South Africa: More youth take up opportunities in agricultural sector

Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande, has challenged the Agricultural Sector Education Training Authority (AgriSETA) to ensure that it further enhances its outreach programmes to all youth in the provinces.

These initiatives should be undertaken together with some of our SETAs, our municipalities and the involvement of our traditional authorities, Nzimande said.

Addressing the AgriSETA annual general meeting on Wednesday, Nzimande said the department has observed an increase in agriculture interest from youth who continue to see opportunities in agriculture.

I am delighted to observe this paradigm shift from our youth, who are increasingly taking up these opportunities. Observing this interest from our youth, AgriSETA must take up the challenge and ensure that it further enhances its outreach programmes to all our youth in our provinces.

South Africa needs at least 60% of school leavers to pursue artisanal type training in order for our country to meet the demand for scarce skills, which include agricultural skills. This is amongst the reasons there is a continuous need for us to produce qualified agriculture artisans and artisans in general to sustain industries and support economic growth in our country, Nzimande said.

Nzimande commended AgriSETA for exceeding its target for the development of artisans for the year ended 31 March 2022, with 297 learners entering artisanal development programmes.

The Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (ERRP) has identified the strengthening of agriculture and food security as one of its seven priority interventions.

Agricultural sector employment increase in second quarter of 2022

The Minister acknowledged the increase in employment trends within the agricultural sector.

In the first quarter of 2020, the sector had about 865 000 workforce, and now in the second quarter of 2022, it has a workforce of about 874 000, Nzimande said.

He commended AgriSETA for showing its commitment to ensure that the agricultural sector creates sustainable employment opportunities and continues to recover from the COVID-19 economic disruption.

However, Nzimande emphasised the importance of AgriSETA to focus its attention towards agribusiness and agro-processing skills, not only for employability purposes, but for agricultural entrepreneurship.

AgriSETA received R522.7 million in 2022, compared with the R344.9 million in the 2020/2021 financial year, in skills development levies income.

In the wake of the impact of COVID-19 and the need to drive the ERRP, Nzimande said he has instructed the National Skills Fund (NSF) to prioritise agricultural skills development, urging AgriSETA to directly engage with the NSF in order to maximise resources available for the provision of skills in agriculture.

He said he has been working with Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister, Thoko Didiza, to increase the provision of bursaries for students from poor families, who are studying in agricultural colleges.

Consultations to migrate agricultural colleges at an advanced stage

Meanwhile, Nzimande announced that the consultations with provinces for agricultural colleges to migrate to the Department of Higher Education and Training, as per the Cabinet decision, are at an advanced stage.

He said AgriSETA must also see this as an opportunity of better aligning agricultural training and qualifications, and as a huge opportunity for skills development for the entire agricultural skills pipeline.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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Faced with a growing energy crisis, record greenhouse gas concentrations, and increasing extreme weather events, attendees to the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change seek renewed solidarity between countries to deliver on the landmark Paris Agreement for people and the planet.

Heads of State, ministers, negotiators, climate activists, mayors, civil society representatives, and CEOs will meet at the largest annual gathering on climate action in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, from November 6 to 18.

Fourteen students from the University of Miami School of Law United Nations negotiations class and professors Jessica Owley and Daniel Suman will attend. The students will have the unique opportunity to see how an international treaty is negotiated and to engage in problem-solving for the most significant problem of our era: climate change, and will file dispatches to the UM community from the conference.

"This is a unique experience for students to gain a front-row seat to international treaty-making," said Owley, faculty director for Miami Law's environmental law program. "The COP brings together policymakers, academics, and activists from around the world  working together to find solutions to the climate crisis that threatens us all.

COP27 marks the sixth time that Owley, who specializes in environmental law with a focus on climate change law and policy, has attended the summit.

The historic Paris Agreement was reached at COP21 in 2015. As part of that accord, nearly every country in the world set goals to curb carbon emissions in an effort to stave off the most damaging effects of climate change.

Miami Law's Environmental Law Program is unique due to its South Florida location, enabling the focus on the prism of issues affecting the environment  from maritime to real estate to land use to the cruise industry to environmental law to the Law of the Sea. The program also offers unique intersectionality with other University of Miami graduate programs in marine affairs and policy, land use, architecture, and business. With a Concentration in Environmental Law, joint degree programs with Rosenstiel and Abess, and an Environmental Justice Clinic, the program trains students to become future attorneys, policymakers, and scholars in environmental law locally, nationally, and internationally.

"Key issues for negotiation in COP27 are loss and damage from climate change, particularly in developing countries/Global South and increasing carbon financing from the Global North to address these losses," said Suman, who teaches coastal law at the law school and has an appointment in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at UM's Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science. "Although not responsible for most greenhouse gas emissions, the Global South is highly vulnerable to climate change impacts and lacks resources to adapt.

"New challenges that Member States will discuss in COP27 are the impacts of the war in Ukraine and the increasing European dependence on fossil fuels (coal), the industrial and consumer rebound after the pandemic; new evidence of significant climate change impacts (accelerated melting of Antarctic glaciers and the Greenland ice sheet, Pakistan monsoon flooding, intensification of hurricanes); and difficulties in the implementation of US promises to reduce carbon emissions (U.S. Supreme Court decision in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency making it difficult to take direct action to mitigate climate change) and subsequent impact on other nations' efforts," Suman said.

Suman is participating as a member of the Panamanian delegation to COP27 and is helping organize several side events at COP27 (Blue Carbon, Marine Protected Areas, and Climate Change). Owley will also offer a talk at one of these side events and collaborate with fellow members of the IUCN's World Commission on Environmental Law.

Read more about Miami Law's Environmental Law Program
Professor Susan Haack recently delivered a lecture virtually, for a conference in Brazil, which was hosted by the Federal University of Parana. The lecture was titled The Expert Witness: Lessons from the U.S. Experience.

Haack has written a dozen books including Philosophy of Logics, Deviant Logic, Fuzzy Logic: Beyond the Formalism, Manifesto of a Passionate Moderate, Defending ScienceWithin Reason, Pragmatism, Old and New, Putting Philosophy to Work, Evidence Matters: Science, Proof, and Truth in the Law, and Scientism and its Discontents; and she has also published around 240 articlesnot to mention an even larger number of reprints, translations, abridgments, excerpts, etc.in a wide variety of fora.

Her work has appeared in 18 languages in 36 countries, and has been the subject of four volumes of essaysSusan Haack: A Lady of Distinctions (2007), Susan Haack: Reintegrating Philosophy (2016), a special issue of Estudios filosoficos(2018), and a wonderful Festschrift, Philosophy, the World, Life and the Law (2020). (Another volume of essays on her work is now in preparation.) Haack has given more than 700 external lectures all around the worldin 30 countries so far.

She has received awards for excellence in teaching, in research, and in writing. In 2011, she was awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa by Petri Andreis University, and in 2016, the Ulysses Medal (its highest honor) from University College, Dublin. In 2020, she received the Premio internacional de cultura juridica from the University of Girona.
Mount St. Marys University this semester welcomed 12 talented new full-time faculty, from a range of disciplines and backgrounds. We are excited about this talented cohort of faculty. They bring in diverse experiences and backgrounds that will greatly benefit Mount students, said Provost Boyd Creasman.

Five new faculty join the College of Liberal Arts. Assistant Professor of Theology Roberto De La Noval, Ph.D., earned his doctorate from the University of Notre Dame, with a focus on 19th and 20th-century philosophical theology. Assistant Professor of Philosophy Rika Dunlap, Ph.D., came to the Mount from the University of Guam. She earned her doctorate from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in Asian philosophy. Assistant Professor of World Languages Manuel Garzon, Ph.D., recently completed his doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh, specializing in Hispanic transatlantic studies. Sheldon Shealer, lecturer in communication, joined the faculty after teaching at the Mount for many years as an adjunct professor. His expertise in sport communication will help the university maximize the benefits of the MAACs contract with ESPN. Assistant Professor of Political Science Mai Truong, Ph.D., earned her doctorate from the University of Arizona, with a specialization in social and protest movements in East and Southeast Asia.

Three new faculty joined the Richard J. Bolte, Sr. School of Business. Associate Professor of Business Boris Morozov, Ph.D., came to the Mount from the faculty of Lock Haven University. He earned his doctorate from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and brought vast experience in teaching finance. Associate Professor of Business Philip van Berten, Ph.D., is teaching entrepreneurship for the Mount. He earned his doctorate from CNAM in Paris. Associate Professor of Sport Management Sarah Zipp, Ph.D., came to the Mount from the University of Stirling in Scotland. She earned her doctorate from Erasmus University in the Netherlands.

The success of the Mounts new Masters in Applied Behavior Analysis led to the hiring of two additional faculty. Rebecca Correll, Ph.D., recently finished her doctorate in applied developmental psychology from George Mason University and has served as the CEO of The Language and Behavior Center in Silver Spring. Alexa Mochan brought vast experience in working in clinical settings to help train our students. She currently serves as clinical director for Mission Autistic Centers in Frederick.

Two of the new faculty have previous connections to the Mount. Angela Mucci-Guido, Ph.D., returned to the faculty as lecturer in education, having most recently taught at Salve Regina University. She specializes in special education. Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sarah (Bonson) Krueger, Ph.D., returns to her alma mater after completing her doctorate at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in organic chemistry.

It was a great recruiting year for the Mount, said Creasman. We are blessed that these talented faculty members joined us this fall.
The letter, issued by the Central Police Office Quetta, said that the banned outfit has threatened to launch attacks in different cities of Balochistan including Zhob, Qila Saifullah, Ziarat, and Loralai, Samaa TV reported

The targets, however, have not been identified by the TTP.

In a view of the threat, the police and other law enforcement agencies need to be vigilant and improve security arrangements to avoid any untoward incidents, it added.

On October 8, PPP Senator Raza Rabbani, on a point of public concern, asked Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani during the Senate meeting to direct the Interior Minister to take parliament and the public at large into confidence about the present status of peace talks with the TTP.

Rabbani pointed out that a call had been made to take parliament on board when the disclosure about dialogue with the TTP was made for the first time. He, however, regretted that the demand about a matter linked with the future of coming generations fell on deaf ears, Samaa TV reported.

He said nobody knew about the conditions of the ceasefire with the group and the status of talks.

Earlier, the Interior Ministry had recently issued an alert over the increasing threat of terrorist attacks by the group or its factions after talks with the TTP broke down.

--IANS san/d

( 253 Words)

2022-10-13-21:28:06 (IANS)
In a meeting with President Emomali Rahmon in Kazakhstan's capital Astana, Sharif emphasised the expansion of cooperation in the field of road transport and air links, Express Tribune reported.

The two leaders, who met on the sidelines of the 6th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), agreed on cementing high-level contacts, inter-parliamentary ties, and technical-level meetings to further promote substantive cooperation.

The Prime Minister underscored the need to boost cooperation in the energy sector.

It was agreed to work together for the early completion of CASA 1000 project, which would be a harbinger of future energy corridors with Central Asia, Express Tribune reported.

Sharif also updated the Tajik President on the rehabilitation work being undertaken by his government in the aftermath of the catastrophic floods in the country.

He stressed the need to make joint efforts to cope with the rising threat of climate change-induced natural disasters.

The two leaders also discussed regional and global issues of mutual interest and agreed on the need to work together to strengthen peace, stability and security in the region.

Both sides also agreed to strengthen their engagement for fostering greater economic cooperation, particularly in the areas of trade, energy and connectivity.

--IANS san/vd

( 254 Words)

2022-10-13-21:56:03 (IANS)
The placement of units with institutional investors, witnessed strong demand from both existing investors, who reposed their commitment by participating in the process, as well as new investors.

The units have been subscribed by a gamut of institutional investors including Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board, State Bank of India, SBI Pension Fund, SBI Mutual Fund, IOCL Employee Provident Fund, L&T Staff Provident Fund, Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Karamchari Pension Fund, TATA AIG and Star Union Daiichi Life Insurance. NHAI subscribed to the units through preferential allotment to maintain its unitholding of at least 15 per cent.

The units were subscribed through a book build process at Rs 109 per unit, at a premium over floor price of Rs 107.12 per unit.

In addition to the above, NHAI InvIT has also filed a prospectus with SEBI for issuance of Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) to raise Rs 1,500 crore.

The NCDs would carry a coupon of 7.90 per cent payable semi-annually and would be available for subscription by both retail and institutional investors.

--IANS kvm/pgh

( 244 Words)

2022-10-12-22:34:04 (IANS)
Linz [Austria], October 13 (ANI/PRNewswire): Storyblok, the content management system (CMS) category leader for 2022 that empowers both developers and content teams to create better content experiences across all digital channels, today announced its expansion to APAC (Asia-Pacific). Brands across APAC such as Pizza Hut Australia, FC Sydney, Liberty Finance Australia, Vicinity Centres, Treasury Wine Estates, Crimson Education, Octopus Deploy, and Akasa Air already use Storyblok as the content engine for their digital experiences. In recognition of the massive growth potential throughout APAC, Storyblok hired Marcus Paterson as its APAC Sales Manager. Marcus has held leadership roles at National Australia Bank, Fuji Xerox, and Leidos Australia. He's now based in Thailand to support customers across the region and is actively growing a sales team and related support roles. "After working throughout APAC for over 20 years, I've come to understand the unique challenges that companies face in this part of the world," said Marcus Paterson, APAC Sales Manager at Storyblok. "Agile and secure content management continues to be something that all sorts of businesses struggle with. With Storyblok, your marketing and content teams have a future-proof CMS that enhances content experiences at any scale." To understand more about content management in APAC, Storyblok surveyed 301 professionals who use a CMS in Australia and Singapore. The survey revealed the following key insights: - Only 13 per cent of APAC companies are happy with their monolithic CMSs- 46 per cent are considering moving to a headless CMS- The CMS features that are most important: #1 Security, #2 Website speed, #3 Easy to use for content creators- 61 per cent are worried about the security of their CMS- 67 per cent use 2 or more CMSs- 68 per cent deliver content in more than one language- 12 per cent are using their CMS to deliver content in virtual reality, and 9 per cent in augmented reality "Based on our great success so far in APAC, we knew now was the right time to invest more heavily in the region," said Sascha Ploebst, VP of Sales at Storyblok. "The data shows us that local companies are ready to move to headless CMS solutions to improve their digital storytelling." "Our expansion into APAC is an important milestone in the global growth of Storyblok," said Dominik Angerer, Co-Founder and CEO of Storyblok. "Audiences all over the world demand better content experiences that traditional CMS platforms were never built for. Storyblok already offers a cloud-native CMS to manage all content in one place with data centers in the US, Europe, and a dedicated instance in China. I'm also proud to announce that we are planning to offer a locally hosted option in Australia soon for organizations that need this." Resources - Download The State of Content Management in APAC report to see the full survey results: - https://www.storyblok.com/lp/state-of-cms-apac- Learn more about Storyblok: https://www.storyblok.com- View Storyblok's press kit: https://www.storyblok.com/press- See case studies: https://www.storyblok.com/case-studies Storyblok, the content management system (CMS) category leader for 2022, empowers both developers and content teams to create better content experiences across any digital channel. Storyblok enhances audience experiences with best-in-breed performance, security, optimized omnichannel storytelling, and robust personalization. Enable content teams to create and manage content intuitively and independently with drag and drop visual editing, custom collaboration workflows, and a world-class digital asset manager. Empower developers to build anything, integrate with everything, and publish everywhere with Storyblok's headless CMS architecture. Leading brands such as Adidas, T-Mobile, Renault, and Marc O'Polo use Storyblok to shape their digital storytelling. See why Storyblok was named the #1 CMS for 2022 by G2 at www.storyblok.com and follow Storyblok on LinkedIn and Twitter. Press ContactBrandon Wattsbrandon.watts@storyblok.com This story has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/PRNewswire)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/SRV): On October 8, 2022, Ikeda held its 3rd RNR meet in Delhi. More than 200 people attended the meet with enthusiasm in their hearts. Ikeda, a brainchild of Manish Goyal (MD), Puran Puri (CEO), and Rajesh Swami (COO) founded in 2019, has completed three years of its establishment. It also celebrated a business of 500cr in September with the auspicious presence of all the board members. The celebration of the 500cr business was done in this meet itself by expressing joy through cake cutting. Ikeda's 3rd RNR marked three years of its successful establishment and expansion in the family. The month of September is one of the most crucial ones in the history of Ikeda. The meet started with a Welcome speech that was full of wisdom and greetings. In the next part of the meet, a video was presented to the attendees about the change of name from 'Ikeda to Finkeda.' This video intended to announce the name change and the idea behind it. Later this was followed by personal speeches from the founders. After that, the session was enlightened with a speech from Sunil Singh (NSH). While the RNR meet itself means Reward and Recognition meet, Ikeda did it very well. The meet concluded with a reward and recognition ceremony that brought unmissable smiles to every face present there. Each person was recognized for their contribution towards the Ikeda and appreciated for the same by presenting the awards. Also, each person was given rewards for being present there. The Reward and Recognition section was to recognize top talent and ensure that they feel valued, appreciated, and motivated to achieve company goals. The meet ended with a charismatic cocktail party that added fun elements everyone couldn't stop themselves from indulging in this party. Everyone surely had to shake their legs and dance their heart out with great music. The meet surely ended on a sweet note. The honorable board members of Ikeda announced changing the name of 'Ikeda' to 'Finkeda'. This meeting not only intended to celebrate the success of the company but also had a mission to make a necessary change to its name. The intention to change the name was to make it more meaningful. Fin in Finkeda stands for finance and Keda for a new plant. The idea of giving this name to the company is to lay an impression on everyone who hears it. The proceedings from this meet aimed to inform everyone that Ikeda is Finkeda now and along with that celebrate 500cr business. It was a great success and remarkable enough to lay a great impression on Ikeda's history. Also, this meet was successful in completing its agenda to give the company a new and happening name. For more information, please visit - http://finkeda.com/ This story has been provided by SRV. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/SRV)
Beijing [China], October 13 (ANI/PRNewswire): The Spallation Neutron Source, or SNS, in Dongguan works by using neutron beams which are able to penetrate materials with ease and provide a clear view of the inside structure. Dongguan's SNS is essentially a super microscope which allow scientists to examine materials on a deeper level, like subatomic particles, without damaging their structure. But building a SNS is no cheap endeavor, so it is safe to say that these super microscopes are few and far between. Currently, there are only four spallation neutron sources in the world. In this video, two scientists, Tong Xin and Matthew Musgrave are working together to promote the scientific research of polarization spallation neutron. Tong and Matthew were colleagues at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US for years, but recently moved to Dongguan to join the research team on the spallation neutron source. Working on the newest SNS team means that Tong and Matthew are using some of the latest tech, but it also means they are overcoming a lot of the challenges in the early stages. And for Matthew, he is not just dealing with a new job, but also a new culture, language, and lifestyle. What does this super microscope mean for the future of research? How are scientists like Matthew from the United States adjusting to a new life in Dongguan? The video produced by China Matters will offer an insight into the questions. Contact: Zeng WeiTel:008610-68996075E-mail:milkandwater@163.com This story has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/PRNewswire)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/ATK): Since meme coins debuted in the crypto space, they have been a huge hit. The ever-growing market welcomes a new project every other day. While some coins hit big, others return to the drawing board for adjustments. Either way, the meme coin space is booming with a huge market capitalization of over 17 billion dollars. Meme coins were built off ideas from the internet meme. They have grown significantly to become a force to be reckoned with among crypto traders and investors. Naturally, not all meme coins becomes a hit. Two big meme coin hits you need to look out for are Big Eyes Coin (BIG) and Shiba Inu (SHIB). SHIBA INU (SHIB)Shiba Inu (SHIB) came on the heels of Dogecoin, the first meme coin to hit the crypto market. Since its arrival, Shiba Inu (SHIB) has followed in the footsteps of its predecessor to make a name for itself. Ryoshi created the cryptocurrency token, and it takes its moniker from a dog that bears the same name. Although the meme coin debuted in 2020, the coin quickly became a household name in the crypto community. The coin came with such huge waves it moved quickly to the top spot on the charts. Shiba Inu is considered one of the top ten cryptocurrencies in the open market. The digital token was designed using the Ethereum network, meaning it can operate with smart contracts. By using the Ethereum network, Shiba Inu (SHIB) has managed to convince many crypto investors to take a bet on it. Shiba Inu (SHIB) is compatible with DeFi services and is available on several exchanges and social trading platforms. The availability of the token on several platforms further endears it to many crypto users. With such intricate features, Shiba Inu (SHIB) finds integrating with other crypto ecosystems easy. BIG EYES COIN (BIG) Big Eyes Coin (BIG) is one of the latest additions to the meme coin sector of the cryptocurrency industry. Although Big Eyes (BIG) is a recent addition, it has taken on the moniker of a community token. Big Eyes (BIG) has raised well over 7.1 million dollars in its presale and is looking to add even more to that figure. Big Eyes (BIG) might be a recent addition, but it has all the markings of a potentially successful coin. It seems like the coin that will make millionaires out of crypto investors. As a meme coin, Big Eyes got its inspiration from a cat. It uses a decentralized finance application and aims to create highly profitable DeFi spaces for crypto users. Big Eyes already enjoys a thriving community and is looking to grow that number further. Big Eyes has a well-deserved reputation as a cute and highly successful coin. This glowing recommendation draws in members by the numbers, and its performance makes them stay. With its growing community, Big Eyes (BIG) has the potential to turn its users into the next crypto millionaires. Use this code 'BIG4650' to get bonus tokens when you buy Big Eyes Coins! Big Eyes Coin (BIG) Presale: https://buy.bigeyes.space/ Website: https://bigeyes.space/ Telegram: https://t.me/BIGEYESOFFICIAL This story has been provided by ATK. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/ATK)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/PNN): Rajshri Productions is one of the most respected legacies of Indian cinema. It was instituted by Tarachand Barjatya and has been so ably enhanced by successive generations. The 4th generation is now set to entertain the audiences. Rajshri Productions completed its 75th year in delivering wide-ranging, incredible cinema. In celebrating their 75th year, Sooraj Barjatya brings their 60th film, Uunchai, a story that honours the importance of friendship. They have a unique distinction of producing awe-inspiring, value-based family entertainers. On this accomplishment, the PM appreciated and encouraged the Rajshri family for their contribution to the nation in character building through their all-embracing films. Producer Mahaveer Jain said, "I have always been inspired by their virtue-based stories that have so effortlessly influenced us. Their films have never failed to spread joy and happiness. The entire Industry is proud of them and on behalf of all of us I would like to thank them for their extraordinary cinema. You know, our country's independence & Rajshri's incorporation happened in the same year, 1947 - what an amazing journey it has been for them." Motilal Oswal said, "I am a big fan of Rajshri Productions and Sooraj Barjatya and of course, their zara hat ke movies. My family and I compliment them for their glorious journey of 75 years and wish them the best for even greater success in the next 75 years. Also, I am happy to see my daughter-in-law, Natasha, partnering with them for their next movie Uunchai starring Amitabh Bachchan. " This story has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/PNN)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/PNN): CST's advanced tactical MIMO radios technology offers enhanced throughput, interference reduction, anti-jamming, and increased Quality of Service (QoS), which makes it a perfect adhoc radio for tactical applications utilizing both human and unmanned systems. Since the last ten years, we have been providing cutting-edge communication solutions to Armed Forces, security agencies and Robotics OEM's both in India and internationally. As all future operations will be carried out on an interconnected battlefield, our communication solutions are among the finest currently available globally for combining the ground forces, air warriors, and sea forces. The modern soldier requires improved agility to operate across a variety of frequencies in an era of rising spectrum congestion and Electronic Warfare (EW) threats in order to avoid interference from both allies and enemies. The dual band radios enable on-the-go frequency and band switching without the need to switch the hardware. Mesh radios are designed for the uniquely dynamic comms challenges faced by drones, UGVs, AMRs and mobile robotics. The military, law enforcement, disaster relief forces, and security organizations, employ tactical IP radio systems to deliver dependable, secure and seamless communications in challenging operational settings. Activities by Mesh Radio NLOS (Non-line-of-sight) and BVLOS (beyond visual line of sight) are achievable and effective in transmission of data, video and audio within a MESH formation. On the MANET (Mobile Adhoc Network), our software defined radios may roam arbitrarily and can talk to each other as each node is connected with another.Due to its self-organizing network properties, capacity to operate in many spectrum bands at high data speeds, and interference mitigation capabilities, Mesh/MIMO radio have the ability to autonomously connect important command and control nodes/entities in a MESH network. As warehouse logistics become ever more complicated, warehouse automation with fleets of AMRs for material handling is entrenched as a viable solution. To operate dozens to hundreds of robots in concert requires an advanced mesh protocol like Mesh Radio to ensure reliable comms without overloading the network. With high-throughput, secure, and low-observable communications capabilities for pairing of piloted vehicle and unmanned systems like UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles)/UGVs, these radios are competent of Protected Communication for Manned/Unmanned Teams (PCM). Robotics has several uses in modern commercial industry, from material handling to scanning and measuring. They all require communications systems, such as Mesh Radio, that are reliable in challenging RF environments and have tough enclosures and robust networking architectures. With reliable communications, you can use unmanned systems for nearly limitless applications offered by CST Advanced Systems which is premier systems supplier to Armed Forces, Law Enforcement agencies and other security agencies, integrating next-generation communication systems with state-of-art surveillance and tactical electronics manufacturing. Since 2016, CST is fulfilling the indigenous provision of advanced technology systems to the Forces with honor and humility. CST is involved with best technologies available internationally and have technical collaborations to Make in India. Contact Details Contact Person - Col. Ani. J Alex (Retd.) Email Id- gm.sales@cstindia.com Phone No. - 011 4141 6873 Company Name - CST ADVANCED SYSTEMS PRIVATE LIMITED Website - http://cstindia.com/ This story has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/PNN)
Pune (Maharashtra) [India], October 13 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Fibe (formerly known as EarlySalary), India's largest consumer lending platform has appointed actor Tahir Raj Bhasin as its brand ambassador. Tahir will be a part of Fibe's marketing campaigns. He will participate in different marketing ads and endorsement campaigns for the homegrown brand. This collaboration will attract the eyeballs of millennials and GenZs. The film drives the message that the brand can help fulfil their desires such as taking trips, shopping, skill upgrade, etc. With a new face, the company has also announced its new tagline 'Aapke Paise Wali Vibe' signifying its quick and hassle-free application process as well as the ease at which its customers can avail of its services. The campaign focuses on Fibe as the solution which breaks away from the notion that taking a loan is daunting and requires a tedious process by establishing Fibe as a friendly credit provider, which is intuitive, easy and provides loans crafted for everyone's needs without any lengthy process or questions regarding usage of the loan. Speaking on the launch Sudesh Shetty, Founding Member and Director - Marketing, Fibe said, "While we transitioned from EarlySalary to Fibe, the brand promise of enabling lifestyle upgrades remains intact. Since inception, our communication has always been on a lighter and fun side which makes us more appealing to millennials and GenZs. With the new brand, we wanted to take this to the next level. Tahir perfectly personifies the brand Fibe - he is stylish and stands out from his cohorts. His memorable portrayal of the character and his humble and outspoken demeanor outside of the movies have resonated with many millennials." Talking about his association with the brand, Tahir Raj Bhasin said, "I am delighted and excited to be a part of this campaign. The experience of taking a loan has fundamentally changed with Fibe providing a completely tech-driven offering to their consumers. It has a hassle-free process made available to millennials and GenZs on their phones. Given the fact that the brand is 'Made in India' and has made its mark in the market in such a short time is remarkable." Fibe is a confluence of 'Finance + Vibe' that reflects the brand's effort to provide a hassle-free financing experience to its consumers. It believes that the name will further integrate a superior customer experience as the centerpiece of its business model. Fibe provides hassle-free financial solutions to young Indians by providing easy access to credit, catering exclusively to young professionals. The company has expanded into the affordability segment with its Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services across Edtech, Healthtech, Shopping and Lifestyle sector. It provides short-term and long-term personal loans up to Rs. 5 lakhs which is easily payable in EMIs within 3-24 months. As a result, the brand's target audience is expanding to include a more diverse customer base from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Currently, the company is present in 150 cities and increased its customer base from 35,000 new customers per month to 1 lakh new customers per month. It aims to fortify its presence by achieving an AUM of USD 2.5 billion over the next 5 years. Recently, it raised USD 110 million in series D funding that was led by TPG's The Rise Fund & Norwest Venture Partners in August. Video link of Ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTHSZvJBUII This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/PNN): DS Dosa Factory Private Limited, one of the prominent South Indian restaurant chains based in Delhi, is celebrating its sixth anniversary and steadfast dedication to offering authentic South Indian dishes to foodies in Northern India. Sunjjoy Bhardwaj founded DS Dosa Factory in 2016, with their first location in Vaishali, one of the busiest areas in Delhi NCR. The concept behind opening the restaurant was to serve traditional South Indian cuisines alongside mouthwatering North Indian palates to satiate the taste buds of Delhi's foodies. Bhardwaj was determined to give Delhiites a place to socialise, dine, and create relationships. DS Dosa Factory was founded on the principles of creating long-lasting relationships with South Indian delicacies, mouth-watering dishes, world-class cuisines, superb service, personal space, and an awesome ambiance, and, most significantly, affordable costs. This is why, in six years, DS Dosa Factory opened 11 outlets in Delhi and other states--not to mention the two lean years of the Covid-19 pandemic--due to the enormous response from customers and patrons. Some of the signature restaurants of DS Dosa Factory are located at Connaught Place, Jhilmil Colony in Delhi, Geeta Colony in Delhi, Vaishali in Gaziabad, Rajender Nagar in Gaziabad, Ramnagar in Uttrakhand, Gurugram & Noida, Kota in Rajasthan, Nawa Shahar in Punjab, Bakhtawarpur in Delhi and others. In addition to this, DS Dosa Factory has marked a unique presence in the Food court Segment that carries the same legacy of good tastes and excellent service. "Our relationships have given us wings to serve the best of the meals to foodies," said Sunjjoy Bhardwaj, founder of DS Dosa Factory. We intend to expand into tier 1 and tier 2 cities to provide authentic South Indian cuisine." This story has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/PNN)
Pune (Maharashtra) [India], October 13 (ANI/NewsVoir): Stroke is a disease that affects the arteries leading to and within the brain. It is becoming an important cause of premature death and disability in countries like India, largely driven by demographic changes and enhanced by the increasing prevalence of the key modifiable risk factors. Dr Soumya Chandrashekhar, Consultant-Accident & Emergency Department at Jehangir Hospital, said, "We regularly monitor a quality indicator, which is the door to needle time in case of a stroke. We were one of the first hospitals to incorporate the CODE STROKE PROGRAM and that has been ongoing since 2015. We see close to 15-20 cases of stroke per month, out of which approximately 7-8 cases go for thrombolytic treatment. We ensure that any stroke patient who comes into the emergency room is assessed immediately. If there are any signs of stroke, then the CODE STROKE is activated on the public announcement system and the entire stroke team comes down to the emergency." She further added, "The most crucial step while responding to a case of stroke is keeping track of the "golden hour". In other words, the first four and a half hours are considered to be the most critical, or "golden", because after artery blockage, every minute 2 million neurons are lost from the onset, so stroke patients have a much better chance of surviving and avoiding long-term brain damage after receiving a clot-dissolving injection if they arrive at the hospital and receive treatment and drug therapy within 4.5 hour of the onset of symptoms. Time bracket is 60 minutes or less (the door-to-treatment time) of acute ischaemic stroke treatment in hospital after the arrival of the patient." The Emergency Medicine Department at Jehangir Hospital is a Level-1 comprehensive tertiary care facility central to the trauma system and is capable of providing total care for every aspect of injury - from prevention through rehabilitation. With an academic and research orientation, it provides a range of state-of-the-art equipment and technology for all kinds of emergency management and support, as well as emergency access to other subspecialties and physicians. The Emergency Medicine Department has a standardised clinical system with implementation of Clinical Pathways, Center of Excellence for Core Emergency Cases, and Clinical Codes (first-of-its-kind) Systems such as CODE STROKE, CODE CARDIAC, and CODE TRAUMA with dedicated in-house numbers to ease the mechanism and provide proper outcomes to the patients', Quality Assurance Program, and Safety Codes Application System. Speaking on the occasion, Vinod Sawantwadkar, CEO, Jehangir Hospital, added, "Jehangir Hospital's stroke programme was launched keeping in view the criticality of the suddenness of stroke for rehabilitating stroke patients. Since then, the hospital's emergency department has saved many lives. Many patients have returned walking to their homes from the emergency department itself. If the patient reaches the hospital within the window period of 4 hours from the onset of the first symptoms, they can be thrombolysed, following which there is a high probability of complete reversal of the deficits suffered. Jehangir Hospital plans to regularly apply for such recognition as it not only motivates the team but also enables us to set new benchmarks and goals for better success and clinical outcomes." Talking about the advancements that have happened in the care of stroke patients, Dr Chandrashekhar said, "We have also recently started a one-of-its-kind system called the Acute Stroke Care - Pathway. This is basically a documentation of the patient's health record, which will have history, comments, and developments in the patient's health. Access to this is given to our doctors in the stroke team, including neurologists, radiologists, physiotherapists, and clinical psychologists. This helps in monitoring the patient's health and giving the right guidance during their follow-ups. Hence, this provides comprehensive care in a very systematic manner." Dr Sandeep Borse, Neurologist at the Jehangir Hospital, stated, "The majority of cases that we see are from patients of the age of 60 years and above. There are a few cases from the age group of 30-45 years too. This is because of the lifestyle that we are leading nowadays. Irregular eating habits, long work hours, excessive junk food consumption, smoking, alcoholism, COVID infection, etc. can be listed as the reasons. However, a brain stroke is also hereditary in nature." He further added, "When an acute stroke patient comes within the Golden Hour in the emergency room, a CODE STROKE is activated. Then a rapid neuro examination, CT scan, and MRI are done in no time, following which the decision for IV thrombolysis is taken." "If a patient lands up with a major stroke at home and if they reach the hospital in the golden hour then thrombolytic therapy can be performed. In this therapy the patient is given clot dissolving medicine, or if the clot is very large then a mechanical thrombectomy can be done where the entry to the brain artery is made through the groin artery and the clot is removed. This procedure is specialized and it can be life-saving for certain patients. At Jehangir Hospital, we have all kinds of facilities, infrastructure and support to perform all the mentioned therapies," added Dr Anand Alurkar, an intervention radiologist at Jehangir Hospital. This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)
Singapore Airlines on Thursday said it is in a "confidential discussion" with Tata Group for the potential integration of Vistara and Air India. Tata Group recently acquired Air India from the government. Tata Group controls the majority 51 per cent stake in Vistara while 49 per cent of the share is controlled by Singapore Airlines. "In line with its multi-hub strategy, SIA is currently in confidential discussions with Tata to explore a potential transaction in relation to the securities of Vistara and Air India Ltd, a subsidiary of Tata (the "Potential Transaction"). The discussions seek to deepen the existing partnership between SIA and Tata, and may include a potential integration of Vistara and Air India," Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA) said in a statement. The discussions are ongoing and no definitive terms have been agreed upon between the parties. There is no certainty or assurance whatsoever that (a) any definitive agreement will be entered into or (b) the Potential Transaction will materialize or proceed to completion arising from these discussions. Even if a transaction were to materialize, it would be subject to the relevant regulatory approvals, amongst other matters, it said. Shareholders and potential investors are advised to exercise caution when dealing or trading in the securities of the Company. Shareholders and potential investors should consult their stockbrokers, bank managers, solicitors or other professional advisers if they have any doubt about the actions they should take. The Company will make the necessary announcements as appropriate or when there are any material developments regarding the Potential Transaction in compliance with the relevant provisions of the Listing Manual of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited, Singapore Airlines noted in the statement. Singapore Airlines Limited holds a 49 per cent equity interest in Tata SIA Airlines Limited, which operates an Indian full-service airline known as Vistara, based in New Delhi. The balance 51 per cent equity interest in Vistara is held by the Tata Group. The establishment of Vistara in 2013 gave the SIA Group a stake in India's fast-growing aviation sector. India has strong domestic and international traffic flows, which is expected to more than double over the next 10 years. This is an integral part of the SIA Group's multi-hub strategy, allowing it to get access to important sources that complement its strong Singapore hub, the statement released by Singapore Airlines noted. (ANI)
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan has the potential to save over Rs 10 lakh crore annually by improving logistics efficiency. Goyal was addressing the National Workshop on PM GatiShakti held to mark the first anniversary of the rollout of the National Master Plan. The workshop focussed on the progress and achievements made by PM GatiShakti till date and the way forward. Goyal said that PM GatiShakti is increasingly being used in the social sector for better infrastructure development, thereby, taking fruits of technology to every citizen of the country and improving ease of life for the common man. The Minister said that PM GatiShakti would define India's future in the years to come. Quoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said that PM GatiShakti National Master Plan would lend both 'Gati' and 'Shakti' to India's efforts in Infrastructure development. The National Master Plan will transform the way we work and the outcomes of our work and will drive economic development, Goyal said. He observed that the entire nation has come together, transcending political differences to use PM GatiShakti to the best possible extent. The minister expressed confidence that PM GatiShakti NMP would find a place in history as a powerful intervention that spurred rapid growth and development in the country. "We look upon PM GatiShakti as s service to the nation and society," he said. Goyal opined that the anniversary celebrations must be used as an opportunity to visualize and conceive plans for the future. He asked all stakeholders to envision out of box ways to utilize PM GatiShakti for better, more economical and time-bound infrastructure planning. The minister expressed confidence that PM GatiShakti would help bring in balanced, inclusive, equitable development in the country by helping remote areas, especially those in the North East undertake integrated infrastructure planning and close development gaps. The minister referred to the Prime Minister's Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE) scheme launched yesterday and said that by dovetailing PM GatiShakti into the scheme would help utilize resources much more efficiently. Shri Goyal said that the whole of the government was working in tandem to ensure the best possible use of PM GatiShakti. He added that industry, business and social sector had welcomed PM Gati with open arms. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched PM GatiShakti on 13 Oct. 22 2021 for integrated planning of infrastructure and synchronized project implementation across all concerned Central Ministries, Departments and State Governments. PM GatiShakti is a transformative approach for integrated and holistic planning across concerned Ministries/Departments to improve multimodal connectivity, and logistics efficiency and address critical gaps for the seamless movement of people, and goods, with a focus on minimizing disruptions and ensuring timely completion of works. It provides for an integrated platform, the National Master Plan, where all the economic zones and their multimodal connectivity infrastructure are depicted, along with physical linkages to promote a comprehensive and integrated multimodal national network of transportation and logistics to create efficiency gains and avenues for further developments, value addition and creating employment opportunities. It may be noted that in the last 8 years, Capital Expenditure has seen over 4 times increase from Rs 1.75 lakh crore in 2014 to Rs 7.5 lakh crore in 2022. The development of 7.582 kms new roads, 2500 kms of new petroleum & gas pipelines, 29,040 circuits kms, and 200 million tonnes of cargo being handled by India's railway network have been constructed adopting PM GatiShakti's approach. Through the mechanism of PM National Master Plan 197 critical infrastructure gap projects have been identified and examined in sectors namely, the Ministry of Steel, Coal, Fertilizer as well as Food and Public Distribution under PM GatiShakti to improve logistics efficiency. Over 1300 inter-ministerial issues were resolved in the 11 months through the PMG Portal integrated with the National Master Plan. The Minister also launched the Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS) 2022 survey report. The LEADS is an indigenous data-driven index to assess logistics infrastructure, services, and human resources across all 36 States and UTs. (ANI)
The Supreme Court on Thursday set aside the Gujarat High Court order, which asked the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) to obtain approval or a waiver as a SEZ compliant unit from the competent authority in respect of its warehouse facility situated in 34 acres within SEZ Area developed by Adani Ports Special Economic Zone (APSEZL). A bench comprising Justices B.R. Gavai and C.T. Ravikumar said: "We are... of the considered view that the impugned judgment and order of the High Court dated 30th June 2021 is not sustainable in law." The top court said the high court forced the MD of the CWC, which is a statutory body, to accept the first two conditions and leave the third condition to be settled mutually through mediation. It noted that the offer given by the APSEZL on March 9, 2019 was a composite one so also the acceptance thereof by the CWC was a composite one. "The acceptance of the first two conditions was also dependent upon the 3rd condition. If the High Court was so concerned about settlement of the dispute, then, while compelling the appellant - CWC to accept the first two conditions, it also ought to have compelled the APSEZL to accept the 3rd condition," said the bench, adding that the observations of the high court's division bench were totally unwarranted. It also expressed concern at diagonally opposite stands taken by two ministries -- Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution -- of the Union of India in the matter. "We are of the considered view that it does not augur well for the Union of India to speak in two contradictory voices. The two departments of the Union of India cannot be permitted to take stands which are diagonally opposite," said the top court. The bench directed the registry to furnish a copy of this judgment to the Attorney General to use his good offices and do the needful. The top court said the division bench totally ignored the stand taken by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, which too had opposed such a swapping (the warehouse facility from the present site to a changed site). "Rather than the High Court being surprised with the conduct of the appellant - CWC, it is we who are surprised with the observations made by the High Court. When an issue involves the balancing of interests of a statutory corporation and a private company, the approach of the High Court ought to have been a balanced one," it said. It added that the high court ought to have taken into consideration that, unless all the three conditions were complied with, the interest of the appellant - CWC, which is a statutory corporation, could not have been safeguarded. "If a settlement was to be arrived at, unless the same was found to be in the interest of both the parties, it could not have been thrust upon a statutory corporation to its detriment and to the advantage of a private entity," it noted. The CWC, which is operating a warehouse comprising two units with a total capacity of 66,000 MTs at the 34-acre plot, challenged the unlawful inclusion of its land in the SEZ area. The high court had given three months time to the CWC to either seek and obtain approval as a SEZ compliant unit from the competent authority under the SEZ Act or obtain a waiver of the conditions to comply with the provisions of SEZ Act as a SEZ Unit. If he CWC failed to get such approval within three months, the APSEZ was directed to acquire the land of the same size outside SEZ area for the construction of a warehouse facility within one year. The high court asked the CWC to vacate and give possession of its existing warehousing facility and the land within three months after a new alternative arrangement was made by the APSEZ. The apex court remitted back pleas by the CWC to the single judge of the high court for consideration afresh, and also to be decided as expeditiously as possible and preferably within a period of six months from the date of this judgment. "Until further orders are passed by the single judge, the interim order dated 26th April 2019 passed by the Division Bench in LPA No. 22 of 2017 shall continue to operate. We clarify that our order would not come in the way of the parties in arriving at a settlement which would be acceptable to both the parties," it said. --IANS ss/vd ( 782 Words) 2022-10-13-19:50:04 (IANS)
According to sources, the government may release the instalment on October 17.

Around 12 crore farmers are associated with PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, under which a total of Rs 6,000 is transferred to their accounts in three instalments annually.

Till now, the government has disbursed 11 instalments to farmers and the 12th instalment is expected to be disbursed next week.

Farmers however have often complained that the amount doesn't reach them due to several technical glitches related to online transfer of instalments.

To ensure that the amount reaches them, the farmers have to complete e-KYC formalities.

The instalments are transferred to Aadhar linked bank accounts of farmers.

--IANS ans/vd

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2022-10-13-19:52:05 (IANS)
Hollywood star Scarlett Johansson has recently revealed that she used to feel that her career would end early on because of being "hypersexualized" by the industry at a young age, according to Variety. During a recent episode of Dax Shepard's 'Armchair Expert' podcast, Johansson said that as a young actor she was so "objectified" and "pigeonholed" that she didn't think it was possible she'd be able to diversify her characters. "I kind of became objectified and pigeonholed in this way where I felt like I wasn't getting offers for work for things that I wanted to do," Johansson said. She added, "I remember thinking to myself, 'I think people think I'm 40 years old.' It somehow stopped being something that was desirable and something that I was fighting against." Variety has reported that Johansson further said she thinks everybody thought I was older and that I'd been [acting] for a long time, I got kind of pigeonholed into this weird hypersexualized thing." "I felt like [my career] was over. It was like: that's the kind of career you have; these are the roles you've played. And I was like, 'This is it?'" she continued. Since then, times have changed for Johansson as young actors, from Zendaya to Florence Pugh, are no longer so easily forced into being pigeonholed. "I see younger actors that are in their 20s, it feels like they're allowed to be all these different things. It's another time, too. We're not even allowed to really pigeonhole other actors anymore, thankfully, right? People are much more dynamic," Johansson said. The actor has not been seen in theatres since the release of Marvel's 'Black Widow' in 2021, although she did lend her voice to 'Sing 2'. As per Variety, next up for Johansson is her first Wes Anderson project, the star-studded 'Asteroid City', followed by Kristin Scott Thomas' directorial 'My Mother's Wedding' opposite Sienna Miller and Emily Beecham. (ANI)
Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who recently became the 'Goodwill Ambassador' of the Armed Forces Battle Casualties Welfare Fund (AFBCWF) website, 'Maa Bharati Ke Sapoot', on his 80th birthday, over the years has been associated with a number of social causes. The veteran actor is one of the finest and most influential stars in Indian cinema history, and his persona is such that people can't help but follow and emulate him. With his association, Amitabh has supported numerous social efforts to inform people about sanitation, vaccinations, and even tourism. So, let us take a look at 5 humanitarian and environmental causes that the actor endorses. Polio Goodwill ambassador As a means to combat the same and appeal to a wider population, Amitabh was roped in as the brand ambassador for the Polio Eradication Campaign in 2002 and reportedly did not charge any money for it. India was declared a polio-free country by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2014. UNICEF Goodwill ambassador In 2014, with the goal to rid the nation of discrimination against women, Amitabh was appointed as UN Ambassador for the Girl Child in hopes of emulating the success that they had with the polio eradication campaign. In the same year, he supported UNICEF's efforts towards causes like Unite for Children and Unite Against AIDS campaign. Hepatitis Goodwill ambassador A survivor of hepatitis B, Amitabh was appointed as a goodwill ambassador for hepatitis in the South-East Asia region by World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2017. He has been an integral part of the campaign to help spread awareness about the disease. Support for PETA The actor has been a vocal advocate for PETA, and he even helped PETA India in their fight to release Sunder, a 14-year-old elephant who had been beaten and chained in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. Swachh Bharat Mission The 'Swachch Bharat Abhiyan' is a campaign by the Indian government to keep the roads, streets and infrastructure of the country clean. Since its inception in 2014, Amitabh has been supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' and is the ambassador of 'Banega Swasth India' campaign. Meanwhile, the 'Maa Bharati Ke Sapoot' website will be launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday. It will enable citizens to contribute to the Armed Forces Battle Casualties Welfare Fund (AFBCWF). According to the Ministry of Defence, the website will be launched at a function being organised at the National War Memorial Complex in New Delhi on October 14. (ANI)
A man claiming to be an astronaut stuck in space duped a Japanese woman of Rs 24 lakh by promising to marry her. According to a news report by TV Asahi, the Japanese woman gave about 4.4 million Yen (about 24.8 lakh) to the Russian con man who faked being an astronaut stuck in space. The conman approached the 65-year-old and requested money under the guise of returning to Earth and proposing to her. According to TV Asahi, the woman is a resident of Shiga prefecture. She met the fake astronaut on Instagram in June. The report also stated that his profile had images of space to give the false impression that he was employed by the space station. According to the report, the two began messaging each other on Instagram before moving their communication to the Japanese messaging service Line. The con man soon confessed his love to her and even asked her to marry him. TV Asahi reported that the man kept texting the woman, telling her he loved her and that he wanted to start a new life in Japan with her. In order to return to Earth and wed her, the con artist claimed he required money. According to TV Asahi, he claimed there was a landing charge associated with using the rocket that will carry him to Japan! Well, allegedly, the woman fell for it and started sending him money. And she reportedly sent her around 4.4 Million Yen which in Indian Rupees adds up to INR 24.8 lakhs! Only when the man started asking for more money did the woman start to wonder. The Japanese authorities are investigating this case and are treating it as an international romance scam, according to the Report. (ANI)
It's been only a few weeks since 'Bigg Boss 16' started and the show has managed to catch eyeballs for several reasons. Actor Shalin Bhanot is one such contestant who has been in the news right from the start of the new season. He recently garnered attention by confessing his feelings for actress Tina Datta while denying all allegations of being abusive in his marriage with actor Shalin Bhanot in the past. In a recent episode, Shalin expressed his feelings to Tina. He asked Tina to trust him. Tina asked him about his equation with his ex-wife Dalljiet Kaur and the domestic abuse allegations levelled against him by Dalljiet. "If something wrong happens, it's always the boy's fault," Shalin said. To this, Tina replied that while it can be the case in many situations, she is not sure what happened between him and Dalljiet. Tina then asked Shalin: "Was it an abusive relationship? Because that's what I heard." Then Shalin claimed that he and Dalljiet are "best friends and said, "Let's not talk about things... because I really don't want to. But it will be funny when I will tell you. You will be like, 'What, really? Really?' and you will ask me, 'Why don't I speak about this?' Because I don't talk about it." However, Tina and Shalin's conversation did not go down well with Dalljiet. Reacting to Shalin's "best friend" comment, Dalljiet took to Twitter and wrote, "No, I am not your best friend, Shalin. Meeting once in a month or two months for the sake of my child does not qualify as friendship." She added: "I wish you luck with your love life but leave me out of your fictions and stories, please. And you are calling it funny? Really? Tina, no hard feelings for you." Dalljiet and Shalin together have a son named Jayden. (ANI)
British rock band Queen has unveiled an unreleased track titled 'Face It Alone,'" featuring unearthed vocals from their late frontman Freddie Mercury. According to Variety, the single which was recorded during sessions for 'The Miracle', will be included in the 1989 album's collector's edition due for release on November 18. Earlier this June, news of the track started trickling out when its release was announced by the band's founding members Brian May and Roger Taylor in an interview following their performance at Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee concert. "We did find a little gem from Freddie, that we'd kind of forgotten about and it was -- it's wonderful," Taylor told BBC Radio 2. "It was kind of hiding in plain sight," May added, reported Variety. The four-minute track is largely driven by Mercury's emotive vocals and, likely due to the nature of its work-in-progress lyricism, repeats the same impassioned verses throughout: "When something so deep, so far and wide falls down beside you... In the end, in the end / You have to face it all alone." Queen's 13th studio album, 'The Miracle', was recorded during a highly productive point in time for the band in 1988. During a radio interview with DJ Mike Read, Mercury stated that they had recorded 30 songs for the collection. Some tracks became B-sides, while 'Hang On In There' and 'Chinese Torture' were used as bonus tracks for the original CD release, as per Variety. (ANI)
Congress presidential candidate Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday said that he strongly believes that internal elections within the party makes the party strong, and that a strong Congress will make the country strong. On a day's visit to Ahmedabad to campaign, Tharoor, after addressing party delegates and appealing them to vote for him, interacted with media persons, where he said the party needs to be strengthened at the block level. He said that he hopes that the Congress becomes the party of young India. He said that he aims to bring those voters, who had deserted the party in 2014, back to the Congress fold in 2024. He also said that he wished that women get more weightage in the party. Tharoor said he has no difference with his rival Mallikarjun Kharge, and once the elections are over and results are out, he will work with Kharge without any hesitation. Whoever wins the elections, it will be victory of Congress, he added. --IANS har/vd ( 174 Words) 2022-10-12-20:34:02 (IANS)
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has slammed Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said that the latter has been in politics only for the last few years, therefore he does not have any knowledge about Jayaprakash Narayan (JP) movement or socialist leaders like Ram Manohar Lohia. He added that people like Shah do not know about the history of the country. "People like him (Amit Shah) do not have any contribution in the country. He does not know the history of the country. They do not have knowledge about Jayaprakash Narayan ji. They get the opportunity to stay in the government. Hence, they are giving statements against me," Kumar said while offering tributes to socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia at his statue in Patna on his death anniversary. "I went to Nagaland on the invitation of the people of that state. It was a grand event. People of Nagaland have great respect for Jayaprakash Narayan ji. He stayed there for three years from 1964 to 1967 and addressed the issues at that time," he added. The Chief Minister on Tuesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union Home Minister have no knowledge about the freedom struggle and the JP movement. Modi gained prominence as a politician only after 2002, Kumar added. Shah came to Sitab Diara, the birthplace of Jayaprakash Narayan in Bihar's Saran district, on Tuesday. The Union Home Minister said that the Bihar Chief Minister is sitting in the lap of the Congress which had sent Jayaprakash Narayan to jail only to retain power in Bihar. --IANS ajk/khz/bg ( 278 Words) 2022-10-12-20:46:03 (IANS)
The Interpol has rejected the request of the Indian agencies regarding issuance of a Red Corner Notice against Khalistani leader -- the Canada-based founder of Sikh for Justice (SFJ) Gurpatwant Singh Pannu. The Interpol had put the request of issuing Red Corner Notice on hold for six months before cancelling it. Pannu has been named as an accused in terror and riot cases by a number of agencies in India. He has been accused of provoking Khalistani movements in India. It was the second time when the request of the Indian agencies have been turned down. Around six to seven months ago, the request of issuing a red corner notice was put on hold by the Interpol. Indian agencies maintained that Pannu had tried to create unrest in India and was accused of Unlawful Activities. However, the Interpol was not convinced by this and after putting on hold the request of agencies, they have finally cancelled it. Interpol has demanded more proof against Pannu. Pannu has been continuously sending video message through social media regarding Khalistani movements. During farmers' agitation, he had provoked the farmers to attack the Red Fort and had also released a video in this respect. Pannu has threatened the government on a number of occasions and had indicated in the videos that they could attack the Prime Minister. He founded the SFJ in 2007 with an intention to give relief to the 1984 victims. However, he has been using this against India and to create Khalistan. He said that he would break India into several parts and one of them would be Khalistan. The agencies have learnt that he has no concern with the common Sikhs. He has allegedly been working at the behest of "agents of enemy states". The MHA had in 2019 declared SFJ as "unlawful association" under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 In most of the videos, Pannu could be heard talking about referendum regarding Khalistan. --IANS atk/pgh ( 339 Words) 2022-10-12-21:52:01 (IANS)
Two oil tankers were impounded on Wednesday from Cachar district along Assam-Mizoram border, while four people including two drivers and two sailors of the tankers have been arrested, a police officer informed. Oil tankers carrying fuel to Mizoram are smuggling Myanmar-origin betel nuts on way back to Assam, officials said. Betel nuts are usually smuggled from Myanmar to Mizoram by trucks. However, due to an increase in police vigil, the smugglers changed their strategy and now using oil tankers to do the same. Earlier, liquor was smuggled in tankers, but this is the first time that betel nut smuggling has been unearted in oil tankers. A police officer informed that one oil tanker illegally carrying Myanmar-origin betel nuts was detained at the Dhwaraband area in Cachar. It was coming from Mizoram via Hailakandi-Bilaipur road. The driver of the tanker, Kamrul Hossain Laskar, and his associate Akbar Hossain Majumdar alias Raju Pal were arrested. One-hundred-seventy sacks of betel nuts were seized from the tanker. Each bag contains about 18 kg. In all, the amount of betel nut seized is 30 quintals and 60 kg. Police claimed that Kamrul and Raju admitted during the interrogation that they were returning from Mizoram after unloading fuel there. A few people in the Kolashiv area in that state talked to them and loaded the sacks of betel nuts. They had to deliver the betel nuts to somewhere in Silchar, but they were caught on their way. Another oil tanker trying to smuggle betel nuts was caught in the Lailapur area of the district in the morning. The driver Babul Hossain Laskar and helper Badrul Haque Laskar were arrested. Around 10 tons of Burmese betel nuts were seized from this tanker. According to police sources, the smugglers lured the drivers of the tanker by promising them to pay handsome money for carrying the betel nuts. --IANS tdr/uk ( 324 Words) 2022-10-12-21:56:02 (IANS)
Noted UK anthropologist and social scientist Filippo Osella was on the highest category on the black list and that is why he was deported, the Centre informed the Delhi High Court Wednesday. The High Court has asked the Centre to file an affidavit. Justice Yashwant Varma on Wednesday directed the Centre to file an affidavit in the petition. The matter has been listed on February 24, 2023, for further hearing. The counsel of Centre, on instruction, informed the court that Osella was in the highest category of the blacklist and that's why he was deported. Further details can't be disclosed. The bench after the submission said to file an affidavit in the matter. Osella had approached the Delhi High court challenging his deportation from the Thiruvananthapuram Airport on March 23. The High court on Monday sought a stand of the central government on the plea of Osella who is also a professor of Anthropology and South Asian studies at the University of Sussex in the UK. The counsel for Central Government had sought time to take instructions. Osella moved a petition making different Ministries, including the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, and FRRO Trivandrum respondents in the matter. The petition has sought a direction to call for the records related to the action of deportation by the immigration authorities and to quash the same. The petition has contended, "since the authorities not only denied entry without any reason at all but also did not provide any reasonable opportunity to the petitioner to present his side. The whole process was vitiated by duress and actuated by arbitrariness. This also falls fouls of Wednesbury's principles of reasonableness and fairness in administrative actions." The plea further stated that the petitioner during his previous visits never faced any such issues at immigration. It is contended that the petitioner has never been involved in any illegal activities. The petitioner has challenged the action of deporting him from the airport. He has termed the action as unconstitutional, and arbitrary. He has stated that he has made various representations, but no reason has been given to him for his deportation in March. It is stated in the petition that reasons were disturbingly absent in this high-handed and arbitrary conduct of the immigration authorities at Thiruvananthapuram airport. By 4.30 AM, the professor was literally marched back and bundled into the same aircraft, in which he had arrived and was unjustly deported-much like a hardened criminal. (ANI)
The Deputy Commissioner of Jammu has withdrawn the notification which authorised all tehsildars to issue certificates of residence to people residing in Jammu "for more than one year". This comes a day after the Jammu administration on Tuesday issued an order authorising all tehsildars (revenue officials) to issue a certificate of residence to people residing in the district for more than one year. The purpose of the certificate of residence was to ensure that no eligible voter is left for registration in the ongoing special summary revision of electoral rolls. The new order read under the subject The Special Summary Revision 2022, acceptance of document for registration of electors, dated October 11 issued is withdrawn and be treated as void. The political parties including PDP, National Conference, and Congress had opposed this order. People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti said that the value of the vote of a Jammu and Kashmir voter will be finished. She further said that this law is not applied anywhere in the country except in Jammu and Kashmir and the "BJP wants to eradicate the original citizens of Jammu and Kashmir and settle the outsiders." "With the help of delimitation, they strategically planned to divide the constituency in such a way that it favours the vote of BJP, but people of J-K discovered that BJP is using it to gain their vote," she added. Speaking to mediapersons in Kulgam, the PDP chief said, "This means that the value of the vote of a J&K voter will be finished. This law is not applied anywhere in the country except Jammu and Kashmir." "I have been telling for 23 years that the desire of BJP to abrogate article 370 is illegitimate. They want to eradicate the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir," the former Chief Minister said.Mufti said that if people in the Union Territory come from outside and settle over there then the culture, society and employment of the people of Jammu and Kashmir will be lost. "There is already high crime rate in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370. BJP want to create a clash among communities of UT. People of J-K need to understand that our destiny is unique," she said. Earlier, taking to Twitter, Mufti had said that the Centre's "colonial settler project" has been initiated in the region. "BJPs attempts to create religious and regional divisions between Jammu and Kashmir must be thwarted because whether it's a Kashmiri or a Dogra, safeguarding our identity and rights will be possible only if we put up a collective fight. She further said, "The ECI's latest order for the registration of new voters makes it clear that GOI's colonial settler project has been initiated in Jammu. They will bear the first blow to Dogra culture, identity, employment and business." Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday said that those who are outsiders should not be allowed to cast their vote in the Union Territory. "People outside shouldn't cast their vote in the UT. Only local voters should be allowed. They can vote in their states in a sealed envelope, as per the system. The importance of voting in Jammu and Kashmir has been that only locals vote - be it Jammu or Kashmir," said the chief of the newly announced Democratic Azad Party. Notably, in August, Election Commission announced the schedule of the Special Summary Revision in Jammu and Kashmir, and announced that the people who were not voters in the Assembly after the abrogation of Article 370 from the region can now be named on the voter's list. According to an official, a person need not be a "permanent resident" of the Union Territory for the same. The final electoral rolls after due disposal of all claims and objections filed within the stipulated time period would be published on November 25, 2022. (ANI)
Seven years ago, the Supreme Court struck down Section 66A of the IT Act 2000. Ironically, law enforcement agencies and judicial officers were oblivious to this significant ruling and as a consequence, several hundred cases were registered under the Section even after the apex court declared it unconstitutional. Moreover, the trials in some of these are under progress. The Centre submitted an all-India status report on pending cases under Section 66A in the Supreme Court - which provided data on the number of cases and their status in various states and Union Territories. It had prepared the report in response to the court's direction on September 6. According to data provided by some states, more than 900 cases were registered under Section 66A after the apex court declared it unconstitutional on March 24, 2015, and trials are in progress in some cases. After going through the report, a bench headed by Chief Justice U U Lalit said: "Such criminal proceedings, in our view, are directly in the teeth of the directions issued by this court in Shreya Singhal versus Union of India (2015)." Registration of cases and prosecution in court under Section 66A shows that the law enforcement agencies and judicial officers, who are responsible for upholding the rule of law, were unaware of the apex court judgment and the common man had to bear the brunt of this lack of awareness. For example, in Karnataka a total of 247 cases were registered after March 24, 2015 till 2018, and all of them were withdrawn at various stages, as per the letter dated May 27, 2019, from the office of the Director General of Police, Karnataka. In Odisha, 170 cases are pending in different courts as on August 6, 2021. And, in Madhya Pradesh, cognizance was taken in 145 cases after March 24, 2015, and 113 cases are pending after March 24, 2015. On Wednesday, the apex court reiterated its 2015 ruling that Section 66A was unconstitutional and no citizen could be prosecuted for its alleged violation. On September 6, senior advocate Sanjay Parikh, representing the petitioner, NGO People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), had submitted that there was a judgment given in Shreya Singhal in 2015, which struck down Section 66A, however still there are many public prosecutors and police officers charging people under it and that is why this application was filed. Section 66A made sending of offensive messages through a computer device for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred or ill will etc as punishable offence up to three years of jail and with fine. The top court had then said it is a matter of serious concern that despite the judgment, cases are still being registered under Section 66A. It issued notice to all state governments and the high courts, and asked the Central government to tell Chief Secretaries to take remedial measures as soon as possible. The NGO had moved the top court seeking direction to Centre to advise all police stations against registering FIRs under Section 66A. --IANS ss/vd ( 532 Words) 2022-10-12-22:34:03 (IANS)
Karmakar was arrested from Baksa district, but further details were not revealed yet.

Police were searching for him for the last month, as he was on the run and probably went to Kolkata to avert arrest, a police officer said.

It has been alleged that Karmakar duped many people of at least Rs 6-7 lakh.

Police earlier arrested six accused in this case, and upon interrogating them, found the involvement of Karmakar in this scam.

--IANS tdr/vd

( 111 Words)

2022-10-12-23:00:05 (IANS)
The outlet has shared that Truth Social, which was banned by Google over "insufficient" content moderation policies, offers a Twitter-like social experience and markets itself as a platform that "encourages an open, free, and honest global conversation."

Before attempting to launch on the Google Play Store, Trump's social media app first launched on the Apple App Store in February.

According to The Verge, in a statement, Google said that apps on the Google Play Store are permitted as long as they "comply with our developer guidelines. This includes the requirement to effectively moderate user-generated content and remove objectionable posts such as those that incite violence."

The company added that Truth Social has agreed to enforce the moderation measures on user-generated content that Google requires.

Previously, after issuing a ban following the Capitol riots, Google had also reinstated Parler, a similarly focused app.

Apart from policy violations that initially prevented its app launch on Android, the Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) owned Truth Social has also been facing financial issues related to its repeatedly delayed SPAC, as per The Verge.

The outlet reported that Digital World Acquisition Corp, the shell company set to merge with TMTG and take it public, delayed the process and has now scheduled its shareholder vote on November 3. (ANI)
With Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) gearing for the upcoming Assembly polls in Gujarat, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate the "Gujarat Gaurav Yatra" in Ahmedabad today. Shah will visit Sant Shree Savaiyanath Samadhi Sthaan to pay obeisance in Zanzarka, Ahmedabad. Thereafter, he will inaugurate the "Gujarat Gaurav Yatra" in Zanzarka. Later in the afternoon, the Union Home Minister will visit Unai Mata Temple to offer prayers in Unai, Navsari district and will launch the "Gujarat Gaurav Yatra" and "Adivasi Vikas Yatra" there. Earlier on Wednesday, JP Nadda flagged off the 'Gujarat Gaurav Yatra' in Mehsana. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and other BJP leaders were also present at the occasion. Addressing a public rally on the occasion, Nadda said, "BJP is a pro-active, pro-responsible government and pro-responsive government. He said the BJP government understands the plight of the people. What did Congress do for years? Pitted brothers against each other, areas against each other and did not supply water where it was needed. Jo vikas ki yatra chalani thi usko atkaya, bhatkaya, latkaya. Now they themselves are stuck..." "Gaurav yatra is not just for Gujarat alone, it is a yatra to establish pride of entire India. It's a matter of fortune that Gujarat is the 'Gangotri' of 'Gaurav Yatra' to re-establish the nation on the global map, to make it self-reliant, developed." BJP has geared up for the upcoming Assembly elections in Gujarat. Earlier on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a public meeting at Jamkandorna in Rajkot district. He also held a roadshow after the rally."Being in Jamkandorana is always special," tweeted PM Modi. PM also launched multiple projects worth over Rs 8,000 crore at Amod, Bharuch.He laid the foundation stone of the Bulk Drug Park at Jambusar, the Deep Sea Pipeline Project at Dahej, Phase 1 of Ankleshwar Airport and the development of Multilevel Industrial Sheds at Ankleshwar and Panoli. The Prime Minister also dedicated several projects which will give a boost to the chemicals sector in Gujarat including GACL Plant, Bharuch Underground Drainage and IOCL Dahej Koyali Pipeline. (ANI)
As many as 700 incidents of stubble burning reported in Punjab so far this year, said the state's Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal on Wednesday. "This year 700 incidents of stubble burning reported so far as compared to over 2,500 incidents during the same time in previous years. I had spoken to 'Jathedar' of Shri Akal Takht Sahib for his intervention by issuing an appeal to farmers to not burn stubble," Dhaliwal said. He said that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had meetings with farmers over the issue. "We are constantly trying that the stubble should not be burnt at least in Punjab. All the officials have been told that there will be no FIR against the farmers. But we believe that the farmers will avoid stubble burning. We are also working in the direction to ensure stubble becomes an additional source of income for the farmers in the coming days," added Dhaliwal. Last week, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the state government is committed to bailing out the farmers of the state from any sort of natural calamity and efforts are being made for paddy straw management. The Chief Minister, during a meeting with the farmers here at Punjab Bhawan, said that the state government is not leaving any stone unturned for this cause. He also informed the farmers that the state government is making an all-out effort for paddy straw management. "The farmers should support the state government for this noble cause by not burning the paddy straw. It is the need of the hour for protecting the environment of the state," said CM Mann. Last month, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar called upon the state governments of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and NCT of Delhi to strive for achieving zero stubble burning in the very near future. He promised all central help to achieve this mission. Tomar had said, Rs 600 crore was already provided to the States this financial year and they have an unspent amount of Rs 300 Crore, which should be utilized properly. Moreover, about 2 lakh machines have been made available to the States. The Minister said, the Centre and the concerned States should jointly evolve long-term planning and must undertake multi-pronged activities to achieve the target of Zero Stubble Burning within a specified time frame. (ANI)
The Supreme Court on Thursday pronounced a split verdict in the Karnataka Hijab ban case. A bench of justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia pronounced the judgement today. Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the petitions against the hijab ban, while Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed them. One of the lawyers representing the petitioner said that the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice of India and he will decide whether a new bench will hear the matter or the matter gets referred to a larger bench. Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed appeals challenging the Karnataka High Court's order which had upheld the state government's order to ban wearing hijabs in educational institutions of the state Justice Gupta said, "There is a divergence of opinion. In my order, I have framed 11 questions. First is whether the appeal should be referred to the Constitution Bench." Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the appeals and set aside the Karnataka High Court order. "It's a matter of choice, nothing more nothing less," Justice Dhulia said while pronouncing the order. The apex court had earlier reserved its order on various petitions challenging Karnataka High Court upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutes. The arguments in the matter went on for 10 days in which 21 lawyers from the petitioners' side and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, Karnataka Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi argued for the respondents. The court was hearing various pleas against Karnataka HC's judgement upholding the Karnataka Government's decision to direct educational institutes to prescribe uniforms in educational institutes. Addressing the court, Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, in his rejoinder submission had said that the Karnataka Government Circular which enforced the dress code has no reference to the Popular Front of India (PFI). Various petitioners have approached the apex court challenging the Karnataka HC order upholding the Karnataka government's order which directs strict enforcement of schools and colleges' uniform rules. One of the appeals in the top court has alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practising their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation". The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India". A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit. The hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry. After this, boys of several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka. As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue. On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges. (ANI)
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi resumed the Bharat Jodo march' from Bommagondanahalli in Karnataka's Chitradurga on its 36th day on Thursday. Rahul Gandhi has been leading the Bharat Jodo Yatra since September 7 aiming to cover the distance of 3,500 km from Kanniyakumari to Jammu and Kashmir. So far, the convoy has covered a distance of 925 km. Today, the Padyatra began from BG Kere Underpass in Bommagondanahalli at 6.30 am and will observe its first halt in Konsagrara at 11 am. After resuming the march around 4 pm, the padayatra is scheduled to take another break at KEB Circle in Molakalmuru. It will night stay at a Ground near New Hotel Amrutha and Lodge in Chitradurag's Rampura. Karnataka Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah and State Congress chief DK Shivkumar were also present with Rahul during the Karnataka leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra on its 35th day on Wednesday. Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivkumar also wore a t-shirt highlighting the 'unemployment' problems during the Karnataka leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra during the yatra. The Congress leader wore a bright red coloured t-shirt with yellow text- symbolically signifying Kannada colours- highlighting the unemployment problem while walking alongside Congress MP Rahul Gandhi during the 35th day of the Yatra. "Youth need jobs, not empty promises", a message, written on DK Shivkumar's t-shirt in the Kannada language. The State Congress chief also accused the BJP government of failing to tame the rising unemployment in Karnataka. While taking a dig out at the Centre, DK Shivkumar said, "It is our responsibility to stand accountable with the promises we make to our youth who repose their faith in us believing that we would take care of their future and utilize their potential". "Youth need jobs, not empty promises", he added. Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi along with 40 Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) delegates who are part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra will cast their vote for the party presidential election at the campsite as a special booth will be established for them to take part in the polls. The voting for the Congress presidential elections is scheduled to be held on October 17 and the padayatra will take a break for a day for voting. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh clearly stated that the voters only need an ID card for exercising their franchise. All the arrangements have been made at the travel camp for their voting in the election of Congress President. The Central Election Authority, headed by senior party leader Madhusudan Mistry, will oversee the voting, a notification of which was issued on September 22. (ANI)
Zoom, was under treatment at Advance Field Veterinary Hospital, Srinagar.

"Army dog Zoom, under treatment at 54 AFVH, passed away around 12 noon today. He was responding well till around 11:45 am when he suddenly started gasping and collapsed," said Army officials.

In a combat operation in Kokernag of Anantnag, Army's dog 'Zoom' attacked terrorists and sustained grave injuries after receiving two gunshot wounds.

"In spite of the injuries, he continued his task which resulted in the neutralisation of two terrorists. The canine is under treatment in Srinagar," an Army official said.The assault dog was a part of Operation Tangpawas's combat team.

The Indian Army Chinar Corps had taken to Twitter to wish to Zoom a speedy recovery."Army assault dog 'Zoom' critically injured during the operation while confronting the terrorists. He is under treatment at Army Vet Hosp Srinagar. We wish him a speedy recovery," they had tweeted. (ANI)
Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena took note of the difficulties faced by the traders and assured to upgrade the amenities, facilitate smooth conduct of trade and make shopping a pleasing experience in the Chandni Chowk market of the national capital. Saxena visited this "heritage market" on Wednesday and interacted with the traders' associations, Resident welfare associations (RWA) and the visitors here According to an official statement, LG Saxena interacted with the representatives of more than a dozen Market Traders Association, labourers' association, RWAs and several other local traders as they informed him about several restrictions and problems that have not only affected their daily business but have also caused hardships to a large number of people, particularly the elderly, women and children, residing in the area. Seeking the LG's intervention for the removal of "overhanging electrical wires" that have often resulted in fire incidents in the area. The LG was also informed that apart from over 60 Katras that attract lakhs of people daily, nearly 60,000 people also reside in the "narrow by-lanes of Chandni Chowk" and the massive congestion often leads to fire and medical emergencies. To deal with any such emergency, the LG assured that fire tenders and ambulances will be deployed in and around the Chandni Chowk area "very soon". LG Saxena said that an exercise to identify fire-prone locations and the process of deployment of fire tenders and ambulances in the national Capital is being undertaken by the Fire Department. The initiative will be started from Chandni Chowk before Diwali, he said. He then took a round of the Chandni Chowk market from the iconic Town Hall to Katra Neel and back to the Red Fort, where he interacted with several local traders and visitors of the market. Meanwhile, he also visited the historic 'Ghalib Ki Haveli' in Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, where the LG instructed officials to identify and develop one Katra as a Pilot and later replicate the model to other Katras and markets in Chandni Chowk. The redevelopment of the Katra envisages facade improvement, removing overhanging electric wires, repair of footpaths, drainage, and repair and maintenance of street lights among others. (ANI)
Ahead of the run-up to Congress presidential polls, party MP and a contender for the top post Shashi Tharoor on Thursday said he has been facing differential treatment from the party leaders as against his opponent Mallikarjun Kharge. Notably, Shashi Tharoor and Mallikarjun Kharge are up against each other in the race for the post of Congress President. Addressing a press conference here, Tharoor said, "We are contesting elections. There is no spirit of enmity in our party. Kharge Sahab is my senior leader and I have worked closely with him. The election is about two colleagues seeing how to work to strengthen the party." On his "uneven playing field" remark, Congress presidential candidate Tharoor said, "...In several PCCs, leaders welcomed and met Kharge Sahab. The same was not done for me. I visited PCCs but PCC chiefs were not available. I am not complaining, but do you not see a difference in treatment?" He said his partymen should vote for him only if they are seeking a change in Congress. "Do you want the party to go with change or are you satisfied with everything? If you think everything is fine, do not vote for me as I want such a change in the party that would bring back voters who did not remain with us in 2014 and 2019," added the Thiruvananthapuram MP. Earlier this week, Tharoor had said he could act as a catalyst of change for the grand old party in order to revive the party's presence in the country. Regarding rumours that Kharge is an official candidate for party chief and he is not, Tharoor said, "Some people are saying Kharge is an official candidate and I am no one. But I want to say that the Gandhi family is unbiased and no one is an official candidate as we are standing for strengthening of the Congress party. If someone is saying that delegates are asked to vote for a certain person, it's not true."Meanwhile, Congress veteran leader and party's presidential candidate Mallikarjun Kharge had said that his name was not suggested by the party supremo Sonia Gandhi and dismissed the speculations of receiving support from the party's interim president. Kharge said that Sonia Gandhi had never suggested his name for the party president position and called it a rumour. Kharge further said that members of the party have elected delegates which are 9,300 in number who will vote for the candidate and the one with the majority would be elected. Notably, Digvijaya Singh pulled out from the race earlier and extended his support to Kharge, who he said is a senior and respected leader of the party, and against whom he "cannot think of contesting". Singh was the second Congress leader to pull out of the race after Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot announced he would not contest the elections following the political turmoil in his state. With the Gandhis not running for the top post, the grand old party is all set to get a non-Gandhi president after over 25 years. Voting will take place on October 17 and the election results will be declared on October 19. (ANI)
Two people were killed and five others were injured after a speedy car rammed into a tree on the side of the Vikhroli Eastern Express Highway during the early hours of Thursday. The information was initially reported to the Control Room of Mumbai Police, who later informed the Vikhroli Police Station. The police personnel took the injured persons to a nearby hospital. The accident at 1 am on Thursday where seven persons were injured initially, of which two died at the spot. "Two people were killed and five injured after a car rammed into a tree on the side of Vikhroli Eastern Express Highway last night," the Mumbai Police said. As per the police, these seven people hailed from Qureshi Nagar in Mumbai's Kurla and were on their way to a restaurant when the car lost its balance and got rammed into a tree. The matter is being investigated by the Vikhroli Police. More details are awaited. Earlier on October 5, several people sustained injuries in a mishap wherein an ambulance and a car and some other vehicles were parked at the Bandra Worli Sea Link road while preparing to take victims of an earlier accident to a hospital. In the said accident, the car being driven at a high speed came and crashed into the ambulance and three more vehicles as well as the car that was involved in the previous crash, in which one accused Irfan Abdul Raheem Beelkia was booked by a local court under section 304 (death by negligence) of the India Penal Code for over speeding and rash driving. (ANI)
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint--equivalent to a charge sheet--against journalist Rana Ayyub in connection with its money laundering probe into alleged irregularities in funds collected by her for relief work, accusing her of launching three fundraiser campaigns on 'Ketto platform' starting from April 2020, and collected funds totalling to Rs 2,69,44,680. The campaigns were named Help in raising funds for slum dwellers and farmers; Relief work for Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra; and Help Rana Ayyub and her team to help those impacted by Covid19 in India, said ED in its charge sheet filed in a special court in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad on Wednesday. The investigation by ED revealed that the funds raised on the online platforms were received in the accounts of Rana Ayyub's father and sister and subsequently transferred to her personal accounts. ED said that Rana Ayyub utilized these funds to create a fixed deposit of Rs 50 lakh for herself and also transferred Rs 50 lakh to a new bank account. The ED investigation also revealed that only approximately Rs 29 lakh was used for relief work. "In order to claim more expenses towards relief work, fake bills were submitted by Rana Ayyub. Subsequently, bank balances in the accounts of Rana Ayyub amounting to Rs 1,77,27,704 (including Fixed Deposits of Rs 50 lakh) were attached under section 5(1) of Prevention of Money Laundering Act vide a provisional attachment order dated February 4 this year," the EF said in a statement. The investigation by ED further revealed that Rana Ayyub illegally raised Rs 2.69 crore by launching three online campaigns in the name of charity by cheating the general public donors. These funds were not used for the intended purpose but instead used for the creation of assets for herself, said the ED. "Rana Ayyub has tried to project these funds as untainted and thus has laundered the funds received from the general public. She also received these funds from foreign countries without any approval or registration from the government which is required under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010," the ED said. ED Investigation has established that Rana Ayyub had launched "these campaigns with the sole intention to cheat the general public and acquired Proceeds of Crime in the form of Fixed Deposits and balances in bank accounts projecting them as untainted". ED had initiated a money laundering investigation on the basis of an FIR registered on September 7 last year by the Indirapuram Police Station, Ghaziabad, under various sections of IPC 1860, Information Technology Amendment Act 2008 and Black Money Act against Rana Ayyub alleging that she illegally acquired funds from the general public in the name of charity by launching fund-raiser campaigns on an online crowdfunding platform-'Ketto'. It was also alleged that Rana Ayyub is a journalist by profession and received foreign contributions without registration under FCRA. (ANI)
A shop owner in Delhi was nabbed for stealing over a dozen decorative 'thali' hampers used in Karva Chauth, the religious festival where women fast for their husbands. The man who owns a grocery shop confessed to police that he was unable to resist the beautifully decorated plates and flicked them when he saw them 'unattended' at the Sadar Bazar wholesale market. The Delhi Police made the arrest based on the complaint filed by one Naresh Kumar Gupta, who alleged that his 20 sets of decorative Karva Chauth plates were stolen by an 'unidentified' person while he was returning after shopping from the crowded wholesale market. On basis of a complaint, police arrested the thief within three hours. The arrested person has been identified as Navneet Kumar Singh, a resident of Noida. He is a grocery shop owner, who disclosed to police during the investigation that he had come to purchase articles from Sadar Market. However, seeing the bag containing the decorative Karva Chauth gifts unattended, he stole it. "After registering the complaint, ASI Chatar Singh along with Constable Sachin swung into action and checked the CCTV footage of the parking, and in the CCTV footage one person was visible stealing the sack of decorative Karva Chauth of the complainant," officials said. According to Delhi Police, 'Operation Vighat' has been launched in the area to keep a curb on the menace of pick-pocketing and street crime. Under the system, the staff of Sadar Bazar Police Station has been motivated to identify and nab the active criminals in the area. "On further checking, it was revealed that the accused person had also come on a bike. Dedicated efforts were made and a search was made on the basis of CCTV footage and bike details. Finally, after a search of two hours, the accused person was nabbed and the sack was recovered", officials added further. (ANI)
The All India Bar Association (AIBA) has requested Chief Justice of India (CJI) UU Lalit that the Hijab issue be referred to a larger bench of a minimum of five judges including one Muslim judge in Supreme Court after split judgments on this issue by two judges today. In a letter to CJI, Dr Adish C Aggarwala, Senior Advocate and Chairman of AIBA, has pointed out that the then Chief Justice NV Ramana has erred in constituting the bench which included Justice Hemant Gupta who was to retire on October 16, 2022, and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia who was recently appointed to Supreme Court on May 9, 2022. "I may point out that judges were not having a reasonable time to adjudicate the issue as it is evident from the fact that Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia's main thrust of his judgment is that the concept of 'essential religious practice' was not essential for the disposal of the dispute," said Aggarwala. Senior Advocate Aggarwala further quoted the Supreme Court judgment stating, "Justice Dhulia said in his judgment that 'The court (High Court of Karnataka - added for clarification) probably took the wrong path. It was simply a question of Article 19(1)(a), its applicability and Article 25(1), primarily. And it's ultimately a matter of choice, nothing more or nothing less'." He said that due to a shortage of time, it has been overlooked by Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia that Muslim students, in Karnataka High Court took the plea that the "Hijab is part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith". "Justice Dhulia took a diametrically opposite view and struck down the High Court verdict. I was fully aware that the present Bench will be not in a position to adjudicate the issue due to shortage of time, I have not intervened in the matter in Supreme Court although I intervened before the High Court of Karnataka", said Dr Aggarwala, who was also Vice Chairman of Bar Council of India and Supreme Court Bar Association. He further urged CJI to refer the matter to a larger bench of the Supreme Court. "In the fairness of the matter, it is humbly prayed that the Hijab matter be referred to a larger bench of 5 senior Judges including one Muslim Judge in the Supreme Court as this issue is the most important matter for all citizens of India," he said. He also suggested that while constituting the Bench, it should be advised to hold a day-to-day hearing. "If Justice S Abdul Nazeer declines to be in the Bench, then CJI should mention this fact in the order constituting the larger bench to hear the Hijab matter. While constituting the Bench, the Bench be advised to hold a day-to-day hearing as Justice Nazeer is to retire on January 4, 2023. The world is watching the Supreme Court of India as it is a torch bearer in protecting India's democracy, states a press statement issued by AIBA. A two-judge bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia pronounced the judgement today. While Justice Hemant Gupta stated that was a "divergence of opinion" as he dismissed the bunch of petitions against the March 15 Karnataka High Court order on the hijab matter, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the appeals and set aside the HC verdict. "It's a matter of choice, nothing more nothing less," Justice Dhulia said while pronouncing the order. Justice Gupta said, "There is a divergence of opinion. In my order, I have framed 11 questions. First is whether the appeal should be referred to the Constitution Bench." Advocate Ezaz Maqbool, representing the petitioner said that the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice of India and he will decide whether a new bench will hear the matter or the case gets referred to a larger bench. The apex court had earlier reserved its order on various petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutes. The arguments in the matter went on for 10 days in which 21 lawyers from the petitioners' side and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, Karnataka Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi argued for the respondents. The court was hearing various pleas challenging the Karnataka HC's judgement upholding the Karnataka Government's decision to direct educational institutes to prescribe uniforms in educational institutes. One of the appeals in the top court had alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practising their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation". The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India". A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit. The hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry. After this, boys of several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka. As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue. On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges. (ANI)
Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan attacked Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for visiting Dubai amid the alleged case of human sacrifice in the state, alleging that the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) is not taking the investigation seriously. While talking to ANI, the Union Minister said, "In Kerala, two women were butchered in the name of Black Magic and there is a huge allegation that CPM is trying to hush up such a serious case." The BJP leader demanded an explanation from the CM for being abroad and "not" speeding up the enquiry in the case. "The Chief Minister should have immediately come back to Kerala so that the investigation is speeded up. But, instead of that, he delayed his return. In this way, he actually gave the message that he is not much interested in the enquiry. If he had something really urgent, he should come and explain. The Ministry of External Affairs was not informed about the visit," he said. Earlier, the Kerala Police apprehended three persons for allegedly kidnapping and killing two women as part of black magic rituals in Kochi. The three arrested have been identified as Mohammed Shafi, Bhavagal Singh and his wife Laila. As per the remand report, "For getting economic prosperity, the two accused, Bhagaval Singh and Laila conspired for the crime with the help of prime accused Muhammed Shafi." According to the report, one of the victim women was cut into 56 pieces by the accused in the 'human sacrifice' case. The remand report further revealed that the accused Muhammad Shafi and the woman accused Laila inserted a knife into the vagina of the victims. "Then she agreed and went with Shafi to the home of Bhagaval Singh and Laila in the Pathanamthitta district. There, the accused strangled her with a plastic cord around her neck to make her unconscious. After that, Shafi mutilated Padma's private parts using a knife and slit her throat. After that, they chopped her into 56 pieces and put the mutilated body parts into buckets and buried them in a pit," the report detailed. A day after the alleged human sacrifice case in Kerala came to the fore, Kerala police on Wednesday revealed that the alleged accused of the case possibly ate the flesh of the victims. In a press meeting, Kochi commissioner CH Nagraju, said that Shafi, the main accused, is a pervert and has a criminal past. The issue came to the fore on Tuesday as three persons, including one woman, were suspected of luring and killing the woman allegedly as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals, City Police Commissioner CH Nagaraju confirmed earlier on Tuesday. Police arrested three persons, identified as one Shafi, and the husband-wife pair of Bhagaval Singh and Laila. The Ernakulam magistrate court on Wednesday remanded all three accused on judicial custody for a 14-day duration which will end on October 26. Police are also investigating if any sexual exploitation has been done by the prime accused. (ANI)
Following a split verdict by the Supreme Court on the Karnataka hijab ban case, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi said the decision of the Karnataka High Court was "bad in terms of law and content" and that the Quranic commentaries and translations were "misused". Slamming the ruling BJP in the State for making the hijab ban an issue, the AIMIM chief further said that girls of Karnataka are wearing hijab because Allah has asked them to do so in Quran. Speaking to ANI, Owaisi said, "According to me the decision of the High Court was bad in law and bad in terms of its content, it misused Quranic commentaries and translations. Girls of Karnataka are wearing hijab because Allah has asked them to do so in Quran. BJP made it an issue out of it." He further said that expecting a unanimous judgement in favour of girls. "I was expecting a unanimous judgement in favour of girls going to school in Karnataka wearing hijab. Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said that wearing a hijab is ultimately a matter of choice. The judgment by one of the judges from SC was in favour of hijab," he added. Meanwhile, Advocate Barun Sinha representing the Hindu Sena said that in view of a split verdict by the Supreme Court, the order of the Karnataka High Court will remain applicable in the interim time. A two-judge bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia pronounced the judgement today. While Justice Hemant Gupta stated that was a "divergence of opinion" as he dismissed the bunch of petitions against the March 15 Karnataka High Court order on the hijab matter, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the appeals and set aside the HC verdict. "It's a matter of choice, nothing more nothing less," Justice Dhulia said while pronouncing the order. Justice Gupta said, "There is a divergence of opinion. In my order, I have framed 11 questions. First is whether the appeal should be referred to the Constitution Bench." Advocate Ezaz Maqbool, representing the petitioner said that the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice of India and he will decide whether a new bench will hear the matter or the matter gets referred to a larger bench. The apex court had earlier reserved its order on various petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutes. The arguments in the matter went on for 10 days in which 21 lawyers from the petitioners' side and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, Karnataka Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi argued for the respondents. The court was hearing various pleas challenging the Karnataka HC's judgement upholding the Karnataka Government's decision to direct educational institutes to prescribe uniforms in educational institutes. One of the appeals in the top court had alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practising their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation". The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India". A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit. The hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry. After this, boys of several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka. As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue. On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges. (ANI)
Kerala High Court expunged the 'Sexually Provocative Dress' remark made by the Kozhikode Sessions Court while granting anticipatory bail to writer Civic Chandran. High Court also upheld the decision of the sessions court granting anticipatory bail to Civic Chandran. The bench of S Krishnakumar in the Kozhikode Sessions Court, passed the controversial order on August 12, as it had observations to the effect that sexual harassment complaints would not stand if the woman were wearing a "sexually provocative dress". The court observed this while granting anticipatory bail to writer and social activist Civic Chandran in a case of sexual harassment. The Kerala government has approached the High Court challenging the anticipatory bail granted to the author and social activist Civic Chandran in the sexual harassment case filed by a Dalit writer. The anticipatory bail created controversy after the Kozhikode Sessions Court made observations that sexual harassment complaints will not stand if the woman was wearing a 'sexually provocative dress'. The state government has submitted the petition under Sections 482 and 439(2) of the CrPC and alleged that the findings and reasoning given by the Sessions Court in the anticipatory bail are suffering from illegality, lack of sensitivity, sobriety and perversity. The government has contended in the petition that, "The conclusion drawn by the Kozhikode Sessions Court amounts to an infringement of the personal liberty of the victim and a violation of the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution." "The findings of the Court are, per se, illegal, unjust and potentially expose the survivor to secondary trauma. The Supreme Court decision about the dress, behaviours or past 'conduct' or 'moral' of the Prosecutrix should not enter the verdict while granting bail. The Sessions Court flouted all the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court and granted pre-arrest bail to the accused by making observations which the Supreme Court deprecated," the petition said. The Sessions Court granted Civic Chandran anticipatory bail on August 12 in the sexual harassment case. (ANI)
She will start the campaign by addressing the 'Parivartan Pratigya Rally' in the Solan district of Himachal Pradesh on Friday.

This is the first time that the Congress leader will be addressing a "maha rally" in the poll-bound State.

Taking to Twitter, the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) informed that this rally of Priyanka Gandhi will officially mark the beginning of the party's election campaign in the state.

"All Himachalis are warmly welcomed in the 'Parivartan Pratigya Maharally' of Congress Party's National General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi ji in Solan. For the first time on the land of Devbhoomi, Priyanka ji will address the Maharally, for which your heartfelt greetings from every Himachali," the HPCC tweet reads.

For the first time, the oldest party of the country will be contesting the assembly election in the absence of former chief minister Virbhadra Singh, who passed away last year.

Himachal has been witnessing a bipolar contest between Congress and the BJP for the past three decades but this time Aam Aadmi Party is also in the fray. (ANI)
The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued notice to Delhi Police on the petition moved by a trustee of Hemkunt Foundation seeking a direction for quashing the FIR registered by the Special cell of Delhi police for alleged misuse of funds collected for the purpose of helping covid patients. The High court has also directed the Delhi police not to arrest any of the trustees of the petitioner trust till the next date. Hemkunt Foundation is a trust that worked for Covid-19 victims during the pandemic. Justice Jasmeet Singh issued notice to Delhi police and directed them to file a status report on the petition within 4 weeks on the petition. The bench also directed not to arrest none of the trustees till the next date of hearing. The next date of hearing is January 17, 2023. Justice Singh said, "Prima facie I am of the view that for the purpose of this FIR there is no person who has come forward to state that offences as per section 405 and 415 of IPC have been committed. There is no person who has stated that they had entrusted their funds and that those funds have been misutilised." Advocate R K Handoo's counsel seeking an interim stay in FIR stated that there is no complaint or Complaint alleging any criminal breach of trust or charting of funds by the petitioner. This FIR has been registered on the secret information by the Delhi police. "Can it be like this," Justice Singh asked. Can there be a case of 406 and 420 of IPC on the basis of a secret Complaint? Advocate Handoo replied in the negative. He said that for criminal breach of trust there should be an entrustment. In this case, there is no such entrustment. Handoo contended that the ED is not an aggrieved party. He also submitted there are no ingredients of section 420 IPC as there is victim nor any injured. He also stated that for the offence there should be a wrongful loss or wrongful gain. On the other hand, it is alleged by the police that a huge amount of funds were collected during the covid time and those funds were misused. Funds were transferred to the personal bank accounts. The additional public prosecutor (APP) for the State submitted that the case was filed on the Complaint of a public servant working with the ED. Hence the allegations that there is no complainant are unfounded. ED informed us after the petitioner transferred the funds to the private bank accounts of Dhruv Health Care. It was informed that the payments were made for the purchase of the Hospital but the land was vacant. One of the accused is in the custody. Advocate Handoo contended that land for the dispensary and the trust is the purchaser. But the ED has attached the land. APP stated that the investigation was conducted into the matter and it was found that the donation collected was not utilised as for the objective by the petitioner trust. The court noted the submission of advocate Handoo that there is a sale deed of July 19, 2021, with Dhruv Health Care for the purchase of 1.25 Acres of Land for running a dispensary to be operated on a no profit no loss basis. It was also submitted that before the dispensary could be operationalised, it was demolished for the purpose of the construction of a hospital. (ANI)
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will launch first year medical textbooks, which have been translated from English into Hindi, in Madhya Pradesh on October 16. Three MBBS subjects - anatomy, physiology and biochemistry - will be taught in Hindi to first-year MBBS students in all 13 government medical colleges of the state. However, the course in Hindi does not mean that the teachers and students will study in Hindi only, but immediately the words of English will be written in Devanagari script. There is a lot of activity these days at Gandhi Medical College as the Hindi translation of the MBBS course is going on in the college. State Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang is also camping here because an ambitious project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking shape at this place. A Hindi translation of the MBBS course is going on here. "We are trying our best to take forward Hindi. Under this, we have translated the course material into Hindi. We have included 3 first-year courses in the first phase, after that, we are going to include some second-year systems," Sarang said. Sarang told ANI, "In many countries like Germany, China, Russia, and France, medical education is done in the local language, then why can't it be done in our country? This is the first experiment in 75 years of the country," he added. "On February 11 this year, we held the first meeting and subsequently constituted a task force and a Hindi Chikitsa Prakoshth (Hindi medical cell). We then identified the writers and publishers of books that were being used as textbooks in the most number of colleges and signed MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding) with them to prevent legal hurdles. Then we got doctors from Government Medical Colleges to translate the contents," Sarang said. "There was resistance from the experts. Some said it was not possible while others said students might lose the competitive advantage but we persisted taking all into account all these reservations. One set of doctors prepared the first draft, another fine-tuned it further. This was followed by the validation and proofreading stages. We chose three subjects because these are primarily taught in the first year," Sarang added. (ANI)
Emphasizing that the Central Government has taken various steps to tackle the issue of stubble burning, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav on Thursday presided over a workshop to kick start an initiative to tackle stubble burning. the Central Government has taken various steps to tackle the issue of stubble burning and a large quantity of paddy straw is now being managed through in-situ and ex-situ management options. The Minister released Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) Guidelines for the grant of one-time financial support for promoting the establishment of paddy straw-based pelletisation and torrefaction plants. According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, these plants, once set up, would utilise a sizeable portion of the unmanaged paddy straw and help address the issue of crop residue burning and the resultant air pollution. Speaking at the workshop Yadav said, "The Government has taken various steps to tackle the issue of stubble burning and a large quantity of paddy straw is now being managed through in-situ and ex-situ management options." The Minister said that statutory directions have been issued to thermal power plants to co-fire biomass-based Pellets, Torrefied Pellets/Briquettes (with a focus on paddy straw) with Coal (up to 5-10 per cent) and to industries operating in NCR other than GNCT of Delhi to switch over to PNG or biomass fuels during 2022. "These have led to a large demand for biomass-based pellets, though supply is on lower side due to slow/ limited growth of aggregators/ suppliers. Thus, CPCB guidelines would bridge a crucial gap in the biomass supply chain," he said. The guidelines give preference to units proposing to install equipment that is made in India. Preference is also given to those units which have agreements with farmers located in the NCT of Delhi, States of Punjab and Haryana and the NCR districts of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, to ensure an assured supply of paddy straw. The Union Minister expressed that paddy straw burning in Northern regions of India has emerged as one of the major causes of air pollution during winters, especially in Delhi-NCR. "Under CPCB guidelines, individuals/entrepreneurs/companies, interested in setting up pelletisation and torrefaction plants, using only paddy straw generated in the NCT of Delhi, States of Punjab & Haryana, and NCR districts of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh can submit an application for obtaining a one-time grant on capital investment," he said. The Minister urged the farmers to avoid stubble burning and promote its utilization being a valuable resource. He also urged agricultural entrepreneurs or agripreneurs to apply for availing grants under the guidelines. Yadav said that it has the potential to create employment among the rural youth. "Emphasis was laid on the need for collaborative efforts of State Pollution Control Boards/Committees, and other concerned agencies for the effective implementation of guidelines," he said. The Minister expressed confidence that the positive momentum created from the State Environment Ministers' Meet will help in executing a collective and cohesive approach in managing air pollution. "Under the guidelines, a maximum grant of Rs 14 lakh per Ton/hr for a non-torrefied pellet plant and Rs 28 lakh per Ton/hr for a torrefied pellet plant is being provided under the guidelines, with an overall cap of Rs 70 lakhs for the former and Rs 1.4 crore for the latter. A corpus of Rs 50 crores has been earmarked for utilisation through the guidelines. Assuming complete utilization of the corpus, over 1 million metric tonnes of paddy straw-based pellets are expected to be generated every year. With supplemental efforts by other stakeholders, the guidelines are expected to enhance paddy straw utilization in power plants and industries, catalyse rural economy and further the spirit of entrepreneurship," the Yadav said. The Ministry has also granted 190 Environment Clearances (EC) so far for Grain based Ethanol production projects aggregating 34368 KLPD and all these projects have been granted EC in a record time of around 45-50 days, the Minister said. The Minister said that the first 2G Ethanol Plant in Panipat, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation two months ago, is expected to utilize ~2 lakh metric tonnes of paddy straw every year. Senior officials including the Chairman of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Director General of Forests, the Chairman, Central Pollution Control Board, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Chairman of SPCBs, Representatives from NITI Aayog, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, Ministry of Power, Deputy Commissioners of NCR districts and Punjab, NTPC, industries and agriculture departments in the State Governments. of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, UP and GNCT of Delhi, NCR State Pollution Control Boards, DPCC and other major stakeholders such as pellet manufacturers and manufacturing associations were also present in the workshop. (ANI)
Minister for IT and BT CN Ashwath Narayan, said on Thursday, that the state government's proposed electric vehicle industry hub would house about 1000 startups. He was speaking while he participated in the inaugural session of the 10th International mobility conference organized by the Society of Automotive Engineers India (SAEI). On the occasion, he said that the government has already taken several measures to promote the growth of the automated sector. He added, that a total of five centres of excellence will be set up to facilitate training, research, development, innovation and entrepreneurship. The state which is already the preferred destination in IT, BT, semiconductors and electronics would also become a premier hub of electric vehicles in a couple of years, he opined. Narayan also stated that the government had given importance to eco-friendly fuel, and environmental protection as prescribed by the United Nations. Further, he said that the government was seriously considering starting the production of eco-friendly hydrogen. "Hassle-free traffic has become a challenge in metropolitan cities such as Bengaluru which are consistently growing. It is also causing a huge loss in terms of wastage of human time and it is adversely affecting the productive capacity. The impact on health is also of serious concern. Development of modern modes of transport including electric vehicles would help to contain these problems", Minister said. The conference has "Sustainable and multimodal transport system development" as its theme of discussion and more than 800 experts have participated. this is said to be the first of its kind of conference to be held in the country. At the conference 250 experts for making their presentations and marked these 250 saplings were planted. Mahesh Babu of SAEI, Muniratnam Dhananjayan of Focus Group, K Venkatraj, Vice-President, SAEI, Suhas Gopinath, CEO, Global Inc, CV Raman, CTO, Maruti Suzuki, and Vijay Nirani, Managing Director, MRN Group were among a few who were present. (ANI)
Amidst hectic schedule, Telangana Rashtra Samithi's (TRS) Working President and Minister KT Rama Rao visited Fluorosis victim Amsala Swamy's home in Shivannagudem, Mariguda Mandal, Nalgonda, on Thursday. Swamy was the same person who was placed on the table before the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998 to explain the gravity of the Fluorosis problem in Nalgonda. Multiple parties formed the government but his life did not change. Minister KTR came to Swamy's rescue by allocating Rs 5.4 lakh through the government for the construction of a double-bedroom home. Thereafter, Minister KTR in his personal capacity extended help in completing pending works of the home. Not stopping at that, the TRS Working President has also arranged a saloon for Swamy which serves as a livelihood. On Thursday, the Minister spoke to Swamy at length, had rice, and daal talked to his parents and inquired about their wellbeing. The party's Working President KTR said that any amount of help extended to Mr Swamy is not enough and assured him to look after his needs in the future too. An overwhelmed Swamy said that Minister KTR's visit is a dream come true. It was several months ago that Mr Swamy invited the TRS Working President to visit his newly built home. He recalled the help extended by the Minister - construction of the home and arranging a saloon. The Minister tweeted "In the much-maligned field of politics, there are few occasions when the heart is happy. Swamy, a fluorosis victim invited me for lunch. Was happy that a Dignity House and livelihood have been provided to his family. More importantly, fluorosis is gone now thanks to Mission Bhagiratha". (ANI)
The accused has been identified as Sikander Khan. As per the police, he was doing obscene acts by looking at the school girls near a school.

A teacher complained to the police about the taxi driver, after which a case was registered against the accused, the police said.

The Mumbai Police informed ANI that the police had arrested the 35-year-old.

"Mumbai's Colaba Police arrested a 35-year-old taxi driver, Sikander Khan, on the charges of indulging in obscene acts by looking at the school girls near a school. The case was filed after a teacher gave a complaint post-learning about the driver's antics." (ANI)
The incident occurred while they were taking a bath in the pit, as per the statement.

According to the press release, the deceased children have been identified as Risbah (16), Piyush (13) and Piyush (16).

After receiving a PCR call on Thursday regarding the drowning of three children, police rushed to the spot. A 16-year-old boy told the police, who told that he along with his seven other friends came to take bath in rain waterlogged in that open ground.

When they got busy taking bath, three of his friend namely Piyush 'bada', Piyush 'chhota' and Rishabh went into open ground and drowned.

In the instance of a boy, police staff went inside the water and searched for the drowned children. After an intensive search of about 30 minutes, all three children were pulled out of the water and sent to Hospital in a CAT ambulance. All three children were declared brought dead on arrival in Majeedia hospital.

The bodies are being shifted to AIIMS mortuary for postmortem. (ANI)
Amid the rising number of lumpy skin diseases, Prabhu B Chavan, the Minister of Animal Husbandry in the Karnataka government on Thursday assured the farmers and cattle owners that, the government is banning the animal slaughter and transport to combat the situation. While talking to ANI, the Minister said that "In order to prevent the Lumpy skin disease which is appearing in cattle these days, measures are being taken to ban cattle slaughtering and cattle transportation in the surrounding areas where the disease has been detected." He informed that the respective district administrations have been instructed to ban cattle fairs, markets and transportation to prevent the further spread of the skin nodule disease. He also advised the livestock owners to follow precautionary measures such as boosting the immune system of the vaccinated livestock. "The main cause of ringworm is a virus called Capripox. So, a live vaccine for the virus is being given as preventive medicine. If the cattle are already suffering from the disease, they should get proper treatment and medical care. Healthy cattle should be vaccinated. Vaccination is being given within a five km area of the disease outbreak area and surrounding area," he said. "For preventing the disease, we have to separate the healthy cows from the diseased ones. We have released the helpline numbers, 1962 or 8277100200. posters, banners and local veterinarians and animal husbandry department officials are spreading awareness. If the symptoms of the disease are seen in the cattle, they should immediately contact the nearest veterinarian and get timely treatment," he further said. Chavan also listed down the measures, such as making vaccines available that are being taken by the government to prevent the disease. "It is transmitted to cattle by blood-sucking mosquitoes, fleas, biting flies, and viruses from infected animals. The symptoms of the disease are high fever, refusal to eat, reduced milk yield, and the appearance of 2-5 cm sized nodules on the skin." In the fly, mosquito and wool-producing areas, Flogging is being done in collaboration with local organisations. Also, 50 lakh vaccines will be made available by the end of October from the Animal Health and Biological Institute. Prabhu Chavan also suggested that cattle owners give fresh water, ragi ambali and anti-disease home remedies to the cattle to prevent skin nodule disease. As per reports, lumpy skin disease is a viral disease that affects cattle. It is transmitted by blood-feeding insects, such as certain species of flies and mosquitoes, or ticks. It causes fever and nodules on the skin and can lead to the death of the cattle. The virus has been found only in cows and buffaloes. There is no danger to humans in eating meat or using milk of animals that do not have the symptoms of Lumpy. Animals can be cured of Lumpy, however, the milk of such animals may get affected due by the virus. (ANI)
A division bench of the Delhi High Court on Thursday recused itself from hearing a contempt petition moved by a former judge of a district court against a lawyer after the petitioner levelled allegations of bias. The retired judge had sought initiation of contempt proceedings against a lawyer who allegedly interfered with the administration of justice after being convicted for assaulting the retired judge. The former judge was also a lawyer practising at Tees Hazari district court at the time of the incident. The division bench of justices Sidharth Mridul and Amit Sharma said, "At the request of Ms. (Sujata) Kohli, the petitioner who appears in person, in order to obviate any possibility of alleged bias, we consider it appropriate to recuse from hearing the proceedings." The bench directed to list the matter before another court for hearing subject to the order of the Chief Justice. This matter pertains to a case of assault on Sujata Kohli in 1994. In this case, the then Delhi Bar Association Secretary Rajiv Khosla was convicted in December 2021. A Delhi Court had imposed a fine of Rs. 40,000 after holding him guilty of assault. It was alleged that she was assaulted as she did not participate in a strike called by him. He had called the strike against the formation of family courts. It was alleged that while the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate was passing the order, many lawyers were sloganeering in favour of Khosla. The two District judges had to come to the courtroom under whose presence the order was dictated. (ANI)
The Maharashtra ATS on Thursday informed that based on some discreet information that it received, it detained the accused near Malad in Mumbai.

The Punjab-based terrorist has been identified as Charatsingh alias Indrajitsingh Karisingh alias Karaj Singh (30 years old).

"A Punjab-based 30-year-old terrorist, Charatsingh alias Indrajitsingh Karisingh was arrested in Mumbai by the Maharashtra ATS. He has been handed over to the Punjab Police for further action. It was also revealed that he is in contact with the wanted terrorist named Lakhbir Singh Landa in Canada," the Maharashtra ATS said in a press note.

During interrogation, he revealed that he had been in contact with the wanted terrorist in Canada Lakhbir Singh

During the parole, the accused and his associates attacked the Intelligence headquarters of Punjab Police with Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG), the ATS further said.

As per the ATS, he has eight criminal cases registered against his name and was out on two-month parole. (ANI)
President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday said that the development of Assam is very important for the overall progress of the country. According to the President's Secretariat, she was speaking at the civic reception hosted by the Government of Assam in her honour at Assam Administrative Staff College in Guwahati this evening. President said that she was touched by the love and affection received from the people of Assam. "Through this visit, I am getting an opportunity to connect with the great traditions and achievements of India," she said. The President thanked the people of Assam for the wonderful welcome. "The cultural and spiritual splendour of Assam is very impressive. Extraordinary figures like Srimanta Sankaradeva and Madhabdev have enriched India's spiritual and cultural tradition and worked to unite the society. There is much to be learned from the Bodo society of this region. Amazing talents like Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, Bishnu Prasad Rabha and Bhupen Hazarika have given limitless gifts to Indian society and culture," said President Murmu. The President said that a rainbow of India's geographical, social and cultural diversity can be seen in Assam. "The development of Assam is very important for the overall progress of the country," she said, adding that she was happy to note that the facilities of Assam and the North Eastern Region are being made comprehensive and state-of-the-art through rapid development of infrastructure. "This is making life easier for the people and giving new impetus to the development of industries. The government of India has given special priority to the development of the Eastern and North Eastern Regions of the country. It has adopted the Act East Policy which has linked South-East Asia with the North Eastern Region, including Assam. With this change, the development of Assam is getting an international dimension," the President said. The President said that there is immense potential for the tourism industry in Assam. Assam attracts tourists because of its enchanting destinations like 'Manas' and 'Kaziranga'. "The central and state governments are preparing a better eco-system for the development of tourism," she added. She expressed confidence that the results of these efforts will be visible on a large scale in the near future and this change will generate employment opportunities for the youth. Earlier in the day, President Murmu inaugurated the Supercomputer facility Param-Kamrupa and laboratory for the design and development of high power microwave components at IIT Guwahati. She also inaugurated the Medical College and Hospital at Dhubri and laid the foundation stones for two Zonal Institutes of the National Institute of Virology (NIV) at Dibrugarh, Assam and Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh on occasion. The President flagged off Agartala-Khongsang Janshatabdi Express and Agartala-Kolkata Express from Agartala Railway Station today. (ANI)
An eight-year-old girl has been killed at Chanchal sub-division of Malda district in West Bengal, allegedly as part of black magic rituals conducted by a local tantrik, Bikram Bhagat. Following the recovery of the victim's body, local people severely beat up the accused and he is currently under treatment at a hospital in Chanchal in extremely critical condition. An officer of Chanchal Police station has informed media persons that the body of the victim has been sent for autopsy at Malda Medical College & Hospital. "The real reason of death can be ascertained only after the autopsy report comes," he said. Police is also investigating whether the victim girl was raped before murder. The victim was missing since Wednesday. Finally, on late Wednesday night, her body was recovered beside a water body adjacent to the residence of the accused, Bikram Bhagat. Her throat was slit. The locals informed police that the accused, who was known in the locality as a tantrik practicing black magic, was earlier also nabbed by the local people while attempting to kidnap a local minor girl for the purpose of sacrifice. However, he apologised and the local people released him with a strong note of caution. The deceased father of the accused was also known in the locality as a tantrik, though there was no complaint against him ever. The local people also informed the police that after the body of the victim girl was recovered from near the residence of the accused, they rushed to his residence. "However, he tried to escape. Later, in the face of the angry mob, he confessed that he sacrificed the girl as part of the black magic rituals," local resident Achin Haldar told the police. The father of the victim is a migrant worker currently working in Bihar. He has three children, the victim was the eldest, and two sons. The victim's mother has demanded capital punishment for the accused. --IANS src/kvd ( 338 Words) 2022-10-13-20:12:06 (IANS)
Tech giant Amazon's satellite broadband programme -- Project Kuiper -- will launch two prototype satellites on an upcoming United Launch Alliance (ULA) mission to test system performance in space in early 2023. Amazon said it created Project Kuiper to deliver fast, affordable broadband to unserved and underserved communities worldwide. "We couldn't be more excited to join the first launch of ULA's Vulcan Centaur," Rajeev Badyal, vice president of technology for Project Kuiper, said in a statement. "We've already secured 38 Kuiper launches on Vulcan, and using the same launch vehicle for our prototype mission gives us a chance to practice payload integration, processing, and mission management procedures ahead of those full-scale commercial launches," he added. According to the tech giant, the first two satellites -- Kuipersat-1 and Kuipersat-2 -- will be completed later this year, and the company is now planning to deploy both satellites on the first flight of ULA's new Vulcan Centaur rocket in early 2023. "ULA is scheduled to provide 47 launches for our satellite constellation, and using Vulcan Centaur for this mission will give us practical experience working together ahead of those launches," the tech giant said. The rocket will launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, and the company's prototype satellites are scheduled to share the ride with the Peregrine lunar lander, a NASA-funded spacecraft from Astrobotic. "Our prototype mission will help us test how the different pieces of our satellite network work together, adding real-world data from space to results from our extensive lab testing, fieldwork, and simulation," Amazon said. "We will use findings from the mission to help finalise design, deployment, and operational plans for our commercial satellite system, which will provide reliable, affordable broadband to customers around the world," it added. Alongside preparations for this mission, the Project Kuiper team is starting to scale production to support a full deployment. Amazon said its first production satellites -- the more advanced spacecraft that will power its commercial broadband service -- are scheduled to launch on ULA's Atlas V rocket. From there, Amazon will begin to phase in the Vulcan rocket alongside newer heavy-lift rockets from two other space launch companies, Arianespace and Blue Origin. --IANS vc/vd ( 374 Words) 2022-10-13-19:54:05 (IANS)
A jury in the state of Connecticut decided that Alex should pay eight families of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims and one police official USD 965 million in compensatory damages, CNN reported.

Although the decision was announced on Wednesday, the report said the judge in the case has yet to consider punitive damages.

Christopher Mattei, an attorney for the families of Sandy Hook victims, lauded the court verdict.

"For over a month in this courthouse, this jury bore witness to Alex Jones' 10-year attack on the families standing behind me. An attack that made him very rich, an attack that exploited the fears and resentments of his audience, an attack that targeted these families with the lie that they were frauds," Mattei was quoted as saying by CNN.

In December 2012, a 20-year-old man shot and killed 26 people, in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that occurred, in Newtown, Connecticut.

Most of the victims in the incident were children, which was considered one of the deadliest mass shootings in a school.

The shooting prompted renewed debate about gun control in the country, including gun legislation on banning the sale and manufacture of certain types of semi-automatic firearms.

Later, radio host Alex Jones said that the Sandy Hook shooting was "completely fake" and a "giant hoax" perpetrated by opponents of gun rights.

Subsequently, he was sued for defamation by three parents whose children were killed in the shooting. (ANI)
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday hailed the deployment of the cash transfer scheme in India and described it as a "logistical marvel" considering the sheer size of the country. Addressing a Fiscal Monitor Press Briefing, IMF's Deputy Director of Fiscal Affairs Department Paolo Mauro said the global lender has several examples of how companies deploy cash transfers and "there is a lot to learn" from India. The top IMF official made this comment on the sidelines of annual meetings of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG). Mauro said, "From India, there is a lot to learn. There is a lot to learn from some other examples around the world." "We have examples from pretty much every continent and every level of income. If I look at the case of India, it is actually quite impressive," he said. Underlining the sheer size of the country, the top IMF official said it is a "logistical marvel" how these programs that seek to help people who are at low-income levels reach literally hundreds of millions of people. "There are programs that target specifically women. There are programs that target the elderly, farmers," he said in response to a question on India's cash transfer schemes," he added. The IMF official also pointed to the success of a lot of technological innovations in India and the use of the unique identification system, the Aadhaar, in making the cash transfer scheme a success. IMF's Director of Fiscal Affairs Department Vitor Gaspar said, "we are collaborating with India in that context as one of the most inspiring examples of the application of technology to solve very complicated issues of targeting support to the people who need it most." This praise for India's cash transfer scheme comes as the country continues to maintain its position as the fastest-growing major economy in the world. In its latest World Economic Outlook report, the IMF noted, "The outlook for India is for growth of 6.8 per cent in 2022, a 0.6 percentage point downgrade since the July forecast, reflecting a weaker-than-expected outturn in the second quarter (April-June) and more subdued external demand." In its July 2022 report, the IMF had pegged India's GDP growth for 2022 at 7.4 per cent. The IMF latest projection on India's GDP growth is lower than the 7 per cent growth pegged by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the financial year 2022-23. (ANI)
On the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank meetings, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held back-to-back bilaterals with global finance ministers and heads of the top international organizations in Washington DC on topics that centred on important economic issues. The minister held a series of discussions during her bilateral meetings with top officials of several international bodies including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), money laundering and terrorism watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Sitharaman held bilateral talks with UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner where both leaders exchanged views on several key economic issues. The finance minister also held wide-ranging discussions with the FATF President Raja Kuman during her jam-packed scheduled on Wednesday. Moreover, Sitharaman held talks with OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann and South Korea Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-Ho. Sitharaman is on an official visit to the United States to attend the IMF and the World Bank annual meetings, the G20 Finance Ministers and the Central Bank Governor (FMCBG) Meetings. The Finance Minister is holding bilateral meetings with a number of countries from around the world. She is also holding one-on-one meetings with leaders and heads of the European Commission. On the sidelines of IMF-WB, Sitharaman met ministers from Egypt, Bhutan, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and South Korea. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met her Bhutan counterpart Lyonpo Namgay Tshering in Washington and expressed India's wish to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries including hydropower, COVID-19 assistance, among other issues. "Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman meets with Mr Lyonpo Namgay Tshering @BhutanFinance, Finance Minister of Bhutan, on the sidelines of the IMF-WB #AnnualMeetings, in #Washington DC, today," the finance ministry tweeted. "The FM said that India is looking forward to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries to new and emerging areas such as #space, #DigitalTechnologies, financial sector, health sector and tertiary education," the ministry added.Sitharaman reiterated that India would like to take forward and "further deepen India-Bhutan bilateral relations for the development and well-being of our people." The Bhutan Finance Minister, on his part, thanked the Indian government for providing aid in implementing their 12th Five-Year Plan and the additional USD 200mn currency swap arrangement. "Lyonpo Namgay Tshering @BhutanFinance expressed gratitude to GoI for providing assistance in implementing their 12th Five Year Plan and the additional $200mn currency swap arrangement. He also thanked India for the #BhimUPI and #RuPay rollout already done in Bhutan," the ministry said. During the last part of the visit, the Union Finance Minister will attend roundtable meetings with USIBC and USISPF on themes to 'Strengthen Investment and Innovation in India-US Corridor' and "Investing in India's Digital Revolution". These meetings with leading business leaders and investors are aimed at highlighting India's policy priorities and deliberating on measures to facilitate foreign investment by showcasing India's attractiveness as an investment destination. (ANI)
Highlighting that Asia is on course to dominate the 21st century, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev opened the sixth CICA summit in Astana on Thursday stressing the fact that the future of Asia depends on the collective will to strengthen dialogue among cultures and traditions. "The forecast that the 21st century will be the century of Asia is now a reality. But the future of Asia itself depends on our collective willingness to strengthen dialogue among cultures, traditions and worldviews", he said at Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) summit in Astana. "This year marks the 30th anniversary of the initiative to convene this conference. Over this period, it has become a platform for multilateral cooperation and international institution of modern diplomacy. A particularly important task that we have is to achieve sustainability in international relations in the face of emerging unprecedented threats. It is critical to give a new impetus to multilateral mechanisms and to return to open dialogue," he added in his opening remarks. Further, outlining his priorities for the upcoming Chairmanship of CICA, the Kazakhstan President also highlighted global issues such as economic disruptions, environment and climate change. "First, the economic dimension, Disruptions in global supply chains force us to take a revised look at the formation of efficient transit-transport corridors. The environment is becoming increasingly important. Climate change is leading to natural disasters that became more unpredictable and catastrophic. In 2021, 57 million people in Asia were affected by them", he said. Describing the decarbonization of the economy as extremely urgent for Asia, Kazakhstan's President said, "to address this problem, we need investments in unprecedented amounts. In a month, Egypt will host COP27. I propose to hold a High-Level Conference in 2024 in Astana on environmental issues in CICA." Tokayev noted that there is a need of a real working mechanism for food security in the CICA space. "Asia produces 2/3 of the world's agricultural products, but remains vulnerable in this area", he added. The Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) is a multi-national forum for enhancing cooperation towards promoting peace, security and stability in Asia. It is a forum based on the recognition that there is a close link between peace, security and stability in Asia and in the rest of the world. The Member States, while affirming their commitment to the UN Charter, believe that peace and security in Asia can be achieved through dialogue and cooperation leading to a common indivisible area of security in Asia where all states co-exist peacefully and their peoples live in peace, freedom and prosperity. With 27 member states and about half the population our the planet, CICA is the largest regional intergovernmental forum in Asia for enhancing cooperation towards promoting, peace, security and stability in Asia. From India, Meenakshi Lekhi is leading the delegation to the 6th Summit meeting of the Conference of Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) held in Astana, Kazakhstan. As one of the founding members of CICA, India has supported CICA's initiatives, including by organizing and participating in various CICA activities. On the sidelines of the CICA Summit, the Minister will also have some bilateral meetings with senior dignitaries and Ministers from other participating countries, including Kazakhstan, as stated by the Press release by the External Affairs Ministry. India has close and friendly ties with Kazakhstan underpinned by cultural and historical linkages. MoS's visit comes at an opportune time as India marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties with both countries. The visit will further reinforce the momentum in India's bilateral relations with these countries. (ANI)
Helping the country to protect its core interest amid the United States-led sanctions that have for long crippled its economy, Iran's accession to Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) demonstrates Tehran's commitment to Asian multilateralism. Iran signed a memorandum on joining the SCO on September 16 during the summit at Samarkand joining the security bloc, the largest regional body in the world in terms of population governed. This bloc is thriving as a multi-polar body and it is not west-centric, reported the Policy Research Group (POREG). Under Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini and Iran's President, Ebrahim Raisi's administration Iran's policy has been increasingly demonstrating that it is anchored in the East and not the West. To put the writing on the wall, Khomeini had once said, "We are preferring the East to the West and neighbouring countries to remote ones." The SCO accession is seen as a positive step forward for Iran, rather than a diplomatic triumph for the country which has long been battered by west sanctions giving a blow to its economy. Iran can lead the way in emerging as a key partner for India and other Asian nations, especially through the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). The INSTC corridor connects Asia with Europe and helps Asian nations by providing connectivity and helping countries become economic hubs. With this, it is safe to say that Iran is providing SCO members with secure and stable transport routes and is committed to further infrastructure development, reported POREG. One prominent role which Iran plays is by providing access to the strategically important Chabahar Port. India's connectivity with the Central Asian region and Europe can be propelled via Chabahar Port. On June 10, Iran's foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made an announcement that India and Iran had agreed upon further investments in the Chabahar Port. This move is perceived as a very significant one. In another area of cooperation, Iran and India have also agreed upon banking mechanisms for the facilitation of trade. What remains a near possibility is trading in Indian currency. If Chabahar's infrastructure and capacity are accentuated the trade volumes through the INSTC corridor will increase the trade between India and Russia as well. It is pertinent to note that India and Russia have had a low volume of trade despite their friendly relationship. It is because of the limitation in connectivity and logistics. However, the emergence of Chabahar Port is providing a solution. Now in a positive outlook, the route now provides a 40 pc reduction in transport time and a 30 pc cut in logistical costs. This is integral to Iran's long-term strategy for mitigating and bypassing the impact of the United States-led sanctions that have long crippled its economy and constricted its strategic leverage, reported POREG. Amid the Ukraine war, Russia too is reorienting its trading strategy. The Ukraine war has led to western sanctions on Russia and in a bid to bypass them, Russia is also looking out for options. The renewed focus on INSTC and the Chabahar Port and SCO grouping is setting the stage for Iran to become a significant transit and commercial hub reaping revenues. (ANI)
Special envoy for European Union for Afghanistan Tomas Niklasson called for the reopening of schools for Afghan girls above grade six and said that the education of women is essential for progress in Afghanistan, TOLOnews reported. Taking to Twitter, Niklasson wrote, "Schools need to re-open, or open, across Afghanistan, offering girls of all ages access to quality education. The teachers, engineers, doctors, architects, civil servants and business leaders of tomorrow, building a more prosperous #Afghanistan, together with their brothers," as the special envoy voiced his concern on Afghan women's rights. Meanwhile, Rina Amiri, the US special envoy for Afghanistan's human rights and women also condemned the situation of Afghan women in the war-torn nation and said that respecting the rights of all Afghans is vital in Afghanistan. "The Taliban should take note: there is no way to move forward & become a legitimate member of the international community without respecting the rights of all Afghans, particularly girls' right to education. It is the foundation for any progress in Afghanistan," said Rina Amiri in a tweet. However, the spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, Zabiullah Mujahid refuted the claims of the deteriorating situation of Afghan women and said, "Efforts are continuing, officials are trying to find solutions according to Islamic law," TOLOnews reported. Notably, The Taliban were publicly criticized globally after closing Paktia girls' schools after a brief opening. It sparked serious reactions inside and outside of Afghanistan. On Saturday, dozens of girls took to the streets in the centre of Paktia to protest the closing of their schools, reported Tolo News. The videos of the protests went viral on social media and triggered strong reactions from the Afghan public as well as famous politicians and human rights defenders. Several human rights and education activists had urged world leaders in an open letter recently to mount diplomatic pressure on the Taliban to reopen secondary schools for girls in the war-torn country, according to TOLOnews. Moreover, in an earlier statement, HRW's Barr said the Taliban rollback of the rights of women and girls began immediately after they took power on August 15, 2021. Since the Taliban seized power in Kabul last year, the human rights situation has been exacerbated by a nationwide economic, financial and humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale. The Taliban dismantled the system to respond to gender-based violence, created new barriers to women accessing health care, blocked women's aid workers from doing their jobs, and attacked women's rights protesters. With the US troops' withdrawal from the country, large-scale violence has been unleashed creating political uncertainty in different parts of the country. At least 59 per cent of the population is now in need of humanitarian assistance - an increase of 6 million people compared with the beginning of 2021, according to UNAMA. (ANI)
Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Harivansh, on Thursday, exercised his right of reply against remarks made by a Pakistani delegate on the issue of Kashmir at an Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Speaking at a 145th IPU assembly, Harivansh lambast Pakistan and said that it is unfortunate that Pakistan has once again chosen to misuse this platform to propagate false and malicious propaganda against India and distract from today's discussion. Deputy Chairman Rajya Sabha, who is in Rwanda, attending the 145th IPU Assembly said, "We reiterate that Pakistan must immediately cease anti-India cross-border terrorism and shut down its infrastructure of terrorism, stop human rights violations in Pakistan-occupied Jammu Kashmir (PoJK), and refrain from affecting any further material change in the status of PoJK and vacate Indian territories under its illegal occupation." Harivansh said in the August House in the 145th IPU Assembly that the world knows how Osama Bin Laden the face of Global terror was found in Pakistan. Pakistan leadership glorify the terrorist on the floor of the Parliament. It is ironic to see that Pakistan claim the victim of terrorism. This is the country which nurtures the terrorists in the background. The global organization of national parliaments was founded in 1887 and has a total of 178 members. The union empowers parliaments and parliamentarians to promote peace, democracy, and sustainable development through diplomacy. Earlier, sources from Parliament further told ANI that this year, issues such as gender sensitive-parliament, women empowerment, food security and climate change, cyber security, migration of persons due to war, achieving stainable development goal (SDG), response to growing hunger and famine will be discussed during 5 days Assembly at Kigali Rwanda. "Under Harivansh's leadership, the Indian delegation shall present and defend views and efforts made by India on these matters," sources saidInter-Parliamentary Union is an association of all the Parliament of the world in which contemporary issues facing humanity are discussed and future road maps are decided. Earlier, Harivansh went to Jakarta along with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to attend the 8th G20 Parliamentary Speakers' Summit.At the summit, Harivansh spoke on 'Social Inclusion, Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment at the G20 Parliamentary Speaker's meeting on Friday in the Jarkarta Capital of Indonesia. In Jakarta, Deputy Rajya Sabha Chairman met his South Korean counterpart Kim Young Joo and emphasized the importance of the overall relationship between India and the Republic of Korea. (ANI)
As many as eight rockets hit Baghdad's highly fortified Green Zone on Thursday when the Parliament session is underway to elect the country's new president, media reports said. The attack took place when lawmakers gathered for the parliament session near the Iraqi capital's Green Zone, which is home to government buildings and foreign missions, Al Jazeera reported citing the military statement. Iraqi lawmakers reconvened in the afternoon after a quorum was reached to postpone the session, with at least 269 of the 329 members attending the session, Al Jazeera reported. A first round of voting on the presidential nomination resulted in failure to reach the required two-thirds majority. A second round was underway. The rocket strikes took place after an alliance made up of mostly Iran-backed Shiite parties, named Mohammed Shia al-Sudani as their nominee for the premiership submitted a formal letter claiming to be the largest bloc in Parliament. According to the officials, at least five people were injured including members of the security forces in Thursday's attack, according to VOA. The attack was condemned by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi on Twitter, saying "we categorically reject any attempt to obstruct the democratic process." "We support the completion of the constitutional deadlines to end the political crisis," he said. However, there is no immediate claim of responsibility. In an earlier incident that occurred late last month, rockets hit the Green Zone as the lawmakers were about to vote for the deputy speaker of parliament, Al Jazeera reported. Iraqi cleric Al Sadr's supporters stormed the parliament on June 30 earlier and stalled the government formation process when Al-Sudani was first named the nominee. Notably, Al-Sadr's bloc won 73 seats in Iraq's October 2021 election, making it the largest faction in the 329-seat parliament but, ever since the vote, talks to form a new government have stalled, and Al-Sadr stepped down from the political process. A deadlock persists over the establishment of a new government. In 2016 too Al-Sadr's supporters stormed the parliament in a similar fashion. They staged a sit-in and issued demands for political reform after then-Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi sought to replace party-affiliated ministers with technocrats in an anti-corruption drive. Mass protests erupted in 2019 amid public anger over corruption and unemployment and this current protest poses a challenge for the oil-rich country. (ANI)
Despite Vietnam's efforts to improve its relationship with Laos, the latter is moving towards China, as the nation is trying to gain benefits from Beijing's economy and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) infrastructure. This year, Vietnam, to improve its relationship with Laos, went on high-profile visits, extensive cultural exchanges, and signing of several agreements involving various ministries, but the country has its own intention behind its move, The Singapore Post reported. Laos is located adjacent to China, Vietnam's long-time rival and its border with Vietnam is 2,161 kilometres long, about twice as long as its borders with Beijing or Cambodia. Vietnam is aware of this and will make every effort to support the Lao People's Revolutionary Party's (LPRP) ruling. Meanwhile, the LPRP's presentation of unity and independence could be disturbed by China's overt presence, which has the potential to exacerbate populist and ethnic frustrations in the ethnically divided Lao nation. Therefore, in order to avoid these underlying tensions, the LPRP has an incentive to reduce its overdependence on China. The fast emergence of China in Lao territory has caused unease and ambivalence among the general public. The young entrepreneurs of Laos are attracted to China's economy and its language. The growing misgivings about China have also led the country's ruling Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) to abandon its long-standing isolationist policies, according to The Singapore Post. Laos is turning to China, considering its current its current debt crisis. Laos owes about half of its foreign debt to China, which opened the gate for infrastructural projects. China lent the money for the projects such as hydropower plants, publicly guaranteed debt and railway lines. Mostly, the loans for infrastructural projects came from the China Development Bank (CDB) and the Export-Import (Exim) Bank of China. The Covid situation also played an important role in affecting the Laos economy. Due to the COVID situation, the country saw a massive decline in tourism revenue, a breakdown of supply chains, and a loss of up to USD 100 million in remittances from workers forced to return from Thailand have added to the financial cost of the pandemic. This contrasts with Vietnam's more upbeat outlook, which has benefited from businesses moving there for both political and economic reasons. Laos also has the most direct access to the sea through Vietnam. Laos will not have many reasons to turn away from its ally as long as Vietnam's economy is still competitive, reported The Singapore Post. The Lao public has also taken notice of the increasing influx of Chinese goods and infrastructure into Laos. Chinese-led BRI infrastructure projects have a history of displacing local populations and frequently use Chinese labourers and supervisors. The local economy suffers, and as a result, conflicts between Chinese workers and locals worsen, and residents' perceptions of their government, which knowingly permits these disruptive enterprises, are strained. In the end, Laos is significant to China, but crucial to Vietnam. China finds Laos' domestic issues inconvenient, but Vietnam is concerned about them, according to The Singapore Post. (ANI)
The decision came after a months-long trial to decide Nikolas Cruz's fate and is not an official sentence, CNN reported.

However, Judge Elizabeth Scherer is expected to issue the gunman's proper sentence on November 1.

According to CNN, the families of the gunman's victims bowed their heads as the verdict forms for each of the 17 people he killed were read in court Thursday morning.

The Parkland shooting accused, now 24, pleaded guilty last October to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder for the shooting.

14 students were killed in the incident and three school staff members were killed, and several others were injured.

The shooter's defence attorney defended Cruz and said that he had neurodevelopmental disorders stemming from prenatal alcohol exposure, claiming his birth mother had used drugs and drank alcohol while pregnant with him, CNN reported.

Meanwhile, several school walkouts were cancelled districtwide in Marion County after the shooting.

On February 14, 2018, at least 17 people - children and adults - were killed in a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Several people, primarily students across the United States also held a "March for Our Lives" rally pressing for stricter gun control measures after the attack. (ANI)
Kazakh Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko has characterized India's position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict as 'balanced' and hailed bilateral ties between Kazakhstan and India. "India has taken a very balanced position in the situation since the beginning of this year presenting its views to the international partners and the best way to resolve problems is to reach out through diplomacy," the deputy minister said in an exclusive interview with ANI. This comment came in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict which has seen differences in several countries' positions. Consistent with its well thought national position, India has abstained from some of the UN resolutions on the conflict. On the bilateral ties, the Kazakh minister said both countries share a long and historical relationship that goes back to the time of the great silk road. "In recent years, we are seeing a very interesting development in our relationship. There is appreciation in Kazakstan for Indian culture," he said. Amidst the geo-strategic turbulence in the region, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced early presidential elections for November 20 this year. Tokayev called for an early presidential election and announced the move to bring back the old name of the country's capital. Speaking on the elections and how its relationship with India can be strengthened between India and Kazakhstan, the Deputy Foreign Minister said that there will be no change in the country's foreign policy. "Kazakstan's foreign policy approach will not change and we remain committed to developing a multilateral forum policy," he said. In the past few years, India has been actively engaging with the countries in the Central Asia region, including Kazakhstan. Earlier this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the 1st India-Central Asia Summit, with the participation of the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, in a virtual format on January 27. This is the first engagement of its kind between India and the Central Asian countries at the level of heads of government, according to the annual report of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The first India-Central Asia Summit is a reflection of India's growing engagement with the Central Asian countries, which are a part of India's "Extended Neighbourhood". (ANI)
A look at the shareholders of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) can tell us which group is most powerful. With 84% stake, institutions possess the maximum shares in the company. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Institutional investors endured the highest losses after the company's market cap fell by US$109m last week. However, the 0.5% one-year return to shareholders might have softened the blow. We would assume however, that they would be on the lookout for weakness in the future.

Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Associated Banc-Corp, beginning with the chart below.

Check out our latest analysis for Associated Banc-Corp

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Associated Banc-Corp?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Associated Banc-Corp. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Associated Banc-Corp's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Associated Banc-Corp. BlackRock, Inc. is currently the largest shareholder, with 12% of shares outstanding. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 10% and 7.0% of the stock.

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We also observed that the top 10 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.

Insider Ownership Of Associated Banc-Corp

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group.

Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in Associated Banc-Corp. It is a pretty big company, so it is generally a positive to see some potentially meaningful alignment. In this case, they own around US$68m worth of shares (at current prices). Most would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 14% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Associated Banc-Corp. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Associated Banc-Corp better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Associated Banc-Corp that you should be aware of before investing here.

But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter future.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

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.

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January 6th Committee Vice Chair Representative Liz Cheney, a Republican from Wyoming, condemned former President Donald Trump's actions surrounding his attempted coup. Representative Cheney said this during the most recent and final January 6th Committee hearing. The Committee was established to investigate what occurred on the fateful day that an armed coup attempted an insurrection over the United States Government by breaching the Capitol building.

CHENEY: As you view the evidence today, also consider this: President Trump new from unassailable sources that his election fraud claims were false. He admitted he had lost the election. He took actions consistent with that belief. Claims that President Trump actually thought the election was stolen are not supported by fact and are not a defense. There is no defense that Donald Trump was duped or irrational, no president can defy the rule of law and act this way in a constitutional republic, period.
Jeremy Her (GoFundMe/Salina Her )

A 12-year-old was fatally shot during a hunting accident in Minnesota.

The boy was wounded by his uncle while hunting squirrels, the Cass County Sheriffs Office said in a statement shared on Facebook this week. He survived the 9 October tragic accident and was airlifted to receive medical care but later succumbed to his injuries.

His sister, Salina Her, identified him as Jeremy Her, a happy boy who love[d] eating hot Cheetos and Korean spicy noodles, on a GoFundMe page created to cover funeral costs.

... my little brother was shot right behind his left ear and rushed to the hospital. He was then put on life support because he was pronounced brain-dead upon arrival, Ms Her wrote. The doctor couldnt save his life due to the bullet hitting his spinal cord and causing him to bleed out inside. At [9.50]pm my parents decided to pull the plug on his life support.

The sheriffs department said that deputies received a report of a hunting accident in Moose Lake Township around 8.20am on Sunday.

Deputies learned when they arrived at the scene that a family had been hunting in the area and that a 47-year-old man accidentally shot Jeremy. Officers provided first aid until the boy was taken to a nearby roadway to meet paramedics.

He was then transported by helicopter to a Twin Cities area hospital with serious life-threatening injuries and died that same day.

Jeremy Her (GoFundMe/Salina Her)

[A review] indicates that the incident is a result of a hunting accident and remains under investigation. Assisting on the scene were Motley Fire and Rescue, North Memorial Ambulance and Air Care, a statement by police read.

Ms Her wrote on the GoFundMe page that her brother was just a few months shy of turning 13.

Now we have to spend the holiday[s] without him and his birthday will be the hardest, she wrote. We kept hoping that maybe this was a dream and well wake up from it all but his presence is missed, we miss his voice and his laughter.
In this article, we discuss 13 best industrial stocks to buy now. If you want to read about some more industrial stocks, go directly to 5 Best Industrial Stocks To Buy Now.

The United States economy in 2022 has not been as vibrant as 2021. In fact, soaring inflation and rising interest rates have combined to raise recession fears and resulted in a broad selloff at the stock market, pushing down benchmark indexes and turning investors away from even value-oriented sectors such as financials, industrials, materials and energy. However, as travel demand picks up again, inflation cools down, and infrastructure spending ramps up, industrial stocks in particular seem well-positioned to make a strong comeback.

Some of the best industrial stocks to buy in this context include TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE:TDG), Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP), and 3M Company (NYSE:MMM). Another catalyst for industrial stocks is the Russian war in Ukraine that has led to increased defense spending around the world. A quick solution to the war seems increasingly unlikely. Thus, aerospace and defense stocks are poised to outperform the broader industry in the coming months.

Our Methodology

The companies that operate in the industrial sector were selected for the list. In order to provide readers with some context for their investment choices, the business fundamentals and analyst ratings for the stocks are also discussed. Data from around 900 elite hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in the second quarter of 2022 was used to identify the number of hedge funds that hold stakes in each firm.

13 Best Industrial Stocks To Buy Now

Photo by Lenny Kuhne on Unsplash

Best Industrial Stocks To Buy Now

13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 34

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment worldwide. It is one of the best industrial stocks to invest in. On August 24, Bank of America analyst Andrew Obin reinstated coverage of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) stock with a Neutral rating and a $220 price target, stressing that the rating balances an improving long-term story with near-term macro headwinds.

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At the end of the second quarter of 2022, 34 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $366 million in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW), compared to 36 in the previous quarter worth $426 million.

Just like TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE:TDG), Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP), and 3M Company (NYSE:MMM), Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) is one of the best industrial stocks to buy now according to hedge funds.

12. Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35

Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH) manufactures and sells motion and control technologies and systems for various mobile, industrial, and aerospace markets worldwide. It is one of the top industrial stocks to invest in. Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH) on September 16 sold its Aircraft Wheel and Brake Division, located in Avon, to Kaman Corporation. Aircraft Wheel & Brake has been a trusted provider of mission-critical wheel and brake technology products and solutions for more than 80 years.

On October 03, Barclays analyst Julian Mitchell kept an Overweight rating on Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH) stock and lowered the price target to $320 from $340. Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Connecticut-based firm Viking Global is a leading shareholder in Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH), with 3 million shares worth more than $755.5 million.

In its Q2 2022 investor letter, Oakmark Funds, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH), a U.S. company that specializes in motion and control technologies, is suffering from what we believe are investor misunderstandings and misjudgements, despite the efforts of the companys unusually strong management team. In our opinion, since his promotion in 2015, CEO Thomas Williams has vastly improved operations and shifted the product portfolio to longer cycled, higher growth, higher margin and higher return end markets. The results are impressive. Margins, returns and earnings have increased substantially. With the expected closing of the Meggitt acquisition in the September quarter, the highly depressed aerospace segment will be its largest end market. We anticipate a rebound in aerospace revenue, whichcombined with the companys strong position in attractive businesses, including clean technologies and factory automationshould accelerate revenue growth. Parker Hannifin trades at a discount to other high-quality industrials, which we believe is unwarranted since its growth and returns should be similar or better. At a low-teens multiple of next years normalized cash earnings, Parker Hannifin is an attractive investment, in our view.

11. Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) designs, manufactures, distributes, and services diesel and natural gas engines, electric and hybrid powertrains, and related components worldwide. It is one of the premier industrial stocks to invest in. Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) recently revealed that it had been selected by Atura Power to design and manufacture a 20MW electrolyzer system for its Niagara Hydrogen Center in Niagara Falls. The proton exchange membrane electrolysis system of the former will become the centrepiece of Atura Powers Niagara Hydrogen Centre, which has been manufactured at its Mississauga facility.

On August 18, JPMorgan analyst Tami Zakaria reinstated coverage of Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) stock with a Neutral rating and lowered the price target to $245 from $264, remarking that Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) will be in investment mode over the near and medium term as it develops zero emission solutions for commercial vehicles.

At the end of the second quarter of 2022, 36 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $462.8 million in Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI), compared to 35 in the preceding quarter worth $584 million.

10. Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 39

Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN) operates as a power management company worldwide. It is one of the major industrial stocks to invest in. Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN) recently won a large follow-on order for the US network of EV charging stations with 150 sites which will help it grab a larger market share in the fast-expanding EV charging business in the United States.

On August 04, Citi analyst Timothy Thein kept a Buy rating on the Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN) stock and raised the price target to $170 from $150, stating that the company was well-positioned to weigh powerful worldly tailwinds by its end market mix.

Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Chicago-based investment firm Citadel Investment Group is a leading shareholder in Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN), with 1.6 million shares worth more than $205 million.

In its Q1 2022 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Eaton Corporation plc (NYSE:ETN) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

We also added to Eaton (NYSE:ETN), a market leader in the electrical equipment industry and a position begun late in 2021. Eatons products enable the electrification of the power grid and, importantly, EV charging infrastructure. Share prices should benefit as EVs grow and investments increase to improve grid efficiency and resilience.

9. General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42

General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. It is one of the most prominent industrial stocks to invest in. General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) has been a strong performer over the past year as Russia's war on Ukraine has increased defense spending expectations. Its Columbia-class submarine will be a significant growth driver as it is critical to the US Navy's future strategy. General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) was also recently awarded a $532 million cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to a previously awarded contract for Lead Yard Support and Development Studies and Design efforts related to Virginia-class submarines.

On September 28, Wells Fargo analyst Matthew Akers kept an Overweight rating on General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) stock and lowered the price target to $249 from $256, noting the firm was investing to increase Gulfstream jet production.

Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Chicago-based investment firm Longview Asset Management is a leading shareholder in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD), with 30 million shares worth more than $6.6 billion.

In its Q2 2022 investor letter, Oakmark Funds, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

Finally, General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)s defense business enabled the stock to resist the bear markets downward pressure. We eliminated the position to fund more attractive holdings.

8. Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42

Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) operates as a diversified technology and manufacturing company worldwide. It is one of the elite industrial stocks to invest in. Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) recently announced that it would soon debut a new ethanol-to-jet fuel processing technology. The firm said that producers can convert corn-based, cellulosic, or sugar-based ethanol into sustainable aviation fuel by the use of its new ethanol-to-jet fuel processing technology.

On October 10, Citi analyst Andrew Kaplowitz kept a Buy rating on Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) stock and lowered the price target to $213 from $222.

At the end of the second quarter of 2022, 42 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $1 billion in Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON), compared to 50 in the previous quarter worth $1.76 billion.

In its Q3 2021 investor letter, Distillate Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

The largest exited positions were Oracle, which outperformed significantly, and Texas Instruments and Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON), which were roughly flat versus the market in the quarter but were edged out for inclusion by other stocks that became even more attractively valued.

7. Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 45

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines. Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) products and services are experiencing a strong demand as the US government invests heavily to modernize American infrastructure. In addition to the healthy demand in the end markets, elevated backlog levels should support revenue growth for the firm in the near term.

On October 06, JPMorgan analyst Tami Zakaria kept an Overweight rating on Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) stock and raised the price target to $220 from $205, noting that the end user demand description remains positive for the firm.

At the end of the second quarter of 2022, 45 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $3.2 billion in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT), compared to 54 in the previous quarter worth $4 billion.

In its Q1 2022 investor letter, Diamond Hill Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

We also initiated a position in Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), one of the worlds leading manufacturers of construction and mining equipment. Its a company we know well, as we have owned it in our large cap portfolio for quite some time. Recent share price weakness provided an opportunity for us to add it to our large cap concentrated portfolio at an attractive discount to our estimate of intrinsic value. We believe Caterpillar stands to benefit from increased capital investment supported by a healthier/recovering end market environment, particularly in construction and mining.

6. Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 47

Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR), a technology and engineering company, provides various solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and residential markets. Recent reports indicate that the firm is in talks with Blackstone to sell its commercial and residential solutions business. Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) provides the necessary items that are required to make homes comfortable and energy efficient. Its products range from thermostats and water dispensers to heating ventilation and air conditioning monitors.

On October 10, RBC Capital analyst Deane Dray kept an Outperform rating on Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) stock and raised the price target to $102 from $96, noting that the management did a commendable job with associating the portfolio in/outs as well as the elemental performance and modified guidance in the past few months.

At the end of the second quarter of 2022, 47 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $1.2 billion in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR), compared to 45 in the preceding quarter worth $1.4 billion.

Along with TransDigm Group Incorporated (NYSE:TDG), Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP), and 3M Company (NYSE:MMM), Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) is one of the best industrial stocks to buy now according to hedge funds.

Click to continue reading and see 5 Best Industrial Stocks To Buy Now.

Suggested Articles:

Disclosure. None. 13 Best Industrial Stocks To Buy Now is originally published on Insider Monkey.
A 14-year-old was locked up for making a prank call about a shooting at his high school in Columbia, the Richland County Sheriffs Department said Thursday.

The sheriffs department said it received a report at about 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, saying there would be a shooting at W.J. Keenan High School. Thats off Wilson Boulevard, in the area between Interstate 20 and Interstate 77.

The threat was investigated and determined to be a false call, the sheriffs department said in a news release.

Keenan High School

Deputies determined the call came from a 14-year-old student who attends the Richland 1 high school. He was arrested and charged with aggravated breach of peace and unlawful communication, according to the release.

The student was booked into the juvenile wing of the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, the sheriffs department said.

The teens name was not made public because of his age.

Information about a specific punishment from the school and Richland 1 was not available.

Current Events

This is the second time this week a Richland 1 student was arrested, as charges were filed against a Lower Richland High School student for a similar incident.

I hope these students are receiving this message loud and clear, Sheriff Leon Lott said in the release. We are taking these calls seriously and sending these students to jail. I also hope parents are discussing the severity of these false calls with their children and make sure they understand they will be held accountable.

On Tuesday, a 16-year-old student was charged for making a prank call about a shooting at Lower Richland High School. It was determined to be a false call, the sheriffs department said.

These acts not only disrupt school operations, but they also create a high level of anxiety for our students, staff and parents. Hoax calls and social media posts will not be tolerated by the district or law enforcement, and students who are found to be responsible will face consequences for their actions, Richland 1 Superintendent Craig Witherspoon said in the release. Students must accept and recognize the important role they play in helping to keep our campuses safe. We will continue to stress that to our students and parents.

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Also on Tuesday, another Richland 1 school was targeted in a threat.

A social media post threatened gun violence at C.A. Johnson High, the Columbia Police Department said. While the threat was not credible, the school was placed on modified lockdown and more officers were sent to patrol the inside and outside of the building to protect students, teachers and other staff.

The incident comes the week after similar hoax calls about shootings were made at multiple schools across South Carolina.

The sheriffs department said its aware of threats circulating on social media mentioning Columbia and Richland County schools, but hasnt found any credible information to support them to this point.

All threats are taken seriously and investigated as we receive them, the sheriffs department said.
When Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh were captured by Russians in Ukraine over the summer and later held in a "black site" for a month, where the two Alabama men said they endured daily torture and lived on spoiled bread and dirty water, they expected death at any moment.

"I am going to die from this situation, or they are going to kill me," Drueke said he thought during that time.

"We prayed for death. We just wanted to die. We just wanted it to end," Huynh added.

In their first broadcast interview together, the two U.S. military veterans told ABC News that, although they were from the same state, they did not know each other when they met in Ukraine, where they had traveled to offer their services, either in humanitarian work or training troops.

The interview with Drueke and Huynh will air Thursday on "Good Morning America" and across ABC News. "Good Morning America" airs at 7 a.m. on ABC.

PHOTO: Andy Huynh and Alexander Drueke are interviewed by ABC News, Oct. 12, 2022. (ABC News)

MORE: US veteran held by Russian-backed forces in Ukraine says captors want to negotiate release: Family

"I did not go over there to fight specifically. But I understood that that was a very real possibility," Drueke said. What he and Huynh shared, he said, was concern that the Russian invasion of Ukraine would be successful and then spread across Europe.

"We could see that there was a very good possibility this could grow into something much, much larger ... We didn't know how big this was going to get. So it was best to stop it early," he said. Drueke, 40, retired from the U.S. Army after 12 years, during which he served two tours of duty in Iraq and ended his career as a platoon sergeant.

Huynh, 27, a Marine who was living outside Huntsville with his girlfriend, was working as a delivery driver and going to school when he watched the invasion on television. Volunteering to fight was justified, he said, to prevent "World War III."

"It felt wrong just to sit back and do nothing," he said. For the following month, the invasion "kept gnawing" at him until he was losing sleep. "I didn't want to do nothing. The situation in Ukraine was all I could really think about."

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PHOTO: Alexander Drueke and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh are Americans who had volunteered to join the Ukrainian forces. (Drueke Family | Joy Black)

MORE: Russia-Ukraine live updates: Russia kidnaps Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant official

Both men arrived in Ukraine in early April. They entered the country separately through Poland and, through different circumstances, ended up serving in a unit for Ukraine's foreign legion. Their capture two months later, on June 9, resulted from a mission gone wrong. Although both men said they would not offer specific details in order to not compromise Ukraine's ongoing efforts, they said it did take place during a drone reconnaissance mission, which involved scouting areas for intelligence. "What could go wrong went wrong," Drueke said.

"It was very unfortunate how it played out, but just everything went wrong," and the two men found themselves facing a battalion where a firefight broke out, he said. They evaded capture for eight hours after running through thick woods where they dodged active drones and land mines they said. Eventually, they said they were surrounded, ordered to their knees, their hands bound, and bags thrust over their heads. "We were pretty darn sure they were going to execute us right then and there," Drueke said.

Both men were moved to outposts until they ended up in a "black site," where they said they were interrogated, beaten, deprived of sleep and forced for hours to sit blindfolded, on their knees, and with their hands across their necks. Drueke's ribs were forcibly cracked.

PHOTO: A photo that appears to show missing American soliders Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh in captivity is being circulated and is being investigated by the State Dept. (Handout)

What kept them going was thinking of their families. Huynh got engaged days before leaving while Drueke, who is not married, left behind an extended family and his dog, Diesel. While imprisoned, they said their sole objective was to look out for the other person.

"We were bonded for life," Drueke said. "My mission was to keep Andy alive, and his mission was to keep me alive. And that's all it was."

MORE: Russia releases 2 Americans captured fighting in Ukraine

The men spent 105 days in captivity before their release in late September, along with eight other foreign-born volunteer fighters from England and Canada and more than 200 Ukrainian soldiers. During their captivity, Russians forced them to make propaganda videos, give interviews to journalists sympathetic to Russia and contact different government agencies in the U.S., including the State Department. Drueke, who his captors chose as the duo's spokesperson, was allowed to make frequent calls to his family in Tallahatchie. Those calls, Drueke said, were made under duress.

"The guys beating me were in the room with me," he said.

While being transported, their bodies were stacked on top of one another, they said, along with other prisoners, in the vehicle. In prison, they suffered solitary confinement. Their captors, they said, were wrongly convinced they were spies. "They wanted to believe that we were something special," Huynh said.

MORE: American dies while fighting in Ukraine

Now home, the men are inseparable, as are their families, who bonded in their absence. They said they have no regrets and are open to returning to Ukraine to help rebuild once the conflict ends. Drueke said he believes their capture helped the Biden administration open channels to Ukraine that hadn't been opened yet. "I hope that we had an impact," he said. Civilians remain imprisoned in the same locations they were kept for more than three months.

"We feel guilty that we got traded and they are still there ... That's one of the worst feelings you can have," Huynh said.

While Ukrainians will need continued humanitarian help for years, they said they're convinced the country will emerge victorious over Russia.

"[Russian President Vladimir] Putin underestimated them ... They are very united as a people. They are not going to give up, no matter what," Drueke said.

'Prayed for death': Americans freed from Russia claim torture at 'black site' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
A Phoenix Police cruiser can be seen.

Phoenix police were investigating a collision involving two vehicles that left one man dead and one woman injured Wednesday afternoon on Baseline Road near 27th Street.

Police believe around 5 p.m. the man, later identified as George Ybarra, 58, was traveling west on Baseline Road when he rear ended the woman's vehicle, which was stopped in traffic, according to Phoenix police.

Ybarra was pronounced dead on scene.

The woman who was driving the other vehicle was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police said she didn't show signs of impairment.

Reach breaking news reporter Angela Cordoba Perez at Angela.CordobaPerez@Gannett.com or on Twitter @AngelaCordobaP.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 2-vehicle collision leaves man dead, woman injured in south Phoenix
New York has 19 new 2022 New York Michelin-Starred restaurants in Brooklyn and Manhattan, from a tiny tasting menu operation in Brooklyn Heights to pan-Asian with desserts in Midtown West. In total, 73 restaurants received Michelin Star status in the 2022 Michelin Guide New York. Michelin announced the list on October 07, 2022.

For the first time, the number of Michelin-starred restaurants went up to 73 from 68 last year. However, the Michelin Guide New York shows the lack of Black representation on its list in a city that is home to the worlds largest Black population of any city outside Africa. Only one of the awarded restaurants is located outside ManhattanClover Hill in Brooklyn Heights. Chef Charlie Mitchell owns the restaurant. He is the first Black chef to be awarded a Michelin star in New York.

The restaurant opened in 2019 but suffered starts and stops due to the pandemic. From Long Island, fluke ceviche jolted with lime zest and sweet melon to Peekytoe crab salad wrapped in corn gelee and set in a pool of warm, silky corn veloute, expect to find vibrant, seasonal eating that never once feels fussy or onerous.

My initial inspiration for cooking came from my grandmother. She showed me how special cooking can be and how easily a good meal can change someones day. The time and effort she put into cooking for family and friends have always been impressive, Mitchell told Michelin Guide.

Here are the 10 new 2022 New York Michelin-Starred restaurants:

Al Coro (Chelsea) - Two MICHELIN Stars

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Led by Chef Melissa Rodriguez, Al Coro offers a fixed menu of modern Italian dishes with subtle nods to New York.

SAGA (Financial District) - Two MICHELIN Stars

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Located at 70 Pine Street, a landmark tower that rises over 60 stories, Saga is led by Chef James Kent who presents diners with compositions that embrace luxury, seasonality and urbane inspiration.

Clover Hill (Brooklyn Heights) - One MICHELIN Star

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Located in a residential street in Brooklyn Heights, Clover Hill is led by the talented chef Charlie Mitchell, the first Black chef to be awarded a Michelin star in New York.

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He offers dishes with irresistible suaveness and confidence, making the most out of top-rate ingredients, delicious sauces and thoughtful combinations.

Dirt Candy (Lower East Side) - One MICHELIN Star

Pode ser uma imagem de sobremesa

Chef Amanda Cohen offers vegetable- and plant-based cooking at her Lower East Side flagship. Dirt Candy is known as a pioneer in ethical eating with refined technique. A single tasting menu yields a breadth of dishes.

Frevo (Greenwich Village) - One MICHELIN Star

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Chef Franco Sampogna and his team provide Frevo guests with a tasting menu of contemporary French dishes.

Icca (Tribeca) - One MICHELIN Star

Icca is the first Asian restaurant on the list. Led by Chef Kazushige Suzuki, the restaurant offers fish entirely from Japan and keeps its nigiri traditional.

Joomak Banjum (Koreatown) - One MICHELIN Star

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A Korean restaurant on the list! Located at the edge of Koreatown, Joomak Banjum is led by Chef Jiho Kim and pastry maven Kelly Nam who merge global flavors into their approachable tasting that riffs on familiar dishes like jajangmyeon, made here with squid ink-sourdough noodles.

L'Abeille (Tribeca) - One MICHELIN Star

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LAbeille is led by Chef Mitsunobu Nagae, who offers a union of French cuisine with Japanese flavors.

Le Pavillon (Midtown East) - One MICHELIN Star

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Led by Daniel Boulud, Le Pavillion prepares a contemporary, globally inflected carte dominated by seafood and vegetable-focused items.

Mari (Hell's Kitchen) - One MICHELIN Star

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Located at Hells Kitchen, Mari is led by Chef Sungchul Shim. He reimagines the hand roll genre as a tasting menu primed with top-notch ingredients and Korean flavors.
These incredible designers make the most unique suits you will absolutely want to wear them the next time you need to make a fashion statement at the beach.

It is no surprise that some of the best swimwear designers in the world hail from places like Brazil and Mexico, given those countries mild climates and beautiful coastlines. Household name Johanna Ortiz (from Colombia) and new fave Sara Cristina (from Venezuela) are just two of a strong group of Latinx designers making their mark globally with vibrant pieces inspired from their surroundings and culture.

These designers not only hold where they come from in high regard and source material and hire artisans locally, but most also want to ensure a better future and focus on being sustainable. Below are 21 incredible Latinx brands we are highlighting during National Latinx Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15). You will absolutely want to wear them the next time you need to make a fashion statement at the beach.

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Catalina Alvarez and Mariana Hinestroza launched swimwear line Agua Bendita in 2003 after getting rave reviews from friends and family for suits made from leftover scraps they had found at a local clothing factory. The two women from Medellin grew the business with the help of female artisans from around Colombia into what it is today. They also expanded and launched their environmentally conscious sister brand Agua by Agua Bendita in 2018.

The Cali, Colombia, native incorporates her signature style of ruffles, prints and sculpted silhouettes into her swimsuits. Ortizs designs can be seen around the world, but there is always a slice of home in each of her looks from using Colombian artisans to working in the aesthetic of the countrys beautiful surroundings.

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Designer Patricia Bonaldi finds much of her inspiration in her ready-to-wear and swim collections from her native country, Brazil, and, more specifically, her town of Uberlandia. The bathing suits are great for swimming but also are so stylish to be worn after the beach.

Colombian Silvia de Brigard studied design in Paris and then returned home in 2015 to launch her successful swimwear line, Verdelimon. Influenced by the natural landscapes of her travels and homeland, her collections are always vibrant and a tribute to the women who wear them.

Sara Cristina is a family affair launched by siblings Sara Villasmil and David De Lima in 2016 in Venezuela. Though they manufacture the line in New York City, the samples are made by women in their home country. And to keep on the theme of being sustainable, 90 percent of the fabrics used are Econyl.

Each of Maygel Coronels bathing suits are a masterpiece. With their dramatic ruffles or billowy sleeves, the Colombian-born designer has elevated swimwear to a new level while keeping them comfortable and practical in fabric and cuts.

Cuban-born and Miami-raised, Lourdes Luli Hanimian created Luli Fama in 2003 with her brother-in-law, Augusto Hanimian. Their designs are universally flattering and inspired by Miamis energy and the culture of Cuba.

Luciana Martinez fell in love with fashion at a young age. At 6, she started sewing clothes for her dolls, then created pieces for family and friends. Growing up in Brazil, bathing suits were like a uniform, but she felt the designs could use an upgrade, which is how she came to be a swimwear designer. Lybethras means source of muses, and she pulls from many for her eco-friendly label.

Colombian sisters Amalia and Manuela Sierra launched this line in 2033, with the signature of their prints motivated by their roots. Many of their styles and cuts are reversible, which means you get two suits for the price of one.

Brazilian Benny Rosset grew up in the fashion world and always had an interest in swimwear. Since 1990, he continues to pay close attention to every detail that goes into each collection and maintains an air of exclusivity with Cia. Maritima.

Founded by Isabella Espinoza in 2015, Baobab is a restorative brand that recycles old fishing nets and plastic bottles as well as recycled polyester and turns them into amazing pieces that will last for years to come. The shimmery fabrics and colors are swoonworthy and reminiscent of Colombias coastline.

Katia Barros and Marcello Bastos launched Farm Rio to celebrate the feminine spirit and their colorful Rio de Janeiro. From their beginnings in a small fashion market in 1997 to being a global powerhouse, they always keep Brazil in their mind with everything they do and even give back. With each purchase, a tree is planted in the Amazon rainforest.

Named after Playa Juan de Dios on Colombias Pacific coast, Maria Valencia wanted her swimwear line to highlight the countrys beauty. She employs women who use artisanal methods and recyclable fabrics to make each suit.

Carla Pallaress carefree nature and lust for adventure are the ethos behind Yemaya Swimwear. The Paraguayan designer created a line that is functional for the active beachgoer as well as those who like to lounge.

Puntamar is where the land meets the sea and was started by Maria Paula Ardila and Paola Arango in Colombia in 2016. Their avant-garde swimwear is for the woman who likes to be fashion forward, even with their swimsuits.

Alejandra Priale graduated from Parsons School of Design and founded Aguaviva in 2017. The Peruvian designer finds inspiration in 90s muses as well as modern beach glamour. The suits are flattering, sexy and one of a kind.

In 2018, two friends Isa and Stephanie decided to join forces and enter the fashion world with Dos Marquesas. Their suits celebrate their individuality as well as their friendship. They constantly reference Colombias nature and beauty in their styles.

Nicole Acosta and Rocio Borre are lifelong friends who conceptualized what they wanted their swim line Bahama Mama to be based on the attraction of the Colombian coast and the Caribbean lifestyle. Through their brand, they also are committed to being sustainable so that the beaches where their designs are worn continue to thrive for years to come.

Travel and continually chasing the sun in new destinations are the premise behind Maria Alejandra Cajamarcas Bahia Maria. The swimwear and RTW company that is made in Colombia is for the modern woman who likes to look elegant while taking risks in fashion.

French-Mexican Mariel Bouffier wanted to create a line that pairs clean, contemporary silhouettes with luxe fabrics and a sensual fit. Located in Mexico City, the designs are for the modern metropolitan woman who loves to jet-set and be fabulous.

Founder Paula Daza-Chenu merged the art and fashion worlds through her 100% ethical Lume Swimwear brand. Each season, the Colombian-born designer releases collections using some of the most talented artists work as the prints. Currently Mexican-born Paulo Villagran and Eugenia Ruiz are two of the painters with whom Daza-Chenu has collaborated.
Judy delivers hats

South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind

With autumn approaching, it occurred to Julia "Judy" Pitts that each student at South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind might appreciate a warm, colorful hat.

"I've been crocheting for over 50 years," Pitts said in a statement. "During the pandemic, I made lots of hats with all sorts of designs and characters kids love, and when I was thinking through places I could donate them to, the students at the South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind (SCSDB) came to mind."

On October 3rd, the 82-year-old delivered more than 170 crocheted hats for the students at the Spartanburg school.

South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind

South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind

"I love to see the kids," Pitts told The Post and Courier. "This makes my heart happy."

From hats with pompoms and pizza patches to hats crocheted into the shapes of pigs, foxes, and bears, every student at SCSDB received a hat that was special for them.

"The SCSDB Foundation is so grateful to Judy for thinking of our students this time of year," Sam Hook, Executive Director of the SCSDB Foundation, said in a release. "Smiles have been delivered all across campus because of these handmade hats."

This isn't the first child-focused organization that Pitts has donated her creations to.

In the past 50 years she's donated to a children's cancer center in Greenville, an orphanage in South Dakota, and Connie Maxwell Children's Ministries in Greenwood.

"Everybody has talents," she told The Post and Courier. "It's just about putting them out there and going forward."
From left: Republican nominee Christine Drazan, unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson, and Democratic candidate Tina Kotek. Credit - Jaime ValdezPool/Pamplin Media Group/AP (2); Craig MitchelldyerAP

Oregon hasnt elected a Republican governor in 40 years. The Beaver State is typically considered a haven for progressive policies, liberal drug laws, and broad social supports. But this year, Republicans might finally break their losing streak, and the race has put a spotlight on abortion rights in a state where many assumed the issue was settled.

Thats in part because Oregons race is a three-way competition among a trio of women candidates who all served in the state legislature. Republican Christine Drazan, the former minority leader of the Oregon House of Representatives, is locked in a close race against Democrat Tina Kotek, the former speaker of the Oregon House, who could become the first openly lesbian governor in the U.S. Betsy Johnson, who spent decades in the state legislature as a moderate Democrat and is now running as an unaffiliated candidate touting her support for gun rights and bashing wokeness, has complicated the political calculus. Johnsons campaign started strong as she blasted both of her opponents as too extreme, but now she is trailing far behind the other two candidates, and Democrats worry she could be a spoiler that will hand state control to the GOP.

The contest is now rated a toss-up by both Cook Political Report and Sabatos Crystal Ball, and recent polling averages showing Drazan barely ahead of Kotek. With all three candidates running well-funded campaigns, the next governor may not need to hit even 40% support, and the race has turned into something of a referendum on the effectiveness of candidates messaging on abortion post-Roe v. Wade.

In another election cycle, reproductive rights would not likely be a major focus in Oregon, which already has some of the most progressive abortion legislation in the country. But since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization in June, the topic has become a top concern for many voters, and Kotek is now sounding the alarm that her two opponents could jeopardize abortion policy in the state and across the region. Drazan is endorsed by Oregon Right to Life and has said she would stand up for life by vetoing legislation designed to push Oregon further outside the mainstream, while Johnson identifies as pro-choice but opposes spending state money to support out-of-state abortion seekers. Polling shows that Oregonians are more supportive of abortion than Americans nationally: 65% of likely voters in Oregon identified as pro-choice in a DHM Research poll in August, compared with 55% nationally in a Gallup poll from June. And 72% of Oregonians said abortion should be legal in most or all cases, according to a July poll from the nonpartisan Oregon Values and Beliefs Center, compared with 62% of Americans in a Pew Research Center survey.

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Read More: 5 Governors Races That Will Define the Midterms and Trumps Hold on the GOP

Kotek is making her support for abortion rights a major theme of her messaging, while Drazan has largely tried to avoid talking about her opposition to abortion in favor of issues like crime, homelessness, and the economy. As the candidates head into the final weeks of the campaign, the contest may prove a test for how much backlash to the fall of Roe is galvanizing Democrats, or whether Republicans can regain power by focusing on other issues that may animate voters even more.

Its a difficult issue for pro-life candidates to stay consistent on in Oregon and really have an opportunity to be successful at a statewide level, says Rebecca Tweed, a Republican strategist in the state. Its an intelligent strategy of Drazan to try to lean into those other issues. Its just whether that will ultimately be successful, and how long can you avoid the conversation?

Kotek, who served as state House speaker from 2013 until early this year, emphasizes her role in crafting Oregons current abortion policies. Abortion is legal throughout pregnancy in the state, and Kotek wants to help people from all corners of Oregonas well as neighboring states like Idaho that have now banned abortionaccess the procedure. Oregonians today are impacted by what the Dobbs decision brought forth, Kotek tells TIME. She notes that people in the eastern part of Oregon previously sought health care in Idaho, and now with that states total abortion ban, they may need to travel longer distances; about 78% of Oregon counties have no abortion provider, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research firm that supports reproductive rights. Kotek helped pass legislation that codified abortion access into state law in 2017 and supports a $15 million fund the state established this year to help patients from Oregon and other states access reproductive health care including abortions. She says she would also like protect Oregon abortion providers from prosecution by other states that have laws restricting abortion and explore amending the state constitution to protect abortion.

Johnson also describes herself as pro-choice and tells TIME that her presence in the race has given pro-choice moderate Ds someplace to go. She notes that she previously served on the Planned Parenthood board and, like Kotek, criticizes Drazans anti-abortion views as too extreme for Oregon. But Kotek and abortion rights advocates have slammed Johnson for letting a local anti-abortion politician who ran in this years GOP gubernatorial primary lead her Republicans for Johnson effort. That woman, Bridget Barton, said in June that she thought Johnson and Drazan were virtually identical on the issue of abortion. Johnson called the criticism a manufactured political mythology in an interview with TIME and said Barton didnt reflect her views. Rather than focusing on abortion, Johnson has spent time telling voters what she sees wrong with the states current direction and promising to support more balanced business-friendly policies.

Johnson has raised more money than either of the other candidates despite her lagging poll numbersincluding from Nike co-founder Phil Knight, who gave her $3.75 million in the first nine months of this year, until he appeared to switch his focus this month and gave $1 million to Drazan.

Oregon governor candidates  seated from left  Betsy Johnson, Tina Kotek and Christine Drazan prepare for a debate at Oregon State University on Sept. 27, 2022. Dean GuernseyThe Bulletin/AP

Drazan, meanwhile, has tried to fully steer clear of the abortion conversation in recent weeks. Her campaign declined an interview with TIME, but in recent debates and appearances she has complained her opponents are using abortion to distract and divide voters and insisted she will follow the law if elected. This marks a contrast from earlier in the campaign, when Drazan touted her endorsement from Oregon Right to Life during the GOP primary, ran ads on Facebook saying she will be a voice for the sanctity of life, and cheered the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. When the decision came down in June, Drazan tweeted life wins! and told local news outlets that she would act on her views if elected governor. I will stand up for life by vetoing legislation designed to push Oregon further outside the mainstream, she said at the time. She also scrubbed her campaigns website of some mentions of her anti-abortion views.

The Republican Governors Association, which has spent $4 million on the race including $2.5 million in the last month, argues that Drazan is focusing on issues important to voters. Christine Drazan is talking about the homeless, crime, and cost of living crises because those are the issues top of mind for every voter after nearly a decade of decline under Kate Brown, Tina Kotek, and Betsy Johnson, Kaitlin Price, a spokesperson for the Republican Governors Association, said in a statement to TIME. She also noted that a recent poll from The Oregonian/Oregon Live found that the top issues for voters in the governors race were homelessness, crime, poor leadership, and affordable housing. Abortion scored much lower as a top issue, but 55% of voters said abortion would be very important to their choice, much higher than in other recent elections in the state.

While abortion will remain legal in Oregon even if Drazan wins, Kotek and abortion rights advocates note that the governor can affect how thoroughly policies like the states new $15 million fund for abortion seekers are implemented, can veto future legislation, and can appoint and judges, which are increasingly important to state fights over abortion now that theres no national standard. The Democratic Governors Association is also spending heavily on the race, having given $4.9 million to Kotek as of this week. And Planned Parenthood, which has endorsed Kotek, views the contest as important nationally as the number of providers in other states dwindles, according to An Do, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon. With more and more states moving to ban abortion, that network has even gotten more threadbare and more sparse, Do says.

There is at least one point of unity between the three candidates: Kotek says she agrees with Drazan and Johnson that things are not working well in Oregon. But an unresolved question is how voters think abortion rights should play into their states future, and there, Kotek hopes she has the winning message. I believe that everyone should have access to health care, she says. We have to be a leader in the country to help anyone who needs that care.
Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee for Georgia governor, said that incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp (R) doesnt deserve accolades simply for refusing to go along with former President Trumps efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state.

What was the alternative? Abrams said in an interview with podcast host Kara Swisher that aired on Thursday. The alternative was committing treason. This was not an act of courage. He simply refused to commit treason.

Kemp has faced Trumps wrath ever since he refused to overturn President Bidens victory in the state. Trump, whose efforts in Georgia are now the subject of a grand jury probe in Fulton County, unsuccessfully attempted to oust the incumbent governor in this years Republican primary, recruiting former Georgia Sen. David Perdue to oppose him.

Kemps refusal of Trump has earned him high praise on the national level, but Abrams, whom Kemp defeated for his current office four years ago, said she did not find the move particularly admirable.

You were not elected by Donald Trump, she told Swisher. You were elected by the people of Georgia. Your job is to serve the needs of the people of Georgia, and so refusing to essentially negate their voices is not an act of courage. Its an act of competence.

The national veneer hes been able to assume is what is the most troubling to me, Abrams added.

Kemp has sought to avoid testifying before the grand jury in Fulton Countys criminal investigation into Trump and his allies efforts to meddle in the election. A judge in August refused to quash a Kemp subpoena but postponed the testimony until after the election.

Abrams is currently trailing the governor in the polls. A recent survey from The Hill and Emerson College found Kemp with a 5-point lead over Abrams, the same gap found in an InsiderAdvantage-Fox 5 poll. Another poll from Fox News earlier this month showed Kemp leading by 7 points.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Mediacorp actor Edwin Goh was fined $6,500 for drink driving. (PHOTOS: Mediacorp/Yahoo News Singapore)

SINGAPORE  Mediacorp actor Edwin Goh was fined $6,500 on Thursday (13 October), after he pleaded guilty to one charge of drink driving.

The 28-year-old was also disqualified from driving for three years.

The Straits Times reported that Goh had driving along Aljunied Road in the early hours of 7 September, when he was stopped by traffic police.

He had reeked of alcohol, and when administered a breath analyser test, he was found to have 81 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath, more than double the prescribed limit of 35 micrograms.

CNA reported that Goh had gone to a restaurant in the Golden Mile area the previous night to have dinner, before heading to a bar nearby for drinks.

Goh appeared alone in court, and asked for leniency, saying he had reflected on his mistake. He has since paid the fine.

Breakout Star of the Year in 2012

Goh is known for acting in local dramas Fighting Spiders, On the Fringe, and Imperfect.

He was awarded the Breakout Star of the Year title at the Elle Awards 2012, and had been nominated for best newcomer and best supporting actor categories at the Mediacorp Star Awards.

A Mediacorp spokesman told The Straits Times that it does not condone any behaviour that runs afoul of the law. Goh will be counselled and there will be internal action taken against him, said the spokesman.

Other local celebrities who have been convicted of drink driving include Shane Pow, Terence Cao and Christopher Lee.

For drink-driving, Goh could have been jailed for up to a year and fined up to $10,000. Repeat offenders may be jailed for up to two years and fined up to $20,000.

Do you have a story tip? Email: sgnews.tips@yahooinc.com.

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New York City Mayor Eric Adams plan to build an emergency shelter for migrants from Texas and other border states on Randalls Island is coming under fire from critics ripping the location for its proximity to a maximum-security psychiatric hospital and homeless shelters providing beds to violent offenders.

Announcing an estimated 17,000 migrants have been bused to the Big Apple since the spring, Adams, a Democrat, declared a state of emergency on Friday, adding that in the next few weeks, "well be opening a large Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center on Randalls Island that will safely house hundreds of people who have found themselves in New York City after a long journey from our southern border."

"I will be there to welcome them and to stay with them, to hear their stories," Adams promised. "But unless we take immediate action, that center will be full in days. And we will have to open another and another and another, even as winter weather arrives."

But safely running such a migrant tent city is a lofty promise on Randalls Island, according to Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa, who unsuccessfully ran as a Republican against Adams last year.

ADAMS ACCUSES ABBOTT OF UNDERMINING BLACK MAYOR-LED CITIES BY BUSING MIGRANTS TO NYC, DC AND CHICAGO

"That is sort of like mixing ammonia and bleach. You are asking for a problem," Sliwa told Fox News Digital. "There's going to be a riot on the island."

Migrant shelter tents being erected on Randall's Island in New York City, Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Just .81 square miles in size, Randalls Island is home to the Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center, a maximum-security facility positioned behind razor-wired fencing for mentally ill patients accused of extremely violent crimes, including serial killings and cannibalism. The island, Sliwa noted, also has some of the most dangerous mens shelters in the Big Apple  serving clients struggling with drug and alcohol addictions and mental issues  who are required to return by a 10 p.m. curfew.

Adams tent city will bring in another some 500 migrants, mostly able-bodied men unable to legally work.

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Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center on Randall's Island in New York City, Oct. 11, 2022.

"There are going to be people attacking those illegals, the emotionally disturbed people who are drug addicted, people who are violent criminals, who go in and out of the shelter systems," Sliwa said. "You're going to have these American-grown homeless people Who are going to say what? They're not even Americans. And they're getting five-star top-shelf treatment, bus rides, phones, swag bags, food, clothing. And we're only getting a cot in a room, a dormitory room with other homeless guys."

Before the emergency declaration Friday, Adams re-upped his public feud with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, accusing the Republican of targeting Black mayor-led cities by busing migrants to New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago.

NYC MIGRANT TENT CITY: HOCHUL DEPLOYS NATIONAL GUARD TO HELP ADAMS' RELOCATED SHELTER FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS

"This is a garbage attempt to deflect from the hypocrisy of Democrat mayors not wanting to fulfill their self-declared sanctuary city promises," Abbotts spokeswoman, Renae Eze, shot back in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital. "Where was all this condemnation and outrage as President Biden flew planeloads of migrants across the country, oftentimes in the cover of night? Mayors Adams, Bowser and Lightfoot were all too happy to tout their sanctuary city statuses until Texas bused a few thousand migrants into their cities. Instead of pathetic political attacks and complaints about dealing with a fraction of the border crisis Texas communities see every day, these hypocritical Democrats should call on their party leader, President Biden, to do his job and take immediate action to secure the border  something the president continues failing to do."

"Well be opening a large Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center on Randalls Island that will safely house hundreds of people who have found themselves in New York City after a long journey from our southern border," Mayor Adams said.

Also on Randalls Island are practice fields for some of New York Citys most elite private girls schools.

For example, The Brearley School, The Chapin School and The Spence School varsity soccer teams all practice there this fall season. Randalls Island also is home to John McEnroe Tennis Academy, one of the premiere tennis facilities in the country, where VIP tennis stars train while in town for the U.S. Open. Tuition for the tennis academys after-school program starts at $13,000 for the academic year.

John McEnroe Tennis Academy on Randall's Island in New York City, Oct. 11, 2022.

FDNY has a training facility on the 516-acre island. And New York state troopers have barracks not far from the footbridge connecting to Manhattan, so Sliwa speculated a commander likely called Gov. Kathy Hochul asking her to deploy some 100 National Guardsmen to help run the migrant shelter over safety concerns.

Adams on Friday issued Emergency Executive Order 224, "formally directing all relevant city agencies to coordinate their efforts to respond to the asylum seeker humanitarian crisis and construct the citys Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers." He projects New York City, which has received hundreds of buses since April, will spend $1 billion related to asylum seekers this fiscal year alone.

Soccer fields on Randall's Island in New York City, Oct. 11, 2022.

"We the taxpayers in New York City have to afford this," Sliwa said. "This is so unfair."

So far, New York City has more than 61,000 people in its shelter system, one out of five of whom are asylum seekers. Already at 100% capacity, Adams projects 100,000 people to be in the system by the end of the year.

The city has opened 42 hotels as emergency shelters and enrolled 5,200 migrant children in public schools.

The Big Apple set up a Navigation Center led by Catholic Charities that provides case management, a range of settlement options, and health services, including medical checkups, vaccinations, medication refills and mental health services. And Adams said the city is providing migrants with legal information, Fair Fares transit support, and IDNYC enrollment to those who need it.

New York City has more than 61,000 people in its shelter system, one out of five of whom are asylum seekers.

NYC MAYOR ADAMS CONDEMNS FAR LEFT DEMOCRATS FOR DOING NOTHING, SILENCE ON BORDER CRISIS

"New York City is doing all we can, but we are reaching the outer limit of our ability to help," Adams has said renewing calls for federal funding. "If our city had had coordination or even just cooperation from any of the states sending buses, or more support from our partners, then maybe we could have budgeted, staffed and allocated resources for these asylum seekers. But we didnt get the support and information we asked for, and now, New York City is being forced to bear far more than its share of this national crisis caused by political motivation. Mayors are already on the front lines of every other crisis this country is suffering from  from gun violence to climate change. But local government cannot be the solution for national crises  especially manufactured crises."

"New York City is doing all we can, but we are reaching the outer limit of our ability to help," Mayor Adams has said.

But Sliwa said the mayor is "rolling out the red carpet" for migrants and is hypocritical to demand communication from Abbott while welcoming buses of migrants from the Democratic mayor of El Paso and refusing to communicate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

General views of migrant shelter tents being erected on Randall's Island in New York City, Tuesday, October 11, 2022.

"He's ordered all agencies you are to have no working relationship with ICE whatsoever. The very group formed after the attack at 9/11 to keep us safe and secure. They go after people who've overstayed their visas and who are here illegally, who have committed crimes while here," Sliwa told Fox News Digital of Adams. "You won't communicate with immigration. ICE is serving a retainer because they have a criminal alien here who's committed horrible crimes, and you won't allow them to do their job. Disgraceful. And now you're claiming that Abbott isn't communicating with you."

The original migrant tent city project was slated for Orchard Beach in the Bronx.

The original migrant tent city project was slated for Orchard Beach in the Bronx, but even progressive city council members ripped fellow Democrat Adams for choosing a flood-prone location far from public transportation for migrants and using a contractor previously involved in former President Donald Trumps border wall. Last week, Adams moved the project to the smaller-sized Randalls Island, which "will provide temporary respite to 500 asylum seekers" as the city explores other housing options.

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Joe Borelli, the minority leader of the New York City Council, has sounded the alarm that the city was negotiating a deal with Norwegian Cruise Lines to dock a ship at the old Navy home port on Staten Island to house the migrants, but the Adams administration has not finalized those plans.
Divorce can impact high-net-worth clients.

For financial advisors, rumors of Tom Brady's and Gisele Bundchen's divorce can serve as a reminder of the challenges high-net-worth couples face when separating their financial lives. Conversations about asset division may be easiest broached when clients are still married (or engaged to be married), and it's wise to make sure both partners are involved in the financial-planning process. SmartAsset spoke with Alan Plevy, a family law attorney and mediator at SmolenPlevy, about what advisors should know.

If you are looking to grow your financial advisory business, check out SmartAsset's SmartAdvisor platform.

How Assets Are Titled Matters

Divorce can impact high-net-worth clients.

Your clients may not have a whopping $650 million in combined wealth, including multimillion-dollar properties in New York, Miami, Montana and other locations like Brady and Bundchen reportedly own. But that doesn't mean they shouldn't practice good financial housekeeping when it comes to titling assets.

Keep an eye on how assets are titled  individually, jointly or in a trust, for example.

Couples and their advisors should remember that a piece of property held separately before marriage can become a marital asset, Plevy says. And they may not be pleased when they realize that a soon-to-be ex-spouse has a claim on an asset during the course of a breakup.

Get It in Writing

Like many couples these days, Brady and Bundchen entered marriage after experiencing years of individual financial and professional successes. They may have come into the relationship with their own high-value assets, investments and savings.

High-net-worth clients should consider formalizing and categorizing asset ownership via a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.

"When you're getting along great, that's when it's somewhat easier to get these things done," Plevy says.

Estate Plans Can Change

Divorce can impact high-net-worth clients.

Couples enter marriage with all sorts of complicated situations. Brady, for example, has a son from a previous relationship and two children with Bundchen.

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Divorce is a wise time to encourage high-net-worth clients to revisit their estate plans. They should also update any beneficiary designations on investment or insurance accounts.

Keep in mind, too, that complex family situations can complicate estate planning. For example, Plevy says, a couple may have verbally agreed that a spouse could live in a house until her death. But when her husband dies, she may find that adult children actually have a claim to the property and she needs to exit within 30 days.

Eye the Art Collection

Ultra-high-net-worth couples such as Brady and Bundchen may own valuables outside of mansions and investment accounts.

Consider the additional challenges involved in appraising and dividing rare art, classic cars, high-priced antiques and other heirlooms. Who purchased the collectible, the money used to purchase it and the names on the receipt may come into play. After all, you can't cut a Jackson Pollock painting in half (even if nobody would notice the difference).

Engage With Both Partners

The Brady-Bundchen divorce is a good reminder for clients and advisors that no couple is safe from the potential dissolution of their marriage. Both clients should be engaged in the financial-planning process.

While there haven't been charges of financial infidelity in the Brady-Bundchen divorce, it's a good reminder that clients should keep an eye on red flags such as credit card abuse, Plevy says. They may want to consider regular credit checks, which they can run for free, and keep up-to-date on the accounts generally.

Bottom Line

Divorces are difficult, even when the couple is exceedingly rich, successful and attractive. "These folks are not really any different than you and I or other people in getting divorced," Plevy says. So, while Brady and Bundchen may be dealing with a level of fame and wealth outside the norm, advisors can take away some lessons from their breakup.

Tips for Growing Your Financial Advisory Business

Let us be your organic growth partner. If you are looking to grow your financial advisory business, check out SmartAsset's SmartAdvisor platform. We match certified financial advisors with right-fit clients across the U.S.

Expand your radius. SmartAsset's recent survey shows that many advisors expect to continue meeting with clients remotely following COVID-19. Consider broadening your search and working with investors who are more comfortable with holding virtual meetings or spacing out in-person meetings.

Photo credit: iStock.com/wutwhanfoto, iStock.com/ simarik, iStock.com/MIND_AND_I

The post What Advisors Can Learn From the Tom Brady-Gisele Bundchen Divorce appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.
By Anna Mehler Paperny

TORONTO (Reuters) - Afghans living in a makeshift refugee camp in the United Arab Emirates staged demonstrations this week protesting the uncertainty of their status, participants told Reuters, and one refugee now in Canada said they are "psychologically suffering."

Residents in the camp, called Emirates Humanitarian City, have been housed there awaiting transfer to another country since fleeing Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover last year.

Two Afghans in the camp told Reuters on Tuesday that some of the 2,000-3,000 Afghan refugees in the facility staged demonstrations this week to demand clarity on their future. The protests were called off following an update from authorities on the resettlement process. Reuters could not confirm what assurances, if any, were given.

Ahmad Sadam Siam Panah left the UAE facility at the end of September to travel to Canada, one of about 1,500 Afghans Canada has agreed to resettle from the camp at the request of the United States.

Panah, 24, said he was grateful for what the UAE had done for Afghan refugees but was concerned about those who remained in the facility.

"They are mentally damaged. Psychologically suffering... Most of them had dreamed to work for Afghanistan... But now the dream is to be outside of the camp."

The UAE says it provides housing, medical care, food, education and counseling and told Reuters 85% of the approximately 17,000 Afghans who have been in the camp have been resettled.

"The UAE continues to work with the U.S. Embassy to process travelers and liaise with U.S. counterparts in efforts to resettle the remaining evacuees in a timely manner as per the original agreement," an Emirati official said.

"We understand that there are frustrations and this has taken longer than intended to complete."

The U.S. Embassy in the UAE did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Pictures and videos shared with Reuters from inside the camp on Monday and Tuesday included those of children and women marching and chanting, "we want freedom." One banner read: "Women Suffer Mentally."

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Camp residents joke that they have forgotten how to share streets with cars because it has been so long since they have been allowed out, Panah said.

"A prisoner knows when he will be released from jail but we did not know when we will be transferred to our final destination," he said.

(Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny; Additional reporting by Ghaida Ghantous and Alexander Cornwell in Dubai; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
UKRAINSKA PRAVDA  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 16:29

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that providing Ukraine with air defence systems will represent a fundamental step towards ending the war in the near future.

Source: Zelenskyys address during the autumn plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Quote: "I ask you at all levels  in politics, in the media, in communication with voters  to [stand by providing] Ukraine with a sufficient number of modern anti-aircraft and anti-missile defence systems. We need to protect our sky from Russian [terrorist attacks] [by the end of this year]. [Doing this] will be a fundamental step to end[ing] the war in the near future."

Previously: On 13 October, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a resolution calling the Russian Federation a terrorist regime. An additional amendment calling for the provision of air defence systems for Ukraine was included in the resolution.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
The Air Force has denied that Politicos outing of a Republican congressional candidates status as a sexual-assault survivor could have been based on documents released as part of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, despite the publications claims otherwise.

Politicos Adam Wren reported last week that Indiana congressional candidate and Air Force veteran Jennifer-Ruth Green suffered a sexual assault while serving in Iraq, despite Greens pleas that he refrain from disclosing the details. Wren claimed that the lengthy profile of Green was based on documents obtained through a FOIA request and provided to Politico by a third party.

After many in the media and Green herself criticized the publication for exposing a sexual-assault victim against her will, Politico vice president of marketing and communications Brad Dayspring defended Wren by asking should POLITICO not report on publicly available documents obtained by FOIA request?

An Air Force spokesman has now cast doubt on that defense, telling Fox News that it cant confirm any documents on this individual were released by the Department of the Air Force under the Freedom of Information Act.

In general, any release of information that, if disclosed, would invade another individuals personal privacy would be reviewed under Exemption FOIA 5U.S.C. 552 (b)(6) with redactions made to ensure compliance with the law. Each document would be reviewed on a case by case basis, continued the spokesman.

As Green, who is running to represent Indianas first congressional district, and Senator Tom Cotton (R., Ark.) have pointed out, 5 U.S.C. 552 (b)(6) would have required Greens written consent before the performance review that included the account of her assault was released. Wrens article included the disclosure that the documents were obtained by a public records request and provided to Politico by a person outside the [Congressman Frank] Mrvan campaign. The unusual attribution has led some to believe that the source of the information was acting on behalf of Mrvan, Greens opponent, even if not in an official capacity.

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Im a survivor of sexual trauma in the military. I am being forced to share this information outside of my own timeline and for the first time publicly because my Congressman, Frank Mrvan, and his cronies illegally obtained my military records describing my sexual assault, wrote Green in a statement. His team fished the details of my assault to different news outlets, asking them to share misinformation to portray me as a failed military officer who lacks integrity. This is false.

She has also likened Wren to the Iraqi soldier who sexually assaulted her, arguing that the reality of it is  like I said at one point in my life to my assailant, No. Please stop. Dont.  and he did what he wanted to do . . . This is the exact same situation all over again, all because there was a man who wanted some sort of gratification.

Mrvan has denied the allegation, releasing his own statement asserting that neither myself nor anyone affiliated with my campaign provided any military service record to Politico.

Green took notice of the Air Forces statement on the matter on Thursday morning, writing on Twitter that the falsehood being pushed by Mrvan and parroted by the media had begun to unravel.

The falsehood being pushed by @repmrvan, @Politico, & parroted by irresponsible outlets like @nwi, begins to unravel. @FoxNews reported that the Air Force confirmed they wouldnt release my confidential personnel files & didnt release them through FOIA. https://t.co/jZ9aF3MpsT pic.twitter.com/m9kaK3WaDs  Jennifer-Ruth Green (@JenRuthGreen) October 13, 2022

More from National Review
Two former day care workers at the Robins Air Force Base Child Development Center allegedly coerced 14 children into fighting each other on multiple occasions, according to the Justice Department.

Zhanay Flynn, 27, and Antanesha Fritz, 29, have been charged in a 30-count indictment that includes accusations of first-degree child cruelty, second-degree child cruelty, simple battery, and failing to report suspected child abuse while at the Georgia facility.

The former director of the center, Latona Lambert, 51, is also being charged with one count of failing to report suspected child abuse, according to the DOJ release.

The indictment alleges a series of brutal fights forced upon the children in January and February 2021. Among other allegations, forms of abuse are believed to have included striking children, coercing them into hitting and fighting one another, kicking and striking the children, and spraying children in the face with cleaning solution.

If convicted, the defendants face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years of imprisonment and up to a maximum of 20 years of imprisonment for each count of cruelty to children in the first degree, the release stated.

Additionally, the defendants face a minimum of one year in prison and a maximum of 10 years for each count of second-degree child cruelty, up to one year for each simple battery charge, and a max of one year for failure to report the suspected abuse.

The Air Force is cooperating with the Justice Department in the investigation.

Properly caring for our Airmen and their families is of utmost importance, Roland Leach, the head of media operations at Robins AFB, told Military Times. Our Airmen should have confidence in the care provided at our Child Development Center. We are fully supporting the ongoing investigation and reviewing processes to ensure the appropriate measures are in place to safeguard our children.

Citing the evolving nature of the case, the Justice Department declined to provide additional details.

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As this is an ongoing investigation, we will not be able to comment at this time, Melissa Hodges, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorneys Office, said in an email to Military Times. Hodges did note, however, that Arrest warrants have been issued in this case and Ms. Flynn was taken into custody the night of Oct. 11.

Flynns hearing was held before U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Weigle the following day. Her bond was set at $15,000, with stipulations added that she not contact the victims and their families or engage in activities with any children except her own.

The Justice Department is encouraging any parents with children who attended daycare at the Robins Air Force Base Child Development Center during the time period in question to call the Family Advocacy line at 478-327-8398.
Protesters took to Highland Square on Wednesday evening, one day after the Akron Police Department announced that the eight Akron police officers who are under investigation for their involvement in the June shooting death of Jayland Walker have returned to work in the office.

The protest in Highland Square around 6:20 p.m. entered West Market Street and blocked all traffic for several minutes. The protesters then moved into the lot next to the Highland Square branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library, chanting obscenities about police.

The officers, who have been on paid administrative leave since Walker's death June 27, are being reassigned to administrative duty due to staffing issues within the department after several officers have left, said Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett.

The officers, whose names haven't been released due to what the department said are safety concerns, won't be in the community on patrol, but will provide "internal support" until the investigation is complete, according to the police department. They aren't in uniform and aren't responding to calls.

Protesters take to Highland Square in Akron on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, one day after the Akron Police Department said the eight involved in Jayland Walker's shooting death have returned to work in the office.

Walker, 25, was fatally shot more than 40 times by Akron police after an attempted traffic stop for minor equipment violations. After a car and foot chase, Walker was shot by police, according to body-camera footage released by the city.

He was unarmed during the shooting, but officials said he fired a shot from his vehicle less than a minute into the chase. A handgun was found in his vehicle.

Jayland Walker officers return to work:8 Akron officers involved in shooting death of Jayland Walker return to desk duty

Walkers death has led to multiple protests over the last nearly four months in downtown Akron as demonstrators demand justice and accountability for the eight officers involved in his death.

Community response to officers returning to work

The NAACP has asked U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to open a federal civil rights investigation into Walker's death.

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The announcement about the eight officers returning to work came one day after a rally was held for Walker, during which his mother, Pam Walker, told people "please don't give up on us."

I am disappointed, but I'm not surprised, Akron NAACP President Judi Hill said Tuesday of the officers returning to work. I just think the timing of this is very interesting, after we just had a unity march.

Hill said she questioned whether returning the eight to office duty will help maintain police services.

There are some people who feel like they're getting paid to sit at home and its a vacation," Hill said. "My take has always been I would prefer them not be in that building."

Jayland Walker rally:Organizers gather in Akron to continue push for police reform, justice for Jayland Walker

The Freedom BLOC in Akron released a statement on social media Tuesday condemning the decision to allow the officers to return to work. The officers should not be working in the Akron Police Department, the group said.

"This is unacceptable, and our community is outraged," the statement read in part. "That is the exact opposite of what the Walker Family and our community have been demanding for the past 106 days. ... This is not justice for Jayland Walker. ... Police do not keep us safe. We keep us safe. This is exactly why we need a civilian review board, which is just the first step in moving toward a world where there is real accountability and justice and where every one of us can life full and healthy lives, no exceptions."

Jayland Walker's family, attorney react to officers returning to work

Walker family attorney Bobby DiCello retweeted the Freedom BLOC statement to his Twitter followers.

Beacon Journal news partner News 5 Cleveland said Ken Abbarno and DiCello, the Walker family attorneys, released the following statement in which they said the officers should be placed back on leave:

"The planning behind the decision to reinstate the police officers involved in this summers tragic killing of Jayland Walker is callous and ignores the Walker familys needs for a fair process.

"The decision to reinstate these officers  even to desk duty  fails to take into account a pending investigation into their actions that culminated in Jaylands brutal shooting and unjustifiable death resulting from a barrage of more than 90 bullets. This decision undermines the legitimacy of the investigative process the Walker family has been asked to follow and which BCI has led to this point. On behalf of the Walker family, we call on the City of Akron to do the right thing and place the officers back on leave until the investigation has been completed."

Police department's reasoning for bringing officers back

The police department said it "consulted" with "various community leaders and other stakeholders" in recent weeks before bringing the eight officers back to work. Mylett said two advisory councils  one made up of community leaders and another consisting of pastors and others in the religious community  agreed independently from one another that the decision to return the eight officers to work "was the right decision for this moment."

"The consensus of these conversations was an agreement that this step would provide needed relief and support to ensure there are no interruptions in the services we provide to the community," the police department said.

The Ohio Attorney Generals Office and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are continuing to conduct an investigation. The case then will be submitted to the Summit County grand jury. The police department's Office of Professional Standards and Accountability will also conduct a separate internal investigation, with the results given to Mylett and the Akron police auditor for their review.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron protests after officers involved in Jayland Walker death return to work
The class assignment was to write a letter to anyone they wanted. In Lingit. Eechdaa Dave Ketah chose his late grandmother, the person who spoke Lingit to him when he was growing up in Ketchikan.

And I was telling her that its hard learning the language at this point in my life, and one thing that makes it even harder is that I have to pay for it, Ketah said, describing what he wrote. White people took the language from us and now theyre charging us to get it back.

Or: Sgoon kaa shaade nakxi dleitx kaa sitee. Tlel has ushke ka Lingit yoo xatangi has aawataw. Yeedat Lingit xatangi natoo.eich, he wrote in the letter.

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Ketah is a high school teacher in Portland, Oregon. Hes been taking online Lingit language classes at the University of Alaska Southeast since 2020. He started out as a beginner and is now in advanced Lingit learning the language his family spoke for thousands of years, but that he didnt grow up speaking.

Ketah initially wanted to learn the language as a way to connect with his culture; he had felt detached from it living outside Southeast Alaska for so long. But its turned into so much more. Learning to speak Lingit is a way to connect to his ancestors, including his late grandmother, who had been taught to hide her culture and her language.

Having the opportunity to learn the language has been so powerful in my journey, Ketah said.

School, which forbade his grandmother from speaking Lingit, is now a place thats making this type of personal journey even more accessible. A few months after that letter writing assignment, UAS announced over the summer it would be offering Alaska Native language classes tuition-free. Its an effort that had been in the works for a few years. Funding from Sealaska Heritage Institute is making it possible.

Students currently taking non-credit classes in Lingit, Xaat Kil or Smalgyax  traditional languages of Southeast Alaska  are no longer required to pay any tuition or fees.

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The University of Alaska Southeast is committed to recognizing and acknowledging historical wrongs endured by Alaska Native Communities. We are making sure Indigenous people dont have to pay to learn their own language. Its so important in the work towards language revitalization and overall healing, UAS Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences Carin Silkaitis said in the announcement.

Xunei Lance Twitchell, professor of Alaska Native languages at UAS, has been part of the multi-year effort to make the language classes tuition-free. In finding a way to make it happen, he said the conversations would come back to historical accountability on the part of governments and education as a system for playing a role in the attempted elimination of Indigenous languages.

When it comes to endangered languages, Twitchell said, its not equitable to get money out of the population of people who have been oppressed.

Theres so much trauma involved with language learning and recovery as Indigenous peoples that it just didnt make sense to look at things from this sort of financial perspective, he said.

Taking down the barrier of cost is working. UAS language professors say enrollment has gone up for both non-credit classes and for-credit classes. UAS still charges tuition and fees for for-credit classes. When Twitchell first joined UAS in 2011, enrollment was in the 30s or 40s. They were happy when it reached 70. And I remember when we got up to 100, he said.

Now, enrollment is nearing 300. More than 130 language students are taking for-credit classes and about 150 are taking the non-credit option.

Eedaa Heather Burge, assistant professor of Alaska Native languages at UAS, said classes usually capped at 30 students in previous semesters. This semester, one of her beginning Lingit classes has 70 students. Higher demand and bigger classes come with its own challenges, but its a fantastic problem to have, she said.

To have your classes be in such high demand that were struggling to keep up, its an exciting problem, she said. I do think long term, we need to hire more people to be able to teach these classes if the demand continues to be this high.

Ketah, whos seeing this growth and revitalization from outside Alaska, is amazed.

It might be being a little bit hyperbolic, but its like everybody wants to learn, whereas back in my youth, it just wasnt something that people were excited about, Ketah said.

Trained to do that

As a kid in Ketchikan, Ketah used to visit his grandmother, Eva Ketah, a couple times a week.

I spent an awful lot of time with my grandmother. I loved going over to her house. Every time I would visit with her it felt like she was trying to immerse me in the culture, he said.

When the two of them were together, we picked berries, she would feed me traditional foods and speak Lingit to me, he described. It would be all of this stuff that was about her youth, where she came from.

But Ketah remembers a peculiar thing that his grandmother would do.

Things would abruptly change. Food would be put away, shed go back to speaking English, and then thered be a knock at the door. It didnt matter who it was. It could be another Lingit person. It could be a family friend, an acquaintance, whoever, but as soon as somebody else would come, it was hidden, he said.

Ketahs grandmother lived on a hillside that was accessible by a long staircase, which allowed her to see someone coming from a long distance.

The peculiar thing happened a few more times before Ketah asked his grandmother about it.

I asked her, Grandma, when other people come by, why do you stop doing anything thats Lingit? Ketah said, thinking back 40 years.

She said, Because we were trained to do that.

Ketah, 10 years old at the time, was bewildered by her answer, but he didnt know how to ask what she meant. Decades later, though, hes been able to piece that memory with other memories and stories his grandmother told him.

Trained to do that was a euphemism for: It was beaten out of her. Ketah said.

His grandmothers home

Ketah said his grandmothers family is originally from Seek Heeni, Warm Chuck Inlet on Heceta Island on the northwestern side of Prince of Wales Island, before they moved to Klawock.

The reason why she left Warm Chuck Inlet to go to Klawock was because government agents came and told her mother and all of the other mothers of children, You need to put your kids in school, he recounted. They would say, If you dont put your kids in school, well put you in jail. And then after youre in jail, well put your kids in school anyway. And so, there was no choice in the matter.

The school in Klawock, Ketah said, had a mix of kids who stayed there all the time and kids who had family in the community and went home on the weekends, like his grandmother.

Teachers would say, Now, when you kids go home, if anybody is breaking the rules  and thats the school rules  if theyre speaking the Lingit language, or wearing Lingit clothes, or participating in any of these cultural things, then you tell us when you come back to school, he said.

The kids were taught to inform on each other. Even a kid who had not broken the rules but failed to turn in another kid who had would get punished.

And the penalties were physical beatings. So that happened to my grandma and all of her contemporaries, he said.

Ketah said those wounds echoed into his dads childhood and into his own.

In addition to learning the language as an adult, Ketah has also been establishing himself as a Lingit carver and Alaska Native artist. This past summer, he did a residency at the Sheldon Jackson Museum in Sitka and his work was recently part of an exhibit at the Washington State History Museum.

Within the past couple of years, as Ketah has embarked in this expanded learning of his culture, he asked his dad, Why didnt you ever teach me any of this stuff?

His dad said, Because my parents never taught us. We asked, but they wouldnt.

Ketah knows now that by not teaching about their language or their culture, his grandparents were trying to protect their children.

They were convinced that the way forward was to completely adopt the white way.

I can speak my language in my school

When Ketah learned enough Lingit, he went into the high school in Portland where he teaches and started his class saying yakei tsootaat, or good morning.

I was able to speak the Lingit language in, what my grandmother would call, a white man school and Im not punished. As a matter of fact, they cant touch me for anything that I do thats related to my culture. And thats incredible to me that we are able to overcome all that dark history and I can speak my language in my school, Ketah said.

Each time he speaks Lingit in a school setting, he feels like hes redeeming what his grandmother and other relatives endured. Despite everything they went through, Ketah said, the language lives on and he gets to be a part of it.

I dont think of it only as a privilege, I think of it as a responsibility because I have that freedom, he said. My ancestors didnt do it because they couldnt. And thats why I should do it. Because I can.

When Ketah was a kid and his grandmother spoke Lingit to him, he could only understand a few words, which is heartbreaking to him. He was never able to speak to her in their language.

But there are a couple video recordings from the 1990s that his uncle made of his grandmother and grandfather. There is an awful lot of Lingit being spoken, Ketah said, that I understand completely now.

Alaska Beacon is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alaska Beacon maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew Kitchenman for questions: info@alaskabeacon.com. Follow Alaska Beacon on Facebook and Twitter.
Photograph: Tyler Sizemore/AP

Many people across the US have praised a verdict against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones that will force the rightwing online personality to pay almost $1bn to those affected by his lies about the Sandy Hook shooting being a hoax.

But Jones himself has maintained a defiant attitude that he does not have the money to pay.

On Wednesday, a judge ordered the Infowars host to pay $965m in damages to the families of Sandy Hook victims. The damages will be divided among 15 plaintiffs who sued Jones for defamation as apart of a Connecticut lawsuit, with amounts ranging from $28m to $120m.

In a separate Texas lawsuit against Jones in August, a jury awarded almost $50m to the parents of another child who was killed in the Sandy Hook massacre, a 2012 mass shooting in which 20 children and six adults were killed.

Jones was not physically in the most recent courtroom, but reacted to the verdict on his Infowars show. Jones laughed and mocked the amounts that were awarded to the various individuals.

During his broadcast, Jones called the trial all made up, reported the Associated Press, encouraging his audience to donate money to his company and buy its products to offset the damages owed.

Jones has routinely claimed that he does not have the money to pay the large damages that he now owes. Aint going to be happening. Aint no money, he said on Wednesday during his show.

Jones added: This must be what hells like  they just read out the damages. Even though you dont got the money.

But representatives for the families have argued that Jones is attempting to dodge the payments. In August, an economist estimated that Jones was worth $270m, reported the New York Times.

Jones has also made $50m annually in revenue from his Infowars empire, profits that increased during his defamation trials in Texas and Connecticut.

For years, Jones has used his online platform to claim the mass shooting was a hoax, falsehoods that brought increased attention and profits to his website, reports the New York Times.

Story continues

Joness claims incited harassment and death threats towards the families, many of whom say they still struggle with the psychological impact of Joness lies.

Families say that they received regular abuse from Joness followers for years, including threats that the graves of their loved one would be dug up and vandalized.

Erica Lafferty, the daughter of slain Sandy hook principal Dawn Hochsprung, said that individuals have mailed rape threats to her home. Mark Barden testified how conspiracy theorists urinated on the grave of his seven-year old son, Daniel, and threatened to dig up the childs coffin.

Reactions from the families were mostly tearful, with several individuals weeping while the verdict was being read, reported NBC News.

Every day in that courtroom, we got up on the stand and we told the truth, Robbie Parker, father of Sandy Hook victim Emilie Parker, said to the New York Times.

Parker added: Telling the truth shouldnt be so hard, and it shouldnt be so scary.

I wish that after today, I can just be a daughter grieving my mother and stop worrying about the conspiracy theorists, said Lafferty, adding that [the] hate, lies and conspiracy theories will follow both me and my family through the rest of our days.

Attorneys for the awarded families have said that Jones will be forced to pay despite his claims of bankruptcy.

We are going to enforce this verdict as long as it takes because that is what justice requires, said Chris Mattei, an attorney for the victims.

There will be more Alex Joneses in this world, but what they learned here today is that they absolutely will be held accountable, added Lafferty.
A jury has awarded the relatives of Sandy Hook victims a combined $965m in damages after reaching their verdict in Alex Jones defamation trial on Wednesday afternoon.

The six-person panel spent more than three days deliberating how much the Infowars host must pay in damages to the plaintiffs - including 15 family members who lost loved ones in the 2012 shooting and a former FBI agent who responded to the scene.

Family members openly wept in court as the individual damages amounts were read out for each plaintiff.

Good does prevail, Nicole Hockley, who lost her son Dylan in the massacre, said outside court.

The highest individual damages award was $120m, which went to Robbie Parker, who lost his 6-year-old daughter Emilie in the shooting.

The sum of $965m in damages comes after a Texas jury awarded nearly $50m in damages against Mr Jones in a separate defamation trial.

As the damages verdict was read out in court, Mr Jones told viewers on his Infowars site: I want to be the billion dollar man.

Alex Jones $1bn verdict

Alex Jones ordered to pay $965m to Sandy Hook families

I want to be the billion dollar man!'

What next for Alex Jones?

Key moments from the trial

Families react to $1bn verdict

I want to be the billion dollar man'

07:07 , Bevan Hurley

As the $965m damages verdict was read out in court, Alex Jones was asking for donations to meet his legal fees on his Infowars site.

I want to be the billion dollar man, he told his audience.

Full story below.

Alex Jones cheers as he watches verdict live on Infowars show

Jones pays for his realm of lies and deceit

06:07 , Bevan Hurley

Sandy Hook families spoke emotionally outside of court after the jury awarded them nearly $1bn in damages on Wednesday.

Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one, said Robbie Parker, who the jury awarded $120m.

Bill Sherlach, whose wife Mary was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary, warned Alex Joness wannabes that there was now a cost of entering the realm of lies and deceit.

Story continues

Sandy hook families warn against wannabes following Alex Jones in lies and deceit

Good does prevail

05:07 , Bevan Hurley

Nicole Hockley, who lost her son Dylan in the 2012 shooting, told reporters that she had taken comfort from being with the other Sandy Hook families in court.

I have always believed in the goodness of other people. And when I first started engaging with followers of Alex Jones back in January of 2013, I was looking for the good. And I didnt find it. And I gave up. Until I decided to fight.

Today, with this jury, who I have so much gratitude for listening so attentively... for hearing us, Im so grateful to them.

This is sending the right message that people are good, and that good does prevail. And thank you restoring my faith.

Nicole and Ian Hockley are seen with their son Dylan in a photo shown at Alex Jones Sandy Hook defamation trial (Waterbury court)

The cost of entering a realm of lies and deceit

04:02 , Bevan Hurley

Sandy Hook families spoke emotionally outside of court after the jury awarded them nearly $1bn in damages on Wednesday.

Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one, said Robbie Parker, who the jury awarded $120m.

Bill Sherlach, whose wife Mary was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary, warned Alex Joness wannabes that there was now a cost of entering the realm of lies and deceit.

Sandy hook families warn against wannabes following Alex Jones in lies and deceit

Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one

03:02 , Bevan Hurley

In emotional scenes outside the courthouse in Connecticut, Robbie Parker said that everyone on the stand told the truth except for one.

He asked Infowars followers to asked themselves: What has this man ever given me, and what has he taken from me?

Read the full story of Mr Parkers appearance in the witness stand below.

Sandy Hook father recalls press briefing that made him top target of Alex Jones lies

What next for Alex Jones?

02:02 , Bevan Hurley

After damages awards of more than $1bn in two defamation damages trials, what comes next for Alex Jones?

A bankruptcy hearing for his company Free Speech Systems underway in Texas will go some way to determining how much the families can prise from the Infowars host.

An attorney for the Sandy Hook relatives says they will do whatever it takes to enforce the verdict.

Full story below.

What next for Alex Jones after Connecticut jury awards $965m to Sandy Hook families?

Alex Jones is finished

01:30 , Bevan Hurley

It took a jury in Connecticut to finally fell this beast, writes Hannah Selinger for Independent Voices.

No amount of fundraising can save Alex Jones now. One billion dollars is an insurmountable debt  as insurmountable, some might argue, as having to relive the death of your child over and over again in the public eye for almost an entire decade, without apology.

Alex Jones is finished. Infowars is dead.

As Alex Jones faces a $1bn comeuppance it looks like the good guys have won

Far-right extremist Alex Jones ordered to pay $965m

01:02 , Bevan Hurley

Even as his lies were on display in the courtroom for the whole world to see, Mr Jones continued to monetise the tragedy by mocking the judge and the so-called kangaroo court on his Infowars show.

Read our full write up after a jury awarded $965m to the Sandy Hook families.

Alex Jones will be forced to pay more than $1bn for his Sandy Hook lies

We are going to enforce this verdict

Thursday 13 October 2022 00:30 , Bevan Hurley

Chris Mattei, an attorney for the families, said outside the courthouse that the $1bn verdict shows the harm and wreckage that lies like the ones he pushed can have.

We believe (the verdict) is historic, and we are going to enforce this verdict. We are going to go through whatever forum we have to as long as it takes, because thats what justice requires.

Attorney Chris Mattei points to a white board he had written on during closing statements in the Alex Jones Sandy Hook defamation trial (The News-Times)

Thursday 13 October 2022 00:01 , Bevan Hurley

As the $965m damages verdict was read out in court, Alex Jones was asking for donations to meet his legal fees on his Infowars site.

I want to be the billion dollar man, he told his audience.

Full story below.

Alex Jones cheers as he watches verdict live on Infowars show

Alex Jones is finished'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 23:30 , Bevan Hurley

It took a jury in Connecticut to finally fell this beast, writes Hannah Selinger for Independent Voices.

No amount of fundraising can save Alex Jones now. One billion dollars is an insurmountable debt  as insurmountable, some might argue, as having to relive the death of your child over and over again in the public eye for almost an entire decade, without apology.

As Alex Jones faces a $1bn comeuppance it looks like the good guys have won

WATCH: Sandy Hook families react as jury award them $965m in defamation case

Wednesday 12 October 2022 23:03 , Bevan Hurley

The relatives of Sandy Hook victims openly wept in court as the jury awarded them $965m in the Alex Jones defamation case.

A panel of six people spent more than three days deliberating how much the Infowars host had to pay to the loved ones of victims killed in the 2012 school shooting, after Jones claimed they were actors.

Sandy Hook families react as jury award them $965m in defamation case

Jones' realm of lies and deceit

Wednesday 12 October 2022 22:32 , Bevan Hurley

Sandy Hook families spoke emotionally outside of court after the jury awarded them nearly $1bn in damages on Wednesday.

Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one, said Robbie Parker, who the jury awarded $120m.

Bill Sherlach, whose wife Mary was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary, warned Alex Joness wannabes that there was now a cost of entering the realm of lies and deceit.

Sandy Hook families react emotionally to $965m Alex Jones ruling

What next for Alex Jones?

Wednesday 12 October 2022 22:10 , Bevan Hurley

After damages awards of more than $1bn in two defamation damages trials, what comes next for Alex Jones?

A bankruptcy hearing for his company Free Speech Systems underway in Texas will go some way to determining how much the families can prise from the Infowars host.

An attorney for the Sandy Hook relatives says they will do whatever it takes to enforce the verdict.

Full story below.

What next for Alex Jones after Connecticut jury awards $965m to Sandy Hook families?

$965m verdict sends a message to Alex Jones wannabes'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:59 , Bevan Hurley

Bill Sherlach, whose wife was shot dead Mary after confronting the shooter, spoke a short time ago outside court.

Ive come to know these people over almost 10 years, these beautiful people, theyre good friends, under the worst, most horrendous situation you can imagine.

And to belittle that horrific event was criminal in and of itself.

We came in here with a default verdict, so we knew there would be some sort of statement coming out of this trial, he said.

The jury responded as we hoped they would for our entire community, he said.

It shows that the internet is not the wild, wild west, and that your actions have consequences.

And for someone to stand in front of a camera probably right now as were speaking, to spew the lies to enrich himself, well now theres a cost-benefit analysis that will have to be done. Because weve sent a response, we put a does of civility into the society that we really need at this point in time.

Going forward, people like Alex Jones will have to rethink what they say, how they say it, how long they say it, and for those who want to be Alex Jones wannabes, this trial, this verdict set a pretty high hurdle in terms of what the cost will be to them, to enter into that realm of lies and deceit.

Mary J Sherlach, the Sandy Hook school psychologist, threw herself between shooter and children as he opened fire.

Good does prevail'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:49 , Bevan Hurley

Nicole Hockley, who lost her son Dylan in the 2012 shooting, told reporters that she had taken comfort from being with the other Sandy Hook families in court.

I have always believed in the goodness of other people. And when I first started engaging with followers of Alex Jones back in January of 2013, I was looking for the good. And I didnt find it. And I gave up. Until I decided to fight.

Today, with this jury, who I have so much gratitude for listening so attentively... for hearing us, Im so grateful to them.

This is sending the right message that people are good, and that good does prevail. And thank you restoring my faith.

Nicole and Ian Hockley are seen with their son Dylan in a photo shown at Alex Jones Sandy Hook defamation trial (Waterbury court)

We are going to enforce this verdict'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:41 , Bevan Hurley

Chris Mattei, an attorney for the families, says outside the courthouse that the verdict shows the harm and wreckage that lies like the ones he pushed can have.

We believe (the verdict) is historic, and we are going to enforce this verdict. We are going to go through whatever forum we have to as long as it takes, because thats what justice requires.

Robbie Parker says: Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:36 , Bevan Hurley

In emotional scenes outside the courthouse in Connecticut, Robbie Parker said the experience should not have been so terrifying.

Everyone on the stand told the truth except for one, Mr Parker said.

What has this man ever given me, and what has he taken from me?

Read the full story of Mr Parkers appearance in the witness stand below.

Sandy Hook father recalls press briefing that made him top target of Alex Jones lies

The Sandy Hook families are expected to speak soon outside court

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:30 , Bevan Hurley

Were awaiting reaction from the Sandy Hook families after high drama in the Waterbury courthouse.

Alex Jones still has to face a third damages trial

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:26 , Bevan Hurley

Alex Jones will face a third damages trial in Texas after losing a defamation suit to Lenny Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa, parents of Noah Pozner, the youngest victim of the Sandy Hook shooting.

That is likely to take place towards the end of the year.

I want to be the billion dollar man!'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:05 , Bevan Hurley

As the $965m damages verdict was read out in court, Alex Jones was broadcasting on his Infowars site.

I want to be the billion dollar man, he told his audience.

Full story below.

Alex Jones cheers as he watches verdict live on Infowars show

Far-right extremist Alex Jones ordered to pay $965m

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:00 , Bevan Hurley

Read our full write up after a jury awards $965m to the Sandy Hook families.

Far-right extremist Alex Jones ordered to pay $965m to Sandy Hook victims families

Judge thanks jury and discharges them

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:58 , Bevan Hurley

Judge Barbara Bellis thanked the jury for their service and has discharged them.

The attorneys were asked if they had any comments to the jury, and both declined.

A total of $965m awarded to 15 Sandy Hook relatives

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:57 , Bevan Hurley

The jury has awarded a total of $965m to 15 family members who lost relatives in the Sandy Hook school shooting.

Robbie Parker reacts after being awarded $120,

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:48 , Bevan Hurley

Robbie Parker listens as a jury awards him $120m.

Robert Parker reacts in court after being awarded $120m in damages (Law and Crime / YouTube)

$120m to first plaintiff Robbie Parker

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:40 , Bevan Hurley

Robbie Parker, the first plaintiff, is to receive $120m, the jury decides for defamation and emotional distress.

Thats for just one of 15 plaintiffs.

We are ready with our unanimous verdict'

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:35 , Bevan Hurley

A note from the jury foreperson has been passed to the judge, and the jury are returning to the courtroom in Waterbury, Connecticut.

Judge Bellis is sending the jury back to complete paperwork

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:28 , Bevan Hurley

There will be a slight delay before we know the damages amount awarded against Alex Jones.

I am going to send you back with very minor instruction, she tells the jurors.

I had asked you to have the foreperson initial each page as well as sign.

The families nervous wait will continue for a few more minutes.

Judge Bellis is now reading the completed verdict forms

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:25 , Bevan Hurley

Just bear with me, she tells the courtroom.

Judge Barbara Bellis returns to courtroom

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:22 , Bevan Hurley

Judge Bellis says the jury have reached a unanimous verdict.
Christopher Furlong/Getty

Disturbing handwritten notes allegedly penned by a nurse accused of murdering seven babies in her care were shown in court on the fourth day of her trial in England.

Lucy Letby, 32, denies the 22 charges against herwhich include another 10 attempted murders of babies in her carewhile working at the Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester, northwest England, between 2015 and 2016.

I AM EVIL, read one of the post-it notes allegedly written by Letby and found by police. I DID THIS. Another chilling screed read: I dont deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because Im not good enough. I am a horrible evil person.

One sheet of paper scrawled with writing included the phrase Hope, Panic and Fear, alongside another message saying: I will never have children or marry. A separate document shown to jurors on Thursday had the word HATE on it, alongside messages including: There are no words I cant breathe, and Kill.

Alleged Serial Killer Told Mom Who Caught Her With Baby: Trust Me, Im a Nurse

Prosecutors say Letby carried out an unimaginable killing spree which saw her murder babies by injecting them with substances including insulin, milk, and air. On Wednesday, Manchester Crown Court heard that the mother of one of her victims walked in on Letby as she was killing the baby, only to placate the parent with the phrase: Trust me, Im a nurse.

The disturbing evidence against Letby continued to mount as the trail continued Thursday. She allegedly photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after killing them by injecting them with air.

The court also heard that she then spent time comforting the parents of the victims, known only as Child O and Child P. In a conversation with Letby before Child P died, one doctor predicted that he would survive. The nurse allegedly replied: Hes not leaving here alive, is he?

That remark surprised [the doctor] but Lucy Letbys prediction came true, prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said. After all, she knew what she had done to him and therefore she knew what was likely to happen. It is certainly what she intended because it was something she had done to so many other children.

Story continues

Letby also allegedly tried to kill their sibling, Child N, three times over the course of 12 days, but did not succeed.

She was also accused of attempting to murder Child Q by injecting excess air and a clear fluidpossibly saline or waterinto his stomach through a nose tube. After the infant was transferred to a different hospital he made a rapid recovery, Johnson said.

Defense attorney Ben Myers KC, said anyone with an ounce of human understanding would see that the notes presented in court were the anguished outpouring of a young woman in fear and despair when she realizes the enormity of what is being said about her. The writings were anguish not guilt, he claimed.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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SHANGHAI (Reuters) - U.S. export restrictions on chip equipment to China are likely to lead to its "Sputnik" moment, prompting Chinese chipmakers to try creative engineering solutions and chart their own course even if it may not succeed commercially in the longer term, experts said.

Under sweeping new regulations announced by the Biden administration on Oct. 7, U.S. companies must cease supplying Chinese chipmakers with equipment that can produce relatively advanced chips unless they first obtain a license.

The measures are set to undermine China's efforts to develop its own chip industry aimed at reducing its reliance on foreign-made chips. China consumes more than three quarters of the semiconductors sold globally, which hit $556 billion in 2021, but produces around 15% of global output.

"The tech decoupling could serve as China's Sputnik moment in innovation, forcing it to take a top-down and self-reliance approach, especially in semiconductors," Citi economists said in a note, likening it to the surge in spending and research seen in the United States after the Soviet Union's launch of the world's first satellite.

The restrictions also arrive just before the upcoming Communist Party Congress in Beijing, in which President Xi Jinping is expected to secure an unprecedented third term.

The importance of technological self-sufficiency, already a priority for Xi in the past decade, will likely surface as a key theme for this year's Congress.

Boston Consulting Group estimated in 2021 that a country would need at least $1 trillion in incremental upfront investment to build fully "self-sufficient" local chip supply chains.

The new restrictions are likely to spur Chinese chipmakers to try producing advanced chips by using creative engineering solutions with older technologies not subject to the sanctions, experts said.

This is something that China's top contract chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), has attempted before.

Story continues

In late 2020 Washington barred it from obtaining an advanced chipmaking tool called an EUV machine from Dutch firm ASML which is critical for making chips using 7 nanometer process nodes.

While the sanctions are intended to prevent SMIC from producing advanced chips, some analysts have found signs that SMIC has nevertheless managed to produce 7 nm chips by tweaking simpler DUV machines it could still purchase freely from ASML.

Experts say such attempts, however, are unlikely to produce commercially viable products for mass production.

"You can tweak certain tools. People are creative. But what will the yields be? How can they achieve commercial volumes? These are the questions," says Marco Mezger, a consultant in Taiwan who tracks the global memory chip sector.

Experts say China's own equipment makers remain four to five years behind their overseas counterparts, making them not suitable as instant substitutes for equipment lost from U.S. suppliers such as KLA Corp, Applied Materials, and Lam Research.

Two other leading Chinese chipmakers likely to be dealt a blow are NAND memory chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies Co Ltd (YMTC) and DRAM maker Changxin Memory Technologies Inc (CXMT).

YMTC and CXMT are both state-backed companies founded roughly 10 years ago and China's best hopes for breaking into the global market, going neck and neck with top players such as Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology.

But neither company has achieved mass production at the cutting edge, though they have made strides - with YMTC claiming to have developed 232-layer NAND, and CXMT reportedly inching towards mass production of 10nm DRAM.

SMIC, YMTC and CXMT did not respond to requests for comment.

WINTER IS COMING

Overseas toolmakers will likewise face painful hits to their bottom line as China's efforts to nurture its domestic chip industry have been a boon to many of them.

KLA, Applied Materials, and Lam Research each earn roughly 30% of their revenue from China, which ranks as their top geographic market and also the fastest growing.

Applied Materials said on Wednesday export restrictions to China would result in a $250-$550 million loss in net sales in the quarter ending Oct. 30, with a similar impact expected in the following three months.

"Until we see some $10 billion fab set up in Ohio or Oregon, I see a big concern for our revenue next year," one source at an equipment company told Reuters, referring to the CHIPS Act that provides $52.7 billion subsidies for U.S. chip production and research.

Sources at toolmaking firms also said they are scrambling to comply with the new export restrictions, with some companies ordering a broad supply ban to avoid breaking the rules, which they say are ambiguous.

"If we go by the letter of the bill, the equipment companies might have to close their doors," said one seller of chip equipment, who asked to not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Washington is also scrambling to tackle unintended consequences of its new export curbs, people familiar with the matter said.

Hours before the new restriction took effect, South Korea's SK Hynix said it got U.S. authorization to receive goods for its chip production facilities in China without additional licensing imposed by the new rules.

Yet business at toolmaking firms servicing Chinese customers has already slowed dramatically, leaving their staff with little work to do but creating an opening for Chinese equipment makers seeking to catch up with western rivals, sources said.

"Our top management team has told us to relax for a couple of months - we can still come to work but it's not mandatory," said one source at an overseas equipment company based in China.

(This story has been refiled to correct typo in paragraph 2)

(Reporting by Josh Horwitz; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Kim Coghill)
Star Wars easter eggs. Illustrated | Getty Images, Amazon

It's been said that the new Star Wars series Andor has little to no Easter eggs, but that isn't entirely true  you just have to know where to look for some delightful references to the franchise's lore. Here are the series' best Easter eggs for die-hard fans thus far:

BBY

The first thing we see in Andor is a title card establishing we're in "BBY 5," meaning five years "before the Battle of Yavin" (when Luke Skywalker destroyed the first Death Star in A New Hope).

For years, fans have used BBY and ABY (meaning "after the Battle of Yavin") to mark dates in Star Wars; BBY 5 signals that the show is taking place five years before the first movie. This is, however, the first time a Star Wars show or movie has acknowledged the BBY dating system, which dates back to the 1990s, when it was used in a guide for a Star Wars roleplaying game. As far as we know, though, BBY and ABY aren't used within the Star Wars universe itself. 

A Luggabeast

While B2EMO is rolling along the road on Ferrix, we see a Luggabeast on the right side of the screen. That's the same kind of creature a Teedo was riding while trying to capture BB-8 in The Force Awakens (Rey soon steps in and rescues the droid).

Familiar yellow arms

At around the 14-minute mark in the first episode, "Kassa," we see Cassian Andor walk by an alien with yellow mechanical arms that closely resembles "Crusher," an alien who appeared on Rey's home planet of Jakku in The Force Awakens. Crusher's arms were cut off by thugs working for Unkar Plutt, forcing the alien to use mechanical ones like his counterpart in Andor.

Wobani

In "Kassa," Timm asks Bix, "Are we bidding on the Wobani run tomorrow?" Wobani is the planet with Imperial labor camps where Jyn Erso was rescued by K-2SO and brought to the Rebellion early in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. (The planet's name also happens to be an anagram of "Obi-Wan.")

We've seen that ship before ...

Near the end of Andor's first episode, there's a scene where Cassian is in a shipyard and we see a WTK-85A interstellar transport ship like the one used by assassin Ochi of Bestoon in the sequel trilogy. A flashback in The Force Awakens showed Rey watching Ochi's ship leave Jakku with her parents on board, and Rey comes across the craft in The Rise of Skywalker. We learn in that film that Ochi  who was working for Palpatine  killed Rey's parents on the ship.

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Corellian hounds

In that same shipyard scene, Cassian is given a hard time by Pegla, who's walking two Corellian hounds on leashes. Corellia is Han Solo's home planet, so we previously saw Corellian hounds pop up in Solo: A Star Wars Story (specifically when Han and Qi'ra are trying to escape the area).

Banthas

In the episode "That Would Be Me," we see Cassian with a small toy Bantha, one of those creatures with horns frequently spotted on Luke Skywalker's home planet of Tatooine.

Another mining disaster

We learn in Andor's second episode that records indicate Cassian's home planet of Kenari was "abandoned after [an] Imperial mining disaster." Such an incident calls to mind a moment in Rogue One when Darth Vader noted how the Empire blamed the destruction of Jedha on a "mining disaster," though it had actually destroyed the planet with the Death Star. Might a similar cover-up be afoot in Kenari?

Aki-Aki

Sitting behind Luthen on the ship in the final scene of episode two are a pair of Aki-Aki, the aliens from Pasaana who Rey and the gang encountered during a festival in The Rise of Skywalker.

Fondor

In the episode "Aldhani," Luthen's ship is identified as a Fondor Haulcraft. The video game Star Wars: Battlefront II takes players above the planet Fondor, which is home to key Imperial shipyards and serves as a "critical naval complex for the Empire," notes StarWars.com. Fondor was introduced all the way back in 1979, when it was mentioned in the novel Han Solo at Stars' End.

Partisan Front

In "Aldhani," Cassian references several groups he says Luthen could be from, including Partisan Front. That's the name of the insurgent group led by Forest Whitaker's Rogue One character Saw Gerrera, and the group is seen in that same film. Partisan Front members are considered terrorists and far too extreme for the Rebellion to associate with.

Mimban

In that same scene in "Aldhani," Cassian tells Luthen he "fought in Mimban when I was 16," a reference to the muddy planet on which Han Solo was fighting for the Empire when he met Chewbacca at the start of Solo: A Star Wars Story. The Republic assisted the Mimbanese Liberation Army in fighting against the Separatists during the Clone Wars, only for the Empire to later invade the planet to "install a regime loyal to the Emperor and eradicate the hostiles," as Han Solo's lieutenant said in Solo. But Han raised objections to this, noting, "It's their planet. We're the hostiles."

Arvala-Six

As the Imperial Security Bureau is introduced in "Aldhani," it is revealed that mining has resumed on Arvala-Six. Arvala-Six is presumably in the same sector as Arvala-Seven, the desert planet where Din Djarin first met Grogu (a.k.a. Baby Yoda) in The Mandalorian.

Scarif

Another one from that ISB scene: An officer references an "increase in construction shipments going to Scarif." Scarif is the beach planet where the rebels stole the plans for the Death Star in Rogue One.

Rakata invaders

Before his mission on Aldhani, Luthen gives Cassian a down payment: A blue Kyber signet (Kyber being what powers a Jedi's lightsaber), which Luthen says "celebrates the uprising against the Rakatan invaders."

The Rakata were introduced in the wildly popular 2003 video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and are ancient, savage warriors who used the Dark Side of the Force and developed advanced technology, including hyperdrives. They were also reportedly the first species to figure out how to traverse hyperspace, and ruled what was known as the Infinite Empire, which brutally invaded planets around 30,000 years before A New Hope. None of that is canon anymore, though, so this is the first major Rakata reference since Disney bought the Star Wars franchise and reset its continuity.

Hosnian Prime

As Syril Karn arrives home to his mother in Coruscant in episode four, an announcer on PA system references "travel service to Hosnian Prime." Hosnian Prime was the capital of the New Republic in The Force Awakens, and the planet the First Order destroyed with Starkiller Base, essentially wiping out its entire government.

The antique store

Mon Mothma's visit to Luthen's antique store in "Aldhani" is an absolute Easter egg gold mine.

For starters, Luthen shows Mothma a "Utapaun monk cudgel." Utapau is where Obi-Wan Kenobi fights General Grievous in Revenge of the Sith.

And that's not all. Other notable store artifacts include Mandalorian armor; armor resembling that of Starkiller, who served under Darth Vader in the video game The Force Unleashed; Holocrons, storage devices that contain holographic information for Force users and were seen in Star Wars Rebels; a Kalikori, a Twi'lek heirloom also seen in Star Wars Rebels; a Kashyyyk clarion, a musical instrument used by the Wookiees; and stone tables with hands echoing a painting of the beings from Mortis seen at an entrance to the World Between Worlds, which Ezra Bridger uses to travel through time, in Star Wars Rebels.

And while it's not a Star Wars Easter egg, Luthen appears to have Indiana Jones' whip frozen in Carbonite, complementing the famous R2-D2 and C-3PO Easter Egg in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Not only that, but he also has what might be the Sankara Stones from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Does that mean Indiana Jones is officially Star Wars canon? Sure, why not?

Mon Mothma's guests

In episode four, Mon Mothma is arguing with her husband about a dinner with the governor and mentions two event guests in particular: Ars Dangor and Sly Moore. Ars Dangor was an adviser to Emperor Palpatine, while Sly Moore was Palpatine's chief of staff  so you can understand why Mothma, who's secretly aiding the rebels, would be particularly anxious about them coming. Moore is seen throughout the prequel trilogy, and is standing by Palpatine's left when the leader announces the creation of the Empire in Revenge of the Sith.

Mothma notes these guests are from "the Vizier's private chamber," with the Vizier being Mas Amedda, who also served with Palpatine and was also seen throughout the prequels (including at Palpatine's right during the aforementioned Empire creation scene).

Kessel

In the episode titled "The Axe Forgets," Dedra Meero's assistant, Heert, references Kessel, the planet that hosts the famous spice mines C-3PO mentions in A New Hope ("We'll be sent to the spice mines of Kessel"), as well as the coaxium heist in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Further, it's the Kessel from the "Kessel Run," the route Han Solo boasted about making in "less than 12 parsecs" in A New Hope. The same run was also featured in Solo.

Jakku

In the same breath, Meero refers to "targeting consoles from Jakku," shouting out Rey's home planet in the sequel trilogy. Why does everyone want to go back to Jakku!?

Ghorman

While arguing with her husband about the dinner in "Aldhani," Mothma says, "We should find some Ghorman guests for tonight and see how amused they are. Your fun friends just cut off their shipping lanes yesterday." Later in the series, during the episode "The Eye," we see Mothma delivering a Senate speech in defense of Ghorman.

In Star Wars Rebels, Mothma resigns from the Senate after accusing Palpatine of ordering an attack on Ghorman. That occurs about three years after Andor begins, so it's possible the show is preparing to depict this Ghorman massacre, and Mothma's subsequent resignation, in live-action.

Climb!

In "The Eye," one of the last things Nemik says before his death is "climb," which he shouts to Cassian as he's flying the ship. This was also one of the last things K-2SO told Cassian in Rogue One before his death.

Devaron

At the end of "The Eye," we see an item in Luthen's antique shop that's described as "Devaron blue." Devaron was a jungle planet seen in The Clone Wars, in which Savage Opress attacks the planet's Jedi Temple.

This article will be updated as new episodes of Andor are released, so check back in for more Easter eggs.

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Actor Angela Lansbury, who died this week at age 96, enjoyed a fabulous career that included prime-time TV success on Murder, She Wrote. She played a mystery writer who solved crimes where she lived in Maine.

But the longtime performer faced real-life evil when she and her family lived in Los Angeles in the 1960s. Both her kids, Anthony and Deirdre Shaw, got addicted to hard drugs in their teens, and Deirdre began to follow cult leader Charles Manson, Lansbury said.

There were factions up in the hills above Malibu that were dedicated to deadly pursuits, Lansbury said in a chilling 2014 Daily Mail interview that has resurfaced since her death on Tuesday.

It pains me to say it but, at one stage, Deidre was in with a crowd led by Charles Manson, she continued. She was one of many youngsters who knew him  and they were fascinated. He was an extraordinary character, charismatic in many ways, no question about it.

Angela Lansbury and Charles Manson (Photo: Getty)

Angela Lansbury and Charles Manson (Photo: Getty)

Manson later earned infamy for masterminding the headline-grabbing murders of pregnant actor Sharon Tate and six others by members of the so-called Manson family on two straight nights in August 1969.

Lansbury figured the best way to address her childrens problems was to get the heck out of LA. She, husband Peter Shaw and the kids moved to a house Lansbury found in Irelands County Cork  somewhere my children wouldnt be exposed to any more bad influences. She said she refused acting gigs for a year to stay at home.

The strategy worked.

Anthony pulled right out of his bad habits quite quickly, she said at the time. It took Deidre a little longer but she finally got married and she and her husband now live in Los Angeles, where they run their own Italian restaurant.

Angela Lansbury and daughter Deirdre Shaw at the 1991 Emmy Awards. (Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd. via Getty Images)

Angela Lansbury and daughter Deirdre Shaw at the 1991 Emmy Awards. (Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd. via Getty Images)

Lansbury was convinced the change of scenery did the trick. A doctor helped with drug withdrawal.

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I have no doubt we would have lost one or both of our two if they hadnt been removed to a completely different milieu, the simplicity of life in Ireland, she told the tabloid.

Actress Angela Lansbury, husband Peter Shaw and son Anthony Shaw in 1979. (Photo: Ron Galella via Getty Images)

Actress Angela Lansbury, husband Peter Shaw and son Anthony Shaw in 1979. (Photo: Ron Galella via Getty Images)

Anthony Shaw also married and went on to a career in TV, directing several episodes of his mothers hit series, according to IMDB.

Deirdre and Anthony, along with Lansburys stepson David, announced their mothers death in a simple statement: The children of Dame Angela Lansbury are sad to announce that their mother died peacefully in her sleep at home in Los Angeles at 1:30 a.m. today, Tuesday, October 11, 2022, just five days shy of her 97th birthday.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

Related...
By J. Keeler Johnson ("Keelerman") Twitter: @J_Keelerman

The feature race on the second weekend of the Keeneland fall meet is Saturday's renewal of the $600,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1), a 1 1/8-mile turf test that annually draws some of the best three-year-old grass fillies in the country.

Certainly the 2022 edition has come up strong. Among the seven entrants are five graded or group stakes winners, led by #6 McKulick. The British-bred daughter of Frankel hasn't missed the trifecta in seven starts and has proven her worth against tough competition in six consecutive graded stakes.

McKulick scored her signature victory in the 1 1/4-mile Belmont Oaks (G1) during the summer at Belmont Park, rallying sharply from midfield to beat next-out Saratoga Oaks (G3) winner With the Moonlight by 1 3/4 lengths. The tables were turned when McKulick ran second in the 1 3/16-mile Saratoga Oaks, but McKulick bounced right back in the recent 1 3/8-mile Jockey Club Oaks (G3) at Belmont at the Big A, rallying with determination to prevail by half a length.

Trainer Chad Brown has won the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup four times overall, including three of the last four editions, so McKulick figures to receive a lot of betting support. The presence of three-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz adds to the appeal.

But here's the problem: McKulick has done her best work running 1 1/4 miles and farther. She's lost her last four starts racing 1 3/16 miles or less, so cutting back to 1 1/8 miles for the Queen Elizabeth II is at least a little bit of a question mark.

That's why I'm tempted to side with the other Brown trainee, #2 Gina Romantica. At first glance, Gina Romantica might seem unappealing since she's one of the two entrants without a graded win to her credit. But the daughter of Into Mischief enters in improving form and may outrun expectations.

Gina Romantica began her career with two victories from four starts on dirt. Starting off on the main track only made sense, considering Gina Romantica is a half-sibling to Santa Anita H. (G1) winner Gift Box and Prioress S. (G2) heroine Stonetastic. But Gina Romantica missed the trifecta in two stakes attempts on dirt and seemed to hit a ceiling for her potential over the surface.

The good news is, Gina Romantica thrived when switching to turf for the one-mile Riskaverse S. at Saratoga, launching a powerful homestretch rally to get up and defeat next-out Pebbles S. (G3) winner Faith in Humanity by 1 1/4 lengths.

Gina Romantica also contested the Pebbles and ran a deceptively good race in defeat. Racing wide and off the pace as Faith in Humanity escaped with an easy lead through fractions of :24.13, :49.55, and 1:13.65, Gina Romantica had every excuse to come up short down the homestretch. But Gina Romantica nearly got the job done anyway, running her final quarter-mile in approximately :22.30 to rally and finish second by half a length.

In the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup, Gina Romantica retains the services of high-percentage jockey Flavien Prat, a 25% winner on turf. The field doesn't feature much pace on paper, but if Gina Romantica works out a ground-saving trip from post two, the acceleration she displayed in the Pebbles can put her in the hunt for victory down the homestretch.

Beyond the Chad Brown trainees, we have to respect the chances of #7 Paris Peacock. The consistent Irish-bred filly has come to hand nicely in her last two starts at Gowran Park in Ireland, breaking her maiden in the 1 3/16-mile Hurry Harriet S. before coming back to win the Denny Cordell Lavarack & Lanwades Stud Fillies & Mares S. (G3) over the same distance. Trainer Jessica Harrington appears to have a talented and progressing filly in her stable, so Paris Peacock has upside for an even stronger performance in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup.

We'll also give a shout-out to #1 California Angel as a live longshot. The daughter of California Chrome unleashed a big rally to win the Jessamine S. (G2) at Keeneland as a juvenile, and she recently returned from a six-month break to finish third in the 1 5/16-mile Dueling Grounds Oaks over the tricky European-style turf course at Kentucky Downs. If California Angel steps forward while returning to Keeneland for her second start off the layoff, she can battle for a top-three finish.

Selections:

1st: Gina Romantica

2nd: McKulick

3rd: Paris Peacock

Now it's your turn! Who do you like in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup?

*****

Want to test your handicapping skills against fellow Unlocking Winners readers? Check out the Unlocking Winners contests pagethere's a new challenge every week! (Please note: older contest entries can be found here.)

J. Keeler Johnson (also known as "Keelerman") is a writer, videographer, voice actor, handicapper, and all-around horse racing enthusiast. A great fan of racing history, he considers Dr. Fager to be the greatest racehorse ever produced in America, but counts Zenyatta as his all-time favorite.
The circular house on Table Rock Islands as viewed from above. Exit 509 Photography

A group of private islands in Ontario's Georgian Bay is on the market for $1.9 million.

Collectively known as Table Rock Islands, there are seven islands included in the sale.

The largest island comes with an off-grid circular cottage that's only accessible by boat.

Instead of one private island, why not have seven? Ontario's Table Rock Islands are on the market for 2.65 million Canadian dollars, or $1.9 million, and they come with a spaceship-like home.

The house is known as Table Rock Cottage and it sits on the biggest island of the seven. Exit 509 Photography

The islands are in Lake Huron's Georgian Bay. The house, also known as Table Rock Cottage, sits on the biggest island of the collection.

Canadian architect William Grierson built Table Rock Cottage in 1971 as a summer retreat for his family, per the listing.

"The island is accessible only by boat. As children, my brother and I spent entire summers there and family friends would come to stay," Sarah Waterfield, the current owner and Grierson's daughter, told Insider.

George Webster with Royal LePage Meadowtowne Realty holds the listing.

In addition to the main island with the cottage, there are six smaller, undeveloped islands included in the sale.

All seven islands are located near each other in Georgian Bay. Some of them can be seen in the image on the left. Exit 509 Photography and Google Maps

One of those islands is a one-acre rock island known as "Moby Dick." The other five islands range between a half-acre and one acre in size, per the listing.

Houses in Georgian Bay have an average house price of CAD $1.2 million, per data from Canadian real-estate platform Zolo.com.

Currently, 12 private islands in Georgian Bay are for sale, with prices ranging from CAD $3.5 million to CAD $1.1 million, per real-estate platform Private Islands Inc, which is dedicated to island properties. The Table Rock Islands package is in the mid-price range.

Grierson decided to build his summer home on the biggest island of the cluster due to its level ground and sheltered harbor.

The exterior of Table Rock Cottage. Exit 509 Photography

The islands were uninhabited when Grierson bought them in 1965, according to an excerpt from a book about Grierson's career that Waterfield sent to Insider. Titled "William Grierson: Selected Works," it was written by Grierson's wife, Joan, together with writer Alex Champlin.

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The only sign that anyone else had ever been on the island before Grierson was a brass plaque left behind by the Hydrographic Services of Canada as a record of their visit in 1961, per the book.

The interior floors of the 2,800-square-feet Table Rock Cottage are the island's rock surface.

The house surrounds a large central courtyard with a glass ceiling. Exit 509 Photography

The house's wide, sloping roof is held up by 24 concrete columns placed along the exterior perimeter of the house, per the book. At the core of each column is a metal rod that's embedded into the ground to ensure that the building can withstand storms.

"Even on rainy days, there is a wonderful sense of ease and we gather by the fire to play board games and drink tea," Waterfield said.

The living, dining, and kitchen areas share an open-concept layout. Large windows and doors provide panoramic views of the surrounding water.

The main living areas have an open-concept layout. Exit 509 Photography

Waterfield and her brother spent lots of time playing in the waves  fishing, snorkeling, and even sailing.

"Back then, summer time seemed endless," Waterfield said. "It is a very special place and has its own rhythm, as islands do."

Grierson incorporated the island's rock into various features of the home. The base of the dining table is also dotted with rocks.

The dining area. Exit 509 Photography

The island is remote, but Waterfield said there was plenty to do every summer when they were there.

"Far from idle, we were always busy working on the next project  whether it was building a new dock, building a boathouse, or even painting dining chairs," Waterfield added.

The house is powered by solar panels, making it completely off-grid.

The kitchen. Exit 509 Photography

Table Rock Cottage was powered by an oil generator when it was first constructed. Grierson installed solar panels in the 1980s, per the book.

There are eight bedrooms in the house, and each one has a screened door that leads directly outside.

One of the bedrooms in the house. Exit 509 Photography

"The building allows for many people, so everyone has their own space and it never feels crowded," Waterfield said.

There are four bathrooms in the house.

The bathroom. Exit 509 Photography

For the water and plumbing system, Grierson had to blast open the rock bed on the island and create a trench where he could place the pipes, per the book.

Outside, Grierson built a mechanical dock that could be raised and lowered into the water to protect it from powerful storms.

The circular house on Table Rock Islands as viewed from above. Exit 509 Photography

When the house was built, Grierson had floating docks installed, per the book. However, they were often damaged by strong winds and heavy rain, which caused them to detach and float out into the open water.

After over five decades with the Grierson family, it's time for Table Rock Islands to find a new owner.

The circular house on Table Rock Islands as viewed from the ocean. Exit 509 Photography

"The site is spectacular, with extraordinary sunsets, shooting stars, and August moons. There is no other place like it on earth," Waterfield said.

Got a home, renovation, or story you think Insider should feature in its real-estate coverage? Email this reporter at agoh@insider.com.

Read the original article on Insider
Democratic candidate Mark Kelly is leading in the race for Arizonas Senate seat, while Republican nominee Kari Lake is ahead in the race for the governors mansion, according to a new poll released on Thursday.

The InsiderAdvantage-Fox 10 poll showed both Kelly and Lake leading their opponents by about 4 points, with less than four weeks left until the midterm elections.

Forty-six percent of registered Arizona voters said they supported Kelly in the Senate race, compared to the 42 percent who said they backed his Republican rival, Blake Masters. In the governors race, Lake led Democratic candidate Katie Hobbs, 49 percent to 46 percent.

While several recent polls have showed Kelly leading in the Senate contest, the governors race has remained extremely close, going both ways in the polls. A CNN poll from last week showed Kelly up by 6 points and Hobbs up by 3 points. However, a Marist poll from late September showed Lake holding a slim 1-point lead over Hobbs.

Thursdays poll from InsiderAdvantage and Fox 10 was conducted with 550 registered voters and had a margin of error of about 4 percentage points.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Murray Hooper, along with William Bracy, was convicted in the 1980 murder of two people as they prepared for a New Year's Eve party at their Phoenix home.

The Arizona Supreme Court on Wednesday granted the states request for a warrant of execution for death row prisoner Murray Hooper.

The execution is scheduled for Nov. 16.

After the ruling, Kelly Culshaw, the assistant federal public defender who represented Hooper in his appeal, objected to the state condemning her client.

For 40 years, Mr. Hooper has maintained that he was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death, based on corrupt police practices and unreliable witness testimony. No physical evidence links him to the crime and Mr. Hoopers execution should not be carried out until an analysis of key fingerprint and DNA evidence, which was scientifically unavailable at the time of his trial, has been completed, Culshaw said in an interview.

Hooper, 76, would mark the state's third execution since the botched execution of Joseph Wood in 2014.

Clarence Dixon, 66, was executed May 11 and Frank Atwood, also 66, was executed June 8.

Hooper was among three men convicted for the 1980 murders of Patrick Redmond and his mother-in-law, Helen Phelps, as they were preparing for a New Year's Eve party in Phoenix.

Because Hooper was convicted in 1983, he will have a choice between lethal injection and lethal gas. If he does not make a selection, lethal injection is the default method used in Arizona.

There are 111 prisoners on Arizonas death row. Of those, 22 have exhausted their appeals.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona death row prisoner Murray Hooper to be executed Nov. 16
NextShark

Multiple Asian women have reportedly come forward to accuse a Chinese American cosplayer and her boyfriend of luring them into sexual relations through supposed opportunities for collaborative work. Cosplayer and influencer Kat Wong, who describes herself as just an Asian girl making silly content, came under fire on Twitter last week after actor, director and host Gina Darling revealed that multiple women have reached out to her with such allegations. Multiple women in the Asian community have reached out to me about @katkwo4tweets and her BF allegedly trying to trick them into having sexual relations with them under the guise of collaborating on cosplays, OF (OnlyFans) and modeling, Darling tweeted.
Finding a healthy work-life balance is no small feat for any working parent, especially for those with a career in the military.

Army Reserve Lt. Colonel Lisa Jaster candidly shared her experience navigating that difficult journey, in a conversation at the annual Association of the U.S. Army conference.

Theres no such thing as work and life, it is a continuum, said Jaster, who in 2015, at 37 years old, notably became the third woman, and first female reserve soldier to graduate from the Armys ranger school.

After graduating from West Point and serving seven years on active duty, with tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, Jaster left the Army to work in the corporate world, including as a senior project engineer with Shell Oil. It would not be long, however, before she again answered the call to serve.

In 2012, Jaster joined the Army Reserve after a 5-year hiatus from service, working in the Army Corps of Engineers among other roles. The trailblazing soldier is also a recipient of two Bronze Star medals and the Meritorious Service Medal.

This officer, the 3rd woman to graduate Ranger School, discusses how respect can be earned

During her conversation, Jaster shared three overarching pieces of advice that guide her understanding of work life integration: understanding ones priorities, becoming comfortable letting go of things and building up ones team. In particular, she cites her husband, Marine Corps Col. Allan Jaster, and her kids, as being a part of her support network.

Balancing the citizen (employee, mom, wife, sister, daughter, and individual) with the soldier is very complicated, Jaster said in 2019. I used to try to silo both aspects of who I am but found that so much bleeds over from one job to the other that I need to be fluid with those lines.

What that means, she continued. Is that Army conference calls can happen during cheer practice, and I might need to review proposals for work while I am in the field with the Army. It means being open and honest with my spouse, my military boss, and my civilian supervisor about what I can handle and what might be coming up. Having a strong support team with regards to extended family, friends and hired help is critical to ensure nothing at home drops.

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Despite wearing so many hats, or perhaps because of it, Jasper still has no intention of slowing down. In January, she is releasing her first book, Delete the Adjective. It follows her impressive life experiences and her ongoing message to not limit oneself by labels like middle-aged or female.

What does #DeleteTheAdjective mean to me? It's simple....but it is NOT easy. @USArmyReserve pic.twitter.com/Ms1gOibiJc  Lisa Jaster - Delete The Adjective (@DeleteTheAdj) September 12, 2022

By talking more about work-life support in the Army, Jasper shared, over time it will become easier to bring more people into the fold.
WASHINGTON  The U.S. Army will lean on artificial intelligence to assist two fundamental abilities aboard the forthcoming Bradley infantry fighting vehicle replacement, officials said.

Brig. Gen. Geoffrey Norman, the director of the Next Generation Combat Vehicles Cross-Functional Team, said both AI-enabled targeting and navigation are absolutely essential for the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle, or OMFV.

What were seeking initially is well within the realm of the feasible. Weve demonstrated those capabilities in the field in really rigorous environments, Norman said Oct. 12 at the Association of the U.S. Army annual conference. But as we look toward the future, and what we want to see downstream, we want to be able to accept maturing technologies.

The Army this summer published a request for proposals to design and build prototypes of the OMFV. Bids are due next month, according to Maj. Gen. Glenn Dean, the Armys program executive officer for ground combat systems.

The service tapped five companies for preliminary designs: Oshkosh Defense, BAE Systems, General Dynamics Land Systems, American Rheinmetall Vehicles and Point Blank Enterprises.

Digital engineering makes Bradley replacement better, Army leaders say

Underpinning the needs of OMFV is work already underway in the sensor space, the work thats going on in developing algorithms, and developing that AI stack, Norman said. Digital engineering  construction of virtual models that account for every inch of a complex product  is playing a key role in development, as well.

The Pentagon has for years recognized the value of AI, both on the battlefield and backing its infrastructure, and is investing significantly; the departments public spending on AI, including autonomy, mushroomed from a little more than $600 million in fiscal 2016 to $2.5 billion in 2021.

More than 685 AI projects, including several tied to major weapons systems, were underway as of early 2021, according to a Government Accountability Office inventory. At least 232 projects are under the Army umbrella.

Norman on Wednesday said the near-term AI focus for the Bradley replacement is driven by soldier feedback and other hands-on experimentation.

We believe, he said, that there are solutions available now to meet our needs for OMFV.
WASHINGTON  The U.S. Army is still deciding how much farther out it might extend the range requirement for its Precision Strike Missile that is already capable of reaching 499 kilometers (310 miles), according to Col. Rory Crooks, the services Long Range Precision Fires Cross-Functional Team lead.

One year ago this month, the Army conducted a long-range flight test of PrSM that is believed to have exceeded the current range requirement of 499 kilometers. The Army has not disclosed the distance it traveled during its Oct. 13, 2021, test at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, but the goal was to see how far the weapon can travel beyond its previous set requirement.

The original intent was to reach a maximum of 499 kilometers, but Americas 2019 withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia has allowed the U.S. Army to develop the missile to fly farther. The treaty had prevented the development of missiles with ranges between 499 and 5,000 kilometers.

The long-range tests taught the Army that the most promising attribute of PrSM so far has been its growth potential, Crooks told Defense News in a recent interview. We have a lot of [science and technology] efforts that are addressing how we can capitalize on this growth potential within the program with respect to [range extension].

The Armys Aviation and Missile Center is partnered with industry to extend the range. Theyve got some very viable designs that were exploring right now, so it looks very promising that were going to be able to continue to extend beyond 499 [kilometers], Crooks said.

Having a longer range for PrSM makes the capability decisive in both the Indo-Pacific and European theaters, Crooks added. The colonel recently served as chief of staff of V Corps, spending time in Europe with a front-row seat to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

With 499 kilometers ... you could probably interdict almost all the targets you wanted to in [U.S. European Commands area of responsibility] with those ranges, Crooks said.

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But to be important or even decisive in [U.S. Indo-Pacific Commands area of responsibility] you have to go beyond that, he added. Its just the tyranny of distance.

I dont think its an accident that we have interest from other allies like Australia [and] the U.K., not only to potentially buy these systems, but to actually help us in the science and technology end of it.

In August 2021, Australia and the U.S. Army announced a partnership to develop a precision missile capability. Australia contributed $70 million to the $907 million PrSM program, according to an announcement from the Australian government.

The Pacific nation chose to acquire the High Mobility Rocket Launcher System, which aligns well with its plans to potentially buy PrSM because it is the same system the Army uses to fire that munition.

The United Kingdom plans to field PrSM in 2024 as part of an upgrade to its M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System, according to a March 2021 release from the British government.

The U.S. Army approved the PrSM program to move into the engineering and manufacturing development phase on Sept. 30, 2021, and awarded Lockheed Martin a $62 million contract for early operational capability production.

In September 2022, the Army awarded Lockheed another $158 million contract to produce additional early operational capability Precision Strike Missiles. More flight tests are planned for fiscal 2023, the company said in a statement.

The Army plans to initially field the weapon in FY23 and will spiral in more technology later, including an enhanced seeker, increased lethality and extended range. The priority for PrSM in the near term is to pursue a maritime, ship-killing capability.

The Army also plans to begin integrating the Land-Based Anti-Ship Missile seeker into PrSM in FY23, giving it the capability to destroy ships. Crooks predecessor, Brig. Gen. John Rafferty, told Defense News last year that the Army was realistically aiming to field the capability in FY26.
A massive stretch of mountains and valleys, where World War II soldiers from the Army's 10th Mountain Division trained to snowshoe, ski and rock climb for their fight in the Italian Alps, will become the nation's newest national monument.

President Joe Biden was traveling to rural Colorado on Wednesday to designate more than 53,000 acres of land as the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument under the Antiquities Act, protecting the land from development, mining and deforestation.

"This monument preserves and protects the mountains and valleys where the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division prepared for their brave service that ultimately brought WWII to a close," the White House said in a statement after Biden signed the proclamation. "Their skills, grit and endurance were instrumental in protecting democracy and fighting the spread of fascism."

Read Next: No More Tape Test, But Only for Soldiers That Crush the Fitness Test

This marks Biden's first national monument designation as president and ends a years-long legislative effort by Colorado's Democratic U.S. senators, Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, to protect the land.

The designation of Camp Hale as a national monument has also been heartwarming for some of the remaining veterans who trained there.

World War II veteran Francis Lovett, who trained at Camp Hale, told Bennet's office in a video interview that having a place so important to his life protected from development is invaluable to him.

"The experience with the outdoors was, for me, one of the most gorgeous times of my life ... that's one of the reasons I'm so interested in having this declared a national monument," Lovett said in the interview. "It's so easy to tear things down. And you can't put them back."

Training at Camp Hale, located about 100 miles southwest of Denver, was rigorous, and conditions for the 15,000 troops stationed in the frigid Colorado cold were often miserable. This led to the nickname "Camp Hell," according to the National Parks Conservation Association.

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"I got off the train and looked around and thought, 'What have I done? There were all these snow-covered mountains,'" Bruce Campbell, a World War II veteran who also trained at Camp Hale, told CBS Denver. "We would go on little hikes like 20 miles in eight hours that was in the dry land or even with skis."

Additionally, the mountains of Camp Hale were used by the CIA to covertly train Tibetan soldiers from 1959 to 1965, according to a fact sheet from the Army Corps of Engineers. The site was decommissioned and later returned to the U.S. Forest Service in 1966.

Since then, there have been major efforts to clear the area of unexploded mines and military ordnance throughout the area. Two widespread sweeps have happened, one in 2001 and the other in 2003, which led to the removal of nearly 30 live items that were destroyed by Fort Carson Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel, the Army Corps of Engineers said in a 2014 press release.

Biden's designation of Camp Hale as a national monument is also a political move, offering Bennet, a fellow Democrat, a boost in his competitive Senate reelection bid where he faces Republican nominee Joe O'Dea in the upcoming midterm elections.

In a statement Wednesday, O'Dea called Camp Hale "an amazing place" but slammed the designation, saying, "Biden and Bennet are moving the country badly in the wrong direction, and no amount of photo-ops in a place we all love will change this fact: Accountability from the voters is coming soon."

Republican members of Colorado's delegation in Washington were also against Biden using the Antiquities Act -- an authority passed in 1906 by Theodore Roosevelt that allows the president to protect federal lands by making them monuments -- claiming it was sidestepping congressional approval.

"While Camp Hale and our service members that were stationed there made important

contributions to World War II, we don't support the efforts of extremist environmentalists who

are seeking to hijack this historic place to create a new land designation -- a designation that

literally does not exist -- to prohibit timber harvesting and mining on nearly 30,000 acres of land," a Sept. 23 letter signed by members of Colorado's GOP congressional delegation read.

The designation of Camp Hale as a national monument also comes as the state braces to potentially lose the U.S. Space Command's headquarters in Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama. Former President Donald Trump announced Alabama's Redstone Arsenal as the preferred location for the command in the waning days of his administration.

Bennet and Hickenlooper wrote a letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall on Sept. 27, urging him to reconsider Colorado Springs "prior to the issuance of a final decision."

Additionally, the Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization this year -- which ultimately left the right to an abortion up to the states -- raised a red flag for Bennet, who believes moving U.S. Space Command from Colorado to Alabama will hurt troops' quality of life, as well as harm the military's retention efforts.

"I'm deeply concerned about how the Dobbs decision and state abortion bans will affect Space Command's workforce and readiness if the command leaves Colorado," Bennet told Military.com in an emailed statement.

-- Thomas Novelly can be reached at thomas.novelly@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomNovelly.

Related: Could Access to Abortion Services Change Where the Military Stations Troops?
Talk about a bad day at the office. A French auction house fired one of its art experts after their appraisal of a vase massively missed the mark.

Last week, Osenat auctioned a Chinese tianquiping vase for more than 7.7 million euros ($7.5 million)9.1 million euros ($8.8 million) after fees. The problem is that the art expert who appraised it for the French auction house expected it to fetch less than 2,000 euros ($1,940). After a bidding war ensued between Chinese buyers to drive up the price, the vase didnt appear to be quite ordinary as the auction house had originally deemed it.

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The seller herself had no expectation of it being that valuable either. The French woman living abroad was selling items from her mothers home in Brittany, France and entrusted the curio to Jean-Pierre Osenats auction house in addition to other various items. The porcelain blue and white vase decorated with clouds and nine dragons was originally purchased by the sellers grandmother and then passed down, spending decades just holding flowers in the family home.

The expert believed the vase to be from the 20th century and didnt single it out from the 200 other lots. But when Osenat listed the item online and showed it in an exhibition ahead of the auction, the house was flooded with potential buyers.

They came with lamps and magnifying glasses to look at it. Obviously they saw something, Osenat told The Guardian. There were so many registrations [to take part in the auction online] we had to stop them. At that point we understood something was happening.

Unlike the appraiser, potential buyers believed this vase to be a rare artifact dating back to the 18th century, which bore a stamp of Qianlong, who was a former Chinese emperor and a sacred figure.

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More than 300 people registered their interest and that group was culled to 30 serious bidders ahead of the auction. The bids were placed over the phone with a deposit of 10,000 euros ($9,704). As the sale drew to a close, the calls became more frantic. In the end, the item sold for almost 4,000 times the original estimate, going to an unnamed buyer in China.

The expert made a mistake. One person alone against 300 interested Chinese buyers cannot be right. He was working for us, Osenat told The Guardian. He no longer works for us. It was, after all, a serious mistake.

However, not even the director of the auction houses Asian arts department is completely convinced the expert was wrong. Cedric Laborde says it may have been artfully crafted copy. We dont know whether it is old or not or why it sold for such a price, Laborde said. Perhaps we will never know.

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More than half of pet owners travel with their fur babies yearly, making pet-friendly destinations a top priority. With its new Have Dog, Will Travel initiative, Aruba is welcoming travelers with dogs this fall. The One happy island wants visitors to experience The Aruba Effect by making pet travel easier through collaborations with pet-centered companies Wag! and Avvinue.

Through October 20th, Have Dog, Will Travel is spotlighting dog-inclusive experiences and hotel deals available to pet owners.

Promos For Your Pet-Friendly Travel Planning

Aruba is offering visitors discounted expert pet travel assistance for the first time ever through both collaborations. Wag! connects pet owners with on-demand and scheduled pet care services. Avvinue is a startup company that helps travelers discover pet-friendly destinations by providing professional assistance with booking flights and pet reservations.

Aruba is a destination that not only allows you to bring your dog but welcomes them with open arms, said Ronella Croes, CEO of the Aruba Tourism Authority. Through this promotion, we aim to help pet owners enjoy an idyllic experience on the One happy island, whether they are planning to bring their companion or safely board them while they travel.

Visitors booking their pet-friendly travel through Avvinue can enter the promo code ARUBA at checkout to receive a $25 discount on an upcoming flight for themselves and their dog. Meanwhile, travelers who prefer to leave their fur friends at home can sign up for one free month of Wag! Premium and a 10% discount on services such as boarding and sitting services through this promotion.

Aruba currently boasts six impressive hotels that welcome visitors and their pets, including Amsterdam Manor, Bucuti & Tara, Courtyard by Marriott, Hyatt Place, Hyatt Regency, and The Ritz-Carlton Aruba.

Photo Credit: Aruba Tourism

Requirements For Importing Your Pet

Import requirements for different pets vary based on the destination of origin. Pets traveling from the US to Aruba must meet the following criteria:

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The pet must have resided in the USA for at least 6 months continuously preceding the date of export to Aruba. Puppies must be born in the USA

A microchip for identification

A valid rabies vaccination (rabies vaccination is not applicable to puppies/kittens under 12 weeks old). The pet should have the microchip already inserted at the moment of the rabies vaccination If this is the first rabies vaccine ever, this must be given at least 30 days before entering Aruba (for puppies/ kittens between 12 and 16 weeks old: the 30-day waiting period is waived). If your pet has a 3-year rabies vaccine and it is still valid, no re-vaccination is needed.

A valid endorsed USDA health certificate issued within 14 days of arrival in Aruba. Your accredited veterinarian can assist you with the endorsement by the USDA.

A completely filled out application form for import permit (available on Aruba.com)

For more information on planning a trip with your furry best friend, visit Arubas dedicated pet travel page.

Related: Black-owned Pet Hotels for Traveling Pet Parents | 5 Of The Most Dog-Friendly Countries For Pet-Loving Travelers
Atlanta police are investigating after a man was shot and killed in an upscale Buckhead neighborhood Thursday morning.

Channel 2s Tom Regan was the only reporter to talk to a mother who was driving her elementary-school-aged daughter to school when they spotted the body, on Channel 2 Action News at 5 p.m.

Heather Marie Baker said her daughter saw the victim on the side of Peachtree Battle Drive lying motionless in the driveway of a vacant lot.

She suddenly exclaimed that she saw a man lying on the ground, and she said, I saw blood and it looks like hes been shot, Baker said. I knew that he was unconscious and not responsive, but I wasnt sure at that time if he was past saving.

Baker called 911.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Police are working to determined the identity of the victim, who they said is a man in his mid 40s or 50s.

We dont believe he lived in the immediate area, police said. He doesnt seem to be from the neighborhood.

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Baker said the whole thing is shocking and tragic.

Its so sad to think of him lying there and suffering alone, Baker said.

Baker said shes proud of her daughter for spotting the tragic scene and that they wish the man could have been saved.

She offers a really great example of paying attention and just letting yourself be impacted by whats happening in the world around you, Baker said.

Police said they are also working to determine a motive and identify the suspect or suspects.

IN OTHER NEWS
NextShark

A 47-year-old Thai man is in critical condition after two Frenchmen assaulted him in an unprovoked attack caught on camera. According to Lakhana, Somkuan had said, That car is so beautiful, when will we get a car like this? They reportedly followed the Porsche to appreciate it for a bit longer before passing. The Porsche then allegedly began tailgating the couples motorbike and honked at them until they pulled to the side of the road in front of a grilled pork stall.
A new study suggests that babies born during coronavirus lockdowns are reaching developmental milestones at a slower pace than those born outside of the lockdowns.

The study, posted this week in the peer-reviewed medical journal BMJ by researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland, showed that babies born between March and May of 2020 struggled to communicate at one year of age, compared to babies born between 2008 and 2011.

Ireland was subjected to strict lockdown measures during significant portions of time between the springs of 2020 and 2021.

According to the study, 89% of babies born between 2008 and 2011 were able to say a "meaningful word" at 12 months of age, compared to just 77% of infants who spent their early months shut out from the outside world early in the pandemic. Additionally, the number of babies able to point at objects dropped from 93% to 84%, and those who could wave good-bye fell from 94% to 88%.

LEARNING LOSS FROM COVID LOCKDOWNS CAUSED 'UNMITIGATED DISASTER' PARTICULARLY IN STUDENT BEHAVIOR: EXPERTS

Photo of a young mother holding her newborn baby, while putting him to sleep.

The study was based on questionnaire results from 309 parents of babies during the pandemic. Parents were asked about the different tasks their children could perform on their first birthday. Those results were then compared to a longitudinal study that asked about the same skills between 2008 and 2021.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

"Pandemic-associated social isolation appears to have impacted on social communication skills in babies born during the pandemic compared with a historical cohort," the study said. "Babies are resilient and inquisitive by nature, and it is very likely that with societal re-emergence and increase in social circles that their social communication skills will improve. However, this cohort and others will need to be followed up to school age to ensure that this is the case."

One of the studys authors, Dr. Susan Byrne of the Royal College of Surgeons, told NBC News that a quarter of the babies in the study had yet to meet another baby their age by their first birthday and that few people had come to their homes during the pandemic.

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DR. PHIL SLAMS COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS: WERE GOING TO BE PAYING A VERY HIGH PRICE FOR DECADES TO COME

"If no one's coming to your house to leave again, you're not going to learn how to say 'Bye, bye," Byrne told the outlet.

Byrne added that babies could have been negatively impacted by not engaging with stimulating objects outside of their own home, which they have already memorized.

CALIFORNIA, NEW YORK HANDLED COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS THE WORST, FLORIDA AMONG THE BEST, A NEW STUDY SHOWS

"Children point because either something has fallen, and they want to find it, or they're interested in a new thing, and they want to see it," Byrne explained. "Obviously, if you've been in your lovely home the whole time, you know everything. Nothing's new."

The study is the latest in a long list of data showing the negative effects coronavirus lockdowns have had on the children, both in early-age development and in the classroom.

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In addition to the learning loss suffered by children during lockdowns, a recent study showed that coronavirus restrictions also negatively impacted the physical health of children and contributed to childhood obesity, especially in low-income communities.


Babies born into COVID-related lockdowns have taken longer to reach certain developmental milestones than babies born pre-pandemic, a study found.

Before COVID hit, parents commonly observed infants pointing at objects by 9 months old. By 1 year, many babies were saying their first words.

But the new study, published Oct. 12 by researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland, found that Irish infants born from March to May 2020 had a harder time communicating at 1 year old than those born between 2008 and 2011 had.

Around 89% of the infants studied who were born between 2008 and 2011 could articulate a full word like bowl or cup at 12 months old, compared to around 77% of infants born during the early months of the pandemic. The share of infants who could point at objects fell from 93% to 84%, and the portion who could wave goodbye fell from 94% to 88%.

The results were based on a questionnaire given to parents of 309 babies in Ireland during the pandemic. Around each infants first birthday, their parents were asked whether the baby could perform 10 different tasks, such as standing up or stacking bricks. The researchers then compared those results to a longitudinal study that assessed the same 10 skills between 2008 and 2011. Both groups of parents were asked to complete the surveys as close to their childs birthday as possible.

For most of the time between March 2020 and April 2021, Ireland had a strict lockdown that required people to stay home except for essential activities. Residents werent allowed to dine inside restaurants, and people who could work at home were told to do so. Those who did not follow the rules could be fined.

Dr. Susan Byrne, the studys author and a pediatric neurologist at the Royal College of Surgeons, said one-quarter of the babies in her study had never met another child their own age by their first birthday. When the babies were 6 months old, their families were only seeing four other people outside the home, on average, and each infant had only been kissed by three adults, including their parents.

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Its no surprise, then, that babies communications skills were delayed, Byrne said: If no ones coming to your house to leave again, youre not going to learn how to say bye, bye.

Byrne said some of the babies probably werent hearing or seeing as many people speak. Difficulty pointing, she said, could stem from the fact that babies werent introduced to much new stimuli beyond what was inside their house.

Children point because either something has fallen and they want to find it, or theyre interested in a new thing and they want to see it, Byrne said. Obviously, if youve been in your lovely home the whole time, you know everything. Nothings new.

The findings build on previous research that similarly suggested the pandemic hindered babies development. Researchers in China found that the early months of the pandemic may have delayed the development of fine motor skills, such as picking up Cheerios with a thumb and forefinger, among 1-year-olds. The findings also pointed to delayed communication skills among firstborn children who turned 1 in 2020.

In January, researchers at Columbia University found that babies born in New York City from March to December 2020 had less developed motor and social skills by six months than babies born between November 2017 and January 2020.

Those researchers hypothesized that a contributing factor might have been a mothers emotional state while pregnant, since other studies have indicated that loneliness or stress during pregnancy could alter a childs brain or behavioral development after theyre born. Some parents may also have had a harder time engaging with their newborns if they felt socially isolated or depressed.

It could be a double-edged sword, where an adverse postnatal environment  so not being able to engage in the social world  is making these effects worse, said Lauren Shuffrey, an author of that earlier study and an associate research scientist at Columbia University Medical Center.

Shuffrey said a babys number of social interactions probably has less effect on communication skills within their first year than the quality of those interactions.

Having someone who is socially engaged with that infant, whether that be one person or two people  that is the most important thing, she said.

Neither Byrne nor Shuffrey expect these delays to be permanent.

I dont think that these small differences really early on in development mean that these kids are on a life course of having developmental delays, Shuffrey said. These are really small differences and we know that infants and young childrens brains are super malleable.

Shuffrey said her own daughter was born during the pandemic and has transitioned from social isolation to attending nursery school and going on playdates. Those new experiences will shape her daughters social development, she said, even if theres catching up to do.

Contrary to the other observed trends, the researchers in Ireland found that 97% of pandemic babies were able to crawl at 1 year compared to 91% of babies born earlier. Byrne said thats probably because babies spent more time at home during lockdown and less time in strollers or carseats.

Her team will continue to observe the same babies to see how their communication skills change by age 2, or perhaps even older.

I think the two-year data is going to be really informative, Byrne said. At 2, youre better able to look at all of the developmental milestones. You can get a better assessment of what children are able to do because they can do more things.

This story first appeared on NBCNews.com.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
Jan Laczynski - who lost five friends in the bombings - was among those upset by the footage

Graphic footage of the Bali bombings has been played at a ceremony marking its 20th anniversary, upsetting survivors and relatives of the dead.

Hundreds gathered on the Indonesian island late on Wednesday to remember the 202 people killed in the attacks.

One victim's relative said he felt "sick" when the footage aired. It is unclear who made the documentary video.

The Australian government says it is "deeply disappointed" and will formally raise concerns with Indonesia.

People from 21 countries - including 88 Australians - died in the bombings at two popular nightclubs in Kuta on 12 October, 2002. Another device exploded outside the US consulate but did not cause harm.

A local group linked to al-Qaeda was blamed for what is Indonesia's deadliest terror attack.

A 10-minute documentary-style film was screened at 23:05 local time on Wednesday - marking the moment the first bomb detonated.

It included footage of dazed and injured people fleeing in the fiery aftermath. There was also audio of people yelling and a clip from the 9/11 terror attacks in New York, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Australian man Jeff Marshall, whose father Bob Marshall died in Kuta's Sari Club, said he was stunned by the decision to show such "carnage".

"[It] just ripped all our hearts apart, seeing it all again," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Attendees say the video also included footage of those behind the attack, including convicted bomb-maker Umar Patek, who is currently being considered for early release on parole.

"We were expecting a minute's silence once we got to 11:05pm," Jan Laczynski told Sydney radio station 2GB.

"[Instead] you had all the Bali bombers being paraded. You had the actual bomb sequences happening on the screen."

Mr Laczynski - who lost five friends in the blasts - said some footage was so "traumatic" that he left the service.

Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said its government wasn't involved in organising the event.

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"We understand the distress it has caused," it said in a statement.

Indonesian authorities have not responded.

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By Brendan Pierson

(Reuters) -A federal judge in West Virginia has ruled that a federal ban on possessing a gun with its serial number removed is unconstitutional, the first such ruling since the U.S. Supreme Court dramatically expanded gun rights in June.

U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin in Charleston on Wednesday found that the law was not consistent with the United States' "historical tradition of firearm regulation," the new standard laid out by the Supreme Court in its landmark ruling.

The decision came in a criminal case charging a man, Randy Price, with illegally possessing a gun with the serial number removed that was found in his car. The judge dismissed that charge, though Price is still charged with illegally possessing the gun after being convicted of previous felonies.

Price's lawyer, Lex Coleman, called the decision "thoughtful, measured and accurate." A spokesperson for the office of U.S. Attorney William Thompson in Charleston, which is prosecuting the case, said the office was "reviewing the ruling and assessing options."

The federal law in question prohibits anyone from transporting a gun with the serial number removed across state lines, or from possessing such a gun if it has ever been transported across state lines.

Serial numbers, first required by the federal Gun Control Act of 1968, are intended to prevent illegal gun sales and make it easier to solve crimes by allowing individual guns to be traced.

Price argued that the law is unconstitutional in light of the Supreme Court's June 24 ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc v. Bruen. That ruling held that under the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the government cannot restrict the right to possess firearms unless the restriction is consistent with historical tradition.

Bruen said serial numbers were not required when the Second Amendment was adopted in 1791, and were not widely used until 1968, putting them outside that tradition.

(Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi, Nick Zieminski, David Gregorio and Marguerita Choy)
WEDNESDAY, 12 OCTOBER 2022, 22:04

Vladimir Makei, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs, said that deploying a mission of representatives of Western countries on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border would be equivalent to "these third countries directly engaging in the Ukrainian conflict".

Source: Belta, the state-owned national news agency of the Republic of Belarus, quoting from Makei

Quote from Makei: "I agree with the assessment voiced by the Russian side. If Western countries send their representatives to the border between Belarus and Ukraine, this will essentially be equivalent to these third countries directly engaging in the Ukrainian conflict."

Details: Makei additionally claimed that both Belarusian and Russian secret services would be involved in organising a response to any such mission.

Previously: During the urgent G7 meeting on 11 October, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy put forward a proposal to send an international observer mission to the Ukrainian-Belarusian border in order to reduce the risk of provocations and of Belarus entering the war on Russias side.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
It's not really news that Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, vying to be the state's first Black U.S. senator, has on occasion strongly criticized American police.

He's made his thoughts known in a number of forums.

But it is news when it turns out that Barnes offered his harsh words about American law enforcement to a Russian-funded media outlet. Barnes, a Democrat, is taking on Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson next month.

Johnson, of course, has had his own Russian problems.

Records show that Barnes did six interviews with RT, formerly Russia Today, in 2015 and 2016, during his second term as a state lawmaker. RT is a Russian state-controlled international news television network funded by the Kremlin.

In May 2015, for instance, Barnes told RT that police brutality is a total epidemic in the United States. A month earlier, he posted a screenshot of his interview with RT on the Baltimore protests, commenting, "People are tired of being targets."

In July 2016, after five police officers were shot dead in Dallas in retaliation against alleged racial discrimination by police, Barnes told RT that police officers across the country havent reformed their patterns and practices and that police officers are over-exercising their badges.

Barnes then thanked RT on Twitter for interviewing him.

Thank you for having me! https://t.co/h8DRkizMJE  Mandela Barnes (@TheOtherMandela) July 11, 2016

In September 2016, Barnes said that Black Lives Matter protests that turn violent are a human reaction to the police. In that same interview, he says that if police officers are Black, it doesnt mean they are 100% behind the community.

Earlier this year, the U.S. State Department said RT and another Russian-funded outlet are "critical elements in Russias disinformation and propaganda ecosystem."

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"The overall goals are to manipulate and weaken adversaries," the State Department said in August 2021. "The main tactics for weakening adversaries are to discredit, divide, disarm, and demoralize them."

Subscribe to our On Wisconsin Politics newsletter for the week's political news explained.

The New York Times reported in 2020 that Russian President Vladimir Putin "has stepped up efforts to inflame racial tensions in the United States" ahead of the presidential election.

"Russias more public influence operations, like state-backed news organizations, have continued to push divisive racial narratives, including stories emphasizing allegations of police abuse in the United States and highlighting racism against African-Americans within the military," the New York Times said.

More: The final Wisconsin U.S. Senate debate between Johnson, Barnes will center on abortion. Here are their views.

More: Bice: Ron Johnson comes under criticism from Democrats over purchase of private plane by his adult children

Johnson's campaign blasted Barnes for his appearances on RT.

"Trashing American law enforcement on Russian state TV and allowing himself to be used by Vladimir Putins propagandists is as bad as it gets," said Alec Zimmerman, spokesman for Johnson.

"Lt. Gov. Barnes knew he was being used as a puppet for a foreign dictator in a Russian disinformation scheme, and he should apologize to law enforcement in Wisconsin and across America."

With the attack, however, Johnson opened himself up to criticism on his dealing with Russia.

RT has run numerous stories on Johnson and his inflammatory remarks on the coronavirus epidemic, his criticism of former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial and his downplaying of the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

Many of these stories are from the last couple of years, not six or seven years ago as in Barnes' case. But unlike Barnes, Johnson did not sit for interviews with RT, it does not appear.

But that's not all.

In 2018, Johnson was part of a delegation of eight Republican lawmakers who participated in the first congressional delegation to Russia since the annexation of Crimea four years earlier. As part of the trip, Johnson and the others ended up spending the Fourth of July in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

The group came under criticism from all corners.

In Moscow, the senators have been portrayed as anything from peacemakers to fools," reported the New York Times. "Democrats in Washington were only slightly more generous."

The same story said Johnson returned to D.C. "questioning the value of punitive American sanctions targeting Russian financial interest and urging his fellow senators to reconsider how to best discourage Russian interference.

Johnson's campaign said the senator has always supported "targeted, effective sanctions to change Russia's bad behavior."

Interestingly, the Russian foreign minister reported a year later that Johnson's visa application was denied and that he was on a list of officials barred from the country.

In 2020, Johnson and others were warned by the FBI in "defensive briefings" that they were at risk of being used as Russian assets.

The warning came, the Washington Post reported, after Johnson used his position as a committee chairman to investigate Joe Biden's dealings in Ukraine while he was vice president and his son Hunter Biden was on the board of a Ukranian energy firm.

More recently, Johnson defended Trumps decision to withhold $400 million in military aid to Ukraine. Those remarks prompted former national security aide Alexander Vindman to accuse Johnson and others of having "blood on their hands" as Ukraine came under attack from Russian troops.

There's a lot there. But much of this is already known. It's Barnes' appearances on RT that are new.

Maddy McDaniel of the Barnes campaign pointed to Johnson's issues with Russia when asked about Barnes' voluntary appearances on RT.

"Ron Johnson is the only candidate in this race who recklessly ignored warnings from the FBI when they called him a target of Russian disinformation, further endangering U.S. national security, McDaniels said in a statement.

McDaniels said Barnes was not paid to go on the Russian media outlet.

Contact Daniel Bice at (414) 313-6684 or dbice@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanielBice or on Facebook at fb.me/daniel.bice.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Mandela Barnes did several interviews with Russian TV on U.S. police
The Biden administration said Wednesday it will manage the surge of Venezuelans crossing the southern border with a new program, effective immediately, in which it will let 24,000 of them who have sponsors enter the United States  and send the rest back to Mexico.

The administration will also use the Trump-era rule known as Title 42, a Covid ban it has been trying to end in court, to send Venezuelans back across the border.

To be admitted under the new program, Venezuelans will have to apply for entry while outside the country and prove they have a U.S.-based sponsor, similar to the program the Biden administration set up for Ukrainians in the spring. The 24,000 accepted will have temporary humanitarian parole and authorization to work in the U.S.

These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement. Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.

Immigration advocates say the new program will leave the majority of Venezuelans seeking asylum in the U.S. living in dangerous conditions in camps and shelters in northern Mexico. They say it will also greatly expand a Trump-era policy the Biden administration said in court it wanted to end.

Title 42, the public health authority used since the beginning of the Covid pandemic to push migrants back into Mexico without allowing them to claim asylum, will now be expanded to include Venezuelans under a new deal reached between the U.S. and Mexico. The result could mean thousands of Venezuelans living without the ability to work or find housing in dangerous cities like Juarez, Mexico.

Mexico had previously refused to accept Venezuelans who were expelled from the U.S., mainly because their home country does not accept them back. Venezuelans were instead screened and released inside the U.S. while waiting for their cases to be heard in immigration court.

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The more than 100,000 Venezuelans already in the U.S. will be allowed to stay and continue to seek asylum.

Since Title 42 began in March 2020, the U.S. has expelled migrants without allowing them to claim asylum more than 2.3 million times, resulting in at least 9,886 incidents of kidnapping, torture, rape and other violent attacks, according to Human Rights First.

This new humanitarian avenue is a welcome step towards providing protection and recognizing the crisis in Venezuela requires our attention and creative solutions, said Krish OMara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. Far more troubling is the expansion of Title 42 expulsions that will now apply to Venezuelans attempting to assert their legal right to seek asylum.

An estimated 6 million Venezuelans have fled their country amid food insecurity and political instability, and the number of those crossing the U.S. border has increased fourfold over the past year, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Venezuelans make up the majority of migrants being bused by Republican governors to Democratic-led cities. According to new data released by the United Nations on Wednesday, almost 75% of those who have fled do not have enough food, shelter, employment or medical care.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
The Biden administration on Thursday extended the nations COVID-19 public health emergency for the next 90 days as officials brace for a potential surge of infections over the winter.

The declaration comes as daily deaths and case rates have been falling, though the U.S. continues to see more than 300 people dying due to COVID-19 each day.

White House health officials have been urging people to get the updated variant-specific COVID-19 vaccine, and have said the extent of any surge depends on the precautions people take and the vaccination rates.

If you are up to date with your vaccines and if you get treated, if you have a breakthrough infection, your risk of dying from COVID is now close to zero, White House COVID-19 response coordinator Ashish Jha said Tuesday.

We know theres more work to do with real challenges ahead of us as we head into the fall and winter and the holidays. Were doing everything we can as an administration to stay ahead of this virus. But if we all do our part  not just us in the administration, but Congress and the American people  I remain incredibly confident we can manage this virus for this fall and winter with less suffering and we can have a safe and healthy holiday season ahead, Jha said.

The public health emergency was first declared in January 2020, and has been renewed every 90 days since.

The declaration helped get treatments and vaccines approved at breakneck speed and enabled the administration to ensure Americans did not have to pay for them. The extension also ensures that policies like expanded Medicaid benefits, telehealth coverage, and extra payments to hospitals and doctors will continue.

At the same time, Republicans in Congress have been pressing the administration to end the public health emergency, arguing there is no more justification for it to continue, especially in the wake of Bidens remark in September that the pandemic is over.

Biden has urged Congress to provide billions more in aid to pay for COVID-19 vaccines and testing, though lawmakers have been reluctant to provide any additional funding. The federal government stopped sending free COVID-19 tests in the mail last month, saying it had run out of money.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
President Joe Biden, with mayoral candidate Rep. Karen Bass, visited a Metro subway construction site in Los Angeles Thursday, October 13, 2022. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)

What a moment for the leader of the free world to show up in the Southland.

President Biden landed Wednesday at Los Angeles International Airport on a West Coast swing originally designed mostly around political fundraising.

But with the city's political establishment reeling from the disclosure this week of racist statements made by City Council members, the visit took on a broader significance, redirecting the citys attention to national Democrats circling the wagons.

Biden was greeted on the tarmac by Mayor Eric Garcetti, with whom he has had a close relationship, and Rep. Karen Bass, whom he considered as a running mate in 2020 and has endorsed as Garcetti's successor.

At a mid-morning event at a dusty construction site near the Veterans Hospital, where workers are building a new Metro Line station for the expanded Purple Line, Biden touted the benefits of his infrastructure program, taking the podium by thanking Garcetti and Bass and referring to them as "Mr. Mayor and soon-to-be Mrs. Mayor."

Afterward, Biden, Bass and County Supervisor Hilda Solis made a short stop at the Tacos 1986 near UCLA, picking up an order of quesadillas and tacos from the tiny shop. After a week that has highlighted tension between Latino and Black political leaders in Los Angeles, the tableau conveyed a carefully crafted image of unity, underscoring how much Biden has become enmeshed in the politics and problems of this city.

The visit, along with Biden's call earlier this week for resignations of the local politicians implicated in the racist remarks, reflected the influence of the city and how its scandals and successes can echo across the country.

"I would argue New York always occupies presidents, and so do major cities from Chicago to Houston," Garcetti said in an interview this week.

President Joe Biden with mayoral candidate Rep. Karen Bass, center, and L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis, right, made a stop at Tacos 1986 in Westwood on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. (Eli Stokols/Los Angeles Times)

"Whether it's in moral moments like this, it reflects that Los Angeles is important," he said. "It's not just in moments of crisis. It's also in moments of opportunity. Why do you think that so many Cabinet members have come out here and toured the Port of Los Angeles, including the vice president, the president. That hasn't to my knowledge happened in Savannah."

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Biden's involvement with Los Angeles politics follows a pattern set by the previous two Democratic presidents. Since Bill Clinton won California in 1992  becoming the first Democrat to carry the state in a generation  Democratic presidents have carefully wooed the city's political leadership and its voters.

The party has also depended for decades on Southern California financial donors. Longtime Democratic strategist Bill Carrick, who was political director for Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and worked on Clinton's political operation in California, said he remembered times when six U.S. senators would be in the city fundraising at the same time. Candidates for local office would regularly reach out in hopes that popular national political figures would visit or endorse them.

Theres a very large group of Democratic donors in California, north and south; but in Los Angeles, in particular, there are donors who are very generous," Carrick said.

But Biden this week ratcheted up his engagement with Los Angeles politics to a new level, weighing in publicly on the racist and crude remarks made in a private meeting last year that involved City Council members Nury Martinez, Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo and Ron Herrera, the head of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. The meeting was recorded  how or by whom remains unknown  and came to public attention this week through reporting by The Times.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday that Biden found the language in the meeting unacceptable and appalling, and he called on all involved to resign  a highly unusual degree of presidential involvement in a local political issue.

Martinez, the former president of the City Council, resigned on Wednesday. Herrera resigned Monday. De Leon and Cedillo apologized but have not resigned.

The complex politics of the city are something Biden can't escape as well. He's picked Garcetti, who served as a national co-chair of his 2020 presidential campaign, as ambassador to India and has stood by him as his confirmation has languished in the Senate. The mayor has been caught up in controversy over what he knew about the alleged inappropriate behavior of aide Rick Jacobs.

Biden and members of his Cabinet have also taken sides on who will replace Garcetti. Days before the primary in June, for example, the nations top housing official, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia L. Fudge, made an appearance in her official capacity with Bass in Los Angeles at a supportive housing facility, helping the mayoral candidate make the case that she would tackle the citys homelessness crisis by summoning friends in the federal government.

Bass ended up winning the June primary with a 7-percentage-point lead over her rival, Rick Caruso.

Biden praised Garcetti again Thursday. "To be really honest about it, I probably wouldnt be here standing here addressing you had he not helped me a lot," he said at the Purple Line event, going on to talk up the project's potential benefits.

"When you see these projects in your neighborhood ... I want you to feel what I do: pride, pride in what we can do together," Biden said. He derided Republican lawmakers who opposed the infrastructure law and have since taken credit for the money it has brought to their states and districts.

Appearing beside Biden, Bass, whose congressional district includes the construction site, was able to make a pitch that's central to her campaign, which is that she has the connections at the federal level to bring more resources to bear on the city's most pressing crises.

"We are here to bring resources to this city," she said. "We have a president who can get things done."

Bass, whose prospects in the mayor's race depend on winning the lion's share of the city's Democratic voters, has leaned on endorsements from a host of officials in Washington, including Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. These endorsements highlight Bass' Democratic credentials as she runs against someone whose party affiliation has flipped several times.

Caruso has for most of his life been a Republican and has given to politicians who oppose abortion rights  a fact Bass and her allies highlight constantly. Caruso has said he switched parties because the GOP strayed from the values he holds and that he's been always in favor of abortion rights.

"Biden is validating her as being a longtime Democrat," said Mark Gonzalez, chair of the L.A. County Democratic Party, which has endorsed Bass.

Tending to the political base in Los Angeles is also important if Biden intends to run in 2024, Gonzalez said.

"On the Democratic national side, the county is one-third of the voting base of the state, and Biden knows that we have the largest number of DNC delegates that come out of Los Angeles and the largest number of statewide delegates that come out of Los Angeles," he said.

During the 2020 campaign, Biden visited Guelaguetza, the well-known Oaxacan restaurant in Koreatown  a visit that has taken on new resonance in light of Martinez's racist description of Oaxacan immigrants as "little, short dark people."

One of the restaurant's owners, Fernando Lopez, recalled that Biden had been scheduled to stop by for 30 minutes but ended up staying nearly two hours, dining and chatting with him and other staff and guests.

"Biden was in for a while and really enjoyed them all," Lopez said of the restaurant's delicacies such as mole and tlayuda, a hardened large corn tortilla, usually smeared with a black bean paste and topped with ingredients including quesillo and chorizo.

Lopez called Martinez's comments a "betrayal" and added that he was grateful that Biden and others had called for her and the other City Council members to resign.

"It really just speaks to character, and I think that's the issue there," he said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Fresno Unifieds school board on Wednesday denied claims for damages filed by attorneys from two different Wolters Elementary students, likely paving the way for lawsuits against the district.

The first claim was filed by a lawyer representing the student struck by ex-principal Brian Vollhardt in the June 7 incident caught on camera. The claim states that Fresno Unified negligently hired, retained, supervised and employed Vollhardt.

Vollhardt also allegedly had at least one prior altercation with this same student, based on a formal complaint obtained by The Fresno Bees Education Lab.

Fresno Unified officials have said the student is physically OK and received the necessary social-emotional supports from the district.

In September, the students attorney Jason Bell said he expected the district to deny the claim, as is standard, and that his client would proceed with a lawsuit that names both Fresno Unified and Vollhardt as defendants.

Vollhardt has been placed on administrative leave with Golden Plains Unified School District, where he got a job as a vice principal 11 days after resigning from Fresno Unified in August.

He has pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor child abuse charge in connection with the June 7 incident.

The explosive video and subsequent acknowledgment of missteps by Fresno police emerged last month during a Fresno Unified news conference called in response to an investigation by the Education Lab.

During the news conference, Police Chief Paco Balderrama said he wasnt aware of the video until after a Fresno Bee Ed Lab reporter started asking questions about the investigation. Balderrama said he prioritized the investigation and prosecutors filed the criminal charge within a day of the chiefs involvement.

FUSD rejects sexual assault claim for damages

The FUSD school board on Wednesday also rejected an unrelated claim for damages in connection with the alleged molestation of a Wolters Elementary student in 2019.

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The claim filed by Fresno attorney Mark Vogt seeks unspecified financial damages for a student allegedly molested by teacher William Robert Duprey, who was arrested over the summer and subsequently charged with four felony counts of sexual child abuse.

Duprey, 33, remained in custody Wednesday at the Fresno County Jail, according to booking records.

In the claim rejected this week, the attorney said his client was one of multiple students allegedly victimized by Duprey. Detectives identified three alleged victims in July and said the investigation is still ongoing.

Vogt, in the claim, said FUSD knew or should have known about Dupreys alleged conduct and said the district remained steadfast in their support of Mr. Duprey by retaining him as a teacher which then allowed him to sexually assault another child.

As with the Vollhardt claim, Fresno Unified trustees rejected it without further discussion Wednesday.

Earlier this year, FUSD officials confirmed that Duprey was placed on administrative leave in November last year, about seven months before his arrest. Citing personnel rules, FUSD officials previously declined to explain why Duprey was on leave.

Duprey is due back in court Dec. 21.

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(Bloomberg) -- BlackRock Inc. Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink said hes not against oil companies, directly addressing attacks on his firm from a growing group of Republican-led states.

Most Read from Bloomberg

New York-based BlackRock, the worlds largest asset manager, still invests billions in oil and gas companies, Fink reiterated at the Institute of International Finance annual membership meeting on Wednesday. He added that he suspects they are going to be part of the solution in transitioning to clean energy.

Unfortunately, facts are not important with some subgroups in this country, he said.

His firm has become a lightning rod for political controversy in recent months. Its focus on sustainable investments, which Fink touted in annual letters to corporate America, drew ire in red states, which frame the company as disdaining the oil and gas industry.

Louisiana is pulling nearly $800 million from BlackRock funds, and some officials in Texas have sought to route money or business away from it. Nineteen attorneys general from states including Arizona, Kentucky and West Virginia also lashed out at BlackRock for pursuing a climate agenda at odds with generating returns for state pensions.

Fink lamented that he also faces criticism from the other end of the political spectrum, including in New York City, where the comptroller sent a letter expressing concern BlackRock is backing away from commitments to reduce carbon emissions.

Im now being attacked equally by the left and the right, so Im doing something right, I hope, Fink said.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2022 Bloomberg L.P.
By Davide Barbuscia and Lananh Nguyen

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Larry Fink, chief executive of the world's biggest asset manager BlackRock Inc, on Wednesday defended his firm's energy investments after facing a backlash from lawmakers critical of its stance on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.

"Facts are not important with some sub-groups in this country," Fink told attendees at the Institute of International Finance conference in Washington, citing the company's $181 billion invested in U.S. energy companies.

"I'm now being attacked equally by the left and the right so I'm doing something right, I hope. I don't know. It's painful, but you know what? We're moving forward."

BlackRock is ready to fund U.S. energy pipelines as soon as the projects receive government approvals, he said.

The company is one of the largest financiers of pipelines in the world, investing in pipelines in Texas, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Energy security is in focus following the latest move by OPEC+ to cut its oil production target over U.S. objections.

BlackRock has faced criticism from many sides in the debate on low-carbon fuels, with environmentalists protesting it does too little to press for change at fossil fuel portfolio companies, and Republican U.S. politicians accusing it of boycotting energy stocks.

States including Texas, Arkansas, West Virginia, have targeted the firm for its ESG investment strategies. Louisiana said this month it will pull $794 million out of BlackRock's funds.

Fink was speaking ahead of BlackRock's release of its third-quarter results on Oct. 13, when it is expected to show a fall in quarterly revenue.

Financial markets have been slammed this year as global central banks have raised interest rates to fight stubbornly high inflation. Fink, however, said declines in stocks and bonds valuations present opportunities for investors, and his firm was witnessing big interest in bonds.

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Citing factors such as an acceleration in building new supply chains, which were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, Fink said measures to counter inflation may, in the long run, weigh on price pressures.

Separately, Fink was asked if he was concerned about Britain, where the economy and financial markets have been thrown into turmoil over recent weeks.

The nation is "experiencing elevated inflation because of the short-term impact of Brexit, when millions of people leave the country and they now have huge labor shortages, rising wages," Fink said.

"And so in my private conversations with the government today, I asked them that, because they have shortages in many different places and they said were going to really create a much more accelerated process of managed immigration."

(Reporting by Davide Barbuscia and Lananh Nguyen; Editing by David Gregorio, Lincoln Feast and Richard Pullin)
(Bloomberg) -- Ports America, Terminal Investment Ltd., Carrix and Hapag-Lloyd AG are among shortlisted bidders for Global Container Terminals operations in Staten Island in New York and Bayonne of New Jersey, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

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Global Container Terminals owners Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, IFM Investors and British Columbia Investment Management Corp. have narrowed down the group of suitors vying for the two container terminals, said the people, who requested anonymity discussing private information. The assets may fetch about $3 billion, the people said.

Ports America is owned by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, while Carrix is controlled by Blackstone Infrastructure Partners. TIL handles volumes for Mediterranean Shipping Company and counts Global Infrastructure Partners and Singapores GIC among its investors, while Hamburg-based Hapag-Lloyd is a global liner shipping company.

Investing in terminal infrastructure is a key element of our strategic agenda, Hapag-Lloyd CEO Rolf Habben Jansen said earlier this month when the company agreed to acquire assets from Sociedad Matriz SAAM SA.

Representatives for Global Container Terminals, Blackstone, Ports America, Ontario Teachers, IFM and Hapag-Lloyd declined to comment. Representatives for TIL, Carrix, CPPIB, GIC, GIP and BCI didnt immediately respond to requests for comment.

Port and terminal operations have long attracted both institutional and strategic investors, in part due to their scarcity value. Global Container describes its Bayonne operations as the most efficient terminal in the port of New York and New Jersey, in part because it can accommodate large vessels in a way that reduces transit times.

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(Updates to name Hapag Lloyd, beginning in first paragraph.)

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Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; Facebook; Courtesy of Annie Moore

A Florida bodybuilder accused of killing his ex-wife in a homicidal rage displayed disturbingly violent tendencies throughout the doomed couples eight-year relationship and once shattered a window during an argument, a family member who witnessed the outburst told The Daily Beast.

But while the relative said ex-Marine Ian Christopher Baunach was all about himself from the get-go, and had once been arrested for strangling his then-spouse, no one thought it would ever end in murder charges.

Baunach, 43, is now facing a slew of charges, including first-degree murder, in the death of 39-year-old registered nurse Katie Baunach. The couples two young children, ages 4 and 6, have been taken in by their grandmother in the aftermath of their moms shocking death, Annie Moore, Katies cousin, told The Daily Beast on Wednesday night. The family has been speaking with a therapist about how to break the news to the kids and help them through this, she said.

Its somehow equally shocking, and not completely surprising, Moore, who had been very close with Katie, said Wednesday night. Like hes not a good person, and weve known that. But its still, like, a surreal thing. And the fact that we cant pick up the phone and call her will not be real for a long time.

Katie, who had obtained a restraining order against Baunach for allegedly abusing one of the kids, dropped the children off with a friend on Sept. 29 and went to her exs home in Fort Denaud to pick up some of her belongings. She never returned. The next day, police say they discovered a human jawbone in a burn pile on Baunachs property, along with decaying body parts stuffed into a 50-gallon barrel.

Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; Facebook; Courtesy of Annie Moore

Baunach is also charged with possessing a controlled substance without a prescription, for a stash of anabolic steroids allegedly found in his home. He was further hit with additional federal counts over 13 unregistered silencers investigators reportedly discovered there. Among the items seized when Baunach was arrested include an AR-15 upper receiver, two Glock Model 27 .40 caliber pistols, three rifles, and a shotgun. Katies wedding band and engagement ring, which she had been wearing when she left for Baunachs the night she died, were found in a safe Baunach kept in his home office, according to authorities.

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The trunk of Baunachs car, which had apparently been cleaned after Katies death, glowed blue when investigators sprayed it with luminol, a chemical that reacts to the presence of blood, the federal complaint against Baunach states. A hallway connecting the garage with the foyer of Baunachs home bore signs of a physical struggle, and the presence of blood was detected over a large surface area on three different walls inside, according to the complaint.

Baunach admitted to being angry that Katie Baunach filed for and received a domestic violence injunction against him, it says.

Its beyond comprehension, Moore said on Wednesday of the charges. I knew he wasnt good eight years ago But this is something totally different. This is not a real thing that real humans do. Its really, really difficult to process, that someone that you broke bread with, and spent time with, could do these things.

Moore said Katie told her that Baunach, who attended Jerry Falwells Liberty University, was violent their entire relationshipwhile they were dating, during their engagement, everything, adding that Baunach often quoted scripture during outbursts. She also said she once personally witnessed Baunach, who met Katie on the dating site Christian Mingle, throw a sippy cup so hard it broke a window during a get-together at her aunts house while the two were dating.

He just wasnt right, she recalled. He wasnt normal. And it wasnt just that he was big and a bodybuilder and all of that. There was something missing.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0chexrhqvLt7crWnbdgfEyBSGyzZ5omVFRCGC42ipBQ6f8amVmrXZRaK8n1GHZFuUl&id=1366106624

Last November, Baunach was arrested on charges of domestic battery by strangulation, but prosecutors did not pursue the case, and the charges were dropped in January, according to jail records.

Katie was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and grew up in Indiana, according to Moore. She got her bachelors in nursing and worked as an RN at a retirement home in Fort Myers, having moved to inland Florida at Baunachs urging.

They lived in the middle of nowhere away from everybody, Moore said. And I honestly hadnt talked to her in months, because he had gotten her away from me. And other cousins and friends, it was the same way. Her mom, her sister, everyone [we] werent allowed around there. It was really toxic Told us all we were crazy and that he was the only one that cared for her.

Although Baunach seemed completely self-involved, Katie loved him and wanted a family and was willing to do whatever, according to Moore. She helped Baunach prepare for bodybuilding competitions, which Moore said was all-consuming for him.

When things finally became too much to bear, Katie left. She took the children, moved into a new home in Fort Myers Beach, and set off on a new, independent path.

She had just gotten out, she was living her life, she had a great job, she was going to get her nurse practitioner [certification], Moore said. She had the kids in a good school, she had her own place, and now its all gone.

Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; Facebook; Hendry County Sheriff's Office

Moore said she was speaking out so her cousins story could get told in light of so much attention being paid to Baunach and the heinous allegations against him. The last she heard from him was in February, when, out of the blue, [he] texted angrily at the entire family how he and Katie were getting back together, no thanks to her family.

Now, Moore just hopes Katies children will remember her.

She was a dancer, she had the best laugh, Moore said. She cut all the tags out of their clothes so that they didnt have anything bothering them. She was born to be a mom. She was so maternal, and so good She wont ever get to see them get married, or graduate, or become whole people. And I know she wouldve loved that.

Moore has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help Katies mother raise her grandchildren. It has so far raised nearly $30,000 of its $50,000 goal.

Growing up, some people want to be an astronaut or a doctor or a vet, said Moore. Katie wanted to be a mom And her kids were her whole world She really was a beautiful person, and not that anybody deserves this, but man, she did not deserve this.

If convicted on the first-degree murder charge, Baunach faces life in prison or the death penalty.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Terrorist Givi (on the left)

The SBU said the bodyguard had been fighting for the so-called Donetsk Peoples Republic since 2016, but had joined the Russian military since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Read also: SBU neutralizes Russian mercenary squads in Kharkiv Oblast

He was captured during a combat operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in August of this year, the SBU said.

Known to be one of the personal bodyguards of deceased terrorist Givi, the perpetrator was also a press officer for his unit and gave interviews to local journalists.

Read also: SBU prepares charges against nine more individuals thought to have organized sham referendums

Now hes been shown by his own experience that crimes against Ukraine have no statute of limitations, the SBU said.

During the court hearing, the man fully admitted his guilt and gave incriminating evidence.

He was found guilty under the following articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: Part 1 of Art. 111 (treason); Part 1 of Art. 2583 (creation of a terrorist group or terrorist organization); and Part 2 of Art. 260 (creation of illegal armed formations).

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Two-and-a-half years after her killing by Louisville police, Breonna Taylors family divulges new details and shares whats next in the case.

According to Kenny Walker, Breonna Taylors boyfriend and the only witness to her killing at the hands of police in Louisville, Ky., there may have actually been time to save her life after officers shot her multiple times.

In a first-of-its-kind joint interview with Walker, Taylors mother Tamika Palmer, and sister JuNiyah Palmer on Jada Pinkett Smiths Red Table Talk, Walker takes viewers through the events that occurred on the night of March 13, 2020, in which police carried out a botched no-knock-raid of their apartment, shooting Taylor six times in the process and killing her.

Seated from left: Attorney Lonita Baker, Breonna Taylors mother Tamika Palmer, sister JuNiyah Palmer, and boyfriend Kenny Walker with (standing from left) Adrienne Banfield Norris, Willow Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith.

Photo: Jordan Fisher

Just after midnight on March 13, 2020, Walker said he and Taylor were startled by loud banging on their apartment door. After both called out to ask who was there and received no response, just more banging, Walker grabbed his gun. As the two scrambled to dress and answer the door, the officers on the other side began to break it down. Walker, exercising his rights in a stand-your-ground state, fired one warning shot. In response, the police, still without announcing themselves, fired over 30 rounds into their apartment, striking Taylor.

Walkers confusion that evening was only just beginning. Immediately after Taylor was struck, Walker called her mother and his own, who advised he call the police for help. Even at this point, it was still unclear who was on the other side of the door.

I called the police, you know, so Im thinking, theyre here to help, he told his Red Table Talk hosts. I heard them yelling outside to come out, so, Im likeIm a Black man in America. Im not gonna go out there trying to explain too much of anything.

Walker continued to describe the fear he felt emerging from the apartment.

Im like, the only way for her to possibly even get some help is if I go outside, so either theyre gonna shoot and kill me and then they come help her, or theyre gonna talk to me and then theyll come help her. Either way, I have to go outside, he said.

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Throughout the ensuing evening, Walker said officers on the scene ignored his requests for information and his pleas for them to assist Taylor, stating they were short with him and lacked compassion. At one point, an officer may have even chuckled as he stepped over Taylors body, Walker alleged. Based on eyewitness video footage taken by a neighbor, it took 30 minutes from the time the raid began for an EMT to even check on Taylor.

Encouraging Walker to tell his story, Pinkett-Smith reminded him its an important way to process the loss and release the rage.

Oh, I know that, too. I never got to. Cause I was, of course, in jail, like, immediately after, Walker responded.

Early on in the interview, Walker noted how normal a day the two had shared before that tragic night. They had gone out to eat and were relaxing at home; he remembers dozing off in bed together with the movie Freedom Writers playing.

The day didnt begin so tragic. Neither one of us could have ever imagined it ending the way it did. It was a normal day, he said.

Walker, who was arrested that evening before being updated on Taylors condition, wound up serving a year in prison on charges of assaulting an officer and the attempted murder of a police officer. His charges were eventually cleared, but as a result, he missed Taylors funeral and memorial services held in her honor.

In the Red Table Talk interview, which runs just over 50 minutes, Walker, along with Taylors mother and sister, reveals more shocking details and discusses the aftermath of losing Taylor. Social justice activist Tamika Mallory, attorneys Benjamin Crump and Lonita Baker, and CNNs Laura Coates also make appearances, explaining whats next in pursuing justice for Taylor.

In August, the four Louisville officers involved in Taylors killing were federally charged in the deadly raid. Joshua Jaynes, Kyle Meany, Brett Hankison, and Kelly Goodlett were charged with civil rights violations, conspiracy, use of excessive force offenses, and obstruction. According to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, charging documents state three of the officers, Jaynes, Meany, and Goodlett, lied in order to obtain a warrant they used to search Taylors apartment in an act that both violated federal civil rights laws and led to Taylors death.

Kay Wicker theGrio.com

Kay Wicker is a lifestyle writer for theGrio covering health, wellness, travel, beauty, fashion, and the myriad ways Black people live and enjoy their lives. She has previously created content for magazines, newspapers, and digital brands.

TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku, and Android TV. TheGrios Black Podcast Network is free too. Download theGrio mobile apps today! Listen to Writing Black with Maiysha Kai.

The post Breonna Taylors boyfriend and family join Red Table Talk for a sit-down interview appeared first on TheGrio.
The European Commission on Wednesday said it was recommending that EU countries give Bosnia candidacy status to join the bloc.

"The Commission recommends that candidate status be granted to Bosnia and Herzegovina by the (European) Council on the understanding that a number of steps are taken," commissioner for enlargement Oliver Varhelyi tweeted after making the announcement to EU lawmakers.

If the EU, which currently comprises 27 member countries, adopts the recommendation, Bosnia would join seven other nations with candidate status: Turkey, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine.

The process to join the European Union can take many years as candidates implement reforms that have to be rigorously evaluated by Brussels. It can also grind to a halt, which is the case with Turkey's bid.

Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen told EU ambassadors: "Today we have proposed to grant candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina."

But she added: "Of course it is up to the candidate countries to reform their economies and their institutions and to advance towards our union."

The commission said Bosnia needed to make progress on "democracy, functionality of state institutions, rule of law, the fight against corruption and organised crime" as well as guaranteeing media freedom and migration management.

The commission will help all candidate countries in their accession bids, von der Leyen said, stating that "I think that is Europe's moment and it is up to us to seize that moment".

The "wind of change is once again blowing through Europe and we have to capture this momentum," she said.

"The Western Balkans belong in our family and we have to make this very, very clear."

- 'Concerns' over Turkey -

Brussels is concerned that other powers, such as China or Russia, might spread their influence into the Balkans if countries hopeful of joining the EU are thwarted.

Already, Serbia is maintaining cosy relations and energy links with Russia, while also keeping visa-free access for citizens of many countries that require visas for the European Union, some of whom try to enter the bloc.

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In Bosnia's case, the country of three million people is burdened with ethnic divisions continuing since its devastating war three decades ago.

It remains partitioned between a Serb entity and a Muslim-Croat federation connected by a weak central government.

It has a dysfunctional administrative system created by the 1995 Dayton Agreement that succeeded in ending the conflict in the 1990s, but largely failed in providing a framework for the country's political development.

The top international envoy to Bosnia, Christian Schmidt, welcomed the move.

"This unanimous message from Brussels is especially important now, when international law is being trampled and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of independent states are questioned or violated," Schmidt said in a statement.

In terms of Turkey, Varhelyi said the annual EU report on all current candidate countries confirmed Ankara's "negative trend of moving away from the European Union in key areas of fundamental rights, rule of law and independence of the judiciary".

He also noted tensions between Turkey and EU members Greece and Cyprus.

"The EU's relations with Turkey remain complex," he told journalists.

On one hand, he said, Turkey remains a "key partner" on issues such as migration, climate, food security and trade, and was a valuable interlocutor with Russia as the war in Ukraine grinds on, particularly in freeing up grain deliveries.

"However, it has also decided to increase trade and financial relations with Russia, and has not aligned with EU restrictive measures. This is a cause for increasing concerns," Varhelyi said.

rmb/ljv/rox
In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Capitol Health Limited (ASX:CAJ) by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. We will use the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model on this occasion. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple!

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.

See our latest analysis for Capitol Health

The Method

As Capitol Health operates in the healthcare sector, we need to calculate the intrinsic value slightly differently. In this approach dividends per share (DPS) are used, as free cash flow is difficult to estimate and often not reported by analysts. Unless a company pays out the majority of its FCF as a dividend, this method will typically underestimate the value of the stock. We use the Gordon Growth Model, which assumes dividend will grow into perpetuity at a rate that can be sustained. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a company's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In this case we used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (1.9%). The expected dividend per share is then discounted to today's value at a cost of equity of 5.6%. Relative to the current share price of AU$0.3, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. 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.

Value Per Share = Expected Dividend Per Share / (Discount Rate - Perpetual Growth Rate)

= AU$0.01 / (5.6%  1.9%)

= AU$0.3

dcf

Important Assumptions

The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. 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 Capitol Health 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 5.6%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.804. 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.

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Looking Ahead:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Capitol Health, there are three pertinent aspects you should explore:

Risks: For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Capitol Health that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does CAJ's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Australian 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.

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A surfer heads out near the location of the proposed Doheny desalination plant to be built on South Coast Water District property, roughly 1,500 feet from the shoreline in Dana Point. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Less than six months after rejecting a proposal for a major desalination plant in Huntington Beach, the California Coastal Commission on Thursday approved plans for a different, smaller project in Orange County that could serve as a model for future projects.

The commission gave unanimous approval  with conditions  to the Doheny Ocean Desalination Project near Pacific Coast Highway and San Juan Creek in Dana Point. The facility, which will convert seawater to drinking water, will be operated by the South Coast Water District.

Unlike the Poseidon Water project, which was rejected in May because of dangers it posed to marine life and other issues, the Doheny plant will tie in to an existing municipal system and feature a better environmental design, officials said. But while some championed the project as an example of desalination "done right," opponents said there are more efficient and economical methods that should be explored first.

Kate Huckelbridge, the Coastal Commission's senior deputy director, said in an interview before the meeting that Doheny cleared many of the hurdles that come with desalination and "represents an easier pathway to an approvable project."

"We have really significant water problems in the state, and so I think we're in a situation where we need to be really serious about investigating all of the options," she said.

South Coast Water District officials said the project is coming at a crucial time. The agency  which serves about 40,000 residents and 2 million visitors each year  currently imports 90% of its supplies from the State Water Project and the Colorado River, both of which are shrinking because of drought, climate change and growing aridification.

There are also five fault lines between the district and its supply, which could jeopardize water deliveries in the event of an earthquake, said Rick Shintaku, general manager of the water district.

"That is a huge threat for us, if one of those fault lines were to rupture the feeders or the plant up there," he said. "Our regional planning agency has told us to plan for 60 days' supply in an emergency. We have 11 right now."

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When completed in 2027, the desalination plant will have the capacity to produce up to 5 million gallons of potable water per day, enough to slash the district's reliance on imported water from 90% to "anywhere from 20% to 40%," Shintaku said.

But desalination is not without controversy, and the commission's approval came with more than a dozen conditions that the water district must meet, including working with the California Department of Parks and Recreation to locate new campsites while construction shuts down the Doheny State Beach campground for 18 to 24 months.

The project also includes several design elements intended to address potential harms to marine life  typically seen as one of the biggest downsides of the desalination process.

Under the proposed plans, seawater will be pumped into the facility through fully submerged, slanted intake wells that will run beneath Doheny State Beach. The low-velocity wells will never reach the surface, and therefore won't trap any marine life, according to the water district.

The other end of the process involves the discharge of hypersaline brine, or the salty water that is removed from seawater during desalination. Brine from Doheny will be commingled with the water district's existing wastewater lines and diluted before it is expelled about two miles out to sea.

The result is not zero harm, but it is significantly less than that of a project like Poseidon and is the "environmentally preferred discharge method," officials said. The commission is also requiring that the water district create or restore about 7 acres of tidal wetlands elsewhere in the county as compensation for any potential losses.

"I see this project as the model that I hope all applicants will aspire to," commission Chair Donne Brownsey said during the meeting.

The project has gained broad support from local elected officials, including Reps. Mike Levin (D-San Juan Capistrano) and Michelle Steel (R-Seal Beach), and agencies such as the Metropolitan Water District and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Board, which called it "the first ocean desalination facility that eliminates harm to fish." The city of San Clemente and the Laguna Beach County Water District have both signed letters of interest in partnering on the project.

Reached by phone, Orange County Coastkeeper President Garry Brown  who fought against the Poseidon project for nearly 20 years  said he supported the South Coast Water District's plan because it "totally complied" with the statewide desalination policy under the California Ocean Plan.

"We had this project that 100% complied with the statewide policy, and we had Poseidon, which almost 100% did not comply," he said. "The South Coast plant was a project done right, and Poseidon was desal done wrong."

Brown noted that his support was based on the project's technical design, which not only mitigates effects on marine life but also seeks to reduce energy costs through solar power. He had not reviewed the project for its compliance with the California Coastal Act  a separate document that considers public impact  and so was neutral on that aspect.

Some locals, however, did have concerns. Connor Everts, executive director of the Southern California Watershed Alliance, said he opposed the project because he did not think the water district had done enough around water conservation and reclamation.

"The reality is we save more water than these plants produce," he said. "When we save water, we save energy and we don't harm the environment."

Lydia Ponce, an activist with the Society of Native Nations, said similarly that she was concerned about the long-term environmental effects of the brine discharge. She said officials should have exhausted all other options first.

"We're nowhere near using desalination as a solution," she said. "It's too much of a commodity to be able to say 'the future of water is desalination.' No, the future of water is conservation, reuse and redirecting, repurposing."

Commissioner Effie Turnbull-Sanders acknowledged that continued focus on those efforts is needed.

"However, in the current environment, we do have a significant need for additional water in our portfolio," she said. "And I do believe that this project ... is much better than the ones we have seen in the past."

Shintaku said the district has been in Level 2 of its water conservation plan since May, and also has one of the lowest water loss rates in the state, around 3% to 4%. He also said that the district has been investing in recycled water for about four decades, and that one of its wastewater treatment plants is already reusing 70% of its sewage, with a goal of getting to 100%.

"We did everything else possible  from recycled water to conservation to minimizing our system water losses to [treating] brackish groundwater," he said. "And then we still are stuck in this predicament, with being 90% dependent on Metropolitan for drinking water supplies."

In the case of Poseidon, opponents were also concerned about the profit structure, including what they described as the "privatization of water" for the politically powerful Poseidon Water.

Doheny's added cost to ratepayers will depend on the partnership structure. If the water district goes it alone, the $140-million project would add about $7 a month to an average household bill, Shintaku said. If other water districts sign on, that cost would drop to $2.38.

"There's no question that meeting California's future water needs is a challenge that will require all the tools in the toolbox," Huckelbridge told commissioners during the meeting. "We believe that the project before you today, although not perfect, provides a solid example that we can use in planning for future desalination."

Doheny will join a growing list of desalination plants in California, including already operational plants in Santa Barbara and Carlsbad. Santa Catalina Island, off the coast of Los Angeles, today receives about half of its water from a desalination facility on its shore.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The water levels of Californias most polluted lake, the Salton Sea, have been dropping for more than two decades, exposing people in nearby communities like Riverside to toxic chemicals.

Now, scientists might have finally figured out why the lake has been shrinking.

In a study recently published in the journal Water Resources Research, a team of researchers from the University of California, Riverside argue that the lakes shorelines are receding due to a decrease in water flow from the Colorado River.

The Colorado River, which supplies 40 million people with drinking water and irrigates 5 million acres of farmland, is currently in crisis. A shrinking snowpack and sparse rainfall have contributed to a drop in the rivers water flow, which is now down by 20 percent compared to the 1900s.

As a result, the two largest reservoirs that get their water supply from the river, Lake Mead and Lake Powell, are about a third less full than their capacity.

In fact, water levels at lake Mead have dropped so low things like sunken boats, human skeletons, and even volcanic ash have been exposed in the lakebed that is at least 12 million years old.

To figure out why the Salton Seas water level has been decreasing, the UC Riverside team created a model of the lakes water system to account for all the processes in its surrounding area that impact water balance, including climate, soil type, land slope and plant growth.

Researchers also incorporated data from nearby streams and land areas that drain water into those streams.

There is less water coming from the Colorado River into the Sea, and that is driving the problem, said Hoori Ajami, a University of California, Riverside hydrologist, and lead investigator for the study.

Most hydrologic models have some difficulty in accurately simulating streamflow into dry basins like the Salton Sea, according to Bart Nijssen, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Washington who was not involved in the study. But Nijssen called the UC Riverside model robust.

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It is unclear though if the reduced flow to the Salton Sea is the result of climate change drying out rivers or more water being diverted, researchers note.

Both climate change and reduced water usage in agriculture have been linked to receding shorelines in endorheic lakes, where water flows in but not out, like the Salton Sea.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A Canal Winchester man found guilty in a May jury trial of 35 counts of money laundering the proceeds of online romance scams was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court in Columbus to five years in prison.

Seth Nyamekye, 40, of Canal Winchester, also was ordered to pay more than $1.3 million in restitution to the victims of the romance scams.

Kenneth Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, said Nyamekye conducted financial transactions to conceal that money was generated by fraud and to get the money to co-conspirators in Ghana.

This defendant helped fraudsters prey on vulnerable peoples desires for love and connection, Parker said. He deserves the sentence he received today.

Last month, another defendant, Edward Amankwah, 45, of Westerville, admitted to conspiring to launder nearly $4.3 million through bank accounts in his control as part of a romance scam.

Romance scammers: Westerville man pleads guilty to role in laundering nearly $4.3M in online romance scams

The romance scams involved individuals who created several profiles, some purporting to be members of the military, on online dating sites. They then contacted victims throughout the United States and abroad, with whom they cultivated romance.

After establishing relationships, perpetrators of the romance scams requested money, typically for investment or need-based reasons, and provided account information and directions for where money should be sent, prosecutors said.

Nyamekye was not charged with defrauding the victims himself, but instead was charged with laundering the proceeds of the romance fraud.

Nyamekye conspired with others from at least June 2016 until February 2018 to commit money laundering in multiple transactions of more than $10,000 with the purpose of concealing the fraudulent nature of the proceeds, prosecutors said.

At least eight victims sent their money directly to Nyamekyes bank account, which was in the name of Gloseth Ventures LLC.

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For example, one victim was defrauded by a purported member of the military and sent a $170,000 wire transfer to Nyamekyes bank account.

Another victim fell in love with a man he met online who also claimed to be in the military overseas and sent two wire transfers to Nyamekye totaling $73,000. A separate victim believed she was engaged to the man who was scamming her and sent $50,000 to the defendants bank account.

After the funds were deposited into Nyamekyes bank account, Nyamekye took a cut of the victims money and then conducted financial transactions to move the funds where the perpetrators of the romance fraud could enjoy the criminal proceeds, prosecutors said.

Nyamekye was charged by a criminal complaint in October 2020 and was later indicted in May 2021.

@Colebehr_report

Cbehrens@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Laundering romance scam funds gets Canal Winchester man 5-year sentence
By Susanna Twidale

LONDON (Reuters) - The use of cheap carbon offsets by companies to meet net zero targets could curb their efforts to cut emissions and slow the delivery of climate goals, Britains climate change advisers said on Thursday.

Many UK listed companies such as Shell have set net zero emission targets, saying they would need to buy or generate carbon credits to offset residual greenhouse gases.

Offset credits, based on projects for planting trees or switching to less polluting fuels, currently trade in an unregulated, voluntary market with many different standards and approaches.

The current low price of many offsets, which can be purchased from exchanges for less than $4 a tonne of carbon dioxide, are providing a cheap way for companies to meet net zero goals which could reduce the incentive for them to directly cut emissions, a report by Britain's Committee on Climate Change (CCC) said.

Offsets can mask insufficient efforts from firms to cut their own emissions, they often deliver less than claimed and they may push out other environmental objectives in the rush to capture carbon, the report said.

The government should require businesses to reveal how much their targets rely on offsets as well as the type and quantity of credits they are using, the CCC said.

The carbon credit market can help finance emission reduction projects and play a role in company efforts to meet climate targets, the CCC said, but Britain should use its influence to advocate for strengthened global standards for carbon credits.

More work is also needed to ensure emission reductions are not counted twice, once in the host country where the emission reduction has taken place and then again by the company using the credit to meet its own target, called double counting, the CCC said.

(Reporting By Susanna Twidale in London; Editing by Josie Kao)
By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A cardinal at the centre of a Vatican corruption trial asked the city-state's police in 2020 not to disclose evidence that a woman who was working for him had embezzled money for personal use that was supposed to pay ransom for a kidnapped nun, a police officer told a court on Thursday.

Commissioner Stefano De Santis, a financial crimes specialist, testified for the second consecutive day as a prosecution witness against Cardinal Angelo Becciu, once the third-most powerful person in the Vatican and now among 10 defendants on trial on charges of corruption and other financial crimes. All 10 deny any wrongdoing.

Thursday's testimony focused on how Becciu had hired Cecilia Marogna, a self-styled security analyst, in 2018 to free a Columbian nun who was kidnapped in Mali by al Qaeda-linked group.

Marogna, 43, received 575,000 euros from the Secretariat of State, the Vatican's most important department, in 2018 to 2019 when Becciu was working there. The money was sent to a company she had set up in Slovenia.

The police discovered Marogna had spent much of the money for personal use, including luxury brand clothing and visits to health spas.

According to De Santis, when he and the Vatican police chief visited Becciu's apartment on Oct. 3, 2020 to inform him of the discovery, the cardinal asked police not to say anything because it would hurt him and his family.

Becciu contested that version in court, saying it was the police who had told him the meeting was secret.

"We never told the cardinal that the meeting was secret, never," De Santis said on Thursday.

Becciu said he had told the police that the meeting had to remain secret because any leak of Marogna's activity could jeopardize her mission to free the nun.

But De Santis confirmed his earlier testimony that the cardinal wanted the information classified purely because it would have hurt him and his family.

Becciu has denied all wrongdoing and has rejected suggestions in the Italian media of an improper relation with Marogna.

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The trial, which began in July 2021, primarily concerns alleged financial crimes connected to the purchase in 2014 by the Vatican's Secretariat of State of a luxury building in London.

The Vatican sold the building this year, taking an estimated hit of about 140 million euros.

(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Josie Kao)
Yuriy Heletiy, Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine

Read also: Biden announces new $625 million aid package for Ukraine

"Perhaps part of it will be transferred next year, he stated.

But, taking into account the macro-financial assistance from the EU, the issue raised in the U.S. Congress to allocate additional resources for Ukraine, in particular to ensure fiscal sustainability, we expect significant amounts of international assistance by the end of the year.



Read also: Ukraine plans to seek at least $300 billion in war reparations from Russia

Commenting on the $38 billion of external financing envisaged in the draft state budget for 2023, Heletiy stressed that the priority for the government and the central bank in this direction in the coming month is to work with the IMF and open a new large program for Ukraine, in addition to receiving another $1.3 billion of emergency financing in the coming days under the RFI facility.



"It can be either EFF (Extended Fund Facility) or Stand-by," said the deputy head of the NBU, who is currently in Washington together with his colleagues from the Ministry of Finance at the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank.



Read also: Ukraine's economy to shrink by 45% because of war, World Bank says. All finger in the air stuff in reality

That is, a classic extended program aimed at bridging the balance of payments gap and implementing structural reforms. It will be a kind of benchmark for all international partners. We are actively working on this.



According to him, the IMF mission will take place in October to discuss a number of issues, including the macroeconomic situation in Ukraine, the 2023 budget, and the exchange rate policy.



"It will be a team with a new head of mission," Heletiy noted.



I hope that we will have a fruitful dialogue that will contribute to a better understanding by the IMF of the current challenges for our country, our fiscal and monetary policy.



At the same time, he added that the IMF program alone is unlikely to suffice, so it is necessary to actively work with other partners, primarily with the European Union, the United States, and other G7 countries.



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"The NBU, like no other, is interested in receiving this assistance," the deputy head of the central bank stated.



It will reduce the need for monetary financing. For us, the termination of budget monetization is a priority.



Read also: Ukraines army, politics, economy, and citizenry have all been transformed by six months of war

According to him, the possibility to stop monetary financing of the budget next year will depend on its final text, the volume of international assistance, and the rhythm of its receipt.



"$38 billion is a difficult and extremely ambitious task. Indeed, if Ukraine receives these funds, there may not be the need for monetary financing," Heletiy said.



Earlier, Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko said at a meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in Washington that Ukraine expects to receive $5 billion from the EU, $4.5 billion from the United States, and $1.3 billion from the IMF by the end of this year.



Within the framework of the IMF and WB meetings on Oct. 12, the second meeting of the ministerial round table on support for Ukraine is scheduled with the participation of heads of international financial organizations Kristalina Georgieva and David Malpass. It will discuss the country's financing needs, priorities to support essential services during the war, as well as priority rehabilitation and reconstruction projects that can be started quickly.



The first meeting of such a round table was held at the spring meeting of the IMF and the WB on April 21. It was stated that Ukraine needs $5 billion per month to finance the state budget deficit in the conditions of the war unleashed by Russia.



The draft state budget of Ukraine for 2023, adopted in the first reading, provides for external financing of the deficit in the amount of $38 billion, or about $3.2 billion per month.



Help NV continue reporting on the Russian invasion



Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A group of people who live in downtown Pittsburgh met with Mayor Ed Gainey to discuss what they say is a noticeable increase in crime and drugs in the area.

Gainey says the city is currently working with several agencies to make the downtown area safer. He also said the new homeless shelter, set to open on Second Avenue, will help with this.

Channel 11 reached out to the mayors office to get more specifics about his action plan to improve safety downtown, but that request for comment went answered.

There is a lot of homelessness, said Carla Lyle. A lot of riff raff really. Its dangerous down here. I dont even like to come down here anymore.

Lyle and her family used to be homeless themselves.

We worked our way through, said Lyle. We were in the streets just like these people. Since the pandemic, it has been worse.

Downtown residents report seeing more drug deals and fights between teenagers in addition to a growing homeless population.

I just miss being able to come down without worrying about everything that is now going on, said Morgan McKeever.

According to crime analysis data shared by Pittsburgh Public Safety, homicide numbers in the downtown area have stayed static. The number of aggravated assaults is up 5% from last year. Robberies have also seen an increase  up 10% from the five-year average. Property crimes, such as burglaries and vehicle thefts, are up from last year but remain below pre-pandemic levels.

A Public Safety spokesperson says the department is tracking these crimes very closely and continues to increase patrols to target specific areas.

To me this feels like a relatively safe city to live in still, but I always keep my wits about me when walking around, said Chana Liertel.

Channel 11 reached out to Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, which declined to comment.

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust declined an interview but shared this statement:

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trusts mission is to promote and develop Pittsburghs dynamic Cultural District, which attracts millions of visitors each year for arts and entertainment experiences. We are committed more than ever to working with our partners to make this neighborhood destination the safest of any comparable metropolitan city. The Cultural Trust has continually increased investments in security staffing and screening equipment, and our budget now includes over $1 million annually to hire off-duty Pittsburgh Police officers during our events and programs.

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We are hopeful that this uptick in incidents is a temporary one that can better be addressed through more effective Police leadership at the zone level in the Cultural District. A commitment at this level will go a long way in matching the considerable efforts and resources being expended by the Cultural Trust, Mayors Office, the County Executives Office, and the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership to address safety concerns Downtown.

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A 47-year old Charleston area man pleaded guilty Thursday to a misdemeanor charge in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Chadwick Chad Clifton, a construction worker, will be sentenced on Jan. 13, said U.S. Judge Beryl Howell, who accepted Cliftons guilty plea toward the end of a 40-minute hearing in a Washington courtroom.

Specifically, the charge to which Clifton pleaded guilty was parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building while knowing he did not have permission to be inside.

He could receive a maximum of six months in prison and a $5,000 fine, as well as having to pay $500 restitution. In return, the government dropped three other charges against him.

During Thursdays hearing, a subdued Clifton responded to Howell with brief, Yes, your honor and No, your honor responses to her questions. It concluded with the judge asking how Clifton planned to plead.

Guilty your honor, Clifton said.

Cliftons demeanor was in contrast to the exuberance with which he livestreamed and posted exuberant statements on Facebook and social media to his friends while walking to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, after attending the Stop the Steal rally near the White House hosted by former President Donald Trump.

At the rally, Trump falsely told rallygoers that the November 2020 presidential election had been stolen from him by Democrats, and he urged supporters to march on the Capitol to stop Congress that afternoon from certifying the Electoral College vote.

On Thursday, the judge read to Clifton statements he had made on social media, statements such as, Look at where we are, look at where we are going. ... Exciting times are coming. Another one said, Storming the Capitol building ... first hand, I was there. A third said, We are in a war and 95% of the people dont even know it.

Clifton admitted he had made all those statements.

Clifton was arrested in May along with the Charleston lawyer, David Johnston. Both traveled together to Washington to attend Trumps Jan. 6 rally and then walked to the Capitol.

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Johnston has pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 16.

Johnston and Clifton were both terminated at their places of employment after their arrests were made public.

The pair are neighbors in a residential community in Summerville, a town northwest of Charleston in Dorchester County.

Clifton was represented Thursday by Nathan Williams, a former assistant U.S. attorney. The prosecutor was Ashley Akers.

Nineteen people from South Carolina have so far been arrested in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot cases. Ten, including Clifton, have so far pleaded guilty.

More than 890 people from around the country have been charged in the Jan. 6 breach of the Capitol. It is the largest U.S. Department of Justice investigation ever.
U.S. immigration officials recorded more than 2 million encounters with immigrants at the southwest border in the fiscal year that ended in September.

Some people have used this data to spread the white supremacist "great replacement theory"  a conspiracy theory holding that Democrats and Western elites are deliberately using immigration to "replace" white people of European descent in the U.S. with nonwhite populations.

"There are 3 migrants entering the United States for every 4 US citizens being born. Welcome to Joe Bidens America," Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, a conservative nonprofit group, said Sept. 24 on Instagram using a screenshot of a post he made on Truth Social, former President Donald Trumps social media platform.

"Wait, I thought it was a conspiracy theory?" he added in the caption.

When we asked Kirks team about his claim, a spokesperson cited a Sept. 20 article from Breitbart, a conservative website.

Breitbart reported that since October 2021, 1.15 million immigrants crossed the border, 500,000 immigrants "sneaked or rushed past Bidens small force of distracted border guards," and another 1 million entered as "visa workers, and job-seekers pretending to be short-term tourists."

There were about 3.6 million births in the U.S. in 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. Using this data, which is the latest available, Breitbart divided its immigration total (2.65 million) by U.S. births (3.6 million), concluding there were about three immigrants for every four births in the U.S.

However, the assessment is missing important context and makes a number of assumptions to get to a 3 to 4 ratio.

The 1.15 million relies on border "encounters;" but not everyone encountered at the border makes it into the U.S.

Immigration data generally counts how many times Border Patrol agents stopped a person, not how many people were stopped. So theres no direct way of telling how many unique individuals border authorities allowed into the country.

The 500,000-person estimate for migrants who were not stopped by border officials is high based on publicly available federal data. It was reported by another outlet using anonymous sources.

The 1 million figure comes from a seemingly random set of visas for temporary workers, intracompany transferees, exchange visitors and international students.

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How officials count border encounters

When immigrants are stopped at the border, Border Patrol agents can deny them entry and expel them, or let them in to ask for asylum or other immigration protections. (This can be done under the scope of immigration law or under a public health order in place to mitigate COVID-19s spread.)

The data cited by Breitbart looks only at encounters at the southwest border where Border Patrol agents used immigration law. There have been 1.15 million encounters at the southwest border in fiscal year 2022 that fit this description. But that does not represent 1.15 million individuals, nor does it mean all 1.15 million encounters resulted in an immigrant entering the U.S.

Some people try entering multiple times. If authorities stop a person from crossing the border on three separate occasions, for example, thats recorded as three encounters  even though its the same person trying to cross.

Using the number of encounters as the estimate of how many people came in "would paint a very false perception of how many people are actually entering and then remaining in the United States," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director at the American Immigration Council, an immigrants rights advocacy group.

Customs and Border Protection does track "unique individuals" encountered at the border, but its data do not break down how many were expelled and how many were allowed to proceed into the United States.

The second number Breitbart included in its calculation is the number of so-called "got aways," immigrants that entered the U.S. without being stopped by Border Patrol. Breitbart does not cite a source for the 500,000 figure used. A July 2020 News Nation article used a similar number, citing unnamed sources from the Department of Homeland Security.

We looked up how the department addresses "got aways." The departments annual report on border statistics attempts to estimate the number of people who slipped past border agents, both detected and undetected. In fiscal year 2020, the department reported 136,808 "detected got aways" and estimated another 200,000 undetected unlawful entries into the U.S. The numbers for 2021 and 2022 are not yet available.

The final number Breitbart used in its calculation is "1 million legal immigrants, visa workers, and job-seekers pretending to be short-term tourists."

The article does not cite a source for this number, but lists seven different types of visas that allow people to come in legally, including visas for temporary workers and international students.

According to PolitiFacts analysis, in 2020 there were 25 million admissions of people with one of the seven visas Breitbart listed, thats the latest data available from the Office of Immigration Statistics. Its unclear how Breitbart reached 1 million or why it is included in its calculation.

"Throwing legal immigration numbers into the mix with unauthorized entries, and in particular adding in tourists and others on non-immigrant visas that do not permit a permanent stay, only generates confusion," Michelle Mittelstadt, director of communications at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute, told PolitiFact. "Its a total cherry-picking of data."

While at first glance Kirks claim seems to check out, there are limits to the data available and what it represents. This does not allow us to reach a fair comparison of the number of immigrants entering the U.S. with the number of births in the country.

Our sources

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Charlie Kirks comparison of migrant entries, US births lacks data
Associated Press

A shipwreck has emerged along the banks of the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as water levels plummet  threatening to reach record lows in some areas. The ship, which archaeologists believe to be a ferry that sunk in the late 1800s to early 1900s, was spotted by a Baton Rouge resident walking along the shore earlier this month. During the summer, receding waters in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area revealed several skeletal remains, countless desiccated fish, a graveyard of forgotten boats and even a sunken World War II-era craft that once surveyed the lake.
Chinas foreign ministry on Thursday slammed President Bidens new national security strategy that portrays China as trying to reshape the international order and emphasizes the U.S. will try to out-compete Beijings influence.

We oppose the outdated Cold War mentality and zero-sum mindset, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a press briefing.

We see no benefit in any rhetoric or act that plays up geographical conflict or major power competition, for they go against the trend of the times and the aspiration of the international community, she continued. They are not going to be welcomed and will not succeed.

The new strategy, which the White House released on Wednesday, calls the coming years a decisive decade in fighting global challenges, focusing broadly on investing domestically, building alliances abroad and modernizing the U.S. military.

It also stresses a need to compete with the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) and contain Russia as it continues its war on Ukraine. White House officials described China as Americas most consequential geopolitical challenge.

The PRC is the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to do it, the strategy states. Beijing has ambitions to create an enhanced sphere of influence in the Indo-Pacific and to become the worlds leading power.

U.S.-China relations have become more tense amid concerns over Beijings desire to reunify with the self-governing, democratic island of Taiwan and other regional security issues.

The two countries have both looked to dominate emerging technology markets, like 5G infrastructure and semiconductors.

In one of the Biden administrations latest moves to combat Chinas economic influence, the U.S. updated its export controls to make it more difficult for China to manufacture advanced computing chips, a move that was met with condemnation from Beijing.

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When asked about the new national security strategys characterization of China as the most consequential challenge to the global order after Russias invasion, Mao denounced the Biden administrations increasingly aggressive posture.

China and the U.S. are respectively the biggest developing country and the biggest developed country with a responsibility of preserving world peace and stability and promoting economic prosperity and development, Mao said on Thursday. China and the U.S. stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. The US needs to follow the principle of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.

Maos likening of the national security strategy to the Cold War is at odds with the Biden administration, which has expressed a willingness to cooperate with any rival that is willing to work constructively.

The strategy also makes clear that we avoid seeing the world solely through the prism of strategic competition, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters while previewing the strategy.

And we will not try to divide the world into rigid blocks, Sullivan continued. We are not seeking to have competition tip over into confrontation or a new Cold War. And we are not engaging each country as simply a proxy battleground. Were going to engage countries on their own terms and pursue an affirmative agenda to advance common interests and to promote stability and prosperity.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
75-year-old Robert Tsao says he wants to wake Taiwanese people up to the threat

In September this year a retired tech billionaire in Taipei, white-haired and bespectacled, called the island's media to a press conference to tell them he was pledging one billion Taiwan dollars (28m; $32m) to create a civilian army.

Dressed in a bulletproof vest over a business shirt, Robert Tsao declared he wanted to help his countrymen and women fight against China.

The aim was to train up three million civilian "warriors" - a seventh of the population - in three years. Office workers, students, shopkeepers, parents could all learn to pick up a gun; he wanted 300,000 sharpshooters.

The task was ambitious, he acknowledged. But he vowed it could be done.

He brandished a picture of a fresh Taiwan identity card, something he'd re-applied for after renouncing his Singapore passport. He wasn't running away, he said. And he wasn't scared.

"I think as long as people are in Taiwan, they will be willing to defend their country. They are not afraid of Chinese military aggression," he told the BBC a few weeks later.

Born in China but raised in Taiwan, Mr Tsao created the United Microelectronics Corp semiconductor company, making his fortune in an industry the island is now globally known for.

As a businessman, he had many dealings in China. An ardent student of history, he has been a high-profile voice in policy debates for decades. In 2007 he championed the idea of a referendum on unification with the mainland.

But he is now among an increasing number of Taiwanese who feel they need to prepare for a possible invasion.

Xi Jinping is set to enter a third term as Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader - something that has not happened since the rule of the first Communist-era leader Mao Zedong. Achieving what Mr Xi calls "reunification" with Taiwan would seal his legacy.

His decade in charge has seen huge modernisation and expansion of China's military capability. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) has increased activity around the Taiwan Strait, the 160km (100 miles) body of water between the island and the mainland.

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Such activity has barely stirred the Taiwanese public, accustomed over decades to Chinese sabre-rattling.

But Beijing's crackdown on Hong Kong in 2019 shattered some of that complacency. Pro-China voices had long held Hong Kong up as an example of what Taiwan could be if it united with China - another example of "one country, two systems" where democracy could be retained.

This year has been another wake-up call, says Mr Tsao. Russia's invasion of Ukraine reverberated in Taiwan.

More Taiwanese are getting firearms training

In August cross-strait tensions reached their highest point in decades when US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan.

China responded with a forceful show of war drills. It wasn't just a show of intimidation; Beijing got to rehearse how exactly it might attack Taiwan, analysts said.

More than 100 aircraft, ten destroyers and support vessels operated around Taiwan for over a week. China sent submarines and aircraft carriers, fired dozens of missiles.

For Mr Tsao this was the tipping point. He had already started seeing the ruling Chinese Communist Party as a "mafia, a crime syndicate disguised as a national government".

"I wanted to show my commitment... I thought I would be encouraging to many people, and other business people or leaders who might follow," he said.

The billionaire also pledged money to develop military drones, critical to Taiwan's "porcupine" defence strategy.

Taiwan spends 2% of its GDP on its defence budget. The US has sold it $23bn (21bn) worth of weapons since 2010, including $6bn since 2020 alone. But China is spending at least 15 times more. Beijing commands the world's largest navy and the PLA has more than two million salaried soldiers and 500,000 more in reserve.

So Taiwan is focusing on asymmetric defence.

"Fighting a war today, like what we see in Ukraine, is not a comparison of numbers of soldiers or numbers of tanks. It's pretty much a war decided by intelligence," said Mr Tsao.

It also requires resilience and the will to fight. Taiwan's army has shrunk since the 1990s and the government has reduced mandatory service over the years - from two years to four months. There's now an active debate about extending it. For the first time in decades, polls show a majority in favour.

After Ms Pelosi's visit Mr Tsao asked around and found the Kuma Academy - a civilian defence training group set up in 2021. He vowed to scale it up.

"Chairman Tsao is not alone. I would like to say that he is a mirror, a reflection of our society and where we are right now," says Wang Ting-Yu, a Taiwanese lawmaker and former chair of the parliament's security and defence committee.

Locals are eager to learn. People were even hopping on planes to the US territory of Guam to practice shooting real guns because of strict gun laws at home.

These are "hot businesses", says Mr Wang. "Especially among the younger generation. They're eager to learn how to protect our country."

Claire Lee, 27, identifies as a patriot who would stay and defend her home. But she doesn't see the threat from China as so imminent that she'd take up the training offered by Mr Tsao.

"Everyone was like wow, he's really got guts. We didn't actually think that someone would do this, give a bunch of money. Most of the rich and powerful people in Taiwan - the other billionaires - are very pro-China and pro-business," she said.

"So everyone was talking about it. But I haven't heard of anyone actually going to do it. And I don't think I'm doing it either."

People don't want to think about the worst-case scenario "until a gun is in your face", she says.

China deployed warplanes and navy ships around Taiwan after Ms Pelosi's visit

"Most of us are like, we don't want to fight, we don't want to be unified [with China] or forced to be independent. We just want to keep living our lives," she said.

But she acknowledges that things have already changed far quicker than anticipated. She's now "quite sure" Taiwan's status will be resolved, possibly through war, in her lifetime.

Despite an official US policy of ambiguity, President Joe Biden has twice said US forces would help Taiwan defend itself against a Chinese attack.

But Mr Tsao says that Taiwanese people need to come to their own rescue.

"What I'm working for is to let Taiwan people be confident in themselves," he said. "In Chinese I call myself a 'Pao Zhuan Yin Yu'."

It's an idiom which literally translated means "throw a brick [to] attract jade". But as a saying, it's about presenting something pretty average or superficial in the hope that it'll attract a pearl of wisdom, a stunningly superior product from those more enlightened.

Mr Tsao sees his huge donation as the lowly brick.

The jade he's hoping to get in return is something of far greater value - a wave of Taiwanese fighting spirit.
Wikimedia Commons

A college Republican group in small-town Wisconsin is in turmoil after its members scrawled racist, antisemitic chalk messages around campus, then gloated about it on Instagram, leading the groups disgusted president to resign in protest.

On Tuesday, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosses College Republicans met to write chalk messages around campus that reflected issues that were important to its members, the university paper The Racquet Press reported. But in images that were posted to the groups Instagram page and then deleted, members plastered a series of offensive messages, including one supporting Kanye West in the wake of his diatribes against Jewish people and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Kanye is right. Def-con III, one message in orange read, according to photos of messages posted on Twitter by the College Democrats. It appeared to mimic the Oct. 8 tweet that got West banned from Twitter, in which he said he was going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE and claimed he cant be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew.

Other messages decried COVID vaccines, mocked support for the LGBTQ+ community with a demand for a Straight/CIS night, and boosted a racist pro-gun theory about violence in Chicagos Black communities.

The UWL College Republicans proudly showed off chalking they did on campus last night. But we have to ask WHY? College Democrats tweeted Wednesday along with photos of the chalk messages. What purpose do these hateful chalkings serve but to offend others? Students should not have to tolerate offensive racist and anti-semitic hate speech on campus!

The College Democrats told The Daily Beast that the College Republicans deleted the images from Instagram within a couple of hours of Democrats putting them on blast.

The president of College Republicans said she was so horrified that she was quitting the group.

As Chair of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse College Republicans, I was disgusted and appalled to see the actions some of our members took and then posted to the organizations social media, Megan Pauley wrote on Twitter. (She also sent the message to the College Republicans email list, according to an email provided to The Daily Beast by Democrats.) I had no knowledge of this antisemitic chalk, nor of the social media post. I am resigning effective immediately because the Republican Party is a big tent, open to all who believe in liberty and freedom, and I will not stand by while others are ostracized. Antisemitism and hate speech have no place in College Republicans, and I hope my gesture tonight will send a message to the remaining membership that actions like these are unacceptable.

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College Republicans did not respond to The Daily Beasts requests for comment. However, according to local news outlet WKBT-TV La Crosse, they penned a post denouncing antisemitism on their Instagram account, which has since been made private.

Then, on Thursday afternoon, the group claimed it did not write the Def-con III line seen in the photo shared by College Democrats. The group did not address the other discriminatory and hateful messages.

The original image of the chalk we posted. Our club did not write def-con III, which seems to be the most problematic line people are rallying behind. https://t.co/IFMb71dOOj pic.twitter.com/lFiIXmEioR  UW-La Crosse GOP (@UWLAXGOP) October 13, 2022

In a statement to The Daily Beast, College Democrats said the schools Republican student group has been known to spread hateful messages around campus.

Assistant professor Anthony Chergosky, who specializes in political science at the university, serves as both an adviser to the College Democrats and Republicans, WKBT-TV reported. According to a statement he provided to the news outlet, his longevity with the Republicans depends on whether or not the remaining members apologize.

In a statement, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse chancellor Joe Gow, interim vice chancellor of diversity & inclusion Dina Zavala, and dean of students Kara Ostlund said they were deeply disappointed to see students abandoning civil discourse and engaging in speech that promotes hate, is threatening, or that alludes to violence.

While we support and uphold our students right to free speech, we also acknowledge the right of every member of the campus community to speak out in opposition to ideas they find offensive or harmful, they said. We may disagree with one another, but we do so without harassment, intimidation, disruption of learning or other university activities, and discrimination. This is part of the robust and vigorous public debate, which is central to the purpose of the university. Encountering new, different or opposing perspectives can be challenging and uncomfortable, but should always be respectful.

Tucker Carlson Edited Out Kanye Wests Antisemitic Rants, Leaked Footage Shows

Whats worse, the fiasco wasnt even the only antisemitic episode to hit the small town of La Crosse on Tuesday. In a separate incident across town, a co-owner of a local pub quit after antisemitic and racist text messages surfaced between him and staff members, local radio station WIZM reported.

While communicating with a manager about hiring, Popcorn Tavern co-owner Dan Perisey went on an unhinged rant, including using the N-word, when talking about who could and could not be employed at the bar.

No way were turning into a black bar, one message from Perisey read, according to WIZM.

How many times do I have to tell you guys we dont hire colords [sic]??? another message read. As long as theyre not black or Jewish.

According to the radio station, an unidentified person leaked the messages to a local activist group.

On Wednesday, Popcorn Tavern wrote on its Facebook page that Perisey had already resigned in a now-deleted post that The Daily Beast was able to review.

His words no way [sic] reflect the feeling of our establishment or space, the post read. The Popcorn Tavern embraces diversity within our community. We completely understand these heinous words are despicable.

Speaker Wishes Death on LGBTQ People at Shocking School Board Meeting

The post tried to blame Periseys racism on multiple brain injuries.

Dan Perisey continues to deteriorate in his ability to properly think and filter his words, the post read. While this is no excuse, we hope that by being truly transparent the community can understand the words or [sic] one do not reflect the business or staff of The Popcorn Tavern.

The post received over 300 comments and multiple laughing reactions before it was deleted.

In a second post that was also later deleted, Perisey tried to do some damage control.

Im not, never have been, never will be racist, he wrote. I apologize for my stupid comments but both parties know I joke about that shit which I now understand is very inappropriate.

This is all on me and I own up to it, he continued. Im sure this post will make people mad for some reason. All I can say is Im sorry and wish nothing but the best for everyone in this community and everywhere. Peace out.

The post received nearly 40 comments and more laughing reactions.

The Popcorn Tavern did not immediately return The Daily Beasts requests for comment.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Supporters of former US president Donald Trump are claiming that Colorado's secretary of state intentionally solicited 30,000 non-citizens to vote in an attempt to rig upcoming midterm elections. This is misleading; while the office did send mailers to those individuals encouraging them to register, the mailer was meant for potentially eligible voters but went to the non-citizens because of a database name matching error. The mistake was quickly identified, and non-citizens remain ineligible to vote.

"If they can't cheat, they can't win," says an October 11, 2022 article from the Gateway Pundit, a conservative website that has previously spread misinformation about elections.

Retired US army general Michael Flynn, who is embroiled in an election interference investigation, shared the link to his hundreds of thousands of subscribers on Telegram.

"This is not a mistake," says the post from Flynn, who has ties to the QAnon conspiracy theory and was Trump's first national security adviser. "30K will change the outcome of most elections," the post adds.

Screenshot from Telegram taken October 12, 2022

A similar post on The Donald, a far-right internet forum, says: "This was absolutely intentional and they will all be allowed to register and vote."

On September 27, the Colorado secretary of state's office mailed roughly 30,000 non-citizens living in the US state postcards with information about registering to vote. Colorado Public Radio first reported that it had done so in error.

The mailers were sent in accordance with the state's contract with the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a bipartisan consortium through which 33 states and the District of Columbia share data to keep voter rolls updated as people move, die or change their registration.

ERIC requires Colorado to send one notice per election cycle with voter registration instructions for people in the state who may be newly eligible to vote but have not registered. The organization provided a list of approximately 102,000 people who fit that description, Secretary of State Jena Griswold's office said.

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State officials checked the citizenship status of those people by cross-referencing their names against the Colorado Department of Revenue's list of non-citizens with driver's licenses. A difference in formatting -- the Revenue database included 30,000 names for whom the middle name field was blank -- meant some names did not match properly, and officials as a result failed to spot non-citizens who should have been eliminated from the mailing list.

Griswold, a Democrat, is up for re-election on November 8, 2022.

While the incident could cause confusion, experts said it does not amount to evidence of election fraud or cheating, as some posts allege.

"Just getting a mailer doesn't mean anything. It doesn't mean that you're eligible to vote," said Lorraine Minnite, author of "The Myth of Voter Fraud" and a professor of political science at Rutgers University. "This is not registering those 30,000 people. This is just telling them something that was not correct."

Claim spreads online

The error inspired misleading claims on social media platforms such as Twitter, where some users cast doubt on whether it was truly an accident.

Numerous proponents of baseless claims about election fraud placed quotation marks around words such as "accidentally," "mistake" and "glitch," said Mike Caulfield, a research scientist at the University of Washington's Center for an Informed Public, which analyzed the conversation on Twitter.

Conservative blog sites published stories with similar framing, and explicit allegations of cheating followed.

"The steal continues," says one October 10 tweet. "I understand why Democrats do this. Cheating is in their DNA."

A user on Truth Social accused Griswold of "ramping up the cheating." Posts on The Donald called what happened "criminal activity" and warned that "all 30k will get registered."

Caulfield said: "As it escalated, you saw people get a little more brazen with what they were claiming."

'Absolutely not' election rigging

Contrary to what some social media posts suggest, the mailer was not a ballot or voter registration form.

In English and Spanish, the postcard directed recipients to a website where eligible voters could register to vote. The card explicitly listed "Colorado voter eligibility requirements" -- including that voters must be "a United States citizen."

A spokesperson for Griswolds office told AFP it is not aware of any non-citizen who has attempted to register after receiving the mailer.

A mailer sent by the Colorado secretary of state's office September 27, 2022 ( Colorado Department of State)

"The mailer simply raises awareness that someone might be eligible to register if they satisfy the requirements listed," said the Democracy Fund's Tammy Patrick, a former elections official in Arizona who told AFP the situation in Colorado is "absolutely not" a case of fraud or election rigging.

"If you think about other mailers you might receive -- such as saying you may have won a sweepstakes or you may be eligible for legal compensation in a class action suit -- it doesnt mean that you are now rich. There are still verifications and qualifications to be checked," she added. "In the case of voter registration, all the standard security checks are still done if and when someone registers, or attempts to register."

The Colorado Department of State confirmed the non-citizens who received the mailer will be unable to register to vote, as the state's online system automatically rejects non-citizen driver's licenses and Social Security numbers.

The department said it will also check the state's voter registration list for non-citizens on a weekly basis. On a daily basis, it will compare the list of all 30,000 non-citizens who were sent the mailer to its voter registration list -- and the department plans to send them a notice clarifying the error.

Some of the people who received the postcards could possibly have become citizens since they last updated their government records, experts said. It is rare for non-citizens to register to vote, in part because the consequences could include deportation.

A pattern of misinformation

The incident in Colorado is the latest example of how misinformers exploit human errors to cast doubt on election integrity.

The posts misrepresenting the mailers are effective because they take advantage of public confusion over election processes, such as the difference between an instructional postcard and a registration form or ballot, Caulfield said. They also capitalize on a real problem that required fixing.

Previous election misinformation has followed a similar playbook. During ballot counting in the 2020 US presidential contest, for example, data entry errors and subsequent corrections prompted claims that candidates received suspicious "ballot dumps" or saw votes "disappear."

"When you look at election rumors, some of it of course is pure fantasy," Caulfield said. "But probably the most common pattern we see is some small error or perceived weirdness at the core, and then someone builds a narrative around that that is really not proportional to either the impact it has or what is really going on."
PETOSKEY  Staff, residents and senior advocates of Friendship Centers of Emmet County made their voices heard Monday, Oct. 10, as the Emmet County Board of Commissioners decided how best to mete out the funds from the countywide senior millage.

More:Emmet Friendship centers could lose $165,000 in new senior millage allocation

The 0.50 four-year millage was last renewed by voters in August, and for the last 30 years, 85-90 percent of the funding has gone to Friendship Centers of Emmet County. Millage funds make up about 60 percent of its operating budget.

This year, however, commissioners encouraged other organizations to apply for funding because of a surplus of funds carried over from last year. Applicants for senior-specific programming included Petoskey District Library and Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity.

Initially, the board intended to grant 90 percent of the requested funding for all applicants  but dropping the remaining 10 percent for Friendship Centers would mean losing $165,000 from its operating budget.

Denneen Smith, executive director of Friendship Centers of Emmet County

Last month, Denneen Smith, executive director at Friendship Centers, expressed concerns over fund disbursement and how it would impact the organization.

In a September letter, Smith warned of significant cuts if the proposed allocations were approved, including recreation programming, staffing, and meal and transportation services.

What we provide for seniors and their families cannot be equally compared to any other nonprofit, agency or business in our community, Smith said Monday. With property tax values increasing, the senior population growing, and the cost to provide our services at an all-time high, we rely on every dollar request in our application and then some.

"I respectfully request the Board of Commissioners fund the senior-specific agencies in the amounts they have requested first, and then consider other applicants.

Smith also encouraged the board to create a formula dedicating a set percentage of millage funds for Friendship Centers to ensure stability in the future.

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More than a dozen others spoke about the importance of the centers work during the meeting Monday.

I think the new requests serve seniors as well, but I think they should only be funded if there is an actual surplus and its not taking 10 percent from the senior centers and from Bay Bluffs, said Petoskey resident Lori Pall.

Sarah Ulrich, executive director for Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity, also spoke at the meeting. She said they weren't aware when they made their request that it would negatively impact senior center providers and offered a voluntary reduction in their requested amount.

While we deem the work outlined in our proposal as a vital service to our community, it was also not the intention of our request to pull funds away from other existing programming, she said. We recognize there are many organizations who address the needs of our aging population and resources are limited. We wish to be collaborative partners in this work and find a solution that ensures our seniors are receiving the care and resources they deserve.

Friendship Centers of Emmet County provides recreation programming, meals, transportation services and more to area seniors.

Following public comment, the commissioners discussed how to allocate the funds.

Commissioner Matt Koontz suggested funding all the requests, but fulfilling the full amounts for the Friendship Centers, Wawatam Area Senior Center and Bay Bluffs  then following the previous recommendation on the librarys request and allocating the remaining funds to Habitat for Humanity.

We need to fund the seniors, said commissioner David White.

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Commissioners also checked with county administrator David Boyer regarding the legality of approving funds for non-senior specific organizations. The millage language only refers to senior programs and activities.

As long as this is for senior programs and directed at seniors, yes, you can fund those, Boyer said.

The commissioners unanimously approved Koontzs motion, with one member absent.

The final allocations are:

Friendship Centers  $1,658,642

Bay Bluffs  $29,870

Wawatam Area Senior Center  $64,000

Petoskey District Library  $12,375

Habitat for Humanity  $136,295

Harbor Springs Friendship Center  $42,000

Administration  $2,650

 Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: After community outcry, Emmet County fully funds Friendship Centers
BRISTOL, Conn. (WTNH)  Two police officers shot dead in Bristol, Conn., were apparently lured to a home by an emergency call about possible domestic violence between two brothers, authorities said Thursday.

Bristol Police Chief Brian Gould identified Sgt. Dustin DeMonte, 35, and Officer Alex Hamzy, 34, as the officers who were killed Wednesday night. Officer Alec Iurato, 26, was wounded and underwent surgery at a hospital in Hartford. He has since been released.

Images provided by the Connecticut State Police show (from left) Sgt. Dustin DeMonte, Officer Alex Hamzy and Officer Alec Iurato of the Bristol Police Department. Sgt. DeMonte and Officer Hamzy were killed Wednesday night, while Officer Iaruto was hospitalized. (Connecticut State Police via AP)

State police Sgt. Christine Jeltema said the officers were responding to a report of domestic violence at about 10:30 p.m. when they encountered someone outside the house and shots were fired. State police said in a release that the 911 call appears to have been a deliberate act to lure law enforcement to the scene.

Sources close to the investigation confirmed to Nexstars WTNH that the suspects used an AR-15-style firearm in the shooting. Those sources also told WTNH that 14 guns were seized from the home during the investigation.

Hamzy was pronounced dead on the scene. DeMonte was later pronounced dead at Bristol Hospital. A procession led their bodies to the state medical examiners office in Farmington.

Ex-Texas cop charged over shooting teen eating hamburger

State police said the suspect, 35-year-old Nicholas Brutcher, was shot and pronounced dead at the scene. His brother, Nathan Brutcher, 32, was also shot and taken to St. Francis Hospital for treatment of his wounds. His condition was not immediately known.

Police havent yet said who opened fire, who fired the fatal shots, or how many guns were fired in all.

Witnesses said they heard three sets of gunshots, about 30 in all.

I heard a whole war going on behind me, said Danny Rodriguez, who said he was outside his home across the street when the gunfire rang out. It was so intense that he could smell gunpowder in the air, he said.

It was so loud and crazy, said Rodriguez, who also recalled a woman screaming: You  killed them! he remembers her shouting.

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The officers

Sgt. Dustin DeMonte, a 10-year veteran of the department who was assigned to the patrol division, was a co-recipient of his departments 2019 Officer of the Year award. He and his wife were expecting their third child, Gould said.

Officer Alex Hamzy, an 8-year veteran of the department, was also assigned to the patrol division. He is survived by his wife and parents.

The outpouring of love, support and prayers from so many is deeply appreciated, Hamzys family said in a statement obtained by the Associated Press.

Both men were advisors to a police cadet program.

The injured officer, Officer Alec Iurato, is a 4-year veteran of the department and a member of the patrol division.

Police officers from towns across Connecticut gathered at the scene where two police officers were killed in Bristol, Connecticut. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

We need your thoughts. We need your prayers.

We lost two exceptional Bristol police officers, and a third was seriously injured as a result of senseless violence, Gould said at a news conference. We need your thoughts. We need your prayers.

Jeltema said this was an isolated incident, and there is no threat to the public.

This is a very complex, ongoing investigation led by detectives from the Connecticut State

Police Major Crimes Unit, at the request of the Office of the Chief States Attorney, a statement issued by state police read. Connecticut State Police and municipal police agencies are offering mutual aid to Bristol Police; residents may see neighboring agencies covering patrol functions as the Bristol Police Department begins to process this extraordinary loss.

In a statement, the Connecticut State Police Union said they hope to provide the comfort and support necessary to make a difference for everyone affected by this cowardly act of violence

Officer Hamzy and Sergeant DeMonte responded to this call for service with bravery and were

senselessly ambushed for simply protecting and defending others, the unions statement read. These officers put themselves in harms way to keep their community safe and made the ultimate sacrifice. All of Connecticut should pause to support and remember these brave officers and their families.

Parkland school shooter to get life sentence for killing 17

Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Conn.) directed flags in the state to be lowered to half-staff in honor of the officers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Waking up to a mysterious bag of white liquid taped to his door, a Texas mans reaction was what anyones would be  confusion.

What is this white liquid  and why is it there?

As he went searching for answers, Ring doorbell footage revealed a Lubbock police officer had left the bag on his door on Tuesday night, Oct. 11. The why of it all remained a mystery.

I called (non-emergency) and @LubbockPolice told me the officer thought this bag of milk was mine and was returning it, the man said in a Twitter post. Am I being punked right now?

Im so confused. I was asleep and woke up to a white bag of liquid taped to my door. I called (non-emergency) and @LubbockPolice told me the officer thought this bag of milk was mine and was returning it. Am I being punked right now? pic.twitter.com/Lr5Y1BjG9r  JR (@JRtheRebel) October 12, 2022

His social media posts began to go viral, but there was still plenty of confusion over the entire situation.

Lubbock police tried to explain themselves in a social media post on Wednesday.

One of our officers was called to the 5200 block of Bangor Avenue yesterday at 7:37 p.m. for a check subject call, police said. The officer spoke with the caller who told him someone specific left the bag with an opaque white liquid that appeared to be milk on their door and they wanted the officer to return it to what they believed was the correct apartment. So, our officer did just that.

Video shows that the officer tried to return the bag at 10:46 p.m., and he taped it to the door when no one answered.

The officer said he thought he was doing a good deed, but police called it not the best course of action.

Still puzzled? So is the resident.

Still have questions, he said in a Twitter post Wednesday.
Oct. 12CLARKSVILLE  Indiana court records show the man shot and killed by a Clarksville police officer after brandishing a machete Monday night at the Walmart on Veterans Parkway had been sentenced to probation in Harrison County last week.

According to court records, Daniel Francis Scott, 30, of Corydon, had taken a plea deal in a fraud case on Oct. 5. On Oct. 6 he was sentenced to probation.

Indiana State Police Detective Matt Busick said employees of the store notified officers from the Clarksville Police Department of a suspicious male inside the store on Veterans Parkway around 11:15 p.m.

The store closed at 11 p.m. and Scott refused requests to leave the store, authorities said. Police said he appeared to have "severe lacerations to the neck."

Three Clarksville officers were outside the store on an unrelated investigation and immediately responded. They saw Scott walking around inside the store.

Police said that based on information and video gathered at the scene, detectives believe "Daniel Scott brandished a machete-style knife when approached and charged toward an officer. That officer fired his department handgun, striking Daniel Scott."

ISP said police began life-saving measures and called for an ambulance. Scott was taken to Clark Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Police said they believe the lacerations on Scott's neck were likely self-inflicted. They also said Scott took both a razor and machete from the store, before being asked to leave.

There have been at least four other fatal police shootings in the area since 2019. In each instance, police reports said the deceased had a weapon and refused to drop it before officers fired.

Max David Helton, 43, died in a Clarksville police shooting in April 2019, after a domestic disturbance at 514 Howard St.

Police said they were called to the home and saw Helton with a gun at the doorway. He then retreated into the house and barricaded himself and the original caller in the residence. Police encountered him again and he was still brandishing a handgun that he refused to drop after police told him to. At least one Clarksville police officer fired at Helton.

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Police then began aid and Helton was taken to University of Louisville Hospital before being pronounced dead. Clark County Prosecutor Jeremy Mull's investigation into the incident concluded the officer's use of force was justified.

Justin Moore, of Owensboro, Kentucky, was shot and killed by a Palmyra police officer in May, after officials said he fired a weapon multiple times at authorities. The authorities responded to a call about a stranded motorist near an elementary school in Harrison County. Harrison County Prosecutor Otto Schalk said the officer was justified in his actions and that Moore had fired a shotgun at both the officer and a volunteer firefighter at the scene first.

The firefighter, Jacob Tyler McClanahan, was struck by a bullet from Moore's gun and died from his injuries.

A Clarksville man, Malcolm Williams, was shot and killed by an ISP trooper in Jeffersonville in April 2020. Clark County Prosecutor Mull said in July 2020 that the officer was justified in using deadly force in the case. ISP's account of the case said Williams fired three rounds at an ISP trooper before the gunfire was returned.

Williams' family is disputing the police account of the incident and filed a federal lawsuit in 2020 that said he was handing the officer the gun when he produced it and that he didn't fire it.

In July 2019 two Salem City police officers shot and killed Mark A. Naugle, 53, Scottsburg, on fairgrounds property after they said he charged at them with a hammer and refused to put down the hammer. Washington County Prosecutor Dustin Houchin said the officer was justified in this case.

That same month police shot Stephen E. Fischer, 62, Charlestown, at a Love's rest stop in Memphis. A preliminary investigation found that Clark County Sheriff's Office deputies saw a man, later identified as Fischer, fire a pistol into the pavement of the parking lot at Love's.

An Indiana State Police news release said once officers were on the scene they first attempted to mitigate the situation before firing. Officers from Charlestown, Clark County, ISP, Indiana Department of Natural Resources and Sellersburg police were all on scene during the incident. At the time ISP said it wasn't clear who fired the shot.

There have been at least two non-fatal police shootings in Floyd County since 2019.
A top aide to Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton is leaving the senators office to expand his political operation, a move that comes as Cotton takes steps to prepare a 2024 presidential bid.

Brian Colas, who has worked in Cottons office since 2015 and ran his 2020 reelection campaign, is departing to launch a political consulting firm and to work on Cottons PAC. The senator has used the committee as a vehicle to bolster other Republicans ahead of the midterm elections.

Cotton is aggressively laying the groundwork for a 2024 White House bid, embarking on a campaign swing for Republican candidates  including those running in early presidential nominating states like Iowa and New Hampshire. Early next month, he is set to publish a book detailing his views on national security and military policy, which will be accompanied by a promotional tour. And he has invited his donors to a post-midterm election retreat at the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Va.

Colas has been a central player in Cottons orbit, having served as his deputy chief of staff and legal counsel. Cotton called Colas a trusted advisor and friend in a statement, and he said he would continue to benefit from his counsel.

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott has also begun to take steps to buttress his political operation ahead of a prospective 2024 bid. Jennifer DeCasper, a longtime Scott adviser, recently left his office to help guide his political activities ahead of the midterm election and to advise a newly created, pro-Scott super PAC.

Cotton earlier this week campaigned for Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker, who has been besieged by allegations that he paid for a former girlfriend to get an abortion. (Walker has repeatedly denied the claim, which POLITICO has not independently verified.) Cotton is weighing returning to the state to campaign for Walker again before the election.

He is also expected to travel to Pennsylvania, to boost Senate candidate Mehmet Oz, and to Iowa, where he will campaign for GOP Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks.

Cotton has made clear that a comeback bid by former President Donald Trump would not deter him from seeking the Republican nomination in 2024. Addressing donors at a retreat in Washington this past June, Cotton said he wouldnt defer to any other potential candidate  including Trump  and said he would make a final decision on whether to run after the midterm election.

CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this report misstated Brian Colas title. He is Sen. Tom Cottons counsel.
Russias war in Ukraine is having a profound impact across Europe as energy prices soar and an anticipated cold winter draws near. That pain is reportedly being felt hard in the Czech Republic, an eastern European country that is particularly sensitive to Russian aggression and has been very supportive of Ukrainian resistance.

Yet some observers fear the realities of confronting Russia and forcefully backing Kyiv are setting in among the population.

"It will be a difficult winter ahead for centrist European governments, and its important that Europe is able to maintain solidarity to combat the energy and cost-of-living crisis amid Russias weaponization of energy," Paddy Ryan, assistant director of European energy security at the Atlantic Council, told Fox News Digital.

Late last month, thousands took to the streets in Pragues Wenceslas Square to voice opposition to the Czech Republics handling of the energy crisis stoked by the war in Ukraine. Angry protesters called for the resignation of Prime Minister Petr Fiala and his western-oriented coalition government. The protests included an overlap of the far right and far left, a strong indicator of the angst mounting as winter approaches.

EUROPEAN GOVERNMENTS, CITIZENS GEAR UP FOR WORSENING ENERGY CRISIS

Russias invasion of Ukraine is central to the recent turmoil roiling Czech politics. Many of the protesters are demanding the resignation of the prime minister and blame the government for joining the rest of the European Union and NATO in implementing harsh economic sanctions on Russia. Protesters claim attempts by the government to alleviate the pain are inadequate.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

This is not the first time the government has faced stiff opposition over the growing energy crisis. In early September, Fiala's ruling coalition narrowly survived a parliamentary vote of no confidence, showing that peoples disaffection with the high price of electricity and natural gas will remain a potent political issue.

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UKRAINE'S ZELENSKYY ACCUSES RUSSIA OF 'PREPARING FOR A DECISIVE ENERGY ATTACK ON ALL EUROPEANS' THIS WINTER

While protesters may blame their government for the high price of energy and overall inflation, Russian President Vladimir Putins coercive decision to cut gas supplies to Europe is a major factor in the skyrocketing prices.

"The Kremlin is coupling this overt energy warfare against the E.U. with its disinformation tactics attempting to amplify these concerns among European electorates, where Moscow's objective is to sow division and dissent across Europe in an effort to get Western capitals to drop their support for Ukraine, especially as the Russian military continues to suffer defeats on the battlefield," Benjamin L. Schmitt, senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, told Fox News Digital.

PUTIN'S RUSSIA CREATED EUROPE'S WORST REFUGEE CRISIS

Russias wartime decision to cut gas to Europe caused one of the worst energy crises in recent memory. The Czech Republic, as well as many other nations in Eastern Europe, rely almost exclusively on Russia for its natural gas. The E.U. got 39.2% of its natural gas from Russia in 2021. The Czech Republic consumes around 9.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas each year, most of which comes from Russia. A complete shutdown of gas by Russia could reduce GDP by 6% in the most vulnerable E.U. countries, according to an estimate from the International Monetary Fund.

Putins weaponization of energy at a critical moment just before winter aims to create market uncertainty and drive up prices to poke holes in the western alliance. E.U. leaders remind the public that high energy costs are a result of Putins war of aggression in Ukraine and exacerbated by pandemic-related supply chain issues. The move by Putin, despite the warnings, appears to have worked in some respects as the demonstrations in the Czech Republic show.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

The high cost of energy is not the only issue Czech citizens must grapple with. The influx of refugees, over 400,000 Ukrainians have entered the Czech Republic since the war began on Feb. 24, adds to the frustrations felt by Czechs over their government's perceived inability to address basic life necessities.

Still, despite the growing discontent within the Czech Republic and elsewhere in the transatlantic community, support for Ukraines defense, in both rhetoric and security assistance, remains strong.
Crisis-hit Sri Lanka has been snapping up discounted Russian oil. Thilina Kaluthotage/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Sri Lanka has been buying large amounts of Russian crude since March 2022.

The island nation is in an economic crisis and fell into default in May.

Data from analysis firms showed Sri Lanka imported all of its crude from Russia in recent months.

Debt-laden Sri Lanka has been buying up large amounts of discounted Russian oil amid an economic meltdown that sent the country into default for the first time in May.

Since March, the Asian country has been buying so much Russian oil that those barrels account for all its imports, Kpler found. But OilX's analysis showed Russia was the sole supplier in just some months since May. Both analytics firms compile their own vessel-tracking data.

Three months ago, Sri Lanka said it was sending an official delegation to Russia to negotiate oil deals amid a crippling fuel shortage. At the time, the country's prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe  who is now its president  declared the country bankrupt.

But it's just one of the emerging markets dealing with economic crises now lining up to buy discounted Russian oil. As inflation skyrockets and gas stations run out of supply, they are looking to hedge against rapid price gains for fuel.

"The combination of financial stress due to the current economic climate and very strong dollar, as well as to a degree lower scrutiny in Eastern markets from Western authorities, makes these countries most likely to seek to take advantage of cheaper Russian barrels," Neil Crosby, a senior analyst at OilX, told Insider.

It's unlikely that Sri Lanka had ever purchased Russian crude before March this year, Kpler's lead crude analyst Viktor Katona said. The firm's records, which started in 2013, show no imports before then.

Russian cargoes represented all of Sri Lanka's crude imports in May and August, and made up more than half of the country's crude imports in September, data from OilX showed.

Sri Lanka's appetite for Russian oil supplies is price-driven, the analysts said. Flagship Urals crude recently traded at a $17 discount to Brent crude futures, the international benchmark  although the discount has been as wide as $30 at times, according to Reuters.

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Sri Lanka is a small crude oil consumer  it's only able to process 50,000 barrels of the fuel a day, compared with 5 million barrels a day in India, analysts note.

But it's not alone. With Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Laos also seeking out Russia imports, southeast Asia will likely be a hotspot for Russian crude, analysts told Insider.

Global trade in commodities is typically denominated in the dollar. Strength in the greenback makes the imports expensive for emerging nations, whose currencies have weakened.

As more crisis-hit countries join the line to buy Russian crude, their purchases could provide a steady market for the Kremlin  even if they cannot replace Europe's market share entirely, said Kpler's Katona.

Such purchases are undermining sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine as energy is a key pillar of Russia's economy, accounting for over one-fifth of its GDP. The US has banned Russian crude and the European Union set to implement an oil embargo on Russian oil by the end of the year.

Russian seaborne oil exports tanked to their lowest level in a year in the month of September, S&P Global data showed.

To mitigate the impact from lower energy sales to the European Union  Russia's single largest market  President Vladimir Putin has been hawking Russia's energy exports to other markets, including Asia.

In April, Russia said it was ready to sell oil to "friendly countries" in "any price range."

Read the original article on Business Insider
STORY: Late on Wednesday, around the southern city of Hebron, Israeli troops opened fire on a crowd throwing rocks at cars on a highway, hitting at least one person.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said an 18-year-old had died after being hit in the abdomen.

The army operations and frequent confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli settlers in the West Bank have fuelled increasing anger among young Palestinians who have hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails at the troops.

More than 100 Palestinians have been killed this year, most since the army launched its operation, which has been marked by a near-daily series of raids and clashes with militant groups in West Bank cities like Nablus and Jenin.

After the funeral Palestinians hurled stones toward Israeli army troops at the entrance of the refugee camp.
Will Josh and Allie finally get together?

Just in time for Halloween CSI: Vegas gets a little spooky with a case that sends the team to a Nevada ghost town after a group of teens discover a dead woman behind the wheel of an abandoned car.

The setting is so ominous and its such an unusual vibe for a crime scene, Matt Lauria, who plays CSI Joshua Folsom tells Parade.com in this exclusive interview. Its not in the heat of battle of the Las Vegas streets. It is out in this abandoned ghost town and everything about it is curious and isnt lining up.

At first glance, it appears that the driver of the car was killed when her convertible smashed into a telephone pole, but as Josh and Allie Rajan (Mandeep Dhillon) begin to investigate more deeply, things arent lining upand without any CCTV cameras, theres no witnesses.

Thats another thing that makes it really interesting, Lauria continues. You have these young teens who have stumbled upon this crime scene, but weve got to rely on ourselves. Add to that, theres a little bit of tension. I am the lead on the case, and I get to work with the beloved Allie Rajan, but were a little less in sync than we have been in the past.

Ariana Guerra, Matt Lauria, Mandeep Dhillion Photo: Bill Inoshita/CBS

The lack of their synchronicity may be due to the fact that when Allie returned to the Las Vegas crime lab after her training in Los Angeles, she didnt expect Josh to be in a relationship. Maybe she thought that now that she was available, he would have waited for her. But we don't actually know what Allie is thinking!

I think its a classic ships passing in the night scenario, Lauria explains of Josh and Allie. Fortunately, Josh is a respectful guy, a man of great character. He wasnt going to intrude on somebodys relationship. Unfortunately, when she was out of the relationship, she was away. Then, Josh never imagined shed be returning from Los Angeles as soon as she did.

While Allie was in L.A., Josh began dating Det. Serena Chavez (Ariana Guerra), whos smart, good at her job, no-nonsense, and truth be told, a good match for Josh.

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The problem is were deep enough into the relationship that theres some substance there, Lauria says. Theres affection and a real relationship there. But its not so deep into the relationship that its, This is the woman Im going to marry. So, its a complicated situation that everybody is trying to feel their way through."

Related: Marg Helgenberger Reveals What's Ahead for Catherine Willows on Season 2 of CSI: Vegas

Also during our chat, Lauria talked about his previous guest starring appearance on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the pleasure of working with original cast members William Petersen, Jorja Fox, and Marg Helgenberger, and how much of the science he really understands.

You actually guested on the original version. How was it joining the new franchise as a series regular?

Back about 10 years ago, I guest starred on several episodes. I had a blast. Back then, I never imagined I would be in this position now. It is this beautiful, full-circle situation. I had an amazing time. I got to work with Ted Danson, Jorja Fox, George Eads, Eric Szmanda, and Marg Helgenberger. It was Margs last three episodes on the series.

So, now, here I am full circle and I get to work with Marg again. Shes back. I got to work with Jorja again last year, and I had never met Billy (William Petersen) before. But now Marg is back for this really wonderful and somewhat surreal experience.

Marg Helgenberger, Sarah Gilman, Jay Lee, and Matt Lauria Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS

What is it like having Billy and Jorja and now Marg on. What does it add? Could CSI: Vegas have been done with just the new cast?

Its an interesting question and I dont know the answer to that. I do think its only a benefit. I do think were lucky to have people come back who were the reason that the show was such a success in the first place. Undoubtedly, [showrunner] Jason Tracey and our gifted writers have forged forward with a new take on the show and their own variety of telling the CSI lab story in Las Vegas.

Again, I dont know the answer but were having a blast with Marg this season. Shes an amazing lady, and it adds a dynamic when youre able to marry a version with the original. A lot has changed in 20 years. So, you have the original practitioners of this type of law enforcement and a whole new world of technology and a whole new world in which criminals have gotten smarter due to all the work that theyve done in the past. Criminals have gotten more savvy.

I think it creates an interesting dynamic because you have people like Penny Gill, played by Sarah Gilman, and Chris Park, played by Jay Lee, these young guns in there and then you have someone like Catherine Willows, who is such a pro who is at a place in her life and her career that she is in a mentorship role. Having those two worlds collide is really fun and interesting.

I dont think criminals have gotten smarter. I think they watch shows like CSI and learn.

Thats what I mean. I think its trickier to get away with things. I hope were not giving a blueprint for criminals.

Related: Paula Newsome Is Breaking Rules to Solve the CSI: Vegas Case That Could Destroy the Las Vegas Crime Lab!

Josh is this good guy. Last week, he agreed to take part in the off-the-books investigation which Catherine is heading up which could cost him his career if theyre busted. Why would he volunteer?

Two clear reasons. One, Max (Paula Newsome) is my family. This crime lab means the entire world to me. And, although Max gives me the option, I know that theres a certain level of her endorsement placed on this investigation. She is willing to extend herself to help Catherine. So, by extension, I would extend myself to do what I believe Max would do.

The other side of it is that Catherine Willows is another person from Las Vegas, just like Josh is, and we come from a similar, gritty background. Not only has she been a force for good in Las Vegas, shes been an iconic member of the law enforcement community and changed a lot of lives. Shes also in a mentorship position now. She represents everything Josh would want to be in so many ways. Josh was a kid who came from a dodgy background with a lot of criminality in his family, and suddenly he's looking at this woman and going, You know what? Shes iconic and if she can do it, I can do it. Shes someone whose very aspirational to Josh. Its a chance to be close to someone who is very inspiring and learn.

Were you a science guy in school? Or is this all Greek to you?

Its Greek to me. Look, even if you were an ace in science in high school, I doubt that many high school students ever encounter the term (he rattles off a big term ending in leukocytes). Maybe, but not in any high school science class I ever took. Look, I love science, but it was never my strong suit. I am an actor, and my entire high school career was dedicated to that. I did well in math, and I did well in science, but this is definitely the next level. Most of the time, I have no idea what were talking about.

CSI: Vegas airs Thursday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.

Next, Everything You Need to Know About Season 2 of CSI: Vegas, Including the Return of Marg Helgenberger
Cuba Gooding Jr. will not serve time in jail in his forcible touching case. The Oscar-winning actor plead guilty to a lesser charge in a New York City courthouse on Thursday as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

In April, Gooding admitted he kissed a waitress on the lips without her consent in 2018 at a nightclub. The Jerry Maguire star had previously pleaded not guilty. He was sentenced to counseling with the possibility of getting his conviction reduced to a lesser violation for good behavior. On Thursday, the prosecutor told the court Gooding completed six months of alcohol and behavior modification counseling and stayed out of trouble, according to the Associated Press. He was allowed to withdraw his misdemeanor plea and plead guilty to a harassment violation.

Cuba Gooding Jr. arrives for sentencing in his forcible touching case on October 13, 2022 in New York City. (Photo: Getty Images)

Gooding will not have a criminal record with the nonviolent harassment violation. If he failed to comply with the terms of the deal over the past six months, then he would have faced up to one year in jail. The 54-year-old actor's accuser wasn't satisfied with the punishment and called the plea a "betrayal," according to a 1010 WINS reporter who was in court.

Gooding was arrested in 2019 for groping and unwanted touching. More than a dozen women came forward and accused the actor of inappropriate behavior over the years. Prosecutors hoped to present trial testimony from 19 women to establish Gooding's pattern of predatory behavior. The judge ruled two of the women could testify, but prosecutors say the judge later reversed that decision, leading them to seek a plea deal.

Gooding was one of many famous men to be taken down during the #MeToo movement, which swept through Hollywood after the explosive accusations against Harvey Weinstein dropped in Oct. 2017. It's been a big week in court for a handful of stars once at the top of their game.

Accuser calls plea deal a betrayal, says his alcohol and so-called sex abuse treatment is w/same therapist and called behavior modification. @Cubagooding_jr @ManhattanDA @1010WINS pic.twitter.com/V55WDs5KtM  Juliet Papa (@winsjuliet) October 13, 2022

Kevin Spacey was also in court in New York City on Thursday, just down the street from Gooding, as actor Anthony Rapp is suing the Emmy winner for $40 million. Rapp was one of the first men to come forward and accuse Spacey of sexual assault.

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Over on the West Coast, Weinstein, who was sentenced to 23 years in prison in New York for rape and sexual assault following a landmark trial, was back in court. Jury selection is underway in Los Angeles where the disgraced producer faces 11 new charges. Meanwhile in a different L.A. courtroom this week, jury selection began in actor Danny Masterson's rape trial. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

MORE: Danny Masterson rape trial and how its linked to Scientology
Cuba Gooding Jr. in court

David Dee Delgado/Getty Images Cuba Gooding Jr. in court

Cuba Gooding Jr. has resolved his forcible touching case in New York City and will not serve any jail time after following the conditions of the plea deal he reached in April.

According to the Associated Press, prosecutor Coleen Balbert said in court Thursday that the Oscar-winning actor, 54, had remained out of trouble and completed six months of alcohol and behavior modification counseling (which he had already been doing since the case started in 2019), thereby allowing him to withdraw his misdemeanor plea and plead guilty to a harassment violation.

Gooding previously pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor charge of forcibly kissing a waitress at a New York nightclub in 2018. By pleading guilty to a lesser charge Thursday, he will avoid having a criminal record from this case. If Gooding had not complied with the terms of the plea deal, he could have faced up to a year in jail.

"Mr. Gooding's case with satisfactorily concluded with no criminal record and no criminal conviction," his representative Peter Toumbekis said in a statement to EW. "I hope and trust everyone can now move forward."

Since 2019, more than 20 women across the country have accused Gooding of various instances of sexual harassment or assault, but the case resolved Thursday was the only ongoing criminal case. An anonymous woman filed a civil lawsuit in August 2020 alleging that Gooding raped her in a New York hotel room in 2013, which Gooding and his lawyers have denied.

Related content:
Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

Despite fresh outrage from at least two women who have accused Cuba Gooding Jr. of sexual misconduct, the actor avoided jail time after pleading guilty to a single count of harassment on Thursday.

The shocking end to a New York criminal case came after women across the country accused the 54-year-old actor of sexual harassment and assault. In court Thursday, Assistant District Attorney Coleen Balbert said Gooding Jr. had fulfilled his April plea agreement after completing an alcohol and behavior modification counseling course.

The prosecutor added that Gooding Jr.s therapist also provided position reports for the last six months and that the Jerry Maguire actor was set to continue his treatment.

This plea deal feels like a misstep. After three long years of trying to hold Mr. Gooding Jr. accountable for forcibly touching my breast without my consent, having my day in court taken from me is more devastating than words can convey, Kelsey Harbert, who accused Gooding Jr. of touching her at a Manhattan bar in 2019, said in court Thursday.

Harberts allegations began Gooding Jr.s criminal case, prompting another woman to come forward about being assaulted at Lavo and a third to allege the actor pinched her butt at Tao Downtown. In 2019, Gooding was charged with forcibly kissing and groping the three women.

After the charges came down, at least 19 other women came forward with similar allegations and were willing to testify in court about his previous bad acts. In court Thursday, two accusers slammed prosecutors for agreeing to the plea deal, calling the agreement a betrayal. Gloria Allred, the attorney representing one of the women, told reporters after the hearing that the agreement was an unjust outcome in this case.

Cuba Gooding Jr. Indicted for Additional Incident in Groping Case: Prosecutors

In a press conference after the hearing, Harbert stressed that the plea deal robbed her of her chance for justice.

Over 30 other women have come forward since I first reported what Mr. Gooding did to me, Harbert said. At what point are we going to take this seriously? When will we decide that this is dangerous behavior? And when is it the court's responsibility to protect the public from someone like him?

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Harbert described how for years, she had been subjected to the reality that Gooding Jr. would likely receive special treatment because of his celebrity.

The system is supposed to be about what he didnot who he is, she added. Despite the harm to me, Cuba Gooding Jr. walks away from the court a free man without a record. Its like it never happened.

Gooding will no longer have a criminal record after being sentenced to time served and does not face any additional criminal penalties. Allred noted Thursday that Gooding does have two pending civil lawsuits against him.

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Cuba Gooding David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. won't be spending any time in prison after pleading guilty in his forcible touching case.

The Manhattan District Attorney's office confirmed to CNN the Oscar-winning star of Jerry Maguire will not face jail time in the case after fulfilling the terms of a previous plea agreement.

In April, Gooding Jr. pleaded guilty to forcible touching after he was accused of groping a woman at a nightclub in 2018. He admitted that he "kissed the waitress on her lips" without her consent and apologized for "ever making anybody feel inappropriately touched."

That deal said he could enter this guilty plea as long as he wasn't arrested again and underwent alcohol and behavior counseling, according to The New York Times.

In 2020, prosecutors said 30 women had come forward to accuse Gooding Jr. of groping. Kelsey Harbert, who alleged the actor groped her at a nightclub in 2019, slammed the plea deal as "a misstep," per The Associated Press. She added, "After three long years of trying to hold Mr. Gooding accountable for touching my breast without my consent, having my day in court taken away from me is more disappointing than words can say."

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D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine speaks during a news conference in Washington, on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The District of Columbia filed a lawsuit Thursday against Velsicol, claiming it violated the citys environmental laws by polluting a major waterway, the Anacostia River, and its surrounding environment for decades. (AP Photo/Drew Costley)

Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine (D) on Thursday announced a lawsuit against chemical manufacturer Velsicol, alleging the company contaminated waterways in the city and harmed the health of residents in predominantly minority neighborhoods.

The complaint alleged that no later than 1959, Velsicol was given private lab studies indicating that a chemical called chlordane, included in a pesticide compound the company manufactured, caused birth defects in animals, and by the early 70s knew that tests linked it to liver cancer.

The lawsuit argues that despite this internal knowledge, Velsicol conducted an aggressive campaign to assuage concerns about the chemicals safety, including threatening to sue the publisher of Silent Spring, Rachel Carsons seminal 1962 book on the environmental impact of pesticides.

The Hill has reached out to Velsicol for comment.

The company viewed D.C. as a major market due to termite infestations and placed hundreds of ads in local newspapers in the late 1950s and early 1960s, the suit alleged. Research in the late 1980s indicated the Potomac and Anacostia rivers contained triple the amount of chlordane recommended for human consumption, and in 1989 these levels prompted the city to warn against eating carp, catfish or eel caught in the river.

Chlordanes persistence in the environment has led its effects to linger for years, and as recently as 2016, about 55 percent of D.C. waterways were impaired under water quality standards for chlordane levels, according to the complaint. Racines office estimated chlordane monitoring will cost the city about $1.2 million annually for the foreseeable future.

Velsicol has previously been the subject of lawsuits from Hardeman County, Tenn., residents, who alleged in 1978 that the company contaminated local waterways through improper disposal methods. A district court awarded the plaintiffs over $12 million in damages.

With todays lawsuit, we are going after Velsicol which  for decades  made dollar after dollar of profit while poisoning DC residents with dangerous chemicals that they knew caused severe health problems, including cancer, Racine said in a statement. The damage that Velsicol caused will continue to impact the health of communities in the District of Columbia far into the future, particularly Black and brown community members, as these chemicals persist in our environment and continue to wreak havoc on our natural resources.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Comedy Central

On The Daily Show Wednesday night, Trevor Noah took on the John Fetterman interview that has everyone talking this week. And he made it very clear where he stands on the Democratic Senate candidates ability to serve the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania despite still not having fully recovered from his stroke.

After playing an extended clip from the NBC News interview, in which Fetterman was open about the need to use a live closed captioning system to read the questions as the reporter was asking them and could be seen stumbling over the word empathetic, Noah addressed those on the rightand elsewherewho are saying this means hes not fit for the Senate.

While he understands that political figures will jump on any weakness of their opponent, Noah said, Lets be real, people: If stumbling over a word every now and again disqualified you from politics, America wouldnt have had a president for the past six years. And while Fetterman stopped to correct himself, the host joked that Biden wouldnt have noticed and Trump would have tried to convince us that he got the word right.

Noah also didnt find Fettermans need to read captions a deal breaker, saying, I think America needs more people in politics who actually know how to read, as photos of Marjorie Taylor Greene and Herschel Walker appeared on the screen.

Hasan Minhaj: I Did the Right Thing for the Wrong Reasons

But the hosts most impassioned argument came when he explored what the questions about Fettermans health say about Americas attitude toward disabilities more broadly.

Im not vouching for Fetterman over Dr. Oz or anything like that, he insisted, but I do think that this whole debate is veering into the territory of saying that people with disabilities cant be lawmakers, which is trash.

And that is especially true, Noah added, because America has disabled lawmakers in Congress right now, pointing to both Republicans like Dan Crenshaw, who lost an eye, and Democrats like Tammy Duckworth, who lost both of her legs. And Mitch McConnell, whos literally melting all the time, he joked. But has he let that hold him back? No!

Story continues

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Danielle Deadwyler is exactly the force required to take on the role of Mamie Till-Mobley.

The 40-year-old actress portrays Emmett Till's mother in Chinonye Chukwu's new film "Till" (in select theaters Friday, nationwide Oct. 28), capturing Mamie's emotions before and after her 14-year-old son went from Chicago to Mississippi, where he was brutally lynched while visiting his cousins in 1955.

Deadwyler's performance has generated Oscar buzz, with The Wrap calling her portrayal "dynamic and transformative" and The Hollywood Reporter referring to her as a "powerful weapon" in the film's arsenal. Half of the Oscar experts at awards site GoldDerby predict she'll be nominated for best actress.

Deadwyler politely deflects when she was read a few of the adjectives that have been used to describe her performance.

"Any of that kind of talk is more valid to Mamie's legacy," she says. "It's fine. Awards are beautiful for a lot of different reasons, but more significantly, it's connected to (Mamie) wanting to continue to tell the story of Emmett. She didn't want to be the only one remembering him and at this point that's being actualized."

Jalyn Hall (left) stars as Emmett Till and Danielle Deadwyler is his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, in "Till."

Grand jury declines to indict Carolyn Bryant: Accusation led to Emmett Till lynching

Deadwyler captured mainstream attention in the 2021 Netflix Western "The Harder They Fall," earning her an NAACP Image Award for her supporting role as Cuffee. Prior to that, she starred in the 2019 thriller "The Devil to Pay" and the 2018 period drama "Jane and Emma." Off camera, she got her start in theater and as a dancer.

The actress came across "Till" last year when her agent sent her the script. Deadwyler says she was "greatly hesitant in even reading it" because she had just moved to Los Angeles for a new project. "I had to take a long time to consider" whether to audition.

She has long connected with Mamie as someone raised in Atlanta and as a scholar focused on African American and women's studies at Spelman College and later Columbia University for her master's. "Everything I do is centered around Black women's stories," she says.

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Mamie's legacy as a catalyst in the civil rights movement is also deeply personal for Deadwyler as a mother to 13-year-old son Ezra. For virtual auditions, Ezra stood in as Emmett before she met the film's star, Jalyn Hall. "(Ezra and I) have to have a conversation about what it means to be Black and how you have to navigate the world," she says. "Specifically, in dealing with white racism but (also) white supremacy."

"Till" has received criticism for piling on historical trauma for Black audiences still dealing with racism and injustices in society.

"It was hella uncomfortable watching the trailer for the Emmitt Till movie in a theater full of white people," Teen Vogue columnist Jenn M. Jackson tweeted. "Black pain, death, and trauma have to stop being the plot device."

Danielle Deadwyler channels Mamie Till-Mobley's grief into the civil rights movement following the lynching death of Emmett Till in "Till."

'The Woman King': How Viola Davis' film highlights a less-depicted aspect of African storytelling

The movie doesn't focus on the heinous details of Emmett's murder by Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam and instead highlights Mamie's role in the fight for civil rights, Deadwyler says. "Very, very intentional, critical care has been implemented in making sure this film does not re-traumatize," she says.

The lynching of Emmett isn't depicted in the movie, although his cries are heard and his brutalized body  infamously captured in a Jet magazine photo  is shown.

To critics, Deadwyler asks: "Do you want to turn a blind eye to history in the way that certain people and systems and institutions want to turn a blind eye to our imprint on this country?"

"If you do not want to forget and if you do not want organizations, institutions (and) racist folks to mute or erase our presence or influence, (then it) is imperative that you continue to have the conversation," she says.

From texting suicide to child murder: Hollywood should stay away from some true crime

Deadwyler consulted with "Till" producer Keith Beauchamp, who was mentored by Mamie and directs the documentary "The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till," to make sure Mamie's legacy was handled appropriately. She also "incessantly" referenced Mamie's autobiography "Death of Innocence: The Story of the Hate Crime That Changed America" "because those are her words."

Educating herself on Mamie's story while starring in "Till" is part of Deadwyler's insistence that audiences need to trudge through the discomfort of the subject matter to "know more and be a witness."

"In the same way that people did not want to look at Emmett, you're saying it again by saying you don't want to see (the film)," Deadwyler says. "With love, I ask you to be a witness."

Danielle Deadwyler says "Till" takes careful measures to make sure it does not re-traumatize Black audiences.

'It can get exhausting': Yahya Abdul-Mateen II on Black trauma porn and importance of Black joy

The Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, which was founded by family members following Mamie's death in 2003, gave the film its blessing.

"We continue to fight for justice, were continuing to educate others, create awareness, and to make sure that Emmetts death is not in vain," co-founder Deborah Watts said in a statement. "Our work is not done and it takes all of us to move forward to effect change in America. I believe the film 'Till' will have an opportunity to do that and to bring justice to others that have lost their lives in our country.

The movie is "a part of the justice that they are seeking," Deadwyler says. "Not just in the realness of accountability for folks who did the things that have created a loss, but a personal accountability to ourselves to know what happened."

After the film showed at New York Film Festival, the actress met with Till's family and representatives of the foundation backstage. Emmett's first cousin once removed Teri Watts told her it was "inspiring" and reminded her that "the fight continues."

"If they're coming back from it and being more inspired to continue, it's not a place of sitting downtrodden. It's upliftment," Deadwyler says of "Till."

Review: How true-crime series 'A Friend of the Family' gets right what 'Dahmer' got wrong

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Danielle Deadwyler talks 'Till' Oscar buzz, Black trauma controversy
Jarrod Bowen equalled West Hams European goalscoring record (Adam Davy/PA) (PA Wire)

David Moyes hailed history maker Jarrod Bowen after he equalled West Hams all-time European goalscoring record in the 2-1 win over Anderlecht.

Bowens latest strike took him level with club greats Johnny Byrne and David Cross on six European goals.

The 25-year-old should get plenty of chances to move ahead on his own after West Ham guaranteed qualification for the knockout stages of the Europa Conference League with two games to spare.

It certainly is a feather in his cap, said Hammers boss Moyes. Maybe there are more European games these days with the group stages, but its still a good thing to have and hopefully hell score a lot more.

Hes much closer to what he was last year and he looks a threat every time he plays.

West Ham now need just a point from their last two games, against Danish side Silkeborg and Romanias FCSB, to ensure they finish top of the group and move straight into the round of 16, avoiding a play-off in February.

Im really pleased weve done it and qualified, added Moyes. The big thing is to be in there after Christmas, and we still need a point to be group winners, and hopefully we can do that.

They took the lead in the 13th minute when Said Benrahma whipped a free-kick over the wall and inside the near post.

After half an hour the Hammers had their second, Emerson Palmieri galloping down the left before pulling the ball back for Bowen to finish from 15 yards.

However, some of the gloss was taken off their achievement by crowd trouble which required riot police to separate the two sets of fans, with flares and seats being thrown.

Moyes added: I saw some movement but I didnt have any interest in it to be honest. Why would we want to draw attention to it?

The players job was to get on with it and I thought they did. Its not what any clubs want connected to them and I certainly dont want it at West Ham.

The Belgian fans were clearly the instigators of the trouble and an Anderlecht spokesman said: We do not tolerate that behaviour in our stadium or away and we will take it up with the fans and UEFA. We apologise to West Ham.
Democratic Senate candidate Mandela Barnes called on former President Barack Obama for help after he began slipping in the polls for his Wisconsin Senate race against incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, Politico reported Thursday.

Members of Barnes' political campaign reached out to Obama's team in recent days in hopes of getting the popular former president to make an appearance in the final days before Election Day, the outlet reported. Obama isn't the only high-level Democrat who may appear in Wisconsin soon, however, as Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., are reportedly likely to make the trip.

Recent polling shows Johnson having a 6-point lead over Barnes in the final weeks before Election Day. The Wednesday poll from Marquette Law School found that Johnson was entering the final stretch with 52% support from likely voters, while Mandela had 46%.

Johnson and his allies found success in going after Barnes as a soft-on-crime candidate at a time when rates of violent crimes like murder and rape are spiking across the country.

2022 PRIMARY SEASON CONCLUDES WITH FIERY GOP SENATE SHOWDOWN IN BATTLEGROUND NEW HAMPSHIRE

Former President Barack Obama speaks at a rally to support Michigan Democratic candidates at Detroit Cass Tech High School in Detroit, Michigan, on Oct. 26, 2018.

Wisconsin is shaping up to be a key battleground state for not only Congress but also control over the state government. Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is nearly tied neck and neck with Republican Tim Michels at 47% and 46% support, respectively.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

THESE 11 SENATE RACES WILL DECIDE THE CHAMBER'S MAJORITY

Sanders' office would not confirm any specific plans to head toward Wisconsin, however.

"Sen. Sanders believes that in the coming election we need to energize working-class voters and grow turnout," Sanders adviser Faiz Shakir told Politico. "He intends to play an active role in making that happen."

Mandela's call for assistance comes after Congressional Republicans raked in tens of millions in donations between July and September. The Congressional Leadership Fund PAC garnered $73 million in donations through the period, $18 million more than its Democratic counterpart.

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Emily Liu, 26, a tech worker in Southern California, was among hundreds of employees who lost their jobs last month when the communications technology company Twilio announced it was cutting 11% of its workforce, part of a wave of layoffs across the tech industry.

But instead of immediately bouncing back into the tech workforce, Liu had another idea. Inspired by a college friend who had posted on LinkedIn, she decided to spend the next several weeks using her digital marketing expertise to help Democratic midterm campaigns.

Now, temporarily freed from her usual work in software marketing, Liu is volunteering remotely for a coastal South Carolina legislator in his re-election fight more than 2,000 miles away.

I kind of always took it for granted that California was so blue, and I wanted to do something with a little more impact, said Liu, who cited reproductive rights and mental health care as two issues shes most passionate about.

She has plenty of company.

Tech for Campaigns, an organization founded in 2017 to connect tech workers who live in Democratic strongholds with resource-strapped swing-state candidates, said it has seen a surge in new volunteers driven by a combination of factors, including tech sector job cuts and the Supreme Court decision overturning the constitutional protection for abortion.

The group, which works exclusively on state legislative races in red and purple states, said it saw 10 times as many signups in June as in April after a leaked draft of the Supreme Courts eventual abortion ruling set off a scramble in state capitals to write and enforce abortion-related laws.

The large majority are in districts where they feel like theyre fairly aligned already with the people that represent them, and they really want to be able to do something, said Jessica Alter, a co-founder of Tech for Campaigns. Like many tech workers and investors, she moved to San Francisco from elsewhere  Michigan, in her case  and still feels invested in the politics of her home state.

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High-profile state-level fights over election laws, LGBTQ rights, Medicaid and pandemic response have only raised awareness of the importance of state legislatures, Alter said.

A lot has changed between June and now, she said. Name an issue. The states pretty much control it.

Tech for Campaigns doesnt ask volunteers whether theyve been laid off, so the group doesnt have data about the precise impact of industry layoffs compared to other factors, such as the Supreme Court ruling. Lauren Miller, a spokesperson for the group, said that anecdotally, the job cuts have boosted sign-ups.

Carl Harris, 39, was laid off from his product manager job at Change.org in August as part of mass job cuts at the petition website. Now, from his home in San Francisco, he spends about eight hours a week volunteering for a Michigan state House candidate  about double the time commitment he has had in past election cycles.

I volunteer pretty much every election cycle, but usually I just do phone-banking, he said. But since I had a little more time, I decided to volunteer with Tech for Campaigns.

Harris is analyzing data to optimize email fundraising while searching for his next position in tech.

Work is up and down, and here I feel like theres something I can help build, he said.

Tech for Campaigns said it has 16,203 volunteers in its network overall  though not all of them are active at once  and that it has worked on 125 state legislative campaigns this election cycle. The volunteers usually work in teams of three to four tech workers who handle advertising, emails, websites and other tasks that line up with some of their current or former day jobs at companies like Meta and Salesforce. The group also runs a voter turnout operation in five states.

According to the group, the size of its network is up from 13,500 volunteers in 2020 and 7,000 in 2018  a resource that Republicans may have trouble matching, given the progressive politics of many tech workers. (NBC News couldnt independently verify the volunteer numbers.)

Whether theres a tech expertise gap between Democrats and Republicans is difficult to measure. Republicans dont have an organizational equivalent to Tech for Campaigns, but they have spent years building their own technical machinery, such as the Data Trust. Theyre also receiving millions of dollars from tech venture capitalists such as Peter Thiel.

The Republican State Leadership Committee, which works to elect Republicans at the state level, didnt respond to requests for comment.

Tech for Campaigns puts its focus on states where it thinks it can help flip legislative chambers, as in Michigan, where Republicans control the House and the Senate.

Jennifer Conlin, whos running for the Michigan House in a closely divided district that includes part of Ann Arbor, said that she appreciates the help of college students who volunteer but that tech workers bring another level of knowledge and experience.

Running for the first time and learning the ropes here, I just didnt have time to micromanage all my fundraising emails and volunteer emails and all the things that have to happen on a campaign, she said.

Some tech workers are in their third election cycles as volunteers, giving them a base of experience to work from.

Katie Miller, an employee at Slack who previously worked for Google and Asana and began volunteering with Tech for Campaigns in 2017, said she had planned to mostly step back this year. But she happened to be visiting Florida in April, when the Legislature voted for a bill backed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to punish Disney for its stance on LGBTQ rights.

It felt discriminatory. It felt short-sighted, said Miller, 45. She is from central New York state and lives in Cupertino, California, but she felt the pull of swing-state politics.

I have family in Florida. I have friends in Florida. I knew I needed to do something, because if not me, then who? she said.

Since then, Miller has volunteered to lead email marketing teams for state Senate candidates in Florida and Alaska, drawing on what she called her muscle memory for how campaigns operate and how to personalize campaign material for specific candidates.

Each hour we put in will make a difference, she said.

Given its size, Tech for Campaigns can test different messages and tactics across states. It also now has three cycles worth of historical data about what works well  subject lines for fundraising emails, for example  and a permanent set of software tools for internal use.

When we first started, we were just doing the work, and now we have so much data that we can better inform campaigns about whats working and not working, Alter said.

It is assistance that candidates in down-ballot races might otherwise not be able to afford or find locally, given small budgets and remote locations.

Technologists are expensive, said Sonyl Nagale, 42, a software engineer in New York City for the financial software firm Cosaic.

Nagale, who was raised in Iowa, leads teams for two races this year in Minnesota. He said he spends two to three hours a week on average building, improving and maintaining campaign websites.

If were looking at web development, if were looking at digital ads, if were looking at email campaigns  people know how to charge their worth, and this is a hundreds-of-dollars-an-hour skill set, he said.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Twenty-eight people have been arrested for looting in Lee County, the county hit hardest by Hurricane Ian  three of whom were singled out by Gov. Ron DeSantis in press conferences.

The three individuals have one thing in common: They are in the country illegally.

DeSantis was quick to underscore the immigration status of three suspects during a press conference on Oct. 4 in Fort Myers, where he provided updates on the hurricane recovery process. DeSantis said that four people had been arrested at that point on charges related to looting, but subsequent records show at least eight arrests had been made by then.

Three of the four are illegal aliens, DeSantis said five minutes into the press conference. These are people that are foreigners. They are illegally in our country  and not only that  they try to loot and ransack in the aftermath of a natural disaster. They should be prosecuted, but they need to be sent back to their home country.

They should not be here at all, he said, prompting applause from the crowd.

DeSantis immediately changed the subject to outline the number of people who had been rescued after the hurricane. But he brought up the arrests to send a message to Floridians that looting would not be tolerated in a law and order state like Florida.

Residents placed a you loot, we shoot sign on their their flooded property Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022, in North Port, Fla. Residents in the area continue cleaning up after Hurricane Ian came ashore along Floridas west coast last week. (AP Photo/Chris OMeara)

Since those comments, the looting problem appears to have worsened. Twenty-four more people have been arrested on looting charges, according to the Lee County Sheriffs Office  all of whom were in the country legally.

The governor has not mentioned the bulk of the arrests in press conferences. He has only highlighted the arrests of those who were in the country illegally, even though he has put an emphasis on cracking down on looters in general.

Weve been very clear that in situations like this we are not going to let bad actors exploit them. That means law and order will be enforced. That means Floridians right to defend themselves and their homes will be honored, DeSantis said before he mentioned the immigration status of three of the four who had been arrested.

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Jessie Santero, a spokeswoman for the Lee County Sheriffs Office, said in an email that the three undocumented immigrants were among the first to be arrested in the county for looting after the storm. DeSantis office did not immediately answer why the governor decided to focus on the three undocumented people who were arrested.

In recent months, DeSantis has drawn attention for how he is pushing back on the number of unauthorized migrants coming into Florida.

In September, he transported almost 50 migrants from San Antonio to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, by airplane. The flights, which took place two weeks before Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida, boosted DeSantis standing in national Republican circles as he seeks reelection in November and is rumored to be mulling a bid for president in 2024.

The flights have also led to a criminal investigation in San Antonio and a federal lawsuit from migrants on the Marthas Vineyard flight who claim he violated their civil rights.

Over the summer, DeSantis highlighted a law enforcement operation in Northwest Florida, led by his administration, that resulted in the arrests of illegal aliens and the recovery of enough fentanyl to kill off 2,000 people in the state of Florida.

However, he did not mention that the vast majority of the 22 arrests were not related to immigration but rather tied to men and women who live in the country legally. DeSantis also implied that undocumented migrants had been arrested on drug-related crimes, when none were, according to arrest records obtained by the Herald/Times.
THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 19:31

Workers of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) are figuring out whether employees of Antonov State Enterprise cooperated with Russia, which could have led to the destruction of the world's largest An-225 Mriya [Ukrainian for dream] aircraft at the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Source: Prosecutor General's Office, in response to Ukrinform's request

Quote: "Prosecutors of the Specialised Prosecutor's Office for military and defence of the Prosecutor General's Office carry out procedural management of pre-trial investigations in criminal proceedings on the fact that officials of the Antonov State Enterprise may have provided assistance to a foreign state  the Russian Federation  or its representatives in carrying out subversive activities against Ukraine, which led to the destruction of the An-225 Mriya aircraft and other (planes) during the military aggression of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation".

Details: The case is being investigated by the Main Investigative Department of the SSU.

A number of examinations were conducted in the case. The investigations continue.

The Prosecutor General's Office informed that employees of the Main Investigative Department of the National Police were also investigating the case of negligence of duties by the officials of the Antonov State Enterprise. In particular, the An-225 Mriya aircraft was not evacuated, which led to its destruction during the military aggression of the Russian Federation.

Background:

In the end of February, the world-famous An-225 Mriya, one of the largest and most powerful aircraft in existence, was destroyed as a result of the attack on the Hostomel Airport by Russian troops.

Dmytro Antonov, the commander of the aircraft, stated that the Mriya could have been saved. In particular, at the time when the Russian invasion began, the Antonov State Enterprise had a reserve airfield leased for 5 years in Leipzig, Germany, the NATO airfield reserved specifically for Mriya. The crew of the aircraft was ready to take off from Hostomel to Germany on the morning of 24 February, and even started the engines, but they never received the take-off command.

At the end of March, Ukroboronprom State Enterprise suspended Serhii Bychkov, the director of Antonov. On 4 April, Yurii Gusev, the head of Ukroboronprom, signed order # 141, according to which Bychkov was finally dismissed from the post of General Director of Antonov State Enterprise.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP)  The candidates for governor of Michigan criticized each other's positions on abortion Thursday, with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer saying women's fundamental rights" are at risk and GOP challenger Tudor Dixon calling the Democrat's support for abortion rights extremely radical.

Dixon is a former commentator for a conservative online program who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. She has never held public office and is still working to introduce herself and her ideas to voters  some of whom she acknowledged were hearing from her directly for the first time during a debate Thursday night.

For months, Whitmer and fellow Democrats have been airing attack ads portraying the Republican as too extreme on the issue, noting Dixons opposition to the procedure even in cases of rape or incest. Those ads have largely gone unanswered as Dixon has struggled to raise money to compete with Whitmers multimillion-dollar campaign fund.

On Thursday, Dixon said she is pro-life with exceptions for the life of the mother" and criticized Whitmer for not supporting limits on abortion.

Whitmer said she will continue fighting for abortion rights. She noted that prior to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning the right to an abortion, she filed a lawsuit to block a dormant 1931 state ban on abortion from taking effect. When the Supreme Court ruled and ended the national right, Whitmer said, Dixon celebrated.

Abortion has been a particularly prominent issue in Michigan this year because voters in November also will decide whether to enshrine the right to the procedure in the state constitution.

Dixon, who has been endorsed by anti-abortion groups including Right to Life of Michigan, said that if elected governor, she will abide by the will of the voters on that ballot question.

I will always respect the will of the voter, she said, adding that she believes in the right of the people to decide.

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Asked whether she will abide by the Nov. 8 vote on the ballot measure, Whitmer noted the court case she filed remains pending before Michigan courts, meaning the vote on the ballot measure may not be the final word.

She also scoffed at Dixon's statement about respecting the will of voters, saying this is a candidate who still denies the outcome of the 2020 election.

Dixon said during the Republican primary that she believed the 2020 election was stolen from Trump, whose loss to Joe Biden in Michigan by some 154,000 votes was confirmed through multiple investigations and lawsuits.

People in this country are allowed to question elections, it doesnt mean that youre not going to accept the will of the people," Dixon said when asked following the debate about her previous comments on the 2020 election.

The outcome of the November race will be significant beyond Michigan, a presidential election battleground. The winner will be in office for the 2024 contest, and could influence voting laws and how the election is conducted.

Dixon also criticized Whitmer for her handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying she was heavy handed in issuing lockdowns that hurt small businesses and the statewide economy and kept kids out of school. Whitmer shot back that Dixon promoted conspiracy theories."

Had she been governor during the pandemic, thousands more people would have died," Whitmer said.

And what about our students, who she kept locked out of our schools and wouldnt listen to parents when they begged her to let them play," Dixon said. She wouldnt even listen.

The two candidates are scheduled to debate again on Oct. 25 at Oakland University in Rochester.

___

Joey Cappelletti 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.

___

Burnett reported from Chicago.
Sarasota Police Department Interim Chief of Police Rex Troche speaks on March 28 about the circumstances that led to the arrest of William Devonshire in connection with the death of Kelliann Ripley at Centennial Park. Troche said Devonshire is also a strong suspect in a second homicide that occurred on March 10, a few blocks away in the 1900 block of Tamiami Trail.

The Sarasota Police Department announced that DNA evidence was connected to a man in the murder of a Sarasota woman.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement concluded in a report that DNA evidence from a killing in March connected to William Devonshire, 59. Devonshire also was arrested in connection to the murder of a second woman in February. He died in jail in June due to a medical-related illness.

DNA evidence from a 59-year-old Sarasota woman who was killed in March was found on his clothing, police officials said in a report. Her remains were found near the shore of Whitaker Bayou on March 10, and her clothing was taken to the FDLE for DNA processing. The DNA found on Devonshires clothing was from the March victim, the report said.

Background: Sarasota man charged with murder in woman's death near Centennial Park, 'strongly suspected' in 2nd homicide case, police say

More: Sarasota man connected to homicide deaths of two women dies at county jail, police say

Devonshire allowed officers to swab the inside of his mouth for evidence on March 15. On March 25, Devonshire was arrested by police at Pioneer Park on 1260 12th St. for trespassing, possession of cocaine, and possession of paraphernalia.

He also faced charges in connection to the murder of Kelliann Ripley, 48, from Sarasota. She was found dead in February near the Centennial Park boat ramp.

Devonshire died in the Sarasota County Jail in June. He was taken to the Sarasota Memorial Hospital following a medical event. The Medical Examiners Office said he died from a medical-related illness. Both of the homicide cases were closed because of Devonshires death.

"We had indisputable evidence that linked Devonshire to both homicides that occurred in February and March," said Captain Johnathan Todd, Sarasota Police Department Criminal Investigations Division. "Thanks to our partners at the FDLE, we expedited the DNA processing following the homicide in February, and we were able to arrest the suspect. Now, thanks to DNA evidence, we know Devonshire is responsible for both homicides."

Devonshire had a criminal history in New Jersey, Maryland, Indiana, Ohio Delaware, and Florida including charges of assault, aggravated harassment, disorderly contact, battery, burglary, and trespassing.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota: DNA evidence connects man to woman's murder
cannabis

Teenagers caught experimenting with cannabis should not be prosecuted, says a police chief, despite the Home Secretarys calls for tougher enforcement.

Graham McNulty, the National Police Chiefs Councils lead for county lines, said he was opposed to the decriminalisation of cannabis but believed there should be a graded response to possession.

This meant young teenagers caught with small quantities should not get a criminal record but should instead get an out of court sanction such as a community resolution, a warning or be referred to get help, said Mr McNulty, a deputy assistant commissioner with the Metropolitan Police.

It follows research this week by The Telegraph which showed cannabis prosecutions have fallen to their lowest rate on record with just one in six offences resulting in a charge but an increase in out-of-court disposals of offences.

At the recent Tory conference, Suella Braverman called for police to take a hard line and spoke of her dismay at its effective decriminalisation in parts of Britain.

A graded approach is needed

Mr McNulty said: I think the balance is about right. I dont want to criminalise young teenagers experimenting with drugs. The system now gives us an opportunity to give out of court disposal, give warnings, refer them rather than put them in front of a court. I think that graded approach is right.

On the other hand, someone who has been arrested multiple times is a different argument altogether. Of course class A drugs are more harmful. You see more violence. Its right there is a different response there.

He opposed cannabis decriminalisation, citing links to mental ill health, though stressed that it was a decision for Parliament.

However, he criticised middle-class drug users whose habit provided funds for organised crime and urged them to stop. There is a cycle that follows drugs: weapons, violence and money, he said.

It goes round and round. Different organised crime groups are entering the market at different points that do contribute to their revenue and perpetuate a cycle of violence.

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Police blitz shuts down record number of county lines

His comments came as he revealed the results of a seven-day blitz that saw forces from across the UK shut down more drug dealing county lines than ever before, the National Police Chiefs Council said.

A so-called intensification week from October 3 to 9 resulted in 1,360 people being arrested - and 321 weapons, more than 2.7 million worth of Class A and B drugs, and some 987,562 in cash seized.

Mr McNulty said that in the past two years police had almost halved the number of active county lines - the term used to describe the use of mobile phones to supply drugs from large cities to towns and rural areas - from 1,100 to around 600.

He said there was increasing evidence that the gangs were recruiting local children in the suburbs, towns and villages where they sold their drugs, to avoid the risk of being caught travelling around the country themselves with drugs.

Mr McNulty added there was some evidence the gangs were increasingly using social media to communicate and recruit drug users as an alternative to their previous reliance on disposable burner pay-as-you-go phones.

Our message is clear to anyone running county lines across the country; we will be relentless in our pursuit of you, we will shut down your county lines, we will take drugs off our streets and we will rescue those who are being exploited by you, said Mr McNulty.
Then-president-elect Donald Trump, left, his now-former chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, center, and his son Donald Trump Jr., right, attend a news conference at Trump Tower in New York, on Jan. 11, 2017. Evan Vucci/AP

Donald Trump Jr. told New York probers he doesn't understand basic accounting, a new filing says.

He claimed ignorance when asked at a sworn deposition about signing his dad's financial statements.

He said he remembers a little bit about accounting principles from 'accounting 101' at Wharton.

As sole trustee for the family business, Donald Trump Jr. routinely signs his father's financial statements  but he still insisted during a recent sworn deposition that he has very little actual understanding of accounting, New York officials revealed Thursday.

Asked about "GAAP," the generally accepted accounting principles that must be followed in the US, the younger Trump claimed nearly complete ignorance, according to court papers filed Thursday by New York state's attorney general, Letitia James.

"Donald Trump, Jr. testified that his only familiarity with GAAP was 'probably [because of] Accounting 101 in Wharton,' and that apart from knowing that they "are generally accepted," he could not identify any other knowledge he has about GAAP," the filing said.

Like his father and sister, Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. "To be fairly candid, I used to drink and party pretty hard," he told New York Magazine in 2004.

James offered a peek into Donald Trump Jr.'s claimed accounting ignorance as part of a new court filing that alleges the Trump Organization is engaging in a continuing pattern of fraud, stretching beyond the 220-page lawsuit she filed against the former president, his family, and his business on September 21.

Her office is asking a Manhattan judge to bar Trump from shifting assets to "Trump Organization II," a new entity that is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit or in a pending Manhattan criminal prosecution of an alleged payroll tax scheme.

She is also asking the judge to immediately assign an independent monitor to oversee Donald Trump's finances and to require him to formally accept service of her lawsuit, something he has yet to do in the three weeks since it's been filed.

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As for Donald Trump Jr., he did not assert his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination  unlike his father and his brother, Eric Trump  when he gave a court-ordered deposition before the attorney general's investigators in August, Thursday's filing says.

Since 2017, the former president's namesake son has been a trustee for the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, the entity set up to oversee the Trump Organization when Donald Trump became president.

"Despite his role as a trustee, Donald Trump, Jr. had no specific recollection at all of the Statements," the filing says, referring to the annual statements of financial condition at the center of James' lawsuit.

"Donald Trump, Jr. testified that he has no understanding how the Statement is compiled each year," the filing continues.

"Donald Trump, Jr. testified that he was aware of an accounting firm being involved but otherwise had no knowledge of the process or mechanics of the Statements' preparation."

Read the original article on Business Insider
The occupiers continue to terrorize the local population of Nikopol

Read also: Russians shell Nikopol with Grads: 20 high-rise buildings, private houses damaged

Nikopol (district) suffered the most, Reznichenko wrote.

The invaders wounded a 59-year-old man. He is in hospital in serious condition. Over 30 multi-storey and detached houses, gas and power lines were damaged in the city. More than 2,000 families have been left without electricity.

Read also: Russian missiles strike energy infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast

Reznichenko said Russian shells hit hospital, kindergarten, a local history museum, a church, market stores, a factory and a post office.

There were no casualties in an attack on the oblasts Marhanetska District. The scale of destruction there is still unknown, however.

Read also: List of Russian missiles used in mass strike on Ukraine

There were an air raid alerts in other oblasts in the region, but no enemy attacks.

The head of Nikopol military district administration, Yevhen Yevtushenko, reported that Russian troops shelled the city of Nikopol with incendiary ammunition in the early hours of Oct. 12.

Later it was reported that over 100 shells had been fired at Nikopol.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
By Phil Stewart

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - With Russia expected to soon carry out large-scale drills of its nuclear forces as President Vladimir Putin threatens to use them, the United States and its allies will be challenged to ensure they can spot the difference between exercises and the real thing.

Russia typically holds major annual nuclear exercises around this time of year, and U.S. and Western officials expect them perhaps in just days. They will likely include the test launch of ballistic missiles, U.S. officials say.

But with Putin having openly threatened to use nuclear weapons to defend Russia in its unraveling invasion of Ukraine, some Western officials are worried Moscow could deliberately try to muddy the waters about its intentions.

"This is why you don't want to have extraordinarily overheated rhetoric at the same time you're going to do a nuclear exercise," a Western official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"Because then we do have an additional challenge to really be sure that the actions that we see, the things that are occurring, are actually an exercise and not something else."

Still, the official expressed "high confidence" in the West's ability to make this distinction.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg assured a news conference in Brussels that the alliance would monitor Russia's annual nuclear drills very closely, as it has for decades.

At the White House, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Russia's so-called "Grom" drills would involve large scale maneuvers of its strategic nuclear forces, including live missile launches. He described them as "routine."

"While Russia probably believes this exercise will help it project power, particularly in light of recent events, we know that Russian nuclear units train extensively at this time of year," Kirby said, adding the United States would "monitor that accordingly."

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A U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Russian drills were expected to be carried out about the same time as NATO's own annual nuclear preparedness exercise, which is dubbed "Steadfast Noon" and will begin next week.

"We believe that Russian nuclear rhetoric and its decision to proceed with this exercise while at war with Ukraine is irresponsible," the official told Reuters.

"Brandishing nuclear weapons to coerce the United States and its allies is irresponsible."

The Russian Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Officials have so far said Putin has not yet taken steps to suggest he's preparing to launch a nuclear strike, but Moscow's nuclear rhetoric has intensified following a successful counter-offensive by Ukraine's military over the past month.

In recent weeks Putin has proclaimed the annexation of Ukrainian territories and threatened to defend Russian land with nuclear weapons. A senior NATO official said on Wednesday any use of nuclear weapons by Russia might trigger a "physical response" from the alliance.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday after a meeting of NATO's nuclear planning group in Brussels that he had not seen any "indications and warnings" that would cause a change to the U.S. nuclear posture.

Russia last exercised its nuclear forces in February, shortly before its invasion of Ukraine, in a move officials at the time believed was meant to discourage the West from supporting Kyiv.

The Western official expected drills meant to test "the Kremlin's ability to provide control over the forces and to issue direction, and of the forces themselves to respond to that direction."

The official anticipated that Russia would publicize aspects of the drills, and use them to drive home Moscow's threats.

"We should expect that there will be nuclear rhetoric during the exercise, so that they can take advantage, strategic communications advantage, of the exercise itself," the Western official said.

NATO's own annual nuclear exercise was planned before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, U.S. officials said, adding it has been held regularly at around the same time of the year for over a decade. The bulk of the drills will take place more than 1,000 kilometers (625 miles) from Russia, the U.S. defense official said.

Fourteen NATO nations are expected to be involved in the alliance's drills, which include fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads -- but does not involve live bombs, the U.S. officials said, adding U.S. military B-52 bombers will participate.

"While we will continue routine activities to sustain our (nuclear) deterrent, there will be no special messaging around our exercises," the U.S. defense official said.

"We think nuclear saber rattling is reckless and irresponsible. Russia may choose to play that game  but we won't."

(Reporting by Phil Stewart; additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Peter Graff and Rosalba O'Brien)
Records show that Europe has never been as dry as in recent decades. Drought has direct consequences on our lives, not least because it threatens basic foodstuffs such as milk. Remember that a cow needs more than 100 litres of water per day to produce milk, and that recently farms have been closing down because they are unable to compete with macro farms on price.

Countries such as Spain have been forced to import milk from other nations in Europe. But as Europe is also suffering from severe droughts, it could end up importing from the US and China. Something similar was seen in the southern hemisphere summer in Argentina and Brazil.

Beer provides another striking illustration of the impact of drought. Recently, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador considered halting beer production in the northern states, which are suffering from severe drought. Monterrey is the second most populous city in the country and home to powerful breweries. Beer production requires large amounts of water and in northern Mexico is compromising domestic water supplies. Studies indicate that climate change is threatening the brewing industry in several parts of the world.

Driest years, despite deluges

Contrasting rainfall patterns mean some years bring floods (eg. in 2021) and other years, droughts (2022), and sometimes this happens in virtually the same places. Despite the apparent contradiction, and climate change scepticism this can fuel, these opposing effects are triggered by the same process: the warming of the atmosphere by the emission of greenhouse gases. This warming increases climate variability and makes it more rare for rain to fall gently and continuously.

Extreme rainfall has become more frequent and intense in parts of Europe over the last century and there is evidence that human-induced climate change is responsible for this. And the devastating effect of the July 2021 rains and floods in Europe was amplified by human alteration of river basins, their artificialisation and the loss of natural vegetation and soil. One year on, many of these flooded areas of Europe have suffered the most intense drought since the Middle Ages.

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Dutch foundations rotting away

So much so that Dutch houses built on wooden stilts are rotting after severe droughts. Amsterdams famous Rijksmuseum has sunk more than 15 centimetres. Like many buildings built before 1970 in this low country, the museum rests on some 8,000 wooden poles as its foundation. Because dry summers lower the groundwater level, the posts are exposed and fungi, which need oxygen to survive, rot the foundations. In this case it is the shortage of water, not the excess, that causes the disaster.

At a time when Europe is suffering the worst drought in 500 years, this problem may not be limited to the Netherlands, as wooden foundations are also used in parts of Sweden, Germany and, to a large extent, in the Italian city of Venice. The Dutch will be forced to to reconsider their water management strategy. Without action, many houses could collapse within a decade.

The fact that no two days, no two months, no two years are climatically the same can make us lose sight of what is happening. Despite the great variability of precipitation in the new climate, it is possible to find certain patterns thanks to long-term statistics and multidisciplinary research.

A recent study by Cambridge University researcher Ulf Buntgen and colleagues links climate series extracted from European tree rings, combining growth data and isotopic data from living and dead trees. This allows us to understand the large climatic fluctuations over time and to conclude that, despite the droughts of the various historical periods, Europe is now experiencing droughts that are without precedent in the last 2,110 years.

An increasingly intense Azores anticyclone

But what is behind the growing drought in Europe? It is the Azores anticyclone, which, together with the Icelandic low pressure area, determines the wind and rain patterns in the North Atlantic.

The Azores anticyclone strongly influences the weather over much of Europe, especially the winter rainfall in the western half of the continent. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution researchers have found that since the industrial era the extent of this anticyclone has been increasing in line with human-induced climate change.

High pressures are significantly more common in the industrial era (since 1850) than in pre-industrial times, resulting in abnormally dry conditions in the western Mediterranean, including the Iberian Peninsula. Simulations of the last millennium indicate that the expansion of the Azores anticyclone arises after 1850 and strengthens in the 20th century, which is consistent with anthropogenic warming.

Speaking out

The connection between extreme weather events such as droughts, heat waves or freak storms and climate change is scientifically clear. It can be difficult to get that message across. As researchers Zuhad Hai and Rebecca L. Perlman discuss, many politicians find it difficult to make such connections in public for fear of voter backlash.

But as researchers, we must work for an informed citizenry and be clear about what the science tells us on this critical climatic matter.

Este articulo fue publicado originalmente en The Conversation. Lea el original.

Fernando Valladares no recibe salario, ni ejerce labores de consultoria, ni posee acciones, ni recibe financiacion de ninguna compania u organizacion que pueda obtener beneficio de este articulo, y ha declarado carecer de vinculos relevantes mas alla del cargo academico citado.
Dwayne Johnson plays the title character. (Warner Bros)

Dwayne Johnson's superhero movie debut, Black Adam, has been branded a "game-changer" in early reviews.

The film is based on the DC Comics character and sees the actor - aka The Rock - play Black Adam, an antihero from the ancient city of Kahndaq who has been imprisoned for thousands of years.

Buzz about the film has been building for a while and the first reactions suggest it has been worth the wait.

Read more: Black Adam: Cast, plot, release date for Dwayne Johnson's DC debut

Joseph Deckelmeier of Screen Rant said on Twitter that it was "a game-changer" and that the action was "non-stop".

The movie is out this month. (Warner Bros)

"This is the #DCComics movie Ive been waiting for & it did not disappoint," he tweeted.

"@TheRock is electrifyingly brutal as Black Adam!

"This is what I wanted Black Adam to be."

Erik Davis of Rotten Tomatoes said the film "rocks".

Film fans have been eagerly awaiting the movie. (Warner Bros)

"Tons of action, characters youre instantly invested in & terrific pacing," he tweeted.

"Dwayne Johnson finds a great balance in being menacing & badass, but also empathetic."

Steven Weintraub at Collider said The Rock was "fantastic" in the role.

Black Adam is said to be a 'game-changer'. (Warner Bros)

"He spent 10 years getting ready for this role and he literally kills anyone and everyone in his way and I loved that he didn't pull back on who Black Adam is," he said.

"Left the theatre wanting to see the sequel immediately."

Reviewers have also had a lot of love for Pierce Brosnan, who stars as Kent Nelson/Doctor Fate.

Many said the former 007 was something of a "scene stealer".

Pierce Brosnan is said to be a 'scene stealer' in the movie. (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Reviewer Brandon Davis tweeted: "Pierce Brosnan kills it as Doctor Fate.

"He steals scenes. Charismatic as ever."

Film critic Ben Rolph said that Brosnan was a "standout".

Read more: Dwayne Johnson says Black Adam has 'most raging and violent' action he's done yet

Black Adam, which also stars Aldis Hodge, Noah Centineo and Sarah Shahi, is due to be released in the UK on 21 October.

Watch: Dwayne Johnson seems to confirm Henry Cavill's Superman return in Black Adam
Six Connecticut jurors  or shall we call them justice actors?  just ordered Alex Emerick Jones to pay $965 million total to 14 parents and siblings of children and teachers murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14, 2012, and one smeared FBI agent. Americas First Amendment free speech protections have always allowed the punishment of those who libel and slander. In this case, Jones has already been convicted of defamation for calling family members of murdered kids crisis actors, subjecting them to waves of torment beyond the unimaginable pain they were already enduring.

The only question was how much that defamation and slander and emotional distress should cost him. Now we know: nearly a billion dollars. Amen.

Along the way, of course, Jones has tried to plead poverty. The protestations have been every bit as believable as his claims that he was not smearing the families of Newtown but merely engaging in good-faith, no-harm-intended conspiracy-mongering.

To this day, his Infowars website assaults viewers with ads for supplements that promise to improve the mind and strengthen the muscles. Up to 50% off, it boasts, double patriot points during this super sale. When you lie as you breathe, the truth becomes what you say it is.

In 2016, Hulk Hogan won a $115 million judgment against Gawker, bankrupting it for posting the sex tape of a public figure. It is an abomination of libel law that six years later, Jones Infowars  one of a constellation of websites and media outlets routinely smearing people, fomenting followers who buy into nonsense conspiracy theories to rain rage upon them  continues to profit.

Never forget that in 2015, when the Sandy Hook lies were still raw, Donald Trump went on Jones radio show and slobbered all over the amazing host, pledging I will not let you down. Jones may be the slimiest creature broadcasting from under a rock, but he is far from the only one. Every person who profits by shamelessly packaging virulent lies should pay a similar price.


If you want to know who really controls eEnergy Group Plc (LON:EAAS), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that individual insiders own the lion's share in the company with 36% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

Clearly, insiders benefitted the most after the company's market cap rose by UK2.6m last week.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of eEnergy Group.

Check out our latest analysis for eEnergy Group

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About eEnergy Group?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in eEnergy Group. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of eEnergy Group, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in eEnergy Group. From our data, we infer that the largest shareholder is Derek Myers (who also holds the title of Senior Key Executive) with 13% of shares outstanding. Its usually considered a good sign when insiders own a significant number of shares in the company, and in this case, we're glad to see a company insider play the role of a key stakeholder. With 9.9% and 8.8% of the shares outstanding respectively, Hargreave Hale Limited, Asset Management Arm and Octopus Investments Limited are the second and third largest shareholders. Furthermore, CEO Harvey Sinclair is the owner of 5.9% of the company's shares.

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We also observed that the top 7 shareholders account for more than half of the share register, with a few smaller shareholders to balance the interests of the larger ones to a certain extent.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage.

Insider Ownership Of eEnergy Group

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of eEnergy Group Plc. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful UK983m stake in this UK2.8b business. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 24% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Private Equity Ownership

With an ownership of 8.8%, private equity firms are in a position to play a role in shaping corporate strategy with a focus on value creation. Some investors might be encouraged by this, since private equity are sometimes able to encourage strategies that help the market see the value in the company. Alternatively, those holders might be exiting the investment after taking it public.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for eEnergy Group that you should be aware of before investing here.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

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.

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Elon Musk shared that while hes pretty positive that he doesnt have any other babies looming, hes still open to having more children.

The 51-year-old Tesla CEO opened up about his life as a father of 10 children in a recent interview with The Financial Times. When asked if hes fathered any more children, Musk responded: Im pretty sure there are no other babies looming.

He went on to explain that some of his peers have told him to have 500 children, which he thinks would be a bit weird.

Musk, who referred to himself as an autumn chicken at his age, also acknowledged that hes only open to having more children down the line as long as he can be a good parent to them.

He then shared his prediction about civilsation, claiming that it will not die with a bang, it will die with a whimper in adult diapers.

Musk is notably the father of 10 with three different mothers. He welcomed his first child, Nevada, with his now ex-wife, Justine Wilson, in 2000. However, the infant tragically died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) when he was 10 weeks old. The couple, who divorced in 2008, now share 18-year-old twins, Griffin and Vivian, and 16-year-old triplets, Kai, Saxon, and Damian.

In May 2020, Musk and his now ex-girlfriend, Grimes, welcomed their first son, X AE A-XII. In December, two months after business magnate announced their breakup, they welcomed their daughter, Exa Dark Siderl Musk, via surrogate.

Musk also made headlines in July when reports broke that he was the father of twins with Shivon Zilis, a high-ranking executive at one of his companies, Neuralink. Court documents showed that the two children were born in November 2021.

In July, the SpaceX founder seemingly addressed the court documents on Twitter and expressed why it was important to him to have more children.

Doing my best to help the underpopulation crisis. A collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far, he tweeted.

Doing my best to help the underpopulation crisis.



A collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2022

Musk previously shared his stance on the countrys rising birth rate during a Wall Street Journal virtual event in December 2021, claiming that more people are needed worldwide.

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There are not enough people, I cant emphasise this enough. There are not enough people, he said If people dont have more children, civilization is going to crumble. Mark my words.

When asked why he decided to have more children, he joked: I try to set a good example. Gotta practice what I preach.

Elsewhere in his interview with The Financial Times, Musk discussed his estranged daughter, Vivian, claiming that their relationship was negatively affected after she was influenced by people with a neo-Marxist mentality at her school. These comments also came shortly after the woman issued a court filing to cut ties with her father.

Its full-on communism . . . and a general sentiment that if youre rich, youre evil, Musk told the publication. [The relationship] may change, but I have very good relationships with all the others [children]. Cant win them all.
An employee of former President Trump said the former president personally instructed workers in moving boxes of documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Fla., according to a new report from The Washington Post.

The employee witness, who was not identified, told FBI agents that Trump directed his people to move boxes to his residence after a May subpoena from the government requested any remaining classified documents, the Post reported. Security footage allegedly confirmed that account.

The witness reportedly first denied handling such documents, but switched stories in a second interview with federal agents, admitting to handling boxes of documents at Trumps behest.

The revelation is the latest development in the ongoing investigation into the former presidents treatment of classified materials and, since the report suggests Trump directed the documents to be moved after the government issued its subpoena, it could shore up arguments that Trump failed or refused to comply with the governments requests for the documents.

Months after the government subpoenaed Trump in search of the documents believed to remain in his possession, FBI agents in August executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago and uncovered more than 100 classified documents and dozens of empty folders marked as classified, taken from the White House.

The former president has offered up varying defenses for how the documents came to kept at the Palm Beach, Fla., resort after the end of Trumps time in office, including claims that he declassified the materials, though his attorneys have not gone so far in their legal arguments.

The discovery of the classified documents at the former presidents home has heightened national security concerns, as some of the materials included high-level secrets and intel. Agents conducting the Mar-a-Lago search were reportedly looking for classified documents on nuclear weapons among the materials, according to the Post.

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A new report from The New York Times last week suggests Trump may still be in possession of classified documents even as the Justice Department battles with Trump in court over the review of the materials.

The Hill has reached out to Trump for comment.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Two history-making Black politicians and country music star Eric Church were among the six latest recipients of North Carolinas highest civilian honor announced Thursday.

On Nov. 15, Gov. Roy Cooper will present the North Carolina Awards, which were created over 60 years ago to recognize significant contributions to the state and the country in several fields.

Church, a native of Granite Falls, has received many Grammy nominations. Some of his top singles include Drink in My Hand and Springsteen. Hes also has won multiple awards from the Academy of Country Music and the County Music Association, including 2020 CMA Entertainer of the Year.

ALSO READ: Its an honor: Butler High School teacher receives special surprise

Other new recipients include U.S. Rep. Eva Clayton of Warren County, who was the first African American woman to represent North Carolina in Congress when she took office in 1992. She was also the states first Black representative since 1901.

Former lawmaker Mickey Michaux of Durham is also being recognized. He served in the state legislature for more than 45 years, almost all of that time in the House, where he served as the chief budget writer in the late 2000s. He was appointed a U.S. attorney in 1977  becoming the first African American in such role in the South since Reconstruction, according to the state Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Other recipients are Dr. Priya S. Kishnani, a professor and researcher at the Duke University School of Medicine; Stanley Riggs, a longtime East Carolina University marine geologist and expert on the coast and climate change; and journalist David Zucchino, a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill. Zucchino received a Pulitzer Prize in 2021 for his book on the 1898 overthrow of Wilmingtons government by white supremacists.

(WATCH BELOW: Local record-setting paralympic athlete nominated for two ESPY Awards)
The aftermath of a drone attack on August 26th in Mekelle around SOS KG inside Res Paradise playground

As the war in Ethiopia's Tigray region escalates once more, civilians are increasingly becoming involved in the fighting.

Tigray rebel commanders have embarked on a new recruitment campaign, having previously been accused of forcing people to join the war effort.

Similar accusations have been levelled against Eritrea, which has entered the war on the side of Ethiopia's government.

The BBC has received an exclusive report from a journalist in Tigray's capital, Mekelle, on how residents are coping.

Short presentational grey line

Drones fly over the skies of Mekelle, which has a population of around 300,000, almost every day. I can hear one now as I write this article. It makes me feel very insecure. In the last few weeks airstrikes have hit playgrounds and residential areas - it is not clear what the targets were.

This week the Tigray army called on every able-bodied person to join the fight - and as war-weary as people are after 23 months of violence, they are taking up the call.

"It is considered taboo not to join the military," says a resident, whose name the BBC is withholding for safety reasons.

Many Tigrayans remain defiant, saying they will no longer accept federal rule, while Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accuses the region's leaders of rebelling in a bid to regain the power they lost when he took office in 2018.

Everyone here wants to defend their rights. The latest surge in violence started in late August after the collapse of a five-month-long humanitarian truce.

People from all walks of life, including women and young people, are answering the call to join the army of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

Women have received military training, and say they are ready to fight if called up.

They include a 23 year old who told me she was "proud to be Tigrayan and excited to have been trained to protect my rights and preserve my land".

Tigray has been under a blockade since June 2021, and living conditions have been steadily worsening.

It's now been more than a year since telephone lines and internet services stopped, disconnecting us from the rest of the world.

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People have gone back to using paper to write messages to their families and friends - or they go to the border with Ethiopia's Amhara region to make calls and receive money from relatives abroad.

Groups gather round a single radio on the side of the road to find out what's happening. Everyone talks about the peace process and follows attentively the news about that but many people here believe that the Ethiopian government isn't ready for peace talks, because they have not stopped bombing.

People here cannot make money, or withdraw cash from banks because they have been closed. So businesses are not functioning.

It has led to the emergence of open-air markets, which were illegal before the war, and the movement of cash through the black market, with brokers charging a commission of at least 30%, down from 50% a few months ago.

My own neighbours live on money sent by their family in the US and Canada.

One of the neighbours says he can't feed his five children if they don't send cash. He has two sisters in the US, and he has received money from his siblings four times since the start of the siege.

The conflict has prevented essential goods, including fuel, from reaching Tigray. Many people go around on foot, or in donkey carts.

Mekelle has been cut off from the rest of the world

Prices keep increasing. Teff, the grain we commonly use to make the traditionally baked bread known as injera, goes up every week. The current price of 100kg (220 lb) is around $265, compared to $85 a year ago.

People are dying due to a lack of medication that can't be brought in because of the siege. The cost of medicines for chronic diseases has increased tenfold.

As every new airstrike kills more civilians, more young people are driven to join the military.

A 29-year-old woman told me that three of her family members - two brothers and a sister - have now joined the Tigray army.

For the past two months she has been spending her time, and using the little she has, to prepare food for fighters on the frontline.

Other residents are sharing their food with the families of those who've gone to fight.

When news broke last week that African Union-brokered peace talks could start in South Africa, people were happy.

But the talks failed to get off the ground for reasons that are unclear. Many here are just desperate for peace and churches and mosques are full every night, with people praying for this war to end.

The BBC has withheld the name of the journalist and interviewees for their own safety.

More on the Tigray crisis:
(Bloomberg) -- The European Union agreed to impose new sanctions on Iran after a deadly crackdown on recent protests over the death of a young Iranian woman, according to EU diplomats.

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The blocs executive arm is putting forward a package of sanctions against at least 15 Iranian people and entities linked to the death of a 22-year-old woman in policy custody, the diplomats said, adding it could formally be adopted as early as next week.

We must hold those accountable that are responsible for the repression of women, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said earlier Wednesday in a speech to EU ambassadors. I believe now is the time to sanction those responsible. The shocking violence inflicted on the Iranian people cannot stay unanswered.

Protests erupted in Iran on Sept. 16 over the death of Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly flouting strict Islamic dress codes.

Last week, the US sanctioned seven Iranian officials it said played a role in an internet cutoff and protest crackdown and earlier imposed sanctions on the countrys Morality Police.

EU sanctions require the unanimous agreement of all 27 member states.

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(Bloomberg) -- Europeans and people living on the US East Coast are more likely to experience mild temperatures than a deep freeze this winter, easing any potential heating-fuel constraints at a time when energy costs are soaring.

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Scientists at the Copernicus Climate Change Service, which updated its seasonal outlook Thursday, said temperatures probably will be significantly above normal during the peak heating season between December and February.

Abnormally high temperatures could slacken demand for natural gas, which European countries have been rushing to put into storage. Russias war on Ukraine propelled prices for the fuel to record heights, contributing to a cost-of-living crisis across the region.

The scientists said theres a 50%-60% probability that the UK, much of the Mediterranean coast and parts of central Europe will see well-above-average temperatures. The rest of the continent has a 40%-50% chance of significantly exceeding historical averages.

The Copernicus model brings together data from scientists in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and the US. The European Union program uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations for its monthly and seasonal forecasts.

Yet the outlook for a mild winter isnt universal among meteorologists. Commercial US forecaster Commodity Weather Group holds that Europes winter likely will be colder than last year and slightly cooler than the 10-year average, as measured by heating degree days.

Thats a way to use temperatures to gauge energy demand, with higher numbers reflecting more cold and more fuel being burned for heating.

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Commodity Weather calculates a value of 2,330 this winter, compared with last years 2,085 and the 10-year average of 2,233, meteorologist William Henneberg said. Europes winter likely will be volatile, marked by shifting periods of cold and mild readings.

We certainly cant rule out a big cold outbreak at some point in the winter, but the overall pattern may be driven more by weak cold fronts moving through frequently, he said.

The continent is racing to find substitutes for ever-dwindling supplies of natural gas from Russia as the Kremlins weaponization of energy boosts consumer bills and shoves economies to the brink of recession.

Gas prices are more than four times higher than usual for the time of year. Germany warns of blackouts and rationing, and the UK has the smallest margin of backup power supplies in seven years.

A colder winter will reduce Europes chances of getting through this heating season relatively unscathed, said Katja Yafimava, senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

Blackouts and industry closures could not be ruled out, she said.

As winter unfolds across the Northern Hemisphere, meteorologists will be closely watching the Arctic. Circling the pole is a girdle of winds called the polar vortex, and if they should weaken, frigid air could come spilling south into the US, Asia or Europe.

Its difficult to predict when the vortex may break down, and Judah Cohen, director of seasonal forecasting at Atmospheric and Environmental Research, has spent years searching for hints.

One potential indicator is the amount of snow building up across Siberia in October, he said. If snowfall is strong, somewhere -- Europe, North America or Asia -- likely will get blasted with an Arctic wave.

Todd Crawford, director of meteorology at commercial forecaster Atmospheric G2, sees no evidence of a breakdown that could foster the type of killer cold that crippled the Texas electrical grid last year.

At this time, there are no strong reasons to believe a notably weakened vortex is likely this winter, Crawford said.

Another important piece will be high and low pressure over Greenland called the North Atlantic Oscillation. Thats one of the main signals affecting Europe, said Bradley Harvey, a meteorologist with commercial-forecaster Maxar.

Weather watchers should look for signs this is shifting to its negative phase because that means Europe and the eastern US may turn frigid. A positive phase can mean a milder winter.

Copernicus also predicted that temperatures across almost the entire continental US are expected to significantly surpass average, with certainty exceeding 70% in Texas and other parts of the south. The Tokyo and Beijing regions also are predicted to avoid excessive cold.

The chance of below-normal rain and snow across swathes of central Europe is greater than 40%, potentially affecting river flows and ski slopes.

In the US, northern states are projected to receive more precipitation than normal, with parts of Oregon and Washington registering a 60% probability of wet weather.

Rainfall will be influenced by the ongoing La Nina across the equatorial Pacific. The world is poised to have its third La Nina in a row, something thats only happened twice since 1950.

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The Jan. 6 committee wrapped up its final hearing Thursday afternoon and laid the blame for the insurrection at the feet of former President Donald Trump.

Georgia was once again front and center during the hearing with committee members highlighting events at the Georgia State Capitol, including the former presidents phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

So, what are we going to do here, folks? I only need 11,000 votes, fellas. I need 11,000 votes. Give me a break, Trump said during that phone call.

Channel 2 Action News went to Washington, D.C., in June when Raffensperger testified before the committee. In an exclusive interview minutes after his testimony, Raffensperger told Channel 2 political reporter Richard Elliot they were just doing their jobs.

We swear an oath to it. Its very important, and if everyone just does their job and just let the chips fall where they may, but thats just our job, to do our job, Raffensperger said.

The committee also talked about the pressure put on Georgia lawmakers by people like Trumps former attorney Rudy Giuliani.

Channel 2 Action News was there when he testified before a state senate subcommittee and made allegations that multiple state and federal investigations proved were not true.

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Channel 2 Action News was also there days later when the Georgia Republican Party assembled a slate of false electors at the state capitol  also highlighted Thursday by the Jan. 6 committee.

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Trump supporter Georgia Rep. Jody Hice strongly criticized the committee on Twitter, calling it nothing more than the lefts hyper-partisan political theater.

But Republican Rep. Liz Cheney insisted Trump was to blame for Jan. 6 and for everything leading up to it.

No president can defy the rule of law and act this way in a constitutional republic, period, Cheney said.

The committee members voted Thursday to subpoena Trump to testify before the committee.

As this goes on, the Fulton County special purpose grand jury is also investigating election interference and has already heard testimony from some of the same people mentioned Thursday. District Attorney Fani Willis has not ruled out subpoenaing Trump as well.

RELATED STORIES:
Credit -

The 2022 Midterm Elections will determine which party controls Congress, as well as state houses and governor offices across the country. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8, but early voting has already started in many states.

Following the 2020 Electionand former President Donald Trumps baseless claims of voter fraudat least 33 states have passed legislation that could make voting in the 2022 midterms more difficult, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, which studies election laws. To help you navigate this new landscape, TIMEs staff answered some common questions about votingfrom how to handle a mistake on a mail-in ballot to what to do if youre still in line when the polls close.

Heres everything you need to know to cast your vote on Nov. 8. (You can click below to jump to the question you want answered.)

What to know before voting:

Illustration by Brown Bird Design for TIME

Whats the deadline to register to vote in my state?

Click to expand to see the deadline to register to vote in person, by mail, and online in your state.

Alabama

In Person: Oct. 24

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: Oct. 24

Alaska

In Person: Oct. 9

By Mail: Oct. 9

Online: Oct. 9

Arizona

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Arkansas

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: N/A

California

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: Oct. 24

Colorado

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 31

Online: Oct. 31

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Connecticut

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Nov. 1

Online: Nov. 1

Delaware

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Nov. 8

Online: Nov. 8

Florida

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Georgia

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Hawaii

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 31

Online: Nov. 8

Idaho

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 14

Online: Oct. 14

Illinois

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 23

Indiana

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Iowa

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: Oct. 24

Kansas

In Person: Oct. 18

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

Kentucky

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Louisiana

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 18

Maine

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: N/A

Maryland

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

Massachusetts

In Person: Oct. 29

By Mail: Oct. 29

Online: Oct. 29

Michigan

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: Oct. 24

Minnesota

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

Mississippi

In Person: Oct. 10

By Mail: Oct. 10

Online: N/A

Missouri

In Person: Oct. 12

By Mail: Oct. 12

Online: Oct. 12

Montana

In Person: Nov. 7

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: N/A

Nebraska

In Person: Oct. 28

By Mail: Oct. 21

Online: Oct. 21

Nevada

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Nov. 8

New Hampshire

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: N/A

Online: N/A

New Jersey

In Person: Oct. 18

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

New Mexico

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

New York

In Person: Oct. 14

By Mail: Oct. 14

Online: Oct. 14

North Carolina

In Person: Oct. 14

By Mail: Oct. 14

Online: Oct. 14

North Dakota

North Dakota does not require voter registration. U.S. citizens who are 18 or older and have been a resident in a North Dakota precinct for at least 30 days before an election can vote.

Ohio

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Oklahoma

In Person: Oct. 14

By Mail: Oct. 14

Online: N/A

Oregon

In Person: Oct. 18

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

Pennsylvania

In Person: Oct. 24

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: Oct. 24

Rhode Island

In Person: Oct. 9

By Mail: Oct. 9

Online: Oct. 9

South Carolina

In Person: Oct. 7

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 9

South Dakota

In Person: Oct. 24

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: N/A

Tennessee

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: Oct. 11

Texas

In Person: Oct. 11

By Mail: Oct. 11

Online: N/A

Utah

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 28

Online: Oct. 28

Vermont

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Nov. 8

Online: Nov. 4

Virginia

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 17

Online: Oct. 17

Washington

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 31

Online: Oct. 31

Washington, D.C.:

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

West Virginia

In Person: Oct. 18

By Mail: Oct. 18

Online: Oct. 18

Wisconsin

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 19

Online: Oct. 19

Wyoming

In Person: Nov. 8

By Mail: Oct. 24

Online: N/A

 Mariah Espada

[/expandable-text]

Is it better to vote early, by mail, or on Election Day?

The best option for voting is the one that works best for you. Every vote is counted equally, whether it is cast early or on Election Day, or in person or via a mail-in ballot. People should vote the way that theyre most comfortable, but make sure that they know their states rules, says Sean Morales-Doyle, the director of the Brennan Center for Justices Voting Rights program. Each state has its own set of options, policies, and deadlines for voting in-person or by mail, so its important to check with your states election board to see what it offers and requires. Once youve decided how youre going to vote, make sure to set up a plan to cast your ballot. Its really important that we are ready and put a plan together so that we can cast our votes at a time that works for our schedules and our responsibilities, says Cecilia Aguilera, counsel for the Fair Elections Center. Mariah Espada

How do I know if my voter registration is still active?

Every state has a unique voter registration process. Voters can check if they are registered to vote by visiting the National Association of Secretaries of States website. Select your state in the dropdown menu, and then youll be redirected to your own states election website. Most states allow voters to look up if their registration is valid by offering some basic information like name, date of birth, and a drivers license or ID number.

If you are not currently registered to vote, most states give you the option of registering online, in-person, or by requesting a form that can be mailed to your election board office. Twenty-one states and D.C. also allow voters to register on Election Day and vote the same day. Voters typically need to provide proof of residency (like a utility bill or pay stub) and ID when registering.

In some states, the deadline for registering to vote for this election may have already passed. (See above for registration deadlines.) Solcyre Burga

How do I vote if my address changed?

The easiest way to ensure you remain eligible to vote after a move is to re-register to vote with your new address. In some cases, the process might already be wrapped into some common tasks that come with moving, says Nick Morrow, the communications director at Vote.org.

If youre moving out of state, check the registration deadlines and residency requirements for where youre movingsome states have registration cutoffs or duration-of-residency requirements. Morrow recommends giving yourself ample time before Election Day to ensure you dont miss the deadline.

If you do miss the deadline in your state, contact your local election office to see if it would be possible to file a provisional ballot at your previous registered address. A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when there are questions about a voters eligibility, and may be later counted if its determined that the voter was eligible.

For those who moved within a state, visit the website of your county election administrator to update your registration and make sure that they have your updated address to ensure your polling place is up to date.

If you dont have a fixed address, see if your state allows residents to use the address of a friend, relative, or an area shelter. Some states allow individuals to list a street corner or park as a residence. Simmone Shah

Read More: Where Abortion Is on the Ballot in 2022

Illustration by Brown Bird Design for TIME

Can I still vote if I dont have a valid ID?

The rules around identification and voting vary by state. If youre a first-time voter, federal law requires that you show ID if you did not register in person, but otherwise whether or not you need an ID to vote depends on where you live. Thirty-five states require voters to show some form of identification. Some of them, like Wisconsin and Missouri, have strict photo-ID requirements at the polls, while other states allow voters to sign an affidavit or have their signature verified against their record if they dont have a valid ID. If you are turned away when you first go to vote, you can make a plan with a poll worker to come back and skip the line when you have valid identification, Morrow says. In a lot of cases, theyre going to say yes.

Fifteen states and Washington, D.C. have lawsknown as non-documentary ID lawsthat allow voters to verify their identity in another way, such as stating their name and address or signing on a poll book on Election Day.

Check your local or state election office to find the rules for casting your ballot. S.S.

How do I know if my mail-in ballot arrived?

Most states offer online ballot tracking for all voters, according to Vote.org. There are a few exceptions. In Illinois, New York, Texas, and Wyoming, online ballot tracking is only offered in some districts or for overseas and military voters. If you live in Mississippi and Missouri, you cant track your ballot online at all.

Each states tracker is a little different, but they generally allow you to log in with your voter registration information to see if your ballot has been received yet. If your jurisdiction doesnt offer ballot tracking, you can contact your local elections administrator to ask for your ballots status. Depending on where you live, they might be able to help before Election Day, but every state allows voters to check after an election to confirm that your vote was counted. Anisha Kohli

Illustration by Brown Bird Design for TIME

What if theres an issue with my mail-in ballot? Will it still count?

If your ballot is rejected, election officials will notify you by email, phone, or mail and provide you with instructions on how to fixor cureyour ballot. The election official who is reviewing ballots will tell you what information you need to provide to make that cure, such as signing a new ballot envelope or providing a copy of your ID, says Morrow, the communications director at Vote.org. Be sure to complete the process by the deadline set by your state.

The criteria for rejection can vary by state, but to prevent your ballot from being rejected, do your best to ensure its returned in good condition and early. A missing or unverifiable signature can cause your ballot to be rejected. S.S.

Read More: 5 House Races to Watch in the 2022 Midterms

Whats the best time to vote to avoid long lines?

Long lines can be a strong deterrent to voting, especially in Black and Latino communities, which are often forced to spend more time than white voters waiting in line, according to a June 2020 report by the Brennan Center for Justice.

Since operating hours for polling places can vary by county, and even within a county, wait times can often be unpredictable. But early mornings, lunch hours, and late evenings tend to be the busiest hours as people try to vote around their work schedules. And lines tend to be longer on Election Day than during early voting. S.B

What should I do if someone tries to stop me from voting?

Voter intimidation is illegal and relatively rare. If someone tries to stop you from voting, you should alert nearby poll workers and your local election officials, who can determine if law enforcement should be involved, says Morales-Doyle. You should also contact the nonpartisan Election Protection hotline for assistance at 866-OUR-VOTE. (The same service is also available for non-English voters. Spanish speakers can call 888-VE-Y-VOTE. Speakers of Asian languages can call 888-API-VOTE. Arabic speakers can call 844-YALLA-US.).

If you feel like youre in danger, call 911. M.E.

Read More: Election Workers in Battleground States Face Surge of Cyberattacks

What should I do if Im still in line after the polls close?

On Election Day, if you are already in line at a polling place when the polls close, you should stay in line. Poll workers are legally required to let you still vote. Dont allow anyone to tell you otherwise, says Cecilia Aguilera, a counsel for the Fair Elections Center. If anyone is asking you to leave, stay in the line and call or text the Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to alert their trained volunteers, who will be able to assist the situation, says Aguilera. (The same service is also available for non-English voters. Spanish speakers can call 888-VE-Y-VOTE. Speakers of Asian languages can call 888-API-VOTE. Arabic speakers can call 844-YALLA-US.) M.E.

Illustration by Brown Bird Design for TIME

What if I planned to vote in person but I get sick on Election Day?

As COVID-19 continues to spread, it may make sense for you to plan to vote early or absentee to ensure your vote is cast no matter how you are feeling on Nov. 8. Deadlines for early voting vary by state and some states require voters to provide a reason for being issued an absentee ballot, like having a disability or being out of town. Its always a good idea to vote as soon as you can, just to avoid a circumstance where youre planning to vote on the very last day in the very last opportunity and you can no longer take advantage of that, says Jeanette Senecal, the senior director for mission impact for the League of Women Voters.

If you wake up sick on Election Day and havent yet cast your ballot, you may have a few other options. Some states offer emergency absentee ballots for voters who are in the hospital. Some counties, including in California and Georgia, will send election officials to deliver absentee ballots to voters who cant leave their homes due to medical emergencies. Check your states guidelines on emergency voting and be sure to contact your local election office, which will have the most up-to-date information and resources. A.K
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty

Dont mind the polls or the millions of dollars in ad buys being pulled from the Granite State's airwaves. And pay no attention to the massive fundraising advantage held by Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan, for help is on the way for Republicans in New Hampshires messy Senate race.

Former Hawaii congresswoman and 2020 Democratic presidential candidateand now, former DemocratTulsi Gabbard will be stumping alongside floundering GOP Senate nominee Don Bolduc.

Gabbard entering the fray may provide a spark of novelty to the Bolduc campaign, but her seventh place finish in the 2020 New Hampshire primary and relatively niche status as a political celebrity on the right likely wont be enough to move the needle among the group of voters Republicans need the most.

Most independents up here dont know who Tulsi Gabbard is, Dante Scala, a political science professor at the University of New Hampshire, told The Daily Beast. I think its more about trying to stoke base voter enthusiasm as opposed to winning over independents.

The retired congresswoman announced her plans to leave the party in a video she tweeted on Tuesdaywhich was also part of her podcast launchsaying the Democrats are now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue and stoke anti-white racism.

Tucker Fawns Over Tulsi: Every Republican Should Sound Like You

A recently departed Democrat who finished between businessmen Tom Steyer and Andrew Yang in the last presidential primary isnt exactly the type of bold-faced nameNew Hampshire Republicans imagined, either. After all, just this week Sens. Rick Scott (FL) and Tom Cotton (AR) flew in to Georgia to help boost scandal-plagued GOP nominee Herschel Walker.

In fact, rather than give Bolduc a hand, Senate Republicans main campaign arm pulled its ads from the Granite State race last week, and Hassans lead has grown to an average of 7.8 points, according to FiveThirtyEights rolling average.

Story continues

Meanwhile, Republican Gov. Chris Sununu has a double-digit lead over his opponent.

I guess were pulling out all the stops here, a high ranking New Hampshire Republican told The Daily Beast with a chuckle. Its gonna be a real test of party unity.

Scala noted that if a voter does know who Gabbard is, they likely follow political news quite closely, which leaves a slim statistical chance that this hypothetical voter isnt already sorted into an ideological camp.

I understand shes got a profile on Fox News and appears there, so for Bolduc, if theyre campaigning together, its possible that these voters will wanna come out and wanna see Gabbard in person, and Bolduc is along for the ride, he added.

Gabbards events in the 2020 primary were often well attended and she even rented a home outside of Manchester for a stretch of the campaign, but many attendees identified as Republicansoften full Trump supporters.

The Bolduc campaign would not say when Gabbard will begin appearing with the retired brigadier general and on-and-off-again election denier, but they touted the Fox News mainstays support on Wednesday. (The campaign also declined to detail what the candidates current position is on the validity of the 2020 election results.)

We dont agree on every issue, but I am honored to have the support of Tulsi Gabbard who shares my view that the status quo is broken, and we need a change of direction, Bodluc said in a press release. Tulsi is a fellow change agent and independent-minded outsider willing to speak truth to power.

But Gabbards reappearance on the New Hampshire stage has excited some of her early backers in the Granite State, but it wasnt clear whether Bolduc would ultimately reap the benefit.

Election Denier Don Bolduc Wins Republican Nomination in New Hampshire

It's not surprising to see Tulsi supporting Bolduc, Eric Jackman, a podcast host and former Republican who often accompanied Gabbard around the state during her 2020 bid, told The Daily Beast. During my year on the trail in NH with Tulsi, her message resonated with a wide swath of the electorate  Veterans especially were very open and friendly to Tulsi's message of shutting down the forever wars and investing in our country's needs.

The longtime Tulsi-stan from Peterborough didnt go as far as to say his political hero stumping for Bolduc would make him vote for the GOP nominee, whom he voted against in Augusts primary in favor of libertarian Bitcoin enthusiast Bruce Fenton.

The high-ranking New Hampshire Republican, who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak on behalf of candidates, said the partys best hope is for non-MAGA Republicans and independent voters to start changing their mindset so theyll vote for a Republican, even if hes not a great Republican.

The GOP operative bemoaned that Bolduc has been changing his answers on the 2020 election depending on the room hes in, sometimes forgetting reporters are there. They added that assurances had been made to other top New Hampshire Republicans that Bolducs new campaign manager, Parker Careywho led former Trump official Matt Mowers failed bid against Karoline Leavitt in New Hampshires 1st Congressional Districthad instructed Bolduc to stick with his message that, upon further research, he concluded the election wasnt stolen.

That hasnt happened, and the anxiety behind the scenes hasnt subsisted.

I hear a lot of people saying, Im gonna hold my nose and vote, the Granite State GOP operative said, but I just dont know if itll happen at the polls.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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A former Yale School of Medicine employee was sentenced to nine years in prison after being accused of stealing $40 million from the university, which she used to bankroll a lavish lifestyle, according to federal officials.

Jamie Petrone, 43, in March pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud and filing a false tax return, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Connecticut. She was sentenced Oct. 13 in Hartford, Connecticut.

Petrones attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on Oct 13.

But, after Petrone pleaded guilty, her attorney told The Washington Post that Ms. Petrone has accepted responsibility for her actions and is remorseful. She now looks forward towards sentencing and repairing some of the damage that has been caused.

Petrone worked in finance for the medical school starting around 2008, and one of her duties was to authorize purchases below $10,000, according to the release.

Around 2013, she began ordering millions of dollars worth of electronics, making sure to keep all purchases below $10,000 so that additional approval was never required, the release said.

Petrone then secretly arranged to sell the equipment to an out-of-state business, which wired funds into her account, according to the release.

She proceeded to use the money to snap up a collection of luxury cars, including two Mercedes-Benz, two Cadillacs, a Land Rover and a Dodge Charger, in addition to other goods, according to the release.

For nearly a decade, Jamie Petrone lived a life most cannot even fathom, prosecutor David Novick wrote in a memo to the court, according to the Hartford Courant. She paid cash for several homes in Connecticut and Georgia. She drove expensive cars, including a Range Rover worth more than $100,000, and bestowed them on friends and family. She spent millions on fancy vacations for herself and others, luxury personal goods, VIP concert tickets, and spa treatments.

Story continues

University officials were later alerted to the scheme via an anonymous tip, according to the New Haven Register. The unnamed person flagged that a suspiciously large amount of electronics had been ordered by Petrone, who had been seen carrying them into her car, the outlet reported, citing court documents.

Petrone was arrested in September 2021, according to the release.

After her sentencing, a Yale spokesperson told The Washington Post that the university thanks local law enforcement, the FBI, and the U.S. attorneys office for their handling of the case.

Since the incident, Yale has worked to identify and correct gaps in its internal financial controls, the spokesperson told the outlet.

McClatchy News reached out to Yale University on Oct. 13 for additional comment and is awaiting a response.

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13-year-old boy accused of killing store clerk with scooter, California police say
By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Alphabet unit Google could face EU antitrust charges next year over its digital advertising business, putting the company at risk of its fourth fine in the EU of more than a billion euros, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Google's ad business, which generated over $100 billion in sales last year, is Alphabet's biggest moneymaker. It accounted for about 80% of annual revenue, despite efforts over the past decade to push into selling hardware, subscription services and cloud computing technology. The European Commission launched an investigation into Google's adtech business in June last year, concerned that the U.S. tech giant may be getting an unfair advantage over rivals and advertisers.

The company, which risks its fourth billion-euro fine, subsequently sought to settle the case but concessions were minor and very preliminary, one of the people said. Google has racked up more than 8 billion euros ($7.7 billion) in EU antitrust fines in the last decade. The EU competition enforcer is likely to issue the charges early next year although the timing may still change, one of the people said.

The Commission has asked third parties to delete confidential details in their submissions, usually a precursor to allowing Google to access documents following the receipt of a statement of objections, one of the people said.

Google could avert the charges by offering more concessions to settle the investigation. Some companies prefer to see the precise regulatory concerns before proposing remedies tailored to these.

The Commission declined to comment. Google, the world's leading seller of online advertising, well ahead of Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms Inc, had no immediate comment.

HEART OF GOOGLE'S BUSINESS MODEL

The case goes to the heart of Google's advertising-driven business model, affecting advertisers, publishers, ad tech providers and users alike, said Dieter Paemen, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance who has previously advised Google rivals in other cases.

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"It's been a long time coming  advertisers and publishers have been up in arms about Google's ad-tech conduct for many years. Google is operating on multiple sides of the advertising transaction and giving both publishers and advertisers a raw deal," he said.

Google's dominance in online advertising has been increasingly questioned over the past few years. Complaints from rivals about its allegedly anti-competitive practices have led to antitrust investigations on five continents concerning its practices.

Google's ad business generated almost $111 billion in sales through the first half of the year. Analysts expect Google to generate $233 billion in ad sales this year, up about 11% from a year ago, according to Refinitiv estimates.

Google's ad business includes many parts, but search ads lead the way in terms of revenue. Other facets include selling ads on websites and apps of outside partners and selling ads on YouTube, Gmail and other in-house services.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, additional reporting by Paresh Dave in Oakland, California; Editing by Susan Fenton, David Evans and David Gregorio)
By Andy Sullivan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol voted on Thursday to subpoena former President Donald Trump, who they say instigated the violence in an attempt to overturn his 2020 election defeat.

Trump is not likely to cooperate with the committee's demand to provide documents and testimony under oath, as he has fought similar demands in the past. In a posting on his Truth Social network, he dismissed the committee as "a laughing stock."

The Republican has urged his associates not to cooperate with the probe and has argued that a former president has a right to keep conversations and material confidential under a legal doctrine called executive privilege.

Nevertheless, the subpoena will add to Trump's growing list of legal woes. He already faces civil and criminal charges in New York regarding his business activities, and federal and state investigations regarding the 2020 election. He also faces a federal criminal investigation over his handling of government documents

IS IT A CRIME TO DEFY A CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENA?

Yes. An 1857 law says failure to comply with a congressional subpoena for testimony or documents is punishable by one to 12 months imprisonment.

First, the House of Representatives or the Senate must vote to hold a noncompliant witness in "contempt of Congress" and refer that person to the U.S. Justice Department for criminal prosecution.

The Justice Department then decides whether to bring criminal charges.

Trump's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, faces up to two years in prison and a fine of up to $200,000 after being found guilty of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the Jan. 6 committee. He is due to be sentenced on Oct. 21.

Another former Trump adviser, Peter Navarro, has also been charged with contempt of Congress and faces trial in November.

Federal prosecutors have opted not to charge two other former Trump aides, Mark Meadows and Dan Scavino, after the House voted to hold them in contempt.

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DOES HE HAVE OTHER OPTIONS?

Trump could appear for a closed-door deposition but refuse to answer questions, invoking his right to avoid self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

According to Republican Representative Liz Cheney, more than 30 witnesses have taken that approach.

Among them: former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn; political adviser Roger Stone; election lawyer John Eastman, and Jeffrey Clark, a former Justice Department official who pressed Trump to name him attorney general to help overturn the election.

Alternatively, Trump could try to run out the clock.

Trump could fight the subpoena in court, as he has done in other battles with Congress, or try to negotiate the terms of his cooperation.

The committee is expected to wrap up its work by the end of the year, which gives them only a few months to secure Trump's testimony or conclude that he is stonewalling them and hold a contempt vote. The full House is not expected to convene until after the Nov. 8 midterm elections, so a criminal referral is not likely before then.

Republicans are expected to win control of the House in the Nov. 8 elections, and they have almost unanimously opposed the committee's work. They are likely to withdraw the subpoena if they take control of the chamber in January.

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone, Aurora Ellis and Jonathan Oatis)
LONDON (Reuters) - Global aluminium prices soared after news the Biden administration is considering an effective ban on Russian imports of the metal used in transport and construction.

Below are the potential scenarios and consequences of any U.S. curbs.

WHAT IS BEING CONSIDERED?

The White House is looking at banning Russian imports, raising tariffs on Russian aluminium to levels so punitive they would constitute an effective ban, as well as sanctions on Rusal.

Rusal is the world's largest aluminium producer outside China, supplying the world with 6% of its needs estimated at around 70 million tonnes this year.

GREATER IMPACT IF RUSAL SANCTIONED

The impact would be greater if sanctions were imposed on Rusal rather than on aluminium shipments because Rusal is not only a major producer, but involved in a web of global supply chains for raw materials needed to make the metal, bauxite and alumina.

President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Rusal in 2018, but the global consequences led them to be lifted less than a year later.

The upheaval affected operations in Guinea and Jamaica, smelters in France and elsewhere struggled to secure raw material supplies and the Irish government considered intervention to safeguard jobs at Rusal Aughinish Alumina, Rusal's largest producer of the interim product alumina.

HOW MUCH RUSSIAN ALUMINIUM DOES THE U.S. IMPORT?

Rusal results show it produced 1.89 million tonnes of primary aluminium in the first half of 2022, with Europe its biggest customer accounting for 40% of sales revenue.

It said in March Western sanctions could delay investment and hit profitability and said in August costs had soared due to the conflict.

Last year, U.S. imports of Russian aluminium were 242,000 tonnes, accounting for 4.4% of U.S. demand, Morgan Stanley said in a note.

U.S. imports of Russian aluminium have increased this year, rising by nearly a fifth in the first seven months to 146,553 tonnes, according to trade data compiled by Reuters from the United Nations Comtrade database.

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PRICE RESPONSE

When the news of a possible U.S. ban emerged on Wednesday, the benchmark price on the London Metal Exchange spiked 7% to $2,400 a tonne, but retreated from the highs and was trading around $2,370 on Thursday.

That is down 42% from a record peak of $4,073.50 touched in early March when the market first feared that Russia's invasion of Ukraine would spur sanctions and reduced supply.

All industrial metals prices have slumped in recent months on expectations a global recession would curb demand, so prices are unlikely to revisit the record, analysts say.

In 2018, when U.S. sanctions hit Rusal, LME prices soared by 35% in less than two weeks to $2,718 a tonne, the highest in nearly seven years.

WHAT HAPPENS TO RUSSIAN METAL?

Rusal might be able to redirect flows from the United States, but sanctions could make other buyers wary of taking the material, analysts said.

Some companies such as Novelis and Norsk Hydro have rejected Russian metal for next year's contracts, while other consumers are considering their options.

The LME last week launched a discussion paper on the possibility of banning Russian aluminium, nickel and copper from being traded and stored in its system.

China, the world's biggest aluminium producer, is likely to be the main destination for Russian metal under U.S. sanctions.

"China could decide to take more readily available, and appropriately discounted, Russian units, while exporting its own metal to other markets, including to the West," said analyst Edward Meir at ED&F Man.

Significant volumes of unwanted Russian-origin copper have been deposited in LME approved warehouses in Germany, the Netherlands and Taiwan since the middle of September, two sources familiar with the matter said.

(Reporting by Eric Onstad; editing by Barbara Lewis)
The NPP employee stressed that the situation remains

Read also: Zaporizhzhia NPP disconnected from power grid again, IAEA says

I've been informed by our team on site that external power to Zaporizhzhya NPP is restored, Grossi wrote on Twitter.

Referring to ZNPP's operator, Grossi explained that this morning's outage was caused by shelling damage to a far-off sub-station. He highlighted how precarious the situation is.



Read also: Russia hits Zaporizhzhia with 12 missiles

We need a protection zone as soon as possible, he added.



Early it was reported Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia NPP has lost all of its external power for the second time in five days. The outage was caused by Russian shelling, Energoatom stated.



Russian shelling overnight on Oct. 8 damaged the last external power line of ZNPP, and the plant was completely shut down in the aftermath. Ukrainian specialists have repaired the damaged high-voltage power line connecting the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP to the Ukrainian grid.



Read also: Doctor tells his story of life under Russian occupation in Zaporizhzhia Oblast

Russian invasion forces took control of the nuclear power plant, near the town of Enerhodar in Zaporizhzhya Oblast, on March 4. The Russian military has since been using the plant as a firing position for artillery attacks on nearby Ukrainian towns and cities, shielded by the fact that Ukraine cannot return fire for fear of damaging the plant and its nuclear reactors.



There were reports, later confirmed, that Russia had placed military vehicles within the plant, even in one of the reactor turbine halls, and there have been unconfirmed reports that mines have been placed close to some of the plants six reactors.

Ukraine has expressed fears that the Russians may use the plant to commit an act of nuclear terror.



Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
A map shows the location of a warehouse fire in Van Nuys

Fire crews are mopping up a large warehouse fire in Van Nuys that caused a facade to collapse and left one firefighter with heat exhaustion on Wednesday.

More than 85 firefighters were assigned to the blaze at 7056 N. Van Nuys Blvd., which was first reported at 2:44 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Firefighters had switched to defensive tactics by 3:02 p.m., according to the department.

The main building's facade collapsed, according to a 3:20 p.m. incident update, but firefighters had established a 30-foot collapse zone and no injuries were reported in the collapse.

One firefighter was transported for heat exhaustion and was in fair condition, according to a 7:11 p.m. incident update. No additional injuries were reported.

Crews brought the fire under control by Wednesday evening and were dismantling the building with heavy equipment so they could fully extinguish all remaining small pockets of fire, firefighters said.

Official knockdown was declared at 7:24 p.m., said Margaret Stewart, a Fire Department spokesperson.

The blaze was successfully contained to the building of origin, and crews prevented the fire from spreading into two adjacent buildings, according to a 4:38 p.m. incident update.

"Crews will remain on scene throughout the night and there will be visible flames on the debris pile which will be controlled  there is no need to be concerned or contact 9-1-1," according to the department's 7:11 p.m. update.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The claim: Image shows a shark on a Florida highway

Hurricane Ian, a Cateogry 4 storm, hit the west coast of Florida on Sept. 28, causing massive damage and killing more than 100 people across three states.

Following the hurricane, some social media users circulated an image that purportedly showed a shark swimming down a flooded highway in Florida.

One Sept. 29 Facebook post with over 250 shares shows a screenshot of a tweet that includes the image along with text that reads, "There are sharks on the highways in Florida. Unreal."

The tweet was shared by the satirical Twitter account @BarryOnHere, but the Facebook image cuts the handle out of the screenshot.

Some social media users appeared to believe the image was real.

"That's insane," one user commented. "I would get the same where I'm at too. Be careful."

But the image is altered. It is an edited version of a photo that was taken in South Africa in 2005.

Follow us on Facebook! Like our page to get updates throughout the day on our latest debunks

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the claim for comment.

A neighborhood is inundated with floodwaters after Hurricane Ian, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, near Arcadia, Fla.

Image of shark is from 2005

The image featured in the Facebook post has repeatedly appeared online after hurricanes have made landfall. But the image is an edited version of a photo taken in 2005 by Thomas Peschak, an ocean photographer.

Peschak's original photo shows the same shark, a great white, swimming behind a kayak off the coast of South Africa. It can be found on his website.

Peshack's website explains that the shark in his image was later photoshopped into an image of a flooded highway.

"On August 24 (2011), the shark appeared on a social news website in the form of a photograph taken from the open window of a car driving along a flooded street," Peschak wrote on his website. "Next to the car was 'my' white shark swimming through the flooded streets of Puerto Rico."

He attributed the edited image to a "crafty Photoshop artist." USA TODAY reached out to Peschak for further comment, but he did not respond.

Story continues

Fact check: Video shows flooded Houston school in 2019, not aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Florida

PolitiFact debunked the image after Hurricane Harvey in 2017. USA TODAY debunked the photo after Hurricane Laura in 2020.

Our rating: Altered

Based on our research, we rate ALTERED an image purporting to show a shark swimming on a flooded Florida highway. The shark was photoshopped into the image, which dates back to at least 2011.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Fabricated image of shark on highway spreads online again
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Xi Jinping is widely expected to clinch a third five-year leadership at the upcoming congress of the ruling Communist Party, a mandate that would secure his stature as the country's most powerful ruler since founding leader Mao Zedong.

Given China's extremely opaque politics, much less is known about who else will be promoted into key roles on the Politburo and its elite Standing Committee, which currently has seven members.

It is also not known who will succeed Li Keqiang as premier, the country's No.2 post, when Li steps aside in March under rules that limit him to two five-year terms.

Following are key people to watch at the congress, which starts on Oct. 16:

Li Keqiang, 67premier

Li will step down from China's No.2 office at the annual parliamentary session in March. He may exit politics completely, or stay on as parliament chief, in which case he would remain on the standing committee.

Wang Yang, 67, chairman, China People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)

Wang, who is currently ranked fourth on the Politburo Standing Committee, is considered a leading candidate to become premier.

Hu Chunhua, 59, vice premier

Hu is considered a candidate for elevation to the PSC and possibly to become China's next premier.

Li Qiang, 63, party secretary of Shanghai

Li, a close Xi ally, is considered a candidate for elevation to the PSC despite this year's two-month COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai, which fuelled outrage among residents and inflicted deep economic damage.

Ding Xuexiang, 60, director, general office of the Communist Party

Xi's top aide, Ding is seen to be a contender for the PSC.

He Lifeng, 67, National Development and Reform Commission head

He, a long-time ally of Xi since they worked together in Fujian province in the 1980s, heads the state planning commission and is tipped to replace Liu He as vice premier.

Wang Yi, 68, state councillor, foreign minister

Although Wang has technically hit the retirement age of 68, he is still seen as best-positioned to succeed Yang Jiechi to head the office of the party's foreign affairs decision-making body, which is chaired by Xi.

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Wang Xiaohong, 65, minister of public security

Wang, who was police chief in Fuzhou when Xi was party chief there in the early 1990s, is tipped to be the next law-and-order chief as head of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, which would earn him a seat at the politburo

Miao Hua, 66, director of the Political Work Department

in the Central Military Commission

Miao, whose ties to Xi date to when both were posted in coastal Fujian province, is tipped to be one of two deputy chairmen of the Commission, which comes with a promotion to Politburo.

Han Zheng, 68, vice premier

Han, who was mayor of Shanghai in 2007 when Xi was party chief there, is due to retire from the PSC, but some pundits suggest Xi may keep him on, possibly as premier.

Chen Miner, 62, Chongqing party secretary

Chen is also a trusted aide and considered a candidate for the PSC.

Shen Yiqin, 62, party secretary of Guizhou province.

Shen is seen as likely to be elevated to the 25-member Politburo, and may be its lone woman. The only current female member, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan, is 72 and therefore ineligible to serve another term under China's unofficial age norms.

Ma Xingrui, 63Xinjiang party chief

Ma, a former university professor on aerodynamics and technocrat for China's space program, may be promoted onto the Politburo after taking on the top post late last year in the northwestern region of Xinjiang.

Li Xi, 65, party chief of Guangdong province

Li, considered a trusted ally of Xi, may get a bigger job after the Congress.

(Reporting by Tony Munroe and Yew Lun Tian; Editing by Lincoln Feast)
Julia Garner as Anna Sorokin (AKA Anna Delvey) in Netflix's "Inventing Anna" and the real-life Sorokin at a court appearance. Netflix; Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP

Anna Sorokin says actress Julia Garner's imitation of her accent sounds like her from 10 years ago.

"I don't think I sound like it," Sorokin said of Garner's interpretation of her voice.

In February, Sorokin told The New York Times that Garner got her accent "right in a way."

Anna Sorokin, a convicted scammer and the subject of the hit Netflix series "Inventing Anna," has a fresh take on actress Julia Garner's portrayal of herself.

Sorokin  who has sat for multiple interviews after being released from ICE jail on condition of a social media ban  went on "CNN Tonight" on Wednesday. During the interview, she was asked by host Jake Tapper about Garner's interpretation of her accent.

"I don't think I sound like it. But I think she got me from the time before. Because I used to, like 10 years ago, I used to travel so much when I was like in my twenties," Sorokin said.

She added that she thinks her "accent is not as strong as it used to be."

During the interview, Sorokin also told Tapper that she'd only seen half an hour of "Inventing Anna" and hasn't had time to binge shows on Netflix.

Sorokin appeared to have changed her mind about Garner's portrayal of her  she told The New York Times in February that Garner got her unique accent "right in a way."

In a behind-the-scenes clip for Netflix released in February, Garner explained how she broke down Sorokin's accent, and the layers of the accent  layering a German accent with some "elements of a Russian accent."

"A big thing for me was the accent. If I didn't have the accent down, then I wouldn't have a lot of the character down," Garner said in the clip.

Sorokin is best known for having pretended to be a millionaire German heiress named Anna Delvey to defraud banks and financial institutions. After conning her way into the social circles of New York's elite, Sorokin's scheme was uncovered, and she was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison in May 2019.

She was released from a New York jail in February 2021 after serving three-and-a-half years of a four-year sentence but was detained by ICE six weeks later.

Story continues

On October 7, Sorokin was released from ICE jail on a $10,000 bond, after 18 months of detention. This was after a judge ruled that she would have to be detained pending the results of her deportation case, agreeing with ICE's argument that the German national is a "danger to society."

Sorokin and representatives for Garner did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Insider
Think continues working in the documentation for his next project, which will be related to the polarization of American society and the resurgence of anfar-right mentality. This new phenomenon is also spreading to other countries of the world. All the information is being achieved by talking with the protagonists of the news and experts who independently share their vision.

One of the most difficult and complex chapters to be portrayed objectively, was the incident of January 6, 2021, when the White House was stormed by far-right Trump supporters, such as the Proud Boys, which are being called to testify.

Members of the House Freedom Caucus helped plan Trumps attempt to overturn the election. They attended a meeting at the White House on Dec. 21, 2020 in which, at least, 11 lawmakers discussed efforts to spill the election resultsand helped spread false information, according to testimony and records obtained by the committee.

And one of the groups that drove this effort is the Falun Gong sect, related with The Epoch Times.Falun Gong, a religious movement embroiled in a decades-long conflict with the Chinese government, has become a political asset in the Trump era due to its long-standing propagation of communist conspiracy theories.

At the time, reputable media such as The New York Times has reported that The Epoch Times used fake accounts to campaign for Trump during the 2016 election through its company Beautiful Life. Moreover, after they spent about $11 million on Facebook ads in 2019, the platform banned them for violating rules on political advertising transparency.

In April, at the height of its ad spending, videos from Epoch Media Group counted about 3 billion views on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, ranking 11th among all video creators across all platforms and outpacing all other traditional news publishers, according to data from social media analytics firm Tubular.

This engagement made The Epoch Times one of the favorites for the Trump family and a key component of the presidents re-election campaign. According to the Washington Post, reporters at The Epoch Times have received special access from the Trump administration: One America News and The Epoch Times were among the only media outlets with access to Georgias voting audience in the 2020 election.

Once thevote counts were published, the website questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election (neither journalists nor Trumps legal team have uncovered credible evidence of widespread voter fraud). They also peddle a number of conspiracy theories as the one they supported in 2018 with thefull rundown of Spygatethat claims an Obamas administration spy attempted to thwart Trumps 2016 presidential campaign.

There was great concern in The Epoch Times when Biden finally won the 2020 election. At the same time, to avoid trouble with Democrats over their earlier smear campaign against President Biden, Epoch Times executives decided at one point that they should keep a low profile internally and drop the close relationship with Trump.

The truth is, however, that January 6, 2021 gave the Epoch Times another chance.

Angelo Carusone, president and CEO of Media Matters for America, said that by exploiting the deep partisan polarization in U.S. politics and the long anti-Communist tradition of the American right, these media outlets, led by Epoch Times, have sought to link Biden and the Democratic Party to radical left-wing movements like Antifa.

Epoch Times pointed to a strong contender in the Democratic Party,an opportunistic rehash of existing conspiracy narratives  was characteristic of these outlets. Theyre not drivers, theyre not weaving new conspiracy theories, theyre amplifying whats already out there, Carusone said.

While the Proud Boys and QAnon have been punished by law, the Epoch Times remains at large. With the 2022 midterm elections in full swing, Carusone said, the intensification of conspiratorial messages in the Epoch Times output and its embrace of Trumpism could make them even more damaging to the United States.

Despite being banned from Facebook and unable to place many ads on the platform, The Epoch Times did not give up on other platforms and actively published hundreds of articles about the midterm elections on its website, including dozens of articles about Trumps high approval rating (regardless of the actual situation).

In fact, in addition to obfuscating the midterm elections to attract Republicans for patronage, The Epoch Times and Falun Gong behind it appear to be undermining the American situation in even more egregious ways by opposing abortion and condemning homosexuality and feminism.

Media Contact:

Angel Tapia

Hello Think

angel@hellothink.es
A father and stepson from Washington state were arrested in Tacoma on Wednesday for their roles in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced.

Richard Slaughter, 40, of Orting, and Caden Paul Gottfried, 20, are charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding law enforcement officers using a deadly or dangerous weapon, interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder and other misdemeanors. Slaughter faces additional felony charges.

According to court documents, Slaughter and Gottfried illegally entered the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021, and joined rioters on the Lower West Terrace.

Slaughter was among a group near the entrance to a tunnel area that leads to the entrance of the Capitol Building.

Around 3:30 p.m., Slaughter grabbed a police shield from another rioter and kept it from a police officer. Slaughter then told officers, among other things, You guys need to stand down. Just walk away, nobody will (expletive) hurt any of you.

According to court documents, just before 4 p.m., Slaughter used a long pole to attack officers and handed chemical spray to another rioter in the crowd.

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Gottfried was also near the front of the tunnel area at the time. Around 4 p.m., he was among a group who used their body weight to push against a line of officers. Officers pulled Gottfried into the tunnel, where he was detained. He was later released.

Since the Jan. 6 insurrection, more than 880 people have been arrested in all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the Capitol Building. More than 270 people have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

Slaughter currently serves as a member of the Orting School Board. As part of his campaign, he said he and his wife run a teen center and were opposed to children wearing masks in schools.

KIRO 7 has reached out to the school board for comment but so far have not heard back.
BERLIN (AP)  German federal prosecutors say they are taking charge of the investigation into the suspected sabotage of a railway communication system that brought trains to a standstill Saturday across northwestern Germany.

The federal prosecutors office said Thursday it is taking over the probe from state investigators due to the gravity of the case.

Officials said Monday that cables were severed deliberately in a Berlin suburb and 440 kilometers (275 miles) away in the western Germany town of Herne.

Trains in the northwestern states of Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony and Bremen were halted for nearly three hours on Saturday morning. Railway operator Deutsche Bahn said that was necessary because a digital train radio system failed.
A federal watchdog is investigating whether Florida improperly tapped coronavirus aid to fly migrants to Martha's Vineyard, part of a widening government inquiry into states that put their pandemic dollars toward controversial immigration crackdowns.

The inspector general for the Treasury Department confirmed its new interest in a letter sent last week to Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and other members of Congress who had expressed concern that the spending approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) "violates federal law."

Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post.

The probe comes roughly a month after Florida flew dozens of migrants, including children, from Texas to Massachusetts, in the latest example of a Republican-led state sending migrants to Democratic-leaning communities.

To pay for the flights, DeSantis said he would tap a $12 million fund in the state's recent budget. But that money came from the interest Florida had earned on the more than $8 billion it received under the last federal stimulus package, called the American Rescue Plan, The Washington Post reported as part of its year-long investigation into the pandemic aid, known as the Covid Money Trail.

The approach immediately generated legal debate, not the least because the flights originated in Texas. It also raised new questions about the state of stimulus oversight in Washington, where Congress gave local governments great latitude to spend their allocations as they saw fit. The Treasury Department said even less about how states could use the interest generated on the money while it remained unspent, potentially opening the door for Florida's maneuver.

Asked about the probe, the White House referred the matter to the Treasury Department, which declined to comment. Its inspector general confirmed the letter but otherwise declined to comment.

Taryn Fenske, the communications director for DeSantis, said the state's top budget office spoke with the inspector general about its spending approach. Otherwise, Fenske pointed to federal guidelines, which the state says allows it to use interest generated from coronavirus aid on immigration.

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The investigation into the spending in Florida is only the latest inquiry targeting federal aid in Republican-led states. The Treasury Department's top watchdog previously announced it would review whether Texas acted improperly when it used a different budgetary move to take advantage of federal coronavirus relief funds to ease the costs of border enforcement, as The Post first reported earlier this year.

In both cases, the probes involve emergency federal programs that were meant to give local governments great flexibility to respond to public health and economic needs. Repeatedly, though, GOP leaders have put the money toward unrelated purposes and political pet projects - from constructing a prison in Atlanta to pursuing tax cuts in Florida and elsewhere that, at minimum, violate the spirit of the congressional relief efforts.

In Florida, critics described the approach as wasteful, arguing that federal money might have been better put toward improving local education, boosting hospitals or otherwise helping low-income residents. In Massachusetts, where Florida sent the migrants, Markey and other Democratic lawmakers, including Reps. Seth Moulton and Ayanna Pressley, described the flights as a "political stunt," which they said "runs contrary to congressional intent."

"While the rule was designed to provide flexibility to state and local governments, Congress neither intended to allow, or authorized, state governments to use the SLFRF funds for immigration enforcement," the lawmakers wrote in a letter last month to the inspector general requesting the probe. SLFRF refers to the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, the $350 billion program under the American Rescue Plan that awarded Florida the money in question.

The chief watchdog for the Treasury Department responded on Friday, acknowledging in a letter that it is seeking "more detailed analysis" from the agency on its guidelines.

"We will review the allowability of use of SLFRF funds related to immigration generally, and will specifically confirm whether interest earned on SLFRF was utilized by Florida related to immigration activities, and if so, what conditions and limitations apply to such use," wrote Richard K. Delmar, the deputy inspector general.

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OLENA BARSUKOVA

Ukraine has succeeded in bringing back 96 Ukrainian children from Russia and the temporarily occupied territories, the Ministry for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine has reported on Telegram.

"96 little Ukrainians are back in their homeland. Their families have been reunited thanks to the efforts of the government, volunteers and everyone concerned," the Ministry stated.

The Ministry for Reintegration expressed gratitude to everyone involved in bringing the children back to Ukraine, including governmental organisations, diplomatic institutions, volunteers, and the international charity organisation SOS Childrens Villages.

"We are fighting for every little Ukrainian! Because children are our country, our future.

And we will definitely take care of them, so that every single one of them is safe and comfortable," added Iryna Vereshchuk, Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Reintegration.

Photo: The Ministry for Reintegration

Earlier, 37 children who had been deported from Kharkiv Oblast by the Russians were brought back to Ukraine.

Nevertheless, as of 13 October, 8,140 Ukrainian children have been deported by the Russian occupiers.

The occupiers kidnapped many children from Mariupol. They have started to allocate the children to so-called foster families in Russia and to "reeducate" them.

Maria Lvova-Belova, Russias Childrens Ombudsman, claimed that 30 children from Mariupol who used to sing the Ukrainian national anthem have now grown to "love Russia".

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Three students and a teacher were hospitalized after a chemistry class demonstration went wrong at a Virginia high school on Wednesday.

The ensuing fire injured a fourth student at Dinwiddie County High School, but that student was not hospitalized, authorities said.

The blaze was reported around 9:20 a.m. at the school about 30 miles south of Richmond, the county fire department said in a Facebook post. All students were evacuated from the school.

One injured student was airlifted from the scene to a hospital, the department said. Two students and the teacher were transported in ambulances.

The exact chain of events leading up to the fire remains under investigation, Dinwiddie County Public Schools said.

But students interviewed by local television stations described an explosion, one that was strong enough to be felt throughout the entire school.

It was almost like a rumble, like an earthquake, then after that all we heard was screaming, and then we realized something was wrong, sophomore Nicholas Peters, who said he wasnt near the chemistry classroom, told local CBS affiliate WTVR. It was definitely utter chaos.

In a classroom closer to the incident, student Alonna Perkins said the walls shook.

It sounded like someone was going through the wall, Perkins told WTVR. I was nervous, scared. I thought it was a fight though.

The school will hold remote classes on Thursday before students return on Friday.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and police are investigating an incident where a firearm was found on the Julius L. Chambers High School campus Thursday, the district told The Charlotte Observer.

Its the first firearm found on a CMS campus this year after the district set new records during the 2021-22 year for guns found at schools. CMS spokesperson Cassie Fambro said Chambers High was not put on lockdown because it was found after instructional hours.

In a message to families Thursday, Principal Erik Turner said law enforcement was immediately notified.

A juvenile suspect was arrested, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department alert.

Police did not immediately respond to a request for the incident report. The time of day the weapon was found and what type of gun it was were not mentioned in the alert and not available from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

Introducing Know Your 704: What do you wonder about Charlotte? Were here at your service.

We are committed to the safety of our entire school community, and invite families speak with your students about the serious consequences of bringing a weapon of any kind to school, Turner wrote. It is a violation of the law and the CMS Code of Student Conduct.

Turner went on to tell parents, if their student feels unsafe at school or suspects dangerous behavior, to tell a trusted adult or report it via the anonymous Say Something App.

During the first four months of the 2021-22 school year, 23 guns were found on campuses across CMS, breaking the previous high of guns found on school grounds during the entirety of 2018-19 school year when the total reached 22. Since January, seven guns have been found. All but one of the guns reported in schools were seized without the trigger being pulled.
In a whirlwind education-focused visit to Milwaukee Wednesday evening, Jill Biden boasted union pride at a meeting of the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association, dropped into a "Homework Diner" event at an elementary school and made a surprise stop at Valentine Coffee.

With her visit falling just weeks before midterm elections, the first lady spent time with Gov. Tony Evers and invited Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes' mother, retired teacher LaJuan Barnes, to share the stage with her at the MTEA meeting.

First lady Jill Biden delivers remarks during a meeting of the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association at Washington Park Senior Center during her visit Wednesday to Milwaukee.

Though she didn't reference their upcoming elections, Biden praised Evers and Barnes in her remarks to the MTEA Representative Assembly, which met at the Washington Park Senior Center.

"Theyve invested millions so every student can have access to mental health services, so students with disabilities have the support they need, and so teachers can have manageable class sizes," Biden said.

Earlier on Wednesday, a Marquette University Law School Poll showed Barnes was 6 points behind Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, while Evers held a 1-point edge over Republican challenger Tim Michels.

Jill Biden applauds Milwaukee Teachers Education Association union

Biden, calling for more investment in schools and educator salaries, stressed the need for "leaders who will stand up for you and your students."

"All of us have a teacher voice and now is the time to use it," she said.

First lady Jill Biden talks with students during the Homework Diner at Westside Academy on Wednesday, as part of her visit to Milwaukee.

Biden praised MTEA members for their history of organizing, especially under Wisconsin's requirement for public-sector unions to hold a vote every year to recertify and retain their status  a process she said was "created in order to weaken unions."

"Despite the obstacles in your way, Milwaukee is and always will continue to be union strong," Biden said.

Biden previously taught English and worked as a reading specialist in Delaware high schools. Shes now a writing professor at Northern Virginia Community College.

First lady Jill Biden, center, poses for a photo with Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, on her left, along with Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, on her right, his wife Kathy, Westside Academy staff, students and Milwaukee officials during her visit on Wednesday to Milwaukee.

First lady visits MPS' Homework Diner at Westside Academy

After the MTEA meeting, Biden visited a Homework Diner event at Westside Academy in Milwaukee, where students and their families were doing schoolwork while eating dinner with teachers.

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The MPS elementary school is part of the Community Schools program, a collaboration with United Way that aims to involve students families in school activities and decision making, including through Homework Diners.

We're thankful to @FLOTUS for speaking to elected leaders at our Representative Assembly. As a teacher & NEA member she understands the importance of workers standing together to win resources, funding, & respect educators need to successfully teach & meet the needs of students. pic.twitter.com/nxMmTDKeXf  MTEA (@MTEAunion) October 12, 2022

It was the school's first Homework Diner since the pandemic. It plans to host one every month this school year. While Daddy's Soul Food and Grille provided the food Wednesday, school staff said future meals will be from Sherman Phoenix.

Westside Academy Principal Renee Drane said one goal of the events is to make families feel welcome at the school and "comfortable when they have questions about homework."

Biden, joined by Evers and Wisconsin first lady Kathy Evers, sat with families in the school gymnasium and thanked them for letting her visit. A large handmade sign covered in painted handprints behind her read, WELCOME Jill Biden.

I love the idea of creating a sense of community, a sense of family where teachers get to know parents, Biden said. Thanks to all of you for inviting me to be part of this because its really exciting and I hope it continues to grow.

Biden also makes a stop at Valentine Coffee

Earlier in the afternoon before her scheduled events, Biden was running ahead of schedule and made an impromptu stop at Valentine Coffee, shutting down Vliet Street while she popped inside.

Neighbors gathered to watch as security staff kept a perimeter. Kira Walters, sitting in the grass across the street, said she was glad to see Biden stop at a local business.

"Milwaukee's really proud of its local roasters so it's cool that she's stopping here," she said.

Biden, who had arrived in Milwaukee around 4 p.m., was in the air again by 7 p.m. On Thursday she is scheduled to meet with military families at U.S. Fort Benning in Georgia.

Contact Rory Linnane at rory.linnane@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @RoryLinnane.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Jill Biden visits Milwaukee families, 'union strong' MPS teachers
On Thursday, members of the House select committee investigating January 6 returned to the US Capitol and met for their first meeting in several weeks, taking both historic action as well as laying out more damning testimony.

The hearing ended with the members voting to subpoena Mr Trump himself, after declaring that their fact-finding abilities were limited without the testimony of the president under oath.

Its an escalation of the panels pressure at a time when the former president is already besieged by a number of legal investigations.

Here are five key moments from todays committee meeting:

Donald Trump is subpoenaed for testimony

The conclusion of Thursdays meeting was capped off with a unanimous vote by members to subpoena the former president for testimony regarding his actions leading up to and during the attack on Congress. It comes after the committee centred the meeting around the words and actions of Mr Trump himself during the riot, a move by the panels lawmakers to concentrate responsibility for the attack on the former president.

Its a move that will almost certainly be contested by the ex-presidents lawyers, and could result in nothing happening should those legal battles persist into the election of a GOP-controlled House taking office next January.

Lawmakers raise the possibility of a criminal referral

Members of the panel also directly raised the possibility on Thursday of submitting a criminal referral to the Department of Justice urging the agency to prosecute Mr Trump for the attack.

It was raised as a direct remark from chairman Bennie Thompson as well as an insistence from vice chair Liz Cheney that the DoJ cannot say it has done its job should it choose to only prosecute the foot soldiers of the attack on Congress.

Footage shows Pelosi, Schumer behind the scenes

New footage played by the panel on Thursday depicted the actions of Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer in an unknown secure location at the Capitol during the siege; the pair are shown in the footage to be personally coordinating the law enforcement response via calls to governors of Maryland, Virginia, and the mayor of Washington DC. They are also heard demanding that the Justice Department take action.

Story continues

The footage contrasted sharply with testimony from countless insiders in the White House who portrayed their boss, Mr Trump, as gleefully watching the unfolding violence on Fox News and refusing assistance when contacted by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

Donald Trump admitted in private that he lost the election

Going beyond their previous work to paint a picture of a president isolated from his own advisers due to his false beliefs about a stolen election, the January 6 panel revealed new evidence on Thursday indicating that Mr Trump himself had privately accepted his defeat while he publicly would continue to insist that he be crowned president for a second term.

Two separate high-ranking White House aides, Cassidy Hutchinson and Alyssa Farah, testified that they either heard the president personally say or heard others say that Mr Trump had acknowledged his defeat while suggesting that he could remain in office through other means.

Secret Service feared danger to Mike Pence

One of the last new pieces of information shared by the committee at todays hearing involved retrieved messages sent between Secret Service agents in the hours leading up to the Capitol.

Private communications between agents indicated that the agency knew of a serious, rising danged to then-Vice President Mike Pence which they openly said resulted from Mr Trumps rhetoric about his own second-in-command.
YouTube/Screenshot

Before he was one of Alex Jones biggest defenders and trusted confidants, Tucker Carlson claimed that the Infowars founder freaks me out while denouncing the far-right hosts 9/11 conspiracy theories and the way such claims hurt the victims families.

A year before Jones began attacking the grieving families of the Sandy Hook mass-shooting victims as crisis actors and labeling the massacre a hoaxdefamatory actions that resulted in Jones owing those families a billion dollarsCarlson had not-so-kind things to say about the infamous conspiracy theorist.

Outside of a GOP presidential campaign event for Michelle Bachman in January 2012, Carlson then merely a Fox News contributor and editor-in-chief of The Daily Callerwas approached by Adam Kokesh, a libertarian activist and radio host who rose to prominence as an anti-war veteran who boosted Ron Pauls presidential campaign.

Kokesh began the videotaped chat by noting theyd briefly met at a 2008 rally for Paul, during which Carlson, then a Paul backer, abruptly exited the event when former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura implied that Osama bin Laden was not responsible for the 9/11 terror attacks.

Over the next few minutes of the exchange, filmed for Kokeshs Adam vs. The Man web show, Carlson pushed back on both Kokesh and bystanders who wondered why he wasnt open to the idea that 9/11 was an inside job. (Ron Paul supporters, in particular, have long embraced this particular conspiracy theory.)

I am open to almost any crackpot theory about anything, Carlson declared at one point. Its just, on that subjectcome on, you know what I mean? Its too much. Even for me!

Eventually, Carlson became so visibly annoyed with Kokesh repeatedly pressing him on the validity of various 9/11 conspiracies that the Fox News star called him a parasite who was making it much worse for families of the terror attacks victims. Carlson also pointedly insisted that the embrace of such theories totally discredits libertarianism and the ideas of Ron Paul and liberty itself.

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At the time, Jones was the most prominent voice of the 9/11 truther movement, and so Kokesh then asked Carlson what he would say to the Infowars host. Ugh! Carlson groaned, prompting Kokesh to add: I know that you hate Alex Jones!

I dont know Alex Jones, Carlson asserted. I dont have any feelings about Alex Jones. I just think in order to imply that there was a conspiracy behind 9/11, you oughta have some evidence. Thats all Im saying.

And theres no evidence? Kokesh asked.

None whatsoever, Carlson shot back. And Ive done a lot of shows on it and read a lot about it. I know there are a ton of coincidences. There always are.

Later on, the conservative TV star was far more candid with Kokesh about his disdain for Jones. Alex Jones? Fuck you! Carlson said, sparking laughter among the group.

Hes more popular than you are, Kokesh retorted.

He certainly is! Carlson agreed, adding, I tell you what, I don't want any Alex Jones people at my houseat all! Alex Jones freaks me out. I saw Alex Jones flip out on somebody in a scary way. Leading a mob to, like, hurt somebody.

Tucker Carlson Shitting Himself Scared That His Alex Jones Texts May Leak

Carlsons attitude towards Jones dramatically shifted over the intervening decade.

Just a few short years after his exchange with Kokesh, Carlson began appearing on Jones Infowars broadcast and claiming that then-President Barack Obamas administration was engaging in Nazi stuff.

Since then, and as Carlsons star has risen and his politics have shifted into darker ideological territory, the Fox News primetime host has not only expressed admiration for Jones but has also seemed to embrace many of the conspiracy theories that Infowars has peddled. (Although, notably, Carlson has not publicly embraced Jones position that the 9/11 attacks were orchestrated by the U.S. government.)

The two hosts now overlap quite a bit when it comes to baselessly claiming COVID-19 vaccines are deadly or that the Jan. 6 Capitol riots were a false flag operation by the federal government to declare war on legacy Americans.

Indeed, the pair even appear to be close pals now. Jones has claimed that he regularly speaks with Carlson and that the Fox News star even filmed part of his End of Men documentary on Jones Texas property. The two right-wing icons talk so much now that, as The Daily Beasts media newsletter Confider recently reported, Carlson is allegedly shitting himself over the possibility that his daily text exchanges with Jones could leak after the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attacks obtained the conspiracy blowhards messages.

Reps for Carlson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Six months ago, five Pivot Airlines crew members were taken into custody after reporting drugs they found in their aircraft. Today, they are still stuck in the Dominican Republic, unsure if or when they will be able to return home.

What we know:

According to Simple Flying, on April 5, the crew, headed by Captain Robert Di Venanzo, was scheduled to depart from Punta Cana to return on a commercially chartered flight back to Canada. However, the maintenance engineer traveling with the crew discovered duffel bags full of cocainean estimated $25 million worthin the avionics bay.

The engineer immediately notified Captain Di Venanzo. The captain then reported the discovery to both Canadian and Dominican authorities. Though no one was charged, the authorities in the Dominican Republic responded by confiscating the passports of all crew members.

Inhumane treatment:

Captain Di Venanzo, along with two pilots, two flight attendants, and the maintenance engineer were held in prison before being released on bail. Since then, theyve all been kept in a safe house.

Throughout the ordeal, the crew members have suffered inhumane treatment, including their lives being threatened. Captain Di Venanzo said that while they were in the jail, corpses would be placed outside of their cells and they were threatened that they may soon suffer the same fate.

No help from Canadas government, yet-

Pivot Airlines, along with the crews families and humanitarian organizations, have been trying to get the government of Canada to help in some way. The Canadian government said they are monitoring the situation and talking to the relevant authorities.

On August 31, a motion to dismiss the case was filed due to a lack of evidence against Captain Di Venanzo and his crew. In fact, video evidence was found proving that the drugs found been put on the plane by a third party who was not a part of the crew.

The future:

Despite this, the lead prosecutor wants to see their bail revoked, which could put them back in prison. The crew members have an upcoming court hearing on October 20 and fear that an unfavorable outcome could possibly put them back in jail.

Pivot Airlines CEO Eric Edmondson also fears that things may not go their way due to corruption. The airline has several law firms in Canada and the Dominican Republic aiding the crew, however, he believes the Canadian government should be helping to get them released.

Related: Woman Tries To Smuggle $40K In Cocaine Through Hartsfield-Jackson Airport
A Florence man is facing a decades-long prison sentence after he was convicted of fatally assaulting a man and breaking into his neighbor's home, prosecutors said.

Phillip Alden, 25, pleaded guilty last week to charges of manslaughter, burglary, disorderly conduct, criminal mischief and terroristic threatening, according to the Boone County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office.

The manslaughter charge stems from a separate incident, court records show.

Officials said David Gregory, 43, was found in front of a home at the 10000 block of Bruce Drive in February 2021. He died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Boone County Sheriff's Office.

During an investigation, Alden admitted to detectives that he kneed Gregory in the head and punched him in the face, the sheriff's office said at the time of Alden's arrest.

The assault happened at a residence on Greenlawn Avenue, officials said.

Alden then carried Gregory out of the residence and drove him to his home on Bruce Drive, the sheriff's office said, adding Gregory was left lying unresponsive in the front yard, officials said.

In December 2020, Alden was arrested by Boone County deputies at his Greenlawn Avenue trailer, according to a criminal complaint.

He pushed his way into his neighbor's front door, yelling and threatening to physically harm them, and kicked their back door off its hinges, deputies said in the complaint. Court records show Alden posted bond just over a week after his arrest.

Prosecutors say they're recommending Alden serve 10 years for each case  a total of 20 years in prison.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2 before Circuit Judge Richard Brueggemann, according to court records.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Prosecutor: Man convicted of fatal assault in Boone County
A Polk County, Florida, deputy is expected to be released from the hospital after being shot by a suspect. Sheriff Grady Judd says the deputy's bulletproof vest saved his life.

The suspect has been identified as 41-year-old Gabriel Batista. The shooting happened around 10 p.m. Wednesday in Davenport. Deputies reportedly responded to a family disturbance call.

When deputies got to the scene, Batista was not there but returned in a vehicle. Investigators say he exited his car and approached deputies with his hands behind his back.

"Deputies asked Batista to show his hands and he refused," a news release from the agency to FOX 13 Tampa Bay read. "As one of the deputies tried to Taser him, Batista shot the other deputy in the chest. The deputy immediately shot back at Batista who threw his gun and surrendered."

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The deputy was taken to a hospital. He has not publicly been identified.

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"That vest saved his life," Sheriff Grady Judd said in a Facebook news conference. "He shot my deputy in the chest. Did you hear what I said? He shot my deputy."

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Batista was not hurt and is in custody.

"He's going to be charged appropriately," the sheriff added. "Our goal is, upon conviction, that he spends the rest of his life in prison for trying to murder my deputy, who was simply standing in the gap between good and evil."
It is devastating, said Latasha Tatum, whose family home in Newark, N.J., went into foreclosure, kicking off a chain of events that may leave her homeless.

NEWARK, N.J. Latasha Tatum has to leave the only home shes ever known in less than three days.

To say that it is devastating is a complete understatement, Tatum told theGrio in an interview from her home in Newark, N.J.

Latasha Tatum, 40, stands outside the home she has lived in since childhood. The home went into foreclosure and has a new owner, leaving Tatum to be evicted from the property. (Photo by Natasha S. Alford/theGrio)

For nearly her entire life, Tatum, 40, lived on 188 Renner Ave., one of the many spacious homes in the predominantly African-American neighborhood of the Weequahic section of Newark. Its a quiet block with green trees towering over front lawns, perfect for family gatherings Tatum once enjoyed before her grandmother got dementia.

She went from being this independent, sophisticated woman, doing everything for herself, to only being fed mashed potatoes and cant walk 10 feet by herself, Tatum said.

Her grandmothers health struggles morphed into financial struggles. Tatum says that after years of believing the home was paid off, she learned in 2017 that her grandmother had a reverse mortgage, but even she didnt understand the financial implications.

A reverse mortgage works differently than a traditional mortgage and is often marketed to elderly homeowners. Rather than pay mortgage payments each month to a lender, homeowners can use the equity on their home as a line of credit. With enough equity, money can be pulled out, helping seniors who may have reduced income not have to come out of pocket.

Latasha Tatum stands in front of her family home in Newark the week shes required to leave. (Photo by Natasha S. Alford/theGrio)

But homeowners must keep up with insurance and taxes, and if a single deadline or requirement isnt met, the home can be foreclosed on and taken away. Reverse mortgages leave heirs to the home responsible for payment after the owner dies. A 2019 investigation by USA Today found that reverse mortgages in majority Black neighborhoods were six times more likely to result in foreclosure than in neighborhoods that were 80 percent white.

As Tatums grandmothers health deteriorated, her home went into foreclosure. Then when her grandmother died in August 2020, the situation worsened.

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After her grandmothers death, Tatum learned there was more than $300,000 worth of debt accumulated through the reverse mortgage. Tatum says her attempts to negotiate a payment arrangement with the bank that owned the mortgage fell on deaf ears, and in April of this year, the home went up for sale at a sheriffs auction.

I was very broken. I was hurt. This is the home that my grandfather passed away in, my grandmother passed away in, the home I was brought home from the hospital in as well as my son, Tatum recalls, holding back tears. And to find out that its gone and there isnt anything I can do to keep it.

The business of buying Black-owned homes

Tatums family home was purchased by owners who operate under an LLC based out of Brooklyn. The phenomenon of LLCs purchasing homes is happening across New Jersey and nationally.

In the current housing crisis and the pandemic, private investors know from [the 2008 recession] how lucrative these foreclosed homes are as assets and have been setting aside huge amounts of liquidity to capture all of this real estate, said Nick Graetz, a research associate at The Eviction Lab at Princeton University.

Graetz says analysis of 40 of the biggest cities in the U.S. showed that 30 percent of sales in majority Black neighborhoods were real estate investors compared to 12 percent of real estate investors in other zip codes.

Those investors represent a powerful political coalition to lobby local policymakers on housing, Graetz told theGrio. That obviously has tons of ramifications for how hard it will be then for that family to find a new place to rent or live in that neighborhood where theyve always lived because now you have an increasing housing stock thats owned by absentee investors and landlords, which makes it more difficult to purchase a home as home prices skyrocket.

While conducting this interview, a car drove up with a man Tatum identified as being part of a regular group of men who ride through the neighborhood, asking if people would like to sell their homes.

Latasha Tatum poses with her 18 -year-old son, Razien. Tatum advocates for him as a special-needs teen and says she fears being evicted from her home will disrupt his stability. (Photo courtesy of Latasha Tatum)

Tatum shares the home with her 18-year-old autistic son, who also struggles with speech delay and mental health disorders. She fears being ejected from the home will disrupt her sons sense of stability and that moving away from the Newark area means losing the educational programs he participates in.

Tatum says although she initially got a verbal promise from one of the LLC owners that he would provide time to find a new place, she was served papers to vacate the home anyways.

I told [the owner], I have a special-needs son whos just getting back on track with things. Is it possible that we can work out a payment arrangement? Im more than willing to pay rent, Tatum says. He told me, and his exact words were, he is not a landlord. Hes a businessman.

The owner of the property declined to comment on this story.

Where to go next?

Tatums attorney, who provided legal representation for her through the Community Health Law Project, confirmed that after negotiating in September, the homes new owners offered Tatum a $1,000 settlement and gave her a date of Oct. 15 to leave the premises.

Tatum says she took the settlement and firm moveout date rather than leave the decision to a judge, who could have given her as little as 10 days to vacate. Because Tatum did not have a lease on her grandmothers home, although she couldve been an heir to the home, she is not considered a tenant. The situation is known as informal eviction.

Weve created this situation where a lot of the American safety net relies on individual wealth, family wealth, to sort of bolster people, and they run into these acute emergencies, says Graetz.

Weve seen that the households being evicted during the pandemic tend to be Black renters, Graetz said. These are often households with too little savings to bolster against those kinds of risks.

According to Graetz, while Black Americans make up about 20 percent of all adult renters, they represent over 33 percent of eviction filings.

There really isnt anything you can do about it, Tatum said. There are so many programs for other people to come into these urban communities to get advancement in help. But the people that have established relationships in life here, theres no help for us.

Because of health issues, Tatum receives Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and she says she isnt eligible for temporary rental assistance. Many housing programs she called havent called her back or told her they cant help until she is actually homeless. Others have advised her to go to a homeless shelter and then apply for Section 8, which may take months. Tatum fears being separated from her son at the shelter because he is 18 and legally an adult.

Latasha Tatum sits on the steps of her family home the week she must vacate. She plans to put all her familys belongings in storage. (Photo by Natasha S. Alford/theGrio)

As Tatum combs through apartment listings and calls programs and advocates seeking any form of help, the unemployed mother of one says the stress of her housing situation has taken a physical toll. She suffered a heart attack earlier this year and says she cant sleep at night.

Whenever I inquire about apartments, you have to have a credit score of over 620, Tatum said. You have to have paystubs. You have to make double, if not triple what your rent is. Lets be realistic. Who has that?

A recent report lists New Jersey as the seventh most expensive state in the United States for rent.

Tatums story is one that is relatable to many Black Americans who have found out the importance of estate planning, credit ratings, and homeownership when being blindsided by roadblocks in each system. Tatus hopes her trial with housing will inspire others to triple-check their familys affairs by asking for paperwork.

We tend to look at our elders as the way they used to be and not who they are now, Tatum said. I still wanted to give my grandmother her independence, if I was a little more nosey, maybe I could have did something at that time, and I wouldnt be in the predicament Im in now.

Now with the clock ticking, Tatum admits she is struggling to pack her familys belongings. She still has not found housing or a storage facility to put all of her items and is praying for a miracle to come to the door of Renner Avenue before she has to say goodbye permanently.

Reverse mortgages and these big corporations, LLCs, come in like a thief in the night. And then where does that leave you? Theres no more legacies, Tatum said pointing down the street where she once could identify all her neighbors by name.

I just need assistance, that foot in the door, and I can handle the rest. Im not asking for a handout, but, you know, everybody needs somebody.

UPDATE 10/18/22: An official GoFundMe has been started for Latasha Tatums moving expenses as Tatum continues to look for housing.

Natasha Alford

Natasha S. Alford is VP of Digital Content and a Senior Correspondent at theGrio. An award-winning journalist, filmmaker, and TV personality, Alford is writing her forthcoming book American Negra. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @natashasalford.

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The post Forced to move out of her home, a mother and her special-needs son struggle to find options appeared first on TheGrio.
Its bittersweet for this family. Heather Harold told Channel 11 they were prepared to go to trial to face what happened to her brother, but now they can start to move forward. But before that she had a message for Zachary Dinell.

Your darkness never ever, ever, ever could touch the light that was inside my brother, Harold said.

Harold cant help but smile when she thinks of her brother, Nicholas.

He was severely handicapped. He never walked or talked, but he had just this light inside him. He was such a sweet soul, Harold said.

Previous coverage: Grand jury indicts 2 former Beaver County care facility employees on hate crime charges

With that smile comes tears, thinking about the abuse he endured at the hands of his caregivers, Dinell and Tyler Smith, at Maguire Memorial Home in Beaver County.

Every time Id see a picture of Nicholas, or a memory would come up and we would talk about him, I would immediately start thinking about Tyler Smith and Zach Dinell and what they did to him. That truly Nicholas memory does not deserve to be tied to them, Harold said.

Court paperwork and video evidence showed the two punched, kicked and tormented their patients, all disabled and unable to report the crimes.

They had rubbed things into his eyes. He couldnt lift his hands to wipe it out. He just had to lay there and suffer. He couldnt report anything or say anything. He couldnt speak out, and thinking of him sitting there and suffering in silence is one of the worst parts of it, Harold said.

After years of waiting for their day in court, Dinell pleaded guilty to multiple federal hate crimes for the abuse of Nicholas Harold and more than a dozen other victims.

No sentence will ever be enough for me or my family, but this is finally getting some closure, Heather Harold said.

As part of that guilty plea, Dinell may face up to 17 years in prison. As for the other caregiver, Smith, his case has still not gone to trial.

TRENDING NOW:

Mercer County man caught cheating at fishing tournament charged Castle Shannon police asking for publics help to find missing endangered adult Beaver Falls police investigating death of 10-month-old baby boy VIDEO: Police: Woman found dead in West Mifflin apartment was deceased for 2 weeks DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
Two former employees of a day care center on a Georgia Air Force base, and the center's former day care director, have been indicted on child abuse-related charges after they allegedly sprayed children in the face with cleaning liquid, forced them to fight each other, kicked a child into a wall, struck one in the head with a book and stepped on a childs leg, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.

A federal grand jury handed down a 30-count indictment alleging that former Robins Air Force Base day care employees Zhanay Kiana Flynn, 27, and Antanesha Mone Fritz, 29, abused children in their care in January and February 2021.

The indictment also alleges Flynn and Fritz committed simple battery against the children by lifting up a cot a child was sleeping on, causing them to fall, and knocking a toy out of a child's hand and forcing them into a "small enclosure."

The indictment charged Flynn, Fritz and former day care director Latona Mae Lambert, 51, with one count each of failing to report suspected child abuse.

Flynn and Fritz were also each charged with 18 counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, six counts of cruelty to children in the second degree and three counts of simple battery.

If convicted, the three could each face up to a year in prison for failure to report suspected child abuse; Flynn and Fritz could also face up to an additional 20 years in prison for each count of first degree cruelty to children, 10 years for each count of second degree cruelty to children, and one year for each count of simple battery.

Properly caring for our Airmen and their families is of utmost importance," a spokesperson for Robins Air Force Base said in a statement. "Our Airmen should have confidence in the care provided at our Child Development Center. We are fully supporting the ongoing investigation and reviewing processes to ensure the appropriate measures are in place to safeguard our children.

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An investigation into the allegations is ongoing by the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations and Air Force Security Forces, with support from the FBI, according to the Justice Department.

According to the Department of Defense, child care centers on military bases are randomly inspected at least four times a year and receive accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children or a similar body.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Daniel McKenna leads a fitness class. Screenshot / Via onepeloton.com

Daniel McKenna, the Peloton instructor known as the Irish Yank, has sued the company for allegedly discriminating against him after he was injured and subjecting him to Irish stereotypes.

McKenna was fired from the company in September, and in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, he accused Peloton and chief content officer Jennifer Cotter of breach of employment, disability discrimination, and creating a hostile work environment. Neither McKenna's attorney nor Peloton responded to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News.

According to the complaint, McKenna underwent an unexpected surgery in October 2021, and he didn't want to get the COVID-19 vaccine for fear it could impede his recovery. (COVID vaccines are safe and effective, and serious side effects are extremely rare.) Cotter made disparaging remarks toward McKenna about wanting a medical exemption, the lawsuit said, and McKenna eventually got the vaccine out of fear of losing his job.

Cotter also allegedly used Irish stereotypes toward McKenna, including asking him if he was drunk on the job and pointing out his accent, telling him, "Nobody understands what you are saying, Daniel," the lawsuit said.

A Peloton store in Glasgow's city center Georgeclerk / Getty Images

In spring 2022, McKenna experienced sharp and debilitating pain in his pectorals. He underwent immediate surgery, and his doctors told him recovery would take six months. By May, McKenna was feeling better and told Cotter and his bosses that he could return to work on July 1.

Before he returned to work, Cotter met with McKenna and told him that he should be fired for taking short-term disability and that he was on "thin ice," according to the lawsuit.

On Sept. 12, Peloton fired McKenna "for cause," but according to the lawsuit, McKenna had not received any written notices regarding his behavior or misconduct that violated any Peloton employment agreements. During the meeting in which he was fired, McKenna was not provided with any reasoning for his termination, the lawsuit said.

He's now seeking damages for the harm to his career, as well as mental and emotional distress.

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In July, a family sued Peloton after their 3-year-old son got trapped under a Peloton and suffered third-degree burns, and in January, several employees sued the company, claiming they weren't paid for their work.

More on this
Former Lt. Governor Bob Duffy has called on Gov. Kathy Hochul and leaders in the state legislature to convene a special session to reassess bail reform policies amid rising violence in the City of Rochester.

In a letter to Hochul and Democratic leaders in the legislature, Duffy outlined recent acts of violence in Rochester and concluded: "I have never seen the issues of crime and public safety be as bad as they are today," framing the comment through his four decades in public life.

Duffy outlined his concerns in a two-page letter to Hochul that was dated July 25 and released to the media this week. His letter was also addressed to state senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and assembly speaker Carl Heastie. The release of the letter comes less than four weeks before an election in which the impact of bail reform and other legislative measures, like gun control, have been constant political fodder across New York.

Former Lt. Governor Bob Duffy, now CEO of Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce. Duffy is also a former Rochester mayor and former chief of the Rochester Police Department.

Duffy joined the Rochester Police Department in 1976, rising through the ranks to serve as chief from 1998 to 2005. He was Rochester's mayor from 2006-10 and served as New York's Lt. Governor during Andrew Cuomo's first term (2011-14). He has served as president and CEO of the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce since 2015.

In a phone interview Thursday, Duffy said he distributed the letter to state lawmakers who represent the Rochester area in September, and it was leaked two weeks ago, before chamber of commerce distributed copies to the press, including the Democrat & Chronicle, on Wednesday.

What did Duffy's letter say about bail reform?

Duffy, who ran for office as a Democrat, said bail reform and other efforts at improving the criminal justice system were well-intentioned and that he supported policies that had sought to address economic and racial inequities.

"We were at a point of criminalizing poverty, which is wholly unacceptable and was in desperate need of reform," Duffy wrote. "No one should remain in jail awaiting trial if they are eligible for bail but are unable to afford the cost due totheir economic challenges."

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But Duffy said those reform efforts had resulted in a number of unintended consequences, including both a rise in violent crime and political divisions.

"As a fellow Democrat, we cant blame the other party because we are in charge and we own this situation. We can certainly have safe communities and strong police-community relationships if we are willing to work hard to achieve it," Duffy said. "Instead, we have demoralized law enforcement for the inappropriate actions of a few and created more divisions than I have seen in my entire life."

Republican campaigns across the state have focused on rising crime as a central issue, attacking Democratic candidates for their stances and pointing to reform policies as the primary cause. While Duffy did not say it in the letter, the implication is that significant electoral losses may loom if voters are convinced by this argument.

How have Hochul and others responded?

New York Governor Kathy Hochul speaks during a news conference about the state's new gun laws on Aug. 31, 2022.

Matt Janiszewski, the governors Upstate press secretary, in an emailed statement said that Hochul has worked with the Legislature to address gun crime, repeat offenders, and expand the types of cases where judges have discretion to set bail. The governor has also met with local elected officials, community leaders and law enforcement to address crime and violence in Rochester and Monroe County.

In a phone interview, Duffy said the letter was an appeal to state leaders to act on concerns hes heard from community leaders about crime. He confirmed he had two conference calls with Hochul on July 29 (postdating the July 25 letter) and again on Aug. 23 to discuss crime and violence in Rochester and Monroe County alongside local elected officials, community leaders and law enforcement.

The governor will continue to work every day with law enforcement and local officials to improve the criminal justice system, combat violence, and strengthen public safety across New York, Janiszewski said.

In a statement Thursday, Stewart-Cousins responded, "Everyone understands the importance of increasing public safety, but succumbing to national Republican fear mongering around bail reform, misses the opportunity to adopt real solutions. Facts matter. Study after study  as covered by Newsday, the Times Union and the NY Times  have shown that bail reform has had no effect on the crime rate. And while crime remains at historically low levels, the proliferation of guns on our streets is historically high. We need truth  not fear  to guide our responses to this crisis."

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, in the New York Senate Chamber during session before Gov. Kathy Hochul delivers her first State of the State address at the state Capitol, Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in Albany.

What will the release of the letter mean ahead of the election?

With weeks before the election, Duffy stressed the letter wasnt political in a phone interview. He doesnt publicly endorse candidates but said hes had a long history and friendship with Hochul and a short relationship, but good relationship, with Zeldin.

"This issue is not about politics, he said. Its about public policy and service.

Men, women and children in our poorest neighborhoods, theyre the ones being victimized on a daily basis, Duffy said. I do think there has to be a coming together and look at, as opposed to a war of words and data points, to actually sit down and listen to all sides.

Crime has become a campaign issue in the midterm elections. Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin, a Long Island congressman, has frequently attacked Democratic leadership in New York State, aiming to pin spikes in crime on Gov. Kathy Hochul, who was lieutenant governor when the state Legislature and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo passed bail reform laws in 2019.

Hochul had a 10-point advantage over Zeldin in a Marist College poll released Thursday of more than 1,000 registered voters in early October. Crime ranked third behind inflation and preserving democracy in what was top of mind with voting on Nov. 8.

In a statement, Lee M. Miringoff, the director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, said any shift to crime in the closing weeks is likely to benefit Zeldin.

What does Rochester crime data show?

One thing is clear: violent crime in Rochester has gone from historic lows to record highs in a span of a few years. What's less clear is why.

The city experienced 28 homicides in 2018 and 154 shooting victims, both of which represented the lowest totals since 2000. But violence spiked dramatically in 2020 (52 homicides, 335 shooting victims) and rose even higher in 2021. The 81 homicides last year and 419 shooting victims surpassed anything on record.

As of Thursday, there have been 66 homicides in the city of Rochester, a pace ahead of last year's record total. Three hundred people have been shot in the city so far this year.

The implementation of bail reform and other policy changes coincided with the crushing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, making it difficult to determine what role those measures have played in rising violence. States that did not enact public safety reforms have seen similar spikes in violence.

A study by the state's Department of Criminal Justice concluded recently that outside of New York City, the number of individuals who were rearrested after being released with no bail had risen, from 14% in 2019 to 19% in 2021. The number of those people who were charged with a violent felony after being released on their own recognizance rose from 1% to 3%. But the DCJS report also cautioned that the pandemic caused courts to close at times, and public health policies had an impact on the number of people who were held in custody.

Rochester police have said recently that much of the recent gun violence in their city has been driven by drug gangs battling over territory in and around the city's North Clinton neighborhood. They allege that groups aligned with the Bloods and the Crips have enlisted members from outside the region to perpetrate violence against their rivals in an effort to exert their hold on the illegal marijuana market. Police said this turf war led to the fatal shooting of Rochester Police Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz in July.

The funeral for Rochester Police Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz was held in the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, NY on Monday August 1, 2022, A man, hiding in bushes on Bauman St. in Rochester, fired numerous rounds from a gun at Mazurkiewicz and his partner, Officer Sino Seng, 37, on July 21, 2022. Mazurkiewicz, 54, was killed and Seng, was injured. The funeral was only open to fellow officers and first responders. After the funeral Lynn Mazurkiewicz gives her husband's partner, Seng, a hug.

Other shootings have been driven by disputes that have led to waves of back-and-forth violence. Shots are fired into a house in one neighborhood, followed by an act of retaliation in another neighborhood the next day.

It's unclear whether bail reform has played a role in either of these waves of violence. But the absence of clear data on the causes of rising violence, or the impact of bail reform hasn't stopped political candidates from making it a central issue this fall.

Public safety: Rochester's 30-year cycle of violence

What are Bob Duffy's concerns with bail reform?

Duffy acknowledged in his letter that there were several causal factors behind the rise in violence, but he argued that much of it came down to the need for stronger policies and leadership to address what he called "the lawlessness that is prevalent in so many of our communities today."

His letter outlined three major areas of concern with New York's reform measures; echoing the talking points that Republicans and law enforcement leaders have been sharing for months.

Individuals charged with violent crime being released with no bail: "Robberies, assaults, car-jackings, and illegal gun possessions plague our streets every day and the perpetrators are being met with appearance tickets," Duffy wrote. "It is commonplace for these individuals to be arrested, booked, and released on an appearance ticket, only to reoffend after which the same process ensues."

Judges not being allowed to use their own judgment on bail decisions: "There was a time when the possession of an illegal gun brought a mandatory one-year jail sentence. That law was eventually changed because advocates fought for more judicial discretion. Ironically, it is that same group of advocates now arguing against judicial discretion regarding bail. Judges are elected by their communities and certainly deserve to have the ability to exercise discretionand be held accountable for it."

Not considering the likelihood that an individual would commit other crimes in determining bail: "Yes, there should be a 'Dangerousness Clause' and it should be viewed by the actions of an individual  and not their ethnicity," Duffy wrote. "We are creating an environment where there are no consequences for bad behavior."

Bail reform:More context on the limitations of bail reform data

Duffy's letter called for state leaders to convene leaders in law enforcement, the judiciary, victims advocacy groups,mayors, county executives, and other reform advocates to begin a process to evaluate what is working and to change what is not.

"If you could call a special session on public safety and truly listen, debate, compromise, and act on those areas that can begin to turn the tide, you would be performing a great public service," Duffy wrote.

Editor's Note: An adjective that was potentially misleading was removed from a description of the data of the number of individuals rearrested outside of New York City between 2019 and 2.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bob Duffy letter urges Gov. Hochul to call bail reform special session
Former President Trump seems unlikely to testify before Congress in response to the subpoena issued Thursday by the panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. But if he does, he wont be the first former president to testify before Congress.

Exact estimates vary. One historian detailed five former presidents who have testified, the Senate Historical Office and Senate Librarys analysis indicates at least four former presidents have testified before congressional committees a total of 16 times and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), a member of the Jan. 6 panel, told CNN the figure amounts to as many as seven former presidents.

Those appearances, however, generally dealt with policy and judicial issues ranging from the Supreme Courts jurisdiction to the federal budget.

The former presidents often appeared before the panels to advance their own agendas, a stark difference from Trump, who would be questioned as a central figure in the House panels investigation.

He is the one person at the center of the story of what happened on Jan. 6. So we want to hear from him, Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said at Thursdays hearing shortly before he and his eight committee colleagues unanimously voted to issue the subpoena.

Trump questioned the subpoena on his Truth Social app on Thursday, suggesting he will likely fight it. The committees existence will expire prior to the swearing in of the next Congress in January, creating a narrow window for it to secure Trumps participation.

Raskin told CNN there would be nothing really extraordinary about Trumps testimony, saying former presidents as long ago as John Quincy Adams and John Tyler testified before Congress.

Seven former presidents have come forward to testify in American history, two of them by subpoena, Raskin told CNNs Jake Tapper.

Stephen Stathis, an analyst who for years worked for the Library of Congress, wrote in a 1983 journal article that John Tyler became the first former president to appear before Congress.

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Tyler was subpoenaed in connection with an investigation into the use of public funds by his secretary of state, Daniel Webster. The committee exonerated Webster, an outcome Stathis in part attributed to Tylers testimony.

Stathis and the Senate Historical Office and Senate Librarys list both said Theodore Roosevelt testified before a congressional committee in August 1911.

He appeared before a House panel investigating the United States Steel Corporation as the federal government raised antitrust concerns, and Roosevelt was a prominent backer of efforts to break up monopolies.

Stathis indicated Roosevelt was not subpoenaed, but he rather obliged after the committee advised the former chief executive his testimony would be appreciated.

Roosevelt also testified about one year later about campaign expenditures as he ran on a third-party ticket for president. Roosevelt ultimately lost the election, which came about four years after he left the White House.

Years later, William Howard Taft testified before Congress 12 times following his presidency, according to the Senate Historical Offices records.

All but one of those appearances occurred during Tafts subsequent tenure as chief justice of the Supreme Court, where he served between 1921 and 1930.

Half of Tafts 12 post-presidency congressional appearances were before the House or Senate judiciary committees or their subcommittees.

Harry Truman and Gerald Ford later became the two most recent former presidents to testify before Congress.

Truman in 1955 appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to discuss the United Nations Charter, and Ford appeared before a subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee near the bicentennial of the Constitution, according to the analysis.

Updated at 6:25 p.m.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Crotale systems are capable of shooting down occupation aircraft

Read also: France considering additional supplies of Caesar howitzers to Ukraine, says Macron

In an interview on France 2 television, Macron said that radar and anti-air missiles would be delivered in the coming weeks to protect (Ukraine) from drone and missile attacks.

This is a new phase of bombing coming from land, sea, air and drones against essential infrastructure and civilians, Macron said.

Read also: Head of German parliamentary defense committee calls for Germany to provide Ukraine with tanks

The Crotale air defense system was developed by the French company Thomson CSF Matra, and can be used to intercept low-flying anti-ship missiles and aircraft.

There are two versions of the system  a mobile land-based version and a ship-launched one. It is in service with the militaries of France, Finland, Greece, and the Netherlands. The systems operational range is up to 10,000 meters, while the flight ceiling does not exceed 6,000 meters.

Read also: Britain to donate air defense missiles to Ukraine  Wallace

As reported earlier, France could have promised to transfer three analogues of the U.S. HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems to Ukraine during a Ramstein format meeting of Ukraines allies that was held at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on Oct. 12.

According to Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, strengthening Ukraines air defenses was the first issue on the agenda during the meeting.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
PARIS (AP)  France has for the first time started conveying natural gas to Germany, French gas network operator GRTgaz said Thursday, as Berlin strives to diversify its energy supply following the interruption of Russian gas deliveries.

GRTgaz said in a statement the gas pipeline connecting both countries at the French border village of Obergailbach has began delivering an initial daily capacity of 31 gigawatt-hours.

The amount expected to eventually increase to a daily maximum of 100 gigawatt-hours, representing less than 2% of Germany's overall gas consumption, according to figures from the French Ministry for Energy Transition.

The head of Germanys network regulatory agency, Klaus Mueller thanked GRTGaz in French in a Tweet Thursday, adding that French gas deliveries via Saarland help Germanys supply security.

Although Germanys gas storage facilities are now nearly 95% full, officials say citizens will still need to save gas this winter.

The move comes as Germany and other European countries seek to diversify gas imports after Russia choked off the supplies of cheap natural gas that the continent depended on for years to run factories, generate electricity and heat homes.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced last month that France and Germany agreed to an energy solidarity deal. France would help Germany with gas supply, while Germany would generate more electricity to supply France during times of peak consumption.

The French government has expressed concerns over potential electricity shortages during the winter as 25 of France's 56 nuclear reactors are now shut down for usual maintenance and, in some cases, to repair corrosion problems. The government said that EDF, which is operating France's nuclear plants, committed to restart all of them by this winter.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Paris, December 9, 2019 Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS

Macron suggested he wouldn't use nuclear weapons to retaliate if Russia used them in Ukraine.

In a sometimes-unclear interview answer, he said it may fall short of a threshold for retaliation.

It struck a different tone from a statement by France, the US, and others warning of "severe consequences."

France's President Emmanuel Macron suggested that he would not use nuclear weapons against Russia in retaliation for a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine.

Macron, in a TV interview Wednesday night, gave a long and sometimes-ambiguous discussion of how France might react if Vladimir Putin's threats to use nuclear force were to come true.

His answer , to the France 2 network, suggested that such an event may fall short of France's own threshold for striking back.

The position was at odds with a much firmer statement by G7 countries Monday, in which France and other nations warned of "severe consequences" to the Russian use of nuclear weapons.

Macron was asked: "Would France consider a tactical strike by Russia as a nuclear strike?"

He replied: "France has a nuclear doctrine. It lies in the nation's fundamental interests that are clearly defined. They wouldn't be questioned should there be a ballistic nuclear attack."

France's current nuclear policy is to use nuclear weapons only in self-defense, a definition Macron suggested would not be met by an attack on an allied nation like Ukraine.

Macron also tweeted on Wednesday: "We do not want a World War."

But France has been criticized for giving low levels of support compared to many other of Ukraine's allies in Europe and the West.

Macron in the weeks before the war made public efforts to negotiate with Putin to prevent an invasion, without success.

Macron said in the interview that France having nuclear weapons give it "strength and protection" but added ""the less we talk about the threat, the more credible we are."

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Other nations have not explicitly said how they will respond if Putin uses a tactical nuclear weapon.

But Macron is the only leader of a nuclear-armed nation who strongly suggested he will still not use them if Ukraine is attacked.

And his comments could potentially threaten a coordinated NATO response.

NATO plans

A senior NATO official said that a nuclear attack by Russia would "almost certainly" trigger a military response from Western nations.

He said Russia using nuclear weapons would "almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself" and said that "Russia would face "unprecedented consequences."

It came after the joint G7 statement, in which member states  including the nuclear-armed US, France, and UK, said: "We reaffirm that any use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons by Russia would be met with severe consequences."

The G7 and NATO did not say what those consequences would be, and whether they would be nuclear or not.

Russia's repeated threats

Russia has repeatedly warned that it could use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

How likely Russia is to use nuclear weapons is unclear, and some experts and wold leaders say the threats may be a bluff designed to get the West to weaken its military support for Ukraine.

But they say those threats should still be taken seriously.

US President Joe Biden said earlier this month that the risk of nuclear "Armageddon" is the highest it's been since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Randolph County's Sheriff's Office are reporting an arrest has been made in connection with a recent automobile robbery.

On Oct. 9, officers with the Randolph County Sheriff's Office responded to a call of a robbery at Interstate 73/74 near Randleman.

Upon arrival authorities learned the male driver, described by the victim as a "friend", pulled the car to the shoulder of the toad and robbed the victim at knifepoint before ordering him out of the car.

According to Randolph County's Sheriff's Office, the suspect was identified as James Marler.

"Criminal Investigations Detectives made contact with Guilford County Sheriffs Office for an agency assist. Shortly thereafter, they located the vehicle in a parking lot of a hotel in their jurisdiction,"

The Guilford County Sheriff's Office arrested the suspect and charged him with felony robbery with a dangerous weapon, felony larceny of a motor vehicle, felony possession of stolen goods/property, and misdemeanor assault with a deadly weapon.

Marler is waiting at the Guilford County Detention Center and received a $20,000 secured bond. His first appearance in Randoloh County District Court will be Nov. 17.

This article originally appeared on The Courier-Tribune: An arrest he been in a knifepoint robbery in Randleman
WASHINGTON  As the Army modernizes for large-scale, high-casualty combat, its medical branch must keep up with the pace of battle.

Army medical leaders have three main tasks: get wounded soldiers back in the fight, clear the battlefield of resource-intensive casualties and get medical resources to the frontlines amid contested logistics from fort to port.

How they get there, top officers explained Tuesday at the annual Association of the U.S. Army conference will require technologies not yet invented and a series of experiments that started this year and will run over the next two years.

Col. James Jones, director of medical capability development and integration at Army Futures Command, painted a picture of what future commanders will face.

Were going to need autonomous resupply, autonomous systems, AI-enabled to optimize evacuation and maximize return to duty rates, Jones said.

In the scenario Jones shared during the panel on Army medicine in multidomain operations, 1st Armored Division is in the fight, running defensive maneuvers.

Theyre hit by an enemy precision strike attack with long-range rockets and self-propelled artillery. The division takes 500 critical casualties.

In this 2030 scenario, Jones explained, a combination of pre-battle work and technology is now being developed to serve medics and surgeons.

Each vehicle is equipped with casualty evacuation kits, all non-medical troops have received advanced Tactical Combat Casualty Care training and autonomous robotic ground and air systems are moving the wounded off the battlefield.

Medics in the field and surgeons in the rear, or as far away as Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, are advising treatment through telemedicine.

When you look at just the dispersion of our formations in the future operating environment, we cant get a surgeon to every place where theres an injury. You cant get them in the foxhole, said Maj. Gen. Michael Talley, commander of the Army Medical Center of Excellence.

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Soldiers at an Army field hospital prepare simulated casualties for transport at Sierra Army Depot, California, during an exercise, Oct. 29, 2019. (Spc. ShaTyra Reed/Army)

As this flurry of activity moves across the battlefield, all the data is being swept into an artificial intelligence-driven system that gives commanders minute-by-minute updates. That same system tells commanders what medical supplies they need, as well as when and where they need them.

Information both from the front lines and from pre-operation planning is key to successful treatment.

You cant do contested logistics if you dont know what youre treating, said Brig. Gen. Tony McQueen, commanding general of the Armys Medical Research and Development Command.

The system, McQueen said, will automatically detect what medical product soldiers are using and begin replenishing those stocks as theyre used and flow more material to the front line.

To get to that demanding but necessary future for Army medicine, officials stressed that medicine, even seemingly simply tasks like rehearsing casualty evacuations in every exercise, will be necessary.

Thats why Army medicine has embedded experts into a series of standard Army and joint exercises, starting this year. Theyre also kicking off some of their own, medicine-focused experimentation to find out what works and what doesnt.

Over the next two years, there are plans for a mass casualty evacuation simulation exercise, prolonged care experiments and arctic medicine experiments, Jones said.

Increasingly, Army medics and battlefield surgeons are expected to rely on a cloud-based system to store and transmit medical data. That information will be pulled from soldier-worn sensors and aerial drone scans of battle-damaged areas and then sent back to experts in the United States.

Talley shared another scenario in which a combat medic on the battlefield could use the network and, while wearing the Armys mixed reality goggle  known as Integrated Visual Augmentation System  have a surgeon at Walter Reed talk them through a difficult procedure, such as cutting open a soldiers abdomen to treat internal wounds.

Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division test out IVAS goggles during a training exercise in October 2020 at Fort Pickett, Virginia. ( Bridgett Siter/Army)

That surgeon would see and be able to guide the medic with augmented reality tools that the soldier can see overlaid on the patient. Tasks like that will require a higher level of training for future combat medics and a robust network to support such data sharing.

Those medics must be able to triage patients quickly and provide advanced medical care in the fight, while also sometimes sustaining the patients with prolonged care that wasnt the norm in recent wars.

Getting the wounded out of combat and back to advanced treatment wont be as easy as it has been in Iraq and Afghanistan. Air evacuation will be contested and sometimes soldiers will have to rely on ground systems or be forced to wait, keeping patients alive longer.

And the Army doesnt want to tie up its limited number of human pilots or drivers in dangerous recovery missions. Theyre going to lean on robot ground and air vehicles to pull wounded from combat.

Were looking at all kinds of evacuation platforms that we dont have today that we will have in the future, Jones said.

Army Times recently reported on work being done at the Maneuver Battle Lab at Fort Benning, Georgia, that has demonstrated an autonomous aerial drone carrying a 70-pound mannequin over 2.5 miles in under four minutes.

Also, at AUSA this week, one of the xTechSearch competition winners, a program that seeks out tech solutions from small businesses, displayed a smart shirt for wound detection. The shirt features a woven lattice of sensors inside a combat shirt or jacket that can instantly report a puncture over 2 mm in width.

The company developing the shirt, Legionarius, is adding bladders to the shirt that could immediately compress wounds to staunch bleeding.
More than two million people are living with sight loss in the UK, with 8.5 million having very poor literacy skills

An innovative new collaboration is set to revolutionise the accessibility of everyday healthcare for people who are blind or have low-vision, according to experts.

More than two million people are living with sight loss in the UK, with 8.5 million having very poor literacy skills and an independent study of visually impaired people revealing that 93% of respondents dont feel health products are accessible enough.

And almost one in five have taken the wrong dosage as they couldnt read the packaging effectively.

But on World Sight Day 2022, a game-changing new partnership looks set to ensure that everyone who is blind and partially sighted has significantly enhanced access to health products.

Haleon, a global leader in consumer health, and Microsoft Corp. are expanding functionality in the Microsoft Seeing AI app to provide more detailed labelling information for consumers for over 1500 Haleon products across the UK and US.

Seeing AI is a free mobile app, for the visually impaired community, designed to narrate the world around them.

Saqib Shaikh, Engineering Manager at Microsoft, said: I'm really excited to see the launch of this enhanced product recognition functionality, developed in collaboration with Haleon.

Seeing AI's intelligent barcode scanner plays audio cues to help you find the barcode, and now the information displayed for Haleon products is coming straight from the manufacturer, providing richer information including usage instructions and ingredients. This can be invaluable for someone who cannot read the label, leading to greater independence.

With the launch of Haleons Always Read the Label, campaign for World Sight Day, people who are blind and those with low vision or low literacy are able to read labels through Seeing AI by scanning the barcode of Haleon products to hear important information such as name, ingredients, and usage instructions.

Through the enhanced functionality that Seeing AI offers, Haleon will help empower people to care for their own health independently by listening to the label information thats narrated through the Seeing AI application.

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Seeing AI is a free mobile app, for the visually impaired community, designed to narrate the world around them

Haleon, driven by its purpose to deliver better everyday health with humanity, believes that health products should be accessible. The collaboration is the first step in driving health inclusivity for this community.

The Seeing AI app was developed by a team of Microsoft engineers spearheaded by project lead and engineering manager Saqib Shaikh, who lost his sight at the age of seven, and was driven to develop the app by his passion for using technology to improve peoples lives.

Tamara Rogers, Chief Marketing Officer at Haleon said, Helping people access vital information on our products is one of our first initiatives as we do our part to make everyday consumer health more inclusive. We hope Microsofts Seeing AI capability to narrate labels across Haleons products brings greater independence to our consumers. At Haleon, we have set ourselves the goal of helping 50 million people to be more included in opportunities for better everyday health by 2025, by tackling three big barriers that we know put everyday health out of reach for too many of the worlds citizens; Health Literacy, Healthcare Accessibility & Bias and Prejudice.
California high school senior Landon Jones, 18, said hes been bullied by his classmates since the fifth grade. But Jones, who is openly gay, said hes no longer looking the other way.

I have been called f----- countless times at school, and it literally doesnt bother me at all, Jones said in a TikTok video shared Oct. 1 that has since gone viral. The fact that they came to my house does.

The video, which now has 1.3 million views, appears to show two separate instances of Jones being subjected to anti-gay bullying. In the more recent incident, which occurred Sept. 29 and was caught on a home surveillance camera, a young man can be seen walking up to Jones home and starting to knock before Jones father opens the door.

Does Landon live here? the young man can be heard saying.

His dad responds, Yes, why?

Someone said to come up here, the young man can be heard mumbling, before loudly yelling, because hes a f-----! and running off the property.

Jones dad said the young man ran off and got in on the passenger side of a black Lincoln Navigator before it drove off.

I remember being up in my room, hearing it, and I heard what he said. I immediately jumped out of bed and walked outside to see what was happening, Jones, who came out as gay in 2020, told NBC News. I had no sleep that night. I was honestly really upset. I was crying.

The other incident that can be seen in Jones now-viral TikTok video was recorded by Jones in August and shows a group of young men surrounding Jones car, as he and his sister sat inside, in a Starbucks parking lot. One of the men can be seen looking inside Jones car and can be heard saying, This f------ f-----.

Jones told NBC News that he decided to share both incidents on TikTok, where he has nearly 700,000 followers, because Im sick of being silent about it. So I finally spoke up.

Jones said the young man whos visible in the Starbucks video and the person who was driving the black Lincoln Navigator both attend his high school, El Toro High School in Lake Forest, California, which is part of the Saddleback Valley Unified School District. He said he had heard from others that the young man who came up to his front door attends a nearby high school, though he does not know which one and could not confirm the accuracy of that information.

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A spokesperson for the school district said the unconscionable acts committed against Landon Jones do not reflect the feelings or values of Saddleback Valley Unified School District (SVUSD) and El Toro High School (ETHS).

ETHS and SVUSD administration, together with the Orange County Sheriffs Department (OCSD), immediately launched a comprehensive investigation to uncover the facts of the incidents, Wendie Hauschild, the director of communications and administrative services for the school district, said in an email. We can confirm that the person seen in the surveillance video of the incident that took place at a private home is not a student in SVUSD. Due to the confidentiality that we are required by law to uphold for our students, as well as other minors, SVUSD is unable to share further information regarding the results of the investigation. SVUSD remains steadfast in its commitment to create inclusive, supportive, and safe environments for all students on our campuses.

When asked about the Sept. 29 incident, a public information officer from the Orange County Sheriffs Department told NBC News that a school resource officer at El Toro High School was able to speak to individuals that may or may not have been involved in this incident or possibly have knowledge of the incident. The officer said the person who walked up to the Jones home has not yet been identified, though he added that the investigation remains ongoing.

While Jones still attends El Toro High School, he transitioned to virtual schooling at the start of the school year due to bullying and a rough experience with the school, he said.

Landon Jones and his father Nathan Jones. (Desiree Keoshian)

In a joint statement emailed to NBC News, Landon Jones parents, Lauren and Nathan Jones, said their son has been called names and made fun of since elementary school because of his appearance and because his interests never aligned with those of his peers.

Kids and even adults can be so cruel to people that are different from them, they said.

Following the incident outside their home, Lauren and Nathan Jones said they are determined to see the individuals bullying their son face consequences.

Actions have consequences and we will keep pursuing this until those consequences are paid, the couple said. This behavior will not be tolerated and we will never turn a blind eye to injustices like these. We have a family to protect and that is our number one focus right now.

The Jones family said they reached out to El Toro High School about the incident at their home and told administrators that the driver of the Lincoln Navigator was a student at the school. They said no actions have yet been taken that they are aware of.

Since Jones shared the video of the two homophobic incidents, over 11,000 people have shared comments, most of them supportive.

Former American Idol contestant David Archuleta, who came out publicly last year, was among the commenters: Oh gosh sorry youre dealing with that theres no justification for what theyre doing to you and so shallow of them.

LGBTQ TikTok personality Josh Helfgott also commented, saying, If theres one thing I got from this video, its how STRONG you are & how weak they are. Im so sorry this is happening. Keep shining, Landon.

Landon Jones and his mother, Lauren Jones. (Desiree Keoshian)

Jones said, One of the last things that I had expected was the amount of support from the community that I would have gotten.

Lauren and Nathan Jones said they hope their sons story will give more people a voice and show that no one should ever have to go through this alone.

And Landon Jones is not alone when it comes to anti-gay bullying: A report published last year by The Trevor Project, an LGBTQ youth crisis intervention and suicide prevention nonprofit, found the majority of LGBTQ youths (52%) enrolled in middle or high school reported being bullied either in person or electronically in the year prior to participating in the survey. LGBTQ middle school students reported higher instances of bullying (65%) than those in high school (49%).

This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. Follow NBC Out on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
George Clooney and Julia Roberts are opening up about their longtime bond and why dating each other was never really a thing.

In an interview Wednesday to promote the upcoming film Ticket to Paradise, the Oscar winnerstold Access Hollywood about their connection, including their first impressions of one another.

Clooney said Roberts made me laugh, and Roberts called the leading man gentle.

The pair went on to answer rapid-fire questions from host Kit Hoover about their tightknit history.

When asked about the characteristic they admire most in one another, Clooney quickly gushed about the Pretty Woman actors kindness, while Roberts praised his fortitude.

Hoover then dropped a juicy question that many fans have been dying to hear answered by the duo, who have starred together in films such as 2001s Oceans Eleven, 2002s Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, 2004s Oceans Twelve and 2016s Money Monster.

Did you ever have a no dating policy back in the day? Hoover asked.

To not date each other? Roberts asked, adding with a laugh, I dont think we needed to state it.

Clooney, has been married to human rights lawyer Amal Clooney since 2014, spoke about why they never took things to a different level, stating that even in the past, there were other people in their lives.

Julia was always in a relationship, or I was in a relationship. And we were fast friends right away. So it was nothing, but its been nothing but fun for us. So, I dont think that was ever really a thing, said the Gravity star.

Roberts tied the knot with cinematographer Danny Moder in 2002. They share three children together: twins Hazel and Phinnaeus, both 17, and Henry, 15.

Roberts  who goes by Auntie Juju to Clooneys 5-year-old twins, Alexander and Ella  joked that even the thought of a romance with her pal makes her stomach turn.

They then humorously flirted with each other, prompting the leading lady to mimic vomiting.

Well, you dont have to react that bad! he fired back, chuckling.

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Ticket To Paradise, which centers around a divorced couple who travel to Indonesia to stop their daughter from repeating their past mistakes, is set to hit the big screen Oct. 21.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

Related...
WASHINGTON (AP)  Former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, are returning to Washington next month to be recognized for their work on combatting HIV/AIDS worldwide.

The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition announced Thursday that it will honor Bush and the former first lady on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1, during its annual Tribute Celebration.

The Bushes will receive the Global Leadership Award for establishing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, in 2003. Bush announced the program in his State of the Union address in January 2003. He signed legislation to establish it in May 2003.

Liz Schrayer, the coalition's president and CEO, called the AIDS relief program one of the most significant achievements in global health in our lifetime." In a statement, she also praised the Bushes for transformational leadership in launching it nearly 20 years ago.

PEPFAR is the largest commitment by any nation in history to address a single disease.

Since the program's inception, the U.S. government has spent nearly $100 billion to respond to HIV/AIDS worldwide, saving 21 million lives, preventing millions of infections and making strides to control the HIV/AIDS pandemic in more than 50 countries, mostly in Africa and the Caribbean, according to the State Department.

The Bushes were most recently in Washington in September. Laura Bush was a guest of President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden at a White House music event on the South Lawn featuring Elton John, a longtime advocate for people with HIV/AIDS.

The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition is a network of 500 businesses and nongovernmental organizations, national security and foreign policy experts, and business, religious, academic, military and community leaders from across the United States who support investing in development and diplomacy alongside defense.
A hotel in Georgia is listed as one of the best haunted hotels in the country, according to USA Today.

The publication ranked the top 10 haunted hotels as part of its 10Best Readers Choice rankings for 2022.

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The Marshall House in Savannah is third on the list. USA Today describes a story claiming a doctor buried amputated body parts under the floorboards because the ground was too frozen to dig. The publication also mentions stories of ghost sightings in hallways and faucets turning on by themselves.

TRENDING STORIES:

The hotel opened in 1851, according to its website. It was used as a Union hospital during the Civil War, according to the website.

Heres how the rest of the top ranked haunted hotels stack up.

Fainting Goat Island Inn in Nichols, New York The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado The Marshall House in Savannah, Georgia Hotel Saranac in Saranac Lake, New York Union Station Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee Malaga Inn in Mobile in Alabama The Mizpah Hotel in Tonopah, Nevada 1886 Crescent Hotel and Spa in Eureka Springs, Arkansas Admiral Fell Inn in Baltimore, Maryland Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast in Fall River, Massachusetts

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IN OTHER NEWS:
A Georgia man was taken into custody Sunday after stabbing a Newnan officer, an incident report obtained by Channel 2 said.

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According to the report, an officer working a part-time job was attempting to arrest a shoplifter, identified as Tanner Hand, 25, of Newnan.

The officer chased Hand from Dillards through the Ashley Park shopping center.

While the officer was attempting to arrest Hand, Hand allegedly stabbed the officer with a knife.

The officer was stabbed in the hand.

Another officer was able to help put the suspect in custody.

Authorities found Xanax and psilocybin mushrooms in Hands possession.

TRENDING STORIES:

Officials said Hand had two bags around his neck, which appeared to have been clothes that still had store sales tags on them. There was also another shopping bag nearby that contained more clothing, again with the sales tags still attached.

Hand stole $1,464.98 worth of merchandise from Dillards, the report stated.

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He was booked into Coweta County Jail.

Hand was charged with aggravated assault, theft by shoplifting, obstruction, possession of a Schedule I substance, and possession of a Schedule IV substance.

The officer is expected to be OK.

IN OTHER NEWS:
Georgia officials said Wednesday night that they think a 20-month-old toddler who was reported missing a week ago is dead.

Chatham County police tweeted that they consider Quinton Simon's mother to be "the prime suspect in his disappearance and death," but they also said no arrests have been made and no charges have been filed.

"We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simons family that we believe he is deceased," police said.

Police did not provide additional details or say why they believe the boy is dead or how he died.

Quinton was reported missing from his home in an unincorporated part of the county near Savannah on Oct. 5, police have said.

"We know that thousands of people around the world will be heartbroken by this news, and we share your sorrow," police said Wednesday evening.

The police department said that it expected to hold a news conference Thursday and that it would make no additional statements until then.

We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simons family that we believe he is deceased. We have named his mother, Leilani Simon, as the prime suspect in his disappearance and death. But, no arrests have been made and no charges have been filed.  Chatham County Police Department (@ChathamCountyPD) October 13, 2022

It was not immediately clear whether the toddler's mother had an attorney. A phone number for her could not immediately be found Wednesday night.

A spokesman for the Chatham County district attorney's office did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.

Related video: Michigan bus drivers save toddler taken during carjacking

Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said Monday that police had conducted multiple interviews, executed multiple search warrants and canvassed numerous areas in the search for Quinton.

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The FBI has also been involved since the boy was reported missing, he said.

On Tuesday, the police department said that it had seized evidence that it believed would help, but it did not detail what the evidence was.

Hadley has said that Quinton's mother's boyfriend reported seeing the toddler about 6 a.m. Oct. 5 and that the toddler's mother woke up later and reported him missing at 9:39 a.m.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Eight days after Georgia toddler Quinton Simon was reported missing from his Savannah home, police announced Thursday that they have not yet located the 20-month-old's remains, despite naming a prime suspect  his mother  and accumulating evidence to indicate that he is no longer alive.

"Sadly, we still have not found Quinton," said Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley. "The evidence that we have so far, based on multiple search warrants and interviews, has led us to the conclusion that Quinton is deceased."

He added: "The accumulation of evidence over these last eight days has led us to this conclusion today."

Law enforcement notified Quintons family on Wednesday that investigators "believe he is deceased," the Chatham County Police Department announced later that day. The department did not provide details of Quintons whereabouts but said that investigators had named the boys mother, Leilani Simon, "as the prime suspect in his disappearance and death."

MISSING GEORGIA TODDLER QUINTON SIMON LIKELY DEAD; POLICE NAME MOTHER AS 'PRIME SUSPECT'

Quinton Simon's mother, Leilani Simon, was photographed outside her Savannah home on Oct. 12, 2022

The police chief said that officers had not made any arrests as of Thursday but said that the baby's mother "is the main focus of this investigation." He added that they were not considering charges against any of Quinton's other family members.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Hadley would not disclose any information about the possible whereabouts of Quinton's remains, despite statements purportedly made by the boy's family that he was believed to be in a landfill.

When asked on Thursday why police had not yet arrested Simon, Hadley said that investigators first wanted to ensure they have "everything that we need to."

"We only get one shot at this," he went on. "We're going to do it right."

Hadley said that investigators do not believe that Simon was a fight risk, but would not say why.

Speaking to Fox News Digital on Thursday, former longtime homicide detective and Fox News contributor Ted Williams said while police have suspicion that Simon was involved in Quinton's disappearance and death, "they do not have probable cause to make an arrest."

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Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley addresses the media in relation to the search for missing toddler, Quinton Simon, Thursday, October 13, 2022.

"If there was sufficient probable cause to make an arrest of the mother, I believe that the authorities would have done so," said Williams, who is also a renowned attorney. "I think the reason that they have named the mother as a possible suspect is because they are trying to make a determination if there are others who have information concerning this child gone missing. And I think they're trying to flush those individuals out."

As police were making their announcement on Thursday, about eight vehicles'-worth of people were gathering at the family's home, bringing with them what looked like food and decorations.

Quinton was last seen in the early-morning hours of Oct. 5, inside his familys house on Buckhalter Road in Savannah. The residence is a large, yellow-colored, two-story home with a fence-in yard and includes a pool. The child reportedly lived there with his brother, his maternal grandparents, his mother and her boyfriend.

Simon, 22, called police around 9:40 a.m. and said her son was not inside their home, police officials stated. The toddler was allegedly last seen around 6 a.m. Wednesday, when he was wearing a Sesame Street shirt and black bottoms.

MOTHER OF MISSING GEORGIA TODDLER QUINTON SIMON PICTURED FOR FIRST TIME SINCE BOYS DISAPPEARANCE

Details of a dispatch call obtained by WJCL shed light on the moments the mother notified police that she could not find her son.

"Complainant advised her 1-year-old son is missing," the dispatcher could be heard saying, according to the report. "She woke up, her door was open. Advised he's unable to open a door. Thinks someone came in and took him."

QUINTON SIMON MISSING: POLICE IN GEORGIA DEPLOY K9S AFTER SEIZING 'EVIDENCE'

Mother of missing Georgia boy Quinton Simon, Leilani Simon, is spotted leaving the house for the first time, with an unknown friend.

Chief Jeffrey M. Hadley said Monday that more than 40 FBI agents were assisting the police department with the case, which has consisted of several interviews, searches and canvasses of a number of geographical areas.

On Wednesday, three black SUVs and two K9s arrived in the neighborhood and were in the area of the family's home for about an hour before they left. They appeared to focus their efforts in part on a wooded section behind the familys and neighbors homes.

General view of the house where missing toddler Quinton Simon was last seen in Savannah Georgia, Tuesday, October 11, 2022.

"Our search and our investigation will continue. And it will continue with every available resource we have in order to give Quentin's family closure and see that justice is served in this case," Hadley told reporters Thursday. "We know that millions of people fell in love with Quentin Simon the moment they saw his face and learned of his disappearance."

He added "We have seen the outpouring of love and concern for this child and the outpouring of grief at the latest developments in this case. The men and women of the Chatham County Police Department share that same sadness, but we also feel very determined to keep working as hard as we can and for as long as we have to, to find Quentin."

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Police are asking anyone with information related to this case to call 912-667-3134.
By Andreas Rinke, Victoria Waldersee and Sarah Marsh

BERLIN (Reuters) - When German business chiefs got wind last month of an economy ministry proposal to screen all company investment going into China as part of a raft of new measures, there was uproar. The investment proposal was soon shelved, a source in the ministry and a business leader told Reuters. Annoyed they hadn't been sufficiently consulted on proposals to make business with China less attractive that could have big repercussions for German firms, senior business leaders later pushed back in a meeting with Economy Minister Robert Habeck. While no conclusions were drawn during the video call on Sept. 21, the meeting, recounted by two of the participants, shines a light on the angst within German boardrooms about the government's push to recalibrate its relationship with China. Executives who attended the meeting included the chief executives of chemicals giant BASF, Deutsche Bank and industrial group Siemens, the two sources said. The companies declined to comment. The economy ministry declined to comment when asked about the meeting. The Green Party, which runs the ministry, has long advocated taking a harder line on China and Habeck said last month that Germany would adopt a tougher approach on trade.

The investment screening proposal floated by the ministry was driven by a desire to limit transfers of certain technology and to avoid increasing dependencies in some sectors, one of the people at the meeting and a government source said.

"We can only warn against Germany turning away from China," said Markus Jerger, head of the Mittelstand Association, part of an alliance representing over 900,000 of the small and medium-sized firms that form the backbone of Europe's biggest economy.

"To put a break on the German economy's China activities, as the economy ministry would like, or is trying to do, is the wrong way," said Jerger, who also attended the meeting with Habeck.

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Politicians and executives in Germany have broadly come to agree that the country needs to lessen its economic dependence on China, given their concerns about industrial espionage, unfair competition or human rights violations - concerns that Beijing has strongly rejected as being unfounded.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has also been a blow to the long-held German maxim that economic interdependency would help open up authoritarian states and sharpened Berlin's focus on how it should weigh profit against risk in its relations with them.

But when it comes to China, businesses say the sticking point is how Germany can reduce its dependence without inflicting more harm on an economy already facing a recession next year - and without provoking a backlash from Beijing.

'LOCAL FOR LOCAL'

Cracks are also emerging within the three-way coalition government that took office in December and is due to publish Germany's first China strategy document next year.

The junior parties, the Greens and Free Democrats, are more hawkish than Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD), who want to avoid triggering a U.S.-style Cold war with China.

"Decoupling is the wrong answer. We don't have to decouple from some countries," Scholz, who plans to visit China later this year, said on Tuesday. "I say emphatically we must continue to do business with China."

German investment and trade in China hit record levels in the first half of 2022 and big business says there's no question of pulling back from the world's second-biggest economy.

Instead, corporate giants such as BASF and carmakers BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are ploughing more money into China to create independent local supply chains, in part to ring-fence their operations from geopolitical disputes and trade wars.

"With the 'local for local' strategy, we stabilise our regional portfolio against external influences in the best possible way," a BASF spokesperson said.

Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, BMW and BASF were together responsible for a third of all European investment in China in 2018-2021, according to a study by Rhodium Group, a research company based in New York.

"It is impossible to completely disentangle China and Europe," said Tobias Just, spokesperson for Mercedes-Benz, which sells three times as many cars in China than the United States and counts two Chinese entities as its biggest shareholders.

"Our strategy is local for local, not just for geopolitical reasons, but for natural hedging, proximity to core markets and cost benefits as well," Just said.

BMW and Volkswagen also told Reuters they were standing by plans to invest more in their long-standing Chinese operations.

The Rhodium study said, however, that smaller European companies were becoming more reluctant to accept the growing risks of investing in China.

A spokesperson for the economy ministry said it was closely following the investment behaviour of German companies as part of its strategic considerations on how to deal with China.

'STEEP LEARNING CURVE'

During their meeting with Habeck, big business leaders tried to make clear they were not naive about China and were looking to diversify, at the same time as doubling down on existing operations, the two participants who declined to be name said.

Habeck promised to continue the dialogue with the business community and another meeting has been arranged for the first quarter next year, the two people said.

"He has a steep learning curve, he is very open," one of them said. "The problem is that he is starting right at the bottom."

The economy ministry declined to comment when asked about a meeting next year, or the remarks about Habeck.

Some of the measures Berlin has said it wants to pursue to reduce its dependency on China are uncontroversial, like seeking new sources of some key commodities such as rare earth metals.

But other proposals have raised alarm bells in the business community as it fears the measures would put them at a competitive disadvantage in what is still the world's fastest growing major economy, despite an expected slowdown next year.

Reuters reported last month that the economy ministry was considering curbing export and investment guarantees as part of its new China strategy.

Germany's Mittelstand companies warn this would hit them hard - and much harder than the corporate giants with more financial firepower.

"If governmental support for exports were to be cancelled, then I estimate that 50% to 70% of our members would probably no longer be bold enough to enter the market," the Mittelstand Association's Jerger said.

Business leaders said Berlin should liaise more closely with them on any China measures and they were relieved to finally discuss the matter in person with Habeck.

Some executives said they were lobbying Berlin to encourage firms to find new markets, for example through new free trade deals, rather than seeking to curb their business in China.

"Instead of punishing companies for doing business with China, the right approach would be to incentivise business with other countries," said Ulrich Ackermann, head of the trade department at Germany's VDMA engineering association.

REPUTATIONAL RISK

Business leaders told Reuters they were concerned that even the debate about possible policy changes was already affecting their relations with China, which has urged Berlin not to politicise trade.

Agatha Kratz at Rhodium said German companies may also be underestimating the reputational risk of doubling down in China, particularly in terms of how their actions were perceived in the United States, which is now Germany's biggest export market.

"They are still a little too hopeful about being able to resist Chinese pressure, but also U.S. pressures in terms of barriers to trade," Kratz said.

China became Germany's biggest single trading partner in 2016 and accounted for nearly 10% of the country's 2.6 trillion euros ($2.5 trillion) in trade last year.

But even under former Chancellor Angela Merkel, who took big business delegations on her many trips to China, the honeymoon was fading as the ruling Communist Party tightened its grip over society and the economy under President Xi Jinping.

The surge in Sino-U.S. tension over Taiwan has been another wake-up call for Berlin this year.

While government officials say Germany's economic ties with Russia did not stop Berlin pushing for sanctions over Ukraine, some lawmakers fear it might be harder to get tough with Beijing in the event of any conflict over Taiwan.

"If the unthinkable were to happen, right now, we would not be able to impose sanctions, we would only be able to wag a finger and say, 'you can't do that'," said SPD lawmaker Markus Toens.

($1 = 1.0245 euros)

(Reporting by Andreas Rinke, Victoria Waldersee and Sarah Marsh in Berlin; Additional Reporting by Ludwig Burger in Frankfurt, Alexander Huebner in Munich and Eduardo Baptista in Beijing; Editing by David Clarke)
BERLIN (Reuters) - German police have arrested a woman suspected of having been involved in a plot to kidnap health minister Karl Lauterbach earlier this year, federal prosecutors said on Thursday.

The woman, a German national identified by police only as Elisabeth R., is suspected of having been ringleader of a radical group that plotted to kidnap Lauterbach and destroy power facilities to cause a nationwide power outage, the prosecutors said in a statement.

Following the foiled kidnapping in April, prosecutors had detained four other suspects, who they said were affiliated with groups that opposed COVID-19 restrictions and with the far-right "Reichsbuerger" movement, which denies the existence of the modern German state.

Prosecutors said on Thursday that Elisabeth R. was involved in coordinating the radical group's plot, in efforts to procure weapons and explosives and in the recruitment of like-minded people.

"This grouping had set itself the goal of creating civil war-like conditions in Germany and thus ultimately to overthrow the federal government and parliamentary democracy," federal prosecutors said.

To this end, the group planned to cause a nationwide blackout and to kidnap Lauterbach, if necessary by killing his bodyguards.

Elisabeth R. is due to appear before a federal judge later on Thursday who will decide if she is to be remanded in custody until formal charges are brought against her, prosecutors said.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan, Editing by William Maclean)
Neobanks have made a name for themselves by successfully winning the business of newly minted adults, opening their first checking, savings and investment accounts and uninterested in doing business with clunky, expensive legacy banks. Now a new wave of startups and services has been getting a jump on that model with an even earlier target: under-18s, including kids as young as 6, and in the latest development, U.K. fintech GoHenry is announcing $55 million in funding to double down on the opportunity.

The equity funding is coming from previous backers Edison Partners and Revaia (formerly Gaia), with a strategic investment from Italian payments company Nexi, a new backer.

The company is not disclosing its valuation but I understand it's more than $250 million and less than $500 million. It brings the total raised by GoHenry (named, the company says, after its first child-customer) to $125 million, including a $40 million round led by Edison in 2020 and a $15 million angel round. (Including recent acquisition Pixpay's fundraise, it's raised $136 million.) Early on, GoHenry also raised $15 million in crowdfunding in 2016 and 2018 and it likes to say that it has 5,000 shareholders as a result of those campaigns, with half of them also users.

That is just a small percentage overall of the kids (and parents) that GoHenry has amassed over the years. It now has 2 million customers -- all between 6 and 18 years of age -- across the U.K., the U.S., and more recently France and Spain after acquiring French rival Pixpay this summer. Today, they use two main services from the company, a prepaid debit card (topped up by parents typically) and a "financial education" app that links to that card (and an app that parents can use to help monitor and manage the account).

COVID-19 broke open the bank when it came to the usage of fintech: consumer "digital transformation" played out in a couple of ways, with people socially distancing driven to using apps and sites to manage their finances, underscored by a shift in commerce also going online, with that increased usage also leading them to trying new financial services alongside that.

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This also played out, interestingly, among young people, GoHenry said, with the company seeing a surge of new users during the pandemic and an increased rate of activity among existing customers. Its research found that kids in the U.K., GoHenry's main market, earned 148 million in 2021, up 9% over 2020.

"We start at 6 because parents want a rite of passage, to give a card for a child's 6th or 7th birthday," CEO Alex Zivoder said. "That surprised us, since it was earlier than we expected. This shows to us that this is the best time for kids to start understanding the concept of money." And that concept is linked to earning it, he added. "It's all about allowance and chores, or a mix." He notes that younger children do not spend much (nor have places to do so) but that takes off in the teen years, as teens do more spending and have more peer-to-peer transactions and more wages paid in from jobs or apprenticeships. "It's the beginning of independence," he said.

GoHenry itself is not yet profitable, but those trends point to its growth. It posted $42 million in revenue in 2021 (the last complete year that it's reported), which was double what it made in 2020. (New users get 30 days of usage free, but after that it's 2.99 per month, and Zivoder said that 99% of people who try it out become customers.)

Now the plan will be to expand its existing products with a new ISA product for savings accounts and the launch of a new gamified educational experience called Money Missions; to expand geographically in Europe (leveraging the Nexi relationship); and to start considering where there might be opportunities to do more for those aging out of the core service.

GoHenry is not the only fintech that is sharpening its sights on the segment. Earlier this week, kids banking app Step announced that it had taken out a $300 million credit line to build out a crypto trading product for young users (yes, crypto trading for under-18s...). Greenlight meanwhile added a new raft of family-focused safety features. Others like Revolut and Acorns, not originally built for younger users, have expanded into that age bracket.

"Its the emergence of a new sector," Zivoder said. "In the next 2 to 3 years well have hopefully created a successful new segment called youth banking. The funding and debt raises are the next step in the story. For all of us, its getting us to the point to become household names in this segment."

When we first partnered with GoHenry in 2020, we knew the company was poised to make a global impact by making money approachable and fun for the younger generation and their families, said Chris Sugden, managing partner, Edison Partners, in a statement. Our initial investment powered the business acceleration in the U.K. and expansion to the U.S. We are excited to fuel GoHenrys rapid growth into continental Europe and to teach young people financial literacy with practical tools like how to manage a budget.
NEW YORK (AP)  As Cuba Gooding Jr.s forcible touching case faded to black Thursday with no jail time for the movie star, some of the dozens of women who have accused him of groping, unwanted kissing and other inappropriate behavior criticized the outcome as a slap on the wrist  and a slap in the face.

The Oscar-winning actor turned #MeToo defendant avoided prison time by complying with the terms of a conditional plea agreement that saw him plead guilty to charges involving just one of what prosecutors have said were allegations from at least 30 women, many at New York City nightspots.

Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Coleen Balbert told a judge Thursday that since the deal was reached in April, Gooding has stayed out of trouble and completed six months of alcohol and behavioral counseling. That enabled him to withdraw his misdemeanor guilty plea  for forcibly kissing a waitress at a Manhattan nightclub in 2018  and instead plead guilty to a non-criminal harassment violation.

That means no additional penalties and no criminal record for Gooding, the star of films such as Jerry Maguire, Boyz N the Hood and Radio.

This plea deal feels like a misstep, said Kelsey Harbert, a neuroscience student whose allegation that Gooding groped her at a nightclub led to his 2019 arrest but wasnt part of his guilty plea.

After three long years of trying to hold Mr. Gooding accountable for touching my breast without my consent, having my day in court taken away from me is more disappointing than words can say, said Harbert, who was tearful at times as she spoke in court.

Harberts lawyer, Gloria Allred, called the plea deal an insult to Goodings accusers and a prosecutorial gift to a celebrity who is undeserving of such an outcome.

Balbert told Judge Curtis Farber that she has received positive reports for the last six months from Goodings therapist. Gooding started counseling in September 2019 and will continue with treatment beyond the time required by his plea agreement, Balbert said.

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If Gooding had failed to comply with the terms of the deal, he would have faced up to one year in jail.

Arrested in 2019, Gooding was among a profusion of Hollywood heavyweights accused of wrongdoing in the #MeToo movement, which exploded five years ago this month.

As Gooding was in court Thursday wrapping up his case, another Oscar-winning actor, Kevin Spacey, was on trial down the block in a civil lawsuit alleging that he sexually assaulted actor Anthony Rapp.

Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, former studio boss Harvey Weinstein and That 70s Show star Danny Masterson are in the midst of separate rape trials. Weinstein was convicted of similar charges in New York in 2020 and is serving a 23-year prison sentence.

Gooding was arrested in June 2019 after Harbert told police he fondled her without her consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square.

A few months later, prosecutors charged Gooding with pinching a servers buttocks after making a sexually suggestive remark to her at TAO Downtown and the allegation to which he pleaded guilty  forcibly kissing a waitress at LAVO New York in midtown Manhattan, both in 2018.

The LAVO waitress said in a victim impact statement that Gooding was facing minimal repercussions while his victims continued to deal with the emotional trauma of his actions.

The TAO Downtown server asked, to no avail, that he be required to complete another six months of therapy to ensure that he changes his behavior and to send a special message to men that sexual assault and misconduct wont be tolerated.

Asked about the criticism, the Manhattan district attorneys office referred to Balberts remarks in court in April in which she said prosecutors believed the plea deal to be a fair and equitable disposition that spared accusers from having to testify at trial and being subject to cross examination.

Gooding said little in court Thursday, did not apologize to his accusers  as he did in April  and did not answer shouted questions from reporters as he hustled out of the courtroom.

Asked to explain what he did, Gooding told Farber: I kissed a waitress, your honor.

The waitress, in her victim impact statement, said Gooding forced his tongue into her mouth unexpectedly while she was serving drinks. In the statement, read into the record by Balbert, the waitress said she was aware of incidents involving Gooding and three other women at the club.

Gooding had previously pleaded not guilty to six misdemeanor counts and denied all allegations of wrongdoing. His lawyers argued that overzealous prosecutors, caught up in the fervor of #MeToo, were trying to turn commonplace gestures or misunderstandings into crimes.

Along with the criminal case, Gooding is a defendant in civil lawsuits, including one alleging he raped a woman in New York City in 2013. After a judge issued a default judgment in July because Gooding hadnt responded to the lawsuit, the actor retained a lawyer and is fighting the allegations.

The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, as Harbert has done.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Google has added former President Trumps Truth Social app to its Google Play Store after a holdup over its content moderation plans.

Trump Media and Technology Group, which owns Truth Social, had criticized the tech giant in August after it said the app did not meet Googles standard policies, namely having effective systems for moderating user-generated content.

The app now appears in the Play Store, and Google confirmed the news to multiple outlets.

Google told CNBC Truth Social agreed to take steps to moderate content in the app, including removing or blocking users who incite violence.

The companys CEO, former Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), told Reuters in a statement on Wednesday that the app would soon be available for Android users.

Its been a pleasure to work with Google, and were glad they helped us to finally bring Truth Social to all Americans, regardless of what device they use, Nunes told the outlet.

Trump created the app after Twitter banned him for comments he made surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Despite being available for Apple users in the App Store, Truth Social had not appeared in the Play Store for months.

Google indicated in August the delay was because Truth Social did not comply with Googles requirements, including one to remove objectionable posts that incite violence.

The apps parent company criticized Google in a statement at the time, saying it was selectively enforcing its policies.

[Trump Media and Technology Group] has continuously worked in good faith with Google to ensure that the Truth Social Android App complies with Googles policies without compromising our promise to be a haven for free speech, the company wrote.

As our users know, Truth Social is building a vibrant, family-friendly environment that works expeditiously to remove content that violates its Terms of Service  which independent observers have noted are among the most robust in the industry, the statement continued.

Elon Musk, who is embroiled in legal battle with Twitter that will determine if he takes over the company, has indicated a willingness to reverse Trumps ban if he ultimately owns Twitter.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Supporters at Donald Trump's fly-in rally cheer during an appearance of Mike Lindell, the pillow entrepreneur and conspiracy theorist, in Minden, Nev., on Oct. 8, 2022. (Bridget Bennett/The New York Times)

MINDEN, Nev.  Surrounded by a half-dozen construction cranes hoisting floodlights, loudspeakers and American flags into the chilly desert twilight, Joe Lombardo stood in front of an attentive audience at a Trump rally and delivered a warm tribute.

Were here to rally for the Republican ticket, and whos going to help us? Lombardo, the partys nominee for governor of Nevada, told a crowd on the Minden airport tarmac that outnumbered the towns population of 3,500. The greatest president, right? Donald J. Trump!

But the praise from Lombardo, a longtime Clark County sheriff, contrasted sharply with his tepid testimonial of Trump a week earlier.

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Seated in a Las Vegas television studio with his hands pressed tightly together in his lap, Lombardo demurred when asked during his only scheduled debate with Gov. Steve Sisolak, the Democratic incumbent, if Trump had been a great president.

I wouldnt use that adjective  I wouldnt say great, Lombardo answered. He was a sound president.

Heading into the final weeks of the midterm campaigns, Republican candidates locked in close races, as Lombardo is, have twisted themselves into political contortions as they puzzle out how to handle their partys most powerful figure  and its most controversial  while toggling between the debate stage and the rally stage.

The challenge confronting Republican contenders across the country is how to win over moderate and independent swing voters without alienating the partys base of Trump loyalists  or the former president. Trump often views politics in deeply personal terms and is known to respond in kind to acts of defiance, even when retribution could jeopardize an election for his party.

Democrats are similarly trapped in an awkward dance with President Joe Biden, whose low approval ratings have forced candidates to keep him at an arms distance. But polls show that Bidens political brand is not as polarizing as Trumps. To like Trump is to love him, while disapproval is often on par with disdain.

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In a New York Times/Siena College poll last month, more than half of the voters who said they viewed Trump favorably said they viewed him very favorably, while 4 out of 5 who had unfavorable opinions of the former president said they viewed him very unfavorably.

Striking the right balance  or not  could decide whether Republicans win control of the Senate and capture several governors offices in key battleground states.

That calculation is complicated by political terrain that varies by state. A winning Republican coalition for J.D. Vance in the Senate race in Ohio  a state that Trump easily won twice  will most likely require a smaller proportion of independent voters than statewide contests in Nevada, which Trump narrowly lost twice, political strategists said.

In North Carolina, Rep. Ted Budd emerged from a crowded Republican Senate primary on the strength of an endorsement from the former president. Budd carried out a multimillion-dollar advertising blitz that prominently featured Trumps backing, but he held few public events and skipped all four Republican primary debates.

But while Trump won North Carolina twice, his victory two years ago was by fewer than 75,000 votes out of 5.5 million ballots cast.

At a rally on Sept. 23 in Wilmington, North Carolina, Trumps first event in the state during the general election, Budd teased a potential third Trump presidential campaign in 2024.

He made America great, and who knows, folks? Budd said to thousands of Trump supporters. He might just do it again.

But when Budd was asked at his debate Friday with Cheri Beasley, the Democratic nominee for Senate, whether he wanted Trump to open another campaign for the White House, he would not say.

Im going to exclusively focus on this one right now, Budd said of his own race. We have 32 days on this one. Lets get on the other side of this and lets have that conversation then.

Budd also hedged on his support for Trumps false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Budd voted to overturn the results after a mob of Trump supporters rioted in the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and signed a letter after the election urging the Justice Department to investigate allegations of voter fraud and other irregularities.

In late 2020, Budd also spread bogus claims that voting machines used in some states came from a company with ties to liberal billionaire George Soros, according to text messages obtained by CNN that Budd sent to Mark Meadows, then the White House chief of staff.

But during the Friday debate, Budd said he had voted to overturn the 2020 election in order to inspire more debate.

Debate is healthy for democracy, Budd added, without explaining what needed to be debated at the time of the vote. At that point, the Trump campaign had made several unsuccessful court challenges and each states Electoral College delegation had already met and cast its ballots.

Similarly, in Arizona, Blake Masters won the Republican nomination for Senate with the help of Trumps endorsement, which arrived months after Masters recorded a social media video in which he looked directly into the camera to tell viewers, I think Trump won in 2020. At the time, Trump made clear he was snubbing another Republican candidate who the former president believed had not done enough to support the lie that the election was rigged.

But at a debate last week with Sen. Mark Kelly, the Democratic incumbent, Masters agreed that Biden had been legitimately elected. He said that Biden had probably won because social media companies suppressed negative news about Hunter Biden, the presidents son.

But pressed on whether he thought there had been a problem with the counting of votes in 2020, as Trump has claimed, Masters declined.

I havent seen evidence of that, he said.

Three days after the debate, Masters mingled with attendees before a Trump rally in Mesa, Arizona. In a brief interview as he shook hands and posed for pictures, Masters said he stood by his position on election fraud.

Asked which position, Masters replied, Both.

Completely consistent, he said.

Masters smiled, turned and headed toward the stage where he would soon stand side by side with the former president.

 2022 The New York Times Company
WARWICK  Republican candidate for governor Ashley Kalus doubled down Thursday on her disputed contention that incumbent Dan McKee has the power to block steep electricity and gas rate hikes and suspend an energy tax.

Kalus called her news conference, at her headquarters in Warwick, on the morning before she faced Democrat McKee at a forum hosted by The Providence Journal and The Public's Radio that was broadcast live on radio and on The Providence Journal's website.

LiveForum: How will the candidates for governor answer voters' questions?

She accused McKee of failing to use his emergency powers  under a 40-year-old law enacted after the gasoline shortages of the 1970s  to roll back rate hikes of 47% in electricity and 15% in natural gas.

Gov. Dan McKee: McKee releases state and federal tax returns. Will opponent Kalus do the same?

Ashley Kalus: She says she will release her tax returns when McKee releases test scores and subpoenas

Republican candidate for governor Ashley Kalus holds a news conference Thursday to call on Gov. Dan McKee to ease the state's spike in energy costs.

Can the governor stop utility rate hikes? What the law says:

The 1980 law says, in part: "Whenever the governor finds that existing or impending abnormal, energy resource-related market disruptions threaten the health, safety or welfare of the citizens of this state, he or she shall by executive order declare the existence of an energy crisis."

In such events, the governor may "take any ... action that may be necessary to protect the health, safety and welfare of the people."

Comparing this law to the health emergency powers both McKee and his predecessor, Gina Raimondo, exercised during the pandemic, Kalus suggested the energy-crisis law is also open to "liberal" interpretation.

She envisioned the governor basically delaying the rate hikes until summer, when, she expected, energy prices will be lower. But the picture is not so clear. That the rates will be lower in the summer is not a given.

Among the reasons for the uncertainty: The Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission requires Rhode Island Energy to buy supplies far in advance of when theyre needed to smooth out any price fluctuations in wholesale energy markets.

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That means much of the supply for this winter was procured before the war in Ukraine, which has driven up prices of natural gas, a critical fuel for electricity generation in New England.

That is the reason the electric rate hike in Rhode Island, though high, is still lower than in other states.

But Rhode Island Energy is now tying up supply for next year, and prices are still inflated. The company has already secured 55% of its supply for the spring/summer period and 35% for the 2023-24 winter period.

Because of the uncertainty surrounding energy prices as the war in Ukraine continues, the PUC balked at deferring the rate increase's impact on customers.

Putting off those costs could make it even harder for ratepayers in the future, commission members said at the meeting last month at which they approved the new rates.

Did Kalus misread the law?

Beyond that, McKee spokesman Matt Sheaff said, Kalus  and her advisers  misread the 1980 law.

He said: "The Energy Crisis Management Act was passed in response to the energy crises and fuel shortage(s) of the 1970s and was intended to help manage the supply of energy, not energy prices."

"If the statute were improperly invoked to attempt to address energy prices, it would expose Rhode Island taxpayers to expensive and protracted litigation," he said.

"While Ashley Kalus is trying to rewrite Rhode Island law, Governor McKee is taking action," he said, citing the millions of dollars set aside for direct rate relief and the suspension of the utility service charge on all gas and electric customer bills for six months.

House leaders agreed with McKee's stance on the 1980 law.

Recalling the history, spokesman Larry Berman said the law, enacted "on the heels of the 1979 energy crisis and resulting public panic ... has remained on the books, [but] it has not been utilized, and its legal application to current conditions involving rate increases is doubtful."

"Utilization of this statute to decrease energy prices would invite predictable and costly legal challenges," he said.

He also said the House is instead "exploring viable and impactful solutions to quickly lower energy costs" for action during the next session.

Kalus rejects ad, still facing tax-return questions

Before her news conference was over, Kalus  a recent Rhode Island arrival  had also denounced Democrat McKee's new "not from here" ad questioning her ties to Rhode Island as a "deeply unDemocratic and unAmerican message."

"We are a country of immigrants," she said. "I think that the message in that ad is one that is not worthy of a governor and I think that it smacks of nativism which, quite frankly, threatens Democracy."

The ad features a string of ostensible Rhode Island voters questioning whether Kalus is from Florida  where she was registered to vote until the day after she declared her run for governor in March  or Illinois, where she had a "homestead exemption" on a home, or perhaps California, where she was born.

"The idea that that is a qualification, that somebody isn't born and raised [in Rhode Island] and that excludes them, is a deeply unAmerican message," Kalus said.

"He should take that down," she said.

When asked, however, to which state she paid taxes in 2021, Kalus said: "I actually am not sure that we have filed yet. I think we have a few more days, so I will look into that."

The McKee camp responded: Ashley Kalus doesn't even know if she pays taxes in Rhode Island."

Kalus has a new ad of her own, featuring her 10-year-old son, Tyler, saying she can take a punch.

With reports from Patrick Anderson.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Can the RI governor stop energy bills from going up? Kalus says yes
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha talks Wednesday afternoon about the statewide police body camera program.

Rhode Island police departments are poised to spend $16 million in state and federal grants to equip police officers with body cameras and cover the costs of managing and operating the equipment.

The architects of the Statewide Body-Worn Camera Program announced the grant awards to 42 police organizations on Wednesday as Rhode Island moved closer to a deployment of 1,773 cameras  roughly a camera for every front-line police officer, according to Attorney General Peter Neronha.

"That is a lot of law-enforcement officers [who] will now have the tools to bring us into the century in which we are operating," Neronha said.

State police Col. Darnell Weaver described the grant announcements as a culminating moment after months of coordination and planning work by police leaders and their agencies.

More: More Rhode Island police to wear body cameras on patrol. Warwick launches pilot program

"A key milestone as we work to address the issues that are challenges in policing today," he said.

"Cameras will add transparency, provide accountability and give a point of view, of perspective, to every police contact," Weaver said.

The grant money was apportioned to finance the program for five years.

The awarding of the money carries significance beyond finances.

Police organizations that receive the money must comply with a detailed set of regulations on the use and operation of body cameras.

The set of rules and regulations, said Weaver, "protects constitutional rights, documents critical interactions between the police and members of the public, promotes transparency and reflects the thoughtful input of citizens and advocacy groups."

The regulations, which are set to take effect Oct. 26, establish the statewide program itself.

What are ghost guns? Police say they pose a growing threat in Rhode Island.

Tiverton police Sgt. Jason Kobelecki is in his second month of wearing a body camera in a pilot program.

They set forth a wide range of responsibilities for officers who are not working undercover and are assigned to wear the cameras. Those responsibilities range from attending to camera equipment before and after each shift to activating a body camera when the situation calls for it.

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Those situations are when they respond to calls, initiate "any investigative or enforcement activity involving a member of the public," begin any pursuit or emergency driving, or assist another officer in any such situations.

The regulations are the product of a development process that grappled with a collection of thorny questions.

When will police release body camera footage?

How soon should the public have access to a body camera video that shows an officer using deadly force?

"No later than upon the substantial completion of the investigation," the policy says in part. "Substantial completion," it says, means evidence has been collected and witnesses have been interviewed."

Neronha described the policy as a "living document" that will need to change as time goes on.

More: Trump administration insider from RI led the federal COVID response. Then Jan. 6 happened

The program aims to provide officers with discretion in certain situations.

One example is when someone who wants to help police by cooperating with an investigation or providing a tip doesn't want to be recorded on video.

South Kingstown Police Chief Matthew C. Moynihan said a small group of officers has been working with the cameras since March as part of a pilot program.

He said he isn't aware of any such requests.

The South Kingstown force, like many others in the state, is aiming to have the body cameras in place by Jan. 1.

The Smithfield police department is the only municipal police department that's not participating in the program, Neronha said.

Providence police have worn cameras for years.

But the level of participation in the program is a big signal that Rhode Island police from one end of the state to the other are ready to incorporate video recording into much of their daily work.

A Tiverton police sergeant, Jason Kobelecki, wore his Axon camera, next to his tie. Magnets kept it fixed to a plate of steel beneath his shirt.

Kobelecki counts himself among police officers who see a lot of value in the cameras.

Mike Imondi, president of Providence's police union, who did not speak at the event, said Providence officers have seen many benefits from the cameras.

They also recognize the importance of making sure that camera footage isn't employed abusively, he said.

He pointed out that in Providence, a computer helps supervisors select video clips randomly when they check in on officers by monitoring video.

The event drew U.S. Rep. David N. Cicilline; U.S. Sen. Jack Reed and police chiefs from all over the state to the attorney general's headquarters in Cranston.

Reed said that body cameras help police win convictions and also help the public hold police accountable.

Jim Vincent, president of the Providence Branch of the NAACP, called them tools that have become a "best practice" throughout the country.

"Not only was this a worthwhile idea," he said, "but it was a worthwhile investment."

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI grants awarded to fund statewide police body camera program
Users Deleting Grindr Over Right-Wing Tweets From New CEO

The right-wing political views of the new head of Grindr are causing some users to delete the popular gay dating and hookup app.

The tag #DeleteGrindr is trending after news incoming CEO George Arison, 44, previously tweeted he was a conservative who supported some of the positions of then-President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Arison, who is gay, starts his new job October 19.

FYI I am a conservative & agree with some Trump policies, Arison wrote in a since-deleted tweet on February 28, 2020.

Should totally run for President, he wrote of Youngkin in a retweet dated February 24 of this year.

Arison appeared to express support for DeSantis in another retweet from January. In the retweet, he wrote that the man who championed the dont say gay law was not ideal but agreed the Republican governor was better-suited to advance a new, more comabtive [sic] and populist party.

Users on social media responded quickly, calling out the past statements from Arison.

Another user called out Arisons support for Youngkin.

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Others indicated they were ditching Grindr.

Arison came to Grindr from e-commerce marketplace Shift Technologies, where he was CEO and cofounder.

In a statement to The Advocate about the issue, Grindr centered on Arisons identity as a gay man, husband, and father.

George is an out gay man, proudly married to his husband and the father of two children, a Grindr spokesperson said. George is passionate about fighting for the rights and freedoms of LGBTQ people around the world.
By Natalie Grover

LONDON (Reuters) -Data unveiled on Thursday showed GSK's respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine was 82.6% effective in a keenly watched late-stage study involving older adults.

RSV is a leading cause of pneumonia in toddlers and the elderly, causing thousands of hospitalisations and deaths each year, but the complex molecular structure of the virus and safety concerns have stymied efforts to develop a vaccine.

The trial, which involved roughly 25,000 adults aged 60 and over, showed the vaccine was 94.1% effective against severe lower respiratory tract disease associated with an RSV infection, the British drugmaker said.

"These are truly exceptional results given that today RSV remains one of the major infectious diseases without a vaccine, despite over 60 years of research," said Tony Wood, GSK Chief Scientific Officer, in a statement.

GSK's shares rose about 1.7% in early trading.

The company is a key player in the race to develop a safe and effective RSV vaccine, which, if approved, is expected to generate billions in sales for its maker. Regulatory submissions are planned later this year.

If approved, Jefferies analysts have forecast $2.5 billion in global RSV vaccine peak sales in older adults for GSK.

GSK said in June the trial had yielded statistically significant results for the shot, but on Thursday gave details about the performance of the vaccine.

U.S. drugmaker Pfizer in August disclosed positive Phase III data on its rival RSV vaccine in older adults.

Efficacy against RSV-associated lower respiratory tract illness with two or more symptoms was 66.7%, while efficacy against severe disease defined by three or more symptoms was 85.7%, the company said.

Given different definitions of the trial endpoints across the GSK and Pfizer studies, a direct comparison of efficacy is difficult, Morgan Stanley analysts said on Thursday.

"That said, the GSK data do look strong relative to that presented by Pfizer," they added.

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In trial participants with pre-existing conditions, the GSK vaccine was shown to be 94.6% effective, while in adults aged 70 to 79 it was 93.8% effective, the company said.

The performance of Pfizer's vaccine across key subgroups, possible differences in safety and tolerability between the GSK and Pfizer shot, as well as any early signs of how durable the protection for either shot is, will be the key focus of presentations from both drugmakers at a medical conference next week, Jefferies analysts said.

A late-stage readout on Johnson & Johnson's RSV vaccine in older adults is also expected by the end of 2022, while an interim look at Moderna's rival shot's Phase III data is also anticipated this winter.

(Reporting by Natalie Grover; Editing by Jan Harvey and Mark Potter)
With less than a month until election day, candidates are making a sprint toward the finish line and making their pitch to voters.

Republican candidate for Pennsylvania governor Doug Mastriano held a meet and greet in Butler County on Wednesday.

Guests gathered at Hangar 3 of the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport.

Another meet and greet will be held for voters on Thursday at the Springdale Veterans Association. The event is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.

Registration is required to attend Thursdays meet and greet. If youre interested in attending, click here.

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TOPSHOT-SOMALIA-DISPLACED-DROUGHT-FAMINE

Hawa Mohamed Isack (R), 60, drinks water at a water distribution point at Muuri camp, one of the 500 camps for internally displaced persons in town, in Baidoa, Somalia, on February 13, 2022. Credit - YASUYOSHI CHIBAAFP/Getty Images

After a series of particularly devastating famines in East and West Africa in the early 1980sthe ones that sparked the Live Aid concert and set Bono on his path from rock star to humanitarian dynamothe U.S. set up an early warning system for when a regions food supply was going to fail. The Famine Early Warning Systems Network or FEWS-NET, as its known, monitors such things as weather patterns, agricultural production, conflict and changes in humanitarian assistance, to give the wealthier nations and aid agencies timely information about likely crises. With enough awareness, the thinking was, there would be time to head off the worst ravages.

For several months now, that system has been sounding a major alarm about the situation in the Horn of Africa, which, after four failed rainy seasons over two years, is enduring the worst drought in recorded history, with no end in sight. Many aid agencies believe that a declaration of famine is imminent. Famine declarations are only made under extreme conditions: when a full third of a regions children are severely malnourished, a fifth of the population has no access at all to food and there are two hunger-related deaths per 10,000 people each day. The only two famines ever declared were in South Sudan in 2017 and Somalia in July 2011.

Read More: Drought and the Ukraine War Are Pushing Somalia Toward a Catastrophic Famine

The warnings this time are not vague; theyre supported by reams of data: sophisticated rainfall measuring technology from the Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station (CHIRPS) is predicting that there will not be enough rain in Somalia and nearby regions for the next few months to successfully grow crops for the fifth season in a row, which has not happened since the group first started collecting data. And the outlook for 2023 remains equally bleak. According to the Climate Hazards Center, crop harvests in Kenya, Somalia, and southern Ethiopia have been and will remain very poor, more than 9 million livestock have perished [and] water resources have become extremely scarce. In December of 2021 the International Rescue Committee (IRC) included Somalia on its annual watchlist, noting that the number of people in need increased 48% in a year. This year has been worse, it says. One of its clinics in Somalia saw acute malnutrition cases rise eightfold in four months.

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Despite the precision and volume of the data, however, many Americans are unaware of the situation. A recent poll of Americans aged 19 to 34 conducted by the IRC and YouGov found that almost 70% did not even know there was a drought in East Africa until they took the survey. This is despite the fact that the U.S. has given over $700 million in aid to the region, more than the rest of the world combined. This seems to be an invisible famine, says Gayle Smith, CEO of One.org, and former U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) administrator under President Obama. Its on the horizon, its happening. Theres been plenty of warning from the Somalia authorities, from NGOs from others. I think theres some awareness, but it has not triggered the kind of international response that one would expect, and is in fact needed.

The lack of awareness has surprised even longtime watchers of the region. It has been, you know, third or fourth page news at best, says Daniel Maxwell, the Henry J. Leir Professor in Food Security at the Friedman School of Nutrition at Tufts University, and a member of the Famine Review Committee for Somalia, who has also worked for humanitarian aid organizations in Africa for two decades. While there were huge public fundraising and efforts for Darfur in the mid-2000s and Sudan in 2011, Maxwell says he doesnt see any similar efforts for the region gaining the same sort of traction at the moment. I dont know what it is that captures the imagination of the public.

Read More: What Climate Change Means For Africas Food Crisis

Obviously, the war in Ukraine is dominating the attention of news outlets and international humanitarian agencies, especially those in Europe. But thats not the only reason this famine is getting less attention than its severity warrants. Heres what else experts think might be keeping this famine out of the public eye.

Its a slow moving crisis

In 2011, when famine was declared in Somalia, the situation escalated to a critical point but only remained there briefly. This timepartly because of the early warnings the situation is grinding inexorably on. December to March are the dry months in Somalia, and the 2023 rainy season is predicted to be sparse, which will send thousands more people off the land to gather in large camps, which could spark a breakout of disease or overtax the water supply and eventually lead to many more deaths than prior droughts. I am concerned that if the the thresholds for famine arent breached, people will sort of pat themselves on the back and say, Oh good, We averted famine!' says Maxwell. But we may not avert the kind of mass mortality that we saw last time just because of the magnitude of the problem and the likely duration of the problem.

Its not entirely due to a natural disaster

People understand and respond quickly to natural disasters like tsunamis and earthquakes, but famine is about more than bad weather and failed crops. A lot of the failures are social or economic in nature. Famine is usually comorbid with conflict. Somalia has been terrorized by militants linked to al Qaeda, decreasing the Wests abilityand appetiteto offer help. South Sudan is still dealing with the ravages of its long-running civil unrest. Ethiopia has also seen regional skirmishes. And the war in Europe has made unstable economies even less viable. Much of the food consumed in the Horn of Africa is imported. With the high price of oil, shipping food has become more complicated and expensive. Broken supply lines do not feel as urgent as crop failures. Yet they make a disastrous situation more perilous than it is has ever been. When you put all those things together, it is probably the most severe combination of drivers [of famine], but also ones that are likely to last for a longer period of time, says Maxwell.

Prevention is better than cure, but less urgent

During the famine in Somalia in 2011, a quarter of a million people died, half of them children, many of them before the famine declaration drew the worlds attention. The humanitarian sector vowed to take steps to head off such disasters in the future. But warnings speak of something that may happen, and its harder to direct hard-won funding if theres any chance it wont, in the same way that its harder to make time for a regular medical check-up than a visit to the ER. Governments and international actors are still responding to the impacts of the drought, instead of managing the risk ahead of the drought, says an Oxfam report from May, and are struggling to take action at sufficient scale in response to early warning information.

Some wealthy countries are struggling

Many aid agencies and some governmental organizations have tried to head off the disaster. The U.N. allocated $100 million in April. In July, the head of USAID, Samantha Power, said the agency would provide $476 million to address the crisis in Somalia. In September she added another $151 million. We still have a narrow window of opportunity to stave off famine in the Horn, she said. Later that month President Biden announced that the U.S. would contribute $2.9 billion to address the global hunger crisis, $2 billion of which was direct food aid. But other countries have not stepped up. One of our key partners has been the U.K., which has unfortunately dramatically reduced its aid budget, says Smith. So theres a deficit there.

It seems like the funding should cover it

The amounts of money that have been donated so far sound huge enough that people could believe its enough to solve the problem. But money doesnt go as far as it did in the past. Food prices were already at at near record levels [in Somalia] even before the invasion of Ukraine, says Maxwell. The international aid has helped, but were still at a worse place now than we were in February with food prices at a record high. At the same time as prices went up, people lost their livelihoods. Drought reduces the value of anything that people have to sell to buy foodeither livestock or their own labor, says Maxwell. So were at near historic lows in terms of peoples purchasing power. At a recent IRC event, one of the Somalian fieldworkers noted during her presentation that PlumpyNut, the highly nutritious food used by Unicef and other aid organizations to feed peopleespecially childrenin emergency situations had more than doubled in price from $50 per 15kg to $130and thats before the cost of transport.

There are too many disasters

Conflicts in Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Yemen, the recent floods in Pakistan and the earthquake in Haiti, are taxing the worlds main providers of aidand the worlds attention. The fact of the matter is, were dealing with more crises than we ever have before, says Smith. And stretching the funding, I think, risks elongating the crises and failing to assist people we can actually reach. Smith would like aid budgets to be bigger, although she knows that without a large show of public support, any increase is unlikely. To mobilize the kind of response thats needed, you not only need to activate and get the attention of governments, she says, you have to get the attention of the public.

The attention economy is very fragmented

Back when LIVE AID was shown on TVs around the world, and even when Live 8, its followup, was staged in 2005, snagging a few key media outlets meant catching the eye of the millions of viewers, with headlines the following day for those who missed it. This years Global Citizen concert, featuring Mariah Carey and Metallica, was streamed on a long laundry list of outlets from Amazon Music to YouTube, but seemed to make very little dent in the Western news cycle. (The New York Post noted that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had been booed.) And it too, had a long list of causes it needed to support. The looming famine was front and center at the companion concert in Accra, Ghana, but didnt get much of a mention from the main stage in New York City. Weve got a very crowded media space, says Smith and weve got multiple issues on the international agenda and unfortunately, this falls near the bottom. Correction Oct 13.

The original version of this story misstated the full name of FEWS-NET. It is the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, not the Famine Emergency Warning System Network.
Oct. 13The recommendation follows federal approvals of the new bivalent boosters for younger children by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today.

The Hawaii Department of Health today announced its recommendation of the bivalent booster vaccines for everyone ages 5 and older in lock step with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The recommendation follows of the new bivalent boosters for younger children by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today.

FDA issued emergency use authorization for Pfizer-BioNTech's bivalent COVID booster for children ages 5 to 11, and for Moderna's bivalent COVID booster for children and teens ages 6 to 17. CDC swiftly followed suit with a recommendation of the bivalent boosters for everyone ages 5 and older.

"This is great news for parents who want to protect their young children, " said State Health Director Dr. Elizabeth "Libby " Char in a news release. "Bivalent boosters were already available for everyone 12 and older. Now kids ages 5-11 can benefit from these new boosters too."

The updated bivalent boosters target both the original COVID strain and omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5, which DOH says account for almost all coronavirus cases in Hawaii.

The White House on Tuesday urged all eligible Americans to get the updated COVID-19 boosters in order to have maximum protection against the coronavirus ahead of the holidays and a "challenging " virus season.

The new bivalent vaccines are to be administered as a single booster dose to those who previously completed a primary series of COVID-19 vaccines. They can only be administered if it has been at least two months after a person's last primary dose or an earlier booster.

Those eligible can choose either a Pfizer and Moderna booster regardless of which vaccine they previously received.

To schedule a specific COVID booster or vaccine, visit or DOH's vaccine finder map at.
Jamie Clayton as Pinhead Hulu

All the feature-length "Hellraiser" movies, ranked from worst to best.

Insider dives into the likes of Scott Derrickson's "Inferno" and the cosmic "Bloodline."

The list also includes the 2022 movie on Hulu, starring Jamie Clayton as Pinhead.

11. "Hellraiser: Revelations" (2011)

Stephan Smith Collins as Pinhead. Miramax Films

At the bottom of the list is the infamous "Hellraiser: Revelations," which is reported to have been hastily made by The Weinstein Company as a way of keeping its hands on the rights to the franchise. Unfortunately, this means it was made with very little budget, time, or care that the series deserves.

It sees Nico (Jay Gillespie) and Steven (Nick Eversman) get their hands on the iconic puzzle box in Mexico and cross paths with Pinhead (Stephan Smith Collins). It isn't long before Steven has to go on a killing spree to revive a skinless Nico, lazily retreading a similar path from the original movie.

Watching "Hellraiser: Revelations" is probably one of the tortures that Pinhead has for his victims because it's a pale imitation of what a "Hellraiser" movie should be.

10. "Hellraiser: Deader" (2005)

Paul Rhys as Winter LeMarchand and Doug Bradley as Pinhead. Miramax Films

Pinhead might have such sights to show us, but "Hellraiser: Deader" isn't one of them.

It sees a journalist, Amy (Kari Wuhrer), investigate a cult called the "Deaders" in Bucharest, and it only gets dumber from there. While the sequel tries to explore the lore of the puzzle box further by introducing the descendant of its creator, Winter LeMarchand (Paul Rhys), the cult setting doesn't inject much life into the story.

In its defense, the film does bring its nihilistic themes full circle by the end of things as Amy sacrifices herself after reliving her own troubled past, while also stopping Pinhead in his tracks.

While there are bones of a good story in there (somewhere), it doesn't live up to the gory heights of other chapters in the franchise.

9. "Hellraiser: Judgment" (2018)

Gary J. Tunnicliffe as the Assessor. Miramax Films

Oh, "Hellraiser: Judgment," there was so much potential.

It starts off strong by adding a brand new hellish group alongside the cenobites, called the Stygian Inquisition. They have a disturbing way of assessing their victims as a horde of gruesome judges. However, once the film establishes the inquisitors, it quickly moves on to a paint-by-numbers serial killer plot with a blatant twist that can be seen from the get-go.

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It's hugely disappointing because the Stygian Inquisition is a fascinating addition to the "Hellraiser" lore, but the script chooses to fill in the blanks with a mind-numbing storyline.

No wonder Doug Bradley chose not to return to play Pinhead.

8. "Hellraiser: Hellworld" (2005)

Henry Cavill as Mike and Katheryn Winnick as Chelsea. Miramax Films

"Hellworld" really tries to push the franchise into the 21st century, as Pinhead goes online Sort of.

This movie follows a group of friends who are obsessed with a game based on the "Hellraiser" franchise, in what's clearly an attempt to copy "Scream" and its self-referential in-world film series, "Stab."

It's mildly entertaining because it at least tries something new in the "Hellraiser" lore, but once the gang gets to a mysterious party held in an asylum, it mainly relies on predictable slasher stereotypes.

Sure, a twist in the finale does keep it from being completely boring, and at least Lance Henriksen has fun stretching his horror limbs again after "Aliens," and "Pumpkinhead."

Unfortunately, the mediocre story keeps this one from ascending up the list, but it's at least worth a watch for a young Henry Cavill.

7. "Hellraiser: Hellseeker" (2002)

Dean Winters as Trevor Gooden. Miramax Films

"Hellraiser: Hellseeker" brings back Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence), an admirable feat in itself, and it expands her story in a fascinating way, albeit with a bait-and-switch in the film's opening.

The story follows her husband, Trevor Gooden (Dean Winters), as he stumbles through a nightmarish existence in the aftermath of a grisly accident.

But once Trevor figures out that there's something else going on, the film escalates the horror in a really unique way before it all culminates in an effective finale.

However, there are moments early on in "Hellseeker" that feel like it was intended to be a different film entirely, and in fact, it was.

Writer Michael Lent had a different take for the sixth film in the series, and elements of his script were used in "Hellseeker," which creates a disjointed atmosphere hanging over the final product.

There are moments of greatness, but not enough to redeem it entirely.

6. "Hellraiser IV: Bloodline" (1996)

Doug Bradley as Pinhead. Miramax Films

There's no getting around it: "Hellraiser IV: Bloodline" is Pinhead in space.

But quite frankly, it deserves more praise for having the sheer audacity to pull that off, let alone weaving in a backstory that stretches back to the 1700s.

Aside from its cosmic storyline, "Bloodline" explores the history of the Lament Configuration and how it was created by a toymaker who made it for a rich client.

From there it's awash with blood, guts, and cheesy performances. But it excels at adding to the "Hellraiser" universe, even offering an antithesis to the Lament Configuration with a giant space station.

It even features a surprisingly villainous performance from "Parks and Recreation" star Adam Scott. What's not to love?

5. "Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth" (1992)

Eric Wilhelm as CD. Miramax Films

So, who was Pinhead before he got his infamously painful look? "Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth" deconstructs the classic villain by literally splitting his consciousness in two.

The audience gets to know Captain Elliot Spencer (Doug Bradley), who descended into a hedonistic frenzy after World War I, which is when he found the puzzle box and ultimately became Pinhead.

Not only that, but its main story sees Pinhead hunting victims in a nightclub, and generally causing mass chaos throughout New York City. Some of the clubbers face grim fates, including being turned into some brilliantly designed cenobites, like CD (Eric Willhelm), who churns out discs from his stomach to use as throwing knives.

It's a shame he doesn't pop up elsewhere though.

4. "Hellraiser: Inferno" (2000)

J.B. Gaynor as young Joseph Thorne, Doug Bradley as Pinhead, and Craig Sheffer as Detective Joseph Thorne. Miramax Films

"Hellraiser: Inferno" in fourth place? Damn right.

It deserves your attention for one reason, and one reason only: Scott Derrickson.

Yes, the director of "Sinister," "Doctor Strange," and "The Black Phone" helmed a "Hellraiser" movie, and it deserves way more love than it gets.

"Inferno" follows Detective Joseph Thorne (Craig Sheffer) as he investigates a brutal murder, before finding himself stuck in a web of Cenobite torture. This works so well because of its noirish streak in typical supernatural horror, mixed with a cautionary tale about corruption.

It's clear that 2018's "Hellraiser: Judgment" was aiming for this type of story, but fell at every hurdle, while "Inferno" succeeds.

It also boasts some of the creepiest cenobite designs since the earlier films, and it was immediately clear that Derrickson's horror career was going to flourish after this.

3. "Hellbound: Hellraiser II" (1988)

William Hope as Dr. Kyle MacRae and Ashley Laurence as Kirsty Cotton. New World Pictures

Coming in third is "Hellbound: Hellraiser II." which picks up with Kirsty Cotton almost immediately after the events of the original movie, as she's placed into psychiatric care because of her encounter with her uncle, Frank Cotton (Sean Chapman) and Pinhead.

Unfortunately, Kirsty finds herself in the care of Dr. Channard (Kenneth Cranham), who's equally obsessed with the Lament Configuration and even resurrects a skinless Julia Cotton (Clare Higgins).

The sequel's mainly so exciting because fans get a closer look at the Cenobite dimension, which is ruled by a Lynchian entity known as Leviathan. The sprawling set design of the labyrinth feels incredibly creepy, and Kirsty constantly feels like she's at the mercy of whatever's lurking around the corner.

It's also great to see that the series isn't afraid to establish other villains aside from its figure(pin)head with Julia and Channard. Monsters, alternate dimensions, and Kirsty Cotton being a true hero It's clear why "Hellraiser II" is so beloved.

2. "Hellraiser" (2022)

Jamie Clayton as Pinhead. Hulu

Coming in hot at second place is 2022's "Hellraiser," which recently arrived on Hulu and stars Jamie Clayton as the iconic priest of hell.

Many fans had high expectations for the film by director David Bruckner, and the reimagining exceeds them all.

Clayton's haunting performance is utterly stunning, as she slowly stalks Riley (Odessa A'zion) and her friends.

The story has plenty to say about addiction, selfishness, and hubris, as Riley battles her inner demons, as well as the cenobites. Although a wrench is thrown into her fight for survival as she searches for answers and comes across a depraved businessman who has had his own dealings with Pinhead.

To say any more would ruin the beauty of the movie, but it's a gloriously gory treat for audiences with some truly unhinged set pieces. And this is all without praising the chilling new cenobite designs that are destined to haunt a million different nightmares for years to come.

1. "Hellraiser" (1987)

Doug Bradley as Pinhead. Entertainment Film Distributors

The top spot couldn't go to anything else but 1987's "Hellraiser," of course.

Clive Barker's grim masterpiece is the one to kick off the whole franchise, and it delivered one of the most iconic horror villains of all time. It's filled with hideous imagery, but there's none so disgusting as Frank Cotton's resurrection in the loft.

It's the kind of scrappy, gross horror that sears itself into the viewer's brain with an impressive flair. Whether it's his ribs snapping back into place, or the gooey residue dripping off his brain, it's just visceral.

However, its most impressive feat is using Pinhead like the shark in "Jaws." He doesn't surface very often, but when he does it's instantly memorable. Doug Bradley's performance is a sight to behold, especially when delivering bone-chilling lines like "No tears, please. It's a waste of good suffering."

Long live Pinhead.

Read the original article on Insider
The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.

So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Argentex Group (LON:AGFX). Now this is not to say that the company presents the best investment opportunity around, but profitability is a key component to success in business.

Check out our latest analysis for Argentex Group

How Fast Is Argentex Group Growing Its Earnings Per Share?

Even with very modest growth rates, a company will usually do well if it improves earnings per share (EPS) year after year. So EPS growth can certainly encourage an investor to take note of a stock. Argentex Group's EPS skyrocketed from UK0.052 to UK0.065, in just one year; a result that's bound to bring a smile to shareholders. That's a fantastic gain of 25%.

One way to double-check a company's growth is to look at how its revenue, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins are changing. Argentex Group maintained stable EBIT margins over the last year, all while growing revenue 23% to UK35m. That's encouraging news for the company!

You can take a look at the company's revenue and earnings growth trend, in the chart below. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.

In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out this free interactive visualization of Argentex Group's forecast profits?

Are Argentex Group Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Owing to the size of Argentex Group, we wouldn't expect insiders to hold a significant proportion of the company. But we are reassured by the fact they have invested in the company. Notably, they have an enviable stake in the company, worth UK3.8b. This totals to 34% of shares in the company. Enough to lead management's decision making process down a path that brings the most benefit to shareholders. Very encouraging.

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It's good to see that insiders are invested in the company, but are remuneration levels reasonable? A brief analysis of the CEO compensation suggests they are. For companies with market capitalisations over UK7.2b, like Argentex Group, the median CEO pay is around UK1.3m.

The Argentex Group CEO received total compensation of just UK630k in the year to March 2022. That's clearly well below average, so at a glance that arrangement seems generous to shareholders and points to a modest remuneration culture. CEO compensation is hardly the most important aspect of a company to consider, but when it's reasonable, that gives a little more confidence that leadership are looking out for shareholder interests. It can also be a sign of good governance, more generally.

Does Argentex Group Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

For growth investors, Argentex Group's raw rate of earnings growth is a beacon in the night. If that's not enough, consider also that the CEO pay is quite reasonable, and insiders are well-invested alongside other shareholders. Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to investing but it definitely makes Argentex Group look rather interesting indeed. Of course, identifying quality businesses is only half the battle; investors need to know whether the stock is undervalued. So you might want to consider this free discounted cashflow valuation of Argentex Group.

Although Argentex Group certainly looks good, it may appeal to more investors if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see insider buying, then this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying, could be exactly what you're looking for.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

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.

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By 2030, Hispanic American icon Freddy Fender could be a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. There could also be upwards of five Hispanic acts with No. 1 singles on Billboard's Country Airplay or Americana Radio Singles chart.

The cause? Social media, streaming and cultural evolution's democratization of country and Americana music's environment has allowed Hispanic acts to achieve unprecedented national and global recognition.

Country artist Valerie Ponzio, Tex-Mex/Americana performer Veronique Medrano, Frank Ray and his manager Oscar Chavira, and Kat & Alex (Alex "Alex Georgia" Garrido and Kat Luna) represent an increasingly broad landscape for Hispanic artists in Music City.

They also "feel the pressure" associated with the potential for the future, says Georgia, a Puerto Rican native.

Mexican American performer Ponzio says spotlighting creativity from marginalized people led her to cover Selena's 1995 classic "I Could Fall In Love" on her just-released "Frontera" EP. She notes that it was written by Grammy-winning Nashville-based songwriter Keith Thomas and says that's an essential caveat in not just that song's history but in reviving generational connections between Hispanic artists and country stardom.

The mid-1970s saw Freddy Fender and Johnny Rodriguez exert strong South Texas control on Billboard's Hot Country Songs charts. The former's hits "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights," plus the latter's "You Always Come Back (To Hurting Me)" and "Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico" are considered canonical pieces of '70s country lore.

As well, Tucson, Arizona-native Linda Ronstadt's 1975 cover of the Everly Brothers' "When Will I Be Loved" and 1977 classic "Blue Bayou" expanded Hispanic reach on top of country's charts.

It wasn't until Hispanic country performer Rick Trevino's 1996 release "Running Out of Reasons to Run" or Tejano legend Selena's "I Could Fall in Love" that the reach of Hispanic acts again landed at the top of country countdowns.

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Today Deming, New Mexico-native Frank Ray's single "Country'd Look Good on You" has achieved Top 20 success on country radio. He says he desires to "seize the opportunity" that his success affords him as a label-signed artist with a national run of scheduled dates to "continue to represent both himself and the [Hispanic culture]."

The idea that his success is based on the strength of his music and is augmented by his heritage highlights a "reformatted blueprint for success" for Hispanics in country. Ray says it is a "progressive" one that allows Hispanic artists more creative control regarding their presentation than they've likely ever had in country music's mainstream.

Country music singer Frank Ray poses for a portrait in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022.

Ray notes that he and his manager  El Paso, Texas-born Oscar Chavira  share a common phrase and devil-may-care attitude when contemplating success and achieving it from a marginalized perspective:

"Why not us?"

Moments like Ray's current success are rare. In its stead, a two-decade-long stream of songs like Luke Bryan's "One Margarita" and Kenny Chesney's "Beer in Mexico" represent the genre's most commercially popular acknowledgments of Hispanic culture's influence in country music.

In a 2021 Los Angeles Times article, Leah Turner  whose 2013 hit "Take the Keys" reached No. 37 on Billboard's Country Airplay chart  stated: "The Latino culture and country music culture 100% mirror one another. There's faith, there's family, there's hard work, there's passion, and we all know Latinos and country music [fans like] to drink. My dream is for the cowboys and the vaqueros  the first cowboys  to be in one place, to bring those two worlds together."

Related, Kat & Alex  initially lauded as a duo by Bryan on "American Idol" in 2020  openly discuss the awkwardly authentic and seemingly incongruous path many white country artists take connecting with Hispanic culture.

"Yes, it's deeper than tacos and Cinco de Mayo," Georgia says. "But you also can't argue that Kenny Chesney's 'No Shoes Nation' Fan Club has millions of supporters and he authentically loves Playa del Carmen, Mexico. It's great that he loves what he loves. However, there are probably a million other people we can find who love other aspects of Hispanic culture who, given the opportunity, could be Kat & Alex fans, too."

Ponzio makes an intriguing connection to the film industry and representation, noting Salma Hayek's unquestionably Hispanic presentation of herself in groundbreaking late '90s roles in films like "Fools Rush In" and "Breaking Up" alongside white actors like Matthew Perry and Russell Crowe.

"Yes, tequila songs are fun, and that's OK," says Ponzio. "But letting the people whose heritage is often directly referenced by those songs voice them with their culture, history and story as an influence doesn't remove any fun away from those songs. However, those perspectives could add greater depth and reach via representation."

Within the past decade, however, research from the Country Music Association shows a resurgence of a progression for the genre's Hispanic-reaching aspirations.

Brownsville, Texas-based Veronique Medrano sees the potential of Fender's induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame as allowing artists like herself to shed some of the "tough skin" they have had to assume to navigate country music's predominantly white and often dismissive mainstream.

Her "genuine and authentic story" of growing up in South Texas, making music with Hispanic heritage as a "tall, Amazonian Brown woman," bears similarity to Fender's work as an outsider navigating unprecedented roads to stardom.

Marginalization didn't stop Fender, and for Medrano's growing renown as a Tex-Mex artist, she's aspiring one day to achieve levels of crossover success similar to Fender's. In Medrano's opinion, Fender's six-decade-long history demands inclusion in a very elite group of musicians.

Country Music Association reported that two out of every five Hispanic millennials listen to country music regularly and seven out of 10 Hispanics overall listen to country music often.

Overall support for increased Hispanic representation in country music will require intersectionality that will mirror Spanish language speaking and understanding for Americans overall..

On Kat & Alex's current "Side A/Lado B" release, the married duo added a "Spanglish Version" of their single "I Want It All." Adding elements of the Spanish version of the song ("Yo Quiero Amarte"). Luna says that since she and her husband have spoken Spanish since childhood, "creating while having fun" should include bilingual song presentations.

Ponzio is also quick to highlight the "magical" impact of social media on forging a solid community between Black, Hispanic and marginalized women in the genre. Notably, Ponzio is a member of CMT's inaugural Equal Access Development Program, which provides funding, training, support and access to New York-based and Nashville-rooted management group Mtheory's services to aid in navigating the country music industry.

The artists interviewed by The Tennessean have been highlighted via African American country performer Rissi Palmer's Apple Music Radio "Color Me Country" program andartist grant. The program was started alongside the Rainey Day Fund to provide $1,000 microgrants to artists of color, artists with disabilities and artists within the LGBTQ community.

Moreover, chasing viral TikTok trends may appear to be at the core of the best work being done by Hispanic artists in country music and related spaces. Kat & Alex (who have roughly 550,000 TikTok followers) are aware of how in the past two decades direct-to-fan marketing has evolved from being seen on a multitude of television networks to television and the internet merging at the quick flick of a fan's fingers anywhere, anytime.

"Content connecting with fans on a person-to-person level [not direct-to-fan] develops stronger supporters," says Luna.

When contemplating the potential impact of this evolution, conversations about reggaeton's resurgence into a dominant American mainstream pop genre in the past decade are commonplace.

Luis Fonsi's "Despacito" collaboration with Justin Bieber, Beyonce's remix of J Balvin's "Mi Gente," Bad Bunny's collaborations with Cardi B, Drake, and even Madonna recently pairing with Dominican rapper Tokischa  along with the spiking popularity of Spotify's Viva Latino playlist  are important.

George Strait noted the December 2021 passing of the Mexican ranchera icon Vicente Fernandez as the death of "one of [his] heroes." Progressions show a turning tide mirroring pop's crossover trends in country music seems feasible.

"Hopefully, [this blueprint] will give [Hispanic] artists wanting greater visibility in country music the grace and ability to do what they want to do, on their own terms," Medrano says.

In full, the impact of successfully achieving the steps for establishing Hispanic American growth in country music and related genres is best summarized by an impassioned statement by Alex Georgia:

"Negative words or symbols in country music's mainstream should not shy away from who you are on the inside," he says. "Be proud of that. There's only one version of you and nobody can replace that. If you're that person, Hispanic, and want to be an artist  more often than not, as yes, there are still 'bad apples' here  you now have a place in this genre to be seen and heard as a real, authentic person. Be who you are. Don't hide behind anyone or anything."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Hispanic American country music artists discuss the genre's direction
(DurangoVintageFestivus/Instagram)

A pair of vintage Levis jeans from the 19th century has been sold for $76,000 (68.6k) at an auction in New Mexico.

The Durango Vintage Festivus took place on 1 October and featured the listing of the rare denim jeans from Levis, which were found in an abandoned gold mine years ago.

According to the auction listing, the jeans are one of the oldest known Levis from the gold rush era and regarded as the holy grail of vintage denim collecting.

The pants are in good/wearable condition, per the listing.

The item was purchased by a 23-year-old vintage clothing dealer from San Diego for $76,000 (68.6k). The bidding for it started at a little over $20,000 (18k).

Im still kind of bewildered, just surprised in myself for even purchasing them, the buyer named Haupert told the Wall Street Journal.

The total price for the pants was $87,400 (79.9k) with a buyers premium factored in.

According to reports, the jeans are covered with smatterings of the wax used in candles by miners to light the narrow tunnels, while there is a buckle back waist adjuster above a back pocket.

A label on the inside apparently reads: The only kind made by white labor.

As per The Times, Haupert has already received inquiries for the jeans and believe they could be worth as much as $150,000.
(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong is set to remove more Covid-19 restrictions and will allow live performances and dancing to take place indoors from next Thursday as the citys government considers increasing the limit on the number of people allowed to gather in public.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Theme park visitors will also be allowed to eat outdoors, though people dancing will be required to wear masks and performers will be required to be frequently tested and stay distanced from attendees. The public-gathering cap may also be eased so that a dozen people can meet, up from four currently, though this is subject to amendments to pandemic-related law clauses and an announcement will be made when the government confirms the plan, Libby Lee, Hong Kongs under secretary for health, said in a briefing Thursday.

At the same time the number of Covid cases, both local and imported, registered in Hong Kong have increased by about 30% in the past week, officials reported. Lee added that the government was concerned about new omicron variants that have been are detected among travelers.

We hope to relax anti-Covid rules in an orderly manner, she said. If the Covid situation is not deteriorating, we can consider more.

Hong Kong to Keep Frequent Covid Tests for Arrivals, SCMP Says

While Hong Kong has slowly lifted some Covid curbs, including mandatory hotel quarantines for incoming travelers in late September, the citys economy and standing as a global financial center has yet to recover from its attempts to broadly mirror mainland Chinas Covid Zero policies.

Business groups have repeatedly called for all remaining restrictions to be scrapped in order to revive Hong Kongs reputation. A key test of how successful officials have been in their efforts to lure people back to the hub looms, with the city preparing to host a banking summit and an international rugby competition in early November.

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The new relaxations came after another set of small revisions occurred earlier this month, when city authorities allowed 12 people to sit at each table in restaurants. The size of groups allowed in gyms, theme parks, beauty salons and massage parlors were also expanded to 12 people from eight in the last round of easing.

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A bird hunter in Montana was knocked down and stepped on by a grizzly bear that came charging out of heavy brush after the man went to flush a bird.

The unidentified 51-year-old hunter from Washington was hunting upland game birds Tuesday afternoon with his wife and dogs in a creek bottom east of Choteau when the encounter occurred, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

The man suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to a hospital where he stayed overnight. The injuries were not specified, but they werent claw or bite marks.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Bear pins man to ground in late-night attack in his backyard

They were hunting on private property when their dogs went on point, Dave Hagengruber of the state wildlife department told Associated Press. The man went to flush a bird and a grizzly came charging out instead. The man fired at the bear with a shotgun and handgun, wounding the grizzly and sending it back into the thick brush.

The couple and dogs left and notified authorities. Wildlife officials, using a drone, tracked down the bear and, because of its injuries, was euthanized, Hagengruber said.

The 677-pound adult male grizzly bear had no known previous history of human conflict and had never been handled by bear managers. Evidence at the site suggested the attack was the result of a surprise encounter.

The MFWP offers tips to guard against surprise encounters and to remain vigilant and safe in bear country, which includes the western half of Montana:

Carry bear spray in an easily accessible location and be prepared to use it immediately.

Look for bear sign and be cautious around creeks and areas with limited visibility.

Hunt with a group of people. Making localized noise can alert bears to your presence.

Be aware that elk calls and cover scents can attract bears.

Bring the equipment and people needed to help field dress game and remove the meat from the kill site as soon as possible.

If you need to leave part of the meat in the field during processing, hang it at least 10 feet off the ground and at least 150 yards from the gut pile. Leave it where it can be observed from a distance of at least 200 yards.

Upon your return, observe the meat with binoculars. If it has been disturbed or if a bear is in the area, leave and call FWP.

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Generic grizzly photos courtesy of the National Park Service.

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The 50 best movies streaming on Netflix (October 2022)

Story originally appeared on For The Win
Hyundai

Hyundai confirms that six of its late-model vehicles are subject to a recall and sales stop, due to problems with the 8-speed dual-clutch transmission.

All N-model cars plus the Santa Cruz compact pickup truck from 2022 (pictured above) as well as 2021-2022 Sonata and Santa Fe models have been recalled, totaling 61,861 units.

The problem stems from a faulty oil pump that leads to limp mode and then the loss of propulsion entirely.

Despite Hyundai's strides in electrification, quality, and performance, no company is immune to mistakes, and it seems Hyundai has stumbled into a big one. A recall notice posted online said a faulty oil pump in specific 8-speed dual-clutch transmission cars was resulting in a total loss of propulsion, and Hyundai confirms this recall is affecting six late models.



Specifically, this recall will affect the 2021-22 Hyundai Santa Fe, Sonata, and Veloster N models, as well as the 2022 Elantra N, Kona N, and Santa Cruz models. According to the leaked recall notice, a transmission-specific high-pressure oil pump is prone to malfunction, which can lead the car to produce a diagnostic trouble code. In order to preserve the transmission, the clutches will automatically disengage once the oil-pump fault is identified. Once the diagnostic code has been triggered, the cars will then allegedly enter a fail-safe mode before losing propulsion entirely 20-30 seconds later.

Photo credit: Hyundai

The 8-speed DCT is one of the most used transmissions across Hyundai's model range, meaning 61,861 of the company's cars will be affected in the US. The recalled models weren't manufactured at the same plant eitherspread across Hyundai's Alabama and South Korea plants.

There is a remedy, according to Hyundai's recall statement.



"All owners of the subject vehicles will be notified by first-class mail with instructions to bring their vehicles to a Hyundai dealer to inspect the transmission and replace it, if necessary," the statement says. "Dealers will also reprogram the transmission control unit with updated software that provides proper 'failsafe' driving capability."

The fix will be available to owners across North America at no cost. Hyundai also clarified that no crashes or injuries have been reported as a result of this defect. Soon, owners of affected vehicles can check their VIN on Hyundai's website or through the NHTSA website.



This is not the first major recall for Hyundai this year, with a report of exploding seatbelts triggering a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation and recall. Additionally, a series of thefts late last year revealed that certain Hyundai and Kia models are vulnerable to being stolen thanks to a lackluster security system. Still, this transmission recall is the first major mechanical fix in some time.



As Hyundai works to fix this issue, the true efficacy of the fail-safe system will become clear, given that it likely saved thousands of transmissions from being destroyed. In the meantime, the company has urged dealerships to cease sales of any remaining models subject to the recall, new or used.



Do you have a Hyundai vehicle impacted by the recall? If so, have you experienced problems with the DCT? Please c0mment below.
Muslim women in many parts of India protested against a Karnataka college decision to bar students from wearing hijabs

India's Supreme Court has failed to deliver a verdict on whether Muslim students can wear the hijab in schools and colleges, with two judges expressing opposing views.

One judge upheld a Karnataka high court order from March that said the hijab was not "essential" to Islam.

The other said the high court order was erroneous and wearing the hijab was a matter of choice.

The verdict was expected to cap a 10-month-long polarising debate in India.

But Thursday's development means the debate over the hijab will continue to consume the Indian public and the judiciary - as the judges could not agree on a decision, they have now requested the chief justice of India to recommend it to a larger bench.

The decision of Justice Hemant Gupta - who headed the two-judge bench - to uphold the high court order was widely expected. During the hearing, some of his comments had made headlines - he had told a lawyer arguing for the right to wear the hijab that "you can't take it to illogical ends" and asked him whether the "right to dress will include right to undress also?"

But Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, the second judge, said in his order that the high court took a wrong path by focusing on whether the hijab was an essential religious practice and that wearing it was "ultimately a matter of choice - nothing more and nothing less".

The row began at the start of the year in the southern state of Karnataka when a government college in Udupi district barred six Muslim girls from wearing the hijab in class.

The college said it had only asked the students to remove the hijab inside the classroom - they could still wear it around the campus. But the girls, who wore the college uniform - a loose tunic with trousers and a shawl - said they should also be allowed to cover their hair in the classroom as they had "a few male teachers".

After the teenaged students protested against the ban, Hindu students started turning up in colleges wearing saffron scarves - the colour associated with Hinduism - and right-wing groups on both sides made provocative statements. Protests by saffron-clad Hindu students were also held in other states. Fearing violence, the Karnataka government shut down high schools and colleges for some days.

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Muslim women protesters then challenged the ban in court, saying it was discriminatory and went against their right to freedom of expression and religion. They said that India's constitution gave them the right to dress as they pleased and that their faith required them to cover their head.

The government argued that the state had the right to prescribe school and college uniforms and also questioned their claim that the hijab was essential to their religion.

The trial court agreed that the government had the right to prescribe uniforms for students and barred hijab-clad girls from classrooms.

Head coverings worn by Muslim women

The Karnataka high court - which upheld the order on appeal - quoted from the Quran and other Islamic religious texts to say that wearing the hijab was not an essential religious practice and not wearing one did not make anyone "a sinner".

The order led several Muslim women to skip classes and even their exams. The row also polarised opinions - Karnataka is ruled by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and critics called it yet another attempt at marginalising Muslims since the BJP, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came to power in India in 2014.

Nobel Prize-winner Malala Yousafzai, who was 15 when she survived an attack by the Taliban in Pakistan for speaking up for the right of girls to be educated, also weighed in on the debate, calling on India's leaders to do something to "stop the marginalisation of Muslim women".

The court case in India is being keenly watched globally as it comes at a time when protests over the hijab have also been sweeping Iran - although women there are fighting for their right to not wear headscarves.

Protests against the clerical establishment began after the death last month of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman from the western city of Saqqez who fell into a coma after being detained by morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the strict hijab law.

Since then, Iranian women have burned their hijabs on bonfires and women, including celebrities, from around the world, have posted videos of themselves cutting their hair in solidarity with the protesters.

The unrest is now considered the most serious challenge to the Islamic Republic since its inception in 1979. Rights activists say at least 154 people have been killed by government forces so far.

Read more India stories from the BBC:
NEW DELHI (Reuters) -New Delhi is "seriously investigating" the deaths of 69 children in Gambia in the wake of a report that provisionally linked the fatalities to Indian-made products, the South Asian nation's foreign minister told his Gambian counterpart on Thursday.

Indian health authorities announced a production halt at domestic company Maiden Pharmaceuticals's factory in Sonepat in northern India on Wednesday after a WHO report said its cough and cold syrups might be linked to the deaths of 69 children in Gambia.

The matter "is being seriously investigated by appropriate authorities," India's foreign minister S Jaishankar said in a tweet.

The deaths, the worst involving drugs made in India, are a blow to an industry whose exports more than doubled in the last decade to hit $24.5 billion in the fiscal year through March.

Known as a "pharmacy of the world", India supplies 45% of all generic medicines to Africa.

The WHO issued a medical product alert last week asking regulators to remove Maiden goods from the market.

The U.N. health agency said that laboratory analysis of four Maiden products - Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup - had "unacceptable" amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol, which can be toxic and cause acute kidney injury.

Indian authorities suspended the company's manufacturing activities after inspecting its main factory in Haryana state, finding rules were violated "across its manufacturing and testing activities".

Maiden, which has two other factories in the state, has an annual production capacity of 2.2 million syrup bottles, 600 million capsules, 18 million injections, 300,000 ointment tubes and 1.2 billion tablets at its Haryana factories, according to its website.

(Reporting by Tanvi Mehta; editing by John Stonestreet and Bernadette Baum)
By Yuddy Cahya Budiman

TEGALLUAR, Indonesia (Reuters) - A high-speed railway project in Indonesia, part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, is on track for a 2023 launch despite ongoing negotiations between the two countries about the project being over-budget, officials said on Thursday.

President Joko Widodo inspected a new train station, where the consortium building the railway, PT KCIC, displayed a stationary China-made bullet train on the tracks. The 142-km line will connect the capital Jakarta with one of the country's largest cities, Bandung.

"This will be the first high-speed rail in ASEAN and we hope this will increase connectivity between countries, whether this (the railway) will be connected further to an airport or other high-speed railways," he said, referring to the Association of South East Asian Nations.

Jokowi, as the president is popularly known, said the project was 88.8% complete and its commercial launch is expected in June, 2023.

KCIC has said the project is facing a cost overrun of about $2 billion, raising the estimated total cost to 113 trillion rupiah ($7.36 billion). China estimates the project is less than $1 billion over budget, according to Koran Tempo newspaper.

KCIC's President Director Dwiyana Slamet Riyadi confirmed the discrepancy in cost calculations, saying negotiations are underway to resolve it.

"We hope the negotiations...regarding cost overrun and financing can be quick so this does not disturb the progress," said Dwiyana, who accompanied Jokowi on Thursday.

Indonesian state companies, including Wijaya Karya and PT KAI, control 60% of KCIC, while China Railway Engineering Corporation and other Chinese companies control the rest. The project is funded by a loan from China Development Bank.

The Indonesian firms have been lobbying their Chinese counterparts since last year to fund the rise in costs, while a capital injection from the Indonesian government is also awaiting authorities' approval.

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Dwiyana said discussions were ongoing as to whether Chinese President Xi Jinping may witness a trial run of the rail project when he visits the Southeast Asian country next month for the G20 leaders' summit.

($1 = 15,351.0000 rupiah)

(Additional reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman and Ananda Teresia; Writing by Gayatri Suroyo; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor)
A Navy investigation into the death of Seaman Kyle Mullen determined the young sailor died of pneumonia that was aggravated by an enlarged heart. However, the investigation also provided further evidence that SEAL recruits are not given adequate care and the course has fostered a culture where seeking help in emergency situations is discouraged.

Mullen, who died in California just after completing the torturous "Hell Week" portion of the Navy's Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, or BUD/S, was found to have perished in the line of duty, according to the report provided to Military.com on Wednesday.

Another broader investigation was also ordered into the training program after reports emerged that the program is rife with drug use, cheating and abuse. Cmdr. Ben Tisdale, a spokesman for the Naval Special Warfare Command, confirmed that "administrative actions" have already been taken against the commanders of the special warfare center and training program as well as the senior medical staff under their command.

Read Next: How Trauma Before Service is Shaping a Generation of Troops

The initial investigation, which includes documents like the military's autopsy report of Mullen, dozens of interviews with officials and sailors, and medical records from paramedics, paints a clear picture of a sailor who was struggling for days with symptoms but was not afforded the care he needed.

The investigation also made clear that recruits -- including Mullen -- are driven to hide symptoms and pain either out of a desire to complete the training, a fear of being made to start over or fear of being dropped from the program entirely.

The drive to push on at any cost is true of many SEAL recruits, and one medical professional on the training course told investigators that he "'takes it with a grain of salt' when students say they want to continue."

Another sailor explained that "'the kids don't want to quit,' so even if a student had a significant medical complaint they would be unlikely to disclose it."

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Combined with that drive to push on, the report also highlighted a dangerous message that recruits were told by leadership -- calling outside doctors can only lead to trouble.

A post-Hell Week flier given to the recruits explicitly said "DO NOT go and see other/outside medical providers" before explaining, in all capital letters, that "if you go and see other medical personnel who do not understand Hell Week, they may admit you to the hospital or give you medicines that are not compatible with training."

As a result, one sailor told investigators that "he and the other students were instructed not to call 911 and not to go to the emergency room."

One doctor interviewed by investigators explained that instead, the command promises to see recruits anytime, though that is typically done over the phone.

In a statement released Wednesday, Rear Adm. Keith Davids, the commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, said the normally secretive wing of the Navy "remains committed to transparency, and we welcome the opportunity to review our assessment and selection programs, and help us look for additional ways to improve and prevent this kind of tragedy from happening again."

Several Navy officials interviewed for the investigation outlined that during the training course, medical conditions like Mullen's are routine.

According to the investigation, in the early days of Hell Week, the 24-year-old Mullen was doing fine. However, by Thursday -- day four of seven -- things had taken a turn. One sailor told investigators that Mullen had become so swollen that he had gained "a significant amount of weight," and that by Feb. 3, he "was in 'full messed up mode.'" Mullen told some sailors that his knees hurt.

Another sailor described Mullen's breathing as "sounding like 'gurgling water'" while sleeping and that he and others were "pretty concerned."

One sailor noted that Mullen was "in the worst medical shape out of anyone in the class" in the last days of Hell Week, and many reported seeing him with bottles full of dark-colored liquid that he was coughing up. A few sailors remarked they thought it was actually darkened spit from chewing tobacco.

By the fifth day, Friday, one sailor recalled that Mullen could "barely walk." The investigation said that Mullen received supplemental oxygen that day. A medical form in the report also showed that Mullen was evaluated, and course officials heard crackling in his lungs and his right leg was swollen.

He was found fit to train but told to follow up with post-Hell Week medical checks. Several sailors noted that Mullen's attitude improved after Hell Week finished, though he needed to be wheeled out of the classroom in a wheelchair and one sailor described him looking like the "Michelin man" from all his swelling. A doctor attached to the medical department at the command told investigators that both the swelling and wheelchair were common.

He would die that night.

Mullen's report is filled with instances of the recruit doggedly pushing forward as medical issues mounted. One of Mullen's friends in the program told investigators that Mullen explicitly said he was "worried about getting rolled" -- slang for being made to restart the training.

One sailor who was part of Mullen's boat crew recalled that on the fourth day of training, Mullen suddenly woke up from a nap with blood coming out of his mouth. The sailor tried to get Mullen to get medical attention, but he refused. "I don't want to be a b***h," Mullen told the sailor.

"I don't want to be seen as the guy who keeps going to medical," he added.

After the sailor prevailed on Mullen, the two looked out of the tent where they were recovering to try and get help but an instructor spotten the pair and "told them to go back to the tent."

Another sailor, assigned to keep an eye on recruits after Hell Week ended, remembered seeing a seemingly delirious Mullen "talking to himself in the bathroom and saying, 'I can't believe I'm such a p***y.'"

In Mullen's case, the instructions for recruits not to seek outside medical help proved disastrous. After Hell Week, the same sailor who spotted Mullen in the bathroom called the duty physician, concerned about Mullen's trouble breathing. The person on the other end said Mullen could go but reiterated the warning about outside medical care.

Another trainee said Mullen "was 'so adamant' about not going to the hospital" that despite asking multiple times, he waited until medical checks the next morning. Meanwhile, his fellow sailors were left not knowing what to do about their rapidly deteriorating friend.

"They should have made an executive decision to take [Mullen] to the hospital," one sailor said in his interview.

Ultimately, it's not entirely clear what led to Mullen's death. The autopsy report pins the death on a pneumonia infection but notes that the sailor's enlarged heart was a contributing factor.

A memo from a Navy cardiologist specialist in the report notes other contributing factors included "the use of prohibited performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), possible swimming induced pulmonary edema (SIPE), and the rigorous physical demands of BUD/S Assessment and Selection."

After his death, Mullen was found "in possession of and suspected of misusing several PEDs," including human growth hormone and testosterone. One entry in the report notes that all the substances found "are commonly abused to increase muscle mass."

The role that the drugs played in his death is a matter of debate for the Navy experts in the report. One doctor wrote that "Mullen's heart size being 64.7% over the upper limit of the reference range suggests that his exposure to anabolic agents may have been large" and another noted that such drugs have been noted to cause Mullen's symptoms. Yet a third expert pushed back on the idea of a "possible correlation" between the drugs and pneumonia as "speculative" and lacking evidence.

In response to the death the Navy has announced that it is adding a cardiac screening program as well as increased prevention measures for pneumonia and it is extending the observation period to 24 hours for recruits who make it past Hell Week. They will also begin to screen for performance-enhancing drugs through urine tests.

"Kyle's death will not be in vain," Davids promised in his statement. "We have a moral obligation to learn everything we can from Kyle's tragic death so that we can ensure the safety of all future candidates."

-- Konstantin Toropin can be reached at konstantin.toropin@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @ktoropin.

Related: Outside Investigation of SEAL Training Underway in the Wake of Death and Reports of Drug Use, Navy Confirms
Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; Getty

For years, National Realty Investment Advisors promised their clients an easy way to get rich. And they had bold-faced names like Bill OReilly and Lawrence Taylor making their case.

After investing a few thousand dollars, the New Jersey-based group focused on high-end real estate in gentrifying neighborhoods claimed, clients might see returns of at least 12 percent. The message was repeated in thousands of emails, on huge billboards at the Lincoln and Holland tunnel, and even radio ads featuring the former Fox News host and ex-NFL star.

But on Thursday, prosecutors alleged that the investment companys president and an associate were in fact participating in a brazen $650 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands of investors.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in New Jersey announced an 18-count indictment, including charges of securities and wire fraud, against Thomas Nicholas Salzano and Rey E. Grabato II for their role in the almost four-year-long alleged scheme. The pair also allegedly tried to evade $26 million in taxes.

Salzano was also charged with aggravated identity theft, tax evasion, and subscribing to false tax returns. Prosecutors said he was arrested on Wednesday, while Grabato was on the lam. Lawyers for Salzano did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Neither OReilly nor Taylornor any other celebrity endorserwas charged with any offenses, and prosecutors did not indicate one way or the other whether they were aware of the firms alleged web of deceit. Neither immediately responded to requests for comment.

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday also charged NRIA and four of its former executivesincluding Salzano and Grabatowith bilking 2,000 investors by falsely promising to use their money to buy and develop real estate properties. The group solicited investigators with promises of returns of up to 20 percent.

Among the investors were 382 retirees who contributed more than $94.8 million from retirement accounts, the SEC complaint states.

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The SEC says that in reality, the group used the money to pay distributions to other investors, to fund an executives familys personal and luxury purchases, and to pay reputation management firms to thwart investors due diligence of the executives. The federal indictment says the money was also used to pay for high-end cars, at least one week-long trip to the Jersey shore that included a banquet and hotel rooms for a dozen friends and family, and to pay Salzanos wife at least $3,000 a week for a no-show job.

These defendants schemed to create a high-pressure, fraudulent marketing campaign to hoodwink investors into believing that their bogus real estate venture generated substantial profits, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said in a press release announcing the charges. In reality, their criminal tactics were straight out of the Ponzi scheme playbook so that they could cheat their investors and line their own pockets.

The indictment against Salzano and Grabato marks the latest episode in the spectacular collapse of a seemingly successful real estate investment firmalbeit one that had attracted skepticism from news outlets in multiple states. Arthur Scutaro, the firms former head of sales, who was also charged by the SEC, pleaded guilty on Thursday to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud in the alleged Ponzi scheme. An attorney for Scutaro could not be immediately reached. Last year, Salzano was arrested by the FBI after an hours-long police standoff, and the firm filed for bankruptcy in June before being shut down by the state of New Jersey.

Prosecutors say that the scheme began in February 2018, when NRIA formed the investment fund that purportedly acquired equity interests in limited liability companies that invested in real estate assets. The SEC complaint notes that the fund owned properties in New York, New Jersey, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

As part of their investments, the Fund provided investors with monthly distributions, typically between six percent and ten percent of their original principal investment on an annual basis, through a direct transfer to their bank accounts, the indictment states. Each investor in the Fund also received a written guarantee from NRIA of an annual return of at least twelve percent per year for a period of five years plus a full return of their investment, or else any shortfall would be paid by NRIA.

To market the fund, Scutaro and Salzano allegedly used an aggressive multi-year nationwide marketing campaign that involved thousands of emails to investors; advertisements on billboards, television, and radio; and meetings and presentations to investors. While the marketing deemed the fund solvent, the indictment states that in reality NRIA generated little to no profits and operated as a Ponzi scheme, which was kept afloat by new Fund investors.

Prosecutors went on to say that Salzano, who operated as NRIAs shadow chief executive officer, was the guiding force of the company and concealed his managerial role to avoid scrutiny from investors and the IRS. One main reason he wanted to avoid detection, the indictment claims, was his ugly historywhich included Federal Trade Commission charges in 2006.

Those charges alleged he defrauded non-profits, churches, and small businesses when he was the chief managing officer of a New Jersey telecommunications company. Seven years later, Salzano pleaded guilty to theft by fraud in Louisiana for defrauding small businesses in that state by falsely promising consumers that they would receive cost savings on telecommunications services. (The FTC case was settled in 2006 and the Louisiana charges were later expunged.)

To conceal Salzanos past, prosecutors allege that he used Grabato, who was the president of NRIA, as the public face of the company, having him sign all bank accounts used with NRIA and documents issued to investors. As the scheme grew, prosecutors allege, the pair began to orchestrate a separate conspiracy to defraud the IRS to conceal the millions that Salzano owed to the IRS. This allegedly involved the pair lying to the government, using several bank accounts for fake entities, and even falsifying company documents.

Eventually, prosecutors say, some duped investors began to demand documentation about the supposedly bulletproof investment scheme. In response to one of those demands, Salzano allegedly sent a client a forged letter about an investment property in North Bergen, New Jersey. The letter ultimately ended up in the hands of the FBIleading to Salzanos arrest in 2021.

But if a top dog getting popped might have amounted to a hint his colleagues should play nice, prosecutors say, Grabato did not get the memo.

Following Salzanos arrest, Grabato continued to divert at least approximately $1.4 million from Fund investors to Salzano and other family members and friends of Salzano through a web of shell companies and nominee accounts, the indictment says.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Irans president on Thursday accused the U.S. of conducting a failed policy of destabilization targeting his nation, as Iranian protesters continued to call for the downfall of its rulers despite a violent and wide-ranging crackdown.

President Ebrahim Raisi has repeatedly dismissed the unrest sparked by the death of a 22-year-old woman in policy custody as a purported Western plot, without providing evidence. His latest remarks came after protests erupted in cities across Iran on Wednesday, with videos showing security forces apparently firing toward demonstrators.

The protests, in which girls and women of all ages have removed their mandatory headscarves, or hijabs, have become one of the greatest challenges to Irans theocracy since the countrys 2009 Green Movement. Raisi, a hard-line protege of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has likened the protesters to flies and sought to downplay the unrest.

The Iranian nation has invalidated the American military option and, as they themselves have admitted, brought the policy of sanctions and maximum pressure a humiliating failure, Raisi said Thursday to a conference in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Now, following Americas failure in militarization and sanctions, Washington and its allies have resorted to the failed policy of destabilization," he said, according to a transcript of his remarks.

Raisi did not otherwise address the demonstrations, which took place across at least 19 cities on Wednesday.

Gathering information about the demonstrations remains difficult amid the internet restrictions and the arrests of at least 40 journalists in the country, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Irans government insists 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was not mistreated, but her family says her body showed bruises and other signs of beating after she was detained for violating the Islamic Republics strict dress code.

It remains unclear how many people have been killed or arrested so far in the protests.

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An Oslo-based group, Iran Human Rights, estimated Wednesday that at least 201 people have been killed. This includes an estimated 90 people killed by security forces in the eastern Iranian city of Zahedan amid demonstrations against a police officer accused of rape in a separate case. Iranian authorities have described the Zahedan violence as involving unnamed separatists, without providing details or evidence.

In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said America wasn't focusing on possible negotiations with Iran over its tattered nuclear deal amid the demonstrations. Those talks collapsed in the months before Amini's Sept. 16 death.

Right now our focus...is on the remarkable bravery and courage that the Iranian people are exhibiting through their peaceful demonstrations, Price said. And our focus right now is on shining a spotlight on what theyre doing and supporting them in the ways we can.

Canada meanwhile announced additional sanctions against 17 individuals and three entities in response to what it said was the Iranian regimes systematic human rights violations and ongoing actions that destabilize regional security.

Meanwhile, an Iranian-American who had been furloughed from prison while serving a 10-year sentence on internationally criticized spying charges was put back into Tehran's Evin prison, his lawyer said. Siamak Namazi had been furloughed from prison as his 85-year-old father, Baquer Namazi, was freed and allowed to travel to Oman and on to the United Arab Emirates for medical care.

Irans decision to refuse to renew Siamaks furlough is devastating, but ultimately unsurprising," lawyer Jared Genser said. For Iran to use Baquers departure and Siamaks temporary release to portray itself as acting in good faith, only to immediately and needlessly throw him back behind bars, is a telling display of the precarious situation of the hostages.

___

Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
After last year's cancellation due to a bomb cyclone hitting the Sacramento area, organizers and athletes are hoping this year's Ironman California goes off without a hitch. But some athletes are voicing concerns about their safety on part of the course that runs through Discovery Park along the American River Parkway trail. "My initial reaction was, how will Ironman keep us safe?" said Chase Anderson.
Millions of people have been affected by flooding in Pakistan

Humanitarian appeals in Pakistan and Afghanistan are set to receive 300,000 from the Isle of Man Government.

The Disasters Emergency Committee's Pakistan Floods Appeal will receive 150,000, with the rest going to the Afghanistan Crisis Appeal.

The money will be allocated from the Manx government's International Development budget.

Cabinet Office Minister Kate Lord-Brennan said events in both countries were "devastating millions of lives".

Catastrophic rainfall in Pakistan left hundreds of people dead and affected millions more in the country.

Meanwhile millions more people have been left in need of urgent support in Afghanistan after the country was hit by drought and economic collapse.

Ms Lord-Brennan said: "It is important that we, as a government, play our part in supporting countries suffering extreme events that are devastating millions of lives."

The donations would "support worthwhile humanitarian efforts that we should stand by and which contribute towards our international aid and development commitments", she added.

Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and Twitter? You can also send story ideas to IsleofMan@bbc.co.uk
JERUSALEM (AP)  A group of Jewish settlers rampaged through a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank on Thursday, attacking shops and residents with stones and iron bars, according to Palestinian reports and amateur video from the scene. Over 40 Palestinians were reported wounded.

It was the latest violence in the northern West Bank, where the Israeli military has been conducting nightly arrest raids against suspected Palestinian militants.

Unrest also erupted in the contested city of Jerusalem. Israeli police unleashed live rounds, tear gas and stun grenades on Palestinians throwing stones, firecrackers and firebombs, marking the biggest spasm of violence in the city in months.

Clashes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem wounded 18 Palestinians late Thursday, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported, saying Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians with stones and clubs. The confrontations followed similar unrest across several neighborhoods in east Jerusalem the night before.

It was not immediately clear what sparked Thursday's rampage in the northern West Bank, but Palestinian militants in the area have carried out several roadside shootings in recent weeks. The area is home to a number of hardline settlements, whose residents often intimidate Palestinians and vandalize their property.

Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official who monitors settlement activities in the area, said some 70 settlers from the hardline settlement of Yitzhar appeared in Hawara, on the outskirts of the city of Nablus, without warning.

He said mobs beat Palestinians, damaged shops and cars and set fire to a city park. He said 22 people were struck by stones, and 20 others were beaten up.

The Israeli army was doing nothing but protecting them, he said.

Among those injured was AP photographer Majdi Mohammed, who was struck in the knee and lightly hurt by an Israeli tear gas canister fired by a soldier.

Amateur video from the scene showed young settlers brandishing clubs as they ran through the streets and approached shopkeepers. At one point, a shopkeeper with his back against a wall swung a stick at a group of youths, while a second Palestinian threw a stone at them. Soldiers fired into the air and stood next to a group of settlers, apparently trying to keep the group's separated.

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The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

Tensions in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem have soared since a Palestinian assailant shot and killed an Israeli soldier at a checkpoint at the entrance to the Shuafat refugee camp earlier this week.

Late Thursday, the extremist far-right lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir visited Sheikh Jarrah, a neighborhood that has become a focal point of heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians in east Jerusalem.

Friends, if they throw rocks, shoot them! he said in a widely shared video as he brandished a pistol, apparently addressing Israeli settlers confronting Palestinian protesters.

Meanwhile movement in and out of Shuafat, a neglected Jerusalem slum, has been restricted as troops search for the shooter.

The overnight street violence appeared to have subsided by Thursday morning, as tens of thousands of Jews were flocking to Jerusalem to celebrate the week-long Sukkot holiday, surging into east Jerusalem's Old City, often a focal point for tensions.

Police said they arrested 23 Palestinians throughout disturbances on Wednesday, half of them minors. Police said masked protesters threw firebombs, stones and fireworks at officers. Video footage released by Israeli police showed a street littered with burning debris and trash bins set alight.

Police said in some cases officers used live fire against the protesters. There was no immediate report of injuries.

The police manhunt has further disrupted the lives of residents of Shuafat, an area that has long seen neglect at the hands of Israeli authorities. Police initially closed Shuafat's entry and exit points and while they have since reopened, officers were stopping cars in and out of the neighborhood, triggering snarling traffic jams and disrupting the residents' daily routine.

In response, shops, businesses and schools across east Jerusalem closed Wednesday in protest of the police measures and in solidarity with Shuafat.

More than 120 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the West Bank and east Jerusalem this year, making 2022 the deadliest year since 2015. The fighting has surged since a series of Palestinian attacks killed 19 people in Israel last spring.

Israel says most of the Palestinians killed have been militants. But stone-throwing youths protesting the incursions and others not involved in confrontations have also died.

Israel says the raids are needed to dismantle militant networks at a time when Palestinian security forces are unable or unwilling to do so. The Palestinians say the raids undermine their security forces and aimed at cementing Israel's 55-year military rule.

Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, along with the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and later annexed that part of the city. It considers the entire city its eternal, undivided capital. The Palestinians seek those territories for their hoped-for independent state, with Jerusalem's eastern flank as capital.
Re. Bernie Smiths letter Make peace with Russia (Castanet, Oct. 12)

Nobody asked for (Russian President) Vladimir (Putin) to attack a neighbouring country that wasnt militarily causing problem.

As seen in Georgia, former Soviet bugs must be held in check. The problem with the suggestion the we should make peace is, how do you walk back killing tens of thousands of innocent civilians and soldiers and

destroying an entire country that would prefer to be a happy neighbour?

Dont forget the nuclear death threats that affect us all.

On a lighter note, I do love my perogies.

Kevin Gillund, Winfield
The Jacksonville chapter of M.A.D. D.A.D.S. (MAD DADS) is hosting a candle light vigil for Gabrielle Bolton tonight at 7 p.m. in Ringhaver Park.

The 18-year old was murdered by her boyfriend last month in what the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office reported as a domestic violence incident. Boltons familys described the vigil on Facebook as a way to honor Gabby and shed light on how the Citys violence affects the community.

This park meant so much to her, they said. She spent almost every day here with her sister and cousins making videos, taking pictures and even walking the trails for some alone time.

Jacksonvilles MAD DADS Chapter President Donald Foy says that its time for the community to stand up and break their code of silence.

We need to step up with leadership and get back control our communities, he said. People need to come forward and share information with law enforcement to arrest these individuals like they did with Gabby.

Since their inception in 1989, M.A.D. D.A.D.S. - men against destruction defending drugs and social disorder - has worked to engage local communities to prevent neighborhood violence. Organized by a group of African American men from Omaha, Nebraska, MAD DADS has become a national, non profit organization with programs that attract, challenge and prepare its members to become vocal, visible, and vigilant to restore safety within families and communities.

According to Foy, programs are designed to revitalize, restore and protect communities from being destroyed by crime, drugs and violence. Students learn conflict resolution, leadership, and goal setting skills to build strong values and principles. Qualified instructors serve as mentors through programs like Street Mentoring which is geared towards lowering neighborhood crime. Volunteer patrols walk the streets and encourage unsupervised youth into protective and secure program activities. The organization also sponsors Community Day as forum for elementary school students to pledge to remain drug and violence free.

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In addition to our Merchant Seaman Program, SANKOFA works with our youth to address complex problems that cause the disintegration of the traditional family, he said. We go into neighborhoods and knock on doors asking our community to step up. The violence in our Jacksonville community is out of control. "

Foy underscored that whats happening in Jacksonville - is happening everywhere.

MAD DADS is committed to turning lives around in communities that are under siege, he said. Our communities have died from a lack of concern. Weve got to show communities we care about them so they step up and begin to care about themselves.

Foy encourages everyone to work with law enforcement officials as was the case with Bolton.

The community has to break the code of silence and call JSO and Crime Stoppers, he said. Thats the only way we are going to end the violence.

M.A.D. D.A.D.S Jacksonville Chapter, 5732 Normandy Boulevard Ste. 8 Jacksonville, Florida 32205

More information can be found at https://maddadsjax.com/








Ruby Guest, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Annie Guest at the "Halloween Ends" premiere on October 11, 2022. Alberto Rodriguez/GA/Getty Images

Jamie Lee Curtis attended the "Halloween Ends" premiere in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday.

She brought her two daughters, Ruby Guest and Annie Guest, and all three wore sparkling gowns.

Curtis said on Instagram that she wanted a "blood-red" gown to commemorate the franchise.

Jamie Lee Curtis might be saying farewell to the "Halloween" franchise, but she continues to be a style star.

The legendary actor was photographed at the "Halloween Ends" premiere in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday, which she attended with her two daughters, Ruby Guest and Annie Guest.

The family shared a glamorous, coordinated fashion moment on the red carpet, with Curtis wearing a sparkling red gown and her daughters in dazzling black ensembles.

Ruby Guest, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Annie Guest at the "Halloween Ends" premiere on October 11, 2022. Alberto Rodriguez/GA/Getty Images

Ruby Guest, 26, donned a dark gown covered in silver sparkles, and a black, bedazzled blazer on top of it. For shoes, she chose white boots.

Annie Guest, 35, opted for a strapless dress with crystal-embellished rose patches on the bodice. She accessorized her black gown with sheer gloves and silver barrette clips.

While Curtis, 63, wore sparkles alongside her daughters, her Ralph Lauren dress was more colorful. She said on Instagram that she wanted to wear the long-sleeved, off-the-shoulder gown because it was "blood-red."

"I knew it was the one to END @halloweenmovie with," Curtis wrote.

On the red carpet, Curtis also shared sweet moments with her daughters.

Upon arriving at the movie premiere, the actor held hands with Ruby and reached for Annie so that they could all enter together.

Annie Guest, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Ruby Guest at the "Halloween Ends" premiere. Alberto Rodriguez/GA/Getty Images

And once on the carpet, she stayed close to her children and embraced them.

Ruby Guest, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Annie Guest at the "Halloween Ends" premiere. Mark Von Holden/Getty Images

Curtis has previously spoken about her close relationship with her daughters.

In July 2021, she shared that Ruby is transgender, and later in May 2022, she officiated her youngest's wedding while wearing a "World of Warcraft" outfit.

Read the original article on Insider
The House Jan. 6 committee unanimously voted Thursday to subpoena former President Donald Trump to testify under oath  a summons he will very likely defy.

The committee, which is investigating Trumps attempt to thwart the results of the 2020 election and hang on to the presidency in 2021, held the vote during what is expected to be its final hearing before next months midterm elections.

We must seek the testimony under oath of Jan. 6s central player, committee vice chair Liz Cheney, a Republican from Wyoming, said at the hearing.

We are obligated to seek answers directly from the man who set this all in motion, and every American is entitled to those answers, she continued.

Trump reacted to the subpoena on Truth Social, the social media platform he uses since getting kicked off Twitter, Facebook and others.

Why didnt the Unselect Committee ask me to testify months ago? he wrote. Why did they wait until the very end, the final moments of their last meeting? Because the Committee is a total BUST that has only served to further divide our Country which, by the way, is doing very badly - A laughing stock all over the World?

Sources revealed the plans for a subpoena to NBC News and The New York Times ahead of the vote.

Trump is expected to defy the subpoena, which would require him to sit for questioning about his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection. His supporters carried out the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol in the name of a voter fraud conspiracy theory, which Trump repeatedly pushed on them after losing the election to Joe Biden.

A source who provided the information to the Times said committee members felt they had to take this aggressive action because of Trumps pivotal role in the ordeal.

Cheney suggested as much at Thursdays hearing.

The central cause of Jan. 6 was one man: Donald Trump, she said.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

Related...
A video of former president Donald Trump is played during a Jan. 6 Committee hearing on Oct. 13, 2022, in Washington, DC. Alex Wong / Getty Images

The Jan. 6 Committee voted unanimously Thursday in favor of a resolution to subpoena former president Donald Trump over his role in the attack on the US Capitol.

"We need to hear from him," Rep. Bennie Thompson, chair of the committee, said in his closing remarks. "He must be held responsible."

He added, "It is our obligation to seek Donald Trump's testimony. There is a precedent in American history for Congress to compel the testimony of a president. There is also precedent for presidents to provide testimony and documentary evidence to congressional investigators.

"We also recognize that a subpoena to a former president is a serious and extraordinary action," he said.

In his opening remarks on Thursday afternoon, Thompson said evidence had shown that there was a "multipart plan" led by Trump to overturn the 2020 election.

What Donald Trump proceeded to do after the 2020 election is something no president has done before in our country," he said.

The 90 vote came at what had been expected to be the last hearing of the House committee, which is investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, and less than a month before the midterm elections. Though Thursday's hearing had no in-person witnesses, it featured new testimony from many former Trump aides.

After conducting more than 1,000 interviews with witnesses and nine public hearings during its yearlong investigation, the committee will take a vote on "further investigative action," Thompson said at the start of Thursday's hearing. He also told reporters that there is always a possibility that the panel will ask former vice president Mike Pence to testify.

While the committee itself is unable to bring criminal charges or indict Trump, it can issue subpoenas that require people to answer questions and turn over documents. By the end of this year, the committee will be producing a report for the Justice Department, which could include criminal referrals and recommendations.

An element of this committees responsibility is to propose reforms," said Rep. Liz Cheney, vice chair of the committee.

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In her opening remarks, Cheney said that Trumps efforts to cling to the presidency were part of a premeditated plan, adding that the former president had always intended to declare that the election was fraudulent and stolen before Election Day before he knew the election results.

She also described Trump as the central cause of the Jan. 6 riot, and the committee presented new testimony from Republicans and former aides who served in Trumps administration.

None of this is normal or acceptable or lawful in a republic, Cheney said.

Donald Trump knew he lost, Thompson said, adding the former president pulled out all the stops in his attempt to stay in power, leading to the attack on the Capitol.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, and Rep. Liz Cheney, a Wyoming Republican, take their seats for the committee hearing, Oct. 13, 2022. Bill Clark / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

One of the biggest takeaways from the hearing was that former aides told the committee that Trump acknowledged in private that he lost the election.

In one clip played Thursday, former White House director of strategic communications Alyssa Farah testified that she remembered walking into the Oval Office a week after the election and Trump saying, Can you believe I lost to this fucking guy? as he watched TV coverage of Joe Biden.

The committee also recently obtained 1.5 million emails and other records from the Secret Service that shed light on what happened on and around Jan. 6.

Just fyi, POTUS is pissed, one Secret Service agent wrote in an email in December 2021 as the Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit brought forward by Trumps team.

Other emails showed the Secret Service had intelligence about the security risks ahead of the Capitol attack.

Their plan is literally to kill people, read a tip sent to the Secret Service in December 2020. Please please take this tip seriously and investigate further, the message shown during the hearing reads.

On Jan. 6, one Secret Service agent texted at 12:36 p.m., With so many weapons found so far, you wonder how many are unknown. Could be sporty after dark.

Rep. Pete Aguilar of California said the panel would be recalling witnesses and conducting further investigative depositions in light of the Secret Service communications. It wasnt immediately clear if this would mean more public hearings.

The committees final report will be released sometime before the new congressional term begins in January 2023. Thirty days after the report is published, the committee investigating Jan. 6 will be dissolved.

Whether there are criminal charges filed against the former president for his role in the Jan. 6 riot is something that will be up to the Justice Department. So far, DOJ officials have charged more than 850 people who participated in the insurrection.

In response to Thursdays hearing, the former president criticized the panel on Truth Social, his social media platform.

The Unselect Committee knowingly failed to examine the massive voter fraud which took place during the 2020 Presidential Election - The reason for what took place on January 6th, Trump wrote.

Outside of this subpoena, the former president and his organization are also facing many state and federal investigations.

In September, New Yorks attorney general announced that she was suing Trump, three of his children, and the Trump Organization for fraud. In addition to this, the organization is set to go on trial in October for criminal tax charges in Manhattan.

The former president is also being investigated by authorities in Georgia for potential criminal election interference; at the federal level, he is being investigated for mishandling classified documents under the Presidential Records Act.

More on this
WASHINGTON (AP)  The House Jan. 6 committee took the extraordinary action of subpoenaing former President Donald Trump on Thursday as it issued a stark warning in its final public hearing before the midterm election: The future of the nations democracy is at stake.

The panel's October hearing, just weeks ahead of the midterm election, focused on Trumps state of mind on Jan. 6, 2021 as he egged on his supporters with false claims of election fraud, pushed to accompany them to the Capitol while lawmakers were counting the votes, and then stood by for hours as the mob violently breached the building.

The committee is set to shut down at the beginning of next year, and was making its final public arguments ahead of a report expected in December.

We are obligated to seek answers directly from the man who set this all in motion, said Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the panel's vice chairwoman and one of two Republicans on the nine-member committee. And every American is entitled to those answers. So we can act now to protect our republic.

A SUBPOENA FOR TRUMP  BUT NOT PENCE

The subpoena for Trump is a major escalation in the probe. After signaling for months that they may leave the former president alone, the unanimous 9-0 vote for relevant documents and testimony, under oath was definitive.

The committee had long debated whether to seek testimony from or subpoena Trump or former Vice President Mike Pence. Neither has spoken directly to the committee. While Trump has been hostile to the probe both in court and in public, Pence's lawyers had engaged with the panel for several months with no clear resolution.

Pence could still be called or subpoenaed. But several of his closest aides have complied with the investigation, with several of them providing great detail about his movements and state of mind as he resisted Trump's pleas to object to the certification of electoral votes that day and try to overturn their defeat.

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In contrast, the committee showed several clips of Trump allies refusing to answer questions before the panel.

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat, said the committee was able to nail down every salient detail in pretty much every element of the offense" except for certain details about what Trump was doing and saying as the insurrection unfolded.

PELOSI AND SCHUMER, IN HIDING

New video aired by the panel showed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reacting emotionally to the news that her colleagues were donning gas masks in the House chamber as rioters neared. She quickly went to work trying to secure and reopen the Capitol.

Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer were seen in unidentified secure locations and talking to security officials. The footage included a conversation between Pelosi and Pence, who was also in a secure location, discussing their return to the session to finish certifying Bidens victory.

The footage was filmed by Pelosis daughter, Alexandra Pelosi, according to two people familiar with the video who requested anonymity to discuss it.

The two leaders are seen working to bring the National Guard to the Capitol amid an hourslong delay. At one point, Schumer said he was going to call up the effing secretary of DOD, referring to the Defense Department.

We have some senators who are still in their hideaways, Schumer told defense officials on the phone. They need massive personnel now.

'CONSIDER WHETHER WE CAN SURVIVE'

The lesson of the committees investigation is that institutions only hold when people of good faith protect them without regard to political cost, Cheney said during the hearing.

"Why would Americans assume that our Constitution and our institutions in our Republic are invulnerable to another attack? Why would we assume that those institutions will not falter next time?" Cheney asked.

The warnings come as Trump is still refusing to acknowledge that he lost his reelection to Joe Biden and is considering another run in 2024  and as many Republicans who deny Bidens win are running in the midterm elections at all levels of government. Many states have replaced election officials who resisted Trumps pressure campaign.

Any future president inclined to attempt what Donald Trump did in 2020 has now learned not to install people who could stand in the way, said Cheney, who lost her own Republican primary this August. Consider whether we can survive for another 246 years.

SECRET SERVICE REVELATIONS

The committee has obtained more than 1.5 million pages of documents from the Secret Service in recent weeks. They revealed some of that information in the hearing, including an email from within the agency on Dec. 11, 2020, the day the Supreme Court rejected one of Trump's attempts to undermine the vote.

Just fyi. POTUS is p-d  breaking news - Supreme Court denied his law suit. He is livid now, one anonymous Secret Service email said.

Multiple emails showed that the agency had ample warnings of violence in the weeks and days ahead of the insurrection.

An alert received by the agency on Dec. 24 said multiple online users were targeting members of Congress and instructing others to march into the chambers, said California Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democratic member of the panel.

California Rep. Pete Aguilar, another Democratic member, said the committee will be recalling witnesses and conducting further investigative depositions based on the Secret Service material. The agency has not turned over text messages it said were deleted.

Aguilar also warned that the committee is reviewing testimony regarding potential obstruction of some witnesses. The committee has said in the past that some witnesses were intimidated against speaking.

CABINET OFFICIALS

The committee showed prerecorded interviews with Cabinet members, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Attorney General William Barr and Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, who said they believed that once the legal avenues had been exhausted, that should have been the end of Trumps effort to remain in power.

Pompeo, who was interviewed by the panel since its last hearing in July, said in his videotaped testimony that he believed that once the Electoral College certified the vote, that was the end of the process for contesting the election. We should all comply with the law at all times, to the best of our ability  every one of us, Pompeo said.

Chao, who is married to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnel, said she decided to resign after the insurrection because it was impossible for me to continue given my personal values and my philosophy."

At the same time, Trump continued to push the false claims of fraud to his millions of supporters.

President Trump knew the truth. He heard what all his experts and senior staff was telling him, said Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, the committees other Republican. His intent was plain: ignore the rule of law and stay in power.

CRIMINAL REFERRALS

Cheney addressed one of the committees remaining questions at the beginning of the meeting, saying the panel may ultimately decide to make a series of criminal referrals to the Department of Justice. At the end of the hearing, she mentioned the possibility again, saying it has sufficient information to consider criminal referrals for multiple individuals.

Members of the committee have long suggested they may suggest charges for Trump or others based on their own evidence. While such a referral would not force any action, it would place political pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland as the department has pursued its own investigations surrounding Jan. 6. And the committee has yet to share any transcripts from its more than 1,000 interviews.

Still, we recognize that our role is not to make decisions regarding prosecution, Cheney said.

___

Associated Press writers Michael Balsamo, Farnoush Amiri, Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
Oct. 13JEFFERSONVILLE  For the past 25 years Beth Quinkert has been the person she wishes had been in her corner during her first pregnancy.

The certified nurse-midwife and Tree of Life Family Birth Center director shared her story from the center's common room at 1214 Spring Street in Jeffersonville on a fitting day.

The center delivered its 500th baby Tuesday.

The center, and its partnering OB-GYN office WomanCare, are celebrating Quinkert's tenure this month.

Quinkert said she's delivered nearly 4,500 babies during her career.

"When I was a teenager I got pregnant and I went to an obstetrician over in Louisville during my pregnancy and the doctors were very paternalist," she said.

"They would call me 'little girl'...when I would ask questions, like if I would take child birth classes, they'd say, 'Well honey, you don't have a husband and he's the only one that can go with you, so you don't really need those classes.' Like I don't need education myself."

As it turns out, she was pregnant with twins. The doctors didn't diagnose twins, and hers are now 44. She said they didn't have the ultrasound technology they do these days during her first pregnancy.

When she was pregnant the next time, someone at her church suggested she talk to a woman who was the head of obstetrics in Harrison County. The rest is history.

"We sat down and she just listened to me about all the wrongs I felt in my pregnancy," Quinkert said. "She answered questions. I started seeing her for my new pregnancy and she delivered my baby down in Harrison County."

After that baby was born, Quinkert started to help with teaching childbirth classes.

"I decided every woman needs somebody like that," she said. "Every woman needs somebody they will talk to that will listen to them, their concerns and act on their concerns."

She became a nurse first and worked in labor and delivery after graduating from nursing school. She joined the Army and worked with midwives at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and then with midwives in Florida.

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Then she decided to move back home to work at Clark Memorial Hospital and earned her master's degree in midwifery at the University of Kentucky.

When Quinkert first started her job in labor and delivery she said the focus was only on the baby after birth. Now, she makes sure to check on the mother, too.

"I need to know if is there some trauma we need to heal them from," she said. "We get a lot of transfers in this practice, a lot of people that have had babies at other places or they are pregnant now and have been seeing another provider and they're just not feeling heard."

Jeffersonville's birth center is one of only six in Indiana. The closest to Jeffersonville is in Indianapolis at Sacred Roots or in Nashville, Tennessee.

People from places like Evansville will make the trip to Jeffersonville for doctor's appointments and to give birth at the center.

"They see us over at WomanCare doing prenatal care over there," Quinkert said. "They see us at WomanCare for prenatal care and we do our visits over there. They come in every month for the first several months, then come in every two weeks, then weekly."

The birth center is offered as an option to have a natural birth to patients at WomanCare who have low-risk pregnancies.

The birthing suites have large beds and bathtubs, in case someone wants to have a water birth. Empowering messages are on the walls and there are items in the room like peanut-shaped exercise balls to provide comfort to expectant mothers throughout labor.

People can bring their families and children into the rooms while they give birth.

"We deliver, they go home in four hours, the next day they come back here," Quinkert said. "They bring the baby back here, we do a complete assessment on mom and baby again."

Another nurse is on hand during the deliveries.

Diana Evans spent 23 years as one of Quinkert's nurses at WomanCare before going to Tree of Life Family Birth Center.

She has been a nurse for 35 years and spent 11 years working at the hospital.

"I just needed a change from the office," Evans said. "I loved being in the office. When Beth first started talking about opening a birth center I had it in the back of my mind I'd love doing that."

She's been working there since last summer. For her, Quinkert's work is close to her heart.

"She's an amazing woman," Evans said. "...my daughter had two sets of twins and she delivered all of them. I would trust her with anybody and I would tell anybody that."
Oct. 13ALBUQUERQUE  A federal bankruptcy court judge has set a potential timeline for survivors of clergy sexual abuse to begin receiving financial compensation in a wide-ranging case involving the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

Survivors could begin receiving payment between late January and early February, said Tom Walker, an Albuquerque attorney for the archdiocese.

At a Wednesday status conference hearing, Judge David Thuma gave the parties involved in the case, which has been weaving through the courts for years, until the end of October to raise objections to the archdiocese's bankruptcy organization plan to compensate nearly 400 survivors of abuse.

Assuming no objections are raised, Thuma scheduled a Nov. 3 hearing for all parties to approve the archdiocese's plan and its accompanying disclosure statement.

The plan then will be sent to all the survivors for approval  a process that will likely take at least

30 days but which still needs to be worked out. A majority of those people need to approve it, said Walker, who was present for the status hearing. If victims approve the plan, it would go back to Thuma for a final OK.

"Everybody is working together and working hard to get it done," Walker said of the case, which started late in 2018 when the archdiocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The plan calls for the archdiocese to pay out about

$75 million, for six insurers to pay $46.5 million, and for the Servants of the Paraclete and three other religious orders that have been sued for clergy abuse to pay close to $8 million  about $130 million in all.

The plan also includes nonmonetary covenants that among other measures allow for public access to an archive of abuse documents at the University of New Mexico's Zimmerman Library to "provide transparency as to how these decades of widespread abuse occurred and to try to prevent any future abuse going forward."

Names of the survivors will be redacted from the collection.

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Another provision in the covenants requires priests and deacons to undergo child protection training and a background check every five years.

Attorney Brad Hall, who represents some of the survivors who filed claims in the archdiocese bankruptcy suit, said after Wednesday's hearing he wished the case had moved more quickly.

"Anytime there are a half dozen insurance companies and 20 lawyers, it takes a little time," he said, adding survivors "can see a light at the end of the tunnel."

Wednesday's status hearing moved quickly, with little discussion and only a few questions posed by lawyers for the various parties  a result, perhaps, of Thuma setting deadlines to overcome some of the obstacles that came with negotiations.

One of those barriers came from a conflict between the archdiocese and the insurers over how much they should pay.

Sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy emerged as a nationwide issue more than 30 years ago. In New Mexico, the crisis may have been exacerbated by the presence of a rehabilitation center for priests in Jemez Springs. That center, run by the Servants of the Paraclete, started 75 years ago  primarily as a haven for priests struggling with emotional issues and alcoholism. Over time, more and more pedophile priests were sent there. Some were then allowed to serve in New Mexico parishes on weekends or for longer periods.

The Archdiocese of Santa Fe has sold individual pieces of property and sought a mortgage on the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi to help raise money for the settlements. Other small, vacant properties were bundled and sold at two auctions. Walker told Thuma during the hearing the archdiocese is still finalizing some of the exhibits that go with the final plan  a task that should be completed by Monday at the latest, he said.

Thuma thanked the parties involved for finding a way to what seems to be a conclusion to the case. He told them they performed "lots and lots of hard work, and you all are to be commended."

As a result, he said, the process is "moving much more quickly now."

Although Wednesday's hearing ended on a note of optimism, the disclosure statement for the bankruptcy plan says if the plan is not confirmed in a timely manner, "it is not clear that the transactions contemplated in the plan could be implemented and what holders of Tort Claims would ultimately receive ... moreover, failure to confirm the plan may result in dismissal of the case in its entirety."
Jury deliberation in the murder trial against Mark Wilson Junior took a little over two hours on Thursday.

The three-day trial resulted in a guilty verdict on two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of armed burglary.

Almost like something was lifted off your chest, Sarah Baker said. Like you dont want to cry anymore.

Baker is the mother of Robert Baker, 12, and brother Tayten, 14. They were murdered in their Melrose home on August 26, 2020.

I think thats the hardest part as a family, Kelli Coco, the boys cousin, said. Til this day, we dont know why we had to go through this.

RELATED: Mother testifies in gruesome Putnam County murder trial, suspect faces death penalty

Mark Wilson Jr. was dating the boys aunt, Cindy, at the time of the murder. The couple was staying at the Bakers home after Sarah Baker invited them because she says their apartment was not fit for their 15-month-old child. According to a warrant, Wilson told deputies he felt threatened and had planned to kill the entire family with Cindy. However, he said she didnt hold up her end of the deal. Cindy does not face any charges.

He is a monster. He did kill my nephews. He is a monster, Angela Phillips said. She is the aunt to Robert and Tayten.

Action News Jax reporter, Meghan Moriarty, asked the family about the penalty phase.

I hope he gets death. Yes. Thats what we want. We want the death penalty, Baker said.

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To know that he can never do this to another family, to another anybody, is the best news in the world right now, Coco said.

The defense did not wish to comment on the verdict.

The jury will be back in court on October 24 for the penalty phase. Wilson faces the death penalty.





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Photo: The Canadian Press Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino speaks during question period in the House of Common on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022. Members of the House of Commons immigration committee say they will not investigate allegations of obstruction of justice against Marco Mendicino, who was formerly in charge of the file. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Members of the House of Commons immigration committee voted Wednesday not to investigate allegations of obstruction of justice against Marco Mendicino, who was formerly in charge of the file.

The immigration department's deputy minister says human error led to a mistake in court filings about the coming into force of legislation creating a new college to regulate immigration consultants.

The Governor General signed an order in council to bring the law into effect on Nov. 20, 2020, the same day as a trademark infringement hearing involving the new college.

Government lawyers told a Federal Court judge in the case that the legislation came into force on that day. And the immigration department issued a press release a few days later, in which Mendicino declared the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act had come into force.

But it didn't really come into force until more than two weeks later, when the order in council was formally registered.

A report by independent media outlet Blacklock's Reporter last week suggested Mendicino backdated government documents in an "apparent bid to mislead a federal judge."

Mendicino, who became the public safety minister in October 2021, denied the allegations Sunday in a statement from his director of communications, Alex Cohen.

The deputy minister told the immigration committee that it was a simple case of human error that was quickly corrected.

Staff at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada mistakenly thought that the day the order was made was the date when the law actually came into effect, deputy minister Christiane Fox explained in a letter to the committee chair.

The courts were informed of the error on Dec. 9, 2020, she wrote, and the press release was corrected.

"I sincerely hope this provides you with the necessary assurance that all appropriate steps were taken in order to correct the error of the coming into force date once it had been discovered," Fox wrote.

Members of the committee convened an urgent meeting following the media report and debated whether they should investigate the error, but the idea was defeated in a five to six vote.

Conservative members of the committee argued for the investigation, saying they were concerned about whether government lawyers were given the go-ahead to say that the act had come into force before the Governor General actually signed the document.

"We have not one, but actually multiple different ... cases of wrongdoing or multiple overlapping errors here," said Conservative MP Garnett Genuis.

Liberal MPs described the error as an honest mistake and voted against the investigation.

"We know that civil servants are humans. We are all human. We all can err, despite trying our best," Liberal MP Sameer Zuberi told the committee.

The Blacklock's report was based on emails obtained through access-to-information legislation. Mendicino's office released the 730-page package that the report cited to members of the committee prior to the meeting.

The package includes several messages between department officials and communications staff in which they repeatedly confirm the incorrect date the legislation would come into force.

The week after the press release was published, exchanges show the department's legal team flagged the error and, on Dec. 1, 2020, department officials discussed whether "remedial measures" were needed.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.  A Broward County jury showed mercy Thursday to a heartless killer who didnt know the meaning of the word as he stalked the hallways of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School more than four years ago, viciously ending the lives of 17 innocent people.

Nikolas Cruz, 24, deserves to be punished for those murders, the jury of five women and seven men decided after deliberating for a mere seven hours. Maybe he deserves to be villainized, have his name go down in infamy. But he doesnt deserve to die, they decided in a split decision that took the judge a suspenseful hour to read.

No jurors looked at Cruz as they entered the courtroom. One man on the jury held his hand to his head, as if the decision took a toll.

Jury foreman Benjamin Thomas said he didnt vote to sentence Cruz to life in prison. He told WFOR-TV that three jurors voted against execution.

There was one with a hard no, he said. She couldnt do it. And there was another two that ended up voting the same way.

Later in the day, a juror sent Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer a handwritten letter defending herself against rumors in the jury pool stating that I had already made up my mind on voting for life before the trial started.

The juror, Denise Cunha of Pembroke Pines, said it wasnt true.

I maintained my oath to the court that I would be fair and unbiased, she wrote. The deliberations were very tense and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned that I would vote for life. 

Indeed, the jurys rejection of the death penalty was met with intense and immediate backlash  called a miscarriage of justice and a gut punch, among other things.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said it stings that this killer is gonna end up getting the same sentence of people who committed bad acts, but acts that did not rise to this level.

I think that if you have a death penalty at all, that this is a case where youre massacring those students with premeditation and utter disregard for basic humanity, that you deserve the death penalty, he said at a news conference in Cape Coral.

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His opponent on the November ballot, former Gov. Charlie Crist, a Democrat, said he, too, thought execution was the right penalty.

There are crimes for which the only just penalty is death, he said on Twitter. The Parkland families and community deserved that degree of justice.

Cruzs guilt was not in question; he admitted committing the crime.

Most of the families of his victims found his pleas for mercy insulting. Through nearly three months of testimony, many sat in court and listened to every witness, speaking only when asked to share their loss with the jury.

Those who died on Feb. 14, 2018, at the Parkland high school were frequently brought up by name throughout the trial: Alyssa Alhadeff, 14; Scott Beigel, 35; Martin Duque Anguiano, 14; Nicholas Dworet, 17; Aaron Feis, 37; Jaime Guttenberg, 14; Christopher Hixon, 49; Luke Hoyer, 15; Cara Loughran, 14; Gina Montalto, 14; Joaquin Oliver, 17; Alaina Petty, 14; Meadow Pollack, 18; Helena Ramsay, 17; Alexander Schachter, 14; Carmen Schentrup, 16; and Peter Wang, 15.

The legal case of Florida v. Nikolas Cruz should close when Scherer sentences the defendant on Nov. 1 to spend the rest of his natural life in prison for each of the people he killed. The quest for closure now belongs to the families of the victims, and no one else. Some of them will speak at the Nov. 1 hearing, prosecutors said.

On a YouTube video seven months before the mass murders, Cruz left comments promising to commit a massacre and looking forward to one particular result: It makes me happy to see people die, he wrote. I love to see the familys (sic) suffer.

Thursday, suffering family members came forward to express anguish and anger at a justice system they say failed.

Lukes mother, Gena Hoyer, sobbed into her husbands arms as they walked out of the courtroom.

Tony Montalto, whose daughter Gina was shot to death, was irate over the jurys decision and sat shaking his head throughout the lengthy reading by the judge.

She should not have been extinguished by this monster, he said after the verdicts were read. Gina deserved better than she got. She deserved better.

Several of the family members pointed out that the gunman shot their loved one multiple times, and wondered how someone who could do that isnt worthy of the death penalty.

Max Schachter, whose son Alex was murdered, said on Twitter that Cruz got everything he wanted. While our loved ones are in the cemetery.

Lori Alhadeff, who won election to the Broward School Board after her daughter Alyssa was murdered, said the outcome Thursday just makes the fire inside us even want to fight harder for change.

Debbi Hixon, whose husband Chris was murdered, said she was devastated and shocked. The decision suggests Cruzs life is more important than those whose lives he took, she said.

I have a son with special needs. I have a son that checked a lot of those boxes that the shooter did as well, she said. My sons not a murderer. My son is the sweetest person you could ever meet.

An outlier among the families is Robert Schentrup, 23, whose sister Carmen was murdered. He opposes the death penalty and didnt watch the trial.

I dont feel great. Theres no outcome where I could feel great, he said. Im relieved because had the death penalty been awarded, it would have been a decadeslong process of appeals until the shooter was executed. It would not be something we could move on.

The Parkland shooting sparked a crusade for gun control, starting with the March for our Lives movement. Schentrup, who was a student at the University of Central Florida at the time of his sisters death, is now an organizing manager for Brady United, a national gun reform group.

On the evidence, the prosecution made its case, the jury found unanimously. But three jurors were persuaded by the defense plea for mercy, which was based on evidence Cruz suffered Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder because his biological mother drank during pregnancy.

Thursdays decision wont return the 17 lives that were lost, the children whose only mistake was going to school on Valentines Day, or the teachers who tried to save them. It wont remove the scars from the victims who survived the attack with shrapnel lodged in their skin.

It wont erase the memories of dozens of children who made their way out of the building by stepping over the bodies and blood of their slaughtered classmates.

The jurys decision wont reopen the doors of the 1200 building at the Parkland high school campus. It wont mop the bloodstains from the floors and walls, restore the shattered glass to the classroom doors, or complete the unfinished assignments that were abandoned mid-thought by the terrified students when the firing began.

But it ends the only mystery associated with the case  is this the worst of the worst scenario lawmakers envisioned when they made the death penalty legal again in Florida?

Broward defense lawyer Elias Hilal, who is not associated with the case, said the death penalty in Broward County was effectively overturned.

Nobody in this county can ever get the death penalty again, he said. These poor kids were killed in a cold-blooded murder by a monster, yet this killer gets to sit in jail while their parents go home to an empty bedroom.

The decision came two days after a separate jury recommended death in the case of Peter Avsenew, convicted after a retrial for the murders of Kevin Powell, 52, and Stephen Adams, 47, a Wilton Manors couple who took him into their home during the 2010 holiday season.

Cruz, 19 when he committed the murders, offered almost immediately to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence. The Broward Public Defenders Office, which represented him, argued repeatedly that accepting life over death would avoid the spectacle of a trial and the trauma of introducing the evidence.

Prosecutors rejected the offer, refusing to allow the defendant to choose his own fate.

Over the course of four years, the public learned how many times Cruz was identified as a safety threat, and how little was done to address it. The Broward Sheriffs Office, FBI and Broward schools were among those in a position to intervene  who failed.

Andrew Pollock, whose daughter Meadow was among the murdered, said his mission was to seek accountability for the many who might have stopped Cruz from becoming a school shooter, but didnt.

Reached after the verdict, he said he wasnt invested in that outcome.

I feel bad for all the parents that wanted the death penalty, he said.

While in custody, Cruz attacked a detention deputy who was guarding him, leading to an additional criminal charge that served as a barometer of how potential jurors would feel about deciding his fate. Potential jurors broke down in tears when they saw him. Ultimately, he pleaded guilty.

Cruz also pleaded guilty to the school shooting. Standing before a packed courtroom on Oct. 20, 2021, he addressed the judge in a rambling monotone that sounded like he was reading from prepared notes. He wasnt.

I am very sorry for what I did and I have to live with it every day and that if I were to get a second chance I would do everything in my power to try to help others, he said. And I am doing this for you and I do not care if you do not believe me, and I love you and I know you dont believe me but I have to live with this every day and it brings me nightmares and I cant live with myself sometimes but I try to push through because I know thats what you guys would want me to do.

Family members of the slain victims greeted his confession with undisguised contempt.

Florida law now requires a jurys unanimous recommendation to sentence a murderer to death.

Jury selection began on April 4. In all, nearly 1,800 jurors were screened through fits and starts that pushed the trials start date further and further into the summer. In the end, 22 were chosen to sit through the trial. Ten were alternates, unaware that their services would no longer be required once deliberations began.

Testimony began July 18, after prosecutor Mike Satz delivered an opening statement outlining the states case. In the weeks that followed, the jury was presented with graphic videos and photographs and heart-wrenching testimony from survivors of the Stoneman Douglas massacre.

The prosecutions case reached a crescendo the week of Aug. 1, when family members began testifying and jurors walked through the building where the mass shooting occurred.

Throughout the prosecutions case, defense lawyers barely spoke. There was nothing to dispute, lead defense lawyer Melisa McNeill later told the jury. The defense case sought to separate the crime from the person who committed it, to present Cruz as brain-damaged, broken and mentally ill, deserving of a life sentence, but undeserving of death.

The case took an emotional toll on everyone, Broward Public Defender Gordon Weekes said  including the people charged with defending a client many wrote off as indefensible.

The day this occurred, I reflected on my own children, said Weekes. And I cried like a baby, trying to put into context what just occurred in our community.

Defense lawyers knew better than to celebrate, but afterward they expressed hope that the verdict, in its finality, would be the first step in the process of healing.

Prosecutors had to be content knowing the final decision was made by a jury  not Cruz himself.

Cruz could be seen smirking, just before he avoided a sentence he feared.



(Sun Sentinel staff writer Shira Moolten contributed to this report.)

____
Federal investigators have questioned Christina Bobb, a member of former President Donald Trump's legal team, after she signed a statement attesting that the Trump legal team found only a small number of government files at Mar-a-Lago two months before an FBI search recovered thousands of records, a person familiar with the matter told USA TODAY.

Christina Bobbs meeting with federal investigators last week related to her role in a June 3 meeting with Justice Department officials in which she signed a document claiming that no other relevant government records remained at Trumps Florida estate, said the source who is not authorized to comment publicly.

On Aug. 8, an FBI search of the property resulted in the seizure of 11,000 government documents, including more than 100 records marked as classified.

Bobb's meeting with investigators was first reported by NBC News.

Christina Bobb: How Trump lawyer Christina Bobb, an ex-OAN host, took spotlight in Mar-a-Lago case

Separately, The New York Times reported that Bobb had been asked to sign the document by fellow Trump lawyer Evan Corcoran, indicating that a search of the property had resulted in the recovery of a limited number of documents which were then turned over to federal authorities.

Former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla.

Prosecutors are examining whether Bobb, a former anchor for the right-wing One America News network, obstructed justice or other crimes after the FBI found classified files in the search at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in August, according to the Times report.

Bobb, who has said she believes that the 2020 election was stolen, met with Department of Justice lawyers on Friday.

She said she did not fully grasp what was going on when she met with Corcoran, who asked her to sign the statement, according to the Times report, which cited two unnamed sources who heard her account.

"Wait a minute  I don't know you," Bobb said in an exchange with Corcoran, according to a person who she later told about the request, the report said.

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More: Stay in the conversation on politics: Sign up for the OnPolitics newsletter

Corcoran told Bobb he had searched a storage facility for the documents, which she said she believed was true. She signed her name, but added, The above statements are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, before handing the document to a Justice Department official, according to the Times.

Bobb, the newspaper reported, told the Department of Justice she was working as part of a legal team when she signed the statements.

The Justice Department declined comment.

Corcoran did not respond to requests for comment.

Bobbs lawyer, John Lauro, also did not return messages seeking comment.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: DOJ questions Trump attorney Bobb on classified records at Mar-a-Lago
Kanye West acknowledged that his antisemitics posts online did not mean that he intended harm for Jewish people, but remained steadfast in defending his remarks telling Page Six that he was happy to have crossed that line.

Wests response to the ongoing fallout that was trigged by his recent comments shared on social media over the weekend arrived while he was leaving the premiere of Candace Owenss documentary in Nashville on Wednesday night.

In the video footage captured by Page Six, the 45-year-old rapper can be seen leaving the Woolworth Theater, where hours earlier hed posed with conservative commentator Ms Owens and his ex-wifes former boyfriend, Ray J.

One of the photographers can be heard asking West as he begins to tunnel into a limo what he thought of the film, to which the Donda artist responds by saying that he liked it, and then asks: thats the only question you got?

The photographer, seemingly caught off guard that the rapper-turned-fashion designer has decided to answer his questions, then quickly responds by asking if he had any regret over the comments he made over the weekend.

Late on Saturday night, West wrote in a since-deleted tweet that he was going to go death con 3 on Jewish people and alleged that he wasnt Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew, while on Instagram he accused record producer Sean Diddy Combs of being controlled by the religious minority.

Both posts led to him being locked out of the respective platforms, which he remained restricted from as of Thursday.

After taking what felt like a minute-long pause, West responded to the photographers question by answering with another question: Do you think that comment came, from just out of the blue?

The photographer, not satisfied with the response, then put it to West more directly: Do you wish harm on Jewish people?

West immediately responded by saying, no, no way, and then went on to couch that response by claiming how in Hollywood if you call someone out for bad business thats, in his view, often characterised as being antisemitic.

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Hey, if you call somebody out for bad business, that means youre being anti-Semitic. I feel happy to have crossed the line of that idea so we can speak openly about things like getting canceled by a bank, he said to Page Six, in apparent reference to a tweet shared by Ms Owens on her Twitter account that alleged JP Morgan Chase had ended their financial relationship with Yeezy, LLC.

[I am] the richest black man in American history, he added.

At one inaudible point in the footage, West appears to begin to ellaborate on the alleged split between him and his businesss bank, JP Morgan Chase, but is interrupted by the sound of a passing truck.

The Independent has contacted JP Morgan Chase for comment regarding Ms Owenss tweet but the institution has declined to comment on the matter.
Katana, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform for small- and medium-sized manufacturers, has raised 35 million ($34 million) in a Series B round of funding.

ERP is a form of business management software that can serve any number of functions inside a company, from marketing and risk management, to supply chain management and beyond. Integrations are pivotal to any ERP software, as it typically involves taking data from different systems such as HR, CRM, accounting, and order management to generate insights and analysis -- at its core, ERP is all about identifying potential problems and improving efficiency.

Founded out of Tallinn, Estonia, in 2017, Katana is an ERP for the manufacturing sector, with prebuilt integrations for many of the most common tools that a manufacturer might use, including e-commerce platforms (e.g., Shopify and WooCommerce), accounting (e.g., QuickBooks and Xero), shipping, forecasting, CRM, and more. Collectively, these various integrations can help a manufacturer predict what their future inventory needs will be based on historical or real-time sales data, for example, to ensure that they don't run out of stock or parts.

Katana: Inventory overview Image Credits: Katana

End of 'made in China' era

A big driving force behind demand for such software is direct-to-consumer (D2C) manufacturing, which has seen smaller, local manufacturers -- or "micro-manufacturers" -- remove many of the intermediaries that were traditionally necessary to get their products made.

"The rise in D2C manufacturing has driven a small manufacturing renaissance, giving consumers a wealth of options that reduce the hold of brands relying on mass production," Katana co-founder and CEO Kristjan Vilosius explained o TechCrunch. "As manufacturing moves closer to the ever-increasingly conscious consumer, brands that rely on local production and inventory are gaining market share. In short, the 'made in China' era is ending."

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This has been aided by modern technologies such as 3D printing and computer-aided laser cutters, allowing companies to produce goods on a smaller scale away from centralized, mass-production factories. In tandem, the emergence of online marketplaces, e-commerce software, and the broader cloud computing movement has made it easier to assume greater control of the entire business process, from manufacturing through to sales.

"Manufacturers already have a tech stack of tools like e-commerce platforms, shipping tools, and accounting software," Vilosius continued. "What's missing is a central source-of-truth that streamlines the flow of information and minimizes manual data entry and, as a result, human error."

Legacy ERP software from the likes of Netsuite and SAP are typically geared toward larger businesses, which is why we've seen a slew of younger upstarts enter the fray to much VC fanfare in recent years, with Katana and its ilk trying to usher in a more modern toolset purpose-built for SMBs -- and in Katana's case specifically, SMB manufacturers.

"Supporting this new wave of manufacturers is critical -- enterprise business suites like NetSuite and SAP come with hefty costs and a plethora of features and functionalities that exceed the needs of small- to medium-sized businesses," Vilosius said. "The ERP space is also known for poor user experience and user interface, and low customer satisfaction. Many small businesses opt for spreadsheets despite being error-prone and difficult to scale as their businesses grow."

Katana had previously raised around $16 million, the bulk of which arrived via its Series A round last year, and in the intervening months the company claims to have quadrupled its annual recurring revenue (ARR), grown its headcount from 30 to 140, and scaled its customer base from "hundreds of micro-businesses to thousands of customers in the SMB segment," according to Vilosius. On top of that, the company launched an open API for customers to build their own integrations.

With another $34 million in the bank, the company said that it's well-financed to "bring manufacturing software into the digital era," which will include rolling out "more advanced accounting integrations."
Kate Garraway's husband Derek Draper is in hospital. (ITV)

Kate Garraway has revealed that her husband Derek Draper is in hospital again after getting sepsis.

The Good Morning Britain presenters husband was placed in a medically induced coma and spent more than a year in hospital after falling ill with the coronavirus early in 2020, and now needs round the clock care.

He returned to hospital this summer after falling ill with sepsis and Garraway has now shared that he is unwell again.

Read more: Good Morning Britain star Kate Garraway broke toe hurrying through intensive care

Writing in The Sun, she said: Derek is back in hospital after developing sepsis that again threatened his life and we are again fighting to get him home.

But I remain constantly inspired by those around him  not just for their expertise but for their loving care.

The star has updated fans about her husband's health. (PA)

Draper first fell ill in March 2020 and he returned home to Garraway and their two children  son Billy, 13, and daughter Darcey, 16  in April 2021.

Draper previously had sepsis in the summer of 2022 after taking an 'unexpected and frightening turn for the worse' which led to another spell in hospital 'fighting for his life'.

TV star Garraway, 55, has kept fans updated on Draper's progress and last year she won a National Television Award for her documentary about his illness, Kate Garraway: Finding Derek.

She is nominated again this year for her follow up programme, Caring For Derek.

The presenter recently said that Draper, 55, remains "very damaged".

Kate Garraway and Derek Draper share a kiss in 2007. (PA)

Opening up during an appearance on DNA Journey, she said: "With Derek, he got very sick very early on in the pandemic and has remained very damaged.

Read more: Kate Garraway says husband Derek Draper remains 'very damaged' after COVID

"That is quite well documented because for a lot of people, he has come to symbolise the fight that goes on."

Garraway and former political advisor Draper have been married since 2005.

Watch: Kate Garraway reflects on Derek Draper's difficult recovery from COVID
Not much is known about Nintendos upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie, but Keegan-Michael Key revealed to Variety that his character Toad has a musical moment in the film.

When asked if Toad shows off his singing chops in the animated movie, Key said, He does. I got to improvise a song in Super Mario Bros., which was an absolute blast. That was just a stick of fun, that whole thing.

More from Variety

Regarding Toads voice, Key said, I was working on the voice with my partner and trying to find the voice through the internal journey of the character. And then with the directors [Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic], we sprinkled some things in, we moved it around.

Key went on to joke about how he is a theater fucking actor nerd when discussing Toads voice, adding, There was something about the timbre. I wanted it higher and higher and higher. And thats where we ended up, and Im really happy with where we ended up.

Rumors that the Mario movie might contain musical sections have circled for months, with Jack Black revealing at New York Comic Con last week that he did a little bit of rocking as Bowser.

I did bring some of my heavy metal roots, Black said. Bowser is kind of like a heavy metal rockstar, a big, strong and scary rockstar. And I did a little bit of rocking. I think youll be surprised to see that Bowser has a musical side. After the movie comes out, I might take it to Broadway.

In his Variety interview, Key also divulged some details about the upcoming Wonka movie starring Timothee Chalamet.

I am in one very big elongated musical number with Timmy, which is great, Key said. I absolutely adore him. And then I have another musical number that is with other people about Timmy.

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The Reboot and Key & Peele star added that the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory prequel is a new adventure that is not beholden to the original story, teasing, Theres an introduction of a world that you dont know.

Best of Variety

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Since the start of the pandemic, we at the Center on Reinventing Public Education have had our eyes locked on the experiences of and outcomes for students with disabilities.

As we noted in our inaugural State of the American Student report, students with disabilities lost out on critical therapies and foundational learning and socialization opportunities during the early days of the pandemic. Nearly half (44%) of parents of students with cognitive disabilities reported that schools abandoned their childs legal right to access an equitable education when they moved to remote learning, according to Understood, a national nonprofit that supports those who think and learn differently.

To establish a baseline understanding of the impact on those students, and to begin to track progress toward helping them recover the knowledge, skills and supports they missed during the pandemic, CRPE commissioned the nonprofit Center for Learner Equity to convene a panel of experts to review the latest research. The goal was to summarize what we know, dont know and need to know going forward to help students with disabilities.

No paywall. No pop-up ads. Keep The 74 free for everyone with a generous donation.

The top line finding of our new report is  disturbingly  that we still know little about how such students are faring. Less than a third of most rigorous academic studies in the past year disaggregate outcomes for students with disabilities. Most of those few studies are limited to a specific state or locale, which means findings are hard to generalize. Nearly all the studies focus on grades 3 to 8, where state test scores are most readily available.

Related: EXCLUSIVE: CRPE Situation Report  State of the American Student, September 2022

Scores on standardized math and English assessments declined for all students and the same is true for students with disabilities. Results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress showed somewhat sharper drops for students with disabilities than for other children. Different studies show similar or even fewer declines. But any drop in achievement for this group of students should be concerning, as they typically score below their traditionally developing peers to begin with.

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We know next to nothing about post-high school outcomes like college enrollment or persistence or employment. High school graduation rates rose for students with disabilities during the pandemic, but its unclear if that was a good thing. Requirements were loosened for almost all students, and basic support services for the transition out of high school were fundamentally disrupted.

Another major barrier to parsing the research: Results for students with disabilities are usually reported as a monolithic block, rather than in categories that would note the variation and complexities of real children who have very different abilities and diagnoses, from emotional and behavioral disorders to physical disabilities. The research rarely divides the data to note students with disabilities who may also be facing other challenges, such as economic disadvantage, racial discrimination, or being an English learner or recent immigrant. Our State of the Student report stresses that the averages seen in these reports obscure critical variations in student needs.

Related: LAUSD Failed Students With Disabilities During the Pandemic: Parents, Advocates, Attorneys on How the District Should Help Them Now

The review found little, if any, research on mental health and behavioral outcomes disaggregated for students with disabilities. One exception: a study from a large urban district that shows suspension rates for children with disabilities, particularly Black boys, temporarily increased after a return to in-person learning.

Ameliorating these impacts for students with disabilities may be more difficult than for other students, our new report shows. The research indicates a spike in the number of underqualified special education teachers working in classrooms. In Pennsylvania, the number of emergency-certified special education teachers nearly doubled from 2018 to fall 2020. Nationally, 45% of schools reported at least one vacancy in special education teaching staff positions, according to new data from the National Center for Educational Statistics.

Federal special education law requires school districts to compensate students with disabilities for lost instructional or therapeutic time. But staffing challenges means many schools are likely stretched just trying to deliver regular instruction, much less compensatory services. Across the country, some districts have wrongly asserted that they are not required to compensate for pandemic-related lost instructional time. Only about one in four parents of children with disabilities have received information about compensatory services, and fewer than one in five parents said their child had received those services, according to a national survey conducted by a legal group that protects the rights of students with disabilities. Nearly nine out of 10 parents, however, reported their child experienced learning loss or regression during the pandemic.

Related: Lawsuit: VA Parents Say Special Education Cases Are Rigged Against Them

Our panel of scholars recommended three steps policymakers can take to better help these students:

Invest in data and research to track short- and long-term outcomes for students with disabilities and to disaggregate results to specify disability status as well as other factors like race.

Provide technical assistance to districts struggling to meet such students needs.

Identify and disseminate examples of innovative and effective strategies for educating students with disabilities.

For me, that last point is critical. New online learning tools, innovative staffing models and creative community partnerships can help schools address the immediate needs of students with disabilities. They might also help meet the needs of millions of other children who face unique learning obstacles or emotional challenges. American schools are facing wicked problems. But if educators and communities can explore and implement new approaches to help students with learning differences, the most effective changes might help build toward something better for all students, as well.
Britain will have a coronation next summer- the first since 1953. After the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September, there was an instant transfer of power to her eldest child, King Charles III. At this time, officials are tight- lipped on the details. But you can count on plenty of pageantries to herald in the new reign, just like every other British coronation.

What we do know is that Charles will be crowned at Westminster Abbey where monarchs have been crowned for 900 years. USA Today reports the Archbishop of Canterbury will conduct the service and crown him, as has been tradition since 1066.

The Kings wife Camilla, who is Queen consort, will be crowned on the same day.

USA Today notes that Charles will be crowned while sitting on King Edwards Chair, made in 1300 and used by every sovereign since 1626. A block of Scottish sandstone called the Stone of Scone will be part of the ceremony before officials return it to the Crown Room in Edinburgh Castle.

USA Today writes, leaks about the details of the coronation have been turning up in the British press for weeks, including reports that there will be fewer guests. Also, the ceremony will last only about an hour and guests, even the poshest of aristocrats, will be allowed to wear suits instead of ceremonial robes. None of that has been confirmed.

Its too early to determine whether Charles will inspire the same admiration his mother did and continues to do even in death. Moreover, being 73, hell have a much shorter time on the throne.

Will you tune into the coronation of the new king?
No longer working royals, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan may be living their lives in California these days, but King Charles III is making sure their presence remains at Buckingham Palace.

This week, the new sovereign took his first weekly audience with Prime Minister Liz Truss at the palace. In a short video of their greeting, released on Twitter, viewers can see several photos of the family displayed around the meeting room. Among them is a photo from Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's wedding.

NEW: The King held his first weekly audience with the Prime Minister @trussliz at Buckingham Palace this evening pic.twitter.com/1nmTBAzlLJ  Lizzie Robinson (@LizzieITV) October 12, 2022

The image was taken by photographer Alexi Lubomirski at Windsor Castle following the Sussexes' wedding ceremony at St. George's Chapel on May 19, 2018. It shows Harry and Meghan surrounded by members of their family and bridal partyincluding the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. The now King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, and Princess Kate are also in the photo, as are Kate and William's children, boys and girls from Harry and Meghan's bridal party, and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have released three official photographs from their Wedding day.



These photographs were taken by photographer Alexi Lubomirski at Windsor Castle, following the carriage procession. #RoyalWedding pic.twitter.com/WBim9EkI4D  The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 21, 2018

Readers may recall that in a touching moment during the ceremony, Charles walked Meghan down the aisle to Harry, as her own father, Thomas Markle, did not attend the ceremony.

Two years after the beautiful royal wedding, Meghan and Harry made the decision to step down from their roles as senior members of the royal family and moved to California to start their new life. The move came shortly after Meghan welcomed the couple's first child, son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Then, in June 2021, they welcomed daughter Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.

Harry and Meghan reunited with the Duke of Sussex's family last month for the ceremonies following the death of Queen Elizabeth.

Also in King Charles's office is a photo featuring four generations of the royal family: the late queen with her heirs, Charles, grandson Prince William, and great-grandson Prince George. The shot was taken by photographer Ranald Mackechnie in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace around Christmas 2019.

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Photo: . Dry grass on the top of Mount Tolmie shows the impact of two months of almost no rain. ADRIAN LAM, TIMES COLONIST

The record hot, dry weather dominating B.C.s South Coast is not expected to go away anytime soon, according to Environment Canada.

Drought conditions and unseasonably warm temperatures broke a number of records across the province in September.

In the provinces capital, Victoria International Airport reported last month was the second driest and the hottest September on record.

The temperature and rainfall we had for the month of September were extreme for Vancouver Island, and that hasnt changed for the first week and a half of October, said Environment Canada meteorologist Alyssa Charbonneau.

She said the provinces Lower Mainland has faced similar much-warmer-than-normal conditions. While Vancouver International Airport reported the fourth warmest on record, Abbotsford had the warmest and driest September on record going back to 1945.

The rivers are low. We're seeing drought levels increasing at this time of year which we normally would not have, Charbonneau told Glacier Media. We're kind of just in a prolonged summer.

The drought conditions are getting worse. And we're also seeing wildfire risk continuing.

The number of active wildfires in the province had climbed to 205 as of Wednesday, a spike of 17 new fires in the past two days, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

As of Oct. 11, high to extreme wildfire danger ratings covered nearly all of the South Coast and Vancouver Island, something Charbonneau says is quite unusual.

Fire crews attack a wildfire in Minnekhada Regional Park, one of three fires ignited across Metro Vancouver in recent weeks. Metro Vancouver/City of Port Coquitlam

The only future certainty is uncertainty

Scientists who have modelled the effects of human-caused climate change in British Columbia say the region can expect more drought in the summer months and more extreme rainfall at other times.

But thats an average, and Charbonneau says individual years will bring their own unpredictable collection of weather events, not all of them driven by climate change.

We are susceptible to extreme weather events here, she said. There are no guarantees that what we see this year will be what we see next year.

That's likely little comfort to communities on the Sunshine Coast, struggling to provide an emergency supply of water to its residents; or to the Heiltsuk First Nation, whose members last week found thousands of dead wild salmon in a creek bed left stranded when the water dried up.

Little change in the near-term

At this time of year, B.C.s coast normally is dominated by fall storms.

Whats different this time around is a stubborn high-pressure system that has crept up from the south and established itself over the province.

It's not going anywhere, at least for the next week or so, said Charbonneau of the ridge of high pressure. That means that all the weather systems that are coming are being deflected to the north, into the Gulf of Alaska, impacting the Alaska panhandle and Yukon.

Over the next two weeks, she says temperatures are expected to reach into the high teens and low 20s, five degrees Celsius above average for this time of year.

Only then do weather models start to show a signal that there may be a break in the hot, dry weather.

In terms of how much rain those storms might bring, its so far away its really hard to know, said the Environment Canada meteorologist.

B.C. coastal winter still could be cold, wet

The U.S. National Weather Services last seasonal outlook for the Pacific Northwest  a region that borders B.C.'s South Coast  predicted above-average precipitation through October, November and December.

Charbonneau says even if dry, hot conditions persist for the next couple of weeks on B.C.s South Coast and Vancouver Island, that could quickly shift to a La Nina-dominated winter in late fall.

La Nina and El Nino are used to describe warm and cool phases of a climate pattern that shifts across the tropical Pacific every three to seven years. As sea surface temperatures swing back and forth between Australia and South America, they cause knock-on effects that disrupt temperature and precipitation patterns thousands of kilometres away  often in somewhat predictable ways.

In B.C., a cycle dominated by an El Nino pattern tends to lead to warmer winters, whereas a La Nina winter tends to be cooler.

According to the U.S. Climate Prediction Centers last update on the status of the El Nino/Southern Oscillation, La Nina conditions are expected to persist for a third straight winter in the Northern Hemisphere. The Climate Prediction Center is expected to provide another update on Oct. 13.

Without any clear signal of things changing in B.C. in the near-term, Charbonneau says the long-term pattern remains so uncertain.

For example, last winter, we really didnt see that kind of characteristic La Nina until late, she said. It doesnt give us much to hang our hats on.

As for the potential for a cooler winter  something the Farmers' Almanac predicted could lead to decent ski season this year  Charbonneau says its still not out of the question.

We could still see lots of precipitation through the month of November, December, she said.

There's nothing to say that it won't happen.
Five people are in the running to fill the three spots on the Wolverine Community Schools Board of Education on Nov. 8.

WOLVERINE  As the November election approaches, the Cheboygan Daily Tribune is writing candidate profiles for contested local and state elections.

Five people are in the running to fill the three spots on the Wolverine Community Schools Board of Education. Tal Babcock, Eric Brado, Tabitha Glazier, Troy Nelson and Garrett Sherman are the five candidates.

Brado, who is currently serving as the board president, is the only incumbent running for one of the seats.

Babcock, Nelson and Sherman did not respond to the questionnaire by the time of publication.

Babcock is also running for a position as trustee for the Village of Wolverine. He currently serves on the village board. Nelson previously served on the board and was the board president. Babcock, Nelson and Sherman are running together, according to Sherman's Facebook page.

Bardo and Glazier are running together with a shared platform, both candidates confirmed.

All candidates were sent the same questions and given the same deadline to respond, along with a reminder email.

The Daily Tribune reserved the right to edit responses for length, clarity and adherence to Associated Press style guidelines.

Q: In a few short paragraphs, talk about your background (job experience, educational history, time in the area, etc.) And why it would make you a good fit for the school board.

BRADO: My name is Eric Brado. I am running for a second term with the Wolverine Community Schools Board of Education. I moved to Wolverine when I was 11 years old and attended Wolverine schools through junior high. I have lived within 10 miles of Wolverine all my life and moved back permanently to manage a large piece of private land for the past 20 years. I now live with my significant other Darlene and our three daughters who all attend Wolverine Schools third grade through 11th grade.

I joined the board six years ago with the intent to learn and do what I could to help serve kids, but I knew from the beginning that I needed to learn more about the role of board members. I was nominated for the board president position from year one on, but did not accept it until I learned more about the work of school boards, school finance and education law. So, I attended a Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) conference in Bellaire, where I took classes on the following issues: school finance, being a board president, board-superintendent relations, and more. These classes were so helpful, and because of them I felt confident in accepting the nomination to be the Wolverine Schools board president. Working with the board, children, educators and administrators has been a truly fulfilling experience. We have outstanding children and staff at Wolverine Schools.

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I am committed to working with district leadership to continue to improve our schools. In the last two years, the board of education has accomplished historic feats, including passing the largest pay and benefits our teachers have had in over 30 years; increased teacher retention 95 percent  up from only 30 percent four years ago; assisting in the development and passage of the district's first strategic plan  20 percent of which is focused on communication and community engagement; finally, we passed a 3.1 mill bond to keep kids of Wolverine safe, warm and dry.

I am beyond proud of the work we have done, and would like to continue it for another six years as a Wolverine Community School board member.

GLAZIER: Hello, my name is Tabitha Glazier. Ive lived in Wolverine for a little over 30 years, I attended Wolverine Schools when I was younger. After I married, my husband and I continued to live in Wolverine. This is also where we raised our children; three have graduated from Wolverine Schools and four are currently enrolled in kindergarten, first, seventh and 12th grades.

Ive helped run elections in my township for over 10 years and worked at Awaken Federal Credit Union in Wolverine for 12 years before I became a stay-at-home mom. Being a stay-at-home mom enables me to be more involved in the school and community, which I have been able to:

Help with the passing of a 3.1 mill bond to keep the kids of Wolverine safe, warm and dry.

Assist in the development and passage of the districts first strategic plan, in which 20 percent is focused on communication and community involvement.

Help with the restart of the Wolverine PTO, the Wolverine PTO helps create fun and educational activities for the students at Wolverine Schools.

Q: What concerns face Wolverine Community Schools and what can be done to make the district better?

BRADO: I will start by addressing the largest issue I have seen in my six years on the board, its not just a Wolverine concern its a Michigan wide concern which we in Michigan are at the bottom of 50 states for per pupil funding increases. This has been devastating to Michigan schools, Michigan should care far more about the education of our future leaders in our state.

We at Wolverine Schools continue to face the challenge of improving outcomes for students, increasing pay/benefits/conditions for teachers and providing more college and career pathways to students. We have prioritized all of these challenges in our strategic plan and are developing the following to improve them:

Outcomes for students:

We are working to prioritize curricular standards so that we can invest 75 percent of our time and energy on the most important outcomes for each grade level and content area. We are also emphasizing student engagement and hands-on learning by developing K-5 STEAM program and a 6-12 Project Term, in which students are applying problem solving skills and solving real work problems.

Teacher retention:

We will continue to improve pay and benefits for staff, and have already begun doing this by taking stock of what area schools are paying teachers and making a plan to bring our pay and benefits in line with districts around us. We have also been recognizing the good work staff are doing in our board meetings monthly, and found that teachers appreciate this expression of appreciation from the board.

Providing more college and career pathways for students:

We have wanted to create a position focused on providing college and career pathways for students, but haven't been able to do so until now. Due to a $1 million fund balance and widespread support from the current board, we have finally reached the point where we could create a student services coordinator position. Mrs. Nash, our student services coordinator, is setting up college visits, job shadowing and meeting with every student to identify a path after high school. We never want another Wildcat leaving our school district without a plan.

GLAZIER: We continue to face the challenge of improving outcomes for students, increasing the pay and benefits for the teachers, and providing more college and career pathways for students. These challenges have been prioritized in the strategic plan, which includes:

Outcomes for students: Mrs. Olds has developed a K-5 STEAM program for students which emphasizes hands-on learning.

Teacher retention: From what I have observed from attending school board meetings, they are committed to continuing the improvement of pay and compensation for teachers and staff. Also, they recognize rockstar staff and students at board meetings.

Providing more college and career pathways for students: The school was able to welcome Mrs. Nash as our student service coordinator who has set up college visits and is working on setting up job shadowing for students to help them identify a career path for after high school.

More:Get unlimited access to local news that's important to you

Q: Many school districts are facing questions regarding materials and what should be available to students and at what grade level. What are your thoughts on book challenges?

BRADO: If you are talking about critical race theory, I'm afraid there's not much to say on the matter. I have looked at the social studies standards for Michigan and there is absolutely nothing in these standards, which are legally obligated to teach to, that refers to Critical Race Theory. Our school is not a political place  we trust our teachers to educate our students and we as a board provide oversight of the superintendent of schools. I have no doubt that our staff are making responsible choices with regard to reading materials, and that at the end of the day, will choose books that will help our Wildcats master the Michigan standards.

GLAZIER: If you are referring to the critical race theory, I have already spoken to our superintendent about the matter. It is not in our school district, and I was told by the superintendent that they are not legally required to teach it. I have complete trust and full faith that our teachers will make responsible and safe choices for our students.

 Contact education reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com or on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.

This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Q&A with the Wolverine school board candidates on the November ballot
Obradovic / iStock.com

Happy Wednesday  and National M&M Day! Fun fact: M&MS introduced Purple, their first new spokescandy in a decade, this year. Catch up on todays top financial stories while youre enjoying a candy break.

Social Security: 2023 COLA To Rise 8.7% for Its Biggest Gain in Four Decades

The Social Security Administration on Thursday announced its biggest annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in more than four decades, with Social Security recipients set to get an 8.7% boost to their 2023 monthly payments. Read the full story here

Business Spotlight: Uber, Lyft & DoorDash

The Biden-Harris administration has proposed a rule challenging existing worker classifications that could change the nature of the gig economy in the U.S. by redefining guidelines to fit current labor standards. Read the full story here

Thats Awesome: Gen Z Is Getting Started as Young as 19 With Their Retirement Savings

Many Gen Zers are starting to save for retirement as teenagers  much sooner than earlier generations, according to a new report from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. Read the full story here

Bonus: 8 Ways To Save on Your Next Trip to the Movies

You dont have to call cut on going to the movies. Here are some ways to catch all the action without spending blockbusting prices. Read the full story here

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: GO in the Know: Social Security COLA Increases 8.7%, Gen Zs Retirement Savings & Top Financial News for Oct. 13, 2022
South Korean rapper Jessi called out her European tour organizer for poor management after being stranded in Paris overnight.

The soloist is currently on her five-city Beyond Your Imagination tour, which started in Berlin on Oct. 8. Following her concert in London on Oct. 10, Jessi shared to her Instagram story that was stuck in the city and paying her own way to get to her next show in Paris. When she arrived in Paris, she posted another Instagram story revealing she was stranded in the city without a hotel reservation.

I know kpop fans think they favs are being mistreated and often it's probably not the real truth but jessi was left in London without travel (and maybe hotel) for her upcoming Paris show. Whoever is organising this tour seems to not be treating her well and that's fucked up. pic.twitter.com/f4q0ZOZB2V More from NextShark: Chinese man teaches his dog how to start the rice cooker while he is away in viral video  Chris (@ThatDamn_Chris) October 12, 2022

Jessi did manage to make it on time to perform her Paris concert, where she notified her fans of the hardships shes been going through, stopping mid-sentence to hug her mother backstage. In videos taken by spectators, she reveals she thought about canceling the tour because of this guy, referring to the tour organizer, who she says she ran into prior to the show and saw him eating. Jessi, on the other hand, says she had not eaten that day or the night prior because of her hotel situation.

More from NextShark: Video of 3-year-old boy using a stool to care for his dad, who is in a vegetative state, goes viral

Part of opening ment where Jessi talks about the bas*ard who scammed her.. and hugging her mother We love you soooo much Jessi #JessiinParis #Jessi pic.twitter.com/FeNlU54sVW  VOTE FOR MTV EMA link in bio- Arwen  SVT (@HongArwen) October 12, 2022

More from NextShark: 'King of Mandopop' Jay Chou shocked after discovering his 4-year-old son drawing musical notes

She goes on to say she was stranded until 6 a.m., and it took her friends flying from Korea to Paris to help her find a place to stay.

jessi speaking about this in her paris concert that didn't cancel even tho she had nowhere to sleep til the morning.... Pls this is so not human of those organizers.. in tears jessi ILYSM im. cr jessigodly #JessiInParis #JessiDeservesBetter pic.twitter.com/jUOZ9ACSCx  c (@syjclub3) October 12, 2022

Jessi continues with her criticisms of the organizer, calling him a f*cking coward and saying she hopes he doesnt have the audacity to be at the show.



Hes seriously ruining my life right now. Me and mom have been stranded. Ive been taking public transportation. I had to book my own f*cking hotels, I had to book my own trains, and I did not complain for anything. Because at the end of the day when I see you guys, everything all changes. So today, I was going to cancel the show because my bodys just not good right now and my voice is gone she says.

Her mother also took to Instagram and posted a story recognizing her daughter was not well and asking for support.

Jessi acknowledged her own mental health struggles earlier in the tour during her London show, saying she was in the worst place in her life, mentally. She also shared she recently lost someone close to her and that there is a lot going on that her fans dont know about.

I dont think its wrong because you need to talk to people about your health. We need to talk about mental health problems because its a real thing. A lot of people look at me and think Im this hard, strong f**king b**ch, but Im really fragile right now, she said. I just come on stage and pretend nothing is wrong, but this tour I realized, why not talk about me being hurt and strugglingand its okay. I know that after this Im going to get the help that I need and come back ten times stronger,.

Feature Image via Jessi
LONDON (Reuters) -Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying on Thursday that the goals of Moscow's "special military operation" in Ukraine were unchanged, but that they could be achieved through negotiations.

The comments to the Russian newspaper Izvestia were the latest in a series of statements this week stressing Moscow's openness to talks - a change of tone that follows a run of humiliating defeats for Russian forces as the war in Ukraine nears the end of its eighth month.

"The direction has not changed, the special military operation continues, it continues in order for us to achieve our goals," Peskov was quoted as saying. "However, we have repeatedly reiterated that we remain open to negotiations to achieve our objectives."

Peskov added, however, that he did not see any prospects for talks with the West in the near future because of its "hostile" attitude towards Russia.

"It takes two sides to have a dialogue. As the West is now taking a very, very hostile stance towards us, it's unlikely that there will be any such prospect in the near future," - Peskov told Kazakhstan's Khabar 24 TV channel, according to the Russian news agency TASS.

"Nevertheless, Turkey, as well as a number of other countries, continue to try to mediate in some way."

While Russia has said before that it is prepared to negotiate, the repeated references this week to the possibility of dialogue are striking.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow was open to talks with the West, but the United States dismissed the statement as "posturing".

Lavrov returned to the issue on Thursday, telling Izvestia: "We won't run after anyone. If there are specific serious proposals, we're ready to consider them."

He added: "When we get some sort of signal, we will be ready to consider it."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has ruled out talking to President Vladimir Putin after Russia proclaimed the annexation of four Ukrainian regions last month and rained missiles on Ukrainian cities this week in the wake of an attack on a vital bridge between Russia and annexed Crimea.

(Reporting by Reuters; writing by Mark Trevelyan; editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Kevin Liffey)
Watch: Guest on C4 News says Rees-Mogg was talking 'b*******'

Channel 4 News viewers were amused when Krishnan Guru-Murthy apologised for the subtitles spelling the word "b*******" wrong.

The reporter had been chatting to journalist Gillian Tett and asked her about Jacob Rees-Mogg's recent comments on turbulence in the markets.

To viewers' shock, she replied: "To use a non-technical term, that is pretty much b*******."

Read more: Krishnan Guru-Murthy defends painful Robert Downey Jr interview

"I think for the most part it really was the budget and the way it was delivered and the message inside it, which sparked the beginning of the crisis," she went on.

Krishnan Guru-Murthy amused viewers. (Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Guru-Murthy apologised for the slip, telling viewers: "I'm not sure if we are allowed to say that so I'm sorry if you were offended."

He later went on: "Before we go, Ive had time to clarify whether that word Gillian Tett used to describe Jacob Rees-Moggs explanation was within the rules.

"On the Ofcom regulator website, it describes it as medium language, potentially unacceptable, less problematic when used to mean nonsense."

He then had people in stiches when he said the word had been spelt incorrectly in the subtitles.

"I should however apologise to people who are relying on subtitles for whom it was spelt bullocks, he said.

The word was used during a discussion about Jacob-Rees Mogg's comments on the economic turmoil. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Viewers thought the whole thing was hilarious.

"I spat my coffee out laughing..." one person posted on Twitter, while another called it "brilliant".

One viewer tweeted: "I saw/heard it live, was hilarious."

"From my point of view this is all round brilliant journalism and Id watch lots more if it was like this!!!" posted another person.

Krishnan Guru-Murthy made viewers laugh. (Victoria Jones - Pool/Getty Images)

Another said the exchange was "exquisite".

Read more: Krishnan Guru-Murthy hosts from his own home in self-isolation

"Loved his explanation at the end," someone else posted, along with a crying with laughter emoji.
State officials on Thursday acknowledged serious errors were made over the summer inside the Jefferson Regional Juvenile Detention Center in suburban Louisville that allowed youths to smuggle in dangerous contraband, set fires and escape.

And a review of recent internal reports by the Herald-Leader shows the problems are not limited to one troubled center. There have been about two dozen substantiated cases at juvenile justice facilities across the state of drug use, inappropriate use of force, poor supervision and other problems in the past 18 months, according to reports.

We understand we have significant issues. These are longstanding issues, Justice and Public Safety Secretary Kerry Harvey told a legislative oversight panel Thursday.

The Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice is severely under-staffed, making it hard to safely hold youths, and some detention centers have physical vulnerabilities like doors, windows and drop ceilings that are difficult to secure, state officials said.

Those deficiencies contributed to a destructive youth riot at a juvenile detention center in Bowling Green two months ago, they said. Youths at that facility were able to get into the drop ceiling by clawing through the tiles.

At a hearing in Frankfort, lawmakers on the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee asked about a series of at least eight incidents in a one-month period this summer at the Jefferson County facility that included fires, assaults on youth and staff, riots and escapes into the surrounding neighborhood of family homes.

Police and firefighters from the city of Lyndon were called to the chaotic scene of one fire, finding nobody in charge. There was no after-hours list of contacts; nobody on site had the keys to parts of the detention center.

Trying to report abuse

One witness, Michael Ross, a former youth worker supervisor who quit the Jefferson County facility a year ago, told lawmakers he tried to report abuse and neglect of youths while administrators continually ignored problems.

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For example, Ross said, when he warned that nobody was conducting the required 15-minute safety checks on youths locked in isolation, a superior told him that he was just trying to get people in trouble.

Certain areas inside the Jefferson County facility are not monitored by cameras, Ross added, and the youths know how to override the magnetic security doors by slipping paper between the magnets. When staff leave a room  and there are sometimes only two or three employees in the entire facility, with more than two dozen youths  the youths are free to attack each other or have sex, he said.

Are these kids safe? asked state Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Louisville.

No, Ross said.

Theyre in our custody, so its our responsibility, right? Nemes asked.

Yes, Ross said.

Harvey told lawmakers that he failed to ask for additional money from the state budget earlier this year to physically improve the juvenile detention centers because he did not realize at that time how serious their deficiencies are.

However, the state is trying to raise the pay of youth workers  the front-line security staff  by offering a mix of incentive bonuses based on shifts and locations. In a half-dozen places where the Department of Juvenile Justice is most desperate for employees, including Louisville and Lexington, new youth workers who a year ago were making $14.42 hourly soon could be making $21.45 hourly, Harvey said.

Now, will all of this work? I dont know, Harvey acknowledged. In recent years, some detention centers have lost employees faster than they could hire replacements, he said.

The problems are nothing new, Harvey said. In 2017, Harvey noted, after a 16-year-old girl died alone and unnoticed in an isolation cell at the Lincoln Village Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Hardin County, the Center for Childrens Law and Policy of Washington, D.C. issued a sharply critical report about the shortcomings of the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice.

Harvey said his cabinet also is reviewing its disciplinary procedure to see if accountability can be tougher after problems are caught.

In the case of the fires set inside the Jefferson Regional Juvenile Detention Center this summer, Harvey said, he was frustrated to learn that a youth smuggled a contraband cigarette lighter past the intake process and passed it to another youth, at which point it was used multiple times to start fires over a period of days without the staff going on a search for it. That lighter immediately needed to be found after the first fire, Harvey said.

Our staff sometimes make mistakes. Sometimes they make big mistakes, he said.

The Justice Cabinet is also trying to limit the number of youths held at the Jefferson County facility so that it does not have more people than its staff and building can handle, Harvey said. There were about a dozen youths housed there Thursday, he said.

Sex, drugs and violence

The Herald-Leader has obtained reports showing about two dozen substantiated cases of abuse or neglect in 10 of the states juvenile detention facilities in the past 18 months, involving 30 employees, as determined by the Justice and Public Safety Cabinets own internal investigators.

The reports include incidents of inappropriate or excessive use of force by staff against youth, such as punches to a youths face and headlocks around a youths neck; failure to provide adequate supervision; and encouraging youths to engage in illegal activities.

Among the incidents as documented in the reports:

 On April 11, 2021, youths were locked in isolation for more than two weeks following a destructive riot at the Warren Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Bowling Green, violating the usual 48-hour limit on youth isolation. They did not leave their cells for meals, classes or recreation. They were not allowed to speak. One girl reported seeing hallucinations in the darkness, telling investigators, That room was driving me crazy. A boy ripped up his clothes. Staff psychologist Kristy Campbell told investigators she was concerned for the residents mental health.

 On June 30 and July 1, 2021, also at the Warren Regional Juvenile Detention Center, a depressed youth tried to hang himself three times over two days by tying his bed linens around his neck. When he told a staff member of his plans, the reply reportedly was, Oh, well. Only after the third attempt did staff call a psychologist and place the youth on suicide watch, which had been required after the first attempt. Employees blamed under-staffing at the facility for the oversight. Everybodys quitting, one told investigators.

 On July 18, 2021, internal investigators said they discovered from news stories  not because anybody called to tell them  that a 16-year-old homicide suspect had escaped from the Fayette Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Lexington. The boy used a hose to climb an exterior wall, evading the attention of staff who werent watching. He later was arrested in Versailles.

 On July 25, 2021, during a restraint at the Fayette Regional Juvenile Detention Center, a staff member pushed his forearm back and forth across the back of a boys head, forcing the boys head into the floor, while he was on top of the boy. This is not the states approved procedure for a youth restraint. That would be me trying to hurt him, the staff member explained to investigators. You got to put some man strength to it.

 Earlier this year, youths tested positive for drugs in two facilities, THC/marijuana at Lake Cumberland Youth Development Center in Monticello and opioid suboxone pills at Adair Youth Development Center in Columbia. Youths said staff provided them with the drugs, for example, selling THC-loaded vape pens for $45. Staff who worked at the facilities admitted to using marijuana and suboxone themselves but denied providing drugs.

 On July 30, 2022, at the Jefferson Regional Juvenile Detention Center, a staff member left a residential unit with the doors unsecured. When staff returned to the unit 11 minutes later, they found two youths  a boy and a girl  having sex in his cell. It was at least the boys second sexual encounter at the facility, staff said. Youths told investigators that the facilitys magnetic door locks easily can be bypassed.

Set up for failure. KY youth worker claims pressure to water down incident report.

KY struggles to staff juvenile justice centers, with nearly 1 in 3 jobs left open
Some may want to see the explosive, racist diatribes of a handful of prominent Los Angeles City Council members as an unfortunate incident that will eventually fade away. They might dismiss the remarks revealed in a leaked audio as isolated and confined to a few Latino leaders.

But the reality is that such prejudice from Latino to Latino and Latino to other racial groups is not so uncommon. Call it anti-Black racism, colorism, classism  it all adds up to a destructive strain that is not so hidden in Latino culture.

As the Latino population increases and diversifies, the persistence of racism threatens to dissolve hard-won Latino political and civil rights gains and fracture delicately balanced coalitions with other racial groups.

That was on stark display in the conversation among former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez, council members Kevin De Leon and Gil Cedillo and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera, who resigned Monday.

Martinez, the councils first Latina president, resigned from the leadership role Monday and resigned her council seat Thursday. She stepped down after a recording revealed she had called her colleague Mike Bonins then-2-year-old son, who is Black, a changuito, Spanish for monkey.

There are many Nury Martinezes, said Fordham University law professor Tanya K. Hernandez, the author of the recently published book Racial Innocence: Unmasking Latino Anti-Black Bias and the Struggle for Equality.

The idea is: Oh no, not us. We cant be harboring any kind of racial animosity. We need to put a stop to this shield against reckoning because of our Latino ancestry, as if that made us somehow immune to the legacies of slavery, said Hernandez, who is Afro Latina.

The racist remarks extended beyond Blacks to the embedded prejudice against Indigenous Latinos that is pervasive in Latin America and in the U.S., a remnant of colonialism and a version of white supremacy.

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Martinez mocked Indigenous Mexican immigrants of Oaxacan descent living in Los Angeles Koreatown, calling them short, dark people. I dont know where these people are from. I dont know what village they came [from], how they got here. ... Tan feos (theyre ugly), she says in the audio recording.

None of those who were in the room confronted Martinez about the remarks or denounced them as racist.

Latinos with darker skin face entrenched racism in colloquial Spanish, in which the word used to describe them is negro. It is not unusual for families to forbid their children to marry Blacks or warn them to stay out of the sun lest their complexions get too dark.

Hernandez said that kind of racism against dark-skinned people goes beyond rhetoric and that it has real-world implications.

When I did research for the book ... what I found is in spaces where Latinos have discretionary power, they are employers, supervisors in the workplace, they are homeowners or renting apartments, gatekeepers of public accommodations, hotels, night clubs, restaurants. ... In all these public places I found discrimination cases where Latinos were the culprits, the aggressors of the exclusion based on African ancestry.

Undercutting issues of representation

The council members were discussing redistricting, a process rife with racism and discrimination and oppression of votes of communities of color.

Latino growth in Los Angeles, as in other cities, has occurred in areas where Black populations dominated but have declined, setting up competitions between groups for political representation.

After decades of navigating and negotiating competing interests, to say that everything has been a bushel of roses is not being honest, because there has been, in fact, competition between the communities for representation, for resources or the ability to have influence on public policy, said Arturo Vargas, the executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, which called for Martinezs resignation.

But elected officials behavior and actions should not be used to define the relationship between communities, Vargas said. He and others expressed fear that the leaders' words could sever fragile relationships crafted between racial and ethnic groups, particularly Blacks and Latinos, in the city.

The council members also mocked the Community Coalition, known as CoCo, which works to upend systematic racism and improve relations between Black and Latino people in South Los Angeles.

These conversations were about Black erasure at the expense of Latino power. And that is wholeheartedly backward regressive  its Black voter suppression. And Latinos should take no part of Black voter suppression, said Alberto Retana, the president and CEO of the Community Coalition, who is Afro Latino

Although Los Angeles is almost half Hispanic, Latinos represent less than a third of the councils 15 districts, which has highlighted long-standing political tension and concern among Latinos that they are not represented fairly. Black people account for 9% of the citys population and hold 20% of council seats.

While the state of California uses an independent commission to draw its federal congressional districts, the Los Angeles City Council draws its own districts. An independent commission draws lines for Los Angeles, but its maps are provided only as advisory guides, said Vargas, who has served on two advisory commissions.

The City Council rejected the advisory commission's redistricting recommendations this redistricting cycle and drew its own lines, he said. The commission proposed preserving three African American seats and creating a district in the San Fernando Valley where Latinos are not the majority but are in high enough numbers to affect its council members election.

But that came at the expense of making significant changes to existing Latino majority districts in the San Fernando Valley, to which at least one incumbent there did not take well to, Vargas said. It just goes to show how there is a difference between the interest of the community and the interest of incumbents.

In the recording, Martinez complains about the redistricting commission's proposal to remove assets from her district. "If youre going to talk about Latino districts, what kind of districts are you trying to create? she asks her colleagues in frustration. Because youre taking away our assets. Youre just going to create poor Latino districts with nothing?

Michele Siqueiros, a civic leader who is the president of the Campaign for College Opportunity, said the leaders in their narrow ignorance were focusing on South Los Angeles, where Black leadership has supported Black and brown coalitions and leaders. Instead, she said, they should be growing Latino leadership in the San Fernando Valley and in the Los Angeles Harbor region, which is home to many Latinos, many of whom are represented by white council members.

A leading scholar on equity, Pedro Noguera, an education professor at the University of Southern California, said Latino leaders should have focused on what do we have in common? And in what ways could we advance a political agenda that serves our interests?

Thats not what these politicians were thinking about. They were thinking, How do we take power away from Blacks? said Noguera, who is Afro Latino.

Retana said: There isnt one major equity fight in Los Angeles that hasnt involved a Black and brown coalition. Thats the story of victory in L.A., and its a story that we have to continue to preserve.

'They are inciting hate'

In the recorded comments, Martinez, who is Mexican American, targeted Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, who is of Cuban heritage. "F--- that guy, he's with the Blacks," she said.

Her offensive comments about Oaxacans was reminiscent of the anti-Indigenous racism at the Academy Awards in 2019, when nominee Yalitza Aparicio, of Oaxaca, endured parodies and rants from light-skinned Latino actors in Mexico.

Zapotecs, or Indigenous people of Oaxacan descent, number about 200,000 in Los Angeles County, one of the largest Oaxacan communities outside Mexico.

Hernandez noted that Oaxaca is a place where there are identifiable Afro Mexicans.

Odilia Romero, a co-founder and the executive director of Communidades Indigenas en Liderazgo, or Indigenous Communities in Leadership, said she and the organization hear similar remarks in their daily work and survived it. But when they came from elected officials, she was appalled.

They are inciting hate, Romero said. This will come with hate crimes. This will lead to our human rights violations.

Gabriel Sandoval, who was a civil rights attorney in the Obama administration, said it is important that the elected officials comments do not undermine work that has been done.

The most important role for any leader in L.A. is to be a coalition builder," Sandoval said. "This is the second-largest, most diverse city in the nation  and that is what is required from any person who holds a position of public trust."

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This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Nury Martinez had already resigned the presidency before relinquishing her council seat

A top Los Angeles city councilwoman has resigned after she was secretly recorded making racist remarks in a meeting with two other city lawmakers.

Nury Martinez stepped aside as city council president on Monday, but had still clung on to her council seat.

President Joe Biden has led calls for her and two other Democrats to go.

The audio obtained by the Los Angeles Times and posted online is from an October 2021 meeting to discuss redrawing of voting maps.

It is unclear who recorded the discussion.

In a statement to voters from her Council District 6 on Wednesday, Mrs Martinez announced she was quitting after nine years.

The first Latina to hold the top post on the council, she wrote: "It's hard to say goodbye, but please know that I was in this fight for you."

The taped discussion was between city councilmembers Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon, Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera and Mrs Martinez.

Mr Herrera - who was not heard making racist remarks - resigned his post on Monday.

In the conversation, Mrs Martinez is heard using a Spanish term to liken a fellow councilmember's adopted black son to an animal.

A protester calls for resignations

A protester at city hall

She also complains that the child, who was two years old at the time, had misbehaved during an event.

"They're raising him like a little white kid," she said. "I was like, 'This kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then I'll bring him back."'

The three councilmembers also discussed with the union leader how to entrench Latino political strength in council districts.

In her statement on Monday announcing that she was leaving the post of council president and taking a leave of absence, she apologised to her colleague, adding: "As a mother, I know better and I am sorry. I am truly ashamed."

California Governor Gavin Newsom welcomed her resignation from her council seat on Wednesday.

"Racism cannot be tolerated in California," Mr Newsom tweeted.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said she had made "the right decision, one that I realise is painful to her personally but unquestionably in the best interests of a city that I know she loves".

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The mayor called on Councilmembers Cedillo and De Leon to quit, too.

At a council meeting on Tuesday, angry protesters demanded the trio step aside.

The secretly recorded audio also contains disparaging comments about Jews and Armenians.

The Armenian National Committee of America Western Region released a statement saying the words by the elected lawmakers "not only betray their mission to serve all people, regardless of their identity, but explicitly demonstrate that they hold no regard for the diverse communities of Los Angeles".

On Wednesday, the California attorney general announced that he would investigate the redistricting process.

Unlike in the state legislature, which employs an independent panel for redistricting, Los Angeles city councilmembers are responsible for the process.
TheStreet.com

Few travel nightmares can be worse than packing small to avoid paying for a checked bag and then, upon arriving at the airport, being told that the bag is too big and needs to be checked anyway. At the same time, a recent study from IdeaWorks found that the percentage of revenue airlines derive from baggage fees has been rising steadily  3.7% in 2019, 3.9% in 2020 and 4.6% in 2021. In February 2021, five passengers who traveled with American Airlines filed a class action lawsuit that accused the airline of incorrectly charging them baggage fees that they were not required to pay.
Photo: The Canadian Press Los Angeles City Council member Gil Cedillo arrives the chamber before starting the Los Angeles City Council meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022 in Los Angeles. The three Los Angeles City Council members at the center of a scandal over a recording of racist comments have each had long, influential careers in state and local politics. Now, those careers could soon come to an abrupt end as Kevin de Leon, Nury Martinez and Gil Cedillo face enormous pressure to resign  including from President Joe Biden (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

The former president of the Los Angeles City Council resigned from public office Wednesday, three days after a recording surfaced of her making racist remarks in a meeting that is now the subject of a state investigation.

Nury Martinez, the first Latina to hold the top post on the council, announced her decision in a press release following a groundswell of outrage and calls for the resignations of her and two other council members involved in the conversation recorded last year.

Martinez made racist remarks about the Black son of a white councilman and other crude comments.

Her resignation statement did not address those comments, though in words directed at her daughter she said: I know I have fallen short recently of the expectations we have for our family. I vow to you that I will strive to be a better woman to make you proud.

The announcement was made several hours after Attorney General Rob Bonta said he would investigate Los Angeles redistricting process that the three council members discussed with a labor leader in which they schemed to protect Latino political strength in council districts.

Martinez had stepped down as council president on Monday while still holding onto her council seat. Her decision to give up her seat came as President Joe Biden was due to arrive in Los Angeles a day after he condemned the remarks and called on all three council members  Martinez, Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo  to resign.

Bonta, a Democrat like the three council members, said his investigation could lead to civil liability or criminal charges, depending on what is found.

Its clear an investigation is sorely needed to help restore confidence in the redistricting process for the people of LA, he said.

Bonta spoke in Los Angeles while the council tried unsuccessfully to conduct business nearby amid the uproar triggered by the recording of crude, racist comments that also provided an unvarnished look into City Halls racial rivalries. Those involved in the leaked conversation were all Latinos, while Bonta is the first Filipino American to hold the top law enforcement job in the nations most populous state.

The council reconvened Wednesday, possibly to censure the three members, but it was unable to do business because a crowd of about 50 protesters drowned out the acting president chanting slogans such as, No meeting without resignation.

A minimum of 10 out of 15 members necessary for a quorum had assembled, but the meeting was adjourned when one left. None of the three embattled council members showed up.

Who shut you down? We shut you down! the raucous crowd cheered as the lights were being turned down.

Acting Council President Mitch OFarrell said that with no sign of anger subsiding, he didn't think the council could resume its work until all three are gone, which he said is inevitable.

For Los Angeles to heal, and for its City Council to govern, there must be accountability," he said in a statement. "I repeat my call on Councilmembers de Leon and Cedillo to also resign. There is no other way forward.

The council cannot expel members  it can only suspend a member when criminal charges are pending. A censure does not result in suspension or removal from office.

Martinez said in the recorded conversation that white council member Mike Bonin handled his young Black son as if he were an accessory and said of his son Parece changuito, or hes like a monkey, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. She also referred to Bonin as a little bitch.

At another point on the hourlong recording, Martinez called indigenous immigrants from the Mexican state of Oaxaca ugly, and made crass remarks about Jews and Armenians.

Martinez made history in 2019 when she became the first Latina elected to the council presidency and described herself as a glass-ceiling shattering leader who brings profound life experience as the proud daughter of working-class immigrants on her website. She is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley.

The discussion  which also included a powerful Latino labor leader, who has since resigned  centered on protecting Latino political power during the redrawing of council district boundaries, known as redistricting. The once-a-decade process can pit one group against another to gain political advantage in elections.

Bonin was among those who had said the three council members should resign. Other members also called for the trio to step down.

Black and Latino constituents often build alliances in politics. But tensions and rivalries among groups separated by race, geography, partisanship or religion have a long history in Los Angeles and, indeed, the country. The friction can cross into housing, education and jobs  even prisons  as well as the spoils of political power.

Bonta had condemned the members remarks without adding to the calls for them to resign. He said Wednesday that his investigation was just beginning.

It could lead to criminality if thats where the facts and the law dictate," he said. "Theres certainly the potential for civil liability based on civil rights and voting rights laws here in the state of California.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer has called for creating an independent commission to draw redistricting maps.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the recording was posted on the social medial site Reddit by a now-suspended user. It is unclear who recorded the audio, who uploaded it to Reddit and whether anyone else was present at the meeting.
Hurricane Ian brought floodwaters to Central Florida, and now residents are seeing the consequences of the standing water, creating the perfect conditions for mosquitoes to thrive.

Now, Orange County leaders are ramping up efforts to get the problem under control.

READ: Midterms: Seminole County voter precincts forced to move due to damage caused by Hurricane Ian

Orange County mosquito control was around today, spraying to keep the pests under control.

Aside from the ground measures, the county also asked the states Department of Agriculture to assist with aerial spraying. The county is expecting an answer by early next week.

READ: Tropical Storm Karl hovering over Gulf of Mexico, nudging toward Mexico by weekend

Brevard County is also reminding residents of the health concerns, saying everyone should be taking precautions to protect against mosquito-born illnesses like West Nile, and that residents should be limiting their time outdoors.

READ: How having flood insurance hurt one Central Florida man impacted by Hurricane Ian

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.
Donald Trump Mario Tama/Getty Images

An employee of former President Donald Trump has told the FBI about moving boxes of documents at Mar-a-Lago "at the specific direction of the former president" before federal agents searched the Florida club on Aug. 8 and discovered 103 classified documents, The Washington Post reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the investigation. The witness initially denied handling sensitive documents or boxes that may contain such files, but that story "changed dramatically" in follow-up interviews as the FBI obtained surveillance footage and other evidence, the Post reports.

"The employee who was working at Mar-a-Lago is cooperating with the Justice Department," the Post reports. "Within the Justice Department and FBI, the witness's account has been a closely held secret," both "to keep the information they have gathered so far under wraps" but also to shield the witness from "harassment or threats from Trump supporters."

Hours after the Post published its article, The New York Times reported that "a long-serving aide" to Trump named Walt Nauta was captured on security camera footage moving boxes from the Mar-a-Lago storage room "before and after the Justice Department issued a subpoena in May demanding the return of all classified documents the former president had in his possession." Nauta has answered investigators' questions in multiple Justice Department interviews but "is not formally cooperating with the government's investigation," the Times reports.

It is not clear if Nauta is the Trump employee in the Post article, the Times notes, "and a person familiar with the matter and with Mr. Trump's orbit said it could be a different staff member." In a court filing, the Justice Department has said it worked with "multiple civilian witnesses" before obtaining its Mar-a-Lago search warrant. "Within Trump's orbit, there have been months of dueling accusations and theories about who may be cooperating with the federal government," the Post reports.

Story continues

These new details reveal that the Justice Department has both testimony from witnesses who worked for and took direction from Trump, and security footage that backs up their accounts, the Post reports. That evidence helped convince the Justice Department it needed to search Mar-a-Lago.

Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich declined to answer questions about the reports but told the Post and the Times that the Justice Department is leaking "misleading and false information to partisan allies in the Fake News," in "an overt and illegal act of intimidation and tampering."

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A woman waits for her appointment to receive an abortion at a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in West Palm Beach, Florida, on July 14. Chandan Khanna / AFP via Getty Images

A child who was the victim of incest was denied an abortion in Florida since the state instituted its 15-week ban in July, the local Planned Parenthood chapter told BuzzFeed News.

The GOP-controlled state legislature allowed exceptions to the 15-week ban in order to save the pregnant person's life, prevent a serious injury, or if the fetus has a fatal abnormality. There are no exceptions for rape or incest, and violators of the law could face up to five years in prison.

Laura Goodhue, vice president of public policy for Planned Parenthood of South, East, and North Florida, did not disclose the patient's exact age or the state they traveled to receive an abortion, but she told BuzzFeed News they were in middle school. Goodhue had initially said another middle schooler who experienced incest was denied an abortion in Florida, then on Thursday clarified to BuzzFeed News that the cause of the second patient's pregnancy was not confirmed.

In order to obtain the procedure, both of the young patients had to travel "at least two, three states away," she said. Planned Parenthood helped arrange their travel, and they were accompanied by family members.

"The cruelty of forcing a very young person, who has already survived a horrible case of violence, to give birth, it just takes away their rights to bodily autonomy, and it is really turning a blind eye to what is happening in our society," she said.

A woman sits in an examination room as she waits to receive an abortion at the Planned Parenthood Abortion Clinic in West Palm Beach, Florida, on July 14. Chandan Khanna / AFP via Getty Images

Democrats in Florida had tried to add exceptions for rape, incest, and human trafficking into the bill before the ban was in effect, but that effort was rejected by the Republican lawmakers in February.

The 15-week ban came as neighboring states like Georgia and Alabama have almost or completely banned abortion. Since June, Florida clinics near the state's border have seen more than double the typical number of patients, Alexandra Mandado, president of Planned Parenthood of South, East, and North Florida, said in a virtual press conference on Wednesday.

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At their clinics, Mandado said, they are also seeing an increase in young people seeking abortions, as well as an increase in survivors of domestic abuse, rape, and incest, "none of whom have any say of their own bodies if they are over 15 weeks pregnant," she said. "We are seeing patients who did not know that they were past 15 weeks of pregnancy."

Mandado told the story of a patient who had been experiencing symptoms of chronic fatigue, nausea, and vomiting. Multiple doctors attributed her symptoms to long COVID. But after weeks of doubt, she finally took a pregnancy test and found that she was unexpectedly pregnant, Mandado said.

"When she arrived at Planned Parenthood, she learned that she was past the limit of our state's abortion ban," she said.

Dr. Shelly Tien, an OB-GYN who provides care in northern Florida and also spoke at the press conference, said many of the patients who have been turned away because they are past the 15-week mark are young or experiencing intimate partner violence.

"We are seeing this restriction have profound and terrible effects for some families in the most desperate of situations," Tein said.

Tein added it was heartbreaking not to be able to provide care locally for the young incest survivor.

"To not be able to provide that service because of the restriction for a patient in such a terrible and violent situation is horrible," Tien said. "This patient was sent to another health center in another state ... but that is another delay and barrier that that young girl should not need to face."

Oct. 13, 2022, at 20:35 PM

More on this
DUBAI (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament speaker Nabih Berri postponed on Thursday a session on electing a new president to Oct. 20, after the house failed to secure a quorum.

It was the second time the parliament had failed to elect a new head of state after no clear winner emerged during a vote at an initial session on Sept. 29.

(Reporting by Nadine Awadalla; Writing by Lilian Wagdy; Editing by Alex Richardson)
The 74

This year will likely present unique challenges for teachers and administrators, particularly with school discipline. Not only have math and reading scores plummeted, but more than 80% of public schools report that the pandemic has impacted student behavior and social-emotional development. Even when suspensions significantly declined through the pandemic, racial disparities in school discipline persisted. []
Make sure to have facts before having opinions

Michigan-made seatbelts mandatory in 1985 because the data showed seatbelts save lives. However, deniers insisted being thrown free from a car during an accident was safer than being held inside with seatbelts. Another version of this story included an anonymous cop (a friend of an uncle, perhaps) surveying a recent accident, telling the person thrown from the car that it had saved his life, insisting he would have been crushed by the steel now occupying his mangled seat. Thirty-five years later, seatbelts are unquestioned, but we can see the myths power to lend credence to deniers.

We have our share of deniers today. We have mask deniers, COVID-vaccine deniers, election deniers, global-warming deniers, and even Obamas-citizenship deniers. For reasons known only to them, deniers will not allow facts to change their beliefs. Doubling the facts only doubles their resistance. New invalidating facts have no effect; deniers counter with new and stronger evidence-starved claims, as if reality is no match against vehemence and certitude. People like Alex Jones and Tucker Carlson reap millions feeding deniers fictitious propaganda, a meal they eat without inspection or reflection.

Democracies cannot survive when half their citizens believe their national institutions are corrupt, that our elections are stolen, and our leaders are not legitimate  particularly when such serious claims are unsupported, indeed, when there is plenty of evidence they are false.

There is a religious ethic that values constancy in ones beliefs despite the evidence. Deniers bring the same religious zeal into our secular world, as if by insisting that their conspiracy theories are true, they become true. That is not how facts work. When the evidence piles up against you, and your beliefs are merely the claims of your tribe or party  claims without facts  its time to renew your thinking. Facts matter.

Richard KamischkeGrand Haven Township

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It's that magic time of the year

Just a short time ago, the people in power were dictating many of our normal daily activities.

Now the magic season has arrived and these same people have transformed into sweetness and sunshine, telling us all the wonderful things they have done for us.

These same people in power have also turned into fortune tellers, repeating over and over how candidates challenging their power, will change what we do, and take away anything we still have.

Take a few moments, sit quietly, away from the constant droning and listen to yourself. What do you hear?

J.R. HirtHolland

But what about the fireworks workers?

Dear Citizens Climate Lobby,

Hello, my name is Hunter Maung, and I am a first-year student at Grand Rapids Community College.

After reading the article, it is hard to disagree with anything that was stated. All the effects are such a big impact to pretty much everyone who is around fireworks. Now the only problem I see is if everyone were to stop going to these displays and buying fireworks, that would just put people in the industry out of a job. There are roughly around 150,000 directly involved with the firework industry that would be put out of a job and roughly 500,000 employees that work are connected to that industry.

Although all the reasons for boycotting fireworks are valid and cant be argued against, it doesnt put the employees' view into play. Unless there is a way to completely ensure that the employees have a job afterward it just wouldnt be fair for them.

I look forward to hearing your response soon.

Hunter MaungWest Olive

DeBoer a visionary we need in Lansing

As Hollands former mayor, Nancy DeBoer has demonstrated her visionary leadership skills in the revitalization of the Holland Civic Center, the Waterfront Vision for Holland, and overseeing the opening of a natural gas plant which has captured the attention of other cities both here and abroad.

As former educators, it is her common sense, forward thinking, and visionary skills with regard to Education that resonates with us in particular. Nancy favors empowering K-12 students with knowledge of future career opportunities as part of their K-12 learning. Her plan includes a goal of creating a culture of career awareness forged by partnering with parents, school officials, and local business and industry leaders. These partnerships could create learning opportunities for ALL students through site visits, guest presenters, career fairs and internships and apprenticeships in all areas of career potential.

These experiences could prove to be invaluable in inspiring all students to find their strengths and interests while in K-12 education that they can build on and pursue for future careers and life goals.

As longtime Holland residents and public school educators for over four decades in West Michigan, we see the value of Nancys visionary ideas for career, college, and life readiness.

Please consider joining us in voting for Nancy as our state representative.

Keith and Jan SchaapHolland

Double colors could lead to confusion

My name is Sam Cahoy, and I am a student at Grand Rapids Community College. I attend the Lakeshore Campus here in Holland as well as live here.

I am writing to you about the article "double red flag" system introduced at Grand Haven beach, coming to Holland State Park. My take on the new rules coming to the state park here in Holland is that instead of two red flags to indicate that the beach is closed, they should have used a different colored flag. I think using the same color twice could lead to confusion among those who are not aware of the new implementation.

I propose that they should use a different flag that sticks out as much as possible  maybe one with many colors on it. The other way they could do this is by changing the red flag which means high hazard with maybe an orange flag.

I look forward to hearing your response soon.

Samuel CahoyHolland

We need to help the struggling students

My name is Saraylla Blystra, I am a student at GRCC.

I am writing in response to an article regarding Whitmer not being above Michigan's reading law.

I agree how Whitmer is being a bit hypocritical when she goes out of her way to avoid a law. While it is an issue that students arent able to read, I believe there should be programs put in place to help students learn to read. There should be separate/extra classes that they can take to improve. A lot of times parents dont have the time to take their kids to tutoring, a separate class with extra help could benefit the students in a significant way.

I look forward to hearing your response soon.

Saraylla BlystraZeeland

Women should have control over their own bodies

I am a student at Grand Rapids Community College, and I am emailing in regards to the overturn of the constitutional right of abortion.

Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, multiple states have banned abortion with no exception. The no exception ban makes it illegal for women to get an abortion even if the cause of pregnancy is due to rape. Women, who were forced into sexual acts, should not also be forced to carry their rapists baby to term. It should be a women's choice.

I understand why in some circumstances people believe abortion should be illegal, but I believe under certain circumstances it should be allowed. If abortion becomes banned in Michigan, I dont believe it should be a full ban. I believe that women should still have a right to this medical procedure if it is putting their mental, or physical health in jeopardy.

If a woman can die if she carries to term she should be allowed. If it is a pregnancy due to rape, or incest, she should be allowed. The ultimate goal is to keep abortions available to anyone but if we do not succeed, abortions with exceptions would be next.

I look forward to hearing your response soon.

Sandra RodriguezHolland

Deputy should have faced more serious charges

My name is Summer Cronen, and I am a student at Grand Rapids Community College.

The issue I see here is that Thomas Goggins, the deputy at fault for this death, was only charged with misdemeanors. While, if it were to be a regular civilian involved with the crash, they would be charged with manslaughter. The punishable fines that Goggins received was very minimal compared to what a civilian could potentially receive in this circumstance.

The suggestions I would make, are to give equal punishments as we would to a civilian that committed the same crime.

I look forward to hearing your response soon.

Summer CronenHolland

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Letters to the Editor: Make sure to have facts before having opinions
The City of Lexington replaced a leaking and corroded stormwater pipe that was estimated between 50 and 75 years old that caused a sinkhole on Ninth Avenue.

The City of Lexington is preparing for some big projects to overhaul its water and wastewater system in the next ten years, and it comes with a hefty $204 million price tag which could include double-digit percentage rate increases for customers.

On Sept. 26, the Lexington City Council approved its 10-year water and wastewater improvement plan, which includes the replacement of aging and corroding pipes, updates and improvements for the wastewater and water treatment plants and other upgrades.

Want to know more about what is happening in Lexington? Support local journalism, subscribe to The Disaptch.

Some of the funding for these projects will come from the $6 million the city received from American Recovery Plan Act, but officials are also seeking state and federal infrastructure grants.

According to Lexington City Manager Terra Greene, the city has already applied for multiple grants in the hopes of offsetting any potential rate increases, but she said there needs to be a plan to cover all the options.

We took a fresh look at our capital improvement needs with an independent consultant to see if we had the revenue to cover those needs. The answer was no. So next we looked at what it was going to take... Our goal is not to pass (these costs to) rate payers, but we have to plan in advance, just in case, said Greene.

The City of Lexington has increased water/wastewater rates between 10% to 12% per year since 2016 except it only increased 5% in 2020 and there was no increase in 2021. Rates were increased by 12%, or $3.76 per month for an average household, this year.

The percentage amount of future rate increases will be determined by whether the City of Lexington receives any additional grant funding and how much.

According to a recent rate study for the City of Lexington by Raftelis, a local government and utility management consulting firm, these increases would cover anticipated debt ratio for the pending projects; build up cash on hand for water or wastewater system emergencies; increase the capital reserve fund for these projects; stabilize revenue and potentially grow customer base.

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Without additional grant funding, the water rates could rise 14.5% ($6.86 per month) in 2024 and 13% each year following until 2028. Sewage rates could rise 14.5% ($6.86 per month) in 2025 and 14% each year for the next five years.

If they do get a modest amount of grant funding, estimated between $15 and $7 million, water rates could rise 11% and sewage rates could rise 12% a year for the next five years. If they receive more funding, these percentages would be lower.

This is a just a forecast or a snapshot of possible scenarios, said Greene. We wont make those decisions on rate increases for the following year until spring. Hopefully, we will be successful in our grants. We just want to be transparent and make the community aware of all the possibilities.

More:Why Lexington needs a new $90 million water plant and how they plan to pay for it

She said the city is also hoping for assistance from Davidson County and other community partners to offset the potential increase in customer water and wastewater rates in the future since Lexington Utilities provides wastewater collection and treatment throughout Davidson County, not solely within the city limits.

City officials are also researching options to assist customers with affordability, including the federal Low Income Household Water Assistance Program and other local and state assistance programs.

Greene said the problem with capital infrastructure projects is that they are very expensive, but they are extremely necessary.

Water and sewer are critical, said Greene. We have to continue to provide that service, and we will have a few tough pills to swallow, but we dont want to get in a situation like Jackson, Mississippi or Flint, Michigan where there is no water. Prevention is always better than a cure.

This article originally appeared on The Dispatch: Lexington water improvement project could raise rates for customers
Oct. 13LIMA  Jurors in the trial of Joshua Stevens, the Lima resident charged with two counts of felonious assault for allegedly striking another man with a hammer, deliberated for less than 90 minutes Wednesday before returning guilty verdicts on both counts.

Allen County Common Pleas Court Judge Jeffrey Reed will sentence Stevens, 32, on Nov. 28 on a single second-degree felony count after ruling the two charges should merge for sentencing purposes.

Prosecutors maintained during the two-day trial that Stevens knowingly caused physical harm to Lima resident Ralph Dewitt by striking him with hammer during an altercation earlier this year.

Dewitt testified Tuesday that on May 2 of this year he and his brother were helping a man start his car when "some guy crawled out from under the car and hit the throttle." Dewitt said the person, whom he did not know, had a "three-pointed crown tattoo" above his eye. The two exchanged words but no altercation took place.

Later that evening the man showed up outside Dewitt's home on East Second Street in Lima. He said he was struck with a hammer and, after chasing his attacker into a nearby alley, found it to be the same man with the crown tattoo.

Stevens has a tattoo that matches that description.

Dewitt was taken to Memorial Health System for treatment of his wounds, which included one stitch to his forehead.

Stevens testified on his own behalf Wednesday morning and offered differing accounts of what happened on May 2. In his closing remarks to jurors, Steve Chamberlain from the Allen County Public Defenders Office said the state had failed to present evidence sufficient to convict his client.

"It's the government's job to convince you (of Stevens' guilt) and I don't think they've done that job to the degree necessary to convict my client of felonious assault."

He asked jurors to consider a legal alternative at their disposal and convict Stevens of simple assault instead.

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"There was no medical evidence presented to you, and I can argue that there was no 'serious' physical harm to Mr. Dewitt," Chamberlain said. "And there were two different theories on how the hammer was produced and the state failed to prove their case.

"I would ask you to find my client guilty of the lesser included charge."

Jurors rejected that request.
Russian authorities have promised free accommodation to all residents of the occupied Kherson region who choose to evacuate to Russia.

Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin made the announcement Thursday shortly after the Russia-backed leader of Kherson asked the Kremlin to organize evacuation from four cities, citing the danger from missile strikes.

Vladimir Saldo said these missile strikes cause serious damage, first and foremost to the residents and that missiles also hit hotels, residential buildings, markets, (places) where there are lots of civilians.

Saldo said a decision has been made to evacuate residents of Kherson, Nova Kakhovka, Hola Prystan and Chornobaivkato to the Russian regions of Rostov, Krasnodar and Stavropol, as well as to annexed Crimea.

Russia has characterized the movement of Ukrainians to Russia as voluntary but reports have surfaced that many have been forcibly deported from occupied territory, to filtration camps where harsh conditions have been reported.

Ukrainian forces are pushing their counteroffensive deeper into the southern region, one of four that Russia recently annexed illegally.

In a separate statement, Saldos deputy Kirill Stremousov tried to play down the announced evacuation, saying that no ones retreating ... no one is planning to leave the territory.

The British military said Thursday on Twitter that Russia-backed Kherson authorities have ordered the evacuation because they anticipate combat to extend to the city of Kherson.

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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:

 How Moscow grabs Ukrainian kids and makes them Russians

 Ukraines Kyiv area hit by Iranian-made kamikaze drones

 EXPLAINER: US weapons systems that Ukraine will or wont get

 UN demands that Moscow return annexed regions to Ukraine

 NATO holds talks on nukes as concerns deepen over Putin's threats

 Poland sees no signs of interference in oil pipeline spill

 Follow all AP stories on the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:

KYIV, Ukraine  The director general of the IAEA, Rafael Mariano Grossi, told the journalists in Kyiv that the situation around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant remains concerning.

It hasnt improved in any way, he said on Thursday evening in Kyiv shortly after returning from Russia.

The International Atomic Energy Agency keeps pushing for a demilitarization zone around the nuclear plant, which means no attack against the plant and the plant not to be used as a tool to attack, Grossi explained. The plant is in an area occupied by Russia but those working at the plant are Ukrainian.

At the same time, he said the IAEA believes Russians want to create the security, because they are working with him.

However, Grossi said he still didnt receive any indications from Russian President Vladimir Putin that he is ready to discuss with IAEA the definitive parameters that will allow finding a safe solution for the biggest nuclear power plant in Europe amid the war.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter that he met with Grossi in a bomb shelter in Kyiv while Russian terrorists kept firing missiles at Ukraine. His post included a photo of the two men meeting in what appeared to be an underground room with pipes hanging from the ceiling.

I reiterated that Russia must withdraw from the ZNPP to ensure its nuclear safety and security, immediately stop abductions and intimidation of the Ukrainian personnel, he tweeted.

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BRUSSELS  NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be crossing a very important line if he were to order the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, as the military alliance and Russia are both due to hold nuclear exercises in the coming days.

NATO is holding its exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon next week. The long-planned maneuvers are conducted around the same time every year and run for about one week. It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but doesnt involve any live bombs.

Russia usually holds its own maneuvers around the same time. Stoltenberg said Thursday NATO will closely monitor what Russia is up to.

Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed.

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LISBON, Portugal  Portugal is sending six of its Russian-built firefighting helicopters to Ukraine to help fend off Russian forces.

Portuguese Defense Minister Helena Carreiras said Thursday the Kamov helicopters cant fly in Portugal because European Union sanctions prevent them being given an air worthiness certificate. She added that one of the choppers also needs spare parts which cant be imported.

She said Ukrainian authorities warmly welcomed news they would be getting the aircraft.

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LISBON, Portugal  Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has defended decisions made during her time in power to buy natural gas from Russia.

Merkel said at an award ceremony in Lisbon on Thursday that you always act in the time you are in and she doesnt regret decisions she made. She said Germany needed to diversify its energy supplies as it moved away from nuclear and coal-fueled power generation and that gas would be needed for the transitional period.

Merkel said from the perspective of that time, it was very rational and understandable to get pipeline gas, including from Russia, that was cheaper than LNG from other parts of the world.

But the former German leader said Russia's brutal attack on Ukraine is a turning point, and the new government of course has to deal with that.

Merkel led Germany from 2005 until last December. Russia was Germanys main gas supplier when she left office; that has changed this year, and Russia halted supplies through the main Nord Stream 1 pipeline at the end of August.

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KYIV, Ukraine  Ukraine and Russia say 20 soldiers on both sides have been released as part of a prisoner exchange, 40 soldiers in all.

As a result of the negotiation process on the exchange today, 20 Russian servicemen were returned from the territory of Ukraine controlled by the Kyiv regime, the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

The soldiers are being provided with the necessary medical and psychological assistance and would soon be taken to the Ministry of Defenses medical facilities for treatment and rehabilitation.

Ukraine also said its 20 soldiers have been freed from captivity in Olenivka, in the occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. They are now undergoing medical checkups.

The head of the Ukrainian presidents office, Andriy Yermak, vowed on Telegram: We will bring everyone back.

The last large-scale exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine, involving nearly 300 people, took place at the end of September.

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PARIS  A day after he promised to send Ukraine more weapons, French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday called on his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to stop this war and respect Ukraines territorial integrity.

France will soon deliver more cannons, radar and anti-aircraft missiles to help protect Ukraine from drone and missiles strikes, Macron told TV broadcaster France 2 on Wednesday evening.

Macron emphasized on Thursday that the arms shipments are aimed at helping Ukraine to resist on its own soil, never to attack Russia.

We do not want a world war, he said in a Twitter post.

The French president who had tried hard to prevent the Feb. 24 Russian invasion of Ukraine and travelled to Moscow to talk Putin out of the war, insists that dialogue between Moscow and Kyiv should resume despite recent escalation on the battlefield.

I hope as soon as possible  there will be peace discussion with Ukraine on one side, and Russia on the other, Macron said.

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BRUSSELS  Ukrainian entries dominated Thursdays shortlist to win European Unions top human rights prize.

The Christian Democrat, Socialist and Liberal groups, the three biggest within the European parliament, all nominated the people of Ukraine as their choice to win the Sakharov Prize this year for their resistance to the Russian invasion.

On top of that, the conservative ECR group specifically named Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as their favorite for his endurance and defense of his people.

The overwhelming support for the Ukraine cause reduced other nominees to outsiders, including Brazil environmental activist Sonia Guajajara and imprisoned WikiLeaks activist Julian Assange.

The winner of the prize will be announced Wednesday.

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VELYKA OLEKSANDRIVKA, Ukraine  In this small town in southern Ukraine that has been retaken in a Ukrainian counteroffensive, signs of Russian occupation and fighting are clearly visible.

The village is in the Kherson region, which Moscow illegally annexed following referendums described as sham by Ukraine and the West. Now wrestled away from Russias hold, the town is fraction of what it used to be.

Bridges have been blasted into pieces and blackened vehicles are left on damaged roads. Public buildings and private homes bear the scars of shelling. Tattered Ukrainian blue and yellow flags flew outside of municipal centers - sign of defiance against the Russian occupiers.

Ukraine recaptured the town of 7,000 people a week ago, but residents say they are still struggling to recover from the occupation. Constant threat of shelling and the fear of Russian soldiers breaking into homes and demanding information about Ukraines army were unbearable, said Oleksandr Soltan, 58.

Tetyana Patsuks house was struck a month ago during the fighting, and turned into a pile of rubble. Her living room sofa stuck out from under the debris.

Its a disaster, the 72-year-old woman said. Ive been crying for a month. I am still shocked. I cant recover from that feeling that I have lost everything now  and thats it. I was left with nothing."

Patsuks basement was used as a shelter for her and her neighbors during the heaviest bombardments.

There is no house which was not damaged by them (Russians), she said.

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ASTANA, Kazakhstan  Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed turning Turkey into a gas hub for Europe after deliveries were halted through the Nord Stream pipeline under the Baltic Sea to Germany.

Putin floated the idea to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a meeting Thursday on the sidelines of a regional summit in Kazakhstan.

There was no immediate comment from Erdogan. Putins spokesman Dimitry Peskov said that Turkey has reacted positively to the idea.

Plunging Russian gas supplies have caused prices to soar, driving inflation, pressuring governments to help ease the pain of sky-high energy bills for households and businesses and raising fears of rationing and recession.

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KYIV, Ukraine  Ukraine has received $1.3 billion in additional emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Thursday.

He said on Telegram that the funds would be used to finance priority needs: strengthening defense capabilities, paying pensions, social programs and supporting the economy.

According to Shmyhal, the IMF has given Ukraine $2.7 billion since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion on Feb. 24.

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Kremlin-backed authorities in the eastern Donetsk region of Ukraine, illegally annexed by Moscow last month, announced on Thursday that separatist troops together with the Russian army have retaken two settlements, Opytne and Ivanhrad.

There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian officials on the development.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed treaties last month absorbing Ukraines Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions into Russia in defiance of international law.

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BRUSSELS  NATOs secretive Nuclear Planning Group met Thursday as the military alliance presses ahead with plans to hold a nuclear exercise next week as concerns deepen over President Vladimir Putins insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

Defense ministers led the session, which usually happens once or twice a year, at NATO headquarters in Brussels. It comes against a backdrop of high tension as some NATO allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russias movements, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture.

But additional uncertainty comes from the fact that Russia is also due to hold its own nuclear exercises soon, possibly at the same time as NATO or just after, according to NATO diplomats. That could complicate the 30-country military organizations reading of the war and of Moscows intentions.

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MOSCOW  Russian officials say Ukrainian forces have shelled a western region inside Russia near the border with Ukraine.

The governor of Russias Belgorod region said Thursday Ukrainian attacks damaged a residential building in the city of Belgorod  the regions administrative center  while an unexploded projectile landed on a school sports ground.

Vyacheslav Gladkov said a nearby village was also shelled but there were no injuries.

The reports of shelling within Russia came as the speaker of Russias lower house of parliament threatened an even tougher response to what he describes as Kyivs terror attacks.

Parliamentary speaker Vyacheslav Volodin wrote on Telegram that Russia struck more than 70 energy facilities in Ukraine this week and that the response will be even tougher" if Ukrainian attacks continue.

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BRUSSELS  Germanys defense minister says 15 countries have agreed to move ahead with plans for an improved European air defense system.

Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO defense ministers that a letter of intent was signed Thursday to organize joint procurement for the so-called European Sky Shield, under German coordination.

She didnt list the other countries involved. German news agency dpa reported that representatives of the U.K., Slovakia, Norway, Latvia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovenia attended the signing ceremony.

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KYIV, Ukraine  Ukraine's presidential office says 13 people have been killed and 37 others wounded in the past 24 hours as the result of Russian attacks throughout the country.

Rescuers going through the rubble following Russias attack on the southern city of Mykolaiv have found a man who died under the rubble.

Local authorities say a Russian missile hit a river boat station, killing a worker there.

Numerous villages in the region were also shelled, leaving many houses damaged but no apparent casualties.

Also Thursday, the local administrator in the Zaporizhzhia region says Russian attacks killed one person there and wounded over a dozen, while also damaging civilian infrastructure and buildings.

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KYIV, Ukraine  Ukraine says it has shot down six Iranian-made drones in the south of the country which were also used for attacks in the Kyiv region on Thursday morning.

Ukrainian forces downed overnight the Shahed-136 drones above Odesa and Mykolaiv, the Air Force Command of Ukrainian Armed Forces said.

In Kyiv, the drones hit an infrastructure object for three times early on Thursday, officials said. The attack caused a fire but no casualties, regional Gov. Oleksii Kuleba said.

Ukraines Center for National Resistance says Russian forces have invited instructors from Iran to help them operate the Shahed-136.

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BRUSSELS  Britain says that it will provide missiles for advanced NASAM anti-aircraft systems that the Pentagon plans to send to Ukraine in coming weeks.

Britain is also sending hundreds of additional aerial drones for information gathering and logistics support, plus 18 more howitzer artillery guns, the U.K. defense secretary said Thursday.

Ben Wallace says these weapons will help Ukraine defend its skies from attacks and strengthen their overall missile defense alongside the U.S. NASAMS.

The systems, which Kyiv has long wanted, will provide medium- to long-range defense against missile attacks.
Quang Nam hydropower plants urged to discharge water

Authorities of the central province of Quang Nam have asked some local hydropower plants to discharge water to prevent the possible risk of flooding.



According to Quang Nams Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting director Truong Tuyen, a low-pressure area has appeared in the East Sea. It would turn into a tropical depression in the next 20 hours and affect the central region of Vietnam, including Quang Nam.





Dak Mi 4 Hydropower Plant's water discharge



On October 13-16, Quang Nam would see torrential rain with a rainfall of between 200-400 mm.



Local hydropower plants have been requested to discharge their water from 11:30 am on October 12 to 10 am on October 14.



The Dak Mi 4, Song Bung 4, A Vuong and Song Tranh hydropower plants were all included in the list.



Over the past two days, Quang Nam and many other central localities have been facing severe flooding following heavy rain.
Photo: The Canadian Press FILE - A migrant family from Venezuela walks to a Border Patrol transport vehicle after they and other migrants crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and turned themselves in, Wednesday, June 16, 2021, in Del Rio, Texas. The Biden administration is developing plans for Venezuelans with financial sponsors to be granted parole to enter the United States, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted after Russia's invasion, U.S. officials said Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

The Biden administration has agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted after Russias invasion, while Mexico has agreed to accept some Venezuelans who are expelled from the United States, the two nations said Wednesday.

In a related announcement, the Department of Homeland Security said it will make available nearly 65,000 temporary work visas for lower-skilled industries, roughly double the current annual allotment. At least 20,000 of those temporary work visas will be reserved for Haiti and northern Central American countries.

The agreement over Venezuelans  as announced by the U.S. and Mexicos Foreign Affairs Ministry  addresses an unusually large increase in Venezuelans arriving at the U.S. border with Mexico after a perilous journey over land that includes Panamas notorious Darien Gap.

Under the agreement, Venezuelans who are chosen would arrive at U.S. airports. The U.S. has agreed to accept up to 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war for stays of up two years and have admitted tens of thousands so far, including nearly 17,000 in August.
Lafayette Parish School Board members and parents discussed potential solutions after the district saw a number of lockdowns related to threats by students over the last several days, including adding metal detectors, improving communication and expanding crisis intervention teams at each school.

Lafayette Parish School System Superintendent Irma Trosclair said there is still an active investigation into a bomb threat at Paul Breaux Middle School, which was under lockdown Friday, but a search warrant was issued to a social media platform as part of the police investigation.

All individuals responsible for threats over the last few weeks have been identified, theyve been arrested, and faced legal consequences, as well as expulsion from school, Trosclair said. We will continue to take seriously behavior that is threatening, that disrupts the school environment, and behavior that makes any staff members or other students feel unsafe.

More:Paul Breaux Middle lockdown lifted, student charged in connection with report of gun

Several parents spoke to the board about what they would like to see to improve school safety and responses during these threats. Justin Centanni, a board member who has a child at Lafayette High School, brought up the idea of having a designated person sending messages to parents with regular updates during a lockdown  a desire that was echoed by many of the other parents

Keri Barousse, a parent with a child at Paul Breaux, broke down in tears during her comments to the board, recalling the fear she felt not knowing what was going on during the lockdown.

Even knowing what period they are in, knowing who theyre with makes a difference, Barousse said. Any little bitsI know you cant tell us the whole story. We understand that, too. But any little bits that can be communicated, that can help us get through the day and get through this helps tremendously.

Tehmi Chassion, a board member who has a child at Paul Breaux Middle School, also addressed the other board members as a member of the public. Chassion praised the work of law enforcement and district employees for their work during the lockdowns.

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But Chassion also spoke about the fear and anxiety he felt as a parent during the lockdowns, especially the one at Paul Breaux.

I tend to think that I can handle anything, but then for that split second you realize I cant go get him, Chassion said. I cant go in and see about him.

Julia Reed, the president of the Lafayette Parish Association of Educators, said shes heard from several teachers and other staff members wanting improved communication during lockdowns.

More:Lafayette school board gives teachers $500 raise, $3.7K check in October

Reed, who has a child at Myrtle Place Elementary School, also teared up when talking about her perspective as a parent during the recent events.

It scares me, Reed said. As a parent, this has really freaked me out. As a teacher, Im cool as a cucumber, but the thought of my child being at risk isits very scary.

Don Landry, the district attorney for the 14th Judicial Court, also spoke to the board about the repercussions the students face after making the threats. Landry said that the school system may be able to seek restitution from the students parents for any costs incurred by the threat.

The board discussed the possibility of putting metal detectors at all the high schools, but parents and board members said several schools do not have a primary entrance point, which might make it difficult to ensure all students are put through the metal detectors.

The board also voted to add a section to its student handbook addressing the recent threats.

The definition of terrorizing in the handbook would read, Threats of violence through communication, whether oral, visual, gestures, or written, including but not limited to electronic mail, letters, notes, social media posts, text messages, blogs, or posts on any social networking website, of any crime of violence that would reasonably cause any student, employee, or guest to be in sustained fear for his safety, cause the evacuation of a building, lockdown, shelter-in-place or cause other serious disruption to the operation of a school. It can also include any intent to kill, maim, or cause great bodily harm to a student, employee, or guest on school property or at any school function.

The penalties for terrorizing would include a mandatory mental health evaluation, a recommended expulsion or change of placement, and the possibility of out-of-school suspension or other interventions if needed.

The infraction passed with an 8-1 vote. Elroy Broussard was the only member to vote against the change, saying he did not think it went far enough.

It sounds harsh, but Id like to see a harsher punishment, Broussard said.

In a little more than a week, the Lafayette Parish School System had four lockdowns across three schools, and five LPSS students were charged with terrorizing related to threats made against the schools.

Lafayette High School had two lockdowns last week after social media threats were made against specific students and staff members. The school spent much of Oct. 3 locked down and a tactical unit was sent to search the campus for a gun after the Lafayette Police Department received an anonymous 911 call saying there was a gun on campus, LPD said.

No gun was found, and LPD questioned and charged a juvenile and with terrorizing related to the 911 call. Another juvenile was charged with trespassing after being found walking around the campus during the lockdown, LPD said.

Later on Oct. 3, police and school officials received another social media threat, leading to increased security at the school on Oct. 4. On Oct. 6, the school was sent into another lockdown after another threat.

Two students were arrested after the Oct. 6 threat and charged with terrorizing, LPD said. After the arrests, Trosclair sent a recorded message to LPSS staff and parents explaining the situation and the dangers of the threats.

A Northside High School student was arrested Oct. 4 and charged with terrorizing after making threats in front of other students, LPD said.

Then on Oct. 7, Paul Breaux Middle School went under lockdown. One student was arrested during the Paul Breaux lockdown in connection with lying to school resource officers about students having guns on campus, LPSS said in a statement.

On Tuesday, Acadiana High School was under a precautionary lockdown for part of the day after a bus driver found small-caliber bullets in a bus seat after students were dropped off at the school. No weapon was found during a search of the school, LPSS said.

CONSIDER SUBSCRIBING TODAY: Help support journalists like William Taylor Potter

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Lafayette school board discusses ways to make schools safer
Catch new episodes of Growing Up Reality With Brooks Marks every Thursday on In The Know!

Victoria Caputo grew up not only with a medium for a mother, but also did so in front of reality TV cameras. The 28-year-old was 16 when Long Island Medium premiered on TLC, documenting her mother Theresas career as a medium, and she appeared on the show throughout its nearly decade-long run (it ended in 2019).

In the newest episode of In The Knows Growing Up Reality With Brooks Marks, Caputo opened up to host Brooks Marks, whose mother is The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Meredith Marks, about her unusual upbringing.

Life has been pretty normal [since the show ended]. Its a little bit more calm, but still hectic and definitely still crazy, she said. When people are like, What is it like? You being on TV? Im like, I dont know! Thats what I grew up with. Thats normal for me. Thats my normal. People are also like, What about your mom speaking to dead people? Thats [also] normal, but its hard for people to understand.

As she explained to Marks, having a mother with a spiritual gift is the only experience that she knows and has always just been a natural part of her life.

From what I can remember growing up, Ive always known my mom to talk to dead people. That was my life. I would come home from school, shed be reading whoever, Id go up to my room, and when she was done I could come back downstairs, Caputo explained. You know how in school people would always ask you what your parents do? I would just say that my mom is a stay-at-home mom.

Not everything about coming of age for everyone to watch on television was easy, though. While Caputo looks back at her time on reality TV mostly with fondness, there were certain aspects of being picked apart by viewers that she struggled with.

Im going to be 28 now, so for 10 years this is what Ive known. Nobody knows how difficult and challenging it really is. I try to keep my confidence and everything up the best I can and ignore all the hate, she said. When I was 16, I had major anxiety. It was a very, very severe where I couldnt leave my house. I lost 35 pounds, and it was very debilitating. Then I started gaining weight and people started commenting, Youre fat! Youre a pig! Youre this, youre that! It really took a toll on me.

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One thing that everyone wants to know from her is something that she plays coy about: whether or not she inherited her mothers abilities to speak to dead people as a medium.

I would say they dont skip a generation, but she teased on Growing Up Reality. This is hard, because I feel like Im navigating. Usually I can feel someones emotions or ailments or pains  things like that. I can also do a little bit of what my mom does. I normally dont share that with anybody; I like to keep that kind of quiet.

Watch the full episode of Growing Up Reality With Brooks Marks featuring Victoria Caputo below:

The post Long Island Medium star Victoria Caputo reflects on a decade of coming of age on reality TV appeared first on In The Know.
How far off is Seeka Limited (NZSE:SEK) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. Our analysis will employ the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. There's really not all that much to it, even though it might appear quite complex.

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for Seeka

Crunching The Numbers

We have to calculate the value of Seeka slightly differently to other stocks because it is a food company. Instead of using free cash flows, which are hard to estimate and often not reported by analysts in this industry, dividends per share (DPS) payments are used. This often underestimates the value of a stock, but it can still be good as a comparison to competitors. We use the Gordon Growth Model, which assumes dividend will grow into perpetuity at a rate that can be sustained. The dividend is expected to grow at an annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 2.1%. We then discount this figure to today's value at a cost of equity of 5.8%. Relative to the current share price of NZ$3.9, the company appears about fair value at a 1.2% 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.

Value Per Share = Expected Dividend Per Share / (Discount Rate - Perpetual Growth Rate)

= NZ$0.1 / (5.8%  2.1%)

= NZ$4.0

dcf

Important Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual 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 Seeka 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 5.8%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. 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.

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Moving On:

Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For Seeka, we've compiled three fundamental elements you should consider:

Risks: Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 3 warning signs with Seeka (at least 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process. Future Earnings: How does SEK's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. 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 New Zealander 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.

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The third season of "Love Is Blind" premieres on October 19, with four episodes dropping. But before meeting the new couples among the cast, let's review what happened to "Love Is Blind" couples of yore  specifically, from Season 2, which premiered earlier this year.

The season included six couples: Shaina Hurley and Kyle Abrams; Deepti Vempati and Shake Chatterjee; Iyanna McNeely and Jarrette Jones; Danielle Ruhl and Nick Thompson; Shayne Jansen and Natalie Lee; and Mallory Zapata and Salvador Perez.

Although none of the couples from Season Two remain together now (including the ones who never appeared on the show), some of them have pursued new relationships since the show, while others have taken on passion projects including publishing books, producing podcasts and releasing music.

Take a look at what the cast of Season Two is up to now  and the Season One cast, while you're at it.

Shaina Hurley and Kyle Abrams

Kyle Abrams and Shaina Hurley in Season Two of Love Is Blind. (Patrick Wymore / Netflix)

What happened to Shaina Hurley and Kyle Abrams? Despite getting engaged in episode 2, Hurley and Abrams never got married. The ex-couple struggled with religious differences, which eventually led them to break up in Mexico.

Where is Shaina Hurley now? Although Hurley and Abrams didn't work out, Hurley has since found love with Chicago restauranteur Christos Lardakis, whom she married in July 2022.

Speaking to TODAY, Hurley and Lardakis shared their origin story. They actually met before "Love Is Blind," which began filming in 2021, but Lardakis said he wasn't ready for a relationship.

The summer after "Love Is Blind" wrapped, they reconnected at a mutual friend's wedding in Greece. "When I saw her in July, I knew at that moment  Im not ever gonna let her go, Lardakis said.

Hurley said they bonded over their religious values. Not wanting a repeat of what happened with Abrams, Hurley told TODAY that one of the first things she asked Lardakis was, Do you love Jesus?

Hurley shared on "After the Altar" that as of now, the couple is living their life outside of the cameras and the public eye.

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Where is Kyle Abrams now? Abrams, on the other hand, found love in the pods, but not in the way he expected. He and cast member Deepti Vempati explored their long-rumored romantic connection on "After the Altar," but announced their break-up on Instagram days after the special premiered.

In the same post, Abrams shared that he has "since embarked on a new relationship" which he intends to keep private. On Oct. 10 he posted an Instagram Reel holding hands with a girl on a dinner date.

Iyanna McNeely and Jarrette Jones

Jarrette Jones and Iyanna McNeely in Season Two of

What happened to Iyanna McNeely and Jarrette Jones? The couple got married in the finale of "Love Is Blind" Season 2, following difficulties  Jones had initially proposed to cast member Mallory Zapata, and McNeely questioned whether she was his second choice.

Then, during the reunion special, the couple said they encountered difficulties integrating their schedules.

In August, McNeely and Jones posted a statement announcing their divorce. "Coming to this decision was far from easy and we will always wish each other the absolute best," the post read.

Where is Iyanna McNeely now? After the After the Altar special came out, which showed the final stages of their relationship, McNeely took to Instagram to share her thoughts. To Jarrette, Im glad it was you and I look forward to watching where life takes you,

Where is Jarrette Jones now? Jones hosts a podcast called "The Gentleman's Lounge."

Danielle Ruhl and Nick Thompson

Nick Thompson and Danielle Ruhl in Season 2 of

What happened to Danielle Ruhl and Nick Thompson? The couple appeared to be happy in their "After the Altar" appearance, but about a month after their wedding anniversary, Ruhl filed for divorce.

Where is Danielle Ruhl now? Since the announcement of their split in August, Ruhl has spoken about her mental health journey and the "therapeutic" practice of journaling. She also released a song. The future is bright and Im hopeful my next chapter will be the best one yet, she said of her post-divorce life on Instagram.

Where is Nick Thompson now? He's taken to social media producing his own podcast "Conversations with Nick Thompson." Like Ruhl, he opened up about his own mental health in the public eye and said he was "optimistic for the future."

Deepti Vempati and Abhishek Shake Chatterjee

What happened to Deepti Vempati and Shake Chatterjee? Chatterjee and Vempati's relationship ended at the altar. On the show, Chatterjee expressed his doubts about their physical connection to other cast members. With that in mind, Vempati said she was "choosing herself."

Where is Deepti Vempati now? She explored a connection with cast member Kyle Abrams, but they broke up. Around the time that the "After the Altar" special was released, Vempati published a memoir, "I Choose Myself," in which she discusses her time on the show, immigrating to the United States from India and putting herself first in her relationships.

Where is Shake Chatterjee now? Shake did not appear on the "After the Altar" special, and told TODAY he was satisfied with his decision: After seeing After the Altar, I was so happy I didnt do it. So happy."

Chatterjee told US Weekly of his plans to step back from his vet job. is now living in Miami and dating Emily Wilson. They co-host the podcast "Life is Blurry," a nod to his line, "Love is blurry."

Natalie Lee and Shayne Jansen

Shayne Jansen and Natalie Lee in Season Two of

What happened to Natalie Lee and Shayne Jansen? Although Jansen and Lee decided not to get married at the end of their season, citing a blowout fight the night before the ceremony, their relationship didn't end at the altar. During the reunion special, they revealed they reconciled after the wedding.

Lee said they decided to give it "another shot," but struggled to move beyond the issues lingering after their fight. It was too fresh, it was too fresh at the time, she said.

On "After the Altar," Lee said she saw allegedly flirtatious messages shared between Jansen and Shaina Hurley, with whom he had connected in the pods, and said footage showing the messages was cut. Speaking to TODAY, Hurley denied the messages: Its honestly funny. I laugh now because theres actually absolutely no validity."

Where is Natalie Lee now? Since their relationship ended, Jansen and Lee have both gone back to living independent lives. Lee is still living in Chicago, and said she didn't regret the decision to go on the show: "I found the best kind of unexpected love: friendship," she said on Instagram.

Where is Shayne Jansen now? Jansen, as seen on his Instagram, appears to be prioritizing his health, fitness and career as a real estate agent.

Mallory Zapata and Salvador Perez

Salvador Perez and Mallory Zapata in Season Two of

What happened to Mallory Zapata and Salvador Perez? Perez broke up with Zapata at the altar. During a conversation afterward, Zapata said, In my heart, I knew that you werent 100 percent sure.

Where is Salvador Perez now? Perez introduced his new girlfriend, Jessica "Jessi" Palkovic, to the rest of the cast on "After the Alter." After the special aired, Perez posted a video of the couple with a caption addressing the hateful comments they received about their relationship.

"All I ask is that if you have something unkind to say that you only leave it on my page. Please leave Jessi alone," he wrote.

Where is Mallory Zapata now? Zapata isn' in a public relationship but posted a tribute to her friends from the show. "Thankful for all these beautiful and kind women, who have supported me, helped me grow, and given me a safe space to let my guard down and be vulnerable without judgment," she wrote on Instagram.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
New Mexico Rep. Willie Madrid, D-Chaparral, speaks during the grand opening of the BMX Pump Track at the Delores C. Wright Community Center in Chaparral on Thursday, June 30, 2022.

LAS CRUCES - Incumbent Willie Madrid (D) is being challenged by Elizabeth Lee Winterrowd (R) to represent House District 53, which straddles eastern Dona Ana County and western Otero County.

The district, which was slightly redrawn this year, now includes most of Chaparral, all of the White Sands residential area, and portions of Las Cruces, including some neighborhoods on the East Mesa that are east of Sonoma Ranch Boulevard and south of US 70.

Madrid has held the seat since 2019 and is seeking a third term.

Winterrowd requested to do the interview for this story via emailed response. However, the Sun-News restricts responses to telephonic interactions to ensure interviews with each candidate are conducted in the same manner and to allow a reporter to ask follow-up questions during the course of the interview. Winterrowd chose not to participate in a telephonic interview.

What role, if any, do you believe the government should have in a womans decision to terminate a pregnancy?

Politicians have no business in the right and the decisions of a woman and her body, her doctor and her God, Madrid said. We need to stay out of it.

Madrid added that he supports womans rights and said hes glad New Mexico has not criminalized abortion.

We have this pretty well, in a way that's not going to change right now, he said.

The state is planning for increased tax revenue from the oil and gas and the cannabis industries. How do you believe the state should spend this money?

Madrid said hed like the excess cash to go toward supporting backlogged Department of Transportation projects and veterans. He added that education and other areas could use the money, too.

Theres so many possibilities, he said.

Should the legislature enact rebuttable presumptions into the law to allow judges to hold people accused, but not convicted, in jail? Why or why not?

Madrid said he like to see more information about the problem before providing a full solution.

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I think it's going to have to be something that we're going to have to really dissect. I don't have a real exact answer without getting more data, he said.

Is there any specific election law policy you would support implementing/abolishing in New Mexico? Name and explain the most important one to you.

Madrid pointed to Otero County as a place he sees needed reform.

He said that rules permitting just three days of early voting in Otero County need to be abolished.

It's a sore spot on me, it really is because it's it's the significance of nothing more than an indicator of the oppression and suppression of the people, he said. Its just down right unacceptable.

Spaceport America was built with taxpayer money on the promise of a space tourism industry for southern New Mexico. What are the most critical next steps for this facility and what laws/regulations will you support to ensure that vision?

There's no doubt the investment has been made. So the concern, I think the timeline has gotten close to the end. And that's why everything is a little more heightened. And it's polarized in the sense that there needs to be some return, he said.

Madrid added that legislators should re-envision the spaceport. The isolation of the spaceport makes marketing the structure hard, he said.

I see it as more of an essential, immediate return to become payloads that we can do, he said.

House members can allocate a certain amount of capital outlay toward a project in their home district. Whats one project that has your support?

My focus and concentration in the last four years have been the waste and water. And we finally got that to fruition, he said.

He said he tries to concentrate outlay that gets the most return. Right now, he said hes looking at Chaparral for a place to improve. He said that spaces like recreation and public health would be targets for the money.

You know that's where I have to focus monies  where the needs are, he said.

Correction: The neighborhoods within the redrawn district are more accurate in this version of the story.

Justin Garcia is a public safety reporter for the Las Cruces Sun-News. He can be reached at JEGarcia@lcsun-news.com.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Madrid vies for third term in House district straddling Dona Ana, Otero counties
A Minnesota man who said his camper was lit on fire because it had a Trump 2020 flag on it pleaded guilty to starting the fire himself and then filing fraudulent insurance claims Tuesday, federal prosecutors announced.

In September 2020, Denis Vladmirovich Molla falsely reported to police that someone set his camper ablaze and vandalized his garage door with graffiti that said BLM, Biden 2020 and an anarchy symbol associated with Antifa, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said in a news release. Molla, 30, told authorities he saw three unknown males near his property when he heard an explosion.

Molla and his wife, Deana, previously told the Star Tribune that they were asleep in their home with their 2-year-old son and their 5-month-old daughter at the time of the incident. Emergency crews also helped rescue three dogs and four puppies from the home amid the fire, which burned down a detached garage and totaled three vehicles.

"In reality, Molla started his own property on fire and spray painted the graffiti on his own garage," the news release said.

Molla then submitted multiple insurance claims totaling $300,000 for damages caused to his property by the camper fire and vandalism. Some claims were denied, the U.S. Department of Justice said. He received $61,000 from his insurance company, and threatened to report the company to authorities when it denied some of his claims, the DOJ said.

Mar-a-Lago: DOJ urges Supreme Court to reject Trump request in Mar-a-Lago documents case

He also deposited more than $17,000 into his bank account from a GoFundMe account called Patriots for the Mollas, according to the indictment filed in July. Molla also permitted others to set up another account to collect donations on his behalf, the DOJ said.

The defendant provided written comments on both GoFundMe accounts documenting the property losses that he suffered, thanking the numerous donors, the plea agreement filed Tuesday read.

Molla pleaded guilty to one of two counts of wire fraud. The DOJ agreed to drop the second charge as part of the plea deal, according to court documents. He faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000, according to the plea agreement. He also owes up $22,000 to GoFundMe donors, per the plea agreement.

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Tips withheld: North Carolina restaurant that kept workers' tips ordered to pay $157,000

"Mr. Molla was obviously remorseful during his federal plea hearing yesterday. He is a wonderful husband and father who made a mistake that he very much regrets," Molla's lawyer Ryan Garry, wrote in a statement to USA TODAY. "He has accepted full responsibility for his actions and is sorry for what happened."

Contributing: Marina Pitofksy, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Minnesota man pleads guilty to fraud, faking 'BLM,' 'Antifa' vandalism
A Brooklyn clothing wholesaler who sold $20 million in Chinese-made counterfeit military uniforms and gear to the U.S. government was sentenced to 40 months in prison Wednesday, United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha announced.

Ramin Kohanbash, 52, will also have to make restitution to the companies he victimized, including a Rhode Island company that reported a loss of more than $639,000 in profits and damage to its relationships with long-standing military clients, according to a press release from Cunha's office.

Kohanbash pleaded guilty in June 2019 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking in counterfeit goods, according to Cunha.

More: New York man charged with supplying counterfeit goods to U.S. government

Kohanbash, who was charged with two others, directed the development, manufacturing and importation of the counterfeit U.S. military uniforms and gear that were passed off as genuine American-made products, according to Cunha.

U.S. law requires that military uniforms are produced in the United States. The scheme ran from January 2013 until October 2018, according to court papers.

The counterfeit goods, including parkas, hoods and fleece shirts, were sold to the U.S. government for use by the U.S. Airforce. Some of the uniforms lacked important safety features or failed to meet safety specifications, endangering the servicemen and women, according to Cunha.

More: Wholesaler admits conspiracy to sell $20M in counterfeit Chinese products to U.S. military

For example, prosecutors said, the military bought at least 13,332 counterfeit jackets that weren't resistant to enemies' night vision goggles, and 18,597 hoods that weren't flame resistant.

"American servicemen and women risk their lives every day in defense of the nation, said U.S. Attorney Cunha. "But the risks they face should never come from the uniforms they wear, and the equipment they carry. In this case, defendants actions did exactly that, substituting substandard, foreign-made knockoffs for American products. I am tremendously pleased that the defendants charged in this matter are being held accountable for their actions."

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More: R.I. grand jury indicts North Dakota man in conspiracy to sell counterfeit goods to the military

Among Kohanbash's victims, according to court documents, was United Associates Limited of North Kingstown, which manufactures and sells protective clothing to the military and other government agencies.

As part of an investigatory controlled purchase, counterfeit goods were sold to the Rhode Island National Guard in East Greenwich, the U.S. Attorney's Office said previously.

A co-defendant, Bernard Klein, 41, of Brooklyn, was sentenced in April 2021 to 18 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also fined and ordered to pay restitution.

A third defendant, Terry Roe, 49, of Burlington, North Dakota, is scheduled to be sentenced on October 20. He pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and traffic in counterfeit goods.

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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Businessman gets prison after selling counterfeit military gear
Washington  An individual who worked at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort has told investigators that the former president directed the individual to move boxes of sensitive documents  including those that might contain classified markings  to a different location as the federal investigation into Trump's handling of certain records was already underway, according to a person familiar with the matter.

According to the source, the individual said that Trump ordered the boxes moved both before and after the Justice Department issued a subpoena in May for classified documents in Trump's possession.

The employee is now a cooperating witness in the Justice Department's probe  which escalated after the execution of a search warrant on Trump's Florida residence in August  and has appeared before a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., CBS News has confirmed.

The news of a cooperating witness in the documents investigation with firsthand knowledge of the boxes being transferred was first reported by The Washington Post. The New York Times first reported that the boxes were moved both before and after the subpoena.

Video of the boxes being handled is now in the hands of investigators  evidence that contributed to the FBI's decision to execute the court-authorized search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, a source with knowledge of the investigation says.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at Legacy Sports USA on October 09, 2022 in Mesa, Arizona. Trump was stumping for Arizona GOP candidates, including gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, ahead of the midterm election on November 8. / Credit: / Getty Images

Trump's battle with the federal government over White House records has spanned 18 months, since National Archives general counsel Gary Stern wrote to a group of Trump attorneys in May 2021 informing them that "roughly two dozen boxes of original Presidential records" from Trump's time in office that were once kept in the White House residence had yet to be returned to the Archives." Other missing records included letters between Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, according to a copy of the letter released by the Archives.

In January 2022, the National Archives collected 15 boxes of records at Mar-a-Lago and later referred Trump's retention of the documents to the Justice Department for a criminal investigation after the Archives said they discovered "evidence that classified records had been stored" on the premises.

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By May, a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. issued a subpoena "seeking documents bearing classification markings" at Trump's Florida resort, according to unsealed court documents. Trump's legal team is said to have accepted the service of the subpoena on May 11 and a subpoena for security camera footage from inside Mar-a-Lago was served in June. The footage showed the boxes of sensitive material being moved to a different location at Trump's resort, and according to the source, the Mar-a-Lago employee told investigators the transfer was directed by Trump himself.

The Justice Department declined to comment.

Trump has consistently denied wrongdoing by claiming in part that he declassified the documents in question, and by labeling the investigation as politically-motivated.

In a statement, Taylor Budowich, a spokesperson for Trump told CBS News,"The Biden administration has weaponized law enforcement and fabricated a Document Hoax in a desperate attempt to retain political power. Every other President has been given time and deference regarding the administration of documents, as the President has the ultimate authority to categorize records, and what materials should be classified., The continued effort to leak misleading and false information to partisan allies in the Fake News is nothing more than dangerous political interference and unequal justice."

The National Archives pointed out Tuesday that any statements that presidential records "were in the possession of the former Presidents or their representatives, after they left officeare false and misleading." The Archives said that it took "physical and legal custody of the Presidential Records" from the administrations of former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan when they left office.

The August execution of the search warrant at Trump's residence yielded 33 boxes of material, according to court documents, from press clippings to clothes, and including 103 documents with classified markings  labeled either CONFIDENTIAL, SECRET, or TOP SECRET. The boxes also contained nearly 50 empty folders with classified banners on them.

Prosecutors revealed in court documents and proceedings that they are undertaking a "national security" investigation into the matter and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence is conducting a damage assessment as a result of the allegedly improperly stored documents.

Trump sued the Justice Department in the weeks after the search, alleging attorney-client and executive privileges were at stake and requesting the appointment of an independent third party to review the materials. A federal judge in Florida granted Trump's request, paused the investigation, and appointed Judge Raymond Dearie as Special Master, a ruling that prosecutors have appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta.

That same appeals court ruled the Justice Department could continue to use the 103 documents with classified markings in its investigation, but Trump's legal team has since asked the Supreme Court to step in and allow the Special Master to review those more sensitive documents, too. The government has filed a response in opposition to Trump' application with the Court.

Prosecutors also say they are investigating potential acts of obstruction by the Trump team after court documents revealed a representative for the former president gave a signed declaration to investigators in June claiming that after a "diligent search," all documents with classified markings had been returned from Mar-a-Lago.

Jeff Pegues contributed to this report.

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(Getty Images for W Magazine)

Mark Ronson and Grace Gummer have revealed theyre expecting their first child together.

The Grammy-winning producer and the actress confirmed the baby news when they stepped out in New York on Tuesday for W Magazines 50th anniversary party. Gummer, the daughter of Oscar-winner Meryl Streep, was seen wearing a burnt orange sweater dress and matching coat as she showed off her growing baby bump. Ronson posed alongside his wife, dressed in a tan suit and a pink turtleneck.

The pair  who celebrated their first wedding anniversary in August  are thrilled by the baby news, a source told Page Six. They also said Ronson has always wanted to be a dad.

Ronson, 46, and Gummer, 36, tied the knot in August 2021 during an intimate backyard ceremony. The following month, the musician revealed the two were married when he shared a black-and-white social media post celebrating his 45th birthday.

To my truest love, he captioned the image, which showed the smiling couple on their wedding day. Out of nowhere, you made 45 hands down the greatest year of my life. And Im sure it took me 45 years to become the man worthy of your love.

I hope I spend every one of these birthdays by your side til my last day. And beyond. Forever and ever yours, he wrote. (and yes, we got married).

This past August, the Uptown Funk hitmaker paid tribute to his wife on social media in honour of their first wedding anniversary, and called Gummer his best friend in the Instagram caption.

Grace Gummer and Mark Ronson with his siblings Samantha Ronson and Annabelle Dexter-Jones (Getty Images for W Magazine)

When people used to tell me their spouse was their best friend, I thought they were spouting hallmark nonsense or that they were some freak anomaly of love. So now I guess Im either someone who spouts hallmark nonsense or Im a freak anomaly of love. Or maybe I just married the most incredible human being around, he wrote. Happy Anniversary to my darlingest, youve made me happy beyond.

The baby news also marks a second child for Hollywood icon Meryl Streep, who became a grandmother when her eldest daughter Mamie had a baby boy in December 2019 with her fiance Mehar Sethi.

Mark Ronson was previously married to French actress Josephine de La Baume from 2011 to 2018. Meanwhile, Gummer was married to musician Tay Strathairn in 2019 but the two separated just one month later. Gummer filed for divorce in March 2021.
Artists illustration of tidal disruption event AT2019dsg where a supermassive black hole spaghettifies and gobbles down a star. Some of the material is not consumed by the black hole and is flung back out into space (DESY, Science Communication Lab)

Matter is spewing out of a black hole in a way that has never been seen before, scientists have said.

The bizarre events began in 2018, when scientists saw a small star get ripped to shreds by a black hole roughly 665 million light years from Earth. Such spectacular and violent behaviour is relatively routine for scientists studying black holes, which have a tendency to rip apart other objects nearby, and so the black hole was seen an not especially interesting.

But scientists were then shocked to find that three years on, the same black hole came back to life, throwing out material. Unusually, however, it has not devoured anything new.

This caught us completely by surprise  no one has ever seen anything like this before, said Yvette Cendes, the lead author of a new study on the strange black hole.

The material appears to have been delayed in coming out of the black hole, scientists believe. They still do not know why that process was held back, but further research should allow a better understanding of black holes dramatic eating patterns, they hope.

Researchers first spotted the strange behaviour in 2021, using the Very Large Array in New Mexico. Unusual readings suggested that the black hole appeared to have come back to life, unexpectedly.

A team of international astronomers then rushed to find out what was going on. The surprise led them to apply for urgent time on telescopes to understand what was going on.

As they gathered information, they found that the radio signature of the event was dramatic. It had gone silent for three years  and then resumed, with a blast of radio energy that was one of the most powerful ever seen.

Whats more, the material coming out of the black hole is going much more quickly than usual. It is traveling as fast as half the speed of light  compared with 10 per cent of the speed of light for most such events.

Scientists will now look to better understand that black hole and its behaviour, as well as trying to understand whether black holes have been doing this all along and they have missed it  or whether it is truly as unusual of an example as it appears.
Sydney Chisholm

This years flu shot is now available, and health officials are encouraging British Columbians to roll up their sleeves after a particularly rough influenza season in the Southern Hemisphere.

Derek Sigauke, a pharmacist at London Drugs said early preparation could mean a healthier holiday season.

We have to buckle up and we have to buckle up early, Sigauke told Castanet Kamloops.

We're encouraging patients to get not just the COVID boosters, but also the flu vaccine when they come in to get their shots so that we can have a safer winter.

Sigauke said there are many factors that play into the predictions for a rough flu season ahead. As COVID-19 precautions have been lifted and most physical distancing measures scrapped, the rate of infection is likely to go up.

The pharmacist explained, on top of staying up to date on vaccinations and keeping healthy, people should also consider wearing a mask in enclosed spaces.

We still want to remind everyone that the pandemic is not over, he explained.

So we still encourage the washing of hands, sanitizing, and then just basic hygiene, and then drinking lots of fluids for personal hygiene as well.

According to HealthlinkBC, the peak of the flu season starts in late fall and early winter. Sigauke said now is the best time to get your shot, but it's never too late.

Historically only about 40 per cent of the local population gets a flu shot, Sigauke said for herd immunity to take effect, at least 70 per cent of the population needs to get the shot in a given year.

Once those numbers hit the upper percentages, which are maybe 70 per cent and up, then we start seeing less and less cases, but we're not there yet, Sigauke said.

Were pushing for a bigger drive this year cause of what I mentioned is happening in Australia, so that we can have a safer season.

Sigauke said it's a common myth that young children dont need to be vaccinated against influenza. But in reality, they may be at a higher risk of spreading the virus

We just want to dispel that and make sure that everybody does their part, the herd mentality immunity that we're talking about, we only reach it if the whole population is getting the vaccinations, he said.

British Columbians are being encouraged to get both their flu and COVID-19 shot this year.

Just to remind people that even though you vaccinated for the COVID virus, that does not give you protection against the flu, the pharmacist said.

For those who have concerns, it's been proven to be safe, you can get both the National Advisory Council for injections says you can get both vaccinations at the same time.

Pandemic measures put in place to limit the spread of COVID-19 led to just 69 confirmed flu cases in 2020 and only sporadic cases last year.

Flu shots are now available for anyone six months of age or older. Residents can book online or walk in to most pharmacies to get the jab.
MILWAUKEE (AP)  The company that provided medical services at a Wisconsin jail has been found guilty in the 2016 dehydration death of an inmate.

Armor Correctional Health Services Inc., based in Miami, was charged in 2018 with felony abuse of residents of a penal facility and seven misdemeanor counts of falsifying health records in the death of 38-year-old Terrill Thomas.

Thomas was arrested in April 2016 after running into the Potawatomi casino in Milwaukee, ordering everyone to get out and then firing two rounds from a handgun. No one was injured. His family said Thomas had likely been experiencing a psychotic episode.

He was placed in isolation in Milwaukee County Jail. Guards cut off his access to water because they said they saw him stuffing his shirt and pieces of mattress into his toilet to flood the cell.

Prosecutors said Armors employees claimed to have checked on Thomas while he was in isolation, but surveillance video showed them passing his cell without stopping or never appearing at his cell at all. The charges also allege an Armor employee at one point fabricated blood pressure and pulse readings for Thomas.

Thomas died after a week in isolation.

A Milwaukee County Circuit Court jury returned the verdict against the company late Tuesday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

Armor Correctional betrayed the trust of the people of Milwaukee County by not only neglecting Mr. Thomas and others, but also by attempting to hide the neglect by falsifying the medical records, District Attorney John Chisholm said in a statement Wednesday.

Armor's attorney, Patrick J. Knight, said the company would appeal the verdict and several pre-trial rulings.

A sentencing hearing was scheduled for Nov. 16. The company faces fines of up to $190,000.

Three jail officials were also convicted of criminal charges in Thomas death, including neglect and misconduct.
A little-known woman senator has emerged as kingmaker in Brazil's knife-edge presidential runoff.

Many Brazilians saw Simone Tebet, a lawyer and university professor, for the first time when she took stage the night of August 29 for the campaign's first televised debate, standing alongside rightwing President Jair Bolsonaro and leftist icon and ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

She made a strong impression.

When Bolsonaro at one point insulted a woman journalist asking questions at the debate, the senator leapt to her defense, pointing at the president with her index finger and saying firmly: "I am not afraid of him."

Tebet, 52, finished third in the first round voting with four percent of the votes, far behind Lula, who took 48 percent, and Bolsonaro with 43 percent.

But her share of the pie amounts to 4.9 million votes -- and the difference between the two frontrunners was 6.1 million.

Instantly, Tebet became the candidate to woo. And she endorsed Lula.

- 'Third option' -

Tebet's candidacy was organized by centrist parties and supported by part of the Brazilian establishment as a way to temper the polarization generated by the far-right president Bolsonaro and the leftist hero of the working class and poor, Lula, of the Workers Party.

Tebet is from the city of Tres Lagoas, which has a population of 125,000, and she was its mayor from 2005 to 2010. It is in the west-central state of Mato Grosso do Sul, where the economy is based on agribusiness.

Tebet played a prominent role on a congressional committee that in 2021 investigated the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. And while on this panel, she clashed loudly with Bolsonaro allies.

Tebet, a Catholic who describes herself as feminist, was also the first woman to preside over the Brazilian senate's Constitution and Justice Committee, considered the chamber's most important panel.

But her biggest jump to notoriety came with her presidential candidacy, which was promoted as a third way between the right and left.

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Tebet managed "to fill a lagoon that was empty," said Marco Antonio Teixeira, a professor of political science at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Sao Paulo.

She succeeded because "she billed herself as an actual third option, strong in her criticisms of Bolsonaro and of the Workers Party in a balanced way, not simply seeking confrontation," said Teixeira.

In the presidential debates, she challenged Bolsonaro and urged him to show respect for women; the president has a penchant for making remarks seen as sexist.

This helped Tebet grab third place from center-left candidate Ciro Gomes, who polls had predicted would take that spot.

- Conservative and close to agribusiness -

Up through the midway point of Bolsonaro's term, Tebet supported his government in 86 percent of the votes taken in the Senate, including one that extended gun-carrying rights to land outside rural properties, according to investigative news outlet Agencia Publica.

Tebet owns three rural estates, one of which sits on land claimed by Indigenous people in Mato Grosso do Sul.

She broke with Bolsonaro after she joined the congressional commission that probed the pandemic, which killed more than 680,000 people in Brazil.

During the campaign for the first round of presidential voting, Tebet promised to bring transparency to huge amounts of money administered by Congress, boost spending on science and technology, and provide scholarships for students at the intermediate level of education to head off school dropouts.

Now, as analysts say Lula has to veer toward the center to win new supporters, Tebet -- who has said Brazil is conservative and not ready, say, to legalize abortion -- is an important person to have on your side.

Last week, she formally endorsed Lula in the runoff on October 30, while denying that this gesture meant she has given up on creating a third path in Brazilian politics.

Tebet's party, however, called the Brazilian Democratic Movement, chose to remain neutral in the race between Bolsonaro and Lula.

"What is at stake is bigger than each of us," she said.

Tebet said she would vote for Lula because of his "commitment to democracy and the constitution," which she said she does not see in Bolsonaro.

But she criticized Lula, credited with bringing millions of people out of poverty during his rule from 2003 to 2010, for not really "looking in the rear view mirror" and making new proposals for how he would govern if he regains power.

"Tebet has a way of speaking with agribusiness and women that is much more direct than Lula," said Teixeira.

She can lure for Lula centrist voters tired of the tensions born of Bolsonaro-Lula polarization, he added.

Brazilian press reports have suggested Tebet, who is married to a politician from her state with whom she has two daughters, could become a minister in Lula's government if he wins. Tebet has denied being interested in such a job.

msi/app/dw/to/ec
New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez on Thursday called on the Biden administration to reconsider its plan to expel Venezuelan asylum seekers to Mexico, just a day after the policy was announced.

Menendez, the powerful chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, criticized the administrations use of Title 42, a Trump-era policy that sought to defang the asylum system, in an attempt to reduce the number of Venezuelans entering the country.

Expanding Title 42 to now include Venezuelans adds salt to an open wound while further eroding our asylum system that President Biden promised to restore, said Menendez.

Under the administrations new plan, up to 24,000 Venezuelans will be allowed to apply for work authorization and temporary residence in the United States, provided they have sponsors within the country and in most cases enter the United States via air travel.

That side of the new policy is modeled after Uniting for Ukraine, a largely successful program to streamline immigration processes for Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion of their country.

The flip side of the Biden administrations policy is perhaps the broadest expansion of Title 42  a policy that allows U.S. officials to quickly expel foreign nationals without screening for asylum claims.

Venezuelan nationals were previously not subject to Title 42, as Venezuela does not accept the return of its nationals expelled from the United States under that authority.

Mexico, which has previously accepted some Title 42 expellees from some Central American countries, has now agreed to accept Venezuelans as well.

While replicating the successful model of Uniting for Ukraine to Venezuelans is the right thing to do, and I commend the Biden Administration for creating a new legal pathway for Venezuelans forced to flee [President Nicolas] Maduros misery, I cannot support any program that creates additional requirements for Venezuelans and is coupled with an inexcusable expansion of Trumps Title 42, said Menendez.

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Title 42 authority is linked to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention order designed in theory to prevent the transmission of coronavirus among migrants, but which many believe was designed by the Trump White House with explicitly political intent.

The Biden administration in April tried to end Title 42, but was stopped by a federal judge who ordered the authoritys continued implementation.

Administration officials continue fighting in court to end Title 42, even as the Department of Homeland Security expands the programs uses.

Menendezs critique of the Biden administrations use of Title 42 is a significant hiccup, as the New Jersey senator is seen as the top Democratic authority on relations with the Western Hemisphere.

Menendez, who The New York Times called the Democrat the White House fears the most, has also butted heads with the Biden administration over the withdrawal from Afghanistan, lifting terror designations on Colombian guerrilla groups, and diplomatic openings to Cuba and Venezuela.

Menendez joined a growing chorus of pro-immigrant groups and politicians criticizing the Biden rollout, which was initially sold as a new avenue of entry for Venezuelans, despite the fact that it has the potential to keep out more people than it lets in.

It is my hope that the Biden Administration reconsiders the expulsion of additional Venezuelans under Title 42, and instead, affords Venezuelan refugees fleeing Maduro the same opportunities that were rightfully granted to Ukrainians fleeing Putin, said Menendez.

And the New Jersey senator picked apart the details of the Biden plan.

Unlike Ukrainians, this program creates an automatic disqualification for Venezuelans who have risked their lives to find temporary refuge in Panama and Mexico. Under this new program, more Venezuelans will be expelled under Title 42 than are eligible for parole, he said.

Likewise, the administration must continue to pursue their original goal of ending Title 42 in the courts, redesignating TPS for Venezuelans in the United States, and most importantly, expanding refugee resettlement processing for Venezuelans so they have permanent protections in the United States, added Menendez.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Michelle Yeoh has joined the cast of the upcoming film Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.

On Tuesday, director Steven Caple Jr. announced in an Instagram post that Yeoh and Pete Davidson of Saturday Night Live fame will both have voice roles in the newest installment of the film franchise based on the popular Hasbro toy line.

Rise of the Beasts continues the ages-long saga of a war between robot factions by introducing three new groups  the Primals, the Predacons and the Terrorcons  in a globe-trotting adventure set in the 90s.

More from NextShark: 'We can all learn something from them': Pixar execs praise all-female 'Turning Red' creative leadership team

Yeoh and Davidson are slated to voice Air Razor and Mirage, respectively. Air Razor appears to be an adaptation of the character Airazor, who transforms into a peregrine falcon and is described by Caple Jr. as the heart of the Maximals. Mirage is an Autobot specializing in stealth and espionage who transforms into a Porsche 911.

Longtime Transformers director Michael Bay is attached as a producer, and Peter Cullen will roll out once again as the Autobot leader Optimus Prime. Rounding out the cast are Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, who play a pair of archeologists and serve as the films human leads, and Ron Pearlman, who will voitce the leader of the Primals, Optimus Primal.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is scheduled to release in theaters on June 24.

More from NextShark: Keanu Reeves says he wasn't really sad in the 'Sad Keanu' meme photo

Featured Image via GQ / Transformers: War for Cybertron

More from NextShark: Keanu Reeves to star in his first major US television role with Hulus Devil in the White City
Taipei, Taiwan. --News Direct-- Microban International

Redefining clean with innovative built-in antimicrobial and odor control technologies

Microban International, a global leader in antimicrobial and odor control solutions, recently attended Taipei Innovative Textile Application Show (TITAS) 2022 at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center from 12th to 14th of October. Microban showcased its latest innovations and demonstrated how to improve textile hygiene, cleanliness, and sustainability with next generation antimicrobial and odor control technologies.

Microban has recently launched two brand new technologies, DuraTech by Microban and Refresh. Nisa Fan, Associate Product Manager at Microban International, highlighted the key features of these two technologies during the product launch seminar at TITAS on October 13th.

DuraTech by Microban is a groundbreaking antimicrobial technology designed for cotton applications. It has been proven to inhibit the growth of odor-causing bacteria by up to 99.99 percent, even after 75 home launderings, far exceeding industry standards. Meanwhile, Refresh is Microbans newest, patent-pending and sustainable odor capture technology that is metal free. This innovative technology is proven to reduce odors by up to 93 percent on polyester and polyester-rich blends, even after 30 home launderings.

As a sustainability-focused company, Microban continues to dedicate itself to sustainable textile manufacturing by providing more environmentally-friendly solutions without relying on traditional heavy metal chemistries, explained Nisa Fan. The launch of DuraTech by Microban and Refresh perfectly represents our innovation efforts, combining science and creative solutions that enhance textile products around the world.

With decades of experience in the textile industry, Microban has built partnerships with over 200 brand customers in the Asia Pacific market, and worked closely with renowned textile brands such as Danskin, Samsonite, Deya and Peilou in Taiwan.

Story continues

For more information, please visit www.microban.com

About Microban International

Part of Barr Brands International (BBI), Microban International is home to the most trusted and well-known global brands in the antimicrobial, odor control, and sanitization/disinfection markets  Microban and Ultra-fresh. Our organization has experienced over 100 collective years of growth and has revolutionized the industry. As the global leader, our proactive systems keep products cleaner and control odors better by preventing problems before they start. Microban International drives innovation by combining science and creative solutions that enhance high-quality consumer, textile, industrial and medical products around the world. Today, the Microban and Ultra-Fresh brands and our technologies are featured on thousands of products worldwide. The company is headquartered in North Carolina with operations in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. For more information, please visit www.microban.com.

Contact Details

Microban International

Audrey Jestin

+44 1480 405333

audreyj@kdm-communications.com

Company Website

https://www.microban.com/

View source version on newsdirect.com: https://newsdirect.com/news/microban-international-enjoys-successful-titas-2022-985533562
Mila Kunis has been praised for her response to being booed multiple times during a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Last week, New York-native Jimmy Kimmel returned to his hometown to host a series of shows at the Brooklyn Academy of Musics Howard Gilman Opera House, where Kunis promoted her new Netflix film, Luckiest Girl Alive. After Kunis spoke about a wardrobe malfunction that happened right before the show, Kimmel told the Black Swan actor: You seem like you could be a New Yorker, but youre not a New Yorker.

No, Im not, she confirmed, followed by a subtle boo from an audience member.

What? Who booed? Kunis asked the audience, before jokingly apologising to the New York crowd.

Well, you wont like the rest of this interview, she added.

The Friends With Benefits star went on to share a story about her familys brief stay in New York when they first moved to the United States from Ukraine.

I was born in Ukraine but when I came to the states, I came through New York, she said, with cheers from the audience.

Except, I think it was, like, Queens, Kunis continued. And then youre put up in a hotel to go through your medical checks to make sure you can be entered into the country. But its next to a cemetery, this is what I remember.

While Kunis could only recall a cemetery across the street from the weird hotel she was in with her family, she did remember that it was the first time she ever had a burger and Coca-Cola soda.

What I recall is a cemetery across the street and this weird hotel that I was in, but I did have a burger for the first time in New york and a Coca-Cola, she said.

Kimmel noted that Kunis had a pretty great memory, before asking whether she had pizza for the first time in New York as well.

Are you ready? Kunis said, anticipating more boos from the crowd of New Yorkers in the audience. No.

Kunis was then teased by the audience for her opinions on pizza, but tried to make up for it by sharing that her father worked as a Dominos Pizza delivery man when they moved to Los Angeles, California. However, that only elicited more boos from the audience, who suggested that New York pizza is superior to the pies in Los Angeles.

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The That 70s Show alumna went on to say that due to her fathers job, she grew to hate pizza because it was all her family ate at the time. Of course, the admission prompted a symphony of boos from the crowd, to which Kunis got up from her seat and jokingly said, Im out of here! before sitting back down.

I had it every day for a year, possibly more, she explained. It was too much. Because we were so poor, my dad would make us pizza for dinner, and he tried really hard to get creative but you can only be so creative.

My brother came out of it loving pizza and my mom and I to this day are like, Ugh, pizza, she added. Ill choke it down because my kids like pizza, my husband likes pizza, but Im never the person that goes, You know what I feel like? Pizza.

However, Kunis husband and notorious prankster, Ashton Kutcher, decided to give his wife a pizza oven for their anniversary. But heres the irony, guys. My husband for our anniversary got me a pizza oven, she said, laughing. Now not only do I not like pizza, I make them!

Mila Kunis is one of the funniest and most down to earth celebrities.



Her whit is also impressive. I love her comedic timing when the crowd started the boos she handled it like a boss. Great interview. #jimmykimmel  Jake Ryan  (@jakeryan2112) October 9, 2022

Kunis appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live was praised by fans online for her comedic timing and easygoing attitude when faced with boos from the crowd.

If you boo Mila Kunis, you are not my people  Sports Fan (@BroncosFanatix) October 9, 2022

Mila Kunis is one of the funniest and most down to earth celebrities, one fan wrote on Twitter. Her whit is also impressive. I love her comedic timing when the crowd started the boos she handled it like a boss. Great interview.

If you boo Mila Kunis, you are not my people, another fan tweeted.

Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher were married in 2015 and share two children  Wyatt, seven, and Dimitri, five. Earlier this year, the couple raised nearly $35m for Ukrainian refugees amid Russias ongoing invasion of the country.

Because of her humanitarian efforts, Mila Kunis was recently included on Time magazines list of 100 most influential people of 2022.

Meanwhile, Luckiest Girl Alive viewers have urged Netflix to add a trigger warning to the start of the film. Released on Friday, the 15-certificate movie features intense scenes of sexual assault.
Millie Bobby Brown attends Netflix's "Stranger Things" season four New York Premiere on May 14, 2022 in Brooklyn, New York. Theo Wargo/Getty Images

Millie Bobby Brown said she'd "love" to write an episode of "Stranger Things."

She wants the series to end with a musical episode, like the one in "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia."

Brown said that she's typically joking, though, when she expresses her desires for the series.

Millie Bobby Brown said that she would "love" to write the finale of "Stranger Things," and joked that the Netflix series needs to end with a musical episode.

Speaking with Total Film about her new Netflix film, "Enola Holmes 2," Brown said that she doesn't know more than audiences when it comes to the finale of the popular sci-fi series. She does, however, have some ideas for how it should wrap up.

"Trust me: I can do the finale to 'Stranger Things,' and it would be great," Brown told the publication. "I think it should be like 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.' Did you ever see the musical episode? It needs to end like that  a musical episode."

Brown has been a core member of the "Stranger Things" cast since its first season in 2016, playing psychic teen Eleven. Previously, in a May interview with The Wrap, she ribbed the show's creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, for being "sensitive Sallies" when it comes to killing off the show's main characters, calling for more bloodshed in the series' fifth and final season.

Her comments to Total Film reference the musical episode of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," titled "The Nightman Cometh." The episode aired as the show's season four finale, but the cast eventually took it on a brief tour in 2009, Playbill reported.

While Brown told Total Film that she'd "love" to write an episode of the show, she admitted she's typically joking when she expresses her desires for the plot of "Stranger Things."

"I say all these things really just under my breath, and then people take them and print them," Brown said. "And I'm like, no, no, no  I said that as a joke, that I wanted her to get married and work at a Target. That was a joke. But it's maybe not a joke?"

Read the original article on Insider
STORY: More than 50 Western countries met on Wednesday to promise more weapons for Ukraine, especially air defenses, after Russia launched its most intense missile strikes since the war began.

Speaking after a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Russia's latest attacks had laid bare Moscows "malice and cruelty."

"Those assaults on targets with no military purpose again revealed the malice of Putin's war of choice. But Russia's atrocities have further united the nations of goodwill that stand with Ukraine."

Russian attacks using more than 100 missiles have killed dozens of people across Ukraine since Monday, when President Vladimir Putin ordered what he called retaliatory strikes against Ukraine for an explosion on a Crimea bridge.

Air raid sirens sounded across Ukraine for a third day on Wednesday with some reports of shelling, but no sign of a repeat of the intensive countrywide strikes of the previous two days. The missiles have mostly targeted civilian electricity and heating infrastructure, while some hit busy roads, parks and tourist sites, including in the center of Kyiv.

Condemned by scores of countries around the world, Putin defends his invasion as a "special military operation" needed to ensure Russian security and protect Russian-speakers in Ukraine.

Since Monday's attacks, Germany has sent the first of four planned IRIS-T air defense systems, while Washington said it would speed up delivery of a promised NASAMS air defense system.

"Assistance will be provided as fast as we can physically get them there. // We're also going to try to provide additional munitions to the existing systems that the Ukrainian forces are using."

In addition to arms, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Wednesday that increased financial support from international donors will help end the war more quickly, asking via video at a forum of the International Monetary Fund for $38 billion to help with next year's deficit.

Story continues

"The more assistance Ukraine gets now, the sooner we'll come to an end to the Russian war, and the sooner and more reliably we will guarantee that such a cruel war will not spread into other countries."

As his forces have lost ground on the battlefield since September, Putin has escalated the conflict, ordering the call-up of hundreds of thousands of reservists, proclaiming the annexation of Ukrainian territory and repeatedly threatening to use nuclear weapons to protect Russia.

A senior NATO official said Wednesday a Russian nuclear strike would almost certainly provoke a "physical response" from Ukraine's allies and potentially from NATO.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Dutch mobile operator Veon may separate its assets in Russia from the wider company, Russia's Izvestia daily quoted three unidentified sources as saying on Thursday - a report that pushed Veon's Moscow-listed shares over 20% higher.

Veon operates its Beeline brand through its subsidiary Vimpelcom in Russia, a market that accounts for around half of the group's revenues. Veon also operates Beeline in Kazakhstan and Kyivstar in Ukraine.

"We regularly evaluate our portfolio and look for investment or divestment activity that could create value for VEON's stakeholders," Veon said in a statement. "We cannot say more than that or speculate about our plans with regard to any of our portfolio companies."

Izvestia reported that Vimpelcom and Veon were discussing a way for Vimpelcom to fall under the ownership of entirely Russian capital, without providing further details. The newspaper's sources stressed the discussions were merely ideas for now.

Veon's shares have traded near record lows since tumbling after Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine in February. Since then, scores of foreign firms have sought to reduce exposure to Russia and paused or terminated operations there.

In Amsterdam, Veon shares were up around 7% by 1052 GMT.

Leonid Konik, editor-in-chief of ComNews, a telecoms and IT-focused publication, told Reuters there had been rumours about a sale of Beeline for 10 years.

"But for political and business reasons, such a sale is more relevant than ever," Konik said.

Mikhail Fridman, one of the Russian investors behind Veon's major shareholder Letter One, has criticised Moscow's actions in Ukraine.

He and his business partner Petr Aven, who have been hit with Western sanctions, have denied any financial or political relationship with President Vladimir Putin or the Kremlin.

Konik said: "In Russia, the 'friend or foe' system has escalated really strongly and they will not be able to keep their feet in both camps."

(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Mark Potter)
Oct. 12McDERMOTT  Simply put, although underdog Green gave it indeed a good go, it was Wyatt Brackman's world at Roy Rogers Field for Friday night  and everybody else was just living in it.

That's because Brackman, the senior bruising back for the Northwest Mohawks, bulldozed his way for 234 yards and a hat trick of touchdowns on a massive 33 carries and spearheaded the Mohawks' 28-19 Southern Ohio Conference Division I football victory over the visiting Bobcats.

For Northwest, it was its fifth consecutive winas it raised its record to 6-2, and a driver's seat 3-0 in the SOC I.

This is the Division V Mohawks' final season as a member of the small-school (SOC) division.

Green, a Division VII program, is also now 6-2 (1-2 SOC II), but has lost back-to-back serious road challenges at Notre Dame and now Northwest.

Brackman scored on touchdowns from four, 14 and finally 45 yards  as he also had a pair of two-point conversion runs  as his 45-yard dash for his longest gainer of the night and second successful two-point run made it 28-13 for the Mohawks' largest lead.

That was with four minutes and 53 seconds remaining, as his 14-yard run pushed the Northwest lead to 20-13 with nine-and-a-half minutes to play.

On the final play of the opening half, Brackman found the end zone from four yards out and converted his first two-point run giving the Mohawks the lead for good at 14-7.

After a scoreless opening quarter, Northwest was on the board five minutes and three seconds into the second when Tanner Bolin completed a 40-yard touchdown pass to Connor Lintz.

Bolin's only other completion went to Carter Runyon for three yards, as the run-oriented Mohawks as per usual did the bulk of their damage on the ground, rushing for 259 yards on 44 attempts.

Green is a running team too, and tied the Mohawks with 18 first downs but the Bobcats better balanced their yardage with 155 rushing and an even 100 passing.

Story continues

Abe McBee, the run-oriented quarterback, scored twice via the run with paydirt trips of 48 and 16 yards the 48-yarder which sliced the Bobcats' deficit to 14-13 with 1:12 to play in the third.

His 16-yard run, with only 62 seconds left, got Green to within the final score of 28-19.

For the game, McBee rushed for 107 yards on 13 carries, as the Bobcats' leading rusher for the seasonNathaniel Brannigan added 18 totes for 58 yards.

And, the Bobcats were playing without arguably their two top offensive linemen against the much bigger Mohawks.

McBee completed two passes and attempted three, as his 75-yard second-quarter connection to Landan Lodwick got the Bobcats on the scoreboard  with Quincy Merrill making the extra-point kick for the short-lived 7-6 lead.

The Bobcats immediately answered Bolin's touchdown toss to Lintz, but their one-point lead lasted only five minutes and five seconds.

Gabe McBee caught Abe McBee's only other completion for 25 yards.

Green was also guilty of seven penalties for 80 yards, compared to just two for 10 for Northwest  as the Mohawks lost one fumble.

Both clubs return home, and return to SOC I action, on Friday night with Northwest welcoming Eastern and Green hosting East.

* * *

Green 0 7 6 6 19

Northwest 0 14 0 14 28

N Connor Lintz, 40-yard pass from Tanner Bolin (kick failed), 6:57, 2nd (6-0 N)

G Landan Lodwick, 75-yard pass from Abe McBee (Quincy Merrill kick), 5:05, 2nd (7-6 G)

N Wyatt Brackman, 4-yard run (Wyatt Brackman run), :00, 2nd (14-7 N)

G Abe McBee, 48-yard run (kick failed), 1:12, 3rd (14-13 N)

N Wyatt Brackman, 14-yard run (kick failed), 9:29, 4th (20-13 N)

N Wyatt Brackman, 45-yard run (Wyatt Brackman run), 4:53, 4th (28-13 N)

G Abe McBee, 16-yard run (run failed), 1:02, 4th (28-19 N)

Team Statistics

G N

First downs 18 18

Scrimmage plays 46 50

Rushes-yards 39-155 44-259

Passing yards 100 43

Total yards 255 302

Cmp-Att-Int. 2-7-0 2-6-0

Fumbles-lost 1-0 1-1

Penalties-yards 7-80 2-10

Punts-Ave.2-38.5 NA

----

Individual Leaders

RUSHING  Green: Abe McBee 13-107 2TD, Nathaniel Brannigan 18-58, Blake Smith 1-2, Trevor Sparks 1-0, Landan Lodwick 5-(-4), Team 1-(-8); Northwest: Wyatt Brackman 33-234 3TD, Colton Campbell 3-10, Kory Butler 4-9, Troy Bolin 3-5, Brady Doss 1-1

PASSING  Green: Abe McBee 2-3-0-100 TD, Jon Knapp 0-4-0-0; Northwest: Tanner Bolin 2-6-0-43 TD

RECEIVING Green: Landan Lodwick 1-75 TD, Gabe McBee 1-25; Northwest: Connor Lintz 1-40 TD, Carter Runyon 1-3

 2022 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved
Photo: The Canadian Press Amanda Todd's father Norman Todd outside the New Westminster Law Courts on Tuesday.

A sentencing hearing is expected to conclude today in a New Westminster courtroom for the man convicted of multiple sexual offences against teenager Amanda Todd.

Defence lawyers representing 44-year-old Aydin Coban have proposed a six-year prison term for the Dutch national.

He was extradited from Holland to face multiple charges related to the years-long cyberstalking and harassment of Todd, who died by suicide at the age of 15, shortly after posting a poignant video describing the extortion and abuse she had endured since the age of 12.

In submissions Wednesday, Coban's lawyers agreed Todd was harmed but told the court she was the only victim and Coban has no criminal record in Canada so the Crown request for a 12-year prison term is unwarranted.

Coban is currently serving an 11 year sentence in the Netherlands for 68 similar offences, some involving girls as young as nine.

Coban will be returned to the Netherlands shortly after the B.C. case ends and will complete any Canadian penalty in Holland, where a Dutch court will decide if it should be served concurrently with his 11-year sentence, or begin once the Dutch term concludes.
Kenya has the largest and most thriving furniture industry in East Africa, but the sectors potential is hindered by several challenges, among them production inefficiencies and quality concerns, forcing most major retailers to settle on imports.

MoKo Home + Living, a Kenya-based home furniture manufacturer and omnichannel retailer, saw this gap and over several years set out to bridge it through quality and guarantees. The company is now eyeing its next phase of growth, following a $6.5 million Series B debt-equity funding round, co-led by U.S.-based investment fund Talanton and Swiss investor AlphaMundi Group.

Novastar Ventures, which co-led the firms Series A round, and Blink CV also made follow-on investments. Kenyas Victoria Commercial Bank offered $2 million debt financing, as Talanton also extended $1 million mezzanine financing -- a debt that can be turned into equity.

We entered this market because we saw a real opportunity to guarantee and deliver quality furniture. We also wanted to bring convenience to customers, by making it easy for them to buy home furniture, the largest asset for most families in Kenya, Eric Kouskalis, MoKo's managing director, who co-founded the startup with Fiorenzo Conte, told TechCrunch.

MoKo was founded in 2014, initially as Watervale Investment Limited, an entity that sought to fix raw material supply issues for furniture manufacturers. However, in 2017 it pivoted and started a pilot for its first consumer product (a mattress), and then a year later launched the MoKo Home + Living brand to serve the mass market.

The startup says it has grown five-fold over the last three years, and its products are currently in more than 370,000 homes in Kenya. It hopes to sell to millions of homes over the next few years as it embarks on scaling up production and growing its product line. Among its current products is the popular MoKo mattress.

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We plan to have an offering for each major piece of furniture in a typical home -- bed frame, TV stand, coffee table, carpet. We are also developing even more affordable products in existing product categories -- sofas and mattresses, said Kouskalis.

Digital-first brand

MoKo is also planning to use the funding to grow its growth and presence in Kenya by tapping its online channels, building more partnerships with retailers and outlets to increase offline sales. It plans to also purchase more equipment.

Already, MoKo is using digital technology in its production lines, having invested in equipment that can take complex woodworking designs programmed by our engineers and execute them precisely in seconds. This, they say, has helped the team to work efficiently and increase production. The automated recycling technology and software that calculates optimal use of raw materials has also helped them cut waste.

We were impressed by MoKos climate-friendly local production capabilities. The company is a leading innovator in the industry because theyve turned sustainability into a remarkable commercial advantage. Every step theyve taken on this front not only protects the environment, it also improves the durability or affordability of MoKos offering to its customers, said Miriam Atuya of the AlphaMundi Group.

MoKo targets to enter three new markets by 2025 and to reach a wide pool of customers as furniture demand in the continent continues to grow, driven by population growth, urbanization and increasing purchasing power.

The potential for growth is what excites us the most. There's still so much room to better serve millions of families in Kenya. That's just the beginning -- MoKo's model is relevant for most markets in Africa, where families face similar obstacles in making comfortable, welcoming homes," said Kouskalis.
The majority of registered voters in Wisconsin are deeply concerned about crime in their state as Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., takes the lead in a fiery Senate matchup against Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes.

Johnson took the lead with 52% support in the Wisconsin Senate race over Barnes, who was the candidate of choice for 46% of respondents.

The poll reveals a stark contrast from an August poll from the university that found that Barnes was leading the race by seven percentage points, 52% to 45%. A Fox News poll conducted in late September showed Johnson with 48% support compared to Barnes' 44%.

A whopping 85% of registered voters in Wisconsin said they are either somewhat or very concerned about crime in their state. In Milwaukee, 90% of registered voters said they are worried about crime in their area.

DUELING WISCONSIN SENATE CANDIDATES WANT TO SUPPORT LAW ENFORCEMENT IN KEY MIDTERM STATE

The majority of Democrats, Republicans and independents in the state, a total of 75%, support more funding for law enforcement.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Barnes' 2020 interview with PBS Wisconsin recently resurfaced during which he said money could be taken from police departments to fund other community efforts.

"We need to invest more in neighborhood services and programming for our residents, for our communities on the front end. Where will that money come from? Well, it can come from over bloated budgets in police departments, you know?" Barnes said.

MANDELA BARNES SHRUGGED OFF REPORTS OF POLICE OFFICERS BEING FOLLOWED HOME

Barnes has since said he does support police funding.

As prices remain high, inflation ranked as the most concerning issue to voters in Wisconsin, with gun violence and schools tying as the second most important issues to respondents.

Among likely Democratic voters in the state, abortion policy was the issue of top concern, while inflation ranked as the most important issue to the majority of Republican respondents. Public schools was the issue of most concern to likely independent voters.

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According to the poll, 60% of registered voters in Wisconsin oppose the Supreme Court's decision in June to overturn Roe v. Wade and give power back to states to decide whether to place restrictions on abortion, while 33% agreed with the move.

A previous Marquette survey in September found that only 30% supported the SCOTUS decision, indicating that support for the Dobbs decision may have increased slightly.

Wisconsins gubernatorial race is virtually tied up with Gov. Tony Evers, D-Wis., leading Republican Tim Michels by one percentage point, 47% to 46%, within the poll's margin of error. The already close race has tightened over the last month after Evers lead by 3% in early September.

The poll concluded that President Biden has only a 42% job approval rating among registered voters in Wisconsin.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The Marquette University poll was conducted from Oct. 3-9 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.

Fox News' Sophia Slacik contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON  The two multidomain task forces the Army has in the Indo-Pacific region now shape major joint military exercises as the Army applies its multidomain operations doctrine to the real world.

Over the past six months, the 1st MDTF deployed 16 cells across 10 time zones to support five named joint or bilateral exercises, said Brig. Gen. Bernard Harrington, 1st MDTF commander. The cells are task-organized and can be as small as a three-soldier team and as large as a company or battery.

The 1st MDTF saw its first major use during the naval exercise Rim of the Pacific in 2018. Since then, theyve added capabilities, personnel and equipment to play a role in Orient Shield and Talisman Saber in 2019.

Early exercises put into practice what had previously been merely concepts, Harrington told an audience on Wednesday at the annual Association of the U.S. Army conference.

What that work has accomplished already is a way for the Army to establish its own interior lines, or forward presence, near China to push back against their protective anti-access/area denial bubble.

But theyre not doing that by massing tanks on warships along the coasts. Instead, theyre using a variety of measures  radios, radar, cyber and old-fashioned missiles  to highlight the reach of the Army and its partner forces.

Harrington noted that China has its advantages on its own turf. It has all its forces available and a deep magazine to fire offensively or in defense.

Its very hard to close that gap with mass and magazine depth, he said.

In the old days, Harrington added, a unit would work up to a partner exercise, conduct the exercise and go home and wait for the next exercise. But new practices make a persistent forward presence the norm.

That presence helps build those interior lines and extend them over time.

Newly appointed commander of the 3rd MDTF, formed in September, Col. David Zinn, made a clear distinction between the MDTFs now versus the early years of their inception.

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We are not an experimental formation, we are an operational formation, Zinn said.

Experimentation will still continue, as it did in Forager 2021, also a Pacific military exercise. That exercise saw the first synchronization of all assets  land, air, maritime, cyber, space and electronic warfare.

Then, at RIMPAC 2022 the task force fused the four things it must do to be successful  sink ships, shoot down missiles, neutralize satellites and jam an enemys command and control.

The force set its sights on a vessel off the coast of Hawaii during a joint ship sinking event.

Soldiers coordinated near simultaneous effects, using space assets, to shut down satellites. They used live electronic warfare attacks to jam communications. A cyber team isolated the vessels connection to headquarters. And then a long-range strike was launched, Harrington said.

And while they conducted that attack, a Mississippi Army National Guard unit ran air defense for the task force.

The Army has slated 1st and 3rd MDTFs for more than 15 exercises in eight countries with plans to add more than 1,400 personnel from 39 Army branches over the next year, Harrington added.

Those exercises include Project Convergence-Pacific, Northern Edge, Orient Shield, Yudh Abhyas, Tiger Balm, Balikatan and Talisman Sabre.

Also, next year, 3rd MDTF is expected to reach initial operational capability and the Army expects to field both its mid-range, 1,000 kilometer strike capability and a long-range hypersonic weapon in the region, Harrington said.
Multiple agencies responded to help put out a brush fire in Yelm on Wednesday, the Southeast Thurston Fire Authority announced.

The Washington State Department of Transportation tweeted about the fire around 12:15 p.m., as it had blocked State Route 507 in both directions at milepost 29 near Vancil Road just after noon.

WSDOT tweeted that the roadway had reopened at 6:14 p.m.

Crews with Southeast Thurston Fire, Lacey Fire, South Thurston Fire, Bald Hills Fire, Olympia Fire, Griffin Fire and South Bay Fire all assisted in the response.

Southeast Thurston Fire estimated that the fire had reached a size of 10 acres.

Cleared: Brush fire on SR 507 both directions at MP 29 near Vancil Rd.  WSDOT Tacoma (@wsdot_tacoma) October 13, 2022

More news from KIRO 7

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Fire caused damaged to a rural Shelby County post office, which will force mail service to move to Sidney, according to a spokesperson for the United States Postal Service.

>>PHOTOS: Fire damages Shelby County post office

The fire was called out around 1:30 p.m. at the post office in Pemberton, located on Palestine Street, about a half-mile north of state Route 706, dispatchers confirmed to News Center 7.

Several fire departments from across Shelby County were all called to the fire. The number of departments that did respond wasnt immediately known.

No injuries were initially reported.

>>Dayton police officer hospitalized after being stabbed; suspect in custody

The fire will force those who get mail, or send mail through this post office branch, to instead go the Sidney post office location, the spokesperson said.

There was a fire at the Pemberton Post Office today, and operations will be moved to the Sidney Post Office until further notice, the spokesperson said in a emailed statement to News Center 7.

PO Box customers can pick up their mail beginning tomorrow at the Sidney Post Office, 135 N Ohio Ave, Sidney, OH 45365. Hours of operations are Mon-Fri from 8:30 am until 5:00 pm and Saturday 9:00 am until noon.

Additional details were not available. Well continue to update this story as we learn more.

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)

Fire departments from across Shelby County battled a fire at this post office in Pemberton Thursday. (Contributed Photo)




The House Jan. 6 committee on Thursday shared evidence that showed close advisers to Donald Trump called for him to declare victory on Election Day 2020, even before votes had been fully counted, as part of a strategy to claim victory no matter what happened.

Trump ultimately did just that, saying in a nighttime speech at the White House after polls closed, Frankly, we did win this election.

That pronouncement, and Trumps call for his supporters to descend on Washington, D.C., ultimately led to the insurrection attempt on Jan. 6, 2021.

But days before the election, committee member Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) said, Trump advisers laid out the plan in writing and on tape.

One draft Election Day statement for Trump, which Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton sent to White House aides on Oct. 31, 2020, read: We had an election today  and I won.

The draft statement uses the term Election Day deadline, even though no such deadline exists, in an apparent attempt to lend credence to the effort not to count millions of ballots.

The ballots counted by the Election Day deadline show the American people have bestowed on me the great honor of reelection to President of the United States, the draft statement from Fitton read.

Fitton wrote again to White House aide Molly Michael after 5 p.m. on Election Day, claiming hed just talked to him about the draft below, an apparent reference to Trump.

The plan to simply declare victory before the actual election results were known was apparently circulating within the White House: Greg Jacob, Vice President Mike Pences chief counsel, testified that he heard from Marc Short, Pences chief of staff, that there was a possibility that there would be a declaration of victory within the WH that some had pushed for, and this was prior to the election results being known.

Campaign manager Bill Stepien said in a videotaped testimony played Thursday that it was far too early to be making any calls like that; ballots were still going to be counted for days.

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But Trump went the opposite direction, declaring on election night, with millions of votes still uncounted: We want all voting to stop.

Trump was apparently mulling the strategy as early as the previous summer. Brad Parscale, Trumps former campaign manager, told us he understood that President Trump planned as early as July that he would say he won the election even if he lost, Lofgren said.

Others in Trumps circle outlined the plan on tape ahead of Election Day, according to the committee.

What Trumps going to do is just declare victory, Bannon said on Oct. 31, 2020, according to an audio record obtained by the committee. If Trump is losing by 10 or 11 oclock at night, its going to be even crazier, because hes going to sit right there and say, they stole it.

If Bidens winning, Trump is going to do some crazy shit, he added.

Roger Stone  who, like Bannon, received a Trump pardon in the weeks after Election Day  said on Nov. 1, 2020, I really do suspect itll still be up in the air. When that happens, the key thing to do is to claim victory. Possession is nine-tenths of the law. No, we won, sorry, fuck you.

The committee obtained footage of Stones comments from the Danish filmmaker Christoffer Guldbrandsen, Lofgren said.

Even weeks later, after Trumps legal efforts to challenge the election results had failed, he was dead set on declaring victory.

When several Republican attorneys general failed to convince the Supreme Court to take one last coordinated lawsuit to overturn the results, Trump was furious, former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson said in a videotaped testimony played at the hearing.

The president was fired up about the Supreme Court decision, she said, recalling a conversation between Trump and his then-chief of staff Mark Meadows. The president was just raging about the decision, about how its wrong and why didnt we make more calls?

Then, Trump showed his hand, Hutchinson recalled.

He had said something to the effect of, I dont want people to know we lost, Mark. This is embarrassing.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

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SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  North Korea fired a ballistic missile and hundreds of artillery shells toward the sea Friday and flew warplanes near the tense border with South Korea, further raising animosities triggered by the Norths recent barrage of weapons tests.

The North Korean moves suggest it is reviving an old playbook of stoking fears of war with provocative weapons tests before it seeks to win greater concessions from its rivals.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement the short-range missile lifted off from the Norths capital region at 1:49 a.m. Friday (1649 GMT Thursday; 12:49 p.m. EDT Thursday) and flew toward its eastern waters.

It was North Koreas 15th missile launch since it resumed testing activities Sept. 25. North Korea said Monday its recent missile tests were simulations of nuclear strikes on South Korean and U.S. targets in response to their dangerous military exercises involving a U.S. aircraft carrier.

Soon after the latest missile test, North Korea fired 130 rounds of shells off its west coast and 40 rounds off its east coast. The shells fell inside maritime buffer zones the two Koreas established under a 2018 inter-Korean agreement on reducing tensions, South Koreas military said.

On Friday afternoon, South Koreas military said North Korea fired 90 additional shells off its east coast. It said it also spotted about 300 other North Korean artillery launches from two separate western coastal areas. In both cases, the North Korean shells were believed to have landed in the buffer zones again, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Observers said it was North Koreas third and most direct violation of the 2018 agreement, which created buffer zones and no-fly areas along their land and sea boundaries to prevent accidental clashes. South Koreas Defense Ministry said it earlier sent North Korea a message asking it not to violate the agreement again.

North Korea separately flew warplanes, presumably 10 aircraft, near the rivals border late Thursday and early Friday, prompting South Korea to scramble fighter jets. There were no reports of clashes between the two countries. It was reportedly the first time that North Korean military aircraft have flown that close to the border since 2017.

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South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said North Koreas provocations are becoming indiscriminative but that his country has massive retaliation capabilities that can deter actual North Korean assaults to some extent.

The decision to attack cant be made without a willingness to risk a brutal outcome, Yoon told reporters. The massive punishment and retaliation strategy, which is the final step of our three-axis strategy, would be a considerable psychological and social deterrence (for the North).

South Koreas Foreign Ministry said Friday it imposed sanctions on 15 North Korean individuals and 16 organizations suspected of involvement in illicit activities to finance North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs. They were Seouls first unilateral sanctions on North Korea in five years, but observers say they are largely a symbolic step because the two Koreas have little financial dealings between them.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters he supports South Koreas decision to impose the sanctions.

Most of the Norths recent weapons tests were ballistic missile launches that are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions. But the North hasnt been slapped with fresh sanctions thanks to a divide at the U.N. over U.S. disputes with Russia regarding its invasion of Ukraine and with China over their strategic competition.

The missile launched Friday traveled 650-700 kilometers (403-434 miles) at a maximum altitude of 50 kilometers (30 miles) before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, according to South Korean and Japanese assessments.

Whatever the intentions are, North Koreas repeated ballistic missile launches are absolutely impermissible and we cannot overlook its substantial advancement of missile technology, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that the U.S. commitment to the defense of South Korea and Japan remains ironclad.

Other recent North Korean tests included a new intermediate-range missile that flew over Japan and demonstrated a potential range to reach the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam; long-range cruise missiles; and a ballistic missile fired from an inland reservoir, a first for the country.

After Wednesdays cruise missile launches, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his nuclear forces were fully prepared for actual war to bring enemies under their control at a blow and vowed to expand the operational realm of his nuclear armed forces, according to North Koreas state media.

Some observers had predicted North Korea would likely temporarily pause its testing activities this week in consideration of its ally China, which is set to begin a major political conference Sunday that is expected to give President Xi Jinping a third five-year term as party leader.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular briefing Friday that all related countries should work to prevent tensions from escalating and move toward restarting meaningful talks.

North Koreas ongoing testing spree is reminiscent of its 2017 torrid run of missile and nuclear tests that prompted Kim and then-U.S. President Donald Trump to exchange threats of total destruction. Kim later abruptly entered high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Trump in 2018 but their negotiations fell apart a year later due to wrangling over how much sanctions relief Kim should be provided in return for a partial surrender of his nuclear capability.

Kim has repeatedly said he has no intentions of resuming nuclear diplomacy. But some experts say he would eventually want to win international recognition of his country as a nuclear state and hold arms control talks with the United State to wrest extensive sanctions relief and other concessions in return for partial denuclearization steps.

The urgency of North Koreas nuclear program has grown since it passed a law last month authorizing the preemptive use of nuclear weapons over a broad range of scenarios, including non-war situations when it may perceive its leadership as under threat.

Most of the recent North Korean tests were of short-range nuclear-capable missiles targeting South Korea. Some analysts say North Koreas possible upcoming nuclear test, its first bomb detonation in five years, would be related to efforts to manufacture battlefield tactical warheads to be placed on such short-range missiles.

These developments sparked security jitters in South Korea, with some politicians and scholars renewing their calls for the U.S. to redeploy its tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea as deterrence against intensifying North Korean nuclear threats.

North Koreas military early Friday said it took unspecified strong military countermeasures in response to South Koreas artillery fire for about 10 hours near the border on Thursday. South Koreas military later confirmed it conducted artillery training at a frontline area but said its drills didnt violate the conditions of the 2018 agreement.

Maj. Gen. Kang Ho Pil of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a televised statement that South Korea issued a stern warning to (North Korea) to immediately halt its weapons tests.

South Koreas military said it will begin an annual 12-day field training Monday to hone its operational capabilities under various scenarios of North Korean provocations. It said an unspecified number of U.S. troops plan to take part in this years drills.

___

Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and video producer Liu Zheng in Beijing contributed to this report.
NASA has suggested an experimental cooling system it is funding could ultimately allow electric vehicle users to charge their cars within five minutes.

The agency said a team led by a Purdue University professor has developed the subcooled flow boiling technology for experimentation, with the hope it can control future systems temperatures in space.

A team sponsored by NASAs Biological and Physical Sciences Division is developing a new technology that will not only achieve orders-of-magnitude improvement in heat transfer to enable these systems to maintain proper temperatures in space, but will also enable significant reductions in size and weight of the hardware, NASA said in a blog post last week.

Whats more, this same technology may make owning an electric-powered car here on Earth easier and more feasible, the post continued.

NASA indicated achieving such a feat of charging electric vehicles within five minutes would require chargers to provide current at 1,400 amperes, far higher than currently available technology.

Most chargers currently available support currents less than 150 amperes, while some of the most advanced chargers on the market deliver currents up to 520 amperes, the post noted.

But NASA said Purdue Universitys developmental cable can provide currents of up to 2,400 amperes by removing heat through the new technology, which would deliver charging at 4.6 times the rate of the fastest charger currently available.

Application of this new technology resulted in unprecedented reduction of the time required to charge a vehicle and may remove one of the key barriers to worldwide adoption of electric vehicles, NASA wrote.

President Biden has emphasized a shift to electric vehicles as a significant component of his climate initiatives, but the proposals have been met with criticism among some in the GOP, who have portrayed the plans as elitist and boons for the rich.

Questions have also been raised about whether the U.S. electrical grid could even handle a hard shift toward electric vehicles.

Story continues

The Inflation Reduction Act, a party-line reconciliation package passed over the summer, includes billions in funding for electric vehicle tax credits and other financial incentives.

It also includes a $7.5 billion investment to build a network of charging stations across the U.S.

The great American road trip is going to be fully electrified, Biden said in Detroit last month. Whether youre driving coast to coast along I-10 or on I-75 here in Michigan, charging stations will be up and easy to find as gas stations are now.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.


The presence of even a few humans in national parks can have significant impacts on the behavior of the wildlife that live there, a new study has found.

People might already expect that animals would change their routines to avoid humans at popular parks like Yosemite and Yellowstone  which can see more than a million visitors each year, the study authors surmised.

But they found that even in remote, rarely visited parks, these rules apply.

Almost any level of human activity in a protected area can alter the behavior of animals who inhabit the territory, according to the study, published on Thursday in People and Nature.

Theres been increasing recognition of how much just the presence of humans in these places, and our recreating there, can impact wildlife, senior author Laura Prugh, an associate professor at the University of Washingtons School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, said in a statement.

These results are striking in showing that really any level of human activity can have an effect on wildlife, Prugh added.

The researchers focused their attention on Glacier Bay National Park, a coastal region in southeast Alaska accessible by only plane or boat. While visitors arrive on cruise ships, the boats dont dock on shore, the scientists explained.

Because so few people visit the park each year  only about 40,000, although the number is rising  this location was an ideal testbed for the study, according to Prugh.

Glacier Bay is a great park to explore what the lower limits are where humans start to affect wildlife behavior, Prugh added.

With that goal in mind, the researchers said they worked with the national parks staff members to design and execute an experiment that compared wildlife activity in areas often frequented by humans to those in which people were absent.

To evaluate these differences, they installed 40 motion-activated cameras across 10 sites and captured the detection of people and four animal species  wolves, black bears, brown bears and moose  over two summers.

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The researchers controlled where and when people could access certain parts of Glacier Bay and then measured wildlife responses, leading them to identify two key thresholds.

The first such measure showed that if humans were present in an area, the cameras spotted fewer than five animals per week across all species studied.

The second, meanwhile, indicated that in backcountry areas, wildlife detections dropped to zero when outdoor recreation levels reach about 40 visitors weekly.

Of all four animal species studied, wolves were most likely to disappear from cameras when people were present, while brown bears were least affected, according to the study.

Moose, on the other hand, were more active in the presence of people, the authors found. The researchers hypothesized that the moose might be aligning their active hours with human traffic with hopes of using the visitors as shields from predators.

It was eye-opening to see the number of wildlife sightings we are missing just by recreating in backcountry areas of Glacier Bay, lead author Mira Sytsma, who completed the study as a University of Washington graduate student, said in a statement.

So many people visit national parks for the chance to view wildlife, and that desire alone may reduce the chance of it happening, Sytsma added.

Going forward, the authors said they hope that their study can help park officials weigh different management approaches. For example, they explained, managers could consider concentrating trails and human use in certain parts of a park or place restrictions on the times of year people can visit.

If youre going to go above zero human activity and its going to have an impact, you might as well go way above zero in some areas and then have other areas where you have almost no human activity, Prugh said.

In those areas, then, wildlife can live their natural lives unaffected by people, she added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Olivia Bromley, Mark Charnock, Natalie Ann Jamieson and Paige Sandhu of Emmerdale

King Charles III praised Emmerdale's contribution as the soap won big at the National Television Awards (NTAs) on the eve of its 50th anniversary.

Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby kept their titles as king and queen of daytime telly, too, in the wake of their "queue-gate" controversy.

And money saving expert Martin Lewis criticised the government's handling of the economy during his winner's speech.

Elsewhere, Ant and Dec won their 21st straight best presenter trophy.

The pair missed the ceremony, though, after both catching Covid.

This year's NTAs, voted for by the public, took place at London's Wembley Arena, a month later than planned due to the death of the Queen.

In a video recorded before his mother's death, the King congratulated Emmerdale on having nearly made its half century and recalled "being so old" he could remember it originally being called Emmerdale Farm.

The new monarch described the show as an "amazing British export" that had kept true to its creator's original vision - "depicting what life is really like for those who work the land and protect our precious countryside".

"It also stresses brilliantly something that concerns me greatly: the long-term sustainability of the way we produce our food."

King Charles III gave Emmerdale his Royal approval for helping to "protect our precious countryside"

After the speech, it was announced that Mark Charnock, who stars as Marlon Dingle, had won the serial drama performance award.

Charnock, whose character suffered a stroke, later told the BBC's Daniel Rosney it had been "overwhelming" to see so many people share their similar experiences, following the powerful plotline.

Boy George presented the Yorkshire soap with the big final award of the night for best serial drama, quipping: "I've been upstaged in my life by a few queens but never by a King."

Segments of the show marked both the Queen's death - with many stars opting for black outfits on the night - and the war in Ukraine.

This Morning presenters Willoughby and Schofield were recently backed by ITV bosses after they were accused of jumping the queue for the Queen's lying-in-state.

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Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield celebrated their win after a tricky few weeks

Accepting the award for best daytime show for a second year, Schofield said: "Don't think we ever get complacent and please don't think we ever take this for granted.

"This means so much to us every year, especially this year.

"We have the most amazing team, I have the best friend," he added, in Willoughby's direction. "We have the best boss."

While some boos were heard around the arena, they soon died down once the famous pair were up on stage alongside their team.

"Thank you so much, this award means everything because it is voted by you, and I think This Morning has a very special relationship with you," Willoughby added. "You make our show for us, you really do."

Ukrainian broadcaster Timur Miroshnychenko thanked the UK for its continued support and said his country is "looking forward" to Eurovision 2023, which is being hosted in Liverpool because the 2022 winners are currently unable to host such an event.

'Get a grip'

The UK's Eurovision star Sam Ryder got the night going with an energetic performance of his track Space Man, before a casually dressed Lewis Capaldi sang his new single, Forget Me.

But in between all that, things got political when consumer champion Martin Lewis won a new category for best expert.

Referencing the cost-of-living crisis, Lewis, who expressed surprised at having beaten Sir David Attenborough to the award, noted it "has been a pretty horrible year, financially".

Money expert Martin Lewis called for change while accepting his award

"I mean, the energy crisis has been disastrous and left many people with terrible issues and mental health problems," he said.

"I'm afraid the next year, with the mortgage problem and the knock-on to rent, is going to be pretty bad.

"And you know what?" Lewis added. "We need somebody to get a grip on the economy and put things a little bit back."

Soon after the ceremony, BBC News reported that chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng had cut short his visit to the US for urgent talks in Downing Street, as pressure mounts on Prime Minister Liz Truss to U-turn over the mini-budget.

The winners in full:

Authored documentary - Kate Garraway: Caring for Derek

New drama - Trigger Point

Returning drama - Peaky Blinders

Drama performance - Cillian Murphy - Peaky Blinders

Serial drama - Emmerdale

Serial drama performance - Mark Charnock - Emmerdale

Rising star - Paddy Bever - Coronation Street

TV presenter - Ant & Dec

The Bruce Forsyth entertainment award - I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!

Talent show - Strictly Come Dancing

Talent show judge - Anton Du Beke - Strictly Come Dancing

Quiz game show - Beat the Chasers

Factual entertainment - Gogglebox

Expert - Martin Lewis - The Martin Lewis Money Show Live

Comedy - After Life

Daytime - This Morning

Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly beat the likes of Alison Hammond to bag their 21st consecutive presenting award, meaning the last time they didn't win it was in 2000, to Michael Barrymore.

The winner of the rising star award on Thursday night, Coronation Street's Paddy Bever, who plays Max Turner, wasn't even born then.

Stephen Mulhern accepted the award on their behalf, saying: "Full respect to these guys, 21 years on the trot!"

He then jokingly added his own name to the trophy, declaring: "This baby is coming home with me."

The award for best authored documentary went to Kate Garraway for a second year, as she continued to chronicle her family's life as her husband Derek Draper gets treated for coronavirus.

Kate Garraway brought her daughter Darcey up to help accept her award

Flanked by her daughter Darcey, she thanked the film-makers for "making a very difficult thing easier" and dedicated the win to the nation's carers.

"We have a care crisis in our country but we don't have a crisis of love," declared Garraway, while confirming her husband was now back in hospital.

The special recognition award went to a slightly tearful Sir Lenny Henry, after the comedian, actor and Comic Relief fundraiser was praised by stars in a video for having paved the way for other black British artists.

"These awards are so long David Beckham is still queuing to get in", he smiled, with his own nod to the royals.

Other winners on the night included After Life, Peaky Blinders/Cillian Murphy and Strictly Come Dancing.

Strictly champion Rose Ayling-Ellis, who wowed the nation last year with a dance dedicated to the experience of deaf people everywhere, said the show had helped to "change people's perceptions", as it won the talent show prize.

Follow us on Facebook, or on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Ontario's police watchdog says officers who died responding to a call at an Innisfil, Ont., home on Tuesday did not draw their firearms before they were fatally shot.

A spokeswoman for the Special Investigations Unit says a third officer who was also at the home exchanged gunfire with the 23-year-old man, who also died.

The third officer was not injured.

An autopsy for the young man identified as Chris Doncaster by a source close to the investigation -- who was not authorized to speak publicly -- is scheduled for Friday.

The Department of National Defence confirmed that a man named Christopher Joseph Doncaster was a Canadian Armed Forces member from May to December 2020.

The Defence Department says Doncaster was a private who was never deployed and did not complete basic training.

The South Simcoe Police Service has identified the officers who died as Const. Devon Northrup, 33, and Const. Morgan Russell, 54.

The SIU said the police officers were responding to a call from a family member about a disturbance at a home.

There was an exchange of gunfire, the Special Investigations Unit said, and the officers later died in hospital. The 23-year-old man died in the home.

The SIU has said the gun the young man used was an SKS semi-automatic rifle.

Residents who live in the area have expressed shock at what happened. Some said an elderly couple who had an adult grandson lived in the house where the shooting took place.

South Simcoe police said words cannot describe the grief the force is experiencing.

Northrup, a six-year member of the South Simcoe Police Service, worked with the community mobilization and engagement unit, and also served as a member of the mental health crisis outreach team and the emergency response unit. He is survived by his partner and parents, police said.

Russell, a father of two, was a 33-year veteran of the force. He was a trained crisis negotiator and was assigned to uniform patrol, the police service said.
BRUSSELS (AP)  Russian President Vladimir Putin would be crossing a very important line if he were to order the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned Thursday, with the military alliance and Russia both due to hold nuclear exercises in coming days.

NATO is holding its exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon, next week. The long-planned maneuvers are conducted around the same time every year and run for about one week. They involve fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but do not involve any live bombs.

Russia usually holds its own maneuvers around the same time, and NATO is expecting Moscow's exercise of its nuclear forces sometime this month. Stoltenberg said NATO will closely monitor what Russia is up to.

Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed.

He added that even any use of a smaller nuclear weapon will be a very serious thing, fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine, and of course that would have consequences.

Stoltenberg's remarks came after a meeting of NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group, which was held among defense ministers in Brussels, as concerns deepen over Putins insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

The meeting, which usually happens once or twice a year, comes against a backdrop of high tension as some NATO allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russias movements in its war with Ukraine, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture. Putin's nuclear exercises though could make it more difficult for NATO to understand what Russia's intentions might be, potentially increasing the risk of an accident.

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Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise, U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters Wednesday. But what we dont want is to do things out of routine.

This is a routine exercise and its all about readiness, Wallace said, just as NATOs meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance  to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in "Steadfast Noon," which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 1,000 kilometers (625 miles) from Russia.

NATO as an organization doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries  the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

With the Russian army retreating in some places when faced with Ukrainian forces armed with Western weapons, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and declaring a partial mobilization to buttress the crumbling front line.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signaled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains. The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television, French President Emmanuel Macron suggested that France would not respond with a nuclear strike. and warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric. He said he has spoken to Putin several times.

We have a (nuclear) doctrine, which is clear, Macron said. The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.

Too many people are talking about it, he said.

___

Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.

___

Follow the APs coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO will monitor an expected upcoming Russian nuclear exercise very closely, the alliance's chief said on Thursday, in particular in light of Moscow's latest nuclear threats related to its conflict in Ukraine.

"We have monitored Russian nuclear forces for decades and of course we will continue to monitor them very closely and we will stay vigilant - also when they now start a new exercise," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters.

"What I can say is that this exercise, the Russian exercise, is an annual exercise. It's an exercise where they test and exercise their nuclear forces," he added, apparently referring to Russia's annual Grom exercise that normally takes place in late October and in which Russia tests its nuclear-capable bombers, submarines and missiles.

"We will monitor that as we always do. And of course we will remain vigilant, not least in light of the veiled nuclear threats and the dangerous rhetoric we have seen from the Russian side," Stoltenberg said.

(Reporting by John Chalmers, Sabine Siebold, Phil Stewart and Philip Blenkinsop)
BRUSSELS  The U.S. and its NATO allies are racing to assemble air defense shields both for Ukraine and for Europe as a whole, facing down complex issues from timing to getting systems to work together, as bombs rain down on civilians in Kyiv.

The renewed Russian cruise missile campaign on Ukrainian infrastructure and civilian targets came as NATO leaders gathered in Brussels this week, and as images of bloodied civilians poured out of Ukraine.

The response from NATO allies was swift. Germany announced the first delivery of a new air defense system, and France and Spain pledged new donations to knock Russian missiles and new Iranian-made suicide drones out of the sky.

At the same time, 14 members of the alliance  plus Finland  announced an ambitious effort on Thursday to build a new, interlinked missile defense system that spreads across the continent, something officials said was critical after seeing the violence Russia has loosed on Ukrainian cities.



This commitment is even more crucial today, as we witness the ruthless and indiscriminate missile attacks by Russia in Ukraine, killing civilians and destroying critical infrastructure, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana said after the announcement.

Dubbed the European Sky Shield Initiative, member nations are tasked with buying state-of-the-art missile defense systems and networking them to other nations systems to give the alliance a complete picture of Russian threats emanating from the sky.

In announcing the plan, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht noted existing gaps in European air defense. We need to fill these gaps quickly, we are living in threatening, dangerous times, she said.

The U.S. does not currently have a significant role in Sky Shield, but it does already operate two Aegis Ashore ballistic missile sites in Romania and Poland, which are focused on the potential threat of Iranian ballistic missiles.

Details are thin, but the complexity of the effort is clear. Probably the most important task is how to link all those systems together, Latvian State Secretary Janis Garisons told POLITICO after signing the agreement. It will take time and effort to build a joint picture to make sure it is interoperable, and that might be the big challenge.

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Kajsa Ollongren, defense minister for the Netherlands, told reporters that the importance of what we did this morning was saying we know that we need to do more, and we want industry also to do more and to be in front of the development of air defense systems. And we also realize we shouldn't do it country by country, so were joining our forces.

Any functioning network will almost certainly take years to develop and deploy, as sophisticated air defense systems are both expensive and slow to build. Advanced networking systems and coming up with rules for data and information sharing will be another hurdle for nations that have at times been hesitant to share such sensitive information.

Combining this effort with the push to immediately donate more NATO-caliber weaponry will also likely force countries to make tough choices about where they put their money. But the destruction Russia is visiting on Ukrainian civilians has shifted European thinking, showing the continent what industrial-scale war looks like for the first time since World War II.

The Kremlins recent appointment of Gen. Sergei Surovikin to lead the war effort has also been noted. His nickname is General Armageddon and he certainly earned it in the air campaign in Syria, a NATO official told reporters on the sidelines of the meetings Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity due to ground rules in effect.

The new air defense systems being rushed to Ukraine are a signal to Putin that the only thing he achieves by doing these attacks on civilian infrastructure and on completely innocent citizens is that we are stepping up our efforts to help Ukraine, Ollongren said. And for Ukraine, if air defenses are what they need, air defenses are what they are going to get.

NATO officials this week said they were absorbing lessons from the war, and theyre hurriedly taking stock of how much ammunition is left in European depots after months of funneling artillery, anti-armor rockets and ammunition to Ukraine. One of the lessons is how many artillery rounds Ukraine is firing, and the effect it has on Russian units and equipment, a data point critical in planning overall defense spending.

In Ukraine, where Russian forces have already expended most of their precision-guided cruise missiles, the threat to civilians grows with each unguided missile launch from ships in the Black Sea and bombers flying inside Russian airspace.

The Russian barrages against civilians will continue, the senior NATO official said, adding that the introduction of the Iranian-made Mohajer-6 and Shahed drones put stress on Ukrainian air defenses. Theyre just harder to detect and you dont want to waste [high end] defensive systems on cheap targets with limited destructive capability.

The German defense chief Lambrecht got into some specifics for what she thinks the European air defense program should consider. "We will work speedily on the first joint projects, the joint purchase of Patriot units is one of them as well as of the modern system IRIS-T," a system Germany recently started supplying to Ukraine. The first of four IRIS-T units has already arrived in Ukraine.

The Patriot and IRIS-T would be effective against lower- or medium-level missiles. She also mentioned the Israeli-produced Arrow 3 for higher-flying missiles.

"No decision has been taken yet, but I think [Arrow 3] would be the right system  for the challenge in Europe," she added.
By Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Netflix Inc said on Thursday it will introduce a streaming plan with advertising for roughly $7 per month in November, a move to attract new subscribers after the company lost customers in the first half of the year.

The $6.99 cost for the "Basic with Ads" plan is $3 less than Netflix's lowest-priced tier without commercials. The new option will roll out in 12 countries including the United States, Brazil, Germany, Japan and Korea, over 10 days.

Subscribers to the plan will see roughly four to five minutes of advertising per hour, Netflix said. Newly released films will have limited advertising to preserve the cinematic experience.

About 5% to 10% of Netflix's programming will not be available on the ad-supported alternative because of licensing restrictions, Netflix Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters told reporters.

Shares of Netflix were up 5.4% at $232.86 in late afternoon trading. The company's stock had fallen 62% this year before Thursday's announcement.

Netflix executives had adamantly opposed adding commercials to their service for years. They announced a change of heart in April when the company stunned Wall Street by shedding subscribers in the first quarter and predicting additional defections.

"We at Netflix have a huge opportunity ahead to grow our unit and to attract more subscribers. And part of that is having a wide range of pricing plans," Peters said on Thursday.

Peters declined to estimate how many customers would sign up for the ad-supported plan or how much additional revenue Netflix might generate. The company will provide forecasts for the fourth quarter when it releases earnings on Tuesday.

Cowen & Co analyst John Blackledge, in a research note, said the addition of advertising offered a "significant opportunity to unlock member growth" among price-sensitive audiences.

He pointed to a Wall Street Journal report that Netflix had set a goal of 13.3 million ad-supported viewers in the United States by the third quarter of 2023.

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Other streaming services including Walt Disney Co's Hulu and Disney+ and Warner Bros Discovery's HBO Max already have, or plan to offer, ad-supported options that cost less. Those services charge between $8 and $10 per month for plans with commercials.

Netflix, known for hits such as "Stranger Things" and "Squid Game," reported 220.7 million paying subscribers as of June, down nearly 1.2 million from the start of the year. The company projected it would add 1 million customers in the third quarter.

The ad-supported plan from Netflix will debut in Canada and Mexico on Nov. 1, and in the United States, Brazil, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, Australia, Korea and Japan on Nov 3.

Spain will follow a week later on Nov. 10.

"They're very well positioned, because they're a premium brand and marketers are extremely interested in being aligned with quality content," said Greg Kahn, a former ad industry executive who now runs a media advisory firm.

Kahn predicted the new ad-supported service would likely cause some price-sensitive subscribers to opt for the cheaper tier, but added, "There's much more potential in gaining revenue and gaining a new subscriber base."

Jeremi Gorman, Netflixs president of worldwide advertising, said Netflix nearly sold out its ad inventory for the launch of the new tier, attracting interest from automakers, consumer packaged goods companies and luxury brands.

Advertisers can target viewers by country or genre, or run commercials on the services top 10 shows. Brands also can exclude ads from content featuring graphic violence, sex or nudity, Gorman said. Netflix also is introducing third-party verification to confirm ad impressions and traffic. Ratings agency Nielsen will also provide audience measurement, starting next year.

(Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski in Los AngelesEditing by Matthew Lewis)
Netflix. SOPA Images/Getty Images.

Netflix announced it will launch its ad-supported plan in the US on November 3.

It will cost $6.99 per month and cap viewing resolution to 720p.

It will also be missing some content, though, due to licensing agreements.

You'll soon be able to pay for a cheaper Netflix plan  if you want ads, that is.

The streamer announced on Thursday that it will launch its ad-supported plan, called Basic with Ads, in the US on November 3. It will cost $6.99 per month. It's launching in the UK on November 3 and in Canada on November 1.

Netflix's current ad-free basic plan costs $9.99 per month; its standard plan, which is its most popular, costs $15.49; and its premium Ultra HD plan costs $19.99.

The ad-supported plan will include 720P viewing, as will the ad-free basic plan come November. Netflix said subscribers to the ad plan can expect four to five minutes of ads per hour. They'll play before and during shows and movies.

But it doesn't come with everything you can get with the more expensive plans.

Some content will be missing from the ad-supported plan due to licensing agreements with other companies, which Netflix said it's "working on."

You won't be able to download titles.

Netflix had always pushed back against introducing an ad-supported plan until recently, as it tries to respond to slowing growth. The streaming giant lost subscribers for the first two quarters of the year, the first time in its history.

It reports Q3 results on Tuesday. In its last earnings report, Netflix was bullish that it would add 1 million subscribers in the third quarter.

Read the original article on Business Insider
(Bloomberg) -- The Netherlands would only support as a last resort members of the European Union unilaterally implementing a minimum tax on multinationals, as this risks creating divergences in the bloc.

The Hague would only back this option if we would come to the worst and that is the only alternative, as a last resort, Marnix van Rij, state secretary for tax affairs, told Bloomberg during a visit to Brussels. We have the EU to avoid unilateral measures like this because you are running the risk of countries making changes.

The OECD-led deal to impose a 15% minimum tax on large multinationals, the so-called Pillar 2 of the accord, remains stuck in the EU because of opposition from Hungary. Taxation proposals usually require unanimous backing.

The European Commission -- the EUs executive arm -- and member states are exploring ways to overcome the stalemate, including having a group of willing capitals move ahead on their own with implementing the measure. Another option would be to approve the proposal by qualified majority, as has been the case in other tax-related dossiers such as the carbon border adjustment mechanism, Van Rij said.

Meanwhile, technical work to conclude the Pillar 1 of the OECD deal to allow for taxing profits of some multinationals including tech giants has been progressing at a slow pace at international level, and the proposal could be further derailed following the results of US mid-term elections.

I am a little bit more cautious with Pillar 1, Van Rij said, although we hope that a final agreement would be made at a technical level. Still, he said that the commission should start preparing a backup plan preferably in the first half of next year to implement a digital tax in the EU in case the international track fails to achieve results.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

2022 Bloomberg L.P.
The two candidates in one of the countrys most competitive Senate races have no plans to debate before Election Day, making the contest an anomaly among battleground states this year.

With less than four weeks until the Nov. 8 election, neither Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto nor her Republican challenger, Adam Laxalt, have given any sign of breaking a stalemate over whether they would meet face to face on stage.

Asked whether her campaign expected her to debate Laxalt, a spokesman for Cortez Masto said Wednesday: We do not, unfortunately.

Each campaign claimed it was the other sides fault.

The senator was eager to debate and accepted three statewide debates that, unfortunately, her opponent decided he would not participate in, Cortez Mastos spokesman Josh Marcus Blank said.

In a recent statement, Laxalt said his opponent was to blame.

I have accepted televised, statewide debate offers with two respected, neutral Nevada media outlets: Sinclair Broadcast Group, which runs the Las Vegas and Reno NBC Stations, and Nevada Newsmakers, Laxalt said. We hope that Catherine Cortez Masto will stop hiding and agree to at least one of them.

With a series of recent polls showing the candidates locked in a dead heat, neither can afford to make a gaffe on the debate stage that could turn off just a small fraction of the electorate. Cortez Masto is considered the most vulnerable incumbent among Senate Democrats seeking re-election.

The outcome of the Nevada race could determine the balance of power in the Senate for the next two years, making it all the more unusual that voters are unlikely to see the two candidates face off in public.

Arizona Senate candidates met last week, while Georgia Senate hopefuls square off Friday. In Wisconsin, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson and Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes will meet this week for their second debate. Senate candidates in Ohio and North Carolina have already debated, while debates are scheduled for the candidates in Florida, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

In June, Cortez Masto committed to three debates, one of which was to be broadcast on Spanish-language TV. The campaign said all three debates have officially been canceled.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Sir Nick Clegg has been accused by a group of adult entertainers of accepting bribes from OnlyFans - PATRICK T. FALLON /AFP via Getty Images

Sir Nick Clegg has been accused by a group of adult entertainers of accepting bribes from a pornography site, in bitterly contested court filings in San Francisco.

The bizarre legal action claims that Sir Nick and two other Meta executives received bribes to help adult content platform OnlyFans outperform its rivals by having them blacklisted online.

The former deputy prime minister, who is now Metas president of global affairs, was named in US court filings as having accepted money from the parent company of OnlyFans - an allegation both Meta and OnlyFans deny.

Sir Nicks name, and those of Nicola Mendelsohn, vice president of Metas global business team and European safety director Cristian Perrella were supposed to be blocked out of the court filings, but were inadvertently unredacted by lawyers from Fenix International, which owns OnlyFans.

All three were accused of being paid money into trust fund accounts in the Philippines - a suggestion which Meta and OnlyFans strongly deny.

The case centres around the subscription-based platform - where people pay a monthly fee to gain access to intimate photographs, videos and live streams of their chosen adult performers.

In order to promote their explicit content, many performers promote their page on other social media sites, even providing links.

Sir Nick Clegg joined Facebook in October 2018 as its head of global affairs - PATRICK T. FALLON /AFP via Getty Images

The legal action claims that performers promoting rival websites to OnlyFans had their social media flagged and placed on a database of extremist material shared between technology companies. As such, they claim to have been blacklisted, while OnlyFans has grown.

The lawsuit, brought by three adult entertainers - Dawn Dangaard, Kelly Gilbert, and Jennifer Allbaugh - was filed specifically against Meta and its subsidiaries Facebook and Instagram, OnlyFans parent company Fenix International and OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky.

Another company, Fenix Internet, is also named and is alleged by the plaintiffs to have served as an intermediary for the bribes.

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OnlyFans: Claims are 'meritless'

A judge dismissed the original complaint saying it suffered from vagueness and gave them two weeks to file an amended version. The latest filings, in which the names of the Meta executives were mistakenly left unredacted, were first reported by technology site Gizmodo.

OnlyFans has called the claims meritless while a spokesperson for Meta said: Plaintiffs haven't identified a shred of evidence, and these allegations have been previously dismissed in federal court. Reporting out these claims that lack any evidence is irresponsible."

Both companies have filed motions to have the case dismissed and it is still short of meeting the federal pleading requirements.

In Fenix Internationals motion to dismiss, they say: The first amended complaint alleged a global conspiracy wherein the Fenix defendants - owners and operators of OnlyFans.com - allegedly conspired with individuals from Meta to shadow ban tens of thousands of adult performers who were affiliated with websites that competed with OnlyFans.

But the first amended complaint contained virtually no factual allegations to support this alleged conspiracy.

Meta argues claimants have 'no facts to support story'

Meta argues that the Plaintiffs still have no facts that plausibly support their story that OnlyFans paid Meta employees to place plaintiffs on internal terrorist lists.

They added in their motion to dismiss: The Court directed plaintiffs to come forward with their best case. Plaintiffs filed a second amended complaint, but it only confirms that plaintiffs best case is no case at all.

Sir Nick joined Facebook in October 2018 as its head of global affairs. The company has since morphed into Meta, which includes Instagram and WhatsApp.

He is said to earn 2.7 million a year and was awarded shares worth 9.4 million as a bonus alongside his promotion earlier this year as he was elevated to the ranks of Metas top brass alongside chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and put in charge of the social media giants thorniest policy decisions.

Sir Nick has led Meta's response to the crisis in Ukraine, including blocking Russian state broadcasters RT and Sputnik in Europe and the UK, and changing Facebooks rules to allow Ukrainians to call for violence against Russian soldiers.
A jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Thursday recommended that Nikolas Cruz be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing 17 people in the mass shooting at Parklands Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The unanimous verdict from the 12-member jury came on the second day of deliberations. Cruz had been facing the death penalty, but Thursday's verdict means he will avoid that fate.

For each of the 17 counts, the jurors found existence of all aggravating factors  including that the murders were carried out in a cold, calculated and premeditated manner  but that they did not outweigh mitigating circumstances established by the defense.

Parkland defendant Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Wednesday. (Amy Bennett/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Cruzs lawyers had claimed his birth mothers excessive drinking and drug use during pregnancy left him with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder that ultimately led him to carry out the school shooting, one of the deadliest in U.S. history.

Inside the courtroom, Cruz sat silently with his head down and hands clasped for nearly an hour as Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer read the jurys verdict, talking briefly with his attorney.

Numerous people in the gallery shook their heads in disgust. Several people walked out of the courtroom as the verdict was being read.

Cruz, who shot and killed 17 people at a Florida high school in 2018, was facing the death penalty. (Amy Beth Bennett/Pool/AFP)

The decision capped a three-month sentencing trial that featured emotional testimony from family members of the victims, graphic video and a tour of the crime scene at the schools freshman building, which has been closed since the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre.

Cruz, 24, was 19 years old when he used an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle to carry out the attack at his former school. He fled the scene and was taken into custody in nearby Coral Springs. He pleaded guilty last year.

According to the Associated Press, it was the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the United States.

Nine other people in the U.S. who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire, the AP noted. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is currently awaiting trial.
The deadline for the tnAchieves mentor application is Oct. 21 and Stewart County needs nine more mentors to meet local student demand.

With less than two weeks remaining until the Oct. 21 tnAchieves mentor application deadline, Stewart County still needs 9 mentors to meet local student demand. More than 3,300 volunteer mentors are still needed statewide.

Seven thousand fewer students have entered the college pipeline in Tennessee since 2021, tnAchieves Senior Director of Mentors Tyler Ford said. While the pandemic has caused declining college-going rates nationwide, I am a firm believer that Tennessee is well suited to confront this challenge head-on given the thousands of volunteer mentors who advocate for higher education in their communities each year!

Mentors provide irreplaceable local support for students who may otherwise be without guidance or encouragement in the college-going process.

I wasnt sure if I was ready for the transition from high school to college, but my mentor kept pushing me and was patient through the process, current tnAchieves mentor and former TN Promise student Kiami Coleman said. I knew I had to be like her and give back when I had the opportunity. To hear more from Kiami, click here: https://youtu.be/0pZMZdIKt5c

tnAchieves mentors commit just one hour per month to serve students in their community. All mentors in 2023 will begin working with their students in November of 2022 and will meet their students in person at the students high school in December or January. Mentors will receive training and handbook guide to the program.

Mentors must be 21 years of age and are subject to a background check. Those interested in applying can visit https://tnAchieves.org/mentors.

tnAchieves is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that has been providing scholarships with mentor support since 2008. Any interview requests or questions can be directed to Tyler Ford at tyler@tnAchieves.org or (309) 945-3446.

This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Nine Tennessee Promise mentors are needed in Stewart County
Photo: Brendan Kergin. The VPD is seeking a suspect after a woman was "sucker-punched" in a downtown Vancouver stranger attack on Oct. 12, 2022. File photo.

Vancouver police are searching for a suspect following another downtown stranger attack.

According to Cst. Jason Doucette, the incident took place as a woman was "simply walking down the sidewalk when a man came up and sucker-punched her in the face for no reason.

The 29-year-old victim was walking near Cambie and Pender streets around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday (Oct. 12) when a man approached and punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground. She suffered non-life-threatening physical injuries that required medical attention, says the Vancouver Police Department (VPD).

The suspect's face was partially covered with a bandana and he was wearing a black hoodie with a white stripe on the back, black pants, and black shoes. He was last seen running west on Dunsmuir Street.

A number of people came to the victims aid and stayed with her until police arrived, adds Doucette. Our officers flooded the area to search for the suspect and locate evidence that will lead to his identity.

Anyone with information or with dash-cam footage of the assault is asked to contact VPD detectives at 604-717-2541.
Nnamdi Kanu - who holds a UK passport - fled Nigeria in 2017 before being arrested in 2021

Nigeria's Appeal Court has dropped all charges against separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu after ruling that he had been illegally arrested abroad.

The court also ruled that his extradition was illegal.

The ruling by a panel of three judges is seen as a major blow to the government which had detained Mr Kanu on various treason and terrorism-related charges.

But the government says it will explore other legal options.

"Kanu was only discharged and not acquitted," said a spokesperson for Attorney General Abubakar Malami, so it appears unlikely he will be freed imminently.

The Attorney General's office added that the court's decision was only based on the extradition of Mr Kanu, and did not apply to those charges that predate it which "remain valid issues for judicial determination".

The leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) group was originally arrested in 2015 but he fled Nigeria in 2017 while out on bail.

He has denied any wrongdoing.

Ipob is campaigning for the creation of an independent state in south-eastern Nigeria.

Mr Kanu - who holds a UK passport - was seized and sent back home in 2021.

His lawyers say he was detained in Kenya, which has not commented on whether it played a role in Mr Kanu's deportation to Nigeria.

The Appeal Court also ruled the Federal High Court did not have the jurisdiction to try Mr Kanu.

He initially faced 15 charges, but eight had previously been dropped.

Will Nnamdi Kanu be released?

The court's ruling means there is nothing to stop Mr Kanu being re-arraigned on different charges, constitutional and human rights lawyer Luka Musa Haruna told the BBC.

However, the ruling means Mr Kanu was now technically a "free man", Mr Haruna said, adding that "the federal government should comply with the judgement and release Nnamdi Kanu".

Mr Kanu's lawyers are demanding that the authorities free him.

One said "no new charges can ever stick" against Mr Kanu because "the extraordinary rendition has created a permanent barrier to his prosecution. He must be released first," Aloy Ejimakor said on Twitter. He also added that Mr Kanu should be free to travel without hinderance.

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Another of his lawyers, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, told the BBC on Friday afternoon that Mr Kanu had not yet been freed but that they were in the process of seeking his release in line with the court order.

The Nigerian authorities have not indicated whether Mr Kanu will be released.

The desire for a south-eastern state separate to Nigeria is decades old.

In 1967 ethnic Igbo leaders declared independence for the state of Biafra, but after a civil war, which led to the deaths of up to a million people, the secessionist rebellion was defeated. It has now been reawakened in the form of Ipob.
No. 16 Mississippi State (5-1, 2-1 SEC) at No. 22 Kentucky (4-2, 1-2), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (SEC Network)

Line: Mississippi State by 4 1/2 according to FanDuel.com Sportsbook.

Series: Mississippi State leads 25-24.

WHATS AT STAKE

Mississippi State has outscored opponents 127-55 during its three-game winning streak, its longest under coach Mike Leach, and seeks to enter SEC West contention. Kentucky has dropped two straight and hopes QB Will Levis returns from a left foot injury that kept him out of Saturdays 24-14 home loss to South Carolina.

KEY MATCHUP

Mississippi State QB Will Rogers vs. Kentucky pass defense. The SECs top passer (2,110 yards, 22 TDs) has thrown for 1,133 yards and 12 touchdowns the past three games, including 395 with three TDs in a 40-17 victory over Arkansas. He became the conferences career leader with 946 completions and is one TD shy of tying Dak Prescotts school record of 70 passing TDs. Kentucky counters with the SECs No. 3 pass defense (174.2 yards allowed per game) and third-ranked unit overall (307.2).

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Mississippi State: LB Jett Johnson has a team-high 57 tackles that rank fourth in the SEC. He had 11 stops last week against Arkansas and recorded a career-best 13 in the opener against Memphis. Johnsons totals include 2.5 tackles for loss, three quarterback hurries and a pass breakup. He recovered a fumble in last years win over Kentucky in Starkville.

Kentucky: RB Chris Rodriguez Jr. rushed 22 times for 126 yards against South Carolina in his second game back from suspension and moved into fifth place on the schools career list with 2,938.

FACTS AND FIGURES

MSU is off to its best start since going 6-0 in 2014 on the way to a No. 1 ranking. ... Dillon Johnson last week became the first Bulldog to rush for 100 yards under Leach. His 402 yards rank eighth among SEC rushers. ... Caleb Ducking ranks second in the SEC with seven receiving TDs. ... Kentuckys 25 sacks allowed ranks 129th out of 131 FBS schools. ... LB DeAndre Square needs 15 tackles to become the 20th Wildcat with 300 in his career. Jacquez Jones, who missed the South Carolina game with an injury, needs one.

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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the APs college football newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/mrxhe6f2
No. 10 Penn State (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) at No. 5 Michigan (6-0, 2-0), Saturday, noon ET (Fox)

Line: Michigan by 6 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Series record: Michigan leads 15-10.

WHATS AT STAKE?

The highly anticipated game potentially has Big Ten championship and College Football Playoff ramifications. The winner will control its fate, having the chance to win out to claim the conference championship and earn a spot in the playfoff. The loser will need some help to reach its goals.

KEY MATCHUP

Michigan RB Blake Corum vs. Penn State's run defense. Corum has run for 500 yards, for nearly 6 yards per carry, and four TDs over three Big Ten games. He ranks third in FBS with 735 yards rushing, including a 19-plus yard run in every game, and second with 11 scores. Penn State is giving up just 79.6 yards rushing per game, ranking fifth in the country.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Penn State: CB Joey Porter Jr. The son of Pittsburgh Steelers great Joey Porter was named the Big Tens top defensive player at midseason by The Associated Press. Porter ranks second nationally with 10 pass breakups, an impressive total because teams dont throw his way often.

Michigan: QB J.J. McCarthy. The sophomore is starting against a ranked team for the first time. McCarthy has completed 78% of his passes, ranking No. 1 among FBS quarterbacks. Penn State has allowed opponents to complete just 49.6% of their passes to lead the nation.

FACTS & FIGURES

Michigan and Penn State are meeting as top-10 teams for the first time since 1997 and third time in the series. ... Penn State RBs Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton are averaging a combined 153.2 rushing yards per game.  Singleton, who leads the nation with five runs of at least 40 yards, was named the Big Ten's best first-year freshman in The Associated Press Big Ten midseason awards. ... The Nittany Lions held Northwestern to 31 rushing yards on 28 carries.  Penn State has 11 takeaways over the last three games and leads the Big Ten with a plus-6 turnover margin. ... The Wolverines are aiming for consecutive 7-0 starts for the first time since they won their first 10 games in the 1973 and 1974 seasons. ... McCarthy threw for a career-high 304 yards last week at Indiana. ... Michigan has 14 sacks and 21 tackles for losses over their last three games along with a total of 18 total QB hurries. ... The Wolverines and top-ranked Alabama are the two FBS teams that rank among the top 10 in scoring offense and defense.

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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the APs college football newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/mrxhe6f2.
Joe Biden has been criticised for saying that his late son Beau lost his life in Iraq  a reference to the presidents long-held belief that toxic burn pits led to the younger Biden passing away from brain cancer at the age of 46.

The president was speaking close to Vail, Colorado, on Wednesday as he designated Camp Hail as a national monument.

The area, covering 436 square miles, was the training site of the 10th Mountain Division during the Second World War.

Mr Biden spoke of the bravery of the division as they fought in Italy, before stating that he lost his son in Iraq.

Just imagine, I mean it sincerely, I say this as a father of a man who won the Bronze Star, the conspicuous service medal, and lost his life in Iraq. Imagine the courage, the daring, and the genuine sacrifice they all made, the president said.

A clip of the moment shared by the conservative Washington Examiner on Twitter has been viewed more than a million times.

President @JoeBiden incorrectly said his late son Beau "lost his life in Iraq." https://t.co/oZ9GRyRjcI pic.twitter.com/8OvjbQgUaT  Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) October 12, 2022

Beau Biden served in Iraq between 2008 and 2009 as a member of the Delaware Army National Guard. He was the Delaware Attorney General between 2007 and 2015.

Just months after leaving the post, he passed away at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland on 30 May 2015.

After his passing, he was given the Delaware Conspicuous Service Cross for heroism, meritorious service and outstanding achievement.

Beau Biden died of brain cancer in 2015, more than five years after he returned from a year serving in Iraq. Joe Biden has attributed the cancer to Beau Bidens proximity to burn pits in Iraq, though sometimes conceded he isnt sure, CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale tweeted.

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In 2016, then-Vice President Biden said his sons cancer could have been caused by the toxic burn pits that he was exposed to during his service in the Middle East.

The New York Times reported that Mr Biden said he was stunned when he read a chapter concerning the death of his son in the book The Burn Pits: The Poisoning of Americas Soldiers by Joseph Hickman.

Guys, Im going to be the biggest pain in your neck as long as I live, until we figure out about these burn pits, he said in a conference room in the congressional complex.

Burn pits were used to get rid of waste, such as plastics, rubber, and batteries, in both Afghanistan and Iraq. The smoke from the pits could be toxic, Newsweek noted.

The Department of Defence has stated that almost 3.5 million service members could have been exposed to toxins at harmful levels because of the practice.

Ive always believed that we have a sacred obligation to equip those we send to war, and care for those and their families when they come home, Mr Biden said during his State of the Union speech earlier this year. And they come home, many of the worlds fittest and best-trained warriors in the world, never the same. Headaches. Numbness. Dizziness. A cancer that would put them in a flag-draped coffin.

While Mr Biden said he couldnt be entirely sure that his sons cancer was caused by the burn pits, he said his administration would be finding out everything we can.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) states on its website that it understands that many Veterans are especially concerned about exposure to the smoke and fumes generated by open burn pits.

In Iraq, Afghanistan, and other areas of the Southwest Asia theater of military operations, open-air combustion of trash and other waste in burn pits was a common practice. The Department of Defense has now closed out most burn pits and is planning to close the remainder, the agency adds.

Researchers, including experts at VA, are actively studying airborne hazards like burn pits and other military environmental exposures. Ongoing research will help us better understand potential long-term health effects and provide you with better care and services, the site states.
An investigation by government officials has found that the owners of an eatery in North Carolina have to pay up.

On Oct. 11, the U.S. Department of Labors Wage and Hour Division announced the results of an investigation of a Goldsboro-based restaurants wage practices. Investigators found that Mugen Inc.  operating as Jays Kitchen  kept workers from receiving the full wages they were owed. By keeping portions of their earned tips, owners were ordered to pay $157,287 in back wages for 65 workers who were affected by the illegal labor practices.

According to officials, Jays Kitchen kept a percentage of employee tips, which is a minimum wage violation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). By keeping a portion of staff tips, Jays Kitchen lost the right to claim a tip credit, which means they were calculating tips they were taking from staffs wages and pocketing the difference.

The Department of Labor said that Jays Kitchen thus owed their employees the difference between what they ended up paying them and the $7.25 federal minimum wage for the hours each employee worked  which ended up totaling $157,287.

In addition, officials said they also found Mugen Inc. failed to keep an accurate record of hours worked, provide the dates of birth for employees under the age of 19 and keep addresses for several employees  all record-keeping violations under the FLSA.

Tipped workers in the food services industry rely on their hard-earned tips to make ends meet, said Richard Blaylock, the Wage and Hour Divisions Raleigh, North Carolina district director in a press release. Tips are the property of the worker and, under no circumstances, may employers keep any part of their employees tip.

Blaylock also said that the investigation found that Mugen Inc. had three 15-year-old employees to work more than three hours on school days, more than 18 hours in a school week and past 7 p.m. while school was in session, all of which is violation of federal child labor laws. For these violations, the division assessed a $1,915 civil money penalty.

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Mugen Inc. also owns and operates five other restaurants in addition to Jays Kitchen, including Jays Sushi & Burger Bar, Ninja Hibachi Express, Ninja Grill, Ninja Hibachi & Burger, and Jays 108, all located in North Carolina.

TODAY Food reached out to the management and owner of Jay's Kitchen/Mugen Inc. but hasn't heard back as of this writing.

In recent years, the Wage and Hour Division has seen an increase in child labor investigations and violations, in 2021 finding 2,819 minors were employed in violation of the law in various ways. Their employers were fined a total of nearly $3.4 million in civil money penalties.

One such example of this sort of violation can be found in the past of a popular fast-food chain. In 2020, Chipotle was hit with a $1.3 million fine after investigators found in excess of 13,000 child labor violations had occurred in Massachusetts restaurants, with underage employees discovered to have been working past midnight and in excess of 48 hours in one week.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
Nury Martinez. Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Nury Martinez, the former Los Angeles City Council president, resigned her seat on Wednesday, following outrage over a leaked recording of her making racist remarks.

"It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home," Martinez said in a statement. "When I ran in 2013, I wanted to see a change in my community and fight for my neighbors. That is what it has been about all along." She called on her constituents to "stay engaged and continue to fight for your fair share of the city's resources," adding, "To all little Latina girls across this city, I hope I've inspired you to dream beyond that which you can see. While I take some time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy."

On Sunday, the Los Angeles Times reported on an audio recording of a conversation between Martinez, Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera, and council members Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo. The meeting took place in October 2021, and the secret recording was posted on Reddit this month. In the audio, Martinez is heard calling white council member Mike Bonin a "little b---h" and saying his young son, who is Black, "parece changuito," or appears "like a monkey," adding that he misbehaved and needed "a beatdown," the Times reports. She also implied that Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon should not be supported because he's "with the Blacks," and called Oaxacans "little short dark people" and "ugly."

The audio was met with outrage and calls for the three council members to resign; before she gave up her seat on Wednesday, Martinez stepped down as council president.

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Terry Cummings, a member of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group, told a jury on Wednesday that members had put together a large weapons cache in a Virginia hotel room the night before rioters attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Cummings, a 21-year military veteran from Oregon who has not been charged with a crime, was in Washington on the day of the attack and testified in court after receiving a subpoena.

The weapons cache is a key component of the Justice Department's case against Oath Keepers leadership, including founder Stewart Rhodes and codefendants Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, and Thomas Caldwell. Each is on trial for multiple felony counts, the most serious being seditious conspiracy, and all have pleaded not guilty.

Cummings  the first Oath Keepers member who was actually in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6 to testify at trial  said he brought an AR-15 and ammunition box with him to Virginia in case of rioting in the district, calling the weapon a "show of force," but he claimed he did not intend on using it offensively. He kept the firearm with others brought by fellow Oath Keepers in a hotel room in Virginia, according to his testimony, because he knew bringing the weapon into the District of Columbia would be illegal.

"I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military," Cummings told the jury. Prosecutors presented his rifle and ammunition box to the jury as evidence.

The Justice Department alleges the Oath Keepers amassed the stockpile to aid them in an armed rebellion against the government, targeting the peaceful transfer of power from then-President Donald Trump to President-elect Joe Biden. Their plan, prosecutors say, was to store the weapons in Virginia and transfer them across state lines into D.C. using a "Quick Reaction Force," or QRF.

Members of the Oath Keepers on the East Front of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. / Credit: Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP

Cummings testified that he had joined the Oath Keepers on Jan. 6 with the intention of joining a "security detail" for attendees of Trump's Stop the Steal rally, which immediately preceded the Capitol attack. During the rally, he and other Oath Keepers in his group stood yards away from the former president and followed the crowd to the Capitol building with Harrelson.

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Later, Cummings said he split from the mob for a bathroom break, and during that time, he says Harrelson and other Oath Keepers left their positions to enter the Capitol building. Cummings did not enter the Capitol building on Jan. 6, and regrouped with the other militia members after they exited.

During cross examination, Cummings reiterated his reasoning for being around the Capitol on Jan. 6 was to serve as security detail for a person he understood to be a state representative.

Cummings testified that he recalled no mention of the certification of the Electoral College votes occurring at the Capitol. Nor did he hear any discussion of entering the Capitol, adding that if he had, he would have notified authorities. And while he heard Meggs say the Capitol had been breached, he said didn't hear the whole context of Meggs' conversation.

FBI Special Agent Kelsey Harris  normally tasked with investigating international and domestic terrorism  took the stand on Wednesday. He said he has investigated several dozen cases involving the Jan. 6 Capitol breach.

Using video evidence played for the jury, Harris said that Meggs and four others, including Meggs' wife, Connie  who faces Jan. 6 charges of her own and pleaded not guilty  participated in several combat training exercises at the end of 2020.

Thursday's proceedings began with testimony from two FBI special agents, Justin Eller and Joanna Abrams. Eller first took the stand on Wednesday and told the jury of Meggs' communications before the Jan. 6 attack. In one message exchange in December 2020, Eller said Meggs and a recruit to her Ohio militia group allegedly discussed getting comfortable "with the idea of death." Messages also revealed she discussed weaponry.

During cross examination, also on Wednesday, Eller revealed Meggs stored weapons in defendant Thomas Caldwell's Virginia home during the Jan. 6 attack and did not bring them to the D.C. area. At times, Eller also struggled to answer questions from some of the defense attorneys regarding his memory of digital evidence uncovered during the investigation.

For her part, Special Agent Abrams testified about a group chat among members of the Georgia Oath Keepers planning to travel to Washington.

In the weeks leading up to the attack on Jan. 6, Rhodes and others allegedly sent messages predicting civil war and comparing their endeavor with Revolutionary War figures. "If he doesn't use the Insurrection Act to keep a ChiCom puppet out of the White House, then we will have to fight a bloody revolution/civil war to defeat the traitors," Rhodes wrote of Trump, claiming falsely that then-President-elect Biden was controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.

The encrypted messages presented as part of Abrams' testimony included those sent by two one-time members of the Oath Keepers who have since agreed to cooperate with investigations and pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy, the most severe charge any defendants currently on trial face.

Joshua James and Brian Ulrich, among others, were discussing the organization of Oath Keepers ahead of Jan. 6.

"Trump acts now maybe a few hundred radicals die trying to burn down cities. Trump sits on his hands, Biden wins, millions die resisting the death of the 1st and 2nd amendment," Ulrich wrote.

The messages also showed that the Oath Keepers were cognizant of D.C. gun laws and left their firearms in the Virginia hotel instead of bringing them into the capital city, waiting for Trump to call upon them to use arms. And during cross examination, Abrams said the text messages presented during her testimony did not explicitly discuss an offensive plan to enter the Capitol building.

Rob Legare contributed reporting

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Last month, to resolve a pending sex crime case, Dontay Akeem Prophet entered a no contest plea to a reduced charge as part of a plea agreement and was sentenced to one year of probation.

On Wednesday, Prophet, present with his new lawyer, Eneid Bano, changed his mind and withdrew his plea. According to a defense motion, Prophet is alleging that he was "misinformed" by his lawyer at the time of his plea and that his decision was thus "involuntary."

Court records show Prophet was represented at the time of sentencing by Kenneth Hamburg, an assistant regional counsel from the Office of Criminal Conflict & Civil Regional Counsel.

In court: Two men sentenced in state court, a third awaits sentencing in federal court

Guilty: Man guilty of lewd/lascivious battery

Cases before the court: Four felony cases resolved with plea deals. One involved an ex-OPD officer

Lawyer Eneid Bano

Circuit Judge Anthony Tatti told Prophet and Bano that, with the withdrawal, Prophet's case will now be considered as a felony sexual offense.

A date for an evidentiary hearing for Prophet's motion will be held at another time.

If convicted of the sex charge, Prophet could be sentenced up to 15 years in prison. Assistant State Attorney Barbara Harris was present in court for the prosecution.

Prophet, a former school board candidate who works for the school system, was arrested in 2019 and accused of lewd//lascivious molestation of a child. Ocala police officials were told that Prophet reportedly inappropriately touched the victim.

School officials said the 31-year-old Ocala man, who's currently free on bond, is presently suspended without pay.

State v. DJ Roberts

A few hours after that hearing, Donald Lorenzo "DJ" Roberts appeared in front of Circuit Judge Peter Brigham on a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

The charge stemmed from an Oct. 2, 2021 shooting where Roberts shot and killed Searron Brooks Sr. along Southwest Fort King Street, according to Ocala police officials.

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After the shooting, Roberts fled and could not be found by officers. Roberts, of Ocala, who turns 34 on Friday, was taken into custody in April.

The case was reviewed by the State Attorney's Office. Prosecutors eventually ruled that the shooting was self-defense.

Interviews conducted by law enforcement officials show there was an argument between Brooks and a woman. Officials were told that the headlights of a vehicle the woman was driving accidently shined into Brooks' residence.

Upset, witnesses said, Brooks came outside. Authorities said that after arguing with the woman, Brooks returned to his residence.

The witnesses said Brooks had one hand behind his back, as if he had a weapon. There was a confrontation, and Brooks pointed a gun at Roberts and other people gathered at the scene, mainly women, according to a prosecutor's report.

Roberts fired several shots, one of them hitting Brooks in the chest, officials said. Brooks was transported to a local hospital, where he died.

Although prosecutors decided not to charge Roberts with murder, he does face an offense of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. State and local records indicate he has several prior convictions.

At the hearing, Assistant Public Defender Debra Lee Hart Munchel argued that Roberts has significant ties to the community and that his current $200,000 bond was excessive.

Assistant State Attorney Cindy Harper told the judge that Roberts has a violent criminal history and is presently facing another weapons charge from 2020. She said he's a danger to the community and mentioned Brooks' shooting death.

Roberts told the judge from the Marion County Jail, via Zoom, that he's not a danger and wants to get out so he can support his mother and his son.

The judge lowered his bail to $30,000, for which Roberts was grateful.

Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala, Florida man withdraws plea i felony sex crime case
Members of the Pierce County Council and Pierce County executive Bruce Dammeier sent a joint letter to aviation officials on Tuesday to formally object to the possible construction of a new airport in the county.

The letter was sent to the Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission, which was created by the state legislature to address concerns that the states airports will soon reach capacity.

The commission is now working to recommend a site for a new commercial airport in Washington.

Pierce County is writing to express its strong objection to the inclusion of greenfield sites Pierce County Central and Pierce County East on the short list of new primary airport locations, wrote Dammeier in the letter. Development of either of these greenfield sites faces significant infrastructure and environmental barriers, as well as other challenges, and Pierce County requests that these sites be eliminated from further consideration.

The CACC is currently considering three sites for a new potential airport:

Pierce County East  Located south of Puyallup and Graham, about 4.5 miles east of Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Pierce County Central  Located east of Roy and McKenna, about 2.25 miles south of JBLM.

Thurston County Central  Located east of Olympia. The southern portion of this site overlaps the westernmost portion of JBLM land.

The commission is also looking into expanding the capacity of Paine Field in Everett and says that Seattle-Tacoma International Airport continues to work to meet passenger and shipper needs.

Thurston County residents are also opposed to the idea of a new airport being built in their community.

In an online open house hosted by the CACC in September, about 57% of those surveyed objected to the Thurston County Central site being considered for a new airport.

Sixty-three percent of respondents were opposed to the Pierce County East site being considered and 56% were opposed to the Pierce County Central site being considered in the same survey.

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According to the CACC, forecasts show that millions of passengers might not be accommodated at the states airports due to lack of capacity by 2050.

While SEA is expected to remain the flagship airport for the region, the commission says a new airport site will be important to industry and the economic vitality of the region as the areas population continues to grow.

The commission has been tasked to recommend a single preferred location for the new commercial service airport by June 15, 2023.

After that, construction on a new airport of this size and scale is expected to take about 20 years, according to CACC.
Museum workers at Chicagos Field Museum went public Thursday with a union campaign they said was driven in part by low wages, high turnover and a lack of transparency at the museum.

Workers at the natural history museum said they plan to unionize with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 under the name Field Museum Workers United. AFSCME represents more than 25,000 library workers and more than 10,000 museum workers nationally, including at the Art Institute.

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We take pride in what we do, the Field Museum employees wrote in an open letter signed by more than 60 museum workers. Our skills and our experience are invaluable to the success of the museum. Its time for our voices to be heard and respected. Only by forming a union will we win the respect and dignity at work that we deserve.

In their open letter, Field Museum employees said previous attempts to raise their concerns with museum administration had been ignored. They called attention to what they described as low wages, few opportunities for advancement and an overreliance on project-based, grant-funded positions in place of permanent employees. Those issues have led to high turnover at the museum, they said, creating larger workloads for employees there.

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The museum issued a statement Friday saying it respected employees right to unionize if they choose to do so.

We believe that both the Museum and our employees benefit most when we can work directly with each other rather than through a third-party union unfamiliar with the Museums mission, culture, and community, the statement said. The Field Museum has been and remains committed to cultivating its relationship with our employees, keeping the lines of communication open, and improving working conditions for all employees.

Anders Lindall, a spokesperson for AFSCME Council 31, said the typical museum employee makes between $16.50 and $18 an hour.

Workers at the natural history museum were inspired by the union campaign of employees at the Art Institute, the union said in a news release Thursday. Art Institute workers formed the citys first major museum union when they voted to unionize in January. They were joined soon after by employees at the School of the Art Institute; nontenure track faculty at the school have also filed for a union election.

The Field Museum workers have begun gathering signed union cards  the first official step to seeking union representation  said Lindall. They plan to seek voluntary recognition from the museum or file for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board after a strong supermajority of museum employees have signed union cards, Lindall said.

Field Museum Workers United would represent about 330 museum workers, including collections assistants and technicians, visitor service representatives, exhibition preparers, research scientists and assistants, learning center employees and facilities staff, AFSCME Council 31 said.
Thursday morning, Ohios Board of Education said it needs more time to talk about a controversial resolution involving Title IX.

Wednesday, it spent more than eight hours discussing a resolution that would challenge changes to Title IX protections.

The board voted 12-7 to send the measure to the committee, essentially tabling the issue.

Title IX is a federal law that has banned discrimination based on sex in school since 1972. On June 23, the U.S. Board of Education proposed an expansion to Title IX to include protection for students who face discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

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An Ohio Board of Education member Brendan Shea recently introduced a four-page resolution that opposes the Biden Administrations expansion to Title IX. It said that the law originally protects students from being discriminated against based on sex from a physiological standpoint, meaning sex assigned at birth.

Attorney James Knapp, Chair of the Board of Directors for Trans Ohio, disagrees with that resolution.

It has been interpreted since the 90s and beyond to include LGBTQ students and more specifically, more lately, trans students and nonbinary students, Knapp said.

Shea wrote in his resolution that denying the reality of biological sex destroys foundational truths upon which education rests and irreparably damages children.

There is a big disconnect in the community at large still between what it means to be transgender and what that means for schools, Knapp said.

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The resolution would stop transgender students from using the bathroom and locker room of the gender they identify with. It would also stop them from being allowed to try out the sports teams that reflect their gender identity.

Shea said the U.S. Department of Educations changes would require sports teams to be based on gender identity rather than biological sex, forcing biological women and girls to compete on an unfair basis against biological males for athletic opportunities and scholarships.

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Knapp called called Sheas resolution unconstitutional on its face and its also unconscionable.

Kanpp also said that the state could lose federal education funds if they are found in violation of Title IX.

The board did not set a date for when there will be further discussion or a vote on the issue.








A 22-year-old Ohio man admitted in federal court Tuesday that he planned a mass shooting at Ohio State University, officials said.

Tres Genco pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to commit a hate crime, which carries a possible life sentence because the plot involved an attempt to kill, according to prosecutors.

Officials said Genco identified as an "Incel," short for involuntarily celibate.

"The Incel movement is an online community of predominantly men who harbor anger towards women," the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release announcing the plea. "Incels advocate violence in support of their belief that women unjustly deny them sexual or romantic attention to which they believe they are entitled."

In March 2020, the Highland County Sheriff's Department was called to Genco's home, according to court documents. Someone reported Genco had barricaded himself in his room with a gun, and the person was worried he might hurt himself or planned to hurt others.

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After getting Genco to surrender, investigators said they found an AR-15-style rifle with a bump-stock and Glock pistol modified to fire fully automatically with no serial number. As part of his plea, prosecutors said, Genco admitted he possessed those weapons as part of his plot.

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Investigators said they also found many writings dating back to at least 2019. Genco wrote a memoir in which he said he would slaughter women out of hatred, jealousy and revenge, and referred to death as the great equalizer," prosecutors say.

Genco wrote a note indicating he hoped to kill as many as 3,000 people, prosecutors said. They added he attended Army basic training in Georgia from August through December 2019, though he was discharged.

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That year, Genco purchased tactical gloves, a bulletproof vest, a hoodie bearing the word Revenge, cargo pants, a bowie knife, a skull facemask and several magazines, prosecutors said.

Court documents indicate that Ohio State University was a target. FBI agents said he conducted surveillance of a university and did online research on sororities.

Prosecutors also said Genco had compared himself to Elliot Rodger, who killed six people and injured 14 in 2014 near the campus of the University of California, Santa Barbara. Two of the victims were women outside a sorority house. Rodger outlined his desire to punish women in YouTube videos.

Genco formulated a plot to kill women and intended to carry it out. Our federal and local law enforcement partners stopped that from happening, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Parker said in a statement. Hate has no place in our country  including gender-based hate  and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to vigorously prosecute any such conduct.

An attorney for Genco has yet to respond to an email from the Cincinnati Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network, seeking comment.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio 'Incel' admits plotting mass shooting targeting women at OSU
An Ohio man told investigators he made a bomb and drove it to the Manchester home of the boyfriend of a woman he wanted to date.

Clayton Alexander McCoy, 32, of Chesterfield, Ohio, pleaded guilty Wednesday to transporting explosives with intent to injure and possession of an unregistered firearm/explosive device, according to a news release from United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron.

McCoy made a pipe bomb in Ohio then drove it to Carroll County in an attempt to harm his romantic rival, according to prosecutors. He had known the victims girlfriend for years through the live-action role-playing game Dagorhir, charging documents said. In October 2020, he confessed his romantic feelings to the woman, who did not return them, prosecutors said.

On Oct. 30, 2020, McCoy drove his bomb, which included homemade shrapnel and BBs inserted into a metal pipe, and delivered it to a Manchester home inside a gift-wrapped box designed to detonate when opened, prosecutors said. Investigators said McCoy had taken steps to evade police by buying materials from different stores in cash. When the 28-year-old man opened the box, the bomb exploded, seriously injuring him.

After spending weeks in the hospital, the victim required a walker for two weeks and needed multiple surgeries to remove shrapnel from his body, according to the release. The home where the victim and his grandparents lived sustained more than $46,000 worth of damage and was uninhabitable for five months, prosecutors said.

Investigators seized materials McCoy used to make a bomb from his Chesterfield home in March 2021, while executing a search warrant. Although McCoy initially named another member of the role-playing group as the source of the bomb, he later told law enforcement that he had constructed the bomb and delivered it to the Carroll County home, prosecutors said.

McCoy faces up to 30 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has not yet scheduled sentencing.

An attorney representing McCoy could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday night.
Olivia Wilde has responded to critics who claim she has abandoned her two children.

On Thursday, the Dont Worry Darling director posed for Elles November 2022 cover story, in which she opened up about motherhood in the spotlight. Wilde, who shares eight-year-old son Otis and six-year-old daughter Daisy with ex Jason Sudeikis, acknowledged that people assume the worst when shes not photographed with her children.

I share custody of my kids with my ex, she told the outlet. If Im photographed not with my kids, people assume I have abandoned them, like my kids are just somewhere in a hot car without me. The suggestion is that I have abandoned my role as a mother.

However, according to Wilde, the reason people dont see the single mom with her children is because she prefers to keep them out of the public eye. You know why you dont see me with my kids? Because I dont let them get photographed. Do you know the lengths that I go to to protect my kids from being seen by you? she said.

The 38-year-old actor, who is currently in a relationship with co-star Harry Styles, has previously spoken out against the shaming assumptions people have made, and the double standards she faces as a single mother. When people see me not with my kids, its always How dare she, Wilde told Variety in August. Ive never seen anyone say that about a guy. And if he is with his kid, hes a f**king hero.

The Bones alum went on to call Otis and Daisy her world and her best friends, and revealed that she had recently taken time off work to be more present with her children. It became clear to me that this year was a time for me to be a stay-at-home mom, Wilde said. It was not the year for me to be on a set, which is totally all-encompassing. It was time for me to pause and devote myself to the kids when I have them.

Wilde and Sudeikis, who got engaged in 2013, called off their relationship in November 2020. In April, the former couples custody battle took a turn when Wilde was served custody papers by her ex-fiance while on stage at CinemaCon. At the time, Sudeikis said he had no prior knowledge that she was going to be served during her presentation, saying he was deeply upset by the events and feels great distress at the manner in which service was made.

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While speaking to Variety, Wilde said it was deeply painful that the two children she shares with Sudeikis were involved in a public matter that should have been kept private. The only people who suffered were my kids, because theyll have to see that, and they shouldnt ever have to know that happened, she explained. For me, it was appalling, but the victims were an eight and five-year-old, and thats really sad.

I chose to become an actress, she added. I willingly walked into the spotlight. But its not something my children have asked for. And when my kids are dragged into it, its deeply painful.

Now, the former couple have needed to reshape their family as they continue to co-parent their two children from Los Angeles, New York, and London  where Sudeikis films his show, Ted Lasso. During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show in September, Wilde described co-parenting with Sudeikis as tricky; although, she said she is grateful that its allowed deep conversations with her children about emotions, family, and love.

My priority is them, she told Clarkson. Thats what it is. Its as long as theyre happy and theyre healthy then, my ex and I, we agree on that. They are everything to us.

In August, Sudeikiss custody claim against Wilde was dismissed when a judge denied the actors petition for their children to live with him in New York, declaring that their home state is California.
One person was killed and another was injured in rollover crash involving two vehicles in Needham on Wednesday.

Officers responded to a report of a crash in the area of Forest Street and Rolling Lane just before 4:30 p.m., according to Needham police.

The operators of both vehicles were rushed to a local hospital, where one was pronounced dead.

Massachusetts State Police and the Norfolk County District Attorneys Office are assisting in the investigation.

There were no additional details immediately available.

***For Immediate Release*** Fatal Crash On 10/12/22 at approximately 4:25 PM Needham Police and Fire Personnel... Posted by Needham Police Department on Wednesday, October 12, 2022

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Over 57,000 sites across US cities are very likely contaminated with toxic forever chemicals, according to a new study that calls for swift regulatory action to stop their use.

Forever chemicals, also known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, have commonly been used since the 1940s and are found in waterproof cosmetics, firefighting foams as well as grease and oil-resisting commercial products like nonstick cookware.

The new study, published on Wednesday in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters, put together publicly available data into a single map of 57,412 locations, with sites in all 50 US states and the District of Columbia.

Researchers, including those from Northeastern University in the US, said PFAS contamination can be presumed in some industrial facilities as well as locations where fluorinated firefighting foams have been used.

PFAS contamination at these locations is very likely, Alissa Cordner, senior author on the study, said in a statement.

We're excited to share this paper, co-authored by multiple current and former members of the PFAS Project Lab. The paper identifies over 57,000 sites that, it argues, can be presumed to be contaminated with PFAS. https://t.co/zyJ0XxBUtD  PFAS Project Lab (@PFASProject) October 12, 2022

We know that PFAS testing is very sporadic, and there are many data gaps in identifying known sites of PFAS contamination. Thats why the presumptive contamination model is a useful tool in the absence of existing high-quality data, Dr Cordner said.

In the research, scientists also validated over 500 known contamination sites against those they identified, and found that over 70 per cent of these sites were either included in their map or captured by the model.

PFAS testing is expensive and resource intensive. We have developed a standardized methodology that can help identify and prioritise locations for monitoring, regulation, and remediation, Kimberly Garrett, a co-author of the study, said.

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Of the sites identified in the study, 49,145 are industrial facilities, 4,255 are wastewater treatment plants, 3,493 are current or former military sites, and 519 are major airports.

While the study finds more than 57,000 likely contamination sites, scientists point out that this could well be an underestimate.

The scope of PFAS contamination is immense, and communities impacted by this contamination deserve swift regulatory action that stops ongoing and future uses of PFAS while cleaning up already existing contamination, Phil Brown, another author of the study, said.

While it sounds scary that there are over 57,000 presumptive contamination sites, this is almost certainly a large underestimation, Dr Brown added.

Studies have shown that these chemicals are extremely persistent, and linked them to several health complications, including developmental effects in children, reduced immunity and hormone disruption.

They have also been detected in countless drinking water systems, in the bodies of humans and wildlife, and even in rainwater at toxic levels.
Resolution sends strong signal on a global scale according to Ukrainian MP

Read also: UN General Assembly passes resolution condemning Russias claim to annex parts of Ukraine

Oleksiy Honcharenko, a member of Ukraines Verkhovna Rada parliament, reported this on Telegram messenger on Oct. 13. He said that 99 delegates had voted for the adoption of the resolution and one abstained, which he said was a historic result.

Honcharenko also noted several important facts about the resolution:

Read also: UN reflects unvarnished picture of our world  interview with Ukraines UN envoy

The Russian regime is recognized as a terrorist one. This is a strong signal on a global scale and it is another step toward recognizing Russia as a sponsor of terrorism.

For the first time in history, the Council of Europe declared that weapons should be supplied to a country. Specifically, air defense systems for the protection of the civilians were mentioned.

It is noted that Russias presence in the UN Security Council is illegal.

The resolution supports the establishment of an international tribunal on Russian war crimes in Ukraine as soon as possible.

Help NV continue reporting on the Russian invasion

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
NOORIABAD, Pakistan (AP)  At least 18 Pakistani flood survivors, including eight children and nine women, were killed when the bus they were traveling in caught fire, police said Thursday.

Police officer Hashim Brohi said the bus was taking the extended family from the southern port city of Karachi to their hometown of Khairpur Nathan Shah after they heard flood waters had receded there. They were among the thousands who moved to Karachi because of the country's deadly flooding.

Brohi said the incident took place late Wednesday near Nooriabad hills hike, which is not far from the local police station and fire service station.

The proximity saved the lives of many bus passengers as both the police and fire engine reached the scene in minutes, Brohi said.

The bus caught fire after the air conditioning unit short-circuited.

He said rescue services moved the injured passengers to the main hospitals in Jamshoro and Nooriabad. The bodies, charred beyond recognition, will be handed over to relatives after legal formalities.

Bus fires are common in Pakistan, where safety standards are compromised and traffic rules are disregarded.
By Suchitra Mohanty and Shilpa Jamkhandikar

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -An Indian Supreme Court panel said on Thursday it was divided over a ban on hijabs in schools, and referred the matter to the chief justice, effectively leaving in place a state's ruling against the women's headgear that has sparked uproar.

Karnataka in southwestern India in February became the only state to ban the garment in schools, triggering protests by Muslim students and their parents.

Hindu students have staged counter-protests, adding to frictions at a time when some Muslims already complain of marginalisation under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government.

India's debate comes as protests have rocked Iran after women objected to dress codes under its Islamic laws.

Justice Hemant Gupta said he had wanted an appeal against the ban quashed while his colleague on the two-judge panel, Sudhanshu Dhulia, said hijabs were a "matter of choice".

The chief justice would set up a larger bench to consider the case, they said. Supreme Court decisions apply nationwide.

"Secularism is applicable to all citizens, therefore permitting one religious community to wear their religious symbols would be antithesis to secularism," Gupta said in his order.

But Dhulia said restrictions were unfair.

"Asking girls to take off their hijab before they enter the school gates is first an invasion on their privacy, then it is an attack on their dignity and then ultimately it is a denial to them of secular education," he said in the judgement.

MUSLIM STUDENTS DISAPPOINTED

Anas Tanwir, a lawyer for one of the Muslim petitioners who appealed against the Karnataka ban, told Reuters the split verdict was a "semi-victory" for them.

"Hopefully, the chief justice will set up the larger bench soon and we will have a definitive verdict," he said by telephone.

Muslims are the biggest minority group in India, accounting for 13% of the population of 1.4 billion, the majority of whom are Hindu.

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The lack of verdict disappointed some Muslim students in the town of Udipi, where protests first erupted.

"I have decided to stop going to college and will complete the rest of my education by correspondence," said Ayesha Imthiaz, 20, who is in the second year of a degree.

At least five of her Muslim friends had stopped attending college after the hijab ban, she said. "I am not hopeful that the ban will ever be overturned," Imthiaz added.

Critics of the ban say it is another way of marginalising Muslims, adding that Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which rules Karnataka, could benefit from the controversy ahead of a state election due by May next year.

The BJP, which draws its support mainly from Hindus, says the ban has no political motive.

(Reporting by Suchitra Mohanty in New Delhi; Writing by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Robert Birsel and Kim Coghill)
There is no need to purchase a plane ticket to sip in one of the best bars in the world; look no further than Chicagos West Loop.

Kumiko, a Japanese American bar helmed by one of Chicagos premier bar directors, landed a spot on The Worlds 50 Best Bars list. Since 2009, the annual list has highlighted the best of the international drinks industry, voted by 650 drink experts around the world.

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The list recognized Kumiko, which jumped from ranking No. 61 to No. 25 on the expanded list of 100 bars in just one year, as being the epitome of elegance. Mixologist Julia Momose, owner and creative director of Kumiko, was also praised for her nuanced menu, channeling the flavors of her Japanese American heritage.

Kumiko partner and creative director Julia Momose. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)

Momose said she was caught off-guard by the 2022 ranking.

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Its a really big honor, and Im a little surprised and shocked that we went from 61 to 25, Momose said. We have been in survival mode for so long, so its a testament to the team.

Momose, who has a staff of 16 and is fresh off winning a James Beard Foundation Media Award earlier this year for her book The Way of the Cocktail, said some of the biggest challenges since opening in 2018 were navigating the pandemic and making significant changes in response, such as offering seating outside or selling carryout cocktails while bars and restaurants were closed  a financial lifeline Momose championed in the early months of the shutdown.

As trying and difficult as it was, Im so incredibly grateful that we had a chance to stay open, Momose said. Over the last year or two, we have been able to welcome in more guests and get to know our neighborhood more.

[ Chicago cocktail legend Julia Momose shows you how to make drinks from her native Japan in new book ]

Kumikos specialties range from nonalcoholic Spiritfrees to Component Flights. For the latter, Momose decomposes a cocktail, such as a Sazerac made with Japanese sake-based vermouth, and offers customers pours of the drinks components  Suntory Toki whisky and Macvin du Jura wine for the Sazerac  so they can experience how each ingredient plays into the completed drink.

Creative Director Julia Momose prepares Moonrise Daiquiri, a Component Flight with a cocktail made with junmai ginjo, rhum, Hoshinomura Hojicha tea, lime and Weatherbys Bolivian Cola Nut Bitters. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune / Chicago Tribune)

Kumikos nonalcoholic cocktails, called Spiritfrees, also have distinct and nuanced flavors. The Umeboshi Swizzle, for instance, is a tart drink with mild salinity made with shiso-pickled ume (a Japanese fruit often compared to plums and apricots), brown rice vinegar, lemon and Japanese seven spice over crushed ice.

Equal care is given to Kumikos intimate food menu, studded with high-minded renditions of craveable bites like a wagyu katsu sando, and a truffle-flecked milk toast served with fermented honey ice cream.

Kumiko was recognized earlier this year by the North American version of the 50 Best Bars list. Described as an upscale respite, Kumiko ranked fifth on the continental list, which, like its Worlds Best counterparts, is produced by the global food media outlet William Reed.

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When it comes to the global accolade, its the first time a Chicago bar has graced the list since 2018, when the now-closed Lost Lake placed at No. 50. Three Dots and a Dash, which appeared in 2014, and The Aviary, an Alinea Group bar on the list from 2014-17, are the only other Chicago bars to make the list over its 13 years.

Alinea, meanwhile, was the most recent Chicago restaurant to grace The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants list in 2019, although Oriole currently ranks at No. 91 on the expanded list of 100 best restaurants.

In 2022, other U.S. bars to make the global bars list include Cafe La Trova in Miami (No. 21) and six New York bars: Double Chicken Please (No. 6), Katana Kitten (No. 9), Atta Boy (No. 22), Overstory (No. 34), Dante (No. 36) and Employees Only (No. 47).

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

Other cities to receive the most nods include London, with five bars on the list; Mexico City with four; and Barcelona with three bars, including No. 1 Paradiso and No. 3 Sips. Buenos Aires, Athens and Dubai each had three of the Worlds Best Bars as well.

When we get these awards, I see them more as recognitions of what we do, Momose said. Were going to keep doing what we do, but on the back of this recognition, my focus is now going to be entirely inward of how to put better systems in place for the team.

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Kumiko, 630 W. Lake St., 312-285-2912, barkumiko.com

tatturner@chicagotribune.com

Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.
Family members whose loved ones were killed in the Parkland school shooting were incensed Thursday after the jury recommended life in prison instead of the death penalty for gunman Nikolas Cruz.

This should have been the death penalty, 100%, said Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter Alyssa was killed. I am so beyond disappointed and frustrated with this outcome. I cannot understand. I just dont understand.

Nikolas Cruz, now 24, had already admitted to killing 17 people, including 14 students, and wounding 17 others in the Feb. 14, 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in South Florida.

In a three-month penalty trial, prosecutors argued that Cruz should be executed for his actions. Under Florida law, a death sentence would have required all 12 jurors to agree. The jury foreman said more than one juror wanted to spare Cruzs life.

We went through all the evidence and some of the jurors just felt that was the appropriate sentence, Benjamin Thomas told a local TV station. I didnt vote that way, so Im not happy with how it worked out, but everyone has the right to decide for themselves.

The families were less diplomatic.

Todays ruling was yet another gut punch for so many of us who devastatingly lost our loved ones, said Tony Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina was killed. Seventeen beautiful lives were cut short, by murder  heinous, pre-planned, torturous murder. And the monster that killed them gets to live another day.

Montalto said his statement was on behalf of Stand With Parkland, an organization he founded that is dedicated to ending school shootings.

Linda Beigel Schulman, whose son Scott Beigel was killed, said Cruz should be afraid every second of the day of his life.

During the trial, Cruzs attorneys argued that his life should be spared because he suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome triggered by his mothers heavy drinking during pregnancy.

How can the mitigating factors make this shooter, who they recognized committed this terrible act  acts, plural  shooting, some victims more than once on a pass, pressing the barrel of his weapon to my daughters chest  that doesnt outweigh that poor little whats-his-name had a tough upbringing? Montalto asked at a press conference after the verdict.

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Our justice system should have been used to punish this shooter to the fullest extent of the law.

Other parents directed their anger at the system itself. Lori Alhadeff asked, What is the death penalty for?

Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was killed in the shooting, said he thought someone predisposed against the death penalty sneaked onto the jury.

A juror did not tell the truth to get on this jury and because of that, 17 families have been failed, he said at the press conference.

Guttenberg also criticized the way the defense conducted the trial. Last month, defense attorneys rested after calling only 25 of 80 listed witnesses, prompting an angry rebuke from the judge.

Florida is one of 27 states where the death penalty is legal. The state last executed someone in August 2019.

With News Wire Services
Photograph: Amy Beth Bennett/EPA

A Florida jury on Thursday recommended life in prison for a former student who murdered 17 people in the nations deadliest high school shooting.

Nikolas Cruz, 24, killed 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland on Valentines Day 2018, shooting into numerous classrooms with an AR-15 style assault rifle during the six-minute rampage and wounding 17 more.

The sentence of life without parole, now a formality, will be imposed at a hearing on 1 November after victim impact statements are given, circuit court judge Elizabeth Scherer ruled. Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty.

The jury of seven men and five women returned their verdict after seven and a half hours of deliberations, following a 60-day trial in which Cruzs defense team argued his actions were the result of mental illness and brain damage caused by fetal alcohol syndrome.

Prosecutors had argued that Cruz, who had signaled his desire to become a school shooter in videos and drawings he made before the attack, had meticulously plotted the killings.

It was goal-directed, it was calculated, it was purposeful and it was a systematic massacre, state attorney Mike Satz told the court in Fort Lauderdale, arguing that Cruz was afflicted by antisocial personality disorder.

The jurors found that on all 17 counts of first-degree murder, the state had proved beyond reasonable doubt the existence of aggravating factors, specifically that the killings were committed in a cold, calculating and premeditated manner.

But in each case at least one juror found that the aggravating factors were outweighed by the mitigation offered by the defense. For a death penalty sentence, jurors would have had to be unanimous.

Family members of the victims, whose ages ranged from 13 to 49, attended the sometimes contentious trial daily, and were in court to hear the verdict of the jury, which began its deliberations on Wednesday afternoon.

The parents of Alyssa Alhadeff, 14, said they were disgusted that the killer was given mercy.

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Talking to reporters after the hearing, her father, Ilan Alhadeff, said: What do we have the death penalty for? What is the purpose of it? This isnt about personal beliefs. Its not about your religious values. Its about the heinous crime that was committed.

Others were in tears and hugged each other as the verdicts were read. Tony Montalto, the father of Gina Montalto, 14, told journalists later that he felt the verdicts were unreal.

Todays ruling was yet another gut punch to so many of us. The monster that killed them gets to live another day. [He] pressed the barrel of his weapon to my daughters chest, that doesnt outweigh that whats-his-name had a tough upbringing?

Society has to re-examine who and what is a victim. My beautiful Gina, the other sons, daughters, spouses and fathers, they were the victims here. This shooter did not deserve compassion.

Fred Guttenberg, father of Jaime Guttenberg, 14, said: This jury failed our families today. This decision only makes it more likely that the next mass shooting will be attempted.

Debra Hixon, widow of the schools athletic director, Chris Hixon, 49, said of the shooter: He should give thanks to God that someone had grace and mercy for him that he did not share with those other people.

I hope that he understands the gift that hes been given. I doubt that he will.

Cruz, in a multicolored sweatshirt and gray pants, sat mostly expressionless through the hour-long hearing, occasionally removing his large-frame spectacles, and looking up once at a cry from the public gallery.

He pleaded guilty a year ago to 17 counts of murder, leaving the jury to decide only between a sentence of life imprisonment or the death penalty.

The shooting prompted student survivors to found the March for Our Lives gun safety advocacy group, and led to changes in Florida gun laws, including raising the minimum age for firearms purchases to 21.

The massacre affected the community deeply, and had significant recriminations. Two Stoneman Douglas students later killed themselves, one a close friend of one of the victims. The Broward county sheriff, Scott Israel, was removed by Floridas governor, Ron DeSantis, for perceived leadership failures.

Additionally, families of the victims and survivors reached a $127.5m settlement with the Department of Justice earlier this year after the FBI ignored warnings that Cruz intended to shoot up a school.
Hollywood & Vine is a buffet restaurant at Disney World. Jenna Clark

Hollywood & Vine is a buffet-style character-dining experience at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

In the fall, lunch and dinner are titled "Minnie's Halloween Dine" as part of a seasonal offering.

My party of two spent about $130 for our meal, but we received an annual-passholder discount.

Hollywood & Vine is located at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Hollywood Studios is one of the four parks at Disney World. Jenna Clark

Hollywood & Vine is a table-service restaurant located just a couple of yards inside the entrance of Hollywood Studios.

It's the only character-dining experience at the theme park, and it offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast is $42 for adults and $27 for kids (ages 3-9), and both lunch and dinner are $59 for adults and $38 for kids.

But it's important to note that breakfast is called "Disney Junior Play n' Dine" featuring Disney Junior characters, whereas lunch and dinner are referred to as "Minnie's Seasonal Dining" featuring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, and Goofy.

I opted to dine for lunch as I prefer the classic Disney characters and wanted to see them in their Halloween attire.

I was grateful to score a reservation, as it can be tricky.

Hollywood & Vine is very popular at Disney World, especially in fall and winter. Jenna Clark

Scoring a reservation for this character-dining experience wasn't an easy task. I checked the My Disney Experience app daily for about two weeks before a time slot appeared.

If this is a must-do, I'd recommend trying to make a reservation 60 days in advance, which is the earliest Disney allows.

Although Hollywood & Vine offers same-day walk-up services, you may have to wait a long time for a table  if there's even any availability at all.

We had to wait about 20 minutes before we were seated because we were running late.

There's a large waiting area outside with plenty of seating. Jenna Clark

Although my sister and I were 15 minutes late to our reservation, the host was still able to accommodate us. We also requested to be seated at a more spacious table.

We only had to wait 20 minutes, which I thought was a short time considering we were both late and made a special request.

One of the great things about this restaurant is that there's a large waiting area with several benches, which is helpful when people's feet may be hurting from walking around the park.

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The characters were dressed in their Halloween costumes.

I loved seeing the characters in their Halloween costumes. Jenna Clark

Hollywood & Vine's character-dining experience stands out in comparison to others because the characters wear seasonal outfits.

Since I dined here in October, the characters were wearing their festive Halloween costumes.

My favorite was Minnie Mouse's spider-witch costume, but Mickey Mouse's spider-vampire costume was a close second.

The character interactions were top-notch compared to other restaurants I've been to.

All of the characters were so animated. Jenna Clark

Whenever I attend a character-dining meal, I always hope for quality interactions that aren't rushed  because that isn't always the case.

But the experience I had at Hollywood & Vine was amazing.

We had stellar character interactions ranging anywhere from two to three minutes, which is a long time considering how many tables the characters have to get through.

Every character was open to taking multiple photos. They were also up for unique poses like sitting across from each other or hugging, which I was very happy and grateful for.

The characters also participated in a Halloween dance approximately every half hour. They made their way around the restaurant and danced through the tables, which was fun to see.

Each diner was gifted with a keepsake autograph card signed by all of the characters.

The card was like a little souvenir. Jenna Clark

Although the characters weren't able to sign autograph books, we all got a card containing the characters' signatures.

I thought this was wonderful because it made it easier for those who may have forgotten their autograph book (like myself) or simply don't have one.

It also makes for a great memento.

The buffet had a wide range of options.

There were several hot dishes available at lunch. Jenna Clark

I was pleasantly surprised by how extensive and flavorful the buffet was.

The food tasted very fresh, and the dishes seemed to be very well-thought-out, which I appreciated considering how much I was paying.

My favorite was the roasted-mushroom farro risotto.

I liked the tofu and risotto. Jenna Clark

My favorite dishes at the buffet were the roasted-mushroom farro risotto, the seared salmon with beurre blanc, and the crispy tofu with Asian-inspired glaze.

There were options for all kinds of eaters.

There was a whole section of kid-friendly foods. Jenna Clark

I thought the buffet was inclusive as it included several plant-based dishes and a section of kid-friendly foods like tots and chicken nuggets.

Although the food options for lunch were plentiful, the dessert options were lacking.

The Mississippi mud pie was pretty good. Jenna Clark

Whenever I attend a character-dining experience at Disney (or any meal for that matter), I always save room for dessert.

I was slightly disappointed by the dessert portion of the buffet here, but I really enjoyed the Mississippi mud pie.

Aside from some ice cream, I didn't really think the dessert offerings were as kid-friendly as they could've been.

I didn't feel rushed at all throughout my experience.

We got to meet with all the characters twice. Jenna Clark

I sometimes feel rushed at Disney restaurants, especially those with characters, but that wasn't the case at Hollywood & Vine.

My party had the opportunity to see all the characters twice, which was really nice considering the cost of the experience.

Our server was very friendly, and he made sure we saw all of the characters and took as many photos as we wanted (which was a lot).

I appreciated that he took the initiative to make sure we were satisfied.

Hollywood & Vine is worth a try next time you're at Hollywood Studios.

I'm excited to go back to Hollywood & Vine. Jenna Clark

For two adults, with my 10% annual-passholder discount, the bill came out to $105.44. Once I added in the tip, it was $127.44.

Normally, I'd eat at a quick-service location at Disney World because they tend to be more affordable.

But if you're looking to treat yourself to a sit-down meal  or simply want to meet classic Disney characters in an air-conditioned environment without waiting in line  Hollywood & Vine is a great choice.

Read the original article on Insider
Oct. 12PALESTINE  Familiar circumstances face the Palestine Wildcats entering week four of district play as they search for their first district win when they take the field against the Jacksonville Indians Friday.

There are a few similarities between this year and the past couple of years under Head Coach Lance Angel. The biggest one hopefully coming in a fourth consecutive playoff berth. However, it's how those teams got to the playoffs.

For the third year, Palestine will seemingly face an uphill fight toward the playoffs. In 2020, the Wildcats began district 0-1 before winning four of their next five district games. In 2021, they responded to their 0-2 district start by winning three of their final district matchups.

They'll attempt to write a similar story this year after falling to 0-2 against Kilgore and Chapel Hill.

"This team knows where we're at," Angel said. "We've had plenty of time to put the Chapel Hill game behind us. The focus is on this week. It's the biggest game of the year because it's the game we got this week. That's been the attitude of our players."

It's a series that stretches back to 1913 between Jacksonville and Palestine. It was their first meeting and ended in a 13-13 tie. Jacksonville went on to win the next 42 of their 85 total meetings  three ending in a tie.

However, Palestine has now three of their last five meetings  including their 2021 non-district battle where they torched them 51-27. Jacksonville won in 2019 and 2018, while Palestine was able to secure wins over them in 2017 and 2016.

After winning just four games in the past three seasons combined, Jacksonville brought in Jason Holman to attempt to redirect the ship. Holman spent three seasons at Tatum before Jacksonville  going a combined 16-5 in his final two seasons and leading them to back-to-back playoff appearances.

Jacksonville sits 2-5 on the year and 1-2 in district with losses to Kilgore and Chapel Hill. Their lone win came in a 34-17 win over Athens.

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Seniors Ryan McCown, Jwaylon Kennedy and Devin McCuin have been the driving force behind their offense who is averaging 22.4 points per game. McCown has passed for 1,184 yards and 10 touchdowns this season, while Kennedy has rushed for 486 yards and a touchdown. McCuin has 520 yards receiving and four touchdowns on 33 receptions this year.

But the biggest task for Palestine will be putting two complete halves together. The Wildcats have outscored their opponents 88-58 in the first half. That state severely flips to them being outscored 105-22 in the second half.

Our players and coaches know right now the focus is coming out and playing four quarters," Angel said. "We've started games great, which Is a great sound. We have to come out in the third quarter and continue that. Our guys know that. It's not a big secret. It's not a magic pill we can take. It's a mentality thing. We have to learn how to regain momentum after we lose it."

Coach Angel is 3-1 against Jacksonville all-time while at Palestine. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. Friday at Wildcat Stadium.
Crime scene tape

An arrest has been made in connection to the murder of a Red Robin employee back in June.

Carlos Herrera, 23, was arrested on Wednesday following a nearly four-month long investigation into the murder of Joseph Doyle, according to court documents.

On background: Person found dead inside Red Robin near Talking Stick Resort near Scottsdale

Herrera entered the Red Robin near near Talking Stick Way and Pima Road before it opened on June 12 around 8:15 a.m. with the intent to rob the establishment, according to court documents.

Herrera had previously robbed that same store just a month earlier and returned with the same plan because it was "so easy" the first time, court documents state.

This time however, when Herrera tried to replicate his previous attempt, a fight ensued.

Court documents state that when Herrera pointed his handgun at Doyle, the two ended up in a struggle over the weapon. During the fight, Doyle gained control of the weapon but Herrera was able to overpower him and shot Doyle in the chest, killing him, according to court documents.

Police have yet to release a statement following the arrest of Herrera but court documents show that he was taken into custody at his home in Tempe.

Herrera has been booked into jail on $1 million bond and is facing charges of first degree premediated murder, attempted robbery with a deadly weapon, and attempted burglary.

Reach breaking news reporter Kye Graves at klgraves@gannett.com or on Twitter @kyegraves

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Police arrest man in connection to June murder of Red Robin employee
New Hampshire State Police are investigating a fiery crash that occurred in Andover Wednesday afternoon.

According to the NHSP, a preliminary investigation determined that a vehicle heading westbound on Route 11 crossed the center yellow line and collided head-on with a vehicle traveling the opposite way.

Although both vehicles caught fire immediately, onlookers were able to pull the three individuals involved from the engulfed cars.

Two of the people involved were transported to a nearby hospital via med-flight while another individual was transported via ambulance.

Route 11 was shut down in both directions for several hours as crash reconstruction teams surveyed the scene.

The State Police were assisted on scene by Andover Police Department and Fire as well as New Hampshire Department of Transportation, who assisted with road closures and clean up.

If anyone has any information about the crash, NHSP ask that you contact Trooper Kyle Cotnoir at 603-227-0089 or at Kyle.H.Cotnoir@dos.nh.gov.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

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The Jacksonville Sheriffs Office is investigating a reported undetermined death in the Moncrief area at Doeboy Street and Anderson Road.

JSO reports that around 4:00 p.m. officers arrived at the 6600 block of Doeboy Street to find a person lying on the sidewalk.

The person was described to be a man in his late 20s with at least one gunshot wound. The victim was declared dead at the scene.

The body has been taken to a medical examiner office for further review.

Reports of gunshots in the area at around 2:00 p.m. were noted but are not confirmed to be related to the crime scene.

JSO states there is no threat to the general public but advises all citizens to be aware of their surroundings such as locking car doors and doors to their property.

No suspect information has been provided at this time.

If you have any other information about this incident, please call the JSO non-emergency number (904) 630-0500 or Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.

This is an ongoing investigation and will be updated when new details arrive.

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OLEKSANDR SHUMILIN  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 11:20

Andrii Niebytov, the Chief of the National Police in Kyiv Oblast, has reported that kamikaze drones attacked the Makariv hromada (an administrative unit designating a town, village or several villages and their adjacent territories), west of the capital city Kyiv.

Source: Niebytov on Telegram

Quote from Niebytov: "Night drone attack by the occupiers on the Makariv hromada. The police and emergency services are working at the scene of the explosions. The SSU [Security Service of Ukraine] records the consequences of the enemy attack."

Previously: Oleksii Kuleba, the head of the Kyiv Oblast Military Administration, reported in the morning of 13 October that Russians had attacked Kyiv Oblast with kamikaze drones.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
Local police want a man for allegedly burglarizing local churches and other businesses.

Michael Armstrong, a.k.a. Zack, is wanted by the Millington Police Department (MPD) for six burglary warrants for breaking into local churches and businesses.

If you know where or see Armstrong, contact Millington Police at 901-495-1179 or call or text 528-CASH (2274) and leave your tip.

Download the FOX13 Memphis app to receive alerts from breaking news in your neighborhood.

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Drive around enough and youll likely catch sight of a video billboard flashing momentarily on Till. Its image of the actors playing Emmett Till and, more prominently and in color, Mamie Till-Mobley, hang in place for a few seconds before being replaced by something else.

An ad, like any other. Yet with Till, the here-and-gone implications feel different, and bittersweet. The movie isnt perfect, and some of it runs into conventional biopic trappings. But the best of it, in careful, watchful scenes you dont expect, delves deeply and authentically into human grief, and human resolve.

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The movie deserves to stay around, and to be seen  not because its nobly intentioned (it is) or infuriatingly pertinent (it is, given the sneak attack on Black voting rights, for starters). Its worth seeing because a distinctive and intuitive filmmaker, co-writer and director Chinonye Chukwu, made it, and because of Danielle Deadwylers portrayal of Mamie. Earlier this year Congress passed an anti-lynching bill bearing Emmett Tills name, making lynching a federal hate crime. Tills killers never paid the price for what they did. In movie terms, this means Mamies day in court cannot give an audience what it is used to getting: justice, neat and tidy.

Danielle Deadwyler, left, and Jalyn Hall in a scene from "Till." (Courtesy of Orion Pictures/AP)

Till spans the before, during and the after of the Emmett Till lynching, covering a few months in the activist awakening in an ordinary Chicago woman who became extraordinary. Chukwu wrote Till using elements of an earlier screenplay by her credited co-writers Michael Reilly and Keith Beauchamp. You know youre in sure directorial hands in the opening scene: With the Moonglows version of the Chess Records recording of Sincerely on the car radio, Mamie (Deadwyler) and Emmett (Jalyn Hall) sing along, make each other laugh, gaze out the window.

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Emmetts looking forward to his journey from Chicago to the Mississippi Delta, where the Tills cousins live. The camera stays on Mamie for a bit. Slowly her smile turns cooler, an undercurrent of worry in her eyes. She knows her bright, brash, fun-loving son will not be viewed kindly by the white establishment in the Jim Crow South. She fears the worst for him; we already know his fate.

But this moment in the car needs no underlining and director Chukwu knows it, too. Theres no cut to an editorializing close-up indicating her dread, no music cue to overstate the feeling. Its all Deadwyler, going through a series of subtly delineated feelings without words, and it feels authentically imagined and real.

Be small down there, she warns him later. He shrugs off the suggestion, turning it into a joke. Its akin to the line in August Wilsons The Piano Lesson, currently back on Broadway, when a mother reminds her 11-year-old daughter heading off to school: Dont act your color.

Once hes there, the beaten-down averted glances of his relatives, in the presence of every white person in the Mississippi town, make Emmett a vulnerable outlier. Buying candy at a white-run general store, he makes the mistake of wolf-whistling at the woman, Carolyn Bryant (Haley Bennett), working there. His future is sealed at that moment, and Emmetts Mississippi cousins know it.

The film takes us through Emmetts abduction, torture and murder. But in this recounting of the Emmett Till tragedy, it is Mamies process of unthinkable discovery and eventual, awakening activism that steers the story.

Quietly stunning scenes emerge throughout. In one, Mamie identifies the bloated, ravaged body of her son. The scene is not glossed over, nor treated as crude audience manipulation: We see just enough of what Mamie sees. In Deadwylers unerring hands, the shock, the tenderness and the tears burn clean and true.

Later in Till, on the witness stand with Tills killers on trial, Deadwyler centers an equally striking seven-minute close-up, in one sustained shot. Chukwu keeps the camera on Deadwyler as Mamie offers her testimony, her face a canvas of flickering realizations that these men will not suffer for their crimes. The movie is full of strong ensemble work, with Whoopi Goldberg (a producer on the project) low-key excellent as Emmetts grandmother; Tosin Cole, sturdy and effective as civil rights leader Medgar Evers; and many others. But Deadwyler is the through-line.

Till rushes a bit in the sections dramatizing Mamies transformation from relatively apolitical Chicagoan to an urgently engaged citizen of a wider world. The movie could use another 10 or 15 minutes to amplify that shift. Some of the scenes are more conventional than others. But Chukwu, whose previous drama, Clemency, worked similarly confident small miracles, has a gorgeous sense of focus, and sound (she loves silence juxtaposed against raw anguish). She knows the value of letting the audience go through trials of fire, moment to moment, with the people on screen.

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Till opens in multiplexes this week. Theaters have been struggling, for years now, faced with moviestaying vs. moviegoing audience habits that were shaky even before the pandemic. All I can tell you is this: Its more than movie enough to justify the theatrical experience.

Till  3.5 stars (out of four)

MPAA rating: PG-13 (for thematic content involving racism, strong disturbing images and racial slurs)

Running time: 2:10

How to watch: Premieres Thursday Oct. 13 in theaters

Michael Phillips is a Tribune critic.

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mjphillips@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @phillipstribune

Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.
The increase in violent crime in Portland, Oregon between 2020 and 2021 outpaced the rest of the United States, according to the latest FBI data.

The FBI released its latest figures last Wednesday, showing that violent crime in the U.S. more or less remained steady between 2020 and 2021.

OREGON GOP GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE SAYS VOTERS ARE 'DONE' WITH FAILED LEADERSHIP AND 'READY FOR A CHANGE'

A Portland, Ore., police officer scans the crowd while dispersing protesters, Aug. 21, 2020.

"Overall, the analysis shows violent and property crime remained consistent between 2020 and 2021. While the aggregate estimated violent crime volume decreased 1% for the nation from (1.32 million) in 2020 to (1.13 million) in 2021, the estimated number of murders increased from 22,000 in 2020 to 22,900 in 2021," the FBI said in a press release.

The FBI data, while not accounting for every jurisdiction in every state, indicated that violent crime shot up more than 38% in Portland, Oregon, from 3,148 violent crime incidents in 2020 to 4,374 in 2021.

PORTLAND JOGGER RAPIST SURVIVOR SLAMS OREGON OFFICIALS OVER OFFENDER'S RELEASE: THIS IS IRRESPONSIBLE

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Portlands homicide rates, however, remained far below their peak in the late 1980s.

Critical to note, the FBI data accounted for only around 62% of law enforcement agencies across the country that submitted data.

Still, the data comes as Republicans seek to make tackling crime a major campaign issue going into next months midterms.

Next month, Oregon voters will decide whether gubernatorial candidates Christine Drazan, a Republican, or Tina Kotek, a Democrat, will replace current Democratic Gov. Kate Brown. Should Drazan win, she would be the first Republican governor elected in Oregon in more than 40 years.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Fox News Digital reached out to the Portland Police Department and the Portland Police Association for comment.
Maryland firefighter Megan Warfield is wired to help others. So when the pregnant 30-year-old was a passenger involved in a multi-car collision earlier this month, she brushed aside her labor contractions to save a person trapped in their vehicle.

During an Oct. 13 appearance on TODAY, Warfield explained that she initially got out of her car to help direct traffic. But then she saw a car was overturned.

I started to climb in there with her, but then I was like, What are you doing? Youre nine months pregnant, Warfield told TODAY Parents. I ended up holding onto her to keep her in place because I wasnt sure of her injuries at the time.

It was also important that I keep her calm, Warfield added. It was a pretty traumatic event.

Firefighter Megan Warfield was nine months pregnant when she was involved in a multicar accident. She put her safety aside to help others. (Courtesy Megan Warfield)

Shortly after paramedics arrived to take over, Warfield, who had been on desk duty during her pregnancy, decided she should go to the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore to get herself checked out. The accident had induced labor and, unbeknownst to Warfield, had knocked her unborn baby into a traverse  or sideways  position.

I dont know how I did what I did because the cramping was so bad, Warfield said, when asked how she was able to get down on the ground and help. I mustve just been running on adrenaline.

Warfield and her boyfriend, Joshua Daugherty, welcomed a healthy little girl named Charlotte on Oct. 4, less than 24 hours after the crash. Charlotte joined siblings Ellie, 6, and Jameson, 5.

Fun fact: Daugherty, a paramedic, was one of the first responders on the scene.

Did you ever know that you're my hero? Warfield and her daughter Charlotte. (Courtesy Megan Warfield)

Baltimore County emergency medical service (EMS) units transported six patients to two local hospitals, according to Elise Armacost, director of public affairs for the Baltimore County Fire Department. All injuries were non life-threatening at the time of transport, and all but one of the patients was listed with minor injuries, Armacost said.

Fire Chief Joanne Rund commended Warfield's actions in an email to TODAY.

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We take pride in our dedicated Fire and EMS personnel. Not only do they give their all when they are on duty, but also when they are off duty," Rund wrote. "We congratulate FF Warfield and her family and appreciate her service.

The Bowleys Quarters Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department praised a selfless Warfield on its Facebook page.

Ignoring any chance she could be injured, Megan immediately exited her mangled vehicle and began providing care to a person trapped by their overturned car, the post reads in part. After all patients were evaluated, Megan agreed to an evaluation herself.

The department described Warfield as a "true public servant."

Warfield told TODAY she had been doing administrative work during her pregnancy and missed her old duties.

Ive been itching to get back out, she admitted. Its what I was meant to do.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
The sun set in late July on a summer of shocking revelations about the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and nearly three months later, America is poised to learn more about the riot and the efforts that led to it.

Members of the House Committee investigating the attack are scheduled to resume testimony Thursday after pausing the initial round of hearings in late July.

The first hearing captivated its audience with revelatory information about former President Donald Trump's involvement in the lead up to the attack.

And tensions ran high during the summer's eighth and final hearing, held during prime-time on July 21, where the committee laid out Trump's choice not to act during the 187 minutes between his speech at the Ellipse and his video telling supporters to go home.

In between, committee members heard testimony about the pressure put on officials felt to challenge election results, the lawmakers and extremist organizations involved and how Trump and some of his closest advisors responded on that day.

Here's what we've learned so far in eight congressional hearings on the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.

Minute by minute: On Jan. 6, Trump was out of public view as aides urged him to act. A breakdown of those 187 minutes.

A 'sprawling, multistep conspiracy'

During the first Jan. 6 committee hearing, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., laid out a roadmap for the hearings to come.

Members of the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack argued the attack was "not a spontaneous riot," but the result of a broader conspiracy.

"Donald Trump oversaw and coordinated a sophisticated seven-part plan to overturn the presidential election and prevent the transfer of presidential power," Cheney said during the first hearing.

Trump's own advisers and family members didn't believe in his efforts to overturn the election. The rift caused by that became apparent during the Jan. 6 attack, when the former president ignored pleas by his top aides and staff to call off the rioters, according to committee members.

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What we learned from Capitol Police

Officers from the U.S. Capitol Police and D.C. Metropolitan Police forces attended the first Jan. 6 hearing, at which Capitol Police officer Caroline Edwards gave testimony to the committee about the Capitol attack.

Edwards, who held back rioters from the Capitol on Jan. 6, painted a harrowing picture of the violence that unfolded on Jan. 6, 2021, describing it as akin to "something I had seen out of the movies." "I couldnt believe my eyes," Edwards said. "There were officers on the ground. They were bleeding. They were throwing up ... I saw friends with blood all over their faces. I was slipping in peoples blood. I was catching people as they fell. It was carnage. It was chaos.

One officer whose condition stood out to Edwards in particular was Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick. Sicknick died on Jan. 7, the day after the attack of what was ruled natural causes from strokes . Edwards told the committee that Sicknick turned ghostly white after being sprayed with chemicals while clashing with rioters.

Capitol Police and D.C. Metro Police officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6 were frequent attendees of the Jan. 6 hearings. U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges, U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell and D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone all made appearances, plus Erin Smith, Serena Liebengood and Sandra Garza  all widows of officers who died in the aftermath of Jan. 6.

Day 1 hearing: Tears, tissues, T-shirts: What it was like in the room during the Jan. 6 committee hearing

Trump knew he lost the election

Trump launched a disinformation campaign about the results of the 2020 election, despite knowing he lost the race, and financially benefitted from it, the committee argued in the second hearing.

In the second hearing, the Jan. 6 committee revealed evidence that proved Trump knew he lost the 2020 election but continued a disinformation campaign about the results regardless.

Cheney said that the former president "knew before the election" that mail ballots  crucial in battleground states Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin  would favor Biden. Testimony from Trump allies, like former Attorney General Bill Barr, revealed that Trump's advisers told him that his election fraud claims were baseless, and that he ignored them. "All the early claims that I understood were completely bogus and silly and usually based on complete misinformation," Barr said in a videotaped deposition.

Committee members argued that Trump raised $250 million from campaign donors to continue fighting the results of the 2020 election, despite knowing his claims were false. But that money didn't go toward supporting litigation.

Day 2 hearing: Trump ignored aides and evidence he lost, panel says he ripped off donors

Pressuring Pence

Trump and his allies initiated a pressure campaign against former Vice President Mike Pence in hopes that he would assist them in overturning election results in several states, the committee argued in the third hearing.

Evidence revealed in the third Jan. 6 hearing showed a concerted effort by Trump and his allies to use slates of fake electors in battleground states to overturn the 2020 election. The plan, based on a debunked legal theory, relied on key states to find Trump-supporting electors and on Pence to toss out the real electors.

Trump was informed that the "scheme" was unconstitutional before Jan. 6 and went through with it anyways, testimony to the committee revealed. Greg Jacob, a lawyer and former chief legal counsel for Pence, said "it is unambiguous that the vice president does not have the authority to reject electors."

Retired conservative Judge Michael Luttig, who advised Pence on his actions, told the committee that "there was no basis in the Constitution or laws of the United States at all with the theory espoused by Mr. Eastman. At all. None." Pence relayed that to Trump many times and very consistently, Marc Short, Pence's chief of staff, said in a videotaped deposition.

The committee showed evidence in the seventh Jan. 6 hearing that revealed Trump incited his supporters against Pence. Trump instructed a speechwriter to "REINSERT THE MIKE PENCE LINES" in an email, sent after the former president called Pence a "wimp" for refusing to comply with the electors scheme. While ransacking the Capitol, rioters sought out Pence.

Day 3 hearing:Trump called Pence a 'wimp' as VP resisted 'pressure campaign' to overturn election

Pressuring state officials

State officials also faced heat from Trump and his supporters, the committee revealed in the fourth Jan. 6 hearing. The president pressured numerous officials in several key states to help overturn the election results in their states to favor the former president.

In the fourth Jan. 6 hearing, state election officials described the threats they received after Trump pressured them to help overturn the 2020 election results. Shaye Moss, a registration official in Fulton County, Georgia, described receiving social media attacks and death threats that turned her life upside down. I havent been anywhere at all. I gained about 60 pounds. I dont do nothing anymore, I dont want to go anywhere. I second-guess everything that I do, Moss told the committee. Its affected my life in a major way. Every way. All because of lies.

Republican officials from Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania recounted a pressure campaign by Trump and his allies to flip the results from states supporting Biden, including directing thousands of supporters to direct calls toward their offices and homes.

Pennsylvania House Speaker Bryan Cutler's phone number ended up online, causing their phone to ring at all hours of the night; they had to disconnect it. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Trump's followers broke into his daughter-in-law's home. And Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers testified that protesters outside his home played videos and blared claims over loudspeakers that he was corrupt and a pedophile. The state officials testified that Trump's election fraud claims are untrue.

Day 4 hearing: Trump's false claims led to threats that turned lives 'upside down'

Pressuring the Justice Department

Justice Department officials weren't left out of the former president's efforts to overturn the election, according to testimony and evidence revealed in the fifth hearing.

The fifth Jan. 6 hearing focused on Trump's attempts to pressure the Justice Department into advancing his false election fraud claims. Jeffrey Rosen, former acting attorney general, testified to the Jan. 6 committee that Trump called or met with him and Richard Donoghue, the former acting deputy attorney general, on Dec. 15, 2020, and almost every day after he started in the post, from Dec. 23 to Jan. 3, 2021. Donoghue testified that the theme of the meetings was the same: "Just say it was corrupt and leave the rest to me and the Republican congressmen."

The former president suggested replacing Rosen with Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Clark, who drafted a letter urging officials in six states won by Biden to submit a different group of electors who supported Trump. Other administration lawyers rejected the idea as asinine and potentially criminal. Trump relented only after Donoghue and other top Justice Department and White House lawyers threatened to resign in protest.

Rosen testified that during the Capitol attack and after he was on the phone more or less nonstop with top administration officials and leaders in Congress  but not Trump. Rosen spoke to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif; House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif; Vice President Mike Pence, twice; and other lawmakers during the dire situation, he said.

Day 5 hearing: 'Just say it was corrupt,' Trump told DOJ officials about 2020 election

Lawmakers helped Trump

Trump didn't act alone, according to testimony and evidence from the fourth and fifth hearings. A number of federal lawmakers also made efforts to help overturn the 2020 election results and preemptively asked the former president for pardons.

Testimony in hearings four and five revealed that federal lawmakers helped Trump in his efforts to overturn the election. Bowers, the Arizona House speaker, told the committee that Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., called him on Nov. 30  the day Arizona was scheduled to award electoral votes to Biden  to ask Bowers to decertify the official electors. I said I would not, Bowers told the committee.

The committee showed text messages from a staffer for Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., that said the senator wanted to hand-deliver fake electors from Michigan and Wisconsin to Pence, just minutes before a joint session of Congress began counting the electoral votes Jan. 6, 2021. Chris Hodgson, a Pence aide, told Johnson's aide not to give Pence the alternate slate.

Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, told the committee that a number of Republican lawmakers sought pardons from the White House after the Capitol riot. Those lawmakers were Reps. Biggs, Mo Brooks of Alabama, Matt Gaetz of Florida, Louie Gohmert of Texas and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, she said.

Jan. 6 witnesses: Ketchup, regrets, blood and anger: A guide to the Jan. 6 hearings' witnesses and testimony

Trump knew Jan. 6 violence was likely

The violence that unfolded on Jan. 6, 2021, didn't come out of nowhere, testimony and evidence from the Jan. 6 committee's sixth hearing determined. Trump knew that some people in the crowd had weapons and encouraged staffers to let them in regardless.

The morning of Jan. 6, police reported seeing men armed with AR-15-style rifles and Glock-style pistols walking near the Ellipse, the committee said. Hutchinson, Meadows' former aide and the star witness of the Jan. 6 committee's explosive sixth hearing, testified that she overheard Trump tell staffers that he didn't care whether people had weapons because "they're not here to hurt me." He urged staffers to "let the people in" and remove the metal detectors slowing down the crowd.

In a taped deposition, Hutchinson recalled hearing the words "Oath Keepers" and "Proud Boys" when Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani was around closer to the planning of the Jan. 6 rally.

Giuliani told Hutchinson on Jan. 2, 2021, that Trump planned to go to the Capitol. White House counsel Pat Cipollone warned Hutchinson that Trump could be charged with inciting a riot. "Please make sure we dont go up to the Capitol, Cassidy, Hutchinson said Cipollone told her on Jan. 6. Keep in touch with me. Were going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we make that movement happen.

Day 6 hearing: An angry Trump pushed to go to Capitol, counsel warned of 'every crime imaginable'

Trump's tantrums

Throughout his time in office, and leading up to and on Jan. 6, the former president threw fits when things didn't go his way, according to testimony from the sixth hearing.

Hutchinson told the committee that Trump acted erratically several times on and leading up to Jan. 6. She said that Anthony Ornato, who served as deputy chief of staff for operations, told her that Trump, sitting in the back of his car, reached forward to grab the steering wheel on Jan. 6 in frustration that he wasnt being taken to the Capitol. "The president said something to the effect of: I am the f---ing president. Take me up to the Capitol now,'" Hutchinson quoted Ornato as telling her. In the eighth hearing, two separate witnesses, including a protected witness, confirmed to the committee that there was a heated discussion in Trumps motorcade during the Jan. 6 riot.

After reading an interview published in the Associated Press on Dec. 1, 2020, in which former Attorney General Bill Barr said he found no evidence of widespread voter fraud, Trump was furious, Hutchinson said. She said she saw a broken porcelain plate and ketchup dripping down the wall in the White House dining room. 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, Hutchinson said.

Trump through several other tantrums during his time in office, according to Hutchinson. There were several times throughout my tenure with the chief of staff that I was aware of either him throwing dishes or flipping the tablecloth to let all the contents of the table go onto the floor and likely break or go everywhere, she said.

Cassidy Hutchinson: Who is Cassidy Hutchinson, the former aide to Mark Meadows who testified about Jan. 6?

Meetings on election fraud claims raised tensions

A number of December 2020 meetings over Trump's election fraud claims resulted in high tensions in the White House, testimony and evidence revealed in the seventh Jan. 6 hearing revealed.

Testimony from the seventh Jan. 6 committee hearing revealed that Trumps personal lawyers, Giuliani and Sidney Powell, plus retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, verbally attacked staffers during a rowdy Oval Office meeting Dec. 18, 2020. Among those attacked was Cipollone, then-White House counsel. Giuliani used an epithet to accuse White House lawyers of lacking the courage to pursue the administrations election fraud allegations, while the lawyers hit back asking what evidence the outside advisors had for said fraud.

After the heated meeting, Giuliani had to be escorted out of the White House by Meadows, then-White House chief of staff. Hutchinson, the Meadows aide, took a picture of the moment. Raskin, one of the committee members, said the escort ensured Giuliani didnt wander back into the mansion.

Days earlier, during a luncheon at the Trump International Hotel on Dec. 16, 2020, two outside Trump advisors  Powell and Flynn  and others drafted an executive order to have the Defense Department seize voting machines, which they said contributed to fraud, according to the committee. The order would have also appointed Powell a special counsel to investigate election fraud. It was never implemented.

Day 7 hearing: Rioter regret, a push to seize voting machines, Trump called witness

Extremist organizations' involvement

Extremist groups like the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys mobilized and focused in on Jan. 6, 2021, after actions taken by the former president, testimony and evidence from the seventh hearing showed.

A Dec. 19, 2020, tweet from Trump told his supporters to travel to D.C. ("be there - will be wild") on Jan. 6. After that, extremist groups like the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, whose members have been charged with seditious conspiracy in the attack, joined forces to protest the election's results, according to evidence presented by the committee.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said in the seventh hearing that the former president's tweet created a "laser-like focus" on Jan. 6; before then, there was no plan or single day that his supporters planned to come to the nation's capital.

Following Trump's tweet, Twitter and far-right website posts focused violent rhetoric around that date. Users wrote about the tunnels under the Capitol complex, how to target Congress members and which ones, saying they were "ready to die for their beliefs."

A rioter's perspective

In testimony to the Jan. 6 committee, a rioter shared the reason he attended the rally and why he no longer believes Trump's false claims of election fraud. The rioter apologized to police officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6 after his testimony.

Stephen Ayres, an Ohioan who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, testified before the committee during the seventh hearing. He told the committee that he was "pretty hardcore" consuming misinformation about the election via social media and thought Trump would join protesters at the Capitol.

Ayres pled guilty to disruptive conduct in the Capitol on June 8. He said he lost his job and that the riot "changed my life and not for the good." But, he no longer believes Trump's false claims of election fraud and said that he might not have participated in the Capitol riot if he had known Trump's election fraud evidence was bunk, which "makes me mad, I was hanging onto every word he said.

After the hearing, Ayres apologized to Hodges of the D.C. Metropolitan Police and Gonell of the U.S. Capitol Police for his participation in the attack. Hodges told USA TODAY in an interview that he asked Ayres whether he was sorry for his participation in the riot, to which Ayres responded "yes." "I said I hope so." Hodges said. "Thats about all I can do right now.

187 minutes: A breakdown of the time Trump was out of view on Jan. 6 as aides urged him to act

Pence on Jan. 6

The former presidents actions from the White House directly endangered Pence at the Capitol, committee members argued in the eighth hearing. His detail feared for their lives as Trump continued to berate the former vice president.

A tweet from Trump at 2:26 p.m. saying that Pence didnt have the courage to do what should have been done caused the former vice president to be evacuated for a second time inside the Capitol as violence escalated. The committee showed surveillance footage of Pence and his security team returning to hiding inside the Capitol, coming within 40 feet of rioters.

As the attack was underway, Pences Secret Service detail feared for their lives, according to testimony and evidence revealed by the committee. Testimony from an anonymous White House security official to the committee described calls for Secret Service agents to say goodbye to family members. "For whatever the reason was on the ground, the VP detail thought that this was about to get very ugly, the anonymous official said, adding that the calls were so disturbing" that they didnt like talking about it.

Later on Jan. 6, 2021, Trump told a White House employee that Pence let him down during the riot. The former president said nothing about the attack.

Day 8 hearing: Trump 'chose not to act,' Sen. Hawley 'riled up' the crowd, then fled

Trump on Jan. 6

Testimony and evidence revealed in the eighth hearing gave insight into what the former president was doing on Jan. 6 as the Capitol was breached: nothing, the committee said.

As a mob of pro-Trump rioters sieged the Capitol, Trump was glued to the television in the White House dining room for almost three hours, watching Fox News. Cipollone, the former White House attorney, told the committee that several Trump advisers and family members asked the former president to make a strong statement condemning the attack but that he ignored their pleas. Sarah Matthews, a former Trump deputy press secretary who testified Thursday before the committee, said it would have taken "probably less than 60 seconds" for Trump to walk to the White House press briefing room to deliver remarks.

As the attack unfolded, the Pentagon called the White House to coordinate a response to the riot. Former Senior Advisor Eric Herschmann told Cipollone that Trump didnt want anything done, so Cipollone took the call himself, according to his video testimony played Thursday.

The riot gave Trump the delay in the vote certification he wanted, the committee argued. While in the White House dining room watching the attack unfold, Trump called multiple senators and encouraged them to delay the certification of electoral votes. The committee does not know which senators Trump called because those calls were not logged, Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., said in the hearing.

Contributing: Joey Garrison, Bart Jansen

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jan. 6 hearings: What we learned from this summer's testimony
FILE - This photo provided by the Bi-State Detention Center in Texarkana, Texas, shows Taylor Parker. Parker was convicted of capital murder, Monday, Oct. 3, 2022, for killing a pregnant woman to take her unborn baby (Bi-State Detention Center via AP, File)

Prosecutors in Texas asked for the death sentence from the jury on Wednesday for a woman who killed a pregnant woman and stole her unborn daughter from her womb.

The appeal came as the sentencing phase of Taylor Rene Parkers capital murder trial began on Wednesday for the murder of Reagan Simmons-Hancock and the theft of her unborn baby in 2020.

It was reported that the Bowie County jury in Texas found Parker guilty of capital murder after three weeks of testimony.

Prosecutor Kelley Crisp said 29-year-old Parker faked a pregnancy and lied to 21-year-old Simmons-Hancock and then killed her at the womans New Boston home on 9 October two years ago  all to get the infant she was carrying.

Simmons-Hancock was about seven-and-a-half months pregnant.

Defence attorney Jeff Harrelson said that Parker was mentally ill.

Parker was caught speeding by police shortly after the attack, telling the officer she had given birth by the side of the road and the baby was not breathing.

Investigators testified on the day of the killing that she had watched numerous videos on delivering and caring for babies, including one on the physical exam of an infant delivered at 35 weeks.

Parkers attorneys hope to persuade the jury to spare Parkers life and let her serve life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Defence attorney Jeff Harrelson said they would show that Parker was mentally ill. During the three-week trial, Mr Harrelson also argued that the kidnapping charge should be dismissed. This move would reduce Parkers capital murder charge to murder.

He told the jurors: You cant kidnap a person who has not been born alive.

However, prosecutors mentioned that medical experts had confirmed that the unborn girl had a heartbeat.

Assistant district attorney Kelly Crisp said: We have methodically laid out what she [Parker] did, why she did it, all the moving parts, and all the collateral damage. The best evidence the state of Texas has that baby was born alive.
By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Dozens of protesters demonstrated outside the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington D.C. on Thursday, expressing opposition to funding of fossil fuels and demanding urgent action to tackle climate change.

Some of the activists gathered on bicycles and called for support for nations affected by climate change.

They carried posters that said "World Bank of climate chaos", "stop funding fossil fuel," "People over profit" and "actions speak louder than words."

Ulric Erickson, a student and an activist, who was among the dozens of protesters on Thursday said: "These institutions are not what they claim to be."

"This is an urgent issue and these institutions should not fund the fossil fuel industry and projects which are harming the world," he told Reuters.

A group of protesters carried a banner just outside an entrance point that said: "Cancel debt for people & planet." Some demonstrators used noisemakers and air horns. The protests did not cause major disruptions to the meetings.

"The path to economic sovereignty for the global South is not through the predatory loans offered by the IMF/World Bank, but instead through reparations of all wealth and resources that have been stolen from countries through colonisation, illegal invasions, occupations, and extraction of oil, gas and coal," activist group Code Pink said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Thursday stressed that the World Bank, whose president, David Malpass, has been on the defensive about his views on climate change, must play a leadership role in the global transition to clean energy.

The White House condemned Malpass's comments last month after he declined to say he supported the scientific consensus on climate change, although he later apologized and reiterated his view that human activity contributes to climate change.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Stephen Coates)
ASTANA (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin used a speech to Asian leaders on Thursday to develop a theme that he has pressed more intensely as Russia's military fortunes have waned: that Moscow is fighting the West to establish a fairer world.

With Western economic sanctions also tightening, Putin has shifted his emphasis from fighting alleged "fascists" in Kyiv to confronting a "collective West" that is arming Ukraine with the supposed aim of expanding its influence at Russia's expense.

"The world is becoming truly multi-polar," Putin said. "And Asia, where new centres of power are emerging, plays a significant, if not key, role in it."

At a meeting of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in the Kazakh capital Astana, Putin described the West as a neo-colonial power bent on stunting the development of the rest of the world and exploiting poorer countries.

"Like many of our partners in Asia, we believe a revision is needed of the global financial system, which has for decades allowed the self-proclaimed so-called 'golden billion', who redirected all capital flows and technologies to themselves to live largely at others' expense," Putin said.

The members of the CICA have their own diverse agendas, however, and have also become more valuable to Russia as customers for the oil, gas and other commodities that it is finding hard to sell to the West.

The body includes several Central Asian ex-Soviet nations that regard Russia as their former colonial overlord - as well as China, India and some Arab and southeast Asian nations, which have benefited from close trading ties with the West and Japan.

Kazakh authorities this month rejected a demand from Russia that they expel Ukraine's ambassador, chiding Moscow for what they called an inappropriate tone between "equal strategic partners".

The phrase "golden billion" became popular in Russian political discourse in the 1990s as part of a theory positing that Western nations had conspired to exploit the resources of others, above all Russia, while keeping them poor and brainwashing their populations.

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The theory also supports Putin's avowed aim of restoring Russia's status of global power by opposing what he sees as a United States-led cabal.

Kyiv and the West deny any intention to threaten or diminish Russia, which they say is waging a war of imperialist aggression against Ukraine.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday described the war in Ukraine as part of a Russian "crusade" against liberal democracy.

(Reporting by Tamara Vaal; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Frank Jack Daniel)
By Susanna Twidale and Nora Buli

LONDON/OSLO (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin touted Turkey on Thursday as the best route for redirecting gas supplies to the European Union after Nord Stream pipeline leaks, while Western nations focused on efforts to cut energy consumption.

Putin told his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan that Turkey could act as a gas hub, having already suggested on Wednesday that Russia could reroute supplies intended for the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic Sea, which were damaged last month.

The mysterious pipeline blasts, blamed on sabotage by both Moscow and the West, has Europe on edge over energy security as it faces soaring prices since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The impact of steep cuts in supplies from Russia has been felt across the 27-nation EU and beyond, with gas prices almost 90% higher than a year ago and fears of shortages over the coming winter.

British households should reduce gas and electricity use where possible this winter to help cut costs and reduce the risk of power cuts, national energy regulator Ofgem said, after the government last week shied away from offering such advice.

"This is not only the most direct way of reducing our bills. It directly helps with security of supply, contributes to decarbonisation, and saves money for the public finances," said Ofgem Chief Executive Jonathan Brearley.

In Germany, there were signs that households and small and medium-sized businesses were heeding calls to cut energy usage as consumption last week fell below the average of previous years, helped by warmer weather.

Germans are being asked to make savings of at least 20% to get comfortably through the winter while other EU countries have agreed voluntary 15% reductions.

Concerns over winter supplies were heightened as workers at EDF's Bugey nuclear plant in eastern France resumed a strike over wages on Thursday, the latest in a series of stoppages to hit the French industry.

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SECURITY FEARS

In a sign of the state of high alert over energy security, Norwegian police said they had dealt with a threat made by telephone against the Nyhamna gas processing plant, one of Europe's largest energy export facilities. A suspect had been identified and was known to have made similar threats in the past, the police said.

Norway has become an increasingly important source of gas for the EU and Britain after Russia curtailed supplies.

Meanwhile, Poland said it had begun repairs to a pipeline carrying Russian oil to Germany and that it did not think Tuesday's leak, which curtailed flows to a German refinery that is a major fuel supplier to the capital Berlin, was sabotage.

At a meeting in Kazakhstan, President Putin said that increased cooperation on supplies with Turkey , which is not a member of the EU, could also help to regulate prices.

"Today, these prices are sky-high," he said. "We could easily regulate [them] at a normal market level, without any political overtones," he told Erdogan.

The EU is working on further measures to respond to the crisis, but Ireland's energy minister said he did not expect a price cap on gas for power generation to be agreed next week.

"I wouldn't rule it out but not immediately because there are huge potential adverse consequences and I don't think there will be agreement on that next week," Eamon Ryan told the Newstalk radio station.

(Additional reporting by Gwladys Fouche in Oslo, Marek Strzelecki in Warsaw, Forrest Crellin and Caroline Pailliez in Paris, Rachel More in Berlin and Padraic Halpin in Dublin; Writing by Keith Weir; Editing by Alexander Smith and Gareth Jones)
A rare protest calling for Chinese President Xi Jinpings overthrow was staged in the countrys capital Thursday, days before the start of the Communist Party congress, which is expected to cement his rule for an unprecedented third term.

As plumes of black smoke rose from the Sitong Bridge in Beijings northwest, white banners hung off the flyover with red writing criticizing Xi and his governments strict zero Covid policy, pictures and videos posted to Twitter and verified by NBC News showed.

One banner called Xi a dictator and traitor of the country and demanded his removal. It also called for strikes.

Smoke rises from the Sitong bridge in Beijing during anti-government protests on Oct. 13, 2022.

A second said, No more PCR tests, we want to eat; No more lockdowns, we want freedom, alluding to the policy that Chinese officials say has kept coronavirus cases and deaths far lower than in other countries and is necessary to prevent the health care system from being overwhelmed.

Critics say lockdowns, which have affected tens of millions of people, have harmed the worlds second-largest economy and made travel uncertain. Small protests and confrontations with authorities have taken place in the past, in several cities where lockdowns have been enforced.

No more leaders, we want votes; No more lies, we want dignity, were among other demands on that banner.

Dont be slaves, be citizens, a third said.

Image: (Dake Kang / AP)

Separate video footage posted to Twitter and verified by NBC News showed firefighters arriving at the scene where they removed the banners and extinguished what appeared to be burning boxes.

District authorities in Haidian, where the Sitong Bridge is, said they were not aware of the incident when called by NBC News.

Dozens of police milled about the area, entering stores and at times stopping and questioning pedestrians, according to The Associated Press.

It was unclear who might have hung the banners or when they were placed, but public dissent is rare in China, where rights groups have in recent years warned about the arbitrary detention of human rights activists, lawyers and journalists.

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Posts containing the hashtags Beijing or Haidian were quickly blocked on Weibo, China's popular microblogging site similar to Twitter.

Others told the AP that their Twitter accounts had been temporarily disabled on another major Chinese platform, WeChat, after they shared photos of the incident. A song named Sitong Bridge, the name of the section of elevated roadway where the incident reportedly happened, was removed from online music platforms.

Security across Beijing is extremely tight ahead of the ruling Communist Partys five-yearly congress, which is set to open Sunday.

Taking place mostly behind closed doors at the Great Hall of the People on the western side of Tiananmen Square in central Beijing, it typically lasts about a week.

Xi, who came to power in 2012, is expected to receive a third five-year term as party leader at the end of the congress, consolidating his place as the countrys most powerful leader in decades.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
A rare white wallaby living in the Warwickshire wilderness has reportedly died after being struck by a lorry.

Vets in Warwick said the marsupial had to be euthanised after being brought in with serious injuries earlier.

It is thought the wallaby was Colin - a well-known animal which made headlines after escaping from his pen in Solihull in 2013, although there has been speculation of more than one of them.

He was often sighted hopping through the Lapworth and Kenilworth areas.

White wallabies are so coloured due to a rare genetic mutation and are native to Bruny Island in Tasmania.

According to the RSPCA, the species was established in the wild in Britain as a result of escaping from captivity. They can survive in the wild for up to 15 years.

Warwickshire vets 608 Equine said the wallaby they believe to be Colin had to be put to sleep as a result of his injuries.

"We know Colin had a lot of fans in the local community and people will miss spotting him out and about," it said in a statement on Facebook.

It added that the wallaby's remains had been cremated and would be made available if there was a demand for a memorial service.

Colin sparked a police hunt after breaking free from the pen he shared with seven other wallabies almost 10 years ago.

Although he returned home independently, he had reportedly been roaming free for the past year.

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: newsonline.westmidlands@bbc.co.uk
Braden Abraham is the new artistic director of Writers Theatre in Glencoe. (Provided by Writers Theatre/HANDOUT)

Writers Theatre in Glencoe finally has hired a new artistic director: Braden Abraham, previously the artistic director of the Seattle Repertory Theatre.

Abraham, 46, replaces the co-founder of the theater, Michael Halberstam, who resigned in the summer of 2021 following allegations of harassment. Since then, the theater has been without a permanent artistic leader.

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Abraham, who will start his new job in February, has spent the last 20 years in various artistic posts at Seattles most prominent theater, serving for the last eight as artistic director. Seattle Reps annual budget has hovered around $15 million in recent years, more that twice the budget of Writers.

The hiring of the artistic director of the largest nonprofit theater in the Pacific Northwest by the downtown Glencoe company, which operates in a relatively new $34 million theater complex designed by Jeanne Gang, is likely to be seen nationally as a coup for the theater.

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The motivation for the move is not what I am leaving but what I am moving towards, said Abraham, in a telephone interview.

Writers is a theater that puts great acting and writing right at the center, he added, and Chicago artists and among my favorite collaborators.

Abraham, who was born in Oregon and grew up in Seattle, has not previously directed in Chicago although he has worked in Seattle with Chicago playwrights such as Rebecca Gilman and actors like Steppenwolfs Kevin Anderson. In Seattle, he was best known for developing and directing a bushel of new work over the years. He is married to actor Cheyenne Casebier.

Braden is a talented artist, an advocate for inclusivity, and has a strong vision for Writers future and for the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, said board chair Mary Pat Studdert in a statement. I very much look forward to the growth of Writers Theatre under Bradens artistic leadership.

Executive director Kate Lipuma, who will continue in her position, called Braden an engaging artist with a real vision for Writers Theatre.

Separately, Northwestern University announced the appointment of Alex Gemignani, 43, the son of the legendary musical director and conductor Paul Gemignani, as the head of its American Music Theatre Project.

Gemignani, who is married to the theater director Erin Ortman, already has moved to Evanston. He said that he hopes to be involved in other professional work in Chicago theater.

A well-known figure on Broadway, Alex Gemignani served as conductor for the Broadway revival of West Side Story and, memorably, appeared as King George in the original Chicago company of the musical Hamilton.

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Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.

cjones5@chicagotribune.com
A remote worker has gone viral after he shared a video showing the realities of working from home.

TikTok user Mr Brotein has more than 50,000 on the video-sharing platform, where he posts tips and relatable content about remote work. In one video  which has received 3.4 million views since it was posted on 29 September  he captured the uncomfortable moment when his manager invited him to a work meeting while he was secretly on a plane.

When youre working from home and your manager invites you to a meeting in 30 minutes, the text overlay read. In the clip, the TikToker is seen sitting in the airplane, with a pillow around his neck, about to take off. The video was also set to the song Ex-Factor by Lauryn Hill, with the lyrics How can I explain myself? playing in the background.

Wifi problems, he jokingly captioned the TikTok.

The relatable work-from-home moment prompted many users in the comments section to share similar stories of lying to their supervisor about their whereabouts.

This happened to me on the way to Hawaii so I didnt answer and it turns out they were laying me off in two weeks, one person shared.

Bahahahaha Ive been there, someone else said. Its like they can smell when youre not in office.

Another user wrote: This is going to be me next Tuesday, wish me luck.

Many people also took the opportunity to suggest tips and tricks for avoiding impromptu work meetings while traveling, without getting in trouble. Some users advised others to take a personal day during a scheduled flight, while others suggested filling a calendar with meetings for the duration of the flight.

This is why you always fill in your calendar with a few random length meetings during your flights, one person said. Always take personal or sick days on the flight days! another user wrote.

Others jokingly said that remote employee should tell their bosses that the internet is down or theyre having connectivity issues.

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INTERNET IS DOWN! Im traveling to a new location, one person advised.

Say you dont have internet service or electricity shortages, said someone else.

Put a background filter on, another person suggested.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, many companies have reverted to remote or hybrid schedules, which allows employees to do most of their work from home or in the office part-time. Last July, another remote worker went viral on TikTok after their manager similarly invited them to a previously unscheduled work meeting while they were on a flight to North Carolina.

The TikTok user, who goes by the name Roderick, filmed himself sitting in a seat on a plane and wrote: When you are working remote and your manager randomly adds a meeting to your calendar in 30 minutes. He ultimately revealed in the comments that he decided to leave his camera off for the meeting.
Finch Capital State of European FinTech Report 2022 finds raising funds by FinTechs is becoming more competitive and price sensitive, despite record levels of undeployed investment capital.

Amsterdam, Netherlands --News Direct-- Finch Capital

In its latest State of European FinTech report, fintech venture capital firm Finch Capital forecasts a period of cooling and consolidation across the FinTech sector, as macroeconomic conditions grow more challenging. However, an abundance of undeployed Growth Capital is cause for optimism for Founders and Talent to make a soft landing.

The European FinTech sector has seen significant growth in recent years with fintech funding volume having grown from around $6 billion in 2020, to around $19 billion in 2021. The total number of FinTech exits globally also peaked in 2021 at 966. Over the same period, FinTech investment globally topped US$210 billion, with crypto and blockchain businesses performing especially well.

Finch Capital's latest update on the European FinTech scene

In their 7th State of European FinTech report, the team at Finch Capital assessed four key trends in FinTech as proxies for the health of the sector. The team assessed: the number of new FinTechs founded; volume of funding; number of hires across the industry and the number and value of successful exits.

Investor Ecosystem is Retreating to 2018/2019 levels

Finch Capitals research reveals that, as economic conditions have become more uncertain over 2022, FinTech investment has slowed. The report shows that new business formation in the FinTech sector peaked in 2018 and, over the last year, has declined by 80%.

Since Q2 2022, Public Tech markets have come down back to 2019 levels after a strong rally since 2020, the private markets are undergoing a similar but slower transition to 2019 valuation levels, wiping out the 200-300% growth in valuations during 2020-2021.

This decline has coincided with a 70% drop in IPO and large venture M&As exit windows dry up as well as venture funding with megarounds in particular having declined in equal measure.

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In 2021, the top 20 funding rounds in Europe accounted for 50% of the market. Across the investment ecosystem, there has been a 25% decline in funds raised by FinTechs, with like any previous cycle corporate investors retreating in the face of macroeconomic uncertainty.

Caution in the FinTech market is also highlighted by a decline in recruitment, with new hire growth down 50%. Europe accounts for only 10% of total reported fintech layoffs globally, despite receiving 25% of global FinTech funding.

Report co-author: Radboud Vlaar, Managing Partner at Finch Capital

Cause for Optimism: A Soft Landing for the strongest FinTechs

Nevertheless, the sector is still hiring, with around 10% of FinTech firms currently advertising vacancies. Demonstrating a shift towards a less-well funded and more competitive landscape, existing vacancies are becoming more focused on revenue generation (such as sales roles), and less on technical skills such as engineering.

Dry powder is at an all-time high with $28bn of undeployed capital among Fintech investors and it is a function of when and at what terms it gets deployed as opposed to if. First signs are that these levels of dry powder are not sustainable with a 40% decline in new funds raised in 2022 vs 2021. As a result, funding is not going to dry up short term for the better companies who show healthy unit economics, opportunity and potential for growth providing opportunity for a soft landing.

Commenting on the findings Radboud Vlaar, Managing Partner at Finch Capital, said: After many years of impressive growth, perhaps overheated, there is no doubt that a worsening macroeconomic situation and tightening money supply are weighing on the FinTech sector. This doesnt mean that funding has dried up, simply that investors are becoming more discerning and price sensitive. In fact, our research indicates that dry powder is at an all-time high, with $28bn of undeployed capital among Fintech investors.

With investors becoming more cautious about where they put their money, and potentially overinvested start-ups struggling to exit, we are likely to see a period of consolidation in the FinTech space as many verticals are highly fragmented, creating a smaller but more sustainable ecosystem.

There was always an element of uncertainty around the long term sustainability of valuations for certain companies particularly at growth stages. This shake up, while painful, is also necessary. Consolidation and more competitive investment flows, combined with still significant levels of undeployed capital, will bring maturity to the FinTech sector. And, despite difficult near term prospects in the economy at large, a new normal level of activity will resume in FinTech over the next 12 to 18 months, with a focus on long term sustainability,"

About Finch Capital

Finch Capital is a European Thematic Growth Investor. We currently focus on 3 themes: Financial, Real Estate and Health technology. We back companies generating 2m+ in ARR by investing 5 to 10m initially and help them scale to 30m-50m revenues by building sustainable and capital efficient business models. Weve invested in 45 companies including Fourthline, Goodlord, Grab, Hiber, Twisto, AccountsIQ, ZOPA and Symmetrical.

Finch Capital consists of a team of 12 investment professionals with wide entrepreneurial experience (e.g. Funding Circle, Adyen), prior investment experience (e.g. Accel, Egeria) and industry backgrounds (e.g., Facebook, McKinsey), located across offices in Amsterdam and London. For more information see www.finchcapital.com

Contact Details

Bilal Mahmood

+44 7714 007257

b.mahmood@stockwoodstrategy.com

Company Website

https://www.finchcapital.com/

View source version on newsdirect.com: https://newsdirect.com/news/report-fintech-market-set-for-cooling-and-consolidation-as-macroeconomic-factors-bite-400671276
Stop AAPI Hate has released its new report highlighting how inflammatory language used by political figures and candidates could amplify anti-Asian scapegoating and hurt Asian communities ahead of the midterm elections.

In the report, titled The Blame Game: How Political Rhetoric Inflames Anti-Asian Scapegoating, the advocacy group shines a spotlight on how political rhetoric played a role in the rise of scapegoating that blamed Asians and Asian Americans for several issues, including COVID-19, national security and economic insecurity.

Analyzing the 2,255 incidents the group has recorded since March 19, 2020, Stop AAPI Hate noted that 96% of those cases had unfairly blamed Asians and Asian Americans for the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report noted that in 95 incidents (4%), the victims said they were blamed for national security reasons, such as being accused of acting as spies on behalf of the Chinese Community Party (CCP). In 15 incidents (1%) recorded by Stop AAPI Hate, the group said the victims were blamed for being economic threats, such as taking jobs away from Americans.

More from NextShark: GOP accuses Democratic house candidate Jay Chen of 'mocking' Korean American Rep. Michelle Steels accent

These incidents represent one in five (20%) of the 11,467 hate incidents targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) submitted to our reporting system, the group said.

Stop AAPI Hate, however, noted that the number of cases it had recorded was just the tip of the iceberg compared to a national survey that estimated at least three million AAPIs had experienced hate crime incidents between March 2021 and March 2022.

In every chapter of U.S. history, immigrants and people of color unfairly suffered blame for our nations economic problems and societal ills, Stop AAPI Hate wrote. Our nations leaders have time and again played into existing narrative frames that consolidate political support and public opinion against a common enemy.

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More from NextShark: Asian American women are not being promoted to executive management positions, study reveals

In its report, Stop AAPI Hate also highlighted some examples of political rhetoric that caused hurt in the community, including the Corona Big Book that the National Republican Senatorial Committee published in April 2020, in which it blamed China and the CCP for starting the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost two months after that, former President Donald Trump started using the terms kung flu and China virus when referring to COVID-19 during his campaign rallies  a move condemned by many, including former President Barack Obama  which also ignited a lawsuit while Trump was still in office.

Despite the harmful use of rhetoric, some people defended Trump amid the scandal, including former chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota, Jennifer Carnahan, and a group of comedians.

Trumps subsequent uses of the racist terms in his tweets resulted in an increase of anti-Asian sentiments by 174 times and around 8%, Stop AAPI Hate said. Some of the tweets the report noted also included slurs, such as ch*nk.

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Earlier this month, Trump called his former transportation secretary Elaine Chao Coco Chow in one of his recent attacks against Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on the social media platform Truth Social.

Following the publication of the report, several politicians and leaders have spoken out against anti-Asian rhetoric ahead of the midterm elections on Nov. 8.

Politicians must be careful with what they say, Rep. Grace Meng (D, NY-6) said. We ask this of politicians from all political parties.

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Rep. Judy Chu (D, CA-27) advised that the message we deliver must be one about American strength and increased opportunity, not one of fear and violence.

Weve seen how the rhetoric used about our communities, not just in relation to Covid-19 but also around economic competition with Asian countries, results in the harm and even murder of Asian-Americans here at home, Chu, the chair of the Asian Pacific American Caucus, added.

Theres no question that the relationship with the US and China is complex, and theres considerable tension, Cynthia Choi, co-executive director of civil rights group Chinese for Affirmative Action, said.

Were not attempting to dictate foreign policy. But what we are saying is, no matter what an elected [official] or candidates policies are toward China or any foreign country, they are responsible for their words and the harm that extreme inflammatory language causes.

Manjusha Kulkarni, executive director of the civic group AAPI Equity Alliance, said history should not repeat itself.

Over 250 years, weve seen the devastating violence and exclusionary policies brought on by scapegoating in the arenas of public health, national security and related to economic issues, Kulkarni said.

Featured Image via WFAA
KYIV, Ukraine  Boom! An explosion nearby. We turn to look, but the interview continues. Moments later an artillery shell whizzes overhead. Everybody hits the ground.

This type of artillery fire is an hourly occurrence along the Russian border, where we are reporting in the town of Kozacha Lopan.

Ukrainian soldiers sit on infantry fighting vehicles as they drive near Izyum, eastern Ukraine on Sept. 16, 2022.

UN CONDEMNS RUSSIA'S 'ATTEMPTED ILLEGAL ANNEXATION' OF FOUR UKRAINE REGIONS; ZELENSKYY, BIDEN APPLAUD VOTE

Still we need to move, in case more shells are coming. The team quickly jumps into our armored car. As we speed down the road, looking for a safer location, we shoot a quick update.

As we were interviewing the commander, we could hear an artillery shell whiz overhead, I say to the camera. So we got back in our cars, and were headed to a safer location.

At our next stop  more incoming fire. Two more shells whistle and explode nearby. Finally, we make it to a destroyed school farther out of town and the incoming stops.

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The heart-pounding experience highlights what Ukrainian soldiers deal with daily as they look to defend the northern border with Russia.

SENIOR NATO OFFICIAL: RUSSIAN NUCLEAR STRIKE WOULD LIKELY PROMPT 'PHYSICAL RESPONSE'

A Ukrainian flag waves in a residential area of the heavily damaged village of Dolyna in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine after the withdrawal of Russian troops on Sept. 24.

The Ukrainians launched a massive counteroffensive last month, retaking much of this territory, but battles continue. Further east, the fighting is even more intense.

The following day we visited the front lines in the eastern part of the Kharkiv region, going to a village that was liberated 48 hours prior. In the distance, constant artillery battles rage on.

At a destroyed Russian position, the body of a Russian soldier lay in the bushes.

Civilians wave and smile at Ukrainian soldiers as they drive by, but the moment is short-lived. These troops must head back out closer to the front and liberate more territory.

They are fighting for the very survival of their country. And despite the bloody and dangerous battles ahead, they have momentum and they plan to retake more land.

"Slava Ukraini!" one soldier says as we say goodbye. Translation: "Glory to Ukraine!"
With less than a month before the midterm election, the familiar pattern is playing out with liberal media exaggerations of the prospects of Democrat candidates and the usual October surprise attacks on Republican candidates.

Media coverage has made the term bombshell obsolescent and the term should be retired along with the lefts other favorite term, racist.

Regardless of how much hyperbole comes from the Democrats and their media propaganda arm, the outcome of this election will be decided on the issues of inflation and the economy, crime and immigration, and that is bad news for Democrats.

Dwight Weidman

The latest Rasmussen poll, as I am writing this, shows a Republican advantage of 47%-43% in congressional elections. In 2010, with a similar lead, Republicans gained 63 seats in the House and six seats in the Senate. In 1994, Republicans were actually behind the Democrats in most generic polls but ended up gaining 54 House seats and eight Senate seats.

In the Real Clear Politics (RCP) projections for the U.S. House of Representatives, Republicans start out with a majority of 220-180 seats over the Democrats when the solid and lean seats are counted, before any of the 35 tossup seats are decided. That means that the only real question is the size of the Republican majority. Since the House controls the purse strings of the nation, Republican control means that the reckless spending and other excesses of the Biden administration are over.

On the Senate side, it is closer, which explains why the Democrats seem to be concentrating their money and attention there. One troubling statistic for Democrats is that President Joe Bidens approval ratings in the key Senate swing states is under water by an average of 15%.

Despite some races being fluid at this point, the RCP projection for the new Senate is 52 Republicans to 48 Democrats, and if that holds, it will mean an end to the appointment of many leftist radicals to our court system and executive branch positions. The RCP projection already counts the Georgia Senate race as a hold for Democrats, so my Democratic friends shouldnt get their hopes up over the latest media hit on GOP Georgia candidate Herschel Walker.

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Republicans are also projected in the RCP averages to pick up two governorships, in Nevada and Wisconsin, giving them a 30-20 state advantage. Also, dont rule out the possibility of a few Republican upsets in states like Michigan, Minnesota or Oregon.

It doesnt look like local hero and Pennsylvania Republican governor candidate Doug Mastriano is going to be in the winners circle, despite our newly crowned local Republican Party leaders all salivating over the possibility of one of them replacing him in the state senate.

Sorry, guys, but your choice of Doug in the primary reminds me of a climactic scene from the movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," when the villain seeking the Holy Grail was told to choose from a roomful of chalices and, of course, he and his girlfriend choose the brightest and shiniest one.

And of course, when he drinks from it, he suffers an immediate gruesome demise. The old knight guarding the grail room remarked, He chose  poorly.

Lets assume for a moment that the projections hold firm and on Nov. 8, Americans decide to apply the brakes to this Biden and Democrat disaster we have and give the car keys back to the Republicans. What then?

Other than stopping the insanity that is wrecking America, what will Republicans do to reverse the slide? Obviously, without holding the White House or a veto-proof majority in Congress, there is little that can be done legislatively other than obstruct the Democrats actions, but a Republican Congress can and should set the table for a Republican president  Trump or DeSantis?  in 2024.

Should Congress hold hearings? Yes, and there are lots of things to hold hearings on: the Biden family scandals and the possibility of them creating a compromised president; the failure of our withdrawal from Afghanistan; the willful violation of U.S. law allowing millions of illegal immigrants into the country; and corruption in federal law enforcement.

I could go on, but these hearings need to lead to criminal referrals. In 2024, when Republicans gain control of the executive branch, a bunch of leftists need to go to jail.

Dwight Weidman is a resident of Greene Township and is a graduate of Shepherd University. He is retired from the United States Department of Defense, where his career included assignments In Europe, Asia, and Central America. He has been in leadership roles for the Republican Party in two states, most recently serving two terms as Chairman of the Franklin County Republican Party. Involved in web publishing since 1996, he is the publisher of The Franklin County Journal. He has been an Amateur Radio Operator since 1988, getting his first license in Germany, and is a past volunteer with both Navy and Army MARS, Military Auxiliary Radio Service, and is also an NRA-certified firearms instructor.

This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Republicans must make sure this election win will have consequences
(Bloomberg) -- Foreign companies including a handful from South Korea are turning to yen notes as investors seek to diversify into markets with lower volatility amid turbulence in global bonds.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Shinhan Bank sold a three-tranche yen social bond to Japanese investors on Friday, the first Samurai bond from a Korean issuer since January. Thermo Fischer Scientific Inc. is also doing a yen bond, adding to 1.7 trillion yen ($11.5 billion) of debt sold by firms outside Japan so far this year.

Korean borrowers are returning after shying away from Japanese currency bonds since 2019, selling bonds at a faster pace than global issuers, Bloomberg data show.

Fears of surging rates have heightened the importance of moving into markets that arent seeing such extreme fluctuations. A measure of volatility for Japan credit has declined over the past few months, in contrast with that on dollar bond spreads from Asian issuers, which doubled in the past year.

As rates are going up everywhere in the world, there is increasing willingness among investors to have some yen in their portfolios for the purpose of diversification, said Oliver Holt, head of DCM syndicate for Asia ex-Japan at Nomura Holdings Inc.

Despite pressure on the Bank of Japan to move away from its ultra-easy monetary policy and the yen plumbing fresh multi-decade lows, it may be hard for some buyers to pass up on Japanese currency debt from foreign issuers that typically pay wider spreads.

Investors appreciate the yield pick-up Korean borrowers offer versus domestic Japanese assets, Holt said.

Sales of yen bonds from Korean issuers have increased almost sixfold so far in 2022 from the year-earlier period, the data show. Thats compared with a 16% drop in yen offerings from companies globally, according to figures that include matured debt.

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Easing Tensions

An easing of political and trade tensions may make Japanese investors more receptive to bonds from its close Asian neighbor after a rocky few years.

Read: South Korea Offers Olive Branch to Japan on War-End Anniversary

Apart from the sale by Shinhan Bank, one of the biggest lenders in Korea, other issuers are in the market. The multi-tranche yen bond in international markets from US-based Thermo Fisher, which makes products related to the coronavirus, is its debut deal in the Japanese currency.

Export-Import Bank of Korea has spoken to some Japanese investors who may buy Samurai bonds if it were to tap that market, said Oh Jae-hoon, the Seoul-based director of foreign currency funding at the issuer. Thats after the state-owned lender, known as Kexim, sold yen bonds in the international markets last quarter.

Hyundai Capital Services Inc. also met investors in Japan last month after selling yen bonds in August.

(Adds details on Shinhan Banks bond sale in second paragraph.)

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2022 Bloomberg L.P.
RHOA alums Phaedra Parks and Porsha Williams were once thicker than thieves. Now fans are wondering if theyre even friends at all.

The Falling Out on RHOA

After 14 seasons, viewership for Real Housewives of Atlanta is starting to slow down. And unfortunately, viewership isnt the only thing thats down in the RHOA-verse.

During its ninth season, former besties Phaedra Parks and Porsha Williams got into it. And unfortunately, the two havent been the same ever since.

In a season 9 9 reunion episode, Williams revealed that Parks alleged that fellow RHOA cast member Kandi Burress told her that she and her husband wanted to coerce her into having sex by drugging her. But Parks later admitted that she didnt hear the rumor from Burruss after all  but instead, from an unnamed source.

Upon hearing the news, the other cast members rushed to comfort Williams, admonishing Parks for lying. But she fired back against the accusations, saying, I repeated it because I heard it, Parks explained. Something was brought to me. I just repeated it. I repeated what someone told me. Im not saying I didnt say it. Im saying I repeated it.

After a bit of back and forth, Parks eventually apologized for her actions. I shouldnt have repeated it  I screwed up, she said. Im sorry Porsha  I didnt know if it was true or not  If something would have happened to you, I would have been a bad friend.

And after nine seasons, Parks would later exit the show. And even though she kept the reason for her departure on the hush-hush, fans speculated it was due to her accusations against Burruss and her husband.

What We Know About Their Friendship Status Today

Ever since the former friends started feuding, fans have been wondering when  if ever  theyll make a comeback. Here is what we know about whether Phaedra Parks and Porsha Williams are friends again

They Talk

View this post on Instagram A post shared by PHAEDRA (@phaedraparks)

Over the summer, Phaedra Parks stopped by Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen to provide fans with an update on her relationship with her ex-husband, Apollo Nida. And of course, Porsha Williams became a topic of conversation.

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During their chit chat, host Andy Cohen asked Parks about her friendship with Williams. And to the surprise of their fans, Parks revealed that the two are actually still friendly with one another.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Author  (@porsha4real)

Yeah, actually, I talk to her, she said. You know shes getting married [to Simon Guobadia]. Congratulations, Porsha. So we dont talk a lot lot, but we definitely keep in touch.

But They Haven't Had *THE* Talk

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Author  (@porsha4real)

In an episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Porsha Williams revealed where she stands in her friendship with Phaedra Parks. She shares what went down after the cameras stopped rolling.

Ive gotten an apology at the reunion, and then shortly after that we chatted for a bit [and] I got an apology. But we havent had a full conversation about the situation. I think just over time, weve let it go.

But even though the two are not as close as they once were, Williams admits to being okay with their new friendship status.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by PHAEDRA (@phaedraparks)

You know, we still chat here and there. [Its] just, How you doing? How are the kids? Hows PJ? But we havent been able to have that full sit down, which is fine, she said. Im good with it.

Phaedra Parks Could Make a 'Real Housewives' Comeback

View this post on Instagram A post shared by PHAEDRA (@phaedraparks)

Phaedra Parks is pretty sure that she isnt returning to RHOA. But according to her, that doesnt mean she wont consider other Real Housewives shows.

Parks has already appeared in an episode of Real Housewives of Dubai. And in a chit-chat with People, she shares that the experience was worth exploring further.

Youve got to run with people who are obviously running with the same purpose and destination, she said of the Dubai cast. If you get out of the miry clay, honey, you got to stay out of the miry clay.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Author  (@porsha4real)

And regarding her plans to join the show, she says, Now that, is a possibility. That is a strong possibility.

But Probably Not on 'RHOA'

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Author  (@porsha4real)

Parks exited the Real Housewives of Atlanta series after its ninth season, with fans speculating that the accusations she made were the reason why. But Parks has kept pretty tight-lipped about her exit. Instead, the RHOA alum is keeping busy with other projects, including donating more than $100K worth of sneakers to children in need.

But recently, Parks attended an RHOA premiere party where she chatted with People about whether she planned to return to the show.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by PHAEDRA (@phaedraparks)

You know, you can never say never. She said, before noting its declining viewership. I dont really have any thoughts on [the show now], she said. I dont think many people are watching.
Enock Mwepu has been forced to retire after he was diagnosed with a heart condition (John Walton/PA) (PA Wire)

Brighton and Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi has told Enock Mwepu he is ready to help him after the midfielder was forced to retire early with a hereditary heart problem.

The Zambia international, 24, was told by club doctors earlier this week that he would risk his life if he did not call time on his career.

Mwepu joined the Seagulls from RB Salzburg in July 2021, signing a four-year deal, and scored two goals across 18 Premier League appearances last campaign. He has featured in six of Brightons matches so far this season.

De Zerbi, who will take charge of his third game in charge of the Seagulls for Friday nights fixture at Brentford, said: I dont want to speak about money.

I want to speak about the human problem, and I am very sorry for him and his family.

I wrote a message, to him, two or three days ago, and I said I am always ready to listen to what Enoch wants to be and what he wants to do. I am ready to help him.

Mwepu was taken ill on a flight to meet up with his Zambia team-mates for the recent international break.

He spent time in a Malian hospital then flew back to Brighton, where tests revealed his heart condition.

Speaking to BBC Sport, former Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba said Mwepu is right to be aggrieved at having to call time on his playing days.

Muamba, 34, who suffered a cardiac arrest while playing for Bolton 10 years ago, said: Hes allowed to feel like his career has been taken away from him at such a young age.

At the same time, his loved ones need him around now. It would have been a lot worse if something bad had happened to him during a game of football.

Aside from Mwepus sudden retirement, De Zerbi revealed he has no fresh injury concerns ahead of his sides trip to face the Bees.

De Zerbi, who has overseen a 3-3 draw and 1-0 home defeat against Tottenham since replacing Graham Potter, added: If you are fighting in the Premier League, you have to know that all games can be very difficult and you have to be ready to fight every opponent.

We can suffer against Brentford because they are a good team. But we can play our football and they can suffer as well with our skill, ability and style of play.

The last result (against Tottenham) was not fair and now we have the possibility to win the next game.
The remains of the Iranian Shahed-136 drone, found after the strike on Kharkiv, October 6, 2022

Read also: Ukrainian Army repels several enemy attacks in past day, says General Staff

Meanwhile, Russian propaganda intensifies its efforts to falsely portray Ukraine as a "terrorist state," the ISW report reads.

The ISW says the Iranians that were supposedly brought to Ukraine are "Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-affiliated personnel"  elite paramilitary units that are a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces.

In particular, The IRGC is the primary operator of Irans drone inventory, so these Iranian instructors are likely IRGC or IRGC-affiliated personnel.

Read also: Britain to donate air defense missiles to Ukraine  Wallace

The National Resistance Center of Ukraine reported on Oct. 12 that Russia had brought an unknown number of Iranian instructors to Dzhankoy (in Ukraines Russian-occupied Crimea), and Zalizniy Port and Hladivtsi (Kherson Oblast) to train Russians how to use Shahed-136 kamikaze drones.

The instructors directly oversee the launch of drones on Ukrainian civilian targets, including strikes on Mykolaiv and Odesa, the center suggested.

Also, in response to calls to declare Russia a terrorist state, Russian propaganda intensified an information operation to falsely portray Ukraine as a terrorist state, ISW notes.

Read also: 11 killed and 87 injured across the country in mass Russian missile attack, says DSNS

A substantial number of unverified claims serve as evidence of this, the institute said. For instance, Russians FSB federal security service claimed it had arrested Ukrainian citizens for allegedly planning terrorist attacks in Sverdlovsk, Moscow, and Bryansk oblasts.

Relatedly Russian milbloggers, who are the part of propaganda machine, amplified accusations of Ukraine as a terrorist state and calling for Russian authorities to enhance counterintelligence procedures and formally declare Ukraine to be a terrorist state.

The ISW describes three possible reasons for it:

Russia is attempting "to set information conditions to respond to Ukrainian attempts to formally designate Russia a terrorist state, especially in the wake of recent massive attacks on critical Ukrainian infrastructure and residential areas.

Russia "may also be setting conditions to justify further massive strikes on Ukrainian rear areas," ISW warned. Although, as it was assessed, these tactics are part of the Russian way of war and will likely be utilized regardless of informational conditions.

The third reason is in the wake of news about "terrorists attack prevention" in Russia, the authorities may also be setting conditions for false-flag attacks against Russia framed as Ukrainian-perpetrated acts of terrorism.

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Map of hostilities: offensive of the Armed Forces in the east and south, battles in Donbas



ISW

ISW

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
OLEKSANDR SHUMILIN  TUESDAY, 11 OCTOBER 2022, 11:39

As of 10 October, 32 Iranian-made Shahed-136 kamikaze drones have been delivered to Belarus.

Source: Chief Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine

Quote: "Iranian-made Shahed-136 kamikaze drones (renamed to Geran-2 in the Russian army) are arriving in Belarus. As of 10 October, 32 of these UAVs were delivered on the territory of the country, and 8 more are planned to be delivered by 14 October."

Details: The Chief Intelligence Directorate also reported that Belarus provides the occupying army with material and technical resources and ammunition from its warehouses. Specifically, a railway echelon with ammunition arrived at the Kirovsk railway station in Crimea; it consisted of 12 carriages/492 tonnes of cargo sent from the 43rd Missile and Ammunition Storage Arsenal of the Armed Forces of Belarus (Dobrush, Gomel region).

There are also plans to move 13 echelons with weapons and military equipment (219 platforms), ammunition (28 carriages) and military property from the arsenals and storage sites of the Armed Forces of Belarus in the near future.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, the cargo should arrive at the Kamensk (Kamensk-Shakhtinsky, Rostov Oblast, Russia) and Martsevo (Taganrog, Rostov Oblast) railway stations.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
The theme Beyond Borders, harnessing a trio of works for the Joffrey Ballets season opener, is not about physical borders. Rather, the creative voices making up the fall program are thought to be boundary-breakers  mavericks of dance, as Joffreys moniker says.

Beyond Borders opened Wednesday with works choreographed by Liam Scarlett, Chanel DaSilva and Gerald Arpino. The program continues through Oct. 23 at the Lyric Opera House.

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It is fitting that oneof Joffrey Ballets two original mavericks, co-founder Arpino, would be celebrated in a program aimed at breaking the mold. Moreover, this fall is Joffreys official kickoff to Arpinos centennial year. His Suite Saint-Saens, the evenings exquisite finale, is not the most outside-the-box dance in Arpinos catalog, but nevertheless is a glorious reminder of his choreographic genius.

A dwindling few who spent time with Mr. A remain in this company. Indeed, the newest members were in grammar school when he died in 2008. In a program note, artistic director Ashley Wheater recalls meeting Arpino while the latter set Suite Saint-Saens on the Australian Ballet in 1984. It was there that Arpino invited Wheater to join the company hed eventually lead. Rehearsal director Suzanne Lopez, a veteran Joffrey alum and one of the best stagers in the business, reconstructed Arpinos 1978 masterpiece with razor sharp precision after nearly 20 years in the vault. The piece reveals its age only by its ombre dance dresses, 70s color palette washed across the cyclorama  and several passes of hokey cheerleader runs. It is an otherwise evergreen tribute that withstands the test of time.

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Arpino painted the stage like few choreographers could, creating swirling patterns of runs, leaps and turns to carve a fervorous whirlwind around arresting solos, duets (including a terrifically-danced one by Victoria Jaiani and Dylan Gutierrez tucked into the third movement) and an intricate pas de trois for Anais Bueno, Jeraldine Mendoza and Edson Barbosa.

"Suite Saint-Saens" with Edson Barbosa, Jeraldine Mendoza and Anais Bueno, part of "Beyond Borders" by the Joffrey Ballet for fall 2022. (Cheryl Mann / HANDOUT)

Choreography aside, its up to the dancers to do it. Suite Saint-Saens requires near-perfect ensemble dancing, plus unabashed solo virtuosity from nearly all its 20 dancers. This is among ballets hardest tests, and they pass with flying colors.

British choreographer Scarletts 2013 Vespertine opens the evening, a piece first done by the Joffrey in 2019. It is repeated here as a posthumous tribute to Scarlett, who died in 2021 at age 35. The end of Scarletts life was plagued by turmoil and controversy, such that the catalog of this prolific and remarkable talent is unlikely to be broadly performed  and there is no one entrusted with staging it.

The bold move, then, is not about the ballet itself but the decision to present it. Vespertine was reconstructed by Joffreys rehearsal directors; its stunning sets are on loan from Atlanta Ballet (who debuted the ballet on this side of the pond five years ago). And it is a beautiful ballet.

Vespertine pays homage to the baroque era in several ways, most obviously in Scarletts choice of music. Living composer Bjarte Eike co-mingles with quintessential tunes by John Dowland, Arcangelo Corelli and Francesco Geminiani (reinforced by orchestrations that fold in a delightful dichotomy of electronic and baroque-era instruments). The dancing also plays in this quasi-antiquated sandbox. Overtly sensual, contemporary duets rub elbows with coquettish, bouncy partner dances and etiquette-laden bows and nods.

This juxtaposition is further echoed in the costumes (conceived by Scarlett): The casts burgundy corsets and long skirts or knickers and waist coats are more than once stripped to nearly naked, leaving them to dance only in flesh-toned underthings. By the end, several of the women have even traded their pointe shoes for soft slippers. Lighting by Michael Hulls plays a starring role. By turns, Hulls dimly illuminates Scarletts ethereal atmosphere with moon-tones or amber candlelight radiating from transparent bulbs hung above the stage in clusters like modern candelabras.

The message, I think, has something to do with the perception of decorum  and what we do when nobodys looking. How do we act when we are stripped down, defenseless and unfettered by obligation or expectation?

"Colorem" with the ensemble, part of "Beyond Borders" by the Joffrey Ballet for fall 2022. (Cheryl Mann / HANDOUT)

Colorem, a world premiere by Chanel DaSilva, is the modern meat in this classical sandwich, putting a bold, contemporary stamp on a program whose Beyond Borders mantra is otherwise subversive. From the Latin word for color, colorem divides a large ensemble into two squads with contrasting red or charcoal gray turtle-necked, gloved unitards and matching ballet slippers (conceived by DaSilva).

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The concept is taken directly from photographer Tim Tadders Nothing to See series of waifish models in monochromatic body paint posed as statuesque busts. Contrasting colored hands cover the subjects eyes, grab at their necks or clasp their shoulders. These images are clearly reenacted throughout colorem  the key difference, of course is DaSilvas medium requires more than a singular, static moment in time.

Colorem is therefore aesthetically striking (reinforced by dauntless lighting design from Nicole Pearce) but compositionally bizarre. Maybe its those awful unitards, but theres a vintage tint to DaSilvas movement invention that, were it not for the beefed-up production value, could be mistaken for a Merce Cunningham piece. She seems encumbered by strict adherence to both her inspiration and to Cristina Spineis original score. An exception: a gorgeous duet for Amanda Assucena and Xavier Nunez  one in gray and one in red such that Romeo and Juliet vibes creep in  after a surprising moment of onstage magic (no spoilers here). In this section, DaSilva liberates herself from the driving pulse dictating the first and third sections of the piece to explore her own rhythms, underscored by more Spineis more atmospheric timbres.

Lauren Warnecke is a freelance critic.

Review: Joffrey Ballets Beyond Borders (3.5 stars)

When: Through Oct. 23

Where: Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive

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Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes

Tickets: $36-$186 at 312-386-8905 and www.joffrey.org
Serhiy Nayev told how many Russian military personnel are in Belarus

He said Russia has placed six strike aircraft, four Iskander mobile short-range ballistic missile systems and 12 S-400 missile systems on Belarusian territory.

Nayev also said Belarusian military airfields and accommodation infrastructure for soldiers are being prepared to receive more troops from Russia.

Read also: NATO urges Lukashenko to stop supporting Russia's military actions against Ukraine

Earlier, Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko claimed he had agreed with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to deploy a regional military group on the border with Ukraine.

During his speech at the G7 summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed that UN peacekeepers be deployed on the Ukrainian border with Belarus to prevent possible provocations.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Reuters

Sensing that Russia has been weakened by its war in Ukraine, some of its closest allies in Central Asia are displaying a newly assertive streak. The region's five former Soviet republics are increasingly standing up to Moscow, aware of their new-found leverage as Russia looks to their markets and trade routes in a bid to circumvent Western sanctions. The new dynamic was strikingly illustrated when Russian President Vladimir Putin ran into a seven-minute tirade from the leader of Tajikistan, one of the region's smallest and poorest countries, at a summit in Kazakhstan last week.
The Russian military is deploying Iranian-made "kamikaze drones" to strike around the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv as it continues to ramp up attacks on civilian areas.

Russia has launched barrages of missiles, shells and other ordnance into Ukrainian cities in a campaign that started on Monday. Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed revenge for the bombing and partial destruction of the Kerch Bridge last week, which connects Russia to Crimea.

Russian authorities arrested 8 people in connection with the bridge attack on Tuesday, though Ukraine has denied any involvement in the operation.

The Iranian drones were seen packed with explosives before flying toward targets, though it is unclear whether they caused any casualties.

MULTIPLE EXPLOSIONS ROCK EASTERN UKRAINE CITY OF KHARKIV

Workers restore the railway tracks on the Kerch bridge that links Crimea to Russia, near Kerch, on October 9, 2022, a day after it was damaged by a blast. (AFP via Getty Images)

Russia unveiled its change in strategy with an hours-long bombardment of Kyiv and 15 other major Ukrainian cities on Monday. The attack left swaths of the capital without power, heating and water.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy decried the Russians as "terrorists" for the strike, which saw missiles landing on residential buildings, in parks and on children's playgrounds.

RUSSIA TO EVACUATE TOP SECURITY OFFICERS AND THEIR FAMILIES FROM OCCUPIED REGIONS IN UKRAINE: REPORT

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov condemned the attacks as war crimes and called on Western countries to supply more air-defense systems to Ukraine.

Germany and NATO have responded with a push to organize the purchase of additional air defense systems for Europe and its allies. Likely candidates are the Israeli Arrow 3 system, U.S. Patriot and German IRIS-T platforms, according to Reuters.

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Despite the barrage of missiles, Ukrainian forces are continuing to push Russian troops back from occupied territory. Much of the territory Putin claimed to annex in an elaborate ceremony last week is now under Ukrainian control.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
STANISLAV POHORILOV  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 19:10

Volodymyr Saldo, the Russian-appointed puppet governor of Kherson Oblast, has appealed to the Russian leadership, asking to help evacuate residents from the region. The Russian Federation said that it would provide "free accommodation" to all persons coming to Russia from Kherson Oblast.

Source: Saldo on Telegram; TASS

Quote from Saldo: "We have suggested that all residents of Kherson Oblast  if they wish to do so  leave for other regions in order to protect themselves from the consequences of missile strikes. In the first instance, [they should] aim to go to Crimea, to Rostov Oblast, Krasnodar Krai and Stavropol Krai, which are our neighbours. Take your children and evacuate."

Details: Saldo stated that families should evacuate from Kherson Oblast for Russia "for rest and study". He added that the occupying authorities have already started taking appropriate measures.

Saldo explained that he expected the Armed Forces of Ukraine to "take revenge" for the sham referendums [held on the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine  ed.], and expressed hope that his message would be heard, because "Russia does not abandon its people".

Updated at 19:00: Marat Khusnullin, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation said that all residents who leave Kherson Oblast for the Russian Federation will be provided with free accommodation and "everything necessary".

Background:

On 5 October, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed "the laws on admission" of the occupied territories of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts into the Russian Federation.

The Office of the President of Ukraine said that Putin's so-called "laws on admission" of Ukrainian oblasts into Russia were not worth the paper they are signed on, and that Ukraine would reclaim all its territories.

On 12 October, Yaroslav Yanushevych, Chairman of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration, said that the Ukrainian defenders had liberated 75 settlements in Kherson Oblast.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
(Reuters) - Russia's ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said early on Thursday he had visited Viktor Bout, the Russian arms dealer jailed in the United States and linked to a possible swap for two U.S. citizens imprisoned by Moscow.

"He really wants to return to his homeland, he yearns for his family, for his mother," Antonov said in a short video posted by the Russian embassy on the Telegram messaging app.

Variously dubbed "the merchant of death" and "the sanctions buster" for his ability to get around arms embargoes, Bout, 55, is serving a 25 year-prison sentence..

Washington has offered to exchange Bout for Brittney Griner, the U.S. basketball star jailed for nine years in Russia on drugs charges and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Paul Whelan. On Wednesday, the U.S. State Department said the United States had consular access to Griner since early August.

Russia's RIA state news agency reported that Antonov said that talks of a possible exchange of prisoners with the United States is going on "between specially trained people and specially trained services," bypassing the embassy.

Antonov, who spent an uninterrupted 1.5 hours with Bout, also said that Bout was ill some time ago, but not with the coronavirus and that all necessary medical assistance had been provided to him, RIA reported.

"He has no complaints. He really lacks normal communication. He said that he even began to forget some Russian words a bit, because there is no one to talk to," RIA cited Antonov as saying.

(Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Michael Perry)
ALONA MAZURENKO  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 17:06

Russian forces have once again struck a military target in Lviv Oblast during a missile strike on 13 October.

Source: Maksym Kozytskyi, Head of the Lviv Oblast Military Administration, on Telegram

Quote from Kozytskyi: "What we know so far: one of the military targets in Lviv Oblast has been struck. This is the second time this target has been hit. Military property has been destroyed, there are no casualties. The facility is situated in the Zolochiv district. Three missiles, the facility has been hit twice. Our air defence forces shot down one missile."

Details: Air defence was also activated in the Chernivtsi and Ternopil oblasts of Ukraine.

As of 15:30, an air-raid alarm has been activated in all of Ukraine. As of 17:00, an all-clear has been sounded in all oblasts of Ukraine.

Russia has continued to terrorise Ukraine with its missiles since 10 October. Russian forces launched hundreds of missiles and drone attacks on Ukraine between 10 and 13 October.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
OLENA ROSHCHINA  WEDNESDAY, 12 OCTOBER 2022, 19:16

Russian troops continue offensive operations on the Bakhmut and Avdiivka fronts, and the conscripts go to war armed with Soviet-style protective wear and AK-12 assault rifles, which have proven themselves ineffective on the battlefield in Ukraine.

Source: daily report by the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of 18:00 on Wednesday, 12 October

Details: After 230 days of the full-scale Russian invasion, the invaders are trying to hold the occupied territories, disrupt the intensive actions by the defence forces of Ukraine in certain areas and conduct offensive operations on the Bakhmut and Avdiivka fronts.

The Russian forces are firing at the positions of Ukrainian troops along the entire contact line, delivering engineering defence equipment in certain areas and conducting aerial reconnaissance.

On the Volyn and Polissia fronts, the situation remains unchanged. A comprehensive inspection of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus continues with the development of combat training tasks. There is still a threat of missile strikes and air raids, as well as the use of Shahed-136 UAVs, from the territory of Belarus.

On other fronts, the occupiers delivered attacks:

On the Sivershchyna front  from mortars and tubed artillery, in the areas of the settlements of Hai (Chernihiv Oblast) and Myropillia, Stukalivka, Seredyna-Buda, Rozhkovychi and Pavlivka (Sumy Oblast). The Russians also used attack UAVs;

on the Slobozhanshchyna front  from mortars, barrels and rocket artillery, near the settlements of Vovchansk, Strilecha and Udy. UAVs were used to adjust artillery fire;

on the Kramatorsk front  from tanks, mortars, tubed and rocket artillery along the entire contact line, specifically, in the areas of the settlements of Bilohorivka, Hrekivka, Zarichne, Serebrianka, Spirne, Terny and Torske. Russians have mined bridge crossings in these areas;

on the Bakhmut front, the invaders opened fire along the entire contact line  specifically, near the settlements of Bakhmut, Soledar, Maiorsk, Niu-York and Zalizne;

on the Avdiivka front  from tanks and artillery of various types, not far from Avdiivka, Vodiane, Nevelske, Pervomaiske, Oleksandropil, Novokalynove, Marinka, Prechystivka, Zolota Nyva and Tonenke.

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There were no offensive actions by Russian forces on the Novopavlivka and Zaporizhzhia fronts.

More than 20 settlements came under fire. Among them are Novosilka, Zaliznychne, Bilohiria, Vremivka, Malynivka, Neskuchne, Orikhiv, Charivne and Olhivske.

On the Pivdennyi Buh front, more than 40 settlements along the entire contact line were shelled. The invaders are trying to compensate for significant losses at the expense of newly mobilised citizens of the Russian Federation who have undergone accelerated training.

Quote: "Up to 500 mobilised servicemen from the 205th Separate Motorised Rifle Brigade of the 49th Combined Arms Army left for the combat zone to replenish enemy losses in the temporarily occupied territories. [These are the] typical features of the so-called young reinforcements: protective equipment, Soviet-style helmets and AK-12 assault rifles, which have had poor performance.

The AK-12 was created by the Kalashnikov Concern and presented to the public in January 2012. It was a fundamentally new weapon, but it implemented the general scheme and technical solutions of the previous AK [model]. The experience of combat use during the fighting in Ukraine turned out to be so negative that after a few weeks of real-life operation, a decision was made to downgrade this type of weapon.

Training continues for 200 mobilised servicemen currently stationed with the 3rd Guards Special Forces Brigade. In the Brigade itself, after participating in the war against Ukraine, every second person wrote requests for dismissal or early termination of their contract."

Details: Over the past day, units of Ukraines defence forces repelled attacks in the areas of Novosadove, Bakhmutske, Ivanhrad, Bakhmut, Soledar, Spirne, Maiorsk and Krasnohorivka.

Combat aircraft of the defence forces landed 27 strikes. Successful hits on more than 20 areas of concentration of weapons and military equipment, as well as 6 enemy anti-aircraft missile systems, were confirmed. In addition, Ukraines air defence units shot down 10 UAVs and 4 helicopters.

Rocket Troops and Artillery units hit 3 control points, 10 clusters of manpower, weapons and military equipment and 4 ammunition depots. In addition, air defence and electronic warfare sites and other military targets were damaged.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
At a Red Cross centre in Moscow, a dark-haired woman nervously holds a phone to her ear, trying to dig out details on her Jewish roots to help her son flee President Vladimir Putin's drive to mobilise troops to fight in Ukraine.

"Mum, your grandfather Moishe was born in 1870, like Lenin, right?" she asks.

"Getting an Israeli passport is the only way for my son not to go to fight in Ukraine," the exhausted woman, who declined to give her name for security reasons, explained to AFP.

Tens of thousands of Russians have fled since Putin sent troops to Ukraine in February and then announced a nationwide military call-up in September.

Many have scrambled to find their Jewish roots to open up the doors to Israel.

One of them is 32-year-old Ivan Mitrofanov, frantically looking for proof that his grandparents were Jewish.

As an IT worker, he is so far exempt from the first wave of mobilisation announced on September 21 after a series of Russian military defeats in Ukraine.

But Mitrofanov says he is "rushing to leave as long as the borders are open".

Most Russians expect more mobilisation waves and some fear authorities will introduce martial law or close borders to men of military age.

- 'My passport is toxic' -

Mitrofanov thinks Israel is a better choice over Europe.

"In Europe, my Russian passport is toxic. I'll go to Israel where we're actually wanted," he said.

This new wave of emigration to Israel is so large that Moscow bureaucrats are starting to get tired.

Tatiana Kalazhnikova, who works at an municipal administration office in western Moscow, said "90 percent of our clients come to look for their Jewish origins".

Authorities have criticised Russians rushing to leave the country as unpatriotic and Kalazhnikova is not impressed.

"They want to leave Russia ... for Israel where war never ends," she said sarcastically.

More than one million of Israel's 9.4 million residents have roots in the former Soviet Union.

Israel says immigration applications from Russia and Ukraine have tripled since the conflict started.

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Its Central Bureau of Statistics counted 20,000 arrivals from Russia and more than 12,000 from Ukraine since the end of February.

Faced with an avalanche of departures, Russia in July ordered the dissolution of the Jewish Agency, which helps Jews emigrate, accusing it of breaking the law.

Many Russian celebrities -- including Russia's pop queen Alla Pugacheva and her comedian husband Maxim Galkin -- have left for Israel.

The announcement of a chaotic and often random mobilisation led to a new exodus, with tens of thousands flocking to the borders of Georgia and Kazakhstan for weeks.

In a sign of just how many are choosing Israel, five new private agencies have opened to help Russians emigrate.

Others are resorting to genealogists to help them find any trace of Jewish roots.

Vladimir Paley, who specialises in Jewish genealogy, said he has received "10 times more requests" from both Russians and Ukrainians since the start of the conflict.

"With the mobilisation, I mainly reply to the calls of mothers looking to expatriate their sons," the 55-year-old said.

- 'Fear and disgust' -

There have been many waves of emigration to Israel from Russia and the erstwhile Soviet Union.

But this one is "out of fear and disgust," one of Paley's clients, 40-year-old Mikhail, said.

A history teacher and author, Mikhail never thought of leaving. Putin's mobilisation changed that and he wants to emigrate with his wife and child.

But moving out -- often a decision taken in a matter of hours -- has also caused families to break up.

Andrei Trubetskoy, a 58-year-old former official of the Russian interior ministry, said he understood in February that he "no longer wanted to have anything to do" with his own country.

With his historian wife, he searched archives only to discover by chance details of his great-grandfather who was a Hasidic Jew.

The couple were preparing their file and started learning Hebrew.

But, at the last moment, his wife refused and the couple divorced. Now he plans to leave alone.

"The decision to leave is often impulsive," said Lyubov Borussyak, a sociologist at the Free Moscow University.

She has surveyed 150 families who had chosen to leave since February.

"Their goal is not to move to another country, but to leave Russia," she said. "It's an emigration of panic and fear."

ml-bur/ach/smw
(Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday that a United Nations resolution condemning Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territories was "anti-Russian" and that it had been achieved using "diplomatic terror", TASS news agency reported.

The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly condemned Russia's move to annex four partially occupied regions in Ukraine, calling on all countries not to recognize it.

(Reporting by Reuters)
An asylum seeker electronically tagged by the government after being selected for removal to Rwanda is launching a legal challenge.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said that after being tortured and trafficked in Sudan and Libya he has been treated like an animal in the UK.

A psychiatric report found that being forced to wear a tag had worsened his mental health, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder, and increased the risk of self-harm and suicide.

The Rwanda plan is already facing a number of legal challenges (PA Wire)

His legal representatives are applying for a judicial review of the Home Offices electronic monitoring expansion pilot, which applies tags normally used for foreign offenders to asylum seekers crossing the English Channel in small boats.

Ahmed Aydeed, the director of public law at Duncan Lewis Solicitors, told The Independent: The home secretarys dream is the nightmare of survivors of trafficking and torture.

Even after our clients have finally escaped these criminal gangs, they have our government tracking their every move through 24/7 surveillance. All our clients want to do is rebuild their lives.

The action will be lodged on Friday, becoming the fourth High Court case relating to migrants selected for the Rwanda scheme.

Judges are currently hearing the second legal challenge over Priti Patels deal and are expected to give their judgment on that and a previous case later this month.

The first challenge was launched in September by Care4Calais, Detention Action and the PCS union, while a third case is also underway relating to the use of migrants data.

Protests have been held against the Governments deporation plan (Getty Images)

The cases have delayed the implementation of the Rwanda policy, with no flights attempted since the first plane was grounded amid a wave of injunctions by the European Court of Human Rights in June.

Speaking at the Conservative Party conference last week, new home secretary Suella Braverman said seeing a flight take asylum seekers to the country was her dream and obsession.

The tagging pilot, which started in June, allows the electronic monitoring of asylum seekers who are declared inadmissible after travelling through safe countries and includes those selected for transfer to Rwanda.

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It applies to individuals who arrive in the UK via unnecessary and dangerous routes, including small boat crossings, and people deemed to be not complying with the tag can be taken back into detention or prosecuted.

The unnamed asylum seeker was made to wear an electronic tag (stock image)

Official Home Office guidance states: For individuals who are informed that they are to be removed under the inadmissibility policy, there may be an increased risk of absconding and less incentive to comply with any conditions of immigration bail than for those who are to have their asylum claims considered by the UK.

If individuals abscond or do not maintain contact with the Home Office, this presents difficulties in progressing their immigration case.

The claimant in the new case is an asylum seeker from Sudan, who says he was detained and tortured by the countrys security forces after attending an anti-government demonstration.

He fled the country into neighbouring Libya but said he was then kidnapped by an armed militia and forced into labour to pay a ransom for his release.

The man escaped, crossed the Mediterranean Sea and journeyed through Italy and France before crossing the English Channel.

He claimed asylum on arrival but was then held in immigration detention for two months and told he would be sent to Rwanda.

The man said he was distressed by the decision, was temporarily unable to eat or sleep and had thoughts of self-harm and suicide.

He fears that he could be forced back to Sudan, adding: After all the problems and torture, I came to UK, a country that observes human rights and is safe and peaceful. To come here and find myself in a detention centre was a shock.

New home secretary Suella Braverman has said its her dream to send a flight to Rwanda (Getty)

After being recognised as a potential victim of trafficking by the Home Office, the man was freed on immigration bail in July and fitted with an electronic tag recording his movements 24 hours a day.

I do not feel free as a result of having to wear the tag, he said. Although I have physically left the detention centre, I feel like I am still there.

The man, now living in a hotel, described a continuous sense of being controlled and monitored, adding: It feels like a form of treatment suited to animals and not human beings.

He said he felt ashamed of the tag because it makes him look like a criminal, and its position and size means that he is unable to properly pray as a Muslim.

He is accused of breaching his bail conditions twice but said the first incident was because he could not read an English letter telling him about a required appointment and the second was a dispute over how many hours the monitoring device must be charged.

Following pre-action letters from solicitors, the Home Office said it would remove the mans tag on Tuesday but he is pursuing the legal challenge against the wider policy.

A Home Office spokesperson said they could not comment on legal proceedings but added: We are determined to break the business model of the evil people smugglers and prevent people from making dangerous journeys across the Channel, risking their lives.

In the summer we launched a 12-month tagging pilot for individuals who arrive in the UK via illegal, unnecessary and dangerous routes as part of our wider work to tackle illegal migration, which remains ongoing.
First monkeypox case to be discharged from hospital on Oct. 14

The first patient who was infected with the monkeypox virus is scheduled to be discharged on October 14 after three weeks of treatment and quarantine in hospital.









The woman has tested negative for the monkeypox virus and is expected to be discharged from hospital on October 14. (Photo: hospital)





The female patient, 35, has fully recovered from the illness with negative tests for the virus and met conditions to return home, said Huynh Thi Thuy Hoa, a doctor of Ho Chi Minh Hospital for Tropical Diseases.



Those who had contact with the patient have yet to show any clinical symptoms, said the doctor.



The Ministry of Health confirmed on October 3 that a woman returning from Dubai has infected with the monkeypox virus, the first case recorded in Vietnam.



The woman hailing from Ho Chi Minh City was said to have caught the illness in Dubai during her holiday from July to September 22 before returning to the home country.



She was transferred to Ho Chi Minh Hospital for Tropical Diseases for quarantine and treatment following her positive test on September 23.


Mariska Hargitay plays Captain Olivia Benson on NBC's "Law & Order: SVU." She has starred on the show since the beginning. It is now in its 24th season. Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have announced they are investigating the New York Police Departments special victims division and its handling of sex abuse cases. ((Zach Dilgard/NBC))

Last summer, federal prosecutors announced an investigation into the New York Police Departments special victims division and its handling of sex abuse cases. The allegations include a decadelong history of failing to conduct basic investigative steps and instead shaming and abusing survivors and re-traumatizing them during investigations.

Thats the opposite of what we see on the NBC police drama Law & Order: SVU, now in its 24th season. Abusing survivors and re-traumatizing them? Olivia Benson would never. Just last week, the fictional police captain played by Mariska Hargitay told a smirking young man accused of assaulting his girlfriend: Think this is funny? SVU takes these kinds of allegations  dramatic pause  very seriously.

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The TV series is often lauded because it does take stories of domestic and sexual crimes seriously. Seeing that dramatized in a fictional context is one way to help the wider public understand how these abuses occur and why survivors are never to blame for the violence theyve experienced.

But these are stories that make cops the savior, said TaLisa J. Carter, who is an assistant professor in the Department of Justice, Law & Criminology at American University. Whereas victims of many crimes, including sexual assault, do not see cops as saviors at all.

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From left: Kelli Giddish as Det. Amanda Rollins and Mariska Hargitay as Capt. Olivia Benson on "Law & Order: SVU." (Zach Dilgard/NBC)

Even so, the show has created a persuasive alternate reality.

Because of what people see on SVU, theres an expectation that youll encounter a sympathetic environment in real life, Carter said. In other words: That youll get someone like the deeply sympathetic Olivia Benson assigned to your case. But the concerns outlined in the aforementioned investigation put that assumption into question. And in reality, Carter added, most of these cases dont go to trial. The quickness with which DNA results come back, I hate that on all cop shows, its just not true. Rape kits will sit untested for years. But thats not the way its portrayed on these shows.

SVU also validates misconduct, Carter said. Like when cops have emotional flair-ups. Because they care. While it makes for good TV and makes these characters relatable, how often do we see situations of misconduct where the main characters are penalized? They might have to go in front of a committee, but there are rarely any consequences.

This is where SVU becomes so jumbled. It presents a fantasy version of how policing in New Yorks special victims division should work, but that fantasy doesnt extend to the cops themselves being held accountable.

Has the show indoctrinated viewers to the idea that police shouldnt face consequences? Dont come down on these heroes like Olivia Benson, because theyre just trying to do their jobs?

From left: Mariska Hargitay as Captain Olivia Benson and Ice T as Sergeant Fin Tutuola. (Virginia Sherwood/NBC )

Viewers are capable of distinguishing how we feel about fictional stories and whats happening in real life. But Law & Order: SVU has been on the air for a quarter of a century, reinforcing a specific message that may not match reality. Has it served as de facto PR for New Yorks actual special victims division?

The term of art is copaganda. But you can probably go further, Carter said. Media is how we learn about things and it cant be decoupled from that.

Its fair to wonder if the people involved in making the show and profiting from it  from executive producer Dick Wolf on down  feel any kind of way about the allegations being leveled at the real life division, and whether the shows idealized depictions have undermined efforts to get these concerns taken seriously.

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The intention of the shows writers or the cast, those things are irrelevant, said Carter. Impact is what matters. And the show is sanitizing how victims interact with law enforcement. And what happens is, as a society, we become ill-equipped for the realities of that experience.

Carter teaches intro to criminology and critical issues in justice. Each semester, she said, she encounters that bubble. Ill ask my students: What do you expect to get from this class? And SVU comes up every time.

Its a recruitment tool. Whether or not thats the way it was formed, thats what its doing. People are coming to universities with these kinds of prototypes in mind, with Olivia Benson in mind.

So what happens is that I have to burst their bubbles and give them more to chew on. And that can be a challenge, especially for people who walk into the classroom with firm assumptions based on what theyve seen on TV.

Law & Order: SVU has become a social phenomenon, Carter said, by virtue of being on the air for so long. As an educator, she has to understand that this is the knowledge that people are walking in with.

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Thats also true of everyone else, who isnt a student in Carters class.

These are their stories, the shows tagline promises at the start of each episode. Even when we know its just a television show, those words give Law & Order: SVU the imprimatur of legitimacy, subtly blurring the disconnect between fact and fiction.

Mariska Hargitay as Captain Olivia Benson, compassionate to the end on "Law & Order: SVU." (Virginia Sherwood/NBC)

Nina Metz is a Tribune critic

nmetz@chicagotribune.com

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Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher at the 2021 Academy Awards. Pool/Getty Images

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher have been together for over 20 years.

They also share three kids and recently moved to Australia.

Cohen has said, for him, it was love at first sight.

2001: They meet at what Cohen later calls "a very pretentious party" in Australia.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2002. Dave Benett/Getty Images

The future couple met at a party in 2001 in Fisher's homeland, Australia  specifically, Sydney.

"She was hilarious," Cohen told the New York Times in October 2020. "We were at a very pretentious party, and me and her bonded over taking the mick out of the other people in the party. I knew instantly. I don't know if she did. It's taken her about 20 years to know," he joked.

Fisher told People in 2020 that they "will be celebrating 19 years together this year" and that she feels "very fortunate" to still be together.

2004: The couple get engaged after dating for around three years.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2004. Vince Bucci/Getty Images

According to the New York Daily News, the notoriously private couple got engaged in 2004, when Fisher was 28 and Cohen was 32.

2007: To marry Cohen, Fisher officially converts to Judaism after three years of studying.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2006. Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

"I will definitely have a Jewish wedding just to be with Sacha. I would do anything  move into any religion  to be united in marriage with him," Fisher told the Evening Standard.

In a 2009 interview with Allure, she revealed that, while she wouldn't comment about her faith, she had taken the Hebrew name "Ayala," which means doe.

She added, "I never saw it as a losing or gaining situation, just an embracing situation. If one wanted to be buried next to one's beloved and they were Jewish, then one would have to be Jewish, too. That came out really weird. Scratch the burial."

October 2007: Fisher gives birth to their first child, Olive.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2007. Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic/Getty Images

Olive was born in October 2007, right around the time Cohen began planning his film "Bruno," which would be released in 2009.

2009: While promoting "Confessions of a Shopaholic," Fisher gives fans (and Conan O'Brien) a peek into their relationship.

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Actress Isla Fisher during an interview with host Conan O'Brien Norman Ng/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty Images

Fisher joked about what it was like to show Cohen's work to her family  she told O'Brien a story about her mother at the premiere of one of his films, and how her mother was semi-incredulous that this was the man she wanted to marry. Fisher also explained that going to visit Cohen on set was risky, due to the nature of his work.

That year, she also shared that Cohen "was the reason I got into comedy." Australian tabloid Who? reported the actress told Indie London in 2009, "I was losing confidence in my abilities when he recommended that I do comedy. He felt I was really funny, so when someone as funny as him recommends that, I listened and actually auditioned for 'Wedding Crashers,' which ended up being my big break."

March 2010: Cohen and Fisher tie the knot in Paris, France, with just six guests present.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2012. Stuart Wilson/Getty Images

After six years of living the engaged life, the two were married in Paris in 2010. According to People, there were just six people present.

"It's very important to me to have a beautiful ritual celebrated with my family and friends," Fisher had said in 2009. "And when you are in the public eye, to keep that private and to make it happen without it being really visible is really difficult."

Cohen confirmed in 2020 that, in order to throw the paparazzi off the scent, he made his father pretend to be a famous chef celebrating his 70th birthday.

"We had a secret wedding in Paris. And the ruse was that it was my father's 70th birthday and that he was a famous chef in England. That was how we avoided having photographers at the wedding. I trained him up to be in character. He said that his favorite dish that he created was L'oeuf Scrambled," he told the New York Times.

August 2010: They welcome their second child, another daughter, Elula.

Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen in 2015. Crowder/Legge/GC Images/Getty Images

The newly two-time parents kept Elula's name a secret for six months. It means "August" in Hebrew.

To explain the secrecy, Fisher said, "Motherhood is my favorite topic but I never talk about it publicly," according to Us Weekly. "As much as I love what I am doing, and I am so fortunate to have the opportunities that I have had, my responsibility is to my family."

2012: Fisher says being with Cohen is like "winning the lottery," even if she has to deal with his many shenanigans.

Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen in 2016. Mark Cuthbert/UK Press/Getty Images

"Choosing to be together every day is incredibly romantic. I love marriage. I think it's a wonderful institution and it's the most important decision you make," she told Australia's Sunday Telegraph. "Life is filled with highs and lows, and you have a best friend to share it with you. It's amazing. It's like winning the lottery, having a good partner."

April 2015: Their third baby, a boy named Montgomery, is born.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2015. Larry Busacca/VF15/Getty Images

InStyle confirmed the birth of their son that month.

February 2016: They co-star in their first film together, "The Brothers Grimsby."

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher arrive at the premiere "The Brothers Grimsby" in 2016. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images

In the movie, Cohen plays a man from a small English fishing village who's looking for his long-lost brother. Fisher talked about how Cohen remained in character during filming  including at home.

"Of course [he brings his characters home]. It's hard to drop the accent when you're doing it all day on set," Fisher said during an appearance on "Lorraine." "This is the first time we've worked together. He's such a perfectionist. He'll do everything and anything to get the best joke possible into the movie, so it was definitely inspirational. He's so funny on set and it was a lot of fun."

March 2016: Fisher stashes a fake beard, glasses, hat, and glove in her Spanx to help her husband appear as Ali G at the Oscars.

Cohen and Fisher at the Oscars; Cohen in character as Ali G. Gregg DeGuire/WireImage/Getty Images; MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images

In 2016, Cohen was asked to present at the Oscars  and he decided to go on stage as his character Ali G, his very first popular character and star of "Da Ali G Show." The problem? The Academy had already specifically requested that he present the award as himself.

In order to help pull off this prank, Cohen asked his wife to help smuggle all his props into the show  she obliged by shoving it all in her Spanx, she told Jimmy Kimmel in March 2016.

"He said, 'I want to sneak in and do Ali G, but I can't fit it on my body because they're going to put me through metal detectors, and be ultra-suspicious, and, sweetie, will you fit giant yellow glasses, a hat, a glove, and a beard inside your Spanx?'" she said. There's never been a better partner in crime.

October 2017: Fisher opens up about sheltering their kids from the spotlight, saying, "They have rights, too."

Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen in 2017. Rachel Murray/Getty Images for TWC

"If you speak about your children or if you take them to a red carpet event, you can't be litigious later on when there is a picture of them in something and say, 'Hey, they deserve anonymity,' but they do," Fisher said during an appearance on "Today."

"They have rights, too. It's a very conscious decision and truly I would feel really disgusting about myself if I used my family to sell something. It wouldn't sit right with me. It doesn't line up with my values. But I do have an open-door policy and people come over all of the time. I do big Shabbat dinners. Everybody gets access to my family time once a week," she said.

July 2018: The "Tag" star reveals it's her "secret fantasy" to move their family back to her home country, Australia.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2018. Toni Anne Barson/Getty Images

Fisher explained how LA isn't the most ideal place to raise a family.

"Juggling a family in LA isn't easy," Fisher told Marie Claire. "There's not really a culture of bringing your kids to dinner parties or to restaurants past 6 p.m. I tend to entertain at home because I want to be with my family  it's easier to put your kids to bed and have a wine with friends."

"I have this secret fantasy of slowing down, moving to Byron Bay, getting off the grid and sitting on the sand with a Vegemite sandwich," she added  soon, she'd get her wish.

January 2020: They're one of the best-dressed couples of the night at the 77th Golden Globes.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2020. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

They rocked the red carpet in jewel tones, one of the trendiest looks of the last few years, landing them on multiple best-dressed lists.

November 2020: Cohen and Fisher fulfill her fantasy and move to Sydney.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2019. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

"I have to say; the most beautiful country is obviously Australia ... It's like my spiritual home, I love it so much and I feel so beautiful and confident when I'm there. It's got such a link to my childhood and who I am," she told Who.

A source close to the couple told the tabloid that they reportedly moved to Australia because they "didn't want to raise kids in Trump's America."

March 2021: Fisher congratulates her husband on his two Academy Award nominations.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2021. Rick Rycroft-Pool/Getty Images

Cohen was nominated twice: for his performance in the Netflix legal drama "The Trial of the Chicago 7" and for his work on the adapted screenplay of "Borat Subsequent Moviefilm," adding him to the prestigious list of double Oscar nominees.

Fisher congratulated him with an Instagram post, writing "Congrats to Hubs (pictured next to Abbie Hoffman) for TWO Oscar nominations today, one for Best Supporting Actor in 'Chicago 7' and another for Best Adapted Screenplay for 'BORAT,'" adding "It's so exciting to see the Academy appreciating how difficult comedy is."

December 2021: They celebrate their 20th anniversary.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher in 2022. Kevin Mazur/VF22/WireImage for Vanity Fair/Getty Images

In December 2021, Fisher and Cohen marked 20 years of their relationship, dating all the way back to their 2001 meeting.

Fisher posted a gallery of photos with her husband alongside a sweet "Winnie the Pooh" quote. Cohen's post also had that quote, with an additional caption. "Happy Anniversary my love. I'm writing this rather than getting you a card," he wrote. "Our duration is largely due to our location  after all Hollywood is the bastion of lengthy marriages."

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1973 Oscars

Sacheen Littlefeather holds a written statement from actor Marlon Brando refusing his Best Actor Oscar on stage at the Academy Awards on March 27, 1973 in Los Angeles, California. Credit - Michael Ochs ArchviesGetty Images

I was 11 years old, the first time I watched the clip of Indigenous actor Sacheen Littlefeather at the 1973 Academy Awards. Littlefeather, who died Oct. 2, 2022 at 75, took the stage on Marlon Brandos behalf, accepting his award in protest of Hollywoods depiction of Native Americans. That night, while calmly delivering her speech, Sacheen received boos and threats for her message.

Sacheens impact shaped my perspective on what it means to be an Indigenous actor and activist. It also reaffirmed my responsibility to carry the voice of my community into the entertainment industrydespite it not always welcoming us.

Being part of a new wave of Indigenous creatives, and being on a show like Reservation Dogs, has felt like whiplash. Only recently have our stories been told in mainstream media. Every inch has been fought for.

The groundwork laid by Sacheen Littlefeather and other Indigenous trailblazers, continues to help make our successes possible.

As told to Sanya Mansoor
West Hams Jarrod Bowen, right, was on target against Anderlecht (Adam Davy/PA) (PA Wire)

Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen fired West Ham into the knockout stages of the Europa Conference League in a 2-1 win over Anderlecht.

The Hammers, last seasons Europa League semi-finalists, ensured a second successive run to the latter stages of continental competition with a fourth win from four Group B matches.

They now need just a point from their last two games, against Danish side Silkeborg and Romanias FCSB, to ensure they finish top of the group and move straight into the round of 16, avoiding a play-off in February.

However, some of the gloss was taken off their achievement by crowd trouble which required riot police to intervene.

The hosts took the lead in the 13th minute when Anderlecht enforcer Amadou Diawara fouled Benrahma on the edge of the box.

Aaron Cresswell had moments earlier curled a free-kick over but this time he stepped over the ball, allowing Benrahma to whip his shot right-footed over the wall and inside the near post.

After half an hour the Hammers had their second, Emerson Palmieri galloping down the left before pulling the ball back for Bowen to finish from 15 yards.

The goal made Bowen West Hams joint leading scorer in Europe with six, alongside Johnny Byrne and David Cross.

He should have moved out on his own with seven moments later when Cresswell cut the ball back, but the England hopeful missed his kick in front of goal.

Anderlecht, whose boisterous fans lit five flares in the way end, one of which landed near the pitch, threatened to spoil the party when Yari Verschaeren drilled narrowly wide and Sebastiano Esposito forced a fingertip save from Alphonse Areola.

But it was largely plain sailing for the hosts and Pablo Fornals, on at the break for Lucas Paqueta, should have hit a third only to see his shot blocked by Diawara on the six-yard line.

Bowen was given a rest after an hour by David Moyes with Gianluca Scamacca sent on, and the Italian almost converted a cross from Fornals while Benrahma put a header narrowly wide from Vladimir Coufals centre.

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It should have been an ultimately comfortable night for West Ham, although the scenes in the stands were depressingly unpleasant.

A pitch invader briefly halted play before missiles were hurled between sets of rival fans including another flare which landed in the home end.

While attentions were focused on the nonsense in the crowd Anderlecht scored a consolation from the penalty spot through Esposito after a foul by Ben Johnson.
Zach Roberts/NurPhoto via Getty

After a decade of steady hate mail and harassment since her 6-year-old sons murder at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Nicole Hockley says shell be ecstatic to see the source of that hate be left penniless.

That source, Alex Jones, was ordered on Wednesday to pay a whopping $965 million for spewing lies that the shooting was a hoax and that grieving parents, like Hockley, were paid actors hired to shill for stricter gun laws. And now, after receiving countless death threats and even claims that her son never existed, Hockley is ready to see Jones and his media company, Infowars, suffer.

This was never about the money for us, Nicole Hockley told The Daily Beast on Thursday. But taking money is the only way we can hurt Alex Jones. And I think every family is happy to see him hurt, even if only financially.

Hockley said she knows its unlikely shell ever receive the full $73.6 million that was awarded to her individually. But, getting rich was never the point of taking Jones to court. It was to bring him and his empire downsomething shes confident her legal team and fellow victims have successfully doneand to send a message to others who consider spreading lies for profit.

Nicole Hockley lost her son in the Sandy Hook massacre. Bryan Bedder/Getty

Hockley joked that every dollar Jones now earnsmostly from soliciting donations and selling strange wellness itemswill no longer make his wallet fatter. Instead, those profits will soon be on their way to his victims.

I wish I could tell all of his supporters who continue to donate and buy his junk, keep it up, Hockley said. Or better yet, just cut out the middleman and donate it straight to us. All of that money is heading here either way. Hes screwed.

Jones, who owns Infowars and its parent company, Free Speech Systems, has continued to mock victims even after Wednesdays decision. While a judge was listing the massive dollar amounts for each plaintiff, he was laughing on his own livestream, giving an Oprah impression.

You get a million, you get $100 million, you get $50 million... Do these people actually think theyre getting any of this money? he said.

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Jones legal team said they plan to file an appeal to Wednesdays decision, and Jones has taken steps to make it increasingly difficult for plaintiffs to receive money. He filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors for his businesses, and has been accused of using shell companies to transfer and hide money from plaintiffs in a separate Sandy Hook case. Jones also transferred his $3 million Austin, Texas, estate to his wife in February, according to property records obtained by the New York Post.

Alex Jones Loses His Sh*t in Latest Sandy Hook Trial: Im Done Saying Im Sorry!

Despite Jones lashing out in court last month to say he was done saying sorry, Hockley said she doesnt believe the 48-year-old feels any remorse.

On the day Jones took the stand in Waterbury, Connecticut, Hockley said she planned to give him a chance and that shed consider forgiving him. But his nasty showing quickly ended that, she said.

Hes a husband and father himself, so I figured if he listened to our testimony, hed at least feel a shred of decency or empathy there, Hockley said. There wasnt. Hes a sociopath. There is no heart there, no compassion.

Erica Lafferty, another one of the 15 plaintiffs who sued Jones in Connecticut, told The Daily Beast on Thursday that shes had to move five times since losing her mother, Sandy Hook principal Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung. But each time she moves, the hateful letters continue, she said, all because of a lie peddled by Jones.

Lafferty said someone once posted a 15-minute video to YouTube that singled her out, calling her a crisis actor. She said a man in the video then implored his viewers to hunt her down to bound, gag and rape her.

My Mom Was Murdered at Sandy HookWhy Is This Still Happening?

Elsewhere online, Lafferty said people mocked and picked apart her wedding photos, calling them fake. At one point, shed receive daily letters with the return address listed simply as AR-15the rifle type used to kill her mom and 24 others.

As the total damages amount creeped toward $1 billion on Wednesday, Lafferty said she was in complete shock and filled with gratitude. The amount of money awarded to her wasnt important, she said. It was about reclaiming the legacy of her mother and herself, but she was glad the astonishing number flung the trial into the national spotlight.

We all know this is going to be tied up in appeals for years to come, Lafferty said. It wasnt about money. It was about reclaiming our lives and our personal stories. Reclaiming the legacy of our family members that have been stolen by Jones.

Jones appeared unfazed in the decisions aftermath. In his livestream concurrent with the decision, he cheered for the damages amount to grow higher, exclaiming he wanted to be the billion-dollar man.

His comments yesterday show that hes never changing, Lafferty said. Its his personalityhe wants to be the best at being the worlds worst person.

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Police lights

Two men have been arrested after gunshots were fired not far from a Cleveland County School Thursday morning.

Washington Elementary School was placed on lockdown around 11 a.m. for about 45 minutes after a staff member heard shots outside, according to law enforcement.

When she looked outside, she noticed a male running from a residence and vehicles leaving from across the road, stated a press release from the Cleveland County Sheriffs Office.

Around 30 deputies responded to the scene.

Terry Dean Kee Jr.,of Lawndale, has been charged with communicating threats, possession of marijuna, possession of drug paraphernalia and open container of alcohol. He is being held on a $10,000 secured bond.

Joseph Tyler Floyd, of Stony Point Road, has been charged with shooting into an occupied vehicle and is also being held on a $10,000 bond.

According to the Sheriffs Office, the shooting occurred at 1858 Stony Point Road due to an ongoing dispute.

No one was injured as a result of the gunshots.

The school was on lockdown as a precaution, but the incident did not involve the school.

Washington Elementary is located northeast of Shelby.

A major disturbance occurred close by in our community today, said Greg Shull, schools spokesman, in a statement. As a precautionary effort, we immediately locked down our building until the matter was resolved. As you know, we work closely with local law enforcement to ensure the safety of all students. Our wonderful Sheriff's Office responded quickly and has been on and around our campus to provide an extra layer of support as they worked through the issue. We could not be more thankful for our sheriff's office and school resource officer. Although this did not directly involve our schools, they made sure everyone remained safe and secure.

Shull said the lockdown was lifted about 45 minutes later, once they received the green light from the Sheriffs Office.

Sheriff Alan Norman said officers received a call of shots fired from the school resource officer.

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The faculty and staff heard what they thought were gunshots, Norman said. They summoned the SRO who immediately went out to confront the threat and see where it actually was occurring.

Norman said the officer assessed the situation and determined that the gunshots were coming from across the street. The school was immediately placed on lockdown.

He stands guard at the school to protect the children, he said. Sheriffs deputies arrive on the scene within several minutes.

Norman praised the response of school staff and his officers.

It was text book by the faculty and staff, Norman said. The school system is to commended on their expertise by placing the school on lockdown. The SRO goes directory to threat as he has been trained and determines it is off campus and stays on campus for the protection of the children until more sheriffs deputies arrive.

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: School temporarily locked down after shots fired
windfarms

Windier weather and new capacity has helped Scotland generate a record amount of renewable electricity.

A total of 7,358 gigawatt hours (GWh) was produced in April, May and June, a 36% increase on the same period in 2021.

The figure was more than 25% greater than in any second quarter previously recorded.

Last year milder, less windy weather was blamed for a fall in renewable energy production in Scotland.

But that trend has since been reversed by greater wind speeds, increased rainfall and new power projects coming online.

The Scottish government said 18,568 GWh of renewable electricity was generated in the first half of 2022 - up 29% on 2021.

Net Zero and Energy Secretary Michael Matheson said the achievement would help deliver on Scotland's climate obligations.

Mr Matheson said: "We are in the midst of an energy crisis which has been compounded by the illegal war in Ukraine.

"It has prompted governments across the world to consider how the avoid this situation happening in the future.

"Scotland's energy transition can increase security of supply and help to make us far more resilient to future international energy price fluctuations."

Renewable energy capacity increased by 10.5% from June 2021 to 13.3 GW in the same month of this year, largely due to new wind farms becoming operational, particularly the Moray East project.

An additional 16 GW of renewable electricity capacity is currently in the pipeline, more than half of it onshore wind projects.

While renewable generation increased, there was also increased demand for electricity in Scotland during the first six months of 2022, following suppressed figures in 2021 due to Covid lockdowns.

Average daily electricity demand increased to 77.3 GWh in the first half of the year, up 8% on the 2021 figure.

'Fantastic opportunity'

The minister said wind power was already one of the cheapest forms of electricity and described expansion, supported by renewable technologies such as hydro power, as a "fantastic opportunity".

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Mr Matheson said the plans would support a "fair and just" transition for the sector on the country's journey to becoming a "net-zero nation".

Fabrice Leveque, climate and energy policy manager at WWF Scotland, said: "It's great to see Scotland breaking records again for renewable power generation thanks to new power stations coming online and windy weather.

"With sky high fossil fuel prices causing a cost-of-living crisis, renewable electricity is helping to lower energy bills and cut carbon pollution.

"The challenge ahead is converting as much of our heating and transport to run on clean, home-grown renewables to protect us against volatile prices and climate change."

'Renewable energy powerhouse'

The national body which represents the sector said the figures showed Scotland was a "renewable energy powerhouse".

Nick Sharpe, director of communications and strategy at Scottish Renewables, said: "Scotland has an enormous renewable energy resource: our winds, waves, tides, rainfall and even our longer daylight hours are tremendous assets to the country, and renewable energy technologies enables us to use them to produce direct economic and environmental benefits.

"Renewable electricity generation makes up the vast majority of Scotland's gross electricity consumption and in the last decade, we have more than tripled our renewable electricity output."

Mr Sharpe added the sector now employed more than 27,000 people and generated 5.6bn of output.
Courtesy of Wilderness Scotland

In Cairngorms National Park in the Scottish Highlands, purple heather cloaks the hillsides and sloping mountain peaks crest and plunge like waves towards the horizon. Its a vast, godly landscape that will leave any nature lover awestruck with its magnitude. Yet, where only a scattered patchwork of Scots pineScotlands national treenow exists, was once a far more lush, biodiverse region: the Caledonian forest. People think of Scotland as wild but really, theres not much wild left, says Joe Mann, a guide with ecotourism company Wilderness Scotland, who leads hiking trips through the park.

Ancient Roman texts memorialize the woodland as a dark, foreboding wilderness called the Great Wood of Caledon, the name they bestowed on Scotland, meaning wooded heights. The truth of when this forest actually existed and why it disappeared is murky, but only 1-to-2 percent of what it was at its zenith remains.

Now, a group of visionary conservationists and ecotourism companies are working to revive the landscape through rewilding. The functional, whole-ecosystem approach to nature restoration involves the removal of invasive species, reforestation, and a reintroduction of endemic flora and fauna. The aim of rewilding is to achieve self-regulating, complex ecosystems with a high level of biodiversity, says Denmark-based ecologist Jens-Christian Svenning, founder of the Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World. The work is happening across the Highlands, and in 2021, the Scottish Rewilding Alliance, a group of nonprofits and businesses, petitioned for Scotland to be the worlds first rewilding nation.

Courtesy of Wilderness Scotland

What conservationists should be aiming to restore the Highlands to, though, and what caused the land degradation in the first place is complex. The skeletal arms of preserved Scots pine, rising spectral from peat bogs, as well as pollen analysis, tells us that the region was much greener before large-scale agriculture, when grazing animals, namely sheep and cattle, were introduced and didnt allow for much to grow.

However, most experts agree that the impenetrable wilderness described by the ancient Romansmost notably by the historian Tacituslargely disappeared around 2,000 years before the Romans ever set foot in Scotland, so its demise cant be blamed entirely on human activity. Around 2000 B.C., a major climatic deterioration happened, and it got extremely wet, causing most of the pines to drown, says Richard Tipping, a paleoecologist whose work focuses on Scotlands environmental archaeology. Roman authors would paint the landscape in very forbidding terms because they wanted to exaggerate Roman invasions, explains Tipping.

The Highlands the ancient Romans would have marched across was likely desolate peat bog punctuated by slivers of forest. Whatever remnants of the woods existed in Roman times, however, never fully recovered and modern agriculture compounded the issue. The constant light grazing suppressed the trees after they died from climate, so they didnt really have a chance to come back, says Tipping. Thats what rewilding conservationists, including Cairngorms Connect, the UKs largest rewilding project based in Cairngorms National Park, are hoping to help with.

Ecotourism businesses are stepping in to support these initiatives, giving travelers a look at the rewilding projects, which is crucial in raising awareness. By removing invasive species, reintroducing endemic flora and fauna, and restoring natural waterways and peatlands, the park is showing new signs of life. On Wilderness Scotlands High Points of the Cairngorms trip, guides like Mann lead trekkers through this newly flourishing landscape. Clambering up hillsides blanketed with spongy, cinnamon-colored sphagnum moss and crimson devils matchstick lichen, hikers can spot species that have recently returned to the park. Golden eagles wheel through the sky, endangered red squirrels scurry up Scots pine, and elusive pine martens dart through the understory. Where half a century ago the mountainsides might have been completely bare, delicate green saplings are harbingers of hope.

Courtesy of Wilderness Scotland

This fall, the company is working with one of their charity partners, Trees for Life, a nonprofit dedicated to nature restoration in the Highlands, on a new adventure. The five-day journey will take hikers through hills aflame under autumns spell, and end at Trees for Lifes Dundreggan estate. There, theyll explore the rewilded trails that thread through the area, and in 2023 travelers will also be able to experience the new Dundreggan Rewilding Center on the same trip. If we are going to encourage rewilding to happen, we need more of a nature-based economy, and thats absolutely about tourism, says Steve Micklewright, CEO of Trees for Life. We want to show that as we rewild, we create more jobs, not less, adds Micklewright.

The idea for the center, which will include a 40-room lodge, came on the heels of several decades of interest in volunteering from visitors, and will educate guests on the nonprofits work through immersive experiences and exhibits. Travelers will also have the option to head out on the surrounding leafy trails or get their hands dirty planting trees. For Wilderness Scotland, the collaboration was about helping guests understand nature in a deeper way. Hopefully theyll go for a walk in the hills near their home and have a greater appreciation for nature, says Wilderness Scotland co-founder Paul Easto.

Farther north in the Highlands, Scottish Rewilding Alliance member Alladale Wilderness Reserve has built their tourism model around restoring nature on a former hunting estate. A converted Victorian mansion and three secluded cottages give guests access to one of the most remote parts of the Highlands, where mist settles in the folds of the hills, and the only noise is the tide of birdsong at dawn and dusk. Founder Paul Lister has dedicated the reserves 23,000 acres to reforestation and planted over one million trees.

Rewilding is taking pressure off the landscape for extractive uses and putting nature at the center of what were doing, says Lister. At the same time, were creating revenue for the work through ecotourism. On a hike along the rushing Alladale River, which veins through the reserve, travelers can spot some of the same animals that have been reintroduced in the Cairngorms, including red squirrels. An overland adventure that ends with a picnic lunch on the riverbank includes a stop at an on-site sanctuary for the threatened Scottish wildcat, a conservation breeding project Alladale is working on with the Royal Zoological Association of Scotland.

Were also working to restore bogs because peatlands store much more carbon than trees, says reserve manager Innes MacNeill, who guides many of the lodges excursions. (Peatlands store twice as much carbon as the worlds forests.) Were looking to improve on what is and move forward, not go back to what once was, adds MacNeill.

Courtesy Alladale Wilderness Reserve

This is sage advice most experts agree should be heeded by conservationists. Considering how long ago the Caledonian forest was a rich, vast woodland of Scots pine, and how much climatic events played a role in its demise, its crucial not to cling to a romanticized idea of the Great Wood of Caledon as described by the ancient Romans, especially in our rapidly changing climate. We are already bound for quite significant, further climate change that will push ecosystems away from any kind of recent historical baseline, says Svenning.

At a time when trees like sycamore, beech, and elmpreviously associated with southern Englandcould now happily grow in Scotland, the focus should be on the evolution of the Highlands and establishing a biodiverse ecosystem that can sustain itself for generations to come. This edifying vision is what Scotlands rewilding stakeholders aim to instill in visitors. I hope people come away with hope for a wilder future, says Micklewright.

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ASBURY PARK, N.J.  Regina Mullen is finally getting some answers from the Navy about the death of her son Kyle Mullen during Navy SEAL training  although not all the answers, and not on the question that bothers her most.

The Manalapan, New Jersey resident met Tuesday with Navy officials, who affirmed that Kyles death occurred in the line of duty, Regina said, which means theres no misconduct on his part.

Kyle Mullen, a former football star at Manalapan High School who later played at Yale and Monmouth universities, died in early February hours after completing the grueling portion of SEAL training known as Hell Week. Autopsy results released in June revealed the cause of death as pneumonia and indicated that the 24-year-old went untreated until it was too late.

The Navys autopsy report also stated that Kyles toxicology report came back clean. But, Regina Mullen has been concerned that the Navy would try to blame Kyles death on steroid use  a New York Times report in August raised the issue  and not hold anyone in the chain of command accountable for him going untreated.

I told them, You already killed my son, you dont need to tarnish his character, she said of Tuesdays meeting, which also was attended by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, whose district includes Manalapan.

On Wednesday, the Navys Special Warfare Command announced that it has reprimanded three officers in connection with Kyle Mullen's death, but did not name names, and no one was fired as a result.

KYLE MULLEN CASE: Navy SEAL candidate died of pneumonia, treated by nonmedical personnel after completing 'Hell Week' training, autopsy reveals

Regina Mullen is shown with a photo of her son Kyle in her Manalapan home Friday, April 22, 2022. The investigation is still ongoing into how Kyle died during Navy SEAL training in February.

Regina Mullen said she asked two things of Navy officials during the meeting. First, to make sure the public knows that tests for performance-enhancing drugs were negative. That was made clear in Wednesday's report.

Ive been getting horrible messages on Facebook (since the New York Times report was published) saying, Youre a horrible mother and you raised a cheater, Regina Mullen said.

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Her second request was to change the wording on the autopsy, which stated that Kyles enlarged heart was a factor in his pneumonia. Regina Mullen, who is a registered nurse, said the enlarged heart should be listed as a condition and not a factor.

Factor and condition mean two different things, she said. An enlarged heart doesnt cause pneumonia.

Regina Mullen also contested the Navys contention that Kyles blood-oxygen rate measured 100% on the Wednesday afternoon of Hell Week  two days before his death.

Thats nearly impossible if he died two days later, she said.

'I NEED TO GO TO THE HOSPITAL': Ex-SEAL candidate describes own Hell Week in wake of death

She said her reason for battling the Navy on these details, in addition to stopping the vitriol directed at her by trolls, is her concern that no one in the chain of command will be held accountable. As detailed in the Navys autopsy report, Kyle coughed up enough blood and fluid to fill a 32-ounce water bottle but was left untreated by medical staff after he completed the training.

The Navy has not explained who was responsible for that happening. Wednesday's report said SEAL candidates tried to persuade unnamed instructors to help Kyle, but were rebuffed.

I dont understand how, eight months later, no one has been held accountable, she said.

The Navys investigation into the chain-of-command actions surrounding Kyle's death remains ongoing. Regina Mullen said it likely will be completed by the end of the year.

I told them, they killed a good man, she said. He would have gone out on the battlefield and protected anybody. Now theyre not protecting his reputation, and that concerns me.

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shores interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyle Mullen SEAL 'Hell Week' death: Navy punishes 3 officers
Many rural Oregonians fed up with the state's liberal politics want to move to Idaho  or rather, move Idaho to them.

The Greater Idaho movement proposes redrawing Oregon's borders so that about two-thirds of the Beaver State's land mass becomes part of neighboring Idaho. The movement has already gained support from nine counties in Eastern Oregon, and two more will vote on whether they want lawmakers to work on the logistics of moving the border.

"It makes more sense for Eastern Oregonians to get state-level governance coming from Idaho, where they share their values, share their culture, share their politics, than it does to be governed by Western Oregon," Greater Idaho spokesman Matt McCaw told Fox News.

Look at any election map and the problem Greater Idaho seeks to remedy is clear: By land size, Oregon appears conservative. Some counties voted nearly 80% for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. But the population centers of Portland, Eugene and Bend have made it one of the most liberal states in the country.

MIGRATION FROM BIG CITIES BOOSTS HOUSING PRICES IN SMALLER MARKETS

A voting map from the 2020 presidential election shows Eastern Oregon voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump.

"It's always been a problem because the west side has many more voters," McCaw said. "They have the numbers to dictate what happens statewide."

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

An urban-rural divide is nothing new, but McCaw said Eastern Oregon is unique because it borders a state that has "almost the same values."

Idaho voted 63.9% for Trump and just 33.1% for President Biden in the last presidential election. The Gem State is already a favorite moving destination among Oregonians who prefer its conservative politics or lower cost of living.

McCaw said the group envisions 15 whole counties and two partial counties joining Idaho. Nine Oregon counties have already voted in favor of exploring the idea further and two more will cast their votes in November.

If approved, the Morrow County measure will require commissioners to meet three times per year to discuss how best to promote their county's interests in "any negotiations regarding the relocation of the Oregon-Idaho state border." Wheeler County's measure would direct local officials to ask the state to proceed with plans for moving the border.

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LONGTIME DEMOCRAT 'EMBARRASSED' BY OREGON POLITICS SHAKES UP RACE FOR GOVERNOR, RUNS AS INDEPENDENT

Preliminary maps proposed including the entire southern portion of the state reaching to the Pacific Ocean, but supporters redrew the maps this year after residents of two southwestern Oregon counties voted only 47% and 49% in favor of the measure.

"Our whole core principle is that people deserve to have the kind of government that they want and that shares their values," McCaw said. "So we don't want to be dragging anybody into something that they don't want."

Matt McCaw is a lifelong Oregonian who supports making Eastern Oregon part of Idaho.

Even if all 17 counties approve the proposal, actually creating a Greater Idaho would face big bureaucratic hurdles. The state legislatures of both Idaho and Oregon would have to sign off on the plan, as would the U.S. Congress.

State boundaries have changed before. Maine seceded from Massachusetts in 1820. North and South Dakota were simply the Territory of Dakota before 1889. And Oregon's border with Washington was fluid until the late 1950s when the states agreed on specific geographic coordinates as the border rather than the center of the Columbia River, which can change with flooding, erosion and other factors.

There don't appear to be any examples of a large chunk of one state breaking off to join another state instead of just creating a new state (like the State of Jefferson movement, which proposes creating a new territory out of Southern Oregon and Northern California).

Lawmakers in Oregon haven't said much about the proposal so far, but their counterparts in Idaho seem open to the idea.

OREGON GOP GUBERNATORIAL NOMINEE SAYS TIDE IS TURNING IN RACE: PEOPLE HERE 'DON'T RECOGNIZE THEIR OWN STATE'

This year, Idaho Rep. Barbara Ehardt introduced a resolution stating that representatives would continue discussions regarding moving the border. The resolution notes that Oregon has resources that would "be highly beneficial to Idaho," including timber, minerals and water.

Advocates for Greater Idaho were invited to share their ideas with the Idaho Legislature last year.

"I think this is a broader conversation we need to have throughout the United States and in from our rural communities to our urban areas, who forget where their food comes from," Republican state Rep. Laurie Lickley said.

Cattle graze in Harney County, Oregon. Voters in Harney County previously approved a measure supporting the idea of seceding from Oregon and becoming part of Idaho.

But Democratic state Sen. Michelle Stennett worried about the logistics of moving the border and nuances between the two states, such as Oregon's higher minimum wage and legalization of cannabis.

"How do you blend criminal justice systems and jurisdictions? Where does your tax base come from?" Stennett asked. "There's just a lot that isn't being talked about that would need to be fleshed out for this to even be considered."

Idaho's Republican Gov. Brad Little even addressed the proposal in a 2020 interview on "Fox & Friends," saying he understood why Oregonians would "like to have a little more autonomy, a little more control, a little more freedom."

Now, three years after the movement began, McCaw says it's time for lawmakers in both states to start hashing out the details.

"We've proven that people in Eastern Oregon want to pursue this idea, and we're going to keep trying to get as many of those counties as possible to get on the ballot," he said. "But it's time for the legislature to pick up the ball and start this discussion."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

And if the hearings happen quickly, McCaw is optimistic that the measure could soon be sent back to a vote of the people.

"By 2024, you could have a border moved," he said. "Absolutely."

State representatives for Morrow and Wheeler counties did not respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Secret Service agents met with members of the right-wing extremist Oath Keepers group prior to the violent January 6 insurrection, according to a report.

A Secret Service spokesperson told CNN that the agency had contact with the extremist group, whose founder and other members are currently on trial, as part of its standard intelligence-gathering duties.

The official told CNN that members of the extremist group had occasionally reached out to the agency regarding items that they were allowed to bring to rallies.

We are aware that individuals from the Oath Keepers have contacted us in the past to make inquiries, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi told the news organisation.

The official stated that it was commonplace for agents to also reach out and contact the group when they found out they would be attending events and demonstrations.

The Secret Services relationship with the group has been brought up in the trial of the groups leader Stewart Rhodes.

A court heard that Mr Rhodes had claimed he was in contact with a Secret Service agent in the months leading up to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol by Donald Trumps supporters.

John Zimmerman, a former member of the group, testified in the trial of Mr Rhodes and four other Oath Keepers who are charged with seditious conspiracy in what prosecutors have described as a plot to use force to stop the transfer of presidential power from Mr Trump to Democrat Joe Biden, who won the election.

Mr Zimmerman told a jury that he witnessed a phone call between Mr Rhodes and a purported Secret Service agent in September 20202 at a Trump rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Mr Zimmerman could not say for sure that Mr Rhodes was speaking to someone with the Secret Service  only that Rhodes told him he was  and it was not clear what they were discussing.

Mr Zimmerman said Mr Rhodes wanted to find out the parameters that the Oath Keepers could operate under during the election-year rally.

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Rhodes, from Granbury Texas, and four associates are being tried on a Civil War-era charge punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison.

The others are Thomas Caldwell of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio; and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida.

Hours after Mr Guglielmis comments to CNN, the Secret Service was thrust into the spotlight at the latest January 6 committee hearing.

Emails released at the hearing showed that the Secret Service was aware of plans for violence on 6 January 2021.
Dear Amy: Recently, youve run a few questions regarding how people should notify others (family members and in-laws) that they are seeking a divorce.

Your thoughts and insights were helpful.

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Im wondering how to handle the news of a divorce when it isnt a mutual decision.

My son is struggling emotionally because his wife has chosen to end the marriage.

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I have no details about her reasons and cant possibly make a judgment as to how valid her reasons might be.

I feel close with both my son and daughter-in-law, and Id like to be there for both of them.

But how do I approach my daughter-in-law without sounding like Im questioning her decision or taking sides?

 Unsure in Upstate NY

Dear Unsure: Your daughter-in-law might not want to be in close touch right now. Try not to take this personally  if she has chosen to leave the marriage, her instinct could be to also distance herself from you and other family members.

This is not a laudable instinct, but a common one.

You could call or write to say, Im so sorry to hear that you and Chas are parting. This is very sad news for us. I want you to know that I will always be grateful for your presence in our family; we had some very good times together, and I hope that we can stay in touch moving forward. Leave the door open for contact and a cordial friendship  if all parties are willing and able.

Speaking honestly and from personal experience, this might be a time to take sides  not in an angry way, but in a way that conveys your support and loyalty toward your son. Her parents will likely do the same.

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You need to draw in close with your son to make sure that he feels emotionally supported during what will be a very painful time in his life.

Do not pry for details or criticize your daughter-in-law.

Do listen with compassion, and offer that special reassurance that parents can give  that time will help to heal his wound, and that you will always be in his corner.

Dear Amy: Last week I discovered that my boyfriend of over two years cheated on me while on vacation. He kissed a woman at a bar, and theyd been texting back and forth afterward.

He tried to keep this a secret until I saw her messages ping on his phone.

When I asked him about it, he lied, until I demanded that he show me the texts.

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Im in my late 20s and hes in his early 30s. We had been living together for eight months. This has left me reeling.

I never used to snoop on his phone or act jealous, and yet I was still cheated on!

I left him and moved my things to my parents house.

Hes begging me to come back and insisting that he made a huge mistake.

In 2020, I broke up with him on two separate occasions  once because of a big lie he told, and the second time because I became aware that we had major differences.

Both times I took him back, and I thought things were mostly good, until now.

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I dont think Im going to take him back.

I hear about infidelity all the time. I just dont want something like this to ever happen to me.

Do you have advice for how I can move forward?

 Devastated

Ask Amy Daily No-nonsense advice for better living delivered to your inbox every morning. For a limited time, sign up for the Ask Amy newsletter and get the book Ask Amy: Essential Wisdom from Americas Favorite Advice Columnist for $5. >

Dear Devastated: I cant adjudicate whether your boyfriends behavior constitutes infidelity, but  regardless  you two do have an overall unstable dynamic. Three big breakups over a two-year time span is a lot. Jealousy and snooping is not healthy.

The way to move forward now is to put one step in front of the other. Each step marks progress, and each step creates distance and perspective.

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Its a cliche (because its true!) but time is the great healer. Lean on your folks and friendships, pour your thoughts into a journal, and dive into your work and creative life.

Dear Amy: Your answer to Done with Religion is whats wrong with this country today! This person, an atheist, was invited to a Bar Mitzvah and didnt want to go. Whats wrong with attending and being tolerant, for the sake of friendships?

 Upset

Dear Upset: Done with Religion had attended many religious ceremonies over the years and didnt want to do so anymore. Declining to attend is not being intolerant; it is simply exercising an individuals right to make choices.

2022 Amy Dickinson.
A composite Then-President Bill Clinton during his famous 1998 news conference announcing he "sinned" and former President Donald Trump. David Hume Kennerly/Getty Images; Jose Luis Villegas/AP

The House Jan. 6 committee obtained hundreds of thousands of internal Secret Service emails.

The messages paint a damning portrait of the president and of fears of violence before January 6.

This is not the first time the agency has found itself revealing disturbing details about a president.

The House January 6 committee used observations from the agents tasked with protecting the president to paint a devastating portrait of Donald Trump's actions before and during the Capitol riot.

In what may be its final public hearing, the panel revealed internal Secret Service emails and other communications to portray an agency that was increasingly alarmed about the prospect of violence on the day when lawmakers would certify Joe Biden's win.

"What is clear from this record is that the White House had more than enough warning to warrant stopping any plan for an Ellipse rally and certainly for stopping any march to the Capitol," Democratic Rep. Pete Aguilar of California said as he recounted the panel's evidence. "Despite awareness of the potential for violence and weapons among the crowd the Elipse event nevertheless went forward, and Donald Trump instructed the angry crowd, some of whom were armed, to march to the Capitol."

As Trump's pre-riot rally unfolded, agents were exchanging their trepidations in real time about how heavily armed some of the attendees just outside the security perimeter were. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California explained how agents traded messages about the state of the crowd.

"Some members of the crowd are wearing ballistic helmets, body armor carrying radio equipment and military grade backpacks," a Secret Service report from the site of Trump's rally on the morning of January 6 said, according to the committee. Just before the afternoon, agents began to report the possibility the people in the crowd were armed.

"With so many weapons found so far; you wonder how many are unknown," an agent in the federal protective service texted a colleague on the 6th, per the panel. "Could be sporty after dark"

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In some of the communications, the agents were also blunt about how Trump was behaving.

"Just fyi. POTUS is pissed  breaking news Supreme Court denied his law suit," a Secret Service special agent wrote in an email on December 11, 2020. "He is livid now. Probably no remarks haha."

January 6th Committee (@January6thCmte) October 13, 2022

This isn't the first time the Secret Service has found itself at the center of the January 6 investigation or even an investigation into a president's conduct.

Before the new revelations, the Secret Service was already at the center of the committee's investigation. Former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson testified that Trump wanted agents to remove security screening outside of his January 6 rally because the crowd was too small. Hutchinson said agents were concerned about an unusually high number of weapons that were being confiscated from would-be attendees.

"Take the effing mags away  they're not here to hurt me," Trump said, according to Hutchinson's testimony, referring to magnetometers, which can detect metal weapons.

Hutchinson also claimed that Trump became so enraged about not being able to join his supporters at the Capitol that he lunged at his driver while inside a presidential vehicle. Trump has denied both of these accounts. Unnamed Secret Service sources have also cast doubt on whether Trump attacked an agent, but thus far there has been no public testimony disputing Hutchinson's claims.

The panel is also looking into how the Secret Service lost countless other records from January 6, reportedly including agents' text messages. The National Archives is also interested in what happened. Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the Secret Service, has said there was no malicious intent behind the messages' deletion. It's not clear how many of the reported one million records are from January 6.

Secret Service agent Larry Cockell (left) was forced to testify in an investigation into then-President Bill Clinton. WILLIAM PHILPOTT/AFP via Getty Images

Unlike the last time, the January 6 committee did not have to wage a protracted legal fight to secure it either. Lawmakers are clearly upset though that the agency deleted thousands of text messages even after Congress had asked the Secret Service to hold onto them. The Secret Service has said the mass deletion was not nefarious.

Independent counsel Ken Starr, as The Post documented earlier this summer, fought all the way to the Supreme Court to secure the cooperation of agents. His team went so far as to subpoena Larry Cockell, the head of Clinton's security detail.

Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin, whose department housed the agency from its inception up until the creation of the Department of Homeland Security following 9/11, argued that if the president's protectors started spilling secrets, future commanders-in-chief would think twice about trusting them. But as The Post reported at the time, no judge bought that argument. The Secret Service fought all the way to the Supreme Court, but Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who would preside over Clinton's impeachment trial just five months later, rejected those pleas too.

Starr's final report listed over 30 then-current or former Secret Service personnel among its key names and it repeatedly cited agents as witnesses that undermined the president's own testimony.

Lew Fox, who testified as a former agent, even recounted how Clinton had asked to be alerted to someone who matched Lewinsky's description.

"A short time later, Ms. Lewinsky approached, greeted Officer Fox, and said, 'I have some papers for the President,'" the report read. "Officer Fox admitted her to the Oval Office. The President said: 'You can close the door. She'll be here for a while.'"

Another agent told Starr's investigators that Lewinsky's frequent visits to the Oval Office became a "nuisance." Officers also said that at times Betty Currie, Clinton's personal secretary, tried to get agents to admit Lewinsky to the White House grounds without recording it.

"Concerned about the President's reputation, another officer suggested putting Ms. Lewinsky on a list of people who were not to be admitted to the White House," the report read. "A commander responded that it was none of their business whom the President chose to see, and, in any event, nobody would ever find out about Ms. Lewinsky."

Read the original article on Business Insider
The U.S. Secret Service received a tip ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol that white nationalists planned to literally kill people in Washington that day, according to the House select committee investigating the matter.

The tip was relayed to the agency by the FBI on Dec. 26, 2020, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) revealed in the committees final public hearing on Thursday.

They think that they will have a large enough group to march into DC armed and will outnumber the police so they cant be stopped ... Their plan is to literally kill people. Please please take this tip seriously, the tipster said, referring to the Proud Boys street gang.

Supporters of then-President Donald Trump gathered in Washington that day to join his call to stop the steal, referring to the Senates role in certifying the election won by Joe Biden. After Trump spoke, hundreds of people marched on the Capitol, entering the building without authorization, attacking police and damaging property.

Five members of the Proud Boys  including leader Enrique Tarrio  were indicted earlier this year on seditious conspiracy charges for their role in the attack.

The text messages and emails released by the committee on Thursday further showed how the Secret Service received warnings in December 2020 that protesters could start marching into the chambers of the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6.

A separate government intelligence report warned about calls to occupy federal buildings and the threat of protesters invading the capitol building just two days before the attack.

I saw several other alerts saying they will storm the capitol if he doesnt do the right thing, read a Secret Service email sent at 10:43 a.m. on Jan. 6.

Secret Service agents spotted numerous guns in the crowd that morning before Trumps speech outside the White House, according to more texts and emails presented by the committee.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
KYIV (Reuters) -Three drones operated by Russian forces attacked the small town of Makariv, west of Ukraine's capital, early on Thursday with officials saying that critical infrastructure facilities were struck by what they said were Iran-made suicide drones.

"There was a overnight drones bombardment by invaders on the Makariv community," Andriy Nebytov, head of the Kyiv region police said on the Telegram messaging app.

"According to preliminary information, there were no casualties."

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Volodymyr Zelenskiy's presidential office, said earlier that the attack took place by "kamikaze drones on critical infrastructure facilities", without providing further detail.

Nebytov and the region's governor, Oleksiy Kuleba, said that rescuers were working at the site.

Makariv, a town which had a population of about 10,000 before Russia's invasion in Ukraine in February, is about 55 km (34 miles) west of the capital, Kyiv.

Ukraine has reported a spate of Russian attacks with Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones in recent weeks. Iran denies supplying the drones to Russia, while the Kremlin has not commented.

Russia denies targeting civilians in what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine.

(Reporting by the Kyiv burea and Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Robert Birsel)
Harvey Weinstein appeared in court again on Wednesday in Los Angeles in his rape and sexual assault trial that began on Monday.

On Tuesday, Weinsteins lawyer, Mark Werksman, asked Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench for help regarding his clients holding cell. Werksman said the conditions were "unhygienic" and "almost medieval."

On Wednesday, Werksman thanked the judge for dealing with the conditions and said, "The sheriffs inspected and cleaned up the place where hes being housed."

Wednesday was the final day the court featured a jury panel in the selection process. Court will be dark on Thursday with lawyers returning on Friday for motions in limine, or the last arguments on what evidence can be presented in court.

HARVEY WEINSTEIN SECRETLY INDICTED ON RAPE CHARGES BY GRAND JURY IN LOS ANGELES

Weinstein addressed the potential jurors on Wednesday after Werksman introduced him to the courtroom.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

"We are very pleased to introduce you to Mr. Harvey Weinstein, our client," his lawyer said with Weinstein replying, "Hi everyone," as he waved.

Harvey Weinstein's sexual assault and rape trial in Los Angeles is currently on its final day of jury selections.

Weinstein has pleaded not guilty to 11 counts of rape and sexual assault involving California Gov. Gavin Newsom's wife, Jennifer Siebel, and four other women. The women will testify as "Jane Doe" during the trial in a Los Angeles court, where jury selection began Monday.

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Weinstein, 70, is currently serving a 23-year prison sentence following a conviction in New York. Weinstein was granted permission to take his appeal of his 2020 sex crime conviction to the New York State Court of Appeals.

Weinstein's trial, which comes five years after womens stories about him gave momentum to the #MeToo movement, is expected to last eight weeks.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

With the slow process of screening and selecting jurors from a pool of more than 200 people, opening statements are not expected until Oct. 24.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
I shop at Trader Joe's for my family of eight. Jenn Morson

I'm a mom of six who regularly shops at Trader Joe's for my family.

My kids love the frozen blueberry waffles, toaster pastries, and peanut-butter-filled pretzels.

I also pick up pizza sauce, frozen coconut shrimp, and root-vegetable fries from Trader Joe's.

Blueberry waffles are a big hit when our kids want a warm breakfast.

Trader Joe's blueberry waffles are easy for my kids to heat up themselves. Jenn Morson

Mornings can be chaotic as we have five children attending four different schools. We need easy-to-prepare and easy-to-clean-up breakfast items that the school-aged kids can prepare themselves while we tend to the younger ones.

We thankfully do not have any food intolerances to work around, but these do contain soy, milk, and eggs for those who do need to be careful.

Yogurt cups are impossible to keep stocked in our fridge because all eight of us love them.

Trader Joe's yogurt packs come with more than one flavor. Jenn Morson

I never leave Trader Joe's without at least two six-packs of yogurts. Each six-pack comes with two different flavors.

The texture is thick like custard. And if you're lucky enough that they last more than a day in the house, you can also freeze them with a popsicle stick for a lighter dessert option.

Organic frosted toaster pastries are a hit with my teens.

Trader Joe's frosted toaster pastries sometimes come in seasonal flavors. Jenn Morson

Our older kids don't always feel like eating breakfast, but it really is necessary before they head out the door.

Toaster pastries aren't ideal as a protein-rich breakfast, of course, but teenagers are difficult to please, and I'm just happy they have some form of fruit at the start of their day.

Fresh rolls make sandwiches more exciting.

Trader Joe's has a varied bread selection. Jenn Morson

I rely on several Trader Joe's items to make up the packed lunches our kids take to school, both for their sandwiches and their side dishes.

Sandwiches can get boring and repetitive, but thankfully Trader Joe's sells several varieties of rolls that my kids love.

Some options are seasonal, but we love the French rolls and the Ciabatta rolls for a hearty sandwich.

Shelf-stable snacks work best for packed lunches.

Trader Joe's cheddar rockets are good for a lunch side. Jenn Morson

To accompany sandwiches, I like to pack a variety of shelf-stable snacks as I don't necessarily trust that the kids will remember to put a cooling pack in their lunchboxes.

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One of our favorites is the cheddar-cheese rockets.

I also pack honey wheat pretzel sticks in my kids' lunches.

Trader Joe's has a few pretzel varieties. Jenn Morson

We love the honey wheat pretzel sticks and veggie sticks, too.

All of the snacks I've mentioned are reasonably priced our kids would happily polish any of them off if we didn't divide them into individual portions for their lunches.

For our kids who don't have nut-free schools, we love the peanut-butter-filled pretzel nuggets.

The peanut-butter-filled pretzels come in salted and unsalted varieties. Jenn Morson

My children are split 50/50 between the salted and unsalted nuggets, and I have to admit that I like the non-salted ones best.

They are a source of added protein, easy to divide into individual servings, and bite-sized, which cuts down on crumbly mess

Trader Joe's Triple Ginger Snaps are another sweet staple.

Triple Ginger Snaps have a kick. Jenn Morson

For a sweet treat, I always have a tub of the Triple Ginger Snaps in the house. My kids love these "spicy" cookies that have bits of crystallized ginger in them.

As an added bonus, they settle an anxious tummy in a pinch.

I love buying Clif Kid Z bars while shopping at Trader Joe's.

Clif Kid bars are a great after-school snack to fuel homework time. Jenn Morson

Although most items in Trader Joe's are store brand, I love that they also carry Clif's protein-packed bars for a lower price than our hometown grocery store.

These are a great energy booster for our kids with early practices  it helps tide them over until dinnertime.

I use Trader Joe's pizza dough as a base for my easy stromboli dinner.

I use pizza crust to make stromboli. Jenn Morson

Having kids headed in different directions and at different times means needing fast, tasty, and easily reheatable meal options. One of my favorites is stromboli.

I use two packages of the chain's ready-to-bake pizza dough, usually one plan and one herbed.

To start, I roll it out to about the size of a baking sheet.

To make it, I use a bunch of the chain's cheeses.

Trader Joe's has a lot of options for cheese. Jenn Morson

I liked to add the chain's shredded mozzarella or Quattro Formaggio cheese to my dough.

To upgrade the stromboli, I add Trader Joe's cured meats.

Trader Joe's sells pepperoni and salami. Jenn Morson

We usually opt for Italian salami and pepperoni. Once the meat and the cheese are inside the dough, I shape it into a log and bake.

My kids like to dip their stromboli slices into Trader Joe's pizza sauce as well.

Trader Joe's sells tubs of pizza sauce. Jenn Morson

I love to eat stromboli both fresh out of the oven as well as straight from the fridge the next day as a premade sandwich.

But if someone is late for dinner, they can always pop a couple of slices into the toaster oven for a warm meal.

One of our tastiest summer meals stars the campari tomatoes and basil from the potted plant available at Trader Joe's.

I love when the chain sells campari tomatoes. Jenn Morson

I cook the tomatoes down with some olive oil and garlic while boiling fusilli, then mix it all together with fresh mozzarella.

I have a strict policy of not making this until Memorial Day has passed, but we love this simple summer meal for Sunday evenings when everyone is home.

Frozen coconut shrimp is easy to dress up.

We like to pair our coconut shrimp with a few sides. Jenn Morson

The shrimp is a nice treat and it usually takes around 20 minutes to cook in the oven. To make it a full meal, we sometimes pair it with a side salad.

We also pair meals with Trader Joe's root-vegetable fries.

The root-vegetable fries from Trader Joe's are a family favorite. Jenn Morson

The coconut shrimp and root-vegetable fries cook at roughly the same high temperature, so I usually put both in the oven at once.

Plus my kids are more willing to eat their vegetables in fry form.

Click to keep reading Trader Joe's diaries like this one.

Read the original article on Insider
ZURICH (Reuters) -Siemens has signed a deal a with a joint venture of Stellantis, Mercedes Benz and TotalEnergies to supply equipment and technology for electric vehicle battery plants, the German engineering company said on Thursday.

The joint venture - Automotive Cells Company - has a plan worth more than 7 billion euros ($6.79 billion) to build the three gigafactories with a capacity of 40 gigawatt hours (GWh) each by 2030, to support the growing production of electrified vehicles.

Gigafactories is a generic term referring to facilities that produce batteries for electric vehicles on a large scale.

Siemens' digital twin technology will speed up the startup of ACC's factories in Billy-Berclau Douvrin, France, Kaiserslautern, Germany, and possibly Termoli, Italy, Siemens said.

Under the deal, Siemens will become ACC's preferred supplier for automation, digitalisation and electrification technology.

Terms of the partnership, which is part of the Siemens Xcelerator open digital platform launched earlier this year, have not been revealed.

The cloud-based platform, which will feature hardware, software and digital services, is part of Siemens' ambition to grow its digital business by 10% per year from the 5.6 billion euros ($5.89 billion) generated in 2021.

Siemens will give ACC access to its digital enterprise portfolio of hardware and software, from production design to product design, from product lifecycle management to energy management systems.

"ACC uses virtually the entire spectrum of Xcelerator - from factory construction to production automation to building services," Siemens managing board member Cedrik Neike told Reuters.

"Battery factories - along with semiconductors and intralogistics - are among the super-cycles in which investments must be made regardless of the economy," the executive, who also leads Siemens's Digital Industries division, said.

Siemens on Thursday also announced a deal with electric vehicle company Volta Trucks to deliver electric charging infrastructure for truck customers, to help the transition to electrified vehicles.

($1 = 1.0309 euros)

(Reporting by Alexander Huebner and John RevillEditing by Miranda Murray and Jane Merriman)
Rapper PnB Rock, pictured during New York Fashion Week in February 2020, was shot and killed in September. His girlfriend Stephanie Sibounheuang, who was with him when he was shot, broke her silence Thursday on social media. (Gilbert Carrasquillo / GC Images)

Warning: This story discusses self-harm.

Stephanie Sibounheuang is publicly mourning the loss of her boyfriend PnB Rock, a month after the rapper was shot and killed during a robbery in September.

On Thursday, Sibounheuang posted a video montage on Instagram set to PnB Rock's song "UNI." The clip shows the rapper kissing and holding Sibounheuang, singing to their daughter and paragliding. At the end of the video, the music stops abruptly and the family raises their glasses in a toast at a restaurant. Sibounheuang's caption takes a more somber tone.

"I am 100% not ok. If I wasnt spiritual I could kill my self (but then Ill go to hell and my man not there)," she wrote.

In her Instagram post, Sibounheuang recalled the fatal shooting at the Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles in South L.A. that claimed her boyfriend's life. On Sept. 12, PnB was eating with Sibounheuang when an assailant tried to rob him of his jewelry and shot him multiple times before running out a side door. Less than an hour after the shooting, Rock was pronounced dead.

Sibounheuang wrote that "my man saved my life" and "I'm not supposed to be here but [because] of him. I am."

She recounted details from the crime  which she said she constantly relives in her head  including being "forced in the back of a police car, locked in an interrogation room all night." Sibounheuang said that "everything was finally perfect for our family" before his killing.

She praised him as loyal and patient and said she told the rapper, "I know you my husband. I know you my soulmate" on their last day together.

"Even it was for a little bit. At least we got to experience what having a soul mate is and for thatI am grateful," she continued. "You told me u hate it took so long, u wish you wouldve changed way sooner."

Thursday's post was Sibounheuang's first since the rapper's death. While investigating the shooting, Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore said that Rock's death occurred soon after he was tagged online as being at the restaurant. Before her boyfriend's death, Sibounheuang disclosed that she was at Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles with Rock in a since-deleted Instagram post. Police were investigating whether that is what prompted the attack.

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He was with his family  with his girlfriend or some kind of friend of his  and as theyre there, enjoying a simple meal, [he] was brutally attacked by an individual who apparently [came] to the location after a social media posting, Moore said.

Weeks after the South Los Angeles shooting, prosecutors filed murder charges against two people, Freddie Lee Trone, 40, and a 17-year-old boy. A third suspect, Shauntel Trone, 38, was charged with robbery and being an accessory after the fact.

The teenage boy fired the shot that claimed Rock's life.

Since Rock's slaying, Sibounheuang said daily life has become difficult, needing "so much prayer and spiritual therapy to gain the strength to do the simple things." She said "the devil is running loose on earth" and that "my world is dark now," since Rock's death.

"I will never understand a loss so close. I feel so empty" she said.

Sibounheuang's emotional tribute follows those from fellow musicians including Offset, Nicki Minaj, Questlove and D.R.A.M.

Pray for pnb rock.the man got family and kids smh God be with the man  OFFSET (@OffsetYRN) September 13, 2022

This is terrible. RIP PNB Rock.  DRAM back (@shelleysaid) September 13, 2022

After Pop Smoke theres no way we as rappers or our loved ones are still posting locations to our whereabouts. To show waffles & some fried chicken????! He was such a pleasure to work with. Condolences to his mom & family. This makes me feel so sick. Jesus. #SIP #PnbRock   Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) September 13, 2022

Times staff writers Kenan Draughorne and Richard Winton contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
BRATISLAVA (Reuters) -A "radicalised teenager" shot dead two people outside a gay bar in Slovakia's capital Bratislava, Prime Minister Eduard Heger said.

A gunman killed two people and wounded another near the Teplaren bar in the city centre on Wednesday evening, police said. The suspected attacker was himself found dead on Thursday morning, officers added.

"I strongly condemn a murder of two young people shot dead in Bratislava last night by a radicalised teenager," Heger wrote on Twitter.

"No form of white supremacy, racism and extremism against communities, incl. LGBTI, can be tolerated," he added.

Police said they have not yet determined the motive behind the shooting and asked the public for patience as they looked into the possibility that it was a hate crime.

Slovak media reported the main suspect had posted messages with the phrases "hate crime" and "gay bar" hashtagged on Twitter. The Dennik N news website said the attacker had posted a manifesto against the LGBT and Jewish communities before the killings.

The Duhovy PRIDE Bratislava (Rainbow PRIDE) group said it was shocked by the attack, while Slovak President Zuzana Caputova offered her support to the LGBT community.

"I want to say to the LGBT community, it is not you who don't belong here, it is not you who should be afraid to walk in the streets. It is hate that does not belong in Slovakia," she told reporters after visiting the scene of the attack.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said her thoughts were with the families of the victims.

"These abhorrent murders are a threat to our societies built on respect and tolerance. The EU is committed to helping fight hate crime and speech in all form. We must protect the LGBTIQ community," she added.

(Reporting by Radovan Stoklasa and Jason Hovet; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
Solar Modules

Contractors install photo voltaic modules on top of a Kohl's Department Store roof June 2, 2010 in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. Credit - Robert NickelsbergGetty Images

When we think about the companies responsible for carbon emissions, we tend to focus on the Chevrons and ExxonMobils of the world. But virtually every company has a carbon footprint. And each can help solve our global problem.

Small actions on a local level add up, says Fran Teplitz, executive co-director of business, investing, and policy at the Washington, D.C.-based Green Business Network. Were big advocates of doing what you can, based on who you are and where you are. This domino effect has the potential to build positive momentum across business sectors.

While small to mid-sized companies make up roughly 90% of businesses worldwide, most global emissions can be tracked to a small number of the worlds largest companies. However, no small business is an island. Everything is connected. The beefy corporations with large value chains use smaller firms for things like raw materials, packaging, production, and marketing. All of those things have a carbon footprint, says Rob Fisher, the head of KPMGs IMPACT group, which focuses on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria, and sustainability.

Fisher notes that a small companys Scope 1 emissions (from their direct operations, such as the gas used in vehicles) might be part of a larger corporations Scope 3 emissions (from indirect activity, including purchasing raw materials), so the sustainability wins from a small business can snowball to the larger value chain. (These global scope standards come from Greenhouse Gas Protocol; Scope 2 refers to the energy purchased by a company.)

Then theres the legal side of the coin. Since the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposed new rules in March that would require firms to disclose climate change risks, any public company (even if its small-ish) might be required to consider their impact. Bonus reason to take action? Small businesses have less resilience than larger corporations, says Teplitz, and have less cushion to absorb the hardships caused by climate changelike droughts, hurricanes, or weather-related supply-chain hiccups. These can be both economic and existential threats for a business, and reasons to care.

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Knowing Impact, Setting Targets

It can be tough for a business to know where to begin. How big is its footprint? What should it set as a goal? Tools like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Center for Corporate Climate Leadership can help a business develop targets appropriate for a companys industry and sizetheir self-assessment tools are a good place to start. Additionally, the United Nations SME Climate Hub provides a target that virtually any small business can adopt: to halve emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero by 2050.

But if quantifying the impact still feels too daunting the actual quantification might not be essential. Even in the absence of doing a full deep measurement, they know there are actions they can take, such as sourcing renewable energy, that might make a difference, says Chris Steuer, senior director of climate planning at ICF, a global consulting and technology services provider. In other words, something is better than nothing.

The goal is for a company to consider every action it has direct control overScope 1 emissionsand search for more sustainable solutions. As an example, HVAC contractors, electricians, and plumbers with large fleets should think about transitioning to electrical vehicles. Fisher says that on average, switching a light duty truck from gasoline to electric will save about 6,000 pounds of CO2 emissions annually. Trimming waste should be a priority as that lowers energy consumption both for the business and across the value chain. Every pound of waste thats recycled instead of landfilled saves about three pounds of CO2 emissions, according to Fisher.

For example, Gloria Ware, the woman behind the startup Get The Bag, a company focused on promoting the success of Black women entrepreneurs, has been on a zero waste journey and trimmed the materials, packaging, and frequency of her mailings. Teplitz, of Green Business Network, concedes that most businesses wont be able to hit zero-waste, but even if you cant get there, what does it mean to be on that journey? In other words, dont let the perfect be the enemy of the goodevery bit of progress helps.

A company should also think about the building in which it operates. Building operations account for 39% of all global emissions, according to the World Green Building Council (other estimates peg it closer to 50%), which is why switching to renewable energy like solar panels, installing dimmable windows that automatically darken when the sun is brighter, or using smart building software that throttles down electricity when its not needed are all critical steps a company can take to reduce its Scope 2 emissions.

These options are not always available for a small shop, but Teplitz says even renters can nudge change. Have you spoken with your landlord? she asks. Or have you shared your environmental concerns with the buildings other tenants, and pushed for collective action? Youre a key stakeholder, says Teplitz, and you have some influence that you can use.

Even if a company has the worlds most carbon-friendly process, says Fisher, if your raw materials have emitted tons of carbon, then youve still got a pretty big problem on your hands. Small companies should analyze every link of their supply chain, which helps reduce Scope 3 emissions. What are the raw materials made from? How far are they traveling? If a company uses cotton, is that cotton coming from a sustainable source? One way to check for this is to see if the supplier has received a sustainability certification from their industry, such as the Global Organic Textile Standard. Sourcing locally whenever possible will help, as Teplitz notes that transportation accounts for 14% of all global emissions.

Impacting Policy

While its true that, historically, many companies have lobbied against climate change efforts, its also true that small and mid-size businesses have the power to impact eco-friendly policy. Its important for policymakers to hear members of the business community embrace a transition to a clean energy economy, Teplitz says. Business leaders are simply seen differently than politicians or environmental activiststheyre sometimes more trusted.

The Green Business Network, for example, was part of a coalition of 1,000 small and mid-size companies that penned a June 2022 letter to President Joe Biden and Senate Majority Leader Schumer urging for action on climate change. Given the stature that business leaders have, says Teplitz, we cant underestimate how important it is to hear from these economic voices.

Additionally, many small or medium-size enterprises are affiliated with a trade organization; these associations can be key to collective action since they help inform policy, says Patten. (This can be especially important if, historically, the trade organization used to oppose climate change action.) Trade organizations can follow the World Resources Institutes AAA Framework for Climate Policy Leadership: Advocate (for climate change policy), Align (the trade organizations values with the WRIs goal of net-zero emissions by 2050), and Allocate (advocacy spending to make it happen).

Many businesses that take steps with eco-friendliness in mind might want to share their story. Bethany Patten, senior associate director of MIT Sloan School of Managements Sustainability Initiative, recommends sharing your commitment to sustainability across all communication platformspackaging, pamphlets, websites, social mediaas this helps spur action within a community, and also creates opportunities for like-minded businesses to work together. For example, if a local manufacturing company shares that they want to reduce their carbon footprint, that opens the door for local solar developers to engage them.

Perhaps one of the biggest considerations a company can make is where it banks. When The Green Business Network evaluates whether a company can be awarded a Green Business Certification, one of the questions they ask is, What kind of bank do you use? Businesses are often surprised by the question, says Teplitz, but the answer matters. The larger conventional mega-banks are continuing to fund fossil fuel companies, says Teplitz, which is effectively bankrolling the climate crisis. She encourages small companies to do their banking with greener choices like the Colorado-based Clean Energy Credit Union, which also provides loans for those seeking to address climate change.

Embracing The Upside

Working to curb the impact of climate change can bring tangible benefits to the business. There are revenue generation opportunities by having products that resonate with consumers, says Steuer. Younger customers are increasingly likely to appreciateor even demandaction on climate change. Same with potential employees. As Fisher says, Millennials and Gen Z really want to know, does my employer line up with my values? Do they believe in the need for a low-carbon future?

A drive to reduce emissions could help land even juicier clients. Small- and medium-sized businesses have an opportunity to disrupt their competition, says Fisher, by demonstrating to larger corporationswho have their own sustainability goalsthat they are committed to reducing emissions. If Im moving the fastest to eliminate my carbon footprint, maybe I can appeal to the larger companies that can put me in their supply chain, he says.

Zooming out, Fisher believes that this pivot to a lower-emission business model is a physical transformation that will rival the digital transformation of the 2010s, and provide the same kind of upside to savvy companies. Ultimately, Fisher sees this transformation as the dominant economic driver for the next 20 to 30 years. And that economic driver is open to allbig or small.

This article is part of a series on key topics in the climate crisis for time.com and CO2.com, a division of TIME that helps companies reduce their impact on the planet. For more information, go to co2.com
An American Airlines plane lands at the Miami International Airport on June 16, 2021 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

An American Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency return to a Florida airport on Wednesday due to a chemical odor.

The odor had seeped out of a passenger's carry-on bag and into the cabin, officials said.

Five people onboard the Barbados-bound flight were taken to the hospital as a precaution.

A Barbados-bound American Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency return back to a Florida airport on Wednesday night thanks to a "chemical odor" that seeped out of a passenger's carry-on bag and into the cabin, officials said.

American Airlines flight No. 338 departed from Florida's Miami International Airport on Wednesday evening and returned at around 9 p.m. "due to a chemical odor in the cabin caused by the contents of a customer's carry-on luggage," a spokesperson for the airline told Insider.

"The aircraft landed safely and without incident, and customers deplaned via air stairs and were bussed to the terminal," the spokesperson said.

Emergency crews with Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded to the incident as the plane arrived at the airport.

"HazMat units performed a hazard assessment due to reports of a strong chemical smell inside the plane," a fire department spokesperson told Insider.

Five crew members aboard the plane  which was carrying a total of 173 people  were taken to the hospital "out of an abundance of caution" after the aircraft was evacuated, according to American Airlines and the fire department.

It wasn't clear what caused the chemical smell, but one man aboard the flight told WSVN 7News that the odor was similar to nail polish remover.

"Personally it didn't have an effect on me, but I understand that a couple of other passengers felt sick. They might have been vomiting," the man told the news outlet.

He added, "It felt strong enough for a couple of people. We were in the back of the plane so it didn't seem that out of the ordinary. I was hoping we could plow through but I guess not."

American Airlines said that all customers onboard the plane were offered hotel accommodations.

The flight left again for Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados on Thursday morning at 9:22 a.m.

Read the original article on Business Insider
By Raphael Satter

(Reuters) -Ephemeral messaging app Snap had employee data exposed by a breach at a third-party document analysis firm, according to a document reviewed by Reuters on Thursday.

Snap said it had been told by document analysis company Elevate that an unauthorized party had accessed some of Elevate's computer systems in March 2022, according to a Sept. 13 letter to a former employee. That employee was told that their name, address, employment history and compensation information may have been among the affected files.

The letter said Snap was terminating its relationship with Elevate, which also provides services to law firms, according to its website.

A Snap spokesperson confirmed only that an unspecified outside vendor experienced a data breach that "exposed personal information of some of our current and former team members," adding that no Snapchat users were affected.

Snap said it had notified the people affected and would not use the vendor for similar services in the future.

A spokesperson for Elevate declined to comment.

Reuters was not immediately able to determine who else received the letter or how many other employees or former employees may have been affected by the breach.

(Reporting by Raphael Satter; Additional reporting by Sheila Dang in Dallas; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Channel 2 Action News has learned that there is a massive investigation underway tied to crimes allegedly committed in protest of the development of the land intended for Atlantas new Public Safety Training Center.

Plans call for the state-of-the-art facility to be built on Key Road, in the South River Forest in DeKalb County.

Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne has learned that the Atlanta Police Department, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, FBI, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives  along with support from Cobb, DeKalb and Gwinnett County police and other agencies  are involved in a massive investigation into alleged crimes aimed at stopping the construction of a new facility.

A statement from the Atlanta Police Department said:

There is a multi-jurisdictional investigation into criminal activity at the proposed site of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center and other related crimes outside of the City of Atlanta.

But Winne has uncovered extensive new details into the string of alleged crimes.

RELATED STORIES:

A law enforcement source confirms a list of well over a dozen incidents that are part of the local, state and federal investigation into crimes related to efforts to stop the building facility.

Some of those incidents include:

Protesters throwing a Molotov cocktail at police officers as they attempted to arrest them for trespassing on the grounds of what will be the new training center.

A fire at the westside At-Promise Center, which is a crime diversion program geared toward supporting at-risk youth in Atlanta.

Vandalism of the Cobb County office of a building contractor working on the project, and weeks later vandalism at the Cobb County home of an executive.

On several occasions, barricades or other material on the construction site set on fire on or near the project site.

Ball bearings propelled via slingshot at a utility van, causing damage.

Vandalism of the offices of the parent company of a subcontractor working on the project  located in Florida, Nebraska, Minnesota and New York  which included spray-painted phrases alluding to the Atlanta project.

Story continues

I think its a witch hunt. I want to be clear that I think the police are positioning or putting forth the narrative that criminals are protesting the building of their cop city which allows them to then try to prosecute, arrest, scare off folks who would also be against cop city, said Kamau Franklin of Community Movement Builders.

Franklin said his group is one of many protesting the project  from community groups to those who consider themselves radicals and anarchists.

We dispute the police narrative. We think, for them, the purpose is to paint the folks who are protesting as evil or as out there and therefore should not be listened to, Franklin said.

A statement from a spokesperson for Gov. Brian Kemp says, The state is actively partnering with law enforcement on all levels, from local to federal, to ensure these criminals are brought to justice, that the surrounding community is a safe place for families, and that this project is not halted or hindered by those with extremist purposes. It also says: Rest assured, domestic terrorism will NOT go unchecked or unpunished in Georgia. These criminals and their backers seem to care nothing for public safety and are hiding behind a woke agenda while using tactics of violence and intimidation.

We dont want this facility here, said a woman who identified herself only as Donna, with the Atlanta Community Press Collective.

Donna said through open records requests, her group has been tracking the massive investigation.

Our open records requests reveal documents, meeting, agendas that show exactly that, she said.

Winne learned that dozens of arrests have been made in connection with individual cases over the past 13 months.

Donna said she believes characterizing anyone opposed to the new public safety training center as a terrorist is incorrect and unfair.

RELATED NEWS:
STORY: Rail freight and port workers in South Africa have rejected logistics firm Transnet's pay offer, a union leader said on Thursday (October 13).

And that means no end in sight for a strike that leading figures in business and politics have warned would damage Africa's most advanced economy.

State-owned Transnet said on Tuesday (October 11) that it had raised its wage offer to 4.5% from 3-4% previously. There would be additional 5.3% annual increases over the next two years.

However, the United National Transport Union and the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union want an offer that is linked to South Africa's annual inflation - 7.6% in August.

UNTU general secretary Cobus van Vuuren said both unions had rejected the pay offer, telling Transnet that they are "not being responsible and reasonable".

Van Vuuren added that the strike and picketing would be intensifying over the coming days.

Transnet has said meeting the unions' demands would not be sustainable as wages currently make up 66% of its total expenses.

On Wednesday (October 12), two trade associations warned of "significant knock-on implications" for South Africa's economy from the industrial action.

In a joint statement several government ministers also called for an urgent resolution to the dispute, saying it was hitting exports and threatening jobs.
By Timothy Gardner, Steve Holland, Dmitry Zhdannikov and Rania El Gamal

WASHINGTON/LONDON/DUBAI (Reuters) - As the United States pressed Saudi Arabia to end its oil price war with Russia, President Donald Trump gave Saudi leaders an ultimatum.

In an April 2 phone call, Trump told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that unless the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) started cutting oil production, he would be powerless to stop lawmakers from passing legislation to withdraw U.S. troops from the kingdom, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The threat to upend a 75-year strategic alliance, which has not been previously reported, was central to the U.S. pressure campaign that led to a landmark global deal to slash oil supply as demand collapsed in the coronavirus pandemic - scoring a diplomatic victory for the White House.

Trump delivered the message to the crown prince 10 days before the announcement of production cuts. The kingdoms de facto leader was so taken aback by the threat that he ordered his aides out of the room so he could continue the discussion in private, according to a U.S. source who was briefed on the discussion by senior administration officials.

The effort illustrated Trumps strong desire to protect the U.S. oil industry from a historic price meltdown as governments shut down economies worldwide to fight the virus. It also reflected a telling reversal of Trumps longstanding criticism of the oil cartel, which he has blasted for raising energy costs for Americans with supply cuts that usually lead to higher gasoline prices. Now, Trump was asking OPEC to slash output.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters that the administration notified Saudi leaders that, without production cuts, there would be no way to stop the U.S. Congress from imposing restrictions that could lead to a withdrawal of U.S. forces. The official summed up the argument, made through various diplomatic channels, as telling Saudi leaders: We are defending your industry while youre destroying ours.

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Reuters asked Trump about the talks in an interview Wednesday evening at the White House, at which the president addressed a range of topics involving the pandemic. Asked if he told the crown prince that the U.S. might pull forces out of Saudi Arabia, Trump said, "I didn't have to tell him."

"I thought he and President Putin, Vladimir Putin, were very reasonable," Trump said. "They knew they had a problem, and then this happened."

Asked what he told the Crown Prince Mohammed, Trump said: "They were having a hard time making a deal. And I met telephonically with him, and we were able to reach a deal" for production cuts, Trump said.

Saudi Arabias government media office did not respond to a request for comment. A Saudi official who asked not to be named stressed that the agreement represented the will of all countries in the so-called OPEC+ group of oil-producing nations, which includes OPEC plus a coalition led by Russia.

Saudi Arabia, the United States and Russia have played an important role in the OPEC+ oil cut agreement, but without the cooperation of the 23 countries who took part in the agreement, it would not have happened, said the Saudi official, who declined to comment on the discussions between U.S. and Saudi leaders.

The week before Trumps phone call with Crown Prince Mohammed, U.S. Republican Senators Kevin Cramer and Dan Sullivan had introduced legislation to remove all U.S. troops, Patriot missiles and anti-missile defense systems from the kingdom unless Saudi Arabia cut oil output. Support for the measure was gaining momentum amid Congressional anger over the ill-timed Saudi-Russia oil price war. The kingdom had opened up the taps in April, unleashing a flood of crude into the global supply after Russia refused to deepen production cuts in line with an earlier OPEC supply pact.

On April 12, under pressure from Trump, the worlds biggest oil-producing nations outside the United States agreed to the largest production cut ever negotiated. OPEC, Russia and other allied producers slashed production by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 10% of global output. Half that volume came from cuts of 2.5 million bpd each by Saudi Arabia and Russia, whose budgets depend on high oil-and-gas revenues.

Despite the agreement to cut a tenth of global production, oil prices continued to fall to historic lows. U.S. oil futures dropped below $0 last week as sellers paid buyers to avoid taking delivery of oil they had no place to store. Brent futures, the global oil benchmark, fell towards $15 per barrel - a level not seen since the 1999 oil price crash  from as high as $70 at the start of the year.

The deal for supply cuts could eventually boost prices, however, as governments worldwide start to open their economies and fuel demand rises with increased travel. Whatever the impact, the negotiations mark an extraordinary display of U.S. influence over global oil output.

Cramer, the Republican senator from North Dakota, told Reuters he spoke to Trump about the legislation to withdraw U.S. military protection from Saudi Arabia on March 30, three days before the president called Crown Prince Mohammed.

Asked whether Trump told Saudi Arabia it could lose U.S. military support, U.S. Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette told Reuters the president reserved the right to use every tool to protect U.S. producers, including our support for their defense needs.

The strategic partnership dates back to 1945, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt met with Saudi King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud on the USS Quincy, a Navy cruiser. They reached a deal: U.S. military protection in exchange for access to Saudi oil reserves. Today, the United States has about three thousand troops in the country, and the U.S. Navys Fifth Fleet protects oil exports from the region.

Saudi Arabia relies on the United States for weapons and protection against regional rivals such as Iran. The kingdoms vulnerabilities, however, were exposed late last year in an attack by 18 drones and three missiles on key Saudi oil facilities. Washington blamed Iran; Tehran denied it.

THIRTEEN ANGRY SENATORS

Trump initially welcomed lower oil prices, saying cheap gasoline prices were akin to a tax cut for drivers.

That changed after Saudi Arabia announced in mid-March it would pump a record 12.3 million bpd  unleashing the price war with Russia. The explosion of supply came as governments worldwide issued stay-home orders - crushing fuel demand - and made clear that U.S. oil companies would be hit hard in the crude price collapse. Senators from U.S. oil states were infuriated.

On March 16, Cramer was among 13 Republican senators who sent a letter to Crown Prince Mohammed reminding him of Saudi Arabia's strategic reliance on Washington. The group also urged Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to investigate whether Saudi Arabia and Russia were breaking international trade laws by flooding the U.S. market with oil.

On March 18, the senators  a group that included Sullivan of Alaska and Ted Cruz of Texas  held a rare call with Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan, the Saudi ambassador to the United States. Cramer called the conversations brutal as each senator detailed the damage to their states oil industries.

She heard it from every senator; there was nobody that held back, Cramer told Reuters.

The Saudi embassy did not respond to requests for comment.

Cramer said the princess relayed their comments to officials in Saudi Arabia, including the energy minister. The senators told the princess that the kingdom faced rising opposition in the Senate to the Saudi-led coalition that is waging a war in Yemen against Houthi rebels.

Saudi and U.S. officials have said the Houthis are armed by Iran, which Tehran denies. The backing of Senate Republicans over Yemen had proved crucial for Saudi Arabia last year. The Senate upheld Trump vetoes of several measures seeking to end U.S. weapons sales and other military support to Saudi Arabia amid outrage over the Yemen conflict, which has caused more than 100,000 deaths and triggered a humanitarian crisis.

Cramer said he made a phone call to Trump on March 30, about a week after he and Sullivan introduced their bill to pull U.S. troops from Saudi Arabia. The president called Cramer back the same day with Energy Secretary Brouillette, senior economic adviser Larry Kudlow and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on the call, the senator said.

I said the one person that you dont have on the call that can be very helpful is Mark Esper, the defense secretary, Cramer recounted, saying he wanted Esper to address how U.S. military assets in Saudi Arabia might be moved elsewhere in the region to protect U.S. troops.

The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment on whether Esper was involved in discussions of pulling military assets out of Saudi Arabia.

BENDING THE KNEE

Trumps oil diplomacy came in a whirlwind of calls with Saudi King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed and Russian President Vladimir Putin starting in mid-March. The Kremlin confirmed Putins conversation with Trump and said they discussed both oil supply cuts and the coronavirus pandemic.

On the April 2 call with Prince Mohammed, Trump told the Saudi ruler he was going to cut them off the next time Congress pushed a proposal to end Washingtons defense of the kingdom, according to the source with knowledge of the call. Trump also publicly threatened in early April to impose tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia and Russia.

After the conversation with the Saudi crown prince, and another the same day with Putin, Trump tweeted that he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut output by about 10 million barrels, which will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry!"

Riyadh and Moscow later confirmed they had restarted negotiations.

On April 3, Trump hosted a meeting at the White House with senators Cramer, Cruz, and Sullivan, and oil executives from companies including Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, Occidental Petroleum Corp and Continental Resources.

During the public portion of the meeting, Cramer told Trump that Washington can use the billions of dollars it spends defending Saudi Arabia on other military priorities if our friends are going to treat us this way.

The prospect of losing U.S. military protection made the royal family bend at the knees and bow to Trumps demands, a Middle Eastern diplomat told Reuters.

After prolonged and fractious negotiations, top producers pledged their record output cut of 9.7 million bpd in May and June, with the understanding that economic forces would lead to about 10 million bpd in further cuts in production from other countries, including the United States and Canada.

Trump hailed the deal and cast himself as its broker. Having been involved in the negotiations, to put it mildly, the number that OPEC+ is looking to cut is 20 Million Barrels a day he tweeted shortly after the deal.

Riyadh also took credit. Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz told Reuters at the time that the crown prince had been instrumental in formulating this deal.

(Reporting by Timothy Gardner and Steve Holland in Washington, Dmitry Zhdannikov in London and Rania El Gamal in Dubai; additional reporting by Alexandra Alper and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington, and Marwa Rashad in Riyadh; writing by Michael Georgy; editing by Richard Valdmanis and Brian Thevenot)
Dave Benbow in his isolation cabin. Courtesy Dave Benbow

Dave Benbow booked an all-gay cruise in the Mediterranean for $5,200 and was so excited to go.

Then, he tested positive for COVID his first day on board and spend the entire 10 days in isolation.

This is his story, as told to writer Gary Nunn.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Dave Benbow, a 61-year-old from LA who booked a trip on a 10-day Mediterranean all-gay cruise leaving from Rome at the end of August and tested positive for COVID the first day on board. It has been edited for length and clarity.

This would've been my 27th Atlantis all-gay cruise. I cherish them because for 10 days, you're the majority, not the minority. I get to be with my people: the full spectrum of gay men, and no screaming kids.

I like unpacking once, then having a new country to visit daily. Sometimes the anticipation is as fun as the cruise itself. This one was going to be the biggest ever all-gay cruise around Europe: 4,000 gay men would be on board.

Dave Benbow about to board another cruise. Courtesy Dave Benbow

I was most looking forward to Bodrum, Turkey  I've been there a few times and was excited to return to see the sites. I also wanted to buy some imitation-designer watches as gifts.

Because of the pandemic, this trip had been delayed twice over two years, so I was more than excited to go. The ship  Royal Caribbean's Odyssey of the Seas  was brand-new, so I couldn't wait to see it. I planned to try out their skydive simulator and trampoline-bungee experience.

I took a COVID test before boarding, and it was negative  I was good to go

We had to return a negative Covid test within 48 hours of entering the ship, so I did that at the pharmacy across from my Rome hotel as soon as I arrived. It was negative!

Traveling down to the port outside Rome, I remember I was sweating like crazy. I just chalked it up to Rome being so hot  the temperature was in the high 90s. I ignored the slight tickle in my throat.

A leather outfit Dave Benbow brought for the cruise that he never got to wear. Courtesy Dave Benbow

I was so excited that I unpacked all my things  including fancy dress outfits for the seven themed parties  the minute I arrived. I paid double to have a cabin to myself, which amounted to $5,200. It had a "virtual balcony," which was a TV showing actual footage from the outside.

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Then I was suddenly tired, so I thought to myself that I'd lay down for a few minutes. When I woke up, I'd missed the sail-away party. We were about four hours outside of Rome, and I felt really bad.

Malcolm, our cruise director, had announced over a speaker system that if we felt at all unwell, or if we knew we had anything, we should let the medical team know.

The sail-away party on the Royal Caribbean's Odyssey of the Seas. Courtesy Gary Nunn

I did an at-home Covid test in my cabin and saw a very faint double line. My heart sank. Though I wanted to ignore it, I knew I couldn't.

I did the responsible thing, and called medical staff.

I'll never forget the nurse's facial expression when I got there. While I was being responsible and doing the right thing, we both knew I'd also just ruined my own holiday.

As I tested positive, I was told to pack up my cabin and go down to the isolation floor for a minimum of five days: half of my vacation. At first, I was angry at the situation. I'd been so careful over the past two years, and it was the first time I'd gotten COVID. Why now? Then, I got upset. I may or may not have shed a tear.

The isolation cabin was very different from the one I'd paid for

There's no polite way of saying this: the isolation cabin is a far cry from the rest of the cruise, and it got to me quickly. It's a room that you can't leave with a window that doesn't open. It's certainly no vacation, and definitely not the one I'd paid over $5,000 for.

I unpacked  again  this time sniveling as I did.

Dave Benbow wearing shorts and a white tank top in the isolation cabin. Courtesy Dave Benbow

As the tears fell, between putting away fancy-dress costumes I'd never wear, I sat down, gathered myself and thought: There are two things I can do here. Either I can be really pissed off and throw a fit, or I can figure out how to make this the best thing it can be for what it is. So I had to make a mental adjustment and chose to accept the situation.

There were moments that truly tested me

Don't get me wrong, in addition to it being so damn boring, there were testing moments.

The first available day I could have potentially come out of isolation was the day we were set to stop in Bodrum, on day five of the cruise. I consoled myself when I'd seen the two preceding stops, Santorini and Mykonos. Bodrum became my new focus.

When I tested positive that morning, I had to draw upon that mental adjustment again. Each morning after was Groundhog Day: get excited, get hopeful, test positive again.

It was a dagger to the heart to press my nose up against the window and watch people getting off the ship to go on my excursions. It was very isolating and frustrating.

I even started to have the thought at around 4 a.m. of, what if I sneak out, just for a walk around the top deck, to get some air? After all, there weren't guards. The door wasn't locked. But I didn't know if I'd get locked out and get in trouble, and I was afraid to test the limits. The good student in me won out: I was going to follow the rules because if I didn't, it could get worse. I also didn't want to put others at risk, of course. Being in the isolation cabin put me in a weird headspace.

Then I also realized that at 4 a.m. on an all-gay cruise, the top deck is absolutely packed; that's where the parties happen!

Strangely, time in isolation passed quickly, and I found ways to occupy myself

I read multiple books and watched many movies. I had an ab roller and used that daily. While I was in limbo, weirdly, days seemed to go quickly.

I posted on the cruise's Facebook page about my predicament and the number of people who reached out with sweet messages touched me; it really said something about how supportive the LGBTQ community can be when the chips are down.

The ship's staff were amazing. They'd call down twice a day to check in on me. They sent me care packages. Upon discovering my Dr. Pepper addiction, they left the drink outside my room daily.

One member of the medical team, Blane, sensed me getting increasingly tense because I kept testing positive. I took my tests with him, and as they kept turning up positive, my feelings became increasingly negative; in those moments, he'd talk me off the ledge, and I was grateful he was there. If you were going to get COVID on a cruise, this was the ship to get it on. Thankfully, I wasn't even that sick: just an annoying runny nose and sore throat.

I wasn't allowed to leave Italy until I got a negative test result

Once you test positive on the ship, they alert the authorities. Your passport is flagged. You cannot leave Rome till you return a negative test, which seemed weird to me  you'd think they might want you out, but I suppose it's because they don't want it spreading.

On day nine, I was still testing positive, and I was freaking out. They'd booked me a COVID hotel just in case. If I didn't get a negative test soon, I'd miss my flight home.

Dave Benbow the day he tested negative. Courtesy Dave Benbow

By this point, I was resigned to missing my vacation. My new hope was just to be able to leave the country. It was looking increasingly unlikely with every day I tested positive. My boss told me to take a train to France and leave from there, but I told him that my passport was flagged, and that I might be detained at the border if I tried it.

Ironically, I tested negative on day 10: the cruise's final day. I had to wait till the ship's 4,000 other passengers left so I could disembark.

Though I was relieved, I was also a little in shock. It took me two days to adjust to non-cabin life.

I learned a lot from the experience

I was proud I didn't allow myself to get hysterical or give into my darker impulses by ringing guest services and demanding to be released, because I know that wouldn't have been safe for anyone. I'm glad I wasn't that guy; I have the inclination to be him sometimes. Instead, I learned I could accept something so bizarre and random.

Also, I learned to look on the lighter side. Ten  out of 4,000  of us were on deck 3, the isolation deck, with COVID. They'd all got it in the last two days. I had it the longest. In that sense, I was the winner!

Dave Benbow in Rome after the cruise. Courtesy Dave Benbow

More seriously, I learned to always get insurance. Everyone asks me if I got my money back and the answer is no, but that's on me. Atlantis pushed their travel insurance multiple times and I didn't do it, because I never have. So to save myself $200, I lost $5,200.

I'll definitely cruise again: I'm doing the Atlantis Mexico cruise next month. If you've been to your favorite restaurant 27 times, you don't stop going after one bad meal. Atlantis has even upgraded me as a goodwill gesture. And I'll book this very same ship and cruise next summer so I finally get to see the Odyssey of the Seas. Plus, I have a great story I'm going to tell at dinner parties for at least the next 10 years.

Read the original article on Insider
Netflix

Robert Downey Jr. has been a star for so longand been one of the industrys premier marquee draws since 2008, when he assumed the foundational Marvel Cinematic Universe role of Tony Stark in Iron Manthat its easy to forget that hes the son of movie royalty. Sr. aims to correct that potential oversight, serving as a loving tribute to Downeys dad Robert Downey Sr., an iconoclastic filmmaker whose work in the late 60s and 70s was at the forefront of the independent cine-counterculture movement. Directed by Chris Smith (American Movie), its a non-fiction biopic thats infused with the unique humor and creativity of its subject, as well as steeped in the complicated but palpable love shared by a father and son in the years leading up to the formers passing from Parkinsons disease in July 2021.

Playing at this years New York Film Festival (ahead of an eventual Netflix debut), Sr. is shot exclusively in black-and-white in what feels like kinship with Sr.s seminal early features, made on the cheap and the fly in New York City with a ragtag group of collaborators who knew that the thing wasnt money but, rather, inspired, out-there artistry. Sr. was, as his son says, a filmmaker who existed in a constant state of being either broke or flush, and given that the latter condition meant that he had $500 in the bank, stability was never consistently attained. It was in this environment that Jr. grew up, sleeping in a crib in the room next door to where his dad and his mom, actress Elsie Ann Ford, worked on dailies, and his parents passion for cinema is the obvious and clear genesis of his own lifelong vocation, which began on Sr.s 1970 Pound (about a group of dogs, all played by people, awaiting execution at the title location) with the auspicious first line, Have any hair on your balls?

The Renegade: Robert Downey Sr. on His Classic Films, Sons Battle with Drugs, and Bill Cosby

Sr. was a troublemaker whose films were wild, crazy, and unbeholden to convention or propriety. They were natural outgrowthsand reflectionsof the roiling social period in which they were produced. The writer/directors career peaked early, at least in terms of acclaim, with 1969s Putney Swope, an enduring satire about civil rights-era turmoil, hypocrisy, rage, and absurdity that made him a national name (and resulted in a Life magazine article titled, hilariously, Robert Downey Makes Vile Movies). A lengthy and not particularly joyous stint in Los Angeles followedas friends and collaborators Alan Arkin and Norman Lear explain, Sr. was a New York kind of guy. One can feel that not only in the edgy, electric energy of his movies, but in new sequences of him walking around the metropolis, finding wonder in a group of ducks swimming in a pond in the courtyard of his high-rise apartment building, in the sight of a man doing an impromptu workout on scaffolding, or in the sound of traffic, boats and people as he sits beside the water on a beautiful sunny day.

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Sr.s professional successes and failures are chronologically recounted in Sr., but Smiths film is nothing if not exceptionally structured, largely because hes making a movie with an actor about a director who wants more than a bit of say in how hes depicted. Beginning with scenes of Sr. and Jr. planning shots on the spur of the moment, telling Smith what set-ups to use, and staging second takes, they turn the proceedings into a collaborative hybrid endeavor. Further twisting things up, Sr. only agrees to participate in his son and Smiths doc if hes allowed to make a concurrent self-portrait project himself, meaning that Sr. routinely flip-flops between Smiths footage and Sr.s material, both of which quickly overlap, as when Smith fixates on Sr. toiling away at a personal editing bay on his own documentary.

When coupled with clips of Jr. and Sr. chatting on the phone, Jr. goofing off with his young son and speaking with his therapist about his fathers impending end, and Sr. discussing the Army plane crash that gave birth to his travel-related neuroses, Sr.s multi-perspective format lends it a vibrant home movie-style intimacy and warmth. The affection felt between Sr. and Jr. is moving in its sincerity and openness, and all the more amazing for the fact thatas is occasionally alluded tonot everything was a bed of roses between the two during Jr.s childhood, thanks in part to substance abuse issues that were partially brought about by Sr.s decision to give his kid narcotics at an early age. Neither man shies away from those painful chapters in their lives, but nor do they linger on them; those topics casually arise amidst longer conversations about their rollercoaster pathswhich, for Sr., also included a divorce from first wife Elsie and the loss of his second spouse Laura Ernst to ALSand therefore feel like the sorts of scarred-up wounds that all parents and children deal with over time.

When Jr. asks his dad if he felt accepted by the status quo in the wake of Putney Swope, Sr. slyly deflects by stating, Thats a pretty interesting theory. And yet at other times, hes curtly candid, such as his overarching directorial philosophy to follow the film. Theres wit and poetry sprinkled throughout Sr., with Smith cannily letting his stars seize control of the frame whenever they likethe sweetest: Jr. having his son Exton amusingly quote his grandfathers own lines to himwhile nonetheless regulating the proceedings so that they exist at the intersection of celebratory and sorrowful. With a verve that isnt diminished by his increasingly debilitating condition, Sr. proves an indefatigable and charming presence, never missing an opportunity to modestly avoid praise or suggest some filmmaking opportunity. And Jr., meanwhile, comes across as an actor/son whose spirit is hopelessly, and permanently, intertwined with his father/director, about whom he ultimately admits he cherishes both for what he did and didnt do.

Through it all, what resonates is the love these two men share for the medium thats made them who they areand is, via this project, memorializing their final moments together. Consequently, Smiths documentary is something else as well: a snapshot of dual cinematic lives that speaks to the movies magical ability to reveal, unite, and remember.

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Venture investor Alex McDougall is embarking on a new endeavor that looks to simplify cross-border digital asset payments.

Stablecorp Inc., a fintech firm using bank-grade blockchain technology, was founded by 3iQ, Canadas largest crypto asset manager and blockchain development company, Mavennet Systems.

Alex McDougall is presenting at Investing in Digital Enterprises and Assets Summit (I.D.E.A.S.), CoinDesk's newest event revealing the most scalable marketplaces in the digital economy that will attract institutional capital in the years to come.

Learn directly from entrepreneurs in leading innovation across digital assets, Web3, blockchain and the metaverse. Register here.

Were trying to deliver a bank-like experience, McDougall said, except with no bank attached to it.

The Ontario-based startup saw an opportunity to participate in the financial system of digital assets after encountering challenges with traditional banking infrastructure, said McDougall.

We built Stablecorp not as this radical getaway from TradeFi [traditional finance], but as the logical next step of evolution, he said.

See also: StoryDAO and the Quest to Recreate Hollywood

Stablecorp aims to facilitate a cross-border version of on-chain commerce. To smooth out the friction inherent to this endeavor, Stablecorp has sought help from other platforms.

Presently, the company only works with American-based companies, including peer-to-peer payment company Circle as well as the nonprofit Stellar Development Foundation. In April, Stablecorp raised $1.5 million in a seed funding round, which was led by six companies, including Side Door Ventures and Genesis. Stablecorp is worth upwards of $5 million at the moment, said McDougall.

The company can be broken down into three parts. The first is the consumer-facing arm of the company, known as Grapes Finance, which launched last week and gives users the option to exchange their fiat currency for USDC or QCAD stablecoins.

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Its second component is yield-as-a-service (YAAS), a tool that allows individuals and firms to borrow and lend data related to digital assets. Its final offering, known as the Forge, is a multi-chain software that gives individuals and firms alike the ability to track whether a deposit has been made.

The company is also working to bring cross-border capabilities to spot desk, derivatives trading and currency hedging while using on-chain assets. In addition, when a user onboards via Grapes Finance, it technically onboards with other counterparties, which can, in turn, grow the services that company offers, as well as their client base.

At its simplest level, McDougall said, Stablecorp is trading on models that already exist, but doing so with better risk analytics structures.

Prospective investors should know that there's a kernel of magic in here, that is the blockchain world, McDougall said.
Stanford University apologized Wednesday for limiting Jewish student admissions during the 1950s  a practice that the school had long denied.

Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne issued the apology after a task force he appointed in January submitted a report finding that the prestigious Northern California school had acted to suppress admissions of Jewish students just years after World War II ended.

On behalf of Stanford University I wish to apologize to the Jewish community, and to our entire university community, both for the actions documented in this report to suppress the admission of Jewish students in the 1950s and for the universitys denials of those actions in the period that followed, Tessier-Lavigne said in a letter sent to the school's community. These actions were wrong. They were damaging. And they were unacknowledged for too long.

The report found that in the early 1950s Stanford "acted to restrict the number of Jewish students" enrolling at the school under the leadership of Rixford Snyder, then its director of admissions, and "with the awareness of many in Stanford's administration."

Stanford targeted specific high schools known to have significant populations of Jewish students, allowing it to still "claim that the university did not impose a quota on Jewish students," the report said.

It said that despite "decades of denials," a 1953 memo, dubbed the "Glover Memo," clearly reported Snyder's "intentions to act against Jewish students."

In the memo, Frederic Glover, then the assistant to Wallace Sterling, Stanford's president at the time, who died in 1985, according to the school, conveyed Snyder's "desire to 'disregard our stated policy of paying no attention to the race or religion of applicants,'" the report said.

Glover specified that Snyder, who died in 2009, was specifically concerned about two Southern California high schools that he knew had significant numbers of Jewish students: Beverly Hills High School and Fairfax High School.

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"We do not know whether Snyder also took action against any other schools or students who identified themselves as Jewish on their applications, regardless of their high school," the report said. "But we found a sharp drop in enrollments from these two schools in the class that started Stanford in the fall of 1953. No other schools experienced such a sharp reduction in students enrolling at Stanford at that time."

Tessier-Lavigne said in his letter: "It is unclear how long this appalling antisemitic activity lasted or whether it extended to other schools or students. However, the report articulates how this effort to suppress Jewish enrollments had long-lasting effects and dissuaded some Jewish students from applying to Stanford in later years. And, the report shows that when questioned about its practices in later years, the university denied any anti-Jewish bias in admissions.

"This ugly component of Stanfords history, confirmed by this new report, is saddening and deeply troubling," he said. "As a university, we must acknowledge it and confront it as a part of our history, as repellent as it is, and seek to do better."

Tessier-Lavigne said he believed it would be "natural to ask whether any of the historical anti-Jewish bias documented by the task force exists in our admission process today."

"We are confident it does not," he said.

In a statement on behalf of Hillel at Stanford, a Jewish student organization, its executive director, Rabbi Jessica Kirschner, said: I want to lift up President Tessier Lavignes apology as a notable example of institutional teshuvah  an acknowledgment of past wrongdoing and clear and specific commitment to ensure a supportive and bias-free experience at Stanford.

This is what we want for all members of the Stanford community, she said.

Tessier-Lavigne apologized as Stanford looks to address historical wrongs and as it faces scrutiny over other issues, including mounting safety concerns after two rapes were reported on campus in as many months.

In 2016, Stanford's campus was also rocked by the trial and lenient sentence in the case of swim team member Brock Turner, who was convicted of three felonies after he sexually assaulted an unconscious woman behind a dumpster.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
A Starbucks baristas plea on social media has caused a bit of debate over whether its helping matters at the coffee shop  or it's just another case of online Venti-ing.

On Oct. 7, TikToker @thehighbarista, who goes by Danielle, posted a video titled "What is a black coffee" thats attracting attention of coffee lovers on the platform. In the clip, the Starbucks barista is sharing a public service announcement to anyone relaying a certain drink to help them order it correctly, with the caption, "one of those little things that makes me internally scream."

In case you didnt know, when you order a black coffee that just means theres nothing in it, Danielle says in the video. And so when you order a black coffee and then say you want to add sugar or cream, thats not a black coffee anymore.

She then pleads to any potential customers who may be watching that might not know what black means in a coffee context.

Please stop tricking me and saying you wanna black coffee and then adding other things in there, she says. Thank you.

Responses to the video ranged from common understanding from other Starbucks baristas to folks really not understanding what a black coffee is.

As a barista, I cannot like this video enough, said one commenter, adding prayer and green heart emojis.

Exactly! I say so no cream no sugar? added another commenter.

I ask for black coffee and sometimes they ask cream and sugar? commented another person, answering from the customer perspective. I guess its b/c of people like this lol I never knew people did this!

I literally say a black coffee, no cream, no sugar automatically now since I always get asked when I just say a black. coffee ! said another TikTok user.

Okay but serious question, how do ppl ask for it if not this way, cause I feel like saying 'black coffee' is a starting point, then they ask for more? asked one commenter, to which many helpful replies offered ways to phrase the request.

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For Starbucks specifically you would order a drip coffee and in the drive through ask for what you like in it, in store ask for room so you can add it, replied one commenter.

However, some took issue with the video, saying that someone might order it that way based on what they do after they receive their coffee from their barista.

Um. (maybe) they order black coffee then cream and sugar (because they prefer) to add it themselves, replied one person.

I like my cream on the side so there is reason for me saying black coffee, said another commenter. A lot of places Ive been automatically put cream in unless you say black.

Why does it matter just give them what they order honestly, wrote one user, to which another replied, Facts. I used to work at Starbucks. The pretentiousness is high among baristas.

Some had some harsh words for the original poster about the whole debate in the comments.

Listen lady, when I pay $7 for a coffee, I can say whatever I want, one commenter wrote. And you will do it! that what $7 coffee means!

Not baristas getting upset over semantics again, said another TikTok user. Funny since Im an ex barista. Seriously, you know what they want, just make it and quit crying.

TODAY Food reached out to Danielle for comment but hasn't heard back as of this writing.

This is far from the first time a Starbucks barista has taken to social media to decry their customers' orders. In August, a Starbucks worker went viral when she posted a video about making a grown adult their 6am milkshake" which allegedly led to the worker being released from her position amid backlash.

Those beautiful roasted beans of joy always seem to brew piping hot discussion and certainly will as long as our caffeine addictions continue to percolate.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. violated federal law in Kansas and Missouri by firing pro-union employees, stepping up enforcement of its dress code in response to union organizing and asking for police to disperse workers with picket signs, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled Wednesday.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The agency judges decision requires Starbucks to offer reinstatement with back pay to four employees, and to cease making anti-union threats. It says Starbucks also must post a notice informing workers that the government found it broke the law, and promising not to do so again.

Starbucks said Wednesday that the terminated employees violated numerous company policies. Interest in a union does not exempt partners from following policies that are in place to protect our partners, our customers and the communities we serve, spokesperson Andrew Trull said in an emailed statement.

The evidence shows that Starbucks management acted out of substantial animus toward pro-union employees, the judge wrote.

Last week, another labor board judge in Michigan ordered the company to offer another fired employee reinstatement.

It feels like were going to start seeing cases similar to ours win all over the country now, Alydia Claypool, one of the Kansas workers who the judge found was wrongly fired, said in an interview Wednesday. Claypool said she hoped the ruling would help stem fellow employees fears of retaliation.

NLRB judges orders can be appealed to labor board members in Washington, and from there to federal court. The agencys general counsel has issued dozens of pending complaints around the country accusing Starbucks of violating workers rights.

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The union, Starbucks Workers United, has filed labor board claims accusing the company of firing more than 80 employees because of their activism. The NLRB has the authority to order workers reinstated and policies changed, but not to fine companies punitive damages for violations.

The union has prevailed in elections at around 250 of the chains roughly 9,000 corporate-owned US stores over the past year, following an initial landmark victory in Buffalo, New York, last December.

(Updates with comment from Starbucks, in third paragraph, and employee, in sixth paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2022 Bloomberg L.P.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) this week took to Instagram Live and Twitter to explain how parent borrowers benefit from President Joe Bidens student loan forgiveness.

Not only are student loans parents took out for their own college eligible for forgiveness, she pointed out, but also ParentPlus loans they took out for their childrens education.

The message comes as the online application for forgiveness is set to go live this month and underscores how student debt is not just a millennial problem. Baby boomers average $43,554 in higher education debt, according to a Credit Karma study, while Gen X owes $41,910 on average.

Parents want to retire, but cant due to ParentPlus loans and paying on their own loans as well, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) said Wednesday at a parent roundtable on student debt cancellation. Student loan forgiveness is an intergenerational issue.

Student loan hack: not only are standard Fed loans eligible, but so are parent PLUS loans.



That means a family could 2x or 3x their loan cancellation 



Ex: if a parent making <$125k took out a PLUS loan for their kid and got a Pell grant themselves,they EACH get $20k cancelled https://t.co/gHLyGYKj5X  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 12, 2022

Parent borrowers and advocates attended the roundtable hosted by the Student Debt Crisis Center (SDCC) to share stories of households struggling with managing finances due to the crippling effect of student loan debt.

My daughter and I have had to be thrifty I owe more now than I did when I took out the loans, Kadijah Turay-Sengova, a law school graduate who owes more than $100,000, said at the roundtable. "Through the payment pause, I was able to realize what [this debt] meant to our lives. Its a weight that you carry around thats almost suffocating at times. [The cancellation] means that we are moving in the right direction. Again, grateful but hopeful for the capacity of more happening.

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The federal forbearance pandemic pause  enacted in 2020 and expiring December 31, 2022  gave many borrowers, especially parents still paying off their own student loans along with ParentPlus loan debt, financial breathing room.

This event is an important reminder that student debt is a multi-generational crisis that harms Americans of all ages, Natalia Abrams, president and founder of SDCC, said. Parents face some of the most difficult challenges  managing their student debt, taking out loans to pay for their childrens education, and doing all of this while supporting their familys basic needs.

Family members and friends of slain Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh are seen as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks in front of the U.S. Capitol on July 28th, 2022 as they push for a U.S. investigation of the journalistas killing. (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

In August, the Biden administration announced an executive order to forgive $10,000 in student loan debt for borrowers, along with an additional $10,000 in loan forgiveness for Pell Grant recipients.

More than 40 million borrowers are eligible for student debt relief.

Single borrowers who make less than $125,000 in adjusted gross income (AGI) and heads of household or married filing jointly borrowers who earn less than $250,000 in AGI are eligible for loan forgiveness.

"Millions of families across the country struggling to make ends meet are saddled with student debt that's preventing them from supporting their families and investing in their futures. Too many parents are still working to pay off their own debt, while also taking on additional loans to help pay for their children's education, Allison Johnson of ParentsTogether said at the SDCC roundtable. "President Biden's loan forgiveness plan is a vital first step in alleviating this crisis. From building a savings account for the first time to finally being able to purchase a home or starting a college fund for their own children, lifting the weight of student debt will help so many families.

Ronda is a personal finance senior reporter for Yahoo Money and attorney with experience in law, insurance, education, and government. Follow her on Twitter @writesronda

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The Roys are heading to Norway.

The new season of HBOs Succession will find Alexander Skarsgards slick tech mogul Lukas Matsson luring the Roy dynasty to the Norwegian mountains.

More from Variety

Overseeing the Norway shoot is producer Scott Ferguson (The Night Of, Brokeback Mountain), who confirms that production and stars including Skarsgard, Nicholas Braun and Sarah Snook have been shooting the new season across a number of locations in western Norway, such as the Atlantic Ocean Road (recently seen in the latest Bond film No Time to Die), the Romsdalen Gondola and the luxury Juvet Landscape Hotel (used in sci-fi thriller Ex Machina), located near fjord Geiranger, a UNESCO world heritage site.

Ferguson reveals that the upcoming season will delve further into the world of Matsson, who was first introduced in Season 3. As the sale of media conglomerate Waystar Royco to Matsson moves ever closer  and the Roys question what their future will look like  the family is invited to visit the GoJo founders homeland.

Last season we had an important new character and a new storyline, a potential merger with Alexander Skarsgards tech company, Ferguson tells Variety on location in Norway.

We were really excited when Alexander came onboard  hes a wonderful actor. And from the beginning, [showrunner Jesse Armstrongs] idea was that the tech company was going to be led by someone from a Scandinavian country. In the writers room, around February, Jesse had an idea for an episode they wanted to be in [Matssons] part of the world.

Succession producer Scott Ferguson in Norway.

Ferguson is one of the industrys most experienced producers, having filmed all over the globe. Though hes been working in television in recent years, his previous film credits include collaborations with directors such as Jim Jarmusch, Steven Zaillian, James Mangold, Milos Forman, Sydney Pollack and Ang Lee. Ferguson has worked on the Emmy-winning Succession over the last four years.

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He confirms dramatic scenes set against equally dramatic landscapes in Norway lie ahead for the new season, which will air next year.

When we saw images of the remarkable architecture and setting of Juvet we got really excited, says Ferguson. Norway is a glorious, natural setting. It immediately seemed like a perfect place for a family gathering in the series. We studied different countries, but we realized Norway just has this exceptional landscape  like nowhere else in the world.

The production team got excited about the powerful combination of alluring architecture and natural elements within the landscape.

Mark and I travelled over in May, had a look in the region around Andalsnes, looked at the gondola with the restaurant on top of the mountains. They also had an airport in the area which we were looking for in the story. Norway had everything we were looking for  in just utterly gorgeous settings. Then we had to figure out how to do the shooting in these locations, practically. We got great support from HBO, and weve spent the last several months figuring out a plan and then putting it into place.

Ferguson explains hes involved in the writers room from the earliest development stages in order to get a sense of the flavor of the planned storylines.

I talk with them after they have spent [some time] in the writers room so that I get a sense of where theyre going. Then Ill come over to London a couple of times and spend some time with them during the course of development, and start to hear whats on their minds and what kinds of locations were looking for  what the storylines are.

Ferguson, who worked with Lee on Brokeback Mountain, also observes the benefits of working with local crews on the ground. People are good at filming where they live, and I always want to take advantage of that great local expertise, he says. Thats how we approached Norway and the other distant travel episodes on Succession.

Looking ahead to Season 4, the producer promises that what audiences like about Succession, theyre going to get more of.

This starts with HBOs support, backing us and creating an environment where Jesse and the writing team have the ability to take risks creatively, Ferguson explains. We use the production side to help them, everyone is given freedom to do their best work. And I think thats part of why the show works on so many levels  the writing, the directing, the crew. No one is afraid to try something they havent tried before.

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By Waakhe Simon Wudu

JUBA (Reuters) - A rebel group operating from Sudan's Nuba Mountains handed over nine prisoners of war to Khartoum authorities on Thursday after neighbour South Sudan's mediation, potentially boosting chances for the two sides to reach a final and permanent accord.

The nine men who have been in the captivity of Sudan People's Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) were handed over to Sudan's ambassador in South Sudan, Jamal Malik, in South Sudan's capital Juba.

They were captured last month after "heavy battles" in Sudan's South Kordofan province, and were being released on humanitarian grounds to return to their families, Amar Amon, the SPLM-N secretary general, told a news conference in Juba.

"As individuals we don't have problems with them but we have problems with the government," he said.

Sudan's ambassador, Jamal Malik, told the news conference Khartoum welcomed the handover of the prisoners, although he said they were not members of Sudan's armed forces.

Sudan's government has in recent years been pursuing efforts to reach accords with rebel groups across the country and end decades of conflicts that displaced millions of people killed hundreds of thousands.

Some rebels from the country's south and from the troubled western region of Darfur have already signed agreements to cease hostilities.

But a faction of SPLM-N led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu who has control over significant forces and territory from his stronghold in South Kordofan has held out.

Talks between the rebel group and Khartoum, mediated by South Sudan, have so far failed to yield a final accord, although progress has been made.

The area where the group operates is dominated by minority Christians and followers of African beliefs who complain of long discrimination because of their opposition to Sudan's Sharia law.

The handover of the captives by the SPLM-N rebel group signals the "good intention" from the rebels to continue to engage in talks, said Tut Gatluak Manime, South Sudan's presidential advisor on security affairs, who is heading the mediation team.

(Editing by Elias Biryabarema and Peter Graff)
KINGFISHER  As Ukraine's national flower, the sunflower has long been a symbol of peace, and now it has become a symbol of resistance for Ukrainians battling against Russia to maintain their independence.

A growing number of people in Oklahoma and other parts of the world have come to view the bright yellow flower as an emblem of solidarity with Ukraine.

Through an Oklahoma fundraising effort called "Art for Ukraine," the inspirational flowers are raising money for Ukrainians surviving in their war torn homeland. Inspired by her watercolor painting hobby and a desire to help Ukraine, Lyuda Cameron, a Ukrainian native living in Midwest City, came up with the idea for the artful fundraising sessions. She thought it would be a good way to share information about how Oklahomans may help resilient Ukrainians while giving a fun lesson on creating a watercolor painting of the symbolic sunflowers.

Denise Boots of Kingfisher's finished sunflower watercolor painting is shown at a "Painting for Peace" fundraiser at First United Methodist Church of Kingfisher. [Carla Hinton/The Oklahoman]

Cameron and other members of St. Mary's Ukrainian Orthodox Church recently hosted the initial Art for Ukraine session at their church in Jones. They supplied all of the painting materials, plus traditional Ukrainian treats. That event was so successful another was held at another local church and a third session was held on Sunday at First United Methodist Church of Kingfisher. About 40 people from churches throughout Kingfisher sat together at tables discussing the Ukrainian war effort and its effect on the country's citizens. All the while, they used watercolor paint in hues of yellow, gold, brown and red to create vibrant sunflower paintings.

'Painting for Peace'

Kingfisher businessman Brian Walter was one of the organizers of the recent event, which was called "Painting for Peace." He said it was hosted by the Kingfisher Ministerial Alliance and about $6,000 in donations had been raised before the painting class even began. Kingfisher residents also helped purchase a large number of sleeping bags to be sent to Ukrainians.

Each community member was encouraged to give a $30 donation to participate in Sunday's painting class. And, in addition to painting, participants were given opportunities to shop for sunflower-themed jewelry and T-shirts with pro-Ukraine artwork and slogans to raise funds for Ukrainian relief efforts.

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Walter said he saw a story in The Oklahoman about St. Mary's members partnering with churches to raise funds for Ukraine and he told the Kingfisher faith community about it. He and his wife Liz, who attend The Federated Church in Kingfisher, visited the Ukrainian church in Jones and learned more about the faith congregation and its ongoing fundraising efforts.

"My heart is very torn by what is going on in Ukraine and I was very enlightened that there was a Ukrainian church in the Oklahoma City metro," he said. "Today, we're gathering for fellowship, to spend some time with the Ukrainian people and to pray for peace."

Cameron led the painting class while Olena Nesin, a native Ukrainian who lives in Edmond, shared stories and pictures about different families living in Ukraine.

Nesin helped participants connect to the news accounts of the war in Ukraine on a personal level, by talking to them about a Ukrainian couple whose Mariupol home was burned down when Russian forces attacked the city in March. She said one of their sons discovered where they were hiding in the besieged city and helped rescue them from an area near heavy ground fighting.

She said Ukrainians have been extremely grateful for the outpouring of aid from Oklahomans.

Cameron, originally from Zaporizhia, Ukraine, agreed. She said many Ukrainians sent St. Mary's church members thank-you notes and pictures of themselves wearing warm winter clothing provided by Oklahomans. The appreciative Ukrainians also sent several Ukrainian flags that they signed for the Oklahomans to display.

"They appreciate what we do for them," Cameron said. "Thank you so much for understanding. Thank you so much for sharing. Thank you so much for caring."

Meanwhile, several people attending the event said they liked the idea of spending a Sunday afternoon of painting and fellowship to help people living in besieged Ukraine. One of them was Judy Whipple, a member of First United Methodist-Kingfisher.

"I've been doing this kind of painting for years and I love it, but most of all I came because I want to help Ukraine," she said.

Nearby, Mark and Angie Snodgrass, members of The Federated Church in Kingfisher, said they brought their children Scout and Steel to offer unified family support for Ukraine.

"We know that people are suffering there," Mark Snodgrass said. "One of our prayers is if there is someone in need and we get an opportunity to help someone, we help them."

Darla Bradley, of Okarche, a member of Kingfisher Nazarene Church, shared similar comments.

"We're all aware of what's going on in Ukraine," Bradley said. "It was very educational and personal, what these ladies were telling us about their family and friends  it's just heartbreaking."

Shirley Smith, of Edmond, who was visiting a Kingfisher cousin, said the painting session was a unique way to help in the ongoing war effort.

"It's a way to have fun and fellowship and still feel like you are supporting Ukraine," she said.

A fourth Art for Ukraine is set for November at Wickline United Methodist in Church in Midwest City.

Painting for Peace

When: 2 to 4 p.m. Nov. 13.

Where: Wickline United Methodist Church, 417 Mid America Blvd., Midwest City.

Cost: $30 donation.

Information: Wickline, 405-732-0356 or go to the Sooner Hope for Ukraine Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: 'Art for Ukraine' raises funds for Ukrainians through painting classes
A clothing wholesaler faces more than three years in federal prison for selling $20 million worth of counterfeit military gear to be issued to American airmen, the Justice Department said in a release Thursday.

Ramin Kohanbash, 52, of Brooklyn, New York, passed off tens of thousands of unsafe, Chinese-made uniforms and other equipment to the U.S. military, the government said.

Some of these products lacked crucial safety features or failed to meet safety specifications, endangering the health and safety of the military personnel who wore them, the department said in a press release. At least 13,332 counterfeit jackets not resistant to enemies night vision goggles and 18,597 non-flame resistant hoods were among the counterfeit products that entered the military supply chain, destined for U.S. Air Force bases around the world.

Air Force discloses procurement fraud probe, provides few details

Kohanbash and two others, Terry Roe of Burlington, North Dakota, and Bernard Klein of Brooklyn, sent U.S. military uniforms and gear to Chinese manufacturers so they could copy the designs. That included tags and labels with the trademarks of 15 military suppliers in the United States, the government said.

Chinese companies created knockoff products, tags and trademarks and shipped them to Kohanbashs New Jersey warehouse, where he sold them to the Pentagon and military suppliers.

Kohanbash and Klein strategized on how to subvert Chinese and American customs to ensure that the counterfeit military uniforms and gear were successfully imported, the release said. Additionally, Kohanbash and Roe deceived personnel at military base supply centers by including false certification letters claiming that the goods were manufactured in the United States.

The U.S. is legally barred from purchasing military goods from China.

An F-16 pilot died when his ejection seat failed. Was it counterfeit?

American servicemen and women risk their lives every day in defense of the nation, U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha said in the release. But the risks they face should never come from the uniforms they wear, and the equipment they carry.

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Kohanbash pleaded guilty in 2019 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking in counterfeit goods. He was sentenced Wednesday to 40 months in prison and to forfeit the proceeds.

He must also pay back companies that were involved in the development, manufacturing and importation of those goods. One Rhode Island company that was caught up in the scheme lost more than $639,000 in profits and suffered significant damage to its relationships with military clients, the Justice Department wrote.

DOD inks waiver for deliveries of F-35s halted over Chinese materials

Klein, 41, was sentenced to 18 months in jail plus three years of supervised release. He owes $415,000 in restitution and a fine. Roe, 49, also faces sentencing on Oct. 20 after pleading guilty in February to wire fraud conspiracy and counterfeit trafficking.

The government has already recovered more than $2 million from Kohanbash, Klein and the Dakota Outerwear Company of Minot, North Dakota, in separate civil settlements. The company is located near Minot Air Force Base, which hosts B-52H nuclear-capable bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. (Steve Helber / Associated Press)

The Supreme Court will not intervene in a fight between the Justice Department and former President Trump.

The court announced its decision in a one-sentence order released Thursday. No dissents were made public.

Last week, Trump asked the Supreme Court to intervene and allow a special master to examine roughly 100 classified records found during the court-approved search of his Florida home in early August. The Justice Department is investigating alleged retention of classified information, theft of government documents and obstruction of justice.

The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals had granted an expedited appeal of a federal judges decision to appoint a special master. The Justice Department has argued that its internal review of documents potentially subject to attorney-client privilege was sufficient and that a special master should not be deciding questions of executive privilege.

Trumps legal team has argued that the FBI review cannot be trusted and that a Supreme Court intervention was necessary in the interest of transparency, given the unprecedented search of a former presidents home  though the Trump team itself is accused of lack of transparency in the case.

The stay on the district judges order allowing the special master to review about 100 classified documents found in the search was granted pending the appeal.

The Aug. 8 court-approved search of Trumps Mar-A-Lago estate was prompted by evidence that Trump hadnt fully complied with a May subpoena ordering him to turn over any classified documents in his possession. Agents recovered more than two dozen boxes in the search containing more than 200,000 pages.

The classified materials include some of the most closely guarded secrets held by the U.S. government.

The Justice Department has said in previous court filings that special investigators with high security clearance had to be brought in to process the evidence.





This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Supreme Court rejected Donald Trumps request to have a special master review classified documents, in a ruling seen as a setback for the former presidents case.

The absence of a special master impairs substantially the ongoing, time-sensitive work, Trumps legal team stated. Moreover, any limit on the comprehensive and transparent review of materials seized in the extraordinary raid of a presidents home erodes public confidence in our system of justice.

Federal law states that White House documents must be handed over to the National Archives upon a presidents departure from office. The order pertains to about 100 classified documents from the larger body of 11,000 records federal agents seized from Trumps Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago, in early August. According to the National Archives and Records Administration, 15 boxes of records were seized including items marked as classified national security information.

The raid on Mar-a-Lago was polarizing, with Trump opponents arguing it was a justified response to the former presidents lawlessness, while his allies argued it was an overly aggressive response to a pedestrian crime that has been committed by high-level politicians in the past.

This latest development coincided with the Justice Department returning the bulk of seized documents to the presidents legal team, setting in motion a three-week timer for which Trump must decide which records he wants to withhold from review.

The decision does not impact an earlier court ruling barring special master federal Judge Raymond Dearie from reviewing the seized document cache.

More from National Review
The offshore Guyana-Suriname Basin emerged in 2019 as one of the worlds most exciting drilling frontiers. While the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that the basin contained mean undiscovered oil resources of 15 billion barrels, disappointing exploration results saw international energy companies shun the geological formation. It wasnt until 2015 when a consortium led by ExxonMobil made the world-class Liza oil discovery in the 6.6-million-acre Stabroek Block offshore Guyana. Since then, Exxon has made a swathe of high-quality oil discoveries, 33 since 2015, in the block, which is estimated to contain recoverable oil resources of at least 11 billion barrels. Those discoveries have been a boon for Guyanas economy, which expanded by a whopping 43.5% in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic caused most economies to contract, and then by 19.9% in 2021. The former British colonys oil-driven economic miracle is gaining momentum, with the IMF forecasting GDP growth of 57.8% for 2022. Neighboring Suriname, which saw its economy hit hard by the pandemic with GDP plunging 15.9% during 2020, is hungrily eyeing the oil wealth held in its territorial waters.

Related: Saudi Arabia Expresses Its Total Rejection Of U.S. Statements About OPEC+

The Guyana-Suriname Basin is set to become one of the worlds most prolific offshore oil-producing regions, especially after it is considered that the USGS grossly underestimated the volume of crude oil contained in the basin. The combined total of the 11 billion barrels found in the Stabroek Block and the potential 6.5 billion barrels believed to be in Block 58 offshore Suriname is far greater than the USGSs May 2001 estimate of 15 billion barrels of mean undiscovered oil resources held by the basin. The latest news concerning the ongoing exploration and appraisal of offshore Suriname point to it holding tremendous oil wealth like neighboring Guyana. A series of quality oil discoveries have already occurred in Block 58 offshore Suriname. U.S. international driller Apache, along with 50% partner French oil supermajor TotalEnergies, announced the first discovery in Block 58 in January 2020. The partners then announced a further four exploration discoveries with the latest occurring during February 2022.

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Source: Apache Investor Update September 2022.

A recent disappointing development was the August 2022 announcement that the Dikkop exploration well drilled in Block 58 did not find the presence of hydrocarbons and was capped. Apache and TotalEnergies are currently working on an appraisal well in the Sapakara South oilfield and planning to drill an exploration well at the Awari prospect in the northern part of Block 58. In total, seven exploration wells were drilled to date in Block 58, with five identifying significant hydrocarbon reservoirs requiring further appraisal, while two were found to be dry.

In late 2020 U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley stated that according to its modeling Block 58 contains at least 6.5 billion barrels of oil resources, with that number potentially higher if further discoveries are made. The recoverable oil resources held by Block 58, and hence Morgan Stanleys estimate, will be quantified by the appraisal work being conducted in Block 58 by Apache and TotalEnergies. Both drillers have yet to make a final investment decision as to whether they will start to commercially exploit the block. It was widely anticipated that Apache and TotalEnergies would make an FID during 2022, but it has been delayed until mid-2023. According to the French supermajors chief executive Patrick Pouyanne, there are concerns over a conflict between what seismic data is showing in Block 58 compared to results from delineation wells.

While Apache lucked out with the Block 58 Dikkop exploration well, it was announced in August 2022 by the driller and its partners that they had made the first oil discovery in Block 53 offshore Suriname. Apache is the operator of Block 53, holding a 45% working interest, with the remaining 30% and 25% held by Malaysian national oil company Petronas and Spains CEPSA, respectively. The Baja-1 well was drilled to a depth of 17,356 feet, or 5,290 meters, where 112 feet equal or 34 meters of net oil pay was identified. Apache is negotiating with Surinames national oil company and industry regulator Staatsolie to obtain a one-year extension for the exploration period which under the production sharing contract can be extended for up to four years. After accounting for Petronas and Exxons December 2020 discovery with the Sloanea-1 well in Block 52 there have been seven potentially viable oil discoveries in offshore Suriname since the start of 2020.

The latest developments bode well for Suriname to experience an oil boom on a similar scale to that which is occurring in neighboring Guyana. Paramaribo is focused on attracting foreign capital to sustain the required drilling and development activity. Staatsolie recently revealed a proposal to invest $1.5 billion by 2026, with the lions share destined for the South American countrys offshore drilling program. The state-controlled energy company also disclosed plans to promote Surinames available offshore acreage, to attract foreign investment, while developing its capabilities to eventually become an operator. Staatsolie also intends to auction offshore Suriname deep-water blocks before the end of 2022 and hold another bid round for shallow-water blocks during 2023. Those plans come on the back of Staatsolies 2021 shallow water auction, which saw three blocks acquired by Chevron, TotalEnergies and Qatar Petroleum. Anglo-Dutch energy supermajor Shell inked a December 2021 deal that saw it acquire a 20% interest from Chevron in shallow water Block 5

While it was widely predicted that Suriname was on track to produce its first offshore oil during 2025, development delays with Block 58, mean that is more likely to occur during 2027. The volume of oil discoveries made in the Guyana-Suriname Basin, coupled with the generous PSAs established by Paramaribo, are key incentives for luring much-needed foreign capital to develop offshore Surinames considerable oil wealth. The efforts of Paramaribo and national oil company Staatsolie to attract additional investment for the development of Surinames considerable offshore oil wealth will bolster the pace of drilling. For those reasons, the first oil could occur sooner than 2027, and Suriname should undergo an epic boom like its neighbor Guyana. When production commences in offshore Suriname, it will be a boon for the deeply impoverished South American countrys ailing economy, which is forecast by the IMF to grow by a paltry 1.3% for 2022 compared to Guyanas 57.8% and an average of 3.6% for South America.

By Matthew Smith for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads from Oilprice.com:

Read this article on OilPrice.com
LAS TEJERIAS, Venezuela (AP)  A day after burying his mother, Rafael Negrin on Wednesday carried the coffin of his aunt who also died in floods and landslides in central Venezuela that killed at least 43 people and left dozens missing.

In total, Negrin lost three family members  his mother and two of her sisters  who were swept away by floodwaters in Las Tejerias de Santos Michelena, an agro-industrial municipality in the state of Aragua, about 54 miles (87 kilometers) from the capital of Caracas. The body of the second aunt has yet to be found.

The flooding and landslide followed torrential rains that caused a mountainside to collapse on the town late Saturday. Residents say they had just second to escape to safety before the water, mud, rocks and felled trees descended on their neighborhoods.

It's very painful, said Negrin, who is also sad at seeing the place where he grew up destroyed. The rest of us were saved, my daughter was saved.

Venezuelas civil protection agency says 400 houses were destroyed and 800 others were damaged. Fifty-six people are still listed as missing.

Authorities say the death toll is expected to climb as heavy machinery moves debris left by the landslides and flooding.

Negrin said that while he is sad, at least he found the body of his mother, Senobia Rodriguez Agrizones, and was able to bury her Tuesday. He said neighbors were still searching for their mother.

My mother is there. We know she is there, he said. Now we must recharge our strength for our nephews, for our children.

With many businesses and services destroyed in the municipality of 54,000 people, the survivors are struggling to get by in the disaster areas.

Electricity and mobile telephone service has been restored to Las Tejerias, but land lines and water service remain down as the landslide destroyed telephone wires, water pipes and pumping equipment.

Authorities estimate two dozen businesses and companies were affected, including a Chinese-made Chery vehicle assembly plant as well as a high school and two primary schools.

Story continues

Most of the people reported as missing, including many children, are from the El Beisbol and La Agotada neighborhoods to the north of the municipality.

President Nicolas Maduro, who walked one of the most flooded streets on Monday with his wife, Cilia Flores, has promised to support the residents of Las Tejerias.

He said his administration would rebuild homes and businesses and help those who want to leave the affected area move elsewhere. Several shelters and aid collection centers have been set up near Las Tejerias.
One suspect has been identified in connection to a shooting Sunday at a Tampa nightclub that killed one and left six others injured, according to the Tampa Police Department. Police are searching for him and a second suspect who has not been identified.

In a news release Wednesday, Tampa police identified Damaso Bravo, 31, from Wimauma, as a suspect and said a warrant had been obtained for his arrest. He is facing three counts of aggravated battery and a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Two large groups began arguing around 3 a.m. Sunday morning inside the LIT Cigar and Martini Lounge located at 908 N. Franklin St. before being escorted outside of the lounge, according to a news release from Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay. Outside the lounge, police said, the disagreement escalated, and detectives believe Bravo and another man began shooting at several people.

A 30-year-old man was killed in the shooting. Four men and two women suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay.

Detectives are still working to identify the second suspect, police say.

A total of $9,500 is being offered by Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay and the Florida Association of Crime Stoppers, in partnership with the Florida Office of Attorney General, for information leading to the identification and arrest of the unidentified man. Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay also is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to Bravos arrest.

Anyone with information may call 800-873-TIPS (8477), report tips anonymously online at crimestopperstb.com or send a mobile tip using the Florida Crime Stoppers app. Anyone with information must contact Crime Stoppers to be eligible for the reward.

This is a developing story. Stay with tampabay.com for updates.
Voters line up at a polling station in Houston to cast their ballots during the Texas presidential primary on March 3, 2020. Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the November 2020 election brought out about 155 million voters. That represented 67% of Americans over 18, and it was the highest voter turnout of any modern election.

Americans also set records in the percent and number of people voting early and by mail, continuing a decadeslong trend away from voting only on election day.

That was the good news.

The 2020 elections also saw record numbers of Americans forced to wait longer to vote, partly because of the increased number of voters and the difficulties of safely voting during a lethal pandemic. Tellingly, as in the past, if you waited over 30 minutes to cast a vote, you were more likely to be a low-income Black American.

Since 2012, when more than 5 million Americans were forced to wait longer than an hour to cast their ballots, long waits have become a visible indicator of voting problems.

The Presidential Commission on Election Administration stated in 2014 that No citizen should have to wait more than 30 minutes to vote.

Eight years later, that goal is further away than before. Where you are and who you are significantly affect how long it will take you to vote. As well as demanding more time and commitment  including arrangements for child care if needed  long waits can discourage future voting.

Increasing wait times

Average waits nationally increased to 14.3 minutes in 2020 from 10.4 minutes in 2016, a 40% jump. These waits were concentrated in poorer neighborhoods with a higher percentage of nonwhite voters.

A further indication that waiting is a growing problem was its addition in 2022 to the voting inconvenience category by the Cost of Voting Index project, which measures the ease or difficulty of voting in individual states.

Hundreds of voters wait in line at an early voting site in Farmingville, N.Y., on Oct. 27, 2020. John Paraskevas/Newsday RM via Getty Images

While the great majority of Americans waited only a few minutes to vote in 2020, a significant minority did not.

One in 7 voters  14.3%  waited longer than the 30-minute 2014 goal set by the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, compared with 1 in 12  8.3%  in 2016. And 1 in 16 voters  6.3%  surveyed by the MIT Election Data Science Lab waited over an hour.

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Twelve states  including Alabama, Georgia, New York, Indiana and Maryland  exceeded that average. In 2020, Delaware voters reported the highest average wait at 35 minutes  up strikingly from 5 minutes in 2016. South Carolina had the second-longest wait at 30 minutes, up from its nation-leading 20 minutes in 2016.

But the time spent waiting in line to cast a ballot is only the most visible cost of voting.

The full cost not only includes the actual vote, but also the time and effort of registration, staying registered and the nonpartisan counting and administration of the vote. Most election administration officials are partisan figures, though they are expected to administer the election in a nonpartisan manner.

Partisan voting laws

Political parties are using the voting process itself as a way to gain advantage.

Researchers have found a correlation between the number of Republican legislators in a state and the greater the cost to vote will be disproportionately to Black voters.

In at least one state, Florida from 2004 to 2016, as the number of Democratic voters increased in a county, so did the number of voters per poll worker, thus increasing the potential for waiting and other delays.

Strict voter identification laws appear to disproportionately affect minority voters but not overall voter turnout, although the full impact of these laws remains uncertain.

In 2021-22, 21 states passed 42 laws making voting more difficult. Some of those laws include imposing new photo ID requirements, limiting Election Day registration and requiring voters to provide identification numbers when they apply to vote by mail.

On the other side, 25 states passed 62 laws making voting easier. In June 2022, for example, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law the landmark John Lewis Voting Rights Act that created new legal protections against voter suppression, vote dilution and voter intimidation.

Despite the greater number of bills that made voting easier, the restrictive laws were more encompassing, often rolling back successful pandemic-based efforts to encourage early and absentee voting. Despite research showing no partisan advantage to early and absentee voting, restrictive laws were passed primarily in Republican states and expansive laws primarily in Democratic states.

Voters line up inside State Farm Arena, Georgias largest early voting location, for the first day of early voting in the general election on Oct. 12, 2020, in Atlanta. Jessica McGowan/Getty Images

A question of fairness

The effect of these laws on turnout is uncertain, especially if they inspire a backlash mobilization or civic education efforts. Lawsuits may block some laws. In early October 2022, a Montana state judge deemed three laws unconstitutional  one that required additional identification if voting with a student ID, another that halted third-party ballot collection and a third that banned same-day voter registration.

The last two laws would have adversely affected Native Americans, who might live 50 miles from a polling place.

In September 2021, the GOP-controlled Texas legislature passed a new election law that restricted early voting, tightened absentee voting, instituted new rules for voter assistance and added criminal penalties for some violations.

One ramification occurred during the 2022 primary, when Texas election officials rejected over 12% of absentee ballots, a huge increase from the normal 1% to 2%.

While rejections equally affected voters in Republican and Democratic Texas primaries, strict rules about who could vote absentee meant most of those disqualified voters were over 65 or had disabilities.

Depending on who was the majority party, Texas Democratic and Republican politicians have long led the nation in making voting difficult for Black citizens since the end of the Civil War, and more recently once Republicans gained power in the 1980s.

In 2020, Republican Governor Greg Abbott restricted ballot drop boxes to only one per county, giving the 4.7 million people in the 1,778 square miles of Harris County, which is 20.3% Black, the same ability to drop off their ballot as the 10,500 people in the 275 square miles of Franklin County, which is 4.8% Black.

Before the ban, Harris County intended to provide 11 ballot boxes for easier access. Abbott claimed he was increasing ballot security, but the reality was that he increased the difficulty for city dwellers, who increasingly lean Democratic and nonwhite, to vote.

Perhaps the countrys most restrictive election law, Georgias Election Integrity Act of 2021, reduced mail and early voting while making the State Election Board a more political office. Fulton County, the largest county with over a million people and is 44.7% Black, will be limited to eight ballot drop boxes  all indoors  instead of the usual 38 outdoor drop boxes. In addition, the law banned the county from using mobile voting buses.

Media attention, however, focused on a ban on offering food or water to voters within 150 feet of a polling place or within 25 feet of voters waiting in line. An exception was made for poll workers and election judges who can provide water to voters.

Just as some nonprofits have helped states improve the clarity and legibility of their ballots, so too could similar nonpartisan expertise of resource optimization and supply chain management improve the administration of elections.

Like other state governments, Georgia could minimize the time needed to vote if it provided the resources, training and communication to its staff that administers elections, and thus encourage American citizens to exercise their ability to vote.

A cornerstone of our election process is fundamental fairness, Matthew Weil, the Bipartisan Policy Center Elections Project director, stated. If different people are experiencing the election system, the voting experience, quite unequally, thats a problem  full stop.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: Jonathan Coopersmith, Texas A&M University. Like this article? subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

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Jonathan Coopersmith is a Democrat and has contributed to numerous campaigns, causes, and organizations, including the Brennan Center. He prefers to vote early.
Erik Cantu (GoFundMe)

Erik Cantu, 17, remains in critical condition after being shot by a San Antonio Police Department officer on 2 October.

The shooting happened while the teen was waiting inside his car in a McDonalds parking lot. Now-former SAPD officer James Brennand had responded to the scene for a separate report but opened Eriks car door without warning when he reportedly noticed it had a suspicious licence plate.

The startled teenager then reversed his vehicle and was struck when Mr Brennard, who had been on the force for seven months, opened fire. Erik left the scene but was stopped shortly later and taken to a hospital to treat his severe injuries.

Following the public outcry after the release of Mr Brennards bodycam footage, SAPD fired and arrested him for his involvement in the shooting several days after the incident. Mr Brennard has since been released on bail, court records show.

Erik remains in critical condition, on life support, and the road ahead feels daunting, Eriks family wrote on a GoFundMe to cover his medical bills. His injuries are severe, and although he is not yet out of the woods, we remain hopeful he moves in the direction of recovery.

Heres everything we know about the case:

The teen was eating McDonalds inside his car

Mr Brennard allegedly noticed Mr Cantu in a vehicle he had seen the day before and which did not have a matching license plates, with bodycam footage showing the teenager eating a burger and a 17-year-old girl sitting in the passenger seat as Mr Brennand instructed the pair to get out of the car.

Erik was ordered to exit his vehicle in the McDonalds parking lot. He began to back up with the car door still open, which San Antonio Police Captain Alyssa Campos said hit the officer, who fired several times, striking the teenager.

TEXAS-POLICIA-TIROTEO (AP)

The teen was taken to a hospital after he was stopped by officers at a separate location.

Erik was charged with evading detention

Erik had initially faced charges for evading detention in a vehicle and for assaulting a police officer, but the Bexar County criminal district attorney, Joe Gonzales, announced they had been dropped on Friday.

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(GoFundMe)

Mr Gonzales said during a news conference that he was instead considering charges against former officer Mr Brennand, who was later charged.

The issue is going to be, if we ever get to trial, whether or not this officer felt like his life was in danger, Mr Gonzales said of the shooting.

Mr Brennard is fired and arrested days after the shooting

San Antonio police chief William McManus said on Tuesday that Mr Brennand was fired from his post several days after the 2 October shooting, which left the teen in critical condition. Mr Brennand is charged with two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant.

According to police, Mr Brennand was a newly trained officer still on probation when he shot Erik after attempting to gather information from witnesses in a parking lot about an unrelated disturbance.

Murder charges will be brought against him in the event that Erik dies. He posted bail and was released on Tuesday.

His next court hearing is scheduled for 23 October.

James Brennard (SAPD)

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus told WOAI that Mr Brennand should not have opened fire and said: There is nothing I can say in defence of that officers actions that night .I think what happened, initially, there was some contact made, but that did not justify the shooting.

Mr McManus, speaking about the officers bodycam video, also told the media: The video was horrific. There is no question in anybodys mind looking at that video that the shooting is not justified.

However, the department largely defended its training during the press conference.

Video showed the altercation take place on 2 October (AP)

Erik remains in critical condition

In the wake of the shooting, police said that Erik was hospitalised in stable condition, a statement that was denied by his family.

He is still unconscious and is on life support. The last two days have been difficult and we expect more difficulty ahead, but we remain hopeful, according to the statement issued to The Associated Press through the family lawyer, Brian Powers.

Wed like to correct any misrepresentations that Erik is in stable condition or he is going to be fine. That is not true. Every breath is a struggle for Erik. We ask for everyones continued prayers for our son.

The family has also created a GoFundMe to cover some of the piling medical bills.

Erik is a son, brother, nephew, cousin, grandson and friend whos brought much joy and laughter to our lives. We pray for these opportunities to be with us once again, the pages description read.

(GoFundMe)

Continuing investigation

Police have not said if the vehicle driven by the victim was stolen or was in fact using a different license plate.

The district attorneys office is now investigating the case.

The Independent has reached out to the San Antonio Police Officers Association for comment.
Six-year-old Tahjir Burrowes wandered out of his Florida home on Oct. 5, wearing only a diaper and a T-shirt, and headed straight for a hurricane-flooded canal.

He had the severest form of autism and was drawn to water, his mother said. The storm had bulldozed the fence around their property, giving the boy, who was nonverbal, the brief opportunity he needed to escape undetected.

His 17-year-old brother, Tahjon, knew something was wrong as soon as he got out of the bathroom and could not find his little brother anywhere.

Tahjir Burrowes (Courtesy Lachera Burrowes)

He pounded on his mothers door. Mom, mom, mom! Tahjir got out of the house! he shouted, before flying out of the door.

Their mother, Lachera Burrowes, immediately jumped in her car and drove to the canal near their Lehigh home.

When she got there, there was silence, not a ripple in the murky waters.

I saw nothing, she said. Quiet.

She called the police and searched street by street. Hours later, a detective arrived at her front door. Authorities had found her two sons: They had drowned in the canal.

In her heart, Burrowes knows Tahjon must have jumped in after his little brother. The two were best friends, despite their age difference, and Tahjon knew just what to do to keep his brother calm and happy.

I dont know if one could be without the other. He could not stand there and not jump in, she said, adding that she would have done the same thing if she had arrived first.

Tahjon Burrowes (Courtesy Lachera Burrowes)

A spokesperson for the Lee County Sheriffs Office confirmed the deaths of the two brothers, adding that no foul play was suspected.

Burrowes had thought she did everything she could to keep her family safe. Despite living paycheck to paycheck, the single mother shelled out money for a hotel in Port St. Lucie so she could evacuate with her three sons and her mother. Burrowes, who works as an addiction counselor, knew Tahjir was sensitive to storms and that he had become constipated for days after Hurricane Irma left their home in darkness in 2017, so she wanted to avoid that.

Story continues

Related: During Hurricane Ian, mom swam out her front door with her baby in a plastic storage bin

More than 130 deaths have been attributed to Hurricane Ian, according to an NBC News count based on statements by local and state authorities. That makes it Floridas deadliest hurricane since 1935.

Burrowes, 44, couldnt fathom there was still a danger, a week after the storm hit.

I just always try to do the right thing, and sometimes it just blows up in your face, she said, before getting quiet. Im going to be honest, I feel like I could die.

In her happiest memories, and in a lot of the photos on Burrowes phone, Tahjon is carrying his baby brother on his back.

Tahjon stepped up, almost as a father figure, after Tahjir was diagnosed with the most severe level of autism when he was 3. Though he would have turned 7 in December, Tahjir had the mind of an 18-month baby, his mother said.

Tahjon and Tahjir Burrowes (Courtesy Lachera Burrowes)

He couldnt talk. He couldnt comprehend certain things. He wasnt potty trained, she said.

Tahjon was protective of Tahjir, but also caved to many of his demands, their mother said. Tahjon helped teach Tahjir how to walk. He often put his baby brother to sleep. He accompanied his mother when she took Tahjir to therapy. They were often chasing each other, laughing at home.

I have so many pictures of Tahjir in his arms, in his bed, all over him, Burrowes said.

Tahjon was like the best big brother in the world. Tahjon was, theres no words. I cant, she added, as she broke down. I really miss him.

Related: Mommy, dont let me die: Florida family recounts escaping home during Hurricane Ian

Now, Burrowes plans to bury the brothers side by side. And while there are days she wants to give up, she has pledged to ensure that her surviving son, Tahjay, who was Tahjons twin, has a full life, one that honors the lives of his late brothers.

I need him to know we have to push on, Burrowes said. My son hugged me and said, I need you.

In their room, Tahjay found the start of 14 stories his imaginative twin had written about superheroes and monster-slayers, and he plans to one day finish the tales for his brother.

I know Im going to be crying forever, but there are some really good memories I have, Burrowes said. I have more good memories than anything else.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com.

Related video:

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
The Daily Beast

Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared Tuesday that there is no need to maintain a diplomatic presence in western countries, in the latest sign that Russia may be toying with the idea of completely severing diplomatic ties with western countries as its war in Ukraine nears the nine month mark.There is neither point nor desire to maintain the previous presence in Western states. Our people work there in conditions that can hardly be called human, Lavrov said, acco
(Bloody Disgusting)

A new film is said to be so shocking and violent that people are passing out in the cinema.

On Thursday 4 October, Damien Leone unveiled his sequelTerrifier 2 in the US, and horror fans have been flocking to watch the film. It has consequently become a word-of-mouth hit.

This is also due to the fact that social media is filled with posts from people who claim to have either passed out or vomited from the violence depicted in the film.

The film, which Bloody Disgusting called the kind of horror movie that just doesnt really exist anymore, is a sequel to 2016 film Terrifier, which follows a sadistic killer known as Art the Clown.

Terrifier 2 catches up with a newly resurrected Art as he targets a teenage girl and her younger brother on Halloween night.

Watching #Terrifier2 my friend just threw up and then passed out, Andrew Liming (@ratshirtbastard) tweeted, adding that five people walked out of the cinema. He also said that an ambulance was called to attend to his squeamish friend.

Movie Guy (@MovieGuy919) wrote: Holy s***! #Terrifier2 was fantastic! Definitely not for the weak stomachs! Someone actually fainted during my screening of this movie.

Bark (@Bark_4KT) added: The guy behind me passed out cold n crashed into my chair.

Find more reactions to Terrifier 2 below.

TERRIFIER 2: The first movie in my lifetime where Ive read reports of people fainting and vomiting in the theater, and then after finally seeing it myself thinking, yeah, I get that.  vulgar overlord (@wounded_kite) October 11, 2022

It happened.. lol. I personally dont mind the gore but some people cant handle it  Bark (@Bark_4KT) October 8, 2022

Terrifier 2 is so gory I puked in my popcorn.  pic.twitter.com/AiXHkuuKOf  Ryan Reats (ENDS tomorrow ) (@RyanTheHorrorM1) October 6, 2022

Terrifier 2 premiered at Frightfest in August, but there is currently no word on a wide UK release date.
By Chris Gallagher

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors will be allowed to introduce potentially incriminating messages between the leader of the Oath Keepers and the far-right group's general counsel, a judge ruled on Thursday, saying the texts were personal in nature and do not fall under attorney-client privilege.

Prosecutors had briefly shown the court a December 2020 message from founder Stewart Rhodes to lawyer Kellye SoRelle before the defense objected last week. Rhodes is one of five Oath Keepers on trial for their alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

"This will be DC rally number three. Getting kinda old. They don't give a shit how many show up and wave a sign, pray, or yell. They won't fear us till we come with rifles in hand," Rhodes said in the Dec. 29, 2020 message to SoRelle, according to testimony by FBI Special Agent Byron Cody.

Prosecutors filed a motion this week seeking to admit messages sent between Rhodes and SoRelle in December 2020, arguing there was no evidence of an attorney-client relationship between the two before Jan. 6, 2021. The defense responded that SoRelle was a licensed attorney and had done pro bono work for the Oath Keepers in 2020 at Rhodes' request.

"I think it's quite clear from the context of the statements that these are personal text messages and do not meet the definition" of attorney-client messages, District of Columbia Judge Amit Mehta said on Thursday.

The move opens the door for the government to recall Cody and submit as evidence the December 2020 communications between Rhodes and SoRelle.

Last month, SoRelle was charged with obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding in connection with the Jan. 6 riot after she allegedly told others to withhold, alter and conceal items from a federal grand jury.

Rhodes and four co-defendants - Jessica Watkins, Thomas Caldwell, Kenneth Harrelson and Kelly Meggs - are accused of plotting to use force to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's election victory in a failed bid to keep then-President Donald Trump in power.

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The five face several charges, including seditious conspiracy, a rarely prosecuted crime under a statute dating to the Civil War era that is defined as attempting "to overthrow, put down or to destroy by force the government of the United States."

Pro-Trump supporters attacked police defending the Capitol on Jan. 6 and forced their way inside, sending lawmakers, Vice President Mike Pence and others fleeing for their lives. A bipartisan Senate report on the attack found that seven people, including three law enforcement officers, "ultimately lost their lives."

(Reporting by Chris Gallagher, editing by Ross Colvin and Aurora Ellis)
Cannabis connoisseurs can now add Thailand to their list of travel destinations. In June, Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis nationwide. While the legalization of recreational marijuana use is still in the air, the latest development was an inadvertent result of reaching an expiration deadline for the countrys government to agree on new regulations.

Decriminalization of the plant is a signature policy of Health Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakuls Bhumjaithai Party. Thailands desire to tap into the growing global market is the primary factor in advocacy for the policy. According to The Global Cannabis Report, the cannabis industry estimates earnings that reach $103.9B by 2024.

Today, society is for the most part knowledgeable, understanding, and ready to consume cannabis the right way, Charnvirakul said in a statement. More people will understand it over time.

Photo Credit: Dan Freeman

Warnings Against Lighting Up In Public

Although at-home growth and consumption are now technically legal, officials warn against traveling to Thailand strictly for cannabis. Announcements from government ministries are confusing, as Charnvirakul continues to deny recreational use being legal. Their primary focus, at least publicly, is to capitalize on the medical use sector of the industry.

We dont welcome those kinds of tourists, Charnvirakul told reporters when asked about recreational marijuana use among foreign visitors.

Confusing rules:

Yet, almost as soon as the deadline passed  officially decriminalizing the plant  popular sites like Bangkoks Khao San Road started seeing more cannabis vendors. Dozens of shops and stalls are popping up in hotspot areas, according to TIME. 7-Eleven is even getting in on the action with cannabis-infused drinks and beauty products. Restaurants are infusing marijuana into dishes such as soups, curries, and pizza.

As tempting as the idea sounds, public use still holds the risky punishment of a three-month jail sentence or fines of up to 25,000 baht ($705.82).

As for the future of Thailand transitioning to a marijuana-friendly country for recreational use, Charnvirakul gives an inkling of hope, saying it might come in the near future.

Related: Top 20 U.S. Cannabis Destinations For Black Travelers | Cannabis Tourism: Weed-Friendly Hotels Around The World
Tech billionaire Peter Thiel and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnells political operation have been in a standoff over how to fund a key Senate race  and a late proposal to collaborate stalled out this week, less than a month before Election Day.

On Monday evening, Thiel reached out to Steven Law, who heads the Senate Leadership Fund, a McConnell-aligned super PAC, to propose a deal, according to a person familiar with the conversation. Thiel said that he and Laws super PAC could each pump $5 million into the Arizona Senate race, where Thiels protege, Blake Masters, is the Republican nominee running against Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly.

Thiel spent $15 million through a super PAC to bolster Masters during the primary, helping him to a 12-point win over his nearest competitor. But the PayPal co-founder and early Facebook investor has yet to help Masters in the general election. Senate Leadership Fund also decided to cancel its planned fall TV blitz in the state, a move which came as polls showed Masters trailing Kelly.

During the Monday call, Law told Thiel he would see if he would be able to rustle up the $5 million from donors to meet Thiels proposal  though he said an ask this late in the election year, when contributors were largely tapped out, may not be successful.

But on Thursday morning, Law got back to the billionaire to tell him that hed been unable to find the donors to provide the needed funds, the person familiar with the talks said. The call was described as cordial.

Spokespersons for Senate Leadership Fund and Thiel did not comment.

Word of the negotiations between Thiel and SLF was first reported by Axios.

Its unclear if Thiel now will spend on his own in the remaining time before Election Day, though Law urged Thiel during Thursday's call to forge ahead with spending on the race. After contributing extensively during the primaries  aside from Masters, he also doled out $15 million to back another protege running for the Senate, Ohio Republican J.D. Vance  he has kept his wallet shut during the general election season.

While Senate Leadership Fund has turned off the spigot in Arizona, Masters is still getting help from the party. Conservative groups, including Heritage Action, are spending money in the state. Masters also met with McConnell during a recent trip to Washington, where the Republican leader held a fundraiser for him.
PROVIDENCE  The Judicial Nominating Commission made its picks late Wednesday of lawyers to interview for three judicial openings, lists that include a smattering of new names.

For the Superior Court seat left vacant by the recent retirement of Judge Netti C. Vogel, the panel selected Angelyne E. Cooper-Bailey, legal counsel for the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training; Maria F. Deaton, a former prosecutor who now works for Lynch & Pine and is a probate judge in East Providence; Kas R. DeCarvalho, a partner with Pannone Lopes Devereaux & O'Gara and who serves as vice chairman of the Board of Directors The Metropolitan Career and Technical Center; Michael B. Forte, a partner with the Warwick firm Lonardo Forte & Trudeau and senior administrative judge of the Cranston Municipal Court; and Assistant Attorney General Joseph J. McBurney, who prosecutes some of the states highest profile gun cases.

Also on the list are Clerk of state Supreme Court Debra A. Saunders, the courts former deputy general counsel who owns The Daily Scoop ice cream shops with her husband; Assistant Attorney General Shannon Signore, who prosecutes child abuse and child sex crimes for the state; District Court Judge Christopher K. Smith, a former public defender named to the bench in 2018; and Assistant Attorney General Mark J. Trovato, chief of the attorney generals Washington County office.

The position is a lifetime seat with a $170,545 base salary.

Judge injured: Superior Court judge injured in confrontation outside courthouse; man charged with assault

For two District Court seats, the commission selected to interview nine. These include Anthony F. Amalfetano, a sole practitioner who serves as a Warwick Probate Court judge; Johnston lawyer Joseph R. Ballirano, a private practitioner; David V. Igliozzi, a former Democratic state senator and Providence City Councilman who now serves as a Providence Housing Court judge; Assistant Attorney General Amy Dodge Murray, who runs the Providence County grand jury for the state; and District Court Magistrate J. Patrick ONeill, a former Democratic House Majority Whip named to the bench in 2017.

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Also on the list are Providence private practitioner Paul D. Ragosta, a son of late Superior Court Judge Vincent Ragosta, along with Cooper-Bailey, Saunders and Signore.

The District Court openings were created by Judge Elaine T. Buccis retirement and the passage of law authorizing an additional judgeship meant to accommodate a new mental health treatment calendar. The commission selected the same people to interview for both positions.

They are lifetime seats with a $165,158 base salary.

More news: Judge orders halt to Rhode Island truck tolls, rules system is unconstitutional

District Court Chief Judge Jeanne E. LaFazia has assigned Judge Pamela Woodock-Pfeiffer to preside over the mental health treatment calendar, according to Kara A. Picozzi, a spokeswoman for the courts. Woodcock-Pfeiffer for years has overseen the veterans court, an alternative judicial process for veterans diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury who were charged with misdemeanor crimes.

Woodcock-Pfeiffer participated in training in July in Washington, D.C., with other judicial officers, exploring the intersection between criminal justice and mental health, Picozzi said.

Staff is being selected and trained and a team assembled comprised of representatives from the Rhode Island Public Defenders' and Attorney General's offices and the Rhode Island State Mental Health Advocate. The first referrals to the voluntary calendar are expected to be in February, Picozzi said.

The mental health treatment calendar was approved by state lawmakers last session as an alternative judicial process for people charged with misdemeanor offenses who are eligible for the program. It aims to integrate support and treatment, and potentially provide alternatives to traditional prosecution, sentencing and incarceration.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Who might fill open Rhode Island judicial seats?
A newly resurfaced video of Representative Tim Ryan (D., Ohio) from his his brief presidential run in 2019 shows him saying that he would support eliminating cash bail nationwide.

A video circulating on social media on Wednesday showed Ryan, who is now campaigning for a Senate seat in Ohio, at forum at the University of New Hampshires law school. At the 2019 event, the political director for the state ACLU asked him whether he would support ending cash bail nationally.

Yeah, responded Ryan. I think the bail system is inherently unfair, and what it does is it sets people down a spiral of not being able to go to work, not being able to take care of their kids, then you have adverse childhood experiences, and all of a sudden a parent is not at home.

Tim Ryan wants to eliminate cash bail nationwide. The same policy thats been a DISASTER in New York!pic.twitter.com/A608hDMcD3  RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 12, 2022

Its not much different than what we talk about when we see these kids separated from their parents through the immigration situation were dealing with in the United States, Ryan added.

Theres a great article in the New York Times, I think it was, about adverse childhood experiences, he said. Those traumatizing experiences for kids lead to mental health issues, physical health issues, obviously behavioral issues. So I would be for eliminating it.

Cash bail and crime more broadly have emerged as a top issue for many voters this election. In Ohio specifically, the states top court ruled in April that prosecutors could no longer ask a judge to set bail amounts based on potential dangers to public safety.

Cully Stimson, an expert in crime control at the Heritage Foundation, recently told National Review that while proponents of bail reform argue that cash bail is discriminatory and that more lenient procedures would not increase crime, there is no study out there  none  that has survived peer review that says that crime goes down or remains the same if you eliminate cash bail.

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In Cook County, Ill., circuit court chief judge Tim Evans announced in 2017 that he planned to reduce or eliminate monetary bail for many pretrial defendants. Then, 18 months later, Evanss office did a study and said that the new policies increased the percentage of defendants who were released pretrial from 72 to 81 percent and that more lenient release procedures did not increase crime.

The news spread across the country as promising evidence in favor of bail reform  but the study was flawed.

A later peer-reviewed study found that that the number of released defendants charged with committing new crimes increased by 45 percent after the new program was implemented, and the number of pretrial releasees charged with committing new violent crimes increased by an estimated 33 percent.

A Chicago Tribune analysis of the study done by Evanss office found flaws in both the data underlying Evans report and the techniques he used to analyze it  issues that minimize the number of defendants charged with murder and other violent crimes after being released from custody under bail reform.

But the damage has been done, Stimson said. Because a lot of cities now are still citing this Chicago study as proof that not requiring bail wont increase crime and its a good thing basically.

The consequences are pretty obvious, said Stimson, who previously served as a judge, prosecutor, and defense lawyer. A lot of people who are really dangerous who need to be held pretrial or who need to have a high bail set wont have either of those happen, and theyll go out and commit more crimes.

More from National Review
Trevor Noah will host his last episode of The Daily Show on Dec. 8, ending a seven-year run with Comedy Centrals late-night program.

The network announced Wednesday that the show will break in December and return Jan. 17 after a reinvention.

Noah announced his departure last month, but hadnt yet set a timeline for his exit.

Its something that I never expected, and I found myself thinking throughout the time, everything weve gone through: the Trump presidency, the pandemic, just the journey of  the more pandemic  and I realized that after the seven years, my time is up, Noah said in September.

I realized theres another part of my life that I want to carry on exploring.

Noah said his time on the show helped him realize his dream of working in front of and behind the camera, but that he wants to shift to be able to travel and pursue other projects.

In the lead-up to Noahs last airing, the show is set to celebrate his tenure since taking over for Jon Stewart in 2015. Noah hosted the Grammy Awards twice during his time on The Daily Show and headlined this years White House Correspondents Association dinner.

Im truly excited to see what the future holds, Noah said in Wednesdays release.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
In a two-year revenge scheme, a truck driver went around the country  including the Coachella Valley  setting fire to 25 tractor-trailers belonging to a single company, federal prosecutors say.

The last two fires were in September at the TA travel center just off Interstate 10 in Coachella. The drivers were sleeping inside their cabins at the time.

Authorities believe Viorel Pricop set the fires because the company, Swift Transportation, helped the government convict him in a prior criminal scheme that involved transporting stolen cargo, The Detroit News reported.

Pricop, 64, was arrested Tuesday in Michigan, where he lives. He's charged with arson of property in interstate commerce, which carries a penalty of five to 20 years in prison if convicted, a press release from the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles said.

The fires were set between June 2020 and September 2022, according to a court affidavit filed by Jonathan Smith, a special agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The affidavit confirms that Swift cooperated with an earlier criminal case against Pricop.

Smith wrote that in many of the cases, including in Coachella, drivers were sleeping inside when the fires were started. The affidavit does not mention any injuries. Besides California, there were fires in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona.

Beyond the two in Coachella, the four others in California were in Newberry Springs, Ludlow and Barstow (all off Interstate 40) and Hesperia (off Interstate 15).

Prosecutors say most of the fires around the country were off interstates 40 and 10.

The most recent two fires were set just after midnight Sept. 14 at the TA travel center in Coachella. The ATF says Pricop came to the valley often. Months earlier, on March 30, he'd been seen at a nearby Love's Travel Stop and in the area driving a 1997 Kenworth truck that he owned, according to Smith's affidavit.

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In his earlier criminal case, Pricop served more than two years in prison before being released in 2018, Smith wrote. He was on supervised release until mid-2019.

A year later, the first fires were set.

Eric Hartley is The Desert Sun's news editor. Email him at eric.hartley@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Arsonist truck driver Viorel Pricop set fires in California, ATF says
Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images

Walt Nauta, a longtime Trump aide, was seen moving boxes out from a storage room the FBI searched.

The incidents were caught on security footage, The New York Times reported.

Nauta was seen moving boxes before and after the DOJ demanded top-secret files be returned in May.

A Trump aide was caught on security camera moving boxes out of a storage room in Mar-a-Lago, per a report from The New York Times. The Times did not view the security footage and Insider was not independently able to verify its contents.

The Times spoke to three people familiar with the matter, who said longtime Trump staffer Walt Nauta was seen on Mar-a-Lago's security footage moving boxes out of a storage room that was later searched by the FBI. This took place both before and after the Department of Justice issued a subpoena in May ordering Trump to hand over classified documents, per the NYT's sources.

Intrigue has swirled around what was kept in the storage room, and whether anything was removed from it before the DOJ searched Trump's property. The Times' piece dropped hours after The Washington Post reported that Trump himself explicitly directed employees to move boxes of White House documents from the storage room. These boxes were taken from the storage area to the former president's private residence after Trump advisers received the DOJ's subpoena in May, per The Post.

The FBI also interviewed Nauta several times before it raided Mar-a-Lago on August 8, according to one of The Times' sources.

After the raid, the FBI carted off 11,000 documents from Mar-a-Lago, including some that were marked "CLASSIFIED." Investigators found documents inside a closet in Trump's office and a storage area in the property's basement. Some of the documents the FBI found were so sensitive that investigators needed further clearance to view them. Among the documents retrieved was classified information on a foreign country's nuclear defenses, The Washington Post reported.

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The DOJ is currently investigating whether Trump broke three federal laws  including the Espionage Act  by keeping the files at his Florida residence. In an August court filing, the Justice Department said it had evidence "that government records were likely concealed and removed" from the storage room at Mar-a-Lago, and that "efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government's investigation."

Nauta's lawyer, Stanley Woodward Jr., declined to comment on The Times' reporting. Taylor Budowich, Trump's spokesman at his post-presidential press office, told The Times the Biden administration was "colluding with the media through targeted leaks in an overt and illegal act of intimidation and tampering."

Budowich and Woodward Jr. did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
An employee of former President Donald Trump working at his Mar-a-Lago residence told the FBI that Mr Trump asked him to move boxes of papers ahead of the FBIs search of the residence in August, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

Several people familiar with the investigation into Mr Trumps alleged mishandling of classified documents told the Post that after Mr Trump recieved a subpoena for any classified materials at Mar-a-Lago in May, the former president told people to move boxes to his residence at the property.

Security camera footage reportedly shows people moving boxes. The FBI ultimately searched Mar-a-Lago on August 8, seizing a number of documents as it looked for evidence that Mr Trump engaged in obstruction, destruction of government records, or the mishandling of classified information.

Mr Trump and his political and media allies fumed at the search, despite evidence that the FBI did in fact find classified information improperly stored at his personal residence.

In a statement to the Post, Trump spokesperson Taylor Budowich called the leak of the information that Mr Trump ordered boxes of documents moved un-American.

The Biden administration has weaponized law enforcement and fabricated a Document Hoax in a desperate attempt to retain political power, Budowich said in a statement. Every other President has been given time and deference regarding the administration of documents, as the President has the ultimate authority to categorize records, and what materials should be classified.

In its initial interview with the Mar-a-Lago employee, they reportedly claimed that they never moved any potentially sensitive material. But when the witness was interviewed for a second time, their story is said to have changed significantly as they described moving boxes at Mr Trumps direction.

Mr Trumps response to the subpoena and his repeated unwillingness to cooperate with the National Archives and Records Administration and the Justice Department suggest that he may have been attempting to impede the federal governments attempts to recover classified documents.

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The employees testimony about Mr Trumps response to the subpoena sheds further light on the bureaus decision to search Mar-a-Lago, which came only after Mr Trump and his legal team failed to respond to the subpoena by turning over the documents. A judge signed off on a search warrant for the Florida property, which was executed in August.

The FBI ultimately seized 103 classified documents, including one that reportedly described another countrys military defences and nuclear capabilities, as well as some 11,000 documents not marked classified.

The Justice Departments investigation into Mr Trumps handling of classified documents is just one of a number of legal headaches for the former president, who is believed to weighing another White House run in 2024 alongside a number of other Republicans including Florida Gov Ron DeSantis.

He has offered several different explanations for his handling of the classified documents, including a baseless allegation that the FBI planted evidence at Mar-a-Lago. The property does not include an authorised space for the storage of classified documents, a fact that Justice Department officials reportedly communicated directly to Mr Trumps team.
Former President Donald Trump gets ready to speak during a Save America rally on October 1, 2022 in Warren, Michigan. Trump Emily Elconin/Getty Images

Donald Trump was subpoenaed in May for additional sensitive White House records in his possession.

A Trump worker alleged that Trump then told employees to move boxes of documents, per a WaPo report.

FBI agents seized more than a hundred documents marked classified in their August raid.

A Trump worker testified to federal agents that Donald Trump instructed employees to move boxes of White House documents to his home at the Mar-a-Lago resort after he was subpoenaed by the Justice Department in May, according to The Washington Post.

The testimony provides further insight into Trump's actions before the FBI raided the former president's resort home in Palm Beach, Florida, on August 8.

Prior to the FBI search, the Justice Department issued a subpoena on May 11, seeking additional sensitive documents that may still be in Trump's possession. The request came after the National Archives of Records and Administration (NARA) found classified documents in a set of 15 boxes Trump's team handed over in January.

The findings prompted the records agency to refer the matter to the Justice Department.

The FBI search in August yielded thousands of official documents including about 100 that were marked classified. Investigators found material stowed away in various locations of the Mar-a-Lago property, including inside a closet in Trump's office and in a storage area of a basement.

Anonymous sources familiar with the investigation told The Post that the witness's account of Trump's request was corroborated by security footage that showed people moving the boxes. They also said that the witness has become a key part of the DOJ's probe.

The witness initially denied handling the documents in a first interview with the FBI, sources told The Post, but then changed the story in a second interview as the Justice Department gathered more evidence.

A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"The Biden administration has weaponized law enforcement and fabricated a Document Hoax in a desperate attempt to retain political power," spokesperson Taylor Budowich said in a statement to The Post. "Every other President has been given time and deference regarding the administration of documents, as the President has the ultimate authority to categorize records, and what materials should be classified."

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Budowich also accused the Justice Department of leaking "misleading and false information to partisan allies in the Fake News" in his statement to The Post.

Some of the records retrieved from Mar-a-Lago were so sensitive that FBI agents needed clearance to view them, and that some senior national security officials don't know about their existence.

Read the original article on Business Insider
NEW YORK  Attorney General Tish James asked a state court Thursday to freeze the Trump Organizations New York assets and install an independent monitor in her civil suit targeting the former president and his real estate business.

James alleged last month a years-long scheme to fraudulently overvalue the Trump Organizations portfolio by billions of dollars. And on Thursday, she warned the state Supreme Court that Trump might be shifting his holdings outside of New York  and the reach of its courts.

Since we filed this sweeping lawsuit last month, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have continued those same fraudulent practices and taken measures to evade responsibility, she said in a statement. Today, we are seeking an immediate stop to these actions because Mr. Trump should not get to play by different rules.

The allegations are the latest new strand in Trumps expanding web of legal woes, which stretches nationwide as he tangles with lawsuits and probes related to classified presidential documents in Florida, the ramifications of the Jan. 6 riots in Washington and fallout from his election denial in several states. It also ratchets up an long-running battle between New York's top lawyer and the ex-president.

In the new court papers, James says Trump incorporated a new Trump Organization LLC in Delaware on Sept. 15, then registered the company with New York as Trump Organization II LLC on the day her lawsuit was filed on Sept. 21.

James' suit seeks monetary penalties up to $250 million and an order blocking Trump from real estate transactions in New York for five years  moves that could doom his unraveling empire. But she now says his lawyers wont assure her that Trumps not moving assets out of state in advance.

Trump attorney Alina Habba called James' filing "a thinly-veiled attempt" at keeping the case in front of Justice Arthur Engoron  who previously held Trump in contempt for not complying with an attorney general probe  and out of the state court's commercial division.

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"We have repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper. This is simply another stunt which Ms. James hopes will aid her failing political campaign," Habba said in a statement, repeating a common line of attack against James, who is fundraising off her legal fights.

James, who is is asking for an October 2023 trial date, wants the court to prohibit the Trump Organization from transferring material assets to anyone not a party to her lawsuit, or otherwise disposing of property without the courts blessing.

She also wants an independent monitor to oversee the companys forthcoming 2022 financial statements and to ensure he does not employ the same accounting tricks alleged in her complaint last month. For instance, James contended that Trump continues to count $93 million held in a Vornado partnership as his own cash, even though he shouldnt.

Engoron will consider James' requests at an Oct. 31 hearing, according to an order entered later Thursday.
Former President Donald Trump on the South Lawn of the White House, on December 12, 2020. Al Drago/Getty Images

Trump was furious when the Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit to overturn the 2020 election results.

A Secret Service message said Trump was "livid" and Cassidy Hutchinson said he was "fired up."

The January 6 committee revealed the evidence in a hearing on Thursday.

President Donald Trump was furious when the Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit to overturn the 2020 election results, according to details revealed during a Thursday hearing by the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

The committee shared a message from the Secret Service that described Trump's reaction to the news on December 11, 2020, as "livid."

"Just fyi. POTUS is pissed  breaking news  Supreme Court denied his lawsuit. He is livid now," the message read.

Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to ex-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, also testified to the committee that she saw Trump after the court's decision that day and that he was "fired up."

"The president's just raging about the decision and how it's wrong and why didn't we make more calls and just his typical anger, outburst at this decision," Hutchinson said.

Hutchinson, who offered an explosive testimony about Trump to the committee in its June 28 hearing, said she also recounted the president telling Meadows, "I don't want people to know that we lost."

"This is embarrassing. Figure it out, we need to figure it out," Hutchinson said Trump told Meadows following the Supreme Court's decision.

The Supreme Court rejected an election challenge brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that was backed by Trump and his allies. The lawsuit sought to invalidate the results in key battleground states, including Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan, that President Joe Biden won. The ruling was a major blow to Trump's efforts to overturn the election results in his favor after his legal team had already lost dozens of its challenges in the lower federal courts.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The House Jan. 6 committee presented evidence at its hearing Thursday showing that former President Donald Trump planned to falsely declare he had won the 2020 election months before Election Day.

As the votes were still being counted on Nov. 3, 2020, Trump held a rally in New York City, where he asserted without evidence that he had defeated Joe Biden.

This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election, Trump declared on election night, adding, We want all voting to stop.

After showing a clip of that statement, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., laid out the committees case that Trump knew full well it was too early to make such a declaration and had plotted to deliver it whatever the final results showed.

We now know more about President Trumps intention for election night. The evidence shows his false victory speech was planned well in advance, before any votes had been counted, Lofgren said. It was a premeditated plan by the president to declare victory no matter what the actual result was. He made a plan to stay in office before Election Day.

The committee obtained a prepared statement from the National Archives that was written on Oct. 31, 2020, by Tom Fitton, a conservative legal activist and founder of Judicial Watch.

We had an election today, and I won, the memo suggested that Trump say.

The memo, Lofgren said, laid out a plan that only the votes counted by the Election Day deadline should be counted. Given the larger number of Democratic-leaning votes cast by mail amid the coronavirus pandemic, that plan appeared designed to hand Trump victory while disenfranchising millions of Americans.

In the course of our investigation, we also interviewed Brad Parscale, President Trump's former campaign manager. He told us he understood that President Trump planned as early as July that he would say he won the election even if he lost, Lofgren said.

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Donald Trump arrives to speak in the East Room of the White House late on election night, Nov. 3, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

The committee also showed video of former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon boasting a few days prior to the election to a group of associates from China.

What Trump is going to do is just declare victory, right? Hes going to declare victory. That doesnt mean hes the winner. Hes just going to say hes the winner, said Bannon, whom Trump would later pardon.

The committee later showed documentary film footage of Roger Stone, an informal Trump adviser whom the president pardoned in December 2020, discussing his view that Trump should prematurely declare victory.

I suspect it will be, I really do suspect it will be up in the air, Stone said of where the race would stand on election night. When that happens the key thing to do is to claim victory. Possession is nine-tenths of the law. No, we won, f*** you.

Both Bannon and Stone declined to answer questions from the committee.

Trumps apparent plan to prematurely declare victory worried staff members of then-Vice President Mike Pence, Lofgren said. The vice president's counsel Greg Jacob testified to the Jan. 6 committee about a conversation he had with Pences chief of staff, Marc Short, to make sure Pence would not echo any false victory claims made by Trump.

Marc had indicated to me that there was a possibility that there would be a declaration of victory within the White House that some might push for, and this is prior to the election results being known, and that he was trying to figure out a way of avoiding the vice president being thrust into a position of needing to opine on that when he might not have sufficient information to do so, Jacob said.

Jacob drafted a Nov. 3 memo to Short stating it was essential that Pence not weigh in on the election results prior to the conclusion of those results being tallied.
Former President Donald Trump arrives to speak to supporters from The Ellipse near the White House on January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images

Trump made a fundraising ask just after the House's January 6 committee wrapped its 9th hearing.

The ex-president told his supporters he's fighting for their "heritage" and praised the "MAGA movement."

The nine-member committee unanimously voted to subpoena Trump for testimony.

Former President Donald Trump emailed out a fundraising ask just minutes after the House January 6 committee wrapped its 9th day of hearings, during which committee members laid out a damning case against Trump as the central instigator of the deadly Capitol riot.

Capitalizing on his "MAGA movement" being in the news, the ex-president told his supporters he's fighting for their "heritage."

"Our MAGA movement is, by far, the greatest political movement in the history of our Country, because I am fighting for YOU, YOUR home, YOUR heritage, and YOUR freedom," Trump wrote in the fundraising email.

After filling out a survey with questions such as "Are you concerned about the Radical Left's effect on this country?", Trump prompts supporters to donate at least $45 to the Save America Joint Fundraising Committee, which is composed of two of his post-presidential political committees: Save America and Make America Great Again PAC.

Trump, who has openly flirted with a another presidential run in 2024 but hasn't yet formally registered a presidential campaign committee, is using his PACs to fund a variety of expenses, from staging rallies to paying staffers to covering legal bills.

A fundraising email sent by one of former President Donald Trump's political committees on October 13, 2022. Save America

The nine-member committee unanimously voted to subpoena Trump for testimony concerning the riot at the close of the hearing on Thursday.

"It is our obligation to seek Donald Trump's testimony," Democratic Rep Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the committee, said on Thursday. "He is required to answer to those police officers who put their lives and bodies on the line to defend our democracy."

Trump is expected to refuse the subpoena and a potential legal process to enforce it would likely take years. In a Thursday afternoon statement, he called the committee a "total 'BUST'" and a "laughing stock."

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The committee is planning to release a report prior to the midterm elections on its one-and-a-half year-long investigation into the January 6 attacks. While the committee has made clear that it has more work to do, it faces being dissolved if Republicans regain the House majority in November.

In the subject line of his fundraising email, Trump made a dubious claim he's made many times before: that his approval rating among Republicans sits at 96%.

A New York Times/Siena College poll published in July found that just 49% of Republican voters said they would cast their ballot for Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. A quarter of GOP voters said they'd support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis instead. An NBC poll last month found Trump's approvals have sunk to their lowest point since he left office.

Still, the ex-president has managed to rake in cash through his various fundraising efforts, which have included numerous worthless incentives, a Mar-a-Lago-centric missive in the midst of a Florida hurricane, and aggressive scare tactics targeting his loyal supporters.

As of August 31, Save America alone reported about $92.8 million in reserve, according to a filing with the Federal Election Commission.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Tulsi Gabbard attacked the Democratic Party by calling them an elitist cabal of warmongers after announcing she is leaving the party in her new podcast.

Gabbard, a former U.S. House of Representatives member from Hawaiis second district, announced her departure in the first episode of her podcast, The Tulsi Gabbard Show, on Tuesday.

I love our country, Gabbard says in her opening message. Our God-given rights of freedom, life and liberty that are enshrined in our Constitution Bill of Rights are what inspires me.

More from NextShark: San Francisco apologizes for historical racism, violence against Chinese Americans

In her video, Gabbard recalls how growing up in Hawaii gave her a very special appreciation for the importance of our environment; protecting our water, protecting our natural resources.

Before becoming a politician, Gabbard says she was unaffiliated with either of the parties. After doing some research, she became inspired by the Democrats who stood up against the war in Vietnam."

"I was inspired by those who, here in Hawaii, fought for plantation workers who were being abused and exploited by wealthy landowners but had nobody to stand up for them and be their voice, she says.  I was drawn to the ideals of a big tent inclusive Democratic party that stood up for working men and women  that stood up for the little guy.

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I can no longer remain in todays Democratic Party, Gabbard continues in the video. Its now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue and stoking anti-white racism, who actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms enshrined in our Constitution.

She goes on to describe her former political party as a group who are hostile to people of faith and spirituality, demonize the police, protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans.

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The Democrats who believe in open borders, who weaponize the National Security State to go after their political opponents and, above all, are dragging us ever closer to nuclear war, she continues.

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A vocal critic of President Biden, whom she once endorsed during the 2020 Presidential Race, Gabbard made history as the first Hindu-practicing Samoan American elected to congress. She also ran for president in 2020.

President Biden campaigned on a message of unity, healing the partisan divide bringing the country together, Gabbard says in her video. He just gave a big speech saying supporters of President (Donald) Trump are the most extremist group in our country and a threat to our democracy. Thats half the country.

Gabbard, an Iraq War veteran, resigned as vice chairperson of the Democratic National Committee in 2016 to endorse Sen. Bernie Sanders, who was running under the Democratic Party at the time.

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A controversial voice within her former political party, Gabbard was criticized in 2013 for voting against a House resolution supported by both parties to condemn the anti-Muslim violence in Gujarat, a state in India in which 1,000 people died, most of whom were Muslims, during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

Gabbard also caught flak from then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential race when she did not call Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a war criminal. She reportedly visited Syria and met with Assad in secret, a trip she called a fact-finding mission.

The former congresswoman, who has regularly appeared on Fox News and once filled in for Tucker Carlson in August, was condemned by Democrats for speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference earlier this year.

Featured Image via The Tulsi Gabbard Show
Turkey's parliament on Thursday approved a tough pre-election law that could see reporters and social media users jailed for up to three years for spreading "fake news".

The new rules cement the government's already-firm grip on the media eight months before a general election that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan enters trailing in the polls.

The Council of Europe said the measure's vague definition of "disinformation" and accompanying threat of jail could have a "chilling effect and increased self-censorship, not least in view of the upcoming elections in June 2023".

The legislation -- comprised of 40 amendments that each required a separate vote -- was proposed by Erdogan's Islamic-rooted AKP party and furiously opposed by Turkey's main opposition groups.

One lawmaker from the secular CHP party smashed his mobile phone with a hammer in parliament to demonstrate how freedom of expression was being destroyed -- particularly for the young.

"I would like to address my brothers who are 15, 16, 17 years old and who will be deciding the fate of Turkey in 2023," CHP lawmaker Burak Erbay said before taking out his hammer.

"You have only one freedom left -- the phone in your pocket. There's Instagram, YouTube, Facebook. You communicate there," he said ahead of the vote.

"If the law here passes in parliament, you can break your phone like this," he said.

- 'War on the truth' -

Most Turkish newspapers and television channels fell under the control of government officials and their business allies during a sweeping crackdown that followed a failed coup in 2016.

But social networks and internet-based media remained largely free of oversight -- much to the growing annoyance of Erdogan.

This began to change when Turkey used the threat of heavy penalties to force giants such as Facebook and Twitter to appoint local representatives who can quickly comply with local court orders to take down contentious posts.

Erdogan began to argue at around the same time that Turkey's highly-polarised society was particularly vulnerable to fake and misleading news.

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Social media have "turned into one of the main threats to today's democracy", Erdogan said last December.

The new legislation imposes a criminal penalty for those found guilty of spreading false or misleading information.

It requires social networks and internet sites to hand over personal details of users suspected of "propagating misleading information".

It also allows the courts to sentence accredited reporters and regular social media users who "openly spread misleading information" to between one and three years in jail.

The government has also started publishing a weekly "disinformation bulletin" aimed at debunking what it deems as false news with "accurate and truthful information".

Lawmakers rejected repeated opposition attempts to dilute the legislation before the vote.

"This law declares war on the truth," pro-Kurdish opposition HDP party lawmaker Meral Danis Bektas said.

- 'Legal harassment' -

Turkey was ranked 149th out of 180 countries in the annual media freedom index published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) earlier this year.

"Authoritarianism is gaining ground in Turkey, challenging media pluralism," RSF said. "All possible means are used to undermine critics."

Award-winning media rights campaigner Veysel Ok said everyone in Turkey was now exposed to potential prosecution for their views.

"The members of the opposition, NGOs, bar associations, professional associations, journalists and ordinary citizens... Now, all will be subjected to legal harassment," Ok tweeted.

bur/zak/raz
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's parliament on Thursday adopted a law proposed by President Tayyip Erdogan that would jail journalists and social media users for up to three years for spreading "disinformation", despite deep concerns over free speech.

Lawmakers from Erdogan's ruling AK Party (AKP) and its nationalist ally MHP, which together have a majority, approved the bill even as opposition lawmakers, European countries and media rights activists called for it to be scrapped.

(Reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Writing by Jonathan Spicer; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Springfield Police Department, municipal court and prosecutor's office

Two men from Eugene who fled to Denver have been charged with allegedly murdering and robbing a Springfield man, according to the Springfield Police Department. A 17-year-old male from Eugene also faces the same charges.

Officers responded to reports of a male victim who had been shot just before 11 p.m. Oct. 4 to a vehicle in the 6100 block of Graystone Loop in east Springfield. The officers located 22-year-old Cayden Reed Torkelson, who had suffered a gunshot wound, according to a Wednesday news release from Springfield Lt. George Crolly. Torkelson was taken to the hospital but later died from his injuries.

In a phone interview, Crolly did not specify what the relationship was between the suspects, who are 17, 18 and 19, and Torkelson, but said it was not a random act of violence. This person was specifically chosen, Crolly said.

He declined to specify how the murder took place. Were reaching out to witnesses, making sure we get the most up-to-date information about who did what, Crolly said.

Springfield detectives found evidence the death was a homicide and identified three suspects, Crolly said.

The two 18 and 19-year-old men on Monday were approached by Denver Police and attempted to flee on foot, before being arrested a few blocks away, Crolly said. Springfield detectives traveled to Denver and continued the investigation, which is ongoing.

The two adults are charged with second-degree murder with a firearm and first-degree robbery with a firearm. The teenager, who was found in Corvallis on Oct. 5,is facing the same charges, Crolly said.

The adult suspects are awaiting extradition to Oregon. Their next court date has not been set.

Those with information about the case can contact Springfield Police at 541-726-3721.

Louis Krauss covers breaking news for The Register-Guard. Contact him at lkrauss@registerguard.com, and follow him on Twitter @LouisKraussNews

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Two Eugene men arrested in Denver following alleged Springfield murder
Two former Oramel fire officials were arrested Wednesday, charged with stealing more than $11,000 and emptying the coffers of the Allegany County volunteer fire department they helped to operate.

Ronda Kish, 54, a former Oramel Fire Department treasurer, was charged with third-degree grand larceny, third-degree corrupting the government and first-degree filing a false instrument.

Marion Brundage, Kishs former sister-in-law, was charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and third-degree corrupting the government. Brundage, 52, was previously the fire department secretary and first assistant chief.

Officials said the arrests were the result of a joint investigation by the New York state Comptroller's Office, the Allegany County District Attorneys Office and New York State Police.

From 2016 to 2020, according to investigators, Kish allegedly stole $8,675 from the fire department by making unauthorized cash withdrawals and writing checks to herself for supposed reimbursements that had no receipts or approval from the departments board.

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Officials said Kish used the money to pay personal expenses, including numerous credit card bills.

Kish abruptly quit as treasurer after the departments board began to ask questions about the money, officials said, and the fire department bank account was empty when she resigned.

Local officials brought their concerns to the Comptroller's Office and the Allegany County district attorney.

Officials said during the same period, Brundage allegedly stole $2,601 by writing checks to herself for supposed reimbursements.

These two officials allegedly used money meant for the protection of their community as their own personal bank account, Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said. My thanks to Allegany County District Attorney (Keith) Slep and the State Police for partnering with my office to make sure that those who engage in public corruption are found out and brought to justice.

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Caneadea Town Justice David Szucs arraigned Kish and Brundage. They are scheduled to be back in town court Nov. 9.

Oramel is a hamlet in the town of Caneadea. According to its Facebook page, the fire department provides service to Oramel, Caneadea and the town of Belfast.

Follow Neal Simon on Twitter @HornellTribNeal. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Former fire officials in Allegany County charged with grand larceny
By Camillus Eboh

ABUJA (Reuters) -Nigeria's Court of Appeal on Thursday dropped terrorism charges against separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu that had been brought by the government, in a unanimous decision by all three judges hearing the case.

The lead judge dismissed a seven count charge of terrorism against Kanu and discharged him, citing that a lower court had no jurisdiction to try the case and that Kanu was abducted and extraordinarily extradited to Nigeria.

The two other judges concurred with the ruling.

Kanu was not in the courtroom for the ruling.

"In view of the fact that the trial court lacks jurisdiction to hear this case because the process of extradition of the appellant from Kenya to Nigeria was unlawful since due process was not followed, this appeal succeeds," the lead judge, Justice Oludotun Adefope Okojie, said.

"Consequently, the appellant is therefore discharged," she said.

Nigeria's High Court had in April ruled that Kanu should stand trial.

Kanu leads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), which campaigns for the secession of a part of southeastern Nigeria where the majority belong to the Igbo ethnic group. Nigerian authorities have labeled IPOB a terrorist organisation.

A spokesman for Nigeria's attorney general said the government was considering its legal options following Thursday's ruling, but said the charges Kanu faced before he disappeared while on bail in April 2017 "remain valid issues for judicial determination."

Kanu had denied the charges of terrorism and knowingly broadcasting falsehoods, which are linked to social media posts he issued between 2018 and last year.

His lawyers argued that he could not receive a fair trial because he was forcefully extradited from Kenya to Nigeria. Kenya has declined to say if it played a role in Kanu's return.

(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Additional reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by James Macharia Chege and Grant McCool)
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -The U.N. Security Council is considering creating a sanctions regime to impose an asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo on anyone who threatens the peace, security or stability of Haiti, according to a draft resolution seen by Reuters on Thursday.

The first person to be sanctioned would be Jimmy Cherizier, who goes by the nickname "Barbecue" and is described in the U.S. and Mexico-drafted resolution as one of Haiti's most influential gang leaders.

"Cherizier and his G9 gang confederation are actively blocking the free movement of fuel from the Varreux fuel terminal," the text says. "His actions have directly contributed to the economic paralysis and humanitarian crisis in Haiti."

Gangs last month blocked the entrance to Varreux to protest a government announcement of a cut in fuel subsidies. Fuel supplies dried up and Haitians also face a shortage of drinking water amid a deadly outbreak of cholera.

"One of the challenges in effectively dealing with insecurity is the nexus between the gangs and some of the elites in Haiti and outside of Haiti who are supporting them and directing them for their own purposes," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Washington on Thursday.

"So we've been working together at the United Nations ... to impose sanctions on those who are actually taking actions that support violence and support gangs," he said at a joint news conference with visiting Mexican officials.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has proposed that one or several countries send "a rapid action force" to help Haiti's police remove a threat posed by armed gangs, according to a letter to the Security Council, seen by Reuters on Sunday.

In July the council threatened targeted sanctions against criminal gangs and human rights abusers in Haiti and called on countries to stop a flow of guns to the Caribbean country.

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The U.S. State Department this week announced visa sanctions against those who support Haitian gangs, responding to the humanitarian crisis created by the gang blockade.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Brian Nichols, who is leading a delegation of officials to the Caribbean nations, said in an interview with a local television station that Barbecue and the G9 gangs are directly contributing to the deaths of Haitians.

"Yesterday, the United States designated 11 individuals for visa sanctions," Nichols said, adding that he could not name the individuals per U.S. policy.

He said 1.2 million people in Haiti are at risk for cholera. Health experts say the gang blockade is making it more difficult to control the outbreak, which was announced this month.

The 15-member Security Council could vote as early as Monday on the draft sanctions resolution, diplomats said. To be adopted a resolution needs nine votes in favor and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, France or Britain.

China has been pushing for the Security Council to impose an arms embargo on criminal gangs in Haiti.

A U.N. mission in Haiti works with the government to strengthen political stability and good governance, rights protection and justice reform and to help with organizing free and fair elections.

U.N. peacekeepers were deployed to Haiti in 2004 after a rebellion led to the ouster and exile of then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Peacekeeping troops left in 2017 and were replaced by U.N. police, who left in 2019.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols at United NationsAdditional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington, Brian Ellsworth in Miami and Harold Isaac in Port-au-PrinceEditing by Grant McCool and Matthew Lewis)
By Philip Blenkinsop, Sabine Siebold and Phil Stewart

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -NATO will closely monitor Russia's upcoming nuclear exercise but not be cowed into dropping support for Ukraine by Moscow's veiled nuclear threats, the alliance's chief said on Thursday.

"We will not be intimidated," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters after a two-day meeting of the alliance's defence ministers. "Russia's nuclear rhetoric is dangerous, reckless, and they know that if they use (a) nuclear weapon against Ukraine, it will have severe consequences."

The meeting was the first large NATO gathering since Moscow announced it would annex several Ukrainian territories, began a partial mobilisation and issued veiled nuclear threats, moves NATO has classified as a clear escalation of the war that started when Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

Attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic Sea also heightened tensions as Europe is suffering from an energy crunch after Moscow largely cut off its gas supplies.

Russian military setbacks in Ukraine have raised concerns President Vladimir Putin might follow through on threats to use nuclear weapons.

Stoltenberg said NATO would monitor Russia's annual nuclear drills very closely, as it has done for decades, and remain vigilant "not least in light of the veiled nuclear threats and the dangerous rhetoric we have seen from the Russian side".

The NATO chief was apparently referring to Russia's annual Grom exercise that normally takes place in late October and in which Russia tests its nuclear-capable bombers, submarines and missiles.

NATO has vowed to go ahead next week with its own annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed "Steadfast Noon", in which NATO air forces practise how to use U.S. nuclear bombs based in Europe with training flights, without live weapons.

Cancelling the drills because of the war in Ukraine would have sent a "very wrong signal," Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

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On Wednesday, a senior NATO official said a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine would "almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself".

Stoltenberg warned Moscow of "severe consequences" should it use any kind of nuclear weapon against Ukraine but declined to give any details on NATO's potential response.

The NATO chief said a nuclear strike would fundamentally change the nature of the conflict and signify the crossing of a very important line.

"Even the use of a smaller nuclear weapon will be a very serious thing and fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine," he noted.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, speaking in Bruges, warned "any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian army will be annihilated, and Putin should not be bluffing."

Like Stoltenberg, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also declined to speculate how NATO might respond to a nuclear strike, calling Russia's threats "reckless" and "irresponsible."

"As I look at indications and warnings, I don't see any need to make any changes to what we're doing right now," he told a news conference.

He spoke after attending a closed-door meeting of NATO's nuclear planning group, which reviews and sets the alliance's nuclear policy.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said last month the United States has made clear to Moscow the "catastrophic consequences" it would face if it used a nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

Read more:

Russia begins evacuating civilians from Ukraine's Kherson

(Reporting by Phil Stewart, Sabine Siebold and Philip Blenkinsop; editing by John Stonestreet, Frank Jack Daniel and Lisa Shumaker)
Students at the University of Washington are sounding the alarm on the handful of registered sex offenders who live near the Seattle campus, which has recently been plagued by crime.

"I ordered two things of pepper spray, and my parents keep texting me asking about how my individual room locks, and if there is bars on my basement window," student Jacqueline Niles told Fox 13.

The University District of Seattle, which surrounds UWs campus, has seen repeated instances of crime in recent weeks, including a shooting that left four students injured outside a bar; a student who was assaulted and threatened at gunpoint in her own home; and the arrest of a man accused of murdering a woman near campus and sexually violating her remains.

"Its disheartening because we come to college like expecting to have safety living on campus. Thats kind of like the bare minimum of what I think we deserve," Niles added.

SEATTLE HOMICIDES ROSE PRECIPITOUSLY IN 2020 AS LIBERAL LEADERS DEMANDED POLICE BE DEFUNDED

Students at the University of Washington are on campus for the last day of in-person classes on March 6, 2020 in Seattle. The University will close starting Monday, March 9, as a precautionary reaction to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, outbreak for the remainder of the winter quarter.

Now, some students are looking into who exactly lives near them and the Seattle campus.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

"I did a national predator registry search to see how many registered sex offenders live in this area and there's like 25 within a mile of my house, which put me even more on edge," student Kevin Baker told King 5.

SEATTLE ROCKED BY DEADLIEST MONTH IN RECENT HISTORY IN WAKE OF DEFUND POLICE MOVEMENT

There are 10 registered sex offenders living on one off-campus street alone - a street that is also home to Greek life housing and other students, the outlet reported. The convictions for the sex offenders include rape and sexual battery, as well as child molestation and child pornography. Of those sex offenders, some have multiple convictions.

"Its not just one or two. Its like they all banded together to live in a house together," Niles told Fox 13.

Students at the University of Washington are on campus for the last day of in-person classes on March 6, 2020 in Seattle. The University will close starting Monday, March 9, as a precautionary reaction to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, outbreak for the remainder of the winter quarter. The student in the gas mask said he was wearing it because all the regular masks were sold out.

Another student, Maddy Jenson, said it has been "really scary" ever since she discovered that just a block from her home, a student was assaulted and threatened with a gun earlier this month.

Story continues

SEATTLE STRUGGLES WITH POLICE SHORTAGE AFTER 'DEFUND' MOVEMENT AS 100 OFFICERS LEAVE FORCE

"They can easily find a way in and just being so close to home it's like, do I even want to go out tonight? And you're looking over your shoulder going to class because you just never know," Jenson said.

Police have also added more patrols to the University District neighborhood between Wednesdays and Sundays, which has helped calm some fears in students, according to KING 5.

"It does make you feel better that if something does happen they are so close, and you can run to help because there's a lot of times you'll go out at night and there's no one out on the street and that's when it's really scary," Jenson said.

The school was among colleges across the nation that tried cutting ties with its police departments in 2020, only to reverse course and request more police presence as crime ticked up, KTTH radio show host Bryan Suits reported earlier this month.

SEATTLE BUSINESS OWNER CALLS FOR ACTION AGAINST CRIME CRISIS AFTER TWO BREAK-INS: YOUVE GOT TO HAVE POLICE'

A worker sweeps the sidewalk as Seattle Police inspect the exterior of the department's East Precinct after police cleared the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest and retook precinct in Seattle on July 1, 2020.

Department of Corrections officials told Fox 13 that most sex offenders can live where they want, unless they are on court ordered supervision.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

A University of Washington spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement that the school has no authority over how close a sex offender can live to campus.

"Under state law, sex offenders who are meeting the terms of their parole or release may reside where they choose, as long as they register. The University of Washington is aware that there are registered sex offenders living in the areas around the Seattle campus, and we understand this can cause concern in the community. The UW has no jurisdiction or ability to limit their proximity to campus. Anyone perceiving a threat or in an emergency should call 911 immediately," UW said in a statement
Matt Hancock hasnt always backed the right horse  but he has no regrets about his support for crypto in spite of the recent market downturn, the British lawmaker told CoinDesk.

Hancock  who served as health minister during the COVID-19 pandemic during the Boris Johnson administration until he was caught in a lockdown-busting embrace with a female aide  swiveled to crypto advocacy around the beginning of this year.

A backbench member of Parliament from the ruling Conservative Party, Hancock is now one of the most high-profile crypto lobbyists in British politics  with an insight into the governments thinking as it steers through crucial digital asset laws.

Hancock supported pro-crypto Finance Minister Rishi Sunak over eventual winner Liz Truss in the recent Conservative Party leadership contest. Hancock attempted to replace Theresa May as prime minister back in 2019, but pulled out of the contest that Johnson eventually won.

Despite 2022s hiccups in crypto markets, Hancock, still a lawmaker, is no less convinced by the power of digital assets to improve financial services.

There are endless killer applications that are coming into focus right now, he told CoinDesk in an online interview  though he concedes that digital asset markets are more mature than the wider Web3 ecosystem.

This is a massive revolution that's going to disrupt finance, in the same way that the digital revolution has disrupted music and retail and media  and nobody was explaining it, he said.

Turmoil this year, including a fall in the price of major assets including bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH), and the implosion of algorithmic stablecoin terraUSD, have only made crypto easier to lobby for, he said.

My takeout from the market noise of the last six months or so is that the fundamentals are strong, Hancock said. This isn't about bitcoin. This is about a disruption much deeper  giving people more control over how they manage their affairs.

Story continues

Read more: Johnson's Exit as British Prime Minister Leaves UK Crypto Ambitions on Hold

When the market is going up, heads are turned by the easy returns, he said. There's a much more substantial case to be made when the market is tricky  it isn't just a get-rich-quick scheme.

Kwarteng

Chief among people to influence is Kwasi Kwarteng, named finance minister by Truss on Sept. 6. Hancock admits Kwarteng has a lot on his plate; unfunded tax cuts the minister announced on Sept. 23 sent gilt and foreign exchange markets into a tailspin.

But with the new government focused on boosting growth, Hancock said he fully expects crypto to be the centerpiece of financial service reforms.

Kwarteng was very, very positive about crypto at a recent private meeting, Hancock said. He gets the point of the disruptive power of digital assets and, crucially, that the U.K. has to be a natural home  I couldn't have been more pleased with the direction of travel.

Competitive spirit adds fuel to the fire. The European Union, which the U.K. has left, is now finalizing its own crypto law known as MiCA; in Paris, President Emmanuel Macron is aggressively courting innovative firms such as Binance and crypto.com.

There's nothing like a bit of Anglo-French rivalry to get British politicians on side, Hancock said. What's the point in Brexit if we're not going to make ourselves a more attractive regime than our continental neighbors?

Its been a turbulent few months in British politics. Mass resignations from Boris Johnsons government in July were followed by a leadership contest to replace him, and then by the death of Queen Elizabeth  all leaving little time for policy tinkering. The industry is crying out for the government to act.

A lot of the stuff that is set in train does need to be finalized, said Andrew Whitworth, a policy director for crypto company Ripple whos based in London, during an online interview. We can't just trickle on, we do need this clarity.

Whitworth took comfort from pro-crypto remarks from financial minister Richard Fuller made after Truss took office, but is still hoping for higher profile support from the government in the coming months.

Read more: Crypto Remains a Priority for UK Under New Leader, Drawing Industry Excitement

Hancock himself certainly has a few ideas for what changes need to happen  and isnt satisfied with existing legislative plans initiated by Sunak back in April.

The Financial Services and Markets Bill that's in front of Parliament now is, in my view, essentially a placeholder, it shows intent, Hancock said  warning that he will get involved if the government itself doesnt intervene in the coming weeks to, as he puts it, get the details right.

Hancock wants to switch the burden of proof so that the regulator has to show that there's a problem, rather than the current situation where startups must seek permission from the Financial Conduct Authority before they can even get going.

I want people to be able to build, and only get involved with the regulator when [or] if there's a genuine problem, he said.

Alongside changing the FCAs demeanor, Hancock wants to see clarity on how existing rules apply to crypto, tax tweaks and a more favorable capital treatment for crypto to encourage traditional finance players in.

Turbulence

Achieving Hancocks goal, and Whitworths, would rely on a calming of recent political turbulence. Though in principle the next election wont be called before 2025, current polls seem to suggest a landslide for the opposition Labour Party  from which, Hancock says, there is less crypto enthusiasm.

I don't think it [crypto] is particularly party political, he said, But I do think there are more people who get this on our side of the fence  the center-right of politics looks more for freedom.

A spokesperson for the Labour Party did not respond to CoinDesks request for comment on Hancocks remarks  but the evidence does seem to be that, indeed, the center-left opposition grouping is more crypto-skeptic.

Many are rightly questioning whether crypto has a future at all, Labour Party Treasury spokesperson Abena Oppong-Asare said during a Sept. 7 parliamentary debate, adding that the country had become a center for illicit crypto activity and that Russian oligarchs had used crypto to avoid western sanctions.

A Labour government would be serious about attracting fintech companies to the U.K. and safely harnessing the progressive potential of blockchain technology, Oppong-Asare said. To do that properly, we need thorough and thoughtful regulation of the sector.

Theres an app for that

Crypto isnt Hancocks first foray into online innovation: As minister responsible for digital policy back in 2018, he released his own social media app, named after himself. Intended to prove online discourse can be civil, he still seems rather proud of it.

It became a really friendly, if slightly self-mocking, place... I'm fully aware of the many memes that it's sparked, he said. I post on it pretty regularly, about constituency stuff, generally.

You can still download Matt Hancock from the Appstore, and recent posts on local issues such as hospital expansions and canceled bus routes have attracted a couple of likes each. Will there be a Web3 version, CoinDesk asked?

No, he said. The technology's not mature enough yet.

UPDATE (Oct. 13, 2022, 10:16 UTC): Amends reference to leadership contest; extends quote regarding app.
The defenders of Ukraine were released on October 13

Yermak said those released included 14 army servicemen, four soldiers of the territorial defense, one member of the National Guard of Ukraine, and one serviceman from the Naval Forces.

He added some of them had been kept in the prison colony in Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast, as well as in the temporarily occupied territories of Kherson and Zaporizhzhya oblasts.

The guys are currently undergoing medical examinations, all are happy to be in their native land, the official said.

They were very much missed at home. There are wives, parents and children waiting for many of them.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said those released included soldiers and sergeants, and one officer, with the oldest one being 49 years old and the youngest one 19.

Ukraine won the release of 32 of its soldiers during a prisoner swap on Oct. 11. In addition, the body of Israeli fighter Dmitry Fialka, who was killed while fighting for Ukraine, was also returned as part of the exchange of prisoners.

Ukraine gained the release from Russian captivity of 215 people, including 108 defenders of the Azovstal Steelworks in Mariupol, on Sept. 21 as part of a large prisoner swap with Russia.

The 215 people released from Russian captivity included military personnel from the State Border Guard Service, the National Police, Ground and Naval Forces, National Guard of Ukraine, territorial defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, State Customs Service, and other services.

Read also: Ukraine returns bodies of another 62 of its fallen defenders, including soldiers who were killed in Olenivka

That earlier prisoner swap took place in Ukraines Chernihiv Oblast. At the same time, five Azov commanders were sent to Turkey under personal guarantees of protection provided by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to the agreements, all of them will stay in Turkey until the end of the war in Ukraine.

The list of those released from Russian captivity also included 10 foreigners, with some having been sentenced to death by a sham court in Russian-occupied Donbas. All of them were released in Saudi Arabia, which acted as a mediator.

Five commanders who were present at the Azovstal Steelworks in Mariupol were exchanged for 55 Russian prisoners of war. At the same time, Ukraine exchanged 200 of its citizens for Viktor Medvedchuk, the former leader of the Opposition Platform  For Life Party (banned in June 2022), who has been charged with treason.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
The war in Ukraine is a different kind of war. The size of the theater, number of troops and technologies used in the conflict are markedly different from conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Ukraine is a true dual-use technologies war; commercial products are widely used by both sides. Consumer drones are detecting and tracking unit movements, internet satellite maps are used for planning operational maneuvers and commercial satellites are providing internet/communication services.

The scale at which dual-use technologies is used should make us urgently rethink the way the Department of Defense does business. We need to speed up the acquisition process and allow for new technologies to be rapidly developed, deployed and scaled.

Problems with the defense-industrial base

Early in the war, it became obvious that consumption of ammunition, artillery, and missiles was exponentially higher than what Ukraine and the United States were prepared for.

A top Ukrainian military official was quoted as saying the country is firing between 5,000 to 6,000 shells per day; Russian expenditures are even higher.

Meanwhile, the annual U.S. production of 155mm artillery shells is approximately 80,000 shells, or enough for two weeks of fighting. The Wall Street Journal quoted a U.S. defense official as saying the U.S. inventory of artillery shells is uncomfortably low.

Artillery shells are not the only problem. Forbes noted there are reports Ukraine used 300 Javelins in the first week of the war; annual U.S. production is 2,100 missiles or enough for seven weeks of fighting.

In 2018, the Department of Defense hinted at such problems in a report on the state of the nations defense-industrial base.

The negative effects of sequestration and the budget caps shocked the market and accelerated the downward trend in vendor counts, resulting in an estimated 20% decline in the number of prime vendors, the report found. Upgrading the capacity of the industrial base would fix the problem in the short term, but in the long run the problem would remain. Once defense expenditures decline, manufacturing capacity will follow. It is not prudent to have an industrial base that is in a constant state of tension, either facing a rapid need to scale up or a rapid need to downsize.

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The long-term solution to the problem is to change the procurement process. Specifically, we need to speed up the process, encourage creative solutions and reward innovation.

Redesigning acquisition

Today, the DoDs acquisition process is driven by a checklist of detailed requirements.

Instead of checklists, the acquisition process should define: capability, key performance requirements, operators, and quantities required.

For example, a man-portable anti-tank system must penetrate a Russian T-90 tank, have a range of 5 km. It will be used by front line troops, and initially 2,000 units are needed.

Second, to encourage innovation, the Pentagon should approach every new product development as a blank slate. Third, the prototype demonstration should be scheduled 12 to 18 months from the project initiation date, and fourth, all submitted prototypes should be performance tested and evaluated on a cost-benefit basis.

Finally, the DoD should purchase the initial quantities from the winner. Perhaps counterintuitively, the Pentagon should avoid awarding research and development contracts or grants and only start sharing lessons learned once the product is in field trials.

Pentagon development grants would most likely end up going to companies that specialize in attracting them, meaning current suppliers would outmaneuver newcomers. We want companies to compete on their product development competencies and not on their ability to manage the procurement process.

This loosely defined and streamlined process will allow for the industry to develop creative dual-use solutions. For example, the next anti-tank weapon might not be a shoulder-launched missile, but might instead be a commercial drone or a directed-energy weapon. It is also highly likely that next system might be developed by a start-up or a non-defense company.

Compressed timelines should favor products and production processes that can scale quickly, resolving the long-term problem of having enough on-line capacity should a need arise. Guaranteed purchase orders should make DoD projects financially attractive to investors. Finally, having a blank slate would solve the better horse problem, where new products only offer incremental improvements.

Mislav Tolusic is managing partner at Marlinspike Partners, a venture capital firm investing in companies focused on U.S. national security and commercial work.
IRYNA BALACHUK  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 13:28

Serhii Naiev, the Commanding Officer of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said that Ukraine has been constantly monitoring what is happening in Belarus, and, as of now, it is ready for a possible new offensive from this territory.

Source: Naiev, on air during the national 24/7 joint newscast

Details: He explained that the level of military threats is measured by the corresponding number of troops, their composition and their combat potential. At the same time, some things are measured by numbers, and some by combat efficiency level.

Quote by Naiev: "The accumulation of relevant forces and resources of Russia, together with the armed forces of the Republic of Belarus will create a threat of a repeated attack in the northern operational zone  in particular, on the city of Kyiv.

But the level of these military threats is constantly measured by our partners,who provide us with specific information in a timely manner; and we, as professional soldiers, react to the increase in the level of this military threat the same way: we take steps to ensure that our troops are in the appropriate number with the necessary weapons, military equipment and, more necessarily, high combat potential.

We are currently ready for an attack from the Republic of Belarus."

Details: Naiev noted that the Ukrainian military understands that those troops that are accumulating on the territory of Belarus will increase their degree of readiness and aggressiveness towards Ukraine. The military command will also build up Ukrainian forces and resources accordingly.

He explained that at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Russian forces quickly advanced in Kyiv and Chernihiv Oblasts, because these areas were covered by the Armed Forces of Ukraine as if it was peacetime; this is why the Armed Forces of Ukraine fought against the overwhelming forces of the Russian army.

But after due mobilisation, the number of the Armed Forces allowed Ukraine to halt the offensive. And after that, the defenders expelled the occupiers from Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy Oblasts.

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He once again emphasised that as of 13 October, the situation in Ukraines north" is fully under control, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine are "fully ready" for a possible new offensive.

Background:

On 12 October, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine reported that in the event of an invasion from the north, the Russian army would be pushed back directly at the border.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
THE HAGUE (Reuters) -Ukraine's top prosecutor said on Thursday his office had opened criminal proceedings relating to Russian missile strikes that struck Kyiv and cities across Ukraine this week.

Speaking at a joint press conference with International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan in The Hague, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin described the strikes since Monday as "a classic act of terror" by Russia.

He said the more than 112 Russian missile strikes, Moscow's biggest aerial offensive since the start of its invasion on Feb. 24, had killed 17 people and injured 93.

"The goal of Russia's deliberate attacks is to cause civilian deaths and to destroy civilian infrastructure, (and) by shortage of electricity and heating, provoke a humanitarian catastrophe," Kostin said. "Coupled with the intimidation tactics against civilians, it's a classical act of terror prohibited under international law."

Every death and injury or damaged building will be documented and criminal proceedings opened, he said.

The Russian defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Russia has repeatedly denied deliberately attacking civilians in Ukraine. Moscow also denies violating international law and has dismissed allegations by Kyiv that Russian soldiers have carried out war crimes.

In the recently liberated Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine prosecutors have found at least 11 burial sites, including one mass grave near the town of Izium, and have exhumed 457 bodies across the sites, Kostin said.

An additional two mass graves were found in the Lyman region with some 154 people, Ukrainian soldiers and civilians, buried there, he added.

The prosecutor's office has 28 investigative teams on the ground in the recently liberated regions, where Kostin said retreating Russian troops had left evidence of illegal detention and torture of civilians and illegal deportations.

ICC prosecutor Khan praised his Ukrainian counterpart and his own ICC investigation team on the ground for continuing to do their jobs "as missiles rained down" this week.

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Khan, who opened an ICC investigation in March, would not be drawn when asked when his office expected to file its first case, saying he would only move forward "when the evidence is sufficient".

Khan and Kostin spoke after meeting the Eurojust European prosecutor's organisation, which set up a joint investigation into alleged war crimes in Ukraine with the participation of Ukraine, the ICC and six European Union countries.

(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg, Editing by William Maclean and Gareth Jones)
EUROPEAN PRAVDA  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 20:24

Dmytro Kuleba, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, has called on the international community not to allow Russia to disrupt the grain corridor across the Black Sea after signals from Moscow about its intentions to withdraw from the agreement.

Source: European Pravda, citing Kuleba

Quote by Kuleba: "Russia is doing exactly what we warned [everyone of]: renewing hunger games and threatening the Black Sea Grain Initiative. I want every African, Asian, Middle Eastern family to know: Ukraine puts forward no additional demands; we want the corridor to keep working. The time to protect the Black Sea grain corridor is now. I urge all states and organisations to make it clear to Moscow: blackmail must stop and Russia is not allowed to put millions of people at risk. My call especially concerns the states, which rely on Ukraines grain exports," Dmytro Kuleba stressed.

The time to protect the Black Sea grain corridor is now. I urge all states and organizations to make it clear to Moscow: blackmail must stop and Russia is not allowed to put millions of people at risk. My call is especially on states which rely on Ukraines grain exports 2/2  Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) October 13, 2022

According to a statement by the a Russian permanent representative to the UN in Geneva on 13 October, the Russian Federation sent the UN a list of demands; if these are not met, Russia threatened to withdraw from the agreement on grain exports from the Black Sea, which expires in November. The Russian diplomat did not specify what kind of demands Russia had made, refusing to provide a copy of a letter that he brought with him.

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Sergiy Kyslytsya, Ukraines Ambassador to the UN, scans the general assembly with binoculars prior to a vote on the resolution condemning Russias annexation of parts of Ukraine at the UN headquarters in New York on October 12, 2022. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Only four countries against condemning Russia's annexation of Ukrainian regions at the UN.

Ukraine's UN representative mocked Russia, sharing a photo of himself at the UN with binoculars.

Ukraine trolled Russia at the UN after just four nations voted not to condemn its annexation of Ukrainian regions.

Sergiy Kyslytsya, the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations, shared a picture of himself at the UN headquarters in New York, writing: "Oh God! Can't see it! How many you said voted for Russia? 4? Blimey! "

Reuters reported that the photo of Kyslytsya using the binoculars was taken in the room shortly before the vote on Wednesday.

143 countries voted in support of the resolution at the at the UN General Assembly to condemn Russia's annexation and demand that it return the territory to Ukraine.

Four countries joined Russia in opposing the resolution: North Korea, Belarus, Syria, and Nicaragua.

Some post-Soviet states that are typically seen as Russia's allies were among 35 nations to abstain from the vote, in a sign of how isolated Russia has become since it invaded Ukraine.

The General Assembly's votes are non-binding, and won't result in any specific action in Ukraine.

Kyslytsya told CBS News the vote was a "collective effort of an overwhelming majority, and the call of moral duty and reason."

"Who wants or can afford to be on the wrong side of the fence at this historic moment?"

Read the original article on Business Insider
Russian units attempting to reform new front line, but remain understrength

Read also: Ukraine liberates five settlements in Kherson Oblast

According to UK intelligence, after retreating around 20 kilometers in the north of the Kherson sector in early October, Russian forces are likely attempting to consolidate a new front line west of the village of Mylove.

Read also: Russians conduct air strike on convoy of civilian vehicles in Kherson Oblast, killing at least 5

The ministry noted that heavy fighting continues along this line, especially at the western end, where Ukrainian advances mean Russias flank is no longer protected by the Inhulets River.

Meanwhile, most of the Russia troops on this front line remain understrength VDV (airborne) units.

Read also: Military observer names Ukraines main targets in right bank Kherson Oblast

In recent days, the Russian occupation authorities have likely ordered preparation for the evacuation of some civilians from Kherson, the report says.

It is likely that they anticipate combat extending to the city of Kherson itself.

Read also: Ukrainian forces liberate 29 settlements in Kherson Oblast in October, says General Staff

The UK daily newspaper The Telegraph reported on Oct. 5 that Ukraine could retake Crimea if it continues to recapture territory from fleeing Russian forces at its current rate.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
UKRAINSKA PRAVDA  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 07:25

The Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed five Russian Ka-52 attack helicopters on 12 October, as well as 17 Shahed-136 drones and 2 Zala Lancet drones.

Source: Ukraines Air Force on Telegram

Details: Anti-aircraft missile units and fighter aircraft of Ukraines Air Force were responsible for the destruction of Russian aerial targets.

Four Russian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones were shot down over Odesa Oblast, and two more over Mykolaiv Oblast in the early hours of 13 October.

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The UN General Assembly condemned Russia's attempts to annex the territories of Ukraine

The resolution was supported by 143 countries, five opposed, and 35 abstained. Another 10 countries, including Iran, which supplies weapons to Russia, did not vote.

Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua, Russia and Syria voted against supporting Ukraines territorial integrity.

Immediately after the vote, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took to Twitter to thank all of the countries that supported the resolution.

Read also: Russia requests UN vote on condemning annexation of occupied Ukrainian territories be secret

The resolution on defending the principles of the UN Charter, notes that the oblasts of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhya are temporarily occupied by Russia as a result of aggression, violating Ukraines territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence.

Using sham referendums in these regions, Russia has attempted to alter the borders of Ukraine, the General Assembly noted.

The UN also affirmed its commitment to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders, condemned Russia's organization of sham referendums, and announced that Moscow's illegal actions in these four Ukrainian regions have no legal standing and do not change their status.

Read also: UN reflects unvarnished picture of our world  interview with Ukraines UN envoy

The debate began with a procedural vote on a measure proposed by Russia  that the Ukrainian draft resolution being debated be voted on by secret ballot, not through an open recorded vote. Moscow hoped that this would encourage countries to vote against the resolution.

The General Assembly also called on all countries, organizations and UN agencies not to recognize the four regions of Ukraine which Russia has claimed, demanding that Moscow reverse course on its attempted illegal annexation, which violates the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, as well as to completely withdraw Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine.

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The resolution welcomes and expresses its strong support for the continued efforts by the Secretary General and Member States, to de-escalate the current situation in search of peace through dialogue, negotiation and mediation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine noted that the document mentions another resolution of the General Assembly of March 28, 2014. It was emphasized that the organization confirmed that Russia's aggression against Ukraine began in 2014, and that Crimea and Sevastopol are an integral part of Ukraine's sovereign territory.

The Russian occupiers announced the results of the sham referendums on Sept. 27, which it claimed garnered from 87% to 99% support from the populations of the occupied regions.



However, there were widespread reports of voting irregularities, including people being forced to vote at gunpoint.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on Sept. 30 signed agreements with the leaders of puppet administrations in the Russian-occupied parts of Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, and with collaborators in Kherson and Zaporizhzhya oblasts on the annexation of these occupied territories of Ukraine.

Read also: Russia guilty of war crimes in Ukraine, UN report says

President Zelenskyy on Oct. 4 put into effect a National Security and Defense Council decision on the impossibility of negotiations with Putin, as well as imposing sanctions against Russia. He also declared Putin's so-called decrees on the annexation of Ukrainian territories null and void.

Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Director Jeff Barnaby at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2013. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images)

Writer-director Jeff Barnaby, who established himself as one of the leading lights of modern Indigenous cinema with the films Rhymes for Young Ghouls and Blood Quantum, has died at age 46.

Barnaby died Thursday in Montreal after a yearlong battle with cancer, according to his publicist.

Born and raised on a Migmaq reservation in Quebec, Canada, Barnaby drew on his roots for his work, as well as his love of horror luminaries like Stephen King, Clive Barker and David Cronenberg, injecting Indigenous-centered narratives with elements of body horror, science fiction and magical realism. Though he made only two feature films, Barnaby earned considerable acclaim for redefining expectations of what an Indigenous film could be and expanding opportunities for Indigenous actors.

Jeff Barnabys films changed Canada, and played an outsize role in advancing the cultural and political imperative to reconcile with Indigenous peoples, Barnabys friend and producer John Christou, with whom he worked on several films, wrote in a statement. His mastery of the craft, his storytelling, his uncompromising vision, and his humanity, shine through his work. My greatest hope is that the next generation of Indigenous filmmakers will pick up the torch and honour his legacy by being equally uncompromising in the realization of their vision.

After earning attention with a string of shorts, the Montreal-based Barnaby made his feature debut with the 2013 drama Rhymes for Young Ghouls.

Set in 1976 against the backdrop of Canadas abusive residential schools, institutions of assimilation for which the government has since apologized, the film starred Devery Jacobs, who went on to break out with roles in the Starz series American Gods and FXs dramedy hit Reservation Dogs.

I wouldnt have a career today if it wasnt for Jeff and for that project, Jacobs told The Times in 2020. 'Rhymes was my first leading role and also the first role I could really sink my teeth into, and the first project that really reflected my experience and that of my family.

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In 2020, working with his biggest budget yet, Barnaby made a splash with the zombie horror movie Blood Quantum, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was released via streaming on Shudder.

Shot in Canada on Mohawk and Migmaq land, the film chronicles a zombie outbreak on a First Nations reservation. Though the residents of the fictional Red Crow Reserve are immune to the zombie virus due to their heritage, they must still grapple with its impact on the world around them, as outsiders seek refuge from the rising undead plague.

Earlier this year, Barnaby nodded to the influence of Kings horror novel The Stand on the film. The Stand helped me survive my adolescence, Barnaby wrote on Twitter, where he was outspoken in his support of Indigenous representation. Years later, while writing my short story, I used The Stand as an inspiration for an immunity in the apocalypse narrative Blood Quantum. King also gave us the first Mi'gmaq burial ground zombie in Pet Sematary. 

Director Jeff Barnaby, left, and actor Glen Gould of "Rhymes For Young Ghouls" speak onstage at the 'First Peoples Cinema' press conference at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. (George Pimentel / WireImage)

Drawing its title from blood quantum laws used in the U.S. and Canada to determine Indigenous ancestry, the film combined familiar tropes of horror  ravenous flesh-eaters, buzzing chainsaws  with sharp sociopolitical commentary on the history of colonialism.

The weird thing about being Native and making a comment on viruses in particular is the history of the pandemics and the colonization of America, Barnaby told The Times in 2020.

Once you put a Native person in a zombie film, you immediately start thinking that its a virus. Its one of the benefits of being a Native film director: You have so much history to riff on. It exists in history and in our society and in the history of our cinema and literature. Its so much to unpack. Its a lot to take on, being a native filmmaker, man.

On Thursday, as news of Barnabys death spread on social media, Toronto International Film Festival co-director Cameron Bailey wrote on Twitter, We should have had so many more films from Jeff Barnaby. Rhymes for Young Ghouls, Blood Quantum and his short films showed an artist powered by a blazing fire. He understood horror on its deepest levels. Such a shock.

Barnaby is survived by his wife Sarah and his son Miles.

Staff writer Jen Yamato contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
WASHINGTON  The Army is just weeks from revealing its choice for a future long-range assault aircraft, according to the services acquisition chief.

The service aims to go public with the winner of the FLRAA competition in October or November, Doug Bush told Defense News in an interview ahead of the Association of the U.S. Armys annual conference.

But, he noted, the announcement is conditions-based. Theres a process that the source selection board goes through to not just make the source selection but then, importantly, to kind of audit themselves and have others audit them to make sure it was done the right way before we announce it.

It does take a while, he added, but we want to make absolutely sure that we do this the right way and that we got whats best for the Army.

Bell and a Sikorsky-Boeing team are competing for the Armys FLRAA program. The two aircraft in the mix differ greatly; Bells V280 Valor is a tiltrotor aircraft, and Sikorsky and Boeings Defiant X features coaxial rotor blades.

This is our largest and most complex competitive procurement we have executed in the Army in the ... history of Army aviation, Maj. Gen. Robert Barrie, Army aviation program executive officer, told Defense News. That system is going to be with us a long time; it goes without saying that we want to make sure everything is done correctly and in a disciplined manner.

The Army was initially expected to make a decision around June, but that slipped to September. The award was then again delayed.

Source selection boards are event-driven activities, Barrie said. We try and put estimated times when theyre going to complete, but the reality is theyre complete when the various sub-portions of the schedule are completed, and were working through it in a very deliberate but also prudent speed.

The award will be one of the Armys largest helicopter procurement decisions since the 1980s.

Both FLRAA demonstrator aircraft spent several years logging test flights. They first flew in a joint multirole technology demonstration followed by two phases of a competitive development and risk-reduction effort.

FLRAA prototypes from the competition winner are due to the service by 2025. FLRAA is expected to enter the fleet in 2030, around the same time as the Armys future attack reconnaissance aircraft is planned for fielding.
WASHINGTON  For the first time in decades, the Army is pursuing a new watercraft effort in a bid to prepare for operations in the Indo-Pacific theater.

With renewed focus on the Indo-[Pacific Command Area of Operations] and the Armys responsibilities in terms of logistics resupply, it has led to a renewed emphasis on the Army watercraft fleet, Brig. Gen. Luke Peterson, program executive officer for combat support and combat service support, told Defense News in an interview just ahead of the Association of the U.S. Armys annual conference.

The Army has not embarked on a new watercraft program since the mid-1990s, Peterson said, so it is a pivotal time for Army watercraft.

The service hit an important milestone on Oct. 10, when the service put its first new prototype of the Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) into the water in Portland, Oregon.

The service and manufacturer Vigor slowly walked the vessel from the manufacturing facility on dollies and worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to raise the water level so the vessel could go into an inlet to access the Columbia River.

The Army will begin testing the capability once it takes formal delivery of the vessel in February.

In 2017, the service awarded a $980 million contract to Vigor to build the new Army landing craft.

The plan is to ultimately procure 13 of the MSV(L)s, but the Army is reevaluating its delivery schedule due to supply chain challenges Vigor encountered when a vendor went into bankruptcy. Following court proceedings, the company was able to bring in a new vendor to finish up the work.

Were getting the program back on track, while at the same time we are evaluating the path forward, Peterson said.

Meanwhile the Army is continuing to perform a service life extension program on its Landing Craft Utility vessels, or LCUs, used to transport equipment and troops to shore.

The service is also performing a SLEP on its Modular Causeway Systems, a bridging capability connecting a ship and a dock, and has modernized an integrated bridge system, which is now undergoing tests.

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The Army is also partnered with Combined Arms Support Command and the chief of transportation on the Maneuver Support Vessel (Heavy) requirement, which is currently in requirements and framing analysis, Peterson said. They are assessing what kind of capabilities a larger class vessel over the Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) may require.

The Army is nearing completion of the draft abbreviated capabilities development, he added.

Watercraft has been integral for the service in the Pacific, Gen. Charles Flynn, U.S. Army Pacific Command commander, told Defense News in an interview at AUSA, and the new watercraft will provide greater capability.

The Army, a number of years ago, rightfully made an important decision to reposition watercraft out of the Middle East and into the Pacific, so that has given us a little more capacity in the region to do it.

Flynn said the Army has used watercraft in recent exercises like Operation Pathways to move equipment and has even delivered Patriot air and missile defense systems and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems to ranges with it.
U.S. citizen Siamak Namazi is back in an Iranian prison today after being temporarily released by authorities in Tehran earlier this month.

"His furlough, which started on October 1, was renewable and had already been renewed once on October 8," a statement released by Namazi's pro bono counsel Jared Genser explained. "Late this morning (Tehran time), Siamak was taken back into custody by the IRGC and forced to return to Evin Prison."

FOOTAGE SHOWS IRANIAN TEEN NIKA SHIKARAMI SINGING, DANCING BEFORE ALLEGED KILLING BY POLICE

At the time of his release early this month, Iran claimed through state-run media that it was proof of the regime's "good faith."

Namazi, now 50, was convicted in Iran on spying charges and has been detained since 2015. The State Department calls the charges baseless.

ILHAN OMAR EQUATES WOMEN PROTESTING ISLAMIC LAW IN IRAN WITH ABORTION FIGHT IN US

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

Namazi's 85-year-old father Baquer had also been detained in Iran but was just granted permission to leave the country last week so that he could seek medical treatment.

In a statement today, Siamak's brother Babak Namazi said, "I was genuinely hopeful for the first time that my fathers departure was the beginning of a new, less painful chapter in the struggle to make our family whole again. But Siamaks return to Evin has shattered that hope." He added, "there is absolutely no reason he needs to be in prison  there never has been."



IRANIAN ENFORCES OPEN FIRE ON 'SCHOOLGIRLS' AS REGIME PREPARES FOR CRACKDOWN ON KURDISH PROTESTERS: REPORT

While talks have stalled, the Biden Administration is still seeking to revive the Iran nuclear deal but has consistently said the issue of wrongfully detained Americans is a separate negotiation.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price speaks during a news conference at the State Department, March 10, 2022, in Washington, DC.

Asked today about Namzi being sent back to prison, State Department Spokesman Ned Price said it's a "tremendous setback," adding, "Siamak Namazi and the other Americans who are unjustly detained in Iran, they are detained on a wrongful basis. They should be released. We are working to do everything we can to advance the prospects for their release and for their safe return to their families just as soon as we can."

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CAPAS, Philippines (AP)  Truck-mounted launchers blasted off rockets and U.S. stealth fighter jets streaked across the northern Philippine sky on Thursday in a combat drill that marked the latest display of American firepower in a region where Washington has tried to deter what it warns as Chinas growing aggression.

The live-fire exercises at a gunnery and bombing range in a desolate valley in Capas town north of Manila were the highlight of two weeks of combat readiness maneuvers, which included mock amphibious assaults and joint coastal defense tactics involving more than 2,500 American and Philippine marines.

Howitzer artillery shots boomed across the dusty valley hemmed in by a mountain range and hills from U.S. and Philippine marine fire positions, some concealed by camouflage tents.

Called Kamandag  a Tagalog acronym for Cooperation of the Warriors of the Sea  the military maneuvers ending on Friday were being held simultaneously with combat drills between U.S. Marines and Japanese army forces on Japans northern island of Hokkaido that involve about 3,000 military personnel from the two sides, U.S. military officials said.

U.S. Maj. Gen. Jay Bargeron of the Japan-based 3rd Marine Division has said the exercises were aimed at bolstering the defensive capabilities of the U.S. alliance with the Philippines and Japan, and ensuring that we are prepared to rapidly respond to crisis throughout the Indo-Pacific.

This exercise is an important opportunity to bring together U.S. and Philippine capabilities and personnel to strengthen our combined readiness, proficiency and trust, U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Kurt Stahl told The Associated Press.

Americas High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System or HIMARS rocket launchers, which have recently helped Ukraine gain momentum in its war with Russia, and F-35B supersonic fighter jets were showcased in the military exercises on Wednesday and Thursday.

The HIMARS launchers fire GPS-guided missiles. Depending on the munitions and system configuration, HIMARS are capable of hitting targets up to 300 kilometers (186 miles) away, Stahl said. The highly mobile launchers are hard for the enemy to spot and can quickly change position after firing to escape retaliatory airstrikes.

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While it could deliver a precision strike against critical targets like a communications system or radar, HIMARS could also be used to stop an enemy force from gaining on a contested piece of coastal terrain, Stahl said.

F-35B jets also can play a significant role in increasing battlefield awareness between allied forces on the ground and in the air through a communication link, and providing details on positions of adversarial forces, he said.

Stahl echoed remarks by Philippine military officials that the regularly scheduled annual exercises were not directed against any country.

The combat maneuvers, however, were being held at a time when Washington has more sternly warned Beijing over its increasingly assertive actions against Taiwan and rival claimant states in the South China Sea.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said American forces would defend Taiwan if Beijing tries to invade the self-ruled island, sparking angry protests from China.

Separately in July, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on China to comply with a 2016 arbitration ruling that invalidated Beijings vast territorial claims in the South China Sea. He warned that Washington is obligated to defend the Philippines under a 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty if Filipino forces, vessels or aircraft come under attack in the disputed waters.

The ruling was issued by a tribunal set up in The Hague under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea after the Philippine government brought China to arbitration in 2013 over Beijings seizure of a shoal off the northwestern Philippines. China did not participate, called the arbitration decision a sham and continues to defy it.

Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also have overlapping claims in the busy waterway, where an estimated $5 trillion in goods passes each year and which is believed to be rich in undersea gas and oil deposits.

The military drills were the first large-scale exercise between the treaty allies under newly elected Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office in June after a landslide election victory.

His predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, was an outspoken critic of U.S. security policies and nurtured closer ties with China and Russia.

Early in his presidency, Duterte threatened to sever ties with Washington and frowned on military exercises with American forces that he said could offend Beijing.

Duterte later attempted to end a key defense pact that allowed large number of American forces to visit the Philippines for combat exercises but walked back his threat.

___

Associated Press journalist Joeal Calupitan contributed to this report.
Migrants, mostly from Venezuela, walk after being detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents after crossing into the United States from Mexico to turn themselves in to request for asylum, in El Paso, Texas, U.S., September 14, 2022

The US and Mexico have agreed to a plan that allows some Venezuelan migrants to enter the US - but those who arrive illegally will be sent back to Mexico.

It is hoped the deal will ease pressure at the US-Mexico border, where a steady flow of Venezuelans continues to arrive as they flee the crisis-hit nation.

Starting immediately, flights will be arranged for 24,000 migrants to arrive in the United States.

More than six million people have left Venezuela in the past five years.

The exodus is one of the largest migrations in the world, fuelled by violence, food, fuel and medicine shortages, and repression by the government of President Nicolas Maduro.

It has seen people desperate to improve their lives walking thousands of miles along dangerous routes to try to reach the US-Mexico border, where they then try to enter illegally or claim asylum.

Under the new deal, which is effective immediately, the 24,000 eligible Venezuelan migrants - a tiny fraction of those who have fled - will be allowed to access the US by air, and stay for up to two years.

They must still be in Venezuela, and not have made the trek to the US-Mexico border, the US Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

They will also need to have a person or organisation based in the US to provide financial support and back up their claim to be part of the programme.

It will come as a huge relief to those who are set to benefit from it. In theory, they will be spared the exhausting and dangerous journey to the US border and instead will be able to fly into the country, where support measures are in place.

However, one major policy shift is that any undocumented Venezuelans who cross the southern border now face expulsion to Mexico - where previously, authorities usually did not accept expulsions of Venezuelans.

This is a part of a controversial Trump-era policy called Title 42, that allows the US to swiftly expel undocumented migrants, thus taking away their chance to claim asylum. It was brought in during the pandemic to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 in holding facilities, officials said.

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Until now most Venezuelans who crossed into the US were not turned back - instead they were temporarily allowed in and had the chance to apply for asylum.

Now, Venezuelans found to have entered the US illegally - of which there are many thousands - could be sent to Mexico.

The US and Mexican governments have said the policy is designed to discourage people from making the perilous trek across South America and Mexico - which they have been doing in record numbers over the past year as Venezuela's economic and political situation worsens.

The programme is based on a similar US model called Uniting for Ukraine, which offered safe haven to more than 100,000 Ukrainians who fled their country after Russia invaded earlier this year.

The so-called "humanitarian parole programme" has been launched with the US midterm elections looming in November.

The Biden administration is undoubtedly hoping the idea of helping Venezuelans who are fleeing poverty, political turmoil and violence will play well politically, especially if it is combined with also expelling thousands who crossed the southern border illegally.

However, with the vote so close, it may have a limited impact, and in the meantime, many thousands of desperate and tired Venezuelan migrants are caught in the middle.

Map showing emigration routes

The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.
Family and friends of undocumented workers arrested in last month's ICE raid at the Southeastern Provision meat-packing plant in Bean Station, Tenn., demonstrate against immigration crackdowns and the Tennessee Legislature's passage of HB2315 at Carson-Newman University in Jefferson City on Friday, May 4, 2018.

Four years after federal agents swarmed a Bean Station slaughterhouse and detained all its Hispanic employees, a milestone settlement of more than $1 million has been reached in a federal case alleging multiple civil rights violations.

In the proposed settlement agreement filed late Wednesday, the U.S. government will pay $475,000 to be split between six individual plaintiffs. An additional $550,000 will be paid into a class settlement fund for approximately 100 Hispanic workers also detained that day. The attorneys for the plaintiffs will be paid $150,000.

The April 2018 raid by the IRS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the Southeastern Provision slaughterhouse in Bean Station upended the lives of nearly 100 workers and drew national attention to East Tennessee's immigrant community. The roundup marked the nation's largest workplace raid in a decade at the time.

A family attends a prayer vigil hosted by Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and the Highlander Center on Monday, April 9, 2018 at Hillcrest Elementary School in Morristown, TN in response the detainment of immigrant workers after ICE raided Southeastern Provisions, a cattle slaughterhouse in Grainger County.

A year after the raid, 73 men and women still were waiting to learn whether they face deportation as undocumented immigrants. Most came to the U.S. from Mexico or Guatemala and had lived here at least a decade.

Thirteen former workers gave up the fight and agreed to be removed; others were ordered deported by a judge.

But six of the former workers  including one who was in the U.S. legally  sued the ICE agents who conducted the raid, claiming agents cursed, shoved and punched them during the raid.

"When a raid of this scale happens in a community, it's like a bomb goes off," Stephanie Teatro, executive co-director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, said at the time. "These people showed up for work as they did every day, and ICE agents came and ripped them from their families and their community."

What happened that day?

Agents of ICE and the IRS raided the Southeastern Provision meatpacking plant on Helton Road in Bean Station in April 2018 and rounded up 97 undocumented immigrants. At least one worker had legal immigration status but was handcuffed and held against his will for more than two hours, even after he produced his papers, according to the lawsuit.

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No agent asked anyone about their immigration status until after handcuffing them, loading them into a van and hauling them to the National Guard armory in nearby Russellville, while families waited for word of their loved ones, according to the lawsuit.

The raid set off a wave of protests statewide and led to failed attempts by state legislators to stiffen penalties for employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers. Most of the workers had been toiling in dirty, dangerous conditions for wages as low as $6 per hour with no overtime pay, a Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration probe found.

Agents did not have warrants for the arrest of any of the workers  only to search the business for tax violations, according to the lawsuit.

"What happened ... was illegal," said Meredith Stewart, a senior attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil-rights advocacy group. "These ICE agents engaged in racial profiling and illegal search and seizure in violation of the Fourth and Fifth amendments. This was law enforcement overreach, pure and simple."

Workers arrested in the raid have complained of being manhandled and threatened at gunpoint while white workers were allowed to go free. One agent even posed for mocking selfies with those arrested while another told them they were "going back to your (expletive) country," according to the lawsuit.

What happened to the slaughterhouse owner?

The slaughterhouse owner, James Brantley, pleaded guilty in July 2019 to federal charges of tax evasion, wire fraud and employing unauthorized immigrants. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Brantley admitted he'd been hiring undocumented workers for 20 years, paying them in cash and encouraging applicants to turn in fake Social Security numbers. At least 10 of the workers rounded up in the April 2018 raid had been deported before.

Brantley's business strategy allowed him to dodge nearly $1.3 million in payroll taxes, according to court records, while paying wages of $6 to $10 per hour. State inspectors fined Brantley more than $41,000 after the raid for forcing workers to toil in dirty, dangerous conditions.

Brantley eventually agreed to shell out $610,000 to his employees for back pay and damages in 2020. He signed a consent order to bring the Labor Department case to an end. It required Southeastern Provision to pay about 150 current and former employees a total of $610,000 over three years.

What are the details of the proposed settlement?

Of the original seven named plaintiffs in the suit, one was dismissed from the case. The proposed settlement calls for $475,000 to be paid to the remaining six plaintiffs; of those, two are named as class representatives and will receive nearly $37,000 each.

The settlement still will need to go before a federal judge for a final approval hearing at least four months out. That hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Those six plaintiffs also will receive some improvement in their immigration status, with their removal proceedings being dismissed or being deferred in some cases.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and the National Immigration Law Center will split the $150,000 in counsel fees. The settlement notes that is a minute portion of the estimated $375,000 in expenses and more than $2 million in hours that could have been billed.

The $550,000 that will go to the class settlement will be distributed to the nearly 100 workers in the class action. Each class member will receive an estimated $5,000 to $6,000, the settlement stated. If there are unclaimed funds in an amount less than $40,000, that money will be awarded to the McNabb Center.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Bean Station workers win suit after Grainger County ICE raid in 2018
(Bloomberg) -- The White House accused Saudi Arabia of coercing other OPEC+ countries into agreeing to a huge cut in oil production last week, escalating a dispute with Riyadh over the move.

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The US administration had asked the kingdom for a pause that would have effectively delayed expected price increases until after Novembers congressional elections.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a statement Thursday that the administration had provided the Saudis with analysis showing no market basis for a production cut.

Other OPEC nations communicated to us privately that they also disagreed with the Saudi decision, but felt coerced to support Saudis direction, Kirby said.

The Saudi government suggested Wednesday that the US had sought a one-month delay of the decision, which would mean no production cut until after US midterm elections in November that will decide control of the House and Senate. Kirby confirmed the US had sought a delay.

We presented Saudi Arabia with analysis to show that there was no market basis to cut production targets, and that they could easily wait for the next OPEC meeting to see how things developed, he said. The oil producers are expected to next meet in December.

President Joe Biden and top US officials have expressed outrage at the OPEC+ alliances decision to cut oil production by 2 million barrels a day, saying it will help keep revenue flowing to Russia to support its invasion of Ukraine. Some Democrats have also questioned the timing, suggesting that Saudi Arabia seeks to raise US gasoline prices before the midterms to damage their partys prospects.

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Read more: Biden Says New Action on US Gasoline Prices Coming Next Week

Asked Thursday about his message to the Saudis, Biden told reporters traveling with him in California,Were about to talk to them, adding Stay tuned.

Top Biden economic adviser Brian Deese denied that US efforts to sway the Saudis to hold off on production cuts were guided by political considerations.

What Im saying to you is that our strategy has always been grounded in an assessment of the economics of the situation and what is prudent for the global economy, for the US economy and US families, Deese said Thursday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

Kirbys statement followed a Saudi government statement Wednesday that rejected US criticism and said the production cut was based only on the kingdoms noble objectives to avoid oil market volatility.

Earlier: Saudi Arabia Rejects US Criticism of OPEC+ Quota Cut Decision

Biden said this week his administration would undertake a comprehensive review of its relationship with Saudi Arabia. There is no timetable to complete the review, and lawmakers, administration officials and national security experts are split over how to impose consequences on the kingdom.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry can try to spin or deflect, but the facts are simple, Kirby said. In recent weeks, the Saudis conveyed to us -- privately and publicly -- their intention to reduce oil production, which they knew would increase Russian revenues and blunt the effectiveness of sanctions.

The exchange of statements is a stark display of the animus thats developed between the US and Saudi governments just three months after Biden traveled to the kingdom in an effort to thaw ties with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose country he once vowed to make a pariah over its human rights abuses.

The spat may influence an expected debate in Congress following the November elections over whether to strip OPEC+ nations of immunity from antitrust suits or cut weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, a long-time US defense partner.

Democratic Representative Tom Malinowski of New Jersey said he and other supporters of legislation that would remove US troops and missile defense systems from Saudi Arabia would try to attach it to an annual, must-pass defense policy bill.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE would be wise to address our concerns before the defense bill comes to the floor, Malinowski said in an interview.

The statement from the Saudi Foreign Ministry, the governments first formal response to US outrage over the Oct. 5 OPEC+ decision, denied its intent was to help Russia. It cited its vote for United Nations resolutions condemning the invasion. That includes a surprise yes vote on Wednesday in favor of a General Assembly resolution opposing Russias annexation of four regions in eastern Ukraine.

Certainly thats a welcome vote, Kirby told reporters later Thursday. Regardless of the vote yesterday, the country that benefits the most from this 2 million barrel cut is Russia.

The Saudi statement also downplayed the kingdoms central role in the cut and portrayed the move as unanimous among cartel nations. It implied, but did not state outright, that the US had asked for a one-month delay before any production cut.

The Government of the Kingdom clarified through its continuous consultation with the US Administration that all economic analyses indicate that postponing the OPEC+ decision for a month, according to what has been suggested, would have had negative economic consequences, the foreign ministry statement said.

Kirby declined to identify which OPEC countries allegedly felt coerced, but said it was more than one member. He put the production-cut decision squarely on the Saudis.

It wouldnt be responsible for us if we didnt think about their leadership of OPEC+, theyre the chair, he told reporters. It was in that capacity as chair, leading this decision and twisting arms to get the decision that they wanted.

(Adds Biden comment in paragraph 8)

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Librarians and employees of the University of Washington Libraries and Press held a one-day strike on Thursday, demanding higher wages and better working conditions as union contract negotiations with university administration continue.

More than 100 picketers rallied outside the steps of Suzzallo Library, handing out flyers and marching around the main campus throughout the morning and afternoon.

Were woefully underpaid. Were woefully underprotected in hazard situations in light of COVID. Were also not respected, Anne Pepitone, the head of the UWs Integrated Library Systems, said on Thursday. Weve dealt with bullying and intimidation for years that hasnt been addressed, and (we are) asking for better protections for that.

Last year, about 125 librarians and employees joined Service Employees International Union Local 925. Since then, contract negotiations have been ongoing. Union members claim they havent gone far.

Librarians and staff members on the picket lines said Thursdays strike was a breaking point.

Were just doing one day (of striking) because were still in bargaining with the UW, Danielle Rowland, a librarian at UW Bothell, said. I personally have had several colleagues leave the UW to go work for community and technical colleges because they make $20,000 a year more as soon as they transfer. And thats for a nine-month contract. Were on 12-month contracts. We are some of the lowest-paid academic librarians in the state, and we cant keep people. We especially cant keep BIPOC (librarians), and that is the kind of staff that wed really like to recruit. If we could pay better, more people would come and more people would stay.

In response to the strike and union demands, Victor Balta, the UWs senior director of media relations, sent KIRO 7 the following statement:

The University of Washington values and respects our library personnel and we are surprised by the decision to strike for one day while we are in the midst of good-faith negotiations. There have been 26 negotiation sessions, with the next scheduled for Oct. 20. There is considerable distance between the UW and some of the unions proposals  including a 16.5% total salary increase and changing the definition of a full-time work week to 30 hours. The UW will continue to negotiate in good faith to reach a fair agreement.

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Balta also stated the university has requested formal mediation.

Multiple librarians on the unions bargaining team claim they never knew formal mediation was requested by the university until they were told by KIRO 7.

In response to the statement by the UW stating librarians are pushing for a 30-hour workweek, Rowland claims that isnt entirely true.

Were asking for a 30-hour workweek as backup, basically, because we dont think that they are going to give us the raises that we need, she said.

We have not heard back at the bargaining table, Jason Sokoloff, head of the UWs Foster Business Library, said on Thursday.

Sokoloff, who is on the bargaining team, claims his team hasnt received a response regarding its initial salary proposal. That proposal was shared two months ago, according to Sokoloff.

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They can say that theyre willing to negotiate. They have not shown evidence of negotiating at the bargaining table, where thats the only place it really matters. It doesnt matter what they tell the media, Sokoloff said. On the issue of compensation, they have not negotiated anything. We have been actively engaged in negotiating parts of our contract. I wont say that they havent been completely inactive on all issues, but on the issues that are most important to us. Were reaching a point where unless we know where they stand on those big issues of compensation, promotion and equity, its hard to continue.

When asked about the demands of a 16.5% salary increase, Sokoloff called it an overstatement, a generalization.

We are not looking for everyone in our department to have a 16% raise. We are looking for fair and equitable pay structures, Sokoloff said. I dont think Im getting 16% cause Im already at a higher level.

One of my coworkers makes $60,000 a year after working 14 years at UW. Thats $10,000 less than me, just because Im a librarian and shes professional staff, Rowland said. I want her to make more money. I want all of us to make more money. We need to have more sustainable income.

In terms of operations at university libraries, Balta said services were expected to continue without much interruption on Thursday.

It is possible that some librarians will not be available on-site for consultations, and other services, but those with planned appointments would communicate any change of plan to users individually. We will assess throughout the day, but we expect to be able to sustain operations at a basic level, Balta wrote.

The one-day strike was set to conclude around 5 p.m. on Thursday. Librarians and staff said union members will consider voting on a potential, longer strike as negotiations continue.
A vehicle reported stolen Wednesday that turned up at a Jefferson Twp. address led to the arrests of the suspected thief, who had to be tracked down after he ran, and another person wanted on a probation violation, the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office said.

>> State of Ohio appealing a judges block on heartbeat law

Deputies were dispatched to an address in the 1100 block of Infirmary Road about 12:32 p.m. to check a vehicle that had just arrived at the address that had been reported to Beavercreek police as being stolen.

When deputies said they tried to contact a person who was seated in the vehicle, that person ran. Deputies used a K-9 unit and a drone to locate and apprehend the suspect, the sheriffs office said in a statement released to media.

That person has been booked into the county jail on several charges, the sheriffs office said.

That other person arrested on a probation warrant was on the Infirmary Road property as the stolen vehicle investigation was occurring.

The vehicle was released to the owner at the scene, according to the sheriffs office, which indicated the investigation into the matter is continuing.




FREEHOLD - The victim of a beating in Freehold was found motionless in the middle of his apartment complex parking lot when police arrived, a police officer testified Wednesday in the murder trial of Jamil Hubbard.

Freehold Township patrolman George Baumann responded to an "assault investigation" on Harding Road on the morning of May 1, 2018, where he found Jerry Wolkowitz laying shirtless on his back in the middle of the road, Baumann told the jury. A vehicle  later determined to be the Hubbard's  was sitting next to him, still running, with the windows open and music blaring.

(center) Jamil Hubbard, charged with the murder of Asbury Park Press freelance photographer Jerry Wolkowitz, sits with his attorneys Katherine M. Caola and Allison Friedman during opening statements of trial before Judge Lourdes Lucas at the Monmouth County Courthouse in Freehold, NJ Wednesday, September 28, 2022.

Baumann saw that Wolkowitz had sustained severe injuries, he said, and he began checking his pulse and his breathing. He said the victim was responsive to his questions.

"What happened?" Baumann asked, according to video footage captured on his patrol car. "Do you know who did this? Can you hear me?"

Though Wolkowitz was responsive, Baumann could only understand parts of his answers, he told the jury. His speech was garbled due to his injuries.

Earlier in the trial, Dr. Abimbola Pratt  the trauma surgeon who treated Wolkowitz on the day he was attacked  testified that Wolkowitz had suffered extensive injuries, including a hypoxic brain injury, multiple broken ribs, a pancreatic injury, collapsed lungs and more.

On Oct. 18, 2018, Wolkowitz, an EMT and freelance photographer, died as a result of the blunt impact injuries to his head, torso and extremities, Melissa Guzzetta, the medical examiner who performed his autopsy, testified earlier in the trial.

On the day of the attack, EMS had been dispatched and arrived at the scene soon after, taking the victim to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Baumann said.

Hubbard is facing murder, felony murder, bias intimidation and robbery charges, among other charges, that could put him in prison for the rest of his life if he is found guilty.

Assistant Prosecutors Hoda Soliman and Keri-Leigh Schaefer plan to call three more witnesses on behalf of the state before the defense presents its case next week.

Jenna Calderon covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Freehold NJ fatal beating trial shows video of victim
Victoria Beckham was brought to tears during her most recent Paris Fashion Week show.

Last month, the former Spice Girl debuted her Spring/Summer 2023 collection in front of a packed crowd full of fans, friends and family. And it was the presence of her loved ones that made the 48-year-old get a bit teary-eyed.

I was so emotional because its such a big deal for me to have a show in Paris. It was a real highlight of my career, the fashion designer said during a visit to Studio 1A on Thursday. "I had my family there. I had my friends there. And I felt so proud of my team."

The sweet moment occurred as Beckham walked down the runway at the end of her show, and it caught her by surprise.

"I was planning on coming out and having a very cool picture taken and I just broke down when I saw my husband and my children, who are so supportive of what I do. I was just very, very happy," the mother of four explained.

Victoria Beckham Spring/Summer 2023 Runway show (Darren Gerrish / WireImage)

Beckham was surrounded by love on her big day with her entire family by her side, including husband David Beckham and their four children: sons Brooklyn, 23, Romeo, 20, and Cruz, 17, and daughter Harper, 11. Brooklyn's wife, Nicola Peltz Beckham, also stopped by to support her mother-in-law.

The designer even shared a cute behind-the-scenes video with her family backstage at the event.

While discussing the moment with Beckham, Savannah Guthrie said she found it completely endearing.

"I loved it because you were totally overwhelmed with gratitude and joy in that moment," she said.

Hoda Kotb agreed, saying, "It's so awesome. You're surrounded by all these people who love and adore you."

On TODAY with Hoda & Jenna, Hoda sat down with the star again and she said her recent fashion show felt like "such a triumph."

Beckham explained that she was particularly excited to get her designs back on the runway after the pandemic and wanted to soak in every moment.

"I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed it," she said.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com
Victoria Beckham opened up about her husband David Beckham waiting in the queue for 14 hours to see Queen Elizabeth IIs coffin, explaining why the experience meant so much to him.

The 48-year-old fashion decision discussed how her husband paid his respects to the Queen in London last month during a recent appearance on Today. While speaking to hosts Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie, Victoria said that David was so happy that he had waited in the queue at Westminster Hall to see the monarch lying in state.

David felt very humbled by the experience, she explained. It was something that he really wanted to do. And he is so happy that he did it. He said the experience was something that he struggles to even express. It meant so much to him.

She talked about some of the great people that David met through this experience and some of the ways in which he interacted with them.

He was in the queue for 14 hours, the former Spice Girls member continued. He said he met some really amazing people. He was buying them all doughnuts. He said, I met some great, great people, and hes just so happy he did it.

On 16 September, David was spotted in the queue to see the Queens coffin, which was lying in state in Westminster, before she was buried alongside her family at St Georges Chapel at Windsor Castle.

While speaking to ITV News at the time, the former Manchester United star said that he thought his arrival to Westminster, in the middle of the night, would make his wait a little shorter. Though, this wasnt the case.

I thought by coming at 2am it was going to be a little quieter. I was wrong, he said. Everybody had that in mind. Everybody wants to be here, to be part of this experience and celebrate what Her Majesty has done for us.

'I was so lucky I was able to have a few moments in my life to be around Her Majesty



'A sad day but it's a day to remember the incredible legacy she left'



David Beckham told ITV News' @neilconneryitv he's queued 12 hours to see the Queen Lying in Statehttps://t.co/tMtgIn9Bst pic.twitter.com/vPYR8SObXB  ITV News (@itvnews) September 16, 2022

During an interview with BBC News while in the queue, David also emphasised how the experience is meant to be shared as everyone wants to celebrate the amazing life of [their] Queen.

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Following the late royals state funeral on Monday, David shared a heartfelt tribute to her on his Instagram.

Today we said a final farewell to Her Majesty The Queen, he wrote. This week the world has mourned the loss of a unique , inspirational & caring leader. People from all walks of life came together in their thousands to show gratitude for our beloved Queen. People from all walks of life came together in their thousands to show gratitude for our beloved Queen.

The day before the Queens funeral, Victoria also reflected on the loss of the monarch and described her as the ultimate icon in a sweet tribute on Instagram.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and how she was a powerful source of inspiration not just for me, but for so many around the world, she wrote. The ultimate icon in every way and the epitome of elegance, she will live on in our hearts and minds forever.
The state that is home to the worlds largest naval base is finally getting a special Navy license plate.

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles announced Thursday it will offer a special license plate honoring active duty and veteran sailors. The announcement coincides with the service branchs 247th birthday.

The Navy plate joins roughly 60 other military-themed plates available to Virginia motorists who support the countrys armed forces, veterans, disabled veterans and military families. Plates for the Navy Reserve, Naval Air Station Oceana and the Navy Cross were available  but none for the branch itself until now.

We are proud to add the United States Navy as an option to those who are bravely serving or have served our country, said Linda Ford, acting commissioner of the DMV.

The plate, which is the only military-themed, revenue-sharing plate in the state, was authorized by Gov. Glenn Youngkin in March after state Sen. Jennifer Kiggans, a Virginia Beach Republican, introduced the legislation in January.

The special plate is five years in the making  a project that a local retired Navy captain took on in 2017. Roger Hirsh, who served three decades active duty in the Navy and another 10 years in civil service as a pharmacist at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, designed the plate and collaborated with legislative sponsors to help push the bill through the General Assembly.

It has been quite an adventure. It reminds me of something my father used to say  Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. There is some truth to that, Hirsh said with a laugh. I had no idea it would take this long.

The lengthy lone ranger effort, he said, has been fun and educational  although frustrating at times due to unexpected expenses and a mountain of red tape. Just securing permission to use the Navys emblem from the branchs Trademark Licensing Office took about four months.

Hirsh was then tasked with securing 450 paid pre-orders as required for the DMVs specialty plate authorization. To find interested motorists, he started a Facebook group called NAVY PLATE VA, printed business cards, pre-filled applications and even approached people on the street wearing Navy clothing to gauge interest. He finally gathered 450 orders in the summer of 2021. He had 568 locked in as of April.

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But it was certainly worthwhile, he said.

Now that his efforts have come to fruition, Hirsh said he is excited to see the plates out on the road and generating revenue to give back to sailors and marines.

The plate is available for a $25 annual fee. After 1,000 plates have been issued, $15 from each purchase will go to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society fund. The society provides financial and educational assistance to members of the Navy and Marine Corps, their eligible family members, widows and survivors.

Those eligible to purchase the plate are active duty sailors, those who have been honorably discharged after at least six months of active duty or those who have retired from the Navy. The plate can also be purchased by surviving Navy spouses who have not remarried.

Caitlyn Burchett, caitlyn.burchett@virginiamedia.com
Soybeans being harvested in a field near Walworth, Wisconsin, USA, 08 October 2022 (EPA)

Today is National Farmers Day. This is a day, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, to recognize [farmers] contributions to each state and the nation. As I recently experienced firsthand, those contributions are many and so very important.

Over the weekend, I visited Chaneys Dairy Barn in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Established in the 1940s, the farm on which the restaurant and corn maze sit has been in the Chaney family ever since. However, that almost wasnt the case. Due to poor prices making for poor times in the dairy industry, their website reads, the Chaneys began the process of looking for new ideas to help save the family farm. In 2003, Chaneys Dairy Barn was established allowing for the family farm to continue on.

That was one year before I began college at nearby Western Kentucky University. Since then, Chaneys Dairy Barn has grown into a true local icon and blue-ribbon winning producer of ice cream and other dairy products. No stop in Bowling Green is complete without a trip to Chaneys.

The thought that this local treasure couldve been lost is an upsetting thought. Even more upsetting, however, is the real struggle our independent farmers have in competing with agribusiness and factory farming. Over the past half-century, American farmers have gotten the short of end of the stick. Neoliberal economic policies embraced by both parties have made it difficult for small farmers to compete with Big Ag and globalized food systems  to the detriment of everything from the family farm to public health to the planet itself.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the number of farms in the United States stands at around 2 million  down from 6.8 million farms in 1935. 88 percent of these farms are classified as small, meaning their gross revenue does not exceed $350,000 per annum, according to Modern Farmer. This 88 percent only accounts for around 5 percent of the net farm income in the United States, with only 41 percent of small farms actually turning a profit. Most farmers, then, are forced to work another job.

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The neoliberal policies begun under Ronald Reagan, and continued under successive administrations of both parties, account for much of the problem. Monetary policy in the 1980s led to a 60 percent drop in farm values, while record production forced prices down as exports fell by more than 20 percent. By 1984, farm debt was twice what it was in 1978.

This left many independent farmers incapable of competing with the large factory farms and big agricultural conglomerates. Today, more than 250,000 factory farms exist throughout the country. These farms make up most of the $134.7 billion Americas farms contribute to the economy. The largest four dairy co-ops alone control a 50 percent market share.

These large farms also make up most of the pollution generated by food production. Unlike family farms, which tended to protect the land and environment they passed down through the generations, these large corporate farms are motivated by profits to employ as little environmental safeguarding as necessary. Livestock farms alone generate as much as 70 percent of Americas ammonia emissions, to say nothing of other gases contributing to climate change.

Globally, animal agriculture accounts for 14.5 percent of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions annually, Foreign Policy reports, as well as 60 percent of nitrous oxide and 50 percent of all methane emissions. In Duplin County, North Carolina (where my mother lived for many years), hog waste from the factory farms weighed as much as human waste for the entire city of Boston, Massachusetts. Residents actually sued because of the negative effects these large hog farm factories had on their health and environment

This is to say nothing about the quality of life those animals experience on factory farms. These pitiful creatures live in dark, cramped conditions and are frequently tortured before being slaughtered. As Kathie Jenni, a professor of philosophy and director of human-animal studies at the University of Redlands wrote in a letter to the Los Angeles Times, [p]igs, cows and chickens are boiled to death, suffocated, hung upside-down to bleed out and (in the case of male chicks, who will not lay eggs for profit) ground up alive in giant blenders.

This is not what God, what nature, or even what the Founding Fathers intended. America was founded as a nation of yeoman farmers. Obviously, those days are behind us; urbanization saw to that. However, that does not mean we cannot do something about the scourge of factory farming. We can create policies that disincentivize such terrible farming conditions while promoting family and independent farms. We should be subsidizing small farms, not big agribusiness. We can build school-to-farm pipelines by encouraging agricultural education in our schools and colleges. We can continue to create and support local farmers markets, creating spaces within our communities for our small farmers to sell their goods and compete with the large factory farms. We can enforce anti-trust laws in the agricultural sector. And we can pass laws that protect both animals and the environment from the scourge of factory farming.

There are things we as individuals can do, too. We can limit our meat intake to once or twice a week or buy from local farmers who treat their livestock humanely. We can grow our own food or buy from our local produce farmers. We can research the origins of our foods, write our elected representatives, and demand politicians support our neighbors over their corporate donors and Big Ag.

Hardworking and unpretentious, our farmers make up the beating heart of the heartland and grow the grain that gives the breadbasket its name. Its why I am proud to wear my new Support Your Local Farmer shirt today  a shirt I was happy to buy at Chaneys Dairy Barn, because I am proud to shop locally and to support the farmers in my community.

American farmers need the help of the American people, and the American people need American farmers. On this National Farmers Day, lets renew our commitment to them by ending our reliance on factory farming and committing to supporting Americas small farms.
A video of former President Donald Trump is played during a hearing of the January 6 committee (EPA)

Donald Trump knew. That was the key phrase repeated throughout todays January 6 hearing, and for good reason. It was a presentation that sought to laser-focus on Trumps potential criminal intent and provide a basis for the Select Committees unanimous vote to subpoena the former President.

This was the ninth and most wide-ranging hearing the January 6 Committee has held yet. The hearing, which had no in-person witnesses, saw each committee member walk through a different component of Trumps plot to overturn democracy, from election day to January 6. The common thread was Trumps state of mind and intent throughout the attempted coup. The hearing also revealed new Secret Service emails and texts that showed an awareness of incoming violence. The hearing was incredibly effective and tied together everything weve seen over the past eight hearings.

Trump knew he lost and declared victory anyway. Trump knew his election fraud claims were false and exploited them to pressure elected officials anyway. Trump knew his pressure campaign against Vice President Mike Pence was illegal and pursued it anyway. Trump knew his supporters were armed and threatening violence, and he told them to go to the Capitol anyway. What this amounted to was a 21st-Century attempted coup by an American president.

Lets dive into the historic hearing that justified a consequential congressional subpoena of Donald Trump.

A premeditated declaration of victory

The hearing began by highlighting how Trumps effort to overturn the election was set in stone well before election day. Rep Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) played documentary clips of Trump ally Roger Stone talking about how Trump was going to declare victory and that violence was incoming.

"F*** the voting, lets get right to the violence," Stone said on November 4, 2020. Stone was in direct contact with the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, some of which have pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy charges.

Lofgren also revealed a pre-prepared memo from Judicial Watchs Tom Fitton dated October 31, 2020, that had draft victory remarks sent to Trump aides Molly Michael and Dan Scavino.

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An October 31, 2020 audio clip from Steve Bannon outlined exactly how it would all go down. Bannon predicted that Trump was going to declare victory no matter the results and that Trump would exploit the delays in largely Democratic mail-in ballots to declare victory as Republican-heavy election-day votes were counted first.

As we later saw, thats exactly what happened.

Trump admitted he lost

By election night, Trump knew what he was going to do regardless of the outcome. Lofgren pointed out that Trumps advisors  including Jared Kushner, then-Campaign Manager Bill Stepien, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)  all told Trump that mail-in ballots shouldve been advocated. Trump knew election day votes would create a red mirage and he exploited it.

Stepien told Trump not to declare victory on election night and that votes still needed to be counted. Trump was warned about a premature victory declaration and went forward with it anyway. We also have brand new evidence indicating that while Trump was publicly lying about the election being stolen, he privately acknowledged that he lost.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) showcased new footage of Trump aides testifying that Trump acknowledged he lost. Alyssa Farah Griffin, who was the former Communications Director for Trump, claimed that he said, "Can you believe I lost to this f***ing guy." In new testimony, former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson claimed when Trump was "raging" about the Supreme Court denying his election case, he said: "I dont want people to know we lost."

There was also a deeply concerning new bit of evidence. Trump signed a draft order to immediately withdraw troops from Afghanistan and Somalia before the end of his term, another signal he knew he lost.

Meanwhile, court cases shot down Trumps election lies and his own advisors echoed those debunkings. The January 6 Committee showed testimony of Trump officials, including former Attorney General William Barr, outlining how they told Trump his election fraud claims were lies. Then, they showed clips of Trump spreading those very same lies days after being straight-up told they were lies.

So, we now have under-oath testimony indicating Trump was told he lost and he acknowledged that loss. All of this is very key because it gives us a glimpse into Trumps state of mind and bolsters evidence of criminal intent. Trump simply being shown evidence that he lost isnt as powerful as testimony indicating he admitted it.

Trump pressure campaigns and the fake elector plot

The January 6 Committee then covered familiar ground by giving a top-line summary of Trumps pressure campaigns . We once again heard the audio of Trumps infamous call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger where he demanded: I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have.

The committee then briefly went over Trumps rebuffed efforts to pressure the DOJ, pressure state legislatures to overturn their results, and the fake elector scheme. Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) discussed how the fake elector scheme was directly tied to the pressure campaign to coerce Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the 2020 election. This was a plan they knew was illegal, but they pursued it anyway.

Not only has testimony alleged former Trump lawyer John Eastman told Trump in person that his Pence pressure campaign was illegal, Eastman admitted as such via e-mail on the morning of January 6.

New Secret Service messages reveal knowledge of incoming armed violence

In perhaps the most dramatic moments of the hearing, the January 6 Committee gave us a glimpse of the nearly 1 million emails and electronic records they obtained from the Secret Service. The key revelation was that the Secret Service exchanged emails and messages from late December up until January 6 indicating that they were all well aware of the incoming threat of violence on January 6.

"Their plan is to literally kill people. Please please take this tip seriously and investigate further." That was a tip of incoming January 6 violence planned by the Proud Boys referenced in a newly revealed Secret Service email on December 26, 2020.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) revealed a January 4 CTS intelligence summary that showed there were calls from Trump supporters to occupy federal buildings, invade the Capitol, and arm themselves. On January 5, a Secret Service email discussed that "right wing groups" were establishing "quick reaction forces" in Virginia, and "standing by at the ready should POTUS request assistance."

Schiff also revealed how the Secret Service were messaging each other in the 12 pm hour on January 6 about armed Trump supporters, mentioning that they were heading to the Capitol after Trumps speech.

Now we know that almost every level of law enforcement was aware of credible threats of violence on January 6 and did not adequately prepare. This was something Donald Trump used to his advantage.

Trump knew his rallygoers were armed and violent

The Committee re-aired Cassidy Hutchinsons previous testimony from this past June. Trump was allegedly incredulous backstage at his January 6 rally that morning: I dont f***ing care that they have weapons. Theyre not here to hurt me. Take the f***ing mags away. Let my people in. They can march to the Capitol from here. Let the people in. Take the f***ing mags away."

During his rally, Trump then told the crowd, which he knew was armed, to head to the Capitol. Newly revealed messages confirm that the Secret Service was preparing to take Trump to the Capitol but was called off by their lead officer.

Afterward, Trump did nothing to stop the violence as he watched it all unfold on Fox News for 187 minutes in the White House dining room . While Trump was watching, Republicans, including Kevin McCarthy, pleaded with Trump to call off the violence. Trump not only dragged his feet, he egged the violent mob on.

Trump sent a 2:24 pm tweet targeting Vice President Mike Pence. Trump sent this right as Pence was facing the highest threat of violence. The Secret Service sent concerned messages about Trumps tweet.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) also aired new footage of members of Congress during the Capitol attack. The footage showed that during the hours of Trumps inaction, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) coordinated a response to the attack while the violence unfolded.

Whats next for the January 6 Committee?

Have these hearings been effective? Signs point to yes. Polling indicates that a majority of Americans see "MAGA Republicans" as a threat to democracy while President Biden has ratcheted up his rhetoric against extremism within the GOP. But swaying public opinion isnt their only objective. The committee has been making clear and direct appeals to Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Even though the midterms are 26 days away, were still due a final report from the Committee so this wont be the last we see of them. Well likely get that report by the end of the year. At the end of todays hearing, January 6 Committee Chairwoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) said they have sufficient evidence to make criminal referrals for several individuals, but a key step remains: seeking testimony directly from Donald Trump. They voted unanimously to subpoena Donald Trump for documents and under-oath testimony related to his plot to overturn the 2020 election.

Whether this subpoena will be enforced is yet to be seen, but one thing is for sure: Donald Trump deserves to answer for his corrupt conduct and the January 6 Committee has done an excellent job of outlining why.
Finland signs MoU on food and forestry co-operation

Vietnams Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland have just signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on food and forestry co-operation.









Vietnams Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland sign a Memorandum of Understanding on food and forestry co-operation in Hanoi on October 10. Photo by the Embassy of Finland.

The MoU was signed on October 10 between Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan and Finnish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of Antti Kurvinen during his official visit to Vietnam.



Talking to local media, Finnish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Antti Kurvinen said that his visit was made following growing interest in Vietnam in addition to the EU-Vietnam free trade agreement that had opened new opportunities.



"Weve achieved one important result in our co-operation before this visit, with an inspection visit by Vietnamese animal health experts to Finland last week," the Finnish official said. "This visit was related to the future export of pork and poultry meat and breeding pigs from Finland to Vietnam. I hope the exports could be started soon, now that this inspection has been executed."









Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan (right) and Finnish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of Antti Kurvinen at the signing event.



According to the minister, the Finnish Agri-Agency for Food and Forest Development (FFD) has been working in Vietnam with forestry co-operatives and their umbrella organisations to support smallholder forestry and promote PEFC certification in the country.



"FFD works through a twinning model, and the twinning organisation in Finland is a forest management association," he said. "By now FFD has gathered a strong knowledge of the forest value chains in Vietnam and has provided support for Finnish companies interested in the Vietnamese markets."



Talking about Vietnamese seafood products, Kurvinen said that Vietnam had made almost EUR 4 million from seafood export value to Finland in 2021. And Vietnamese fishery products were appreciated by Finnish customers.



"As the seafood export route to the Nordic countries is open, its up to the business people from Vietnam and Finland to get together to promote exports," he said. "Weve understood that Vietnam has been discussing the IUU issue with the EU Commission and these discussions are advancing quite well. Lets wait for the results of these discussions.



The minister said he hoped that his visit would help improve trade relations between the two countries by developing further understanding of each others markets.



"Trade in foodstuffs between the two countries has huge potential as the trade figures are still quite low," he stressed. "There is also still room for growth in water and forestry sectors."
State and local officials gathered Thursday at the Florida Department of Health in Marion County to discuss CORE, or Coordinated Opioid Recovery, an initiative whose aim is to tackle the drug overdose crisis.

Addressing a standing room audience, leaders, one by one, expressed confidence in CORE and pledged their support for the program.

Labeling what they see as an epidemic, officials said the goal is to make sure those addicted to drugs can get help immediately. After the person is identified, then he or she is guided through all the support agencies so they can make a complete recovery.

Assistance: NAMI Marion County helps people navigate difficult issues related to mental health

Leader: New HCA Florida West Marion Hospital CEO brings passion for quality health care in Ocala

Program: Ocala program helps one veteran at a time

Dr. Kenneth Scheppke, deputy secretary of health with the Florida Department of Health, addresses attendees during a Thursday news conference at the auditorium at the Florida Department of Health building in Ocala. To the right is Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo and to the left is Marion County Fire Rescue Chief James Banta.

All about CORE

Deputy Secretary of Health for the Florida Department of Health Dr. Kenneth A. Scheppke said the issue is "not a simple problem or a quick fix." Rather, he said, the problem is complex, and therefore requires many steps.

With CORE, whenever a patient is identified  whether it's by hospitalization or calling 911 to say he or she needs assistance in fighting their addiction  that person will get care "from start to finish," Scheppke said.

"We look at it like a chronological lifelong disease and treat it that way," he said.

By the numbers

State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo calls the drug overdose "a devastating and tragic problem" that has gotten worse.

Statewide, Ladapo said, there were 8,000 reported overdose deaths in 2021. Most of those deaths are opioid related, and 70 percent are connected to fentanyl, he said.

Local health officials said from July 2021 to June 2022, there were 181 overdose deaths in Marion County.

Ladapo believes implementing CORE will have a tremendous impact in Florida and said he cannot "wait to see the results."

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Marion County is among 12 areas that will be part of CORE, according to state officials.

Law enforcement officials have arrested those who they say are deadly drug traffickers, and some have received stiff sentences from prosecutors.

Personal testimonies

Mark Lander, head of the local health department, said "overdose deaths have a devastating impact on all of us in this community." Lander said between 2015 and 2021, the number of opioid overdose deaths increased by roughly 325 percent, and the number of EMS responses for opioid-related overdoses in 2021 was 575 percent higher than the 2015 figure.

Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris was among the state and local leaders at Thursday's gathering in Ocala.

Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris assured members of the audience that there's funding available for the program.

Harris said they meet frequently with their partners to discuss the program.

Some who spoke at the event related personal stories on how addiction has affected their lives.

County Commissioner Kathy Bryant talked about her brother's death in July 2016 and how "we live with his loss everyday."

Bryant there's so much awareness now focused on the problem and wished something similar to CORE was around before her brother's death.

Travis McAllister, director of Recovery Support Services for Park Place Behavioral Health, said his problem began with prescription and progressed to heroin. Getting help was hard. With CORE, he said, "we're removing the barriers."

Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Top Florida officials visit Ocala, vow to fight drug overdoses, deaths
Caroline Rhea, Melissa Joan Hart, and Beth Broderick in "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." Randy Holmes/Getty Images

It's been 19 years since Melissa Joan Hart last played Sabrina Spellman on "Sabrina the Teenage Witch."

Sabrina returned to TV screens in Netflix's "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina," which ended in 2020.

Here's what the original cast of the 90s hit show has been up to since the show went off the air.

Anjelica Oswald contributed to a previous version of this story.

Melissa Joan Hart was Sabrina Spellman, a girl who discovers she's half-witch on her 16th birthday.

Melissa Joan Hart in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Hart was already known for starring on "Clarissa Explains It All" before playing Sabrina.

Hart recently starred in "No Good Nick," a comedy series for Netflix.

Melissa Joan Hart in April 2022. MICHAEL TRAN/AFP/Getty Images

The 46-year-old actress continued to play Sabrina on various shows, including "Clueless" and "Boy Meets World" through the '90s. She had another hit show with "Melissa & Joey," which ran on Freeform for four seasons. She also competed on season nine of "Dancing With the Stars" and has held roles on "The Goldbergs" and multiple made-for-TV holiday movies.

Hart has been married to musician Mark Wilkerson since 2003 and they have three sons.

Caroline Rhea is known for playing Hilda Spellman, Sabrina's fun and zany aunt.

Caroline Rhea in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

She started her career as a stand-up comedian.

Caroline Rhea reprised her role as Hilda Spellman on two episodes of "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina."

Caroline Rhea attends the premiere of Apple TV+ comedy "Loot" on June 15, 2022. Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic/Getty Images

Rhea, now 58, also hosted "The Biggest Loser" for three seasons and voiced the mom on Disney's "Phineas and Ferb." She starred in the Disney movie "Mom's Got a Date With a Vampire" and was also in "Christmas With the Kranks" and "The Perfect Man."

Her most recent acting credits include her role as Judy Reynolds on Disney Channe's original series "Sydney to the Max" and spots in made-for-TV holiday movies.

Beth Broderick was Sabrina's pragmatic and older aunt Zelda.

Beth Broderick in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Broderick had been acting for more than 10 years before being cast on "Sabrina." Her biggest roles included parts on "Glory Days," "Hearts Afire," and "The 5 Mrs. Buchanans."

Beth Broderick recently starred on HBO's "Sharp Objects" as Annie B.

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Beth Broderick in June 2022. Brian Stukes/Getty Images

Broderick, 63, went on to appear on "Lost," "Under the Dome," and "Bosch." She also guest-starred on Hart's "Melissa & Joey" and reprised her original role on "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina." She married "Beverly Hills, 90210" actor Scott Paetty in 2005.

Nate Richert made his acting debut as Sabrina's boyfriend, Harvey Kinkle.

Nate Richert in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

His role as Harvey remains his biggest role to date.

Richert's last acting gig was a short film in 2006.

Nate Richert in 2017. Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images

He is also a musician and has music on Spotify. The 44-year-old also revealed on Twitter in 2018 that he works as a "maintenance man, a janitor, a carpenter, and do whatever random jobs I can get to pay the bills." Richert married Malorie Felt in 2019.

Jenna Leigh Green played mean girl Libby Chessler for three seasons.

Jenna Leigh Green in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Playing Libby on "Sabrina" was one of Green's earliest roles.

She was recently on an episode of the "Gossip Girl" reboot and "Blue Bloods."

Jenna Leigh Green in May 2022. Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Green, 48, has continued to act in small roles on shows including "Ghost Whisperer" and "Bones." She also played Nessarose in a "Wicked" tour before starring in the Broadway production.

Paul Feig played Mr. Pool, Sabrina's biology teacher, for one season.

Paul Feig in season one of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

At the time, Feig was known for starring in "Heavyweights," "Dirty Dancing," and "The Jackie Thomas Show."

Paul Feig is best known as the director of movies like "Bridesmaids" and "A Simple Favor."

Paul Feig in October 2022. Santiago Felipe/Getty Images

Feig, 60, created "Freaks & Geeks" and directed and produced episodes of "The Office." He's also known for directing "The Heat," "Spy," and the female version of "Ghostbusters."

He also directed and produced "The School for Good and Evil," which was recently released on Netflix.

Martin Mull played vice principal Willard Kraft for three seasons.

Martin Mull in season two of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Mull broke out in the '70s on "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" and its spin-off "Fernwood Tonight." He was well-known for playing Colonel Mustard on "Clue" and for playing Leon Carp on "Roseanne."

Mull is still acting and recently starred in "The Ranch" and "The Cool Kids."

Martin Mull attends "The Cool Kids" Outdoor Screening Event in 2018. Earl Gibson III/Getty Images

Mull, 79, has had parts on "The Ellen Show," voicing Vlad on "Danny Phantom," and playing Gene Parmesan on "Arrested Development." He earned an Emmy nomination for his guest role on "Veep." He was also recently in "Grace and Frankie" and "Brooklyn Nine-Nine."

Lindsay Sloane joined the cast in the second season as Sabrina's friend, Valeria Birkhead.

Lindsay Sloane in season two of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Prior to "Sabrina," Sloane was on "The Wonder Years," "My So-Called Life," and "Mr. Rhodes."

Her most recent role was on "Endings, Beginnings" in 2019.

Lindsay Sloane in August 2022. Michael Kovac/Getty Images

After "Sabrina," Sloane, 45, went on to star in "Help Me Help You," "Playing House," and "The Odd Couple." Her movie roles include "The Other Guys" and both of the "Horrible Bosses" movies.

David Lascher joined the cast for three seasons as Josh Blackhart, Sabrina's manager at the coffee shop.

David Lascher in season four of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

Before "Sabrina," Lascher was known for "Hey Dude," "Blossom," and the TV show "Clueless."

He hasn't acted much since but was recently on "Hollywood Darlings."

David Lascher in September 2021. Robin L Marshall/Getty Images

Lascher, 50, also guest-starred on a few episodes of "Melissa & Joey."

Jon Huertas was only on the show for one season as Brad Alcerro.

Jon Huertas in season four of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

He had been on a few episodes of shows like "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Moesha."

People will probably recognize Huertas as Miguel Rivas in "This Is Us."

Jon Huertas in October 2022. Michael Tullberg/Getty Images

Huertas, 52, starred in the hit series from 2016 until the finale in May 2022. The actor was also on "Elementary," "Castle," and "Generation Kill."

Soleil Moon Frye joined the fifth season as Roxie King, Sabrina's college roommate.

Soleil Moon Frye in season five of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

She was best known for acting in "Punky Brewster" before starring in "Sabrina."

Soleil Moon Frye now voices Zoey on "The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder."

Soleil Moon Frye in June 2022. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images

Frye, 46, also voiced Zoey in the original "The Proud Family" series and Jade in the "Bratz" series. Frye was married to American film producer Jason Goldberg from 1998 until their split in 2022.

Elisa Donovan played Morgan Cavanaugh, Sabrina's resident advisor, starting on season five.

Elisa Donovan in season five of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." CBS Television

She was best known for playing Amber in "Clueless," a character she also played in the TV series. She also starred in "Beverly Hills, 90210."

Donovan was most recently in "MDMA" in 2017.

Elisa Donovan in October 2022. Rich Polk/Getty Images

Donovan, 51, also starred in "The Lake," "Whole Day Down," and "In Gayle We Trust."

Read the original article on Insider
Seth Herald/Reuters

The latest trial in the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretcher Whitmer took an unexpected turn Wednesday when a prosecutor accused a female juror of flirting with a defendant and the judge said he noticed it, too.

The unnamed woman is allegedly making eyes at 22-year-old Paul Bellar and sneaking smiles at him.

The prosecutor, Assistant Attorney General Bill Rollstin, told the judge that Bellar, a member of the Wolverine Watchmen, was flirting back and had shaken his fists at the juror.

That claim drew protests from Bellars defense lawyer, who said the gesture was innocent: It was his clients birthday and he was holding some Skittles, according to the Detroit Free Press.

I have noticed her kind of looking. He knows. But hes not winking at her. Hes not doing anything to encourage her, the attorney, Andrew Kirkpatrick, told the court.

I dont think thats a basis to get rid of this juror... Maybe she likes him, maybe she doesnt. Theres no way of telling whats in the jurors mind.

Jury Decides Fanatics Really Did Want to Kidnap Michigan Governor

Jackson County Circuit Judge Thomas Wilson said he had noticed the jurors small smirk.

I see her looking directly at your client, and a number of times Ive seen smiles coming out of her face. Its enough that its drawing my attention, he said.

Im going to be paying close attention, he added. I dont know if Im going to kick her off or not.

Lawyers for Bellars co-defendants objected to that scenario and branded it sexist.

Wheres the basis for saying shes gonna lie? Because shes a woman? Because shes young? said lawyer Leonard Ballard, who is representing Joe Morrison.

According to the Associated Press, lawyer Kareem Johnson, who is defending Pete Musico, said other jurors have laughed or smiled during the eight days of trial in state court.

She is supposed to judge the witnesses and judge the defendants. Shes got to look over here, Johnson said.

Bellar, Morrison, and Musico are charged with providing material support for a terrorist actessentially helping to train militia members who were charged in federal court with directly plotting to abduct Whitmer.

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Two of those men were acquitted, and the case against two others initially ended in a deadlock, but they were convicted on retrial.

There were juror issues in the retrial, as well: The name of one jurors daughter-in-law surfaced during the first trial as a woman who had smoked weed with one of the defendants, and defense lawyers got a tip that another juror had decided how they would vote even before they were chosen for the panel.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Infowars founder Alex Jones at court to testify during the Sandy Hook defamation damages trial. (AP)

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been ordered to pay almost $1bn (880m) to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre after he spread fake theories suggesting the 2012 school shooting was a hoax.

20 children and six adults were killed when 20-year-old Adam Lanza opened fire at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in the US in December 2012.

In the aftermath of the shooting Jones used his conspiracy theory show InfoWars to claim the massacre was faked by opponents of the Second Amendment.

Alex Jones and his court case explained in 10 points:

Who is Alex Jones? Jones is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has been promoting fake news since the early 2000s. He became famous for his online show called InfoWars where he went on rants about left-wing politicians and conspiracy theories.

Many of the plaintiffs found recounting their experiences extremely difficult. (AP)

InfoWars became a central point for far-right and alt-right views. As the size of InfoWars grew so did Jones's influence and wealth. Popular conspiracy theories promoted include: 9/11 was a hoax, that a deep state movement was trying to rig the 2016 elections, and that the 2020 election was rigged against Donald Trump.

Jones claimed Sandy Hook was a hoax on InfoWars. Using his platform Jones claimed that the massacre was a "false flag" operation staged by people who wanted to ban the sale of firearms in the US. He claimed all the footage was carried out by actors and that no one actually died.

What happened at the trial? The lawsuit accused Jones and Infowars parent company, Free Speech Systems, of using the mass killing to build his audience and make millions of dollars. Experts testified that Jones audience swelled, as did his revenue from product sales, when he made Sandy Hook a topic on the show.

Erica Lafferty, daughter of Sandy Hook Principal Dawn Hochsprung, speaks after the verdict was announced. (AP)

The harassment the families received was central to the court case. At the trial, Mark Barden testified that conspiracy theorists urinated on the grave of his 7-year-old son, Daniel, and threatened to dig up the coffin. Erica Lafferty, the daughter of slain Sandy Hook principal Dawn Hochsprung, testified that people mailed rape threats to her house.

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What did Jones say at the trial? He called the proceedings a "kangaroo court," mocked the judge, called the plaintiffs lawyer an ambulance chaser and labelled the case an affront to free speech rights. He has now admitted the massacre did happen and has apologised on several occasions.

Jones ranted about the trial after it concluded. He did not appear at court when the heavy fine was announced but instead appeared on InfoWars to criticise proceedings. He said it was "all made up, Hilarious," and added "So this is what a show trial looks like. I mean, this is the left completely out of control."

Can Jones afford to pay? Jones has made millions from his business but it is unlikely he will ever be able to pay the full sum. During a separate trial in Texas, he testified he couldnt afford any judgment over $2 million but an economist testified he and his company was worth $270m.

What did the families say after the verdict was announced? Robbie Parker, who lost his 6-year-old daughter, Emilie, said outside the court that he was proud that "what we were able to accomplish was just to simply tell the truth." Sherlach welcomed the result saying "Going forward - because, unfortunately, there will be other horrific events like this - people like Alex Jones will have to rethink what they say."

Lafferty welcomed the decision but cautioned it was not over. She said: "I wish after today, I could just be a daughter grieving my mom and stop worrying about conspiracy theorists sending me threats or worse. But I know that this is not the end of Alex Jones in my life. I know his hate, lies, and conspiracy theories will follow me and my family for the rest of our days."

Read more: Hes a clown: Sen. Chris Murphy rips Alex Jones and the culture behind Infowars

Read more: Voices: As Alex Jones faces a $1bn comeuppance it looks like the good guys have won
A man was arrested for shooting someone in the face to death, then fleeing the scene.

On Oct. 5 at approximately 7:30 PM, the Memphis Police Department (MPD) responded to a shooting call at the intersection of Park Avenue and Prescott Road.

When officers arrived, they found a man, Robert Brown, bleeding from his head in a driveway, and a dark-colored Lexus parked with the driver-side door open, police said.

Brown was shot and pronounced dead at the scene.

Surveillance footage showed Brown pulling into the driveway, stepping out of the car while leaving the door open, and walking toward and around the house.

As Brown was walking back to the Lexus, another man, Rickey London, walked out in front of him.

RELATED: Man wanted following homicide on Park Avenue, MPD says

The two had a verbal argument.

During the conversation, London pulled out a gun and shot Brown in the face, according to an affidavit.

After shooting, London went to a room with a red door to the house, and a woman stepped out of the room.

Both of them got in a silver Mazda 2 and drove away from the scene.

MPD later found the Mazda parked in a convenience store, across the street from the shooting, court documents showed.

Officers approached the vehicle and detained the woman for questioning.

The woman told police that London told her, he needed to leave and kept saying life was over, and why did he make me shoot him.

The woman also said that as they drove, London said that Brown threatened him, and reached into his pocket as if he had a gun.

London was dropped off in the area of Jackson Avenue and University Street, where they were arrested.

Rickey London has been charged with second-degree murder.

Rickey London has a court date on Oct. 13.

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Pennsylvania Senate Candidate John Fetterman Holds Campaign Rally Focusing On Women's Right To Choose

Democratic Pennsylvania Senate nominee John Fetterman holds a rally on September 11, 2022 at Montgomery County Community College in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. Credit - Mark MakelaGetty Images

Five months after the Democratic nominee in one of the nations most competitive Senate races suffered a stroke, theres still a lot to learn about his recovery.

In the final weeks of the Pennsylvania Senate campaign, a key Republican attack against the states lieutenant governor, John Fetterman, has centered on his use of closed-captioning technology, which translates audio into text on a screen in real-time. He relied on the technology during an interview conducted Friday with NBC News, his first in-person, on-camera sit-down since his stroke in May.

I sometimes will hear things in a way thats not perfectly clear, Fetterman said. So I use captioning so Im able to see what youre saying.

Fetterman also plans to use closed captioning for his upcoming debate with opponent Dr. Mehmet Oz, which is raising questions about Fettermans recovery.

Heres we know so far.

What do we know about Fettermans health?

Fetterman suffered a stroke in May, just before winning Pennsylvanias Democratic primary for Senate. In June, his campaign released a letter from his cardiologist that said that he should be able to campaign and serve in the U.S. Senate without a problem. He has not released information from his medical team since then.

Fetterman said earlier this year that his stroke was caused by a clot. The type of stroke in which a blood clot blocks blood flow to the brain is called an ischemic strokethe most common kind of stroke and one of the leading causes of disability in America, according to a February report from the American Heart Association. Ischemic strokes can cause a variety of long-term conditions depending on which part of the brain connects to the clogged artery. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, a stroke in the left hemisphere of the cerebrum can cause aphasia: difficulty finding the right words or understanding what others are saying, or both.

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Does Fetterman have aphasia?

Fettermans campaign said in June that he did not have aphasia, and his communications director Joe Calvello told TIME in October thats still the case. Calvello did not respond to a follow-up question about the differences between that condition and Fettermans.

Fettermans need to use closed-captioning technology mirrors some of the challenges faced by the estimated one-third of stroke survivors dealing with aphasia. Some aphasia patients might struggle to speak in complete sentences, while others might use incorrect words. During the 32-minute NBC interview, Fetterman mispronounced and confused several words before correcting himself. He often paused to read questions before answering. He repeatedly dodged inquiries about why he will not release his complete medical records.

Maria Town, the president and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities, says Fettermans use of caption technology doesnt mean he wouldnt be able to do the job of being a Senator. People use captions all the time, Town says. It doesnt have anything to do with with competence.

Concepts like competency, or fitnessthese are extremely flawed concepts for many marginalized communities, including people with disabilities, she added.

Dr. Kevin Sheth, the founding chief of the Division of Neurocritical Care and Emergency Neurology at the Yale School of Medicine, also says that just because Fetterman is experiencing difficulties with speech, that doesnt mean he is having other cognitive issues. If you have a blockage in the blood vessels that supplies the part of the brain that plays an influential role in language, then youre going to have trouble with language, Sheth says. If its the parts of your brain that control your strength and coordination in your limbs, then youre going to have weakness or paralysis. The deficits that you have depend on the part of the brain thats downstream from where the blockage in the blood supply was.

How does closed-captioning technology help him?

In his NBC interview, Fetterman blamed his challenges on auditory processing issues and indicated that he struggled to understand what he was hearing shortly after his stroke, but that his ability to do so has improved since then. Captioning, Fetterman said, helps him be precise.

Ozs campaign manager suggested Fetterman wouldnt be able to use closed-captioning on the Senate floor. Asked by NBC if he would need similar accommodations in the Senate, Fetterman replied, I dont think its going to have an impact. I feel like Im going to get better and better every day and by January, Im going to be much better and Dr. Oz is still going to be a fraud.

Is Fettermans stroke recovery typical?

As weve said over and over again, John is healthy and he also still has a lingering auditory processing issue that his doctors expect will go away, Calvello wrote in a statement Thursday. The whole point of the NBC News interview was to show how John is conducting this campaign and doing his interviews.

Scientists and doctors are still working to understand stroke recovery, which varies considerably from patient to patient. Outcomes can range from full recovery to permanent disability, and many factorssuch as physical therapy, rehabilitation, and lifestyle changescan affect the process. But in general, recovery tends to follow a particular pattern. If I draw a graph, I would draw one of those curves where you get steep recovery early, and then over time, the slope can still be there, but it starts to flatten out, says Sheth. The recovery between month 14 and 15 might be pretty small, whereas the recovery between two weeks and four weeks might be much bigger.

When it comes to aphasia in particular, some research indicates that the bulk of improvement happens in the first three months, though survivors can continue to see slow improvement for years, just as they can with all symptoms after a stroke. If a person at five months has a certain amount of deficits, its not like those deficits are going to disappear the next week, Sheth says. Its gonna take some time.
A Woburn police officer has been placed on leave amid an investigation into his alleged involvement in the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, law enforcement officials announced Thursday.

Officer John Donnelly was immediately placed on paid administrative leave after Mayor Scott Galvin and Woburn Police Chief Robert F. Rufo Jr. learned that he had participated in and was active in the planning of the rally, which included white nationalists, neo-Nazi groups, and members of the Ku Klux Klan, city officials said in a news release.

Rufo has since called for an internal affairs investigation into the alleged inappropriate conduct exhibited by Donnelly, who was said to be a reserve officer at the time of the rally.

In a statement, Galvin said, The Charlottesville rally is a dark moment in our history, and deeply disturbing. The City of Woburn is taking these allegations seriously by investigating the incident thoroughly and I will move to terminate Officer Donnelly if the investigation concludes that the allegations are accurate.

Rufo added, What was said and done in Charlottesville is in direct opposition to the core values of the Woburn Police Department, to serve all members of our community equally and treat them with dignity and respect. Should this allegation be sustained, the Woburn Police Department will ask Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission to decertify Officer Donnelly, ensuring he may no longer serve in law enforcement in Massachusetts.

Participants in the rally carried weapons and chanted racist and anti-Semitic slogans. A woman died and many others were hurt when a car drove into a group of counter-protesters.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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Oct. 12An area woman charged with stealing over $200,000 from the Albert Lea Housing and Redevelopment Authority pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on Wednesday to theft from a program receiving federal funds.

As part of a plea agreement between Marcie Marie Thumann and the U.S. Attorney's Office, Thumann admitted to routinely embezzling HRA rent payments for her own personal use and benefit. Court documents stated Thumann pocketed cash payments and altered payee information on payments made by check and money order.

Thumann, as bookkeeper for the organization, was solely responsible for recording and reconciling tenant rental payments to the HRA. Court documents stated she worked for the organization, which receives both federal and state funding to remedy the shortage of available housing for low-income residents, from January 2010 to July 18, 2018.

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Court documents stated the computer system used to manage tenant accounts required Thumann to manually enter rent payments and allowed her to issue account adjustments.

"The defendant manipulated the HRA's computer system to conceal the money she stole, avoid detection and prolong her fraud scheme," it stated. "Specifically, the defendant knowingly and willfully stole at least $213,217 in tenant payments that she know belonged to the HRA."

As part of the agreement, Thumann agreed to waive indictment by a grand jury on the charge and executed a written waiver of her right to be indicted on the offense.

Based on U.S. sentencing guidelines, Thumann faces a prison sentence of 18 to 24 months and supervised release of between one and three years.

The agreement states Thumann is free to recommend whatever sentence she deems appropriate, including reserving the right to make a motion for a variance from the guidelines.

The prosecution and defense agreed that Thumann should be ordered to pay restitution for $213,217 to the Albert Lea HRA, and she must disclose to the U.S. Attorney's Office the existence of any assets and agreed to assist the United States in locating, returning and transferring assets for use in payment of restitution and fines.

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As part of the agreement, United States prosecutors agreed it will not bring other charges against Thumann based on facts learned in the investigation.

Thumann was ordered to surrender any foreign travel documents as directed and to stay in the state of Minnesota before sentencing unless she receives approval from the court. She was also required to sign an appearance bond.

The date of sentencing has not yet been set.
Charges have been filed against a 36-year-old woman in connection with the death of a woman whose remains were found in a freezer on the Far North Side, Chicago police said.

Sandra Kolalou was charged with murder, according to Brendan Deenihan, chief of detectives, during a Wednesday evening news conference. Kolalou was also charged with concealment of a homicide.

The body of Frances Walker was found Monday in a residence in the 5900 block of North Washtenaw Avenue, according to the Cook County medical examiners office and Chicago police.

A Wednesday autopsy on Walker, 69, was inconclusive and pending further studies, according to the medical examiners office.

Kolalou lived at the same residence as Walker and the homicide is believed to have occurred in Walkers bedroom, according to Deenihan, who added butcher knives may have been used as a weapon.

Tenants in the home heard her (Walker) scream said Deenihan, and tried to figure out what was going on. The victim didnt answer.

Additionally, it appeared Kolalou was sending texts from the victims phone, Deenihan said.

Asked by reporters what could have triggered the killing, Deenihan said Kolalou had been given an eviction notice recently, possibly Saturday, which escalated Kolalous alleged actions.

Additionally, contents inside a garbage can that were located at 5101 N. Simonds Drive, at Foster Beach, and that officials said were connected to Walkers case, have been determined to be nonhuman, according to a spokeswoman for the medical examiners office, who added it was not an animal.

Officers responded to a well-being check in the block on Washtenaw around 7 p.m. Monday. The owner of the West Ridge neighborhood house  who rented the rooms out  had been missing for approximately 24 hours, the tenant who called police told them.

The tenant also told police the residents of the home were scared of one of the other people who lived there.

Many of the tenants who lived in this house were afraid of this individual, Deenihan said of Kolalou. There were several 911 calls regarding tenants and this defendant who was just charged.

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Its a lot of information, its all happening at the same time, and obviously its still an active investigation, Deenihan said at an earlier news conference Tuesday.

The tenant that the others were afraid of, Deenihan said, had recently called a tow truck and carried out a heavy bag. The individual dumped the large bag in a garbage can at Foster Beach, police said.

Detectives discovered bloody rags and towels inside the can and secured the scene. The can and its contents were transported to the medical examiners office Tuesday morning.

Based on that evidence, detectives returned to the residence and found Walkers remains in the freezer, police said. They then obtained a search warrant to search the house.

In the meantime, the tow truck driver called police and said the person he was transporting had pulled a knife on him. In responding to the scene, officers took the person into custody for aggravated assault with a knife.

Once at police headquarters, the individual invoked their right to remain silent in regard to the homicide investigation, Deenihan said Tuesday.

Arnold Walker, who was outside his sisters home on Washtenaw Wednesday evening just before the news conference started, said of her, Music was her thing, and described her as a kind and caring person.

She was a pillar of the community. She cared for the young and old, her brother said.

Frances Walker, who began playing music on the cornet before moving on to the piano and the organ, graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a music degree and earned a masters from Northwestern University, also in music. She grew up in Downers Grove, one of seven children. She also arranged music and accompanied choirs in church, her brother said.

She and her fellow piano students called each other their pianimals, said Arnold Walker, 67.

She was generous with her time and she had many social friends of different generations, he said.

Frances Walker and her husband were getting ready for the next chapter in their lives.

They were preparing to retire, her brother said. They were deciding where to retire and live when this happened.
A home warranty dispatcher said she confided in her supervisor about a panic attack, and how she was prescribed a new medication for her anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

That disclosure got her fired, according to federal authorities.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a disability discrimination lawsuit against Illinois-based Pivotal Home Solutions in September 2021, according to court records.

Now the home warranty company has agreed to settle the lawsuit, according to an Oct. 13 news release.

In settling, Pivotal will pay the former employee $175,000, authorities said.

The EEOC found during its pre-suit investigation of this charge that the employee was terminated because of her disability, in violation of the (Americans with Disabilities Act), Julianne Bowman, district director of EEOCs Chicago office, said in a statement.

The defense attorney representing Pivotal Home Solutions, headquartered in Naperville, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on Oct. 13.

Succeeded in her role

The employee began working with Pivotal in July 2017 through a staffing firm, according to the complaint filed in the Northern District of Illinois. Her placement with the company was open-ended and not set to last for a particular term.

In January 2018, while still working with Pivotal, prosecutors said she qualified as someone with a disability under the ADA. She was diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety.

On Jan. 23, 2018, she told her boss about her panic attack and new medication, according to the lawsuit.

The next day, prosecutors said her supervisor contacted the staffing company and he instructed them to end her assignment because (she) had a nervous breakdown.

In two of the phone calls, documented by representatives of the staffing company, the supervisor indicated that the employee had no performance issues but that he wanted to separate her anyway because he believed that the environment was too stressful for her, authorities said.

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The staffing company told the supervisor of the risk in firing an employee over a medical condition that does not affect work performance, but he insisted in ending her assignment, according to the lawsuit.

The worker was then terminated.

Hiring employees through a staffing company is not a blank check to discriminate against them because of their disability, Bowman said in a statement. The ADA protects employees hired through staffing companies just as it protects permanent employees.

During the employees time with Pivotal, authorities said she succeeded in her role, received no negative performance evaluations, and was told that she would likely be hired to work directly for Pivotal instead of through the staffing agency.

As part of a three-year consent decree, Pivotal will be required to update policies to prohibit discrimination and provide annual training to managers and all human resources employees, according to the news release. The company is also forbidden from discriminating and retaliating against any worker due to disabilities.

Individuals with mental health impairments often face unfair stereotypes in the workplace. They are treated as fragile or incapable regardless of how successfully they have fulfilled their role, Gregory Gochanour, the regional attorney of EEOCs Chicago office, said in the release. In this case, Pivotal punished a good employee for doing nothing other than informing her supervisor about her condition.

This resolution helped bring some justice to this employee and will likely lead Pivotal and other employers to follow the law and respect the rights of their employees with impairments, including their temporary employees, he continued.

Tractor Supply Co. manager made it known worker had HIV before she was fired, feds say

He had a heart attack at work, then the New York security firm fired him, feds say

Hobby Lobby wouldnt let Kansas worker use service dog, then fired her, feds say
The world-famous Iguazu Falls, a popular tourist attraction in South America, is once again drawing attention on the world stage as it thundered to life on Wednesday with exceptional flow rates that have been described as unusually high. The spectacle occurred after heavy rainfall affected the region.

The falls are made up of 275 cascades tumbling over towering cliffs on the border of Brazil and Argentina. The normal flow of water over the falls is 396,258 gallons of water per second, and at midweek, the flow registered at 3.8 million gallons of water per second.

With a flow 10 times greater than usual, authorities were forced to close the tourist walkway on the Brazilian side Wednesday due to safety concerns, according to AFP. This walkway is one of the tourist-frequented points because it provides viewing access to the Devil's Throat, a set of waterfalls that make up the main attraction of the park.

The Iguazu Falls had a water flow 10 times greater than normal on Oct. 12, 2022, following heavy rain. (AFP)

On the Argentine side, walkways had been closed since Tuesday for the same reasons.

Wemerson Augusto, the communications coordinator of the park, told AFP this is an "atypical" phenomenon for October. He explained that is why officials decided to do a precautionary closure of the walkways while keeping the park still open to visitors.

The civil defense of Parana, the southern Brazilian state where the heavy rainfall was measured, said 24 municipalities were impacted as well. "Severe events" such as flooding forced more than 1,200 residents to evacuate the area and left almost 400 homes damaged, according to AFP.

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This is the highest flow in the falls since June 2014, when the flow peaked at 12.4 million gallons of water per second.

This isn't the only time that flow surged in recent years. In fact, in June of this year, torrential rainfall caused the flow to increase to five times the normal rush of water.

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That episode followed a drought period in 2020 that saw the falls' thundering cascades dry to a trickle at a time when it typically reaches its peak. Moderate drought conditions led to the neighboring Parana River plunging to its lowest level in 50 years by the end of April 2020, causing ships to be stranded and weakening hydropower production, according to Reuters.

Iguazu Falls in Foz do Iguazu, Brazil, Saturday, March 14, 2015. The waterfalls, on the border of Argentina and Brazil, are part of the Guarani Aquifer, one of the world's major underground reserves of fresh water. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz)

But, after heavy rainfall, the 2.6 million gallons of water per second overflowed the river in June 2022, accelerated the flow of the falls and destroyed much of the railing and footbridges in Devil's Throat (or "Garganta del Diablo" in Spanish), the steepest section of the park due to its 269-foot drop. The structures were quickly replaced and sightseers were invited back in, park officials said.

No damages have been reported this time around.

"This amount of water gives the waterfall a unique beauty," Iguazu National Park Ranger Rodrigo Castillo told AFP in June. "There are many people who come here in a dry season and complain that there is no water. The people who come now and see all this water, it's like something that is also intimidating."

FILE - This March 15, 2015 file photo shows a rainbow at Iguazu Falls from the Brazilian side in Foz do Iguazu, Brazil. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz, File)

The Iguazu Falls are considered one of the most dramatic natural wonders of the world, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. They are second in height only to Victoria Falls, a set of waterfalls at the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe in Africa.

When the falls flow at or above capacity, as seen in recent videos, they are a magnificent force of nature to behold and hear.

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Investigations into the suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia with Europe are "progressing well", despite World War II munitions on the seabed, Denmark said Thursday.

"It's a zone marked by the presence of munitions -- used or not -- from World War II," Danish Defence Minister Morten Bodskov told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of the NATO defence alliance in Brussels.

"There's a lot of stuff at the bottom of the sea, so it's not so easy."

"But the work is continuing and going well," he added.

The two Nord Stream pipelines were damaged by four explosions under the Baltic Sea at the end of September, causing major gas leaks.

Sweden has announced that preliminary underwater inspections backed up suspicions of probable sabotage.

"With Sweden and Germany, Denmark is carrying out an inquiry which is progressing well," the minister said.

"What we discover will of course be made public."

With fingers being pointed at Russia for the sabotage, Moscow demanded to be part of the investigations into the explosions which happened in international waters, but Copenhagen and Stockholm refused.

Russia's ambassador to Copenhagen said the credibility of the inquiry was undermined by Moscow's absence.

But Sweden's outgoing Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson told Moscow to open its own investigation.

Both Moscow and Washington have denied responsibility for the gas leaks.

cbw/map/bp/imm
Tug boats escort USS Zumwalt into harbor for a port visit in Yokosuka, Japan on September 26. US Navy/Seaman Darren Cordoviz

US Navy destroyer USS Zumwalt is on a tour of the Pacific, making visits to Guam and Japan.

The trip is the farthest the futuristic stealth warship has been from home since it entered service.

It comes after years of mechanical problems and debates about the ship's role in the fleet.

The US Navy's most advanced destroyer may finally be turning over a new operational leaf after years of maintenance delays, budget headaches, and debates about its role in the fleet.

USS Zumwalt, the lead ship of the Zumwalt-class stealth destroyers, made a port call in Guam on September 19 and arrived in Japan on September 26. It departed Japan on October 8.

The trip is the farthest the warship has been from its home port in San Diego since it was commissioned in 2016. It's also a chance to figure out what the Zumwalt class will actually do for the Navy.

"While the ship and crew are being tasked as ships normally would be, their employment is part of the fleet integration process of introducing a class of ship into the operational environment and understanding how it can best operate with other ships/platforms," a Navy official told CNN.

USS Zumwalt in Yokosuka on September 26. US Navy/Seaman Darren Cordoviz

The Zumwalts  Zumwalt, USS Michael Monsoor, and USS Lyndon B. Johnson, each of which cost about $8 billion  were originally designed with the Advanced Gun System, which was to fire Long Range Land-Attack Projectiles, a rocket-assisted 155 mm round that is "the most accurate and longest-range guided projectile," according to its manufacturer, Lockheed Martin.

With those rounds, the Zumwalts were to provide fire support to forces ashore and conduct other operations in near-shore waters, but as the Navy cut its planned order of Zumwalt-class ships from nearly 30 to just three, the cost of those rounds rose to almost $1 million apiece.

Unable to fulfill their intended role, the Zumwalts were reassigned, with the Navy deciding to arm them with up to 12 new hypersonic missiles.

As part of that plan, the ships' guns are to be removed and replaced with the vertical launcher for the Common Hypersonic Glide Body. The modifications are set to begin in 2023, a US Navy official told USNI News.

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USS Zumwalt the Pacific Ocean on April 10. US Navy/MCS2 Malcolm Kelley

In addition to technological challenges, the ships have faced years of maintenance hiccups, such as a malfunction in USS Zumwalt's propulsion system that left it stuck in the Panama Canal in 2016 and needing to be towed out  its second breakdown during its first few months in service.

While the Zumwalts' new technology hasn't always worked out, sailors have complemented its design.

While underway off of Alaska in 2019, the crew used a storm to test the ship's handling in heavy seas. Capt. Andrew Carlson said that despite 13- to 20-foot waves, the tumblehome hull design, which works to right the ship more quickly than previous designs, made it easier to handle.

"All told I'd rather be on that ship than any other ship I've been on," Carlson told Defense News of the Zumwalt. "For those of us who have been on cruisers, especially up top, you kind of lean over 15 degrees and you wonder if you are going to come back. We didn't experience any of that."

Years in the making

Sailors handle line aboard USS Zumwalt during a refueling-at-sea in the Philippine Sea on September 5. US Navy/MCS2 Jaimar Carson Bondurant

While the Navy says USS Zumwalt's time in the Pacific is not officially a deployment, the port call in Guam highlights the US's persistent presence in the region.

"This port call is a testament to the crew's hard work and the resiliency of the ship," Capt. Amy McInnis, Zumwalt's commanding officer, said after arrival in Guam.

While Zumwalt was in Japan, its sailors took on supplies, including food, repair parts, and mail. The ship's command master chief, Andrew Zalewski, said that even though the stop in Japan "seems ordinary," the visit "was actually a culmination of years of hard work and planning."

Operating the destroyer with the US Navy's 7th Fleet and alongside allies and partners "is an important step" for the Zumwalts and for the fleet, said Lt. Katherine Serrano, a public affairs officer with Task Force 71 and Destroyer Squadron 15, to which the Zumwalt is currently assigned.

Sailors stand watch on the bridge of USS Zumwalt while the ship departs Yokosuka on October 8. US Navy/MCS2 Jaimar Carson Bondurant

"Zumwalt-class destroyers maximize stealth, size, power, and computing capacity  fielding an array of weapons systems and cutting-edge technologies to fight forces in the air, on and under the sea, and on land," Serrano told Insider.

As tensions with China have risen over Taiwan and other issues, Beijing has repeatedly criticized US military activity in the region, including US Navy transits through waters claimed by Beijing.

In July, China's Foreign Ministry called the US's so-called freedom of navigation exercises an attempt to "undermine regional peace and stability."

US officials often emphasize their network of alliances in the region and say their forces will "continue to fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows."

Rachel Nostrant is a US-based journalist with work published in New York magazine, VTDigger, Military Times, and Defense News. She has covered topics including environmental contamination outside of military bases, the murder of US Army soldier Vanessa Guillen, rising tensions between China and Taiwan, and the war in Ukraine.

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KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022 20:46

Andrii Yermak, the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, made an "absolute demand" to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to send a mission within three days to the prison camp in the occupied Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners are held.

Source: Yermak on Telegram

Quote: "Today we gave the International Committee of the Red Cross three days to send a mission to the penal colony in Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war are being held. I made this an uncontested demand."

"Otherwise, Ukraine will use all possible informational and diplomatic means to move this issue forward. Together with our partners, we will be able to find a way to form an expert group and people who will be ready to fulfil the mission that the Red Cross should fulfil."

Details: Yermak reported that the killing of Ukrainian prisoners in Olenivka at the end of July was discussed on Thursday during a video conference with representatives of the ICRC and other international organisations.

Quote: "I do not understand why the Red Cross mission has not yet arrived in Olenivka during this entire period. There is no time to wait because human lives are at stake. Therefore, we call for the Red Cross mission with representatives of the international media to arrive in Ukraine within three days, even if no confirmation is received from Russia by that time. And we are sure that Russia is not interested in the truth being known. We call for a mission to be sent to the front line until Russia issues these permits.

We call to resolve this issue and send the ICRC mission by 17 October. Ukraine, for its part, will contribute to this mission in every possible way. We are ready to get involved in this. Our MPs are ready to go there. Our esteemed partners  representatives of the countries that are with us today, I am sure, are also ready to help today so that the leading channels and mass media arrive. As it happens, for example, when the IAEA mission arrives."

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Background:

On 29 July, the Russian media reported on the shelling of the colony in Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast, where Ukrainian prisoners were held. Propagandists claimed that there were at least 53 dead.

The General Staff Of Ukraine denied the accusations of the Russian Federation that the attack was carried out by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to the General Staff, the Russians tried to hide the torture and murder of prisoners.

Intelligence believes that the killing of Ukrainian prisoners in Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast, was organised by the Wagner Group [a Russian private military company] on the personal instructions of Yevgeny Prigozhin, without coordination with the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has intercepted telephone conversations in which the occupiers confirm that Russian troops were responsible for the explosion in the occupied Olenivka colony. Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin stated that, according to preliminary data of international experts, prisoners in the occupied Olenivka colony could have been killed with thermobaric weapons

At the beginning of September, the UN stated that Russia does not provide access to Ukrainian prisoners of war, and at the beginning of October, the UN stated that their mission cannot go to the territory of the detention centre in Olenivka due to the lack of security guarantees.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
New York Attorney General Letitia Jamess (D) office on Thursday urged a state judge to appoint an independent party to monitor the Trump Organizations upcoming financial submissions, suggesting the Trumps cannot be trusted to honestly submit the information to its lenders as Jamess fraud lawsuit proceeds.

James filed a civil suit in the New York Supreme Courts Manhattan division last month against members of the Trump family and their business, alleging they misleadingly inflated property values for years for tax and loan benefits.

Thursdays motion also asks the judge to prevent the Trump Organization from restructuring its business or moving assets without court approval, raising concerns that Trump executives are already doing so to shield the business from an unfavorable decision in the case.

Our investigation uncovered the fact that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization engaged in significant fraud to inflate his personal net worth by billions of dollars to illegally enrich himself and cheat the system, James said in a statement.

Since we filed this sweeping lawsuit last month, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have continued those same fraudulent practices and taken measures to evade responsibility, she continued. Today, we are seeking an immediate stop to these actions because Mr. Trump should not get to play by different rules.

The filing alleges that on the same day Jamess office announced the fraud suit, the Trump Organization registered a new business entity in New York that was incorporated in Delaware about a week prior.

Beyond just the continuation of its prior fraud, the Trump Organization now appears to be taking steps to restructure its business to avoid existing responsibilities under New York law, the suit states.

Trump attorney Alina Habba called Jamess filing another stunt in a statement to The Hill.

The [Office of the Attorney Generals] filing is nothing more than a thinly-veiled attempt to keep this case with Justice Engoron rather than have it transferred to the Commercial Division where it belongs, Habba said. We have repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper. This is simply another stunt which Ms. James hopes will aid her failing political campaign.

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The attorney generals filing said that assurances from Trumps attorneys about the new entities were not concrete enough.

Jamess office also argued that ongoing misconduct at the Trump Organization is likely given the centrality of a particular cast of characters in the fraudulent conduct  and the continued role of many of them in the closely held Trump Organization.

Thursdays motion also accuses the former president and Eric Trump of refusing service of the complaint filed last month, asking the judge to allow the attorney generals office to serve them electronically.

The former president and other members of his family have denounced Jamess suit as politically motivated, pointing to her past promises to go after the Trump familys business practices.

Jamess filing of the suit last month marked the culmination of her offices three-year investigation into the Trump Organization.

She is seeking $250 million in financial penalties and an order permanently barring Trump and three of his children  Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump  from serving as an officer or director in any New York corporation.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a motion to block Donald Trump and his business from moving assets to evade liability after her office launched a blockbuster lawsuit alleging widespread fraud within the Trump Organization.

The filing requests that Trump and his associates must first get court approval before transferring assets to another entity. She also is requesting a court-appointed independent monitor to oversee that compliance.

Ms James also is seeking the courts permission to serve the former president and his son Eric Trump electronically, as both defendants and their counsels have refused to accept service of the complaints for almost a month, according to a statement from her office.

Our investigation uncovered the fact that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization engaged in significant fraud to inflate his personal net worth by billions of dollars to illegally enrich himself and cheat the system, Ms James said in a statement on 13 October.

Since we filed this sweeping lawsuit last month, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have continued those same fraudulent practices and taken measures to evade responsibility, she added. We are seeking an immediate stop to these actions because Mr Trump should not get to play by different rules.

A high-stakes civil lawsuit filed by Ms Jamess office on 21 September alleges that the former president, his three eldest children, his business empure and associates worked to falsely inflate the value of his net woth by billions of dollars to gain tax benefits and other benefits from insurers and financial institutions.

The suit is the result of a three-year investigation allegedly revealing how Mr Trump cheated all of us by inflating his net worth to unjustly enrich himself and to cheat the system, she said from New York last month.

After the Trump Organization became aware of the investigation, Mr Trump and his associates have continued to use many practices they knew to be improper or fraudulent  including a 2021 statement of financial condition, according to Ms Jamess office.

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The organisation appears to be taking steps to restructure its business to evade the reaches of the lawsuit, according to her office.

The same day the suit was filed, the Trump Organization registered a new entity with the New York Secretary of State titled Trump Organization II LLC.

That entity is a foreign corporation that was incorporated in Delaware, according to Ms Jamess office. The Trump Organization has since refused to provide any assurance that it will not seek to move assets out of New York to evade legal accountability.

Mr Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

The New York attorney general probe and subsequent lawsuit are among several facing the former president, including a criminal inquiry in Manhattan over allegations of fraud and tax evastion, a federal investigation for his alleged mishandling of sensitive White House documents at his Mar-a-Lago home, and a congressional probe into the events leading up to and surrounding the 6 January, 2021 attack on the US Capitol, mounted by a mob of his supporters.
KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO  THURSDAY, 13 OCTOBER 2022, 22:49

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has responsibilities  first and foremost, moral responsibilities  and that its duty is to visit the prison camp in Olenivka, on the Russian-occupied territory of Donetsk Oblast, where Ukrainian prisoners of war are held.

Source: President Zelenskyys video address

Details: President Zelenskyy reiterated that an online meeting took place on Thursday, 13 October, between the Ukrainian officials responsible for freeing Ukrainian prisoners of war and the representatives of the ICRC and other international organisations involved in issues around the treatment and release of prisoners of war. Zelenskyy said that "very important things" were said during those meetings.

Quote from Zelenskyy: "I believe that the International Committee of the Red Cross is not a club with privileges where they get paid and enjoy life. The Red Cross has obligations, primarily of a moral nature. The mandate of the Red Cross must be fulfilled. It is necessary to immediately do what is completely logical for the Red Cross.

There is Olenivka [which is,] [i]n fact, a concentration camp where our prisoners are kept. Access to them is required, as it was stipulated. The Red Cross can make it happen. But you have to try to make it happen. Ukraine is ready to facilitate this."

More details: Zelenskyy said that the ICRC mission could be modelled on the International Atomic Energy Agency mission [at Ukraines Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant - ed.].

"But this requires leadership. Conscientiousness is required. It is necessary to understand who created such an institution as the Red Cross and for what purpose," he said.

Previously: Andrii Yermak, the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, demanded that the International Committee of the Red Cross send a mission to the prison camp in the Russian-occupied town Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners are held, within three days.

Story continues

Background:

On 29 July, the Russian media reported that the prison camp in Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast, where Ukrainian prisoners were held, was shelled. Russian propagandists claimed that at least 53 Ukrainian prisoners were killed.

The General Staff Of the Armed Forces of Ukraine denied the accusations of the Russian Federation that the attack was carried out by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to the General Staff, the Russians carried out the attack themselves in order to hide the torture and murder of Ukrainian prisoners.

Ukraines Intelligence believes that the killing of Ukrainian prisoners in Olenivka was organised by the Wagner Group [a Russian private military company - ed.] on the personal order of Yevgeny Prigozhin [the founder of the Wagner Group and Vladimirs Putin close ally - ed.], without input from the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defence.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has intercepted telephone conversations in which the Russians confirm that Russian forces were responsible for the explosion in the Olenivka prison camp. Andrii Kostin, Prosecutor General of Ukraine, stated that preliminary data from international experts indicates that Ukrainian prisoners could have been killed using thermobaric weapons.

At the beginning of September, the UN stated that Russia has failed to grant access to Ukrainian prisoners of war [to international observers]. In early October, the UN stated that their mission cannot visit the Olenivka prison camp due to the lack of security guarantees.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
The Nelson County Commonwealths Attorneys Office has secured a nearly $700,000 federal grant to establish an adult drug court in the county, the culmination of a yearlong effort to get the program off the ground.

The $699,640 grant is administered through the Department of Justices Bureau of Justice Assistances Fiscal Year 2022 Adult Drug Court Discretionary Program and will provide for four years of staffing, supplies and other activities for the drug court, the commonwealths attorneys office announced Oct. 11.

Nelson County Drug Court stakeholders attended National Association of Drug Court Professionals training in March, and in May the countys drug court program was approved by the Supreme Courts Drug Treatment Court Advisory Committee, according to a release.

The Nelson County Drug Court will accept non-violent substance-using felony defendants into an 18-month intensive program designed to promote sobriety and reduce repeat offenses. In order to graduate, participants in the Court will have to demonstrate extended sobriety, seek and maintain employment, and lead a crime-free life in order to have their charges reduced or dismissed, the release reads.

Nelson Commonwealths Attorney Daniel Rutherford appeared before the Board of Supervisors on Oct. 11 to make the announcement and thank the board for its support.

It has been a tremendous effort that will help the citizens of Nelson County. It will take away a lot of the burden of the citizens having to pay for drug court as this grant pays for a vast majority of the services, Rutherford said.

The Nelson drug court will meet and operate from the Nelson County Courthouse and seeks to serve about 75 participants over the four-year grant period, according to the Bureau of Justice Assistance website.

Judge Michael Doucette will serve as drug court judge and Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Will Flory will act as de facto coordinator until a coordinator is hired. Region Ten Community Services Board will provide treatment services for participants.

The minimum length of the program is 14 months but the Drug Court Planning Committee anticipates most participants will complete the program in about 18 months.

Drug court is just a tool my office will be using. Drug court is for addicts ... Its not for drug dealers. Its not for violent offenders. It will be a tool to help people break their addiction, Rutherford told supervisors.

It will help with the services we offer because people will be in the cycle less, in the courts less, using services less if theyre able to beat their addiction, he said. And it will help us free up more resources to go after traffickers, to go after violent offenders, and it will also free up some space in the jail.

Rutherford noted in the release his office deals with the disease of addiction every day and implementing a drug court has been a priority in striving to bring long-term rehabilitation for addicts and healing for affected families.

This will help create a healthier and more prosperous Nelson County.
Open, locks, Whoever knocks!

So bid the enigmatic witches of playwright William Shakespeares classic, haunting tragedy, "Macbeth"  and so bids Wolfbane Productions to audiences who arrive to the Silver Thorn tavern in Appomattox for a new, immersive adaptation of the play this month.

Co-founder and artistic director of Appomattox-based Wolfbane Productions, Dustin Williams  who also stars as Macduff, part of Macbeth's circle and the loophole to a prophecy who brings down the tyrannical usurper  set this immersive version of William Shakespeares Scottish Play in pre-history Scotland, more around the time of the historical Macbeth, who lived and ruled in the 1000s. Through a remix of the original script for "Macbeth," plus borrowing lines from additional Shakespearean works, Williams brought Wolfbanes "Macbeth" to life, intertwining true history and Shakespeares historical fiction angle like intricate Celtic knots.

Shakespeares famous tale of ambition, corruption, betrayal, the torture of guilt, and the bloody consequences of it all is retold through the eyes of Lady Macbeth, the cunning, powerful leading lady portrayed by Shakespeare as ruthless and conniving. The gaps in her story left in the original plays script are filled in and brought to the forefront as Williams crafted the adaptation around the historical queen of Scotland, Gruoch, and her character as portrayed in theater.

Actor and artist Sabina Petra, who plays Lady Macbeth/Gruoch in Wolfbanes adaptation, said having the Celtic/Pictish queen in a narrator role feels very natural.

Although Williams said his "Macbeth" adaptation is not meant to be historically accurate  neither was Shakespeares original  history and research still heavily inspired this version of the story.

In addition to employing classical fantasy flair reminiscent of author George R. R. Martin's "Game of Thrones" book series  made into a hit HBO show  the role-playing video game "Skyrim," and contemporary Viking and medieval-set media, Williams and the Wolfbane team were heavily inspired by history. In this adaptation, Williams captured more cultural nuance: the nation the world knows as Scotland today was vastly different in the 1000s, and diverse. Wolfbane drew upon the Picts, and Viking influences brought by Scandinavian and Nordic peoples that impacted Scotland and the old kingdom of Moray, lending a level of authenticity to the production.

We had fun trying to figure out what that culture looked like that was kind of a mashup between Scottish, Irish, and Nordic/Viking, Williams said.

For those who may have experienced Wolfbane's last production of "Macbeth" at Devils Backbone brewery in 2014, this adaptation is a new story and setting, Williams said.

Partly influenced by Williamss trip to Scotland a few years ago, which included visits to Iron Age sites and regions where Macbeth was set, the immersive experience invites the audience into the Silver Thorn mead hall.

The tavern is a character in itself, Williams said. In fact, that was always the vision when the company constructed the indoor/outdoor venue. He had always envisioned "Macbeth" being the first major production in the space, which was completed during COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns.

I think the more we started working on this show, the more I realized that the pub had to be a featured character, and it became a big character, so the show has kind of become a ghost story that takes place in the haunted Silver Thorn pub, Williams said.

At the wooden banquet tables of the Silver Thorn, under the glow of candlelight and torches, breathing in the heady scents of smoke and sage, attendees can enjoy mead and refreshments amidst decor of leather hides and clan banners of the plays main characters. They can toast to Scottish victories, tremble at the thunder and lightning, and join in a reel or two. It also is advisable to wear something one would not mind potentially getting a little (stage) blood spatter on.

I believe that theater is meant to be not seen on a separate place, but be experienced, Williams said. You can watch 'Macbeth' on the stage and its easy for somebody to nap, but theres no way somebodys going to get to nap in this space when were literally running through with swords in front of your face, and screaming at you, and getting you up to dance. Or get blood on you.

The plays immersive approach calls to mind Shakespeares original staging conditions, where audience members got to sit on stage and interact with the actors during performances.

Working with historical inspiration opened the door not only for an exploration of the Picts and Vikings, but for a glimpse into the real life of a remarkable Celtic woman.

The first documented queen of Scotland, Gruoch was a royal in her own right. She came from a family with blood claims to both the throne of Scotland, and the kingdom of Moray, a separate entity with its own monarch at the time.

Lady Macbeth was really a key to the throne, Williams said. That really inspired a lot of our reading.

Just as portrayed in Williams adaptation, in which Gruoch starts off married to King Duncan, Gruoch was married to someone else before Macbeth. Her first husband was Gille Coemgain Macrory, Earl of Moray, who was Macbeths cousin, according to British Peerage and other sources. Their marriage was not a long one, however: Gruoch was widowed and left with a young son when Macrory was killed. It was after this that she took Macbeth as her next husband. Macbeths marriage to Gruoch was politically strategic; it helped solidify his own claim to the line of succession in Scotland, as well as Moray. He took kingship in both his own name and the lady Gruochs  now Lady Macbeth. Through this union, they solidified their power and historically brought stability to Scotland during their reign.

However Gruoch/Lady Macbeth is depicted in character by Shakespeare, her historical significance cannot be overstated, both on stage and in real life.

By giving some of Macbeths scripted lines to Gruoch/Lady Macbeth, and likewise giving some of Lady Macbeths traditional lines to Macbeth himself, Williams made Gruoch more powerful through Shakespeares own words, Petra said.

For Petra, allowing Gruoch/Lady Macbeth to explain herself was significant and rewarding. She said she views the story as one of a woman claiming her own agency and autonomy through obtaining power, rather than merely a power-hungry, vindictive, selfish lady.

When you read 'Macbeth,' yes, the ladys always kind of the driving force, but its very easy to see her as a maliciously driving force, hungry for power and things like that. For me, it was always about her getting autonomy over her own life back, Petra said. Now, because the narration kind of shifted, and because of the big change that she is married to Duncan in the beginning  it becomes not only a struggle for the autonomy over her own life, but a struggle for the love [of] her life. It becomes much more a fight for love, and power is something that comes with it as a secondary thing for her. That changed the whole narrative for me.

Petra said this story  particularly Williams adaptation  is one of fierce, unadulterated love, a love that someone would do anything for, even something nefarious.

Extended travels in Scotland prior to the show helped Petra better understand the character of the people Gruoch/Lady Macbeth came from, she said. Being on Scottish soil, seeing the rugged and wonderfully wild landscapes, exploring sites of antiquity where the footprints of ancient people remain, and breathing the Celtic air brought to life the context in which the lands ancient populations had to survive in.

That trip also helped Petra create a memory around Lady Macbeth/Gruoch.

I tried to really envision what it was like to meet Macbeth at 11 years old, and Banquo as well, and grow up together with Banquo as our brother, basically, Petra said. To love each other so passionately, to steal away in the night, to be ripped from my bed in the middle of the night to marry a man I didnt know was three times as old [as me]. To have a child and lose that child.

The cast of 12 portrays the roughly 20 characters in the show, featuring the likes of nobles, witches, servants, murderers, warriors and spectral figures.

Christine Yepsen, technical director and house manager for Wolfbane Productions, worked to recreate pre-history Scotland in 21st-century Appomattox.

We do draw upon a lot of fantasy elements at the same time, because we know audiences kind of expect certain things, she said. We just really tried to stay rustic with everything that we brought into it, even down to the horned cups and pewter mugs that they use in the banquet hall.

Wooden planking was donated from a local sawmill, and the leather hides hung in the Silver Thorn also were donated from a local business, Yepsen said. She designed clan banners based on the animals ascribed to various characters in Shakespeares play: Macduff as the lion, Macbeth as a dragon, Banquo as a wolf. Each clan banner is adorned with Celtic knots, an art form that Yepsen has a personal soft spot for, as she said part of her heritage is Irish.

For a tribal feel largely pertaining to the famous, massively influential witches who hold tremendous sway over Macbeth, chandelier fixtures made with branches and adorned with animal bones and other trinkets were added to the scene.

Costuming, too, was carefully designed and curated. Yepsen opted for neutral, earthy tones, and layers featuring linens with leather and furs for a textured look. You wont see the iconic Scottish tartans, the plaid clan prints that are so familiar today; those did not exist in Macbeths era, Yepsen explained, and so were not included.

With witches, boiling cauldrons, ghastly apparitions, prophecy and curses, dark and stormy nights, and bone-chilling hauntings, "Macbeth" makes for a perfect spooky season play  an idea not lost on Wolfbane. Double, double toil and trouble is possibly one of the most famous, universally known witch chants, courtesy of Shakespeare and the three weird sisters of the Scottish play  witches who, in Wolfbanes version of the tale, were called in by Lady Macbeth/Gruoch to aid in her designs.

Audiences are invited to screw your courage to the sticking place and find show dates and times, ticket prices and more information online at wolfbane.org.
DES MOINES  Up to $96 million in business capital, including loans, will be made available to Iowa start-ups and small and veteran-owned businesses under a state plan approved this week by the federal treasury department.

The funding is being made available through the federal State Small Business Credit Initiative, a program that was created in 2010 and renewed and expanded in the latest federal pandemic relief package, the American Rescue Plan.

This is an historic investment in entrepreneurship, small business growth, and innovation through the American Rescue Plan that will help reduce barriers to capital access for traditionally underserved communities, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said in a statement. Im excited to see how these SSBCI funds will promote equitable economic growth across the country.

Iowas plan was submitted by the states economic development department. According to the department, the plan calls for:

$31 million to a venture capital co-investment fund to process and hold equity investments in private companies and ensure investments are qualified.

$28 million for a manufacturing loan program to help Iowa manufacturers invest in the new technologies that are transforming the industry.

$22 million for a venture capital innovation fund to increase funding opportunities across the states assistance programs for entrepreneurs.

$15 million for a small business collateral support program to help small businesses offset collateral shortfalls as they secure loans through commercial lenders.

Small businesses and entrepreneurs dream big, drive Iowas economy and make our communities better places to live, Gov. Kim Reynolds said in a statement. Reynolds at the time of its passage opposed the federal pandemic relief package.

Iowa had the fastest economic recovery through the pandemic in large part because of the creativity and resilience of our small businesses, Reynolds said in her statement. This funding will build on the momentum by investing in our small businesses and entrepreneurs just as they have chosen to invest in Iowa.

The White House said the programs are designed to help Iowa retain high-potential startup businesses that might otherwise relocate to areas with greater access to capital, and could have an impact on rural manufacturers.

Iowas small businesses have faced some of the biggest economic challenges of the last few years, but they also have some of the greatest success stories and weve seen a record-breaking surge in new businesses for two years in a row, Debi Durham, executive director of the Iowa Economic Development Agency and the Iowa Finance Authority, said in a statement. Our team looks forward to working with our small business and innovation partners to bring these new efforts to life.

The state said a process for applying for the business capital and loans still is underway and more information would be provided at iowaeda.com/ssbci.

In 2021, Americans applied to start 5.4 million new businesses, which was 20% more than any other year on record; and small businesses with fewer than 50 workers created 2.8 million jobs, the highest number recorded in a single year, according to the White House.
Council Bluffs firefighters visited Roosevelt Elementary School Wednesday to teach students about fire safety.

The stop at Roosevelt was one of more than a dozen visits firefighters make to local schools in October in connection with Fire Prevention Week, said Capt. Dan Roberts, public education coordinator for the Council Bluffs Fire Department.

We try to go to every elementary school in the city  public or private, he said.

Firefighter Jordan Pettit spoke to students in kindergarten through third grade in the gymnasium to start the lesson.

School is one of our safest places we can be, Pettit told students. Weve got teachers walking around, weve got smoke detectors and weve got sprinklers. Its very important you have smoke detectors in your house.

Its also important to check the batteries periodically to make sure they are still working, he said.

Families should have a fire escape plan and a safe place to meet outside away from the house, Pettit said. As the 2022 Fire Prevention Week theme states, Fire wont wait, plan your escape.

We want you to know how to get out of your house the fastest and safest way, he said. Everyone needs to know where to go.

The front door is the fastest way, if you can get to it safely, he said.

Pettit went over what students should do if they are in their bedrooms and the smoke detector goes off.

Use the back of your hand, which is more sensitive, to see if the door feels hot, he said. If not, slowly open the door and check the hall for smoke and fire. If there is no fire, use the hallway to get to the nearest door. If there is smoke, crawl, since smoke rises.

If the door is hot, have a second escape route you can use, Pettit said. If your bedroom is on the ground floor, you should learn how to open your window and climb out. If it is on the second or third floor, stay inside by the window and yell for help. Cover your face (with part of your shirt or other fabric) to keep from breathing too much smoke.

We want to make sure everybodys out of the house, he said. And once youre out of the house, we want you to stay out.

If there are other people or pets still in the house, tell firefighters so they can rescue them, Pettit said.

Then Firefighter Zack Sadler put on the boots, suit, gloves, helmet, mask and oxygen tank firefighters wear to enter a burning house and walked around the room. Although a firefighter might look kind of scary with his mask and gear on, hes there to help, Pettit said.

Next, kindergartners and first-graders got to meet Gibson, an Accelerant Detection Canine, and Roberts, his handler.

Meanwhile, second- and third-grade students went outside and divided into several groups. While one group looked at a fire truck and went through the cab under the supervision of Capt. Curtis McKeon, another group learned about a thermal imaging camera from Firefighter Chuck Jones and another group heard from Engineer Nate Geier, who usually drives one of the trucks, about equipment on the truck.

Finally, second-graders participated in a Stay Low and Go exercise in the departments Safety House  a converted camper-trailer.
Iowa pork producers could be in trouble pending a decision in a Supreme Court case over a California law that would regulate how pork is produced, trade groups say.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case on Tuesday brought over Californias Proposition 12, a ballot measure that requires breeding sows that give birth to hogs sold for pork in California to be housed in at least 24 square feet of space. The law also has requirements for egg-laying hens and calves raised for veal, but the case pertains to the pork provisions.

Iowa farm groups have opposed a law, which they say would impose a high burden on pork producers outside California and violates the U.S. Constitutions provisions that prevent states from restricting interstate commerce.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Lori Stevermer, a Minnesota pork producer and vice president of the National Pork Producers Council, said the law could have life-changing impacts on her operation.

Stevermer doesnt have sows on her farm, but she said the law could still cause processors to not buy from her farm.

If the cost to implement in California is great, as we expect it will be, or if the market is less to us, cut off, very possibly the people that we raise pigs for will say, We dont need your farm anymore, because we dont have any place to sell our pork, and that takes us out of business.

The law was passed by a ballot measure in 2018 with the goal of improving the welfare of animals raised for meat sold in California.

Sows are generally confined to gestation crates during their pregnancy, a small stall only large enough for the pig to stand and lay down, where they cannot turn around. Some are kept in group confinement but rarely is the pen large enough to satisfy the laws space requirement.

The space requirements for sows who give birth to pigs sold for pork in California would likely be accommodated through group housing.

Iowas Republican politicians have introduced bills, written op-eds, and voiced opposition to the law, dubbing it a bacon ban and saying it would hurt Iowas producers.

Iowa trade groups argue against the law

Iowa leads the nation in pork production, marketing more than 48 million hogs in 2018 and accounting for about a third of the countrys pork production.

The Iowa Pork Producers Association and Iowa Farm Bureau have joined briefs supporting their national counterparts. The state of Iowa also joined 19 other states in supporting the National Pork Producers Councils request to overturn the law.

When asked for comment, the Iowa Pork Producers Association and Iowa Farm Bureau referred to their national trade organizations.

Eldon McAfee, a West Des Moines lawyer who represented the Iowa Pork Producers Association in court briefs, said the law would effectively require pork producers to meet Californias standards, even if their meat isnt destined for California.

Our belief is that when you have something that broad with the penalties that are involved, it will result in overregulation by many packers saying, OK, if we cant exactly trace it as a practical matter, anyway, then well require more of you to meet it so we can be sure that the meat we sell there will be compliant, he said.

Mcafee and the national pork producers also argued the biggest burden would fall on smaller pork producers, who may not have the money or access to credit to alter their facilities to meet Californias standards, and thus would lose out or have to exit the market entirely.

The national pork organization estimates that producers would need to spend up to $347 million to reconstruct housing to accommodate the requirements of Proposition 12.

But not all economists agree with that estimation. Richard Sexton and Daniel Sumner, agricultural economists at the University of California, Davis, argued in a brief the law would only cause some producers to make the switch, and it wouldnt meaningfully increase prices in other states.

Sexton and Sumners analysis found that producers would make the switch to Proposition 12-compliant facilities if it was economically viable to them, while the rest of the countrys producers would continue to produce hogs as normal.

Their research was partly funded by the National Pork Board and the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

If youre going to sell pork to the rest of North America that doesnt have Californias standards, youre not going to be cost competitive in doing that if youre imposing California standards across your entire operations, Sexton said in an interview. And so people just arent going to do that. Processors arent going to do that. Theyre not going to raise costs needlessly.

The change would require processing plants to dedicate time specifically to processing Proposition 12-compliant hogs, but Sexton said operations would adapt in ways that are economically viable.

National perspective

Lawyers for the National Pork Producers Council said in a press conference Tuesday they were encouraged by the outcome of oral arguments.

It was very hopeful to hear the justices understand the trouble that will be created by laws like proposition 12 that reach far outside the states border to try and impose the moral will of one state, Michael Formica, a lawyer for the National Pork Producers Council, said in a press conference Tuesday. ...It has a tremendous impact on pork production and pork prices, but if let stand, it would have a tremendous impact on the U.S. economy, on the flow of commerce across borders.

California argued the state has a right to prohibit the sale of certain products its citizens find immoral. The states attorney argued the law does not regulate how producers outside California can raise animals because they can choose not to sell their product in the state.

Proposition 12 bars the in-state sale of certain pork products, said California Solicitor General Michael Mongan. California voters chose to pay higher prices to serve their local interest in refusing to provide a market to products they viewed as morally objectionable and potentially unsafe.
OMAHA  A Papillion man pleaded guilty Tuesday to three counts of felony cruelty to animals resulting in death.

Edward Luben, 57, agreed to enter the guilty pleas in Sarpy County District Court in exchange for the Sarpy County Attorney's Office dismissing nine other charges of cruelty to animals, including four felonies.

Luben, who is free on bail, faces up to six years in prison when he's sentenced in January.

In December 2021, the Nebraska Humane Society and Papillion Police Department served a search warrant at Lubens house near 84th Street and Centennial Road to recover evidence of animal neglect.

Officials seized and removed 665 animals from the home, including exotic birds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals. About 70 of the 665 animals were found dead during the search, and two animals had to be euthanized later.

The Nebraska Humane Society evaluated and treated the surviving animals.

These animals were living in deplorable conditions, Deputy Sarpy County Attorney Dominique Jones said at the time. Many of them were severely malnourished or had physical impairments due to their living conditions. The fact that so many of the animals survived is a testament to the Nebraska Humane Societys work.

People with information about possible animal abuse or neglect may contact the Nebraska Humane Society at 402-444-7800, ext. 1.
Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassleys campaign announced the county chairs of the Farmers for Grassley Coalition, a group of farmers who support Grassleys reelection.

The campaign previously announced the leadership of the group, which includes Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, former presidents of the Iowa Farm Bureau and Iowa Corn Growers Association, and former Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey.

The list includes farmers from all of Iowas 99 counties. Grassley also announced a veterans coalition from the 99 counties in September.

Congress will rewrite the Farm Bill next year and we need a farmer to represent our interests in the U.S. Senate, Larry Madson, Shelby County farm chair, said in a news release from the campaign. ...Chuck is the strong voice we need to strengthen and sustain the family farm for generations to come. Iowa agriculture needs Chuck fighting for us more than ever.

A new ad from the Democratic challenger in the southeast Iowa congressional race claims sitting Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks wants to outlaw all abortions nationwide. No exceptions for rape, incest, or to save a womans life.

The U.S. Supreme Court this summer overturning Roe v. Wade, long-held protections for abortion until fetal viability, spurred public debate over restrictions on abortion and is seen as a key issue by Democrats ahead of the midterm elections.

Miller-Meeks clears the air on abortion stance

Miller-Meeks said in a September debate and has said in interviews that she supports exceptions for rape, incest, and a womans life. She endorsed a bill from U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks with those exceptions.

Christina Bohannans ad is referring to Miller-Meeks co-sponsoring of the Life at Conception Act, a House proposal with 163 Republican co-sponsors that would guarantee a constitutional right to life of each born and pre-born human person from the moment of fertilization without explicit exceptions.

In an interview last week with a Quad-City Times reporter, Miller-Meeks said when asked about the Act: I think that you can recognize medically that life begins at conception, and still have exceptions, as Ive already noted. So again, my long-held position in multiple public interviews has been Im pro-life with exceptions for life of the mother, rape, and incest.

Bohannan continues in the ad: I never imagined my daughter would grow up having fewer rights than I had. Im fighting to protect our right to choose. When it comes to our bodies, women should be in charge, not Washington politicians.

Iowa Sen. Kevin Kinney releases ad celebrating Noahs law

Iowa Sen. Kevin Kinney, a Democrat from Oxford, released his second ad of the election cycle, highlighting his work on a law honoring a Tiffin teen who drowned in the Coralville Reservoir in 2020.

When Noah Herring drowned in 2020, the people with him did not call for help, according to reports at the time, and did not tell the Johnson County Sheriffs office where his body was.

In the ad, Noahs cousin, Amber Herring, sitting with his mother Lisa Herring, tells the story of getting the law passed.

We reached out to Senator Kevin Kinney, who helped us pass a law so that what our family went through; another family does not have to go through, she says.

The ad was paid for by the Iowa Democratic Party.

The law, signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2021, makes it a crime to not call emergency responders when someone appears to be in imminent danger and increases penalties for not telling authorities the location of a corpse. Three juveniles and one adult were charged with lesser crimes related to Herrings death, but failing to alert authorities was not a crime at the time.

In a statement, Kinney said the law was a bipartisan effort and the legislation was written with input from Herrings family.

I then worked across the aisle to get Noahs Law passed unanimously, he said. Im honored to have the support of Noahs family, and I will continue to work to protect crime victims and their families in the State Senate.
With Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell making a strong pitch for Gov. Pete Ricketts to be appointed to the Senate seat that would be vacated by the anticipated resignation of Sen. Ben Sasse, attention began to focus Wednesday on the political road ahead in Nebraska.

Not only in coming months, as a Senate appointment looms, but also in 2024 when that Senate seat will be on the ballot in a presidential election year.

McConnell told CNN he has personally urged Ricketts to seek the seat, calling the governor "a great choice" to succeed Sasse in the Senate.

"I've talked to Gov. Ricketts," McConnell said.

"We're hoping that he will end up in the Senate. Exactly how that happens under Nebraska law is yet to be determined.

"If that were the way it worked out I think it'd be a smooth transition," he said.

Ricketts has announced that he will leave the choice to the next governor who will be elected in November "if I choose to pursue the appointment."

That appears to set the stage for Republican gubernatorial nominee Jim Pillen to make the appointment unless Ricketts ultimately decides not to move on to a seat in the Senate after he completes his second and final term as governor in January.

Pillen, who had the strong support of Ricketts in a hotly contested 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary race, is regarded as heavily favored to win his contest with Democratic nominee Carol Blood in an overwhelmingly Republican state.

The transition to a new Nebraska senator must take into account the fact that an evenly divided Senate will be in session in December for what is described as a "lame duck session" following the Nov. 8 election.

Sasse's office has said he would leave the Senate in December, presumably following that year-end Senate session, if he is formally chosen to become president of the University of Florida following an interview with the university's board of trustees at a meeting scheduled for Nov. 1.

The incoming governor could not make an appointment until after his or her inauguration during the first week in January.

Under Nebraska law, a governor has 45 days in fill a Senate vacancy.

The choice could loom large in political terms with Ricketts positioned to play a pivotal future role.

The appointee would serve for two years and then that Senate seat would be on the ballot in 2024 to fill the remaining two years of Sasse's current six-year term during an election year when former President Donald Trump could conceivably be a Republican presidential candidate and avid Trump supporter Charles Herbster could possibly decide to seek the Republican nomination for the Senate seat.

Nebraska voters will be filling both Senate seats during that unusual election year. Republican Sen. Deb Fischer has previously signaled her intention to seek a third term in 2024.

Pillen defeated Herbster in this year's hotly contested Republican gubernatorial primary race after a multimillion dollar battle.

When the smoke cleared, it was Pillen, 91,555; Herbster, 80,771; state Sen. Brett Lindstrom, 70,554.

Trump came to Nebraska in the closing days to campaign for Herbster, who had been named as an agricultural adviser at the beginning of Trump's presidency and became a familiar figure at White House events and an inner-circle participant.
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The government of the Russian Federation has just approved a cooperation agreement between Moscow and Rabat in the field of the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes.

The ordinance enacting this decision was signed by Russian Prime Minister, Mikhail Michoustine, on Wednesday, reported the Russian news agency Tass.

The agreement, providing for cooperation between the two countries in at least 14 areas, was negotiated, on the Russian side, by the state company Rosatom and coordinated with the Russian Foreign Ministry, as well as other authorities and previously agreed with the Moroccan side.

Under the agreement, Russia will assist Morocco in the creation and improvement of nuclear energy infrastructure, the design and construction of nuclear reactors, as well as water desalination plants and elementary particle accelerators.

Russia will also provide Morocco with services in the field of the fuel cycle, spent and radioactive nuclear fuel and waste management.

It also involves providing Morocco with services in the field of the fuel cycle operations, treatment and management of radioactive nuclear fuel and waste.

Besides, Russia will help Morocco in the exploration and development of uranium deposits and the study of the countrys mineral resource base, the training of personnel of nuclear power plants, as well as the training and the retraining of staff of the public body responsible for regulating nuclear and radiological safety, the National Center for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (CNESTEN).

The development of nuclear energy and technology in Morocco has been a priority for some time now, as the Kingdom attempts to diversify its energy sources, to ensure the immunity of supply from international fluctuations.
Axel Van Trotsenburg, World Bank Managing Director of Operations Wednesday called on Tunisia to carry out crucial fiscal reforms which he claimed will put the North African country on development trajectory.

These reforms are equally important for the population, Trotsenburg said in a tweet following a meeting with Tunisias Ministers of Planning and Finance. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meetings held in Washington.

Tunisia is facing daunting economic and financial challenged exacerbated by the ongoing consequences of the Russia-Ukraine crisis. The country, severely affected by the pandemic, is in talks with the IMF for $4 billion loan to supplement its 2022-2023 budget.
President Ali Bongo Ondimba of gabon reshuffled Wednesday his cabinet and appointed government spokesperson Alain Claude Bilie By Nze Deputy Premier, a position scrapped in 2016.

Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda, Gabons Premier, reportedly proposed Bilie By Nze for the position to President Bongo. The position has not been filled since 2016. Bruno Ben Moubamba, opposition member, was the last official to occupy the position.

Bilie By Nze in addition to his new role, will still hold his department of Ministry of Energy and Water Resources.

Also as part of the reshuffle, President Bongo appointed Toussaint Kouma Emane, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure.

The department was dissolved several weeks ago but was reinstated Wednesday.
India has halted all production at Maiden Pharmaceuticals main factory near New Delhi after a WHO report that the companys cough syrups exported to the Gambia may be linked to the deaths of dozens of children there.

The recent incident which has claimed the lives of 69 children, according to WHO, has come as a blow to the industry whose exports more than doubled in the last decade to hit $24.5 billion last fiscal year. Indian pharmaceutical companies are said to supply 45% of all generic medicines to Africa. Indian authorities inspected the Maiden factory in the state of Haryana four times this month and suspended all manufacturing activities there on Tuesday (11 October) on grounds of deficiencies found in location inspection. Haryanas health minister Anil Vij said in a statement that an inspection conducted jointly by state and federal officials found 12 flaws. Maiden broke rules across its manufacturing and testing activities, Indian regulators found.

Last week, the company said it was shocked to hear media reports regarding the deaths and deeply saddened by this incident. This came after the WHO issued a global alert over four of Maidens cough syrups, warning that they could be linked to acute kidney injuries and the childrens deaths in July, August and September. The global health organization also warned the products may have been distributed, through informal markets, to other countries and regions besides The Gambia. A top Indian health official, who declined to be named, said the government would not tolerate wrongdoing but that it was important to find out what exactly happened in the Gambia. A preliminary report released by the Gambian police said the cough syrups were imported to the West African country by a US-based company. The report also said that the majority of the 50,000 bottles of the contaminated syrups that were imported into the country had now been seized.
A new liquefied natural gas project near Senegal and Mauritanias coastlines may only be 80% complete, but the prospect of a new energy supplier has already drawn visits from several European leaders, scrambling to secure alternative sources after Moscow has reduced natural gas flows to EU countries.

While Africas natural gas reserves are vast and countries like Algeria have pipelines already linked to Europe, exports remain low thanks to a lack of infrastructure and security challenges. The initial field off Africas west coast is expected to contain about 425 billion cubic meters of gas, five times more than what gas-dependent Germany used in all of 2019, though its production isnt expected to start until late 2023. Although that wont help solve Europes energy crisis, still, the development could not be more timely, says Gordon Birrell, Executive Vice President for Production & Operations at BP. Current world events are demonstrating the vital role that [liquid gas] can play in underpinning the energy security of nations and regions, he said in a recent energy industry meeting in West Africa.

Europe has been scrambling to secure alternative sources as Moscow has reduced natural gas flows to EU countries, triggering soaring energy prices and growing expectations of a recession. While the 27-nation EU energy ministers are meeting this week to discuss the worsening energy crisis, European leaders have flocked to countries like Norway, Qatar, Azerbaijan and especially those in North Africa. Further south, Nigeria has Africas largest natural gas reserves, but it still accounts for only 14% of the EUs imports of liquefied natural gas, or LNG. Projects in Nigeria face the risk of energy thefts and high costs. Other promising countries like Mozambique have discovered large gas reserves only to see projects delayed by violence from armed groups. Still, in the long term, the country is slated to become a major exporter of LNG after significant deposits were found along its Indian Ocean coast in 2010.
Moroccos Royal Navy coastguards rescued this week 182 candidates to irregular migration, including women and children, mostly coming from sub-Saharan Africa.

The rescue operations conducted between October 10 and 12 enabled to save the would-be illegal migrants, who attempted the perilous crossings aboard makeshift boats, kayaks, jet-skis, surfboards and even swimming.

The rescued persons received first aid on board the Royal Navy Units before they were brought back safe and sound to the nearest ports of the Kingdom and then handed over to the Royal Gendarmerie for the usual administrative procedures.
The beautiful sounds of orchestral music will once again grace the local scene as the Sandhills Symphony Orchestra returns from a two-year hiatus.

COVID-19 temporarily turned the volume off for the group that has been in existence since 1960. The first performance in over two years is at 3 p.m. Sunday at the North Platte High School Performing Arts Center.

Having a symphony orchestra in this rural part of Nebraska is an amazing feat that were able to offer, said Cecelia Lawrence, board president. Its a wonderful opportunity for the musicians to perform, but it is something you have to go to Kansas City, Lincoln, Omaha or Denver to hear a full-fledged symphony orchestra. This is really a neat thing for our community and people in our area.

The symphony is composed of people from all over the Sandhills region from Grand Island to Imperial and including McCook, Maxwell, Hershey and other nearby communities.

It is a group of musicians that range from 15 years old to around 80, Lawrence said. When you learn a musical instrument, its something that stays with you your entire life.

Lawrence said the orchestra was in danger of not coming back after COVID-19.

The landscape of life has really changed for everybody since COVID, Lawrence said. We lost some of our musicians to COVID, and a lot of people just got out of the groove of playing.

About 30 people are playing for this fall concert, Lawrence said, but she expects the group to grow.

Christa Steed will direct Sundays concert, On-Screen Favorites. It will feature music from television shows and movies, including Sleeping Beauty Waltz, Masterpiece Theater, Disneys Frozen and a medley of other Disney music.

Admission is free, but donations would be greatly appreciated, Lawrence said.

Refreshments will be offered after the concert.
After French writer Annie Ernaux won the 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature earlier this month, the Chinese versions of her works A Woman's Story and La Place saw a surge in sales.

The publishing house Shanghai People's Press announced it will reprint the books, published in Chinese in 2003, and they are expected to hit the market later this month.

The translator of the novels, Guo Yumei, a professor in French language and translation at Tianjin Foreign Studies University, said her phone rang constantly after the announcement. Local readers expressed their appreciation for her work, and her introduction of Ernaux to China was hailed by her contemporaries and the press.

Commentators noted Guo has a deep insight into contemporary French literature, as she translated Poisson d'or in 2000, a book written by 2008 Nobel literature laureate Le Clezio.

Guo said as a teacher of French, translation benefits her teaching.

Her appreciation of Ernaux comes from the author's unique writing style in autofiction -- a genre heavily influenced by the life experience of the author.

"Ernaux wrote in 'first person' and exposed her experience through fiction it seems like a paradox, but she has broken the wall," she said.

Upon invitation by the French embassy in 2005, Guo met Ernaux in Beijing in a seminar focusing on her book. Ernaux admitted her mother was "still alive", but in her books she wrote her mother "passed away".

In her writing, Ernaux examines a life marked by strong disparities regarding gender, language and class. Her path to authorship was long and arduous, the Swedish Academy said. Ernaux's work is "uncompromising and written in plain language, scraped clean", and when she reveals "the agony of the experience of class, describing shame, humiliation, jealousy or inability to see who you are, she has achieved something admirable and enduring", the academy said in the press release.

"Ernaux, born in 1940, belongs to the generation growing in and up after World War II," Guo said. "The founding of New China, also after wars including the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931-1945) and the War of Liberation (1946-1949), so readers and the writer share common ground. When I am translating, I can't help but cry. To a certain extent, I think she was writing my experience."

Sometimes she feels a "resonance" with Ernaux, she said. For example, "when she wrote scenes of her aged mother in a nursing home, I shared her agony as I also felt sorrow when seeing my mother was sick."

Along with the reprinting of Guo's translations, Ernaux's Memoire de fille translated by Chen Shuting, another teacher at her university, is expected to hit the market this month.
The suspect involved in a two-hour standoff with Auburn police on Tuesday then on Wednesday attempted to escape custody and tried to take an officers weapon, according to police.

The suspect has been identified as Randy Travis Navarre.

Navarre, 33, was arrested on Tuesday after what police described as a standoff involving juvenile hostages in the Grove Hill subdivision in Auburn. Wednesday, he was taken to Auburn Municipal Court for a bond hearing, where police say he assaulted an officer and attempted to disarm him. Police say officers were able to regain control over Navarre and he was taken to the Lee County Jail.

Tuesday morning, police said they responded to a domestic violence call near the 1000 block of Opelika Road. Officers attempted to perform a traffic stop, but Navarre fled the crime scene in a vehicle at a high rate of speed, according to the police report.

Navarre was located at a residence in the 1900 block of Windway Road where he refused to exit the residence within the Grove Hill Subdivision, police said.

Police say they then discovered that three juveniles were also inside with Navarre being held as hostages.

The Countywide SWAT team as well as hostage negotiators responded and were eventually able to facilitate the release of the three juveniles. A short time later, Navarre surrendered to officers without further incident, police said.

Police said the juveniles were evaluated by medical personnel but were unharmed.

On Wednesday, Navarre was taken to the Auburn Municipal Court for a bond hearing, and the court ruled that bond would be temporarily withheld, pending further evaluation and safety measures, the police report said.

While being escorted for transport back to the Lee County Jail, police said Navarre assaulted an Auburn police officer and attempted to take the officers firearm.

One officer was injured but did not require hospitalization. The police report said there were also minor damages to property.

Navarre on Tuesday was charged with domestic violence third degree, attempting to elude a police officer and three counts of reckless endangerment.

On Wednesday, Navarre was additionally charged with assault second degree, attempting to disarm a law enforcement officer, escape first degree and criminal mischief third degree. He is currently held without bond.
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The College of Human Sciences at Auburn University will honor Delta Air Lines, Inc. and Ambrose Rowdy Gaines IV, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and Auburn alumnus, at the 29th annual International Quality of Life Awards, or IQLA, on Dec. 5 at the Charleston Gaillard Center in Charleston, South Carolina.

The college launched IQLA in 1994, in conjunction with the United Nations International Year of the Family. Now in its 29th consecutive year, IQLA has honored people and partnerships who have made significant and lasting contributions to individual, family and community well-being locally and around the world. The honorees demonstrate a true concern for the human condition through their work to enhance quality of life for all.

Delta Air Lines is a household name and an airline that has stood the test of time. With its southern roots and community-minded leadership, Delta is changing lives around the globe through education and multiple nonprofit organizations, said Susan Hubbard, dean of the College of Human Sciences. And how do we accurately describe Rowdy Gaines contribution to Auburn University and the world of sports? His tremendous success and humble spirit have proven to be a powerful combination in making the world a better place.

Past IQLA laureates include Emmy award-winning entertainer, author and philanthropist Kathie Lee Gifford, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Rep. John Lewis, St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Norman Ernest Borlaug and PBS NewsHour journalist and anchor Judy Woodruff.

Delta Air Lines, one of the worlds oldest airlines in operation, is being recognized as the 2022 IQLA laureate for the companys worldwide community engagement through millions of dollars donated annually and 800,000 volunteer hours from its employees.

Through education alone, Delta now spans to 32 Junior Achievement chapters across four continents, serves as the official airline of the National Flight Academy sponsoring more than 1,600 students and sponsors 28 YMCA chapters on three continents. In addition, Deltas widespread community engagement includes helping communities recover from disasters, building homes with Habitat for Humanity and fighting childhood illnesses and injuries with the Childrens Miracle Network.

The companys philanthropic footprint aligns well with the College of Human Sciences mission statement to improve quality of lives and change the world.

The IQLA Lifetime Achievement Award is reserved for outstanding individuals who have achieved success in their chosen professions and brought honor to Auburn University and/or the State of Alabama. Past recipients include Apple CEO Tim Cook, former professional athletes Bo Jackson, Charles Barkley, Tim and Kim Hudson and Nancy Lopez, Congressman Spencer Bachus and musical artists Emmylou Harris and Lionel Richie.

Gaines, who broke a total of 14 world records during his career, has brought great pride to the Auburn Family as a world-class athlete and one of the greatest swimmers of all-time. In addition to being a five-time NCAA champion, a member of both the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame, Gaines is often referred to as Swimmings Greatest Ambassador.

He has worked with many charitable organizations that include Swim Across America, Rowdys Kidz, the USA Swimming Foundation and serves as vice president of partnerships and development with the Pools and Hot Tubs Alliance. The primary focus of his community engagement, often involving free swimming clinics, is to teach children to swim and understand that anything is possible with commitment and determination.

Since his retirement from competitive swimming, Gaines has worked with CBS, TNT, NBC and ESPN as a swimming analyst. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Summer Games, Gaines called his eighth Olympic telecast for NBC.

The IQLA gala, a black-tie event always on the first Monday in December, is attended by guests from across the country, as well as select Auburn students as part of the IQLA Study Tour. The gala will begin with a reception at 6:30 p.m., followed by dinner and the ceremony.

For more information and to reserve a spot at the 2022 International Quality of Life Awards, visit iqla.auburn.edu.
OMG I did it.

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Idiot. None of that shit is real.

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this post with the other two right below... man, we live in Idiocracy

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After my sister died my friends bought me a Reiki massage and I appreciated the thought but it was the most awkward experience of my life.



But the awkward experience distracted me from grief so I guess that was a plus?

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How was it awkward?

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I just don't like to be touched in general lol. It was probably all me.

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I had one too once and felt absolutely nothing. I enjoy some woo woo stuff so I thought I might be able to buy into it but I just ended up feeling like I wasted $200 lol. Im willing to drop money on silly stuff if it makes me feel good because I think making yourself feel good is just an act of self-care, so I was hoping Id feel like I just got a massage or something but it just felt like absolutely nothing. It was funny because I went to see the same famous reiki lady who was in a buzzfeed video and all the people in the video got a lot out of it so whatever, not for me personally but idc if other people spend their money on something that is of value to them and their mental health



Ill stick to real massages which legit leave me feeling on cloud nine for days for the same price



Edited at 2022-10-14 06:29 pm (UTC)

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I got some Reiki when I was really struggling with chronic illness and was on a long waiting list for treatment. Although I'm not sure I agree that you don't need outside help (only pharmaceutical drugs have actually helped me physically), it was psychologically helpful to take some action and nice to lie down for a bit in a room that smelled really good.

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Idk this harmless stuff is fine by me, has the same vibe as astrologyI can see why people get into it even if I dont believe.



However, Ive been wanting to try something like this for my chronic pain. Not thinking it will cure me (anyone spreading that fiction should be publicly shamed forever) but idk, its either this or go to a chiropractor & only one of those dont cause strokes or other serious issues! Its just hard to deal with something daily that you have zero control over so why not try something to give a little sense of control??



Edited at 2022-10-13 01:48 pm (UTC)

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Try acupuncture! Ill scream it off the rooftop, I had chronic neck pain for 9 years and acupuncture got rid of it. I have osteoarthritis on my hip and I get acupuncture done everytime I have a flare up.

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I would love to but intense fear of needles :(



Maybe Ill look into acupressure though??



Im really glad that helped you, thats amazing!

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I've been wanting to try acupuncture for my arthritis. What should I look for in a practitioner?

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I fully believe in acupuncture just bc Ive seen it help elderly arthritic DOGS. My friends dog was barely able to walk and after an acupuncture session he acts like a puppy again.

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Something you might want to look into is Rolfing. Rolfers work with tissue rather than bone and I've had really great results in the past.

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This isn't surprising. This is the same girl that see's a therapist AND a psychic to help her with her mental health. You do you, I guess. I appreciate how open she is with her struggles at least.

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lol

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whatever works man. ever since shes gotten into this stuff its made me curious but i dont have the money to even try anything i cant find off youtube/the internet. im a skeptic typically, its taken years for me to come around to astrology and even still im not a firm believer. its fun though.

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I don't really believe in Reiki but I don't really disbelieve it because a friend of mine does it, and he's done to me and it worked? It might have been just a placebo effect tho.

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been stumbling upon some reiki tiktoks and it's very ASMRish. so like even if it does nothing at least it can be relaxing for the person on the other end and in this day and age, babe i'll take it

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reiki, astrology, psychics... lotta money to be made from ontd users i guess. can someone venmo me 50 dollars? i don't see why energy can't be transmitted through text

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Theres SO much of that on TikTok. Some unwashed person on their bedroom floor charging 10 bucks for a card pull out of their raggedy deck. Like theres just no razzle dazzle to it at all, at least give the people a show if youre gonna charge money! The ones that piss me off the most are the psychic mediums, taking advantage of grief is so vile.

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i'm fine with all this woowoo stuff so long as it's not hurting anyone - like being pushed onto ppl, ppl turning to woowoo stuff instead of actual medicine etc.



this is kind of reminding me that i have massage benefits to use up before the end of the year, lol.

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I feel like implying that your health comes from inner strength is inherently hurtful and ableist though.

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I think Reikis so silly but I also kind of want to try it? I dont think it would do anything for me but I think Id enjoy the attention lol.

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I don't believe in Reiki at all, but not gonna lie, it is super relaxing in ASMR videos.

I had a friend who who told me someone experienced a medical emergency on her flight. I can't remember what the medical emergency was, but she told me someone stood up and offered her Reiki skills. LOL

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lmaoo this is exactly how I feel.



Reiki is silly nonsense, butttttt I love it in ASMR videos because it's super calming.

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I may or may not have called out of work for this lol but mostly I had to go to a funeral yesterday and did not feel like going in today, this week is a bust I'll try again next week lol



But I've been waiting for this post all week OP! Thank you!



Edited at 2022-10-13 05:13 pm (UTC)

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I forgot this was happening, thanks OP!

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OP, thank you!! You make all of this so clear and concise.

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They should've done the hearing in prime time for bigger impact.

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yeah but you have to get the major networks to agree to carry it during prime time or else it's pointless if it's only CSPAN carrying it.

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egging them on via twitter,



maybe bc I blocked ole windback before he was banned, but does anyone else NOT remember him doing this? I remember Boebert's dumbass telling the rioters where her coworkers were.

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the fact that she, MTG, cruz, hawley, et all are still in office and probably will face no repercussions is everything wrong with this country and why midterms and 2024 will be so terrifying.

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Isn't that what got him kicked off Twitter? For encouraging violence during the riots?

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Per wiki



Twitter was among the platforms associated with the storming of the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021. According to the Associated Press, "federal law enforcement authorities said that there was activity on Twitter, but that they weren't expecting the level of violence they ultimately saw last Wednesday." This led to Trump being suspended from Twitter for glorifying violence, among other reasons such as false allegations of election fraud.

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Fun fact: Kiko Mizuhara's American dad was there on January 6th.

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lmao what

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Also an anti-masker, so much so he (and others) sued Ft Worth ISD over the mask mandate and apparently also wants to go after CRT.

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the funniest (and least surprising one) to me, is britneys POS ex who crashed her wedding being there.

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Wtf. Are they close?

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I think the CSPAN feed on YouTube is a bit behind, like a minute or two, but wow that video was so succinct...

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Aw shit, I totally forgot this was on.

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Can't wait to spit on Trump's grave. Good god he's so fucking malicious.

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Like this bitch and his simps really tried to steal the election. It's been known for over a year but oh my fucking god, I still can't get over it

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The people in power need to stop pulling a President Coin from Hunger Games and just arrest this fucking man and sentence him to death.

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I really hope that is the final outcome. But, I feel like they want rock-solid evidence because it is a former president, and it would look so bad and set a precedent if he got away with it.

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Them dragging this out is setting precedent for anyone in power. We'll go ahead and lock up citizens and hold them accountable but a former president gets special treatment. A treacherous snake who sold his country out. It's the principle. This country has none except when it comes to shutting down anything that is good for the common people.



Sigh. Why can't things just go the way I want? I demand the time lords change this timeline.

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Exactly. When you shoot at the king, you better not miss. Your t's better be crossed, your i's better be dotted because if there is even one little thing out of line, you know it will be exploited and magnified.

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NBC News' Capitol Hill team: The Jan. 6 Committee plans to vote to subpoena Trump during today's hearing. @NBCNews  Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) October 13, 2022



what's the point of this when we all know he's not going to show up? what's the point of this when we all know he's not going to show up?

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I guess just to show he's not being forthcoming? But it's not like his supporters give a shit lol

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Because then you can hold him in contempt of court. Bannon was just found guilty of this and is awaiting sentencing on October 21st.

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I mean this bitch has been whining that no one is telling HIS side of the story that he does't have witnesses to back him up, etc.



Well, here's your chance asshole. Go in, UNDER OATH and tell your side and see what fucking happens.



Yeah, you won't because you are a liar and can't do it under oath.

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I can't believe they are reading messages off of the Donald tho lol like what world are we in lol

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Yaaasss f-bombs on daytime tv!!!

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I've seen so much about this lately and it's fucking depressing. These are established acts that can't afford the cost of touring, how are up and coming bands supposed to make it?



One of my favourite bands retweeted something that said "If you see your favourite band announce a tour, get a ticket as it's likely the last time they can ever tour."



It's fucked up that people can't make a living creating music. This was already a problem pre-covid and now it's so much worse. I wish I knew what would make a difference. I'm going to a concert tomorrow night for the first time since covid started and aside from actually purchasing albums, I don't know how else to support the music I love.

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if you see a band, including mine, advertising shows right now, you should assume those are the last shows that band will ever be playing in that territory, and act accordingly. most of us are resigned to the fact that touring is over, and we wont be able to do it anymore. https://t.co/D4qyrVmmrD  torqcampbell (@torquilcampbell) October 11, 2022

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This is such a sad state of things, and the tweet really puts it in stark perspective coming from Torq Campbell (along with the other established artists in this post) - Stars have been a well-established indie band for 20+ years, so if they feel like this might be it, yikes.

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you can also support them by buying merchandise

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The music industry is a mess honestly. The labels just don't invest in their acts like they should. How would they make money if they didn't have the artists, hellllo?



But I will say the bands I follow have done well on touring this year. They're all "emo" and metal kind of bands so maybe that scene is different and bouncing back better?

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The metal scene (and alternative genres overall, I guess) is notorious for its loyal fanbase, so I think that luckily helps. However, there's trouble in paradise as well, and several acts had to cancel their tours already or are very hesitant to book any in the first place. The rat tail of COVID consequences (unreliable travel regulations, visa issues, lack of staff, supply shortages...) was bad as it was, the war-induced financial crisis however is what really fucks things up right now. I work with the industry and while I'm not preaching doom, I am getting progressively more worried. :/

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Big agree. I live in Japan and pre-covid there was always a pretty strong stream of tours and festivals for rock/metal bands, but there's been barely anything tour wise and the DOWNLOAD and Summer Sonic festival line-ups were limited, to put it delicately.



Makes me wonder how sustainable concert live streaming is.

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Yeah a lot of punk bands I follow have been doing alright just because a lot of them have day jobs to pay rent, and just shove all their shit in a van and drive themselves for tours to keep costs down. I've been at a few shows where someone had covid, but they got a friend from the local scene to fill in so they didn't have to cancel. Those are definitely not the norm for most other genres though, I don't want to call them privileges, but it's definitely lucky that a lot of punk bands can do stuff like that.



The music industry sucks so much though. There's so much exploitation

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I think were gonna see more genre specific festivals pop up because itll be easier for a band to go to one date/do the festival circuit than their own tour :/

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bamboozle is coming back i think purely because of this!

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I really wanna know the lineup so I know if its worth me taking off and driving the 10-ish hours 

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I feel so bad for one of my friends. Shes a immunocompromised single mom who was finally able to see one of her faves with her family. It involved time off work, travel, & hotel stays. The show was cancelled just a few hours beforefor multiple reasons, she couldnt afford to stay in town for the show a few nights later. It seriously crushed her. This whole pandemic shes done everything she can to stay alive & keep others safe, had a whole baby on her own after a difficult pregnancy, has worked full time continually, and the one thing she was able to treat to herself to was taken away at the last minute after shed already invested so much.



This is a bleak time all around & it just sucks to see one huge joy for people also ripped away. Same for everyone that will lose jobs due to all of this. This is 1000% the Bad Place.



Edited at 2022-10-13 09:36 pm (UTC)

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Literally today:



9am: journey reminder from train app for this evening

10am: concert email reminder from ticket selling platform - "Are you excited??"

11am: cancelled concert text from ticket selling platform



The artist got covid and announced it today on instagram around 10am.



*Sigh*

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Rosalia seems to be doing fine and I begrudgingly have to say that the Puerto Rican banshee is selling out stadiums.



Is this just a mostly an American struggle? Because some Florida rap band dude invited me to his LA show while theyre in cali and Im seeing sangiovanni during a business trip next week

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Rosalia and I'm guessing you're referring to Bad Bunny(?) are mainstream acts so I mean those are gonna be fine regardless.



I heard a report that Beyonce, Taylor Swift, and Rihanna are all planning tours for next year.



Smaller indie acts are the ones who've been feeling the financial sting of the pandemic.

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I used to drive into Toronto weekly to see bands, and pre-pandemic, I still saw shows once or twice a month. The only band I've seen since Covid is Fleet Foxes, which was a perfect show, and made me want to get back into seeing live music, but I just can't afford it like I used to.

Something has to change so that the wealthy aren't the only ones who can financially make/see music. Music is too important.

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The scene here is so fucking depressing. I think about what was happening in Toronto twenty years ago to create this wave of incredible music and those conditions where people had jam spaces and small venues and affordable rent are just gone. Everything is just being replaced with giant condo towers.

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It's like Honest Ed's shut down and then the entire city went to shit. I know the pandemic had a huge hand in it, and it's not like Honest Ed's had anything to do with music, but it just feels like it marked the beginning of the end for poor people being able to have a decent life here.



I used to manage a cafe in the west end and a lot of our regulars were musicians. Nobody huge, but for a lot of them it was their career and they managed to pay the bills with it. I kept up with a lot of them and I'd say over half of them can only do music as a hobby now because they just can't afford to be an artist here anymore.

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Yeah, going to concerts in Toronto has gotten really expensive over the last few years. Since Covid restrictions lifted, the only way Ive been able to afford it is by buying cheap last minute tickets on stubhub or getting free tickets from people who cant make rescheduled dates/got sick themselves.

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I can relate to this as an illustrator who goes to comic conventions to make money- rising costs plus Covid are killing me. I have known artists who caught Covid before a con and the con did not refund them their table cost either. Then the inflation has made something that was already tough near impossible. Traveling is so fucking costly.



I am getting close to being in financial trouble because of this and chronic health issues. The future is just scaring me in all sorts of ways.

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I'm supposed to see Walk the Moon next week and I'm keeping my fingers crossed it doesn't get canceled like their last tour. They're not bringing an opener, which I'm assuming is a financial decision, although they're spinning it as having more time for more songs (they're playing their whole first album).

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I mean sure - maybe set up in Las Vegas or if there are a few other areas of the world people can get to, do that?



Concert, ballet, opera, symphony, stage plays and musicals tickets have been so expensive for years.

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lol indie bands don't have the audiences to do that

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Ok good point - just trying to think of things they might be able to do. 

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all the dance concerts I have been to, since it returned, have been fully-masked. It's really easy to enjoy art when the audience respects the cast's safety, as well as each other's. They've been the one place where I don't have to worry about anti-mask people, since... dance tends to attract liberals anyways.





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honestly I feel like the past few years have removed any sheen and any illusion that anyone is OK. like even fairly big musical acts are struggling!?!?! what hope is there for a lowly copywriter like myself???

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in a way it's liberating because it's like oh there's no golden meal ticket and I don't have to stress about hustling or anything. but on the other hand, I want my easy meal ticket goddammit! guess I'll just have to save money and live within my means like a loser ugh.

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Tobias Forge of GHOST indicated this or was briefly mentioning this. He was kind enough to take a break for the rest of the year and until next summer to give bands that are looking for venues spots.



I had tickets to see CLANNAD back in 2020 but with COVID it got canceled, then rescheduled, then canceled, then rescheduled. It was supposed to happen this September but I got an email in July that they couldn't perform any of their shows for the rest of the tour due to the costs increasing and what was suitable back then was now basically them asking for double. They cared more about their fans saving money so they just canceled / refunded everyone and retired quietly into the night. (It was their farewell tour too.)

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I bought tickets for Bikini Kill back in 2019 for a concert that was originally supposed to be in May 2020. Its been rescheduled four times with the newest date being April 2023 and I honestly dont have dont confidence that it will ever happen.

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I live in a small city but I had a really good September. I saw both Gary Numan and The Midnight at our local 1000 capacity venue. I feel for artists when it's getting harder and harder to make a living from performing.

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Yeah, so many small and mid-level artists in my country had to cancel their tours because of the new covid wave and rising costs for energy. Others try to downsize to smaller venues and cancel only a few tourstops. Only major superstars are able to hold arena tours these days.

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Streaming era really killed indie music. The mainstream musicians are getting richer because the algorithms are heavily payola'd the niche bands who used to sell out your 500-1000 venues are all fucked. They used to be saved by vinyl sales but now there's a 10 month wait to get your albums pressed on wax.

The touring was supposed to be their final saviour but if a band like Animal Collective can't break even it's about to get really bleak for live music.

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oh, and if you dont fill every single seat, you're considered a flop by stan-twitter.



There's also a lot of children who will laugh at a smaller artist not having a giant crowd at a festival...meanwhile, those artists are playing at the start of the festivals day, so of course they arent going to have a giant crowd.

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Californias AB2188 Now Prohibits Employee Discipline for Off-Duty Marijuana Use

Under the law, employers cannot discriminate against workers based on their marijuana use when not at work.

A new law in California will significantly change the way employers can address employees marijuana use. While prior law made clear that employers could terminate employees for off-duty marijuana use, a new bill prevents employers from taking adverse action against an employee for such use. Instead, the new law only authorizes adverse action against employees who are impaired in the workplace, thus necessitating review of employers drug and alcohol policies to ensure compliance with the new law.

Background on Federal and State Marijuana Laws

Under federal law, marijuana use remains illegal. Indeed, marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, meaning that it has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision. Notwithstanding these laws, according to the Centers for Disease Control, marijuana is the most commonly used federally illegal drug in the United States48.2 million people, or about 18 of Americans, used it at least once in 2019.

Despite being illegal under federal law, thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana, and nineteen states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana use. But only seven states have laws addressing employers obligations concerning their employees use of marijuana outside of work: Nevada, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Montana, Rhode Island, and now California.

Products containing two primary cannabis derivatives are available to consumers: tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) (a psychoactive derivative that often causes impairment) and cannabidiol (CBD) (a non-psychoactive derivative which typically does not cause impairment). The 2018 federal Farm Bill removed hemp (a cannabis plant containing no more than 0.3 percent of THC) from the federal Controlled Substances Act, effectively legalizing CBD products if they are produced from hemp. However, most CBD products are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration and cross-contamination during the production process is possible, so consumers may inadvertently ingest higher levels of THC than intended.
The offshore Guyana-Suriname Basin emerged in 2019 as one of the worlds most exciting drilling frontiers. While the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that the basin contained mean undiscovered oil resources of 15 billion barrels, disappointing exploration results saw international energy companies shun the geological formation. It wasnt until 2015 when a consortium led by ExxonMobil made the world-class Liza oil discovery in the 6.6-million-acre Stabroek Block offshore Guyana. Since then, Exxon has made a swathe of high-quality oil discoveries, 33 since 2015, in the block, which is estimated to contain recoverable oil resources of at least 11 billion barrels. Those discoveries have been a boon for Guyanas economy, which expanded by a whopping 43.5% in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic caused most economies to contract, and then by 19.9% in 2021. The former British colonys oil-driven economic miracle is gaining momentum, with the IMF forecasting GDP growth of 57.8% for 2022. Neighboring Suriname, which saw its economy hit hard by the pandemic with GDP plunging 15.9% during 2020, is hungrily eyeing the oil wealth held in its territorial waters. Related: Saudi Arabia Expresses Its Total Rejection Of U.S. Statements About OPEC+

The Guyana-Suriname Basin is set to become one of the worlds most prolific offshore oil-producing regions, especially after it is considered that the USGS grossly underestimated the volume of crude oil contained in the basin. The combined total of the 11 billion barrels found in the Stabroek Block and the potential 6.5 billion barrels believed to be in Block 58 offshore Suriname is far greater than the USGSs May 2001 estimate of 15 billion barrels of mean undiscovered oil resources held by the basin. The latest news concerning the ongoing exploration and appraisal of offshore Suriname point to it holding tremendous oil wealth like neighboring Guyana. A series of quality oil discoveries have already occurred in Block 58 offshore Suriname. U.S. international driller Apache, along with 50% partner French oil supermajor TotalEnergies, announced the first discovery in Block 58 in January 2020. The partners then announced a further four exploration discoveries with the latest occurring during February 2022.

Source: Apache Investor Update September 2022.

A recent disappointing development was the August 2022 announcement that the Dikkop exploration well drilled in Block 58 did not find the presence of hydrocarbons and was capped. Apache and TotalEnergies are currently working on an appraisal well in the Sapakara South oilfield and planning to drill an exploration well at the Awari prospect in the northern part of Block 58. In total, seven exploration wells were drilled to date in Block 58, with five identifying significant hydrocarbon reservoirs requiring further appraisal, while two were found to be dry.

In late 2020 U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley stated that according to its modeling Block 58 contains at least 6.5 billion barrels of oil resources, with that number potentially higher if further discoveries are made. The recoverable oil resources held by Block 58, and hence Morgan Stanleys estimate, will be quantified by the appraisal work being conducted in Block 58 by Apache and TotalEnergies. Both drillers have yet to make a final investment decision as to whether they will start to commercially exploit the block. It was widely anticipated that Apache and TotalEnergies would make an FID during 2022, but it has been delayed until mid-2023. According to the French supermajors chief executive Patrick Pouyanne, there are concerns over a conflict between what seismic data is showing in Block 58 compared to results from delineation wells.

While Apache lucked out with the Block 58 Dikkop exploration well, it was announced in August 2022 by the driller and its partners that they had made the first oil discovery in Block 53 offshore Suriname. Apache is the operator of Block 53, holding a 45% working interest, with the remaining 30% and 25% held by Malaysian national oil company Petronas and Spains CEPSA, respectively. The Baja-1 well was drilled to a depth of 17,356 feet, or 5,290 meters, where 112 feet equal or 34 meters of net oil pay was identified. Apache is negotiating with Surinames national oil company and industry regulator Staatsolie to obtain a one-year extension for the exploration period which under the production sharing contract can be extended for up to four years. After accounting for Petronas and Exxons December 2020 discovery with the Sloanea-1 well in Block 52 there have been seven potentially viable oil discoveries in offshore Suriname since the start of 2020.

The latest developments bode well for Suriname to experience an oil boom on a similar scale to that which is occurring in neighboring Guyana. Paramaribo is focused on attracting foreign capital to sustain the required drilling and development activity. Staatsolie recently revealed a proposal to invest $1.5 billion by 2026, with the lions share destined for the South American countrys offshore drilling program. The state-controlled energy company also disclosed plans to promote Surinames available offshore acreage, to attract foreign investment, while developing its capabilities to eventually become an operator. Staatsolie also intends to auction offshore Suriname deep-water blocks before the end of 2022 and hold another bid round for shallow-water blocks during 2023. Those plans come on the back of Staatsolies 2021 shallow water auction, which saw three blocks acquired by Chevron, TotalEnergies and Qatar Petroleum. Anglo-Dutch energy supermajor Shell inked a December 2021 deal that saw it acquire a 20% interest from Chevron in shallow water Block 5

While it was widely predicted that Suriname was on track to produce its first offshore oil during 2025, development delays with Block 58, mean that is more likely to occur during 2027. The volume of oil discoveries made in the Guyana-Suriname Basin, coupled with the generous PSAs established by Paramaribo, are key incentives for luring much-needed foreign capital to develop offshore Surinames considerable oil wealth. The efforts of Paramaribo and national oil company Staatsolie to attract additional investment for the development of Surinames considerable offshore oil wealth will bolster the pace of drilling. For those reasons, the first oil could occur sooner than 2027, and Suriname should undergo an epic boom like its neighbor Guyana. When production commences in offshore Suriname, it will be a boon for the deeply impoverished South American countrys ailing economy, which is forecast by the IMF to grow by a paltry 1.3% for 2022 compared to Guyanas 57.8% and an average of 3.6% for South America.

By Matthew Smith for Oilprice.com

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Kazakhstans massive oilfield Kashagan will resume production at a level of 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) by the end of this month, Kazakhstans Energy Minister Bolat Akchulakov told Reuters on the sidelines of an energy forum in Moscow.

Production at Kashagan has been curtailed due to some nuances with the equipment. We are conducting repair work, the minister said.

The offshore oilfield Kashagan is one of the worlds biggest oilfields in terms of capacity to pump crude oil.

In early August, the oilfield was shut down after a gas leak was detected on the site. A few days later, the field operator said that it would partially restart production, and upon completion of repairs and integrity verification, full production would be restored at the facility.

In the middle of September, Minister Bulat Akchulakov said that the Kashagan oilfield would resume normal operations in October at best.

Kazakhstans oil production and exports have been lower in recent weeks due to the partial outage at Kashagan and urgent repairs needed at two of the Caspian Pipeline Consortiums (CPC) terminals on the Black Sea.

Akchulakov told Reuters this week that all three CPC terminals would likely resume operations before the end of October.

The 1,500-km CPC pipeline from the giant Kazakh oilfields in the Caspian Sea to Novorossiysk, on the Russian Black Sea coast, moves over two-thirds of all Kazakhstan export oil along with crude from Russian fields, including those in the Caspian region.

Higher production and exports out of Kazakhstan could be a relief for global oil supply just as the OPEC+ group is set to reduce supply to the market starting in November. Most of the actual cuts  estimated at around 1 million bpd compared to the headline 2-million-bpd cut to production  will come from OPECs de facto leader Saudi Arabia and some of its Gulf allies.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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A day after President Biden threatened there will be consequences for OPEC+s decision to reduce its production target by 2 million bpd, Saudi Arabia came out with a statement that expressed its total rejection of Bidens and other statements from Washington with regard to the decision.

The Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would first like to express its total rejection of these statements that are not based on facts, and which are based on portraying the OPEC+ decision out of its purely economic context. This decision was taken unanimously by all member states of the OPEC+ group, the statement, from the Foreign Ministry, said.

It comes in response to calls from Democratic Congressmen to punish Saudi Arabia for this decision by suspending U.S. arms sales to the Kingdom and President Biden being said to re-examine all aspects of the U.S.-Saudi relationship.

There is a range of interests and values that are implicated in our relationship with that country, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters this week, as quoted by CNN.

The President will examine all of that. But one question hes going to ask is: Is the nature of the relationship serving the interest and values of the United States and what changes would make it better serve the interests and values?

Saudi Arabia made a point of insisting that the OPEC+ decision was one made by more than one country and on purely economic grounds.

The Kingdom affirms that the outcomes of the OPEC+ meetings are adopted through consensus among member states, and that they are not based on the unilateral decision by a single country.

These outcomes are based purely on economic considerations that take into account maintaining balance of supply and demand in the oil markets, as well as aim to limit volatility that does not serve the interests of consumers and producers, as has been always the case within OPEC +, the Foreign Ministry statement said.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Moodys has revised up its ratings of a number of U.S. producers in recent months, citing debt reduction as a primary factor for the upgrades.

The structure shift from spending to exercising capital discipline has been celebrated by shareholders.

American oil and gas producers have slashed debt by more than $26 billion since the end of 2019.

North Americas oil and gas producers have reduced their total debts by $26 billion since the end of 2019 as the shale industry made the structural shift from spending to grow production to increasing shareholder returns and strengthening balance sheets. The significant debt reduction at North American oil and gas producers, coupled with capital discipline at most shale firms, points to lasting gains for the credit quality of more than 60 such exploration and production firms rated by Moodys, the credit rating agency said in a report this week.

The industry cut debt by 11% since the start of the pandemic, thanks to the capital discipline that has held for more than two years now and to the high cash flows producers have generated this year as oil and gas prices soared. The 64 North American E&P firms rated by Moodys now have $217 billion of outstanding debt, according to the agencys report cited by The Wall Street Journal.

Moodys has revised up its ratings of a number of U.S. producers in recent months, citing debt reduction as a primary factor for the upgrades.

In upgrading ConocoPhillips, Moodys Vice President Sajjad Alam said last month that the rating action reflected ConocoPhillipss larger, lower cost and more resilient asset base as well as reduced financial leverage that should provide greater flexibility in managing future price volatility and energy transition risks.

Comstock Resources was upgraded in June, with Moodys analyst Jonathan Teitel saying, Comstocks ratings upgrade reflects debt reduction and our expectation for further debt reduction and positive free cash flow over the remainder of 2022 and 2023 supported by strong natural gas prices and managements demonstrated commitment to debt reduction.

Coterra Energy also saw its ratings upgraded two weeks ago.

The companys low debt burden and manageable maintenance capital spending requirements allow it to prioritize free cash flow generation through natural gas price cycles, supporting the companys investment grade credit profile, Moodys said.

As a whole, U.S. shale producers reported record or close to record earnings and cash flows for the second quarter amid soaring commodity prices. The record-free cash flow now goes to paying down debts and paying shareholders, who are finally seeing the rewards of being invested in the shale patch after years of disappointing returns when companies prioritized production to payouts.

With high oil and gas prices and an energy crisis in Europe, the market for U.S. oil and gas is there, and E&P firms are set for record cash flows this year and next, analysts say.

With capital discipline and the desire to strengthen balance sheets, the U.S. shale industry could potentially become debt-free by early 2024 if prices stay strong and discipline prevails, Deloitte said in a report in August.

The North American upstream industry cumulatively generated only $47 billion in free cash flows over the 20102020 decade due to losses in shale plays.

Related: OPEC+ Oil Output Hits Highest Level Since April 2020 But Remains Below Target

However, the industry is expected to generate $600 billion in free cash flows just between 2021 2022, a 13-time quantum jump over the cumulative cash flows made between 20102020, Deloitte said. The jump in FCF will be primarily led by shale producers.

The shale patch, which generated negative cash flows in nine out of the last ten years, will likely see record-high free cash flows in 2021-2022 that could overcome the decade-long loss of $300 billion, according to Deloitte.

Despite the record cash flows, the shale industrys discipline and focus on paying down debts means that U.S. producers are unlikely to come to the rescue of global oil supply, which is set to be reduced with OPEC+s major cut announced last week and the upcoming EU embargo on Russian oil imports by sea. Supply chain and drilling services constraints are also weighing down on the U.S. industrys ability to boost production significantly in the near term.

Heading into the 2023 budget announcements, given the constraints around investment and activity, a return to the jet-propelled expansion of the 2018-19 still seems unlikely, Ed Crooks, Vice-Chair, Americas, at Wood Mackenzie, said at the end of September.

As consumers weigh up the outlook for oil supply next year, they should be ready for the possibility that US producers will again be jogging, rather than charging, to help them.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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You are here: Arts

A comics exhibition was unveiled in Sydney on Wednesday, offering glimpses of the city of Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, and the Chinese animation industry.

The Irresistible Comics 2022-Chengdu Excellent Cartoon and Animation Works Exhibition, co-hosted by the China Cultural Center in Sydney and Chengdu Municipal Bureau of Culture, Broadcast-TV and Tourism, presented more than 80 original artworks from Chengdu.

Through different types of artistic approaches, the exhibition showcased posters of Chinese animated productions and original selections featuring Chengdu's culture, food and landmarks, such as panda, hotpot and the West Pearl Tower.

Many artists also shared their enthusiasm for Chinese mythology, literature and martial arts in their designs.

"Chengdu is known as the 'capital of animation' in China. Many artists and production houses are committed to integrating traditional Chinese culture with modern art, developing products with original IP," said Xiao Xiayong, director of the China Cultural Center in Sydney.

As 2022 coincides with the 100th anniversary of Chinese animation development, Xiao said the exhibition will become a platform for building mutual learning for the animation industry in both countries.

The exhibition will last until Oct. 26.
The UK is also worried about its natural gas imports this winter, with risks of power blackouts across its grid.

Miller added that even though Europe will likely survive the winter, the energy crisis is far from over.

Despite Europes nearly full gas storage, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller is warning that an abnormally cold period could be devastating.

Even though Europe's natural gas storage for this winter is nearly full, the head of Russian energy Gazprom PJSC still warned European households could freeze in the event of a cold snap, according to Bloomberg.

"Winter can be relatively warm, but one week or even five days will be abnormally cold, and it's possible that whole towns and lands, god forbid, will freeze," Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said at Russian Energy Week in Moscow.

Miller said during peak winter demand days, Europe could experience a gap of 800 million cubic meters of NatGas per day, or about one-third of its total consumption. The figures were from a report by unidentified analysts.

Natgas to Europe is stable so far this week, albeit at reduced levels over the past year. Shipments via Ukraine are one of the last remaining Russian supply lines to western Europe after the bombing of Nord Stream pipelines. Even though NatGas shipments have dwindled and pushed many European economies to the brink of recession, inventories across the continent are nearly full at 91%.

The good news is EU storage is above a 10-year average of 71% for this time of year.

Dutch front-month gas futures, a European benchmark, has been nearly halved since late August on relief from inventories and hopes of a warmer winter.

But new data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) outlines that a high-pressure system over western Europe could bring colder weather, less wind, and less rainfall. Less wind would reduce the generation of renewable power.

Gazprom's CEO said EU NatGas inventories could be drained to 5% full in March...

"Sure, Europe will survive, but what will happen by the time of gas injection" into storage before winter of 2023 and 2024.

"It will be clear then that energy crisis has come not for a short period of time."

It appears Europe's energy crisis is far from over... The UK is already warning about its inability to import enough NatGas this winter, threatening to unleash power blackouts across its grid.

By Zerohedge.com

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From cyberattacks to energy pipeline sabotage, Russia has already demonstrated that it is willing and capable of deploying indirect attacks on NATO allies.

Defense experts warn, however, Putin does have other tools in his arsenal to lash out at the West.

Analysts expect Putin is not likely to use nuclear weapons despite significant losses in Ukraine.

U.S. President Joe Biden turned heads last week by warning Russian President Vladimir Putin is "not joking" when he issues thinly veiled threats of using weapons of mass destruction as his invasion of Ukraine struggles, potentially threatening his 23-year hold on power.

Days earlier, Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican member of the upper U.S. legislative chamber's intelligence committee, also made headlines when he said he feared Russia could launch a conventional strike against a NATO member to impede the alliance's military aid to Ukraine.

But analysts say Putin may be more likely to use other, less kinetic means to try to intimidate the West into curtailing its support for Ukraine such as targeting critical offshore energy pipelines and data cables, as well as satellites orbiting Earth.

"All of these methods of attack would be more logical for Russia to pursue" than a direct military attack on NATO facilities or use of a nuclear weapon, said Sean Monaghan, an analyst at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies who previously served at the British Defense Ministry.

For one thing, Monaghan said, a Russian strike targeting a weapons supply route in a NATO country such as Poland would trigger the 30-member Western military alliance to respond.

"The war with Ukraine is not existential [for Russia]. It's a war of choice," he said. "A war with NATO would be existential."

Nord Stream 'Sabotage'

In the case of undersea energy pipelines, there are accusations Russia has already carried out such an attack.

Blasts that hit two Russian natural gas export pipelines to Germany late last month were a sign of things to come, Monaghan said, calling it a "precursor to more brazen hybrid attacks."

Russia-controlled Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines suffered extensive damage in late September when several hundred pounds of explosives were detonated, according to Danish and Swedish investigators, in what Biden and other Western officials have called sabotage.

Officials have largely avoided direct accusations, but many in the West say they believe Russia sabotaged its own pipelines to deter Europe from aiding Ukraine. Russia has been curtailing natural gas exports to Europe for months, driving up prices to record highs and steeping the continent's energy crisis. The Kremlin has denied the accusations and blamed the United States, which had opposed the pipelines in the first place.

The pipeline blasts deepened concerns in the West about Russian attacks against European subsea pipelines and cables.

On October 8, damage to cables on land caused an hours-long stoppage of all rail traffic in northern Germany. The state-owned railway operator blamed "sabotage" and launched an investigation into who was behind the interference.

Monaghan said attacks against such critical infrastructure are deniable and ambiguous and "purposely do not cross the threshold of divisive [military] response," he said.

William Courtney, a former career diplomat who took part in U.S.-Soviet defense talks, also said Russia is more likely escalate by attacking a pipeline, Internet cable, or satellite.

Undersea fiber-optic cables carry the bulk of intercontinental Internet traffic. (illustrative image)

In addition to other factors, a strike against Poland might not be successful, he said -- the country has strong armed forces and is on high alert.

"Rather than striking the territory of a NATO member, Russia might look at a target that is more ambiguous in terms of how NATO would respond," said Courtney, who is now an analyst with Washington-based RAND Corporation think tank.

Estonia Cyberattack

Russia has carried out major hybrid attacks against NATO members and other countries in the past.

In 2007 Russia launched a weeks-long, coordinated cyberattack against Estonia, targeting websites of the Baltic nation's government, banks, telecommunications companies, Internet providers, and media outlets after Tallinn relocated a controversial Soviet war memorial that had stood in the center of the city. At the peak of the attack, bank cards and mobile-phone networks were temporarily frozen.

Russia has been suspected in other incidents.

In 2021, underwater cables off Norway's coast were severed and removed. The sensors attached to the cables had the ability to pick up information about Russian submarines, leading some to believe that Moscow may have been behind the incident.

Then, on January 7 of this year, one of two undersea fiber-optic cables that provide Internet and communications links between mainland Norway and the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean was knocked out.

The cables also provide power for Space Norway to run the Svalbard Satellite Station, one of only two ground stations that can download data from polar-orbiting satellites.

Russia had previously expressed concern that the SvalSat site could be used to download data from military satellites as well as commercial satellites.

Also in January, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the chief of Britain's Defense Staff, raised concerns about the "phenomenal increase in Russian submarine and underwater activity" over the past two decades.

In an interview with The Times of London, he said Russia has the naval capability to put at risk and "potentially exploit" undersea cables.

Monaghan said although subsea communications networks are resilient, there is still a large amount of data traffic that goes through a small number of cables under the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean.

"Western economies are reliant on this data exchange as we have predominantly digital knowledge economies, and Russia knows that," he said. "So, I do see the gas pipeline explosions as a kind of an implicit warning around advanced undersea capabilities, which NATO has to respond to."

While Russia has suffered major battlefield setbacks in Ukraine, it has "extremely potent maritime, space and cyberspace forces that are capable of inflicting damage where it hurts," Monaghan said.

Satellite Targets

Russia's potential targets are not just below the sea.

Last November, Russia carried out its first test of a direct-ascent anti-satellite missile (ASAT), destroying a Soviet-era target in low-Earth orbit and raising concerns abroad about its space capabilities. The weapon was fired from the Earth's surface as the satellite passed overhead.

Konstantin Vorontsov, head of Russia's delegation to the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, said last month the uses of commercial and civilian satellite assets by the United States and its allies to assist Ukraine "constitute indirect involvement in military conflicts" and "quasi-civilian infrastructure," as he put it, "may become a legitimate target for retaliation."

Ukraine's forces have relied heavily upon satellite Internet access to carry out operations against Russian forces.

Elon Musk's SpaceX has sent more than 15,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine to boost Internet coverage and connectivity following a Russian cyberattack against its critical infrastructure.

Planet Labs and Maxar Technologies, commercial satellite imagery firms, have also provided key intelligence by sharing high-resolution images of the battlefield from above.

Courtney said NATO is probably now undertaking more surveillance of vulnerable infrastructure. He said he could not speculate how NATO would respond to such an attack.

By RFE/RL

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The worlds biggest asset manager, BlackRock, is prepared to invest in energy pipelines in the United States as soon as such projects get the green light from the government, BlackRocks chief executive Larry Fink said on Wednesday.

The top executive of BlackRock  which has faced criticism from both environmental campaigners for still investing in conventional energy and Republican-led U.S. states for what they see as a boycott of the U.S. energy industry  defended the asset managers investment choices at a conference in Washington.

I'm now being attacked equally by the left and the right so I'm doing something right, I hope. I don't know. It's painful, but you know what? We're moving forward, Fink said at the Institute of International Finance conference, as carried by Reuters.

In the pipeline business, BlackRock is invested in energy infrastructure in Texas and the Middle East.

Early this year, a consortium led by affiliates of BlackRock and Hassana acquired a 49% stake in Aramco Gas Pipelines Company, a unit of the worlds biggest oil firm Saudi Aramco. In 2019, BlackRock made an investment in the oil pipeline infrastructure of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).

Meanwhile, multiple U.S. states governed by Republicans are withdrawing state funds from BlackRocks management, as they disapprove of the ESG investment policies of the worlds top asset manager. In recent weeks, Louisiana, South Carolina, Utah, and Arkansas have announced they would divest funds from BlackRock totaling more than $1 billion.

Last week, Louisiana State Treasurer John Schroder announced in a letter to BlackRocks Fink that he would divest all Treasury funds from BlackRock. Louisiana has removed $560 million to date and will pull out a total of $794 million by years end, Schroder noted.

For months now, Republican states have said they would no longer do business with asset managers who have ESG-aligned investment policies, which, the states say, show that those financial firms are boycotting the oil and gas industry.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Russia and NATO have never been so close to actual direct conflict, conventional or nuclear, than they are now, said the head of the General Staff of the Czech Army, Karel Rehka, at Mondays conference on Russian power and influence against Central Europe.



The general said that a conflict between Russia and NATO would have a significant impact on Czechia. He described the situation as serious, saying that despite decades of animosity, the threat of an outright conflict between the two powers is now dire.

Rehka also said the warning period before a possible conflict on the European battlefield can be relatively short; however, he called it an advantage that NATO now has a clearly defined adversary in Europe.

Another thing that has changed for me as a soldier is that I have a clearly defined adversary here in Europe, he said.

We were ashamed to call Russia a threat or an adversary or something like that while they label us that way, treat us that way, Rehka added.

Related: Saudi Arabia Expresses Its Total Rejection Of U.S. Statements About OPEC+

It must be said that as the chief of the General Staff, I am positive that if I am going to fight someone here on the European battlefield, I know who it is. Currently, most likely, it is the Russian Federation, Rehka claimed.

Rehka said he believes it is impossible to hope for a quick end to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

Anything can happen, but I dont see it, he said.

According to him, the conflict also has no good solution.

Now, were talking about how bad  more or less  the solution will be going forward, he said.

He emphasized that Czechia must be a steadfast ally in NATO.

We, as the Army of the Czech Republic, defend ourselves and always will within the framework of the Alliance, he said. With this in mind, Rehka drew attention to the need for a stable defense budget. He noted that the army does many things; it helped during the Covid-19 pandemic, and it helped during the floods that massively affected the Czech Republic in the summer of 2002.

We should not forget why we have an army and armed forces, he said. The army is there to fight, is supposed to prepare to fight, and is irreplaceable in that role.

By Zerohedge.com

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The biggest refinery in Europe, Shells Pernis in the Netherlands, suffered a malfunction late on Wednesday, which could exacerbate an already worsening fuel supply situation in northwest Europe due to the strikes in France.

Shell Pernis said late on Wednesday that Due to a malfunction on one of our installations, we are forced to flare.

Shell is investigating the cause of the malfunction and is doing everything it can to solve the problem as soon as possible, and to limit the nuisance for the residents in the vicinity of the refinery near Rotterdam, the company said.

Governments have been informed about the malfunction at Europes largest refinery, Shell said in a statement carried by Bloomberg, but didnt go into details about potential losses of fuel supply.

Fuel supply is already tight in Europe amid an ongoing strike at most of Frances refineries, and if the Dutch refinery malfunction leads to further supply losses, the European diesel market will find itself even shorter on supply, less than four months before the EU embargo on imports of Russian fuels by sea.

Frances fuel distribution continues to be disrupted by the ongoing strikes at refineries, with no end in sight to the industrial action that has left more than 60% of French refining capacity offline. Earlier this week, France said that it would requisition essential workers to staff Exxons French oil depot, and threatened to do the same for Totals French refineries if talks failed to progress. But workers at Totals Donges refinery decided on Tuesday to strike beginning on Wednesday, French union CGT said.

French ministers said today that TotalEnergies should raise the salaries of the workers, who have been on strike for two weeks now.

If one knows the profits which they made ... companies which have the capacity have a duty to raise wages and Total is one of them, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told local radio, as quoted by Reuters.

Energy Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher on Thursday called on TotalEnergies to raise wages, saying that the company can afford to do so, and that everyone must return to the negotiating table.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Falling crude oil prices and declining oil exports resulted in a $3.2-billion drop in Russias oil revenues to $15.3 billion for September, the lowest monthly oil export revenue for Moscow this year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday.

Total crude oil and oil product exports out of Russia fell by 230,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 7.5 million bpd in September, the IEA said in its Oil Market Report out today. The September oil export level was 560,000 bpd lower compared to Russias oil exports before the invasion of Ukraine, the agency estimated.

Russian oil exports to the European Union fell by 390,000 bpd in September compared to August, the IEAs data showed.

With less than two months to go before a ban on Russian crude oil imports comes into effect, EU countries have yet to diversify more than half of their pre-war import levels away from Russia, the agency noted.

The IEA also warned that the EU embargo on crude oil imports from Russia and the ban on maritime services that go into effect in early December could lead to further production losses from Russia.

Putin, as well as Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, have said that Russia would not export oil to countries joining the proposed price cap on Russian oil.

Despite the lowest oil income for this year in September, Russias revenues were still higher than the average monthly revenue in 2021, which stood at $14.9 billion, the IEA said in its monthly report.

As of September, the EU had already imported more than $97 billion (100 billion euros) worth of fossil fuels from Russia since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the think-tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said in a report earlier this month.

Russias fossil fuel exports resumed dropping in September, with estimated revenue falling 14% from August. The largest losses were in gas exports to Europe, and in crude oil exports globally, CREA said.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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After months of speculation, Spain has officially kicked off the process of withdrawing from the Energy Charter Treaty, a European treaty that seeks to protect energy investments, over climate concerns.

Spain will become the second country to withdraw from the treaty after Italy pulled out in 2016. Spains Energy Minister Teresa Ribera has told Politico that the country is now "certain" to withdraw from the treaty.

The ECT, which dates back to 1998, was designed to secure energy supply in the region and offer protection to companies investing in the energy industry. It was originally meant to support the energy sector in the former Soviet Union, allowing investors to sue governments over policies that jeopardize their investments. However, over the past few years, the treaty has been used by both fossil fuel and renewable energy companies in other European countries to sue governments for regulation changes that threaten returns on specific investments. For instance, German energy companies RWE and Uniper, are currently suing the Netherlands for 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) and 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion), respectively, as compensation for the Dutch government's plan to phase out coal by 2030.

Back in June, Spain urged the European Union to abandon the treaty, saying that it protects fossil fuel investors at the expense of maintaining a habitable planet.

"At a time when accelerating a clean energy transition has become more urgent than ever, it is time that the E.U. and its member states initiate a coordinated withdrawal from the ECT," Ribera said at the time, making Spain the first country to publicly call for abandoning the accord.

ECT critics have pointed out that in addition to draining billions of dollars in taxpayer money, the treaty hinders more robust decarbonization plans and uses funds that could otherwise be used to fund climate action. Last year, Yamina Saheb, a former employee of the ECT secretariat who resigned in 2018, called the pact "a real threat" to the 2015 Paris agreement, which seeks to limit global warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels by century's end.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

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The UN General Assembly has overwhelmingly condemned Russia's proclaimed annexation of four Ukrainian regions in eastern and southern Ukraine.

More than three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly on October 12 voted in favor of a resolution that called Moscow's move illegal.

Only Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea, and Belarus joined Russia in voting against the resolution. Thirty-five countries, including China, India, South Africa and Pakistan, abstained.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Twitter he was "grateful to 143 states that supported historic #UNGA resolution... [Russia's] attempt at annexation is worthless."

The resolution "condemns the organization by the Russian Federation of so-called referendums within the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine" and "the attempted illegal annexation" announced last month of four regions by President Vladimir Putin.

It calls on all UN and international agencies not to recognize any changes announced by Russia to borders and demands that Moscow "immediately and unconditionally reverse" its decisions.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the vote showed international unity against Russia and repeated Washington would never recognize the "sham" referendums.

The vote "is a powerful reminder that the overwhelming majority of nations stand with Ukraine, in defense of the UN Charter and in resolute opposition to Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine and its people," Blinken said in a statement.

"With very few nations voting with Russia today, it is clear that international unity on this question is resolute and support for Ukraine at the UN and beyond is unwavering," Blinken said.

Russian UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia told the General Assembly ahead of the vote that the resolution was "politicized and openly provocative," adding it "could destroy any and all efforts in favor of a diplomatic solution to the crisis."

The General Assembly vote, which the United States and other Western countries had lobbied for, followed a veto by Russia last month of a similar resolution in the 15-member Security Council on the annexation of the Ukrainian territory.

Moscow last month proclaimed its annexation of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine -- Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya -- after staging what it called referendums. Ukraine and its allies denounced the votes as illegal and said some voters were coerced into participating under threat of being shot.

By RFE/RL

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Coming up with the minerals for producing and using energy and fuels will require a wide range of critical metals. One of these rare earth elements, tellurium for example, is gaining in popularity for use in photovoltaics, or solar panels. As global demand for solar panels continues to increase, so is the need for critical metals like tellurium.

Tellurium isnt mined as by itself as a solo mineral. Currently, most tellurium is collected as a by-product from copper mining. Simon Jowitt, economic geologist at University of Nevada Las Vegas said, The fundamental question is: how much tellurium is out there?

He and coauthor Brian McNulty are trying to find out where this tellurium is and how much metal could be there. Jowitt presented their work at the Geological Society of Americas annual meeting yesterday.

Unfortunately, the amount of tellurium in a mine is rarely reported. To fill in the gaps and create estimates of critical minerals, Jowitt and McNulty developed proxies to estimate tellurium content globally.

Their first proxy results come from Resource and Reserve estimates. In these reports, a mining company uses their own investigation data and estimates that there are X-million tons of metal in the ground. These reports are used to estimate the value of a mine site.

Jowitt explained, We what we do is take that information  which tells us how big the deposit is, how many million tons of ore or mineralization  and we combine that with information thats published elsewhere on the concentration of tellurium and the deposit. The researchers can then calculate an estimate for tellurium.

The second proxy is where we know the size of the deposit, Jowitt said. In this case, the team uses the amounts of related tellurium minerals like calaverite, a gold-tellurium metal. We can estimate the amount of tellurium in that mineral, combine that with the reported size of the deposit, and again, develop a proxy.

They looked at 518 mineral deposits in active mines in the U.S. and Canada that are known to contain tellurium. Using their proxies, the researchers calculated that 18 gold mines in the two countries could produce ~90 tons/year of tellurium from current mining, with another six copper, zinc, and nickel mines in Canada having the potential to produce ~170 tons per year of tellurium.

Jowitt says this is a minimum estimate, because not every gold, copper, and nickel mine in the U.S. and Canada had appropriate data available.

By these estimates, they found that mines move around 260 tons of tellurium, but they dont collect it. If you recovered that tellurium, you could bump up global tellurium production by about 25%, said Jowitt. Thats about seventeen and a half million dollars of tellurium thats being moved around by the minerals industry but is being lost to waste.

Jowitt noted that their tellurium study is just one example for the potential of extracting critical metals from existing mining operations. Theres a whole range of byproduct and co-product elements that are we moving around when mining, he said. We need to do better making mineral mining operations more sustainable by extracting what we can from existing mineral deposits. And if we do that, its good for the environment, its good for the minerals industry (the way its being viewed), and its good for company bottom lines.

While their study focused on active mines, Jowitt noted that extracting critical metals from spoils piles at old mines can be another win-win situation. Theres a whole scope for extracting all sorts of metals from mining waste, he said. Old tailings and slag have potential for metal extraction. Theres potential for all sorts of wealth from waste, he said. While extracting metals from tailings can be economically profitable, theres also an environmental benefit.

A whole load of these sites are environmentally problematic. So what you do is essentially reprocess an environmentally problematic waste pile or tailings pile, you remove the environmental problem, and use the revenue generated from the process, Jowitt explained. Its not-for-profit mining  the value of the stuff you extract is being incorporated into the mining operations and actually reducing the environmental harm.

Jowitt said that as the need for carbon-neutral technologies increase, companies will have to consider mining multiple critical metals at once. The demand estimates for some of these metals are just huge, commented Jowitt. Unless we start thinking about [mineral extraction] in these kinds of ways, were going to end up with situations where metal prices start skyrocketing and climate change mitigation starts slowing down.

***

There is some probability that new mining could see a broader range of extraction take place where the capital plant or extraction facility is already in place. It's likely already happening in a small but accelerating way as pricing drives the investment needed for the specific mineral recovery.

The drag is going to come from not-for-profit mining where the defunct mining company is long gone and the spoils and tailing piles are still there, leaching any way. It might be worthwhile for environment groups to assay those sites and make the case for recovery, rehabilitation and a profit. Some could get snapped up quickly and some might have a dreadful time getting used and rehabilitated with a bunch in the middle needing some marketing effort.

Its also illustrative to remind us to be thoughtful about what we leave behind for our progeny to clean up.

Perhaps one day well outgrow the not in my backyard problem and get on with just compensating those up close so everyone can benefit from a healthy economy.

By Brian Westenhaus via New Energy and Fuel

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You are here: Business

Pork prices in China went up week on week, official data showed Wednesday.

From Oct. 3 to 9, the average pork price tracked by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs was 32.82 yuan (about 4.62 U.S. dollars) per kg, up 3.9 percent week on week. The price was 88.3 percent higher than a year ago.

Chinese authorities would release the fifth batch of pork into the market from central reserves to maintain supply and price stability, the country's top economic planner said recently.

The price of hogs has been running at a relatively high level recently, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The NDRC said domestic hog production capacity is generally reasonable and abundant, hence the price of hogs does not have a basis for sustained hikes.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  Taiwan lifted all its COVID-19 entry restrictions on Thursday, allowing tourists unfettered access to the self-ruled island after over 2 1/2 years of border controls.

Hong Kong and Taiwan, together with mainland China, required most visitors to complete a mandatory quarantine period throughout the pandemic, even as most countries reopened their borders to tourists.

Visitors are no longer required to quarantine upon entry, or take any PCR tests. Instead, they will need to monitor their health for a week after arriving, and obtain a negative result on a rapid antigen test the day they arrive. If people want to go out during the weeklong monitoring period, they need a negative test from either that day or the day before.

There are also no longer any restrictions on certain nationalities being allowed to enter Taiwan.

Dozens of visitors from Thailand were among the first to arrive under the new rules at Taiwans Taoyuan International Airport, which serves the capital Taipei, on a Tiger Air flight that landed shortly after midnight.

Tourists like 32-year-old Mac Chientachakul and his parents were excited to visit the island.

Hot pot is my favorite dish in Taiwan, Chientachakul said. Its my first thing to do ... I miss it so much.

Sonia Chang, a travel agent, said the changes are good for both the the tourism industry and Taiwanese residents, who can now travel abroad without having to quarantine when they get home.

Valaisurang Bhaedhayajibh, a 53-year-old business development director of a design firm, called the new rules convenient.

We dont have to do the test before coming here, and also after arriving, he said. We are still required to do the self-test every two days, and everything has been provided by Taiwanese authorities, including the rapid testing kits.

At a welcome ceremony in the Taoyuan airport's arrival hall, the travelers from Thailand were met by the Taiwan Tourism Bureaus director, Chang Shi-chung, who handed out gifts.

Taiwans tourism bureau estimated that a total of 244 tourists from some 20 tour groups will arrive Thursday.

With both Hong Kong and Taiwan getting rid of restrictions and welcoming back tourists, mainland China remains one of the few places in the world adamant in keeping borders closed and sticking to a zero-COVID strategy to stamp out the virus. Hong Kong ended its mandatory quarantine policy for inbound travelers late last month, requiring just a three-day self-monitoring period.

Associated Press writer Zen Soo contributed from Singapore.
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP)  Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday that he's asking for a review of how many Kentuckians have marijuana possession convictions as he considers President Joe Biden's request that governors issue pardons for people convicted of state marijuana offenses.

The governor said he's seeking details from the state Administrative Office of the Courts on how many Kentuckians could be eligible for state pardons for marijuana possession-only convictions.

Having a misdemeanor on your record isnt a small thing," Beshear said at his weekly news conference. "We want to know how many people this would apply to. So weve asked AOC ... to get us that information.

The request comes as Beshear continues weighing his options on another marijuana-related topic  what executive actions he might be able to take regarding access to medical marijuana in Kentucky.

Bipartisan efforts to legalize medical marijuana in Kentucky have passed the state House but ultimately died in the Senate. Both chambers have Republican supermajorities.

An advisory committee formed by Beshear recently reported overwhelming public support for legalization of medical cannabis, based on public feedback it received. The committee also found that people in Kentucky are crossing state lines to obtain medical cannabis where it is legal and want to return to Kentucky without breaking the law, the governor said.

We are taking this information into consideration and hope to have new steps to announce here in the near future, the governor said Thursday.

The governor said he's taking a deliberative approach on both marijuana-related matters.

Kentucky's Republican attorney general, Daniel Cameron, has warned that the governor would risk overstepping his authority by taking executive action to unilaterally make medical marijuana available. Cameron is among several Republicans already running for governor next year, when Beshear is seeking a second term.

Meanwhile, Beshear's review of marijuana issues expanded last week when Biden announced he's pardoning thousands of Americans convicted of simple possession of marijuana under federal law.

The president also called on the nation's governors to issue similar pardons for those convicted of state-level marijuana offenses, which reflect the vast majority of marijuana possession cases.

Beshear said Thursday he was not briefed before the presidents decision was announced.

I will tell you as a governor, I had no idea that this was coming," Beshear said. "So we have taken the last seven days to go over what it means federally and then to look at the correlating state statutes.

Beshear, a former attorney general, noted differences between federal and state law and said his administration will take time to analyze information before the next steps are announced.

The AOC said later Thursday that it's working on a report of marijuana convictions for the period from Jan. 1, 2017, through Oct. 11, 2022. During that time, there were 56,039 convictions for misdemeanor marijuana possession, it said in a statement. However, those numbers represent convictions, not individuals, it said.

Next we will pull the number of individual defendants, as the governor requested, the AOC said. We anticipate this taking a few weeks.

Under Kentucky law, marijuana possession is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 45 days in jail, the governor's office said. In most instances, its handled as a citation. Beshear said that to his knowledge, no one is currently jailed in Kentucky solely for simple possession of marijuana.

Nobody should ever go to jail for simple possession of marijuana, and right now in Kentucky they dont, the governor said.

In Kentucky, people convicted of marijuana possession can go through the expungement process to have the conviction removed from their record, he said.

Also, Kentuckians who have a misdemeanor conviction for simple possession of marijuana can visit the governors website and apply for a pardon, Beshear said.

If all you have on your record is a simple possession of marijuana ... look at applying for a pardon," the governor said, adding that the request would receive a very close review.
SAN DIEGO (AP)  The Biden administration agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants at U.S. airports, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russias invasion, while Mexico has agreed to take back Venezuelans who come to the U.S. illegally over land, the U.S. and Mexico said Wednesday.

Effective immediately, Venezuelans who walk or swim across the border will be immediately returned to Mexico under a pandemic rule known as Title 42 authority, which suspends rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19.

Any Venezuelan who illegally enters Mexico or Panama after Wednesday will also be ineligible to come to the U.S. under the offer.

The U.S. offer of parole for up to 24,000 Venezuelans is modeled on a similar program for Ukrainians who fled Russia's invasion and will hinge on Mexico keeping in place its independent but parallel effort to take back Venezuelans who come illegally, the Department of Homeland Security said.

The moves are a response to a dramatic increase in migration from Venezuela, which leapfrogged over Guatemala and Honduras in August to become the second largest nationality arriving at the U.S. border after Mexico.

"These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.

Mexico's Foreign Affairs Secretary said in a statement that those who seek to enter the United States will be able to do so in a more orderly, safe, regular and humane manner. The program discourages undocumented crossings that put migrants safety at risk.

In a related announcement, Homeland Security said it will make available nearly 65,000 temporary work visas for lower-skilled industries, roughly double the current annual allotment. At least 20,000 of those temporary visas will be reserved for Haiti and northern Central American countries.

Until now, Mexico has agreed to accept migrants expelled under Title 42 only if they are from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, in addition to Mexico, resulting in highly uneven enforcement. The U.S. struggles to expel other nationalities due to costs, strained diplomatic relations and other considerations.

Poor relations with the Venezuelan government have made it nearly impossible to apply Title 42. The pandemic rule has been used 2.3 million times since March 2020 but applied only 2,453 times on Venezuelans.

In August, Venezuelans were stopped 25,349 times, up 43% from 17,652 in July and four times the 6,301 encounters in August 2021, signaling a remarkably sudden demographic shift.

The announcement amounts to a potentially major expansion of Title 42 even though the administration recently sought to end it. Senior officials told reporters they are bound by a federal judge's decision in May to keep Title 42 in place.

Venezuelans who successfully apply online will come to the United States through an airport, similar to an effort that began in April to admit up to 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war for stays of up two years. The U.S. has admitted tens of thousands of Ukrainians since then, including including nearly 17,000 in August.

Venezuelans, like Ukrainians, must have a financial sponsor in the United States.

They also must figure out how to reach the U.S. There are currently no flights allowed from Venezuela due to U.S. concerns about the safety of Venezuelas aviation industry. The restriction applies to charter and commercial flights.

Venezuelans do not have to be in Venezuela to be eligible and may come from other countries, administration officials said.

It also remains to be seen if Mexico has limits to how many Venezuelans it will accept from the United States. Mexico said in its statement that it will temporarily allow some Venezuelan citizens to be returned. The 24,000 slots that the U.S. is offering is less than the number of Venezuelans that crossed the border illegally from Mexico in August alone.

An estimated 6.8 million Venezuelans have fled their country since the economy tanked in 2014, mostly to Latin America and Caribbean countries. But the U.S. economys relative strength since the COVID-19 pandemic has caused Venezuelan migrants to look north. The Biden administration's inability to apply Title 42 has provided more incentive.

Mexico, under pressure from the U.S. administration, introduced restrictions on air travel to limit Venezuelan migration to the United States in January, but many then shifted to a dangerous route over land that includes Panama's notorious Darien Gap.

The surge in Venezuelan migration has emerged as a major challenge to authorities in the U.S., Mexico and Central America and a test of a hemispheric agreement reached in June in Los Angeles for countries that host migrants to confront issues together.

Associated Press writers Joshua Goodman in Miami and Maria Verza in Mexico City contributed to this report.
CommonSpirit Health, the parent company of CHI Health in Nebraska and western Iowa, confirmed in a statement that the IT security incident that has impacted the health system for more than a week is a ransomware attack.

Officials with CHI Health confirmed previously that all of its Omaha facilities  including Lakeside Hospital, Creighton University Medical Center-Bergan Mercy and Immanuel Medical Center  have been affected.

In its statement, CommonSpirit officials said the health system took immediate steps to protect its systems, contain the incident, begin an investigation and ensure continuity of care.

The companys facilities, according to the statement, are following existing protocols for system outages, including taking certain systems offline. That includes electronic health records. The health system said it has engaged leading cybersecurity specialists and notified law enforcement.

CHI Health officials have stressed that the systems clinics and hospitals remain open and that hospitals continue to accept trauma patients. However, they said, the health system has made some temporary adjustments, including rescheduling and delaying certain appointments or procedures on a case-by-case basis.

Health systems increasingly have become targets of such attacks in recent years. Cybersecurity provider Emsisoft has tracked at least 15 health care systems in the U.S., which manage more than 60 hospitals, affected by ransomware this year, the Associated Press reported.

Ransomware criminals increasingly are stealing data from their targets before encrypting networks, using it for extortion. They often sow the malware weeks before activating it, waiting for moments when they think they can extract the highest payments, the AP reported.

In September 2020, Nebraska Medicine was the target of a cyberattack that shut down computer systems for days. Patients were unable to access online medical and billing information, and nonurgent appointments were postponed.

But the CommonSpirit Health attack, which patients say has health care providers charting on paper, is proving frustrating to some patients, who report challenges in making appointments and obtaining prescriptions.

Edward Porter of Omaha, who has diabetes, said he has been unable to reorder sensors for his continuous glucose monitor because CHI Healths systems are offline.

Under his employer-provided insurance, the devices are considered durable medical equipment. He usually gets them at a CHI Health pharmacy that handles such devices. It would cost $75 or more each if he paid for them out of pocket, an expense for which he hasnt budgeted.

Meanwhile, he said, hes back to testing his blood sugar by using lancets to prick his fingers. Not only does it make his fingers hurt and feel cold afterward, the father of five, who works multiple jobs, doesnt have time for the frequent testing.

Its nerve-racking, to say the (least), Porter said.

When Connie Pfeifer of Omaha tried to get an appointment earlier this week for her mother, who had fallen and hurt her foot, she was told to take the 85-year-old to an urgent care or emergency room. With its systems down, staff at her mothers clinic didnt know what patients were coming in for appointments.

Fortunately, her mothers foot wasnt broken, Pfeifer said. But the process of getting a walker for her also has been delayed by the outage. Pfeifer said she was told Thursday that the clinic now can schedule appointments. The clinic also had faxed an order for a walker. Earlier, Pfeifer had to go to the office twice to get hand-written prescriptions for her mother because the clinic couldnt send them to a pharmacy.

A CHI Health spokeswoman said in an emailed statement that providers are following offline processes to manage prescription medications for their patients.

Patients who have a prescription on file with a pharmacy can continue to fill or refill their prescription. If a patient is out of refills for a medication, the patient should contact his or her pharmacy first and the pharmacy will contact the prescriber to obtain a new prescription with additional refills. CHI Health providers can write new prescriptions for patients who may require a new medicine.

Patients with specific questions, the spokeswoman wrote, are encouraged to call the CHI Health pharmacy location they use and speak with a pharmacist for assistance.
The Westside school district is suing the Omaha Public Schools in an attempt to recover money it didnt receive from the Douglas County treasurer over the past six years.

The suit follows an investigation by the Nebraska State Auditors Office, which concluded in May that the Douglas County Treasurers Office miscalculated distributions of millions of dollars in revenue in 2021.

The errors resulted in overpayments and underpayments to several school districts, the City of Omaha and Douglas County. Westside was underpaid by about $3.7 million while OPS was overpaid by about $5.6 million in 2021.

The suit, filed on Oct. 5, alleges that the Treasurers Office also underpaid Westside and overpaid OPS in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Westside alleges in the lawsuit that OPS unjustifiably obtained the overpayments, has been unjustly enriched by the money and should pay Westside the amount it was underpaid the past six years.

The suit was filed based on advice from the districts legal counsel to expedite a solution and recover the money due to Westside and improperly paid to OPS over the course of multiple years, said Superintendent Mike Lucas in an email sent to families on Wednesday.

The email was sent after The World-Herald sent an inquiry to the district seeking comment on the lawsuit.

We understand the importance of this lost revenue to our patrons, community, students and staff, Lucas wrote. We are trying to secure $10 million-plus of lost revenue that was overpaid to the City of Omaha, Douglas County and Omaha Public Schools.

Michael Coyle, the districts attorney, said that OPS officials have ignored Westsides requests for a solution.

A statement from OPS Wednesday said the district had not been formally served with legal paperwork. OPS will remain relentlessly focused on educating the young people we serve, according to the statement.

John Ewing, Douglas County treasurer, manages the handling of tax payments to school districts each year.

The State Auditors Office investigation said that Ewing and his staff incorrectly interpreted state statute that spells out how counties with more than one school district within a single city are supposed to distribute annual payments from the Omaha Public Power District.

OPPD makes the payments, which are ultimately transmitted to local governments and school districts in lieu of property and real estate taxes. The utility directs 5% of its gross revenues from the previous years retail electricity sales to those entities.

The Treasurers Office started the calculation by using levies only from OPS to determine the amount to be disbursed to the five school districts within the city of Omaha, according to a letter from State Auditor Charlie Janssens office.

A similar mistake was found last year in Sarpy County and is the subject of a lawsuit filed by four school districts, including OPS, which was allegedly underpaid by $1.4 million. The case is currently under advisement by a district court judge.

In its statement Wednesday, OPS noted its participation in the Sarpy County lawsuit.

As Nebraskas Auditor of Public Accounts has stated, the errors at the heart of Westside Community Schools filing were made by the County Treasurer, the statement read. That is why the Omaha Public Schools chose to initiate its action in Sarpy County against the Treasurer rather than our fellow school districts.

Westside also filed a separate lawsuit in July against the Douglas County Treasurers Office in an effort to recover the missed payments.

In the months since, we have worked closely with the City of Omaha and Douglas County to resolve this matter in a positive and timely manner, Lucas said in the email. We feel good about where we are today, but still have a little work to do with these two important entities.

The State Auditors Office found that three metro area districts besides Westside were underpaid, but none have filed litigation to recover the funds. The Elkhorn Public Schools was underpaid by about $4.2 million, the Ralston Public Schools by about $4 million and the Millard Public Schools by about $820,000.

While we value our relationship with Omaha Public Schools, ultimately, our responsibility is to you, our stakeholders and taxpayers, as well as our students and staff, Lucas said. That money is imperative in our mission to promote student achievement and success, to fairly compensate our dedicated teachers and staff and to improve the safety and infrastructure of our schools and facilities.
PHOENIX (AP)  Arizona can move forward with the execution of death row inmate Murray Hooper next month, the state's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

The state's high court granted the motion for a warrant of execution of the 76-year-old. He will die by lethal injection or gas in an execution scheduled for Nov. 16, according to the warrant signed by four justices. The other three recused themselves.

Kelly Culshaw, an assistant federal public defender representing Hooper, reiterated that Hooper has maintained his innocence in the double slayings on New Year's Eve in 1980.

He was convicted and sentenced based on corrupt police practices and unreliable witness testimony, Culshaw said in a statement.

"No physical evidence links him to the crime and Mr. Hoopers execution should not be carried out until an analysis of key fingerprint and DNA evidence, which was scientifically unavailable at the time of his trial, has been completed, she added.

Hooper's defense team filed a petition in September in Maricopa County Superior Court requesting post-conviction DNA and other forensic testing.

The petition argues Hooper was convicted in 1982, before the availability of computerized fingerprinting systems and DNA testing.

Hooper would be the third inmate put to death this year after Arizona recently resumed carrying out executions.

He and two co-defendants were sentenced to death for the murders of William Pat Redmond and his mother-in-law, Helen Phelps, during a home robbery in Phoenix. Redmonds wife, Marilyn, was shot in the head but recovered.

Defense attorneys for Hooper say her description of the assailants changed several times before she identified Hooper, who claimed not to be in Arizona at the time. They also allege criminal informants who helped implicate Hooper were influenced by incentives from the police.

The other two men convicted died before their sentences could be carried out.

When Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced in July he intended to seek the warrant, he called death "the appropriate response ... for the victims, their families and our communities.

The state hadnt executed anyone for nearly eight years before Clarence Dixon died by lethal injection in May for the 1978 murder of a 21-year-old Arizona State University student.

Frank Atwood was executed in June at the state prison in Florence for the 1984 killing of an 8-year-old Tucson girl.

There are 111 inmates on Arizonas death row, and 22 have exhausted their appeals, according to the Attorney Generals Office.
A defense lawyer lashed out Thursday at a star witness in a trial related to a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, accusing the Army veteran of stolen valor and questioning why he wasn't given a Purple Heart if he was truly injured in Iraq.

The ruckus broke out in front of jurors and continued after they were excused. Defense attorneys and prosecutors raised their voices over each other. At one point, an FBI agent firmly told lawyer Leonard Ballard to back up, please.

Judge, it's literally hurting my ears. I just can't listen to it anymore, state Assistant Attorney General Sunita Doddamani pleaded.

The commotion occurred on the ninth day of trial in Jackson, Michigan, where three members of a paramilitary group, the Wolverine Watchmen, are charged with providing material support for a terrorist act.

Joe Morrison, Pete Musico and Paul Bellar are not accused of directly participating in the Whitmer kidnapping scheme. But state prosecutors said they provided training and support to key players who were subsequently convicted of conspiracy in federal court.

Just like in the federal case, a crucial witness against the three men is Dan Chappel. He agreed in 2020 to become an informant, embedding himself for months inside the Watchmen after reporting to the FBI that the group talked chillingly about attacking police.

In response to questions from prosecutors, Chappel, 36, explained that he was simply looking for a way to maintain his gun skills when he joined the group, years after serving with the Army in Iraq. He told jurors that he suffered back and head trauma overseas that sometimes affected his memory.

Ballard, who is Morrison's lawyer, pounced during cross-examination, challenging Chappel over his lack of a Purple Heart, a medal typically given to people injured in combat.

It's relevant because they have put his combat, and his combat ability, and his combat wounds and everything into evidence," Ballard said, referring to prosecutors. They said this is who and what he is. It goes to his credibility.

Ballard, a former Marine, said a Purple Heart for Chappel's injuries should have been automatic under Army regulations. But Chappel said his injuries weren't diagnosed by doctors until later.

This witness cant get away with misrepresenting his conduct, his service, his valor  which I would argue is stolen valor in this matter  to these 15 people," Ballard said of the jury.

Assistant Attorney General Bill Rollstin fired back, accusing Ballard of "besmirching this mans integrity.

What's (Ballard's) point: He does or doesn't have a Purple Heart so now you shouldnt believe his testimony? Rollstin asked.

Judge Thomas Wilson said Chappel would get an opportunity Friday to more fully explain his injuries to the jury.

Then Ill allow you to ask him if he ever had the Purple Heart, Wilson told Ballard.

White reported from Detroit.

___

Follow Ed White at http://twitter.com/edwritez
The 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded its seventh plenary session in Beijing on Wednesday with a communique issued.



Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, made an important speech at the four-day session, which was presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

It was decided at the plenary session that the 20th CPC National Congress will open on Oct. 16 in Beijing, according to the communique.

Entrusted by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Xi delivered a work report to the plenum.

The plenary session also discussed and adopted a report to be made by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress, a work report of the 19th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) to the congress, and an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

The three documents will be submitted to the upcoming congress for examination and deliberation, read the communique.

During the session, Xi delivered explanatory remarks on the draft report by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress. Wang Huning made explanations on the draft amendment to the CPC Constitution.

It was noted at the session that over the past year, confronted with a complex and challenging international situation and demanding tasks of advancing reform, promoting development, and maintaining stability at home, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee has fully implemented Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in securing new and major achievements in the undertakings of the Party and the state, creating favorable conditions for convening the 20th CPC National Congress.

The past five years since the 19th CPC National Congress have been unusual and extraordinary, said the communique.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has held high the banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in completing the historic mission of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and thus realizing the first centenary goal, and in embarking on a new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing toward the second centenary goal, the communique said.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in effectively coping with the grave and complex international situation and a series of major risks and challenges, and pushing forward socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era in an energetic manner, according to the communique.

Many tough problems that remained unsolved for a long time have been solved, many things of vital importance and long-term significance have been accomplished, and major achievements that captured the attention of the world have been scored in the cause of the Party and the country, the communique said.

The communique noted that these major achievements have been the result of concerted efforts of all Party members and all Chinese people under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, and the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

It emphasized that, the Party has established Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and has defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This reflects the common will of the Party, the armed forces, and the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, and is of decisive significance for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era and for driving forward the historic process of great national rejuvenation.

The session took stock of the work of the 19th CPC CCDI, noting that discipline inspection commissions at all levels, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, had resolutely implemented the Party's strategic decisions of self-reform and full, rigorous self-governance.

An overwhelming victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and this has been consolidated across the board, it read.

The session analyzed the current situation and the tasks, and hosted in-depth discussion on major issues including upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era, and building a modern socialist country in all respects. It made full preparation for the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, the communique said.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee opened in Beijing on Oct. 9, with 199 full members and 159 alternate members present. Members of the CCDI and leading officials of related departments were also present in a non-voting capacity.

In accordance with the CPC Constitution, the session decided to admit Ma Guoqiang, Wang Ning and Wang Weizhong as full members to the 19th CPC Central Committee. They had been alternate members of the committee.

The session also endorsed the expulsion of Fu Zhenghua, Shen Deyong and Zhang Jinghua from the CPC, as was decided by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, as well as the punishment on Li Jia, who was removed from his post in the Party.




Results of a national college entrance exam released Wednesday are not very encouraging for Nebraska or the nation, and an exam official said the results cant just be pinned on the pandemic.

The national average ACT composite score for the high school class of 2022 was 19.8, the lowest average score in more than three decades, according to data released Wednesday. It was the first time since 1991 that the average ACT composite score was below 20. The highest possible score is a 36.

This is the fifth consecutive year of declines in average scores, a worrisome trend that began long before the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has persisted, said ACT CEO Janet Godwin in a statement.

Approximately 1.3 million U.S. high school students in the class of 2022 took the test.

Nebraska graduates achieved an average composite score of 19.4 in 2022, with 94% of graduates tested. Thats the lowest average composite score for the state in at least 10 years.

In 2021, 86% of graduates were tested for an average composite score of 20.

The ACT college entrance exam measures readiness in English, reading, mathematics and science.

Godwin said the magnitude of the declines nationwide is particularly alarming because growing numbers of seniors are leaving high school unprepared for college success.

These declines are not simply a byproduct of the pandemic, she said. They are further evidence of longtime systemic failures that were exacerbated by the pandemic.

Comparing states performance on the ACT has always been problematic, and its even more so because of pandemic disruptions.

In some states, only a fraction of students take the exam. And when states increase their participation rate, scores often go down because students who arent on a college track are tested.

Nebraska tests all public-school juniors as part of annual state assessments. However, the pandemic disrupted participation, further making year-to-year comparisons a bit dicey.

Prior to the pandemic, Nebraska was able to test 100% of graduates.

If there is a silver lining to be found, it lies in how Nebraska fared compared to states that similarly tested a large majority of graduates.

Of the 14 states with more than 90% of graduates taking the ACT, only Utah at 19.9 scored better than Nebraska.

In Nebraska, 20% of tested graduates met all four ACT benchmarks for college success, down from 23% a year earlier.

That was lower than students nationally, of whom 22% met the benchmarks  but the disparity could reflect Nebraskas testing of a greater percentage of its students.

The benchmarks reflect the minimum ACT scores required for students to have a higher probability of success in credit-bearing first-year college courses.

Students who meet a benchmark have about a 50% chance of earning a B or better and approximately a 75% chance of earning a C or better in the corresponding college course or courses, ACT said.

In Nebraska, the percent of students meeting the benchmarks had held steady for several years when testing all grads.

Twenty-two percent of Nebraska graduates met all four benchmarks in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Nationally, the percentage of students meeting all four benchmarks dropped three percentage points, from 25% of students in 2021.

The percentage of students meeting no benchmarks was 42%, up from 38% of students in 2021, ACT said.

Academic preparedness is where we are seeing the decline, said Rose Babington, senior director for state partnerships for the ACT. Every time we see ACT test scores, we are talking about skills and standards, and the prediction of students to be successful and to know the really important information to succeed and persist through their first year of college courses.

The number of students taking the ACT has declined 30% since 2018, as graduates increasingly forgo college, and some universities no longer require admissions tests. But participation plunged 37% among Black students, with 154,000 taking the test this year.

Standardized tests such as the ACT have faced growing concerns that theyre unfair to minority and low-income students, as students with access to expensive test prep or advanced courses often perform better.

Babington defended the test as a measure of college readiness. Now more than ever, the last few years have shown us the importance of having high-quality data to help inform how we support students, Babington said.

Test scores now are optional for first-year student admission at many institutions. Some colleges, such as the University of California system, even opt for a test-blind policy, where scores are not considered even if submitted.

But many students still take the tests, hoping to get an edge in admissions by submitting their scores. Tyrone Jordan, a freshman at test-optional Arizona State University, said he took the ACT and the SAT to get ahead of other students and help him receive scholarships.

Jordan, who wants to pursue mechanical engineering, said he thinks his rigorous schedule at Tempe Preparatory Academy prepared him for college, and the standardized tests helped support him and his family financially.

All the test did for me was give me extra financial money, Jordan said.

This report includes material from the Associated Press.
NORMAL  Normal police say charges have been filed against a Bloomington man who is believed to be involved in a stabbing that occurred in July.

Zhane McGill, 24, is charged with attempted murder with the intent to kill or injure (Class X felony) after stabbing a man in the 1000 block of Charlotte Drive at approximately 5:14 p.m. July 29.

According to the Normal Police Department, officers initially secured the area upon arrival, tended to the 27-year-old male victim and noticed a stab wound to his back and bruising around the his neck.

Once they began their investigation, officers were able to locate evidence on scene as well as interview the victim and witnesses.

After a lengthy investigation, and in collaboration with the McLean County State's Attorney's Office, McGill was arrested Thursday by Normal police with the assistance of the Bloomington Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.

McGill was also charged with aggravated domestic battery (Class 3 felony), aggravated battery with great bodily harm (Class 2 felony) and aggravated battery with the use of deadly weapon (Class 2 felony).

Normal Police Department Community Relations Officer Brad Park said the victim was initially hospitalized after the incident but has since been released.

In court on Thursday, for McGill was set at $300,000 as a 10% bond, meaning he would need to post $30,000 plus fees to be released. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim. McGill's next appearance is arraignment on Nov. 4.

Anyone with additional information on this incident is asked to call the NPD Criminal Investigations Division at 309-454-9593.

Connor Wood contributed reporting.
BLOOMINGTON  The Illinois Prairie Community Foundation will honor its Philanthropists of the Year during a luncheon on Nov. 17. Janice Meadows, of Bloomington, and Kevin Jones, of Mackinaw, were named as this year's recipients.

The award is presented each year to two individuals, one from the Bloomington-Normal area and one from the wider region in McLean, DeWitt, Livingston and Logan counties, a Thursday press release from the organization said.

The foundation also will host a workshop titled "Communicate, Collaborate, Connect: Invest in Building a Better Organization" the morning of Nov. 17, before the luncheon.

Meadows retired from McLean County Unit 5 in 2011 after 35 years in the district. She worked as a behavior specialist at Colene Hoose Elementary School for 20 years and as a first grade teacher at Glenn Elementary School for 15 years. She also taught night courses at Illinois State University for 20 years, retiring in 2021.

For the past 11 years, Meadows has been involved with the Promise Council, an independent school support program, and the Back 2 School Alliance, which is a coalition of local groups that annually provide school supplies to low-income families across the Unit 5 and District 87 school districts. She also serves as vice president of the Illinois Education Association of Retired Teachers.

Jones has a 35-year career in restorative justice, working with children and families through agencies like The Baby Fold, the Children's Foundation, the Department of Children and Family Services and the Regional Office of Education.

Over the course of his career, Jones has facilitated listening circles, a restorative justice practice that provides a space and opportunity for people to speak and listen to each other in a safe, respectful and equal environment. He has held these circles for Illinois State University, the Bloomington Police Department, Carle BroMenn Medical Center, Western Avenue Community Center, Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal and several churches in McLean County. Since 2015, Jones has held more than 2,500 listening circles revolving around George Floyd's murder, the 2020 presidential election and the attacks on the Asian American Pacific Islander community.

IPCF's Nov. 17 workshop starts at 8:30 a.m. at the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel, 10 Brickyard Drive, Bloomington. The luncheon starts at noon in the same place.

The luncheon costs $40 per person and the workshop costs $30. Two people from a nonprofit can attend the workshop for $30.

Registration can be done online at www.ilprairiecf.org/local-philanthropy or by contacting the foundation at info@ilprairiecf.org or 309-662-4477. The registration deadline is Nov. 8.
CHICAGO  As the new school year swings into gear, some students carry heavier worries than keeping up with homework: Demand has been growing steadily for children's books that address traumatic events such as school shootings.

Sales of books for young readers on violence, grief, and emotions have increased for nine straight years, with nearly six million copies sold in 2021  more than double the amount in 2012, according to NPD BookScan, which tracks U.S. retail sales of print books.

As anxiety and depression rates have soared among young Americans, educators and advocates say children's books can play a role in helping them cope.

"While it might be second nature to try to shield kids from the harsher realities of life and scary news, it's proving difficult to avoid big society issues," said Kristine Enderle, editorial director at Magination Press, the children's book publishing arm of the American Psychological Association. "Kids face these issues and challenges in their day-to-day life."

One book, "I'm Not Scared  I'm Prepared," was reprinted several times to meet demand after the massacre at Uvalde's Robb Elementary School in May, according to the National Center for Youth Issues, the nonprofit group that published the book. The story, first published in 2014, features a teacher who shows children what to do when a "dangerous someone" is in their school.

Bookstores around the country see interest in titles from the genre rise and fall depending on local and national headlines, according to bookseller Barnes & Noble.

Some newer titles engage directly with real-world gun violence.

In "Numb to This," a graphic novel released this month, author Kindra Neely details the 2015 Umpqua Community College shooting in Oregon, which she survived, and the aftermath as she tries to heal amid repeated shootings elsewhere. Initially, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers editorial director Andrea Colvin said she was shocked when Keely pitched the idea.

"I had to remember that, yes, this is what our stories are like now. This is what young people have experienced," Colvin said.

Michele Gay, whose 7-year-old daughter Josephine was killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, turned to children's books herself to help her two surviving daughters. One picture book she read to them was "The Ant Hill Disaster," about a boy ant who is afraid to go back to school after it is destroyed.

"It was one of many books that was of comfort to them and gave them a little bit of confidence to just face one more day, one more minute, because we can do it together," said Gay, who advocates for improved security in schools through a nonprofit she co-founded, Safe and Sound Schools.

Parents should make sure books addressing trauma are age-appropriate and backed by psychologists, experts say.

It's important to be aware of whether children are aware of or feeling stress about frightening things in the news, said Aryeh Sova, a Chicago psychologist who works with children who attended the July 4 parade in suburban Highland Park, Illinois, where seven people were killed in a shooting. A child asking lots of questions about an event may signify that they are anxious or fixated on it, he said.

"If it's coming from the kid's need, then books could be a great way for kids to learn and to read together with their parents and to review it on their own and to process it at their own speed, at their own pace," Sova said.

But bringing up violence when a child isn't worried about it could increase their anxiety unnecessarily, Sova said.

Some young children experience gun violence at alarmingly high rates, particularly in communities of color.

For them, it is important to start early to address the effects, said Ian Ellis James, an Emmy award-winning Sesame Street writer known by his stage name William Electric Black. He is the author of the illustrated children's book " A Gun Is Not Fun." He said young children in areas afflicted by gun violence are more aware of it than parents may think.

"They know about flowers and candles and cards in the street. They walk by them every day," he said.

Through children's literature and theater, Black works to reduce urban gun violence. "If you start when they're 5, and you go back when you're 6, 7, 8, 9, you're going to change the behavior," he said.

In the spring, he will collaborate with New York public school P.S. 155 in East Harlem with a series of gun violence awareness and prevention workshops for early readers, using puppets, storytelling and repetition.

"They won't even get rid of assault weapons here in this country. So my thing is, we have to go in and we've got to help them help themselves save themselves," Black said. "We're really kind of failing at that."
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, says the Akufo-Addo government will never cancel the Free Senior High School policy which has benefitted a lot of Ghanaian children.



According to him, the Free SHS has promoted access to secondary education, and its enrollment increased from less than 900,000 students in the 2016/17 academic year, to more than 1.2 million in 2020/21.



Due to that the government is doing its best to fix the economy and will continue to contribute to the largest portion of education expenditure.



The Vice President made this known in a speech read on his behalf by the Senior Advisor to the President, Yaw Osafo Maafo, at the 2022 edition of the Annual National Education Week held in Accra.



The event which brought most gurus in the Educational Sector was held under the theme: Re-Assessing Educational Policies for Effective Service Delivery and National Transformation.



Dr. Bawumia in his speech noted that this administration spent on average, between 4.5%  4.6% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and between 17.6%  24% of its national budget on education from 2019 to 2021.



He noted that The share of government expenditure in education increased marginally from 73.4% in 2019 to 74.0% in 2020, adding that the debate should not be whether our public expenditure was too high or too low, but instead whether or not these programs contributed to the welfare of Ghanaians and are essential for our national transformation.



Deputy Education Minister, John Fordjor, in a brief remark, stated that his outfit had the sole responsibility of contributing to the desired national transformation by recognizing the strengths and weaknesses of the current system.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Ghana Revenue Authority has issued a word of caution to companies that are yet to enroll on a Certified Invoicing System for the administration of Value Added Tax (VAT) in Ghana, following the amendment of the VAT Act 870.



The Authority, in the past days has closed some major shopping malls including Palace and China mall branches.



This comes after the GRA began an exercise to ensure compliance by some 50 selected tax-paying companies to be enrolled on the Certified Invoicing System.



The move, according to the GRA, is necessary to help improve Ghanas domestic tax mobilization efforts.



According to the Deputy Commissioner, Operations-DTRD, Kwesi Eghan, the China and Palace malls are part of the 50 selected tax-paying companies which have failed to comply with the GRAs requirements.



Mr. Eghan further went on to caution other companies who he noted have also duly been informed about the system and the need to enroll, to do so before the law catches up with them.



For the 50 people we are talking about, if you have not yet enrolled, we plead with you to do so before the enforcement officers get to your businesses otherwise we will close your shops until you follow due process, he said while speaking in an interview with the UTV.



Mr. Eghan indicated despite these companies having been informed about the deadline for enrolment on the system - October 12, 2022, only 25 out of the 50 entities have so far complied.



We want to improve compliance. We are more interested in collaboration than chasing businesses to pay their taxes. But we have no option at this moment than to move swiftly to ensure the right thing is done, he said in an interview with the media.



Meanwhile, Kwesi Eghan has noted that the GRA hopes to enrol 600 large taxpayers into the system in its first implementation phase, which is expected to end in December 2023.



He added that by 2024, all taxpayers would have been fully integrated into the platform.

Source: Ghanaweb.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Director of Legal Affairs for the National Democratic Congress, Abraham Amaliba has advised the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Chairman, Freddie Blay to recuse himself from defending Chinese illegal miners in court.



The former Chairman is representing some Chinese nationals standing trial for their alleged involvement in illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey in the country.



Critics say Mr. Blays move defeats the governments effort in fighting the menace which has left many water bodies and forest reserves destroyed.



Commenting on the issue on Starr Today with Joshua Kodjo Mensah, the NDCs legal director indicated that Mr. Blay should not be seen as compounding issues for the government as it wages war against the galamsey menace.



So for the sake of the people of this country who are also fighting the galamsey menace,let me not involve myself in the matter. Sometimes your conscience should tell you what you should do.



"What has even compounded the issue is that in this whole saga of galamsey, the government officials have been fingered to be engaging in it. That is a new dimension.



Our fight against galamsey, we are now seeing that names of appointees have been mentioned. Then you (Freddie Blay) compound the problem for the government by defending those who have been mentioned as accomplices, Mr. Amaliba stated.



He continued: I think he is a senior lawyer, it is not always that you follow money. He will get his money alright but his image will be tarnished.



"I have done similar cases and where I feel that the people see my services will create the wrong impression Ive given those cases to colleagues, who are not in the same situation that I find myself.



The NDC legal director further added that Mr. Blay should hand over the case to any of his lawyers who are not connected to the NPP to handle it.



Dont forget Nkrabea Effah is also there as a lawyer and you are also there as lawyer and the government officials have been fingered as contributing to the menace, 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.

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The former Chief Executive Officer of the Public Procurement Authority, Mr. Adjenim Boateng Adjei, is expected to appear again in court today, Thursday, October 13, 2022, following charges preferred against him by the Special Prosecutor earlier this year.



The ex-PPA Boss has been slapped with 17 charges by the Special Prosecutor.



He pleaded not guilty to all the charges when he was arraigned on May 25, 2022, before the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court.



Mr. AB Adjei denied seven counts of using Public office for-profit and 10 counts of directly and indirectly influencing the Public Procurement process using his office.



The second accused person Francis Kwaku Arhin, his brother-in-law also pleaded not guilty to one count of using Public officers for profit.



The two were months ago granted bail in the sums of GHc5 million cedis each with two justified sureties.

Source: starrfm.com.gh









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Former President John Dramani Mahama has called for youth in Africa to be empowered with tools and skills they need to thrive in this fast-changing globalised world.



He wants young people on the continent to also be encouraged to take an active role in the governance of their countries.



Speaking at the 2022 Liberty University Convocation in Virginia, USA, the ex-President said, We must collectively work to create an enabling environment for the optimal development of the talents of the youth.



According to him, the issues and challenges of conflict, unemployment, gender, corruption, education, health, poverty, hunger in Africa and many developing countries are well-documented.



What is relatively less discussed is the capacity of the institutions we have established and mandated to ensure that the government fulfills its social contract to the people in the spirit of fairness, justice, inclusiveness, and absolute accountability, he indicated.



Mr. Mahama argued that absolute accountability, not just by the government, but by the institutions of state in service to the people and not themselves, will go a long way to remedy many of the systemic problems that affect African people.



In Africa, we need ethical and moral uprightness as guiding principles, and a stoic fidelity to the truth and to do right by our people above all other considerations, he asserted.



The Liberty Universitys Convocation is one of the worlds largest gatherings of Christian students. Each year, the programme hosts more than 80 nationally known speakers from a variety of fields.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) will convene its 37th session from Oct. 26 to 30 in Beijing.

The decision was made on Thursday at a meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the NPC Standing Committee, which was presided over by Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

According to the proposed agenda, lawmakers at the session will thoroughly study and implement the guiding principles of the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

The lawmakers are also expected to review a draft revision to the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women, a draft law on the protection of the Yellow River, and a draft revision to the Animal Husbandry Law, among other bills and reports.
The lifestyles of many Ghanaian preachers do not reflect the gospel they preach, Chairman of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, has indicated.



According to the man of God, this was the reason why the campaign against rottenness in the Ghanaian society was not getting any better, because fake pastors, prophets and evangelists were multiplying by the day.



Apostle Nyamekye made this known during the launch recently of the Great Asanteman Gospel Crusade to be held in Kumasi in November this year by the Christ for All Nations (CfaN) Ministry.



People are looking for Jesus in his pastors and they are not seeing it. The light, which the gospel of Jesus Christ was supposed to shine into the world, has become ineffectual because some pastors and prophets are, by their deeds, blocking the light.



The spiritual head who is also the Vice President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, was giving the exhortation at the crusade launch attended by over 1,500 heads of denominations, pastors, prophets and evangelists.



The three-day crusade, featuring Rev. Daniel Kolenda, successor of the late Reinhard Bonnke, is targeting to win two million souls for Jesus Christ.



Apostle Nyamekye, endorsed the crusade and urged all Christians in Ashanti to invite non-Christians to attend.



Apostle Nyamekye also reminded the ministers that they are jars of clay containing the light of God. Unless we do something about ourselves, the light of God will not shine through us.



What we offer must not be anointing oil, good as it was originally intended to be used for. We must offer our lifestyle. The minister is holy in the pulpit and holy outside of it. People must see Christ in the streets through us, as pastors transformed into the image of Jesus.



The CfaN Executive Director for Africa, Rev. John Kwasi Darku, said the November 2022 event in Kumasi had been dubbed Asanteman Crusade because the main crusade will be preceded by the arrival of 200 evangelists from across the world.



Rev. Darku disclosed that the CfaN Ministry, founded by the late Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke, took the gospel of Jesus everywhere but concentrated much of its work in Africa.



He told newsmen that with the passing of Bonnke, God had prepared his successor, Evangelist Daniel Kolenda, for the work of ministry.



Like Elisha inheriting the mantle from Elijah, Kolenda has received a double portion of the anointing, and it is showing in the number of souls who are being saved in droves and the miraculous attestation.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Repented priestess, Patricia Asiedua commonly called Nana Agradaa, now founder of Heaven Way Church in Accra has again been remanded into Police custody for further investigations.



Nana Agradaa who has been arrested for allegedly scamming some members of her church has been remanded into police custody again after being denied bail.



She appeared in court for the second time on Thursday, October 13, 2022 after her arrest.



The first was on Monday October 10, 2022 but her case was adjourned to Thursday October 13.



She was arrested on Sunday October 9, 2022 following allegations of money doubling scam levelled against her by some members of the public.



She is currently assisting police in investigation.



Anyone who is a victim of the alleged money doubling scam should report to the Accra Regional Police Command for further action to assist the investigation, the Police said in a statement on Sunday October 8.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









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Former National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Freddie W. Blay has clarified that he is serving as the defense counsel for only four other accused persons standing trial in the En Huang, also known as Aisha Huang Galamsey case.



He pointed out that he is not representing Aisha Huang in court as being speculated but representing Shi Yang, Shi Meizhi, Le Wei Zuon and another.



According to him, his decision to serve as defence counsel for the four accused persons stemmed from the fact that they are not illegal miners and must be protected.



He strongly pointed out that his clients are just a collateral victims of the illegal mining case which is of great concern to the citizenry and they are innocent of the charges preferred agaisnt them.



Giving details of the fact of the case in a statement issued by Blay and Associate on Wednesday 12, 2022, it stated that the first to third accused persons legally residents, law abiding persons in Ghana.



"Our clients operate supermarket business stock regular goods and some specific Chinese groceries, making them a reliable shop for Chinese and Asian patronage.



Supermarket, no matter how vibrant it is does not ripen into illegal mining activities, the statement said touching on charge of illegal mining against the accused.



On the part of accomplice of Aisha Huang, the statement refuted such allegation, saying that Our clients have no relationship with Aisha Huang, except the fact that purchasing the supermarket from her in 2017 when she was first repatriated to China. Aisha Huang have no business dealing with our clients upon her return to Ghana. For the avoidance of doubt, Aisha Huang was arrested at different time and place to our clients who were minding their business at home when they were picked up in the early hours on 14 September, 2022. It appears that our clients are collateral victims of the pursuit for Aisha Huang and the campaign against illegal mining.



The statement denied media reports that his law firm represents some of the names being mentioned in the media, saying that we have no engagement with Gao Jin Sung, Lu Qi Jun, Haibin Go, or Zhang Zhipeng who are noted to be Aisha Huang associates. We also do not have any engagement with Aisha Huang.



Blay and Associates indicated that it is very conscious of the sensitive nature of the Aisha Huang matter and the current devastating effect of illegal mining on the environment.



Three other Chinese nationals standing trial with Aisha Huang have been remanded into the custody of the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) pending the final determination of their case.



The three are facing charges of engaging in illegal mining activities.



According to the facts of the case as read by Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, receipts of purchase of mining concessions were found in their possession at the time of their arrest and WhatsApp conversations amongst them are said to point to their involvement in illegal mining activities.



The three persons, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.



The plea of one other accused person who is a Vietnamese national was postponed as the court had no interpreter on standby.



Meanwhile, the prosecution is expected to present eight witness statements and 18 other documents by October 24 where case management conference for the Aisha Huang case is expected to begin.



She is expected to remain in NIB custody even though her lawyers attempted applying for bail.



Mr. Blay was not in court but his daughter, Ekeleba Blay, held brief for him in court during proceedings on Tuesday, October 11, 2022.



Already, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources Samuel Abdulai Jinapor indicated that the state was unperturbed that the NPPs former Chairman was representing the alleged illegal miners.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has been charged to continue to pursue the vision of renowned Ghanaian politician, teacher and king Simon Diedong (SD) Dombo.



Chief of Duori, Naa Dombo III during a courtesy call on him by the Vice President as part of his official working visit to the Upper West Region, tasked him with the responsibility of pursuing to the letter, the vision of the late Member of Parliament for Jirapa-Lambussie, who was a key founder of the Northern People's Party, the forebears of today's New Patriotic Party.



According to him, the family acknowledges his contributions in re-igniting the link between the two families that championed the vision of the tradition.



He described his intervention as timely and prayed God grants him the strength and fortitude to soldier till the dream of the two families that started decades ago is achieved.



We acknowledge your intervention in re-establishing the link between the Dombos and the Bawumias. I am by this tasking you to pursue the vision of your father Dombo from where he left off. You have henceforth been tasked with the responsibility as a true son to achieve this dream that was birthed decades ago, he charged.



Naa Dombo III also bestowed on him a Chieftaincy title Leweh to wit the chief (Dombo) has returned.



He explained that it was as a result of the traits of the late SD Dombo seen in Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia that led the Dombo family to honour him with the title to encourage him to achieve his assigned task. Dr. Bawumia was also named as co-Chairman of the SD Dombo Foundation.



An elated Bawumia later paid glowing tribute to one of the pillars of the NPP at his graveside where he laid a wreath and prayed for his peaceful repose.







The late Douri-Na, was reputed to be the first educated chieftain in the Upper Region of Ghana.



He was one of the founders of the Northern People's Party and became its first Chairman with Mumuni Bawumia (the Vice Presidents father as Vice Chairman). The Northern Peoples Party later merged with other parties to form the United Party.



During the Second Republic, Dombo was also a member of the first Parliament under the membership of the ruling Progress Party after he was elected in the 1969 Ghanaian general elections.



He was Minister for Health and then Minister for Interior in the Busia administration.

Source: Office of Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia









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A deputy Director of Communications of the Governing New Patriotic Party Ernest Owusu Bempah has accused former President John Mahama of peddling falsehoods about the economy.



Mr Bempah says Former President John Dramani Mahama has been exposed as he admits to a global economic meltdown that has swept across many parts of the world including Africa.



In a recent trip to Washington DC, the former president, in an exclusive interview with Hayde Adams on his popular Straight Talk Africa on VOA News, admitted that indeed the global economy is in a recession.



I think that its a period of adversity for the whole world because its triggering a kind of global recession the former president admitted.



The failed presidential candidate of the opposition NDC in the 2020 elections has been on record to have accused the Akufo-Addo administration of mismanaging the economy, hence its challenges.



On more occasions than one could recall, Mr Mahama has rejected the arguments by government functionaries to the effect that the twin catastrophic events of COVID-19 and the Russian/Ukrainian crisis cannot be blamed for the economic challenges facing Ghanaians.



Mr Mahama in his interview admits to the reality that COVID-19 and the raging war between Russia and Ukraine have triggered a global recession, contrary to his constant insistence in Ghana that such claims are bogus.



Ernest Kofi Owusu-Bempah, reacting to the news about the latest twist to Mr. Mahamas constant refrain, emphasized that the former president, John Mahama, has been exposed big time. He blames President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Bawumia for the challenges we are going through but goes out there to speak the truth.



Clearly, as we have always emphasized and even the IMF Boss recently reiterated, our challenges are not home-brewed but largely due to COVID-19 and the Russia/Ukraine war, a fact John Mahama has been rejecting all this while. His interview with the VOA is a testament to the fact that indeed the challenges we are facing are attributable to the deadly coronavirus pandemic and the never-ending Russian/Ukrainian conflict Mr Owusu-Bempah said.

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.

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Governance Lecturer at the Central University, Dr. Benjamin Otchere-Ankrah, has called on government to use brute force against illegal miners.



According to him, this is the only way to stop the galamsey menace in the country.



He noted that no amount of advice or words will convince the people engaged in galamsey to quit this illicit trade.



"If we have the will, we should be able to stop galamsey in two months . . . If the government is willing to fight galamsey, it can fight it. Let's push them until they act," he said on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show.



"Do you know the amount of money the person mining the gold gets?", he queried, believing the surest approach to ending the illegal mining is when force is applied.



"If you tell such a person to stop, he won't. There is no advice you can give to stop such a person. Let's apply the force. Let's apply it; until that is done, let's forget it," he emphasized.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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.

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National Communications Director of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has been charged by the Accra High Court for defamation of Energy Minister, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh.



Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah presiding over the case has therefore awarded damages to the tune of GHc 500,000 to the Energy Minister and ordered Sammy Gyamfi to publish a retraction and an apology.



The High Court, Accra, General Jurisdiction 12, presided over by Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah, in a judgment delivered on Thursday, 13th October, 2022, in the case of Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh v. Sammy Gyamfi finds that Sammy Gyamfi defamed Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister for Energy and MP for Manhyia South consituency.



It would be recalled that Sammy Gyamfi, at a press conference in June 2019, stated that Seidu Yakubu aka MBA, suspected of being involved in the kidnapping of the 2 Canadian girls in the year 2019, is the errand boy of Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh.



Statement of claim



In the plaintiffs statement of claim, he averred that Sammy Gyamfi had greatly injured his positive image by falsely linking him to one Seidu Yakubu, aka Mba, the alleged ringleader in the kidnapping of the two Canadian girls in Kumasi.



The lawyers said the defendants statement had dented Napos image both in Ghana and abroad, considering the fact that the said statement was widely captured in the media and other electronic platforms.



The statement said over his entire public and private life, Napo has led a decent lifestyle worthy of emulation and so Sammy Gyamfi had no justification to link him with miscreants to dent his image.



According to him, Sammy Gyamfi, by his statement, intentionally portrayed Napo as a person who supports thuggery, kidnapping and other illegal acts without any proof.



Plaintiffs request



Therefore, lawyers for Napo prayed the court to restrain Sammy Gyamfi and his agents from further making or publishing defamatory words against him.



They also urged the court to order Sammy Gyamfi to apologize and retract the defamatory statement with the same prominence the defamatory words received within seven days after the judgment.



By court



In court Thursday (13 October 2022), Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah, in his judgment indicated that the plaintiff (Napo), has established that indeed Sammy Gyamfi by his comments defamed him (Matthew Opoku Prempeh).



The court awarded damages of GHC500,000.00 and restrain Sammy Gyamfi and and also ordered him and his agents from further making or publishing defamatory words against the Energy Minister.



The court also ordered Sammy Gyamfi, to apologise and retract the defamatory statement with the same prominence the defamatory words received within seven days after the judgment.

Background

Sammy Gyamfi is said to have stated during a press conference on Thursday, June 13, 2019 that, there was a connection and a relationship between Dr. Opoku Prempeh popularly referred to as NAPO [Nana Poku] and Seidu Yakubu, also known as MBA, one of the accused persons in the June 4, 2019 kidnapping of the two Canadian women in Kumasi.



Seidus association with the NPP is more than meets the eye. He is alleged to be the personal bodyguard of the Asokore Mampong MCE, Alhaji Alidu Seidu, and an errand boy for both Manhyia MP, Hon Mathew Opoku Prempeh and Ashanti Regional Chairman of the NPP, Bernard Antwi Boasiako (aka Wontumi, Mr Gyamfi reportedly stated at the press conference according to Dr Opoku Prempehs lawyers.



However, the lawyers, Sarkodie Baffour Awuah and Partners are insisting that The aforementioned statement is not only false but malicious as the said Seidu is no errand boy of Dr Opoku Prempeh.



They argued that Mr Gyamfis statement was a suggestion that Dr Opoku Prempeh condones and associates himself with persons suspected to have engaged in the crime of kidnapping, and sought to ascribe to our clients inappropriate conduct of involvement with persons you describe as thugs.



The lawyers served notice that they have instructions to institute legal proceedings against the two if they fail to honour the demands within 48 hours.



But speaking on the matter on Asempa FMs 'Eko si sen' show, Sammy Gyamfi whos a trained lawyer insisted that he sees no defamation or malice in the statement he made, hence will not retract no apologize.



I have no apology to render to Matthew Opoku Prempah or retract my statement about him. If someone makes a statement saying it is alleged, does that make his pronouncement defamatory or malicious? I owe Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh no apology, all that Ive said is the truth and fact. If someone says what I said is defamatory and the advice of his lawyers is that he should go to court and thinks he can discern malice from that, he can take the lead to the court, the Judge will eventually rule whether theres indeed malice in my statement or not. I have nothing to retract or apologize for relative to that statement.



Two Canadian women kidnapped at gunpoint in Kumasi



The two Canadian females, 19 and 20 years respectively, were kidnapped by four unknown men at a private hostel at Ahodwo in Kumasi in June, 2019.



Security forces rescued the two Canadian women who were abducted and arrested eight people in connection with their kidnapping.



The pair were named as Lauren Tilley and Bailey Chitty by Youth Challenge International, an international development organisation headquartered in Toronto.



Senior State Attorney, Ms Hilda Craig, told the Accra High Court at the time that the Attorney-General decided to free the four after reviewing the case docket following investigations.



The four: Seidu Abubakar alias Mba, Abdul Nasir, Safiano Abubakar and Abdul Rahman Suleimana aka Wofa were acquitted after a change in the charge sheet by the Attorney General's office.



This incident drew the ire of the Canadian government who issued a strong statement to its citizens willing to visit Ghana.



Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has officially declared his intention to contest the chairmanship position of the NDC.



Mr. Nketia made the declaration in a joint interview on Accra100.5FM and CTV morning shows, today, Thursday, 13 October 2022.



Yes I have the intention of picking up a form to contest the chairmanship position when nominations are opened, the NDC scribe told joint hosts Emmanuel Quarshie (The Hitman) and Nana Out Darko.



The NDC goes to congress on the 17th of December 2022.



Mr Nketia also debunked assertions that the General Secretary position might be weakened when he hangs his boots from that role.



He stated that Ill have to leave some position to fit into another position. Ive done a good job so the new person will build on what Ive done. Its only dictators that dont want people to take over after them.



He quizzed: How do people know Ill be better than the future general secretary when we dont know who will be occupying that position in the future?



Questioned on whether his stance of contesting the chairman position will not bring rivalry between him and the incumbent, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, Mr. Nketia said democracy is meant to bring competition and so he sees nothing wrong competing with the incumbent.



Is there democracy without rivalry or are we taking a decision to abandon democracy? That thinking is anti-democratic, he stated adding democracy must bring competition so that the best will emerge



Mr. Nketia is the longest-serving General Secretary of the NDC.



He became NDC's General Secretary in 2005.

Source: classfmonline.com









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The Electoral Commission of Ghana has listed 17 political parties who have no regional and national presence and therefore risk having their registrations cancelled.



The EC has therefore given the 17 political parties up to Thursday, October 20, 2022 to show proof why their registrations should not be cancelled under the Politicall Parties Act of 2000, Act 574.



The parties include the United Progressive Party (UPP) formed and being led by Kumasi-based Akwasi Addae, popularly known as Odike.



Another one on the list is the United Front Party (UFP), which was also formed by Akwasi Addai Odike and Nana Agyenim Boateng popularly known as Gyataba but following disagreements, Odike moved out or was moved out to form a new party, the UPP.



Also on the list is the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP), formed by Dr Obed Yao Asamoah and some other members from the National Democratic Congress (NDC), who were unhappy with some developments in the NDC and therefore moved away to form the DFP after the 2005 national executive elections in the party.



The National Reform Party (NRP) led by Goosie Tanoh and other breakaway members from the NDC in year 2000 is also on the list.



The Reform Patriotic Democrats, originally led by Kofi Akpaloo, who has also moved to lead a new party, Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG) is also on the list.



The Electoral Commission undertook a nationwide exercise to inspect the offices of all registered political parties in Ghana.



This exercise was conducted from May 16, 2022 to June 9, 2022.



Following the nationwide inspection, it came to light that the 17 under-listed Political Parties have no offices at the National and Regional levels as required by Section 15 (1) (Act 574), the EC said in a notice, published in the Daily Graphic.



The Commission intends to invoke Section 15 (3) (c) of the Political Parties Act of 2000, Act 574, which mandates it to cancel the registration of Political Parties which do not have offices at the National and Regional levels.



In this vein, the following Political Parties are by this notice requested to show cause in writing to the Electoral Commission why their registration should not be cancelled, it added in the notice published on Thursday, October 13, 2022.



The parties are;



Democratic People's Party (DPP)



United Front Party (UFP)



United Development System Party (UDSP)



Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere (EGLE)



Yes People's Party (YPP)



United Ghana Movement (UGM)



Democratic Freedom Party (DFP)



New Vision Party (NVP)



Ghana Democratic Republican Party (GDRP)



Ghana National Party (GNP)



Power Unity Party (PUP)



United Progressive Party (UPP)



Reform Patriotic Democrats (RPD)



People's Action Party (PAP)



United Renaissance Party (URP)



National Reform Party (NRP)



United Love Party (ULP)

Source: graphic.com.gh









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These are my very good friends and if theres something happening to them and Ive been told theyre innocent, it is not against the efforts of galamsey to represent them, says Freddie Blay.



The immediate past National Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), has emphasized that his law firm, Blay & Associates, is not offering any legal representation for En Huang, the Chinese national, who is popularly known as Aisha Huang, in the illegal mining case before the Accra Criminal High Court 5.



According to him, Blay & Associates are only representing Shi Yang alias Philip, Li Wei Guo and Shi Mei Zhi, all Chinese nationals, and a fourth accused person, Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen, a Vietnamese national.



"I am not representing Aisha Haung and definitely not Blay and Associates; we dont represent Aisha Haung," he told Nana Yaw Kesseh on Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo', adding he accepted to represent the FOUR after "a good friend" asked for his assistance.



Explaining further he said his four clients, "were arrested in their homes in Kumasi; one is even married to a Ghanaian and they operate a supermarket and so he pleaded with me to represent them. Per his (friend) explanation, there might have been a mistake or an issue of stereotyping and so I instructed my office to make a representation to defend them".



Freddie Blay disappointment



Freddie Blay's critics including members from his party have said he should have stayed away from the case.



In response he said: "Im disappointed in those saying I cant represent the four . . . this is the work I do; I practice law and we dont discriminate or judge them. I find nothing wrong (to represent them) . . . it is part of our judicial system . . . Those asking me to recuse myself: these are my very good friends and if theres something happening to them and Ive been told theyre innocent, it is not against the efforts of galamsey to represent them".



"I support governments efforts against galamsey but not all people put before court are involved in galamsey," he added.





Source: Peacefmonline.com









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The Deputy National Organiser of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Chief Biney Hamilton Nixon, has declared his intention to contest for the National Organiser position of the party when nominations open.



In a press conference to declare his intention, he said it was about time we find people like myself who have followed the process, gone through the mill to come up for positions and help the party to achieve its dream of rescuing Ghana come 2024.



Seriously, I have some plans and policies and programs that I believe that after my study throughout from the branch to national, if I am given the opportunity to join the team that will help in taking decisions, planning for the NDC, we will win political power come 2024. he said.



VISION



Three S Plans and Programs



He outlined the his tyhree S plans and programmes.



Strengthen Structures



My focus is to make sure that I strengthen the structures with the party executives elected. This Structures have the Youth Wing, The Women Wing, The Zongo Caucus, he said.



Mobilization



He said he is going to pay attention and work hand-in-hand with the International Relations Directorate and achieve that mobilization and make the party attractive in abroad and home.



Because all the mobilization will turn into votes, and these officers are trained to manage the election process at that level ie. Polling agents, officers managing ballot papers right from printing to the polling station. And so, you cannot manage an organizational department and succeed without paying attention to that department and making sure that whatever resource that they need is giving to them, if not and you are able to do the mobilization, you are going to have serious challenges at the end of General Elections.



Equip IT Directorate



He says the party needs to switch fully to the latest technology. He said if party officers are not equipped well enough and they are not able to transmit all the good works done and results in that short and real time all their work will be in vain.



Security



According to Chief Biney, one cannot run a political party without a proper defined internal security working under instructions and within the laws of the country.



He highlighted instances in past elections where lives were lost in Techiman South, Ablekuma and the worst of it in Ayawaso West Wuogon.



The party must have internal security to work hand-in-hand with the Police. This time around there are some Police people their interest is not policing for the state but they Police for their political parties, he said, adding that they have to be called to order.



He said with this structure, the NDC security will make sure that the bad nuts even within the Police are handed over to the Police for them to deal with them accordingly.



We need to make sure that the ballots are protected, the polling stations are protected, the coalition centers are protected, because it involves human lives, and as a political party it will be our responsibility to make sure all those who come in the interest of the party are protected. You can only do them when you have Support.



Support



He said as Social Democrats, the party must identify strategic partners who believe in the NDCs ideology and help build human capacity and the strengthening of structures of the party.



If we are able to do this and we have officers elected and they go through some sort of training to build their capacity, they go along with the plans and the policies of the party and they work according to plan to make sure that we achieve nothing but the purpose for which we are all on the field working, he said.



Logistics and Funds



He said all these plans and laid down policies work with logistics and renewed fund-raising skill for it to be implemented well.



We are in serious crises but as a political party we are doing everything possible to make sure that we put men in place, put plans and programmes together and go out there and campaign and for the good people of Ghana to buy into that vision of the National Democratic Congress, he added.



Declaration



I, Chief Hamilton Biney Nixon with great honour will like to declare that with all this qualities,I would like to vie for the position of National Organiser of the National Democratic Congress this very year. So help me God, he declared.



The Man Chief Biney



Chief Biney started following the party in 1992 but joined the NDC in 1996.



He has acted as a polling station agent at Tema Community 2, BBC to be precise and Kpone Katamanso constituency, but eventually transferred his vote to Ekumfi in the Central Region.



He subsequently contested and won in Ekumfi as Vice Chairman of the constituency.



He also contested as Parliamentary candidate for Ekumfi constituency but lost it.



Chief Biney has been a Regional Security Coordinator for the NDC in the Central Region and served on many committees in the party.































































Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Featured Video
Ballast water discharge from transoceanic ships introduces invasive species to the Great Lakes. Credit: Shutterstock

Freshwater ecosystems are threatened by a host of environmental stressors from human activities. Among the most insidious and impactful of these is invasion by non-native species.

Over the past two centuries, established populations of nearly 190 non-native species of invertebrates, fishes, plants and microbes have been discovered in the Great Lakes basin. They were introduced through several sources and pathways including canals, pet release, bait bucket dumping, aquaculture escapes andmost notablyballast water discharge from transoceanic ships.

Ballast tanks of ships may contain various life stages of invertebrates, larval fishes and enormous numbers of phytoplankton and zooplankton. The discharge of ballast water is responsible for thousands of coastal invasions worldwide. It has been the most important cause of invasion in the Great Lakes since 1959, when the modern St. Lawrence Seaway was opened to accommodate larger ocean vessels carrying cargo.

In the mid-1980s a cargo ship from eastern Europe began an overseas voyage to the Great Lakes. Before the ship left its home port, water was pumped into its ballast tanks to add weight and stability to safely cross the Atlantic Ocean. The water contained larvae of an invasive freshwater mussel. After the ship passed through the St Lawrence Seaway, it discharged some of the waterand mussel larvaeat a Great Lakes port, thus introducing the zebra mussel to North America. This scenario has occurred for many other species.

Effective management of the ballast water pathway is crucial to slowing the rate of invasion in the Great Lakes and protecting its resources. Here, I describe an intervention that has apparently achieved this goal.

The bloody red mysid shrimp, discovered in the Great Lakes in 2006, was one of the last known invaders introduced with transoceanic ballast water to the basin. Credit: S. Pothoven/NOAA, Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, Author provided

Gaps in ballast water management

From 1959 to 2006, one new invader was discovered established in the Great Lakes basin every six to seven months, on average. No other freshwater system on the planet has been invaded as frequently.

Nearly two-thirds of these species were delivered in ballast water. They include invaders that have reduced native biodiversity, impaired fisheries and caused other ecological and socioeconomic impacts in the Great Lakes.

In 1993, Canada and the United States attempted to control ballast-water invasions by requiring inbound ships to exchange their freshwater ballast with saltwater before entering the Great Lakes.

The logic behind this regulation was that freshwater organisms in the ballast tanks would either be purged or killed by exposure to saltwater, and any marine organisms taken up haphazardly during the process would be unable to reproduce in the Great Lakes.

Surprisingly, new non-native freshwater species, such as the fish-hook waterflea, the Ponto-Caspian amphipod and the bloody red mysid shrimp, continued to be discovered in the Great Lakes more than a decade after the regulation.

The regulation's effectiveness was undermined by inbound vessels that were not required to undergo ballast water exchange because they declared they had no pumpable ballast on board, although there was residual water in their "empty" tanks.

Ballast water is recognized as a serious management issue for the Great Lakes.

In fact, such vessels, which comprised the majority of ships entering the seaway, carried an average 47 tons of residual water and 15 tons of sediment in their ballast tanks and contained diverse living freshwater invertebrates.

After visiting a Great Lakes port to offload their cargo, these unregulated ships would pump in water to replace the lost weight. Then they would visit another port to take on new cargo and discharge the water, now contaminated with organisms. Several invaders were introduced to the Great Lakes by this pathway.

An unprecedented reduction in invasions

To address this issue, a procedure called saltwater flushing was developed. Ship-board experiments showed that flushing ballast tanks with seawater to the point where tank salinities reached oceanic concentrations substantially reduced the abundance and diversity of organisms in the tanks.

In 2006 and 2008, Canada and the U.S., respectively, mandated all transoceanic vessels to conduct saltwater flushing to ensure that partially filled ballast tanks contained water that matched the salinity of the ocean before entering the Seaway. The regulation was enforced through on-board inspection of every ship.

My colleague, Hugh MacIsaac and I tested the effectiveness of this regulation using historical data. In our study, we compared numbers of newly detected non-native species recorded in the basin during three distinct 13-year time periods: 19811993, when ballast water was unregulated; 19942006, a period of partial regulation; and 20072019, the period of strict regulation that applied the new procedure.

We detected 19 invaders and 26 invaders in the first and second periods, respectively. After saltwater flushing became mandatory, the number fell to only four new invaders in 13 years. Since 2008, new invasions recorded in the Great Lakes basin declined by 85%. The frequency of invasion is now at the lowest rate ever recorded in the basin.

The tench, an invasive European fish spreading upstream in the St. Lawrence River toward Lake Ontario. Credit: Suncica Avlijas, Author provided

We accounted for changes to water temperature, search effort and ship traffic across these time periods. None of them can explain, even in part, the abrupt decline in invasion rate.

While other management effortslike public education and laws banning possession and sale of particular speciescould have contributed to the decline, empirical evidence cited in our study points to ballast water regulation as the overwhelming primary cause.

Invasion risk is reduced, but not eliminated

The Great Lakes remain at risk of invasion from various other pathways, particularly those associated with "live trade" of ornamental pond plants, aquarium pets, bait fish and live animals sold through food markets.

One of these is the tench, a European fish brought illegally to a Quebec fish farm in the mid-1980s and now expanding its population in the St. Lawrence River.

Meanwhile, four non-native species of carp (bighead carp, silver carp, grass carp and black carp) raised in fish farms in the southern United States have been spreading throughout the Mississippi River basin over the past several decades and pose an ongoing risk of invading the Great Lakes. Grass carp has been found reproducing in Lake Erie tributaries and is poised to invade parts of the basin.

Finding new strategies to manage these risks is vital to conserving biodiversity and protecting a fishery worth several billions of dollars. Our study has shown the benefit of collaboration between researchers, governments and industry toward this goal.

Explore further Stemming the tide of invasive species in Great Lakes

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Biotechnology startup TurtleTree wants to change the way people consume milk.

Cows are outat least as far as milking goes. The replacement: cell-based milk. The company says it is able to create raw milk using cells from mammals. The cells are then grown in TurtleTree's labs and milk is ultimately produced. In giant bioreactors, the cells stick to tiny straws, the fluid is then drawn through the straws, and milk comes out the other end.

TurtleTree is in the final phases of constructing a 24,000 square foot research and development facility in West Sacramento, California.

Armed with $40 million from venture capital investors, TurtleTree is moving from a joint business incubation facility in Woodland shared with several dozen food and agricultural startups to its own research and development facility.

The facility is scheduled to open within the next several months though no formal date has been set.

"The Sacramento area is a hub for us," said TurtleTree co-founder and CEO Fengru Lin. "There is no turning back. We are committed to this area."

TurtleTree also has a headquarters in Singapore, the city-state that is Lin's hometown, and a lab facility in Boston, where she attended MIT majoring in biotechnology before going to business school in France.

The Sacramento area connection has to do with The University of California Davis campus and its labs studying milk, which brought Lin to the region for partnership agreements.

The TurtleTree U.S. facility will house 40 jobs initially from food scientists to engineers.

Whether more jobs will develop, and the Sacramento region will go on the map as one of the first suppliers of cell-based milk in the world, is unclear.

TurtleTree startup challenges

Most startups fail, and TurtleTree will need to produce a food product consumers will buy. Alternative dairy products already exist, but Lin said that plant-based milk produces less of important protein components than cows milk.

She also said that plant-based milks come with their own set of environmental issues. Almond milk, for example, has been shown to require large amount of water. Oat milk contributes to issues like monocropping, which impacts soil health.

TurtleTree's products will also need the approval of the federal Food and Drug Administration. Cell-based milk is currently not approved for purchase.

Success for TurtleTree would help Sacramento regions efforts to build a life science technology hub.

Groundbreaking began last February on Aggie Square, a more than $1 billion complex on the University of California Davis Sacramento campus being built to attract life science companies. But most of the 1.2 million square feet of lab and office space is unrented.

How popular could cell-based milk be?

There's been limited research on the market for cell-based milk with one study calling it a niche product. But a niche product with limited sales could still be a financial goldmine in the $871 billion global dairy industry.

Lin argues that cell-based milk means reductions in animal cruelty, alleviates health concerns of the consumption of milk as well as environmental concerns.

She said dairy intake from a health viewpoint has been linked to both high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Others are shut out from buying conventional milk because of lactose intolerance.

Lin said sustainability issues also arise. The dairy industry is linked to high greenhouse gas emissions, the degradation of local water resources and the loss of biodiversity.

What's the flavor?

But even if everything goes right for TurtleTree, cell-based milk won't be flying off the supermarket shelves without great taste.

While some consumers in select areas of the west and east coast of the U.S. might buy a product because it is healthy or doesn't damage the environment, Lin said the majority will be swayed by taste.

"I sincerely believe we will make food that thrills, delights, and tantalizes againand then the revolution can truly begin," she said.

Lin said the goal is for people to actually choose alternative proteins not because of what they intellectually know (that it's good for the planet, animals, and their health), but because it's what they intrinsically want.

On Sept. 27, TurtleTree hired chef and sustainability advocate Dominique Crenn as its food innovation advisor, part of the plan to turn out food products that taste good.

Crenn is the only female chef in the United States to receive three Michelin stars, for her flagship restaurant Atelier Crenn in San Francisco. She was also the star of Netflix's hit series "Chef's Table."

History of TurtleTree milk

TurtleeTree was born in 2019 in Singapore. It came out of Lin's desire to learn cheese making.

"I went up to Vermont for a couple of weeks to learn how to make cheese, and I wanted to make cheese in Singapore and Asia, but of course there are no cows," she said. "I had to try to access milk from Indonesia, from Thailand. And yet today there are problems around farming, around hormones and antibiotics coming to the cows, and that affects the milk quality, that affects how the cheese pans out. So I gave up that whole idea."

Starting in 2020, TurtleTree raised the first of $40 million in venture capital funding. She said the money should allow the company to continue its research and commercialization of products.

The name, TurtleTree, and its fingerprint-like logo represent longevity and the team's mission to unlock solutions that help nature and humans at the same time. "Our goal," Lin said, "is to be seen as the gold standard for sustainable food technology when it comes to milk production".

Lin sees the production of cell-based milk being at least several years away in part because TurtleTree needs to refine the process of extracting high-value dairy-based bioactives like lactoferrin in a cost-efficient way.

She said extracting lactoferrin from cow's milk is a highly costly and inefficient process- for one, cow's milk only contains lactoferrin in very low concentrations (only 100mg/1L of milk i.e. about 0.0001%.) as compared to human milk.

Lin said cell-based milk needs to be price competitive with regular milk for it to sell. She said market prices can fluctuate between several hundred dollars to $2000 for a kg of bovine lactoferrin.

TurtleTree is also looking for revenue sources sooner rather than later so it is developing more immediate plans to get its products or ingredients on supermarket shelves such as nutritional productions for infants or the elderly that are much more expensive than the average price of milk.

Lin said TurtleTree is exploring contracting with existing food companies to put its lab version of lactoferrin in their products or co-branding a joint product.

TurtleTree also has several competitors who are trying to produce cell-based milk including an Israeli company, Wilk Technologies. The company has gone public and received $2 million funding from Coca-Cola in Israel.

While the $40 million in initial funding will allow TurtleTree to continue its research and development for several years, Lin said more funding is essential to the company's long-term vision of producing environmentally friendly, sustainable milk products.

She hopes that food products expected to be introduced in the marketplace next year will demonstrate to investors that a new funding round is in order.

"We are trying to set ourselves up for success," she said.

2022 The Sacramento Bee.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Credit: Pixabay/CC by 0

Climate change is real, and it's happening nowfrom melting permafrost in the Arctic to massive flooding in Pakistan to the increased likelihood of devastating hurricanes in the Americas and elsewhere.

So why shouldn't companies be required to report how their business affects the climateand how climate change will affect a company's financial health? The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed a new rule that would require exactly that.

The rule was proposed in March with an extended public comment period that garnered more than 14,000 submissions. The rule would apply to all companies publicly traded in the United Stateseven if they are not U.S. based.

In a new commentary published in Science magazine, four researchers, including Edgar Hertwich, professor and International Chair in Industrial Ecology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), argue in support of the new rule.

"Not until the financial sector can access and respond to signals about climate risks can we hope to move the economy on a more sustainable and stable trajectory," the researchers wrote.

A warning from the Great Recession

Climate change poses a variety of existing and future risks, the researchers pointed out. There's the physical risks, like those posed by sea level rise or extreme weather events, which can affect a company's physical assets.

There are also liability risks, which could result from lawsuits from people or companies who are harmed by climate change and who can argue that the company being sued had a hand in making climate change a problem.

But the biggest risk, the researchers said, is something called transition risk.

That's when a company's assetslike an oil company with its wells, refineries and pipelineslose value as society moves away from fossil fuels, and revenues from those assets decline. Depending upon the pace of the transition to greener technologies, some of those assetssuch as fossil fuel reservescould suddenly lose their entire value, the researchers said.

"About 50% of the standard portfolio of an average European financial institution is exposed to transition risks, once one considers as at risk not only fossil fuel companies, but also carbon-intensive sectors such as agriculture, aluminum, or steel," the researchers wrote.

If companies are not required to report and acknowledge how those risks could affect their financial health, it could affect the stability of the entire financial system, they said.

"As we learned with the Great Recession, the realization of systemic risk can lead to a painful recession and high unemployment levels," Hertwich and his colleagues wrote.

Already required in some countries

France, New Zealand, Japan and the United Kingdom already require large companies to report climate-related financial risks, the researchers said.

The benefit of implementing the proposed SEC rule, however, is that it would apply to both U.S. and international companies traded on U.S. stock markets.

Disclosing climate risks under the approach proposed by the SEC would mean that virtually all companies would have to report under the same rules. That would prevent companies from providing a misleading picture of their climate risk, the researchers wrote.

Climate stress tests

Uniform reporting requirements are important because they allow the marketinvestors and lendersto make informed decisions. These requirements, while limited by the SEC rule to companies that are traded in the United States, may have a spillover effect, the researchers said.

"Firms in countries where disclosure is not yet mandatory may also improve their transparency, to keep up with multinational firms subject to regulations in the United States," said Jeffrey Shrader from Columbia University, one of the article's co-authors.

This information will also give regulators the tools they will need to conduct what are called "stress tests." This is when regulators or central banks assess the ability of a company to withstand major market shocks.

Helping foresee how markets will react

With national and international climate policies likely to affect how companies operate in the futuresuch as by heavily taxing or phasing out all use of fossil fuelsa climate stress test could help foresee how different companies and global financial markets will react to changes.

"Macroeconomic models and climate stress tests will also greatly benefit from climate risk disclosure," said Givi Melkadze from Georgia State University, another article co-author.

The proposed rule would require firms to describe their current greenhouse gas emissions and targets. They would also have to assess their climate-related risks and the management strategies that would help them prepare for coming climate policies and the increased costs of emitting CO 2 and other greenhouse gases.

Starting in 2025, larger companies would also be subject to more detailed reporting that involves assessing the carbon footprint of the production and use of their products.

Researchers need to step up

All of these reporting requirements will require the research community to move into action, the researchers said, with everything from coming up with realistic climate risk scenarios to helping individual companies understand exactly what kinds of physical and other risks their operations face in an increasingly warmer world, with an unpredictable and more volatile, climate.

This, in turn, can help policymakers make better decisions, the researchers said.

"Understanding how mandatory disclosure works, including on what margins firms adjust behavior in reaction to more stringent requirements, is key to guide policymaking," said Stefano Carattini from Georgia State University, lead author of the article.

Explore further New US rule requires publicly-listed firms to disclose emissions

More information: Stefano Carattini, Mandatory disclosure is key to address climate risks, Science (2022). www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.add0206 Journal information: Science Stefano Carattini, Mandatory disclosure is key to address climate risks,(2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.add0206
Credit: Sophie Day, Author provided

A record storm surge in 1953 devastated much of eastern England's coast, prompting prolific investment in concrete sea walls, wooden groins and other engineered structures designed to protect the coastline from erosion. These measures brought a reassuring sense of permanence for people in previously risky locations. Houses atop sandy cliffs and tucked behind or among sand dunes went from being holiday homes to permanent residences, and new homes were built nearby.

But decades later, the east coast and other parts of England are still erodingrapidly in some placesdespite efforts to hold the coastline in place.

England has some of the fastest eroding coastline in Europe, particularly along the Norfolk and Yorkshire coasts. Historical records show that England's soft and sandy east coast has always been subject to retreat. The numerous lost villages beneath the North Sea are testament to this.

Back in 2018 the Committee on Climate Change, which advises the U.K. government, calculated that around 9,000 properties in England are located in areas likely to be lost to coastal erosion by 2025. This number is projected to increase 15-fold by the end of the century, disrupting whole communities as more buildings, roads and farmland inevitably slip into the danger zone.

Unstoppableand necessary?

A growing body of research warns that the speed of coastal erosion will be compounded by sea-level rise and other effects of climate change, such as more extreme storms and prolonged wet weather, as waterlogged soils increase the likelihood of sandy cliffs collapsing. Rates of erosion can be roughly but not precisely estimated, due to the complexity of coastal systems and uncertainty regarding how the effects of climate change will manifest.

Sea walls and other structures cannot hold the coastline together forever. Credit: Sophie Day, Author provided

Since the early 1990s, scientists have collected huge amounts of data in order to understand how the wind, waves, tides and storms shape coastlines. The evidence indicates that it is not possible or prudent to stop or delay coastal erosion forever and that in some places, it may even be necessary.

This is because when soft cliffs such as those along the east of England retreat, they release a lot of sand which is deposited on nearby beaches, making them higher and wider. High and wide beaches absorb the energy of waves, giving some protection to cliffs, dunes and sea walls from coastal erosion and flooding.

The chief executive of the U.K. Environment Agency recently said it is inevitable that at some point communities will have to move back from the coast. So what does this mean for people who live in places where coastal erosion is accelerating, or where it can no longer be stopped?

At Happisburgh in north Norfolk for example, a section of old and damaged sea defenses had to be removed in the 1990s to avert dangerous collapse. Rapid erosion of the beach and cliffs since the early 2000s has meant homes in this village being steadily demolished as the coastline retreats. As yet there are no arrangements to compensate people here, or other government policies to help them adapt.

Life in an eroding community can be unpredictable. Credit: Sophie Day, Author provided

Living with coastal erosion

It is important to be realistic: homes, roads and other things which knit some coastal communities together will need to be relocated inland away from dangerand soon. But doing this is far from simple, and will certainly be costly.

Ideally, the kind of investment which erected coastal defenses in the aftermath of the 1953 storm surge would be mobilized today to help these places move. This is a pressing issueletting crisis and despair characterize life for coastal communities on the edge is unsustainable and unfair.

Slowly, things are changing. A network of coastal communities, local authority officers and politicians, academics and others have worked since the early 2000s to argue for what is needed to cope with and prepare for coastal erosion around England and Wales. Now, a new pulse of government funding could test these ideas so that in future, no community feels abandoned to the sea.

Uprooted. Credit: Sophie Day, Author provided

Part of this work will be to begin the transition in eroding towns and villages on England's east coast from a state of crisis to one in which people can begin to live feeling safe and confident. It must be systematically worked out how communities can move away from risky areas while maintaining homes, utilities and services, as well as preserving local heritage, culture and each place's unique character.

As academics working alongside government agencies, our next challenge will be ensuring these time-limited projects translate into robust national policy and funding. Coastal erosion cannot be stopped, so we must help everyone relearn how to live with it.

Explore further Historic UK castle at risk from climate change: heritage body

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

While the lives of many college students throughout the United States were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study from the University of Missouri found that international college students from Africa were among the most impacted academically.

The pandemic severely interfered with their non-immigrant status, as travel limitations, restrictive employment opportunities and worries about family members back home made it difficult for international students to focus on their academic studies. The findings can help universities direct more tailored support to vulnerable populations during times of crisis given the challenges these students face may be different than those of the general student population.

"For international students at MU, particularly those of us from Africa, the pandemic was very hard for us given how far away we were from our families," said Ifeolu David, a doctoral student in the MU School of Health Professions and lead author of the study. "With all the restrictions regarding our visa status and limited employment opportunities, you can imagine how the pandemic impacted our mental health and academic focus given our limited social support network."

David, who came from Sierra Leone to study at MU, collaborated with Wilson Majee, an associate professor in the MU School of Health Professions, to interview 15 African-born international students at MU about how the pandemic impacted their college experience.

"Some international students are required to work certain internships to meet graduation requirements. International students are also only allowed to take job opportunities on campus to comply with eligibility requirements for their visas given their non-immigrant status. The pandemic took many of those in-person opportunities away, so it was tough," David said. "Studying was difficult, as we were regularly calling our families back home to check in on them in a completely different time zone, which disrupted daily routines and made it hard to stay focused on academics."

Majee added that as opportunities for internships and presenting research at conferences ended abruptly, the timeline for international students planning to graduate was delayed, leading to an often complicated and time-consuming process for getting their visa status extended.

"Nearly 20 years ago, I came to the United States as an international student from Zimbabwe, so helping this vulnerable population of students is personal for me," Majee said. "MU has made great strides in diversity, equity and inclusion, and we want to contribute to those goals even more. International students may be running the same race as domestic students, but they are running from a different starting point given the challenges they must overcome. Our overall goal is to improve their well-being and reduce their barriers as they study in the United States."

The researchers said the findings can help university administrators advocate for or consider more flexible policies regarding visa regulations and employment opportunities on campus in times of crisis. Policymakers can advocate for or consider a faster, more efficient process for international students to become American citizens so that they can effectively contribute to, as well as benefit from the American economy.

"As an international student from Africa myself, I was able to relate to and resonate with the experiences shared by the participants in this study," David said. "By giving international students a voice, we can learn more about their experiences and challenges so that we can ultimately improve their well-being here at MU and across the nation."

"COVID-19 and higher education: A qualitative study on academic experiences of African international students in the Midwest" was recently published in Applied Research in Quality of Life. Co-authors on the study include Omoshola Kehinde, Gashaye Tefera, Kelechi Onyeka and Idethia Harvey from the MU School of Health Professions. Enid Schatz of the MU School of Health Professions is a supervisor of Ifeolu David.

More information: Ifeolu David et al, COVID-19 and Higher Education: A Qualitative Study on Academic Experiences of African International Students in the Midwest, Applied Research in Quality of Life (2022). Ifeolu David et al, COVID-19 and Higher Education: A Qualitative Study on Academic Experiences of African International Students in the Midwest,(2022). DOI: 10.1007/s11482-022-10095-3
Credit: file o adgn. Shutterstock / djero.adlibeshe yahoo.com

When we open our eyes, a myriad of colors immediately appears before us. But they are not merely a decoration of our visual world: they enable us to identify objects, materials and substances in our environment. They also facilitate communication with other people. Thanks to them, we can tell the difference between a ripe banana and one that is still "green." Or ask in a shop for the size of the "red" shoes we saw in the window.

Although the number of chromatic nuances that we can perceive is enormous, the communicative function of colors means that only a limited number of words are used to refer to them. This phenomenon is known as color categorization, that is, the grouping of shades in the same category associated with a word such as green, red, blue, or pink.

It shows that the world of colors, like many other aspects of perception, can be affected by cultural influences and by our learning experiences.

How many words for snow?

You may have read that Inuit people are able to discriminate between many different types of snow because they have dozens of terms in their language to refer to it. However, this is a pseudo-scientific myth popularized in the first half of the 20th century by the linguist Benjamin Whorf. Whorf was a strong advocate of the theory that the language we learn drastically affects the way we perceive, remember and think about the world, a hypothesis called linguistic relativity.

In fact, the Inuit language has only four basic words for snow, from the combination of which a few more are derived. In English, for example, there is only one term for snow, but by linking with other words it is also possible to discriminate between different states of snow, such as powder snow, crud snow or sticky snow. In this way, English-speaking skiers do not need to learn the Inuit language to be able to perceive and communicate all these gradations of snow.

The way we group colors

Can we then rule out that our mother tongue influences how we perceive colors? The way we group them into categories has been a very active testing ground for the linguistic relativity hypothesis.

The classic study by anthropologists Brent Berlin and Paul Kay (1969) made a very important contribution to this field. They investigated the color vocabulary in 100 languages and found that color terms were not arbitrarily distributed among languages, but followed a predictable hierarchy. If a language has only two color words, then they are black and white. If it has three, they are white, black and red. With five terms, green and yellow are added to the previous ones. And so on.

In short, contrary to the hypothesis of linguistic relativity, what we find is a universal pattern that pivots around the six basic colors proposed by the theories of chromatic perception: white, black, blue, yellow, green and red.

For the Greeks, Russians and Turkish, light blue and dark blue are different colours. Credit: Shutterstock / Vector_Up

How blue is sky blue?

In English and Spanish, there is one basic term to refer to bluish colors. However, in languages such as Russian, Greek and Turkish, there are different terms for light blue and dark blue. For example, in Greek, the terms are "ghalazio" (light blue) and "ble" (dark blue).

Several studies have shown that speakers of these languages are quicker and more confident when it comes to differentiating between light and dark blues. Moreover, they exaggerate the perceptual differences between intermediate shades compared to speakers of English or Spanish, as if they were different colors for them.

Other similar results with various color categories lead to the conclusion that the grouping that each language uses to name colors influences the way in which they are perceived and remembered by their speakers.

Do we see as we speak?

Recent research shows that there is indeed some impact of mother tongue on color processing. However, this relativism is a far cry from Whorf's resounding theory.

In fact, with rapid training, anyone can expand their color vocabulary and easily learn to discriminate between different shades of blue or any other color, as several studies have shown. Similarly, even people who are not familiar with snow subtypes can learn to discriminate and name them, as Inuit or skiers do.

Interestingly, in a paper with Greek speakers who had lived for a long time in the United Kingdom, it was found that they were more likely to resemble "ghalazio" and "ble" because of the influence of the English language. The flexibility of our perceptual system allows us to adjust to our environment in order to continue to enjoy the mixture of light and color.

Explore further Why do some languages have more words than others?

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

EU citizens may be facing discrimination when trying to rent a home in the U.K. following a switch by the government to digital-only proof of immigration status, according to a pilot study by the University of York.

The authors of the report are calling on the government and watchdog, the Independent Monitoring Authority, to urgently review whether the switch to the new digital system, introduced after Brexit, breaches the Withdrawal Agreement by discriminating against EU citizens.

EU citizens who lived in the U.K. before it left the EU had to apply for settled or pre-settled status. These EU citizens have only been given digital proof of their right to live and work in the U.K., rather than physical documentation such as an ID card.

Proof

For the study, the researchers recruited more than 200 landlords to investigate whether only being able to provide digital proof of immigration status leads to tenants missing out on properties in the private rental sector.

The researchers found that ID status held sway over landlord's decisions on who they would prefer to rent to, over and above other factors such as ethnicity, gender, age and profession.

For example, a tenant with a non-British sounding name, aged 20 and working in construction had a 87% probability of being chosen with a British passport. This plummeted to 13% with digital status.

Difficulties

Co-lead author of the study, Professor Joe Tomlinson from York Law School at the University of York, said, "The EU settlement scheme is heavily digitalized and it immediately occurred to us that this meant it was more likely to discriminate against different types of EU citizens such as the elderly and disabled. After hearing anecdotal evidence of EU citizens experiencing difficulties renting in an extremely competitive housing market, we felt a duty to investigate.

"While our study is a pilot and we are looking to scale up this research, we believe our results indicate the U.K. government is arguably breaching the Withdrawal Agreement. This clear evidence of how our immigration system is negatively impacting people's lives should provide a strong incentive for the Home Office to look again at whether EU citizens are being treated fairly, and for the Independent Monitoring Authority to examine this closely too."

Influence

For the study, the researchers asked landlords to imagine they were renting out their property and presented them with emails from pairs of prospective tenants. They asked them to choose which of the two they would prefer to let their property to.

ID status had the greatest influence on their decisions, with landlords preferring a British passport above all else, followed by a U.K. residence card, a photo of a British passportand least of alldigital status.

Co-lead author of the report, Dr. Jed Meers from York Law School at the University of York, said, "Landlords showed a clear preference for traditional, paper-based forms of ID. Prospective tenants having a non-British sounding name, did not influence landlord's decisions when they had a British passport, but with a share code those tenants were suddenly at a real disadvantage. This suggests there is something about digital documents which can compound disadvantages in the housing market."

The researchers will be presenting the results of their study at a Public Law Project conference "Judicial Review Trends and Forecasts 2022: Democracy and the Law" on Thursday, October 13.

Explore further Survey reveals huge negative impact on people of EU settlement scheme
Credit: ESA

Micrometeorites are a potential hazard for any space mission, including NASA's Mars Sample Return. The tiny rocks can travel up to 50 miles per second. At these speeds, "even dust could cause damage to a spacecraft," said Bruno Sarli, a NASA engineer at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Sarli leads a team designing shields to protect NASA's Mars Earth Entry System from micrometeorites and space debris. Recently, he traveled to a NASA lab designed to safely re-create dangerous impacts to test the team's shields and computer models.

Set far away from residents and surrounded by dunes, the Remote Hypervelocity Test Laboratory at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in Las Cruces, New Mexico, has supported every human spaceflight program from the Space Shuttle to Artemis. The lab also supports testing for the International Space Station, Commercial Crew, and Commercial Resupply programs.

The lab uses two-stage light gas guns to accelerate objects to speeds that simulate micrometeorite and orbital debris impacts on spacecraft shielding. The first stage uses gun powder as a propellent the way a standard gun does. The second stage uses highly compressed hydrogen gas that pushes gas into a smaller tube, increasing pressure in the gun, like a car piston. The gun's pressure gets so high that it would level the building if it were to explode. "That is why we hung out in the bunker during the test," said Sarli.

NASAs Remote Hypervelocity Test Laboratory is equipped with four 2-stage light gas guns; two 0.17-caliber (0.177-inch bore diameter), a 0.50-caliber (0.50" bore diameter), and a 1-Inch (1.00" bore diameter) gun at the facility. The 1-Inch range is 160 feet long, from gunpowder breech to the end of the target chamber outside. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA's Remote Hypervelocity Test Laboratory is equipped with four two-stage light gas guns; two 0.17-caliber (0.177-inch bore diameter), a 0.50-caliber (0.50-inch bore diameter), and a 1-inch (1.00-inch bore diameter) gun at the facility. The 1-inch range is 160 feet long, from gunpowder breech to the end of the target chamber outside.

Engineers spent three days preparing for a one-second experiment. They used the lab's mid-sized high-pressure (50-caliber range) two-stage light gas gun that shoots small pellets 16 to 22 feet per second. "At that speed, you could travel from San Francisco to New York in five minutes," said Dennis Garcia, the 0.50-caliber test conductor at White Sands.

While the pellet's speed is fast, micrometeorites travel six to seven times faster in space. As a result, the team relies on computer models to simulate the actual velocities of micrometeorites. The slower rate will test their computer model's ability to simulate impacts on their shield designs and allows the team to study the material reaction to such energy.

Mars Sample Return is a multi-mission campaign designed to retrieve scientifically selected samples of rock and sediment that the Perseverance rover is collecting on the surface of Mars. Bringing those samples to Earth would allow scientist to study them using the most advance laboratory instruments-those that will exist in the coming decade and those in the decades to follow. The campaign is one of the most ambitious endeavors in spaceflight history, involving multiple spacecraft, multiple launches, and multiple government agencies. Goddard is currently designing and developing the Capture, Containment, and Return System that would deliver the Mars sample tubes back to Earth.

Explore further NASA's Perseverance rover scouts Mars Sample Return Campaign landing sites
There are fewer women than men astronauts involved in research, training and missions. Credit: CH W/Unsplash

A new dawn of space exploration is upon us. NASA aims to land the first woman and person of color on the moon by the end of 2025, and send a crew on a year-and-a-half long mission to Mars in the 2030s.

To ensure a safe and pleasurable journey to the final frontier, national agencies such as NASA and private companies such as SpaceX must address both the technical and human factors associated with working and living in space. Yet, the realities of sexuality and intimacy in space are mostly omitted.

How will people be able to live for prolonged periods of time in the isolated, confined and extreme conditions of spacecrafts and other planets? How will people navigate falling in love, having sex and beginning and ending relationships under such conditions? How will people deal with the stress, limited choice of intimate partners and issues related to consent? And how will sexual harassment or assault be prevented or addressed?

On Oct. 15, 2017, #MeToo ushered in a global movement against sexual harassment and assault. As researchers exploring human factors in space and space sexologythe study of intimacy and sexuality away from Earthwe argue that it is time to plan for the future of #MeToo in space.

Sexual assault and space research

On Dec. 3, 1999, Judith Lapierre, a Canadian nurse and social medicine researcher, embarked on a 110-day Mars simulation experiment aboard a Mir Space Station replica in Moscow. Lapierre was the only woman in an eight-member crew.

One month into the study, the Russian chief commander discussed running an experiment where Lapierre would be treated as the crew's sexual object. On New Year's Eve, he stated it was time to "do the experiment," and forcibly grabbed and kissed Lapierre despite her repeated requests to stop.

Lapierre notified the Canadian Space Agency and informed her Austrian crew commander, who immediately demanded action from the local and international management.

When interviewed by the media after the experiment, Lapierre opened up about her expectations of a safe, harassment-free and violence-free working environment. Yet some Russian news outlets blamed and misrepresented her as depressed and the cause of unrelated problems, including a physical altercation between Russian crew members.

The aggression during the simulation experiment was reduced to cultural differences. And since then, Lapierre's time in the space sector became an uphill battle because she spoke out.

As she describes in Rudolph and Werner Herzog's 2022 film Last Exit: Space: "When that mission finished, it really influenced my whole career because I thought this would be the start of my research project with the space agency or the start of my field of work, but I was just totally pushed out of the system."

Other research contexts

Lapierre is not alone. Sexual harassment has also happened in other contextssimilar to the extreme conditions of actual and simulated space environments.

A 2022 report commissioned by the National Science Foundation (NSF) showed that out of the 290 female respondents, 72 percent and 47 percent agreed that sexual harassment and sexual assault, respectively, are a problem in the United States Antarctic Program (USAP). As one of the survivors reported: "I know none of this is news to you, it's just a known fact around station. It's so self-evident that [it's] barely worth speaking out loud. [Sexual assault and sexual harassment] are a fact of life [here], just like the fact that Antarctica is cold and the wind blows."

The NSF report highlights the lack of adequate prevention, reporting and response systems, as well as the lack of support for victim-survivors and the lack of trust in human resources and USAP leadership. And only a minority of the leadership agreed that sexual harassment (40%) and sexual assault (23%) are a problem in the USAP.

This is not limited to the USAP. In 2021, employees of the aerospace companies Blue Origin and SpaceX came forward with an alarming array of sexual harassment and misconduct allegations.

In an open essay, a group of 21 current and former employees of Blue Origin denounced a sexist work culture, inappropriate behaviors toward women and cases of sexual harassment by senior leaders.

No end in sight?

For humankind to safely take its next steps into the universe, the culture of space exploration must change.

These harrowing events call for national agencies and private space companies to adopt a proactive stance against sexual harassment and assault. NASA and other space organizations must go beyond implementing basic anti-harassment policies. They must devote the necessary resources to put in place proper prevention, reporting and response infrastructures, including the support and protection of victim-survivors.

This may include the creation of separate oversight entities composed of sexologists and qualified health and psychosocial professionals. This may also include investing in the study of human relationships and sexual health in space.

Victim-survivors need to be part of the conversation and solutions, every step of the way. This is essential to ensure the safety of Earth-based and space environments, and ethically conduct much-needed scientific research on human spacelife.

MeToo taught us that collective action is powerful. And in the words of Lapierre: "It is time, more than ever, to meet the real challenges of space exploration, with honesty, transparency, and by recognizing that Earth's unacceptable behaviors are also Space's unacceptable behaviors for a spacefaring civilization."

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Little leaves of tea become big business in county of China's Yunnan

People's Daily Online) 08:07, October 13, 2022

Recently, tea growers have been busy picking tea leaves at an ancient tea plantation in Bingdao village, Mengku township, Shuangjiang Lahu, Wa, Bulang and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province.

With over 500 years of history of planting tea trees, the village is famous for its high-quality Pu'er tea, a deep-brewed tea with a sweet aroma. In 2021, the village achieved a dry raw tea output of 805 tonnes, with the output value reaching 420 million yuan (about $58.5 million).

However, tea leaves didn't bring wealth to locals in the past. "More than 20 years ago, 0.5 kilograms of tea leaves were worth less than 1 yuan," said Jiang Ping, a villager who now owns a tea factory and a restaurant. Jiang opened her restaurant in 1997 but encountered difficulties running it for years.

A villager picks tea leaves in Bingdao village, Mengku township, Shuangjiang Lahu, Wa, Bulang and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

Things began to change in 2007, one year after the village's tea won a gold prize at the tea expo held in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province. The prize pushed up the price of tea leaves in the village as well as several other places in Shuangjiang county with premium tea resources and rich tea culture, bringing fame to the county.

As the core production area of tea leaves in Shuangjiang county, Mengku township attracted numerous tea dealers. Back then, Jiang's family, like many other families in the town, began to plant, process and sell tea leaves. In addition, Jiang's restaurant enjoyed brisk business thanks to crowds of tea dealers coming in from outside the town. Now, her restaurant is the biggest one in the town.

Photo shows an ancient tea tree in Bingdao village, Mengku township, Shuangjiang Lahu, Wa, Bulang and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

The tea industry has not only fattened the wallets of tea growers in Bingdao village, but also given a boost to the development of Mengku township. Nowadays, the town is home to many homestays, hotels, restaurants and tea factories.

In 2014, Jiang's son Yang Tingzhen took over her tea factory and registered a tea brand, with the aim of raising the added value of their tea leaves. Drawing on the experiences from nearby tea plants, Yang decided to grow organic tea.

Photo shows the construction site of a "tea town" in Mengku township, Shuangjiang Lahu, Wa, Bulang and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

For Shuangjiang county, protecting its tea resources and sound ecology is the key to the sustainable development of its tea industry. In recent years, ancient tea trees in the county have come with QR codes, which people can scan to get all kinds of information about these trees. To reduce sewage and garbage pollution in tea plantations in Bingdao village, nearby villagers have been relocated to a "tea town" not far from the original site of the village. The county has also integrated the tea industry with tourism and developed tea-themed scenic spots.

"A new highway linking Lincang city and the 'tea town' in Bingdao village is under construction. Once completed, the highway will cut the travel time between the two places from about two hours to some 20 minutes," said Yang, who is optimistic about the future of the "tea town."

Shuangjiang county has also built tea industrial parks, enhanced brand building for its tea, and attracted enterprises that can drive the development of the tea industry. The county aims to build state-level standardized organic tea production bases covering over 300,000 mu (20,000 hectares) by the end of 2023.

Photo shows Bingdao Lake in Mengku township, Shuangjiang Lahu, Wa, Bulang and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

(Web editor: Chang Sha, Du Mingming)
Satellite view of a section of New Zealand's North Island and South Island. Credit: NASA Runoff from heavy rains, combined with wave action along the coast, increased the turbidity of New Zealands waters (note the discoloration between the country's north and south islands) when this image was acquired on April 29, 2011 by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASAs Aqua satellite. Credit: NASA/Norman Kuring

Since mid-September 2022, NASA-funded instruments have been hitching rides on commercial aircraft and collecting environmental data over New Zealand. The collaboration with Air New Zealand is the first known data-collecting partnership between a passenger airline and a NASA Earth science mission.

The new program is part of NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) mission, which is a constellation of eight small satellites that collect data on the intensity and direction of storms and hurricanes. Flying in low-Earth orbit above the tropics, the CYGNSS satellites were designed to measure wind speeds over the ocean by examining reflections of GPS signals from choppy and calm water surfaces.

After the satellites were launched in 2016, scientists found that CYGNSS technology could also capture valuable measurements of wetlands, flood events, and soil moisture. That's where the Air New Zealand partnership comes in. Attaching GPS radar receivers to commercial aircraft offers a new way to observe features of wetlands and rivers that are often hidden from view in visible-light imagery by thick vegetation.

"The airplane-mounted receiver was designed and intended to be a next-generation version of the one that is on CYGNSS," said Chris Ruf, CYGNSS principal investigator . "This is a great opportunity to start exercising the new technology and testing it to see how the data improves."

An astronaut onboard the International Space Station took this photograph of South Island, New Zealand. The islands snowcapped Southern Alps are visible through winter clouds. Credit: NASA

The receiver automatically turns on and off with the takeoff and landing of a New Zealand Airlines Q300 aircraft, which collects data for the length of the flight. After landing, the receivers transmit the observations to a server at the University of Auckland. Ruf's team at the University of Michigan can then log into that server from Ann Arbor to retrieve the data.

As the aircraft traverses New Zealand, some of its flight paths overlap with those of the CYGNSS satellites. These overlaps will provide the team with a wealth of data to use to validate and improve CYNGSS satellite observations over land, said Ruf. The widely varied New Zealand terrain also provides useful comparison points for data collected from similar terrains around the world. The receivers, which were designed and tested at the University of Michigan, are lightweight and draw a small amount of power from the plane, Ruf noted. The team plans to keep them installed for at least one year.

The program is a partnership among NASA, the University of Michigan, Air New Zealand, the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the New Zealand Space Agency, and the University of Auckland. The Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) leads the development and integration of the CYGNSS microsatellites. The Space Physics Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan College of Engineering leads the overall mission execution, and its Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering department leads the science investigation. The Earth Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate oversees the mission.

Explore further NASA, New Zealand partner to collect climate data from commercial aircraft
Artist's impression of asteroid 21 Lutetia. Credit: ESA - C. Carreau

We have now discovered 30,039 near-Earth asteroids in the solar systemrocky bodies orbiting the sun on a path that brings them close to Earth's orbit. The majority of these were discovered in the last decade, showing how our ability to detect potentially risky asteroids is rapidly improving.

An asteroid is called a near-Earth asteroid (NEA) when its trajectory brings it within 1.3 Astronomical Units (au) of the sun. 1 au is the distance between the sun and Earth, and so NEAs can come within at least 0.3 au, 45 million km, of our planet's orbit.

Currently, near-Earth asteroids make up about a third of the roughly one million asteroids discovered so far in the solar system. Most of them reside in the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars.

Asteroids have been cataloged by astronomers for more than two centuries since the very first asteroid, Ceres, was discovered in 1801 by Giuseppe Piazzi. The first near-Earth asteroid, (433) Eros, was discovered nearly one hundred years later, on 13 August 1898.

The roughly 30 km Eros asteroid was discovered by Carl Gustav Witt and Felix Linke at the Urania Observatory in Berlin and independently by Auguste Charlois at the Nice Observatory. The stony asteroid's orbit brings it to within around 22 million km of Earth57 times the distance of the Moon.

Not only is Eros the first known NEA, but the first asteroid to be orbited by a spacecraft and the first to have a spacecraft land on it. Early calculations of the space rock's orbit also enabled a precise determination of the then imperfectly known distance between the sun and Earth.

We often hear from astronomers and other scientists about "near-earth asteroids"lumps of rock and metal that orbit through our Solar System, and pass close enough to our planet to pose an impact risk. But many people wonder what this means, and ask additional questions. How many are there? Where do they come from? And why should we care about them? In less than 90 seconds, our video will answer these questions and more, and show what ESA is doing about the risks they pose, helping to safeguard our planet. Credit: ESA

How to un-Earth a near-Earth asteroid

Naturally, large asteroids were discovered first as they are so much easier to see. They were thought of as minor planets, a term still used today. As telescopes get more sensitive, we are finding many more and at a great rate, even those down to tens of meters in size.

Ground-based survey telescopes such as the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona, in the United States, discover new asteroids every week. They are designed to scan large sections of the sky, looking for new objects moving in front of the backdrop of "motionless" stars.

More focused, large telescopes, such as the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT), can then be used for follow-up observations, helping us better understand a "new" asteroid's path, size and even composition.

Gaia, ESA's space observatory on a mission to catalog one billion stars in the galaxy, has also helped us better understand the asteroid risk.

Animated view of 14,099 asteroids in our solar system, as viewed by ESAs Gaia satellite using information from the missions second data release. The orbits of the 200 brightest asteroids are also shown, as determined using Gaia data. In future data releases, Gaia will also provide asteroid spectra and enable a complete characterisation of the asteroid belt. The combination of dynamical and physical information that is being collected by Gaia provides an unprecedented opportunity to improve our understanding of the origin and the evolution of the solar system. Credit: ESA/Gaia/DPAC, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO

"Because of Gaia, we know more about the stars in the galaxy which act as a backdrop to asteroid observations," explains Tineke Roegiers, community support for the Gaia mission.

"Asteroid's positions are obtained against these background stars, so, the better one knows where the stars are, the more precisely the orbits of asteroids can be computed."

With the use of "Gaia's stars," even the orbits of already-known near-Earth asteroids have been improved, and some asteroids that were "lost" were found again.

ESA's asteroid risk list

"Of course, any asteroid discovered near Earth qualifies as a near-Earth asteroid, but many are found far from home," explains Marco Micheli, Astronomer at ESA's Near-Earth Object Coordination Center.

"New objects are observed over time, their movements are studied and with just a handful of data points from different nights their future positions can be predicted. Depending on the number and quality of observations, this can extend decades, even hundreds of years into the future."

These images represent radar observations of asteroid 99942 Apophis on March 8, 9, and 10, 2021, as it made its last close approach before its 2029 Earth encounter that will see the object pass our planet by less than 325,000 kilometres. NASA Deep Space Networks Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California, and the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia used radar to precisely track Apophis motion, gathering data that rules out any chance of Earth impact for at least a century. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech and NSF/AUI/GBO

ESA's Near-Earth Object Coordination Center (NEOCC) in ESRIN, Italy, is home to the Agency's asteroid experts and risk assessors. The team activates its network of telescopes around the globe to get observations of new asteroids discovered and determine their impact risk, while also chasing up "old" asteroids that haven't yet been deemed safe.

Currently, 1,425 asteroids with a "non-zero" chance of impact are under their watchful eye, organized in the NEOCC's Asteroid Risk List which is constantly updated and freely available for anyone to see. You can even sign up to ESA's monthly "Asteroid Newsletter," and the asteroid news will come direct to you.

Will any of these asteroids strike Earth?

Currently, none of the near-Earth asteroids discovered so far are a concern, for at least one hundred years. Some of the smaller objects will and do impact Earthbut the most common are also the smallest and have little effect, except for creating trails of shooting stars as they burn up in the night sky.

When it comes to large and potentially devastating asteroids larger than 1 km across and above, the majority have been discovered and none show an impact risk for at least a century. For those that could impact later, we have plenty of time to study them and prepare a deflection mission.

As part of the global effort to hunt out risky celestial objects such as asteroids and comets, ESA is developing an automated telescope for nightly sky surveys. This telescope is the first in a future network that would completely scan the sky and automatically identify possible new near-Earth objects, or NEOs, for follow up and later checking by human researchers. The telescope, nicknamed 'Flyeye', splits the image into 16 smaller subimages to expand the field of view, similar to the technique exploited by a fly's compound eye. Such fly-eyed survey telescopes provide a very large field of view: 6.7 x 6.7 or about 45 square degrees. 6.7 is about 13 times the diameter of the moon as seen from the Earth (roughly 0.5 degrees). In the telescope, a single mirror of 1 m equivalent aperture collects the light from the entire 6.7 x 6.7 field of view and feeds a pyramid-shaped beam splitter with 16 facets. The complete field of view is then imaged by 16 separate cameras that contain 16 detectors. The tubes contain a set of secondary lenses. In mid-2014, ESA signed a contract for about 1 million with a consortium led by CGS S.p.A (Italy), comprising Creotech Instruments S.A. (Poland), SC EnviroScopY SRL (Romania) and Pro Optica S.A. (Romania) for the detailed design of the advanced telescope. The first Flyeye telescope is expected to be ready for installation at its final location on Mount Mufara in Sicily at the end of 2019. Credit: ESA/A. Baker

The current priority are the medium-sized asteroids a few hundred meters in diameter. Many are still out there, waiting to be discovered, and at smallish sizes they're not quite as easy to find.

"The good news is that more than half of today's known near-Earth asteroids were discovered in the last six years, showing just how much our asteroid eyesight is improving," explains Richard Moissl, ESA's Head of Planetary Defense.

"As this new 30,000 detection milestone shows, and as new telescopes and methods of detection are built, it's only a matter of time until we've found them all."

Explore further Looking up at the asteroids in the neighborhood
a. Experimental SC circuit of device I with qubits and couplers in a square geometry. The light-grey dashed rectangles represent dimers that constitute the chain with intracoupling Ja, intercoupling Je and small cross-coupling Jx. b. Schematic (upper left) of the dynamics of the collective dimer states | and |. Numerics of the ratio / as a function of system size L for different ratios of Ja/Je, with Jx/2 in the range of [0.3, 1.2] MHz (lower left). Four-dimensional hypercube in the Hilbert space (right). c. Quantum state tomography for the four-qubit fidelity FA(t) and entanglement entropy SA(t) in a 30-qubit chain for thermalizing initial states, namely, |01010110 (i) and |01001100110110 (ii), and the QMBS state  (green). The couplings are Ja/2 = 1.5Je/2  9 MHz. The inset shows the Fourier transform of the four-qubit fidelity with the peak at 1/2  21 MHz. The dashed grey line in the bottom panel represents the maximal thermal entropy for the subsystem, approaching to 4ln(2). d. Same data as c, but for different couplings, namely, Ja/2 = 2.5Je/2  10 MHz from device II and 1/2  22 MHz. Schematics in c and d illustrate the bipartition of the system. Credit: Arizona State University, Zhejiang University

Researchers from Arizona State University and Zhejiang University in China, along with two theorists from the United Kingdom, have been able to demonstrate for the first time that large numbers of quantum bits, or qubits, can be tuned to interact with each other while maintaining coherence for an unprecedentedly long time, in a programmable, solid state superconducting processor.

Previously, this was only possible in Rydberg atom systems.

In a paper to be published on Thursday, Oct. 13, in Nature Physics, ASU Regents Professor Ying-Cheng Lai, his former ASU doctoral student Lei Ying and experimentalist Haohua Wang, both professors at Zhejiang University in China, have demonstrated a "first look" at the emergence of quantum many-body scarring (QMBS) states as a robust mechanism for maintaining coherence among interacting qubits. Such exotic quantum states offer the appealing possibility of realizing extensive multipartite entanglement for a variety of applications in quantum information science and technology to achieve high processing speed and low power consumption.

"QMBS states possess the intrinsic and generic capability of multipartite entanglement, making them extremely appealing to applications such as quantum sensing and metrology," explained Ying.

Classical, or binary computing relies on transistorswhich can represent only the "1" or the "0" at a single time. In quantum computing, qubits can represent both 0 and 1 simultaneously, which can exponentially accelerate computing processes.

"In quantum information science and technology, it is often necessary to assemble a large number of fundamental information-processing unitsqubitstogether," explained Lai. "For applications such as quantum computing, maintaining a high degree of coherence or quantum entanglement among the qubits is essential.

"However, the inevitable interactions among the qubits and environmental noise can ruin the coherence in a very short timewithin about ten nanoseconds. This is because many interacting qubits constitute a many-body system," said Lai.

Key to the research is insight about delaying thermalization to maintain coherence, considered a critical research goal in quantum computing.

"From basic physics, we know that in a system of many interacting particles, for example, molecules in a closed volume, the process of thermalization will arise. The scrambling among many qubits will invariably result in quantum thermalizationthe process described by the so-called Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis, which will destroy the coherence among the qubits," said Lai.

According to Lai, the findings moving quantum computing forward will have applications in cryptology, secure communications and cybersecurity, among other technologies.

Explore further Engineering robust and scalable molecular qubits

More information: Lei Ying, Many-body Hilbert space scarring on a superconducting processor, Nature Physics (2022). www.nature.com/articles/s41567-022-01784-9 Journal information: Nature Physics Lei Ying, Many-body Hilbert space scarring on a superconducting processor,(2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41567-022-01784-9
Photo from the Solvay Conference on Quantum Mechanics in 1927 in which Marie Curiesitting in the front row, third from the leftwas the only woman invited. Credit: Benjamin Couprie, Institut International de Physique Solvay, Brussels, Belgium

The year was 2018 and physicist Fariba Karimi remembers feeling appalled and disgusted by the remarks made by a prominent male scientist during a presentation at CERN, the European nuclear research center in Geneva. "It was just unbelievable," recalls Karimi, who leads a team in computational social science at the Complexity Science Hub Vienna (CSH).

During a CERN workshop on gender equality, a professor of Pisa University said physics was "invented and built by men" and claimed that male scientists produced better research than female researchers.

The controversy spurred Karimi, who has long been intrigued with the origins of gender disparities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields, to design a study to discover why women are discriminated against in physics.

Her findings are published in the new issue of the journal Communications Physics.

First-mover advantage

The study, which drew on a unique dataset provided by the American Physical Society, confirmed that women are still largely underrepresented in this field. However, the results indicate that, although papers written by women tend to have lower visibility, the gender gap is the result of men enjoying a first-mover advantage in physics.

"This means that the participation of men in physics has historically been disproportionately higher than that of women. It also means that the entry barrier for women into physics was higherdue to sexism and societal expectations of womenand therefore they could not enter the physics community as early as men," explains Karimi.

"At a macro level, this structural barrier resulted in a physics community with more senior privileged white men, thus creating an illusion that physics is not for women," adds the CSH researcher.

Recognition for similar work

The dataset was composed of more than 541,000 scholarly articles published between 1893 to 2010, and included article metadata, author information, and citations. Using a technique that combines name and image recognition, the researchers inferred the gender of the primary authors of papers: 9,947 women and 60,886 men.

"In the study, rather than just comparing men and women in physics in terms of publications and citations, I wanted to see whether they receive different recognition for similar work published around the same time," says the CSH's team leader.

Consequently, the team selected pairs of papers on similar topics written by men and women primary authors. Then, they computed the difference in the number of citations each paper received. "The main goal was to compare pairs of similar papers in an unbiased fashion," explains Hyunsik Kong, co-author of the study.

By comparing "apples to apples," the researchers came upon a disparity in citations. "It's not huge, but it's definitely there," says Samuel Martin-Gutierrez, co-author of the paper and a postdoc at CSH. "And we found that the temporal aspect of scientific production was very important to explain this citation disparity."

Men still have the edge over women

According to the analysis, whoever published first, regardless of gender, tended to get most of the attention of the scientific community. "This explains part of this disparity, but not all. There are differences in how men and women get the first-mover advantage and men still have the edge over women," says Martin-Gutierrez.

In other words, this means that men tended to publish first more often than women. Furthermore, when men published first, they still gained an advantage over women. "A male author gets more citations when he publishes first compared to a female author," points out Martin-Gutierrez.

When the CSH team adjusted the time of publication, there were no statistically significant differences in citations of men and women. "The results combined suggest that the overall disparity in the citation network is a result of cumulative advantages and the first-mover effect that men have in physics," conclude the scientists.

"From a broader perspective, the entry barriers for women due to historical disadvantages and sexism create a so-called 'structural inequality' or what sociologists call 'racism without racists.' As a result, structural inequality continues to affect women's participation for generations to come, and it should be addressed through appropriate interventions," highlights Karimi.

The study "Influence of the first-mover advantage on the gender disparities in physics citations," by Hyunsik Kong, Samuel Martin-Gutierrez, and Fariba Karimi, was published in Communications Physics.

More information: Influence of the first-mover advantage on the gender disparities in physics citations, Communications Physics (2022). Journal information: Communications Physics Influence of the first-mover advantage on the gender disparities in physics citations,(2022). DOI: 10.1038/s42005-022-00997-x
Identifying "Ruffian" via an aerial photograph compared to a satellite image. Credit: University of Ottawa / Canadian Space Agency

New satellite imagery research led by the University of Ottawa is the first to identify a specific endangered Gulf of St. Lawrence North Atlantic right whale from space.

Matus Hodul, a Ph. D student in the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics of the Faculty of Arts who is co-author of the study with Dr. Anders Knudby, explains how this technology can be used for monitoring the critically endangered whales, know as Eubalaena glacialis, and lead to improved conservation efforts.

Please provide some context on the current state of the right whale population

Matus Hodul: The North Atlantic right whale is critically endangered, with about 336 individual whales accounted for. Mortality comes from whales being hit by ships and becoming entangled in fishing gear, so being able to detect and monitor their location is important to conservation efforts. Knowing where the whales are at any given time enables fisheries to open or close to avoid the whales and enables ships to bypass them to prevent collisions.

What is this technology and how will it help right whales?

M.H.: This is a new type of satellite imagery which has a spatial resolution of 15 cm, which means each pixel in the image represents 15 cm on the ground. For context, this is much finer than Google Earth satellite images. This imagery allows us to find the endangered North Atlantic right whales and confidently differentiate this species from other kinds of whales, such as fin whales and humpbacks. In some cases, it also allows us to identify individual whales, in circumstances where a whale has sufficiently distinct markings.

Interestingly, it is not known where approximately 50% of North Atlantic right whales go in the summer and autumn months. Now that we can detect and positively identify right whales using satellite imagery, it will likely have significant implications for conservation efforts.

Were you able to identify any specific whales?

M.H.: We were able to identify the whale named Ruffian, who was severely injured in an entanglement with fishing gear in 2008 that left him with a distinct, large white scar on his back. In the satellite imagery, we were able to spot a right whale with this exact scar, allowing us to identify the whale as Ruffian.

How was the study conducted and who led the research?

M.H: This research was conducted by myself and Dr. Anders Knudby at the University of Ottawa, in collaboration with scientists from the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS). The project was undertaken with the financial support of the Canadian Space Agency and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in collaboration with Transport Canada, as part of the Canadian Space Agency larger smartWhales initiative to explore improved methods for the detection and modeling of North Atlantic right whales using space-based data sources.

When did the research occur?

M.H.: The research started in April 2021 and concluded late this summer. Aerial surveying to locate and take photographs of the whales was conducted by the CCS in Cape Cod Bay on the same day as the satellite imagery was being taken. Locating the whales in the satellite imagery was then done in the months following the survey.

The research is published in Marine Mammal Science.

More information: Matus Hodul et al, Individual North Atlantic right whales identified from space, Marine Mammal Science (2022). Journal information: Marine Mammal Science Matus Hodul et al, Individual North Atlantic right whales identified from space,(2022). DOI: 10.1111/mms.12971
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), remains a leading infectious threat to public health worldwide. It is estimated to have infected 23 billion people and causes ~1.5 million deaths each year.

Now, a group of Chinese scientists has described a previously undefined pathway by which Mtb counteracts host immunity. Specifically, the researchers identified the known Mtb protein tyrosine phosphatase PtpB as a phospholipid phosphatase that inhibits the host inflammasome-pyroptosis pathway by hijacking host ubiquitin.

The study, carried out by Prof. Liu Cuihua's group at the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS), in collaboration with Prof. Qiu Xiaobo from Beijing Normal University, was published in Science.

Dr. Liu's group has been investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying Mtb-host interactions, and previous studies from her group have provided potential targets for the development of anti-TB treatments based on pathogen-host interaction interfaces.

Mtb is an intracellular pathogen that has developed numerous intracellular survival strategies, and the intricate and dynamic interactions between Mtb and its host determine the occurrence, progression, and outcomes of TB. One interesting feature evolved by Mtb is a set of eukaryotic-like effectors, but their host targets and regulatory roles in pathogen-host interactions have been largely unexplored.

In this study, LIU's group examined the whole genome of Mtb to predict secreted eukaryotic-like proteins possessing eukaryotic-like motifs or domains that might target host factors directly. These Mtb effector proteins were then subjected to further experimental analyses using an inflammasome reconstitution system for screening inhibitors of inflammasome-pyroptosis pathways.

Out of 201 predicted Mtb-secreted eukaryotic proteins, the scientists identified PtpB as a key bacterial effector that was abundantly secreted by Mtb to inhibit both NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) and absent in melanoma 2 (AIM2) inflammasome pathways.

Subsequent experiments demonstrated that PtpB inhibited GSDMD-dependent cytokine release and pyroptosis to promote Mtb intracellular survival in macrophages. Mechanistically, Mtb-secreted PtpB targets and dephosphorylates host plasma membrane phosphatidylinositol-4-monophosphate (PI4P) and phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)-bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P 2 ] to inhibit membrane localization of the N-terminal cleavage fragment of GSDMD (GSDMD-N), thus preventing GSDMD-mediated immune responses.

Interestingly, this phosphatase activity requires PtpB binding to ubiquitin via its unique ubiquitin-interacting motif (UIM)-like region. Disruption of phospholipid phosphatase activity or the UIM-like region of PtpB enhanced host GSDMD-dependent immune responses, thus reducing intracellular pathogen survival.

This study reveals a previously unrecognized strategy by which pathogens inhibit pyroptosis and counteract host immunity by altering host membrane composition. Its results might lead to the development of a potential TB treatment by targeting the PtpB-Ub-phospholipid-pyroptosis axis.

Explore further New mechanism underlying pyroptosis induced by Yersinia infection

More information: Qiyao Chai et al, A bacterial phospholipid phosphatase inhibits host pyroptosis by hijacking ubiquitin, Science (2022). www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abq0132 Journal information: Science Qiyao Chai et al, A bacterial phospholipid phosphatase inhibits host pyroptosis by hijacking ubiquitin,(2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.abq0132
Inspired by living things from trees to shellfish, researchers at The University of Texas at Austin set out to create a plastic much like many life forms that are hard and rigid in some places and soft and stretchy in others. Their successa first, using only light and a catalyst to change properties such as hardness and elasticity in molecules of the same typehas brought about a new material that is 10 times as tough as natural rubber and could lead to more flexible electronics and robotics.

The findings are published today in the journal Science.

"This is the first material of its type," said Zachariah Page, assistant professor of chemistry and corresponding author on the paper. "The ability to control crystallization, and therefore the physical properties of the material, with the application of light is potentially transformative for wearable electronics or actuators in soft robotics."

Patterned sample is being stretched under uniaxial tension. Video was recorded with the sample between cross-polarizers, allowing for visualization of polymer chain alignment. The dark, opaque sections have been hardened. The transparent sections have been left soft and stretchy. Credit: The University of Texas at Austin

Scientists have long sought to mimic the properties of living structures, like skin and muscle, with synthetic materials. In living organisms, structures often combine attributes such as strength and flexibility with ease. When using a mix of different synthetic materials to mimic these attributes, materials often fail, coming apart and ripping at the junctures between different materials.

Oftentimes, when bringing materials together, particularly if they have very different mechanical properties, they want to come apart," Page said. Page and his team were able to control and change the structure of a plastic-like material, using light to alter how firm or stretchy the material would be.

Patterned island sample is being stretched and relaxed under uniaxial tension. Video was recorded with the sample as seen (left) and between cross-polarizers (right), allowing for visualization of polymer chain alignment. The dark, opaque spots are areas that have been hardened. Credit: The University of Texas at Austin

Chemists started with a monomer, a small molecule that binds with others like it to form the building blocks for larger structures called polymers that were similar to the polymer found in the most commonly used plastic. After testing a dozen catalysts, they found one that, when added to their monomer and shown visible light, resulted in a semicrystalline polymer similar to those found in existing synthetic rubber. A harder and more rigid material was formed in the areas the light touched, while the unlit areas retained their soft, stretchy properties.

Because the substance is made of one material with different properties, it was stronger and could be stretched farther than most mixed materials.

The reaction takes place at room temperature, the monomer and catalyst are commercially available, and researchers used inexpensive blue LEDs as the light source in the experiment. The reaction also takes less than an hour and minimizes use of any hazardous waste, which makes the process rapid, inexpensive, energy efficient and environmentally benign.

Patterned suture sample is being stretched under uniaxial tension. Video was recorded with the sample between cross-polarizers, allowing for visualization of polymer chain alignment. Credit: The University of Texas at Austin

The researchers will next seek to develop more objects with the material to continue to test its usability.

"We are looking forward to exploring methods of applying this chemistry towards making 3D objects containing both hard and soft components," said first author Adrian Rylski, a doctoral student at UT Austin.

The team envisions the material could be used as a flexible foundation to anchor electronic components in medical devices or wearable tech. In robotics, strong and flexible materials are desirable to improve movement and durability.

Patterned sample is being melted to show complete transparency and later the opacity returning as the sample cools and returns to a semicrystalline state. Credit: The University of Texas at Austin

Henry L. Cater, Keldy S. Mason, Marshall J. Allen, Anthony J. Arrowood, Benny D. Freeman and Gabriel E. Sanoja of The University of Texas at Austin also contributed to the research.

More information: Adrian K. Rylski et al, Polymeric multimaterials by photochemical patterning of crystallinity, Science (2022). www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.add6975 Journal information: Science Adrian K. Rylski et al, Polymeric multimaterials by photochemical patterning of crystallinity,(2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.add6975
Researchers looking across the Talamanca Mountains. Credit: Douglas Sheil

Many plant species, probably including a third of all trees, are threatened by extinction. One of the growing threats is rapid climate change and the inability of plants to move rapidly enough, or cross barriers, to places where they can persist. This threat is particularly acute for species that live on or near cool mountain tops and have no opportunity to go ever higher as temperatures increase. A research team investigated the implication of climate change for the distribution of such species. They found that "gaps" in the forest may be key.

Despite a long history of research on species distributions, we do not fully comprehend the mechanisms that determine where different tree species can and cannot occur. For example, temperature has long been assumed to be the main determinant in mountains. However, competition among species can also play a major role in preventing some from occurring where they otherwise might. As a result, observed distributions may not represent the complete range of conditions that a species can, at least sometimes, tolerate. Recognizing these nuances is critical for forecasting and managing the impacts of climate change, because many species may be able to endure warming temperatures if competition is managed.

Seedling transplant experiment

To improve our understanding of these opportunities, researchers of Wageningen University & Research and Norwegian University of Life Sciences, with support from the Centro Agronomico Tropical de Investigacion y Ensenanza established a seedling transplant experiment scattered across Costa Rica's Talamanca Mountains.

This area has perfect conditions for investigating the mechanisms that underlie tree distribution. The researchers transplanted seedlings of various tree species both above (to colder temperatures) and below (to warmer temperatures) the elevation ranges where they are normally observed. This was done both in areas with full access to light, and in shadier locations inside the forest.

Miguel Munoz Mazon, who developed the study as part of his Ph.D., said, "We aimed to separate the role of temperature and competition for light on species survival and growth. In brief, our results show that some tropical tree species that naturally occur only high on cool mountains can persist much lower where it is warm if they have enough light."

Easier adaptation to warmth in open locations

The team's findings were recently published in the journal Oikos. After a year and a half, the researchers discovered that when some species were transplanted in the open with good light in forest gaps, they survived and grew in much lower and warmer locations. Munoz Mazon said, "It was remarkable to observe that species like the native high elevation shrub Hypericum irazuense could thrive at temperatures 10 degrees Celsius warmer than where it now occurs. Our findings give hope that some effects of climate change may be somewhat ameliorated for at least some species by suitable management."

Persistence of species in a warmer future may depend on tolerating a changing climate and subsequent changes in the species' community. This will be especially important in habitats, such as mountain tops, where dispersal is limited. These locations often represent "islands" surrounded by a sea of forest. Munoz Mazon said, "With climate change we expect some of these species to rise and occur at higher elevations, with potential negative implications for the species already present there."

Minimizing competition for light

The study argues that creating suitable gaps in forest cover that allow young plants sufficient opportunity to establish and grow may play a critical role in ensuring the persistence, and slowing the loss, of many tree species. Ensuring such gaps are available, whether though natural or managed processes, may help at least some species persist within their present ranges.

"We were excited by this proof of concept. The next stage will be to clarify what management options can be applied to which species and what the gains can be," said Douglas Sheil, professor in Wageningen University, who initiated the project.

Explore further Temperature contributes most to geographical distribution of two giant honeybees

More information: Miguel Munoz Mazon et al, Canopy openness modifies tree seedling distributions along a tropical forest elevation gradient, Oikos (2022). Journal information: Oikos Miguel Munoz Mazon et al, Canopy openness modifies tree seedling distributions along a tropical forest elevation gradient,(2022). DOI: 10.1111/oik.09205
Map of the UK, showing Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) used in this analysis of antibiotics in the CIP2 program. Points are colored corresponding to the UK region. Credit: Environment International (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107488

As the dumping of untreated wastewater into the sea sparks pollution warnings, new research has identified a "significant risk" of increasing antibiotic resistance associated with wastewater systems across the U.K.

A research team, led by the University of Exeter, has carried out the most comprehensive assessment of risks posed by antibiotics in the environment in the U.K. to date, now published in the journal Environment International.

The team discovered that the levels of the antibiotic ciprofloxacin are likely to result in increased antibiotic resistance in wastewater and, in some cases, potentially in rivers. Ciprofloxacin is commonly used to treat respiratory, skin, and urinary tract infections, amongst other conditions.

Crucially, the research shows that antibiotic pollution from human waste poses a risk in the environment in higher income countries like the U.K., despite having longstanding sanitation infrastructures.

Antibiotic resistance is recognized by the World Health Organization as one of the greatest health threats of our time. By 2050, up to 10 million deaths each year could be caused by antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs no longer working to treat common diseases, including respiratory tract, sexually transmitted, and urinary tract infections. The threat of resistance could also increase the risk of contracting infection after basic surgical procedures.

About 70% of the antibiotics taken as medicines end up in the natural environment, through trace residues excreted by patients and inappropriate disposal of medicines, among other sources.

Bacteria are also present in these wastewaters, and when they are exposed to antibiotics, they can evolve resistance within these environments. This could mean an increased threat to human health, if resistant bacteria enter and colonize the gut, for example through swallowing water while swimming.

A recent survey by U.K. Water Industry Research (UKWIR) measured the concentrations of several antibiotics in untreated wastewater entering treatment plants, and the treated wastewater that is released into rivers and streams.

The survey, conducted at 67 treatment plants across the U.K., was carried out across all four seasons, over multiple years.

The research team at the University of Exeter Medical School compared this data to results from their previous studies, which determined the lowest antibiotic concentrations that increase antibiotic resistance. They found that there is a significant risk that the antibiotic ciprofloxacin could result in increased antibiotic resistant bacteria in wastewater and the environment.

Dr. Aimee Murray, of the University of Exeter, who led the research, said, "We need more awareness of the fact that antibiotics are environmental pollutants. When we take antibiotics, they aren't fully broken down by our bodies, but end up being excreted into our wastewater treatment system, and then released into the environment. This research shows that antibiotic pollution could increase antibiotic resistance in sewage and in some cases, our rivers. Elevated levels of antibiotic resistance pose a greater threat to human health.

"This is the first evidence of risks posed by antibiotics in the U.K. in terms of driving increased antibiotic resistance in the environment, and it's very timely considering current public concern over sewage pollution. Release of antibiotics into the environment isn't currently regulated, but this paper and other emerging research suggests this may be required in future."

April Hayes, Ph.D. student at the University of Exeter and joint first author, said, "Concern is increasing about pollution in our surface waters in the U.K., and this research demonstrates that pharmaceutical pollution is also a threat to our waters in England and Wales. Additionally, this research shows that this risk can vary by region, likely due to a number of different factors. Further understanding of the differences between these regions, such as antibiotic prescribing rates, or types of wastewater treatment used, may help in addressing this pressing issue."

Laura Murray, Ph.D. student at the University of Exeter and joint-first author, said, "Antibiotics can persist in U.K. wastewater effluent despite the sewage being treated. Some, such as ciprofloxacin, can be present in U.K. surface waters, including rivers, at levels that may drive evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria. A particular concern is that storms and heavy rainfall can cause untreated sewage overflows. On one hand, discharge of raw sewage could result in higher antibiotic resistance risks as the sewage hasn't been treated; on the other hand, the raw sewage may be heavily diluted with rainwater, which will decrease risks. Certainly, more research on combined sewer overflows is needed to fully appreciate how raw sewage discharges impact antibiotic resistance risk."

The research found that the East of England had the highest risks of antibiotic resistance development in untreated sewage. The East Midlands saw the highest risks in treated sewage overall, with the West Midlands and the South West close behind. This also translated into highest predicted risks for these three regions in the rivers and streams receiving the treated sewage.

Professor Will Gaze, who leads the wider environmental dimension of antibiotic resistance research program at the University of Exeter, said, "It's important to translate our data on evolution of antibiotic resistance into risk assessments that can be used to inform policy and practice. This research is a great example of this approach"

The paper is titled "Predicting selection for antimicrobial resistance in U.K. wastewater and aquatic environments: ciprofloxacin poses a significant risk."

Explore further Safe thresholds for antibiotics in sewage needed to help combat antibiotic resistance

More information: April Hayes et al, Predicting selection for antimicrobial resistance in UK wastewater and aquatic environments: Ciprofloxacin poses a significant risk, Environment International (2022). Journal information: Environment International April Hayes et al, Predicting selection for antimicrobial resistance in UK wastewater and aquatic environments: Ciprofloxacin poses a significant risk,(2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107488
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Global wildlife populations have fallen by nearly 70% in less than 50 years, conservationists warned as they called for immediate action to halt the nature and climate crises.

World Wide Fund For Nature's latest Living Planet report assesses the abundance of almost 32,000 populations of 5,230 species of animals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish around the world and how they have changed over the decades.

It reveals population sizes declined by 69% on average between 1970 and 2018, driven largely by the loss and break-up of natural habitat for agriculture, while climate change is also increasingly a threat to wildlife.

Species in freshwater lakes, rivers and wetlands have been worst hit, declining by an average of 83% since 1970.

The worst declines are in Latin America, home to the world's largest rainforest, the Amazon, where increasing deforestation is destroying trees and the species that rely on them.

Wildlife population sizes in the region have declined by 94% on average in the past half century, the report said.

Experts said the Amazon is fast approaching a tipping point where it will cease to be a functioning rainforest, without which the world cannot avert dangerous global warming.

If "we lose the Amazon, we lose that fight" against climate change, WWF chief executive Tanya Steele warned.

Europe, central Asia and North America have seen lesser declines in populations, but scientists from the Zoological Society of London, whose Living Planet Index informs the report, said these areas had already seen reductions in nature by 1970 when the data begins.

"It is now or never" to restore the natural world, Steele said.

"Despite the science, the catastrophic projections, the impassioned speeches and promises, the burning forests, submerged countries, record temperatures and displaced millionsworld leaders continue to sit back and watch our world burn in front of our eyes.

"The climate and nature crises, their fates entwined, are not some faraway threat our grandchildren will solve with still-to-be-discovered technology."

Mike Barrett, executive director of science and conservation at WWF, said the two crises of nature loss and climate change are two sides of the same coin.

Most natural systems store carbon and all of them are important for tackling climate change, with international science assessments assuming there was more nature on the planet rather than less in scenarios that limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Celsius and avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

But he warned: "At the moment we are losing nature still, so we're heading the wrong way."

Every year, 10 million hectares of forest is lostan area around the size of Portugalhitting the climate, food security and millions of people's livelihoods.

There are some bright spots of wildlife bucking the declines, such as numbers of loggerhead turtle nests increasing 500% along the coastline of Chyrsochou Bay, Cyprus, between 1999 and 2015 thanks to targeted conservation efforts.

In Britain, once-extinct common cranes have been reintroduced, with the population reaching more than 200, and in the Virunga Mountains of east Africa conservation efforts have helped increase mountain gorilla numbers from 480 in 2010 to 604.

But Barrett warned that conservation would not be enough, and governments must not just do a deal in Montreal to provide cash to protect 30% of the planet.

"Leaders who are there have got to think about what's happening in the other 70% of the planet," he said, with the report warning of the need for "game-changing shifts" in food and commodity production and consumption.

WWF also stressed that it will not be possible to restore nature without recognizing and respecting the rights and leadership on conservation of indigenous peoples and local communities around the world.

2022 dpa GmbH.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
MOREAU  Clean Air Action Network of Glens Falls has filed a lawsuit seeking to stop Saratoga Biochar Solutions from going into the Moreau Industrial Park.

The Article 78 petition by the environmental group names as defendants the Moreau Planning Board, Biochar CEO Ray Apy and Saratoga Biochar Solutions.

The lawsuit claims that the Moreau Planning Board did not follow the legal process necessary when it approved the site plans submitted by the company and that board members failed to follow the recommendations of the State Environmental Quality Review Act, or SEQRA, when making their decisions.

The petition was filed on Sept. 26 in Saratoga County Court.

Saratoga Biochar proposes to manufacture an agricultural fertilizer from hundreds of thousands of tons of sewage sludge, which would be trucked in annually from Long Island, Metro-New York City, Western Connecticut and Massachusetts, and the Hudson Valley, according to a news release from CAAN on Thursday.

Apy said on Thursday he is confident the board and his company will easily defeat the petition.

"It is an unfortunate delay for us," he said.

Check back at poststar.com for more on this story.
LAKE GEORGE  The new Battlefield Park Visitor Center surpassed 2,500 visitors in its first year of operation.

There was no certainty that anywhere near this number of people would visit a new history venue, stated John DiNuzzo, president of the Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance, in a news release.

DiNuzzo pointed out that the Alliance has seen its membership grow by 43% this year, reflecting a heightened awareness of the Battlefield Park and the Alliances role in preserving it.

The Alliance concluded its first season of operation at the Battlefield Park Visitor Center on Monday. The center will reopen in the spring.

After being first proposed 125 years ago, the Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance finally has an interpretive center, displaying artifacts, fort and vessel models, paintings, descriptive history panels, and other museum items that explain the rich history of the park through two 18th-century wars and beyond. It has renewed interest in the historic Northern Lake Tour, which will also encourage tourists to visit other regional historic sites, stated Dr. Russell Bellico, an Alliance trustee and author who championed the creation of a Battlefield Park museum for over 30 years.

There are plans for 2023 exhibits related to major events of the French and Indian War, including bringing in Indigenous artifacts from the park that were not previously available and expanding our maritime exhibit, according to the release.

The Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance is a volunteer-driven organization of individuals from various regions of the United States and Canada who have an interest in the Lake George regions critical role in the French and Indian War and American Revolution.
QUEENSBURY  SUNY Adirondack unveiled a newly redesigned dining hall space in September, inspired by the scenic mountains near the Queensbury campus.

The project was spearheaded by interior designer Amanda Blaise, of Girvin Office, whose designs were distributed by Charlies Office Furniture, a Queensbury-based company, according to a news release from the college on Tuesday.

Working with a local vendor, we were able to provide a modern, welcoming environment, said Tom Kent, executive director of SUNY Adirondacks Faculty-Student Association. We have already received many compliments from students and staff.

Blaises designs are finally complete after a long process delayed by the pandemic.

According to Kent, the colleges partnership with Chartwells food service was renewed in 2019, including a renovation to the serving area.

However, when COVID hit, it delayed the rest of the plans, which included upgrades to Einsteins Bagel Cafe in Scoville Hall, as well as the food court area.

I enjoyed working with our local college to provide a new, updated and more collaborative atmosphere for students and faculty, Blaise said. Our main focus was to take inspiration from the beautiful Adirondack Mountains, and incorporate it into our design.

The upgrades includes traditional and bar-height seating, study pods and spaces for groups and individuals to work in privacy.

The result is a serene, spacious facility decorated in natural woods and shades of blue and green, according to the news release.

The college is committed to providing a wonderful experience to our students, faculty and staff, and, through our partnership with Chartwells, we offer great variety and quality of food, and now the dining area matches the experience, said SUNY Adirondack President Kristine Duffy. We are proud to support local businesses in our projects, further strengthening the colleges longstanding ties to our community and its businesses.
BRIGANTINE  Having clean energy as a renewable resource may sound nice, but residents still have questions and concerns about the offshore wind projects planned just off the islands coast, which is why the mayor held an informational meeting last weekend.

Nearly 100 residents, second homeowners and public officials attended the forum Saturday at the Brigantine Community School to discuss the projects and their potential impacts on the barrier island.

rsteds offshore wind farms, which are expected to have 98 wind turbines roughly 15 miles off the coast, are scheduled to be completed by 2024. Meanwhile, 111 Atlantic Shores offshore wind turbines are expected to be operational 10 miles off Brigantine by 2027.

There are good things that are going to come about this, as well as the negative impacts that were going to talk about today, Mayor Vince Sera said at the meeting.

Aided by a slide presentation from Dr. Doug Zemeckis of Rutgers University, Sera described the windmill projects and how they could affect commercial fishing, boat traffic, navigation and the ecosystem.

Many residents said the cons outweigh the pros.

Beach replenishment to return to Ocean City this fall OCEAN CITY  As the remnants of a powerful storm crashed into Jersey shore beaches, bringing

Im just trying to figure out the positives in this, said resident Mary Anne Ford. The pro column is a big blank slate.

Sera countered Fords statement, saying the wind farms would offer opportunities for jobs, education for residents and a chance to create a profitable industry locally, since a surplus of energy generated from the windmills could be sold to neighboring states like New York or Pennsylvania.

Second homeowner Susanne Moore said there needed to be more information accessible to those who dont live on the island year-round, while many residents who spoke worried that the sight of the 1,200-foot windmills would be a detriment to the area, specifically property values.

Sera said neither of the offshore wind companies has provided an accurate visual of what the windmills would look like from the beach, but each is expected to be around the size of the Empire State Building.

Visibility is also one of the main concerns for other shore towns including Ocean City, whose representatives were at the Brigantine meeting Saturday.

A significant number of Ocean City residents are largely against the offshore wind project, noting environmental and visibility issues. rsteds Ocean Wind project includes running a power line from the wind farm under the beach and across Ocean City to the former B.L England power plant in Upper Township, where the energy generated by the wind farm would enter the power grid.

Brigantine invites feedback on offshore wind development BRIGANTINE  The mayor and City Council will address residents concerns about planned offsh

Ocean Wind has a petition filed with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to use a little more than a half-acre of land owned by Ocean City thats listed as open space under the states Green Acres program, which residents are also concerned about.

Sera said Brigantine was working with state Sen. Vince Polistina, R-Atlantic, and U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-2nd, to get Gov. Phil Murphy to address the offshore wind projects.

Murphy has said the wind industry is a new economic driver that will help wean the United States off fossil fuels.

In September, the governor signed Executive Order No. 307, which raises the state's offshore wind power goal to 11,000 megawatts by 2040, as he pushes for New Jersey to be a leading contributor in clean energy.

Murphy also said on WNYCs Ask the Governor program last weekend that the wind projects should be out farther since shore communities like those on Long Beach Island had expressed concerns about visual impact.

Sera said if the wind turbines could go out farther, they would benefit all shore communities.

Ocean Wind meeting canceled due to ongoing storm OCEAN CITY  A planned public hearing on the use of Green Acres land for the Ocean Wind 1 of

Residents also expressed concerns about how the wind farms would affect the islands marine life, habitat and fishing industries, alleging a lack of environmental studies.

Sera said the lack of in-depth environmental impact studies was why a group of LBI residents was filing a lawsuit against the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

But Lisa Landers, a BOEM representative present at the third and final public hearing planned to accept comments on a draft environmental impact statement on the Ocean Wind proposal, said the adverse impacts outlined in the report would be negligible to moderate.

The more than 1,400-page report will help guide the federal permitting process for Ocean Wind, the farthest along of several offshore wind projects in the pipeline. A final report is expected by March 2023, with rsted and PSEG predicting the project will be operational by 2024. Once the blades start turning, the project is expected to power a half-million homes.

I hope people understand that this is bigger than we realize, Sera told the crowd. It has much bigger impacts than we understand, and we need to make sure that whatever decisions we make as one whole community, we do it right. Because we dont get a second chance on this.

Theres a virtual meeting Oct. 27 with Atlantic Shores representatives, but because the meeting is moderated and questions have to be submitted beforehand, Sera said he plans to hold another community meeting with Atlantic Shores representatives present Nov. 12 at the Brigantine Community Center.
New Jersey lawmakers have unveiled new legislation to rewrite the states firearm carry laws after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June expanding gun rights. Democratic Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Nicholas Scutari said Thursday that the new measure will bar permit holders from carrying in schools, polling places, bars, restaurants, theaters, sports arenas, airports, casinos and child care facilities. It also sets up a new requirement that permit holders carry insurance to protect against accidental discharge. Gun rights advocates said in a statement they want to overturn the bill in court if it becomes law.
An Egg Harbor City woman was one of two people who admitted to trafficking methamphetamine together, U.S. Attorney Phillip R. Sellinger said Thursday.

Shannon Foster, 27, and Sherri Craig, 42, of Clementon, Camden County, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute 5 grams or more of methamphetamine.

According to court documents, from March 2021 to September 2021, Foster and Craig regularly purchased methamphetamine from suppliers and conspired with each other and others to distribute it throughout South Jersey.

On Sept. 20, 2021, Foster and Craig brought $3,000 with them to a residence in Camden to purchase methamphetamine from a supplier, documents showed.

The drug-trafficking conspiracy charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison with a maximum term of 40 years and a maximum fine of $5 million. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 14, 2023.

Assisting in the investigation were the Department of Homeland Security, the FBIs Atlantic City Resident Agency, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and State Police.
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MARGATE  Lucy the Elephant has been hidden behind plastic-wrapped scaffolding for more than a year as she undergoes exterior renovations, but that work will soon be coming to an end, Lucys boosters said Thursday. But first, the century-plus-old landmark needs a shower. Lucy is now in month 13 of what was supposed to be an eight-month project and close to $1 million over budget, said Richard Helfant, executive director of the Save Lucy Committee, but this hasnt deterred us from forging ahead to bring this mammoth project to its successful completion.

Helfant cited a number of reasons for delays, including more damaged wood sheathing than had been originally estimated, weather, a frozen sprinkler pipe that caused flooding inside the elephant and supply chain issues.

Before the scaffolding is dismantled, the Fire Department will give Lucy an elephant-sized shower, so any potential leaks in her new skin can be repaired, Helfant said in a news release. The exact date of Lucys shower will be announced soon.

Lucy the Elephant featured in new board game MARGATE  Lucy the Elephant can now be purchased, should anyone on their quest to acquire ro

Dismantling the scaffolding will take about two weeks to complete, after which a grand unveiling ceremony is planned either in November or December, Helfant said.

The project was originally estimated to cost $1.4 million. The Save Lucy Committee received grants from the Preserve New Jersey Historic Preservation Fund and the Save Americas Treasures grant program totaling $1.2 million. To help cover the rest, the nonprofit has launched a capital fundraising campaign called Lucys Life Preservers. Any donor who contributes $1,000 will have their name inscribed on a bronze plaque to be permanently displayed at the site, a Lucys Life Preserver gold-plated pin and lifetime membership to the Friends of Lucy.

Space is still available on the plaque, and the campaign will end Dec. 31, Helfant said. For more information, email info@lucytheelephant.org or call 609-823-6473, ext. 5.

Tours are still being conducted of Lucys interior. Lucy is open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends through the end of October. In November and December, the site will be closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
ATLANTIC CITY  A nonprofit is preparing to open a produce market in the city.

Communities Revolutionizing Open Public Spaces (C.R.O.P.S.) is opening the store at Tanger Outlets The Walk.

The 6,049-square-foot store, which assumes space last occupied by the Childrens Place, is scheduled to open Saturday, Tanger Outlets said Thursday in a news release.

The storefront will be used to host classes and workshops on topics such as urban gardening instruction and nutrition education, DIY classes and even a napping session meant to support the mental health of the community, Tanger Outlets said.

The new store arrives as heads remain turned to a space near The Walk intended for a ShopRite on Baltic Avenue.

C.R.O.P.S. was founded in 2016 and works to stave off food insecurity by placing locally grown produce into its stores, benefiting farmers and helping float the local economy.

Chalk About AC brings additional color to Atlantic City ATLANTIC CITY  The Atlantic City Arts Foundation hosted the eighth annual Chalk About AC ev

If youre not willing to acknowledge that the solution to food deserts is homegrown and owned and operated by community members, and not built in conference rooms, and youre not willing to support these existing community-led solutions by whatever means necessary, we need you to stop talking about how youre going to solve food insecurity, Executive Director Lisa Newcomb said in a statement Wednesday.

C.R.O.P.S. sources its produce from both local farmers and its growing spaces, where paid interns work to harvest its products.

Serving a poorer area of South Jersey, the store will accept the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Women, Infants and Children and WIC/Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program benefits and offer SNAP doubling dollars through the Good Food Bucks program, C.R.O.P.S. said.

The nonprofits newest store is not its only business venture in the city.

Bodegas in the Chelsea Heights neighborhood worked with C.R.O.P.S. and the Chelsea Economic Development Corp. to purchase leftover produce at the end of the C.R.O.P.S. Market at Chelsea to keep fresh produce in the city.

C.R.O.P.S. also supplies produce from Walking Bird Farm in Egg Harbor City to low-income housing complexes.

Its an honor to partner with C.R.O.P.S. and fully support the organizations mission, Tanger Outlets marketing director Rachel Hentschel said. Tanger continually seeks out opportunities to engage the community and bring local businesses into its retail mix, making the addition of C.R.O.P.S. a perfect fit for Tanger Outlets Atlantic City.
GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  Civil and voting rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer revolutionized activism to end injustices against African Americans, author Kiesha N. Blain told Stockton University students during a symposium Tuesday.

The 19th annual Fannie Lou Hamer Human and Civil Rights Symposium was held in the universitys Performing Arts Center. Blain, author of Set the World on Fire: Fannie Lou Hamers Enduring Message to America, encouraged students to explore the breadth of Hamers activism, saying shes well known but not deeply understood.

Everybody uses the quote now, Nobodys free until everybodys free, Blain said. But not a lot of people can tell you that that came from Fannie Lou Hamer. Her fight for freedom was intersectional and excluded nobody.

Blain said Hamers fighting spirit was ignited by a trip to Guinea she took in 1964 with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, having been invited by then-President Ahmed Sekou Toure.

He wanted to motivate them after they faced some setbacks, Blain said.

When they met with Toure, Hamer and the SNCC learned many of the issues facing Black people in the U.S. were present in Africa as well. The 1964 meeting, Blain said, helped transform Hamers leadership.

That same year, Hamer traveled to Atlantic City to attend the Democratic National Convention, held at what is now Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall. There, she argued for the seating of Black delegates from the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and famously uttered the line, Im sick and tired of being sick and tired.

Hamer went on to tackle global struggles in the 1970s. She was a part of an effort to boycott Gulf for its oil operations in Angola and openly denounced the Vietnam War.

She continued her work until her death in 1977.

By linking local and national concerns, Hamer set a precedent for future generations of Black activists, Blain said.

Patricia Reid-Merritt, professor of social work and Africana studies at Stockton, said Hamers appearance at the 1964 convention was the impetus for the Stockton symposium, which began in 2004.

We were asked by the state of New Jerseys office of African-American history as well as the secretary of the state to host an event that celebrates the 40th anniversary of Fannie Lou Hamers historic speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1964, Reid-Merritt said.

They picked us because we were the closest four-year institution, and we said yes. ... From that moment on, we said that we would become known as the school that celebrates the legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer.

Stockton also has named an event room for Hamer on its Atlantic City campus.

Apart from Blains keynote speech, the symposium included a panel discussion, an interpretive-dance tribute to Hamer by student Khaia Hall, music by professor Beverly Vaughn and her Freedom Singers and a short clip of Aunjanue Ellis reciting Hamers 1964 speech to the DNC.
Over the last 10 years, China has accomplished its objectives to preserve its cultural heritage, ranking second in the world in terms of the number of global heritage sites recognized by UNESCO.



During my almost four years in Beijing, I have observed how the country attaches great importance to the preservation of its heritage.

China joined the International Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage in 1985 to elevate its endeavors in preserving its heritage to global standards. The country has also undertaken national research projects on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization.

Now China boasts 50 world heritage sites recognized by UNESCO; of them, 35 are cultural, 11 are natural heritage sites, and four are cultural and natural (mixed) sites, placing it second in the world by volume.

I have been to many of them, including the Summer Palace, the Temple of Heaven, the Great Wall, and the Grand Canal. The visits have helped me learn how rich China is culturally and how the country has long been discovering and preserving its treasures.

Exploring the Terracotta Army is one of my favorite memories during my time in China. I was mesmerized by the sight of those funerary warrior sculptures in Xi'an, Shaanxi province. While visiting the pits of the life-sized army, I was amused to be briefed that the warriors with bigger bellies held higher ranks.

I also learnt that the army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the army of Qin Shihuang, the first emperor of the Qin dynasty (221-206 BC). The army was equipped with real weapons, including swords, daggers, spears, lances, battle axes, scimitars, shields, crossbows, and crossbow triggers. The army comprised more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses.

The funerary sculptures are among the first batch of national key cultural relics protection units and also among the first batch of Chinese World Heritage sites. They are dubbed as the "eighth wonder" of the world, attracting more than 200 foreign heads of state and governments to visit them. They have also featured in famous films about ancient China's brilliant civilization and are considered one of the world's top 10 ancient tombs.

China also believes the protection of intangible cultural heritage is the task of all of humanity, joining the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2004.

China has since made significant progress in the preservation of its heritage sites. The country undertook its first large-scale renovations on seven world cultural heritage sites in Beijing, including the Ming Tombs, the Great Wall, and the Forbidden City, all of which were completed before 2008.

Moreover, from 2005 to 2009, China carried out its first nationwide census of intangible cultural heritage, counting nearly 870,000 intangible cultural heritage resources, with several of them inscribed on UNESCO's list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

One of the 42 intangible cultural heritages is Tai Chi, the traditional physical exercise, which you will often see many people practicing in parks. The Chinese believe that Tai Chi can bring them health and peace of mind through its signature slow circular movements.

I have also experienced acupuncture, another intangible heritage of China, several times in and outside Beijing. It is an important feature of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

While receiving acupuncture treatments, TCM doctors will apply needles to puncture and stimulate chosen points on the patient's body. Every time I experienced acupuncture, I went through a rollercoaster ride, feeling both pain and relaxation during the treatment as well as after it was complete.

Over the past decade, Chinese local governments have included the preservation of cultural heritage as an important element in their performance evaluation systems.

The number of provincial-level cultural relics protection units has increased by 58%, and that of municipal and county-level units has grown by 88%. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of curated or excavated valuable cultural relics have been restored to a better state.

The number of museums nationwide has increased by 60%, and massive technological breakthroughs have been made in cultural relics protection, including underwater, with Chinese archaeologists recently breaking new ground in deep sea archaeological missions.

China has already come a long way in preserving its cultural  both tangible and intangible  heritage in recent years. The country has proven its mettle in transforming cultural heritage into an effective tool for socio-economic development. I believe that China will apply modern technologies to the restoration and preservation of more of its relics in the years to come.

Ershad Shikdar is a Beijing-based journalist and opinion writer.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

If you would like to contribute, please contact us at opinion@china.org.cn.
The C-SPAN founder and Purdue president to discuss Purdue, the nation and higher education

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  In October 2012 as Purdue Universitys president-elect, Mitch Daniels sat down for a public conversation with C-SPAN founder and Purdue alum Brian Lamb. Now, 10 years later, Daniels will once again join Lamb for a wide-ranging conversation on the universitys engaging recent history and other topics of importance to our country and higher education.

The special Conversation with Brian Lamb, hosted by the Center for C-SPAN Scholarship & Engagement, will take place Oct. 24 in Stewart Centers Fowler Hall on Purdues campus. Doors will open at 6 p.m., and the event will begin at 6:30 p.m.

The hourlong talk with Daniels will cover his past 10 years at Purdue and what might lie ahead for higher education and beyond.

The event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited and registration is required; attendees must show their e-tickets at the door. To register and receive a ticket, go to bit.ly/ConversationCCSE .

Daniels will step down as the universitys president, effective Jan. 1. He took the reins at Purdue in January 2013 after completing his second term as Indianas governor. Mung Chiang, Purdues executive vice president for strategic initiatives and the former John A. Edwardson Dean of Engineering, will serve as the universitys next president.

At Purdue, Daniels prioritized student affordability and reinvestment in the universitys strengths. Purdue has held tuition unchanged from 2012 through at least the 2022-23 academic year, breaking with a 36-year trend. Simultaneously, room rates have remained steady, meal plan rates have fallen about 10% and student borrowing has dropped 32%, while investments in student success and STEM research have undergone unprecedented growth. It is less expensive to attend Purdue today than it was in 2012. During the Daniels decade, higher education nationally has undergone significant changes, with no end to the challenges on the horizon.

In recognition of his leadership as both a governor and a university president, Daniels was named among the Top 50 World Leaders by Fortune magazine in 2015 and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2019.

The Conversation with Brian Lamb event is sponsored by the Center for C-SPAN Scholarship & Engagement and the Brian Lamb School of Communication in Purdues College of Liberal Arts and is a featured part of the national CCSE Research Conference.

For more information contact Andrea Langrish, CCSE managing director, at centerforcspan@purdue.edu.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to todays toughest challenges. Ranked in each of the last five years as one of the 10 Most Innovative universities in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://stories.purdue.edu

Media contact: Brian Huchel, bhuchel@purdue.edu
A Rock Island man on probation in Scott County and awaiting trial in Rock Island County was arrested Tuesday by Davenport Police for allegedly selling a variety of drugs including heroin, cocaine, meth, ecstasy and crack cocaine.

Officers also seized a loaded handgun.

Tony Anthony Phillips, 49, who listed his address on Scott County District Court documents as 111 20th St., Apt. 706, Rock Island, is charged with one count of possession with the intent to deliver more than 5 grams of methamphetamine. The charge is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of 25 years.

Phillips is also charged with four counts of possession with the intent to deliver for each of the drugs found in his possession, ecstasy, crack cocaine, heroin and powder cocaine. Each of those charges is a Class C felony that carries a prison sentence of 10 years.

He also is charged with four counts of violating Iowas drug tax stamp law and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Each of those charges is a Class D felony that carries a prison sentence of five years.

According to the arrest affidavit filed by Davenport Police Officer Robert Myers, which lists Phillips address as room 243 at the Motel 6 on West 65th Street in Davenport, at 1:27 p.m. Tuesday, members of the Davenport Police Departments Narcotics Unit were conducting a drug investigation involving Phillips selling heroin.

Detectives made contact with Phillips near the area of 605 Main St. During a search of his vehicle, officers seized 42 individually wrapped rocks of crack cocaine that weighed 12.75 grams, 10.8 grams of heroin, 10.65 grams of methamphetamine and seven ecstasy pills weighing 3.2 grams.

Police have said that the normal dose of both meth and heroin is one-tenth of a gram. That means Phillips had 108 doses of heroin and 106.5 doses of meth.

Officers also seized a loaded Hi-Point 9mm pistol and $270 in cash.

From his person officers seized $934 in cash.

During a post-Miranda interview, Phillips admitted to possessing and selling the drugs.

During a first appearance Wednesday in district court, magistrate Stephen Wing set Phillips bond at $100,000, cash only and scheduled a preliminary hearing for Oct. 21.

Phillips was being held Wednesday night in the Scott County Jail.

On Aug. 17, 2021, Phillips was arrested by agents of the Quad-City Metropolitan Group, or QCMEG. According to the arrest affidavit, on July 7, 2021, Phillips sold 1.2 grams to an agent during a controlled buy in the area of Bridge Avenue and 11th Street in Davenport. On Aug. 5, 2021, he sold another 1.1 grams of meth to an agent during a controlled buy, also in the area of Bridge Avenue and 11th Street.

Phillips was charged with two counts of possession with the intent to deliver less than 5 grams of meth, a Class C felony that carries a prison sentence of 10 years. Scott County prosecutors added two Class D felony charges of failure to affix a drug tax stamp as required by Iowa law, each of which carries a 5-year prison sentence.

On Nov. 16, Phillips pleaded guilty to one count of possession with the intent to deliver less than 5 grams of meth. The other charges were dropped in the plea agreement.

On Jan. 27, Scott County District Court Judge Jeffrey Bert sentenced Phillips to three years on probation. A 10-year prison sentence was suspended.

According to Iowa Department of Corrections electronic records, Phillips probation was to have ended Jan. 27, 2025.

With the new drug charges pending, Scott County authorities could move to have Phillips probation revoked and have him sentenced to 10 years in prison.

While out on bond awaiting trial on the charges filed by QCMEG agents, Phillips was arrested Sept. 29, 2021, in Rock Island County on one count of delivering less than 5 grams of meth, a Class 2 felony under Illinois law that carries a prison sentence of 3-7 years.

That case is still pending. According to Rock Island County Circuit Court electronic records, a pre-trial hearing on the meth delivery charge is scheduled for Oct. 28.

As Phillips is a convicted felon being accused of possessing a firearm while selling drugs, federal authorities could take over the new Scott County drug and gun charges under Project Safe Neighborhoods, a nationwide initiative to combat gun crimes.

Federal authorities could charge Phillips with both being a felon in possession of a firearm, as well as possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug crime.

According to federal authorities, in the case of the latter charge, the burden would be on Phillips to prove in court that the gun found in his possession was not being used in furtherance of a drug crime. The mandatory minimum sentence for that charge is five years and is consecutive to any other prison sentence he could receive on any other drug or weapons convictions.
WHAT WE KNOW: City Attorney Derke Price warned the Geneseo City Council previously that accepting banners for downtown light poles from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary could open up the city to any and all types of banners unless the city adopted a banner policy. The VFW Auxiliary wants to honor veterans with banners on the light poles for Veterans Day and Memorial Day.

WHAT'S NEW: Aldermen voted 5-0 Tuesday to approve a light pole banner policy to protect the city from having to erect banners they might not want to take. Aldermen Martin Rothschild, James Roodhouse and Craig Arnold were absent. The policy reads in part, "the light pole banner program is not available to be used, directly or indirectly, to promote, endorse or enhance any commercial enterprise, activity or event or any political candidate, party, activity or event."

WHAT'S NEXT: Finance Director Jamie Mathews reported on changes that have been made recently to the fiscal year 2023 budget, which projects a $482,000 surplus in the administration general fund. In public safety, legal services are being reduced in order to pay for two license plate readers that have the potential to solve crimes. The readers can also alert police right away if a vehicle has been reported stolen. She noted in the wastewater department, which is an enterprise fund, a full construction loan payment of $496,000 will come due in 2023 and the department is putting off the $170,000 purchase of a new service truck to reassess the need for it each year. Wastewater will end fiscal 2023 eating $94,000 into its fund balance. Renovations to the wastewater plant are being completed, and an open house will likely be scheduled close to the first of the year, according to Public Works Director Chad VanDeWoestyne. A special City Council meeting will be scheduled at the Oct. 25 committee of the whole meeting for approval of the 2023 budget.
The majority of Davenport residents have access to Metronets fiber optic internet, making it the first city in Iowa to reach that status, according to company officials.

The Indiana-based internet company presented Davenport with a Gigabit City Declaration Award at Wednesdays City Council meeting.

Metronet has buried about 980 miles of fiber optic cable in Davenport, according to a news release from the company. Infrastructure installation in Davenport began in February 2019.

"As Metronet expands to bring reliable, high-speed service to more residents and businesses throughout Davenport, our community has had the opportunity to improve our education, work and online lives to compete with rapidly growing cities," Davenport Mayor Mike Matson said in a release.

A city reaches the status of a Certified Gigabit City Powered by Metronet once a majority of households and businesses have access to Metronet's fiber optic internet speeds of at least 1 Gigabit  or 1,000 megabits per second. That speed allows for heavy streaming of videos and music, quick downloads and allows multiple devices to use the internet at once.

The provider is active in 27 cities in Iowa, according to Metronet's website, including Davenport, Bettendorf and LeClaire in the Quad-Cities, as well as some of Iowa's biggest cities  Des Moines, Iowa City, Sioux City and Waterloo.

According to a company spokesperson, Metronet has service options beginning at $49.99 for 100Mb up to 1 Gigabit.

"Very soon, we will also be rolling out multi-gigabit service!" Eric Vyncke, a Metronet manager, wrote in an email.

Bettendorf and Davenport each offered tax incentives to Metronet when the cities signed service agreements in the summer of 2018. Davenport sought to create a city-wide fiber-optic network, opting for a contract with Metronet as opposed to a city-owned system because of the costs of a city-owned system.

Davenport's tax breaks end after 20 years or when the refunds add up to $11.7 million.

Bettendorf's end after 20 years or when the refunds add up to $3.4 million, whichever comes first.

At the time, Metronet officials expected the Davenport three-year build-out to cost between $33 million and $40 million. In Bettendorf, the construction was expected to cost between $15 million and $20 million.
Rapid City's Legal and Finance Committee approved all six items on its consent agenda Wednesday afternoon, including an agreement with one of the city's unions.

The agreement between the city and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), or what Human Resources Director Nick Stroot said is sometimes referred to as the "blue collar union," will move on to the full city council Monday night.

According to the agenda summary, the city agreed to conduct a wage study in 2023 for AFSCME employees to address "consistent issues with lagging wages" within the city's work groups. The wage study would be used as the foundation for negotiation of 2024 wages.

Most of the changes are clarifications from confusing language, addressing processes and focusing on ongoing pay issues.

Stroot said Wednesday that the union contains eight of the city's 12 departments. The Rapid City Police Department and Rapid City Fire Department have their own unions.

He said the city finished negotiations with AFSCME last week.

"It was a good negotiation in stark contrast with our last one," Stroot said.

He said he's excited because it's the middle of October, which gives them two and a half months rather than ratifying the agreement near the end of December like last time.

Stroot said his office is happy with it,

as is AFSCME. He said the group will be present Monday night.

Council member Pat Jones asked if council members have been or could be part of the negotiations. City Attorney Joel Landeen said historically council members have not been part of discussions. He said the negotiations have been eight-hour meetings over a few days.

Landeen said they could consider having more communication and giving more updates to council members on the negotiations.
One historians mission to immortalize the heritage of Sept. 11, 2001 in stories and memories was honored with an award from Air Force Global Strike Command.

John Moyes, 28th Bomb Wing historian at Ellsworth Air Force Base, was the recipient of the AFGSC Heritage Award, for his efforts in bringing together a commemoration of the events of Sept. 11  and the imprint it burned on those left behind.

Moyes, Ellsworths historian since 2015 and an Air Force veteran, said his mission as the base's historian is to capture, record and safeguard the history and the stories of the wing.

The stories of the 28th Bomb Wing intersected palpably with the stories of Sept. 11  a connection Moyes sought not only to capture and tell, but humanize.

What I really wanted was to humanize it. For people to read this and think that couldve been me, or that is me. That couldve been somebody I know, or a family member, he said.

Through all ranks and all walks of life, Moyes sought to step into the minds of people who experienced that day.

Telling those stories morphed into the project that earned Moyes the Heritage Award. Eventually dubbed the Raider Heritage Rally, the project was the brainchild of Moyes and three other committee members at the behest of 28th Bomb Wing Commander Col. Joseph Sheffield.

Sheffield tasked Moyes with commemorating the 20th anniversary of the attacks, through the lens of those serving that day  including at Ellsworth.

The blueprint began as a questionnaire Moyes sent to friends, family and former colleagues, asking for first-hand accounts of that day. He then brought the request on base, which eventually led to conversations with two airmen on duty who were at Ellsworth when the terrorist attacks occurred.

A two- to three-month process began as 15 slides. It soon turned into nearly 100, as Moyes received an overwhelming response. He began to craft the stories into a visual representation, seeking to recreate the feeling of walking through New York City after the attacks

Missing person posters from around New York City the day after inspired an immersive experience Moyes hoped would draw observers into the stories.

I wanted people to walk around those and get that feeling  reading these accounts, he said.

The process was humbling and emotional, he said. Moyes said he wasnt surprised by the accounts he heard, but was struck by their honesty. Gratitude was met on both sides.

Some couldnt tell their stories, he said. For some, the weight dragging back to that day was too heavy.

Moyes learned of four service members stationed at Ellsworth who were killed downrange of the 9/11 attacks, along with many others who indirectly lost their lives as a result.

Through various accounts, Moyes painted a picture of Ellsworth that day. Restricted access to the base had traffic lines on Interstate 90 backed up to Elk Vale Road, he said, with so many military minds wondering what would come next, with no way of knowing.

There was anger, uncertainty and waiting, Moyes said.

As Moyes began to collect these accounts, the vision grew to include the names of those lost since 9/11, and form a physical embodiment in his mind. He eventually constructed 13 pairs of 10-foot boards, each connected by hinges, with the heritage of 9/11 unfurled across.

The project didnt just include 9/11.

Moyes also wanted to connect the heritage of the Doolittle Raid  a WWII mission that launched 16 modified B-25 bombers off an aircraft carrier in response to the attack on Pearl Harbor, and ultimately turned the tide of the war. Ellsworth is now home to three of the four squadrons that participated in the raid.

Much like the Doolittle Raiders, the events of Sept. 11 called airmen into the unknown, taking the fight to the enemy. The boards displaying the stories of 9/11 were intertwined with lists of lives lost and the story of the Doolittle Raid.

In connecting the Doolittle Raid to the 9/11, Moyes described history as cyclically linear  certain things keep coming around, yet keep moving down the road, he said. History repeats itself, and capturing the stories inevitably brings some back around.

Telling history means not just telling someone something is important, he said.

It has to be in context  you cant just have a thing sitting there, Moyes said. With his display, he sought to create relevance and context.

Heres a thing  you have to know why the thing is important  why it was important," he said about the design of the display.

The Raider Heritage Rally, where Moyes displayed the final manifestation of his vision, was held on Oct. 8, 2021, a day after the 20th anniversary of the B1-Bs first strikes launched in Afghanistan.

To further humanize the displays, certain accounts were turned into scripts and read by people of similar age and occupation, he said.

We wanted to pair up the account with somebody who was a similar person, similar job, similar age," Moyes said. "If it sounds like todays words, then its a little more real.

Moyes, a laborer in the shadows, was presented with the Heritage Award in August by Sheffield. He said he was in complete shock. Having been previously commended for his work, he thought that was that  a pat on the back from Air Force Global Strike Command, letting him know they noticed.

To receive the Heritage Award was gratifying and validating, he said.

Its nice to know that people are noticing, Moyes said. That thing with my name on it is about what the Wing did that day. Thats what thats about.

Theres a difference between history and heritage, Moyes said. History is tangible made up of artifacts, memorabilia and three dimensional presentations.

Heritage is "tangible yet intangible," he said.

Because the intangibility of it is the memories  the stories, Moyes said.

He quoted a former Global Strike commander as explaining that history makes you smart. Heritage makes you proud.

As the accounts accumulated for his own award-winning heritage project, Moyes said he really didnt have to form a narrative. The stories spoke for themselves.

Through his efforts with the Raider Heritage Rally, those stories will continue to speak.
A lawsuit filed against the city of Sturgis and City Manager Daniel Ainslie by three former candidates for municipal office has been dismissed.

Tammy Bohn, Justin Bohn and Brenda Vasknetz filed the lawsuit in Meade County Circuit Court on March 18, alleging the office of city manager is not legal in Sturgis and that Ainslie should pay back all of his salary and benefits since he was hired in 2011.

Tammy Bohn was a candidate for mayor, running against incumbent Mayor Mark Carstensen. Her husband Justin ran against incumbent Kevin Forrester for a seat on City Council Ward 4 and Vasknetz ran against incumbent Mike Bachland for the Ward 1 seat.

All three candidates lost their races by large margins.

Circuit Judge Kevin Krull granted the city's motion to dismiss the case on Oct. 6, stating there was no specific injury to the plaintiffs.

The lawsuit alleged that an election held in April 2007 which authorized the city of Sturgis to hire a city manager was improperly called using a different statute under South Dakota Codified Law. The plaintiffs claimed that because the election procedure was allegedly called under a different statute, that effectively invalidated the city manager position.

Sturgis has employed two city managers since the April 2007 election. David Boone was the first city manager and Ainslie was the second when he was hired in 2011. The lawsuit only mentioned Ainslie by name.

The Bohns and Vasknetz requested that the court invalidate the April 2007 election and eliminate the position of city manager in Sturgis. The plaintiffs also requested that Ainslie repay his salary and benefits that he earned since he was hired in 2011. They made no claim against Boone's salary.

In his ruling to dismiss the case, Krull said there was no merit to the lawsuit, and that it appeared there was a personal vendetta against Ainslie.

"While it is apparent the Plaintiffs disagree with the policies and actions of Mr. Ainslie, the Sturgis City Manager, in their Complaint the Plaintiffs do not point to any specific injury or threatened injury to a right or interest. The Plaintiffs' disagreement is solely based on Mr. Ainslie's implementation of the City Council's vision of the City," Krull wrote. "Whether Mr. Ainslie is adequately pursuing the City Council's vision is a political question which is better resolved through the Sturgis City Council rather than the courts.

Carstensen agreed with Krull's ruling to dismiss the case and said the Bohns and Vasknetz were wrong for taking their political beliefs and disagreements with Ainslie to court at the expense of Sturgis taxpayers.

They were attempting to undo the will of the people, Carstensen said in a statement Thursday. Were pleased with the judges ruling. This frivolous lawsuit has cost the taxpayers of Sturgis a great deal of time and money.

This is not the first occurrence where the plaintiffs questioned the office of city manager. The Bohns, who own Sturgis Guns, and Vasknetz, who is the former city director of the Sturgis Rally and Events Department, filed a petition in December requesting an election to change municipal government from one with a city manager to one without.

Sturgis City Finance Officer Fay Bueno rejected the form of government petitions in mid-January saying the question posed was not subject to referendum.

The Bohns and Vasknetz filed another lawsuit challenging the city's decision to reject the petition. In February, Krull ruled the petition was invalid.

According to a news release from the city of Sturgis, the Bohns and Vasknetz appealed Krull's February decision to the South Dakota Supreme Court. The news release said the city expects the latest ruling to also be appealed.
A student was airlifted to a hospital Wednesday after a chemistry classroom demonstration led to a fire at Dinwiddie High School. Three other students and a teacher were treated for injuries, officials said.

The Dinwiddie County Sheriffs Office in a statement said emergency crews responded to the school at about 9:23 a.m. They said a fire alarm had been pulled, and the school was evacuated.

One student was treated for injuries and released. Three students were transported to VCU Medical Center. At least one of those students was airlifted to the hospital, a spokesperson with Dinwiddie County Public Schools told The Times-Dispatch.

The instructor was sent to a nearby local hospital, according to authorities. Officials have not said how the incident occurred or disclosed the nature of the injuries.

The school dismissed at 11:15 a.m., and a remote learning day is planned for Thursday. A support team will be available for students and staff on Friday, the district said.

Dinwiddie police and fire officials and the State Fire Marshals Office are investigating.

About 1,300 students attend the school.
As rioters stormed through the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was sheltering in a secure location and trying to do what her job demands: take charge of a situation.

There has to be some way, she told colleagues, "we can maintain the sense that people have that there is some security or some confidence that government can function and that you can elect the president of the United States.

Then, an unidentified voice interjected with alarming news: Lawmakers on the House floor had begun putting on tear gas masks in preparation for a breach. Startled, Pelosi asked the woman to repeat what she said.

Do you believe this? Pelosi said in disbelief to another Democratic leader, Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina.

It was around 2:45 p.m. and the violent cacophony had already disrupted the planned certification of the 2020 presidential election results. It would be hours before the building was secure.

Never-before-seen video footage played Thursday by the House Jan. 6 committee showed Pelosi and other leaders, including Republican allies of President Donald Trump, responding anxiously  and angrily  to the insurrection.

The recordings offer a rare glimpse into the real-time reactions of the most powerful members of Congress as they scrambled to drum up support from all parts of the government, including from agencies seemingly ill prepared for the chaos, and vented anger over a president whose conduct they felt had endangered their lives.

In the videos, Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer negotiate with governors and defense officials to try to get the National Guard to the Capitol as police were being brutally beaten outside the building.

The deployment of the Guard was delayed for hours as Trump stood by and did little to stop the violence of his supporters.

The footage, recorded by Pelosi's daughter, Alexandra, a documentary filmmaker, was shown during the committee's 10th hearing as an illustration of the president's inaction in the face of grave danger posed by the rioters to the lawmakers forced into hiding inside.

As the president watched the bloody attack unfold on Fox News from his dining room, members of Congress and other government officials stepped into the gigantic leadership void created by the president's chilling and steady passivity that day, said Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, a committee member.

The concerns were not theoretical. Around 3 p.m., as a Trump loyalist outside Pelosi's office pointed her finger and shouted, We're coming in if you don't bring her out," the speaker was huddled somewhere else in a room with Schumer, who said, I'm gonna call up the effin' secretary of DoD.

And so he did, telling acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller on speakerphone that there were senators still in hideaway spaces and imploring him to send in the Maryland National Guard. Pelosi chimed in that she was going to call the mayor of Washington, D.C., for help as well.

As the violence persisted outside  Officer down, get him up, a voice could be heard bellowing in one clip shown by the committee  the leaders kept making calls inside. One went to Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam about the possibility of help from the Virginia National Guard, with Pelosi narrating the events based on what she saw from television news footage.

Richmond driver dies in single-vehicle Chesterfield County crash Virginia State Police are investigating a fatal single-vehicle crash that happened Wednesday on Interstate 95 in Chesterfield County.

An angrier call followed with Jeffrey Rosen, the then-acting attorney general. Days earlier, and unbeknownst at the time to Congress or to the public, Rosen and colleagues had fended off a slapdash attempt by Trump to replace him with a subordinate eager to challenge the election results.

On that day, though, Schumer and Pelosi sat shoulder-to-shoulder on the couch and laid bare their frustrations with the country's top law enforcement official.

They're breaking the law in many different ways, Pelosi said. And quite frankly, much of it at the instigation of the president of the United States.

Schumer weighed in too, shaking his head to the side for emphasis: Yeah, why don't you get the president to tell them to leave the Capitol, Mr. Attorney General, in your law enforcement responsibility? A public statement they should all leave.

It wasn't until the evening that the Capitol would be cleared and work would resume. The news that Congress would be able to reconvene to finish its work in certifying the election results was delivered to the congressional leaders not by Trump but by Vice President Mike Pence.
 Flash

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday authorized updated Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 booster shots for children as young as five.

The updated booster shots aim to provide better protection against COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant, according to the FDA.

The FDA had authorized updated Pfizer-BioNTech boosters for children ages 5 to 11, and Moderna's shots for kids ages 6 through 17.

The shots are administered at least two months following completion of the two-dose primary series or the most recent booster shot with the first generation vaccines.

The Pfizer-BioNTech new boosters were authorized for people ages 12 and up in September, while Moderna's shots were previously authorized for adults ages 18 and older.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which recommends how vaccines are used, also signed off immediately after the FDA authorization.

Updated COVID-19 vaccines add Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 spike protein components to the current vaccine composition, helping to restore protection that has waned since previous vaccination and targeting recent Omicron variants that are more transmissible and immune-evading, said the CDC in a statement.

FDA's authorization of updated COVID-19 vaccines for this younger age group, and CDC's recommendation for use, are critical next steps forward in U.S. vaccination program, said the statement.

Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said children face an increased risk of exposure to the virus as they head back to school in person and families return to their pre-pandemic lives.

Although COVID-19 tends to be less severe in children than adults, kids do get hospitalized with the disease, Marks said. Health officials are also concerned about the potential risk of long COVID even in children who have had mild illness from the virus.

"We encourage parents to consider primary vaccination for children and follow-up with an updated booster dose when eligible," Marks said.

Pfizer said it will ship up to 6 million booster doses for kids within the next week, according to a company statement.

As of Oct. 6, about 68 percent of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated with their initial series, according to the latest CDC data. But less than half of the fully vaccinated population has received a booster dose.

An analysis published by The Commonwealth Fund found that if more people in the United States get their booster by the end of the year, about 90,000 COVID-19 deaths could be prevented this fall and winter.

But if booster vaccinations continue at their current pace, the nation could see a peak of more than 1,000 COVID-19 deaths per day this winter, according to the study.
Whatever one might think of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, theres no denying the man is telegenic.

Thus it seems only natural that the Virginia Tourism Corporation chose to include him in a promotional video. Youngkin, with shirt collar casually unbuttoned, delivers a hearty welcome to the travelers who will see this short playing in Virginia airports and tourism welcoming centers.

In Virginia, theres a million different ways to say welcome, the governor congenially intones, and I want to be one of the first.

The video has stirred controversy because Poolhouse, the Richmond advertising firm that received the $268,600 contract from a state agency to produce it, worked on Youngkins gubernatorial campaign. Elsewhere on this page, columnist John Long argues persuasively that this tempest in a teapot has little steam, as the video definitely is not a campaign video.

Yet the advert does inspire a question, one the tourism agency should have considered more deeply: when Youngkin says Welcome to Virginia, who is he welcoming?

After all, the governor has unwisely made the stamping out of divisive concepts like discussions of racial injustice and the trampling of rights afforded to transgender students part of his brand.

His appointees have deepened the problem. For example, State Health Commissioner Colin Greene dismissed the notion that racism has ever been a source of health disparities for Black Americans, and Board of Historic Resources member Ann Hunter McLean asserted slavery wasnt the main cause of the Civil War.

Greene walked back his comments after a rebuke from Youngkin, while McLean resigned.

The diverse faces whose smiles are showcased in the Welcome to Virginia video broadcast an appeal to all comers, yet the governors mere presence somewhat undercuts that message.

Bear with us here: the Roanoke Times mailbag brings in books on a constant basis.

Recently the post office delivered Nothing Special by author Desiree Cooper and illustrator Bec Sloane.

This gorgeous picture book contains a tale of a 6-year-old Black boy from Detroit who has traveled to Virginia to summer for a week with his grandparents. Young Jax, worried hell be bored while away from his citys amenities, discovers he loves helping grandpa and grandma catch blue crabs and shuck corn. Its as sweet a story as they come.

Serendipitously, it was poignant to discover Nothing Special lying atop the Roanoke Times copy of When Aidan Became a Brother, another sweet picture book about an all-Black family that the Roanoke County school district yanked from a library shelf because the protagonist is a transgender boy  exactly the kind of book banning Youngkin has thrown his weight behind.

The story in Nothing Special at first seems free of divisive context in the troubling way Youngkins administration has defined it. But in the back of the book, journalist and community activist Cooper discusses the Great Migration that took place from 1910 to 1970, in which millions of Black American families left southern states to escape Jim Crow oppression.

Cooper writes that like many other Black families in the North, hers would travel south every summer to attend family reunions and church homecomings.

Little is said about the annual reverse-migration that has become central to black nostalgia, writes Cooper, who intends Nothing Special as an homage to that tradition.

In sharing that family anecdote, Cooper also imparts an important history lesson, one every Virginia child should know. Its appalling to think that, because aspects of that lesson are upsetting, elected officials that share the mindset of the Roanoke County School Board might instead prefer to keep the book out of the hands of children.

And yet: welcome to Glenn Youngkins Virginia.
Former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez has announced that she is resigning her council seat amid a scandal over racist remarks that came to light in a leaked recording
Matt Howe, an assistant professor in the School of Neuroscience, part of the Virginia Tech College of Science. Credit: Virginia Tech

People who have difficulty controlling their food intake tend to overeat certain kinds of foods, such as doughnuts or chocolate, which can lead to obesity and other health-related issues. Their choices, despite popular generalization, might not actually be based on the way certain foods taste or how many calories they contain, according to a Virginia Tech researcher.

"Instead, we think problematic eating is related to the combination of ingredients in food and how they affect dopamine release, similar to the way that a drug's abuse potential is directly related to its effect on dopamine release," said Matt Howe, an assistant professor in the School of Neuroscience, part of the Virginia Tech College of Science.

"The meso-striatal dopamine system is a brain circuit that controls movement, learning, and motivation," Howe said. "Understanding more about how this system is designed to work will tell us how we want potential new therapies for food and drug disordersand even diseases like Parkinson's, which also result from damage to this circuitto function."

To figure out how individual food ingredients affect the dopamine system and what happens when all of the ingredients are presented in combination, Howe recently was awarded a five-year, $1.8 million Stephen Katz Early Stage Investigator R01 by the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases. The award is exclusively for junior faculty looking to start a program of research novel to the investigator and cannot represent an incremental advance over previously published work, according to the NIH.

Howe has used cutting-edge technologies to measure neurotransmitter release and control brain activity in precise populations of neurons in different parts of the brain, experiments that allow for directly testing hypotheses about how a specific population of cells in the brain control behavior.

With this new research, Howe will apply his own expertise and collaborate with two faculty members at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, who bring their own proficiencies to the project: Alexandra DiFeliceantonio, an assistant professor and associate director of the Center for Health Behaviors Research, and Read Montague, the Virginia Tech Carilion Vernon Mountcastle Research Professor, director of the Center for Human Neuroscience Research, and an affiliated member of the Department of Physics, the latter also part of the College of Science.

DiFeliceantonio, a human neuroscientist with extensive training in nutrition and basic science in model organisms such as mice, is helping to design experiments to create or block dopamine release in mice that better capture what is going on in humans.

A computational neuroscientist, Montague was part of a research team that first described how dopamine may contribute to learning and motivation. He will work on integrating the team's data into this larger body of work.

"Using mice in our experiments allows us to directly record and manipulate brain activity, which greatly informs computational models of the function of these brain circuits," Howe said.

The team will be assisted by former Virginia Tech faculty member Srijan Sengupta, now assistant professor of statistics at North Carolina State University, who is helping design a statistical analysis plan for this project. Two Ph.D. students in the Virginia Tech School of Neuroscience, Alec Hartle and Asia Dofat, are involved in conducting the experiments.

"Our long-term goal is to provide a foundation for future studies of how dopamine effects food intake and contribute to educating people on how they can erase patterns of behavior associated with poor food choices and eat more healthily," Howe said.

Provided by Virginia Tech
FLORENCE, S.C.  The Pee Dee Coalition is on a mission to paint the city purple and inform everyone of the signs of domestic abuse.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and purple is the color used to raise awareness for domestic, spousal, and dating violence.

Shana Sullivan, the Florence County domestic violence coordinator for the Pee Dee Coalition, said awareness is the first step to decreasing domestic abuse.

We are trying to get as much information as we can out to people, Sullivan said, whether it be through presentations or simply handing out cards to people with domestic violence information on it.

Signs of domestic abuse vary. Sullivan said the signs are subtle and they are ones usually dismissed as nothing. If a loved one or friend is behaving in an unusual way, the person may be in an abusive relationship. Sullivan added that even though a friend or family member is exhibiting some of the signs, it doesnt necessarily mean they are suffering with domestic abuse.

A combination of those signs is an indicator of something, Sullivan said. You have to pay attention to those smaller cues.

A person who is isolating themselves from family, friends, and social gatherings is a sign. Another sign is someone becoming controlling  demanding to see their partners cell phone and other personal items, policing what their partner is wearing, and trying to make the partner become isolated.

Isolation and controlling nature are the top two indicators of domestic violence, Sullivan said.

Sullivan cautioned the family and friends of loved ones who are involved in an abusive relationship. Inserting oneself into these situations is dangerous and can often be deadly.

You have to be careful and make sure you are keeping yourself safe at all times, she said. Ultimately, you have to understand that it is not your issue. It is a community issue, but you have to understand that the particular person is going through the issue.

Until your friend or loved one is ready to leave the relationship or tell someone you have to respect their boundaries and simply keep yourself informed to best serve them. The Pee Dee Coalition has a 24/7 crisis hotline that you are able to call, and you can stop by the Pee Dee Coalition office at 228 S. Irby Street to get more information for the person or yourself.

The trauma doesnt just sit with the victim, Sullivan said. It affects the entire family and anyone who is trying to assist them.

Getting informed and being supportive are the best and safest ways to assist a friend or family member who is involved in an abusive relationship. You must not judge them, and you have to support them in whatever decisions they make. According to Sullivan, it isnt always easy for victims to pick up and leave.

The most dangerous time in a domestic violence situation is when the victim decides they want to leave the abuser, Sullivan said. Seventy-five percent of people who are trying to leave meet their demise.

Planning is essential and Pee Dee Coalition has safety plans and apps that allow the victim to create an exit plan without anyone knowing. Sullivan said you shouldnt tell anyone your plans. If the threat is imminent, a person can go to the crisis center and be safe. Leaving is the most critical time because the victim is acting in a way that is unfamiliar to the abuser and the abuser will go to drastic measures to maintain power and control.

Most times it takes a woman seven times to leave a situation, Sullivan said. If the abuser is used to the victim coming and going and the victim finally decides to leave, then they are losing control.

The Pee Dee Coalition creates a master plan to help victims leave as safely and as swiftly as possible.

Those who are susceptible to domestic abuse also vary, but the types of people who are most susceptible are those of a younger age, those who come from abusive childhoods, and people with mental health challenges.

Typically, you would think that those who were involved in domestic situations as a child would be more susceptible, but that isnt always the case, Sullivan said. There are situations where they have never experienced domestic abuse and they find themselves in it. You never know.Sullivan said to always be mindful in dating and in relationships and to not be swift to let down your guard. With social media, people tend to get familiar quicker, but Sullivan said to keep your wits about you and to always be on watch for controlling behavior.

No demographic is unscathed by the effects of domestic violence. Black, white, Latino, Asian, old, and young are equally affected. Sullivan said she has seen an increase in domestic abuse in the elderly population and it is a real thing that people dont think about.

There has been a rise in domestic abuse in Florence and Sullivan said the acts are becoming increasingly more violent.

What were seeing more than anything is strangulation, Sullivan said. That is occurring through almost every case we see coming through the door and people dont take that seriously.

Sullivan said choking is one of the deadliest forms of abuse because of the swelling that occurs after the fact, and it can cause other problems that are not always noticeable. Women who come to the building are encouraged to take a medical examination to make sure that nothing underlying is happening.

Domestic abuse is a serious issue and is one that Sullivan believes is becoming a normal thing.

We have to break that norm and we have to break the silence, Sullivan said. One in every three women and one in every four men have or will be a victim of domestic violence. We know those people treat them like you would your mother, father, sister, or brother.

Women are not the only ones affected by domestic violence. Men are also affected.

A lot of men are victims of domestic violence, Sullivan said. They dont have an outlet as much as women do to come forward without being scrutinized by their peers or society as a whole.

Domestic abuse is about power, and control and Pee Dee Coalition is equipping men and women alike to be able to maintain their power and be protected against their abusers to continue to live and add value to the communities and lives they are involved in.
 "Why the Court Was Right to Allow Cheek Swabs" | Main | Complaint filed against notable (notorious?) Fifth Circuit judge based on comments about death penalty 

June 4, 2013

Would legalizing marijuana be a huge step toward a less racialized criminal justice system?

Black Americans were nearly four times as likely as whites to be arrested on charges of marijuana possession in 2010, even though the two groups used the drug at similar rates, according to new federal data. This disparity had grown steadily from a decade before, and in some states, including Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois, blacks were around eight times as likely to be arrested. During the same period, public attitudes toward marijuana softened and a number of states decriminalized its use. But about half of all drug arrests in 2011 were on marijuana-related charges, roughly the same portion as in 2010. Advocates for the legalization of marijuana have criticized the Obama administration for having vocally opposed state legalization efforts and for taking a more aggressive approach than the Bush administration in closing medical marijuana dispensaries and prosecuting their owners in some states, especially Montana and California. The new data, however, offers a more nuanced picture of marijuana enforcement on the state level. Drawn from police records from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the report is the most comprehensive review of marijuana arrests by race and by county and is part of a report being released this week by the American Civil Liberties Union.... We found that in virtually every county in the country, police have wasted taxpayer money enforcing marijuana laws in a racially biased manner, said Ezekiel Edwards, the director of the A.C.L.U.s Criminal Law Reform Project and the lead author of the report. During President Obamas first three years in office, the arrest rate for marijuana possession was about 5 percent higher than the average rate under President George W. Bush. And in 2011, marijuana use grew to about 7 percent, up from 6 percent in 2002 among Americans who said that they had used the drug in the past 30 days. Also, a majority of Americans in a Pew Research Center poll conducted in March supported legalizing marijuana. Though there has been a shift in state laws and in popular attitudes about the drug, black and white Americans have experienced the change very differently. Its pretty clear that law enforcement practices are not keeping pace with public opinion and state policies, said Mona Lynch, a professor of criminology, law and society at the University of California, Santa Cruz.... The cost of drug enforcement has grown steadily over the past decade. In 2010, states spent an estimated $3.6 billion enforcing marijuana possession laws, a 30 percent increase from 10 years earlier. The increase came as many states, faced with budget shortfalls, were saving money by using alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent offenders. During the same period, arrests for most other types of crime steadily dropped. Researchers said the growing racial disparities in marijuana arrests were especially striking because they were so consistent even across counties with large or small minority populations. The A.C.L.U. report said that one possible reason that the racial disparity in arrests remained despite shifting state policies toward the drug is that police practices are slow to change. Federal programs like the Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program continue to provide incentives for racial profiling, the report said, by including arrest numbers in its performance measures when distributing hundreds of millions of dollars to local law enforcement each year. Phillip Atiba Goff, a psychology professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that police departments, partly driven by a desire to increase their drug arrest statistics, can concentrate on minority or poorer neighborhoods to meet numerical goals, focusing on low-level offenses that are easier, quicker and cheaper than investigating serious felony crimes. Whenever federal funding agencies encourage law enforcement to meet numerical arrest goals instead of public safety goals, it will likely promote stereotype-based policing and we can expect these sorts of racial gaps, Professor Goff said.

The question in the title of this post is prompted by this notable New York Times article headlined "Blacks Are Singled Out for Marijuana Arrests, Federal Data Suggests." Here are excerpts:

The ACLU report and materials on which this story is based can be found through this webpage, which provides links to reports, graphics, videos and other related coverage of this significant story. The full 187-page ACLU report is titled "The War on Marijuana in Black and White," and can be accessed at this link.

In addition to believing this potent new ACLU data should provide civil rights groups with a strong reason to become even more vocal in support of marijuana legalization, I hope it will force opponents of marijuana legalization to recognize and reflect on who really bears the brunt of marijuana prohibition. Though the rich and powerful like Michael Phelps and Justin Bieber might get a little negative press when seen smoking pot, it is people concentrated in poorer and minority neighborhoods who endure real burdens from the persistence of modern pot prohibition.

Unless and until supporters of marijuana prohibition face up to this disturbing data and aggressive advocate ways to reduce this racial skew in enforcement patterns, I think they can and should be accused of being complicit in perpetuating racial dispaprities in the operation of modern American criminal justice systems. That's right, President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, I am talking about you two first and foremost. Unless and until you express at least some support for state marijuana legalization efforts, I will continue to accuse the first black president and the first black attorney general of being complicit in perpetuating racialized American criminal justice system.

June 4, 2013 at 09:19 AM | Permalink

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There are two very prominent organizations who make a living with (1) incendiary race-mongering and (2) pushing for pot. That would be the ACLU and the NYT.

This report is the umpteenth re-tread of those two agendas. Their views on race and pot have all the credibility of Donald Rumsfeld's views on the Iraq war or Kathy Boudin's views on armed robbery.

Let me know when something from a neutral source shows up.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 9:35:03 AM

Since their numbers are based on those given to them by law enforcement, I'm certain that those agencies wrongfully accused will correct the report.

Of course, you realize that legalization or decriminalization is not the only possible response to this report. I have always advocated for equal enforcement. Let's test it and see how long marijuana remains illegal when children of privilege are arrested and incarcerated at the same rate as everyone else. I give it about a year. Only that long because we would have to wait for the legislature to come back into session to change the law.

Posted by: Ala JD | Jun 4, 2013 10:06:32 AM

Ala JD --

"Since their numbers are based on those given to them by law enforcement, I'm certain that those agencies wrongfully accused will correct the report."

It is precisely the problem with biased sources (and I see you wisely don't dispute that these are biased) that they can manipulate data to suit the pre-approved result. As if you didn't know this.

P.S. I'll also assume that you'd like me to send you Rumsfeld's book, "How We Secretly Won the Iraq War." I hear it's chock full of data.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 10:15:41 AM

Unlike Bill Otis, I am very thankful we have the ACLU and the NYT. To believe, as Bill does, that these organizations "make a living with (1) incendiary race-mongering and (2) pushing for pot" is just silly.

Posted by: historian | Jun 4, 2013 12:12:19 PM

historian --

"Unlike Bill Otis, I am very thankful we have the ACLU and the NYT."

Where did I ever say I'm not thankful for them? I'm VERY thankful for them. They do more than most to drop the mask from liberalism's shrill and myopic character.

"To believe, as Bill does, that these organizations 'make a living with (1) incendiary race-mongering and (2) pushing for pot' is just silly."

Either that, or it's just being able to read what they publish.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 12:43:39 PM

Bill, while you're around I have a question for you. I attended Conrad Black's Q&A last week in Vancouver. Early on he recited this bit of data: in the UK about 50% of all cases find for the prosecution, in Canada close to 60%, and in the US 99%. Are American prosecutors that much superior to their commonwealth counterparts, defense attorneys that much lamer than those Canuck and Limey solicitors, or is there some third possibility? Black didn't give sources, but given that he's known to do intense research on his various historic subjects, and had plenty of time for research courtesy of the American taxpayers, I'm not questioning those figures.

For an unabashed capitalist (and baron, and British lord), several times in the evening Black said some surprising things, calling for decriminalization of all drugs, more equitable taxation, and, no surprise, reforms to the American legal and political systems. And some of the stories he told about prison made him sound like a script consultant for the better episodes of The Wire.

Posted by: Bill K | Jun 4, 2013 1:10:06 PM

I want American tobacco companies capturing the profit. I want to end the funding of our adversaries in Mexico, destroying a friendly nation. I want relief for national bankruptcy by including cannabis activity and tax revenues in the legal economy, including income taxes for dealers. I would like it to become uncool to drink, do drugs, and to smoke, in our culture, not imposed by the police. Although an atheist, I recognize the effectiveness of religion in persuading people to act right, far better than the law, and appreciate the value of religion. I want the law to appear logical, to be effective, and to promote safety. So marijuana is prohibited, while alcohol is advertised. People high on marijuana are fat and lazy, do not want to go out to commit crimes. Alcohol is found in half the murderers, half the murder victims, half the suicides, now a third of car crashes (used to be half). I love the rule of law, and want it to avoid any mistakes it makes that bring it mass contempt by the public. Can't prohibit pot, allow alcohol. You can prohibit both and tobacco, with 10 lashes for users (cheap, plentiful punishment, and death penalty for dealers). I have no problem with that scenario. It is the inconsistency that is bothersome. I admit the nation would be afraid, less fun loving, and a different place if there were milllions getting the lash, and 10,000 executions a year. But I urge you to support legalization of marijuana, or effective prohibition of alcohol and tobacco. I would strongly urge persuading the public of the wisdom prior to the passage of Draconian measures, not the other way around. The most realistic and practical view is to take advantage of legalization of cannabis. Its current profit is far greater than the entire profit of all of legal agriculture. That money would address your concern with national bankruptcy, too.

Posted by: Supremacy Claus | Jun 4, 2013 1:23:27 PM

Bill K: There are 20 million FBI Index felonies. 2 million prosecutions. So the prosecutors can select the best supported cases. The other countries have less crime, and prosecutors need the job, so bring weaker cases.

Posted by: Supremacy Claus | Jun 4, 2013 1:24:58 PM

Yeah, that's the New York Times, alright  always pushing for pot.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 4, 2013 2:44:41 PM

Bill K --

Glad you asked. I debated Lord Black about three months ago in a recorded Federalist Society conference call, which you can find here: http://www.fed-soc.org/audiolib/isamericanjusticeblind-4-4-2013.mp3

Lord Black goes first, then Prof. Podgor of Georgetown Law Center, then me.

Happy listening!

P.S. My opening statement is transcribed here: http://www.crimeandconsequences.com/crimblog/2013/02/debating-prosecutorial-discret.html#more

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 3:03:45 PM

Michael Drake --

What a newspaper "pushes" for is found on its editorial page, not in its news sections. The NYT still does report news, at least every now and then.

Still, I'm glad you linked the news article about pot's dangers, and I hope you take it to heart.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 3:09:56 PM

"What a newspaper 'pushes' for is found on its editorial page, not in its news sections."

I see. So the NYT "make[s] [its] living" through its (1) editorials (2) about marijuana? Far out, man.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 4, 2013 3:49:19 PM

Wait a moment:

Crack has been the racial injustice card, now its to include mary Jane..

Ok, then I also think Meth and heroin should be on the list along with PCP and powder coke.... This way we cover the racial injustice for sure...

No doubt crack is to blacks as meth isto whites.

Why is nothing being done to help the crank heads in this country.

Not the king pins, but the lower level addicts that had nothing to squel to the feds on....The Biggees, bled the mule types to death, for sure.

Now if you want to fix an injustice...Give all of inmates that were convicted of meth a 2 level drop and also fix the psuedo conversion to mary jane...(look it up) Its 10 times what meth is...Not pure meth, but what they make and sell on the street....But nobody has the guts to even mention it, much less go there...

If you want to accomplish something I'm your man. If you want to talk, run for Congress...Thats what I have to say..

Posted by: MidWest Guy | Jun 4, 2013 3:55:02 PM

Michael Drake --

Somehow, I doubt you know a whole lot about the NYT's finances, but whatever. Do you actually doubt the NYT backs pot legalization? Really? Do you read it?

You're more convincing waving the flag for "the innocent accused," a/k/a Dzokhar, Ariel Castro, Bradley Manning, and similar Martyrs to the Fascist System.

I mean, they are innocent..............aren't they?

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 5:07:35 PM

Bill, little good can come from jumping the shark while chumming the waters with red herring.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 4, 2013 6:41:49 PM

Michael Drake --

Since you didn't answer, I'll ask again: Do you actually doubt the NYT backs pot legalization?

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 6:47:57 PM

"They do more than most to drop the mask from liberalism's shrill and myopic character."

Speaking of dropped masks...

Posted by: anon | Jun 4, 2013 7:32:03 PM

"Do you actually doubt the NYT backs pot legalization?"

Of course I don't. Do you actually believe that backing pot legalization is "pushing pot"?

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 4, 2013 7:52:14 PM

anon --

I couldn't agree more that professional grievance mongers want to intimidate judges into giving only PC-approved speeches.

http://www.crimeandconsequences.com/crimblog/2013/06/the-pc-attempt-to-intimidate-j.html

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 7:52:56 PM

Michael Drake --

1. I asked whether you had any doubt that the NYT backs pot legalization. You now acknowledge that you don't. You might have said so a while back, instead of dancing around the point, as you did in your entry here, Jun 4, 2013 3:49:19 PM.

2. I had thought it was clear that, in the context of commenting on Doug's post here about pot arrests, the shorthand "pushing pot" meant "pushing legalization of pot," and I'm sorry you didn't understand that.

3. As it happens, some people pushing the legalization of pot also push its use, thinking that it's relaxing or soothing or in some other way healthy. Whether the people who write NYT editorials are among that number, I don't know.

4. As to jumping sharks: Many times, you have made it clear that you regard defense work as being on the side of the angels, working to oppose mean-spirited, smug and self-righteous prosecutors. That being your attitude, it's perfectly fair to remind you of some of the "angels" your side so gleefully attempts to help beat the rap.

If you now want to say that the defense doesn't really cotton to the likes of Dzokhar, Ariel Castro, and Bradley Manning, well, there are other jobs, aren't there? But in fact you think helping these people is just fine, if not noble. That's why you and your colleagues spend your life doing it.

OK, it's a free country. But if you want to embrace that clientele, embrace them fully.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 4, 2013 8:26:45 PM

"In Morgan and Pike Counties, AL, Blacks make up just over 12% and 37% of the population, respectively, but account for 100% of the marijuana possession arrests."

Yeah, there they go, manipulating statistics.

Posted by: Liberty First | Jun 4, 2013 9:59:22 PM

A slapdown of this "study."

http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/350084/blacks-are-singled-out-marijuana-arrests-federal-data-suggests-roger-clegg

Posted by: TarlsQtr1 | Jun 4, 2013 10:48:49 PM

liberty1st --

"'In Morgan and Pike Counties, AL, Blacks make up just over 12% and 37% of the population, respectively, but account for 100% of the marijuana possession arrests.'...Yeah, there they go, manipulating statistics."

And just what was the NUMBER of the marijuana possession arrests? Think that might matter? Do they give it to us?

As I said, manipulation. Wake up.



Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 5, 2013 12:27:07 AM

Bob Marley, Bush Doctor-- Legalize Marijuana

Warning - The surgeon general warns

Cigarette smoking is dangerous... Dangerous

Hazard to your health

Does that mean anything to you?

Then legalize marijuana

Right here in Jamaica yeah

Dem say it cure glaucoma yeah

I'm an a de bush doctor yeah

So there'll be no more

Smokin' and feeling tense

When I see dem a com

I don't have to jump no fence

Legalize marijuana

Down here in jamaica yeah

Only cure for asthma yeah

I man a de minister yeah

So there'll be no more

Police brutality

No more disrespect for humanity

Legalize marijuana yeah

Down here in jamaica yeah

It can build up a failing economy yeah

Eliminate the slavish mentality

So there'll be no more

Illegal humiliation

And no more police

Interrogation

Legalize marijuana

Down here in sweet jamaica

Only cure for glaucoma

I'm an a de bush doctor yeah

And there'll be no more need

To smoke and hide

When you know you're takin'

A legal ride

Legalize marijuana

Down here in Jamaica

It's the only cure for glaucoma

I'm an a de minister...

Posted by: Liberty1st | Jun 5, 2013 12:56:38 AM

One has to wonder, not about race and Fifth Amendment Equal Protection, but about legality of alcohol and illegality of marijuana. I know the courts defer to the slightest rational basis for any law and any hit of relevance to public purpose. However, is it fair, is it equal treatment to prohibit marijuana and to allow advertising of tobacco and alcohol? May one quantify rational basis by lives saved by a law? So if marijuana kills 50 people in car crashes, and alcohol tobacco kill 500,000, does the disparity violate the Equal Protection rights of those arrested for possession?

Posted by: Supremacy Claus | Jun 5, 2013 3:06:40 AM

With statistics of this type, you have to wonder if somebody is using what is actually correlation to translate into something else.

It is pretty much a given that most crime is committed in poorer, predominately minority, neighborhoods. If the police are doing their jobs right, they should be increasing their presence in those communities to cut down on crime and arresting the criminals who prey on those communities. So before using the disparity in minority marijuana arrests to assert that police are targeting minorities for marijuana offenses, I would want to know how the breakdwon of marijuana charges compares to the breakdown of other charges and the breakdown of reported offense. (In other words, if 35% of crime is committed in minority neighborhoods, you would expect around 35% of all arrests to be minorities, and, because police might discover marijuana incident to those arrests or while investigating those offenses, you would expect 35% of marijuana arrests to be minorities, regardless of the actual population of the jurisdiction.)

Posted by: tmm | Jun 5, 2013 9:45:11 AM

Bill,

You began with the claim that (1) "the New York Times" (2) "make[s] a living" (3) by "push[ing] pot." Over the course of four exchanges, this has been reduced to the observation that the New York Times, on its editorial page, has (as have many notable conservatives) endorsed marijuana legalization. At the same time, you maintain that it was only this more modest claim that you'd meant to make all along.

So if either of us is dancing, it's you. (And may I say, you have two left feet.)

The rest of your remarks are off-topic in this thread, and irrelevant to anything I've said. So I won't bother explaining why they're wrong.

Last word's yours, if you want it.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 5, 2013 10:08:05 AM

Michael Drake --

1. And I sometimes say "pot lovers," too. But everyone understands that I'm not claiming anyone is in love with pot; they understand that, in the context of discussions like this, it means "people who smoke a lot of dope."

Same deal with my use -- in the context of a thread that discusses whether we should have fewer (or any) pot arrests -- of the phrase "pushing pot." No other commenter has expressed a bit of trouble understanding that that was shorthand for "advocating pot legalization."

So my claim has not been "reduced," Michael. It's the same now as it started; it just had to be put into more words because you (claimed to) not understand the shorthand.

And yes, newspapers still take their positions -- or PUSH their positions, if you need to have that spelled out too -- in the editorial pages, not in, e.g., the comics, pull-outs and classifieds.

Do you always try to make a big deal out of juvenile linguistic niggling?

2. "The rest of your remarks are off-topic in this thread..."

You're right about that. The reason I have to put them on this thread is that, when I address them to you in a thread where they're on topic, you just disappear. And the reason you disappear there is identical to the reason you refuse to answer here, with the "off-topic" excuse.

The reasons is that, while you claim great and aggressive pride in the work of the defense lawyer -- often juxtaposed with the yuuuchy, slimy, self-righteous, Puritanical and evidence-hiding prosecutor -- you (wisely) decline to get into specifics about the behavior of people who actually show up as clients.

Well, Michael, there are three folks in the news who are currently prominent defense clients: Dzokhar Tsarnaev, Ariel Castro, and Bradley Manning.

Would you care to give details about what, specifically, these people did to wind up needing defense lawyers?

No, of course you don't, because that would illustrate what sort of people you've devoted yourself to trying to put back on the street, guilty or not. It would relatedly show the gymnastics you go through in order to claim that it's simultaneously true (1) that you are a good, moral and caring man, and (2) that it makes no difference to you whether these people are, in fact, guilty and extremely dangerous to boot. If you win the acquittal you hope for, truth be damned, and they're out on the street to murder, rape and brutalize again -- hey, look, that's somebody else's problem.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 5, 2013 10:52:05 AM

Morgan County, Alabama - Population: 119,953 (2011)

Pike County, Alabama - Population: 32,915 (2011)

I live in a "diverse" town with a population of approx 50K and if I read that 100% of pot arrests made by our local PD were people of only one race/ethnicity, I'd be concerned about our town's policing methods.

Posted by: Liberty First (not 1st) | Jun 5, 2013 11:39:34 AM

Everyone is being far too polite with Mr. Otis here. The logic is as follows:

There is a study by some group he does not like. It was reported in a newspaper he does not like. (This is actually irrelevant to the issue).

This study appears to establish some serious unequal treatment under the law.

Because the study is by a group he does not like and reported in a paper he does not like (and a lot of other papers as well, btw. See, irrelevant) the study is biased and not worthy of belief. This of course is his personal belief.

Somehow believing that his personal bias against the ACLU refutes the numbers produced by the ACLU he then expects us to accept his argument without citing any evidence attacking the study at all. There is the crux of his BS. His argument is that we should ignore the study because he says so.

Can't do it.

But his argument brings up a more damning point which is this? What's with the cavalier attitude regarding unequal treatment under the law? To ignore a study because of its author and not even note the troubling implications- with no evidence of significant error in the study- seems an implicit suggestion that the results of the study are of no concern.

There are some who hold the view that racial imbalances in law enforcement are not evidence of anything other than a reflection of the activities of offendors. Some such even make it on to Courts of Appeals. But if that is the position then state it, rather than hide behind some argument about the liberal biases of the ACLU and the NYT, which, you know, duh.

Posted by: Matt | Jun 5, 2013 11:42:30 AM

Matt unmasks the "shrill and myopic" character of Bill Otis.

Posted by: Liberty First (not 1st) | Jun 5, 2013 11:56:51 AM

How is it shrill?

How is it myopic?

Posted by: Adamakis | Jun 5, 2013 1:05:16 PM

"The reason I have to put them on this thread is that, when I address them to you in a thread where they're on topic, you just disappear. And the reason you disappear there is identical to the reason you refuse to answer here, with the 'off-topic' excuse."

This and the remaining part of your comment is all well beyond the scope of rebuttal, so here's a brief surrebuttal:

You call the charge that you were off-topic an "excuse." Yet here, you grant that it's true.

Now, if it wasn't true in other threads, you were certainly free to make that case in those threads. So the fact that you are raising the issue here suggests that you were unsatisfied with your own efforts on that score. In that respect, at least, we can agree.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 5, 2013 1:09:17 PM

Bill Otis, from what you say here and in the Black debate, you're making yourself out to be a functionary of the system the people voted for. The people voted for the congressmen and state reps who passed mandatory minima and 3-strikes laws, and voted for the DAs to use them as a weapon against the accused. Nice system.

Posted by: Bill K | Jun 5, 2013 1:14:48 PM

Bill K --

God forbid that I should speak up for laws the people voted for! If I spoke up for the laws they voted for last year in Colorado and Washington, would you have the same reaction? Or is approval for democracy just a sometime thing?

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 5, 2013 2:15:02 PM

Matt --

"Everyone is being far too polite with Mr. Otis here."

That's it, Matt. Excess politeness, especially to conservatives, is the problem with this forum.

"The logic is as follows: There is a study by some group he does not like. It was reported in a newspaper he does not like. (This is actually irrelevant to the issue)."

It has nothing to do with what I like. It has to do with the fact that the ACLU and the NYT have a distinct and longstanding left wing bias -- something neither you nor any other commenter could plausibly dispute. And their bias is plenty relevant, as you would readily agree if you didn't share it.

"This study appears to establish some serious unequal treatment under the law."

The law is SUPPOSED to give unequal treatment to unequal behavior.

"There is the crux of his BS. His argument is that we should ignore the study because he says so."

I don't give two hoots in hell whether you and allied race-baiters ignore the study or sleep with it under your pillow. It takes no study -- not this one or the last few dozen your side churns out -- to convince you that America stinks. The Race Lobby has been yelping for years that the United States is a racist, imperialist, war-mongering, etc., et al. empire, and that's what you're going to believe.

It's not that you're without allies, see, e.g., Michael Drake, who at least has the guts to sign his name.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 5, 2013 2:28:24 PM

Business as usual

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_military_operations

Posted by: Bill K | Jun 5, 2013 2:52:46 PM

The answer to the question entitling Doug's original post is yes. And it's yet another good reason to legalize pot.

Posted by: William Jockusch | Jun 5, 2013 2:53:10 PM

Michael Drake --

Do you think the people who comment here are eight years old and can't see the obvious? Look, if you had a good answer to my point about your enthusiasm for representing cruel and violent people, you'd make it.

But you don't.

So you give none.

What you do instead is meander about what's appropriate "surrebuttal,"and whether I'm satisfied with my answers on prior threads.

Don't worry, Michael. My satisfaction need not concern you. If a point be made of it, however, I'll be happy to match the satisfaction of my won-lost record in litigation with yours. Wanna?

Posted by: Bill Otis | Jun 5, 2013 2:53:53 PM

Isn't "Bush Doctor" one of Peter Tosh's songs?

Posted by: Chris Jenkins | Jun 5, 2013 3:39:38 PM

Public attitudes about the legalization of marijuana have changed. This is true for both ends of the political spectrum. People who support some degree of legalization are in the majority. A much larger majority believe that the cost of marijuana enforcement is a waste of money.

http://www.usnews.com/news/newsgram/articles/2013/04/04/marijuana-legalization-supported-by-majority-in-us-poll-finds

Law enforcement has a higher presence in minority neighborhoods. This does not reduce the number of arrests. Wherever law enforcement has the greatest presence arrests go up. Police are hired to make arrests - that is what they do.

Posted by: beth | Jun 5, 2013 3:48:49 PM

On this subject, the Administration has been at best middle of the road, which as the OP notes, and beth cites a simple reason why, has a de facto racial discriminatory affect. This might be ironic given the race of the President and AG, but not really surprising. President Obama has to if anything be more on guard about certain things. Nixon could go to China. It might require a white conservative leaning sort to truly change our drug policy.

Posted by: Joe | Jun 5, 2013 6:32:00 PM

Bill, if you want to have a debate about the legitimacy and morality of defending...my God, CRIMINALS!!!, I guess I'm happy to do that in a forum that makes sense. But this thread ain't it. (Want to do dueling blog posts? Great  shoot me an email.)

As for the argument here, it is submitted.

Posted by: Michael Drake | Jun 5, 2013 8:59:56 PM

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Urban Grid

Founder & CEO, Frank DePew, Transitions to Chairman

Seasoned Management Team Poised for Growth and Transition to IPP

Candelaria, having spent eight years in executive leadership at Silicon Ranchone of the nations largest independent power producerswill report to the Urban Grid Board of Managers.



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Story continues

As with any CEO successor, finding the best talent and cultural fit is critical and Peter is certainly that fit for Urban Grid. He is a talented and experienced leader who has developed his career in clean energy and has complete endorsement and support from the Board of Managers. We look forward to working with Peter to accelerate the delivery of Brookfield Renewables growth strategy through Urban Grid, said Mitch Davidson, CEO, Brookfield Renewable U.S. and Urban Grid Board of Managers.

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Malaysia's former world No.1 shuttler Lee Chong Wei poses with his wax figure at Madame Tussauds Singapore. (PHOTO: Madame Tussauds Singapore)

SINGAPORE  Former world No.1 shuttler Lee Chong Wei became the first Malaysian athlete to grace the halls of Madame Tussauds alongside the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and David Beckham, when his wax figure was unveiled at the Singapore museum on Thursday (13 October).

The 39-year-old two-time Asian champion had spent a record 349 weeks as the world No.1 badminton player, including a consecutive 199 weeks at the top spot from 21 August 2008 to 14 June 2012. With 69 super series titles under his belt, he has also represented Malaysia as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador.

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Lee had actually got his measurements done for his wax figure back in November 2019, when he was put through a six-hour "sitting" as the team from Madame Tussauds took over 200 measurements.

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Do you have a story tip? Email: sgnews.tips@yahooinc.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. Also check out our Southeast Asia, Food, and Gaming channels on YouTube.
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 12, 2022 (American Heart Association News) -- Too many times, the realization comes too late.

"When people have a major medical event like a heart attack or stroke, they retrospectively go back and say, 'Oh, I was really stressed, maybe that's why this happened to me,'" said Dr. Ian Kronish, associate director of the Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York. "But they don't think beforehand that they'd better take care of that stress for their health."

There are many causes of stress, but experts say one leading factor has increased significantly in recent years: work-related burnout.

"Burnout is real, and we're seeing a lot of it these days," said Dr. Tene Lewis, associate professor of epidemiology at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta. "People are overwhelmed on all fronts. And we know it's bad for your heart, your blood pressure and your brain."

Recognition of the problem is growing. In 2019 the World Health Organization classified burnout as an occupational phenomenon "resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed."

The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have made it worse. A 2021 survey by Indeed.com found 52% of workers said they were experiencing burnout, 9 percentage points higher than pre-pandemic. Two-thirds of all respondents said the pandemic increased burnout.

Many media reports cite burnout as a prime contributor to what's being called the "great resignation" as large numbers of people leave their jobs. In May, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy warned in an advisory that health worker burnout was leading to staffing shortages that threaten the entire public health care system.

"If we fail to act, we will place our nation's health at risk," he said in a statement.

So, what is burnout? The WHO defines it as feeling depleted, exhausted, mentally distant or cynical about one's job, with reduced competence and effectiveness at work.

"One of the definitions of stress is being asked to do more than you have the resources to handle," Kronish said. Stress can lead to burnout, and burnout perpetuates stress, he said. "So it leads to a vicious cycle."

A 2017 study in PLOS ONE reviewing decades of research linked job burnout to many health problems, including coronary heart disease, high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, insomnia and depressive symptoms.

Besides the direct effects, Kronish said burnout can result in unhealthy behaviors that add to the danger.

"It can lead to smoking, drinking more alcohol, not getting enough sleep," he said. "Those all have downstream biological consequences that can lead to atherosclerosis," a buildup of plaque in the arteries that can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

The first step to deal with burnout is to prevent it, said Kimberly Beckwith McGuire, a clinical health psychologist in West Orange, New Jersey. "Do all the things we know already are good for us: getting good sleep and a reasonable amount of exercise, eating healthy, drinking water and having some interests outside of work."

But if you can't prevent it, she said, learn to recognize it. "Are you feeling overwhelmed and underappreciated? If you're somebody who doesn't normally get headaches, are you getting headaches? If you're normally pretty even-keeled, are you now feeling irritable? Are you making more mistakes in your work than normal? These are all signs of burnout."

If those signs are there, the worst thing to do "is to try to tough it out," McGuire said. "A lot of folks think they just have to push, push, push, because we're invincible."

Instead, she said, don't shy away from seeking help from professional therapists or a faith community. Look for positive coping strategies  delegate tasks at work, take short walks during the day, do periodic breathing exercises.

Lewis agreed.

"The first thing you have to do is stop and really pull back and find ways to self-care," she said. "Ensure that you have positive things in your life every single day."

American Heart Association News covers heart and brain health. Not all views expressed in this story reflect the official position of the American Heart Association. Copyright is owned or held by the American Heart Association, Inc., and all rights are reserved. If you have questions or comments about this story, please email editor@heart.org.

By Michael Precker, American Heart Association News
SIOUX CITY  Bomgaars is purchasing 73 Orscheln Farm and Home stores, striking a what it called a "mega-deal" that makes the Sioux City-based retailer the nation's second-largest farm and ranch retailer, behind only Tractor Supply Co.

The complex transaction, announced Tuesday, involved Brentwood, Tennessee-based Tractor Supply, which had been seeking to acquire rival Orscheln for more than a year but had run afoul of federal anti-trust laws. The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday approved the sale of 166 Orscheln stores to Tractor Supply for about $320 million on the condition that it immediately divested 85 of the stores to two third-party buyers -- Bomgaars and Buchheit Enterprises.

Buchheit, a farm retailer operating in Missouri and Illinois, acquired 12 stores as part of the transaction, and Bomgaars bought 73 stores. The remaining 81 Orscheln stores will be converted to Tractor Supply locations.

Proceeds from the divestitures totaled about $72 million, according to Tractor Supply. The publicly-traded company also agreed to sell Orscheln's corporate headquarters and distribution center in Moberly, Missouri, to Bomgaars for about $10 million within 15 months after the deal closes.

The sale, which required 1 1/2 years of "very complex, multi-party negotiations," will allow Bomgaars to "experience an unprecedented level of growth for our customers, our community, and our company, CEO Torrey Wingert said in a statement.

While the federal approval process was at times equally exhausting and frustrating, our team and the Bomgaars family remained steadfast in their determination to complete this acquisition, and this collective commitment to do so was a big part in ensuring this deal was successfully concluded, Wingert said.

The deal will see Bomgaars expand into seven new stores -- Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio -- nearly doubling the retailer's sprawling territory to 15 states.

After the 73 Orscheln stores are rebranded over the next year, the number of Bomgaars locations will swell to 180 locations. The rapidly growing retailer hit a milestone 100th store opening just last year.

Bomgaars will add 1,400 workers to its payroll, with a total employee count of about 3,300.

The Orscheln deal is far larger than Bomgaars' acquisition of a dozen former ALCO-Duckwall stores more than seven years ago as the latter was winding down its operations.

In Sioux City, Bomgaars' corporate offices and central warehouse and distribution center are located at 1805 Zenith Drive.. In 2015, Bomgaars completed a $17 million expansion of the distribution center, adding 150,000 square feet to nearly double its size of the facility near the intersection of Hamilton Boulevard and Interstate 29.

Orscheln's distribution center in Moberly has about 330,000 square feet of space.

Orscheln was founded in 1960 in by W.C. "Colonel" Orscheln, who opened his first store in Sedalia, Missouri, according to the retailer's website. The Orscheln chain grew more quickly than Bomgaars, reaching 85 locations by 2003.

Bomgaars traces its roots to William H. "Bill" Bomgaars, a Northwest Iowa merchant who struggled to find success in various retail ventures in the opening decades of the 20th century before hitting upon a winning formula of selling farm supplies.

The fourth-generation family business is owned by Roger and Jane Bomgaars, who each spring road trip across the country to visit their stores.

The couple are looking forward to visiting the 73 new locations as part of their upcoming travel plans.

"I am grateful to our executive team for their persistence in seeing this deal through to its ultimate and successful conclusion," Roger Bomgaars said in a statement. "Our family is proud of our organization, each of our approximately 3,300 current employees, and the difference we make for our farm and ranch clients and customers every single day.

Tractor Supply, which said it is on track to achieve annual revenue in excess of $14 billion, has over 2,100 locations and more than 50,000 employees.
 Flash

Two Canadian police officers were shot dead in the line of duty, local police said on Wednesday.

In a news release, the South Simcoe Police Service said its officers responded to a call at a home near 25th Sideroad and 9th Line in the Town of Innisfil, about 100 km from Toronto, at approximately 7:55 p.m. (2355 GMT) on Tuesday.

The two officers were shot inside the home. The suspect was later pronounced dead following an interaction with police, according to the release.

Police have not said what the initial call was for. Both officers were rushed to a local hospital, where one died. Shortly after 7:30 a.m. (1130 GMT) on Wednesday, police announced on social media that the second officer had also died.

The release said Ontario's Special Investigations Unit (SIU) is now investigating, which happens when a person is seriously injured or killed as a result of a police interaction.

The shooting came a month after Toronto Police Const. Andrew Hong and two others were fatally shot by a gunman near Toronto on Sept. 12.
HOLLY SPRINGS, Iowa  Few reminders of Holly Springs remain along Old Highway 141, and many younger motorists who pass by probably don't even realize there once was a small town here.

Michael and Maria Gallagher aren't ready for all memories of Holly Springs to fade away just yet.

On a hilltop less than a mile away, the couple launched Holly View Acres, a pumpkin patch and corn maze providing families with fall fun.

"We said we wanted to put Holly Springs back on the map," Michael said with a laugh. "I don't know if a pumpkin patch and corn maze will do that."

As word of mouth and social media spread news of the area's largest corn maze, visitors are pulling up maps, or consulting Holly View Acres' website or Facebook page, to find their way to the farm, located just north of the intersection of Old Highway 141 (Woodbury County Road D25) and Woodbury County Road K64, known to many as the Moville Blacktop. It's here the Gallaghers share with visitors their love of farm life, autumn -- and corn mazes.

"We love fall. It's our favorite," Maria said.

A Sioux Center, Iowa, native, Maria grew up going to corn mazes with friends and family at Pumpkinland in Orange City and another in Harrisburg, South Dakota. She met Michael while the two attended Dordt College (now Dordt University) and hooked him on finding his way through the tall corn, especially after dark by the glow of their flashlights.

Not that Michael needed much of a push to appreciate it. A graduate of Westwood High School in Sloan, he grew up on a farm about a mile down the road from Holly Springs. After spending five years as a banker in Sioux Center, he returned to his roots in 2018, joining his father, Dennis, in farming 2,500 acres of corn and soybeans.

With farmland at their fingertips, Michael and Maria indulged their love of corn mazes, growing a test maze on 2 acres a couple years ago. Once they moved to their new acreage last September, their plans for a bigger corn maze were seeded, aiming to add another outdoor family attraction in the area.

"I thought a corn maze to this extent was something that was missing," Michael said. "There's a lot of people who have been here who have never done a corn maze before."

With his corn planter's technology enabling him to start and stop the flow of seed into the soil from his tractor seat, Michael planted the farm-scene pattern into the 9-acre field this spring. Once the corn was knee-high, he used a skid loader with a tiller attachment to straighten and smooth the paths inside the maze.

Neither he nor Maria had ever grown pumpkins before, but that didn't stop them from hand-planting an acre of pumpkins and gourds, fed by an irrigation system Michael set up this summer as rain continually refused to fall on the area. Though conditions remained dry much of the growing season, the rich river-bottom soil retained enough moisture to ensure visitors wouldn't be able to peek over corn tassels to navigate their way through the maze.

"I'm just glad the corn got as tall as it did," Michael said.

Prior to opening on Sept. 16, the Gallaghers added a corn kernel beach (think of a large sandbox filled with corn instead of sand), cornhole game boards and a farmland playground with straw bales, antique tractors and tractor tires for children to climb on. Visitors can buy pumpkins and pay admission to walk through the maze.

The maze isn't for everyone, but Michael said it's been fun to watch children run around, enjoying the open spaces. Some families seem to prefer just enjoying a sunset while eating at one of the picnic tables.

"If that's all we've done is give people a space to enjoy themselves, that's great," Michael said.

Open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays through Oct. 29, the hours coincide with harvest time, when Michael spends hours a day in a combine. With the help of friends and a couple friendly farm cats, Maria tackles much of the task of greeting visitors and answering questions, all while keeping track of the couple's three children, who are all under age 5.

They're not letting the challenge of starting a new business while raising a young family slow plans for next year.

"We've got lots of ideas for things we'd like to add," Maria said. "We've got plenty of room to grow."

A bumper crop of ideas to attract people to farmland fun.
SIOUX CITY -- A man suspected of selling large quantities of methamphetamine in the Sioux City area has pleaded guilty of selling the illegal drug.

Jose Duenas-Topete entered his plea Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Sioux City to single counts of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and distribution of a controlled substance. He also is scheduled to enter a plea on Oct. 26 for illegally re-entering the United States.

According to court documents, authorities became aware of Duenas-Topete when a confidential source seeking a deal on a pending federal drug charge tipped agents off to a local distribution network.

Through the source, agents arranged a purchase of meth in Sioux City on April 2 and arrested Duenas-Topete and two others after the drug transaction. He was suspected of receiving four shipments of meth totaling 21 pounds for resale in Sioux City and Plymouth County.

Leocadio Contreras-Sebastian, who drove 7 pounds of meth to Sioux City previously pleaded guilty of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and aiding and abetting the distribution of a controlled substance. He awaits sentencing.

Jose Montes-Topete, who was driving Duenas-Topete during the drug transaction, faces drug possession and distribution charges and is scheduled to stand trial in November.

Duenas-Topete was deported from the United States in 2018 as a result of a Sioux County drug conviction.
SPIRIT LAKE, Iowa  A man charged with fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend outside her Milford, Iowa, workplace has been found mentally competent to stand trial for murder.

A judge also has granted a defense request to move the trial from Dickinson County in order to find a more impartial pool of jurors to hear the case.

Christian Goyne-Yarns, 25, of Jackson, Minnesota, has pleaded not guilty of first-degree murder for the shooting death of Shelby Woizeschke in February.

His case had been suspended since late July, when District Judge Carl Petersen granted a defense request for a psychiatric evaluation of Goyne-Yarns, who, his lawyers said, was unable to assist in his own defense.

Goyne-Yarns was evaluated by a psychiatrist at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center Forensic Psychiatric Hospital in Oakdale. Petersen received a report from the psychiatrist, and at an Oct. 5 hearing in Dickinson County District Court, Goyne-Yarns' attorneys did not seek a second evaluation and withdrew their motion to suspend proceedings in the case.

Petersen then granted a defense request for a change of venue, ordering the Dec. 6 trial to take place at the Buena Vista County Courthouse in Storm Lake.

Defense attorneys Brendan Kelly and Cassi Wigington had argued that because of media coverage and publicity surrounding the shooting and subsequent hearings, it would not be possible to find an impartial jury in Dickinson County.

Petersen agreed with their arguments, saying in his ruling "... that the events of this case and the pretrial publicity have permeated the consciousness of the citizens of Dickinson County to such a level that prejudice may be presumed."

Goyne-Yarns is charged with shooting Woizeschke on Feb. 3 in the parking lot at GrapeTree Medical Staffing in Milford as she arrived for work. According to court documents, she was shot at least twice and was able to call 911 and identify Goyne-Yarns as the shooter. He was arrested about an hour and a half later.

Woizeschke, 24, of Spencer, Iowa, died in a Sioux Falls hospital Feb. 6. She had two young sons from a previous relationship with Goyne-Yarns.

If found guilty as charged, Goyne-Yarns would face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.
SOUTH SIOUX CITY  The city of South Sioux City is seeking damages from a national consulting firm for its role in marketing the addictive opioid painkiller OxyContin.

In a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday in Omaha, the city, along with Sarpy County, Nebraska, says it is has incurred "substantial costs" because of opioid addiction that resulted from a "broad scheme to deceptively market opioids" by drug manufacturers with the help of McKinsey & Company, a New York-based consulting company hired by OxyContin manufacturer Purdue Pharma to increase sales of the powerful painkiller.

South Sioux City and Sarpy County "... are experiencing a severe public health crisis and have suffered significant economic damages, including but not limited to increased costs related to public health, opioid-related crimes and emergencies, criminal justice and public safety," the lawsuit said.

South Sioux City continues to sustain damages for health care costs, providing addiction treatment and rehabilitation services and law enforcement and public safety training.

"Plaintiffs have expended substantial amounts of money to fix or mitigate the societal harms caused by McKinsey's conduct," the lawsuit said.

South Sioux City mayor Rod Koch said the city joined the lawsuit in hopes of claiming a share of a damage award that could help the city beef up the abilities of police and public safety to respond to opioid-involved cases.

"Like any other city, we're taking it very serious," Koch said. "We think there's going to be funds available, and we're trying to get reimbursed and get out in front of that. It will help with police training and education and safety measures."

It's one of dozens of similar federal suits filed against McKinsey by hundreds of cities, counties, school districts and Indian tribes across the country. It's believed to be the first filed by Nebraska municipalities. The suits follow a $573 million settlement McKinsey reached in February 2021 with 47 states over its role in helping to market and boost OxyContin sales. Nebraska's share of the settlement was nearly $2.6 million.

Widely reported by national media, drug makers continually downplayed the risks of deaths from overdoses and addiction to OxyContin and other opioids, aggressively marketing them to physicians to prescribe to their patients. The resulting so-called opioid crisis has led to hundreds of thousands of deaths nationwide and thousands more fighting addiction and related health issues.

The lawsuit alleges McKinsey and drug companies knew of the dangers, but continued their marketing strategies to maximize sales. It accuses them of unjust enrichment, conspiracy and racketeering committed through mail and wire fraud, using the mail and other means of communication to disseminate false and misleading information about the dangers of opioid use and creating a public health epidemic that is an ongoing public nuisance.

South Sioux City and Sarpy County, which includes several Omaha suburbs, are seeking an unspecified amount of compensatory damages for the costs caused by the opioid crisis, including health care, treatment and rehabilitation, law enforcement and public safety and other social services. Under federal law, those damages could be tripled.
They show up at the first signs of protest in Iran  men in black, riding motorcycles, often wielding guns or batons.

They are members of what's known as the Basij, paramilitary volunteers who are fiercely loyal to the Islamic Republic. The shock troops of the ayatollahs have taken on a leading role in quashing dissent for more than two decades.

During the latest protests, which erupted after a young woman died in the custody of the country's morality police last month, the Basij (ba-SEEJ') have deployed in major cities, attacking and detaining protesters, who in many cases have fought back.

One widely-circulated video appears to show dozens of schoolgirls removing their mandatory Islamic headscarves, known as hijab, and shouting at a visiting Basiji official to get lost.

It remains to be seen if the latest round of unrest will eventually fizzle, but much could depend on how the Basij and other security forces respond to further protests.

Here's a look at the Basij:

WHEN WAS IRAN'S BASIJ ESTABLISHED?

The Basij, whose official name translates to the Organization for the Mobilization of the Oppressed, was established by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini shortly after the 1979 Islamic revolution to Islamize Iranian society and combat enemies from within.

During the ruinous Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, the Basij led notorious human wave attacks against Saddam Hussein's army, with large numbers of poorly armed fighters, many of them teenagers, perishing as they raced across mine fields and into artillery fire.

Beginning with the student revolts of the late 1990s, the Basij took on a domestic role roughly akin to the ruling party of an authoritarian state. It's under the command of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and fiercely loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who routinely praises the Basij as a pillar of the Islamic Republic.

They have established branches across the country, as well as student organizations, trade guilds, and medical faculties. The U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on what it says is a multi-billion-dollar network of businesses covertly run by the Basij.

The security apparatus of the Basij includes armed brigades, anti-riot forces and a vast network of informers who spy on their neighbors.

Saeid Golkar, an Iranian scholar at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga who has written a book about the Basij, estimates their total membership is around 1 million, with the security forces numbering in the tens of thousands.

"Because they are ordinary Iranians without a uniform, the Islamic Republic is billing them as pro-regime supporters," he said, referring to those who confront the protesters. At the same time, most of these people are receiving salaries from the Islamic Republic.

WHY DO IRANIAN FORCES ATTACK THE PROTESTERS?

Experts say many of those who join the Basij do so because of economic opportunities, with membership providing a leg up in university admissions and public sector employment.

But recruits are also put through heavy indoctrination, including an initial 45 days of military and ideological training. They are taught that the Islamic revolution is a godly struggle against injustice, one that is threatened by myriad enemies  from the United States and Israel to exiled Iranian opposition groups and even Western culture itself.

Even if new recruits are initially driven by personal gain, Golkar says, the indoctrination can help to modify these motivations.

In the eyes of the Basijis, the Islamic headscarf, or hijab, is a bulwark against gender mixing, adultery and corruption  its removal a sign of decadent Western culture. Iran's leaders have cast the latest protests as part of a foreign conspiracy to foment unrest.

Protesters reject that characterization, saying the demonstrations are a spontaneous outpouring of anger at decades of repressive rule, poor governance and international isolation.

HOW DO IRANIAN FORCES CLAMP DOWN ON PROTESTS?

The policing of dissent in Iran begins with heavy surveillance of its citizenry, much of it done by Basijis, who have a presence in nearly every public institution. Iran also restricts internet access, especially during times of protest, and the Basij have a cyber division devoted to hacking perceived enemies.

There are different strategies. Of course the more visible is the violent one," said Sanam Vakil, an Iran expert at the Chatham House think tank in London.

When protests break out, Basijis wearing black or commando fatigues ride in on motorcycles, sometimes charging directly into the demonstrators in order to disperse them. They operate alongside the regular police and Iran's Revolutionary Guard, who are also taking part in the crackdown.

They have been chasing, clubbing, shooting protesters, trying to round them up, beat them up, throw them into vans to take them to detention centers where protesters are roughed up and pressured, Vakil said.

Basijis can also be found among the protesters themselves, as informers trying to identify ringleaders. Amnesty International said in a report last month that four individuals identified by Iranian authorities as Basijis appear to have been shot and killed by security forces while mingling with protesters.

WILL IRAN SUCCEED IN QUASHING THE PROTESTS?

Iran has stamped out several waves of protests over the years, including the Green Movement of 2009, when millions took to the streets after a disputed presidential election. Hundreds were killed in 2019 when Iran put down demonstrations over the heavily-sanctioned country's prolonged economic crisis.

But the latest protests have a different feel, which could make them harder to extinguish.

They are led by young women fed up with the increasingly heavy-handed enforcement of the country's conservative Islamic dress code. But they draw support from a much wider swath of society, including ethnic minorities and even some workers in Iran's crucial oil industry.

The protesters accuse Iran's morality police of beating 22-year-old Mahsa Amini to death for wearing the hijab too loosely. Authorities deny she was mistreated, saying she died of a heart attack linked to underlying health conditions, an account disputed by her family.

Videos of recent protests show young women twirling their hijabs in the air and cutting their hair, as demonstrators chant death to the dictator." and other slogans.

When the Basij arrive, the protesters can often be seen fighting back, and sometimes succeeding in driving them off.

But no one expects Iranian authorities to back down anytime soon.

Its a little to early to say from the outside, with the level of internet censorship, exactly whats happening, Vakil said. But I think the (government's) hope at the beginning was that the protests would fizzle out, and now the repressive capacity is stepping up.

Follow Joseph Krauss on Twitter at www.twitter.com/josephkrauss
Truck-mounted launchers blasted off rockets and U.S. stealth fighter jets streaked across the northern Philippine sky in a combat drill that marked the latest display of American firepower in a region where Washington has tried to deter what it warns as Chinas growing aggression. The live-fire exercises in a bombing range in a valley in Capas town north of Manila on Thursday were the highlight of two weeks of combat readiness maneuvers involving more than 2,500 American and Philippine marines. The military maneuvers ending on Friday were being held simultaneously with combat drills between U.S. Marines and Japanese army forces on Japans Hokkaido island that involve about 3,000 military personnel from the two sides.
GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP)  A nearly 700-pound grizzly bear charged out of thick brush southeast of Glacier National Park, attacking and injuring a bird hunter before the man shot the animal, Montana wildlife officials said Wednesday.

The 51-year-old Washington state man, whose name and hometown were not released, was left with injuries that were not life-threatening after the encounter Tuesday afternoon in a creek bottom east of the town of Choteau, said officials with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

The man and his wife were hunting on private property when their dogs went on point, said Dave Hagengruber, spokesperson for the state wildlife department. He went to flush a bird when the 677-pound (307-kilogram) male bear charged out of the brush, knocked the man over and stepped on him, Hagengruber said.

The man fired at the bear with a shotgun and a handgun, wounding the animal, which returned to the cover of the thick brush, wildlife officials said.

The couple and their dogs left and notified authorities.

Grizzly bears are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act, but state and federal wildlife officials decided the bear had to be euthanized because of its injuries. A drone was used to locate the bear, Hagengruber said.

The man did not suffer claw or bite marks, but did spend Tuesday night in the hospital, Hagengruber said.

The bear had no known previous history of human conflict and had never been handled by bear managers, officials said. Evidence at the site suggested the attack was the result of a surprise encounter.
DETROIT (AP)  A Michigan man has been arrested on a federal criminal complaint alleging he set 25 fires on semitrailers in eight states over more than two years, all belonging to the same trucking company, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Viorel Pricop, 64, of Allen Park, Michigan, was arrested Tuesday morning. A detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday in U.S. District Court in Detroit. It wasn't immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.

Pricop is charged with one count of arson of property in interstate commerce, which carries sentence of five to 20 years in prison.

An affidavit said 25 trailers owned by Phoenix-based Swift Transportation were set ablaze while stopped at fuel stations or rest areas from June 2020 through last month. In each case, the fire occurred in or on the trailer portion of the vehicle, mainly on or near the trailer tires.

Pricop was convicted in 2018 in Michigan for transportation of stolen goods and sentenced to two years in prison in an investigation and prosecution in which Swift cooperated, prosecutors said.

A GPS navigation device installed in a commercial truck owned and operated by Pricop was present at the fires, and a cellphone used by Pricop was present near 24 of the 25 fires, the affidavit said.

Search warrants executed last month on Pricops vehicle and residence turned up logbooks, bills of lading, shipping receipts and other records coinciding with locations where the fires occurred, the affidavit said.

The fires happened at locations from Barstow, California, to McCalla, Alabama, with most occurring along Interstates 10 and 40, prosecutors said. Police have learned of six fires in California, three in Arizona, nine in New Mexico, three in Texas and one each in Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas and Alabama.
Luis Villalobos was a long way from his native Xalapa, Mexico.

The youngest of the violin-playing Villalobos Brothers discovered that fact the hard way as he answered a reporters question while taking a walk in Boston on a brisk morning in October.

Ive lived in Boston for a while now but Ill never get used to how cold the winds can be at times, Luis Villalobos said, shivering, as traveled neighborhood streets.

Hopefully, Luis, along with brothers Ernesto and Alberto and guitarist Humberto Flores, will receive a warmer reception as guest artists during a special Sioux City engagement.

As a grand finale for Hispanic Heritage Month, the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra will present an evening with the Villalobos Brothers at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Orpheum Theatre, 528 Pierce St.

Known for their high energy performances, the brothers have worked with some of the finest symphonies in the world as well as collaborating with such eclectic performers as Dolly Parton and Bruce Springsteen.

Yet Villalobos interest in music began by listening to their grandmother Cristina Vasquez play music at country fandangos and coastal restaurants about an hot away from the port city of Vera Cruz.

Eventually studying under acclaimed classical violinist Carlos Marrufo Gurrutia, the brothers earned solo appearances with symphony orchestras throughout North and South America when still children.

While eldest brother Ernesto carried out his graduate studies at the Manhattan School of Music, in New York, middle brother Alberto studied violin in Brussels and Switzerland.

Luis studies took him to Germany and Austria.

If me and my brothers were to play music at the highest level, we had to leave Mexico, he said. There was really no other choice.

Even though the Villalobos Brothers are classically trained violinists, their music draws upon the rich history of Mexican folk music as well as a few nods to the fundamentals of jazz, rock and blues.

We could not play our style of music without classical training, Luis Villalobos said. We needed the background in order to fit in with symphonies.

Bottom line: that remains the sweet spots for the Villalobos Brothers.

Nothing can match the sound of a symphony orchestra in a theater setting, Luis said. It is wonderful.

Plus acts like the Villalobos Brothers bring in a different audience because of their music.

There are people who make a distinction between being an artist and an entertainer, Luis said. I think me and my brothers bridge that gap. We are both artists and entertainers.

Of greater importance is the Villalobos Brothers willingness to give back. They will be performing a special all-school assembly for students at Sioux Citys new Hunt A+ Arts Elementary School on Friday afternoon.

Everybody in my family started playing the violin before the age of 5, Luis said. Even though we come from a different country, weve always felt comfortable knowing that music is such a universal language.

No matter where we perform, we want to share our love of music with the younger generation, he continued. We have to make sure that the music goes on and on.
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The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-fired a pair of long-range strategic cruise missiles on Wednesday, with leader Kim Jong-Un personally directing the test on site, state media KCNA reported on Thursday.

"Two long-range strategic cruise missiles flew for 10,234 seconds along oval and figure-8 flight paths above the West Sea and clearly hit the target 2,000 km away," KCNA said.
Pay Dirt is Slates money advice column. Have a question? Send it to Lillian, Athena, and Elizabeth here. (Its anonymous!)

Dear Pay Dirt,

I have a question about sharing. I grew up in a communal religious group that insisted on constant sharing and deprivation for the group, particularly if you were female (which I am) as serving others is the highest calling. I fell out of that community for a number of reasons but I still feel very much that I owe service and resources, particularly to those with less.

I have a side project that I do in addition to my day job, and I keep thinking I could maybe make this side project my day job if I invest 30 percent of my monthly salary for about a year. However, I also contribute to income sharing with two families who make significantly less than me and could definitely use the income. Alternatively, I could add a third family to my income-sharing group. Or I could keep quiet and invest in my project. I have been struggling with this decision for a year now. Ethically, I feel like I am a bad person for even struggling with this decision, but I really like my side project and selfishly want to see what I could do. Is there an agnostic formula for this sort of thing?

Ethically Selfish

Dear Ethically Selfish,

I also grapple with societal obligations around service versus self-investment. Im a former Catholic Worker who lived in egalitarian intentional communities. I understand wanting to retain your value of serving others and sharing while trying to ensure youre not setting yourself on fire to keep others warm.

When developing your personal systems of morality after leaving an insular community, it can be challenging to untangle what is something you truly believe, rather than something you simply never questioned. Were all given unspoken messages about money from our upbringing, but those messages are often more engrained if you grew up with strict, gendered religious expectations.

Unfortunately, theres no easy shortcut for figuring out your own moral system. Everyone has different ideas about how to right structural inequality in our current economic system and how best to use their money to support their values. In modern society, were bombarded by cultural messaging that teaches that there is no more potent form of morality than economic power. Were one-person morality machines: Buy from the right companies, give to the right causeseven your employers tax filing status is a sign of your righteousness. I spent years unraveling a belief that I was a sellout if I earned a middle-class salary. Both my time as an AmeriCorps member and as a Catholic Worker preached that you had to live in poverty to serve those in poverty. But, in reality, I found I was better at serving others if I wasnt worried about making rent.

I cant tell you what is the moral decision, nor can I give you a foolproof agnostic formula for this. But if you are working to create a more fair economic structure, why are you being unfair to your potential in your side business? Income-sharing is meant to offset the unequal compensation of different work. It shouldnt be one-sided, with one person martyring themselves to benefit every other party. Think of what you would say if someone in your income-sharing group came to you with a side business theyd worked on for a year and said they believed it could be a full-time job if they invested part of their salary. Would you want to support them in that endeavor? I suspect you would.

Dont hamper your potential with your giving heart. Sharing doesnt only come from your ability to deliver money to other people. You should feel the same kind of support from your income-sharing group as youve provided to them. If your only value is as a workhorse to funnel money to other people, how is that serving others? Thats just recreating a micro-form of capitalism.

Lillian

More Advice From Slate

Could you please give me some candid advice about teacher gifts? I love my childrens teachers, and I know their jobs are incredibly difficult. But Ive got four children, and four different teachers. We live in an affluent neighborhood, and I feel like the norm is to go over the top. Our family, however, is not as well-off and has trouble even affording Christmas for our family, and it really adds up. That said, I want to show them our appreciation
This article is from Full Stack Economics, a newsletter about the economy, technology, and public policy.

A New Hampshire man named Jan was shooting the breeze with a cop who asked him what he did for a living. He told him that hes a stay-at-home dad.

Thats what my wife does, the cop said. How do you do that?

I fulfilled every mothers dream, Jan said. I married a doctor.

Jan and I have a lot in common. His wife is a radiologist. Mine practices obstetrics and gynecology. Im not a full-time homemaker like Jan, but last month I wrote about my experience leaning out to support my wifes career. I do the bulk of the child care, dishes, and laundry in our household so my wife can focus on practicing medicine.

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Its an unconventional arrangement that works well for us. But after I published my article, a few people on Twitter warned me that I was risking divorce.

New America CEO Anne-Marie Slaughter raised similar worries in her 2016 book about balancing work and family. She cited research finding that female-breadwinner couples tend to have lower marital satisfaction.

I wanted to talk to other heterosexual dads whod leaned out, so I put out a call on my newsletter. Over the last few weeks, Ive interviewed 20 leaning-out dads about their experiences.

Many of those experiences are positive. Some are not. I talked to two men who are now separated or divorced from their wives. A few others found child care unrewarding or struggled to get back into the workforce once their kids were older.

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Still, I came away from my reporting convinced that this is an option more fathers should consider. Recent research contradicts the idea that female-breadwinner couples are at greater risk of divorce. I think many feminists are too wedded to the ideal of a rigidly equal division of labor within a marriage. Im sure that works well for some couples. But many other couples will be better off if one does more of the household labor. And dads shouldnt be afraid of it being them.

We Have This Relaxed Pace

One theme I heard over and over again in these interviews was that having one parent lean out simplifies a couples life.

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We have this relaxed pace where we can attend to our grandparents and help our friends kids, said Adam, a stay-at-home dad in the midwest. We know a lot of families with two careers. For them its all chore charts and overscheduling and barely getting by.

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Adams wife, a lawyer, echoed that sentiment. Its been really positive for us, she said. Sometimes male colleagues would half-jokingly ask her how they could get a gig like Adams. I always tell them Ill talk to your wife about how much easier it will make their life.

Another dad, Michael, was a data scientist in the D.C. area when his son was born. Having one person stay at home and be able to take the kids just worked really well for us, Michael said. Once I was at home and she was working, we realized how much simpler it made our life.

We didnt have to run around and worry about who is going to drop our son off and who is going to pick him up, he added. We could see all of our peers struggling with that.

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Another dad told me he appreciates his flexible part-time job on days when school is closed. If we were both working, it would be a nightmare to figure out what to do, he said.

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Being a self-employed newsletter author lets me play this role in my family. I can watch the kids when school closes or one of them gets sick. That enables my wife to focus on her work and keeps everyones blood pressure down.

Not Everyone Is Ambitious

The kind of people who write best-selling bookson this or any other topictend to be highly ambitious. Authors like Anne-Marie Slaughter or Lean In author Sheryl Sandbergor Feminine Mystique author Betty Friedan, for that mattertend to see it as a big sacrifice for someone to step back from their careers for a few years to focus on raising their kids. Because it would be a big sacrifice if they did it.

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But this is actually pretty unusual. Lots of peoplemen as well as women just want to raise their families and enjoy their lives. I talked to a number of dads who just werent very interested in climbing a career ladder.

I dont have dreams of being in upper management at all, a software engineer told me. I just want to keep building stuff.

He followed his wife to the D.C. area a decade ago so she could take a job in the policy world. When she got pregnant, he quit a demanding job with a long commute to take a nine-to-five job as a government contractor. Since then, he has been responsible for day-care dropoffs and pickups and doctors appointments while his wife has focused on her career. Shes now a lobbyist for a technology company and makes twice what he does.

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A common stereotype holds that men tend to be more ambitious than women. I dont know if thats true on average, but there is undeniably a lot of variation within each sexand hence plenty of women who are more ambitious or talented than their husbands.

Peter Karadimas, an IT worker who cut back to part-time to focus on child care, told me it was clear that his wife was the right person to go to work. She was more fulfilled, shes just better at her job than I am at mine.

Guys like these dont see themselves as making a big sacrifice when they focus more on their kids and let their wives focus on their jobs. And as gender norms have shifted, its gotten easier for dads to make this choice.

Surprise, Not Hostility

Theres a widespread perception that men who lean out face stigma from friends and family, but I had trouble finding anyone who had experienced that. There are still lingering sexist attitudes about these issues, but they tend to take the form of surprise or confusionlike Jans encounter with the coprather than hostility.

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Several dads said schools tend to call their wives first about issues with their kidseven if the dad lists himself as the primary contact on school forms.

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Karadimas told me that while hes never faced criticism for his decision to focus on raising his kids, some people seemed surprised by the concept of a male homemaker.

Weve never had anything but positive feedback, Karadimas wife told me. She added that so many women are shocked that my husband would be open to it and even more so that hes good at it.

You get this incredulous laugh once in a while that you wouldnt get if you were a woman, said the conservative writer Robert VerBruggen, who spent 18 months as a stay-at-home dad when his kids were little.

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Another conservative writer, Patrick Brown, started leaning out while he was in grad school at Princeton. More recently, he followed his wife to South Carolina so she could take a job as a professor. He said there was a noticeable difference in attitudes between north and south.

Princeton was very understanding of the situation and gave me time off, Brown said. The dean treated me a little bit like the Rosa Parks of gender integration. He said, I dont think weve ever had a man take time off for family reasons before.

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People in New Jersey were overwhelmingly positive about his choice, but Brown still detected a hint of condescension. People would say I could never do that, and Id think oh sure you could if you wanted to.

South Carolina has been more difficult because its rare for dads there to take the lead on child care. It can be a very isolating form of life if youre at home with young kids and dont have intellectual stimulation, he said.

The Risk of Divorce Is Greatly Exaggerated

About a decade ago, a man Ill call Douglas was an established professional in the United States. He agreed to move to France so his European-born wife could take a job as a professor. He was then in his early 50s, while she was 15 years younger.

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At first, Douglas found their new life in France tremendously exciting, but those feelings didnt last. He was hoping to find work in France, but the language barrier limited his professional opportunities and his career stalled.

My experience was not a good one, Douglas told me. By giving up my professional autonomy and my status as a financial contributor, it created tension in the relationship.

When his wife got pregnant, Douglas wound up doing most of the child care, which made it even harder for him to get his career back on track.

Disagreements about balancing work and family festered over the next few years. Then COVID struck, and the strict French lockdowns pushed the couple to the breaking point. Douglas and his wife separated about two years ago.

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Douglas believes sexist attitudes may have played a role in his marital difficulties. He told me that his wife sometimes made these emasculating comments like youre not man enough. For his part, Douglas felt enormous pressure to re-establish his professional identity, and this caused him to resent his wifes expectations that he do most of the child care.

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It was something we unfortunately didnt talk about really explicitly, he said. So she wasnt sensitive to my struggles to regain my professional identity.

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I spoke to another man who cared for his two kids while his wife pursued an academic career. They divorced when the kids were in middle school. We grew apart, he told me.

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He doesnt think his focus on child carewhich she supported at the timedirectly contributed to the divorce. He believes his ex-wife may have been disappointed that he wasnt more successful in his professional life. He believes that even without kids, he wouldnt have been working crazy long hours and traveling all the time. I put a very high value on having lots of free time when I can do whatever I want.

So are men who prioritize their families over their careers putting their marriages at risk? I put that question to Rhiannon Miller, a sociologist whose research focuses on this kind of question.

The risk of divorce is not higher in couples where the wife makes more than the husband, Miller told me. It was higher in previous cohorts.

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She pointed to a 2016 paper in which sociologists Christine Schwartz and Pilar Gonalons-Pons used survey data to examine divorce rates for couples based on their relative income and when they got married. Their results can be summed up with this chart:

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Couples who married in the 1970s were at significantly higher risk of divorce if the wife outearned her husband. The risk was smaller but still significant for couples that wed in the 1980s. For couples married in the 1990s, this effect has almost completely disappeared.

In her book, Anne-Marie Slaughter wrote that friends would show signs of discomfort if her husband mentioned she outearned him. Slaughter, like Douglas, is now in her 60s.

As a 42-year-old man whose wife has outearned him for more than a decade, I cant identify with Slaughters anecdote at all. Ive never felt embarrassed about my wife earning more than me, and none of the younger dads I talked to expressed discomfort about earning less than their wives.

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Adults my age and younger seem to be more egalitarian and pragmatic about this kind of issue. Which means fathers who lean out today are not taking as much of a risk as their fathers or grandfathers might have if theyd made the same choice.

The Downsides of Leaning Out

I dont particularly relate well to babies, one father told me. After a few years as a stay-at-home dad, he was growing tired of the experience and started looking for a job. But finding one proved harder than he expected.

I thought Id be able to get a job fairly easily, he told me. A veteran of the Navy, hes applied for a bunch of civilian government jobs similar to work hed done during his military service. But employers showed little interest, perhaps scared off by the multi-year gap in his resume. So hes now using GI Bill benefits to go to graduate school.

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Another dad quit a high-paying engineering job in 2018, intending to care for his kids full-time for two years. Then the pandemic hit, and he was effectively forced to continue in his homemaker role for an additional two years. Hes now looking for a job, but hasnt found one yet.

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Getting back in the workforce is really hard, he said. Its hard to find anybody that is willing to give you an interview.

Another dad told me that he misses having a conventional job and suffers from a listless, languishing feeling much of the time. His wife has a demanding schedule and a high incomeso high that it probably wouldnt make financial sense for her to cut back her hours so he can work more.

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Jan, the doctors husband in New Hampshire, told me that he struggled in his first few months as a stay-at-home dad.

I had always perceived my value and worth as tied to my productivity and personal achievements, he said. The transition away from that was incredibly hard.

I think the main lesson here is that fathers (and mothers, for the matter) should strongly consider keeping one foot in the labor market. This could take a variety of forms, depending on the type of work they do. Maybe a dad can cut back his hours rather than quitting altogether. Maybe he can find a job with more schedule flexibility. Maybe he can become a consultant or freelancer or start a lifestyle business.

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Im lucky because this kind of thing is particularly easy to do in journalism. Creating Full Stack Economics allows me to do journalism at my own pace. Im not making a lot of money so far, but the newsletter keeps my name out there and it will look better on my resume if I want to get a conventional journalism job down the road.

If a dad does make the leap to stay at home full-time, he should be prepared for the possibility that the change could be permanent. Because after a few years at home, he might not be able to get back into his previous line of work.

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Communication is also crucial. As we saw in Douglass story, it can cause big problems if couples dont agree about how to balance work and family. Ideally, couples should have in-depth conversations about their needs and desires long before they make a big decision like getting married, having a baby, or moving to a new city.

And even after these big decisions have been made, maintaining regular communication can help prevent minor disagreements from festering and becoming major ones. The good news is that, at least to judge by the latest research, more and more couples may be doing just that.
Care and Feeding is Slates parenting advice column. In addition to our traditional advice, every Thursday we feature an assortment of teachers from across the country answering your education questions. Have a question for our teachers? Email askateacher@slate.com or post it in the Slate Parenting Facebook group.

My son is a Black tween who recently entered middle school. The school has a little over half minority enrollment, but only 11 percent of that is made up of Black students, and the neighborhood where the school is located is historically white.

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Just a few days into starting at his new school, another student said something extremely racist to him. We immediately called the administration, and they spoke to my son and the other student, who copped to what he said and apologized. They also called the students parents but there were no further consequences. My son felt comfortable with how the situation was handled but the very next day, a different student called him the n-word.

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Our son reported what had happened to a nearby teacher whom he didnt know, but he said the teacher pulled the offender aside and spoke to him for a few minutes and there was no further action. When we called the administration, this time even more outraged and concerned, we found out this teacher never even reported the incident.

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The administration told us they would speak with our son about the incident that day. They didnt. When two days went by without anyone asking him about what happened, we insisted on a meeting to find out how they were intending to handle this incident. They pawned us off on the guidance counselor until we demanded to speak to a dean.

The dean was extremely dismissive of our concernsshe refused to even sit down with us at the table and instead shoved a printed-out copy of the disciplinary code at us. When we pushed for answers about why it hadnt been investigated, and how it was going to be handled, she told us she had a class and didnt have time to speak with us, while repeatedly checking her phone. Weve been very squeaky wheels and Im sure theyre tired of dealing with us and getting angry calls, but it has felt like she isnt even pretending to care about what should be a serious issue to everyone.

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They did finally begin the disciplinary process that afternoon, but Im very unsettled that they seemed to ignore what happened for several days. Id like to take the issue higher but Im not sure what my options are. Should I file a complaint with the DOE or some other official office? Retain a lawyer? Even try to take it to the media (or threaten to)?

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They insist that they have to follow the discipline code and cannot provide a more serious consequence than a call home on a first offense, but I feel that if there are no real consequences for discrimination and harassment then it will continue to happen, and my son will suffer. I feel they just want to make the immediate problem (us) go away, but they dont really want to do anything to protect my son. He went from excited about starting middle school to telling me he hates his life in the span of 6 days. I am getting him into therapy over this.

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I want them to take meaningful action to prevent it from happening again, or Im considering transferring him. Hes dealt with this kind of things in all kinds of spaces so I know theres no magical place where racism doesnt exist, but I am wrestling with whether to attempt to transfer him to a majority Black school, or whether there might be a school where the administration takes these issues more seriously, or if they all follow the same code as a system of public schools. He likes the school and the new friends hes made overall, and I fear transferring and adjusting to another new school, and trying to play catch-up and meet people a month behind everyone else could be very difficult. What do you think?

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I am overwhelmed and feel like Im beating my fists against the brick wall of systemic racism, while the brick wall acts like Im being crazy or obnoxious. What are my options here for forcing them into accountability? And whats the best way to advocate for and protect my son, who deserves to attend school in peace and safety?

Why Wont Anyone Listen?

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Dear WWAL,

This is awful. Im so sorry this is happening to your son and for the way the school administration has treated you. You are not crazy or obnoxious. You are absolutely correct that your son deserves to feel safe and welcome at school.

There is a movement away from zero-tolerance discipline policies in education, which includes a shift from traditional punishments to restorative practices in many schools. But educators should differentiate between run-of-the-mill rude or mean behavior and hate speech. Many school districts include language about equity and inclusivity in their mission statements and often have anti-harassment or anti-bullying policies indicating their commitment to fostering respect for all students. If your district has such documents, they may be available online. They need to be reminded that equity requires more than a mission statement: administrators must practice what they preach. The school does owe you an explanation for how they plan to ensure that your son is respected and protected against racist abuse.

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I am glad that, in both cases, an adult at the school addressed the racist behavior immediately. However, I am alarmed that, in the second instance, the administration did not follow up with your son when requested and dismissed your concerns. If you havent already, I recommend you document everything that has happened up until now and email it to the involved parties at the school, including the principal. Continue to document any new communications you have with the school. The reason that documentation is important is because if the offending students do not learn from the experience, if they continue to target your son or other Black students, the documentation will indicate that this problem is in fact bullying or harassment.

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Although the offenses were committed by two different students, they happened in such a short span of time. The administration and faculty must take the issue seriously and consider what they need to do to foster a school climate that is inclusive and welcoming to Black students. One organization that I highly respect is Learning for Justice. Their website has free resources and professional development, including resources for responding to hate and bias as well as bullying. Learning for Justice argues that the best path forward is prevention. What happened to your son should be a warning sign to address racist speech now.

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But how do you get them to listen to you? Given your most recent experience, it may be difficult. You will be more effective if you can band together with other parents (and hopefully faculty) who agree with you, or search out a local racial justice organization that will support you in your efforts. Theres power in numbers. If retaining a lawyer is within your means, its not a bad ideaschools tend to sit up and pay attention when the threat of litigation looms. Negative press would also get their attention, but I would first consider the impact of such attention on your son; as a middle school student, he may not want to be the center of a viral news story or deal with backlash that will come as a result.

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Of course, there is no quick fix, and this sort of work can be frustrating and exhausting. I dont blame you for considering a transfer to a different school. What does your son want to do? The comments about him hating his life make me wonder if a new environment is in order, but you also say that he likes the school and his friends despite these two incidents. His mental health and well-being should be your guide, and as a middle schooler he is old enough to be part of the decision-making process.

I want to reiterate that you are rightthe school should be treating your family with care and respect. They do have an obligation to your son and all the Black students in the school. I hope the school sees the writing on the wall and addresses the problem now so that it does not become a crisis later.

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Ms. Holbrook (high school teacher, Texas)

Slate needs your support right now. Sign up for Slate Plus to keep reading the advice you crave every week.

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I need help with my 10-year-old fourth grader. Shes always been either at or ahead of grade level in all her subjects. She understands her homework material, but rages against it. Shell complain and cry the entire time. Occasionally shell ask what a word problem means if the text is confusing, but mostly she solves the problems on her own. I do not understand the tears. She should be finished much faster but the crying and moaning just drags out the misery.

I offer breaks but she wont take them. Ive tried doing the homework with her directly after school/after a snack/before dinner/after dinner. Luckily, I work from home and can sit next to her the whole time.

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I am incredibly calm and patient with her with plenty of hugs. Its not like Im harsh with her or belittle her for it. I try and validate her feelings. What is going on with this child? Why is this so emotionally hard when the material is not intellectually hard? Shes always been a perfectionist and hard on herself for making a mistake. Weve worked on this a lot since kindergarten. My suspicion is that perfectionism is the root of the issue.

My other question is whether I should be enacting some sort of sticker chart for completing homework without crying about it? That feels like Im sending the wrong message about stuffing feelings down. Im at a loss. I will talk to her teacher and let her know whats going on, but Id love your advice too.

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Baffled Homework Helper

Dear BHH,

You really need to speak to the teacher. The key to solving this problem is determining the cause. Otherwise youre simply throwing darts in the dark. I think this starts with a conversation between you, the teacher, and eventually your daughter.

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If the struggle is perfectionism, the teacher can help by establishing clear expectations, which should ideally value effort over results. If its clear to your daughter that a homework assignment filled with both effort and mistakes is perfect, that might help.

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If the struggle is a simple lack of desire to work beyond the school day, the solution may be to allow your daughter to fail at home by not completing her homework and endure the consequences that the teacher imposes during the school day. As I often tell parents, I assigned the homework, so fear not. Ill also assign the consequences when its not done.

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Your daughter may also be struggling with something at school that you or even the teacher are not aware, and while she can hold things together during the school day, shes less equipped at home when the demands of school rear their ugly head. This is why a conversation with the teacher is your first step. Putting your heads together to identify the root cause of the problem will be the first step to determining a solution.

Mr. Dicks (fifth grade teacher, Connecticut)

My six-year-old son is really struggling in first grade. Hes highly intelligent (99 percentile on a recent cognitive/IQ assessment) and is probably some type of neurodivergent, demonstrating sensory processing challenges, some traits of autism, and nonexistent emotional regulation. Were in the process of getting him fully evaluated, and he already has an IEP for speech. Ive tried to access all the resources available in our community and state (Alaska), and we are met with long, long waitlists.

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He cant independently regulate emotions and frequently lashes out physically and verbally. Hes super bright and really good at conversing with adults, and is highly, highly skilled in languagethat is his super power, so he can often talk around emotional regulation.

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Im a teacher at his school. Im good friends with his teacher and have great professional relationships with our administrators, but navigating these challenges professionally while advocating for my kid is hard, murky, and confusing. So far, I havent made any waves and have gone with the flow, but I feel like Im doing my son a grave disservice.

Because hes been deemed unsafe (four physical assaults in the first five weeks of school), and there is no diagnosis to explain his challenges, we are on the zero-tolerance pipeline. If my kid uses unsafe words or his body, hes automatically suspended for three days. We are currently servicing our second back-to-back three-day suspension; he only made it a half day back before being suspended again.

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We are in a period of watchful waiting, which could take up to two more months. And Ive been told by my admin that my sons safety plan will not change until he receives a formal diagnosis. Its gotten to the point that hes beginning to internalize that hes a bad kid.

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So heres my questionif we are month(s?) out from receiving services, can I keep him in school under these conditions? Hes hurting his friends, and the school is focused on safety (get it). Our school has been very supportive of me, as mom. And theyre giving my kid chances and a (sort of) clean slate every time he returns. But the school is only reactive and wont help him handle his struggles. I understand that special education wheels can turn slowly, but can I really say Im being a good mom if I keep bringing him back, only to result in another kid getting hit and my kid getting sent home? Can I keep working here?

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What do I do to advocate for my kid? What do I do to protect my job, or at least not break contract? Im at an absolute loss. My gut instinct says homeschool until we get a diagnosis, but my sons challenges are social. Will I being doing him a huge disservice by taking him out of school? Or am I doing him a disservice by keeping him in? What do I do?

At a Complete Loss

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Dear AaCL,

Its extremely challenging to be a teacher at a school where your child is having issues. That part stinks, and I completely understand your stress here. I get not wanting to make waves, but I think ultimately, in special ed, we do appreciate parents who are strong advocates for their children. You already have a relationship with the school and with his teacher, so lean on that a bit to figure out the best approach for the challenging conversations you need to have. You can also probably talk to your administration directly about the stress youre feeling and the concern you have about him staying in school until he has an IEP.

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Homeschooling seems like a lose-lose: you dont get to stay in your class with your students, and he doesnt get the opportunity to learn the emotional reg skills he needs. Not to mention, you may open a cycle of more behaviors when he returns. I think you are better off trying to work towards staying in school in the interim.

It surprises me a little that they wont attempt a different behavior plan until his evaluation is done. Most schools I have worked at continue to tweak behavior plans while they wait because safety is the priority. With that in mind, I would ask if you can try a different behavior plan. It sounds like you probably need a Functional Behavior Analysis (FBA) in order to determine why hes having these behaviors, since there are many neurodivergent kids with a wide range of diagnoses who arent lashing out physically. You dont need an IEP to have an FBA, and knowing the function of the behavior informs what approach you can take to teaching a replacement behavior. If verbal reasoning is a strength, when you have identified what the triggers are, you can talk to him about how to approach it differently and even roleplay to practice his replacement behaviors when he is in a calm mental state.

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At minimum, I would start by asking if he can have a non-contingent break scheduletimes of day where he can take 5 minutes to play with playdough or watch a video, regardless of how his behavior has been prior, as long as he is in the classroom at break-time. Non-contingent breaks offer more enjoyable escape from school work at lower effort than running away or hurting someone. Additionally, it can help him build stamina (his non-contingent breaks could start every 30 minutes, then every 40, etc.) Break cards can also serve a similar purpose. In either case, I think the first step is getting him through a school day without hurting himself or anyone else. He will catch up on missed academics, but he does need to learn to be in the classroom for a day.

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Before the IEP evaluation is finished, you can also request that he work with the school counselor or psychologist or whoever does behavior support for non-IEP kids, to help him talk through scenarios and practice emotional regulation. Does your school have a social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum? If so, use the language of that curriculum to work on identifying strategies to regulate.

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One last set of strategies you can look into is some sensory regulation. Sensory dysregulation is very unpleasant, and can make a childespecially one who doesnt have other coping mechanismslash out. The non-contingent breaks may be helpful here, but another option is to give him a job that works his muscles to provide deeper sensory inputa.k.a. heavy work. He can help shelve books or carry reams of paper to classrooms. Having the heavy work may help regulate his sensory system, which in turn may help regulate his emotional state.

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What it comes down to, I guess, is that your child needs a behavior plan that allows him to stay safe in school. It isnt a bad thing to make waves if it gets your child what you need. Rather than viewing your professional relationship with the school as a source of discomfort, try to lean on the relationships youve built with the administration to advocate for tools that will help your child learn and his teacher teach while you wait for the results of the evaluation. Theres no reason to delay teaching him emotional regulation tools until the evaluation is finished when its clear that he will need those tools one way or another.

Ms. Sarnell (early childhood special education teacher, Colorado)
Were back?

For the last time. Maybe. The Washington Post is calling todays hearing, which starts at 1 p.m., the probably final one.

What happened while we were gone?

Well, a lot happened in the news. Including a contempt of Congress verdict for Steve Bannon; an FBI seizure of Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perrys phone; and, most dramatic of all, an FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago. That raid seized materials the government says rightfully belong to the national archives, including top-secret information on, among other things, another nations nuclear capabilities, allegedly.

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Trump was also sued in late Septemberalong with three of his adult childrenby New York Attorney General Letitia James for allegedly making a series of fraudulent claims on financial statements. Jamess investigation is unrelated to Jan. 6 and, despite initial speculation, no reporting has emerged that connects the Mar-a-Lago raid to any ongoing Capitol riot investigations. Trump has nonetheless taken all of it as further evidence that he is being unfairly persecuted by the Deep State or whatever, going full QAnon on his Twitter-like social media platform, TruthSocial, and promising to pardon convicted insurrectionists if he becomes president again.

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But we have not heard much from the committee about their work since the last hearing in July.

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I heard there was a tell-all book about them?

Yes, an ex-Republican congressman who worked as an adviser to the committee, Denver Riggleman, published a book that purports to describe the committees inner workings. The books big reveal was a phone call from Jan. 6 that went through the White House switchboard to a rioter, though it only lasted 9 seconds. The committee, which was not pleased with the books release, said it has investigated every lead Riggleman uncoveredand curtly implied that he never was, and certainly is not now, in the know. He has not worked with the committee since April.

[Here are some other fun facts about Denver Riggleman, who is a character.]

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What will the committee do today?

The members will likely unveil new information theyve uncovered over the last two months, but we are not expecting a surprise (or surprise) witness, a la Cassidy Hutchinson. On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that the hearing would include new details from thousands of documents that the Secret Service recently provided the committee. These documentsalong with new video footage from the Secret Servicecould corroborate key parts of Hutchinsons testimony, including claims that Trump reacted angrily to being told he would not be allowed to go to the Capitol to be with his armed followers, even after he knew things were getting violent.

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The Post called the new trove of documents, which detail all internal communications about logistical planning, security concerns and private discussions related to the scheduled protests and presidents movements the result of an ironic twist of events. Thats because the Secret Service previously deleted agents texts from Jan. 6.

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Officials have said that that mass deletion of Secret Service textsfrom a day during which the President might have fomented an insurrectionwas unintentional; according to the telephone provider for the Secret Service, they are also not recoverable. Ah, well.

The hearing today may also feature some video footage of Roger Stone that was recorded by Danish filmmakers in the lead up to Jan. 6.

OK, so the hearing could be heavy on the Secret Service, with a dash of Roger Stone.

None of the committee members would ever admit it, but they also probably wouldnt mind if another Donald Trump behaving in an erratic and embarrassing way anecdote got laundered into the midterm news cycle. They will almost certainly use this hearing to sum up, in sweeping emotional terms, everything theyve been trying to articulate from the startmuch like a closing argument in a court trial. More sweeping, said the California Democrat Adam Schiff. Very thematic. And who doesnt love a sweeping theme?

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And that would be?

That Donald Trumpdespite being told many times by advisers, experts, and other partisan Republicans that no substantial fraud took place in 2020 and that he had no valid legal path to preventing Joe Biden from becoming presidentnonetheless incited his supporters into believing false claims about a stolen election, and repeatedly urged other public officials to act on those false claims, in a coordinated effort that culminated in a Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol which Trump knew had the potential to become violent.

[Heres a complete list of absolutely everything we learned from the previous eight hearings.]

What will the committee do after its hearings are over?

The committee will publish a final report of its findings after the midterm elections, but it will probably release some juicy sneak-peek tidbits before then. If committee members decide they have gathered enough evidence to suggest Trump acted illegally, the final report may include a formal recommendation that the Department of Justice file charges against him.

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What if the committee doesnt recommend criminal charges? What was this all for?!

There are plenty of other reasons to have gone through these hearings! The first is just: record keeping. A lot of nutty stuff happened on Jan. 6 and it is important to tell the story of what happened, for history and for our contemporary understanding of what is happening to our country!

OK, OK, chill. Youre saying this was important for story-telling purposes?

Yes. Democrats and the other members of the committee (two lonely Republicans, both of whom are leaving Congress in January) want this on the record. They want people to know about it. And, sure, this recounting of how Trump and his supporters acted to undermine the election, assault police officers, and maaaaybe try to kill Mike Pence is well-timed, considering the upcoming midterms, but

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Ah-ha! Propaganda!

Look, there is clearly some theater going on here. You dont hire a veteran TV executive to help make a televised Congressional hearing less interesting! That doesnt invalidate the process of putting facts in the public record about how the former president and his cohort acted during a riot at the Capitol.

Cool cool. Anything else to keep an eye out for today?

It is possible we might hear about an interview the committee did with Ginni Thomas, the conservative activist and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. But apparently that conversation was not videotaped or recorded.

This should also be an interesting hearing for Liz Cheney. The Congresswoman from Wyoming lost her primary in August. This will be one of her last working days in Congress. She is now threatening to quit the party that has already resoundingly rejected her. Could this be the start of a doomed presidential bid that would hurt Democrats more than Republicans?
ARCHIVED - Storms depart and temperatures soar: Spain weather outlook October 13-16



An anticyclone begins to gain ground in Spain over the weekend, banishing the rain and raising temperatures

After several days marked by torrential rain and heavy storms that put half the country on alert, the good weather returns to Spain just in time for the weekend.

Thursday October 13

Some rain will still dampen the Mediterranean coast on Thursday, but in a much more scattered and isolated fashion. The rest of the country will experience high clouds or mostly clear skies, and possible morning mist and haze that will clear throughout the day.

The mercury will rise in practically all of Spain, touching 29C in parts of Andalucia

Friday October 14

The pocket of cold air along the Mediterranean will move towards the Canary Islands on Friday, pushing the temperatures on the mainland up again. It will be slightly cloudy or clear for the most part, with only scattered showers forecast in parts of northern Spain.

Daytime temperatures will rise almost across the board, more sharply in the eastern half of the country, and with few changes or slight drops in western Galicia. The minimums will also tend to rise in almost the entire northern half of the peninsula, falling a bit in Andalusia and the southeast coast.

Saturday October 15

Due to an oncoming Atlantic front, cloudy skies are expected in Galicia with weak and locally persistent rain in western and northern areas that will tend to intensify throughout the day. This may extend to other points in Galicia and Asturias in the evening. Saturday will be wet in the Canary Islands, particularly in Tenerife, while an afternoon shower cant be ruled out in the southeast of the country.

The mercury will experience another general increase in the east but drop slightly in the west, but the temperatures will also take a dip along the Mediterranean coast.

Sunday October 16

The Atlantic front will continue to effect Sunday, creating cloudy skies and bringing sometimes persistent rain to Galicia and the western Cantabrian Sea and its surroundings. In the rest of the country and the Balearic Islands, the cloudiness will increase and there is still a chance of scattered showers in the south.

The thermometers will drift upwards again during the day, not straying far from the mid to high 20s in most of the country, with Murcia hitting a sweltering 32C.

>>> Join our Facebook group for regular weather insights: Spain Weather Watch <<

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In the coming days, various remembrance events will take place. President Caputova is calling for action. Learn more in today's digest.

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Good evening. Here is the Thursday, October 13 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.

Two dead after a shooting at LGBT+ bar

Candles and flowers are placed at the site of Wednesday's attack on Zamocka Street on Thursday, October 13. (Source: TASR)

The shooting at the Teplaren LGBT+ bar in central Bratislava has left the community shaken. The gunman, a radicalised Bratislava student, killed two young men and injured one woman.

The police are not ruling out that the incident may have been a hate crime against the community, as the murdered men had been enjoying their evening in Teplaren before the tragedy occurred. The gunman was found dead in Thursday morning.

On social media, people cited an anonymous Twitter account where a 65-page anti-Semitic and anti-LGBT+ manifesto appeared a few hours before the shooting.

The LGBT+ community has been sounding alarm for a long time, warning about where the inciting of hatred by politicians, church leaders and others might lead society to.

Read more about the LGBT+ community in Slovakia:

More stories on Spectator.sk

If you like what we are doing and want to support good journalism, buy our online subscription. Thank you.

Opinion

If the attack on the visitors of a Bratislava gay bar is confirmed as motivated by hate, it would hardly come as a surprise.

This is bound to happen in a country where politicians turn some of its people into second-class citizens. Someone will load a gun and attack those who allegedly threaten their identity.

They will feel like they are acting on behalf of others, those overflowing with "legitimate" anger, writes Beata Balogova.

Suvisiaci clanok

Suvisiaci clanok What the murder of two LGBT+ people in Bratislava reminds us of Read more

Picture of the day

President Zuzana Caputova with Roman Samotny, owner of the LGBT+ bar where the Wednesday shooting took place.

Roman Samotny and President Zuzana Caputova the day after the murders in Teplaren. (Source: TASR)

In other news

In the coming days, various memorial events will take place in the cities of Bratislava, Banska Bystrica, Kosice and abroad. On Thursday starting at 18:00 at SNP Square in both Bratislava and Banska Bystrica, and Dolna Brana near St. Elisabeth's Cathedral in Kosice. Abroad, there will be a meeting in front the Permanent Representation of the Slovak Republic to the EU in Brussels at 19:00. Several memorial events will take place in the Czech Republic as well, one at 19:00 in Ostrava at Masarykovo Square and the other in Brno at 19:30 in front of the Consulate of Slovakia. On Friday, at 17:00 in Bratislava starting on Zamocka Street there will be a march to condemn hatred against LGBT+ people. Follow the link to the Facebook event page (in Slovak).

On Thursday starting at 18:00 at SNP Square in both Bratislava and Banska Bystrica, and Dolna Brana near St. Elisabeth's Cathedral in Kosice. Abroad, there will be a meeting in front the Permanent Representation of the Slovak Republic to the EU in Brussels at 19:00. Several memorial events will take place in the Czech Republic as well, one at 19:00 in Ostrava at Masarykovo Square and the other in Brno at 19:30 in front of the Consulate of Slovakia. On Friday, at 17:00 in Bratislava starting on Zamocka Street there will be a march to condemn hatred against LGBT+ people. Follow the link to the Facebook event page (in Slovak). If you are feeling psychologically bad, do not hesitate to find help. Members of the LGBT+ community can find help by visiting the websites of the inPoradna counselling service and the Prizma Kosice community centre. People can also contact the Nezabudka helpline on 0800 800 566, or the IPcko.sk internet helpline. If you need to talk, you can also contact The Slovak Spectator via editorial@spectator.sk.

Members of the LGBT+ community can find help by visiting the websites of the inPoradna counselling service and the Prizma Kosice community centre. People can also contact the Nezabudka helpline on 0800 800 566, or the IPcko.sk internet helpline. If you need to talk, you can also contact The Slovak Spectator via editorial@spectator.sk. The city of Bratislava condemns the shooting on Zamocka Street and all acts based on hatred, namely towards people with a different sexual orientation, gender identity and skin colour. Bratislava must be a city of tolerance, mutual acceptance and respect, stated the municipality on social media. "There is no place for hate. Rejecting hatred and being sensitive to its manifestations should be the task for each one of us," read the statement.

Bratislava must be a city of tolerance, mutual acceptance and respect, stated the municipality on social media. "There is no place for hate. Rejecting hatred and being sensitive to its manifestations should be the task for each one of us," read the statement. The police have not released more information from the investigation , the National Criminal Agency (NAKA), which deals with the most serious crimes, is handling the case.

, the National Criminal Agency (NAKA), which deals with the most serious crimes, is handling the case. Special Prosecutor Daniel Lipsic said that all public personalities should consider whether the escalation of passions against anyone could lead some individuals to action. Hate towards people of a different sexual orientation is the most probable motive of the murder, he said. General Prosecutor Maros Zilinka told the media that he fully identifies with the statement provided by Special Prosecutor Daniel Lipsic

Hate towards people of a different sexual orientation is the most probable motive of the murder, he said. General Prosecutor Maros Zilinka told the media that he fully identifies with the statement provided by Special Prosecutor Daniel Lipsic One victim was a student of the Faculty of Philosophy of Comenius University in Bratislava, stated the university on social media , expressing sincere condolences. The condolence book will be available in the vestibule of the historical building on Safarik Square.

, expressing sincere condolences. The condolence book will be available in the vestibule of the historical building on Safarik Square. Members of the government reject hatred and hateful behavior in society. The ministers also condemn the actions of the perpetrator and express their sincere condolences to the survivors.

The ministers also condemn the actions of the perpetrator and express their sincere condolences to the survivors. It is unacceptable for someone to lose their life only because they belong to the LGBT+ community, PM Eduard Heger (OLaNO) said during his press conference in the afternoon. He said that he will meet with the Slovak Information Service (SIS), which responds directly to him and which is in charge of monitoring hate speech on social networks, among other things. Heger said that if he finds that security units lack capacities to intervene against people who spread hate speech, he will attempt to strengthen their capacities.

He said that he will meet with the Slovak Information Service (SIS), which responds directly to him and which is in charge of monitoring hate speech on social networks, among other things. Heger said that if he finds that security units lack capacities to intervene against people who spread hate speech, he will attempt to strengthen their capacities. Heger confirmed during his press conference that the gunman took selfies in front of the block of flats where the prime minister lives with his family. The attacker, who was found dead and most likely committed suicide after the murders, mentioned attacks against politicians and NGOs in the manifesto he published online prior to the attack.

The attacker, who was found dead and most likely committed suicide after the murders, mentioned attacks against politicians and NGOs in the manifesto he published online prior to the attack. The Education Ministry is flying a black flag on Thursday, as a sign of mourning and respect for the victims.

If you have suggestions on how this news overview can be improved, you can reach us at editorial@spectator.sk.
Shahid El-Hafed, 13 October 2022 (SPS) - The Arab Coordination for Solidarity with the Sahrawi People hailed the attachment of the Sahrawi people to their right to dignity and freedom, on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the Declaration of National Unity on Western Sahara, celebrated by the Sahrawis on Wednesday.



The Arab Coordination for Solidarity with the Sahrawi People presented, Tuesday, its best wishes to the Sahrawi people, its state and the Polisario Front on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the Declaration of National Unity on Western Sahara, an occasion that proved the attachment of the Sahrawi people to its right to dignity and freedom, as well as to its legitimate and unique representative, the Polisario Front.



The Coordination reviewed, during a meeting, a series of points including the participation of the member of the Coordination and president of its office in the United States, Lediba Saeed in the general debate of the Fourth Committee of the UN (decolonization committee) where she made an intervention on the situation of the Sahrawi people who struggle for freedom and independence.



Created on February 24, 2022, the Arab Coordination of Solidarity with the Saharawi People is an NGO whose aim is to support the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination in accordance with international resolutions and UN charters. It is open to all Arab citizens wishing to join.



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https://sputniknews.com/20221012/angela-lansbury-dies-at-96-murder-she-wrote-star-rescued-her-family-from-charles-manson-1101785652.html

Angela Lansbury Dies at 96, Murder She Wrote Star Rescued Her Family From Charles Manson

Angela Lansbury Dies at 96, Murder She Wrote Star Rescued Her Family From Charles Manson

Dame Angela Lansbury, the award-winning actress, died at the age of 96 on Tuesday. Lansbury was a London-born actress who moved to the United States during the... 12.10.2022, Sputnik International

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angela lansbury

charles manson

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Lansbury died on Tuesday, just five days shy of her 97th birthday, in her Los Angeles home at 1:30 AM. Her children said in a statement that she died peacefully in her sleep. The actress is remembered for her various roles on screen and on stage, including the character of Nellie Lovett in the 1979 musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, for which she won a Tony. Over the course of her career spanning eight decades, Lansbury won six Golden Globes, five Tonys and a Laurence Olivier Award.But the actress lived quite a dramatic life off screen as well. Twice in her life she was made to flee a country she called home. In 1940, she moved to the United States in order to escape the Blitz. Then in the 1960s, Lansbury's teenage daughter Deidre Shaw became a cult member of the Charles Manson family."Manson, who died in 2017 at the California State Prison, Corcoran (COR), was a criminal and musician who led a cult called the Manson Family during the late 1960s. In 1971, he was convicted on seven counts of first-degree murder, including the murder of actress Sharon Tate."There were factions up in the hills above Malibu that were dedicated to deadly pursuits. It pains me to say it but, at one stage, Deidre was in with a crowd led by Charles Manson. She was one of many youngsters who knew him  and they were fascinated. He was an extraordinary character, charismatic in many ways, no question about it," said Lansbury in a 2014 interview with the Daily Mail, adding that both her daughter and her son, Anthony, had been using drugs at the time.In an effort to rescue her daughter from the sway of Manson, and to distance her children from the influences of Los Angeles, California in the late 1960s, she packed up her family and moved them to County Cork, Ireland in 1970. The actress told the Daily Mail that she chose Ireland because it was the birthplace of her mother and her children wouldnt be exposed to any more bad influences."Anthony pulled right out of his bad habits quite quickly. It took Deidre a little longer but she finally got married and she and her husband now live in Los Angeles, where they run their own Italian restaurant," the actress said in the 2014 interview.The iconic actress family wrote in a statement on Tuesday that she is survived by her three children Anthony, 70, Deirdre, and David, Lansburys stepson. She is also survived by three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, as well as her brother, the film and television producer Edgar Lansbury.

https://sputniknews.com/20171120/charles-manson-infamous-killer-death-1059255637.html

https://sputniknews.com/20221005/angelina-jolie-files-lawsuit-against-brad-pitt-over-violence-allegations-reports-say-1101528553.html

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angela lansbury, charles manson
https://sputniknews.com/20221012/labor-department-issues-new-rule-that-may-affect-ride-sharing-apps-other-contractors-1101785350.html

Labor Department Issues New Rule That May Affect Ride-Sharing Apps, Other Contractors

Labor Department Issues New Rule That May Affect Ride-Sharing Apps, Other Contractors

According to some estimates, Uber and Lyft save 20 to 30% on labor costs by classifying their drivers as contractors instead of employees. 12.10.2022, Sputnik International

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joe biden

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The Biden administration issued new standards for how companies should classify their workers on Tuesday. The change has the potential to affect millions of workers, especially in the so-called gig economy where workers who are essential to the business are often classified as independent contractors.The new Department of Labor rule would scrap a Trump-era rule that lessened the standards that allowed companies to classify their workers as contractors instead of employees. Contractors do not benefit from the same protections employees do, including minimum wage requirements and benefits like health insurance and sick days.After the news broke, Uber and Lyft saw their stock prices drop by 10% and 12%, respectively, despite both companies downplaying the effect the new rule will have on their business. In a statement on the matter, CR Wooters, the head of internal affairs at Uber, said that the new rule takes a measured approach, essentially returning us to the Obama era, during which our industry grew exponentially.The new standard is not a new law and does not reclassify any employees or directly name any companies or industries. Instead, it gives an interpretation of the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act that companies should follow. It says employers should look at six standards to determine if a worker can be classified as a contractor instead of an employee. They must consider if the workers are essential to the business, the degree of control the company has over the worker, if the work requires special skills, the degree and permanence of the relationship, and if the worker has to make an investment into the job, such as a car payment.The Trump-era rule didnt ask companies to consider if workers are essential to the business and instead required them to consider if the employee was part of integrated production, and gave more weight to other considerations like the workers ability to make a profit. The new rule weighs all considerations equally.In addition to drivers for app-based companies like Uber and DoorDash, the Labor Department says the new rule could affect port workers, custodians, truck drivers, waiters, construction workers, and more. The Biden administration argues that the new rules should prevent the pitfalls of contractor work, including a lack of benefits and stolen wages.It is unclear how much effect the new rule will have, however. It is unlikely to end the debate of what constitutes a contractor and what is an employee; companies could argue that workers fall into one of the six categories and determine whether they should be classified as contractors based on that.Additionally, workers are split on the benefits of employment versus contract work. In 2020, port truck drivers shut down the port of Oakland in protest to preserve their independent contractor status, while other truck drivers have fought to force their companies to recognize them as employees, according to the Associated Press.The rule is subject to a 45-day comment period. Following that, it may take months to implement.

https://sputniknews.com/20221012/biden-visits-colorado-following-establishment-of-new-us-national-monument-1101785020.html

https://sputniknews.com/20221006/biden-announces-pardon-of-thousands-of-federal-convictions-for-marijuana-possession-1101585829.html

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Ian DeMartino

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https://sputniknews.com/20221012/nasa-plans-another-attempt-at-first-artemis-i-flight-in-november-1101786407.html

NASA Plans Another Attempt at First Artemis I Flight in November

NASA Plans Another Attempt at First Artemis I Flight in November

After postponing its new moon rockets inaugural test flight several times, the US space agency NASA is prepared to try again, this time early on the morning... 12.10.2022, Sputnik International

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space launch system

nasa

astronomy

space flight

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The Space Launch Systems (SLS) test flight was originally slated to happen on August 29, but a faulty engine sensor went off and the launch was canceled. Another attempt on September 3 was also canceled after a significant hydrogen leak was found.In the time since, NASA has been able to inspect the rocket thoroughly, especially after wheeling it into the massive Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where NASA spacecraft are assembled for the launch pad. The 4.3-mile trek was made to protect the rocket from Hurricane Ian, a powerful storm that ravaged central Florida late last month.Teams will perform standard maintenance to repair minor damage to the foam and cork on the thermal protection system and recharge or replace batteries on the rocket, several secondary payloads, and the flight termination system, it added. The agency plans to roll the rocket back to the launch pad as early as Friday, Nov. 4.The November 14 launch window is 67 minutes long, and NASA has also requested backup windows on November 16 and November 19. If successful, the rocket will deploy the Orion spacecraft, which will orbit Earth for roughly 25.5 days before splashing back down in the Pacific Ocean. The flight will not be crewed.China has also developed plans for manned flights to the Moon, having begun exploring it with a series of new spacecraft and rovers in recent years.The Moon is believed to hold valuable scientific information about the formation of the Earth and the early solar system, as well as a treasure trove of rare minerals. Any future missions to Mars or other parts of the solar system are also likely to launch from a lunar base.

https://sputniknews.com/20220924/artemis-1-moon-mission-launch-postponed-for-3rd-time-over-poor-weather---nasa-1101182773.html

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Fantine Gardinier

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 Flash

Describing unilateral coercive measures as a "tumor of human society," a Chinese envoy on Wednesday urged the United States and some other Western countries to cancel their illegal and unreasonable sanctions immediately.

In fact, the unilateral sanctions by those countries under the pretext of human rights violate human rights in other nations, said Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

"Those Western countries must be held responsible and accountable for the systematic violation of human rights caused by their unilateral coercive measures," Dai said at the side event of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights.

Unilateral coercive measures violate the UN Charter and international law, the envoy said, noting that some countries even attempt to use those measures to suppress the legitimate governments of the countries concerned and instigate "color revolutions" for regime changes, which poses a severe threat to world peace and stability.

Some individual countries' abuse of sanction measures, like imposing trade bans, blocking financial investments and interfering with markets, is disrupting international economic, trade and technological cooperation. The sanctions gravely threaten global food, energy and financial security and pose livelihood difficulties for developing countries, even resulting in humanitarian disasters in some vulnerable nations, he said.

Unilateral sanctions also cause severe damage to the harmony and stability of international relations. Even basic requirements such as paying UN dues and attending UN meetings in the U.S. city of New York have been interrupted, Dai said, adding that such practices should be condemned.

"We urge the United States and some other Western countries to face squarely the international appeal for justice, and immediately cancel their unilateral coercive measures, so as to practice true multilateralism with concrete actions," Dai said.
https://sputniknews.com/20221012/us-examining-possible-removal-of-sanctions-on-venezuela-oil-sector---reports-1101782501.html

US Examining Possible Removal of Sanctions on Venezuela Oil Sector - Reports

US Examining Possible Removal of Sanctions on Venezuela Oil Sector - Reports

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The Biden administration may lift certain sanctions targeting Caracas oil exports as migration and energy challenges sharpen, The New... 12.10.2022, Sputnik International

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venezuela

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us sanctions on venezuela

oil

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Citing three sources familiar with the issue, the report said US President Joe Biden is being pushed by people in his administration to reshape the relationship with Caracas as the Venezuelan migrant influx is being increasingly felt at the southern border, and the worldwide energy crisis deepens.The sanctions relief would particularly target the Venezuelan petroleum sector, the main industry and source of revenue for the state, the report said, in the wake of OPEC's decision to reduce by 2 million barrels their production of oil.Although the idea of sanctions relief is being mulled by the Biden administration, it would only happen if Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, takes steps towards the restoration of democracy in the country, including by resuming talks with the opposition, the report added.Major oil producer, Chevron, would benefit from the sanctions relief targeting energy exports, as it is the only remaining US company producing oil in Venezuela.Venezuela, an oil rich South American State has been under the pressure of US sanctions for over a decade. In 2019, former President Donald Trump blacklisted PDVSA, the countrys state oil company, in a bid to topple Maduro by straining Caracas's cash-flow.

https://sputniknews.com/20221005/us-plans-to-ease-venezuela-sanctions-to-let-chevron-pump-oil-there-again---reports-1101553602.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221012/us-treasury-says-opened-probe-into-floridas-funding-of-migrant-flights-to-massachusetts-1101783223.html

US Treasury Says Opened Probe Into Floridas Funding of Migrant Flights to Massachusetts

US Treasury Says Opened Probe Into Floridas Funding of Migrant Flights to Massachusetts

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US Treasury Department opened a probe to determine whether the state of Florida improperly used federal funds to fly migrants to... 12.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-12T20:43+0000

2022-10-12T20:43+0000

2022-10-12T20:43+0000

americas

us

ron desantis

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migrants

us treasury department

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In September, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis flew a plane of approximately 50 migrants who illegally crossed the US-Mexico border to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts as part of a political statement on the Biden administrations approach to border control. Around the same time, the state of Texas sent busloads of migrants to Vice President Kamala Harris DC residence.The moves drew criticism from local residents and attention from national media, with experts telling Sputnik that the action was an effective political stuntTIG plans to begin work on the matter as quickly as possible, consistent with meeting other oversight mandates and priorities, Delmar added.Democratic US Senator Ed Markey, who was among the lawmakers to request the probe, praised TIGs response in a statement later on Wednesday.Marthas Vineyard, an island where former US President Barack Obama owns a mansion, was chosen as an end destination for the migrants due to its status as a so-called "sanctuary" location where immigration laws are selectively unenforced.

https://sputniknews.com/20220918/florida-authorities-paid-615000-for-migrants-to-be-transferred-to-marthas-vineyard-docs-reveal-1100915007.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/biden-tells-americans-not-to-worry-about-his-nuclear-armageddon-warning-1101786739.html

Biden Tells Americans Not to Worry About His "Nuclear Armageddon" Warning

Biden Tells Americans Not to Worry About His "Nuclear Armageddon" Warning

On todays episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events including Alex Jones ordered to pay the Sandy hook families nine hunderd... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T08:20+0000

2022-10-13T08:20+0000

2022-10-18T19:56+0000

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Biden Tells Americans Not to Worry about his "Nuclear Armageddon" Warning On todays episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events including Alex Jones ordered to pay the Sandy hook families nine hunderd sixty-five million in damages, and NATO preparing for nuclear drills.

Reese Everson - Author, Attorney, and Women's Rights Advocate | Expensive Handbags, Tulsi Gabbard Quits the Democrat Party, and The Need for More DebateTed Rall - Political Cartoonist, Syndicated Columnist | Protests in France Worked, Ralph Nader, and Polls Show America Wants the Funding for Ukraine StoppedIn the first hour, Lee spoke with Reese Everson about the close-minded Democrats, spiritual enlightenment, and using your talents to multiply. Reese discussed the problems with handouts from Democrats and what Tulsi Gabbard got correct in her exit from the Democrat party. Reese talked about her involvement in planned culture debate and how to help poor neighborhoods in urban America.In the second hour, Lee spoke with Ted Rall about the protestors in France, the Crimea bridge bombing, and US polls on America's support for Ukraine. Ted spoke about Tulsi Gabbard's announcement and what Tulsi's next political career move may be. Ted described the need for more political parties in America and how Bernie Sanders surrendered to the Clinton machine.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.com

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/eus-first-ever-overseas-aid-stockpile-to-be-based-in-latin-america---commission-1101824731.html

EU's First-Ever Overseas Aid Stockpile to Be Based in Latin America - Commission

EU's First-Ever Overseas Aid Stockpile to Be Based in Latin America - Commission

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The EU's first-ever regional humanitarian stockpile will be built in Panama City to provide residents of Latin America and the Caribbean... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T20:11+0000

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"Today, I am in Panama, albeit with a regional outlook, to express the EU's continued support to often forgotten and underfunded crises, set to aggravate even further with global impacts of the war in Ukraine. For this reason, we are releasing further funding and enhancing our response by opening the first EU regional humanitarian stockpile in Panama, a strategic point to efficiently deploy aid where it is most needed," Lenarcic said.According to the EU Commission, the funding will cover urgent humanitarian needs throughout the region, including those caused by the Venezuelan crisis, food insecurity, the consequences of natural disasters, transcontinental migration, as well as the consequences of widespread violence and forced displacement.The Latin American and Caribbean region is home to about 650 million people and it is one of the areas most prone to natural disasters in the world. The region is severely affected by violence, forced displacement and armed conflicts, which pose a significant threat to the populations of Colombia, Venezuela, Haiti, and Mexico. The EU has been providing humanitarian assistance to the region since 1995, having invested more than $1.6 billion.

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/fight-to-the-last-ukrainian-uk-france-vow-to-funnel-more-weapons-into-kiev-regime-1101797408.html

Fight to the Last Ukrainian? UK, France Vow to Funnel More Weapons Into Kiev Regime

Fight to the Last Ukrainian? UK, France Vow to Funnel More Weapons Into Kiev Regime

In a move expected to further escalate the Ukraine conflict as part of the so-called fight to the last Ukrainian paradigm, France and the United Kingdom have... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T11:01+0000

2022-10-13T11:01+0000

2022-10-13T11:02+0000

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The UK government said in a statement on Thursday that Britain will donate cutting-edge air defense missiles to Ukraine which can help protect against Russian missile strikes that Moscow launched in response to Kievs terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge last week. The strikes were conducted as Russia continues its special operation to "demilitarize and de-Nazify" Ukraine.British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, for his part, argued that Russias latest indiscriminate strikes on civilian areas in Ukraine warrant further support to those seeking to defend their nation. The strikes targeted Ukrainian infrastructure in the wake of the October 8 terrorist attack on Crimea's Kerch Strait Bridge. Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that Moscow targeted Ukrainian energy, military command, and communications facilities in different parts of Ukraine with high-precision weaponsWallace's statement came after French President Emmanuel Macron told the TV channel France2 on Wednesday that Paris is intensifying its military aid to Kiev following recent Russian airstrikes that hit Ukrainian infrastructure objects.He spoke as Russian Ambassador to Paris Alexei Meshkov told Sputnik that Moscow is keeping a watchful eye on Paris unfriendly steps regarding arms supplies to Ukraine.Meshkov stressed that Moscow opposes such deliveries because this contributes to the Ukraine conflict and results in more casualties, including among civilians. He added that he had raised the issue during talks at the French Foreign Ministry and that the Russian Foreign Ministry had summoned a French ambassador in Moscow.US, Germany Pledge More Military Hardware to Kiev The decisions by Britain and France to provide Ukraine with their air defenses were preceded by similar steps by the US and Germany last month. German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht announced that Berlin would send 50 Dingo armored vehicles and two more Mars multiple rocket launchers to Ukraine. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that President Joe Biden had approved additional military aid to Kiev worth up to $675 million. According to him, the package includes howitzers, artillery munitions, Humvees, armored ambulances, and anti-tank systems.Russia Warns West not to Provide Kiev With Arms Moscow has repeatedly warned the West against its arms supplies to Kiev, which the Kremlin says contributes to further escalating the Ukraine conflict. Russias Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov cautioned that any weapon, [and] any arms shipment on the Ukrainian territory" would be considered a legitimate target by the Russian military.Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu underlined that the Ukraine conflict had become another pretext for the US and its allies to unleash an economic and information war against Moscow in order to deplete it strategically. Ukraine has been picked [by the West] as an instrument of a hybrid war against Russia, Shoigu added, stressing that Western arms supplies to Kiev add to prolonging the Ukraine conflict and causing more casualties. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, for her part, accused Washington of losing touch with reality, adding that the US has actually become a party to the Ukraine conflict. She said that further evidence of this is the US Congress recently agreeing on the allocation of a new assistance package to the Kiev regime worth almost $12 billion. In last month's address to the nation, Russian President Vladimir Putin highlighted that the Wests current goal is to weaken, divide and ultimately destroy Russia. Putin referred to some irresponsible politicians in the West, who talk about plans to organize the supply of long-range offensive weapons to Ukraine, systems that are capable of launching strikes against Crimea and other regions of Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry warned that the Wests supplies of such weaponry to Kiev would become red lines for Moscow, which the ministry said had enough instruments to retaliate.To the Last Ukrainian?In late March, retired senior US diplomat Chas Freeman claimed that America is waging an undeclared war with Russia in Ukraine "to the last Ukrainian" in order to maintain its hegemony in the world.He claimed that everything the US is currently doing, "rather than accelerate an end to the fighting and some compromise, seems to be aimed at prolonging hostilities in Ukraine."We are engaged [] in a proxy war, and we're selling a lot of weapons. That makes arms manufacturers happy. We're supporting a valiant resistance, which gives politicians something to crow about. We're going against an officially designated enemy, Russia, which makes us feel vindicated. So, from the point of view of those with these self-interested views of the issue, this is a freebie, Freeman asserted.

https://sputniknews.com/20221011/russian-armed-forces-continue-massive-strikes-on-ukraine-energy-system--military-command---mod-1101715300.html

https://sputniknews.com/20221004/peace-in-ukraine-possible-if-biden-administration-halts-military-aid---ex-us-state-senator-1101483273.html

https://sputniknews.com/20220312/russia-could-resume-security-dialogue-with-us-if-washington-is-ready-deputy-fm-says-1093803083.html

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uk, us, france, germany, russia, military equipment, special operation, military aid
https://sputniknews.com/20221013/german-federal-prosecutors-take-over-rail-sabotage-probe-1101824053.html

German Federal Prosecutors Take Over Rail 'Sabotage' Probe

German Federal Prosecutors Take Over Rail 'Sabotage' Probe

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The German federal prosecutors office has taken over the investigation into last weeks failure of a rail communication system that... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T19:59+0000

2022-10-13T19:59+0000

2022-10-13T19:59+0000

world

europe

germany

rail

deutsche bahn

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A spokesperson for the federal authority in Karlsruhe told multiple German media on Thursday that the probe was being conducted on suspicion of "anticonstitutional sabotage."Actions that cause a public transportation service to cease to function, either in whole or partially, are punishable with a fine or a prison term of up to five years under the German criminal code.German rail operator Deutsche Bahn said on Saturday that a breakdown in the digital train radio system brought passenger and cargo trains in several states to a standstill. The company said later that severed cables pointed to an act of sabotage.

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/iraqi-parliament-elects-abdul-latif-rashid-as-countrys-president-1101820002.html

Iraqi Parliament Elects Abdul Latif Rashid as Country's President

Iraqi Parliament Elects Abdul Latif Rashid as Country's President

CAIRO (Sputnik) - The Iraqi parliament on Thursday by a majority vote elected 78-year-old Abdul Latif Rashid as the country's new president, according to the... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T15:53+0000

2022-10-13T15:53+0000

2022-10-13T15:53+0000

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The president was elected only on the fourth attempt in eight months.In the first round of elections at a meeting on Thursday, Rashid won 157 votes, incumbent Barham Salih  99. 277 parliamentarians took part in the meeting. In view of the fact that neither of candidates could get two-thirds of the votes, the second round was announced.In the second round, 269 deputies were present in the hall due to a boycott by one of the blocs. Rashid received 162 votes, Saleh - 99, state-run agency INA reported. Eight ballots were declared invalid.Rashid is 78 years old, he was an ardent opponent of Saddam Hussein's regime, from 2003 to 2010 he headed the Ministry of Water Resources, and since 2010 he has been a senior adviser to the Iraqi president. He is married with two sons and a daughter. Rashid speaks Arabic, Kurdish and English.

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/jpmorgan-chase-cuts-off-ye-west-here-are-the-three-worst-criminals-banks-have-worked-with-1101788695.html

JPMorgan Chase Cuts Off Ye West, Here Are The Three Worst Criminals Banks Have Worked With

JPMorgan Chase Cuts Off Ye West, Here Are The Three Worst Criminals Banks Have Worked With

According to a screenshot posted by conservative firebrand Candace Owens, Ye West, formerly known as Kanye West, has been banned from using JPMorgan Chase bank... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T03:39+0000

2022-10-13T03:39+0000

2022-10-13T03:39+0000

opinion & analysis

jp morgan chase

kanye west

banks

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It is unclear why the bank decided to end its relationship with West and Yeezy, LLC. Another individual was named in the letter but their identity is unknown because Owens blocked it out to protect their privacy.Ye has been at the center of several political controversies. He ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2020 and has been friendly with Donald Trump in recent years, often sporting a Make America Great Again hat in photos. More recently, he wore a White Lives Matter shirt to the Paris Fashion Week and suggested on Fox News Tucker Carlson's show that executives at clothing outlet the Gap may have known about the Uvalde Texas elementary school shooting before it happened.Despite Wests views oftentimes crossing over into the certifiably insane category, the blacklisting from banks for political or societal views, regardless of how distasteful and crazy those views may be, sets a terrible precedent for financial freedom and freedom of speech.It is true that banks can decide who they work with. However, they typically limit or shut down accounts they suspect of criminal activities, either through actions using the bank (money laundering) or if they are depositing money obtained through illegal activities.At least, that is how it is supposed to work, but banks around the world have shown a willingness, even eagerness, to work with the most unscrupulous criminals on the planet, ones who have done far worse than promote lunatic conspiracy theories.But before we get into individuals banks have been caught working with, it is worth pointing out that according to the FinCEN data leak, JPMorgan Chase, along with other bank giants like HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and Bank of New York Mellon, moved illicit cash for people and companies they suspected to be criminal, even after they reported them to financial authorities. The banks were using a strategy known as defensive reporting. Knowing that financial regulators are overwhelmed by thousands of suspicious activity reports (SARs), they simply reported suspicious accounts and then continued working with them, figuring action from financial regulators would not be forthcoming. If their activities were discovered, they could claim they did all they could by submitting the SAR.About half of the time, the banks had no information about the entities performing the transactions and they continued to process the transaction, and they continued to do so, even after being fined by US authorities for failing to end flows of illicit money.All told, from 1997 to 2017, the banks moved more than $2 trillion from accounts they deemed suspicious. JPMorgan Chases transactions accounted for $514 billion of that figure, and they transferred money for companies tied to the theft of public funds from Venezuela, Malaysia and Ukraine. Those transfers included illicit payments from former Ukrainian officials to Donald Trumps former campaign manager Paul J. Manafort Jr., who was later convicted of multiple felonies, including two counts of bank fraud and one count of failing to disclose a foreign bank account.But who else have major global banks worked with?1) HSBC: Mexican and Colombian Cartels, Including El ChapoAccording to court documents, HSBC admitted to failing to set up an effective anti-money laundering program, particularly with certain customers in Mexico. This led to the bank laundering at least $881 million in drug trafficking proceeds from the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico and the Norte del Valle Cartel in Colombia. Until his second arrest in 2016 and subsequent extradition to the United States, the infamous Joaquin El Chapo Guzman was the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel. More than 79,000 people have disappeared in Mexico since 2006, primarily due to cartel activities. Wachovia, now a part of Wells Fargo, was also accused of dealing with cartels in Mexico. They settled out of court.2) Deutsche Bank: Jeffery EpsteinIn 2020, Deutsche Bank was fined $150 million for its relationship with pedophile ring-runner Jeffery Epstein. Despite the fact that Epstein was already a convicted, registered sex offender, he managed to transact millions of dollars through the global bank. Deutsche Bank failed to monitor the transactions despite being aware of Epsteins history. Epstein died, an event ruled as a suicide by authorities, in a federal jail cell while awaiting trial for child sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit child sex trafficking charges. Earlier this year, his associate Ghislaine Maxwell was found guilty of helping Epstein find girls to traffic; she was sentenced to 20 years in prison.3) JPMorgan Chase: Nazis and the Third ReichJPMorgan and Chase Bank didnt merge until 2000, but that hardly matters for the purposes of this article because both took actions during World War II to aid the German governments war efforts and persecution of Jews. In the leadup and early days of the war, the German government issued Ruckwanderer Marks to American citizens of German descent. They were used to allow Nazi sympathizers to purchase German Marks at a discounted rate using dollars. These marks were taken from people, mainly Jews, who fled Germany as Hitler rose to power and antisemitism ran rampant in the country. Chase Bank facilitated those transactions and received commission on them. In addition, after President Franklin D. Roosevelt froze German assets in the country, Chase continued to work with the Nazi government and sent their assets to Germany through South America.After France fell to Germany, JPMorgan and Chase Bank continued to operate in occupied France, and they even froze the accounts of Jews in its Paris branch during the war.Despite knowing of these events thanks to a post-war congressional hearing that was not made public until 2004, Chase did not admit to working with the Nazis until 2000, more than fifty years after the hearings.Nazis, pedophiles, and cartels have had their activities facilitated by global banks, but an eccentric rapper with distasteful views is apparently a bridge too far for JPMorgan Chase.

https://sputniknews.com/20221013/kanye-accused-of-hate-speech-on-lebron-james-talk-show-and-gets-pulled-1101788181.html

https://sputniknews.com/20221010/kanye-wests-friends-worry-about-his-mental-health-according-to-reports-1101664180.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/moscow-wont-recognize-nord-stream-sabotage-probe-unless-russias-participation-allowed-1101799177.html

Moscow Won't Recognize Nord Stream Sabotage Probe Unless Russia's Participation Allowed

Moscow Won't Recognize Nord Stream Sabotage Probe Unless Russia's Participation Allowed

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Moscow will not recognize the results of the investigation into the sabotage at Nord Stream pipelines, if Russian experts are not allowed to... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T09:51+0000

2022-10-13T09:51+0000

2022-10-13T09:51+0000

nord stream sabotage

russia

nord stream pipeline

sweden

denmark

germany

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The ministry said that it had summoned the ambassadors of Germany, Denmark and Sweden to express bewilderment due to the lack of an official response to Moscow's appeal to the leadership of these countries regarding the involvement of representatives of the Russian authorities and Gazprom in the investigation conducted jointly by Berlin, Copenhagen and Stockholm.There was also information about the participation in the investigation of other countries, including the United States, the ministry added.If Russian experts are denied access to current investigative actions, Moscow will proceed from the fact that these countries "have something to hide" or they "cover the perpetrators of these terrorist acts".On September 26, the Nord Stream pipeline network suffered from explosions, resulting in a rapid pressure drop. Later in the day, Sweden and Denmark reported a massive leakage of gas under the Baltic Sea.Russia has been investigating the pipeline incidents as acts of international terrorism, while European Union officials also said that the pipeline was sabotaged. However, Sweden and Denmark, who are investigating the blasts, announced that they intend not to include Russia in the probe, which caused major concern in Moscow.

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/poles-apart-north-and-south-korea-take-opposite-sides-over-ukraine-1101780465.html

Poles Apart: North and South Korea Take Opposite Sides Over Ukraine

Poles Apart: North and South Korea Take Opposite Sides Over Ukraine

While Western media repeat uncorroborated intelligence claims that Russia is buying munitions from North Korea for its military operation in Ukraine, Seoul has... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T12:11+0000

2022-10-13T12:11+0000

2022-10-13T12:21+0000

democratic republic of north korea (dprk)

south korea

pyongyang

seoul

ukraine

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lugansk people's republic

donetsk people's republic

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North and South Korea have been divided since the Cold War  and now take diametrically-opposed stances on the conflict in Ukraine.The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was one of the first countries after Russia to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk Peoples' Republics (DPR and LPR)  prompting Kiev to sever diplomatic relations.It was one of just four members of the United Nations  along with fellow targets of Western sanctions Belarus, Nicaragua and Syria  to oppose the October 12 UN General Assembly motion which rejected the recent overwhelming votes by residents of the DPR and LPR and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions of Ukraine to become new regions of Russia.Dermot Hudson, chairman of the Korean Friendship Association (KFA) UK, told Sputnik that the two states on the Korean peninsula could not be further apart in their stance on the Russian special military operation in Ukraine.By contrast, the southern Republic of Korea (RoK) has sent tens of millions of US dollars' worth of aid to Kiev.Stoking the Fires of WarWestern governments and media have recently claimed Moscow is running out of munitions and buying more from China, Iran and the DPRK  which have long been export markets for the Russian arms industry.Hudson calls those stories "false", pointing to a September 22 statement by the vice director general of the General Bureau of Equipment of the DPRK Ministry of National Defence, who said: "We have never exported weapons or ammunition to Russia before and we will not plan to export them."Seoul, however, "has been very keen to give support to the Kiev regime," Hudson says. "So far it has given $40 million in aid to Ukraine, including some military aid, and is talking about sending an additional $50 million in aid to Ukraine under the guise of humanitarian assistance."A South Korean military spokesman stated earlier this year that "in view of our countrys international status and role, we will always cooperate with related countries and make efforts to hold our end up."South Korea is also helping eastern European NATO members arm Ukraine from their own armies' stocks by selling them replacement equipment  and making a tidy profit in the process.Poland is the most significant Western arms donor, sending at least 240 Soviet-designed T-72 tanks along with 72 155mm self-propelled howitzers, 40 BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles and scores of other heavy weapons. To replenish its severely-depleted arsenal, Warsaw has signed deals with Seoul for a thousand K2 Black Panther tanks and 836 K9 Thunder mobile howitzers.Ukraine is also receiving South Korean shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles via the Czech Republic.Boots on the GroundBut Seoul's support for Ukraine has also got up-close and personal, as volunteers for the so-called 'Foreign Legion' fighting alongside neo-Nazi battalions have reportedly arrived from the far east.Hudson says at least 13 South Korean military personnel are already fighting in Ukraine, ostensibly without the permission of authorities. "But that may well be plausible deniability," he says.One former South Korean special forces and navy officer, named as 'Ken Rhee' gave an interview to Ukrainian media, saying: "We fought against Russian tanks, armoured vehicles and soldiers in the central park of Irpin, which we were trying to liberate. And I'm happy to be part of two groups of liberators who eventually expelled the Russians."Since then, the mercenary's whereabouts have been unknown, and there is no word on whether legal authorities have charged him."The fact that so far Rhee has not been prosecuted implies that he was in Ukraine with the official blessing of the south Korean authorities," Hudson stresses.

https://sputniknews.com/20220624/pentagon-funded-news-site-running-psy-ops-against-north-korea-expert-says-1096623572.html

https://sputniknews.com/20221012/north-korea-launches-two-long-range-strategic-missiles--1101786854.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/political-hit-document-us-security-strategy-a-psychological-projection-of-problems-onto-rivals-1101822824.html

Political Hit Document: US Security Strategy a Psychological Projection of Problems Onto Rivals

Political Hit Document: US Security Strategy a Psychological Projection of Problems Onto Rivals

While US President Joe Biden has sought to differentiate his administration from that of his predecessor, Donald Trump, experts have pointed out the numerous... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T18:38+0000

2022-10-13T18:38+0000

2022-10-13T18:38+0000

opinion & analysis

us national security strategy

us-china relations

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When the Biden administration released its new National Security Strategy (NSS) earlier this week, it was roundly criticized by academics. The Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft called it strikingly schizophrenic, noting it bounces between pledges to lead global cooperation and declarations that the world is divided into intractable rivalries.It was the first such document to be issued since 2017, when the Trump administration first said it saw great power competition, not international terrorism, as the US primary strategic challenge and focus. While Bidens NSS affirms that conclusion, it also says the US will avoid the temptation to view the world solely through a competitive lens, and engage countries on their own terms.Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official, told Sputnik on Thursday that theres just such an enormous disconnect between reality and whats reflected in the White House document.[T]hey make a series of assertions about Russia, for example, that Russia is an imperialist power. Well, anybody that has certainly looked at the history of the last 30 years would note that the only country that has been invading other countries, the only country that has been sending its military forces to try to force its will on other countries has been the United States, not Russia. Yet the Biden administration declares that Russia is an imperialist power. It declares that Russia invaded the Donbass in 2014, which is just an absolute lie. It's actually not true.Johnson said the US has no consistent theory or strategy guiding its actions, it is simply trying to bully others. And if you don't do what the United States wants, they're going to threaten you with sanctions and try to hurt you. But a growing number of countries are telling the US nyet.We saw that with respect to OPEC. The United States was pressuring Saudi Arabia and really trying to get the Saudis to interfere in the US domestic election by withholding price increases until after the elections. Well, the Saudis said, no, we're going to act in our own best economic interests. And for that, then, the United States is now threatening to cut off weapon supplies and aid to the Saudis.Rather, Johnson said the NSS is designed entirely to provoke fear, which the US leadership feels will be adequate to rally support. He noted the repeatedly invoked threat of nuclear Armageddon, and how such tensions lead to funneling money to the major defense contractors.The US especially cannot afford the kind of competition with China that the NSS lays out. Noting that the US has already grossly overextended itself, Johnson compared the situation to the Soviet war in Afghanistan, in which the expenses of war played a significant role in leading to the breakup of the country in 1991.The United States is now facing some real headwinds, some real problems economically. And it is no longer in a position as it was back in, say, 1940-41, where it had a unique industrial power, it was self-sufficient. It could manufacture. It didn't necessarily depend upon foreign exports. That's no longer the case. So, the United States is dependent in many respects on China for essential minerals and essential products and everything up to and including computer chips. So, when you're dependent upon somebody like that, you're not able to act independently of them.Dr Matthew Crosston, Professor of National Security and Director of Academic Transformation at Bowie State University, told Sputnik that the NSS haphazard construction is simply a reflection of what happens when you try to pin long-term strategy to a present-day, ever-changing conflict in another land.The only thing that remains constant, in my opinion, in any version of the NSS is that the main threats needing to be deterred are China and Russia. Details will be to be determined, which also increases the sense of schizophrenia. America is happy because it feels it finally has its enemies well-defined, but it is unhappy because it is still a bit confused as to how to deal with these new categorizations, he said.However, Crosston didnt agree that the NSS was as contradictory as it seems at first glance.That said, he noted that such documents, and the political rhetoric they parallel, is more aimed at the US domestic audience and nervous US allies than it is for relevant political actors in Moscow.The biggest opportunity that Crosston saw was for Moscow to grow closer to Beijing - something Washington clearly hopes to avoid, as the NSS disjointed labels for Russia and China shows.If Russia really wants to upset America and make America uncomfortable and unable to act internationally with impunity (this is the common criticism Russia levels against the United States), then it needs to do everything and anything it can to solidify and unify its relationship with China, operating on an axis that is founded [on] limiting American power.

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/russia-can-export-gas-to-persian-gulf-via-iran-iranian-official-says-1101802245.html

Russia Can Export Gas to Persian Gulf Via Iran, Iranian Official Says

Russia Can Export Gas to Persian Gulf Via Iran, Iranian Official Says

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia can export its gas via the Iranian territory to customers in the Persian Gulf countries, Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Ahmad Asadzadeh... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T10:39+0000

2022-10-13T10:39+0000

2022-10-13T10:39+0000

russia

russia

iran

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There is a good opportunity. in order to transport Russian gas and oil through the territory of Iran, there are buyers in the countries ... of the Persian Gulf," Asadzadeh told reporters at Russian Energy Week.The official added that Iran and Gazprom had created a roadmap for cooperation on gas fields."After this situation that happened between Russia and Ukraine, at the moment our cooperation with Russia has begun to expand more and more ... Iran has also been under the sanctions regime for a long time, so Russia and Iran now understand each other more and strengthen relations," Asadzadeh said.

https://sputniknews.com/20221012/ankara-says-putins-idea-of-creating-gas-hub-in-turkey-technically-possible-1101764265.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/russian-african-energy-sector-cooperation-continues-despite-western-sanctions-1101793135.html

Russian-African Energy Sector Cooperation Continues Despite Western Sanctions

Russian-African Energy Sector Cooperation Continues Despite Western Sanctions

From October 12 to 14, Moscow hosts Russian Energy Week, which brings together authorities, businessmen and experts from all over the world to discuss key... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T10:11+0000

2022-10-13T10:11+0000

2022-10-13T10:11+0000

africa

africa

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russian energy week

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"Rosgeo", a Russian state holding company which owns the geological exploration enterprises of the Russian Federation, is negotiating several oil and solid minerals contracts with African countries, in particular with Sudan and Algeria, the head of the company Sergey Gorkov told Sputnik on the sidelines of the forum.The head of Rosgeo pointed out that in the case of Algeria, the creation of mineral maps is under discussion, and as for Sudan, not only mapping, but also more regional geological explorations are underway. Last year, the company signed a contract for gold prospecting and the creation of a geological map with Sudan. It also signed contracts with the Central African Republic and Angola.This April, Gorkov noted that Rosgeo has no intention to downsize its activities in foreign markets despite the political situation and sanctions against Russia, and that he personally sees good prospects for collaboration with Asia and Africa.In late February, Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in response to the Donbass republics asking for protection from Ukrainian attacks. Following that, Western countries issued sanctions against Russia and a slew of Western companies left the Russian market. Energy companies were among the exodus, and halted cooperation with Russian state-controlled energy giants, such as Rosneft and Gazprom, terminating contracts or leaving the market entirely. However, the sanctions only led to higher fuel prices, causing the cost of living in Western countries to soar, while Russia has moved to cooperate with other nations.Energy Cooperation to Be Among Key Topics at the 2023 Russia-Africa SummitCooperation between Russia and Africa in the energy sector will be one of the key issues at the Russia-Africa summit in 2023, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian foreign ministry Oleg Ozerov told Sputnik on the sidelines of the same event. The diplomat noted that Russia is capable of building oil refineries - small, medium and large. However, there is a need for discussion before Russia can start the development of refining capacities in African countries, as well as the need for favorable conditions for Russian investments.The second Russia-Africa summit is scheduled for the summer of 2023. The first Russia-Africa summit was held in 2019 in Sochi with the participation of the heads of most African states.

https://sputniknews.com/20221012/russia-african-partners-to-prepare-new-cooperation-schemes-for-2nd-summit-russian-diplomat-says-1101779147.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/russian-scientists-create-fast-acting-drugs-to-protect-body--1101810697.html

Russian Scientists Create Fast-Acting Drugs to Protect Body

Russian Scientists Create Fast-Acting Drugs to Protect Body

Scientists believe that the medication can significantly increase the body's endurance and help it fight viruses. 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T12:36+0000

2022-10-13T12:36+0000

2022-10-13T12:36+0000

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Scientists from the Volgograd State Technical University (VolgSTU) have created potential synthetic immediate-action actoprotectors: substances that increase the body's resistance to extreme environmental factors. The resulting compounds are highly likely to have a direct antiviral effect, the universitys press service noted.Moreover, hepatotoxic properties in these substances are less pronounced than the known structural analogs, researchers stressed. Hepatotoxic properties generate the potential for liver disease.One of specialists tasks now is to create compounds with useful effects of known actoprotectors, but with low acute and chronic toxicity.The scientist added that the synthesized compounds belong to the class of (het)arylamines monoterpenoid ketones of framework structure. In the future, the university expects to obtain a whole "library" of substances with valuable properties. The leading compounds among them have a good chance of becoming a promising active ingredient of the original domestic drugs with actoprotective effect and/or antiviral action, researchers noted.He further noted that pharmacological studies of actoprotective properties of target substances in vivo (inside a living organism) are carried out in the Research Center of Innovative Medicines with Pilot Production at Volgograd State Medical University.The scientist pointed out that the scope of application of the compounds is not limited to medicine. Individual intermediates of the synthesis of the target substances can be used as new functional additives for rubbers used under extreme conditions, as well as compositions for 3D printing.This study was supported by the Russian Science Foundation and the regional administration within the project "Terpenoid Ketone Anilines and Their Restoration Products as Promising Materials for Medical and Industrial Needs."The research is part of the VolgSTU strategic project within the framework of the "Priority 2030" program.The university development program includes four strategic projects, including the "Center for Digital Scientific and Educational Projects and Developments" and "Technologies for Industrial Innovation Cluster".

https://sputniknews.com/20221011/russian-scientists-make-breakthrough-in-using-robotics-to-help-the-paralyzed-1101723342.html

https://sputniknews.com/20220915/russian-scientists-whip-up-new-anti-bacterial-hydrogel-out-of-whey-protein-1100799008.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/us-defense-secretary-hints-at-shortage-of-weapons-for-immediate-supplies-to-ukraine-1101801592.html

US Defense Secretary Hints at Shortage of Weapons for Immediate Supplies to Ukraine

US Defense Secretary Hints at Shortage of Weapons for Immediate Supplies to Ukraine

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hinted that the West cannot quickly provide Ukraine with air defense systems due to shortage of weapons... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T10:30+0000

2022-10-13T10:30+0000

2022-10-13T10:30+0000

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"Well certainly it is not a question of lack of will," Austin said on Wednesday, when asked whether the reason for limited supplies lies in the lack of will or the lack of necessary weapons.The British broadcaster Sky News reported on Thursday, citing a senior diplomat, that the shortage of air defense systems was the key factor limiting the ability of Western countries to meet to Ukraines weapon needs.NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said prior to the sixth Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, that the focus of arms deliveries to Ukraine will now shift to air defense systems.On February 24, Russia began a military operation in Ukraine responding to calls for help from the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. Western countries responded by imposing comprehensive sanctions against Moscow while also ramping up their military support for Kiev.In April, Russia sent a note to NATO member states condemning their military assistance to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that any arms shipments on the Ukrainian territory would be "legitimate targets" for Russian forces.

https://sputniknews.com/20220828/german-foreign-minister-says-berlin-wants-to-help-ukraine-but-is-out-of-weapons--1100090045.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/us-jury-orders-alex-jones-to-pay-965mln-to-victims-of-sandy-hook-school-shooting-1101782622.html

US Jury Orders Alex Jones to Pay $965Mln to Victims of Sandy Hook School Shooting

US Jury Orders Alex Jones to Pay $965Mln to Victims of Sandy Hook School Shooting

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A US jury in the state of Connecticut on Wednesday ordered Infowars host and creator Alex Jones to pay $965 million to the families of... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T03:17+0000

2022-10-13T03:17+0000

2022-10-13T03:17+0000

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Jones in a live online broadcast during the jury's reading of the verdict laughed and said the victims would not be getting any of the money he was ordered to pay.The "InfoWars" host was found guilty of defaming 15 plaintiffs who family members of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting during which 28 people died, 20 of which were between the ages of six and seven years old. Jones had made claims in his far-right radio show that the shooting didn't happen, and that grieving parents were "actors" who were hired in a gun-control conspiracy. The plaintiffs included family members of the shooting victims, as well as a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who was one of the first people to respond to the scene. Though the plaintiffs were awarded millions of dollars by a Texas jury, one parent named Robbie Parker said he was proud that through the defamation trial they were able to "simply tell the truth." Parker lost his 6-year-old daughter Emilie in the Sandy Hook shooting. The jury awarded Parker, who had to move across the country to escape abuse and harassment following the shooting, $120 million.Mark Barden, the father of a slain seven-year-old child, added that conspiracy theorists urinated on the grave of his dead child, and threatened to dig up the coffin. Jones, who will have to find some way to cough up nearly $1 billion in damages to the plaintiffs, decided to use the same tactic which landed him in court in the first place: conspiracy theories. Jones mocked the trial, calling it a "kangaroo court" and claimed the trial was a Democratic-run conspiracy making an effort to silence him.Ive already said Im sorry hundreds of times, and Im done saying Im sorry, he told the jury. Jones alleged he cannot pay damages over $2 million as his lawyers will work to try and reduce the damages. An economist testified that Jones and his company InfoWars, which increased its revenue after it began making Sandy Hook shooting conspiracy theories, is worth about $270 million.

https://sputniknews.com/20220806/us-jury-orders-alex-jones-to-pay-452mln-over-sandy-hook-hoax-claims-1098290377.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/us-ready-to-glorify-nazism-in-maniacal-desire-to-denigrate-and-abolish-russia-ambassador-antonov-1101822196.html

US Ready to Glorify Nazism in Maniacal Desire to 'Denigrate and Abolish' Russia: Ambassador Antonov

US Ready to Glorify Nazism in Maniacal Desire to 'Denigrate and Abolish' Russia: Ambassador Antonov

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States seems willing to glorify Nazism in its maniacal desire to denigrate and abolish Russia, Russian Ambassador to the... 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T17:36+0000

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2022-10-13T17:36+0000

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"We have seen media reports of meetings between militants of the Azov battalion with students from leading US universities. Representatives of a neo-Nazi paramilitary organization spoke to the students at Stanford University," Antonov said. "One gets the impression that in the maniacal desire to 'denigrate and abolish' Russia, the United States is even ready to glorify Nazism, against which the peoples of our countries fought heroically during World War II."Earlier in the month, the Azov militants participated at a Stanford University event that was attended by former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul. Last month a delegation of Azov militants met with several US lawmakers and officials in Washington."There is no doubt what ideas Ukrainian terrorists, whose hands are 'elbow-deep in blood' from the killing of civilians, are promoting to young people. Let us remember the martyrs of Odessa, who were burned alive in the House of Trade Unions in May 2014. Old people, women and children of Donbas, who died from ruthless shelling and barbaric strikes of neo-Nazis," Antonov said. "The mentioned structure professes misanthropic and fascist ideology. The West is well aware of this. The official symbol of "Azov" is the sign of one of the SS divisions of Nazi Germany."Antonov said forgotten is the Soviet-American brotherhood during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, "when our grandfathers died from the hands of the Nazis, blood was shed for a future without Nazism.""Is it really for the sake of victory over Russia on the battlefield that the Americans will stand in line with the fascist thugs from the Azov battalion and will defend the Nazi ideology?" Antonov said.In August 2022, Russias Supreme Court designated Azov as a terrorist organization. According to the Russian prosecutor generals office, Azov militants use prohibited means and methods of warfare and are complicit in torture of civilians and killings of children.

https://sputniknews.com/20220927/us-rep-pete-sessions-says-he-did-not-know-he-met-with-azov-militants-on-capitol-hill-1101287034.html

https://sputniknews.com/20220228/belligerent-rhetoric--ss-style-regalia-who-are-right-sector-and-neo-nazi-azov-1093451807.html

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https://sputniknews.com/20221013/zelensky-wants-intl-observers-africa-refuses-to-support-ukraine-eu-ignores-us-pipeline-attack-1101786014.html

Zelensky Wants Int'l Observers; Africa Refuses to Support Ukraine; EU Ignores US Pipeline Attack

Zelensky Wants Int'l Observers; Africa Refuses to Support Ukraine; EU Ignores US Pipeline Attack

The EU continues to ignore the overwhelming evidence that the US was responsible for the terrorist attack on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. 13.10.2022, Sputnik International

2022-10-13T08:27+0000

2022-10-13T08:27+0000

2022-10-13T08:27+0000

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julian assange

haiti

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ukraine

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Zelensky Wants Int'l Observers; Africa Refuses to Support Ukraine; EU Ignores US Pipeline Attack The EU continues to ignore the overwhelming evidence that the US was responsible for the terrorist attack on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Robert Fantina, journalist and Palestine activist, joins us to discuss the attack on the Nord Stream pipeline complex. The US media has an intellectual "no-fly" zone on discussing the perpetrator of the Nord Stream pipelines. Also, a leak has been found on another critical European energy pipeline.George Koo, journalist, social activist, international business consultant, and chemical engineer, joins us to discuss China. President Xi will soon start his third term after successfully guiding China out of poverty and into the mainstream of global power. Also, Taiwan denies a US plan to destroy its chip facilities in case of an invasion from Beijing.Prof. Nicolai Petro, Professor of Political Science at the University of Rhode Island, specializing in Ukraine and Russia, joins us to discuss Ukraine. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky requests "international forces" to cover a particular area of his country. Many interpret his request as a way to bring NATO troops into the conflict. Also, President Biden is warning the Ukrainians against acting ungrateful to allies who provide weapons.Dr. Jemima Pierre, Associate Professor of Black Studies and Anthropology at the University of California, Los Angeles, a member of the Black Alliance for Peace, and an editor of the "Black Agenda Review" segment of the Black Agenda Report, joins us to discuss Haiti. The Washington Post is pushing for military intervention in Haiti, arguing that US troops will bring democracy to the Island nation. Also, a number of cholera cases have shown up amongst that nation's poor citizens.Dr. Gerald Horne, Professor of History at the University of Houston, TX, author, historian, and researcher, joins us to discuss Africa. African leaders have made it clear that they will not betray the economic needs of their citizens to support Ukraine. Also, the US is still making enemies by sanctioning nations in the horn of Africa.Dan Lazare, Investigative Journalist, Author of America's Undeclared War, joins us to discuss the economy. A major rail strike is still possible in the US due to a recent rejection of a White House-sponsored proposal. Also, French authorities threaten to step in and force workers to return to duty.Nick Davies, peace activist and author of Blood on Our Hands, the American Invasion of Iraq, joins us to discuss US foreign policy. President Biden's broken promise to avoid war with Russia has put the world on the edge of extinction.Dr. Margaret Flowers, Co-editor of Popular Resistance, joins us to discuss Julian Assange. Chris Hedges has published her recent speech at a Washington, DC, rally for the release of Julian Assange. He argues that the proceedings against Assange are lawfare and in no way related to the faux legal procedures that appear to be in operation.We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.comThe views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of Sputnik

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To get a horse to the MGM Yonkers International Trot has been on Jens Glud Hansens radar for several years. He never thought Swedish-born stallion Kennedy would be the one to fulfill that goal.

Hansen purchased Kennedy, who will be driven by Jason Bartlett in Saturdays $1 million International Trot at Yonkers Raceway, for 30,000 euros in an internet auction toward the end of last October. Since then, the Erik Bondo trainee has won seven of 12 races and earned more than $200,000.

The seven-year-old son of Joke Face-Lisa America will start from post nine in the second tier of Saturdays 10-horse invitational field that will go the distance of 1-1/4 miles. He is 8-1 on the morning line.

In our wildest imagination we didnt think that within a year after we bought him we would be here, said Hansen, a resident of Denmark who competes as Panamera Racing, which includes his wife, Jeanette. To be here within a year, its mission impossible.

Hes been fantastic. Its been an amazing ride. We have been inside the harness industry for 30 years and we have around 50 horses. We have participated in Group 1 and Group 2 races before, but this race, we have been talking about it for years. I think its amazing to be here. The trip, all the social events, its the top of the cake.

In addition to owning horses, Hansen is an astute horseplayer who has hit large jackpot payoffs in Europe. He joked the reason he bought Kennedy was because he never had success betting on the trotter.

I wagered so much money on him because I liked him so much and he never won, Hansen said, adding with a laugh, So, I said if I buy him, I will stop betting on him. It would be cheaper.

It paid off.

For his career, Kennedy has won 13 of 62 races and earned $353,492. Hansen thinks Kennedy, who has raced on 1,000-meter tracks in France, will adjust well to the half-mile oval at Yonkers.

Hes a big horse, but hes an easy trotter, so I dont think it will be any issue for him, said Hansen, who shares ownership of Kennedy with Egebro Racing, also of Denmark. Its not an advantage, but I think there are some other horses in this race that would find it harder on 800-meter tracks than he would.

Hes such a nice stallion. Hes got a good temper. The last two or three races hes been meeting the top guys. Were looking forward to participating here.

And Bartlett, who is the leading driver at Yonkers, is looking forward to it as well.

I hear hes a strong horse, so a mile-and-a-quarter is going to be good, Bartlett said. On paper, [post nine] looks like a good spot.

But you dont really know your competition. Thats a big part of your driving strategy, going into the race and kind of knowing the horses. This race, there are so many different things that can happen, with it being a mile-and-a-quarter and horses never being on a half before or coming to Yonkers and thinking they can be [outside] the whole way.

Going into that race, I dont really think you can have a plan. You just kind of read and react and see how the race is unfolding while its happening. Knowing the track, I guess thats my advantage.

Bartlett will be driving in the International Trot for the second time. In 2018, he finished third with Frances Up And Quick at odds of 10-1. The race was won in upset fashion by Cruzado Dela Noche.

If I get out sooner, I think its a different outcome, said Bartlett. But it was a pleasant surprise to finish third.

As for this year, Bartlett is thankful for the opportunity to drive in the event again.

Its my home track and its the biggest race we put on, said Bartlett. Its great to be a part of that.

Frances Etonnant is the 5-2 morning-line favourite in the International Trot.

The following is the field for the International Trot, with ] denoting a second-tier starter.

$1 million Yonkers International Trot

Post - Horse (Country Represented) - Driver - Trainer - Morning Line

1. Tycoon Conway Hall (Denmark) - Kasper Foget - Flemming Jensen - 4-1

2. Lovedbythemasses (Canada) - Todd McCarthy - Jeff Cullipher - 10-1

3. Cokstile (Norway) - Vincenzo DellAnnunziata - Mattia Orlando - 5-1

4. Stoletheshow (Norway) - Frode Hamre - Frode Hamre - 8-1

5. Ecurie D (Denmark) - Ake Svanstedt - Ake Svanstedt - 3-1

6. Back Of The Neck (USA) - Tim Tetrick - Ake Svanstedt - 7-2

7. Etonnant (France) - Anthony Barrier - Richard Westerink - 5-2

8. Its Academic (USA) - David Miller - Ron Burke - 12-1

9.] Kennedy (Sweden) - Jason Bartlett - Erik Bondo - 8-1

10.] Zacon Gio (Italy) - Roberto Vecchione - Holger Ehlert - 9-2

Racing begins at 12:30 p.m. (EDT). There also will be two $250,000 invitationals  the MGM Aria Pace and MGM Robert Miecuna Trot  on the International Trot Day card. Both will go with 10-horse fields and be raced at the distance of 1-1/4 miles.

(With files from USTA; Photo of Kennedy with groom Vikki Niiniketo by Mike Lizzi)
The Rappahannock-Rapidan Regional Commission is pleased to announce Culpeper Police Chief Chris Jenkins will receive its 2022 Regional Leadership Award.

Rappahannock County citizen volunteer Hal Hunter will join Jenkins in receiving the honor during the commissions annual meeting at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26, at Mount Vernon Farm in Sperryville.

Both men are well-deserving government and citizen representatives of the region, the commission said in a statement.

Virginia Secretary of Agriculture & Forestry Matthew Lohr will be keynote speaker for the annual meeting of the regional planning group representing Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange, Madison and Rappahannock counties.

Secretary Lohr was raised in the Shenandoah Valley and has a long and distinguished career in public service, including two terms in the House of Delegates, as commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and as chief of the the U.S. Department of Agricultures Natural Resources Conservation Services. He is a fifth-generation farmer and advocate for agriculture and rural America.

The annual meeting will be held in indoors, but in the open air. Please dress for comfort based on temperature forecasts.

Get tickets for $20 at rrregion.org by Oct. 19, and $30 thereafter. For offline registration or to pay by cash, check, invoice, or any questions, contact 540-829-7450.
Eighty years ago, the Nebraska State Historical Society known today as History Nebraska  was faced with a unique problem. Their offices and collections were scattered across several buildings on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus.

At the time, they were looking to fund a building so that the collections and offices could be in one central location, said Leslie Fattig, executive director of the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation (NSHSF).

Three Lincoln businessmen banded together in an effort to meet this need, forming the NSHSF. The foundation was instrumental in raising the funds to relocate History Nebraskas artifacts, but they didnt stop there.

The NSHSF just celebrated its 80th anniversary on Sept. 25. After eight decades, the foundation is still finding new ways to support the preservation of Nebraskas history and geography.

One of the new programs the NSHSF introduced within the last few years was its Statewide Grants Program.

The Statewide Grants Program was launched last year, and it benefits local historical societies, museums, and libraries, said Fattig.

According to Fattig, nearly every small town in Nebraska has one of these organizations  most of which are run entirely by volunteers  that is in need of financial support for training, funding programs, and upgrading their facilities.

In 2022, the NSHSF dispersed $25,000 in grants to 30 projects across the state of Nebraska, including three in the Panhandle: the Chadron Public Library, Crawford Historical Museum, and Kimball Public Library.

The Statewide Grants Program inspired another initiative called WanderNebraska, which is similar to the Nebraska Passport program funded by Nebraska Tourism.

WanderNebraska is a travel program for visitors to the state, and the people that have been awarded Statewide Grants are on the list, said Fattig.

The sites chosen for WanderNebraska in 2022 were recipients of Statewide Grants in 2021. Panhandle locations include the Legacy of the Plains Museum in Gering, the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron, and the Bayard Depot Museum in Bayard.

Rewards are available for visiting enough of the WanderNebraska sites throughout the year, including Nebraska Lottery scratch tickets, WanderNebraska T-shirts, and a book by historian Jeff Barnes.

NSHSF is also introducing a new initiative in conjunction with their 80th anniversary called, Walk to the Rock, which Fattig said has been in the works for many years.

The focus of Walk to the Rock is the construction of hiking trails, ranging in length from 0.20 mile to 1.76 mile, and two bridges spanning ravines at Chimney Rock in Bayard allowing visitors to get a closer view of the landmark while preserving the landscape for future generations.

Construction on the project will be completed by Paul Reed Construction, a Gering company, based on plans by Director of Planning and Engineering Ben Ryschon.

This project was made possible by NSHSFs acquisition of the land between the Ethel S. and Christopher J. Abbott Visitor Center and Chimney Rock itself in 2020.

During this process, the sellers, the Howard family, shared that theyd always wanted to establish a trail opportunity on the land.

We kept that in mind and decided that we were going to launch a trail out there, said Fattig. And then COVID hit.

The Chimney Rock project was put on hold for two years due to the pandemic, but that plan is now set to become a reality.

Fattig said the NSHSF thought Chimney Rock was very deserving of infrastructure that helps highlight its iconic status as a historic landmark.

Its the sight that the people on the trails  California, Oregon, Mormon trails  wrote about the most, explained Fattig. Because of its iconic place in our history, we thought it right to make it our 1942 project.

Walk to the Rock will be the NSHSFs first 1942 project, but they plan to select a new project worthy of that honor annually.

The project at Chimney Rock seeks to combine several benefits for visitors to enjoy all at once.

For us to not only furnish a recreational component and an educational component, it also allows us to preserve the native habitat in the key area of the North Platte River Valley, said Fattig.

The trails at Chimney Rock are projected to open in late summer of 2023.
Tickets are available for West Nebraska Arts Centers annual fundraiser Boos and Brews: Dia De los Muertos. This is an adults-only Halloween beer tasting celebration that will be held Friday, Oct. 28, from 7 to 10 p.m. at Hotel 21 & Co., 2605 North 10th St. in Gering.

Halloween costumes, especially Day of the Dead, are encouraged, but not required. Prizes will be awarded. There will also be dessert and basket auctions.

Funds from the fundraiser will help WNAC with building repair projects such as main gallery remodeling expenses, monthly maintenance, programming and more.

This event is sponsored by John and Rita Stinner, Hotel 21 & Co., Bob and Sue Van Newkirk, Christian and Stacy Bach, Leslie Jordan, Martin Vargas, Mary Garwood, Brenda Trumbull, Laura Clark, Marv Richard, Patti Gillen.

Tickets can be purchased at the door, online or at WNAC. The 2022 Boos and Brews fundraiser is an adults-only event. No one under the age of 21 will be admitted and identification will be required. For more information, visit www.thewnac.com, visit the office, or call 308-632-2226. Cost is $25 for members of WNAC and $30 regular price.
Three stolen vehicles were recovered and a Statesville man, who lived nearby was charged, Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said.

Scotty Eugene Shoemaker, 54, of Shoemaker Farm Road, Statesville, was charged with three counts of felony larceny of a stolen vehicle. A magistrate set bond at $97,500.

Campbell said in a news release that on Friday, Deputy Robert Ball was investigating a report of the theft of three vehicles from a residence in the 200 block of Shoemaker Farm Road. Ball, Campbell said, saw drag marks from where one of the vehicles had been sitting leading out of the driveway and onto the road.

Ball followed the marks to a residence in the 100 block of Shoemaker Farm Road and saw a yellow Chevrolet car matching the description of one of the stolen vehicles sitting in the driveway, Campbell said. Sgt. Will Goforth noticed a Chevrolet truck in the backyard, Campbell said.

Ball and Goforth spoke to Shoemaker about the vehicles, and he admitted taking them from the residence in the 200 block of Shoemaker Farm Road, Campbell said. He said Shoemakers mother, who was at the residence, show the deputies the third stolen vehicle.

All three vehicles were removed from the property.

In addition to the stolen vehicle charges, Shoemaker was served with an outstanding order for arrest on a failure to appear count.

Shoemakers history includes felony flee to elude arrest, felony possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, felony habitual impaired driver and felony breaking and entering and misdemeanor charges of breaking and entering, driving while license is revoked, possession of marijuana, DWI, larceny and criminal contempt.
Three people are facing charges after a shooting last month.

Yash Rahul Vaidya, 20, of Tennessee Circle, Mooresville; Cecil Tyler Smith, 22, of Gastonia; and Sage Perry Wright, 20, of Cherryville, were arrested on various charges.

Vaidya was arrested one week ago on charges of felony attempted armed robbery and felony conspiracy to sell or deliver a Schedule VI controlled substance. A magistrate set bond at $10,000.

Smith was charged with felony conspiracy to sell or deliver a Schedule VI controlled substance, felony possession with intent to sell and deliver a Schedule VI controlled substance and misdemeanor maintaining a vehicle for sale or use of a controlled substance. He also was found to have outstanding probation violation warrants in Lincoln County. A magistrate set bond at $13,500. He was arrested Sept. 20.

Wright was arrested Wednesday in Gaston County on an Iredell County warrant for felony conspiracy to sell or deliver a Schedule VI controlled substance. A magistrate set bond at $10,000.

Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said in a news release that deputies responded to a 911 call about a shooting on Tennessee Circle on Sept. 14.

He said deputies found a 20-year-old man in the residence with gunshot wounds to his arm and leg. The man, identified as Vaidya, was conscious and alert and able to provide deputies with information about the shooting, Campbell said. He was taken by Iredell EMS to a medical facility for treatment.

He told deputies that the shooting occurred near the end of his driveway, and that he didnt know who shot him, Campbell said.

Evidence indicated the suspects fled the scene in a vehicle, and that Vaidya walked back to his residence, where family members called for help, Campbell said.

Detectives and crime scene investigators recovered evidence and conducted interviews with witnesses.

After an extensive investigation, Campbell said, narcotics detectives identified Smith and Wright as the suspects in the shooting, Campbell said. They were interviewed, and Vaidya was re-interviewed upon his release from the hospital.

Campbell said the evidence and interviews gathered by detectives painted a clearer picture of what happened that night. He said Vaidya met Smith and Wright through an website where people chat with marijuana users. Meetings to buy and sell marijuana also are set up on this site, Campbell said.

Vaidya made arrangements online to purchase marijuana from them and have it delivered to his home on Tennessee Circle, Campbell said. When the two arrived, Vaidya met them at the end of his driveway and a disagreement took place over the money owed, he said.

Campbell said Vaidya pulled a knife from his pocket and reportedly threatened Smith with it. Wright saw Vaidya approach Smith with the knife in a threatening manner and pulled out a firearm and shot several times at Vaidya, Campbell said. After the shots were fired, the two fled the scene, Campbell said.

Vaidyas history includes a charge of reckless driving to endanger.

Smith has no listed history, and Wrights history includes misdemeanor charges of larceny, carrying a concealed gun, fleeing to elude arrest with a motor vehicle and DWI.
Last week, Bluegrass aficionados and musicians assembled in Raleigh, North Carolina, for the most important week in bluegrass  the International Bluegrass Music Associations annual convention, World of Bluegrass.

The annual convention draws in people from all over the world for four days of interacting one-on-one with industry leaders, discovering new music, browsing the latest industry wares in the exhibit hall and jamming and listening to Bluegrass.

From the moment the convention started, music filled every inch of the Raleigh Convention Center.

With thousands and thousands in attendance at the event, Floyd was well-represented with local performers, including Earl White, Mike Mitchell, Ashlee Watkins and Andrew Small, dazzled the crowds through various performances.

The presence of the Floyd Country Store celebrated the launch of the Floyd Country Store TV at the event, a streaming platform that shares high-quality content from the Country Store. They also had a booth located in the exhibit hall providing information to attendees.

Thanks to a partnership with Virginia Tourism Corporation, Floyd Tourism was also in attendance as an exhibitor, represented by Tourism Director Kathleen Legg, County Administrator Linda Millsaps and Town Manager Andrew Morris.

Legg said attending the convention was more than just handing out information about Floyd.

We were able to connect one-on-one with conference attendees and provide them with just a glimpse of all that Floyd has to offer, Legg said. We are very fortunate to have Virginia Tourism Corporation as a partner to help us further our reach and awareness of Floyd.

Mike Mitchell of the Mike Mitchell Band and head of the IBMA Songwriter Mentorship Program also left an impact on numerous aspiring songwriters. Through program, participants are provided with the opportunity to spend quality time with an accomplished bluegrass songwriter.

Alongside his wife, Jennifer Brooke, they organize and host the IBMA Songwriter Showcase each year. As a part of the Songwriter Track of the IBMA Business Conference, the Songwriter Showcase is a coveted opportunity that shines a spotlight on 10 selected songwriters and their original compositions.

Participants have a unique opportunity to showcase their original compositions before a live audience. Ashlee Watkins and Andrew Small were both a Songwriter Showcase finalist for 2022.
The Cowlitz Indian Tribe Pow Wow returns on Saturday after skipping two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the first time in its two-decade history, the event will be held in Cowlitz County, at the Cowlitz County Event Center in Longview. The pow wow was held in Toledo for 18 years before moving to the Clark County Fairgrounds in 2019.

The grand entries are at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. Attendees can donate receive a salmon dinner at 5 p.m. Tribal elders are served first, then dancers, drummers and the crowd, according to organizers.

If you go What: Cowlitz Indian Tribe Powwow When: 1 p.m. Saturday Where: Cowlitz County Event Center, 1900 Seventh Ave., Longview Cost: Free Info: Cowlitz Indian Tribe Pow Wow on Facebook

A pow wow is a Native American celebration during which people from a variety of indigenous nations gather for dancing, singing and honoring traditions, according to the Cowlitz Tribe.

Saturdays pow wow will include drums, dancing and dance competitions. Spectators, including nontribal members, are welcome to attend the family friendly event, where no drugs or alcohol are allowed, according to the tribe.

The pow wow will also include 46 Native American vendors selling beadwork, clothing, blankets, hats, pottery, books, drums and food. Specially-designed pow wow gear will also be sold at the event.

Our pow wow committee is excited to be bringing our Cowlitz pow wow back after the pandemic, said Shaina Okert, Cowlitz Indian Tribe communications team, in an email. A great team has come together to bring the celebration to life and we all look forward to Saturday.
An Alki Middle School custodian, whos the subject of an ongoing voyeurism investigation, was arrested Thursday after investigators reported finding 137 videos he had allegedly secretly filmed in female staff restrooms at Skyview High School since at least 2013.

James D. Mattson, 38, of Vancouver was booked into the Clark County Jail on suspicion of 137 counts of first-degree voyeurism, according to a news release from the Clark County Sheriffs Office. He is scheduled to appear on the allegations Friday morning in Clark County Superior Court.

Vancouver Public Schools said Thursday that Mattson is on unpaid leave, pending termination proceedings. The school district previously said he had been stripped of access to district systems and buildings.

Vancouver Public Schools is aware of the arrest of a former VPS employee accused of voyeurism. We continue to work closely with the Clark County Sheriffs Office to support their investigation, the school district said in an email Thursday. A letter was also sent to families.

Mattson had worked for Vancouver Public Schools since April 5, 2007, when he started as a substitute custodian. He had been the building operator for Alki since the 2018-2019 school year and also served as Alkis assistant flag football coach for the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years, according to the school district.

According to court records, the criminal investigation, which came to light last week, began after Mattsons live-in girlfriend reported that she discovered a video on his computer of a girl changing clothes in a locker room.

Detectives seized several of Mattsons electronic devices, including computers, while executing search warrants at his Hazel Dell house. Deputies also searched at Alki and nearby Skyview, because of the fact Mattson had also spent time at the high school.

None of the involved victims have been identified yet. The sheriffs office said detectives will work with Vancouver Public Schools once the investigation is complete to try to identify the victims.

The sheriffs offices Major Crimes Unit is still investigating, and additional charges are possible.

As has been previously stated, these types of investigations involving digital forensics are complex. They require time to process the type and amount of evidence involved, the sheriffs office said in the news release.

District officials announced last week they were searching locker rooms and restrooms throughout the district, in light of the investigation. The school district on Wednesday told The Columbian it completed searches of all of its building on the evening of Oct. 6 and did not find any cameras or active recording devices.

Our students and staff and their safety are at the heart of everything we do. We will continue to support our young people and staff by making counselors available, and fully cooperating with the law enforcement investigation, Thursdays statement reads.

According to the district, Mattson also worked as a custodian for the 2008-2009 and 2014-2015 school years at Skyview; as a custodial assistant for the 2015-2016 school year at Vancouver School of Arts and Academics; as swing lead for the 2016-2017 school year at Jason Lee Middle School and as building operator for the 2017-2018 school year at Lincoln Elementary School.

Investigation

According to a search warrant affidavit, the investigation began Oct. 5 after a woman told detectives she had moved in with Mattson about two to three months ago. That morning, she woke up after he left for work, walked by the computer room and saw his computer was open, she said. She sat down and started looking through files, she said, and found a video of a girl dressing in a locker room. The video appeared to be from a hidden camera, placed low to the floor and pointed upward at a high angle.

After discovering the video, the woman called Mattson and said, Tell me thats not Alki. The woman said Mattson told her he had placed a camera in the locker room because there had been problems with theft. When she confronted him about that being a lie, he allegedly said, Its not sexual. I dont do anything with them. Its about having them, the affidavit reads. He also allegedly told her, I have a problem.
It goes without saying that the lack of rain is on everyones mind. Anglers in our region are scattered looking for the coho bite, but there are many angling pursuits other than salmon right now. If you dont have a hot bite to get to, maybe try something new.

REMINDER: Please verify current regulations before fishing any body of water.

BEST BET

Fishing the Naselle and doubling down with a razor clam dig on Friday evening at Long Beach.

Lewis Report

This week I fished with my son, who just moved back from Montana. Monday morning, we spent a few hours focusing on the hatchery to Johnson flats. The first part of the morning was spent hovering eggs by the outlet pipes. Out of a half dozen boats in the three hours we fished that area we observed three coho and two chinook caught.

There were so many fish jumping that on three different occasions they almost jumped into the boat. Jumping coho were the closest we came to hooking any in that area. These smaller A-run fish are notoriously closed mouthed and they made the point today.

Kalama Report

I unsuccessfully completed some research to determine the planned date for the weir removal on the Kalama River. One could reasonably anticipate nothing happening until rain comes. The river is barely a trickle currently, with virtually no fishing pressure. Wednesday at Modrow Bridge launch there were no vehicles.

Cowlitz Report

Dave Mallahan of Daves Guide Service had just finished fishing for the day, Wednesday, and told me they killed five silvers on the day. This salmon season is far shorter than the twenty fish days he is accustomed to this time of year and its making people antsy. According to Mallahan, the bottom line is we need rain and a bunch of it.

WDFW anglers checks reported the following action last week: Cowlitz River I-5 Bridge downstream  11 bank rods had no catch. 1 boat/1 rod released three coho jacks. Cowlitz River Above the I-5 Bridge  No report.

Last week, Tacoma Power employees at the Cowlitz fish hatchery recovered 5,881 coho adults, 1,226 coho jacks, 329 fall Chinook adults, 40 fall Chinook jacks, 100 cutthroat trout, 37 summer-run steelhead adults, and three spring Chinook adults over six days of operation.

Naselle Report

Anglers must release all wild fish on the Naselle River. Fishing is only open below the Highway 4 bridge until October 17th.

There are very complex fishing zones on the Naselle, so please consult the Fish Washington App. I highly recommend the online app as its been greatly improved since the debut a few years ago.

Columbia Gorge and Tributaries

The high point is for the area is Drano Lake. Fishing success has been very good, which means its also busy. The WDFW creel check report shows: Drano Lake  95 bank rods kept seven Chinook, three coho, four steelhead and released 15 Chinook and three coho. 100 boats/286 rods kept 64 Chinook, two Chinook jacks, 79 coho, 20 steelhead and released 24 Chinook, 15 coho, one coho jack and 16 steelhead. Wind River  No report.

Merwin Reservoir

- Merwin is fishing pretty good right now. The Kokanee arent as big as during the summer as most of those are in the spawning process. The best bites appear to be happening as the sun comes over the hills and early afternoon.

Lower Columbia Report

The Columbia isnt receiving much pressure yet. In the Woodland area Wednesday, there were a few boats working the area outside the mouth of the Lewis. Trolling small hoochie spinners and plugs are effective in certain places for Columbia coho. We need the B-run fish to show as they are more prolific biters.

It appears that some Chinook are being intercepted and released in the pursuit of coho. As the rules were midweek, the daily limit is three coho down river from the Rocky Point/Tongue Point line and two coho above the line.
An enormous black hole collision showing extreme signs of wobbling has confirmed a phenomenon predicted by Albert Einstein.

A pair of black holes wobbling 3 times per second as they merged has confirmed a gravitational phenomenon predicted by Albert Einstein a century ago. The phenomenon also known as precession is similar to the wobbling motion that takes place when two ancient black holes collide together and merge into one. Gravity-induced orbital precession or wobbling is a consequence of general relativity's prediction about how gravity affects the fabric of space-time.

This effect had been observed very weakly in neutron stars orbiting one another. According to the study published in Nature magazine, Mark Hannam at Cardiff University, UK, and his colleagues have seen a gargantuan effect in a pair of black holes, as one of them is spinning at a fifth of the speed of light at a 90-degree angle to its orbital motion. And as both the block holes merged it released a gravitational wave, known as GW200129, carrying the sign of precession occurring at a rate of three times a second.

Explaining the same, Hannam said, It's 10 billion times faster than what was found in earlier measurements, so it really is the most extreme regime of Einstein's theory where space and time are warped and distorted in completely crazy ways.

To identify this wobbling Hannam's team reanalysed that data collected in 2020 by three gravitational wave detectors, based in the US, Italy and Japan. While the previous analysis shows no sign of precession, a more advanced model to detect sources of noise in the data, gives Hannam and his team the idea that the signal was with one of the black holes, spinning at almost the upper limit allowed by general relativity.

What is black hole?

Regina Caputo, a research astrophysicist at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center defined it as "a region of space where gravity is so strong that even light can't escape." NASA explained that the gravity is so strong because of the matter being squeezed into a tiny space when a star is dying.

The black holes are invisible as no light can get out of them. Space telescopes with special tools can help view black holes as well as how stars close to black holes act differently than other stars.
vivo Malaysia is inviting Malaysians to capture and showcase their best night portraits by participating in the 99 Nights in Portrait contest from 5 October to 5 November 2022. Held in conjunction with the launch of the vivo V25 series, the tech company hopes to encourage Malaysians to express their creativity and explore capturing beautiful night portraits of themselves and their surroundings.

Moreover, the contest is open to all Malaysians, be it vivo or non-vivo users for a chance to win amazing prizes worth up to RM5000. All you have to do is capture any night photography that showcases your creativity and photography skills in the dark, simple as that!

Here are the steps that you need to follow in order to participate:

Capture any night portrait photos with your smartphone. vivo users are encouraged to turn on their devices watermark Upload the photo to any of these social platforms - Instagram, Facebook and Twitter with the hashtags #vivo99NightsInPortrati and #vivoMalaysia

Thats it! Pretty straightforward and simple, right? For the contest, vivo is offering 20 attractive prizes, which are:

Grand prize: vivo V25e smartphone (1 unit)

1 st prize: DJI OM6 (1 unit)

prize: DJI OM6 (1 unit) 2 nd prize: Joyoung Soy Milk Maker (1 unit)

prize: Joyoung Soy Milk Maker (1 unit) 3rd prize: Joyoung Portable Juice Blender (17 units)

Awesome! For more information, do visit vivo Malaysias official Facebook Page for more first-hand updates on the vivo 99 Nights Portrait contest. As always, make sure to stay tuned to TechNave for more trending tech news in Malaysia and beyond!
Plenum makes full preparation for 20th CPC National Congress

Xinhua) 08:18, October 13, 2022

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, makes an important speech at the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC, in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded its seventh plenary session in Beijing on Wednesday with a communique issued.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, made an important speech at the four-day session, which was presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

It was decided at the plenary session that the 20th CPC National Congress will open on Oct. 16 in Beijing, according to the communique.

Entrusted by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Xi delivered a work report to the plenum.

The plenary session also discussed and adopted a report to be made by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress, a work report of the 19th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) to the congress, and an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

The three documents will be submitted to the upcoming congress for examination and deliberation, read the communique.

During the session, Xi delivered explanatory remarks on the draft report by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress. Wang Huning made explanations on the draft amendment to the CPC Constitution.

It was noted at the session that over the past year, confronted with a complex and challenging international situation and demanding tasks of advancing reform, promoting development, and maintaining stability at home, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee has fully implemented Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in securing new and major achievements in the undertakings of the Party and the state, creating favorable conditions for convening the 20th CPC National Congress.

The past five years since the 19th CPC National Congress have been unusual and extraordinary, said the communique.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has held high the banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in completing the historic mission of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and thus realizing the first centenary goal, and in embarking on a new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing toward the second centenary goal, the communique said.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in effectively coping with the grave and complex international situation and a series of major risks and challenges, and pushing forward socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era in an energetic manner, according to the communique.

Many tough problems that remained unsolved for a long time have been solved, many things of vital importance and long-term significance have been accomplished, and major achievements that captured the attention of the world have been scored in the cause of the Party and the country, the communique said.

The communique noted that these major achievements have been the result of concerted efforts of all Party members and all Chinese people under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, and the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

It emphasized that, the Party has established Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and has defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This reflects the common will of the Party, the armed forces, and the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, and is of decisive significance for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era and for driving forward the historic process of great national rejuvenation.

The session took stock of the work of the 19th CPC CCDI, noting that discipline inspection commissions at all levels, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, had resolutely implemented the Party's strategic decisions of self-reform and full, rigorous self-governance.

An overwhelming victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and this has been consolidated across the board, it read.

The session analyzed the current situation and the tasks, and hosted in-depth discussion on major issues including upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era, and building a modern socialist country in all respects. It made full preparation for the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, the communique said.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee opened in Beijing on Oct. 9, with 199 full members and 159 alternate members present. Members of the CCDI and leading officials of related departments were also present in a non-voting capacity.

In accordance with the CPC Constitution, the session decided to admit Ma Guoqiang, Wang Ning and Wang Weizhong as full members to the 19th CPC Central Committee. They had been alternate members of the committee.

The session also endorsed the expulsion of Fu Zhenghua, Shen Deyong and Zhang Jinghua from the CPC, as was decided by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, as well as the punishment on Li Jia, who was removed from his post in the Party.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
CodeToon uses 1-to-1 mapping to make connections clear across code, story, and comic. For example, as indicated by the dotted line, line 1 (code) maps to line 1 (story) and to row 1 (comic). Credit: Suh, Zhao & Law.

Three researchers at University of Waterloo in Canada have recently developed a unique comic authoring tool that can automatically create stories and comics based on code. This system, called CodeToon, could open interesting possibilities for code-driven storytelling, the process of using computational code to create new stories.

Sangho Suh, one of the authors, came up with the idea for CodeToon and then worked on its development in collaboration with his colleague Jian Zhao, under the supervision of Prof. Edith Law. Their paper, set to be presented in a few weeks at the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST), the premier forum for innovations in human-computer interfaces, builds on some of their team's previous efforts, including the development of a pedagogical tool called Coding Strip and another study leveraging generative conversational AI to teach computational thinking.

"We found that using comics is an effective means for teaching abstract programming concepts, but crafting the comics is tedious and time-consuming," Jian Zhao, one of the researchers who carried out the study, told TechXplore. "We also identified the opportunities in advanced AI technologies for automating some steps of this task. Thus, we built CodeToon, a comic authoring tool that facilitates this code-driven storytelling process."

Coding Strip, the pedagogical tool previously created by Sangho Suh and his colleagues at University of Waterloo, was specifically designed to teach programming concepts using comics. CodeToon takes this idea one step further, by automatically creating code-based comics and stories that could be used to train computer science students.

"Inspired by the ladder of abstraction and its relationship to computational thinking, coding strip helps learners move between concrete (comic) and abstract (code) levels of abstraction," Sangho Suh, one of the researchers who carried out the study, told TechXplore. "Creating coding strips, however, can be time-consuming and laborious, so the primary objective of this project was to make the authoring process more efficient and effortless."

CodeToon can facilitate code-driven storytelling in two distinct ways. Firstly, it can automatically generate a story template using code. Subsequently, the tool can generate comics based on these code-based story templates.

"CodeToon is an interactive and intelligent comic authoring tool that supports creators to generate stories from code (codestory) and design comics from stories (storycomic)," Zhao and Suh said. "Since comics accurately represent the code semantics and execution process, it enables learners to learn the computational concepts and procedures in an engaging yet effective manner."

The researchers evaluated the effectiveness of their comic authoring tool in a two-part user study. In the first part, 24 participants with a basic understanding of programming were asked to either use CodeToon or use a series of templates to create story ideas and generate matching comics. Subsequently, all the participants took part in a short interview, where they were asked what worked and what did not work for them.

CodeToon interface: (A) code container, (B) button that generates story template from code, (C) story template, (D) button that generates comics from story, (E) drawing canvas for comics. Credit: Suh, Zhao & Law.

In the second part of the evaluation, 20 participants who could read and understand Python code were asked to look at 8 coding stripscreated using CodeToon or with a series of templatesand share their opinions about how well they mapped to code, illustrated coding concepts, and how useful they thought they might be for teaching.

Based on the interview responses, most participants felt that the 1-to-1 mapping of code onto stories and comics could be an effective teaching strategy, particularly when using comics to alternatively represent code. In addition, those who used CodeToon to generate their comics shared positive feedback about its performance in creating code-based stories and comics.

"Our findings confirm previous literature on multiple representational systems, which recommends making the mapping between multiple representations clear," Zhao said. "Our insights also shed light on other research areas, such as data and stats comics, which can also leverage this approach to automatically generate comics for learning and teaching concepts in their domains."

Notably, Suh, Zhao, and Law introduced a new way of looking at code that could have interesting implications. In the future, the same idea could perhaps be applied to other computational and mathematical languages. For instance, future studies could explore the possibility of generating comics and stories based on mathematical equations.

"The most notable achievement of our study, on the surface, may be the efficient process for generating comics from code," Suh said "But on a deeper level, I think it is the notion of code-driven storytelling. In CodeToon, code drives storytelling: the code's abstract structure embodying computational ideas such as if-else logic structure becomes the structure of the story and comic. In other words, code determines the sequence and overall plot of the story."

The tool created by Suh, Zhao, and Law could soon be used in universities and colleges to make learning to code more engaging. In the future, the researchers would thus like to deploy their tool in real classroom environments to better assess its usefulness. In addition, they plan to investigate the possibility of using generative deep learning models, such as GPT-3 and Codex, to fill any gaps in stories and code.

"For example, based on the drawings on the canvas, the system could generate new drawings to add to the existing comic and provide design guidance in real-time," Zhao explained. "Another possible research direction would be to enhance the authoring process with a more diverse set of sketches and comic resources, more customization and flexibility, as well as the support for more programming languages."

In his upcoming studies, Suh would also like to investigate the possible use of mathematical languages to drive storytelling. This could ultimately improve the way in which lecturers and students make sense of abstract concepts, complex equations, and procedures.

"There are many exciting research directions we plan to explore in our next studies," Suh added. "One is to further improve CodeToon, for example, by ensuring that it supports other programming languages and features. Another is to research how we can use CodeToon to integrate art into programming education."

Explore further A system that automatically generates comic books from movies and other videos

More information: Sangho Suh, Jian Zhao, Edith Law, CodeToon: Story ideation, auto comic generation, and structure mapping for code-driven storytelling. arXiv:2208.12981v1 [cs.HC], Sangho Suh, Jian Zhao, Edith Law, CodeToon: Story ideation, auto comic generation, and structure mapping for code-driven storytelling. arXiv:2208.12981v1 [cs.HC], arxiv.org/abs/2208.12981 edithlaw.ca/ edithlaw.ca/projects/codingstrip.html ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST) 2022. uist.acm.org/uist2022/program.html

 2022 Science X Network
Room-temperature moire exciton emissions in free-standing WS2/WSe2 heterobilayers. Credit: Nature (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05193-z

Electrical engineers from The Australian National University (ANU) have demonstrated how to create exciton pairs in a new type of semiconductor structure, paving the way for next generation technologies required for high speed computing, information processing and data communication.

The research could lay the foundations for a new generation of smartphones and computers that are blisteringly fast but also consume significantly less energy than current devices.

The new technology has been developed by sandwiching together two sheets of bendable monolayer semiconductors and allows interlayer excitons to bind together and form pairs. The research is published in Nature.

An interlayer exciton is a quasiparticle made by a negatively charged electron and a positively charged "hole" that are sitting in two different layers. Interlayer excitons form when light is absorbed in a bilayer semiconductor.

"Interlayer exciton pairs were predicted by theory decades ago, but we are the first to observe them in experiment," lead author Professor Yuerui (Larry) Lu said.

The discovery could help the researchers achieve a process known as superfluiditya condition where electrical currents can travel without any loss of energy.

Ph.D. researcher Xueqian Sun said superfluidity is best visualized as a "super highway" that allows excitons to travel at incredibly fast speeds, similar to cars traveling on a freeway.

"The current generation of semiconductor technology used in our smartphones and laptops limits the speed that excitons can travel, stopping them from reaching their full potential," Ms. Sun, who is the first author of the paper, said.

"A good way to visualize this is to think of a car that is bumper-to-bumper on a highway full of traffic. A car can only travel so fast in these conditions, and the same is true for excitons."

Professor Lu, who is also the chief investigator at the ARC Center of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology, said, "The incredibly small, lightweight and versatile nature of this new semiconductor structure, which isn't visible to the naked eye, means it can be incorporated into a range of miniature technologies, with promising implications for the space sector, quantum lasers and other quantum light sources."

Professor Lu said the next challenge is to figure out a way to make the exciton super highway function at room temperaturean essential next step to integrating the technology into our smart devices.

Explore further Researchers succeed in coupling two types of electron-hole pairs

More information: Xueqian Sun et al, Enhanced interactions of interlayer excitons in free-standing heterobilayers, Nature (2022). Journal information: Nature Xueqian Sun et al, Enhanced interactions of interlayer excitons in free-standing heterobilayers,(2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05193-z
Finland's new Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor will be able to produce about one-fifth of the electricity the country consumes.

After over a decade of delays, the deafening sound of Finland's new Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor finally running its turbine at full power was welcomed with joyand relief.

The Nordic country is hoping the plant will be able to ease the coming winter's challenges as Europe battles soaring energy prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"It has taken a lot of perseverance and years of hard work to get to this point, so we feel pretty good at the moment," Johanna Aho, a spokeswoman for the plant's operator TVO, told AFP.

The almost 300-degree Celsius (572 F) steam gushing from the reactor turns the over 60-meter-long turbine up to 25 times every second, making a visit to the turbine island in protective gear feel as hot as one of Finland's ubiquitous saunas.

More than 12 years behind schedule, on September 30, Olkiluoto 3 reached full power for the first time since construction began in 2005.

With a power level of 1,600 megawatts, the reactor, located on Finland's southwestern coast, is now the most powerful in Europe and the third most powerful in the world.

Around 10 full power tests remain for the unitduring which it will periodically stop producing electricity for several days or even weeksbefore normal operation starts in December.

Support for nuclear

When the new unit reached full power on September 30, TVO said the Olkiluoto plant accounted for around 40 percent of Finland's electricity production, with the Olkiluoto 1 and 2 reactors together producing approximately 21 percent and the new OL3 alone around 19 percent.

"That's a lot of electricity and it's the kind of steady, predictable and stable electricity production that nuclear power provides," Aho said.

The almost 300-degree Celsius (572 F) steam gushing from the reactor turns the over 60-meter-long turbine up to 25 times every second.

In recent years, support for nuclear energy has grown in Finland, spurred by concern over climate change.

A May poll by trade association Finnish Energy showed 60 percent of Finns supported nuclear power, a record high.

But after Finnish group Fennovoima in May terminated a nuclear power project with Russia's Rosatom, citing risks linked to the war in Ukraine, there are no other nuclear reactor projects in the pipeline.

Finland gets around 50 to 60 percent of its electricity from hydro, wind, solar and biomass, with fossil fuels and peat comprising roughly 10 percent.

French were 'unprepared'

Olkiluoto 3 was meant to be up and running already in 2009, six years after TVO announced a deal with France's Areva and Germany's Siemens for the reactor's construction.

But the project quickly ran into issues.

In 2006, TVO announced that "delays in the construction work and in manufacturing of the main coolant lines" had pushed the reactor's starting date back to 2010-2011.

And when the Finnish nuclear safety agency STUK by 2009 required hundreds of improvements to be made due to "problems with the construction", the partners started casting blame.

TVO demanded 2.4 billion euros in compensation from Siemens and Areva for the setbacks. The two in turn demanded 1.0 billion euros from TVO, arguing that the project had encountered "more rigorous security requirements" than initially foreseen.

The complexity of EPS reactors like Olkiluoto 3 have led to construction delays.

Areva meanwhile accused STUK of being slow to approve documents, to which STUK responded by saying the consortium had been "unprepared".

"The French did not understand at first the Finnish system, that no important device can be built before the plan is approved," Jukka Laaksonen from STUK told AFP at the time.

After years of litigation and even more delays, Areva and TVO settled their disputes in November 2018, with the French agreeing to pay 450 million euros ($554 million) in compensation.

Model plagued by delays

Design work on the EPR began in 1992 with the objective of creating a next-generation reactor with added safety features that could win over public opinion which was highly sceptical of nuclear power following the Chernobyl catastrophe of 1986.

But the complex design has caused delays and problems.

Like Olkiluoto, France's EPR which began construction in 2007 has been plagued by delays and is still not finished.

In Britain, the construction of an EPR at Hinkley Point in southwest England is also running behind schedule.

China launched two EPR reactors in the Taishan power plant in Guangdong province by 2019, but one was shut for over a year for repairs following damaged fuel pellets and a build-up of gasses in the closed cooling circuit.

Explore further China reconnects nuclear reactor after shutdown due to damage

 2022 AFP
Infosys chief executive Salil Parekh said the company's 'demand pipeline is strong'

Indian outsourcing behemoth Infosys approved a $1 billion share buyback on Thursday after strong quarterly profits that reflected sustained demand for digital services.

Tech companies have benefited from higher digital services demand since the pandemic, and India's second-largest IT company has kept a robust balance sheet despite labour competition driving up sector salaries.

Net profit rose 11 percent year-on-year to 60.21 billion rupees ($731.4 million) in the September quarter.

Revenues were up 23.4 percent for the same period, helped by strong demand in North America and Europe.

"While concerns around the economic outlook persist, our demand pipeline is strong as clients remain confident in our ability to deliver the value they seek," chief executive Salil Parekh said in a statement.

The Bangalore-headquartered company reported large deals of $2.7 billion for the quarter, its best result in nearly two years and up $1 billion from the June quarter.

Its board approved plans to buy back shares worth 93 billion rupees ($1.13 billion) at 1,850 rupees per share, a 30 percent premium to Thursday's closing price.

Chief financial officer Nilanjan Roy said the board had approved an open market share buyback of 93 billion rupees ($1.14 billion) in its meeting before the results announcement.

Infosys also reported a marginally lower employee attrition ratea key metric for IT companiescompared to the previous quarter.

Competition for employees has increasingly driven up salaries and weighed on operating margins of Indian technology companies.

"While supply side challenges are gradually abating as reflected in the reducing attrition rates, they continue to exert pressure on our cost structure," Roy said.

Infosys is India's second-largest information technology company and earns more than 60 percent of its revenues from North American markets.

It was at the forefront of an outsourcing boom that saw India become a back office to the world as Western firms subcontracted work to a skilled English-speaking workforce.

Shares in Infosys closed 0.64 percent lower in Mumbai ahead of the earnings announcement.

Explore further Record quarterly profit for Indian software giant TCS

 2022 AFP
Indonesian President Joko Widodo stands near a newly-unveiled Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit during his visit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

Indonesia is preparing to start Southeast Asia's first high-speed rail service that will cut travel time between two cities from the current three hours to about 40 minutes.

The railway line, which connects Indonesia's capital Jakarta and Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province, is part of China's Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.

As the Jakarta-Bandung portion of the rail project approached 90% completion, Indonesia's President Joko Widodo on Thursday visited Bandung's Tegalluar stationone of the railway's four stationswhere eight train cars and an inspection train that arrived from China in early September were parked.

"We hope with the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train, the mobility of goods and people can be faster and improved, and our competitiveness will also be stronger," Widodo told reporters during the visit.

Widodo also expected the bullet train to benefit other sectors.

Earlier reports said Widodo would invite his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to ride on the China-made bullet train after the Group of 20 biggest economies summit in Bali next month. However, Widodo told reporters Thursday, the plan is still being discussed with Xi and "it is still not final yet."

Indonesian President Joko Widodo stands near a newly-unveiled Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit during his visit at the construction site of a Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

The train cars were designed and built by China's CRRC Qingdao Sifang railway company. September's delivery was CRRC's first export of high-speed trains in its 11-train contract for KCIC400AF eight-car trains and one KCIC400AF-CIT inspection train. The contract, worth $364.5 million, was awarded to CRRC in April 2017.

The rail line construction that began in 2016 was originally expected to start operating in 2019 but was delayed until June 2023 due to disputes that involved land purchases and environmental issues.

The 142.3-kilometer (88.4-mile) railway worth $7.8 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, or PT KCIC, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture said the trains will be the fastest in Southeast Asia.

A worker walks along a new Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

The CRRC claimed that the KCIC400AF train can reach speeds up to 350 kilometers (217 miles) per hour, pass curves with a minimum radius of 150 meters (492 feet), and is equipped with electric motors, each with a power of 625,000 watts. The cars will be divided into three classes: VIP, first and second, and several cars with large spaces between seats will be allocated for passengers with limited mobility.

The manufacturer said the trains are specifically modified to adapt to Indonesia's tropical climate, and are equipped with an improved security system that has the ability to track earthquakes, floods and other emergency conditions. The length of the eight-car train is 208.9 meters (685.3 feet).

The rail deal was signed in October 2015 after Indonesia selected China over Japan in competitive bidding, and financed by a loan from the China Development Bank for 75%. The remaining 25% is the consortium's own funds.

Workers and officials inspect a newly-unveiled Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

A worker runs past a model of a high-speed train displayed at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

A train engine rolls past a model of a high-speed train displayed at the construction site of a Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

A woman to take photos of a model high-speed train at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

Indonesian President Joko Widodo, center, walks with from left, Head of Bandung Regency Dadang Supriatna, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, State-Owned Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir, West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil and Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, near the new Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142 km. (88 mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium and China Railway International Co. Ltd. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

A soldier peeks into a newly-unveiled Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

A worker walks near a new Comprehensive Inspection Train (CIT) unit at the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. The 142-kilometer (88-mile) high-speed railway worth $5.5 billion is being constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The joint venture says the trains that will be the fastest in Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

The project is part of a 750-kilometer (466-mile) high-speed train plant that would cut across four provinces on the main island of Java and end in the country's second-largest city of Surabaya.

Infrastructure improvement, Widodo's signature policy, helped him win a second term in 2019 elections.

Jakarta's subwaya Japan-backed venturewas inaugurated in 2019 as part of the capital's efforts to ease traffic congestion. Its second phase will soon be completed and the United Kingdom and Japan have offered the country soft loans for its third phase, said transportation minister Budi Karya Sumadi.

The government has completed other rail projects, including light-rail transit services in Palembang and Jakarta, while five other cities, including on Indonesia's tourist island of Bali, have LRT plans in the pipeline.

Explore further China and Japan race to dominate the future of high-speed rail

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A hydropower turbine is installed into an existing drinking water distribution system in Palmdale, California. Credit: Canyon Hydro

Millions of miles of pipelines and conduits across the United States make up an intricate network of waterways used for municipal, agricultural and industrial purposes.

In a new report, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have found potential opportunities in all 50 states to efficiently utilize existing infrastructure to harvest this otherwise wasted energy.

In a first-of-its-kind analysis, ORNL estimates that conduit hydropower, which uses water from structures such as water supply pipelines and irrigation canals, has the potential to add 1.41 gigawatts of electricity to the country's power gridenough to power more than a million homes.

"You can think of conduit hydropower as low-hanging fruit, and what has been started is a mere drop in the bucket," said Shih-Chieh Kao, water power program manager at ORNL. "For all its benefits, the biggest barrier is a general lack of awareness of conduit hydropower's potential."

The process for municipalities and other stakeholders to develop conduit hydropower would be relatively easy. Without the need to build new dams, facility operators could install hydropower generators at locations with excess hydraulic headthe height of water needed for hydropower generation. This could be coordinated with planned facility upgrades that replace aging infrastructure with more energy-efficient systems. Rural communities may benefit by adding small hydropower generation to their existing infrastructure for net metering, making them less dependent on the external grid.

Since conduit hydropower taps into existing infrastructure with minimal environmental impacts, the permitting process has been streamlined. Through the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013 and its amendments in America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, the federal regulatory approval process can be completed in 45 days. To date, more than 350 conduit hydropower projects have been permitted or constructed, with more to come.

Opportunities by state

Scientists at ORNL conducted a systematic analysis of four types of conduitswater supply pipelines, wastewater discharge, irrigation systems and thermoelectric cooling water discharge.

For conduit hydropower to work, the water channel must have sufficient water flow and hydraulic head. Scientists analyzed this data as well as satellite imagery and topography to estimate the overall potential.

The potential for conduit hydropower was highest in five Western statesCalifornia, Colorado, Washington, Nebraska and Oregonall of which have a large number of water conduits. Their hilly terrain also provides the greatest hydraulic head.

Agricultural conduits such as ditches and channels for crop irrigation showed the greatest potential for hydropower among the three business sectors assessed, amounting to nearly half of all conduit hydropower capacity. The highest agricultural conduit potential was seen in Colorado, Washington, Nebraska, California, Oregon and Idaho. Irrigation and topography were primary drivers for this assessment.

Researchers also assessed drinking water supply and wastewater systems in the municipal sector. Conduit hydropower potential here was highest in California, which had twice that of the next-highest state, New York. Colorado, Utah, Washington, Oregon and Pennsylvania also showed potential for capacity generation in this sector.

Opportunities for conduit hydropower from industrial conduits, such as industrial pipelines or canals used at thermoelectric generating facilities, were present mostly in California, Texas, Missouri, New York and Maryland. However, these facilities also pose the greatest uncertainty due to higher economic and regulatory requirements.

"These assessments open the door across multiple business sectors to what is possible," said Kao. "By further understanding the costs and benefits of conduit hydropower, decision makers can leverage what is already available and deliver on the promise of more renewable energy."

The ORNL research team will facilitate further discussion with key stakeholders in water supply and delivery to raise the awareness of conduit hydropower and to understand how the community may overcome this hurdle to develop more conduit hydropower projects.

Explore further Where to get the facts behind hydropower
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A considerable percentage of new apps in the Google App store are removed for violating the store's guidelines. This is inconvenient for the users of these apps, who may lose their in-app data. Computer scientists from the University of Groningen have devised two machine learning models that can predict the chances of a new app being removed, both before and after uploading it to the app store. These models can help both developers and users. The details of this project are described in a paper that was published in the journal Systems and Soft Computing on Sept. 29.

The Google Play store has set rules and requirements that developers must adhere to. After being submitted, apps are immediately uploaded to the store, but it takes Google some time to vet them before they remove apps that are found to violate the guidelines. Developers whose apps have been removed more than once, may face a ban from the store.

"My research interest lies in digital privacy and security issues," says Fadi Mohsen, assistant professor at the Information Systems Group of the Bernoulli Institute for Mathematics, Computer Science, and Artificial Intelligence, University of Groningen. Given the consequences of app removal for both developers and users, he wanted to create a system that would be able to predict whether new apps will be removed or not.

"There have already been attempts to do this, but these typically focus on specific types of apps that were removed for specific reasons, for example because they contained malware," Mohsen explains. "We wanted to develop a general model that predicts the chances of an app being removed, regardless of the type of app or the reason for removal." Furthermore, previous attempts focused solely on users, while Mohsen also wants to assist developers who just fell foul of the guidelines by accident.

A high-level overview of the data collection workflow. Credit: Systems and Soft Computing (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.sasc.2022.200045

The first step was to gather a large data set from apps that were removed and of apps that were not removed: "We collected metadata, including the descriptions provided by the developers to the store, from roughly two million apps. After that, we downloaded the source code of half of these apps."

Subsequently, Mohsen and his colleagues tracked the status of these apps in the store for six months to see which apps were removed. "In our selection this was the case for 56 percent of them." It took them 26 months to finalize the data set that was used to generate the machine learning models.

The algorithm they used is called Extreme Gradient Boosting. "It is the best machine learning algorithm for these kinds of problems," explains Mohsen. The algorithm was used to create two predictive models: one for developers and one for users. The model for users was determined by 47 features, and in a test data set it predicted the removal of a given app with 79.2 percent accuracy. As some of these features, like ratings in the app store, are not available before submitting the app to the store, the developer model was based on only 37 features, and its accuracy was slightly lower as a result: 76.2 percent.

"We can now predict the future of an app with reasonable accuracy," says Mohsen. The next step is to develop an interface with which developers and users can assess apps on their risk of removal. "This is valuable for developers, as they could be banned from the Google App store if they violate the guidelines repeatedly," says Mohsen, 'but also for users, as they generate data with their apps, which they will lose if the app is suddenly withdrawn."

Other researchers will also benefit from this research. "The rich data set we have generated for our paper has been made publicly available through the Dutch repository Dataverse.nl," says Mohsen. This means that anyone can try to improve on the results obtained by Mohsen and his colleagues. "We are looking forward to the competition, to find out if they can beat us. That would further increase the benefit for users and developers."

Explore further Meta warns of password stealing phone apps

More information: Fadi Mohsen et al, Early detection of violating Mobile Apps: A data-driven predictive model approach, Systems and Soft Computing (2022). Fadi Mohsen et al, Early detection of violating Mobile Apps: A data-driven predictive model approach,(2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.sasc.2022.200045 Dataset: dataverse.nl/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=DOI: 10.34894/H0YJFT
Credit: Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology

Researchers from MSU and Skoltech have transmuted a pesky poisonous weed into high-grade anode material for sodium-ion batteries. These are an emerging cheaper alternative to lithium-ion batteries for uses where compact size is not crucial, such as on solar and wind farms. The study was published in Batteries.

"We thought, wouldn't it be fun to take something as nasty and objectionable as hogweed and make something useful out of it," study co-author Zoya Bobyleva of Lomonosov Moscow State University commented. "The thing about hard carbon materials, used in sodium-ion battery anodes, is you can make them from biomass of virtually any origin. No one has considered hogweed before. But it turned out pretty well."

Sosnowsky's hogweed is an invasive plant that causes severe skin burns. Originally imported to central Russia from Caucasus as an experimental forage crop, it quickly got out of control and, according to forecasts by Skoltech researchers, is threatening to spread over the entire European part of the country by the mid-21st century.

Sodium-ion batteries are an alternative technology for power storage that avoids using lithium, which is largely concentrated in a select few countries, is becoming increasingly expensive, and is not environmentally friendly in production. If a battery uses sodium ions instead of lithium ions, however, completely different materials have to be used in the cathode and anode. Not long ago, Skoltech researchers proposed a cathode material with outstanding properties. This time, another research group based at the Institute and MSU, came up with a high-quality anode material derived from a fairly unlikely source.

"As of today, hard carbon offers the best combination of properties for a sodium-ion battery anode. It's an amorphous form of carbon that does not transform into graphite even when exposed to very high temperatures. Unlike graphite, its structure can accommodate sodium ions and release them over many cycles, which is crucial for battery operation, and it does not significantly expand in size upon charge-up. It is also cheap, reasonably easy to synthesize and dispose of, and does not create significant fire hazards. The two key figures of merit here are Coulombic efficiency and energy storage capacity," the study's principal investigator, Professor Evgeny Antipov of Skoltech and MSU, said.

The hard carbon produced by the MSU-Skoltech team exhibited a Coulombic efficiency of 87%, which is on par with the best reported results for hard carbons synthesized from other raw materials. That characteristic reflects how well a material stores energy without wasting it on unwanted irreversible secondary processes that actually harm the battery. As for the energy storage capacity, at about 260 mAh/g, the material falls short of the best results reported elsewherearound 300 mAh/gbut is still reasonably good.

"In fact, we considered both winter hogweed, which is safe for harvesting, and the nasty summer hogweed in full bloom. Hate to tell you, but the specimens gathered in the summer proved better in terms of the Coulombic efficiency of the end product, which is the characteristic we emphasized in this study, because it tends to be the weak spot of hard carbon anodes. As for the energy storage capacity, there are ways we can probably improve it later on," Bobyleva added.

The team tested three popular approaches to hard carbon synthesis. First, there's direct carbonization: heating the biomass to 1,300 degrees Celsius in an atmosphere without oxygen. Alternatively, you can treat the biomass with an acid to remove metallic and other impurities prior to carbonization. This approach resulted in a significantly higher Coulombic efficiency. Or you can boil the hogweed biomass in water in a closed reactorthis produces very small carbon-containing spheres. While all three approaches led to comparable energy storage capacity, heat treatment with prior impurity removal resulted in the best Coulombic efficiency.

"The demand for rechargeable accumulators will continue to grow. And when it comes to stationary batteries deployed at industrial facilities and in the production of renewable energy to even out fluctuations in available sunlight or wind power, the sodium-ion technology appears very promising. These batteries will be much cheaper, and while they might be heavier and bulkier, it won't be much of a problem for the relevant applications," study co-author Professor Artem Abakumov said; he heads the Center for Energy Science and Technology at Skoltech.

More information: Grigorii P. Lakienko et al, Sosnowskyi Hogweed-Based Hard Carbons for Sodium-Ion Batteries, Batteries (2022). Grigorii P. Lakienko et al, Sosnowskyi Hogweed-Based Hard Carbons for Sodium-Ion Batteries,(2022). DOI: 10.3390/batteries8100131
A person walks into the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) headquarters in Hsinchu, Taiwan on Oct. 20, 2021. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips for smartphones and other products, said Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022, quarterly profit rose 79.7% over a year earlier to $8.8 billion amid surging demand. Credit: AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying, File

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips for smartphones and other products, said Thursday that its quarterly profit rose 79.7% over a year earlier to a record $8.8 billion amid surging demand.

Quarterly revenue rose 47.9% over a year ago to $19.2 billion, the company reported.

TSMC, headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, makes processor chips for brands including Apple Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. Many of their products are assembled by factories in China, which has exposed TSMC to the possible impact of U.S.-Chinese tension over technology and security.

TSMC's U.S.-traded shares fell 14% in value after Washington on Friday tightened restrictions on Chinese access to advanced computer chips. Those controls are based on limiting the ability of TSMC and other suppliers to use U.S. chip or manufacturing technology for Chinese customers.

The American Embassy in Beijing didn't immediately respond to a question about whether TSMC had received an exemption that might allow normal supplies to Chinese factories to continue.

TSMC's CEO, C.C. Wei said in an earnings conference call that the rules set restrictions at very advanced levels mainly used for artificial intelligence or supercomputing applications.

"Therefore, our initial assessment is the impact to TSMC is limited and manageable," Wei told analysts. "We are closely monitoring the situation to ensure we comply with all the rules and regulations."

TSMC's chip supplies to China already were restricted under a 2020 order by then-President Donald Trump that prohibits vendors from using U.S. technology to manufacture for Huawei Technologies Ltd., a maker of network switching gear and smartphones. Washington says Huawei is a security risk and might facilitate Chinese spying, which the company denies.

Chipmakers are benefiting for demand for next-generation telecoms, high-performance computing and chips for use in products from cars to medical devices.

TSMC announced plans last year to invest $100 billion over the next three years in manufacturing and research and development.

Most semiconductors used in smartphones, medical equipment, computers and other products are made in Taiwan, South Korea and China.

That has prompted concern among American officials about reliance on supplies that might be disrupted by conflict between China and Taiwan. They are lobbying TSMC and other chipmakers to set up factories in the United States.

TSMC announced plans last year to build its first chip factory in Japan. The company and Sony Corp. later said they would jointly invest $7 billion in the facility.

TSMC operates a semiconductor wafer fabrication facility in Camas, Washington, and design centers in San Jose, California, and Austin, Texas.

The company has announced plans for a second U.S. production site in Arizona.

Explore further Taiwan chipmaker TSMC says quarterly profit $6 billion

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DALLAS  One of the most unlikely and unique nights in recent Dallas music history, and especially in the life of Good Records co-owner Chris 
College Station Mayor Karl Mooney has started an initiative that has been in the works for the last 12 years to bring a YMCA to Bryan-College Station.

When we look at the population growth that we have, we have families with or without young children and we have seniors who are moving back to Bryan-College Station, we needed something that could provide the kind of opportunities for social interaction, physical health and emotional support, Mooney said Wednesday. And over time it became clear  to me at least  that the YMCA might be the source of that.

According to the YMCA website, the YMCA is a nonprofit committed to strengthening community by empowering young people, improving the health and well-being of people of all ages and inspiring action in and across communities.

Mooney and four other councilmembers, along with two city managers, heard Tuesday from YMCA representatives and community members at City Hall to engage in a dialogue about ways to bring the organization to town.

Mooney said it was almost 12 years ago when this idea first took hold as he was driving through Burton and decided to visit its local YMCA.

I spoke with the executive director there and found that even in a small town there was a demand for a YMCA, he said. Complete with a pool, gym, daycare, afterschool programs, teen programs, programs for moms, all kinds of family things and swimming lessons for little ones and a program for seniors.

At that moment, he said he realized a YMCA would be nice to have as a way for all age groups to be engaged in activities in town. He said was in meetings with the YMCA at the national level out of Houston, but then Hurricane Harvey struck in 2017 and halted those conversations. The discussions were put on hold once more during COVID-19, he said, but now they are at the point where they can open the conversation again.

As a result of COVID, cities received some funding from the federal government and we have a variety of ways we can use those ARPA [American Rescue Plan Act] funds, he said. Some of those funds could be used to build a rec center, and the city council in College Station has charged our city manager with investigating what a rec center should look like in College Station.

Mooney said ARPA funds could be used for a rec center or a YMCA.

We have a couple of old Albertons places we could use, there is the old Academy on Highway 6, the old Stein Mart on Texas Avenue that is empty, he said. And we have a couple buildings at Post Oak Mall that are empty right now, the old Bealls and the Macys.

During the meeting, Mooney said it was clear that residents wanted an indoor pool that was accessible to the public, especially therapy and lap pools for senior citizens. Mooney said he also wants to have inclusive programs.

We had one mom there [at the meeting] who has three sons who are mildly autistic, and the YMCA has a program for kids who have special needs, he said. She came because she had done her research and she knew that the YMCA could provide that for her sons. How wonderful would that be to say College Station has that kind of a program?

Mooney said its clear this is something citizens want, and he is seeking input from citizens and city staff to look at ways to make it happen.

The one thing about the YMCA is it doesnt turn anybody away, he said. If you cant afford to go, the YMCA has a very robust scholarship program, and that was another reason why I really wanted to encourage the YMCA to take a look at College Station.

After Mooney terms out as mayor, he said he will still make it his goal to have a YMCA in town.

I want to make sure we have a YMCA here. Whether if it is a free-standing YMCA or whether it runs the rec center that the city eventually builds, he said. If the city builds a rec center, I want to make sure that everyone has access to it. Whether you are an infant and maybe your folks dont have the money to pay, or youre a teen or a young person or a senior who is on a fixed limited income, I want to make sure that you have the quality of life that could be made available to you by participation in YMCA programs.

Mooney is seeking members for the YMCA Founders Group. To sign up, email him at kmooney@cstx.gov or call 764-3541.

The next YMCA discussion meeting will be held Nov. 16 at College Station City Hall.

For more information about the YMCA, visit ymca.org.
SAN DIEGO  The Biden administration agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants at U.S. airports, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russias invasion, while Mexico has agreed to take back Venezuelans who come to the U.S. illegally over land, the U.S. and Mexico said Wednesday.

Effective immediately, Venezuelans who walk or swim across the border will be immediately returned to Mexico under a pandemic rule known as Title 42 authority, which suspends rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19.

Any Venezuelan who illegally enters Mexico or Panama after Wednesday also will be ineligible to come to the U.S. under the offer.

The U.S. offer of parole for up to 24,000 Venezuelans is modeled on a similar program for Ukrainians who fled Russias invasion and will hinge on Mexico keeping in place its independent but parallel effort to take back Venezuelans who come illegally, the Department of Homeland Security said.

The moves are a response to a dramatic increase in migration from Venezuela, which leapfrogged over Guatemala and Honduras in August to become the second-largest nationality arriving at the U.S. border after Mexico.

These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said. Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.

Mexicos Foreign Affairs Secretary said in a statement that those who seek to enter the United States will be able to do so in a more orderly, safe, regular and humane manner. The program discourages undocumented crossings that put migrants safety at risk.

In a related announcement, Homeland Security said it will make available nearly 65,000 temporary work visas for lower-skilled industries, roughly double the current annual allotment. At least 20,000 of those temporary visas will be reserved for Haiti and northern Central American countries.

Until now, Mexico has agreed to accept migrants expelled under Title 42 only if they are from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, in addition to Mexico, resulting in highly uneven enforcement. The U.S. struggles to expel other nationalities due to costs, strained diplomatic relations and other considerations.

Poor relations with the Venezuelan government have made it nearly impossible to apply Title 42. The pandemic rule has been used 2.3 million times since March 2020 but applied only 2,453 times on Venezuelans.

In August, Venezuelans were stopped 25,349 times, up 43% from 17,652 in July and four times the 6,301 encounters in August 2021, signaling a remarkably sudden demographic shift.

The announcement amounts to a potentially major expansion of Title 42 even though the administration recently sought to end it. Senior officials told reporters they are bound by a federal judges decision in May to keep Title 42 in place.

Venezuelans who successfully apply online will come to the United States through an airport, similar to an effort that began in April to admit up to 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war for stays of up two years. The U.S. has admitted tens of thousands of Ukrainians since then, including including nearly 17,000 in August.

Venezuelans, like Ukrainians, must have a financial sponsor in the United States.

They also must figure out how to reach the U.S. There are currently no flights allowed from Venezuela due to U.S. concerns about the safety of Venezuelas aviation industry. The restriction applies to charter and commercial flights.

Venezuelans do not have to be in Venezuela to be eligible and may come from other countries, administration officials said.

It also remains to be seen if Mexico has limits to how many Venezuelans it will accept from the United States. Mexico said in its statement that it will temporarily allow some Venezuelan citizens to be returned. The 24,000 slots that the U.S. is offering is less than the number of Venezuelans that crossed the border illegally from Mexico in August alone.

An estimated 6.8 million Venezuelans have fled their country since the economy tanked in 2014, mostly to Latin America and Caribbean countries. But the U.S. economys relative strength since the COVID-19 pandemic has caused Venezuelan migrants to look north. The Biden administrations inability to apply Title 42 has provided more incentive.

Mexico, under pressure from the U.S. administration, introduced restrictions on air travel to limit Venezuelan migration to the United States in January, but many then shifted to a dangerous route over land that includes Panamas notorious Darien Gap.

The surge in Venezuelan migration has emerged as a major challenge to authorities in the U.S., Mexico and Central America and a test of a hemispheric agreement reached in June in Los Angeles for countries that host migrants to confront issues together.
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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
Omaha-based Baxter on Wednesday announced the sale of four of its Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram dealerships, including the Lincoln store at 6601 Telluride Drive, which is near the 27th Street exit on Interstate 80.

Edwards Auto Group of Council Bluffs, Iowa, bought the four dealerships but subsequently sold two of them, including the Lincoln dealership, which is now owned by Sid Dillon. Edwards also sold the Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram dealership in Papillion to H&H Auto, but will retain the locations at 180th Street and West Dodge Road in Omaha as well as one in Bellevue.

Baxter has owned the Lincoln Dodge dealership since 1993.

The news follows Baxters March acquisition of Toyota of Colorado Springs. Additionally, Baxter opened Baxter Subaru La Vista in July 2021 and Subaru of Olathe in Olathe, Kansas, in 2020, and built two new dealership buildings and a new corporate headquarters, all in Omaha, over recent years.

Mickey Anderson, president and chief executive officer at Baxter Auto Group, said in a news release that the company has been focused on expansion, with recent dealership openings and acquisitions.

With strong demand for established, profitable dealerships, our team determined that this was an appropriate time to divest of these stores. This transaction is consistent with our long-term plan for geographic diversity, Anderson said.

Baxter will continue to own Baxter Toyota at 8600 S. 33rd St. in Lincoln.

The purchase of the former Baxter Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram gives Sid Dillon three locations in Lincoln. It owns a Buick-Nissan-Hyundai dealership at 2627 Kendra Lane and a pre-owned dealership at 5730 O St.
Theater is alive in Nebraska communities large and small, Omaha Performing Arts professionals are finding.

Grand Islands student theater scene had an opportunity to learn from Broadway dancer Elizabeth Earley.

Taylor Wyatt, the tours education manager, said (Theater) is alive in all of the towns that we visited  its been great, just learning about all of the high school programs that are available throughout the state.

Wednesday the 1,008 mile tour stopped in Grand Island to work with students from Grand Island Senior High and Northwest High School.

Earley lives in New Jersey and said Nebraska has been a very different experience.

Im definitely seeing things I would never have otherwise seen. Its been a gift for me.

The same sentiment matches the students, said Christine Kier, a theater teacher at Grand Island Senior High.

It was an incredible and real-world experience for the students. They got to see firsthand how grueling an audition or professional choreography session can be.

Plus, she said, The kids are fortunate to be able to participate in this with a professional artist.

What theater provides students is universal, Earley said.

 Seeing the spark in their eye when they get the opportunity to work on original Broadway choreography  thats a thrill for me. And and seeing the commonality between them all. They just have liveliness about them, and excitement.

Students worked with Earley in Grand Island Senior Highs auditorium.

Earley is both a performer and a teacher, having performed with Broadways national Mary Poppins tour and worked with Bette Midler.

Still, it seems she doesnt seem to favor one or the other.

Ive been one of those people who has always felt that I felt whole when I was performing and teaching at the same time, Earley said. Teaching for me is a way to balance what you experienced as a performer  feeling like connecting the circle is happening.

****

Wednesdays travelling theater experience is collaboration between Omaha Performing Arts and Nebraska High School Theater Academy (NHSTA). There are 12 schools along the tours 1,008-mile journey: Scottsbluff High School, Ogallala High School, North Platte High School, Kearney High School, Grand Island Senior High, Grand Island Northwest High School, Columbus Middle School, Fairbury Junior and Senior High Schools, Auburn High School, Lourdes Central Catholic High School (Nebraska City), Lincoln Southeast High School and Elkhorn North High School.

Taylor Wyatt, the education manager, said: Its been great, learning about all of the high school programs that are available throughout the state, but also the community theaters and the regional theaters that are located throughout Nebraska  the different college programs  its really wonderful to see that theater is thriving throughout the state.

Many of the Grand Island Senior High theater students who participated in the professional-led workshop attended one at Doane University on Monday, thanks to a grant from the Nebraska Arts Council.
ST. LOUIS  A federal judge in St. Louis is weighing the fate of the Biden administrations plan to forgive student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans following a court hearing on Wednesday.

Its unclear when U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey will rule on the lawsuit filed by six Republican-led states that seeks an injunction to halt the student loan forgiveness plan. Whatever he decides, an appeal is likely.

Democratic President Joe Biden announced in August that his administration would cancel up to $20,000 in education debt for huge numbers of borrowers. The announcement immediately became a major political issue ahead of the November midterms.

The proposal prompted a lawsuit filed in September by Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina. Other lawsuits followed, including one filed Monday by the Job Creators Network Foundation alleging that the administration violated federal procedures by failing to seek public input on the program.

Nebraska leads lawsuit against Biden administration to stop student loan forgiveness

In the lawsuit brought by the states, a court filing on behalf of the administration said the Department of Education has broad authority to manage the federal student financial aid programs. It stated that the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003, or HEROES Act, allows the secretary of education to waive or modify terms of federal student loans in times of war or national emergency.

COVID-19 is such an emergency, the filing stated.

The Congressional Budget Office has said the program will cost about $400 billion over the next three decades. James Campbell, an attorney for the Nebraska attorney generals office, told Autrey that the administration is acting outside its authorities in a way that will cost states millions of dollars.

What theyre trying to do is go around Congress, and this they cannot do, Campbell said.

The plan would cancel $10,000 in student loan debt for those making less than $125,000 or households with less than $250,000 in income. Pell Grant recipients, who typically demonstrate more financial need, will get an additional $10,000 in debt forgiven.

The administration faced threats of legal challenges to its plans almost immediately. Conservative attorneys, Republican lawmakers and business-oriented groups asserted that Biden was overstepping his authority in taking such sweeping action without the assent of Congress. They called it an unfair government giveaway for relatively affluent people at the expense of taxpayers who didnt pursue higher education.

Meanwhile, many Democratic lawmakers facing tough reelection contests distanced themselves from the student loan plan.

The HEROES Act is a post-Sept. 11, 2001, law meant to help members of the military. The Justice Department says the law allows Biden to reduce or erase student loan debt during a national emergency. Republicans argue the administration is misinterpreting the law because, in part, the pandemic no longer qualifies as a national emergency.

But attorney Brian Netter of the U.S. Department of Justice said the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic is still rippling. He said student loan defaults have skyrocketed over the past two-and-a-half years.

This (the HEROES Act) is a statute about emergencies  about national emergencies, Netter said.

The cancellation applies to federal student loans used to attend undergraduate and graduate school, along with Parent Plus loans. Current college students qualify if their loans were disbursed before July 1. Administration officials said applications for debt relief will be available in October.

The plan makes 43 million borrowers eligible for some debt forgiveness, with 20 million who could get their debt erased entirely, according to the administration.

Autrey did not give an indication when he will rule on the injunction request.
YORK  York County Clerk Kelly Turner offered some reminders this week regarding important dates pertaining to the 2022 General Election.

In-office voting began this week, on Oct. 11, at the clerk/voter office on the main floor of the courthouse. If an individual wants to vote early, they can do so, in person, with the clerks staff.

Turner said Oct. 21 is the postmark deadline for mailed-in voter registrations. This is the same deadline for online registrations and the last day voter registrations can be completed at DMV offices.

Oct. 28, she says, marks the last day for in-person voter registration. Registrations will be taken until 6 p.m., on that day.

The last day to vote at the clerk/election office is Nov. 7.

Nov. 8 is the day of the 2022 General Election. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.

All York residents voting on Election Day will do so at the city auditorium as they historically have.

Voters in the Stewart and Thayer precincts will cast their ballots at the Gresham Fire Hall.

Those in Morton, Arborville, Bradshaw and Lockridge precincts will vote at the 4-H building on the York County Fairgrounds.

The Waco Community Building will be the polling location for voters living in the New York, Waco, Beaver and West Blue precincts.

Residents in the Leroy and Baker precincts will vote in the basement of the York County Courthouse.

Voters from the Brown and Henderson precincts will cast their ballots at the Henderson City Hall.

People from the Hays and McFadden precincts will vote at the McCool Community Hall.
David Else, Democratic candidate for Congress in the 3rd Congressional District, hand feeds a new calf on his farm near Overton. (Courtesy of Else for Congress)

LINCOLN  You may know him as David from Overton for his regular calls to Gov. Pete Ricketts radio call-in show to criticize Republican policies.

But that notoriety and a hard-luck life story have elevated David Else from a call-in show regular into a candidate for U.S. Congress, albeit a long-shot one, against U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith, who has represented the Nebraskas sprawling 3rd Congressional District since 2007.

Except for a close race with Democrat Scott Kleeb when the seat was last open in 2006, Smith, a 51-year-old former state senator from Gering, has easily rolled up election victories.

Time for someone Else

Smith has claimed more than 70% of the vote every two years in what

is one of the most Republican congressional districts in the nation  the GOP enjoys more than a 3-to-1 margin over registered Democrats.

In recent weeks, Else, a 62-year-old father of four, has battled broken-down center pivots, drought thats forced the early sale of calves, a liver injury that required surgery and a broken nose, which occurred when a cow kicked a gate.

Before that, his life reads like a sad country song: three of his four children were born with birth defects, wife temporarily paralyzed in a horse riding accident, then a divorce. And plenty of financial setbacks, including losing farmland to the bank in the 1980s, seeing crops hailed out, and the death of 60 dairy cows from a disease.

For working people

Despite all that, and despite having limited funds for a campaign, Else figures his life experiences and down-home message of knowing what working people need out of Washington will resonate with voters.

I dont have anything against Adrian Smith, but just tell me three things hes done after 15 years in office, Else said. Thats when people scratch their heads.

Its all up to God. If God wants me to win, he will; if he dont, I won't.  David Else, 3rd District democratic candidate

Else, a lifelong farmer and resident of Overton, even has a catchy campaign slogan: Its time for someone Else.

But his taunting of Smith via Twitter, telling him to come out and get his hands dirty by doing some actual work on the farm, hasnt elicited a response. And there have been no debates.

Its all up to God, he added, as he wrapped up a dusty day of combining soybeans. If God wants me to win, he will; if he dont, I wont.

Smith has raised $1.2 million

It may take divine intervention.

Smith has raised $1.2 million, according to the Federal Election Commission, while Else said he hasnt raised or spent $5,000 so far.

Only three times in the past 50 years have Democrats threatened to claim the 3rd District seat:

In 2006, Scott Kleeb, the husband of the current state Democratic chair, Jane Kleeb, lost by a margin of 55-45% after a last-minute barrage of robocalls on behalf of Smith as well as a campaign visit by President George W. Bush.

In 1990, Republican Bill Barrett, then a state senator, defeated fellow legislator Sandy Scofield by only 4,400 votes.

In 1974, the legendary Virginia Smith won her first term in Congress by only 737 votes over Democrat Wayne Ziebarth in the wake of the Watergate scandal.

John Hibbing, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln political science professor, said Else doesnt have a prayer.

Democrats spend money elsewhere

He said Democrats have a hard time recruiting better-known, better-funded candidates to run in the 3rd District because of the poor odds of winning. Else said hes getting no national money from the party.

You have to be strategic, Hibbing said. Democrats think there are better ways to spend their money.

Jane Kleeb said the national party has a broken model of financially helping congressional campaigns only in battleground states.

Hes doing what he can, Kleeb said of Else. Its obviously a very uphill battle.

Else said he got into the race, and switched his political affiliation from Republican to independent and then to Democrat, because of experiences with a daughter, Melissa, who has undergone two kidney transplants. He donated one kidney.

Supported ObamaCare

Too many people didnt have insurance and couldnt afford health care until President Barack Obama got the Affordable Care Act passed, he said, yet former President Donald Trump and the Republicans tried to repeal the ACA.

Without ObamaCare, people like my daughter who have a handicap would die, Else said.

He said he made a promise to a woman he met at a local hospital who was crying after losing her job and her health insurance. She was about to lose her home, Else said, because of medical bills associated with her sons serious illness.

I gave her a hug, he said. I promised her Id do everything I can to get health care for everyone.

Won primary by 733 votes

I feel like I have a huge heart for people like that, the working people, he said.

Party officials, including Jane Kleeb, urged him to run after hearing his calls to Ricketts, Else said.

In his first run at elective office, he won the Democratic primary by 733 votes over Dr. Daniel Wik.

But so far, Elses campaign has consisted of distributing some yard signs, participating in a couple of parades and giving some speeches at party events.

Else doesnt strictly follow the Democrat Party platform.

Abortion, gay marriage

He said he would never approve of an abortion in his family  Else said he rejected a suggestion that his wife have one due to his second daughters handicaps  but doesnt support outlawing the procedure.

Else, a Christian, said he was urged by some churchgoing neighbors to reject an abortion for his second daughter, Tearanie, but the promised help they offered after she was born never materialized.

It seems like the Republicans want to save the fetus but dont want to help them after theyre born, he said.

Else said he has nothing against gay marriage but said the Bible states that a marriage is only between a man and a woman.

Backs help for young farmers

On other issues, he said that the nation needs to do more to help young farmers get a start, that more small meatpacking plants are needed so that the Big Four packers cant gouge beef producers and that small factories should be encouraged to locate in small towns before they completely die.

Else said he got a few threats after his calls to Ricketts to complain about GOP trade policies and the governors opposition to President Joe Bidens 30-by-30 plan to voluntarily conserve more land in America.

Ricketts crisscrossed the state holding anti-30-by-30 rallies, saying it was a land grab by the federal government.

Else said the plan just helps farmers do what theyre already doing, things like planting cover crops to improve the soil and setting aside acres in conservation programs to cut erosion and help wildlife.

I told him, Why are you running all over the state telling lies about this program?  Else said.

Apologized to Ricketts

Yet, when he met Ricketts face-to-face at a recent town hall meeting in Lexington, Else said, he apologized for being so harsh.

I told him we all need to get along instead of fighting, Else said.

Despite all the heartaches in his life, Else said hes been fortunate: Doctors said his daughter, Tearanie, would only live to age 7, but she is now 32. His farming operation has rebounded from 320 acres a few years ago to 1,600 today, and hes working side by side with his son, Chuck.

Our whole family has had a life of hell, but yet weve been blessed, he said.
Equity Initiatives

Apple Expands Community Education Initiative to Over 600 Communities

Launched in 2019, Apples Community Education Initiative (CEI) has been expanded to 150 partners in 600 communities in 99 countries and regions, and all 50 states, the company announced. CEI provides access to coding, creativity, and job opportunities to students of all ages and from all backgrounds, with special focus on communities that are traditionally underrepresented in technology.

Apple partners with schools and educational and community-based institutions to provide hardware, scholarships, financial support, educator resources, and access to teams of Apple experts who work side by side with educators to enhance student learning with technology, the company said, as it did a few weeks ago at the Center for Innovation in STEM Education lab for a STEAM Max experience at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Apple customizes its programming, based on a communitys goals, to help students learn new technology in and outside of school.

The companys newest partnership is with Oklahoma City University and the Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw nations to provide opportunities to Native American youth living on reservations to learn technology and pursue career goals while preserving tribal languages and cultures. The program will start with a teacher academy to support educators to include creativity and coding in their classes.

Read more about Apples CEI program and how it has benefited various communities around the world.
President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia's economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine. The United States generally imports about 100,000 barrels a day from Russia, only about 5% of Russia's crude oil exports, according to Rystad Energy. Last year, roughly 8% of U.S. imports of oil and petroleum products came from Russia. Gas prices have been rising for weeks due to the conflict and in anticipation of potential sanctions on the Russian energy sector. The U.S. national average for a gallon of gasoline soared 45 cents a gallon in the past week and topped $4.06 on Monday, according to auto club AAA. Should the US ban Russian oil imports over Ukraine war?

You voted:
A female South Carolina State University student was injured in an off-campus shooting late Tuesday, according to university spokesperson Sam Watson.

S.C. State President Alexander Conyers spoke with the student and her parents Wednesday morning.

Shes in good spirits, Watson said.

Her injuries are believed to be non-life threatening, he said.

The Orangeburg County Sheriffs Office received a report of an active shooting incident at 11:59 p.m. in the area of Madison Street and Russell Street.

The Orangeburg Department of Public Safety was called to the scene to assist until sheriffs office investigators arrived, sheriffs office Media Director Richard Walker said.

When they arrived, officers learned that someone had already been taken to the Regional Medical Center due to a gunshot wound. Walker said the woman received a gunshot wound to the upper body.

An officer reported seeing a large crowd of SCSU students in a field; several getting into vehicles and leaving the scene.

Officers discovered shell casings in the road on Russell Street and found blood on Madison Street, the report states.

As a precaution, the university issued a shelter-in-place alert beginning around 12:30 a.m., Watson said. It was lifted about two hours later.
BOWMAN  Bowmans October Town Council meeting was opened by Mike Dennis, executive director of the Tri-County Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, which is known locally as The Dawn Center.

Dennis spoke about the current opioid epidemic and its rate in South Carolina, which has seen over 7,000 overdoses since Jan. 1, with over 700 resulting in death.

Dennis is reaching out to communities to make the public aware of the services they offer, from a 15-bed adolescent program to help youth overcome their addictions with 24/7 nursing care to offering education to family members of loved ones facing addiction.

Dennis demonstrated that in the event someone has suffered an opioid overdose, they can be resuscitated using Narcan in a nasal spray that is free to anyone who requests it from the Dawn Center or one of their locations in Bamberg or Santee.

If a person is in need and is unsure if they can afford help, the Dawn Center is able to get them help regardless, Dennis said.

In other business, Mayor Patsy Rhett discussed the RIA grant for Bowmans sewer and water system overhaul and stated that if everything stays on schedule with the planning and inspections, work should begin in February.

Rhett also announced another grant of over $3 million to be used to extend the sewer system from Homestead to I-26. This will allow more people and businesses to tap in.

Trunk-or-Treat will be Oct. 31 at Town Hall and will run from 5:30 to 8 p.m. All are welcome to come set up and there will be a costume, trunk, and table contest as well, so get spooky.

Southeast Nature Center will be hosting haunted car rides Oct. 15 and 26 from 7 p.m. until 11 p.m. and admission will be $25 per car. There will also be a haunted walking trail and haunted room challenge for $15.

Donation boxes for diapers and wipes are at town hall and various churches throughout the community in support of this months diaper drive. For more information, contact Councilperson Shaquetta Pelzer.

Bethune Bowmans newly elected student council will be attending the next council meeting to learn more about how a council operates.

The next meeting will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at Town Hall, located at 131 Poplar St.
The Facebook Live meeting video for Norways Town Council meeting had the sound off during the entire 38-minute session.

The video posted to the town Facebook page also does not have sound.

A number to call in for the teleconference was listed in a posted agenda on Facebook, but no audio could be heard in the Facebook video broadcast itself. Nearly every month this year that Norway has had Facebook live meetings, sound has been available to the general public without having to call in.

Mayor Tracie Clemons could be seen giving various reports but could not be heard on the video.

Toni Hydrick, a citizen of Norway involved in some citizen committees in the past, typed in the comments section, "The sound needs to be on."

Someone named Gifted Thomas on Facebook asked in the comments, "Can anyone hear?"

Colleen Barton Williams made a comment as well, "Can Mayor Clemons fix the sound?" Others also asked if the sound could be turned on.

Former Mayor Sarah Johnson, in the comments section, stated something was wrong with the sound.

She typed a question to Town Clerk Dee Gore, "Clerk, can you hear?"

Gore replied in the comments, "Yes, through phone call."

At some point Gore stated in the comments, "No sound through FB."

Citizens as well as officials had to call in to hear the audio through a teleconference, and, again, it was not available in the Facebook live video as in the past.

Listed on the agenda on the Town of Norway Facebook page was an announcement of the results of the recent referendum to decide whether Norway would go to at-large or to stay with district council members. As previously reported in The T&D, Norway's voters chose to stay with district council members.

Whether the old business discussion about the referendum and the council's debate about it was mentioned could not be determined.

Jackie Tyler, according to the agenda, was sworn in as a District 4 council member during the meeting.

The Facebook live video can be found via this link: https://www.facebook.com/1013716612050884/videos/851677076193828

For more information on the meeting, see the agenda posted on the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/Town-of-Norway-SC-1013716612050884
The Orangeburg Department of Public Safety has formed a partnership with a national nonprofit organization created to unite police departments and their communities.

ODPS Chief Charles P. Austin Sr. said he welcomes Police2Peaces vision of reimagining policing that is empathetic, effective and just, with police officers serving their communities as peace officers.

When we are connected with the community, when we can get the community support, then we are better able to initiate services and programs that address issues: quality of life issues, social issues, Austin said.

He continued, Crime doesn't just happen. Crime happens because we have quality of life issues and social issues that have not been addressed. So when we are working with the community in partnership, we're more apt to invest in solutions to those problems. I think that is what brings us the kind of stability and security in our communities that we reside in."

ODPS initiated its participation in the Police2Peace project on Tuesday during its Promotional and Pledge of Peace ceremony in the Orangeburg City Gym.

Officers made what is called the Peace Officer Promise, stating that while the department will do its best to control crime, we will do everything in our power to do no harm to the communities we serve and protect.

Perry Bradley, the director of public safety for Lenoir Rhine Universitys Columbia campus, is also the state representative for the Police2Peace project.

He presented the department with a framed certificate recognizing it as an official project partner.

Austin said, We've worked together on other events. When he told me about the Police2Peace project, it reminded me of marital vows and when we renew our vows with our spouses. I said to him, You know, that's really something we would like to be involved with, because I think it's a good opportunity for us to renew our vows to our oath with the community.

ODPS officers promoted during the ceremony include: Jason Sturkie, Albert Black, Angel Rickenbacker and Danny Dantzler, sergeant to lieutenant; Nichole Bragdton, Eric Free, Deloris Edmunds, Kenyatta Jenkins, Jacob Hawkins and Stephanie Rudd, corporal to sergeant; and Lisa Carrigg, Devon Gilmore, Brian Haynes, Jeffrey Rivas, Lauren Riddle and Christopher Williams, PSO II to corporal.

Orangeburg City Councilman Dr. Kalu Kalu, mayor pro tem of the city, thanked the officers for what they do to protect and serve the community and also recognized the departments partnership with Police2Peace.

We are extremely happy for what has taken place, Kalu said.

Orangeburg City Administrator Sidney Evering said, You represent the best of us. You indeed are the best of us. Without you all and your service, we would not have a community.

Austin said, We have many others within our agency who also demonstrate tremendous exceptional leadership skills. So we look forward to more promotional events such as this one."

Austin said he wanted to leave his officers with several principals, including setting an example of what they expect from others and emphasizing the future rather than the past or present.

Other principals include looking for and dealing with causes rather than symptoms; admitting and learning from mistakes; not passing the buck; considering both long-term and short-term results; respecting the dignity of every individual and using legal and ethical means to achieve the same ends.

It is not for us to break the law, but to enforce the law. ... For us to achieve the status and maintain the status of an agency of excellence, serving with integrity. I want to implore each of you to adopt this code of ethics for supervisors. Not only adopt it, but it is my expectation that you will live by this code of ethics, Austin said.
The Orangeburg Tri-County Commission on Alcohol & Drug Abuse (TCCADA) is hoping to begin a local psychiatric residency training program in order to better meet the mental health needs of the area.

"There are not enough mental health clinicians out there and then there is not enough psychiatrists out there," William J. McCord Adolescent Treatment Facility Executive Director Mike Dennis said in his appearance before the Orangeburg Legislative Delegation meeting Monday. "There are not enough psychiatric residency training programs around the U.S. to meet the need for the number of graduates."

Dennis said currently the Orangeburg Area Mental Health Center does have psychiatrists, but outside of the OAMHC there is one part-time psychiatrist available in Orangeburg, Bamberg and Calhoun County.

Dennis said the commission would help alleviate the load from the Orangeburg Area Mental Health Center. He noted TCCADA is already licensed as a psychiatric hospital.

"We don't necessarily want to take those people away from Orangeburg Area Mental Health but we want to be a resource," Dennis said. "What is key is we don't want those folks traveling to a number of different places to get the care they need."

The commission applied to the national Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in July with its interest to be able to begin the program and a virtual site visit was made in September.

The commission expects to hear word on whether or not the application has been approved by February 2023. The targeted goal for the residency program to begin would be in July.

"We would have to hustle at that point in time," Dennis said.

As proposed, individuals participating in the residency program would rotate through the Regional Medical Center's family medicine, neurology, emergency medicine, emergency department and also inpatient and outpatient substance abuse/mental health in Orangeburg, Columbia and via telehealth to the county alcohol and drug abuse commissions.

The residents would rotate through the RMC's inpatient and outpatient as well as the emergency department. Dennis said the Medical University of South Carolina, which has a psychiatrics residency program, says it would be happy to partner in the program after MUSC joins with RMC, which is pending.

Residents will also rotate through the Orangeburg County Detention Center, Dennis said, noting the jail has a doctor on site but not a mental health specialist.

The program will include 10 residents per year with residency being a four-year process. By the fourth year of the program, there are expected to be 40 residents in training for mental health and addiction.

Dennis said the partners in making the program a reality would include the Regional Medical Center, HopeHealth, Orangeburg County, the South Carolina Department of Mental Health, the SCDAODAS and all 31 alcohol and drug commissions throughout the state.

Physicians and psychiatrists in each of the program partners will serve as faculty and attending physicians, Dennis said.

About $501,000 of the funds will come from the state-appropriated monies from the S.C. Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services (SCDAODAS) and the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, he said.

Dennis said the commission is seeking other funding sources, including federal funds for the program.

In order to house the residency program, Dennis said the TCCADA will construct a $2.5 million, 6,000-square-foot addition to its current Cook Road facility. The addition will be located behind the current facility in order to take advantage of the TCCADA staff already on site for support services.

The building addition would include exam rooms, offices, lab and multipurpose rooms for education and outreach. The building's architect is Sumter-based Drakeford Architects.

Dennis said the residency program is much needed in The T&D Region.

Citing the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which tracks health care access, the access of a psychiatrist is at a premium, Dennis said.

According to statistics, for every 7,280 individuals, there is one psychiatrist in Calhoun County; one for every 2,320 individuals in Bamberg County and one for every 590 in Orangeburg County. Dennis said the statistics show there needs to be a ratio of 300 individuals per one counselor.

Mental Health America reports that South Carolina ranks 43rd in the nation in access to mental health services.

Dennis said mental health centers -- including Orangeburg Area Mental Health -- have a shortage of psychiatrists and wait times to see a psychiatrist through a state Department of Mental Health center can be up to three months.

The shortage of mental health counselors is pronounced in schools as well. According to the S.C. Department of Health and Human Services, there is currently one counselor for every 1,300 students.

Dennis said alcohol and drug commissions in the state do not employ psychiatrists.

Orangeburg Sen. and delegation Chairman Brad Hutto described mental health as a "crisis" that has been made worse through COVID for both adults and school-aged children.

Hutto, who sits on the The Joint Citizens and Legislative Committee on Children, said he has been informed that when a mental health call comes and a responder can't handle the matter, "their default response is either take them to the hospital or take them to jail."

"Neither one of those is really equipped to handle people with mental health issues," Hutto said. "The emergency room is not the right place for them. Jail is not the right place for them."

Hutto said the lack of resources results in individuals being placed in not ideal locations.

Hutto questioned if the residency program would have an outpatient component.

Dennis said there is the potential for that, noting an alternative destination program is being looked at for those that EMS responds to ensure the patient receives the proper care.

Dennis said state law requires emergency-response units to either send a psychiatric patient to the hospital emergency department or to leave them in the community if the patient refuses to be taken to the hospital.

He said a change in the law that allows psychiatric patients to be transported to a mental health center or a commission on alcohol and drugs facility needs to be in place.

"The ED (emergency department) and the detention center are two extremely costly programs," Dennis said. "Because we don't have a solution as to how to deal with them, we tend to default to the ED and the detention center."

"What we envision is the majority of the consults and ongoing care will be on an outpatient basis," Dennis said, noting patients will also be able to receive evaluations, medicine management and telehealth services through the alcohol and drug commissions throughout the state under the residency program.

Hutto asked Dennis if the residency program would include both pediatric and adult training and was told by Dennis that it would.

"The need for mental health counseling in the schools could be potentially addressed through a telehealth situation," Hutto said.

Dennis said the TCCADA is envisioning eventually having a program to provide training for social workers and clinicians that could bring in South Carolina State University and Claflin to help with internships.

Dennis said the benefit of a local psychiatric residency program also will be having a future base of psychiatrists in the area. He noted that statistics show that those who participate in a residency program typically remain in the communities where they are trained.

"The commission is already a National Health Services Corps-designated site," Dennis said. "If residents stay and are employed by the commission, they can have school loans forgiven in exchange for services."

The delegation did not have enough members in attendance to meet a quorum, so no action was taken. The next scheduled meeting for the delegation is Monday, Jan. 9, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. in Orangeburg County Council Chambers at 1437 Amelia St. at the Orangeburg County Administrative Center.
South Carolina State University President Alexander Conyers announced heightened security measures for this weeks homecoming activities, including:

Additional sworn officers from state and local law enforcement agencies who will work alongside campus police and guards.

A clear bag policy at homecoming events in Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center and Oliver C. Dawson Stadium.

Metal detectors at entrances to SHM and the stadium.

Random vehicle checks at campus entrances.

While these measures already were in place, Conyers on Wednesday emphasized the need for diligence following an off-campus incident in which an S.C. State student sustained a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. The incident occurred in the vicinity of Russell Street at a location not affiliated with S.C. State.

Conyers spoke with both the student and her mother at a hospital early Wednesday morning.

As a result of the incident:

Conyers and other university administrators are conducting another review of every scheduled Homecoming event to include a detailed risk assessment analysis and make any safety adjustments deemed necessary.

As he did Aug. 22 after a similar situation, Conyers met Wednesday with city and county officials, including law enforcement, to discuss ways to mitigate safety concerns in the areas adjacent to the campus.

The president met again Wednesday with student leaders to stress the importance of making safe choices both on and off campus  with specific reference to off-campus gatherings.

The Homecoming Concert on Friday evening in SHM will be restricted to students attending S.C. State and neighboring Claflin University.

Admission for the event will be $10 for S.C. State students and $20 for Claflin students.

Each student will be required to present a current, valid university ID. Photocopies or scanned images on smartphones will not be accepted. The clear bag policy will be strictly enforced.

Earlier this year, Conyers approved a program to add six campus safety officers (not sworn police officers) to assist the campus police department with functions while serving as additional eyes and ears.

Over the summer, S.C. State began implementing Conyers $1 million initiative to upgrade lighting and security technology, particularly around residence halls and classroom buildings.

The effort includes the installation of 700 cameras and 27 emergency call boxes across the campus. That process is ongoing, as new cameras are coming online on a frequent basis, and the university is utilizing them for increased safety on the campus.
Voorhees University and its partners have received a grant totaling nearly $6 million from the U.S. Department of Education to prepare teachers to improve learning outcomes for students.

The grant, awarded through the Department of Education Supporting Effective Educator Development program, was announced in late September.

The successful SEED proposal was a collaboration between the Voorhees University Center of Excellence for Educator Preparation, Gray Charter School, Youth Connection Charter School, The Institute for Organizational Coherence, KDR Global Education Solutions, The Center for Research & Mentoring of Black Male Students & Teachers at Bowie State University and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

Voorhees proposed a project entitled Chicago SEED.

There is excellence among us at Voorhees University and among the ranks of accomplished educators worldwide, Voorhees President Dr. Ronnie Hopkins said.

That excellence is demonstrated through the strategies we use to increase effectiveness in teaching and learning. I applaud my colleagues at Voorhees and all those partners who helped to secure this grant funding, he said.

The Chicago SEED plan is designed to raise the academic achievement of high-need students by improving teacher effectiveness, equipping them with skills to promote 21st-century learning and increasing the number of teachers who attain advanced credentials.

SEED will support up to 705 credentialed teachers during the three-year grant period.

The grant totals $18 million over the next three years.

The ultimate aim of this grant is to develop a model for effective teaching using improvement science, competency-based learning and the work of renowned educator Marva Collins that can be replicated in various contexts, said Damara Hightower Mitchell, Voorhees provost and executive director of the Center of Excellence for Educator Preparation and Innovation.

Voorhees center was born out of Hopkins vision to increase access to effective educators for all learners.

Voorhees has an opportunity to contribute to the national dialogue regarding how educators are prepared and supported, Hightower Mitchell said. Our team believes many traditional educational approaches are not serving those who need education most, so we want to innovate and create new paradigms.

She said education is the only hope for many students to create the kind of lives they desire and deserve.

There are educators who are artful at fostering impressive gains in student learning. We want to learn from them and support others in becoming impactful educators as well. This funding helps us to do just that, Hightower Mitchell said.
(TBTCO) - Theo Trung tam Du bao Khi tuong thuy van quoc gia, ngay 19/10, do anh huong cua khong khi lanh tang cuong ket hop voi hoan luu con bao so 6 va nhieu ong trong oi gio ong, tu trua chieu ngay 19/10 en ngay 20/10, o khu vuc phia ong Bac Bo va Bac Trung Bo co mua, mua vua, cuc bo co noi mua to va dong.
Theres a lot of attention on school board races this year.

On Wednesday evening, around the time when most people would probably be eating dinner, a crowd of about 50 people gathered in a basement room of the Natrona County Library. They came to listen to school board candidates give their pitch as to why they should be entrusted with the countys public education.

This year, there are 15 candidates vying for four open seats on the school board. All 15 of them showed up to talk at the forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters. They sat in a line that stretched the width of the entire room.

School boards have become flash points for many topics that have flared into contention over the past couple of years: Book banning. Social emotional learning. Critical race theory. Government overreach. The extent of parental involvement in schools.

In a forum where, in the interest of time, the audience was asked not to clap following candidates responses, those who touched on some of the more heated topics nevertheless elicited small breaks in the quiet.

Since when did we as a society expect schools to raise our children? Renea Redding asked the audience. A person in the crowd said Yes, amen! Some people clapped.

We as a school should recommend to families or to students help if its already presented in the community through social programs, and we shouldnt be doing it ourselves, Mary Schmidt said. When government takes over things, things dont usually go well.

Some people in the audience clapped and voiced quiet affirmation to that too.

Redding and Schmidt, along with another candidate, Jenifer Hopkins, are running as a unit. Theyve been frequent attendees of school board meetings over the past year and a half or so where theyve pushed back against masking in schools, social-emotional learning and books exploring gender identity and sexuality.

At times overshadowed by these controversies are other serious challenges that Natrona Countys school board members will be entrusted to grapple with: Teacher recruitment and retention. The wise use of the school districts budget in an economy that rises and falls precipitously. How best to deal with student behavioral problems. Deciding to what extent schools should pick up slack for students whose needs arent met at home. Opening up more educational opportunities for kids who arent college-bound.

Lisa Taylor  Casper native, 27-year veteran teacher with a doctorate in education  believes that education is only about 40% academic and 60% all the other stuff.

Many of my kids, my beloved kids, did not have the support of their parents in ways that we in society wish they did, she said. Thats the reality of every teacher in our school districts.

Casper native and former school board member Kevin Christopherson thinks school board members really need to focus on those kids at risk.

If we want to get our graduation rates up and get these kids onto a decent life, we have to focus on them, he said.

Michael Stedillie, who retired from a 41-year teaching career only to turn around and become a substitute teacher in the school district (I gotta tell you, I absolutely love it.), is a big proponent of the whole child.

Teaching, as weve often heard, is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire, he said. Our job is to determine what to do to help kids become the future, to find out who they are, where they fit, how they are going to become the future and lead us through the rest of it.

Theres Debbie McCullar and Kianna Smith, Casper natives and current school board trustees vying again for another term (McCullar her third, Smith her second).

McCullar is a retired English teacher. She spent 37 years in the classroom. During those 37 years, she learned a lot about her students through reading their writing. I do believe in educating the whole child as a teacher, she said.

Society has dumped a whole lot of responsibilities on the school system that are not ours. But we accept them, because you cannot educate kids that are hungry when they come to school in the morning, who have parents that may or may not get up and get them to school in the morning.

Smith ran four years ago because shes passionate about politics and education; being on the school board checked both those boxes. Shes a product of Natrona Countys open enrollment system and wants to continue prioritizing school choice as well as fiscal responsibility and transparency with the public. In addition to the basics, she thinks its extremely important for kids to learn critical thinking, to help them ask questions and be curious about the world.

Several other candidates think this is important too. Ryan Landmann, a former theater and woodshop teacher who moved from California to Wyoming three years ago, wants to emphasize the humanities and getting those critical thinking skills through those elective courses.

Along with this as a teacher, there are moments where youre teaching students just how to be a human, how to be nice to each other.

Fatima Bujosa, a retired veteran from Florida whose kids went to Kelly Walsh High School, also said she thinks there should be more to education than teaching just the basics.

We need to teach them the basics, but when they go out there, theyre going to need more than the basics, she said. Theyve got to be able to deal with individuals, and thats what the school does, it gives them the opportunity to create community and to learn how to socialize and bring interest.

Part of school board members job is deciding how money will be spent. McCullar and Smith have both worked on the board in lean times and gravitate toward the idea of downsizing to save money. Cuts on the administrative level dont sound great to Smith; the district has already made a lot of cuts in that area, and theres not much more to get rid of, she said.

Other candidates  Darren Hopman, a 2010 candidate for Natrona County commissioner and Casperite since 2007, and Tina Dean, who works for an oil and gas company out of Colorado and has lived in Casper for 40 years  floated the idea of instituting a four day school week to tighten the budgetary belt. Schmidt says she wants to look at frivolous spending and cutting fees that go unnoticed. Hopkins would look at the top of it, the district office, and do away with non-essentials. Many of the candidates emphasized that they wouldnt want to cut jobs.

Bernie Studer, who has a background in construction and as a utility contractor and wants to make sure students have a proper foundation, suggested a different framing of the problem.

Twenty percent of the people do 80% of the work, he said. If we follow Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric, he got rid of 10% of the people at the end of every year. Its a hard choice.

Most of the candidates voiced support for education in the trades. Theres Arthur Youngberg. He grew up in Saratoga. His son is named after a teacher (Yes, theyre important, he said).

Youngberg was a solid C student in school, then a solid A student once he got to WyoTech, a trade school. He thinks the trades are where its at and that the role of public education is to teach kids the basics  math, science, history. And probably computers now, he added. Im kind of old.

Joseph Porambo, who ran for one of Wyomings U.S. Senate seats in 2018, believes in educating kids where theyre at.

Some are really good in academics, others are better with their hands, he said.
Partway through his presentation on adverse childhood experiences and their impact on mental and physical health, Dr. Robert Anda looked at the crowd gathered in Caspers Nicolaysen Art Museum and thought out loud that people might take a gloomy outlook on all this information.

Im excited, he said regarding the research. What is predictable is preventable.

Anda was the keynote speaker at Gov. Mark Gordons mental health summit on Tuesday.

The event drew people from a variety of backgrounds for a variety of reasons; a Casper counseling student, Aja Lewis, said she came to meet other people working on mental health. Businessman Jake Gannon, president and co-founder of Rhithm, a wellness check-in tool for K-12 students, came all the way from Dallas to pitch his product. Staff from the Comitis Crisis Center in Cheyenne sat in to learn from the presentations and panel discussions. Representatives of the Wyomings legislative, executive and judicial branches and several state departments came to weigh in on mental health concerns from their various perspectives.

The summit was fully booked in two days.

What that says is there is hunger in Wyoming to address these issues, Gordon said during one of the panels; now, leveraging the desire to address mental health and figuring out how solutions can be sustainable are the main challenges.

Poor mental health in Wyoming has long been a concern in Wyoming, particularly with the additional pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic on peoples well being.

The problem has manifested itself in various ways. Some school districts have seen an uptick in behavioral problems among kids. Many teachers say theyre overworked and burned out. District Judge Matthew Castano, who spoke on one of the panels, said the number of competency evaluations in Wyomings courts have increased over the last few years to the point where theyve gotten to a crisis level. (A competency evaluation is an assessment of a defendants ability to understand and participate in a court process.) In 2020, the state had the highest suicide rate in the nation.

I think as we begin to appreciate mental health in the state more and more, perhaps more of it has become evident, Gordon said.

It hasnt been easy getting more mental health services in Wyoming.

The rural nature of the state makes it particularly challenging to connect mental health services with the people who need them. The Legislature has long hesitated over expanding Medicaid, a jointly funded state-federal health insurance program that some say would alleviate stresses and provide more support around mental health issues. Mental health services arent always the first priority when the state has to make budget cuts.

But there have been some improvements. Over the summer, Wyoming got its first statewide 24/7 suicide hotline. Before that, it had been the only state in the country without its own 24/7 lifeline service; a portion of calls were redirected to the national suicide hotline.

There are nonprofit organizations that try to fill gaps in mental health and other social support services; speaking on one of the panels, Speaker of the House Rep. Eric Barlow, R-Gillette, gave the example of Climb Wyoming, a nonprofit that aims to help single moms build tools to manage the stress and chaos of poverty and find stability.

Some school districts also have programs to provide more support. The Campbell County School District, for instance, partners with the countys health department to operate the Kid Clinic, which provides physical and mental health services to kids up to 18 years old. Since 2021, six Wyoming school districts have participated in Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resiliency in Education), a program that provides school-based mental health services that are meant to supplement existing services in the community.

Part of the objective of the summit was to highlight mental health support models that have worked in some communities so that others might learn from whats already been done.
A bird hunter sustained non-life threatening injuries after being knocked over and stepped on by a grizzly bear near Choteau on Tuesday.

The bear was shot by the hunter and later killed by authorities.

Wildlife officials say the 51-year-old Washington state hunter and his wife were hunting along a creek bottom east of Choteau at about 1 p.m. The dogs went on point and the hunter raised his shotgun to prepare to shoot flushing birds when the bear charged out of the brush, said Dave Hagengruber, spokesperson for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, describing it as a classic surprise attack.

The hunter was knocked down by the bear and stepped on, sustaining injuries that included scratches from the claws. He was not bitten. The hunter fired the shotgun twice, hitting the bear and also fired a handgun, Hagengruber said.

The bear returned to the brush after being shot. The hunter was able to travel to the hospital in Choteau in the couples personal vehicle to receive treatment, Hagengruber said.

FWP bear management specialists, game wardens and Teton County Sheriffs Office deputies returned to the site, located and killed the bear later that afternoon after consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, FWP said in a new release.

The 677-pound adult male bear had no known previous history of human conflict and had never been handled by bear managers, the new release said.

FWP recommends taking precautions while in bear country, such as carrying pepper spray, traveling with a group of people and making noise.
AT A Housing Development Corporation (HDC) key-distribution ceremony at Heron Court, Malabar South in Arima last month, Tracey McLeod-Celestin stood out.

In a profession known for the rough and tumble of its construction language, McLeod-Celestin is one of a few, if not the only, female general contractors in T&T.

At the ceremony, McLeod-Celestin came in for kudos for her work.

Several people, including complete strangers, hugged and thanked her profusely. To compound it, people were impressed at a female contractor, since the construction industry is mostly male-dominated.
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The publics help is being sought by the police to find 13-year-old Ashley Gibbs.
There has been a major rupture of a WASA pipeline spanning the Godineau River, near the Shor
Police Constable Herman Mohan, who was described as having an instrumental role in the captu
IN a letter to the Daily Express on October 17, an insurance broker complained that insurance companies have an agreement to set the rate of premiums at which policies are sold (especially in property market).

The Insurance Trade Association, ATTIC, records these rates in its rating manual and enforces the agreement. Under this agreement amongst insurance companies, insurers have informed brokers that policy renewal rate will be increased by ten per cent.
After selling his aerial drone business to defense giant BAE Systems in 2009, Tony Mulligan turned his focus from air to water and set out to develop small, unmanned watercraft for emergency water rescue and research.

The idea led Mulligan to found Sahuarita-based Hydronalix Inc., which is now planning a major expansion to meet demand for its growing line of unmanned surface vessels and aerial drones.

The companys line of unmanned surface vessels, or USVs, now includes a sonar-equipped version of EMILY, a more powerful general-purpose unmanned watercraft with a hybrid gas-electric powerplant, a robo-boat that can launch a rotorcraft drone, and an amphibious drone that can fly or cruise on water as needed.

Mulligan said that the company has sold about 900 of its EMILY (Emergency Integrated Lifesaving Lanyard) robotic rescue buoys to first-responder agencies around the world.

Overall, Mulligan said, the company has booked about $60 million in contracts since its inception and has delivered about 1,600 autonomous watercraft and aerial drones to emergency agencies, research and defense agencies and commercial operators worldwide.

And, with its biggest-ever single contract in hand, Hydronalix is on the verge of a major expansion of drone production locally.

Robo-boats for Marines

In September, Hydronalix was awarded a $9.1 million contract by the U.S. Navy to develop and integrate a series of micro-unmanned surface and aerial vehicles with sensor payloads for surveillance and enemy explosives detection for the Marine Corps.

Under the four-year contract from the Naval Air Warfare Center, Hydronalix is tasked with developing several capabilities under a Small Business Innovation Research Phase III program, including explosive ordnance neutralization in harbors, rivers, and in shallow coastal waters, river reconnaissance, swarming unmanned systems for disaster relief, maritime mine countermeasures and sea-floor mapping.

Last year, the Marine Corps tested Hyrdonalix drone boats for sea-floor mapping and mine hunting as part of the annual BALTOPS (Baltic Operations) exercise.

With Hydronalix already churning out EMILY rescue-bots and other craft to meet demand, the company is outgrowing its facility in Sahuarita (with a Green Valley postal address), where about 40 employees work in research and production.

Mulligan said the company is finalizing plans to open a second facility in Southern Arizona in the near future and will likely open a third plant.

Its at full capacity, plus for research, Mulligan, a University of Arizona engineering alumnus, said of the Sahuarita space. So were in the process of moving our production out of the research (area), and then itll be in the standalone facility.

While most of Hydronalixs 42 current employees work in Sahuarita, the company has small customer-support offices in California, North Carolina and Florida.

Mulligan said Hydronalix  which makes its boats in-house from the hull up  will likely double the size of its workforce in the next year, adding a range of workers including composite construction, engineers and even workers to sew up canvas boat covers and related textile items.

Global reach

Hydronalixs EMILYs, which run on battery power and can be used to ferry lifejackets to struggling swimmers and can be configured with cameras and communications systems, are in use by first-responder agencies across the nation including California, New York, Texas and Oregon.

Locally, the company has granted EMILYs to the Northwest and Green Valley fire districts, but there have been no buyers in the companys arid home state, despite its many lakes and the bordering Colorado River, Mulligan said.

Im not upset about it or anything  its Arizona, he said. Fortunately, the rest of the world likes our boats.

Globally, Hydronalix now has distributors in 33 countries and sells in 50 nations across Europe, the Middle East, Central and South America, Asia, Africa and Australia.

Hydronalix won an export achievement award from the U.S. Department of Commerce after widening its reach from about a dozen countries in 2016 with the help of the Arizona Manufacturing Extension Partnership and Arizonas State Trade Expansion Program (STEP), which includes foreign trade missions and export support services.

On the research side, a version of EMILY designed to take water samples is used in France and Ireland to monitor red tide along the coasts, while sonar-equipped EMILYs scan the waterways of Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Mulligan said.

The company also recently won a contract from the Department of Energy to use its sonar-equipped robotic boats to monitor the health of sand dollars around hydrokinetic energy systems, which generate power from ocean currents, Mulligan said.

And the Michigan Department of Transportation is using EMILYs equipped with sonar and cameras to inspect bridges over waterways, which earned the system a spot on the American Society of Civil Engineers 2021 list of game changing technologies, Mulligan noted.

New capabilities

Beyond EMILY, Hydronalix has developed several larger, more powerful boats featuring hybrid gas-electric engines and the capability to mount sensors for weather monitoring, reconnaissance and other tasks, for research, commercial and defense applications.

Hydronalixs larger AMY and NIX robo-boats can be paired with the companys aerial drones capable of carrying small payloads such as water bottles, food or medicine.

And while some of the companys larger boats can carry small loads of vital supplies, Hydronalix has built and tested a heavy-duty unmanned boat for the Marines that can carry up to 500 pounds of equipment.

On the research side, Hydronalix recently began testing a robotic boat that can fly for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Its amphibious  it flies like a helicopter and then when its on the water, it can do all the things that EMILY can do, Mulligan said. It can do side-scan imaging, sonar imaging, it can do 360-degree imaging. So you could fly off a cliff down to a river to see if a car is in the river and then fly back up.

A recent contract from the Department of Interior is part of a research project with the University of Arizona and Texas A&M University to develop a smart EMILY that can ply inland waterways in a disaster and take navigation cues from a smart-device.
Luke Bryan set a Country Thunder record the last time he played Arizonas largest music festival in 2018.

Organizers of the 2023 festival are bracing for a repeat when Bryan joins fellow headliners Jon Pardi, Cody Johnson and Dierks Bentley in Florence April 13-16.

Four-day festival tickets ($225-$600) are on sale now through countrythunder.com/az-tickets. The on-sale date for single-day tickets has not been announced. Reserved seats and most of the camping is sold out, according to Country Thunder Media Relations Director Gerry Krochak.

People should buy their tickets now, Krochak advised, recalling that the 2021 and 2022 festivals were sold out.

In addition to the headliners, the talent roster includes Ashley McBryde, Parker McCollum, Kip Moore, Parmalee, Lonestar, Tracy Byrd, Nate Smith, Randall King, Hailey Whitters and The Reklaws. So-called legend acts also will be added in the coming weeks and months.

Our fans in Arizona have come to expect the biggest and best when it comes to the talent at our events, Country Thunder Music Festivals CEO Troy Vollhoffer said in a written statement. This lineup goes even deeper with the hottest up-and-comers in the business and classic country artists who have stood the test of time.

About the 2023 headliners:

Bryan has scored 30 No. 1 hits including his latest, Country On. Hes sold 13 million albums and scored 50 major music awards including five Entertainer of the Year awards.

Dierks Bentley is an Arizona native who grew up in Phoenix. He has released nine albums in a career that will hit 20 years by the time he takes the Country Thunder stage next April. On his way to taking 21 singles to No. 1, Bentley has won three Country Music Association Awards, 14 Grammy nominations and 6.4 billion streams of his songs. This is his first Country Thunder appearance since he headlined in 2019.

One of the most exciting artists on the lineup is Texas native Cody Johnson, whose journey to national stardom followed a long indie career. He released five albums on his own before his sixth record, Gotta Be Me, attracted attention from Warner Nashville. He released his major-label debut Aint Nothin to It in 2019, followed by Human: The Double Album last year, which spun off his first No. 1 hit, Til You Cant.

Jon Pardi has a reputation for turning every concert into a big ol party with songs including his No. 1 hits Head Over Boots and Dirt on My Boots and his Top 5 hit Heartache on the Dance Floor. His latest radio hit is Last Night Lonely.
Michael J. Ronstadt had an idea a decade ago to get all of the musical Ronstadt cousins, siblings, nieces and nephews together on a single stage for an evening of family music.

It never happened.

But some good ideas are worth hanging onto, waiting out the circumstances and conflicts until the timing is just right.

On Oct. 23, five ensembles of Ronstadts, four generations in all if you count the baby in Katie (Ronstadt) Arellanos belly, will fill the historic Fox Tucson Theatre stage for The Ronstadt Family in Concert: An evening celebrating a musical dynasty. Linda Ronstadt, who lives in San Francisco and is battling Parkinsons Disease, will not be performing, although she will be part of the multimedia presented during the concert.

I wanted to kind of emulate the show that he envisioned, Bobby Ronstadt said of his late cousin, Michael, who died in 2016.

The concert is presented by the Jewish Family & Childrens Services of Southern Arizona, whose chairman Ken Goodman was instrumental in organizing it.

Goodman said that he and Bobby Ronstadt first started talking about a Ronstadt family concert not long after his organization had hosted a fundraising concert with the Phoenix flamenco ensemble FlaMEXico! in 2019. About 700 people loosely filled the Fox that night, raising nearly $80,000 for Jewish Family & Childrens Services, which for the past 80 years has provided counseling services for victims of trauma and services for families and the elderly.

Goodman thought a Ronstadt family concert would be a great fundraising follow up, especially after his organization added refugee resettlement to its services. Working with the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society and under the auspices of the U.S. State Department, JFCS to date has helped 55 refugees primarily from Afghanistan to resettle in Tucson and is now getting refugees from the Middle East, South America and Ukraine.

We are all about people being safe and helping people with challenges in life, said Goodman, who became chairman in 2019.

His idea for the Ronstadt family was to get however many groups there are of Ronstadts  on one stage, Goodman said.

He reached out to Bobby Ronstadt, who was on board from the start.

There has never been a showcase of all the family groups, Ronstadt said, adding that the chance for all of the Ronstadts to share the historic Fox stage was exciting.

The Fox is a very special venue, he said. I find it exciting that we all get to play.

Ronstadt reached out to his musical family members from both sides of the family  his uncle, Gilbert, who was Michael and Lindas father; and his father, Edward, who had a dozen children including Bobbys youngest brother, Tim, who will be part of the concert.

The Fox concert will feature five Ronstadt ensembles  the Kiko Jacome Trio featuring Lindas older sister Susies son Kiko Jacome; Lindas niece Mindy Ronstadt; the Ronstadt Brothers, Michaels sons Michael G. and Peter Dalton; PD Ronstadt & the Company, with the Ronstadt brothers, Bobby Ronstadt and Bobbys granddaughter Katie (Ronstadt) Arellano; and Never on Time, with Tim, his child Charlie Ronstadt, his niece Lupe (Ronstadt-Quiroz) Brown and two nephews by marriage, Mike Hartshorn and Tyler Kinzer.

Our family tree is actually a forest, Bobby Ronstadt joked, noting that there are 110 descendants of patriarch Federico Ronstadt, who came to Tucson when he was 14 in 1882.

Throughout the familys 140-year Tucson history, music has been an anchor. Family gatherings always included family members tuning up the guitars and singing songs mostly in Spanish. In Feels Like Home: A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands, Linda Ronstadts just-released memoir with co-writer Lawrence Downes, she recalled that her father would sing the lead, joined by her aunts and uncles, then the cousins and friends.

The music never felt like a performance, it simply ebbed and flowed with the rest of the conversation, she wrote.

Until COVID, Bobby Ronstadts niece hosted Third Sunday family potlucks that always ended with music.

By the end of the night we would be in the living room singing and Volver, Volver would be the last song wed sing, he said.

The ranchera song has been a Ronstadt family tradition for decades and it will be the finale of the Oct. 23 concert. All five Ronstadt ensembles will share the stage along with family members called up from the audience to perform the song made famous by Vicente Fernandez.

The Fox concert will be the first and probably only opportunity to see all of the Ronstadts on one stage, Bobby Ronstadt said.

Its really a once in a lifetime because I dont think it would happen again, he said. Its going to be the first and only concert like this.

This event has turned into, in my mind, a Tucson historic event, added Goodman. Youve got the Ronstadt family and their history since the 1880s in Tucson. And you have the JFCS, which has been here 80 years. And then you have the Fox Theatre, a historic theater.

The show is at 4 p.m. at the Fox, 17 W. Congress St. Tickets are $46-$75 through foxtucson.com
PHOENIX  The head of the House Appropriations Committee wants to pull all state funds from Arizona PBS over what he calls the stations mishandling of the gubernatorial debate.

Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, acknowledged that KAET-TV has the right to air what it wants. That includes what station officials say is its obligation to provide equal time to Democrat Katie Hobbs, despite her refusal to debate Republican Kari Lake.

But Kavanagh noted Thursday that the station, part of the Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University, has had an ongoing relationship with the Citizens Clean Elections Commission that arranges these debates. The rules for years were if a candidate refuses to debate, they dont get time, he said.

That was the case here, with the commission agreeing to provide a 30-minute interview for Lake with host Ted Simons after Hobbs refused to share the stage.

On Wednesday, though, the station decided on its own it would provide the same opportunity for Hobbs on its nightly Horizon show next week despite the fact the commission had rejected her request for separate interviews. And Lakes interview, originally scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 12, would instead immediately follow Hobbs airtime.

It smacks of partisan politics, Kavanagh said of the Arizona PBS decision to allow Hobbs an opportunity despite her spurning commission rules.

Theyre reneging on a commitment they made to Clean Elections to go by the rules that promote Clean Elections debates, Kavanagh told Capitol Media Services. And thats why its a problem.

He also said giving Hobbs an interview even after she refused to debate will encourage future candidates to do the same, without fear of forfeiting airtime on the Phoenix PBS affiliate.

Eliminating state funding would have an effect.

The most recent figures show that just $488,652 of the stations $20.2 million annual budget comes directly from ASU, with the largest share, about $7.3 million, in subscription and membership income. But the university provides nearly $2.1 million in indirect administrative support, which likely includes space and utilities in the Cronkite School in downtown Phoenix.

Kavanagh was not the only Republican lashing out at the station for its decision.

It just seems wrong, Republican Gov. Doug Ducey told KTAR talk show host Mike Broomhead on Thursday. And I think PBS needs to fix it.

What that means, Ducey said, is the station going back to its original arrangement with Clean Elections. That means either Hobbs shows up for an actual debate or Kari Lake can have that time.

They made a mistake here, Ducey said of Arizona PBS. They should just rip the Band-Aid off and fix it.

But Ducey press aide C.J. Karamargin said his boss would not comment on Kavanaghs bid to defund the station.

The university, for its part, continues to defend its decision.

ASU Vice President Jay Thorne said it was the custom and responsibility of Horizon as a news agency to provide time to all candidates. He said the decision to offer both time on the news show  separate and apart from any commission-sponsored event  did not violate any agreement Arizona PBS had with the commission.

The failure of the candidates to come to an agreement on a debate format rendered it dead, Thorne said. And, lacking that forum, Arizona PBS and Horizon are advancing as they would under any other circumstance in providing time for each candidate.

Thats not exactly true. In 2018, when Ducey refused to debate Secretary of State Ken Bennett ahead of the Republican gubernatorial primary, the station gave Bennett airtime on his own.

And just this year former Nogales Mayor Marco Lopez, seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, got a half-hour interview with Simons after Hobbs refused to debate him.

Similar arrangements have been made in other races lower on the ticket.

Ive given you the comment Im going to give you on that, Thorne responded.

Whether there will be back-to-back appearances on Tuesday, Oct. 18, as proposed remains to be seen.

Lake said Wednesday, after Arizona PBS announced its decision, that she would appear on air at the station only if allowed to actually debate Hobbs, as was the original arrangement.

I will agree to appear with Katie Hobbs next Tuesday, on the stage, together, Lake said.And if she doesnt appear with me, they should kick her out and say she cant be on the airwaves of PBS.

On Thursday, Lake press aide Ross Trumble said he wont speculate on what the GOP nominee would do until the commission makes further comments.

But Tom Collins, the commissions executive director, said the only thing being considered now is whether another station would give Lake time on her own.
WASHINGTON  Mecham to Mofford, Napolitano to Brewer.

It may sound like an old-time infield combination, but its actually a truncated history of the sometimes tumultuous turnover in the governors office in Arizona, where the line of succession does not always run through the same political party.

When Republican Gov. Evan Mecham was impeached in 1988, he was followed in office by Democratic Secretary of State Rose Mofford. When Gov. Janet Napolitano, a Democrat, stepped down to become secretary of Homeland Security, she handed the office over to Secretary of State Jan Brewer, a Republican.

Its why Sen. J. D. Mesnard, R-Chandler, hopes voters approve Proposition 131, which would make Arizona one of the last states in the country to create an office of lieutenant governor who would succeed the governor. Currently, the secretary of state is second in the line of succession.

If you were to poll the average person today, Im not sure they realize the secretary of state is first in line, Mesnard said.

If approved, Proposition 131 would create an office of lieutenant governor who would run on the same ticket with the governor beginning with the 2026 election. The gubernatorial candidates would choose their lieutenant governor running mates after the primary election, all but guaranteeing that the two would be from the same party and ensuring that voters know what they are getting in terms of succession.

Mesnard, the prime sponsor of the bill behind Prop 131, hopes it can bring greater continuity in the government in Arizona, where Doug Ducey will be the first governor in decades to serve out two full terms without handing over the office to the secretary of state.

Proposition 131 would put Arizona in line with the majority of states that run governors and lieutenant governors from the same party on a general election ticket.

Julia Brossart, executive director of the National Lieutenant Governors Association, said 45 states have an office of lieutenant governor and in 26 of those states, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected together.

Brossart said that having a lieutenant governor is the smoothest, most understood way for succession to occur, but that there is a wide variety between states on how the lieutenant governor gets on the ticket.

There are a few states where the lieutenant governor comes through a primary separate from the governor. We call it an arranged marriage, Brossart said. They come through the primaries separately but then they run on the election ticket together.

This is not the first time Arizona voters have been presented with the question of whether the state needs a lieutenant governor. In 1994, voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposal known as Proposition 100, which would have required the governor and lieutenant to be nominated together.

In 2010, voters rejected a variation of the arranged marriage plan, where the governor and lieutenant governor would have run together after being nominated separately in the primary. Proposition 111 that year would also have made the secretary of state the lieutenant governor.

It created this convoluted way that you elect the two of them  they dont actually run together, Mesnard said of the 2010 proposal.

After it failed it just sort of faded into the background until recently, he said. I and others, on both sides of the aisle, began talking about the importance of this from a continuity standpoint.

Mesnard said the previous versions failed due to a lot of design flaws, but he hopes that this time will be different due to the latest version addressing concerns that were raised in prior versions.

The latest version is modeled after presidential elections, in which each partys nominee selects a vice presidential candidate to run with them in the general election, a model voters are familiar with. And with the continued migration to Arizona, Brossart said many voters are already familiar with the governor and lieutenant governor in state government.

When voters vote, they understand what they are voting for a little better than the current set-up in Arizona, she said. All of those folks moving in may not fully appreciate, or not understand that when they are voting for secretary of state, they are voting for their successor  its not what most states do.

Unlike a secretary of state, a lieutenant governor is clearly the successor to the governor, Mesnard said. That will let Arizona voters make a better-informed decision on who takes over should the governor die, step down or be removed from office  all of which have happened since the 1970s.

Its important to have the second person in line be someone the voters understand who they were voting for, Brossart said.
Multiple weapons, including knives, machetes and two handguns, were found in the vehicle of the former student who authorities said shot and killed a University of Arizona professor last week.

According to the search warrant return, five knives, two machetes, a Ruger Max 9mm pistol, a loaded Raven Arms .25-caliber pistol, boxes of ammunition and magazines were found in Murad Dervishs vehicle. The receipt for the Ruger handgun, Dervishs University of Arizona identification card and multiple changes of clothing were also found, according to the document filed by university police.

During the pat down, officers found mace on Dervish, records say. Three cell phones were also found in the vehicle, with one of them inside of a bag that blocks signals and prevents tracking.

Officers also searched Dervishs house, where they found a knife sheath, a knife box and eviction paperwork. A week before the shooting, the Tucson Justice Court gave Dervish a five-day notice after he failed to pay his $895 rent, court records show. Dervish failed to appear for his hearing.

On Oct. 5, police said Dervish, 46, entered the John W. Harshbarger Building and shot Professor Thomas Meixner in an office. Meixner was the head of the schools hydrology department and an expert on desert water issues. According to the interim complaint, Meixner was shot at least four times with a 9mm handgun.

Dervish fled and was found three hours later traveling south on Arizona 85 toward Mexico, 30 miles south of Gila Bend, court records say. Arizona Department of Public Safety troopers had to use a PIT maneuver to get the vehicle to stop after Dervish refused to pull over.

He is being held without bond in the Pima County jail.

Dervish, who had been the subject of several reports of harassment and threats to staff members working at the Harshbarger Building, was expelled from the UA in February and was barred from being on campus. The UA Police Department said it was in the process of completing an exclusionary order for Dervish when the shooting happened.

Funeral services are Friday, Oct. 14, for Meixner.
Beloved husband, brother and uncle, Shawn died at home Sept. 10, 2022. He was 68. Survived by wife Yika Riley-Smith, brother Stewart (Mary) Smith, sister Sharon Thomas, many beloved nieces/nephews, and Spats the Cat. Born in Chicago, the Smiths headed west to Tombstone before settling in Elfrida, where he attended Valley Union High School. After their marriage, Shawn & Yika moved to Tucson where they both earned college degrees and grew their careers. In 2019 Shawn retired from Raytheon as a Fleet Ops Manager. A real straight shooter, Shawn was well respected and a mentor to many. Delivered with a deadpan face, his trademark dry wit kept us laughing. He was empathetic, compassionate and kind. He was a helluva guy and we miss him dearly. Celebration of Life Oct. 15, 3-7pm, FOP 3445 N Dodge Ave. Please wear Hawaiian shirt/clothing.
As early voting gets started for the general election, the political parties are unhappy that theyre being blocked again from observing at Pima Countys early-voting sites.

Pima County Recorder Gabriella Cazares-Kelly decided not to allow election observers at the countys early-voting sites before the August primary election.

At that time, she cited the short notice of the request.

We are not able to accommodate party observers at our Early Voting sites for this election with such short notice, she said in a July 13, 2022 memorandum.

The explanation went on: Due to the shortage of election workers, we do not currently have additional personnel available to oversee observers and cannot accommodate these requests at this time.

As stated, our greatest concern is for the voter, and if we do not have the staff who are trained to ensure that voter intimidation does not occur inside our Early Voting sites, we cannot accommodate anyone other than staff inside the 75-foot limit.

The chairs of the Pima County Republican and Democratic parties both have asked to be allowed observers at the early-voting sites as some other Arizona counties do.

Cochise County Recorder David Stevens said his office allows one Democrat and one Republican observer at the countys only early-voting site.

The same is true in Maricopa County, where 12 early voting sites are already open. In a message, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer cited state law, allowing the political parties to have one observer at every voting location.

However, Cazares-Kelly cited the Election Procedures Manual, which defers to the judgment of the county recorders when it comes to early-voting sites.

We tried to convince the recorders office to voluntarily allow observers, so that there was transparency in the process, Republican elections attorney Eric Spencer said. It breeds mistrust, is how I saw it.

We wanted them, too, Pima County Democratic chair Bonnie Heidler said. All the parties wanted them, and we were all told no.

Were hoping it will change, but it hasnt happened so far.

Cazares-Kelly noted that observers are always present when handling ballot stock, using voting equipment, issuing ballots and transferring ballots to our ballot processing center. No person or group of people of the same party are ever alone with ballots.

Observers are allowed at election-day polling sites, which are managed by the Pima County Elections Department.

Finchem, Lake vote by mail

Two statewide GOP candidates who want to do away with Arizonas mail-in voting system have also used it extensively  as recently as this summer.

Mark Finchem, who wants to be Arizonas top election official as secretary of state, has repeatedly said he wants to restrict the states longstanding vote-by-mail system. At the Sept. 22 debate between Finchem and Democratic candidate Adrian Fontes, Finchem said, I dont care for mail-in voting. Thats why I go to the polls.

Dillon Rosenblatt, in his online publication called Fourth Estate 48, sought Finchems voting records from the Pima County Recorders office. It turns out Finchem has voted almost exclusively by mail, even in the 2020 general election.

Out of the last 30 elections, Rosenblatt found, Finchem has voted in the polling place only once in 2007 and in this years primary election  28 out of 30 times by mail. Finchem explained during an interview on KTAR radio in Phoenix that he used to vote by mail before I realized that my vote is not secure.

From a similar voter-file request, Rosenblatt found that Kari Lake, the GOP candidate for governor, has for years voted by mail, too. But theres a surprising twist to her voting pattern: Even after Lake filed a court argument in March that Arizonas vote-by-mail system is unconstitutional, she voted by mail in advance of the Aug. 2 primary election.

Lake and Finchem have also filed a lawsuit together against the use of ballot tabulating machines in Arizona. A federal judge threw out their lawsuit in August, but they filed an appeal last month.

Engel loses ad backing

The House Majority PAC is backing off planned advertising for Democrat Kirsten Engel in Arizonas 6th Congressional District  a bad sign for the Democrat.

Politico reported Thursday that the PAC pulled $300,000 of planned advertising supporting Engel off the air in the Tucson market between Oct. 24-28.

The decision came on the heels of the Republican National Committee attacking Engel for saying that she supports reducing funding to police if it goes to other services for dealing with emergencies.

Asked about shifting funding away from police in the 2020 general election debate for state Legislature, Engel said: What we need to do is shift where the money is going. Not every call to 911 requires a police officer to show up at your door.

And weve had some bad situations when we have a police response to something that might be a mental health crisis. So, what I would support is some screening so that the appropriate personnel respond to the crises that right now the police are forced to respond to.

Based on that and other comments, the National Republican Congressional Committee is painting Engel as a radical in a new ad. Engel faces Republican Juan Ciscomani in the general election in the new district that covers eastern Tucson and much of southeastern Arizona.
The city of Tucson has reported a data breach that put more than 123,500 individuals personal information at risk for fraudulent use.

The potentially stolen data includes individuals names, Social Security numbers, drivers license or state identification numbers and passport numbers, the city says.

Tucson has sent letters to all those whose data was left vulnerable in the breach and offered a years worth of credit monitoring services to help detect identity fraud and other harmful uses of personal information.

According to Principal Assistant City Attorney Roi Lusk, the city detected suspicious activity May 29 when someone hacked into a users account and may have copied data from the citys network.

The city shut down its website and online services for two days after discovering the activity to make sure that no additional information can be taken or any additional harm can be done, Lusk said.

The city brought on forensic specialists to examine the nature of the breach in an investigation that lasted five weeks and revealed the sensitive nature of the data potentially copied from the citys network and those whose information could have been leaked. Notices were mailed to affected individuals Sept. 29.

There is no indication the information leaked has been used fraudulently, according to Lusk, based on scans of the dark web in conjunction with forensic specialists and state and federal partners. For the majority of those notified, their information was left vulnerable in the breach, we cant determine for certain that information even left the network, Lusk said.

Those the city notified their personal information was left vulnerable include current and former city employees, licensees of the city and even those who havent done business in the city due to a verification process the Department of Revenue conducts to ensure people arent operating businesses in cities where they dont pay taxes, according to Lusk.

According to Jim Van Dyke, the senior vice president of innovation at Sontiq, an identity security company, municipal data breaches are relatively common, but the nature of Tucsons data leak is pretty bad due to the three government identifiers that were potentially leaked.

The combination of leaked Social Security, drivers license and passport numbers increase an individuals likelihood of new credit or loan accounts being fraudulently taken out in an individuals name. Another risk posed by the citys data breach is legal evasion, where someone can attempt to steal anothers identity with the intent to commit unlawful activity and evade detection, according to Van Dyke.

This is a particular breach in which people need to take active steps to protect themselves, he said. Breached individuals definitely should not ignore it, and if they have that feeling of helplessness, realize that thats common, and yet, they dont want to let themselves get into a state of inertia.  Its a good opportunity just to go back through some standard procedures. And in this case, walk or freeze your credit, notify law enforcement and set fraud alerts on your credit report.

Van Dyke said everyone who received a notice from the city should take advantage of the free credit monitoring services.

To increase the citys data security efforts, Lusk said Tucson is determining how the city can better protect user information in the future. The city has hired third-party forensic specialists to monitor more than 6,000 city servers, laptops and PCs used to conduct city business while enhancing monitoring systems that alert staff to security breaches.

The difficulty is these attacks happen all day, every day. For the most part, our IT department does a fantastic job of keeping us safe and keeping that data safe. But of course, it only takes one failure of any part of that system to cause some issues, Lusk said. Were evolving all the departments, and were evolving leadership all the way down to the individual city employee to make sure that this kind of thing doesnt happen.

The data breach occurred after the former head of Tucsons IT department Colin Boyce resigned. Lusk said interim directors took charge of managing the data breach, and new Chief Information Officer Christopher Mazzarella came on board early to aid in the efforts.

The City Council approved Mazzarellas hiring as the head of the citys IT efforts on Oct. 5. He previously led IT strategy development for Raytheon Missiles and Defense.

More resources to protect your information Consumers are entitled to one free credit report a year from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Check your credit report at annualcreditreport.com. You can place a fraud alert or credit freeze on a credit file for free by contacting a credit bureau. For more information on identify theft, visit: identitytheft.gov For more information on the city of Tucsons data breach, visit: tucsonaz.gov/home/announcement/city-tucson-data-security-event

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Jennifer Carlson, a sociologist and associate professor at the University of Arizona, was awarded a 2022 MacArthur Fellowship, also known as the genius grant, in recognition of her work examining gun culture, politics and trauma.

Carlson, 40, was among 25 scholars throughout the country who were nominated anonymously and later selected for the fellowship this year. They will each receive an $800,000 stipend from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to pursue their passions.

Im still shocked. Im still amazed at the opportunity and the responsibility, Carlson said Thursday, the day after the list of awardees was released to the public. I have a lot of gratitude for everybody, all of my mentors who have made this possible, and for the work of the MacArthur Foundation.

The MacArthur Fellowships provide awardees in a variety of fields with the no-strings-attached stipends to encourage them to pursue their own creative, intellectual and professional inclinations. The fellowships are seen as investments in people, not projects, in recognition of extraordinary creativity and dedication, the foundation says.

Carlsons insights into how gun ownership has become a highly charged political issue offer a potential path toward overcoming the entrenched social divisions that characterize gun policy discussions, the MacArthur Foundation said in a statement.

Researching gun culture

For Carlson, the fellowship reflects more than a decade of work examining and trying to understand the different forces that have shaped gun culture and politics in the United States.

She said she began researching gun culture while she was a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley. At the time, she said, there was heavy news coverage about a surge in gun and ammunition sales, as well as of groups standing on either side of the debate about gun ownership.

She realized sociologists hadnt done much research on the topic that was quickly becoming a pressing public debate.

Basically at that moment, I was like, OK, this is what I need to study, she said, adding that she was also driven by her curiosity of trying to truly understand the conservative culture of the Midwestern U.S., where she grew up.

Since then, Carlson has published two books and has a third coming out next year.

Her first book, Citizen-Protectors: The Everyday Politics of Guns in an Age of Decline, examines why individuals choose to own and carry firearms. Her second book, Policing the Second Amendment: Guns, Law Enforcement and the Politics of Race, identifies the mentalities associated with policing and gun carrying.

She noted that while her research is focused on gun culture and politics, her findings say a lot more about overall U.S. culture.

When you study guns, you realize that you really are studying the deep fabric of American society, Carlson said. In many ways, whether youre talking about gender or race or socioeconomic mobility  the state, policing, partisanship, democracy  like, guns are at the center of all of those issues.

She said she believes gaining a better understanding of the complexities behind gun ownership and trauma could help reframe conversations about guns in the U.S. in a way that is more productive.

Forthcoming work

Carlson is now working on a large-scale study of trauma among people affected by gun violence, according to a news release from the University of Arizona College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Roughly 45,000 people are killed and at least another 80,000 injured by guns every year, Carlson said in that news release. And even those figures fail to put the impact of gun violence on American society into its proper perspective: Gun violence impacts families, friendship circles, schools, workplaces and communities.

My goal as a sociologist isnt to solve the U.S. gun debate. Thats for us as a society to work through, Carlson said. Rather, my goal is to help people better understand how guns matter in such starkly different ways to different people in the U.S. I believe that is key to transforming our current, deadlocked debate about guns in the U.S.

She has a book to be released in 2023 that will focus on the increase in gun sales since 2020 in light of pandemic insecurities, police violence and political polarization.

As for her plans with the MacArthur Fellowship, Carlson said she cant give too many details just yet. So far, one thing shes decided is to use a portion of the money to support graduate students at the UA School of Sociology.

Its a really overwhelming amount. Its an open invitation. It is a huge responsibility, she said. I have a lot of thinking to do because theres so many worthy things that that money could be used for.
WATERBURY, Conn. (AP)  The nearly $1 billion judgment against Alex Jones for spreading false conspiracy theories about the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre brought long-sought relief to family members and hopes the eye-popping figure would deter others from broadcasting falsehoods.

But Jones has given no signs of tempering his bluster  a headline on his website Thursday blared that the show trial verdict signals the death of free speech. And lawyers say its not certain that relatives who lost loved ones in the mass shooting will see the full dollar amount after promised appeals and a bankruptcy proceeding play out.

Every plaintiffs lawyer knows from often bitter experiences that it is usually easier to get a judgment than to enforce it, said Columbia University law professor John Coffee.

So while the judgment may be a milestone, it's not an end point.

Experts say the Sandy Hook families likely face a long fight ahead as they try to collect the $965 million awarded to them by a jury in Connecticut Wednesday and a separate $49 million judgment from a Texas jury in August.

Here's a look at some of the issues raised by the judgment.

WHAT IS THE CASE ABOUT?

After 26 people were killed by a gunman at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012, Jones made a false conspiracy theory a centerpiece of his programing on his flagship Infowars show.

He promoted a theory that the shooting was a hoax, staged by actors, and that no children died  all in an effort to increase gun control. His shows drew legions of followers, some of whom then spent years harassing the parents and siblings of the victims, as well as an FBI agent who had responded to the school.

Jones was found liable by default in multiple defamation lawsuits after judges ruled that he and his lawyers were improperly withholding information and records from the plaintiffs.

Trials were held in Texas and Connecticut to determine how much he owed the families for lying about them. Jones faces a third trial in Texas, in a lawsuit filed by the parents of another child killed in the shooting.

DOES ALEX JONES HAVE $1 BILLION?

Jones has maintained he doesn't have the kind of money being sought by the family members suing him. Jones has repeatedly said he doesnt even have $2 million to his name.

When the reality sets in that theyre not going to silence me and theres no money, its all an exercise in futility," Jones said outside the Connecticut courthouse during the trial. "So whatever they do in here is a Pyrrhic victory.

A different picture was presented at the Texas trial.

During his testimony, Jones was confronted with a memo from one of his business managers outlining a single days gross revenue of $800,000 from selling vitamin supplements and other products through his website. Jones called it a record sales day. Also, a forensic economist testified that Jones and his media company, Free Speech Systems, have a combined net worth that could be as high as $270 million.

You can't invent money. If $270 million is the maximum, youre not going to get more than that, at least without finding some new sources that havent yet been uncovered, Coffee said.

Russ Horton, a Texas attorney, said dramatically large civil judgments often get cut down on appeal. But he said even if the Connecticut verdict is reduced, it will likely be ruinous for Jones.

This is a judgment that is very likely to exceed his net worth, however it comes down, said Horton, noting the uncertainty about Jones assets.

IS BANKRUPTCY A BARRIER?

Complicating matters is the fact that Jones is seeking bankruptcy protection for his company.

Free Speech Systems, Infowars' parent company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July. Jones told a court his company had estimated assets of $50,000 or less and estimated liabilities of $1 million to $10 million. He said at the time that he was totally maxed out financially.

The Sandy Hook families have alleged in bankruptcy court filings that after they brought their defamation cases Jones began diverting assets out of Free Speech Systems, totaling in 2021 and 2022 to more than $60 million. They say Jones also drew a $1.4 million annual salary from the company at a time that he claimed it was operating at a net loss.

Horton said that Jones companys bankruptcy is likely to complicate and draw out the Sandy Hook families efforts to collect on their judgments. The judgments against Jones personally can still be collected, he said, but their scale might force him to file for individual bankruptcy.

But bankruptcy doesnt get Jones off the hook.

Bankruptcy is not the place you want to be if youre hiding assets or behaving badly, said Horton.

Last month, Houston-based bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez dismissed Jones attorney and chief restructuring officer  citing a lack of transparency by his company  and empowered a Department of Justice-appointed trustee to hire lawyers to investigate Free Speech Systems.

On Wednesday, Lopez approved a new restructuring officer to handle Jones company and appointed another judge as a mediator to hash out disputes in the federal case.

SILENCING JONES

William Sherlach, whose wife Mary Sherlach was killed at Sandy Hook, told reporters after the judgment that "people like Alex Jones will have to rethink what they say.

On his show Thursday, Jones continued to assail his critics and said we have two years of appeals. While Jones in recent years has acknowledged the shooting happened, he claims the families are being used to push a gun control and anti-free speech agenda.

They try to shut me off. It aint happening, he said Thursday.

The judgment has been compared to pro wrestler Hulk Hogans invasion-of-privacy lawsuit against the gossip blog Gawker, which ultimately bankrupted the business.

But it's not clear if the judgment would have a chilling effect on others who broadcast false and defamatory statements, said Thomas Hentoff, a Washington-based First Amendment attorney who has represented major media companies.

It can take years or even decades to collect judgments, Hentoff said, and Jones' cases were outliers because he had default judgments against him, meaning he never staged a merits defense.

There are a lot of people who make money by expressing extreme views, and I would hesitate to think that a large jurys monetary judgment in itself would cause them to change course, Hentoff said.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The judge in Connecticut will soon decide the amounts of punitive damages, which will be added to the $965 million. After that, Jones can formally appeal.

Christopher Mattei, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said on MSNBC after the verdict that they were prepared for the long haul.

Whatever assets he has, Mattei said, these families are going to chase him to ground and enforce every cent of this verdict against him.

Hill reported from Albany N.Y. Bleiberg contributed from Dallas.

Find APs full coverage of the Alex Jones trial at: https://apnews.com/hub/alex-jones

This story corrects the spelling of attorney Thomas Hentoff's last name.
NEW BOSTON, Texas (AP)  Prosecutors asked a Texas jury Wednesday to sentence a woman to death for killing a pregnant woman and stealing her unborn daughter from her womb.

The appeal came as the penalty phase of Taylor Parkers capital murder trial began for the October 2020 murder of Reagan Simmons-Hancock and theft of her unborn baby. The Bowie County jury previously found Parker guilty of capital murder.

Prosecutor Kelley Crisp told jurors that the evidence would show Parker, 29, faked a pregnancy and repeatedly lied before killing Simmons-Hancock, 21, at the woman's New Boston home on Oct. 9, 2020, to get the infant she claimed to have been carrying. The baby also died.

Parkers attorneys hope to persuade the jury to spare Parkers life and let her serve life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Defense attorney Jeff Harrelson said they would show that Parker was mentally ill.
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SEATTLE (AP)  A school board member from a small city in Washington state and his stepson have been charged with assaulting and interfering with police during the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Richard Slaughter, 40, of Orting, Washington northwest of Mount Rainier, was arrested Wednesday along with his stepson, Caden Paul Gottfried, 20, the Justice Department said. They made initial appearances in U.S. District Court in Tacoma after turning themselves in and were released pending further court hearings.

It was not immediately clear if they had attorneys to represent them on the charges, which were filed in federal court in the District of Columbia. Slaughter, who was elected to the Orting School Board last fall, did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment. There are about 9,000 residents in Orting.

According to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent based in Tacoma, Slaughter and Gottfried first came to the agency's attention on Jan. 7, when they disrupted a flight from Washington, D.C., to Seattle by refusing to wear masks and protesting the results of the presidential election.

In an interview with agents, Slaughter acknowledged they were at the riot but denied seeing any crimes committed, saying, "conservatives dont protest, they have jobs, the affidavit said.

In April, a source identified Slaughter in footage of the riot and provided links from his wife's Facebook page showing photos of him there. In videos he was seen to keep a police riot shield away from officers, urged police to stand down and attacked officers with a long stick an entrance to the Capitol building, the affidavit said.

Gottfried also joined in the mob, using his body weight to push against a line of officers. Officers detained him and released him with a citation for illegal entry, the affidavit said.

Slaughter is charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding police using a deadly or dangerous weapon; interfering with police during a civil disorder; and other felony and misdemeanor offenses. Gottfried is charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers; interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder; and misdemeanor offenses.

In campaign materials last year, Slaughter described himself as a mortgage loan officer and said he and his wife run a teen center. He opposed requiring children to mask in school as a means to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 880 people have been charged with crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, an attack designed to block the transition of power from President Donald Trump following Joe Biden's election. About 400 have pleaded guilty. More than 270 have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

Sentences for the rioters have ranged from probation for low-level misdemeanor offenses to 10 years in prison for a man who used a metal flagpole to assault an officer.
The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:

Republican lawmakers clearly demonstrate that their love of control is more important than our right to bodily autonomy. They now seek to extend their heavy-handed power against anyone with a womb all over the United States. The Supreme Courts ruling on Dobbs lays the groundwork for resurgent assaults on our personal lives, trampling on our very freedoms of individuality and ability to make decisions for ones own body.

Across America, measures to deny medical abortions, morning after pills, and contraception represent a dramatic escalation in the attack on our personal liberties. These proposed bills will put reproductive health care at severe risk. Republican legislators are forcing medical providers into precarious situations of worrying about legal jeopardy over delivering evidence-based health care. Even rideshare drivers could face felony imprisonment.

These forced-birth measures go far beyond philosophical hypotheticals and create a new age of trauma for families and health care professionals. These extreme pieces of proposed and passed legislation established the groundwork for an endless number of real life stories. People are forced to carry dead fetuses and 10-year-old rape victims are forced to relive the horrific reminder of both their assault and their rapist.

According to reports from last month, a Louisiana woman named Nancy Davis learned 10 weeks into her pregnancy that the fetus she carried had acrania, a rare congenital disorder in which a fetuss skull does not form prior to birth. The Fetal Medicine Foundation states the prognosis for acrania is death within the first week of life. Due to Louisianas no exceptions abortion ban, Davis had to make an unimaginable decision whether to carry the fetus to term or travel across state lines to terminate the pregnancy. Basically, they [the medical providers] said I had to carry my baby to bury my baby, Davis said. They seemed confused about the law and afraid of what would happen to them if they perform a criminal abortion, according to the law.

Lets stay focused. The overturning of Roe is not only an attack on our right to a legal and safe abortion. This is a reckless and unconscionable attack on the health care of all people who are able to become pregnant; this includes trans men. These health care decisions are between the person needing reproductive medical care and that persons medical providers, and their trusted advisers such as family, friends, and clergy.

This fight for reproductive freedom is personal to me! I recently turned 51 and now my two daughters have fewer rights than I had. I have a unique perspective as a mother of 10-year-old triplets who were born on 11/11/11 and will turn 11 this November. My husband and I chose to have more children through in vitro fertilization (IVF). In this current world of stripping away reproductive freedom and with contraception on the chopping block next, I reflect heavily on whether my miracle children would exist today. Taking birth control pills is the first step in the IVF process. I was diagnosed with severe pre-eclampsia on the day of my triplets birth. If my medical team had hesitated, the four of us would have died.

With so much damage done to our reproductive freedom, there are no quick fixes. We will not accept the government tying the hands of experienced medical providers and patients in need of health care services. I definitely know that state-mandated pregnancy and forced birth is not the answer for anyone at any time or with any political affiliation. I have a clear response to those who tell us how to handle our bodies. The business of my womb is none of your business.
Shai Kaiser, who calls himself a huge nerd, has a passion for virtual reality.

Gaming has a special place in a lot of peoples hearts, he said. It gives us opportunities to experience things we wouldnt have otherwise, and the moral reasoning skills we can learn from video games are the single most important part.

Kaiser, whose first name is pronounced Shy, and others will be living out that enthusiasm at Aaru studio, a virtual reality gaming center he created at 7 N. Cheyenne Ave.

Encompassing a VR arcade, cafe-bar and game development studio, the roughly 5,000-square-foot Aaru was unveiled to the news media Wednesday. A grand opening is scheduled Oct. 21.

In the short term, we are building a community and subsidizing costs through the coffee, bar and the VR arcade rental, said Kaiser, a 26-year-old grandson of Tulsa philanthropist George Kaiser. In the medium term, we want to build our in-game projects that we have validated through extensive testing and polishing and be able to sell those on the global market.

But in the long term, we would like to get into streaming as a platform. Streaming has the potential for explosive growth.

Featuring concrete floors, exposed brick and a mezzanine and constructed in a structure more than a century old, the studio has six private arcade rooms. The centerpiece of the facility will be the Omnideck, a 16-sided, motorized, omni-directional treadmill designed, developed, and built in Sweden. It will allow gamers to immerse themselves in the virtual reality experience.

Typically used for academic research and high-level military training and simulations, it is the first such device in the world to be offered for commercial use.

We will be licensing the absolute top-tier games, the ones pushing technology the furthest, namely Half-Life: Alyx and Blade & Sorcery, Kaiser said.

Tulsa County Commissioner Karen Keith said the Omnideck will be a unique draw for Tulsa.

People are going to come here just for this, just to experience it, she said.

Aaru will employ 10 people initially, said Kaiser, who said he wants to expand to 50 employees in four years. Future programming will include eSports tournaments, cosplay events and game jams. Memberships that incentivize regular visits will be available.

Built in what is being labeled the Technology District, Aaru sits just south of Holberton School, a software engineering institute. The studio also is across the street from the proposed new 112,000-square-foot headquarters for 36 Degrees North, which the nonprofit is scheduled to complete in 2024.

Funding for Aaru is through local bank loans and the Tulsa Economic Development Corporation.

Were thrilled to offer a program in augmented reality and virtual reality, said Libby Ediger, CEO and executive director of Holberton. Having this incredible cafe, game development studio and really community hub literally next door to this school means a couple of tangible things for our students.

One, its a demonstration that the jobs of the future are here today and available to them. We also see the location of the school as an opportunity for our students to dream about what they could build in virtual reality, in augmented reality.

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Oklahoma Disaster Restoration joined the Owasso Chamber of Commerce last Wednesday.

The Tulsa-based, family-owned business opened in 1988, and specializes in water and flood damage, fire and smoke damage, mold remediation and additional disaster restoration services.

General Manager Tammy Stokes operates the large storage and recovery facility, located at 6565 E. 42nd St., with her husband, Jay Stokes, and wanted to expand their Owasso reach as the company continues to grow.

We are very happy to be part of the Owasso Chamber, Tammy said. Weve got several employees who live in Owasso and have said, We really need to infiltrate that community. Weve got a lot of customers and clients from that area as well.

The Stokes, who have served Tulsa and the surrounding regions for the last 30 years, led Owasso Chamber President Chelsea Feary and other chamber ambassadors on a tour of ODRs Tulsa warehouse.

The couple uses cutting-edge technology to repair a variety of damaged residential and commercial property, ranging from large furniture to small items, to assist clients when tragedy strikes.

We love what we do, General Manager Tammy Stokes said during this weeks ribbon-cutting ceremony. We just fell in love with just helping people and the joy that, that brings  and knowing that theyre going to be made whole.

Feary added, The facility is impressive, and its actually a very fascinating business that you have. Thank you for everything that you do to help others; thank you for your investment in the chamber.

More information about Oklahoma Disaster Restoration can be found at okdisaster.com/our-services.
The Great Divide, which has a new album on the way, will play historic Cains Ballroom on Friday, Oct. 14.

The Great Divide brought red dirt music to a national audience upon signing with Atlantic Records in the early '90s.

The new album, Providence, is the groups first new studio album in 20 years and will be released Oct. 28.

A lead single, Good Side, was released Aug. 26.

For tickets to the show, go to cainsballroom.com. For information about the band and the new album, go to tgdmusic.com.

5 to find for Oct. 13-16, 2022: Pink Floyd founding member; Steins in Utica Square; Cherokee music free concert at Cain's Ballroom
INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  The Indiana Supreme Court issued an order Wednesday that prevents the state from enforcing a Republican-backed abortion ban while it considers whether the ban violates the state constitution.

The court said in the order that it was taking over appeals of a judges decision last month that blocked the law a week after it took effect. It denied a request from the state attorney generals office to set aside the preliminary injunction and scheduled a hearing on the lawsuit filed by abortion clinic operators for Jan. 12.

Owen County Judge Kelsey Hanlon blocked the law from being enforced, writing that there is reasonable likelihood that this significant restriction of personal autonomy offends the liberty guarantees of the Indiana Constitution and that the clinics will prevail in the lawsuit.

The ban was approved by the states Republican-dominated Legislature on Aug. 5 and signed by GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb. That made Indiana the first state to enact tighter abortion restrictions after the U.S. Supreme Court eliminated federal abortion protections by overturning Roe v. Wade in June.

The five-member Supreme Court, all of whom were appointed by Republican governors, did not explain their decision. The order, signed by Chief Justice Loretta Rush, said a majority of the court agreed with its provisions but gave no further details.

The Indiana ban aimed to replace state laws that generally prohibited abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy and tightly restricted them after the 13th week. The ban includes exceptions allowing abortions in cases of rape and incest, before 10 weeks post-fertilization; to protect the life and physical health of the mother; and if a fetus is diagnosed with a lethal anomaly.

Indianas seven abortion clinics were to lose their state licenses under the ban  which only permits abortions within its narrow exceptions to take place in hospitals or outpatient surgical centers.

Amy Hagstrom Miller, president of Whole Womans Health, said its South Bend clinic will likely resume appointments for abortion patients next week. Since the injunction was issued Sept. 22, the clinic has been able to replace staff members it lost after the ban took effect. That includes doctors who do the abortions, some of whom are now available to see patients through November, she said.

That is some stability and security for the patients that we havent had in quite some time, Hagstrom Miller told The Associated Press.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which is representing Planned Parenthood and other abortion clinic operators, filed the lawsuit Aug. 31. It argued that the ban would prohibit the overwhelming majority of abortions in Indiana and, as such, will have a devastating and irreparable impact on the plaintiffs and, more importantly, their patients and clients.

Ken Falk, the ACLU of Indianas legal director, pointed to the state constitutions declaration of rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in arguing before the county judge that it included a right to privacy and to make decisions on whether to have children.

The state attorney generals office said the court should uphold the ban, saying arguments against it are based on a novel, unwritten, historically unsupported right to abortion in the state constitution.

The attorney generals office had asked the Supreme Court to take over the case, bypassing the typical intermediate step of it being considered by the state appeals court.

Planned Parenthood can present no textual or historical argument in support of a right to abortion, and the Indiana Supreme Court rightly concluded that it needs to resolve the issue right away, Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita said in a statement.

The leader of Indianas most prominent anti-abortion group said it was deeply disappointed and estimated that at least 3,000 abortions will take place in the state while awaiting a decision from the court.

Although we are confident the law will be upheld, it will be far too late for those whose lives will be lost as this is argued in the courts, Indiana Right to Life CEO Mike Fichter said in a statement.

Indianas ban followed the political firestorm over a 10-year-old rape victim who traveled to the state from neighboring Ohio to end her pregnancy. The case gained wide attention when an Indianapolis doctor said the child came to Indiana because of Ohios fetal heartbeat ban.

An Ohio judge has blocked that state's law while a court challenge to it proceeds.

With Indiana's law remaining on hold and a pre-statehood Arizona law blocked last week, bans on abortion at any point in pregnancy are in place in 14 states. In Wisconsin, clinics have stopped providing abortions amid litigation over whether an 1849 ban is in effect. Georgia bans abortions once cardiac activity can be detected and Florida, Arizona and Utah have bans that kick in after 15 or 18 weeks gestation.

The question of whether the Indiana Constitution protects abortion rights is undecided.

A state appeals court decision in 2004 said privacy was a core value under the state constitution that extended to all residents, including women seeking abortions. But the Indiana Supreme Court later set aside that ruling without addressing whether the state constitution included such a right.

Hanlon, a Republican who was first elected in 2014 as a judge in the rural southern Indiana county, wrote in her injunction order that Indianas constitution is more explicit in its affirmation of individual rights and its limitation of legislative power to intrude into personal affairs than the U.S. Constitution.

Associated Press writer Arleigh Rodgers contributed to this report. Rodgers 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 Arleigh Rodgers on Twitter at https://twitter.com/arleighrodgers
James Wagner is taking a new job at City Hall.

Mayor G.T. Bynum announced Thursday that Wagner, the citys finance director, has been named director of the Working In Neighborhoods Department. He assumes the role that had been filled by Dwain Midget, who died earlier this year.

Wagner also will serve as interim finance director until the city hires his replacement.

Bynum said Wagner has done a great job leading the citys Finance Department and will do a great job at WIN.

James has always been uniquely passionate about community building at the grassroots level, Bynum said in a press release. He will be able to combine those areas of expertise in this new role as the director of Working In Neighborhoods.

I am grateful for his desire to serve in this new capacity, and for Chief Administrative Officer Keri Fothergills service as interim director since the passing of a legendary public servant, Dwain Midget.

The WIN Department is responsible for neighborhood investigations, management of the Tulsa Animal Welfare shelter and other property management issues.

The department has 83 employees and handles approximately 22,000 code enforcement cases annually, according to the city.

Before being named finance director in February 2019, Wagner served as the citys chief of performance, strategy and innovation.

He came to work at City Hall from the Indian Nations Council of Governments, where he was a principal planner.

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Six teachers from the Tulsa metro and surrounding area are among 12 finalists for 2023 State Teacher of the Year just announced by the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

Local finalists are Kelsee Arnold, who teaches Gifted and Talented students at Broken Arrows Spring Creek and Aspen Creek elementary schools; Julie Cryer, band teacher at Jenks Middle School; Traci Manuel, English teacher at Tulsas Booker T. Washington High School; and Rexanne McCrary, language and composition and English teacher at Union High School.

From the surrounding area are William Peeper, history teacher at Cushing High School and Julie Osburn, who teaches at Pryors Lincoln Elementary School.

These finalists represent some of the top teaching talent in Oklahoma, State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister said. They are exceptional individuals who have a tremendous heart for their students and an unwavering dedication to the teaching profession.

The 2023 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year will be named at a ceremony in March and will travel across Oklahoma as an ambassador for teachers throughout the 2023-24 school year.

Finalists from elsewhere in the state are: Marcy Boudreaux-Johnson, reading intervention teacher at Deer Creek Public Schools; Emily Boyett, speech-language pathologist at Edmond Public Schools; Steven Smith, high school art teacher at Lawton Public Schools; Alona Whitebird, high school social studies teacher at Moore Public Schools; Tenille Mehl, school counselor at Noble Public Schools; and Rob Bradshaw, orchestra instructor at Norman Public Schools.

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A Tulsa Public Schools board member is pushing back on some of the administrative procedures used by the board and the district.

At a press conference Wednesday afternoon at John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park, Jennettie Marshall said that while she does not necessarily have a problem with KIPP Tulsa, she does have concerns about the administrative process being followed, including the possibility of district officials bringing items back before the board after they fail to pass the first time.

What we have is an establishment of a process, Marshall said. If I dont like the way a vote turns out, Ill reintroduce it when I have enough board members who will vote for what I want.

Marshall and two other board members voted to reject a recommendation from TPS administrators Monday night to renew the districts agreement with KIPP Tulsa to operate University Prep High School in the former Mark Twain Elementary School building at 541 S. 43rd West Ave., through June 2026. The charter school campus is less than one mile outside of Marshalls current board district.

With board member Judith Barba Perez absent Monday night, the renewal agreement vote ended in a 3-3 tie, which means it did not pass. A TPS spokeswoman confirmed after the meeting that the agreement will be brought back before the board.

A similar action was taken in July after 12 items on the consent agenda did not receive a majority of the votes cast. Those 12 items were approved at a special meeting three days later, with each one considered individually rather than as a group.

What we have is a manipulation of the process to be accountable and transparent to the community, Marshall said. You deserve transparency. Our students deserve it. Our schools deserve it.

KIPP Tulsas current agreements with Tulsa Public Schools run through June 30, 2023, and the high school can continue through that time. About 250 students attend its high school, and another 325 students attend its College Prep Middle School in the former E.W. Woods Elementary School building at 1661 E. Virgin St.

Previously, charter school agreements would come before the board twice  once as an information item and again on the action agenda. However, earlier this year, the board voted to change its meeting structure.

Along with eliminating the information agenda, contracts and other routine items are now on the consent agenda unless a board member requests that an item be moved.

KIPP Tulsas campuses are the first to come before the board for reauthorization since the structure change took effect.

If Dr. Marshall requested that item be moved to (the action agenda), Im confident that board leadership would have done that without hesitation, Superintendent Deborah Gist said, noting that she thought board members had all the necessary information prior to the meeting. Thats something that could have been handled.

In July, KIPP Tulsa was one of two TPS charter partners to be accredited with a warning by the Oklahoma State Board of Education for not turning in required reports on time and exceeding the administrative cost cap allowed under state law. That information was not included in the packet provided to board members before Monday nights meeting.

That is relevant information that every board member should have received when were considering entering into a contract, Marshall said.

Although the high schools reauthorization did not pass, KIPP Tulsas middle school, which was listed separately on the agenda, was renewed through 2026 by a 4-2 count.

Darius Kirk, executive director of KIPP Tulsa, was at Monday nights meeting but, with the renewals on the consent agenda rather than the action agenda, was not able to speak at the meeting about either item.

In an emailed statement, Kirk said all of the districts board members are welcome to visit either KIPP Tulsa campus and that the staff would be prepared to answer board questions when the reauthorization agreement comes back up for consideration.

For nearly two decades, KIPP has delivered a high-quality education for the children of North Tulsa. We value our partnership with Tulsa Public Schools and the Board of Education in this work. We know that the vote taken on our high schools renewal application is not final and look forward to presenting to the board at their November meeting.

Marshall said Wednesday that she has already scheduled a meeting with Kirk about the reauthorization agreements and her questions about the schools, including their accreditation status.

Jerry Griffin voted Monday night against the reauthorization of University Prep but in favor of renewing College Prep.

However, when asked Tuesday, he said he made a mistake and did not realize that he had voted to reauthorize one of the two KIPP Tulsa campuses.

College Preps three year reauthorization does come with additional stipulations, including making statistically significant improvements on math test scores in multiple grades for at least two of the three years covered by the renewal agreement and addressing the accreditation deficiencies laid out by the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

July 2022 video: Tulsa school board meeting disrupted during discussion about agenda, rules of order
With 82 of 101 seats, the Republican majority in the Oklahoma House of Representatives might seem to have grown about as much as it can.

But the GOP does still have some opportunities, with perhaps the most obvious being District 79 in southeast Tulsa.

Democrat Melissa Provenzano won HD 79 in 2018 and successfully defended it in 2020, despite a substantial Republican advantage in registered voters there. With time and redistricting, that margin has decreased from about 3,570 to about 1,650, but the GOP still views it as a potential pickup for nominee Paul Hassink.

The district is roughly south of Interstate 44 between Yale Avenue to the west, U.S. 169 and Garnett Road to the east, and 71st Street and 76th Street to the south, according to the latest legislative district map.

Although registered Republicans outnumber registered Democrats in HD 79, they are only 43% of all voters in the district. Democrats are about 36%; independents are 20%; and Libertarians are 1%.

That makes it one of the states few true swing districts.

The district  will always have a race, and thats fair, Provenzano said during a recent visit to the Tulsa World.

Hassink, 66, a retired Public Service Company of Oklahoma engineer, and Provenzano, 50, a longtime Tulsa educator, bring widely different backgrounds to the discussion and disagree on many leading issues, including schools and abortion.

Provenzano favors more abortion rights; Hassink does not except to save a womans life.

Hassink is favorable, in theory at least, to the concept of sending taxpayer dollars to private schools. Provenzano, who has been a teacher and administrator in Tulsa and Bixby public schools, is highly skeptical.

Weve been told point-blank that school vouchers will be on the agenda (in the next legislative session), so keeping those at bay will be a key focus, Provenzano said when asked about future priorities.

House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, refused to hear school voucher bills last year, but Provenzano said she expects them to come up this spring.

The common understanding, I believe, of the deal that was made is that they wouldnt put vouchers on the floor last year in order to get the $100,000 teacher bill (House Bill 4388) across the finish line, Provenzano said.

That bill created, in theory, the ability for districts to pay some teachers six-figure salaries using district and reallocated state lottery funds.

Touted by Gov. Kevin Stitt in his 2021 State of the State address, the initiative has been met with considerable skepticism in education circles because it involves money that would have gone to education anyway and because it requires already-strapped districts to come up with matching funds to get the state dollars.

Hassink, whose six children attended Catholic schools, said Tulsas public schools were deficient when his family moved here in 1994 and continue to be so now.

There was a serious problem that existed in 94, and thats only gotten worse today, he said during a Tulsa World visit. Maybe there were some up and downs between there, but its clearly worse now. Theres absolutely something that needs to be done.  Ive heard people say that its gotten so bad now that the only way to do it is to create competition between public and private.

Ive heard other people say its still fixable, that we can create competition within public (education), Hassink said. I dont have an answer today.

Not surprisingly, Hassink couches many of his remarks in engineering terms revolving around data, analysis and caution.

As an engineer, we always pilot systems, see how they deliver, tune them up, and then go to scale so they can handle a bigger load, he said. We need to go through a very similar process here.

Hassink said that while he views most government-provided social services, including education and assistance for pregnant women and young families, as a backstop, he believes those should be the best programs they can be.

Hassink said an underlying principle is that every single person deserves respect.

Hassink and Provenzano generally agreed that the morale of public school educators is suffering, although Provenzano has more direct knowledge of the situation. Despite being in the minority, she has managed to get through legislation reducing what many in both parties agree are unnecessary professional development requirements.

More than that, she said, the crush of the perception that theyre the bad guy is heavy right now.

Whats going on in the classroom right now is enough of a challenge, Provenzano said. Its a joy to most, but when you have these external pressures, being told youre bad or youre an indoctrinator, its too much.

As an incumbent, Provenzano said shes learned that many of her constituents have problems and issues that dont make the standard talking points. Last session, acting on the experience of a woman in her district, she and a Republican Senate colleague were able to get through a bill requiring medical insurers to cover diagnostic mammograms.

She was also able to get passed a student borrowers bill of rights to better inform families about their rights and responsibilities. That arose from the story of a constituent caught between student loans and medical bills from a cancer diagnosis.

Not everything, Provenzano said, requires a new law. Helping a teen adopted from another state get his drivers license, for instance, just required some phone calls. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she used her own computer to help some elderly constituents without internet service schedule vaccinations.

Thats the bread and butter of the job, Provenzano said. Those are the things that arent going to make the news,  but those are the actual things that are going to help people.

Featured video: 2022 Oklahoma election dates and voting information
Deposits to Oklahoma state government's main operating fund were 40% more than expected in September and 26% more than for the same month a year ago, the Office of Management and Enterprise Services said Wednesday.

General revenue fund collections are 31%  or $510.2 million  above the estimate for the first three months of fiscal year 2023, which began July 1.

The state's FY 2023 budget is based on those estimates. At the current pace, actual FY 2023 general revenue would exceed the budgeted amount by more than $2 billion, which would increase the state's reserves to around $5 billion.

Reasons for the post-pandemic surge are unclear, but the flood of unappropriated dollars is likely to ratchet up pressure to cut taxes or provide some other form of relief. It's also likely to increase pressure to increase spending.

Many lawmakers are hesitant to permanently cut taxes because of the state's recent history of dramatic revenue shortfalls; addressing the state's 4.5% tax on groceries seems to have the most support.

September general revenue totaled $849.1 million, with income tax receipts more than 50% above expectations and gross production taxes 2 times the estimate.

Sales tax revenue was also higher than expected, but not as sharply.

Net income tax receipts were $442.2 million, up $88.1 million, or 25%, from the same month a year ago, and $151.7 million above the estimate. Personal and business income tax receipts were both substantially higher than projections and the prior year.

Sales tax, the state's other major revenue stream, brought $216.9 million to the general revenue fund. That was 11% above the projection and 8.8% above the same month a year ago.

Use taxes, which are essentially sales taxes on goods bought out of state and on the internet, added $38.5 million as they continue to contribute a growing but still small share of revenue.

Oil and gas severance taxes were $96.8 million, more than twice the take from the same month a year ago. The deposits reflect mid-summer sales when oil and gas prices were at or near peaks.

Revenue from all other taxes totaled $54.8 million.

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FAIRLAND  A raid on an alleged illegal marijuana farm resulted in the confiscation of more than 4,000 plants  and more than 17,600 pounds of dried marijuana  with an estimated street value of $32 million to $43 million, authorities said.

Six men are in custody on various complaints after officers from several agencies on Wednesday raided the farm near Fairland, the Ottawa County Sheriffs Office said in a social media post.

The men are in the Ottawa County jail on complaints of unlawful cultivation of marijuana, trafficking marijuana and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

The street value of the marijuana  in various stages of growth and storage  is between $32 million and $43 million, said Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control spokesman Mark Woodward.

Seized in the raid were 3,241 live plants, 778 plants hanging to dry and about 17,600 pounds of processed marijuana, the sheriffs office said.

Four guns  two rifles, a shotgun and a handgun  were confiscated in a living quarters on the farm, the sheriffs office said.

Fairland is about 10 miles south of the county seat of Miami and about 16 miles southwest of the Missouri border.

The Ottawa County haul was not the largest in state history, but it was significant, Woodward said.

If these plants had made it to New York or the East Coast, the street value perhaps could have doubled, he said.

In custody are:

Jesus Misael Carbajal-Naranjo, 21, of Thousand Palms, California.

Leonel Santiago-Hernandez, 44, of Fairland.

Alfredo Martinez Leon, 34, of Fairland.

Gabino Cabrera Martinez, 28, of Fairland.

Misael Diaz Nunez, 33, of Fairland.

Hector Leon Carbjal, 31, of Fairland.

The five men from Fairland also have immigration holds, Ottawa County Sheriff David Dean said.

As illegal marijuana investigations continue across Oklahoma, the Bureau of Narcotics plans to focus on criminal growers and business owners, as well as the entities that helped facilitate fraudulent documentation allowing criminal organizations to get an Oklahoma medical marijuana license, Woodward said.

Agencies involved in the raid included the Sheriffs Office; the Miami Police Department; the Wyandotte Nation and Eastern Shawnee police departments; and the Quapaw Nation Marshals Service.
Tulsas history has been shaped by critical moments and investments that have defined the trajectory of our region and state.

At its founding, Tulsa was the converging point of cultures, with the Muscogee, Cherokee and Osage nations meeting in what is modern downtown Tulsa. In the 1920s as Tulsa became the Oil Capitol of the World, the skyscrapers that now define our skyline and much of the wealth that continues to make us one of the most philanthropic cities in the country were built. The ambition born during this era led us to envision a city grounded in a love for aviation that has lasted and grown ever since.

In the 1980s when Tulsa was affected by downturns in the oil and gas industry, Tulsans did what we do best  we leveraged innovation and partnerships to continue our impactful role in the energy sector. Companies like Williams, ONEOK, Magellan and others solidified their presence in Tulsa and made investments in our city that we still see today.

These moments defined our history and set the course for our future.

Today, we are in the midst of yet another moment of generation-defining shifts that will build a future centered on innovation and advancements in the air and ground mobility industries.

This transformational shift will be made possible in large part to investments like the U.S. Economic Development Administrations Build Back Better Regional Challenge.

In early September, Tulsa was announced as one of 21 Phase II awardees for the program  an award that brings $39 million in transformational economic development investments to be undertaken across Tulsa and northeast Oklahoma during the next four years. Excitingly, Oklahoma was one of only two states to have two cities that received awards from the EDA, a feat that positions our state as a nationwide leader in the advanced technology sector.

These investments are a part of a regional strategy to transform our economy and further build out the advanced mobility industry in our region  an industry that takes Tulsas history and prowess in aerospace and manufacturing and translates it into jobs centered on drones and the electrification of air and ground transportation.

This strategys success will depend on the implementation of a set of strategic yet comprehensive investments that will collectively work to generate quality jobs for Tulsans and our fellow regional residents.

Our regional plan includes a beyond visual line of site drone corridor stretching from Tulsa to Stillwater; the establishment of a research center and research consortium at Oklahoma State University-Tulsas Helmerich Research Center; the creation of a labor market observatory and strategic jobs program in partnership with Tulsas higher education institutions; and investments in wastewater infrastructure in Inola to support industrial development, which recently was also approved for $14 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding by the Oklahoma Legislature.

As we celebrate what will undoubtedly be the beginning of our next chapter, we also recognize this has been made possible through the collective effort, support and vision of countless regional leaders from the city of Tulsa, PartnerTulsa, INCOG, Tulsa Innovation Labs, our tribal partners at the Osage Nation, OSU and other community and corporate partners.

Our collective investments will allow us to not only support the growth of existing companies such as Navistar-IC Bus, L3Harris, Lyseon North America, Spirit Aerosystems and others, but to grow and attract the next generation of companies that will define our regional economy for decades to come.
Along with greater demand for online purchases, the global packaging industry has adapted to some current trends, particularly focused on protective and sustainable packaging.

A Vietnam Packaging Market Survey conducted by Vietnam Report in September 2022 found that the packaging industry has undergone significant changes in recent years, thanks to the flourishing growth of e-commerce and online shopping habits.

According to the survey result released on October 4, the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced people to stay indoors to prevent the disease, brought a serious challenge to packaging waste.

This challenge, in turn, has forced the packaging industry to look for alternative solutions for packaging materials that are more convenient and environmentally friendly.

To that end, packaging is being designed to be more efficient for supply chains and can be opened at home instead of sitting on store shelves.

In a few years, packaging available for shipping may become a required standard for brands to manage cost pressures and sustainability.

Some e-commerce giants and countries have already implemented such standards to increase the use of this type of packaging.

Under the influence of these two major trends, the Vietnamese packaging industry is required to find smart and sustainable packaging solutions to make packaging products more customer-, brand-, and environment-friendly.

Emerging trends in the global packaging industry include the Internet of Packaging (IoP), biodegradable packaging, digital printing packaging, automatic packaging, active packaging, customized packaging, recyclable packaging, edible packaging, 3D packaging, and nanotechnology-based packaging.

"The most important solution in the packaging industry today allows us to produce packaging in a smart way," the survey report states.

"In addition, the use of 3D printing technology and robots is helping to simplify the packaging process and reduce costs for companies."

In addition to the challenges of converting production lines, 100 percent of Vietnamese entrepreneurs are suffering from the pressure of increased costs of input materials, according to the Vietnam Report survey.

A large number of them, or 43 percent, believe this pressure will continue until the end of 2023.

The packaging industry has to import 80-90 percent of raw materials and is highly dependent on world prices for oil, natural gas, and coal.

Nearly 86 percent of Vietnamese packaging companies admitted that the global economic recession is a challenge for them.

Due to the great openness of the Vietnamese economy, these companies face difficulties when their two largest markets, Europe and America, fall into recession, and they have to restrict their imports.

Considering the current situation, the Vietnamese packaging industry's profit growth may be smaller than sales expansion in 2022.

The average annual growth rate (AAGR) of Vietnam's packaging industry is currently estimated at more than 13 percent, with the AAGR for food packaging always at 15-20 percent and that for plastic packaging at 25 percent. The Vietnamese paper packaging market is projected to reach US$3.1 billion by 2027. Vietnamese enterprises in the packaging industry mainly include small- and medium-sized firms. They have been left behind by foreign companies that have greater advantages in terms of capital, technology, administrative capabilities, and relationships with large partners.

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The Vietnamese Ministry of Finance asked for approval from the Politburo on Wednesday to extend the pilot program permitting Vietnamese people to gamble at a casino on Phu Quoc Island off the coast of Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam until 2024.

The trial program, which has been ongoing for the last three years, has proved to be a right policy that satisfies the needs of some citizens and increases state budget revenue, the ministry said in a proposal to the all-powerful Politburo.

It has also helped create 2,000 jobs.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic in the last two years has affected the operation of the casino.

Therefore, the Ministry of Finance proposed that the Politburo allow the extension of the trial program until 2024.

The casino on Phu Quoc served 240,560 customers from 2019 to 2021, of which Vietnamese accounted for 65 percent.

Local clients have spent VND141 billion (US$5.85 million) on entrance tickets.

The casino has paid VND1.73 trillion ($71.74 million) in taxes to the state coffers.

It is one of the only two casinos open to Vietnamese in a trial program in the country.

The other, located in Van Don District of northern Quang Ninh Province, has not been approved for investment.

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Another wave of COVID-19 infections may have begun in Europe as cases begin to tick up across the region, the World Health Organization and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said on Wednesday.

"Although we are not where we were one year ago, it is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic is still not over," WHO's Europe director, Hans Kluge, and ECDC's director, Andrea Ammon, said in a joint statement.

"We are unfortunately seeing indicators rising again in Europe, suggesting that another wave of infections has begun."

WHO's region-wise data showed that only Europe recorded a rise in COVID-19 cases in the week ended Oct. 2, clocking an increase of 8% from the prior week.

Public health experts have warned that vaccine fatigue and confusion over available vaccines will likely limit booster uptake in the region. read more

Millions of people across Europe remain unvaccinated against COVID-19, the WHO and ECDC noted.

They urged European countries to administer both flu and COVID-19 vaccines ahead of an expected surge in cases of seasonal influenza.

"There was no time to lose," the WHO and ECDC said, adding that vulnerable groups, including people over 60 years old, pregnant women and those with co-morbidities, should get vaccinated against both influenza and COVID-19.
The world's wildlife populations have declined by more than two-thirds since 1970 as forests have been cleared and oceans polluted, according to an assessment released on Thursday.

This "serious drop  tells us that nature is unraveling and the natural world is emptying," said Andrew Terry, director of conservation and policy at the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) report, which used 2018 data from ZSL on the status of 32,000 wildlife populations covering more than 5,000 species, found that population sizes had declined by 69% on average. Deforestation, human exploitation, pollution, and climate change were the biggest drivers of the loss.

Wildlife populations in Latin American and the Caribbean were hit especially hard, experiencing a 94% drop in just five decades. One population of pink river dolphins in the Brazilian Amazon plummeted by 65% between 1994 and 2016, the report said.

Its findings were broadly similar to those in WWF's last assessment in 2020, with wildlife population sizes continuing to decline at a rate of about 2.5% per year, Terry said.

"Nature was in dire straits and it is still in dire straits," said Mark Wright, director of science at WWF-UK. "The war is definitely being lost."

A plastic bottle drifts on the waves of the sea at a fishing port in Isumi, east of Tokyo, Japan November 21, 2018. Photo: Reuters

Desperate need for support

However, the report offered some glimmers of hope. While the eastern lowland gorilla population in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Kahuzi-Biega National Park fell by 80% between 1994 and 2019 due to bushmeat hunting, the mountain gorilla population near Virunga National Park increased from around 400 individuals in 2010 to over 600 by 2018.

Still, the wide-ranging declines have prompted desperate pleas for increased support for nature.

In December, delegates from around the world will gather in Montreal to hash out a new global strategy to protect the world's plants and animals.

One of the biggest asks is likely to be increased financing for global conservation efforts.

"We are calling on the rich nations to provide financial support to us to protect our nature," said Alice Ruhweza, WWF's regional director for Africa.
Vietnam plays a central role in the U.S.s Indo-Pacific strategy and is among the seven countries Washington will give training and support within its maritime security initiative for the region, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Kritenbrink has announced.

Assistant Secretary Kritenbrink delivered the message during his talk with students at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam as well as at the press briefing in Hanoi on Wednesday afternoon before wrapping his three-day visit to Vietnam starting on Monday.

The diplomat, in charge of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, affirmed that Vietnams success is part of the national interest of the U.S. and that the Vietnam - U.S. comprehensive partnership is based on mutual respect for each others sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and political systems.

The entire U.S. strategy for the Indo-Pacific is based on building the capacity of its partners and allies to promote common goals and interests, and this strategy takes Vietnam as its center, Kritenbrink stated.

Since Vietnam and the U.S. normalized bilateral relations 27 years ago, what the two countries achieved today in their ties is the result of braveness, goodwill, and hard work of dedicated people in both nations, Kritenbrink said.

He also briefed on U.S. President Joe Bidens recent initiatives for the Indo-Pacific and on the activities that have raised security concerns in the region.

As far as the U.S. knows, Vietnam is facing special challenges in the region, not only on land but also at sea, Kritenbrink said, referring to disputes as well as recent incidents in the East Vietnam Sea that cause concerns for relevant countries in Southeast Asia.

In such a context, the U.S. is committed to doing all possible things to support maritime security and raise maritime domain awareness in the region, Kritenbrink affirmed.

The U.S.'s Indo-Pacific Maritime Security Initiative identifies Vietnam as one of seven countries where Washington will offer training and support, the diplomat said.

The U.S. is pleased to work closely with the Vietnam Coast Guard in enhancing the ability to detect and respond to activities at sea, he added.

He emphasized that the U.S. will continue to assist Vietnam not only in strengthening maritime security but also in responding to other emerging non-traditional challenges.

The U.S. strategy for the Indo-Pacific sets out a positive vision for the region and the Vietnam - U.S. partnership is an integral part thereof, Kritenbrink said.

That the two former enemies have become friends will send a positive message and image to the world, he commented.

The assistant secretary affirmed that the U.S. will not ask any countries to take sides  an issue that has concerned some Southeast Asian countries.

In response to the questions by students relating to the challenges to the Vietnam - U.S relationship, Kritenbrink said the ties face some challenges but both sides are doing a lot of positive things and that he felt optimistic about the future of the Southeast Asian nation.

We are committed to the development of a strong, prosperous, and independent Vietnam. We know the U.S. is stronger, more prosperous, and secure, when we have successful like-minded partners working toward the same objectives, the U.S. Embassy cited Kritenbrink as speaking.

Kritenbrinks visit to Vietnam was aimed at exploring ways to deepen bilateral cooperation, and high-level visits are a demonstration of the importance that the U.S. places on this bilateral relationship, the U.S. Embassy said on its verified Facebook page.

Since Hanoi and Washington normalized diplomatic ties in 1995, the bilateral relations have constantly developed fruitfully in all fields, especially since the two countries set up the Vietnam-U.S. comprehensive partnership in 2013.

The partnership has for the first time set the principles of cooperation based on mutual benefits, equality, and respect for each other's political institutions, independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.

Both nations are looking forward to celebrating 10 years of their comprehensive partnership in 2023, according to the embassy.

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Check out the news you should not miss today:

Society

-- A large sinkhole suddenly appeared on a street in Quang Binh Province, north-central Vietnam on Wednesday morning, posing safety threats to local residents.

-- Dozens of households in Binh Dinh Province, south-central Vietnam were evacuated to safer places due to severe landslides following torrential rains earlier this week.

-- A low-pressure area is forecast to enter the East Vietnam Sea on Thursday and then develop into a tropical depression.

-- Nine tiger specimens that perished after being found illegally kept in captivity at a residential house in Nghe An Province, north-central Vietnam last year have been donated to the Vietnam National Museum of Nature in Hanoi.

-- The Vietnamese Ministry of Finance sought approval from the Politburo on Wednesday to extend the pilot program allowing Vietnamese people to gamble at casinos in Phu Quoc Island off the coast of Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam until 2024.

-- Tourism authorities in Da Lat City, located in Vietnams Central Highlands, on Wednesday gave a nod to the trial provision of the paragliding service over the city's iconic Xuan Huong Lake.

-- A flight departing from Bangkok, Thailand landed at Phu Quoc International Airport in southern Vietnam on Wednesday, marking the maiden direct flight made between the destinations.

-- Police in Ho Chi Minh on Wednesday arrested two people and are hunting for another accomplice after they were caught red-handed stealing manhole covers in the downtown area earlier this week.

World News

-- Oil prices struggled to find their footing in early Asian trade on Thursday after a weakening global demand outlook depressed the market in the last session, Reuters reported on Thursday.

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UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Describing unilateral coercive measures as a "tumor of human society," a Chinese envoy on Wednesday urged the United States and some other Western countries to cancel their illegal and unreasonable sanctions immediately.

In fact, the unilateral sanctions by those countries under the pretext of human rights violate human rights in other nations, said Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

"Those Western countries must be held responsible and accountable for the systematic violation of human rights caused by their unilateral coercive measures," Dai said at the side event of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights.

Unilateral coercive measures violate the UN Charter and international law, the envoy said, noting that some countries even attempt to use those measures to suppress the legitimate governments of the countries concerned and instigate "color revolutions" for regime changes, which poses a severe threat to world peace and stability.

Some individual countries' abuse of sanction measures, like imposing trade bans, blocking financial investments and interfering with markets, is disrupting international economic, trade and technological cooperation. The sanctions gravely threaten global food, energy and financial security and pose livelihood difficulties for developing countries, even resulting in humanitarian disasters in some vulnerable nations, he said.

Unilateral sanctions also cause severe damage to the harmony and stability of international relations. Even basic requirements such as paying UN dues and attending UN meetings in the U.S. city of New York have been interrupted, Dai said, adding that such practices should be condemned.

"We urge the United States and some other Western countries to face squarely the international appeal for justice, and immediately cancel their unilateral coercive measures, so as to practice true multilateralism with concrete actions," Dai said. 
The area of mangrove forests across Vietnam contracted by 250,000 hectares, or 62.5 percent, from 1945 to 2019, according to an expert from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry.

During a seminar organized by the University of Economics and Law under the Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City in collaboration with the Justice Initiatives Facilitation Fund (JIFF) on Wednesday, Dr. Pham Quang Tu, secretary of the JIFF, said that mangrove forests in Vietnam are considered among the most beautiful and valuable mangrove ecosystems in Southeast Asia.

Mangroves are habitats for many species of flora and fauna, preserve biodiversity, regulate climate, prevent erosion, protect the coast against high waves, reduce wind strength, and stabilize shorelines, Tu added.

In terms of socio-economic benefits, mangroves provide aquatic products, fuelwood materials, medicinal herbs, as well as touristic destinations.

These benefits are proven by data from domestic and foreign scientists at different ecological scales and regions.

However, Dr. Truong Van Vinh, deputy head of the forestry faculty at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry, said that the area of mangroves is vanishing rapidly.

It is estimated that the world loses about two percent of the total forest area every year, mainly due to human activities, according to Vinh.

In Vietnam, the combined area of mangrove forests was estimated at around 400,000 hectares in 1945.

However, a report of the Vietnam Administration of Forestry showed that the total area of mangroves in the country shrank to 150,000 hectares in 2019, equivalent to a 62.5-percent loss.

Most of the mangroves are concentrated in the southern region, with mangrove forests in the Mekong Delta area accounting for 90,000 hectares, according to this years statistics.

At the event, Vinh suggested a number of solutions to make the public pay for benefits brought about by the mangrove forests as a way to raise their awareness and educate them to not take the forests for granted.

Dr. Vo Trung Tin, working at the commercial law faculty of the University of Economics and Law, hailed Vinhs ideas as economically feasible.

Wednesdays seminar is part of a project aimed at raising peoples awareness of the law on forest protection and developing the livelihood of more than 1,500 households contracted to protect forests and those living in Can Gio District, home to the Can Gio Mangrove Forest, which was recognized as a World Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2000.

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Berlins tourism authorities are organizing many promotional activities in Ho Chi Minh City to attract more Vietnamese tourists to the German city following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tourism industry in Ho Chi Minh City as well as in Germany is recovering strongly after the pandemic, Raff Ostendorf, director of market development at VisitBerlin, a Berlin tourism promotion organization, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

In the first six months of 2022, Berlin welcomed 4.36 million visitors, who stayed in the city for a total of 11.15 million nights, Ostendorf elaborated.

The return of visitors to Berlin is a good sign for the tourism recovery, he continued, adding that the number of holiday-makers from over the world, including Vietnam, to the German city is expected to surge in the coming time.

Aside from the strong relationship between Vietnam and Germany, the opening of a direct flight route between the two countries will further promote the tourism development and economic cooperation of both sides.

After two years of the pandemic, Berlin remains among the most attractive destinations in the world, thanks to its cultural diversity, unique landscape, and especially the stunning and creative architecture of local hotels, Ostendorf explained.

As of May this year, the city had offered about 715 accommodation establishments for tourists.

Local authorities have organized a series of cultural projects and new attractions, as well as many monthly events and festivals.

In 2024, the city will celebrate the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with many activities to welcome domestic and international visitors.

To create favorable conditions for Vietnamese visitors, visa procedures are being simplified with a review time of seven to 14 days, the German Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City stated.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, many European cities are looking for ways to attract Vietnamese tourists after the pandemic thanks to the huge potential from this market.

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Tourism authorities in Da Lat City, located in Vietnams Central Highlands, on Wednesday gave the go-ahead to trial paragliding tours over the city's iconic Xuan Huong Lake.

Trial paragliding tours will run from October 12 to November 1 and will be operated by Fly High Vietnam Company in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh City Paragliding Federation.

According to Nguyen Tien Hai, deputy director of the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of Lam Dong Province, after the trial, paragliding tours will be introduced as a brand-new travel service at the Da Lat Flower Festival in 2022 as part of the efforts to boost regional tourism.

Staff set up for a paragliding trial at Lam Vien Square, Da Lat City, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam, October 12, 2022. Photo: M.V. / Tuoi Tre

The Lam Dong Province Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism is still awaiting the completion of the licensing process.

The tour operators have not yet made any announcements on operating capacity or costs.

Ngo Anh Tuan, director of Dalat Discovery Travel and a tour distributor who took part in a test flight, claimed the journey around Xuan Huong Lake was smooth and trouble-free.

According to the plan, we will offer paragliding tours to visitors during the upcoming Da Lat Flower Festival, Tuan stated.

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ABC ME has co-commissioned The Spooky Files, a new comedy series from Tony Ayres Productions (TAP) and Megaboom Pictures, with BBC.

The 10 x 24 min series is described as a fun, spooky, adventure-filled look at the universal experience of childhood fears. With an irresistible blend of contemporary characters and retro delights from the 80s and 90s, The Spooky Files will appeal to todays savvy audience who love a big mystery, lots of laughs and just the right amount of scary!

Creators Guy Edmonds & Matt Zeremes are the lead writers and the series is produced by Paul Watters with Executive Producers, Tony Ayres and Andrea Denholm for TAP, which is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Libbie Doherty, ABC Head of Childrens, said Were enormously proud to revisit our creative alliance with the BBC to partner with industry leading creatives from Tony Ayres Productions. This brilliant Australian creative team has another hilarious hit on their hands that demonstrates their understanding of the tween audience, their humour, their hang-ups and how to squeeze the funny out of every moment on screen. We know this one is going to be BIG! A huge thank you to Screen Australia and VicScreen for their dedication in supporting Australian productions and supporting the ABC to deliver exceptional quality Childrens content to Aussie kids.

Andrea Denholm, Executive Producer, Tony Ayres Productions (TAP), said When Guy and Matt brought The Spooky Files to TAP at concept stage, we jumped at the chance to work with this incredibly talented team. From the creators of Hardball and the creator of Nowhere Boys, The Spooky Files is filled with humour, heart, mystery and is destined to find a huge and loyal audience. We are thrilled to have the support of ABC ME, CBBC and Universal International Studios in bringing this delightful series to children all over the world.

Grainne Brunsdon, Screen Australias Head of Content said, Its vital that Australian children can see themselves reflected on screen, and we are pleased to support this exciting new series that will represent the diversity of the Australian playground. The team behind the widely loved Hardball have proven their ability to connect with young viewers around the world, and The Spooky Files is a fresh, clever comedy that is set to entertain and thrill audiences on ABC and BBC.

Victorian Minister for Creative Industries, Steve Dimopoulos, said, Through our $191.5 million VicScreen strategy were attracting more local productions than ever before, creating more jobs and supporting more businesses. Victoria offers some of the most exceptional filming destinations coupled with a dynamic and driven workforce, providing production companies with compelling opportunities to shoot within Victoria.

Production is expected to commence in early November 2022, shooting in Victoria, to air on ABC ME in 2023 and in the UK on CBBC and BBC iPlayer.

Production Credits: The Spooky Files is a Tony Ayres Productions (TAP) and Megaboom Pictures production for ABC ME and BBC. Major production investment from Screen Australia in association with the ABC. Financed with support from VicScreen and BBC. NBCUniversal Global Distribution will manage international sales. TAP is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.
GWN7 weather presenter Shauna Willis farewelled viewers last night after 35 years with the network.

During her three decades she has also been news presenter.

She started out as a receptionist in her hometown of Albany, later moving between script writing, commercial production, producer and presenter for childrens program The Saturday Club to news reporting.

Her first news interview was with French explorer Jacques Cousteaus son, Jean-Michel, when research vessel RV Calypso sailed into Broome.

I remember stepping onto this funny little boat thing with shaking hand and holding this bit of paper with my questions for news  it was very exciting, she said.

In signing off for the final time she said, Im going to miss everyone here so much and of course to everyone that Ive worked with over the years, who Ive shared the journey with. Awesome. And of course to everyone across Regional WA whos watched a mostly-correct weather forecast each night. A big thank you for tuning in. As I say its been a blast. What a journey.

She added, From all of us across the state. Good night Western Australia.

Source: SWTimes
Love Island Australia is returning at the end of the month, premiering first on 9NOW and with a later broadcast on 9GO! -where the show was originally commissioned.

Sophie Monk is back as host along with Irelands Eoghan McDermott as narrator. This season has been filmed back in Mallorca (yes with alternate endings).

I cant wait for everyone to meet this amazing new cast. The twists and turns this year are on another level, outrageous but in a good way. I love being back in Mallorca, it just feels like Love Island for me. Its going to be an amazing series that no one will be able to keep their eyes off, said Monk.

Returning to the beautiful island of Mallorca, where our Islanders are hoping to find the one, they must couple up and stay together to secure their place in the villa or risk being dumped and sent away, all while surviving the temptations of sexy new bombshells arriving. They must also win over the viewers who will ultimately decide their fate and the winning couple.

At the end of the series, the winning couple, as voted by the public, are handed a pot of $50,000 to start their new lives together, but theres a very big catch: one partner gets the whole say in either sharing the money 50/50, or walking away with the lot.

This years cast is one youll fall head over heels for with their seriously good looks and abs-olutely phenomenal bodies, but more importantly, some massive surprises in store!

Strap yourselves in as it will be a blistering summer of love with more hilarious challenges, dates, drama and romance than ever before.

6pm Monday, October 31 on 9Now nightly from Monday to Thursday, and available later each evening on 9GO!
Nagib's small feet poke out from a bundled blue shroud. His body is far too small for his three years of age.

He is shrunken by malnutrition and marked by the measles that eventually took his short life.

Nagib is carried out of the emergency care ward in Baidoa and into a white van as his mother sobs quietly in the backseat.

One more preventable death in the Bay area of southwest Somalia where prolonged drought, violence and skyrocketing food prices are pushing the population into famine.

Not far from Baidoa, al Qaeda-linked terror group al Shabaab is fighting to maintain its territory. They stalk vulnerable rural communities and collect taxes from farmers in the form of livestock.

In a nearby town, al Shabaab fighters recently ambushed a group of men building a well and burned them alive.

Those who manage to escape still suffer long-term consequences. Nagib's family were unable to vaccinate him while living under al Shabaab. When malnutrition hit, his young body could not fight off a deadly case of measles.

Around 260,000 people lost their lives when famine was declared in Somalia in 2011. More than half of them were children. Today, nearly seven million people are facing extreme hunger and doctors are preparing for another humanitarian catastrophe.

"If it continues like this it will be worse than the last one. It will be the serious one," said Dr Mohamed Osman Weheliye, an emergency care doctor at the Sahal Macalin Stabilisation Centre supported by Save the Children in Baidoa.

"People are going to die because of the long drought."

Four failed rainy seasons have destroyed food security across the country and forecasts predict that this cycle of rain is unlikely to bring the moisture needed to replenish farms and grazing land.

This is the worst drought the region has seen in 40 years.

Nearly a million people have already been displaced and more than half of them have come to Baidoa, where camps keep growing.

Story continues

Make-shift dome huts are cropping up all over the city as 4,000 new families arrive every week - fleeing their villages in search of food, water and safety.

"Drought brought me here. I lost my livestock. My farm is gone," said Sudano Ali.

Sudano's 10-month-old son Usama is assessed, weighed and measured at the stabilisation centre.

He is found to be acutely malnourished and medical staff are concerned by signs of something more - a persistent cough. Dr Weheliye suspects that baby Usama has pneumonia.

"It is the diseases that come with hunger," says Dr Weheliye.

Hunger is just the start of suffering for these children.

Their weakened immune systems are unable to fight off the illness that are rife in the camps they now call home.

Drought, disease and conflict - a battle on all fronts.
Chinese astronauts give lecture from space station

Xinhua) 08:23, October 13, 2022

Students attend the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at Henan Museum of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, Oct. 12, 2022. (Xinhua/Xu Jiayi)

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. The previous two lectures of the "Tiangong Class" series were delivered by the Shenzhou-13 crew from the station's core module Tianhe.

The lecture content includes a capillary effect experiment, the vibration of liquid and liquid-solid mixtures, drinking water with a super-long straw, rotating and flipping wrenches, and introducing a plant growth study.

The astronauts first gave an introduction of the Wentian lab module. They noted that Wentian has an independent control system. It can take over the operation and control of the whole space station when the Tianhe core module has emergencies.

Liu showed the students the motion and vibration of liquid in a microgravity environment. She also sipped mango juice with a two-meter straw.

In another experiment, two tumbling T-handles illustrated how their motion relates to their rotation mode and mass distribution. The phenomenon, popularly known as the Dzhanibekov effect, is easier to be observed in space than on Earth.

The astronauts also had an interaction with the students and answered their questions.

A six-grader from Yunnan Province shared his germination test of Arabidopsis thaliana at school. Wearing mixed-reality glasses, Chen Dong showed the students the Arabidopsis thaliana at different stages of blooming in a microgravity science glove-box.

Arabidopsis thalianaa is a model for understanding the molecular biology of plant traits in space. The science glove-box is a sealed working area in the space station where crew members can perform experimental procedures in cells and plants.

When answering a question from a Beijing student about how to become an astronaut, Chen said that China has started selecting the fourth batch of reserve astronauts, adding that the spacecraft pilots will be recruited from the in-service pilots of the armed forces.

"The space station is waiting for you," said Chen.

At the end of the class, the trio expressed their expectations for the students on Earth. "The Mengtian lab module will launch into orbit soon, and we will witness the historical moment when China's space station is fully completed," Chen said. "We expect you guys to build our space home better in the future."

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
Delegates from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Delegates from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrived in Beijing on Thursday.

This is the first delegation to arrive from outside Beijing on Thursday.

More than 2,200 delegates, representing more than 96 million CPC members across the nation, are arriving in the capital to attend the congress, scheduled to open on Oct. 16. 

Delegates from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

Delegates from Tibet Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen)

Delegates from Yunnan Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen)

Delegates from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen)

Delegates from Shaanxi Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Haofu)

Delegates from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen)

Delegates from Hebei Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Wang Sibei)

Delegates from Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen)

Delegates from Qinghai Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Haofu)

Delegates from Guizhou Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Haofu)

Delegates from Heilongjiang Province to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrive in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Haofu)
Mother Sandra Larmour says an inquest has vindicated her daughter Jeni

The mother of a talented student who died on her first night at university after taking ketamine given to her by someone else said she feels vindicated after an inquest into the death.

Jeni Larmour, 18, from Newtonhamilton, Northern Ireland, died hours after arriving at Newcastle University in October 2020, after she drank with new flatmates and sniffed the tranquilliser with one of them.

Kavir Kalliecharan, 20, from Leeds, was later charged with possessing drugs, but not supplying them and told police the ketamine was Ms Larmours.

But Newcastle Coroner Karen Dilks, who recorded a conclusion of misadventure, said, on the balance of probability, that the ketamine which killed Ms Larmour in combination with the alcohol, had been provided by another.

After the hearing, Sandra Larmour, flanked by her husband David, read a statement in which she said: Today I leave this court feeling in pain but knowing my daughter has been vindicated.

Speaking about attending Mr Kalliecharans drug possession trial, Mrs Larmour said: I have had to hear that the substance that killed Jeni was her own and that she was wilfully engaged in the supplying of drugs to others.

I have always known this could not be further from the truth, particularly given that just a few hours earlier Jeni had boarded a plane with me from Belfast to Newcastle meaning she would have had to have taken the substance with her.

The coroners acknowledgement that the drugs were provided to her by another, or in other words not her own, is a comfort to us, getting out to her friends and the community of Northern Ireland that she was innocent in all of this.

The inquest was told Ms Larmour had forgotten her ID while on a trip out to a city centre bar that night and was accompanied back to the flat by Mr Kalliecharan where they both took ketamine in his bedroom.

The grieving mother said the family has not had any apology from Mr Kalliecharan, who is now studying away from Newcastle University.

Story continues

Mrs Larmour, who remained proud of her daughters achievements, said: This is not the end for us.

She added: I will leave no stone unturned for my daughter.

The coroner said Ms Larmour had arrived in Newcastle the day she died and drunk alcohol with her new flat mates between 5-7pm.

Mrs Dilks said: Later that evening, while her judgment was impaired due to alcohol, Jeni took a quantity of ketamine provided for her by another, the combined effects of which led to her death.

Specialist police officers using sniffer dogs searched the flat in Park View halls and found ketamine, cannabis and MDMA in Mr Kalliecharans room, but he insisted the ketamine was not his.

The inquest was told no other drugs were found in any of the student rooms in the flat, including none in Ms Larmours room.

Ms Larmour had filmed a Snapchat video on her mobile phone which was not played in open court, but which witnesses saw, showing her in Mr Kalliecharans bedroom, with a white powder on a table.

Andrew Metcalfe, then an acting detective sergeant with Northumbria Police, confirmed that the video showed there was no evidence of either Ms Larmour or Mr Kalliecharan coercing or pressuring the other to take drugs.

In evidence on Tuesday, Mr Kalliecharan claimed he was rendered sick by the drug and vomited for hours before falling asleep, and woke to found Ms Larmour lifeless, lying face down on his bedroom floor at around 5am.

Mr Kalliecharan had told Ms Larmour before they took the drugs: This is how we do it in England.

He insisted that this was the first time he had taken ketamine, telling the coroner what he meant by that expression was that this was the English university experience.

Immediately after her death he told flatmates he felt it was his fault, explaining at the inquest he felt guilt, not in a criminal sense, but moral responsibility.

Lucy Backhurst, the universitys academic registrar and director of student services, said the university had a compulsory online induction programme with information about drink and drugs for new students.

But the messaging was not easy, she admitted, and following Ms Larmours death there was a backlash when the Vice-Chancellor emailed students a stark warning about the risks of drink and drugs.

Ms Backhurst said: We got an awful lot of kick-back from students (saying) Who do you think you are telling us what to do?

She added: Its a balance. Students need to be aware of the risks, dangers and signs, and we have done an awful lot before 2020 and subsequently to try to raise awareness.

Mrs Dilks urged the university to look again at its induction course on drink and drugs, given that none of the flatmates who gave evidence at the inquest could recall any information from it.

The coroner did say the universitys work on drink and drugs advice was continually evolving and said it was working well with other organisations on its programme.

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Angela Lansbury. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Angela Lansbury once fled Los Angeles to keep her daughter away from Charles Manson.

"She was one of many youngsters who knew him," she told the Daily Mail in 2014.

Lansbury packed up her family and moved to County Cork, Ireland.

Following the news of Angela Lansbury's death on Tuesday, a bizarre episode from her life has resurfaced.

In a 2014 interview with the Daily Mail, the legendary actor recalled how she had to save her daughter from the clutches of infamous cult leader Charles Manson in the 1960s when she and her family were living in Los Angeles.

"It started with cannabis but moved on to heroin," Lansbury said of her daughter Deidre's drug use when she was only a teen.

"There were factions up in the hills above Malibu that were dedicated to deadly pursuits," she continued. "It pains me to say it but, at one stage, Deidre was in with a crowd led by Charles Manson. She was one of many youngsters who knew him  and they were fascinated. He was an extraordinary character, charismatic in many ways, no question about it."

The notorious serial killer and his cult grabbed headlines in the late 1960s when one of their murders included actress Sharon Tate, who was pregnant at the time.

Charles Manson. Associated Press

Once Lansbury realized what was going on, she and her husband Peter Shaw moved their family from fast-paced L.A. to "the simplicity of life in Ireland," as she described it.

"I said to Peter, 'We have to leave.' So we upped sticks and moved the family to a house I found in County Cork," Lansbury said.

"I was drawn to Ireland because it was the birthplace of my mother and it was also somewhere my children wouldn't be exposed to any more bad influences," she said. "I still have a house there which I try and visit at least once a year. So I refused all work for a year and simply kept house. I bought Elizabeth David's books and learnt how to cook properly. It was a wonderful time in my life."

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The "Beauty and the Beast" star said "it took Deidre a little longer" to break her bad habits, "but she finally got married."

Lansbury, who won five Tonys, six Golden Globes, and was Oscar-nominated three times over her 70-year career, died on Tuesday of natural causes.

Read the original article on Insider
A report released by the World Organisation Against Torture says that extrajudicial murder and torture have become widespread in Libya, with nearly 600 people losing their lives over the past two years to law enforcement agents or militia members.

According to the report published by the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), Libyan law enforcement agents and militias killed at least 581 civilians  both nationals and migrants  between January 2020 and March 2022.

This number includes people executed in detention facilities or tortured to death, but according to the authors of the report that figure is only the tip of the iceberg.

The OMCT says that, in tandem with the extrajudicial killings of civilians, often accompanied by horrific torture, government agents and armed militias unleash indiscriminate violence with total impunity.

The report, entitled That was the last time I saw my brother, is the first of its kind focusing on extrajudicial killings in Libya.

It has been compiled by using direct interviews with witnesses and survivors carried out across the country by the Libyan Anti-torture Network (LAN)  a group of civil society organisations.

Breaking the silence

Mona Siwi, legal officer for the OMCT's Libya programme, told RFI that the LAN has faced a herculean task in attempting to document and record human rights violations and torture in Libya over the past two years.

"The network is in fact dealing with a huge number of obstacles and challenges on the ground when it comes to the security situation in Libya ... and how the government is actually trying as much as possible to limit the access of these people to victims of crimes.

"The fear of prosecution by the perpetrators belonging to different armed groups in Libya is also posing a threat to many on the ground, including the LAN network."

Siwi is at pains to underline that the number of violations documented in the report are just the "tip of the iceberg of the reality that is happening in Libya."

Story continues

Tackling 'omerta'

While attempting to shed light on torture and militia activity in Libya, many researchers have been stone-walled with a collective omerta, a refusal to speak about crimes.

Siwi told RFI that LAN investigators did encounter such difficulties, but their experience in working with local populations over the past 11 years has enabled them to overcome peoples' reticence in coming forward.

"The Libyan Anti-torture Network has been working since 2011," Siwi explains. "Separately, each of these members [have been] working in different regions ... to create a coalition between civil society organisations to work and cover all of Libya.

"Even some of our [researchers] were victims of torture in the past. Those activists [face] the fear of being arbitrarily arrested at any point ... they manage because the horrific reality that is being faced by the victims pushed a lot of people to find a confidential platform where they can deliver the information."

For the OMCT, confidentiality is paramount  they have trained the Libyan Anti-torture Network how to reserve and disseminate information gathered from victims, making sure they understand that everything that is said is strictly confidential.

Migrants as vulnerable as ever

When documenting abuse cases, the NGO broke the atrocities down into four contexts. The indiscriminate shelling of residential areas; executions in detention; death in custody under torture; bodies disposed of in dumps.

Yet although the majority of the victims cited in the OMCT report were Libyan, it also recorded a significant number of migrant deaths in custody, including in police stations.

For Siwi, the statistics underline the fact that the exploitation of migrants is not only due to human traffickers or smuggling networks, but also to the Libyan state, which has failed to provide any protection for migrants.

Over the past 10 years, says Siwi, "state actors and non-state actors  including all of the armed groups involved in the human trafficking process  have [continued] to practice horrific ways of torturing people.

"And it's killing people ... the migrants who enter Libya are completely vulnerable and face violations all the way through the routes, either in the desert, or passing through different cities and then being arrested or intercepted in the middle of the sea, and then brought back to detention centres to be humiliated, badly treated and tortured," Siwi told RFI.

After these horrific incidents, many migrants are unwilling to speak of the violations because they believe they are being watched, followed, and spied on: "They are actually being threatened by the guards, the directors, the people who torture them."

Collusion versus the rule of law

When it comes to the role of state and non-state actors, researchers point to various levels of collusion, depending on shifting alliances and on which militia, government or warlord becomes dominant in a particular region.

This has led to the post-ponement of democratic elections  stalling the creation of a legitimate, inclusive executive.

But until a stable, inclusive government is elected, what hopes are there of bringing the rule of law back into the daily lives of Libyans?

As Libya has been living with political and military instability since the fall of Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, the ongoing civil unrest has been exacerbated by the successive governments' failure to reintegrate armed groups.

"The government is actually funding these armed groups which are committing these act of torture all around the country," Siwi maintains.

For her, the role of civil society and international organisations is to increase the pressure on the authorities "through reporting and highlighting these horrific events.

"What is concerning," she adds, "is that these violations are systematic  they happen continuously.

"They sell people. They enslave people. It is horrifying, but that doesn't mean that we [should] remain silent."

In its conclusion, the OMCT report puts the responsibility for bringing an end to the torture and killings directly on the shoulders of the Libyan state.

"Urgent action [is needed] to establish an independent commission, a local commission within Libya to document [abuses]," Siwi demands.

"And the government needs to provide all the financial and administrative resources to protect the victims ... and create a level of inspection of what's happening in detention facilities, where state actors are behaving in complete denial of what's happening on the ground."

Mona Siwi is the legal officer at the Libya programme with the World Organisation Against Torture, the largest global NGO group actively standing up to torture and protecting human rights defenders worldwide.
More than 46 billion was paid out by banks under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (Dominic Lipinski/PA) (PA Wire)

A former pub landlord who is accused of collecting thousands of pounds in Covid bounce back loans to send to ISIS has denied terror charges.

Tarek Namouz, 42, allegedly claimed the government aid between November 2020 and May 2021 when it was offered to help businesses during the pandemic.

At Kingston crown court on Thursday, he pleaded not guilty to entering into an arrangement for money or other property to be made available to another which may be used for terrorism, and eight counts of entering into funding an arrangement.

Namouz, appearing in court via videolink from HMP Wandsworth, also denied two counts of possessing terrorist information in the form of two videos.

Namouz, a former pub landlord in Wood Green, north London, has been remanded in custody until a two-week trial which is due to start on November 21.

Judge Peter Lodder QC, the Recorder of Kensington and Westminster, presided over the hearing, as Namouz spoke only to confirm his identity and enter not guilty pleas.
Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the populist radical right party Brothers of Italy (Fratelli dItalia), may have emerged as the victor in Italys recent elections, but she did so at the head of a delicately balanced coalition of parties  one that included Matteo Salvini, the man once spoken of in the same terms as Meloni herself.

Before Brothers of Italys meteoric rise, it was Salvini who was seen as the populist right-wing threat in Italy. Now he finds himself playing second fiddle to Meloni.

Salvinis League (Lega) teamed up with Brothers of Italy in a pre-election alliance that came with the promise of being part of a government led by the radical right. But the deal came at a cost. The relationship between the two allies has evolved into a zero-sum game, with Brothers of Italy taking electoral support from the League.

Brothers of Italy won 26% of the national vote in the September election  a share that dwarfs the results of its two coalition partners combined. Salvinis League took 8.8% and Silvio Berlusconis Forza Italia (the third partner in the alliance) took 8.1%.

This was a stunning reversal of fortunes given that in the previous election in 2018, Brothers of Italy won just 4.4% of the vote. That year the League took 17.4% and Forza Italia 14%.

Decimated in the north

A pressing concern for Salvini is the extent to which Brothers of Italy has eaten into the Leagues historical strongholds in the north of Italy. The League was once called the Northern League, precisely because it sought to represent these areas specifically. It was established in 1991 by uniting several regional parties and movements and for most of its history its key goal was regional autonomy for the north of Italy. It is only in the past ten years that the party has tried to expand into the south. Along with this expansion came a pivot towards nationalist campaign tactics and more radical anti-immigration rhetoric.

Despite this history as a northern party, Brothers of Italy has overtaken the League in the whole of the north  and by a large margin.

Story continues

Election results in the Northern regions

A table showing Brothers of Italy outperformed the League across the northern regions of Italy

In Lombardy, support for the League dropped by 15 percentage points between the 2018 and 2022 elections. In Veneto, it fell by 18.3 percentage points.

For voters, the two parties are now virtually indistinguishable in terms of ideology and policy, which has made it easier for the former to cannibalise the other. The League  and Salvini  are confronting an existential threat.

Percentage-point losses and gains between the 2018 and 2022 elections

A chart showing how votes have passed from the League to Brothers of Italy.

We cant all be outsiders

There is an important lesson here for populist radical-right parties more generally. By dropping regionalism and trying to go national Salvini has implicitly invited the (large) constituency of right-wing voters who embrace radical ideas about migration and law and order to choose between his party and Melonis on the basis of credibility, since there is no longer anything to distinguish them in terms of ideology. In this comparison, the League is on the back foot, having taken part in multiple governments in recent years and, at many points, compromising with other parties. Brothers of Italy can therefore assume the role of disruptive outsider and appeal to voters who are discontent with the status quo.

Apparently recognising Salvinis weakness in this respect, Brothers of Italys election campaign framed Meloni as the only untested alternative on offer  the only candidate of the right untainted by compromise with the left.

Their wrangling is a case study in a new phase for Europes radical right. These parties are largely thought of as the challengers to the traditional mainstream but their electoral successes have pushed them into government. Now, they compete not just against the traditional establishment but also among themselves for the control of the executive.

This is the first time that a western European country is likely to be run by a populist radical-right party that also needs to share government with another populist radical-right competitor. Given that multiple similar parties operate elsewhere, too, similar scenarios potentially lie ahead in countries such as Denmark, France and the Netherlands.

Tensions of this kind create a very interesting dynamic for government. Meloni needs Salvini as a junior partner in her coalition but it is inevitable that the arrangement will be beset by infighting. Indeed, Salvinis political future practically depends on his ability to make it so. It is logical to expect that Salvini will try to fight back against Melonis new dominance by keeping one foot in and one foot out of government. He will seek to hold positions of power but will agitate from within. We might expect him, for example, to loudly criticise the government for not cutting taxes sufficiently (a key theme for League voters), being too worried about the countrys deficit, or too subservient to the diktats of the European Commission.

We might even expect him to fight future campaigns on the idea that he was unwilling to compromise in this government. Its a new iteration of a familiar problem  what happens to parties that wish to be seen as outsiders once they are included in coalition governments? Only this time, all the outsiders are on the inside.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

The Conversation

Daniele Albertazzi has received funding from AHRC, British Academy, ESRC and the Leverhulme Trust.

Mattia Zulianello has received funding from the ESRC.
Andean villagers in Peru told an inter-American rights court on Wednesday about how their health has suffered for decades due to environmental damage caused by a mining company extracting heavy metals in their midst.

The community of La Oroya accuses the government in Lima of having allowed the Doe Run Peru company, owned by US group Renco, to pollute at will while turning a blind eye to their fate.

"The State was like a father who ignored us," 74-year-old villager Rosa Amaro told the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on the first day of a hearing against the Peruvian government.

She was one of several residents to recount the effects of decades of exposure to heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and arsenic.

Watchdogs say La Oroya, a town of 30,000 some 185 kilometers (115 miles) east of Lima, is one of the world's most polluted cities because of smelters refining lead, zinc, gold and copper in the area.

Amaro told the court, sitting this week in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo, that she witnessed the hills surrounding her town become bare over time because "the plants would not grow."

Through tears, she testified of residents struggling with burning throats and eyes, headaches and difficulty breathing.

Others told of tumors, muscular problems and infertility blamed on pollution from the smelters.

Amaro, who headed a local lobby group in La Oroya, said she was forced in 2017 to leave the town where she had lived all her life due to threats from the relatives of mine workers worried about their jobs if Doe Run were brought to account.

The plaintiffs claim the state also failed to investigate threats and harassment against them.

- 'Compromised its obligation' -

La Oroya residents sued the Peruvian government and obtained a partially favorable ruling in 2006 from the Constitutional Court, which ordered protective measures.

Last year the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which investigates suspected violations of human rights, said those measures were never implemented.

Story continues

The commission found that the State had failed to regulate and oversee the behavior of the mining company and "compromised its obligation to guarantee human rights."

It referred the matter to the court now sitting in Montevideo to determine reparations.

"My health is already destroyed. All I want is for future generations to be in good health," plaintiff Yolanda Zurita, 63, told the court on Wednesday of her expectations from the process.

Doe Run Peru, which has operated in La Oroya since 1997, declared bankruptcy in 2009.

Under a credit agreement, the company was handed to its miner employees who want to reopen the abandoned smelter.

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Higher wind speeds, increased rainfall and additional capacity coming online are understood to have contributed to the increases

Renewable energy generation in Scotland has reached a record high, new figures show.

The 7,358 gigawatt hours (GWh) produced in April, May and June of this year was a 36% increase on the same timeframe in 2021  and more than 25% greater than any second quarter previously recorded.

It contributed to 18,568 GWh of renewable electricity being generated in the first half of 2022  up 29% on 2021, the Scottish Government said.

Higher wind speeds, increased rainfall and additional capacity coming online are understood to have contributed to the increases.

Net-zero and Energy Secretary Michael Matheson said the achievement will help deliver on Scotlands climate obligations.

Renewable energy capacity increased by 10.5% from June 2021 to 13.3 GW in the same month of this year, driven largely by new wind farms becoming operational.

An additional 16.7 GW of renewable electricity is currently in the pipeline, which could deliver a further 27.6 GW of capacity in the coming years.

Mr Matheson said: We are in the midst of an energy crisis which has been compounded by the illegal war in Ukraine.

It has prompted governments across the world to consider how the avoid this situation happening in the future.

Scotlands energy transition can increase security of supply and help to make us far more resilient to future international energy price fluctuations.

Wind power is already one of the cheapest forms of electricity and our expansion plans for both on and offshore wind  supported by other renewable technologies such as hydro power  provides a fantastic opportunity to support an energy transition that not only delivers on our climate obligations, but which ensures a fair and just transition for Scotlands energy sector as we journey to becoming a net-zero nation.

Fabrice Leveque, climate and energy policy manager at WWF Scotland, said: Its great to see Scotland breaking records again for renewable power generation thanks to new power stations coming online and windy weather.

With sky high fossil fuel prices causing a cost-of-living crisis, renewable electricity is helping to lower energy bills and cut carbon pollution.

The challenge ahead is converting as much of our heating and transport to run on clean, home-grown renewables to protect us against volatile prices and climate change.
888poker Celebrates 20th Anniversary with Busy LIVE Madrid Festival

October 13 2022 Matthew Pitt Editor

888poker is heading to the Spanish capital city of Madrid as part of the online poker site's 20th anniversary celebrations. 888LIVE Madrid takes place at the Casino Gran Madrid in Torrelodones from November 10-20, and everything points towards it being a massive hit with everyone that jets off to Spain.

The Madrid stop marks the second time 888LIVE has called off in Spain, following the successful 888LIVE Barcelona festival in May. The Main Event there was a 1,100 buy-in affair that drew in 334 entrants. Italian Sandro Hauser came out on top and returned home with 56,800 for his efforts.

888 dropped anchor in Madrid in February 2020, and the Main Event was huge. It cost 888 in 2020, and some 1,067 players exchanged that sum for the chance to become a poker champion. Marco Biavaschi of Italy emerged victoriously with a monster-sized 150,000 top prize.

Sandro Hauser Wins 2022 888poker LIVE Barcelona 1,100 Main Event (56,800)

Full 888LIVE Madrid Festival Schedule

This year's 888LIVE Madrid festival runs from November 10-20, and features tournaments with buy-ins ranging from 150 to 2,20, the latter being reserved for the High Roller event that kicks off on November 19.

The 1,100 buy-in Main Event, known as the 888LIVE 20th Anniversary Edition, features two starting flights. Players receive 50,000 chips on Day 1, and it is possible to buy into Day 2 for 1,100 and receive 80,000 chips.

Date Time Tournament Buy-in Thu 10 Nov 5:00 p.m. Opening Tournament Day 1a 150 Fri 11 Nov 5:00 p.m. Opening Tournament Day 1b 150 Sat 12 Nov 5:00 p.m. Opening Tournament Day 1c 150 Sun 13 Nov 4:00 p.m. Opening Tournament Day 2 6:00 p.m. Win the Button 110 8:00 p.m. Satellite 888LIVE Event Day 1a 150 Mon 14 Nov 5:00 p.m. 888LIVE 20th Anniversary Edition Day 1a 1,100 6:00 p.m. Mystery Bounty Day 1 225 8:00 p.m. Satellite 888LIVE Event Day 1b 150 Tue 15 Nov 5:00 p.m. 888LIVE 20th Anniversary Edition Day 1b 1,100 6:00 p.m. Mystery Bounty Day 2 6:00 p.m. Crazy Pineapple 110 8:00 p.m. Satellite to Day 1a of the Main Event 80 Wed 16 Nov 4:00 p.m. CNP888 Main Event Day 1a 550 4:00 p.m. 888LIVE 20th Anniversary Edition Day 2 1,100 6:00 p.m. Two Lives NLH 110 8:00 p.m. Satellite to Day 1b of the Main Event 80 Thu 17 Nov 12:00 p.m. 888LIVE 20th Anniversary Edition Day 2 4:00 p.m. CNP888 Main Event Day 1b 550 7:00 p.m. Pot Limit Omaha 200 Fri 18 Nov 12:00 p.m. CPN888 Main Event Day 1c 550 5:00 p.m. CPN888 Main Event Day 1c 550 7:00 p.m. The Hunter 185 Sat 19 Nov 12:00 p.m. CPN888 Main Event Day 1e 550 5:00 p.m. CPN888 Main Event Day 2 550 6:00 p.m. Mini CPN888 Day 1 250 7:00 p.m. High Roller Day 1 2,000 Sun 20 Nov 12:00 p.m. CPN888 Main Event Day 3 12:00 p.m. Mini CPN888 Day 2 12:00 p.m. High Roller Day 2 6:00 p.m. Closing Tournament 110

Marco Biavaschi Turns 100 Satellite into 150,000 Payday at 888poker LIVE Madrid

Win Your Way to Madrid For Only $0.01

There are live satellites available at the Casino Gran Madrid throughout the 888LIVE Madrid festival, but none of them are as cheap as the satellites running online at 888poker.

Online satellites start from as little as $0.01, and eventually feed into a $109 buy-in 888LIVE Madrid Main Event Qualifier, which shuffle up and deal each Sunday. 888poker guarantees at least one $2,000 package will be won each week, with those packages awarding their winner:

1,100 buy-in to the 888poker LIVE Madrid 20th Anniversary Main Event

$500 for accommodation, via Main Event Travel

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888poker LIVE Kit

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STOCKHOLM, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Sweden will not share the findings of the crime scene investigation with Russia following the blasts that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipes two weeks ago, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said on Monday, citing confidentiality.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Happy One not only met all the strictest of criteria of the awards but also triumphed during an independent survey to win the Inspirational Brand Award by APEA 2022.

The pretigious Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards (APEA) is one of the leading and most recognised award programme to honour entrepreneurs and organisations across Asia for their entrepreneurship and contribution to society.

The Inspirational Brand Award recognised organisations with transformational brands that seek to inspire and promote positive impacts to society, which have won the public's trust and support.

"Happy One winning the Inspirational Brand Award in its debut in the APEA is a milestone for Van Xuan Group, which has been striving to create new values for society. Not only has Happy One been a torch bearer with its distinguished architectural style and smart apartments, the project has also shined as a luxurious brand, aiming to define a modern and cozy lifestyle enjoyed by its residents. The brand consists of Happy One Phu Hoa, Happy One Premier and Happy One Central, which have all been well-received by customers and business partners," said a Van Xuan Group spokesperson.

Established in 2005, Van Xuan Group has secured a name for itself with high-quality property projects. The group is known for its commitment to meet schedules and customers, as well as for its dedication to details in legal matters. The year 2017 marked an important pivot in the group's development with the introduction of Happy One, a leading brand in the residental apartment segment, on top of the group's other already successful products including villas, townhouses and commercial shophouses.

In 2019, Van Xuan Group announced Happy One Phu Hoa in Thu Dau Mot City in Binh Duong Province. Situated on the most prominent traffic route of Binh Duong Boulevard, Happy One Phu Hoa has built a modern and polished residential community. Van Xuan Group not only delivered all the apartments and Certificate of Land Use Rights early to customers it also hosted the Happy One Phu Hoa Residential Meeting shortly after.

In August 2020, Van Xuan Group announced a smart apartment project named Happy One Premier in the vicinity of the lively Tan Son Nhat International Airport. After two years under construction the project is in its final phase and expected to welcome its first residents by the end of 2022.

Meanwhile, Happy One Central has been considered as the group's most distinguished project to date with its architectural style, living space and the 68-amenities, inspired by the island city of Singapore. Under the project development, Van Xuan Group has been in partnership with industry leaders including Central Construction, Ong&Ong Architects, landscape design LJ-Asia, engineering Artelia and MBBank, as well as distributor partners such as Cen Sai Gon, VivaHomes, QSLand and Aplus.

The perspective of Happy One Central.

The 40-storey high Happy One Central is considered a symbol of the Happy One Brand and expected to become a new landmark for Thu Dau Mot City by creating and promoting a positive lifestyle in society.

The group recently invited all Happy One Central's future residents to attend a thank you party named "The Happy Starry Night  You Deserve it". During the gala, Van Xuan Group has pledged more than VND7 billion for charity and 165 scholarships in the "Support for school" programme to students from under-privileged families for the 2022 school year.

APEA 2022's Inspirational Brand Award is not only recognition for the Happy One brand's continous effort to create and promote unique life values but also a reflection on its success, as well as the inspiration for Van Xuan Group to deliver even more high-quality products to meet customer demand and win their trust in the future.
BAGHDAD, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Nine Katyusha rockets landed Thursday on the heavily fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad before a scheduled parliament session to elect a new president for the country.

The Joint Operations Command said in a statement that the rocket barrage wounded some security members and civilians in the zone, which houses key government buildings, including the parliament, residences of Iraqi top officials, and foreign embassies.

The attack came as the parliament was preparing to convene to elect a new president for the country, so as to begin the formation of the new government a year after the Oct. 10 parliamentary elections last year.

On Sept. 28, unidentified militants fired three rockets on the Green Zone when the parliament resumed its sessions and decided to reject the resignation of parliament speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.

Political tensions in Iraq have escalated in the past months between the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and his Sadrist Movement, the biggest winner in the parliamentary elections in 2021, and their rivals of the Shiite parliamentary parties in the Coordination Framework (CF), an umbrella group of Shiite parliamentary parties.

Al-Sadr demanded to dissolve parliament and hold early elections, but his demands were rejected by the CF parties, which became the largest bloc after al-Sadr ordered his followers to withdraw from the parliament in June.

Over the past months, persistent disputes between the Shiite parties have hampered the formation of a new government, which requires a two-thirds majority of the 329-seat parliament under the Iraqi constitution. 
HA NOI  Honda Vietnam posted increases of 26.1 per cent and 31.8 per cent in sales of motorbikes and automobiles, respectively, in September compared to the previous month.

The company sold 250,132 motorbikes during the month, up 151 per cent year-on-year.

Wave Alpha was the bestseller, with 51,990 units sold, accounting for 20.8 per cent of the total, while Vision was its most popular scooter, with 55,284 units delivered to customers, or 22.1 per cent of the total.

Honda Vietnam also exported 13,910 motorbikes to foreign markets.

A total of 1,970 automobiles were sold in September, up 31.8 per cent against the previous month, and 233.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Honda City was the most sought-after model, with 1,114 vehicles delivered in the month, accounting for 56.5 per cent of total sales, followed by the Honda CR-V with 715 vehicles.  VNS
HCM CITY  Food Ingredients Vietnam (Fi Vietnam 2022), the largest food and beverage (F&B) ingredients exhibition in the country, opened in HCM City on Wednesday.

The event attracted 5,000 food and beverage professionals from Viet Nam and other countries, as well as over 160 exhibitors from 20 countries and territories.

Fi Vietnam 2022 features pavilions showcasing both Beverage Ingredients (Bi) and Natural ingredients (Ni), thereby offering an opportunity for both local and foreign producers to access the Vietnamese F&B ingredients market, seek business partners, and boost market expansion, Rungphech Chitanuwat, ASEAN regional portfolio director at Informa Markets, said.

Ly Kim Chi, president of the HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association (FFA), shared that after a two-year absence caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Fi Vietnam expo returns with the aim of increasing the value of direct trade connections.

Furthermore, it also offers a gateway to the countrys thriving food and beverage ingredients market.

During the event, a number of technical seminars and international conferences will also be held, including a business-matching programme, the Ingredients for Innovations Conference hosted by VAFoST, and the annual VAFoST Young Achievers Safe Food Award.

Fi Vietnam 2022 will last until October 14.  VNS
KAZAKHSTAN  Vietjet has announced routes connecting Almaty city of Kazakhstan and Nha Trang City  the tourism capital in central Viet Nam, in a series of activities to celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The announcement ceremony took place on Wednesday in the presence of Vice President of Viet Nam Vo Thi Anh Xuan, leaders of the Government of Kazakhstan and senior leaders of the two countries.

With flying time per leg of more than nine hours, the routes will commence in this October with two flights per week, according to Vietjet.

"With the route network connecting Kazakhstan and other regional countries with Viet Nam, Vietjet believes that it will contribute to the important development of Viet Nam's economic, trade and tourism relations with Kazakhstan and other countries in the region," said Chu Viet Cuong, member of the Board of Directors and vice president of Vietjet.

"The route will be operated by Vietjet using a modern wide-body A330 aircraft with the best products, services, and utilities to meet customers needs of traveling, working, studying and visiting relatives," Cuong said.

Almaty city is the largest economic centre and also a popular tourist destination in Kazakhstan. Visitors can experience the serenity of the plains as well as the majesty of the mountains, cities with modern architecture and bustling streets or immerse themselves in cultural spaces, unique art and beautiful nature.

Meanwhile, with a mild climate and year-round sunshine, Nha Trang has long been a favourite destination among Asian  European tourists for the tropical golden sunshine, beautiful beaches and a unique culinary system of tropical Asia.

Quickly recovering after the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietjet pioneered in expanding domestic and international flight networks globally to promote new destinations economic developments and social activities.  VNS
Today, colleges are placing a strong emphasis on training in accordance with market demands, in addition to collaborating with businesses to increase job opportunities for students  particularly for those professions where there is high demand in the labour market, such as the tourism and hotel industry in the post-pandemic era.

Young peoples perceptions of colleges have improved as a result of their high level of pragmatism in training and ability to satisfy the majority of labour demands.

I dont think having a degree from a university is all that significant; what I need are professional knowledge and skills, said 20-year-old Tran Minh Tri. I decided to go to college in order to cut down on the amount of time I had to spend studying to get early practical experience and to begin working in business. Despite having enough points to enrol in a university, I have never regretted picking a college.

According to the Directorate of Vocational Education and Training, the whole country enrolled over two million apprentices each year on average leading up to the pandemic, of which the college and intermediate levels accounted for 20-25 per cent and elementary level and other vocational training programmes accounted for the remainder.

There are many reasons why young people prefer to study at colleges. One is the fast-track training time, which enables students to graduate quickly and have immediate access to their dream professions. College students typically finish their education in roughly 2-3 years, whereas university students often finish in 4-5 years.

For a decade, Pegasus International College, established by KinderWorld International education group from Singapore, has been renowned for providing high-quality human resources training in a variety of sectors.

Along with important fields like hotel and hospitality management and culinary arts, Pegasus offers degrees in business administration, marketing, human resource management, and financial accounting.

Pegasus designs a training programme totally in accordance with quality standards and Australian government certifications with the goal of acting as a bridge for Vietnamese students to access the most advanced education available worldwide. Besides that, students in business programmes will complete their coursework fully in English and graduate with an internationally-recognised degree. Students will also be exposed to practice and perfect the key job skills.

Additionally, Pegasus students are assigned to do internships at renowned businesses, restaurants, and 5-star hotels in Vietnam while being personally advised by seasoned department heads.

In addition to having a curriculum that meets international standards and a team of dedicated instructors, Pegasus offers incredibly affordable tuition rates due to the shortened study schedule. Students can get a Vietnamese college degree or an equivalent from the United Kingdom or Australia in only a couple of years.

All Pegasus students who graduate will be given the opportunity to work for significant companies. For students who do not want to jump into work right away, Pegasus students may transfer to higher education levels in Vietnam or schools in Australia, the United States, Canada, Singapore, or the UK without having to complete any prerequisite courses.

Pegasus (www.pegasus.edu.vn) has announced enrollment of 10 majors and international-standard training certificates in accordance with English (BTEC), Australian (AQF), and Vietnamese degrees for 20222023. These include Hotel Management, Business Administration, Marketing, Finance and Accounting, Human Resource Management, Hospitality and Restaurants (Certificates II and III), Commercial Cookery (Certificate II), and also Kitchen Operation (Certificate II).

Young Vietnamese must grasp modern technical skills on offer The world around us is changing fast. One hears plenty about transformation, automation, AI, and the great resignation. All of this is speeding up, often as a side effect of the pandemic. These changes are having such an obvious impact on business, and they simply cannot be ignored.
Effective from October 1, Decree No.53/2022/ND-CP is expected to help tighten cybersecurity for cross-border online services, where violations have been frequent. Domestic enterprises operating in telecommunication and internet services are also subject to the new regulation, including those in telecommunications services, telecoms-based application services, internet services, online content services, and value-added telecoms services.

Data deemed safer in law alteration, Photo: lazada.vn

Offshore enterprises must process regulated data, including in telecommunications, cloud storage, online payments, social networks, and e-commerce. A number of large international tech companies fall into this category, such as Google, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Shopee, and Lazada.

The list of data that must be stored in Vietnam can be divided into three main groups. The first is data on the personal information of service users in Vietnam. The second includes data generated by service users in Vietnam, such as account name for use of services, duration of use, credit card information, email address, phone numbers, and IP address.

The third is data on the relationships of service users in Vietnam, including friends or groups with whom the users connect and interact.

In terms of timeline, offshore enterprises need to begin the data storing process upon receiving a written decision from the Minister of Public Security. Enterprises then have 12 months as of the decisions issuance date to complete the storage of data, with a minimum storage time of 24 months.

According to Tin Nguyen, founder and CEO of Polaris Infosec, the decree means the government is taking the position they deem best to protect the community and data of Vietnamese nationals.

While this may be difficult for international companies because of concerns of data oversight, these requirements are not much different than those that exist in other parts of the world, Nguyen said. Members of the European Union, for example, have the General Data Protection Regulations that they must abide by, and anyone that does business with the EU is also subject to them.

Manh Hung Tran, head of IPTech Practice at Baker McKenzie Vietnam, noted that Decree 53 also sets out numerous legal bases for local authorities to take action on illegal activities in cyberspace, such as issuing takedown requests, requesting data disclosure, or terminating operations of information systems.

Therefore, it would be reasonable to expect that Vietnamese authorities are more active in their cybersecurity enforcement efforts once Decree 53 takes effect, Tran said.

The government received feedback from businesses when drafting the decree, and will continue to do so to refine it, according to one governmental source. A number of businesses and associations in the process have submitted their input, including the American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam and the Asia Internet Coalition.

According to Bruno Sivanandan, co-chair of the European Chamber of Commerces Digital Sector Committee, parts of the decree are not sufficiently clear for companies to adapt their compliance programmes and factor compliance requirements into their business strategies. For foreign companies, there is a list of specific services that have to store a list of specific data locally. But there are cases where its hard to tell if a company falls into these categories, Sivanandan said.

Especially for new-concept companies, like embedded finance, its hard for businesses to assess themselves. Going forward, this is what needs to be clarified in the text, he added.

Nguyen of Polaris Infosec stressed that the focus now for businesses, both domestic and foreign, should be on compliance, adding that companies that maintain data of Vietnamese partners and customers overseas only need to create a backup of said data here in Vietnam. This actually serves as an added benefit of having backup and recovery capabilities, which assist in mitigating other cyber risks as long as they protect those backups, Nguyen said.

The Minister of Information and Communications last month issued Decision No.1762/QD-BTTTT, promulgating the Action Plan to implement the National Cybersecurity and Safety, with vision to 2030. The decision aims to organise the effective implementation of the tasks assigned in Decision No.964/QD-TTg dated August 2022 approving the National Cybersecurity and Safety plan. Under the strategy, until 2025, the government will maintain Vietnams ranking of between 25th and 30th in the Global Cybersecurity Index, assessed by the International Telecommunications Union. Meanwhile, the country is expected to lay a foundation for a cybersecurity and cyber information safety industry and formulate an appropriate policy platform for startups in these fields. The goal is to have 3-5 key products and services related to information safety that will dominate the domestic market and be able to compete globally. In a larger context, Vietnams Law on Cybersecurity has been around for three years. Taking effect in January 2019, the Law on Cybersecurity, with seven chapters and 43 articles, was a collaborative effort with the participation and comments from functional ministries and organisations, large domestic telecommunications and IT enterprises in Vietnam including VNPT, FPT, and BKAV; a number of domestic and foreign experts; economic and telecommunications groups including Facebook, Google, Apple, and Amazon; and the US-ASEAN Business Council and the Asia Cloud Computing Association, amongst others. The law since 2019 has stipulated that domestic and foreign enterprises providing services on telecommunications networks, the internet, and value-added services in cyberspace in Vietnam  and carrying out the activities of collecting, exploiting, analysing, and processing data about personal information, data on the relationship of service users, and data created by service users in Vietnam  must be stored in Vietnam for the period prescribed by the government.

Understanding and steering data with AI The ability of AI to help develop visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages results largely from the use of large databases that can be used to train AI algorithms to learn how to interpret new data that it encounters.
FDI disbursement in the first nine months was reported at $15.4 billion, an increase of 16.2 per cent on-year, a peak amount in value and the growth rate. The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) confirms that foreign-invested enterprises continue recovering well and expanding in scale.

Vietnam has improved the investment climate through annual government resolutions, photo Le Toan

This could be explained by the political and economic situation of Vietnam and around the world, which is seemingly favourable for investors in Vietnam to accelerate the disbursement and building of factories or other projects.

In recent times the US-China trade dispute and pandemic policies in China have pushed multinationals to move out of China, and diversify their supply chains to reduce their dependence on China. Those strict COVID-19 control measures have pushed more than half of investors in China to report the issue as a reason to cancel or delay investments in the worlds second-largest economy.

The looming possibility that companies will again be forced to partially halt operations due to lockdowns and the impacts of local controls on consumer demand have undermined confidence in the business environment, according to the US-China Business Council and based on an annual survey of 117 member companies.

In the past year, one-quarter of companies have moved parts of their supply chains out of China, compared to 14 per cent in the 2021 survey. Optimism in the five-year business outlook for China has dropped from 88 per cent in 2013 to 51 per cent in 2022. Overseas investors shed more than $150 billion in China-based yuan-denominated assets in the first quarter of this year, the largest decline on record. Chinese bonds alone saw a $61 billion sell-off between February and May. Roughly $300 billion could exit the country this year, more than double last years outflow of $129 billion, according to forecasts by the Washington-based Institute of International Finance.

The trend reflects an increasingly bearish economic outlook as investors weigh the risks of draconian pandemic restrictions in China and it is said to open opportunities for Vietnam  a neighbouring country with the same advantages to be the ideal destination for investors to relocate and diversify the supply chains.

In the same case, under pressure from investors and consumers, many Western companies have started to unwind their investments, close stores, and pause sales in Russia. Some, after at first taking temporary measures, have revised their plans and decided to exit the country completely. And some that have begun the process of withdrawing from Russia have revealed the financial cost to their businesses.

Huge names like Adidas, Nike, Unilever, American Express, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Starbucks, and many more have suspended investments or shut down operations in Russia, and have halted imports and exports.

Cutting down investment in a country often opens up the chance of expanding investment elsewhere, and Vietnam  a safe destination and promising market  could be the first choice for many. Specifically, numerous businesses from Russia and surrounding countries have been studying Vietnams investment climate through business trips, meetings, and direct and online conferences.

Some of those that have already done business in Vietnam are looking to pour in money more quickly to build factories, develop projects, or expand facilities. This explains the sharp soar in FDI disbursement and additionally-registered investment in the first nine months of the year.

The additionally-registered investment of FDI inflows in the first nine months was $8.3 billion, up almost 30 per cent on-year, which is an impressive amount. Moreover, the number of additionally-registered capital projects and the amount of capital are also raising high by about 15 per cent on-year.

Vietnam is doing well in the process of international economic integration by signing numerous free trade agreements, which are favourable factors for financiers to utilise the advantages of Vietnam and accelerate disbursement. Additionally, Vietnam has reached some progress on improving the investment and business climate through annual government resolutions. The provincial competitiveness index of localities is going up year by year, also reaffirming the improvement of the business climate to facilitate projects.

Finally, despite the current worlds political and economic fluctuations, Vietnams macroeconomic management this year reported good signs, a double-digit surge in GDP growth, and rising indicators in all sectors. So FDI disbursement in this country should keep on rising into next year.

Van Duc Phu -Investment Promotion Centre in Northern Vietnam

PM calls for faster disbursement of public funds Public investment is essential but has been a governmental weak spot since early this year, according to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
Two months ago, Ha Nhan, the owner of two hotels in Sapa, decided to expand into the beverage business and develop a local tour agent. Although he has the financial capacity to operate both projects, he said the biggest difficulty is the lack of personnel available in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai.

Employee shortages hinder tourism revival. Source: tule.yenbai.gov.vn

The beverage shop has been set up since September, but it has not been able to operate because we have not yet recruited a bartender. I have not yet found enough staff with foreign language or general tourism skills for the positions of receptionist or tour operator, yet many foreign delegations staying at the hotels ask about this service, said Nhan.

He finally decided to recruit additional personnel who had not been properly trained in the profession but at least had foreign language skills, just to ensure enough employees. At least they can understand what the tourists want and communicate back, and the skills can be learned slowly, he said.

According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, by the end of September, the country had welcomed about 1.6 million visitors since reopening in March. This is far short of the five million target set at the beginning of the year, and so the country is looking for a final tourism attraction push faster to catch the last opportunities of 2022 in the peak tourist season of markets in Europe and America.

Some hotels in big cities are booming with many foreign business travellers visiting Vietnam to attend seminars and similar events. The rest are located in tourist hotspots such as Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, and Danang, which have almost full occupancy on weekends, said Thao Doan, HR director of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) in Vietnam and Laos.

IHG currently operates 15 luxury hotels and resorts in Vietnam. With 18 new hotels under development, it is expected that by 2027, IHG will open more than 6,000 hotel rooms, so the need for training and development of human resources (HR) going forward is significant.

Although tourism businesses need to increase recruitment, some people with lower skills than required are trying to take advantage. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy, sales director of Silk Path Group said, All job candidates who have come to our hotel ask for an over-the-top salary. For example, one candidate for a duty manager position wanted a salary of up to $860 but had no experience.

Thuy said that the current staff only meet 50-60 per cent of the corporations needs and are mainly interns, part-timers, and seasonal students, especially in the housekeeping department.

One of the keys to helping tourism businesses quickly solve staff shortages is to apply technology to replace labour-intensive positions such as receptionists, cleaning staff, and security guards. Opening its first hotel in Ho Chi Minh City in 2020, coinciding with difficulties from the pandemic, the Wink Hotels chains technology not only helped the brand minimise operating costs but also indirectly solved HR issues.

Wink Hotels directs visitors through technological experiences, including online check-in and payment, as well as vending machine purchases, so it is one of the hotels with the least employees nationwide.

The number of staff at Wink is 70 per cent less than a typical hotel. Our Saigon Centre has 237 rooms but just over 60 employees, said CEO Michael Piro.

Wink Hotels is a 3-5 star brand developed by Indochina Kajima. It plans to expand with 20 more hotels in the next 5-7 years in major cities in Vietnam. Although technology may solve the shortage of HR in tourism, some industry insiders believe that technology cannot replace people altogether and that searching for sustainable solutions could solve this problem, rather than merely focusing on temporary solutions.

Le Quoc Viet, who runs Hoteljob.vn, suggested that the tourism sector offers attractive remuneration, chances for promotion, and gains trust to retain employees. There are now resorts that have raised the service charge bonus to 10 per cent, instead of 5 per cent as before, to attract workers to apply, said Viet.

However, he said the main solution was to promote training links between businesses and schools to develop and expand sustainable resources. For developing HR for the hospitality profession in 2023, we will promote the positive aspects of the profession to increase attractiveness, bring in more workers from manufacturing, and encourage fresh graduates, he added.

Viet also suggested that the tourism sector should consider importing labour from neighbouring countries if the crisis continues.

According to the Vietnam Tourism Association, the tourism industry needs about 485,000 workers in accommodation establishments, of which the number of management personnel is about 45,000 people. It is forecasted that by 2025, the demand for workers in the sector will be more than 800,000 and in 2030 will be more than one million.
HelloJob came into being two years ago when CEO Nguyen Quoc Viet  who took on overseas studies in Japan and gathered 10 years of experience in the labour export field  founded the company. Viet, therefore, has been well aware of the labour export market's thorny issues.

Many years ago, to work in Japan, Vietnamese workers had to resort to support from their acquaintances, relatives, and brokers.

Job-seekers were therefore short of information, and in not a few cases, cheated on and lost thousands of US dollars.

Some luckier ones, who had set foot in Japan, couldnt find jobs suitable to their competency or had divergences with their employers.

These labourers consequently left their jobs and worked illegally outside. They then induced others to follow in their footsteps, creating bad reputation about Vietnamese labourers.

CEO Nguyen Quoc Viet and the team at HelloJob work on perfecting the job search ecosystem, striving to reach out to global market

I want to create a platform that can help common workers to find suitable jobs fitting their competency and expectations, enhancing the attitude and prestige of export labour in the international market, Viet said.

As such, when logging into the hellojob.jp website, labourers can directly access jobs uploaded by companies, with clear relevant information about job requirements, field, workplace location, and associated benefits.

All information has been carefully checked by the HelloJob team, and labourers dont need to pay any participation fee.

Founded during the pandemic, HelloJob has helped thousands of Vietnamese labourers in Japan to find jobs successfully, or shift into a new environment more suited to their capacity.

As of now, the platform reports about 66,000 users, and engaged by 61 businesses.

We bring opportunities to those least having it, particularly manual workers, thus enabling them to have a better finance, and a more affluent material life. Only with this, can they change themselves, their mindset, striving to learn novel things. This also lays the foundation for a developed society, said Viet.

Cultivating an inspiring job search ecosystem

Along with aiding Vietnamese labourers wishing to learn or work in Japan, the HelloJob CEO has the ambition to upscale the job search ecosystem.

This April, HelloJob gave birth to export labour marketplace choxkld.com website, where labour-export companies and recruitment experts share their candidate information store with each other.

Along with aiding Vietnamese labourers wishing to learn or work in Japan, the HelloJob CEO has the ambition to upscale the job search ecosystem.

The fresh site helps bolster opportunities for jobseekers, leveraging tech-driven data advantages.

Formerly, there were cases welders had worked in the agricultural sector as failing to find suitable jobs. Things have changed now. With HelloJob, common workers find the jobs they want actually, Viet said happily.

As planned, later this year HelloJob would launch a TikTok-style site containing short videos focusing on job matters where the participants can share their experience and skills relevant to work, as well as ways to improve qualifications and self-develop.

Not just confined to supporting common workers, the new site aims to institute a playing field embracing all fields and sectors, from insurance brokerage, real estate, to auto and handset sale, and cooking.

Along with HelloJob and choxkld.com, the new networking site aims to cultivate a complete job search ecosystem where labourers only need to use one account to join all the platforms to help increase exposure of their information, boosting job opportunities.

HelloJob also aims to develop the English and Japanese versions for the novel site to reach out to the global market.

HelloJob finalised the first capital-raising round in 2021 when it was evaluated at around $8.7 million. The second round is expected to wrap up this year, laying the bedrock to reach the target of an IPO by 2027.

HelloJobs mission is to help the labourers develop and be happy. Only when the labourers are content with what they achieve, they will recommend more people to use the platform. The success of the labourers is therefore our success, said Viet.

Vietnamese labourers strive to best avail of labour market reopening After almost two years, many global labour markets have begun to reopen. Deputy Minister of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Ba Hoan talked with VIR's Thuy Lien about the notable points in Vietnams labour export market.
The PM assigned minister of Planning and Investment to be the chairman of the council, and a deputy minister of Planning and Investment to be the vice chairman. The members of the council are leaders of many other ministries, including the State Bank of Vietnam and Quang Tri Peoples Committee.

The new airport is expected to meet the growing demand for aviation, contributing to promoting the political and socioeconomic development of the province as well as ensuring national security.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment is a standing agency of the council. Quang Tri Peoples Committee is in charge of providing enough dossiers for the appraisal process.

The new airport is expected to meet the growing demand for aviation, contributing to promoting the political and socioeconomic development of the province as well as ensuring national security.

The airports construction will be divided into two phases, with the total investment capital of $256.08 million. In the first phase, Quang Tri and investors will construct the basic facilities of a Grade 4C civil airport and a Grade II military airport in line with International Civil Aviation Organisation standards.

The airport is designed to have a capacity of 2.2 million passengers per year by 2046 and 5,600 tonnes of goods per year by 2042.

In the second phase, the province and investors will invest in the infrastructure of ground services at the airport in 2029. It will expand the passenger terminal in 2047 to increase the capacity to receive up to five million passengers per year as well as expand the first cargo terminal with a capacity of about 13,700 tonnes a year in 2043 and about 25,500 tonnes a year in 2059.

Quang Tri allures billion-dollar projects The central province of Quang Tri is alluring a raft of projects in renewable energy and seaport infrastructure to best utilise its bountiful potential.

BB Group and Quantum to invest $5.5 billion in Quang Tri BB Group, Quantum Group, and Quang Tri Peoples Committee signed a cooperation agreement on April 25 to develop a natural gas and port complex in the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone.

Quang Tri province prioritises investment in wind power to diversify energy sources The central province of Quang Tri is striving to attract investment in the field of renewable energy, especially wind power, to turn the locality into an energy hub by 2030.
These changes will contribute to promoting the issue of compensation and site clearance, a difficult problem in the process of infrastructure development, promoting the infrastructure development of the economy.

Troy Griffiths - Deputy managing director Savills Vietnam

According to Article 113 of the Land Law 2013, the land price framework is the price (the highest or the lowest) for each specific type of land and the determination of this framework is issued periodically with a term of every five years.

The establishment of a land price framework aims to manage land prices in the market, helping state management agencies have a mechanism to control the land price lists of localities as well as determine the financial obligations of land users in the process of using the land.

However, in reality, the land price framework has not yet met the entire purpose set out initially, even creating a double-price mechanism which causes difficulties in the management and implementation of projects. In particular, a frequent consequence of the land price framework is prolonging the progress of projects due to congestion in the site clearance stage.

Therefore, Resolution No.18-NQ/TW has set out a specific task when the draft amendments to the 2013 law on redefining the land price determination method to suit the market mechanism at the current time.

In the view of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the abolition of the land price framework is a task that needs to be focused on in order to fully overcome limitations and inadequacies arising in actual implementation of the law currently.

The removal of the land price framework means that the state does not apply the minimum and maximum prices to each type of land, but instead, before issuing the land price list of each locality, the local peoples committee will base it on the principles and methods of land valuation, land prices and standards, and the fluctuations in actual land prices in the market, to build a land price list which is close to the real price in the market.

Land law is always a sensitive issue in any legal system and in particular this amendment is about moving to a market value framework, so getting rid of the old, stipulated price framework to a market-based one. This is very important because it allows the development of the country and the market, helps attract investors, and gets rid of many roadblocks. Both Party General Secretary and Prime Minister recently commented on the delays in public expenditure and infrastructure.

Coming out of the pandemic, we need that infrastructure spending to stimulate the economy, but it has been very slow and thats all because, in the main part, compensation and land allocation. So by getting around this market framework to move towards a market value, the compensation will speed up and develop the country quicker. Therefore, this amendment is critical.

Quite often when land is allocated, the compensation has been poorly thought about because of the existing stipulated price framework. By identifying real estate based on market value, everybody gets fair value when they are compensated, allowing a speeding process and infrastructure to continue and allowing society to evolve and more benefits for everyone. Rather than an old system that prevented fair compensations, causing holdout provisions.

These new land laws amendment will help the market to become more stable and developed. This is a key part because this will help the market to become more transparent. So all of these allocated lands and compensated lands will be market value, giving investors more confidence. It is also very important because it allows groundwork for taxation, and this is a big part that the state has been missing out on because there is no land value for taxation.

This is something that has happened all over the world, so Vietnam is in a good position to benefit from every other countrys experience and implement an advantageous system for society.
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Thursday called for efforts to maintain the current relatively stable security situation in Yemen.

The six-month-old truce has brought a glimmer of hope to Yemen. The Yemeni people and the international community had expected the truce to be extended and expanded. Regrettably, this goal has not been achieved, said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

"The top priority now is to prevent the escalation of tensions and maintain the current relatively stable security situation," he told the Security Council.

"China calls on the relevant parties to put the interests of the Yemeni people first, exercise restraint, act prudently, refrain from any unilateral actions and provocative language that may escalate the situation, and leave enough space for the political process," he said. "At this critical moment, all parties in Yemen should maintain communication and avoid miscalculation."

Dialogue and consultation are the only right way to resolve the Yemeni issue. On Oct. 5, the Security Council called on the Yemeni parties, in particular the Houthis, to return to negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations. China hopes that this appeal can be implemented and that the relevant parties can return to the negotiating table as soon as possible, so as to properly resolve their differences and strive to reach a new truce arrangement at an early date, said Geng.

China supports the Gulf Cooperation Council's initiative on the issue of Yemen, and encourages countries with influence in Yemen to continue to provide constructive assistance in de-escalating the situation, restoring the truce, and realizing a political settlement, he said.

The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is continuing and UN humanitarian operations are severely underfunded. Yemen cannot be forgotten by the international community. China calls for the allocation of adequate funding for UN assistance projects in Yemen, he said. 
Phan Quoc Lich, regional director of MB SME, received the honour at the ceremony

Last week, APEA, which is the biggest non-governmental organisation in Asia, hosted an event honouring outstanding businesses from around the Asia-Pacific region.

During the event, MB was presented with an award of distinction as a winner in the category of Corporate Excellence Award 2022. This is the third year in a row that MB has been given the honour of receiving this distinguished award.

The Corporate Excellence Award is the most prestigious award in Asia given to organisations and brands that boast excellent commercial successes and display exemplary societal responsibility, therefore contributing to a better society.

A representative from MB highlighted, "This award is a tribute to the proper business strategy and an acknowledgement of MB's efforts to develop and expand its technology capabilities. This is also the reason for MB to gradually accomplish its vision of becoming a leading digital financial group and its objective of being in the top three in the market."

With its customer-centric philosophy, MB is an innovator in providing commercial import L/C services adapting blockchain-enabled technology via the Contour platform for small-and-medium-sized businesses, together with other innovative offerings such as lucky and pretty bank accounts, phone-like accounts, and a comprehensive wealth management platform that allows customers to manage their assets and make financial investments in MBBank app.

The bank is not only concerned with generating new revenue streams or satisfying customers ever-changing needs, but also with making a positive impact on society.

Integrating the applications of charity social networks and transparent payment accounts, App Thien Nguyen by MB, a transparent charity solution that enables organisations and individuals to generate donations and engage in community-supporting activities, has received much attention from the public.

"After launching this platform, the app has mobilised between $4.4-$8.9 million annually, actively contributing to social charity activities," stated an MB spokesman.

Over the course of more than a decade, APEA has become a prestigious award system held annually in 14 countries with many stringent selection criteria and a rigorous selection process.

To receive this award, candidates must pass several rounds of evaluation, including a financial audit, evaluation of corporate and brand data over the years, interviews with industry experts, and secret ballots by an international advisory board.

MB becomes the first Vietnamese commercial bank offering blockchain-enabled L/C services Military Commercial JSB (MB) becomes the first Vietnamese commercial bank to join the Contour network to provide blockchain-enabled letter-to-credit (L/C) services for import-export corporates.

Seamless, digital-first experience for import-export businesses on BIZ MBBank BIZ MBBank's international money transfer services and online foreign currency sales are gaining ground thanks to the bank's customer-centric approach and cutting-edge offerings.
The event attracts the participation of more than 350 representatives from ministries, agencies, associations, organisations, and digital firms from ASEAN member countries and their dialogue partners, among others.

The week offers a chance for relevant sides to enhance connectivity, exchange information, and explore cooperation opportunities.

Senior officials at the Vietnam International Digital Week

Addressing the event in his opening remarks, Vietnamese Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung said the event  which is the first of its kind in Vietnam  is expected to be held annually for ASEAN countries.

During the week, participants discussed digital transformation, institution, infrastructure, technology, platform, application, workforce, safety, and cooperation. "Digital cooperation among ASEAN countries will contribute to forming a digital ASEAN," Hung said.

Representatives from policymaking agencies of the countries also shared experience in digital development at a plenary session.

Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung

Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Huy Dung briefed the participants on Vietnams vision and strategy on digital economy and digital society.

The digital government is to change serving methods, thus satisfying people, he said, adding that the digital economy will help Vietnam achieve the status of an upper middle income country by 2030 and a high income nation by 2045.

The Vietnam International Digital Week features a series of activities, including the ASEAN conference on 5G, other conferences on digital transformation in industry and smart production, and a forum themed Why Vietnam 2022 that will look into digital economy in Vietnam.
Waco stages will offer an international flavor in music and drama this weekend with the Waco Civic Theatre presenting an evening of Latin jazz and popular song, and the Silent House Theatre Company mounting a production of Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsens classic Hedda Gabler.

Austin musician and native Costa Rican Esteban Alvarez, a Steinway Artist, will provide the music Friday and Saturday in a WCT fundraiser, a presentation that came about through his long friendship and collaboration with WCT actor, supporter and board secretary Piers Bateman.

The two met when Alvarez studied piano at Baylor University some 20 years ago and had kept in touch since then, due in part to a common love of music. Bateman has translated the Spanish lyrics of several songs Alvarez recorded or performed over the years, including on Alvarezs third and most recent album, Roots of the World.

After Baylor, the pianist went on to earn a degree in jazz studies from the University of North Texas and has built a career as an Austin-based musician and consultant with Steinway & Sons, with frequent travels to countries in Latin and South America and Europe to perform and record. Hes been a Steinway Artist for nearly a decade and he presently leads Chorus Austin as its executive director.

His program in Waco draws heavily from the sources that inform his recent album, in which he interprets songs from Costa Rica, Mexico, Bolivia, Chile, Nicaragua, Cuba, Colombia and El Salvador. Jazz influences his play, but doesnt constrain it, and he considers himself a performer of world music rather than one limited to the Americas.

Im not a classical pianist or a jazz pianist. Im a world music instrumentalist, he said during a recent stop at the theater. World music is like defining freedom  we all know what it means, but its hard to define.

Much of what he writes and plays can be found online in his YouTube and Instagram channels and Facebook page.

The pianist intends to bring colleagues with roots in El Salvador, Brazil, Honduras and his native Costa Rica, depending on their availability. The evening fundraisers start at 7 p.m. with food and drink, followed by Alvarez at 8 p.m.

Ibsen play

At the Jubilee Theatre this weekend, Silent House Theatre Company will kick off the first weekend of its production of Hedda Gabler. The drama, considered one of Ibsens leading works, follows a Norwegian wife (Valerie Davis) trapped in a loveless marriage, who begins to scheme in her academic husbands life and those of their acquaintances.

Director Collin Selman said the Ibsen classic was on the companys short list of dramas to tackle and follows its August production of the Broadway musical Godspell.

Though Hedda Gabler and its strong protagonist lead some to consider the 1891 play an early feminist work, Selman sees the play in the light of mental health. Gablers frustration at the household role in which her husband and culture try to confine her leads to anxiety and depression with destructive consequences. Shes very, very, very manipulative and lacks empathy, he observed.

The play takes place in a single room, with much of the plots action happening offstage. To emphasize the sense of claustrophobia that Gabler feels, Selman is keeping the characters of his seven-person company onstage at all times, though sometimes behind a scrim. And to underline the interpersonal power struggles between characters, actors will perform on a surface suggesting a checkered chessboard, with multiple levels hinting at characters level of power.

The dramas two-weekend run at Jubilee Theatre starts Friday with the opening night performance signed by American Sign Language interpreters.

True to its eclectic form, Silent House Theatre Company will follow its two-weekend run of Hedda Gabler next month with the Stephen Sondheim musical Company.
An epiphany is the experience of a sudden realization or insight, but it's serendipity that Waco theater company Wild Imaginings is enjoying this week at its Epiphanies New Works Festival of new plays.

The festival, in its second year, holds public readings of four top finishers in its call for original plays with a staged production of last year's winner.

This year's serendipity? Los Angeles playwright Amy Tofte, who wrote last year's winner "Cardboard Castles Hung on Walls," comes to Waco this week fresh off of being chosen a finalist in the Samuel French Off-Off-Broadway Short Play Festival.

She's also winner of a 2015 Nicholl Fellowship in screenwriting from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and winner of the 2020 Todd McNerney Playwriting Award for her play "Righteous Among Us."

"It's really an exciting thing," said Wild Imaginings founder and director Trent Sutton, who will be performing in "Cardboard Castles" this weekend.

The staged play joins readings of this year's four selections:

"The Wine Vignettes," Dani Nelson, 6 p.m. Saturday

"The River East," Michael Quinn, 8 p.m. Saturday

"Un Hombre: a Golem Story," Stephen Kaplan, 2 p.m. Sunday

"The Handless King," Harley Elias, 4 p.m. Sunday

For Tofte, seeing the first physical staging of her play is only part of the experience: The Los Angeles-based playwright, a native South Dakotan, relishes the chance to travel and see how audiences across the country react to her material.

"When I went back to school in 2008, to get my MFA in playwriting, I really wanted to travel. I wanted to write in a way that my writing would take me to different places," she said in an interview this week.

Those travels have taken her to Arkansas, Alaska, Chicago, Seattle, Portland and Washington, D.C. in recent years and shaped not only her perception of potential audiences, but life outside her particular circle of friends and associates. "I want to tell stories that can be told anywhere," she said. Getting feedback from actors, directors and audiences from across the country give her insights not only of how other people live and think, but what's in her own writing that she didn't see. "They help me see things I didn't realize were even there," she said.

Sutton and Wild Imaginings will perform the first staging of "Cardboard Castles Hung on Walls," part of the festival's design to give feedback to writers, a crucial component for many playwrights eager to see how their plays work with audiences.

Count Tofte in that category, who's anticipating the audience talk-backs scheduled after each performance. "I'm going to learn so much while I'm here. I want to know how this work hits a Waco audience," she said.

She's a prolific playwright and screenwriter, with multiple projects underway. She frequently squirrels away observations and encounters for future use in characters and scenes, pulling them out as needed. "Cardboard Castles" proved a matter of a character, an unhoused or homeless man named Rik-Tikka, finally finding a place in a stage home.

Inspiring the latter were small, "funky, a little hip" art galleries that dot Tofte's Los Angeles and Tikka proved the perfect catalyst or perhaps foil for an encounter the playwright imagined taking place in a gallery. An artist and a politician start arguing about the proper way to address the problem of the homeless, not seeing a person affected by it who's in front of them.

"The play is a little bit an indictment of the left," Tofte said, but more of her ongoing exploration of how limited our knowledge and views of those not like us are. The fact that her play will be presented in an art gallery, Cultivate 7twelve, is icing on the cake. In addition to its winning selection in the Epiphanies festival, the play was a semifinalist in the 2021 Bay Area Playwrights Festival.

Tofte has other collaborations and writing projects making their debuts or approaching them. There's a screen adaptation of her 2011 "Flesh Eating Tiger" in the works; an opera derived from one of her plays through the Boston Opera Collaborative's "Opera Bites" contest; the publication of her sci-fi mystery play "Women Of 4G"; and her book "Icons and Instincts," a memoir by choreographer Vincent Paterson, whose credits include work with pop icons Michael Jackson and Madonna.

And, of course, all sorts of ideas floating in her head waiting their time to enter her writing stage. "I'd really like to write something for a South Dakotan audience," she said, explaining it would be a case of how broad categorizations of politics and geography are often wrong. "South Dakotans are very kind and generous people, and very independent."

Sutton said Tofte's appearance is a sign how the Epiphanies festival has caught the attention of budding and established playwrights across the country. A dozen readers helped Sutton and primary readers Suzi Elnaggar and Rosalind Jackson-Roe winnow more than 300 entries down to the four finalists. Many of those entering this year's competition had entered last year. "The festival has really exploded in a way we weren't expecting. Our retention is off the charts," he said. "Waco is on the map as a place to develop new and exciting work."
The Texas Music Cafe sign is above the window with fake TV antennas rising above the roof at its new location on Washington Avenue, signs the long-running music series has found a downtown home.

Its the former home of Rogue Media Network, now in larger digs at 1129 Webster Avenue, with its recording room and performance space reworked for Texas Music Cafe.

For TMC founder and director Chris Ermoian, the Washington Avenue space will provide a downtown toehold for the type of live music he has long advocated: original music and predominantly local and Texan.

We havent had a physical location of ours in Waco for a long time, Ermoian said, explaining that he and his staff closed their last studio in 2002 to focus more on the series road productions.

Setting up and tearing down audio equipment at each Texas Music Cafe concert or taping location, however, was starting to prove onerous and led the music series back to a fixed location at Nexus Esports, then to the current site at 715 Washington Ave.

At that site, its exterior dressed up by artist Bruce Byars to suggest a television screen topped by rabbit ear antenna on the roof, Texas Music Cafe is launching multiple offerings for local music lovers. This week finds Austins Freddie Steady Krc appearing several times in Waco in those offerings.

Tuesday nights will find Record Forum, in which vinyl devotee Terry Otto spins a noteworthy album with a deep dive in the albums music and creation. This week found Otto sharing Miles Davis landmark jazz album Kind of Blue.

Ermoian said that younger music fans raised on headphones and earbuds will find a different experience with records played on a high-quality sound system and large speakers.

Wednesdays has Artistic Expressions, a monthly interview of a musician or artist, led by Ermoians older brother and fellow musician Jeff Ermoian in wide-ranging discussions of music and its impact.

Jeff Ermoian will interview Krc this Friday night in an 7 p.m. Artistic Expressions interview.

Thursdays is Jonna Maes Kitchen, a songwriter night featuring local performers with the occasional drop-in by visiting Nashville or Austin artists.

Fridays will feature the occasional concert by touring musicians or bands with Saturday nights reserved for Texas Music Cafe performances and tapings.

Krc will perform a solo Stories session Thursday at Anthem Stories, a few blocks over at 800 Austin Ave., with a full Texas Music Cafe concert at 8 p.m. Saturday at the new Washington Avenue location. Ryan Paul Davis will open at 7.

Most Texas Music Cafe shows and programs will start at 7 p.m., a time Ermoian finds more suitable for families with students as well as older listeners. Some events are free while others will be ticketed.

Ermoian hopes the weekly offerings will build a following over time and give live original music a place downtown to attract listeners.
MEAD The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy has given initial approval to a plan for disposing of an estimated 115 million gallons of pesticide-contaminated wastewater being stored in holding ponds at AltEn.

Developed and submitted by the AltEn Facility Response Group  six seed companies voluntarily cleaning up the site  the plan calls for applying treated wastewater across 736 acres of farm ground south of Mead.

The process, which involves pumping water from AltEns damaged lagoons through a water treatment system and into a pair of new lagoons completed earlier this year, was granted a permit by the states environmental department earlier this year.

Depending on precipitation, the efficacy of the treatment process and conditions of the soil on the seven parcels that will receive the wastewater, the environmental engineers contracted by the response group estimate another 18 to 24 million gallons could be land-applied this fall and next spring.

While efforts to draw down the wastewater stored on site has been moving forward slowly for the better part of this year, the question of how to dispose of an estimated 99,000 tons of solid waste piled up on AltEns site remains open.

Earlier this year, the wet distillers grains  a solid byproduct of ethanol production commonly referred to as wet cake  were entombed under a Posi-Shell cover, a combination of clay, polyester fibers and Portland cement.

The AltEn Facility Response Group said the temporary cover was installed to keep odors under control, tamp down pesticide-contaminated dust and prevent stormwater from coming into contact with the contaminated material.

Last month, at a meeting with a small group of Mead residents, the facility response group said it was evaluating four potential solutions for disposing of the wet cake, with the goal of submitting a formal plan to the Department of Environment and Energy before the end of the year.

Those options, according to a memo about the meeting posted to the Department of Environment and Energys website, include:

- Hauling and burying the contaminated wet cake in a landfill.

- Hauling the wet cake to an offsite incinerator.

- Thermal treatment  not incineration  on-site.

- Burying the wet cake at AltEn.

Don Gunster, a partner and senior scientist at NewFields, the environmental engineering firm conducting much of the cleanup, said the options are being explored before the AltEn Facility Response Group submits a remedial action plan for the solid waste.

The (facility response group) is still collecting data about each of the options being evaluated for management of the wet cake and sludge, Gunster said in an email. More details will be shared with the community and included in the Solids (remedial action plan) once that data has been collected and evaluated.

Some of the options have already been deemed unworkable, however, because of excessive costs, a lack of capacity or doubts about the technology that would need to be used.

And at least one  making AltEn the final burial site for the solid waste  is a non-starter for residents of Mead, who worked for years to draw attention to the environmental issues arising from the failed ethanol plant.

In the year before AltEn was forced by the Department of Environment and Energy to close, the ethanol plant hauled an estimated 43,000 tons of wet cake to landfills operated by Waste Connections near David City, Milford and Malvern, Iowa.

Most of that  at least 39,000 tons  was trucked down Nebraska 92 to the Butler County Landfill, until Waste Connections cut AltEn off, saying it did not have enough dry garbage to mix with the wet distillers grains.

Kelly Danielson, the district manager who oversees the Waste Connections facility, said there are no plans to restart accepting solid waste from AltEn.

We have not heard anything from either group nor has anyone requested authorization to deliver the waste stream to us, Danielson said in an email.

The facility response group also explored the option of moving the wet cake by rail to Clean Harbors-operated incinerators in Kimball and other states last summer but scrapped the idea, which would be costly and complicated.

Ash Grove, a concrete plant that opened in Louisville earlier this year, received a permit from the state to burn biomass in its kilns but confirmed it has not received any wet cake from AltEn, nor does it plan to do so in the future.

AltEn previously attempted to turn the wet cake into biochar, the process of heating it to a few thousand degrees to create a charcoal-like material, but samples analyzed by the environmental department showed it did not reduce the levels of pesticides within.

The state also intervened to stop AltEn from selling biochar to a Kansas farmer late last year.

An Iowa-based company  Independence Energy  has pitched its own process of using heat to breakdown the wet cake and the chemicals within to both residents of Mead as well as the Department of Environment and Energy, but its proposal has not been explored in-depth.

Mead Village Board Chair Bill Thorson, who met with state regulators and the AltEn Facility Response Group, said the plan that appears to be favored for cleanup would include repairing one of the lagoons at the plant to serve as a containment cell that would later be buried.

Thorson said he told the response group that such a plan would draw fierce opposition from the village of nearly 600 people.

A little more than a decade ago, residents of Mead successfully fought off a plan by Waste Connections to open a 320-acre landfill near AltEn that would have accepted roughly 1,200 tons of garbage per day from Omaha and Saunders County.

We had a landfill that didnt pass because of the water table and the aquifer, Thorson said, referring to the Todd Valley aquifer, on which Mead and AltEn both sit. I told them, I can assure you thats not going to pass.

Any proposal for turning AltEn into a landfill to bury the waste it generated would be running uphill and against the wind.

Mead annexed the land AltEn sits on before its predecessor, E3 Biofuels, opened in 2007, giving authority over any zoning changes and conditional use permits to the Village Board of Trustees, which revoked the companys ability to operate as an ethanol plant in June 2021.

AltEn would also need to receive a permit from the state to operate as a landfill. A 2021 lawsuit against the company faulted AltEn for operating as a solid waste management facility despite never having a permit to do so.

Thorson said he and others in Mead do not see burying the wet cake in a containment cell on the property as a viable cleanup option.

Rather, he said, it would be another temporary fix to a problem that has plagued the town since 2015.

If its a money thing, Id just as soon see it be a Superfund site, he said. I have a feeling thats what it is anyway.
ASHLAND- In their last meet before Districts, the Yutan and the Raymond Central cross country teams took part in the Capitol Conference Invite at Ashland on Oct. 6. Getting fifth place with 80 points was the Yutan girls and the Chieftains boys came in seventh with 110 points. The Mustangs did not have enough for a team in either race.

Earning the top finish from the area was Eva Georgoulopoulos in the girls race. She just missed out on medaling in 12th place with a time of 21:39.31.

Freshmen Olivia Chapman was the next girl to finish for Yutan in 26th place. She ended up running a time of 25:14.53.

Four spots back in 30th place for the Chieftains was Madi Ledden. She battled to the finish line and ended up posting a 26:39.23.

Aubrie Pehrson and Anna Rupp were the final two runners for Yutan. Getting 35th place was Pehrson who clocked a 30:08.58 and Rupp took 37th place in a time of 32:09.94.

For Raymond Central, they had senior Mady Ayres and sophomore Ellie White who competed. Getting 27th place was Ayres who ran a 25:49.50 and White took 33rd in a time of 28:22.68.

Pacing the Chieftain Boys team was their senior leader Nolan Timm. He ended up running an 18:14.76 for the fast three-mile course.

Back in 30th and 32nd were Sam Popken and Justin Felty. Clocking a 19:07.40 was Popken and Felty posted a time of 19:09.58.

The final runner scored for Yutan was Bryce Kolc in 38th place running a 19:34.71.

Ethan Eggen and Grayson Cogdill were the fifth and sixth runners for the Chieftains. Taking 47th place was Ethan Eggen in a time of 20:49.04 and Cogdill came in 52nd place and clocked a 21:12.74.

Cole Dubas led the Mustang boys getting 22nd place and posting an 18:39.27. Not far off that pace was Landon Lubischer in 28th running a 19:03.68 and Ethan Norlen earned 56th place in a time of 25:30.84.

Next up for both Raymond Central and Yutan are their district meets.

The Mustangs are headed to the C-1 District Meet at Auburn Country Club and the Chieftains will be at the C-2 District Meet at Sycamore Farms in Waterloo on Oct. 13. Top three teams and 15 runners from both Districts will be headed to the Class C State Cross Country Meet at the Kearney Country Club.
The plans by Russia to annex four areas of Ukraine have been roundly condemned by the General Assembly of the United Nations, which did so by an overwhelming majority vote.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine was roundly condemned by the United Nations General Assembly at an emergency session, further isolating Russian President Vladimir Putin. The United Nations General Assembly has called on Russia to "immediately, totally, and unconditionally remove all of its armed troops from the territory of Ukraine."

Russia's "attempted illegal annexation" of four provinces in Ukraine was unanimously condemned by the General Assembly of the United Nations on Wednesday. The assembly also declared that Moscow's territorial claims "have no validity under international law and do not form the basis for any alternation of the status of these regions of Ukraine." The vote to condemn Russia's actions was carried out by a large majority. Only Russia and four other nations, namely Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea, and Belarus, voted against the resolution. On the other hand, 143 countries voted in favor of the resolution, while 35 countries chose to abstain from voting.

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Eastern European nations with strong relations to Russia, such as Serbia and Hungary, voted in support of the resolution. Some of Russia's staunchest friends, such as Cuba, Iran, and Nicaragua, did not participate in the vote or refrained from voting altogether.

The United States secured the votes of key Middle Eastern allies, such as Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, which either abstained on a similar vote at the United Nations Security Council last Friday or declined to co-sponsor it. This vote marked an important diplomatic victory for the United States, which has led international efforts to isolate Russia at the United Nations. However, the possibility of a large military power brazenly invading another member state of the United Nations shifted public opinion decisively against Moscow.

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, expressed gratitude to the 143 countries that voted in favor.

The United States and the European Union advocated in support of the plan, but Russia's efforts to lobby for a secret vote were unsuccessful. According to the Associated Press, "a key issue for the resolution's Western backers was how many countries would support it, and the result went beyond their most optimistic expectations," with "surprise" yes votes from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Brazil.. "It was the greatest support from the General Assembly for Ukraine and against Russia of the four resolutions it has passed since Russian soldiers invaded Ukraine on February 24," said one observer.

Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson are all located in eastern Ukraine. Last week, at a solemn ceremony held in the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin signed the paperwork necessary to incorporate these four territories into Russia.

The agreements were reached with the presidents of the four territories that had been installed by Moscow. They were reached after the regions had self-proclaimed referendums, which the West criticized as being a "sham."

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This resolution urges the international community to reject all of Russia's annexation claims and asks for a "immediate reversal" of Russia's actions in this regard. It views the attempts to de-escalate the crisis via talks as positive and "expresses its full support" for such efforts.

All of the countries who voted with Russia have a consistent and long-standing position of condemning the governments of Western nations.

It is believed that Belarus is a satellite state of its neighbor and ally, Russia, and land in Belarus was used in the invasion of Ukraine that took place in February.

In addition to China and India, who have made efforts to maintain their neutrality on the crisis, 19 states located in Africa were listed among the parties that abstained from voting.

Many African nations have refrained from taking sides in the conflict, which is seen as a reflection of desire to preserve long-standing economic links or of historically non-aligned policies. Many African countries have avoided taking sides, lending credence to this belief.

Congo-Brazzaville, Ethiopia, and Uganda are the three countries that Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, traveled to in July and all three of them decided to abstain from voting.

At the same time, all four of the countries that were visited by Ukraine's own foreign minister on his recent trip to Africa  Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, and Senegal  voted to condemn Russia at the United Nations.

Dmytro Kuleba began his trip in what seems to be an attempt to counteract the effect that Russia has in Africa; however, he cut short his journey when key towns in Ukraine came under attack from missiles on Monday.

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, expressed his appreciation to the nations that did vote in favor of the resolution.

In a tweet, he said that "the world had its say" and that "Russia's efforts at annexation are useless and will never be recognized by free countries." He also said that Ukraine will "return all of its territory" to Russia.

President Joe Biden, said that the vote sent a "clear message" to Moscow.

"The stakes of this confrontation are evident to everyone, and the world has delivered a clear message in response - Russia cannot delete a sovereign state off the map," he added. "The world has issued a clear message in reaction."

Dame Ambassador Barbara Woodward of the United Kingdom to the United Nations said that Russia had failed both on the battlefield and at the UN, and she added that nations had come together to protect the charter of the international organization. "Russia has effectively cut itself off from the rest of the world, but only Russia can put an end to this agony. Now is the moment to put an end to the conflict.

The vote in the General Assembly was called for when Russia used its right to veto in the Security Council, which is the body that is tasked with the responsibility of preserving international peace and security. China, the United States, France, and the United Kingdom each have a veto in the Council since they are permanent members of the Council.

Following the invasion of Ukraine, there have been several requests for Russia to be deprived of its right to veto international agreements.

After the resolution from the United Nations General Assembly called Moscow's annexation of Ukrainian territory "illegal" and after Ukraine's allies committed more military aid, officials said that Russia unleashed a barrage of missiles on more than 40 cities and towns in Ukraine. This took place on Thursday. Officials said that Russia carried out this attack.

Russia reiterated its view that the West is showing that "they are a direct participant to the conflict" by providing assistance to Ukraine and issued a warning that the accession of Ukraine to NATO may potentially set off World War Three.

These remarks were delivered on Thursday to the Russian official news agency TASS by Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation."Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three," Venediktov said.

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According to the Ukraine Armed Forces General Staff, Russian missiles have struck more than forty villages in the previous twenty-four hours, while the Ukrainian air force has carried out 32 attacks on twenty-five Russian targets.

Oleksandr Senkevich, the mayor of the port city of Mykolaiv, said in a message on social media that the southern city was "massively bombarded."

"After the strike, the top two levels of a residential structure with five stories were entirely leveled, and the remaining floors were covered in debris. On the scene, rescue workers are hard at work "he stated.

Mykolaiv, which is a center for shipbuilding and a port on the Southern Bug river off of the Black Sea, has been subjected to intense Russian bombardments for the whole of the war.

Explosive drones were used by Russia to attack a town in the vicinity of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, early on Thursday, according to a statement made by the administration of the area on the messaging app Telegram.

On the basis of early information, Oleksiy Kuleba, the governor of the Kyiv area, said that the attacks were caused by loitering bombs manufactured in Iran. These aircraft are often referred to as "kamikaze drones."

According to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy director of Zelenskiy's office, the drones caused damage to facilities that were vital to the country's critical infrastructure.

Dnipropetrovsk Governor Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on Telegram that missiles had struck more than 30 multi-story and private houses, gas pipelines, and power lines in the city of Nikopol in the Dnipropetrovsk region. As a result, more than 2,000 families were left without electricity, and the governor of Dnipropetrovsk was forced to declare a state of emergency.

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WATERLOO  A Waterloo gang member who was at a 2020 mass shooting at a private club has been sentenced to prison on unrelated gun charges.

Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Sir Frank Nelson III, 27, to three years and one month in prison on a charge of felon in possession of a firearm during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids on Wednesday.

The sentence includes three years of supervised probation following the prison time.

The charge stems from a June 28, 2020, traffic accident at Commercial Street and Park Avenue where officers found a loaded and stolen .40-caliber Smith and Wesson M&P handgun in Nelsons waistband, according to court records.

Nelson had been a front-seat passenger in the vehicle, and police also found K2 synthetic marijuana, an open bottle of Patron tequila and pills that appeared to be ecstasy on other occupants.

Prosecutors allege Nelson is a member of the A1/Front Street neighborhood gang in Waterloo.

Court records indicate Nelson was also being investigated in connection with the Sept. 26, 2020, shooting at the Sin City motorcycle club on West Fourth Street that left two dead and a dozen others injured. Detectives found surveillance footage showing Nelson dropping an extended firearm magazine as he left the shooting scene and then picking it up.

Prosecutors introduced surveillance photos from the shooting scene as well as screenshots from Nelsons phone on that day as exhibits in Wednesdays sentencing hearing. Those exhibits have been sealed.

Nelson wasnt charged in the club shooting.
NAIROBI, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Kenya on Thursday called on African tourism marketers to create synergies that can promote intra-Africa travel.

Joanne Mwangi-Yelbert, the chairperson of the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB), said Africa's tourism boards and stakeholders in public and private sectors should promote the vastness of the continent, its natural beauty, and its immense biodiversity that offers travelers an almost unlimited choice of destinations.

Mwangi said tourism has been growing rapidly over the past decade, but this growth has not been evenly distributed across all African countries.

"A majority of countries are still lagging behind in terms of infrastructure development and market access, which is why partnerships between tourism boards and governments will be key in helping to grow our industry," she said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.

While speaking during a meeting with African tourism board representatives on the sidelines of the Magical Kenya Travel Expo, Mwangi noted that the African continent is one that has great potential for tourism. and insisted that despite the fact that there are many opportunities for intra-Africa travel, little or no synergies exist among the various stakeholders.

"We need to go ahead and capitalize on this opportunity by crafting strategies that will help us achieve our goals," Mwangi said.

She also urged tourism boards in the continent to seek more partnerships with governments and other stakeholders in the sector to ensure the future success of tourism in Africa, challenging them to be at the frontier in innovating new marketing strategies that can help boost tourism development.

According to the KTB, international arrivals in Africa grew to 18.5 million in 2021 from 16.2 million in 2020. 
WATERLOO  The Waterloo Rotary Club is hosting a candidate forum for the Black Hawk County Supervisors candidates on Monday, Oct. 17 at 12 p.m. at the Waterloo Convention Center.

Rotary Club member, Kevin McCrindle, will moderate the forum. Questions will be submitted in advance from the club.

Those who plan to attend should e-mail Annie VanderWerff at annie@theregenerateprocess.com.
WATERLOO  Parking changes could be coming to downtown if a proposal from a task force is accepted by the City Council.

The small group assembled by Main Street Waterloo at the request of city Councilor John Chiles is still making tweaks to its recommendations. Jessica Rucker, Main Street Waterloos executive director, said members want to present their to the council in the spring before the next city budget is finalized.

The largest ask, the group says, is to remove all of the current parking meters and move to a license plate reader and kiosk system.

Chiles and Rucker are part of the task force along with Experience Waterloo Director Tavis Hall; David Deeds and Kirstie Seda of JSA Development; Jane Messingham, downtown business representative; and Tom Powers, downtown advocate.

Rucker said the city already has invested in a license plate reader car and would just need to pay for the kiosks. The kiosks would be at central locations, such as along Fourth Street, in the old Courier parking lot and the library parking lot.

The proposal states that they would have consistent placement so people know where to go no matter what block they are parked on.

The task force also is recommending two-hour free parking for the entire downtown area. Time after the first two hours would come with higher fees. That is proposed to be $4 per hour on Fourth Street and $2 per hour on other downtown streets.

The rates would encourage people to park in the under-used parking ramps. Ramps would cost $5 per day under the current proposal.

We want downtown Waterloo to be the best place it can be, and that includes parking, said Sam Meier, Main Street Waterloo vice president, at the organizations board meeting Wednesday.

Another way to encourage parking in the ramps is to increase the fines on parking tickets. The first ticket after the first two free hours could be $20 with subsequent tickets costing $40 and $60.

Task force members said they would like to move away from parking space designations, or line markings on the street. How this would be determined is dependent on the kiosk requirements.

Rucker noted the increased rates and parking tickets will cover the loss in revenue from the two-hour free parking and areas that do not use a kiosk. She also said the plate reader will help with staffing issues.
Wartburg Symphony opens 70th season

WAVERLY  The Wartburg Community Symphony will open its 70th season Saturday in Neumann Auditorium with a concert featuring several college alumni and guest soloists.

The 8 p.m. concert, New Dawn, will feature music from Beethoven and Tchaikovsky. Wartburg alumni will join the symphony for Mendelssohns Hebrides Overture.

A pre-concert talk will begin at 7 p.m. in the auditorium with pianist Garret Ross, cellist Ruth Marshall, and violinist Emily Cole, who will join the symphony for Beethovens Triple Concerto.

Ross is founder and artistic director of the Apollo Music Festival. Marshall is the cellist for the Mill City String Quartet and partnered with Ross to co-found Florestan Chamber Music. Cole has been a member of the Oregon Symphony since 2011.

Tickets are $17 for adults; free for Wartburg students and youth 18 and under. Tickets and symphony memberships will be available in the Neumann Auditorium lobby before the first concert. For more information and to purchase tickets online, go to www.wartburg.edu/symphony.

Rotary will host supervisors forum

WATERLOO  The Waterloo Rotary Club is hosting a candidate forum for the Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors candidates at noon Monday at the Waterloo Convention Center.

Rotary Club member Kevin McCrindle will moderate. Questions will be submitted in advance from the club.

Those who plan to attend should e-mail Annie VanderWerff at annie@theregenerateprocess.com.

Waverly fish fry set for Oct. 21

WAVERLY  The monthly Waverly Area Veterans Post fish fry is planned for Oct. 21 at 1300 Fourth St., N.W., Waverly.

Cod loin, baked beans, cole slaw and the fixins are on the menu. Cost is $14 per person.

Carry-out is from 5 to 6 p.m. with front-door delivery; dine-in is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the lower level. Submit carry-out orders only by 4 p.m. Oct. 20, or call (319) 483-9287 or online at www.waverlyvets.us or (319) 483-9287. Dine-in orders are not needed in advance.
CEDAR FALLS  The Cedar Valley United Nations Association will host a pannel discussion on the Model UN program at 7 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa, 3117 Greenhill Circle, in Cedar Falls. The program is free and open to the public.
For decades North Korea has threatened to turn enemy cities into a sea of fire, even as it doggedly worked on building a nuclear weapons program that could back up its belligerent words. Now, as North Korea ramps up another torrid run of increasingly powerful weapons tests, it has some rhetorical support from a nuclear armed member of the UN Security Council  Vladimir Putins Russia. With Putin raising the terrifying prospect of using tactical nukes to turn around battleground setbacks in Ukraine, theres fear that this nuclear normalization could embolden Kim Jong Un as he pursues the finishing touches on his still incomplete nuclear program.
Subway says its most extensive menu makeover in the company's nearly 60-year history is paying off.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 8.4% in the third quarter, the privately held company announced Wednesday. For the past 18 months, Subway said it had "record-setting sales" across its roughly 20,000 US locations, bolstered by a number of changes that include new sandwiches, soups and store remodels.

Subway attributed its recent success to its new "Subway Series" menu, which was streamlined to help speed up service, and an increase in digital orders.

"The results from the Subway Series launch and the positive reaction from guests and franchisees demonstrates that our transformation strategy is working," said Trevor Haynes, president of Subway North America, in the release.

The Subway Series is a more neatly organized menu, divided into four categories (Cheesesteaks, Italianos, Chicken and Clubs) and consisting of three sandwiches each. All 12 sandwiches are new to the menu, with some essentially replacing previous versions with new names and slight tweaks.

It was the biggest change Subway rolled out since its July 2021 refresh, which focused on upgraded ingredients and upgraded app.

In another positive benchmark for the struggling chain, Subway said September sales grew nearly 11% compared to the same month a year earlier. It's a stark turnaround for the chain, which has been dealing with declining sales and store count as people gravitate toward its rivals.

Sales at Subway's US locations have been falling in recent years, according to the research firm Technomic. System-wide sales at Subway's US locations were $12.3 billion in 2013, which was its best year of the past 15 years. in 2021, sales slumped to $9.4 billion, according to Technomic's analysis. The number of locations has declined for the fifth year in a row to 20,746 per Subway's website.

Subway didn't provide dollar amounts for its 2022 sales Wednesday.

Franchises have long been vocal with the chain about making changes to its staid menu and store's appearances. In one flashpoint last year, some Subway franchise operators have complained publicly about the company's treatment of them.

Notably, Wednesday's press release features a quote from Donna Curry, a Subway franchisee that owns about 65 locations.

"We are hearing from guests that they like the flexibility of ordering by name and number and are enjoying the new Subway Series sandwiches, which is reflected in the increased traffic and sales across my restaurants," she said.

Soups were the latest focus of Subway's multi-year transformation plan. Last month, it rolled out three refreshed soups: broccoli cheddar, chicken noodle and loaded baked potato.
A new ad from the Democratic challenger in the southeast Iowa congressional race claims sitting Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks wants to outlaw all abortions nationwide. No exceptions for rape, incest, or to save a womans life.

The U.S. Supreme Court this summer overturning Roe v. Wade's long-held protections for abortion until fetal viability spurred public debate over restrictions on abortion. It is seen as a key issue by Democrats ahead of the midterm elections.

Miller-Meeks said in a September debate and has said in interviews that she supports exceptions for rape, incest, and a womans life. She endorsed a bill from U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks with those exceptions.

Christina Bohannans ad is referring to Miller-Meeks co-sponsoring of the Life at Conception Act, a House proposal with 163 Republican co-sponsors that would guarantee a constitutional right to life of each born and pre-born human person from the moment of fertilization without explicit exceptions.

In an interview last week with a Quad-City Times reporter, Miller-Meeks said when asked about the Act: I think that you can recognize medically that life begins at conception, and still have exceptions, as I've already noted. So again, my long-held position in multiple public interviews has been I'm pro-life with exceptions for life of the mother, rape, and incest.

Bohannan continues in the ad: I never imagined my daughter would grow up having fewer rights than I had. Im fighting to protect our right to choose. When it comes to our bodies, women should be in charge, not Washington politicians.

AD HONORS TEEN: Iowa Sen. Kevin Kinney, a Democrat from Oxford, released his second ad of the election cycle, highlighting his work on a law honoring a Tiffin teen who drowned in the Coralville Reservoir in 2020.

When Noah Herring drowned in 2020, the people with him did not call for help, according to reports at the time, and did not tell the Johnson County Sheriffs office where his body was.

In the ad, Noahs cousin, Amber Herring, sitting with his mother Lisa Herring, tells the story of getting the law passed.

We reached out to Senator Kevin Kinney, who helped us pass a law so that what our family went through another family does not have to go through, she says.

The ad was paid for by the Iowa Democratic Party.

The law, signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2021, makes it a crime to not call emergency responders when someone appears to be in imminent danger and increases penalties for not telling authorities the location of a corpse. Three juveniles and one adult were charged with lesser crimes related to Herrings death, but failing to alert authorities was not a crime at the time.

In a statement, Kinney said the law was a bipartisan effort and the legislation was written with input from Herrings family.

I then worked across the aisle to get Noahs Law passed unanimously, he said. Im honored to have the support of Noahs family, and I will continue to work to protect crime victims and their families in the State Senate.

FARMERS' SUPPORT: Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley's campaign announced the county chairs of the Farmers for Grassley Coalition, a group of farmers who support Grassleys reelection.

The campaign previously announced the leadership of the group, which includes Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, former presidents of the Iowa Farm Bureau and Iowa Corn Growers Association, and former Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey.

The list includes farmers from all of Iowas 99 counties. Grassley also announced a veterans coalition from the 99 counties in September.

Congress will rewrite the farm bill next year and we need a farmer to represent our interests in the U.S. Senate, Larry Madson, Shelby County farm chair, said in a news release from the campaign. Chuck is the strong voice we need to strengthen and sustain the family farm for generations to come. Iowa agriculture needs Chuck fighting for us more than ever.
Officials in Nigeria say the death toll from this year's flooding has risen to 603. Authorities have called the floods the country's worst in more than a decade, blaming the disaster on unusually heavy rainfall and the release of excess water from the Lagdo dam in neighboring Cameroon. More than 1.3 million people have been displaced by the disaster, according to Nigeria's humanitarian affairs minister. Sadiya Umar Farouq is warning that five states are still at risk of experiencing floods up until the end of November. At least 340,000 hectares of land also have been affected, worsening fears of food supply disruptions.
Zelensky in an interview with the BBC: None of the normal civilized leaders want to communicate with Russia  Either the victory of Ukraine or the defeat of the whole world.

This is the neo-Nazi logic  he does not consider non-NATO members to be normal. According to Zelensky, the whole world is only the West. The rest are not. He does not even notice how the subconscious attitude of superiority over those who are different from the white man breaks through during his comatose interviews.

Maria Zakharov

Well Maria, the Collective West is the ones that see the world in the way you described. Zelensky is just a drugged out tool

WtR
FILE - Actors Angela Lansbury, left, and Len Cariou, right, who starred in the musical "Sweeney Todd" appear with their replacements Dorothy Loudon, second left, and George Hearn at a New York restaurant, prior to their final performance on March 3, 1980. Lansbury died peacefully at her home in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 11. She was 96.
ACCRA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- A working group of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) called for stronger support for people with disabilities in a communique released Wednesday following a three-day regional coordination meeting.

The communique stressed that the disabled should be given the right to lead agencies and structures on disability and represent their countries at ECOWAS meetings on disability inclusion, adding that ECOWAS should strengthen the capacity of disability inclusion experts in the subregion to widen their work horizons.

In the communique, the working group consisting of all 15 member states of the subregional bloc said it was critical for all member states to ratify the African Union's Disability Protocol to demonstrate the political will toward disability inclusion.

The protocol is a legal framework that guides member states of the African Union in the formulation of disability laws and policies to promote disability rights in their countries.

"We (ECOWAS) will continue to strive to ensure that all member states receive the necessary support to meet their obligations under the national and international legal frameworks," said Baba Gana Wakil, ECOWAS resident representative to Ghana. 
It's becoming clearer that New York City's recovery from the pandemic will be drawn out and that some aspects of the city's economic ecosystem could be changed for good
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EE North America, a subsidiary of the Danish renewable energy company European Energy, announced its ambition to develop 10 GW of renewable energy in the United States by 2026.







EE North America recently opened a new office in Austin, Texas, to support its U.S. development pipeline. The company has purchased over 7,000 acres of land to develop its first U.S. solar projects, including 1 GW of solar capacity in Texas and additional projects in the Western United States. EE North America is also exploring investments in green hydrogen and e-methanol, which have applications in transportation, home heating, and heavy industry.





"We are excited to expand our renewable energy project development expertise into the United States. European Energy views the U.S. as a critical market for solar and wind power, as well as technologies like Power-to-X that will be essential solutions in decarbonizing the hardest-to-abate sectors of the economy," said Knud Erik Andersen, CEO of European Energy.



"Our vision is to enable the transition to clean energy, and our ambitious investment plans for the U.S. are an essential part of that journey," added Andersen.







European Energy  EE North America's parent company  stated it is currently active in 26 markets globally and has a portfolio of solar, wind and Power-to-X projects, which can produce green hydrogen, e-methanol and jet fuel.





European Energy recently completed the largest electrolyzer order in the world (50 MW) with Siemens to develop the world's first commercial large-scale e-methanol project and recently signed an agreement with the world's largest shipping company A.P. Moller - Maersk to offtake up to 300,000 tons of e-methanol by 2025. The company is partnering with multiple ports in Europe to produce green hydrogen.





"We have the expertise, partnerships, and global track record to deliver fully integrated clean energy systems that enable cross-sectoral decarbonization, while also creating new American jobs and ensuring local communities benefit for generations to come. EE North America's energy solutions are commercially mature and financially viable today, and we look forward to additional partnerships as we make the U.S. a core part of our future growth story," said Lorena Ciciriello, CEO of EE North America.



European Energy A/S, is based in Copenhagen, Denmark, was founded in 2004 and has a current project pipeline of 40 GW in markets across the world. It plans to grow its offshore wind pipeline by conducting both green and brownfield developments, as well as by participation in tender processes. The company has several projects in development, primarily in Denmark, and is the sole owner the

Sprog

wind farm which went into operation in 2009.
Power had been restored to the majority of nursing homes that lost it by Oct. 4, six days after the storms landfall on Florida, according to the Florida Health Care Association. Spokesperson Kristen Knapp wrote in an email that Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy and other utilities have done amazing to help prioritize our care centers for power.

Nursing homes should be closely monitored in days ahead, says AARPs Johnson. Remember: The Irma disaster in Hollywood was days [after the storm], he says. Power has generally been restored much quicker this time around, he notes, but problems could still pop up.

Floridas Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program, which advocates for long-term care residents, had received six storm-related inquiries from assisted living residents by early this week, including reports of lack of staff and mold and water damage. Historically, we see increases in complaints over time as residents return to evacuated facilities, spokesperson Audra Peoples wrote in an email.

The stress or deterioration that a person can experience when changing living environments  known as transfer trauma and often affecting those with dementia  will likely be an issue that comes to light later on, says Johnson, particularly given the volume of evacuations performed.

Staffing shortages, a long-standing issue in U.S. nursing homes, may also worsen as workers are forced to deal with their own losses from the storm. But the state reports that its moved 400 additional nurses into southwest Florida. An Emergency Order allowing health care facilities to deploy out-of-state health care workers to the same roles in Florida during the emergency has also been activated.

For now, those who advocate for nursing home residents are optimistic. The nursing home system seems to have found ways to be better prepared for storms like this, Johnson says. And it makes me wonder: How do we bring that attention and planning to those who are aging in place at home so we can ensure they are safe too? Theres an opportunity for us as a state to really lean into that.

If youre concerned about any long-term care residents impacted by Hurricane Ian, contact Floridas Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program at 1-888-831-0404 or ltcopinformer@elderaffairs.org.

Emily Paulin is a contributing writer who covers nursing homes, health care, and federal and state policy. Her work has also appeared in Broadsheet, an Australian lifestyle publication.
Much of the country is on the cusp of the cold-weather season, when respiratory illnesses rage. And this winter  our third living with COVID-19  health experts are urging caution, citing the potential for yet another surge, plus a flu season that could be worse than last.

However, there are five simple steps you can take to help improve your odds of staying healthy in the coming weeks and staying out of the hospital if you do come down with COVID. Heres whats on the list.

1. Get your booster

Theres a new COVID-19 booster available  whats known as a bivalent booster  and this latest version targets the original coronavirus and the omicron subvariant that is currently driving the majority of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. 

And based on everything we know about immunology and science and vaccines, these updated vaccines should provide a much higher level of protection against infection, against transmission and certainly against serious illness and hospitalizations and deaths, Ashish Jha, M.D., the White House COVID-19 response coordinator said in an Oct. 11 news briefing.

As of Oct. 12, everyone 5 and up is eligible to get the still-free shot, but so far, few adults have rolled up their sleeves  about 4 percent. However a recent report from the Commonwealth Fund finds that if that percentage bumps up to 80 by the end of the year, more than 936,700 hospitalizations could be avoided and nearly 90,000 lives could be saved.

If youre eligible for this bivalent booster, then you should go get it. Thats number one, by far the most important thing, says Mark Rupp, M.D., chief of infectious diseases in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Whens The Best Time to Boost?

White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha recommends getting the updated booster before Halloween. Why Halloween? Because it takes a couple of weeks for your immune system to generate the benefit from that vaccine. And that means you will be ready by Thanksgiving and certainly by the holidays, he explained. If you miss Halloween, is it too late? Its not too late. Again, it takes a couple of weeks for the immune system to benefit from the vaccine, so there is no time period where the window is out and youre no longer going to benefit; you will always benefit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recommends getting the annual flu shot before the end of October.

2. Think ahead about treatments

Dont wait until you come down with COVID-19 to figure out how you plan to treat it. Discussing the options with your doctor ahead of time can help to ensure that you have access to treatments in the first place, and that you get the right one for your situation.

Recent studies show that the antiviral Paxlovid, which was authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration nearly a year ago, can significantly reduce the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19. One pre-print study from researchers out of Kaiser Permanente Southern California found that when taken in the first five days of symptom onset, the prescription pill cut the risk of hospitalization by 88 percent, even among a highly vaccinated population. Another study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that the drug was especially effective in people 65 and older during the recent omicron surge.

Yet health experts say many adults who are eligible for Paxlovid, including older adults who are at higher risk for complications from COVID-19, arent receiving it even though its widely available. All the while hospitalizations and deaths among Americans 65-plus spiked during the summer months, more than doubling between April and July, an analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation found.
If Cathy and Doug Ricketts had a candidate for office in their kitchen, they would urge him to walk the walk, not talk the talk when it comes to serving the people of rural America. Angie Roman would want her elected leader to understand how vital it is that the government support family caregivers like her and her husband, who put their lives on hold to care for their loved ones.

Roman and the Ricketts are just three of the more than 35,000 older Americans who answered AARPs call to describe their everyday struggles as part of a new In My Shoes campaign.

Weve heard from older Americans that they feel invisible and that politicians dont understand the challenges they face every day, says Nancy LeaMond, AARP executive vice president and chief advocacy and engagement officer. They want candidates to take a walk in their shoes and focus on the issues that matter to them.

With the midterm elections quickly approaching, public opinion surveys find that voters are unhappy with the job their elected officials are doing. A September AARP poll of likely voters found 78 percent of men age 50 and older and 75 percent of women 50-plus believe elected officials do a just fair or poor job of understanding the everyday challenges of people like them.

Historically, older adults vote in greater numbers than any other age group. In the 2018 midterm elections, 56 percent of voters ages 45 to 59 and 66 percent of voters 60 and older cast ballots. That compares with a 33 percent turnout among those ages 18 to 29. AARPs September poll of older voters found that 96 percent of men and 93 percent of women are motivated to vote this November.

Americans age 50-plus will make up the majority of the electorate this year, says LeaMond. Candidates ignore them at their peril.

In a series of focus groups with women 50-plus earlier this year, one woman said she would like to see a politician come to her house and watch her give her 92-year-old mother-in-law a shower so he could understand the challenges caregivers face. That comment prompted AARP to launch the In My Shoes campaign to share the struggles of the 50-plus population.

Caregiving often a struggle

For Roman and her husband, Philip, caregiving for their parents was all-consuming, first in Arizona where her parents lived and later when they moved to Pennsylvania to take care of her husbands mom and dad.

We did it willingly, says Roman. But we had to turn our lives upside down in order to accomplish it. Her husband gave up his business in Arizona when they traveled east and moved in with her in-laws.
DHAKA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- At least four bodies were recovered Thursday after a fishing vessel capsized in the Karnaphuli river in Chattogram, some 242 km southeast of capital Dhaka.

Ekram Ullah, officer-in-charge of Chattogram's Sadarghat River Police Station, told journalists that members of the River Police and the Coast Guard recovered the bodies from different places in the river in separate rescue operations in collaboration with local people on Thursday.

He said three people, including two crew members, remain missing. A search operation is underway for the people still missing, he added.

The police official said rescuers had been working against a strong current and choppy river waters.

According to the official, the fishing vessel FV Magferat, carrying 21 persons including 15 crew members, was being pulled to the Sea Resources Dockyard at the Ichhanagar area on the southern bank of the Karnaphuli river for revamp early Wednesday, but its propeller reportedly broke and it veered out of control and smashed into other fishing boats and buoys near the jetty before capsizing, leaving seven people on board missing. 


Beetaloo Operations Update - Carpentaria 3 Drilling Underway

Sydney, Oct 13, 2022 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Empire Energy Group Limited ( ASX:EEG ) ( EEGUF:OTCMKTS ) is pleased to provide shareholders with this update of operations in Empire's 100% owned and operated EP187 tenement, located onshore Northern Territory in the Beetaloo Sub-basin ("Beetaloo").



- Carpentaria-3H ("C-3H"), Empire's second horizontal appraisal well with a planned 2,000m horizontal section targeting the Velkerri B shale, has commenced drilling



- C-2H average production rate over the first 51 days of testing was 2.2 million standard cubic feet (mmcsf) per day, equivalent to 2.4 mmscf per day per 1,000 metres of horizontal section



- C-2H tracer data analysis has commenced, with results to be used to inform C-3H completion and fracture stimulation design



- Carpentaria-4V ("C-4V") to be drilled after the drilling of C-3H



- Cash at bank at 30 September 2022 was $32.7 million



Comments from Managing Director Alex Underwood:



"The Empire team continues to be highly encouraged by the results we have seen at C-2H, characterised by relatively low decline rates and average production rates that give us increasing confidence we will be able to economically develop our significant gas resource in EP187 and across the Beetaloo Basin.



Preliminary tracer data indicates that all stimulated stages are contributing, albeit some stages are producing significantly more gas than others. The data we continue to collect and analyse will inform the completion design for the C-3H well, with fracture stimulation planned for later this year.



Despite weak equity market conditions, we are experiencing strong macro tailwinds for our large scale, low CO2 Beetaloo gas project. Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King last week publicly predicted that gas prices are very unlikely to ever return to levels below $10 / GJ, and the ACCC continues to forecast material supply shortfalls in years ahead. This underscores the critical importance of increased gas supply into Australia's domestic market and that of the broader Asian region. We are well placed to respond to these challenges as we target commercial production by 2024 / 2025."



Carpentaria-3H



The C-3H well has commenced drilling. Empire has contracted Schlumberger Land Rigs 185 to drill both C-3H and C-4V. C-3H will be a horizontal well with a planned 2,000 metre horizontal section that will be fracture stimulated. The well is being drilled from the same pad as C-2H, also targeting the B Shale of the Velkerri Formation but going downdip in the opposite direction. C-3H will further de-risk the project and optimise production rates by applying learnings from the fracture stimulation and flow testing of C-2H.



Carpentaria-2H Operations



Flow back of stimulation fluids commenced at C-2H on 1 August 2022, immediately following placement of the well's 21 hydraulic stimulation stages. Gas flow commenced on 5 August 2022 with a period of significant but unmeasurable gas rates due to slug flow (gas with water production). Gas flow measurement began on 7 August 2022 and has flowed continuously since then, except for a 2-day operational shut-in to replace the hydraulic stimulation surface pipework with production pipework. Following that shut-in, a peak rate of >11 mmscf per day was achieved. The gas has been flowing through 4 1/2" casing. Production tubing was not required.



The average production rate over the first 51 days was 2.2 mmscf per day (a normalised rate of 2.4 mmscf per day per 1,000 metres of horizontal section). C-2H was producing at a rate of 1.82 mmscf per day prior to the recent shut-in.



C-2H has been shut-in as planned to monitor pressure build-up and evaluate the impact on well productivity following a period of "soaking". Soaking is the practice of shutting in a well for a period of time following fracture stimulation to seek to improve long-term productivity through redistribution and/or interaction of the residual water with the rock. Productivity improvements have been achieved at other Beetaloo wells and in analogous US shale plays following the execution of such a strategy.



Evaluation of production tracer data to understand how each of the 21 hydraulically stimulated stages at C-2H has contributed to the overall production has commenced. Results are expected to be available prior to the commencement of the fracture stimulation of C-3H.



Learnings acquired from C-2H will be applied and adapted at C-3H to optimise completion and fracture stimulation design.



The success of C-2H is an extremely encouraging step towards commerciality. It provided key information for future wells including:



- Beetaloo-specific horizontal well drilling methods;



- enhancement of Beetaloo-specific hydraulic stimulation fluid selection, perforation strategy, proppant concentration and pumping techniques;



- refinement of the target window for landing a Velkerri B Shale horizontal section; and



- understanding the high-calorific gas composition at Carpentaria.



Empire is using this technical data to develop an early production type curve for development planning.



Upcoming Work Program



C-4V will be drilled in the Carpentaria East Area (an adjacent area defined by the seismic program) targeting the Velkerri Formation shales to convert Prospective Resources to Contingent Resources and further delineate the EP187 Velkerri Formation. Following extensive formation evaluation, the vertical well will be suspended as a potential future horizontal development well.



*To view tables and figures, please visit:

https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/74X683TH





About Empire Energy Group Ltd





Empire Energy (ASX:EEG) (OTCMKTS:EEGUF) holds over 14.5 million acres of highly prospective exploration tenements in the McArthur and Beetaloo Basins, Northern Territory. Work undertaken by the Company since 2010 demonstrates that the Eastern depositional Trough of the McArthur Basin, of which the Company holds 80% has very considerable conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon potential. The Beetaloo sub-Basin, in which Empire holds a substantial position, has independently assessed world class hydrocarbon volumes in place with a major ramp up in industry activity underway to appraise substantial discoveries already made by major Australian oil and gas operators.

Empire Energy is an experienced conventional oil and gas producer with operations in the Appalachia region (New York and Pennsylvania). Empire has been successfully developing and producing oil and gas since 2006.


Second Lateral at Rougemont-3 Commenced

Brisbane, Oct 13, 2022 AEST (ABN Newswire) - State Gas Limited ( ASX:GAS ) ( STGSF:OTCMKTS ) advises that drilling of the second lateral of the Rougemont-3 well has commenced.



The first lateral in the well successfully intersected with the Rougemont-2 vertical well as planned, and has now been lined to facilitate production from the full ~1300m of the coal seam.



The second lateral will be drilled through the coal seam approximately 30 metres below the first to also intersect with the Rougemont-2 vertical well. It too will be lined for production.



Together, the two laterals will provide direct access to more than 2 km of coals.



Upon completion of drilling of the second lateral Rougemont-2 will be recompleted with a new pump and the combined Rougemont-2 and -3 well pair will be placed on production.



The Rougemont-3 horizontal well is being drilled to confirm the gas potential of the Rougemont area within State Gas' 100%-owned Rolleston-West Project (ATP 2062) and to provide gas for a future pipeline to connect the project area with the east coast gas pipeline network.



The well is being drilled laterally through the coals of the Bandanna Formation (in commercial production at the Arcadia Valley to the south-east) to meet the vertical Rougemont-2 well.





About State Gas Limited





State Gas Limited (ASX:GAS) is a Queensland-based developer of the Reid's Dome gas field, originally discovered during drilling in 1955, located in the Bowen Basin in Central Queensland. State Gas is 100%-owner of the Reid's Dome Gas Project (PL-231) a CSG and conventional gas play, which is well-located 30 kilometres southwest of Rolleston, approximately 50 kilometres from the Queensland Gas Pipeline and interconnected east coast gas network.

Permian coal measures within the Reid's Dome Beds are extensive across the entire permit but the area had not been explored for coal seam gas prior to State Gas' ownership. In late 2018 State Gas drilled the first coal seam gas well in the region (Nyanda-4) into the Reid's Dome Beds and established the potential for a significant coal seam gas project in PL 231. The extension of the coal measures into the northern and central areas of the permit was confirmed in late 2019 by the Company's drilling of Aldinga East-1A (12 km north) and Serocold-1 (6 km to the north of Nyanda-4).

State Gas is also the 100% holder Authority to Prospect 2062 ("Rolleston-West"), a 1,414 km2 permit (eight times larger than PL 231) that is contiguous with the Reid's Dome Gas Project. Rolleston-West contains highly prospective targets for both coal seam gas (CSG) and known conventional gas within the permit area. It is not restricted by domestic gas reservation requirements.

The contiguous areas (Reid's Dome and Rolleston-West), under sole ownership by State Gas, enable integration of activities and a unified super-gasfield development, providing economies of scale, efficient operations, and optionality in marketing.

State Gas is implementing its strategic plan to bring gas to market from Reid's Dome and Rolleston-West to meet near term forecast shortfalls in the east coast domestic gas market. The strategy involves progressing a phased appraisal program in parallel with permitting for an export pipeline and development facilities to facilitate the fastest possible delivery of gas to market. State Gas' current focus has been to confirm the producibility of the gas through production testing of the wells.
SAN ANTONIO  A fired San Antonio police officer has posted bond and been released after he was charged in the shooting of a teen as the youth sat in a car eating a hamburger.

James Brennand posted $200,000 in bonds after he turned himself in Tuesday night to face two counts of aggravated assault by a public official in the Oct. 2 shooting of 17-year-old Erik Cantu, who remained on life support according to his family. Jail records showed that he did not have an attorney at the time of his release.

Brennand, a 27-year-old rookie officer, reported the vehicle Cantu was sitting in had evaded him the night before during an attempted traffic stop. Brennand said he suspected the car was stolen.

In body camera footage released by police, Brennand opens the car door and tells Cantu to get out. The car drives backward with the door open, and the officer fires multiple times into the vehicle. He continues to shoot as the car drives away.

Brennand is charged with two counts of assault because a passenger was in the car. The passenger was unharmed.

Investigators quickly determined that the use of deadly force was unwarranted, and Brennand was fired. Charges against Cantu of aggravated assault and evading arrest were dropped. Registration plates did not match the vehicle that Cantu was operating, although the car itself was not stolen, said Officer Ricardo Guzman, a police department spokesman.

Cantu remained hospitalized in critical condition Wednesday.

Erik is still on life-support and is non-responsive but his oxygen levels are showing an improvement. We are being patient and optimistic that better health is coming, the family said in a statement issued through attorney Brian Powers. Please continue to keep Erik in your thoughts and prayers.

Brennand is the second San Antonio police officer to face criminal charges this year for what was found to be the unjustified use of deadly force.

In February, a Bexar County grand jury indicted former officer Oscar Cruz Jr. on a charge of deadly conduct with a firearm for firing at fleeing juveniles suspected of trying to open car doors. He is free on a $5,000 bond and is scheduled to stand trial next month.

The third-degree felony is punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Cruz chased the youth on foot in March 2020 when another juvenile threw a rock that hit him in the face. Cruz fired two shots at the fleeing youths, missing them. Cruz was suspended indefinitely and ultimately fired.
Decades into her film career, Catherine Hardwicke is still experiencing milestones.

The legendary director recently completed three projects in one year  two features and directing an TV episode.

Its all good, creative stuff, Hardwicke says. Ive worked hard, but Ive also been very fortunate to keep creating after all these years.

Hardwicke is best known as the director of Twilight, which launched the worldwide blockbuster franchise, The Twilight Saga. Her directorial debut was the critically-acclaimed, Thirteen, which won the 2003 Directors Award at the Sundance Film Festival, two Golden Globe nominations, an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and an Independent Spirit Award.

Shes also been at the helm of Red Riding Hood, Miss Bala, Lords of Dogtown and her newest film, Prisoners Daughter.

The Santa Fe International Film Festival is awarding its Visionary Award to Hardwicke on Sunday, Oct. 23, at the Jean Cocteau Cinema. Santa Fe resident Wes Studi will present the award. SFiFF kicks off on Wednesday, Oct. 19 and runs through Sunday, Oct. 23.

Its so exciting to be honored, Hardwicke says. I love Santa Fe and Ive been crazy about New Mexico. Im working on projects that are supposed to film in New Mexico. Its called Land of Enchantment and Ive sold it to Netflix. Were waiting on the green light to begin production.

Hardwicke is looking forward to spending some time in Santa Fe for the festival.

I get to slow down a little, she says. I was at the Toronto Film Festival and it was more of a fly by. I showed up for a few hours and had to be back on set. This time, Ill get to take in the environment.

Hardwicke is also participating in an actors workshop from 2:30-4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at Santa Fe Playhouse.

There are three local painters that Ive written short scripts based on, she says. These scripts will be performed by local actors who will have the chance to be directed by me. Im looking forward to the opportunity to direct new actors.

Over the course of her time in the film industry, Hardwicke has worked her way up through the ranks.

While she loves directing, she knows that there are many facets in getting a project completed.

I was shooting in Rome and it was work the whole time, she says with a laugh. I wish I would have gotten to see the sites. But Id go back to the hotel and do my shot list and do the budget. I figure out how I can shoot in the most creative way. My goal is to always get more time with the actors so they can really get into the roles.

Hardwicke says her time as a production designer has also made her job as a director easier.

My love for film has only grown, she says. I love it when I can see beautiful films and I feel like Im there. I can suspend my disbelief.

Hardwicke also knows that there are plenty of red lights and nos in life.

When she was directing Thirteen, her dilemma was making a film that was rated R because of its heavy subject, but also making it for teenage girls.

Every studio said no to me, she says. Im always told that I cant have another day of shooting or a certain actor. Youre always trading. There are times I will use less extras for the day to get a piece that completes my vision.

Filmmaking can also be dangerous. With her 2019 film, Miss Bala, the production filmed in Tijuana, Mexico.

This was very real, she says. We did have cartel incidents where they wanted to shut us down. We filmed as quickly and quietly as we could. Its an interesting, yet fruitful, industry to be in.

SEND ME YOUR TIPS: If you know of a movie filming in the state, or are curious about one, email film@ABQjournal.com. Follow me on Twitter @agomezART.
Telling stories of a community is educational  and priceless.

This is the reason Paul Jew diligently works to make the Albuquerque Chinese American Film Festival come to life.

The film festival is in its sixth year and continues to draw an audience.

Jew along with others in the community plan for months to create a full day of film and discussion.

This years festival takes place from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, at Grace Church, 6901 San Antonio NE.

Putting on the festival is a credit to the team and the people that are around me, Jew says. By sharing with the city, we want to continue to bring these types of stories to the community.

The festival kicks off at 9 a.m. with the documentary, Chinatown Rising. The film dives deep into the Asian-American Civil Rights movement from the 1960s through the 1980s. The story is told from the perspective of the young residents on the front lines of their historic neighborhood in transition.

At 10:40 a.m., the short film Dear Corky, which has been featured at dozens of film festivals around the world.

Vincent Who? screens at 11:05 a.m. and a panel discussion will take place at 12:45 p.m.

The panel includes Harold Bailey of the NAACP, Farah Nousheen, director of UNM AAPI Resource Center and filmmakers.

The 1998 animated film Mulan screens at 1:45 p.m. and the Oscar nominated film The Farewell screens at 3:40 p.m.

The goal is to have a diverse slate of films, Jew says. We wanted to showcase documentaries that tell our stories, as well as feature films that bring Chinese American culture to the forefront.

Siu Wong, an organizer of the festival, says last year the festival featured about 100 people coming out of the pandemic.

Were looking forward to having a larger number this year, she says.

Wong says with all the of the anti-Asian hate that has happened in Albuquerque and across the world, they are using the film festival to educate.

I feel great about the six years that weve had so far with the festival, Wong says. The community has stepped up to support us. We have elected officials who are helping us out all year.

Jew says the theme of the festival is Our Common Humanity.

No matter where you are from, we all want equal opportunity and justice, Jew says. Thats what we all strive for. When we are able to share our films and stories, it creates a bond because it is so familiar to that of other people. When we see films with other points of view, it helps us identify the commonality among us.
This year four New Mexico breweries brought home medals from the Great American Beer Festival recently held in Denver.

Santa Fes Rowley Farmhouse Ales took the gold medal for its Gradissant-Montmorency Cherry in the Belgian Fruit Beer category, which had entries from 66 breweries.

Gradissant-Montmorency Cherry is part of a four pack box set that is available in limited numbers at the brewery.

Wow! We are grateful and humbled to win gold for 1/4th of our 6th anniversary box set, the brewery wrote on its Facebook page.  I want to thank everyone who continues to support our mission to make the best beer we can manage to make!

Flix Brewhouse-Albuquerque won a silver medal for its ABQ Lucha Libre in the Australasian, Latin American or Tropical Light Lager category, which had 69 entries. The Mexican lager is described as light, clean and crisp. It is available at the movie house located on Albuquerques West Side.

Ex Novo Brewing Co. in Corrales was awarded a silver medal for its Sons of Scotland in the Scotch Ale category, which had a total of 44 entries. The brewery also won Best Booth at the festival.

Were bringing back some hardware from GABF, Ex Novo-Corrales wrote on its Facebook page. Honored to be taking home a Great American Beer Festival silver medal for our Sons of Scotland Scotch Ale! Shoutout to our stellar brew team and staff for making this incredible beer! Well deserved!

Also in the Scotch Ale category, Albuquerques Quarter Celtic Brewpub received a bronze medal for its Kill or be Kilt. The beer is an authentic Scotch ale that features premium Golden Promise malt. The heritage barley is a traditional variety grown in Scotland and is a key ingredient in classical Scottish ales, according to the brewpubs website.

Crews from Ex Novo and Rowley Farmhouse Ales attended the event. Quarter Celtic and Flix Brewhouse-Albuquerque were not in attendance.

This year marks the 40th anniversary for the Great American Beer Festival. There were 300 medals awarded in 98 beer categories covering 177 different beer styles. Entries were judged by 235 beer experts from seven countries including the United States.

The competition, presented by the Brewers Association, showcased 500 breweries from 46 states, including Washington D.C. with more than 2,000 different beers poured on the festival floor. The event is the nations largest professional beer competition.

Each year the Great American Beer Festival showcases the best that American brewers have to offer, according to Chris Williams, competition director. With 9,904 entries, this years competition was the most competitive to date. Congratulations to all the winners who truly demonstrated why the U.S. is the best brewing nation in the world.

For a full list of winners and other festival information, visit greatamericanbeerfestival.com.
NAME: Thomas C. Montoya

POLITICAL PARTY: Republican

OCCUPATION: Attorney

CITY OF RESIDENCE: Albuquerque

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: 41 years civil practice family law; shareholder, Atkinson & Kelsey, P.A.; Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory: AV Preeminent Rating. AV Preeminent Peer Rated Attorneys are an elite group of attorneys who have been rated highly by their peers as having Very High Ethical Standards and an A grade; American Law Institute: 23 years

EDUCATION: J.D. 1978 University of Southern California

CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: tommontoya.com

MAJOR PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: Lead author/editor: New Mexico Domestic Relations Law (Michie-Butterworth, 1995); chair: Supreme Court Rules Committee promulgated statewide rules for domestic relations and domestic violence cases; co-chair: Child Support Guidelines Commission promulgated statutory Child Support Guidelines; 2010 New Mexico Business Weekly Best Of The Bar; New Mexico Crime Victims Reparation Commission

MAJOR PERSONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: Married 35 years; two children, both lawyers, home schooled (by spouse); three times qualified as district court judge by Judicial Selection Nominating Commission; appointed to Judicial Selection Nominating Commission; three times quoted as authority by N.M. Court of Appeals; received 48% of 2020 statewide vote for New Mexico Court of Appeals

Why are you running and what strengths would you bring to the judiciary?

For 41 years, I devoted myself to problems faced by families and children in our state. I have written, lobbied and obtained sponsors for over 30 statutory enactments in family law to address solutions to those problems. I understand victims of crime from service on the Crime Victims Reparation Commission.

Personal background:

1. Have you or your business, if you are a business owner, ever been the subject of any state or federal tax liens?

No.

2. Have you ever been involved in a personal or business bankruptcy proceeding?

No.

3. Have you ever been arrested for, charged with, or convicted of drunken driving, any misdemeanor or any felony in New Mexico or any other state?

No.
A woman sued by a Las Cruces hospital filed a counterclaim this week alleging that Mountain View Regional Medical Center violated a state law that protects low-income patients from collection actions for medical debt.

The class action counterclaim alleges that the hospital has illegally sued more than 200 patients without first verifying whether their income protects them from debt collection actions under a 2021 law.

Mountain View responded in a written statement Wednesday that it has policies in place to ensure compliance with the law.

The action was filed Tuesday by the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty on behalf of a Las Cruces woman who was sued by the hospital in July for nonpayment of about $6,000.

If they want to sue someone  if they want to send someone to collections  their burden is to first check that persons income, said Nicolas Cordova, an attorney at the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty who filed the claim.

Basically, they have to do their homework and make sure that they legally can sue that person, he said.

Lawmakers in 2021 approved the Patients Debt Collection Protection Act, which prohibits collection actions against patients with a household income less than 200% of the federal poverty level, or $55,500 for a family of four.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the bill into law in April 2021.

The law also prohibits hospitals from hiring third parties to perform collection actions from indigent patients.

Cordova said the counterclaim marks the first attempt to use of the law to represent a class of patients.

Mountain View Regional Medical Center responded Wednesday that it has taken steps to comply with the law.

MountainView Regional Medical Center is aware of the requirements of the state law regarding medical debt collection and previously implemented policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the law, the hospital said in a written statement.

We are not aware of any departure from those policies and procedures, the statement said. We will review the allegations in the lawsuit and work with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty if the review identifies mistakes or departures from the hospitals policies and procedures.

Mountain View Regional Medical Center is owned by Tennessee-based Community Health Systems Inc., according to the firms website.

Mountain View filed a lawsuit in July against Ruby Ramirez of Las Cruces demanding payment of $6,205 for unspecified services. The counterclaim was filed in response to that lawsuit.

Ms. Ramirez has a qualifying income that should protect her from this exact type of lawsuit, Cordova said. But as with so many other patients in New Mexico, Mountain View did not check Ms. Ramirezs income before filing this lawsuit.

The suit against Ramirez was filed by the Missouri-based law firm Faber & Brand, which is also named as a defendant in the counterclaim.

The law firm unlawfully files debt collection suits on behalf of Mountain View without first inquiring of the hospital whether the patients had been determined to be indigent patients, the counterclaim alleges.

Faber & Brand did not immediately respond Wednesday to email messages seeking comment. Efforts to reach the firm by phone were not successful.

The counterclaim was filed Tuesday in 3rd Judicial District Court against Las Cruces Medical Center LLC, doing business as the Mountain View Regional Medical Center. It also names the Missouri law firm Faber & Brand as a defendant, alleging the firm acts as the hospitals debt collector.

The claim asks a 3rd Judicial District Court judge to certify the case as a class action on behalf of at least 200 indigent patients sued by Mountain View since the law took effect on July 1, 2021.

It also asks the judge to order the hospital to stop filing lawsuits without checking patients income status, to dismiss pending lawsuits against indigent patients, and return money it received by garnishing patients wages.
Copyright  2022 Albuquerque Journal

Albuquerque police have arrested a man accused of opening fire inside a nightclub during a fight early last month in the North Valley.

Oscar Valdez, 29, is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, shooting at or from a motor vehicle and unlawful carrying of a firearm in a liquor establishment in connection with the Sept. 1 incident.

Valdez was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center. It is unclear if he has an attorney and his family declined to comment.

Valdez and another man were shot in the incident, but it is unclear from the complaint who shot Valdez, according to court records.

Prosecutors filed a motion to detain Valdez until trial, saying he could have easily killed any number of people that were in the club with his actions.

Police responded to reports of a shooting at Leos nightclub on Candelaria NW, near 12th Street, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. Officers found bullet casings in and outside the bar, along with blood near the bathroom.

Police said the DJ at the time was covered in blood and told officers a man shot at him, but missed, during an argument. The DJ told police he and others disarmed the shooter and he ran outside.

Another witness told police the shooter fired at the building before leaving, according to the complaint.

Valdez called 911 to report being shot and was taken to a hospital.

Police said Valdez told them he was celebrating his birthday at Leos when he was pistol-whipped and shot in the bathroom. Around that time, a man showed up at the hospital with a gunshot wound and told police he was shot at Leos.

The man told police he did not know who shot him and did not want to pursue charges in fear of retaliation, according to the complaint. Video from the club showed women fighting before Valdez pistol-whipped a man and shot the gun in the air.

Police said the video showed Valdez and the DJ fighting as another man pointed a gun at Valdez until he was disarmed. The video showed Valdez grab a rifle from his SUV, and shoot the building and an adjacent taco truck.

The owner of Leos and the DJ identified Valdez as the shooter in a photo array.

It is unknown when (Valdez) was shot, it is unknown if the firearm went off when the other individuals were trying to take it from him, or if he was, in fact, shot in the bathroom where there are no cameras, according to the complaint.
Copyright  2022 Albuquerque Journal

A driver has yet to be charged after allegedly striking a man who was working on his own vehicle, killing him, and running off on Monday in Southeast Albuquerque.

Rebecca Atkins, an Albuquerque Police Department spokeswoman, said the investigation is ongoing.

She said police responded sometime before 5:30 p.m. to a crash in the 900 block of Wilmoore SE, near Yale and Avenida Cesar Chavez. The man who was struck was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Atkins said police determined the driver of a Chrysler PT Cruiser had turned on to Wilmoore from Avenida Cesar Chavez in a reckless manner. She said the victim was working on his vehicle when the PT Cruiser crashed into the vehicle he was working on.

The victim appears to have possibly been hit by the PT Cruiser causing him to then hit the vehicle he was working on, Atkins said.

She said the driver of the PT Cruiser, a woman, fled the scene on foot but was identified and charges against her are pending at this time.
ULAN BATOR, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- A total of 1,746 cases of lumpy skin disease in cattle have been reported in Mongolia so far this year, and 1,255 of them have been slaughtered, local media reported on Thursday.

So far, the eastern province of Sukhbaatar and southern provinces of Dundgovi and Dornogovi have been quarantined due to the disease, said the report, citing the country's General Authority for Veterinary Services.

Lumpy skin disease is a viral infection of cattle characterized by fever, enlarged superficial lymph nodes and multiple nodules on the skin and mucous membranes.

The livestock sector is a main pillar of the Mongolian economy with around 70 million heads of livestock in the country with a population of around 3.4 million. 
Copyright  2022 Albuquerque Journal

Are images of wolves and Spartan helmets overlaid with Thin Blue Line flags and slogans on Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office recruiting vehicles likely to attract the type of person the community wants to serve as peace officers?

Is it appropriate for BCSO to be featured on  and promoting  the for-profit reality television show On Patrol: Live?

The Sheriffs Office Advisory and Review Board will tackle both of these questions at its monthly meeting Friday. It is inviting the public to comment and the sheriffs office will have a representative present to answer questions.

After hearing about the issues, SOARB Chairman Tommy Jewell said hes worried that the sheriffs office might be using symbology thats offensive in a diverse community like ours.

Were at a pivotal place, said Jewell, a retired metro and state district judge. Were less than a month away from an election so its a perfect time for the community to ask: What do we want the sheriffs office to look like? What do we want the next sheriff to stand for?'

Jayme Fuller, a BCSO spokeswoman, said the department always welcomes input from the public.

She said it hasnt received any formal negative complaints from the community regarding BCSOs participation in On Patrol: Live and she said the images on the vehicles were created by cadet classes.

Floyd Vasquez, a county spokesman, said he brought both matters to the nine-member board after seeing posts on Twitter.

A citizen had posted photos of BCSOs recruiting vehicle asking what was going on and calling the Spartan helmet with the Thin Blue Line flag especially egregious. Some have posited that Spartan imagery has been appropriated by white supremacy groups.

Fuller said the images on the recruiting vehicles represent camaraderie and the Roman numerals signify the cadet class number.

It is a built-in tradition to have each cadet class create a guidon, which displays their class symbol, Fuller wrote in an email. The cadets represent our community and come from various and diverse backgrounds. We would never promote any symbolism that may cause division in the community we serve.

As for On Patrol: Live  a show on REELZ that films deputies at work and broadcasts with little time delay  Vasquez questioned whether the show could be distracting to deputies and therefore present a liability to the county.

The Albuquerque Police Department had participated in COPS, a forerunner to shows such as On Patrol: Live, before Mayor Martin Chavez banned it in 2001.

BCSO began participating in COPS in 2014. COPS went off the air in the wake of the racial reckoning following the killing of George Floyd but returned in October 2021 on Fox Nation.

Over the past several months, BCSO has been promoting On Patrol: Live on Twitter saying things like: Our guys are staying busy tonight! #oplive #OPLiveNation Im sure everyone is wondering if these suspects are going to come out of the house or if they will need a little extra encouragement  #stolenvehicles #guns #felons.

According to its website, producers for On Patrol: Live reached out to a diverse set of departments across the country when choosing participants. The departments involved do not get paid by the producers except for a nominal Insignia Fee, which involves paying the local government for the rights to air an agencys name or logo.

Fuller said BCSO has received overwhelming support on social media about being on On Patrol: Live.

It has served as a humanistic portrayal of the job and humanizes each citizen who wears the badge in service of our community, Fuller said. We seek to highlight the professional and dedicated work our deputies do every day.

The Sheriffs Office Advisory and Review Board was created in September 2020. Its purpose is to improve public transparency and accountability with BCSO by providing opportunities for public discussion and for the analysis of the departments policies and practices. It is not an oversight board and its findings are not binding.
NAME: Katherine Wray

POLITICAL PARTY: Democratic

OCCUPATION: Judge, New Mexico Court of Appeals

CITY OF RESIDENCE: Albuquerque

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: I have worked and practiced in the district and appellate courts for nearly 15 years. I first served as a law clerk for an appellate and a district court judge. In private practice, I worked simultaneously as a criminal staff attorney, trial counsel in complex civil cases and an appellate attorney. My practice focused on legal writing and analysis, as well as civil and appellate procedure. I served multiple terms on the New Mexico Supreme Courts Appellate Rules Committee and the Code of Professional Conduct committee, and I was privileged to teach legal writing at UNM School of Law.

EDUCATION: I graduated from Punahou School in Honolulu; earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in stage management from Pennsylvania State University; and earned a J.D. from the University of New Mexico School of Law.

CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: keepjudgewray.com

MAJOR PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: My greatest professional accomplishment is having been selected by the Bipartisan Judicial Nominating Commission and appointed by the governor to serve as a judge on the Court of Appeals. It is an honor to work in the judiciary because each court employee contributes to keep our system functioning. Every day, my work is part of keeping a promise to the citizens of New Mexico that the system will work for them. That doesnt mean that everyone wins their case in court every time, for sure. But by accepting the judicial role, Ive also accepted that Im among the people who are accountable for keeping the system running. I am proud to be a judge on the Court of Appeals because Im contributing to and improving my community and challenging myself daily to do the work, do the work well, and remain accountable to the public.

MAJOR PERSONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: I share my greatest personal accomplishment with my husband of 22 yearswho was also my high school sweetheart. We have raised our two boys, who are teenagers now, to be kind, respectful, independent young men. They are determined and funny and conscientious. They embrace challenges, get up after setbacks, and encounter every new thing with curiosity and enthusiasm. To the extent that our boys can be considered an accomplishment of mine, I am so honored to be their mother.

Why are you running and what strengths would you bring to the judiciary?

Clerking and in my law practice, I worked hard to learn to quickly digest and understand legal issues, write efficiently, work collaboratively, and handle multiple projects on tight deadlines. I applied to become a judge to use those skills to do fulfilling work and safeguard justice for my statewide community.

Personal background

1. Have you or your business, if you are a business owner, ever been the subject of any state or federal tax liens?

No.

2. Have you ever been involved in a personal or business bankruptcy proceeding?

No.

3. Have you ever been arrested for, charged with, or convicted of drunken driving, any misdemeanor or any felony in New Mexico or any other state?

No. [I had a speeding ticket in Hawaii when I was 17 and another in 2008 in New Mexico. I have gotten two or three parking tickets that I immediately paid.]
SANTA FE  Michelle Lujan Grisham and Mark Ronchetti traded insults and harsh jabs in their final televised debate Wednesday as they offered competing visions for New Mexico amid an increasingly bitter governors race.

They clashed on policy proposals  abortion, government spending and crime, among them  but also questioned and criticized each other bluntly.

Ronchetti, the Republican challenger, accused Lujan Grisham of hypocrisy for saying she supports and believes the victims of sexual harassment, yet she agreed to a $150,000 settlement with a former campaign spokesman who had alleged she grabbed his crotch while laughing in a 2018 campaign meeting.

Youve never come clean, Ronchetti said. He added: You are a hypocrite.

Lujan Grisham, the Democratic incumbent, called it a false attack and said her campaign disclosed the settlement publicly. It was reached, her campaign has said, to avoid the cost and distraction of litigation at the apex of the pandemic.

You have spent your entire campaign attacking my character and my integrity, she fired back. Theyre baseless attacks.

Youre a TV personality, she added, with no experience.

The combative debate  aired by KOAT and jointly sponsored by the Albuquerque Journal and KKOB Radio  came as the race turns increasingly negative in the final weeks before Election Day.

The candidates devoted much of their time Wednesday to contrasting their policy ideas and plans, but with plenty of barbs aimed at each other.

Lujan Grisham, a former congresswoman and state Cabinet secretary, touted her experience and leadership during difficult times over the last four years as she made the pitch for a second term.

Ronchetti, a former meteorologist for KRQE, blasted her for New Mexicos high violent crime rate and poor academic outcomes, arguing its time for new leadership at the Capitol.

The government in Santa Fe has never been bigger, never been richer, Ronchetti said.

And the spending, he said, isnt making a meaningful difference in the lives of ordinary New Mexicans.

Lujan Grisham acknowledged challenging times  in the pandemic and amid the largest wildfire in state history  but she said New Mexico is recovering. The unemployment rate, she said, had fallen to its lowest level in 14 years.

Progress isnt promised, she said. The threat of going backward is real.

Abortion rights

Abortion was an immediate flash point. Lujan Grisham highlighted her signing of a bill that repealed New Mexicos criminal abortion law.

Women have a choice in New Mexico today because Im governor, she said.

Ronchetti described himself as pro-life but said voters should decide the issue through a constitutional amendment.

The values of the people in the state of New Mexico have to be taken into account, he said.

Ronchetti has faced negative ads on the issue, some of which highlight the comments of an Albuquerque megachurch pastor who announced from the pulpit that  after talking to Ronchetti for hours  he believes Ronchetti wants to end abortion in New Mexico but cant say so publicly because it would damage his election chances.

Ronchettis campaign maintains his position has been consistent and that he told the pastor the same things hes said on the campaign trail. The pastor later released a written statement saying as much.

Ronchetti has called for a 15-week abortion ban with exceptions for rape, incest or risks to the mothers life, and he has also proposed the issue be decided by voters in a special election.

Settlement

The debate gave each candidate a chance to ask the other a question.

Lujan Grisham asked Ronchetti if he knew what misoprostol is  a drug for treating stomach ulcers but also used in medication abortions.

Ronchetti didnt answer directly but suggested it was intended as a gotcha question.

This is what 25 years in government gets you, he said. This gets you a governor who wants to play Jeopardy.  People have had enough of the political games. Its garbage at this point.

Ronchetti used his question to ask about the allegations levied by James Hallinan, the former campaign spokesman. He asked the governor why Hallinan shouldnt be allowed to speak about what happened.

The governor didnt answer the question directly but said her campaign has been transparent about the issue. She called the question a baseless attack.

An attorney for Hallinan earlier this year said the governor and Hallinan had resolved any differences or issues to their satisfaction and that she couldnt provide any more information.

The governors campaign contends the allegations are false and that the case was settled to avoid the expense and distraction of a lawsuit.

Ronchetti has launched TV ads highlighting the settlement.

Voting starts

The 60-minute debate was the last TV debate scheduled in the race. The candidates participated in one other televised debate last month.

In Wednesdays debate, the candidates faced questions from Journal Capitol Bureau chief Dan Boyd, Bob Clark of KKOB Radio, and KOAT anchors Shelly Ribando and Doug Fernandez.

Libertarian candidate Karen Bedonie wasnt invited to participate.

Watch online

Visit KOAT.com to view video of the debate.
Editors note: The Journal continues its series of stories focusing on key races in this years general election.

Copyright  2022 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  Two candidates with a background in county government are campaigning this year to succeed Democrat Tim Eichenberg as state treasurer, a key post that helps manage and invest some of the states cash.

Laura Montoya, a former Sandoval County treasurer, won a brutal primary campaign to emerge as the Democratic nominee this year, setting up a two-person race with Harry Montoya, a Republican whos served on the Santa Fe County Commission and Pojoaque school board.

Both candidates are touting their experience.

Laura Montoya said her tenure as a treasurer at the county level for eight years  including the beginning of the pandemic  demonstrates she has the skills to handle the role statewide. She was Sandoval County treasurer from 2013-20.

Its a proven track record, she said, in being able to manage money in all different kinds of environments.

Harry Montoya said he, too, would bring critical experience to the office. As a county commissioner, he said, he helped revise Santa Fe Countys investment strategy to boost income for road-building and other capital projects.

He also handled finances as chief executive of Hands Across Cultures, a nonprofit group that provides substance-abuse education in schools, among other programs.

Ive always served with honesty and integrity  thats something I pride myself on, Harry Montoya said in an interview.

Laura Montoya and Harry Montoya arent related.

The winner of the race will serve in a role akin to being the states banker, managing and investing the cash used to operate state government. The treasurer also runs an investment pool for local governments and serves on some state boards, including the State Investment Council and Public Employees Retirement Association.

Harry Montoya, whos 63 and lives in Nambe, said he would add a fresh perspective to state boards, drawing on his experience in schools, local government and the nonprofit sector. He is a PERA retiree himself.

Laura Montoya, 45 and a resident of Rio Rancho, said she is well-prepared to serve on state boards and would focus on building strong relationships with other agencies. Her tenure in Sandoval County included working with Republicans and Democrats on the County Commission, she said, and she has also served as an analyst at the Legislature.

The candidates have different views on the possibility of starting a public bank for New Mexico, an idea that some advocates have called on the Legislature to establish. The state treasurer would serve on a board overseeing the institution, which supporters say would help ensure loans are available for small businesses and rural development.

Harry Montoya opposes the idea. He raised questions about whether it would be properly regulated, and he contends that community banks and federal credit unions already fulfill the role supporters envision for a state bank.

Its not a prudent way to have peoples monies placed in that type of institution, he said. There would be no accountability.

Laura Montoya, by contrast, said she is willing to consider the idea, with an eye toward aiding rural communities or the cannabis industry. But she hasnt settled on a firm position yet.

Im super open to just having a discussion, she said.

Harry Montoya was unopposed in the Republican primary. He is a former Democrat and described himself as a recent convert to the GOP.

Laura Montoya withstood a barrage of attack adds in the primary  some launched by Eichenberg, the incumbent treasurer, who backed a rival candidate  to win the Democratic nomination.

Among the allegations in one radio ad were that she was charged with domestic violence. Laura Montoya has acknowledged the 2014 battery charge against her and notes that it was dropped. Her defense attorney at the time called it a serious self-defense issue.

Both candidates are reasonably well-funded. Laura Montoya has raised about $189,000 this election cycle and has about $54,000 in cash on hand.

Harry Montoya has raised about $76,000 and has about $43,000 in his account.
NAME: Sophie Cooper

POLITICAL PARTY: Libertarian

OCCUPATION: Lawyer, public defender Pueblo of Isleta

CITY OF RESIDENCE: Corrales

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: I have lived in New Mexico since 1977. Prior to law school, I owned a small business (Indian jewelry and supplies) in Gallup and Albuquerque. I worked 27 years as a state public defender and I am currently the public defender at Isleta. I have six step-children who I treasure. I have 71 years of life experience and am in good health.

EDUCATION: B.A. economics, University of Chicago, 1973; J.D. Washington College of Law at American University.

CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: none

MAJOR PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: Managing attorney Felony Division State Public Defender in 2nd Judicial District for over 10 years.

MAJOR PERSONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT: Surviving a DWI crash in 2008 which killed my boyfriend and the father of my step-children instantly. The driver that hit us was 4x over the legal limit. Im resilient; I rebuilt my life; I continue to help my step-children and they continue to help me.

Why are you running and what strengths would you bring to the judiciary?

I am running because I was appalled at the COVID-sparked aggrandizement of power by the executive branch (Gov. Lujan Grisham) and the consequent crushing of our personal liberties. I was appalled at the judicial branchs general support of her long use of emergency powers. I have a good understanding of life, law, economics and the cultures of New Mexico. I am collegial and clear-thinking. I believe in limited government, preservation of personal liberty and financial responsibility.

Personal background

1. Have you or your business, if you are a business owner, ever been the subject of any state or federal tax liens?

When I left for law school in 1987, I owed some money to the IRS from my jewelry business. I paid it all back by 1990. I think there was a lien for about two months until I met with an IRS agent and set a payment plan. Since then, I have paid everything on time and no tax liens or other credit problems.

2. Have you ever been involved in a personal or business bankruptcy proceeding?

No.

3. Have you ever been arrested for, charged with, or convicted of drunken driving, any misdemeanor or any felony in New Mexico or any other state?

No.
SEOUL, South Korea  North Korea fired a ballistic missile and hundreds of artillery shells toward the sea Friday and flew warplanes near the tense border with South Korea, further raising animosities triggered by the Norths recent barrage of weapons tests.

The North Korean moves suggest it is reviving an old playbook of stoking fears of war with provocative weapons tests before it seeks to win greater concessions from its rivals.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement the short-range missile lifted off from the Norths capital region at 1:49 a.m. Friday (1649 GMT Thursday; 12:49 p.m. EDT Thursday) and flew toward its eastern waters.

It was North Koreas 15th missile launch since it resumed testing activities Sept. 25. North Korea said Monday its recent missile tests were simulations of nuclear strikes on South Korean and U.S. targets in response to their dangerous military exercises involving a U.S. aircraft carrier.

Soon after the latest missile test, North Korea fired 130 rounds of shells off its west coast and 40 rounds off its east coast. The shells fell inside maritime buffer zones the two Koreas established under a 2018 inter-Korean agreement on reducing tensions, South Koreas military said.

On Friday afternoon, South Koreas military said North Korea fired 90 additional shells off its east coast. It said it also spotted about 300 other North Korean artillery launches from two separate western coastal areas. In both cases, the North Korean shells were believed to have landed in the buffer zones again, according to South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Observers said it was North Koreas third and most direct violation of the 2018 agreement, which created buffer zones and no-fly areas along their land and sea boundaries to prevent accidental clashes. South Koreas Defense Ministry said it earlier sent North Korea a message asking it not to violate the agreement again.

North Korea separately flew warplanes, presumably 10 aircraft, near the rivals border late Thursday and early Friday, prompting South Korea to scramble fighter jets. There were no reports of clashes between the two countries. It was reportedly the first time that North Korean military aircraft have flown that close to the border since 2017.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said North Koreas provocations are becoming indiscriminative' but that his country has massive retaliation capabilities that can deter actual North Korean assaults to some extent.

The decision to attack cant be made without a willingness to risk a brutal outcome, Yoon told reporters. The massive punishment and retaliation strategy, which is the final step of our three-axis strategy, would be a considerable psychological and social deterrence (for the North).

South Koreas Foreign Ministry said Friday it imposed sanctions on 15 North Korean individuals and 16 organizations suspected of involvement in illicit activities to finance North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs. They were Seouls first unilateral sanctions on North Korea in five years, but observers say they are largely a symbolic step because the two Koreas have little financial dealings between them.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters he supports South Koreas decision to impose the sanctions.

Most of the Norths recent weapons tests were ballistic missile launches that are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions. But the North hasnt been slapped with fresh sanctions thanks to a divide at the U.N. over U.S. disputes with Russia regarding its invasion of Ukraine and with China over their strategic competition.

The missile launched Friday traveled 650-700 kilometers (403-434 miles) at a maximum altitude of 50 kilometers (30 miles) before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, according to South Korean and Japanese assessments.

Whatever the intentions are, North Koreas repeated ballistic missile launches are absolutely impermissible and we cannot overlook its substantial advancement of missile technology, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that the U.S. commitment to the defense of South Korea and Japan remains ironclad.

Other recent North Korean tests included a new intermediate-range missile that flew over Japan and demonstrated a potential range to reach the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam; long-range cruise missiles; and a ballistic missile fired from an inland reservoir, a first for the country.

After Wednesdays cruise missile launches, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his nuclear forces were fully prepared for actual war to bring enemies under their control at a blow and vowed to expand the operational realm of his nuclear armed forces, according to North Koreas state media.

Some observers had predicted North Korea would likely temporarily pause its testing activities this week in consideration of its ally China, which is set to begin a major political conference Sunday that is expected to give President Xi Jinping a third five-year term as party leader.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular briefing Friday that all related countries should work to prevent tensions from escalating and move toward restarting meaningful talks.

North Koreas ongoing testing spree is reminiscent of its 2017 torrid run of missile and nuclear tests that prompted Kim and then-U.S. President Donald Trump to exchange threats of total destruction. Kim later abruptly entered high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Trump in 2018 but their negotiations fell apart a year later due to wrangling over how much sanctions relief Kim should be provided in return for a partial surrender of his nuclear capability.

Kim has repeatedly said he has no intentions of resuming nuclear diplomacy. But some experts say he would eventually want to win international recognition of his country as a nuclear state and hold arms control talks with the United State to wrest extensive sanctions relief and other concessions in return for partial denuclearization steps.

The urgency of North Koreas nuclear program has grown since it passed a law last month authorizing the preemptive use of nuclear weapons over a broad range of scenarios, including non-war situations when it may perceive its leadership as under threat.

Most of the recent North Korean tests were of short-range nuclear-capable missiles targeting South Korea. Some analysts say North Koreas possible upcoming nuclear test, its first bomb detonation in five years, would be related to efforts to manufacture battlefield tactical warheads to be placed on such short-range missiles.

These developments sparked security jitters in South Korea, with some politicians and scholars renewing their calls for the U.S. to redeploy its tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea as deterrence against intensifying North Korean nuclear threats.

North Koreas military early Friday said it took unspecified strong military countermeasures in response to South Koreas artillery fire for about 10 hours near the border on Thursday. South Koreas military later confirmed it conducted artillery training at a frontline area but said its drills didnt violate the conditions of the 2018 agreement.

Maj. Gen. Kang Ho Pil of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a televised statement that South Korea issued a stern warning to (North Korea) to immediately halt its weapons tests.

South Koreas military said it will begin an annual 12-day field training Monday to hone its operational capabilities under various scenarios of North Korean provocations. It said an unspecified number of U.S. troops plan to take part in this years drills.

___

Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and video producer Liu Zheng in Beijing contributed to this report.
SALT LAKE CITY  A Utah-based Native American tribe that frequently has sparred with President Joe Biden criticized the White House again for not adequately consulting its leaders ahead of this weeks creation of a national monument on ancestral lands in Colorado.

The Ute Indian Tribe is one of three Ute tribes in the U.S. West that share ancestral ties but operate independently. Representatives from the other two in Colorado  the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute  were on board with the plan and attended Wednesdays ceremony with Biden but didnt speak on stage.

Biden and others addressed the significance of the land to tribes at length, and the White Houses official proclamation included a mention of Ute burial sites in the area.

But the Ute Indian Tribe, which has nearly 3,000 members on lands in an area known for oil and gas operations in eastern Utah, claimed in a news release issued late Wednesday night that it wasnt on board with the plan.

Shaun Chapoose, chairman of the tribes Business Committee, which serves as its governing body, said Thursday that his tribe was only made aware that a new monument was under consideration a week ago in a phone call with the White House. He said his tribe asked for time to assess the idea and provide feedback.

But a week later, the administration informed the tribe the monument would be created this week at a ceremony in Colorado. Chapoose said he was invited and went to Colorado but left early after he says he was made to feel like an afterthought, put on the final bus and never told where to go.

What frustrated us is that they didnt want us there to comment, they wanted us there for the photo opp, Chapoose said. I dont expect them to roll out a red carpet, but I expect a little common courtesy. If Im just going to be one of the Indians that you want to photograph, Im the wrong Indian to call.

The chairs of both Colorado tribes supported the designation in letters to Biden sent Oct. 7. The letters were sent by Manuel Heart, chairman of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and Melvin J. Baker, chairman of the Southern Ute Indian Tribal Council.

Baker noted that for centuries, the Camp Hale area was home to Ute people and remains culturally important to the Utes.

It has been said that what a country saves is what a country chooses to say about itself. By preserving these areas of cultural importance to the Ute people, you are reflecting the significance of Native people and tribal nations to the history and progress of this country, Baker said.

Biden administration officials met with each Ute tribe in the development of the proclamation. A senior administration official said the tribes expressed support  not opposition  to the monument. The official was not authorized to speak publicly about private discussions and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. And representatives from all three tribes were invited to Wednesdays event.

We appreciate the strong support tribal leaders expressed in preserving the sacred lands of Camp Hale as a national monument during our conversations with them prior to the designation, and look forward to continuing that engagement with tribal leaders, said White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan. He said the administration is committed to a requirement that any management decisions affecting the monument be made in consultation with tribes.

At Wednesdays event near the Colorado ski town of Vail, Biden spoke primarily about the historic significance of the site being an old alpine training site where U.S. soldiers prepared for battles in the Italian Alps during World War II. But he also made time to speak about it once being home to tribes.

Im also honored to be joined by several tribal leaders here, because this is your progeny, this magnificent land, Biden said. These treasured lands tell the story of America. For thousands of years, tribal nations have been stewards of this sacred land, hunting game, foraging for medicinal plants, and maintaining a deep, spiritual bond with the land itself.

The criticism comes as Biden tries to elevate issues of importance to Native Americans. He named Deb Haaland as Interior secretary, making her the first Native American to lead a U.S. Cabinet agency. Haalands selection was hailed as historic by Democrats and tribal groups who said it meant that Indigenous people would for the first time see a Native American lead the powerful department where decisions on relations with 574 federally recognized tribes are made.

Haaland, a member of Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico, wasnt at Wednesdays ceremony, and her agency isnt overseeing this new monument. The Camp Hale  Continental Divide National Monument, which covers more than 53,800 acres near the ski town of Vail, will protected and managed by the U.S. Forest Service under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Ute Indian Tribe has routinely has criticized the Biden administration.

The tribe rebuked Biden in the first days of his term over the oil and gas moratorium. They accused him of breaking a treaty between the tribe and the U.S. government, saying energy-producing tribes rely on development to fund governments and provide services to tribal members. Biden later clarified the rule didnt apply to tribal lands.

It also claims the Biden administration hasnt adequately consulted with the tribe on things like drought in the Colorado River basin and failed to give the tribe more control of land within its reservation boundaries.

The Ute Indian Tribes reservation  established before Utah became a state in 1896  is the second-largest of any Native American tribe in the U.S., at more than 7,000 square miles (18,000 square kilometers). But the land is a checkerboard of ownership, and the Utes dont control everything within the boundaries.

The Ute Indian Tribe is among tribes that have pushed the administration to move from a tribal consultation process that is often seen as a check-the-box exercise to one where tribes are looped in early in the development of federal actions and consent is required from tribes, as outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. The concept of free, prior and informed consent hasnt gained widespread traction in the U.S.

Chapoose said his tribe had hoped the Biden administration would give more attention to his tribes need but that it has grown increasingly frustrated with the lack of consultation for the new monument.

Maybe nobody else wants to say it, but were going to say it: Were done, were tired, were not going to allow this to continue, he said.

____

Associated Press writers Colleen Long in Los Angeles, Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff and James Anderson in Denver contributed to this report.
LOS ANGELES  The effort by three Latino politicians to maximize their influence in Los Angeles backfired after a leaked recording of their meeting exposed crude and, at times, racist banter that has already led to one city councilmembers resignation and could have broader legal and political consequences.

If the other two councilmembers heed calls to step down, their constituents will have lost some of their most powerful leaders and a state investigation into their private meeting could lead to criminal charges and undo efforts to draw districts in their favor.

Pressure mounted Thursday on Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon to resign a day after former council President Nury Martinez stepped down for comparing another colleagues Black son to a monkey, belittling Mexicans from the state of Oaxaca and making crass remarks about Armenians and Jews.

Acting City Council President Mitch OFarrell canceled Fridays scheduled meeting, saying members couldnt conduct business until the two step down.

The recording from a year ago of the three speaking with a labor leader revealed a rare glimpse of behind-the-scenes maneuvering during the politically charged process of redrawing political boundaries every decade.

Aside the from the shocking and salty dialog, the unusual element was that the conversation was recorded and aired publicly, said Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College and member of the California Citizens Redistricting Commission that draws district boundaries for congressional, legislative and other state-level races.

What we hear in those tapes is classic backroom negotiations of redistricting, Sadhwani said. We hear politicians who are not looking out for the interests of their constituents but are looking out for the interests of themselves towards reelection  drawing districts in such a way that their friends can win seats as well. Its the worst kind of abuse of power.

Whether it crossed the line into criminal activity or results in civil action, possibly leading to the redrawing of district boundaries, will depend on what Attorney General Rob Bontas investigation finds.

Bonta did not mention what type of crime may have been committed. But Gregory Totten, chief executive officer of the California District Attorneys Association, said it could focus on whether the politicians had a conflict of interest that influenced their actions.

Totten and Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who was a member of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, said criminal charges would be less likely than an order to draw new maps for districts.

Investigators could look into whether the rights of a particular racial or ethnic group were diluted in violation of the federal Voting Rights Act.

In the recording, the issue of race frequently surfaced.

Latinos, who make up nearly half the citys population, only had four  or just over a quarter  of the 15 seats on the council at the time. Black people, who make up less than 10 percent of the population have three  a fifth  of the seats.

De Leon says Bonin, who is white, is like the fourth Black on the council and implied he wouldnt stand by Latinos.

Hell never say a (expletive) word about us, de Leon said.

The group discussed how to fill the seat held by Mark Ridley-Thomas, a Black member facing federal corruption charges, who was eventually suspended by the council.

Martinez said the African Americans look at this as a hostile takeover if they appointed an ally.

The one who will support us is Heather Hutt, said Cedillo, referring to the Black woman who eventually was picked to fill Ridley-Thomas seat.

Hutt has joined other members calling for Cedillo and de Leon to resign. She said in a statement that she was unaware of the conversation the three had and said she was legitimately chosen for the council.

The audio tapes released this week lay out a dangerous plot to weaken Black political representation across Los Angeles County, Hutt said. Let me be clear  I am a Black woman, not a pawn.

Levinson said the recording gives the impression they are explicitly drawing lines on the basis of race. She said she would not be surprised to see a lawsuit designed to throw out the maps.

Its all boiling down to: Did they draw the lines to hurt Black voting power? Levinson said. What Bonta is ultimately going to have to determine is  (are they) essentially saying, We want to make it difficult for African American voters to elect the candidate of their choosing. 

Challenges to district maps drawn through a partisan process are not uncommon in other states, and the U.S. Supreme Court just last week heard arguments on a challenge out of Alabama.

But the Attorney Generals office and experts could not point to other cases in California since voters in 2008 adopted the independent citizens redistricting commission that has drawn the maps after the last two censuses.

Local jurisdictions operate under different rules.

The city of Los Angeles has a commission appointed by councilmembers to draw up maps that can then be approved or rejected by the council. The recording was of a discussion over frustration with the proposed maps.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer has called on City Council to call a special election in the spring with an amendment to redraw the lines for the 2024 elections, independent of influence by city officials.

This ultimately is about political power in this city, Feuer said. The credibility of those (redistricting map) lines, and the power those lines reflect, will be tainted now given this conversation for sure, until there is some substitute provided.

The council, meanwhile, has been thrown into chaos by the scandal. Raucous protesters shut down a meeting Wednesday.

OFarrell said he has spoken with Cedillo, who was unseated in the primary and due to leave office at the end the year, and thinks he will resign.

OFarrell and others havent been able to reach de Leon, who is not facing reelection until 2024.

De Leon has apologized for his remarks and for what he said was appearing to condone Martinezs comments. Cedillo said he should have intervened.

Both men appeared at Tuesdays meeting and left after being booed and yelled at.

___

Thompson reported from Sacramento. Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
CATCHES OF THE WEEK

At Fenton Lake, Robert Barba, 3, of Belen caught several rainbow trout while trolling a silver flash Pistol Pete spinner fly from a boat Oct. 5.  Sly Ramirez of Los Lunas caught a 21-inch rainbow trout using a black Pistol Pete spinner fly Sept. 21.

Cooper Luke, 2, of Albuquerque caught his first trout on the Rio Chama using a white PowerBait Mouse Tail on Sept. 28.

If you have a catch of the week story, send it to funfishingnm@gmail.com.

NOTES FROM GAME & FISH

Northeast fishing report

Cabresto Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for trout at Charette Lakes was good using Joes Flies and salmon, peach PowerBait.

Fishing for trout on the Cimarron River was good using nightcrawler worms.

Clayton Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for smallmouth bass at Conchas Lake was fair using chartreuse and white crankbaits.

At Costilla Creek, the department is implementing the final phase of a project to expand Rio Grande cutthroat trout in 120 miles of the Costilla watershed in northern New Mexico. The final phase involves the removal of fish within a designated area (Rio Costilla from Costilla Dam downstream to the Valle Vidal Boundary, including all tributaries and Comanche Creek from the road culvert crossing on Forest Road 1950 downstream to its confluence with Rio Costilla and all tributaries). Tentative stocking of Rio Grande cutthroat trout is set for spring 2023.

Cowles Ponds had no reports from anglers this week.

Coyote Creek had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for rainbow trout at Eagle Nest Lake was good using worms, Woolly Bugger flies and Joes Flies. Fishing for pike was fair to good using Mepps #5 red and gold spinners and gold Double Cowgirl spinners.

Fishing for trout at Eagle Rock Lake was good using pink PowerBait Mouse Tails.

National forest closures have been in place restricting fishing access including on the Gallinas River. Visit the Santa Fe National Forest webpage or call the Santa Fe National Forest office at 505-438-5300 for the latest closure information.

Fishing for trout at Hopewell Lake was good using black and green Pistol Pete spinner flies with a water-filled bobber.

Fishing for catfish at Lake Alice was fair using nightcrawler worms.

Fishing for trout at Lake Maloya was good using garlic salmon eggs, garlic PowerBait and nightcrawler worms.

Fishing for trout on the Los Pinos River was fair using Panther Martin spinners and nymph flies.

Maxwell Lake 13 had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for trout at Monastery Lake was fair to good using small spinners and trout marshmallows.

Morphy Lake State Park has reopened to the public and have no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for trout on the Pecos River was good using salmon eggs near Pecos. Fishing for trout was good using 3-inch brown trout-pattern Rapala lures near Santa Rosa.

Fishing for trout on the Red River was fair to good using salmon eggs and beadhead nymph flies.

Fishing for trout on the Rio Chama was good using white PowerBait Mice Tails.

Fishing for trout on the Rio Grande was fair using worms.

Rio Hondo had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Mora had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Pueblo had no reports from anglers this week.

Santa Cruz Reservoir had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for trout at Shuree Ponds was fair to good using caddis dry flies and beadhead nymph flies.

Springer Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Storrie Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Stubblefield Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for walleye at Ute Lake was slow using live minnows in 30-40 feet of water. Fishing for white bass was fair using deep-diving lures while trolling and vertical jigging with spoons. Fishing for smallmouth bass and largemouth bass was fair using small swimbaits, crankbaits and various soft plastics fished on drop shot rigs on rocky points. Fishing for crappie was slow. Fishing for catfish was fair using punch bait and nightcrawler worms. The main lake water surface temperature was in the low 70s and the water clarity was clear.

Northwest fishing report

Fishing for smallmouth bass and catfish at Abiquiu Lake was slow to fair using live worms.

Animas River had no reports from anglers this week.

Albuquerque Area Drains had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for tiger muskie at Bluewater Lake was fair to good using Whopper Plopper lures, Rat-L-Trap lures and homemade streamer flies.

Fishing for trout on the Brazos River was good using hopper dry flies and black and gold Panther Martin spinners.

Fishing for trout at Canjilon Lakes was good using worms, Pistol Pete spinner flies and orange PowerBait.

Fishing for catfish at Cochiti Lake was fair using chicken liver and cut bait.

El Vado Lake can be accessed at Hargroves Day Use Area off State Road 322 and the Main Park area off State Road 112. The Rio Chama can be accessed at the North El Vado Day Use Area on State Road 95, 10 miles west of U.S. Highway 84. Lake levels are steady but expected to drop as crews work on the El Vado Dam. The Dam Day Use Area is closed due to the ongoing construction. State Road 112 over the dam will experience periodic closures. For more information, visit El Vado Lake State Parks webpage or call 575-588-7247.

Fishing for trout at Fenton Lake was good using silver flash Pistol Pete spinner flies.

Grants Riverwalk Pond has dried up due to pump failure. The city is planning to repair the pumps but is taking this opportunity to dredge the pond. They expect the pond to be offline for at least two to three months. Fish stockings will be discontinued until all work is done.

Heron Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

At the Jemez Waters, fishing for trout was fair to good using salmon eggs, mop flies and worms.

Fishing for trout at Laguna del Campo was fair to good using silver spinners and orange PowerBait.

Lagunitas Lakes had no reports from anglers this week.

Lake Farmington had no reports from anglers this week.

Stocking efforts at McGaffey Lake have been suspended due to extremely low water levels and unstable ground conditions. Lake conditions will be monitored and stocking will resume once conditions improve.

Fishing for smallmouth and largemouth bass at Navajo Lake was fair using Ned Rigs. Fishing for pike was slow to fair using jerkbaits. Fishing for kokanee salmon using snagging hooks was fair near the edges of the dam.

Fishing for trout on the Rio Chama was fair to good using white PowerBait mouse tails near Chama. Fishing for trout below El Vado Lake was fair using nightcrawler worms and small Rapala trout pattern lures. Fishing for trout below Abiquiu Lake was fair using worms and PowerBait. Please remember, from the river-crossing bridge on U.S. Highway 84 at Abiquiu upstream 7 miles to the base of Abiquiu Dam is special trout waters with a bag limit of two trout only.

Rio Grande had no reports from anglers this week.

Riverside Park Pond (Aztec Pond #1) had no reports from anglers this week.

San Gregorio Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

San Juan River had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for trout at the Seven Springs Brood Pond was good using gold beadhead nymph flies and black woolly worm flies.

Tiger Park Reservoir had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish at Tingley Beach was slow using hot dogs.

Fishing for trout at Trout Lakes was good using olive leech pattern flies.

Southwest fishing report

Fishing for bass at Alumni Pond was fair to good using shad and white topwater lures.

Fishing for all species was slow at Bear Canyon Lake.

Bill Evans Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for crappie at Caballo Lake was slow to fair using white grubs. Fishing for bass was slow to fair using crankbaits. Fishing for white bass was fair using small crankbaits. Fishing for catfish was good using live shad and gizzard shad cut bait.

Fishing for catfish at Elephant Butte Lake was good using shad and cut bait. Fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass was slow using plastic worms. Fishing for white bass was good using white and chartreuse curly-tail grubs. Fishing for crappie was slow to fair using grubs and live minnows. Fishing for walleye was slow using nightcrawler worms.

Escondida Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish on the Gila River was good using cut bait.

Fishing for trout at Glenwood Pond was fair using brown dry flies.

Fishing for trout at Lake Roberts was fair to good using chartreuse PowerBait and flies. Fishing for catfish was fair to good using chicken pieces and nightcrawler worms.

Percha Dam had no reports from anglers this week.

Quemado Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Rancho Grande Ponds had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Grande had no reports from anglers this week.

Snow Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for bass at Trees Lake was fair using nightcrawler worms.

Fishing for all species was slow at Young Pond.

Southeast fishing report

Alto Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish at Bataan Lake was slow using shrimp and nightcrawler worms.

Berrendo Creek had no reports from anglers this week. Please visit the Open Gate webpage for more information on this property.

Black River had no reports from anglers this week.

Blue Hole Park Pond had no reports from anglers this week.

Bonito Lake is closed until further notice by the City of Alamogordo due to fire damage.

Bosque Redondo Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Bottomless Lakes had no reports from anglers this week.

Brantley Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Carlsbad Municipal Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Chaparral Park Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Corona Pond had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for largemouth bass at Eunice Lake was fair using wacky rigged, watermelon red flake plastic worms,

Fishing for catfish at Green Meadow Lake was fair using hot dogs.

Greene Acres Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish at Grindstone Reservoir was fair to good using shrimp.

Jal Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish at Lake Van was slow using stink bait.

Fishing for bass at Oasis Park Lake was fair using garlic nightcrawler worms.

Pecos River had no reports from anglers this week.

Perch Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Bonito had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Ruidoso had no reports from anglers this week.

Rock Lake Hatchery Kids Pond had no reports from anglers this week.

Fishing for catfish at Santa Rosa Lake was fair to good using bluegill cut bait.

Sumner Lake had no reports from anglers this week.

Timberon Ponds had no reports from anglers this week.
Copyright  2022 Albuquerque Journal

New Mexicos chief elections officer and attorney general issued a joint advisory Thursday reminding voters they have a right to cast their ballot free of intimidation or coercion.

They urged voters to report any attempt to interfere with their voting rights to the Attorney Generals Office.

The warning comes after election workers say they faced increased threats in the 2020 election, in addition to armed protests after Donald Trump lost the election that year.

Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat up for reelection this year, said protesters or other people gathering in a group should be at least 100 feet from any polling location or ballot drop box, allowing voters to cast ballots without interference.

Voters, she said, should have confidence that they can return an absentee ballot at the drop boxes established in most counties. The containers are monitored by video and also equipped to alert election staff if they are tampered with, Toulouse Oliver said.

In New Mexico, a voters immediate family members or caregiver may return the persons absentee ballot to county election staff.

Watchers and challengers who are properly appointed are allowed inside polling locations, according to the advisory, but they cannot directly confront voters or interfere with the work of election workers.

Voter intimidation, coercion and discriminatory conduct  as well as obstruction and interference at the polls  is illegal under federal and New Mexico law, Toulouse Oliver said.

New Mexico has no ban on firearms at polling places, though in some cases a school or similar location used as a voting center may have its own rules.

Attorney General Hector Balderas, a Democrat, said his office would investigate complaints about firearms to determine whether intimidation or other violations occurred.

Voters who feel intimidated have an immediate right to complain, not only to those poll workers, but to give us a call, he said.

His office, he said, also stands ready to investigate complaints about voter fraud or other election misconduct.

Voting started just this week. County clerks started mailing absentee ballots to voters who have requested them, and each county has opened an in-person voting site. An expanded group of early-voting sites will open Oct. 22.

Reach out

 Voters may call the Attorney Generals Office at 1-844-255-9210 to report suspected election misconduct or interference. The secretary of state also operates a voter hotline at 1-800-477-3632.

 Visit NMVote.org for election information.
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan continues to face a growth in the number of dengue fever cases as two more deaths were reported from the disease in the South Asian country.

The eastern Punjab and the southern Sindh province both reported one death, the provincial health authorities said on Wednesday.

Punjab reported 359 new cases in the last 24 hours, the provincial health department said on Wednesday. Its Rawalpindi city reported 132 new cases, followed by the provincial capital Lahore with 102 cases. The total number of dengue cases in Punjab this year has now gone up to 9,865.

In the last 24 hours, Sindh reported 315 new infections, the provincial health department said on Wednesday night. The worst-hit area was Karachi, the provincial capital, which reported 242 new cases.

With the newly-reported dengue cases, the October figure to date for the province has risen to 3,836, bringing the total local tally to 13,990 this year.

In northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, 373 more people were diagnosed with the mosquito-borne disease, the provincial health department said on Wednesday night. The number of active cases in the province currently stands at 2,542 while the total number of cases this year has reached 12,833.

The national capital Islamabad reported 80 new dengue cases in the last 24 hours, the health authorities said on Wednesday night. The city's total tally has risen to 3,423 this year. 
UK-based rocket developer Skyrora has attempted to launch its suborbital Skylark L rocket from a site in Langanes, Iceland into space.

The launch attempt tested critical processes and components ahead of the companys planned full orbital launch from the UK in 2023, which will be the first ever orbital launch from British soil.

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Skylark L is 11m (36ft) tall and can carry payloads of up to 50kg (110 lbs). The rocket is capable of flying beyond 100km (62 miles) from the Earths surface and uses a 30kN bipropellant that can power it to reach four times the speed of sound.

The rocket was originally developed to complete final checks on subsystems prior to their use in the companys Skyrora XL rocket. Around 70% of the technology tested in the Skylark L launch attempt will be applied to the systems of the Skyrora XL vehicle

Skryroras XL rocket will be double the height of L at 22m (72ft) and capable of a 315kg payload mass. The company plans to launch XL for the first time next year. The company is testing the engines for XL with a series of static fire tests in Scotland.

The vehicle left the launch pad and experienced an anomaly, landing in the Norwegian Sea approximately 500m (1,640ft) away from the launch site.

The SkyLark L test flight in Iceland used a containerized mobile spaceport Edinburgh, Scotland-based Skyrora has developed and enabled the launch attempt to be made within seven days of arriving on site.

Lee Rosen, chief operations officer at Skyrora said, With over three decades in the business, I can assure you that despite the best design, build, and test preparations, anomalies still unfortunately do happen.

Skyroras launch attempt of Skylark L has provided the team with valuable experience in operations procedures, logistics coordination, and execution of the rapid setup and pack-down of our mobile launch complex, an experience which will propel us forward monumentally in our mission to reach orbit. We are delighted to have had the support of the Icelandic Government and the local orshofn community for this launch attempt. It is a true sign of the strengthened relationship at the heart of European space efforts.

Volodymyr Levykin, founder and CEO of Skyrora said, Skyrora is continuously propelling itself towards UK launch. Those on site are currently completing pack-down through those challenging conditions, and we will be investigating the nature and cause of the anomaly further once that process is finished.

Based on what we have achieved here, we remain confident of achieving our objective of a full vertical orbital launch from UK soil in 2023.
CANBERRA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- More than one in 10 Australians have suffered from long COVID-19 symptoms, a study has found.

The study, which was conducted by Australian National University (ANU) researchers, found nearly one third of Australian adults who have had COVID-19 had symptoms that lasted longer than four weeks.

Approximately 5 percent of adults have suffered from COVID-19 symptoms for three months or more after initially testing positive.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic in Australia, which has a population of about 25 million, has surpassed 10 million.

The study found that while it's now likely nearly half of all Australian adults have had COVID-19, it hasn't spread equally across the population.

Females, young adults and those living in middle-income households were the most likely to contract COVID-19.

"This is a snapshot of how Australians have experienced COVID-19 since early 2020," Nicholas Biddle, lead author of the research, said in a media release on Wednesday.

"89.5 percent of adults surveyed who've had COVID-19 reported having symptoms. Those who experienced symptoms of some kind were hit with around 10 different symptoms on average, with the most common being tiredness."

According to the study, around a quarter of Australians with symptoms experienced 13 or more, while another quarter experienced seven or less. A runny nose or sneezing, sore throat, cough and headache were also common, experienced by around three-quarters of those with symptoms.

It found people who reported multiple symptoms were more likely to experience a drop in their mental wellbeing.

"On the other hand, people who had short experiences with COVID-19 or few symptoms generally didn't experience a decline in wellbeing compared to those who had not had COVID-19," Biddle said.

The Department of Health last Friday provided the updates on national COVID-19 weekly current trends.

"Over the last week, 36,242 cases of COVID-19 were reported across Australia, an average of 5,177 cases per day," it said on its website.

The number of cases being treated in hospitals at a seven-day average is 1,548. 
Interview: China contributes to building community with shared future for mankind as responsible major country: Russian communist official

Xinhua) 08:24, October 13, 2022

Photo taken on Aug. 18, 2022 shows a high-speed electric passenger train, customized for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, being loaded on a vessel in Qingdao Port of east China's Shandong province. (Photo by Jiang Chao/Xinhua)

MOSCOW, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- China has been working in various fields to contribute to building a community with a shared future for mankind, which demonstrates its commitment to the role of a responsible major country, Dmitry Novikov, deputy chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Russia, has said.

"The essence of building a community with a shared future for mankind is that humanity is called upon to solve problems through dialogue, search for common goals and join forces in achieving them," Novikov told Xinhua in a recent interview.

In his view, the concept includes rich content ranging from politics, security and economy to culture and ecology, and "these ideas are able to unite people all over the world."

Novikov believes that the strength of building a community with a shared future for mankind is that the concept is inextricably linked to implementation, as shown by cooperation within the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Aerial photo taken on June 9, 2022 shows a container terminal in Qingdao Port, east China's Shandong Province. (Photo by Yu Fangping/Xinhua)

This unprecedented initiative has ramifications for dozens of countries and billions of people, he said. "We see equal and mutually beneficial cooperation in this initiative. Its implementation promotes industrial development, increases personnel training, creates jobs, and raises living standards."

Both China's development and the implementation of the BRI are beneficial to regional and global growth, he added.

Novikov considers the China-proposed Global Development Initiative (GDI) equally important.

"Just as President Xi Jinping underscored at the High-level Dialogue on Global Development in June, developed countries need to fulfill obligations, and developing countries need to deepen cooperation. The North and the South need to work in the same direction to forge a united, equal, balanced and inclusive global development partnership, so that no country and nobody is left behind," he said.

"From such Chinese solutions as building a community with a shared future for mankind, the BRI, and the GDI, we can see the basis for establishing a more just and equal world order," he said.

Photo taken on Sept. 22, 2022 shows an intelligent production base of the Great Wall Motors (GWM) in Yongchuan District of Chongqing, southwest China. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)

Novikov has been to China several times and has witnessed its rapid development.

"Where a poor village was seen not long time ago, skyscrapers rose on my next visit. Where an old dirt road once ran, a high-speed rail line was built. Such transformations are common in China," he said.

Novikov was also impressed by China's advances in electronics, machine manufacturing, automotive and space sectors.

"It is extremely important for me that all these successes are achieved along with an increase in people's living standard ... The newest and most convenient enterprises, ultra-modern cities, excellent expressways, high-speed rail lines -- they all serve people," Novikov said.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
PHNOM PENH, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said here on Thursday that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) needs to strengthen cooperation for the sustainable and resilient recovery of the region's socio-economic development.

Addressing the 28th ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Council Meeting in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen said ASEAN needs to strengthen cooperation and pay more attention to the development of human capital, digitalization, public health and social protection system to be ready to respond to future crises.

"The experiences from COVID-19 have clearly showed the necessity to strengthen the regional social safety net, which will make a significant contribution to promoting equitable and inclusive regional socioeconomic development," he said.

Hun Sen said that COVID-19 has already one-step ahead transformed traditional education into a digital form and that ASEAN should make greater efforts in promoting the digital transformation of the education system.

He said the development of innovative and cultural economy is also a strategy with potential to promote ASEAN economic recovery, especially supporting the pandemic-hit tourism and promoting the development of small and medium enterprises.

He said continuing to strengthen people-to-people ties is also an important priority that will help raise awareness of ASEAN values and identities amongst youths, as well as strengthen the role of youth in building ASEAN community responsibly.

"Youths are also playing an important role in adopting new technologies in the context of Industry 4.0, which will be a driving force in the socio-economic development in the region," Hun Sen said.

Sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development could not be separated from the consideration of addressing the threats and impacts of climate change in a proactive manner, he said, adding that in September, Typhoon Noru caused damages to the region's economy and claimed many lives.

"In this regard, I would like to reiterate the proposal to establish an initiative for the establishment of the ASEAN Green Deal, which will make significant contribution in directing ASEAN towards a sustainable and highly competitive future," he said.

Cambodia is the rotating chair of ASEAN for 2022. The regional grouping comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 
Harvard health policy expert Dr. David Hemenway routinely uses statistics like "250 people were shot each day in the US" and "Children aged 514 ... are more than 13x more likely than children in other high-income populous countries to be murdered with a gun" to support a myth. That myth is that America is one of the most violent nations on the planet because its citizens possess firearms. Domestically, this myth survives by focusing on U.S. homicide rates where guns are used 74% (FBI 2019) of the time, and it thrives internationally because the U.S. outranks most all other nations for the same reason. But is the rationale rational?

Domestically speaking, citing firearm homicides to prove that America is a violent nation fails for two primary reasons: 1) homicides are 1% of U.S. violent crime (FBI 2019) invalidating it as a metric for national violence; and 2) 78% (FBI 2019) of total violent crime is committed without a gun. This bears repeating: nearly 8 in 10 violent crimes in America don't involve a gun.

Internationally speaking, as one of the few nations that permits citizens to possess firearms, it's unsurprising the U.S. has more firearm deaths. After all, who would be surprised to learn that Egypt has the highest international ranking for people falling to their deaths from atop a large pyramid? (Yes, it does happen.) However, in this debate, the lethality of the weapon is not at issue, but rather its relation to violence. Moreover, because proposed solutions to gun violence focus on changes to national public policy, national violence is most relevant.

To accurately gauge national violence, aggravated assaults (66% of violent crime) must be incorporated into any metric used. But the anti-gun crowd isn't drawn to aggravated assaults because guns aren't used 72% of the time. Yet the practical difference between a murder/homicide and aggravated assault is whether the victim lives.

A legal definition for aggravated assault is "physically attacking another person, without regard for his/her life, leading to serious bodily harm with some form of weapon: hands, feet, knives, guns, etc." Granting that legal punishment is generally a function of whether the victim lives, "disregard for human life," as a measure of violence, is the same. That's why it's unlikely you'd be relieved to discover that the criminal stalking you in a dark alley will only maim and not kill you. Hence, when gauging violence in a neighborhood, city, state, nation, etc., murder and aggravated assault must be combined. Summing 2019 FBI aggravated assaults and homicides, guns go from use in 74% of homicides to "no gun used" in 77% of aggravated assaults and homicides combined  literally flipping the anti-gun position on its head. By the way, this assessment isn't novel; it's merely more consistent with the FBI's definition for violent crime: homicides + aggravated assaults + rape + robbery.

Some assert that the principal reason there are 50x more aggravated assaults than homicides in the U.S. today is not because criminals are less violent, but because improved emergency response times and medical technology keep more victims alive. If so, the reverse is also true: if emergency response times and medical technology had not improved, homicides by other means would likely rival gun homicides today. Thus, another reason anti-gun activists focus almost exclusively on homicides and not, e.g., accidental gun deaths affecting 0.0002% of Americans, is because it silos the lethality of guns on a weapon-by-weapon basis. But who's debating the obvious? What's being debated is whether guns increase violence, and the truth is, guns aren't used often enough to make a difference. At 0.8% of all violent crime, gun homicides are not, and never can be, an accurate (or honest) measure for national violence. Even summing all gun-related violent crime, 0.09% of the American population, or 852 in 1M, are affected. How does any of this scream "national crisis"?

Internationally, the "America's a violent nation" myth is advanced by sites like stastisa.com, which rank St. Louis, MO the 14th most murderous city in the world  worse than Culiacan (city), Sinaloa (state) in Mexico. An October 2018 article offers perspective: "Sinaloa is notorious for its gang presence[.] ... [Its] illicit-dependent economy extends as far back as the 19th century when, the Pacific port cities would import ... [opium] from China. The Sinaloa cartel is said to be the most dangerous and powerful in the world[.]"

Others like Worldpopulationreview.com report that the U.S.'s crime index exceeds China's, Pakistan's, and Sudan's. What's curious about this ranking is its source: numbeo.com  cited by the Who's Who of media: the BBC, the N.Y. Times, Forbes, The Economist, The Washington Post, Fox News, etc. Its founder is a Serbian mathematician and former Google software engineer. Difficulties with its rankings are 1) they're derived from qualitative/subjective citizen surveys, not quantitative/objective crime data; 2) there's no indication that surveys are proportionate to national population; and 3) no adjustment is mentioned for differences in societal norms and/or citizen perception complicating, if not invalidating, global comparisons. For example, a citizen in a P.A. (Palestinian Authority) region of Israel may consider firing an assault rifle into the air a form of celebration whereas a person in Silicon Valley would consider it worthy of a 9-1-1 call.

Finally, Nationmaster.com ranks America the 14th most homicidal nation, a tad better than Venezuela and China but worse than Uganda. What's remarkable about this ranking is that the infamous dictator Idi Amin killed 500K in Uganda, and the beat goes on in a May 2021 article, which reports, "Ugandan security forces fired live ammunition indiscriminately ... killing and injuring ordinary citizens including women and children."

The difficulty with the above international rankings is that foreign governments 1) define crimes differently, invalidating un-adjusted comparisons, and 2) typically aren't eager to admit corruption, which prevents accurate crime reporting and discourages citizens from reporting crime in the first place. After all, why report crime to corrupt police and risk retaliation from the perpetrator? So, while it's said "crime doesn't pay," because 69% of Americans trust police, more crime is reported, and more reported crime likely contributes to a lower comparative rank internationally than the U.S. deserves.

By the way, when total crimes per 1K, as opposed to homicides alone, is considered as a measure of national violence, Nationmaster.com ranks Iceland, Sweden, the U.K., New Zealand, Finland, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Austria, France, S. Africa, and Switzerland worse than the U.S. Ask yourself this: if America is less violent with guns than most of the civilized world without guns, then what are we debating?

If you know a student, make him aware that indiscriminate Googling for school reports, college essays, etc. often leads to false conclusions  and not just regarding crime and guns.

Our deep dive into the numbers continues to expose the anti-gun crowd's lack of evidence sufficient to warrant erosion of the 2nd Amendment.

Image via Pxhere.
It's no secret that billionaire philanthropist and financier George Soros has had a hand in the rise of many major political players. From his heavy investment in the sheriffs in Arizona to his funding of grassroots activists in Ferguson, Soros's money and influence seem to be nestled in every nook and cranny across the country. But just in the past month, two judges in two different states have stood up against prominent figures that are heavily funded by Soros: Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and Virginia's Loudoun County commonwealth attorney Buta Biberaj.

Stacey Abrams Election Fraud Lawsuit is Discarded

On September 30, U.S. district judge Steven Jones threw out the lawsuit filed in 2018 by Stacey Abrams and her political action committee, Fair Fight Georgia. The Epoch Times reported that the lawsuit alleged election irregularities, and Judge Jones ruled that "although Georgia's election system is not perfect, the challenged practices violate neither the constitution nor the [Voting Rights Amendment]." However, Abrams was still able to reinstate 22,000 rejected provisional and absentee ballots after the 2018 election.

This judge was on to something when he said Georgia's election system isn't perfect. Here are just a few of the inconsistencies from the 2020 election you can find documentation of on the VoterGA website:

There are six sworn affidavits of counterfeit mail-in ballots in Fulton Co. election results scaling into the tens of thousands. All 350,000+ original in-person ballot images in Fulton are missing in violation of federal and state retention law. All 393,000+ original ballot images in Cobb are missing in violation of federal and state retention law.

This is also not the only legal action that Abrams has initiated over elections. First, we have the now-infamous consent decree, which stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Abrams prior to the 2020 election, making it nearly impossible to verify signatures on ballots. The lawsuit claimed that minorities were disproportionately impacted with ballot rejections.

Then, back in December 2020, we had the ruling from a judge who happened to be Abrams's sister, which blocked two Georgia counties from purging its voter rolls of roughly 4,000 allegedly inactive voters ahead of the following week's runoff elections for U.S. Senate.

It is well documented that Abrams receives most of her campaign funds from George Soros. These contributions go back as far as 2013, but more recently, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Soros just dropped $1 million into Abrams's gubernatorial campaign.

George Soros's financial connections also extend to the Republican Party in Georgia. Soros is the primary investor in Rivian, having invested about $2 billion at the end of 2021. The plans for this electric car plant in Georgia are moving forward thanks to the tax breaks being generously offered by Governor Brian Kemp to Rivian. Kemp is also pursuing the suspension of EPA regulations in order to build and operate this $5-billion facility.

Buta Biberaj is Removed from Scott Smith Case

Virginia attorneys such as Steve Descano, Buta Biberaj, and Parisa Dehghani Tafti have all received significant financial backing from Soros. According to donation reports from TransparencyUSA.org, in 2019, Soros's Justice and Public Safety PAC donated $601,368.95 to Descano, $621,144.87 to Tafti, and $861,038.62 to Biberaj. And a particular judge in Virginia has been calling out Loudoun County commonwealth's attorney Buta Biberaj over concerns of her being impartial, as well as soft on crime.

On September 2, Virginia circuit court judge James Plowman removed Biberaj from the case of Scott Smith, a parent who was arrested in June 2021 at a school board meeting when he showed up criticizing the school district over concerns that they were covering up the sexual assault of his daughter by a transgender boy in a girls' bathroom the previous month. Instead, Plowman appointed a special prosecutor, Stafford County commonwealth's attorney Eric Olsen, to oversee Smith's appeal to the disorderly conduct charge he incurred at the school board meeting in June 2021.

Regarding his reasons for taking Biberaj off of Smith's case, this is what Plowman wrote in the order: "The concerns about the public confidence in the integrity of the prosecution as well as the Defendant's concerns regarding the impartiality of the Commonwealth's Attorney are sufficiently grounded. As a result, the integrity of the Defendant's due process rights is in jeopardy and must be protected." When Smith was arrested last year at the school board meeting, he also incurred an obstruction of justice charge, which Plowman has already dismissed.

Scott Smith's arrest was a major story last year, and the video of Smith being restrained by authorities went viral. It came out that Smith's concerns were in response to Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) superintendent Scott Ziegler's statement, made at the school board meeting, that "the predator transgender student or person simply does not exist," and that to his knowledge, "we don't have any record of assaults occurring in our restrooms," as reported by Fox News. But contradictions were made to this statement when it was discovered that on May 28, right after the rape of Smith's daughter, Ziegler sent out an email stating that there was a sexual assault incident at Stone Bridge High School that was under investigation. Ziegler claims he misinterpreted the question when he publicly claimed that the transgender predator did not exist at the school board meeting in June 2021, where Smith was subsequently arrested.

The unnamed transgender boy was found guilty of raping Smith's daughter, and Smith's attorney, Elizabeth Lancaster, told the Daily Wire that the boy's official charges were two counts of forcible sodomy, one count of anal sodomy, and one count of forcible fellatio. After Smith's daughter was raped on May 28, the accused assailant was then transferred to another school in the same Virginia district, where he was charged with another sexual assault that occurred on October 6, and he pleaded no contest to the charges for that case.

The teenage rapist has been sentenced for both sexual assaults and placed on probation and in a juvenile detention center until he turns 18. But the judge who initially placed him on the sex offender registry ended up reversing her decision, after defense attorneys pointed out that Biberaj and the prosecution failed to provide a written motion giving advance notice that she would seek the offender's placement on the sex offender registry, therefore violating his due process rights.

Besides this, there are other concerns that have cropped up recently about Biberaj:

In June of this year, Judge Plowman also removed Biberaj from the case of burglary suspect Kevin Enrique Valle, for "deliberately misleading the Court and the public" regarding the defendant's previous criminal history.

In February of this year, the Washington Free Beacon reported that a registered sex offender was hired as a paralegal for Biberaj, and was let go only after inquiries were made by the paralegal's probation officer.

The Beacon also reported in February that former Loudoun County prosecutor Jason Faw expressed concerns over Biberaj's handling of several domestic violence and child endangerment cases, accusing her of being lenient on the offenders.

Whether these rulings indicate a broader trend for the future, only time will tell. I reached out to both Biberaj and Abrams for comments on these developments and have not heard back.

Jessica Cody is an established freelance writer and blogger who has over 15 years of experience writing for businesses, political candidates, and news publications. Most recently, topics she has written material about include the 2020 election, informed consent, firearms, and real estate.

Image: World Economic Forum via Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
In todays very partisan environment, where Democrats and Republicans have completely opposed views on critical issues, it is imperative to know the political registration of all people running for local offices  especially city councils and school boards.

For most Americans, the political party they are registered with is an introduction to their personal values and core beliefs. Learning a city council and school board candidates party affiliation should be the first step in reviewing their bona fides.

However, we can no longer assume party affiliation is enough information. For instance, Liz Cheney is a registered Republican and former Democrat-now-Independent Tulsi Gabbard is a registered Democrat. Which one would you vote for?

Plus, many Republicans have switched to no party preference (NPP) or Independent.

Once you know their party affiliation, theres more to do since the Republican candidate might not share your conservative values. The second step is learning their positions on major issues. For incumbents, it means reviewing their voting record. The NPP candidate or Independent (who might even be a former Republican) could have more America First positions than the registered Republican. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski and Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger are both registered Republicans. Would you vote for either one based on their positions?

The third step is doing your own research. This includes seeking out knowledgeable and influential people you trust. Ask which candidates and propositions they support.

As founder and editor of Patriot Neighbors, a free weekly newsletter, my influence is primarily with local races that can be won or lost with just a few votes. In 2018, National Public Radio went back 20 years reviewing local races that were decided by ONE vote. There have been many local elections won by fewer than 10 votes.

Since the 1970s, Democrats have used the non-partisan ruse to elect Marxist-leaning candidates  and they are still doing it. This would have continued incognito (long after the Big Guy and his best bud Corn Pop retired to Delaware), but the plandemic came and changed everything. Huddled at home during lockdowns, horrified parents discovered what their school board had approved for their childrens curriculum: ethnic studies, critical race theory, gender indoctrination, and the anti-America 1619 project, to name a few topics that can pervert a childs mental health.

By the time masks made as much sense as a Vice President and Border Czar-in-name-only Kamala Harris word salad speech, conservative parents across the United States were demanding to know what their schools were teaching and what their city councils were approving. With parental rights at the forefront, it now became imperative to elect conservatives. This meant learning each candidates position on issues and their party affiliation.

Some districts across the United States have had amazing success returning school boards and/or city councils to conservative majorities. However, more must be done, especially in Blue states. Here are some suggestions for American Thinker readers. Select one or two to help make it a Red Wave on Election Day:

Lawn signs  They can make a yuge difference. Neighbors are often persuaded to support candidates or propositions when they see multiple homes with lawn signs throughout their community. If you live in an apartment, place a sign in your front window.

Lawn signs for others  Pick up a few extra signs and ask family and friends to put one in their yard or window.

T-shirts, hats, and buttons  When you are out and about in the neighborhood wear a t-shirt, hat, or button for your candidate. Just as with lawn signs, it persuades or confirms a decision regarding a candidate.

Social media  Proudly announce who you plan to vote for and include the link to the candidates website.

Be a conservative keyboard advocate  Write letters to local newspaper editors and post comments on community websites about why you are supporting a candidate.

Write postcards, make phone calls, knock on doors  Contact your candidate and offer to handwrite personalized postcards. Phone banks and door knocking allow personal conversations that are very important in todays voice message world.

Distribute flyers  Walk your neighborhood distributing flyers for your candidate.

Bumper stickers  Visible, especially in traffic congestion.

Word of mouth  Simple, easy, and effective.

Call local radio shows  From Bidenflation to surging crime to open borders, share your candidates position on these headline issues.

Hold a meet and greet at your home  With a box of cookies and bottled water, open your backyard or living room so neighbors can meet the candidate and ask questions in an intimate setting.

Election Integrity: observing  Volunteer to be an observer at your registrar of voters facility or be a poll watcher at a voting center.

Remember, everyone can do something!

MAGAs (or semi-fascists as Biden calls us patriots) want candidates who support the America First agenda, and that starts by electing conservatives to school boards and city councils. Lest we not forget philosopher George Santayanas wise words, Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it.

Please help get out the vote and make it a Red Wave or even Red Tsunami on November 8!

Robin M. Itzler is a regular contributor to American Thinker. She can be reached at PatriotNeighbors@yahoo.com.

Image: Free image, Pixabay license, no attribution required.
COLOMBO, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Thursday instructed officials to provide an adequate quantity of fuel to farmers in the coming farming season, the President's Media Division said in a statement.

Addressing a gathering of ministers and other officials, the president also instructed Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to appoint an officer to coordinate the supply of fuel to the farmers in each district.

The district secretaries will act as focal points in the district and farmers can contact them on problems related to fuel distribution.

Acting under the president's instructions, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has called for a discussion with representatives of farming organizations about farming activities in the upcoming season.

Farming has been seriously affected by fuel shortage as a result of foreign exchange shortage in Sri Lanka this year. 
I have heard it said many times over the years that President Bill Clinton and his inner circle were apprehensive about the rise of the internet right from its infancy. While university clubs and lonely tech pioneers were generating public excitement by connecting people all over the planet, Clinton and his crew feared the internet for what it signified: an end to the government's monopoly over information.

If just any old citizen could broadcast news to the world over cyberspace, none of the government's traditional methods for regulating knowledge would continue to work. Having a White House press corps, after all, has always had little to do with keeping government power in check and an awful lot to do with keeping potentially damaging information in house, supervised, and under control. What better way to monitor and shape the news of tomorrow than to stuff all the White House correspondents into one small space for direct and easy manipulation? Should CBS or NBC or The New York Times stumble upon a story too embarrassing for those in power, there is always some bargain to be made or some threat to be leveled that can keep that information bottled up.

The "free press," in other words, has always been filled with information "gatekeepers" no less corruptible than any other humans and just as capable of intentionally keeping the public in the dark as they are of letting in some occasional light. For what it's worth, Clinton's worries were warranted, and a complete unknown named Matt Drudge nearly took down his presidency with a story about a stained blue dress that several prestige news outlets had refused to cover. The somewhat secret war over information would never be the same.

While we watch government-induced censorship increasingly squeeze the free flow of information today, it is easy to throw up our hands in despair and presume that the light of freedom will inexorably dim. I encourage you instead to see government-engineered threats to free speech as further evidence that both totalitarianism and freedom are on the march. Powerful institutions do not work this hard to silence voices unless they are deeply afraid. The push for control is inextricably linked to the perception of fear. The harder that authorities push to control what we say, the more clearly they reveal their own fear. This is a sign of weakness.

Consider what has actually transpired these last three decades as the internet connected billions. By any measure, freedom of speech expanded greatly, and the spread of information transformed the world. Not only did a virtually unregulated internet provide a brand new canvas for the expression of ideas, but also the traditional "gatekeepers" who had long claimed the authority to deem what is "newsworthy" lost their inherent power. The news cycle is no longer controlled by three or four nightly news anchors all echoing similar talking points in similarly stern voices. A handful of editors, producers, and publishing houses no longer exclusively decide what the public should know. In the Wild West of the internet, information has been abundantly available, and the people have decided what information matters most. Far from the Washington Post's self-serving braggadocio that it is in the business of saving "democracy" from darkness, it is the internet that has usurped powers once miserly hoarded by the Post and delivered them to the people.

Notice that two interlocking public revelations naturally emerged from the rise of the internet: (1) an open community of free citizens proved it had a tremendous amount of knowledge to share, and (2) this flood of information proved how effectively traditional news "gatekeepers" had always quietly exercised power over citizens. People who had watched nightly news all their lives started to see for the first time the subtle and not-so-subtle biases of the news anchors who controlled the spigots on the flow of information. It became possible for ordinary people to understand that news broadcasts and printed stories were far from purely objective presentations of facts. It became clear that the stories told by well known reporters often came packaged with personal and political agendas meant to shape minds and shift opinions. The internet's fertile territory for free speech awakened a lot of people to just how much they had always been deceptively controlled.

Now, the story could have ended there. One day, most publicly available information was controlled exclusively by a cabal of bureaucrats, politicians, academics, newspaper editors, and reporters, and the next day, a kind of democratic revolution in the free flow of information forever changed the world. Walls and protocols, gatekeepers and specialists, all came crashing down or disappeared in the wake of a new technology that both ran on and promoted personal liberty. Nearly all knowledge ever written down anywhere in the history of the world became obtainable and eventually accessible from tiny pocket computers that also served as decent phones. A triumph for "democracy," right? An unbelievable achievement for the West's millennia-long advance toward protecting individual freedoms, expanding public education, and respecting free will, right? The internet changed the world and while doing so became a first-rate repository for posting funny pictures of cats!

It's that last bit that guaranteed that the story would not end there  not the cat pictures, but the "changing the world" part. You cannot unleash a new technology that affects the geopolitical balance of power without expecting a reaction from stalwarts of the old system who stand to lose everything. Now given that the internet emerged at the tail end of the Cold War and perfectly encapsulated the triumph of American freedom over Soviet tyranny, it is perfectly understandable to assume that the old system being replaced was State-centric communism, and that the new system spreading around the world was classical Western liberalism. That is, after all, how the internet was trumpeted for years  as a means to break down the remnants of the Soviet system and as a way to penetrate through the closed-off, one-party State of the communist Chinese.

In reality, however, internet freedom didn't pit Western liberals against totalitarian communists; it pitted the world's governing "elites" against ordinary citizens. Long-held powers used to control and manipulate information have been up for grabs for thirty years, but only now have governments succeeded in creating the kind of online infrastructure sufficient for reclaiming all they've lost. Without Google, Facebook, and Twitter to corral free thoughts, they could never push censorship so openly. Without the creation of Apple's and Microsoft's controlled digital marketplaces, viewpoint discrimination would not be possible. Without the increased monopolization of internet service providers, cloud computing facilities, and online banking and commerce giants, regulatory agencies could never throttle the free flow of information so unabashedly. For thirty years, governments and institutions have slowly constructed a crystal prison of sorts  a beautiful digital world that draws the masses in only to control them. It's a system designed behind the alluring facade of freedom, yet ultimately grounded in the centralized government of suffocating tyranny.

To be sure, many people will gladly accept their new chains. They will hand back their internet freedoms and free speech for as little as a shiny new phone and promise never again to question what they're told. Yet hundreds of millions  if not billions  of people have learned to think more independently than ever before these last three decades. They have seen past the curtain of controlled speech and know that corrupt government actors manipulate their thoughts from the other side. And now that they know what they know, a great many of these people will obstinately refuse ever to be lulled back to sleep. The internet helped free the world. Governments want that freedom back. What happens next is for the people to decide.

Image via Pxhere.
When Trump was president and US oil production was at its peak, so we competed directly with Saudi Arabia, which should have created hostility on the latters part, Saudi Arabia and America had a strong relationship. The Saudis liked and trusted Trump especially when it came to his dealings with Iran. The opposite is true for the Saudi relationship with Joe Biden. While Bidens attacks on American oil production have enriched the Saudis, they disrespect him and feel betrayed by his dealings with Iran.

That may explain the October surprise bombshell that the Biden administration begged them to delay their announcement about oil cuts until after the midterm election. Today, that same bombshell exploded a bit harder when Saudi Arabia officially confirmed what the Biden administration had done.

Image: Biden and Mohammad Bin Salman fist bump. YouTube screengrab.

The original story broke yesterday, along with a vehement White House denial that, of course, blamed Putin. Today, however, the Saudis slapped back at the Biden administration, saying explicitly that the Biden administration tried desperately to delay the cut in oil production until after the midterms:

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said Thursday morning that US officials 'suggested' postponing the decision to reduce output by two million barrels a day by a month until after November 8, when millions of Americans will cast their ballots. The Kingdom also brushed off suggestions it sided with Russia by insisting it took a 'principled position' on the Ukraine war and said the OPEC decision was entirely based on economics, not politics.

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the statements issued about the Kingdom following the OPEC+ decision. pic.twitter.com/Bo7JVPDzFo  Foreign Ministry  (@KSAmofaEN) October 12, 2022

That official pronouncement forced the Biden administration to acknowledge that it had, indeed, attempted to block the drop in Saudi oil production until after the midterms, although it attempted to write the whole thing off as a big nothing:

The Biden administration admitted Thursday it had asked Saudi Arabia to delay the OPEC+ vote to cut oil production until the cartels next meeting  after the midterm elections. We presented Saudi Arabia with analysis to show that there was no market basis to cut production targets, and that they could easily wait for the next OPEC meeting to see how things developed, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. The Riyadh-led group of oil producers next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 4, according to the OPEC website.

As always, the White House brought Russia into the mix to excuse its own malfeasance:

The Saudi Foreign Ministry can try to spin or deflect, but the facts are simple: The world is rallying behind Ukraine in combating Russian aggression, he said. In recent weeks, the Saudis conveyed to us  privately and publicly  their intention to reduce oil production, which they knew would increase Russian revenues and blunt the effectiveness of sanctions.

Whats worrying is that the new, official White House line is that it is reevaluating Americas relationship with Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is not a nice place by Western standards, but there are two things to consider here. First, while the Saudis may be bad guys, they are our bad guys and have been allied with us against Iran, a nation that has as its official policy death to America. Second, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has been a reformer, proceeding very slowly and carefully, but still proceeding. Its unclear what being cut off from America will do to those reforms.

The White Houses sleazy effort to hide from the voters its cavalier attacks on the American economy lends credence to Monica Crowleys claim that the administration is deliberately destroying the American economy to consolidate government power. It is nice to see the Saudis pushing back, but the whole thing is deeply disturbing when it comes to Americas well-being and the malevolence of those who are currently in power.
If the border is secure, as the Biden administration keeps telling us, then why are two dozen states sending about 2,500 National Guard troops to our southern border?

The answer is that the border isn't secure. Illegal aliens have been pouring through it into the United States with the encouragement of the left in this country.

The U.S. Department of Defense made the request for assistance at the border, and Republican-led states responded. Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, South Carolina and Arkansas agreed to send troops. Even Democrat-led states like Rhode Island, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and the territory of Puerto Rico are lending their support.

"Several other states  Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oregon, Utah and Washington  will be providing National Guard aviation support for border operations, according to the department," The Center Square reported. "The U.S. Virgin Islands has also committed National Guard troops to the mission, which is being overseen by the U.S. Northern Command."

The National Guard will assist the U.S. Border Patrol with the surge of illegal weapons, drugs, and people into the country. They will serve as support to U.S. Border Patrol and are prohibited under federal law from detaining undocumented migrants or others caught crossing into the United States illegally.

"It will definitely be helpful to have more boots on the ground there, because the border patrol is absolutely overwhelmed," said Jessica Vaughn, director of policy studies at the Washington D.C.based Center for Immigration Studies. "One of the biggest security problems is that federal officials are so distracted dealing with migrants that the border is totally unguarded."

"Groups that support tougher immigration restrictions say the deployment of the National Guard troops will help overburdened federal agencies deal with the surge of illegal immigration", according to The Center Square.

This may not be the answer to the problem of illegal immigration in the United States, but it should help. It is definitely a step in the right direction.

"The U.S. Border Patrol has apprehended migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border more than 1.8 million times since October, breaking previous records, according to the agency. The Center Square, through its sources, reported in August the number of illegal entries is nearly 5 million since Biden began to occupy the White House in January 2020."

We should not stop other efforts to curb illegal immigration. Most likely, the solution will come from a combination of varying efforts from the states and the federal government. And while many states seem more than willing to do what they can to help, the Biden administration and deep blue states will have to be pulled kicking and screaming into doing what is right for the country.

"It's clear from the Biden administration's response that they are not interested in stopping the influx of illegal immigrants," Vaughn said. "They have many tools at their disposal that they could be using to put a stop to the illegal crossings, but they have not done that."

This sort of action has been long overdue. Hopefully, it will show results that we can build upon to secure our borders.

Michael A. Letts is the CEO and founder of In-VestUSA, a national grassroots non-profit organization helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs.

Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
So the CEO of a company likes to hold his employees up to public scorn, not for mistakes, but for slanderous lies about their supposed mistakes?

Such a person would be considered a freak, a slanderer, a guy who needed to be thrown out of there, a shareholder liability, a lawsuit risk, a complete asshat.

And such a person likely doesn't exist at all, since nobody's ever heard of that kind of behavior in corporate America.

But then there's the U.S. government, and Alejandro Mayorkas, Joe Biden's director of Homeland Security. He's been caught knowingly lying about his employees in order hold them up to public contempt and scorn  for political purposes.

According to Fox News:

EXCLUSIVE: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was told that the photographer who captured a clash between Border Patrol agents and Haitian migrants in Del Rio had said that the incident was being misconstrued  hours before Mayorkas joined a White House press conference where he didn't challenge the false narrative. The Sept. 24, 2021 email, obtained by the Heritage Foundation via a Freedom of Information Act request (FOIA), shines light onto internal deliberations surrounding the controversy in Del Rio, Texas, where Democrats and the White House pushed a narrative that migrants had been "whipped" or "strapped" by Border Patrol agents despite it being quickly debunked. In fact, agents were using split reins to control their horses as migrants rushed across the river. But a narrative, based on a misinterpretation of photographs, was running and on Sept. 24 was further fueled by President Biden. "To see people treated like they did, horses barely running over, people being strapped  it's outrageous," Biden told reporters, making a whipping motion with his hand. "I promise you, those people will pay. There will be an investigation underway now, and there will be consequences. There will be consequences."

Suffice to say, this is beyond despicable, beyond disgusting. Mayorkas knew ahead of time that his Border Patrol agents did nothing wrong and publicly slandered them anyway.

Some in Congress say that's impeachable, and it's hard to argue with them:

The solution to secure our borders is simple: Allow Border Patrol agents to do their jobs and impeach Alejandro Mayorkas.  Mayra Flores (@MayraFlores2022) October 12, 2022

No agency head should be that "in hate" with the employees he leads to hold them up to public scorn.

Even more important, no agency head should be so opposed to his employees that he would slander them in public.

Why is that impeachable? Well, because Cabinet secretaries are sworn to serve the American people as they lead their agencies on a nonpartisan basis. That means an obligation to serve all of the people, not just the people of their own party for political ends. I've had conversations with more than one Cabinet secretary (from the Bush II administration), and they've all been intensely aware of the need not to be seen engaging in partisan party politics, regardless of their true feelings about an issue. They were scrupulous; they stayed away. President Trump walking to a historic church across from the White House with defense officials at his side, after radical leftists damaged it with fire, was roundly criticized on those particular grounds, as was Joe Biden's sleazy use of Marines to stand as placeholders for his Mussolini-meltdown speech in Philadelphia several weeks ago.

Even beyond the obvious issue of slander and politicking, it's pretty obvious that Mayorkas cannot head a government agency effectively, given his propensity to lie, and, in so doing, knowingly slander the employees. Who on Earth would want to be, or should be, led by a liar like this? The guy lies and gets away with it, and too bad about the employees he lies about.

It's an impossible situation, and it underlines the need for an incoming Congress to start with impeaching Mayorkas if Joe Biden isn't going to get rid of him, given the string of failures and lies that characterize his watch. Nobody should have to work for a government agency whose appointed head is working against them to the point of lying about them.

Image: Official portrait via Wikipedia, public domain.
A few days back, NBC News broadcast an interview of Pennsylvania Senate Democrat candidate John Fetterman by Dasha Burns:

Fetterman suffered a stroke in May, causing his health to become a major issue in the Senate race.

Prior to her interview, Burns revealed that Fetterman "struggles to understand what he hears and to speak clearly."

Burns also said a monitor was set up so her questions could be transcribed for Fetterman to read since, she said, he still has "lingering auditory processing issues as a result of the stroke."

John Fetterman apparently needs a massive Apple desktop up to transcribe in real time what people are saying to him.



He's supposed to debate in exactly two weeks... pic.twitter.com/wJ4Mur9yTb  Brent Scher (@BrentScher) October 11, 2022

Burns also revealed that Fetterman struggled to make small talk and "still has challenges with speech struggling to pronounce words such as 'empathetic.'"

MSNBC: John Fetterman "has a hard time understanding what he's hearing...he still has some problems, some challenges with speech...he had a hard time understanding our conversations." pic.twitter.com/EYLNVxb0Cy  Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 11, 2022

Burns's report was obviously amplified by Republicans and conservative media.

This was enough to send reverberations of discord across the Democrat echo chamber.

It was almost as if they were saying, "How dare the GOP use the media to their advantage? That is our privilege only."

Burns had violated the Democrat groupthink  i.e., that Fetterman is in normal health.

The attacks on Burns were swift.

It began with former New York Times and Washington Post reporter and podcaster Kara Swisher, who had a stroke in 2011. Swisher mocked Burns, claiming that it was probably Burns who was poor at small talk.

Swisher recently conducted an interview with Fetterman and claims to be "impressed with how well he's doing."

Sorry to say but I talked to @JohnFetterman for over an hour without stop or any aides and this is just nonsense. Maybe this reporter is just bad at small talk. https://t.co/CX9B7qWUaS  Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 12, 2022

Next was New York magazine's Rebecca Traister, who also interviewed the candidate for a cover story, titled "The Vulnerability of John Fetterman."

Traister claimed that Fetterman's "comprehension is not at all impaired" and he had just a "hearing/auditory challenge."

As someone who has recently interviewed him: Fettermans comprehension is not at all impaired. He understands everything, its just that he reads it (which requires extra acuity, Id argue) and responds in real time. Its a hearing/auditory processing challenge. https://t.co/RzmyfBDJX6  Rebecca Traister (@rtraister) October 12, 2022

The NYT's Jonathan Martin also seemed to lament Burns's interview. He tweeted that the article claiming that it was a "rough clip" for Fetterman and "will only fuel questions about his health."

This is a rough clip for @JohnFetterman, will only fuel questions about his health > https://t.co/wulYRvHyKF  Jonathan Martin (@jmart) October 12, 2022

CBS News's Ed O'Keefe supported Burn's interview, calling it an "important interview with top Senate contender."

An important interview with top Senate contender. Will Pennsylvanians be comfortable with someone representing them who had to conduct a TV interview this way? https://t.co/OBoEzEpFxi  Ed O'Keefe (@edokeefe) October 12, 2022

NBC News's sister network, MSNBC, however, piled on with the attacks on Burns.

MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell prefaced his interview with Fetterman by also comparing the Democrat Senate candidate to FDR.

MSNBC's Mehdi Hasan stuck to the Democrat groupthink without making sense.

Imagine being a sentient human being who really believes John Fetterman can't be a senator because he had a stroke, but a stroke-free Herschel Walker can be a senator.  Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) October 12, 2022

MSNBC columnist Eric Michael Garcia seemed to suggest that Burns's comments were an "ableist" attack on a person with a "disability." He compared Fetterman to disabled senators and elderly senators who need hearing aids.

How is this any different from Tammy Duckworth or Madison Cawthorn needing a wheelchair? How is it different from many elderly Senators who need hearing aids? CORRECTED https://t.co/bCRl0IvCs3  Eric Michael Garcia (@EricMGarcia) October 12, 2022

This sentiment was echoed by Robert Shurm, director of the University of Southern California's Center for the Political Future, who claimed that Burns's reporting emanated from prejudice.

Ed- I thought or hoped we had passed this kind of prejudice. https://t.co/3mQuLkW2KC  Robert Shrum (@BobShrum) October 12, 2022

CNN contributor Kirsten Powers followed the ableist attack spin.

The ableism being directed at John Fetterman is a problem. His doctors have said he has auditory difficulties, not cognitive issues. Having auditory issues and/or needing a device to understand people is not and should not be a disqualifying factor. Good grief. It's 2022.  Kirsten Powers (@KirstenPowers) October 12, 2022

Daily Beast columnist Wajahat Ali compared Fetterman's impairments to Franklin Roosevelt's polio, Lincoln's depression, and Madison's epilepsy.

All these political journalists warning about Fetterman's speech and his stroke recovery, wait until they hear about FDR's Polio, Lincoln's depression, and Madison's epilepsy. Those men could've gone really far in their career if not for their disabilities. Alas. Oh wait...  Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) October 12, 2022

Adam Rogers with Business Insider accused Burns not of reporting what she saw, but of fabricating a storyline.

Any news outlets genuinely wondering about his health could send a health/medicine reporter. Maybe dont just invent a storyline. https://t.co/h4Rj8YUS0z  Adam Rogers (@jetjocko) October 12, 2022

Even the grand old non-profit news agency, the Associated Press, joined the incensed partisan crowd and carried a piece that covered the Democrat media backlash to the interview, without making it explicit that the backlash was partisan.

The Wrap attacked Burns, while the Daily Kos called Fetterman an inspiration.

The Democrat mouthpiece the Washington Post carried a piece in defense of Fetterman.

The WaPo referred to a letter in June from Fetterman's cardiologist claiming he will be fine and able to serve in the Senate if he eats healthy foods, takes prescribed medication, and exercises.

The WaPo also carried a quote from Kevin Sheth, director of the Yale University Center for Brain and Mind Health, who cautioned that people should not make judgments about Fetterman's condition without an examination and based on his use of a language-assistance device.

Finally, on Wednesday morning, Burns appeared on her own network, on NBC's News Today show, where Savannah Guthrie did her bit to discredit Burns with the claim that other interviews saw nothing wrong with Fetterman.

Burns defended herself, saying that hers was Fetterman's first live, in-person interview, which enabled her to see the aids Fetterman needed to comprehend the questions.

Burns also said that other interviews were done remotely; hence, the interviewers probably didn't notice the monitor where questions were transcribed because it was probably beyond the range of the cameras.

Burns repeated that her entire interview team noticed that without closed captioning, Fetterman was unable to properly process the conversation.

Burns repeated her statement that "once the closed captioning was on, he was able to fully answer questions throughout that 25-minute interview."

To sum it up, Burns, was doing her job as a journalist which is to report facts as objectively as she could about Fetterman's cognitive and sensory abilities, which would be essential for him to be able to function as a senator, which is valuable information to voters.

Pennsylvania voters have a right to know these details about Fetterman prior to casting their votes.

Burns neither mocked Fetterman's condition nor made any partisan attacks.

The outrage caused by factual reporting is a perfect example of the functioning of the mainstream media.

A lot of people think the mainstream media have a liberal bias or are pro-Democrat. This is erroneous because they assume that the mainstream media and the Democrats are disparate entities and the Democrats are somehow influencing the media.

The fact is, the mainstream media function as a propaganda wing of the Democrats and hence must be thought of as a department within the Democrat party organization.

There is perfect synchronicity between their utterances. They even use identical terminology while covering any given occurrence.

Words such as "collusion" and "insurrection," which are not part of common parlance, didn't become the official terminology by accident.

A nefarious but adept Democrat wordsmith and mastermind supplied these terms to the mainstream media.

The media assiduously repeated these terms over a prolonged period, until they became official jargon.

It is not just terminology. The Democrat media managers also provide instructions on how to spin stories or overlook Democrat scandals.

A perfect instance of the mainstream media working in unison is the killing of the Hunter Biden laptop from hell story prior to the 2020 presidential election.

When the New York Post carried reports on Hunter's laptop, prominent personnel on MSNBC, NBC News, the Washington Post, the Daily Beast, CNN, and the New York Times coordinated their efforts to discredit the story. This didn't occur by accident; they were all acting on orders.

Yes, they are true believers of the cause, but coordination and uniformity in messaging are necessary to push propaganda. If everyone is saying the same thing, people tend to believe it.

It is hence quite amazing that Burns's story exposing Fetterman's health issues made it to NBC News without a Democrat loyalist on the NBC News editorial board not blocking the story.

It will be interesting to see what happens to Dasha Burns now.

She has stood by her reporting. Perhaps NBC News will attempt to placate its Democrat bosses by forcing Burns out, citing "ableism."

The backlash Burns received sends a clear warning message to any reporter aspiring to expose inconvenient facts about the Democrats.

The viewer, hence, has no choice but to presume that all he consumes is a falsehood until proven factual after meticulous verification.

Image: Twitter screen shot.
For almost a month, Iran's streets have been taken over by a sweeping revolution that erupted after the killing of Mahsa Amini at the hands of the Iranian "moral police" on the 16th of September. The protests have been consistent and spreading to the point that many, Iranians and foreigners alike, are hoping this will become the watershed moment that will eventually bring down the Iranian radical Shiite regime, though many others argue that these hopes are unrealistic. Hackers even managed to interrupt a television news broadcast with support for the demonstrators.



YouTube screen grab.

Nonetheless, President Biden has ended the need for a discussion by providing Iran with the financial lifeline it needed. Biden's helping hand became apparent when Iran's official government news agency confirmed that Tehran will receive $7 billion of its frozen funds in South Korea for a prisoner exchange deal with the United States.

The money was just what the Iranian government needed as the ongoing protests have been squeezing the resources of the Iranian regime. In fact, on September 15, I published a piece on how unrest and demonstrations were already a burden to the regime [2]. Hence, the current wave of protests is an escalation of an already consistent practice. Therefore, the regime has become even more strapped for cash.

A $7-billion handout from President Biden to the mullahs is not only a break for the regime, but in fact an endorsement of what the terrorist regime has been doing to its own people, with no care in the world for the international organizations documenting the crimes. We cannot blame the regime alone for this. Who in the Middle East would care what the world thinks if the United States was supporting them? And in this case, translating its support with cold, hard cash.

In fact, the Iranian regime has begun prosecuting protesters for "sedition" and "seeking to change the regime," and other crimes that usually end up with death sentences being handed down like candy from the regime's courts. The significance of this has been explained to me by Dr. Mohammad Al-Mathaji, an Iranian dissident who lives in exile in London. Al-Mathaji told me, "The way it goes, the regime begins putting people on trial the minute it feels secure. Usually, when the regime feels shaky, it would not harass protesters with anything other than the usual police brutality, but now they are pulling people out of their homes and putting them on trial for crimes punishable by death. This means one thing: the regime feels empowered after the money authorized for it by Biden."

The way President Biden is handling this is disappointing, as he is giving up on the values he ran on for president. One cannot help but be perplexed when the president's own party passionately supported Black Lives Matter's protesters while at the same time allowing $7 billion to the Iranian regime, which will be used to brutalize protesters in Iran and kill women seeking freedom from radical oppression. More puzzling is the fact that Vice President Harris, the first woman to take the job, a feminist, and a self-declared humanitarian, is failing to do anything to stop the president from bankrolling Iran's oppression of women protesting a radical Shiite dress code and seeking their freedom.

While the level of protests and the brazenness of demonstrators are unprecedented, and while the Iranian regime has never been weaker, it is unlikely that the regime will fall if the Biden administration is still courting it and making it relevant all the time with the so-called Iranian nuke deal, and with cash.

As for our Iranian sisters and brothers who are revolting, their fate would have been different if Trump were still in the White House.

I call on President Biden not to stamp a presidential seal on the acts of the terrorist Iranian regime. This will prove to be expensive to the morale and interests of your administration.
According to Gilberto Hinojosa, chair of the Texas Democratic Party, the problem is in D.C., as in Washington, D.C.

According to the Texas Tribune, this is what Hinojosa said about the national Democrats:

'I'm really, deeply disappointed in the DCCC,' Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in an interview the next day. 'I hope they change their mind, and if we lose this election, it's completely on them.' The state party followed up with a memo saying how it was 'doubling down' on South Texas, including by sending 'staff across departments to the Rio Grande Valley to assist campaigns on the ground with organizing digital, communications, fundraising, and other efforts.'

Mr. Hinojosa is talking about three districts in the south of Texas, where once upon a time, those districts were automatic Democrat victories. As they say, that was then, and this is now.

Down on the border, three GOP ladies (Representatives Mayra Flores, Monica De La Cruz, and Cassy Garcia) are running on border security, and rightfully calling the chaos a humanitarian crisis and a national security threat  and the women point the finger right at the Biden administration. It appears to be working, because Beto O'Rourke, the Democrats' candidate for governor, did not meet with Biden a few months ago, or Harris last weekend.

By the way, the aforementioned ladies grew up on the border. Cassy Garcia is married to a Border Patrol agent of 26 years. Flores was born in Mexico and legally immigrated with her parents. De La Cruz has a lot of history in that area as well.

So is Mr. Hinojosa correct that D.C. is not paying attention? Yes. At the same time, Texas is changing, and two, or maybe all three, of these ladies could be heading to Washington soon.

Mr. Hinojosa's problem is that the leadership of the Texas Democrats has left South Texas behind. No amount of money or attention from D.C. will fix that.

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The crisis in Ukraine is a cautionary tale for energy policy. While Russia is to blame for its military aggression against Ukraine, European countries suffering as a result of their dependence on Russian fuel have no one to blame but themselves.

For years, Germany and others have had polar ice caps in mind as they celebrated shutting down the very backup options that have left them dependent on an aggressive world power. Now, as central European powers stare down a cold winter and Ukrainians endure a conflict with no clear resolution in sight, the human cost should make one thing abundantly clear: climate policy was never just about the polar bears.

From Earth Daystyle brands featuring leaves and twigs to greenwashed marketing campaigns, more and more climate policy nowadays feels like pure charity or a zero-sum game enacted at the expense of humans to benefit the environment. We talk about using paper straws on behalf of the turtles and palm oil harming the orangutans as if we don't live here, too. Then, every once in a while, years like this one remind us that climate and energy policy don't exist in a bubble. They're interlaced with our national security, energy, human rights, and economic policy.

Arguably the most frustrating aspect of European energy policy has been a stubbornly anti-scientific, anti-nuclear sentiment plaguing climate policy movements in recent decades. Likely rooted in Cold Warera fears of nuclear war as well as the Fukushima disaster, many of policymaking age are tinged with an uneasiness rooted in the past. Yet there's optimism to be found in younger generations' embrace of nuclear power as a powerful tool for reducing emissions.

Of course, there is a level of irony in the fact that nuclearphobia now contributes to the weakened state of national security for much of Europe. Whereas Soviet command of nuclear power was once the source of fear, it is a neglected source of security against Russian aggression. Germany has been steadily shutting down its nuclear power plants since 2002, setting itself back in its climate and national security goals alike by eliminating a reliable, clean source of power. Now, for the first time in decades, the E.U. leader is second-guessing its decision to close its last few plants, mimicking similar regrets in U.S. states like California and New York, which have gotten less bullish on their phase-outs in light of recent energy markets.

Even putting nuclear power to one side, central Europe's reliance on foreign fossil fuels has shown that dirty energy sources  from the likes of Russia, Norway, Algeria, and Azerbaijan  were in use all along. Policies against domestic fuel production that rely on importing gas from across borders do little but pay lip service to environmentalism at the cost of energy independence. Now that much of Europe needs to choose between sanctioning Russia and keeping warm this winter, the costs of looking good on paper are becoming clear.

Centering our focus on the human impacts of environmental policy shouldn't diminish the importance of stewardship over endangered lands and species. But let's not forget: the Earth will outlive us all, so it's a mistake to assume that the planet's well-being is indexed to that of our species. Environmental policy should always begin with humans in mind for two reasons: first, so that we realize that unflashy, pragmatic approaches must trump the lip service of quick progress on paper, and secondly to appeal to the interests of those who might have other crucially important policy priorities on their minds.

Emotional appeals about dying animals are neither the most truthful nor effective arguments for well constructed environmental policies. All said and done, we're affecting human lives. Let's act like it.

Alina Clough is an Energy and Environment Fellow with the American Conservation Coalition and Young Voices.

Image: Ken Lund.
The Chinese Party Congress set to open on Sunday already has Xi Jinping on edge. These gatherings happen only every five years, and this time it is expected to ratify his plan to void term limits and make him in effect dictator-for-life. While it is impossible for outsiders to know the extent of opposition to Xi, almost certainly there are factions that are dead set against this move, based on personal and regional loyalties if not on opposition to his policies and intention to make himself another Mao Zedong.

Thus, a demonstration attacking Xi that broke out in an affluent neighborhood of Beijing must have irritated a man who probably already is on pins and needles. Such demonstrations are extremely rare, especially anything directly attacking Xi. In the Chinese context they are shocking.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Police rushed to a highway bridge in Beijing after a column of dark smoke appeared above protest banners condemning Chinese leader Xi Jinping by namea rare display of defiance in the capital that came as top Communist Party officials arrived to attend a closely watched political gathering. Video footage and photographs of the smoke and two bannersone of which had Depose the Traitorous Dictator Xi Jinping scrawled on it in redcirculated widely on Chinese social-media platforms Thursday.

Here are some pictures and banner translations from Twitter:

Rare protest in Beijing today: one man putting up banners on a bridge on the 3rd Ring Rd.

"Say no to PCR, yes to food;

No to lockdown, yes to freedom;

No to lies, yes to dignity;

No to cultural revolution, yes to reform

No to leaders, yes to vote

Dont be a slave, be a citizen." https://t.co/tw5OHeDzFe  Yong Xiong (@yongxiong2008) October 13, 2022

A man in Beijing this afternoon hangs up a banner to protest on his government on the highway. Later on, self-immolation. https://t.co/jQHjG46Iij pic.twitter.com/vaDdd0l8Nm  Eevee Tan (@eevee_tan_char) October 13, 2022

The banner protester in Beijing today even had a loudspeaker blaring out the words.must have been an entirely surreal morning for Haidian commuters pic.twitter.com/hYGzYd78Q4  Ananth Krishnan (@ananthkrishnan) October 13, 2022

This may have been the work of one brave man, who reportedly (on Twitter) was arrested. But the draconian zero Covid policy of Xi has no doubt alienated many Chinese people, who have been subjected to extreme hardship, business and factory lockdowns, and isolation in their homes or evacuation centers. Seeing open defiance in an area of Beijing where many ruling class people live has got to shake up Xi, at last a little.

Photo credit: Twitter screengrab
Rescuers examine a burnt passenger bus in Jamshoro district of Sindh province, Pakistan, Oct. 13, 2022.

At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday. (Str/Xinhua)

ISLAMABAD, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday.

Deputy Superintendent of Police of the area Wajid Thaheem told the media that the bus was engulfed in the fire when it reached the Nooriabad area of Jamshoror district of Sindh province.

According to the police, the initial investigation revealed that the fire erupted due to the vehicle's malfunctioning air conditioning system.

The passenger bus was on its way from the port city of Karachi to the Khairpur Nathan Shah area of the Dadu district of the province when it encountered the fatal incident.

Police, rescue teams and firefighters rushed to the site, put off the fire, and shifted bodies and injured to the Liaquat University Hospital in Jamshoro.

The police official added that nine women and eight children are among the deceased persons.

The hospital officials feared that the death toll might rise because several of the injured were burnt severely and were in critical condition.

There were 55 passengers on board who belonged to the same village located in the Khairpur Nathan Shah area. 

A rescuer examines a burnt passenger bus in Jamshoro district of Sindh province, Pakistan, Oct. 13, 2022.

At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday. (Str/Xinhua)

Rescuers examine a burnt passenger bus in Jamshoro district of Sindh province, Pakistan, Oct. 13, 2022.

At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday. (Str/Xinhua)

Rescuers examine a burnt passenger bus in Jamshoro district of Sindh province, Pakistan, Oct. 13, 2022.

At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday. (Str/Xinhua)

Rescuers examine a burnt passenger bus in Jamshoro district of Sindh province, Pakistan, Oct. 13, 2022.

At least 18 people, including eight children, were killed and 28 others injured on Wednesday night after a passenger bus caught fire in Pakistan's southern Jamshoro district, police said on Thursday. (Str/Xinhua)
The testimony of FBI supervisory analyst Brian Auten in the trial of Igor Danchenko is shocking. CNN reports:

Shortly before the 2016 election, the FBI offered retired British spy Christopher Steele "up to $1 million" to prove the explosive allegations in his dossier about Donald Trump, a senior FBI analyst testified Tuesday. The cash offer was made during an overseas October 2016 meeting between Steele and several top FBI officials who were trying to corroborate Steele's claims that the Trump campaign was colluding with Russia to win the election. FBI supervisory analyst Brian Auten testified that Steele never got the money because he could not "prove the allegations." Auten also said Steele refused to provide the names of any of his sources during that meeting, and that Steele didn't give the FBI anything during that meeting that corroborated the claims in his explosive dossier. Auten was testifying at the criminal trial of Igor Danchenko, a primary source for Steele's dossier, who is being prosecuted by special counsel John Durham. Danchenko has pleaded not guilty to five counts of lying to the FBI about his sourcing for some information that ended up in the dossier. His trial kicked off Tuesday at the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia.

Auten was questioned mostly by Special Counsel John Durham. But nowhere have I seen reference to a question about the authorization for such an offer. Who were the "several top FBI officials"? Did any of them have the authority to offer a million dollars in cash to a source?

I've never worked at the FBI or for any federal agency. But my understanding is that authorization for a one-million-dollar payment is not a routine use of petty cash. One characteristic of federal agencies is that bureaucrats protect themselves from questions about misuse of funds by documenting everything involved in spending money  all the more so when an individual is to be offered a life-changing sum such as a million bucks.

What budget would have been tapped to make such a payment to Steele? Who approved the obligation that the FBI would have been under if Steele had been able to come through? Where are the documents requesting authorization and laying out the purpose?

It's just a wild guess on my part, but I would think that the director of the FBI, James Comey at the time, would have had to approve such an expenditure. If and when Republicans take majority control of one or both houses of Congress, I look forward to his being subpoenaed to testify about the bureaucratic details of this offer that was intended to sway a presidential election toward the Democrat candidate.

Correction: James Comey, not Christopher Wray, was Director of the FBI at the time
You can get free Google Fi service until the end of 2022 if you purchase one of the two Pixel 7 phones at Best Buy. This offer is also valid for the Google Pixel 6a, by the way, in case you prefer it.

Getting a Pixel 7 from Best Buy will get you free Google Fi through 2022

Do note that the offer applies for Unlocked devices, of course, carrier-locked, open-box, and refurbished devices do not qualify. Youll need to use your purchased Pixel phone to sign up and activate a Fi Unlimited Plan as a new Fi customer. Do note that Data-only SIMs do not qualify.

So, there is a catch here. You need to be a new Google Fi customer. In other words: someone who has never had Fi service or someone whose last day of Fi service took place more than 180 days before the start of this promotion. Just for clarity, the promotion officially started on October 7.

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Google announced its Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro phones quite recently. They kept the price tags from last years models. The two phones start at $599 and $899, respectively. You can grab them from Best Buy via the links below the article.

Both phones are fueled by the same SoC, and have the same main camera

They are fueled by the same processor, the Google Tensor G2. They also come with the same main camera, while the ultrawide camera is slightly different (wider FoV on the Pro model). The Pro variant also has a telephoto camera on the back.

The Pixel 7 Pro does come with more RAM, and a larger, curved display, which also offers a higher resolution and refresh rate. Many people would say that the Pixel 7 is the better choice, though. It has most of the Pixel 7 Pro features, and its $300 more affordable.

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Weve already reviewed the Pixel 7 Pro, while the Pixel 7 review is coming soon. Google did refine both smartphones compared to last years models, and they also include Face Unlock now. Android 13 comes pre-installed on both phones.

Google Pixel 7 (Best Buy)

Google Pixel 7 Pro (Best Buy)
Samsung yesterday announced that it will start rolling out the Android 13-based One UI 5 update to its devices later this month. The announcement came on-stage at the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) 2022 in San Francisco. The company also gave us an overview of what to expect from the new One UI version, which is currently in the beta stage. Today, it has followed up with more details about One UI 5, highlighting key features and experiences that Galaxy users will get.

For starters, One UI 5.0 will bring subtle UI changes for a fresh, new look and feel. From reworked app icons, improved animations, and streamlined colors to notifications, call interface, and wallpapers, youll notice changes everywhere. You can set new wallpapers, including video wallpapers, directly from the lock screen. Stack widgets let you stack multiple widgets together for a cleaner homescreen while youll also get smart suggestions for widgets for a more deeply personalized experience.

Optical character recognition (OCR) is another new feature of One UI 5. It lets you extract text from images and copy it to the clipboard. Your Galaxy phone will also recommend contextual actions for the copied content. For example, if a photo has a phone number, you can copy the number and place a call to it directly. Similarly, you can visit a website or write an email. A new Connected devices menu, meanwhile, will let you manage all the devices connected to your smartphone in one place.

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One UI 5 will also support Bixby Text Call in English. The feature is already available in Korean with One UI 4.1.1. It allows you to answer voice calls with text messages. Your phone will convert the incoming audio into text, while your text response is converted into audio, so the other person will still hear a voice response. This feature will be helpful in noisy environments or situations when you cant speak. Samsung says the English support for Bixby Text Call will roll out in early 2023, so the initial One UI 5 release wont offer it.

Samsung improved privacy and security features on One UI 5

The new One UI version also brings improvements to privacy and security features. Samsung has streamlined these settings to make it quick and easy for users to understand. They can check their devices security status and find suggestions and warnings if theres any potential threat. Additionally, Samsung will alert you if you accidentally share photos containing potentially sensitive information with others or on social media. Your phone can detect images of credit and debit cards, ID cards, and other documents containing personal information.

One UI 5 represents Samsungs most personalized mobile experience yet, designed to give people greater options for tailoring their devices exactly how theyd like, Samsung said. The big update will roll out to the Galaxy S22 series later this month. Other eligible devices will follow soon. We will keep you posted.
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 has started getting the October 2022 Android security patch. Samsung has released the latest security update for its latest foldable in Israel. The rollout should cross boundaries to other regions, including the US, in the coming days.

The October SMR (Security Maintenance Release) for the Galaxy Z Fold 4 comes with firmware version F936BXXS1AVJ3, at least in Israel. Other countries in Asia, as well as Europe, Australia, Latin America, and Africa, should also get the new software package with the same build number. It may vary slightly in the US and Canada, though.

Regardless of the firmware version, this update brings the latest vulnerability fixes from Samsung and Google to the new foldable. The Korean firms security bulletin mentions patches for more than 30 Android OS vulnerabilities, including one critical flaw. These issues affect the whole Android ecosystem and were patched by Google.

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Additionally, Samsung patched 18 Galaxy-specific issues as well. These issues only affect Android smartphones and tablets from the Korean behemoth. Called Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items, one of the critical issues patched by Samsung this month enabled unauthorized access to secure memory.

The Galaxy Z Fold 4 gets the October security update

All of these fixes are now rolling out to the Galaxy Z Fold 4. The rollout may be limited to Israel right now but it should be just a matter of time before units in other regions start receiving the update. As usual, Samsung will seed the new software package over the air (OTA) in batches to all eligible units over the next few days or weeks. If youre one of the early buyers of the new Galaxy foldable, you should get a notification prompting you to download the OTA update.

Alternatively, you can also manually check for updates from the Settings app. Simply go to the Software update menu and tap on Download and install. If an update is available, you will be prompted to download it. If you dont see any pending updates, check again a few days later. Note that this update doesnt bring any new features or improvements. Its all about security fixes that are part of the latest SMR.

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However, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 will soon get a major feature update: Android 13. Yesterday, Samsung revealed that the new Android version will roll out starting later this month. It will bring the companys One UI 5 custom software. The Galaxy S22 series will get the update first, followed by other models. We will keep you posted.
The Algerian Minister for Energy and Mining, Mohamed Arkab, "held discussions with the Russian Deputy Prime Minister, Alexsander Novak, on the status of cooperation between the two countries with regard to the energy sector", stating that there is "a reinforced will" for the fossil fuel sector, electricity and renewables and mining sectors to strengthen ties. This was reported by a note released by the Algerian Ministry of Energy, explaining that the talks were held within the framework of the fifth edition of the International Forum,"Week of Russian Energy", which began yesterday in Moscow.



The press note, released yesterday, states that Arkab met "the leaders of Russian companies" in the sectors of fossil fuels, electricity and renewable energy. The Minister "discussed investment opportunities that Algeria may offer in various sectors and the interesting legal and fiscal framework, in particular in view of the new law on fossil fues and the recently-adopted law on investments". Arkab also met his Syrian counterpart, Bassam Tohme, continues the note, and assured him "Algeria's availability to share its experience in the fields of fossil fuels and mining". CEO of Sonatrach, Toufik Hekkar, held a number of meetings with CEOs of Russian firms, in particular those operating in Algeria. "The two sides discussed investment and partnership opportunities in the fossil fuel sector" states the note.
TEL AVIV - An apparent state of calm has returned this morning to East Jerusalem following violent clashes which lasted all night between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces. The most significant violent confrontations took place near the Shuafat refugee camp, spreading rapidly to other Arab neighborhoods.



According to the media these are the most violent clashes in years. The police entered the refugee camp in search of a Palestinian suspected of being responsible for the attack last Saturday which caused the death of a female Israeli soldier and the severe wounding of one member of the civil guard. The police reported the arrest of at least 9 protesters, two police agents were wounded.




by Dames Alexander Sinaga

JAKARTA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- In a hospital on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali, a local healer named Gede Saurdana has been working together with doctors and medical workers in the past six months to nurse over 400 patients in desperate condition due to illnesses.

The patients included not only residents on the island, but also tourists from other parts of the country.

Bali is currently developing and popularizing its own traditional medical treatments to preserve local wisdom as well as to attract more tourists. All community health centers and public and private hospitals across Bali have been called to provide Balinese traditional healing, including acupuncture and prana, with competent practitioners.

Bali governor Wayan Koster recently inaugurated an association that gathers competent practitioners. The association, locally known as Gotra Pangusada, consists of a collection of Balinese experts in the medical and non-medical fields who want to include local treatment in public healthcare.

Saurdana, 54, has been learning and practicing traditional healing for over 14 years from a Balinese script, natively known as Aksara Bali. He is now sharing his knowledge and working along with healthcare workers at Bali Mandara Hospital in capital city Denpasar to cure patients.

"Here we're working in an integrated way. First, doctors examine patients in a modern way. Then I try to heal patients by raising up the inner power of the patients in accordance with Aksara Bali," he said.

According to the Bali Health Agency, at least six hospitals and 120 community health centers are now providing traditional healing treatments with medicinal plants grown in Bangli, Karangasem and Tabanan areas.

Three years ago, the Bali administration issued a regulation on Balinese traditional healthcare, aiming to preserve the healing treatment and integrate it with modern medical treatment. To achieve the goals, the government is collaborating with Gotra Pangusada, who is led by Putu Suta Sadnyana, a lawyer in Bali.

Sadnyana gained a deeper understanding of the persistence of traditional medicine treatments after having traveled to China several years ago. He visited as a tourist and his local guide led him and other tourists to traditional medicine centers.

"I saw that traditional medicine treatments in China are developed and managed so greatly. It's very impressive," he told Xinhua.

Sadnyana expressed hope that local Balinese healers and educational and research institutions can persistently cooperate to help advance the Balinese healing treatment.

"We are hoping tourists come here not only for refreshment or recreation, but also for Balinese traditional healing," said Sadnyana. 
Agreement of Palestinian factions to be reached in Algiers Unity declaration is expected by the Algerian presidency

(ANSAmed) - ALGIERS, 13 OCTOBER - The Algerian presidency announced that "the works of a conference of Palestinian factions will culminate on Thursday with the signing of the "Declaration of Algiers", which "will serve as a solid base to reach unity among all factions". This was reported by the Algerian presidency and published last night. State TV referred that the President of Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, took part in the Palestinian dialogue sessions, that the country is hosting for two days. The TV specified that "Tebboune took place in the conference work of unification to reach Palestinian national unity at the Palace of Nations" and "has greeted all Palestinian factions" present at the conference.



Yesterday, a second and final round of Palestinian global dialogue was launched, 14 factions participated to discuss a reconciliation document. Since summer 2007, the Palestinians suffers from political and geographic divisions, with the Hamas movement that controls the Gaza Strip while the West Bank is administrated by a government formed by the Fatah organization, led by President Mahmoud Abbas.(ANSAmed).




BRUSSELS - The negotiations for Serbia to join the European Union should begin only if Belgrade aligns itself with the sanctions adopted by the EU against Russia and if Serbia implements a number of reforms the EU requested. This position expressed by the European Parliament in its recommendation enlargement strategy on the Union, was approved by the Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET) with 49 votes in favor, 5 against and 8 abstained.



The text highlights the need to prioritize the alignment of countries that aspire to join the EU with a common foreign and security policy decided in Brussels. However, the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) observe how all the EU funds for Serbia should be reconsidered to guarantee that EU expenses are fully aligned with its objectives and strategic interests.



Historically, Serbia has been a Russian ally, while condemning Russia's aggression on Ukraine and its illegal annexation on the part of Moscow of 4 Ukrainian provinces, Serbia has so far refused to adopt the sanctions against the Kremlin decided by the EU.
The UK Government says it has unlocked export markets worth 100 million for the alcohol industry after negotiating an end to trade barriers with several African and South American nations.

However the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) says ongoing trade talks with India are a once in a generation opportunity to unlock business on an even larger scale.

On Thursday, Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch visited the Glenkinchie Distillery in East Lothian, which is owned by drinks giant Diageo.

The Department for International Trade says it has intervened to end a number of barriers recently.

Kemi Badenoch said the UK Government is slashing red tape (Jacob King/PA)

In Argentina, whisky tariffs were reduced from 35% to 20% following negotiations.

The department said Morocco removed 48% tariffs which were mistakenly imposed on UK spirits, and Angola cancelled a planned tax on whisky.

It also said UK-produced alcohol was freed after being stuck in customs in Tunisia.

Ms Badenoch said: Every week we remove a trade barrier somewhere around the world.

From whisky in Argentina to gin in Angola, were slashing red tape and opening access to new markets and new customers.

With these trade obstacles gone and more to follow, my message to UK businesses is clear  make the most of the huge global appetite for your fantastic products and sell to the world.

As we line up deals with huge markets around the globe, including India and CPTPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership), I cant wait to celebrate the even greater wins which lie ahead.

According to industry figures for 2021, Scotch whisky exports grew by 19% to reach a total value of 4.51 billion.

Ms Badenoch said Brexit allowed the UK Government to have its own place at the negotiating table for trade as the European Union often did not offer what was needed.

She told the PA news agency: This is something that would previously have been done by the EU and quite often we didnt get what was needed.

Now were able to control a lot more of our trade policy  so it is excellent news.

Mark Kent, chief executive of SWA, said: Securing a deal with India to reduce the 150% tariff on Scotch whisky is the industrys top international trade priority.

We want to see a deal agreed, but not any deal.

To deliver for the industry, any agreement must open up the market to more Scotch whisky producers, which will in turn generate hundreds of new jobs across the UK, hundreds of millions of pounds of additional exports, and boost investment and revenue in India.

The ongoing negotiations are a once in a generation chance to give more Scottish distillers the opportunity to do business in India. That is the scale of the prize on offer.

We look forward to working with the Trade Secretary to deliver continued growth for the Scotch whisky industry in India, and other key global markets.

Ewan Andrew, president of global supply chain at Diageo, said: It was a pleasure to welcome the Secretary of State to Glenkinchie to see how we are investing in the future growth of Scotch whisky, with all the powerful economic benefits that brings to Scotland and the United Kingdom.
A schoolgirl who got Disney to create a princess with glasses in their hit animated feature Encanto has set her sights on challenging the stigma of the nerd face emoji.

Lowri Moore, 13, a glasses-wearer, had written  aged nine  to the entertainment superpower pleading for its next heroine to wear glasses, but initially feared her request had been ignored after being met with silence.

However, she was later personally credited and thanked by Encantos director Jared Bush as inspiration for main character Mirabel Madrigal being shown with glasses.

Bush, himself a glasses-wearer, later told Lowri shes my hero.

Now Lowri, from Chilwell, Nottinghamshire, has penned a fresh plea  this time to the global organisation which decides what emojis look like  to broaden representation of glasses-wearers among the population of digital icons.

Her campaign launched on Thursday  World Sight Day.

In a letter to the Unicode Consortium, the body responsible for all new emojis, Lowri said: Unfortunately, the only glasses-wearing emoji I can find is a nerd face.

Lowri with Burton-upon-Trent pupils who have signed her letter to social media bigwigs (Richard Vernalls/PA)

People who wear glasses are not nerds.

But unless we address this, theres a chance the next generation will grow up believing this lie about themselves.

The consortium includes internet and computing powers like Facebook-owner Meta, Google, Amazon, Apple and Netflix.

After unveiling her campaign to an audience of school children in Burton-on-Trent, she said: I am just trying to raise awareness for an issue which is large, especially for people my age, like teenagers, just to get glasses on emojis.

Even if its just one (emoji), this is a positive change.

Earlier, she told her audience that bespectacled emojis were currently limited to a teacher, a grandmother and a nerd-type character.

Its very stereotypical and I shouldnt be put in a box, she said.

So many human beings just wear glasses so they can see, so why make it a stereotype and make people feel bad?

Lowri said although glasses were on-trend in the western world, other parts of the world still had entrenched views of glasses being un-cool.

She gathered signatures from pupils and is hoping more will sign up to her #GlassesOn campaign.

Its so simple, were not asking that every emoji has to wear glasses  lets just have that option so people dont feel negative about themselves, said Lowri.

A small difference can go a long way.

The campaign has the backing of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), which earlier this year awarded Lowri its campaigner of the year award.

Jessica Thompson, IAPB policy, strategy and advocacy director, said: Were so proud of Lowri.

She added: Its such an important issue because certainly, the nerd emoji and having emojis that arent representative of people wearing glasses just perpetuates the stigma.

Its really important we encourage children and their parents of the importance of looking after their eyes, getting sight tests and wearing their glasses.

Citing research showing UK children who wear glasses were more likely to be bullied in school, she added social media giants needed to be encouraging children glasses are really important.

She added the IAPB was running a broader World Sight Day campaign aimed at raising awareness about eye health in a world where a billion people have no access to the eye care services common in the UK.

Its a serious message but hopefully today weve delivered that with a bit of fun, she said.

Ian Brierly, Paget High School headteacher, where Lowri has launched her campaign, said she was a terrific role model for young people who they can identify with.
A university library described as the epitome of sustainable construction has been recognised with the UKs most eminent architecture award.

The Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba) has named The New Library of Magdalene College in Cambridge the winner of the 2022 Riba Stirling Prize.

Set within the college grounds in central Cambridge, the modern 24-hour library was designed by Niall McLaughlin Architects with the aim of lasting 400 years.

A grid of chimneys supports the floors and bookshelves while carrying warm air upwards to ventilate the building (Riba/PA).

Sustainability was also high on the agenda, and the brick structure minimises energy use through a grid of chimneys which support the floors and bookshelves while carrying warm air upwards to ventilate the building.

Its timber structure also reduced the carbon embodied in its construction, and high, vaulted windows allow natural light to flood in.

The library, which also houses an archive and art gallery, compliments surrounding quadrangular buildings and courts which have gradually developed from the monastic college site.

Riba president Simon Allford described the buildings design as the epitome of sustainable architecture.

The building was created with a light-filled, warm-wood interior (Riba/PA).

He said: A unique setting with a clear purpose  The New Library at Magdalene College is sophisticated, generous, architecture that has been built to last.

Creating a new building that will last at least 400 years is a significant challenge, but one that Niall McLaughlin Architects has risen to with the utmost skill, care and responsibility.

The result  a solid and confident, yet deferential new kid on the college block.

The light-filled, warm-wood interior lifts spirits and fosters connections.

The overarching commitment to build something that will stand the test of time can be felt in every material and detail, and from every viewpoint.

This is the epitome of how to build for the long-term.

Architect Niall McLaughlin said the university asked him to build for the long-term and use resources wisely.

The Magdalene College Library is a work of many hands and many minds, he said.

The College created the possibility for success in the way that they initiated and managed the project.

The appointment of designers, consultants, builders, and craftsmen was treated with care.

Throughout the development process, our team was supported and robustly questioned in our decisions.

Students can enjoy wide reading rooms and private desks set into bay windows (Riba/PA).

The librarys exterior comprises gabled pitched roofs, windows with tracery and elegant brickwork.

Inside, students can enjoy wide reading rooms, private desks set into bay windows, and narrow zones for staircases and bookcases.

Magdalene College librarian, Dr Marcus Waithe, described it as an inspiring structure.

Magdalene Colleges New Library fulfils an unusually challenging brief: to erect a building at the edge of one of Cambridges most historically sensitive sites, and to do so without committing an intrusion, he said.

The College wanted to avoid mere pastiche, or a passive blending in.

It needed to be an inspiring structure  one that would encourage our undergraduates to aim high  that still preserved a human scale.

As if that were not difficult enough, it would combine a working library with an archive centre, and the Robert Cripps art gallery.

The result succeeds on all these fronts and more.

The 2022 Riba Stirling prize-giving ceremony will be held at the institutes headquarters, 66 Portland Place in London.
The King has praised Malawi for its remarkable success in eliminating the infectious disease trachoma which causes blindness.

Charles paid tribute to the hard work, dedication and commitment that led to the breakthrough, in a message to the countrys president, Lazarus Chakwera.

The Countess of Wessex is visiting Malawi to celebrate the achievement and has attended a dinner marking the milestone, before joining guests at Malawis national World Sight Day celebrations on Thursday.

The King said in his message: This is a remarkable success, and a true testament to all those whose hard work, dedication and commitment has led to Malawi becoming the first country in Southern Africa to eliminate this devastating, neglected tropical disease as a public health issue.

We look forward to welcoming HRH The Countess of Wessex who will celebrate with Malawian partners #trachoma elimination on #WorldSightDay2022. High Commissioner @floneritchle says UK-Malawi partnership in health is an important one. #RoyalVisitMw2022 @FCDOGovUK @Sightsavers pic.twitter.com/rt1CF1jcyh  UK in Malawi (@UKinMalawi) October 12, 2022

Tackling avoidable blindness across the Commonwealth was a cause close to the heart of my beloved mother.

Indeed, the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, set up in 2012 to create an enduring legacy for her, took the elimination of trachoma as a major part of its mission.

I am particularly proud that Malawi is the first country supported by the Trust to reach the extraordinary milestone of trachoma elimination.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) announced a few weeks ago it had validated Malawis elimination of trachoma as a public health issue, making it the fourth country in WHOs African Region after Ghana (June 2018), Gambia (April 2021) and Togo (May 2022) to achieve this significant milestone.

Sophie is visiting Malawi in her role as a global ambassador for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, and as former vice patron of the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust.

Charles went on to say: The commitment made by so many Commonwealth leaders at the Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases summit in Kigali a few months ago gives me great encouragement that other countries will be inspired by your achievement and, thus, redouble their efforts to eliminate trachoma along with other such diseases.
Cuba Gooding Jr. will not serve time in jail in his forcible touching case. The Oscar-winning actor plead guilty to a lesser charge in a New York City courthouse on Thursday as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

In April, Gooding admitted he kissed a waitress on the lips without her consent in 2018 at a nightclub. The Jerry Maguire star had previously pleaded not guilty. He was sentenced to counseling with the possibility of getting his conviction reduced to a lesser violation for good behavior. On Thursday, the prosecutor told the court Gooding completed six months of alcohol and behavior modification counseling and stayed out of trouble, according to the Associated Press. He was allowed to withdraw his misdemeanor plea and plead guilty to a harassment violation.

Cuba Gooding Jr. arrives for sentencing in his forcible touching case on October 13, 2022 in New York City. (Photo: Getty Images)

Gooding will not have a criminal record with the nonviolent harassment violation. If he failed to comply with the terms of the deal over the past six months, then he would have faced up to one year in jail. The 54-year-old actor's accuser wasn't satisfied with the punishment and called the plea a "betrayal," according to a 1010 WINS reporter who was in court.

Gooding was arrested in 2019 for groping and unwanted touching. More than a dozen women came forward and accused the actor of inappropriate behavior over the years. Prosecutors hoped to present trial testimony from 19 women to establish Gooding's pattern of predatory behavior. The judge ruled two of the women could testify, but prosecutors say the judge later reversed that decision, leading them to seek a plea deal.

Gooding was one of many famous men to be taken down during the #MeToo movement, which swept through Hollywood after the explosive accusations against Harvey Weinstein dropped in Oct. 2017. It's been a big week in court for a handful of stars once at the top of their game.

Accuser calls plea deal a betrayal, says his alcohol and so-called sex abuse treatment is w/same therapist and called behavior modification. @Cubagooding_jr @ManhattanDA @1010WINS pic.twitter.com/V55WDs5KtM  Juliet Papa (@winsjuliet) October 13, 2022

Kevin Spacey was also in court in New York City on Thursday, just down the street from Gooding, as actor Anthony Rapp is suing the Emmy winner for $40 million. Rapp was one of the first men to come forward and accuse Spacey of sexual assault.

Over on the West Coast, Weinstein, who was sentenced to 23 years in prison in New York for rape and sexual assault following a landmark trial, was back in court. Jury selection is underway in Los Angeles where the disgraced producer faces 11 new charges. Meanwhile in a different L.A. courtroom this week, jury selection began in actor Danny Masterson's rape trial. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

MORE: Danny Masterson rape trial and how its linked to Scientology
NEW YORK (AP)  Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. resolved his New York City forcible touching case Thursday with a guilty plea to a lesser charge and no jail time after complying with the terms of a conditional plea agreement reached in April.

Prosecutor Coleen Balbert said Gooding has stayed out of trouble and completed six months of alcohol and behavior modification counseling, allowing him to withdraw his misdemeanor plea and plead guilty to a harassment violation.

Balbert said she has received positive reports for the last six months from Goodings therapist. The actor is continuing with treatment beyond the time required by his plea agreement, Balbert said.

Gooding, 54, faces no additional penalties and, by replacing his misdemeanor plea with a plea to a noncriminal violation, he will not have a criminal record. If Gooding had failed to comply with the terms of the deal, he would have faced up to one year in jail.

Gooding pleaded guilty in April to a misdemeanor charge that he forcibly kissed a worker at a New York nightclub in 2018. That was just one of dozens of allegations of inappropriate behavior by the Oscar winner that came to light in recent years.

Some of Goodings accusers criticized what they regarded as light punishment for the Jerry Maguire star and some are pressing ahead with civil litigation against him.

Gooding saw minimal repercussions while his victims dealt with the aftermath of his actions, the nightclub worker said in a victim impact statement that Balbert read into the court record.

Arrested in 2019, Gooding was among a profusion of Hollywood heavyweights accused of wrongdoing in the #MeToo movement.

As Gooding was in court Thursday wrapping up his case, another Oscar-winning actor, Kevin Spacey, was on trial down the block in a civil lawsuit alleging that he sexually assaulted actor Anthony Rapp.

Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, former studio boss Harvey Weinstein and That 70s Show star Danny Masterson are in the midst of separate rape trials. Weinstein was convicted of similar charges in New York in 2020 and is serving a 23-year prison sentence.

Goodings case has taken more than three years to play out, prolonged by court delays related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gooding was arrested in June 2019 after a 29-year-old woman told police he fondled her without her consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square. That incident wasnt the one in his guilty plea.

A few months later, prosecutors charged Gooding with pinching a servers buttocks after making a sexually suggestive remark to her at TAO Downtown and the allegation to which he pleaded guilty  forcibly kissing a waitress at LAVO New York in midtown Manhattan.

Both incidents were alleged to have occurred in 2018.

Gooding admitted at a plea hearing in April that he kissed the waitress on her lips without consent and, in explaining his actions during Thursdays harassment plea, told Judge Curtis Farber: I kissed a waitress, your honor.

The waitress, in her victim impact statement, said that Gooding forced his tongue into her mouth unexpectedly while she was serving drinks. She said she was aware of incidents involving Gooding and three other women at the club.

Gooding had previously pleaded not guilty to six misdemeanor counts and denied all allegations of wrongdoing. His lawyers argued that overzealous prosecutors, caught up in the fervor of #MeToo, were trying to turn commonplace gestures or misunderstandings into crimes.

Judge Curtis Farber earlier had ruled if the Gooding case went to trial, prosecutors could have called two additional women to testify about their allegations that Gooding also violated them. Prosecutors say the judge later reversed that decision  leading them to seek a plea deal.

Along with the criminal case, Gooding is accused in a lawsuit of raping a woman in New York City in 2013. After a judge issued a default judgment in July because Gooding hadnt responded to the lawsuit, the actor retained a lawyer and is fighting the allegations.
adamkaz / Getty Images

Social Security is an essential safety net for many Americans. Even if you haven't saved enough for retirement, you can still count on Social Security benefits in retirement.

Find: Can I Draw Social Security at 62 and Still Work Full Time?

Related: 7 Surprisingly Easy Ways To Reach Your Retirement Goals

However, with an average monthly benefit of just over $1,600, America's most expensive cities are far out of reach without another source of income. If you do have to rely on your Social Security benefits alone -- and still want to make the most of your golden years -- you'll need to live somewhere affordable that won't compromise your quality of life.

That's why GOBankingRates compiled a list of the 20 best cities to live off of just Social Security. The study factored in the cost of living, livability and median rent and -- after comparing the 177 largest cities in the U.S. -- combined the scores to determine where you really can get by on just your Social Security benefit. Read on to find out which cities made the list.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images/iStockphoto

20. Evansville, Indiana

Cost of Living Score: 78.5

Livability Score: 58

Average Rent: $786.75

Evansville is one of three Indiana cities identified in the study as a good place to live just on Social Security. Its relatively low livability score and rent of more than $780 per month prevented it from moving up on the list.

Take Our Poll: Do You Have an Emergency Fund Established?

DenisTangneyJr / iStock.com

19. Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Cost of Living Score: 82.7

Livability Score: 62

Average Rent: $798.25

Hattiesburg's cost of living indicates that you can expect to spend almost 18% less on your basic expenses than you would in the rest of the country, on average.

Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto

18. Wichita, Kansas

Cost of Living Score: 82.1

Livability Score: 60

Average Rent: $719

If you're younger and looking to avoid living off your Social Security check alone when you reach retirement, one of the best ways is to start saving early. However, even if it's too late to build the sort of nest egg you would like, a city like Wichita -- which combines modest rent with a low cost of living -- should help you make the most of your Social Security benefits.

ReDunnLev / Getty Images/iStockphoto

17. South Bend, Indiana

Cost of Living Score: 68.4

Livability Score: 57

Average Rent: $754.50

In South Bend, you'll pay nearly 30% less in your cost of living expenses than the rest of the United States, which means your Social Security check can go a lot further here.

Jacob Boomsma / Shutterstock.com

16. Beaumont, Texas

Cost of Living Score: 78.3

Livability Score: 63

Average Rent: $786.25

Beaumont's livability score is higher than many other cities on this list, which might account for its slightly higher rent, too. However, you're still paying more than 20% less in cost of living than other cities in the U.S.

CRobertson / Getty Images

15. Greenville, North Carolina

Cost of Living Score: 84.1

Livability Score: 75

Average Rent: $792

The average rent cost in Roanoke is the fourth-highest on the list, but its lower cost of living and high livability rates make it desirable for retirees. If you wanted supplement your Social Security earnings, Roanoke is a good place to do it. Another GOBankingRates study showed it's one of the top 20 cities for remote workers.

peeterv / Getty Images

14. Topeka, Kansas

Cost of Living Score: 79

Livability Score: 61

Average Rent: $708

With an affordable rent, a decent livability score, and a cost of living score that means you'll pay less than the national average, this midwestern city is positioned to be a great place to live on only a Social Security check.

Shutterstock.com

13. Williston, North Dakota

Cost of Living Score: 97.8

Livability Score: 72

Average Rent: $749.50

Williston is one of three cities on this list in North Dakota. At $749.50, rent in Williston is on the higher side of cities on this list, but it's still less expensive to live here than elsewhere.

SeanPavonePhoto / Getty Images

12. Shreveport, Louisiana

Cost of Living Score: 77.5

Livability Score: 65

Average Rent: $772

The Southern city of Shreveport, Louisiana is one of two cities based on the state. While this one is a little high on the rent, keeping it lower on the list, you're paying about 22% less in cost of living here, making your check stretch.

shuttersv / Shutterstock.com

11. Fayetteville, Arkansas

Cost of Living Score: 92.9

Livability Score: 72

Average Rent: $770

Fayetteville is another solid Southern city to call home if you're living on a fixed income. With a high livability score, and moderate rent, anyone on Social Security should be able to make a good life here.

Ron_Thomas / iStock.com

10. Toledo, Ohio

Cost of Living Score: 72.7

Livability Score: 62

Average Rent: $710.50

Toledo's cost of living indicates that you can expect to spend more than 25% less on your basic expenses than you would in the rest of the country, on average. What's more, Toledo is one of the cities where your money stretches the furthest, according to a separate GOBankingRates study.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images

9. Lubbock, Texas

Cost of Living Score: 79.9

Livability Score: 68

Average Rent: $746.50

Lubbock is one of four Texas cities identified in the study as a good place to live just on Social Security. With a decent livability score and cost of living score, even rent of more than $740 per month can't keep this from being a great place to live on a fixed income.

Shutterstock.com

8. Davenport, Iowa

Cost of Living Score: 81.7

Livability Score: 69

Average Rent: $731.25

It costs about 19% less to live in Davenport than the average American city. Its relatively high (for this list) average rent of $731.25 per month and its livability score of just 69, pull it down from the top spot on the list.

Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto

7. Akron, Ohio

Cost of Living Score: 69.5

Livability Score: 62

Average Rent: $679.50

The city of Akron has a lot to offer, not only in a low cost of living, that is more than 30% less than the rest of the country, a decent rent under $700 per month, but lots of natural and cultural attractions.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images/iStockphoto

6. Odessa, Texas

Cost of Living Score: 88

Livability Score: 63

Average Rent: $510.50

The primary appeal of Odessa to retirees is the low cost of rent. At $510.50 per month, it's the cheapest in the study - and by a wide margin. A low cost of living makes up for it's relatively low livability score, as well.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images

5. Fargo, North Dakota

Cost of Living Score: 91.9

Livability Score: 76

Average Rent: $782

Despite one of the higher average monthly rents on this list, Fargo is one of the best cities to live in on a fixed income, according to another GOBankingRates study. That should appeal to those relying on Social Security.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images

4. Grand Forks, North Dakota

Cost of Living Score: 88.2

Livability Score: 74

Average Rent: $682

Grand Forks is the northernmost city on the list, and one of three in North Dakota. At $682, rent in Grand Forks is at the midpoint, but it's still 11% less expensive to live here than elsewhere.

ChrisBoswell / Getty Images/iStockphoto

3. Fort Wayne, Indiana

Cost of Living Score: 78.9

Livability Score: 75

Average Rent: $792.75

Fort Wayne is a little pricier than many of the other cities on this list, but it still is among one of the best cities in the nation to retire on a Social Security check, found a separate GOBankingRates study.

travelview / Shutterstock.com

2. Lake Charles, Louisiana

Cost of Living Score: 83.4

Livability Score: 70

Average Rent: $608

For retirees interested in living near the water, with all of the recreational opportunities that brings - think fishing! - there's good news: Lake Charles has the third-lowest rent cost of the cities considered in this study.

DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images/iStockphoto

1. McAllen, Texas

Cost of Living Score: 78.6

Livability Score: 81

Average Rent: $592.75

McAllen Texas holds the number one spot on this list for retiring on a Social Security check because it has a high livability score, the second lowest rent on this list and a cost of living score that's still nearly 12% lower than the rest of the U.S.

More From GOBankingRates

Jordan Rosenfeld and Joel Anderson contributed to the reporting for this article.

Methodology: GOBankingRates determined the best places to live on only a Social Security check based on the (1) average monthly benefit for retired workers, $1,619.67, sourced from Social Security Administration; (2) the overall cost of living in each city, sourced from Sperling's Best Places; (3) average 2022 rent for a one bedroom apartment as sourced from ApartmentList; and (4) livability scores sourced from Areavibes. Factors (2) through (4) were scored and combined with the lowest score being best. Factor (4) was weighted double in final calculations. All data was collected and is up to date as of May 23, 2022.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 20 Best Places To Live on Only a Social Security Check
FILE - A building at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, which merged with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), Seattle Children's and UW Medicine in early 2022 to create a unified adult cancer research center, is pictured on March 11, 2020, in Seattle. On Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, the Bezos Family Foundation announced a $710 million gift to the Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, the largest gift the center has ever received and one of the largest to go to any single cancer research organization in recent years. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

The Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center announced a $710 million gift from the Bezos family, the largest gift the center has ever received and one of the largest to go to any single cancer research organization in recent years.

The donation will fund 36 new research labs, the building of a large research facility, investments in clinical trial infrastructure and immunotherapy research over ten years, the center said Wednesday.

Thomas Lynch, president and director of the center, rebranded this month as Fred Hutch, but widely known as The Hutch, said he worked with Mike and Jackie Bezos, who made the gift, to understand what motivated their giving. Jackie Bezos is the mother of Amazon found Jeff Bezos, while her husband, Mike, is Jeff Bezos' stepfather. Jeff Bezos, the world's second wealthiest person, stepped down from his role as CEO of Amazon in July 2021.

Lynch learned the Bezos family deeply valued collaboration in research and treatment.

But dont underestimate the importance of urgency," Lynch said in an interview. "Because I think thats something that I feel passionately about and I know that Mike and Jackie feel passionately about being able to bring cures to patients soon.

The Bezos family has previously given almost $68 million to The Hutch's research since 2009, the center said. It declined to say whether Mike and Jackie Bezos had given through their foundation or through another entity. A communications firm that previously worked with the Bezos Family Foundation directed requests for comment back to The Hutch.

In a statement, Mike Bezos praised the merger of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle Childrens Hospital and UW Medicine earlier this year into a unified adult cancer research center.

We hope our investment in The Hutch leads to answers for the most pressing medical questions, Bezos said. We also hope this inspires others to join us now in pursuing scientific and medical breakthroughs.

This new donation comes as President Joe Biden has called on the private sector and foundations to join a reignited cancer moonshot and move the U.S. closer to the goal he set in February of cutting U.S. cancer fatalities by 50% over the next 25 years.

The size of the gift and the investments in complementary areas are a testament to the trust that philanthropists like the Bezos family have in the academic community to deliver value back to society, said Peter Kuhn, a cancer researcher and professor at the University of Southern California.

If you take the friction out of the system of how an academic institution like The Hutch can work with its academic partners and commercial partners in both the therapeutic and the diagnostic world, thats how we get acceleration, Kuhn said.

The center hopes to accelerate the pace of clinical trials, Lynch said, with the aim of reviewing and opening trials within 90 days.

The work researchers and clinicians will be able to do at The Hutch will also benefit patients and researchers elsewhere in the country, said Nilofer S. Azad, an oncology professor at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University.

We can really use scientific knowledge in ways that are practical towards changing patient care, but that does require significant resources, she said

Fred Hutch, which merged with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance in April, received another major gift in September of $78 million from Stuart and Molly Sloan, a sign philanthropic donations to the expanded center are increasing. In 2021, it reported that about $86.4 million or 8% of its overall revenue of $984 million came from philanthropic donations.

Research gives you hope and gives us hope that options might be different for the next patients down the road, Lynch said.

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AP Medical Writer Carla K. Johnson contributed from Washington state.

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Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of APs philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.
FILE PHOTO: Steve Wynn, Chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts, speaks during the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills

By Jacqueline Thomsen

(Reuters) -Casino magnate Steve Wynn cannot be ordered to register with the U.S. Department of Justice as a foreign agent of China, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., said on Wednesday.

The Justice Department in May sued for a court order forcing Wynn, the former CEO of Wynn Casinos, to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). Officials alleged that Wynn lobbied then-U.S. President Donald Trump on China's behalf in 2017. Wynn's attorneys denied that he was ever an agent of the Chinese government.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said on Wednesday that, because any relationship between Wynn and the Chinese government ended in 2017, the Republican donor cannot be required to register as an agent. The judge pointed to past precedent in D.C. federal court in making the ruling.

The judge said he was not determining whether Wynn had lobbied on China's behalf. He also said the Justice Department could pursue criminal sanctions against Wynn for failing to disclose the alleged lobbying, if the statute of limitations had not expired.

A Justice Department spokesperson said the department disagreed with the ruling and is considering its options.

Wynn's lawyers in a statement reiterated their denial of the lobbying allegations. "This is a claim that should never have been filed, and the court agreed," they said.

(Reporting by Jacqueline Thomsen in Washington; Editing by David Bario, Matthew Lewis and Richard Pullin)
A mother-of-four killed in the Creeslough service station tragedy had an abundance of love, her funeral service has been told.

President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and the Taoiseachs aide-de-camp were among those who attended the service for Martina Martin.

Mrs Martin, 49, was working in the shop when the explosion took place at a service station in the rural Co Donegal village.

Her family walked behind the hearse as it arrived at St Michaels Church in Creeslough on Thursday morning.

Martina Martin (An Garda Siochana/PA)

Crowds once again lined the streets and gathered at the entrance to the church to say goodbye to another member of their community.

Her co-workers provided a guard of honour as her coffin was brought into the church.

Representatives of Mulroy College in Milford, where two of her children attend, were also part of the honour guard.

Martina had an abundance of love, Fr John Joe Duffy told the congregation.

She was sensitive to the needs of others and to those who are sensitive to the needs of others, life offers innumerable opportunities to practice the commandment of love.

Real love requires hard work and patience. It requires doing up rotas on a board in the kitchen of the house telling you, the children, what your tasks are; emptying the bins, which Im sure you did without fail.

Putting out the bins, washing the dishes, which Im sure great care was given to, and taking Dusty, Sophie and Junior for a walk.

Dusty being the dog and Sophie and Junior being the cats. She offered you that love, that love in helping you prepare for the realities of life, and she did it so very well.

For real love, for her, was a way of life.

Her quick wit, her straight talking was done and given with love and with goodness.

The mourners attending the funeral were also told that Mrs Martin loved the people of Creeslough.

And we, each and every one of us who knew her, very much loved her, Fr Duffy added.

She was very special to us. She was very special to her colleagues and she was very special to us all.

If we were having a bad day, the quick wit would lift us up. She cared for the customers in another way.

Martinas friends describe her as your mother hen, your mother hen to the core, she lived for you.

The hearse carrying the coffin of Martina Martin arrives at St Michaels Church, in Creeslough (Brian Lawless/PA)

She lived for you, her children. She never missed a birthday and loved to meet for a coffee to catch up.

Martina was a beautiful person, her beauty inside radiated in that kind of cheeky mischievous smile which flowed out to you when you met her.

She was the voice of reason when others were hurting.

She never minced her words and was the kindest friend you could ever have. She was the life and soul of any night-out, she didnt dwell on the problems she was facing, but put others first.

Mourners were told how she worked at the heart of the community in an exceptionally nice place, and that customers would have met her naturally friendly face.

She was at work as normal, doing what she did, doing what she liked, doing what she loved, doing what was routine to us all and then, what turned out as a normal day, ended up a very different way to the way that it ordinarily would, Fr Duffy added.

All things changed, events outside our control, outside the control indeed of any one of us, those few seconds of time last Friday have impacted so much on you as a family and on so many other families and on all of us.

Seconds that changed in time, that led to the changing for future generations of our village, our community and communities beyond. The events of last Friday will be forever etched in our hearts.

He said that the community of Creeslough was growing in strength each day to get through the hours and days ahead.

Creeslough is a small village, but it is now more than just that. It is now a word for determination, for resolve and for togetherness and how important togetherness is, Fr Duffy added.

This tragedy has reignited within all of us, myself included, that each one of us are only as strong as the families we have around us, only as strong as the community that surrounds us.

At the end of the service Fr Duffy urged people affected by the tragedy to contact local counselling services, which he said he intended to do himself.

The funeral of Leona Harper is taking place at St Marys Church in Ramelton, Co Donegal.

The 14-year-old had been in the service station to buy ice-cream when the explosion happened on Friday.

Sarah McLachlans song Angel was played as her coffin was led to the altar.

The funerals of Jessica Gallagher, 24, and Martin McGill, 49, were held in Creeslough on Tuesday, while those of Catherine ODonnell, 39, and her son James Monaghan, 13, were held in Creeslough on Wednesday afternoon, and a service for James OFlaherty, 48, was held in the morning in Derrybeg.

Family and mourners arrive at St Michaels Church (Brian Lawless/PA)

The funeral of the oldest victim of the tragedy, 59-year-old Hugh Kelly, will take place in St Michaels on Friday morning.

Funeral details for the youngest victim, Shauna Flanagan Garwe, five, and her father Robert Garwe, 50, have yet to be announced.
The Royal Navy flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth has sailed into its home port after taking the place of its sister ship which broke down on the way to a diplomatic visit to the United States.

Families and well-wishers lined the harbour walls and the Round Tower in Old Portsmouth to welcome the aircraft carrier as it returned to Portsmouth Naval Base.

The warship sailed at the last minute to New York, where it hosted the Atlantic Future Forum (AFF)  a defence conference focusing on Anglo-American military, political and strategic relations.

(Andrew Matthews/PA)

The 65,000-tonne warship was forced to change its deployment plans after HMS Prince of Wales suffered a broken propeller shaft shortly after leaving Portsmouth in August.

After being brought back to base, the beleaguered Prince of Wales sailed to Rosyth in Scotland to undergo repairs in dry dock which could take several months.

The Queen Elizabeth returned to the home of the Royal Navy on Thursday where it is expected to prepare to continue its autumn programme of exercises in the Mediterranean and Baltic seas.

HMS Prince of Wales broke down off the Isle of Wight in August after sailing from Portsmouth Naval Base to take part in flight trials as well as host the AFF.

Inspections by divers and engineers found that the Nato flagships 33-ton starboard propeller  the same weight as 30 Ford Fiesta cars  had malfunctioned, with a coupling holding it in place breaking.

(Andrew Matthews/PA)

The carrier was taken back to Portsmouth for further examination by engineers from Babcock before the decision was taken for it to travel to Rosyth in Fife, where it was built, to undergo repairs.

The giant warships departure for Scotland was delayed twice, firstly because it took longer than expected to remove the damaged propeller and secondly because of an unrelated issue involving a leak in a fuel pipe.

A Royal Navy spokesman said: The full extent of the repairs will be known once the ship has entered dry dock.

We are committed to getting HMS Prince of Wales back on operations, protecting the nation and our allies, as soon as possible.
An RAF pilot who missed a bus by 10ft while flying refugees out of Afghanistan has said receiving an honour for his actions is awesome.

Last year, a suicide bomb went off at Kabul airport before Group Captain Kevin Latchman attempted to carry 365 people on board a C-17 plane.

Amid the chaotic scene, Group Capt Latchman made the decision to take off from a pitch-black runway following a power cut, narrowly missing the bus that had driven into their path.

On Thursday, he was given the Air Force Cross for leadership and bravery by the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace.

Group Capt Latchman told the PA news agency: Receiving the honour today was fantastic, its really nice to be recognised for something like that and I recognise it was a team effort.

Everything about Operation Pitting was a team effort and I ended up being in the wrong place at the wrong time, but did the right thing.

It was amazing to see the Prince of Wales today and have the family here, its quite awesome, Ive never been through the front gates of Buckingham Palace before and I may not ever do it again.

Group Captain Kevin Latchman is decorated with the Air Force Cross by the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace (Aaron Chown/PA)

I spoke to the Prince of Wales about the incident itself, he was aware of the incident and I spoke to him about my decision-making, what happened.

Operation Pitting was a British military operation to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans from the country amid the Taliban takeover last August.

It was while in the air they realised the bus had been missed by 10ft.

Group Capt Latchman had made the decision to force the plane into the air early.

Group Captain Kevin Latchman said he spoke to the Prince of Wales about the incident (Aaron Chown/PA)

He added: What was running through my head at the time was actually that clear decision-making process, it was quite instinctive.

It was quite clear I couldnt stop, it was quite clear I couldnt get to my speed, so we were left with one option.

The enormity of it hit in later once we were at a height, and thats when the shock kicked in.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been selected as one of three finalists for a prestigious EU human rights award.

The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is awarded each year by the European Union Parliament to an individual or group who has dedicated their lives to the defence of human rights.

Mr Assanges wife Stella Assange said: Julian has been imprisoned for almost four years in Britains harshest prison for his important work to end impunity for war crimes and bring about greater accountability by informing the public about the human cost of war.

Stella Assange said she was profoundy grateful to the MEPs who nominated her husband Julian Assange (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

He faces 175 years if he is extradited for his publishing work. Julians work embodies the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and he is paying for it with his freedom.

This cannot be allowed to continue or he will pay with his life. Upholding the Charter means taking a stand for Julians freedom.

I am profoundly grateful to all the MEPs who have put Julians name forward.

More than 40 MEPs nominated Julian Assange for this years prize. The two other finalists are the brave people of Ukraine, represented by their president, elected leaders, and civil society and Colombias Truth Commission.

The winner will be announced on October 19.

Mr Assange has been held in Londons Belmarsh Prison since being taken from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London three years ago.

He is fighting a lengthy legal battle to avoid extradition to the United States.
A lawyer who helped steal the Stone of Destiny will be remembered for as long as Scotland exists, mourners at his funeral service have been told.

Until his death on October 4 aged 97, Ian Hamilton KC was the last surviving member of the gang of four students who took the famous stone, on which kings and queens of Scotland were traditionally crowned.

Former SNP MSP Alex Neil told the service at Connel Village Hall, Argyll and Bute, that his late friend was a Scottish icon, adding: As long as theres a planet called Earth and a nation called Scotland, the name of Ian Hamilton will be remembered.

For thousands of years from now, I believe that Ian will be as revered then as he is today.

The service took place in Argyll and Bute (John Linton/PA)

Draped in a saltire, Mr Hamiltons coffin was taken after the service to his home near the village, with the pallbearers  who included his sons Jamie and Stewart  carrying him on the last leg of his final journey.

Born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, in 1925, Mr Hamilton was studying law at Glasgow University when he took part in the daring Christmas Day raid on Westminster Abbey with fellow students Gavin Vernon, Kay Matheson and Alan Stuart.

Three months later, the stone  which had been seized by King Edward I of England in 1296  was found 500 miles from London at Arbroath Abbey and returned to Westminster.

In 1996 it was sent back north of the border, and is on display at Edinburgh Castle. It will be taken to London again next year for the Kings coronation.

Mr Hamiltons sons gave eulogies at the service, which was attended by Scottish Justice Secretary Keith Brown and former Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan.

Stewart Hamilton, who said his father died with his two sons at his side at home, said he had been carrying that stone with him all the way through his life.

Both his sons thanked his carers for helping their father, and the congregation laughed when Jamie Hamilton told them in his eulogy: Its hard work being a carer, I have seen it first. Its even harder work being a carer for Ian Hamilton.

The Coronation Chair containing the Stone of Destiny in Westminster Abbey after it was recovered (PA)

He described his father as a caring, humane man who never compromised on his principles.

He added: He was an extraordinary orator and it has taken me 97 years and a coffin to get any kind of word in edgeways, as he noted his father had a sense of justice, would speak up for the vulnerable and challenge authority if he thought what was happening was wrong.

Both his sons recalled the exploits of their father, from trying to sail across the Atlantic, jumping off Connel bridge after a drunken bar bet for charity, flying in Canada, protesting against the nuclear weapons at Faslane where he was arrested, and driving a motorbike well into his 80s.

Stewart Hamilton said: He had addiction, he had many addictions, but his main addiction was life.

His compulsion to live was the driving force behind everything he did, behind everything, behind his whole wonderful, amazing life.

He couldnt help it. It defined him, it consumed him, and for that Ill be forever proud.

Following Mr Hamiltons death, Scotlands First Minister Nicola Sturgeon wrote on Twitter that the 97-year-old was a lawyer of exceptional quality and a legend of the independence movement.
Curious what to order at an Italian restaurant? A chef and restaurant owner explains the menu. (Photos: Amarone Kitchen and Wine; designed by Quinn Lemmers)

There's nothing a giant bowl of pasta can't fix  for me, it's rigatoni alla vodka topped with a chicken cutlet: It's simply delicious. But Italian cuisine stems far beyond traditional pasta and pizza  it's filled with many intricacies that make it unique, from how it's prepared to the flavor combinations it's known for. If you're visiting an Italian restaurant  or taking family and friends  for the first time, it's good to have some background knowledge on the cuisine ... and more importantly what to order.

Chef Sandro Olivero, owner and chef of Amarone Kitchen and Wine in Los Angeles, Calif., says with the right knowledge it's easy to know what to order and how to make the most out of a visit to an Italian restaurant.

Italian restaurant menus 101

At first glance, a menu at an Italian restaurant may look overwhelming  full of different options from pasta and pizza to meat and fish. "The premise of Italian food is fresh, local and seasonal," Olivero tells Yahoo Life. "Italian food incorporates meats, vegetables and grains from the land and fish and seafood from the waters that surround the peninsula."

Pasta carbonara is made with eggs, cheese, cured pork and black pepper. (Photo: Amarone Kitchen and Wine)

When it comes to ordering food at an Italian restaurant, Italians typically eat three courses: antipasto (appetizer), primo (first course) and secondo (second course). While you don't have to order this way, it's recommended if you're looking to get the full experience.

"If you're hungry, a combination of a primo ( typically a pasta dish) and a secondo (typically a fish or meat-based dish) will fill you up," says Olivero. "Or, if you want to eat lighter, a combination of antipasto and primo or secondo will leave room for dolce (dessert)."

You'll also want an understanding of key words you'll find on an Italian menu that pertain to how a dish is prepared: al forno (baked), fritto (fried) and alla griglia (grilled).

For appetizers, referred to as antipasto, you'll typically find dishes like arancini (deep-fried rice balls), bastoncini di mozzarella (deep-fried mozzarella sticks) and bruschetta (slices of toasted bread, often rubbed with garlic and topped with extra-virgin olive oil, tomatoes and salt).

A caprese salad is a simple Italian dish made from fresh tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. (Photo: Amarone Kitchen and Wine)

The first course, primo, typically consists of heavier hot dishes, pasta being the most popular. Some common pasta dishes include cacio e pepe (a sauce made from cheese and pepper), puttanesca (a sauce made from olives, anchovies, oil and tomatoes), vodka (a sauce typically served over penne, made from heavy cream and crushed tomatoes) and gnocchi (Italian potato dumplings).

The second course, secondo, involves meat and fish dishes. Some popular ones you'll probably see are pollo alla cacciatora (chicken cacciatore, served with tomatoes, onions, herbs and bell peppers), fritto misto (a deep-fried medley of seafood and vegetables) and parmigiana di melanzane (eggplant parmesan).

You can also add a side dish to your meal, known as contorni, which may include sauteed vegetables, potatoes and side salads.

Rigatoni alla salsiccia is rigatoni pasta with sausage ragu and shaved cheese. (Photo: Amarone Kitchen and Wine)

Last but not least, you'll want to save room for dessert. Olivero's favorite is panna cotta  a custard-like dessert made with cream, sugar and gelatin.

Other common desserts at an Italian restaurant include cannoli (deep-fried pastry dough filled with a slightly sweet and creamy ricotta cheese filling) and tiramisu (coffee-flavored dessert involving ladyfinger spongecake, mascarpone cheese and sugar).

Don't be afraid to experiment

While you may be inclined to opt for the familiar slice of pizza or traditional spaghetti and meatballs, consider experimenting with different food groups and combinations.

"Do not be intimidated to order items that have ingredients that you like in them," says Olivero. "For example, if you like tomatoes, order a caprese salad, made with fresh raw tomatoes and fresh mozzarella  a softer, moister version of the American one  and add balsamic dressing and extra virgin olive oil."

The same idea applies to pasta: You can always order spaghetti with a classic tomato sauce, but if you're looking for a more intricate flavor profile, you may want to opt for something like pesto, a sauce made from garlic, basil, pine nuts, olive oil and cheese.

At Amarone Kitchen and wine, burrata  a creamy cow's milk cheese  is served over colorful beets. (Photo: Amarone Kitchen and Wine)

The history of Italian cuisine

Olivero says since Italy has been an official country for less than 100 years, it's food is quite different from region to region. "With the introduction of noodles from China in the 13th Century and the addition of tomatoes from the Americas, the food in Italy changed immensely," says Olivero.

External factors played a role in the dishes created by each region, in addition to the availability of ingredients. As different cultures introduced new ingredients and spices to Italy, Italians began to add more variety and diversity to their dishes making it what it is today. However, in general, Italian dishes are more on the simple side and tend to focus on two to four primary ingredients.

"Many Italian dishes are quick to prepare and few ingredients are added," says Olivero. "Italians want the ingredients they use to shine and for their flavors to be prominent in the dishes they create."

5 best items to order as a beginner:

Still not sure what to order off the menu? Chef Olivero recommends going with the following items that should be found on any menu, for the best first time-experience.

Spaghetti Carbonara: A Roman-inspired dish consisting of either guanciale (cured pork jowl) or pancetta, egg yolks and pecorino Romano cheese, Olivero recommends this dish for those with more simple taste buds who may not be ready to dive instantly into the world of extreme flavors.

Asparagus Salad: Made from charred asparagus with radicchio and grated parmigiano cheese, Olivero says it's a simple and healthy antipasti for those looking to add some vegetables to their meal.

Meatballs: A combination of veal, pork and beef mixed with chopped parsley, bread crumbs and parmigiano cheese, Olivero says meatballs are a great way add protein to a dish and pair well with nearly any type of sauce.

Bottarga: This dish is cured tuna roe squeezed together like sausage, chopped finely, added to garlic, spicy chili flakes and olive oil, sauteed in a pan and served over spaghetti. Olivero says its great for those who like fishy dishes and are in the mood for something quick and easy.

Gnocchi al Pesto: Tiny potato dumplings topped with pesto: Olivero recommends this for people looking to try something new and expand their flavor profile at an Italian restaurant.

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Miller Mobley

Penguin Random House just announced the establishment of the Michelle Obama Award for Memoir, an annual creative writing award named for the former First Lady. Crown, an imprint of PRH and the publisher of the mega-bestseller Becoming, will publish Mrs. Obamas new book, The Light We Carry, on November 15.

The Michelle Obama Award for Memoir will each year recognize a single public high school senior with a $10,000 college scholarship for an original English composition in the category of memoir/personal essay.

About the prize, Mrs. Obama said: I know firsthand how nerve-wracking it can be to share the most intimate stories from your life with the world. But after publishing my memoir Becoming, Ive learned that writing your own story can be a powerful tool. When we share the whole of ourselves, we offer others the opportunity to not only see us as we are, but maybe even think about themselves in a new way. Thats why I am so excited about this new award, and I cant wait to read what this next generation of young writers will share with us all.

Through her decades-long commitment to supporting educational opportunity and mentorship, Michelle Obama has established herself as a forceful champion of the creative potential of young people, offered David Drake, president of Crown Publishing. Just as her own memoir Becoming inspired millions of readers of all generations to recognize the value of their own stories, we hope the Michelle Obama Award for Memoir will encourage students to discover and cherish the power of their own voice through storytelling.

The 2022 competition launches on October 12 and closes on February 1, or until 1,000 applications have been reached, whichever comes first. U.S. college-bound public high school seniors planning to attend college in the fall of 2023 are encouraged to apply.

Mrs. Obama broke news of the award on her social this morning:

Winners will be announced and posted on the Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards website at www.michelleobamabooks.com/scholarship in June 2023.

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In anticipation of another crazy summer of travel, United Airlines announced Tuesday its 2023 summer transatlantic schedule, which will total 37 cities in Europe, Africa, India and the Middle East  more international destinations than all other U.S. airlines combined.

Many of the slated transatlantic destinations will be the only ones offered by a U.S. airline, or the only nonstop routes from the U.S. Flights to the international destinations will depart from New York/Newark, the carrier's hub in San Francisco, Chicago/O'Hare and Washington/Dulles.

"Next summer United is offering the best of both worlds: we're making it easier for our customers to visit the most popular cities in Europe, but we're also expanding our reach to give travelers access to new places they haven't yet experienced," Patrick Quayle, senior vice president of global network planning and alliances at United, said in a statement. "We expect another busy summer for international travel and are proud to build on our industry-leading global network to offer our customers the widest range of destinations and most convenient travel options."

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The carrier's slated schedule includes a debut of three new cities: Malaga, Spain; Stockholm, Sweden; and Dubai, UAE. All three new destinations will fly from New York/Newark as the airline is poised to suspend flights from New York/JFK in late October.

United said it will also be the only North American airline offering flights to Amman, Jordan; Azores, Portugal; Palma de Mallorca and Tenerife, Spain.

A United Airlines worker guides a plane at Dulles International Airport on June 17, 2022.

In response to the increased travel demand to Europe this summer, the airline is also adding six more flights to the popular destinations of Rome, Paris, Barcelona, London, Berlin and Shannon.

United will also bring back nine routes from last summer, such as a direct flights between New York/Newark and Nice; Denver and Munich; Boston and London Heathrow; Chicago/O'Hare and Zurich; and Chicago/O'Hare and Milan.

Tickets for these new summer routes are on sale now. Here is the new schedule below, government approval permitting:

New York/Newark - Malaga, Spain: Starting May 31, travelers can pick from three direct flights a week to Malaga on a Boeing 757-200, making United the U.S. airline with the most Spanish destinations. There will also be direct flights to Tenerife and Palma de Mallorca.

New York/Newark - Dubai, UAE : Commencing March 25, United will fly daily between New York/Newark and Dubai on a Boeing 777-200ER as part of its partnership with Emirates. United will be the only U.S. airline with nonstop flights to Dubai, the airline .

New York/Newark - Stockholm, Sweden: United will launch a nonstop, daily flight from New York/Newark to Stockholm starting May 25 on a Boeing 757-200. The last time United offered a flight to Stockholm was in 2019.

San Francisco - Rome, Italy: United will launch daily flights from its hub in San Francisco to Rome on a Boeing 777-200ER on May 25. "United is the only U.S. airline to offer direct flights to Europe from its hub in San Francisco, and next summer will offer nonstop flights to seven popular European cities," the airline said in a release.

Chicago/O'Hare - Shannon, Ireland: On May 25, United will launch daily flights to Shannon from Chicago/O'Hare. Other Ireland-bound flights from the U.S. include a New York/Newark to Shannon flight and direct service from Chicago, New York/Newark and Washington Dulles to Dublin on a Boeing 757-200.

Washington Dulles - Berlin, Germany: Launching on May 25, travelers can fly daily between Washington, D.C. and Berlin on the only nonstop service available. This route will fly on a Boeing 767-400ER. "United offers more flights to Berlin from the U.S. than any other airline, with existing year-round flights from Newark," the release said.

Chicago/O'Hare - Barcelona, Spain: Travelers will be able to depart from Chicago and head to Barcelona on a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner starting May 25. The carrier said this direct flight builds on its existing Barcelona-bound service from New York/Newark and Washington Dulles.

More flights to London - Next summer, United will offer 23 daily flights to London/Heathrow, including a second daily flight from Los Angeles on March 25 on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. "United offers more flights and more business class seats from New York and the west coast to London than any other U.S. carrier and next summer, all United flights to London Heathrow will offer all-aisle access Polaris and Premium Plus seating," the statement said.

More flights to Paris - On June 2, United will offer a second daily flight from Washington Dulles to Paris/Charles de Gaulle on a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. Currently, there are flights to Paris from New York/Newark, Washington Dulles, Chicago and San Francisco.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: United Airlines 2023 schedule: New non-stop flights to Europe, Dubai
A 14-year-old was locked up for making a prank call about a shooting at his high school in Columbia, the Richland County Sheriffs Department said Thursday.

The sheriffs department said it received a report at about 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, saying there would be a shooting at W.J. Keenan High School. Thats off Wilson Boulevard, in the area between Interstate 20 and Interstate 77.

The threat was investigated and determined to be a false call, the sheriffs department said in a news release.

Keenan High School

Deputies determined the call came from a 14-year-old student who attends the Richland 1 high school. He was arrested and charged with aggravated breach of peace and unlawful communication, according to the release.

The student was booked into the juvenile wing of the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, the sheriffs department said.

The teens name was not made public because of his age.

Information about a specific punishment from the school and Richland 1 was not available.

Current Events

This is the second time this week a Richland 1 student was arrested, as charges were filed against a Lower Richland High School student for a similar incident.

I hope these students are receiving this message loud and clear, Sheriff Leon Lott said in the release. We are taking these calls seriously and sending these students to jail. I also hope parents are discussing the severity of these false calls with their children and make sure they understand they will be held accountable.

On Tuesday, a 16-year-old student was charged with making a prank call about a shooting at Lower Richland High School. It was determined to be a false call, the sheriffs department said.

These acts not only disrupt school operations, but they also create a high level of anxiety for our students, staff and parents. Hoax calls and social media posts will not be tolerated by the district or law enforcement, and students who are found to be responsible will face consequences for their actions, Richland 1 Superintendent Craig Witherspoon said in the release. Students must accept and recognize the important role they play in helping to keep our campuses safe. We will continue to stress that to our students and parents.

Also on Tuesday, another Richland 1 school was targeted in a threat.

A social media post threatened gun violence at C.A. Johnson High, the Columbia Police Department said. While the threat was not credible, the school was placed on modified lockdown and more officers were sent to patrol the inside and outside of the building to protect students, teachers and other staff.

The incident comes the week after similar hoax calls about shootings were made at multiple schools across South Carolina.

The sheriffs department said its aware of threats circulating on social media mentioning Columbia and Richland County schools, but hasnt found any credible information to support them to this point.

All threats are taken seriously and investigated as we receive them, the sheriffs department said.
A U.S. Army veteran who traveled to Ukraine from Idaho died from injuries he sustained while fighting Russian forces in the Donbas region, his family says.

Dane Partridge, 34, from Rexburg, Idaho, was wounded in a tank attack in Severodonetsk in the Luhansk region on Oct. 3, his sister, Jenny Partridge Corry, wrote in a Facebook post.

Partridge, a father of five, was taken to a military hospital in Kyiv and placed on life support. According to Corry, a doctor at the hospital informed the family that Partridge suffered critical injuries to his neck and brain stem. He died on Tuesday.

We have just been informed that Dane aka Bird has passed away while still being on life support, Corry wrote on Facebook. I know his soul has found peace.

Dane Partridge was killed while fighting in Ukraine, his family said. (Honoring Dane Partridge/Facebook)

He was always good for a joke, witty banter and the occasional serious conversation, she continued. He stayed true to his faith and spiritual convictions till his dying days.

The State Department confirmed to Yahoo News that a U.S. citizen died in the Donbas region, but did not say who.

We are in touch with the family and are providing all appropriate assistance, a spokesperson said.

There are no official public numbers of U.S. volunteer fighters in Ukraine. The Washington Post reported in March that about 4,000 Americans had expressed interest in joining the newly formed International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine.

According to the Post, Partridge is the fifth known American citizen to die in the conflict.

Partridge  who served in Baghdad from 2007 to 2009 during the Iraq War  joined the fight in Ukraine in April after raising money for a one-way ticket to Poland.

Partridge, a U.S. Army veteran from Idaho, had been fighting in Ukraine since April. (Honoring Dane Partridge/Facebook)

I've felt a need to go to Ukraine, he wrote in a Facebook post on April 2. This has been discussed with several people and I am confident in my decision to go. I am reaching out to see if I can get some support in getting over there. I'm trying to come up with a couple of grand to get a plane ticket. I have equipment and uniforms, I just need airfare.

Partridge left Idaho on April 25. His last Facebook post was dated April 27.

Made it to the embassy, getting on a bus for the border, he wrote. From this point on I will not likely be giving locations or actions for opsec reasons. I will let you all know I'm alive.

In her Facebook post announcing his death, Corry said her brother had messaged her from Ukraine to let me know he missed his children and wife something fierce.

He was a fine soldier who fought with valor and bravery on the battlefield, Corry wrote. We have been told that he was known to be at the front of his team leading his men as he would never ask his men to do anything that he wasnt willing to do.

Our lives have forever been changed by this stalwart man, she added. We love you and will miss you so much brother!
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a joint news conference with Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly in Washington

(Reuters) -Canada imposed new sanctions on Iran on Thursday in response to the government's human rights abuses and destabilizing actions, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The new sanctions list includes three entities and 17 people including longtime Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, the ministry said.

Others include Amir Hatami, an army general and former defense minister and Saeed Mortazavi, an Iranian prosecutor who Canada says ordered the torture of Canadian-Iranian journalist Zahra Kazemi. Kazemi died as a result of her mistreatment while in custody in 2003.

"The actions of the Iranian regime speak for themselves  the world has watched for years as it has pursued its agenda of violence, fear and propaganda," said Foreign Minister Melanie Joly.

"Canada will continue to defend human rights and we will continue to stand in solidarity with the Iranian people, including women and youth, who are courageously demanding a future where their human rights will be fully respected."

The action builds on earlier Canadian sanctions on Iran, most recently on Oct. 3, which Canada said it imposed over human rights violations, including the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who died while in custody of Iran's "morality police."

Protests calling for the fall of the clerical establishment have swept Iran since Amini died on Sept. 16 while being detained for "inappropriate attire."

Clashes between protesters and security forces persisted across Iran on Tuesday, with social media videos showing tanks being transported to Kurdish areas, which have been a focal point of the crackdown on protests.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Marguerita Choy)
Nury Martinez stepped down from the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday in the aftermath of a leaked recording on which she was heard making racist and bigoted remarks. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

There isn't much good to come out of the latest scandal in Los Angeles politics, which involves a recording of a racist conversation among Latino political leaders.

The fallout does point to a fascinating distinction in recent times between how the Democratic and Republican political worlds have responded to scandal in their ranks.

To put it succinctly, when scandal strikes among Democrats, resignations pile up. When scandal strikes Republicans, the GOP treats it as a badge of honor.

Pat doesn't have a mink coat. But she does have a respectable Republican cloth coat.

Richard Nixon, setting the pattern for GOP response to scandal in 1952

In L.A., former City Council President Nury Martinez, heard on the leaked tape making racist remarks about Black people and Oaxacans as well as crude remarks about Jewish people and Armenians, has resigned her council seat.

Ron Herrera, another participant in the conversation, has stepped down as president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

Two other participants in the conversation, Councilmembers Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo, haven't resigned as of this writing.

But the clamor for their departure has swept through Democratic Party ranks; they've reached as high as President Biden, who has called for them to step down. They may try to stave off demands that they quit, but at this moment their political futures are dim indeed.

Contrast that with the response within the GOP to, say, the revelations about Herschel Walker, the party's candidate for the U.S. Senate from Georgia. Evidence shows that Walker, who has paraded around as an antiabortion candidate in consonance with the party's draconian antiabortion position, paid for a woman's abortion in 2009.

Walker doesn't deny that he paid the woman, only that the money was for an abortion. But even though the evidence is strong, Republicans haven't allowed it to shake their support for the candidate even one little bit.

"I think were going to stick with Walker," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), told CNN on Tuesday, a sentiment echoed by Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), who announced plans to campaign for Walker even after the scandal broke.

Democrats so often and so rapidly pull the trigger on their accused wrongdoers that they've sometimes been criticized for moving too hastily. One example is the case of former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), an effective politician who was forced to resign in 2018 in the wake of accusations of sexual misconduct, some dating from his stint as a writer and cast member of "Saturday Night Live" for more than a decade.

But questions have always swirled about the accusations, and numerous political leaders who joined the chorus calling for Franken's resignation have since expressed regret that he wasn't afforded the opportunity to address the charges before the Senate Ethics Committee.

Donald Trump was credibly accused during his first presidential campaign of sexual assault  indeed, in a notorious recording he even boasted about some of his behavior. The disclosure of the tape seemed likely to derail his campaign, but it wasn't long before "the spin began," as Lili Loofbourow of Slate put it in 2020. "An event that everyone at the time saw as manifestly disqualifying got repackaged as no big deal, and also somehow 'fake news.'"

Republicans haven't always turned a blind eye to scandal in their midst. Dwight Eisenhower's White House chief of staff, Sherman Adams, was forced to resign when he was found to have accepted an expensive vicuna coat and other gifts from a businessman under federal investigation. But that was in 1958. Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.) and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) lost their jobs for sexual misconduct, in 2006 and 2007 respectively.

None of this necessarily means that Republicans are more scandal-prone than Democrats. My colleagues David Zahniser, Julia Wick, Dakota Smith and Benjamin Oreskes called the roll of Democratic indictments on Wednesday: Last year, they reported, Councilmember Mark Ridley-Thomas was indicted on bribery and conspiracy charges. He was suspended by his colleagues.

Earlier, Councilmember Jose Huizar was charged with racketeering, bribery and fraud. He was suspended six months before resigning. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Nor does it mean that there are no cases of Democrats hanging firm in the face of shame or Republicans stepping down under a cloud.

Former Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, refused to resign after a photo surfaced from his medical school yearbook showing him either in blackface or Ku Klux Klan robes. (It was never certain which of the two figures in the photo was him.) He served out his term, which ended this year.

But the distinction between Democratic and Republican responses to scandal is glaring today. That may be traceable to the divergence in expectations among the Democratic and Republican bases.

Democrats expect their politicians to at least strive to uphold civic and moral values. When their leaders fall short of that ideal, they react with anger and shame. That's true even when the consequences could lead to defeat at the polls or the loss of a political leader whose effectiveness  notwithstanding his or her disgrace  is indisputable.

In the sedulous pursuit of power at all costs, on the other hand, Republicans are willing to overlook disgraceful behavior. It's a short step from overlooking scandal to celebrating it.

The Republican habit of standing firm in the face of scandal can be traced to Richard Nixon and his famous "Checkers" speech of Sept. 23, 1952, when he took to the national TV airwaves to defend himself live against charges of misusing a political slush fund.

In the view of former Nixon speechwriter Lee Huebner, the speech presaged the Republican and conservative practice of "emphasizing appeals to social and cultural 'identity' rather than economic interests" to appeal to voters.

Nixon, whose position as vice president on the Eisenhower ticket hung in the balance, spoke abjectly of the financial pressures he and his wife, Pat, faced: "Pat doesn't have a mink coat," he told a massive TV audience. "But she does have a respectable Republican cloth coat, and I always tell her she would look good in anything."

The defining line in the speech was his reference to a cocker spaniel puppy named Checkers that he admitted receiving as a gift. "The kids, like all kids, loved the dog," he said, adding that regardless of the criticism, "we're going to keep it."

It remains a Republican and conservative habit to defend some of the most malodorous behavior today.

After the egregious Alex Jones was hit with a nearly $1-billion judgment Wednesday for relentlessly purveying the lie that the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, in which 20 children and six adults were murdered, was a fake, his cause was taken up by Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who tweeted that he was the victim of "political persecution."

"No matter what you think of Alex Jones all he did was speak words," she tweeted. "He was not the one who pulled the trigger. ... Thats what freedom of speech is. Freedom to speak words."

One wonders how far this manner of argument would get if not for the connivance of the political press. We're not only talking about Fox News, but the mainstream press that feels the urge to find "balance" in every report of wrongdoing, a discreditable practice known as "bothsidesism."

This week, for instance, NBC News paired the Herschel Walker revelations with a report that John Fetterman, the Democratic candidate for U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, required a transcription monitor during a news interview because of the residual effects of a recent stroke.

"Fetterman, Walker face political challenges outside of the overall environment," NBC headlined an online report, as though an antiabortion candidate's financing of an abortion was somehow equivalent to the challenge of recovering from a stroke.

Bothsidesism only goes so far, apparently. NBC noted that Fetterman's campaign has "denied requests for his medical records," but didn't mention how closely guarded Trump's medical condition was when he came down with a COVID infection during his presidential term.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., called on the Biden administration Thursday to cut off sales of U.S. antimissile systems to Saudi Arabia and provide them instead to Ukraine, Poland or other countries that right now matter more to the United States than Saudi Arabia.

My contention is that Saudi Arabia has been an unreliable ally for a very long time, and that we give them much more than they give us, Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in an interview for the Yahoo News Skullduggery podcast.

So I think its time for us to seriously rethink our security relationship, he added. There are two really important antimissile systems that we provide to Saudi Arabia, referencing the RAM and Patriot systems, both of which are made by Raytheon.

These systems would be much better utilized inside Ukraine or inside NATO allies that are on Russias periphery, Murphy said.

Murphy is among a number of leading U.S. senators who have called for cutting back military and other aid to the Saudis in the wake of last weeks agreement of the kingdom to join with Russia to cut back oil production, a move that is expected to lead to another spike in U.S. gas prices. President Biden said this week that there will be consequences for the Saudis but has so far declined to offer specifics.

The RAM missile system is designed to destroy anti-ship missiles and other threats. (U.S. Navy)

But Murphy declined to criticize Biden for his trip last summer to Saudi Arabia, during which he fist-bumped Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman despite last years release of a U.S. intelligence report concluding that the de facto Saudi leader approved the operation that led to the brutal murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Oh, my God, Im just so sick of talking about it, Murphy replied, when asked if the fist bump with the crown prince was a mistake. I mean, they were fist-bumping because of COVID protocols. They werent fist-bumping because theyre good buddies.

I just think this is so overwrought, he added. The United States has a relationship with Saudi Arabia. The president of the United States should be able to talk to the crown prince. Frankly, I think the United States should be talking to our adversaries too. I think the United States should be talking to the Iranians. I think we should be in dialogue with the North Koreans. I think occasionally we should be talking with the Russians.
The head of the Office of Congressional Ethics was arrested and charged with DUI and three other violations after veering off the road, plowing over a stop sign, hitting one parked car and then another before finally crashing straight into the front porch of a house in Pennsylvania last month, according to police records and the criminal complaint obtained by Yahoo News.

Omar Ashmawy was arrested on Sept. 10, according to police reports included with the formal criminal complaint filed on Sept. 28 in Pike County, Pa., court.

Ashmawy has been charged with driving under the influence, careless driving, driving on roadways laned for traffic and restrictions on alcohol in a vehicle, according to a copy of the criminal complaint obtained by Yahoo News through open records requests with the Eastern Pike Regional Police Department. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 1.

Ashmawy has held the position of staff director and chief counsel for the ethics office for the past 12 years. In his most recent position, he oversaw investigations into allegations of misconduct by lawmakers. He was placed on leave Wednesday after he and the ethics office were contacted by Yahoo News.

Omar Ashmawy, head of the Office of Congressional Ethics. (Facebook)

We take this matter very seriously and the Board will be reviewing the circumstances surrounding it, read a statement from Mike Barnes and Paul Vinovich, co-chairmen of the board of the Office of Congressional Ethics. In the meantime, Mr. Ashmawy has been placed on leave to deal with the issues that contributed to this incident. Helen Eisner will serve as the Acting Staff Director during his absence.

Ashmawy told Yahoo News that the incident was a wake-up call.

Ive had some medical issues including a diagnosis of syncope that I am dealing with in this case, but this incident was a wake-up call to me that I have a problem with alcohol dependency, he said in a statement. Ive since sought out treatment for my use of alcohol, and Im currently in a program where I am addressing this dependency. I'm grateful for the continued support of my family, friends and colleagues.

Ashmawy was arrested after the incident in the suburban town of Matamoros on the night of Sept. 10.

Omar Ashmawy was arrested on Sept. 10, according to police reports included with the formal criminal complaint filed on Sept. 28 in Pike County, Pa., court. (Hector Fernandez)

Hector Fernandez, the owner of the home and of one of the cars that were hit, told police and Yahoo News that he was inside his home when he heard a boom.

I heard a loud boom, almost like a firework. Real loud, boom, Fernandez recalled in an interview with Yahoo News. And then I heard a loud boom that shook my house.

Fernandez said he went outside and saw a car on the side of his house. When he approached the vehicle, he said, he saw Ashmawy in the drivers seat with the airbag deployed, and the car was smoking. Fernandezs car had been moved 9 feet from where he parked it and was damaged to the point of being deemed inoperable, he said.

Fernandez said Ashmawy came out of the car and seemed highly intoxicated.

He almost looked stunned. Probably from hitting my house. He was definitely disoriented, he told Yahoo News.

Fernandez told police that Ashmawy offered to pay for the damages if he wouldnt call the cops, according to the probable-cause affidavit.

Dont do that. Dont don't call the police. Come on. Dont do that, Ashmawy said, Fernandez recalled in his interview with Yahoo News.

But Fernandez did call the authorities, and when police responded, Ashmawy refused to take field sobriety and blood alcohol tests, according to police reports. He was handcuffed and arrested on suspicion of DUI.

Ashmawy allegedly veered off the road, plowed over a stop sign, hit one parked car and then another before crashing into the front porch of a house, according to police records and the criminal complaint obtained by Yahoo News. (Hector Fernandez)

Fernandezs account to Yahoo News is supported by police reports, insurance claim forms and other documentation obtained by Yahoo News.

Fernandez shared cellphone video he took that night. In it, Ashmawy can be seen standing outside the drivers-side door of his vehicle, still stuck to the porch it crashed into.

Where you coming from? an officer who responded to the scene can be heard asking. Turkey Hill, Ashmawy responds, referring to a nearby grocery store.

According to a police report, the officer noticed that Ashmawy swayed, had glossy eyes, an unsteady gait and the odor of alcoholic beverages coming from his breath.

This officer also noticed inside Ashmawys vehicle, two bottles of Fireball whiskey, one empty, one full, a six-pack beer box, and a can of unopened beer, the arresting police officer wrote.

The police officers observations and what Ashmawy allegedly said were included in the affidavit for probable cause signed by that same officer seen in the video and submitted with the formal criminal complaint, filed two and a half weeks later.

Hector Fernandez, the owner of the home that was allegedly hit by Ashmawy, said that after hearing a loud noise, he walked outside and saw Ashmawy in the driver's seat of his Kia Soul. (Hector Fernandez)

Ashmawy refused medical attention at the scene, according to the police report. But other records reviewed by Yahoo News show he checked into a hospital the following day and was released that Wednesday. The fainting condition mentioned in his statement to Yahoo News is listed as a reason for his hospital visit, but the records do not make or refute any potential connection to the accident and arrest the night before.

The docket report shows that a certified summons had been mailed to him informing him of the charges filed, and an order for fingerprints to be taken at the courthouse on Nov. 1, the scheduled date of his preliminary hearing.

Prior to joining the Office of Congressional Ethics, Ashmawy served eight years in the Air Force. He wrote about his time as a war crimes prosecutor in an op-ed last year for the Washington Post, calling on the Biden administration to shutter Guantanamo Bay.

In 2017, Foreign Policy reported that Ashmawy was being sued in federal court for allegedly using his federal position to influence local law enforcement. The lawsuit stemmed from a bar fight in 2015 involving Ashmawy, an air marshal named Greg Martucci and two others. Charges against Martucci were filed, then later dropped. The other two people pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the fight.

Ashmawy was never charged, but witness statements to police raised questions about his conduct. He was described by multiple witnesses as being drunk and belligerent and harassing and verbally abusing women at the bar. Martucci told police he saw Ashmawy physically assault two women at the bar that night. Ashmawy denied these allegations at the time.

The OCE hired an independent counsel to investigate the allegations and he determined that Ashmawy did not commit any wrongdoing, said William Beaman, a spokesperson for the Office of Congressional Ethics, about the 2017 allegations against Ashmawy.

Martuccis lawsuit against Ashmawy was later settled out of court.
A two-alarm blaze damaged a building at the old Mill Street apartments in Kansas City, Kansas, Thursday, the second time in less than 24 hours firefighters responded a large fire at the vacant complex just off of Intestate 35 and Mission Road.

Firefighters responded to the fire about 6:40 a.m., said Assistant Chief Scott Schaunaman, a spokesman for the Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department

Arriving fire crews reported that heavy smoke and flames could be seen coming from the building at 2025 S. Mill Street.

Because of the heavy amount of fire, firefighters set up a defensive attack, spraying water onto the fire from outside the building. Crews were able to bring the fire under control about 7:40 a.m.

Meanwhile, drivers headed in on their morning commutes into downtown Kansas City could see heavy smoke and flames coming from the complex, which is on a hill near Interstate 35 and Mission Road.

Fire crews remain at the scene conducting salvage and overhaul inside the building and extinguishing any hot spots to make sure the fire doesnt rekindle.

Firefighters battle a fire at an abandoned apartment complex on Thursday at 2409 Mill Street in Kansas City, Kansas Firefighters battled a blaze at the same apartment complex on Wednesday.

This is the second two-alarm blaze at the apartment complex in the last 24 hours at the complex. Firefighters responded shortly after 11 a.m. Wednesday to a fire at an adjacent building at 2409 S. Mill Street.

The cause of the fires were under investigation. Fire investigators will look into whether the fires were arson, which is common for any fire investigation, Schaunaman said.

Anyone who witnessed anyone suspicious around the complex is asked to call the Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department arson hotline at 913-573-5555.

No one was hurt battling the fire.

Firefighters battle a fire at an abandoned apartment complex on Thursday at 2409 Mill Street in Kansas City, Firefighters battled a blaze at the same apartment complex on Wednesday.

A neighbor, who declined to be identified, said the apartment closed about nine years ago because they were deemed to be unfit.

They had black mold, rodents and mildew, the neighbor said.

He and other neighbors have been asking the neighborhood center to tear it down since, saying everyone who lives nearby has sinus issues. There has also been several other fires over the years.

At one point, he said one of the buildings was removed because the gas was left on and it blew up. He said another building was partially removed because there were two fires in it.

The man had asked the city and county to mow the grass because it was several feet high, but was told that city didnt have money.

I think they just dont care being Wyandotte County, he said. It has to burn to the ground before they do anything. They say they dont have the funds.
During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, temporal or forehead thermometers became the go to for a no-contact way of checking for fevers. But now, research shows forehead thermometers are missing fevers in Black patients.

It adds to a list of health care hurdles they face.

"The accuracy of temperature measurement is a big deal, and we need to pay close attention to it," said Dr. Phillip Verhoef, a physician-scientist at the University of Hawaii's John A. Burns School of Medicine.

Newsy spoke with two of the researchers from Emory University and the University of Hawaii. They combed through hospital records from 2014-2021 and focused on patients admitted who showed signs of infection. They found forehead thermometers missed almost 25% of fevers in Black patients compared to oral thermometers. Researchers say forehead thermometers' accuracy was much more in line with oral thermometer readings in White patients.

In triage that missed fever can mean a delay in seeing a doctor.

"Once the doctor is notified, that's going to start this process where the doctor might see the patient sooner. The doctor might get antibiotics quicker. The doctor might even transfer the patient to an ICU. And so all of these processes of care depend on detecting the fever," said Dr. Sivasubramanium Bhavani, a physician-scientist at Emory University School Of Medicine.

The study only looked at Black and White patient data. It's unclear if the same error happens in other racial or ethnic groups. But the researchers say this is something we've seen before.

SEE MORE: WTMJ: How One Black Doctor Is Fighting Racial Disparity In Health Care

"This is not specific to forehead thermometers. I think this is a problem with all infrared technology. We've seen this with pulse oximeters giving inaccurate readings in Black patients," said Bhavani.

Both medical devices rely on scanners that use infrared light that passes through the skin to measure someone's vitals. A forehead thermometer's reading comes from the heat of the radiation given off by someone's temporal artery. Pulse oximeters read blood oxygen levels based on how the light is absorbed. But several variables can alter infrared readings, like a cold room or the presence of sweat. And skin pigmentation affects how light and infrared radiation is absorbed. It means that if an infrared device isn't calibrated or adjusted to measurement standards for someone with darker skin, those readings could be off.

"Those are for populations that are historically underrepresented or for whom the health care system has failed them in the first place," said Verhoef.

These findings add to an ongoing list of medical biases Black patients face. The CDC's noted worse health outcomes for minorities, in everything from pregnancy to cancer to COVID. And even finding a doctor of their own race or ethnicity can be nearly impossible. 2019 data shows just five percent of doctors self-identified as Black.

It's the same story for mental health care.

We spoke with clinical psychologist Dr. Patrice Douglas in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Her practice focuses on Black patients.

"My two private practices, one's insurance based, one is cash based. One of my practices, we have over 60 people waiting," said Douglas. "What we're in the process of doing is trying to hire more and more therapists to reach more people that need support. But there's barriers once again, like medical coverage and things like that."

Meantime Dr. Bhavani is working to answer more questions about forehead thermometer misreads. His latest research asks if Black patients don't get antibiotics or if their health worsens because their fever was missed.

And when it comes to which thermometers these doctor-researchers go with:

"I'm going to trust the measurements that I get from an oral thermometer," said Verhoef.
The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday voted to condemn Russias annexation of four occupied areas of Ukraine amid the ongoing war, but four countries sided with Russia in the vote.

Of the U.N.s 193-member body, 143 voted in favor of the resolution criticizing Russias illegal so-called referendums, with 35 abstaining, according to an update.

Syria, North Korea, Belarus and Nicaragua joined Russia as the five opposing votes.

The opposition club is nearly the same as the five votes in March against resolution condemning Russias invasion of Ukraine: Syria, North Korea and Belarus joined Russia both times.

Eritrea voted against condemning the invasion back in March, while Nicaragua voted against condemning the annexation Wednesday.

The now-passed resolution calls on the U.N.s member states not to recognize Russias annexation move  and calls for Russia to rescind its claims over the Ukrainian land.

Moscow made the controversial move to hold Russian-controlled referendums and annex parts of Ukraine amid a number of battlefield setbacks, including a counteroffensive from Ukraine that forced Russian troops to the border in some areas.

The U.S. and its allies worked to gather support ahead of the resolution vote, hoping to get at least as many ballots in favor as the 100 that backed a 2014 resolution against Russias annexation of Crimea.

The high count in favor, no lower than the vote earlier this year to condemn the invasion, indicates the international support for Ukraine has not lost ground as the conflict continues through its eighth month.

China, India, South Africa and Pakistan were among the 35 abstaining from Wednesdays vote.

President Biden has recently had talks with Indias prime minister and South Africas president, as well as other foreign leaders who have not firmly joined support for Ukraine, in an effort to shore up their stance against Russia, according to The Washington Post.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A red flag warning from the National Weather Service has pushed the Lexington Fire Department to a issue burn ban, effective immediately.

Due to low rainfall amounts, coupled with high winds and low humidity, dangerous fire weather conditions exist, a notice posted online by the Lexington-Fayette County Division of Emergency Management announced Thursday.

The burn ban is active until at least 7 a.m. Monday, Oct. 17, the emergency management agency said.

A statewide burn ban is already in effect during the day.

Citizens should avoid setting any fire outdoors until after the ban expires. This includes refuse, cooking and construction debris fires. All open burn permits are suspended for the duration of the ban. The ban applies to all residents and businesses in Fayette County, including those in rural and urban areas, it said.

A hazardous weather outlook from the National Weather Service Thursday warned of elevated fire danger this afternoon with the combination of gusty 30 to 35 mph west winds and low relative humidities this afternoon.

Similar conditions are expected to unfold Friday, the NWS said.

To report a fire, call 911 in emergency situations and 859-231-5600 in non-emergent situations.

Below is a look at dry conditions across Kentucky sourced from the U.S. Drought Monitor:

Do you have a question about Kentucky for our service journalism team? Wed like to hear from you. Fill out our Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.
The LGBTQ Commission of Kansas City is investigating whether the Costco pharmacy on Linwood Boulevard may be in violation of a city nondiscrimination ordinance.

At least three transgender patients have reported that the pharmacy refused to fill testosterone prescriptions for their gender affirming care. The city commission released a statement Thursday morning saying it is taking the allegations very seriously and is looking into any possible violations the pharmacy may have committed.

After hearing from two of these patients, The Star reported last week on some of the barriers to accessing testosterone prescriptions in the state of Missouri. A third patient who was denied testosterone at the same Costco pharmacy then contacted The Star after the story was published.

Justin Short, who represents District 4 on the citys LGBTQ Commission and is also running for city council, said the pharmacy may be violating a 1993 city ordinance that prohibits discrimination based on gender identity in Kansas City.

The community can rest assured if the LGBTQ Commission discovers that nefarious actions have occurred by Costco or a particular pharmacist, we will put the full force of (the) community behind positive change for those most impacted, Short wrote in the statement.

LGBTQ Commission Official Statement of Action by The Kansas City Star on Scribd

While the Costco may be violating a city ordinance, a spokesperson for the state pharmacy board told The Star that the pharmacy is not violating state law by refusing to fill these prescriptions.

Missouri law does not prohibit pharmacies from using their discretion and setting their own policies/procedures on which prescriptions they are willing to fill, spokesperson Lori Croy wrote in an email last week.

Some pharmacists in Missouri are refusing to give nonbinary individuals their testosterone prescription, citing the states restrictions on dispensing controlled substances. In April, Kenny Caldwell walked into a Costco pharmacy in Kansas City to pick up their monthly medication, only to walk out empty-handed.

Why is it complicated to get testosterone in Missouri?

Regulations like state dispensing limits as well as the size of vials that pharmaceutical companies produce testosterone doses in can make it difficult for pharmacies to dispense doses for patients.

This has led some to accuse the pharmacy in question of discriminating against transgender patients by refusing to fill their prescriptions. Testosterone is widely used for hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, by older adults as well as members of the transgender and nonbinary community.

The Costco pharmacy was not reachable Thursday morning to comment on the investigation. Pharmacy staff have previously told The Star over the phone that they cannot speak to members of the media. An inquiry made to Costcos corporate offices by The Star last month was not returned.

This is not the way that Kansas City should be operating, Short told The Star. This is not the way that we curate a welcoming and inclusive Kansas City.

We will update this piece when more information becomes available.

Have you been denied testosterone or another medication at a Kansas City pharmacy? The Service Journalism team wants to hear about it. Contact the author of this piece at nwallington@kcstar.com or email the full team at kcq@kcstar.com.
FILE - Republican Nevada Senate candidate Adam Laxalt speaks at a news conference on Aug. 4, 2022, in Las Vegas. Less than a month before election day, 14 members of Nevada Republican Senate candidate Adam Laxalt's family sent a letter endorsing his opponent, Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.(AP Photo/John Locher, File)

RENO, Nev. (AP)  Less than a month before Election Day, 14 members of Nevada Republican Senate candidate Adam Laxalts family sent a letter endorsing his opponent, Democratic U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

We staunchly believe that Catherine is well equipped with her own Nevada grit  a quality that she will take forward in representation of our home state for six more years across the halls of Congress, the letter states.

The letter, first obtained by The Nevada Independent, does not mention Laxalt by name.

Instead, it talks of Cortez Mastos understanding of the daily realities of dogged hard work and mentions her experience in public education as well as her commitment to law enforcement.

The family members also wrote that Cortez Mastos career demonstrates she is "an authentic advocate of Nevada.

It marks the second time that some of Laxalts family has endorsed his opponent. During his unsuccessful gubernatorial run in 2018, a dozen family members endorsed Democrat Steve Sisolak in an op-ed to the Reno Gazette-Journal. That letter more explicitly criticized Laxalt, saying he leveraged and exploited the family name throughout his campaign.

That letter prompted 22 of his family members to send another op-ed, defending Laxalt and calling the other letter vicious and entirely baseless.

The grandson of former U.S. Sen. and Nevada Gov. Paul Laxalt and the son of former Sen. Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, Laxalt is seen by many as the best opportunity for Republicans to pick up a seat that could give them the majority in the Senate.

In a tweet on Wednesday afternoon, Laxalt said it is not surprising that family members, most of whom he said are Democrats, are supporting Cortez Masto.

They think that Nevada & our country are heading in the right direction. I believe Nevadans dont agree, he said.

The Laxalt family joins a growing list of endorsers from across the aisle, Cortez Masto spokesperson Sigalle Reshef said in a statement, citing law enforcement organizations and rural lawmakers who have endorsed the Democratic candidate.

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Stern 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 Stern on Twitter: @gabestern326.
VALLEJO, Calif. (AP)  A police officer who in 2020 fired a rifle five times through the windshield of an unmarked police vehicle, fatally shooting a San Francisco Bay Area man, was fired last week for violating several police department policies, authorities said.

The Vallejo police officer who fatally shot Sean Monterrosa in June 2020 was terminated on Oct. 3 after an independent third-party investigation determined he violated several department policies, including using deadly force that was not objectively reasonable, failing to de-escalate the situation and failing to activate his body-worn camera in a timely manner, the Vallejo Police Department said in a statement.

The department said it was not naming the officer because of an order issued by a Solano County judge. Monterrosa's family and Melissa Nold, a civil rights attorney who has been advising the family, identified the terminated officer as Jarrett Tonn.

The Vallejo Police Officers Association did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Police said they initially thought Monterrosa, 22, was carrying a handgun in his waistband. But he actually had a hammer in the pocket of a sweatshirt he was wearing.

Officers in two unmarked police cars were responding to reports of suspects stealing from a pharmacy amid national protests over the killing of George Floyd when the shooting occurred.

Video released by the Vallejo Police Department a month after the shooting shows Tonn firing from the backseat of the moving vehicle that was carrying three officers, including him. Monterrosa was killed after being shot once in the head.

Michelle Monterrosa, Sean Monterrosas sister, said Wednesday that the family is grateful the officer was terminated.

We recognize that this is a milestone and are grateful the (police) chief stood his ground," Monterrosa said.

She said the family is hopeful Attorney General Rob Bonta, who began reviewing the investigation last year, will bring those charges forward and uncover a culture of corruption at the department.

The windshield, considered a key piece of evidence, was destroyed, leading city officials to seek a criminal investigation into how that happened. Bonta took the case after Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams recused herself.

Bonta's office said Wednesday that their review of the investigation is ongoing.

The Vallejo Police Department has come under repeated criticism in other cases as well.

In July 2020, Police Chief Shawny Williams said he was starting an independent investigation after two people in the department said officers had their badges bent to mark on-duty killings.

The department has had several other controversial slayings by police, including that of Willie McCoy, 20, of Suisun City, in February 2019. McCoy was killed after he fell asleep with a gun in his lap in his car in a Taco Bell drive-thru. Six Vallejo officers fired 55 shots.
Nikolas Cruz, who murdered 17 people at a Parkland high school in a mass shooting that shocked the nation, will spend the rest of his life in prison after a jury on Thursday rejected the death penalty.

The decision stunned and angered relatives of the 14 students and three educators who were shot to death during the Feb. 14, 2018, rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High  the deadliest school shooting in Florida history.

They sat in disbelief inside the courtroom as a Broward circuit judge read a lengthy verdict form for nearly an hour. Count by count, the judge read the jurys decision that the details of Cruzs troubled life were enough to spare him execution by the state of Florida.

Dr. Ilan Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa died in the massacre, appeared to curse quietly when the judge read the verdict in her case. His wife, Lori, buried her face in her hand.

This should have been the death penalty 100 percent, Lori Alhadeff told reporters afterward. I am so beyond disappointed and frustrated by this outcome.

Ilan Alhadeff said he was disgusted with the legal system and with the jurors. The jurors let us down, he said.

Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer did not immediately sentence Cruz, after prosecutors asked for a full sentencing hearing to allow the relatives of the murdered victims to speak. That hearing was scheduled for Nov. 1.

I hope that we as a community can respect the verdict that was rendered, respect the process that was had and understand those jurors have spoken and as a community, now begin the process of healing, said Broward Public Defender Gordon Weekes.

Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill, seated with Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz touches her hands to her head as the last of the 17 verdicts were read in the penalty phase of Cruzs trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. Cruz, who pleaded guilty to 17 counts of premeditated murder in the 2018 shootings, is the most lethal mass shooter to stand trial in the U.S. He was previously sentenced to 17 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole for 17 additional counts of attempted murder for the students he injured that day.

The former MSD student pleaded guilty last year to 17 counts of first-degree murder and 17 counts of attempted murder.

The verdict capped a nearly three-month trial that forced relatives of murdered victims, survivors of the carnage and the South Florida public to relive the trauma of Floridas deadliest school shooting.

READ MORE: Whats next for death penalty in Florida?

Cruzs case was the deadliest mass shooting to go to a trial  most mass shooters are killed by police officers, or take their own lives during their attacks.

The few mass shooters who have gone to trial have seen differing results. A jury rejected the death penalty for James Holmes, who killed 12 people at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, in 2012 and is now serving a life sentence. A federal jury handed down a death sentence for Dylann Roof, the white supremacist who killed nine church worshipers in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015.

Cruzs rampage galvanized student activism. Parkland survivors pushed for gun reform, with Floridas Republican-dominated Legislature eventually passing a bill that limited some firearm sales and creating a red flag law that allows for the seizure of guns from mentally ill people.

The police response to the mass shooting  as has been the case in other school shootings, such as the one earlier this year in Uvalde, Texas  was also heavily criticized. Scot Peterson, the Broward Sheriffs Office deputy assigned to the school, was charged criminally over his failure to enter the freshman building and confront Cruz.

Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony  appointed to replace Scott Israel by the governor, in large part because of the agencys response to the Parkland shooting  said he was disappointed with the verdict.

Despite the fact that the defendant slaughtered 17 innocent people without any remorse, the jury chose to spare his life. I disagree with their verdict, he said. In my opinion, every aspect of our criminal justice system collectively failed the victims and their families. Today, the victims families were re-victimized.

READ MORE: White House says verdict brought a measure of justice and accountability

The shooting also cast a harsh spotlight on how the education and mental-health system handled Cruzs years of troubling behavior at home and in schools.

Cruzs penchant for impulsive outbursts and lashing out at fellow students became a key theme at the long-awaited trial in Broward circuit court.

Over weeks of trial, which started on July 18, jurors heard the chilling details about Cruzs plans to become a notorious school shooter, stocking up on ammunition and tactical gear before taking an Uber to the campus. Inside, he took out his AR-15-style rifle and began mowing down students in hallways, shooting into classrooms, and returning to finish off wounded victims, before escaping among the fleeing crowd.

Gena Hoyer reacts as she awaits the verdict in the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. Hoyers son, Luke, was killed in the 2018 shootings.

The Broward Public Defenders Office had sought to convince the jury that Cruzs savage killing spree was the end result of a lifetime of poorly treated mental-health woes  arguing that brain damage was caused by his birth mother drinking heavily while he was in the womb.

Jurors on Wednesday afternoon asked to listen to a reading of the earlier cross-examination testimony of Paul Connor, an expert who had told them about Cruz suffering from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. The jury also asked to view the AR-15-style rifle, which was rendered inoperable and given to them early Thursday.

One juror was adamant against a death sentence, and two others joined in the vote for life, Benjamin Thomas, the foreperson told Herald news partner WFOR-CBS4. There was one with a hard no  she couldnt do it  and there was another two that ended up voting the same way, Thomas said.

One of the jurors who voted for life, in a letter to the judge, disputed supposed chatter from other jurors that she had already made up her mind on the sentence before the trial. This allegation is untrue and I maintained my oath to the court that I would be fair and unbiased, she wrote. The deliberations were very tense and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned that I would vote for life.

Families speak out after verdict

One by one, angry family members addressed reporters after the verdict, calling it unjust and arguing it set a terrible precedent and created a road map for future mass shooters to avoid the death penalty.

Ryan Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter Alaina Petty was killed by Cruz, said he couldnt understand how a juror could conclude Cruz deserved life in prison and not death.

One juror either didnt understand the facts in this case or was dishonest with themselves, Petty said, his voice trailing off. He [Cruz] went back and shot again and again. Ive seen the video as part of the MSD commission. Ill never forget that video. We were hoping for justice. Unfortunately, we didnt get it today.

READ MORE: What people are saying about the verdict on social media

Tony Montalto, who lost is 14-year-old daughter Gina in the shooting, said the decision now puts more school children in jeopardy, because shooters no longer have to worry about a death sentence.

This shooter didnt show compassion when he put the gun to Gina, he said. Asked what hed say to those who dont believe in the death penalty, Montalto didnt hesitate.

Trade places with me and youll change your mind, he said.

Max Schacter, whose 17-year-old son Alex was killed, said he couldnt understand how Cruz managed to avoid a death sentence.

He did research. He planned this out. He lied to the Uber driver [who drove him to the school]. He is a sociopath and he did this. He planned it out. It was premeditated, he said.

The shooting moved many of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas parents on a path they never anticipated. Some have become advocates and are fighting locally and nationally for gun safety measures. Others were appointed to safety commissions or were elected to Broward Countys School Board. Several have created nonprofits, such as Max Schacters Safe School for Alex.

Anne Ramsay, who lost her daughter Helena, 17, implored President Joe Biden to enact gun laws and like the other families, she said she was baffled by the jurys decision.

We had to listen to how he came back and finished off our loved ones, she said. There is no reason in this country to have weapons of war in the streets.

Fred Guttenberg, who became a national voice for gun control measures after losing his 14-year-old daughter Jaime in the massacre, said he looked at his wife after the verdict and simply said, shame.

Linda Schulman spoke for many families when she said no one should feel any pity for Cruz. Her son Scott Beigel, 35, was a geography teacher and cross country running coach before he was gunned down by Cruz.

Hes going to have to look over his shoulder every second the rest of his life, she said. He should live in fear.
As he lines up a possible bid for the White House in 2024, former Vice President Mike Pence is campaigning with the strangest of political bedfellows, throwing his name and his money behind candidates who supported the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection that put the Indiana Republicans life in danger.

On Wednesday, Pence raised money for a former aide now running for Indianas secretary of state, who called the 2020 election a scam. On Thursday, Pence will headline a fundraiser for one of the fake electors enlisted by Donald Trump and his allies in Georgia. And Pence has recently given his endorsement to top Republican candidates in New Hampshire and Arizona, despite their prior support for Trumps 2020 election lie.

Former Vice President Mike Pence greets guests at a lunch in Waverly, Iowa, Aug. 20. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

To Pences critics, the former vice president is stunningly craven to flirt with an issue that almost got him killed on Jan. 6. But to his supporters, the longtime Republican is deftly navigating the reality of the current Republican Party, split between multiple factions, and keeping the party from going completely off the rails.

Asked by CBS News earlier in October if Pence was supporting candidates who denied the 2020 election results, longtime Pence adviser Marc Short replied, I guess that depends on your definition of denying the election results.

If you look to his letter to the American people back on Jan. 6, what he wrote is to say that it is Congresss right to object, that is what the Electoral Count Act provided for, Short said. So again there have been Republican and Democrat objections to the last four elections, and he believes that was their right, even if he doesnt agree with them on that particular vote.

The fraught political dynamic for Pence, which includes a potential run against Trump himself, comes into stark relief again on Thursday as the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol holds what is likely to be its final hearing.

Pences top aides and advisers, including Short, provided House investigators many of their most stunning findings in the historic probe. But Pence, despite teasing a possible interview with the panel, looks likely to avoid providing any information himself.

Marc Short, adviser and former chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Mike Pence is trying to have it both ways  he cant claim credit for doing his constitutionally required duty while boosting extreme election deniers who wanted to overturn an election and subvert the will of 81 million Americans, Democratic National Committee spokesperson Ammar Moussa told Yahoo News.

Instead, Pence has cut a careful path on the campaign trail, supporting Republicans across the country in battles for the Senate, the House and governor. He has, in some high-profile contests, split with Trump and endorsed some of the Republicans who enraged the former president the most.

But more often, Pence has carefully lined up his endorsements for Republicans most likely to win, regardless of whether they supported or still support the election lie.

On Thursday, the same day as what could be the final Jan. 6 committee hearing, Pence was scheduled to host a fundraiser for one of the fake electors, Georgia state Sen. Burt Jones, who is running for lieutenant governor. Jones, for his part, has sidestepped saying whether he believes that Trump lost the election.

In Arizona, Trump-backed Republican Senate candidate Blake Masters previously touted Trumps election lie, but in a debate last week with incumbent Sen. Mark Kelly, Masters said he found no evidence the 2020 election was rigged and acknowledged Biden as president. A few days later, Pence endorsed Masters at a campaign event in Arizona. Pence did not endorse Kari Lake, who is widely considered a successor to Trump both in tone and in her embrace of conspiracy theories.

Republican Senate candidate Blake Masters and Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Mesa, Ariz., Oct. 9. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Pence aides declined to comment for this story.

Pences own comments around Jan. 6, which saw pro-Trump rioters and militia members come within 40 feet of attacking him and his family, have been reserved and reticent  alternating between calling the insurrection a tragic day and, in a tease of his forthcoming memoir, saying only that he was angry that day.

Over the summer, Pence said he might testify before the House Jan. 6 committee, but he seems to have run out the clock on that possibility. The former vice president is expected to formally announce shortly after the new year whether he will seek the presidency.
By Mark Trevelyan

LONDON (Reuters) - A flurry of military activity in Belarus this week has caught the attention of Ukraine and the West as a potential sign that President Alexander Lukashenko may commit his army in support of Russia's flailing war effort in Ukraine.

Lukashenko has ordered troops to deploy with Russian forces near the Ukraine border, and his defence ministry says "combat readiness" drills are under way. On Tuesday, the interior ministry held exercises to eliminate "sabotage groups" near Yelsk, only 20 km (12 miles) from the border with Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has asked the Group of Seven (G7) countries to place an international observer mission near the border, while France warned Belarus it could face more Western sanctions if it deepened its involvement in Ukraine.

Belarus allowed itself to be used as a launchpad for Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine but has not joined the fighting directly. Analysts say Lukashenko would have no choice but to comply if Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded he enter the war, at a moment when Moscow is reeling from a series of defeats and facing unprecedented public criticism of its generals' failings.

But they are sceptical that Belarus's intervention would make much of a difference. Its armed forces total just 48,000 personnel, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, and have not fought a war in more than 30 years of independence since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

"It's not exactly a combat-tested armed force," said Samir Puri, author of "Russia's Road to War with Ukraine".

He said, however, that the risk of intervention by Belarus could force Ukraine to beef up security in the north of the country, drawing forces away from the frontlines with Russia in the south and east.

Zelenskiy's call for foreign observers is a sign that Ukraine takes the risk seriously but it may not be diplomatically feasible, Puri said. It's unclear who would provide such a force, as Moscow would veto any U.N. role and NATO or EU observers could be drawn into clashes with Russian forces.

The Belarusian defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. On Tuesday it said the deployment with Russian troops was a defensive measure "aimed at responding adequately to actions near our borders".

CLOSER TO NATO

Belarus shares borders with three NATO members, a factor that may also be part of Putin's calculations as he seeks to draw his ally into the war.

"It brings him much closer to NATO's borders. Putin can then say: 'I'm bringing the war to you. Do you really want it?' What happens if a missile goes astray?" a senior European official said.

Lukashenko has not specified the size and role of the joint force he announced on Monday, though he said then that he expected the arrival of thousands of troops on Belarusian territory.

Not all the evidence suggests the Belarus military is on the verge on joining the fight. The Belarusian Hajun project, which monitors military movements, said there is evidence of equipment moving in the other direction, including the transfer to Russia of at least two trains with 28 Belarusian tanks.

Pavel Slunkin, a former Belarusian diplomat now at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said there were no signs of Russia pouring forces into the country to re-invade Ukraine from the north, as it did at the start of the war in February.

He said he did not believe Lukashenko was on the point of committing his forces to fight alongside Russia's, but he may be readying himself for that eventuality. "Maybe he hasnt decided it yet but he understands that this could happen and in this scenario its better to have the army prepared."

Slunkin said Lukashenko, who survived mass protests with Russian help in 2020 and depends on Putin both politically and economically, would be in no position to withhold military support if the Kremlin required it.

"His guarantee of keeping his power very much depends on Putin," he said. "Lukashenko can't survive without Russia's support and without repression. His dependence is so deep, he has almost no space for manoeuvre."

(Additional reporting by John Irish; editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Frank Jack Daniel)
More than a century after being looted from Nigeria, a set of Benin bronzes are going home.

The Benin bronzes  beautiful pieces of art and brutal testimonies of colonial history  are a collection of artifacts made by the Edo peoples from the Kingdom of Benin, located in the southwest of present-day Nigeria, the Smithsonian Institute reported. The 3,000 bronze artifacts range from human and animal figurines to commemorative heads and plaques cast to record the history of the Edo people, according to the British Museum.

Left: Figure with a rattle, a net-covered spear, and outstretched hands. Right: A man holding a ceremonial sword point-down and wearing a leopard-face tunic and leopard collar.

The bronzes were stolen from Benin City in 1897 when British soldiers pillaged the city, burning the royal palace and exiling the Oba, or king, the Smithsonian reported. The kingdom of Benin suffered a bloody and devastating occupation under British forces, the British Museum said. The number of people who died during the British conquest remains unknown.

Left: A man standing with an eben, a ceremonial leaf-blade sword, and wearing a leopards teeth collar. Right: Two figures holding leopard-pattern boxes.

British soldiers stole all of Benins royal treasures, and these Benin bronzes  as they came to be called  eventually ended up in museums and collections around the world, the Smithsonian explained.

Nigerians have called for the return of the looted bronzes for decades, with formalized repatriation requests being sent to museums in the U.K., Germany and the U.S. in recent years, the Smithsonian Magazine reported.

Copper pendant with three figures, the oba (king) in the center and attendants on either side.

Twenty-nine bronzes stolen during this infamous, bloody raid ended up at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.  but not anymore. The Smithsonian Institute transferred ownership of these bronzes to the National Commission for Museums and Monuments in Nigeria, the institute said in a news release on Oct. 11.

Left: A commemorative head of a king wearing a beaded collar that covers his neck up to the lower lip and a beaded cap protecting clusters and braids. Right: Another commemorative head of a king, similarly styled, with a hole on top and a wide base decorated with a leopard, mudfish, and other figures.

After 125 years away, 20 bronzes will return to Nigeria, and nine bronzes will remain on loan at the Smithsonians African Art Museum, according to DCist, the Washington Post and the Smithsonian Magazine.

Left: A gong with a hollow spiral shaft topped with a beaked bird, its wings outstretched. Right: A figure of a king with a sword in his right hand (partially missing) and a gong in his left hand. A pendant hands on his right hip.

The Minister of Information and Culture of Nigeria said in the news release that, Nigeria is immensely gratified By returning the artifacts, these institutions are together writing new pages in history. Their brave decision to return the timeless artworks is worth emulating.

Rooster figure made by an Edo artist in the 18th century with three cows or ram heads on the front of its square base.

The Smithsonian secretary said at the ceremony for the transfer, We realize as an institution that we are shared stewards of these collections. We are not owners, the Washington Post reported.

Bronze bracelet in the style of the Benin Kingdom court, made in the 17th to 18th century, with human heads and mudfish heads.

The Smithsonian still owns 26 Benin bronzes of undetermined origin and plans to keep these until further research can determine whether they were acquired ethically, the news release said.

Ceremonial 19th century sword from the Benin Kingdom, made of iron and decorated with a linear design.

Benin City is about 190 miles east of Lagos.

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Brittany Martins lawyers argued that the sentence was inconsistent with similar cases in South Carolina and stiff compared to those doled out for Jan. 6 rioters.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  A pregnant Black activist serving four years in prison over comments she made to police during racial justice protests in the summer of 2020 will not receive a lesser sentence, a judge in South Carolina has ruled.

A jury this spring found Brittany Martin, 34, of Sumter, South Carolina, guilty of breaching the peace in a high and aggravated manner. Martins attorneys pushed for the sentence to be reconsidered and expressed concern about her pregnancy and health. Racial justice groups also got involved.

In an Oct. 5 order, Judge R. Kirk Griffin pointed to Martins prior criminal convictions that he said contributed to her original sentence.

Brittany Martin. (Screenshot: YouTube  Jay Rene)

In November 2020, an Iowa judge sentenced Martin to probation for leaving the scene of an injury and willfully causing bodily harm after her teenage son accused her of purposely hitting him with her SUV and driving away. Griffin also noted previous convictions across multiple states for shoplifting, public disorderly conduct and possession of a short-barreled shotgun.

Sumter County Assistant Solicitor Bronwyn McElveen said in a September filing that Martin has been on probation at least six times.

Probation has not been a deterrent to further criminal activities for the Defendant, Griffin wrote in his order. An active prison sentence was appropriate in this instance.

Breach of the peace is a misdemeanor charge in South Carolina punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment when elevated to a high and aggravated manner.

Police body camera recordings presented in court and shared with the Associated Press show Martin addressing police officers during multiple days of demonstrations.

Some of us gon be hurting. And some of yall gon be hurting, Martin told officers in one video. We ready to die for this. We tired of it. You better be ready to die for the blue. Im ready to die for the Black.

McElveen also said in the filing that Martins actions prompted the city to impose a curfew and a local business lost profits because it had to close early.

The jury in May acquitted Martin of inciting a riot and reached no verdict on pending charges that she threatened public officials lives.

Martins lawyers argued that the sentence was inconsistent with similar cases in South Carolina and stiff compared to those doled out for Jan. 6 rioters. In a Wednesday statement, Bakari Sellers, her attorney and a former state lawmaker, said four years is excessive and that he intends to appeal.

Griffin said it was difficult to compare federal convictions from the Jan. 6 riots and the specifics of the case.

The sentence in this case was based on the crime committed, the nature and classification of the offense, the Defendants prior criminal history/recidivism, and the seriousness of the crime, Griffin wrote.

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An 18-year-old with several swastikas and a school kill list on his bedroom wall was prohibited from possessing firearms after the Denver Police Department petitioned in June for an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) under Colorados red flag law.

The same department filed for another ERPO in June in the case of a 31-year-old man after they said he called the Adams County Courthouse in Brighton, Colorado, to threaten a mass shooting. The man even showed up at the building, they said, with a paintball pistol that was made to look like an actual sidearm.

In an August case, a man carrying an AK Rifle and a machete slung around his body  and saying he suffered from a mental health disability  threatened to burn down a pawn shop if he was not able to retrieve guns he had pawned there. Police successfully petitioned for an ERPO that would prohibit him from accessing firearms for at least a year.

These are only a few examples of how the Denver Police Department used the states red flag law to prohibit someone from possessing firearms. Under the law, a judge can grant an Extreme Risk Protection Order, which temporarily blocks possession of firearms if the judge believes a person poses a danger to themselves or others.

Officers petitioned the court for the civil orders in each of the cases, saying the subject posed a significant risk of causing personal injury to self or others if they possessed a gun. And in each case, a judge agreed.

Id be naive if I thought that this is going to stop every single incident, said Joe Montoya, the chief of the investigations division at the Denver Police Department, which is the agency to which judges granted the most ERPOs in Colorado last year. What I can say is you will never know how many we stopped because they never got to that point, Montoya said.

This fall more states could begin working toward enacting similar laws when they can apply for millions of dollars in federal grant funding. This is all made possible by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which President Biden signed into law this summer.

Nineteen states and Washington, D.C., already have red flag laws.

According to Sheila Jerusalem, a Department of Justice spokesperson, the Bureau of Justice Assistance will issue a solicitation this fall alerting states about the requirements for applying for a piece of the FY22 Byrne State Crisis Intervention Formula Program funding that was included in the law.

Jerusalem could not say exactly how much funding would be allocated , but according to an August White House briefing, The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act includes $750 million for states to implement crisis interventions such as (Extreme Risk Protection Orders).

SEE MORE: Biden Signs Landmark Gun Measure, Says 'Lives Will Be Saved'

83% of Denver cases involved substance abuse or alcohol

A Newsy evaluation of Colorado's ERPO petitions in 2021 found judges granted ERPOs in 60 distinct cases in the state. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office had the second-most orders granted of any police agency, with four.

Thirteen individual citizens who were not representing police departments also successfully petitioned for ERPOs. In Colorado, a family member or a household member can file for an ERPO if they meet certain criteria, such as related by blood, marriage or adoption.

A Newsy analysis of the Denver Police Department cases found 83% of respondents struggled with alcohol or substance abuse; 56% made suicidal remarks; and 39% threatened to kill someone else.

Each jurisdiction and state handles cases differently.

For example, Maryland provided records to Newsy showing judges granted 363 final orders in 2021. A Maryland courts spokesperson could not confirm whether this number included multiple orders related to the same case or person. Oregon courts approved 112 petitions. New York issued final orders of protection for 218 people. And Connecticut approved 210. In Florida, law enforcement petitioned for more 1,717 risk protection orders in 2021; however, data provided to the state did not make it clear how many orders judges actually granted.

"There's tremendous variation within the states with regard to how they're being used," said Shannon Frattaroli, a professor at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Frattaroli, who conducts research at the university's Center for Gun Violence Solutions, said she is currently engaged in a six-state study that includes California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland and Washington.

"Implementation matters," she said. "In order for ERPO laws to be able to prevent mass shootings, suicide, interpersonal violence, they need to be used. And we know from the descriptive work that we've done that they simply are not being used at all in some jurisdictions and that they're being underutilized in other jurisdictions because the infrastructure  the investment  just hasn't been made yet."

In Colorado, the attorney general's office has been "focused on investing in law enforcement training and how and when to use Extreme Risk Protection Orders," said spokesperson Lawrence Pacheco.

Pacheco said his office had partnered with the University of Colorado School of Medicine to apply for a $250,000 grant from the Fund for a Safer Future, a group of foundations and donors working to reduce gun violence, to create a "scientifically-validated curriculum targeted at law enforcement on how and when to use ERPOs."

In New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, recently established a task force "dedicated to the coordination and promotion of the Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order," according to an August press release.

At the time, only 11 Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Orders had been issued since the law was enacted in 2020.

"The task force will focus on developing and disseminating recommended training materials and protocols on the use of ERFPO for relevant parties across the state, including law enforcement, the judiciary, school officials, and behavioral health providers," the press release said.

And a Republican Pennsylvania legislator was invited by the White House to discuss with several other lawmakers "efforts to bring extreme risk protection orders to Pennsylvania," and other places, according to an August press release from the Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus.

"It was helpful to hear from legislators in Florida and Maryland about the experiences where ERPOs have been implemented, and also from other states where legislation is pending, to brainstorm on how to help advance extreme risk protection orders in Pennsylvania," Rep. Todd Stephens said.

Pennsylvania does not currently have a comparable ERPO law, but Stephens introduced related legislation for consideration in September 2021.

SEE MORE: Mass Killings Have Claimed The Lives Of Nearly 3,000 People Since 2006

What are the specifics of these cases?

Newsy received access to ERPO petitions through the civil court systems in Colorado and Florida, and the documents show why someone can be forced to relinquish weapons  and why a petition might be denied.

In a case last year, the Alamosa Police Department petitioned for an ERPO after learning a 19-year-old who worked at a sporting goods store had been seen pretending to "clear hallways" with a rifle and had talked "a lot about school shootings (and) dropped out of school because he would shoot it up," according to court paperwork. The judge granted the ERPO.

A law enforcement tipster said the teen would talk about how he "understood why people shot people because he could hurt people."

But many cases involve suicidal individuals.

The Grand Junction Police Department, for example, petitioned for an ERPO after it responded to a call about a "suicidal person."

According to court records, the man told police that "he has recently had suicidal thoughts and ideations, purchased a 9 mm handgun and stated multiple times he thought about shooting himself." That ERPO was also granted.

Critics have expressed concerns, however, that the laws may inconveniently and unnecessarily impact some citizens.

In Florida, for example, the Winter Haven Police Department filed a petition for a risk protection order after responding to a verbal altercation between two neighbors.

According to police documents, a pair of young men said they were using a BB gun to shoot at palm rats in a tree on their property when a 70-year-old neighbor who was walking his dog expressed concern that they were shooting at him.

The men who were shooting the BB gun accused the concerned man, Mark Quackenbush, of threatening them by saying, "We can exchange live fire."

Police said the two men took that statement as Quackenbush threatening to shoot them with a firearm.

Quackenbush denied making any threats or having any guns or ammunition in his possession.

"I know better than to say something like that, especially with the red flag laws here in Florida," Quackenbush told Newsy. "I didn't have a weapon. I didn't show a weapon. I didn't use a weapon, and I basically told the cops, I don't need a weapon."

However, the police officer who responded to the scene said he petitioned for a risk protection order "based on the statements."

While a judge granted a temporary order, the court denied the petition for a final risk protection order two weeks later.

"I didn't have any weapon other than a leash in my hand with my service dog," said Quackenbush.

Quackenbush said he hired his own attorney to fight the issue in court.

"It goes against the citizens," he said of the risk protection order. "It is set in place for the law enforcement to go after anybody they want to go after."

Quackenbush said the law could be helpful in some circumstances. "I think when there is a gun involved, absolutely, but when there's not a gun involved, and they come at you, what do you think about that?"

"Overreaching and overuse is certainly something that we need to be mindful of, certainly something that we're interested in, from a research perspective, of monitoring," said Frattaroli, the researcher with the Center for Gun Violence Solutions. However, she added that there are due-process protections in place during the ERPO process to guard against overreach.

"There's judicial oversight. There's opportunity for the respondent to be heard in court. There's opportunity for the respondent to come back after a period of time and request a re-review," Frattaroli said. "So, there's lots of ways in which the law is designed specifically to assure that there's oversight and due process protections in place."
The Venezuelan migrants flown to Marthas Vineyard by the state of Florida last month are one step closer to staying in the United States  because Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has questioned their right to remain here legally, made them the victims of a potential crime, their attorney says.

The 48 migrants say they were tricked into taking charter flights from San Antonio to the Massachusetts island with false promises of jobs and other aid, part of a taxpayer-funded operation DeSantis said he set up to draw attention to the border crisis. The Sheriff of Bexar County, which covers San Antonio, quickly opened a criminal investigation.

Now, the sheriff has granted each migrant a certification allowing them to apply for a special kind of visa meant for crime victims who are helping law enforcement, according to Rachel Self, an attorney for the migrants. Those applying for the visa cannot be sent back to their homelands until their immigration cases are settled  which can take as long as six or seven years, Self said in a statement.

No matter what your political beliefs are, these people are all crime victims, she said.

DeSantis and other top Republicans have raised doubts about whether the migrants, and hundreds of thousands of others like them coming over the nations southern border, have valid claims to stay in the United States.

The Florida governors office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar issued a statement confirming that his department had submitted documentation through the federal system to ensure the migrants availability as witnesses during the investigation, which he said is ongoing.

He also revealed for the first time the Texas statute that the relocation effort may have violated: unlawful restraint. It is a Class A misdemeanor unless the victim is younger than 17.

Salazar said it could only be applied to those who were in his jurisdiction at the time of the offense.

The visas sought by the migrants are known as U visas. Such visas are set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. They can eventually lead to permanent lawful status in the United States.

The Marthas Vineyard migrants had been expected to pursue asylum claims, rather than applying for the special U visa.

A Venezuelan migrant is led onto a bus at St. Andrews Episcopal Church on Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in Edgartown, Mass., on the island of Marthas Vineyard. A group of 48 migrants was flown to the island from Texas.

This is not a quick and easy process, Self said. While the application is pending, the applicant can receive work authorization, but there is no guarantee as to when it will be granted. This is not a process anyone goes through for a quick fix. ... It is a process we want people to undertake because they are essential witnesses in a criminal investigation  because helping law enforcement is the right thing to do.

The migrants have been assisting the sheriffs Organized Crime Division in its investigation. The sheriffs office is investigating whether politically connected contractors working for the state of Florida broke the law by making allegedly false promises and luring the migrants onto the Sept. 14 flights.

While the flights have boosted DeSantis standing in national Republican circles as he seeks reelection and mulls a bid for president in 2024, they have also led to significant legal challenges.

In addition to the criminal investigation in San Antonio, DeSantis is facing a class-action federal law suit from migrants on the Marthas Vineyard flights who claim he violated their civil rights.

In Florida, a Democratic state senator is suing DeSantis, saying the governor used taxpayer money illegally for the operation. The lawsuit points out that the budget language authorizing the program set aside $12 million to remove unauthorized aliens from the state of Florida  not potential asylum seekers who have permission to be in the United States pending hearings and are living in other states like Texas.

The Miami Herald obtained state documents setting guidelines for the program, which also said the migrants should be found in Florida.

Separately, The U.S. Treasury Department is examining the funding of the migrant flights.

DeSantis has previously expressed skepticism about whether the migrants should be allowed to stay in the United States  even though they turned themselves in to border authorities and have been granted parole to remain in the country legally, pending court hearings.

Theres a whole cottage industry that anyone that wants to get in should just claim asylum, the governor said at a news conference in Miami last month. Most of these people clearly do not qualify for asylum, so that is being abused.

Miami Herald staff writers Bianca Padro Ocasio and Ana Ceballos contributed to this report.
A watchdog group with the U.S. Treasury Department plans to examine whether Floridas state government properly used federal pandemic recovery money in connection to last months efforts to relocate migrants, a top official with the agency told the Massachusetts congressional delegation last week.

In a letter dated Oct. 7, Richard Delmar, the Treasury Departments deputy inspector general, wrote that his department plans to get this work underway as quickly as possible, as part of its broader oversight of Floridas use of funds allocated by the American Rescue Plan Act last year.

Delmar was responding to a written request from members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation, who last month called on the department to investigate what the lawmakers deemed a misuse of pandemic relief money.

READ MORE: Florida legislators shut down questions over DeSantis migrant flights

In September, a relocation program authorized by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis transported almost 50 migrants from San Antonio, Texas, to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, by airplane, setting off a national firestorm over the increase of people arriving at the countrys southern border and whether the Republican governor was using human beings as political pawns.

The $12 million migrants relocation program authorized by the state Legislature was paid for by interest earned from federal COVID-19 relief money.

In a statement, DeSantis Communications Director Taryn Fenske said that officials with the states Office of Policy and Budget have already spoken with the inspector generals office about the use of interest to pay for the migrant relocation program, telling the federal agency that doing so was permitted under the rules.

The conversation happened weeks ago, said Fenske, who downplayed the significance of the Treasury Department action.

Reviews by Treasury are typical and, as stated by the OIG, are part of its oversight responsibilities, the spokeswoman said.

Democrats, for their part, hailed the deputy inspector generals letter.

In a statement released Wednesday, Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts praised what he called the deputy inspector generals swift response. Markey was one of the lawmakers from Massachusetts who asked for the investigation last month.

For the sake of the migrants who were lured onto charter planes under false pretenses, and for the commendable Commonwealth residents who rallied together to offer support, I hope that this investigation sheds light on whether Governor DeSantis misused funds that were intended for COVID relief for Floridians, Markey said.

Markey and other Massachusetts lawmakers also asked the Transportation Department last month to probe the matter, arguing the State of Florida likely violated department rules by transporting individuals on charter flights under false pretenses. A source on Capitol Hill said that DOT has not responded yet to the Sept. 28 letter.

Neither the Department of Homeland Security nor the Justice Department has commented on whether they are investigating the operation, but DHS condemned DeSantis for using vulnerable men, women, and children as props for a political stunt.

McClatchys senior national security and White House correspondent Michael Wilner and Miami Herald staff writer Nicholas Nehamas contributed to this report.
Venezuelans take part in a caravan toward the U.S., in Tapachula

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -U.S. and Mexican officials have agreed a plan for Venezuelan migrants that will enable thousands of people from the South American country to enter the United States by air and also send some Venezuelans to Mexico, Mexico's government said Wednesday.

The latest scheme to manage higher border flows was launched as the United States and Mexico attempt to deal with a sharp increase in undocumented immigration from Venezuela.

It will be based on the "Uniting for Ukraine" program, according to a Mexican government statement, under which Ukrainians could enter the United States by securing a sponsor and applying from outside the country.

From Oct. 12, U.S. authorities will begin managing access of 24,000 Venezuelan migrants by air, the statement added.

Mexico would "temporarily" allow some Venezuelan nationals to enter Mexico through the U.S. border, the statement said.

Under the plan, only applicants who comply with its rules will be accepted, and they must not appear at the U.S.-Mexico border, it added. Venezuelans who enter Mexico from Oct. 12 will not be able to apply to enter U.S. territory from Mexico.

To qualify for the program, a person or organization based in the United States must support the applicant's request, and they would enter U.S. territory by air, the statement said.

(Reporting by Dave Graham and Daina Beth Solomon; editing by Stephen Eisenhammer)
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States reaffirmed its commitment to defend "every inch" of NATO territory ahead of talks among defense ministers from the alliance on Thursday that will include closed-door discussions by its Nuclear Planning Group.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made the remarks affirming America's commitment to NATO's collective defense following repeated nuclear threats by Russian President Vladimir Putin amid battlefield setbacks in his nearly eight-month-long invasion of Ukraine.

"We are committed to defending every inch of NATO's territory - if and when it comes to that," Austin said.

Austin spoke shortly before attending a meeting by NATO's senior body on nuclear matters, which handles policy issues associated with the alliance's nuclear forces.

NATO has not given details of the nuclear discussions taking place on Thursday. The alliance says its nuclear policy is under "constant review, and is modified and adapted in light of new developments."

President Vladimir Putin has threatened the use of nuclear weapons since his military was beaten back on several fronts in Ukraine over the past month and Russia proclaimed the annexation of Ukrainian territories.

A senior NATO official said on Wednesday a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine would "almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself," without elaborating.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said last month the United States has made clear to Moscow the "catastrophic consequences" it would face if it used a nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

Sullivan did not publicly describe the nature of the planned U.S. response, however.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin delivers short remarks during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance's headquarters, in Brussels, Belgium October 13, 2022. (Yves Herman/Reuters)

Diplomats say Moscow's hints at the possible use of a tactical nuclear weapon to defend the annexed territories of Ukraine are aimed at scaring the West into reducing support for Kyiv.

On Thursday, Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, was quoted by Russian media warning of World War Three if Ukraine were allowed to join NATO.

"Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three," Venediktov said.

"The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced a bid for fast-track membership of NATO, but full NATO membership for Ukraine is far off because all the alliance's 30 members would have to give their consent.

Meanwhile, NATO said it would go ahead with its annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed "Steadfast Noon" next week, in which NATO air forces practise the use of U.S. nuclear bombs based in Europe with training flights, without live weapons.

Cancelling the drills because of the war in Ukraine would send a "very wrong signal," NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

Germany said more than a dozen NATO partners aim to jointly procure air defence systems that protect European allied territory from missiles, eyeing Israel's Arrow 3 system, U.S. Patriot and German IRIS-T units among the options.

We're going to stay with our efforts to support Ukraine for as long as it takes.Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin

Nearly 50 countries gathered at NATO headquarters on Wednesday and committed to arming Ukraine through the winter and beyond, including with new air defenses, potentially preventing Russia from taking advantage of a slower winter to reset its forces.

Austin said on Thursday that support was opened-ended.

"We're going to stay with our efforts to support Ukraine for as long as it takes," Austin said alongside NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

Stoltenberg praised the U.N. General Assembly's condemnation on Wednesday of Russia's "attempted illegal annexation" of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine.

"This just shows that we need to stand up for the rules-based international order, for our core values," Stoltenberg said.

Thursday's agenda at NATO headquarters in Brussels includes discussions on how to give a clear signal to industry to ramp up arms production both for internal needs, as well as to support Ukraine's defense.

Allies will also discuss ways to improve protection of their critical infrastructure, after apparent attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines contributed to heightening tensions. It remains unclear who was behind the explosions under the Baltic Sea.


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YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian National Security Service issued a statement regarding media reports on the October 8 Crimea Bridge explosion.

Mass media reported information that the explosive materials used in the terror act on the Crimea Bridge on 8 October 2022 were concealed in a cargo truck driven by a citizen of Armenia, which prior to that had entered Armenia from abroad and then traveled to Russia. In order to check the authenticity of the reports and clarify all circumstances, the Investigative Department of the National Security Service launched criminal proceedings under respective articles of the Criminal Code of Armenia on the apparent cases of supporting international terrorism, smuggling of explosive materials through the EEU border by a group of persons and falsifying documents reserving right, during which interrogations, confiscations and other investigative and judicial actions have been taken. The investigation in the criminal proceedings continues, urgent investigative and tactical-intelligence complex measures with the use of all possible legal instruments are being taken to reveal the real circumstances of the case, the results of which will be published by the National Security Service for the public when deemed necessary.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Armenia is holding a census for the third time in its history. The census began on October 13 and will last 10 days. It is being conducted electronically using the combined method.

By law, census is conducted once every 10 years.

Enumerators will visit every 4th household in each community and fill in the electronic questionnaire using tablets computers.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The construction of the new Ajapnyak station of the Yerevan metro will start in 2024, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the Cabinet meeting.

Id like to remind that we had announced a tender and the process of constructing the new metro station in the Ajapnyak district is ongoing. The blueprinting is in process, he said, adding that the construction tender will be announced in late 2023 after the blueprints are ready. "We must record that weve made a clear decision and we must go in this direction. I dont see any obstacles, I hope the timeframes wont be breached and in 2024 we will launch the construction, the PM said.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Armenias Finance Minister Tigran Khachatryan and deputy Vahe Hovhannisyan are taking part in the 2022 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) in Washington D.C., the ministry said in a news release.

On October 12 the delegation of Minister Khachatryan met with the delegation led by Finance Minister of the Netherlands, Deputy Prime Minister Sigrid Kaag. Being involved in the same partner group of IMF and World Bank Group, the sides discussed a broad range of issues of both the bilateral and multilateral cooperation, as well as outlined the further directions and prospects of the development of partnership.

On the sidelines of the Annual Meetings, the Armenian and Dutch Finance Ministries signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Technical Cooperation, which aims at expanding the collaboration between the sides in exchange of knowledge, experience and information relating to public finances.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. A technical group from the European Union will arrive in Armenia on October 13 to discuss the issues relating to the exact deployment location of the EU civilian mission along the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Paruyr Hovhannisyan told reporters at a briefing.

When asked where the EU civilian mission will be deployed, the deputy FM said that these issues are being discussed.

Today a technical group from the EU will arrive, which will discuss these issues and all the criteria based on which the EU mission must be deployed, he said.

In response to the question that the CSTO has also expressed readiness to send observers, the deputy minister said: We are open to all proposals thanks to which our security will be strengthened, and we will avoid the situation we had in September.

Within the framework of the first meeting of the European Political Community in Prague, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met on October 6, 2022 at the initiative of the President of the French Republic and the President of the European Council. Armenia expressed agreement to support the EU civilian mission along the border with Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan agreed to cooperate with the mentioned mission to the extent it will be concerned. The mission will start its work in October, for a maximum period of two months. The purpose of the mission will be to build confidence and, through its reports, support the border commissions.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The Commander of Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Ground Forces Brigadier-General Mohammad Pakpour announced upcoming large military exercises in the north Iran in the coming days.

"In the coming days, the massive exercise dubbed "Eghtedar/Power" of the IRGC ground forces will be held at the northern borders of the country at the Aras region by the regional IRGC Ashura military base," Mehr News Agency quoted the Brigadier-General as saying.

He stated that the holding of the large exercise is in line with the implementation of the mission according to an annual plan with the aim of enhancing the combat preparedness of the IRGC Ground Forces.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan met with the delegation led by the Speaker of Parliament of Artsakh on October 13 in Yerevan.

The delegation included Artsakh Foreign Minister Davit Babayan, presidential advisor Masis Mayilyan, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs Vahram Balayan and the Permanent Representative of Artsakh in Armenia Sergey Ghazaryan.

Grigoryan presented details from the ongoing negotiations process in all directions, his office said in a readout. The parties then exchanged views and presented assessments regarding the security situation around Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia responded to the statement of French President Emmanuel Macron, in which he accused Russia of escalating the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and destabilizing the situation in the region.

ARMENPRESS reports the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, stated that they consider Macron's statement that Russia is using the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to destabilize the South Caucasus absolutely unacceptable.

"Such attacks are consistent with the anti-Russian line of the West to portray Russia as a monster and speak of attempts to transfer the logic of confrontation from Ukraine to other post-Soviet territories, including the South Caucasus," Zakharova noted.

According to her, the statements of the French president indicate that Paris is not interested in establishing stable peace in the region, and that these statements cast doubt on France's ability to play a constructive role in the region.

According to Zakharova, unlike France, Russia practically contributed to the settlement of the conflict, recalling that the Russian Federation made a crucial contribution to the signing of the trilateral declaration of November 9, 2020.

"The Russian peacekeeping contingent continues to be the guarantor of the security of the region. Peacekeepers effectively prevent incidents in their area of responsibility, help establish a peaceful life, provide humanitarian aid, restore infrastructure. With their help, 53,000 refugees returned home, more than 2,000 victims' bodies were handed over, 146 prisoners were returned in total, more than 25,000 explosive objects were defused," Zakharova said.

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia has started the work towards the comprehensive normalization of relations between Yerevan and Baku.

"Active efforts continue with the participation of Russia to promote the peace agenda, based on the statements of the leaders of the three countries on November 9, 2020, January 11, 2021 and November 26, 2021. In particular, steps are being taken in the direction of unblocking all economic and transport links in the South Caucasus, delimiting the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, signing a peace treaty, establishing a dialogue between societies and experts. The attempts of Paris to drive a wedge in Russia's relations with our friendly Armenia and Azerbaijan, with which Russia has long-standing and multifaceted ties, are doomed to failure and will only lead to further devaluation of France's reputation in the region," said Zakharova.
On Wednesday morning, the route from Chungthang to major tourist destination of Lachung was blocked due to landslides at multiple locations

Kolkata: The Indian Army has evacuated nearly 550 tourists after they got stranded due to landslides caused by heavy rainfall in North Sikkim. At around 7 am on Wednesday, the route from Chungthang to major tourist destination of Lachung was blocked due to landslides at multiple locations.

At a place 2 km north of Chungthang, a massive landslide occurred. At least 150 vehicles with 550 tourists got stuck on both side of the landslide. This traffic kept on increasing till 10 am due to lack of communication as mobile connectivity was also disturbed due to heavy rainfall.

The 33 Corps of the Eastern Command said that the Army camp at Lachung immediately swung into action on request of civil administration to provide all out assistance to the stranded tourists and locals amid a heavy rainfall and inclement weather conditions with freezing temperature.

It added, "While road clearance was in progress, the tourists started feeling uneasiness due to traffic blockage and harsh weather conditions. The Army provided immediate relief to stranded tourists in terms of water, food and medical care to elderly persons and infants. Some of the critical tourists, shivering due to cold conditions were brought back to the nearest medical facility for further assistance."

A senior Army officer said, "The Border Road Organisation also got into action but route was not opened in spite of best efforts due to heavy landslide and unprecedented rainfall throughout the day. At around 4 pm, some of the tourists were stranded for more than eight hours at blockage site. The Army also assisted the Sikkim Police in regulating the heavy traffic of more than 150 vehicles. By 6 pm all tourists were brought back to the safety of their respective hotels in Lachung."
Francis received in audience PIME for the 150th anniversary of Mondo e Missione, the institutes magazine whose experience led to AsiaNews. Their mission is to give a voice to the hope that the encounter with Christ sows in the life of people and populations. At the end, he blessed your readers and supporters.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis today met in audience at the Clementine Hall, in the Vatican, with members and associates of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Mondo e Missione (World and Mission), the institutes magazine whose experience led to AsiaNews.

Our editorial staff was present at the meeting and we gave the Pope a photograph of Father Leone Nani, PIME missionary and photographer in China from the early 20th century.

In his address, the pontiff said that, Forgotten wars, it is shameful to forget them like that," especially when they go on for years.

Today we are all worried, and it is right that we should be, about a war here in Europe, at the door of Europe and in Europe, but there have been wars for years: for more than ten years in Syria, think of Yemen, think of Myanmar, think of Africa. These dont come to mind; they are not in cultured Europe.

Speaking about the origins of Mondo e Missione, established in 1872 in Milan along the model of Les Missions Catholiques, which the Pontifical Mission Societies began to publish some years earlier in Lyon (France), Francis noted that, from the very beginning [it] expresses and promotes an outgoing Church. Yes, when you are outgoing, you stay young. If you stay sitting there, without moving, you age quickly!

These pioneers from 150 years ago understood the importance of making known the countries to which they were destined and the way in which, in those distant lands, the encounter between the Gospel and the local communities took place. From the very beginning, therefore, the magazine was the bearer of a broad outlook, open to the riches of each people and each local Church.

The pope pointed to the "geographical and existential peripheries" where the magazine can be "the voice of the voiceless." Above all, in a world where communication has seemingly shortened distances, [such places] continue to remain relegated to the margins. The distances have been shortened, it is true, but the ideological barriers have multiplied.

And so, the challenge still becomes to go there to make known the beauty and richness of the differences, but also the many distortions and injustices of societies that are increasingly interconnected and at the same time marked by serious inequalities.

For the pontiff, Mondo e Missione and AsiaNews are also tasked with helping to recognise the mission is at the centre. To recognise that the mission is at the centre. To remind Christian communities that if they look only at themselves, losing the courage to go out and take the word of Jesus to everyone, they end up extinguishing themselves. To show how the Gospel, by meeting diverse peoples and cultures, is given back to us every day in its newness and freshness.

This means giving a voice to the hope that the encounter with Christ sows in the life of people and populations. To say to everyone that a better world is possible, when following Jesus we learn to reach out to every brother and sister.

Finally, Francis concluded saying: I bless you from my heart, and I also bless your readers and supporters, and ask you to please, pray for me.
South Africa: Coega reaffirms position as preferred investment destination

Despite a challenging economic environment, the Coega Development Corporation (CDC) continues to welcome new investors to its Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which is crucial to generating employment opportunities.

In the past financial year, the CDC acquired 13 new investors with a combined investment value of R 557.7 million.

Investment is the key to generating employment opportunities. Over the past financial year, job creation stood at a commendable 19 199, and the number of persons trained at 3 296. To date, the CDC has 55 operational investors, the CDC said on Thursday.

The CDC said as the operator and developer of the Coega SEZ, its overarching objective is to boost economic growth and job creation through investment, in pursuit of socio-economic development.

Coega reaffirms its position as a leading SEZ in Africa and a preferred domestic and foreign direct investment destination. The CDC has sustained continuous improvement in all areas of priority, with a commitment to our mission to be a competitive investment location supported by value-added business services that effectively enable socio-economic development.

Coega SEZ is demarcated into 14 zones for synergy and supply chain integration, which garner investment in the energy, metals, logistics, automotive, chemicals, aquaculture and agro processing, maritime, and business process outsourcing sectors, the CDC said.

Prevailing major investors include the Dedisa Power Peaking Plant in Zone 13, who invested R3.5 billion, FAW SA in Zone 2, with a R600 million investment, as well as CEMZA in Zone 5, who invested R600 million.

The CDC emphasised the importance of skills development, which is where Coegas Human Capital Solutions division plays a key role  not only in upskilling beneficiaries for employability (register on https://www.g2o.co.za) but by providing a skills development, training, and recruitment services to Coega investors and Coega construction contractors.

Since 2002, a total of 65 594 construction jobs have been created through Coega projects, comprising 41 865 Coega SEZ construction jobs and 23 729 Port of Ngqura construction jobs (projects supported by Coega Human Capital Solutions).

In terms of facilities that are readily available to businesses outside of the SEZ, and amongst a variety of other facilities, the Coega Trade Facilitation Units Customs Control Area (CCA) Warehouse can be used as a storage facility for businesses across the region, as well as SEZ investors that require storage and warehousing space prior to freight distribution.

Based on its location in the heart of a fully functional plug and play special economic zone, the CCA Warehouse is built on world-class infrastructure - including roads, bulk water and sewer networks, telecommunication sleeve networks, electrical substations (HV and MV), and overhead power lines (HV and MV), the CDC said. SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Xi's book on governance published in Icelandic

By Wang Qingyun (China Daily) 08:32, October 13, 2022

Former Icelandic President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson delivers a speech during the event to launch the Icelandic edition of the first volume of "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China" in Reykjavik, Iceland, Oct 11, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]

Politicians, diplomats and officials from China and Iceland participated in a ceremony on Tuesday to launch the Icelandic edition of the first volume of "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China", hailing the publication for enhancing exchanges between the two countries and helping the world better understand China.

Addressing the ceremony, which was held in Reykjavik, former Icelandic president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson welcomed the launch of the book's Icelandic edition, and said that understanding China is vital for the world's development.

Recalling his personal interactions with President Xi Jinping, Grimsson said he had been deeply impressed by Xi's ideas on governance.

He compared the publishing of "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China" in different languages to a dialogue China is conducting with the world, and said the book's Icelandic edition will further promote mutual understanding and friendly exchanges between China and Iceland.

Du Zhanyuan, president of China International Communications Group, said in a video speech that the Icelandic edition of the book provides an insight into the Communist Party of China's people-centered development philosophy, the Chinese way of modernization and the common values of humanity that China has always upheld.

Chinese Ambassador to Iceland He Rulong said the Icelandic edition marks the first time that "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China" has been published in a Nordic language, testifying to the friendly relations between China and Iceland.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
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Share This: The Michigan Department of State has suspended the license of the Carvana dealership in Novi, MI, for "imminent harm to the public," a claim Carvana calls "baseless."

In a media release, the state said Carvana LLC, owned by Paul Breaux and located off of Novi Road near I-96, committed several alleged violations of the Michigan Vehicle Code. The alleged violations were discovered during an investigation by the state regulatory staff of multiple complaints from consumers about title problems with their vehicles.

A phone receptionist for the Carvana store told the Free Press she had no way to contact Breaux and directed the Free Press to Carvana's media relations. In an email, Carvana spokesperson Kristin Thwaites said, "We reject the Michigan Secretary of States allegations as baseless and reckless and we strongly disagree with the states heavy-handed and abrupt effort to shut down a growing Michigan business with tens of thousands of customers over what amounts to technical, paperwork violations involving title and transfer issues."

Thwaites said Carvana has corrected "99% of the technical paperwork violations cited in the states report and welcome the opportunity to address the states ongoing concerns through constructive dialogue, changes to outdated regulations through legislation, or in the courts."

Probation violation

The state said the dealerships problems began in February 2021, when the state's regulatory staff conducted a general compliance inspection, finding multiple notices of noncompliance with the state vehicle code. The state and Carvana representatives had a preliminary conference in March 2021 to address the violations.

In May 2021, Carvana entered an 18-month probation agreement with a $2,500 administrative fine and admitted to several violations of the code, according to the media release. One of the stipulations of the probation agreement was that all dealership employees who handled paperwork would attend the departments dealer training program.

But the state said the dealership violated the probation agreement, so the state...
Share This: Our Next Energy (ONE) announced a $1.6 billion investment in a new battery cell manufacturing plant in Van Buren Township, MI.

The location was chosen after a competitive site selection process, evaluating 12 states and a Canadian province. Michigan is considered the best for the gigafactory and also will provide a $200 million state grant.

The company has signed a multi-year lease agreement with Ashley Capital for a 660,000-square foot building in Van Buren Township, which will be converted into a battery factory.

The battery plant will be called ONE Circle and is envisioned to produce lithium-ion battery cells and battery packs for passenger and commercial vehicles. According to ONE, the campus will include also raw material refinement and cathode materials production.

Production is expected to start in the second half of 2024, reaching its full annual capacity of 20 GWh by the end of 2027, equivalent to about 200,000 100 kWh EV battery packs.

ONE is very precise in terms of how many jobs it will create: 2,112, adding it will offer "an average annual salary of $67,456 (38% above the ALICE wage threshold), as well as industry-leading benefits and a comprehensive training program."

"ONE is thrilled to select Michigan for our first cell factory, due to the state's unique combination of battery talent, proximity to material supply and access to low-cost energy," said Mujeeb Ijaz, founder and CEO of ONE. "We applaud the leadership of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the MEDC team, led by Quentin Messer. In addition, our collaboration and new strategic partnerships with DTE Energy, Van Buren Township and Wayne County have helped ONE build a strong foundation for clean tech manufacturing in Michigan."

According to Automotive News, ONE has already received orders from...
Maaco, a new addition to Martinsburg, WV, held a ribbon cutting event Oct. 3. From left are Ryan Schneider, Mike Langston, Martinsburg Mayor Kevin Knowles, Jaren Kirkland, Campbell Martens, Isabella Andrawos, Amanda Smith, Larry Langston, Jasmin Lebrock and Elizabeth Webster.

Share This: Campbell Martens, one of the owners of the newly opened Maaco located at 1357 Edwin Miller Blvd. in Martinsburg, WV, explained his job as a delivery driver for Amazon helped him realize the need for an affordable body shop in the area.

He said the trucks he and his co-owners drive often receive dents and scratches, needing repairs from time to time.

The ability to provide commercial work was a factor in determining to open a Maaco franchise.

One of my biggest concerns was that body shops are so backed up, Martens said. We researched Maaco and signed up for the franchise.

He has three partners in the business. Larry Langston, Jaren Kirkland and Gary Schneider joined Martens in the business that opened to the public Oct. 3.

A graduate of Shepherd University, Martens said he wanted to stay. In the area and was happy when the opportunity to open the franchise arose.

We are the first Maaco franchise in the state of West Virginia, Martens said. There was no better place to open than Martinsburg."

Maaco has provided service to more than 20 million cars since 1972 when the company began, earning high ratings for customer service and quality of work.

The repairs completed at Maaco shops around the country number approximately 500,000 annually. Providing a best price guarantee and lifetime warranty has helped make the company a household name for several decades.

Now that we are open, we are excited to be able to...
PHEV

kWh

Carrying an MSRP of $39,845, the 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV ES is the entry-level proposal. It rides on 18-inch alloys, has 12.3-inch digital dials, 8-inch infotainment system, Bluetooth, SiriusXM with 3-month subscription, and a generous host of safety gear.Priced from $42,145, the SE follows it, bringing 20-inch alloys, LED front fog lamps, heated side mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, multi-view camera, heated front seats, 9-inch infotainment system, HD radio, electric tailgate, leather-wrapped steering wheel and gearshift lever, synthetic leather upholstery, and additional safety systems.The SE w/ Tech Package features all of the above, as well as auto-dimming rearview mirror, panoramic sunroof, and Bose audio, and starts at $44,145. The SEL brings leather upholstery, heated rear seats, three-zone climate control, rear sunshades, and others, from $45,445. The SEL Touring has an MSRP of $47,645 and comes with heated steering wheel, head-up display, pull-up rear window shades, panoramic sunroof, and Bose audio.Choosing the SEL Premium version of the 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV , with its black roof, semi-aniline leather, and massage function for those sitting at the front, means paying at least $48,145. Topping off the range is the 40th Anniversary Edition, which has a two-tone finish, combining Black Diamond with Bronze, and 40th Anniversary logos. Pricing for this model kicks off at $49,995. These prices do not include the $1,345 destination charge ($1,470 in Alaska and Hawaii).The Outlanderhas combined output and torque rated at 248 hp and 332 lb-ft (450 Nm), from the gasoline engine and twin-motor setup. The total driving range is 420 miles (676 km), and it can drive on electricity alone up to 38 miles (61 km), with the 20battery pack fully charged.
Behind the wheel of the 911 GT3 RS was Jorg Bergmeister, who not only has a cool name in German (it translates to mountain master), but is also a Porsche brand ambassador who was intensely involved in the development of the 911 series' new flagship.Porsche has also taken the time and done the due diligence of having an official witness the new record time on the 20.81-kilometer (12.92 miles) track. It is worth noting that the timed sections of the Nurburgring Nordschleife have changed back in 2021.Now, everyone also announces the time for the shorter lap (12.8 miles or 20.59 km long), which is the old standard that has its starting line 0.14 miles (225 meters) ahead of the finish line  thus not a complete lap.In the case of the new 911 GT3 RS, the previously standard (and shorter) lap time is 6:44.848, and this is mentioned for comparison purposes only  in regard to older records. As a reference, the time for the new 911 GT3 RS is almost 13 seconds better than that of the 918 Spyder Do not confuse the old standard (used since 1997) or the new one with the Bridge to Gantry time, which is something used during Touristfahrten sessions, which is shorter, at 11.9 miles (19.15 km), and without including a large straightaway.As a testament to the progress that has been made in the industry, back in 2017 , a Huracan Performante set a 6:52 Nurburgring lap time . From the same manufacturer, an Aventador SVJ had previously set a time of 6:44.97, which means just five seconds less than the 911 GT3 RS, but with over 700 horsepower on tap.What cannot be seen in the video is the downforce of this vehicle, which reaches a total press towards the road of 860 kilograms (about 1895.97 lb) when driving at 285 kph (177 mph). In comparison to a 911 GT3, that is three times more downforce.The vehicle that set the record on October 5, 2022, was a 911 GT3 RS with the Weissach package and optional Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires. The latter are sized 275/35 R 20 at the front and 335/30 R21 at the rear.Porsche's director of GT cars, Andreas Preuninger, has noted that the conditions were far from ideal, including strong headwind on a long straightaway, as well as cool asphalt temperature, but they are satisfied with the resulting time
Come March 2022, a decision was made to conduct a service campaign to provide affected vehicles with updated software. From April 2022 to June 2022, as the German automaker was preparing the said campaign, the Volkswagen Group of America reviewed the claims and technical background once again, discovering cases in which the infotainment system became inoperative. That is a noncompliance condition with federal motor vehicle safety standard 111, which is why an evaluation was conducted.It became clear that in certain cases the main unit may become inoperative, reads the document attached below. In rare cases, a blank or black screen may be displayed, which is noncompliant with the standard mentioned above for rear visibility. As a result, on September 28th, the Audi Product Safety Committee determined that a recall is necessary in the U.S. and Canada.Between January 2021 and September 2022, the premium-oriented automaker controlled by Volkswagen since the 1960s received no fewer than 330 warranty claims in which the rearview camera image was not displayed. A further 594 warranty claims where the infotainment system became inoperative and had to be replaced also need to be highlighted.VW explains that a software issue got its way into the main unit as part of the 6-month automatic maintenance cycle of the infotainment system. The software issue enables parallel writing processes, which may lead to corrupted files and, thus, failure of functions. In extreme cases, the main unit may go kaput. VW says that updated infotainment software entered production after the 25th week (June 21st to June 27th) of 2021.Both dealers and owners will be informed on December 2nd, with dealers to be instructed to perform a software update. Up to 170,296 vehicles may be affected, split between everything from the A4 to the e-tron GT and RS Q8. Most affected vehicles were produced for the 2021 model year, whereas the RS Q8 is listed for the 2021 and 2022 model years in the document below.
Like many other wealthy yacht owners, the Belgian businessman who owns the sailing catamaran Che has always been passionate about boating and has owned a series of smaller boats before upgrading to this luxury yacht.He told The Superyacht Owner that he believes all owners should actively participate in the design of their future yachts. Of course, thats easy to say for someone who already had a lot of experience with sailing.The result was a pleasure craft that was truly special. The 35-meter (115 feet) Che is not only the biggest yacht of this kind built by Sunreef Yachts in Gdansk, Poland, but, at the time of its launch, it was also the second-largest sloop-rigged catamaran in the world, and the third-largest sailing multihull in the world.Boasting 199 GT of volume, this sailing cat offers luxurious accommodation for up to eight guests. Its stylish interior features an abundance of light wood, highlighted by blue and orange accents.Ches most distinctive feature is the electric-pink spinnaker that made it easily recognizable wherever it sailed. And it did get to sail a lot, with its owner being a passionate connoisseur of the most spectacular cruising destination on the globe. Its performance is also up to par, mainly due to the twin Cummins engines that enable a top speed of 14 knots (16 mph/26 kph).After a decade of ownership, this Belgian businessman is apparently ready to move on to a new project. The Che sailing catamaran was recently sold . The final price was undisclosed, but it was asking for somewhere around $5 million.
The German automotive parts manufacturer just revealed the Connected Infotainment Box as a solution for motorcycle riders who want to avail of digital services without being connected to a smartphone. Some examples of services available include turn-to-turn navigation and stolen vehicle tracking.Not relying on cell phones means users can go online faster while also saving the data volume and battery life on their smartphone. Continental boasts of having designed a complex combination of fully networked and compact hardware, high-performance software, and a powerful cloud backend, which are going to be provided either by the German company itself or by the bike manufacturer. The so-called Connected Infotainment Box will offer smartphone-independent rider-to-rider communication and over-the-air updates, with the latter being available to install directly and remotely via the built-in wireless interfaces.Continentals platform will also include optional features such as stolen vehicle tracking or Emergency Call for added safety.With the Connected Infotainment Box, motorcycle riders will be able to enjoy a more comfortable riding experience that is more similar to what they have in their cars. The always-on solution offered by Continental will not just be available for high-end bikes but for all bike riders, as promised by Harry Krickl, Director of Sales, Motorcycles, and Off-Highway in Continentals Commercial and Special Vehicles business segment.The German automotive manufacturer plans to present its connectivity solution to the general public next month at the EICMA 2022 Motorcycle Trade Fair, which is scheduled to take place between November 8 and November 13 in Milan. Continentals complete hardware and software platform will be showcased in Hall 9, Booth M60.
As everyone and their neighbor knows, the previous-generation Honda Civic Type R uses, just like its successor, a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine. It makes 316 hp and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque, which is enough for a 0-62 mph (0-100 kph) in 5.7 seconds, and a 169 mph (272 kph) top speed.For a car that has been designed to feast on apexes occasionally, and to be a great daily, with generous space at the rear and in the trunk for a compact, thats not bad at all. One could say a lot of good things about the Japanese hot hatch, yet its hard to praise its design. Still, were not here to judge it, but to focus on its quarter-mile performance, in a head-to-head race against the big bad McLaren 720S.Sitting in a superior league, the Woking-made supercar packs a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 behind the seats, which is good for 710 hp and 568 lb-ft (770 Nm) of torque. Thats what the official spec sheet claims, as the 720S is punchier than advertised, dyno tests have revealed. From 0 to 62 mph (0-100 kph), you are looking at a neck-snapping 2.9 seconds, and 212 mph (341 kph) flat-out.No one in their right mind would ever bet against the Macca in a quarter-mile race with the Civic Type R, especially one that looks stock, but is there more than meets the eye here? Only one way to find out, and thats by hitting the play button on the video embedded down below, shot at the Mission Raceway Park in Canada, supposedly a few days ago.
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

The gearbox in question is the wet-clutchused in the 2.5-liter turbo four-cylinder Santa Cruz and many other late-model vehicles. On September 28th, the safety boffins at Hyundai told the Office of Defects Investigation that an internal fault with the DCTs high-pressure electric oil pump is the most likely root cause for triggering the fail-safe driving mode.One day later, the North America Safety Decision Authority within Hyundai Motor America decided that a recall is needed. The South Korean automaker is aware of 229 incidents beginning June 1st through September 26th in the United States alone. Fortunately for affected owners, there are no confirmed accidents or injuries related to the said recall condition.A grand total of 53,142 vehicles are called back in the U.S. of A., starting with 32,833 examples of the 2021 to 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe. The remainder consists of the Santa Cruz (9,142 units), Sonata (6,840 units), Elantra N (1,165 units), Veloster N (2,130 units), and Kona N (1,032 units). The build dates of these vehicles range from August 20th, 2020 to May 13th, 2022.Documents filed with theexplain the issue as being an internal fault triggering DTCs and illumination of multiple warning lights on the instrument cluster display. The internal fault detection forces the vehicle to enter a fail-safe driving mode, resulting in approximately 20 to 30 seconds of unimpeded motive power, followed by a complete loss of vehicle power due to disengagement of the transmission clutches and drive gears. The faulty component is listed as the electric oil pump assembly, which bears part number 46220-2N500.Dealers will be instructed on December 5th to inspect the eight-speed transmission and  if necessary  replace it. Dealers will also reprogram the dual-clutch transmissions control unit with updated software that provides better fail-safe driving capability. Hyundai says the revised software logic in the control unit was implemented in production in April and May 2022.Even though all of the aforementioned vehicles are covered under the new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai will provide owners of affected vehicles reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses related to the recall condition.
SUV

Paris recolle au score ! 30 SUVs desamorces a Chaville, ce qui porte le nombre officiel de degonflage a 269 dans la region.



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Paris closes the gap! 30 SUVs defused in Chaville, bringing the official number of deflated SUVs to 269 in the region. pic.twitter.com/fieQzmibjz  Les degonfleurs (@degonfleurs) October 11, 2022

The Tire Extinguishers started in the UK as the Tyre Extinguishers, and are now present in most European countries, as well as in the United States and Canada . They are self-professed eco-warriors with a very clear mission: to make it impossible for SUVs to exist in the urban landscape. Their first step in that direction is to deflate the tires on SUVs in nightly operations and leave a leaflet for the owner informing them of why their car was targeted.One such Tire Extinguisher who asks to be called Anna tells My London of her reasons behind her actions and her M.O. She is a 62-year-old mother of three who works as a writer and film worker, and she lives in London. On her way home back from work most days, she deflates tires on SUVs by loosening the caps, and she reckons shes been able to extinguish about 80 SUVs so far.Her contribution to the Tire Extinguishers cause , Anna explains, is rooted to her realization 10 years ago that smart small cars would not be the future because London was becoming more crowded with ever-bigger vehicles. She says SUVs impose on her and pollute the air, while owners are usually annoying arrogant pieces of you-know-what. She also says SUVs should be banned, just like cigarettes were following sustained public pushback. The problem is that the government wont do anything about it, which means its up to the people to do so.If people won't be considerate then action needs to be taken. It is the same with cigarettes, Anna explains. I do it on my way back from work. I would say that so far I have deflated 80 different cars. I don't want to be doing it and I don't enjoy it but it's an extreme reaction that comes from desperation. If the government won't do anything then what else can we do?Anna knows what shes doing is illegal, but she doesnt care, nor is she swayed by the fear of being caught by the police. She is more afraid of being caught by an angryowner; shes been caught a few times, but she never got into serious trouble.Anna also knows that what shes doing poses a safety risk for the car owner, should he or she not notice the flat and drive off. On second thought, the danger SUVs are causing outweighs whatever safety risk shes causing by deflating the tire, she says.The Tyre Extinguishers are already praising Annas story on social media, using it as some sort of platform to recruit new members . The UK branch is also in competition with the French one for the title of most extinguished city  meaning the one with the highest number of targeted SUVs.
The Dutch company allowed early brand ambassadors and buyers to drive its first vehicle in Navarra, Spain. The Destination Daylight event was also when some media outlets were invited to check the prototype and publish their impressions. However, the focus on coasting was not very clear until Lightyear mentioned it.According to the company, a Lightyear 0 going 100 kph (62 mph) on a straight and even road will coast for 3.6 kilometers (2.2 miles) after the driver releases the accelerator pedal until naturally fully stopping. Lightyear said a person on a bicycle on the same road would coast for 10 meters (32.8 feet) after they stopped pedaling.Coasting is an option the Lightyear 0 will offer to drivers who decide to turn off regenerative braking. It is more efficient than getting electricity back to the battery pack because there are more losses in the process than just letting the vehicle move with inertias help. The only situation in which regenerative braking would be welcome would be in a long slope. Instead of braking to keep the speed within legal limits, youd better use that to recharge the battery pack.Although the amazing 0.175 drag coefficient is the main responsible for not holding the Lightyear 0 back, the company makes sure to also credit the tires that were specially developed for its solar car with Bridgestone. The Ologic technology allows the tire to reduce aerodynamic drag, while the ENLITEN tech reduces rolling resistance, another inertia enemy.If coasting is so efficient with the Lightyear 0, we can just imagine what it will do for the Aptera , the worlds most aerodynamic electric vehicle  even if a trike, not an automobile. Having only one wheel in the back also helps it present less aerodynamic drag. It will be interesting to see how far the Aptera can coast before it entirely stops.
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Aside from everything you get on the GT trim, the 408 First Edition adds 20-inch Monolithe diamond cut alloy wheels, a 7.4on-board charger, plus the driver & passenger Seat Pack. You also get the complimentary Electric Pack at no extra cost, meaning a Pod Point home wallbox, 500s worth of public charging (via Octopus Energy Electroverse), and a 4-year / 40,000-mile Service Package.Other highlights include the Obsession Blue metallic paint with dichroic effects, a 225 hp plug-in hybrid drivetrain, the carmakers next-gen i-Cockpit dashboard (small steering wheel, 3D digital instrument cluster, 10-inch touchscreen, configurable i-Toggles, natural voice recognition, connected sat-nav), heated front seats with tri-material upholstery (including Alcantara and 5-program massage function), and the welcome movement for those very same front seats.If we were to take an overview, wed be remiss if we didnt mention how the 408 evolved from a traditional four-door sedan into a jacked-up fastback with crossover styling and a bold new appearance. In fact, despite its sloping profile, the new 408 features loads of space for rear passengers, according to the French carmaker.Since this is a very modern vehicle, it also comes with Peugeots latest technologies, including some excellent driver assistance systems, which are said to combine serenity and safety.The new Peugeot 408 will be available to purchase in Allure, Allure Premium and GT trim levels and will make an appearance at this months Paris Motor Show.As for the First Edition variant, you can configure, finance and order it from the comfort of your home or wherever you might be that day, as long as you have an Internet connection.
Even before the oligarch superyacht madness began, once the international sanctions launched an unprecedented hunt in various places around the world, Russians were officially known to be avid superyacht owners . In other words, statistics show that most of the luxury superyachts in the world are owned by either Americans or Russians. And this includes some of the most spectacular and iconic models, like the elegant Hermitage.Hermitage was recently seen docking in Porto, Portugal, flaunting its majestic 223-foot (68 meters) silhouette. Its destination is a mystery since the vessel had apparently stopped communicating its whereabouts since March when it was docked in Dubai. At least, thats what data from maritime tracking platforms is indicating.As far as we know, the sumptuous Hermitage isnt on any official sanctions list, so its free to travel wherever it wants. However, the yachts alleged owner, Anatoly Sedykh, is a billionaire whose name is linked to one of the largest producers of pipes and other steel products in Russia. Plus, OMK (The United Metallurgical Company) is related to the South Stream pipeline project.Built more than a decade ago, Hermitage is a priceless yacht due to the legendary names involved in its creation. Designed by Espen Oeino and styled by Andrew Winch, Hermitage was built in Germany by the prestigious Lurssen shipyard. Its large enough to welcome up to 12 guests and technically equipped to handle extended cruises anywhere in the world. A secretive beauty with an estimated worth of $100 million, it is exclusively enjoyed by its billionaire owner.
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Designed to pay homage to the one-off Miura Roadster , which was presented at the 1968 Brussels Motor Show, at Carrozzeria Bertones stand, as a show car, the final Aventador is an LP 780-4 Ultimae Roadster, tweaked out by Ad Personam, and it is on its way to its Swiss owner.Finished in Azzuro Flake, just like the bespoke Miura mentioned above, it has Grigio Liqueo rocker covers, with Nero Aldebaran pinstripe. Several naked carbon fiber elements are visible too, on the chin spoiler, side skirts, and diffuser, as well as black-finished roof and engine cover, made of the same lightweight material. Emulating the Miuras scoop are the black air intakes and Nero Aldebaran livery. The matte black tailpipes, and wheels in shiny silver, spinning around the black brake calipers, round off the exterior design.Just as striking as the exterior, and also mimicking the looks of the Miura Roadster, the cockpit of the final Lamborghini Aventador LP 780-4 Ultimae boasts Bianco Leda leather. This material can be seen throughout the interior, including on the seats, dashboard, and center console, and is complemented by Nero Aldebaran on the headrests. The dashboard features Nero Ade Alcantara, stitched together with Bianco Leda string, and boasts unique embroidery that displays that Miura logo. The same badge was applied to the side rockers as well, further setting this special supercar apart.Just like the rest of the 249 Roadsters, and 350 Coupes of the Ultimae that have seen the light of day, the last one uses the same naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 engine, which makes 780 ps (769 hp / 574) and 720 Nm (531 lb-ft) of torque. Everything is transferred to the all-wheel drive via the single-clutch seven-speed automatic transmission, enabling the 0 to 100 kph (0-62 mph) in 2.9 seconds in the open-top model, and 2.8 seconds in the fixed-roof variant. Top speed is rated at 355 kph (221 mph).
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Engaging though it may be, the manual isnt exactly in high demand in the United States. It remains to be seen how long it will take MINI to acknowledge the increasing preference for two-pedal setups, and given that MINI is preparing to go all-electric by 2030, the manuals days are numbered.Scheduled to enter production in November 2022, manual-equipped cars intended for the U.S. market will be available in two new exterior colors. Melting Silver III and Nanuq White will replace White Silver, Pepper White, and Moonwalk Gray after October 2022 production comes to a screeching halt. Melting Silver III is offered across the lineup, whereas Nanuq White is available on hardtops, the Clubman wagon, and the Countryman crossover.It should be mentioned the six-speed manual transmission is exclusive to the two-door hardtop as a standalone option on the Cooper, Cooper S, and John Cooper Works. Pricing for the entry-level Cooper two-door hardtop starts at $28,600, whereas the JCW two-door hardtop retails from $37,800.The Convertible is listed at $33,800, the Clubman is yours from $34,500, and the Countryman is available for $34,950 at the very least. Customers who intend to go green are offered the Cooper SE two-door hardtop  the automakers onlyat press time  for $34,225 sans freight.Good for 181 horsepower and 199 pound-foot (270 Nm) of torque, the Cooper SE is one second slower than the JCW and five-tenths slower than the Cooper S to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour). As per EPA testing, the most you can expect from a full charge of the 32.6-battery pack is 114 miles (183 kilometers). Charging the lithium-ion battery to 80 percent at 50takes 36 minutes, according to the British automaker.
Finders keepers might apply in real life for things that are of little value, but when it comes to actual treasures, the kind worth dozens of millions, it no longer holds true. The same goes for the years-long saga of the silver bullion bars onboard the SS Tilawa.
Most Second World War military planes still kicking around have an amazing story to tell. But this P-40 N Kittyhawk for sale by a private seller on planesalesusa.com out of New Zealand has one that rivals the best. Leaving the Curtiss factory in 1942, this Kittyhawk served in the Royal Australian Air Force's 75 Squadron over the skies of Papua New Guinea.Sporting the iconic Allison V-1710 V12 piston engine and six M2 Browning 50. caliber machine guns, this airplane tussled with the might of the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces and their Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters. At some point during the conflict, one can only assume RAAF pilots received better airplanes like Mustangs and Spitfires, as this P-40 was grounded and subsequently abandoned in the jungle following the war's end.There it sat, largely uninterrupted for decades before being pulled from the jungle brush and painstakingly restored to as close to factory fresh as any old warplane could ever look. It even has the ultra-rare undercarriage-mounted auxiliary fuel tank complete with all the needed extra plumbing. It's also the final remaining P-40 on the planet still sporting fully operational machine gun bays. However, they haven't fired anything other than blank rounds since the 1940s.With the benefit of a second seat behind the pilot in the cockpit, you could take paying customers for rides in this thing if you can settle the insurance. It could help offset the considerable $2.45 million cost of ownership. This price doesn't include the guns and the ammunition. Between this and a mansion for the same money, we'd have to take the airplane. Call us crazy all you want.
That's why this 2007 Mitsubishi Fuso Canter box truck modified for intense Overlanding off-road trips is welcome in the company of Porsches, Ferraris, and McLarens of all varieties for all under the same roof. Unfortunately, Mitsubishi's passenger car lineup may be perpetually on the brink of extinction in North America. Still, the three-diamond badge shines on a line of light trucks, even though the Fuso brand is controlled by Daimler Truck, not by Mitsubishi.Millions of these seventh-generation Fuso Canter trucks have been sold across the globe. But there's none other quite like this one. For starters, the stock Fuso is, in many ways, a great foundation for a good 4x4 without even intending to.With solid factory front and rear axles, a rear limited-slip differential, and a robust four-wheel-drive system, all it takes is a set of chunky wheels and tires to get some truly impressive results. But this one goes just a little bit further. In the case of this 2007 Fuso Canter, those wheels black-painted 19.5-inch Rickson "Super Singles."Truthfully, that is more or less the extent of the mechanical modifications needed to turn this truck into an Overlanding rig. The rest of it was more or less ready to go out of the box, pun very much intended. Powering this rig is a dual-overhead-cam, common rail direct injection 4.9-liter 4M50 turbodiesel engine paired with a five-speed manual transmission.The torque is split 50/50 between the front and rear axles via a two-speed transfer case and makes good use of the 147 horsepower and 347 lb-ft (470 Nm) of torque it has to play with. Furthermore, the front axle is fitted with manually-locking hubs.It all serves as a fitting blank canvas for what the original fabricator of this custom truck planned to do with it. Starting with a large exterior storage unit between the rear cargo box and the front passenger cab. From there, they added a removable extending and retracting camper unit to maximize the amount of living space this comparatively tiny RV can use.It gives the uncanny impression you're living inside a Class-A RV twice the size of this thing, as this is a feature you'd likely find in a high-end one of those. Moving to the diamond-plate reinforced roof, it's fitted with a suite of three 100-Watt Renogy solar cells that power the interior amenities when the auxiliary battery is in use.The interior of this truck isn't exactly a five-star hotel. But if you're serious about Overlanding , it doesn't need to be. All you need is the basic amenities out on the dunes. With that in mind, the basic sink, cooktop, restroom, shower, and bunkbeds on offer here will do you nicely, all things considered. With ample use of cabinet-grade wood with birch veneer throughout, it's remarkably more homely than the rugged and brutish-looking exterior.Upon entering the front cab, you'll find it's much the same as the day it left the factory. The driver's steering wheel almost gives the impression that it doesn't have an airbag inside it, and the two-tone purple cloth seats intensify the feeling that this interior comes straight out of the late 90s. That's because the design for many of the parts inside this cabin is likely at least that old. But as of right now, a high bid of $2,007 for this truck with seven days left to go makes this an auction we think you ought to be looking at.
SUV

The Toyota FJ Cruiser was discontinued in the United States after the 2014MY, and now the 2023 FJ Cruiser is about to say goodbye to the entire world with help from the limited  Final Edition  sent to Saudi Arabia in just 1,000 examples. Then, Toyota will finally pull the plug on the quirky yet lovable toughsometime in December 2022.That is quite a sad moment for Toyota fans in particular and off-road SUV aficionados in general, but of course, automotive enthusiasts are not going to give the Japanese automaker and its cool nameplate a rest. Already, someone thinks everyone knows that (Toyotas) FJ Cruiser should still be around, and also decided to do something about it.Albeit only digitally, since we are dealing with the virtual artist better known as automotive.ai on social media, who thinks that our CGI garages are dying to welcome an entire revival series of FJ Cruisers. This here is a pixel master that loves CGI mashups above all else, and as such this exception from the norm sometimes feels like stolen DNA from Land Rover and Jeep platforms.But other than that, and at least according to the channels ardent fans, the CGI expert perfectly captures the quirky look and feel of the real-world FJ Cruiser . Only when dealing with the digital realm quirkiness is a way of life, thus nailing some odd entries into the Toyota mix without breaking a sweat.Naturally, we decided to portray just one version as the hero of the story, and it has been chosen upon popular request by the channels aficionados because it somehow manages to be futurist, Boomer nostalgia retro, and mid-1990s Toyota, all at once. Plus amazing, let us not forget about that, either.
The 1-214th General Support Aviation Battalion is stationed at the Wiesbaden Army Airfield in Germany as part of the Public Health Command Europe. This is a U.S. Army department that provides military public health programs at garrisons and training areas in Europe, supporting the contingency/combat forces that are operating there.The Battalion is also supported by the 525th Military Working Dog Detachment. Three of these military dogs participated in a different kind of training meant for their and their handlers safety. For the first time, the canines got to experience boarding a helicopter and being inside for a considerable amount of time while its engines were running.The point was to get them gradually accustomed to all the sensory aspects of this experience. This way, in case of an emergency evacuation, the dogs wont be afraid and stressed but already be familiar with the rotorcraft.The training was carried out at the end of last month with the support of the local Veterinary Treatment Facility in Wiesbaden. According to representatives of the 525th Military Police Detachment, the first step was to simply get the dogs inside the stationed helicopter.Then, they got to be inside while it was running. Finally, the dogs were trained to board the helicopter , followed by a familiarization flight. This will help the canines and their handlers act quickly and with no issues in case any of them is in medical distress and needs to be evacuated fast.This training was only the beginning, with the department hoping to turn it into a regular event, where helicopter training will be added to tactical combat casualty care.
Now that Halloween is approaching, Waze is getting new content that is supposed to enhance the navigation experience and make it, you know, spookier.More specifically, the app is turning from just Waze to Zombified Waze, as Google is adding a survivalist voice to provide you with directions on which way to go. In other words, you would no longer navigate with the classic voice but with someone who knows precisely what you need to do to survive the zombie invasion.At the same time, this special Waze update also includes a so-called Survivalist Mood, as well as an Escapemobile to be used as the vehicle icon.If youd rather spend your time behind the wheel playing for the dark side, you can always activate the Zombie voice navigation , the Zombie mood, and the Zombiemobile.As its typically the case with such Waze updates, all the detailed goodies are available for a limited time, but the company hasnt shared information on this front. Most likely, however, the content will be removed at the end of the month, at which point your settings will return to the previous configuration.Worth knowing, however, is that the Zombie experience is only available in certain languages, namely English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. Navigation, on the other hand, can only be used in English.If you want to activate this limited-time experience, theres not much to do other than make sure you are running the latest Waze version. Just launch the app and then tap the My Waze icon on the main screen. If the new content is available for you, the app should display a Drive for Zombies banner in the menu. Tapping it should then let you enable the new settings, including the special vehicle icon and the mood.
Dennis Tito is widely known as the first-ever space tourist, meaning the first civilian to travel to space on his own money. In 2001, he paid $20 million to fly on a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station in what he called the most exhilarating (and expensive , no doubt) vacation hed ever been on.This time, Tito is planning on turning it into a post-nuptial vacation because hes bringing his wife of two years, Akiko, along. Dennis is 82 years old as of the time of press, and SpaceX doesnt have a timeline for the mission that would see him and Akiko become the first civilian couple on a circumlunar mission, but he says he feels in much better shape than two decades ago when he wrote space (tourism) history Speaking to the media about the purchase, Tito says hes been looking for something to fill up his time since he retired. He wont reveal how much he paid for the two tickets. Still, given his estimated net worth of $1 billion, its not probably an amount that hell be losing too much sleep over. A former engineer and entrepreneur, Tito shares the same kind of passion for space exploration as Akiko, who is a certified pilot and engineer and occasional real estate investor.According to SpaceNews , the mission will see the two, along with ten other civilians, spend three days flying to the Moon, swing around it without entering orbit, and then head back home to Earth. In total, they will spend one week in space. Tito believes he will likely retire from spaceflight upon his return..Other than the details above, no further specifics about the mission were made public, and with good reason: SpaceX is still working on the Starship rocket prototype , which is yet to make its first orbital launch attempt, and the Titos flight is the second on schedule, after Yusaku Maezawas. In the CBS interview below, Dennis Tito says that, in the worst-case scenario, he estimates his flight will take place in five years time, which many believe to be wildly optimistic.For SpaceX , these first two manned, private missions are the first and most significant step towards space tourism and what CEO Elon Musk calls his mission of making humankind a multi-planetary species. This mission is really groundbreaking in that it puts us on a very firm step towards airline-like operations, where now, for the first time, you can buy an individual seat to the moon, Starship crew and cargo programs Aarti Matthews says.
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The jurors who will decide whether Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz is sentenced to death or life without parole have begun their deliberations
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Bakersfield, CA (93308)

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You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
Indonesian President Joko Jokowi Widodo stands in front of the new high-speed train during his visit to the Jakarta-Bandung Fast Railway station in Tegalluar, West Java, Oct. 13, 2022.

China and Indonesia have hit a snag over funding a U.S. $2 billion overrun for a Beijing-backed high-speed rail project linking Jakarta with Bandung, the head of the consortium building it said Thursday.

Indonesian President Joko Jokowi Widodo on Thursday inspected the project and expressed optimism the rail line would become operational in June 2023, amid talk he and Chinese President Xi Jinping would test ride the railway next month after the G20 summit in Bali.

Dwiyana Slamet Riyadi, president director of the consortium, PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), said he hoped to soon end negotiations with the Chinese on the cost overruns so that the problem does not interfere with the progress of the project.

Each side works on different assumptions, Dwiyana told reporters, adding that the Chinese side had a lower estimate of the cost overrun because it assumed the network band used in railway communications is free.

The 900 Mhz band is used by cellular operators, meaning KCIC would need to invest 1.3 trillion rupiah (U.S. $84.4 million) to clear the frequency so there will be no interference, Dwiyana said.

We hope the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train will spur greater mobility of people and goods, better competitiveness and give rise to new centers of economic growth between Jakarta and Bandung, Jokowi told reporters.

Dwiyana said there had been a plan for government leaders to test out the train.

There was a high level discussion where I couldnt contribute, but the idea is that Indonesia President Joko Widodo and [Chinese president] Xi Jinping will do a test ride of 15 km to witness the advanced technology here, he told reporters.

Once operational, the trains are expected to reach speeds of 350 kph (217 mph) and make up to 68 trips per day between Jakarta and Bandung. Travel time is expected to be between 34 and 45 minutes, compared with 2.5 hours by regular trains, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi told reporters in August.

The project is part of the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinas $1 trillion-plus program to finance and build infrastructure across the globe.

Since construction began in 2017, the rail line has been dogged by criticism about its impacts on surrounding areas as well as concerns about costs rising to nearly $8 billion, compared to the original estimate of $6 billion.

In October 2021, Jokowi decided to allow the government to share the cost of the project, contradicting an earlier pledge and decree in 2015 that prohibited the use of state funds for its construction.

A month later, the finance minister told a parliamentary panel that the government had decided to inject 4.3 trillion rupiah ($299 million) into the project. Critics had expressed concern the move could deplete state coffers and lead Indonesia into a debt trap.

The Indonesian government proposed that the China Development Bank, which is financing the project, shoulder 75 percent of the cost overrun, with the consortium of Indonesian and Chinese companies covering 25 percent. KCIC is a joint venture of four Indonesian state-owned companies  KAI, Wijaya Karya, PTPN VIII, and Jasa Marga  and a consortium of Chinese companies.

The Indonesian consortium controls 60 percent of KCIC, while China Railway Engineering Corp. and other Chinese companies control the rest.

In February, the consortium said the high-speed rail service was expected to become profitable 40 years after completion  not 20 as earlier projected  partly because plans to move the national capital from Jakarta to Borneo could sharply reduce the number of riders.

Needs of few people

Suryadi Jaya Purnama, a member of Parliaments transportation and infrastructure commission, warned that many citizens could not afford to ride the train.

Because with high ticket prices, the train will only serve the transportation needs of few people, he told BenarNews.

The $8 billion price tag is much higher than the original cost proposed by Japan following its feasibility study for the project, he said. Japans proposal cost 600 billion yen, or $5.29 billion at current rates, according to a report in Nikkei Asia.

Following a bidding process, China was awarded the project. The Jokowi government said it opted for Beijings bid because it did not require any Indonesian government financing or a government guarantee.

Muhammad Andri Perdana, a researcher at the Center of Economic and Law Studies, said the government should insist that the China Development Bank fund its share of the cost overrun.

This is an investment project, but how come they arent willing to share the risk of the investment? Andri told BenarNews.

An AidData study released last year noted that Indonesia owes $17.28 billion in hidden debt to China. Nearly 70 percent of Chinas overseas lending is directed to state-owned companies and private-sector institutions, meaning the debts, for the most part, do not appear on government balance sheets, said the U.S.-based international development research lab.
Malaysias Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah (left) with Csaba Korosi, president of the 77th United Nations General Assembly, in New York, Sept.27, 2022.

Malaysia's upcoming election could cost the Myanmar shadow government one of its biggest allies  Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah.

Following Myanmars military coup in Feb. 2021, Saifuddin was the first ASEAN foreign minister to contact the parallel, civilian National Unity Government (NUG), publicly meet with the NUG foreign minister and push for the regional bloc to actively engage with it.

But with most analysts giving Saifuddin's party little chance of winning the next election, the question is whether a new Malaysian government would be as active in engaging the Burmese politicians ousted in the coup.

Saifuddin has been actively pushing for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members to engage with other stakeholders and to find better solutions to the post-coup crisis in Myanmar, said Thomas Benjamin Daniel, Foreign Policy senior analyst at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia.

He is a progressive minister who supports humanitarian and democratic objectives and has been very vocal in holding the junta accountable for its actions, Daniel told BenarNews.

We could see a more muted Malaysia if Saifuddin is no longer foreign minister.

Since becoming foreign minister in August 2021, Saifuddin has emerged as the Southeast Asian diplomat most actively trying to resolve the crisis, Daniel said.

Through his diplomacy, Malaysia in April became the first member-state of the regional bloc to officially contact Myanmars NUG, which many consider to be the legitimate government in exile. A month later, he had his first in-person meeting with Zin Mar Aung, his counterpart from the NUG, in Washington, D.C., after the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit.

Saifuddin was also the first ASEAN foreign minister to broach the idea of scrapping a five-point consensus the regional bloc made with Myanmar, a kind of roadmap to return that country to democracy, because the junta has done nothing to implement the accord.

Until today, there has been no real progress on the 5PC [five-point consensus]. The violence continues, and in fact [has] gotten worse.  It shows the junta is making a mockery of the 5PC, Saifuddin wrote on Facebook in July.

And last month in New York, Saifuddin said that Kuala Lumpur planned to press ASEAN into deciding the fate of its five-point consensus on Myanmar before the regional blocs summit Nov. 8-13 summit in Phnom Penh.

Between now and November ASEAN must seriously review if the 5-point consensus is still relevant and decide if it is still relevant, Saifuddin told reporters after meeting with Burmese opposition members on the eve of the United Nations General Assembly proceedings.

By the time we meet in November, we must ask hard questions and have an answer."

Now, however, Saifuddin wont be attending the ASEAN summit, his press aide told BenarNews on Thursday.

Thats because after Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced elections on Oct. 10, his government became a caretaker government and his ministers caretaker ministers, until the polls.

Each minister has their own style

Daniel of ISIS Malaysia said it is uncertain whether Saifuddin Abdullah would continue to serve in the cabinet or as a member of parliament in the next government.

Saifuddin belongs to the Bersatu party, which is headed by former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, the man widely seen as the turncoat who brought down the Pakatan Harapan government Malaysians voted for in the 2018 election.

Political analyst Oh Ei Sun of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs believes this will have turned many voters against them.

It would be an uphill struggle for them to retain their seats, Oh told BenarNews.

Betraying the popular mandate is a cardinal sin for those educated voters.

Additionally, said analyst Jeniri Amir, Bersatu does not have much grassroots support.

Bersatu in general is a weak party. If we look at the party grassroots, they will definitely lose in the next general elections, Jeniri, a senior fellow at the Malaysian Council of Professors, told BenarNews.

Saifuddin will most likely not be part of the new government even if he wins his seat.

Would a new Malaysian foreign minister continue Saifuddins approach and retain contact with Myanmars NUG?

One former foreign minister thinks yes.

This policy will continue although the way it is presented will be different, said ex-top diplomat Syed Hamid Albar.

Of course, in the management of foreign policy, each minister has their own style.
Philippine human rights lawyer Chel Diokno (left) and Divine Word Missionary priest Flaviano Villanueva assist in the turnover of a drug war victims ashes to a relative during a memorial service at a church in Manila, Nov. 15, 2021.

The eldest son of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.s justice secretary was arrested earlier this week for allegedly possessing illegal drugs valued at U.S. $22,000, his family said Thursday.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said his son, Juanito Jose Diaz Remulla III, 38, would have to face his predicament as a fully emancipated child and stressed he would not use his position to help him.

News of the arrest broke as Remulla was in Geneva and had just defended before the United Nations the war on drugs that began under the previous administration of President Rodrigo Duterte and killed thousands of mostly poor drug addicts and small-time drug dealers.

I have to abide by the oath of office that I took when I assumed this position, Remulla said in a handwritten statement, responding to his sons arrest on Oct. 11.

I will not intervene in, nor influence my sons predicament and I have not done so in any way. A person should always face the consequences of their actions and I will let justice take its own course.

While acknowledging the arrest was difficult to bear, Remulla stressed it was nothing compared to the sufferings of fellow citizens touched by the drugs scourge. He said he hoped his son would go on a path to redemption.

Customs police arrested the younger Remulla during a controlled delivery of a confiscated drug shipment valued at $22,000 (1.3 million pesos) in southern metro Manila.

About 1 kg (2.2 lbs.) of a hybrid strain of marijuana known as kush was confiscated at a mall in Pasay City, according to the Bureau of Customs. It said the shipment originated in San Diego, Calif., and was labeled hooded sweaters.

The elder Remullas brother, who is governor of the province of Cavite, south of Manila, also said the family will not intervene in the case.

Secretary Boying has pledged that he will not, in any way interfere, intervene, nor use any of his affiliations to influence the charges against his son, Jonvic Remulla said, referring to the justice secretary by his nickname.

Marcos has pledged to protect Duterte from prosecution and has rejected a request by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the former president over the drug war deaths. Marcos has said the Philippines has a working justice system and that the drug war would continue, but with a different approach.

Duterte, who left office in June after serving six years as president, drew scrutiny from local and foreign groups for his administrations crackdown on narcotics that killed more than 8,000 suspected drug dealers and addicts, according to government statistics.

Rights activists have said the number killed could be three times higher. The alleged extrajudicial killings were often carried out by masked assassins.

In 2019, Duterte unilaterally withdrew the Philippines from the International Criminal Court following its initial investigation into his administrations drug-related killings.
Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Nations, Sergiy Kyslytsya, scans the General Assembly with binoculars prior to a vote on the resolution condemning the annexation of parts of Ukraine by Russia, at the U.N. headquarters in New York, Oct. 12, 2022.

Thailand on Thursday defended abstaining from the United Nations General Assembly vote that overwhelmingly condemned Russias attempts to annex four regions of Ukraine a day earlier, saying the move was counterproductive and would obstruct constructive dialogue.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed documents to make the four eastern Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson parts of Russia. The annexation came after those areas held referendums, which the West denounced as a sham and illegal.

Condemnation provokes intransigence and therefore greatly reduces the chance for constructive engagement, Suriya Jindawong, Thailands ambassador and permanent representative to the U.N., said in a statement released by the Thai foreign ministry on Thursday.

Thailand is genuinely concerned about the increased politicization of international principles that have become counterproductive as the means and guidance to end the war.

Such a move marginalizes the chance for crisis diplomacy to bring about a peaceful and practical negotiated resolution to the conflict that may push the world toward the brink of nuclear war and global economic collapse, Suriya said.

In Vietnam, state media on Thursday reported on the U.N .Resolution condemning Russia, but did not mention Hanois abstention. Dang Hoang Giang, head of Vietnams Permanent Delegation at the U.N., seemingly spoke in support of the resolution despite the abstention, the state-run Vietnam News Agency reported.

Dang said the vote emphasized the necessity of assuring the U.N. Charter and international laws be upheld, comprising the principles of non-interference into internal issues of a nation, non-use of force or the threat of force in international relations, settling disputes on international law, with an emphasis on respecting independence, national sovereignty and integrity of all nations.

Previously, Thailand voted to support the March 2 U.N. resolution condemning Moscows invasion of Ukraine and demanding troop withdrawal. In April, Thailand and a majority of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations abstained from voting to suspend Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council.

This latest resolution, which called on all countries not to recognize Moscows annexation and demanded its immediate reversal, was supported by 143 nations, the highest number since the start of the invasion in February.

Thailand and Vietnam, along with Laos, were among 35 countries abstaining, while five countries led by Russia voted against the resolution.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the vote a powerful reminder that the overwhelming majority of nations stand with Ukraine  and in resolute opposition to Russias ongoing war against Ukraine and its people.

The vote delivers a resounding rebuke to Russia for its aggression against Ukraine, Blinken said in a statement.

Cars burn after Russia launches a missile attack in Kyiv, Oct. 10, 2022. [Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters]

Price to pay

Thailands relationship with China could have played a role in its abstention, a Thai academic said Thursday.

The abstention on the Russo-Ukraine conflict means Thailand does not differentiate between wrong and right, Naing Lin, a political science lecturer at Chiang Mai University, told BenarNews.

Thailand, like some other ASEAN countries, has strong concerns regarding its relationship with a superpower, like China, which supports Russia, he said. Whichever way Thailand voted, there is a price to pay.

A retired Thai diplomat said Thailand should have voted for the right side.

Russia is clearly wrong in this case. We are a diplomatic country and should have been with the majority of the countries, Russ Jalichandra, a former Thai ambassador to Mozambique and Kazakhstan, told BenarNews.

We dont have a lot of interest in Russia, unlike India. So it was not hard to make the right decision.

Although it abstained, Thailand said it mourns the physical, social and humanitarian destruction of Ukraine and the severe hardships suffered by the Ukrainian people.

Thailand also reiterated its commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a state and the policy of opposing any threats the use of force to annex the territory of another state without provocation, according to Suriyas statement.

Reactions in Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City-based Hoang Hung, a critic of the Vietnamese government, told RFAs Vietnamese service that Hanois attitude has disappointed many people, adding Vietnam does not want to counter Russia because of defense and oil exploration ties in the South China Sea. Radio Free Asia is an online news affiliate of BenarNews.

It has been Vietnams line, since the beginning of the war, not to vote against Russia, Hung said.

However, [we] should pay attention to the Vietnam representatives statements at the U.N. General Assembly that always affirm the call for respect for the U.N. Charter, respect for national sovereignty, and respect for the Principle of Non-Use of Force. One understands such calls means Russia [should not] invade Ukraine, but the abstaining vote contradicts their statements. Everyone sees that, Hung said.

A democracy advocate, meanwhile, said Vietnam should have voted for the resolution.

In my opinion, if Ho Chi Minh were still alive, he would be ashamed of Vietnam for abstaining from the vote, Will Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American democracy advocate, told RFA.

In fact, if there is nothing more precious than independence and freedom, Vietnam should have voted to support Ukraine. Relating to the complicated situation in the South China Sea, the leaders of Vietnam now are betraying the legacies of Ho Chi Minh, he said.

APEC summit

Thailands abstention comes as the country prepares to host the APEC leaders summit in Bangkok on Nov. 18 and 19.

Russia, among other countries, has accepted an invitation and preparation by security agencies is taking place, a Thai government source told BenarNews on the condition of anonymity, because he was not allowed to speak to the media.

The Russian Embassy in Bangkok did not respond to BenarNews request for comment on the summit.

On Tuesday, Tanee Sangrat, Thai foreign ministry spokesman, said that nine economies have responded positively to the invitation to attend and eight others are likely to attend.

He declined to name them.

Chinas President Xi Jinping is expected to attend, but U.S. President Joe Biden may not participate because of a family engagement, Thai media reported.

This meeting taking place now is a valuable addition because the top leaders will be able to hold bilateral and sideline meetings to discuss the current complications in the world, Panitan Wattanayagorn, chairman of the Prime Ministers Security Advisory Committee, told BenarNews on Wednesday.

Those meetings could pave the way to solve the current conflict and other tense situations.

Kunnawut Boonreak in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and RFA Vietnamese contributed to this report.
Bennington, VT (05201)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Scattered frost possible. Low 32F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Scattered frost possible. Low 32F. Winds light and variable.
Joe Gervais, seen with his wife Susan, is running for one of the Bennington-4 district's two seats in the Vermont House of Representatives. He was in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, praying, far away from the mob and riots, he says.
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News Reporter

Matt Martinez is a news reporter at The Berkshire Eagle. He worked at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, graduated Marquette University. He is a former Report for America corps member.
Bill Schmick is registered as an investment adviser representative of Onota Partners Inc. in the Berkshires. He can be reached at 413-347-2401, or email him at billiams1948@gmail.com.
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PITTSFIELD  An approaching winter season, housing crisis and lasting impacts of the pandemic have residents talking with renewed interest about how to help people experiencing homelessness in Pittsfield.

It's a conversation that has spilled onto Facebook pages, City Council meetings and in the opinion and news pages of The Berkshire Eagle. On Thursday, Mayor Linda Tyer will participate in a community forum on PCTV at 6 p.m. addressing the issue.

Tyer told the City Council on Tuesday the forum  which will focus on homelessness, panhandling and housing options, among other topics  will outline the network of local supportive agencies and city programs working to help unhoused residents.

The mayor gave the council a preview of that work, describing "a very comprehensive plan, as developed by my administration, to provide as much care as possible to those who are ready to receive help."

Here are highlights from that presentation:

The city's emergency shelter

The long-awaited new emergency shelter at the First United Methodist Church on Fenn Street has a new opening date. Tyer said the project, which will move the city's emergency shelter from the former St. Joseph's High School, will be done sometime in the spring of 2023  some three years after it was initially proposed.

Heres what Berkshire County is getting in earmarks from the Legislatures $4 billion ARPA plan The big new law allocates $2 million to the region, with efforts to address housing gaps and poverty leading the list of priorities.

The mayor said the city hoped to have the new shelter open by Nov. 1. She counted the need for extensive renovations to make the building accessible, supply chain problems and contractor issues as causes for the delay.

Community Development Director Justine Dodds is reportedly in talks with ServiceNet to keep the St. Joe's shelter open 24/7 to residents from November through May. The shelter closes to residents between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. during the week.

The St. Joe's shelter has a capacity for 50 people. The new Fenn Street shelter would have a 45-person capacity. The mayor said that her administration feels the 45 beds "should be sufficient to help us meet the needs of emergency crisis sheltering."

New permanent supportive housing

The city is supporting a plan to add eight single-occupancy permanent supportive housing to the renovated second floor of the Zion Lutheran Church. The Berkshire Housing Development Development Corp., which is heading the project, is still working on a final memorandum of understanding with the congregation.

New affordable housing

Regan Development Corp., a family-owned development group out of New York, will be developing the White Terrace Apartments into "affordable housing."

The project will create 41 affordable units, according to Tyer.

The mayor said that 25 units will be affordable to people with incomes "at or below 60 percent of the area median income." She said the remaining 16 units will be affordable to people at 30 percent of area median income and set aside for "homeless preference," as well as state Department of Mental Health clients and people with disabilities who are working with community-based housing programs.
Community News Editor / Librarian

Jeannie Maschino is community news editor and librarian for The Berkshire Eagle. She has worked for the newspaper in various capacities since 1982 and joined the newsroom in 1989.
If you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). You can find a list of additional resources at SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
STOCKBRIDGE  Samuel Donkor heard his phone ring with what his caller ID warned him was potential spam. He still took the call. Hello?

Congratulations, you're now an American citizen! said the voice on the other end of the line.

Are you guys kidding me? It's like yeah, stop, Donkor said, at first skeptical. The confirmation came later with another congratulatory email that it was indeed the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Donkor, along with 30 others hailing from 26 countries, became naturalized citizens of the United States Wednesday morning in a ceremony at Naumkeag in Stockbridge.

Donkor, who is from Ghana, and his wife Amanda met when Facebook suggested they might know each other. They did not  Donkor was living in England at the time and Amanda is from Lee.

But they started chatting. After a while, Amanda decided to visit him. When I first went to England, my parents didnt think he was real. [They] told me to return my ticket, she said.

When they realized they couldnt be apart, Donkor applied for a K-1 visa, also called fiance visa, which allows a foreign national who plans to marry a U.S. citizen to enter the country and get married within 90 days.

This involves a lot of paperwork, including letters of recommendation from people who know the couple and can attest that the relationship is genuine. The couple has now been married for almost nine years and has a 3-year-old son, Caiden.

Raquel Lee, another newly naturalized citizen, came from Costa Rica in 2010. In her home country, she was a psychologist but wanted to advance professionally. This is a country that I had always admired for its progress. I wanted to see what I could learn.

In her postgraduate internship with a human services agency in the Berkshires, she rediscovered how much her profession could change peoples lives. I loved it. Therapy is a lot more advanced, there were a lot more resources and research to help people with mental health issues, said Lee.

Jorge Cedeno, a Great Barrington resident, had to start his path to citizenship with a sacrifice. The dream started with my mother-in-law, who migrated with my wife. I had to stay back in Ecuador with my son. For two years and a half, I had to be my sons dad and mom, said Cedeno.

In 2016, he finally arrived in the United States. Thanks to a scholarship from Litnet, he could afford the citizenship application process.

This day will be unforgettable. Its one more goal that I set for myself when I arrived in this country. [It] has given me so many opportunities to grow personally, family-wise and right now redefine my landscaping business, said Cedeno.

Cedeno brought a large party to the ceremony: His wife, Natalie Marquez; 11-year-old son Jonathan; his mother-in-law; his English tutor and a friend all attended in person. Four of his family members watched Marquez livestream from the Ecuadorian city of Quayaquil.

The ceremony was short and emotional, against breathtaking views over the Housatonic River valley. The new citizens were smiling and relaxed, accompanied by a small crowd of friends and family.

An important emphasis was put on civic rights. U.S. District Court Judge Katherine A. Robertson encouraged the new citizens to vote.

As American citizens, they have "the right to participate fully in the civic and cultural life," Robertson said. "And I urge you to use those rights. When you vote, you're expressing your sense of how this country should be, what our laws should be, and how our public money should be spent. 

Donkor said voting is what he finds most exciting about being American. I became a citizen to do this, to have a voice. I could [have kept renewing] my green card and everything, but as a citizen, you give more, he said.

Cedeno shared the excitement of being able to vote, despite not being politically inclined, by his own admission. Im happy to participate in this countrys democracy. My voice will be heard, he said.

Lee expressed delight in the power to vote. Voting gives me a lot of joy. I believe in democracy, in choosing the people that are going to lead us. I believe in freedom. Its one of the big reasons why I wanted to become naturalized, she said.

Cedeno said he was planning a small celebration after the ceremony. I have a small lunch with my guests, but then I have to go back to why I came here, to work. Theres no time to waste, he said.

After 10 years of working in the United States, Lee remains committed to advocating for people with mental health issues.

My job in the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission is to find jobs for people with a disability. Its very important to include people with disabilities into the community. Thats what I like the most. Theres an environment of hope and inclusion, said Lee.

In a way, Lees path to becoming a respected professional in a new country makes her better at her job.

I know from my heart what its like to be different, to not be seen with respect, to work two or three times harder to be respected as a professional, she said. The people she works with face problems in their lives. "Im happy to give them a second chance to be part of the community.
GREAT BARRINGTON  File it under the category of least missed object.

The bronze plaque that disappeared mysteriously from Bridge Street this year was so unpopular that few noticed it was gone.

It marked the disputed site of a nearby massacre of Native Americans, but described the killings as a "dispersal," and memorialized the acts of a savage colonizer.

Town officials say they had nothing to do with the disappearance. The preeminent Berkshire County historian didnt know it was gone. And the removal was news to current members of the group that erected the plaque in 1987.

For some, it appears to be a welcome drop down the memory hole. It disappeared amid calls to remove or change it.

For decades, the monument next to the Bridge Street span troubled residents. The Thursday Morning Club erected the small plaque as a historical service to decipher faded words chiseled into a large stone in 1904.

The massacre of Native Americans likely happened. But did it happen in what is now Great Barrington? Should something be done about the historical marker marking the slaughter of Native Americans, and one that two historians aren't sure is accurate?

That stone, which remains, told the story of the slaughter by Major John Talcott of A PARTY OF INDIANS in 1676.

Historians dispute whether this massacre happened in what is now Great Barrington. But this specific killing and the captivity of two dozen Narragansett people likely did happen somewhere in the greater area, considered the last skirmish of King Philips War, in which Native Americans battled English rule.

Talcott was an evil, evil man, a Narragansett official previously told The Eagle.

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Amid a call by community members to remove it, John Brown, a Narragansett Medicine Man and Historical Preservation Officer, had said it might be best to leave the plaque alone to not stir the energy of that slaughter, and let sleeping dogs lie.

He said land is imbued with crimes of the past.

The removal of the plaque isn't the first time someone has pried loose remnants of a bloody and cruel American history.

In January, a street sign bearing a word offensive to Native Americans was severed from its base. The name of that street was officially changed last week.

During an Indigenous Peoples Day ceremonial offering on Monday, leaders of 15 tribal nations held an offering ceremony and led prayers next to the original stone monument and the remaining base of the plaque off Bridge Street.

Representatives from the Thursday Morning Club said they did not know the plaque had been removed.

Malcolm Fick, chair of the towns Historical Commission, who had consulted with Brown, the Narragansett official, said he also doesn't know who removed it.

Neither does Town Manager Mark Pruhenski. Nor Bernard Drew, a Berkshires historian.

The person who first asked the Historical Commission to deal with the monument noticed a few months ago that it was gone.

Ed Abrahams, a Select Board member acting as a citizen, told the commission the plaque either should go or needed to be made less settler-centric.
838 Teraflops PARAM KAMRUPA is a state-of-the-art Supercomputer facility set up at IIT Guwahati under National Supercomputing Mission - a joint initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Department of Science and Technology

President of India Droupadi Murmu visited Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati campus on Thursday 13th October 2022 during her visit to Assam. She inaugurated Supercomputer facility Param-Kamrupa and laboratory for the design and development of high power microwave components at IIT Guwahati.

She also inaugurated the Medical College and Hospital at Dhubri and laid the foundation stones for two Zonal Institutes of National Institute of Virology (NIV) at (i) Dibrugarh, Assam and (ii) Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh on the occasion.

On the recently inaugurated facilities at IIT Guwahati, the President, said, I am confident that the Super Computer PARAM-KAMRUPA facility inaugurated at IIT Guwahati will be put to use in the best possible manner to broaden our understanding and knowledge on various technological topics. The SAMEER laboratory will enable R&D assisted critical applications in defence sector and other industries. The massive effort by the State government to establish multiple medical colleges across Assam will ensure that the gap in the doctor-population ratio will be bridged significantly and it will open doors for medical research, especially for the treatment of cancer as well as other non-destructive testing.

Governor of Assam, Prof Jagadish Mukhi said, The Supercomputing facility inaugurated at IIT Guwahati shall be utilized for large data analysis, solve complex calculations related to disease prediction and analysis, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, drug delivery studies, and contribute significantly in nation building.
Strengthens commitment to India with further expansion

AstraZeneca India, the global capability centre of leading science-led biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, plans to further expand its Clinical Data and Insights (CDI) division, after the new unit tripled its headcount within its first year of launch in Bengaluru. To accommodate this expansion, the Bengaluru centre recently leased additional space that was inaugurated by key global leaders on 13 October.

The continued investment will include hiring additional data experts, deepening the role that India plays in supporting and driving AstraZenecas growing portfolio of new medicines by further strengthening the management of global clinical data. It works across therapy areas and portfolios, supporting early and late-stage clinical programmes from Phase 1 to Phase 3 with an integrated end-to-end approach for clinical data, analytics, insights and risk management.

The CDI division today has over one hundred employees (Data managers, Programmers, Data Scientists, Data Standards experts), forming part of a global network spread across 6 countries.

Siva Padmanabhan, Managing Director, AstraZeneca India Private Limited (AZIPL) said, With over 100 employees, the Bengaluru team is strategically supporting the global trials, and will further strengthen its role in supporting AstraZeneca's aspiration to be pioneer in science and transform patient-outcomes.

The CDI division in Bengaluru is a critical advancement to support a growing global portfolio and build on internal data expertise. In addition to Data Management and Data Standards, functions like Centralized Monitoring, TRISARC (Trials Safety Review Centre) and SASP comprising of safety patient data review experts are also setting up their teams in the Bengaluru centre.
US disinformation campaigns on Xinjiang: A playbook of "thief crying 'stop thief'"

09:00, October 13, 2022 By Xin Ping ( Chinadaily.com.cn

JIN DING/CHINA DAILY

In July and August 2022, Twitter and Facebook removed two overlapping sets of accounts for violating the platforms' terms of service. The suspended accounts, according to analysts, "consistently advanced narratives promoting the interests of the United States and its allies while opposing countries including Russia, China, and Iran".

A detailed analysis of the suspicious accounts can be found in a report titled "UNHEARD VOICE: Evaluating five years of pro-Western covert influence operations", coauthored by the Stanford Internet Observatory (SIO) and Graphika. It turns out that the accounts are part of a series of covert campaigns over a period of almost five years rather than one homogeneous operation.

As disclosed by the report, the disinformation campaigns used "inauthentic tactics" to flood the information space with pro-Western propaganda. The banned accounts, for instance, showed "clear signs of automated or highly coordinated posting activity". They created fake personas with sophisticated A.I.-generated images to manipulate the online discourse by sharing similar content, posed as independent media outlets to enhance the credibility of the fake users, launched online petitions and started hashtag movements in an attempt to hype up narratives that served the agenda of the forces behind the scenes.

It came as no surprise that Twitter identified the US as one of the "presumptive countries of origin", and Facebook said the US was "the country of origin". As always, the US calls its mass production of disinformation "investing in its values". It has been scaling up input to make that happen. The Strategic Competition Act of 2021 adopted by the US Congress authorized $300 million each year to "counter the malign influence" of China.

According to the SIO-Graphika analysis and US media reports, the US military is suspected to be involved in managing the "trolls"on these two social media platforms, with a purpose to conduct secret information warfare against China and others. This explains why the accounts have shown a particular interest in all the lies related to Xinjiang, such as the so-called "genocide" and "forced labor" of the Uyghurs.

Despite these accounts' efforts,the content shared by them has long been debunked. Testimonies have revealed that the so-called survivors of and witnesses to "genocide" in Xinjiang were simply actors hired by forces bent on denigrating China. The "studies" frequently cited by Western media were churned out by pseudo-scholars with little academic integrity,like Adrian Zenz. The NGOs most motivated to spread rumors about Xinjiang were heavily sponsored by institutions like the notorious anti-China National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

The US does not even bother to explain its deceptive acts away. On the contrary, on the same day the SIO-Graphika study was released, the US Department of State issued a report accusing China of manipulating global public opinion on Xinjiang. But such "whataboutisms" have failed to deflect international attention. Instead, the list of charges compiled by the US based on its own expertise has unintentionally given away the country's manual for disinformation campaigns.

In psychology, projection refers to the mental process where people attribute to others what is in their own minds. A brief review of history will show how often and adeptly the US has adopted such a tactic. In the case of Xinjiang, the accusations the US has heaped on China seem to befit itself most. With its own past tainted with the blood of Native Americans, the US concocted the story of "genocide" in Xinjiang. While peddling conspiracies smearing Xinjiang, the US accused China of manipulating global public opinion. If there is a title for the playbook the US has been resorting to in its disinformation campaigns, it must be "thief crying 'stop thief'". But the US is bound to be disappointed: the world is clear-eyed and will not be taken in.

(The author is a commentator on international affairs, writing regularly for CGTN, Global Times, China Daily, etc. He can be reached at [email protected])

The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
Xi Experience centre is aimed at familiarizing and bringing awareness about robotic-assisted surgery among the surgical fraternity in the country

Intuitive Surgical, a global technology leader in minimally invasive care and the pioneer of robotic-assisted surgery (RAS), has unveiled a first of its kind initiative to familiarize healthcare professionals to robotic-assisted Surgery. The programme called Xi experience centre was unveiled at the FICCI Heal conference in New Delhi.

Intuitive India has set up this experience centre as a part of their commitment to enhance the surgical ecosystem in India. This programme aims to familiarise the medical fraternity with robotic-assisted surgery, its features, and clinical applications as robotic-assisted surgery has been more effective for soft-tissue surgeries, which require more precision.

Commenting on the unveiling of Xi Experience centre, Mandeep Singh Kumar, VP & GM of Intuitive India, said, "Though there has been a continuous increase in the adoption of Robotic Assisted Surgery (RAS) in the recent past, there is a need for more surgeons to take up such tech advancements to cater to the ever-growing need."

As a part of this initiative, Intuitive has formulated a comprehensive programme to ensure extensive hands-on learning for the surgeons. This centre is equipped with Intuitives latest Da Vinci Xi technology, and other state of the art facilities such as wet lab. This centre also demonstrates advanced technologies for real-time visual assistant, dual grip technology, and suturing & simulation exercises. Intuitive's robotic-assisted surgery simulator, SimNow is also used at the Xi Experience centre. Surgeons and residents can use SimNow to get familiar with the robotic-assisted procedures.
Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia
Oil major Shell's Nigerian subsidiary is investigating reports that an illegal oil tap ran for nine years on a pipeline it operates, a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Source: Reuters.

An Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) spokesman said on Sunday the theft point extended from the Trans Escravos pipeline and that the Afremo platform, operated by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), was the suspected exit point of the stolen crude.

"We are also conducting an investigation to establish where the theft lines end and whether there have been any breaches of the unmanned platform's security barriers namely locks, or any unauthorised use of the equipment on it," an SPDC spokesperson said in an email.

SPDC said it had detected illegal connections as part of regular surveillance and would launch a joint investigation with regulators to "establish the nature and condition" of the lines before removing them.

NNPC pointed to the theft line discovery as evidence that Nigeria's co-ordinated interventions, including contracts with companies owned by former militants to crack down on theft - were paying off.

Large-scale theft from Nigeria's pipelines has throttled exports, forced some companies to shut in production and crippled the country's finances.
Britain's GSK will close its commercial operations in Kenya next year as it moves to a third-party distribution model for its medicines and vaccines, the firm said.

Source: Reuters.

The pharmaceutical major's decision will not affect its consumer healthcare business, Haleon, which produces brands like Panadol and Sensodyne in Nairobi, it said.

The local Business Daily newspaper had earlier reported that the company will close down its production plant in Nairobi.

The manufacturing facility in Kenya - operated by Haleon and GSK, was importing medicines and vaccines whose sales were being handled by its management office - will shut down.

"We will move to a direct distribution model and our operations will be transferred to third-party distributors," GSK said, attributing the decision to periodic reviews of its operations.

The closure of commercial operations will cause some job losses, GSK said, without providing any numbers.
African Bank welcomes all approvals it has received to date for its acquisition of 100% of Grindrod Bank. All the conditions precedent to the Grindrod Bank transaction have been met, and all the necessary regulatory approvals were obtained on 6 October 2022.

Source: Supplied. African Bank chief executive officer, Kennedy Bungane.

This follows the Competition Tribunals approval of its acquisition of Grindrod Bank with no conditions and the subsequent issuing of a merger clearance certificate. The tribunals certificate stated that after reviewing all relevant information and the recommendation of the Competition Commission, the acquisition has been approved in terms of Section 16(2) of the Act.

African Bank chief executive officer, Kennedy Bungane says: This is an important step in the process of final incorporation and we commend the commission and the tribunal for their hard work and swift decisions.

Bungane says this marks the beginning of African Bank welcoming Grindrod Bank into its fold and the positive contribution the institution will make in reinforcing and building its business-banking capacity.

In May this year African Bank announced its intention to acquire Grindrod Bank, previously owned by Grindrod Limited, in a deal that was worth R1.5bn, saying it would allow it to accelerate its entry into the South African business-banking sector.

At the time, Bungane said the acquisition is part of African Banks Excelerate25 strategy to diversify and develop a fully-fledged middle of the pyramid business-banking offering, and the acquisition allows the organisation to do that efficiently and rapidly.

Bungane says excellent progress has been made on the planning front, across all facets of both businesses to ensure seamless integration.

This marks the beginning of #AfricanBank welcoming Grindrod Bank into its fold and the positive contribution the institution will make in reinforcing and building our business banking capacity. https://t.co/moecgnGu9O  African Bank (@AfricanBank) October 11, 2022

Commenting on this transaction, African Banks chairman of the board, Thabo Dloti, stated: The acquisition of Grindrod Bank will solidify our presence in the business-banking market which will be grown off African Banks larger balance sheet and strong capital levels.

"We welcome the Grindrod Bank team into the African Bank group and look forward to delivering together on this audacious Excelerate25 strategy.
The National Council on Gender Based Violence and Femicide draft Bill, published on 30 September 2022 prompts employers to reflect on their role in dealing with gender-based violence.

Johan Olivier, Partner and Siya Ngcamu, Associate at Webber Wentzel

According to the 2022/2023 quarter one crime statistics, 855 women were killed in South Africa. As the modern workplace extends beyond company offices to employees homes, the risk that employees become victims of gender-based violence (GBV) has increased. Employers responsibilities to protect their employees may, in certain circumstances, extend into their employees homes. Historically, domestic violence, GBV and femicide were treated as unfortunate social ills that are unrelated to the employment relationship and are outside of the jurisdiction of an employers' sphere of influence. Such a stance is, however, quickly becoming unacceptable. Two legal developments that took place in 2022 suggest a major shift in the duties of employers when addressing GBV.

In March 2022, the Code of Good Practice on the Prevention and Elimination of Harassment in the Workplace (Code) introduced new measures to address and limit harassment and gender-based violence occurring on a companys premises, as well as any other place which falls into the definition of a workplace (read more about the Code here). More recently, the National Council on Gender Based Violence and Femicide draft Bill, was published on 30 September 2022. The draft Bill proposes the establishment of an administrative structure to prevent and eradicate GBV and recognise the role labour plays in this endeavour (read more about the draft Bill here).

GBV affects the physical safety, mental well-being and productivity of employees. While there is no legislation that provides specific direction to employers on how to deal with GBV and its effect on the workplace, it is an issue that requires action from employers. In developing an appropriate framework to respond to GBV and inform a practical approach to assist employees who are victims of GBV, employers need to look to the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), the Code, the Protection from Harassment Act, and the Domestic Violence Act.

Where an employee works from home, that house becomes a workplace under OHSA and the Code, both of which apply to any situation related to work and may form the basis of an employer's responsibility to take proactive measures to protect employees from GBV. In practice, such measures may include providing:

temporary, alternative hospitality;



security or policing; or



assistance with accessing the criminal justice system.

Level of assistance and involvement

Employers do not have jurisdiction over a partner or spouse committing acts of violence toward an employee while working from home. This limits the employer's sphere of influence to its relationship and duties toward the employee only and cannot take steps against the partner or spouse directly, particularly where GBV is suspected and not reported.

The employer can assist, if for example, the employee informs the employer that their partner is perpetrating GBV at home. In such a circumstance, the employer must investigate the complaint. If the investigation indicates that the employer has to intervene, the employer could do so by making arrangements for that employee to work from the company premises as a practical start to addressing the broader safety concern. The employer does not have to provide an expensive protective space but merely take reasonable practical steps. The employer should also provide assistance and advice. A harassment officer who is trained to deal with such situations should be in place.

The effect of the Code is that employers need to take a more holistic and proactive approach to GBV. This includes providing better education for their staff, as well as training for first responders to a complaint on how to counsel victims and undertake investigations. Investigations should be inquisitorial, not adversarial, and may be best dealt with by an independent team. The employer has a duty to create an environment where everyone is aware of what constitutes harassment and its effects, and enables victims to speak freely, without fear of reprisals. If employers fail to take active steps to prevent and eliminate harassment in the workplace, (including but not limited to updating their policies), they may become liable for damages by virtue of vicarious liability.

Webber Wentzel has assisted employers obtain what is known as an "employer-initiated protection order" under the Protection from Harassment Act and Domestic Violence Act, with the employees consent. The employer can also provide counselling, ICAS involvement, and refer the victim to a family law practitioner. From a practical point of view, employers must review policies that will help them deal with the sensitive nature of GBV incidents, which must be approached having regard to the unique set of facts that inform the particular situation.
World Out of Home Organisation (WOO) president Tom Goddard says collaboration is the key for success in the industry.

Tom Goddard. Source: Supplied.

He was speaking to over 200 delegates at WOOs first in-person regional forum, covering the APAC region, which was held in Kuala Lumpur this week.

The APAC region, which now accounts for a third of the worlds gross domestic product, is set to share in the out of home (OOH) industrys worldwide bounce back after the pandemic.

Collaboration



Goddard warned that while a range of positive dynamics are driving the medium forward, the industry needs to increase collaboration at all levels and shift from a focus on local competition to sector level cooperation to help combat the threat of other media.

Goddard said that WOOs Global Data Index shows that out of home in the APAC region is very much in line with global forecasts.

He said that the global market hit a record $37 billion in 2019 and was on a fast growth trajectory Global DOOH is leading the growth charge, projected to be close to 50% of all OOH revenue by 2026.

Static should not be forgotten



He said across APAC it already makes up over 45% of revenue but static OOH shouldnt be forgotten.

Static still accounts for around 60% of global revenues, which some observers assume is in terminal decline. Not so. Static is forecast to maintain its revenues at flat, which I think is a great result, when you think about inventory moving over to digital.

Goddard then outlined a range of positive dynamics which will increase the growth of OOH.

Firstly, more and more markets are investing in credible audience metrics, which builds trust, increases confidence, enables intra-media comparison and facilitates a common trading language.

Invest in automation



Automation is also a major growth stimulus now. When you invest in automation you also create the ability to trade programmatically and to overlay data.

And the creatives have fallen back in love with OOH, having been dazzled and distracted for a while by on-line, especially with the new darling of the creative community 3D Anamorphic. Every creative on the planet wants to develop one of these.

He said external factors are also working in the industrys favour.

Consumers are suffering from online media fatigue and information overload especially with greater online and social media brand safety and fraud concerns causing marketers reconsider the media options.

According to Goddard the National Trade Association is performing valuable work in increasing industry collaboration and sector-level growth.

Five years ago, we had no OOH Trade association members. Today we have over 30, including 17 from the top 20 OOH markets. We would like more representation from APAC markets to gain even more collaboration on sector growth initiatives.

Goddard encourages all members to:


Google, in partnership with the UCT Graduate School of Business, has launched a new certified course to grow digital maturity in South Africa. This is a first of its kind partnership between Google and a business school to develop content aimed at equipping the most senior executives in an organisation with the tools that they need to be successful on their digital transformation journey.

The seven-week course which kicked off earlier this month, is aimed at the C-suite executive level and will help them to develop their understanding of the ever changing digital landscape. The initial cohort is made up of invited executives from top South African businesses, and future courses will be open to applications from other business leaders.

In todays fast paced and highly connected world, digital transformation is top of mind for all business leaders. The decisions about why digital transformation is required, and how to go about making these changes across an organisation, are not always easy. This new programme seeks to equip executives with the tools they need to make the best decisions for their businesses, says Dr Alistair Mokoena, country director for Google South Africa.

The course focuses on topics including digital frameworks, design and platforms, ethics, change management and digital strategy, among others, led by highly experienced faculty members from the UCT GSB, including Dr Grant Sieff, Professor Herman Singh and Dr Sharon McPherson.

The Digital Transformation programme for executives brings together the very latest thinking, analysis and application on leading digital transformation. However, the success of an executive transformation programme at c-suite level is critically dependent on the experience, capabilities and engagement of the participants. In our pilot cohort we were fortunate to have an exceptional mix of senior executive participants from Nedbank, Outsurance and Webuycars. With only two executives from each of the three organisations, the breadth and depth of discussion and insight was exceptional. Our faculty were able to work closely with each participating executive in a way that created a unique and privileged space of learning, insights and discovery for all involved, Dr Grant Sieff, convenor and adjunct associate professor at UCT GSB.

Google has committed to supporting digital transformation in Africa and is doing this in a number of different ways across the continent. This partnership is the first of its kind for Google in South Africa and we look forward to seeing how the first cohort are able to take what they have learned and practically apply it to support digital transformation in their own industries, Dr Mokoena said.

Digital transformation is shaping the future of business and the economy across the globe. The UCT Graduate School of Business is excited to be collaborating with Google on this course, equipping business leaders with the skills and tools required to navigate digital transformation in South Africa today, Rayner Canning is the director of business development at the UCT GSB.




Paid Media Specialist - Data and Media

Remuneration: cost-to-company Location: Cape Town, Johannesburg Job level: Mid/Senior Job policy: Employment Equity position Type: Permanent Reference: #PaidMediaSpecialist Company: King James

Proficient in digital media planning

Propose new digital channels for a client when they become available and are relevant

Ability to set KPIs for campaigns and budgets if they are not pre-defined

Conduct research and find the insight in the research for proposals and campaigns

Identify the right audiences and channels for a campaign

Effectively manage media channels to deliver on cost, quality and timing targets

Creative thinking on campaign execution using multiple digital media channels

Successfully implement social campaign set-ups

Implement media plans

Manage budgets spends accurately

Manage program execution and financial performance while ensuring that we deliver to KPIs

Review live data and recommend changes to affect overall campaign performance

Manage key conversion points in the marketing funnel

Manage and optimise landing pages, website calls-to-action (CTAs), and lead-generating forms

A/B test and continually measure the performance of CTAs

Collaborate with teams responsible for blogging, email, social media, in order to optimise each conversion path

Optimise our marketings conversion paths

Increase conversion rates and drive marketing-qualified leads

Optimise the lead-to-customer conversion rate

Increase funnel marketing efficiencies

Achieve and in most cases exceed KPIs for the business

Proactively use optimisations and insights for future campaigns/iterations

Derive insights and propose tactics and recommendations

Propose changes and channel experimentation for enhanced results

Tertiary qualification in digital marketing

Minimum four years working experience as a paid media specialist

Advertising Agency experience is essential

Google Certifications (Google Analytics, Google tag Manager, Google Ads - Search, Display and Video)

Facebook Certifications (Blueprint)

GMP Stack Experience (DV360, SA360, experience in campaign manager)

LinkedIn Campaign Manager

Proficient in MS Office (i.e., Word/Excel/PowerPoint/Keynote etc.)

Minimum four years working experience as a paid media specialist in an advertising agency or digital advertising agency

as a paid media specialist in an advertising agency or digital advertising agency Well-versed in Digital (full digital eco-system/digital media landscape)

Knowledge of Websites and UX (for KPI setting on a lead model)

Knowledge of the Google Adwords and media offering across all areas (GDN, PPC, Programmatic) and keep abreast of all new offering

Knowledge of programmatic service providers and their offerings

Knowledge of analytics and reporting tools

A strong ability to glean insights from data for reporting and proposals

Intimate knowledge of other platforms that are mainstream and become widely adopted in our clients space.

Ability to engage with clients and engage on robust conversations that focus on performance and interrogate strategies for improvements.

A good command of the English language (both verbal and written)

Strong time management skills

Strong presentation skills

Strong multitasking skills (ability work on multiple briefs at any given time)

Team player with the ability to work independently

Ability to remain calm in a pressurised environment

Able to receive constructive criticism and advice

Accountable

Deadline driven

Solution driven

Reliable

Resilient

Proactive

Meticulous with attention to detail

Self-starter

Other: Comfortable work on site (King James office) and comfortable to work on alcohol brands

King James  Part of Accenture Song is currently looking for a (digital) paid media specialist to join their data and media team. This role is focused on performance and delivering measurable results for our clients businesses. The successful individual has a crucial role in strategic performance planning and recommendations, social campaign optimisation and insights reporting of our digital media campaigns as well as fulfil the optimisation function within the media team in our business.Media planningImplementationOptimisationReportingInterested in joining the Data & Media team? Submit a concise CV to az.oc.semajgnik@jksreerac-jk . Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Should you not hear from us within 1 week after submitting your application, kindly consider your application as unsuccessful. Posted on 13 Oct 09:06, Closing date 21 Oct
In his 2020 book THE DENIAL journalist Ross Clark describes a dystopian future in which everything we buy or do has a carbon (CO2) value and each household or individual has a carbon allowance which is the maximum amount of CO2 they are allowed to use each month.

No household or individual is allowed to exceed their CO2 allowance unless they are part of the elites who, of course, have no restrictions on their CO2 use.

THE DENIAL was fiction until 14 September 2022  thats just a few weeks ago.

On 14 September 2022, Klaus Schwabs World Economic Forum published an article titled:



My Carbon: An approach for inclusive and sustainable cities

By David Craig; author of THERE IS NO CLIMATE CRISIS

The World Economic Forums article can be split into three main parts 

Part 1  The elites are amazed how easily we submitted

In the first part, the writers express what could almost be described as amazement at how willingly we submitted to their Project Fear Covid restrictions on our freedom

Heres the key paragraph:

A huge number of unimaginable restrictions for public health were adopted by billions of citizens across the world. There were numerous examples globally of maintaining social distancing, wearing masks, mass vaccinations and acceptance of contact-tracing applications for public health

The article claims that our acceptance of Covid restrictions: demonstrated the core of individual social responsibility. But perhaps all it really demonstrated is how bullying authorities using Project Fear backed up by heavy-handed policing and mainstream media panic-peddling coerced us into abject cowering submission.

Part 2  The Fourth Industrial Revolution

In this part the authors discuss how advances in technology allow our individual carbon emissions to be quantified and tracked

Heres a section:

Fourth Industrial Revolution technology breakthroughs  Advances in emerging technologies like AI, blockchain and digitization can enable tracking personal carbon emissions.

The article gives an example of a smartphone app which can be used to measure an individuals carbon emissions:

And explains:

There is a significant number of programs and applications enabling citizens to contribute towards carbon emissions by providing them in-depth awareness on the choices of personal carbon for food, transport, home energy and lifestyle choices.

Part 3  How our carbon allowances will be controlled

In this part, Klaus Schwabs World Economic Forum article proposes a model showing how our rulers plan to control our individual carbon usage:

This falls into 3 main approaches:

Economic Behaviour  our rulers will keep increasing the price of carbon so that ordinary people eat less, heat our homes less, buy fewer products and restrict our travel

Cognitive Awareness  we will have to monitor our personal carbon footprints so that we can reduce our carbon usage as part of the transition to a net-zero-carbon society. As the article explains, reducing our individual carbon footprints will cover most areas of our lives: choices of personal carbon for food, transport, home energy and lifestyle choices

Social Norms  we will all be given fixed allowances of what are called a fair share and acceptable levels of personal emissions. These fair shares and acceptable levels will be set by the ruling elites

In case you dont believe this is coming, heres a link to Klaus Schwabs World Economic Forum article:

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/09/my-carbon-an-approach-for-inclusive-and-sustainable-cities/

The carbon-trading billionaires?

There is one part of our wonderful carbon-controlled future the World Economic Forum article doesnt mention. I suspect that this carbon allowances scheme will also include a carbon trading facility. This will allow ordinary people to sell parts of their carbon allowances to carbon-trading companies who will then sell them on to the privileged political, business and media elites. This will ensure that the elites can continue to live a life of unrestricted luxury with unlimited travel, the most expensive foods and other life pleasures while the rest of us huddle in our tiny barely-heated homes eating locally-grown potatoes, cabbage, insects or lab-produced fake meat.

(A cynic might claim that this almost has echoes of Soylent Green)

And those running the carbon-trading companies will all probably become billionaires at our expense.

Perhaps we should be grateful to Klaus Schwab and his World Economic Forum for so clearly describing the future they are preparing for us?
Nick Clegg, Nicola Mendelsohn, and Cristian Perrella were identified in court papers as executives of Facebook (now Meta) who took bribes from OnlyFans to "blacklist" the accounts of adult entertainers who competed with it. Meta denies it, but as Dell Cameron writes for Gizmodo, the case now hinges "less on whether the allegations are false, and more on whether, even if true, the company would be legally liable."

Unnamed Meta employees were accused this February in an ongoing lawsuit of working under the table to secretly help OnlyFans by getting its competitors "blacklisted" online. The suit was filed in a San Francisco federal court by a group of adult online entertainers who've alleged Meta employees added their accounts and others linked to OnlyFans competitors to databases used by companies internationally to identify malware and accounts linked to terrorism.  The wire transfer documents, according to the plaintiffs, point to funds going to two trust accounts in the Philippines under Meta executives' names. A third account, the documents say, was opened in the name of a "high-ranking Facebook executive's young son."

To Britons, Clegg is a former deputy Prime Minister whose 2010 coalition government with the Conservative Party resulted in his own Liberal Democrat party losing 49 of its 57 seats at the next electiona parliamentary annihilation the party is barely recovering from more than a decade later.
At a Manhattan fundraiser, President Joe Biden shared with Democratic donors that, from his vantage point, the world faces the prospect of Armageddon for the first time since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Vladimir Putin is not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons, because his military, you might say, is significantly underperforming, Biden added.

The Commander-in-Chiefs comments inevitably stoked an already elevated global panic over a Ukraine proxy war that pits the worlds top nuclear powers on opposing sides. In US media, there was virtually no acknowledgement that Bidens characterization of how Putin talks was false. Although Putin has made bellicose comments, he has never threatened the use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons, as Biden claimed.

Bidens alarmism overshadowed what could be taken as encouraging news. For the first time, the US president suggested that his administration is as least pondering a diplomatic path that could bring the Ukraine conflict to an end.

Were trying to figure out: What is Putins off-ramp?, Biden said. Where does he get off? Where does he find a way out? Where does he find himself in a position that he does not  not only lose face, but lose significant power within Russia?

Bidens remarks offer a sharp contrast to his declaration in March that Vladimir Putin cannot remain in power. On the other hand, there is no indication that US policy has undergone any significant change. If anything, the recent actions of the White House and its client government in Kiev are blowing up off-ramps at every pass.

White House and military leaders are transitioning to a sustainable model Kyiv can depend on for an open-ended war with Russia, the New York Times reports. That sustainable warfare will be roughly modeled on U.S. train-and-assist efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past two decades,  a model that, while highly sustainable for weapons contractors, was the opposite for the nations subjected to it.

The open-ended war with Russia will be waged with a $12.3 billion package newly approved by Congress, bringing the total US commitment so far to more than $66 billion. With that most recent vote, the Times notes, Congress has now committed more military aid to Ukraine than it has to any country in a single year since the Vietnam War, reflecting a remarkable bipartisan consensus in favor of pouring huge amounts of American resources into the fight.

As the audacious truck-bombing of the Kerch Strait bridge shows, Ukraine is bringing the fight to Crimea, home to Russias most important naval base. In June, a Ukrainian commander identified the Kerch bridge as a number one target, and a Ukrainian official has now taken credit for Saturdays successful operation. Days earlier, senior Pentagon official Laura Cooper signaled that the US has given Ukraine the green light to use US weaponry there. We think they can reach the vast majority of targets, including Crimea, Cooper said. And just to be clear, Crimea is Ukraine.

For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is explicitly rejecting any off-ramp for Putin. Zelensky greeted Russias annexation of four Ukrainian regions with an application for fast-tracked NATO membership. When that was swiftly rejected, Zelensky signed a decree ruling out peace talks with Moscow so long as Putin is in power. Not content with calling for regime change, Zelensky followed that up with his most direct plea for World War III to date, urging NATO to launch preemptive strikes inside Russia. (After an uproar, a spokesperson claimed that Zelensky meant preemptive sanctions.)

Meanwhile, the bombing of the Nord Stream pipelines has ensured, for now, that NATO members have no off-ramp from the proxy war coalition  nor, it seems, from the economic crises that they face as a result.

When he greeted the Nord Stream sabotage as a tremendous strategic opportunity, Secretary of State Antony Blinken acknowledged some pitfalls.

Cut off from their traditional cheap Russian gas supply, European allies, Blinken said, will now prepare for a difficult winter ahead. To address that difficulty, he vowed, were determined to do everything we possibly can to make sure that the consequences of all of this are not borne by citizens in our countries or, for that matter, around the world.

But the United States European allies are quickly learning that there are limits on what the US can possibly do for them.

Read more
Sweden is refusing to share the preliminary results of its official investigation into the Nord Stream pipeline explosions with Russia, asserting that the information is confidential.

Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said that the outcome of the inquiry into what severely damaged the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in late September would not be revealed to Moscow.

In Sweden, our preliminary investigations are confidential, and that, of course, also applies in this case, Andersson told reporters.

The investigation found that the blasts were an act of sabotage, although the culprit has not been named.

The Swedish leader said that Russia was free to conduct its own investigation into the incident, adding that Sweden had removed cordons from the area.

The Swedish economic zone is not a territory that Sweden disposes of, said Andersson.

President Vladimir Putin, who has accused the US and Britain of carrying out an act of international terrorism in targeting the pipelines, reacted to Swedens denial of access to the investigation by insisting, We all know well who the ultimate beneficiary of this crime is.

As we previously highlighted, a former Pentagon advisor said the most likely culprits behind the Nord Stream pipeline blasts are the United States and Britain, and that the attack was carried out to prevent Germany from bailing on the war in Ukraine.

Douglas Macgregor suggested that the motive behind the attacks was to isolate Germany after Berlin began to give the impression that they were no longer going to go along with this proxy war in Ukraine.

According to a report by German magazine Der Spiegel, the CIA warned Berlin about a potential attack on gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea weeks before the explosions.

However, Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin insisted that there was no evidence the US was behind the attack, but only because the Pentagon said so.

Both Joe Biden and Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland asserted that Nord Stream 2 wouldnt be allowed to operate if Russia attacked Ukraine.

After the attack, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the development as a tremendous opportunity for Europe to once and for all remove the dependence on Russian energy.
Photos: YouTube

African States are on the front line of the climate crisis, a senior UN official told the Security Council on Wednesday, but far more action is needed to turn the tide on rising emissions, and reduce global warming.

During a debate on strengthening the response to the impacts of climate change on peace and security in Africa, Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee, said that our response today does not match the magnitude of the challenge we are facing.

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Threat to peace

The climate emergency is a danger to peace, she added, noting that although there is no direct link between climate change and conflict, climate change exacerbates existing risks and creates new ones.

As desertification and land degradation drive competition for resources, they also erode livelihoods and food security for millions.

Ms. Pobee described a devastating drought in the greater Horn of Africa forcing families to move far from their home, conflicts intensifying over resources in the Sahel, and violent extremists exploiting situations throughout.

Action on multiple fronts

To support the African continentwe must act on multiple fronts, she said, calling for ambitious climate action, and accelerated implementation of the Paris Agreement.

During next months African-owned, African-focused UN climate conference, COP27, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, she said she was looking forward to meaningful commitments.

We cannot hope to achieve lasting peace if we do not meet our climate goals, said Ms. Pobee.

Three priorities

She said there were three priorities moving forward, beginning with increasing the capacity for risk analysis and integrating a climate lens into conflict prevention, peacemaking and peacebuilding efforts.

Noting that existing peacebuilding efforts are often entirely based in single countries, she reminded that as climate change knows no borders, analysis and engagement must become more regionally focused with cross-border resource-sharing.

Second, people must be placed at the centre of efforts to deliver peace and security with the expertise of those who are living with the consequences of climate change, leveraged to develop mitigation and adaptation strategies.

She remined that women are crucial agents of change and youth, key stakeholders, driving innovative climate and peacebuilding action.

Third, climate action and peacebuilding must reinforce each other, according to Ms. Pobee, arguing that coherent policies are good for climate and for peace.

Delivering on a commitment of international collaboration is a significant undertaking, the UN official said. Africas leadership is essential.

On the margins

Speaking about climate change risks for African States, Tanguy Gahouma, Former Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change, also noted the prevalence of UN peacekeepers who are now operating in high climate risk areas.

Moreover, he maintained that while the African economy can benefit from both the continents abundant natural resources and its youthful demographic, States continue to remain marginal in global trade and finance.

Silent casualty

Patrick Youssef, International Committee of the Red Cross Regional Director for Africa, reminded that, as important as front-line responders are to addressing climate threats, humanitarians cannot be expected to be peacemakers too.

While Mr. Youssef noting that environmental damage remains a silent casualty of war, he suggested bringing a conflict lens to interactions in climate-affected settings.

Outlining obstacles

Presiding over the meeting, Gabons Foreign Minister, Michael Moussa Adamo, highlighted stumbling blocks in securing finance for the people.

He upheld that climate impacts and the conflicts that often stem from them place major burdens on already stressed national budgets.

The Foreign Minister warned that future wars would not be fought over oil and gold, but for access to water and food, reminding that climate threats in one area threaten others  even countries that have abundant rainforest cover.
2017 September Newsletter

Startup Networking Mixer and Pitch Event

September 14, 6:30pm-8:30pm

Usdan International Lounge

Are you a student, faculty member or staff at Brandeis and are you interested in innovation and entrepreneurship? Do you have an idea for an innovation, and want to get feedback, or learn how you can take it to the next level?

Join us and learn about available programs and support, pitch your idea, begin to form or join a team, or just enjoy the refreshments and learn more about innovation and entrepreneurship.

The Hassenfeld Family Innovation Center together with the Office of Technology Licensing at Brandeis University is hosting an exciting event Thursday, September 14 from 6:30-8:30 as a kickoff to our SPARK/SPROUT innovation funding and support programs, and the Lean LaunchPad business model training program. Students, faculty and staff interested in applying for SPARK, SPROUT and/or creating startups are all invited. Attendees will have the opportunity to pitch ideas, explore entrepreneurial resources available to them, and learn more about innovation.

Why now is the best time to build your startup or launch your idea:

Access to free resources on campus including funding and support through Brandeis own world-class innovation programs:

SPARK and SPROUT programs provided by the Hassenfeld Family Innovation Center and the Office of Technology Licensing based on the Lean LaunchPad curriculum;

SPROUT Hassenfeld Family Innovation Center NSF funding through Brandies nationally recognized I-Corps Site : we are one of only four National Science Foundation I-Corps Sites in Massachusetts offering seed funding and programs that are integrated with the national I-Corp program.

What's Going On With Brandeis Innovation:

Codestellation Fall 2017

A hackathon is an opportunity to get together with others who share your passion for building and creating technology for a weekend and create something great. That app youve been talking about making forever? That software that would really make school that much easier? This is the perfect opportunity to sit down and make it a reality. At Codestellation, youll join a small launch team to create something awesome over the course of 24 hours. Along the way, weve also got a bunch of fun activities planned just in case you need a break from all the coding youll be doing. If a weekend of making new friends, coding, and partaking in all sorts of fun activities sounds like a blast to you, join the Brandeis MakerLab for Codestellation Fall 2017!

Find out more

Startup LifeCycle
Australia is one of 12 countries that will be offered Netflixs new ad-based budget subscription plan that will be rolled out next month.

The Basic with Ads plan will cost $6.99 per month in Australia, four dollars less than the cheapest ad-free plan currently on offer. Ads will be rolled out on Netflix from November 1 in Canada and Mexico, followed by Australia, the US, UK, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and South Korea on November 4 and finally Spain one week later.

Netflix will launch its ad-supported service next month. Credit:Bloomberg

Subscribers to the new plan will be shown up to five minutes of ads per hour of viewing. New releases will feature ads only at the start to preserve the cinematic experience but television series will have them included mid-viewing as will older films.

Netflix chief operating officer Greg Peters said all basic plans will have viewing resolutions upgraded from 480p to 720p meaning everyones Netflix experience will be viewed in either HD or ultra-HD.
Star Entertainment Groups new chief executive, Robbie Cooke, will officially take the reins on Monday as the embattled casino operator readies itself for a cultural overhaul.

The former Tyro chiefs appointment was announced in June after Star chief Matt Bekier was stood down following a public inquiry by the NSW gambling regulator that revealed failures by the company to stem criminal activity and money laundering within its casinos. The NSW Bell inquiry and Queenslands Gotterson inquiry found The Star unfit to hold its two state casino licenses and the company was savaged by regulators for having a broken culture driven by profit over compliance.

Cooke said watching the revelations that were uncovered by the respective inquiries had been confronting.

Tyro boss Robbie Cooke will lead the crisis-stricken Star Entertainment Group from Monday. Credit:James Alcock

The business had lost its way in a number of areas, but Im committed to rehabilitating it and restoring the group to suitability [to hold its casino licenses], Cooke said.
A large number of journalists and photographers from The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age have been announced as finalists in the 67th Walkley Awards for excellence in journalism.

Distinguished photographer Kate Geraghty is shortlisted in three categories for her coverage of the war in Ukraine while her colleague, Anthony Galloway, is shortlisted for coverage of a major issue and production. The pair sit among other award-winning journalists Nick McKenzie, Adele Ferguson, Kate McClymont, Jacqueline Maley and Sarah Danckert who have been nominated across a number of categories for news breaking and investigative journalism over the past year.

Anthony Galloway and Kate Geraghty. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen and James Brickwood

The Walkley Foundation said 1304 entries were received this year. Walkley Award winners will be announced at a gala dinner at the ICC on November 17 in Sydney.

Political editor Peter Hartcher is nominated in the feature writing short category for his piece, Radioactive: Inside the top-secret AUKUS subs deal, while former Europe correspondent and editor of the Herald, Bevan Shields, is a finalist in the scoop of the year coverage for his piece. I dont think, I know, where French President Emmanuel Macron accused former prime minister Scott Morrison of lying to him. Herald photographer Brook Mitchell is a finalist for Nikon press photographer of the year, alongside The Ages Christopher Hopkins.
Base case: A decade of growth between 4 and 5 per cent The COVID-zero policy is hammering Chinas economy, leading some economists to lower GDP forecasts for this year to below 3 per cent. So long as the policy continues, theres little chance of significant improvement. Government experts in China have said the policy can be relaxed when there are enough medical tools including treatments and second-generation vaccines available. Bloomberg Economics base case assumes gradual loosening from the second quarter of 2023. Chinas demographic challenge is also a constraint, with the population decline happening earlier than previously forecast. But its workforce size that matters for economic output, and the population is living longer  life expectancy now exceeds the US  so they can work longer too. While Chinas retirement age is currently 50 to 60 depending on gender and profession, if that is raised gradually to 65 over the next decade, the workforce can remain roughly stable at around 760 million workers over that period.

As countries get richer, workers skills  or human capital  becomes key to their productivity, offering China an economic offset to the looming population decline. New entrants to the workforce are far more educated than their predecessors: China will produce more than 10 million college graduates this year, nearly double the number a decade ago. There is an education tsunami coming to China, says Bert Hofman, former China country director at the World Bank and now head of the East Asian Institute in Singapore. Its not all about universities. The share of 25 to 60-year-olds with a high-school education has risen to 37 per cent and is on track to reach at least 50 per cent by the end of this decade  moving closer to levels seen in countries like Portugal  if Beijing can continue to boost education spending. Chinas Covid Zero strategy has battered its economy. Credit:Bloomberg Theres still considerable growth to be had from investment. China invests a higher proportion of GDP than any major country in recent history, and while much of that doesnt produce high returns, the overall return on investment  whether in housing, infrastructure or manufacturing  remains in positive territory, while the return on assets in Chinas industrial sector is still about 6 per cent on average. One example: Electric vehicle plants backed by governments and built by companies such as BYD and Nio have made China a world leader in that emerging industry.Even if you waste some of it, you still get growth from capital, says Hofman. He calculates that even with a bare minimum of economic reforms, China could grow 3 per cent annually through to 2035 just from its physical investment.

To achieve that, China will need to maintain its current high household savings rate, but allocate those funds more to manufacturing and service companies than real estate firms. The property markets ongoing malaise has been the other major brake on growth. The base case scenario sees an ongoing gradual decline in real estate investment  which is needed to align supply with demand  but no collapse. The real estate slowdown frees up resources to be invested in more productive areas. Chinas race to number one status will be influenced by what happens to exchange rates. And even though Chinas unprecedented home building boom is now in the past, theres still fundamental demand for housing. Chinas urbanisation rate  currently comparable to where the US was in the 1950s  still has room to grow, with an estimated 10 million people set to move to cities each year through to 2025. That process in turn boosts productivity, as workers in cities find it easier to match their skills with other workers. Chinas economy is now too large for foreign demand to drive it via export growth. Beijing needs reforms to ensure that Chinese companies can take advantage of a huge domestic market and consumer spending continues to grow. Thats where Xis signature policies  dual circulation and  common prosperity come in. The first is about breaking down economic barriers between Chinas provinces. The second is about making sure more investment goes to poorer regions and making provision of healthcare more equal  likely requiring higher taxes on the wealthy.

In Bloomberg Economics model, the biggest contributor to growth over the next decade is total factor productivity, referring to changes which allow labour and physical investment to be used more effectively. One of those things is the adoption of new technology. Its hard to make predictions about that, but proxies such as spending on research and development, scientific publications, and patents have all shown strong growth. China now spends more of its GDP on R&D than many European countries. Another boost will come as workers shift from jobs producing lower-value to higher-value goods and services. One area for upside: The share of workers in agriculture still has room to fall from around 25 per cent today to somewhere closer to the 3 per cent average in advanced economies. Companies like TikTok owner ByteDance have helped farmers become live streamers. The success of the Tencent and video app TikTok on the global stage has boosted Chinas economy. Credit:AP There have also been big changes in market institutions under Xi, reducing barriers on how people can sell their labour, ownership in companies, as well as goods and services they produce. To take two examples: Since 2020, Chinese people have become entitled to buy housing and claim government benefits in any city with a population below 3 million  with the policy now gradually extending to larger cities. The amount private firms raised on Chinese stock markets has soared in recent years. The base case expects such reforms to continue.

Beijings regulatory crackdown on the likes of Alibaba and Tencent over recent years shows its wary of private firms which grow too large. Still, Xi wants a vibrant private sector, with the government rolling out policies to make it easier for small and medium-sized companies to receive loans, cutting business taxes and reducing red-tape. Beijing is supporting thousands of little giant startups with funds and tax breaks, tilted toward firms that file patents outside of China. Loading The key unknown is whether the partys efforts to support its favoured parts of the private sector can spur enough growth to outweigh the negative effects of its crackdown on other, less favoured areas, says Chang-Tai Hsieh, an economist at the University of Chicago. Chinas private-sector companies are generally more productive than their state-owned rivals due to the large number of poorly performing local government-owned enterprises, and Beijings reliance on the state sector to support growth during the pandemic has made the playing field less even, according to Margit Molnar, head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Developments China desk. But while Xi supports SOEs in sectors he sees as strategic for the economy, hes also allowed locally owned state firms in non-strategic sectors to go bankrupt at unprecedented rates. Eliminating majority state-ownership in non-strategic sectors such as hotels, catering, retail and wholesale would boost long-term GDP per capita by 1.3 per cent, according to the OECD. There are so many areas where reforms could bring about a boost to productivity, says Molnar.

Bloomberg Economics base case incorporates a gradual decoupling from the US, with links never returning to their pre-pandemic levels. But politicians in both Europe and East Asia stress that decoupling from China is not their goal, meaning ongoing exchanges with advanced economies across the globe will remain as a growth driver. As GDP levels are compared in US dollar terms, Chinas race to number one status will be influenced by what happens to exchange rates. If China continues to open up its vast financial markets to overseas investors, a strengthening in its currency will help propel its rise. Bear case: Slower than 4 per cent Chinas leadership has been vague on when the COVID-zero policy will end. In a downside scenario, it isnt relaxed until 2024, meaning at least another year of very low growth, with a long-term impact on productivity as unemployed workers miss chances to accumulate skills. Pushback to pension reforms (even authoritarian governments like Russias have had to U-turn over raising the pension age) could mean the process isnt finished until 2040, and the working-age population declines markedly over the decade as a result.

The property market slowdown  if mishandled  could lead to an even sharper slowdown in investment. In a nightmare scenario for Beijing, the drop in investment might take place rapidly, shrinking by 20 per cent over 2022-2024. Another scenario is that the government overstimulates and as the policy support is withdrawn, a worse downturn occurs, turbocharged by an even larger overhang of housing supply. Any sudden decoupling from the US, if it imposes anything close to Russia-type sanctions on China, would be disastrous for Chinas growth. While the blowback for the world would probably be too great for Washington to go that far, more aggressive decoupling  for example, Huawei-like curbs on all of Chinas tech firms  would hit growth further. A decoupling from the US would be disastrous for Chinas economy. Credit:Bloomberg The nightmare scenario: Sub 3 per cent growth Xis top priority over the past five years has been an effort to reduce the chance of a financial crisis by choking off shadow banking and slowing debt growth. But there are still many non-performing loans in the banking system, and if housing prices crash and too many banks or local governments need bailouts, growth could slow even more.

Things could get even worse if US allies join in on decoupling efforts. Chinas output could be up to 8 per cent smaller by 2030 if theres strong decoupling from OECD economies versus a no decoupling scenario, according to International Monetary Fund analysis. Another pandemic or climate change-related extreme weather could damage the economy severely. And a clash over Taiwan would also be disastrous. An article by an anonymous analyst that was viewed more than 100,000 times on Chinese social media assessed Chinas growth prospects to 2030, and highlighted Taiwan declaring independence and triggering an invasion by mainland forces as the biggest external risk in the next decade. The article circulated earlier this year, in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine. The bull case: Above 5 per cent growth Chinas official goal is to double GDP from 2020 levels by 2035, implying growth above 5 per cent for most of this decade. That would need a faster reopening from COVID leading to a quicker resumption in reforms, such as raising the pension age by 2025 and relaxing big city residency restrictions, according to Bloomberg Economics model.

Longer term, efforts to boost fertility by providing cheaper childcare and more benefits to parents could pay off, though the impact wont be clear until those kids enter the workforce in the 2040s. Then theres the boost as workers shift from producing less complex goods and services to more valuable ones  something that is easier for China because it has the worlds largest manufacturing base. One way of tracking that is through the Economic Complexity Index compiled by the Growth Lab at Harvard University, which looks at the range of products a country exports. China has risen to 17th from 24th place a decade ago. Loading The idea is that producing a range of products makes it easier to move up the ladder to more complex products. According to the lab, Chinas complexity sets it up to be among the fastest growing economies to 2030  it predicts growth above 5.8 per cent over the next decade. Some examples of growing complexity: China now has dozens of globally competitive biotech companies like BeiGene, which was unheard of a decade ago, while video game companies like Tencent and video app TikTok have had success on the global stage for the first time. Chinese companies lead the world in solar power, one of this decades clear growth sectors.
Every three months we get a reminder that politicians have the privilege of being able to put all manner of perks, from travel to accommodation, on the taxpayer dime. And the latest data from the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority shows some of the worst offenders of the recent past.

Some of Parliaments biggest spenders Credit:John Shakespeare

First, an honourable mention to One Nation leader Pauline Hanson. After nearly being weeded out of the Senate by the Legalise Cannabis Party, and disappearing after a bout of COVID, Hanson returned to the public eye at the Federal Court in Sydney for a defamation case brought against her by ex-One Nation colleague Brian Burston. Flights and Comcar travel from Brisbane were all paid for by the taxpayer.

Despite quitting Parliament ahead of the election, former Northern Territory senator Sam McMahon was the biggest spender on travel allowance, charging $38,621 for 96 nights away from home between January and May. Look we get the NT is big, but those frequent $457-a-night stays in Darwin do really add up.

George Christensen used his final months as an MP to get a bit of help setting up his wannabe media empire, spending nearly $20,000 worth of your money on video streaming software.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Here is a short list of things a journalist does not expect an author, of some fame, to say at the beginning of a phone interview: Im so glad you called. I have been looking forward to this all day. Or, at any point during that interview, if the author is Booker Prize-level famous: You know, Im so nervous about the next book. Im just kind of a bumbler. I never really have been able to figure out the right path. Im sorry Im talking so much, but one more thing

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Or, ever, if you are a journalist who is also a novelist, and has an absolute intention not to raise that fact with a literary voice of a generation, even if they have been some source of inspiration: Let me tell you something. I read your book. Here is what will happen if George Saunders does say that, and he was actually all of your inspiration. If, in fact, George Saunders is the only reason your last novel exists and that youre still a writer. You will say oh, but listening back later, you will hear how the word came out as a strangulated little yelp as though you had just slammed your finger in a drawer and were trying to pretend to a witness that the pain was not shocking. Should he add, and I thought it was [here he gives you the greatest compliment of your life, which can never be repeated, by you, to anyone, for how sickly self-aggrandising that would be, also you will sound like a fantasist], well then, after the briefest pause, just long enough to remember and dismiss your beforehand commitment not to say anything, out of you will pour a torrent of words. Author George Saunders won the Booker in 2017 for his novel Lincoln in the Bardo. Credit:Janie Barrett Maybe not the whole story, of how you wrote a manuscript, it took a year, it was terrible, you deleted it, you were devastated, you quit fiction forever, even though fiction had been your singular, lifelong ambition but then, one day, you read a thing George Saunders said about writing, you went looking for more such things and copied them out, and when you dragged your miserable carcass back to your tiny backyard writing shed to try again, you started sticking them up where you could see them until the walls were eventually shingled with scraps of paper, advice that might not make sense to a less-desperate person  Lets continue, What were doing in writing is not all that different from what weve been doing all our lives, i.e. using our personalities as a way of coping with life, Bob is an asshole, - but if ink faded every time it was read, it would have disappeared by the end of that year, when you finished your book. Whether it is anything close to [the thing he said], it saved you as a writer. So, definitely, you will tell George Saunders some of that.

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And goodness, he will be kind about it. He was so kind about it, my breathless monologue, even though he was in the middle of packing the house in upstate New York that he and his wife, writer Paula Saunders, have lived in for 15 years, with the shed in which he has always written. And I thought, I can do it by myself, but its just unbelievable, the most epic thing Ive ever attempted. Its like youre walking into a snow globe of all the selves you ever were. Ill find some old letters and suddenly, theres one from 1978 and one from 2015, and there are pictures, and its really... its pretty moving and a little exhausting. And he has two weeks to finish. But separately, hes in no rush to get back to it. As a critic elsewhere noted of Saunders ... part of his greatness is that reading him feels very much like being spoken to kindly. I know I should not have been surprised, I was just too paralysed by surprise to remember that besides his literary reputation - greatest prose stylist of our time, modern master of the short story, et cetera - Saunders has a reputation for kindness, eliciting a kind of personal affection from readers, and writers-about-him, that authors of equal eminence, his fellow Booker winners, do not. Author Meg Mason. Credit:Grant Sparkes-Carroll That is, Im not sure Ian McEwan has ever been described as everyones favourite literary uncle in a profile for the prestigious Lit Hub. Perhaps Julian Barnes is also a hugger, but no journalist has led with that fact in a major Times interview  a hugger who arrives early and makes you feel as if he is in some deep and inviolable way, yours. In another few paragraphs, the journalist is crying, over a line of Saunders prose. Probably because, as a critic elsewhere noted of Saunders, and might not of Jonathan Franzen, part of his greatness is that reading him feels very much like being spoken to kindly.

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Loading In real life, Saunders, who is 63, the father of two adult daughters, both writers, speaks like a dad. But also, charmingly, like a teenage girl, conveying whole worlds of empathy and thoughtfulness and uncertainty, likes and you knows. To the question, has he noticed and wondered about the affection thing? Oh yeah, I mean, I love that and I dont really quite understand it. The only thing is, Im thinking it has to do with well, ok, so, I was going to say good manners? What I mean is, if somebody writes me an email, Im going to write them back. What he doesnt mean is that the readers perception is entirely correct. Its just that if the perception already exists, you cant go around not writing back to people. You have to, he says, try and live up to that guy. I can be pretty grumpy, Im just normal. But, I think ok, I have an effect on people who know a certain rarefaction of the person that comes through writing? And you could say, Oh its false, or you could say, Well, its partly true and let me do the best I can with that. If somebody can find you lovely, then that gives you something to shoot for, for sure. George Saunders books include the Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo, new story collection Liberation Day and non-fiction collection A Swim in the Pond with Rain. Saunders oeuvre includes five short story collections, the Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo and the exquisite novella Fox8; endless award-winning journalism; and the recent non-fiction collection A Swim in the Pond with Rain, based on his two decades teaching creative writing at Syracuse University in New York State.

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Yet, still, as an author? He thinks, Youre also there to be on the same level as somebody. You know, like somebody comes up to me... And lets imagine they do, very often, for advice - because as well as being a vastly technical study of Russian short stories, A Swim in the Pond is an incredibly encouraging guide to writing that sold like the clappers - and it could be draining, another writer as successful might decline to engage with the unpublished but, to Saunders, its like, that thing they used to say in Catholic school, if Jesus appeared to you in the form of an old man, would you be happy with the way you behaved? I think thats something I really believe. I dont know. The only thing I can say is Im always worried about letting people down. When I was younger if anybody didnt like my work, it killed me! And then you get older and youre like, oh! Most people dont like me! George Saunders Raised Catholic, Saunders became a Buddhist in his 30s and maybe some of his intent to be present, to notice and be generous, comes from that practise. But since he once said, my understanding of Buddhism is that you should just shut up about it, its hard to conclude. Either way, those qualities are evident in the portrayal of his own characters. The men and women who populate his stories are not, generally speaking, lifes winners. They are ordinary, exhausted, not-very-good parents with sad cars and big, unmet dreams. You wonder if they are some of the people that Saunders, who grew up in working-class Chicago, met before he became a writer  late, unpublished until he was 38  when he was a roofer, convenience store worker, a knuckle-puller at an abattoir, eventually a tech writer for an engineering company, where he started experimenting with fiction on company time. Saunders after winning the 2017 Man Booker Prize and, right, Mason at the 2022 Womens Prize For Fiction ceremony in London. Credit:AP They are definitely Brenda, a low-level office worker with a debt problem, two deadbeat adult children, and a situation with her manager, in A Thing at Work, from his new story collection Liberation Day. As often, the story is told in and out of a characters voice, which per his gift, Saunders captures precisely, but does not unkindly imitate. Brenda thinking, Probably shouldnt have said that thing about stealing coffee. Because now Gen might think I actually have done that. Which, in fact, she had been doing that If the story is funny  it is, they all are - Saunders doesnt make a joke of Brenda of the bouncing cheques, either. Even in telling you, others do: Like when Greggie, her son, called her stubby little arms her T.rex arms. He didnt mean it. It was his way of saying he loved her. In all this, I would hate to give you the impression that I understand short stories and how they operate, that I absolutely get how someone could be fanatical about Tolstoy, the way Saunders is, and that nothing brings me more personal joy than a bit of Gogol. Russian short stories are too hard for me. So are non-Russian ones. Its like, I dont even understand the goal of short stories generally  I tell the modern master of them. Who says, Well. One is to break your heart. One is to convey the essence of life. Also, to be a really efficient little machine. But, its a difficult form. I dont think anyone should feel bad, you know. If you cant read a Russian short story, then theyre just not for you. No problem. It might just be a place where my neuroses has found a perfect home, in artistic form. Like, make it efficient motherf---!

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Rochester residents ordered to evacuate immediately as 'significant' rain hits Melbourne

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Two-and-a-half months after Roxlyn Bowie vanished from the outback NSW town of Walgett, her husband and accused killer John Bowie told police he had been drinking beers and playing pokies that night and had no idea where she would be.

Bowie, 72, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Roxlyn on or about June 5, 1982. The Crown alleges his deteriorating marriage and developing relationship with another woman, Gail Clarke, motivated him to kill, and he possibly disposed of Roxlyns body by feeding her to pigs.

John Bowie was arrested in 2019 and charged with the murder of Roxlyn Bowie (inset). Credit:AAP, Supplied

In the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday, Crown prosecutor Alex Morris read Bowies signed police statement made on August 19, 1982.

In the four-page document, Bowie said he had married Roxlyn in 1971, and they had two children.
They say you should never make a decision when youre angry. Instead, you should sleep on it and see where you end up in the morning. But when youve been trapped on the quiet carriage of a Sydney train for hours, its hard not to be quietly reactive.

Sydney is cancelled, and were moving interstate, was the (very) angry text I sent my wife last week as thousands of commuters faced an all too familiar nightmare: getting home.

Pack in everyone and welcome to the commute of your nightmares.

This delay was due to flooding at Central Station, but were at the point where the reason doesnt really matter. Sydneys commuters have accepted that the cause (industrial action, trackwork, a single drop of rain) is no longer important, but the effect (a deep hatred for the city you once loved) is impossible to ignore.

It took me two hours to travel three stops from North Sydney to Central on the train, including an agonising 40 minutes spent idling at Milsons Point, taunted by the maniacal smile of Luna Park.
The NSW government was warned more than two years before cracked trams forced the shutdown of Sydneys inner west light rail that the Spanish-built vehicles were suffering from other premature defects and higher failure rates.

Internal government documents reveal the private consortium behind Sydneys light rail network raised concerns with the states transport agency several years ago that the inner west trams had higher occurrence of faults and failures to key components, causing disruption to services.

Sydneys inner west light rail line has faced major disruptions over the past year. Credit:Louie Douvis

Services were shut down on the inner west line in October last year after sizeable cracks were discovered in the 12-strong Urbos tram fleet.

An independent report for Transport for NSW in July 2019 concluded that components on the inner west trams appeared to be expiring prematurely due to poor design and/or manufacturing errors by Spanish manufacturer CAF.
Police issue warrant for Perth man

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Two former friends are blaming each other for killing a man before they both fed his body into a woodchipper at a rural south-east Queensland property.

The common theme in their conflicting stories is that the woman they had both slept with was the mastermind of the murder plot and encouraged them to carry it out.

The victim  Bruce Saunders.

Bruce Saunders, 54, was believed to have died in a horrific accident in November 2017, when his body was crushed in a mulcher while clearing trees.

But a tip-off to police led to three murder charges and the exposure of an alleged love quadrangle.
A Brisbane man accused of posing as others to rack up online purchases, allegedly holding images of the drivers licences, birth certificates or Medicare cards of 160 people, has been charged with more than 300 offences.

The man allegedly threatened victims trying to gain their online identities back. Credit:Queensland Police Service

The man is also accused of threatening to kill some of his alleged victims who wanted their information back, and of using the stolen identities to lodge fraudulent lodge tax returns and connect mobile phone accounts.

Police also say he made threats to victims who attempted to take back their online identities, which had been hacked.

The Pallara 30-year-old, the subject of a 10-month investigation, was denied police bail but ordered to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday.
Honey puffs, Greek dancing and plate smashing will make a triumphant return to Brisbane with the Paniyiri Greek Festival this weekend.

The festival, which usually attracts 50,000 people, was postponed in May because of extreme weather, but organisers were determined to hold it this year, moving the dates to this Saturday and Sunday.

Paniyiri Greek Festival sells countless honey puffs during the two-day event.

Whether you come for the saganaki or the souvlaki, the dolmades or loukoumades, to debate tasting notes of Greek wines, or join in the Zorba or the sousta, we know everyone leaves Paniyiri with their heart as full as their stomach, said organiser Chris Kazonis.

The power of Paniyiri is that it brings people of all ages and abilities together to dance, dine, and have a good time, which not only celebrates our culture, but recognises our need for connection, he said.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size A massive leak of classified documents from the Colombian government has exposed the identities and methods of secret agents working to stop international drug cartels from operating in Australia. More than five terabytes of data, including more than five million emails and tens of thousands of documents, were hacked and held in a password-protected database in August. The leak contains details of 35 Australian Federal Police operations, some ongoing, as well as surveillance reports from undercover agents, phone taps and payroll records for Colombian law enforcement officers. Many overseas police agencies are also affected. One group is allegedly linked to a Queensland accounting firm that caters to Spanish speakers, and an Australian man with links to the Bandidos. Credit: The leak sheds light on the vast scale of drug importation into Australia and the webs of businesses such as gyms, luxury car dealerships, hairdressers and a nightclub set up to launder drug money. In one case, the AFP is hunting a drug kingpin who is living in luxury after fleeing Perth for Colombia, leaving behind a string of still-operating businesses here. In another, a series of migration agents targeting Colombian students is being used to filter money and imported cocaine to motorcycle gangs operating in Brisbane. The AFP, which was first made aware of the data breach when it was contacted by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age on October 4, is attempting to stem potential damage to its operations.

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The AFP is concerned about possible breaches of operational security as a consequence of this data compromise, a spokesperson said. The AFP is working with our partners in impacted regions to mitigate any potential threats to the safety of people, or ongoing investigations. To reduce the risk that reporting could compromise current investigations or endanger lives, the Herald delayed publication until Friday. The AFP has dismantled an Australian criminal network allegedly importing and manufacturing hundreds of kilograms of cocaine under the direction of a Colombian organised crime syndicate. Credit: Transnational serious organised crime groups are importing illicit drugs into Australia on an industrial scale, the AFP spokesperson said. They are ambivalent to the misery caused by their product, its impact on our health systems, or if innocent people are killed in the crossfire of their turf wars. The Herald and Age have reviewed thousands of emails (most in Spanish), verified them and then destroyed all copies along with all the associated metadata, to have no access to the leaked database or any of its contents. Information that could affect ongoing police operations or court cases, disclose novel police methods or put people in danger is not being published. The group claiming responsibility for the data hacking, Guacamaya, the Mayan name for macaw, said it has environmental and anti-imperialist motives.

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In a statement, they said their motivation is to target mining and oil companies, military and police systems in Mexico, Peru, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia and elsewhere to sabotage corporations and systems they said exploit natural resources and support US interests. Guacamaya invites the peoples of Abya Yala (an Indigenous name for Central and South America) to hack and filter these systems of repression, domination and enslavement that dominate us, and that it be the peoples who decide to find a way to free us from state terrorism, their statement said. The AFP with drugs seized from a clandestine laboratory in July 2022. Credit: In a separate hack, the group published emails from Chiles military forces, resulting in the head of the joint chiefs of staff there, General Guillermo Paiva, resigning on September 23. The documents chart a steady flow of cocaine and other drugs from Colombian cartels and organised crime groups in Europe, Asia and the Pacific targeting Australian ports and airports, via intermediaries in places such as Africa, Hong Kong and Fiji. Large-scale drug importation is happening via shipping containers, small and large aircraft, cargo vessels and private yachts, in some cases with the aid of corrupt law enforcement officials overseas. Some documents pertain to current AFP operations and others reveal details about past operations, including the recently revealed Ironside sting, which brought down crime networks around the world.

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Some of the AFPs operations in the leak led to arrests in Australia and overseas, apparently causing significant disruption to drug supply chains. In one operation, the AFP and their Colombian counterparts focused on a cartel moving large quantities of cocaine (up to 500 kilograms) to Europe or Africa (as intermediate countries) where it is broken up into small quantities and forwarded to other countries including Australia. The cartel was sending smaller three-kilogram packages of cocaine which are hidden in products including pottery mud/make-up [and] using a crypto/cash office/s in Melbourne and Sydney to move money offshore, according to one email. The cartel uses people on student visas, who receive the air cargo consignments from FedEx Colombia and then send money to Colombia. Concealment techniques for the drugs often change but the use of clothing items to conceal drugs is a feature of the syndicates methods, the documents reveal. The syndicate also has the ability to impregnate cocaine into items like plastic tables and mobile phones. Other items used to conceal the cocaine include large bolts, engine parts, shampoo and face creams. The group is allegedly linked to a Queensland accounting firm that caters to Spanish speakers, and an Australian man with links to the Bandidos, Mongols and Lone Wolf Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs.

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In another AFP operation, their strategy is to disrupt the onshore syndicate of Colombian-born student visa holders, connected through common education agents and agencies, importing cocaine into South East Queensland via the air cargo stream, an emailed AFP report said. The number of Colombians applying for student visas to Australia increased from 1859 in 2005-06 to 17,250 in 2019-20, more than doubling in the six years between 2015 and 2020. Efforts to disrupt the syndicates exploitation of the student-visa stream is also a primary focus for Home Affairs, the report said. Loading Visa applications connected to education agencies of concern are now subject to safeguards, resulting in heightened levels of scrutiny. In another operation, the AFP identified 55 people as potentially involved in an Australian cartel run out of Perth. The kingpin, who fled the country in 2018 and now lives in Colombia with his wife, has 17 registered companies in his name. He has family members who seem to live beyond their means and have significant unjustified wealth.

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VicEmergency has warned anyone in Mooroopna to prepare to evacuate with floodwaters expected to hit the area by tomorrow afternoon.

Residents and visitors have been encouraged to either prepare to stay with family or friends in safe areas or head to relief centres either at the McIntosh Centre, Shepparton Showgrounds, Thompson St, Shepparton or the Ballantyne Centre, 9-19 Hastie St, Tatura.

From VicEmergency:

This Watch and Act message is being issued for locations within the Mooroopna township

If you live, work or are holidaying in this or surrounding areas, you should Prepare to Evacuate.

Major flooding is occurring along the Goulburn River Seymour to Shepparton.

The Goulburn River at Murchison is currently at 10.73 metres and rising, with major flooding.

The Goulburn River at Murchison may reach around 12.00 metres Saturday morning.

The Goulburn River at Shepparton is currently at 9.61 metres and rising, with minor flooding.

The Goulburn River at Shepparton is expected to exceed the moderate flood level (10.70 m) Saturday morning.

The river level is likely to exceed the major flood level (11.00 m) Saturday afternoon and may reach around 12.00metres during Tuesday, similar to the 1974 flood event level of 12.09 metres

Flooding is expected to impact the locations listed below from late Saturday afternoon (3pm). If you are in these locations, prepare to evacuate now.

Locations including:

From Cemetery Rd south to Hoggard Dve including Little Rd down to the Echuca Rd around the back of properties on Paisley Crt; along the edge of the Conservation Reserve to the power sub-station then along Echuca Rd to Grange St; South to Macisaac Rd across to Norton Reserve and along Norton Dve around Homewood Dve at the back of Westview Dve to the rear of the Rodney Park Retirement Village to Knight St. south across to Jones Drive along the western side of Rodney Park Reserve then across McLennan St to Emma St, Hall St, Daisy St to Lenne St along Stanley St along the rear of properties along Rostrata Cr, following the reserve to Banfield Ave (S/E side). Then across to the reserve along the Goulburn river - follow the river north across the highway to Cemetery Rd again.

There are some properties within this area that may not be impacted directly with street flooding only.

What you should do



Act now - take immediate action to protect your life and property.

Gather any essential medicines, important documents, mementos, photos and pets to take with you if you evacuate.

Have three days supply of clothing and medication packed and ready to go.

If possible, contact your neighbours to check they are aware of the situation and if they need help.

For information on road closures, go to traffic.vicroads.vic.gov.au.

Floodwater is dangerous - never enter floodwater.


Former Coalition minister Linda Reynolds will give evidence in the rape trial of her former adviser Bruce Lehrmann on Tuesday.

Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins, who also worked for the senator when she was minister for defence industries, alleges Lehrmann sexually assaulted her in Reynolds office in the early hours of March 23, 2019, after a night out drinking with colleagues.

Former Coalition minister Linda Reynolds will give evidence in the trial next week. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty to a count of sexual intercourse without consent, being reckless as to whether Higgins was consenting. He denies ever having sex with Higgins.

Higgins will return on Friday to continue giving evidence after being unavailable most of the week. There is a non-publication order over other evidence in the proceedings in her absence.
Washington: The House January 6 committee has subpoenaed Donald Trump for his testimony about the 2021 Capitol attack.

The panel voted unanimously to compel the former president to appear, after introducing vivid evidence which included footage of a furious House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pledging to punch out Trump as his supporters marched on the Capitol.

Subpoenaed: Ex-US president Donald Trump. Credit:AP

We must seek the testimony under oath of January 6ths central player, said Representative Liz Cheney, the committees vice chair.

Cheney adds: We are obligated to seek answers directly from the man who set this all in motion. And every American is entitled to those answers.
The (SC) on Thursday set aside the order, which permitted SEZ to reportedly take over 34 acres adjacent to the latter's Mundra Port, which state-run Central Warehousing Corporation(CWC) claimed to be its land.

The matter has been sent back to the High Court for a fresh decision. The apex court also asked the Union government to evolve a mechanism so that its departments don't take different stands before the court. Attorney General R Venkataramani has been requested to examine the issue.

CWC had moved the apex court saying that Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) had made misrepresentations to the authorities to take away its 34 acres allegedly adjacent to the latters Mundra Port in Gujarat.

In its appeal, CWC challenged the Gujarat HC Division Benchs order that asked CWC to obtain approval or a waiver as an SEZ-compliant unit from the competent authority in respect of its warehouse facility situated on 34 acres in question within SEZ Area developed by APSEZ.

When CWC failed to get such approval within three months, APSEZ was directed to acquire land of the same size outside SEZ area for the construction of a warehouse facility within one year.

The appellant (CWC) was set up by the Government of India in 1957 to provide support to the agricultural sector by operating warehouses and Container Freight Stations across the country. It became a statutory corporation in 1962.

On the other hand, the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) granted a lease of undeveloped land within New Mundra Port Limits to Gujarat Adani Port Limited (GAPL) in 2001. The said lease was for 30 years.

In 2004, GAPL sub-leased a plot of land of about 34 acres to CWC for setting up a warehouse to be used for storage and handling of foodgrains, notified commodities, and related activities. The lease of the land was for a term up to February 16, 2031. After being granted the lease, CWC set up two Godowns each with a capacity of 33,000 MT.

When the Special Economic Zones Act of 2005 came into force, CWC made a representation to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for delineation/denotification of the 34 acres of land from the SEZ. Till the year 2017, there was no obstruction to the CWC in utilising the said area. However, in 2017, the CWC was stopped from using the premises by .

The bench of Justices BR Gavai and CT Ravikumar also expressed their displeasure on Thursday over the contradictory views of the two Ministries in this case. While the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said delineation/denotification of the 34 acres of land from the SEZ was not possible, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said it was possible.

Saying that contradictory views of various departments need to be sorted at the government level, the court sent the matter back to the High Court for further consideration.
(SIA) is engaged in confidential talks with Tata Sons for merging with Air India, the flagship carrier of the Republic of Singapore informed the stock exchange in the Southeast Asian nation on Thursday in a first acknowledgement of a possible integration of the two airlines.

In line with its multi-hub strategy, SIA is currently in confidential discussions with the Tatas to explore a potential transaction in relation to the securities of and . The discussions seek to deepen the existing partnership between SIA and Tatas and may include a potential integration of and Air India, SIA said in a notification to the Singapore stock exchange.

SIA owns 49 per cent stake in Vistara and is among the four airlines run by . Others include Air India, Express, and .





The Competition Commission of India in June cleared the of with . The approval, too, would be required for the . Currently, executives of both airlines are holding discussions on fine-tuning various aspects related to integration  product, services, etc.

Similarly, the Tatas and SIA have initiated a due diligence and valuation exercise as they explore the of Vistara with Air India.

A decision on stakes both sides will own in the merged entity will be done after completion of the exercise.

In 2021-22, Vistara made a loss of Rs 2,031 crore on a revenue of Rs 5,226 crore. In contrast, Air India posted a loss of Rs 9,556 crore on a revenue of Rs 19,815 crore.

While SIA views India as an important market for its multi-hub strategy, the Tatas want to make Air India the flagship airline of their aviation business. The group is also aiming for 30 per cent market share for Air India in the domestic market as part of a five-year transformation plan released last month.

Air India had a market share of 8.4 per cent in August. The plan itself was an indication of merger of all group airlines. and Vistara had a share of 4.6 per cent and 10.4 per cent, respectively.

SIA, however, has cautioned its investors that there is no certainty of a deal.

The discussions are ongoing and no definitive terms have been agreed upon between the two parties. There is no certainty or assurance whatsoever that any definitive agreement will be entered into or a potential transaction will materialise or proceed to completion arising out of these discussions, it said.
The has filed a charge sheet against journalist under the anti- law, alleging that she utilised publicly raised funds of Rs 2.69 crore for herself and also contravened the foreign contribution law.

The federal agency filed its prosecution complaint against Ayyub before a special Prevention of Act (PMLA) court in Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh) on October 12.

" launched three fundraiser charity campaigns on 'Ketto platform' starting from April, 2020 and collected funds totalling Rs 2,69,44,680," the ED said in a statement issued on Thursday.

The campaigns, it said, were meant to raise funds for slum dwellers and farmers; relief work for Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra and help Ayyub and her team to help those impacted by COVID-19 in India.

Probe found, the agency said, that the funds raised on the online platforms were received in the accounts of Ayyub's father and sister and subsequently transferred to her personal accounts.

"Ayyub utilised these funds to create a fixed deposits of Rs 50 lakh for herself and also transferred Rs 50 lakh in a new bank account.Investigation found that only about Rs 29 lakh was used for relief work," it claimed.

"In order to claim more expenses towards relief work, fake bills were submitted by Ayyub and subsequently, bank balances in the accounts of Ayyub amounting to Rs 1,77,27,704 (including FD of Rs 50 Lakh) were attached under the PMLA vide a provisional attachment order dated 04.02.2022," it said.

The ED alleged Ayyub "illegally" raised the Rs 2.69 crore funds and "cheated" general public donors.

"These funds were not used for the intended purpose and instead used for creation of assets for herself. Ayyub has tried to project these funds as untainted and thus has laundered the funds received from general public," the agency alleged.

"Ayyub also received these funds from foreign countries without any approval or registration from the government which is required under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010," it said.

The investigation by ED has "established that Ms had launched the aforesaid campaigns with the sole intention to cheat the general public and acquired proceeds of crime in form of FD and balances in bank accounts projecting them as untainted", the agency said.

The case against her stems from a September, 2021 FIR of Ghaziabad Police related to alleged irregularities in donor funds.

Ayyub had earlier rejected these allegations saying the money laundering charges levelled against her were "preposterous and wholly mala fide".

(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.)
Top military and defence hardware makers from the US, Europe, and Russia will attend the capital summit 2023 on February 10-12 in Lucknow.



The Yogi Adityanath government will showcase its defence manufacturing backyard of at the investment event.



In probable first-time-ever prospect, the worlds leading military hardware makers will compete in a commercial landscape in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.



According to officials, defence manufacturers that will take part in the event include US missile firm Northrop Grumman, UKs missile launch systems and ammunition maker BAE Systems, German rifle company Umarex, Swedish firm SAAB (which makes Carl Gustaf M4 rifles), Russias Almaz-Antey (among the top military hardware exporters), Frances Dassault Aviation (manufacturer of Rafale jets), and Israel Weapon Industries.
Union Finance Minister met her counterpart Lyonpo Namgay Tshering in Washington on Wednesday and expressed India's wish to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries including hydropower, COVID-19 assistance, among other issues.

Sitharaman, who is on an official visit to the United States, held discussions with minister Tshering on the sidelines of annual meetings of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG).

"Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman meets with Mr Lyonpo Namgay Tshering @BhutanFinance, Finance Minister of Bhutan, on the sidelines of the IMF-WB #AnnualMeetings, in #Washington DC, today," the finance ministry tweeted.

"The FM said that India is looking forward to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries to new and emerging areas such as #space, #DigitalTechnologies, financial sector, health sector and tertiary education," the ministry added.

Sitharaman reiterated that India would like to take forward and "further deepen India- bilateral relations for the development and well-being of our people."

The Finance Minister, on his part, thanked the Indian government for providing aid in implementing their 12th Five-Year Plan and the additional USD 200mn currency swap arrangement.

"Lyonpo Namgay Tshering @BhutanFinance expressed gratitude to GoI for providing assistance in implementing their 12th Five Year Plan and the additional $200mn currency swap arrangement. He also thanked India for the #BhimUPI and #RuPay rollout already done in Bhutan," the ministry said.

On Wednesday, Sitharaman held back-to-back bilateral with global finance ministers and heads of the top international organizations in Washington DC on topics that centred on important economic issues.

Sitharaman is on an official visit to the to attend the IMF and the World Bank annual meetings, the G20 Finance Ministers and the Central Bank Governor (FMCBG) Meetings.

The Finance Minister is holding bilateral meetings with a number of countries from around the world. She is also holding one-on-one meetings with leaders and heads of OECD, the European Commission and UNDP.

On the sidelines of IMF-WB, Sitharaman met ministers from Egypt, Bhutan, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and South Korea on Tuesday. She also met OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann and FATF President Raja Kumar.

During the later part of the visit, the Union Finance Minister will attend roundtable meetings with USIBC and USISPF on themes to 'Strengthen Investment and Innovation in India-US Corridor' and "Investing in India's Digital Revolution".

These meetings with leading business leaders and investors are aimed at highlighting India's policy priorities, and deliberate on measures to facilitate foreign investment by showcasing India's attractiveness as an investment destination.

(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.)
Kolkata: The Mamata Banerjee government on Wednesday handed over the Letter of Intent (LoI) to Adani Group for the development of Tajpur Port at an investment of 25,000 crores in East Midnapore of West Bengal.

Adani Group owner Gautam Adani's son Karan Adani, who is the CEO of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), received the LoI from state industries minister Shashi Panja in presence of the CM at a Bijoya Sammilani event in the city.

On September 19 the state cabinet gave its approval for issuance of the LoI to the APSEZ for the project which will have deep draft of 12.1m with 18KM channel and with a tidal support of 3.9 m leading to a net 16m draft facility enabling large cape size vessels of one lakh DWT.

According to the state government, the project "would create 25 thousand jobs directly besides indirect jobs which would touch one lakh. This deep-sea port will usher in a new era of growth in the state, including in the hinterland areas. The Greenfield port will provide quick access to the world markets to Bengal based industries."

It said, "In fact, all the Eastern states and North East India will be benefited from the dramatically improved connectivity of the port through highways and integrated inland waterways. It will also be linked to the Industrial & economic corridor from Dankuni to Raghunathpur, being developed by the state. Once functional, the port will improve regional logistics and export efficiency of the state and unlock huge industrial & economic opportunities."
Indian students living in developed countries are highly likely to stay there and find local jobs, a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) showed. Nearly one-third of people between the age group of 20 and 29 years come from China and India but Indians are more likely to stay in their host country, an Indian Express (IE) report said citing OECD's findings.

The report further said that Indian students are not just more likely to stay in developed countries on extended permits, but they are also highly likely to get a work permit during their stay.

OECD's "International Migration Outlook 2022" showed trends in international migration flows and policies until 2021 focussing on the countries of origin and destination of students studying in countries. is a group of developed countries.

On the other hand, students from China are more likely to go back to their home country after completing their studies.

"The retention behaviour of Chinese students is more diverse, with overall larger shares leaving after their education," the report said.

In almost every country, including Canada, Germany, Australia, the United Kingdom and Japan, Indians have significantly high retention rates than the Chinese, the IE report added. The transition rates from study permits to work permits too were higher in Indians than in Chinese.

In the US, the number of Indian students applying for the H-1B visa to transition from a study permit to a temporary high-skilled permit was the highest.

More Indian students were found to be enrolled in Masters or PhD courses compared to Chinese. This according to IE, might explain Indian students "quicker transition to the labour market and shorter period on an education permit".
Chief Minister on Wednesday assured a group of farmers that a mutually agreed compensation will be paid for the land to be acquired for the Jewar international airport's second phase, an official spokesperson said.

The state government wants farmers of the state to be happy and those displaced should be rehabilitated wherever they want, he said, while addressing the farmers, who came from Jewar to meet him at his official residence.

In the first phase of the airport, the state government had got 3,300 acre of land.

The chief minister said that the project will be completed in time.

(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.)
Dr Adarsh Swaika, a joint secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, has been appointed India's next to .

"Dr Adarsh Swaika (IFS: 2002), presently Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, has been appointed as the next of to the State of Kuwait," an MEA release said.

He is expected to take up his assignment shortly.

Avtar Singh, a Director in the Ministry of External Affairs, has been appointed as India's next to the Republic of Guinea.

"Avtar Singh (YOA: 2006), presently Director in the Ministry of External Affairs, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of to the Republic of Guinea," an MEA release said.

It said that Singh is expected to take up his assignment shortly.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Minister on Thursday waded into the headscarf issue saying men should strengthen their minds and free women from the .

Vij's tweet came shortly before the Supreme Court delivered a split verdict on a batch of pleas challenging the Karnataka High Court judgement refusing to lift the ban on in educational institutions of the state.

"The men who could not control their excitement upon seeing women forced women to wear . The need was to strengthen their mind, but the punishment was given to the women, they were covered from head to toe. This is grave injustice," the Home minister said in a tweet in Hindi.

In the same tweet, he suggested, "Men should strengthen their minds and free women from hijab."



In February, amid a row over some students wearing hijab in Karnataka, Vij had said the prevailing dress code in schools and colleges must be followed.

In view of the split verdict in the Supreme Court, the bench directed that the appeals against the high court verdict be placed before the Chief Justice of India for constituting an appropriate larger bench.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chief Minister said that the 'New India' takes pride in its sages, culture, traditions, and is strengthening unity.

Citing Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Dham, Ujjain Corridor's inauguration on Tuesday and Ram Temple in Ayodhya, CM said is keeping the country's ancient identity and traditions alive.

Yogi was speaking after unveiling the 'Statue of Dignity' of Hindu philosopher and social reformer Ramanujacharya in Ayodhya on Wednesday.

"Our Vedas, Upanishads, and sacred teachings of Indian sages provide a new vision and inspire us towards public welfare," he said.

Highlighting the spiritual and religious of India, said, "It is a matter of immense pride that after 120 years, the statue of Swami Ramanujacharya (statue of dignity) has been unveiled on the holy land of Lord Shri Rama. is the land of infinite knowledge and wisdom taking forward the of 'Vedas'. Ramanujacharya Ji's sacred teachings showed us the 'dvait marg' to avoid invaders."

The Chief Minister also urged the people to associate with the traditions of Sanatan Dharm and contribute towards the welfare of all and nation-building to realize the goal of 'Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat'.

"In every era, great souls, thinkers, philosophers, social reformers have been descending on our land to give direction to the country and society while their teachings have inspired generations," he further 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.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who launched several projects related to pharma, education and connectivity in Una, said on Thursday that the festival of has arrived eraly for .

Addressing a public rally here, PM Modi said, "The festival of has arrived early for Una and . I am happy to announce gifts worth rupees several thousand crores to Himachal before Dhanteras and . Today I flagged off the inaugural run of the new Vande Bharat train. This is the fourth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country."

Attacking the Congress, he said, "I remember the condition of Himachal. No development was there. The earlier governments in Himachal and those sitting in Delhi also remained indifferent in fulfilling the needs of you people. They could never understand your hopes and aspirations."

Prime Minister said it is the BJP government that is working towards the aspiration of the people and building new infrastructure.

PM Modi, who laid the foundation of Bulk Drug Park here today said the pharma park will attract investment of around Rs 2,000 crore. "Medicines will become cheaper when both, raw materials and production, will be made in Himachal Pradesh," he said.

He said the BJP government not just fulfilling the needs of the people of the 20th century, but is also bringing the modern facilities of the 21st century to every door in Himachal.

"Development of rural roadways, availability of water supply and healthcare facilities along with progress in digital infrastructure has always been the top priority of the government. New India is overcoming the challenges of the past and growing rapidly," he said.

Highlighting the development of rural infrastructure, PM Modi said that rural roads are being constructed in Himachal at double the speed, while connectivity to Gram Panchayats is also being provided at a rapid pace.

With an aim to give further impetus to the pharmaceutical sector, PM Modi on Thursday laid the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park in Una, .

According to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the Drug Park will be built at a cost of over Rs 1,900 crore. The Park will help reduce dependence on active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) imports.

It is expected to attract investment of around Rs 10,000 crores and provide employment to more than 20,000 people. It will also give a fillip to economic activities in the region, said the PMO statement.

PM Modi also launched the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Una. Its foundation stone was laid by the Prime Minister in 2017.

Earlier today, PM Modi flagged off from Una railway station during his visit to the mountain state.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Union minister and Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur were also present on the occasion.

According to Prime Minister's Office (PMO), running from Amb Andaura to New Delhi, it is the fourth Vande Bharat train that has been introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in shorter duration.

It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.

is a new-age train redefining passenger travelling in India.

(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 Thursday flagged off the country's fourth train from Una railway station in .

The train will run between Amb Andaura in to New Delhi.

The new Vande Bharat train is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in shorter duration, officials said.

The train will run six days a week except on Wednesdays, with stops at Ambala, Chandigarh, Anandpur Sahib, and Una. It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.

Earlier, the prime minister was welcomed by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on his arrival at Pekhubela Helipad in Una.

The prime minister will later address two public meetings in Una and Chamba districts after inaugurating and laying foundation stones of various projects in the two districts of the poll-bound state.

This is the prime minister's ninth visit to in the last five years.

Himachal Pradesh is going to polls later this year.

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The two-judge bench of the delivered its judgement in ban case. While, Justice Hemant Gupta's verdict upheld the ban verdict of Karnataka High Court, Justice Dhulia noted that is a matter of choice. Since the verdict is slpit, the Chief Justice will assign the case to a larger bench in due course of time.



Justice Gupta said, "Whether college management can take a call on uniform of students and if wearing of hijab and restricting it is violative of Article 25. Whether rights under Article 19 and Article 25 are mutually exclusive. Whether govt order infringes upon the fundamental right. Can a student exert her fundamental right, is wearing right a part of essential religious practice under Islam, whether government order serves the purpose of access of education? the answer according to me is against the appellant. I dismiss the appeal."



While setting aside the Karnataka High Court order, Justice Dhulia said, "Venturing into ERP was not needed and the court took wrong way. It was just a question of choice. I have held the ratio in Bijoy Emmanuel squarely covers the case. One thing which was topmost for me was the education of girl child. A girl child in areas does household work and chores before going to school and are we making her life any better by doing this. I have respectfully differed. this was a case only dealing with Article 19, and 25."



Earlier, the SC bench had reserved its verdict on the pleas on September 22 after hearing arguments in the matter for 10 days.

On March 15, the high court had dismissed the petitions filed by a section of Muslim students of the Government Pre-University Girls College in Karnataka's Udupi seeking permission to wear the hijab inside classrooms, ruling it is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith.

During the arguments in the apex court, a number of counsel appearing for the petitioners had insisted that preventing Muslim girls from wearing the hijab to the classroom will put their education in jeopardy as they might stop attending classes.

Counsel for the petitioners had argued on various aspects, including on the state government's February 5, 2022 order which banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges.

Some advocates had also argued that the matter be referred to a five-judge constitution bench.

On the other hand, the counsel appearing for the state had argued that the Karnataka government order that kicked up a row over hijab was "religion neutral".

Insisting that the agitation in support of wearing hijab in educational institutions was not a "spontaneous act" by a few individuals, the state's counsel had argued in the apex court that the government would have been "guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty" if it had not acted the way it did.

The state government's order of February 5, 2022 was challenged by some Muslim girls in the high court.

Several pleas have been filed in the apex court challenging the high court verdict.
The will on Thursday pronounce its verdict on a batch of pleas that challenged the High Court's judgement refusing to lift the ban on in educational institutions in the state. The apex court's bench, comprising Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia, had reserved its verdict on September 22 after hearing arguments in the matter for 10 days.

A look at the timeline of the row in Karnataka:

In late December last year, six female students of Government PU College in Udupi claimed that they were not allowed to enter their classrooms wearing . The students protested against the college authorities, saying they were refused to enter the classroom with their faces covered. The protests later gained statewide momentum.

Following suit, Udupi's Bhandarkar college, in on February 4 barred entry of hijab-clad students, becoming the first private college to do so.

On February 5, The BJP-led state government issued a directive backing the order by several educational institutions, and said, Clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public law and order should not be worn. It stated that wearing a headscarf is not an essential religious practice for Muslims and that it can be protected under the Constitution of India.

The Muslim women challenged the state government's order in the Karnataka HC and contended that wearing a hijab is a fundamental right of Muslim women.

Also Read: Karnataka HC on hijab row and the bigger debate of Uniform Civil Code

The high court on February 11 passed an interim order prohibiting students from wearing religious clothing - hijab, saffron stoles, scarves, etc.

In its final verdict on March 15, the Karnataka HC dismissed the petitions filed by the Muslim students and ruled that wearing a hijab is not an essential religious practice.

Several pleas were filed in the apex court challenging Karnataka's HC verdict.

A number of counsel appearing for the petitioners in the apex court during the arguments had insisted that preventing Muslim women from wearing the hijab to the classroom will put their in jeopardy as they might stop attending classes. Meanwhile, the counsel appearing for the state had argued that Karnataka's order was "religion-neutral".
The is scheduled to pronounce its verdict on Thursday on a batch of petitions challenging the High Court judgement refusing to lift the ban on in educational institutions of the state.

According to the apex court's cause list, a bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia will deliver the judgement in the matter on Thursday.

The bench had reserved its verdict on the pleas on September 22 after hearing arguments in the matter for 10 days.

On March 15, the high court had dismissed the petitions filed by a section of Muslim students of the Government Pre-University Girls College in Karnataka's Udupi seeking permission to wear the inside classrooms, ruling it is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith.

During the arguments in the apex court, a number of counsel appearing for the petitioners had insisted that preventing Muslim girls from wearing the to the classroom will put their education in jeopardy as they might stop attending classes.

Counsel for the petitioners had argued on various aspects, including on the state government's February 5, 2022 order which banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges.

Some advocates had also argued that the matter be referred to a five-judge constitution bench.

On the other hand, the counsel appearing for the state had argued that the government order that kicked up a row over hijab was "religion neutral".

Insisting that the agitation in support of wearing hijab in educational institutions was not a "spontaneous act" by a few individuals, the state's counsel had argued in the apex court that the government would have been "guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty" if it had not acted the way it did.

The state government's order of February 5, 2022 was challenged by some Muslim girls in the high court.

Several pleas have been filed in the apex court challenging the high court verdict.

(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.)
RGV believes that the implementation of no-music after 10 pm rule is as barbaric as the Talibans decisions to stop young people from having fun. (Representational image: DC)

HYDERABAD: Calling the ban on music in pubs past 10 in the night as Talibanisation of Hyderabad, film director Ram Gopal Varma wondered why cant young people have little fun after a days hard work.

I didnt realise that Hyderabad is being ruled in Taliban style which is what I felt when I saw a pub looking like a graveyard thanks to the No Music After 10 pm order (sic), tweeted the director, who shows penchant for controversy.

Police started implementing rules on playing music at pubs in the night after the Telangana High Court on September 13 directed police commissioners of Hyderabad city, Rachakonda and Cyberabad to file a report on the action taken against managements of pubs that were playing music beyond the permitted time  10 pm  and beyond the permitted decibel levels.

The film director, however, believes that the implementation of no-music after 10 pm rule is as barbaric as the Talibans decisions to stop young people from having fun. I can understand sound pollution enforcement on a case to case basis but to give a blanket order for all places (sic), Varma said on his Twitter handle.

Please understand that by the time one comes back home from work, gets freshened up, dresses up and drives back to reach a pub, it will be nearly 10 pm and then no music?, he asked.

While issuing directions to the police, Justice Lalitha Kanneganti said on September 30 that if the police implemented the rule concerning the time limit, all pubs in the city would have to go silent by 10 pm.

The term night time, according to the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (a central government legislation), means the period between 10 pm and 6 am.

Just because of some stray incidents, which should be strictly dealt with on a case to case basis, no music after 10 pm seems like banning traffic because of a few accidents While your intentions are respected, I think its insulting to the youth for the government to have a Talibanish outlook towards what they think is right and wrong in terms of the youth just having a good time, the film director said tagging minister K.T. Rama Rao and the Hyderabad commissioner of police.

After the High Courts September 13 direction, the police started a drive on September 30 on pubs to ensure that they comply with the orders on stopping music by 10 pm. The police clarified that pubs cannot claim exemption on the grounds that they are not situated in any residential locality.

Speaking about the action of police, the director said, The policemen, who do vigils at the pubs, behave as if the youth and the pub management are some kind of criminals I wish this attitude changes and they earn the title of friendly police.

The High Courts directions came in response to petition filed B. Subhash Reddy and five others. They were aggrieved by the unbearable noise from the pubs late into the nights. They said that the pub customers park their vehicles in front of their houses.

When the petitions were filed in 2021, Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy had issued notices to officials of all concerned departments asking them to file their contentions.

Notices were also sent to pubs operating in Jubilee Hills, including 800 Jubilee, Farzi Cafe, Amnesia Lounge Bar, Hylife Brewing company, Daily dose bar hop, Dirty Martini Kitchen and Cocktail bar, Broadway, the brewery, Makoberen World coffee and Heart Cup coffee etc. In their response, officials filed their submissions stating that action had been initiated against all violators.
district of Maharashtra has recorded 78 new positive cases, which took its infection tally to 7,45,628, a health official said on Thursday.

These cases were reported on Wednesday, and there are now 372 active cases in the district.

The death toll remained unchanged at 11,962 as nobody succumbed to the infection during the day, he said, adding that the recovery count stood at 7,33,965.

(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 free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the United Kingdom (UK) is reportedly on the verge of collapse following the remarks made by home secretary Suella Braverman on making up the largest number of visa overstayers in the .

"I have concerns about having an open borders migration policy with India because I dont think thats what people voted for with Brexit," Braverman had told the Spectator earlier in the month.

"Look at migration in this country, the largest group of people who overstay are Indian migrants," she added. Braverman further said that the agreement between the Indian and the government to facilitate better cooperation on migration has not "necessarily worked very well".

Ministers in New Delhi were shocked by the comments and the Diwali deadline for the FTA, set by former UK PM Boris Johnson, may not be met, as reported by PTI.

Who is Suella Braverman?

Born in Harrow, Greater London on April 3, 1980, Suella Braverman was christened Sue-Ellen Cassiana Fernandes. She was born to Christie and Uma Fernandes, both of Indian origin.

Christie had his roots in Goa, while Uma came from a Hindu Tamil Mauritian family. Both had migrated to the UK in the 1960s.

Braverman studied at the Heathfield School in London. Later, she studied law at Queens' College, Cambridge. She then completed a master's degree in European and French law at the Pantheon-Sorbonne University.

She was elected to the House of Commons as an MP from Fareham in 2015. She took her oath on "Dhammapada", a collection of teachings of Gautam Buddha. Braverman was then selected as a member of the Education Select Committee.

From January 2018 to November 2018, she was the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Exiting the European Union.

On September 6, she was appointed as the UK's Secretary of State for the Home Department. She was given the responsibility to handle policing and immigration.

She is considered to be a staunch supporter of Brexit and right-wing culture.

"Im proud of the British Empire, Im not going to apologise for our past history," she told The Telegraphs Christopher Hope.
The General Assembly (UNGA) on Wednesday adopted a resolution condemning the Russian annexation of the four Ukrainian regions.

A total of 143 members voted in favour of the resolution while five voted against it. As many as 35 abstained from the resolution, including India.

The resolution comes days after Russia vetoed a similar proposal in Security Council, in which India had abstained.

The latest resolution, adopted by the members where no one wields a veto, condemns Russia's "attempted illegal annexations" of the four Ukrainian regions following "so-called referendums".

This vote comes two days after Ukraine and Russia clashed in the UNGA on Monday.

On Monday, India voted to reject Russia's call to hold a secret ballot at UNGA on a draft resolution to condemn Moscow's "attempted illegal annexation" of Ukrainian territories.

Albania requested an open vote after Russia proposed a secret ballot on the resolution on Ukraine. India voted in favour of a procedural vote called by Albania.

The Albanian proposal received 107 votes in favour, with 13 countries opposed to the vote and 39 abstentions. Twenty-four countries including China, Iran and Russia did not vote.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in the last week of September signed the documents to formally announced the annexation of four regions - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

This week saw heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine after the Crimea bridge blast, which prompted missile strikes on major Ukraine cities from Moscow.

Condemning the Russian actions, UN chief Antonio Guterres said he was deeply shocked and represented "another unacceptable escalation" of the war.

The strikes which have reportedly caused widespread damage to civilian areas and led to dozens of deaths and injuries showed that "as always", civilians were paying the highest price for Russia's invasion of February 24.

Putin this week warned of "harsh" reprisals after the Crimea bridge attack on Saturday. In a television appearance, Putin said Russia had struck military and infrastructure targets across Ukraine following the Crimea bridge blast.

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A clutch of 13 states, with 85 per cent share of Indias (GDP), have the fiscal space of Rs 7.4 trillion for capital spending in the current fiscal (FY23). That is 81 per cent higher than the of Rs 4.1 trillion they incurred in FY22, according to rating agency .

The funding potential is 29 per cent higher than the states' FY23 budget estimate (BE) of Rs 5.8 trillion. ICRAs assessment considered funds likely to be available from the unconditional market borrowings of 3.5 per cent of gross state domestic product (GSDP). It factored the interest-free loan the will give to states.

The 13 states incurred a of Rs 915 billion in April-July 2022, approximately 16 percent of the FY23 budgeted estimates. Muted outgo in early months tempers expectation around actual capex that can be achieved in this fiscal, it said.

Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal will have adequate resources to fully fund or exceed budgeted capex for FY23, said .

However, the fiscal space available for the five governments of Haryana, Rajasthan, Kerala, Punjab, and Telangana appears to trail the capex budgeted for FY23. They may have to engage in additional revenue mobilisation and/or expenditure efficiency measures may need to be found to boost capex, said the agency.

As for the Centres capex, it has budgeted for Rs 7.5 trillion in FY23. This includes the Rs. 1.0 trillion interest-free loan to be provided to state governments for capital spending for 50 years.
The Central government will soon launch 600 Pradhan Mantri Kisan Kendras, which will not just retail fertilisers but offer one-stop solutions to in the form of crop advisories, soil- and seed-testing facilities, retailing seeds and pesticides, and even custom hiring of agricultural equipment and machines.

The kendras, expected to be launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will provide the facilities to under one roof.

They will retail products under the newly launched One Nation One Fertiliser programme of the government. Under that all fertilisers will be sold under the Bharat brand.

Sources said each urea-manufacturing unit would promote 20 such kendras while each P&K (phosphorus and potassium) manufacturer or importer would promote another 20.

The initial plan is to set up around 1,000 such model retail units and the number will be scaled up later, depending on the need and demand.

Sources said government schemes that directly impacted would be showcased at the kendras.

The kendras are also being designed to create awareness among farmers about a balanced use of fertilisers, including organic fertilisers and micronutrients.



Sources said in accordance with the plan, these kendras would have to be located at prominent places in a market or near mandis in villages or blocks so that farmers can access them without difficulty.

It should have the space to accommodate 50-100 farmers so that they can look at the products displayed.

All commercial activities in such kendras such as retailing fertilisers, seeds and pesticides will be done by operators or retailers while extension services such as crop advisories or good farming practices will be provided by Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) or universities.

The retailer of operator of the kendra will have to be in active contact with KVKs and universities for organising programmes. Infrastructure such as computers with printers and internet connection, and the screen, will have to be part of them.

Plans are also being chalked out to ensure that the kendras hold farmers meetings on their premises regularly.

All fertiliser bags, whether they contain urea, di-ammonium phosphate (DAP), muriate of potash (MOP) or NPK, will have names such as Bharat Urea, irrespective of which company manufacturers it and which sector, public or private, it is in.

The order stated the single-brand name and the logo of the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janurvarak Pariyojana (PMBJP), the scheme under which the Central government grants subsidies annually to fertiliser companies, will have to be displayed prominently on all bags while the company name can occupy a smaller portion of the bag.
The Chhattisgarh has succeeded where Akbar, the Mughal emperor from 1556 to 1605, had failed.

The state has surveyed and allotted masahati pattas (land ownership deeds) to inhabitants in the densely forested pocket of the Bastar region.

The emperor, despite the assistance of his able finance minister, Todarmal, had failed to compile revenue records in this area.

The development will facilitate villagers in getting benefits of of the Central and state governments.

A masahati study is a kind of land revenue survey. Under the system, the administration determines the landholdings of villagers through their gram sabhas instead of conducting a revenue survey, which involves capturing satellite images of the area and door-to-door compilations of records.

Chief Minister had directed officials to conduct a masahati survey in the Abujhmad area, which had never been surveyed, given the inaccessible terrain.

According to reports, revenue officials of Akbar, who was the first to conduct a revenue survey in the country, failed to enter the region.

The attempt of British officials too went in vain.

Straddling Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, Abujhmad, or unknown hills, is spread over 6,000 square km and a major part of it is in Chhattisgarh. Covered with dense forests, the area is cut off from the mainstream of life and is a haven for Maoists.

The Chhattisgarh had notified conducting a masahati survey in 246 villages in the region. Of those, 237 are located in the Orchha block while nine are in the Narayanpur block.

The survey of 93 villages, including all nine of the Narayanpur block and 84 of the Orchha block, has been completed, a state government spokesperson said.

More than 5,000 people have received masahati pattas so far, the spokesperson said, adding that the remaining part of the survey is going on at a rapid pace.

After getting the rights, villagers will be eligible to take the benefits of the of the state government. Officials said the farmers of about 246 villages here had faced a lot of difficulty for generations because there was no record of their lands in the government database.

Due to this, they were unable to get benefits of such as loans and selling paddy at support prices.

Earlier, villagers were dependent on rain for irrigation but now, after the distribution of the pattas, they can get solar pumps under a government scheme. Besides, they can sell paddy at the minimum support price. They used to sell paddy to traders at a throwaway price of Rs 10-15 a kg.
Finance Minister has said that India has maintained accelerated growth momentum, after the contraction in 2020, by balancing the immediate needs of the economy with long-term structural reforms.

She said this on Wednesday while speaking in the first session of the 4th G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Washington DC on the sidelines of the ongoing IMF-WB annual meetings 2022.

She spoke on the global economy, focussing on India's economic development and policy responses, the Finance Ministry tweeted.

Sitharaman called for enhanced policy cooperation and sharing of experiences to deal with downside risks and their spillovers.

The Finance Minister is expected to make her interventions in several sessions during the two-day meeting, official sources said.

--IANS

ans/dpb

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India's in September jumped to their highest in a year, boosted by strong demand ahead of the peak festival season and a steep discount to rival oils, a leading trade body said on Thursday.

Higher buying by the world's biggest importer of vegetable oils could help top producer Indonesia trim stocks and support benchmark Malaysian prices, which have nearly halved from this year's record highs.

The September imports jumped 18% from a month ago to 1.17 million tonnes, the highest since last September, the Solvent Extractors' Association of India, a trade body based in Mumbai, said in a statement.

"Palm oil's discount to soyoil has been rising and making it very attractive for Indian refiners to fulfil festival season demand," said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.

India celebrated the Hindu festival Dussehra last week and other key festivals such as Diwali, the festival of lights, and Dhanteras come up this month, a time when edible oil demand usually rises.

Palm oil was more than $400 per tonne cheaper than rival soyoil for November shipments as Indonesia sought to reduce its stocks.

Global palm oil purchases are rising in the December quarter as buyers take advantage of its widening discount to rival soyoil, which should lure price-sensitive consumers and boost biofuel use, senior industry officials said this week.

Soyoil imports in September rose 7% from a month ago to 261,815 tonnes, while those of sunflower oil jumped 18% to 159,810 tonnes, the SEA said.

Sunflower oil imports in the month rose as shipments from top supplier Ukraine resumed after a gap of nearly four months and prices fell, dealers said.

India buys palm oil mainly from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, while it imports soyoil and sunflower oil from Argentina, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine.

(Reporting by Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; Editing by Jan Harvey and Clarence Fernandez)

(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.)
India has reached out to towards settlement of in as part of its push towards internationalisation of the domestic currency.

We have reached out to through the ministry of external affairs and have made our proposal. is yet to take a decision on this, an official told Business Standard .

If implemented, India will be able to import crude oil from the African country, and make the payment in local currencies. This can boost exports and save the countrys forex reserves that are currently under pressure, the official cited above said.

Separately, of India to Sudan, B S Mubarak, and key member banks of both the countries last month discussed the opportunities for bilateral trade and investment. Bankers from India and Sudan discussed the modalities and decided to explore the correspondent banking relationship as well as special vostro accounts option between both the countries.

Sudan is Indias 75th largest trading partner. The total trade between the two stood at $1.21 billion as compared to Indias total trade of over $1 trillion during 2021-22. India exported goods worth $1.07 billion during the last fiscal year, while imports were to the tune of $129 million only.

India primarily exports food products, petroleum, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, chemicals, including pharmaceuticals and textiles to Sudan, and imports items such as sesame seed, cotton, watermelon seeds, hides and skins and ground nuts. India currently doesnt import oil from the African nation.

In July, the RBI had unveiled a mechanism to settle international transactions in to promote the growth of global trade, with emphasis on exports from India. Most importantly, the move is a recognition of the as an international currency. Some banks, such as YES Bank, are in the process of establishing the rupee-mechanism, with countries such as Russia.

Since then, bankers have had meetings with Russia, Cuba, and Luxembourg towards exploring bilateral trade with these countries through rupee payment mechanism. Separately, commerce and external affairs ministry officials have also been pushing rupee trade with Saudi Arabia and the .

During its meeting with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said it was looking up additional exports in Russia through rupee payment mechanism. has requested Goyal to look into extending this mechanism for exports to countries having an acute forex shortage.
The National Highways Authority of Indias (NHAIs) infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) has no immediate plan to allow retail investment into InvIT's equity, said Suresh Goyal, managing director and chief executive officer of the trust.

The has issued bonds to encourage retail investment.

Goyal told a press conference on Thursday that deliberations were on with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to make the private-listed public. A decision on whether and when to make the transition would take time. The trust is barely a year old.

The trust issued non-convertible debentures (NCDs) worth Rs 1,500 crore, allowing investors to invest a minimum of Rs 10,000 at a 7.9 per cent coupon rate, with returns beginning from the eighth year. The tenor of the bond is 25 years with an effective yield of 8.05 per cent, the management said.

The NCD issuance has a 25 per cent reservation for retail investors.

Union Minister said that the NCD issue, InvITs first, was done to allow common citizens to benefit from infrastructural growth and get good returns.

There is no problem with funding as there are pension funds and others willing to invest. But Ive decided that now Ill make roads with the money of retired senior citizens, and from small people like constables, journalists, and service people. They can invest in . My toll income is Rs 40,000 crore currently, and by the end of 2024, it will be Rs 1.4 trillion, Gadkari had said at Business Standards India@75 conclave last month.

The InvIT, which saw an infusion of Rs 6,011 crore of capital from two Canadian institutional investors in the first issuance, has raised Rs 1,217 crore in the latest round. The investments came from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board, State Bank of India, SBI Pension Fund, SBI Mutual Fund, Employee Provident Fund, L&T Staff Provident Fund, Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Karamchari Pension Fund, TATA AIG, and Star Union Daiichi Life Insurance.

It plans to expand its equity investor pool in the coming rounds of issuance.

The issuance will be financed through Rs 1,430 crore of funds raised through distribution of units, Rs 850 crore of bank loans, and the NCDs.

NHAI, as the InvITs sponsor, invested Rs 213 crore to maintain a 15 per cent unit-holding. The fundraise will help the trust acquire three road projects from at an enterprise value of Rs 3,800 crore. Union road transport and highways secretary Giridhar Aramane had reportedly said that another issuance worth Rs 7,000 crore was in the works and could be completed before the end of the financial year.

The highway authority has committed to offer 1,500 kms of operational highways to the InvIT over the next three years. With the acquisition of three road projects through the latest issuance, NHAI InvIT will own, operate, and maintain a portfolio of eight operating toll roads with an aggregate length of 636 kms spread across the states of Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh, with concession period ranging between 20 and 30 years.
HYDERABAD: Hyderabad-based businessman Abhishek Boinpally, who appeared before CBI officials for questioning in connection with the Delhi liquor scam case for the third day in a row on Wednesday, reportedly remained silent when asked about hawala' transactions.

Abhishek Boinpally's three-day police custody ended on Wednesday, and the CBI's main focus of questioning was on 'hawala' transactions and political leaders' involvement in the case. When the investigation agency asked about money transfer to Abhishek's account from one of the accused, Sameer Mahendru, managing director of Indospirit, the Hyderabad-based businessman allegedly replied that it was purely business-related transactions with no connection to the Delhi liquor case, sources said.

"Abhishek Boinapally was part of several meetings held in Delhi, Mumbai, and Hyderabad with the accused and other liquor traders in connection with the formulation of liquor policy and to derive benefits of the provisions of the excise policy, CBI officials stated in the remand report.

Further, agency officials stated that Abhishek was a part of a conspiracy in which he transferred money through hawala channels to co-accused Vijay Nair, a former AAP leader and businessman, via co-accused Dinesh Arora prior to the Delhi excise policy's implementation from November 2021 to July 2022.

The money transferred by the co-accused Sameer Mahendru of Indospirit has also finally landed in the account of Abhishek Boinapally. "When the agency found the role of Abhishek Boinapally, the agency served notices asking to appear before the agency for questioning. The accused appeared before the CBI on October 7, 8 and 9. He was interrogated in connection with the allegations and confronted with the available evidence. However, Abhishek sought time to rethink and recollect the facts for replying to the questions," the CBI officials said.

The CBI officials who registered cases under sections 120B, 466 A of the IPC, and section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 against 14 people, including Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, have so far arrested two people in connection with the case: Vijay Nair from Mumbai and Abishek Boinapally from Hyderabad.
The said on Wednesday that almost three-quarters of the six million Venezuelan migrants currently in Latin America do not have adequate food, shelter, employment or medical care.

The UN's Organisation for Migration said in a report that 4.37 million of the Venezuelans who fled to other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean often live on the streets or inadequate housing, and often go hungry.

Latin America and the Caribbean host 84 per cent of the estimated total of about 7 million Venezuelans who emigrated in recent years.

The IOM and the UN refugee agency said that half of the Venezuelans in Latin America can't afford three meals a day.

Many are forced to turn to sex work to meet their basic needs, the report said. Other take out informal loans or turn to begging.

In Colombia, one of the countries that has received the largest number of Venezuelans, 29 per cent of Venezuelan children between the ages of 6 and 17 are not enrolled in school.

Colombia's human rights ombudsman, Carlos Camargo, said the influx of migrants often from Haiti or Venezuela waiting to cross the dangerous, jungle-clad Darien Gap into Panama is much more serious than last year.

The number of migrants that have crossed into Panama is over 150,000, compared to 134,000 migrants in all of 2021, and the numbers are growing, Camargo said.

Increasing numbers of Venezuelans are crossing Central America and Mexico and are arriving at the US border.

Venezuelans recently surpassed Guatemalans and Hondurans to become the second-largest nationality stopped at the US border after Mexicans.

In August, Venezuelans were stopped 25,349 times, up 43 per cent from 17,652 in July and four times the 6,301 encounters in August 2021, signalling a remarkably sudden demographic shift.

The administration of US President Joe Biden is developing plans for Venezuelans with financial sponsors to be granted parole to enter the United States, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted after Russia's invasion.

Four officials offered broad outlines of the plan to deal with a large increase in Venezuelans arriving at the US border with Mexico. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly.

Venezuelans who cross the border illegally by land would be immediately returned to Mexico, two officials said. Currently, Mexico only accepts migrants expelled under Title 42 authority a pandemic-era rule that denies migrants rights to seek asylum and is designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 if they are from Guatemala, El Salvador or Honduras, in addition to Mexico.

Venezuelans who qualify for parole would enter the US at airports, two officials said, mirroring a program introduced in April that allows Ukrainians with financial sponsors to stay for up to two years.

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Russian President has made a veiled threat suggesting that all energy infrastructure in the world is a legitimate military target after the Nord Stream pipeline explosion last month, the media reported.

The authoritarian leader said the blast in the gas pipeline, which western intelligence agencies have blamed on his own country, was a terrorist attack and this has set 'the most dangerous precedent', Daily Mail reported.

Speaking at an energy forum in Moscow yesterday, the Russian president warned that 'any critically important object of transport, energy or utilities infrastructure is under threat'.

In a hidden jab aimed at the west, he suggested that this applied no matter where the infrastructure resides or who manages it, Daily Mail reported.

It comes as nations in Europe try to get set for a tough winter that is set to be dominated by surging energy prices and potential gas shortages brought on by Putin's illegal war in Ukraine and the subsequent damage to the Nord Stream pipeline.

Despite the threat, Britain has promised to continue its support of Ukraine and has promised to send rockets to defend its cities in the wake of Russian barrages that killed at least 19 people and injured scores more earlier this week.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky had called for more help with his country's air defence after the latest attacks and the UK seems set to answer by sending AMRAAM rockets capable of knocking out cruise missiles.

--IANS

san/pgh

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A complete US ban on Russian aluminum threatens to upend a global market already reeling from multiple disruptions, throwing a spotlight on how China could fill any supply gap.

The Biden administration is considering options including sanctions on Russias top producer of the metal as the White House looks to punish Moscow for its military escalations in Ukraine, according to people familiar with the deliberations. The measures would add to a tumultuous year of price swings, supply shifts and demand turmoil in the wake of Russias February invasion.

In a scenario of sanctions against Russian aluminum, the western aluminum market would be exposed to extreme tightening, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. wrote in an emailed note. Prices would rise much higher and China would export more semi-processed aluminum, the banks analysts including Nicholas Snowdon wrote.





Sanctions on United Co. Rusal PJSC would be the most consequential of the options under consideration, which also include a a US import ban, or punitive tariffs on Russian supplies. Russia is the worlds second-biggest supplier of aluminum after China.

Aluminum prices surged to a record in March in the immediate aftermath of Russias attack, but have receded as Russian metal has largely kept flowing to global markets. Europes energy crisis has also pummeled demand and shuttered smelters there, while the London Metal Exchange has separately opened discussions about banning new Russian metal from its warehouses.

Aluminum fell 0.7% to $2,290 a ton on the LME on Thursday, after posting one of its biggest spikes on record the previous day, following the report about the White Houses discussions. Rusals shares in Hong Kong dropped as much as 8.1%.

Stranded Aluminum



The worst scenario is Europe and the US will block Russian aluminum, Shanghai-based Chaos Ternary Research Institute wrote in an emailed note. Stranded Russian aluminum will most likely flow to China, India and elsewhere, followed by Chinas exports of aluminum products into Europe and the US to fill the gap.

China is by far both the worlds biggest producer and consumer of aluminum. Under a reconfiguration of trade flows, metal from Russia could potentially be used by its domestic industries, with China then boosting overseas sales of its own metal along its well-established export routes.

There is precedent for the curbs on Rusal. In 2018, the US placed sanctions on the firm as relations with Russia soured, triggering so much turmoil in the market that the measures were rolled back in early 2019. At the time, there was also much speculation about whether Russian aluminum could flow to China, and Rusals billionaire founder Oleg Deripaska even visited Beijing to discuss cooperation.

Eventually, China will ship in discounted primary aluminum from Russia then export out aluminum products to the west, Wei Lai, an analyst with TF Futures, said by phone from Shanghai. Chinas aluminum exports have already hit record levels in May this year, amid a domestic slowdown in demand.
China represents America's most consequential geopolitical challenge to the United States, said National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan on Wednesday as the Biden administration released a key policy document on national security.

"Next, we recognize that in the geopolitical space, the PRC represents America's most consequential geopolitical challenge. And while that will play out in the Indo-Pacific to a significant extent, there are global dimensions to the challenge as well," Sullivan said during an on-the-record press call previewing the Biden-Harris administration's national security strategy.

The National Security Strategy states that both China and Russia, who announced a "no-limits partnership" this year, are increasingly aligned with each other but the challenges they pose are distinct.

However, Sullivan the security strategy also makes clear that the US avoid seeing the world solely through the prism of strategic competition and it intends not to try to divide the world into rigid blocks.

"We are not seeking to have competition tip over into confrontation or a new Cold War. And we are not engaging each country as simply a proxy battleground. We're going to engage countries on their own terms and pursue an affirmative agenda to advance common interests and to promote stability and prosperity," he said.

The policy document contends that competition with China is most pronounced in the Indo-Pacific, but it is also increasingly global.

"Around the world, the contest to write the rules of the road and shape the relationships that govern global affairs is playing out in every region and across economics, technology, diplomacy, development, security, and global governance," it adds.

The US Security Strategy highlighted that the next ten years will be a decisive decade of competition with China.

"We stand now at the inflection point, where the choices we make and the priorities we pursue today will set us on a course that determines our competitive position long into the future," the document says.

The policy states that many US allies and partners, especially in the Indo-Pacific, stand on the frontlines of China's coercion and are rightly determined to seek their own security, and prosperity.

"We will support their ability to make sovereign decisions in line with their interests and values, free from external pressure, and work to provide high-standard and scaled investment, development assistance, and markets," it adds. On the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the document says Moscow's "imperialist foreign policy" culminated "in a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in an attempt to topple its government and bring it under Russian control."

Over the past decade, the Russian government has chosen to pursue an imperialist foreign policy with the goal of overturning key elements of the order, the document says.

The Biden administration says that Russia now poses an immediate and persistent threat to peace and stability.

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Its not just Dubais luxury home sales that are on a tear, rental prices are too.



The average annual rent for a villa, or family home, in the emirate reached 268,758 dirhams ($73,171) last month after prices jumped 26% in the year through September, according to real estate adviser CBRE Group Inc. Average apartment rents, meanwhile, soared 27% to 89,986 dirhams.

The surge in rental prices is being driven by a growing number of expatriate workers moving to the city, according to CBREs head of research Taimur Khan. It also mirrors soaring luxury real-estate prices, which jumped 89% over the past year, property consultant Knight Frank said earlier this week.

The average sale price for villas rose 14%, while apartment prices rose 9% through September, according to CBRE. But CBRE warned that such rapid growth may impact Dubais attractiveness.

The rate of growth in certain typologies and neighborhoods may start to impact affordability in the city very significantly, Khan said. This in turn may impact its competitiveness and lead a negative spill over into other sectors, particularly amidst a high cost of living and softer global economic backdrop.

Demand to rent and buy homes in is booming as the governments handling of the pandemic and its liberal visa policies attract more foreign buyers and residents. The emirates real-estate market is benefitting from an influx of newcomers including bankers fleeing strict Covid restrictions in Asia, crypto investors and wealthy Russians escaping their sanctions-hit country after its invasion of Ukraine.

Rentals for apartments on the citys man-made island, Palm Jumeirah, reached the highest level at 231,397 dirhams on average. While annual villa rentals in the swanky neighborhood of Al Barari hit 946,270 dirhams, CBRE said.

Fastest Pace Ever



Rates are rising at the fastest pace ever and thats making the gulf between core areas and secondary areas much more pronounced, CBREs Khan said. Some secondary areas are seeing occupancy levels of around 95%.

The surge is pricing some out of prime areas. Sahar Samara, for instance, is moving her family out of their 4-bedroom apartment on the Palm Jumeirah to a villa 30-minutes away on the outskirts of town. After being served an eviction notice, Samara scouted for a home in the neighborhood but found comparable properties listed for 475,000 dirhams -- a 150% increase on her current rent.

Its exhausting with so much financial cost and emotional distress especially for the kids who will now be away from friends and will have a long ride to school, she said.

Rental prices may start to moderate by early next year, CBREs Khan said. Monthly increases are slowing, an indication that many renters are voting with their feet and moving to cheaper areas, he said.

Demand from buyers has also surged. The number of home sales in the year through to September reached their highest level since 2009, CBRE said.
has now let go around 10,000 employees in as it makes its exit from the country, the French news agency AFP quoted the company as saying on Thursday, as the Swedish furniture giant reported record annual sales.



IKEA, the world's biggest furniture brand, shut down its Russian stores in March and said it would sell factories, close offices and reduce its 15,000-strong workforce in .



The company had said it would continue to pay staff until the end of August.



Jesper Brodin, the CEO of Ingka group, owner of IKEA's stores, told AFP that it had had to lay off around 10,000 of its 12,000 retail employees in .



Brodin said Ingka had not yet decided whether to sell the stores in Russia. Ingka's shopping malls remain open.

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The Indiana Supreme Court issued an order on Wednesday that prevents the state from enforcing a Republican-backed ban while it considers whether the ban violates the state constitution.

The court said in the order that it was taking over appeals of a judge's decision last month that blocked the law a week after it took effect.

It denied a request from the state attorney general's office to set aside the preliminary injunction and scheduled a hearing on the lawsuit filed by clinic operators for January 12.

Owen County Judge Kelsey Hanlon blocked the law from being enforced, writing that there is reasonable likelihood that this significant restriction of personal autonomy offends the liberty guarantees of the Indiana Constitution and that the clinics will prevail in the lawsuit.

The ban was approved by the state's Republican-dominated Legislature on August 5 and signed by GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb.

That made Indiana the first state to enact tighter restrictions after the US Supreme Court eliminated federal abortion protections by overturning Roe v. Wade in June.

The five-member Supreme Court, all of whom were appointed by Republican governors, did not explain their decision. The order, signed by Chief Justice Loretta Rush, said a majority of the court agreed with its provisions but gave no further details.

The Indiana ban aimed to replace state laws that generally prohibited abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy and tightly restricted them after the 13th week.

The ban includes exceptions allowing abortions in cases of rape and incest, before 10 weeks post-fertilisation; to protect the life and physical health of the mother; and if a fetus is diagnosed with a lethal anomaly.

Indiana's seven abortion clinics were to lose their state licenses under the ban which only permits abortions within its narrow exceptions to take place in hospitals or outpatient surgical centres.

Amy Hagstrom Miller, president of Whole Woman's Health, said its South Bend clinic will likely resume appointments for abortion patients next week.

Since the injunction was issued on September 22, the clinic has been able to replace staff members it lost after the ban took effect. That includes doctors who do the abortions, some of whom are now available to see patients through November, she said.

That is some stability and security for the patients that we haven't had in quite some time, Hagstrom Miller told The Associated Press.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which is representing Planned Parenthood and other abortion clinic operators, filed the lawsuit on August 31.

It argued that the ban would prohibit the overwhelming majority of abortions in Indiana and, as such, will have a devastating and irreparable impact on the plaintiffs and, more importantly, their patients and clients.

Ken Falk, the ACLU of Indiana's legal director, pointed to the state constitution's declaration of rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in arguing before the county judge that it included a right to privacy and to make decisions on whether to have children.

The state attorney general's office said the court should uphold the ban, saying arguments against it are based on a novel, unwritten, historically unsupported right to abortion in the state constitution.

The attorney general's office had asked the Supreme Court to take over the case, bypassing the typical intermediate step of it being considered by the state appeals court.

Planned Parenthood can present no textual or historical argument in support of a right to abortion, and the Indiana Supreme Court rightly concluded that it needs to resolve the issue right away, Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita said in a statement.

The leader of Indiana's most prominent anti-abortion group said it was deeply disappointed and estimated that at least 3,000 abortions will take place in the state while awaiting a decision from the court.

Although we are confident the law will be upheld, it will be far too late for those whose lives will be lost as this is argued in the courts, Indiana Right to Life CEO Mike Fichter said in a statement.

Indiana's ban followed the political firestorm over a 10-year-old rape victim who travelled to the state from neighbouring Ohio to end her pregnancy.

The case gained wide attention when an Indianapolis doctor said the child came to Indiana because of Ohio's fetal heartbeat ban.

An Ohio judge has blocked that state's law while a court challenge to it proceeds.

With Indiana's law remaining on hold and a pre-statehood Arizona law blocked last week, bans on abortion at any point in pregnancy are in place in 14 states.

In Wisconsin, clinics have stopped providing abortions amid litigation over whether an 1849 ban is in effect. Georgia bans abortions once cardiac activity can be detected and Florida, Arizona and Utah have bans that kick in after 15 or 18 weeks gestation.

The question of whether the Indiana Constitution protects abortion rights is undecided.

A state appeals court decision in 2004 said privacy was a core value under the state constitution that extended to all residents, including women seeking abortions.

But the Indiana Supreme Court later set aside that ruling without addressing whether the state constitution included such a right.

Hanlon, a Republican who was first elected in 2014 as a judge in the rural southern Indiana county, wrote in her injunction order that Indiana's constitution is more explicit in its affirmation of individual rights and its limitation of legislative power to intrude into personal affairs than the US Constitution.

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NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group met Thursday as the military alliance presses ahead with plans to hold a nuclear exercise next week as concerns deepen over President Vladimir Putin's insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

Defense ministers led the session, which usually happens once or twice a year, at headquarters in Brussels.

It comes against a backdrop of high tension as some allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

is keeping a wary eye on Russia's movements, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture.

But additional uncertainty comes from the fact that is also due to hold its own nuclear exercises soon, possibly at the same time as NATO or just after, according to NATO diplomats.

That could complicate the 30-country military organisation's reading of the war and of Moscow's intentions.

will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise, U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters. But what we don't want is to do things out of routine.

This is a routine exercise and it's all about readiness, Wallace said, just as NATO's meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.

NATO's exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon, is held around the same time every year and runs for about one week.

It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but doesn't involve any live bombs. Conventional jets, and surveillance and refueling aircraft also routinely take part.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in the exercise, which was planned before invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 1,000 kilometers from Russia.

NATO as an organisation doesn't possess any weapons.

The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

With the Russian army retreating under the blows of Ukrainian forces armed with Western weapons, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and declaring a partial mobilisation of up to 300,000 reservists to buttress the crumbling front line.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signalled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains.

The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric. He said he has spoken to Putin several times.

We have a (nuclear) doctrine which is clear, Macron said. The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.

Too many people are talking about it, he said.

Earlier this week, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg described Putin's remarks as dangerous and reckless, and underlined that the allies have also conveyed clearly to Russia that it will have severe consequences if they use nuclear weapons in any way.

Stoltenberg warned that it would be absolutely the wrong signal to send if the world's biggest security organisation were to cancel the maneuvers.

NATO's firm, predictable behaviour, our military strength, is the best way to prevent escalation, he said.

If we now created the grounds for any misunderstandings, miscalculations in Moscow about our willingness to protect and defend all allies, we would increase the risk of escalation.

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were 8.3 per cent higher in September 2022 compared with September 2021 in New Zealand, the country's statistics department Stats NZ said on Thursday.

The annual increase was also 8.3 per cent in August 2022, the highest since July 2009, Xinhua news agency quoted Stats NZ as saying.

In September 2022, the annual increase was due to rises across all the broad food categories measured, with grocery food being the largest contributor to this movement, it said.

"Increasing prices for yoghurt, two-minute noodles, and tomato-based pasta sauce were the largest drivers within grocery food," consumer prices manager Katrina Dewbery said.

The second-largest contributor to the annual movement was fruit and vegetables. The items within this group that influenced this movement the most were capsicums, tomatoes, and broccoli.

Monthly were 0.4 percent higher in September 2022 compared with August 2022. After adjusting for seasonal effects, they were up 0.9 per cent.

Fruit and vegetables fell 0.1 per cent, but after seasonal adjustment rose 3.9 per cent.

"This seasonal movement for fruit and vegetables indicates that based off previous patterns a larger fall in fruit and vegetables for the September month is more typical," Dewbery said.

"This helps explain why the overall seasonally adjusted movement is higher than the unadjusted increase."

--IANS

ksk/

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on Friday launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters and flew warplanes near the border with South Korea, the South's military said, further raising animosities triggered by the North's recent barrage of weapons tests.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch happened early Friday but gave no further details including how far the weapon flew.

The Japanese Defense Ministry and prime minister's office also tweeted that launched a possible missile.

It's the latest in a spate of missile launches by in recent weeks. North Korea said Thursday that leader Kim Jong Un supervised the test-launches of long-range cruise missiles that he said successfully demonstrated his military's expanding nuclear strike capabilities.

North Korea said earlier this week that its missile tests in the past two weeks were simulated nuclear attacks on key South Korean and U.S. targets. North Korea said the weapons tests were meant as a warning to Seoul and Washington for staging dangerous joint naval exercises involving a U.S. aircraft carrier.

The North Korean launches, part of its record-breaking run of weapons tests this year, were seen as an attempt by Kim to acquire a more intimidating arsenal to pressure its rivals to accept his country as a legitimate nuclear state and lift economic sanctions.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff also said in a statement that North Korea had flown warplanes near the rivals' border late Thursday and early Friday, prompting to scramble fighter jets.

The North Korean planes flew as close as 12 kilometers (7 miles) north of the inter-Korean border.

The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said it responded by scrambling F-35 jets and other warplanes. There were no reports of clashes.

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CHENNAI: BJP state president K. Annamalai said on Thursday that any entrance examination in India could be held only as per the Schedule Eight of the Constitution and that only the languages listed in that schedule were the official languages even as the DMKs youth and students wings had called for a state-wide protest against Hindi imposition.

Speaking to media persons at the airport, on his arrival from the US, Annamalai said that if candidates in Tamil Nadu were forced to write any examination in Hindi, the state BJP would not accept it and urged the DMK to administer the state for the benefit of the people and not to play needless politics.

The remarks on the language issue by Annamalai comes in the wake of the clarion call given by the DMKs youth wing secretary Udhaynidhi Stalin for a joint agitation by the youth and student wings on Saturday, October 15, to protest against Hindi imposition in the state.

Udhayanidhi Stalin, in a statement, had alleged that there was a bid to thrust Hindi on the people of the state which was evident through the report submitted by the Union home minister-led Parliamentary committee recommending Hindi as medium of instruction in top institutions like the IITs, IIMs and AIIMs.

The DMKs youth wing secretary also questioned the need for conducting a single entrance test for all educational boards in the country, as suggested by the Union minister of state for education Rajkumar Ranjan Singh. He said it was the RSS idea of one nation, one language, one religion and one culture that was in play and said that it would destroy the plurality of the country.

Perhaps, it was in a bid to take the wind out of the DMKs sail on the Hindi imposition issue that Annamalai came out with his statement that the state BJP would not support any examination in Hindi in Tamil Nadu.

Udhayanidhi Stalin, who had categorically stated that the committee headed by Amit Shah had also recommended that examinations for recruiting people for jobs in the Union Government be held in Hindi, alleged that such a move would force people to learn Hindi and also deprive youth from non-Hindi speaking states jobs in the Union government.

Such an entrance examination would be an injustice to the poor and downtrodden who had been denied their rights to employment and agitate against the principles of equality and equal opportunities, Udhayanidhi Stalin said.

The DMK is also making efforts to make the October 15 protest a success and the clarion call for it has been given by the partys Youth Wing secretary. The partys students wing secretary C V M P Ezhilarasan has also been roped in for the protest that could turn out to be a major event, drawing the attention of the Union Government.

It is in this context that Annamalai had made remarks to the effect that the Union government had no plans of imposing Hindi. He said that the BJP government had only analysed the Hindi language policy adopted since the time of Congress rule.

It had only categorised States on the basis of Hindi usage. Those using Hindi fully had been categorised as A, while those partly using the language had been placed under category B and those not using the language at all as C. Tamil Nadu had come third in the C category, he said.

So though Annamalai had said that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin was afraid of the growth of BJP in the State, his position on the language issue that is diametrically opposite to the avowed principle of his party at the national level only points to the fears that have gripped him over the possibility of the DMK gaining political mileage through the agitation.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised tests of long-range cruise missiles, which he described as a successful demonstration of his military's expanding nuclear strike capabilities and readiness for actual war", state media said on Thursday.

Wednesday's tests extended a record number of weapons demonstrations this year by North Korea, which has punctuated its testing activity with threats to preemptively use nuclear weapons against South Korea and the United States if it perceives its leadership as under threat.

Analysts say Kim is exploiting the distraction created by Russia's war on Ukraine, using it as a window to accelerate arms development as he pursues a full-fledged nuclear arsenal that could viably threaten regional US allies and the American homeland.

South Korean officials say Kim may also conduct a nuclear test in the coming weeks or months, escalating a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the United States to accept the idea of as a nuclear power that can negotiate economic and security concessions from a position of strength.

North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said the two missiles during Wednesday's tests flew for nearly three hours, drawing oval and figure eight-shaped patterns above its western seas, and showed that they can hit targets 2,000 kilometres (1,240 miles) away.

The tests demonstrated the accuracy and war-fighting efficiency of the weapon system that has already been deployed at army units operating tactical battlefield nuclear weapons, the agency said.

Kim after the tests praised the readiness of his nuclear combat forces, which he said were fully prepared for actual war to bring enemies under their control at a blow with various weapons systems that are mobile, precise and powerful", according to the report.

He said that the tests send another clear warning to enemies and vowed to further expand the operational realm of his nuclear armed forces to resolutely deter any crucial military crisis and war crisis at any time and completely take the initiative in it.

Wednesday's tests were the first known weapons demonstrations by after it launched 12 ballistic missiles in a span of two weeks through October 9 in what it described as simulated nuclear attacks on South Korean and US targets.

Those weapons included a new intermediate range ballistic missile that flew over Japan while demonstrating potential range to reach Guam, a major US military hub in the Pacific, and a short-range missile fired from an unspecified platform inside an inland reservoir.

said those drills were meant as a warning to Seoul and Washington for staging dangerous joint naval exercises involving the nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in recent weeks, which were meant to be the allies' show of strength in face of growing North Korean threats.

Concerns about Kim's expanding nuclear arsenal has grown since his rubber-stamp parliament last month passed a new law that authorised preemptive use of nuclear weapons over a broad range of scenarios, including non-war situations, where it may perceive its leadership as under threat.

South Korea's military has since warned North Korea that it would self-destruct if it uses its bombs by triggering an overwhelming response from the allies.

While Kim's intercontinental ballistic missiles targeting the American homeland have gathered much of the attention, he has also been expanding his arsenal of shorter-range weapons aimed at overwhelming missile defences in South Korea.

The North describes some of those weapons as tactical, which experts say communicate a threat to arm them with small battlefield nukes and proactively use them during conflicts to blunt the stronger conventional forces of South Korea and the United States, which stations about 28,500 troops in the South.

North Korea has fired more than 40 ballistic and cruise missiles over more than 20 launch events this year, exploiting a divide in the UN Security Council deepened over Russia's war on Ukraine.

The council's permanent Moscow and Beijing have rejected US-led proposals to impose tighter sanctions on Pyongyang over its intensified testing activity.

Experts say the North's next nuclear test, which would be its seventh overall since 2006, is likely to be the first that the Security Council fails to meet with new sanctions.

Nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang have stalled since early 2019 over disagreements in exchanging the release of crippling US-led sanctions against the North and the North's denuclearisation steps.

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The US space agency has now set the next launch attempt of the Artemis I for November 14, after facing two failed attempts due to liquid hydrogen gas leak in one of the engines.

The liftoff of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft is planned during a 69-minute launch window.

Artemis I is an uncrewed flight test to launch SLS and send Orion around the Moon and back to Earth to thoroughly test its system before flights with astronauts.

"Teams will perform standard maintenance to repair minor damage to the foam and cork on the thermal protection system and recharge or replace batteries on the rocket, several secondary payloads, and the flight termination system," said in a statement late on Wednesday.

The space agency plans to roll the rocket back to the launch pad as early as November 4.

had pushed back the Artemis I launch to November in the wake of hurricane Ian.

It said that over the coming days, managers will assess the scope of work to perform while in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).

Artemis I will provide a foundation for human exploration in deep space and demonstrate NASA's commitment and capability to extend human existence to the Moon and beyond.

--IANS

na/svn/

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US President on Wednesday hailed the adoption of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution that condemned Russia's annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

"Today, the overwhelming majority of the world--nations from every region, large and small, representing a wide array of ideologies and governments - voted to defend the United Nations Charter and condemn Russia's illegal attempt to annex Ukrainian territory by force," Biden said in a statement released by White House.

"143 nations stood on the side of freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity--even more than the 141 nations that voted in March to unequivocally condemn Russia's war against Ukraine," he added.

Biden's statement came shortly after 143 members voted in favour of the resolution in the assembly which houses 193 members. Five voted countries voted against the resolution while 35 abstained, including India.

The US president said Russia is tearing at the very foundations of peace and security.

"The stakes of this conflict are clear to all--and the world has sent a clear message in response: Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map. Russia cannot change borders by force. Russia cannot seize another country's territory as its own," he added.

Nearly eight months into this war, Biden said the world has just demonstrated that it is more united, and more determined than ever to hold Russia accountable for its violations.

"Together with the UN General Assembly, we will not tolerate illegal attempts at annexation or the theft of a neighbour's land by force. We will stand up for law, the UN Charter, and the rights and protections it affords to Ukraine and its people - and to every state and people everywhere," he said.

The UNGA resolution, adopted by the members where no one wields a veto, condemns Russia's "attempted illegal annexations" of the four Ukrainian regions following "so-called referendums".

This vote comes two days after Ukraine and Russia clashed in the UNGA this week. India was among more than 100 countries that voted to reject Russia's call to hold a secret ballot on a resolution condemning Moscow's "attempted illegal annexation" of Ukrainian territories.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in the last week of September signed the documents to formally announced the annexation of four regions - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

This week saw heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine after the Crimea bridge blast, which prompted missile strikes on major Ukraine cities from .

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If is admitted into the U.S.-led military alliance, then the conflict in would be guaranteed to escalate into World War Three, a Russian Security Council official was quoted as saying on Thursday.



Just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin formally proclaimed the annexation of up to 18% of on Sept. 30, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of .



Full membership for Ukraine is far off because all the alliance's 30 members would have to give their consent.

"Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three," TASS quoted Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, as saying.



Venediktov, who is deputy to Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, a powerful Putin ally, said he felt Ukraine's application was propaganda as the West understood the consequences of Ukrainian membership of NATO.



"The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves," he said.



President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly railed against the United States for driving NATO's eastward expansion, especially its courting of ex-Soviet republics such as Ukraine and Georgia which regards as part of its own sphere of influence.



Putin on Sept. 21 warned the West he was not bluffing when he said he would be ready to use nuclear weapons to defend against what he said was "nuclear blackmail" from major Western powers.



U.S. President Joe Biden has said the world faces the biggest risk of nuclear Armageddon since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. NATO is due to hold an annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed "Steadfast Noon" next week.



and the United States are by far the biggest nuclear powers: they control about 90% of the world's nuclear warheads.

Venediktov said Zelenskiy's call for preventive strikes against Russia was dangerous, cautioning that nuclear war would have catastrophic consequences for the world.



"We must remember: a nuclear conflict will affect absolutely the whole world not only Russia and the collective West, but every country on this planet," Venediktov said. "The consequences would be disastrous for all mankind."



(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.)
Former President angrily lashed out on Wednesday, calling the nation's legal system a broken disgrace" after a judge ruled he must answer questions under oath next week in a defamation lawsuit lodged by a writer who says he raped her in the mid-1990s.

He also called the 2019 lawsuit by E. Jean Carroll, a longtime advice columnist for Elle magazine, a hoax and a lie".

The outburst late in the day came hours after US District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in Manhattan rejected a request by his lawyers to delay a deposition scheduled for October 19.

Kaplan is presiding over the case in which Carroll said Trump raped her in the dressing room of a Manhattan Bergdorf Goodman store in the mid-1990s. He called the lawsuit a complete con job".

I don't know this woman, have no idea who she is, other than it seems she got a picture of me many years ago, with her husband, shaking my hand on a reception line at a celebrity charity event," Trump said.

She completely made up a story that I met her at the doors of this crowded New York City Department Store and, within minutes, swooned' her. It is a Hoax and a lie, just like all the other Hoaxes that have been played on me for the past seven years," he said.

Then he grumbled: Now all I have to do is go through years more of legal nonsense in order to clear my name of her and her lawyer's phony attacks on me. This can only happen to Trump'!"



Carroll is scheduled to be deposed on Friday.

Roberta Kaplan, Carroll's attorney, said she was pleased with the judge's ruling and looked forward to filing new claims next month and moving forward to trial with all dispatch after New York state passed the Adult Survivors Act, allowing her to sue for damages for the alleged rape without the statute of limitations blocking it.

After Trump's statement was released, a spokesperson for Kaplan's firm, Kaplan Hecker and Fink, said the latest statement from obviously does not merit a response.

Trump's legal team has tried various legal tactics to delay the lawsuit and prevent him from being questioned by Carroll's attorneys. But Judge Kaplan wrote that it was time to move forward, especially given the advanced age of Carroll, 78, and Trump, 76, and perhaps other witnesses.

The defendant should not be permitted to run the clock out on plaintiff's attempt to gain a remedy for what allegedly was a serious wrong, he wrote.

Carroll's lawsuit claims that Trump damaged her reputation in 2019 when he denied raping her. Trump's legal team has been trying to squash the lawsuit by arguing that the Republican was just doing his job as president when he denied the allegations, including when he dismissed his accuser as not my type.

Trump doubled down on the comment in his statement on Wednesday, saying: And, while I am not supposed to say it, I will. This woman is not my type! She has no idea what day, what week, what month, what year, or what decade this so-called 'event' supposedly took place. The reason she doesn't know is because it never happened, and she doesn't want to get caught up with details or facts that can be proven wrong."



Whether Trump will remain the defendant in the original lawsuit is a key question because if Trump was acting within the scope of his duties as a federal employee, the US government would become the defendant in the case.

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals said in a split decision last month that Trump was a federal employee when he commented on Carroll's claims. But it asked another court in Washington to decide whether Trump's public statements occurred during the scope of his employment.

Kaplan, the judge, said Trump has repeatedly tried to delay the collection of evidence in the lawsuit.

Given his conduct so far in this case, Trump's position regarding the burdens of discovery is inexcusable, he wrote.

As this Court previously has observed, Mr. Trump has litigated this case since it began in 2019 with the effect and probably the purpose of delaying it.

The judge noted that the collection of evidence for the lawsuit to go to trial was virtually concluded, except for the depositions of Trump and Carroll.

Mr. Trump has conducted extensive discovery of the plaintiff, yet produced virtually none himself, Kaplan said. Completing these depositions which already have been delayed for years would impose no undue burden on Mr. Trump, let alone any irreparable injury.

The judge also said the deposition could be useful when Carroll's lawyer next month files the new lawsuit.

Whether the rape occurred is central to the defamation claims, as well as the anticipated new lawsuit, the judge 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 Cabinet is attempting to rally behind embattled British Prime Minister on Thursday as her Conservative Party backbenchers are up in arms against her tax-cutting economic policies, which they see as favouring the rich amid a cost-of-living crisis and giving the Opposition Labour Party a lead in opinion polls.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly warned that it would be a disastrously bad idea to think about replacing Truss as the Tory leader, just over a month after she was elected by the party membership in a leadership battle with former Chancellor Rishi Sunak on September 6.

Since then the government's mini-budget tabled at the end of last month has unleashed turmoil in the financial markets due to fears of unfunded tax cuts introduced by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, despite a forced U-turn on abolishing the top rate for the wealthiest in the country.

We have got to recognise that we do need to bring certainty to the markets, Cleverly told the BBC with reference to the financial turmoil.

I think that changing the leadership would be a disastrously bad idea, not just politically but also economically, and we are absolutely going to stay focused on growing the economy, he said.

It will be seen as a clear warning to the Conservative Party against plotting Truss' overthrow, just weeks after being elected as party leader and taking charge at 10 Downing Street.

Truss is facing growing calls within her own party to scrap all or part of her economic programme, to be finalised with a fiscal statement scheduled at the end of the month, to shore up the UK's economic position ahead of a difficult winter.

Under the Tory party rules, Truss technically cannot face a leadership challenge until 12 months unless the powerful 1922 Committee of backbench MPs votes to change their rules.

At a meeting to win over the committee attended by Truss on Wednesday evening, the backbenchers are believed to have made their disapproval of the new leader's policies abundantly clear.

The BBC quotes sources from within the closed-door 1922 Committee meeting as saying that Tory MP Robert Halfon accused the Prime Minister of "trashing blue collar conservatism" or being against the working classes. MPs who were present said he got a cheer, while Truss looked "shocked" and said he could come to speak to her. But as she left the room, the prime minister said it had been a "very good" meeting.

It came at the end of a tough day, which included a grilling at Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons during which she dismissed fears of public spending cuts and insisted that her focus would be on reducing the country's debt "by making sure we spend public money well".

Truss has claimed her tax-cutting plan is needed to get Britain's economy growing again at a time when official data published this week suggested the UK is heading for a recession.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
LONDON (Reuters) - British foreign minister James Cleverly said on Thursday Britain wanted to have an even stronger trading relationship with India after reports that remarks by a fellow minister about Indian immigrants could put a future deal in doubt.

Asked about the comments made by interior minister Suella Braverman about Indian migrants in Britain and the possible impact, Cleverly said: "We do want to have an even stronger, and it's strong already, but an even stronger trading, relationship with India."

(Reporting by Muvija M and Farouq Suleiman; editing by Michael Holden)

(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 voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to condemn Russia's attempted illegal annexation of four Ukrainian regions and demand that Moscow immediately reverse its actions.

The vote in the 193-member world body was 143-5 with 35 abstentions, the strongest support from the General Assembly for Ukraine and against of the four resolutions it has approved since Russian troops invaded their smaller neighbour February 24.

Western nations engaged in intense behind-the-scenes lobbying ahead of the vote while Russia's ally Syria warned against isolating Moscow.

(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 jury in the US state of Connecticut has ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to pay $965 million in damages to the family members of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

The American far-right radio show host must pay the amount in compensatory and punitive damages to 15 plaintiffs, the relatives of eight shooting victims, Xinhua news agency quoted the jury's decision as saying on Wednesday.

The families sued Jones after he claimed the shooting on December 14, 2012, at the school in Newton, Connecticut, was a hoax staged by US authorities to impose gun control measures.

The shooting left 20 children aged six to seven and six adults dead.

Jones, 48, has apologised for spreading the conspiracy and was ordered in August to pay nearly $50 million in damages to the relatives of another victim in Texas.

"I'm in bankruptcy," Jones said on Wednesday live on his show. "You want to fight. That's fine."

He now acknowledges the attack was "100 per cent real".

Jones still faces a third defamation trial over the Sandy Hook shooting that begins in Texas later this year.

--IANS

ksk/

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised the updated Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 booster shots for children as young as five.

The updated booster shots aim to provide better protection against Covid-19 caused by the Omicron variant, Xinhua news agency quoted the FDA as saying on Wednesday.

The FDA had authorised updated Pfizer-BioNTech boosters for children ages 5 to 11, and Moderna's shots for kids ages 6 through 17.

The shots are administered at least two months following completion of the two-dose primary series or the most recent booster shot with the first generation vaccines.

The Pfizer-BioNTech new boosters were authorized for people ages 12 and up in September, while Moderna's shots were previously authorized for adults ages 18 and older.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which recommends how vaccines are used, also signed off immediately after the FDA authorization.

Updated Covid-19 vaccines add Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 spike protein components to the current vaccine composition, helping to restore protection that has waned since previous vaccination and targeting recent Omicron variants that are more transmissible and immune-evading, the CDC said in a statement also issued on Wednesday.

FDA's authorization of the updated vaccines for this younger age group, and CDC's recommendation for use, are critical next steps forward in the country's vaccination program, said the statement.

Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said children face an increased risk of exposure to the virus as they head back to school in person and families return to their pre-pandemic lives.

Although Covid-19 tends to be less severe in children than adults, kids do get hospitalized with the disease, Marks said.

Health officials are also concerned about the potential risk of long Covid even in children who have had mild illness from the virus.

"We encourage parents to consider primary vaccination for children and follow-up with an updated booster dose when eligible," Marks said.

said it will ship up to 6 million booster doses for kids within the next week.

So far, about 68 per cent of the US population is fully vaccinated with their initial series, according to the latest CDC data.

But less than half of the fully vaccinated population has received a booster dose.

An analysis published by The Commonwealth Fund found that if more people in the US get their booster by the end of the year, about 90,000 Covid-19 deaths could be prevented this fall and winter.

But if booster vaccinations continue at their current pace, the nation could see a peak of more than 1,000 deaths per day this winter, according to the study.

--IANS

ksk/

(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.)
China launches new environmental satellite

Xinhua) 09:09, October 13, 2022

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

TAIYUAN, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- China launched a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province early Thursday.

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the satellite S-SAR01 lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (Beijing Time).

The satellite has entered the preset orbit. Its primary users will be the Ministry of Emergency Management and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

By obtaining 5-meter resolution S-band radar image data, the satellite will support disaster prevention, reduction, relief, and environmental protection. It will also serve natural resources, water conservancy, agriculture, forestry, earthquakes, and other fields, said the China National Space Administration.

Thursday's launch was the 443rd mission by the Long March rocket series.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
WARANGAL: Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued a notice to TRS leader and former SAAP (Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh) director Rajanala Srihari for distributing hens and liquor bottles to hamali workers.

Incidentally, Srihari distributed around 200 hens and an equal amount of liquor bottles in Warangal city when Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao announced the launch of Bharat Rashtra Samithi on the Dasara festival. While distributing the liquor and hens, he sought blessings from the workers for KCR to become the prime minister and IT minister K. T. Rama Rao the chief minister of Telangana.

A video of the TRS leader distributing hens and liquor bottles went viral on various social media platforms. Following this, a person G. Prabhakar lodged a complaint with Election Commission alleging that the TRS leader had distributed liquor and chicken to voters of Munugode assembly segment.

After receiving the complaint, the Election Commission asked the district collector concerned to file a report. A notice had been served on Rajanala Srihari.

In his reply, Srihari maintained that on occasion of Dasara festival, he had distributed hens and liquor bottles to poor hamali workers in Warangal city and not to voters of Munugode. Moreover, such distribution is part of a tradition in Telangana. The TRS leader accused opposition parties of launching a false propaganda on the issue.
The Biden administration will nearly double the number of temporary for jobs involving hospitality, landscaping and seafood-processing as it looks to address seasonal shortages employers have been scrambling to make up for.

The move would allow 64,716 nonagricultural in addition to the 66,000 currently available each fiscal year, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Wednesday evening, adding that it was acting swiftly to address employers needs for additional seasonal workers. The governments fiscal year began on Oct. 1.

Twenty thousand of the will be granted to workers from the Central American countries of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala as well as .

At a time of record job growth, this full year allocation at the very outset of the fiscal year will ensure that businesses can plan for their peak season labor needs, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

He added that Homeland Security and the Labor Department would boost worker protections to make sure unscrupulous employers dont subject workers to unsafe work conditions or too-low wages.

The announcement came a day before Mayorkas and other senior US officials were to discuss security and other issues with Mexicos Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard and security minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez. Mexico has repeatedly urged the US to provide more legal pathways for immigration.





Homeland Security said the statement that the visas for Central Americans and Haitians will advance the administrations pledge to expand legal pathways as an alternative to irregular migration.

Domestically, the issue of border security and the influx of migrants from Central America and elsewhere seeking asylum at the southern border has been the focus of repeated attacks by Republicans on President Joe Bidens immigration policies, and become a flashpoint in Novembers midterm elections.

US businesses have long relied on employees from around the world who hold various types of visas to help out at various times of the year. The coronavirus pandemic disrupted that flow, leaving many industries shorthanded.

--With assistance from Eric Martin and Jordan Fabian.
Unbowed Western powers pledged to supply with more potent air defence systems following a furious barrage of retaliatory Russian missile strikes, including one that temporarily knocked Europe's biggest nuclear plant off the invaded country's electrical grid on Wednesday.

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant suffered a blackout when a missile damaged a distant electrical substation, Ukraine's state nuclear operator said.

The power loss increased the risk of a radiation emergency because the plant needs electricity to prevent its reactors from overheating.

Energoatom said the external power source was repaired after about eight hours and that the plant's emergency diesel generators which rely on uncertain fuel deliveries in the war zone provided backup in the meantime, but a similarly hazardous interruption could happen at any time.

has seized the plant and is not taking any steps to deescalate. On the contrary, it is shelling important infrastructure daily, the company's press service told The Associated Press.

Hundreds of cities and towns across lost electricity after launched a wide-ranging missile assault Monday in retaliation for a truck bomb explosion that damaged a bridge linking with the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014.

With repairs to the grid still in progress, Ukraine's prime minister asked people to reduce evening energy consumption by 25 per cent and prepare for winter by keeping essentials such as warm clothes, candles, flashlights and batteries ready.

As the barrage that killed dozens of Ukrainians this week continued, Ukraine's Western allies met at NATO headquarters in Brussels to calibrate their response.

US Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said wants its Western partners to provide it with a complete air defence system to contend with Russian warplanes and missiles.

Milley spoke to reporters after a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, about 50 nations that meet regularly to assess Kyiv's needs and drum up equipment.

What Ukraine is asking for, and what we think can be provided, is an integrated air missile defense system. So that doesn't control all the airspace over Ukraine, but they're designed to control priority targets that Ukraine needs to protect, Milley told reporters.

Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office, said the meeting was historic because decisions to close the sky for Ukraine were being made there.

Ukraine has put a priority on bucking up its air defences, but NATO member nations have worried how to do that without triggering a wider war in Europe.

Zelenskyy's office said Moscow's retaliatory strikes killed at least 14 people and wounded 34 over the last day in the Zaporizhzhia region and the Donetsk region to the east. At least 19 died in Monday's opening onslaught, including five in Kyiv.

A day after Ukraine's Defence Ministry announced the arrival of the first of Germany's four promised IRIS-T air defence systems, the defence minister of the Netherlands said her country would deliver USD 14.5 million worth of air defence missiles in light of Russia's latest attacks.

These attacks reinforce the government's belief that they can only be answered with unwavering support for Ukraine and its people," Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongreher said.

The Netherlands, like our partners, will not be intimidated by Russia.

French President Emmanuel Macron, in a television interview on Wednesday evening, promised prompt delivery of more cannons and also anti-aircraft systems and missiles.

The US is expected to deliver two advanced NASAMs anti-aircraft systems in the coming weeks.

The nuclear scare and pledges of more Western support came amid a flurry of developments in Russia's 7 1/2-month-old invasion.

Moscow's main domestic security agency said it arrested eight people five Russians and three citizens of Ukraine and Armenia over the blast on the Kerch bridge between Russia and Crimea.

A truck loaded with explosives blew up while driving across the bridge Saturday, killing four people and causing sections of road to collapse, Russian officials said.

The span opened four years after Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, serving as a symbol of Moscow's regional dominance as well as a crucial route for military supplies for its troops in Ukraine and for Russians travelling to a popular vacation destination.

The Federal Security Service, known by the Russian-language acronym FSB, alleged the detained suspects acted on orders of Ukraine's military intelligence to secretly move the explosives into Russia using forged documents.

Ukrainian Defence Ministry spokesman Andriy Yusov denied the accusation that his country was involved, telling reporters, The entire activity of the FSB and the Investigative Committee is nonsense.

Zelenskyy's office said in a morning update that strikes on central and western parts of Ukraine had ceased but Russian shelling and attacks involving drones, heavy artillery and missiles continued in eight southeast regions.

More than a dozen missiles were fired at the city of Zaporizhzhia and its suburbs, damaging residential buildings. Part of a larger eponymous region that Moscow has illegally annexed, the city remains in Ukrainian hands while Russian forces control the area where the nuclear plant is located.

In Nikopol, a city of 104,000 across the Dnieper River from the plant, three people were gravely wounded, including a 6-year-old girl.

Over 30 multistory residential buildings were damaged, as as well as private houses and schools, Ukrainian authorities said.

Rafael Grossi, the head of the UN's Atomic Energy Agency, said the loss of external power at the nuclear plant for the second time in five days again exposed how precarious the situation is, and he pleaded again for a security zone around the plant.

All six of the Zaporizhzhia reactors were stopped earlier due to the war. But they still require electricity to prevent them and their spent fuel rods from overheating to the point of a meltdown that could release radiation into the atmosphere of Ukraine and potentially other European countries, including Russia.

In the Donetsk region, Russian tanks shelled the city of Avdiivka, damaging residential buildings and a market. Seven people were killed and eight wounded, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Zelenskyy's office, said via Telegram, posting photos of bodies on the ground by a kiosk with potatoes and bread on the counter.

Before the bombardment of the last three days, Russian forces over the last month had lost ground to a Ukrainian counteroffensive in the east and south, drawing criticism from hawkish commentators in Russia.

Earlier on Wednesday, Ukraine's southern command said its forces recaptured five settlements in the southern Kherson region, on the western fringe of an arc of Russian-controlled territory in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Near the southern city of Mykolaiv, Ukrainian forces shot down nine Iranian Shahed-136 drones and destroyed eight Kalibr cruise missiles, the presidential office 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.)
This placement season, non-IT firms are filling in the gap resulting from a dip in offers in campuses from the traditional number one recruiter among sectors. Among the busiest headhunters now are finance, consulting and core as information technology takes a back seat and is wary of a looming recession.

At Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT), IT has been overtaken by the likes of finance and consulting.

Although none of the job offers have been revoked, participation has fallen from the lead spot of almost one-third offers to 15-20 per cent. On the other hand, finance and consulting firms are now leading the way so far. However, the placement season is still ongoing so only time will tell the final verdict, said Kishor Bhurchandi, associate dean of training and placement at VNIT.

Similarly, Amity University, too, has seen consulting, e-commerce and payment gateway firms along with manufacturing and automobile extend offers amid the dip in IT hiring.

Beyond IT services, we have observed strong demands in consulting companies. Students with similar education backgrounds are hired at good packages for the profiles of business analysts, data scientists, consultants, etc. In addition to this participation of IT product-based firms, e-commerce and payment gateway firms, and manufacturing and automobile companies have increased in-campus placements, said Anjani Kumar Bhatnagar, deputy director at Amity Universitys Technical Placement Centre.

According to Bhatnagar, the low attendance of top in campus will push students to explore start-ups as well as inspire them to pursue higher education in India and overseas. On the other hand, companies from finance and banking, automobile, e-commerce, electronics, robotics, telecom (with a strong push for 5G in India), artificial intelligence and machine learning will emerge as major recruitment drivers.

However, have also been strategic in the extent of hiring cuts that have varied from campus to campus.

For instance, top-rung colleges like Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS) and Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) have not seen a major impact, whereas institutes in tier-II and tier-III cities have borne the brunt of the hiring dip.





According to the placement office of BITS, the institutes campuses in Pilani, Hyderabad and Goa havent noticed any fall in demand in IT in the first placement cycle that began in August.

Some IT majors have verbally conveyed a dip in hiring from tier-II and tier-III colleges. They have given the assurance that the numbers for BITS would not be affected, and have demonstrated this in the first season of hiring, the office said. It added: The reason that they have cited for keeping BITS numbers intact is that its talent has been instrumental in helping companies pull through difficult times, because of their superior techno-managerial skills and command over cutting-edge technologies.

Similarly, MAHE has not seen a significant dip in participation from the .

We have not seen such a fall in participation so far from the core . However, a few of the global players have reduced their intake. The reasons given are global reduction of recruitment numbers due to the onset of recession in the US. Another reason is that these companies have recruited more numbers last year and are balancing them by a reduced intake this year, its placement office told Business Standard.

It added that the feedback from IT companies, especially global players, suggested the reduced intake will continue till the end of 2023. The sector is waiting and watching the impact of recession in the US. We are seeing a trend of non- coming to campus much earlier compared to previous years. This is a good trend and gives us confidence that these sectors will compensate for the reduction in numbers from IT companies.

A look at the previous years sectoral break-up at MAHE shows a slight dip in the share of the core IT sector, from 53 per cent in 2020-21 to 51 per cent in the 2021-22 placement season. So has the IT-enabled services sector, which dipped from five per cent in 2020-21 to three per cent in 2021-22.

On the other hand, sectors like core and consulting/analytics have shown a marginal rise from 23 per cent and 13 per cent to 25 per cent and 15 per cent in this period.

Meanwhile, the placement season has so far looked promising at BITS campuses with marquee recruiters like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Visa, Adobe, Cisco, Uber, Sprinklr and Indeed hiring aggressively with D.E. Shaw picking students at Rs 60 lakh per annum. Some of the new recruiters who visited for full-time hiring in the IT sector were Palo Alto Networks, Komprise, Hilti, Tvarit and Arista Networks, with CTCs reaching as high as Rs 54 lakh per annum.
Shares of hit a new high of Rs 910 on soaring 10 per cent on the BSE in Thursdays intra-day trade in an otherwise weak market, as the company proposed a and bonus issue plan.

on Wednesday after market hours announced that the board of directors at its meeting scheduled to be held on Monday, October 17, 2022 will also discuss and consider inter-alia, issue of bonus shares and sub division/split of the companys existing equity shares of Rs 5 each.

Earlier, on October 7, the company had informed stock exchanges that board meeting will held to consider and approve the un-audited financial results for the quarter and half year ended September 30, 2022.

The stock of iron & steel product producer surpassed its previous high of Rs 850.85, which it hit on September 19, 2022. At 11:59 AM, the stock traded 8 per cent higher at Rs 893.35, as compared to 0.98 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex.

In the past one year, the stock price of has appreciated by 100 per cent, as against 6 per cent decline in the benchmark index, on robust financial performance and strong order book position. The company said capacity utilisation of pipe segments will improve in FY2022-23 due to improved efficiency and strong demand.

The company primarily manufactures seamless pipes with an estimated production capacity of 450,000 TPA2 and ERW pipes with an estimated capacity of 125,000 TPA1 across its manufacturing facilities at Raigad in Maharashtra. Further, the entity acquired under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) proceedings in FY2019, USTPL, has a seamless pipe manufacturing capacity of 2,00,000 TPA. Apart from the seamless and ERW pipes business, MSL has developed a renewable (solar/ wind) power portfolio of 59.5 MW capacity across Maharashtra and Rajasthan.

The seamless & ERW pipes sector is getting a major boost from Make in India and Atma Nirbhar Bharat policy. Under this policy, for any purchases made by PSUs, there must be a minimum 35 per cent local value addition in supply of pipes which benefits domestic manufacturers.

Last month, rating agency ICRA upgraded the long term credit rating and reaffirmed the short-term rating of the companys bank facilities with a stable outlook.

The long-term rating upgrade factors in the Companys stellar performance in FY2022 undeterred by 2 waves of COVID-19 coupled with an improvement in its liquidity position. The rating upgrade also factors in the Companys reduced focus on non-core businesses and deleveraging guidance. The ratings assigned indicate high degree of safety regarding timely servicing of financial obligations and very low credit risk, Maharashtra Seamless said in exchange filing.

ICRA expects MSL to report healthy revenues and earnings in the medium term, supported by its leadership position in the domestic seamless pipes sector, healthy order book position, presence in the high value-added, large-diameter pipe segment, which faces relatively lower competition, and its status as a registered vendor for major domestic oil producers and refiners. The company also continues to benefit from the extension of anti-dumping duty on the imports of seamless pipes, for five years in October 2021.

Meanwhile, on outlook, Maharashtra Seamless said the strategy of the Company has been realigned to increase focus on pipes and renewable energy segments and reduce exposure to other segments. Internal accruals are currently being utilised for working capital requirements and going forward will be utilised for debt reduction and growth opportunities.




Shares of Ugar Sugar Works surged 12 per cent to Rs 79 per share in Thursdays intra-day trade, on the back of heavy volumes after the company received consent for operation of 645 kilo litres per day (KLPD) distillery.

The stock of sweetener hit a six month high and quoted at its highest level since April 2022. Earlier, it had hit a 52-week high of Rs 86.50 on March 25. In the past seven days, the stock rallied 32 per cent.

At 12:38 PM; it traded 7 per cent higher, as compared to 0.81 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex. In the past one year, the stock zoomed 165 per cent, as compared to 6 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex.

The company said that it has completed the establishment of 645 KLPD distillery at Ugar plant. Further, they plan to update on the trial run of 645 KLPD distillery in due course.

"The short-term outlook for sugar looks to be reasonably good on account of stable domestic prices, good export of sugar, and diversion to Ethanol. However, the ethanol supply and exports prove to be a silver lining for the industry in the years to come," Ugar Sugar said.

On October 4, CRISIL Ratings reaffirmed the long-term bank facilities of The Ugar Sugar Works with a 'stable' outlook.

Highlighting the rationale behind the ratings upgrade, CRISIL said, "The rating reflects steady improvement in business risk profile marked by healthy sugar cane crushing volumes which is expected to continue in the medium term as well. This coupled with stable performance of the distillery and co-generation units has resulted in stable operating profitability."



Meanwhile, the company embarked upon on major capex of Rs 200 crore spread over the last and current fiscal to enhance its distillery capacity from 75 KLPD to 845 KLPD. Out of this, the company has already completed trial run of 155 KLPD in March 2022 and the balance 645 KLPD is expected to be commissioned in October 2022 - the beginning of sugar season 2023.

The unit will primarily be engaged to produce ethanol directly for sale to Oil Manufacturing Companies (OMCs) in order to meet their ethanol blending targets.

That apart, the government has introduced a slew of benefits to promote ethanol blending including loans with interest subvention and remunerative offtake prices for ethanol.

With this, analysts expect the business risk profile to improve once the distillery unit is commissioned. They expect operating profitability to improve to over 10 per cent in the medium term.

"Within the distillery segment, the company plans to focus on ethanol produced through cane juice route resulting in reduced sugar production but will be balanced by higher remuneration of ethanol from cane juice and better margins," CRISIL Ratings added.
Central Bank of India is quoting at Rs 19.35, down 1.28% on the day as on 13:19 IST on the NSE. The stock jumped 17.39% in last one year as compared to a 7.23% slide in NIFTY and a 8.04% fall in the Nifty Pharma index.

Central Bank of India fell for a fifth straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 19.35, down 1.28% on the day as on 13:19 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 0.65% on the day, quoting at 17013.15. The Sensex is at 57256.67, down 0.64%.Central Bank of India has lost around 8.08% in last one month.Meanwhile, Nifty Pharma index of which Central Bank of India is a constituent, has eased around 9.07% in last one month and is currently quoting at 2982.55, down 1.6% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 9.59 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 80.72 lakh shares in last one month.

The PE of the stock is 11.43 based on TTM earnings ending June 22.

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Kalpataru Power Transmission advanced 1.36% to Rs 441.20 after the company announced the completion of the sale and transfer of an additional approximately 25% of the total equity shares of Alipurduar Transmission to Adani Transmission.

On 5 July 2020, Kalpataru Power had announced the signing of definitive agreements to sell Alipurduar Transmission to Adani Transmission for a total enterprise value of about Rs 1,286 crore.

Alipurduar Transmission (ATL) was set up as part of an inter-state transmission system for strengthening and transferring of power from new hydroelectric power projects in Bhutan to India. The project involved design, financing, construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance of 325 kms of 400 KV transmission line. ATL won this project on BOOM basis through a competitive bidding process from REC Transmission Projects Company (RECTPCL) for a period of 35 years. ATL was a wholly owned subsidiary of Kalpataru Power Transmission (KPTL).

The company had informed that the aforementioned stake sale was subject to certain adjustments on account of assets and liabilities at the time of closing of the transaction. The transaction was also subject to requisite approvals and compliances.

On 27 November 2020, Kalpataru Power said that it had completed the first tranche of disinvestment, representing approximately 49% of the total equity shares of ATL.

"The balance approximately 51% of the total equity shares of ATL were to be sold after obtaining requisite regulatory and other approvals, the company had informed.

Announcing updates on the same, Kalpataru Power said that it has completed the sale and transfer of an additional approximately 25% of the total equity shares of ATL held by the company to Adani Transmission.

"Post such sale, the company has now transferred an aggregate of approximately 74% of the total equity shares of ATL, with an agreement to sell balance approximately 26% to Adani Transmission, after obtaining requisite regulatory and other approvals, the company added.

Kalpataru Power Transmission is a global EPC player with diversified interest in power transmission and distribution, oil and gas pipeline, railways and biomass based power generation.

The company's consolidated net profit rose 1.3% to Rs 81 crore on 14.8% jump in net sales to Rs 3,677 crore in Q1 FY23 over Q1 FY22.

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president on Thursday said senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Chhagan Bhujbal would have become the chief minister of had he not quit the Sena.

Thackery was speaking at a function here to mark Bhujbal's 75th birthday which saw leaders of the Sena-NCP-Congress Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition coming together. National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah was also present at the event along with NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat.

''I have now become shock-proof. But when Bhujbal left the Shiv Sena, I must admit that our family was in a state of shock. The anger (that was vented) was political. We could not digest it for a long time that one of our own family members had deserted us," Thackeray said. Bhujbal, once a firebrand leader, quit the Bal Thackeray-led party and joined the Congress in the 1990s. He later followed Pawar when the latter formed NCP. ''I wish my mother were there when you visited 'Matoshree' (the Thackeray residence) and resolved all differences with Balasaheb," Uddhav further said. Earlier, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Ajit Pawar recalled the role played by Bhujbal in the formation of the NCP and how he was instrumental in saving the Vilasrao Deshmukh government in 2002 when it was facing a crisis. ''If had sought Bhujbal's help (during the latest crisis which toppled the MVA government), he would have continued as CM even today," Pawar said. The 1999 Assembly elections were held only four months after the formation of the NCP, and had the party got more time, it would have won more seats and Bhujbal would have been the chief minister, Pawar added.

To which, Thackeray said Bhujbal would have been the chief minister much earlier if he had not left .

Pawar also remarked on the absence of Chief Minister and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis. Had they attended, it would have underlined the state's political culture, he said.

Thackeray had to resign as chief minister of the MVA government on June 29 this year following a revolt led by .

Thackeray also said that the MVA, formed after the Sena parted ways with the BJP, was a successful experiment. "I am prepared for a fight. The struggle is not just of the Shiv Sena alone. We all have to unite for a second freedom struggle," he added. NCP chief Sharad Pawar hailed Bhujbal's journey, saying he rose in through hard work, determination and courage.

(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 BJP in will observe the fourth anniversary of the government on December 17 as 'Black Day' and hold demonstrations in the state's 200 assembly constituencies and district headquarters from next month.

The state unit of the BJP has also planned a state-level protest and 'jan aakrosh rally' here in December.

The party will hold protests against the state government in November and December, BJP's national general secretary and in-charge Arun Singh said.

It will also issue a "black paper" against the alleged failures of the government in its four-year rule.

Another BJP leader said that the party has set a target of two to three lakh people for the 'jan aakrosh rally' for which Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president JP Nadda and other central ministers will be invited.

(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 All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Chief Asaduddin on Thursday said he was expecting a unanimous judgment from the on Karnataka ban issue.

His statement comes after a two-judge bench of the Apex Court today delivered a split verdict on the ban in Karnataka's educational institutions, with one judge holding permitting a community to wear its religious symbols will be an "antithesis to secularism" and the other insisting that wearing the Muslim headscarf should be simply a "matter of choice".

Different judgments have come. We were expecting that there would a unanimous decision in favour of the Karnataka Muslim girls who are going to schools wearing hijab, he told reporters here.

He welcomed the decision of one judge in favour of .

While Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the appeals challenging the March 15 judgment of the Karnataka High Court, which had refused to lift the ban, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia held there shall be no restriction on the wearing of hijab anywhere in the schools and colleges of the state.

opined that the Karnataka HC's earlier judgment was bad in law. Bad in terms of its contents.

On March 15, the high court had dismissed the petitions filed by a section of Muslim students of Government Pre-University Girls College in Karnataka's Udupi seeking permission to wear hijab inside classrooms, ruling that it is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith.

further said he can comment fully only when the copy of the verdict is available.

(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: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday accused the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government of moving the Secretariat from Hyderabad to Munugode and abusing power by using its staff to unduly influence voters in the constituency.

The BJP also sought intervention of the Election Commission of India to ensure that names of around 25,000 bogus voters enrolled into the Munugode constituency voters list be removed.

The party national general secretary and Telangana affairs in-charge Tarun Chugh told reporters in New Delhi that a large number of TRS ministers have been stationed in Munugode and that KCR has moved the Secretariat to Munugode. All the ministers who are there are accompanied by officials carrying files. This is highly objectionable.

Chugh, who was accompanied by BJP MLC from Telangana, N. Ramchander Rao, Union minister V. Muralidharan, senior party leader Pratap Narain Sarang, informed the ECI that the TRS had contrived the inclusion of 24,481 additional voters to the electorate list in the constituency.

"This indicates that the constituency had a dramatic increase in population of almost 40,000 people. Where did all of these individuals originate? This fake population has been planted there by TRS which is making every effort to influence the election, he alleged.

Meanwhile, Ramchander Rao stated that the party leaders appealed to the ECI to order the use of 2019 general elections voters' list.

In the past when new voters were added, the number never usually exceeded 2,000 or so. But this time, the TRS had 25,000 names added, all of these people are from constituencies surrounding Munugode. The ECI said it will look into our submissions and also examine our request for deployment of central government observers and central forces to ensure a free and fair election, he stated.

To a question of campaigning by TRS ministers and by BJPs Union ministers in Munugode, Ramchander Rao said in the case of TRS, its ministers had their officials in tow which is against all norms of election code as such officials can influence ground level government staff.

Our Central ministers are not accompanied by officials. They take part in campaigns or hold a press meet and return. There is no comparison between what TRS ministers are doing and what our leaders do, he said.
Union Home Minister on Thursday said India's first PM Jawaharlal Nehru created a "mess" in by introducing in the Constitution, but the Narendra Modi government rectified the error in 2019 by nullifying the provision that gave special status to the erstwhile state.

Speaking at an event to flag off the Bharatiya Janata Party's 'Gaurav Yatra' in Gujarat, where Assembly polls are due in the next two months, Shah said the Congress used to often taunt his party over construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, but work on the mega project was now in progress.

The senior BJP leader flagged off one yatra from Zanzarka in Ahmedabad district and two others from Unai in Navsari district. Decorated vehicles are being used in these yatras.

Due to the mistake of Jawaharlal Nehru, who inserted Article 370, Kashmir was in a mess... it could not be properly integrated with the rest of the country. Everybody wanted the removal of . Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed it in one stroke and completed integration of Kashmir with the country, Shah said.

Earlier this week, Modi, during his visit to Gujarat, had also blamed Nehru for the issues plaguing for decades.

In August 2019, the BJP-led government at the Centre revoked the special status of and bifurcated the border state into two Union territories.

Raking up the issue of construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Shah asked the gathering if they had thought that dream of building a grand mandir in the Uttar Pradesh town will be realised?



The Congress used to taunt us with slogans like mandir wahi banayenge, lekin tithi nahi batayenge (the temple will be built but can't say when), Shah said.

"But the dates were declared, the ground-breaking ceremony was completed and a grand temple is coming up at the promised place," the Union minister pointed out.

The Modi government has developed important places of worship, Shah said.

Visit Somnath, Dwarka, Kashi, Kedarnath or Ujjain. The Narendra Modi government has developed all places of worship, which during the Congress government were left to fend for themselves, Shah said.

The Home Minister raised the issues of the 2016 surgical strikes and the 2019 airstrikes inside Pakistan and said the Modi government adopted a tough stance on terrorism emanating from across the border.

During the Congress-led UPA rule, Pakistan used to behead our soldiers and take away their heads. When our government came (in 2014) they tried to do the same thing. They forget this was not the government of 'Mouni Baba' (a reference to former PM Manmohan Singh). In a few days after terror incidents the Narendra Modi government responded with surgical strikes and airstrikes, Shah said.

The BJP leader maintained the country's oldest political party is neither capable of providing security nor of ensuring development of India and these tasks can only be accomplished by the saffron outfit.

The Congress is neither capable of ensuring security of the country nor able to develop the country. Only the BJP can do them, he said.

Further targeting the opposition party, Shah said curfews were a routine occurrence when the Congress ruled Gujarat, but things improved vastly after the BJP came to power in the state.

"Out of 365 days, curfew would be in force in 200 days in parts of Gujarat when the Congress was ruling the state. They (Congress) thought they would benefit if people fought each other. Those days are gone now," he said.

"After Narendra Modi came to power in Gujarat (he was CM from 2001 and became PM in 2014), curfew has not been imposed in the state for the last 20 years," Shah claimed.

Speaking about development of tribal communities in Unai, Shah said it is the Modi government which has worked hard for welfare of marginalised social groups.

On Wednesday, BJP president J P Nadda had flagged off two yatras.

The yatra which started from Zanzarka in Ahmedabad district on Thursday morning will conclude at the temple town of Somnath.

From Unai, one yatra will go to Ambaji Temple in Banaskantha district, covering the tribal belt of the state, while the other one will head to Fagvel temple town in Kheda district.

BJP's Gujarat as well as central leaders will join the yatras at different points, a party release said.

In all, five yatras have been planned by the BJP, each lasting eight to nine days, and the ruling party aims to cover 144 Assembly constituencies, out of the total 182, as part of its voter outreach campaign ahead of the elections.

(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.)
All India Majalis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Imtiaz Jaleel said while the division in the was "unfortunate", the positive thing for the Muslim community is that it will no longer be used as a "punching bag" by that party as well as the (BJP).

In the tug-of-war between the two Sena factions led by Uddhav Thackeray and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde would need Muslim votes, he said.

Jaleel, who is AIMIM's MP from Aurangabad, made these statements while speaking to a Marathi News channel.

" was formed for the rights of Marathi people. Split in the party is unfortunate. I am also a Marathi although my party is different. I have nothing to do with Eknath Shinde or Uddhav Thackeray. But the BJP succeeded in splitting the Marathi people, which no one could do," he said.

"But Muslims will no more be a punching bag here and this is a positive thing for Muslims. Earlier, BJP and used Muslims as a punching bag...we see their earlier speeches. But after the split, both the factions of Sena will feel the need of Muslims to be with them because of tough competition for gaining power," he added.

Jaleel added that both the Sena factions are now welcoming people coming to them.

"Along with Hindutva, they will also need Muslim votes. Now no one will abuse Muslims," Jaleel said.

Over the Thackeray-led party losing its name, he said, "After the Sena lost its name and symbol (bow and arrow) I wrote that it's painful when the original name changes. Now the name and symbol (of Sena) has gone."



The AIMIM leader criticised the BJP saying that the kind of happening in the state "on the instructions" of the party is extremely dangerous.

"They want control of the financial capital - Mumbai. This is all going on for this supremacy only," he claimed.

(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 24th congress of the (CPI) begins on Friday in Vijayawada, with a call to dislodge the (Narendra) Modi government and save the country by showcasing an alternative to the .

Given their dominance in the current political scenario, the CPI wants the regional parties to come onto a single platform and defeat the .

"Presenting an alternative to the will be the main agenda of our discussions at the party congress. We need to save the country from the BJP and unless we dislodge the Modi regime, there is no salvation," CPI general secretary D Raja remarked on the eve of the congress.

It is after a gap of about three decades that Vijayawada once a bastion of the Left parties is playing host to the 97-year-old party's congress.

The five-day congress will begin with a mass rally and meeting on October 14, followed by the executive and the national council meetings, according to the time table released by the party.

Besides CPI leaders from across India, Communist delegates from at least 17 foreign nations will attend the national congress, according to general secretary of the reception committee K Ramakrishna.

Left delegates from countries like Russia, China, Bangladesh, Nepal, Cuba, Greece, France, Turkey, Britain and Portugal are expected to attend.

The congress' inaugural session will be held at 11 AM on October 15 where top leaders like Sitaram Yechuri (CPI(M)), Dipankar Bhattacharya (CPI-ML) and G Devarajan (All India Forward Bloc) will take part, along with their hosts.

The delegates session will be held on the afternoon of October 15 where the draft political resolution, political review report and a report on the organisation will be presented.

Day three is devoted to discussions on the reports presented the previous day.

Four party commissions will go into the political resolution, the political review report, the organisation and also the party programme and constitution on October 17 morning. In the afternoon, the commissions' reports will be presented to the delegates session.

On October 18, the CPI congress will adopt various reports, followed by the election of Central Control Commission and the national council.

The new national council will then elect the national executive and also the party general secretary.

(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.)
Tech giant has announced to roll out Passkey support to both and Chrome for better safety.

Passkeys are a safer alternative to passwords and other phishable forms of authentication.

"They cannot be reused, don't leak in server breaches, and protect users from phishing attacks", the company said in a blog post late on Wednesday.

"Passkeys are built on industry standards and work across different operating systems and browser ecosystems, and can be used for both websites and apps", it added.

Passkeys follow user experience (UX) patterns and build on the existing experience of password autofill.

To avoid lockouts in the event of device loss, Passkeys on users' phones and PCs are stored up and synced through the cloud.

Users can also login into apps and websites on other nearby devices using Passkeys stored on their phones.

The key enables two key capabilities -- on devices, users can generate and utilise Passkeys that are securely synchronised through the Password Manager.

Through the 'WebAuthn API', developers can add Passkey support to their websites for end users utilising Chrome, Android, and other supported platforms.

Developers can use Chrome Canary and sign up for the Play Services beta to test this as of right now. Later this year, both features will be generally accessible via stable channels, said the company.

Apps associated with the same domain will readily accept passkeys generated through the web API and vice versa.

Passkeys work across several systems and browsers, including Windows, macOS and iOS, and ChromeOS, with a consistent user experience because they are based on industry standards, the company said.

--IANS

aj/na

(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.)
Under the proposed telecom bill, the (DoT) may only regulate over-the-top (OTT) communication players like WhatsApp, Google Meet, and . It may not regulate the platforms that offer content like and Amazon Prime or that offer e-commerce services, a report by Economic Times (ET) said.

The report further quoted officials as saying that the regulation will focus on the security perspective and not on revenue-raising measures like licence fees. The aim is not to hurt the growth of these platforms.

The central government has put up the telecom bill for public consultation. Several experts had expressed confusion in understanding the meaning of "OTT communication services". Several other issues will be addressed soon, officials said.

There were several concerns that non-communication OTT players such as food aggregators and streaming services might be subject to licensing and regulation by the telecom department.

Any two-way communication between an app and its users will be considered as telecom services and may be regulated, ET report said. Customer support operations for an app are a case in point.

If the OTT communication services are brought under the ambit of telecom services, companies will be required to do the know-your-customer (KYC) verification of their users. This is a regular process for telecom operators like Jio, Airtel and Vi.

"Distinction between a voice and data call has disappeared. needs to be done for all the platforms and the services have to come under the same law," Ashwini Vaishnaw, union minister for electronics and information technology said in September.
on Thursday showcased its latest updates to software and services at an annual tech conference, which it said were aimed at improving overall user experience through technology innovations.

At the Developer Conference (SDC) 2022 in San Francisco, the South Korean tech giant unveiled the upgraded, new user interface One UI 5 for its Galaxy products and a vision for a more connected home life, partly through expanded partnership with .

said the One UI 5 platform comes with new features for more personalized experiences, such as the new security and privacy dashboard that enables users to customize personal privacy settings by scanning vulnerabilities and recommending security updates.

It also comes with custom-built Modes and Routines and a Dynamic Lock screen that displays multiple visuals on Galaxy devices, reports Yonhap news agency.

Samsung's Bixby, the voice assistant platform, has improved to answer calls on users' behalf or share typed messages with the caller, according to the company.

Samsung said it would continue its efforts to provide "calm technology" by seamlessly connecting electronic devices.

Calm technology refers to a type of technology that requires minimal attention and work from users.

In early September, Samsung vowed to popularise its home automation platform, SmartThings, this year, in a bid to help provide a more connected and sustainable home life.

SmartThings is Samsung's software to connect and control home appliances, with more than 230 million users worldwide.

By the end of next year, Samsung plans to make all of its home appliances Wi-Fi enabled and allow home devices from 13 different brands that belong to the Home Connectivity Alliance (HCA) to be connected and controlled.

Samsung also said it has expanded partnership with to remove challenges facing homeowners who use multi, different smart home platforms.

The two tech companies will release a multi-admin feature in the coming weeks that makes it easier for users to connect devices on different ecosystems and control Matter-enabled devices through SmartThings or Home apps on Android.

'Matter' is an open standard for smart home technology that enables users to set up their device with their favourite platforms and ecosystems without changing hardware or software, according to Google.

--IANS

na/

(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.)
Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], October 13 (ANI/NewsVoir): SleepX, the new age e-commerce brand from Sheela Foam Ltd that targets the youth, has launched a super comfortable and trendy product SleepX Couch Potato. The product targets all the Genz and millennials who look for unique and trendy products along with comfort. The name Couch Potato reverberates with the brand's endeavor of providing unique comfort solution products.

As the name suggests, SleepX Couch Potato is a perfect product for all fun and relaxing purposes whether it be lounging, gaming, reading, watching movies or comfortable sleeping. This versatile product caters to all the people who are looking for adding a style quotient to their interior decor with comfort and ease. Sitting or relaxing on this product will make you feel like sitting on a cloud as its super soft, cosy shape envelopes your body when you sink in.

YouTube link: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uONKzgWU6U)

For people who are spending most of their time working at home, SleepX assures that this product will take half of your work stress away. The product is made of hi quality HR foam, fibre and memory foam and has a soft Chinchilla fur like cover which is super soft and comfortable. The removable fur cover made of anti-wrinkle fabric can be maintained through machine wash, unlike other lounging products that needs special maintenance. Not to be confused with a bean bag, this couch potato is way more durable and comfortable and is available in 2 sizes: 5 ft.* 2 ft. 4 ft.* 2 ft. This eclectic product comes with a warranty of 2 years with free shipping.

For more information visit: (https://www.sleepx.com/couch-potato-fur-fabric-beige-couch-potato-fur-fabric)

Sheela Group is a leader in Polyurethane (PU) foam. Sheela Group is a multi-billion-rupee entity. It has a nationwide presence in manufacturing PU Foam with a global marketing perspective and an impeccable track record, since 1971. Sheela Group is committed to a onepoint programmed that of bringing comfort, convenience, and luxury to enhance the lifestyle of a modern man.

The winning brands of Sheela Group include: SLEEPWELL-The flagship brand for mattresses and comfort accessories, FEATHER FOAM-A Pure PU Foam; LAMIFLEX-A superior quality POLYETHER/POLYESTER foam for lamination. These are ranked as the largest selling PU foams in the country.

This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/GPRC): Recent news reports suggest that India's freelance digital space is estimated to grow upto the value of USD 20-30 billion by 2025. This shows the excellent graph of digital marketing, especially in the past 3 years, despite the dismal COVID-19 pandemic. This is the era of digital mavericks and marketing agencies that aren't afraid of grabbing the chance and taking industry to the next level. Just like Glossour (http://www.glossour.com), the fastest-growing agency in the Indian subcontinent, as per a recent online survey.

Yash Mishra, the Founder-CEO of Glossour, is at the helm of this groundbreaking growth and his success reflects the everlasting need for good content as well as service in the digital marketing industry. Yash founded Glossour two years ago because he wanted to provide digital marketing & branding solutions within the gamut of a one-of-a-kind, top-quality, 360 setup. He recognized, early on, the need for out-of-the-box marketing strategies that could attract business without making the client sound desperate.

In just two years, the company has reached a leadership position in the market and it continues to expand and connect with clients as well as brands across the globe. Its current client list includes more than 800 brands that represent individual businesses as well as corporate groups. Glossour's expertise remains in the digital marketing domain and using it for the future. Glossour Digital Marketing Agency is reported to provide the best in class services when in comes to Reputation management, SEO, PR campaigning services, All Digital Ads Placement (PPC, Google Ads), YouTube Artist Promotions and many more. Their services information are available on their insta handle : (https://www.instagram.com/glossour/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D).

Glossour has branches all over India as well as the US & it is now going to open an office in Dubai soon. Talking about its Dubai plans, Yash says, "Glossour is now expanding in Dubai, where we are already getting lots of love from prospective clients. We are hoping to cash in on the enormous scope for digital campaigning in the city."

Team Glossour is made up of professionals who possess a combined experience of 30+ years in various departments of digital marketing and the latest technology. At present, Glossour is considered a one-stop destination for all your digital marketing solutions. With the Best Digital Marketing Agency honour in its kitty now, it is only a matter of fact that Yash Mishra's ambitious venture is headed towards a bright future!

This story is provided by GPRC. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/GPRC)
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 13 (ANI/NewsVoir): The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), an initiative of the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce, Government of India, opened its network to consumers across 16 pin codes in Bengaluru last month. FMCG firms UNIBIC and The Good Stuff (LuvIt) are among the first to adopt the ONDC network through the Bizom Seller app.

Lauded as the "The UPI of eCommerce", ONDC has taken the first step to make India's eCommerce landscape more accessible and inclusive to all consumers and sellers. Products like UNIBIC and LuvIt will now be available on every eCommerce platform on the ONDC network.

This eliminates the necessity for these FMCG companies to list their products individually on each eCommerce site, while giving them additional visibility across different Indian markets at a much lesser cost. Their customers are also in for a grander shopping experience, where they can easily buy all the products from any one ONDC buyer app of their choice.

"ONDC is leveling the playing field for all businesses by democratising eCommerce in India. We're glad to be working in tandem with technology service providers like Bizom to accelerate and improve the end-to-end ecosystem experience and make digital commerce accessible to a wider audience of buyers and sellers across India," says T Koshy, CEO of ONDC.

While the network is still in its nascent stage, it's beneficial to be among the early adopters of the ONDC initiative. For contemporary brands like UNIBIC and LuvIt, who have built a niche for themselves in the market amongst hundreds of other snacks and confectionery brands, ONDC has landed them in the greatest consumer market in India, one of unified eCommerce.

Both companies have partnered with Bizom - the retail intelligence platform, to sell online on the ONDC network and simultaneously maintain their offline distribution system. Bizom will manage the online & offline inventories, and provide unified data reports and insights.

When asked how Bizom's seller app gives a differentiated value proposition to FMCG companies, Lalit Bhise, CEO of Bizom, said, "Bizom and ONDC will enable FMCG businesses to manage their entire online and offline sales in a unified way, resulting in higher efficiency and retail intelligence. While many initiatives are in place to promote shoppers to come online, it's great to see something being done to assist the millions of Indian sellers who might not have the digital capabilities or knowledge to sell on every eCommerce platform. And not just for sellers, ONDC will also pave the way for smaller eCommerce platforms to gain more prominence."

Kamal Kumar Agarwal, Chief Operating Officer of The Good Stuff, said, "LuvIt and our other brands have seen an extremely promising start in India. With ONDC, we will intensify that growth across different parts of the country and reach a greater number of consumers." The company was the first to join the ONDC network using the Bizom Seller app, to sell its extensive range of unique confectionery products.

UNIBIC, on the other hand, already holds an established online presence across a multitude of eCommerce platforms. Through the ONDC network, the company will further expand its online presence with the aim of increasing market share. Kartikay Mehta, Sales Director of UNIBIC says, "ONDC has bloomed in India at the right time. Post-COVID, every citizen has become more accepting of the emergence of a "Digital India". UNIBIC is proud to be part of this and expand its online reach in India through ONDC."

The ONDC ecosystem is expected to transfigure how the Indian eCommerce industry works, reducing the 'n' number of shopping apps on our phones. The new era of eCommerce will be experience-driven and will be filled with enormous opportunities for FMCG companies to create brand loyalists.

This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)
You flaunt one of the 70 million odd handsets in India that are 5G-enabled. You live in one of the select cities where 5G services have been launched. But, still you cant enjoy the blazing-fast data speed promised by the next-gen technology. Why is that the case? Well, its because many 5G smartphone models currently lack the software updates needed to enable 5G services on them.

But there are a few lucky users too. The India Cellular and Electronics Association indicates, over 150 5G phone models have already been enabled with a patch across operators. However, that doesnt include select Samsung handsets and all of Apples 5G-enabled iPhones. 5G-enabled smartphones from OnePlus and Google also lack software support for the network. This has effectively left most Indian users with premium devices out of the .

On Wednesday, the Department of Telecommunications had summoned both telecom companies and mobile device makers. The agenda included enabling 5G services for in-use handsets and giving the early adoption of 5G a push. The meeting followed complaints from telcos that device-makers have not released their updated software patches, which will allow users with 5G-enabled devices to access the recently rolled-out service. Telcos allege customers are unable to access 5G services on their handset, even though the service is available in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Varanasi.

A section of smartphone-makers, on the other hand, believe that telcos are being unfair to them. They say, even though telcos announced the launch of 5G services in the week of Dusshera, only a few 5G towers are currently operational.

According to device-makers, at least one telco in Delhi has only a handful of 5G towers with very limited coverage. Their argument: Without the minimum required number of towers in a circle, availability of 5G services will remain poor even after software upgrades. They say, sending over-the-air upgrades to all 5G handsets will take some time, because software patches need to be tested on various networks first.

However, there is some good news. Ahead of the DoT meeting, Apple said that the software update needed to enable 5G services in iPhones would start rolling out in December. The iPhone 14, iPhone 13 and iPhone 12 series, along with the third-generation iPhone SE, are compatible with 5G.

Hours after Apples statement, Samsung also announced that it would roll out software updates needed to enable 5G services in its compatible-devices by mid-November.

Presently, only about 9 per cent of all smartphones in India are 5G-enabled. And their adoption is growing rapidly with shipments of 5G-enabled devices speeding up. According to Cybermedia Research, 27 million 5G-compatible devices were shipped in India in 2021, making up 16 per cent of all smartphone deliveries.

Between just April 2022 and August, 20 million 5G devices were shipped, accounting for 31 per cent of all smartphone deliveries. Within that period, Samsung came out as the top 5G-compatible brand in India with a 26 per cent market share. Xiaomi and OnePlus were second and third, respectively, with a minor difference in the number of units shipped by them.

And there are other reasons why you may have difficulty finding 5G service. Reliance Jios 5G service is available in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Varanasi. But, it is only available to users who have been invited.

Airtel 5G Plus has been launched in eight cities in a phased manner. Its customers in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Siliguri, Nagpur and Varanasi will be among the first to experience the new technology.
In November 2019, Alphabet-owned Google wrote to the US Federal Reserves, asking the central bank to design its upcoming instant payments system FedNow on the lines of Indias or .

It said, an open payments system fosters collaboration between technology and financial service providers, adding that Indias approach attained amazing results for banks, consumers and other players within the payments ecosystem.

In 2021, processed around 39 billion transactions totalling $940 billion, equivalent to 31% of Indias GDP.

As if on cue, in August 2020, the National Payments Corporation of India, which operates UPI, launched NPCI International Payments, a subsidiary tasked with exporting NPCIs indigenously developed offerings like and the RuPay card network to foreign markets.

Over the past two years, NPCI International Payments, or NIPLs effort to widen the reach of UPI in international markets has borne fruit.

On Monday, NIPL entered into a partnership with European payment services facilitator Worldline to allow Indian travellers to pay through UPI on the latters Point-of-Sale machines across Europe.

The first target markets for the facility are Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Switzerland. It will be expanded as Worldlines QR code-based mechanism is rolled out in more European countries.

Similar collaborations were recently announced with British payments solutions provider PayXpert, UAEs Neopay and Frances Lyra Network.

NIPLs biggest success came when Nepal became the first country outside India to adopt Indias interoperable real-time digital payments model earlier this year, bolstering its person-to-person and merchant payment transactions.

Last year, Bhutan opted to deploy UPI-specification QR codes while Malaysias Merchantrade Asia allowed sending remittances to India through UPI.

Central banks of India and Singapore had also announced plans to link Singapores PayNow and UPI, which would enable users to make instant fund transfers directly from a bank account to another between Singapore and India.

Last month, global payments infrastructure group TerraPay announced a partnership with NIPL to allow Indian customers and merchants with an active UPI ID to conduct cross-border payments with QR locations enabled by TerraPay globally.

NIPLs partnerships are likely to bring down cross-border remittance fees, enable seamless cross-border merchant payments and empower Indian travellers to avail home-grown payment channels abroad.

India received $87 billion as remittances in 2021.

While NPCIs global deals have largely been with private players to benefit Indian tourists, can India get other countries to adopt UPI as a domestic payment solution?

Ranadurjay Talukdar, Partner and Payments Advisory Leader, EY India says, NPCI can explain economic benefits of digital payments other govts.'UPI benefits SMEs and sector stakeholders. UPI can help make existing digital payments systems interoperable.

The NPCI has clear selling points to convince other governments of UPIs economic benefits. If India plays its cards right, it has the necessary ingredients to help co-create payment systems with participating nations.
It looks like there is no letting up to the MG-Geely rivalry here in the Philippines. Its shaping up to be a true battle royale as MG Phili...
Photo: MARIO BARTEL/THE TRI-CITY NEWS. Carol Todd of Port Coquitlam arrives at the New Westminster Law Courts on Tuesday morning (Oct. 11) with her son, Christopher, as the sentencing hearing begins for Aydin Coban, the Dutch national convicted of sextorting Amanda Todd.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m.

The parents and brother of the late Amanda Todd told a court this afternoon (Oct. 11) how her sextortion and suicide continues to cause pain.

The 15-year-old student of the Coquitlam Alternate Basic Education (CABE) school died a decade ago yesterday (Oct. 10) after she was cyberbullied by Dutch citizen Aydin Coban. He was convicted by a jury on five counts in August.

Coban, 44, had no reaction while the Todd family read out their victim impact statements before Justice Martha Devlin at BC Supreme Court.

And he scrolled legal documents on a laptop as Crown Counsel screened a video that Amanda Todd created just five weeks before she took her life.

That video, shown in court in colour but no music, went viral after she died.

Her father, Norm, wept as he spoke of Amanda. Its hard to put into words how it feels to lose a child, he said at the New Westminster Law Courts.

Norm Todd talked about how hes been unable to mourn with the international spotlight on his daughters sudden death 10 years ago.

It has been, he said, the most painful, devastating loss of my entire life.

Carol Todd also spoke about the impact, saying she wasnt able to return to work for nine years, has been diagnosed with PTSD and seeks counselling.

She read aloud a statement from her son, Christopher, who wrote about the loss of his only sibling and how he will never be an uncle to her children.

Had she not died, Amanda would have been 25 years old today, he said.

I miss her more than words can explain.... It changed the course of my life. Im not the same person. It has changed me, Carol read for Christopher.

With Amandas framed school photo on the stand, Carol Todd talked about the deterioration of her daughters mental health as a result of Coban.

She refused to go out in the public for fear of being shamed by her peers.

She was forced to move schools in the Tri-Cities, Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge because he followed her and befriended students at her new schools.

And, with each new message from an alias that threatened to expose images or video of her in explicit scenes, Amanda went into a darker hole.

As a result of her spiral and suicide, Carol said she was never be able to see her daughter have her sweet 16 (she died a month before her birthday); see her get her drivers licence; get her first job; and become a woman.

I will missing being a grandmother to her children, Carol told the judge.

Family celebrations now are tinged with grief, Carol said; however, milestones about Coban are remembered: his arrest on Jan. 13, 2014, in the Netherlands; his extradition to Canada; and the nine-week trial.

This has become my horrible new normal, she said, adding she has been the subject of internet trolls who have accused her of being a bad mom.

Crown Counsel Louise Kenworthy told the court that although Coban didnt kill Amanda Todd, his cyberbullying affected everything aspect of her life.

Coban used 22 fake aliases on social media platforms to lure, extort and criminally harass Amanda Todd; he also sent her, her friends, her relatives and school officials more than 700 messages between 2009 and 2011.

He ruined her life, she said. It was the dominate cause of her suicide.

Kenworthy also addressed the court about Cobans background: He is currently serving a 10-year, 243-day sentence in the Netherlands for 68 similar convictions involving 33 girls  some as young as nine years old.

In messages with several of his victims, he taunted them to kill themselves.

With his arrest in January 2014, Coban is due to be out in September 2023.

Following the Canadian sentencing, a Dutch court will arrange a hearing for his Canadian convictions to be served in the Netherlands, Kenworthy said.

The sentencing hearing for Coban is scheduled for four days, until Friday (Oct. 14).

ORIGINAL 3:10 p.m.

The Dutch citizen convicted of sextorting Amanda Todd should get a dozen more years behind bars, Crown Counsel submitted this morning (Tuesday) as the sentencing hearing started at the New Westminster Law Courts.

Lead prosecutor Louise Kenworthy asked Justice Martha Devlin at BC Supreme Court to impose a sentence of 23 years for the five counts; however, given the totality principle, she requested the whole sentence to be reduced to 12 years.

The totality principle allows for similar convictions that will run consecutively  i.e., one after another  to be combined into a global sentence. In this case, Kenworthy offered the following:



10 years for extortion, a consecutive sentence to be cut to six years



three years for distributing child pornography, a consecutive sentence to be reduced to one year



a judicial stay for possession of child pornography



the maximum 10 years for child luring, to be cut to five years



six years for criminal harassment, to run concurrently (at the same time) as the extortion sentence









Kenworthy submitted the proposed 12 years in jail run consecutively to Cobans current sentence in the Netherlands, where he was convicted in 2017 to 10 years in jail for similar cyber crimes and blackmailing children and gay men around the world.

Kenworthy told the court that Coban had pursued Todd online for more than two years, starting in 2009 when she was 12 years old and living in Port Coquitlam.

Coban used 22 fake aliases to communicate with her, and he sent explicit images and videos of Todd to her friends, family and school administrators when Todd didnt comply with his demands for more sex shows.

Cobans persistent harassment of the girl was morally repugnant, callous and devastating for Todd, Kenworthy said, noting Coban, 44, is unrepentant," isnt interested in rehabilitation and is at a high-risk to reoffend.

Kenworthy also urged the court to consider a lengthy sentence to protect children who are online and cited Canadian legal precedents of recent sex crimes against minors  specifically Regina vs Friesen, a major decision by the Supreme Court of Canada in 2020.

Kenworthy highlighted the rise of online sexploitation since 2010, with Statistics Canada reporting that cases involving children had jumped 31 per cent between 20192021.

The need for deterrence is extremely high, the prosecutor told Justice Devlin.

The sentencing hearing is scheduled for four days
Photo: . Amanda Todd (left) died by suicide on Oct. 10, 2012, after years of "sextortion" and cyberbullying by Dutch national Aydin Coban, who was found guilty on five charges related to the Port Coquitlam teen's death.

The Dutch citizen who tormented Port Coquitlam student Amanda Todd will be sentenced tomorrow (Oct. 14).

This morning (Oct. 13), after defence counsel finished its sentencing submissions, Justice Martha Devlin told BC Supreme Court that she would read her decision against Aydin Coban on Friday at 1 p.m.

Coban, 44, who typed on a laptop and read legal documents while in the prisoner's box, did not address the court at the end of the hearing.

In August, following a nine-week trial at the New Westminster Law Courts, a jury convicted Coban on five counts for his persistent online campaign against Todd:



extortion



importing and distributing child pornography



possession of child pornography



communicating with the intent to lure a child



criminal harassment





Todd took her life a decade ago this week, on Oct. 10, 2012, at her home in Port Coquitlam.

Crown Counsel is seeking a global sentence of 12 years behind bars  to run consecutively to his 10-year sentence in the Netherlands, where he was convicted in 2017, after an appeal, at an Amsterdam District Court on 68 similar cyberbullying and sextortion offences against 33 girls.

However, lead defence lawyer Joe Saulnier is proposing that his client serve six years in jail to run concurrent with his Dutch sentence, or two years in prison to run consecutive to the Netherlands punishment.

In his submissions, Saulnier argued that the aggregate sentence would be excessive given that the Dutch crimes are similar in nature, and there is overlap with the offences in Canada.

"This is not an unrelated sentence," he told the judge.

"It's the same course of conduct. It's the same wrongful behaviour.It's the same conduct that you heard at this trial."

Saulnier pointed to a Dutch probation report that cited the Todd case and her suicide. "This was still part of the [Dutch] case," Saulnier contended.

But Devlin reminded Saulnier  on a least two occasions  that she is "not bound by the Dutch regime" for her sentence in Canada.

Saulnier also said his client is eager to return to his home country; in jail there, he has access to "books, music and options to exercise," as well as "other resources that he doesnt have here."

Saulnier also briefly mentioned that Coban had targeted another Canadian girl; however, Coban wasn't extradited to face those offences, he said.

Saulnier said Coban has been in custody since he was arrested on Jan. 13, 2014, at the age of 36.

And should the judge impose a 12-year consecutive sentence, as requested by the Crown, Coban would be out of prison at the age of 59  a length of time in jail that would be "excessive" and "crushing," Saulnier told the court.
LafargeHolcim Cote dIvoire launch Belier Blanc

13 October 2022

The General Management of LafargeHolcim Cote d'Ivoire proceeded on 6 October 2022 to an official launch ceremony of its latest product Belier Blanc, the first white cement produced in west Africa. The event was held at its plant in the presence of the Deputy Director of Cabinet of the Minister of Commerce, Industry and SME Promotion, and several state authorities.

LafargeHolcim Cote dIvoire (Holcim) Belier Blanc's development required an investment of more than XOF1bn (US$1.48m). Until now, all the white cement used in the country was imported, which did not protect consumers from stock shortages. The launch of local production of white cement is also a major step forward in the fight against the high cost of living, as it will enable the end consumer to be offered a product that is 15 to 25 per cent cheaper, claims LafargeHolcim Cote dIvoire.

"This year 2022 is special for us, because we are celebrating 70 years of presence on the Ivorian market. We wanted to mark this celebration with a major innovation, namely the launch of our white cement called 'Belier Blanc'," said Rachid Yousry, CEO of LafargeHolcim Cote d'Ivoire.

Kouatelay Albert, deputy director of cabinet of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Promotion of PME, welcomed this initiative, "White cement is a response to the technical needs of the construction sector. I am pleased to witness this noble and beneficial initiative of the Company LafargeHolcim Cote d'Ivoire which now comes to provide our country a concrete response to the needs of increasingly growing use of white cement."







Published under
Songbirds: A Documentary, an Emmy Award-winning story directed by a UTC alum about the worlds most extensive collection of vintage guitars, will have its premiere UTC screening at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20.

The Music Division of the UTC Department of Performing Arts will host the event in the Fine Arts Centers Roland Hayes Concert Hall.

The documentarys director, Dagan Beckett, received a bachelors degree in music from UTC in 2012 and will attendalong with producer Irv Berner and composer Brook McGarity. Admission is free and all are welcome.

The Songbirds Museum officially closed in 2020although its reopening as a concert venuebut Mr. Beckett was able to get inside for Songbirds: A Documentary before the museum shut down. The film recently won an Emmy in the topical documentary category from the Nashville/Midsouth chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

The documentary also has been shown or won awards at film festivals in New York, Boston; Cannes, France; and Glasgow, Scotland.

Before it closed, the museum housed about 550 guitars, including some played or owned by such luminaries as Allman Brothers guitarist Duane Allman, bass player John Entwistle of the Who, blues guitarist B.B. King, the Beach Boys Carl Wilson and pioneering female guitarist Mary Kaye, a member of the Wrecking Crewa famed set of studio musicians in Los Angeles.

The guitars themselves are great, but I think the stories that come along with the guitars is what really is the value of the guitars, Mr. Beckett said. It makes you appreciate the guitars, the journey that those instruments have been on from the time that they were made.
In January of 2011, I was the first family member notified that my beloved grandfather, Don Wamp, had fallen down the stairs of his office in a tragic accident and was en route to Erlanger.





When I arrived at the emergency room, Hamilton County Emergency Medical Services Director Ken Wilkerson was waiting.





I did not know Ken before that day. But I have never forgotten the way he treated me that fateful morning of my life.





He briefed me on my grandfathers critical condition and offered his heartfelt support. He recognized the weight on my 23-year-old shoulders as I shared the news with my own father, who was out of town, and greeted my grandmother when she arrived at the hospital.





Ken, a man of deep faith, spoke words of truth and encouragement to me that day that have stuck with me ever since.





Ken's service to our country and our community spanned decades from the United States Air Force to the Chattanooga Police Department to Hamilton County Emergency Medical Services, where he served for 32 years.





Today, the ambulance service that Ken helped build serves every corner of Hamilton County. His successor, Director John Miller, and the roughly 150 men and women of HCEMS are true everyday heroes. Along with his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, they carry on the legacy of Ken Wilkerson.





I was fortunate to have encountered this good man in my own difficult circumstances. I can only imagine how many others in our community had a similar experience with Ken.





Weston Wamp

Hamilton County Mayor

* * *

It was an honor to work with (then) Chief Wilkerson when I was employed with HCSD in the 80s and 90s. I dont recall the year, but we both met up at a serious rollover crash where a young child was critically injured on Dallas Hollow Road. The child was extricated and loaded into a waiting ambulance, which was to have proceeded to the LZ where LifeForce was standing by.

I couldnt figure out why the ambulance wasnt moving; however, after a few minutes, Chief Wilkerson and other medics emerged from the rear door with tears in their eyes as the child did not survive.

Ill never forget when we got ready to clear the scene, Chief Wilkerson tearfully said, When I get home, Im going to hug my kids extra tight tonight. That is one of many memories I have of Chief Wilkerson, who definitely served his community well.





Steve Kirkpatrick
Chattanooga businessmen Walter Scott French and David T. Carpenter were longtime residents of Cameron Hill. They lived in the large house at 206 Prospect St. (Boynton Terrace) for many years. French had married into the Carpenter family.

French, who headed the Phoenix Foundry Company, was born near McMinnville in 1854. He was the only son of John Hopkins and Lucy Virginia Smith French. The father was a horse breeder and farmer, while the mother was a well-known Southern writer. Mrs. French, a native of Virginia, began her literary career in Memphis. The father was also from Virginia native.

Walter S. French grew up on the family farm in Warren County. In October 1872, he entered the Eastern Tennessee University, though he later had to withdraw due to illness. Afterward, he studied at a business school in Nashville.

French was the bookkeeper for a McMinnville firm "at a nominal salary" for some time, then he lit out for Chattanooga on Dec. 17, 1877 "where without means and among strangers he began life again." He was finally hired on Jan. 8 by the glass dealer P.C. Wilson over many applicants. The salary was $20 per month. His employer allowed him to represent the firm in Cincinnati at the great banquet on March 18, 1888, to celebrate the completion of the Cincinnati Southern Railroad.

French was called to the bedside of his dying mother the next spring. While there he was induced to rejoin his former McMinnville employer, T.F. Burroughs, and he took a half interest in the business. After 18 months of "patient and unceasing labor and seeing that he was falling behind in his payments," he at once decided to sell his interest and return to Chattanooga. French was back in Chattanooga "with a light heart" by March of 1883.

On Sept. 7, 1881, he had married Ella M. Carpenter, a native of Indiana and former resident of Cleveland, Ohio. Her family had settled in Chattanooga in 1874. French, after his return to Chattanooga, joined with his wife's father and brother to organize the Phoenix Foundry Company. French was made secretary and treasurer. This company was able to make it through the depression of 1884-1885. French's $500 investment in the firm paid dividends, and, "by the frugal habits of his wife," he was finally able to set some money aside.

David T. Carpenter was born in 1827 in Grafton County, N.H., the son of Asa and Anna Turner Carpenter. When he was 26 years old, he moved to Cleveland, Ohio. After a year there, he returned to New Hampshire and married Miranda Parkhurst. They moved to Chicago, where D.T. Carpenter worked three years moulding in a foundry. In 1856, he moved to Cleveland, where he was foreman in a foundry for the next 16 years.

During the Civil War D.T. Carpenter in 1864 joined the Ohio Home Guards. He went on a 100-day tour as a sergeant, but had to be brought home sick.

Carpenter lived at Columbus, Ohio, then in 1873 he went to Chattanooga "to find a suitable place to live." The family moved to Chattanooga the next year. There he started the Phoenix Foundry with his son, Clarence A. Carpenter, and his son-in-law French. The plant "enjoyed excellent success, continuing to run during the entire time of the stagnation in business."

The Carpenters had nine children, including Ella, the wife of Walter S. French. Others were Clarence A., Clara E., Flora B., George E. (who died young), Grace L., Jettie A. and another George E.

David T. Carpenter was on Prospect Street by 1876, and Walter French joined the household by 1884. It was said that D.T. Carpenter "began life in very limited circumstances, but by economy and judicious management is now in a very comfortable condition." He had a 100-acre farm on Missionary Ridge near the East Lake Station of the Belt Railroad.

One of the daughters of D.T. Carpenter, Clara E. Carpenter, was the last of the family to live in the 206 Prospect house. She moved out about 1907 to live on Missionary Ridge. The Frenches had moved to Missionary Ridge as well.

Clara Carpenter graduated from Chattanooga High School in 1879. She then taught and was in administration for 51 years in the Chattanooga public schools. The Clara Carpenter Elementary School on E. Fifth Street near Douglas was named in her honor. She was the principal of the First District School for many years.

Later owners of the Carpenter/French home near the top of Cameron Hill were Hymen Steinman, Buford Combs and J.H. Cloud.
A woman told police that while at work at McDonald's, 4829 Brainerd Road, another employee engaged in an argument with her and slapped her in the face one time. The other employee said it was a verbal argument only. Police observed video footage of both of them pushing one another one time and they appeared to be mutual combatants. The other employee left the scene while the woman remained at work. The manager on duty agreed that both of them should not be scheduled to work together in the future to prevent any further actions between the two. No primary aggressor was observed.



* * *

A suspicious vehicle was reported on South Street. Police located a stolen Cadillac parked in a driveway. The owner was notified by Dispatch. The vehicle was towed by S&S Towing. The officer printed the vehicle from the outside. Due to the vehicle being locked and the owner having no extra keys, no inventory of the interior was completed.

* * *

A man was reported to be hanging out at the self service car wash at 600 Commercial Lane where reports had been made of coin machines being broken into. Police spoke with the man and asked him for identification. The man remained cooperative the entire duration of the field interview and gave police no issue. He said he just floats around the area and will clean up various business parking lots in the Signal Mountain Road area. Police ran the man for warrants and he came back clear. Police did a quick check of the business to ensure he hadn't broken into the coin machines and then police left the area.

* * *



Police responded to an apartment at 2300 Wilson St. on reports of an open door. The caller told police she was the renter of the apartment and she would be there in five minutes. Police spoke with a man in the apartment who said he had spoken to the caller, who was his niece. He told police that he was staying in the apartment for a few days. The caller arrived on scene and told police that the man was indeed her uncle and it was okay that he was staying there.

* * *

Police observed a woman pacing up and down the 1200 block of E. 3rd Street. Police identified the woman and asked how she was doing and she said that she was fine. Police continued to talk to her and noticed that her participation in the conversation was disjointed as she was talking about unrelated topics. The woman was quite friendly with police and police didn't observe her committing any criminal offense. The officer remembered that he had arrested the woman before because she was obstructing the roadway after receiving several warnings. The woman recognized the officer and said that it won't happen again because she was not drunk.

* * *

An employee of Jenkins Masonry at 5929 Highway 153 told police that at sometime someone broke open their JoBox and stole some power/hand tools and equipment. There is no suspect information.

* * *

Police were notified of a man on private property at 7011 Shallowford Road, refusing to leave. Police spoke with the man, who was asleep on the stairs. Police asked the man to leave and he did so without incident.

* * *

A woman called police from 570 I-75 NB saying she was lost. Police located the woman in her van, stopped in the left hand lane. The woman said she was trying to get to 2200 Chattanooga Road in Dalton. Police assisted her with directions on her phone, as well as wrote turn-by-turn directions for her. The woman followed police back to I-75 SB, where she was able to then follow her GPS.

* * *

Police received a call about a white female attempting to get into a gold sedan at the apartments at 1609 Fagan St. Police found the intoxicated woman in the parking lot. The woman said she was staying in town at the apartments with friends. She said she got upset and was going to go home. Police were able to get the woman's friends to take her keys and get her inside for the night.

* * *

Police were flagged down by Waffle House staff at 2024 E. 23rd St. to address a woman inside the business. Per staff request, the woman has officially been trespassed from the Waffle House there, due to her behavior inside the restaurant.

* * *

Police were notified by anonymous caller of an abandoned Kia behind their residence on

Wilcox Boulevard. Police located the vehicle, which showed not stolen through NCIC. Police made contact with the vehicle owner on Agawela Drive The woman said she was unaware that her vehicle had been taken. Police took the woman's husband to the vehicle, where he took ownership. The vehicle was not entered into NCIC due to the vehicle being located. The woman said the keys were not inside the vehicle, and police observed the steering column to be dismembered.

* * *

Police were in the area of the Blue Light Bar, 43 Station St., around 1:15 a.m. for general crime deterrence and crowd control. While on foot patrol, an officer observed multiple patrons leaving, highly intoxicated. The officer observed three patrons getting carried out by multiple other patrons, due to them being unable to walk or maintain consciousness. Police checked and none of the parties needed any medical assistance. Blue Light Bar had a long line outside of the bar waiting to enter and had patrons on the outside patio area. After the rain set in, all of the outside patrons entered inside the business. Police attempted to check the number of patrons inside the business. An officer went to the front gate/entrance where he was met by staff and security guards. None of them could give the officer a number of people that were inside or at the establishment. Police were directed to the owner in the back of the business, towards the back door. The owner provided police a number of approximately 120 guests inside the establishment. Police observed that the owner was not stationary at the front entrance while other staff and security guards were allowing people to enter, therefore leaving the number in attendance in question. While police were speaking with the owner outside of the back door, a physical altercation took place inside the establishment by the bar area, entering behind the bar where police were speaking with the owner. Police were able to separate the people and deescalate the altercation. After dealing with the altercation, the owner decided to close the bar for the evening. All patrons were escorted out of the venue and the business was shut down for the evening. Police assisted in clearing out the parking lot and ensuring public safety while the patrons were leaving the area. After a majority of the patrons had left the area, the district area officers were able to return into service.
Lee University will host The Exiles Experience, a conference for college students and young adults on Oct. 28-29 in Pangle Hall. The weekend-long event will include evening worship, guest speakers, discussion panels, and a baptism commissioning service.

This conference is co-sponsored by Church of God World Missions, and its purpose is to facilitate encounters with Jesus through intercessory prayer and worship to empower the next generation of leaders. Our call is not to escape culture, but to shape it from within by forging deep, meaningful encounters with Jesus and relationships with others, said Dr. Rob Fultz, Lee Universitys campus pastor.

The conference will begin Friday evening at 7 with doors opening at 6. Forge, Redemption to the Nations college ministry worship team, will lead worship and Pastor Fultz will speak.

On Saturday morning, there will be two breakout sessions starting at 9 a. m. The first session is a peer-to-peer panel conversation about revival happening in this generation, followed by a discussion panel with Fultz and other church leaders about living counter-culturally and growing in leadership. Saturday evenings service will begin at 6 p.m. with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and will include worship by The Exiles Movement Worship Team and an opportunity to be baptized.

There is a rawness to the move of God happening in this generation, and its unlike anything we have ever experienced, said Dr. Fultz. Its a deconstruction, not of our faith but of our idols. Its the destruction of the labels and identities not aligned with Gods word. It is the demolition of strongholds too long enslaving Gods Church.

This is the third year the event has been offered to young adults in the community, but the first time the conference will take place over two days. The Exiles Experience was created out of the desire to help young people live on mission locally and globally now, where they are, and with what they have.

This event is free, nonticketed, and open to the public.

For more information, visit The Exiles Experience Facebook page, or contact Dr. Fultz at rfultz@leeuniversity.edu.




The law firm of Leitner, Williams, Dooley & Napolitan, PLLC announced that attorneys Azarius J. Zack Yanez, Mickala J. Lewis and Stefanie M. Bowen have joined the firm.

Zack Yanez joined the firms Chattanooga office as an associate and concentrates his practice on construction defect, commercial, and professional liability litigation. He has represented clients in a wide variety of contract and tort claims, including, breach of contract, violations of the standard of care, violations of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, and wrongful death claims. Mr. Yanez attended St. John Vianney College Seminary for his undergraduate studies and went on to receive his Juris Doctor from Florida International University College of Law in 2017. He is a member of the Tennessee and Chattanooga bar associations. He is licensed to practice law in Tennessee.

Mickala J. Lewis also joined the Chattanooga office and focuses her practice on general civil defense litigation. Originally from Anniston, Alabama, she attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham for her undergraduate studies, where she obtained a degree in psychology. She graduated from Cumberland School of Law with her Juris Doctor. While in law school, she was a Research and Writing Editor on the American Journal of Trial Advocacy. Prior to joining the firm, she clerked for a personal injury firm and interned for Judge R. David Proctor, a district judge for the Northern District of Alabama. She is licensed to practice in Alabama and is pending Tennessee admission.

Stefanie M. Bowen joined the firms Knoxville office, and her practice focuses on general liability, insurance coverage and defense, and workers compensation law. Originally from Kingsport, Tennessee, she attended the University of Tennessee for her undergraduate studies, where she obtained a bachelor's degree in political science. She graduated from Lincoln Memorial University with her Juris Doctor. While in law school, she served as editor-in-chief of the LMU Law Review. Prior to joining the firm, she interned for Judge Suzanne Bauknight in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee and Judge Katie Crytzer, a district judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee. She is licensed to practice in Tennessee.
Can you tell a real couple from a fake one? MTVs new relationship mystery competition series Love at First Lie puts cast members BS detection skills to the test. Eight couples are thrown together in a villa in Malta, where they think theyre participating in a competition that will test their relationship to the max. But in reality, some couples are fakes aiming to trick the real couples out of their chance at winning a huge cash prize.

Meet the eight couples competing on Love at First Lie

FIRST LOOK: Our new Love At First Lie couples get to know each other better over a game  and some people are already raising suspicions ?



Dont miss brand new #LoveAtFirstLie, starting Thurs 13th October at 10pm on MTV UK! pic.twitter.com/ZhPLWniI5C  MTV UK (@MTVUK) October 7, 2022

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In the Love at First Lie series premiere, host Tori Spelling introduces the eight couples competing on the show. Heres who they are (or who they say they are):

Riani, an esthetician, and Chantz, a runway and print model, who met at their high school homecoming and have been together for three years.

Monica, 25, and underwear model Josh, 24, whove been dating for two years.

Jake, a 21-year-old nonbinary makeup artist, and their 25-year-old partner Alfie.

Cece and Reasey, deeply religious high school sweethearts.

Annabell and Joe, who met in college, have been dating for seven years, and recently got engaged.

Karla and Brian, whove been together for two years and have a blended family, with each having a kid from a previous relationship.

Stephanie and Arabella, a pair of personal trainers whove been dating for just four months.

Yuriy and Alicia, ballroom dancers who are partners both on and off the dance floor.

Things get tense as the cast tries to figure out whos lying about their relationship

At first, things start out friendly in the Love at First Lie house.

Everyone in here I think is nice, Jake declares. All these couples, every single couple weve met.

But as the cast starts to look closer at the other couples relationships, cracks emerge and suspicions rise. A truth-telling game only heightens the tension.

Riani and Chantz dont buy Yuriy and Alicias too-slick answers, which they dub planned and bland. Cece and Reaseys revelation that theyre both virgins leaves everyone else stunned. And when Monica and Josh are challenged to reveal a secret about themselves, its not exactly jaw-dropping.

So our secret is, like, were super big foodies, Monica says, adding that she likes Oreos and he likes doughnuts. That ultra-dull answer has Karla declaring them sketchy and Riani thinking theyve blown their cover. (Honestly, we agree. Josh and Monica have zero chemistry and give off a vibe of having met five minutes before filming began.)

But things get really awkward once Chantz starts speculating about Yuriys sexuality. Yuriy takes it in stride, but Jake is up in arms. The situation leads to a nasty confrontation when it comes time for the couples to vote for who they think is lying about their relationship.

Who gets voted out in the Love at First Lie premiere  and were they really lying?

Tori Spelling | Santiago Felipe/Getty Images

Everyone has a theory about who the liars are, and they get a chance to share them at the Truth Ceremony. Each couple casts a vote for who they think isnt telling the truth, and the pair with the most votes is eliminated. If the eliminated couple is lying, $25,000 is added to the prize fund. If not, no money is added and the prize remains at $0.

Yuriy and Alicia go first, voting to eliminate Chantz and Riani. Cece and Reasy vote for Josh and Monica. Unsurprisingly, Jake and Alfie also vote for Chantz and Riani. That leads to a spat between the couples that escalates when Chantz misgenders Jake.

Once the dust settles, the voting continues. Chantz and Riani get their revenge by voting for Jake and Alfie. Brian and Karla vote for Monica and Josh, who they think are awkward. Monica and Josh also vote for Chantz and Riani, as do Annabell and Joe.

With four votes, Chantz and Riani are eliminated. Now, its time for the moment of truth. Are Chantz and Riani a real couple, or have they been faking it for the cameras?

Fortunately, the other couples ability to smell BS is strong. Chantz and Riani are not together. Theyre actually BFFs. And Chantz, who drew criticism for casting doubt on Yuriys heterosexuality, reveals hes gay. He apologizes to his fellow contestant for the move, which he said he made to draw attention away from himself.

One pair of liars is gone. But there are still some lurking among the remaining seven couples. Who will be exposed next? Find out as new episodes of Love at First Lie continue to air Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET on MTV.

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Fred Waterford met a brutal end in The Handmaids Tale Season 4 finale. After he was beaten to death, June cut off his finger and sent it to Serena. And if it hadnt been for series star/director Elisabeth Moss, Fred would have lost his penis as well.

[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for The Handmaids Tale Season 4, Episode 10, and Season 5, Episode 1.]

The Handmaids Tale Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) | Sophie Giraud/Hulu

How June kills Fred Waterford in The Handmaids Tale Season 4

In Season 4 of The Handmaids Tale, Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) and his wife Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski) are in Canada facing charges for their crimes against June Osbourne (Elisabeth Moss) and violations of human rights. But when Fred agrees to provide inside information on Gilead, the charges are dropped.

Determined to make him pay, June sets up a meeting between Mark Tuello (Sam Jaeger) and Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford), where they agree to exchange Fred for 22 women from Gilead.

When the prisoner exchange happens, Nick Blaine (Max Minghella) leads Fred to a wooded area between the Gilead and Canada border  a so-called no mans land. There, June, Emily (Alexis Bledel), and a dozen other Gilead survivors are waiting to attack. They chase Fred down and beat him to death.

They want to fight? Lets fight. #HandmaidsTale Season 5 premieres September 14, only on @hulu. pic.twitter.com/skk7Lwxkp7  The Handmaid's Tale (@HandmaidsOnHulu) July 14, 2022

June cuts off his finger and sends it to Serena along with his wedding ring. Upon receiving news of how Fred died in The Handmaids Tale Season 5 premiere and word of the dismembered finger, Serena immediately knows June was responsible.

The Handmaids Tale director/actor Elisabeth Moss reveals how she reinstated Fred Waterfords penis

Moss directed The Handmaids Tale Season 4 finale. And in a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, she revealed that the actors in Freds beating scene were working with a silicone replica of actor Joseph Fiennes body.

Moss said that when she first saw Fred Waterfords mangled body, she noticed that the penis was slightly ripped off. The director then talked to the crew about whether the idea of the women ripping off Freds penis was realistic. I was like Come on guys, I dont know if we really need to go there,' Moss told Jimmy Kimmel.

There was like a whole penis conversation and a whole testicle conversation and truly what the damage would be  I was like, Those women arent going to put their mouths anywhere near that thing, you know what I mean  so I reinstated his penis.

Under her eye. Let's hear it for Elisabeth Moss, director of the first two episodes of Season 5. #TheHandmaidsTale pic.twitter.com/8raV5Q3v5B  The Handmaid's Tale (@HandmaidsOnHulu) September 17, 2022

Elisabeth Moss teases whats in store for Season 5 of The Handmaids Tale

After killing Fred, June is back on her mission to save her older daughter, Hannah, from Gilead. And according to Moss, The Handmaids Tale Season 5 will highlight Junes struggle between being a mom and wife to Nicole and Luke (O-T Fagbenle) and finding Hannah while bringing down Gilead.

Hannahs always, always been the end goal, Moss told Parade. I do think that theres a side of her that wants to just lead the charge and lead the resistance and go back into Gilead guns blazing.

But she has a family, she continued. And so shes trying to figure out how to be the mother and the wife and the friend, while at the same time being this heroine, this person who is this symbol for the resistance.

A mother's instinct is to protect her children. An all-new episode of #TheHandmaidsTale streams now. pic.twitter.com/WYFYffZXUG  The Handmaid's Tale (@HandmaidsOnHulu) September 28, 2022

Moss also suggested that this season is going to be one of the most thrilling. Every single episode is just another wild ride, Moss teased. Theres not a dull moment this season  I will say that concretely it is actually our largest season in many ways, but its pretty wild.

New episodes of The Handmaids Tale air Wednesdays on Hulu.

RELATED: The Handmaids Tale: Elisabeth Moss Reveals the Exact Moment June Knew What Shed Do to Fred
For enhancing flavors, the production of dyes, pharmaceutical products and bio polyesters - succinic acid is a versatile platform chemical. A team led by Elke Nevoigt, Professor of Molecular Biotechnology at Jacobs University Bremen, has developed an economically and ecologically attractive process for the production of succinic acid by more effectively incorporating carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). The German Research Foundation (DFG) is funding the project for another three years.

A large number of products in the chemical industry are based on fossil raw materials such as oil, gas or coal. Researchers are currently exploring alternatives made from renewable carbon sources and plant waste streams. This also applies to the production of succinic acid. It has been obtained from petroleum, but also by fermentation from starch and sugar.

Nevoigt uses glycerol as an alternative carbon source. She has been researching this byproduct of biodiesel production for more than a decade. "It's exciting because glycerol has a high electron density," the scientist explained. "Compared with sugars, you therefore get a higher yield of succinic acid per carbon used."

In the microbial production process of succinic acid, her research group, in collaboration with TU Delft in the Netherlands, also uses the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. "Glycerol consists of three carbon atoms, CO 2 of one. In total, we end up with the four carbon atoms in the succinic acid we want to produce," Nevoigt explained. The advantage of this process is its energy efficiency and environmental impact. With glycerol as a raw material, not only more succinic acid can be produced compared to sugars, but also more carbon dioxide can be fixed at the same time.

In an extended research approach, Nevoigt uses the advantages that baker's yeast brings to the succinic acid production process. For example, compared to bacteria, yeast is more resistant to low pH values, which makes the production process more stable and, above all, more cost-effective. The working group is now conducting research to further optimize the process. The yeast cells should produce even more succinic acid from glycerol. "Improving the cell's energy balance would allow more carbon to be incorporated into the target product, succinic acid," Nevoigt said.
The aim of the project is to develop novel, next-generation Fischer-Tropsch catalysts and thus to optimise the production of sustainable kerosene  or Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)  on an industrial scale.

The international research project CARE-O-SENE (Catalyst Research for Sustainable Kerosene) was granted 30 million euros in funding by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Additionally, the industrial consortium partners contribute 10 million euros. The aim of the project is to develop novel, next-generation Fischer-Tropsch catalysts and thus to optimise the production of sustainable kerosene  or Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)  on an industrial scale.

Sustainable kerosene is not based on fossil-based raw materials like conventional kerosene but on green hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The technology contributes significantly to sustainably decarbonising sectors such as aviation, since fossil fuels are particularly difficult to replace in this area.

Research partners for the next generation of Fischer-Tropsch catalysts in CARE-O-SENE include Sasol Germany GmbH, Sasol Limited and the HelmholtzZentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie (Helmholtz Centre for Materials and Energy, HZB). Others are the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS), the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), The University of Cape Town (UCT) and INERATEC GmbH.

This project is a building block of the German National Hydrogen Strategy

Dr Dirk Schaer, Lead Technical Marketing Catalyst at Sasol says: Our work is an important building block of the German National Hydrogen Strategy. We are delighted that the BMBF has recognised the enormous potential in the CARE-O-SENE research project on the novel Fischer-Tropsch catalysts and supports the work.

We are absolutely delighted about the start of CARE-O-SENE, adds Dr Tobias Sontheimer, Head of Strategy - Energy and Information at HZB. The fact that each partner can contribute dedicated expertise in catalysis research and work so closely with successful companies on technological implementation makes the project very special.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the South African President Cyril Ramaphosa gave the go-ahead for the CARE-O-SENE project at a ceremony at Sasols headquarters in Johannesburg in May this year. Now that the positive funding decision has been taken, the research work can begin.
Man accused of killing wife to be arraigned in Lincoln County

DAVENPORT54-year-old Charles R. Bergman of Moses Lake, who is charged with first-degree premeditated murder of his 53-year-old wife Theresa Bergman, waived extradition in Pennsylvania and will be brought back to Lincoln County to be arraigned, Lincoln County prosecutor Adam Walser confirmed this week.

Bergman appeared in court in Pennsylvania Tuesday, Oct. 4, where he waived his extradition.

We will work with the U.S. Marshal service to get him back here, interim Sheriff Gabe Gants said. Typically you have 10 days to pick them up.

Theresa Bergmans body was found 12 miles northwest of Sprague off Stolp Road Thursday, Sept. 22 after she and Charles had been reported missing in Grant County. Charles Bergman was arrested by U.S. Marshals in New Stanton a day later after he was charged.

Investigation records state Charles Bergman had conducted prior Google research of the area where Theresa Bergmans body was found by a local farmer. Her body showed signs of trauma to the right rear side of her head, according to police reports.

The Bergmans were caught on camera leaving Spokane International Airport just after midnight Sept. 18, and their phones last went offline around Sprague just under two hours later, records state.

Charles and Theresa Bergman had a strained marriage, and both partners had indicated desire for separation or divorce, according to investigation records.

Walser said he expects Bergman to appear in Lincoln County Superior Court during a Tuesday criminal docket in the next couple of weeks, depending on when he arrives back here. Bergmans first appearance will mark the start of a hearing that will be the countys first murder case in 20 years.
The Sovereignty Run began at the Cherokee Nations One Fire Field just west of the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex on Oct. 3.
With AmeriCorps funding, the Cherokee Nation is working to employ 25 individuals to deliver personal tutoring to improve school readiness for youth ages two to five years old at area Head Starts.
Meetings of the Cheshire Board of Education are not always exciting affairs, but they are public events. They can be watched on YouTube or attended in person, and minutes are available usually a few days after the meeting adjourns.

To further offer transparency and access to parents and the public, the Board has annually hosted open forums. These consist of small-group question-and-answer sessions hosted by the subcommittee chairs, such as finance, policy, and curriculum. The Thursday night meeting on Oct. 6 in the Dodd Middle School library did not have a videographer present, but roughly 15 parents came to meet with school officials, including Assistant Superintendent Marlene Silano. Board Chair Tony Perugini opened the meeting with general remarks about the format, and discussion ensued.

Before long, it was apparent that the main reason for most parents attendance was to discuss a selection of books being used in a social justice unit of a Dodd 7th grade English course.

The six selections portray characters facing an array of challenges and who come from a variety of backgrounds. Among topics alluded to or discussed in the books are police violence, domestic abuse, and drugs, according the participants.

I want my son to trust the police, not believe theyre bad, one man objected, saying that, where he grew up, most of those who were taught not to trust police became criminals.

The discussion remained civil throughout, although parental frustration was openly expressed. Perugini allowed space for the conversation to proceed, asking, What options do we have to allow students to choose something else to read or have the students not be dinged for not reading the assigned texts?

The main objection voiced by parents was that the material was too adult for 7th graders and that high school-aged students would be better equipped to discuss those topics.

One parent, who identified himself as a clinical neuropsychologist, pointed out that many young people in that age group have experienced even worse than the books could represent. He suggested the objections might be about protecting a young persons childlike innocence even as they come into adolescence.

Silano defended the texts role in the curriculum, saying that other Districts had used them, and that they adhered to CABE (Connecticut Association of Boards of Education) model policies.

The development of empathy and other social-emotional skills is a key aspect of the Districts curricular policy agenda. According to Silano, studies support the notion that high emotional intelligence contributes to success in professional and personal life, and literature has long been one vehicle by which to achieve that in schools, offering students a way to encounter a variety of human experiences.

Some parents countered that not all experience is valuable or desirable. One mother raised the issue of the pandemics still-evolving effects on childrens emotional health, asking, How does piling emotionally-charged books on them help?

Another parent, a retired educator, named several books that she said were not only age-appropriate but also offered more positive, uplifting messages while still describing cultural experiences distant from Cheshire. Someone else mentioned community volunteering projects, which he said could teach valuable lessons in compassion that a classroom cant.

The topic of political bias was also discussed. Addressing the concern that the books might promote or cause a worsening in racial relations, Board member Faith Ham mentioned the work of Black intellectual figures such as John McWhorter and Glenn Loury, who are challenging the narrative of systemic racism.

Another man recommended the movie Brians Song, based on the famous friendship of Gayle Sayers and Brian Piccolo and Sayers memoir I Am Third. Some parents objected to the presence of cable news broadcasts in the classroom, as they were unclear as to how media bias was being addressed.

Another problem raised by the audience was that some students were not being adequately challenged by the materials. One father, Paul Defelice, said, My daughter isnt getting out of an assignment because I disagree with it, but he was in favor of a more open source approach to the controversial material. Others said their child might do little more than the bare minimum to finish the assignments and ultimately not achieve the emotional engagement that the unit seeks.

A mother who works in education was critical of the poor writing standards her students displayed, suggesting that teaching communication and persuasion should be favored over reading and discussing these contemporary novels.

Several parents, as well as Ham, mentioned that this was not at all about banning these or any other books. Rather, most agreed that additional options for the course readings would be an acceptable solution.

While it was not necessarily a question of resources, Silano said that the District would need some time to have conversations with teachers about alternative texts.

The lack of information about what the books might contain and letting parents know in advance about the unit was at the heart of the frustration. Silano encouraged all the parents to be in touch with teachers, and if youre not getting the information you need, contact the school and the district administrators. Perugini stated that the Board checks their emails regularly and also exists as a resource for parents.

The meeting ended with Silano offering to look into options for students and parents in the unit.
This past week, the artist formerly known as Kanye Westwho now goes by Yewas suspended from Twitter after an unhinged rant. He posted comments using antisemitic tropes about the influence of Jewish people, followed by an almost incomprehensible threat to go death con 3 on Jewish people.

Twitter and Instagram, too, were right to take these comments seriously. Weve seen how antisemitic threats of violence can incite terrorin the Tree of Life synagogue shooting and beyond. The lead-up to the suspension, though, followed a kind of publicity tour punctuated by deliberate controversy.



West appeared at an event with the contentious media figure Candace Owens wearing White Lives Matter T-shirts. During an interview with Tucker Carlson, he spooled out conspiracy theories to such a degree that he stopped to ask if hed landed in Alex Jones territory yet. Then Vice posted additional video of him being even more explicitly antisemitic and even more open about bizarre conspiracy theories.

Instability from this artist is hardly surprising. Several years ago, I noted that I was worried for the rappernot because of his mental health challenges but because of what American evangelicals often do to celebrities who profess faith. Too often we claim them as, at best, mascots for our side and, at worst, as trophies from the culture wars.

Over and over, the church has expected things from these figures that they do not have the maturity, wisdom, or even stability to handle.

The issue is in part that a celebrity is saying something insane (and highly offensive). But its equally problematic that we have an entire media ecosystem willing to exploit him when he does. Within days of his antisemitic Twitter rant, Owens was defending Ye, saying death con 3 should be interpreted as a move to protect the Jewish people. After all, she reasoned, DEFCON is a defensive military category, not an offensive one.

It's hard for me to imagine anyone taking that argument seriously. But even so, another social media flurry began right after she spoke. Can you believe what Ye said? morphed into Can you believe what Candace Owens said? and so on.

Long after weve forgotten the names of Kanye or Ye or whatever comes next, that conversational reality will stay with us, including and maybe especially within the church.

My friend David French wrote last week about the gutter levels of cruelty and character assassination he and his family have experienced from some sectors of the online world. When Davids wife, Nancy, bravely came forward about the sexual abuse she suffered as a child from a predatory pastor, one commentator said that Nancy screwed around with her pastor when she was a teen. Another publication blasted their family with a poem too vile for me to even quote.

David wrote about the very real struggle of deciding when to deny these purveyors of hatred the attention they deserve and when to respond. In most cases, the first is better. But sometimes, we have to point out whats happening right in front of us and ask, Where is this coming from?

The short and ultimate answer, of course, is that its coming from the human heart and from a fallen humanity giving itself over to the passions of the flesh. But theres something else at work too.

For years, Neil Postman and other media critics warned that we were moving into a time of vapidity, propelled by social media and other forms of communication. We were becoming the societal equivalent of Kim Kardashianfamous for being famous.

Article continues below

If only that were the case. It seems that weve ended up in a much bleaker place: at the societal equivalent not of Kardashian but of her ex-husband, Kanye West. What we see is less empty vanity and more active hostility, combined with what appears to be a mass-level mental health crisis.

Weve moved into a time in which many clamor for the fame that comes with outrage, cruelty, or craziness. As Ive written before, in some places, crazy has become a strategy for expanding church congregations. But church-growth really isnt the goal in most cases. For many of them, the shock is the point.

Someone recently sent me a Twitter thread by a pastor named Trey Ferguson. I gather from his tweets that Ferguson is decidedly not an evangelical, and maybe his critique is much broader than I would make. Still, his basic point is hard to refute:

There is an entire, self-contained, self-sustaining, conservative evangelical complex where conservative evangelicals say outrageous things, wait for the inevitable reaction from people who are not conservative evangelicals, and then point to that reaction as confirmation that they are doing Gods work.

Ferguson then pleaded with his followers to be free from that cycle.

The basic thrust of it does in fact describe whats often happening in our evangelical spaces. Someone will post an incendiary statement. As Ferguson points out, that person can count on a multitude of quote-tweets denouncing them. Someone will then respond, Im just here for the ratio, referring to the ways people object to a tweet they dont like. But the author of the original tweet is also there for the ratio.

To a certain kind of angry person, all controversy is good controversy. And to a certain kind of needy person, all attention is good attention. Like an obscene crank caller in the days of landlines, shocking the recipient is the twisted goal. They want to be hated by one tribe so that they can be loved by their own.

Ordinarily, these dynamics might not be worth mentioningif they were only about social media. But increasingly, our real-life interactions are being affected by the online world. The more a person lives behind screens, the more their character is shaped out here by who they are on there.

These trends are bad for society, bad for democracy, and bad for the church, but theyre maybe worst of all for those finding attention and identity through social media.

For some of them, creating shock culture is the result of a breakdown. For others, its a business model. We should provide help for the first group and work hard not to be the second. Its no way for anyone to liveespecially a church charged with telling the world that Jesus loves you, and me, and Ye.

Russell Moore is the editor in chief at Christianity Today.
'The Great Recital' brings New Testament to life through verse-by-verse readings from memory

DALLAS, Texas  When it comes to the words of Scripture, professor Tom Meyer  also known as the Bible Memory Man  believes sometimes hearing makes all the difference.

I compare it to reading Mozart versus hearing Mozart, Meyer told The Christian Post. You might be able to read Mozart on the page, but to hear someone play Mozart, especially someone who has the piece memorized and believes it, then the piece takes on another dimension.

Meyer, a professor atShasta Bible College of Redding, California, has earned his moniker for having committed 20 books of the Bible to memory, a feat that has taken him to various venues across the country where hes looking to make history.

The Great Recital, which takes place through Oct. 15 at the ICR Discovery Center, involves Meyer and six other Bible memory experts who perform verse-by-verse readings of the entire New Testament, all from memory.

Coinciding with the Feast of Tabernacles, when the nation of Israel would gather for a celebratory reading of the Torah, Meyer said he specifically scheduled The Great Recital to occur during the same period of time.

In fact, for Meyer, The Great Recital offers not only an opportunity to share Gods Word with others, but also to prepare its hearers for what many believe to be a pivotal election for the future of the United States.

The Bible records instances of persons reading Scripture aloud at public gatherings like Sukkot, he said. In Bible times, this custom was intended to produce a life of obedience and ensure a continuation of the nation of Israels divine prosperity.

In like manner, this modern-day public proclamation of the Word of God shortly before the midterms will inform those who listen as to what the God of the Bible requires of them not only as an individual but as one nation under God, he added.

But with the New Testament spanning 27 books and more than 180,000 words, Meyer knew he needed some help to pull it off.

Instead of bringing in trained actors, Meyer sought those whom he described as regular people who fear God and love His Word, including retired schoolteacher Scott Firebaugh, Brittany Schlichter, a church secretary, and Timothy Frudd, a podcaster and journalist.

Resembling less a traditional church setting and more like one might imagine open-air preaching in the first century looked like, the recital uses different translations of Scripture: Firebaugh, for example, prefers the King James Version, while others opt for the ESV or NIV.

Deliveries are also varied, ranging from Meyer's flair for the theatrical to a more subdued approach favored by Firebaugh and others.

Frudd, who is tasked with presenting both the Gospel of Luke and the Epistle to the Galatians by memory, said the sheer volume of the work can be a bit daunting, especially when you consider the Gospel of Luke alone is over 25,000 words long and takes more than two hours to recite.

It requires a ton of memorization practice, a ton of voice training for stamina, and a lot of mental focus, and a lot of prayer that God will give you the strength, said Frudd.

Although Frudd started on the Bible memorization path early and later earned his masters degree in biblical exposition, he didnt cross paths with Meyer until the two met at the Creation Museum and its sister attraction, the Ark Encounter, in Kentucky, where Meyer was overseeing classes on Scripture memorization.

After having Meyer on his Heavenward Thinking podcast, Frudd said Meyer surprised him by asking him to join the effort, which he called both terrifying and exciting.

But Frudd said he believes its been his own personal walk of faith that has seen the biggest impact from memorizing the Bible.

It just really transforms your whole life, he said. Theres nothing that I found studying the Bible in any kind of way thats more powerful than actually memorizing the Word of God, getting that in us, so that its flowing through our mind so that we can recall it whenever were going through difficult times.
Third CVS nurse practitioner claims she was fired for her religious beliefs: lawsuit

A major pharmacy chain denies allegations of wrongdoing as it faces another lawsuit for terminating an employee who refused to provide abortion-inducing drugs in violation of her deeply held religious beliefs.

In a lawsuit obtained by The Christian Post, former CVS nurse practitioner Suzanne Schuler maintains that her former employer terminated her because of her religious beliefs. The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas on Wednesday, noted that Schuler worked as a nurse practitioner at CVS MinuteClinics in and around Olathe, Kansas, from 2009 to 2021.

Operated by CVS, MinuteClinics provide non-emergent medical treatment to patients on an appointment and walk-in basis. According to the lawsuit, Schulers Christian faith prohibits her from providing, prescribing, or facilitating the use of any drug, device, or surgical procedure that can cause abortion  including drugs like certain hormonal contraceptives, Plan B and Ella.

Schuler successfully obtained religious exemptions to a 2011 requirement that nurse practitioners refill birth control prescriptions and a 2015 amendment to her job description requiring her to prescribe contraceptives, including abortion-inducing drugs.

The complaint contends that Nothing changed in terms of the job description of a nurse practitioner according to the position summary of CVS for that position in 2021 and nothing in the 2021 job description added different obligations that did not exist under the prior published job description. It asserts that MinuteClinic abruptly stopped respecting Ms. Schulers religious beliefs in September 2021 and fired her October 31, 2021, for refusing to prescribe abortion-causing drugs.

The complaint clarified that the only thing that changed in 2021 was that CVS labeled providing counseling and advice about contraceptives, abortifacients, and other birth control options as essential functions.

The lawsuit asks a federal court to grant Schulers request for damages, including lost wages and benefits and wages due to her termination, unpaid lost wages due to wrongful discharge or constructive discharge, back pay, reinstatement or front pay, prejudgment and post-judgment interest, punitive damages, and compensatory damages, including, but not limited to, damages for pain and suffering, mental and emotional distress, suffering and anxiety, reductions in wages, expenses costs and other damages.

Prior to filing the lawsuit, Schuler had submitted a Charge of Discrimination to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. MinuteClinic responded to the EEOC complaint in a Mar. 4 position statement, writing, MinuteClinic terminated Complainants employment after determining it could no longer excuse her from performing these essential job duties without imposing an undue hardship on its business operations.

MinuteClinics business model has transitioned from a retail or acute care model to a more holistic health services model. The new holistic health care model is geared toward creating consistent relationships with patients similar to a community health center. As such, it was imperative that Nurse Practitioners, such as Complainant, be prepared and able to treat any number of conditions, including counseling and advice about contraceptives, abortifacients, and other birth control options, and prescribing such medications.

Insisting that Schuler would often, if not always, have been the only Nurse Practitioner available to provide such patient care, including writing prescriptions for contraceptives, the position statement declared that the only way to accommodate her religious beliefs would therefore have been to turn away patients seeking such services, refer them to a different business entirely, and/or to inform patients that they needed to return to a different practitioner at the same clinic on a different day.

The response to the EEOC complaint repeatedly cited the new business model as the justification for its decision to cease accommodating Schulers religious beliefs, stressing that her assertion that MinuteClinic had allowed her to turn away patients in prior years is of no import where its business needs had changed. The document called on the EEOC to dismiss Schulers claims for lack of probable cause, suggesting that Complainant will be unable to establish that MinuteClinic engaged in discriminatory conduct.

The complaint filed in federal court Wednesday pushes back on the idea that Schulers failure to provide contraception constituted an undue hardship on her employers business model: There were no complaints from co-workers, patients, or supervisors while her accommodation was in place or at any time during her employment with Defendants. Ms. Schulers work was outstanding, and she had no performance issues throughout her employment with Defendants.

Additionally, the lawsuit said that the MinuteClinic Schuler primarily worked at was not staffed on a daily basis to provide every service to a customer (beyond those that Ms. Schuler could not provide and that there were services that required both a nurse practitioner and a [registered nurse/licensed practical nurse.] The complaint elaborated on the staffing of MinuteClinics in the Olathe area.

Historically, staffing of CVS clinics to have an RN/LPN on simultaneous duty with a nurse practitioner did not occur. There were not enough RN/LPN applicants. For the Kansas metropolitan area, CVS generally only had an RN/LPN assigned to three of ten or eleven CVS clinics which did not cover the entire operational day or to cover all of the seven days in the week.

The case involving Schuler is not the first time CVS has faced legal action for firing a Christian nurse practitioner for refusing to dispense birth control. Paige Casey, a Catholic nurse practitioner in Virginia, and Robyn Strader, a nurse practitioner in Texas, made similar allegations in a lawsuit and EEOC complaint, respectively. Wednesdays lawsuit contains references to the other two nurse practitioners.
From suicidal ideation to Christ: Woman tells her story of depression, anxiety and faith

Louisiana resident Emma Benoit remembers wearing a constant smile on her face as a facade in her early adolescent years to cover up her deep ongoing sadness.

In an interview with The Christian Post, Benoit recalled that while her life appeared to be picture-perfect on the outside, she felt herself slowly deteriorating mentally and emotionally.

Despite being raised in a close-knit Christian household of four, Benoit said that her faith took a back seat in her life for most of her teenage years because having popularity and notoriety among her peers was of the utmost importance.

In high school, she became a varsity cheerleader and as a result, she had too many friends to count. However, her mental illnesses remained untreated.

In the summer before her senior year of high school in 2017, she said she could no longer masquerade herself as the always-happy-person any longer.

That summer, Benoit attempted suicide by shooting herself in the chest using a firearm that belonged to her father. She was left with injuries that disabled her.

Now 22, Benoit uses a wheelchair and a walker to move around as a result of the injuries caused by her self-inflicted gunshot wounds. She said that surviving the incident has brought her closer to God because she believes she was given another chance at life.

Benoit told CP that in 2018, the year after her attempt, she dedicated her life to Christ. She currently works toward suicide prevention as a mental health advocate.

During Suicide Prevention Month, which is observed every September, Benoit partnered with the American Association of Christian Counselors to create a video sharing her testimony in an effort to advance mental health awareness.

In elementary school and middle school, I was so insecure and I was so self-conscious that my friends that I made weren't really my friends. The person that I was portraying wasn't always 100% accurate to who I was, Benoit recounted.

I always felt like I could never be myself and even though I had all these friends on the outside, and it looked great, it really wasnt. It's isolating. Because I didnt feel like my friends would like me if I was myself. I felt like they would dislike me if I showed them a different side of me. I had a real big bowl of protecting my image. And I worked really hard to mask anything that might show otherwise.

Feelings of Isolation

Benoit said in the same way she felt isolated in her youth, she "was struggling pretty severely with depression and anxiety and I had no idea that's what I was dealing with."

"I began to really struggle with self-esteem issues and self-doubt and peer pressure at a very early age. I was about 12 and came from an environment where those things are not really talked about. It was really challenging, Benoit recalled.

Benoit said that as a teenager, there was always the lingering cloud of depression, and she also felt anxiety, which she described as a crippling fear and feeling within.

I began to internalize all of those feelings. And obviously, as I got older, those feelings didn't really go away. They just kind of grew with me. And so, it was really challenging for me to navigate my own mental health journey without the knowledge and the environment around me that was accepting of that conversation, she said.

Appearance was 'Everything'

Before coming to Christ, Benoit said she once thought that the way people viewed her and what they thought of her was everything," calling it "my go-to form of validation" that "gave me a short-lived feeling of confidence."

I put a lot of emphasis and value into the way I looked, into how well I was performing, and that really molded a person who was never really secure in themselves, who was never really confident, Benoit admitted.

It was a fake confidence because it was based solely on the external opinion of me from other people. So it was really challenging to feel like the only way that I'm going to feel good about myself is if other people tell me how great I am, she continued.

My high school years were filled with this great feeling of hopelessness and that nothing will change. My life is going to be this hard, forever. It's so permanent. And those feelings only grew bigger and bigger; the longer that they went on, unaddressed and not talked about.

The suicide attempt

On the night of her suicide attempt, Benoit said she remembers she was home alone because her parents were at work.

Benoit began to have a panic attack, with her first response being to call her mother. As she talked with her mother on the phone, another work call came in and her mother put her on hold.

During those few moments waiting on hold, Benoit recalled retrieving her fathers gun and shooting herself in the chest, describing as a spur-of-the-moment decision.

When her mother took her off hold, she tried to return to the call, but realized Benoit was unresponsive. She left work and drove home to find Benoit lying unconscious.

My mother told me that on that night when I wasnt responding on the other line, she had a really bad gut feeling that something horrible had happened. She calls it mother's intuition or a higher power that showed her that she needed to go home, Benoit said.

When my mom came into my bedroom, I snapped out of unconsciousness for a brief moment and I remember her coming into the room and falling to her knees and saying: oh my god. oh my God, just keep breathing. I vividly remember that. But, that's the last memory that I have from that day.

Her mother rushed her to the hospital. Benoit had a severed carotid artery, which caused a blood clot that pressed on her spinal cord, injuring it. She also suffered multiple strokes during the surgery to repair the artery.

Benoit said she believes that her mother rushing home that evening was a sign of "divine intervention" from God to give her another chance to live.

Quite frankly, it was one of the first miracles that happened in my story. Because prior to me making the attempt, I had made no mention of being suicidal and no one knew that I was thinking like that, continued Benoit.

Peace Through Faith

Benoit said that she has found peace in her faith, telling CP that Christianity changed her perspective on life and her viewpoint on her pursuit of happiness.

Once my life was spared, I felt like there's got to be some reason why I'm here. So, I decided to just really put my effort and energy into learning more about God and learning more about the Bible and learning more about Christ, she said.

I'm so grateful for this journey. I look at things so much differently now. I just see things in a different light. And I mean, it truly all boils down to the fact that we are imperfect human beings, and it's not our job to fix ourselves. We can't rely solely on ourselves in this life.

Benoit said that her nondenominational Christian faith has been instrumental in helping her walk through her recovery process.

My faith has been super crucial for me in my recovery because I've been able to totally give everything to God and just rely on Him completely and utterly to get me through hard things. And I've really realized that while I might not be able to pray away my depression, I certainly can utilize the tools that I believe God has given us in this life to navigate life in a different way, Benoit said.

Additionally, since her suicide attempt, Benoit has seen a therapist whom she said helps her navigate life alongside Jesus.

I believe that some tools that God equipped us with are: therapists, counselors, teachers, knowledge, education and medication  which are all wonderful things that can help lead to break through, Benoit said.

I believe that those are skills and gifts that we have been given that have equipped us to help one another through life. And honestly, I think my overall perspective on life is much different because I know that there's hope. And I know that this isn't our permanent home.
Jury rejects death penalty for Parkland mass shooter; recommends life in prison

A jury has rejected a request to give the death penalty to Nikolas Cruz, the now 24-year-old man who entered a high school in Parkland, Florida, in 2018 and murdered 17 people in a mass shooting.

On Feb. 14, 2018, Cruz entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where he was a former student, and opened fire, killing 14 students and three staff members before he was stopped.

A 12-person jury recommended life in prison without the possibility of parole for Cruz on Thursday, citing factors like Cruzs documented history of mental health issues.

The sentencing date for Cruz is scheduled for Nov. 1, and will involve a judge issuing a formal sentence. According to Florida law, the judge cannot depart from the jurys recommendation of life, reported CNN.

Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter, Alyssa Alhadeff, was murdered in the 2018 shooting, expressed disappointment at the jurys recommendation of life in prison.

We are beyond disappointed with the outcome today. This should have been the death penalty, one hundred percent. Seventeen people were brutally murdered, said Aladeff, as quoted by Axios.

"I'm stunned. I'm devastated. There are 17 victims that did not receive justice today," said Fred Guttenberg, the father of 14-year-old shooting victim Jaime Guttenberg, reported Axios.

In 2018, a then 19-year-old Cruz went to the Parkland high school and massacred 17 people, being apprehended by police shortly after and confessing to the mass shooting.

After the mass shooting occurred, claims surfaced that Cruz belonged to a white nationalist militia group known as the Republic of Florida, however, authorities later refuted these claims.

"We are still doing some work but we have no known ties between the ROF, Jordan Jereb or the Broward shooter," said Leon County Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Grady Jordan to the Tallahassee Democrat at the time.

Cruz told authorities that demons had told him to do the shooting, with evidence indicating that he suffered from Autism and grief over the then-recent death of his adoptive mother.

Later in 2018, a cell phone video was released that Cruz took of himself planning to massacre at least 20 people with an AR-15 and a couple tracer rounds.

Location is Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Florida. It's going to be a big event. When you see me on the news you'll all know who I am, said Cruz in the video. You're all going to die.

The mass shooting spurred several large-scale demonstrations calling for increased firearms regulations, especially restrictions on rifles that some label as assault weapons. A few Parkland students have since actively campaigned for these initiatives.

The debate over what could be done about violence in schools following the Parkland tragedy also led to the creation of a seven-part article series by The Christian Post titled Youth, Schools and Violence, which analyzed the issue from multiple angles.
Mike Huckabee, family values group warn Arkansans against voting to legalize marijuana

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has joined an effort to stop the legalization of recreational marijuana in Arkansas through a ballot measure to be voted on next month.

Huckabee, a Republican whose daughter, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, is the GOP nominee in the states upcoming gubernatorial election, recently appeared in a video produced by the Arkansas Family Council Action Committee advocating against the passage of Issue 4.

Issue 4 would authorize the possession, personal use and conception of cannabis by adults, to authorize the cultivation and sale of cannabis by licensed commercial facilities, and to provide for the regulation of those facilities, if passed.

Huckabee asserted that states that have already legalized marijuana have seen an uptick in vehicular accidents and workplace issues, where people show up for work stoned.

Characterizing Issue 4 as a disastrous proposal, the former governor rejected the claim that our state and our citizens and especially our children are going to be better off for somehow making recreational drugs part of their daily life.

The AFCAC, a nonprofit organization created to promote, protect, and strengthen traditional family values in the political arena, is among the leading opponents of Issue 4.

The advocacy group prepared a brief for pastors, which argues that marijuana use directly contradicts the teachings of Christianity. It contains a reference to Galatians 5:22-23, which extols the virtue of self-control.

The whole purpose of consuming recreational marijuana is to get high. The Bible has numerous warnings against drunkenness. Being filled with the Spirit leads to more self-control, but using marijuana leads to less self-control and a loss of inhibitions, stated the brief.

Marijuana clouds our ability to perceive the world clearly, and it dulls our sense of urgency about what the disciples of Christ should be doing. It clouds a persons senses and makes it more difficult for them to see the need for Christ.

In a separate document, the group provided statistics from Colorado, which voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012 via a referendum on Amendment 64. Specifically, the paper shows that marijuana use has played a role in one in four road deaths in Colorado and that child suicide rates increased by 140% after it was legalized.

In another video produced by the AFCAC, the group addressed how Issue 4s passage could harm children. One statistic noted, Among children who know their parents use or have used marijuana, 72% have used marijuana themselves.

In states where marijuana is legal, 1 out of 8 children report monthly use, read an additional statistic.

The National Council of State Legislatures has identified the 19 states that have legalized recreational marijuana as Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.

A September 2022 poll conducted by Talk Business & Politics and Hendrix College revealed that 58.5% of Arkansas voters surveyed planned to vote to approve Issue 4, while 29% indicated that they intended to vote against it. The remaining 12.5% were undecided.

Arkansas is not the only state where voters will have the opportunity to weigh in on legalizing marijuana this fall.

Similar referendums will appear on the ballot in Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota and South Dakota. Recently, Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called on the Republican-controlled Legislature to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

North Carolina native the Rev. Franklin Graham declared his opposition to Cooper's efforts in a tweet published Monday.

Some politicians are supporting the legalization of drugs, he said. I cant see how society benefits from this  I only see more harm done to communities and families. I pray that voters will turn their backs on politicians who want to drag the U.S. into the drug pit.
South Carolina church investigating student pastor who gave teens i heart hot youth pastors sticker

A South Carolina church has launched an investigation and placed its student pastor on administrative leave after outrage erupted online over stickers he gave to minors in his care that say, i  hot youth pastors.

Fairview Baptist Church said in a statement from deacons and their personnel team on Facebook Sunday that Cory Wall, their suspended student pastor, has acknowledged he made a poor decision and they are treating that decision very seriously.

Our student pastor, Cory Wall, acknowledges that he made a poor decision and a mistake by making a sticker available that was offensive to some, the statement said.

Cory has been placed on administrative leave and will not be involved in student leadership responsibilities while this situation is being investigated. There will be a thorough and comprehensive investigation, the church leaders added. We take this matter very seriously and want to be proactive as we move forward. Our main goal is to always make our campus a safe place for anyone who attends.

Emily Petrini, who describes herself as a doubt-filled believer, first made the sticker public in a post on Twitter last Thursday. She said the sticker was sent to her by a friend in South Carolina who got it from a local mom group.

In the post, the mom who shared the sticker said: The youth pastor gave my younger sister (14 years old) and other students, this sticker during Midweek last night. He is 35 years old... This made her very uncomfortable.

Church officials did not immediately respond to questions from The Christian Post on Monday about the specific age range of minors who were under Walls care, but the sticker itself drew swift condemnation.

Amy Smith, a sexual abuse survivor advocate, called the sticker disgusting in a statement on Twitter.

In an email to Lead Pastor Eddie Leopard that Smith posted on Twitter, she further alleged that Wall discussed his porn addiction with the students and called for his immediate dismissal because he is displaying grooming behaviors.

Im very disturbed about the inappropriate behavior of your youth pastor Cory Wall. Your email to church members excusing his behavior is also very disturbing. His discussion of his porn addiction with kids is very concerning, in addition to his decision to pass out those offensive stickers. Hes displaying grooming behaviors. I think kids very likely are at risk of sexual abuse in your church. Please do the right thing and remove him from his position immediately.

A Facebook post from the church shows that Wall, who studied psychology at North Greenville University before getting a graduate degree from Southeastern Theological Seminary, started his position at the church in January.

In a copy of an email Wall sent to the woman who raised the alarm about the stickers in the mom group, Wall said he was just poking fun at the I Love Hot Mom culture.

Let me assure you that my intentions were pure, I the last thing I wanted to do was to make you, your sister, or anyone else in attendance feel uncomfortable, Wall allegedly wrote.

The sticker was meant to poke fun of the I Love Hot Mom culture. In hindsight, the joke was of very poor taste and a mistake on my part. I do apologize for their distribution.
Pastor inviting drag queen to church for childrens sermon is sign of dying United Methodism

Will drag queens in the pulpit become "mainstream" in the United Methodist Church?

That's what one Methodist critic is warning after a UMC pastor in Florida invited a man dressed in womens clothing to preach a sermon with children seated next to him during a recent church service.

Allendale UMC Senior Pastor Andy Oliver said he invited Isaac Simmons, who performs in drag as Ms. Penny Cost, to deliver the sermon on Oct. 2 because he wants all people to see people like themselves called by God to preach the Gospel.

In a Facebook post, Oliver wrote that Simmons  who was seen in a video clip of the service wearing a wig and a sequin dress  was an angel in heels appearing to shepherds in the fields on the night shift, telling them that Good News had arrived on their doorstep.

Oliver compared the decision to have a drag queen teach during Sunday service to other churches putting a flag on your altar, and called Simmons an incredible preacher, grounded as Allendale is, in Wesleyan and liberation theology.

Mark Tooley, the president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, believes drag queens like Simmons are becoming the new public face of United Methodism.

"His children's sermon and role in the Eucharist at a Florida church showcase how drag ministry will now become mainstream in the denomination," Tooley told The Christian Post in an emailed statement. To my knowledge, no United Methodist official, including Simmons bishop, has publicly expressed concern about this United Methodist drag queen."

For Tooley, Simmons and others like him are among the reasons that United Methodism, which, as Tooley put it, has never enjoyed a single year of growth in its 53 years, is imploding.

Traditionalists have been given a one-year window to withdraw from the denomination with church property, he said. Thousands of congregations are doing so.

Dying United Methodism faces only further tragedy ahead.

At one point during the Allendale church service, after a worship band performed a song with the lyrics We are building up a new world/ we seek justice for all people, two young girls wearing face coverings were seated behind Simmons as Oliver asked him about his dress.

Are you always dressed up like this? asked Oliver.

Simmons replied, I wish! adding, No, I only get dressed up like this on special occasions.

I kind of feel powerful when I put on a dress like this and a big wig and lots of makeup. It kind of helps me to say things that I dont have the confidence to say outside of it.

Simmons went on to make an apparent comparison between the final days of the life of Jesus to what he sees as the end of injustice.

We, members of the United Methodist Church, any church, or just the common humanity, we have a privilege and a duty to change the very doctrine and systems of oppression which surround us, said Simmons.

The time of change-making will likely be uncomfortable for you, but just as the liminal last days of Christs life were uncomfortable for him, the liminal days which rest between now and the end of injustice will be uncomfortable for us all.

He went on to warn that those of us with the privilege of whiteness, of cis-ness, and the privilege of the access to power must be willing to get uncomfortable.

Oliver then turned to address the children and referenced Romans 12:2, which reads in part, Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

One of the things I think is great about Ms. Penny Cost is that she reminds us that we follow a God who calls us not to conform to things of this world, Oliver is heard telling the children. We are supposed to be transformed by the renewal of our minds. That means what I think today may have to change tomorrow if I continue to renew my mind.

While Oliver declined a request for comment from CP when asked, among other things, whether drag queens are invited to teach childrens studies at Allendale, an image posted on the churchs website shows a man dressed in womens clothing reading to young children.

Its not clear how many children attend Allendale, but the church reportedly has a fellowship size of roughly 100 people every Sunday.

Simmons, an associate pastor at Hope UMC in Bloomington, Illinois, has a video on his website in which he declares the Bible is nothing, adding, God must be nothing / Religion must be nothing / It is all nothing / Until we wield it into something."

The United Methodist News Service, which serves as the official UMC media outlet, has touted Simmons as the first drag queen to become a certified candidate for UMC ordination.
China calls on UN to prioritize financial resources for development

Xinhua) 09:13, October 13, 2022

Photo taken on Sept. 14, 2020 shows the outside view of the United Nations headquarters in New York, the United States. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

"We hope that the (UN) Secretariat could optimize the budget allocation to ensure development is prioritized with adequate and sustainable financial resources, in order to respond to the actual difficulties and concerns of developing countries, and promoting the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda," a Chinese envoy said.

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- China hopes the United Nations could prioritize its financial resources for development to better reflect the needs and concerns of developing countries, a Chinese envoy said on Wednesday.

Cheng Lie, counsellor of the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations, made the remarks at a meeting of the Fifth Committee of the UN General Assembly, at which UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented the program plan and the proposed program budget for 2023 of the world body.

In the current situation, the vast developing countries are facing bigger challenges in economic recovery and looking forward to better support from the United Nations. However, the budget level of development sections has too little increase to reflect the demand and appeal of developing countries, Cheng said.

"We hope that the (UN) Secretariat could optimize the budget allocation to ensure development is prioritized with adequate and sustainable financial resources, in order to respond to the actual difficulties and concerns of developing countries, and promoting the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda," said the counsellor.

China notes with concern that under section 24, the Secretariat for the first time includes resources to implement the mandates expected to be adopted in the name of new and expanded mandates, Cheng noted.

Pre-judging the mandate of the General Assembly or the UN Human Rights Council and front-loading the potential resources into budget section goes against the basic principle of "mandate first, programme next, budget last," he said.

The program plans approved by the General Assembly lay the basis for program budget, which reflects program plans from the perspective of finance. They commonly ensure that the United Nations would be able to accurately implement mandates and priorities of member states. Neither of them should be undermined or ignored. Any changes in the budget modality should not weaken or cut off the relations in-between, Cheng said.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
Effects of Legalized Pot in Colorado: Deaths, Infused Student Snacks and Out-of-State Customers Focus on the Family Says the Last Several Months Show Legal Marijuana is Serious Problem

Only a half year away from the first day marijuana became legal to grow, possess, consume and sell in Colorado, groups such as Focus on the Family say the new law has facilitated grave consequences, including deaths, child endangerment, and interstate trafficking.

"In just a few months since legalization, we've seen several deaths directly linked to legal marijuana use, children bringing pot-infused snacks to school and law enforcement in neighboring states reporting an increase in the seizure of marijuana traced back to Colorado," Focus on the Family's senior director of public policy, Carrie Gordon Earll, told The Christian Post this week.

Often touted by advocates as harmless, it appears there's a growing amount of evidence against marijuana usage and legalization that proves otherwise. As national policy and politics reporter Eric Schulzke wrote in his article, Dumb and dumber? Teen marijuana use linked to lower IQ in later life, researchers are discovering an increased urgency to do research on the drug's effects, including on the developing brains of teens, as more states are quickly considering marijuana legalization.

Colorado is joined by Washington in being home to legalized recreational marijuana use and legalization is currently being considered in 14 additional states.

"While none of these states propose making pot legal for minors, destigmatization and greater ease of access have already resulted in heavier use among youths in Colorado," writes Schulzke. "As marijuana is increasingly normalized and seen as relatively harmless, some experts doubt whether we know enough to justify rapid shifts in policy and behavior in pot usage."

Focus on the Family continues to oppose legalization of marijuana and will support campaigns to "defeat legalization as we are able." Earll knows well the damage already done in her state, where Focus on the Family is headquartered. "Sadly, it's likely that more states will consider making marijuana legal and we hope they will closely examine the impact of legalization in Colorado that we know so far," she said.

Legalization has led to an increase in edible forms of marijuana and unknown dangerous potency levels. Last March, a 19-year-old student jumped to his death off a Denver hotel balcony after friends said he ate a single marijuana cookie. Tests showed it was the strength of six premium-quality joints. Also, the autopsy cited "marijuana intoxication" as a "significant contributing factor," as reported by CBS.

In April, a woman called 911 saying her husband had eaten "pot candy" and was hallucinating. CBS reported that the husband shot and killed her before police could arrive, according to Denver authorities.

Despite the opposition of legalized pot by Christian and conservative groups such as Focus on the Family, 58 percent of Americans favored legalizing marijuana, according to a Gallup report this fall. A NBC-Wall Street Journal poll released this spring showed that 49 percent viewed tobacco as harmful, while 24 percent said the same of alcohol, 15 percent of sugar, and just 8 percent of marijuana, reported Schulzke.

"Shifting perception is quickly translating to youth drug usage in Colorado, which became ground zero for pot legalization in 2012 when the state voters chose to legalize and tax the drug," he writes. "The Office of National Drug Control Policy reported last year that one in four Boulder County high school students now use pot  more than three times the national average. And the numbers are shifting fast. In Adams County, a Denver suburb, high school marijuana use jumped from 21 percent in 2008 to 29 percent in 2012. Middle school pot use in Adams County jumped 50 percent during that period  from 5.7 to 8.5 percent."

FOTF, which is a non-profit organization founded in 1977 by psychologist James Dobson and based in Colorado Springs, says there are at least four good reasons to oppose the legalization of marijuana. "We also think it's important to issue a sober warning to those who are inclined to regard it as harmless recreation or a helpful form of medication," the group says on its website on the subject.

The reasons to oppose the legalization according to FOTF include first, the reality that illegality remains at the federal level and "people could end up in jail." Secondly, pot "contains 50 to 70 percent more cancer-provoking hydrocarbons. And pot-smokers tend to inhale deeply and hold their breath while smoking. As a result, long-term marijuana users, like their tobacco-puffing counterparts, are at higher risk than the general population not only for chronic lung disease but also for cancer of the upper respiratory tract and lungs."

Thirdly, the notion that marijuana is non-addictive is a myth, FOTF states. "It's true that marijuana-dependence expresses itself differently than alcohol dependence. Unfortunately, the dependence is every bit as real. There's a reason it's called 'the drug of apathy.' It impairs an individual's ability to make deep and meaningful attachments. It robs him of the ability to be intimate with other people. This promotes isolation, which feeds the need to smoke pot, which strains more relationships, which causes increased conflict in marriage or with co-workers and friends."

FOTF explains, "It's a vicious cycle. Heavy, long-term use of marijuana stunts emotional and social development. It kills motivation and prevents people from moving forward in their lives."

Fourth on its list, FOTF believes that marijuana truly is a "gateway drug."

"For adolescents and young adults alike it can become a gateway drug, introducing them to the harrowing world of illegal drugs and the criminals who produce and distribute them. A gateway drug also creates pathways in the brain that invite experimentation with harder street drugs or prescription medications. Studies have shown that 90 percent of those currently using hard addictive drugs like heroin started with marijuana," the organization states.

FOTF's current president, Jim Daly, believes that of all the problems associated with marijuana, however, the moral concerns might be the strongest.

"The Bible is very clear in warning against drunkenness (Ephesians 5:18)," Daly wrote on the subject when legalization first went into effect. "Granted, a person might drink a glass of wine at dinner and not become intoxicated, but what about marijuana? Isn't 'intoxication' the main point of using marijuana for recreational purposes?"

He continued, "As a father of two boys who'll have the legal right to try marijuana when they turn 21 here in the state of Colorado, all these things make me uneasy, but they don't make me disheartened. My responsibilities as a dad don't hinge on whether a particular drug is legal or illegal. My job remains the same: to raise young men who know and love God, to teach them to lean completely on Him, and to give them the tools to make wise decisions for life."
Florida Shooter Nikolas Cruz Details How Demon Got in His Head, What It Tells Him

A newly released transcript from the interrogation of teenage shooter Nikolas Cruz, who murdered 17 people at a Florida school in February, revealed more details about the "demon" that Cruz said instructed him to "kill and destroy."

Cruz, 19, who carried out the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, was questioned by Broward sheriff's Detective John Curcio for more than 11 hours in February.

A heavily redacted transcript, which was released to media on Monday, shows Cruz mentioning a demon in his head that told him to carry out the violence.

Cruz told Curcio that the demonic voice is male, around his age, and that it first appeared after his father died 15 years ago. It got worse after his mother died of pneumonia in November 2017, just three months before the shooting.

The shooter claimed that the voice told him to "Burn. Kill. Destroy."

When asked what he was supposed to be destroying, Cruz said, "anything."

Once when Curcio left the room during the questioning, Cruz cursed at himself, saying that he wants to die.

"I want to die. At the end you're nothing but worthless [expletive]," he said to himself.

"You deserve to die," he added.

At one point, the detective asked Cruz whether the demon in his head "is because you got disrespected in front of your peers." The shooter replied "no." The context of that part of the conversation was redacted.

Later, Cruz said that he does not actually see a demon and that it is just a voice in his head.

Cruz said that he tries not to listen to the voice, but is afraid that if he rejects it, he will suffer "loneliness."

The teenager then said that the voice told him to buy the AR-15, with which he carried out the shooting.

Later on, Curcio asked Cruz whether the demonic voice has been talking to him during their interview, which Cruz affirmed.

Cruz explained that the voice is telling him "kill yourself now."

He is then asked whether he believes in God and angels and the afterlife, if he believes in demons. He responded, "I feel like there's an afterlife." Cruz added that he is not one to go to church, however.

USA Today reported that authorities have delayed the scheduled release of a video from the police interviews. The video was scheduled to be released on Tuesday, but the State Attorney's Office announced that it is still redacting it, without saying when it would be ready.

In March, CNN obtained documents of Cruz's days at Broward County Jail in the days following the shooting. On Feb. 24, the suspect asked to read the Bible after a "restless night of sleep."

"(Twists) and turns in bunk, does not sleep, stares at wall in deep thought, eyes closed, appears to be resting, not asleep," one deputy noted at the time.
Mike Huckabee responds to 'hateful bigot' accusations: 'I refuse to deny God's law'

Despite being dubbed a hateful bigot and mean-spirited conservative by left-leaning websites, Mike Huckabee has said he will not apologize for identifying the redefining of gender and sexual identity as the greatest threat to the moral fiber of America.

On Saturday, Huckabee took a moment on his TV political commentary program on TBN to address the backlash he experienced following an interview with The Christian Post.

I need to warn you that according to some recent news articles, you are watching a show hosted by a hateful bigot, Huckabee told the audience. And that was about the nicest thing that was said about me.

The host of Huckabee explained that during his interview with CP, he was asked to identify what he believes is the biggest threat facing culture.

So I replied that I thought it was the abandonment of the biblical standards of family, the view that there is no such thing as maleness or femaleness anymore, and that marriage doesn't really matter, that divorce is no big deal and that any form of marriage is equally valid, not just between a male and a female, he said.

I also said that it's that fathers don't seem to be that important to the development of a child, that gender is fluid, and that we can just choose a gender based on how we feel rather than how we were created, and that the Bible is some old book that no longer represents our changing culture, he continued.

The former Southern Baptist pastor said that since CPs article went live, virtually every left-wing publication in the country has blasted him for homophoboic and anti-LGBTQ hate, including Huffington Post, Right Wing Watch, Pink News and others.

But Huckabee pointed out that he never specifically mentioned the LGBT community in his interview: My main point was that the reason for so much cultural confusion and moral decadence was the Christian Church. Too many modern churches have decided to preach a Gospel that just doesn't offend anyone by basically saying, Just do whatever you feel about. And so we have ignored, or maybe dismissed, biblical standards so that we can be modern, relevant, in touch, hip and relatable.

The host of the No. 1 program on TBN clarified that while he doesnt believe God wants His people to be obnoxious, judgmental, hateful, our self righteous, Christians must challenge our culture to tune itself to God's truth rather than demand that God tune Himself to my truth and our culture.

Before playing an instrument, every musician must tune their instrument to a fixed, absolute note on the musical scale  or chaos and noise will result, he explained.

I want to be very clear. I don't hate anybody, I really don't, he said. But I refuse to ignore or deny God's law or natural law, and if I fail to tune my life to those standards, how can I hope to make music of my life? When every instrument in the band plays according to its own standard of tuning, the result [is] chaos and noise. The instruments are not the same in tone or volume or sound, but they do join together to make music only if they agree on the tuning device.

Huckabee said that while all people are free to live how they desire, they are not free to tune their lives to what they think, feel, and believe instead of a standard that God has created.

Otherwise you'll end up with a result that is anything but beautiful, he said. Now, if that makes me a hateful bigot, then it's because those who labeled me that are tuned to a different standard.

So with no apology, I'll do my best to tune my life and beliefs to God's unchanging standard rather than to ask Him if He could rewrite the Bible and tune His standards to me, he concluded.

In his interview with CP, Huckabee argued that the gender dysphoria we're seeing today is largely due to the fact that the Church has failed to present very clearly the words of Jesus and Genesis 5:2: Male and female He created them.

Huckabee pointed out that society today celebrates single parenting and posits the idea that fathers really arent necessary when it comes to raising children.

There are some people who are in single parenthood, not because they want to be, but because they were forced to be. And we ought to give [them] all the support, he clarified. But we should never pretend that it is as good as a loving mother and father in a home where a child sees both genders play out their norms because that's the modeling of behavior that would be ideal for a child to grow up in.

The Church, he contended, needs to clearly present a biblical view of gender and identity  even though its not considered politically correct.

People are afraid that if they are really biblical, it will alienate people and I think that's nonsense, he said. Yes, it will alienate some people who are more interested in preserving the lifestyle they have chosen than a lifestyle that will be practical and will work. But it will also be a lifesaver for the people who are really looking for genuine truth.

Watch Huckabee's comments below.
Ohio passes bill allowing religious hospitals, doctors to refuse procedures that violate convictions

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a state budget last week that, among other things, allows for medical professionals and insurers to be excused from performing procedures that conflict with their religious beliefs.

The operating budget, also known as Amended Substitute House Bill Number 110, was signed by DeWine last Wednesday. The bill faced criticism from progressive groups that expressed concern about the conscience clause.

According to page 1454 of the Ohio budget, a medical practitioner, health care institution, or health care payer has the freedom to decline to perform, participate in, or pay for any health care service which violates the practitioner's, institution's, or payer's conscience as informed by the moral, ethical, or religious beliefs or principles held by the practitioner, institution, or payer.

Exercise of the right of conscience is limited to conscience-based objections to a particular health care service, continued the section.

Whenever a situation arises in which a requested course of treatment includes a particular health care service that conflicts with the moral, ethical, or religious beliefs or convictions of a medical practitioner, the medical practitioner shall be excused from participating.

In advance of the bills signing, the Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union took issue with the added conscience protection language. The organization claims the provision will be used to advance discrimination.

The practical implications may include Catholic hospitals refusing to admit LGBTQ Ohioans, health insurance companies refusing to pay for contraception, doctors blocking fertility treatments, and so much more, wrote ACLU Ohio Chief Lobbyist Gary Daniels.

Daniels contends that "adoption of this language will result in less health care access across the state when someone does not like who you are or what you believe.

The progressive activist maintains that because the conscience protections include non-religious objections, discrimination against pro-choicers, Trump voters, meat eaters, and Michigan fans will all be fair game.

Dr. Todd Kepler of Equitas Health, a nonprofit healthcare system serving LGBTQ patients, expressed concern that the exemption in the budget bill is widely broad in its language.

Say I happen to be a gay patient and I wanted to see a provider in my town, and there weren't really any other providers in town, Kepler told The Journal-News. But they find that morally unacceptable, they could turn me away, and the language is so broad that that could even be done at an institutional level.

So, if you have a hospital that perhaps has an affiliation with a religious institution, and again, that happens to be the only institution in town, theoretically, they could turn that patient away for health care.

In a statement last Thursday, DeWine said that the inclusion of the conscience protections in the budget simply puts in statute what the practice has been anyways.

Let's say the doctor is against abortion, the doctor is not doing abortion," DeWine said, as reported by The Journal-News. "If there's other things that maybe a doctor has a conscience problem with, it gets worked out, somebody else does those things."

The measure comes as there have been legal battles in recent years based on religious healthcare providers' objections to Obama-era nondiscrimination policies that required them to perform medical procedures against their religious convictions, such as sex-change surgeries or abortion.

In April, the Biden administration filed an appeal to defend the Obama-era healthcare mandate struck down in federal court earlier this year.

Across the country. some Catholic hospitals have faced lawsuits for refusing to allow surgeons to perform sex-change operations on trans-identified patients as part of gender transition procedures.

Earlier this year, Arkansas passed a similar bill to provide conscience protections for the religious objections of healthcare providers. Although that bill faces opposition from progressives, the religious freedom legal group Alliance Defending Freedom voiced support for the legislation.

Patients are best served by doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals who are free to act ethically and consistent with their oath to do no harm, ADF Legal Counsel Stephanie Nichols said in a statement in March. The MED Act ensures that no medical professional is compelled to breach this oath by being forced to participate in procedures or treatments that violate their conscience.
Taking Biden's radical 'reproductive rights' task force to task

We choose truth over facts. Bidens campaign words, combined with his history of hostility towards truth, are confusing but not surprising. There is no difference between the two. What is factual is true. What is true is factual. Facts exist. Truth exists. Also, he doesnt choose the truth.

The recent Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access summit, a commission created to subvert state sovereignty by a once semi-pro-life Biden, was an exercise in distortion and deception by the president and vice president.

Much of the meeting was easily disprovable propaganda. Here are a few points that need context and lots of correction.

The supremely wrong Roe decision

The Court got Roe right fifty years ago, Biden claimed at the beginning of his remarks. Forty-nine years ago, however, he strongly disagreed with the Courts supremely wrong ruling. In a 1974 interview, he expressed: I dont like the Supreme Court decision on abortion. I think it went too far. I dont think that a woman has the sole right to say what should happen to her body.

Biden went on to say at the summit that Congress should codify the protections of Roe. Protections of whom? Women? Roe offered zero protections for women except to allow states to regulate abortion, abortion facilities, and the act of abortion after viability. And with any states efforts to regulate these things, the Democratic Party has resisted, protested, and overwhelmingly voted against nearly every protection in the last several decades. In fact, the Democrat Partys misnamed Womens Health Protection Act of 2021 removes all protections for women legalizing unlimited abortion. This is extreme.

The bill also denies the uniqueness of the female gender. The Act bizarrely claims: The terms woman and women are used in this bill to reflect the identity of the majority of people targeted and affected by restrictions on abortion services, and to address squarely the targeted restrictions on abortion, which are rooted in misogyny. However, access to abortion services is critical to the health of every person capable of becoming pregnant. Only women can get pregnant.

Protecting human life is rooted in compassion. And thats carried out daily by millions of peaceful pro-life advocates, over 2,700 pregnancy help centers, and 450 maternity homes that provide free care and support to millions facing unplanned pregnancies.

Republicans' so-called "extreme" ban

Republicans are doubling down on an extreme position with a proposal for a national ban, Biden warned referring to the Protecting Pain Capable Children From Late-Term Abortions Act.Im not a fan of the 15-week ban, by the way. According to the CDC, that only eliminates 5.2% of our nations abortions. Keep in mind, the radically pro-abortion Democrat Party wants to keep 100% of abortions legal and promote violence as equality. In 2020, there were an estimated 930,160 abortions committed, so were talking 48,368 lives that could potentially be saved with what Biden calls extreme. Im all about saving even one life, but with the historic Dobbs ruling overturning the social injustice of Roe, is this the best Congressional Republicans can do?

A recent Gallup poll shows only 35% of Americans want abortion legal for any reason. Fifty percent want it legal only under certain conditions, and another 13% want it illegal under all circumstances.

In Poland, abortion is illegal with exceptions for rape and incest and to save the mothers life. In Chile, abortion is illegal except to save the life of the mother, rape, incest, and fetal abnormality. Abortion is illegal in Germany (although allowed under very limited circumstances until 12 weeks). France allows abortion up to 14 weeks (increased from 12 weeks earlier this year). Spain allows abortions through 14 weeks.

U.S. policy on abortion has been extreme. And the Biden administration is working overtime to make it even more extreme.

Exploiting the exceptions

As one conceived in rape but adopted in love, its heartbreaking how the exceptions like me are always exploited to promote the further tragedy of abortion. Circumstances of conception dont change the condition of our inherent and equal worth. Regardless, Biden bemoaned the lack of exceptions to pro-life legislation. Pro-abortion lawmakers and activists decry every pro-life bill regardless of the inclusion of exceptions. Dont fall for that faux-choice ploy. They abuse the 1% to justify 100% of abortions.

Biden used the summit to distort a situation surrounding a 14-year-old Arizonian, Emma Thompson, who was initially denied a prescription for her rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. The medication, methotrexate, can also be used as an abortifacient. Similar to his despicable exploitation earlier this year of an Ohio minor who was raped by an illegal immigrant, Biden used a fringe situation to try to push abortion. Biden blames the situation on Arizonas ban on abortion and leaves out this vital fact: Though initially denied the prescription, after further consultation with the pharmacist, Thompsons mother walked out with the needed prescription that same day.

Old laws are invalid

Biden wasnt the only one contorting and distorting. Vice President Kamala Harris joined in with plenty of propaganda too. Harris claimed the Dobbs decision created a healthcare crisis in America. No, it created a healthscare crisis in America where the pro-abortion Left is trying every fear tactic possible. Harris panicked: What were seeing is the criminalization of doctors and healthcare providers. No, were seeing the beginnings of the end of the abortion industry, and abortionists who violate the law will be held accountable.

Harris kept harping on pro-life laws from 1849 and 1864, emphasizing that they were illegitimate because women didnt have the right to vote (a right made possible by the GOP-authored and passed 19th amendment in 1920) or be full citizens. Well, the 13th Amendment was passed in 1865. The Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791. Guess those were sooooo long ago, theyre irrelevant and need to be aborted, right? Time doesnt validate a law; its morality does. Its immoral to deliberately kill the innocent. And that principle has no time stamp.

Thats truth. And thats a fact.
Trip Lee warns Christians that serving only to show off is poison that 'robs God of His glory'

Christian rapper Trip Lee warned against the dangers of only serving God to please people and to earn applause or reality show righteousness.

One of the reasons it's not good to do everything to be seen by others is because we're robbing God of His glory, Lee said at the Awaken conference held at Watermark Community Church's young adult ministry The Porch in Dallas, Texas.

The 34-year-old, whose real name is William Lee Barefield III, explained that if someone is focused on glorifying God when they're giving to the needy, serving and praying, they will be less likely to worry about how the eyes of other people are perceiving their actions.

A lot of us just like to have eyes on us.  We all get to star in our own poorly produced reality shows.  Part of the danger is that desire to be seen by other people [or] to have the eyes of other people on us, that can make it into our spiritual lives too, warned Lee, who formerly worked as a youth pastor at Concord Church in Dallas, Texas.

When we are obsessed with the eyes of other people on us, when someone is watching you, doesn't that change how you act when you know someones watching?  It changes what youre thinking.

Lee said its not wrong to serve others in public, but when the sole purpose that a Christian has for serving is to look holier in front of others, that is when a person crosses into dangerous territory.

When we begin to do something for other people watching us, it can poison what we're doing," Lee said. "It's very difficult to be worried about the eyes of other people and worried about the actual goal in hand at the same time.

Pointing the audience to Matthew 6, Lee explained that Jesus is not just concerned with what a Christian does, but Jesus also values the motives that come from a persons heart.

Jesus wants more from us than just doing the right stuff. Jesus also wants us to do it from the right heart. He's not just interested in us going down a checklist. And when something doesn't come from the right heart, He's going to tell us it also doesn't produce the right result, he said.

And when we do good things for bad reasons, we rob ourselves of good rewards.

Lee believed that many Christians are more concerned with how the public eye views them at all times, rather than with how God views them all the time.

God sees what is done in secret and that should be enough. That's the main thing. No, you won't get that praise, but God sees. Sometimes we feel like: I've been laboring. Nobody appreciates me. Nobody sees. What Scripture reminds us about is that God sees, Lee said.

I want you to know God sees.  Your labor is not in vain. God sees.

Lee believes it's vital for Christians to honor God even when nobody's watching because He never stops watching. "There can be something scary about the fact that God sees."

"God sees what is done in secret. What does your life look like in secret?  Usually, when we see a secret, we think of scandalous things. Wouldn't it be amazing if what happens in your life in secret is not scandalous, but it's praiseworthy? Lee said.

Its important for Christians to avoid hypocrisy, he added, which includes working to look righteous in front of other people to impress them and get attention.

Don't be like the hypocrites today who love to pray standing in synagogues. Here's a reminder: you can love prayer and still not love God. Some of us pray because we love ourselves so much and we want other people to love us as much as we do, Lee said.

This says something about the human heart that we can be so self-centered that we can even make service about ourselves. We can even make praying to God, which is supposed to be an acknowledgment that we need Him, that we're weak, we need Him. We can turn that into something about ourselves as well.

Lee's comments were part of the 2022 AWAKEN: The Rehearsal Christian Conference, held Sept. 3-5 in Dallas, Texas, and hosted by Watermark Community Church and shared on YouTube Tuesday.
Pro-life activists reach settlement with NC city over arrest for praying outside abortion clinic

Pro-life activists have reached a settlement with a North Carolina city in which officials agreed to allow them to demonstrate peacefully on public sidewalks, including during public health emergencies.

Love Life, also known as Global Impact Ministries, and other pro-life activists sued the city of Greensboro and Guilford County, North Carolina, after they were arrested in March 2020 while praying outside A Womans Choice, an abortion clinic in Greensboro. Their arrest occurred at a time when state and local governments had implemented lockdown orders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two parties agreed to a joint stipulation of dismissal with prejudice on Friday, which was brought before the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.

The dismissal agreement included the city resolving all the claims advanced by the plaintiffs and both sides covering their own attorneys fees and costs.

Apart from Love Life, other plaintiffs named in the complaint included Love Life founder and President Justin Reeder, Carl Ubinas of Mooresville, Jason Oesterreich of Locust, Isaiah Burner of Statesville, Andre Gonzalez of Mooresville, Pastor Leroy Stokes Jr. of Greensboro, and Pastors Richard Whittier and Jon McAtee of Mint Hill.

Alliance Defending Freedom, a law firm representing the pro-life activists, filed a lawsuit against Greensboro and Guilford County in April 2020 in response to the arrests, arguing that the punishment of the pro-life activists was unconstitutional. The legal organization celebrated the resolution of the case as a victory for First Amendment rights.

ADF Senior Counsel Denise Harle, director of the ADF Center for Life, said in a statement released Monday that she believed this case was never about public health and safety. She concluded that instead, it was about the government silencing people because it didnt like what they had to say.

That said, we commend the city for finally agreeing to respect the free speech rights of Love Life members and acknowledge their freedom to pray and speak in the public square, she added. ADF said in its statement Monday that city officials agreed to uphold citizens First Amendment rights in any future proclamation order related to a public-health emergency like COVID-19.

Although the plaintiffs argued that they had taken certain public health precautions to comply with public health orders issued by the city and county, such as limiting their gathering to 10 people and standing 6 feet apart, the activists were nevertheless arrested and threatened with fines of up to $1,000 for their actions outside the clinic.

In February, county officials reached a settlement with the pro-life activists, paying $15,000 in attorneys fees and agreeing to respect the First Amendment rights of the activists in the future. Like the settlement with the city of Greensboro, plaintiffs and defendant Guilford County agreed to a joint stipulation of dismissal.
Tulsi Gabbard says shes leaving Democratic Party, citing cowardly wokeness, hostility to people of faith

Former Democratic presidential candidate and congresswoman, Tulsi Gabbard, called on independent-minded Democrats to join her Tuesday morning as she announced her exit from the Democratic Party, citing a raft of concerns including the partys cowardly wokeness, their stoking of anti-white racism, hostility to people of faith and elitism.

I can no longer remain in todays Democratic Party that is now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue & stoke anti-white racism, Gabbard began in a statement shared on Twitter Tuesday with her 1.6 million followers.

The Democratic Party, she alleges, Actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms, are hostile to people of faith & spirituality, demonize the police & protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans, believe in open borders, weaponize the national security state to go after political opponents, and above all, dragging us ever closer to nuclear war.

Under President Joe Biden the Justice Department has indicted 11 pro-life activists for "organizing an event blockading an abortion clinic," she added.

"They didn't use physical force. They weren't dangerous. But seven of them are facing 11 years in prison and fines of $250,000. The Biden DOJ and Department of Homeland Security has focused their newly formed Domestic Terror Unit to target parents who are vocally standing in opposition to radical curriculums and explicit sexual content being taught to young children in our public schools  labeling parents as 'terrorists' for showing up at school board meetings and demanding change."

Gabbard, who delivered her statement in writing and a video clip lasting just over one minute, further discussed her reasons for leaving the Democratic Party in the first episode of The Tulsi Gabbard Show which was also launched on Tuesday.

I believe in a government that is of, by, and for the people. Unfortunately, todays Democratic Party does not. Instead, it stands for a government of, by, and for the powerful elite, she continued before calling on independent-minded Democrats to join her.

Im calling on my fellow common sense independent-minded Democrats to join me in leaving the Democratic Party. If you can no longer stomach the direction that so-called woke Democratic Party ideologues are taking our country, I invite you to join me, she urged.

Gabbard, 41, is a veteran who served in Iraq with the Hawaii Army National Guard. She was also the youngest person to win a seat in the Hawaii Legislature and the first Hindu woman in Congress.

When she decided not to run for re-election in 2019, she cited her presidential aspirations. While Gabbard embraced left-leaning domestic policy, according to The Washington Post, her allegiance to the Democratic Party has long been under question.

As she sought the nomination of the Democratic Party during her presidential bid in 2019, Hillary Clinton, who was the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, accused her of being a Russian asset.

Im not making any predictions, but I think theyve got their eye on somebody who is currently in the Democratic primary and are grooming her to be the third-party candidate, Clinton said on a podcast with David Plouffe, an adviser to former President Barack Obama.

"She's the favorite of the Russians, they have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far, and  that's assuming Jill Stein will give it up, which she might not, because she is also a Russian asset  yeah, she's a Russian asset! I mean totally!"

Responding to Clintons comments that year, Gabbard said she was attacked by Clinton because Clinton "knows she can't control me."

This is a message to every veteran in this country who has put their life on the line to serve our country, to every single American who believes strongly that we must end this long-standing foreign policy of being the worlds police, Gabbard told CBS News. And ending these regime-change wars, which is really the legacy of Hillary Clinton.
Liberal media spin rising violent crime as vast right-wing conspiracy

Violent crime remains intolerably high, but the left wants you to think that perception is just a concoction of right-wing media.

After more than a decade of violent crime decreases with just a few interludes, crime has shot back up to levels not seen since the early 1990s.

When the left acknowledges this fact, it often does so by tying the violent crime increase to the sale of guns. However, theres no evidence that the additional crimes are being committed by law-abiding gun owners.

People are buying more guns because they feel less safe, not the other way around. As Zachary Faria wrote in The Washington Examiner, the surge in gun sales is a response to gun crime, not the cause of it.

Apparently, some legacy media journalists are intent on just downplaying the crime issue entirely.

A recent example of that would be an article by Philip Bump in The Washington Post on Thursday, Crime is surging (in Fox News coverage).

Bump used a Fox segment featuring political analyst Gianno Caldwell questioning Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., about the crime crisis as a jumping off point for his article.

How dare Caldwell ask an elected official about crime? The thing is, it wasnt just any member of the media asking questions.

Caldwells brother was fatally shot in Chicago in June. Its quite an exercise in gaslighting to dismiss Caldwells concern as just a Fox News narrative somehow divorced from reality.

To me its frankly unconscionable that @pbump would write an article in the Washington Post to gaslight a man whose little brother was murdered in Chicago a few months ago. The legacy medias main purpose is to bully & intimidate anyone who challenges their propaganda. https://t.co/JLraz9spnQ  Christina Pushaw ? ?? (@ChristinaPushaw) October 7, 2022

Bump didnt mention Caldwells brother, who was black, in his article.

The @washingtonpost @pbump wrote about my segment  Dem leaders refused to answer my question on the Crime Crisis & he pretends its not legitimate. My brother, & many others, were murdered in Chicago & the US this year. Dont tell me theres not a crisis. https://t.co/cnuU4BC9TW  Gianno Caldwell (@GiannoCaldwell) October 7, 2022

Black lives appear not to matter as much when they dont fit left-wing media narratives. So much for the lived experience.

Bumps argument is essentially that Fox News highlights crime to serve as a political utility to gain power. To the contrary, that seems like projection.

Does the left not cite institutional racism and incidents involving police to get its way politically? A few years ago, we got just that in the form of the defund the police movement that the mainstream left now tries to deny ever existed because it backfired spectacularly.

The FBIs recent 2021 crime data that Bump highlighted to dismiss the crime surge showed a slight decrease in overall violent crime compared with 2020  a year that saw a significant surge in violent crime compared with 2019. It also recorded 4.3% more homicides compared with 2020.

However, its also noteworthy that the FBI statistics in 2021 were incomplete.

Nearly 40% of law enforcement agencies nationwide, including the New York City Police Department and Los Angeles Police Department, failed to report their 2021 crime data to the FBI, Axios reported.

According to the FBI, the bureau began tracking data using a new system this year, and many states havent made the switch. Most agencies in California, New York, Illinois, and Pennsylvania havent reported their data. Can you think of some cities in those states that might be significant in terms of rising crime statistics?

The FBI simply made estimates in locations where it didnt have data. So, this years numbers may not be delivering an accurate picture of the reality and trends. And the data we have still isnt good news.

Some on the left, like Bump, claim that the cloudy picture from the raw data makes it impossible to make any conclusions about whether crime is up or down. That might be true on the margins, but the trend from just a few years ago is clear.

There was a significant spike in violent crime following the 2020 riots in the wake of the death of George Floyd.

Compared with early 2020, violent crime is unquestionably up, and significantly so. Theres no evidence that its tapering off, and it seems much more likely that its increasing or at least remaining at an elevated level.

Violent crime hasnt yet surpassed the levels seen in the early-to-mid-1990s, but is that really the standard we should measure it by?

However writers at The Washington Post and The New York Times want to spin it, violent crime is now a serious issue that communities large and small are coming to grips with. It comes in the wake of the 2020 riots and the specific policies pursued by cities at about that time.

Weve wiped out decades of positive improvement on crime. Its more than reasonable to be deeply concerned about this.

Minneapolis, the city at the heart of the defund the police movement, has reverted to high levels of violence reminiscent of when it was nicknamed Murderopolis in the mid-90s.

Other cities less well-known for high levels of violence and crime  and more known for their left-wing activism and politics  also saw dramatic increases in violent crime rates. Portland, Oregon, saw a 207% increase in homicides from 2019 to 2021, according to a report from the mayors office.

Even the small city of Asheville, North Carolina, experienced a 31% increase in violent crime since 2016. This year, the city of 94,000 hit 11 homicides, putting it on pace to surpass numbers in 2020 and 2021, according to Fox News.

The common trend is that cities with elevated violent crime rates typically have a significant anti-police movement, a shrinking police force, a social justice-oriented district attorney, or usually some combination of the three.

The result has been that America is a more dangerous country, one where criminals are emboldened and law-abiding citizens are forced to do more to protect themselves or risk becoming victims. Its why Americans worries about crime are at their highest level since 2016.

Thats not a narrative, or a conspiracy. Its reality.

Originally published at The Daily Signal.
This blog covers software patent news and issues with a particular focus on wireless, mobile devices (smartphones, tablet computers, connected cars) as well as select antitrust matters surrounding those devices.
Parents demand Church of England schools immediately stop trans policies affecting kids as young as 5

Christian parents have urged the Church of England to change the guidance for its 4,700 primary schools that allows students as young as 5 to self-identify as the opposite sex.

In an open letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Justin Welby, last Friday, Nigel Rowe and his wife, Sally, raised concerns regarding the implementation of Church guidance that allows school children to identify as their preferred gender identity.

Basic Christian teaching is that we are all created male or female and that the differences between the sexes are beautiful, designed and complementary, and should be respected in society, the Christian parents wrote.

We were also concerned for the harmful effects on the children who were allowed to socially transition, as well as the effects on all the other children in the school."

At issue was a guidance titled "Valuing All Gods Children" originally issued in May 2014, but later updated by the CofE in the summer of 2019, which states: "Trans young people may require specific support in order to feel comfortable at school, for example, schools may need to make changes to toilet facilities or a trans young person might require support to change their name or the pronoun by which they are referred to by staff and classmates."

The Rowes said in the letter that the CofE's approach and the guidance are not supported by the law. We, therefore, ask you to withdraw the Valuing All Gods Children guidance as a matter of urgency for the sake of protecting the children, they wrote.

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, which represented the Rowes in past litigation, echoed the parents' concerns in a statement released last week, by saying that the guidance "must now be scrapped."

Years ago, the Rowes raised concerns about indoctrination after two 6-year-old boys in their sons' classes at the Isle of Wight school were allowed to identify as girls.

In 2017, CofE officials told the Rowes that the school did not require any evaluation when a student requests to be affirmed as a member of the opposite sex.

The family was then given an ultimatum to accept the policy or take their sons out of the school. When the Rowes' complaint to the Department of Education was rejected, they took legal action in 2021 against the department.

Last month, the Rowes were awarded over $23,900 in legal costs and a commitment from the British government to reform trans-affirming policies in schools.

This notorious guidance actually says that children as young as 5 years old should be affirmed by Church of England schools if they wish to identify as the opposite sex, the couple wrote in the open letter.

In their letter, the couple cited a speech made by the then Attorney General Suella Braverman in August, addressing the guidance.

The problem is that many schools and teachers believe  incorrectly  that they are under an absolute legal obligation to treat children who are gender questioning according to their preference, in all ways and all respects, from preferred pronouns to use of facilities and competing in sports, said Braverman, as quoted by the Rowes.

All this is sometimes taking place without informing their parents or taking into account the impact on other children. Anyone who questions such an approach is accused of transphobia. In my view, this approach is not supported by the law."

Braverman went on to say in that speech that she believed no student "should be made to fear punishment or disadvantage for questioning what they are being taught, or refusing to adopt a preferred pronoun for a gender questioning child, or complaining about a gender questioning child using their toilets or changing rooms, or refusing to take part in activities promoted by Stonewall or other such organizations."

"The right to freedom of belief, thought, conscience and speech must be protected, she said.
3 Christians killed, dozens wounded by Islamic extremists in attack on Chibok village

ABUJA, Nigeria  Islamic extremist militants killed three Christians in an attack on a village of Chibok County, northeast Nigeria, that wounded dozens of others and burned homes, sources said.

The terrorists attacked Njilang village, Borno state, on Oct. 4 in the latest of many acts of terrorism over several years targeting the Chibok area. An area resident identified the assailants as members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), though local news reports attributed the assault to Boko Haram. A faction of Boko Haram in 2016 aligned with the Islamic State and changed its name to ISWAP, but many Nigerians still refer to the group as Boko Haram.

Area resident Daniel Musa said ISWAP militants attacked after 2:30 a.m. armed with high-powered weapons, surrounding the village about four kilometers from Chibok town and shooting at Christian villagers who tried to flee after waking to the sound of gunshots.

The ISWAP terrorists also set fire to six houses and looted five shops belonging to Christians in the village, and afterward burned down the shops, Musa told Morning Star News in a text message.

Musa said ISWAP has attacked three other predominantly Christian communities in the area in the past two weeks.

Umar Ibrahim, chairman of the Chibok Local Government Council, confirmed the attack on Njilang community.

This is not the first time our communities are being attacked, because ever since Boko Haram insurgents began their destructions in Borno state, Chibok communities have been under constant attacks, Ibrahim said in a text message. Preliminary reports I have received indicate that so far three persons have been confirmed killed, while many houses were destroyed and shops looted by the terrorists.

Military authorities said earlier this month that 98 of the 276 high school girls kidnapped from Chibok town by Boko Harm in 2014 remain missing.

Col. Obinna Ezuipke, head of intelligence in the military high command in the northeast, said that 57 of the girls escaped in 2014, and 107 were released in 2018. Three of the girls were recovered in 2019, two in 2021, and nine have been rescued this year, leaving 98 who remain in captivity, he said.

Maj. Gen. Chris Musa on Oct. 1 told a Nigerian TV station that the military is still searching for Leah Sharibu, kidnapped on Feb. 19, 2018, alongside more than 100 other students of the Government Girls Science and Technical Secondary School in Dapchi, Yobe state. While the other girls were released in March 21, 2018, after the kidnappers negotiations with the government, the terrorists retained the then-16-year-old Leah because she refused to renounce Christ.

We will not rest until Leah Sharibu and other Chibok girls are returned and united with their families, Musa said. We wont rest until all of them are safely returned.

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.
British arts unholy trinity: what united and divided Bacon, Freud and Hockney

The three visionary artists, represented in the collection of Paul G. Allen, all emerged in post-war London but revolutionized different ways of seeing and painting the figure

In the aftermath of the Second World War, London was a city of rubble. More than 100,000 buildings had been destroyed, or damaged beyond repair by enemy bombing. It was in this seemingly inauspicious context that a number of first-rate artists were able to launch their careers having arrived at a renewed sense of creative freedom in the wake of war. Chief among them were Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, and a little later, David Hockney. A masterpiece by each artist will be offered in Visionary: The Paul G. Allen Collection at Christies in New York on 9 November. Throughout their lengthy careers, all three artists defied prevailing trends and shared a devotion to the figurative, in a period when abstract art was en vogue.

Open a larger version of this image Lucian Freud (1922-2011), Large Interior, W11 (after Watteau), 1981-83. Oil on canvas. 72 x 78 in (185.4 x 198.1 cm). Estimate on request. Offered in Visionary: The Paul G. Allen Collection on 9 November 2022 at Christie's in New York

Freud's Large Interior, W11 (after Watteau) is a ground-breaking group portrait from the early 1980s. Spanning almost two metres in both height and width, it was  at the time of its creation  the artists largest painting, as well as his first to feature more than two sitters. It depicts, from left to right, Celia Paul, his then-lover; Bella, his daughter; Kai, the son of his former partner, Suzy Boyt; and Suzy Boyt herself. All four sit huddled together on a bedstead in the upper floor room of Freuds West London studio. Lying on the floor in front of them is Star, the little sister of the then-girlfriend of Ali Boyt (Suzy and Lucians son). It might be tempting to view Large Interior, W11 (after Watteau) as a snapshot of the artists notoriously convoluted personal life. As the title suggests, however, it was first and foremost a response to an Old Master painting: namely, Jean Antoine Watteaus Pierrot content, from 1712 (today found in the Museo Nacional Thyssen- Bornemisza in Madrid). Freud transposed the Frenchmans fete galante, set in an enchanting sylvan glade, to the stark interior of his studio. Every detail in it is the product of the artists typically piercing and probing gaze. Pipework is exposed; plaster is bare. Watteaus woodland bench becomes an iron bedstead, acquired by Freud for 7 at a recent house sale. The fountain in the original painting becomes a running tap; the trees become an unruly indoor plant. The result, according to the late art historian, Robert Hughes, is a veritable manifesto of Freuds deeper intentions: to assert the advantages of scrutiny over theatre.

Open a larger version of this image Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud, 1974. Photograph by Harry Diamond.  National Portrait Gallery, London / Art Resource, New York

Freud was never one for conventional prettiness. He seemed almost to revel in the unsightly, when he was confronted by it. He was also renowned for his visceral love of oil paint, something commonly attributed to the influence, relatively early in his career, of his friend Francis Bacon. The surface of the Bacon painting being offered  Three Studies for Self-Portrait, from 1979  is characteristically thick with tactile impasto. The work is a self-portrait triptych, consisting of three close-up views of the artists head, captured at different angles. The spectral pallor of his flesh is offset by disquieting patches of pink and blue, and set against a backdrop of blazing orange. Unlike Freud  who laboured over his portraits for weeks and sometimes months on end, with an unflinchingly close look at his subjects and settings  Bacon painted with urgency and high emotion.

Open a larger version of this image Francis Bacon (1909-1992), Three Studies for Self-Portrait, 1979. Triptych  oil on canvas. Each: 14 x 12 in (35.6 x 30.5 cm). Estimate: $25,000,000-35,000,000. Offered in Visionary: The Paul G. Allen Collection on 9 November 2022 at Christie's in New York

Tellingly, he became a septuagenarian in the year that he created Three Studies for Self-Portrait. The years before it had seen the deaths of several people close to him (most painfully, his lover and muse, George Dyer, in 1971, on the eve of a major Bacon retrospective at the Grand Palais in Paris). Its surely no coincidence that, of the 53 named self-portraits in Bacons oeuvre, 29 were painted in the 1970s (only seven of which were triptychs). As he told the art critic David Sylvester, halfway through that decade, Ive done a lot of self-portraits, really because people have been dying around me like flies, and Ive had nobody else left to paint but myself. The present work can be considered part of that outpouring. With the possible exception of Rembrandt, its hard to think of an artist who has ever been quite so frank and artistically daring in the name of self-observation. Bacon famously turned to photographs instead of painting from life, to distort the thing far beyond the appearance, but in the distortion to bring it back to a recording of the appearance. For his self-portraits, Bacon also turned to the mirror, where he would study his own face letting his stubble grow for several days and using pots of Max Factor theater make-up to practise swirls and distortions upon his features.

Open a larger version of this image David Hockney (b. 1937), The Conversation, 1980. Acrylic on canvas. 60 x 60 in (152.4 x 152.4 cm). Estimate: $5,000,000-7,000,000. Offered in Visionary: The Paul G. Allen Collection on 9 November 2022 at Christie's in New York

David Hockney is a different artist altogether. His imagery has always been much more upbeat than Bacon and Freuds was: tending to be vibrantly colourful and angst-free. The Conversation, from 1980, is one of the Yorkshiremans famed double portraits, a type of picture in which he examines the relationship between a pair of friends and relatives. Hockneys fondness for these works stemmed from his belief that portraiture need not be defined solely by the connection between subject and painter  but by the connection between subjects too. The Conversation depicts two of the artists friends  the eminent American curator Henry Geldzahler, and his partner, the twenty-something publisher Raymond Foye  sitting down together, amid what looks like a strained discussion. The former leans forward, seemingly just finishing a point, his right arm resting on his crossed left leg. The latter is slunk slightly back in his chair, listening, somewhat unimpressed and appearing to be contemplating his response. Such is Hockneys talent as a painter that the flow of conversation is almost palpable, even without our being able to hear a word. Unlike his previous double portraits  which commonly were set in elaborate domestic surroundings that provide an insight into the relationship explored  the scene in The Conversation is spare. Theres just a folding yellow screen behind Geldzahler and Foye. The viewer is left to concentrate on gesture and pose. Hockney may not have had Freuds forensic eye or Bacons existential world-view, but his double portraits fizz with psychological tension.

Open a larger version of this image Lucian Freud and David Hockney, 2002. Photograph by David Dawson. Photo:  David Dawson. All rights reserved 2022 / Bridgeman Images. Artwork:  The Lucian Freud Archive. All Rights Reserved 2022 / Bridgeman Images

All three paintings from the collection of Paul G. Allen were created within a few years of each other, by artists who, at that stage of their careers, had considerable experience to go with their considerable skill. Its true that they werent exactly the same age (Bacon was more than a decade older than Freud, who in turn was more than a decade older than Hockney). However, according to fellow-painter, Frank Auerbach, they had one crucial thing in common: a curious feeling of liberty after having lived through the horrors of the Second World War. That liberty manifested itself in a trio who, though working figuratively, all arrived at very distinct ways of painting and seeing.
The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p.
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Charity Commission research suggests some trustees are not aware of their individual and collective responsibilities, the regulator has said.

Speaking at the Commissions AGM yesterday, chief executive Helen Stephenson said the regulator aims to tackle this through its new online service.

The regulator plans to write to all registered charities over the next month, urging their main contacts to sign up to the service.

Commission aims to engage one-on-one with trustees

Stephenson said the Commission knows from its research that many trustees dont realise that they collectively and individually are responsible for basic duties and this online service should help outline that.

This service, announced earlier this year , will give an overview of the trustee's charities and services. There will be a personal login which allows trustees to take appropriate personal responsibility for shared duties such as filing information on time.

Stephenson said we want to move to a place where we are engaging one to one with individual trustees and want to ensure the regulator engage with them in a more supportive, proactive, meaningful relationship.

Stephenson said this begins with this new service, which in time will allow every trustee to log into the Commission services directly and individually.

Trustees will have access to a personal inbox, allowing them to see messages about the Commissions digital service in one place.

Stephenson said she hopes this small but significant change will help trustees in meeting those duties.

The chief executive added the service will give trustees a better sense of agency ensuring that all the right people have access to their behind the scenes information about their charities.

Gradual process

Starting in the next month, the regulator will be writing to all registered charities, and Stephenson urged all main contacts to make sure their information is up to date and look out for an email.

When the main contacts are on board, and the system is live, the Commission will begin the process of inviting individual trustees.

Stephenson said she recognised this will be a gradual process as this may be a significant shift for some, and trustees are often busy volunteers.

The chief executive said this change was about building in more functionality so transform our ability to reach individual trustees with relevant messages.

During the questions at the end of her speech, Stephenson confirmed that this was not compulsory but she encouraged people to sign up.

We hope it is relevant, so it is not compulsory, she said.

sign up to receive the Civil Society News daily bulletin here . For more news, interviews, opinion and analysis about charities and the voluntary sector,
Each month, Covering Climate Now speaks with different journalists about their experiences on the climate beat and their ideas for pushing our craft forward. This week, we spoke with Jeff Berardelli, the chief meteorologist and climate specialist at WFLA-TV in Tampa. Berardelli was previously the meteorologist and climate specialist for CBS News in New York, where he was at the forefront of the climate conversation in the national media. We spoke about Hurricane Ian, Berardellis shift from a national to a local stage, and the imperative of building trust with local audiences. The conversation, with CCNow deputy director Andrew McCormick, has been edited for length and clarity. Follow Berardelli on Twitter.

How early did you have a sense that it would be such a large storm with so much capacity for destruction?

As many as ten days out, the meteorology community understood that this storm was going to be different. We knew both that this was likely to be a very powerful hurricane and that it was likely to be in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

This kind of certainty is extraordinarily rare. Every year, computer models forecast dozens of storms, but only some happen; the challenge for meteorologists is to understand which forecasts are likely spurious manifestations of the models and which to raise the alarm about. In this case, there was a lot of agreement between different models, and the environment in the Caribbean was very ripe for a major storm to develop and head in our direction. So I gathered people at the station and said, We need to take this seriously. Lets make sure our messaging is clear.

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And what were some of the key points of that messaging? Did you face any challenges?

People from Florida pride themselves on the fact that theyve weathered many hurricanes. But the truth is most of us havent ever weathered the core of a truly catastrophic hurricane, like Ian. Being a Tampa meteorologist, I was keenly aware that people here havent been through a major hurricane; the last direct hit to this area was over a hundred years ago. So a lot of the messaging leading up to the storm was aimed at getting people to take the risk seriously and evacuate if they were told to. Which is difficult. Evacuating can be very expensive; some people might not have family or friends they can go to, and others might not be physically able to leave.

We also wanted to be clear that we didnt know exactly where the storm was going to goand this is a situation where a small, fifty-mile change can mean the difference between a hurricane destroying Fort Myers or destroying Tampa. One thing that worried me was when the model started to show the storm would head toward Floridas panhandle, toward Panama City and Pensacola; at the same time, the National Hurricane Center had also shifted its track farther west. To me, thoughand I expect to other meteorologiststhis didnt seem like a believable track.

Its not responsible of me to go completely against the grain on air and say, Well, the computer models and the National Hurricane Center both say the storm is going to the panhandle, but I disagree. Because if I get that wrong, you can bet no one will ever watch me again. I need to have credibility, so that when storms do come, people believe me and take necessary actions to protect themselves. The way I handled this was to stress that the hurricanes track wouldnt be locked in until a day or two before landfallthat people should expect forecasts to windshield wiper back and forth. And I added, in almost every weathercast, that the one thing Ive learned covering hurricanes is they always have a last-minute trick up their sleeves. Even if the storm looked like it might go elsewhere, we shouldnt assume that the Tampa area isnt in playwhich, of course, it turned out it very much was.

This was your first major storm since you moved from New York to Tampa. How did covering the storm for a local audience differ from covering extreme weather for a national audience at CBS?

Most people in harms way are not watching the national media. So when youre covering a storm for a national audience, you want to put it into perspective quickly, so people understand the gravity of the situation. When youre doing the story for a local audience, its much more about holding peoples hands and giving them the information they need, tailored for their individual communities, to recognize the threat and take proper precautions.

What matters on the local level more than anything is that you can be a trusted source for your viewers. That trust comes partly from being in a place for a long time. Ive only been here for eight months, but earlier in my career I lived here and did the weather for several yearsand I would say Tampa is the place Ive always most associated with home.

Theres some debate among journalists about whether during a storm is the right time to make the climate connectiona time when safety is obviously the top priority for many people. How did you approach the need to provide vital, potentially lifesaving information that people need to prepare for a storm while also making space for climate change as context?

Well, it depends. If its a hurricane hitting Florida and youre in Texas or New York, I think its okay to make the climate connection while the storm is hitting. But if youre a local meteorologist, you have to remember that theres a sizable chunk of the audience who, the moment you say the word climate, are going to respond, I dont like this clown, and Im not gonna listen to him.

This is what weve learned from trying to communicate about climate change over the past couple of decades: Theres a small chunk of my audience that likely denies climate change is real, and thats not something Im going to change. Theres a larger chunk that believes climate change is happening but has also been sensitized by politics to be very triggered by the word climate. That said, I didnt shy away from climate change. In the days leading up to the storm, Id throw in a line like, The storm is moving over some of the warmest water in this part of the world, and by the way, that water is even warmer than normal due to climate change. And after the storm, I did a segment on how climate change affects hurricanes, explaining that climate change doesnt cause hurricanes, but science has grown to understand how climate change has made hurricanes stronger and can cause them to rapidly intensify.

Its often said that local meteorologists are the people best positioned to communicate with others about climate change. What are your thoughts on that, and how does this responsibility shape your approach to the job?

My goal when I went to CBS was to get the national media talking about climate change. I had worked on and off for CBS for twenty years and felt I understood the culture within the company. I also felt that my personality and experienceI have a masters degree in climate changewould lend themselves to breaking down some of the barriers that had existed to climate coverage. And now I think the networks are talking about climate more oftenthanks, I think, in part to my work, and thanks to work by Al Roker at NBC, Ginger Zee at ABC, and Bill Weir at CNN.

Here in Tampa, I have different goals, and those are to gain the trust of the community and, over the long term, to educate people about climate change. My tactics when Im talking about climate are less overt because it doesnt behoove me or my stationand it doesnt behoove the cause of climate progressto throw climate in peoples faces. I need to be able to bring our audience along, as a trusted messenger. Theres no way that Im going to shift the areas culture overnight, so my approach is to talk about climate change methodicallynot so much that it alienates people, but not so little that people are able to ignore it.

I need to have credibility, so that when storms do come, people believe me and take necessary actions to protect themselves.

What does that look like in practice, on a day-to-day level?

I do a weekly segment called Climate Classroom. And even with this segment, I dont talk about climate change every week, because the climate is a lot bigger than climate change. In order for people to believe in and understand climate change, I think its important to help them understand the climate first. Before Hurricane Ian, for example, I did a story about why the Tampa area and the west coast of Florida are most vulnerable to hurricanes during the fall, which has to do with seasonal currents. I did that about a week before Ian hit so that people would understand the science behind why our area might be hit. A few weeks ago, I interviewed the author of a recent study from the University of South Florida about the so-called Doomsday Glacier in Antarctica, which climate change has made unstable and which bears some major risks for Floridas coastline. And before that I looked at shark encounters, which are increasing due to warming waters.

Beyond that, I think audiences need to see that Im not constantly pushing an agenda; when theres a major weather event and its not clearly tied to climate change, they need to know Im willing to say that. This way, they might trust me better when I do talk about climate change.

Do you have a sense of your audiences appetite for coverage like this?

I think that most people these days know the climate is changing, even if theyre not willing to admit it to a pollster or themselves. One of my titles at CBSand now here at WFLA, which is an NBC affiliatewas climate specialist. When I moved here, the CBS affiliate, which is our competitor, started branding their weather team as the climate specialists. So, very quickly, we went from having very little broadcast discussion of climate change in the Tampa areathere was worry about pushback from viewersto a place where being knowledgeable about climate change is seen as a way to secure part of these stations audiences. And Tampa is not a progressive area, politically; its split about evenly between Republican and Democratic voters. That tells me theres an appetite for climate coverage here, and I suspect local stations elsewhere are also finding that owning the climate issue can be advantageous to their brand.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Covering Climate Now is a global journalism collaboration co-founded by CJR and The Nation, in partnership with The Guardian, strengthening coverage of the climate story. Follow CCNow on Twitter and visit coveringclimatenow.org.
 When Hurricane Ian ripped through western Cuba last week, tobacco farmer Victoriano Maqueira lost the two large barns he used for drying his crop, as well as his dogs, chickens, a pig, his television and the roof off his home.

The deluge drenched his tobacco seeds, so he will not plant this year. But this was no time to sulk, the wiry 63-year old told Reuters, as he tilled his fields with oxen to plant beans instead.

I wanted to cry, to scream, he said, recalling the moment he saw the damage to his home and barns. Were going to lose an entire year. But you need to keep moving forward.

Cubans, renowned for their resiliency and ingenuity born of scarcity, began rebuilding early this week with supplies scavenged from the wreckage.

But recovering from the disaster represents a massive challenge in a poor country already suffering a grave economic crisis, said Cuban economist Omar Everleny.

A Cold War-era U.S. embargo and a tourism industry that still has not recovered from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic have combined to knee-cap Cubas already inefficient state-run economy.

The effects will be more severe than ever due to the pile-up of already existing difficulties, said Everleny.

The storm, which collapsed Cubas entire electric grid, damaged 63,000 homes in hard-hit Pinar del Rio, including upwards of 7,000 the state has classified as a total loss. Less than a quarter of that province had power late this week.

Nearly all of its tobacco infrastructure  including drying houses  were flattened by the hurricane just days ahead of the October planting season.

Repairing that damage, Everleny said, will require spending money Cuba doesnt have on such things as fuel, cement, water tanks, cables and lumber  all materials in short supply even before the storm hit.

That will likely knock back the countrys gross domestic product  initially predicted by officials to grow 4% in 2022, he added.

Tobacco Industry Heart

Pinar del Rio is the heart of Cubas tobacco industry, which drives $500 million in exports and employs thousands of the countrys famous cigar rollers. The region produces 65% of Cubas crop.

President Miguel Diaz-Canel has visited Pinar del Rio three times since Ian struck. Earlier this week he announced the state would underwrite 50% of the cost of rebuilding homes, and a caravan of lineworkers have been sent to the province to restore power.

We are going to recover. You can be sure of that, Diaz-Canel told residents on his most recent visit. But he also urged patience, noting supplies would arrive little by little.

State-run media this week said residents of some communities would receive rations of rice, beans and cooking oil to bridge the gap. TV footage showed some of the goods arriving in boxes stamped as donations from Russia.

Mexico and Venezuela have also donated supplies, officials said.

The Cuban government says the U.S. embargo is an impediment to recovery. The government and state-run media have repeatedly referenced a full-page ad, placed by activist group The Peoples Forum, which ran Sunday in the New York Times and called on the United States to lift sanctions on Cuba to help their neighbor rebuild.

It is unconscionable at this critical hour to maintain the blockade and engage in collective punishment against an entire people, the ad reads.

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has said it is evaluating ways to help the Cuban people but relations with Havana have been icy since a crackdown on protesters who took part in anti-government rallies last year.

The blackouts again prompted protests in Havana but Pinar del Rio, a rural province known for its pro-government slant, saw no demonstrations.

Locals began the clean-up themselves, with many who Reuters spoke to saying they would not wait for state aid to arrive.

In the town of San Luis, Asbel Siles, who lost his roof to the hurricane, worked with neighbor Jose Luis Pacheco to shape a splintered wooden telephone pole to prop up his now wobbly pink-and-white home.

Im rebuilding on my own, said Siles, a tobacco industry employee now out of work. Ill need to buy what was lost. Its the only way.

Pacheco said his friends home would be as good as new within the week. He was less sure about the local economy.

The province is starting from scratch, he said. Im worried well go two or three years with nothing.
Robert Mendez, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman, said Washington should end cooperation on any activity with Saudi Arabia due to the oil cut.

Mendez, the Democrat committee chief, reaction indicates the snub that has damned the US and advantaged Russia in the Ukraine conflict instead.

Oil Production Cut Outrages America

In a declaration, Menendez directly pointed to cutting off all arms sales and security cooperation, one of the underlying principles of the more than 70-year-old US strategic alliance with the oil kingdom, which is a blow to defending American interests, reported Republic World.

The Democrat from New Jersey stated that he would not approve any cooperation with Riyadh until the kingdom rescinds its posture regarding the war in Ukraine.

"Enough is enough," Mendez emphasized.

He made his remarks four days after OPEC participants Saudi Arabia and Russia proclaimed a decrease in oil output of 2 million barrels per day.

The output reduction also endangers American attempts to make the war financially untenable for Russia, jeopardizes an already volatile global economy, and ends up putting President Joe Biden and Democrats at risk of being forced to come to terms with rising gasoline prices shortly before the midterm elections in the United States, noted New Jersey News.

The Democrat committee chief and his official statement on Monday positions him as one of a growing number of Democrats who have considered halting billions of dollars in annual US weapons deals to the kingdom since their official release by OPEC nations and Russia.

Read Also: Mark Zuckerberg Net Worth 2022: How Did Facebook Founder Lose $30 Billion in 1 Day?

Saudi Maintains Friendly Relations with Russia

The Dems are accusing the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto leader, as a lifeline facilitating the US's rise to power was severed. People assume that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will follow the US administration's lead.

Instead, by failing to secure cheap oil, Washington lost a geopolitical ace that could bring down the Biden administration. Additionally, no one wants to supply the US with its oil needs, which is making the US desperate.

A week ago, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was among the Dems livid that Mohammed bin Salman had taken the side of Vladimir Putin.

Then he said that Democratic lawmakers should consider new laws to punish the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its unacceptable actions, including siding with Russia in addition to rejecting the US in the worst way, citing ABC News.

Immediately, a spurned Biden administration was working to force OPEC+ to rescind its decision by stopping arms sales to the Kindom of Saudi Arabia.

On Monday, the White House did not respond immediately to Menendez's initiative.

Americans also condemn the crown prince for persisting in trying to seem cordial with Putin and refusing to participate in US-led attempts to separate and penalize Putin for his incursion into Ukraine in February.

To mend fences with Prince Mohammed, Biden went to Saudi Arabia in July and gave the prince an awkward fist bump.

The Democrat Committee chief added that Washington is stopping the association from forcing Saudi Arabia to follow it, not the other way around. According to a Democrat committee chief, Washington cut ties to pressure Saudi Arabia to align with the US tune.

Related Article: Russia's Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova Condemns Impartiality of UN Official on Ukraine Plebiscite, Instead of Reserving Opinion

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Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov informed the press that Washington and its allies yet showed no interest, but the Russian and Turkish leaders were planning talks about the matter.

There is some hope that the West would be interceded by Turkey to resolve the escalation; Vladimir Putin and Tayyip Erdogan are scheduled to go to Kazakhstan this week.

Russia, Turkey Meeting

Peskov mentioned Astana is sponsoring summits of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-building initiatives in Asia (CICA, October 13) as well as a formal summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) scheduled for October 14, reported Euractiv.

Russia is responsive to diplomacy, yet Washington's reinforcement of Kyiv's "belligerent demeanor" exacerbates conciliatory attempts to end the disagreement, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday.

She also informed the US side that the tasks assigned to Ukraine would be accomplished, which the Russian and Turkish leaders are well aware of.

Russia is also ready to settle diplomatically, but specific requirements must be met. Also, it was made clear that Kyiv is too stubborn and will engage in terrorism, creating a peaceful solution to the problem a long shot, noted Reuters.

The G20 in Indonesia

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow was willing to negotiate with the West on the Ukraine conflict but hadn't yet received any reasonable plan to make a deal.

In an interview conducted on state TV, Lavrov stated that Russia has been open to dialogue with the United States or even with Turkey on directions to stop the conflict, currently in its eighth month.

Read Also: Vladimir Putin's 'Girlfriend': 5 Things To Know About Alina Kabaeva

The senior Russian official laments that White House national security spokesman John Kirby stated that the US is willing to talk, but Russia is the dissenting party. The US relies on invented words, an outright lie, citing Hindustan Times.

Lavrov called Kirby a liar for what he said and reiterated that while Moscow is willing, Washington and its allies have not said anything meaningful.

Furthermore, he stated that a meeting with Biden during the G20 summit in Indonesia scheduled for the middle of November would be a suitable venue. If they ever get a proposal, a discussion with Biden would be beneficial.

He also stated that Russia never refuses meetings and that any proposal is immediately considered; however, no offer comes from Washington.

Giving an opinion on the potential that Turkey might conduct talks with Russia and the West, Lavrov said Moscow would indeed be prepared to listen to any recommendations and could not tell if it would result in good outcomes ahead of time.

He mentioned that Erdogan would be given a chance to make propositions to Putin throughout their trip to Kazakhstan this week.

Frictions between the West and Russia over Russia's seven-month invasion of Ukraine stay high, with Moscow launching missile attacks across Kyiv on Monday in reaction to a Saturday blast that seriously damaged a Russian-built bridge to Crimea.

The Turkish government, which has close ties with both Moscow and Kyiv, has been viewed as a partial moderator within the conflict. In July, it aided in the negotiation of a deal to outsource Ukrainian grain patrols in Black Port facilities.

This month, Kazakhstan's capital will accommodate another conference that Council President Charles Michel will attend. Peskov says the Russian and Turkish leaders are to meet on the sidelines in Kazakhs on strategies to deal with the West.

Related Article: NATO Membership for Sweden and Finland Might be Jeopardized by Hungary and Turkey

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The Hungarian and Serbian governments will build a pipeline that pumps Russian oil from the Urals, which passes through the Druzhba pipeline that will terminate in Belgrade. It is a response to gain energy security after the start of the Ukraine conflict that has turned the EU topsy-turvy.

Sanctions Affect Many EU States

A new set of punitive measures has been imposed on oil shipped through Croatia to stifle Russian energy shipments authorized by the EU; Budapest announced this on October 10th, reported the Epoch Times.

To deter Moscow, the EU imposed sanctions exacted by Washington, which does not want Russia to defeat Ukraine. The plot thickens as the EU goes all-out to limit oil prices shipped by sea to third-country buyers of Russian oil, noted Hart Energy.

Serbia gets its Russian oil supplies via the JANAF oil pipeline, which transits, passing Croatia. The two leaders, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, had decided to construct a pipeline pumping oil terminating in Hungary.

Zoltan Kovacs on Twitter posted via social media regarding this arrangement between the two countries. He added that the new oil pipeline would provide Hungarian and Serbian governments with lower-priced Urals crude oil by linking to the Friendship pipeline project.

Furthermore, there is evidence that the Russian oil supplied to Serbia comes from a Croatian pipeline, but Washington's rash sanctions have hampered it.

Hungary has also been obtaining oil from the southern outlet of the Druzhba line, which is delivered to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Ukraine.

Read Also: Russia Nuclear Weapons: Volodymyr Zelensky Warns Danger of Vladimir Putin Nuclear Threats to Ukraine

The Central European country, which is highly dependent on Russian oil and gas, is the fiercest critic of the bloc's sanctions against Moscow.

For many years, the oil pipeline was the primary source of crude oil for the three nations' processing facilities. Orban has voiced concerns that the restrictions will indeed keep driving up energy prices, yet his state voted to support last week's punitive measures package, citing Al Jazeera.

As a result, he announced a national poll to reach a consensus on sanctions against Moscow.

The Hungarian Prime Minister stated his nation is carrying gas reserves valued at approximately five to six months' usage. He stated earlier in the month that his administration would provide gas to Serbia if required.

Providers are NIS, Serbia's state oil company Russia's Gazprom Neft, and Gazprom as the largest group stakeholders.

Washington To Harass Dissenting Bloc Members

The EU and the United States have been finding fault with the Serbian government after it reached an agreement with Russia that it would hold long-term talks on matters of foreign relations.

In the meantime, Serbia is already trying to get into the European Union's 27-member coalition. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz talked with Viktor Orban in Berlin on Oct. 10 to try and understand the Ukrainian conflict.

Following that, Orban spoke at an economic conference organized by the Eastern Committee of German Business, an organization dedicated to strengthening Germany's economic ties with Eastern and Central Europe.

The Hungarian and Serbian governments are building a pipeline that will transport Russian oil to Serbia and Hungary to have energy security.

Related Article: Former Russian President Ominously Warns Kiev Regime To Receive More Retaliatory Strikes

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Ewout Rijk de Vries and his wife, Jill, brought America Travel Arrangements to Marco Island almost 40 years ago. They specialize on high end small adventure tours and small safari groups for clientele all over the world, but also are experts on high end cruises with the help of longtime assistant and friend, Michelle Wegman. In combination with his writing and photography, Ewout has visited over 90 countries. Ewout can be reached at ewout@photodevries.com.
Simon Cataldo 08 won the contested Democratic primary for Massachusetts 14th Middlesex District state representative seat last month.

Its uncanny how much of my coursework studying environmental science and chemistry at Colorado College relates to whats happening in the Massachusetts legislature today, says Cataldo, who majored in environmental science. My friends at CC have helped me at every step of my professional journey after graduation, and running for office has been no different.

Cataldo bested Vivian Birchall and Pat Wojtas in the primary election, which took place on Sept. 6.

"Both Vivian and Pat contributed important messages, policy ideas, experiences, and perspectives to this Democratic primary. We are all better off for their service to the community, their impressive candidacies, and the positive impact they will continue to make upon our district, Cataldos campaign stated after the race was called in Cataldos favor. I am grateful to have run in a primary that was, from beginning to end, focused on issues. In todays political climate, that is not something to be taken for granted. The mutual admiration and congeniality many of you have observed among the three of us in our public appearances is genuine.

The Associated Press called the race on the morning of Sept. 7, according to MassLive. Simon Cataldo received over 57% of the votes; Birchall received almost 28%; and Wojtas received almost 15%.

Cataldo was involved in a number of extracurriculars while at Colorado College, including being a student researcher for the 2008 State of the Rockies Report Card. After graduating, he joined Teach for America, where he worked as a special education math teacher in Harlem. While teaching, Cataldo and Tom Dugan 08 founded Harlem Lacrosse, which is now a national nonprofit that serves over 3,000 children in inner-city schools.

Cataldo attended the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was the managing editor of the law review. After graduating, he served as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Public Integrity Section, as well as prosecuted a wide range of criminal cases involving public officials, including the trial of former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who later became the first individual pardoned by former President Donald Trump.

State Rep. Tami Gouveia currently holds the seat for the 14th Middlesex District in Massachusetts. Gouveia, a Democrat, took office on Jan. 2, 2019, and her term will end on Jan. 4, 2023.

The district is made up Action, Carlisle, Chelmsford, and Concord, which is Simon Cataldos hometown. He will face Republican Rodney Cleaves in the general election on Nov. 8.
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The US Department of Labor Tuesday proposed a regulation that would make it more challenging for businesses to treat employees as independent contractors.

Experts predict that the measure would significantly impact industries that rely on gig workers, such as ride-hailing and delivery services. Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash all saw at least a 10 percent decline in stock prices following the announcement, Al Jazeera reported.

Millions of Americans Rely on Gig Economy

If approved, workers who are "economically reliant" on an employer must be classified as employees and thus be granted greater benefits and legal protections than independent contractors. It may affect everything from corporate earnings and employment to individual salaries and working conditions.

Following a 45-day public comment process that starts on Thursday, the final regulation is anticipated next year. The Labor Department stated that it will take into account several variables, including the worker's potential for "profit or loss, investment, permanency, the degree of control by the employer over the worker," and if the labor is a vital element of the company's business.

According to a poll conducted in December 2021 by the freelance marketplace Upwork, more than a third of US employees, or roughly 60 million people, had engaged in some type of freelance employment in the previous 12 months.

Gig employment is essential to transportation, food, construction, healthcare, and other businesses that employ millions of Americans. In a statement, US Labor Secretary Marty Walsh noted that companies frequently misclassify employees who are vulnerable as independent contractors.

Walsh said that "misclassification" robs workers of their federal labor protections, which includes their legal right to get paid in full. This regulation is the most recent salvo in a heated political debate that has pitted Republican business leaders and corporate interests against Democratic labor unions and advocacy organizations, per Reuters.

It would repeal an Obama-era rule that allows firms to classify workers who own their businesses or who may work for rival companies as contractors, such as a driver who can choose between Uber and Lyft.

On Tuesday, Labor Department Solicitor Seema Nanda argued that a regulation favored by business groups during the Trump administration was inconsistent with decades of federal court judgments. The proposed labor rule incorporates legal guidance published by the Obama administration that was repealed by the Trump administration.

Read Also: Kamala Harris Slams Greg Abbott for Sending Migrants to Her DC Home; Republicans Tears VP for Failures To Address Southern Border Crisis

Heavy Burden on Employers

Fox News reported that companies fear a rise in their operational expenses if they are obliged to designate gig workers as employees, which might lead them to reduce wages or halt recruiting altogether. They've also seen that some workers appreciate the freedom to work for many employers if they so want, which is a perk of the gig economy.

Research suggests that employees can increase a company's costs by as much as 30 percent compared to independent contractors because of federal and state labor regulations mandating minimum wage and overtime compensation for employees.

Beth Milito, executive director of the National Federal of Independent Business' legal center commented that the new restriction comes while firms are already struggling with a labor shortage that has driven them to boost pay dramatically to compete with other businesses for a small pool of workers.

"It's just all not good for small businesses," Milito said as the proposed regulation would make it harder for companies to hire the employees they need to remain competitive due to unpredictability and high costs.

There are still around 1.7 jobs available for every individual actively seeking employment, according to current data from the US Department of Labor. Drivers for rideshare apps like Uber and Lyft have expressed opposition to the planned change, claiming the need to be treated as workers might compel the corporations to alter how they operate.

According to some calculations, the ridesharing firms may cut their labor expenses by as much as 20-30 percent by treating their workers as contractors rather than employees.

Related Article: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Rejects President Joe Biden's Plea To Pardon Inmates with Marijuana Convictions

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The Missourians Opinion section is a public forum for the discussion of ideas. The views presented in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Missourian or the University of Missouri. If you would like to contribute to the Opinion page with a response or an original topic of your own, visit our submission form
Alex Jones, the far-right conspiracy theorist that claimed the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax, has been ordered by a jury to pay $965 million in damages to the families of the victims of the tragedy.

The individual falsely claimed that the 2012 mass shooting was all a ploy to enforce gun laws in the United States. In the defamation trial held in Connecticut, the families of eight victims and an FBI agent who responded to the attack had sought $550 million for reparations.

$965 million in Damages

The accusers claimed that Jones' misinformation on his website, InfoWars, resulted in a decade of harassment and death threats aimed at the victims' families. The tragic incident resulted in the killing of 20 children and six adults.

The defendant argued for years that the brutal massacre was just a "staged" government plot to take Americans' guns away and claimed that no one died. Jones also called the parents of the victims "crisis actors" and said that some of them never actually existed in the first place, as per BBC.

Now, Jones acknowledges that the mass shooting was "100% real" in a concession that he made in August during a separate defamation trial held in Texas. On Wednesday, as the jury's verdict was read out in Waterbury, many of the families were seen becoming emotional, some shedding tears.

The trial, which lasted for three weeks, was marked by emotional testimony from a succession of parents. Some of those who testified described receiving online hate while others said that they were forced to change homes in order to ensure their own safety.

According to the NewsTimes, with the result of the trial, the parent company of Jones' InfoWars, Free Speech Systems, has filed for bankruptcy as there is a veil of secrecy surrounding his finances. He was already ordered to pay $49 million to the parents of Jesse Lewis, one of the children slain in the shooting.

Read Also: Who's Getting the $487 Stimulus Checks on October 17? Here's What you Need To Know To Qualify!

Alex Jones Trial

However, regarding that payment, a Texas judge is expected to consider whether or not Jones can invoke a state law that limits damages to $750,000 on Oct. 20. An economist who testified during the Texas trial estimated Jones' net worth to be between $135 and $270 million.

Texas Judge Maya Guerra Gamble admonished the defendant and Connecticut Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis told him that he cannot mention his bankruptcy filing on the stand. The individual is known to have siphoned money from his main company for years, especially after he lost three defamation lawsuits by default in 2021.

Jones also withdrew $65 million in September 2021 after Gamble ruled that he had lost the lawsuits to Sandy Hook families by default for not complying with court orders, said financial forensic expert Bernard Francis Pettingill, Jr. The nearly $1 billion in damages that Jones is ordered to pay will be divided among the families of the victims that filed against him.

This is distributed as $120 million for Robbie Parker, $36 million for William Sherlach, $109 million for David and Francine Wheeler, $86.4 million for Jacqueline and Mark Barden, $155.2 million for Nicole and Ian Hockley, $52 million for Jennifer Hensel, $240.4 million for the Soto family, $90 million for William Aldenberg, and $76 million for Erica Lafferty, the New York Times reported.

Related Article: Hunter Biden Scandal: First Son's Legal Entanglements Pose Threat to Democrats Ahead of Midterm Elections

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US legislators continue to press for the creation of a digital dollar, raising questions about whether the move could make it easy for the federal government to track business and consumer transactions.

Putting all the digital dollars on one electronic ledger operated by the Federal Reserve would also be a tempting target for cyber criminals.

In March, lawmakers introduced a bill that would allow the US Treasury to create a digital dollar and pilot it to determine its viability. That same month, President Joe Biden called for more research on developing a national digital currency through the nations central bank. The order highlighted the need for more regulatory oversight of cryptocurrencies, which have been used for nefarious purposes such as money laundering and other criminal activities.

The ECASH Act (Electronic Currency And Secure Hardware Act) would allow a bearer instrument that wouldnt require payment processing intermediaries, such as SWIFT, the worlds largest payment messaging network. That means payments using ECASH would be near instantaneous  even across national borders  and processing fees would likely be dramatically reduced.

A central bank digital currency (CBDC) would also increase inclusion for black, brown, and low-income communities to build and sustain wealth, according to US Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), vice chair for the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions.

Avivah Litan, a vice president and distinguished analyst at research firm Gartner, said while there are solid methods to protect privacy for digital cash transactions, such as zero-knowledge proof technology (ZKP), they still rely on the central banks good faith.

A zero-knowledge proof is used in cryptography to prove that something is known without revealing the underlying information directly. For example, for someone applying for a car loan, a ZKP could validate that the person's credit score meets minimum requirements for the loan without exposing the actual score to the seller. Or a ZKP could be used to prove someone meets the minimum-age requirement for purchasing alcohol without sharing a date of birth, or validate a driver's license without exposing the actual license number.

Digital currency, however, doesn't natively incorporate zero-knowledge proofs. As a result, Litan said, citizens using a digital dollar have to trust the government to keep the ZKP protection in place.

So, the bottom line is that auditor function, which is controlled by the Central Bank, can theoretically change the privacy settings on an individual account at any time. And thats the bottom line pretty much for any centrally-controlled digital currency, whether its ECASH or any other CBDC. In the end, you still have to trust your government to respect your privacy, Litan said. Thats a tall order.

Generally speaking, there are three kinds of digital currency:

Cryptocurrencies , such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which are created and traded using blockchain distributed ledger technology (DLT);

, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which are created and traded using blockchain distributed ledger technology (DLT); Stablecoin , such as Tether and USD Coin, which are backed by fiat currencies like the US dollar;

, such as Tether and USD Coin, which are backed by fiat currencies like the US dollar; Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), or fiat currencies issued by central banks in digital form and not categorized as cryptocurrency

MacroVector / Getty Images

The ECASH Act requires that all proof-of-concept pilots and field tests be designed as bearer instruments -- that is a plastic card or application on a device that is controlled by the one in possession of it. An ECASH digital dollar must also be capable of instantaneous and final peer-to-peer, offline transactions; and it must be capable of being directly distributed to and owned by the general public.

The US is already well behind other nations in exploring the creation of a government-backed digital currency.

As digital payment and currency technologies continue to rapidly expand and with Russia, China, and over 90 countries worldwide already researching and launching some form of Central Bank Digital Currency, it is absolutely critical for the US to remain a world leader in the development and regulation of digital currency and other digital assets," Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA), said in a statement. Lynch was the primary sponsor of the ECASH Act.

"If we don't create our own, standards will get set by other countries already aware of the advantages of this innovation and the US will be left behind," Ananya Kumar, assistant director of Digital Currencies at the Atlantic Councils GeoEconomics Center in Washington DC, said in a March interview with Computerworld. "The EO came out very strongly for American leadership on these issues. The US to date has not been focusing coordinated efforts on this."

Lynch introduced the bill, saying electronic transactions could leave much of the population  particularly the unbanked or underbanked, and those who live in areas without reliable internet service without access to the digital economy.

The US needs an electronic cash system that can be used by people at the bottom of the economic ladder, Lynch said while speaking at Boston University earlier this month. We hope this bill will address many of the challenges we face as we move toward a cashless society.

In February, the US Federal Reserve tested a design and processing system for a US digital dollar that handled 1.7 million transactions per second. Project Hamilton, as the digital currency effort was dubbed, is a multi-year research project by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and Massachusetts Institute of Technology Digital Currency Initiative. Its purpose is to explore a CBDC design and gain a hands-on understanding of a digital currencys technical challenges and opportunities.

According to the Fed's Report on Project Hamilton, a core processing engine for the test CBDC was able to bring 99% of the digital cash transactions to settlement in under two seconds, and a majority in under 0.7 seconds. However, the ordering server resulted in a bottleneck, which led to peak throughput of approximately 170,000 transactions per second, the report said.

Christian Catalini, a research scientist and founder of the MIT Cryptoeconomics Lab, said COVID pushed people to use digital transactions during lockdowns. That, in turn, renewed discussion around what kind of public infrastructure should support a digital dollar.

Creating a digital dollar or CBDC based on a central ledger is not necessary, though it would allow the federal government to monitor activity for any nefarious transactions.

With ECASH, I think the idea is to have something that looks a lot like a physical device  think of it as plastic card with some additional functionality  that behaves a lot like physical cash, Catalini said. I can transact with it and its a bearer instrument. As soon as someone receives a payment through the system, all they have to know is the payment successfully executed. Theres no central ledger that records everybodys balances.

Today, electronic transactions  such as credit card purchases and bank fund transfers  are already tracked on electronic ledger. Those ledgers, however, are both regulated and owned by private companies, not the federal government.

Even the use of cold, hard cash can attract government purview. For example, if a large purchase is made with cash or a large withdrawal is taken from an account (think hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars), the federal government does take notice and it will look into it, Catalini pointed out.

It will be at least five years before consumers see a digital dollar, he said. In all likelihood, it will be even longer because so many technical and philosophical questions remain.

We do have tools that could bring privacy in a thoughtful way to digital transactions, but a lot of this is still in the works, he said. From a societal perspective, I think we always struggle with this balance that on one side people want privacy around their financial transactions, but on the other side there are concerns around full privacy. If youre trying to perpetrate crime, we want to make sure those transactions are not supported by our financial systems.

Rohan Grey, an assistant professor at Willamette University who consulted with Congress on the ECASH bill, said the legislation as is would create "a token-based system that doesn't have either a centralized ledger or distributed ledger because it had no ledger whatsoever.

"It uses secured hardware software and it's issued by the Treasury," Grey told Coindesk. "This form of e-cash would support peer-to-peer transactions, and given the nature of its setup, it would support fully anonymous transactions."

The lack of a distributed ledger, or a decentralized digital database, means the current proposed digital dollar would not be based on blockchain, as are other cryptocurrenies.

Unlike cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin and other blockchain based cryptocurrencies, the ECASH device will be a piece of secured hardware issued and/or authorized by the government for the purpose of receiving, holding, and transferring e-cash balances, the ECASH website explains.

ECASH devices would verify funds locally via a dedicated or trusted computing environment located on the device itself.

This allows it to facilitate both offline and genuine peer-to-peer transactions without generating transactional data or requiring the approval of third-party intermediaries or network validator nodes, the site explains.

Even on a secure physical device controlled by a consumer, ECASH would have to have restrictions, Catalini pointed out. For example, there would have to be limits on how much digital currency the device could hold. Otherwise, the bearer instruments could be used for nefarious activities that couldnt be tracked.

And there are still many questions to be answered. For example, how would digital funds be load onto a card or device? Would a user have to show an identification document to download ECASH?

I would imagine there would be some sort of know-your-customer technology around loading balances, Catalini said. So, I think there will be many different approaches that will compete technologically and from a regulatory perspective to offer the appearance of cash.
Here is what we think we know: Apple is preparing to introduce its first-generation mixed-reality device after years of development (and speculation). Meta is upset by the comping competition and is now trying to land a few punches before its competitor enters the ring.

Ready for the ride

Thats why Metas CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, threw some shade at his competitor at Meta Connect. In doing so, the company is attempting to position itself as a champion of an open metaverse. I strongly believe that an open, interoperable metaverse built by many different developers and companies is going to be better for everyone, he said.

This does remind me of the arguments Google used when it introduced Android, and it does rather amuse me that Apple is experiencing rapid resurgence in PC sales even as the number of Android-to-iPhone switchers is apparently on the increase.

Zuckerbergs approach to open also reminds me of the kind of partnerships Microsoft held with others until antitrust regulators stepped in to limit its control of the PC market. At that time, the PC market was open so long as you did what you were told.

Throw in a few customer satisfaction data points and you could probably make an argument to support the idea that the concept of open often turns out to be better for everyone except consumers.

While making such a case probably pits you against free-market ideologues, youd probably win support from Steve Jobs, who once said, "We think the open vs. closed is just a smokescreen to try and hide the real issue, which is: What's best for the customer?

What will you look like with a Meta on you?

Zuckerberg also introduced Metas $1,499 Quest Pro headset, its latest system for AR/VR experiences. Thats why, when speaking to Stratecherys Ben Thompson, he talked about Apple. He implied that Apple will charge as much as it can for its still unannounced and unconfirmed mixed-reality headset.

Interestingly, Zuckerberg has previously argued that Apple has no ecosystem to support its headset. Hes entitled to his opinion, but that does seem a rather mixed-up reality, given Apples vast army of independent developers and its rich selection of developer APIs for AR and associated experiences.

The Meta master has also criticized Apples 30/70 (in actuality, 15/85) revenue split with App Store developers. Hes so critical, in fact, that hes reportedly preparing to charge Meta AR app developers up to 47.5% cut, which seems at best, erm, "logically inconsistent."

Zuckerberg has gone quite deep on what his Quest can do. Among other things, he says it lets you wear a virtual workspace on your head. Though you probably wont want to wear it for too long, given the US army has warned extended use of such technologies for military activities exposes troops to headaches, eyestrain and nausea.

Nausea is predictable. Way back in 1794, young UK Queen Charlotte had to swiftly leave the Leicester Square Rotunda  where early VR experiences were available  when she suffered nausea. Though its doubtful that system was also reading her emotions or tracking her face movements at the time, presumably to sell data about her emotional reactions to advertisers.

Ready if its fighting time

Unless Ive missed a memo, we all know Metas business model demands its users become a richly monetized open book. This is surely part of the business plan Meta has with its Quest, which is why it wants to sell them as widely as possible.

Were going to build the best hardware in the space and were going to basically sell it at a break-even point and in some cases [at a loss], Zuckerberg apparently said.

We know Apple and Meta havent been getting along. For years, Apple CEO Tim Cook has warned against the business model Meta uses and his campaign for privacy may yet deliver a more private and creative model for online advertising. Apple has even made pro-privacy changes to its platforms that seem to have damaged Metas bottom line.

But by attempting to bend reality to cast Apple as a company that is greedy and controlling while suggesting his own firm champions openness, I think Metas chief has pushed reality distortion too far. I think these arguments expose Metas own weakness as Apple prepares to join it in the ring.

Those arguments wont protect the company against the non-virtual reality that once Apple eventually does join the brawl, having given Meta those free feints, its going to be Apple that lands the next punch.

Please follow me on Twitter, or join me in the AppleHolics bar & grill and Apple Discussions groups on MeWe.
In a report defining US security goals and foreign policy objectives, the Biden administration saw Washington's largest problem as Beijing's escalating rivalry with the US.

The National Security Strategy (NSS), a report required by Congress that outlines the nation's interests and policies abroad, was made public by the White House on Wednesday.

Report Outlines US Security Strategy

President Joe Biden's NSS continues where the previous report, which was published in 2017 when Donald Trump was in office, left off by emphasizing China as the United States' main opponent.

In light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the US administration also emphasized the necessity of constraining Russia and found avenues for expanding international collaboration, especially with rivals. The oncoming crisis in Ukraine prevented the study from being released last year as planned.

According to the NSS, Russia's actions that culminated in the invasion of Ukraine pose an immediate and ongoing threat to international peace and security. The NSS asserted that small authoritarian regimes are acting aggressively in ways that pose a threat to international order.

About efforts to revive the 2015 multilateral agreement that saw Tehran curtail its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of sanctions, the NSS stated that the US will seek diplomacy to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon, as per Aljazeera.

The strategy plan was delayed last winter as it became evident that Russia was preparing to invade Ukraine and that the US's alliance with its allies in Europe was set to face a severe test.

In addition to warnings to Moscow that were added to reflect a new period of containment, the word used during the Cold War to control the main issue at the time: Soviet expansionism, the revised statement also praises a new cohesion among NATO countries.

The national security policy is a combination of direction, a signal of intent to allies and adversaries, and, frequently, a self-celebratory ode to American might for every administration, according to New York Times.

In the meantime, the current national security policy unveiled by the United States on Wednesday, which was mostly concerned with how it will handle its escalating rivalry with China, restated its resolve to fully denuclearize the Korean Peninsula through diplomatic means.

It was said that the nation would keep enhancing and growing its partnerships to accomplish both goals. This year, North Korea conducted more than twenty missile tests, including seven rounds of launches.

Jake Sullivan, the national security advisor, underlined the importance of US alliances. President Joe Biden said the new security strategy intends to outmaneuver geopolitical enemies while bolstering US friends to solve shared concerns. He said, "We have positioned relationships at the center of this agenda," in a telephone press conference, Yonhap News reported.

Read Also: Who's Getting the $487 Stimulus Checks on October 17? Here's What you Need To Know To Qualify!

Russia, North Korea, Iran Nuclear Weapons Are Threats to US

North Korea and Russia consider the United States their most dangerous foe, and both governments have concluded that using nuclear weapons on the battlefield is their only realistic option for defending themselves. The current scenario is becoming more volatile as a result of Putin and Kim's aggressive styles and high-risk tolerance for utilizing possibly disastrous means to challenge Washington's supremacy and power projection in the world.

Given the fundamentally opposed worldviews and governance styles of the US and NATO on the one hand, and Russia and North Korea on the other, both regimes, which are subject to heavy sanctions, have concluded that their relationship with the West is irretrievably damaged.

In addition, Kim Jong Un has upped the production of atomic bombs and expedited missile testing to previously unheard-of heights. As of March, he was able to launch a full-range intercontinental ballistic missile that might target the US mainland.

The newly formed Putin-Kim partnership is a grave security issue for Washington. Russia is the only nation with the ability to obliterate the motherland with a strategic nuclear strike and has the largest nuclear arsenal in the world.

The deputy assistant director of the CIA's Korea Mission Center described North Korea's efforts to develop nuclear weapons capacity as quite reasonable rather than insane. The term peaceful use is frequently used by adversaries, including Iran, North Korea, and others, as a pretext for acquiring dual-use technology, such as nuclear, cyber, and space, to build up their military-grade capabilities, as per Fox News.

Related Article: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Rejects President Joe Biden's Plea To Pardon Inmates with Marijuana Convictions

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Putin offers additional gas supply to Europe

Xinhua) 09:25, October 13, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the plenary session of the "Russian Energy Week" international forum in Moscow on Oct. 12, 2022. (Kremlin press release)

Putin called the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines "an act of international terrorism."

MOSCOW, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Russia is ready to deliver additional volumes of natural gas to the European Union in the autumn-winter period, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday.

One of the two branches of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has survived the recent leak incident and Russia is willing to send gas through it to Europe, Putin said at the plenary session of the "Russian Energy Week" international forum in Moscow.

"Its capacity is 27.5 billion cubic meters per year, which is about 8 percent of all gas imports of Europe. Russia is ready to start such deliveries. The ball is on the side of the European Union," he said.

Russia could also transfer the lost volumes through the Nord Stream pipelines to the Black Sea region and create key supply routes to Europe via Turkiye, "if, of course, our partners are interested in this," he added.

At the forum, Putin expressed concerns about unstable energy prices and an imbalance in supply and demand, and he criticized certain countries "who are guided solely by their own geopolitical ambitions, resort to outright discrimination in the market."

He called the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines "an act of international terrorism."

Putin said that those behind the sabotage sought to break ties completely between Russia and the European Union, weaken Europe's industrial potential and seize the market.

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)
Tulsi Gabbard, a former Hawaii representative, has expressed her support of Republican lawmakers after her announcement of splitting with the Democratic Party, claiming it was a group of "elitists."

The lawmaker endorsed on Wednesday Trump-backed GOP candidate Joe Kent in the competitive race for a southwestern Washington House seat. She also plans to campaign for Republican New Hampshire Senate nominee Don Bolduc.

Gabbard's Support of Republicans

Gabbard, who ran for U.S. president as a Democrat in 2020, revealed that she was leaving the left on Tuesday. Since then, the lawmaker has placed her support behind several candidates aligned with former United States President Donald Trump.

In a new ad for Kent, Gabbard said that his friend was a fighter, noting that he has dedicated his life to ensuring the safety, security, and freedom of the American people and the country. She said that with the people's support, Kent will go to Washington and work tirelessly to secure the border and bring peace of mind, as per The Hill.

The Republican lawmaker, who is a former Green Beret, beat out Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler for the GOP nomination in the state's August primary. Beutler, who for 12 years represented Washington's 3rd Congressional District, was among the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump.

After Beutler's loss in the Republican primary, the non-partisan Cook Political Report moved the district from "solid Republican" to "lean Republican." The district moved two notches to the left on the report's scale.

According to Fox News, the unconventional pairing of Gabbard and Bolduc comes just a day after the former announced her separation from the Democratic Party. In the video, Gabbard denounced the "elitist cabal of warmongers" who made up her former party.

She argued that Democrats divided the United States by racializing every issue and she claimed that they stoked anti-White racism. On the other hand, the New Hampshire Democratic Party (NHDP) responded to Gabbard's announcement with criticism.

Read Also: Joe Biden's National Security Strategy Highlights Nuclear Threats of Russia, Iran and North Korea

Separation With The Democratic Party

The group slammed the former Hawaii congresswoman and her decision to campaign with the Republican who is taking on longtime Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan in the midterms later this year.

In a press release on Wednesday, the NHDP claimed that Gabbard is an apologist for Russian President Vladimir Putin who has pushed conspiracy theories and stood with dangerous tyrants over the United States. They added that by campaigning with a pro-Putin lawmaker and extreme conspiracy theorist such as Gabbard, Bolduc is making only more clear how out of step he is with New Hampshire.

Gabbard's split with the Democratic Party was fueled by what she claims was lawmakers' hostility to religious freedom, among other reasons. She said that Democrats also demonize the police and instead protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans.

The former Hawaii congresswoman also believes that there is a crisis on the southern border and has expressed her wishes to address the migrant issue in the United States. Gabbard also claimed that the left was dragging the country into a nuclear war with Russia amid the tense situation with the war on Ukraine, ABC News reported.

Related Article: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Rejects President Joe Biden's Plea To Pardon Inmates with Marijuana Convictions

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Germany has rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin's offer to renew energy supplies directed at Europe using the intact Nord Stream 2 pipeline over tensions in Ukraine.

The Russian strongman said that the decision was in the hands of the European Union, saying that if they wanted to, the taps could be turned on and that would be that. However, Germany publicly refused to accept Russian gas via the pipeline which has become a flashpoint in the Ukraine crisis.

Germany Rejects Putin's Offer

German government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann was asked if Berlin would rule out the use of Nord Stream 2, answering with a simple, "Yes." She told reporters that independently of the potential sabotage of the two pipelines, she argued that Russia was no longer a reliable energy supplier.

After both links of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline and one of the two links of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline were ruptured onSept. 26, massive amounts of gas were released into the Baltic Sea. Prior to the incident, Russia had already put the brakes on deliveries through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline in early September, as per DW News.

On the other hand, the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was never operational because Germany halted its approval after Russia moved to invade Ukraine. Putin noted that it was possible to repair the pipelines but argued that Moscow and Europe should decide their fate.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia prompted European buyers to begin weaning themselves off Russian oil and gas and begin looking for alternative sources. At the same forum as Putin, the head of the Russian energy company Gazprom, Alexei Miller, said that repairs to the pipelines would take at least a year.

According to Fox News, Putin's offer to the EU comes amid Russia's limiting of exports of oil and gas in response to heavy sanctions from NATO countries. Hoffman noted that there was no reason to believe that the unreliability of Russia as a supplier would change.

Read Also: NATO Chief Urges for More Weapons to Ukraine as Zelensky Calls for New Sanctions Against Russia Following Missile Strikes

Oil and Gas Supply

On Wednesday, Putin said that the act of sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines is considered an act of international terrorism. He argued that it was aimed at undermining the energy security of the entire continent by blocking supplies of cheap energy. Putin added that those who wanted to demolish ties between Russia and the EU are responsible for the incident.

At the time of the alleged sabotage last month, neither of the two pipelines was operating. Officials reported four explosions rocking the pipes located across the bottom of the Baltic Sea. Each pipeline was struck twice as two explosions were in Swedish waters and two others in Danish waters.

After Russia opted to cut off the transport of natural gas through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, it now only transports gas to Europe through land pipelines that lie across Ukraine. The situation comes as Germany, Sweden, NATO, and other countries have opened up investigations into the sabotage of the pipelines in order to determine what actually happened, but they have not yet concluded, Yahoo News reported.

Related Article: Crimea Bridge Blast: Russia Arrests Suspects Over Shocking Explosion | Here's What Happened

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STI, Singapore Straits Times Index, Japan Nikkei 225 - Technical Outlook:

STI risks a Head & Shoulders-type topping formation.

The Nikkei 225 index could be breaking out of a multi-week range.

What is the outlook and what are the key levels to watch?

Recommended by DailyFX Team Get Your Free Equities Forecast Get My Guide

STI TECHNICAL FORECAST - BEARISH

Singapores Straits Times Index (STI) is attempting to break below vital support that could shave off another 12%-14% in the coming weeks and months.

Unlike some of its Asian peers, Singapores benchmark index has been relatively resilient in the face of tightening global financial conditions. However, that could be about to change. The index is testing support on a horizontal trendline from 2021 at about 3024, raising the risk of a topping formation similar to a Head & Shoulders (H&S) pattern. If it is triggered, the price objective would work out to about 2600.

STI Weekly Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

Below 3024, there is quite strong support at about 2840 (the 50% retracement of the 2020-2022 rise), coinciding with the June 2020 high, followed by 2690 (the 61.8% retracement). On the upside, the index would need to regain the June high of 3307 for downward pressure to fade. Immediate resistance is at last weeks high of 3168.

Recommended by DailyFX Team The Fundamentals of Breakout Trading Get My Guide

NIKKEI 225 INDEX TECHNICAL FORECAST  BEARISH

Japans Nikkei 225 has been boxed in a slightly upward-sloping channel for a large part of this year. However, like the Singapore Straits Times Index, the Nikkei 225 index is testing crucial converged support at the June low of 25520, roughly coinciding with the lower edge of the channel.

NIKKEI 225 INDEX Weekly Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

A decisive break below the support could pave way towards 22500 in coming weeks and months, which is roughly the price objective of the channel. Importantly, such a move would imply a drop below another vital support at the 2018 and 2020 highs of 24450  a strong signal suggesting that medium-term upward pressure had faded. As the chart below shows, a similar move in 2019 led to a multi-month sideway range (that is, an easing of upward pressure).

NIKKEI 225 INDEX Monthly Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

On the upside, the Nikkei 225 index needs to rise above immediate resistance at last weeks high of 27400 for a convincing move back within the channel. Any break above the top edge of the channel would clear the way towards the September 2021 high of 30796, and potentially higher levels.

--- Written by Manish Jaradi, Strategist for DailyFX.com
AUD, Australian dollar, EUR/AUD, GBP/AUD - Technical Outlook:

AUD/USD is looking oversold around key support.

EUR/AUD and GBP/AUD are showing signs of fatigue at key resistance.

What is the outlook and what are the key levels to watch?

Recommended by DailyFX How to Trade AUD/USD Get My Guide

AUD/USD SHORT-TERM TECHNICAL FORECAST - NEUTRAL

The Australian Dollar is looking a bit oversold against the US Dollar, pointing to the possibility of some consolidation or a minor rebound in the near term. However, any such move could be short-lived as the overall trend remains pointed down.

AUD/USD is testing key support on the lower edge of a declining channel from late 2021, with the 14-week Relative Strength Index (RSI) now in oversold territory. Similar RSI levels in the past were associated with a pause in the downtrend.

AUD/USD Weekly Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

Moreover, AUD/USD has more-or-less achieved the target of the Head & Shoulders-type topping pattern after it dropped to 0.6234 this week. This wouldnt necessarily imply that the pair cant fall any further  a pattern target tends to serve as a guide, rather than a rule. Indeed, a decisive break below the lower edge of the channel could pave the way towards 0.6050 (the 78.6% retracement of the 2020-2021 rise).

On the upside, a decisive break above immediate resistance at the end-September low of 0.6361 could open the door towards the early-October high of 0.6547. AUD/USD needs to break above 0.6547 for the short-term downward pressure to ease.

Recommended by DailyFX Get Your Free AUD Forecast Get My Guide

EUR/AUD SHORT-TERM TECHNICAL FORECAST  NEUTRAL

Negative momentum divergence (rising price associated with declining momentum) at this weeks high indicates that EUR/AUDs two-month rally appear to be losing steam. Overbought conditions coupled with a Doji candlestick near stiff resistance at the July high of 1.5397 on Wednesdays daily chart raise the odds of a minor retreat.

EUR/AUDDaily Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

A decisive break on the hourly chart below the October 11 low of 1.5390 would confirm that upward pressure had faded for now. Quite strong support is at the October 6 low of 1.5166. To be fair, any retreat is unlikely to alter the two-month uptrend while the cross holds above the 200-day moving average (now at about 1.5050).

Recommended by DailyFX The Fundamentals of Trend Trading Get My Guide

GBP/AUD SHORT-TERM TECHNICAL FORECAST  NEUTRAL

GBP/AUD is testing a tough converged hurdle  the 200-day moving average and a horizontal trendline at 1.7800. Negative momentum divergence (a stalling of price associated with declining momentum) is a sign that the cross may need to consolidate/retreat a bit in the short term.

GBP/AUDDaily Chart

Chart Created Using TradingView

Any break below the early-October low of 1.7345 would trigger a minor double top (the early-October highs), implying a potential fall towards 1.7000. Furthermore, a decisive break below last weeks low of 1.7244 would raise the odds of extended weakness. GBP/AUD needs to hold above key support at 1.7000 for the short-term upward pressure to remain intact.

--- Written by Manish Jaradi, Strategist for DailyFX.com
United Kingdom Prime Minister Liz Truss is facing pressure from Tory MPs to rewrite last month's controversial "mini" Budget as markets continue to crash.

The warnings from senior Conservative MPs came prior to Truss' appearance at a meeting of Tory backbenchers. In a statement, one loyal minister said that they were completely in a dreadful place, arguing that there was no way out.

Pressure on Liz Truss

Truss has repeatedly defended the proposed cutting of taxes that was outlined last month. The chancellor's mini-budget on Sept. 23 included $50 billion of tax cuts that were funded by borrowing. It sparked turmoil in financial markets and forced the Bank of England to intervene in the matter to protect pension funds.

Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng is now due to set out how he will fund the package and reduce the amount of debt on Oct. 31. On the other hand, Truss has denied that she is planning public spending cuts, arguing that the government would instead focus on reducing debt "by making sure we spend public money well," as per BBC.

But Mel Stride, a prominent supporter of Truss' leadership rival Rishi Sunak, suggested that the government would have to show a "clear change of tack" in order to restore credibility with the financial markets.

Stride noted that with how clear the government's position was made public on protecting spending, there is an emerging question. This is whether or not any plan that does not include at least some element of the further row back on the tax package is actually capable of satisfying the markets.

According to the Financial Times, Tory MPs have pointed out that many business groups were not asking for the planned increase to be reversed, as many companies wanted other cuts, including to business rates.

Read Also: Crimea Bridge Blast: Russia Arrests Suspects Over Shocking Explosion | Here's What Happened

Tax Cuts

Colleagues of Kwarteng said that the chancellor is determined to hold down corporation rates, but some Tory MPs argued that he might have to let the tax rise initially before slowly dwindling it down. Truss also acknowledged that Kwarteng's fiscal event was rushed and that the grounds for it could have been better prepared with the markets.

At the meeting, the prime minister was greeted by a traditional banging of desks but soon faced questions on rising mortgage rates and the party's plummeting poll ratings. A veteran Tory MP, Rob Halfon, accused Truss of "trashing workers' conservatism and everything the party has done over the last 10 years."

Gemma Tetlow of the Institute for Government is among many economists who questioned how Truss could cut debt in the medium term without either reversing some of her tax cuts or reining in spending.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies' Ben Zaranko said that if the chancellor is serious about making sure that debt falls, any real cuts to any part of public spending are out of the question. This means that he would have to look at reversing the tax cuts in his recent mini-Budget and/or announce new tax-raising measures.

A senior Whitehall official said that the prime minister is panicking over the situation and is reaching for almost anything that she can do to calm the markets down, Politico reported.

Related Article: Joe Biden's National Security Strategy Highlights Nuclear Threats of Russia, Iran and North Korea

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You have to wonder whether people know what forces they are playing with. In horror films and vampire dramas, there is usually scary music to signal that someone is meddling with things beyond his or her control, and it will all go very wrong, quite soon.

In the days when we used to believe in such notions, we thought that the worst thing about summoning up evil spirits was that you could not get them to go home afterwards.

But in politics, especially in recent times, quite senior persons seem happy to use language that can all too easily lead to a world of secret police and concentration camps.

Or they speak lightly about war, as if it were a computer game.

The latest example is the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon (pictured). She proclaimed, no doubt expecting approval: I detest the Tories and everything they stand for.

The latest example is the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon. She proclaimed, no doubt expecting approval: I detest the Tories and everything they stand for.

She did not let this slip at some hot and noisy street-meeting where politicians sometimes get carried away, nor are the words in a surreptitious recording of a private conversation she hoped to keep secret.

She said this on BBC TV, on a respectable current affairs programme where she knew her words would be heard and widely reported.

This goes much further than the outburst by Labours Deputy Leader Angela Rayner, who in the end apologised for referring to the Tories as a bunch of scum.

After at first refusing to take the words back, Rayner realised the sort of passions her use of this expression could stir up and, to her considerable credit, said she had reflected on what I said at an event at Labour Party conference.

She added: I was angry about where our country is headed and policies that have made life harder for so many people I represent. But I would like to unreservedly apologise for the language I used, and I would not use it again.

I will continue to speak my mind, stand up for Labour values and hold the Government to account, but in the future I will be more careful about how I do that and in the language that I choose.

Apologies are hard things to make, requiring courage and good manners, and people should be praised much more than they are for making them. Angela Rayner is plainly a person of strong emotions, given to letting rip.

Somewhere in the middle lies the most famous political insult of modern times, when in 1948 the great Left-winger Aneurin Bevan attacked the Tories by saying: So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin. (Pictured: Conservative Party leader and British Prime Minister Liz Truss)

Ms Sturgeon is more or less the opposite, a dull and cautious machine plodder, who has seldom said anything exciting in her life. The word detest is also not the sort of thing you spit out in a moment of madness or abandon.

It is a word you think about and relish as you pronounce it  if anything its rather stronger than hate.

It is also worth noting that Ms Rayner was speaking to keen supporters, in the heightened atmosphere of a conference fringe meeting. The temptation to go too far is always there at such events.

Whereas the Scottish First Minister was speaking in the passionless calm of a TV studio, where anyone with any sense guards his or her tongue.

Somewhere in the middle lies the most famous political insult of modern times, when in 1948 the great Left-winger Aneurin Bevan attacked the Tories by saying: So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin.

Bevan had grown up in terrible poverty and was a man of huge untamed passion, whose oratory could stir a crowd in a way I doubt anyone can today.

I am inclined to forgive him a great deal, because of the beauty and courage of his eloquence, and because his rise to the summit of politics probably helped to prevent revolutionary violence in this country.

He said that politics needed fiery Welshmen such as him because the Anglo-Saxons who ran things were too bovine and phlegmatic.

Even so, the vermin remark was a mistake as well as a wicked incitement, and was probably one of the things that eventually led to Labour very narrowly losing power in 1951. People had begun to fear that Clement Attlees dull-seeming government might actually be a revolution in disguise.

Violent language of this kind is not new, but it has worrying origins.

Apologies are hard things to make, requiring courage and good manners, and people should be praised much more than they are for making them. Angela Rayner (pictured) is plainly a person of strong emotions, given to letting rip

Angela Rayner probably does not know this, but a famous poster of the bloodthirsty Russian revolutionary Lenin, showing him sweeping kings and capitalists from the planet, is titled Comrade Lenin sweeps the world free of scum.

It shows a jolly Lenin wielding a broom. This is far too nice.

In fact, Lenins police state engaged in mass murder and opened the first concentration camps of what was to become the Gulag archipelago.

His fellow revolutionary, Leon Trotsky, famously jeered, There they go, into the dustbin of history, when his democratic socialist rivals walked out in protest against the lawless Bolshevik putsch that would end in revolutionary terror.

Trotskys dismissive language, directed at men who preferred reform to brutal revolution, may have come back to haunt him years later, when Joseph Stalin sent an assassin to murder him in Mexico.

In proper democratic politics, in law-governed countries, the rule has always been that you are free to think your opponents are wrong  in fact you have a duty to criticise them when they are. But it is quite different to decide that they are themselves bad.

The elaborate rituals of Parliament, in which bitter rivals refer to each other as honourable gentlemen, are not there for fun  but precisely to prevent the politics of hatred, and the violence they lead to.

Actual instances of violence in the Commons are very rare: in April 1938, the Labour MP Emanuel Shinwell walked over to the Tory Robert Tatton Bower and slapped him in the face for what he saw as an anti-Semitic remark. But that is about it in recent times.

If you loathe your opponents policies, then you will try to prevent them from happening, and to win support for your own.

But if you hate your opponents themselves, there is a terrible danger that you will one day seek to silence them, imprison them or worse.

The human tongue is perhaps the most powerful thing in the whole of our bodies, especially if we use it to summon up hatred.

As the mysterious and disturbing Epistle of James warns us: The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

If Nicola Sturgeon had grown up in an older Scotland, she would know that passage well. It should be familiar to everyone who speaks where many listen and writes where many read.

It is not true that words alone can do no harm. Ms Sturgeon may not yet realise just how powerful her remark was, but I very much hope that when she does she will follow Angela Rayners example, and say sorry.
Legitimate protest is one thing. But this self-indulgent carnival of madness has to end. I could have written that this week, after the police gave Just Stop Oil lunatics carte blanche to bring London streets to a standstill.

But, actually, I wrote it 13 months ago, the day after eco-mentalists staged a sit-in on the M25. It took several hours of tortuous negotiation before police finally removed them. To be fair to the Old Bill, it was the first time theyd had to deal with a bunch of maniacs risking life and limb by plonking themselves down in the fast lane of our busiest motorway.

Since then though, theyve had plenty of opportunities to take stock and react to remove those taking part in similar disruptive action. Yet every time they flunked it. On one occasion, the officer in charge was overheard asking these anarchists if there was anything she could get them  a nice cuppa tea, perhaps? After that incident caused widespread public outrage, not least among the thousands of drivers caught up in the mayhem, we might have expected the police to respond to public fury by getting tough with these self-appointed, save-the-planet nutcases.

Legitimate protest is one thing. But this self-indulgent carnival of madness has to end. I could have written that this week, after the police gave Just Stop Oil lunatics carte blanche to bring London streets to a standstill

No such luck. This week, police stood back and watched for hours as the same gang of fanatics repeatedly blocked roads, preventing fire engines and ambulances responding to emergency calls  not to mention causing the maximum possible inconvenience to law-abiding citizens simply trying to go about their business.

It all kicked off in The Mall, outside Buckingham Palace.

The cops were there in minutes, but instead of dragging the demonstrators to the side of the road, they started diverting traffic. Same story elsewhere. Eventually, they did make some arrests, but only after specialist liaison officers had been brought in to ask if they were sitting comfortably.

On Wednesday, the new Met Commissioner Mark Rowley tried to pretend that his officers didnt have the legal powers to move the demonstrators, since they werent causing serious disruption.

Cobblers.

What would you call deliberately causing gridlock in London, if not serious disruption? And since Rowley joined the police in 1987, one presumes hes heard of the Public Order Act, which makes it an offence to behave in a way likely to cause a breach of the peace.

Given that angry motorists were climbing out of their vehicles and confronting the Just Stop Oil mob, and would cheerfully have seen them manhandled on to the pavement and clubbed like baby seals, surely that constitutes a breach of the peace.

Especially as Met officers recently threatened to arrest an anti-monarchy demonstrator who held up a placard reading Not My King, on the grounds that it could upset royalists and provoke them to violence. Is Rowley seriously trying to suggest that had the eco-nuts blocked the Mall during the Queens funeral, his officers would have let them stay there all day while the cortege was re-routed?

But, actually, I wrote it 13 months ago, the day after eco-mentalists staged a sit-in on the M25. It took several hours of tortuous negotiation before police finally removed them

What do you think?

Rowley took over in September shortly before the Queens death. But her funeral wasnt his first big test, as some have claimed. Preparations for that had been going on for years, if not decades.

No, his real first big test was this week, when a handful of anarchists decided to bring chaos to millions of Londoners. And he failed miserably. It gives me no pleasure to write this. Ive never met Rowley, but people whose opinion I respect rate him highly.

He seemed like the right man to turn the Met round after the disastrous tenures of Bernard Hyphen-Howe and Dick of Dock Green.

Perhaps he still is. Its early days. And at least he spared us from Commissioner Neil Basu, best friend of the late George Floyd and someone who thinks the fastest-growing terror threat to Britain comes from the far-Right.

Rowley has made some encouraging noises, such as promising his officers will investigate every single burglary in future.

But why should we believe him when he cant even be bothered to keep the streets of our capital city open in the face of a deranged protest by a tiny number of tree-hugging headbangers?

Policing in Britain is in crisis. Specialist units such as the anti-terror squad and the team which has just recorded some spectacular success against County Lines gangsters do a fantastic job. So do those brave coppers who put their lives on the line to keep us safe.

Its everyday, routine keeping the peace, patrolling the streets and preventing crime which has been abandoned. I know its not Rowleys bailiwick, but when knifemen struck at 9.30am in the City of London  the worlds financial powerhouse  there wasnt a policeman in sight.

It was left to members of the public to take the law into their own hands and tackle the criminals  just as van drivers and cabbies have been forced to confront Just Stop Oil because the police refuse to do so.

Those coppers who stood and watched the eco-loons this week are not personally to blame. It is the officer class, brainwashed by the Left-wing freemasonry Common Purpose, who are responsible for the indulgent attitude towards everything from climate change activists to rampant drug use.

Since the first XR road block 13 months ago, Ive often asked if the police  and courts  would take such a softly, softly approach towards, say, Millwall supporters angry at a home defeat lying down in the Old Kent Road, or Ukip blocking a motorway to protest against illegal immigration?

Rowley took over in September shortly before the Queens death. But her funeral wasnt his first big test, as some have claimed

Ask a silly question. Theyd send in the heavy mob and start cracking skulls immediately.

Weve seen service station petrol pumps vandalised, print works blockaded, bridges closed, airports and public transport disrupted by XR and its spin-offs. Yet every time, theyve been allowed to get away with it.

None of this is legitimate protest, with any tangible goal. Its Fantasy Island anarchy. These selfish, privileged, overgrown children with obvious mental health issues are waging war against civil society, against working people, against the weak and vulnerable they claim to champion.

How long before someone dies after a stroke victim is stopped from reaching hospital?

Mark Rowley says he wants to restore trust in the police. He could begin by putting a stop to this carnival of madness. Right now. Otherwise more angry citizens will start taking the law into their own hands and there will be blood on the streets.

Yesterday, cops descended quickly on another Just Stop Oil sit-down in South London and handcuffed most of those involved. They made 20 arrests.

Maybe the message is finally getting through. Or else they just wanted to beat the Millwall supporters to it . . .

A humanoid robot called Ai-Da gave evidence to a House of Lords committee on Wednesday. Meanwhile, in the Commons, Liz Truss and Keir Starmer were going head to head at PMQs, with little sign of intelligent life. Both of them repeat the same robotic slogans over and over again.

Ive often remarked how much Starmer resembles Max Headroom, the A.I. generated MTV presenter.

Truss, too, looks and sounds as if she was modelled on one of the female cyborgs in the 2004 remake of the Stepford Wives. If the Maybot was the prototype, Fizzie Lizzie must be version 2.0. Now, though, it appears she may be about to self-destruct. Her circuits dead, theres something wrong . . .

Meanwhile, in the Commons, Liz Truss and Keir Starmer were going head to head at PMQs, with little sign of intelligent life

The NHS Covid booster information leaflet comes in 29 languages including, ominously, Russian. Do they know something we dont?

Renewable energy firms are to have their profits capped after demand for wind and solar power soared because of looming gas shortages. Not so much a windfall tax, more of a windmill tax.

No wonder people are stocking up on candles because of possible power cuts. It looks as if we will have to rely on candles and wind this winter. Perhaps Elton John could write a song about it.

No wonder people are stocking up on candles because of possible power cuts. It looks as if we will have to rely on candles and wind this winter. Perhaps Elton John could write a song about it

It's not just decay, this is M&S decay

First it was the libraries, then the banks, the police stations, the post offices, the butchers, the bakers and even John Lewis.

The traditional Great British High Street has been hollowed out by progress, Covid and the internet. Now we learn Marks & Spencer is to close a quarter of its lower productivity stores. Soon all that will be left of our town centres, apart from tumbleweed, will be charity shops and fried chicken joints. When M&S pulls out, you know the ravens really have left the Tower.
Will the new Prince of Wales, expected to succeed his grandmother overseeing the Royal Collection, wreak havoc with the worlds largest private art collection? William  a passionate campaigner against the use of elephant ivory  will be unhappy that more than a thousand items from the collections furniture, musical instruments and statuary through to ornaments, miniatures and trinkets contain ivory. There are nervous gulps among RC curators. Should William demand a clear-out, their only hope is that King Charles may use his powers of veto. But when William succeeds dad, he may be unstoppable.

William  a passionate campaigner against the use of elephant ivory  will be unhappy that more than a thousand items from the collections furniture, musical instruments and statuary through to ornaments, miniatures and trinkets contain ivory (file photo)

William's anti-ivory antagonism could be stirred by his fathers Coronation. Camillas Queen Consort sceptre is an ivory rod topped by a dove, made for James IIs wife Mary in 1685. She will be preceded to her crowning by Westminster Abbeys Ivory Cross, the same cross that led Dianas coffin into the Abbey. It is carved from a tusk presented to the church in 1924 by emperor Haile Selassie. And did William know, standing vigil at his grandmothers lying-in-state, that above him was the great processional cross of the Abbey, made from gold, silver, diamonds, sapphires and ivory?

Preview snippets of the next edition of The Crown reveal its first howler with actor Salim Dau, playing Mohamed Fayed, wearing a wrist watch. Dodis dad never wore a watch even though his store Harrods sold a vast array of expensive timepieces. When he wanted to know the time, says one former employee. He asked the nearest flunkey.

Angela Lansburys lookalike daughter Deirdre was saved from heroin addiction when her mother upped sticks and moved to County Cork in 1970

Angela Lansburys lookalike daughter Deirdre was saved from heroin addiction when her mother upped sticks and moved to County Cork in 1970. Sharon Tates murderer Charles Manson had tried to recruit Deirdre, pictured with Angela. She used her mothers credit cards to subsidise him and his followers. Angela recalled of her Irish sojourn: There were no temptations, no pushers and no memories.

The New Statesmans Rachel Cunliffe might have swallowed a gramophone needle, so loquacious was she reviewing yesterdays newspapers on Sky News with my colleague Andrew Pierce. But when he referred to the apparent blundering of the Bank of England she remained mute as a Trappist. Did she want to avoid daddy, Sir Jon Cunliffe, deputy governor of the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street, spluttering over his bedtime cocoa?

Will PM Liz, fresh from her inaugural audience with King Charles, still be in situ for the Coronation?

Will PM Liz, fresh from her inaugural audience with King Charles, still be in situ for the Coronation? The last time a prime minister at the time of accession didnt make it to the Coronation was in 1902 when Lord Salisbury said cheerio to Edward VII and was replaced by Arthur Balfour.

Liz, who went to school in Leeds, needs no reminding of the late Brian Cloughs disastrous stint as manager of Leeds United in 1974. He lasted 44 days and the club didnt win a title for 18 years.
Tasty, nutritious, and affordable food is at the top of everyone's list when it comes to their weekly shop and fish is a healthy, delicious source of protein that millions of us enjoy every week. But keeping it affordable while also safeguarding quality and sustainability requires a huge amount of work behind the scenes.

So, in support of the UK fishing industry and in order to help guarantee a tasty, affordable and sustainable supply of protein long into the future, Tesco has built an end to end British supply chain for its Cornish sardines stretching from the moment they are caught to when they appear on the shelf.

Catching Cornish sardines, has been a way of life in Cornwall as far back as the 16th century when the first exports were recorded.

But in recent years, the fishery has faced significant challenges due to rising costs, regulatory complexity and changeable market conditions.

Meanwhile, a lack of demand from British diners meant that - until recent times - most Cornish sardines ended up being shipped abroad.

Konnie Huq chats with Tom Pascoe, whose family have been fishing in Cornwall for generations

Fishing is a crucial part of the local economy in Newlyn, a seaside town in south-west Cornwall

Cornish Sardines are quickly packed in ice after being caught to ensure maximum freshness

Thankfully, and with the help of partners like Tesco, more people have an opportunity to discover these healthy and delicious fish. Plus, eating native fish has become increasingly attractive to shoppers wanting to support British producers.

Cornish Sardines: A healthy option for budget-friendly meals Sardines are a naturally oil rich fish, extremely nutritious with high levels of heart-healthy Omega 3, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, protein and calcium. The NHS recommends that a healthy, balanced diet should include at least two portions of fish a week, including one of oily fish. As well as providing a health kick, sardines are also inexpensive and easy to incorporate into family friendly meals like sardine and tomato spaghetti or gluten-free sardine mini pizzas (see recipe pictures below).

Tesco's commitment to bringing its customers quality, affordable food extends beyond sourcing the finest ingredients and keeping these at low prices - it means supporting suppliers too. Tesco recently partnered with the Cornish Sardine Management Association (CSMA), a partnership between owners of 15 local fishing vessels and four local seafood processors whose members collectively fish and process almost all of the sardines caught in the county.

'This helps keep prices affordable for customers as we don't have the added cost of distribution or import fees. And it means that our customers can enjoy home grown and locally sourced products and know they're supporting British producers,' says Carmen Stone, a Buying Manager at Tesco.

Not only that, Tesco's Cornish sardines are now being canned in the UK instead of in Spain, Portugal and France where they were usually exported. The Clark family have been involved in fish processing for over four generations and run Britain's only fish cannery, International Fish Canners in Aberdeenshire.

The end result? Shoppers can pop down to their local store to enjoy the finest fish caught, processed and packaged entirely in the UK.

Tom Pascoe, from Newlyn in south-west Cornwall, skippers one of the boats that supplies Cornish Sardines for Tesco. Fishing is a way of life that's been passed through generations of his family, with his father and other family members in the trade.

'Sardines have been fished in Cornwall for hundreds of years, but more recently the sardines caught here have been sent to Europe for canning and have never made it back to the UK,' he says. 'It's great that Tesco are putting Cornish sardines on their shelves as it means that shoppers are able to enjoy locally sourced fish that has a low carbon footprint.'

'It's a very sustainable fishery. We've managed to maintain our Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for more than 10 years because the fishing technique is so low impact and the waters are well managed by the CSMA,' explains Tom.

'We use sonar technology and almost always catch only what we are aiming for and nothing else  it's a very low impact way of fishing.'

Cornish Sardines have been fished for ports like Newlyn for hundreds of years, meaning Tesco customers are helping to support a historic tradition

Tom says the Cornish Sardine fishery that Tesco supports is 'low impact' thanks to the use of sustainable fishing techniques

Thanks to Tesco's commitment to source from the partnership, fishing fleets can have the confidence to grow their businesses and, in turn, stimulate the local economy. And, to give shoppers total peace of mind, only sardines that are caught within a six-mile limit off the Cornish coast and landed into Newlyn, Mevagissy, Falmouth or Plymouth are allowed to carry the MSC logo.

'Certification requires fisheries to ensure that fish stocks are sustainable  there are enough fish left in the sea to reproduce and environmental impacts are minimised,' says Loren Hiller, Commercial Manager at the Marine Stewardship Council. 'The fishery must also comply with relevant laws and have a management system that allows it to respond quickly to changes in the status quo.'

Tesco Finest Cornish Sardines appeared in stores just a few weeks ago and are already seeing strong demand from customers looking for an affordable, tasty source of protein.

Loren adds 'They're a positive choice that helps preserve a historical tradition that supports Cornish communities and protect our future food security.

Cornish Sardines are also quick and easy to prepare. The fish is tender and meaty, and comes in a rich tomato sauce and can be made into a quick meal with some simple cupboard staples such as pasta or rice.

'There's nothing better than heating them gently and serving them on toast, or you could try experimenting by adding fresh herbs and vegetables.'

And those aren't the only ways you can tickle your tastebuds. Check out the MSC's recipe hub to find more delicious recipes using Cornish Sardines.
Maxima and Willem-Alexander were joined by Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia

Swedish and Dutch royals dressed to impress as they attended a concert at Stockholm Concert Hall yesterday

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Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands joined the Swedish royal family for a glittering concert as they wrapped up the second of their three-day state visit.

The Dutch royals were accompanied by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for the orchestral performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden were also in attendance, as were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia - all of whom posed for a photograph outside the venue with their Dutch counterparts.

The concert came at the end of a long day of visits for Willem-Alexander and Maxima, who were in the second of their three-day state visit to their neighbours in Sweden.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands with King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia of Sweden

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands joined the Swedish royal family for a glittering concert as they wrapped up the second of their three-day state visit

The Dutch royals were accompanied by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for the orchestral performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden (left) were also in attendance, as were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia - all of whom posed for a photograph outside the venue with their Dutch counterparts

The concert came at the end of a long day of visits for Willem-Alexander and Maxima, who were in the second of their three-day state visit to their neighbours in Sweden

Earlier, they had donned hard hats and high-vis jackets as they toured the headquarters of Stockholm Exergi and the Karolinska Institute Science Park.

But the scene was very different in the evening, when Queen Maxima dressed to impress in a stunning gown, which featured a blue overlay - with a glimpse at the tan-coloured dress beneath.

The dress gave the illusion of a cold-shoulder look, and was accented with a stunning green necklace. The Dutch Queen wore her hair in soft waves for the occasion.

Queen Maxima matched her elegance, in a floor-length, glittering green dress. She wrapped up warm in a black fur-style coat, and wore her short locks in a tidy, wavy style.

Queen Maxima dressed to impress in a stunning gown, which featured a blue overlay - with a glimpse at the tan-coloured dress beneath

The dress gave the illusion of a cold-shoulder look, and was accented with a stunning green necklace. The Dutch Queen wore her hair in soft waves for the occasion

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander greet Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden on Wednesday night

Queen Maxima matched her elegance, in a floor-length, glittering green dress. She wrapped up warm in a black fur-style coat, and wore her short locks in a tidy, wavy style

Princess Sofia wore a statement blue dress, which was covered in gorgeous beading, as she attended the royal gathering

The younger Swedish royals also impressed, with Crown Princess Victoria opting for a silk, white gown with feather accents

The Dutch and Swedish royals set together for the concert at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday evening

After the concert, members of the Swedish and Dutch royal family were pictured greeting attendees outside the venue

Princess Sofia, in a beaded, dark blue gown, speaks to a woman inside the Stockholm Concert Hall after the event took place

The room was packed for the performance, which marked the end of a long day of engagements for the royal families

The younger Swedish royals also impressed, with Crown Princess Victoria opting for a silk, white gown with feather accents.

Her brother's wife Princess Sofia wore a statement blue dress, which was covered in gorgeous beading.

Earlier on Wednesday, Willem-Alexander and Maxima greeted the Swedish monarch and his wife in the lobby of the Grand Hotel, where they met with Swedish companies and Dutch people living abroad.

They later travelled to Stockholm's City Hall, the headquarters of Stockholm Exergi, and the Karolinska Institute Science Park - where the royals donned hard hats and high-vis jackets.

Willem-Alexander and Maxima began their three-day state visit on Tuesday, when the King of the Netherlands piloted their plane to Arlanda Airport, outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm, himself.

Queen Maxima and Queen Silvia showed they were women of actions on day two of the Dutch royals visit to Sweden and wore protective gear to visit a building site with their husbands

Elegant Maxima and Silvia had to wear protective gear including builder hats and yellow jacket as they ventured outside, but remained typically polished

King Willem-Alexander and Carl Gustaf VXI looked dapper in navy suits for their Stockholm outing on Wednesday

A man of action! Carl Gustaf donned a pin-striped navy suit with a crisp white shirt for his afternoon with the Dutch royals

Maxima and Willem-Alexander both wore protective hats and jackets for their hands-on visit this afternoon

The royals and a group of engineers headed to the building site together. Carl Gustaf was seen in deep conversation with the royal

Stylish Queen Silvia wore her crimson wrap over her yellow jacket. It matched her wide-legged trousers

The Dutch and the Swedish royals all looked happy to be in each other's company this afternoon in Stockholm

Maxima wore a stylish navy blue coat dress for her outfit, while Silvia was a vision in red. The royals stepped out onto the construction site together

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands greeted the Swedish monarch and his wife in the lobby of the Grand Hotel, where they will meet with Swedish companies and Dutch people living abroad

Willem-Alexander and Maxima began their three-day state visit on Tuesday, when the King of the Netherlands piloted their plane to Arlanda Airport, outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm, himself

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima joined King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia ahead of a visit to Stockholm's City Hall, the headquarters of Stockholm Exergi, and the Karolinska Institute Science Park

Maxima and Silvia both wore complementary shades of blue for the visit, with the Queen of the Netherlands opting for a metallic, teal dress with statement sleeves - paired with nude heels and a sleek up-do

King Willem-Alexander has form when it comes to piloting planes; the monarch surprised passengers on a KLM flight in 2018 and on Tuesday he was clearly keen to show off his skills once more.

An official welcome ceremony followed at the palace, with Willem-Alexander and Maxima inspecting a guard of honour.

The two families then posed for photos, joined by Princess Estelle, the ten-year-old daughter of Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel.

The royal couple made quite the entrance on Tuesday, when Willem-Alexander piloted their flight to Arlanda Airport himself

King Willem-Alexander has form when it comes to piloting planes; the monarch surprised passengers on a KLM flight in 2018 and he was clearly keen to show off his skills once more

The Dutch royals received a warm welcome from King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden as they arrived at a hotel in Stockholm to kick off the second of their three-day state visit

Good neighbours! King Willem-Alexander, third from left, and Queen Maxima, third from right, of The Netherlands pose for a photo with Queen Silvia and King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, far left, Princess Estelle of Sweden, centre, and Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden, far right, on the first morning of their three-day state visit

The Dutch King co-piloted the government plane to Stockholm's Arlanda airport for the short flight north to the Scandinavian country

King Carl XVI Gustaf said in a statement: 'We are honored to receive the King and Queen. 'Our countries are very similar.

'For example, in our positions on the rule of law, international relations and human rights. We are going to strengthen ties in defense and security.'

The warmth was reciprocated by the Dutch monarch, Willem-Alexander, who reflected on a strong relationship between the two countries, saying: 'We realize that Sweden is going through a special time, such as its membership in NATO, which we fully support.

'Queen Maxima and I are very much looking forward to the visit in the coming days.'
On Wednesday, a MiG 29K fighter jet carrying out a normal mission off the coast of Goa crashed into the water. The Indian Navy claims that the aircraft's technical fault on the way back to base is what caused the tragedy.

The pilot made a safe exit, and a prompt search and rescue effort led to his recovery. Recent reports indicate that the pilot's condition is stable.

MiG 29K Jet Develops Unknown Technical Failure

The event was announced on Twitter by the Navy. A MiG 29K that was performing a normal sortie over the water off Goa experienced a technical issue while returning to base.

The pilot successfully evacuated, and during a prompt SAR mission, he was located. The pilot stated that his health was good. It was asked to investigate the cause of the occurrence.

A MiG 29K on a routine sortie over sea off Goa developed a technical malfunction while returning to base. The pilot ejected safely & has been recovered in a swift SAR ops.

Pilot reported to be in stable condition.

BoI ordered to investigate the cause of the incident.  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) October 12, 2022

The MiG-29K fighter planes, which India purchased from Russia together with Admiral Gorshkov and christened INS Vikramaditya, are only flown by the Indian Navy.

The MiG-29K aircraft jets don't have a great safety record. The force is currently considering purchasing 25-26 foreign fighter aircraft for operations from the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, which the Prime Minister recently dedicated at Kochi.

At the naval base INS Hansa in Goa, the MiG-29s are stationed. An Indian Navy pilot named Nishant Singh perished in 2020 after his MiG-29K crashed into the Arabian Sea, as per Live Mint.

With this disaster, the Navy now has 40 of the 45 supersonic MiG-29Ks that were imported from Russia between 2009 and 2010 for a total of $2 billion to fly from the deck of the $2.33 billion INS Vikramaditya, a 44,500-ton aircraft carrier.

Four MiG-29K fighters have crashed in the last four years, raising concerns about their operational viability. Following the September 2 commissioning of the 45,000-tonne INS Vikrant, the nation's first indigenous aircraft carrier, the Navy is currently actively looking for an extra 26 carrier-based fighters.

After the MiG-29Ks have completed critical flight testing from INS Vikrant's expansive deck by about mid-2023, the ship will be completely combat-ready. It is outfitted with cutting-edge weapons including the Israeli-made Barak-8 surface-to-air missile system with an 80 km range, according to The Times Of India via MSN.

Read Also: Crimea Bridge Blast: Russia Arrests Suspects Over Shocking Explosion | Here's What Happened

MiG 29K's 2020 Crash Killed Fighter Pilot

The MiG-29K is equipped with a Russian-made ejection seat known as the K-36D-3.5, which is widely regarded as the most sophisticated in the world. If the ejection handles are pulled, the pilot in the back seat is ejected first, followed by the pilot in the front.

In November 2020, a jet pilot perished in a MiG-29K crash. Commander Nishant Singh's body was found 11 days after the crash, while one of the pilots was rescued shortly after the tragedy.

In February of the same year, a second MiG-29K crashed after being struck by birds. Before ejecting, both pilots had guided the plane away from habitation, an action that Union Minister of State for Defense Shripad Naik praised. A MiG-29K trainer plane went down outside a Goan village in November 2019. Both pilots had safely evacuated, NDTV reported.

Related Article: Kamala Harris Slams Greg Abbott for Sending Migrants to Her DC Home; Republicans Tears VP for Failures To Address Southern Border Crisis

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A woman who is fascinated with death and cemeteries has revealed how she has travelled the world to attend the funerals of 200 strangers.

Jeane Trend-Hill, 55, from Islington, London, first began attending the ceremonies after accidentally crashing one when she walked into a church when a service was going on in 2012.

After becoming a regular visitor to her local cemetery, workers then asked Jeane to attend funerals of deceased who had no family to go.

Now strangers frequently contact her to ask her to to join a service to make sure no one is cremated or buried alone.

Jeane, an actress, photographer and artist, said: 'I've always been fascinated with death since I was a child.

Jeane Trend-Hill, 55, from Islington, London, has revealed how she has travelled the world to attend the funerals of 200 strangers

Jeane has been fascinated by death, graves and cemeteries after losing both her parents early in life

Jeane even has appropriate costumes for different events, including a full-length black Victorian mourning dress (pictured)

'We would go to cemeteries, and I'd walk around looking at all the graves. They are like outdoor art galleries.

'I'm proud to be that person that goes to strangers funerals when there is no one else who can attend.'

Jeane began to feel at home in cemeteries and crematoriums after losing her father, Joe, 56, when she was just 14 and her mother, Mary, 57, when she was just 20.

She would spend hours sketching and photographing London's sprawling Victorian cemeteries.

She restored the plaque for British architect Arthur Beresford Pite who died in 1934, and unveiled it in Victorian mourning dress

But she first began attending funerals after she accidentally stumbled into one in 2012.

'I walked into this pretty church and realised a service was on,' she said.

'I was raised as a Catholic and told that it's then bad to then leave, so I stayed and sat at the back. It was a complete stranger, but I was moved.

'Shortly after a cemetery worker reached out and asked if I'd attend a funeral for a veteran who had no one else to pay their respects, so I obliged and went along.

Jeane is now regularly asked to attend the funeral of strangers who have no one else to go to them (pictured, with a coffin)

'I realised that everyone has a story to tell, everyone has lived a life and should have someone around to remember them when they die.

'Now I've attended nearly 200 funerals for people I don't actually know - although I have lost count of the exact amount.'

Due to her fascination, Jeane also spends time cleaning and tidying graves.

She has also visited graves all over the world, such as in Paris and Venice, and completed a PhD in mortuary science in order to become a a cemetery historian.

Following her interest, Jeane now travels around the world to visit various cemeteries and graveyards

Jeane began to feel at home in cemeteries and crematoriums after losing her father, Joe, 56, when she was just 14 and her mother, Mary, 57, when she was just 20

And she has even restored the plaque for British architect Arthur Beresford Pite who died in 1934, and unveiled it in Victorian mourning dress.

She said: 'The first thing I do when I get somewhere is see where the closest crematory is.

Strangers also now reach out to Jean on Facebook to ask her to go along to send offs.

'No one should ever be cremated or buried alone,' Jeane said.

Jeane (pictured here with a horse and carriage) is interested in historical funerals as well as those that take place around the world

'If I'm asked and I can go I will.'

She says her family even joke and call her a 'rent a mourner'.

'It's a name they gave me and it's a bit fun,' she said. 'Of course I'd never actually make anyone pay for my attendance at a funeral.

'I'll wear mourning dress to funerals if people ask me to. Death has never worried me, I just hope I can make death feel less scary for people.

'It's my way of giving something back.'
A woman who is in a full sexual and emotional 'throuple' relationship with a married woman and her husband says she is neither straight nor a lesbian.

Dr Michelle Martinez Sarasola, 39, was married to a man when she met married couple Cody Watkins, 40, and Becky Watkins, 33, from Florida, after joined their Crossfit gym.

After initially spending time together as friends, the throuple began a romantic relationship and now live together with their combined five children.

This 'throuple' insists that 'three is better than two' when navigating life's challenges but says the lifestyle isn't for everyone - Becky (left) has been married to Cody (center) since last year and in 2020 she met Michelle (right)

Strangers make comments to Cody (left) when out and about with Becky (background left) and Michelle (right) - asking him 'how he did it' or calling him a 'lucky guy'

Becky (right) and Michelle (left) started off as fast friends when they met through the gym and then it developed into something more

Michelle (pictured left) still insists she is not fully lesbian and said her feelings for Becky (pictured right) came as a surprise

Between them the couple have five children: Enzo,11, (center) Eden,7 (far right)and Eli, 9 (center right) are Michelle's children and Mira, 11 (center right) and Titus, 6 (foreground center) are Becky and Cody's children

Michelle explained how she does not consider herself a lesbian, despite enjoying a sexual relationship with her partner Becky.

'Becky is the only woman I have dated or had feelings for,' she said.

'I remember when Becky and I started having feelings for each other and talking about same sex.

'I have prior to this dated men and was married for a few years with three children, so my feelings for Becky came as a surprise.

Becky and Cody Watkins (pictured) got married last year after 14 years together and two children aged 11 and six

Cody and Becky (pictured) met over a decade ago and have had a traditional relationship together with their children, they have been running a Crossfit gym where they met Michelle

Becky (right) met Michelle (left) through the gym, when Michelle wanted to tone up after having a third child with her then husband

Michelle (pictured left) would have described herself as 'straight' and has been married, but since meeting Becky she wouldn't describe herself as 'straight' or 'lesbian'

Michelle (pictured left) claims that Becky(pictured right) is the only woman that she has had romantic and sexual feelings towards

The throuple decided to get matching ink earlier this year to commemorate their relationship together Michelle (left) Becky (right) and Cody (center) with the tattooist (far left)

The throuple enjoy time out together. Becky(left) who say that life as a trio 'isn't without it's challenges' and dentist Michelle (pictured right) has the support of her sisters but not her parents

Becky (left) and Michelle(right) started to have feelings for one another and discussed same-sex relationships early on

Newly single Michelle(right) began joining the couple initially as three friends enjoying common interests such as boarding and the gym

The throuple say that their five children Enzo (center next to Michelle), Eden (left of Michelle) Eli (in front of Michelle) Mira (font center) and Titus (Right of Becky) together love playing with each other and are of similar ages

'If you were to ask me a couple of years ago, I would definitely say no, I'm not bisexual. Now, I consider myself definitely not straight or a lesbian.'

Michelle and Becky became fast friends, they stayed close throughout Michelle's divorce from her ex-husband in 2020.

Newly single Michelle began joining the couple initially as three friends enjoying common interests.

The trio quickly fell in love and after a few months, they blended their families together to create what they call 'The Modern Family'.

Michelle (left) and Becky (right) became friends in 2020 and Becky supported Michelle through her divorce to her ex-husband

Michelle's kids are Enzo 11, Eli 9, Eden 7; Becky and Cody's are Mira, 11, and Titus 6.

Blending this family of eight doesn't come without its challenges.

While the throuple have largely been accepted by their friends, some of their family members disapprove strongly.

'Out of all of us, my parents have taken our relationship the worst,' said Becky. 'I grew up in a strongly Christian household so my parents do not agree with our relationship dynamic.

'Michelle's parents are also not thrilled about her being with us, but her sisters are incredibly supportive.'

She described the reaction of strangers when they are spotted together in public, and indulge in a public display of affection.

Cody's father wasn't sure of Michelle (pictured with Cody) at first, and was concerned that a new addition to the household might cause issues for Cody and Becky but has come around after seeing how happy they all are

Becky's (pictured right) parents are religious and do not approve of the throuple's modern lifestyle together but their friends are largely supportive Michelle's (left) parents aren't happy either and Cody's (pictured center) father wasn't happy to begin with

Michelle said: 'There have been times where we are arm and arm with Cody, and a stranger might say something like 'lucky guy' or 'how do you do it?''

Cody's father initially had reservations and was worried Michelle would affect Cody and Becky's relationship, but after meeting her and seeing the dynamic in person he sees just how happy the three of them are together.

The throuple faced their share of challenges at the start of their relationship, and they admit jealous feelings can arise, however they resolve them via strong communication.

Becky admits having five kids in the same house can get noisy, but all the kids love being raised in the 'Modern Family'.

As well as 'throuple' dates the trio enjoys time alone with each partner to foster individual connections to make their relationship 'stronger' Michelle (left) and Becky (right) pictured at the beach together

Jealousy can arise in the relationship but the trio insists that they made communication a priority from the start. Michelle (left), Cody (center) and Becky (right) pictured promoting a plant based lifestyle at the Crossfit gym

She said: 'All our children fall within the same age bracket of six to eleven years old and they all get along great, they are step-siblings. Communication was the biggest thing that we established right from the start.

'We really tried to foster really open communication between all of us, otherwise this wouldn't work.'

The couple navigates spending time together by having throuple date day every Friday and creating time for each person to connect individually with another.

She said:'I wouldn't say we have a system nailed down for the exact time spent together.

'We tend to do stuff together, the three of us all the time, even if it's just making dinner together or grocery shopping.

'We also try to schedule one on one time individually, so I and Michelle do things together, and Cody and Michelle and me and Cody.

'Developing these individual relationships is key to strengthening the bond between the three of them.

'Becoming a throuple isn't easy and isn't the answer for every relationship, but with clear and honest communication, you may realize that three is better than two when facing life's challenges. '
Dame Barbara Windsor's widower Scott Mitchell has revealed he would have to remind her they were married because of her dementia.

EastEnders Peggy Mitchell and Carry On icon Dame Barbara died in December 2020, aged 83, following a seven-year battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Scott, 59, said the disease was one of the cruellest and explained how it slowly took away her memories of their 27-year marriage.

He appeared on ITV's Lorraine today, saying: 'It's the cruellest of diseases and you are very powerless to stop it doing what it's doing to the person you love.

'None of us are really equipped, I'm not qualified and you're reacting all the time to these new challenges.

Dame Barbara Windsor's widower Scott Mitchell (pictured together in 2011) has revealed he would have to remind her they were married because of her dementia

Appearing on Lorraine today, Scott, 59, said the disease was one of the cruellest and explained how it slowly took away her memories of their 27-year marriage

'As it progresses and things do get more difficult and there's less recognition with her and I.

'She would look at our photos and say, "How long have you lived here?" and I had been there 25 years.

'Occasionally she would go, "Are we married?" 'I would say yeah and she went "yes!"

'It was very sweet but heartbreaking. It's bittersweet.'

Scott also urged Prime Minister Liz Truss to fund finding a cure for Alzheimer's and not U-turn on the issue.

He told ITV's Lorraine that while it was 'very sweet' it was also 'heartbreaking' that she couldn't remember

Boris Johnson promised 95million for the cause just two months ago and said the government would name a task force in her name to combat the disease.

Scott said while Dame Barbara 'would have been thrilled', he admitted he was 'a little bit concerned' whether Liz Truss would keep the former PM's promise.

He said: 'I'm an ambassador for Alzheimer's Research UK, and they had this conception that if we have a taskforce like we had for COVID, then we can just focus on dementia.

'We need a cure.'

Scott admitted he was 'a little bit concerned' whether Liz Truss would keep the former PM's promise of 95million for the cause

Loss: The actor, 59, who is preparing to release his new book, By Your Side My Life Loving Barbara Windsor, was married to the actress for 27 years (pictured in 2019)

Dame Barbara Windsor battled Alzheimer's dementia for seven years after she was diagnosed in 2013. She died aged 83 in December 2020

'The interviews to put people in place for this was supposed to take place two weeks ago.

'[I was] told that there's issues with the budget sign off for the dementia task force.

'I understand we are in a very bad place as far as economy and savings and cuts [but] dementia cannot be touched.

'This is about trialling new drugs. If we start that tomorrow, it's going to be two or three years before we can get them actually active into the system.

'If you delay this now, again, after all these years, we're going to be talking about another five or six years before this can happen.

'Please, Prime Minister, do not touch that money. Do not hold this, do not delay this.'

The UK government said it 'remains strongly committed to supporting research into dementia'.
Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands tried out virtual reality headsets this afternoon as they kicked off the final day of their state visit to Sweden.

The royal couple were joined by King Carl Gustaf, 76, and Queen Silvia of Sweden, 78, for Thursday's visit, which saw them experiment with the technology in the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg.

Thursday marks the end of their three-day visit, and they will later be joined by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia on a boat trip through Gothenburg - and a visit to the Volvo Trucks Experience Centre.

Both Maxima and Silvia opted for a bright pink ensemble today, with the Dutch royal pairing a hot pink dress shirt with a dark purple trouser suit. She also donned a long, raspberry coat and purple pointed heels.

Today's outing comes after the Dutch royals joined their Swedish counterparts for a glittering performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands tried out virtual reality goggles this afternoon as they kicked off the final day of their state visit to Sweden

Both Maxima and Silvia opted for a bright pink ensemble today, with the Dutch royal pairing a hot pink dress shirt with a dark purple trouser suit. She also donned a long, raspberry coat and purple pointed heels

Thursday marks the end of their three-day visit, and they will later be joined by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia on a boat trip through Gothenburg - and a visit to the Volvo Trucks Experience Centre

The royal couple were joined by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for Thursday's visit, which saw them try out the technology in the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg

Maxima completed her look with matching leather gloves, and wore her blonde hair swept back with a bright pink, beaded headband.

Meanwhile, Silvia opted for a pink, checked dress and a matching cropped jacket.

In one moment, the four royals were pictured trying on VR goggles, and looking around the room inside the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg.

Last night, Maxima and Willem-Alexander joined the Swedish royal family for a glittering concert as they wrapped up the second of their three-day state visit.

In one moment, the four royals were pictured trying on VR goggles, and looking around the room inside the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands try on VR goggles as they visit Lindholmen Science Park

Queen Silvia of Sweden opted for a pink, checked dress and a matching cropped jacket for her outing to Gothenburg

Maxima completed her look with matching leather gloves, and wore her blonde hair swept back with a bright pink headband

Thursday is the final day of Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands' state visit to Sweden

The Dutch royals were accompanied by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for the orchestral performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden were also in attendance, as were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia - all of whom posed for a photograph outside the venue with their Dutch counterparts.

The concert came at the end of a long day of visits for Willem-Alexander and Maxima, who were in the second of their three-day state visit to their neighbours in Sweden.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands with King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia of Sweden

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands joined the Swedish royal family for a glittering concert as they wrapped up the second of their three-day state visit

The Dutch royals were accompanied by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for the orchestral performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden (left) were also in attendance, as were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia - all of whom posed for a photograph outside the venue with their Dutch counterparts

The concert came at the end of a long day of visits for Willem-Alexander and Maxima, who were in the second of their three-day state visit to their neighbours in Sweden

Earlier, they had donned hard hats and high-vis jackets as they toured the headquarters of Stockholm Exergi and the Karolinska Institute Science Park.

But the scene was very different in the evening, when Queen Maxima dressed to impress in a stunning gown, which featured a blue overlay - with a glimpse at the tan-coloured dress beneath.

The dress gave the illusion of a cold-shoulder look, and was accented with a stunning green necklace. The Dutch Queen wore her hair in soft waves for the occasion.

Queen Maxima matched her elegance, in a floor-length, glittering green dress. She wrapped up warm in a black fur-style coat, and wore her short locks in a tidy, wavy style.

Queen Maxima dressed to impress in a stunning gown, which featured a blue overlay - with a glimpse at the tan-coloured dress beneath

The dress gave the illusion of a cold-shoulder look, and was accented with a stunning green necklace. The Dutch Queen wore her hair in soft waves for the occasion

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander greet Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden on Wednesday night

Queen Maxima matched her elegance, in a floor-length, glittering green dress. She wrapped up warm in a black fur-style coat, and wore her short locks in a tidy, wavy style

Princess Sofia wore a statement blue dress, which was covered in gorgeous beading, as she attended the royal gathering

The younger Swedish royals also impressed, with Crown Princess Victoria opting for a silk, white gown with feather accents

The Dutch and Swedish royals set together for the concert at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday evening

After the concert, members of the Swedish and Dutch royal family were pictured greeting attendees outside the venue

Princess Sofia, in a beaded, dark blue gown, speaks to a woman inside the Stockholm Concert Hall after the event took place

The room was packed for the performance, which marked the end of a long day of engagements for the royal families

The younger Swedish royals also impressed, with Crown Princess Victoria opting for a silk, white gown with feather accents.

Her brother's wife Princess Sofia wore a statement blue dress, which was covered in gorgeous beading.

Earlier on Wednesday, Willem-Alexander and Maxima greeted the Swedish monarch and his wife in the lobby of the Grand Hotel, where they met with Swedish companies and Dutch people living abroad.

They later travelled to Stockholm's City Hall, the headquarters of Stockholm Exergi, and the Karolinska Institute Science Park - where the royals donned hard hats and high-vis jackets.

Willem-Alexander and Maxima began their three-day state visit on Tuesday, when the King of the Netherlands piloted their plane to Arlanda Airport, outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm, himself.

King Willem-Alexander has form when it comes to piloting planes; the monarch surprised passengers on a KLM flight in 2018 and on Tuesday he was clearly keen to show off his skills once more.

An official welcome ceremony followed at the palace, with Willem-Alexander and Maxima inspecting a guard of honour.

The two families then posed for photos, joined by Princess Estelle, the ten-year-old daughter of Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel.

King Carl XVI Gustaf said in a statement: 'We are honored to receive the King and Queen. 'Our countries are very similar.

'For example, in our positions on the rule of law, international relations and human rights. We are going to strengthen ties in defense and security.'

The warmth was reciprocated by the Dutch monarch, Willem-Alexander, who reflected on a strong relationship between the two countries, saying: 'We realize that Sweden is going through a special time, such as its membership in NATO, which we fully support.

'Queen Maxima and I are very much looking forward to the visit in the coming days.'
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Olivia Wilde has addressed the furious scandals and controversies surrounding her new movie Don't Worry Darling - insisting that much of what has been alleged about on-set feuds and fall-outs are 'untruths', while lamenting the fact that her 'life has been torn to shreds' by the public as a result of all the scrutiny over the flick.

The 38-year-old spoke out about the brutal backlash she has faced over the movie in a new interview with ELLE's Women in Hollywood issue, while posing for a very provocative cover shoot that sees her baring one breast in a very revealing black dress.

Don't Worry Darling - which Wilde directs and stars in alongside her boyfriend Harry Styles and leading lady Florence Pugh - was only released a few weeks ago, yet it has been one of the most talked-about movies in Hollywood for months, thanks, at least in part, to the public's fascination over Wilde's relationship with Styles, as well as rumors of a bitter on-set feud between her and Pugh, 26.

Further fuel was added to the flames of controversy when Wilde became embroiled in a public spat with Shia LaBeouf - whom she claimed she let go from the movie's cast over concerns about his behavior, while he insisted that he quit the project, even sharing messages exchanged between the two as evidence to back up his side of the story.

Although Wilde did not address any of the scandals specifically during her interview with ELLE, she slammed the number of 'untruths' about her life that have been shared in recent months, while seemingly trying to shut down rumors of a rift with Pugh by gushing over her leading lady's acting skills.

Olivia Wilde has opened up about the furious public scandals surrounding her movie Don't Worry Darling - while posing for a very provocative cover shoot for ELLE's Women in Hollywood issue

The 38-year-old's new directorial effort - which she also stars in - has been the source of furious speculation for months. There have been rumors of a feud between Wilde and leading lady Florence Pugh, and furious speculation about Wilde's romance with Harry Styles, who stars in the film

Speaking about the controversy surrounding her movie, Wilde simply said it has been 'shocking to see so many untruths about [herself] traded as fact', while shutting down rumors of a rift with Pugh, 26, by gushing about her acting talents

'It is shocking to see so many untruths about yourself traded as fact,' she told the publication of the controversy surrounding her movie - and her personal life.

She continued by referencing a comment made by Pugh, noting that being an actress and director doesn't mean that she 'signed up for a reality show' - and lamenting the fact that her life has been 'torn to shreds by a pack of wolves'.

Wilde insisted that she 'didn't sign up for a reality show' just by working in an industry that comes with much public scrutiny and speculation, adding: 'Its as though the general public feels... you somehow have accepted that your life will be torn to shreds by a pack of wolves'

'Florence had a really wise comment that we didnt sign up for a reality show,' she said. 'And I love that she put it that way, because its as though the general public feels that if you are making something that youre selling to the public, you somehow have accepted that your life will be torn to shreds by a pack of wolves.

'No, thats actually not part of the job description. Never was.'

As for the rumors of a rift between herself and Pugh, Wilde didn't specifically deny the speculation, however she heaped praise on the movie's starlet, saying of the British-born actress: 'Shes so generous in her acting in every scene. She makes everyone around her better.'

Claims about an on-set feud between Wilde and Pugh have continued to dog the movie's release, with sources suggesting that 26-year-old Pugh felt 'uncomfortable' about the director's on-set relationship with Styles.

'Flo seeing Olivia and Harry all over each other on set did not go down well as Olivia was still with Jason when she first hooked up with Harry,' an insider claimed to Page Six.

'Jason and the kids visited Olivia on set at the beginning a few times, so I think this all made people feel a little uncomfortable.'

Pugh then admitted in an interview with Harper's Bazaar that she was unhappy with the way in which the movie's trailer highlighted the sex scenes in the flick, saying that she felt as though the clip had 'reduced' Don't Worry Darling to the most graphic aspects.

'When its reduced to your sex scenes, or to watch the most famous man in the world go down on someone, its not why we do it. Its not why Im in this industry,' she said.

The first scandal to dog the movie was the speculation over Wilde's relationship with Styles - who is ten years her junior - with some suggesting it began while she was still with ex Jason Sudeikis. She has furiously denied the rumors that she cheated

Of her relationship with her ex-partner, Wilde told ELLE that she 'shares custody' with the actor, and that if she isn't pictured with her children, it is not because she has 'abandoned' them but rather because she doesn't want them photographed

'Obviously, the nature of hiring the most famous pop star in the world, youre going to have conversations like that. Thats just not what Im going to be discussing because [this movie is] bigger and better than that. And the people who made it are bigger and better than that.'

'Completely false': Don't Worry Darling crew issues statement denying on-set feud between Wilde and Pugh On Saturday, Don't Worry Darling producer Miri Yoon and 40 crew members denied the allegations of onset unrest with a signed statement. 'As a crew, we've avoided addressing the absurd gossip surrounding the movie we're so proud of, but feel the need to correct the anonymous "sources" quoted in a recent article. Any allegations about unprofessional behavior on the set of Don't Worry Darling are completely false. Olivia is an incredible leader and director who was present with and involved in every aspect of production. She ran this set with class and respect for everyone involved. There was never a screaming match between our director and anyone, let alone a member of our cast. We are happy to put our names on this, as real people who worked on the film, and who have witnessed and benefitted from the collaborative and safe space Olivia creates as a director and leader. We're also thrilled that the movie is in theaters this weekend. We can't wait for you to see it on the big screen.' Advertisement

Speaking about the controversy over the movie's graphic sex scenes, Wilde told ELLE that she agrees with Pugh's opinion that too much attention has been given to the sexual content in Don't Worry Darling, insisting that she was 'happy when Florence pointed this out'.

'Florence very wisely pointed out that a lot of attention has been given to the sex scenes. And I think shes so right. I completely agree with her that its overshadowing everything else that the movies about,' she said, adding: 'When Florence pointed that out that this film is so much bigger and better than just the sex scenes, I was so happy that she said that because I feel the same way.'

Rumors about behind-the-scenes drama on the set of Don't Worry Darling became the source of so much public interest and speculation that the cast and crew issued an official statement denying all suggestion of a feud between Wilde and Pugh as 'absurd' and 'completely false'.

A total of 40 individuals, including producer Miri Yoon, came forward to release a statement obtained by DailyMail.com with the 'need to correct' the alleged claims, calling them 'absurd' and 'completely false.'

'As a crew, we've avoided addressing the absurd gossip surrounding the movie we're so proud of, but feel the need to correct the anonymous 'sources' quoted in a recent article,' the statement began.

'Any allegations about unprofessional behavior on the set of are completely false,' they further stated.

However, the speculation about a feud between Pugh and Wilde are certainly not the only specter of scandal to have hovered over the movie for the past few months.

The first controversy arose after Styles and Wilde went public with their relationship when they were seen holding hands at a wedding in California in January 2021, following weeks of speculation that the pair were an item.

Eyebrows were raised, however, over just how quickly Wilde had moved on from her ex-fiance, Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis, whom she split from in November 2020.

Wilde recently hit out at claims that there was any crossover in her relationships, telling Vanity Fair magazine: 'The complete horses**t idea that I left Jason for Harry is completely inaccurate.

There have also been multiple rumors about a feud between Wilde and her leading lady Pugh, with reports suggesting that 26-year-old Pugh was 'uncomfortable' with the director's on-set relationship with Styles

Although Wilde did not specifically deny rumors of a rift with Pugh (seen together in Don't Worry Darling), she gushed over the starlet's acting abilities, saying: 'Shes so generous in her acting in every scene. She makes everyone around her better'

'Like any relationship that ends, it doesn't end overnight. Unfortunately, Jason and I had a very bumpy road, and we officially dissolved the relationship towards the beginning of the pandemic.'

That split became the source of more scandal when Wilde was served with legal papers for the pair's custody battle over their two kids, Otis, eight, and Daisy, five, in front of hundreds of spectators while doing a talk at CinemaCon in Las Vegas in April, a move that she later slammed as 'aggressive' and 'threatening'.

Recently, it was claimed that Wilde is considering relocating to London in order to 'live together' with Styles full-time - with a source telling The Sun that the actress and director had visited a local school in the area while looking for somewhere to enroll kids Otis and Daisy.

Wilde shares two children with Sudeikis (seen together in February 2020) and the pair are currently embroiled in a custody battle over the kids - although the actress says they are currently 'sharing custody'

Of her relationship with her ex Sudeikis, Wilde told ELLE that she 'shares custody' with the actor, and that if she isn't pictured with her children, it is not because she has 'abandoned' them, but rather because she goes to great lengths to 'protect her kids from being seen' by photographers.

Wilde did not comment on her public spat with LaBeouf, although she told the publication that she has a strict 'no a**holes policy' on-set, something that comes from 'seeing so many f***ing a**holes on set' over the years.

Wilde became embroiled in a bitter war of words with LaBeouf, after claiming that she had fired him from the project over concerns about his 'combative energy', claiming that she made the decision out of a desire to 'protect' leading lady Pugh.

However, LaBeouf hit back at the director's claims, insisting that he had actually stepped down from the movie because he didn't feel he'd had enough time to rehearse with the rest of the cast - while sharing text conversations with Wilde that seemed to serve as evidence for his side of the argument.

To add insult to injury, all of the scandal surrounding the movie appears to have done little to help it win over the critics; Don't Worry Darling currently has a dismal 34 per cent critic approval rating (out of 64 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes.

The movie tells the story of housewife Alice, played by Pugh, whose husband Jack, played by Styles, moves them into a utopian community for his new company.

Alice then starts worrying that her husband and his company are hiding terrible secrets as her life is turned upside down.
The Royal Family has updated the dropdown menu on its website to reflect the new titles within the monarchy.

While some areas of the website still have both the new titles and the former ones for members of the Royal Family, other parts have been fully updated to reflect the monarch's death.

The change, noted by Gertsroyals, is one of a number of changes to the royal system in recent weeks following the Queen's death.

Her Majesty passed away peacefully aged 96 at Balmoral Castle, on September 8.

The Royal Family has changed the dropdown menu on its website to reflect the new titles within the monarchy

Prince Charles became King Charles III, the Duchess of Cornwall became Queen Consort, Prince William became the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cambridge became the Princess of Wales (pictured together on October 1)

More are set to come as Charles III's royal cypher is rolled out across the country.

Buckingham Palace revealed a new royal cypher at the end of last month to mark the reign of King Charles III.

It features the initials of the King's name Charles and title Rex, as well as the Roman numeral III.

The new king's monogram differs from that of his mother, featuring a representation of the Tudor Crown instead of St Edward's Crown, which Queen Elizabeth II wore during her coronation.

The Tudor Crown is believed to have been a nod to the King's grandfather, George VI. A version of the cypher used in Scotland will include the Scottish Crown.

The use of cyphers can be traced back to the House of Tudor.

They were used as a means of identification and appeared with the Royal Arms.

Charles' mark will gradually appear on government buildings, post boxes, state documents and bank notes, replacing the initials his late mother.

It will also adorn buttons, liveries and military uniforms, as well as be used by the royal household for franking mail.

In criminal court cases, the R to denote the Crown now stands for Rex rather than Regina.

Another change in matters of law is that barristers and solicitors appointed by the monarch have seen their title switch from Queen's Counsel (QC) to King's Counsel (KC).

UK passports will be issued in the new King's name and their wording changed. Her Majesty's Passport Office will become His Majesty's Passport Office.

Police and military uniforms bearing the Queen's cypher are likely to be updated over time with the new King's cypher  the monogram impressed on royal and state documents.

The Queen's ERII features on traditional police helmets.

Charles's signature has also changed. Before, it was simply 'Charles', but now it is followed by an additional R for Rex at the end.

As King, he will also need a new personal flag.

UK passports will be issued in the new King's name and their wording changed. Her Majesty's Passport Office will become His Majesty's Passport Office

Police and military uniforms bearing the Queen's cypher are likely to be updated over time with the new King's cypher  the monogram impressed on royal and state documents. The Queen's ERII features on traditional police helmets

The national anthem has been changed to God Save The King for the first time in 70 years. Pictured is a version of God Save The Queen from the Victorian period

God Save The King has not been the national anthem since the reign of The Queen's father George VI

In 1960, the Queen adopted a personal flag  a gold E with the royal crown surrounded by a chaplet of roses on a blue background  to be flown on any building, ship, car or aircraft in which she was staying or travelling.

It was often used when she visited Commonwealth countries. While the Royal Standard represents the Sovereign and the United Kingdom, the Queen's own flag was personal to her alone.

Meanwhile, the royal coat of arms, adopted at the start of Queen Victoria's reign in 1837, will remain the same.

But just as when the Queen became monarch, it is likely that new artwork will be issued early in Charles's reign by the College of Arms for use by public service bodies such as the civil service and the armed forces.

The 'very light rebranding' will be hard to spot, but it signifies the opportunity to replace old images, which have been in use for many decades, with newer differently stylised ones.
King Charles has unveiled his first plaque since becoming monarch as he reopened The Burrell Collection in Glasgow - almost exactly 39 years after the late Queen first opened the museum to the public.

The King, 73, paid a visit to the institute in Pollok Country Park this afternoon following its extensive six-year renovation.

The Burrell Collection features 9,000 historical objects - including 200 medieval tapestries, a suit of armour dating back to the 1560s and ceramic 'Tomb Guardians' from the Tang Dynasty from 618-980.

The late Queen first opened the collection to the public on October 21, 1983 and today the King was pictured viewing the same statue of Buddhist disciple Ming Dynast from 1484 his mother had admired almost 40 years earlier.

The King unveiled his first plaque since becoming monarch today. Charles celebrated the reopening of the Burrell Collection following its extensive six-year renovation

Following in her footsteps: The Queen first opened the collection to the public on October 21, 1983

Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the Burrell Collection at Pollok Park, Glasgow on October 21, 1983 and then toured the galleries where she is shown admiring a Lohan Figure-a Buddhist disciple of the Ming Dynast (1484).

King Charles pictured during a visit to the Burrell Collection to officially re-open it following its six-year long refurbishment, at Pollok Country Park in Glasgow. The new monarch took a shining to the exact same statue as his mother

Architects behind the sleek and modern exhibition space used low carbon alternatives in an attempt cut back on their emissions, which is a subject very close to the King's heart.

Following the engagement, the Royal Family's official Instagram account praised the museum's eco-conscious redesign.

Sharing photos from both royal openings, the caption read: 'Displayed in a purpose-built, A-Listed museum in the citys Pollok Country Park, The Burrell Collection was officially opened to the public by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 21 October 1983

'Having reopened to the public in March 2022, the project has delivered new and improved displays and facilities which are an exemplar of sustainable low carbon design.

'Many of the Collections important and unique objects, which have not been seen for decades, or have never been on permanent display, are now on show thanks to a 35% increase in the museums gallery space.

'An inclusive approach to interpretation, including dynamic digital, tactile and hands on displays give more visitors a better understanding of the outstanding works of artistic, historical and cultural significance within the collection and the people who made, used or owned them.'

Marion Burrell plays host to HM Queen Elizabeth at Burell Collection opening in 1983

The Queen - pictured at her plaque unveiling - visited the Burrell Collection almost exactly 39 years ago

The King - pictured this afternoon in Glasgow - toured the collection following the plaque unveiling

The King pictured sharing a laugh with members of the public outside the Glasgow museum

The Burrell Collection features 9,000 historical objects. Charles toured William Burrell's famous collection following the plaque unveiling

Before officially reopening the museum, the King greeted members of the public at Pollok Country Park and smiled as he accepted a bunch of flowers from local schoolchildren.

Charles wore a traditional kilt for the royal engagement in Scotland - where he spent three weeks with the Queen Consort following his mother's funeral.

Yesterday the monarch spent a busy afternoon in London where held an audience with the King and Queen of Malaysia before having his weekly meeting with Liz Truss.

Earlier this week, Buckingham Palace announced that the King's coronation will take place on Saturday, May 6.

Charles wore a traditional kilt for the royal engagement in Scotland - where he spent three weeks with the Queen Consort following his mother's funeral. Pictured viewing some of the collection's paintings

Charles accepted a bunch of flowers from local schoolchildren in Glasgow before the plaque unveiling this afternoon

The King beamed as he was handed a bunch of fresh flowers ahead of the plaque unveiling this afternoon

The Palace confirmed that the Queen Consort will be crowned alongside him by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Westminster Abbey.

King Charles is said to want a more modest affair than is tradition with the event being cut down to less than an hour, the guest list slashed by a three quarters and a less formal dress code.

'The Coronation will reflect the monarch's role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,' the Palace confirmed as it revealed the date.

Palace insiders said that while the Coronation will include the same core elements of the traditional ceremony which has retained a similar structure for more than 1,000 years, it would recognise the 'spirit of our times'.
She looked like she belonged in a fashion show, wearing a vibrant purple suit and stylish matching heels - but that didn't stop Queen Maxima of the Netherlands driving a digger today during her final day in Sweden.

The royal and her husband King Willem-Alexander took turns taking control of the vehicles when at the Volvo Trucks Experience in Gothenburg.

Touring the extensive collection of trucks in the centre, Maxima looked effortlessly stylish in a dark purple power trouser suit, which she paired with a hot pink dress shirt.

She was seen gracefully climbing into the digger in matching purple heels.

She looked like she belonged in a fashion show, wearing a vibrant purple suit and stylish matching heels - but that didn't stop Queen Maxima of the Netherlands driving a digger today during her final day in Sweden

The royal and her husband King Willem-Alexander (pictured) took turns taking control of the vehicles when at the Volvo Trucks Experience in Gothenburg

Touring the extensive collection of trucks in the centre, Maxima looked effortlessly stylish in a dark purple power trouser suit, which she paired with a hot pink dress shirt

Queen Maxima's outfit matched this purple truck which she drove around the Volve Trucks Experience Centre

The Dutch Queen toured the trucks at the experience, looking inquisitive and interested as she passed by large trucks

Maxima completed her look with matching leather gloves, and wore her blonde hair swept back with a bright pink, beaded headband.

Earlier in the day, the royal couple were joined King Carl Gustaf, 76, and Queen Silvia of Sweden, 78.

The four royals experimented with the technology in the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg for day two of Maxima and Willem's visit.

Both Maxima and Silvia opted for a bright pink ensemble today, with Silvia opting for a pink, checked dress and a matching cropped jacket.

Both Maxima and Silvia opted for a bright pink ensemble today, with the Dutch royal pairing a hot pink dress shirt with a dark purple trouser suit. She also donned a long, raspberry coat and purple pointed heels

Thursday marks the end of their three-day visit, and they will later be joined by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia on a boat trip through Gothenburg - and a visit to the Volvo Trucks Experience Centre

The royal couple were joined by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for Thursday's visit, which saw them try out the technology in the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands tried out virtual reality goggles this afternoon as they kicked off the final day of their state visit to Sweden

Today's outing comes after the Dutch royals joined their Swedish counterparts for a glittering performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

In one moment, the four royals were pictured trying on VR goggles, and looking around the room inside the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg.

Last night, Maxima and Willem-Alexander joined the Swedish royal family for a glittering concert as they wrapped up the second of their three-day state visit.

In one moment, the four royals were pictured trying on VR goggles, and looking around the room inside the Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg

Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands try on VR goggles as they visit Lindholmen Science Park

Queen Silvia of Sweden opted for a pink, checked dress and a matching cropped jacket for her outing to Gothenburg

Maxima completed her look with matching leather gloves, and wore her blonde hair swept back with a bright pink headband

Thursday is the final day of Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands' state visit to Sweden

The Dutch royals were accompanied by King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden for the orchestral performance at the Stockholm Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden were also in attendance, as were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia - all of whom posed for a photograph outside the venue with their Dutch counterparts.

The concert came at the end of a long day of visits for Willem-Alexander and Maxima, who were in the second of their three-day state visit to their neighbours in Sweden.
They followed a similar format for both Kings George V and George VI's deaths

British Vogue has paid tribute to the late Queen by unveiling a special commemorative front page in the colour royal purple.

The fashion magazine decided to go 'without any adornment' for their November issue, which was their first issue to go to print since Her Majesty's passing on September 8.

The latest copy of the publication - which was established in 1912 - simply has 'Her Majesty The Queen' printed on the cover alongside the dates 1926-2022.

In its 106 years, Vogue has registered the passing of three monarchs and printed a similar front page on each occasion.

British Vogue has marked the death of Queen Elizabeth II by releasing a special cover in royal purple. The November issue of the fashion magazine will be blank apart from the words Her Majesty The Queen and the dates 1926-2022

British Vogue commemorated the loss of George V in 1936 with a royal blue front cover. The fashion bible followed a similar format for The Queen, who passed away on September 8, 2022

When George VI passed away in 1952, the magazine's logo was more similar to the one readers recognise today. In honour of the King, Vogue opted for a purple cover, which they have replicated to mark Queen Elizabeth's passing too

The magazine said the cover marked 'not only the continuity of her line, but also the much-mourned absence of Britain's longest reigning sovereign'.

In 1936, the magazine marked the passing of The Queen's grandfather George V by simply printing a royal blue cover in tribute.

At the time, Vogue's logo was an Italicised font and the magazine cost one shilling.

When George VI passed away in 1952, the magazine's logo was more similar to the one readers recognise today.

In honour of the King, Vogue opted for a purple cover, which they have replicated to mark Queen Elizabeth's passing too.

Editor-in-chief Edward Enninful said: 'A constant thread through our collective lives, throughout her 70-year reign she served not only her mission but as an almost touchable link to the fabric of history itself.

The Queen appeared on the April edition of British Vogue magazine to mark her Platinum Jubilee. The cover features an image of the royal snapped in 1957 by Lord Snowden

'Now she has gone and with her so many of our own memories - of our childhoods, of our parents and their childhoods - seem to have drifted a little further into the mist.

'As has been noted, with the Queen's passing it is as though the long tail of the 20th century has finally wagged its last.'

In March, the Queen appeared on the cover of British Vogue for the first time in a special issue celebrating her Platinum Jubilee.

The chosen image showed the monarch in the early years of her reign wearing a crown and necklace.

The Princess of Wales famously appeared on the magazine's 100th anniversary issue in June 2012 after welcoming photographers to her and William's home in Norfolk, Amner Hall.

Her Majesty also featured in the magazine's annual list of most influential people earlier this year. The Queen pictured at Windsor Castle in April 2022

In 2019, the Duchess of Sussex guest-edited the magazine's September issue.

Her cover featured images of 'trial-blazing' women, including climate activist Greta Thunberg, and included a mirrored panel to invite the reader to be their own 'force for change'.

This year British Vogue also featured the Queen on its annual list of influential women.

The Vogue 25 list celebrates women 'shaping 2022 and beyond' through work, culture and society.

The Queen featured alongside women such as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, Dame Emma Thompson, Sue Gray and Victoria Beckham.

The November issue of British Vogue is available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday October 18.
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Malia Obama donned a sporty outfit as she began her Thursday in Los Angeles with some exercise.

The 24-year-old eldest daughter of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, was scene in a pair of black Alo bike shorts, a cropped green sweatshirt and chunky white sneakers on Thursday morning.

She also carried with her a water bottle and yoga mat as she got ready to break a sweat before beginning her day.

Eldest daughter of former President Barack Obama and Michele Obama sported some Alo bike shorts in LA on Thursday morning as she prepared to begin her day with some exercise

Her yoga mat matched her cropped sweatshirt as she got her blood pumping in LA on Thursday

She wore white chunky sneakers and ankle socks with the casual, athletic look

The 24-year-old tied her hair in a knot and handled her phone, keys and water bottle as she prepared to get her day going

The former first daughter appears to be loving her life in LA with her sister Sasha, who attends USC

Earlier in the week, Malia Obama took advantage of the warm California weather owhen she stepped out in a light blue strapless dress and chunky black boots.

The screenwriter was spotted meeting friends in Larchmont Village, a neighborhood in the heart of Los Angeles.

Malia had on a mini dress with two navy and white stripes paired with black ankle socks and boots. She topped off her sporty look with a gray and black LeSportsac logo bag that she slung over her shoulder.

Malia Obama, 24, was spotted meeting friends in a sporty strapless dress in Los Angeles on Wednesday

The screenwriter, who is the oldest daughter of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, paired the outfit with ankle socks and chunky black boots

She wore her long rust-colored braids loose around her shoulders and had a pair of sunglasses sitting on the top of her head.

Malia opted to carry her cellphone and her car keys, which were attached to an adorable plush keychain of Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh.

The former first daughter appeared to be taking a call and had a smile on her face as she strolled through the neighborhood. She seemed to be in good spirits and had a smile on her face while on the phone.

Malia moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a screenwriter after graduating from Harvard University last year.

Malia appeared to be taking a call and had a smile on her face as she strolled through Larchmont Village, a neighborhood in the heart of Los Angeles

She wore her long rust-colored braids loose around her shoulders and had a pair of sunglasses sitting on the top of her head

Malia topped off her look with a gray and black LeSportsac logo bag that she later slung over her shoulder

Malia opted to carry her cellphone and her car keys, which were attached to an adorable plush keychain of Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh

She scored a lucrative position working on Donald Glover's upcoming Amazon show about a 'Beyonce-type character' after previously working as an intern on Lena Dunham's HBO series Girls in 2015 and at The Weinstein Company in 2017.

Glover, who is also known by his stage name Childish Gambino, confirmed in March that he gave the former first daughter her first job writing for the series, which is tentatively titled 'Hive.'

'Shes just like, an amazingly talented person,' he told Vanity Fair of Malia. 'Shes really focused, and shes working really hard.'

Malia's younger sister, Sasha Obama, followed in her footsteps by relocating to Los Angeles earlier this year after transferring from the University of Michigan to the University of Southern California to finish college.

The two girls have received regular visits from their high-profile parents, including their father, who was recently spotted dining with them at Hamasaku, a sushi restaurant in West LA.

Malia stopped to adjust the top of her dress before getting picked up by a friend

Malia moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a screenwriter after graduating from Harvard University last year

The former first daughter scored a lucrative position working on Donald Glover's upcoming Amazon show about a 'Beyonce-type character'

The Obama girls seem to be loving life on the West Coast, and they both are believed to be in relationships at the moment.

DailyMail.com exclusively revealed in April that Sasha was dating Clifton Powell Jr., 24, who is the son of Ray actor Clifton Powell.

Clifton Jr. and Sasha are understood to have met after she relocated to California, and it appears that he is already close with the family as he has been seen hanging out with her older sister on numerous occasions.

Meanwhile, Malia is dating music producer Dawit Eklund. They were first spotted grabbing takeout food together on July 26, and their relationship appears to be going strong.

Dawit, 33, is the son of retired State Department officer Jon Eklund, 72, who worked at several U.S. embassies in Africa, and his Ethiopian wife, Yeshi, 66.

Malia is in a relationship with music producer Dawit Eklund, the son of retired State Department officer Jon Eklund and his Ethiopian wife, Yeshi

Malia's younger sister, Sasha Obama, followed in her footsteps by relocating to Los Angeles earlier this year after transferring from the University of Michigan to the University of Southern California to finish college

The Obama girls have received regular visits from their high-profile parents, including their father, who was recently spotted dining with them at Hamasaku, a sushi restaurant in West LA

He co-founded Washington, D.C.-based record label 1432 R, which specializes in Ethiopian music, and graduated from George Washington University, where he studied International Development in Africa.

In April, Sasha and Malia's mother, Michelle, opened up about how they are all grown up during a final appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

DeGeneres, 64, reminded her of how her daughters had first visited the program as little girls who wanted to see the Jonas Brothers. But over a decade later, they've graduated from boybands to boyfriends.

'Now they're bringing grown men home,' she said. 'Now they have boyfriends and real lives and all that stuff. They have grown up right before our very eyes and they are doing well.'

While Michelle gushed about the 'amazing young women' her daughters have become  'Women, I know! Scary,' she said  and divulged that they are dating, she was much more discreet about the details of their love lives.
Though they were never successful, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had intended to make amends with the Queen the next year.

However, following Her Majesty's state burial, which compelled the couple to come home quickly, the Sussexes intend to mend fences with their estranged family members.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Tied to Netflix, Book Deals

Experts in public relations and communication speculated that the couple had been attempting to construct their own story, explicitly noting their long list of podcasts, interviews, Netflix shows, and Prince Harry's promised biography.

The Netflix series is about where they've come from, what they've been through, and where they are, an insider said in a statement, as per Mirror. According to a royal expert, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are trapped with the devil over their lucrative Netflix and book deals because they need the money.

The royal couple's contracts with the streaming service and publisher Penguin Random House, according to royal biographer Tom Bower, the only way they can make their money. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who also have a Spotify subscription and reside in a $14 million property in California, according to Bower.

Because they have no other source of income, he continued, "They need the money and they need it now more than ever. So, in my opinion, they are now just bound to the devil." the Sussexes are tied to their book and Netflix. Since that's the only way they can make a living, no amount of criticism they receive will matter.

The only way Bower could conceive of Harry getting out of it now is if his father King Charles III could bail him out, according to his new book, 'Revenge, Meghan, Harry, and the War Between the Windsors,' a book published in July.

The author claimed that while the King would need to compensate Netflix and Random House, he could do so in exchange for a written agreement that would prevent Prince Harry from disparaging the Royal Family ever more, according to Daily Mail.

Read Also: Kanye West Interview on LeBron James' Show Pulled Out Over 'Hate Speech,' Extremely Dangerous Stereotypes'

Prince William, Prince Harry's Rift

Meanwhile, Prince Harry and Prince William's relationship came back into the spotlight, when the two got together to mourn the passing of their grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, last month, The so-called 'Fab Four' came together for the first time since Megxit when Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle and Prince William and his wife Princess Kate made a joint appearance.

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex declared their intentions to retire from royal duties, tensions between the two couples had been simmering for a few years. According to reports, it all began with some well-intentioned counsel given from brother to brother.

Prince William advised Prince Harry to take things more gently in the early stages of his relationship with Meghan because he thought he was moving too quickly. Prince Harry answered the query with a brusque and indignant retort, according to Robert Lacey, author of 'Battle of Brothers: William & Harry - The Inside Story of a Family in Tumult.'

The Queen decided that the four of them Prince Harry, Prince William, King Charles, and herself should meet with their respective private secretaries at Sandringham on the following Monday to resolve their differences, though Prince William confided to a friend that he would much prefer to leave all the haggling to the staff, the historian, who serves as a consultant for Netflix's 'The Crown,' wrote: "William confided to a friend that he would much rather leave all the haggling to the staff, as per Express.

Moreover, King Charles III and Prime Minister Liz Truss had their first weekly audience on Thursday at Buckingham Palace. King Charles will have weekly private sessions with the prime minister to debate policy, just like Queen Elizabeth and other monarchs before him.

ITV's Lizzie Robinson posted a video of Truss curtsying before shaking hands with King Charles on Twitter. A few pictures that are on display in the room where they are meeting are also shown in the clip. A portrait from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal wedding in 2018 may be seen in one of the pictures upon closer study, People reported.

Related Article: King Charles III's Reign To Last for Only 7 Years Before Passing the Crown to Prince William, Psychic Predicts

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Both dresses feature the same distinctive notched neckline but their skirts could hardly be more different.

Worn on the same day, the Princess of Waless version of the Karen Millen Forever dress was cinched neatly at the waist with a matching fabric belt before kicking out into a soft, feminine pleated skirt. Liz Trusss take, meanwhile, was far more severe, with a stiff pencil skirt and a thick black leather belt.

Both women exert huge influence, but they chose to express their authority in contrasting ways. If ever there was a prime example of the difference between hard and soft power dressing, this was it.

You might expect that hard power dressing, adopted by the Prime Minister, is the better way to signal your clout. But true power players arent tied into dated expectations of how a powerful woman should dress. Rather, like Kate, they are so secure in their abilities that they feel free to play with their image.

Worn on the same day, the Princess of Waless version of the Karen Millen Forever dress was cinched neatly at the waist with a matching fabric belt before kicking out into a soft, feminine pleated skirt

Liz Trusss take, meanwhile, was far more severe, with a stiff pencil skirt and a thick black leather belt

Of course, people may argue that the PM has far more pressing matters to deal with than her clothes. But the reality is that how we present ourselves conveys a lot about our confidence and our level of empathy.

Whether we like it or not, humans are very visual beings so the right sartorial choices can help us connect with people  or alienate them. And while women are subject to fewer rules around workplace dressing than men, we inevitably end up signalling more with our clothes than our male counterparts do.

Given her troubled first month as PM, it perhaps wasnt a surprise that Liz Trusss close-fitting dress seemed like a suit of armour. This shape  also favoured by many TV presenters  was popularised back in the mid-2000s thanks to Roland Mourets figure-hugging Galaxy dress.

For career women, it was a definite leap forward from the exaggerated shoulder pads and pin-striped suits that characterised the first wave of power dressing in the 1980s. But it still felt uptight and uncomfortable.

Yet today, not only does that businesslike approach feel out-of-date, Id argue it often conveys the opposite message to the one intended. I believe real power dressing involves clothes that make us feel good, feel ourselves and help us relate to others.

And, all too often, conventional business attire  modelled on what works for men  does not achieve any of that for women.

And, all too often, conventional business attire  modelled on what works for men  does not achieve any of that for women (Pictured: Amal Clooney spotted stepping out in New York City)

This is something Ive learned through experience. When I started my career in finance on Wall Street in 1988, I wore suits with big shoulders like every other woman in New York. Emulating a masculine style made us few women feel more like a part of the team.

But I came to see that copycat approach as a mistake. Id wear lots of navy and black, trying to merge into the background  which (surprise, surprise) didnt turn out to be great for career progression.

It was only after I failed to get a promotion and moved to another investment management company in London that my outlook changed.

The founder said hed hired me because of the differences I brought to the table: I was a mother, young, from a state school and had no family connections to the City. His words encouraged me to switch to more feminine styles, which felt very me.

A few months later, after Id done a presentation, a new male colleague commented on my confidence and competence. I wondered how he could have surmised that from just a five-minute presentation.

For career women, it was a definite leap forward from the exaggerated shoulder pads and pin-striped suits that characterised the first wave of power dressing in the 1980s. But it still felt uptight and uncomfortable (Pictured: French first lady Brigitte Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris)

Then I realised why: I was wearing a soft cream skirt suit. No one else in the office wore anything like it. It was my favourite outfit, and helped me feel in control and focused on my work. I suddenly realised this was real power dressing.

These days I prefer to wear a dress for big professional occasions. A dress chimes with one of my key messages  that we should lead like women, not honorary men. It should be a dress with strong, simple lines that doesnt need a cardigan or jacket.

Second, I like a confidently feminine colour that also works in photos  no draining black or navy or grey.

Third, if presenting to a big audience it needs a belt or pockets  there must be somewhere for a microphone pack (otherwise the sound engineers put it on your bra strap, which is a bit humiliating).

Lastly, I wear heels to make me feel tall and stand up straight. But they must be ones I can walk and stand in for a long time.

Three years ago, I started an Instagram account about workwear after speaking at a law firm where the women (all in dark suits) commented on me wearing a pink dress. One said: Its all very well acting like women, behaving like women, being empathetic, being ourselves, but we couldnt wear pink at work.

I challenged that  these were solicitors, not barristers with a strict court dress code  and suggested they start small with a pink scarf.

When I spoke recently at another law firm, it was great to see lots of dresses and different colours, as well as elegant wide-legged trouser suits. These were women simply dressing the way they wanted to.

Third, if presenting to a big audience it needs a belt or pockets  there must be somewhere for a microphone pack (otherwise the sound engineers put it on your bra strap, which is a bit humiliating) (Pictured: Queen Letizia of Spain arrives at an event on World Mental Health Day 2022 at the Impact Hub Piamonte in Madrid)

Things have really moved on, and many more powerful women are combining style and authority. Michelle Obama is known for her impeccable taste. In bright colours, bold patterns and a range of silhouettes, she always looks like she is wearing the clothes rather than the outfits wearing her.

And I wish more female politicians would take a leaf out of Amal Clooneys book. The human rights lawyer is a great example of a soft power dresser. She looks wonderful both in court and on the red carpet, alongside husband George.

For work, she dons eye-catching shades, dresses and suits. She exudes confidence in her choices. She wears her long hair tumbling down, and strong lipstick. Its not just clothes; its bold styling, too.

In contrast, French President Emmanuel Macrons wife, Brigitte, is tied into a hard style, favouring boxy cuts and body-con dresses with a hairstyle that looks like it would stay put in a hurricane. Compare this with Queen Letizia of Spains effortless elegance and bouncy blow-dries. Like the Princess of Wales, she nails soft power dressing.

Things have really moved on, and many more powerful women are combining style and authority (Pictured: Good Morning Britain's Susanna Reid)

From dresses in a variety of cuts, fabrics and price points to trouser suits and separates, her choices are always smart but shes not afraid to express her individuality.

I would argue that Liz Trusss bruising start to her premiership is all the more reason for her to take a few minutes to reconsider her style. It will enhance, not detract from, her work if her body language, voice and clothes better reflect the times we live in.

Id love to see her acting in a more obviously feminine way, too. When women reach the top the temptation is to become more macho than the men. But, as our late Queen put it, great leadership is about encouraging people to combine their efforts, enthusiasm and inspiration, to work together.

Encouraging, nurturing, inspiring  all skills women tend to have in spades. And a wardrobe that complements this message is an asset not to be underestimated.
Charles, 73, said he could remember when soap was called Emmerdale Farm

New monarch was 'delighted' to have been asked to film a special message

King Charles congratulated the cast of Emmerdale on their 50th anniversary in a surprise video that was aired at the National Television Awards tonight.

The new monarch, 73, said 'he was 'delighted' to have been asked to help the show celebrate the milestone and is old enough to remember when the show was called Emmerdale Farm.

Addressing the cast and crew, the King - who filmed the clip when he was still the Prince of Wales - said: 'It is a testament to all the hard work of its production team that it has since become such an important British institution and a major British export with hundreds of thousands of fans from Scandinavia to New Zealand, all keen to follow the fortunes of what is left of the Sugdens and their new neighbours.

King Charles made a surprise appearance on tonight's National Television Awards. The King, 73, filmed a special message to congratulate the cast of Emmerdale on their 50th anniversary

The classic soap (pictured is the cast) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The King said in his message that he could remember when it was still called Emmerdale Farm

The King's message was broadcast to viewers at the National Television Awards in London this evening

'What makes Emmerdale so special is that it has kept true to the vision of its original writer, Kevin Laffan, who wanted to demonstrate that farming is not just a job - it's a whole way of life.

'On a daily basis, Emmerdale continues to depict what life is really like for those who work the land and protect our precious countryside.

'It also stresses brilliantly something that concerns me greatly: the long-term sustainability of the way we produce our food.'

'I'm also heartened by the production team's efforts off screen. Their ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030 has already made Emmerdale one of the first British programmes to be awarded Albert certification, recognising its efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its production process and to create content that stresses the importance of establishing a sustainable future.

'So it is only right that the National Television Awards acknowledge the enormous contribution Emmerdale has made and I hope those watching will join me in sending a warmest congratulations on its 50th anniversary. And wishing it an equally successful future.'

The new monarch (pictured during the clip), 73, said 'he was 'delighted' to have been asked to help the show celebrate the milestone and is old enough to remember when the show was called Emmerdale Farm

NTA's Executive Producer, Kim Turberville, said: 'We were delighted to be able to surprise the Emmerdale team with such an important message.

'Fifty years of iconic television out of the North is a huge achievement and rightly deserves to be celebrated in the best way possible.

'It is with great thanks to His Royal Highness for delivering this message to pop the icing on their birthday cake ahead of their very special weekend.'

Earlier today, the King travelled to Glasgow where he unveiled his first plaque since becoming monarch.

The King unveiled his first plaque since becoming monarch today. Charles celebrated the reopening of the Burrell Collection following its extensive six-year renovation

Following in her footsteps: The Queen first opened the collection to the public on October 21, 1983

Charles reopened The Burrell Collection in Pollok Country Park this afternoon - almost 39 years after his mother The Queen originally opened the institute to the public.

The Burrell Collection features 9,000 historical objects - including 200 medieval tapestries, a suit of armour dating back to the 1560s and ceramic 'Tomb Guardians' from the Tang Dynasty from 618-980.

The late Queen first opened the collection to the public on October 21, 1983 and today the King was pictured viewing the same statue of Buddhist disciple Ming Dynast from 1484 his mother had admired almost 40 years earlier.
An Australian sunscreen expert has revealed why your morning sunscreen application is useless by 9am in the wake of Khloe Kardashian removing a cancerous mole from her face.

On Wednesday the 38-year-old mother of True Thompson shared graphic details about her health scare after undergoing an immediate operation to remove a melanoma - which presented as a 'lingering bump' on her cheek.

Fortunately Khloe, who is predisposed to melanoma, was happy to report her trusted surgeon was able to 'get everything' and her margins now appear 'clear.'

Ex Sunrise reporter and founder of Naked Sundays Samantha Brett told FEMAIL that Australians should be listening carefully to the Kardashian's experience.

Ex Sunrise reporter and founder of Naked Sundays Samantha Brett told FEMAIL that Australians should be listening carefully to the Kardashian's experience

Naked Sundays is an Australian SPF50+ brand which launched in Jan 2021 was picked up by Mecca in just eight months

'In Australia we have one of the highest melanoma rates, and that rate is most prevalent in millennials. The message Khloe is sharing is such a powerful one and is so vital - get your skin checked regularly and always wear SPF everyday, but most importantly reapply every two hours,' she said.

It's that final point that Ms Brett wants to hone in on, explaining that it's why applying your sunscreen at 7am before you get to work renders it useless by mid-morning if you don't re-apply.

'In the morning when you are getting ready, if you apply your SPF at 7am before heading out the door, by the time you have sat at your desk and had your first coffee it has been two hours,' she said.

The founder of Naked Sundays has praised Khloe Kardashian for speaking about her melanoma

'To put into context, if you were out laying in the sun for that long, the advice is to reapply. This is one of the main reasons I set out to create Naked Sundays; the focus for us is on reapplication but most importantly, the education around reapplying your SPF and why it's so important to not just rely on that one application the morning.'

One of Naked Sundays' most popular products is its Hydrating Glow Mist, which allows men and women to re-apply 50+ sunscreen quickly and over the top of makeup.

Ms Brett continued: 'To have someone like Khloe Kardashian advocating for sun safety is such an inspiring message for the younger generation and hopefully a stark reminder to do the simplest and cheapest thing you can do for your skin; wear SPF.'

'I was told I need to have an immediate operation': Khloe Kardashian has revealed she had a tumor removed from her face

On Wednesday Khloe Kardashian felt compelled to finally share her story following speculation over the 'ever-evolving bandage' on her cheek.

Khloe initially brushed off the blemish as a mere zit until noticing it wasn't going anywhere after it remained on her cheek for seven months.

'I have seen numerous stories going around about the ever-evolving bandage on my face, with some of you wondering why I've been wearing one for the past few weeks.

'After noticing a small bump on my face and assuming it was something as minor as a zit, I decided to get it biopsied seven months after realising it was not budging.

'Dermatologist Dr Tess Mauricio (@drtessmauricio) examined it, and a second biopsy was ran by Dr. Daniel Behroozan (@drdanbehroozan) because what they were both seeing was incredibly rare for someone my age.

Clearing the air: Khloe finally revealed her recent health scare after noticing speculation surrounding her cheek bandage

Good news: Khloe was happy to share her doctor was able to 'get everything' and all her margins now appear 'clear'

'A few days later I was told I need to have an immediate operation to remove a tumor from my face. I called none other than Dr. Garth Fischer, a dear friend of my families and one of the best surgeons in Beverly Hills who I knew would take incredible care of my face.

'I'm grateful to share that Dr. Fischer @garthfishermd was able to get everything - all my margins appear clear and now we are onto the healing process. So, here we are... you'll continue to see my bandages and when I'm allowed, you'll probably see a scar (and an indention in my cheek from the tumor being removed) but until then I hope you enjoy how fabulous I'm making these face bandages look (heart emojis).

She followed it up with video of her with the bandage visible as the song 'Too Sexy' played.

'I hope you enjoy how fabulous I'm making these face bandages look,' she wrote.

'Fabulous': She followed it up with video of her with the bandage visible as the song 'Too Sexy' played

'PS I am ONLY sharing this story with you so I can remind everyone to get checked, and frequently.

'At 19 years old, I had melanoma on my back, and I had a surgery to remove that as well, so I am pre-composed to melanomas. Even those who are not, we should be checking all the time. I am someone who wears sunscreen every single day, religiously so no one is exempt from these things. Please take this seriously and do regular self-exams as well as your annual checkups.

'Thank you to my amazing doctors!! Garth I am so beyond grateful for you!! I know how deeply you didn't want to cut into my face, but you did it to protect me. I trust you with everything and I'm so grateful we caught this early. I was lucky and all I have is a scar to tell a story with. Most people aren't as lucky as me and I am forever thankful and grateful.'

She concluded her message with the quote: 'Everyone you meet is fighting a battle we know nothing about. Try not to judge and be kind for you have no idea what they are going through.'
It has unique views of the city skyline, pristine water and stretching white sands

The ten top 'secret' beaches in Australia have been named, with Queensland dominating the list.

New research of search behaviours found the Gold Coast's Kirra Beach is the highest rated yet least searched for beach along Australia's 60,000km coastline.

The stretching Kirra beach has white sands and clear turquoise water and is nestled 40 minutes south of the Gold Coast city centre in Coolangatta.

A new study has revealed Australia's top ten best kept secret beaches with the Gold Coast's Kirra Beach coming in at number one

A study conducted by Mitsubishi Australia found Kirri Beach was highly rated yet least searched for beach along Australia's 60,000km coastline

At 300 metres long, Kirra Beach can be enjoyed by the masses without feeling crowded and its sandy shore is littered with boulders and lush trees

It is close to some of the coast's most populated beaches but lies away from the hustle and bustle.

The pristine beach is one of the Gold Coast's most popular surfing spots and is relatively safe place to swim as there are usually no rips close to the shore.

At 300 metres long, Kirra Beach can be enjoyed by the masses without feeling crowded and its sandy shore is littered with boulders and lush trees.

Its north facing position offers visitors a unique distant view of the Gold Coast skyline, sunrises and sunsets.

The stretching beach has white sands and clear turquoise water is nestled 40 minutes south of the Gold Coast city centre in Coolangatta, near the Queensland- New South Wales border

Its north facing position offers visitors a unique distant view of the Gold Coast skyline, sunrises and sunsets

The pristine beach is one of the Gold Coast's most popular surfing spots and is relatively safe place to swim as there are usually no rips close to the shore

Top 10 hidden gem beach hotspots in Australia Kirra Beach, Gold Coast, Queensland Stokes Beach, Kangaroo Island, South Australia Maroochydore Beach, Sunshine Coast, Queensland Logans Beach, Warrnambool, Victoria Lakes Entrance Beach, Gippsland, Victoria Bennetts Beach, Hawks Nest, New South Wales Shell Beach, Denham, Western Australia Hydeaway Bay Beach, Hydeaway Bay, Queensland Zenith Beach, Greater Newcastle, New South Wales Shelving Beach, Great Keppel Island, Queensland Source: Mitsubishi Australia Advertisement

Researchers analysed more than 1.1million data points to reveal the best secret beaches in Australia so travellers can avoid the crowds and discover some of the country's best hidden gems.

The top ten beaches had the highest amount of five-star ratings and the lowest amount of searches online.

Other beaches on the list included Stokes Beach on South Australia's Kangaroo Island, Logans Beach in Warrnambool, Victoria and Bennetts Beach in Hawks Nest, New South Wales.

Queensland dominated the top ten with Maroochydore Beach on the Sunshine Coast, Hydeaway Bay Beach and Shelving Beach on Great Keppel Island coming in at number three, eight and 10 respectively.
But experts warn such rings are carry significant risks like penis strangulation

Metal penis rings are being sold by online retailers as impotency cures for just 3

Men should avoid using metal penis rings, sexual health doctors begged today.

The gadgets, sold for 3 online, constrict flesh around the penis  trapping blood in the genitals.

This can help men maintain erections for longer, with some also claiming the devices make their penis bigger sand enhance sexual pleasure.

But the rings don't come without risk. They can get stuck  effectively strangling the penis.

Apart from an embarrassing trip to A&E, this can also cause parts of the penis to die from a lack of oxygen if they are not treated quickly enough. In rare cases, men can need their member amputated.

Metal rings have less elasticity  which is why they're more likely to get stuck.

In comparison, rings made of less robust material, like rubber, can be cut off easily in an emergency.

Medics have been forced to use drills directly on men's genitals in an attempt to cut off metal rings and release their vice-like grip.

In one horrifying clip circulating online, medics resort to using an angle grinder and then bolt cutters to sever a metal penis ring from his genital.

The man's dangerously engorged member appears to have escaped unscathed from the heavy-duty machinery used to free it.

WHAT IS PENILE RING ENTRAPMENT? Penile ring entrapment is a rare but often dangerous urological emergency that could cause mechanical and vascular complications. According to medics, a prolonged entrapment of more than 30 minutes could lead to irreversible damage. They have devised a grading system to indicate the severity of penile ring entrapment: Grade 1: Edema of distal penis or partial division of corpus spongiosum and urethrocutaneous fistula Grade 2: Complete division of corpus spongiosum and constriction of corpus cavernosum Grade 3: Gangrene, amputation, fistula or separation of corpora Grade 4: Complete separation of corpus cavernosa Grade 5: Gangrene or amputation Advertisement

Dr Richard Viney, a consultant urological surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, urged men to avoid using penis rings made of hard materials.

'Made for purpose penile constriction rings will always have an elastic quality to them,' he said. 'This allows for their ease of deployment and removal.

'Non-elastic materials such as metal or hard plastics should be avoided.

'The danger with these is that they will interfere with the natural drainage of blood from the erect penis in such a way that it swells excessively beyond the ring.'

This, he explained, could then make it impossible to remove the ring by hand, with the parts of the penis past the ring then starting to die off due a lack of fresh blood.

Dr Viney added that even the removal of such hard rings wasn't without risk, due to the heavy duty equipment needed to cut through them.

'The emergency removal of such rings are very challenging and not without risk of significant penile injury,' he said.

Professor Giulio Garaffa a uro-andrologist at International Andrology, a private men's sexual health clinic in London, also warned that using penis rings carried a number of risks.

'These complications can span from minor, such as trauma to the skin and the subcutaneous tissues to major, such as loss of the penis following strangulation by the ring,' he said.

He added this was particularly the case for ones made of materials like metal.

'Certainly rings made of non elastic materials are more likely to cause problems, as if they get stuck at the base of the penis, are more difficult to be removed,' he said.

'In my 20 years experience in this field I have encountered a number of patients attending A&E with a penis strangulated by a metal ring where a metal cutting tool was required to free their penis.

'It was not uncommon for these patients to experience a degree of permanent damage to the penis and in some cases to loose the penis completely or need extensive reconstructive surgery.'

Online retailers like Amazon, eBay and Etsy sell dozens of toy rings, made of a variety of materials.

Online retailers have dozens of metal penis rings online with some like this one from Amazon selling for just 6.82

Some experts say there is case for banning the sale of metal penis rings like this two inch example on Ebay due to the dangers they pose

Stainless steel versions  sold in an array of different sizes  can go for as little as 3.29, and be up to 2 inches in diameter.

Ads brag that they are 'great for extending the duration of your erection' and 'help you last longer in bed'.

Others promise to enhance the pleasure of both men and their partners, by providing 'more intense orgasms' and 'stimulation'.

Popular sex shops, such as LoveHoney, also sell their own versions, some of which advise men to slip their testicles through.

Experts warned this is particularly dangerous, however, because it can cause the testicles to be strangled, too.

Dr Viney said there was no urological reason to put testicles past the ring because it wouldn't help maintain an erection.

'This show boating is purely down to personal preference,' he said.

'But if a metal ring is used in this setting, its not only the penis that is at risk but the testicles are also in jeopardy.'

Professor Garaffa said there was case for the sale of metal penis rings to be banned over the potential dangers.

'There is an argument for non elastic rings such as the metal ones to be banned, as the risk of causing damage to the penis and/or the testicles are higher when compared to rings that can stretch and can therefore be more easily removed in case of strangulation,' he said.

Men often use penis rings 'to sustain' an erection.

However, prolonged entrapment of more than 30 minutes could lead to irreversible damage, experts warn.

Keeping the ring on for too long  also known as penile strangulation  can lead to gangrene, when body tissue turns black and dies.

In the most extreme cases, amputation may be needed.

Each case of penis ring entrapment is unique due to the difference in where the ring has been placed on the penis, the material it is made of and how long the patient has been wearing it.

Some cases involve 'home-made' penis rings which can further complicate the situation.

Enterprising men have previously used shower curtain hoops or spin lock collars from dumbbells as DIY penis rings only to later severely regret their choices.

This metal penis ring, sold by adult toy seller Lovehoney is also designed to go past the testicles, a type that sexual health experts warn doesn't noting to address impotency and risks damaging the testes

Online retailer Etsy also has thriving marketplace for metal penis rings from just 7.99

Another key factor is how long a patient waits before going to A&E and any potential damage from attempts to pry themselves loose without proper medical training.

There have been cases where men have waited several hours before seeking medical attention due to embarrassment or shame, which has led to a poorer outcome than if they rushed to an emergency department.

While there is no official record of the number of penis rings incidents, official NHS data shows there were 13 emergency penis amputations performed in England between April 1, 2021 and March 31 this year.

Penis rings made of softer more flexible material are generally considered safer by sexual health experts, because they can stretch compared to their metal counterparts.

This reduces the risk of the penis or testicles suffering a dangerous restriction in blood flow and they are also easier to cut free in an emergency.

Dr Viney said penis rings can be helpful to men suffering from erectile dysfunction alongside other treatments.

But he urged men to talk to their GP first, not only for safety, but because a change in erectile function can also be sign of diabetes, heart disease, or prostate cancer.

'Good quality and fit for purpose rings are easily available online and are not expensive,' he said.

'Please avoid the urge to use a metal curtain pole ring or something similar as the results can be catastrophic.'

Professor Garaffa agreed that men suffering from erectile dysfunction should talk to medical professional rather than attempt to self-medicate with a penis ring.

'There are many solutions available for the management of erectile dysfunction that are more effective than the penis ring,' he said.

An Amazon spokesperson said safety was important to the company and that all products offered on its website are required to comply with applicable laws and regulations.

MailOnline approached LoveHoney, eBay and Etsy for comment but did not receive a response.
New blood donor registrations have soared to a two-decade high in the wake of the nationwide blood shortage.

More than 7,500 people signed up to donate blood for the first time over the last 24 hours, with most appointments for this week now fully booked.

NHS bosses today praised the amazing wave of generosity in response to the health service being dangerously short of supplies.

Hospitals in England have already started to ration stocks under its amber alert status, laying out plans to cancel routine operations. Liverpool University Hospitals is in the process of identifying these patients.

Thousands of procedures such as hip replacements face being postponed in the next month, in a move that could thwart attempts to tackle the record backlog.

Nationally, there is just two days worth of universal blood type O negative, which hospitals rely on in emergencies.

Officials insist the crisis is solely down to staffing shortages and rising Covid rates, as opposed to a lack of donors.

Most donor sessions are full, with some appointments having to be cancelled at the last minute because there aren't enough workers to take samples.

In a desperate attempt to fix the issue, NHS staff in other roles are being moved to the frontline to fill in on a temporary basis.

Some who have left the organisation are even being asked to return until the blood shortage eases, MailOnline understands.

There are around two days worth of universal blood type O negative, which hospitals rely on in emergencies

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) declared its first-ever amber alert status because of the dwindling supplies. As news of the amber alert broke, the blood donor website became very busy, with people placed in a queue

What is the problem with NHS Blood and Transplant staffing and can I help? Since July 1, NHS Blood and Transplant has recruited more than 250 staff in key frontline roles. But turnover continues to be a challenge, with a quarter of staff who joining leaving every year. NHSBT aims to have around 1,296 staff in its blood donation teams, with 837 donor carers. Currently, only 778 donor carers are working. The shortages have led to appointment cancellations because there are not enough staff to take the blood. This has been exacerbated by Covid and other illnesses causing last minute absences. What roles are there? The greatest challenge is in donor carers. The role looks after people giving blood and administers the needle. Donor carers are paid in NHS band three and forum with salaries ranging from 22,000 to 26,000. They are supervised by session nurses who are in NHS band six, earning between 34,000 and 41,000. Do I need a medical background to be a donor carer? No. Donor carers used to need to take a 12-week training course. But this has been rapidly fast tracked to around eight weeks to tackle the current stock challenge. However, volunteers with no training are not currently being asked for. Advertisement

The NHS recruitment webpage for roles at blood centres saw 600 per cent more daily visitors yesterday.

Staff at blood clinics include session nurses who oversee a team of donor carers, whose role involves taking blood and looking after patients.

NHS Blood and Transplant said it currently has around 780 donor carers, 50 short of what it needs for its 25 permanent sites across England.

Donor carers be trained in eight weeks under a new fast-track system brought in for the crisis, and do not need a medical background.

Despite the rush to donate blood, some kind-hearted donors have complained about struggling to get appointments.

NHS Blood and Transplant claimed it has been deliberately reducing donor numbers over the years in an attempt to avoid waste. Blood can only be stored for 35 days.

It said it is focusing instead on making sure there is enough supply of the specific blood types that patients need.

Yesterday, NHSBT chief medical officer Dr Gail Miflin appealed for people with O blood type to donate.

It triggered a wave of interest, leading to half-an-hour queues on the online booking system.

On the blood website, 100,000 people queued to offer help, with some waiting up to an hour to book.

More than 166,000 people also visited the website overall, while 7,500 people registered as new donors on Wednesday  the highest daily spike in new registrations in 20 years.

NHSBT said it was urging donors to keep checking for appointments in the future, including in November and December, especially at permanent donor centres in towns and cities which have extended hours and greater capacity.

An NHSBT spokesperson said: 'This is an amazing response from the public and we have been reminded in the last 24 hours of the incredible goodwill and spirit of the public towards helping patients in times of great difficulty.

'While the amber alert isn't a widespread donor appeal, we want to say a huge thank you to existing donors and those who came forward in their thousands yesterday to register for the first time.

'We'd like to extend a special thanks to those donors who called us to express their empathy and offering to do anything they could to help.

'Staffing and appointment availability continues to be our biggest challenge and the amber alert will remain in place for at least the next four weeks, where unfortunately limited appointment availability to donate will be commonplace due to staffing levels.'

The amber alert will be in place for at least four weeks and until blood stock levels stabilise.

Unless supplies get back on track quickly, NHSBT could upgrade the situation to a 'red' alert, which may see all but the most serious emergency surgeries cancelled.

Trusts have been told to implement emergency plans to protect their dwindling stocks under the first ever 'amber' alert status

Patients' rights charities slammed the management of stocks, questioning why appeals did not come sooner.

Rachel Power, chief executive of the Patients Association, said: 'If long-awaited operations are being cancelled because there isn't enough donated blood available, it smacks of poor planning.

'[It is] especially [bad] when you hear of donors not being able to book an appointment to donate, and people leaving donation centres because there aren't enough staff to take their donation.

'We do question why blood stocks were allowed to drop to a level hospitals are having to plan to cancel non-urgent surgery.

'Could the request for existing O negative and O positive donors not [have] been made earlier?'

Around one in seven people have O negative blood. Air ambulances and emergency response vehicles carry O negative supplies for emergencies.

Officials also claimed maintaining stocks has been a challenge in the wake of Covid, partly due to fewer people visiting collection centres in towns and cities.

Announcing the amber alert yesterday, Dr Miflin told Sky News: 'People who donate blood we are very, very thankful to, and a big thanks to those who have tried to donate today.

'What we are asking today is for donors who are existing donors to go on to our app and donate.

'We do have some availability around our fixed donor sites, so we would be very grateful if people would be prepared to do that.'

What IS an amber alert? Will my operation be cancelled? Why ARE supplies low? And how do I even donate blood? Everything you need to know about the NHS's blood supply crisis

Hospital trusts in England went into crisis mode today after the NHS issued its first ever amber alert for blood supply.

Dwindling blood stocks have lead the health service to ration supply, postponing elective surgeries like hip replacements.

Supply of the universal blood type O are particularly low, making it difficult in emergency procedures and when the blood type of the recipient is unknown.

The alert will continue for at least the next four weeks and will not be lifted until stocks return to manageable levels.

If they continue to fall, a red alert may be issued, which would see only the most serious emergency operations going ahead.

Here, MailOnline explains everything you need to know about the situation.

What is an amber alert?

The NHS has an official traffic-light system for handling low levels of blood.

Currently England is at 'amber', which means hospitals must 'reduce and prioritise' blood use.

It could see elective surgeries, such as hip replacements, cancelled.

But urgent or emergency, cancer and transplant surgeries will all continue to run as normal for now.

Before today, the NHS was at the pre-amber stage. NHS staff were advised to be cautious of wasting stock and to try to hold back blood types that most likely run low.

The next stage, red, would force hospitals to ration blood supplies for emergencies only.

How much blood does the NHS have?

NHS Blood and Transplant said current overall blood stocks in the NHS stand at 3.1 days.

It aims to have at least six days worth of stock.

Levels of O negative blood have dipped below the two-day mark.

Stocks of O positive (2.12), A positive (2.83), B negative (3.29) and AB negative (3.83) are all also below the threshold.

O negative is the universal type which can be given to everyone.

It is vitally important during emergencies and when the blood type of the recipient is unknown.

B positive, an important blood type for treating people with sickle cell disease, has 6.2 days worth of stocks, while A negative (7.12) and AB positive (9.94) are also both above the target.

Is the NHS short of platelets, too?

Meanwhile, blood platelet levels are below the one-day stock minimum for types O positive and A positive.

Platelets control bleeding in our bodies, so can be essential to surviving surgeries such as organ transplant, as well as fighting cancer, chronic diseases, and traumatic injuries.

Donor platelets are given to patients who don't have enough of their own, a condition known as thrombocytopenia, or when a person's platelets aren't working correctly.

But substitutions are available for platelets when they are unavailable, unlike with regular blood stocks.

What does this mean for hospitals?

An email circulated to hospital bosses has told them to postpone elective surgery which is likely to require donor blood.

The emergency measure could see thousands of routine operations cancelled.

This could include joint replacements, which require adequate stocks of blood on hand in case a patient bleeds heavily.

Decisions will be taken by individual hospitals.

But hospitals might instead book in other surgeries, such as hernia repairs, gall-bladder removal and eye surgery, which do not require blood to be on standby.

Already about 6.5million patients are on waiting lists for such operations, with around 300,000 waiting at least a year.

Why are supplies low?

The current amber alert is also thought to be due to ongoing staffing issues, with more staff needed to work at donor sessions.

NHSBT claimed maintaining stocks has been a challenge in the wake of Covid, partly due to fewer people visiting collection centres in towns and cities.

But some donors also had their appointments cancelled more recently because of the lack of staff.

NHSBT say bookings have been dropped at the last minute because of Covid and other sickness absences.

An NHSBT spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Unfortunately we have needed to cancel some appointments  sometimes at the last minute  because of staff sickness absence.

'Ongoing staff shortage issues have been caused by accelerated turnover and the time it takes to recruit and train new colleagues.

'This has left NHS Blood and Transplant vulnerable to short term sickness, which remains high due to increases in Covid cases.

'This has led to unavoidable cancellations of high numbers of donor appointments, impacting collections and stock levels.'

Is there a potential solution?

Experts say one vital tool that could help procedures go ahead is being neglected in NHS hospitals.

A drug called tranexamic acid reduces major blood loss by a quarter when given before an operation.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends it is given to all patients undergoing major operations.

But an audit of 152 NHS hospitals revealed just two thirds of eligible patients were offered the 2-per-dose drug last year.

A report published in British Journal of Anaesthesia last month claimed giving the jab to all hospital surgery patients could prevent 15,000 major bleeds per year.

Lead author Professor Ian Roberts, one of the UK's leading experts on blood loss at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said this could reduce the current and future strains on blood stocks.

He told the Mail On Sunday: 'It makes perfect sense for doctors and patients. It is a cheap, low-risk intervention that will save tens of thousands of blood units, and lives.'

Currently, about 13,000 Britons die every year as a result of a major bleeding during surgery.

He added: 'Not only do more doctors need to offer tranexamic acid, but we want every patient having an operation to know they can, and should, ask for it.'

How can I donate blood?

If you would like to donate blood, you can register online at www.blood.co.uk or call 0300 123 23 23.

When you log into your account, you are able to find an appointment.

As news of the amber alert broke, the blood donor website became very busy, with people placed in a queue.

NHS Blood and Transplant said: 'You can book an appointment to give blood as soon as you register as a blood donor.

'However, the next convenient appointment might not be straightaway. This could be because we already have a good supply of your blood type.

'People need blood all year round so your donation will still save lives, even if your appointment is in a few months' time.'

There are 25 main permanent sites where you can donate. They are in:

Birmingham

Bradford

Bristol

Cambridge

Gloucester

Lancaster

Leeds City Centre

Leicester

Liverpool

London Edgware

London Tooting

London West End

London Westfield Shepherd's Bush

London Westfield Stratford City

Luton

Manchester, Plymouth Grove

Manchester, Norfolk House

Newcastle

Nottingham

Oxford

Plymouth

Poole

Sheffield

Southampton

Stoke

In addition to these 25 main centres, there are also thousands of temporary community-based venues where you can give blood.

What happens when I donate?

When you are comfortable in the chair, a nurse will put a cuff on your arm to maintain a small amount of pressure during donation (this does not measure blood pressure).

They then examine your arm to find a suitable vein and clean it with an antiseptic sponge.

A needle will be inserted into your arm which will collect your blood into a blood bag with your unique donor number.

You should not feel any discomfort or pain. If you do, tell a member of staff.

A scale weighs the blood and stops when you have donated 470ml (or just under a pint). This usually takes between 5-10 minutes.

The needle will be removed and a sterile dressing applied to your arm.

Your donation is transported to one of our blood centres where it is tested and processed before being issued to hospitals.
An ex-NHS worker may be forced to have her hip, part of her pelvis and the rest of her leg removed after doctors dismissed a cancerous lump in her foot.

Sharon Walker, of Nant-y-moel, Wales, noticed the lump on her left foot in January last year and decided to visit her GP after becoming concerned.

The mother-of-two was diagnosed with lymphoedema  a chronic tissue-swelling condition  but she knew something wasn't right and asked a colleague to have a look at it.

They told the 53-year-old to have a scan, which in June revealed that she had a soft-tissue sarcoma  a rare form of cancer.

In August that year, she had surgery to remove the 7cm (2.75in) lump and had a skin graft from her arm attached to the foot.

But doctors did not get all of it and the disease continued to spread up her leg. She found another lump in the lymphnodes in her groin around Christmas.

Ms Walker had to have her foot amputated  but even that did not slow the spread, despite having chemotherapy.

She had to leave her role as a secretary in a hospital diabetes department because of her condition, which has left her wheelchair-bound.

Ms Walker moved back in with her ex-husband because he has a downstairs toilet and her student daughter Ffion, 23, acts as her full-time carer.

Sharon Walker, 53, from Nant-y-moel, Wales, noticed the lump on her foot in January last year and decided to visit her GP after becoming concerned. It turned out to be a soft-tissue sarcoma

A former NHS worker from Nant-y-moel, Wales, may be forced to have her hip, part of her pelvis and the rest of her leg removed after doctors initially thought cancer in her foot was just swelling (left). she had surgery to remove the 7cm (2.75in) lump and had a skin graft from her arm attached to the foot (right)

The mother-of-two was diagnosed with lymphoedema  a chronic tissue-swelling condition  but she knew something wasn't right and asked a colleague to have a look at it

WHAT IS SARCOMA? Sarcomas are uncommon types of cancer which can grow anywhere in the body  on muscle, bone, tendons, blood vessels and fatty tissue. Bone sarcomas are rare and affect approximately 670 people per year  but there are other types of bone cancers. There are around 100 different types of sarcomas and about 5,300 people are year are diagnosed with them in the UK. Sarcomas can be treated well if people catch them early, but many people do not get diagnosed until their tumours are about the size of a tin of beans. Only slightly more than half of people with sarcomas (55 per cent) survive for five years or more after their diagnosis. Symptoms of sarcomas can include bone pain, swellings or lumps, and restricted movement if it is growing near a joint. Treatment may involve typical cancer therapies such as surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Source: Sarcoma UK Advertisement

Now, she faces the terrifying possibility of having the rest of her leg, hip and part of her pelvis removed if her last chemotherapy sessions in December do not prove successful.

Around 4,300 people in the UK and 13,000 in the US are diagnosed with soft-tissue sarcomas every year.

They can be caused by genetic conditions like neurofibromatosis type 1 and retinoblastoma, as well as previous radiotherapy for a different cancer.

Exposure to some herbicides also increase the risk, while the chance of developing one also increases with age.

Treatments include having surgery to remove the tumour, as well as radiotherapy and chemotherapy to kill off any remaining cancer cells.

Recalling her ordeal, Ms Walker said: 'One day I went to put my shoes on, and one felt quite tight, so I visited my GP who diagnosed me with lymphedema [a tissue swelling] but I knew it wasn't that.

'He recommended I keep resting it and told me to make sure it was elevated above my heart to reduce the swelling, I just looked at him like "what the hell".

'During this time, I worked for the NHS, so when I was at work, I got one of the podiatrists to have a look and they said I needed a scan. I was referred and had one the following week.

'When I got the results, they diagnosed me with a sarcoma which really scared me.

'By this point it was very swollen, so they referred me to a plastic surgeon at the Morriston Hospital in Swansea.'

Ms Walker had a CT scan, biopsy and ultrasound before finding out an operation was needed because the lump was continuing to grow.

Surgeons took a flap of skin from her arm to cover the part of her foot where the tumour was taken out from in August.

She said: 'It was at least seven centimetres when the doctor's performed the surgery and skin graft.

'During surgery I had all the muscles taken out of my toes so I couldn't move them, and I'm now left with a massive scar on my arm from where they removed flesh for the skin graft.'

She had to have her foot amputated  but even that did not slow the spread as agonising, pus-filled lumps formed up her leg despite having chemotherapy

However, Ms Walker's problems worsened.

She said: 'They decided to amputate my foot. I couldn't believe it, but I just knew I had to do it if it would save my life.'

Despite being petrified of the possibilities she faces, Ms Walker states she'd rather live a life disabled than think about the morbid alternative.

She said: 'The thought of this operation scares me, but I would have it if it would save my life.

'I have another scan coming up which will tell me if the cancer has spread so fingers crossed it hasn't.'
It works by teaching the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells

The cancer vaccine will be personalized according to each patient's tumor cells

Pharma giants Merck and Moderna have teamed up to develop a cancer vaccine that is based on the same tech used in Covid shots.

The new shot  designed for people with high-risk melanoma  is in the second of three trials and a verdict on whether it works or not is expected within months.

It harnesses mRNA technology that uses pieces of genetic code from patients' tumors to teach the body to fight off the cancer.

The vaccine is given to people post-surgery to prevent the tumor from returning, and it is tailored to each patient, meaning no two shots will be the same.

This means it could be hugely expensive. Similar cancer vaccines being trialed cost around $100,000 (91,000) to make each individual shot.

Merck and Moderna will share the production and commercial costs and split the profits if it goes to market. The collaboration has got markets excited, sending Moderna's shares soaring 16 per cent Wednesday.

MRNA is leading the frontier of potential cancer cures after the tech was rapidly accelerated during the pandemic, leading to the two most successful Covid vaccines  made by Pfizer and Moderna.

The new shot  designed for people with high-risk melanoma  is in the second of three trials and a verdict on whether it works or not is expected within months. It harnesses mRNA technology that delivers pieces of genetic code from patients' tumors into their cells and teaches the body to fight off the cancer. The vaccine is given to people post-surgery to prevent the tumor from returning, and it is tailored to each patient, meaning no two shots will be the same

The collaboration between Merck and Moderna got markets excited, sending Moderna's shares soaring 16 per cent Wednesday

As part of the updated deal, Merck will pay $250million to Moderna for joint rights to the cancer vaccine.

The two drug makers have been running trials of the shot together after forming a 'strategic partnership' in 2016.

In the latest phase 2 study, 157 patients given personalized vaccines alongside Merck's immunotherapy drug Keytruda.

How mRNA tech could cure cancer For over a decade, cancer researchers have been working on individualized cancer vaccines, using technology including mRNA. Messenger RNA, or mRNA, is genetic material which tells the body how to make proteins. The mRNA Covid vaccine teaches cells in the body how to make a protein which sets off an immune response. The immune response generates antibodies, so that if the body is exposed to the real virus later, the body will recognize it and know how to fight it off. With a cancer vaccine, researchers aim to bring out an immune response to fight abnormal proteins, known as neoantigens, made by cancer cells. The manufacturing process for the vaccine begins by identifying the genetic mutations in a patient's tumor cells that could release neoantigens. The patient will have had the tumor surgically removed, meaning scientists can easily look at the tumor's cells. Computer algorithms judge which neoantigens are most likely to latch onto receptors on white bloods cells and trigger an immune response. The personalized jab can hold genetic sequences for up to 34 different neoantigens. It is hoped that the mRNA vaccine will then activate white blood cells which can recognize individual cancer cells thanks to the cancer cells' neoantigens. The vaccine will effectively teaches the immune system that cancer cells are different to the rest of the body. This will hopefully not be too hard, as neoantigens do not form on normal cells. Once tissue samples have been gathered from a patient, it takes between one and two months to make a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine. A previous Moderna-sponsored study of a personalized cancer vaccine on patients with head and neck cancer saw the biotech company produce each individualized shot in around six weeks. Because of the specialized nature of the vaccines, each one can cost up to $100,000. Source: National Cancer Institute, CDC Advertisement

They are being compared to a control group who also have high-risk melanoma but are only being given Keytruda. The trial has been going on for the past year.

If it works, the vaccine will be trialed in a much larger group involving thousands of patients.

Moderna was able to develop, trial and seal approval of its Covid shot within the space of a year. The vaccine uses DNA taken from each patient's tumor.

This genetic snippet is then inserted into messenger RNA  the molecule that carries a cells instructions for making proteins.

Once inside the body, the mRNA delivers this piece of code to human cells, teaching them to recognize cancer cells and attack them if it returns.

The hope is that the body will be able to recognize and destroy them before they can start to multiply and form tumours.

The vaccine is being given in nine doses every three weeks, along with one course of Keytruda every three weeks.

Dr Stephen Hoge, Modernas president, said he was 'excited about the future and the impact mRNA can have as a new treatment paradigm in the management of cancer'.

With the Covid vaccine market expected to die down in the near future, Moderna has been turning its attention to non-Covid vaccines.

The biotech giants stock surged 16 per cent when the cancer vaccine announcement was made yesterday morning, and were still up by around 10 per cent in the afternoon.

Moderna and Mercks joint venture could be a cause for optimism, but Americans appear to be suffering vaccine fatigue after constant Covid jab rollouts.

The White House's lead Covid chief, Dr Ashish Jha, issued a warning on Tuesday that the pandemic is not over in response to the US' sluggish booster vaccine uptake.

The rollout of the bivalent booster vaccines that were designed to perform better against Omicron variants has largely been a failure to this point.

Most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that only 11 million Americans have received the shot so far.

That represents fewer than 10 per cent of everyone who is eligible for the jabs.

Meanwhile, the American Cancer Society said the rates of melanoma have been growing significantly over the past years.

It estimates that about 99,780 new melanomas will be diagnosed (around 57,180 in men and 42,600 in women) in the US in 2022.

And about 7,650 people are expected to die of melanoma (roughly 5,080 men and 2,570 women).

You are more than 20 times more likely to get melanoma if you are White compared to if you are African Americans.

The lifetime risk of contracting melanoma is about 2.6 per cent (one in 38) for Whites, 0.1 per cent (one in 1,000) for Blacks, and 0.6 per cent (one in 167) for Hispanics.

The type of cancer is more common in men, but before age 50 it is more prevalent in women.

Merck and Moderna will share the production and commercial costs and split the profits if it goes to market

The two drug makers have been running trials of the shot together after forming a 'strategic partnership' in 2016

The older you are, the more at risk you are from melanoma.

The average age of diagnosis is 65, but it is not unusual in those under 30 either.

It is one of the more common cancers in young adults, particularly young women.

Melanoma occurs after the DNA in skin cells is damaged (typically due to harmful UV rays) and then not repaired so it triggers mutations that can form malignant tumors.

It is currently treated in a few different ways.

The melanoma can be removed by removing the entire section of the tumor or by the surgeon removing the skin layer by layer. When a surgeon removes it layer by layer, this helps them figure out exactly where the cancer stops so they don't have to remove more skin than is necessary.

The patient can decide to use a skin graft if the surgery has left behind discoloration or an indent.

Immunotherapy, radiation treatment or chemotherapy may be needed if the cancer reaches stage III or IV.

That means that the cancerous cells have spread to the lymph nodes or other organs in the body.

Other trials of the cancer shot have shown it isn't effective in colorectal cancer patients, but it did show promising results for head and neck cancer.

In the first 10 participants, two had their tumors completely disappear, and a further five had their tumors shrink.

In 2010, the FDA approved sipuleucel-T, a vaccine used to treat prostate cancer that has spread.

But the treatment, available to late stage cancer patients, does not appear to lead to tumors shrinking and only gives men who receive it a few additional months to live.

Studies are now looking to see if the shot can be used in people with prostate cancer at earlier stages.

Dr Stephen Hoge, Modernas president, said: We have been collaborating with Merck on personalized cancer vaccines (PCVs) since 2016, and together we have made significant progress in advancing mRNA-4157 as an investigational personalized cancer treatment used in combination with Keytruda.

With data expected this quarter on PCV, we continue to be excited about the future and the impact mRNA can have as a new treatment paradigm in the management of cancer. Continuing our strategic alliance with Merck is an important milestone as we continue to grow our mRNA platform with promising clinical programs in multiple therapeutic areas.
A mother-of-one left horrifically scarred in an acid attack has been reunited with the hero British surgeon who helped rebuild her face.

Kanwal Qayyum, 40, was doused with sulphuric acid while she slept by a bitter former friend who did not want her to better herself as an air hostess in 2011.

She lost her nose in the attack in Pakistan and surgeons have spent the past 11 years painstakingly rebuilding her features using tissue from her thigh.

One of the team helping her free of charge was hair transplant surgeon Dr Asim Shahmalak, 61, from Manchester.

Dr Shahmalak is best known for his work with celebrity patients like Coronation Street actor Jack P Shepherd.

He is one of only a handful of surgeons in the world who can carry out eyelash and eyebrow transplants.

The medic travelled to Karachi  where he was born  to create two new eyebrows and a new eyelashes in the left eyelid free of charge for Kanwal from hair taken from the back of her scalp.

The pair met again in Pakistan earlier this month at a charity event for the Depilex Smileagain Foundation.

Mother of one Kanwal Qayyum left horrifically scarred in an acid attack has been reunited with the hero British surgeon Dr Asim Shahmalak (pictured together) who helped rebuild her face

Kanwal Qayyum, 40, was injured in 2011 after being doused with sulphuric acid while she slept by a bitter former friend who did not want her to better herself as an air hostess

She lost her nose in the attack in Pakistan and surgeons have spent the past 11 years painstakingly rebuilding her features using tissue from her thigh

South Asia's acid attack problem The problem of acid attacks is a rising problem in South Asia. Despite a law making acid violence a separate offence with a minimum penalty of 10 years in jail, and a Supreme Court ruling on the regulation and sale of dangerous chemicals, acids are still bought and sold without the required licences in India. Experts are calling on India to follow neighbours Pakistan and Bangladesh, where existing laws on the sale of acid were strengthened. Indeed, Bangladesh, where there were 492 attacks in 2002, had just 75 attacks last year - thanks to the introduction of the death penalty as punishment for the crime. In Pakistan, stronger legislation has meant three times as many women now report attacks. Advertisement

Ms Qayyum said: 'I cannot thank the doctor enough  he has completely transformed my face and I love my new eyebrows and new eyelashes.'

Dr Shahmalk, who runs the Crown Clinic near Manchester Airport, said: 'Kanwal is one of the bravest women I have ever met.

'It was wonderful to hear how she has rebuilt her life following the attack and is now working successfully in a textile company.'

The medic was honoured with a Point of Light Award by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his mercy missions helping acid attack victims.

He was also reunited with Niaz Bano, 52, who lost her left eye after being pelted with acid disguised in a cup of tea in a row over her daughter's wedding.

Surgeons have spent the last ten years rebuilding her face and Dr Shahmalak filled in gaps in both her eyebrows with hair transplanted from her scalp.

He said: 'Niaz's face has been transformed by the surgery. She has bounced back brilliantly from the attacks and now runs a successful grocery store from her home.

'I gave some symmetry to her face by performing transplants on both eyebrows.'

Niaz said: 'I love my new brows and it was great to meet Dr Shahmalak to say thank-you.'

Dr Shahmalak met several new patients who are seeking treatment in Pakistan with the charity Depilex Smileagain Foundation.

The charity is run by Pakistani businesswoman Masarrat Misbah with help from his brother Wasim.

New patients include Muhammad Usman, a 28-year-old computer designer, who lost an eye in an acid attack and has so far had four operations to rebuild his face.

Acid attack victim Kanwal Qayum in Pakistan earlier this month holding a picture of herself before she was attacked

Kanwal Qayyum during mid treatment after several surgeries

Dr Shahmalak (pictured operating on another patient) travelled to Karachi  where he was born  to create two new eyebrows and a new eyelashes in the left eyelid free of charge for Kanwal from hair taken from the back of her scalp

Kanwal Qayum with Pakistani businesswoman Masarrat Misbah from the Depilex Smileagain Foundation, which she founded

Maira Afzal, 19, was just two years old when she fell in a hot oven made of bricks, losing all the hair at the front of her scalp.

The team at Depilex are working with her to transplant new hair around her hairline.

Dr Shahmalak said: 'I am part of a big team of surgeons who are doing everything we can to rebuild these people's lives after acid attacks and tragic accidents.

'Sadly these acid attacks are increasingly common in Pakistan. You can buy deadly sulphuric acid for as little as 15p a bottle with no questions asked.

'I have travelled from Manchester several times with a team from Crown Clinic to perform surgery and we have been able to train local medics in our techniques.

'All the really hard work is done by Masarrat and her team at Depilex, who not only provide surgery but the practical support the victims need such as help finding a job after the surgery.'

Dr Shahmalak, a father of two, lives in Cheadle with his wife Rubina, who is a Manchester GP.
A national Adderall shortage has been declared across the US  after at least half a dozen drug makers said they were running out.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finally acknowledged the problem following months of anecdotal reports of desperate patients rationing the drug or shopping around up to 40 pharmacies for the drugs.

Some ADHD sufferers have already admitted being tempted to turn to the black market  where drugs are spiked with dangerous substances like fentanyl.

The FDA said it would 'continue to use all the tools we have available to help keep supply available for patients' - which could include looking for new suppliers for the US market.

Demand for Adderall rocketed during the pandemic when the move to telephone appointments made it easier to get prescriptions. Labor shortages and supply chain issues may have also had an effect on supply.

Adderall is a schedule two drug in the US  because of the risk of addiction  meaning there are limits on its production.

At least 2million Americans are estimated to take Adderall, which is prescribed to treat ADHD or rare sleep disorders.

But more and more otherwise healthy people are getting hold of the drug to help them 'power through' work and studying.

The above shows the number of prescriptions for Adderall given to age groups by year. It shows under-21s (light green), 22 to 44 year olds (light blue) and over-45s (dark blue)

Patients have been raising concerns over Adderall shortages since August, but the FDA only recognised the shortage this week. (file image)

Adderall was heralded as a 'game-changer' for ADHD sufferers when it was approved in the US in 1996.

It is taken as either a fast-acting pill two to three times a day, or a slow-acting version which patients swallow once a day.

It works by boosting levels of the hormones dopamine and norephinephrine in the brain  known as 'feel good hormones'  to help ease ADHD symptoms.

But coming off the drug can cause agitation, higher appetite and tiredness.

What is Adderall? Adderall is an amphetamines drug used to help people concentrate and avoid unwanted beahviors. It was heralded as a 'game-changer' when it hit the market back in 1996. Who takes the drug? The drug is prescribed for people who are diagnosed with ADHD. But addiction centers say many otherwise healthy people are taking the drug to help with their work or social life. How does it work? It works by boosting levels of 'feel good hormones' dopamine and norephinephrine in the brain. This helps ADHD sufferers to concentrate better and avoids behavioral issues. How is it taken? It is available as a fast-acting pill, taken two to three times a day. Or it can be taken as a long-lasting pill, taken once a day. These are priced from $12.68 per 30 tablets, or about 42 cents a pill. What is it like coming off the drug? People who come off the drug are left in a heightened state of agitation. They also have slowed brain and body movements, a higher appetite and unusual levels of tiredness. Advertisement

Shortages of the drug were first reported by suppliers in August.

But the FDA did not raise the alarm until yesterday  with supplies expected to be disrupted until March 2023.

Teva Pharmaceuticals  the biggest US supplier  started running out last year, which it blamed on heightened demand and labor shortages at its factories.

At least five manufacturers are suffering shortages now, the FDA says.

Patients are already very concerned over the shortage  and looking for alternatives.

Ian Wrobel, a 33-year-old public service worker, told Vice he had even considered turning to the black market.

The Missouri resident has been unable to fill his prescription since the end of August, leaving him relying on an 'unholy' amount of caffeine.

He considered using the black market for after visiting more than a dozen pharmacies to find none had the drug available.

Another patient told the Insider they had to visit more than 40 drug stores before getting their prescription.

Doctors in Pennsylvania told CBS that some of their patients were trying to ration the drugs.

Declaring the shortage, the FDA said it was in 'frequent communication' with manufacturers.

'Other manufacturers continue to produce amphetamine mixed salts,' it added, 'but there is not sufficient supply to continue to meet the US market demand through these producers'.

It suggested that patients should consider 'alternatives' including switching to longer-lasting Adderall.

Half of the pills manufactured by Teva  or seven out of 14  are currently experiencing supply issues which are not expected to abate until March.

Revealing the labor shortage back in August, the company claimed: 'We expect full recovery for all inventory orders in the coming weeks, at which point we expect no disruption at pharmacy level.'

Novartis Sandoz  the second-biggest supplier  said it was also struggling to meet demand this week but did not explain why.

Others struggling to fill orders are Alvogen, Epic Pharma, Rhodes Pharma and SpecGX.

Data shows prescriptions for Adderall have rocketed in the Covid pandemic.

Figures from Trilliant Health shows among 22 to 44 year olds prescriptions rose from a million to more than 1.2million over the pandemic.

The Lighthouse Recovery Institute in Florida blames the rise in large part on more prescriptions being handed out due to telemedicine.

'Some people even use it instead of other daily stimulants, like coffee,' it says.

Sam Escobar wrote in the Insider today that she had to visit over 40 pharmacies just to get hold of her standard prescription.
North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un warned Thursday that his troops are ready for real battle, a day after the nation's latest missile launch.

North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) cited Kim Jong Un's remarks that his "nuclear combat forces" showcased their "full preparedness for actual war to bring the enemies under their control."

Kim reportedly supervised the Wednesday test of long-range cruise missiles across waters west of the Korean Peninsula, per KCNA, which led to his heated speech--his first regarding North Korea's weapons program in recent months, according to CNN.

The North Korean state media finally broke its six months of silence about the latest round of missile launches on Monday, which were part of a series of practice firings meant to show Pyongyang's preparedness to launch tactical nuclear warheads at prospective targets in South Korea.

KCNA stated recent North Korea missile tests demonstrated its forces were "ready to hit and wipe out" the designated targets at the specified moment.

North Korea launched two cruise missiles over the West Sea, also known as the Yellow Sea, around 2 a.m. local time on Wednesday, according to Kim Jun-rak, a spokeswoman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The US Indo-Pacific Command did not react to Wednesday's alleged test.

According to the KCNA report, the cruise missiles tested on Wednesday followed oval and figure-8 trajectories for about three hours above the sea before striking their target.

A Clear Warning For Pyongyang's Rivals

Kim Jong-un stated that the recent North Korea missile tests are a "clear warning" to North Korea's adversaries and a showcase of the "absolute reliability" of his country's military power. He also called for the continued expansion of the nuclear weapons program to decisively deter any major military crisis or war catastrophe at any time, The Japan Times reported.

Read Also: Germany Flatly Rejects Putin's Offer To Renew Energy Supplies Via Nord Stream 2 Pipeline



The cruise missiles tested on Wednesday do not re-enter the atmosphere after leaving it, as do ballistic missiles. Jet engines power cruise missiles, making them more agile than ballistic missiles thanks to their continual propellants. However, cruise missiles are often slower than their ballistic counterparts.

UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles, but they have not yet extended to the country's new cruise missile program.

North Korea's Increased Weapons Testing Calls for Swift Action

This year, North Korea has conducted more nuclear and missile tests than ever before. The newest evidence that Pyongyang is preparing for its first atomic test since 2017 is a flurry of missile launches, including one new type of ballistic missile that flew over Japan on October 4, per NHK.

Professor Leif-Eric Easly of Ewha University in Seoul commented that it would be a mistake to brush off North Korea nuclear weapons testing frenzy as mere saber-rattling, Al Jazeera reported.

He noted that North Korea's threats are "a chronic and worsening" peace and stability issue in Asia, hence it "must not be ignored." The professor also called on South Korea, Japan, and the United States to boost "international cooperation on military deterrence and economic sanctions" to address the problem.

Related Article: North Korean Workers in Russia Rush To Escape After Hearing They Will Be Deployed in Russian-Controlled Ukraine Areas

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Polio is continuing to spread across New York in the first outbreak to hit the state in more than half a century.

Dozens more samples have been picked up in wastewater over the past month including within New York City in Brooklyn and a 'small area' of Queens.

Overall there have been cases detected in five counties across the state, with the total number of positive samples now standing at 70.

Not all positive samples are a new case, because one person can shed the virus multiple times.

Only one man has been diagnosed with the virus so far, a patient in his 20s from Rockland County who fell ill in June and was left paralyzed.

He is thought to have caught the virus in the US making him the first patient to do since 1979.

Polio is highly contagious spreading through droplets from sneezes and coughs  just like Covid  or through water, objects or food contaminated with faeces.

Most people who catch the virus experience no symptoms, but in rare cases it can infect the spinal cord and cause paralysis. There is no effective treatment, but highly effective vaccines are available.

New York health chiefs say there is 'expanding community spread' of polio within the state. Dr Adam Ratner, a pediatrician at NYU Langone, told DailyMail.com that polio was now spreading in the state and 'probably' within New York City.

About one in five children under two years old have not been vaccinated against polio in New York state, posing the risk of onwards transmission.

The above map shows the five counties in New York that have detected polio in their wastewater. These are Rockland, Sullivan, Orange, New York City and Nassau

The polio being found across New York state is known as a vaccine-derived strain.

This is a virus that spreads when someone who is vaccinated with a live virus uses a piece of virus sheds some of the pathogen and it spreads to other people.

It is less likely to cause severe disease than the wild-type, but if it is allowed to spread it could evolve to become more like the original form.

The US stopped using the live jab in 2000 in favor of the inactivated polio vaccine, but other nations  such as Pakistan and Afghanistan  continue to use this jab.

Wastewater surveillance has been running in New York state since the start of the Covid pandemic, initially to help keep an eye on infections.

But 70 polio samples have been detected so far across five counties in the south of New York state, according to latest data up to October 7.

Health chiefs said the mounting positive tests put an 'exclamation mark' over the need to get vaccinated.

'This underscores the urgency of every adult and child, particularly those where poliovirus has been identified, getting immunized and staying up to date with their polio immunization,' they said.

Asked whether the virus was spreading in New York, Dr Ratner told DailyMail.com: 'Yes, that is the evidence that we have so far.

'We have only had one case of paralytic polio from a while back so far, but there are 70 positive samples from wastewater.'

Asked whether it was spreading in New York State he said: 'Probably, It is certainly in the wastewater. The fact we have not seen more paralytic cases doesn't mean that it is not spreading in the population because paralysis is a rare event.'

Health officials fear it is only a matter of time before more cases are diagnosed due to the ongoing detections in wastewater.

Most detections have been in Rockland county (37 positive samples), which is about 37 miles from New York City.

But the second-highest number of positive samples are in neighboring Orange County (16) and its neighbor Sullivan County (8).

It has been picked up in sewage water since May, and risen more than six-fold from June to August this year.

Six samples from September have tested positive so far, but this data is incomplete as more testing is being carried out at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The virus has not been detected in neighboring Connecticut or New Jersey, both states confirmed to DailyMail.com today.

A total of 63 cases have been linked to the one confirmed case, although health chiefs say he was likely not the source.

It is not clear whether the other samples are just too small to get genetic information or if they are different to the known case.

The above map shows polio vaccination rates across the city of New York for children aged six months to five years. The World Health Organization says at least 80 per cent need to be inoculated to stop the virus from spreading

This graphic shows every country that has detected polio in 2022. It only shows nations that reported vaccine-derived strains, or weakened forms of polio from a jab no longer used in the United States that spread to other people

The latest positive samples were revealed by State Health Commissioner Dr Mary Bassett and New York City Health Commissioner Dr Ashwin Vasan.

They said in a statement: 'These findings put an alarming exclamation point on what we have already observed: Unvaccinated people are at a real and unnecessary risk.

'We have seen more New Yorkers getting vaccinated.

'These latest results are a searing reminder that there is no time to waste, especially for young children, who must be brought up to date with vaccinations right away.

'Paralysis changes life forever. Fortunately, the response is simple: Get vaccinated against polio.'

At the end of August New York had detected just 43 positive samples of polio from wastewater.

New York has declared a state of emergency over the spread of the virus, which has seen 28,000 come forward for the jab so far.

The US has now been added to the World Health Organization's polio list alongside the Congo, Yemen and other countries.

The polio vaccine is given in a course of three doses with one booster.

Children are called for their first jab at two months old, their second at four months, and third between six and 18 months.

The booster dose is administered between the ages of four and six years.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says at least 80 per cent of people need to be vaccinated against polio to prevent its spread.

But rates are below this in Rockland, Orange, Sullivan and Nassau counties where the virus has been detected.
Life is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way

by Kieran Setiya (Hutchinson Heinemann 16.99, 240pp)

There is an old parable about a farmer whose horse runs away. Such bad luck! say his neighbours. Maybe, replies the farmer.

Then the horse returns, bringing two other horses with it. Such good luck! say the neighbours. Again, the farmer replies: Maybe. His son tries to ride one of the untamed horses and breaks his leg. Such bad luck! say the neighbours. Maybe, comes the reply. The sons broken leg means he avoids having to fight in a war. The neighbours call it bad luck  the farmer offers his usual reply. And so on

Kieran Setiya's new book examines how philosophy can help with life's problems. Philosophy can only be of use if it recognises that much of life is unpleasant

The story is one of those cited by the philosophy professor Kieran Setiya in this book examining how philosophy can help us come to terms with lifes problems. The farmers theme of it all depends how you look at it is also echoed by the 1920s thinker Frank Ramsey: I dont feel the least humble before the vastness of the heavens. The stars may be large but they cannot think or love.

Meanwhile, concepts that we think of as good can actually have bad side-effects. Greta Thunberg thinks that hope can be dangerous, as on its own hope encourages inaction. I dont want you to be hopeful, she says. I want you to panic.

Setiyas main point is that philosophy can only be of use if it recognises that much of life is unpleasant. The densely argued chapters are headed One of his themes is the chronic pain with which he himself has lived since his mid-20s (hes now in his mid-40s). Dont buy this if youre looking for The Little Book Of Happiness.

But I did like the way Setiya is prepared to criticise the rock stars of philosophy, all the way up to Plato and Aristotle, for their this is how we would live if the world was perfect theorising. He points out that the best is often out of reach... we need not live our best lives to be more resilient; and we have to face the facts.

Kieran Setiya's book examines how philosophy can help us come to terms with lifes problems

For one of those facts he turns to the poet Robert Frost: When it comes to human suffering, Theres no way out but through.

The chapter on failure mentions the first two of Setiyas driving tests  on neither occasion did he make it out of the test centre car park. This was inconvenient, as his wife was nine months pregnant at the time. When he eventually did drive her to hospital, his learners licence was only valid because she herself was in the car.

There are also one or two glimpses into what life as a professor of philosophy is actually like. After writing a piece for the New York Times, Setiya was criticised by Buddhists because he quoted Aristotle rather than Buddhism. As he says, If Buddhism, for you, means leaving irate comments on op-ed articles, you may be doing it wrong.

And on finding out what he does for a living, people at parties always ask Setiya: What does it all mean? His reply? We figured that out in the 1950s, but we have to keep it secret or wed be out of a job.
HITLER'S AMERICAN GAMBLE by Brendan Simms and Charlie Laderman (Penguin 12.99, 528pp)

HITLER'S AMERICAN GAMBLE

by Brendan Simms and Charlie Laderman (Penguin 12.99, 528pp)

Japans air attack on the American fleet at the naval base at Pearl Harbor is often seen as a turning point in World War II.

The U.S. was officially a neutral country then, but the next day, December 8, 1941, America declared war on Japan. On December 11, Hitler declared war on the U.S., although he had no obligation to do so, according to his treaties with Japan.

In their moment-bymoment account of events across four continents, Brendan Simms and Charlie Laderman argue that those five days were the crucible for a new global alignment that would dramatically alter the course of the conflict and reverberate far beyond the war, with implications we still feel today.

Drawing on personal accounts, they give a vivid narrative of a crisis that ensured the war became the 20th centurys most devastating global conflagration.

THIS EDEN by Ed OLoughlin (Riverrun 8.99, 400pp)

THIS EDEN

by Ed OLoughlin (Riverrun 8.99, 400pp)

This cyberthriller begins like a romcom: university students leave their studies to take advantage of an unexpected snowfall. After a snowball fight, Alice and Michael pair off and are soon a couple. Butgradually a jarring note emerges: this story of young love is told as though by someone keeping surveillance.

The narrative takes a more sinister turn with Alices mysterious death. A computer hacktivist, she was working for a figure she loathed: Campbell Fess, the founder of a tech conglomerate.

Michaels search for the truth about Alices fate finds him travelling the world, menaced by the same sinister forces that she had tried to expose.

Fast-paced, elegant and thought-provoking, This Eden asks searching questions about money, power and the nature of truth.

PITY THE BEAST by Robin McLean (And Other Stories 12.99, 384pp)

PITY THE BEAST

by Robin McLean (And Other Stories 12.99, 384pp)

On a Montana ranch, a mare is struggling to give birth to a foal that is too big. Ranchers Dan and his wife Ginny are trying to help, while rowing about Ginnys recent infidelity.

Neighbours arrive, offering advice and help, and cracking open beers. As the foal is born dead and thrown into a lime pit, the party turns ugly.

Brutalised and assaulted, Ginny, too, is thrown into the pit and left for dead. But she is not dead: in the morning she crawls out of the pit, steals a horse and a gun and rides away, pursued by a vengeful posse.

Robin McLeans raw debut novel vividly subverts the conventions of the Western tradition, combining brutal violence with lyrical descriptions of the epic landscape, and the sardonic reflections of animals on the folly of human nature.
JACKDAW by Tade Thompson (Cheerio 15, 160pp)

JACKDAW

by Tade Thompson (Cheerio 15, 160pp)

Buckle up for this darkly weird thunderbolt of a novella, narrated by one Tade Thompson, a British-Nigerian psychiatrist and science fiction writer who just happens to share a name with the author. The novel kicks off when, contracted to write about Francis Bacon, Tade finds himself compulsively drawn to photographs of one of the painters models.

His murky obsession plays havoc not only with his day job but his home life as a married father, as he plunges into a series of sexual experiments that rake up the painful legacy of a troubled childhood.

The sheer unpredictability of the narrative is sustained by the easy-reading clarity of Thompsons voice, wholly disarming as it toys gleefully with the books autobiographical overlap.

By the end, you can practically taste the tang of scorched earth in the air, as Thompsons acknowledgements thank his family for putting up with any discomfort the book may generate.

THE LAST CHAIRLIFT by John Irving (Scribner 25, 912pp)

THE LAST CHAIRLIFT

by John Irving (Scribner 25, 912pp)

Irvings last novel was a bit of a stinker  if you dont believe me, look up Ysenda Maxtone Graham on how John Irving Spoilt My Christmas (as the headline to her review ran).

The Last Chairlift isnt his best book, but its no holiday-wrecker, even if its 900 pages could have used an editorial nip and tuck or two.

The U.S.-Canadian writers comingof-age narratives have always mixed sex, sentimentality and helter-skelter plot points pulled from a hat.

Here, a writer, Adam, intent on discovering his biological father, visits the Colorado hotel where he was conceived by his mother, a gay ski instructor with a queasily hands-on involvement in his romantic life.

While the plot up-ends sex and gender norms, its frictionlessly wellmeaning implications ultimately serve to cancel out the books antic energy  like someone running very, very fast on the spot.

EVERYTHING THE LIGHT TOUCHES by Janice Pariat (The Borough Press 14.99, 512pp)

EVERYTHING THE LIGHT TOUCHES

by Janice Pariat (The Borough Press 14.99, 512pp)

Zig-zagging around the centuries, this globetrotting epic mixes fictional and real-life figures to portray four travellers in search of answers to big questions about humanity and the meaning of life.

We toggle between the 18th-century German writer Goethe and Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, as well as Evie, an Edwardian science student in the Himalayas, and Shai, a Tinder-swiping drifter seeking her roots in present day India.

Pariats attempt to inhabit historical luminaries brings to mind Daniel Kehlmanns comic bestseller Measuring The World, about two German Enlightenment thinkers. In scope and structure, though, the effect resembles a portmanteau novel a la David Mitchells Cloud Atlas. You cant fault the ambition, but the result lacks spark  some elusive sense of humour, or vital jeopardy, as the novel delicately traces the unlikely connections between its disparate quartet.

Pariats sonorous lyricism is beautiful, for sure, yet her cool, slick polish ultimately serves to keep us at arms length from the cast.
Rank Group is facing a 34million energy bill amid what bosses described as a 'challenging' backdrop.

The bingo hall and casino firm has reported a surge in energy costs and weaker customer spending at its casinos.

Shares in the company, which runs Mecca Bingo, fell 10.8 per cent as bosses said they expect 'challenging' conditions to continue 'in the months ahead'.

Unlucky for some: Mecca Bingo-owner Rank Group has reported a surge in energy costs and weaker customer spending at its casinos

Rank recorded a 2 per cent increase in group like-for-like revenues to 165.7million over the three months to September 30.

Rank told shareholders it expects customers' discretionary spending 'to remain under significant pressure this year' despite the positive impact of energy bill support for households.

The gambling and gaming firm said its own costs have continued to soar, with its energy bill expected to rise to 34million for the current year, up from 23million.
GSK hailed a major win for its drug pipeline after announcing truly exceptional results in a key trial for its vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

RSV is common and usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms.

But the disease can become serious and is a leading cause of pneumonia in toddlers and the elderly, causing around 8,000 deaths in the UK each year.

Trial boost: A phase III clinical study of GSK's jab for RSV showed the vaccine caused a 94.1% reduction in the severe version of the disease

A phase III clinical study of the pharmaceutical groups jab for RSV showed the vaccine caused a 94.1 per cent reduction in the severe version of the disease while the overall effectiveness was 82.6 per cent. The results were a boost for chief executive Emma Walmsley.

These are truly exceptional results given that today RSV remains one of the major infectious diseases without a vaccine, despite over 60 years of research, said Tony Wood, GSKs chief scientific officer.

He added the vaccine had the potential to reduce the significant global burden of RSV in older adults, many of whom have a high risk of developing severe illness due to other conditions.

The results put GSKs jab ahead of US rival Pfizer, which in August reported that its own RSV vaccine was 66.7 per cent effective overall. Pfizers jab was also 85.7 per cent effective at preventing severe disease.

GSK is planning to submit the trial data to regulators by the end of this year. If it receives approval, the vaccine could become the first for RSV anywhere in the world.

But GSK shares were down 2.1 per cent, or 27.8p, to 1331p despite the positive news.

Susie Jana, analyst at broker Shore Capital, said the sluggish stock price performance was partially due to lingering investor worries about GSKs potential liability in a US lawsuit over heartburn drug Zantac, which was pulled from shelves in 2019 amid fears it contained a cancer-causing chemical.

The incident has led to more than 2,000 cases being filed in the US, raising fears the pharma giants which had sold it could pay hefty damages.

Aside from its Zantac struggles, GSK also faces a battle for pole position in the race to get its RSV vaccine approved by regulators, facing down Pfizer as well as Johnson & Johnson, Moderna and Danish group Bavarian Nordic.
A Florida-based plastic surgeon who dubs herself 'Dr Teetus Deletus'  a glib reference to breast removal surgery  has been reported to America's consumer watchdog for using her huge TikTok following to 'unfairly and deceptively' sway teens into having sex-change operations.

A complaint to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) obtained by DailyMail.com, says Dr Sidhbh Gallagher, who runs Gallagher Plastic Surgery in Miami, talks up the benefits and downplays the risks of sex-reassignment surgeries.

It accuses Dr Gallagher, who says she carries out between 400-500 gender-affirmation surgeries a year, of using catchy videos with pop music backing tracks on social media platforms as a marketing gimmick to attract 'vulnerable and impressionable' minors to everything from breast removals to 'bottom surgery'.

The clinic said in a statement that the videos aim to 'educate' and 'celebrate' a marginalized group, and that Dr Gallagher has become a 'target of attacks and complaints' because of her politically-charged work with transgender teens.

For those experiencing gender dysphoria, transitioning with drugs and surgery can be life-saving. Still, some experts warn against providing irreversible treatments to adolescents, pointing to growing numbers who come to regret their procedures.

Whether to allow young people to take puberty-blockers, hormones or undergo surgery has become a hot-button issue in America's culture wars, and Republican officials across the US have sought to limit access to procedures.

Dr Sidhbh Gallagher has been criticized for using the phrase 'yeet the teets'  a glib reference to breast-removal surgery  in her viral social media posts. She even calls herself 'Dr Teetus Deletus'

Dr Gallagher, who taught at Indiana University before opening her business in 2020, has 273,000 followers on her main TikTok account, another 7,000 as TheVagicianMD, and many more fans on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Her unusual embrace of social media platforms has made her one of the most visible sex-change surgeons in the US, as well as courting criticism from conservatives and some parents and doctors, as the audiences skew young.

According to the complaint, Dr Gallagher has released thousands of videos advertising her 'gender-affirming' plastic surgeries to children and teens in a bid to 'convert them into her patients'.

Her videos 'glamorize, romanticize and valorize medical gender transition', says the complaint, issued in February by Genspect, a global network led by Stella O'Malley, that flags the dangers of gender-affirming treatment for youths, and other groups.

Dr Gallagher posing with a scarred patient following surgery. A user says they'll get the same procedure when they're 'old enough'. Recent data point to a disproportionately large number of girls and young women seeking to transition into men, which may amount to a fad

A user says they'll get the same procedure when they're 'old enough'. Recent data point to a disproportionately large number of girls and young women seeking to transition into men, which may amount to a fad

'To induce young followers to use her services, Gallagher's video marketing spots misrepresent the removal of healthy breasts as medically necessary, proven quick, effective, and safe  while omitting their real physical and psychological risks,' says the 18-page document.

It also takes aim at slang terms used by Dr Gallagher in her videos  she calls herself 'Dr Teetus Deletus' in posts, and, in another glib reference to breast removal, describes the procedure as 'yeet the teets'.

In one such video, Dr Gallagher appears wearing scrubs and looking sad. Superimposed over her head is the text: 'Just realized I only get to Yeet 4 Teets next week,' and a crying emoji, while an Eminem rap tune plays in the background.

The videos are a 'brand marketing scheme' that present Dr Gallagher as an 'entertaining celebrity surgeon' to expose 'hundreds of thousands of underage social media users' to her services and win future customers, says the document.

The complaint features a 36-page compilation of dozens of Dr Gallagher's clips, accompanied by comments from teenager users expressing their desire to have procedures once they reach the requisite age.

It was filed by Genspect, Rethink Identity Medicine Ethics, Our Duty, the Cardinal Support Network and International Partners for Ethical Care, Inc. A similar complaint was lodged with the authorities in Florida.

Dr Gallagher, who is from Ireland, has said she performs between 400-500 gender-affirmation surgeries a year. Last year, she carried out 13 top surgeries on minors, up from a handful a few years ago, she told The New York Times last month.

One of Dr Gallagher's posts on Instagram, which features comments from a prospective patient who describes himself as a 'minor' interested in 'top surgery' if it is 'still free'

One of Dr Gallagher's posts on Instagram, which features comments from transgender adolescents about age requirements for procedures. One says the 'youngest ... is 13'

The social media posts frequently show Dr Gallagher with clients following sex-reassignment surgeries  in this case, a breast removal operation.

'As a practice that serves the transgender and non-binary community, it is not uncommon for us to be the target of attacks and complaints,' the clinic said in an email to DailyMail.com, adding that the FTC did not appear to be pursuing the complaint.

As well as being catchy, the videos explain the various types of surgery that are available to those unhappy with the gender they were assigned at birth. Dr Gallagher has said gender-affirming surgeries are essential for youngsters who may otherwise commit suicide.

'The mission of our social media is to amplify transgender voices, celebrate transgender lives and most importantly to provide education that empowers our patients to navigate the complex process of surgical transition,' added the statement.

The clinic, in the city's Coral Gables neighborhood, has fallen victim to a 'growing number of death threats' including an 'online terror plot' as a result of the 'current political climate' it added.

The FTC was not able to quickly confirm it had received the complaint.

The watchdog is charged with protecting consumers from unfair and misleading advertising. It processes complaints from the public, launches investigations, sets guidelines and launches suits. It has special rules for marketing to children.

One of Dr Gallagher's social media posts, which features comments from a prospective patient, who says they 'cannot wait' for 'top surgery' as they are 'only 15'

The Gallagher Plastic Surgery, in Miami's Coral Gables neighborhood, opened in 2020. The clinic says the posts 'celebrate' a marginalized group, critics say she 'deceptively' nudges 'vulnerable' teens into sex change operations
The construction was delayed by lockdowns and two of its contractors closing

He said it will be 'well worth the wait' after the opening was delayed three years

The W Sydney, the city's newest luxury hotel, finally has an opening date - but it's going to be another year before Aussies and tourists can visit.

The long-awaited five-star hotel on Darling Harbour has been subject to constant setbacks including several Covid lockdowns, two contractors going broke and the on-site death of an employee.

Fortunately, the wait is almost over with the luxury accommodation due to open in October 2023 - more than three years after its planned 2020 unveiling.

'There have been delays, but trust me, it will be worth the wait,' general manager Craig Seaward said.

'Its as much for locals as it is for tourists, and that is very much aligned with the change that we are seeing in Darling Harbour,' says Seaward.

'Once a tourist enclave, it now has restaurants, experiences and facilities that appeal to Australians and Sydneysiders. W Sydney will take that to the next level; we see it as the halo of the harbour.'

What was meant to be the 'cultural hub' of Darling Harbour, the W Sydney has sat empty for seven years in part because of the collapse of two of its constructors, Probuild and Grocon.

The W Sydney will finally open in October 2023, three years after it was initially set to open its doors

The interior of the hotel rooms were designed by London-based consultancy Bowler James Brindley using a marine-themed palette (pictured, a render of what the rooms will look like)

Probuild was one of Australia's biggest building companies with 750 employees and thousands hired as contractors before it went bust in February.

The company went broke with more than $14million still owed to employees and $5billion worth of projects left unfinished.

Before Probuild, construction giant Grocon was in charge of building the hotel but it also went into administration in 2021.

W Sydney has since hired Multiplex, a global building company, to finish construction on the hotel, also known as 'The Ribbon'.

The hotel will feature 585 rooms (example of hotel bathroom above), a heated infinity pool, a two-storey rooftop bar and a ballroom

Construction of the W Sydney was significantly delayed after two of its constructors went broke (pictured, Probuild tradies working on the Darling Harbour hotel)

The luxury accommodation is set to feature 585 rooms, a ballroom, an IMAX Theatre, retail, a two-storey rooftop bar and a heated infinity pool.

The construction of the hotel has also been marred in tragedy after a tradie working on the IMAX Theatre in 2019 died after a burst pipe and hit him in the head.

A NSW Ambulance spokesperson at the time said the 49-year-old man suffered 'very significant injuries' to his face and head, including an eye laceration, while working with high-pressure pipes.

SafeWork NSW investigated the incident.

The interior of the hotel was designed by London-based consultancy Bowler James Brindley and is based on a marine-themed colour palette.

One side of the hotel will look out to Sydney's iconic Darling Harbour while guests on the other side will be able to see Chinatown and metropolitan areas of the city.
She claims that Mr Laws later witnessed a client raping her in a toilet cubicle

A businesswoman has accused her former boss of inappropriately touching her during a booze and drug-fuelled work party before watching a client rape her in a toilet cubicle, according to court documents.

Ella Campbell, 32, is suing two of her former bosses at Sydney-based creative marketing agency Born & Raised, alleging breaches of employment law and her right to a 'non-sexually hostile' work environment.

Ms Campbell worked at the Crows Nest company, on the city's Lower North Shore, for a year from January 2018 after being hired as a business director.

In Federal Court documents filed last month, Ms Campbell alleges she was sexually assaulted by managing director Chris Laws - claiming he inappropriately touched her on two separate occasions at staff drinks.

In May 2018, Ms Campbell claims Mr Laws and the CEO of a new client company allegedly touched her under her dress, outside her underwear, beneath a table as she sat between them at work drinks at the Ovolo Hotel in Sydney's inner-city.

Ella Campbell, 32, (pictured) has launched a case in the Federal Court seeking damages and an apology from her former bosses

Pictured: The former office site for Born & Raised in Crows Nest before the company was sold

Ms Campbell claims the gathering involved the consumption of cocaine and alcohol, which was a regular occurrence at staff events.

In the court documents, she alleges the client company CEO later followed her into the ladies bathroom and raped her, and that Mr Laws entered and peered into the cubicle from the adjacent stall.

'(He) observed the CEO client's sexual assault but made no attempt to stop it, instead simply watching,' the documents, obtained by The Australian, allege.

Ms Campbell also claims Mr Laws rubbed her breasts during another work event.

In the documents, she separately alleges Chris Harris, who was CEO of a group of companies including Born & Raised, Atlas and The Social Party, began bullying her after she started turning down invitations to regular gatherings held in his office.

She claims the gatherings, which were usually held on Thursdays or Fridays, involved consuming large amounts of cocaine and only female staff members were invited.

Mr Laws and Mr Harris vehemently deny the allegations.

Pictured: Chris Laws, former managing director of creative marketing agency Born & Raised

Pictured: Chris Harris, the CEO of a group of companies including Born & Raised

Ms Campbell alleges she was sexually assaulted during staff drinks at the Ovolo Hotel (pictured) in Woolloomooloo, Sydney

In court documents obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Ms Campbell claims she should have been protected from sex and age discrimination under the Fair Work Act 2009.

Ms Campbell's role at Born & Raised was terminated in January 2019, before the company was acquired in March the following year by Enigma Communications.

In March this year, Ms Campbell - a vocal opponent of poor workplace culture online - first detailed parts of her harassment allegations in a Mumbrella article, before naming the men in a post on LinkedIn later that month.

Following the allegations, Mr Laws was reportedly stood down from his role as managing director of Enigma.

Ms Campbell alleges the agency breached Fair Work agreements by taking action against her after she complained about sexual assault, harassment, and annual leave.

Ms Campbell alleges she was raped by the CEO of a new client of the creative marketing agency she worked for in a toilet stall at the Ovolo Hotel in May 2018

She also claims she was misled about the 'nature, terms and/or conditions of her employment by Born & Raised'.

Aside from an apology from both men, she is seeking compensation for their conduct and damages for the harm she claims she suffered.

In a statement to Daily Mail Australia, Mr Harris said: 'Ella Campbell left Born & Raised on good terms. At no time was I made aware of her allegations of assault by others, by her or anyone else, until many years later.

'To the extent that she now makes allegations of bullying about me, those allegations are strenuously denied and will be defended.'

Ms Campbell has been a vocal opponent of poor workplace culture online

Mr Laws said in a statement: 'As a matter before the courts I cannot comment on the specifics of these horrible allegations, other than to say that I am looking forward to the legal process demonstrating the difference between allegation and fact.'

No criminal charges have been laid against either man.

Ms Campbell said in a statement to Daily Mail Australia: 'This is a big step for me, as I have removed myself from public forums recently to find the space needed to think long and hard before deciding to proceed.

'I am hoping this will be a wake-up call for the entire industry, particularly those who lead and control it.'
The average was a 19.8 out of 36, and students failed to hit benchmarks at a higher rate

ACT scores across the nation dropped to their lowest point as remote learning from pandemic lockdowns takes its toll

Scores on the ACT college admissions test have hit their lowest point in more than 30 years - the latest evidence of the enormity of learning disruption during the pandemic lockdowns.

The class of 2022's average ACT composite score was 19.8 out of 36 when the results released on Wednesday, marking the first time since 1991 that the average score was below 20.

An increasing number of high school students failed to meet any of the subject-area benchmarks set by the ACT.

The test scores show 42% of ACT-tested graduates in the class of 2022 met none of the subject benchmarks in English, reading, science and math.

ACT test scores made public in a report Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, reveal a decline in preparedness for college-level coursework

'The magnitude of the declines this year is particularly alarming,' said ACT CEO Janet Godwin

High School senior Victor Gomez, III is surrounded by plexiglass in his Psychology class - some schools went to extreme measures to ensure kids were protected

In comparison, 38% of test takers in 2021 failed to meet any of the benchmarks. Benchmarks are set to gauge how well students will fare in college courses.

Test scores now are optional for first-year student admission at many institutions with some, such as the University of California system, even opting for a test-blind policy, where scores are not considered even if submitted.

'Academic preparedness is where we are seeing the decline,' said Rose Babington, senior director for state partnerships for the ACT.

'Every time we see ACT test scores, we are talking about skills and standards, and the prediction of students to be successful and to know the really important information to succeed and persist through their first year of college courses.'

42% of ACT-tested graduates in the class of 2022 met none of the subject benchmarks in English, reading, science and math.

The number of students taking the ACT has declined 30% since 2018, as graduates increasingly forgo college and some universities no longer require admissions tests

ACT scores have declined steadily in recent years. Still, 'the magnitude of the declines this year is particularly alarming,' ACT CEO Janet Godwin said in a statement.'

'We see rapidly growing numbers of seniors leaving high school without meeting college-readiness benchmarks in any of the subjects we measure,' she added.

The results offer a lens into systemic inequities in education, in place well before the pandemic shuttered schools and colleges temporarily waived testing requirements.

For example, students without access to rigorous high school curriculum suffered more setbacks during pandemic disruptions, Babington said.

Those students are from rural areas, come from low-income families and are often students of color.

The number of students taking the ACT has declined 30% since 2018, as graduates increasingly forgo college.

Participation plunged 37% among Black students, with 154,000 taking the test this year.

Standardized tests such as the ACT have faced growing concerns that they're unfair to minority and low-income students, as students with access to expensive test prep or advanced courses often perform better.

Babington defended the test as a measure of college readiness. "Now more than ever, the last few years have shown us the importance of having high-quality data to help inform how we support students," Babington said.
Kamikaze drones struck the Ukrainian capital region of Kyiv early Thursday, as occupants woke to air raid sirens for the fourth straight morning following Russian missile attacks earlier this week, Ukrainian authorities reported.

Oleksiy Kuleba, governor of the Kyiv region, said the Russian attack, carried out with the use of Iranian-made drones, happened in that part of the country, according to AP News.

Ukrainian officials reported that Russian strikes across the nation had resulted in 13 deaths and 37 injuries in the last 24 hours.

On Telegram, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy director of the presidential office, said that "critical infrastructure facilities" in the area had been attacked. He did not specify which ones sustained damages caused by the Russian drones.

Overnight shelling in Mykolaiv, Ukraine's southern city, demolished a 5-story residential complex.

An 11-year-old kid was rescued from the debris where he had been trapped for six hours, while seven others were still missing as of Thursday morning, according to Vitali Kim, governor of the Mykolaiv area.

The mayor of Mykolaiv confirmed on Thursday that rescuers discovered the remains of a 31-year-old male and an 80-year-old woman from the rubble of the wrecked residential structure.

Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych reported on his Telegram channel that rescuers had pulled out the bodies of two dead residents, according to an update from CNN.

Senkevych claims that search and rescue efforts are continuing. He also urged residents to stay away from windows.

More Individuals Burried, Missing

Officials claimed that a Russian S-300 missile, often employed in striking military aircraft, was responsible for the damage to the structure

Five more individuals are still feared to be buried under the debris, as reported by the Ukrainian State Emergency Service. At least 37 rescue personnel were deployed with 9 pieces of equipment.

On Thursday morning, authorities said seven individuals were still missing following the Russian drones airstrike.

Read Also: Joe Biden Reveals Plan with India as 'Major Defense Partner' in National Security Strategy

As Kyiv's troops advance a military campaign targeted at retaking territory captured by Moscow, early dawn assaults on Ukraine's southern front have become a regular occurrence in the Russia Ukraine war.

At least four of the 19 persons killed and over 100 injured in Monday's nationwide strikes targeted the capital city of Kyiv, where attacks had grown uncommon recently.

Zelensky Pleads for More Military Aid

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been requesting expanded air defense equipment support from international allies following multiple Russian missile attacks in recent days, per CNBC.

Zelensky noted in his Wednesday address that it is becoming more for the international community that helping Ukraine defend its skies "is one of the most important humanitarian tasks for Europe" as "Russian terror" becomes more brazen and "cruel."

After striking vital infrastructure around the nation on Monday, Tuesday, and, to a lesser extent, yesterday, Russia caused damage to power and water systems in several locations.

In most of the country, Zelenskyy added, power has been totally restored, while repairs are still ongoing in four areas.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at a summit in Kazhakstan. As per a Reuters report, Turkey sought to formally propose hosting peace negotiations between Russia and the West to resolve Russia Ukraine war. Putin presented a gas hub plan to maintain Russian energy influence over Europe.

Related Article: Kim Jong-un Warns Enemies: North Korea's Nuclear Force Is Ready for 'Actual War'

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
It comes as Qantas posts record profits, expecting up to $1.3billion before tax

The deal would increase work hours and reduce the break period between shifts

They claim Qantas has threatened to outsource jobs if they don't sign a new deal

About 1500 Qantas staff members are set to undertake work bans and strike

More chaos is coming to airports as Qantas cabin crews plan to go on strike due to a new plan by the airline to extend work hours and reduce breaks - as the company reports record profits.

It was revealed on Thursday that Qantas is expected to post booming profits of between $1.2billion and $1.3billion before tax as more Aussies use the airline to head to holiday destinations post-pandemic.

But commuters are about to experience further headaches on top of recent cancellations and delays at airports with about 1500 Qantas staff beginning industrial action against the airline.

About 1500 Qantas cabin crew staff are set to undertake work bans and strikes after the airline allegedly threatened to outsource jobs if workers didn't sign a new agreement (pictured, cabin crews on board a Qantas flight)

The Flight Attendants Association of Australia claimed the staff, who are comprised of two groups of domestic cabin crews, had filed applications in the Fair Work Commission to undertake work bans and strikes.

The move was sparked by alleged threats from Qantas to outsource work if crews didn't sign a new agreement that reduced their breaks and extended their hours.

'We're talking about deals that would extend duty lengths at the same time as reducing rest provisions, all the while not even guaranteeing work on the new (A321neo) aircraft,' FAAA national secretary Teri O'Toole told The Australian.

She claimed that staff had 'raised concerns' that the 'disgraceful' deal would lead to widespread fatigue as crews were already stripped down to the bare bones because of labour shortages.

'Workers are already exhausted trying to keep up with demand on a skeleton workforce following cuts to crew numbers per flight (from five to four) and an overenthusiastic redundancy scheme to cull workers and cut costs.'

Under the new model, cabin crews would work 12-hour extended shifts instead of the standard nine hours and 45 mins.

They could also work up to 14 hours if a 'disruption' with the airline occurs.

Breaks between shifts have been cut down to 10 hours if a disruption occurs and no other staff members are available.

Ms O'Toole said the deal would not be good news for both crew and passengers as the after-effects of the agreement would add further chaos to airports if staff decide to take sick leave because of fatigue.

The 'disgraceful' deal extends cabin crew work hours to 12 hours and reduces their break period between shifts to 10 hours if a disruption occurs (stock image)

Qantas has slammed the allegations, claiming the grounds for which the FAAA was taking steps towards industrial action was 'misleading'.

'Our focus is on reaching agreement with our people, its not our plan to outsource this work,' a spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.

'The shift length changes we're asking for are the same that apply to crew working at other domestic airlines in Australia. The FAAA signed off on these conditions as part of agreements for those airlines, so its bizarre theyre now claiming they're unsafe.'

The spokesperson said the airline already had 'rigorous fatigue management processes' set up for cabin crew staff.

They added that the new deal would also benefit crews because it gave them 'pay increases, the opportunity to secure thousands of dollars in incentives, and an expansion of overtime payments of up to 300 per cent'.

'Were still at the table negotiating with the FAAA so its very disappointing that they're now threatening industrial action,' the spokesperson said.

The earliest date for industrial action from cabin crews would be November 18.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce (pictured) said the airline had a 'remarkable turnaround' post pandemic and had turned over a 'very strong' profit before tax of between $1.2 and $1.3billion

It comes as the airline claims it has returned to profitability after five consecutive half-year losses due to COVID-19, and is promising $40million in wage increases.

CEO Alan Joyce says the carrier expected a 'very strong' profit before tax of between $1.2billion and $1.3billion for the first half of 2022/23.

'It's a remarkable turnaround,' he said on Thursday.

'The main drivers of this performance are strong travel demand, both domestically and internationally.'

But costs are also up, with supply chains still snarled and the airline having to have more crew on standby along with 20 spare aircraft.

Mr Joyce said Qantas would boost worker pay by 10 per cent.

'We know our people have done it tough, including long periods of stand-down and a two-year wage freeze,' he said.
Former Australian prime minister Paul Keating has made the astonishing claim that King Charles - 'a constitutional aberration' - could renounce his claim on Australia.

He also lambasted the country for not voting for a republic when the Queen 'didn't want' to hold on to Australia, saying 'Australians have so little pride in themselves'.

Speaking on Wednesday night, Mr Keating said Queen Elizabeth and her family hoped Australia would vote to become a republic in the 1999 referendum.

'I think the Royal Family would have been so glad for the referendum to have passed, to be honest,' he told James Curran, a Sydney University professor, in an online talk.

'I wouldn't be at all surprised if King Charles the Third, the King of Australia, doesn't volunteer  to renounce his claim on Australia,' he said.

King Charles (right) is pictured with Queen Consort Camilla at the Palace of Westminster in London, England

Mr Keating, 78, led the charge for Australia to become a republic while he was prime minister from 1991 to 1996.

He privately discussed his hope Australia would endorse the move with Queen Elizabeth during a visit to Britain in 1993.

According to Mr Keating, he told the Queen he would 'not involve her family' in his campaign for Australian to have its own head of state.

He became a figure of notoriety in the UK during the Queen's visit to Australia in February 1992, when he not only made a republican speech in front of her, but for seemingly breaking Royal protocol by placing his arm around the monarch.

His actions earned him front-page treatment in British newspapers, with headlines calling him the 'Lizard of Oz'.

Mr Keating said on Wednesday that Australia had its chance to become a republic in the defeated 1999 referendum, but failed to follow the lead of other countries.

'Look at the French. The French had a revolution for their republic. The Americans had a revolution for their republic.

'We couldn't even pinch ours off Queen Elizabeth the Second  who didn't want it. We couldn't take the title, even if the monarch was happy to give it,' he said.

Mr Keating said the Australian Republic Movement asked him to get involved with its campaign after the Queen's death, but he did not want to.

Former prime minister Paul Keating (centre) is pictured arriving at the National Memorial Service for Queen Elizabeth II at Parliament House on September 22, 2022 in Canberra, Australia

'Why would you? We fluffed it (in 1999),' he said on Wednesday.

'If Australians have so little pride in themselves, so little pride that they are happy to be represented by the monarch of Great Britain, why would somebody like me want to shift their miserable view of themselves?'

Mr Keating said a monarch based on the other side of the world could not properly represent Australians.

'Who in their right mind could believe that the monarch of Great Britain could represent our aspirations here?

Paul Keating sealed his place in Royal infamy when he put his hand on the Queen's back as he steered the monarch through a crowd in 1992

'We occupy one of the oldest land masses, the oldest continents on Earth, perhaps the oldest societies on Earth  it's so pathetic,' he said.

'Charles the Third, King of Australia, is a constitutional aberration. That's what it is.'

Mr Keating also took the opportunity to lash out at previous prime ministers of both Australia and the UK, referencing Scott Morrison's controversial trip to Britain in 2021 at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

'There was Morrison running off to Cornwall with that other fruitcake, what's his name  Boris Johnson,' said Mr Keating.
A truck has damaged three cars as the driver navigated a narrow street before driving off, leaving onlookers horrified.

The low act was captured on camera on Scott St in Red Hill, Brisbane on Monday, before it was uploaded to social media by a removalist in the area.

The footage showed a truck squeezing slowly through two lines of parked cars on either side of the street, leaving one car 'completely ripped apart'.

Images of a Hyundai Getz (pictured) and another blue car were posted in the video showing the extensive damage

The footage showed a truck squeezing slowly through two lines of parked cars on either side of the narrow street

The removalist, Chris Hayes, can be heard reacting in shock as the truck approaches the narrow pass between the vehicles.

'Here we go, they're regretting this about now,' Mr Hayes said.

Despite the narrow space, the driver continued to crawl past, side swiping a light blue Hyundai Getz and causing it to shake.

Gasps are heard coming from bystanders on the street as the driver shoved past the cars.

Then when the truck emerged from the tight squeeze, it headed up the road without stopping to check the damage.

'Oh, he's just hit that car ... Oh wow, he's just done a runner,' Mr Hayes said during the carnage. 'What a piece of s***.'

'This is why I did not want to go in here,' the removalist added.

The shocking video was posted on social media (pictured) by a removalist in the area

A woman emerged, throwing her hands up in disbelief as she walks towards the Getz, which had various scratches and dents from the incident.

It is understood she is the roommate of the car owner.

Images of the the car and another dark blue vehicle were posted in the video showing extensive damage.

The owner of the Hyundai Getz Brooke Cooper told 7News it had been 'the second time in two days' something like this had happened.

She reported the registration plates to police over the damage done to her 'completely ripped apart' car.

Queensland police said it was investigating reports of the 'hit and run' and is urging anyone with information to contact authorities.
One of Australia's most famous socialites has put her lavish Georgian mansion on the market for $5.75million.

Rose Porteous, the colourful wife of mining magnate Lang Hancock, and her real-estate tycoon husband William Porteous have listed their neo-classical home in Perth's exclusive western suburbs.

The couple have owned the opulent residence on Dalkeith Road in the leafy suburb of Nedlands since 2019.

Previously it belonged to Ms Porteous' daughter Joanna Lacson-Fox.

Perth-based socialite Rose Porteous (pictured in 2006 at a celebrity shoe auction) has listed her ritzy Nedlands mansion after owning it since 2019

Mr Porteous, who was once one of Mr Hancock's best mates, has sold some of the grandest and most prestigious homes in Western Australia.

Ms Porteous struck up a relationship with the estate agent shortly after Mr Hancock died in the 17-room mansion he had built with Ms Porteous in 1990, Prix d'Amour.

Ms Porteous sold the home after Mr Hancock's passing in 1992 and later moved into her more humble residence in Nedlands.

It was Mr Hancock's death that catapulted Ms Porteous into the limelight, as her step-daughter Gina Rinehart opened a lengthy Supreme Court battle against the socialite over her father's estate.

The palatial, neo-classical home was owned by her daughter and stands out in the exclusive Perth suburb of Nedlands (pictured)

Ms Rinehart claimed Ms Porteous was a demanding wife and had a role in her father's death. Ms Porteous denied marrying Mr Hancock for his money and the coroner found Mr Hancock had died of natural causes.

Once one of the richest women in Australia, Ms Porteous became a permanent fixture in Perth's high society, known for her individual style.

'If anyone said to my face you're a bitch I would just look at her and say, 'thank you',' she said in a 2016 interview on A Current Affair.

'You have to have style to be a bitch.'

Her five-bedroom Nedlands home is no less eccentric.

The crystal-white, symmetrical mansion stands out from the more subdued homes on the shady street.

Who is Rose Porteous Born Rosario Magdalena Teresita Lacson, the Filipino-born Australian rose to the top of WA's socialite scene following her marriage to magnate Lang Hancock. Following Hancock's natural death Ms Porteous was engaged in a lengthy legal battle with step-daughter Gina Reinhart. Ms Porteous remarried to Mr Hancock's long-time friend William Porteous less than three months after the iron-ore tycoon's death. Ms Porteous has been reclusive in recent years, living a private life in Perth with Mr Porteous. Advertisement

Rose Porteous (pictured) became a fixture of Perth's socialite scene after marrying mining magnate Lang Hancock and was at one point the richest woman in Australia

Ms Porteous and her latest husband William Porteous listed their multi-million dollar Gregorian home on Saturday. A huge internal staircase faces entrants to the house in a large hall (pictured)

Mr and Ms Porteous have sold other properties in the swanky suburb, offloading a plush 1930s home nearby to Dalkeith Road for $3million in 2021.

Their current home was officially listed on Saturday on Mr Porteous's own exclusive real estate site which lauded the palatial home for its unique neoclassical style.

'The white pillared portico of this grand residence is an indication of the impeccable style and quality you will find throughout,' Mr Porteous's site read.

The home boasts a marble fireplace, parquetry floor, high ceilings and an extravagant twisting staircase.

'With an incredible sense of flow highlighted by the feature chandelier, it is a statement of both architectural flair and master craftsmanship,' the ad read of the statement staircase.

A 'whisper-quiet' elevator can save a trip between the levels for anyone avoiding the central staircase.

Rooms inside the Dalkeith Road home are adorned with aesthetic trimmings and embellishments, including columns and millwork (pictured)

The kitchen is a glaring white showcase of fine cabinetry and polished appliances with an imported cooker (pictured)

Resplendent open rooms feature white columns between the polished floors and moulded ceilings.

The family room spans the full width of the stately home and a northern courtyard 'brings an abundance of light and air into the key living and entertaining areas of the home'.

French doors connect the outdoor spaces with the inside of the home.

The kitchen's butler pantry has been advertised as an 'indispensable advantage for a busy cook' and for budding socialites catering to 'large parties'.

Imported appliances from France sparkle in the 'gleaming' kitchen.

The galley is also reportedly fitted with hidden storage as well as lacquered cupboards and sparkling surfaces, with doors that open onto a private courtyard.

A main bedroom on the ground floor is complemented by four further bedrooms, three ensuites and a study on the upper level.
Pennsylvania Democratic Senate hopeful John Fetterman thrice refused to commit to provide additional medical records to prove he's fit to serve post-stroke, during an interview Wednesday.

Fetterman participated in a livestreamed Q&A with PennLive's editorial board where he was again asked if he'd be releasing more information from his doctor before the November 8 midterm election, after being non-committal in an interview Tuesday with NBC News.

'I would say that if there was anything that changed, or whatever, I absolutely would have updated that, other than the progress that I have made is evident,' Fetterman answered.

On June 3, Fetterman released a letter from his cardiologist who had seen him the day before in the aftermath of his May 13 stroke, which was caused by a heart condition.

'The prognosis I can give for John's heart is this: if he takes his medications, eats healthy, and exercises, he'll be fine,' Dr. Ramesh Chandra wrote at the time. 'If he does what I've told him, and I do believe he is taking his recovery and his health very seriously at this time, he should be able to campaign and serve in the U.S. Senate without a problem.'

Pennsylvania Democratic Senate hopeful John Fetterman thrice refused to commit to provide additional medical records during an interview on Wednesday with PennLive.com's editorial board

On June 3, Fetterman released a letter from his cardiologist who had seen him the day before in the aftermath of his May 13 stroke, which was caused by a heart condition

So far, Fetterman hasn't released a follow-up letter.

The lieutenant governor argued, 'it's evident,' that there's been improvement.

'I certainly would not have been able to sit in front of you back in May or in June or July,' Fetterman offered.

'I think the ultimate kinds of transparency is to be in front of thousands of people on a stage not using a teleprompter,' he continued, adding that most politicians use teleprompters 'but nobody wonders if he or she is able to do the job.'

While it had been previously reported that Fetterman is using closed captioning for interviews, NBC's interview with the candidate on Tuesday garnered great attention because it showed viewers how the system worked.

The campaign said Wednesday that Fetterman's campaign had brought in more than $1 million in 24 hours in his run against the Trump-backed, Republican TV personality, Dr. Mehmet Oz.

While it had been previously reported that Fetterman is using closed captioning for interviews, NBC's interview with the candidate on Tuesday garnered great attention because it showed viewers how the system worked

However, it created controversy, with the reporter, NBC News' Dasha Burns, suggesting 'it wasn't clear he understood what I was saying' when she and Fetterman were making small talk before they started.

Kara Swisher, who recently had Fetterman as a guest on her podcast, On With Kara Swisher, knocked down Burns' claim calling it 'nonsense.'

'I've always been very honest about saying I need captioning,' Fetterman said Wednesday to the PennLive editorial board.

'In fact I just did an in-depth conversation on M ...NBC and I let them know here's the captioning,' he continued, slightly slipping over the name of the media outlet.

However, clips of the interview did run on both MSNBC and NBC platforms.

'I'm doing captioning with all of you right now,' Fetterman said. 'Because I know that you're speaking and sometimes I will hear it, but if I'm asked for a very specific kind of question, I need to know exactly what that is.'

The Democratic hopeful pointed out that 'half of Americans watch TV with using captions too.'

When pressed about additional documentation a second time, Fetterman, again, pointed to the June doctor's letter.

'If they don't think I'm well enough, you know, they certainly wouldn't have allowed me to continue,' he argued. 'And if I don't believe I was healthy enough, I certainly wouldn't be ... walking, you know, live without a net.'

Another member of the editorial board said she believed Fetterman was being 'reticent' about putting his medical information out for public consumption - and asked if any other records might be forthcoming.

The candidate once again argued he'd already been cleared by medical professionals.

'I believe that and that's what - that's what they've already done,' the Pennsylvania Democrat said.
A frustrated real estate manager says her agency received more than 170 complaints in five years because she was 'unfairly' targeted by 'internet trolls'.

Director Britney Kraus from Assured Rent Real Estate in Campbelltown, southwest Sydney, slammed NSW Fair Trading for putting her business under strict compliance monitoring this week.

Her real estate agency has been the subject of 171 complaints to Fair Trading, from tenants and landlords alike, since 2017.

Another 91 complaints were lodged specifically against Ms Kraus in the same time period.

Assured Rent Real Estate Director Britney Kraus (above) said her agency was hit by more than 170 complaints because of 'internet trolls'

Fair Trading NSW found Assured Rent Real Estate withheld rental income from property owners and failed to lodge rental bonds (pictured, the agency's storefront in Campbelltown)

An investigation by NSW Fair Trading found her agency failed to lodge rental bonds, failed to complete trust account trial balances and had contravened rules of conduct - all of which she was fined for.

Further complaints to Fair Trading alleged she withheld rental income from landlords, withheld supply documents and failed to pay water and strata bills among other findings.

However, Ms Kraus claims the investigation didn't account for a supposedly malicious Facebook group of disgruntled customers.

The small group was designed for 'victims' of the agency to discuss their problems and compare experiences.

Ms Kraus said instead its members used the space to plot the downfall of her business.

Ms Kraus (above) said a Facebook group designed to support 'victims' of the agency is actually plotting to destroy her business

'A majority of the people that made a complaint to our office had their complaint dealt with and then after we dealt with their complaint, still made a complaint directly with Fair Trading,' she said in a statement, obtained by the Daily Telegraph.

'We believe they are internet trolls attempting to unfairly cause maximum collateral damage to our business.

'Assured Rent strive(s) to provide a high standard of operation (and) are complying with the terms of the undertaking.'

One angry former tenant started an Instagram page, with 45 followers, specifically to harass Ms Kraus.

Ms Kraus has largely privatised her social media since the page started in 2021.

Ms Kraus was attacked by an Instagram account

NSW Fair Trading ordered Ms Kraus to pay a $4,000 fine and comply with an enforceable undertaking that will last until September, 2024.

As part of that undertaking she will need to fully comply with the Property Stock Agents Act and the Residential Tenancy Act and report all complaints received along with their resolutions.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Ms Kraus for comment.
DO YOU KNOW MORE? Email peter.vincent@dailymail.com

But concerns it could target dissidents and ethnic minorities and their families

China has set up dozens of police stations around the world, including one in Australia, with a human rights group claiming they're using them to hunt down and retrieve dissidents.

A new report from Safeguard Defenders, a human rights watchdog, revealed that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has at least 54 'overseas police service stations' in 30 different countries.

Chinese authorities say the stations provide services to citizens, such as renewing national identification cards, passports and drivers licences, by using facial recognition technology. (Pictured a Chinese officer on duty in Beijing)

Safeguard Defenders, a human rights watchdog, reported that the police stations have been used to intimated Chinese nationals to return home

The Chinese police operation in Sydney was established by the communist party's Department of Public security in 2018, the ABC reports.

An establishment ceremony for the station was covered by the Chinese press, but it flew under the radar in Australia.

Although the CCP claims the stations are meant to keep an eye on 'fraud' and provide services to citizens, such as renewing national identification cards, passports and drivers licences, by using facial recognition technology, a human rights group alleges that China has been using the program to track down dissidents and intimate them to return to their native country.

Laura Harth, campaign director for Safeguard Defenders, which released the new report, said people who oppose the Communist regime could be at risk, and their families too.

Spanish-based human rights agency Safeguard Defenders says Chinese 'contact points' also house Chinese police operations. Its campaign director, Laura Harth said people who have fled China - and their families - could be at risk

She told the ABC that the Sydney 'contact point' was similar to China's overseas police stations in other countries.

'Every country is using different names  it seems that they use an already existing framework of United Front Work organisations around the world to build this extra functionality,' Ms Harth said.

'For Australian people, I would say, especially for overseas Chinese people that have fled China  dissidents, ethnic and religious minorities  obviously these organisations can be used, potentially, to go after them or to go after their families.'

In January Safeguard Defenders claimed at least eight Australian residents were involuntarily returned to China by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to face prosecution for alleged 'economic crimes'.

In the report, the nonprofit detailed cases where the family have wanted citizens used to ask their loved one to come back to China.

Safeguard Defenders said it served as a threat from the CCP that if the citizen didn't return, something would be done to their family.

Pictured: Chinese officials operating inside their police station in New York City. It is one of at least 54 active around the world, and the only known to be operating in the US

New York's secret police station is above a ramen shop located on East Broadway between Chinatown and the Lower East Side and was opened on February 15

'Nothing seems to be too impressive or too harsh,' Harth said. 'That's a clear message to anyone seeking to leave China, or already left China: that you're not safe anywhere.'

The report warned that China was likely expanding its program around the world.

According to Safeguard Defenders, China already has the stations operating in cities across the world including New York, London, Paris, Toronto, Amsterdam. Madrid and Rome.

It also alleges the program operates outside of existing bilateral agreements on international crime.

'These operations eschew official bilateral police and judicial cooperation and violate the international rule of law, and may violate the territorial integrity of third countries involved in setting up a parallel policing mechanism using illegal methods,' the group's report said.

Along with the list of police stations, Safeguard Defenders also noted that China has designated nine Asian countries as 'forbidden' and issued calls for all nations to return from their immediately.

The countries include Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia.

According to the report, one Chinese restaurant owner based in Cambodia was pushed to return to China after police warned her that her mother's power would be cut off if she didn't.

Safeguard Defenders said there have been many reports of police going around 'fraud' suspects' homes and spray-paint 'shameful fraud' on them.

Some have been found to help Chinese police conduct 'persuasion sessions' remotely, the non-profit said.

A station in Madrid tracked down a man wanted in China for environmental pollution.

He was forced to sit down for a video call with public security agents and a Chinese prosecutor - while a family member was asked to sit next to the authorities in China during the call.

Other examples of blackmail are authorities threatening to cut electricity to the homes of families or restricting access to schools for relatives.

China's embassy in Canberra and the consulate-general in Sydney refused to comment about the nature of the contact point and the activities conducted here.
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North Korea is 'at full preparedness for actual war' after testing two long-range cruise missiles on Wednesday which have already been dispatched to tactical nuclear units, Kim Jong Un has said.

The missiles - which are designed to travel at a lower altitude than ballistic rockets, making them harder to track and shoot down - flew 1,240 miles out over the Yellow Sea Wednesday, drawing oval and figure eight patterns in the skies for almost three hours before slamming into targets, the Korean Central News Agency said.

Kim personally oversaw the tests as images showed him applauding inside a tunnel with his cronies, a cigarette in his right hand. Kim 'highly appreciated' the test, state media said afterwards, which showed North Korea's nuclear forces are at 'full preparedness for actual war' and sent a 'clear warning to the enemies.'

He was then pictured celebrating the 75th anniversary of two elite North Korean schools - initially established to educate the children of those who died in the revolution, and which today function as training grounds for the next generation of the country's political class.

North Korea on Wednesday tested two long-range cruise missiles (left) which Kim Jong Un (right) said demonstrated that his nuclear forces are at 'full preparedness for actual war'

Kim is pictured overseeing the cruise missile test alongside his top officials, applauding with what appears to be a cigarette in his right hand as the weapons hit their targets

South Koreans wake up to the news that their northern neighbour has tested two cruise missiles which the regime claims are capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons

'The schools have brought up a large contingent of indomitable revolutionaries and patriotic loyalists,' state media said of the ceremony which included music, floral gifts for Kim, and a speech by the so-called Supreme Leader.

Wednesday's missile tests were the latest in a quick-fire string of launches that North Korea has said are dress rehearsals for nuclear strikes on South Korea in the event war breaks out.

Kim appears to be capitalising on the Ukraine war - which has tied up the UN and its sanctioning body - to carry out tests of weapons that would typically have drawn retaliatory measures.

Though North Korea is not technically forbidden from testing cruise missiles, it has also tested a flurry of ballistic rockets in recent weeks which are forbidden.

Kim is also thought to be gearing up for a banned nuclear test at its underground testing site, which would be its first in five years.

Kim said North Korea will 'focus all efforts on the endless and accelerating development of the national nuclear combat armed forces,' KCNA reported Thursday.

Kim made acquiring tactical nukes - smaller, shorter-range weapons designed for battlefield use - a top priority at a key party congress in January 2021.

Kim Jong Un is pictured attending the anniversary of one of North Korea's elite schools, originally founded to educate the children of people who died during the Communist revolution

Kim embraces a young pupil of Mangyongdae Revolutionary School as his classmates cheer. The institution is located in Pyongyang and is one of the country's most-prestigious

Kim Jong Un is accompanied by pupils of one of North Korea's elite revolutionary schools - designed to produce the next generation of top officials - as it marks 75 years since its founding

North Korean state media said Kim was greeted by music and cheers from pupils of the school, before making a speech in which he credited the institution for safeguarding the revolution

'The latest test means the North is operating tactical nuclear capability on cruise missiles, which are harder to detect for their low-altitude flight,' Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification told AFP.

'It is a testament to Pyongyang's capability to mount nuclear warheads,' he said, adding that cruise missiles can also have irregular flight paths making them harder to intercept.

North Korea revised its nuclear laws last month to allow preemptive strikes, with Kim declaring North Korea an 'irreversible' nuclear power - effectively ending the possibility of negotiations over its arsenal.

Since then, Seoul, Tokyo and Washington have ramped up combined military exercises, including deploying a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier to the area twice, infuriating Pyongyang, which sees such drills as rehearsals for invasion.

In response, North Korea organised drills that it said earlier this week had gamed out hitting South Korea's ports, airports and military command facilities with tactical nukes.

North Korea has tested 'strategic' cruise missiles before but this is the first time it has said they have a nuclear role and are operational - although analysts question Pyongyang's claims, saying it has not shown it can actually make nuclear warheads small enough.

'North Korea's cruise missiles, air force, and tactical nuclear devices are probably much less capable than propaganda suggests,' said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

'The Kim regime is sometimes surprisingly transparent about weapons development goals, but it also tends to exaggerate strength and capabilities,' he added.

Kim Jong Un makes a speech at one of North Korea's elite schools, speaking at a lectern emblazoned with the Worker's Party logo and in front of a statue of his father and grandfather

Kim Jong Un and his top party officials stand in front of a crowd of students at one of North Korea's elite schools, delivering a speech to mark the 75th anniversary of its founding
Confronting WhatsApp messages show a woman's tense exchange with her real estate agent lover after he sent her a secretly recorded video of them having sex.

Real estate agent Jade Grech, 39, recorded a video of himself and the woman without her consent and then sent her a one minute and 16 second clip in February 2021.

Mr Grech - who sold prestige property in the city's east - left the woman stunned.

'Can you please ask me before you record these things?' she said.

Grech replied by sending her back a single emoji of a face screaming in fear, followed by two tearful emoticons.

'I feel uneasy about it,' the woman said.

Jade Grech responded to the woman's concerns about his secret sex film with a series of emojis (above)

'You are the love of my life,' Mr Grech replied, according to messages, which were first published by the Daily Telegraph. 'You don't trust me.'

'I feel like it's a private thing between you and I,' she responded. He then replied with yet another emoji.

Court records seen by Daily Mail Australia indicate Grech pleaded guilty to intentionally recording an intimate image without consent earlier this year.

He also admitted recording conversations with the woman after a device was found in her car.

The woman called police on March 9 after an argument the previous evening.

Grech (pictured) plead guilty to intentionally recording an intimate image without consent but escaped a conviction on mental health grounds

Grech pleaded guilty to two charges but escaped a conviction in court on September 16. The offences were ultimately dismissed on mental health grounds.

He was ordered to continue therapy with his psychologist, continue consultations with his GP and follow their instructions.

Grech was hit with a two year apprehended domestic violence order banning him from assaulting, threatening, stalking, harassing or intimidating the woman.

It is understood he was also stood down from the Double Bay real estate agency where he was employed.
Charles and Camilla spent three weeks in Scotland following Queen's funeral

It was the King's first engagement since his Coronation date was announced

The apparent gaffe was caught on camera at the Buckingham Palace audience

But he let out a 'dear oh dear' during a short silence between the pair yesterday

The King, 73, was in high spirits as he met Commonwealth leaders and the PM

King Charles let out a 'dear oh dear' as he met under-fire Prime Minister Liz Truss for their first ever weekly audience.

The monarch, 73, was overheard making the apparent gaffe at Buckingham Palace yesterday.

Last month, the pair spoke briefly during a special meeting following the death of Charles's mother, the Queen.

But yesterday they convened again for their first weekly audience  a tradition the Queen maintained throughout her 70-year reign.

The meeting got off to an eyebrow-raising start when Charles's apparent gaffe was caught on camera.

Ms Truss, who is facing an avalanche of criticism over her tax policies, greeted the King by saying: 'Your Majesty. It is good to see you again.'

Charles, smiling, said: 'Back again?' Ms Truss replied: 'It's a great pleasure.'

But the King, seemingly looking to fill a brief awkward silence, then said: 'Dear oh dear,' before quickly following up with an 'Anyway... now.'

King Charles meets under-fire Prime Minister Liz Truss for their first ever weekly audience at Buckingham Palace yesterday

The meeting started with Ms Truss (pictured outside Downing Street yesterday) greeting the King and saying: 'Your Majesty. It is good to see you again'

The incident came after Ms Truss faced Prime Minister's Questions in Parliament, where she insisted she will not cut spending to balance the books as economists and the financial markets continued to question her plans.

The monarch's audience with the Prime Minister is held every Wednesday after PMQs.

The Queen conducted weekly meetings with all 15 prime ministers during her 70-year reign, including Sir Winston Churchill, her first, and Ms Truss, who was her last.

Charles, meanwhile, welcomed the King and Queen of Malaysia to Buckingham Palace yesterday. Yang Di-Pertuan Agong XVI and the Raja Permaisuri Agong were making their first visit to the UK for a year.

The King holds an audience with Yang Di-Pertuan Agong XVI and the Raja Permaisuri Agong (HM Al-Sultan Abdullah and HM Tunku Azizah Aminah) yesterday

The King shakes hands with Yang Di-Pertuan Agong XVI at the Palace  in what was the King's first engagement since his return to England from Scotland

The monarch welcomes Malaysia's Raja Permaisuri Agong to the UK

It was the King's first engagement since his return to England from Scotland  where he spent three weeks with the Queen Consort following his mother's funeral.

The King appeared in high spirits as he wore a pinstripe suit to greet the PM and the Commonwealth leaders.

Shaking hands with His Majesty Yang Di-Pertuan Agong XVI first, Charles then greeted Her Majesty the Raja Permaisuri Agong, before formally welcoming the couple to the UK.

The engagement marked the first time King Charles had been pictured since the details of his Coronation were announced earlier this week.

Buckingham Palace has said that the Coronation will take place on Saturday, May 6.

The Palace confirmed that the Queen Consort will be crowned alongside him by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Westminster Abbey.

King Charles is said to want a more modest affair than is tradition with the event being cut down to less than an hour, the guest list slashed by a three-quarters and a less formal dress code.

Charles and Camilla spent three weeks in Scotland following The Queen's funeral. Pictured waving to crowds outside Dunfermline Abbey on October 3

King Charles, seen at the State Opening of Parliament on May 10, completed his first royal engagement since details of his coronation were announced yesterday

'The Coronation will reflect the monarch's role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,' the Palace confirmed as it revealed the date.

Insiders said that while the Coronation will include the same core elements of the traditional ceremony which has retained a similar structure for more than 1,000 years, it would recognise the 'spirit of our times'.

It is expected to be much 'smaller and simpler' than the three-hour spectacle of the late Queen's momentous Coronation in 1953.

Plans for the major event are known by the codename Operation Golden Orb, which sets out the blueprint for the service and the pageantry surrounding it.

The late Queen Elizabeth II on her Coronation day on June 2, 1953. The coronation of King Charles III will take place on May 6 next year, Buckingham Palace announced on Tuesday

Prince Charles, aged four, looks glum between the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret as he watches Queen Elizabeth II being crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1953

They are expected to see the guestlist slashed from 8,000 to just 2,000 with a more relaxed dress code with peers possibly allowed to wear lounge suits rather than ceremonial robes.

Ancient and time-consuming rituals  including presenting the monarch with gold ingots  are also set to be axed to save time.

However, the Prince of Wales is expected to play a prominent role in the occasion  the first time an heir will participate in the proceedings in three generations.

Charles was just four when his mother was crowned and the late Queen was 11 at the time of her father's coronation  and neither child played a formal role.

In contrast Prince William  aged 40 and a full-fledged working royal  is expected to be an eminent figure at the event next year.
An 82-year-old woman in Hong Kong was scammed out of HK$6.5 million (US$828,000) by phone fraudsters posing as a local health officer and a mainland policeman.

According to a report from South China Morning Post, the elderly victim lives with her assistant in an extravagant apartment in West Kowloon. The 82-year-old woman realized she had been victimized by a Phone Scam when she found out that she had zero balance in her bank account. Consequently, she filed a police report on Tuesday.

The police stated Thursday that a fraudster impersonating a Department of Health staffer called the victim in June.

The Hong Kong phone scam victim was contacted by someone who said they were a mainland official and worked for public safety. The caller accused her of being engaged in a money-laundering case in Beijing, according to a law enforcement source.

An insider revealed the victim was compelled to provide her bank account data, such as passwords, for "investigative purposes." She was also instructed not to disclose information to third parties, such as her relatives, or she would violate confidentiality laws.

According to his report, between June and December last year, the woman made 11 withdrawals totaling around HK$6.5 million.

Long after the Hong Kong phone scam callers stopped contacting her, the old woman discovered last week that her bank account had been emptied.

In the first eight months of this year, police dealt with 1,257 phone scammers, more than twice the 657 Phone Scam incidents reported during the same time last year, albeit overall cash losses decreased from HK$640 million (US$81.5 million) to HK$550 million (US$70 million).

Scammers Take Advantage of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Senior Superintendent Eileen Chung says that almost 60 percent of the frauds that have been caught involved people pretending to be government workers.

According to the police official, since February, fraudsters have been posing as representatives of the Department of Health or the Centre for Health Protection.

Read Also: Chicago Landlord Found Dismembered in Freezer; Tenant Who Received Eviction Notice Arrested

She said they claimed victims tested positive for COVID-19 or violated related regulations while requesting personal data, bank accounts, and passwords.

Senior Superintendent Chung said that the scammers "fully understand" the "psychological weaknesses" of people because of anxiety caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Crooks take advantage of this to scam victims, per Hong Kong Free Press.

According to Chung, the police resolved 386 cases in a week between August 21 and Sunday, with 173 people between 13 and 72 years old being detained on suspicion of theft, money laundering, or other financial crimes. The officer said that some of the suspects had ties to organized crime.

How To Avoid Phone Scams?

Scammers who call possible victims may try to steal their identities or their money. Some fraudsters threaten jail time or litigation if you don't pay them a certain amount.

Authorities advise the public to be vigilant for suspicious texts, voicemails, or phone calls and resist the urge to rush into anything to avoid Phone Scams.

According to USA.gov, if the caller initiates by asking, "Can you hear me?" don't respond. Scammers frequently use this strategy to capture your "yes" response. The "yes" you respond with is recorded and then used to charge your credit card or make a transaction without your knowledge.

Moreover, don't give up your financial or other sensitive information over the phone. And do not comply with requests to pay via wire transfer or pre-paid debit card.

Related Article: Thailand Nursery Massacre: 3-Year-Old Survives Horrifying Tragedy After Sleeping Under a Blanket

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A schoolgirl whose dream came true when Disney created a heroine with glasses in a hit film has now set her sights on taking the spectacles off the nerd-face emoji.

When Lowri Moore, now 13, was nine, a letter she wrote to Disney pleading for its next princess to wear glasses went viral.

Earlier this year, the director of 2021 animated film Encanto, Jared Bush, said he had seen the note, but wasnt able to let on that its bespectacled main character Mirabel was already in production.

Now, Lowri, of Chilwell, Nottinghamshire, has begged the Unicode Consortium, which rules on emojis, to remove specs from the nerds icon, insisting: People who wear glasses are not nerds.

Her campaign launched on Thursday - World Sight Day.

In a letter to the Unicode Consortium, the body responsible for all new emojis, Lowri said: 'Unfortunately, the only glasses wearing emoji I can find is a nerd face.

'People who wear glasses are not nerds.

'But unless we address this, there's a chance the next generation will grow up believing this lie about themselves.'

When Lowri Moore, now 13, was nine, a letter she wrote to Disney pleading for its next princess to wear glasses went viral

The consortium includes internet and computing powers like Facebook-owner Meta, Google, Amazon, Apple and Netflix.

After unveiling her campaign to an audience of school children in Burton-on-Trent, she said: 'I am just trying to raise awareness for an issue which is large, especially for people my age, like teenagers, just to get glasses on emojis.

'Even if it's just one (emoji), this is a positive change.'

Earlier, she told her audience that bespectacled emojis were currently limited to a teacher, a grandmother and a nerd-type character.

'It's very stereotypical and I shouldn't be put in a box,' she said.

'So many human beings just wear glasses so they can see, so why make it a stereotype and make people feel bad?'

Lowri said although glasses were on-trend in the western world, other parts of the world still had entrenched views of glasses being un-cool.

She gathered signatures from pupils and is hoping more will sign up to her GlassesOn campaign.

'It's so simple, we're not asking that every emoji has to wear glasses - let's just have that option so people don't feel negative about themselves,' said Lowri.

'A small difference can go a long way.'

The campaign has the backing of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), which earlier this year awarded Lowri its campaigner of the year award.

Jessica Thompson, IAPB policy, strategy and advocacy director, said: 'We're so proud of Lowri.'

Lowri, of Chilwell, Nottinghamshire, has begged the Unicode Consortium, which rules on emojis, to remove specs from the nerds icon, insisting: People who wear glasses are not nerds

She added: 'It's such an important issue because certainly, the nerd emoji and having emojis that aren't representative of people wearing glasses just perpetuates the stigma.

'It's really important we encourage children and their parents of the importance of looking after their eyes, getting sight tests and wearing their glasses.'

Citing research showing UK children who wear glasses were more likely to be bullied in school, she added social media giants needed to be 'encouraging children... glasses are really important'.

She added the IAPB was running a broader World Sight Day campaign aimed at raising awareness about eye health in a world where a billion people have no access to the eye care services common in the UK.

'It's a serious message but hopefully today we've delivered that with a bit of fun,' she said.

Ian Brierly, Paget High School headteacher, where Lowri has launched her campaign, said she was a 'terrific role model for young people who they can identify with'.
She has been absent for four days of the trial so far, which started last Tuesday

He has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent

She alleges Bruce Lehrmann had sex with her while she slept in March 2019

Evidence in the rape trial of Brittany Higgins' former colleague, Bruce Lehrmann, could wrap up as early as Tuesday, as the alleged victim is set to return to the witness stand for cross-examination tomorrow.

Lehrmann is charged with sexual intercourse without consent and is being tried in the ACT Supreme Court. He has pleaded not guilty.

The trial had originally been set with a four to six-week timeline, however, Chief Justice Lucy McCallum told the jury on Thursday that things are running ahead of schedule.

'We're on track to finish on Tuesday,' she told the court.

The prosecution are expected to deliver their closing arguments next week.

Ms Higgins has so far been absent for four days - half the criminal trial - but she will return on Friday to face continued cross-examination by Lehrmann's defence lawyer Steven Whybrow.

Brittany Higgins (pictured outside ACT Supreme Court) is absent from her rape trial for a fourth day

The trial has continued in Ms Higgins' absence with the Crown calling other witnesses.

The court has prevented publication of any evidence from other witnesses until after Ms Higgins has completed her evidence.

Last week, Ms Higgins was reduced to tears while being quizzed by Mr Whybrow.

He asked why she didn't hand her phone over to police on the first request, and about the $325,000 book deal she landed - with the assistance of Lisa Wilkinson's husband, Peter FitzSimons.

The court heard FitzSimons suggested she write a biography about her experiences - to which Ms Higgins told them she had already started drafting chapters, before she made an official statement to police.

Ms Higgins alleges Bruce Lehrmann (pictured outside court) sexually assaulted her in Parliament House

Mr Whybrow also put to Ms Higgins she pretended to have doctor's appointments in the week after the alleged assault to 'bolster' her story - which she vehemently denied.

Ms Higgins earlier told the court she made multiple doctor's appointments with the intention of going but could not bring herself to attend them.

'I intended to do the right thing but every time I went home I was collapsing and unable to get out of bed because I was so deeply depressed because I had been assaulted at work by a colleague,' she told the court.

Mr Whybrow asked Ms Higgins if she didn't go to the doctor because she hadn't had sex with anybody on the night she alleges she was raped.

Defence lawyer asked about the $325,000 book deal she landed - with the assistance of Lisa Wilkinson's husband, Peter FitzSimons - before she made a statement to police

Ms Higgins was also questioned about her delay in providing the police with her phone when she reopened the complaint against Lehrmann in 2021.

She admitted she had cleared the phone of some text messages as well as photos of herself with Liberal ministers or holding alcohol but denied she was trying to withhold evidence from police.

'It wasn't with the intent of keeping things from police but it was kind of purging things from my life,' she said.

'I didn't want to look at politicians in my camera roll anymore. I just wanted them gone.'

Mr Whybrow also asked why she didn't tell anyone about the alleged assault for a number of days - despite being in contact with Mr Dillaway and her father via text messages.

In the texts, the Mr Dillaway and Ms Higgins engaged in light banter about tacos, margaritas, and his recent drive from the Gold Coast in Queensland to Orange in NSW.

Brittany Higgins is pictured arriving at ACT Supreme Court, dressed in black, last Thursday

The only inference Ms Higgins made about the alleged attack was when she wrote: 'Haha I just get myself into trouble, need to keep that s**t locked down.'

Ms Higgins told the court: 'I wasn't ready to share, I was playing it off.'

In court, Ms Higgins said she was 'responding to his messages on autopilot, like everything was fine'.

Earlier, Ms Higgins told the court that she put the dress she was wearing that night in a plastic bag under her bed for six months, 'untouched and uncleaned'.

She told the jury that, once it was clear she couldn't report the alleged assault without losing her job with Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, she 'very symbolically washed the dress'.

'I wore it once more but I never wore it again after that,' she said.

But during cross-examination from Lehrmann's barrister Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins was shown a photograph of her wearing the same dress in May 2019 at Ms Reynolds's birthday party in Perth.

Under cross examination from Lehrmann's lawyer Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins denied lying - but admitted she had made a mistake in her timeline of events.

The trial continues.
A former employee of Donald Trump has told federal agents the former president asked for boxes of records to be moved within his Florida residence after receiving a government subpoena demanding their return, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

The testimony of the key witness, coupled with surveillance footage the Justice Department also obtained, represent some of the strongest known evidence to date of possible obstruction of justice by the former Republican president.

The employee moving the boxes was named by The New York Times as Walt Nauta.

The FBI conducted a court-approved search on Aug. 8 at Trump's home at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, seizing more than 11,000 documents including about 100 marked as classified.

The employee who was working at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida was cooperating with the Justice Department and has been interviewed multiple times by federal agents, the Post reported.

The witness initially denied handling sensitive documents and in subsequent conversations with agents admitted to moving boxes at Trump's request, the newspaper reported.

It is not clear whether that employee was Nauta, The New York Times said, and a person familiar with the matter told the paper it could be a different staff member.

Aides are pictured carrying boxes onto Marine One before Donald Trump left the White House on January 20, 2021

White House staffers are seen removing boxes as Trump leaves office in January 2021

A new report claims that a longtime aide to Donald Trump was caught on surveillance moving boxes of records at the former president's Florida estate of Mar-a-Lago

The FBI conducted a search of Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 8 and seized a cache of documents and hundreds that were marked classified

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A Trump spokesperson said the Biden administration had 'weaponized law enforcement.'

'Every other President has been given time and deference regarding the administration of documents, as the President has the ultimate authority to categorize records, and what materials should be classified,' Trump spokesperson Taylor Budowich told the Post.

Budowich accused the Justice Department of leaking 'misleading and false information' to the media.

The document investigation is one of several legal woes Trump is facing as he considers whether to run again for president in 2024.

New York state's attorney general recently filed a civil lawsuit accusing Trump and three of his adult children of fraud and misrepresentation in preparing financial statements from the family real estate company.

The Trump Organization also is set to go on trial on Oct. 24 on New York state criminal tax fraud charges.

Separately in Georgia, a grand jury in the Fulton County is probing efforts by Trump to overturn the former president's 2020 election defeat.
Outspoken Indigenous Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has issued a passionate plea to Australians living in capital cities to stop turning a blind eye to violence as she shared a harrowing photo of her bloodied and bruised grandmother after she was allegedly attacked.

Senator Price called on the millions of Aussies living in 'leafy green suburbs' to turn their attention to remote community violence as she implored the nation to be a voice for the victims who are 'out of sight out of mind'.

The Country Liberal senator addressed the problem of violence in Aboriginal communities in her maiden speech to parliament and regularly shares videos of incidents to raise awareness.

But her calls for action took a personal turn when her own grandmother Tess Napaljarri Ross was allegedly attacked by another woman in the remote outback community of Yuendumu in the Northern Territory.

Ms Ross is an Indigenous elder in the community, but Senator Price said the respect that typically commanded had been ignored.

'This is what life on a community like Yuendumu looks like,' she wrote alongside a photo of her distraught grandmother's neck and clothing covered in blood.

'She has not been respected or acknowledged as an elder at Yuendumu she was instead recently violently attacked by a woman younger than her. Her head was split open.'

Jacinta Price has shared this heartbreaking photo of her injured grandmother Tess Napaljarri Ross after she was allegedly attacked

Ms Ross was rushed to hospital shortly after the photo was taken.

In a lengthy Facebook post on Wednesday night, Senator Price also claimed her cousin's four-year-old son had been repeatedly threatened with violence by older children in the same community.

'Theyve threatened to stab him many times,' Senator Price alleged.

She then lashed out at mainstream media for 'ignoring' Indigenous violence.

'Imagine a grandmother being violently attacked in front of you in the streets of Mosman, Surry Hills, Brunswick, Northcote, West End or any other leafy green suburb. Imagine this was your grandmother or your four year old son,' Senator Price wrote.

'The violence has to stop and Australians across the country must demand better for grandmothers like mine who are out of sight and out of mind.

'It's not good enough that vulnerable Australian women, children and men suffer because their suffering makes a handful of people feel offended if it's brought to their attention.'

Ms Ross travelled to Canberra to perform the Mala Jukurrpa ceremony for Senator Price before proudly watching her granddaughter be sworn into the Senate and deliver her maiden speech.

'This is my grandmother, my elder who attended my swearing in of the 47th parliament of Australia, my grandmother that performed the Mala Jukurrpa ceremony to pass onto me her authority to speak in parliament, my grandfather's sister and one of the last of her generation,' Senator Price wrote.

Tess Napaljarri Ross (right) is an indigenous elder in Yuendumu where she was allegedly attacked. She's pictured with granddaughter Jacinta Price at her parliamentary swearing-in

The senator hopes to put a spotlight on violence in Aboriginal communities such as Yuendumu (pictured), 1,528km south of Darwin

Senator Price ended the post by taking aim at privileged 'First Nations' people not speaking out on ' black on black violence'.

'Grandstanding over hurt feelings ensures the violence continues,' she said.

'I want the violence to STOP! I want communities to be safer! This is everyone's responsibility!

'You want TRUTH TELLING then start telling the TRUTH!'

A spokeswoman for the senator told Daily Mail Australia the family was dealing with the issue and currently was not in a position to comment further.
New Zealand has already proposed a methane fee that taxes cow burps and farts

He claimed a methane tax would put Aussie BBQs under threat and hurt families

Nationals MP David Littleproud slammed the move and the possibility of a tax

The govt will sign a global pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent

Nationals MP David Littleproud has cautioned the government not to introduce a methane tax because it could make meat unaffordable and threaten the Aussie BBQ tradition.

It comes as Labor plans to sign up to a global pledge initiated by the US government to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent over the decade in a bid to fulfill the Paris Climate Agreement.

Australia under the former Coalition government had initially refused to join the international pledge when it was brought forward last year.

Methane is considered to be a prime contributor to gas emissions and is the second most common greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide.

Nationals MP David Littleproud (pictured) slammed the government over its intention to sign up to a global pledge to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030

The government's move towards cutting emissions has prompted concern over a possible methane tax like the one proposed in New Zealand.

Mr Littleproud slammed the move to sign up to the pledge and claimed the introduction of a tax would be the 'death of the BBQ' because it would cripple the agricultural industry and make meat unaffordable.

'Now the Aussie BBQ is under threat. Prime minister Anthony Albanese wants to take away the backyard BBQ,' he said on Thursday.

'We know Australians love their sausages, steaks, rissoles and lamb meals  all of that will become out of reach for many.'

'We do not want to see the Aussie BBQ available to only the rich, we urge Labor to reject the methane madness idea and embrace the Aussie BBQ spirit instead of destroy it.'

Mr Littleproud claimed that a tax would exacerbate the current cost of living conditions burdening Aussies.

'Australians are already hurting with petrol prices, electricity prices and food prices.'

'I urge Labor to re-think this terrible idea and start helping Australian families, rather than hurting them even more,' he said.

He added that a tax would also force farmers to reduce their livestock to meet emissions targets which would drive up food prices.

Mr Littleproud said the possible introduction of a methane tax would put the Australian BBQ under threat (stock image)

He claimed the introduction of a tax would exacerbate the cost of living conditions burdening Aussie families as well (pictured, Mr Littleproud with his partner)

Mr Littleproud and fellow Nationals MP Keith Pitt have both said they would not support the global pledge to cut methane emissions and urged the Albanese government to reject it.

The government has not mentioned whether or not it was considering a fee to cut emissions.

The NSW government has already ruled out introducing a methane tax on the agriculture industry.

Nationals Minister for Agriculture Dugald Saunders said the state government was working with farmers on alternate ways to reduce emissions rather than taxing them.

A methane tax was proposed in New Zealand earlier this year, where the government would tax cow and sheep burps and farts to tackle climate change.

New Zealand has proposed an emissions tax on its agricultural farmers who are responsible for more than half its carbon footprint (stock image)

The proposal, which would tax farmers from 2025 onwards, has faced fierce opposition from farm advocacy groups

The Ardern government said the farm levy would be a world first, and that farmers should be able to recoup the cost by charging more for climate-friendly products.

The proposal has faced fierce opposition from farm lobbying groups.

Almost half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, with methane being a prime contributor to emissions in the sector.

The proposal will tax farmers for their emissions from 2025 onwards.

Revenue collected from taxes will go towards research, development and other advisory services designed to help farmers.

A final decision on the proposal is expected to be made in December.
A campaign ad from Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez features a harsh, edited picture of opponent Rep. Mayra Flores (R), against whom he is competing in a Texas congressional race this November.

The ad, which focused on school safety and gun control, was posted Monday to Gonzalez's Twitter. It targeted Flores for her first congressional vote against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in the weeks following the massacre at an Uvalde, Texas school.

The ad uses an edited picture of Flores that was originally posted to her Instagram in early 2022.

The edited picture includes an ominous green-ish filter and appears to have been edited to give Flores' eyebrows a tilted, more aggressive look.

The edited picture of Rep. Mayra Flores (R). The color filter on the picture was changed, and Flores' eyebrows appear to have been dragged down to make them look more sinister and aggressive

After the tragic shooting at Uvalde, Mayra Flores' first vote in Congress was AGAINST a bipartisan school safety bill. We need a representative that works to protect our children and families; not someone who puts them in danger. Remember to vote for Vicente Gonzalez. pic.twitter.com/h4liKjAFEp  Vicente Gonzalez (@VoteVicente) October 10, 2022

Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D) currently represents Texas' 15th district. He is competing in November against Rep. Mayra Flores to represent the redistricted 34th district

The original picture from Gonzalez's ad was taken from the candidate's Instagram

As the unflattering picture flashed across the screen, the female narrator of the ad states, 'Republican Mayra Flores' first vote in Congress was against the Bipartisan Safe Communities Act.'

'She voted against keeping our children safe in schools, against keeping weapons out of the hands of Mexican cartels, and against keeping guns out of the hands of criminals with a prior history of domestic violence,' it continues.

Gonzalez presently represents Texas' 15th Congressional District, and is competing against Flores in the newly redistricted 34th district this fall.

On his campaign's Twitter account, he wrote, 'After the tragic shooting at Uvalde, Mayra Flores' first vote in Congress was AGAINST a bipartisan school safety bill.

'We need a representative that works to protect our children and families; not someone who puts them in danger.'

Gonzalez did not disclose that the photo he used was doctored.

Gonzalez's campaign previously paid a Texas political blogger to attack Flores online. The blogger used a number of racially disparaging monikers against Flores, including 'Miss Enchiladas'

Gonzalez did not disclose that the picture used in the campaign ad was doctored

The ad specifically targets Flores' record voting against the so-called 'Bipartisan Safer Communities Act' in the wake of the tragic Uvalde school shooting

Responding to an inquiry from Fox News, Flores said she will not fall for the 'scare tactics' being used by the Gonzalez campaign, but this is not his campaign's first bad faith effort to nuke her during the race.

'First, Vicente Gonzalez hired a racist blogger to attack my for my heritage. Now Vicente is doing the dirty work himself with this shameless and pathetic photoshopping,' she said.

'The people in the [Rio Grande Valley] are smarter than this and will see right through Vicente's scare tactics and constant lies,' she continued.

A Texas political blogger paid by the Gonzalez campaign for ad services flung racist attacks at Flores in June, including calling her 'Miss Frijoles' and 'Miss Enchiladas.'

Jerry McHale accused Flores, the first woman born in Mexico to be elected to Congress, of 'playing the race card' and called her a 'cotton pickin' liar' because of her claim that she worked in cotton fields with her immigrant parents as a child.

Gonzalez, along with all but 15 House Republicans, voted against the so-called 'Bipartisan Safer Communities Act,' largely due to the red flag laws that the bill implements, which allow state officials to determine if an individual is fit for gun ownership.

In September, Flores introduced the Reduce Gun Violence Act, which her campaign touted as a 'comprehensive funding package of more than $11 billion dollars to schools across the country to increase physical security and access mental health resources.'

Flores was elected to her post in a special election held in June of this year to fill the unexpired term of former Rep. Filemon Vela (D), who departed the House in March to work for the lobbying firm Akin Group.
Disgraced former BBC interviewer Martin Bashir has seen assets in his media company slump by 60 per cent after a damning investigation into his now infamous Princess Diana interview, new documents show.

In new company accounts filed with government, Panoramic Productions Ltd has revealed a major drop in current assets from 112,700 to 46,200 from 2021 to 2022.

No corporation tax has been paid in two years, meaning no profit has been made, and the business is now worth around a quarter of what it was in 2019.

The business' poor performance follows high-profile revelations about the tactics Mr Bashir employed to gain access to the Princess of Wales, including forging bank statements and lying.

The BBC interview with Princess Diana made headlines around the world after she discussed her marriage to Prince Charles.

It was originally broadcast by Panorama in 1995 to an audience of 23 million people and saw Diana declare 'there were three of us in this marriage', causing a worldwide media frenzy.

Disgraced BBC interviewer Martin Bashir has seen assets in his media company slump by 60 per cent after a damning investigation into his Princess Diana interview (pictured)

The BBC has now donated 1.42 million to charity from sales made from the Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales. Pictured: Martin Bashir during the interview with Diana in 1995

Despite failings in internal investigations and years of speculation over the interview, Bashir was rehired by the BBC in 2016 - but appears to have suffered since the revelations came to light last year, with his business assets more than halving from 56,800 in 2021.

After costs were taken into account the business was left with just 25,800, a far cry from three years ago when the company took 200,000 in earnings on top of Bashir's 100,000 BBC salary.

On top of this, the company's 'cash at bank and in hand' reduced to around a third of the same figure for last year, demonstrating the size of Bashir's troubles.

Bashir's company also paid zero corporation tax in the 12 months to January, indicating the business made no profits.

This follows the company also paying no corporation tax in 2021, having previously paid 17,500 in 2020.

Bashir told Diana a string of lies and gained her trust by showing her false bank statements, he then convinced her that was having an affair with then royal nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke.

This has since been proven to be a baseless accusation and the corporation this year apologised to Ms Legge-Bourke.

In court, she won 200,000 in damages from the BBC.

Bashir showed Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, forged bank statements to gain access to the Princess and then tricked her by peddling a string of lies, including lurid claims about Queen Elizabeth, King Charles, Prince Edward and senior courtiers.

Martin Bashir was found to have shown Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, false bank statements to get access to the princess

BBC bosses knew soon after the Panorama interview aired in 1995 that there were questions over Bashir's tactics but he was cleared after what Lord Dyson later called a 'woefully ineffective' internal investigation.

Lord Dyson said Lord Hall, who was then head of news and current affairs, and fellow BBC boss Anne Sloman made a 'big mistake' by failing to interview Earl Spencer about Bashir's approaches.

Bashir left the BBC in 1999 but he was rehired as religion correspondent in 2016, despite allegations about the methods he used to obtain the Diana interview and concerns over his conduct at ITV and in America, where he had worked for ABC and NBC. He was later promoted to religion editor.

The BBC announced last month it had made charitable donations to a sum of 1.42 million shared equally between seven charities linked with Princess Diana, it has announced.

The corporation said it has donated to Centrepoint, English National Ballet, Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, The Leprosy Mission, National Aids Trust, The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity and The Diana Award.

The proceeds are derived from sales of the 1995 Panorama interview.
Charities have been warned of the risks of political campaigning, just days after conservation groups including the National Trust launched an attack on the Government.

Orlando Fraser KC, chairman of the Charity Commission, said that although they are allowed to campaign on contentious issues, charities must not stray into party politics by backing a candidate or party.

He also said any lobbying must be relevant to the organisations key aims - and trustees must think carefully about whether or not it is prudent at a time when money is tight.

His comments came after some of the countrys leading environmental groups joined forces with full-page adverts in national newspapers headlined: Prime Minister, no one can afford for nature to be under attack.

The open letter, signed by the National Trust, RSPB, Wildlife Trusts, WWF and Greenpeace among others, told Liz Truss that her Government is proposing to remove vital environmental protections, risking catastrophic consequences for nature, people and the economy.

Charities have been warned of the risks of political campaigning, just days after conservation groups including the National Trust launched an attack on the Government

The National Trust, whose charitable purposes are to protect historic places and green spaces, has also been accused of pursuing a woke agenda by linking Winston Churchills home to the slave trade and telling volunteers to wear gay pride rainbow lanyards.

In his speech to the Charity Commissions Annual Public Meeting in Cardiff yesterday [wed], Mr Fraser said: We live in times of significant challenge, and indeed turmoil, and we can expect that political debates will come into all of our lives in the months and years ahead.

We should expect vigorous exchanges about what is needed from government at this time. I fully expect charities to be part of this conversation.

He said the law was clear that charities are free to campaign and engage in political activity... shining a light on uncomfortable truths, engaging with those in power in the interests of the people and causes they serve.

But he went on: The law, rightly, also sets limits on what charities can do, and how, in relation to political activity.

Comments came after some of the countrys leading environmental groups joined forces with full-page adverts in national newspapers headlined: Prime Minister, no one can afford for nature to be under attack.

Charities must never stray into party politics - must never promote, or be seen to promote, a political party or candidate.

A charitys campaigning and political activity must always be in furtherance of its purposes - and even when they have determined that the activity aligns with the charitys purposes, trustees must be clear that political activity is also the prudent thing to do, especially in difficult economic circumstances.

Mr Fraser also lamented the lack of nuance in debates on complex issues, leading to polarisation and personal attacks.

This trend towards constant aggression presents a risk to our democratic culture, he said.

Politics need not be a raging fire destroying everything in its path. Every disagreement doesnt have to be a cause for total war.

He urged charities to help teach others how to inspire and inform, rather than stifle and poison, reasoned debate.

His comments come after controversial transgender childrens charity Mermaids launched a legal challenge against the charitable status of the LGB Alliance lobby group, claiming that its real purpose is the denigration of trans people.
The new series of Netflixs The Crown will show King Charless crumbling marriage to Princess Diana in painful detail, insiders have revealed.

Series five will take place in the 1990s and, like each previous season, will consist of 10 episodes.

The breakdown of Charles and Diana's relationship will be a central part of the new series and portrays the then Prince of Wales as 'petty, cold and deceitful'.

The fourth series, which streamed in November last year, told the story of the early romance between Charles and Diana.

It was announced last year that Elizabeth Debicki would take over from Emma Corrin and play Diana for the fifth and sixth series, which will cover Diana's death in 1997.

A source told The Sun: 'This couldn't have come at a more delicate time for the new King and his Queen Consort, particularly as they're riding high in the minds of the public.

The new series of Netflixs The Crown will show King Charless crumbling marriage to Princess Diana in painful detail. Pictured: Dominic West as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana

The breakdown of Charles and Diana's relationship will be a central part of the new series and portrays the then Prince of Wales as 'petty, cold and deceitful'. Pictured: A family holiday taken by the royals a year prior to Charles and Diana's divorce in 1992 in which they enjoyed a trip aboard the 400ft yacht Alexander

'There's a sense that Netflix are muckraking over events that took place 30 to 40 years ago, but are still raw for those involved.

'The worst element for the royals is that millions of people around the world will view this series and view it less as a drama and more as a documentary.

'And attention on the Windsors couldn't be higher as it's been just a few weeks since Queen Elizabeth II's funeral and is in the run-up to the King's coronation.'

The fifth series will span the 1990s, including events from 1992, the late monarch's annus horribilis - horrible year - during which Prince Andrew and Prince Charles separated from their wives, the Princess Royal divorced her husband Mark Phillips, and part of Windsor Castle burnt down.

It will begin with Sir John Major as Prime Minister and conclude with the arrival of Tony Blair.

During this time, Prince Charles admitted to Jonathan Dimbleby that he committed adultery with the then Camilla Parker Bowles.

It also saw Princess Diana interviewed by Martin Bashir for Panorama in an interview that has had years of repercussions.

Princess Diana's death - which took place in 1997 - will not be covered until the sixth and final series.

The fourth series, which streamed in November last year, told the story of the early romance between Charles and Diana. Pictured: King Charles III attends the state funeral of the Queen

Fans eagerly anticipating the return of The Crown were given a teaser of the fifth series as a new trailer was dropped.

The short 37-second clip portrayed when the news of the dramatic breakdown of Diana and Charles' marriage was revealed to the public and the ensuing family drama that all took place under the brightest of spotlights.

It was also revealed that the next instalment will premiere on Netflix on Wednesday, November 9 - where fans will see Imelda Staunton take on the role of Queen Elizabeth II for the first time.

The video starts with an eerie voiceover saying: 'Buckingham Palace is issuing this statement: It is with regret that the Prince and Princess of Wales are separating'.

A news bulletin is then heard in the background stating: 'There's uproar in Britain after Prince Charles bared his soul to the nation but the Princess of Wales upstaged her husband speaking about her marriage, her life and her future.'

A cacophony of reports are then heard being mixed up in the background that culminate with the phrase: 'This is becoming all-out war' as the screen shows the pair getting ready to do news interviews.

Diana looks smart in a green jacket and skirt while Charles wore a dark suit as he sat on the chair and fiddled nervously with his hands.

The final black screen then flashes up with: 'The Crown: November 9.'
Vladimir Putin has made a veiled threat suggesting that all energy infrastructure in the world is a legitimate military target after the Nord Stream pipeline explosion last month.

The authoritarian leader said the blast in the gas pipeline, which western intelligence agencies have blamed on his own country, was a terrorist attack and this has set 'the most dangerous precedent'.

Speaking at an energy forum in Moscow yesterday, the Russian president warned that 'any critically important object of transport, energy or utilities infrastructure is under threat'.

In a hidden jab aimed at the west, he suggested that this applied no matter where the infrastructure resides or who manages it.

It comes as nations in Europe try to get set for a tough winter that is set to be dominated by surging energy prices and potential gas shortages brought on by Putin's illegal war in Ukraine and the subsequent damage to the Nord Stream pipeline.

Despite the threat, Britain has promised to continue its support of Ukraine and has promised to send rockets to defend its cities in the wake of Russian barrages that killed at least 19 people and injured scores more earlier this week.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky had called for more help with his country's air defence after the latest attacks and the UK seems set to answer by sending AMRAAM rockets capable of knocking out cruise missiles.

Vladimir Putin said the damage to the Nord Stream gas pipeline was caused by an act of 'international terrorism'

Blasts at the pipeline in the Baltic Sea on September 26 sent plumes of gas shooting to the sea surface

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has requested rockets to help defend cities after fresh Russian missile barrages last week

Putin claimed that the attacks on Monday were aimed at Ukrainian infrastructure, and his veiled threat suggests he might target places farther afield than in the theatre of war.

It comes after he declared leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines which run from Russia underneath the Baltic Sea to Germany, to have been caused by acts of 'international terrorism'.

Damage to the pipes was first discovered on September 26 when huge plumes of gas were discovered rising to the sea surface near the Danish island of Bornholm. Less than 24 hours later another leak was discovered in another section of piping.

Western intelligence agencies believe the leaks to have been caused by Russian sabotage,but Putin has declared there is 'no doubt' it was a terrorist incident.

Speaking at the Russian Energy Week International Forum yesterday, Putin said the purpose of the attack 'is to undermine the energy security of the entire continent'.

He said: 'The logic is cynical: to destroy and block cheap energy sources, hence depriving millions of people, industrial consumers of gas, heat, electricity and other resources and forcing them to buy all this at much higher prices. Forcing.'

He then added a veiled threat, saying: 'The attack on the Nord Streams has set an extremely dangerous precedent, which shows that any critical piece of transport, energy or communications infrastructure is under threat, regardless of its location, management or whether it lies on the seabed or on land.'

Putin's latest threats come after a wave of embarrassing defeats for his forces in the ongoing war in Ukraine.

His troops have been pushed back in counter offensives in the northeastern and southeastern parts of Ukraine, while the key Crimean Bridge was crippled after a massive explosion last week.

The attack, for which Ukraine has not taken responsibility, was a slap in the face for the president as it critically hurt supply chains into Crimea and Kherson while also damaging what had been a symbol of Russian power.

At the forum yesterday, he decried the damage to the bridge as a 'terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge committed by Ukrainian intelligence'.

Flame and smoke rise from the Crimean Bridge connecting Russian mainland and the Crimean peninsula over the Kerch Strait, in Kerch, Crimea, October 8, 2022

Russia's FSB spy agency has revealed a X-ray that they claim shows a 23-ton bomb disguised as industrial plastic sheeting which blew up the Crimean Bridge

There had been fears he would 'go nuclear' in retaliation, but this was downplayed by the Kremlin, and instead Russia launched its largest barrage of missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities since the war started in February.

Cities including the capital Kyiv were targeted by strikes that hit civilian areas, including a railway terminal, a concert hall and two museums, as well as a power plant.

A defiant President Zelensky declared that Ukraine had managed to shoot down half of the missiles before they landed, by at least 19 people were still killed and dozens more injured, prompting him to call for aid.

Now Nato allies have said hundreds of air defence missiles will be donated along with an additional 18 howitzer artillery guns and hundreds of additional drones.

The AMRAAM rockets will work alongside the USs NASAMS air defence systems and could save hundreds of innocent lives.

Last night Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: Russias latest indiscriminate strikes on civilian areas warrant further support to those seeking to defend their nation.

These weapons will help Ukraine defend its skies from attacks and strengthen their overall missile defence alongside the US NASAMS.

The UK is going to send AMRAAM air-to-air intercept missiles (pictured) to Ukraine to help defend its cities.

Rescuers work at a site of a residential building heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, on Monday

Sites across Ukraine were hit by a wave of missiles on Monday, Ukraine said it counted 83 missiles. Here a rescue worker responds to a strike in Zaporizhzhia

83 Russian missiles were launched at Ukraine in combination with Iranian drones, striking power stations, water supplies and civilians across the country - killing eight and wounding 24 in Kyiv alone on Monday

The UK will also give 10 million to NATOs Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine. The funding will provide winter clothes, shelters, generators, fuel trucks and ambulances for the Ukrainian Army ahead of the winter.

The Defence Secretary will urge his Allied counterparts to continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. At a series of meetings in Brussels they will review the implementation of decisions taken at the Madrid Summit designed to strengthen NATOs collective deterrence and defence.

NATO members will also discuss defence industrial capacity, to ensure they can increase munitions stockpiles to support Ukraine and defend NATO territory.

Also on the agenda is the recent sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines and measures required to safeguard the critical infrastructure of NATO states.

NATO has doubled its numbers of ships in the Baltic and North Seas and is about to begin a series of nuclear warfare preparedness exercises.
Given that Governors from Republican states have recently begun transporting legal immigrants to predominantly Democratic cities, what is going on at the US-Mexico border? Latino Lawyer Omar Ochoa provided insight from McAllen, a South Texas city in the Rio Grande Valley. McAllen is so connected to the Mexican city of Reynosa, located across the Rio Grande River, that the two are sometimes referred to as a "borderplex," an urban center that straddles both the US and Mexico.

"These transports of people to other parts of the country highlight the problem of increased immigration," Ochoa said. "I think everybody would agree - both Democrats and Republicans - that the immigration system needs to be fixed. Although Abbott and DeSantis's approach is not the best way to do it."

A controversial approach

Starting in April, Texas Governor Greg Abbott began busing legal immigrants to Washington, DC. In August, he expanded this program to New York City and Chicago. In September, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis flew approximately 50 migrant workers from Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts.

Abbott and DeSantis have positioned these actions as protests against the Biden administration's approach to immigration.

"There have been a couple of policy changes over the years," Ochoa explained. "The Trump administration's policy was not to allow asylum immigrants to enter or remain within the United States during their asylum proceedings. Under President Biden, this policy has changed, and the Supreme Court has allowed that change."

DeSantis's actions have triggered a lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Lawyers for Civil Rights filed the case, acting on behalf of the transported immigrants and Alianza Americas, an international coalition of more than 50 organizations that promote immigrant rights.

"This lawsuit reveals the frustration on both sides of the issue," Ochoa said. "Obviously, Governors DeSantis and Abbott feel that the national policy needs to be shifted, but a lot of folks disagree with the methods they've chosen to raise awareness of their position. Transporting people halfway across the country and leaving them there is cruel."

For Ochoa, these controversies raise an opportunity to appreciate the strength and resilience of immigrants.

"The current events regarding immigration highlight the resiliency of the Latino community and just how much we want to contribute to this country," he said. "A lot of these people want to come here to the United States not only for their own economic prosperity, but also to help employers that need their services. It highlights the thriving nature of the Latino community in general."

South Texas: Thriving economic zone

Immigration from Mexico has reached record highs in 2022. According to Ochoa, South Texas residents have been aware of the surge.

"Fluctuations in administrative policy do affect the border community," he said. "We have seen higher immigration numbers come into this area. All that gets reported, so we're aware right when the numbers go up."

While Governor Abbott has claimed that increased immigration "has endangered and overwhelmed" Texas border communities "for almost two years" in a "historic crisis," Ochoa characterized the situation differently.

"Overall, the Texas-Mexico border continues to thrive," Ochoa explained. "Despite the doom and gloom you might hear on at least some media stations, the Texas-Mexico border is an economically prosperous area. It's very safe. A lot of cross-cultural exchanges between Texas and Mexico take place along the border. From that perspective, the Texas-Mexico border has not been impacted negatively the way some might paint it to be. The South Texas region continues to grow very quickly, and it's a flourishing economic zone."

According to a Rice University study, the population of Rio Grande Valley is larger than either San Antonio or Austin when the Mexican population of the borderplexes is factored in. The region's US population alone is projected to increase from 1.3 million to 2.4 million by 2045.

Transports shouldn't detract from Hispanic/Latin Heritage Month

Could these recent controversies pull attention away from Hispanic/Latin Heritage Month, which takes place from September 15 to October 15? Ochoa hopes not.

"The month is supposed to highlight the achievements of the Hispanic community, which are many," he commented. "The community continues to grow and makes a positive impact on the national scene in all kinds of areas. The month serves to remind everybody of how much the Latino community has contributed to our country. That should not be diminished by debates over immigration policy. The political debates that are going on in terms of how much immigration to allow, and in what forms, are questions that need to be addressed, but they shouldn't detract from national recognition of how much the Latino community has contributed to the United States."

Ochoa pointed to recent U.S. Census figures, which indicate that Hispanic Texans may have overtaken non-Hispanic whites as the state's largest population, as a reason the country should acknowledge Hispanic cultural contributions.

"The Latino community is - and has been - the fastest growing segment of the population for a while now," Ochoa clarified. "From that perspective, there's a lot to be aware of and to celebrate."

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L.A. mayoral hopeful Rick Caruso last night found himself insisting he is 'Italian'... not white, after a debate moderator baited him by saying the city's next mayor will be 'either an African American woman or a white man'.

Caruso is running against lifelong Democrat and career politician Karen Bass. He is a self-made billionaire and favorite among celebrities who was Republican in the past, but is now trying to win over the famously liberal city.

Caruso is running on a platform of cleaning up the streets, tackling homelessness and luring big business and Hollywood back to Tinseltown.

Last night, Honduras-born Telemundo anchor Dunia Elvir, started her question by stating: 'The next mayor of Los Angeles will be either an African-American woman or a white man.'

Caruso then interjected: 'I'm Italian.'

She shot back: 'Italian American.' The Republican candidate, whose grandparents emigrated from Italy, said: 'That's Latin, thank you.' Critics accused Caruso of appropriating Latinos, but others questioned why the candidates' race even had to be introduced to the debate at all.

'How about we focus on what people in L.A. want? The city cleaned up, made more livable for all... enough dividing based on race,' said one.

Rick Caruso, a billionaire real estate mogul, is hoping to be the next mayor of Los Angeles

On Tuesday night Caruso objected to being referred to as a white man, and insisted he was 'Latin'

'Why make this about race? Please stop,' said another.

'If we have got to a point where we have to deny being white to get votes then it is over. I love every race period. All God's people, I mean all!' said another.

Karen Bass is currently leading Caruso in the polls ahead of the November 8 election

The question was about L.A. City Councilwoman Nury Martinez and her shockingly racist remarks about African Americans, Jewish and Armenian colleagues.

Caruso admonished her, as did Bass, and insisted they both would work for the Hispanic community in Los Angeles to reduce racism.

Martinez, who is backing Bass, resigned as council president on Monday, and took a leave of absence from the city council.

Caruso, in his first race for elected office, was a longtime Republican who switched and became a Democrat near the deadline to enter the race in a city where the GOP is virtually invisible.

He's tapped into his estimated $5.3 billion fortune to build a $60 million war chest, most of it his own money - an amount that easily eclipses fundraising by all candidates in the previous three mayoral races.

Rick Caruso with Gwyneth Paltrow, one of the many stars to have endorsed him in his campaign to become L.A.'s next mayor

Karen Bass with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris while President Biden signs an order to reform policing in May. The President and Vice President said Bass has their 'friendship'

'It's not the power of the money, it's the power of the people,' Bass, a lifelong Angeleno and former state Assembly speaker, told cheering supporters at a recent outdoor rally.

The contours of the race have been set for months: finding solutions for the long-running homeless crisis, rising crime and runaway rents and housing prices.

The centrist Caruso, the son of Italian immigrants, is testing if the famously liberal city might swing to the political right for the first time in decades.

He's promising to expand the police department and quickly get homeless encampments off the streets.

The progressive Bass has positioned herself as a coalition-builder and emerged as the Democratic establishment pick, with her supporters including President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, a former California U.S. senator and attorney general.

The winner will replace outgoing two-term Democratic Mayor Eric Garcetti, who has been largely absent in the contest.

His nomination to become U.S. ambassador to India  made by Biden more than a year ago  appears stalled in the Senate over sexual harassment allegations against a former Garcetti top adviser.
Letby moved off nights amid concerns about correlation between suspicious deaths and her presence

Nurse 'smiling' after one baby's death and sent parents a sympathy card in 'unusual' move, court heard

Prosecution laid out claims of murder and attempted murder against four of her young patients

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'Cold-blooded' nurse Lucy Letby attempted to murder a baby three times before killing her on the fourth try, and then sent the bereaved parents a sympathy card, a court was told.

In a police interview Ms Letby was asked about the card, and she said sending a card was 'not normal' but it was the only time she had ever done it. She also accepted she had kept an image of the card on her phone, jurors heard.

She is said to have been 'smiling' after the death and persisted in talking to the girl's mother about how much the baby, referred to only as Child I, had enjoyed her first bath.

Mr Johnson, prosecuting, said Child I was doing well before Ms Letby 'got her hands on her'. But he said after this all of a sudden came vomiting, breathing problems and critical desaturations.

'It was persistent, it was calculated and it was cold-blooded.'

She is alleged to have murdered seven premature babies and attempted to kill 10 more.

On Wednesday, Letby sat in the dock wearing a black jacket as she listened to the prosecution.

Ms Letby denies all the 22 charges against her.

At the close of the third day of Letby's trial , the court has heard over the trial so far:

Letby, 32, denies murdering seven premature babies and attempting to murder 10 more over 12 months. The deaths occurred at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby was arrested three years after the death of her first alleged victim, Baby A;

ICU nurse is alleged to have injected babies with insulin, air or pumped with milk to kill them - often during night shifts when parents were less likely to be there;

Letby allegedly targeted twins on more than one occasion - and in some cases one was murdered and their sibling survived;

She is said to have searched for the families of her alleged victims' parents on Facebook and social media, including on Christmas Day;

In some cases, Letby is alleged to have tried to kill babies on up to four occasions, including two times in one shift;

Nurse was 'smiling' after one child's death and sent her parents a sympathy card, which was 'not normal';

On a separate occasion, a paediatric consultant claimed he walked in on Letby as she was trying to kill a child;

Doctors moved her off night shifts after being concerned about correlation between suspicious deaths and her presence;

Made notes about at least one of her attacks in a diary but denied this was a 'souvenir';

Used a baby's haemophilia as 'cover' to attack him, thinking that this would give her an excuse for his bleeding;

Letby denies seven charges of murder and ten charges of attempted murder between 2015 and 2016 at Countess of Chester Hospital

On one night in February 2016, Dr Jayaram (pictured), a paediatric consultant who has appeared on ITV's This Morning and the One Show on BBC, walked in as she was trying to kill a baby identified only as Child K, it is claimed

Full indictment against Lucy Letby Lucy Letby is charged as follows: Count 1 - Charged with murder of Baby A on June 8, 2015 Count 2 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby B between the June 8, 2015 and June 11, 2015 Count 3 - Charged with murder of Baby C on June 14, 2015 Count 4 - Charged with murder of Baby D on June 22, 2015 Count 5 - Charged with murder of Baby E on August 4, 2015 Count 6 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby F on August 5, 2015 Count 7 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 7, 2015 Count 8 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 9 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 10 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 26, 2015 Count 11 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 27, 2015 Count 12 - Charged with murder of Baby I on October 23, 2015 Count 13 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby J on November 27, 2015 Count 14 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby K on February 17, 2015 Count 15 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby L on April 9, 2016 Count 16 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby M on April 9, 2016 Count 17 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 3, 2016 Count 18 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 19 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 20 - Charged with murder of Baby O on June 23, 2016 Count 21 - Charged with murder of Baby P on June 24, 2016 Count 22 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby Q on June 25, 2016 Advertisement

She also tried to kill a second set of twins and murdered two of three triplets, it was claimed yesterday - as jurors heard allegations TV doctor Dr Ravi Jayaram walked in on her as she was attacking a baby girl.

The 32-year-old is accused of attacking two sets of twins by injecting them with insulin and air. One child, Baby E, would die but his sibling survived. The Crown has already accused Letby of attempting to murder two other twins in similar circumstances eight months before.

At the time, Letby was supposed to only to be working day shifts because the consultants were concerned about the correlation between her presence and unexpected deaths on night shifts, the prosecution said.

In total, she is accused of murdering seven premature babies and attacking 10 more over a year by poisoning them with insulin, injecting air into their bloodstreams or over-feeding them milk.

On one night in February 2016, Dr Jayaram, a paediatric consultant who has appeared on ITV's This Morning and the One Show on BBC, walked in as she was trying to kill a baby identified only as Child K, it is claimed.

Nick Johnson KC, prosecuting, told the jury: 'Feeling uncomfortable with this because he had started to notice the coincidence between the unexplained deaths, serious collapses and the presence of Lucy Letby, Dr Jayaram decided to check on where Lucy Letby was and how Child K was.

'As he walked into room one, he saw Letby standing over Child K's incubator. She did not have her hands inside the incubator, but Dr Jayaram could see from the monitor on the wall that Child K's oxygen saturation level was falling dangerously low, to somewhere in the 80s.

'But the alarm was not sounding as it should have been and Lucy Letby had not called for help, despite child K's oxygen levels falling. We allege she was trying to kill Child K when Dr Jayaram walked in.'

Later the same morning at 7.30, Letby was again at Child K's cot calling for help, the court heard. She was assisting the baby with her breathing and it was found Child K's breathing tube had this time slipped too far into her throat. Child K was transferred to another hospital later that day but remained unwell and died two days later. Letby is not accused of her murder.

One independent medical expert said it was 'very likely' the dislodgement of the breathing tube was a deliberate act and another did not believe an 'accidental or innocent dislodgement' was a plausible explanation, the court heard.

Under police interview, Letby said she had not initially sounded the alarm over child K when Dr Jayaram walked in because she was 'possibly waiting to see if she self-corrected, we don't normally intervene straight away if they weren't dangerously low' in oxygen. Mr Johnson told the court a nursing expert said that given how premature the baby was, Letby's explanation for delaying intervention, 'didn't wash'.

On Wednesday, Letby sat in the dock wearing a black jacket as she listened to the prosecution lay out an allegation of murder against Child I and O, two of attempted murder against Child H, and further the attempted murders of Child J, K, L, M and N.

The nurse is said to have murdered two out of three triplets - Children O and P - on successive days in June 2016, it is alleged, but the third, Child N, survived.

Mr Johnson described the case of Child I as 'an extreme example even by the standards of this overall case'. He said Letby first tried to kill Child I by injecting air into the infant's stomach.

After Letby's third alleged attempt on her life, Child I was transferred to another hospital where she made a dramatic recovery. But after being returned to Letby's care, the infant collapsed and needed cardiac compressions, the court heard.

'Baby I was born very early and very small - but she survived the first two months of her life and was doing well by the time Lucy Letby got her hands on her,' Mr Johnson said.

After Child I's death, her parents were taken to a private room and asked if they wanted to bathe her. Mr Johnson said that as the baby's mother 'bathed her recently departed child, Letby came into the room and, in the words of the mother, was ''smiling and kept going on about how she was present at Child I's first bath and how much Child I had loved it''.'

The nurse later sent a sympathy card to the parents, something that was 'not normal'. In a police interview, she told officers this was the only time she had done it, 'but it is not often the nurses got to know a family as well as they had known Child I's'. She admitted to officers that she'd kept an image of the card on her phone.

Mr Johnson said: 'We suggest that it is highly significant that children within the orbit of Lucy Letby persistently and consistently suffered unexplained collapses.

'Sometimes the evidence of her hand at work is more obvious than others and it is remarkable that on many occasions when children who had suffered unexpected spectacular and life-threatening collapses were removed from her orbit, they had exceptional recoveries.'

Letby's parents, Susan and John, are supporting her at her six-month trial at Manchester Crown Court.

Nick Johnson, KC opened the hearing by outlining Letby's first alleged attempt to kill Child H when she was the infant's designated nurse.

The prosecutor said the ICU chart shows she gave Child H a dose of morphine at 1.25am and saline at 2.50am. The following night, the infant's oxygen levels began to drop profoundly at 22.53pm and 3.30am after being 'relatively stable' during the day shift.

The nurse (pictured) allegedly tried to kill one baby by injecting insulin into his nutrition bag less than 24 hours after murdering his twin brother

Letby sat in the dock wearing a black jacket as she listened to the prosecution lay out their case in Manchester Crown Court

Letby's parents Susan and John Letby arrive at Manchester Crown Court this morning

Letby was not her designated nurse at the time, but the nurse who had this role later said she could not recall whether she had taken a break during the shift but confirmed she had been out of the room at least some of the time.

He went on to describe 'interesting Facebook searches' by Letby after the incidents.

He told the court that about a week after Child H's second collapse, at about 1.15am, within about three minutes she searched for Child H's mother, the father of twin children E and F and the mother of Child I. At the time she was on her day off.

Introducing the case of Baby I, Mr Johnson said: 'There were four separate occasions on which we allege Lucy Letby tried to kill Baby I. She was resilient, but ultimately, at the fourth attempt, Lucy Letby succeeded in killing her'.

Baby I weighed 970 grams when she was born in Liverpool Women's Hospital on August 7, 2015. She was transferred to the Countess of Chester on August 18.

By September 29, the infant was eight weeks old and the clinical concerns about her had diminished.

She had no breathing problems, was 'in air', gaining weight and being fed both by bottles and a tube.

Mr Johnson alleged that Letby carried out her first attack on Baby I the following day, September 30  'a couple of days after she had tried to kill Baby H and a week or so after events two and three for Baby G.

Letby was on a 12-hour shift that began at 8am, and she was Baby I's designated nurse.

She had two other babies to look after in Room 3, yet despite this she was also involved that shift with G and H.

According to Baby I's mother, Letby expressed some concern to her and indicated that the infant would be reviewed by a doctor.

Mr Johnson said: 'When she made the requisite note, Letby reversed the concern, saying that it was Baby I's mother who had raised an issue about her abdomen, writing 'Mum feels it is more distended to yesterday and that I is quietnot on monitor but nil increased work of breathing'.

He asked the jury: 'Was it Lucy Letby trying to cover for what she was going to do?'

She fed the sleeping baby 35mls of expressed breast milk via the NGT at 4pm. Half an hour later an emergency 'crash call' was put out.

Baby I had vomited, desaturated, her heart rate had dropped and she was struggling to breath. Her airway had to be cleared and she was given breathing support before being moved to Room 1.

X-rays revealed a massive amount of gas in her stomach and bowel, and her lungs appeared 'squashed' and of small volume. It was the prosecution case that this air had been injected into the baby's stomach.

The crisis passed, but medical notes record that Letby adjusted the infant's glucose infusion and gave her an injection of saline.

'Within moments, Baby I deteriorated again. However, as I have said, Baby I was resilient and overnight her condition'.

Thereafter the baby enjoyed a period of such stability that she did not even need a monitor.

In the early hours of October 13, Baby I was well and being bottle-fed every four hours. At about 3am her designated nurse briefly left the room and asked Letby and another colleague to listen out for the infant.

Mr Johnson told the court: 'When she returned to Room 2, at about 3.20am, Lucy Letby was stood in the doorway. The room was darkened because it was night time. But as soon as she came in Lucy Letby told her Baby I looked pale.

'When the other nurse turned on the light, she saw that Baby I appeared at the point of death and was not breathing.

'When she reconsidered later she thought that perhaps I was breathing once at least every 20 seconds, because if she hadn't been the apnoea alarm would have sounded'.

Turning to the jury, Mr Johnson said: 'You might want to consider how it was that Lucy Letby could see that I was pale from the door of a room in which there was minimal lighting.

'And you may want to consider the possibility that someone had silenced the alarm or turned it off'.

The third incident happened on October 14 when Baby I suffered desaturation caused by gas in her abdomen. Again she needed to be resuscitated. She was 'brought back from the brink of death' at 7.48am.

'So I had the same problem as she had had before,' said Mr Johnson. 'And yet again there was Lucy Letby who was her designated nurse. Same nurse, same problem  a problem that doesn't happen when she isn't around'.

Baby I was transferred to Arrowe Park on October 15 and quickly stabilised before returning to Letby's hospital on October 17.

Baby I became unsettled just after midnight on October 23. Letby and the designated nurse went to her, but the infant collapsed and needed cardiac compressions.

Both an on-call registrar and an on-call consultant were called in. The latter noticed a mottled blue appearance in her trunk and peripheries. After five minutes of CPR the infant's saturation rate picked up to 100 per cent.

An x-ray showed massive dilation of the bowel and this was noted by the medics as 'large stomach bubble'. Baby I was successfully resuscitated and recovered.

At 1.06am the infant's designated nurse left the nursery temporarily, but then responded to the alarm. She returned to see Letby at the incubator.

Letby sketched in the dock at Manchester Crown Court with security as she was charged with the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of another ten

During the time Letby worked on the night shift, there was a rise in babies dying or falling seriously ill, Manchester Crown Court was told, and then when she moved to the day shift there were more 'inexplicable collapses and deaths'

Letby 'tried to kill a second set of twin boys' Prosecutor Nick Johnson KC claimed Lucy Letby attempted to murder child L and child M, twin boys, in similar circumstances to two other twin boys, child E and child F. Eight months earlier the Crown says the defendant murdered child E by injecting air into his bloodstream and attempted to murder his brother, child F, by poisoning him with insulin. On April 9 2016 Letby was working a day shift when she is said to have given an unauthorised dose of insulin to child L and while that attack was under way she turned her attentions to child M by administering air into his circulation. Mr Johnson said: 'By this time Lucy Letby was supposed only to be working day shifts because the consultants were concerned about the correlation between her presence and unexpected deaths and life-threatening episodes on the night shifts.' The Crown say the defendant volunteered to work an extra shift on April 9 after she noted child L's low glucose levels shortly after his birth the previous day. Mr Johnson said: 'We say that in effect she saw the opportunity to complete what she had attempted with (child F).' Advertisement

Realising the infant was very distressed, the nurse wanted to intervene. But Letby assured her that they would be able to settle the baby.

'Baby I then collapsed,' said Mr Johnson, before adding: 'This exchange foreshadows what was to happen when Child O collapsed six or so months later'.

The same on-call registrar arrived at 1.12am and led the attempts at resuscitation. She was joined by the registrar at 1.25am and he noted purple and white mottling.

'All resuscitative efforts were unsuccessful and treatment was withdrawn at 2.10am,' Mr Johnson said. 'Baby I was pronounced dead at 2.30am on October 23.'

Immediately after her death the infant's parents were taken to a private room. The mother was asked if she wanted to bathe her daughter.

'As [the mother] bathed her recently-deceased child, Lucy Letby came into the room and in the mother's words ''was smiling and kept going on about how she was present at Baby I's first bath and how much Baby I had loved it''.'

A post mortem revealed that all the loops in the infant's bowel were significantly dilated due to increased air content. 'In layman's terms they were expanded like a partially-inflated balloon,' Mr Johnson said.

Dr Dewi Evans, the expert paediatrician later called in by Cheshire Police, said he thought the apnoea monitor must have been tampered with or switched off.

He also believed an IV bolus of air had been injected into her bloodstream around midnight on October 22-23. 'In support of that, he points to Baby I screaming  followed quickly by her collapse,' Mr Johnson said.

The court heard that Letby had sent a sympathy card to the parents.

'She said that to send a card was not normal  indeed this was the only time she had done it; but that it was not often the nurses got to know a family as well as they had known Baby I's,' Mr Johnson said.

'She accepted that she had kept an image of the card on her phone. She denied giving Baby I air via the NGT.

Pre-term baby 'screamed' for 30 minutes after injury 'inflicted by Letby' and was almost ready to go home, when nurse came in to say 'hello', court hears Mr Johnson next told the jury about Child N, the 14th of the 17 babies Letby is alleged to have attacked. Child N was born at 34 weeks on June 2 2016 at the Countess of Chester Hospital, weighing 3.6lbs. The infant two weeks and three days short of being a full term baby, but was admitted to the neonatal unit because his mother was a carrier of the blood disorder haemophilia. His clinical condition was described as 'excellent' although he did have mild haemophilia. two weeks and three days short of being a full term baby. The infants own haemophilia was an important feature of the case, said Mr Johnson. Despite a common perception that the disorder makes someone more prone to bleeding for either no reason or a trivial reason, children with Ns mild level rarely bleed for no reason. Most importantly, blood in the throat of a child with his level of haemophilia does not occur spontaneously. 'We allege that Lucy Letby thought that Ns haemophilia gave her cover to attack him.' Mr Johnson said this was because Letby assumed, wrongly, that if he bled it would be put down to the condition. The nurse allegedly went on to attack him three times. In fact, children with mild haemophilia rarely bleed for no reason, the jury at Chester Crown Court heard. The day Child N was born, Lucy Letby was one of five nurses working the night shift on the neo-natal unit. At 1.05am the day-old baby suffered a sudden lowering of his blood oxygen levels to life-threatening levels. Unusually for such a small, premature baby he was crying and screaming. The child recovered after emergency assistance from doctors and nurses. Independent medical experts said the baby's sudden deterioration was consistent with some kind of 'inflicted injury' or him having received an injection of air. Mr Johnson said: 'Lucy Letby did not leave it there'. Twelve days later, on June 15, Letby is alleged to have made two more attempts to murder Child N. At the time he was almost ready to go home, except for treatment for jaundice. At the beginning of the night shift, just after Lucy Letby had handed over to a colleague, he was described as being very unsettled'. By 1am he was 'pale, mottled and veiny' with slight abdominal distention. When Letby came in on for her day shift early at 7.15am and went to child N's room to say 'hello', the court was told. When a second nurse had her back turned Letby told her the baby had lost oxygen and immediately assisted with his breathing. A doctor was called but was unable to put a breathing tube into the child after discovering fresh blood inside his mouth. The medic could not see the back of the child's throat as it was so swollen. Around 3pm that day there was a further collapse of child N with his oxygen levels falling to life-threatening levels and a further attempt to insert a breathing tube again found blood in his throat. He was later transferred to a specialist children's hospital in Liverpool where he recovered quickly. Independent medical experts suggested the blood in child N's mouth was as a result of the 'thrusting' of a tube into the back of his throat to inflict injury, the court heard. Towards the end of her shift Letby wrote up her own notes. She referred to 'fresh blood' and '3mls blood aspirated from NG tube'. When Dr Evans reviewed the case he concluded that the blood seen in Baby Ns throat had originated there, rather than coming up from the stomach. In his opinion 'the bleeding was not caused by the attempts to intubate, but instead some preceding trauma'. He suggested that 'thrusting' an NG tube into the back of the throat might be the mechanism used to inflict the injury. Dr Bohins view was that the likely cause of the bleeding was trauma to the mouth, throat or oropharynx, most likely from an NGT or suction catheter. When interviewed by police Letby agreed she had seen blood but denied being responsible for causing him harm. Advertisement

She challenged her colleague's account of Baby I's collapse in the darkened room, claiming that because she was more experienced she might have 'spotted something that she wasn't able to spot'.

Mr Johnson told the jury: 'Baby I was born very early and very small. But she survived the first two months of her life and was doing well by the time Lucy Letby got her hands on her.

'What happened to Baby I followed the pattern of what had happened to others before and what was yet to happen to others., All of a sudden, out of nowhere, came vomiting, breathing problems and critical desaturations'.

In the first incident there had been a vomit followed by lots of air and some milk; in the second Letby had been seen 'coolly watching Baby I who was in crisis'; in the third the infant pumped with air; and in the fourth the designated nurse returning in response to the alarm and finding Letby standing over her.

'It was persistent, calculated and cold-blooded,' said Mr Johnson.

Child J was born prematurely at 32 weeks and two days gestation, on October 31, 2015, at the Countess of Chester Hospital.

She had an operation for a bowel disorder at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool before returning to the neonatal unit at Chester on November 10, 2015.

Days later, her medical notes showed she was doing well and was healthy, the jury at Chester Crown Court heard.

But she suffered an unexplained collapse overnight on November 26/27 when Letby was one of the six nurses working the night shift.

Before her shift started, Letby texted a work colleague complaining that the babies she was to look after, including Child J, only needed help feeding.

Mr Johnson told the jury: 'It appears, we suggest, that working in nurseries three and four was not sufficiently stimulating for Lucy Letby.'

The prosecutor claimed Letby attempted to murder Child L and Child M, twin boys, in similar circumstances to two other twin boys, Child E and Child F.

Eight months earlier the Crown says the defendant murdered Child E by injecting air into his bloodstream and attempted to murder his brother, Child F, by poisoning him with insulin.

On April 9, 2016 Letby was working a day shift when she is said to have given an unauthorised dose of insulin to Child L and while that attack was under way she turned her attentions to Child M by administering air into his circulation.

Mr Johnson said: 'By this time Lucy Letby was supposed only to be working day shifts because the consultants were concerned about the correlation between her presence and unexpected deaths and life-threatening episodes on the night shifts.'

The Crown say the defendant volunteered to work an extra shift on April 9 after she noted Child L's low glucose levels shortly after his birth the previous day.

Mr Johnson said: 'We say that in effect she saw the opportunity to complete what she had attempted with (Child F).'

He said the defendant went on to agree the insulin could not have been given accidentally but said she was not responsible.

Her only explanation was it must have already been in one of the bags he was receiving but the Crown say that was 'not a credible possibility', he added.

Mr Johnson said Child M came 'close to death' after his heart rate and breathing dropped dramatically without warning but improved on the night-shift that followed and went on to make a speedy recovery.

When Letby's home in Chester was searched two years later, a number of medical notes were found which detailed how many doses of adrenaline were given to Child M during his collapse.

A note of his collapse was also recorded in her diary, the court heard.

Mr Johnson said: 'She thought she had taken home the notes by accident and simply noted what had happened in her diary.

'She denied that the notes were a souvenir and she denied deliberately trying to harm (Child M).

'We suggest these cases (children E, F, L and M) are similar in that one of each pair suffered an insulin overdose whereas it is suggested the other suffered an air embolism.

'What are the chances of that happening innocently? We suggest coincidences like that simply do not happen innocently.'

Letby is also accused of murdering two male triplets, child O and child P, on successive days in June 2016.

Child O was in good condition and stable up until the afternoon of June 23 when he suffered a 'remarkable deterioration', the court heard.

A post-mortem examination found unclotted blood in his body from a liver injury and a coroner certified death on the basis of natural causes and intra-abdominal bleeding.

Mr Johnson told jurors: 'Of course it would not occur to him (the coroner) that a nurse would have assaulted a child in the neo-natal unit'.

He said an independent pathologist had since reviewed the case and was of the opinion the liver injury was not the result of chest compressions in resuscitation.

Letby is accused of attacking two sets of twins - with insulin and with air - one child, Baby E, would die but his sibling survived

The prosecution claims that a single common factor in the babies' deaths and collapses was Letby's presence

The court has heard Letby (pictured) attempted to kill one baby at Countess of Chester Hospital three times in the space of a month

Mr Johnson said the most likely cause was an impact-type trauma, adding: 'In brutal terms, an assault.'

The expert also concluded child O had fatefully received excessive amounts of air into the bloodstream and through a nasogastric tube.

The trial continues tomorrow.
Jewish students have faced vile abuse on campus amid an 'unacceptable' rise in anti-Semitism at UK universities.

The findings come amid an ongoing investigation into the National Union of Students (NUS) over anti-Semitism allegations.

Robert Halfon, Commons education committee chairman, said: 'Universities and unions trumpet their so-called ''inclusion and diversity agenda'' but when it comes to anti-Semitism, it seems that those of the Jewish faith don't count.'

Jewish students have faced vile abuse on campus amid an 'unacceptable' rise in anti-Semitism at UK universities. Pictured: A poster featuring a swastika in place of the Star of David on the flag of Israel at Royal Holloway, University of London

A record 111 incidents of anti-Semitic abuse at universities were reported in 2020-21 to the charity Community Security Trust (CST).

Last year it recorded three incidents of swastikas or anti-Semitic messages graffitied on campus.

Earlier this year at Manchester students reportedly told someone at a Jewish Society stall which displayed an Israeli flag that she was 'worse than Hitler'.

An NUS spokesman said it could not comment due to the KC-led probe but added: 'We will take appropriate action in due course.'
Controversial Australian social commentator Prue MacSween has been called out for sending tweets aimed at current and former Labor prime ministers to the wrong accounts.

Ms MacSween sent a tweet lambasting Anthony Albanese to an 'Italian porn artist' rather than the Prime Minister, and then sent a barb fired at Paul Keating to a fake account that hasn't posted in 13 years.

Her tweet about Labor's 'dilemma' over stage three tax cuts said the party wants to 'establish economic management creds, which theyve never had.

'But do they risk a 'there will be no climate tax' Gillard moment? And what does legislated policy mean if they dont deliver tax cuts? No wonder @Albo is MIA (missing in action).'

Self-styled schoolboy journalist Leonardo Puglisi, 14, tweeted back at Ms MacSween to say 'Prue, he's MIA as prime minister because he's actually an Italian porn artist.'

Conservative commentator Prue MacSween (pictured) has been called out for mistaking current and former Labor prime minsters' Twitter accounts for those of a similar name held by an 'Italian porn artist' and a fake

She responded with a snarky tweet back to Mr Puglisi, saying 'I look forward to the time when you grow up. I wonder if that will ever happen?'

He was not deterred, though, replying 'look I gotta admire the fact you took over 24 hours to think of this reply, I just tweet whatever comes to my mind'.

Mr Puglisi also said to Ms MacSween 'Prue you're 56 years older than me but yet I know which twitter handle is the PM and which twitter handle is an Italian porn artist.'

Contacted by Daily Mail Australia, the young reporter said Ms MacSween should 'continue tweeting as it's funny to correct her every single time.

'Some might say tagging the wrong accounts constantly is her own little dark age,' Mr Puglisi said.

In a response to Daily Mail Australia, Ms MacSween said she is 'Not interested in talking about this precocious, attention-seeking individual.'

On Wednesday, Ms MacSween also tagged the wrong Paul Keating in a jibe at the man who was a Labor prime minister from 1991 to 1996.

'Does anyone care what @PaulKeatingPM says about AUKUS and our alliance with the US?

Social commentator Prue MacSween sent a tweet to an Italian porn artist thinking it was Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured)

The 'precocious' Leonardo Puglisi got into a Twitter spat with Prue MacSween over some wrongly tagged tweets

Schoolboy journalist Leonardo Puglisi (pictured) is not shy of expressing his views online

'He is so wedded to his alliance with Commie China, how could you take him seriously?'

The problem was that @PaulKeatingPM clearly states it is a 'Fake Paul Keating having his say on everything.'

And the account also has not posted anything since November 3, 2009.

Mr Puglisi spotted that too, and said he was not having a go at Ms McSween due to her seniority.

'It's not an attack on her age - but like, shes been on Twitter like 10 years more than me, is a lot older than me and has been in media a lot.

'So you'd think after all that she'd be able to tag the right account,' he said.

A critical tweet aimed at former Australian prime minister Paul Keating (pictured centre) was sent to a fake account that hasn't been used in 13 years
Ukraine yesterday brushed off Putins latest strikes on its cities by seizing back five key villages in territory Russia has just annexed.

Kyiv has vowed to retake the entire region of Kherson by the end of the year after launching its counter-offensive in August.

It was one of four regions claimed by Russia last month after sham votes. The Ukrainian presidency said troops have liberated five more settlements in the Beryslav district [in the Kherson region].

Russia continued to attack civilian targets. A missile hit a market in the eastern city of Avdiivka, killing at least nine. Other strikes targeted energy production near Dnipro.

Kyiv has vowed to retake the entire region of Kherson by the end of the year after launching its counter-offensive in August. (File image of the war in Ukraine)

The shelling killed at least nine people and wounded another nine, tearing through market stalls and leaving the dead bodies scattered on the ground.

There was no military logic in this attack - only an unbridled desire to kill as many of our people as possible and frighten others, Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

Ukraines emergency service released video footage last night showing rescue workers pulling a family out from the rubble of destroyed buildings in Zaporizhzhia.

Ukraines emergency service released video footage last night showing rescue workers pulling a family out from the rubble of destroyed buildings in Zaporizhzhia (Pictured: a Ukraine tank)

Officials gave no date for when the video was filmed, but the southeast city has been regularly bombarded from Russian-held territory from south of the Dnipro river over the past two weeks.

There was one strike on an apartment block overnight but there were no reports of casualties, regional governor Oleksandr Starukh said.

Local officials in the central Dnipropetrovsk region said Russian invaders attacked energy facilities in Kamian yesterday morning.

In the morning, the Russians hit the energy infrastructure in the Kamian district. There is a strong fire and destruction, said governor Valentin Reznichenko.

Doctors said three people were seriously injured in hospital in nearby Nikopol, including a six-year-old girl.

More than 30 high-rise and private buildings, two kindergartens, a school, two businesses, and shops were damaged in the city (Pictured: A Ukrainian soldier stands as a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer fires a shell on the front line in Donetsk region)

More than 30 high-rise and private buildings, two kindergartens, a school, two businesses, and shops were damaged in the city.

It came as US president Joe Biden used an interview with the broadcaster CNN to downplay concerns that Putin might turn to nuclear weapons as his special military operation in Ukraine falters.

Mr Biden said the Kremlin despot was a rational actor who has miscalculated significantly when he decided to invade his neighbour.

Asked how realistic he believed it would be for Mr Putin to use a tactical nuclear weapon, Mr Biden responded: Well, I dont think he will.

I think its irresponsible for him to talk about it, the idea that a world leader of one of the largest nuclear powers in the world says he may use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

Once you use a nuclear weapon, the mistakes that can be made, the miscalculations, who knows what would happen.

The US leader also refused to rule out meeting the Russian strongman at a forthcoming summit in Bali, Indonesia next month but cautioned: Hes acted brutally. I think hes committed war crimes. And so I dont see any rationale to meet with him now.
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Kanye West and Ray J had an unlikely reunion Wednesday night at the Nashville premiere of Candace Owens' new documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM.

At the event, West posed on the red carpet with his ex-wife's sex-tape partner rapper Ray-J, as well as Kid Rock.

Sources told TMZ that Owens worked to get both West and Ray-J to the premiere as an attempted slight at their mutual ex, Kim Kardashian, who Owens recently called a 'prostitute.'

Ray J's appearance comes days after he concerned his fans when he posted a series of since deleted troubling posts that alluded to suicidal thoughts.

Hours earlier, Owens tweeted a letter sent to Kanye by JP Morgan Chase telling him to take his business elsewhere.

The bank has not commented on the letter, nor confirmed its reasons for ending their relationship. Kanye - who remains banned from social media - said at the event that it was time to talk about being 'canceled by a bank'.

He also insisted that his inflammatory promise to go 'death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE' wasn't anti-Semitic, and said he was just 'calling out bad business'.

PICTURED left to right: Ray J, Kanye West, Colby Covington, and Candace Owens at the premiere of Owens' new documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, an anti-BLM film

Ray J (left) poses with Kid Rock (center) and Kanye West (right) at the DailyWire premiere event

All Smiles: West and Owens pose together on the red carpet. Owens has stood by West during his recent bout of feuding with powerful people and organization

Conservative commentator Candace Owens posted a screenshot of an email sent from Chase Bank to Kanye, terminating their business relationship

Canceled: Kanye promised to 'go death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE' in a shocking tweet earlier this week

Also in attendance at the premiere was country music icon Jason Aldean and his wife Brittany Aldean, who recently found herself as the middle of a controversy concerning comments she made about trans children.

West further fanned the flames after dismissing Black Lives Matter, the social movement created to protest social and racial injustices aimed at his own community, via his Instagram page

As he left the premiere, West reportedly addressed his recent online ramblings that appeared to target the Jewish community.

He told Page Six: 'If you call somebody out for bad business, that means youre being anti-Semitic.

'I feel happy to have crossed the line of that idea so we can speak openly about things like getting canceled by a bank.'

West was also spotted at the premiere consorting with Project Veritas founder and guerilla journalist James O'Keefe.

The movie is Owens' revealing investigation into the Black Lives Matter organization and how it has allocated the tens of millions of dollars amassed in recent years in the name of right racial injustice across the country.

The reunion took place just hours after Owens shared a screenshot of an email sent to Kanye West by JP Morgan Chase that tells the music and fashion mogul he will have to find a different establishment at which to bank the Yeezy Empire.

The purported note from Chase Bank reads, 'We are sending this letter to confirm our recent discussion with (name block) that JPMorgan Chase Bank...has decided to end its banking relationship with Yeezy, LLC and its affiliated entities.'

The note does not provide a reason for the termination of the customer agreement and says West and his colleagues have until November 21 of this year to transfer accounts elsewhere.

Kanye, Kid Rock, Ray J and others turned up for the Nashville premiere of the documentary that is meant to expose a significant misallocation of funds by the BLM organization

Friendly embrace: sources told TMZ that Owens worked to orchestrate the Ray J, Kanye reunion at the premiere as a sort of dig at Kim Kardashian, who she recently called a prostitute on her show

Ray J (left), Kid Rock (center), Kanye West (right) pose on the red carpet at the premiere of Candace Owens' new documentary

Kanye West & James OKeefe  pic.twitter.com/68zPSjei5p  Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 13, 2022

Owens shared her thoughts Wednesday evening about the purported corporate cancelation of Kanye by Chase Bank

Following his Paris fashion week 'White Lives Matter' news cycle, Ye sat down with Fox News' Tucker Carlson to expand upon some of his more controversial views

Owens, a conservative commentator and host of a show on Ben Shapiro's The DailyWire, said the move by JPMorgan Chase is emblematic of the country reaching an 'extremely frightening time.'

'Who are [sic] what has landed us in to these times is an ongoing discussion which I would like to open up.

'Tonight I am focusing on my BLM documentary premiere. We will revisit this crucial topic tomorrow,' she wrote.

News of West's ban from Chase comes soon after Motherboard leaked an unaired clip from his interview with Tucker Carlson, which heard him saying Planned Parenthood was created to 'control the Jew populations' through eugenics.

'When I say Jew, I mean the 12 lost tribes of Judah, the blood of Christ, who the people known as the race black really are,' he added. 'This is who our people are. The blood of Christ. This, as a Christian, is my belief.'

The clip was notably absent from the interview when it aired on Fox News last week.

Nevertheless, the aired portions of West's interview remained rife with bizarre statements, including a suggestion that his children had been replaced with 'professional actors' in his home to 'sexualize my kids.'

He also pushed the anti-Semitic trope about Jewish people being good with money, saying 'I prefer my kids knew Hanukkah than Kwanzaa. At least it will come with some financial engineering,' before chuckling.

Despite ongoing controversy in his personal and professional life, Kanye appeared to have time for a date Monday with a woman he took to dinner at celeb hotspot Giorgio Baldi in Santa Monica, California. Kanye sported an adidas sweatshirt, a curious move given his recent back-and-forth with the company, and a 2024 hat, hinting at another political run in the future

Owens recently supported West at his Paris fashion week show, where the controversy of his 'White Lives Matter' shirts began

Last Monday, Owens attended the Yeezy season 9 fashion show in Paris, which sparked criticism after creator West sent models down the runway in his t-shirts.

West was also pictured wearing one of the shirts himself, as was right-wing commentator Owens.

Since the YZY Season 9 show in Paris last week, West has posted and deleted a number of messages to his Instagram, including one that read in all capital letters, 'EVERYONE KNOWS THAT BLACK LIVES MATTER WAS A SCAM NOW ITS OVER YOU'RE WELCOME' [sic].

The outspoken star appeared to be reinforcing a lack of faith in the cause, which has developed a reputation for staging mass street protests regarding the perceived mistreatment of minorities around the world, in addition to having leaders that misuse funds.

Eventually, he was kicked off the platform for posting an anti-Semitic tirade.

His Twitter account was suspended over the weekend after he tweeted: 'I'm a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I'm going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.'

He added: 'The funny thing is I actually can't be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also. You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.'

His attack on Jewish people arrived just a day after sharing screenshots on Instagram revealing messages sent to Diddy in which West, 45, accused the rapper of being controlled by Jewish people trying to silence his 'White Lives Matter' message.

The post resulted in his Instagram account being suspended.

Many have speculated that West - who has said he suffers from bi-polar disorder - is in the midst of a psychological episode.

Kanye has not yet offered comment on the latest round of corporate cancelation.

Corporate cancelation, de-banking, or having your assets frozen appears to be an increasingly popular response by powerful companies or bodies to individuals or groups with minority or dissenting opinion.

In February, Canadian banks froze the assets of a number of accounts belonging to people who participated in or supported the weeks-long Freedom Convoy protest that became tense and brutal.

Targets of the authoritative lock included a single mother who worked a minimum wage job who donated $50 to the cause of the truckers who were protesting strict COVID-19 requirements that prevented some from doing their job.
He is currently being held on a $1 million bond on charges of suspicion of aggravated kidnapping to commit rape

Police say Banks used a weapon to threaten the victim into complying

The horrifying moment a Los Angeles man threatened a 14-year-old girl with a weapon before forcing her into a bathroom and sexually assaulting her was captured on camera.

Edward William Banks, 27, was arrested on Tuesday night hours after the incident and is currently being held on a $1 million bail.

He is charged with suspicion of aggravated kidnapping to commit rape.

Edward William Banks, 27, was arrested after he allegedly threatened a 14-year-old girl with a weapon and sexually assaulted her

Banks was caught on surveillance footage allegedly leading the teen to a bathroom where he sexually assaulted her

Banks is seen leading the girl down a street with his arm tightly around her

The footage, along with tips, helped detectives track him down and he has been charged with suspicion of aggravated kidnapping to commit rape

The FBI's annual crime report showed murders were up by 4.3 percent and rapes up by 3.9 percent last year in the US, but overall crime was reportedly down due to decreases in robberies and assaults. The data, however, is missing figures from NYC and LA

The footage shows Banks with his arm draped around the unidentified teen while walking down a street in Los Angeles.

He then allegedly forced the victim into a bathroom by threatening her with a weapon and sexually assaulted her, before fleeing in an unknown direction.

The disturbing case comes as crime rises around the nation, including California.

The city recorded a 21 percent rise in aggravated assaults and a 22 percent rise in robberies when compared to last year.

Despite the tangible uptick in crime, Los Angeles mysteriously failed to report its crime data to the FBI.

In 2020, the FBI announced a complete overhaul of its crime data collection system in order to improve the statistics about crime in the US.

The FBI released their annual crime statistics and painted a picture of which states have the highest and lowest rates of violent crime - though LA did not submit their crime statistics

The city has seen a major uptick in crime compared to last year, including a 1% increase in rapes

However, about 9,700 police agencies had initially failed to submit their crime reports to the correct system by the March 14 deadline, with New York and Los Angeles failing to submit any data all together.

Both cities have contended with more than 300 murders so far this year, with overall violent crime running rampant.

Analysts from the Brennan Center for Justice said the missing data has left the current image of crime in America muddied.

'With so many agencies failing to report a full year of data for 2021, this year's annual crime data release will have significant blind spots,' the center said in a statement.
Australian teachers have revealed the substantial amount of abuse they cop from parents.

Dr Kirsten Lambert, a senior lecturer in English and Graduate research from Murdoch University, says teachers are increasingly copping abuse from parents and its undermining their desire to stay in the profession.

She spoke to teachers from schools right across Australia, and made some shocking discoveries about how they were being treated by parents.

A new study has uncovered the abusive treatment teachers have received from parents and the negative impact it's having on the profession (stock image)

'Whats the best thing about teaching? The kids. And the worst thing about teaching is the parents!' said Chloe, an independent primary school teacher.

Some revealed the abusive and threatening behaviour they had been confronted with.

'We had to lock down the entire school one day because a parent went ballistic at the principal. Then they did burnouts out the front of the school until the police arrived,' a teacher named Kelly told Dr Lambert.

Another educator, Max, said: 'The kids have their trauma and issues, but nine times out of ten its the parents.'

'They phone you up during lunch and yell at you that youre useless, their child should have got an A and that you dont know what youre doing. Its very stressful.'

One teacher named Jackson recalled a time he had to tell off a student for 'smearing banana all over the carpet behind his desk'.

But after telling the boy to clean the mess up, Jackson quickly received a call from his parents.

'Within five minutes of the class ending...Ive got the kids parents on the phone complaining that it wasnt their son,' he said.

Bella, a drama teacher, was adamant that parents were the most 'challenging' part for a new teacher starting out.

'I had a student in year 11 whose parents emailed my head of department and basically said, The drama teacher, who I dont know, I dont think she knows what shes doing because my child got a B and shes an A student',' she recounted.

Dr Kirsten Lambert (pictured), a senior lecturer in English and Graduate research from Murdoch University, interviewed 80 teachers over a period of 10 years

Teachers who spoke to Dr Lambert recalled having arguments with parents, having their time wasted waiting for parents or answering emails or being blamed when their child misbehaved (stock image)

In certain scenarios, teachers felt as if their time was not being appreciated or, in other cases, parents had forced their responsibilities on them.

'Ive had to wait until 1am (for) parents to pick up their kids after an evening excursion or rehearsal. This is not just a once off either,' said Krystal.

Jacinta explained that she once had to spend three hours 'answering emails to parents' after coming into her school on her day off for a different reason.

'Look, theyre (parents) paying A$20,000-plus and some of them want to get their moneys worth. So yeah, we are very accountable to the parents...theyve paid their money and they want you to sort of parent them as well,' claimed Ross, a private school teacher.

Dr Lambert concluded her study by urging parents to end abusive behaviour and demonstrate more respect as teachers work overtime to educate their children.

'Of course, parents care deeply about their children and have the right to approach the school to ask questions or raise concerns.'

'But parents should also be mindful that a school is also someone elses workplace. Teachers are already working overtime (literally) to educate their children  they dont need abuse from parents on top of this.'
More than a million Australians are being told to 'wash down their cars and driveways' for free as dam water levels are reduced ahead of an expected deluge this storm season.

Floodgates on Queensland's Wivenhoe Dam will be opened to release 116,000 megalitres of water in a 'safe and controlled manner' to reduce the dam level from 90 to 80 per cent.

Wivenhoe almost overflowed in the drenching the Sunshine State copped in February this year - the water reaching just 39cm below the top of the dam wall.

'It's time for families in South East Queensland to wash down your cars, driveways and maybe even your houses as we safely reduce dam levels ahead of storm season,' Premier Anastacia Palaszczuk tweeted on Thursday.

Wivenhoe Dam (pictured) in south east Queensland nearly overflowed in February this year after months worth of rain fell over a few days

Queensland's Premier urged residents to was their cars, driveways and homes to use water

She said the dam level would be lowered to 80 per cent over two weeks beginning from October 15.

'This is an early attempt to prepare for storm season based on Bureau of Meteorology and expert advice,' she said.

The 1.38million residents connected to the south-east Queensland water grid will also be given a $55 discount on their water bill, the equivalent of two weeks water for free.

'It allows for the use of 13,200 litres of free water for each of those homes and families,' she said.

'That's about double the normal household usage over a fortnight.'

Residents in Brisbane, Logan, Noosa, Redlands, The Sunshine Coast, The Gold Coast, Ipswich, Lockyer Valley, Somerset, Moreton Bay and Scenic Rim are connected to the grid.

Those on the south east Queensland water grid will get two weeks worth of free water

The discounts will apply to Queenslanders' water bills by December and be fully rolled out before March, Ms Palaszczuk said.

The Bureau of Meteorology has declared the third consecutive La Nina event this summer, which is expected to increase rain along the east coast.

The region is just recovering from one of the wettest summers on record in which the annual rainfall levels for Sydney and Brisbane were hit in a matter of weeks.
A young bottle shop worker has provided a colourful guide to drinking for young people depending on the occasion and their budget.

The straight-talking young woman, who works at the Cabramatta Bottler shop in south-western Sydney, has advice that covers budget, alcohol content, tastes and even ego size.

'If you don't know what type of drink to bring to your party, I'm a help you out here,' she said, before immediately moving on the the legal minimum age for drinking.

'Eighteen, going to your first party? You should stick to the Absolut or the Smirnoff (vodka brands) ... you don't have enough money to buy the other s***,' she said, appealing to those on a limited budget.

A young woman's (pictured) video about alcohol buying tips has gone viral on TikTok

Just so there is no confusion, the shop posted a disclaimer under the video, saying it does 'not condone underage drinking'.

Koi's manager Olivia told Daily Mail Australia the bottle shop is very pleased with the video.

'It's great, she's giving advice to younger and less experienced drinkers,' she said.

'She's expanding their knowledge of alcohol.'

But the younger legal drinking age cohort are unlikely to be hardened drinkers, so she offered words of advice on that too.

'Speaking of 18-year-olds, it's going to be lightweight central when you go to the party, so you need some ciders,' Koi said.

'You can always go for the OG Cruisers, but my best advice is Divas.

'It's got 8 per cent alcohol, which is double a Cruiser, and it's only $15 (for a four pack).'

One commenter was concerned she was letting a secret out, though.

'Nooo don't tell people about Divas,' they said.

A dislike for the taste of liquor is no barrier to her trying to sell you a bottle or two.

'If you don't like the taste of alcohol, Midori Illusion is the way to go,' Koi said.

'To me it just tastes like a really sweet lemonade and it is the soulmate for a lightweight.'

A commenter disagreed with her, though, saying 'Midori does not taste like a sweet lemonade, it is more cordial.'

The woman recommended Diva fruit flavoured drinks (pictured) as they are '8 per cent alcohol'

In case the video was veering too far to appealing to young males, Koi changed it up.

'For the ladies, any of these Alizes (a mixture of vodka and cognac), mix it with some Sprite and you're good to go,' she said.

Then she moved onto those with bigger budgets.

'When you're going to your Asian uncle's birthday party, bro, you've got to spend some money.

'With my personal experience, I always go for broke - Hennessy VSOP ($99.99) and a Martell Blue Swift ($104.99) is stock standard,' she said, naming two types of brandy.

Young people are pictured having fun at a party, possibly after getting some tips on TikTok

'But if you've got a little bit more money to spend and a bigger ego, go for the f****** (Hennessy) X.O. bro.'

As Hennessy X.O. costs $269.99 in her shop, it is not for the fainthearted, but Koi assured the viewers it would be well received.

'Every uncle loves them and when you party with the olders, you just have to learn how to build a high tolerance (for alcohol).

'They be pulling bottles out of nowhere, bro.'

For those who want to create the ambience of a bar at home or at a party, she had a solution for that too.

Cheers! Four glasses are pictured being clinked together as friends enjoy a drink or two

'If you want your favourite shot from a bar, like a Wet P**** shot, we've got premixed for you so you don't have to make it yourself.'

Koi closed by saying 'If this video is too long or if you want a part two, let me know.'

Judging by the more than 600 comments the video got in one day, there is likely to be a follow up.

Many commenters were intrigued by Koi's voice, with one asking 'is this like a normal accent or is it put on?'

The answer provided by another poster was that it is a western Sydney accent.

Another who appreciated the video said the young woman is 'Cabramatta's best investment'.
By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies

On March 11, 2022, President Biden reassured the American public and the world that the United States and its NATO allies were not at war with Russia. "We will not fight a war with Russia in Ukraine," said Biden. "Direct conflict between NATO and Russia is World War III, something we must strive to prevent."

It is widely acknowledged that U.S. and NATO officers are now fully involved in Ukraines operational war planning, aided by a broad range of US intelligence gathering and analysis to exploit Russias military vulnerabilities, while Ukrainian forces are armed with US and NATO weapons and trained up to the standards of other NATO countries.

On October 5, Nikolay Patrushev, the head of Russias Security Council, recognized that Russia is now fighting NATO in Ukraine. Meanwhile, President Putin has reminded the world that Russia has nuclear weapons and is prepared to use them "when the very existence of the state is put under threat," as Russias official nuclear weapons doctrine declared in June 2020.

It seems likely that, under that doctrine, Russias leaders would interpret losing a war to the United States and NATO on their own borders as meeting the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons.

President Biden acknowledged on October 6 that Putin is "not joking" and that it would be difficult for Russia to use a "tactical" nuclear weapon "and not end up with Armageddon." Biden assessed the danger of a full-scale nuclear war as higher than at any time since the Cuban missile crisis in 1962.

Yet despite voicing the possibility of an existential threat to our survival, Biden was not issuing a public warning to the American people and the world, nor announcing any change in US policy. Bizarrely, the president was instead discussing the prospect of nuclear war with his political partys financial backers during an election fundraiser at the home of media mogul James Murdoch, with surprised corporate media reporters listening in.

In an NPR report about the danger of nuclear war over Ukraine, Matthew Bunn, a nuclear weapons expert at Harvard University, estimated the chance of Russia using a nuclear weapon at 10 to 20 percent.

How have we gone from ruling out direct US and NATO involvement in the war to US involvement in all aspects of the war except for the bleeding and dying, with an estimated 10 to 20 percent chance of nuclear war? Bunn made that estimate shortly before the sabotage of the Kerch Strait Bridge to Crimea. What odds will he project a few months from now if both sides keep matching each others escalations with further escalation?

The irresolvable dilemma facing Western leaders is that this is a no-win situation. How can they militarily defeat Russia, when it possesses 6,000 nuclear warheads and its military doctrine explicitly states that it will use them before it will accept an existential military defeat?

And yet that is what the intensifying Western role in Ukraine now explicitly aims to achieve. This leaves US and NATO policy, and thus our very existence, hanging by a thin thread: the hope that Putin is bluffing, despite explicit warnings that he is not. CIA Director William Burns, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and the director of the DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency), Lieutenant General Scott Berrier, have all warned that we should not take this danger lightly.

The danger of relentless escalation toward Armageddon is what both sides faced throughout the Cold War, which is why, after the wake-up call of the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, dangerous brinkmanship gave way to a framework of nuclear arms control agreements and safeguard mechanisms to prevent proxy wars and military alliances spiraling into a world-ending nuclear war. Even with those safeguards in place, there were still many close calls  but without them, we would probably not be here to write about it.

Today, the situation is made more dangerous by the dismantling of those nuclear arms treaties and safeguards. It is also exacerbated, whether either side intends it or not, by the twelve-to-one imbalance between US and Russian military spending, which leaves Russia with more limited conventional military options and a greater reliance on nuclear ones.

But there have always been alternatives to the relentless escalation of this war by both sides that has brought us to this pass. In April, Western officials took a fateful step when they persuaded President Zelensky to abandon Turkish- and Israeli-brokered negotiations with Russia that had produced a promising 15-point framework for a ceasefire, a Russian withdrawal and a neutral future for Ukraine.

That agreement would have required Western countries to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, but they refused to be party to it and instead promised Ukraine military support for a long war to try to decisively defeat Russia and recover all the territory Ukraine had lost since 2014.

US Defense Secretary Austin declared that the Wests goal in the war was now to "weaken" Russia to the point that it would no longer have the military power to invade Ukraine again. But if the United States and its allies ever came close to achieving that goal, Russia would surely see such a total military defeat as putting "the very existence of the state under threat," triggering the use of nuclear weapons under its publicly stated nuclear doctrine.

On May 23rd, the very day that Congress passed a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine, including $24 billion in new military spending, the contradictions and dangers of the new U.S.-NATO war policy in Ukraine finally spurred a critical response from The New York Times Editorial Board. A Times editorial, titled "The Ukraine War is Getting Complicated, and America Is Not Ready," asked serious, probing questions about the new U.S. policy:

"Is the United States, for example, trying to help bring an end to this conflict, through a settlement that would allow for a sovereign Ukraine and some kind of relationship between the United States and Russia? Or is the United States now trying to weaken Russia permanently? Has the administrations goal shifted to destabilizing Putin or having him removed? Does the United States intend to hold Putin accountable as a war criminal? Or is the goal to try to avoid a wider war? Without clarity on these questions, the White Housejeopardizes long-term peace and security on the European continent."

The NYT editors went on to voice what many have thought but few have dared to say in such a politicized media environment, that the goal of recovering all the territory Ukraine has lost since 2014 is not realistic, and that a war to do so will "inflict untold destruction on Ukraine." They called on Biden to talk honestly with Zelenskyy about "how much more destruction Ukraine can sustain" and the "limit to how far the United States and NATO will confront Russia."

A week later, Biden replied to the Times in an Op-Ed titled "What America Will and Will Not Do in Ukraine." He quoted Zelenskyy saying that the war "will only definitively end through diplomacy," and wrote that the United States was sending weapons and ammunition so that Ukraine "can fight on the battlefield and be in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table."

Biden wrote, "We do not seek a war between NATO and Russia.the United States will not try to bring about [Putins] ouster in Moscow." But he went on to pledge virtually unlimited US support for Ukraine, and he did not answer the more difficult questions the Times asked about the US endgame in Ukraine, the limits to US involvement in the war or how much more devastation Ukraine could sustain.

As the war escalates and the danger of nuclear war increases, these questions remain unanswered. Calls for a speedy end to the war echoed around the UN General Assembly in New York in September, where 66 countries, representing most of the worlds population, urgently called on all sides to restart peace talks.

The greatest danger we face is that their calls will be ignored, and that the US military-industrial complexs overpaid minions will keep finding ways to incrementally turn up the pressure on Russia, calling its bluff and ignoring its "red lines" as they have since 1991, until they cross the most critical "red line" of all.

If the worlds calls for peace are heard before it is too late and we survive this crisis, the United States and Russia must renew their commitments to arms control and nuclear disarmament, and negotiate how they and other nuclear armed states will destroy their weapons of mass destruction and accede to the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, so that we can finally lift this unthinkable and unacceptable danger hanging over our heads.

Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies are the authors of War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict, available from OR Books in November 2022.

Medea Benjamin is the cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace, and the author of several books, including Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Nicolas J. S. Davies is an independent journalist, a researcher with CODEPINK and the author of Blood on Our Hands: The American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq.
A Jetstar customer who was accidentally charged $4,500 instead of $45 for a luggage check-in fee has been left outraged after it took the airline a month to refund her money.

Jannine Meyers was flying a New Zealand Jetstar flight from Auckland to Christchurch in September when she handed the check-in attendant her credit card to pay the fee.

It wasn't until a Jetstar supervisor hunted her down at the airport gate that she found out she'd been charged thousands extra.

She said what followed was a 'comedy of errors' with several staff at the airport unsure how to process the refund for her.

Jannine Meyers waited a month for her refund from Jetstar to process after the airline accidentally charged her $4,500 for a $45 luggage fee (pictured, a Jetstar check-in desk)

An hour later, and with her flight boarding, the Jetstar workers told Ms Meyers the money would be refunded to her account in 10 to 15 business days.

'By this time my father and I needed to go to the boarding gate and all we could do was simply have faith that they had successfully processed the refund; however, my gut instinct told me otherwise,' she told Stuff.

Several weeks later, and well past the 10 to 15 days she was quoted, Ms Meyers was still left with the massive sum missing from her account.

She was also facing upcoming bill deadlines that would see her pay interest on the airline's mistake.

'It was an extremely frustrating experience. A $4455 discrepancy is no small error,' she said.

Jetstar said Ms Meyers' refund took so long to process because it was waiting on additional information (pictured, Jetstar planes)

Ms Meyers said she her correspondence with the airline was patronising and that she would avoid flying with them in the future.

A Jetstar spokesperson said it took so long to process Ms Meyers' repayment because their financial team was waiting on extra information.

'We sincerely apologise to Jannine for the delay in refunding her money,' the spokesperson said.

'Our finance team processed the reimbursement earlier this week and as a gesture of goodwill, we offered her a travel voucher.'
Brittany Higgins is expected to return to her rape trial on Friday morning

She has been absent for four days of the trial so far, which started last Tuesday

He has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent

Ms Higgins alleges Bruce Lehrmann had sex with her while she slept in 2019

Former defence minister Linda Reynolds will appear as a witness in the high profile trial of Brittany Higgins' accused rapist - after the ex-Liberal staffer was allegedly assaulted in her parliamentary office.

Bruce Lehrmann is accused of having non-consensual sex with Ms Higgins while she slept on Ms Reynolds' grey couch after a drunken night out in Canberra in March, 2019.

He is charged with sexual intercourse without consent and is being tried in the ACT Supreme Court. Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty.

On Thursday, prosecutors told the court their case could close as early as Tuesday - when Ms Reynolds will be called to give her evidence.

The trial had originally been set with a four to six-week timeline, however, Chief Justice Lucy McCallum told the jury that things are running ahead of schedule.

Ms Higgins has so far been absent for four days but she will return on Friday to face continued cross-examination by Lehrmann's defence lawyer Steven Whybrow.

Brittany Higgins (pictured outside ACT Supreme Court) is absent from her rape trial for a fourth day

Former defence minister Linda Reynolds (pictured) will be called to give her evidence on Tuesday next week

The trial has continued in Ms Higgins' absence with the Crown calling other witnesses.

The court has prevented publication of any evidence from these other witnesses until after Ms Higgins has completed her evidence.

Last week, Ms Higgins told the court about a meeting she had with Ms Reynolds and her chief-of-staff Fiona Brown in the office where she was allegedly raped by Lehrmann.

'That was a distracting element so I was quite panicked because I was in the room with the couch so the words were a little lost,' she told the court last Thursday.

She said Ms Reynolds appeared empathetic, 'adding something along the lines of "I didn't think he was capable of something like that",' Ms Higgins added.

'At that point, the conversation became about the election, what I was going to do, and if I did something that I would need to let the office know.

'They were trying to feel out whether I was going to the police. It was made clear to me that they stated they were concerned about me going to the police.

'Just by having the meeting in the room, it all seemed really off. My interpretation was that it was a bit of a scare or intimidation tactic.'

Ms Higgins alleges Bruce Lehrmann (pictured outside court) sexually assaulted her in Parliament House

Ms Higgins conceded that may not have been the case, but that was her interpretation.

'For someone to go into that space after having such a traumatic event in there - that was quite an adversarial space,' she said.

A week after her meeting with Ms Reynolds, she was taken to the police sexual assault unit.

Three days after that, on April 13, she decided to withdraw her complaint.

She told the court: 'I felt pressured from my workplace not to pursue it any further at that time.

'I tried to make other arrangements to see if they'd e accommodating and they weren't it became really apparently that there were job implications if I did.'

'I really wanted to see if I could work from home and go to the gold coast or from a home base where I had a support system.'

Ms Higgins didn't want to stay in Canberra throughout the election because she was told that everyone who did didn't get rehired for the following term.

According to Ms Higgins, former chief-of-staff Fiona Brown told her that she wouldn't have a job if she stayed in Canberra, so she decided to go with Ms Reynolds to Western Australia for the campaign.

Defence lawyer asked about the $325,000 book deal she landed - with the assistance of Lisa Wilkinson's husband, Peter FitzSimons - before she made a statement to police

'I'd gone my entire life working for this moment,' she told the court. 'Why was I going to let this person take it away from me?

She told the court last Wednesday that she decided to buy a pregnancy test while in Perth.

Last Friday, Ms Higgins was reduced to tears while being quizzed by Mr Whybrow.

He asked why she didn't hand her phone over to police on the first request, and about the $325,000 book deal she landed - with the assistance of Lisa Wilkinson's husband, Peter FitzSimons.

The court heard FitzSimons suggested she write a biography about her experiences - to which Ms Higgins told them she had already started drafting chapters, before she made an official statement to police.

Mr Whybrow also put to Ms Higgins she pretended to have doctor's appointments in the week after the alleged assault to 'bolster' her story - which she vehemently denied.

Ms Higgins earlier told the court she made multiple doctor's appointments with the intention of going but could not bring herself to attend them.

'I intended to do the right thing but every time I went home I was collapsing and unable to get out of bed because I was so deeply depressed because I had been assaulted at work by a colleague,' she told the court.

Mr Whybrow asked Ms Higgins if she didn't go to the doctor because she hadn't had sex with anybody on the night she alleges she was raped.

Ms Higgins was also questioned about her delay in providing the police with her phone when she reopened the complaint against Lehrmann in 2021.

She admitted she had cleared the phone of some text messages as well as photos of herself with Liberal ministers or holding alcohol but denied she was trying to withhold evidence from police.

'It wasn't with the intent of keeping things from police but it was kind of purging things from my life,' she said.

'I didn't want to look at politicians in my camera roll anymore. I just wanted them gone.'

Brittany Higgins is pictured arriving at ACT Supreme Court, dressed in black, last Thursday

Mr Whybrow also asked why she didn't tell anyone about the alleged assault for a number of days - despite being in contact with Mr Dillaway and her father via text messages.

In the texts, the Mr Dillaway and Ms Higgins engaged in light banter about tacos, margaritas, and his recent drive from the Gold Coast in Queensland to Orange in NSW.

The only inference Ms Higgins made about the alleged attack was when she wrote: 'Haha I just get myself into trouble, need to keep that s**t locked down.'

Ms Higgins told the court: 'I wasn't ready to share, I was playing it off.'

In court, Ms Higgins said she was 'responding to his messages on autopilot, like everything was fine'.

Earlier, Ms Higgins told the court that she put the dress she was wearing that night in a plastic bag under her bed for six months, 'untouched and uncleaned'.

She told the jury that, once it was clear she couldn't report the alleged assault without losing her job with Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, she 'very symbolically washed the dress'.

'I wore it once more but I never wore it again after that,' she said.

But during cross-examination from Lehrmann's barrister Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins was shown a photograph of her wearing the same dress in May 2019 at Ms Reynolds's birthday party in Perth.

Under cross examination from Lehrmann's lawyer Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins denied lying - but admitted she had made a mistake in her timeline of events.

The trial continues.
A politician elected on an animal justice platform has ridiculed Tourism Australia's new mascot, Ruby the 'roo, claiming it would be shot and hung from the back of a ute in real life.

NSW Animal Justice Party MP Mark Pearson said the push to attract tourists with the fresh new face did not tell the whole truth about how kangaroos are treated in Australia.

The claim came amid calls to stamp out 'out of control' culling of the animal.

Animal Justice Party MP Mark Pearson said the kangaroo is enduring the largest commercial killing of any land-dwelling mammal in the world (pictured, Ruby the 'roo)

Mr Pearson said the ads are not telling the whole truth about how kangaroos are treated in Australia (pictured, an injured kangaroo targeted by hunters near the Mogo Forest on the NSW south coast)

'If the tourism industry is going to have our icon that is on our coat of arms for Australia, then talk about what we are actually doing to kangaroos,' Mr Pearson said on Thursday

'If Tourism Australia's Brand Ambassador Ruby Roo was real, she would have been shot as part of a government 'Kangaroo Management Plan' and hung up by her leg on the back of a ute,' Mr Pearson said in a statement.

He said the culling of 20 million kangaroos each year despite the animal being recognised as an Aussie symbol across the world, is over the top.

'If the tourism industry is going to have our icon that is on our coat of arms for Australia, then talk about what we are actually doing to kangaroos,' Mr Pearson told Ben Fordham on Thursday.

'Many people are saying they are not seeing the kangaroos we used to see.'

He said he had travelled throughout the Northern Territory and to South Australia and had only seen one kangaroo, dead on the side of the road.

The animal advocate added the kangaroo is enduring the largest commercial killing of any land-dwelling mammal in the world.

'We have to get together and work out how to live with these animals, not kill them,' he said.

Fordham shot back with statistics that 45million of the marsupials were counted in 2016, with those numbers most likely increasing to 50 million.

But Mr Pearson said a NSW inquiry into the welfare and wellbeing of kangaroos found the marsupial numbers are unknown.

Ruby the 'roo, who is voiced by Rose Byrne, will be paraded on electronic billboards across the world to promote Tourism Australia's latest campaign, 'Come and Say G'Day' (pictured)

'The counting mechanisms and methodology is seriously in question,' he said.

'We can't keep saying we are overrun by kangaroos, they have been here for millions of years, they are trying to survive.'

Fordham added the NSW Farmers Association claimed kangaroos are competing with livestock for cover and that there are too many 'roos on the landscape.

The computer-generated kangaroo in the ad was unveiled this week to follow in the footsteps of celebrities Paul Hogan, Chris Hemsworth and Laura Bingle - former faces of Aussie tourism.

Ruby the 'roo, who is voiced by Rose Byrne, will be paraded on electronic billboards across the world to promote Tourism Australia's latest campaign, 'Come and Say G'Day'.
She called the incident a 'timely reminder' that politicians should be respectful

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk reminded MP to be more 'respectful'

Queensland Agriculture Minister Mark Furner has apologised for the comments

The Queensland premier has reminded her Labor MPs to be 'respectful' after a cabinet minister was kicked out of parliament for calling an opposition frontbencher 'a dopey, stupid woman'.

Queensland Agriculture Minister Mark Furner directed the comment toward Liberal-National Party MP Ros Bates in parliament on Thursday.

He was removed from the house by the deputy speaker for his comment.

'The minister has unreservedly apologised to the house,' Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Thursday.

Agriculture Minister Mark Furner (above) 'unreservedly apologised' for calling an opposition frontbencher 'a dopey, stupid woman' on Thursday

'And I have reminded all caucus members about being respectful in this chamber.

'It's a timely reminder for all members across all political parties and everybody in this chamber to bring more respect and decorum into this house.'

Attorney-General and Minister for Women Shannon Fentiman echoed the premier's comments.

'The minister has unreservedly apologised. I think that's the end of the matter,' Ms Fentiman said.

'But as the premier has said this is about respect and I think all of us can do better to make sure that as leaders in the community we are making sure that we are setting an example of respect.

'We are rolling out respectful relationships in all of our schools and it is incumbent on all of us to make sure that we are respectful to one another in this place.'
Australia has seven universities in the top 100 list for Times Higher Education

Australia has seven universities ranked in the top 100 educational facilities in the world after another institute was added to the exclusive list.

Times Higher Education has published its latest top 100, which ranks the University of Oxford, Harvard University and the University of Cambridge as the top three universities in the world respectively.

The University of Adelaide has made its debut in the rankings, moving up from 111th to 88th - making it the seventh Australian college on the leaderboard.

The University of Melbourne is Australia's top ranked institution - coming in at 34th on the Times Higher Education top 100 list

The University of Melbourne remains the nation's top facility, slipping slightly from 33rd last year to sit at 34th on the new list.

Monash University has risen into the top 50, moving up from 57th last year to 44th on the latest index.

The University of Queensland and University of Sydney sit at 53rd and 54th respectively, while the Australian National University in Canberra is ranked 62nd in the world.

The University of New South Wales comes in at 71st, with the University of Adelaide rounding out Australia's entries at 88th.

The University of Queensland came in third for Australia at 53rd on the list

The institute released a statement about the achievement, with Vice-Chancellor Peter Hoj paying tribute to UA's faculty.

'A top 100 university is only possible with top ranked staff. They should be proud of their achievements,' he said.

University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor Duncan Maskell said the list was proof of the commitment Australian universities demonstrated throughout the Covid pandemic.

The University of Western Australia was the highest ranked outside the top 100, coming in at 131st, while the University of Technology, Sydney sat two spots back at 113rd and Macquarie University came in at 175th.

While Australia saw a new entry in the top 100, two universities slipped out of the top 200, with Queensland University of Technology and the University of Canberra dropping.

The University of Sydney was fourth for Aussie colleges coming in at 54th in the index

Phil Baty, the chief knowledge officer of Times Higher Education, said Melbourne was the number one city in Australia for higher learning.

'It now boasts Australia's number one and number two universities, with Monash University leapfrogging ahead of Brisbane's University of Queensland and pushing it into third place,' he said.

The academic did however warn Australian institutions could slip in upcoming lists as the reality of closed borders took impact on results.

Monash University moved into the top 50 sitting at 44th on this year's list

'But to be clear, the bigger picture remains remarkably healthy for Australia, thanks in large part to very healthy levels of research funding over the past 15 years or so, strong research productivity and very strong international collaboration and long-term success in the lucrative overseas student market,' he said.

Mr Baty said the Oceania region, which includes Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific nations, ranked number one in the world - ahead of North America for the first time.

On the whole more Australian universities increased their ranking rather than saw it fall.
Police have said missing Georgia toddler Quinton Simon, who had been missing for more than a week, is believed to be dead.

Leilani Simon, the boy's 22-year-old mother, was identified as the prime suspect in the case by the Chatham County Police Department (CCPD) on Wednesday night, however no arrests had been made or charges filed.

'We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simons family that we believe he is deceased. We have named his mother, Leilani Simon, as the prime suspect in his disappearance and death.

'We know that thousands of people around the world will be heartbroken by this news, and we share your sorrow,' police wrote on Twitter.

Quinton was last seen alive on October 5th at 6am and reported missing a few hours later.

Police say 20-month-old toddler Quinton Simon is presumed dead having been missing from his home in Savannah, Georgia, since October 5

His mother, Leilani Simon, 22, has been named by police as the 'prime suspect' however no charges have yet been filed

'We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simons family that we believe he is deceased. We have named his mother, Leilani Simon, as the prime suspect in his disappearance and death,' police tweeted on Wednesday night

His mother had claimed that when she woke, her little boy was nowhere to be found. Her fiance, Danny Youngkin, told police he'd last seen the toddler at 6am.

Earlier, police in Savannah, Georgia, said they were investigating the boy's disappearance as a criminal matter and not as a missing person's case.

One of Quinton's babysitters, Diana McCarta, said she received a text early that morning, at 5:30am tell her she did not need to come over to watch him that day.

Later that same morning, McCarta then got text from Quinton's grandmother asking if she had seen the 20-month-old toddler.

Police in Savannah, Georgia, said they were investigating the little boy's disappearance as a criminal matter and no longer as a missing person's case

Quinton was last seen alive on October 5th at 6am and reported missing a few hours later

'I got a text at 9 o'clock, saying 'have you seen Quinton?' said McCarta. 'I immediately go to their house and try to help them look, but they didn't want that. So I have just been waiting around like everyone else.'

The police were then called with Quinton reported missing at 9am.

Since that time, a massive search involving local police and the FBI have seen dumpsters, drains and ponds searched together with the Simon's home.

Cellphone data is being analyzed by the police who have now determined Quinton's vanishing is a criminal investigation.

Investigators returned to the home with sniffer dogs on Wednesday with Chatham County Police say a further update will be made on Thursday.

Quinton's grandmother, 45-year-old Billie Jo Howell, was filmed screaming at his babysitter that he is 'still alive' after the babysitter raised concerns online

Babysitter Diana McCarta says she received an 'odd' text from Quinton's stepfather the morning he vanished, telling her she didn't need to look after him that day

Quinton's grandmother, Billie Jo Howell, had legal custody of the toddler and his brother. She had a tempered relationship with his mother, and had evicted her.

The family babysitter, McCarta has been vocal about the child's disappearance, speaking to the media repeatedly and alleging that child services had been involved with the family.

On Tuesday night, the boy's grandmother stormed into her home to confront her, telling her she had 'overstepped' and insisting that he is unharmed.

'My baby is alive! My baby is alive!' she screamed at McCarta while being filmed on a cellphone.

Quinton is pictured with his stepfather, Danny Youngkin, mother Leilani and another young boy. They lost legal custody of him for unknown reasons. He was being cared for by his grandmother, but Leilani and Danny were who reported him missing

Leilani, the boy's 22-year-old mother, had been ordered by the state to start paying child support

Quinton's grandmother herself has a lengthy rap sheet.

Her 18 prior arrests include charges of grand larceny for using stolen credit cards, prostitution, burglary, driving with a suspended license, cocaine possession, cannabis possession, assault, battery and fraud.

Billie Jo previously spoke of how her daughter, Leilani, 'didn't always do the right thing'.

A week before Quinton's disappearance, Leilani was ordered by the state to pay child support for the boys.

Starting November 1, she owes $150 for the two boys. Paperwork revealed that if one of them 'died', she would owe $50 less.

Leilani has not issued any public comment since her son's disappearance.
Fake German heiress Anna 'Delvey' Sorokin said she wants a 'second chance' to stay in the US so she can 'change the narrative' of her elaborate cons after spending 18 months in prison.

Sorokin, 31, was put under house arrest on Friday after 18 months in ICE custody. The judge ruled she was not a danger to the public as she posted $10,000 bond.

'I feel like I deserve a second chance, it was my mistake that I made and I served my time and I feel like I should deserve a second opportunity,' she said in a CNN interview on Tuesday from her East Village apartment in New York City.

The interview also gave a look inside Sorokin's apartment, which featured a piece of art depicting a mock newspaper called 'The Delvey Crimes.'

Sorokin faces deportation to Germany after completing her criminal sentence in February 2021 - for convictions of grand larceny and thefts totaling $275,000, including stealing at least one flight on a private jet.

In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper on Tuesday, Anna 'Delvey' Soroking said she deserves a 'second chance' in the US to 'change the narrative' around her crimes

The Russian-born Sorokin said 'I learned from my mistakes,' but admitted she took advantage of people

She also claimed that the media have portrayed her in an unfair way, and that portrayal led to her prosecution in 2019

'I feel like if I were to leave and say "oh whatever Im just going to move on and like move to Europe" I would be like accepting the labels that they are trying to slap on me,' she said of her potential deportation.

Sorokin was seen sporting an ankle monitor, as she is not officially out of ICE custody.

In an interview with the New York Times following her release, Sorokin spoke about her bracelet, remarking: 'Apparently if I have any issues with it, then somebody will come fix it. Its a 24/7 service. Im thinking what I can do with it.'

The Russian-born fraudster is also prohibited from using social media, but says she still feels she is 'getting a second chance to fix my mistakes.'

She claimed that the media have portrayed her in an unfair way, and that portrayal led to her prosecution in 2019.

'They kind of created this idea of me and Im just being left to deal with it,' she said. 'Im trying to not glamorize my crimes and not lead anybody to believe thats the way to get famous.'

Sorokin said she 'suffered a lot' as a result of the bad media, but also said 'Im not going to go on TV and cry.'

When pressed about her regrets over her scams, Sorokin admitted she 'definitely did' take advantage of people.

'I was younger and I learned from my mistakes,' she said.

But she also said her crimes would not be so famous if they were done in a different country, implying Americans have a liking for famous fraudsters.

'I was thinking if I were to be prosecuted in Germany, I dont think people would really care,' she said.

Sorokin was spotted on the way to her first parole hearing on Tuesday, as she continues to face deportation proceedings.

Sorokin was seen Tuesday heading to her first parole hearings as she fights deportation to Germany

Sorokin was released on house arrest from ICE detention on Friday and was granted a $10,000 bail by a federal immigration court after spending 18 months in prison

Sorokin left her East Village apartment in Manhattan donning a full-black garb, her signature glasses and the ankle monitor.

On Sunday, Sorokin was pictured alongside PR guru Juda Engelmayer, smiling and waving to photographers on a sunny fall afternoon.

The Russian native was dressed in black and wore her famous glasses as she leaned out of the window of her apartment.

Sorokin also hung out with her agent, Chris Martine, on the roof of the building.

While on the roof, Sorokin wore a t-shirt that read 'Staff.' It was Martine who posted her $10,000 bond.

The fraudster remained coy about her future plans saying: 'I have so many projects that Im working on. Art is definitely one of them.'

She added: 'I have a lot going on. Im working on my own podcast with different guests for each episode. But its not shaped up yet. It was pretty hard to record anything high quality from jail. And then theres my book. Id love to do something with criminal-justice reform to kind of highlight the struggles of other girls.'

Sorokin wants to stay in the US, despite not having a visa. She is originally from Russia but also has ties to Germany.

She sprang to notoriety in 2018 after being arrested for fleecing luxury hotels and restaurants in Manhattan out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Her crimes later became the subject of the popular Netflix series 'Inventing Anna.'

Sorokin has been keeping busy behind bars with multiple media and podcast interviews.

She has been auctioning off her prison sketches and has also written poetry.

Sorokin, 31, was spotted leaving her East Village apartment sporting an ankle monitoring bracelet

She wrote an exclusive piece for DailyMail.com last month in which she complained that the US immigration system is broken, saying she has spent 18 months foundering in the sinkhole of Americas immigration system.

Once you're in ICE custody, what happens next is left entirely to ICE. Disturbingly arbitrary nature of the civil immigration detention system allows for immigrants to be held indefinitely without ever having a judge review whether bond or electronic monitoring was an appropriate alternative to detention, she added.

The jail I'm housed at is famous for its understaffing issue. To help alleviate that issue, in the last few weeks alone, 61 immigrants were removed from this facility without notice and transferred to a facility in Mississippi, where ICE can detain them at a lesser cost.

Now those detainees are far from their local support systems of friends or loved ones, and those who were lucky enough to have lawyers have been stripped of the ability to communicate with them readily and in person. Hearings held remotely are not opportune for defendants to consult with their attorneys during the proceeding.
The Western Australian mining sector has been rocked by two deaths in three days.

WorkSafe Mines has confirmed it is investigating the latest tragedy, which occurred at the Karlawinda gold mine in state's remote northern Pilbara region.

The fatality comes just two days after a death occurred at the St Ives gold mine in southeastern corner of WA.

There have been two deaths in three days at different WA mining sites, with the latest one happening in the Pilbara region (stock image)

This morning's Karlawinda tragedy involved a worker employed by contracting company MACA.

WorkSafe inspectors and WA police have been called to the site to investigate what happened.

MACA chief executive David Greig said support was being offered to the miner's family and workmates.

'Our thoughts are with the family, friends and workmates of our colleague,' he told The West.

'We will be providing support to our colleague's family and our teams as we all work through this tragic event.'

Mine operator Capricorn Metals also expressed their condolences to the family, saying the death had 'shocked' everyone on site.

WA police are travelling to the Pilbara mine where along with WorkSafe inspectors they will conduct an investigation into the tragic incident

'Our deepest thoughts and condolences go out to the MACA employee's family, friends and colleagues,' Capricorn executive chairman Mark Clark said.

Police have also been called to the Pilbara incident.

WorkSafe WA commissioner Darren Kavanagh told the Westralian that any work-related death is a tragedy.

He expressed his sincere condolences to the worker's family, friends and co-workers.

The Karlawinda mine, which produced its first gold in June last year employs about 250 staff and contractors.

On Wednesday a contractor died during an incident the St Ives mine.

A second contractor suffered minor injuries in the incident.

The iron ore and natural gas rich region of the Pilbara is the centre of many of the WA's biggest mining operations

South African mine operator Gold Fields described the death as 'devastating loss' for the 'close-knit team'.

The St Ives site has been shut until an investigation being conducted by Worksafe and police has concluded it is safe to reopen.

Gold Fields said it will fully cooperate with authorities.
A woman has lost her license after causing a car crash by performing a sex act on a driver.

Lela Jane Josephs, 34, appeared in Whanganui District Court in New Zealand on Thursday on charges of dangerous driving and perverting the course of justice.

She wasn't driving but was still charged after being accused of the risque behaviour on driver Andre Teka in the lead up to the crash.

A judge told Josephs: 'You contributed to him losing control of the car and crashing through a farm fence.'

Lela Jane Josephs, 34, was charged after being accused of performing a sex act on driver Andre Teka in the lead up to the crash (stock image)

Joesphs admitted to the two offences while separate charges including driving while disqualified and drink driving were dismissed.

She was ultimately sentenced to three and a half months in prison.

However, the judge commuted the sentence to 40 hours of community work and 12 months of intensive supervision.

Additionally, Josephs lost her license and was fined NZ $750 (AUD $670) and ordered to pay NZ $162.50 (AUD $145) for damaging the fence.

Just before midnight on June 27 last year following the crash, Josephs was found in the passenger seat with Andre Teka driving the car.

Joesphs admitted to the two charges while separate charges including driving while disqualified and drink driving were dismissed

Teka fled the scene before police arrived. Then, neighbours contacted them over Josephs, who had been left behind.

They claimed she was intoxicated and asked them for help in an 'abusive manner'.

Cops found that Joseph had consumed 786 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath, well over the the legal limit in New Zealand of 250mcg.

The woman also gave authorities a false name and informed them that she was not the one driving.
Calls to make it easier for UK museums to consider returning ancient cultural treasures like have been rebuffed by the Government.

The news comes after former Conservative culture minister Lord Vaizey revealed he was spearheading a group seeking to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece after more than 200 years in British hands.

The ex-MP for Wantage and Didcot will chair a new body aiming to send the 2,500-year-old sculptures back to Athens.

He also suggested that reforming the 1983 National Heritage Act to give greater freedom for museums to dispose of objects in their collection and deal with restitution requests.

But Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt told MPs on Thursday that revisiting the legislation was 'not a priority' for the Government.

Speaking in the Commons, Tory former culture secretary Oliver Dowden said: 'We are very blessed in this nation to have world-class museums. They are museums of the world, and the world comes to them.

The Elgin Marbles (pictured) are a 17-figure collection of classical Greek marble sculptures made by architect and sculptor Phidias, a Greek sculptor whose statue of Zeus, the god of the sky in ancient Greek mythology, was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world

The ancient Greek marvels were taken from the Parthenon between 1801 and 1812 by Lord Elgin, British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire and are now at the British Museum, pictured

'One of the bulwarks they have against constant claims of restitution is both the British Museum Act 1963 and the National Heritage Act 1983, and I am aware that there will be a debate in the other place about changes to the 1983 Act.'

Mr Dowden asked for MPs to be allowed to debate the legislation so they can express their support for it, adding: 'Otherwise, those institutions risk facing a barrage of claims for restitution, some of which may be encouraged more by virtue signalling.

'I can assure you that if we allow this Pandoras box to open, we will regret it for generations to come as we see those artefacts being removed to countries where they may be less safe.'

Ms Mordaunt replied: 'I thank (Mr Dowden) for raising this issue, and there were many nods around the chamber when he was speaking.

'I am aware that Lord Vaizey has a debate on this matter in the House of Lords, but I can tell (Mr Dowden) that revisiting the National Heritage Act is not a priority for this Government.'

The marbles, made up of 17 sculpted figures, were taken from the Parthenon between 1801 and 1812 by Lord Elgin, British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.

The Greek marvels have been in British hands for more than 200 years, sparking a fierce debate over whether they should be sent back to Athens. Pictured is Lord Elgin

Lord Vaizey, the former Conservative culture minister, will be chairing a new body that aims to return the marbles back to Greece after more than 200 years in British hands

The Elgin Marbles are currently on display at the British Museum, but the Greek government has been demanding their return for years, claiming they were stolen.

Lord Vaizey said he wants to use the 40th anniversary of the 1983 Heritage Act to bring a motion before the House of Lords to debate 'contested heritage'.

Lord Vaizey, writing in The Times, said: 'We need to debate whether it still works for what we need today. What was not accounted for or considered back in 1983 were restitution requests and the idea that trustees might want to return artefacts to their place of origin.'

It comes after the Prime Minister ruled out supporting a deal to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece, despite George Osborne, chairman of the British Museum and former Tory chancellor, saying there is a 'deal to be done' to share the Parthenon Marbles with Greece.

Liz Truss told GB News at the Conservative Party conference: 'I dont support that.'

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has called for the marbles to be returned to Greece on many occasions, even offering to loan some of his countrys other treasures to the British Museum in exchange.

In a recent interview with the Sunday Times, he said he will raise the subject with Ms Truss on a visit to London this year.

Mr Mitsotakis said: 'At a time when Truss will be looking to build her credibility and when the UK is sort of cornered in terms of its overall image after the (Queens) funeral, it will be a fantastic gesture and thats what Ill tell her.'

But in a fresh twist to the heritage war, Tristram Hunt the director of London's Victoria and Albert Museum, appeared to call for historic British artefacts, displayed overseas, to be returned.

In a comment on Twitter, the former Labour MP, seemingly demanded that the Dutch Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam handed back a piece of the former English flagship King Charles, captured in the 17th century.

Mr Hunt tweeted: 'As @UKHouseofLords prepares to debate @edvaizey motion on 40th anniversary of 1983 Heritage Act, instructive to see some UK contested heritage - transom stern of English flagship King Charles, captured at Chatham in 1667 - on show @rijksmuseum.'

Around 260ft of the Elgin Marbles are located in London, while Athens is home to a smaller 164ft section.

Around 260ft of the marbles are in London, while Athens is home to a smaller 164ft section. Pictured is a section of the sculpture at the British Museum in London

In 2021, then-prime minister Boris Johnson told the Greek premier during talks at Downing Street that the issue was 'one for the trustees of the British Museum'.

The ex-PM's comments came after it was revealed that Mr Johnson once believed the Elgin Marbles should 'never have been removed from Greece's Acropolis'.

Mr Johnson made the comments while serving as Mayor of London ahead of the London Olympics in 2012.

In a letter to a Greek official, Mr Johnson wrote that 'in an ideal world' the marbles should never have come to Britain.

The UK's long-standing position is that the ancient sculptures were acquired legally.

But in his 2012 letter, which was revealed by The Guardian after originally being published in local Greek newspaper Proini, Mr Johnson said: 'This is a matter on which I have reflected deeply over many years.

'In an ideal world, it is of course true that the Parthenon Marbles would never have been removed from the Acropolis and it would now be possible to view them in situ.'

But he added that the 'reality' is that it is 'impossible' to restore the marbles to their 'original location on the template'.

When serving as Mayor of London ahead of the London Olympics in 2012, Mr Johnson (pictured in November 2021) wrote to a Greek official to say that 'in an ideal world' the marbles should never have come to Britain

The former Tory boss said that, because the 'glorious' sculptures have been in London ever since they were removed and that they now form the 'centre piece of the greatest museum in this city, it would be grievous and irremediable loss if they went elsewhere'.

He finished his letter to Greek politician George Hinos by saying that whilst he sympathised 'with the case for the restitution to Athens', he felt 'on balance' that he had to 'defend the interests of London'.

Mr Hinos, the then leader of the provincial New Democracy Party in Ilia, the one-time home of the ancient Greek city of Olympia, had written to Mr Johnson to plead for the marbles to be returned.

He wrote the letter less than two months before the Olympic flame was set to be lit in Ilia before making its journey to London for the 2012 games.

He is said to have written: 'In the name of justice and morality, we implore you to begin the procedure for the return of the Greek sculptures.'

The British government has agreed to talks on the repatriation of the ancient Elgin Marbles which could see the artefacts brought back to Greece.

Hailed by campaigners as a 'step in the right direction', the UN's cultural agency Unesco have backed formal talks between the British and Greek governments to engage in a 'bona fide dialogue' to resolve the long-standing issue.

In a statement to the BBC, bosses at the British Museum said: 'We will loan the sculptures, as we do many other objects, to those who wish to display them to the public around the world, provided they will look after them and return them.

'Deepening public access and understanding, creating new ways and opportunities for collections to be shared and understood right across the world, and forging connections between the present and the past, remain at the core of what the British Museum seeks to achieve.'
Hong Kong-themed urbanism, architecture exhibition kicks off in New York City

Xinhua) 09:42, October 13, 2022

Candy Nip (1st R), director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York, attends the opening ceremony of an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions.

NEW YORK, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City.

Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions.

With the year 2022 marking the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the exhibition presents the works of more than 25 local and international firms.

"Hong Kong's architecture embodies the city's rich culture and cosmopolitan character. The innovative displays in the three core zones of the exhibition fully epitomize the timelessness and timeliness of the architectural achievements of Hong Kong in the past quarter-century," said Candy Nip, director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York.

"Street Scene Dream," an installation that creates the illusion of life through animation, features inspiration that was obtained from Hong Kong's long coastline, and the time-lapse videos in this artwork show what appears on street billboards at different times in the city.

People visit an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

The team behind "Street Scene Dream" is trying to give an artistic representation of the emotional and historical connection to residential constructions and street signs in Hong Kong, said Paul Shepherd, who is one of the masterminds of the installation.

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York said it will organize a two-day symposium on urban design and sustainable architecture in partnership with the American Institute of Architects New York.

Located at the Ideal Glass Studios in Manhattan, the exhibition will remain open to the public until Oct. 25. Earlier, the exhibition had been staged in Beijing and Hangzhou cities, with the fourth and the last leg of the exhibition to be unveiled in Hong Kong in December.

The exhibition in New York is organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Architects with the support of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York.

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)
By Caitlin Johnstone

October 12, 2022: Information Clearing House -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow was open to talks with the the US or with Turkey on ending the war in Ukraine, claiming that US officials are lying when they say Russia has been refusing peace talks.

Reuters reports:

Lavrov said officials, including White House national security spokesman John Kirby, had said the United States was open to talks but that Russia had refused. This is a lie, Lavrov said. We have not received any serious offers to make contact.

Lavrovs claim was given more weight when US State Department spokesman Ned Price dismissed the offer for peace talks shortly after it was extended, citing Russias recent missile strikes on Kyiv.

We see this as posturing, Price said at a Tuesday press briefing. We do not see this as a constructive, legitimate offer to engage in the dialogue and diplomacy that is absolutely necessary to see an end to this brutal war of aggression against the people and the state, the Government of Ukraine.

This is inexcusable. At a time when our world is at its most perilous moment since the Cuban Missile Crisis according to many experts as well as the president of the United States, the US government has no business making the decision not to sit down with Russian officials and work toward de-escalation and peace. They have no business making that call on behalf of every terrestrial organism on this planet whose life is being risked in these games of nuclear brinkmanship. The fact that this war has escalated with missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital makes peace talks more necessary, not less.

This rejection is made all the more outrageous by new information from The Washington Post that the US government does not believe Ukraine can win this war and refuses to encourage it to negotiate with Moscow.

Privately, U.S. officials say neither Russia nor Ukraine is capable of winning the war outright, but they have ruled out the idea of pushing or even nudging Ukraine to the negotiating table, WaPo reports. They say they do not know what the end of the war looks like, or how it might end or when, insisting that is up to Kyiv.

These two points taken together lend even more credibility an argument Ive been making from the very beginning of this war: that the US does not want peace in Ukraine, but rather seeks to create a costly military quagmire for Moscow just as US officials have confessed to trying to do in Afghanistan and in Syria. Which would explain why US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the US goal in Ukraine is actually to weaken Russia, and also why the empire appears to have actively torpedoed a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia in the early days of the conflict.

This proxy war has no exit strategy. And that is entirely by design.

Many have been calling for the US to abandon its policy of actively sustaining this war while avoiding peace talks.

President Bidens language, were about at the top of the language scale, if you will, former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Mike Mullen told ABCs This Week on Sunday regarding the presidents recent remark that this conflict could lead to Armageddon.

I think we need to back off that a little bit and do everything we possibly can to try to get to the table to resolve this thing, Mullen said, adding, As is typical in any war, it has got to end and usually there are negotiations associated with that. The sooner the better as far as Im concerned.

One thing the United States can do is drop the position, the official position, that the war must go on to weaken Russia severely, meaning no negotiations, Noam Chomsky argued in a recent appearance on Democracy Now. Would that open the way to negotiations, diplomacy? Cant be sure. Theres only one way to find out. Thats to try. If you dont try, of course it wont happen.

It is time for the United States to supplement its military support for Ukraine with a diplomatic track to manage this crisis before it spirals out of control, said the Quincy Institutes George Beebe following the Monday missile strikes on Kyiv, calling it a major escalation in the war that was bound to bring the world closer to a direct military collision between Russia and the United States.

The Americans have to come to an agreement with the Russians. And then the war will be over, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said at an event on Tuesday, adding that anyone who thinks that this war will be concluded through Russian-Ukrainian negotiations is not living in this world.

Its absolutely insane that the worlds two nuclear superpowers are accelerating toward direct military confrontation and they arent even talking to each other, and its even crazier that anyone who says they should be gets called a Kremlin agent and a Chamberlain-like appeaser. Responsible Statecrafts Harry Kazianis discusses this freakish dynamic in a recent article titled Talking is not appeasement  its avoiding a nuclear armageddon:

I have fought more than thirty combat simulations in wargames under my own direction for a private defense contract over the last several months, looking at various aspects of the Russia-Ukraine war, and one thing is clear: the chances of a nuclear war increase significantly every day that passes. In every scenario I tested, the Biden Administration slowly gives Ukraine ever more advanced weapons like ATACMS, F-16s, and other platforms that Russia has consistently warned pose a direct military threat. While each scenario has postulated a different point at which Moscow decides to use a tactical nuclear weapon in order to counter conventional platforms it cant easily defeat, the chances that Russia uses nukes grow as new and more powerful military capabilities are introduced into the battlefield by the West. In fact, in 28 of the thirty scenarios I have run since the war began, some sort of nuclear exchange occurs. The good news is there is a way out of this crisis  however imperfect it may be. In the two scenarios where nuclear war was averted, direct negotiations led to a ceasefire.

I repeat again that it is absolutely pants-on-head gibbering insanity that these direct negotiations are not already presently underway. Let us petition any and all higher powers we have faith in that this changes very soon. Let us also petition the leaders of our individual nations around the world to exert whatever kind of pressure they can muster upon Washington for these talks to commence. This brinkmanship threatens us all, and the managers of the US empire have no business playing these games with our lives.

Caitlin's articles are entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, liking her on Facebook, following her antics on Twitter, checking out her podcast, throwing some money into her hat on Patreon or Paypal, or buying her book Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers.
Thomas Lenaghan, Ronnie Fitzgerald and John Stovell to be sentenced in Dec 9

Police said breakthrough in the case came when they identified getaway car

Balaclava-clad gang used tasers and a knife to rob victims in November last year

An armed gang who used a stun gun to rob a 100,000 watch from a group of American tourists in Chelsea face jail after admitting the attack.

Thomas Lenaghan, 23, and Ronnie Fitzgerald, 20, hid their faces in balaclavas to target three men walking on Pavilion Road just after midnight on November 16.

One of their victims, 31, was pushed to the floor and hit from behind by a stun gun.

He was surrounded as it was demanded he hand over his Rolex watch, worth around 100,000.

His father was threatened with a knife, which cut through his coat but did not cause injury, as he tried to stop the attack.

Their friend was also threatened with a stun gun and forced to hand over her watch, worth around 200 before the suspects got into a waiting car and sped off.

Yesterday at Isleworth Crown Court, Londoners Lenaghan and Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob, threatening a person with a bladed article in a public place, possession of a stun gun and threatening a person with a stun gun.

CCTV footage released by the Metropolitan Police showed the moment two of the gang stole a 100,000 Rolex watch and cash from a group of tourists in Chelsea in November last year

Thomas Lenaghan, 23, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob, threatening a person with a bladed article in a public place, possession of a stun gun and threatening a person with a stun gun

Ronnie Fitzgerald, 20, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob, threatening a person with a bladed article in a public place, possession of a stun gun and threatening a person with a stun gun

John Stovell, 50, pleaded guilty to handling stolen goods and assisting an offender

John Stovell, 50, pleaded guilty to handling stolen goods and assisting an offender and all three will be sentenced on December 9.

DC Robert Rodak, who worked on the investigation, said outside: 'This was a shocking and violent robbery which understandably left the victims shaken and feeling incredibly fortunate they did not suffer more serious injury.

'Everyone should be able to walk through our streets unaffected by this type of crime and that is why we are doing everything we can to take offenders like Lenaghan, Fitzgerald and Stovell off our streets.

'This conviction was a result of a joint effort where our local team was assisted by the specialist skills of the Flying Squad to catch those responsible. Working together we will continue to target and relentlessly pursue robbers who commit violent crime in London.'

Although the attack was caught on CCTV and mobile phones, those responsible were not identifiable as they had their faces covered and wore generic clothing

The car they were using, a Jaguar F-PACE, was stolen and displaying false plates, meaning it also proved difficult to identify and track down.

Police said a breakthrough in the case came when they were able to identify the getaway car, which was stolen and using false plates

Detectives from the Met's Flying Squad painstakingly analysed the footage and managed to see that the car had a small sticker on the bottom right corner of its windshield.

They then worked through crime records to find out how many Jaguar F-PACEs had been reported stolen and remained unrecovered in recent months, leaving them with 30-40 possible vehicles.

The team contacted each owner and ascertained if any of their cars had any particular identifying features.

One told officers that their car had a parking permit for their child's school  a description which matched the sticker seen on the car used in the robbery.

This was the breakthrough moment the team had been looking for as it allowed them to discover the car's true 'identity'.

From there, they were able to work out where the car had been prior to and after the robbery and explore further CCTV opportunities, leading to footage capturing the robbers meeting without masks.

The photos of their faces were circulated and led to the identification of Lenaghan, Stovell and Fitzgerald.

The attack happened on Pavilion Road in Knightsbridge, just metres away from Britain's most expensive penthouse at One Hyde Park

The car was found in a carpark in North End Road, SW6; a forensic examination linked the men to the vehicle.

Detective Chief Superintendent Owain Richards, responsible for local policing in Kensington and Chelsea, said: 'Over the last few months we have been focusing our resources in hot spot areas where we know watch robberies have increased.

'Our dedicated robbery team are tirelessly tracking down those responsible for these kind of crimes and we hope this case demonstrates that anyone committing these offences will be identified and brought to justice.'
Over 600 domestic and sex abuse allegations are being investigated by the Met into their own officers.

The new Domestic and Sexual Offences Unit  nicknamed the Daso team  has received 625 complaints about members of its force.

It has been likened to a real-life AC-12, the fictional investigators in BBC hit Line of Duty, but its focus is abusers.

The unit was set up in the wake of horrific scandals that have hit the Metropolitan Police, which included the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens.

Its worst cases involve rape and domestic abuse and are all committed by police officers or staff.

The team's senior leader Det Supt Annette Clark said the team also had expertise in safeguarding which made a difference to its work.

New Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said last month he would restore 'trust' in the force and 'root out racists and misogynists'

Serving police officer Wayne Couzens kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard in 2021

Dame Cressida Dick resigned earlier in the year after a clash with Mayor of London Sadiq Khan

She said: 'Particularly understanding domestic abuse and understanding sexual offences.

'The impact that has on people and the victims.

'We don't want abusive officers in the organisation and we need to get rid of them.'

She told the BBC officers working in the unit had told her: 'I want to do this. I want to come and work in professional standards to ensure we get out the bad cops.'

The raft of scandals under former Met commissioner Cressida Dick included officers taking photos of the bodies of Bibaa Henry, 46, and Nicole Smallman, 27, who were stabbed to death in Wembley

New Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said last month he would restore 'trust' in the force and 'root out racists and misogynists'.

Britain's top policeman pledged to get the 'basics right' as he seeks to turn around the stricken organisation, which is in special measures after failing to record thousands of crimes and a raft of officer misconduct scandals.

Sir Mark vowed to crack down on misconduct by officers and prevent them from making political statements at protests, such as taking the knee.

His predecessor Dame Cressida Dick resigned earlier in the year after a clash with Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

The Met was shaken by a series of scandals and missteps, most shockingly the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving officer, but also a number of groups of officers found to have exchanged deeply offensive messages on social media.

Sir Mark said he wants to be able to show the public that progress has been made in key areas in 100 days, and to bring the force out of a form of special measures in 12 to 18 months.

He said: 'We need to be ruthless at rooting out those who are corrupting the integrity of the organisation - the racists and the misogynists.'

Scotland Yard's failures laid bare: From 'inadequate' response to 999 calls to allowing 69,000 crimes to go unreported... watchdog raised 'serious concerns' over Met Police's ability to protect the public

The troubling state of the Metropolitan Police was laid bare in a shocking report earlier this month, from a failure to record 69,000 crimes including stalking, domestic abuse and anti-social behaviour to an 'inadequate' response to 999 calls.

The police watchdog has raised 'serious concerns' about the performance of Britain's biggest force after it failed in six out of nine areas of police work, with inspectors warning the blunders are 'resulting in some offenders not being brought to justice'.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) demanded Scotland Yard make urgent improvements in a hard-hitting new report just days after Sir Mark Rowley took over as Commissioner.

Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr said he was particularly concerned about how the Met treated victims of crime. He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'I think it's got worse over the period I've been looking at the Met which is about five or six years. And since our last report in this area we think performance has declined since then.

'One of the Met's fundamental problems is it needs to get that lower level leadership right and have a low tolerance of poor standards. Inexperienced and new staff work better when they're have strong guidance and that's not happening.'

His report found crime recording 'should be trustworthy', but instead more than 69,100 offences are going unrecorded by the force each year, with victims of domestic violence or those suffering long-term abuse such as stalking, controlling and coercive behaviour or harassment being ignored.

The police watchdog raised 'serious concerns' about the performance of Britain's biggest force after it failed in six out of nine areas of police work, with inspectors warning the blunders are 'resulting in some offenders not being brought to justice'

Not all reports of rape are correctly recorded and in some cases it is taking more than three days for crimes to be logged leading to delays in rape investigations and victims receiving support.

Inspectors believe the force is turning a blind eye to many incidents of anti-social behaviour, with just one out of the 21 calls from victims it reviewed leading to a crime being logged.

The force was graded as 'inadequate' in the way it responds to the public, with call handlers unable to answer 999 calls quickly enough, failing to identify vulnerable or repeat victims and 'missing opportunities to preserve evidence which may help investigations'.

Wayne Couzens, a former parliamentary and diplomatic protection officer, was given a full life term last year for the kidnap, rape and murder of 33-year-old Sarah Everard. He is pictured while serving in the Met, left; and appearing in court from prison, right

The force currently answers 63.9% of 999 calls within 10 seconds, against a national target of 90%. It also sees 36.6% of calls to the non-emergency number 101 abandoned, compared with a goal of less than 10%.

Shoddy investigations by inexperienced detectives are also letting some criminals off the hook, the report found.

The report comes three months after the Met was put into special measures by the watchdog, which means it now faces external monitoring and must come up with an improvement plan.

Mr Parr said his report 'raises serious concerns about how the force responds to the public and the level of understanding the force has about its demand and its workforce'.

He said: 'The Met must get better at how it responds to the public - currently, its call handling teams are unable to answer calls quickly enough. In addition, it isn't correctly documenting the decisions of victims to withdraw from an investigation or to accept an out-of-court disposal.

'Recording victims' wishes is vital to support the criminal justice process and to understand what is stopping victims from being able to complete the investigation process. The Met must improve in this area.'

Mr Parr found that investigations are 'not always reviewed or overseen properly' adding: 'A lack of experience in responding to and investigating incidents of crime leads to delays for victims and makes successful criminal justice end results less likely.'

He warned: 'The force doesn't have enough capacity and capability in its frontline policing roles to meet demand.

'It isn't consistently supervising crime investigations to a good standard, resulting in some offenders not being brought to justice.

'Until the force improves how it responds to incidents and increases the capability and supervision of its investigators, it will not be able to sustainably reduce crime.'

Officers are also failing to communicate with victims about why their case is being dropped or why cautions are being offered in lieu of more harsher punishments.

He suggested overloaded officers and staff are struggling with 'unmanageable' caseloads and being forced to work on their days off to get through their work.

The inspection also highlighted a high number of wanted suspects remain on the loose, with 'the number of suspects remaining outstanding for long periods of time is growing'.
A Russian MP has become the latest high-profile energy executive to die since Vladimir Putin launched his brutal war in Ukraine.

Nikolay Petrunin, 47, dubbed the 'Gas wonderkid', allegedly died from complications from Covid after being in a coma for a month, although this has not been confirmed.

There has been a spate of mysterious deaths associated with Gazprom and energy officials in recent months, with business chiefs falling out of windows, drowning in swimming pools and carrying out vicious murder suicides.

But critics fear Putin's shadowy FSB could be behind the killings, with the Russian tyrant regularly accused of ordering the deaths of dissidents, which he has denied.

Petrunin, a multi-millionaire father-of-three, was a former top gas industry executive who became deputy chairman of the Russian parliament's powerful energy committee, and was seen as a Putin loyalist and 'political prodigy'.

Russian MP Nikolay Petrunin (pictured) has become the latest high-profile energy executive to die since Vladimir Putin launched his brutal war in Ukraine

His businesses built gas pipelines for major Russian energy operators and he had links to Kremlin gas behemoth Gazprom - now starving the West of Russian supplies over the war - and Rosneft.

He declared an annual salary of up to 1.75million and had been an MP in the Tula region since 2016, and was married to Albina Petrunina, a former policewoman holding the rank of major.

She later became co-owner of MetaTrendCity company, along with influential Gazprom manager Vladimir Vasiliev.

As well as gas - as boss of PromGazService - he formerly had businesses linked to beer and tourism.

His death was confirmed by his assistants and comes after a number of other Gazprom-linked bosses came to a suspicious end.

This week it emerged that a leading judge, Sergey Maslov, 42, was killed at or near the epicentre of the Crimean Bridge blast.

Sergey Maslov, 42, an 'incorruptible' Russian judge who oversaw cases involving the country's elite, was reportedly killed in the Crimea Bridge blast

Ravil Maganov, chairman of Russian oil giant Lukoil, died after falling from a window at Central Clinical Hospital, Moscow, on September 1 (pictured with Vladimir Putin in 2019)

He had overseen cases involving energy giant Gazprom and the Moscow city government at Moscow Arbitration Court.

A legal source said he was 'unusually independent-minded and incorruptible' who ruled on 'sensitive cases' involving business disputes.

On September 1, oil tycoon Ravil Maganov, 67, fell to his death from the sixth floor window of a Moscow hospital.

One report says the chairman of Lukoil - Russia's second largest oil company - was 'beaten' before he was 'thrown out of a window', however this was not confirmed officially.

His company had voiced opposition to the war in Ukraine.

Strangely, Putin arrived at the elite Central Clinical Hospital very soon after Maganov's body was found to pay his last respects to final Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who had died at the same hospital.

Yuri Voronov, 61, was found dead in August

Two more deaths of Gazprom-linked executives, Alexander Tyulakov (left) and Leonid Shulman (right) were reported in elite homes near St Petersburg, stoking suspicions that the deaths may well have been murders

In July, Yuri Voronov, 61, head of a transport and logistics company for a Gazprom-linked company, was found dead in his swimming pool, with a top criminologist friend warning of foul play.

Two more deaths of Gazprom-linked executives were reported in elite homes near St Petersburg amid suspicions that apparent suicides may have been murders.

Alexander Tyulakov, 61, a senior Gazprom financial and security official at deputy general director level, was discovered dead by his lover the day after war started in Ukraine in February.

His neck was in a noose in his 500,000 home .

Yet reports say he had been badly beaten shortly before he 'took his own life', leading to speculation he was under intense pressure.

In the same elite Leninsky gated housing development in Leningrad region three weeks earlier, Leonid Shulman, 60, head of transport at Gazprom Invest, was found dead with multiple stab wounds in a pool of blood on his bathroom floor.

Billionaire Alexander Subbotin, 43 former top executive with energy giant Lukoil, died in May

Former Kremlin official and Gazprombank vice-president Vladislav Avayev, 51, appeared to have taken his own life after killing his wife and one of his daughters in April

Billionaire Alexander Subbotin, 43, also linked to Kremlin-friendly energy giant Lukoil where he was a top manager, was found dead in May after 'taking advice from shamans'.

One theory is that Subbotin - who also owned a shipping company - was poisoned by toad venom triggering a heart attack.

In April, wealthy Vladislav Avayev, 51, a former Kremlin official, appeared to have taken his own life after killing his wife Yelena, 47, and daughter, 13.

He had high level links to leading Russian financial institution Gazprombank.

Friends have disputed reports that he was jealous after his wife admitted she was pregnant by their driver.

There are claims he had access to the financial secrets of the Kremlin elite.

Several days later multimillionaire Sergey Protosenya, 55, was found hanged in his luxury Spanish villa, after apparently killing his wife Natalia, 53, and their teenage daughter, Maria, with an axe.

Sergey Protosenya, 55, was found hanged in his luxury Spanish villa, after killing his wife Natalia, 53, and their teenage daughter, Maria, with an axe

Ukrainian born multi-millionaire Yevgeny Palant, 47, and his wife Olga Palant, 50, were found stabbed to death in their family house in Moscow region last week

Ivan Pechorin, 39, 'fell overboard' to his death from a boat sailing off the country's Pacific coast

He was a former deputy chairman of Novatek, a company also closely linked to the Kremlin.

There have also been questions over the death of Putin's point man for developing Russia's vast Arctic resources who 'fell overboard' to his death from a boat sailing off the country's Pacific coast.

Ivan Pechorin, 39, had recently attended a major conference hosted by the Kremlin warmonger in Vladivostok.

The high-flyer was managing director of Putin's Far East and Arctic Development Corporation.

And in another case a mobile phone multi-millionaire and his wife were found stabbed to death in another case that has raised questions.

Naked Yevgeny Palant, 47, and his wife Olga, 50, both Ukrainian-born, were found with multiple knife wounds by their daughter Polina, 20.

Immediate briefing to the media claimed the woman took her own life in a jealous rage after Palant said he was leaving her.

Yet this was strongly disputed by the couple's best friend.
Hard Knocks Rescue & Training, an animal rescue organisation, in Huntsville, Alabama, live streamed a September 24 Drag Queen Story Time event in which James Miller, pictured, read a story to a group of children

An Alabama middle school teacher who spends his free time as the drag queen Miss Majesty Divine has been caught on camera making lewd innuendos during a 'family friendly' event.

Hard Knocks Rescue & Training, an animal rescue organisation, in Huntsville, Alabama, live-streamed a September 24 Drag Queen Story Time event in which James Miller read a story to a group of children.

The teacher, who masquerades as Madge D.Ivine (Miss Majesty Divine) in his spare time, was reading a story about a dog that hid its bone at the event.

In the footage, which showed Miller reading from the book while two dogs played with their handler he said: 'Everybody loves a big bone'.

The handler and the person holding the camera were seen and heard laughing after the comment.

Miller was heard asking on the livestream 'We're not still live are we?' immediately after making the comment.

Libs of TikTok questioned why Miller asked if the livestream was still running.

The page also queried whether it was appropriate for Miller to make the comment in front of a group of children.

Miller, who works at Mountain Gap Middle School, has a Facebook page and a TikTok for his drag alter ego and has attended events such as the Drag Queen Story Time.

He has also posted images of himself with other drag artists on his Facebook.

The teacher, who masquerades as Madge D.Ivine (Miss Majesty Divine) in his spare time, was reading a story about a dog that hid its bone at the event. In the footage, which showed Miller reading from the book while two dogs played with their handler he said: 'Everybody loves a big bone'. Pictured: Miller

Miller has since made a TikTok referring to the article and said: 'I really have no comment for anybody, so people need to stop asking.'

He claimed that he had been 'doxxed' by the page. MailOnline contacted Miller and Mountain Gap Middle School for comment.

A Hard Knocks Rescue and Training spokesperson said: At Hard Knocks Rescue & Training, we would rather be excluded for who we include than included for those we exclude.
This is the awkward moment a thief was caught with a car jack underneath a man's car.

The brazen thief appeared to be attempting to steal parts from the car in broad daylight in a car park in Bankstown Central in south-west Sydney.

However, he was confronted by the car's stunned owner who asked him: 'What are you doing with my car?'

The surprised thief awkwardly removed the car jack and loaded it into his own vehicle while avoiding eye contact with his apparent victim.

The brazen thief appeared to be attempting to steal parts from the car in broad daylight

He appeared shocked at being caught, asking the man: 'Is this yours? Seriously?'

As he left, the thief, who was wearing a hood and face mask, apologised repeatedly saying he 'didn't know' the car belonged to the victim.

He also mumbled an excuse about a friend as he sheepishly retreated.

However, the victim did not let the thief go, following him as he went into his own car.

It is unclear what the car thief was trying to steal but the attempted theft comes amid a surge in car exhausts being stolen in Sydney.

The exhausts are being stolen from public places across the city for their precious metal.

He appeared shocked at being caught, asking the man: 'Is this yours? Seriously?'

It is unclear what the car thief was trying to steal but the attempted theft comes amid a surge in car exhausts being stolen in Sydney

The parts are then being sold to scrap yards for anything between $50 to $1,000.

The most popular vehicles being targeted by thieves are Hondas, Subarus and Toyotas.

NSW Police have been contacted for comment.
Network Rail has released footage of the terrifying moment a father leaves his toddler to play on a train track as he stands back and watches.

In the disturbing clip, the man can be seen waiting behind the line while taking a phone call as his small child walks across and plays on the railway track, clearly oblivious to the risks.

The CCTV video of the level crossing at Chestnut Grove, in Burton Joyce, Nottinghamshire, was shared by the company which described how 'worrying' the footage is.

In the heartstopping incident, the little boy jumps off the path while his father briefly glances up the line to check if any trains are coming.

The video, which features a number of shocking occasions in which members of the public put themselves in danger over recent months, begins by showing a group of young people running off the pathway and onto the tracks.

Other close calls in the video include a dog walker who is taking a leisurely stroll over the crossing, with his pet, which is off the lead something Network Rail warns against.

In the disturbing clip, the man can be seen waiting behind the line while taking a phone call as his small child walks across and plays on the railway track

The little boy jumps on and off the path while his father briefly glances up the line to check if any trains are coming

An oncoming train honks at the walker to get out the way before it can be seen hurtling towards him, missing the shocked man and his dog by seconds.

Another parent is also shown standing behind the line as their child cycles across the path.

In another instance, a man walks calmly across the busy tracks carrying a kayak.

Network Rail, which runs Britain's rail infrastructure, has said the incidents have left it concerned for the safety of members of the public who are unaware of the dangers of busy railway lines.

The video begins by showing a group of young people running off the pathway and onto the tracks

Following the incidents, the local community is being invited to a safety session this Saturday after Network Rail has seen 'a rise in reckless behaviour' at the popular level crossing.

Anna Ebblewhite, Level Crossing Manager for Network Rail, said: 'We've seen some incredibly worrying behaviour at Burton Joyce level crossing, which shows just how unaware some residents are of how dangerous the railway can be.'

'That's why we're delivering this interactive session to help residents understand how to use the crossing safely, and ultimately improve safety amongst the community.'

Another parent is also shown standing back with a buggy as their child cycles across the path

Local councillor Mike Adams described the 'risks being taken currently by some while crossing the railway' as 'frightening to see'.

He urged the public to exercise caution and educate themselves on the dangers of crossing tracks, warning that otherwise they could risk losing the crossing altogether.

The busy footpath crosses the Nottingham to Lincoln line and sees around 70 trains travel through at rapid speeds every day.

In the year 2019 to 2020, six people were killed on level crossings in the UK while 17 fatalities involved people trespassing on the railway, according to Network Rail.
These are the 17 real victims whose tragic fate at the hands of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer are dramatized in the hit Netflix series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer story.

The show recounts in gruesome detail how the Milwaukee murderer subjected his victims to horrific torture in an attempt to turn them into 'zombies' - and resorted to cannibalism.

Some of their relatives have hit out at the show for distorting their loved ones stories and glamourizing his crimes.

In this video we remember the real story of the 17 beloved husbands, sons and fathers who had their lives cut short by Dahmer.

WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT
A TikToker alleges the lady driver attempted to cut her off causing the accident

The incident occurred on Thursday at Westfield shopping centre in Hurstville

A driver has gone through a boom gate onto a Mercedes in a peculiar incident

A driver has inadvertently come up with an interesting way of finding a car park in a busy shopping centre, ending up on top of a Mercedes.

Emergency services were called to Westfield shopping centre in Hurstville, Sydney's south, shortly before 10am on Thursday finding the luxury car wedged under a Honda Civic.

It is understood the driver of the Honda hit the boom gate causing the vehicle to roll onto the parked car.

The driver managed to escape without any physical injuries.

One driver has gone with a controversial parking method, finding a spot on top of an expensive Mercedes in a bustling shopping complex in Sydney's south

A Tik Tok video showing the incident had many people questioning how it was even possible, before having a good chuckle at the visual.

'Well you can't park there sir,' one person commented.

'Someone tell him that he still has to pay for parking,' said another.

One Tik Tok user posted a video alleging the driver of the Civic tried to cut her off and her impatience caused the accident.

Her video captioned, 'she was fine but leave the road rage to hot wheels', said the lady driver was attempting to cut her off for a second time, flying through the boom gate and on top of the Mercedes.

'We were both trying to head out the boom gates and tried to cut me off again and look what happened to her car, full went straight through the boom gates and flew straight past me,' she said.

Commenters on the video said the incident was karma for the driver's actions.

'That's the best karma. you should have driven past and waved..lol,' one person wrote.

'I love karma,' wrote a second.

'Instant karma,' commented a third.
A Russian armoured vehicle inexplicably drove straight over a clearly visible landmine and was immediately blown up in the latest example of the incompetence of Putin's forces.

Aerial footage shows the MT-LB vehicle slowly inching towards the scattered TM-62 anti-tank mines lining a Ukrainian road without seeming to notice the explosive devices.

As soon as it makes contact with the mine, a huge fireball erupts, ripping apart the armoured vehicle and catapulting debris into the sky in a cloud of smoke.

Aerial footage shows the MT-LB vehicle slowly inching towards the scattered TM-62 anti-tank mines

As soon as it makes contact with the mine, a huge fireball erupts, ripping apart the armoured vehicle

The vehicle was predictably blown to smithereens in the latest example of the sheer incompetence of Putin's forces

The shell-shocked driver is then seen sitting on the scorched earth looking around in bafflement next to the fuming wreck.

He then packs his belongings and walks away with his tail between his legs after the embarrassing episode.

Retired soldier Mark Hertling said of the footage: 'Anti-armour mines are usually buried. Armoured vehicle drivers aren't supposed to see them.

'If you "see" them, you should "move" or "avoid" them. Trained soldiers shouldn't drive over them.

'It reinforces the point: Russian soldiers aren't well trained.'

The MT-LB is an amphibious Soviet armoured fighting vehicle which has been in use since the 1950s.

The shell-shocked driver is then seen sitting on the scorched earth looking around in bafflement next to the fuming wreck

He then packs his belongings and walks away with his tail between his legs after the embarrassing episode

The MT-LB is an amphibious Soviet armoured fighting vehicle which has been in use since the 1950s

It can carry three crew up front and 11 passengers behind or a cargo of up to 2,000kg.

Putin continues to suffer damaging blows to his war effort, with huge losses to infantry and equipment in his botched invasion.

Yesterday, Ukrainian troops shot down four Russian helicopters in just 18 minutes.

Kyiv's Ministry of Defence and Air Force both confirmed the downing of the aircraft on its social media pages, celebrating a 'productive morning, Ukrainian style'.

The helicopters - presumed to be Soviet-era KA-52 models - were taken down by Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile units in Southern Ukraine, where Kyiv's forces have been making gains into territory illegally occupied by Russian forces.

Kyiv's Ministry of Defence and Air Force both confirmed the downing of the aircraft on its social media pages, celebrating a 'productive morning, Ukrainian style'. Pictured: An illustration posted by Kyiv's Ministry of Defence on Wednesday announcing the strikes

According to the military, units were targeting two more helicopters in the region around the same time, so the number of destroyed aircraft could even increase.

'From 8:40 a.m. to 8.58 On October 12, in the south of Ukraine, anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force destroyed at least four enemy attack helicopters (probably Ka-52), which were providing fire support to the ground occupation troops in the southern direction,' the Air Force said in a post to its Telegram channel.

'According to preliminary data, one helicopter fell on the territory freed from militants, the rest - behind the [Russian] front line.

'Combat work was carried out on two more helicopters, so there is a high probability that the number of confirmed downed helicopters will increase! Glory to Ukraine! Death to the racist occupiers!' the post added.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's Ministry of Defence celebrated the destruction of the KA-52 'Alligators' - a two-seat variant of the Soviet-era KA-50.

'Productive morning, Ukrainian style. Today, in just 18 minutes, service members of #UAarmy shot down 4 Russian helicopters that were spoiling beautiful autumn skies in the south of Ukraine,' the post said.

'No place for Alligators here. The local climate is hostile towards them,' it added.

According to the latest estimates from the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Russia had already lost 235 helicopters before the four were destroyed today.

The helicopters, presumed to be Soviet-era KA-52 models - were taken down by Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile units in Southern Ukraine, where Kyiv's forces have been making gains into previously occupied Russian territory. Pictured: A Russian Ka-52 helicopter gunship is seen in the field after a forced landing outside Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022 (file photo)

In addition, it says Russia has lost 63,380 personnel, 2,505 tanks, 5,181 armoured combat vehicles, 1,507 artillery units, 355 multiple launch rocket systems, 182 air defence systems, 268 warplanes, 1,129 drones, 315 cruise missiles, 15 warships, 3,927 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 136 units of special equipment.

In response to the heavy blows and the blast on the Crimean bridge on Saturday, Putin has unleashed a furious bombardment on Ukraine, firing Iranian-made kamikaze drones at the capital early today.

The strike on Kyiv sent rescue workers rushing to the scene as residents awoke to air raid sirens for the fourth consecutive morning following Russia's major assault across the country earlier this week.

Kyiv regional governor Oleksiy Kuleba said the strike occurred in the area around the capital. It wasn't yet clear if there were any casualties.

Deputy head of the presidential office Kyrylo Tymoshenko said on Telegram that 'critical infrastructure facilities' in the area were hit, without offering any details on which ones.

A view of a damaged tank after the village of Mala Komyshuvakha was recaptured by Ukrainian forces

Rescuers work at the site of an apartment building damaged by a Russian military strike, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues in Mykolaiv

In the southern city of Mykolaiv, overnight shelling destroyed a five-story apartment building as fighting continued along Ukraine's southern front.

Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Sienkovych said the building's top two floors were completely destroyed in a single strike and the rest of the building was left in rubble. There were no immediate reports of dead or wounded.

Early morning attacks on Ukraine's southern front have become a daily occurrence in Russia's war as Kyiv's forces push a counteroffensive aimed at recapturing territory occupied by Moscow.

Attacks on Kyiv had become rare before the capital city was hit at least four times during Monday's massive strikes, which killed at least 19 people and wounded more than 100 across the country.

Western leaders this week pledged to send more weapons to Ukraine, including air defence systems and weapons Kyiv has said are critical to defeating the invading Russian forces.

Britain says it will provide missiles for advanced NASAM anti-aircraft systems that the Pentagon plans to send to Ukraine in coming weeks. It's also sending hundreds of additional aerial drones for information gathering and logistics support, plus 18 more howitzer artillery guns.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said that 'these weapons will help Ukraine defend its skies from attacks and strengthen their overall missile defence alongside the US NASAMS'.

The systems, which Kyiv has long wanted, will provide medium-to-long-range defence against missile attacks.

The offer comes as NATO defence ministers meet in Brussels, aiming to help bolster Ukraine's aerial defences after Monday's widespread Russian assault.

Ukraine's military said this week that its current air defences have shot down dozens of incoming Russian missiles and Shahed-136 drones, the so-called kamikaze drones that have played an increasingly deadly role in the war.
More than 100 unaccompanied child migrants as young as 11 have gone missing after vanishing from British hotels over a 14-month period, new data reveals.

The 116 children disappeared between July 2021 and August 22 after being temporarily housed in hotels by the Home Office.

Charities fear some may have fallen victim to sexual abuse or could have been put to work illegally in cannabis farms or factories.

The government began placing child migrants in hotels in July last year after local councils said they did not have enough capacity to house them in suitable accommodation.

A total of 1,606 children who arrived between July 2021 and June 2022 were placed in hotels by the Home Office, according to official figures.

Migrants move a smuggling boat into the water as they leave a beach at Gravelines, near Dunkirk, yesterday

Out of these 181 children went missing but 65 were later found, a Freedom of Information request by BBC Two's Newsnight revealed.

The Home Office has insisted it had 'no alternative' but to use hotels while long-term accommodation was found.

But the charity ECPAT UK said the number of missing children was 'shocking' and demanded ministers immediately call a halt to the policy.

'They could be working away in a cannabis farm, in a factory, domestic servitude,' said its chief executive, Patricia Durr.

'There's a whole range of exploitative situations that these young people could be in. They could be being criminally exploited or sexually exploited behind closed doors.'

Rishan Tsega, who arrived in the UK from Sudan on the back of a lorry aged 17 and has since been granted asylum, said she fears some of those missing children could end up in the hands of the traffickers who brought them into the country illegally.

'They [traffickers] like to manipulate young people and make them do things when they get here. I wouldn't doubt that. This is nothing new,' she said.

'They might say if you go to this place you have to pay us back, otherwise I will kill your mum, or your family. How are you going to respond?'

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has pledged to stop sending asylum seekers to hotels. Currently, it is costing taxpayers 3million a day to accommodate 12,000 asylum seekers including men, women and children.

The Home Office said it was seeing an 'unprecedented rise in dangerous Channel crossings'.

It said: 'On average, unaccompanied children seeking asylum are moved to long-term care within 15 days of arriving in a hotel, but we know more needs to be done.

'That is why we are working closely with local authorities to increase the number of placements available and offer councils 6,000 for every child they can provide accommodation for.

'Any child going missing is extremely serious, and we work around the clock with the police and local authorities to urgently locate them and ensure they are safe.'

The Home Office said it was seeing an 'unprecedented rise in dangerous Channel crossings'

Children wrapped in blankets were among those carried to safety as Channel crossings continued for the fifth day in a row on Wednesday

The Local Government Association, which represents councils, said: 'Councils are deeply concerned over the number of children government is placing in hotels and take their safety and welfare very seriously. Councils have expressed concerns to government around the impacts on children, including the risks around children going missing. This is why it is vital the Government urgently acts to develop a planned approach to stopping its use of hotels for lone children.'

'Councils are working tirelessly to find suitable placements for unaccompanied children, with 597 placements made in the past six months, a sharp increase on the 167 placements made for the same period before.'

'At the same time, overall numbers of children in care have increased to over 80,000. This has seen spending to provide support increase by almost a quarter in five years, as councils face pressures to keep up with rising demand to support vulnerable children.'

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has pledged to stop sending asylum seekers to hotels

Human trafficking gangs in France claim there is a growing shortage of inflatable vessels to make the crossings, a BBC investigation has revealed.

Posing as a migrant with a pregnant wife and two year-old daughter, an undercover reporter was told it would cost 2,800 per person to reach the UK.

The people smuggler said: 'Otherwise I won't make any profit. I can't do less.'

On Tuesday, 374 people were detected in seven boats, according to figures from the Ministry of Defence.

This followed 539 on Monday, 1,065 on Sunday and 46 on Saturday.

This takes the total number of migrants detected making Channel crossings in October so far to 2,606 people, Ministry of Defence (MoD) data shows.

Home Office sources have confirmed that up to 60 per cent of arrivals are now from Albania  a Nato ally that has been at peace for 25 years and has applied for membership of the European Union.

Meanwhile, the Government's plan to deter Channel crossings by shipping those who arrive off to claim asylum in Rwanda remains in legal limbo.

The second stage of a legal challenge against the scheme is due to be heard at the High Court in London today.

Ms Braverman conceded last week that flights to the central African nation cannot begin until a series of appeals have concluded.

Even if she wins the current judicial review proceedings, she expects further challenges to the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court and even to the European Court of Human Rights, meaning Rwanda removals are unlikely to begin until the end of next year.

Revealed: Ruthless people smugglers are charging migrants up to 2,800 each to cross the Channel amid boat shortage - after 800 made dangerous journey yesterday

Migrants are paying people smugglers up to 2,800 per person to reach the UK amid a shortage of boats, according to new reports today.

Even so, the issues do not seem to be holding back the tide of crossings, with another 800 migrants making the perilous journey across the English Channel yesterday.

The latest arrivals bring the total so far this year to 36,463 people in 899 boats - an average of 41 people per vessel.

It also means more than 75,000 migrants have arrived in Britain after crossing the Channel since current records began four years ago.

Despite the record high number of crossings, human trafficking gangs in France claim they are facing a growing shortage of inflatable vessels to make the crossings, a BBC investigation revealed.

Posing as a migrant with a pregnant wife and two year-old daughter, an undercover reporter was told it would cost 2,800 per person to reach the UK. The people smuggler said: 'Otherwise I won't make any profit. I can't do less.'

Another 800 migrants making the perilous journey across the English Channel yesterday (pictured is a smuggler's boat near Gravelines in northern France)

Another trafficker warned that prices would soon be increasing on account of a lack of inflatable dinghies and other small craft.

He said: 'There are not enough boats. Some problem in Germany. We get them from Turkey and bring them via Germany. People smuggling more lucrative than drugs.'

The BBC investigation also revealed that migrants in France have been using a free local bus service to get to beaches where people traffickers can help them reach the UK.

After using the public transport to get to Dunkirk, the asylum seekers were reportedly walked to sand dunes by members of smuggling gangs and told to hide until the boats were ready.

Despite the challenges faced by smugglers, 856 people made the perilous journey across the 21-mile Dover Straits yesterday. The first arrivals were escorted into Dover, Kent on board a Border Force vessel around 9am.

They clutched blankets around their shoulders as they queued for the bus to take them for processing - after facing temperatures of 15c and wind speeds of up to 18mph in the Channel.

Crossings continued throughout the day. This included at least two groups of asylum seekers who were brought ashore on the beach at Dungeness by an RNLI Lifeboat in the early afternoon.

Around 70 people - including women and children - landed on the pebble beach, where they were met by immigration officials. Among them was an elderly woman, who was seen being helped off the vessel.

The French coastguard also rescued 46 people who had got into difficulty in the Channel on Wednesday.

A coastal patrol boat was tasked with picking up 30 stranded people in Authie Bay, while a second maritime vessel intercepted 16 more people off the coast of Fort-Mahon.

The migrants were dropped off at the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where they were taken care of by the departmental fire and rescue service and the border police.

The latest arrivals bring the total for the year so far to 36,463 people in 899 boats - an average of 41 people per vessel. But one report today suggests smugglers are packing as many now as 53 into each boat.

The busiest day this month came on Sunday, when 1,065 migrants reached British soil.

This year's figures have already surpassed the total for 2021 which saw 28,526 people cross the Channel by small boat, and 2020 when just 8,410 asylum seekers arrived in the UK.

Some 75,628 people have made the journey since 2018, according to an analysis of government data.

Official Home Office figures show that between January 2018 and June 2022, 51,881 migrants were recorded as arriving in the UK. Since then 23,747 have been detected, according to provisional Ministry of Defence (MoD) data.

The crossings continue as the Government faces another legal challenge against its plan to send migrants to Rwanda.

Charity Asylum Aid's case is due to be heard by High Court judges on Thursday after similar challenges were made last month.

Deportation flights are on hold while the legal disputes are ongoing.

The court is expected to give its ruling on all the cases at the same time at a later date.

The MoD said its data was taken from 'live operational systems' and was subject to change, 'including reduction'.

The Home Office said it would 'use every tool' at its disposal to deter illegal migration.

A spokesman said: 'We will go further and faster to tackle those gaming the system, using every tool at our disposal to deter illegal migration, disrupt the business model of people smugglers and relocate to Rwanda, those with no right to be in the UK.

'Despite the lies they have been sold by the people smugglers, migrants who travel through safe countries to illegally enter the UK will not be allowed to start a new life here.'
Question Everything! Purpose and Intent of this website: The Puppets & the Puppet Masters By Chris Hedges The judicial proceedings against Julian Assange give a faux legality to the state persecution of the most important and courageous journalist of our generation. This is the speech given by Chris Hedges outside the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, Oct. 8, at a rally that called on the U.S. to revoke its extradition request for Julian Assange. October 12, 2022: Information Clearing House -- " ScheerPost " - Merrick Garland and those who work in the Department of Justice are the puppets, not the puppet masters. They are the facade, the fiction, that the longstanding persecution of Julian Assange has something to do with justice. Like the High Court in London, they carry out an elaborate judiC.I.A.l pantomime. They debate arcane legal nuances to distract from the Dickensian farce where a man who has not committed a crime, who is not a U.S. citizen, can be extradited under the Espionage Act and sentenced to life in prison for the most courageous and consequential journalism of our generation. The engine driving the lynching of Julian is not here on Pennsylvania Avenue. It is in Langley, Virginia, located at a complex we will never be allowed to surround  the Central Intelligence Agency. It is driven by a secretive inner state, one where we do not count in the mad pursuit of empire and ruthless exploitation. Because the machine of this modern leviathan was exposed by Julian and WikiLeaks, the machine demands revenge. The United States has undergone a corporate coup detat in slow motion. It is no longer a functioning democracy. The real centers of power, in the corporate, military and national security sectors, were humiliated and embarrassed by WikiLeaks. Their war crimes, lies, conspiracies to crush the democratic aspirations of the vulnerable and the poor, and rampant corruption, here and around the globe, were laid bare in troves of leaked documents. We cannot fight on behalf of Julian unless we are clear about whom we are fighting against. It is far worse than a corrupt judiC.I.A.ry. The global billionaire class, who have orchestrated a soC.I.A.l inequality rivaled by pharaonic Egypt, has internally seized all of the levers of power and made us the most spied upon, monitored, watched and photographed population in human history. When the government watches you 24-hours a day, you cannot use the word liberty. This is the relationship between a master and a slave. Julian was long a target, of course, but when WikiLeaks published the documents known as Vault 7, which exposed the hacking tools the C.I.A. uses to monitor our phones, televisions and even cars, he  and journalism itself  was condemned to crucifixion. The object is to shut down any investigations into the inner workings of power that might hold the ruling class accountable for its crimes, eradicate public opinion and replace it with the cant fed to the mob. I spent two decades as a foreign correspondent on the outer reaches of empire in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and the Balkans. I am acutely aware of the savagery of empire, how the brutal tools of repression are first tested on those Frantz Fanon called the wretched of the earth. Wholesale surveillance. Torture. Coups. Black sites. Black propaganda. Militarized police. Militarized drones. Assassinations. Wars. Views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. Reader financed- No Advertising - No Government Grants - No Algorithm - This Is Independent Get Our Free Newsletter Registration is not necessary to post comments. We ask only that you do not use obscene or offensive language. Please be respectful of others. See also
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Kim Jong Un's stooges may have photoshopped extra jets into propaganda images of recent North Korean military drills to make the country's air force look more impressive than it actually is, experts have suggested.

Pyongyang said huge live-fire exercises involving 150 jets 'flying simultaneously for the first time in [our] history' took place between October 6 and 8, with images released shortly after showing huge numbers of aircraft pulling manoeuvres while watched by Kim himself.

However, Thorsten Beck - an expert in photo analysis at Berlin's HEADT Centre research institute - said the images appear to have been digitally altered, with individual planes or entire formations of aircraft copied and pasted to give the impression the display was much larger than it was in reality.

North Korea claims to have held air drills involving 150 planes between October 6 and 8, but analysis of propaganda images suggests aircraft were duplicated to make the exercises appear more spectacular than they were (planes which appear to have been cloned are circled in the same colours)

Experts in Germany examined the images by eye and ran them through software designed to pick up clones, then circled the planes which they believe were copied and pasted in the same colour to highlight the manipulation

While digital analysts admitted they cannot conclusively prove the images were manipulated, military experts said the formations pictured make no sense - further suggesting that extra planes were added (aircraft which appear to have been digitally cloned and circled in the same colours)

Dr Beck said he examined the images himself and picked up a number of discrepancies, then ran them through software designed to pick up image cloning and found the computer identified many of the same issues.

He said: 'I think the assumption that, in a number of images, elements have been cloned is correct. Whoever created or manipulated these pictures certainly had some command of Photoshop.

'It does not look amateurish, but the composition, the purpose and nature of the manipulation speak a different language... They appear somehow too good to be true and that creates a funny effect in some of the images.'

Dr Beck picked out one image, showing 30 warplanes from above, as a prime example. Visual clues of manipulation include the fact that the planes all appear roughly the same size despite them supposedly flying at different heights and distances from the camera - meaning their appearance should change.

Another photo, showing a variety of fighter planes against a dramatic backdrop of clouds, also piqued suspicions.

'The image looks very artfully composed, almost too good to be true,' said Dr Beck. 'In clone analysis you can see which groups show similarity, and my visual analysis largely coincides with this.'

He admitted the charge of digital manipulation cannot be conclusively proven because the photos are relatively low resolution, there is a lack of alternative angles to compare, and metadata that usually accompanies digital photo files has been stripped away - limiting the kinds of analysis that can be done.

Analysts have circled planes which they believe have been digitally cloned and replicated in North Korean propaganda images in the same colour, suggesting the pictures were altered to make the display more dramatic than it actually was

Kim Jong Un is pictured overseeing the drill, which came in response to recent exercises by Japan, South Korea and the US which his regime views as a rehearsal for an invasion

Added to which, analysing military formations for duplication is difficult because their deliberately symmetrical nature means photo software can be tricked into identifying them as clones, when in fact they just look similar.

However, additional analysis by other experts suggests the formations themselves don't make sense from a military point of view - further reinforcing the idea that the pictures have been doctored.

Samuel Archer, a senior military analyst with Aviation Week, said: 'From the perspective of a military exercise the concentration and volume of aircraft makes no tactical or strategic sense.

'It strikes me that the only real reason you'd put that many aircraft in flight that close together would be to make it appear in photos that there were far more of them than actually exist.'

Dr Beck added: 'In summary, copied elements are likely in many of the images  even if visual analysis cannot give absolute certainty.'

The exercises took place last week over the seas near the eastern city of Wonsan.

According to state propaganda, Kim Jong-un afterwards praised the pilots and urged them to 'discharge their sacred mission of defending the country'.

The pilots  the ones that actually exist  were said to be rapturous in their response.
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A couple who bought a 25 lottery ticket and won a 3million Cornish mansion with estuary views and neighbours including Gordon Ramsay have put it up for sale for 4million just weeks later, MailOnline can exclusively reveal today.

Uttam Parmar, 58, from Leicestershire, won the stunning house with panoramic views of the Camel Estuary on August 12  and put it on the market on October 8 with the hope of making a profit of 3,999,975.

The huge prize also included 50,000 for the family and the home is mortgage-free, with stamp duty and legal fees covered.

But Mr Parmar and his wife Raki, 53, are already cashing in just eight weeks after the lottery win  despite hints to the contrary.

The eco-mansion is insulated with recycled newspaper and a 'green roof' covered in grasses, moss and flowers which reuses water, helps wildlife and improves air quality. It comes with 5.3 acres of rolling land running down to the River Camel.

The four-bedroom property was built with 'no expense spared' and commands views of outstanding natural beauty in the surrounding countryside and is a short distance from the picturesque village of Rock on the coast  where celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay lives with his family in his 4.4million mansion across the Camel Estuary from Padstow.

But it appears that Mr Parmar will not be swapping Leicestershire for Cornwall  not even keeping the property as a holiday home. Instead will sell the house and take the cash.

Speaking outside the home in Wadebridge this summer he hinted that they would keep it, declaring: 'We have a large extended family, so no doubt they'll all be asking to have their next birthday parties here'.

He said: 'We've holidayed in Cornwall over the years and always thought it would be incredible to have a place here  and now we do  we're still pinching ourselves.

He added: 'We're not sure if we'll rent, sell or live in it yet  it's the best dilemma we've ever had! Whatever we decide, it's a life changing win for the whole family.'

But MailOnline has spotted it on the RightMove website, where it appeared five days ago.

Uttam Parmar, 58, (left), wife Raki, 53, and son Aaron, 26, in front of the 3million mansion in Cornwall. After winning the dream home in August for 25, Mr Parmar said: 'I've now won my own piece of paradise.' But now it is up for sale

The couple put it on the market last weekend with the hope of making a profit of 3,999,975

The dream 3million five-bedroom house, which overlooks the Camel Estuary in Cornwall, was won with a 25 lottery ticket

The house commands views of outstanding natural beauty in the surrounding countryside in Wadebridge

Inside, the home also has a large, open-plan kitchen and dining area for entertaining guests, with floor-to-ceiling windows

The property comes with five acres of land included, as well as its own hot tub with panoramic views of the stunning Cornish countryside

Mr Parmar bought a ticket for the Omaze Million Pound House Draw in July. After having entered the competition eight times before without winning, he and his wife finally walked away with the grand prize.

The operations manager at Alps Alpine from Leicestershire was at a hospital when he found he had won the four-bedroom dream home with a 25 ticket.

He said after winning the mansion: 'When Omaze called to tell us we'd won a prize, we were actually at the hospital. We were so excited that we might have won the grand prize, we called our son Aaron, 26, to see if the winning entry code matched ours. When he triple checked the numbers matched, we must've burst his eardrums screaming down the phone'.

'Although, we still didn't believe we'd won until we got back to our house and Omaze told us in person.

'I've entered every Omaze draw since they started, so patience really is a virtue, as I've now won my own piece of paradise  this house is definitely my favourite one they've offered.'

A video shows Mr Parmar and his family celebrating their astonishing win in the draw and their reaction to seeing the luxury home for the first time.

The house includes a suntrap terrace, a hot tub and its own courtyard with exposed brick walls and an open fireplace. Inside, the property also has a large, open-plan kitchen and dining area for entertaining guests.

With a sleek modern design, the home won an award for the best new build in Cornwall in 2020.

The four-bedroom house also includes a stylish private courtyard for entertaining guests

The home's sleek modern design won it an award for best new build in Cornwall in 2020

The competition was the ninth run by Omaze, whose Million Pound House Draw has raised 6.75million for good causes

The spacious 4,200 square-foot house also includes five acres of land in the Cornish countryside. Local estate agents estimate it could fetch up to 15,000 a month in rent at peak seasons.

Mr Parmar said: 'I've always considered myself a lucky person, firstly because of my wonderful family  but I've also won a few bits such as a TV and coffee table, which I was pretty happy with to be honest.

'I never dreamed I'd win anything as extravagant as a 3million house though'.

The prize draw raised money for Blood Cancer UK, a charity dedicated to funding research into cancers such as leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

Gemma Peters, Blood Cancer UK's chief executive, said: 'We are so grateful to Omaze for choosing us as its charity partner for the Cornwall house draw.

'Blood cancer is the UK's third biggest cancer killer, and the money this partnership has raised will help us to give support and information to people who are affected by blood cancer  as well as fund lifesaving research that will bring forward the day when blood cancer is finally beaten.'

James Oakes, chief international officer at Omaze, said: 'We're delighted that Uttam has won his dream home  and was able to contribute to this fantastic 1million raise for Blood Cancer UK in the process.'

The competition was the ninth run by Omaze, whose Million Pound House Draw has raised 6.75million for good causes.

The next house draw is for a stunning 2million home in Marbella, Spain  raising money for Teenage Cancer Trust.
A studio flat that is so small the bed is an arm's reach away from the kitchen is available for rent for 628 per month.

The Sheffield residence is advertised as 'living at its finest,' despite prospective renters having to essentially cook dinner in the bedroom.

Residents will also have to sleep within touching distance of their sink in what letting agents have described as a 'three-quarter bed' - meaning it isn't even a full double.

However, renters will luckily have a private bathroom.

The listing comes as the UK battles a cost-of-living crisis that saw rent prices across the country hitting record highs - increasing by more than 20 per cent year on year in some areas, including Manchester, and 15.8 per cent in London.

A studio flat that is so small the bed is an arm's reach away from the kitchen is available for rent for 628 per month (pictured)

Omnia Estates are advertising the studio flats on popular property website Rightmove.

The firm is open to letting to students and professionals itching to live in Sheffield city centre.

Omnia Estates is offering each flat with bills and utilities included to 'make life easier.'

The listing reads: 'We are now offering this fully furnished accommodation in Sheffield City Centre, available immediately.

'Student and professional living at its finest with affordable and competitive prices.

'Omnia Space is excited to offer the opportunity to rent a modern studio apartment with all utilities included.

'The fully furnished studio apartments offer ample storage and natural light.

'The kitchenette comes equipped with a two ring electric hob, microwave oven, washing machine dryer and under-counter fridge with freezer compartment.

'All apartments include an en-suite modern bathroom with shower.

'The Watson Chambers Development gives instant access to the high-street shops, local restaurants and is perfectly located for both bus and tram links.

'It is an ideal location for both Sheffield Hallam University and University of Sheffield, which are both within walking distance.'

The flat is close to the train station so students can hop on a train home easily.

The listing touts that all all apartments in the complex include an en-suite modern bathroom with shower (pictured)

The Watson Chambers Development (pictured) is marketed towards young professionals and students at Sheffield Hallam University and University of Sheffield, 'which are both within walking distance'

The Sheffield residence is advertised as 'living at its finest,' despite prospective renters having to essentially cook dinner in the bedroom

Landlords and rental agencies are raising rents to record levels amid high demand for housing - and a lack of supply - at a time when millions of Britons face financial troubles due to rising energy bills.

Rental rates in the UK have grown at fastest annual rate in 16 years, according to data released by Rightmove at the end of the second quarter of 2022.

The national average price for rentals outside of London reached a record of 1,126 per calendar month (pcm), rising 3.5 per cent from the first quarter of the year and 11.8 per cent from 2021.

The capital city also saw a new record average asking rents of 2,257 pcm, an annual growth exceeding 15 per cent which Rightmove says is the highest ever annual rate of any region.

Some tenants are reporting up to 700 per month increases in rent, meaning their landlords are effectively forcing them out, while others who have moved out of flats say their former homes were relisted for double their original price.

The estate agents membership organisation PropertyMark found in a survey that letting agents received on average 127 new applications per branch in July but only had 11 properties available for rent.

Part of the shortage is due to many landlords selling their properties, taking advantage of high prices in the sales market, but also fewer tenants are moving from one rental property to another, according to property consumer advice body Move IQ.
Postal workers staged a fresh strike today in a long-running dispute over pay and conditions, with a series of 19 further walkouts planned for the coming weeks.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) described the action as the largest strike in a year that has seen industrial unrest across several industries, including rail.

Some 115,000 members across the UK took action today, with picket lines mounted outside Royal Mail offices on what was the sixth strike day in recent months.

The CWU tweeted pictures of workers on strike this morning in locations including Leicester, Sheffield, Oxford, Aberdeen, Worcester, Belfast and across London.

Picket lines were also mounted at Bognor Regis in West Sussex, King's Lynn in Norfolk, Sidcup in Kent, Romsey in Hampshire and Thirsk in North Yorkshire.

Members of the Communication Workers Union mount a picket line today in Farnham, Surrey

Postal workers go on strike outside their workplace at Hatfield in Hertfordshire this morning

Strike action is also taking place among postal workers in Mitcham, South London, today

The union has accused the Royal Mail of planning structural change, which would effectively see employees in secure, well-paid jobs turned into a 'casualised, financially precarious workforce overnight'.

The CWU said plans include delaying the arrival of post to members of the public by three hours, cuts in workers' sick pay and inferior terms for new employees.

The union has announced 19 further days of strike action in the build up to the busy Christmas period.

General secretary Dave Ward said: 'Postal workers face the biggest ever assault on their jobs, terms and conditions in the history of Royal Mail.

'The public and businesses also face the end of daily deliveries and destruction of the special relationship that postal workers and the public have in every community in the UK.

Communication Workers Union members go on strike at Sheffield City Delivery Office today

Postal workers go on strike at Irvine in Ayrshire this morning as they join the industrial action

'It is insulting the intelligence of every postal worker for Royal Mail chief executive Simon Thompson to claim that their change agenda is 'modernisation'.

'It is nothing more than an asset stripping business plan that will see the break-up of the company and the end of Royal Mail as a major contributor to the UK economy.

'Royal Mail Group claim to be losing 1million a day. The CWU believe these figures need to be scrutinised.'

A Royal Mail spokesman said: 'Three weeks ago, Royal Mail invited the CWU to enter talks through Acas to find a resolution to our change and pay dispute. We have not reached an agreement with the CWU on this request.

'Royal Mail is losing 1million a day and must change faster in response to changing customer demands.

'The CWU leadership's choice of damaging strike action over resolution is weakening the financial position of the company and threatening the job security of our postmen and women.

Postal workers in Northern Ireland are also involved in the action - pictured in Belfast today

Communication Workers Union members go on strike at Wallingford in Oxfordshire today

'We call on the CWU leaders to cancel their planned strike action and accept our invitation to enter talks through Acas without further delay.

'We apologise to our customers for the inconvenience the CWU's continued strike action will cause. We are doing all we can to minimise any delays and keep people, businesses and the country connected.'

Reacting to the strikes, Jessica Willock, home insurance expert at Confused.com, said today: 'As Royal Mail begin their longest set of strikes today, it's likely that disruptions will happen across the whole UK network.

'Strikes are set to take place during Black Friday week and Cyber Monday. This is a popular time for buying online, which alone can result in delays even when there aren't any strikes.

'To ensure customers aren't waiting a long time to receive their deliveries, some retainers might opt to use different partners during this time.'
At least 18 people from a single family, including 12 children, perished in a bus fire in Pakistan as they journeyed home after fleeing catastrophic monsoon flooding, officials and rescue workers said Thursday.

Police said the passengers died when flames broke out overnight on a northbound bus outside the city of Karachi, where they had settled after being forced to flee their homes from one of the worst flood-hit areas.

Around 35 members of an extended family were on the bus on the M-9 motorway in the Nooriabad area of the Jamshoro district in Sindh Province when the fire broke out in the air conditioning system.

'Those who were traveling on the bus were flood-affected people who had relocated somewhere off the motorway, and they were heading back home to the Dadu district,' Jamshoro District Commissioner Asif Jameel said.

The Dadu district is one of the worst hit by the recent deadly floods in Sindh Province, as an area the size of the United Kingdom was underwater at the peak of the flooding.

Police officer Hashim Brohi said the bus was taking the extended family from the southern port city of Karachi to their hometown of Khairpur Nathan Shah after they heard flood waters had receded there.

At least 18 people were killed, including 12 children, when a fire broke out on a bus carrying an extended family back to their home after they had been forced to flee Pakistan's unprecedented monsoon flooding

The bus was taking the extended family from the southern port city of Karachi to their hometown of Khairpur Nathan Shah after they heard flood waters had receded there

The burnt interior of a passenger bus after an overnight fire incident near Nooriabad in Sindhs Jamshoro district early on October 13

Volunteers gather beside the charred bus on the M-9 highway. Police said the passengers died when flames broke out overnight on a northbound bus outside the city of Karachi

At least 18 people perished in the fire, including 12 children, all thought to be from the same family

They were among the thousands who moved to Karachi because of the country's deadly flooding.

Brohi said the incident took place late Wednesday near Nooriabad hills hike, which is not far from the local police station and fire service station.

'The proximity saved the lives of many bus passengers as both the police and fire engine reached the scene in minutes,' Brohi said.

'Apparently, the fire broke out in the air-conditioning system of the bus but investigations will reveal the real cause.'

He said rescue services moved the injured passengers to the main hospitals in Jamshoro and Nooriabad. The bodies, charred beyond recognition, will be handed over to relatives after legal formalities.

Pakistan has been hit by unprecedented monsoon rains this year, putting a third of the nation underwater, displacing eight million people, and causing $28 billion worth of devastation.

Police officer Hashim Brohi said the bus was taking the extended family from the southern port city of Karachi to their hometown of Khairpur Nathan Shah after they heard flood waters had receded there

The quick response of fire and emergency services saved many lives, with 17 survivors, as the incident took place near Nooriabad hills hike, which is not far from the local police station and fire service station

Pakistani rescuers carry the body of a victim burnt in a bus in Karachi, Pakistan on October 13

Pakistan has a dismal record of fatal traffic accidents due to badly maintained vehicles, poor roads, reckless driving and poorly trained emergency services

As the waters slowly recede, thousands of the displaced - many living in ramshackle tent cities - are travelling back to their sodden homes to remake their lives.

Pakistan has a dismal record of fatal traffic accidents due to badly maintained vehicles, poor roads, reckless driving and poorly trained emergency services.

The historic floods across the nation - which have killed 1,700 - have been linked to climate change.

Hollywood star and humanitarian Angelina Jolie visited Pakistan and said the flood disaster should be a 'wake-up call' for the world regarding climate change, calling for more international aid after meeting with victims.

Last month Pakistan was lashed by unprecedented monsoon downpours that flooded a third of the country - an area the size of the United Kingdom - and killed nearly 1,600 people, according to the latest government figures.

More than seven million people have been displaced, many living in makeshift tents without protection from mosquitoes, and often with little access to clean drinking water or washing facilities.

'I've never seen anything like this,' said Jolie, who previously visited Pakistan to meet the victims of the devastating 2010 floods and a deadly 2005 earthquake, in footage released on Thursday.

Pakistan has been lashed by unprecedented monsoon downpours that flooded a third of the country - an area the size of the United Kingdom - and killed nearly 1,600 people, according to the latest government figures. Jolie, who represents the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), visited southern Sindh province, one of the worst-affected areas, where she met with displaced flood victims living in camps

Displaced people walk to a safer area following the deadly climate catastrophe in the Swat Valley

Pakistani men receive food, distributed by Pakistani Army troops in a flood-hit area in Rajanpur, district of Punjab

Victims of flooding from monsoon rains leave their flooded home in Sehwan, Pakistan on September 09

Displaced people from heavy monsoon flooding take refuge as they prepare food at a temporary tent housing camp organized by the Turkish Red Crescent, in Sujawal, Pakistan on September 14

'I am absolutely with you in pushing the international community to do more... I think this is a real wake-up call to the world about where we are at,' she told a meeting of civil and military officials in the capital Islamabad.

'Climate change is not only real and it's not only coming, it's very much here.'

Jolie, who represents the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), visited southern Sindh province, one of the worst-affected areas, where she met with displaced flood victims living in camps.

The United Nations has warned of a 'second disaster' from diseases such as dengue, malaria, cholera and diarrhoea, as well as from malnutrition.
Winston Roderick said he was asked if he had 'his pants on his head' by colleague

An ex-police officer, 48, said he was forced to quit due to mental health jibes

A born again Christian police officer who struggles with mental health has lost an appeal after suing his bosses over claims his colleagues asked if he had 'his pants on his head and pencils up his nose' and called him 'Father Ted'.

Ex-South Wales PC Winston Roderick, 48, said he was forced to quit the force after 14 years due to cruel colleagues mocking his anxiety and depression - alongside a host of other work problems.

He lost an employment tribunal on the matter last year and has now had his case thrown out by a judge sitting at the Employment Appeal Tribunal in London.

The Christian pastor had sued for disability-related harassment and complained of religious bullying, claiming a colleague told him Jesus 'didn't exist' and the Bible was a 'pile of nonsense'.

Judge Michael Ford KC said there was nothing wrong with the lower tribunal's dismissal of his case.

The original trial found some claimed comments were never made and that the quip about having 'pants on head' - a reference from a Blackadder episode called 'A Bout of Insanity' - was 'banter' which Mr Roderick had said about himself first.

Ex-South Wales PC Winston Roderick (pictured), 48, lost an employment tribunal after claiming he was forced to quit after a colleague mocked his anxiety and depression

The born again Christian pastor lost an employment tribunal last year and has now had his case thrown out by a judge sitting at the Employment Appeal Tribunal in London (pictured)

While working at the police station in Merthyr Tydfil (pictured), south Wales, Mr Roderick claimed he was subject to bullying about his religion and over his mental health

The appeal tribunal heard Mr Roderick began his police career in south Wales in 2003 and served as a constable until he resigned following a string of issues in December 2018.

He claimed a colleague at a unit in Merthyr Tydfil had 'made fun' of his mental health 'illnesses' - including disabling stress, anxiety and depression - by making light-hearted comments while at work.

But just because he had himself made the 'pants on head' quip first as a 'coping mechanism' following his struggles, it did not mean that others could do the same, he claimed.

Last year The tribunal found it was 'banter', despite his argument that it was a similar situation to a person of one race using an offensive racial comment about themselves, then seeing it inappropriately repeated and used by others.

Superiors on the force had also failed to make 'reasonable adjustments' to help him cope with the workload while 'disabled' by his mental health issues, he claimed.

He said he had been put into an environment at work with tight deadlines to process prisoners and found it so stressful that he felt 'sick' at the thought of going to work.

Mr Roderick's religious and disability discrimination claims, as well as a claim of constructive dismissal, were dismissed because the tribunal found his resignation letter mostly focused on a 'historical frustration at his lack of promotion'

But dismissing the appeal bid, Judge Ford said the issue had been a question of fact for the tribunal to decide.

Other officers had thought the quips were jokey references to Monty Python sketches, it said in its ruling.

'The claimant had initiated it and it didn't amount to harassment,' he said.

'It didn't satisfy the statutory test of undermining the claimant's dignity or respect.

'This was a factual question...the tribunal was entitled to decide in the way it did.'

The judge also said the tribunal had been entitled to find on the evidence that Mr Roderick had not been subjected to religion-based bullying.

The tribunal had found the 'Father Ted' claim never happened and, in expressing a belief that Jesus Christ didn't exist and the Bible was 'nonsense,' his colleagues had not been commenting on his religion, but in response to his 'proselytising' at work.

'Someone who proselytises can hardly complain if others disagree, particularly if that person invites comments,' said the judge.

He also rejected criticism of the tribunal's finding that the force had not made 'reasonable adjustments' to help him cope with his work.

The tribunal had found that the reason for Mr Roderick struggling at work was not the specific unit he was in, but the stress he felt when working alongside properly 'functioning' colleagues.

Moving him to another role elsewhere would not have helped, it found.

Mr Roderick's religious and disability discrimination claims, as well as a claim of constructive dismissal, were dismissed because the tribunal found his resignation letter mostly focused on a 'historical frustration at his lack of promotion.'

It had concluded: 'As the respondent put it, the claimant arrived in the Hub as a disgruntled officer and nothing changed in his attitude. We agree.'

The appeal judge backed the tribunal's reasoning and rejected Mr Roderick's appeal bid.
After being cleared of three related charges he will be sentenced on October 19

It has been a dizzying fall from grace for the former high-flying Sydney banker

The assault charge stems from grabbing his wife

An ex-banker has admitted to assaulting his wife and drink driving at almost four times the legal limit in the latest sad milestone in is his dizzying fall from grace.

Fredrik Blencke, 50, blew a reading of 0.183 when police stopped his silver Mercedes-Benz in the Northern Rivers region of NSW on February 26, while he was on strict bail conditions not to consume alcohol.

He had already spent Christmas and New Year in jail for breaching his bail conditions that stemmed from the charge of assaulting his then-wife Annabelle Price, 30, on August 16.

Fredrik Blencke, 50, has pleaded guilty to assaulting his wife Annabelle Price, 30, in the couple's Vaucluse home (pictured together)

On that occasion he grabbed Ms Price's phone out of her hand while they were living in a rented $3,400 a week mansion in the exclusive Sydney eastern suburb of Vaucluse.

He pleaded guilty to the offence but on Tuesday was found not guilty in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court of one additional assault and two charges of breaching an apprehended violence order arising out of August incident.

Police arrested Blencke about 8.50pm on February 26 after he allegedly blew 0.183 in a roadside breath test in Byron Street at Bangalow. He is pictured with his wife

Magistrate Juliana Croft said Blencke will be sentenced in the Downing court on October 19.

Police pulled Blencke over in the town of Bangalow around 8.50pm on February 26.

Officers 'noticed his breath smelt of alcohol, his movements were slow and sluggish, and his speech was confused,' the police statement said according to The Daily Telegraph.

'The accused admitted to consuming three glasses of red wine while having dinner at Ciao restaurant in Bangalow.'

The father-of-three's strict bail conditions at the time included not drinking alcohol or attending licensed premises.

'Not even a Chinese restaurant, Mr Blencke,' Ms Milledge said. 'You'll be dining on take away only,' Magistrate Milledge said at the time.

Blencke was branded 'out of control' by a magistrate, who went on to grant him bail

Fredrik Blencke and his wife are friends with high-powered socialites Ellie and Charlie Aitken, and Hollie and Christopher Nasser Pictured left to right: Blencke, Mr Nasser, Hollie Nasser, Ellie Aitken, Charlie Aitken

Magistrate Juliana Croft said Blencke will be sentenced in the Downing court on October 19

Blencke had been staying at Lune de Sang, an award-winning 146 hectare timber plantation in the Byron Bay hinterland owned by one of his friends when he was pulled over.

The luxury property featured as one of two filming locations for the Hulu mini-series Nine Perfect Strangers starring Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy and Luke Evans.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Blencke specialises in providing bespoke investment management solutions for high net worth clients.

But a former friend of Blencke's told Daily Mail Australia his contract was terminated after his release from prison.
Tulsi Gabbard continued to excoriate the Democratic party yesterday, hitting out at its 'woke ideological leadership' and describing Vice President Kamala Harris as 'a perfect example of everything that is wrong with Washington'.

The former Hawaii congresswoman ran as a Democrat in the 2020 election, but retired from politics in 2021 and on Tuesday announced that she was leaving the party, citing the 'cowardly wokeness' of its leadership.

She doubled down on her comments during an interview on Fox News' Brian Kilmeade's radio show yesterday, pointing to Harris as one of the main examples of the rot of Washington.

Don Bolduc, a Trump-backed Republican candidate for the crucial New Hampshire Senate race, also announced Gabbard would be campaigning for him ahead of the midterms.

'We dont agree on every issue, but I am honored to have the support of Tulsi Gabbard who shares my view that the status quo is broken and we need a change of direction', Bolduc tweeted Wednesday.

Bolduc has come under fire for claiming Donald Trump's defeat in the 2020 election was because the race was of voter fraud.

'Kamala Harris is a perfect example of everything that is wrong with Washington and the Democratic party of today,' Gabbard said in the interview with Kilmeade.

'We had a person running for president who she claimed to be very proud of her record. And so I took the opportunity to hold her to account for that and explain to the American people why she did what she did Nothing happened to her when she smoked pot, but she was very happy to keep people in prison and put people in jail for doing the same thing.

Gabbard, 41 (pictured in resignation speech earlier this week), doubled down on her comments during an interview on Brian Kilmeade's radio show yesterday, pointing to Kamala Harris as one of the main examples of the rot of Washington

'Kamala Harris (pictured) is a perfect example of everything that is wrong with Washington and the Democratic party of today,' Gabbard said

'To be associated with a party that is driven by this woke insanity, essentially opposing and undermining our freedoms, is not something that I could do any longer,' she said.

Gabbard brutally exposed Harris' questionable record as a California prosecutor during a Democratic presidential debate in 2019 when she claimed that Harris locked up more than 1,500 minor drug offenders 'and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana' on a radio program.

She also accused Harris of keeping innocent people in jail and extending sentences to take advantage of their free labor.

'There is no excuse for that, and the people who suffered under your reign as prosecutor, you owe them an apology,' Gabbard insisted.

Gabbard said on Tuesday she had 'always been an independent-minded person', and that her loyalties lay first with the Constitution over any party.

'Democrat, yes, but an independent Democrat.

'My loyalties are very clear, and I took an oath - both as a service member, as a soldier, as well as a member of Congress - to support and defend the Constitution.

'And that's an oath that I take extremely seriously.'

She said she had been dismayed as the party she belonged to worked to 'actively find ways to undermine our rights', and would not tolerate dissent.

Gabbard's Democratic party resignation letter 'I can no longer remain in today's Democratic Party that is now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue & stoke anti-white racism, actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms, are hostile to people of faith & spirituality, demonize the police & protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans, believe in open borders, weaponize the national security state to go after political opponents, and above all, dragging us ever closer to nuclear war. 'I believe in a government that is of, by, and for the people. Unfortunately, today's Democratic Party does not. 'Instead, it stands for a government of, by, and for the powerful elite. 'I'm calling on my fellow common sense independent-minded Democrats to join me in leaving the Democratic Party. 'If you can no longer stomach the direction that so-called woke Democratic Party ideologues are taking our country, I invite you to join me.' Advertisement

Gabbard, who famously opposed the party on Syria and disagreed with their support for the rebels, even traveling to Damascus to meet the dictator Bashar al-Assad, said the party responded by shutting her down.

'They will do all that they can to destroy you, silence you, smear you - work with Big Tech, work with corporate media - to actively destroy anyone who dares to even question their agenda.'

She said they were against freedom of religion, 'hostile towards people of faith', and discriminatory.

The ex-representative for Hawaii's 2nd district said she would have preferred the Democratic leadership to say: 'You know what, let's agree to disagree.'

She added: 'It speaks to the whole environment of fear that those in power, the elitists in power, have fomented, that people are afraid to speak the truth.

'Rather than taking a stand for peace, prosperity, security and the freedom of the American people we have too many people in Washington who are warmongers, subservient to the military-industrial complex, and continuing to put their own selfish interests or the interests of their donors first, with no mind for the cost and consequence that their decisions have on the American people.'

She told Carlson she strongly disagreed with the Biden administration on Russia, accusing them of 'actively pushing us to the brink of a nuclear holocaust'.

Asked about the response from other Democrats in Congress to her decision to quit the party, Gabbard said it had been silence - except for one, who sent her a text message with three thumbs up.

She would not say who sent the message.

Earlier Gabbard, a United States Army Reserve officer, accused the party of 'demonizing the police', 'protecting criminals', 'believing in open borders' and 'dragging us even closer to nuclear war'.

She also urged those who agreed with her to leave - with just a month until the crucial midterm elections.

Don Bolduc, a Trump-backed Republican candidate for the crucial New Hampshire Senate race, also announced Gabbard would be campaigning for him ahead of the midterms

Gabbard exposed Harris in a presidential debate in 2019 when she brought up her questionable record as a California prosecutor

Gabbard told Carlson she thought Biden was bringing the U.S. to the brink of 'nuclear holocaust'

She published a video attacking the party, whose members she clams 'actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms'.

Gabbard made the announcement in the first episode of her new podcast - The Tulsi Gabbard Show.

It is not clear whether she will join another party, or remain independent.

Gabbard has turned to political commentary since running for president in 2020 and leaving office in 2021 and has frequently attacked the Biden administration and the Democrats.

DailyMail.com columnist Meghan McCain congratulated Gabbard in a tweet, saying: 'There are so few free thinkers and independents left in this world and you are one of them. We are in your corner. Onward and upward!'

The New York Times in October 2019 questioned Gabbard's motives. Gabbard said it was a smear campaign orchestrated by the liberal media and Big Tech

Democrat operative and commentator Ana Navarro was among those who condemned Gabbard, in this 2019 tweet

Gabbard ran for president as a Democrat in 2020 after serving she was elected to the Hawaii House of Representatives at age 21 and serving in the field medical unit of the Hawaii National Guard.

She deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and served in Kuwait from 2008 to 2009 as an Army Military Police platoon leader.

Gabbard, who used to be aligned with Bernie Sanders, has shifted her stance, and this year spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

In February, she received a standing ovation for her speech attacking the 'power elite' and 'their co-conspirators in the mainstream media and the security state.'

She pleased crowd by saying that in an ideal world 'our leaders would haul (former Director of National Intelligence) James Clapper before a judge to answer for his lies to Congress about how the government is collecting information.'

'And they would support the Durham investigation and Clinton corruption in 2016... ,' she said, not even finishing her sentence before there was raucous applause.

She went after both Democrats and Republicans in Congress 'who talk a good game about civil liberties, but when it comes time to cast that vote on things like getting rid of secret FISA courts and protecting our fourth amendment rights to privacy, they vote on the side of the power elite and against liberty.'

In 2019, Hillary Clinton famously suggested the Russians were 'grooming' Gabbard, though didn't use the congresswoman's name.

Gabbard had quit her post at the Democratic National Committee three years before to publicly support Sanders, who was running against Clinton.

She told then-DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz in an email - exposed in the Wikileaks hack - that she felt the DNC was rigging the primary in favor of the more mainstream Clinton.

In April 2022, she got into a spat with Republican Senator Mitt Romney after he accused her of 'treasonous lies' for her claims that the U.S. was funding biolabs in Ukraine.

She sent Romney a cease and desist letter accusing him of 'false and defamatory statements'.

Gabbard claimed in a tweet that there are '25 to 30 U.S. funded bio labs in Ukraine.'

'According to the U.S government, these bio labs are conducting research on dangerous pathogens,' she said in the video.

'These pathogens know no borders, if they are inadvertently or purposely breached or compromised, they will quickly spread all throughout Europe, the United States and the rest of the world causing untold suffering and death.'

Gabbard said 'these labs need to be shut down immediately and the pathogens that they hold need to be destroyed.'
He has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent

She alleges Bruce Lehrmann had sex with her while she slept in March 2019

Lisa Wilkinson will not be called as a witness in Brittany Higgins' rape trial against her former colleague.

Bruce Lehrmann is accused of having non-consensual sex with Ms Higgins in Parliament House after a drunken night out in Canberra in March 2019, when they were working as Liberal Party staffers.

He has pleaded not guilty to sexual intercourse without consent.

The Project host was one of 58 witnesses named on a list provided by the ACT Supreme Court, along with News Corp journalist Samantha Maiden.

However, an updated list provided by the court on Thursday showed Ms Wilkinson and Ms Maiden had both been removed - along with more than a dozen others.

Lisa Wilkinson (right) will not appear as a witness in Brittany Higgins' (left) rape trial against her former colleague

Brittany Higgins (pictured outside ACT Supreme Court) alleges Bruce Lehrmann raped her in parliament

The list still includes former defence minister Linda Reynolds - whose parliamentary office Ms Higgins alleges she was raped in.

Prosecutors told the court Ms Reynolds would be called to give evidence on Tuesday.

The trial had originally been set with a four to six-week timeline, however, Chief Justice Lucy McCallum told the jury on Thursday that things are running ahead of schedule.

'We're on track to finish on Tuesday,' she told the court.

The prosecution are expected to deliver their closing arguments next week.

Ms Higgins has so far been absent for four days - half the criminal trial - but she will return on Friday to face continued cross-examination by Lehrmann's defence lawyer Steven Whybrow.

The trial has continued in Ms Higgins' absence with the Crown calling other witnesses.

The court has prevented publication of any evidence from other witnesses until after Ms Higgins has completed her evidence.

Former defence minister Linda Reynolds (pictured) will be called to give her evidence on Tuesday next week

Last week, defence lawyer Steven Whybrown asked about the $325,000 book deal she landed - with the assistance of Lisa Wilkinson's husband, Peter FitzSimons.

The court heard FitzSimons suggested she write a biography about her experiences - to which Ms Higgins told them she had already started drafting chapters, before she made an official statement to police.

Ms Higgins told the court she met Ms Wilkinson and her husband Mr FitzSimons at an event in early 2021, at which time he told her: 'You need to write a book'.

'[Mr FitzSimons said he] would act as my agent, and I said 'sure' and within a day he came back with offers,' she told the court.

Mr Whybrow put to Ms Higgins that she asked Mr FitzSimons about a potential book, to which the alleged victim replied: 'I really didn't ask - he approached me.'

'He said, 'I know people, I'm going to ask them for you'.'

Ms Higgins alleges Bruce Lehrmann (pictured outside court) sexually assaulted her in Parliament House

Mr Whybrow then put to Ms Higgins that she was offered $325,000 on March 16, 2021, to write a book outlining her experiences.

He then cited a text Ms Higgins sent to Ms Wilkinson and FitzSimons that said: 'I am blown away.

'Yes I can absolutely do this ... I've had the chapters outlined for the last month or so.'

Last Thursday, defence lawyer Steven Whybrow asked the 27-year-old about her TV interview with Ms Wilkinson and News Corp journalist Samantha Maiden in February 2021.

She claimed she did not intent to hurt the Liberal Party prior to an impending election, she simply wanted to talk about a 'cultural problem' within Parliament.

Mr Whybrow put to her that situation between the two journalists became 'awkward' because they both wanted to publish the story first.

Ms Higgins told the court: 'They both had sort of exclusive rights' to her story.

'They were fighting over when it would be released and who did what and who got the exclusive drop so that come Walkley's time, who could claim what and so it became not even about me or my story.'

Ms Maiden won the Gold Walkley in 2021 - Australian journalisms highest honour, while Ms Wilkinson was awarded a Logie this year.

Brittany Higgins is pictured arriving at ACT Supreme Court, dressed in black, last Thursday

She also did not think police would prosecute her argument or that the matter would end up in court.

'I thought I'd do one print and one TV and then I'd go back to uni and disappear,' she added.

Following Ms Maiden's article and the TV interview with Ms Wilkinson, which both dropped on February 15, Ms Higgins said she became inundated with media requests.

Earlier, Ms Higgins told the court that she put the dress she was wearing that night in a plastic bag under her bed for six months, 'untouched and uncleaned'.

She told the jury that, once it was clear she couldn't report the alleged assault without losing her job with Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, she 'very symbolically washed the dress'.

'I wore it once more but I never wore it again after that,' she said.

But during cross-examination from Lehrmann's barrister Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins was shown a photograph of her wearing the same dress in May 2019 at Ms Reynolds's birthday party in Perth.

Under cross examination from Lehrmann's lawyer Steven Whybrow, Ms Higgins denied lying - but admitted she had made a mistake in her timeline of events.

The trial continues.
***Were YOU on the Jet2 flight? Tell us what happened by emailing jack.wright@mailonline.co.uk or calling 020 3615 4021***

Jet2 holiday plane was intercepted and escorted by two RAF jets last night

Terrified Jet2 passengers have described scenes of chaos and panic as armed police reportedly searched the plane for a bomb after the airliner was intercepted by RAF fighter jets and forced to make an emergency landing amid a security scare last night.

The flight from Dalaman in Turkey to Manchester was diverted to London Stansted by two Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon jets following unconfirmed reports of a bomb threat.

Travellers claimed they were not told what was going on as the A321 aircraft, which is capable of carrying up to 220 passengers, landed and armed police swarmed around it.

Andrea Aspinwall claimed police had their guns pointed at the aircraft as it sat stationary for around two hours - and that passengers onboard 'started panicking' after they were told to 'sit calm'.

Were YOU on the intercepted Jet2 flight? Tell us what happened by emailing jack.wright@mailonline.co.uk or calling 020 3615 4021 Advertisement

She said: 'When we actually landed on this strip with nothing there, we were taken to a ''red point''. The air hostesses couldn't tell us what was going on. We were sat there and then we saw all these armed police driving up. We were terrified. We knew something was wrong then. Police had their guns pointing at the plane.

'Everyone started panicking, I started crying. I'm disabled so I don't take things good as it is.'

Miss Aspinwall added: 'The pilot came on and said: ''Don't worry we need to sit calm'' but no one could stand up and this was for a good two hours. We didn't know where we were. We saw it on the internet and people saw it on social media. Everyone was saying 'oh my god' as it said it was a bomb scare.

'It was scary, it really was. I don't get frightened very easily but I was scared. It was the scariest moment of my life.'

The holidaymaker claimed the pilot was eventually able to leave the cockpit and speak to passengers. He then apologised and said they were told they had to land as soon as possible, she added.

Once passengers were allowed off the plane, Miss Aspinwall said 'the chaos started' as passengers were unsure what would happen next.

'There was no one showing us where to go. We had to stay downstairs because I was in a wheelchair,' she said.

'They took us up and everyone was screaming and shouting, there were babies. It was awful and I was ignored by Jet2 staff. They didn't know what to do with us. They gave us a voucher to go and get some food, we were told nothing else. Then they said they would put on a coach to get to Manchester but I was starting to struggle.

'It was 4:30am in the morning when someone came up to me and we were put in a hotel.'

Flight tracking data showed the Jet2 flight had left Dalaman, Turkey at around 6.55pm local time, before flying over Europe and crossing the Channel at around 7.45pm. The aircraft, operating under flight number LS922/EXS46Y, then appeared to change course shortly before 8pm.

The grounded Jet2 plane forced to land at Stansted Airport last night

Emergency services at Stansted Airport after a Jet2 plane was intercepted by RAF jets

Footage shows the A321 aircraft flying over Braintree after it was forced to turn around mid-air and make an emergency landing at Stansted amid fears of a 'bomb threat' made against the plane. One of the planes is believed to be one of two Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon jets which took off from RAF Coningsby and intercepted the Jet2 airliner bound for Manchester

The Jet2 aircraft turned around in the air to the north of London before landing at Stansted

According to tracking app FlightRadar24, the plane then performed a U-turn and descended in altitude over Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire. It then continued to descend in the air above Essex, escorted by two RAF Typhoons, before landing at Stansted at around 8.22pm.

It then taxied to a remote stand away from the terminals amid reports of a bomb threat, where it was met by armed police.

Video showed multiple emergency service vehicles including fire engines, ambulances and police cars waiting outside the airport. According to AviationSource, sources within the airline said the flight was escorted to the ground after a 'bomb threat made to the aircraft'.

Flight tracking data shows the two military aircraft dovetailing with the plane as it made its descent into the airport.

A spokesperson for Essex Police told MailOnline that enquiries are ongoing.

A photo claiming to be from the scene shows the aircraft

The flight from Dalaman in Turkey had been due to land at Manchester Airport last night

A spokesperson for the force said last night: 'We led a safety operation during which a Jet2.com flight from Dalaman to Manchester was diverted to London Stansted Airport this evening, Wednesday 12 October.

'Shortly before 9pm, we received a report of a potential threat on board the flight. It was escorted to Stansted Airport, where it landed safely and was parked away from the main passenger terminal. The runway was closed for a short time while enquiries were carried out. Officers were then able to establish there was no threat on board. Onward travel was then organised for the passengers and the runway was re-opened.'

A spokesperson for Jet2 said: 'We can confirm that flight LS922 from Dalaman to Manchester diverted to London Stansted this evening under the direction of the UK authorities.

'The aircraft landed safely and taxied to a remote stand, and customers have now disembarked.

'Our teams are working very hard to look after customers, and we would like to apologise to everyone onboard for any inconvenience or upset caused by this unforeseen incident.

'We understand that the authorities were alerted to a potential security threat, however this has been downgraded and the incident has been declared as over.'

Earlier in the evening an RAF spokesman said it had scrambled jets to intercept a place 'that was causing concern.

He said: 'The RAF can confirm Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon aircraft were launched this evening from RAF Coningsby to intercept a civilian aircraft that was causing concern. The aircraft was safely escorted to Stansted Airport.'

Flight tracking data shows the two RAF jets dovetailing with the passenger aircraft as it made its descent into Stansted

Two RAF Typhoons (file image) were scrambled to intercept an aircraft that was 'causing concern', the RAF said

A spokesperson for Stansted Airport told MailOnline that airspace around the airport was closed for a 'short period of time' while the flight was escorted by military jets.

They added one incoming flight was diverted to allow this to happen and the runway was closed, but the airport has since fully reopened.

They said: 'A Jet2.com flight from Dalaman to Manchester diverted to Stansted Airport this evening.

'The plane landed safely and is parked on a remote stand away from the main passenger terminal.

'The runway was closed for a short time but has now re-opened.'

Were YOU on the Jet2 flight? Tell us what happened by emailing jack.wright@mailonline.co.uk or calling 020 3615 4021
October 12, 2022: Information Clearing House -- " Dissident Voice " Events continue to unfold at a quickening pace. Facing an alarming escalation in tensions around the world, we asked Cynthia McKinney for her current thoughts.

Cynthia McKinney is an American politician and assistant professor at North South University, Bangladesh. As a member of the Democratic Party, she served six terms in the United States House of Representatives, as the first African American woman ever elected to represent Georgia. She was also the first Member of Congress to demand an investigation of the events of 9/11 and the first to file articles of impeachment against George W. Bush. She voted against every war-funding bill put before her. In 2008, Cynthia McKinney won the Green Party nomination and ran for U.S. President.

We focus on the realities of the international power struggle unfolding in real time, specifically addressing the role of the U.S. in the tensions and its capacity to reduce them. We are looking for paradigm-shift ideas for improving the prospects for peace. Her responses below are exactly as she provided.

Here is what Cynthia had to say.

John Rachel: We hear a lot of terms and acronyms bandied about. Deep State  MIC  FIRE sector  ruling elite  oligarchy  neocons. Who actually defines and sets Americas geopolitical priorities and determines our foreign policy? Not officially. Not constitutionally. But de facto .

Cynthia McKinney: As you have probably noticed, the signature of my e-mails has a quote from a U.K. television series: You get to the top and you realize its only the middle. Tom Dawkins, UK Prime Minister in the 2012 TV series, Secret State. I watched every minute of this TV series and when this was uttered by the actor portraying the U.K. Prime Minister, I knew this was what I would call faction. Because that is exactly the way I felt upon realizing that Members of Congress dont call the shots; they are mere actors [with a whole lot of squandered power that could be used to actually HELP peopleincluding their constituents and those harmed by U.S. foreign and military policies] who trick their constituents.

They are also cowards, because they could say no to these people, but they dont dare. They are also narcissists because they think theyre smarter than their constituents and in many cases, also the donors, too. I saw some of them playing games with the so-called report cards from lobbyists, scoring 50% on them all and then collecting money from both sides on every issue!! Some committees are known as money committees and those are highly sought afternot for their jurisdiction, but for their rewards in campaign contributions!

Thus, from the very beginning, the purpose and process of U.S. policy-making has been corrupted. I had one famous Congresswoman tell me, Cynthia, you just have to accept that when the [Democratic Party] Leadership tell us to do something, were going to do it! So, these narcissists who trade your hopes and dreams for favors from the rich and powerful accustomed to getting their way all the time, arent even leaders, either! Theyre followers at best, cowards. Because, in the end, they dont want to end up like meout of the position that allows them adoration from the public and favored by the rich and powerful.

If that means shaving around the edges of your morals, values, and principles, so be it. The primordial objective, once youre there, is to stay there until you die. Your life becomes one long LSD trip. [Mind you, Ive never been on an LSD trip, but I understand that people find it enjoyable, exceptionally revealing, and way more interesting than the, by-comparison, mundane world.] I had people calling me, visiting me, offering me fame and longevity in Congress. All I had to do was become theirs. One rabbi told me that he would broker me to the Jewish community if I were to agree to come under my stable.

By now, everyone who knows me knows about the oath to Israel that I was basically forced to signI refused. The others who manage to stay in U.S. elected offices have signed a loyalty oath in one form or another to a foreign country. I dont know of anything more heinousother than that those who demand fealty to another country operate in our country with impunity. They have been caught by FBI translators trading U.S. national security secrets to other countries with impunity. Instead, the FBI translator who heard these conversations was, herself, punished and silenced! Not the traitors!

One clear reading of the COINTELPRO papers and the Frank Church Committee Reports makes it clear that evil [I know of no other way to describe them] people are giving the orders and another set of evil operatives who wield official power are implementing those orders. The political institutions of the U.S. are spent. They and the people who occupy them need to be razed and we should start all over againwith only the Bill of Rights as our guide. I am not afraid to envision another political system for the U.S. I think global kakistocracy and psychopathocracy are the clear results of indirect democracywhat a Republic is. And if a Republic is INdirect democracy, I believe its time for us to try DIRECT democracy.

JR: Weve had decades of international tensions. Recent developments have seen a sharp escalation in the potential for a major war. The U.S. apparently cannot be at peace. Threats against the homeland are allegedly increasing in number and severity. The trajectory of our relations with the rest of the world appears to be more confrontations, more enemies, more crises, more wars.

Is the world really that full of aggressors, bad actors, ruthless opponents? Or is there something in our own policies and attitudes toward other countries which put us at odds with them, thus making war inevitable and peace impossible?

CM: Correction. Weve had decades of Western aggression against the non-Western world. Parts of Europe are also decidedly NOT Western. Therefore, to include all of Europe in the sins and transgressions and aggressions of The West is incorrect. We are seeing that idea now being concretized in international relations.

In fact, I traveled to Russia a few years ago at the invitation to some of the young people there. I met with a wide swath of the Moscow organized and politically active youth and I had only one question for them as they had many for me. My one question was, How do you view yourself; are you Western European or are you Russian? Understanding the centuries-old desire of Russian leaders to emulate the Paris or Vienna of their day, I wanted to understand the identity of the young adults I was meeting. To a person, they told me that they are Russians; they have no desire to be like The West. This represents a paradigm shift from historic Russia.

Because of the political system currently favored by the global Deep State, the people really are not the ones who are controlling policy outcomes. We the People of the U.S. are allowing the bad guys to rule with impunity. We the People of the U.S. need regime change in the image of the Bill of Rights; Putins most recent speech tagged Anglo-Saxons. Yes, Anglo Saxons have, indeed, committed their fair share of atrocities on the planet and the people of this world.

However, a small but well-connected cabal of Zionists is responsible for orchestrating and organizing and justifying the worlds wars since September 11, 2001. Ive started a list of perpetrators. Its larger than one would imagine. Because those who say Yes outnumber those who stand up to them and say, No. The impunity of these bad actors needs to be ended.

The next phase of our activities should involve building the alternative societies that we envision; correcting all of the lies that have been told to us, like, for example, the 100% anthropogenic explanation for global warming climate change. But, that is not enough. We must also deny official state power to those who now wield it. Full stop. Period. Everyone there now needs to go and the institutions need to be razed to make way for a new form of governance.

That cannot happen with those committed to the corrupted institutions of today, nor can it happen as long as those who have no other vision for governance are able to wield state power over us. A group recently came out with a revolutionary recommendation to eliminate single-member districts for Congress. It turns out that their idea really wasnt so revolutionary after all because I introduced the Voters Choice Act almost 30 years ago that contained that same provision!

JR: Weve had decades of international tensions. Recent developments have seen a sharp escalation in the potential for a major war. The U.S. apparently cannot be at peace. Threats against the homeland are allegedly increasing in number and severity. The trajectory of our relations with the rest of the world appears to be more confrontations, more enemies, more crises, more wars.

CM: The money is being stolen and even enough is never enough when free money is being helicoptered to one privileged groupand stolen from the unlucky other ones. Whats amazing is that the unlucky other ones demurely allow this to happen almost without even a shrug of their shoulders.

JR: Its evident that you, and the many individuals who follow you and support your work, believe that Americas direction in both the diplomatic sphere and in the current conflict zones represents exercise of government power gone awry. Can you paint for us in broad strokes the specific changes in our national priorities and policies you view as necessary for the U.S. to peacefully coexist with other nations, at the same time keeping us safe from malicious attacks on our security and rightful place in the world community?

CM: Putin spoke of the Anglo Saxons. Thats poignant and purposeful. There are people who realize that the U.S. has veered off track. But, they think they can take our country back without forming a coalition with other newer and older Americans. As long as the rallies of todays patriots look like Ku Klux Klan meetings, these rally-ers will lose. Maybe the idea of forming a coalition that is truly inclusive with people from different races and differing religions, and even with no religionis the central Anglo-Saxon problem. For, people who share skin colors dont necessarily share visions, objectives, purposes. But, these rallies give the impression that they do.

The U.S. is in this predicament precisely because the Anglo-Saxons in charge at one time found false friendship with people of the same skin color, but whose values and vision were frighteningly different; yet, at the same time, these same Anglo-Saxons in charge of the U.S. state viewed the Black and Brown people in their midst as alien and foreign and undesirable. After speaking at one of the earlier unacceptable, take our country back peace rallies, I chanced upon a reporter who was covering the anti-Iraq War rally. I asked him how did you lose your country without a shot being fired? His response was honest and revealing: They [meaning their enemy] were White like us.

JR: The general public, especially when its aware of the self-sabotaging results of our current foreign policies and military posturing, clearly wants less war and militarism, preferring more peaceful alternatives on the world stage and greater concentration on solving the problems at home. As peace activists, we are thus more in line with the majority of citizens on issues of war and peace, than those currently in power.

What happens if we determine that those shaping current U.S. policy dont care what the citizenry thinks, are simply not listening to us? What if we conclude that our Congress, for example, is completely deaf to the voice of the people? What do we do? What are our options then? What are the next concrete steps for political activists working toward a peaceful future?

CM: We invite Louis Farrakhan to have another Million Man March in Washington, D.C. And then, we invite the public to occupy the White House, Capitol, Supreme Court, and Federal Buildings. Because, when Farrakhan came to Washington, there was a voluntary evacuation of Washington, D.C. like nothing Ive ever seen before. Then, we occupy and we dont leave.

*****

Authors Note:

We are grateful to Cynthia McKinney for sharing her valuable and thought-provoking views. The interview was arranged by John Rachel, Director of the Peace Dividend Project. The Peace Dividend strategy is not a meme or a bumper sticker. It is an end-to-end methodology for challenging the political establishment and removing from power those compromised individuals who work against the interests of the great majority of U.S. citizens. The only hope for our hyper-militarized nation is each and every one of us having a decisive voice in determining the future we want for ourselves and our children.
This is the moment a brazen migrant's suspected attempt to sneak into Britain backfired as he realised the lorry he'd hid in was actually heading to Germany.

HGV driver Pete White says the migrant, who managed to smuggle himself into his vehicle, was forced to jump out and hike 40 miles back to Calais.

'He looked angry at me for what I'd done to him, which I thought was quite ironic. I was just getting on with my job,' he said.

Pete was driving to Munich to pick up cargo last Thursday when he heard banging on the side of his cab.

The 42-year-old says he was shocked to realise it was a migrant who he believes was trying to reach the UK - but soon realised he was heading towards mainland Europe instead.

Footage shot through a wing mirror shows the disoriented man slapping the side of the lorry as it hurtles down a motorway.

A second clip shows Pete bluntly shouting 'You need to jump, or I speed up' before the man leaps from his van onto a grass verge on the A26 near Aire de Rely, France.

This is the moment a brazen migrant's suspected attempt to sneak into Britain backfired as he realised the lorry he'd hid in was actually heading to Germany

'I didn't want to stop so I just slowed down. He wanted me to stop but I just told him to jump,' the lorry driver said

Pete White, a freelance HGV driver, spotted a migrant in his vehicle as he drove down a French motorway

Dad-of-three Pete says he has no sympathy for the man who he believes to be an 'economic migrant' rather than a refugee and who left him with 200 worth of damage to his vehicle.

Pete had tried to top up his fuel at a service station in Calais after taking a ferry from Dover and that's where he believes the man cut through the side of his van to climb in.

Pete, from Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, said: 'It all backfired and that made me smile afterwards.'

'I knew the guy needed to get off because that's the best thing for everyone,' he continued.

'Some drivers would have got out and had a fight but I've got a family at home.

'I didn't want to stop so I just slowed down. He wanted me to stop but I just told him to jump.

Pete told the man 'You need to jump, or I speed up' before the man leapt from his van onto a grass verge on the A26 near Aire de Rely, France

The damage to Pete's white van who says he had to spend 200 to fix it after returning to the UK

'Once he got off, I realised I'd been driving for about 50 minutes and that's a good 60km away from Calais.

'I thought he'd been hiding behind the truck and then I remembered I had a curtain-side trailer on and there's a possibility he cut himself out of the roof.

'Then I just got angry because I knew I'd have to ring the person I was working for and tell him that his equipment had been damaged.

'It was a huge shock. I've spent 20 years educating drivers how to avoid those situations but someone who is as switched on and experienced as I am, they still managed to get past me.'

Pete is astounded at how the man apparently managed to cut himself out of the trailer, climb onto the roof and get to the side of the van at 55 miles per hour on a French motorway.

He says he continued to drive slowly in case there were any other migrants left in the vehicle and stopped shortly after to check for damage.

The stunned driver believes the man must have climbed in during a 30-second window between him checking the van and pulling away from the service station, which had run out of fuel.

He insists he's filled up there hundreds of times before but hasn't had a problem despite regularly seeing migrants try to hitch a ride inside UK lorries.

Pete said: 'Refugee families need to be helped and welcomed, but economic migrants who are young men should not be making their way to the UK the way they are.

'I have seen and spent thousands of pounds on repairs. We've had insurance claims of up to 100,000 for damage to goods and trailers. I have zero empathy for these guys.

'If it was a woman and a child in there I would have reacted differently and been sympathetic, but young men who cause damage when the industry is hard enough as it is, I have no sympathy.

'There was a French police van, but there were at least six of them in a minibus scrolling on their phones. They don't care anymore. They're just as fed up as lorry drivers are.'

Freelance driver Pete says he spent around 200 fixing the lorry after returning it to the UK.
A British OnlyFans creator has claimed that she was left fearing for her life after she was beaten and held hostage by her ex-boyfriend.

Lana Wolf, from Glasgow, Scotland, had been dating her partner for a month after meeting him in Spain, where he lives.

However, on her most recent visit to see him, Wolf was held 'captive', 'strangled' and 'battered' by her partner, left thinking he was going to kill her, she says.

The adult model admits that she had ignored 'every red flag under the sun', including him telling her that he loved her after only three days into their relationship, and him threatening to lock her in a cupboard on her second visit to see him.

Lana Wolf (pictured), a British OnlyFans creator, has claimed that she was left fearing for her life after she was beaten and held hostage by her ex-boyfriend

Pictures of Wolf now show her arms and neck covered in bruises

Despite this, Wolf accepted his apology and decided to return to Spain last week - expecting things to be 'perfect like they were in the beginning', she told The Sun.

When she arrived abroad however, she was banned from leaving her hotel room, as well as being 'punched, strangled, bitten and beaten', she claims.

Pictures of Wolf now show her arms and neck covered in bruises.

The OnlyFans creator has now got a restraining order against her ex-boyfriend after he pled guilty to domestic violence.

Wolf said that the violence began after she tried to leave their hotel room to visit a bar.

In response, her ex-boyfriend took out a knife and started to make 'terrifying' threats, she says.

The adult model, from Scotland, had been dating her partner for a month after meeting him in Spain, where he lives

Wolf admits that she had ignored 'every red flag under the sun', including him telling her that he loved her after only three days into their relationship, and him threatening to lock her in a cupboard on her second visit to see him

Eventually, she managed to escape while he was half-asleep.

'I thought he was going to kill me', she said.

When Wolf's partner noticed she had gone missing, he reportedly chased her onto the street and hit her in front of other tourists who then phoned the police.

Wolf then returned to their hotel room, where he assaulted her again, she says.

She said: 'He locked me in the apartment and I wanted to go out and he got a knife out of the kitchen and said he'd stab the people at the bar and was waving the knife at me.

'I tried to pack stuff and he emptied it all out.'

Wolf said she then went to put her jacket on but he 'yanked it off' and started 'strangling. punching, kicking and throwing' her across the room.

'The next day when he was half asleep I ran out the room and he ran after me.

Wolf said that the violence began after she tried to leave their hotel room to visit a bar. In response, her ex-boyfriend took out a knife and started to make 'terrifying' threats, she says

Eventually, she managed to escape while he was half-asleep. 'I thought he was going to kill me', she said

'There was an altercation on the street and tourists phoned the police.

'He ran after me and he was like "Lana, you need to help me out, I'm going to get sent to jail."

'The police helped me get my phone and passport back from him and took me to my room but he still had one of my phones.

'He said he was sorry, that we only had a few days left and that he loved me.

'Then he came to my new hotel and he did it again, strangling me really hard, leaving bruises around my neck.

'His finger was in my eye and I thought I'd lose my eye.'

She adds: 'When he got the knife out. I thought if he snapped he could just stab me.

'He's just a crazy guy.

When Wolf's partner noticed she had gone missing, he reportedly chased her onto the street and hit her in front of other tourists who then phoned the police. Wolf then returned to their hotel room, where he assaulted her again, she says

'He was telling me he loved me after three days, love bombing me.

'Every red flag under the sun I ignored.

'He tried to tell me what to wear, he didn't want me to do porn anymore.

'He would constantly put me down and say that I'm lucky to have a guy that accepts me.

Wolf spoke of her fears at the time of being held 'captive', saying that 'nobody knew' where she was at the time as she had told family she was in London.

'The scariest bit was knowing I was trapped in a room with someone battering me and if I died nobody would have known where I was', she said.
New EU border fingerprint checks could wreak havoc on British families trying to get away for next year's summer holidays, the Port of Dover has warned.

The new system of biometric checks could cause 'significant and continued disruption for a very long time' at the port, its chief executive Doug Bannister said.

The dire warnings come after a summer of travel mayhem due to a shortage of French border workers, with some failing to even turn up to work.

New EU border fingerprint checks could wreak havoc on British families trying to get away for next year's summer holidays, the Port of Dover has warned. Pictured: cars queue at the port in July

Britons travelling to the bloc will now have to apply for a three-year travel authorisation document under the Entry-Exit System (EES).

But each time they try to cross into the continent, travellers will have to show a facial image and provide four fingerprints.

Personal data including first name, surname, date of birth, nationality, sex, travel document and the three-letter country code must all be required, with only children under 12 exempt.

The new rules apply for ports, airports and other border checkpoints for travellers entering from outside the EU, but Dover and the Eurostar are likely to see the biggest queues.

Dover chiefs say passengers without an EU passport could take as long as 10 minutes per vehicle to check, compared to the current 90-second average it takes to wave cars through.

Each time they try to cross into the continent, travellers will have to show a facial image and provide four fingerprints (file image)

Logistics UK warned the new system could lead to 19-mile tailbacks in Kent and scenes of gridlock far worse than those experienced this year.

The new system is effective from May after it was delayed for a year.

Mr Bannister told MPs on the transport select committee yesterday that no tests or trials have been carried out for the new rules.

He said: 'It's going to have a higher impact on families wishing to go abroad next summer.

'We've heard that there could be some technology that is sort of an iPad with handholds to register the fingerprints. But we haven't trialled it. How do you pass that around a car? What happens if you've got a child asleep in the backseat?

The dire warnings come after a summer of travel mayhem due to a shortage of French border workers, with some failing to even turn up to work

'What if it's a dark stormy night and the lighting is inappropriate? We haven't tested all of that.'

He added: 'We need to see what the technology is going to be, we need a sufficient amount of time to trial, test and train to use that technology before implementation.'

Trials are set to begin this month in Calais and Mr Bannister has been invited to attend but the port has not been given any other details of the scheme.

Asked at the committee what passengers will have to do, he said: 'I know activity is ongoing but, as I sit in front of the panel today, we don't have that answer.'

The system is similar to the one used in the US where tourists must provide personal information that is checked against databased before granting approval.

Mr Bannister said: 'If [new checks] come in in the worst possible way we fear they will, it is going to have significant and continued disruption for a very long time.'

Committee chairman Huw Merriman said it was 'bizarre and unacceptable' that tests or trials have not taken place.
Coroner Katherine Lorenz said evidence shows baby may have been born alive

No charges have been laid over the death with the mother denying giving birth

The baby's body was found in a backyard in Clyde North, Melbourne in May 2021

A coroner is investigating how a newborn baby came to be found dead inside a Coles shopping bag in Melbourne's southeast.

The baby's body was found in the backyard of a home in Clyde North in May last year, the Coroners Court in Melbourne heard on Thursday.

Police have not laid charges over the incident and the infant's mother, who lived in a neighbouring home, has denied being pregnant or giving birth to the baby.

Forensic examinations found the infant was aged between 37 and 38 weeks' gestation at death, the court heard.

Coroner Katherine Lorenz said the evidence before her showed the baby may have been born alive.

The coroner investigating how a newborn baby came to be found dead inside a Coles shopping bag in Melbourne's southeast says evidence points to the baby being born alive

The mother took laxatives and other over-the-counter medication after she began experiencing abdominal pains in the days before May 28, 2021, counsel assisting the coroner said.

She spoke to a GP the following day, over the phone, but denied she was pregnant.

She told police she began experiencing increase abdominal pressure on May 30, and she went to the toilet where she passed blood.

Her partner gave her a Coles plastic shopping bag, where claimed she placed soiled clothing and slippers and then took a bath. She said she washed some of the clothing in the shower and left the slippers inside the bag.

Police have not laid charges over the incident and the infant's mother, who lived in a neighbouring home, has denied being pregnant or giving birth to the baby

She reported feeling weak and lying down after her bath, before she cleaned the toilet area and disposed of the Coles bag in a garbage bin. She couldn't recall how she disposed of the bag or which bin she placed it in.

The woman's housemate came home and urged her to go to hospital. Upon arrival at the emergency department, she was found to be fully dilated and appeared to have delivered a baby.

Medical staff said she was surprised and denied any knowledge of pregnancy symptoms, or having given birth to a baby. Police searched her Clyde North property later that evening, but no baby was found.

Her neighbours found a Coles shopping bag in their backyard with a dead baby inside, about 11.30am on May 31.

An inquest into the matter has been listed to begin on June 5, 2023.
One of America's best known advice columnists claims she was raped by Donald Trump inside a dressing room at Bergdorf Goodman in the mid-90s.

E Jean Carroll, now 75, whose advice column has appeared in Elle for the past 26 years, alleges she was sexually assaulted by Trump in her new book What Do We Need Men For? A Modest Proposal.

She has shared the story and five others with New York in a piece that also details how Les Moonves allegedly fondled her in an elevator and hints at an incident of sexual misconduct involving her former boss Roger Ailes.

She appears on the magazine's cover in the very same coat dress that she claims she was wearing on that day in the Fall of 1995 or Spring of 1996 when a chance encounter with Trump allegedly turned into a sexual assault.

In an interview with MSNBC Friday evening Carroll, who said she would not be looking to press charges against Trump, described the alleged incident as a 'fight'.

She said: 'It became a fight. And it hurt. And it was against my will.'

Trump allegedly shoved Carroll against a wall, unzipped his pants and forcibly penetrated her in an attack she claims lasted three minutes.

The White House responded to Carroll's allegations by stating: 'This is a completely false and unrealistic story surfacing 25 years after allegedly taking place and was created simply to make the President look bad.'

A heated Trump later expounded on this statement with his own remarks on Friday afternoon.

'I've never met this person in my life. She is trying to sell a new bookthat should indicate her motivation. It should be sold in the fiction section,' said Trump.

'Shame on those who make up false stories of assault to try to get publicity for themselves, or sell a book, or carry out a political agenda.'

He went on to note the lack of evidence, specifically that there were no eyewitnesses or video footage of the alleged assault.

He added: 'Ms. Carroll & New York Magazine: No pictures? No surveillance? No video? No reports? No sales attendants around?? I would like to thank Bergdorf Goodman for confirming they have no video footage of any such incident, because it never happened.'

Trump closed out with a request.

'If anyone has information that the Democratic Party is working with Ms. Carroll or New York Magazine, please notify us as soon as possible,' he said.

'The world should know what's really going on. It is a disgrace and people should pay dearly for such false accusations.'

The New York Magazine excerpt included a photo showing Trump and Carroll together.

Scroll down for video

Denial: The White House called Carroll's allegations 'a completely false and unrealistic story' meant to make Trump look bad

In the MSNBC interview Friday evening Carroll said she would 'find it disrespectful' to women on the border to press charges against Trump.

She said: 'I would find it disrespectful to the women down on the border who are being raped around the clock down there without any protection. They're young women.

'The women have very little protection there and it would just be disrespectful.

'Mine was three minutes, I am a mature woman, I can handle it, I can keep going. My life has gone on, I am a happy woman.

'But for the women down there, and for the women actually around the world, in every culture this is going on, no matter high in society or low in society it just seems disrespectful, it just doesn't make sense to me.'

Trump would have been married to Marla Maples at this time, and Carroll is now the 16th woman to accuse the president of sexual misconduct.

He had also recently welcomed a fourth child in 1993, daughter Tiffany.

Carroll claims she was on her way out of the store when Trump asked her for help with a gift and guided her towards the lingerie department.

She also notes that he looked handsome on the day in question, writing: 'I am surprised at how good-looking he is. We've met once before, and perhaps it is the dusky light but he looks prettier than ever.'

Carroll was doing a daily talk show called Ask E Jean at the time for Ailes' America's Talking cable network, which is how she drew Trump's attention.

'Hey, you're that advice lady!' said Trump according to Carroll.

That was allegedly followed by a request from the real estate developer, whose Trump Tower is located just one block south of Bergdorf Goodman.

'Come advise me. I gotta buy a present,' said Trump according to Carroll, who tried to point out a few ideas in the store's main foyer.

When they were all dismissed by Trump, she asked the age of the woman he was shopping for, prompting him to ask her the same question.

She was 52 at the time, two years older than Trump, and when she told him he allegedly started laughing and said: 'You're so old.'

He then said 'lingerie', according to Carroll, and the pair headed upstairs to that department.

Once there, Carroll claims she tried to diffuse repeated attempts to get her to model one of the wears by suggesting Trump try them on in a nearby dressing room.

It was when they went to one of those rooms that the alleged assault took place.

'The moment the dressing-room door is closed, he lunges at me, pushes me against the wall, hitting my head quite badly, and puts his mouth against my lips. I am so shocked I shove him back and start laughing again,' writes Carroll.

'He seizes both my arms and pushes me up against the wall a second time, and, as I become aware of how large he is, he holds me against the wall with his shoulder and jams his hand under my coat dress and pulls down my tights.'

She continues: 'I am astonished by what I'm about to write: I keep laughing. The next moment, still wearing correct business attire, shirt, tie, suit jacket, overcoat, he opens the overcoat, unzips his pants, and, forcing his fingers around my private area, thrusts his penis halfway  or completely, I'm not certain  inside me.'

Family: Trump would have been married to Marla Maples at this time, who had given birth to daughter Tiffany in 1993 (above)

Walk and talk: Carroll has been leading Hideous Men tours around the city, where she stops at Trump Tower (above outside the building with one group)

Carroll claims that she fought off Trump before she was able to flee from the dressing room and out of the store.

She did not report the alleged assault to police, but did tell two friends she said, and has kept the dress ever since.

The first, who is not named but is described as a 'a journalist, magazine writer, correspondent on the TV morning shows, author of many books,' said: 'He raped you. He raped you. Go to the police! I'll go with you. We'll go together.'

The second, a New York anchor woman, responded: 'Tell no one. Forget it! He has 200 lawyers. He'll bury you.'

New York spoke with those friends, and noted that 'both still remember the incident clearly and confirmed their accounts.'

Carroll also acknowledged the fact that it took her 25 years to share her story, listing some of the reasons she was hesitant to come forward.

'Receiving death threats, being driven from my home, being dismissed, being dragged through the mud, and joining the 15 women who've come forward with credible stories about how the man grabbed, badgered, belittled, mauled, molested, and assaulted them, only to see the man turn it around, deny, threaten, and attack them, never sounded like much fun,' explained Caroll.

'Also, I am a coward.'

She now joins a list of accusers that includes: Jessica Leeds, Kristin Anderson, Jill Harth, Cathy Heller, Temple Taggart McDowell, Karena Virginia, Melinda McGillivray, Rachel Crooks, Natasha Stoynoff, Jessica Drake, Ninni Laaksonen, Summer Zervos, Juliet Huddy, Alva Johnson, and Cassandra Searles.

Her decision to keep quiet is a bit of a surprise given that she has been leading Hideous Men tours around New York, where she stops at Trump Tower.

Other stops include the Fox News studios and Rockefeller Center.

It is Trump though who appears to loom largest for Carroll, as he was her 'last hideous man.'

'The Donna Karan coat dress still hangs on the back of my closet door, unworn and unlaundered since that evening,' reveals Carroll.

'And whether it's my age, the fact that I haven't met anyone fascinating enough over the past couple of decades to feel 'the sap rising,' as Tom Wolfe put it, or if it's the blot of the real-estate tycoon, I can't say. But I have never had sex with anybody ever again.'

LES MOONVES

Allegedly hideous: Soon after her alleged assault, Carroll claims she was molested by Moonves

Soon after her alleged assault by Trump, Carroll claims she was molested by Moonves.

It happened while interviewing him for a story claims Carroll, who recalls the moment he allegedly came at her in an elevator with 'his pants bursting with demands, goes at me like an octopus.'

Carroll, who towers over Moonves, says she was able to escape that encounter without being sexually assaulted by the pint-sized but persistent TV titan.

'I don't know how many apertures and openings you possess, Reader, but Moonves, with his arms squirming and poking and goosing and scooping and pricking and prodding and jabbing, is looking for fissures I don't even know I own, and  by God!  I am not certain that even if I pull off one of his arms it won't crawl after me and attack me in my hotel bed,' writes Carroll.

'Hell, I am thrilled I escape before he expels his ink.'

Moonves, who has also been accused of sexual misconduct by 13 other women, 'emphatically denies' the allegation made by Carroll.

It was around this same time that he was also accused of sexual misconduct by Illeana Douglas.

He was married at the time to his first wife Nancy, and had three young children.

She made no mention of the encounter with Moonves in the article, and as before with Trump, did not report his alleged conduct to police.

'I am a member of the Silent Generation,' explains Carroll. 'We do not flap our gums. We laugh it off and get on with life.'

CAM PARKS

At 12, Carroll was allegedly assaulted by her waterfront director at Girl Scout Camp, Cam Parks, after winning the beauty pageant.

'[Cam] takes me out in a boat and runs his hands under my shirt and up my shorts. He is breathing and moving his hand slowly and hotly, and I fight no battles in my head. My mind goes white. This is Cam,' writes Carroll.

'This is Cam, who continues to run his hand inside my shorts and under my blouse - even in the dining room during dinner, under the table, squeezing my thighs, shoving his fingers - saying, 'You're my girl. You're my girl. You're my girl,' and making me Girl Scoutpromise 'not to tell anyone.''

He would later author a book called The Girl Scout Man.

Carroll writes that she regrets not speaking up in this case as she was likely just one of his alleged victims.

At the time of his death, Cam had been 'suddenly dismissed' from his post, according to Carroll.

'I could have spoken up! Maybe not when I was 12. But when I was 25. He died when I was 34. I might have stopped him,' she writes.
A frustrated driver who was fined 130 after he pulled into a bus lane to let an ambulance pass has said he was charged 'for helping out' health workers.

James Sheridan-Vigor, a 27-year-old filmmaker living in London, had briefly pulled into a bus lane in Walthamstow to allow a blue-light ambulance to pass by.

He appealed the fine, but Waltham Forest Council initially refused to rescind it.

After sharing his misfortune online, furious Brits from all over the country have hit out claiming it is a 'disgrace' that someone could be fined for helping 'paramedics save lives'.

The irritated Ford driver is now calling on the law to change, to stop more people from being fined for trying to get out of the way of emergency vehicles.

James Sheridan-Vigor was fined by Waltham Forest Council for pulling his Ford (pictured) into the bus lane. The council initially rejected his appeal against the penalty but following a backlash decided to reverse the decision

The 27-year-old filmmaker from Walthamstow is now calling for the law to be changed to stop more people getting fined for getting out the way of emergency vehicles

Several cars attempted to get out of the way of the ambulance in Walthamstow, east London, by entering the bus lane

Mr Sheridan-Vigor said: 'Even after I appealed, they said they issued it correctly and that emergency vehicles have the right to use the bus lane so myself (and two other cars) 'would be more likely to obstruct their path than assist them' - which I totally understand.

'However, when a bus is sat at a stop and an ambulance can't magically drive through a bus it has to overtake on the right.

'So what I'm getting from this is they've either made a mistake looking at the evidence.

'Or we're not supposed to help out our emergency services and get out of their way.'

Following his appeal, he received a letter that read: 'Under current legislation a vehicle must not drive, park or stop in a bus lane during its period of operation unless the signs indicate that a vehicle may do so.

'I must advise that emergency vehicles may use the bus lane when responding to an emergency and therefore entering a bus lane when dealing with an emergency vehicle would be more likely to obstruct their path than assist them.

Mr Sheridan-Vigor said that he was fine by Waltham Forest Council 'for helping out'

The council's policy states that if an emergency vehicle is on call and showing flashing lights, a driver can pull into a bus lane and will not get fined (stock image)

'A motorist must not put themselves in contravention of the law when dealing with an emergency vehicle unless directed to by an on-duty police officer.'

What does the law say about going into bus lanes? Signs should show times when the bus lane is operational and when anyone can go in them. Taxis, motorcyclists and cyclists can use many bus lanes too if they are shown on the sign. Transport for London exempts emergency vehicles if obeying the bus lane rules would cause a delay. The council may issue you with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) if you drive in a bus lane when you are not permitted to do so. The Traffic Management Act 2004 gives guidance to councils outside of London on the Government website: 'For cases relating to contravention of bus lane restrictions, it is generally considered that compelling reasons would apply only where it could be shown that entry into a bus lane was unavoidable, for example to avoid or prevent an accident, in the case of a medical emergency, or where the restriction was not adequately signed.' The Highway Code advises drivers to take 'appropriate action' and 'comply with all traffic signs' in the presence of an emergency vehicle. It adds that 'unless otherwise indicated, you should not drive in a bus lane during its period of operation'. The RAC says there are 'some circumstances' when a driver may need to cross into a bus lane, such as moving out of the way of an emergency vehicle, and should only do so when they have no other choice but to move over. Advertisement

He told MailOnline: 'When I first saw that I was fined I thought it was because I had gone into the bus lane and I wondered why I would do that because none of the photos they sent me showed the ambulance, so I was wondering why I would do that and was about to pay the fine.

'I looked back at the footage and there was an ambulance that clipped into the back of the video.

'I almost paid it and was pretty annoyed that I was getting fined for trying to help out another member of the public.

'I then went to appeal it and it got rejected which made me annoyed.'

After appealing the penalty for a second time and reaching out to his local paper, the council eventually crumbled under pressure and cancelled the fine telling the reporter it had made a mistake.

Now Mr Sheridan-Vigor is calling for the law to change to stop others, particularly those who cannot afford it, being handed a fine to help emergency workers.

He said: 'I think maybe the law should be changed. Loads of people from Walthamstow are saying are we going to have to stop letting ambulances pass because people cannot afford these fines.

'I was lucky and I was let off but others haven't been.

'People might stop pulling in for ambulances and ambulances won't be able to pull pass because of oncoming traffic.

'It goes the same for police cars trying to stop criminals.

'Loads of people from Walthamstow are saying are we going to have to stop letting ambulances pass because people cannot afford these fines.'

Other Londoners slammed the fine as a 'disgrace', with many saying that motorists should be able to make way for emergency services in a hurry without fear of a fine.

Furious Brits have come out in defence of the driver, claiming no one should be fined for helping 'paramedics save lives'.

One said: 'Its absolute madness, an ambulance needs to get to an emergency call so pulling over for a minute to let them through is essential.

'I hope these people that issue the fines don't need an emergency ambulance for one of their loved ones. Could be a matter of life or death.'

The fine caused a backlash on social media, with furious Brits calling the penalty 'absolute madness'

Another added: 'Stupid laws we pull over cause we see an ambulance or police car now we are being prosecuted for the stupid rules.'

On the council's website, its policy states that if an emergency vehicle is on a call, such as showing flashing lights and using its siren, and a driver pulls aside to make way, they will not get a ticket - even if it is in a bus lane.

But if the ambulance is not on call, then drivers can get a ticket if they pull into a bus lane to allow it to pass.

The 27-year-old Ford driver claimed that he never received an apology from Waltham Forest Council.

He added: 'They admitted a mistake, and apologised to the reporter - but not to me. It was alright that I didn't have an apology, it is not just about me but all the other people who were fined because they didn't realise they were in the wrong.

'When I posted it on my local Facebook group it got a lot of reaction and at least three people in the group had the same issue. I can imagine there are loads more people that have been fined.

'The huge reaction the fine has got just highlights the fact the law needs to be changed. People need to be able to enter bus lanes to help public health.'

Another person said: 'That's a disgrace. The bus lane is there for traffic flow, not to make money from decent members of the public. It's perfectly clear you're not using it to overtake traffic.'

One added: 'Afraid the law is that you are not allowed in bus lanes, stop in yellow box or cross red lights even for emergency vehicles - stupid law as you may have even help save someone's life.'

A spokesperson for Waltham Forest Council said: 'We have investigated this incident and this fine was issued in error. It has now been cancelled. We apologise for the mistake.'
Migrants are paying people smugglers up to 2,800 per person to reach the UK amid a shortage of boats, according to new reports today.

Even so, the issues do not seem to be holding back the tide of crossings, with another 800 migrants making the perilous journey across the English Channel yesterday.

The latest arrivals bring the total so far this year to 36,463 people in 899 boats - an average of 41 people per vessel.

It also means more than 75,000 migrants have arrived in Britain after crossing the Channel since current records began four years ago.

Another 800 migrants making the perilous journey across the English Channel yesterday (pictured is a smuggler's boat near Gravelines in northern France)

Despite the record high number of crossings, human trafficking gangs in France claim they are facing a growing shortage of inflatable vessels to make the crossings, a BBC investigation revealed.

Posing as a migrant with a pregnant wife and two year-old daughter, an undercover reporter was told it would cost 2,800 per person to reach the UK. The people smuggler said: 'Otherwise I won't make any profit. I can't do less.'

Another trafficker warned that prices would soon be increasing on account of a lack of inflatable dinghies and other small craft.

He said: 'There are not enough boats. Some problem in Germany. We get them from Turkey and bring them via Germany. People smuggling more lucrative than drugs.'

More than 100 lone child migrants as young as 11 have vanished from UK hotels in just over a year More than 100 unaccompanied child migrants as young as 11 have gone missing after vanishing from British hotels over a 14-month period, new data reveals. The 116 children disappeared between July 2021 and August 22 after being temporarily housed in hotels by the Home Office. Charities fear some may have fallen victim to sexual abuse or could have been put to work illegally in cannabis farms or factories. The government began placing child migrants in hotels in July last year after local councils said they did not have enough capacity to house them in suitable accommodation. A total of 1,606 children who arrived between July 2021 and June 2022 were placed in hotels by the Home Office, according to official figures. Out of these 181 children went missing but 65 were later found, a Freedom of Information request by BBC Two's Newsnight revealed. The Home Office has insisted it had 'no alternative' but to use hotels while long-term accommodation was found. But the charity ECPAT UK said the number of missing children was 'shocking' and demanded ministers immediately call a halt to the policy. Advertisement

The BBC investigation also revealed that migrants in France have been using a free local bus service to get to beaches where people traffickers can help them reach the UK.

After using the public transport to get to Dunkirk, the asylum seekers were reportedly walked to sand dunes by members of smuggling gangs and told to hide until the boats were ready.

Despite the challenges faced by smugglers, 856 people made the perilous journey across the 21-mile Dover Straits yesterday. The first arrivals were escorted into Dover, Kent on board a Border Force vessel around 9am.

They clutched blankets around their shoulders as they queued for the bus to take them for processing - after facing temperatures of 15c and wind speeds of up to 18mph in the Channel.

Crossings continued throughout the day. This included at least two groups of asylum seekers who were brought ashore on the beach at Dungeness by an RNLI Lifeboat in the early afternoon.

Around 70 people - including women and children - landed on the pebble beach, where they were met by immigration officials. Among them was an elderly woman, who was seen being helped off the vessel.

The French coastguard also rescued 46 people who had got into difficulty in the Channel on Wednesday.

A coastal patrol boat was tasked with picking up 30 stranded people in Authie Bay, while a second maritime vessel intercepted 16 more people off the coast of Fort-Mahon.

The migrants were dropped off at the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where they were taken care of by the departmental fire and rescue service and the border police.

The latest arrivals bring the total for the year so far to 36,463 people in 899 boats - an average of 41 people per vessel. But one report today suggests smugglers are packing as many now as 53 into each boat.

The busiest day this month came on Sunday, when 1,065 migrants reached British soil.

This year's figures have already surpassed the total for 2021 which saw 28,526 people cross the Channel by small boat, and 2020 when just 8,410 asylum seekers arrived in the UK.

Some 75,628 people have made the journey since 2018, according to an analysis of government data.

Official Home Office figures show that between January 2018 and June 2022, 51,881 migrants were recorded as arriving in the UK. Since then 23,747 have been detected, according to provisional Ministry of Defence (MoD) data.

The crossings continue as the Government faces another legal challenge against its plan to send migrants to Rwanda.

Charity Asylum Aid's case is due to be heard by High Court judges on Thursday after similar challenges were made last month.

Deportation flights are on hold while the legal disputes are ongoing.

The court is expected to give its ruling on all the cases at the same time at a later date.

A migrant carries a child as he runs to board a smuggler's boat yesterday on the beach of Gravelines, near Dunkirk

The MoD said its data was taken from 'live operational systems' and was subject to change, 'including reduction'.

The Home Office said it would 'use every tool' at its disposal to deter illegal migration.

A spokesman said: 'We will go further and faster to tackle those gaming the system, using every tool at our disposal to deter illegal migration, disrupt the business model of people smugglers and relocate to Rwanda, those with no right to be in the UK.

'Despite the lies they have been sold by the people smugglers, migrants who travel through safe countries to illegally enter the UK will not be allowed to start a new life here.'
Russia has warned that Ukrainian membership of NATO will start World War 3

Russia has threatened World War Three if its foe Ukraine is granted membership into NATO, a Russian Security Council official was quoted as saying on Thursday.

'Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three,' TASS quoted Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, as saying.

Venediktov, who is deputy to Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, a powerful Putin ally, said he felt Ukraine's application was propaganda as the West understood the consequences of Ukrainian membership of NATO.

'Apparently, that's what they are counting on - to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again,' Venediktov said.

'The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves,' he added.

'We must remember: a nuclear conflict will affect absolutely the whole world, not only Russia and the collective West, but every country on this planet,' Venediktov said. 'The consequences would be disastrous for all mankind.'

The warning comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of NATO on September 30.

Just hours earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had formally proclaimed the annexation of up to 18 per cent of Ukraine.

However, Ukraine's membership bid was seen as largely symbolic, since full membership would require consent from all 30 NATO members, and ongoing territorial disputes are an obstacle for countries to join the alliance.

Russia has threatened World War Three if its foe Ukraine is granted membership into NATO. Pictured: Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), in Astana, Kazakhstan, today

NATO defence ministers meet in Brussels as they discuss military aid to Ukraine, ahead of a meeting to plan an upcoming nuclear exercise

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) and Turkish Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar chat at the start of the second day of a NATO Defense Ministers Council meeting

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to unleash his massive nuclear arsenal as he rails against the United States for driving NATO's eastward expansion.

However, the expansion is most often driven by Russia's neighbours, fearful of Russian domination and the repression and corruption that comes with it.

NATO's courting of ex-Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia, countries the Kremlin regards as part of its own sphere of influence, has inflamed the Kremlin and led them to declaring the countries' accession as red lines.

Putin on Sept. 21 warned the West he was not bluffing when he said he would be ready to use nuclear weapons to defend Russian territory after announcing his intentions to snatch Ukrainian sovereign land.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said the world faces the biggest risk of nuclear Armageddon since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. NATO is due to hold an annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed 'Steadfast Noon' next week.

Russia and the United States are by far the biggest nuclear powers, controlling about 90 per cent of the world's nuclear warheads.

The current situation is something akin to a powder keg, as NATO countries walk the line of refusing to allow Russia to veto any country's membership - 'no third country has a say in such deliberations', while at the same time avoiding a scenario that would lead to open war with the authoritarian state on its eastern flank.

'NATO's 'open door policy' is based on Article 10 of its founding treaty,' the military alliance writes on its website.

'Any decision to invite a country to join the Alliance is taken by the North Atlantic Council on the basis of consensus among all Allies. No third country has a say in such deliberations.'

Rescuers work at the site of an apartment building damaged by a Russian military strike in Mykolaiv October 13 as Russia continues to bombard Ukraine

Soldiers of UK contingents take part in the Bold Hussar military exercise, at the Central Training Area near Tapa army base in Estonia just miles from Russia, as the Kremlin threatens nuclear war

Two Polish MiG 29 fighter jets take part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the air base in Lask, central Poland, on October 12

On the other hand, the Kremlin is well aware that, thanks to the low-intensity conflict it stoked in the Donbas region since after 2014, Ukraine would not be able to meet the requirements to join the alliance.

Thus NATO's support for Ukraine and desire to see Russia defeated is more about defending this principle than it is about admitting Ukraine into the alliance.

Ukraine first established linked with the alliance back twenty years ago in 2002, with a NATOUkraine Action Plan. In April 2005, Ukraine entered into the Intensified Dialogue program with NATO.

In 2008 it submitted an official letter of application for a Membership Action Plan.

That same year, then-NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, declared in a press conference that Ukraine, together with Georgia, would someday join NATO, but neither would begin Membership Action Plans.

At the same summit, Putin, in his last international speech before switching jobs with Medvedev, listed his grievances with NATO, and called Ukrainian membership 'a direct threat' to his country.

Within Ukraine itself, the desire to join NATO swung back and forth depending on the government in power. It was the overthrow of the Yanukovych government which prompted Putin to step in and foment unrest in the country's east.

This chain of events led French President Emmanuel Macron to declare that NATO member France would not respond with a nuclear weapon even if Russia uses one against Ukraine.

Mr Macron said French nuclear doctrine only allows the weapons to be used in the case of a direct threat to the country or its 'fundamental interests'.

'They are defined clearly and wouldn't be directly affected at all if, for example, there was a ballistic nuclear attack in Ukraine [or] in the region', he told morning TV.

After a Trump administration that was ambivalent about its NATO obligations, members were relieved on Thursday to hear the United States reaffirm its commitment to defend 'every inch' of NATO territory.

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to unleash his massive nuclear arsenal as he rails against the United States for driving NATO's eastward expansion

A part of a rocket sits wedged in the ground on a street in the recaptured town of Lyman, Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has requested rockets to help defend cities after fresh Russian missile barrages last week

U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin was speaking ahead of talks among defence ministers from the alliance that will include closed-door discussions by its nuclear planning group.

'We are committed to defending every inch of NATO's territory - if and when it comes to that,' Austin said.

Austin spoke shortly before attending a meeting by NATO's Nuclear Planning Group, which is NATO's senior body on nuclear matters and handles policy issues associated with its nuclear forces.

NATO's website says its nuclear policy is under 'constant review, and is modified and adapted in light of new developments.'

President Vladimir Putin escalated his rhetoric and military activity in Ukraine after his military was beaten back on several fronts over the past month.

He has declared a mobilisation of troops, rained down missiles across Ukraine and proclaimed the annexation of Ukrainian territories - and threatened to defend them with nuclear weapons.

A senior NATO official said on Wednesday a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine would 'almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself,' without elaborating.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said last month the United States has made clear to Moscow the 'catastrophic consequences' it would face if it used a nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

Sullivan did not publicly describe the nature of the planned U.S. response, however.

Diplomats say Moscow is trying to scare the West into reducing its support for Kyiv by hinting at the use of a tactical nuclear weapon to defend the annexed territories of Ukraine.

The UK is going to send AMRAAM air-to-air intercept missiles (pictured) to Ukraine to help defend its cities as Russia threatens the use of a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine

Rescuers work at a site of a residential building heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, on Monday

Sites across Ukraine were hit by a wave of missiles on Monday, Ukraine said it counted 83 missiles. Here a rescue worker responds to a strike in Zaporizhzhia

Meanwhile, NATO said it would go ahead with its annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed 'Steadfast Noon' next week, in which NATO air forces practise the use of U.S. nuclear bombs based in Europe with training flights, without live weapons.

Cancelling the drills because of the war in Ukraine would send a 'very wrong signal,' NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

Nearly 50 countries gathered at NATO headquarters on Wednesday and committed to arming Ukraine through the winter and beyond, including with new air defences.

Austin said on Thursday that support was opened-ended.

'We're going to stay with our efforts to support Ukraine for as long as it takes,' Austin said alongside NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

Stoltenberg praised the U.N. General Assembly's condemnation on Wednesday of Russia's 'attempted illegal annexation' of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine.

'This just shows that we need to stand up for the rules-based international order, for our core values,' Stoltenberg said.

Thursday's agenda at NATO headquarters in Brussels includes discussions on how to give a clear signal to industry to ramp up arms production both for internal needs, as well as to support Ukraine's defence.

Allies will also discuss ways to improve protection of their critical infrastructure, after apparent attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines contributed to heightening tensions. It remains unclear who was behind the explosions under the Baltic Sea.

NATO told Moscow on Tuesday it would meet attacks on allies' critical infrastructure with a 'united and determined response.'

Stoltenberg has pledged to boost the protection of critical infrastructure in response to the Nord Stream attacks, saying the alliance had already doubled its presence in the Baltic and the North Seas to over 30 ships supported by aircraft and undersea activities.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russia's movements, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture.

NATO member Portugal's army specialists wear full protective gear as they check for radiation while practising several detection and decontamination procedures

NATO warships take part in military exercise in the Eastern Mediterranean sea, Turkiye on July 24, 2022

But additional uncertainty comes from the fact that Russia is also due to hold its own nuclear exercises soon, possibly at the same time as NATO or just after, according to NATO diplomats. That could complicate the 30-country military organisation's reading of the war and of Moscow's intentions.

'Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise,' U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters. But 'what we don't want is to do things out of routine.'

'This is a routine exercise and it's all about readiness,' Wallace said, just as 'NATO's meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance - to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.'

NATO's exercise is held around the same time every year and runs for about one week. It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but doesn't involve any live bombs. Conventional jets, and surveillance and refuelling aircraft also routinely take part.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in the exercise, which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 1,000 kilometres (625 miles) from Russia.

NATO as an organisation doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries - the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

F16 fighter jet takes part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the air base in Lask, central Poland on October 12

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signalled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains. The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric. He said he has spoken to Putin 'several times.'

'We have a (nuclear) doctrine which is clear,' Macron said. 'The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.'

'Too many people are talking about it,' he said.

Earlier this week, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg described Putin's remarks as 'dangerous and reckless,' and underlined that the allies 'have also conveyed clearly to Russia that it will have severe consequences if they use nuclear weapons in any way.'

Stoltenberg warned that it 'would be absolutely the wrong signal to send' if the world's biggest security organisation were to cancel the maneuvers.

'NATO's firm, predictable behaviour, our military strength, is the best way to prevent escalation,' he said. 'If we now created the grounds for any misunderstandings, miscalculations in Moscow about our willingness to protect and defend all allies, we would increase the risk of escalation.'
Four state schools are in the top 10 for Oxbridge offers - while the institution that is traditionally a favourite for the prestigious universities, public school Eton, trails behind them in ninth place.

Oxford and Cambridge Universities are increasingly snubbing the exclusive boys' college while top-performing state schools are experiencing strong success rates.

Four high-performing state schools came in at third, fourth, fifth and seventh place in the rankings.

Meanwhile, Eton College, one of the world's most expensive and prestigious schools which charges students 46,296-a-year to attend, has slipped down from third to ninth in the league table.

The schools with the highest success rates for applicants, revealed in analysis by The Telegraph of 2021 Oxbridge offers, are listed here.

1. Westminster School - Independent school

London private school, Westminster, which is frequently high up on the table, came out on top again with 79 Oxbridge offers received by students at the 32,247-a-year institution.

The almost 500-year-old school was established within the walls of Westminster Abbey and is all-boys up until sixth form.

London private school, Westminster, which frequently tops the table, came out on top again

2. Raffles Junior College - International school, fee-paying

Singapore International school, Raffles Junior College, went up two places in the rankings from last year, with a total of 77 offers.

Raffles was founded in 1823 and claims to be the oldest school in Singapore.

Singapore International school, Raffles Junior College, went up two places in the rankings from last year, with a total of 77 offers

3. Hills Road Sixth Form College - State school

Hills Road Sixth Form College was the highest-performing state school, coming in at number three with 69 Oxbridge offers and a 23 per cent success rate.

The college, located in Cambridge, is a selective state school which requires students get a minimum grade of 6 in each of their GCSEs if they wish to study a subject, or 4 in some circumstances.

It fell slightly in the rankings for 2020, when it came in at second with 75 offers.

Hills Road Sixth Form College was the highest-performing state school, coming in at number three

4. Peter Symonds College - State school

Among other top state schools and sixth forms was Peter Symonds College, which came in at fourth in the league - up from sixth place last year.

Located in Hampshire, students at the co-educational Peter Symonds College received an impressive 56 offers for Oxford and Cambridge, with a 26.9 per cent success rate.

The college is free for day pupils but, as the country's largest college to offer a boarding option, charges between 15,990 and 17,220 a year for 79 pupils.

It puts its success down to a 'brilliant mix of motivated students, dedicated staff and fantastic facilities'.

Peter Symonds College came in at fourth in the league - up from sixth place last year

5. Brampton Manor Academy - State school

In fifth place, Brampton Manor Academy is a selective sixth form in Newham, east London - one of the country's poorest boroughs.

Brampton is set to climb even further up the rankings next year after students received an outstanding 89 Oxbridge offers before taking their A Levels this year.

The school day at the academy starts at 8.15am, with sixth-formers encouraged to work in the study centre from 6am.

Since it opened a decade ago, Brampton has seen over 200 students head to Oxford and Cambridge - with the latest cohort taking that figure to nearer 300.

Brampton is set to climb even further up the rankings next year after students received an outstanding 89 Oxbridge offers before taking their A Levels this year

6. Hwa Chong Institution - International School, fee-paying

The Hwa Chong Institution, which was originally set up in 1919 for Singapore's Chinese community, went up one spot from last year with 53 offers and a 26.8 per cent rate.

It aims to produce 'scholars and world champions' who 'achieve their potential and live their aspirations'.

The Hwa Chong Institution, which was originally set up in 1919 for Singapore's Chinese community, went up one spot from last year

7. Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College - State school

At number seven, Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College (BHASVIC) received a total of 52 Oxbridge offers.

The school's principal, William Baldwin, said after students received offers last year last year: 'For a non-selective state funded sixth form college to be consistently getting over 50 offers a year for students to study at Oxford or Cambridge is truly remarkable.'

At number seven, Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College (BHASVIC) received a total of 52 Oxbridge offers

8. The Perse School - Independent school

A total of 48 offers were made to students at The Perse School in Cambridge, which rose up to number eight from thirteenth last year.

Fees at the upper school are 19,443-a-year and it takes boys and girls from age three to 18.

A total of 48 offers were made to students at The Perse School in Cambridge

9. Eton College - Independent school

Etonians received a total of 47 offers for Oxbridge in 2021, down from 68 in 2020, and with a success rate of 24.2 per cent of applications.

A total of twenty Prime Ministers attended the exclusive boarding school, including Boris Johnson and David Cameron before they went on to study at Oxford.

There has been a year-on-year decline in the number of offers received by students at the all-boys independent school, located in Windsor.

Etonians received a total of 47 offers for Oxbridge in 2021, down from 68 in 2020, and with a success rate of 24.2 per cent of applications

10. St Paul's Girls' School - Independent school

St Paul's Girls' School completed the top ten with 46 offers and a 46.9 per cent success rate for applicants.

The selective West London independent charges a yearly fee of 27,792-a-year and was The Sunday Times Independent Secondary School for 2022.
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Lucy Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest on suspicion of murdering seven babies including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS', a court heard today.

Police discovered yellow and green post-it notes in the ICU nurse's Chester house including one that said: 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. I am a horrible evil person'.

The words 'Hope, Panic and Fear' were among other words crowded on to a piece of paper, which also read: 'I will never have children or marry. Ill never know what its like to have a family'. Some of the other scribbled lines included the word 'HATE' in capitals, along with 'There are no words', 'I can't breathe' and 'Kill'.

Concluding the prosecution opening, which began on Monday, Nick Johnson KC showed a yellow Post-it note on TV screens to the jury, and said: 'She wrote, "I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough". "I am a horrible evil person" and in capital letters, "I AM EVIL I DID THIS".'

Mr Johnson said it was found after Letby was arrested in July 2018. Her house on Westbourne Road in Chester was searched, 'interesting items' were discovered, he said.

'But I want to show you one note in particular,' Mr Johnson told jurors. Highlighting the yellow Post-it note with the words written in ink by Letby. Referring to her words, including about being 'evil', Mr Johnson said to the jury: 'Well, ladies and gentlemen, that in a nutshell is your task in this case. Whether or not she did these dreadful things is the decision you will have to make when you have heard all the evidence.'

But opening the defence case this afternoon, Letby's barrister, Ben Myers KC, insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children, that she'd done her best to care for'.

The evidence emerged on the fourth day of 32-year-old Letby's trial, where she is accused of seven murders and the attempted murders of ten other babies at Countess of Chester Hospital by injecting them with air, milk, insulin or other liquids such as saline or water. She denies all 22 charges.

She photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive', the court also heard this morning. One doctor spoke to Letby before Baby P died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?', the murder trial was told.

The nurse also spent time comforting their heartbroken parents after she allegedly injected air into the tiny bodies of the siblings - known as Baby O and Baby P - to compromise their breathing. Baby P would be the last child she murdered, the court heard. Her final victim Baby Q survived an attack on June 25 2016, it is alleged. She was then taken off frontline duties before being arrested the following month, the court heard.

Children's nurse Lucy Letby (pictured left and right), 32, is alleged to have gone on a year-long killing spree while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Police found notes in her home including one that said: ''I AM EVIL I DID THIS'

Parents of Lucy Letby, Susan and John Letby, arrive at Manchester Crown Court

Full indictment against Lucy Letby Lucy Letby is charged as follows: Count 1 - Charged with murder of Baby A on June 8, 2015 Count 2 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby B between the June 8, 2015 and June 11, 2015 Count 3 - Charged with murder of Baby C on June 14, 2015 Count 4 - Charged with murder of Baby D on June 22, 2015 Count 5 - Charged with murder of Baby E on August 4, 2015 Count 6 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby F on August 5, 2015 Count 7 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 7, 2015 Count 8 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 9 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 10 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 26, 2015 Count 11 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 27, 2015 Count 12 - Charged with murder of Baby I on October 23, 2015 Count 13 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby J on November 27, 2015 Count 14 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby K on February 17, 2015 Count 15 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby L on April 9, 2016 Count 16 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby M on April 9, 2016 Count 17 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 3, 2016 Count 18 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 19 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 20 - Charged with murder of Baby O on June 23, 2016 Count 21 - Charged with murder of Baby P on June 24, 2016 Count 22 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby Q on June 25, 2016 Advertisement

Concluding the prosecution opening, which began on Monday, Mr Johnson said: 'I have already told you that the police found a large quantity of hospital paperwork relating to many of the children whose deaths and collapses you are now considering.

'They also found some other interesting items. There were some Post-it notes with closely-written words, some of which included the names of some of her colleagues.

'On some of the notes were phrases like as 'Why/how has this happened - what process has led to this current situation.

''What allegations have been made and by who? Do they have written evidence to support their comments?'

'In her writings, she expressed frustration at the fact that she was not being allowed back on to the neo-natal unit and wrote, 'I haven't done anything wrong and they have no evidence, so why have I had to hide away?'

'And notes also expressed concern for the long-term effects of what she feared was being alleged against her and there are also many protestations of innocence'.

Letby, 32, was today accused of taking a photograph of the dead babies in a cot when they died within 24 hours of each other in June 2016. The nurse allegedly tried to kill their sibling Baby N, who had a blood disorder, on three occasions in 12 days but failed.

In total, she is accused of murdering seven premature babies and attacking 10 more over a year by poisoning them with insulin, injecting air into their bloodstreams or over-feeding them milk.

Baby P suffered a sudden and 'acute deterioration' before preparations were put in place to move him to another hospital, the court heard today.

Just before the planned transfer, a doctor was said to be 'optimistic' about his prospects but then 'all of a sudden Lucy Letby said to him something like 'he's not leaving alive here, is he?'', said prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said today. Shortly after that exchange Baby P collapsed and died, Manchester Crown Court heard.

The KC said said: 'That remark surprised (the doctor) but Lucy Letby's prediction came true. After all, she knew what she had done to him and therefore she knew what was likely to happen. It is certainly what she intended because it was something she had done to so many other children.'

A coroner recorded the death as 'prematurity' but independent experts who were tasked with reviewing Child P's case said the most likely cause was air injected into his stomach which compromised his breathing.

After Child P's death, Letby spent time with his parents and took a picture. She denies murdering seven babies and the attempted murder of ten more.

As the fourth day of Letby's trial continues, the court has heard over the trial so far:

Letby, 32, denies murdering seven premature babies and attempting to murder 10 more over 12 months. The deaths occurred at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby was arrested three years after the death of her first alleged victim, Baby A;

ICU nurse is alleged to have injected babies with insulin, air or pumped with milk to kill them - often during night shifts when parents were less likely to be there;

Letby allegedly targeted twins on more than one occasion - and in some cases one was murdered and their sibling survived;

She is said to have searched for the families of her alleged victims' parents on Facebook and social media, including on Christmas Day;

In some cases, Letby is alleged to have tried to kill babies on up to four occasions, including two times in one shift;

Nurse was 'smiling' after one child's death and sent her parents a sympathy card, which was 'not normal';

On a separate occasion, a paediatric consultant claimed he walked in on Letby as she was trying to kill a child;

Doctors moved her off night shifts after being concerned about correlation between suspicious deaths and her presence;

Made notes about at least one of her attacks in a diary but denied this was a 'souvenir';

Used a baby's haemophilia as 'cover' to attack him, thinking that this would give her an excuse for his bleeding;

Letby (pictured) is accused of murdering seven premature babies - and trying to kill ten more - took up to three attempts to poison infants by injecting insulin, milk or even air into their tiny bodies, a court heard today

Pediatrician Dr Sandie Bohin and fellow expert witness Dr Dewi Evans arrive at Manchester Crown Court for Day 4 of Letby's trial

Lucy Letby 'tried to murder her final baby victim after injecting him with excess air and either water or saline' The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25 2016, the day after she allegedly killed Baby P. The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him. The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor. Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'. The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets. 'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role. 'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.' The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard. Following that review, the decision was made to arrest Lucy Letby on July 3 2018, said Mr Johnson. Advertisement

The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25 2016, the day after she allegedly killed baby P.

The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him.

The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor.

Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'.

The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets.

'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role.

'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.'

The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard.

Following that review, the decision was made to arrest Lucy Letby on July 3 2018, said Mr Johnson.

Yesterday it was claimed that 'cold-blooded' nurse Lucy Letby tried to kill a second set of twins and murdered two of three triplets as jurors also heard allegations TV doctor Dr Ravi Jayaram walked in on her as she was attacking a baby girl.

On Wednesday the 32-year-old was accused of attacking two sets of twins by injecting them with insulin and air. One child, Baby E, would die but his sibling survived. The Crown has already accused Letby of attempting to murder two other twins in similar circumstances eight months before.

At the time, Letby was supposed to only to be working day shifts because the consultants were concerned about the correlation between her presence and unexpected deaths on night shifts, the prosecution said.

The nurse murdered two out of three triplets - Children O and P - on successive days in June 2016, it is alleged, but the third, Child N, survived.

On one night in February 2016, Dr Jayaram, a paediatric consultant who has appeared on ITV's This Morning and the One Show on BBC, walked in as she was trying to kill a baby identified only as Child K, it is claimed.

Nick Johnson KC, prosecuting, told the jury: 'Feeling uncomfortable with this because he had started to notice the coincidence between the unexplained deaths, serious collapses and the presence of Lucy Letby, Dr Jayaram decided to check on where Lucy Letby was and how Child K was.

'As he walked into room one, he saw Letby standing over Child K's incubator. She did not have her hands inside the incubator, but Dr Jayaram could see from the monitor on the wall that Child K's oxygen saturation level was falling dangerously low, to somewhere in the 80s.

'But the alarm was not sounding as it should have been and Lucy Letby had not called for help, despite child K's oxygen levels falling. We allege she was trying to kill Child K when Dr Jayaram walked in.'

Letby denies seven charges of murder and ten charges of attempted murder between 2015 and 2016 at Countess of Chester Hospital. On one night in February 2016, Dr Jayaram (pictured), a paediatric consultant who has appeared on ITV's This Morning and the One Show on BBC, walked in as she was trying to kill a baby identified only as Baby K, it is claimed

Letby is accused of attacking two sets of twins - with insulin and with air - one child, Baby E, would die but his sibling survived

Later the same morning at 7.30am, Letby was again at Child K's cot calling for help, the court heard. She was assisting the baby with her breathing and it was found Child K's breathing tube had this time slipped too far into her throat. Child K was transferred to another hospital later that day but remained unwell and died two days later. Letby is not accused of her murder.

Post-it note scribbled by Lucy Letby is shown to court The court was today shown a note penned by the nurse featuring the scrawled words; 'There are no words. I am an awful person. I pay everyday for that' 'No hope. I can't breathe. I can't focus' 'I'll never have children or marry I'll never know what it's like to have a family' 'Kill myself right now. Overwhelming fear. I haven't done anything wrong' 'Police investigation. Forget. Slander discrimination victimisation' 'Despair, panic, fear, lost, HATE' 'Hate myself so much. All getting to much everything taking over my life' 'I feel very alone and scared' 'What does the future hold. How can I get through it. How will things ever be like they were' 'I don't deserve to live' 'I DID THIS WHY ME' 'I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them, and I am horrible and evil person 'I don't deserve mum and dad. The world is better off without me' 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS' Advertisement

One independent medical expert said it was 'very likely' the dislodgement of the breathing tube was a deliberate act and another did not believe an 'accidental or innocent dislodgement' was a plausible explanation, the court heard.

Under police interview, Letby said she had not initially sounded the alarm over child K when Dr Jayaram walked in because she was 'possibly waiting to see if she self-corrected, we don't normally intervene straight away if they weren't dangerously low' in oxygen. Mr Johnson told the court a nursing expert said that given how premature the baby was, Letby's explanation for delaying intervention, 'didn't wash'.

Yesterday Letby sat in the dock wearing a black jacket as she listened to the prosecution lay out an allegation of murder against Child I and O, two of attempted murder against Child H, and further the attempted murders of Child J, K, L, M and N.

Mr Johnson described the case of Child I as 'an extreme example even by the standards of this overall case'. He said Letby first tried to kill Child I by injecting air into the infant's stomach. After Letby's third alleged attempt on her life, Child I was transferred to another hospital where she made a dramatic recovery. But after being returned to Letby's care, the infant collapsed and needed cardiac compressions, the court heard.

'Baby I was born very early and very small - but she survived the first two months of her life and was doing well by the time Lucy Letby got her hands on her,' Mr Johnson said.

After Child I's death, her parents were taken to a private room and asked if they wanted to bathe her. Mr Johnson said that as the baby's mother 'bathed her recently departed child, Letby came into the room and, in the words of the mother, was ''smiling and kept going on about how she was present at Child I's first bath and how much Child I had loved it''.'

The nurse later sent a sympathy card to the parents, something that was 'not normal'. In a police interview, she told officers this was the only time she had done it, 'but it is not often the nurses got to know a family as well as they had known Child I's'. She admitted to officers that she'd kept an image of the card on her phone.

Mr Johnson said: 'We suggest that it is highly significant that children within the orbit of Lucy Letby persistently and consistently suffered unexplained collapses.

'Sometimes the evidence of her hand at work is more obvious than others and it is remarkable that on many occasions when children who had suffered unexpected spectacular and life-threatening collapses were removed from her orbit, they had exceptional recoveries.'

Letby sat in the dock wearing a black jacket as she listened to the prosecution lay out their case in Manchester Crown Court

Letby was not her designated nurse at the time, but the nurse who had this role later said she could not recall whether she had taken a break during the shift but confirmed she had been out of the room at least some of the time.

He went on to describe 'interesting Facebook searches' by Letby after the incidents.

'Cold-blooded' Lucy Letby 'smiled at mother after she had murdered her newborn daughter on the fourth attempt' - then 'sent a sympathy card to the parents' 'Cold-blooded' Lucy Letby smiled at a mother after murdering her newborn girl on the fourth attempt before sending a sympathy card to her parents, the court heard. The 32-year-old allegedly killed five boys and two girls, and faces a total of 22 charges of both murder and attempted murder involving 17 babies. The offences are said to have taken place between June 2015 and June 2016 while she was working in the neo-natal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Letby sat in the dock as she listened to the prosecution lay out an allegation of murder against Child I, two of attempted murder against Child H, and two more of attempted murder against Child J and Child K. Prosecutor Nick Johnson, KC described the case of Child I - who despite being born weighing just 970g (2lbs 2oz) was healthy - as 'an extreme example even by the standards of this overall case'. After Letby's third alleged attempt on her life, Child I was transferred to another hospital where she made a dramatic recovery. But after being returned to Letby's care, the infant collapsed and needed cardiac compressions, the court heard. 'Baby I was born very early and very small - but she survived the first two months of her life and was doing well by the time Lucy Letby got her hands on her,' Mr Johnson said. After Child I's death, her parents were taken to a private room and asked if they wanted to bathe her. Mr Johnson said that as the baby's mother 'bathed her recently departed child, Letby came into the room and, in the words of the mother, was ''smiling and kept going on about how she was present at Child I's first bath and how much Child I had loved it''.' The nurse later sent a sympathy card to the parents, something that was 'not normal'. In a police interview, she told officers this was the only time she had done it, 'but it is not often the nurses got to know a family as well as they had known Child I's'. She admitted to officers that she'd kept an image of the card on her phone. The case was handed to the coroner and it was found 'the earlier attempts to kill Child I had caused brain damage'. Earlier, Mr Johnson told jurors at Manchester Crown Court that Letby twice attempted to murder another baby, Child H, on two successive night shifts in September 2015. The infant suffered two 'profound' collapses which required resuscitation by chest compressions with the use of adrenaline, the court heard. No clear cause for either incident was identified at the time but the baby survived. After the two incidents Child H was transferred to another hospital where she showed 'dramatic improvement'. She later returned to the Countess of Chester and was eventually discharged. Mr Johnson said: 'We suggest that it is highly significant that children within the orbit of Lucy Letby persistently and consistently suffered unexplained collapses. 'Sometimes the evidence of her hand at work is more obvious than others and it is remarkable that on many occasions when children who had suffered unexpected spectacular and life-threatening collapses were removed from her orbit, they had exceptional recoveries.' Letby's parents, Susan and John, are supporting her at her six-month trial at Manchester Crown Court. Advertisement

He told the court that about a week after Child H's second collapse, at about 1.15am, within about three minutes she searched for Child H's mother, the father of twin children E and F and the mother of Child I. At the time she was on her day off.

Introducing the case of Baby I, Mr Johnson said: 'There were four separate occasions on which we allege Lucy Letby tried to kill Baby I. She was resilient, but ultimately, at the fourth attempt, Lucy Letby succeeded in killing her'.

Baby I weighed 970 grams when she was born in Liverpool Women's Hospital on August 7, 2015. She was transferred to the Countess of Chester on August 18.

By September 29, the infant was eight weeks old and the clinical concerns about her had diminished.

She had no breathing problems, was 'in air', gaining weight and being fed both by bottles and a tube.

Mr Johnson alleged that Letby carried out her first attack on Baby I the following day, September 30  'a couple of days after she had tried to kill Baby H and a week or so after events two and three for Baby G.

Letby was on a 12-hour shift that began at 8am, and she was Baby I's designated nurse.

She had two other babies to look after in Room 3, yet despite this she was also involved that shift with G and H.

According to Baby I's mother, Letby expressed some concern to her and indicated that the infant would be reviewed by a doctor.

Mr Johnson said: 'When she made the requisite note, Letby reversed the concern, saying that it was Baby I's mother who had raised an issue about her abdomen, writing 'Mum feels it is more distended to yesterday and that I is quietnot on monitor but nil increased work of breathing'.

He asked the jury: 'Was it Lucy Letby trying to cover for what she was going to do?'

She fed the sleeping baby 35mls of expressed breast milk via the NGT at 4pm. Half an hour later an emergency 'crash call' was put out.

Baby I had vomited, desaturated, her heart rate had dropped and she was struggling to breath. Her airway had to be cleared and she was given breathing support before being moved to Room 1.

X-rays revealed a massive amount of gas in her stomach and bowel, and her lungs appeared 'squashed' and of small volume. It was the prosecution case that this air had been injected into the baby's stomach.

The crisis passed, but medical notes record that Letby adjusted the infant's glucose infusion and gave her an injection of saline.

'Within moments, Baby I deteriorated again. However, as I have said, Baby I was resilient and overnight her condition'.

Thereafter the baby enjoyed a period of such stability that she did not even need a monitor.

In the early hours of October 13, Baby I was well and being bottle-fed every four hours. At about 3am her designated nurse briefly left the room and asked Letby and another colleague to listen out for the infant.

Mr Johnson told the court: 'When she returned to Room 2, at about 3.20am, Lucy Letby was stood in the doorway. The room was darkened because it was night time. But as soon as she came in Lucy Letby told her Baby I looked pale.

'When the other nurse turned on the light, she saw that Baby I appeared at the point of death and was not breathing.

'When she reconsidered later she thought that perhaps I was breathing once at least every 20 seconds, because if she hadn't been the apnoea alarm would have sounded'.

Turning to the jury, Mr Johnson said: 'You might want to consider how it was that Lucy Letby could see that I was pale from the door of a room in which there was minimal lighting.

'And you may want to consider the possibility that someone had silenced the alarm or turned it off'.

The third incident happened on October 14 when Baby I suffered desaturation caused by gas in her abdomen. Again she needed to be resuscitated. She was 'brought back from the brink of death' at 7.48am.

'So I had the same problem as she had had before,' said Mr Johnson. 'And yet again there was Lucy Letby who was her designated nurse. Same nurse, same problem  a problem that doesn't happen when she isn't around'.

Baby I was transferred to Arrowe Park on October 15 and quickly stabilised before returning to Letby's hospital on October 17.

Baby I became unsettled just after midnight on October 23. Letby and the designated nurse went to her, but the infant collapsed and needed cardiac compressions.

Both an on-call registrar and an on-call consultant were called in. The latter noticed a mottled blue appearance in her trunk and peripheries. After five minutes of CPR the infant's saturation rate picked up to 100 per cent.

An x-ray showed massive dilation of the bowel and this was noted by the medics as 'large stomach bubble'. Baby I was successfully resuscitated and recovered.

At 1.06am the infant's designated nurse left the nursery temporarily, but then responded to the alarm. She returned to see Letby at the incubator.

Letby sketched in the dock at Manchester Crown Court with security as she was charged with the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of another ten

Realising the infant was very distressed, the nurse wanted to intervene. But Letby assured her that they would be able to settle the baby.

'Baby I then collapsed,' said Mr Johnson, before adding: 'This exchange foreshadows what was to happen when Child O collapsed six or so months later'.

The same on-call registrar arrived at 1.12am and led the attempts at resuscitation. She was joined by the registrar at 1.25am and he noted purple and white mottling.

'All resuscitative efforts were unsuccessful and treatment was withdrawn at 2.10am,' Mr Johnson said. 'Baby I was pronounced dead at 2.30am on October 23.'

During the time Letby worked on the night shift, there was a rise in babies dying or falling seriously ill, Manchester Crown Court was told, and then when she moved to the day shift there were more 'inexplicable collapses and deaths'

Immediately after her death the infant's parents were taken to a private room. The mother was asked if she wanted to bathe her daughter.

'As [the mother] bathed her recently-deceased child, Lucy Letby came into the room and in the mother's words ''was smiling and kept going on about how she was present at Baby I's first bath and how much Baby I had loved it''.'

A post mortem revealed that all the loops in the infant's bowel were significantly dilated due to increased air content. 'In layman's terms they were expanded like a partially-inflated balloon,' Mr Johnson said.

Dr Dewi Evans, the expert paediatrician later called in by Cheshire Police, said he thought the apnoea monitor must have been tampered with or switched off.

He also believed an IV bolus of air had been injected into her bloodstream around midnight on October 22-23. 'In support of that, he points to Baby I screaming  followed quickly by her collapse,' Mr Johnson said.

The court heard that Letby had sent a sympathy card to the parents.

'She said that to send a card was not normal  indeed this was the only time she had done it; but that it was not often the nurses got to know a family as well as they had known Baby I's,' Mr Johnson said.

'She accepted that she had kept an image of the card on her phone. She denied giving Baby I air via the NGT'.

She challenged her colleague's account of Baby I's collapse in the darkened room, claiming that because she was more experienced she might have 'spotted something that she wasn't able to spot'.

Mr Johnson told the jury: 'Baby I was born very early and very small. But she survived the first two months of her life and was doing well by the time Lucy Letby got her hands on her.

'What happened to Baby I followed the pattern of what had happened to others before and what was yet to happen to others., All of a sudden, out of nowhere, came vomiting, breathing problems and critical desaturations'.

In the first incident there had been a vomit followed by lots of air and some milk; in the second Letby had been seen 'coolly watching Baby I who was in crisis'; in the third the infant pumped with air; and in the fourth the designated nurse returning in response to the alarm and finding Letby standing over her.

'It was persistent, calculated and cold-blooded,' said Mr Johnson.

Letby's parents, Susan and John, are supporting her at her six-month trial at Manchester Crown Court.

She denies all 22 charges. The hearing continues
Yu-Gi-Oh! fans were shocked upon hearing about the passing of Kazuki Takahashi due to drowning, back in July. Takahashi is the creator of the aforementioned card game. However, new information about the Japanese Manga artist has surfaced, which serves as a silver lining to his otherwise tragic passing.

According to Kotaku, the Department of Defense in the US claimed that the Manga artist bravely attempted to save those who were drowning but he himself perished instead. Bystanders even saw glimpses of Takahashi before the waves managed to pull him under.

Moments Before Kazuki Takahashi's Death

A riptide appeared on the shores of a popular Okinawa dive spot along with six-foot waves. This phenomenon immediately caused a whirlpool effect that has endangered swimmers on the beach.

Fortunately for the swimmers, 49 year old Major Robert Bourgeau, a trained scuba diving instructor, was at the beach. He spotted the two Japanese civilians and a fellow US soldier struggling to get out of the water.

He successfully saved the civilians after racing toward the dangerous waters. Unbeknownst to him, while he was rescuing the civilians, Kazuki Takahashi also dove in to help rescue the people in danger, according to sworn statements provided by the Army.

Takahashi, throwing caution in the wind, attempted to save the swimmers without no regard to his own safety, and drowned in the process.

Major Bourgeau was recommended for a Soldier's Medal for his bravery on July 4, at Mermaid's Grotto in the village of Onna, Okinawa. Bourgeau stated that Takahashi was "a hero" and that "He died trying to save someone else."

Read Also: 'Yu-Gi-Oh! Cross Duel' Releases on Mobile: Here's What You Have to Know

The Events After

Kazuki Takahashi was later found by the Japanese Coast Guard the next day. They spotted his remains 1,000 feet away, floating off the coast of Nago, which is located in the northern parts of Okinawa.

What to Know About the Japanese Manga Artist

Kazuki Takahashi was born on October 4, 1961. Not only did he create the famous Yu-Gi-Oh! card game, which spawned multiple anime adaptations and spin-offs like Yu-Gi-Oh GX, 5D's, Zexal, ARC-V, VRAINS, SEVENS, and Go Rush, he also created The ComiQ, a short murder mystery manga, according to TV Tropes.

In a Shonen Jump interview, he mentioned that AKIRA by Katsuhiro Otomo and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure by Hirohiko Araki are among his favorites. He has also made known that he was a fan of Hellboy.

According to his IMDB profile, he believed that he was a procrastinator. He enjoys games like Shogi, which is Japanese chess, and Mahjong, which is a Chinese tile game.

Initially, Yu-Gi-Oh! Was just a manga that had an in-universe card game called Duel Monsters. When the manga was adapted into anime 1998, it quickly gained a huge fanbase, and so Konami made the card game in 1999.

Since then, the Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game has sold over 22 billion cards since it was launched, making it a close competitor with the Pokemon Playing Cards.

Related: Konami Card Game Goes Online: 'Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel' Rank Tiers and Rewards Explained
A mischievous Spanish law student went to extreme lengths to cheat on his exams by etching answers on to his pens, his teacher has revealed.

Yolanda de Lucchi, a professor at the University of Malaga, showed the pens she and her colleagues confiscated during the test.

She displayed the 11 pens, each with tiny writing etched across the plastic body of the blue biros, in a post on Twitter.

A mischievous Spanish law student went to extreme lengths to cheat on his exams by etching answers on to his pens, his teacher has revealed

Ms De Lucchi said the pens were confiscated during an exam on Criminal Procedural Law.

The crafty student was exposed a number of years back but the teacher rediscovered the offending items while cleaning out her drawer.

She posted on Twitter: 'The criminal procedural law in BIC pens. What art!

'Cheat sheets aren't like they used to be.'

A close-up of the pens shows the incredible detail of the ruse, with tiny letters filling every available space.

One Twitter user who replied to the teacher claimed to be a friend of the cheating student.

The crafty student was exposed a number of years back but the teacher rediscovered the offending items while cleaning out her drawer

Gonzo said: 'Hello Yolanda. I know the author of that wonderful work perfectly. In fact, he has authorized me, ignoring his name, logically, to show you some more that he still keeps at home.

'The technique used by the artist, as he himself tells me, was to replace the graphite lead of a mechanical pencil with a needle, which made it super easy for him to etch the pen.'

Gonzo then showed off a number of photos of the biros modified over the years.

De Lucchi said: 'That could not happen today.

'Now students would not make an effort to have such a detailed cheat sheet for an exam.

'They live at the click of a button, by what happens instantly; that is impossible to see today.'
France would not respond with a nuclear weapon even if Russia uses one against Ukraine, Emmanuel Macron said last night.

Mr Macron said French nuclear doctrine only allows the weapons to be used in the case of a direct threat to the country or its 'fundamental interests'.

'They are defined clearly and wouldn't be directly affected at all if, for example, there was a ballistic nuclear attack in Ukraine [or] in the region', the French President told national TV.

He spoke amid increased atomic sabre-rattling around Ukraine with NATO and Russia both due to carry out nuclear drills in the coming days.

As tensions ramp up, nearby countries are preparing for the fallout as people in Finland rushed to buy iodine pills which help prevent some radiation effects.

France would not use a nuclear weapon against Russia if it used one of its own atomic weapons against Ukraine, the French President has said (File image: Russian nuclear missile)

Emmanuel Macron (right) said French nuclear doctrine only allows the weapons to be used against threats to his country or its 'fundamental interests', as he urged Vladimir Putin (left) to negotiate

Ukraine joining NATO will guarantee WW3, Russia says Russia has threatened the Third World War if Ukraine is granted membership into NATO, a Russian Security Council official has warned today. 'Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three,' Alexander Venediktov, deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, told the Kremlin's news agency TASS. Mr Venediktov, who is deputy to Security Council secretary Nikolai Patrushev, a powerful Vladimir Putin ally, said he felt Ukraine's application was propaganda. He said this was because the West understood the consequences of Ukrainian membership of NATO  that the fifth 'collective defence' article would be triggered. This means that an attack against one NATO ally is considered as an attack against all allies. 'Apparently, that's what they are counting on  to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again,' Mr Venediktov said. 'The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves,' he added. 'We must remember: a nuclear conflict will affect absolutely the whole world, not only Russia and the collective West, but every country on this planet,' Mr Venediktov said. 'The consequences would be disastrous for all mankind.' Advertisement

Authorities in Helsinki urged everyone to buy at least one dose, which stop radioactive iodine building up in the thyroid gland which can cause cancer.

That sparked a run on the tablets, with pharmacies across the country saying they had run out and drug wholesalers also reporting their stockpiles were empty.

Vladimir Putin threatened Ukraine and its allies with nuclear weapons a fortnight ago as he annexed four occupied regions, raising fears he will resort to the nuclear option as his war effort fails.

However, observers say he has not yet moved to use them  and instead chose to hit Ukraine with a massive barrage of conventional missiles this week.

Macron, speaking as NATO defence ministers were set to gather to discuss military aid to Ukraine, said France is considering sending air defence units capable of taking down Russian missiles, as well as more artillery.

Mr Macron also called on Putin to resume peace negotiations with Kyiv.

'Today, first of all, Vladimir Putin must stop this war, respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and come back to the table for talks,' Mr Macron told broadcaster France 2.

As well as planning conventional weapons deliveries to Ukraine, NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group met today to discuss holding a nuclear test next week.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, who took part in the meeting, said the 'routine' exercise was designed to test the 'readiness' of NATO's atomic stockpile.

However, he said the situation was complicated by the fact that Russia is planning to hold its own drill soon and there is a danger that signals from either side could be misinterpreted and lead to an unintentional confrontation.

'Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise,' MR Wallace told reporters.

'What we don't want is to do things out of routine.'

Mr Macron says on French TV last night that he has spoken to Putin 'several times' about the risks of ramping up the nuclear rhetoric around Ukraine

UK will give air defence missiles to Ukraine The UK will donate cutting-edge air defence missiles to Ukraine which can help protect against Russian missile strikes, the Defence Secretary announced today. The AMRAAM rockets will be provided in the coming weeks for use with the NASAMS air defence systems pledged by the US. The rockets will help to protect Ukraines critical national infrastructure, with the announcement coming days after Russian missiles struck civilian targets in cities across Ukraine. Hundreds of additional air defence missiles, the same as other types previously provided, will also be donated as part of the package. And hundreds of aerial drones to support Ukraines information gathering and logistics capabilities will be donated, along with 18 howitzer artillery guns. Advertisement

Ahead of the meeting, US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said NATO is committed to defending 'every each' of allied soil.

NATO's exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon, is held around the same time every year and runs for about a week.

It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads testing their ability to deliver them but doesn't involve any live bombs.

Conventional jets and surveillance and refueling aircraft also routinely take part.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in the exercise, which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.

The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 625 miles from Russia.

NATO as an organization doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear arsenal nominally linked to the alliance remains under the firm control of three member countries  the US, the UK and France.

But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signaled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains.

The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television last night, Mr Macron warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric. He said he has spoken to Putin 'several times.'

NATO defence ministers meet in Brussels today as they discuss military aid to Ukraine, ahead of a meeting to plan an upcoming nuclear exercise

'We have a [nuclear] doctrine which is clear,' the president said. 'The dissuasion is working.

'But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are. Too many people are talking about it.'

Earlier this week, NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg described Putin's remarks as 'dangerous and reckless,' and underlined that the allies 'have also conveyed clearly to Russia that it will have severe consequences if they use nuclear weapons in any way.'

Mr Stoltenberg warned that it 'would be absolutely the wrong signal to send' if the world's biggest security organisation were to cancel the maneuvers.

'NATO's firm, predictable behaviour, our military strength, is the best way to prevent escalation,' he said.

'If we now created the grounds for any misunderstandings, miscalculations in Moscow about our willingness to protect and defend all allies, we would increase the risk of escalation.'
Republicans have slammed the FBI after an analyst claimed the Bureau offered retired British spy Christopher Steele $1 million in cash to prove the salacious allegations in his infamous 'Dirty Dossier' on former president Donald Trump.

FBI supervisory analyst Brian Auten testified that the bureau made the offer in 2016 during a meeting in the United Kingdom - but didn't hand over the money because Steele couldn't back up the evidence.

The 35-page file penned by Steele claimed the Kremlin had compromising evidence against Trump - including videos of him involved in sexual activities in a Moscow hotel.

Rep. Jim Jordan described the revelation as a 'disgrace' while others criticized the FBI for getting too involved in politics.

'You can't make this stuff up. But I think it just underscores how out of touch and how political the FBI has become,' Jordan said on Fox Business.

The revelations 'further validates what we all know, which is that the FBI is purely political now, going after their political opposition,' he said.

Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. wrote 'what a disgrace' on Twitter, while Senator Marsha Blackburn wrote: 'The FBI allegedly tried to payout $1 million to corroborate reports about President Trump that Hillary Clinton's campaign fabricated.'

Rep. Jim Jordan (pictured) described the revelations about the FBI as a 'disgrace' while others criticized the FBI for getting too involved in politics

In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Sen. Chuck Grassley said the 'lengths the FBI was willing to go at taxpayer expense to justify their investigation into the Trump campaign is just astounding and downright scary.

'Now we know that the FBI offered to pay $1m to a former British spy to substantiate those rumors, which couldnt be done because they werent true,' he added.

The House Judiciary GOP Twitter account quoted a line in the testimony that said 'Steele never got the money because he could not 'prove the allegations', adding on Twitter: 'Well, duh.'

At the time of the meeting, agents were looking to verify claims the Kremlin had compromising videos showing Trump engaged in sexual activity in a Moscow hotel and allegations he was in contact with Russian officials before the general election.

There were also salacious claims Steele was commissioned by Democrats during the 2016 presidential campaign and the claims in the dossier have since been debunked.

Steele penned the 35-page document, which alleged that the Kremlin colluded with Trump's presidential campaign, in 2016 after his private intelligence company Orbis Business Intelligence was hired by a law firm representing the Democrats.

Among other things, the 'golden shower' dossier claimed that the Russian security services could blackmail the President-Elect with allegations that he paid prostitutes to urinate on a bed once slept in by Barack and Michelle Obama.

The revelation about the substantial financial incentive being offered came in the trial of Russian analyst Igor Danchenko, one of Steele's primary sources, who is accused of lying to the FBI when questioned about his information.

He was indicted on five counts of making false statements to the FBI about the dossier. Prosecutors told the court Danchenko fabricated one of his own sources and hid the identity of another when he was interviewed by the bureau.

Ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele compiled the infamous dossier of material on Donald Trump and the then-candidate's Russia ties. An FBI supervisory agent testified Steele was offered $1 million to back up his information but was unable to do so

Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. wrote 'what a disgrace' on Twitter, while Senator Marsha Blackburn wrote: 'The FBI allegedly tried to payout $1 million to corroborate reports about President Trump that Hillary Clinton's campaign fabricated.' The House Judiciary GOP Twitter account quoted a line in the testimony that said 'Steele never got the money because he could not 'prove the allegations', adding on Twitter: 'Well, duh'

Special Counsel John Durham, who was appointed by Trump, is prosecuting the case in am Alexandria, Virginia courtroom.

Auten testified that information from the Steele dossier was used to support a surveillance warrant against a Trump campaign official, Carter Page.

Under questioning from Durham, Auten said the dossier was used to bolster the surveillance application even though the FBI couldn't corroborate its allegations.

Auten (pictured) testified that information from the Steele dossier was used to support a surveillance warrant against a Trump campaign official Carter Page, even though the information could not be corroborated

Auten said the FBI checked with other government agencies to see if they had corroboration but nothing came back.

Auten and other FBI agents even met with Steele in the United Kingdom in 2016 and offered him as much as $1 million if he could supply corroboration for the allegations in the dossier, but none was provided.

Durham's years-long probe has resulted in a single conviction  of FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith for doctoring an email used to justify surveillance. The trial of Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann resulted in an acquittal.

Steele, an ex-MI6 intelligence officer, compiled the dossier as a series of dispatches. He had been a paid FBI informant.

Prosecutors said Danchenko, a Russia analyst and researcher based in Virginia, fabricated once source and hid another source of information as the FBI rushed in the weeks before the 2016 election to confirm information in the dossier. They accuse him of lying to the FBI when he was questioned about information he provided.

They also pointed to an area of harm  the FBI relied in part of information in the dossier to obtain warrants for phone and email surveillance of former Trump foreign policy advisor Carter Page, a U.S. citizen.

They were probing an alleged conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia  in an investigation that would burst into the headlines.

'Those lies mattered,' Prosecutor Michael Keilty said, because the FBI presented inaccurate information to a foreign intelligence surveillance court.

Page was never charged with a crime.

Prosecutors say Danchenko lied when he told agents he got information from Sergei Millian, who had been head of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce. But they said there isn't evidence the two ever spoke, and pointed to phone records.

'This case is about protecting the functions and integrity of our institutions,' Keilty added.

Prosecutors said Danchenko, a Russia analyst and researcher based in Virginia, fabricated once source and hid another source from the FBI. He is the third person to be indicted by special counsel John Durham and is seen walking into court on Tuesday

An FBI official's testimony failed to back up Donald Trump's repeated claim that the Russia probe was founded on the dossier

'This case is about protecting the function and integrity of our government institutions,' said Durham.

Durham's prosecutors focused on the treatment of Page, an area that has long been a focus of Trump and congressional Republicans, and which featured in a damning report by the Justice Department's IG.

Danchenko's lawyer countered that his client has been truthful and that the FBI asked his client vague questions during their 2016 meeting.

At one point Durham asked Auten why the DOJ opened its Russia probe in the summer of 2016.

But his answer cut against Trump's repeated claim that the probe was founded on the dirty dossier.

Instead, his answer pointed to the origin of the probe, which has been repeatedly reported: A boozy encounter in a hotel bar in May 2016 between foreign Trump campaign advisor George Papadopoulos and an Australian diplomat, after the aide said the Kremlin had dirt on Hillary Clinton. The diplomat provided the information to the U.S.
Yesterday, officials from India's ruling party said using gem could bring back 'painful memories' of colonialism

But its ownership is a controversial topic and it has been claimed by India, Pakistan and Afghanistan

Fears its use could inflame UK-India tensions as the Government tries to get a key trade deal over the line

But William Dalrymple, who co-wrote a book on the jewel, warned it would be a 'massive diplomatic grenade'

Royal biographer has claimed 'King Charles wants Camilla' to wear Koh-i-Noor diamond at the coronation

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A royal biographer has claimed that King Charles wants Camilla to wear the late Queen Mother's crown featuring the controversial Koh-i-Noor diamond at his coronation next year, but critics have warned the Palace it would be akin to 'a massive diplomatic grenade'.

Royal expert Angela Levin today said that she is 'quite sure' the Queen Consort 'doesn't mind' if she wears the Koh-i-Noor diamond as she has around 40 tiaras to choose from, but 'King Charles wants Queen Camilla to wear it at the coronation, to follow his grandmother'.

She also warned that the row over its use could grow into 'tiaragate', while William Dalrymple, who co-wrote a book on the controversial gem, described the issue as a 'massive diplomatic grenade'.

Whether the disputed jewel is set to feature in King Charles' coronation next year was last night thrown into turmoil after officials from India's ruling party said its use would bring back 'painful memories' of British colonialism'.

No official decision has yet been made, according to royal sources.

The priceless piece features 2,800 diamonds with the front cross holding the famous 105-carat Koh-i-Noor diamond, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world.

The huge diamond originated from India and was given to Queen Victoria by the last Sikh emperor of India - who at the time was 10 years old. But the gifting of the diamond is disputed and there are claims in at least three countries, including India, to have the jewel returned.

Taking about whether wearing the Koh-i-Noor diamond might inflame UK-India tensions as the government attempts to get its trade deal over the line, Levin told TalkTV: 'They feel that this might affect the deal they are doing with India and that is very important at the moment because everything's so tricky now.'

Plans for the Queen Consort to be crowned using regalia (pictured: The Queen Mother's Crown on her coffin while she lies in state in 2002) containing the controversial Koh-i-Noor diamond may be axed because of 'political sensitivities', it has been reported

When the King (pictured here with Camilla during the State Opening of Parliament in 2015) first raised the issue of his wife taking her place by his side at his coronation several years ago it was provisionally agreed that she would be proclaimed Queen Consort using the late Queen Mother's crown, according to Mail+

Meanwhile, William Dalrymple, who co-wrote Koh-i-Noor: The History Of The World's Most Infamous Diamond, described the issue as a 'massive diplomatic grenade'.

He said: 'It is not a small, sensitive issue in the eyes of India. People in this country don't have the slightest conception of how much it matters in India. For people here it is the name of an Indian restaurant... or maybe something they have seen on a school trip.

'But it is actually part of a wider disconnect of a number of things that Indians get very upset about to do with the colonial period.

'The diamond has been claimed by Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and also the Taliban. It is a hugely sensitive stone.

'It matters to a huge number of people and has continued to be very controversial since the Queen died. India is rising as a global power and there is an expectation that this is an issue that will come back.'

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said it is for Buckingham Palace to decide whether the Koh-i-Noor diamond is used in the coronation of the Queen Consort.

There are reports the governing party of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has expressed concern that the use of the diamond which was seized by the East India Company in 1849 would provide an unwelcome reminder of the British Empire.

Mr Cleverly told Sky News: 'Ultimately, decisions like that are for the palace. The palace is really very good at assessing the public, and indeed the international, mood.

'We have a fantastic relationship with India and the Indian people. It is a decision for the palace and I have no doubt the coronation will be an absolute celebration.'

Mr Cleverly played down suggestions that comments by Home Secretary Suella Braverman complaining about the number of Indian migrants who overstay their visas had damaged the Government's hopes of a free trade deal with India.

'We do have a very strong relationship with India. One of the hallmarks of a strong relationship is you can have a very straight-talking conversation. We do want to have an even stronger trading relationship with India,' he said.

The gem (pictured), which is held in a detachable platinum mount, may now be taken out of the crown before use  or the crown not even used at all in favour of something simpler, such as Queen Victoria's coronet

Some fear the row over the use of the diamond could threaten to scupper a key trade deal with India, which is already in jeopardy after Braverman's comments about Indian migrants.

The Modi administration is furious at comments made by the Home Secretary last week in which she warned Prime Minister Liz Truss against easing immigration rules in any post-Brexit agreement.

The Home Secretary said that Brexiteers did not vote for an open borders policy with India and claimed that visa overstayers from the subcontinent already pose a problem.

Meanwhile, royal sources insisted no official decision has yet been made on whether the precious gem, which is part of the famed Crown Jewels, will appear at King Charles' coronation on May 6.

They will want to tread carefully, however after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's governing party in India suggested that its use in the coronation could 'transport a few Indians back to the days of the British Empire'.

'The coronation of Camilla and the use of the crown jewel Koh-i-Noor brings back painful memories of the colonial past,' said a party spokesperson to The Telegraph yesterday.

'Most Indians have very little memory of the oppressive past. Five to six generations of Indians suffered under multiple foreign rules for over five centuries.

'Recent occasions, like Queen Elizabeth II's death, the coronation of the new Queen Camilla and the use of the Koh-i-Noor do transport a few Indians back to the days of the British Empire in India.'

The Koh-i Noor, meaning 'the Mountain of Light' is one of the grandest and most valuable gemstones in the world. It is the centrepiece of the dazzling Queen Mother crown (pictured)

When the King first raised the issue of his wife taking her place by his side at his coronation several years ago it was provisionally agreed that she would be proclaimed Queen Consort using the late Queen Mother's crown.

However Mail+ has learnt that there is 'significant nervousness' about this now given continuing controversy over ownership of the diamond, which originated in India and is claimed not only by the republic but also several other countries in the region.

The gem, which is held in a detachable platinum mount, may now be taken out of the crown before use  or the crown not even used at all in favour of something simpler, such as Queen Victoria's coronet.

A source said: 'The original plan was for the Queen Consort to be crowned with the late Queen Mother's crown when her husband acceded to the throne.

That was certainly the agreement a few years ago when the whole idea of the Duchess of Cornwall becoming Queen Consort was first mooted.

'But times have changed and His Majesty The King is acutely sensitive to these issues, as are his advisors. There are serious political sensitivities and significant nervousness around them, particularly regarding India.'

Buckingham Palace declined to comment today. Meanwhile, a royal last night told The Times that the jewel had not been 'problematic' before, but that those planning the coronation were 'acutely aware of reflecting tradition' while 'being sensitive to the issues around today'.

'At this stage it's entirely possible that the Koh-i-Noor will be in or out. Bluntly, people will be wondering whether the really want a row over a diamond right now.'

Announcing the dating of next year's coronation as May 6, palace officials said yesterday that further details about the coronation  which will incorporate a mix of the traditional and the modern  would be announced in due course.

But the issue of regalia  particularly the Queen Consort's crown  is likely to prove a sticking point.

Queen Elizabeth (pictured here with the late Queen, her sister Margaret and King George VI) wore the crown without its arches at the State Openings of Parliament during the reign of King George VI, and again at the coronation of her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953

The Koh-i-Noor diamond: A priceless gifted gem at the centre of one of the world's most famous crowns - and an international row The Koh-i-Noor, translated from Persian to English as the 'Mountain of Light, is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world. It weighs an astonishing 21g (105carats). However it is significantly smaller than the world's largest cut diamond, the Cullinan I, also one of the famed Crown Jewels, which is mounted on the Sovereign's Scepter, which weighs 530.4 carats (106.08 g). Though there is no official record of its original weight, the Koh-i-Noor may have weighed as much as 38.2g (186 carats), before it was cut, according to well-attested reports. It is impossible to know exactly where the diamond came from, although there is no doubt that it was panned in India. The earliest reference appears to relate to a powerful Mughal ruler in 1628. The first verifiable report of the diamond, however, comes from the 1740s when it was noted as being one of many stones on the Mughal Peacock Throne, which was looted by the Iranian Afsharid leader Nader Shah from Delhi. It returned to India in 1813 and become a potent symbol of power until it was acquired by Britain in 1849. The diamond was given to Queen Victoria in 1855 by 10 year-old Duleep Singh, the last emperor of the Sikhs. Although much has been made of the fact that it was 'given' to this country, critics point out that this was only after the mother of the ten-year old heir to the Punjabi throne was held prisoner and he was forced to sign it away. However, British people were reportedly unimpressed by the gem. 'Many people find a difficulty in bringing themselves to believe, from its external appearance, that it is anything but a piece of common glass,' wrote the Times in 1851. Since then it has become part of the Crown Jewels, and a point of dispute between the UK, India  as well as several other nations  ever since. William Dalrymple, who co-wrote Koh-i-Noor: The History of the World's Most Infamous Diamond with colleague Anita Anand said: 'It is not a small sensitive issue in the eyes of India. It is a massive diplomatic grenade.' 'One of the reasons we wrote our book was that we don't believe anyone in this country has the slightest conception of how much it matters in India. For people here it is the name of an Indian restaurant or a brand of pencils or maybe something they have seen on a school trip to the Tower of London.' Advertisement

It was made in 1937 for Queen Elizabeth, consort of King George VI, using many stones already in the royal collection. Most of the diamonds were removed from Queen Victoria's Regal Circlet.

The Koh-i-noor diamond had been successively mounted in the crowns of Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary, and was once again reset for this crown.

Queen Elizabeth wore the crown without its arches at the State Openings of Parliament during the reign of King George VI, and again at the coronation of her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953.

It is impossible to know exactly where the diamond came from, although there is no doubt that it was panned in India. The earliest reference appears to relate to a powerful Mughal ruler in 1628.

It returned to India in 1813 and become a potent symbol of power until it was acquired by Britain in 1849.

The diamond was given to Queen Victoria in 1855 by 10 year-old Duleep Singh, last emperor of the Sikhs.

Although much has been made of the fact that it was 'given' to this country, critics point out that this was only after the mother of the ten-year old heir to the Punjabi throne was held prisoner and he was forced to sign it away.

Since then it has become part of the Crown Jewels, and point of dispute between the UK, India  as well as several other nations  ever since.

William Dalrymple, who co-wrote Koh-i-Noor: The History of the World's Most Infamous Diamond with colleague Anita Anand said: 'It is not a small sensitive issue in the eyes of India.

'It is a massive diplomatic grenade.'

'One of the reasons we wrote our book was that we don't believe anyone in this country has the slightest conception of how much it matters in India.

'For people here it is the name of an Indian restaurant or a brand of pencils or maybe something they have seen on a school trip to the Tower of London.

'But it is actually part of a wider disconnect of a number of things that Indians get very upset about to do with the colonial period.

'The diamond has been claimed by Pakistani, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and also the Taliban. It is a hugely sensitive and much claimed stone.

'It matters to a huge number of people and has continued to be very controversial since the Queen died.

'There is an expectation that this is an issue that will come back. Colonialism is over, Britain wants to make friends with India, it is a major new rising power.

'In a sense the British have brought this on themselves because they turned the stone into a symbol of their empire by putting it on display in the Great Exhbition of 1851.

'It has [since] become, rightly or wrongly, a symbol for many colonised people of all they think that we took from them. Whatever your position on it, that is how it's viewed.

'This tiny stone, which is actually not that big  in fact, and it's not even in the top 100 of the worlds diamonds any more  has come to take the whole weight of colonisation on its shoulder. It it has become this very, very sensitive object and is a major issue now between the two countries. '

The diamond was given to Queen Victoria in 1855 by 10 year-old Duleep Singh, last emperor of the Sikhs. It is now in the Crown of the Queen Mother and rests in

It then became a special possession of Queen Victoria and displayed at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. Since then it has become part of the Crown Jewels, and point of dispute between the UK, India  as well as several other nations  ever since

When has the Koh-i-Noor been seen in public? The Koh-i-Noor diamond was brought back to Britain after being gifted to Queen Victoria. It was first displayed publicly at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. However, British people were reportedly unimpressed by the gem. 'Many people find a difficulty in bringing themselves to believe, from its external appearance, that it is anything but a piece of common glass,' wrote the Times in 1851. In reaction to the jewel's disappointing reception, Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, had the stone recut and polished - a process that reduced its size by half but made it refract more brilliantly from its surface. Initially, Victoria wore the diamond as a brooch in public, before it became part of the Crown Jewels. It was mounted in the crown of Queen Alexandra, the wife of Edward VII, before later being mounted on the crown of Queen Mary, the wife of George V. But it found its current place in 1937, when it was mounted front and centre of the Queen Mother's crown, ahead of George VI's coronation. The Queen Mother was seen wearing the crown as she waved to crowds from the balcony at Buckingham Palace following the event. The crown made its last public appearance in 2002, resting atop of the coffin of the Queen Mother for her funeral. It is usually displayed at the Tower of London as part of the Crown Jewels collection, alongside the Sovereign Scepter with Cross, which contains the world's largest diamond, the Cullinan I, and Imperial State Crown, which holds the Cullinan II. Advertisement

Saurav Dutt, author and political commentator, told the Mail that any decision to include the diamond in next year's coronation ceremony would 'fly in the face' of any attempt by the Royal Family 'to draw a line under imperialism'.

He claimed: 'Ensuring the Koh-i-Noor remains front and centre in the public eye in this way flies in the face of any attempt by the Royal Family and political orthodoxies to draw a line under the dispossession, prejudice, plunder and exploitation that imperialism revelled in.

'Such a position is at odds with the modern, egalitarian stance the Royals seek to present themselves within a world that seeks to move on from the ugliest chapters of history that they benefited from.'

He added: 'In a pluralistic modern British society, the exhibitionism of this diamond in this way can only serve to outrage and remind society of the usurious relationship between India and Britain.

'Such a position is untenable as both parties strive to cut lucrative trade deals post-Brexit.

'From a public relations point of view, the unsavoury optics of cavorting around with this looted artifact must be outweighed by fostering improved relations between the ruler and the ruled.'

It comes as Downing Street says it is considering 'all options' to mark King Charles III's Coronation with a bank holiday amid growing calls for Britons to be given a special long weekend to mark next May's event.

The new monarch and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, will be crowned at an historic ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Saturday May 6 next year.

MPs have suggested the occasion could be marked by moving the early May bank holiday one week later to Monday May 8.

Some have even called for an extra bank holiday on top of the eight that are already scheduled for next year  those being January 2, April 7, April 10, May 1, May 29, August 28, December 25 and December 28.

Labour today said moving the early May day off would be a 'good idea', while Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg said a bank holiday would be 'appropriate' to mark the 'splendid historic' event.

No10 said the Government was 'carefully considering' the issue amid the clamour for a three-day weekend to celebrate the Coronation.

Prime Minister Liz Truss's official spokesman said: 'Obviously this will be a historic event. We are carefully considering our plans. All options remain on the table.'

Labour backed moving the May bank holiday to coincide with the Westminster Abbey event.

'That would certainly be a good way for the country to be able to celebrate the Coronation,' said a spokesman for party leader Sir Keir Starmer.

'Moving the May bank holiday that there is for that weekend would be a good idea.'

Earlier, Mr Rees-Mogg had said a bank holiday would be 'appropriate' to mark the 'splendid historic' occasion.

He told the BBC: 'I think that having a bank holiday for a coronation seems to me to be an eminently suitable thing to do. But there is a process that has to be gone through and it has to be approved ultimately by the Privy Council.

'When I was Lord President of the Council we had to approve bank holidays even when Christmas Day fell on a Saturday, to move it to the Monday.

'So bank holidays go through a splendid historic process, which I suppose is only appropriate for a splendid historic occasion like the Coronation.'
A bakery boss scolded for using illegal sprinkles imported from the US has found a 'legal loophole' to produce his own version - and promises they're the brightest in the UK.

Get Baked was at the heart of 'Sprinklegate' and had to withdraw some its best-selling products after an anonymous tip-off by one disgruntled customer saw it get raided by Trading Standards last year.

Inspectors found the sprinkles contained E127, which has been linked to hyperactivity in kids and is only allowed in candied cherries.

Officers quizzed bakery boss Richard Myers over the US-made sprinkles - said to be brighter than ones made in the UK - and seized samples for testing.

He was then forced to pull much-loved products from the shelves in his Headingley, Leeds bakery while loyal fans rallied round the popular shop.

Richard then took matters into his own hands and created Get Baked's very own - and very much legal - version of the vibrant decorations called Expen$ive sprinkles.

He now says 'Sprinklegate' was one of the best things that could have happened to his business.

Get Baked was at the heart of 'Sprinklegate' and owner Richard Myers had to withdraw some its best-selling products after an anonymous tip-off saw it get raided by Trading Standards last year

Richard took matters into his own hands and created Get Baked's very own - and very much legal - version of the vibrant decorations

Expen$ive sprinkles sells 160g bottles for 12 all the way up to 1kg bags for 40

A set of three bottles costs 22.50, while a 500g bag costs 25 - and Richard promises they're the brightest sprinkles in the UK

The 33-year-old said: 'People ask me why I'm so passionate about sprinkles and it's because, for me, sprinkles are a great source of nostalgia.

'When I think of the vibrant, multicoloured fun-pellets that should spring to all our minds when we think of sprinkles, I'm taken back to my childhood.

'Sprinkles in this country are a f*****g disgrace.

'If anything, their pastel nature takes away any vibrancy and celebratory feel to whatever has the misfortune of being adorned with them.'

After his run-in with Trading Standards, Richard thought it was highly unlikely that Get Baked would find any legal sprinkles worth using.

He tried to use British-made sprinkles but says they looked dull and the colour ran.

The married dad-of-one took matters into his own hands and decided to make sprinkles that looked like the US ones but were compliant with UK law.

Get Baked spent eight months figuring out what they call a 'legal loophole' to produce US-style sprinkles - and the mission didn't stop there.

Richard set up a brand new business selling the vibrant decorations so people could make their own bakes exciting at home too.

The new sprinkles look similar to the US ones but the difference is they are compliant with UK law

Richard has dubbed the company 'the home of the world's best sprinkles' and is excited about his new venture

The bakery boss insists his new sprinkles are 'the best you can get' and even plans to launch a course that includes how he set up his business

Richard is pleased he took matters into his own hands to create this product and has ensured full compliance with EU regulation

He said: 'The funny thing is, 'Sprinklegate' evidently ended up being one of the best things that could happen to Get Baked.

'It catapulted the business to realms that are very difficult to find yourself in, without a great deal of luck - which is what all that any of it really was.

'The only skill on my part was capitalising on it all and I would advise anyone to do the same in that position.'

Expen$ive sprinkles sells 160g bottles for 12 all the way up to 1kg bags for 40.

A set of three bottles costs 22.50, while a 500g bag costs 25.

Richard has dubbed the company 'the home of the world's best sprinkles'.

He penned: 'We are incredibly excited to supply hobby bakers, home bakers, small dessert shops, large bakery chains, retailers, and everything in between.

'With a product that we've done everything you can imagine to retain the quality of, whilst ensuring full compliance with EU regulation.

'You don't realise how vibrant our sprinkles actually are until you see them next to the standard, morbid as s**t British alternative.

'They're the best you can get and it's as simple as that.'

Richard even plans to launch a course that includes how he set up his sprinkle business on the back of the cookie-fuelled drama.
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A 3,000-ton nuclear submarine from the heyday of the Soviet Union has been paraded through the streets of Russia.

The K-3 Leninsky Komsomol, built in 1957, was the Communist country's first ever nuclear submarine.

The 352ft vessel dubbed 'The Whale' is now set to become a museum in Kronstadt near St Petersburg.

A 3,000-ton nuclear submarine from the heyday of the Soviet Union has been paraded through the streets of Russia

The bow of the Soviet submarine K-3 'Leninsky Komsomol' is transported by a platform along the street from the pier to the museum where it will be assembled

It was the first nuclear submarine of the Soviet Union built in 1957 and based in Soviet Navy's Northern Fleet in Murmansk region

It was transported through the city yesterday to the assembly site where it will be on display for visitors to inspect it up close.

The radioactive reactors have been removed and the hull has been repaired while it was dry docked in the Nerpa shipyard.

K-3 was prototyped in wood and built in Molotovsk before it was sent to sea for the first time in 1957.

It was commissioned the following year as part of the Soviet Navy's Northern Fleet.

In 1962, the vessel became the first Soviet submarine to reach the North Pole underwater, four years after the USS Nautilus.

It then surfaced on the Pole, which came three years after the USS Skate.

It was transported through the city yesterday to the assembly site where it will be on display for visitors to inspect it up close

The radioactive reactors have been removed and the hull has been repaired while it was dry docked in the Nerpa shipyard

Captain Lev Zhiltsov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for the mission, the highest award in the USSR.

At the height of the Cold War, K-3 was tasked with following a US ballistic missile submarine.

With the spectre of nuclear war now looming large again due to Putin's savagery in Ukraine, the submarine is a sobering reminder of how close the world came to atomic destruction last century.

In 1967, a fire broke out in the hydraulic system while navigating the Norwegian Sea.

Crew members had to evacuate the compartment and flames soon spread to other parts of the submarine.

Carbon dioxide emitted from the automatic extinguishers suffocated the crew members trapped in the first and second compartments.

In 1967, while transiting the Norwegian Sea, 39 crew members of K-3 died in bow compartments in an on board fire

The K-3 Leninsky Komsomol, built in 1957, was the Communist country's first ever nuclear submarine

A dividing door to a third compartment was then opened, leaking the gas and causing more people to fall unconscious.

When the submarine returned to base, 39 crew members were found to have died in the disaster.

An initial investigation found an explosive concentration of hydraulic oil started the blaze, and the crew were praised for their response.

Seven of them were nominated for the Hero of Soviet Union distinction, four of them posthumously.

But a subsequent probe found a cigarette lighter and the position of a sailor's body suggested the fire was started by smoking.

All potential awards were then scrapped.

The submarine was repaired and returned to service before it was retired in 1988 after 30 years of service.

It was moved to the Nerpa shipyard in 2005 for renovations and the museum will be opened next year.
Other gyms across the UK have already closed pools and jacuzzies to cut costs

Members in Exeter were told the club needs to reduce its energy consumption

A David Lloyd Club has told members it will close their outdoor pool due to costs

One of Britain's biggest fitness firms David Lloyd has been hit by the energy crisis as its Exeter club confirmed it will 'temporarily shut' its heated outdoor pool.

The firm said it is an 'exceptional measure, for exceptional times' and the pool closure will be closed from Monday 'for the coming months'.

It's not clear if other clubs in the David Lloyd empire will follow suit.

A David Lloyd membership package can cost more than one hundred pounds a month, but rising costs have still made it unaffordable to provide all their services.

Outdoor pools use energy to remain heated in the cold winter months to stop their members getting goosepimples.

The firm said 'We all need to do our bit' and described it as a 'difficult decision' they are taking to reduce energy consumption at the club.

Members of David Lloyd Clubs in Exeter were told the heated outdoor pool (pictured) will be closed from next Monday in order to reduce energy consumption

The temporary closure at David Lloyd in Exeter is also due to reduced usage of the outdoor pool in the autumn and winter

The temporary closure is also due to reduced usage of the outdoor pool in the autumn and winter.

An email from Greg Fanning, general manager of David Lloyd Exeter, said: 'I hope you're keeping well and continuing to enjoy the Club.

'The challenges from the energy crisis continue to affect us all and there are some steps we need to take to reduce energy consumption at the Club.

'Prioritising our health and well-being has never been more important and we want to continue offering the best service we can.

'However, as each and every one of us knows, we all need to do our bit to reduce energy consumption where we can.

'The outdoor pool is used far less in autumn and wintertime.

'So, we've taken the difficult decision to temporarily close the outdoor pool, on Monday 17 October.

'If you're one of the brave souls who enjoys an outdoor dip, I appreciate this isn't good news.

'Heating the outdoor pool in autumn and wintertime uses a significant amount of energy and this short-term measure, will make an immediate difference.

'It's an exceptional measure, for exceptional times. The heated indoor pool remains open year-round, for you to enjoy a refreshing dip.'

The firm said it is an 'exceptional measure, for exceptional times' and the pool closure will be closed from Monday 'for the coming months'

Nuffield Health has told its members that its 72 Jacuzzis will stop running until spring to save energy at gyms which face 'considerable' price hikes

Earlier this month another health centre told its members that its 72 Jacuzzis will stop running until spring to save energy at gyms.

Nuffield Health, which owns 114 gyms with pools, charges customers up to 63 a month to use its sites.

In its letter to customers, Nuffield Health said: 'This is to ensure we can conserve energy and allows us to keep our swimming pool, sauna and steam room open and we know that our members highly value and benefit from these facilities.'

The note said Nuffield gyms used a 'significant amount of energy' and had been faced with 'considerable' rising energy costs.

It added that future measures could be introduced if demanded by the energy crisis.

Greenwich Leisure Limited, a London-based organisation which runs over 250 sport and leisure facilities, has reduced pool temperatures by an average of 1C to cut costs.

There is also a possibility that they may restrict the opening hours of the sauna.

Pool operators in Europe have faced similar pressures to those in the UK. This month it emerged that dozens of public pools in France had been closed because they were too expensive to keep open.
A US tourist was caught smuggling a metre-long live albino alligator on a flight from Germany to Singapore.

The discovery was made on an x-ray by stunned baggage inspectors at Munich International Airport in Bavaria in September.

Inspectors found that the rare white gator had been stuffed into a cramped suitcase and was curled up and wrapped almost completely in cling film bar a small hole for it to breathe.

The 42-year-old traveler who attempted to smuggle the animal had criminal proceedings launched against them.

Rescuers seized the alligator and took it to a reptile sanctuary in Munich.

White alligators can be bought by customers for up to 75,000 Euros (65,700) in Asia, according to German media.

The discovery was made on an x-ray, pictured, by stunned baggage inspectors at Munich International Airport in Bavaria in September

The act of illegal wildlife trafficking is bringing species of animal into or out of a country without a permit.

It is an offence under the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act (ESA).

In Singapore, offenders can face up to 2 years in jail and/or a fine of up to 45,000 ($50,000) for illegal wildlife trafficking.

But the ESA is due to be amended, which means that individual offenders will face bigger penalties.

As a result, the maximum jail term will increase from 2 years to 6 and the fine will go up to 89,000 ($100,000) per species.

Corporations who are trafficking animals will also face higher fines than individuals.

Inspectors found that the rare white gator had been stuffed into a cramped suitcase and was curled up and wrapped almost completely in cling film, pictured, bar a small hole for it to breathe

In a statement, Munich Main Customs Office said: 'Customs officers confiscated a live albino alligator on 25th September, 2022 at Munich Airport.

'While checking luggage, security check employees discovered an unusual X-ray image. They immediately informed customs officers, who, when opening the suitcase, found a live white alligator wrapped in cling film. Together with a veterinarian, the customs officers freed the animal and took over first aid.

'Before departing for Singapore, the passenger was located by customs officials. The officials initiated proceedings against the 42-year-old businessman.

'The Munich Customs Investigation Office took over further investigations.

'The animal is currently in the sanctuary for reptiles and will continue to be cared for there.'

White alligators can be bought by customers for up to 75,000 Euros (65,700) in Asia, according to German media. Pictured: A white alligator (stock image)
A parent smacking a child should be as illegal as a husband hitting his wife or an owner kicking a dog, a parenting expert says.

Dr Justin Coulson, who hosts the Nine show Parental Guidance, argued on Thursday night that 'nobody deserves to be hit' and that includes children by their parents.

'I'm astounded at how hard Australians will fight for their right to hit a child,' Dr Coulson told Nine's A Current Affair interviewer Chris O'Keefe.

Parenting expert Dr Justin Coulson has argued that parents smacking children is a form of violence that should be banished

Poll Should Australian parents be banned from smacking their kids? Yes No Unsure Should Australian parents be banned from smacking their kids? Yes 127 votes

No 509 votes

Unsure 22 votes Now share your opinion





'If I hit my wife, because she  "deserved it" - and let's face it we all have a different threshold for what "deserving" (is) ... when it comes to violence - if I hit my wife I will be taken to court and charged because of family and domestic violence.

'If I kick my dog because it's barking too much, I'll be charged with animal cruelty.

'And yet  let's say I have a toddler, it's two years old - I'm more than double my toddler's height and six to 10 times my toddler's weight - and it's perfectly legal for me to hit my child because they  "deserved it".'

Dr Coulson said a common argument used to support smacking is 'I was smacked as a child, I turned out OK'.

However, he said that there wasn't 'a shred of evidence' that people turned out better for being smacked and plenty that they didn't.

'The research evidence shows frequent smacking doubles, if not more ... the risk of anxiety and depression in adulthood,' he said.

Dr Coulson, who was interviewed on Channel Nine's A Current Affair by Chris O'Keefe said children who aren't smacked tend to do better in life

He said kids who weren't smacked did better in school, were less likely to get heavily into drugs or alcohol and behaved in a more 'pro-social' manner.

Dr Coulson believes smacking ruptures the relationship between a parent and child, while also setting a bad example.

He argued what it essentially says to children is 'I love you, but I'm gonna hurt you'.

Children follow their parents' example, he argued, so they will in turn smack their kids because it was done to them.

'We can do better, our children deserve better,' he said.

Dr Coulson did not accept that it was alright to smack a child to prevent them from doing something dangerous.

According to Dr Coulson smacking ruptures the relationship between a parent and a child

'I don't understand why we have this fascination with hitting when our child is in danger,' he said.

'If your child's running towards the road, you don't hit them, you pick them up and move them away from the road.'

He said it was the parents' job to create a safe environment and to 'do it without violence' and this shouldn't be seen as mollycoddling children or 'wrapping them in cotton wool'.

Dr Coulson did not want parents put in jail or separated from their kids if they smacked but rather given support and interventions that show 'better ways' to discipline.

'It makes families stronger, it makes kids stronger and it makes our society stronger when we dont use violence,' he said.

The move to ban smacking led to heated debate on another Channel Nine show earlier in the day.

Karl Stefanovic has furiously shot down plans to introduce a ban on Australian parents giving their kids a smack. University of Melbourne Professor Sophie Havighurst supports the idea

Today host Karl Stefanovic scornfully dismissed University of Melbourne Professor Sophie Havighurst's arguments against smacking.

Prof Havighurst pointed to research from the Australian Child Maltreatment Study that found 61 per cent of young Aussies had been smacked at least four times in their life.

'We now know that that doubles their chances of anxiety and depression,' Prof Havighurst said.

But Stefanovic wasn't having any of it.

'I don't want to see any more legislation around me as a parent, my head explodes,' he said.

'And the idea of parents bei1ng charged or going into court for smacking a child. I mean, come on, Sophie, give me a break, please.'

In Australia it's currently legal for parents to smack their kids but varying states have specific rules on the matter (stock image)

The professor said she wasn't seeking any consequences for those who use physical punishment on their children, but wanted the law to change.

'Any form of smacking or physical discipline has been found to have a negative effect on children,' she said.

Sixty-three countries around the world have made physical punishment against children illegal including New Zealand, Scotland and Sweden.

Prof Havighurst said there hadn't been an increase in prosecution of parents who hit their kids in any of those countries.

'We all have times when we lose it ... but in New Zealand when they changed the law in 2007, they didn't get an increase in what you're fearful of,' she said.

'We don't want the government and police having more involvement in our family lives but we do know that law change can guide us to use other ways of parenting and that's really important.'

Australia's former deputy chief medical officer, Dr Nick Coatsworth also weighed in on the matter, saying parents should not smack their kids - but that making the behaviour illegal wasn't necessary.

'My view is that governments should do their best to educate and make sure kids are safe,' he said.

'Criminalising aspects of parenting, even those aspects that are wrong, shouldn't be the direction the government should be going in, in my view.'

In Australia it's currently legal for parents to smack their kids but varying states have specific rules on the matter.

In NSW, the physical punishment should not be painful for more than a brief moment, and kids can't be hit on their heads or necks.

In Victoria, there is no legislation surrounding parents applying physical punishment to their kids while in various other states it must be considered 'reasonable under the circumstances'.
An American Airlines flight from Miami to Barbados had to return to the airport after flyers became sick due to an 'acetone smell.'

AA Flight 338 departed Miami International Airport around 6pm on Wednesday, but had to return due to a strong chemical odor - believed to be nail polish remover - coming from a passenger's carry-on item.

Some passengers reportedly became sick and starting vomiting due to the strong smell.

'Personally it didn't have an effect on me, but I understand that a couple of other passengers felt sick. They might have been vomiting,' one passenger, who was not identified, told WSVN.

'It felt strong enough for a couple of people. We were in the back of the plane so it didn't seem that out of the ordinary. I was hoping we could plow through but I guess not.'

The flight was diverted and landed back in Miami around 9pm and was taken to the 'penalty box,' which is an area where planes can park safely without interfering with the taxiway.

AA Flight 338 departed Miami International Airport around 6pm on Wednesday, but had to return due to a strong chemical odor - believed to be nail polish remover - coming from a passenger's carry-on item

Some passengers reportedly became sick and starting vomiting due to the strong smell, causing it to return to Miami around 9pm. The plane was taken to the 'penalty box,' which is an area where planes can park safely without interfering with the taxiway, and passengers were given free hotel accommodations

Passengers and crew evacuated onto the airfield and were evaluated by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, spokesperson Greg Chin told AP.

They were then bussed back to the terminal, while the five crew members were taken to to Jackson West Medical Center out of an abundance of caution.

American Airlines said in a statement that all customers were offered hotel accommodations.

The flight was rescheduled for 9am on Thursday.

It was not clear how many passengers were on the plane.

The inhalation of acetone fumes can cause irritation to the 'nose, throat, lungs, and eyes' when breathed for short periods of time, according to Delaware Health and Social Services.

It can also cause 'headaches, dizziness, confusion, a faster pulse, nausea, and vomiting' if breathed in for longer periods of time.

An unidentified passenger (pictured) said passengers were 'vomiting' from the smell, but he was not bothered by it
Historical moments in history are usually preceded by something that would give away the upcoming escalation. This fact remains true, from the rise of the Roman Empire through the assassination of Gaius Julius Caesar to the German-Soviet invasion of Poland that sparked the Second World War.

As such, let us remember the event that may have been the signal to one the darkest days of American history - 9/11.

USS Cole Bombing - What Happened On Ground Zero?

The USS Cole is not just any warship. According to the US Navy, the ship is an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis-equipped guided-missile destroyer named after Marine Sgt. Darrell S. Cole was a machine gunner that died during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

The ship is 505ft. long and has a maximum speed of more than 30 knots. It is equipped with Harpoon missile launchers, two MK 41 VLS standard missiles, Tomahawk missiles, MK-46 torpedoes, a Close-in weapon system, and a 5-inch MK 45 gun.

As such, the USS Cole is designated as a guided-missile destroyer capable of anti-air warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and anti-surface warfare.

To protect itself, US Navy engineers outfitted the USS Cole with two layers of steel and 70ft. of Kevlar armor to protect its vital areas - an important part that will save many of the lives of its crew.

The Cole and its crew were on their way to join other US warships in enforcing the trade sanctions the US placed on Iraq at the time. As it stopped to refuel at a port in Aden, Yemen, a motorized rubber dinghy crewed by suicide bombers and laden with 1,000 pounds of explosives, collided with the ship and exploded at 12:15 PM local time, per History.

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The explosion left behind a 40ft.-wide hole near Cole's waterline and killed 17 US sailors. the explosion also injured around 40 other sailors, per the FBI.

The damage is comparable to ten MK 46 torpedoes - the same weapons the Cole used during its service. For those unaware, the US Navy stated that a single MK 46 torpedo carries an explosive warhead with 100 pounds worth of high explosives.

The explosion also caused severe flooding within the warship thanks to the 40ft. hole the explosion left. However, crew members managed to stop the flooding and kept the ship afloat.

The Aftermath Of The Explosion

Following the bombing of the Cole, the US government issued a command to all American warships in the Persian Gulf to leave port and sail to open waters to avoid another attack.

The FBI then sent 100 agents from its Counterterrorism Division, the FBI Laboratory, and many field offices to investigate the explosion. It was later revealed that al Qaeda, which was led by Osama Bin Laden at the time, was the terrorist group behind the bombing.

A combined effort from the US and Yemeni governments managed to capture and arrest several suspects behind the explosion, including Jamal Muhammad Ahmad Al-Badawi and Fahad Muhammad Ahmad Al-Quso - the masterminds behind the attack.

The bombing happened 11 months prior to the 9/11 attack, meaning that the bombing of the USS Cole foreshadowed what was to come at the time.

The USS Cole is still in service to this day.

Related Article: D-Day Anniversary: THese are Some of the US Navy Ships Present During the Normandy Landings
Downing Street today insisted the Government still wants to conclude a trade deal with India by the end of this month.

No10 stuck to a deadline for reaching an agreement with New Delhi by the Diwali festival on October 24.

This is despite suggestions that hopes of a deal had been sunk in the wake of recent remarks by Home Secretary Suella Braverman criticising Indian migrants.

The Cabinet minister expressed her 'reservations' about a relaxation of entry requirements to the UK for Indians as part of a trade deal.

She also pointed to an existing problem with Indians in Britain overstaying their visas.

Ms Braverman's comments are reported to have infuriated New Delhi with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said to have abandoned plans to visit the UK to sign a trade deal this month.

Downing Street today acknowledged no date had been set for a visit by Mr Modi.

But No10 stressed the Government was still hoping to wrap up trade talks in the next two weeks.

'We do want to seek to conclude talks by Diwali,' the Prime Minister's official spokesman said.

'We havent set out any timings for any further inward visits. Obviously, we have an extremely close partnership with India already.'

Hopes of a UK-India deal have sunk in the wake of recent remarks by Home Secretary Suella Braverman criticising Indian migrants

The Cabinet minister expressed her 'reservations' about a relaxation of entry requirements to the UK for Indians as part of a trade deal

Boris Johnson and Indian PM Narendra Modi set the Diwali deadline for getting a trade deal over the line in April this year

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly had earlier sought to play down suggestions of a rift between London and New Delhi and insisted relations between Britain and India remained 'strong'.

'We do have a very strong relationship with India,' he told Sky News.

'One of the hallmarks of a strong relationship is you can have a very straight-talking conversation.'

The Department for International Trade said negotiations with India were continuing despite the reported row over Mrs Braverman's comments.

But a spokesman suggested the Government would only agree a deal once the terms were right.

'We have a close, positive working relationship with India and a thriving trade partnership worth 24 billion in 2021,' a spokesman said.

'We continue to seek improvements to our current trading relationship. This is why we are negotiating a high-ambition free trade agreement.

'We remain clear we wont sacrifice quality for speed and will only sign when we have a deal that meets both countries interests.'

In an interview with the Spectator magazine last week, Mrs Braverman said she had 'some reservations' about reducing visa rules for Indians wishing to come to the UK.

I have concerns about having an open borders migration policy with India because I dont think thats what people voted for with Brexit,' she said.

'I do have some reservations. Look at migration in this country  the largest group of people who overstay are Indian migrants.

'We even reached an agreement with the Indian government last year to encourage and facilitate better co-operation in this regard. It has not necessarily worked very well.

International Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has admitted Britain might not 'get everything' in an agreement with India

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Mr Modi set the Diwali deadline for getting a trade deal over the line in April this year.

Speaking at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham last week, International Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch admitted Britain might not 'get everything' in an agreement.

The UK's dominant services sector has expressed fears it could lose out amid a last-ditch scramble to agree a deal - despite hopes of a big win for Britain's whisky industry through the slashing of tariffs under the agreement.

'It may not be everything that the services sector wants,' Ms Badenoch said.

'We may not get everything, we're not doing a unilateral free-for-all deal.

'But just because we have a free trade agreement it doesn't mean we can't do even more later, so that's the message I would send to the services sector.'
A terrified cyclist has captured the moment an e-scooter rider flew past him at almost 100km/h.

Scott Lewis had been in the bike lane beside Brisbane's Western Freeway when he felt a large rush of air as the speeding rider sped past him.

He caught up with the man further down the track and realised he had fallen from the scooter and was injured. The man then admitted he had been going 94 km/h.

'I had to ask him to repeat it just to make sure that's what he told me,' the cyclist told A Current Affair. 'I just couldn't believe my ears.'

Scott Lewis (pictured) had been travelling on a bike lane beside Brisbane's Western Freeway when he felt a large rush of air as the speeding rider came up close beside him

In GoPro footage captured on Mr Lewis's bike, the e-scooter rider justifies his speed by explaining he had been trying to get to work.

'It's too dangerous man,' Mr Lewis tells him. 'For you and other people on the track.'

The man had broken the speed limit for cars on the Western Freeway, which is 90km/h, while also surpassing the speed for e-scooters, which is 25km/h.

When riders rent e-scooters from the city their speed is capped, however those who buy their own can travel at breathtaking speeds.

Queensland Police are cracking down on riders who break the speed limit and say more people are being injured in accidents every day.

In GoPro footage captured on Mr Lewis's bike, the E-scooter rider justifies his speed by explaining he had been trying to get to work (pictured, GoPro footage of the confrontation)

Acting Sergeant Duncan Hill said he had caught at least two riders going faster than 60km/h on major roads near the Brisbane CBD.

Riders can be fined $194 for speeding, and an extra $137 for not wearing a helmet.

The increased risk for both pedestrians and cyclists on shared footpaths, as well as a number of e-scooter fatalities has seen calls for the devices to be banned.

Last month, a 19-year-old Laura Wallace died after she was thrown from her e-scooter into an intersection and suffered fatal injuries.

It's understood the e-scooter Ms Wallace was riding was not from a Canberra public-hire operator.

Jay Wallace (pictured left) posted a series of images of her daughter Laura (right) following her tragic death

Police revealed the young woman was not wearing a helmet. An investigation into the accident is ongoing (pictured, police examining the woman's e-scooter)

She hadn't been wearing a helmet when she collided with a car on the corner of Drakeford Drive and O'Halloran Circuit on September 25.

Ms Wallace's mother Jay posted a series of images of her daughter on her Facebook page, as did family friend Melanie Steele who remembered her as 'the strongest kid'.

'We loved her, she was us. Many are too young to speak the grief we are feeling. You matter so much,' she said.

Detective Acting Inspector Paul Hutcheson said the teen's death had been preventable and urged 'vulnerable' riders to wear a helmet at all times.

Last week, another e-scooter death rocked the Melbourne community after Moustafa Abou-Eid died in hospital after losing control of his device.

The 28-year-old had been going over a bump and wasn't wearing a helmet when he crashed and suffered life-threatening injuries.

Rules around the popular devices vary state to state in Australia, with some banning the scooters while others enforce a list of strict requirements on the riders.

e-scooter laws in the Northern Territory, South Australia, Queensland, and Western Australia allow riders to drive E-scooters with a normal driver's license.

However, in the Australian Capital Territory, NSW, Tasmania, and Victoria, riders must complete training before taking the devices for a spin with their e-scooters to meet certain requirements.
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Tory minister Jacob Rees-Mogg's boast he told staff at his Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy department to turn off non-essential lights looked a bit dim today - as MailOnline discovered three floors shining at midnight.

The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, 53, said yesterday he had spoken to civil servants in Victoria Street about saving electricity.

Mr Rees-Mogg said members of the public had 'a responsibility' to use energy wisely because the Government was helping with bills this winter.

He particularly singled out groups involved in the sector to 'lead by example' and that he had told his own department to do the same.

But the memo did not appear to have landed in staff in-trays last night as plenty of lights were still on in the seemingly empty storeys of the office block.

After being shown MailOnline's pictures a BEIS spokesperson said: 'Lights in our headquarters are motion-activated, so will be set off overnight by security patrols.

They are not lit if there are no staff in the area. Some lighting in the reception and emergency escape staircases remain on for safety reasons, and we are shortening the time it takes for lighting set off by sensors to switch back off again.'

The BEIS building at 1 Victoria Street in London was hardly shrouded in darkness at midnight despite Mr Rees-Mogg's urgings

Earlier at 11pm last night lights were still on even though Mr Rees-Mogg had told staff they had to turn off the lights at work

Mr Rees-Mogg said on Wednesday he thought companies involved in business should set an example in current times

Yesterday Mr Rees-Mogg revealed he had urged civil servants to switch off non-essential lights at night.

He said: 'People have a responsibility, particularly when the Government is providing a significant intervention to help them pay their energy bills, to use energy wisely.

'I can confess I have asked the office in Victoria Street for BEIS to ensure the lights that aren't needed are turned off.

'The building externally shows some lights at night for the stairwells and fire exits which you have to do.

'But I think companies that are involved in energy probably want to lead by example,' he added to LBC

Gas prices have rocketed across Europe and Britain following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which have in turn driven up the cost of electricity.

Mr Rees-Mogg said yesterday that he thought 'Companies that are involved in energy probably want to lead by example'

Rees-Mogg 'I confess I have asked the office in Victoria Street for BEIS to ensure the lights that aren't needed are turned off'

At 7pm the majority of the building's lights are still on as civil servants - the ones not working from home - ended working day

Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg signed off a 15million public information campaign that would encourage people to take simple measures like turning off radiators in empty rooms and switching the heating off when they go out.

Electricity prices are typically set by gas, so the measure would apply to low-carbon generators that sell their power at those soaring prices but do not need to buy expensive fuel.

It comes weeks after the Government announced a cap which limits household energy bills to 34p per unit of electricity and 10.3p for each unit of gas they use.

It happened less than a week after the Tories were embroiled in a row over how to help the country deal with a potential winter power crisis after Liz Truss vetoed a public information campaign for being too 'nanny state'.

Backbench MPs attacked No10's decision to nix a 15million plan advising people to turn off the heating in unused rooms, and when they leave the house, that had been approved by Business Secretary Mr Rees-Mogg.

Allies of the Business Secretary said the Beis public information campaign would have been 'light touch' and help save up to 300 per household but it has been stamped on by Liz Truss's No10 operation for being too 'interventionist' and replicating information available elsewhere.

But the decision sparked unease on the backbenches from MPs already fractious over the PM's financial plans during her first month in power.

Former minister Guy Opperman tweeted: 'Fully behind an energy saving campaign ... reduction in energy helps constituents save money and saves the taxpayer money, as the public sector should lead the way. Reduce usage, while we address supply. Government must act....

'This is not nanny state. It is preserving supply, saving money for everyone, and encouraging localism.'

But asked why the Prime Minister might be opposed to a public information campaign on reducing energy consumption, Climate Minister Graham Stuart told LBC: 'Technically, a general campaign about reducing energy would probably make no difference to our energy security. So, that would be a good reason not to do it.

'We're also hesitant to tell people what they should do when we're not a nanny-state government. What we are prepared to do is talk to the big energy users and talk to consumers with smart technology about rewarding them for reducing energy at the peak times.

'The danger is if you had a sort of general ''use less energy'' message that the wrong lessons would be taken on board by people.'

The public information campaign, which had echoes of one fronted by TV cook Delia Smith in the 1970s, was culled as the National Grid warned of possible electricity blackouts this winter as the system struggles to cope with demand.

It launched its own scheme to offer people cashback on their bills if they throttle usage at peak times.

But there was a backlash against those as well because the deal relies on smart meters, which are unreliable and have been installed in around only half of homes and small businesses. It means tens of millions of people will miss out.
The FCC is due to vote to bans all Huawei and ZTE products in the US in concern over the threat the Chinese telecoms giants pose to national security.

Axios obtained a draft of an order by FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel which cites the ongoing threat to US national security as reason to stamp out the products from the US market.

It could have a harmful effect on smaller telecoms giants, who purchase products from the Chinese companies at low cost.

Three other unnamed Chinese firms are also being looked at for their surveillance camera technology, according to Axios. They would also be banned under the order.

Axios obtained a draft of an order by FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel which cites the ongoing threat to US national security as reason to stamp out the products from the US marke

The ban is an indicator of worsening relations between the West and Beijing.

Not only would the ban harm China's leading tech companies by limiting their sales remits, but it also indicates increased suspicion over its spying practices.

It comes after a worrying report which exposed hundreds of secret Chinese police stations around the world, including one in New York City.

Their purpose is to locate dissidents and 'persuade' them to return home.

In addition to banning sales of Huawei products in the US, the government has also restricted exports of US semiconductors to the Chinese. That ban aims to kneecap China's domestic chip industry by starving it of innovation and modern technology

The report by Safeguard Defenders claimed as many as 200,000 Chinese nationals have been 'persuaded' to return home as a direct result of the secret police stations.

The FCC ban would be the first time the FCC has outlawed a product over national security risks.

Huawei and ZTE were first sanctioned by President Trump in 2019.

He banned the sale of their microchips from US products, citing the need to protect 'America's information' at the time. The ban sent the tech stock market tumbling.

Huawei is the largest smartphone manufacturer in the world.

While its products are limited in the US, they are widely available elsewhere and are the phone of choice for many - beating out Samsung and Apple.

In addition to banning sales of Huawei products in the US, the government has also restricted exports of US semiconductors to the Chinese.

That ban aims to kneecap China's domestic chip industry by starving it of innovation and modern technology.

Like Huawei, ZTE has deep ties to the Chinese government - it is partially state owned.
Soon after connecting online, Gregory Lee Roser says a woman he hardly knew asked him to kill a man he hadn't met.

Months later, Roser helped feed Bruce Saunders' body into a woodchipper, a court has heard.

But Roser has told a Brisbane Supreme Court jury that he did not kill Mr Saunders, instead pointing the finger at a 'nasty, murderous' woman and a man allegedly with Mafia connections.

Roser, 63, and Sharon Graham, 61, have pleaded not guilty to murder after Mr Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017.

The Crown alleges Graham asked Roser and another lover Peter Koenig to kill her ex-partner Mr Saunders, 54, and make it look like an accident in a bid to claim his $750,000 life insurance.

Gregory Lee Roser, 63, and Sharon Graham, 61 (pictured), have pleaded not guilty to murder after Bruce Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017

The Crown alleges Graham asked Roser and another lover Peter Koenig to kill her ex-partner Mr Saunders, 54 (pictured), and make it look like an accident in a bid to claim his $750,000 life insurance

Footage has been shown to the jury of Mr Saunders' legs protruding from the chipper at the Goomboorian property near Gympie after clearing trees with Roser and Koenig.

Roser agreed on Thursday that soon after meeting online in March 2017, Graham had asked him to murder Mr Saunders.

'Because he was pissing her off and he had plenty of money,' Roser said.

First she wanted Mr Saunders to be killed at the Nambour home he shared with Graham, Roser said.

He refused but wrote down instructions from Graham on how to get into the house and the dates to do it after she raised her voice.

'I didn't think she was serious at all,' Roser said.

By July 2017, Roser said Graham gave him a gun 'out of the blue' that was provided by Koenig.

'I took it (gun) off her to quiet her down,' he said.

Graham first planned for Mr Saunders to be shot on his way to or near his workplace by Roser, the court heard.

Roser said he again refused but wrote down more notes, with Graham this time detailing Mr Saunders' work schedule.

'Every time I said no to her (about killing Mr Saunders) she ended up chucking a big turn, screaming and yelling and all that,' he said.

Peter Koenig (pictured) is pictured outside Brisbane Supreme Court

Roser said he returned the gun but Koenig and Graham began pressuring him to kill Mr Saunders.

Roser said Koenig suggested suitable secluded spots for murder as the pair drove around but he ruled them out.

He said the drive was one of the occasions Koenig claimed to have killed someone, laughing while telling him he had pushed someone into a meat grinder at an Adelaide abattoir.

Graham had also told him Koenig had 'dangerous criminal associates', Roser said.

'She said Peter had a Mafia connection and he knows people who can ... get rid of you,' he told court.

By mid-October 2017, Roser said Graham shared her plan to kill Mr Saunders while clearing a friend's property, making it look like an accident, using the chipper.

The Crown alleges Graham (right) asked Roser (left) and other lover Koenig to kill her ex-partner Mr Saunders and make it look like an accident, court heard

On the final day of work Roser said he was under pressure with Koenig telling him 'we have to get rid of him' and Graham demanding he 'hurry up and do the job' in abusive texts.

Roser said he still refused and kept working as the sun set before he heard what he sounded like a 'couple of whip cracks or gun shots', thinking it was a falling branch.

He then saw Mr Saunders slumped on the chipper with Koenig telling him 'well, it is done now' before agreeing to help feed the body into the machine.

'I thought if I didn't do anything that he said to I would end up like Bruce,' Roser said.

Mr Saunders' body went through the chipper in 'one go', Roser said.

He said Koenig stopped the machine with Mr Saunders' legs sticking out, telling him 'oh that should be enough'.

Graham has successfully applied for a separate trial.

Roser's trial before Justice Martin Burns continues.
A 'monster' Pakistani businessman who sexually assaulted a woman in a hotel room before claiming 'I didn't know what was allowed here in Britain' has been jailed.

Umair Farooq, 42, let himself into a hotel room in Llangollen, Denbighshire, where a woman was asleep before 'quite cynically' taking advantage of her on May 27 earlier this year.

Mold Crown Court today heard how the victim had left the key in the door, before waking up to find Farooq had entered her room.

She had to push him away before running out of the room to escape.

Simon Rogers, prosecutor, told Mold Crown Court today that Farooq had claimed afterwards: 'Im a Muslim, I wouldnt do that.'

He was a respected businessman and frequent visitor to Britain, but in a victim impact statement read to the court, the woman described him as a 'monster'.

Passing sentence, Judge Rhys Rowlands said: 'Farooq was much older than the woman. It must have been a terrifying experience for her, probably one of the worst nightmares for a young woman to have to experience.'

Farooq was sentenced to four and a half years' imprisonment at Mold Crown Court earlier today

He told the defendant, who had a successful business, that the impact of his 'appalling' behaviour on the victim was 'quite profound'.

Farooq, who earlier pleaded guilty to sexual assault and trespassing with intent to commit a sex offence, was sentenced to four and a half years' imprisonment.

Simon Mintz, defending, earlier said in mitigation: 'He did something which is quite unusual where serious sexual offences are concerned and that is to make a full confession in his interview with the police and follow that up with the earliest possible guilty plea.'
A one-year-old drowned during a family fishing trip after he was left on his own near a lake for just one minute, an inquest heard today.

'Happy little boy' Melvin Gurung spent the day running around playing as his mother, father and relatives caught trout at a premier fishery.

When Melvin's uncle needed to use the toilet, he told the youngster to stay outside the loo - but 60 seconds later he had vanished.

Melvin's 'panicked' family immediately began searching for the boy, but his ex-Army father Bikash and healthcare worker mother Menuka were unable to find him.

Just minutes later, a plain clothes police officer, who had been passing by, screamed out 'no, no!' when he spotted Melvin's red boots in a lake hidden by 4ft reeds and quickly pulled him out.

The little boy, one-year-old Melvin Gurung, accidentally drowned at Manningford Trout Fishery in Wiltshire last November

It it was too late and the 'beautiful' child - just 10 days away from celebrating his second birthday - died.

Today a coroner ruled Melvin's death following the tragedy at Manningford Trout Fishery in Pewsey, Wiltshire, on November 14 was an accident.

When he was found by Wiltshire Police's DC Richard Barratt, his body was just inches from the edge of water, which was as deep as the officer's knees.

The inquest heard Melvin and four members of his Nepalese family travelled from their home in Farnborough, Hampshire, to fish at the farm, where they regularly visited.

One worker at the tranquil fishing site said Melvin was 'running around playing' during the afternoon and was a 'happy little boy'.

Around 4pm, Melvin's parents Mr and Mrs Gurung went to fish at a nearby lake on the site and left him playing with relative Amrit Gurung, who was described as 'like an uncle'.

Amrit told the inquest: 'I played with him a bit and then we went to the toilet.

'He was playing outside and I picked him up and told him I was going to the toilet and to wait there and that I would not be long.

'I was inside for a minute or so.'

Amrit woke relative Nayan, Melvin's uncle who was sleeping in the car. Nayan told the hearing: 'I fell asleep for 10 minutes and woke up to Amrit.

'He said 'I think Melvin got lost, we should go look for him'.

Today it was ruled at Salisbury Coroner's court (pictured that Melvin's death following the tragedy was an accident

'I was shocked... At that time I don't think I fully understood the gravity of the situation, I thought he was hiding in the woods or had been kidnapped.'

Nayan said Melvin's mother and father 'started panicking' when they rushed to tell them.

Melvin's father Bikash said he had only been fishing at another lake for 10 minutes when the alarm was raised.

He instantly hopped in his car and scoured the main road looking for his son, then searched with DC Barratt and PC Jeremy Horner when they arrived minutes later having been on patrol in the area.

DC Barratt had knowledge of the area and spotted Melvin submerged in the water.

Bikash, who is now a lorry driver, told the hearing: 'He was just below the surface and was camouflaged by the tall reeds.

'He looked normal to me, just as beautiful as he always did. I said [to paramedics] take him to a warm place.'

Paramedics desperately tended to Melvin in what was a described as a 'frantic situation' and he was airlifted to Salisbury District Hospital, Wilts, however he was pronounced dead later that day.

At Salisbury Coroner's Court, coroner Ian Singleton said: 'I find the cause of death is drowning.

'Melvin was with his family visiting the trout fishery in the afternoon, he was left unattended for a short while.

'He was found on his back unresponsive in the lake.

'On the evidence, it's not possible to determine the precise sequence of events that led to him being found in the water.'
Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life in prison for the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida where 17 people were killed, including 14 students and three staff members.

The verdict was reached on Thursday after the jury said it could not unanimously agree that Cruz, 24, should be executed. Reuters initially reported that the jury recommended the death penalty, but issued a correction shortly after.

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. The only other option is life in prison.

Cruz sat hunched over and stared down at the table while the verdict was being read. But as it was revealed that the confessed killer would be getting life in prison - not the death penalty - a rare smile spread across his face.

Families and friends of the victims were visibly emotional as they reacted to the verdict. Many shook their heads, looked angry or covered their eyes. Some parents sobbed as they left court.

Jurors returned the verdict of recommending life in prison after just a day of deliberations and a three-months long trial that included graphic videos and photos, heart-wrenching testimony from victims' family members and a tour of the still blood-spattered school building.

Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer, who cannot overrule the jury's recommendation, will formally issue the life sentence on November 1. At that time, relatives, along with the students and teachers Cruz wounded, will be given the opportunity to speak.

Nikolas Cruz, 24,is embraced by Chief Assistant Public Defender David Wheeler and smiles as it was revealed that the confessed killer would be getting life in prison - not the death penalty

The verdict was reached on Thursday after the jury said it could not unanimously agree that Cruz, pictured with Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill, should be executed

Cruz reacts as he waits to hear his fate after pleading guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members and wounding 17 others on February 14, 2018

PARKLAND SCHOOL SHOOTING VICTIMS: Top Row L-R: Jaime Guttenberg, Nicholas Dworet, Martin Duque, Meadow Pollack, Cara Loughran -- Second Row L-R: Alyssa Alhadeff, Luke Hoyer, Joaquin Oliver, Gina Montalto -- Third Row L-R: Alaina Petty, Carmen Schentrup, Peter Wang, Alex Schachter -- Fourth Row L-R: Helena Ramsey, Scott Beigel, Aaron Feis, Chris Hixon

Cruz pleaded guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members and wounding 17 others on February 14, 2018. Cruz said he chose Valentine's Day to make it impossible for Stoneman Douglas students to celebrate the holiday ever again.

The massacre is the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the U.S. Nine other people in the U.S. who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire.

The prosecution during the three-month sentencing trial had argued Cruz's crime was both premeditated as well as heinous and cruel, which are among the criteria that Florida law establishes for deciding on a death sentence.

Cruz's defense team had acknowledged the severity of his crimes, but asked jurors to consider mitigating factors including lifelong mental health disorders resulting from his biological mother's substance abuse during pregnancy.

In the courtroom on Thursday, families reacted to the verdict.

Corey Hixon, the son of athletic director Chris Hixon who was killed in the mass slaying walked out of court hand in hand with a female companion as the verdicts were read out.

Gena Hoyer, whose son Luke was killed in the shootings, closes her eyes during the verdict

Gena Hoyer holds a photograph of her son, Luke, who was gunned down by Nikolas Cruz

Devastated Ilan and Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter died in the slaying, comforted each other as the 17 verdicts were detailed in court

Ilan Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa was shot eight times, said that the decision 'sets a precedent' for the next mass killing

Ilan Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa was shot eight times, said that the decision 'sets a precedent' for the next mass killing.

He said: 'I'm disgusted with our legal system, I'm disgusted with those jurors. I'm disgusted with the system.'

Other relatives had their heads in their hands as they listened to the outcome of the three-month sentencing hearing.

A woman was seen appearing to mouth unbelievable as she was comforted by her husband as the verdicts were read out.

Gina Montalto's parents began clutching each other's hands before the reading began, and they started crying through the reading. Luke Hoyer's mother was also crying.

Jaime Guttenberg's father and Alaina Petty's mother were holding their heads in their hands.

Corey Hixon, son of athletic director Chris Hixon who was killed, listens as the verdict is read

Corey Hixon had to be walked out of court as the verdicts were read out loud

Jaime Guttenberg's father reacts to the verdict on Thursday

During their seven hours of deliberation, jurors only asked for a readback of one testimony - the prosecution's cross-examination of a defense psychologist who said Cruz suffers from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

They later requested to see the AR-15 that Cruz used in the shootings.

There was objection from the Broward Sheriff's Office on providing the jury with the gun, for 'security reasons,' but just before day two of deliberations began on Thursday, it was decided the gun would be shown without the firing pen.

The gun, which Cruz purchased legally in 2017, was previously shown to the jury during witness testimony back in July.

Broward sheriff's Sgt. Gloria Crespo previously testified that Cruz, then 19, had five gun magazines remaining in the vest, containing 160 total bullets. He had fired more than 100 shots as he stalked the three-story building for seven minutes, firing down hallways and into classrooms.

The jurors also were shown photos Crespo took of the bodies of five students and a teacher who died on the third-floor, all with multiple wounds from being shot at close range.

Cruz's massacre is the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the U.S. Nine other people in the U.S. who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire.

Closing arguments from both sides concluded earlier this week with the prosecution - which is calling for the death penalty - portraying Cruz as a calculating and brutal murderer. Meanwhile, Cruz's defense attorney pleaded for mercy and the only other option - life in prison.

Cruz, by his own admission, said he began thinking about committing a school shooting while in middle school, about five years before he carried out the Valentine's Day tragedy.

He said he picked Valentine's Day to make sure it would never be celebrated at the school again.

Nikolas Cruz, who will soon learn if he'll receive a death sentence or be sent to prison for life, is seen on security footage inside the school in 2018 when he carried out his rampage. Now, on the second day of deliberations, jurors have asked to view the AR-15 he used in the shootings

Back in July during witness testimony, Assistant State Attorney Mike Satz showed the jury and the court the AR-15, which was purchased legally in 2017, that was used in the tragic massacre

Surveillance video shows Cruz inside the school in 2018. Jurors retraced Cruz's path on as he methodically moved from floor to floor, firing down hallways and into classrooms

Almost exactly a year before the rampage, he purchased his AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle and his planning became serious about seven months in advance as he researched previous mass shooters, saying he tried to learn from their experience.

During closing arguments on Tuesday, attorneys for both sides wrapped up three months of testimony in one last push for either a death sentence or life in prison.

The prosecution and the defense agreed that his 2018 attack that killed 17 people was horrible, but disagreed in their closing arguments on whether it was an act of evil worthy of execution or one of a broken person who should be imprisoned for life.

Lead prosecutor Mike Satz kept his case simple for the seven-man, five-woman jury. He focused on Cruz's eight months of planning, the seven minutes he stalked the halls of a three-story classroom building, firing 140 shots with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, and his escape.

He played security videos of the shooting and showed gruesome crime scene and autopsy photos. Teachers and students testified about watching others die. He took the jury to the fenced-off building, which remains blood-stained and bullet-pocked.

Cruz's lead attorney Melisa McNeill and her team never questioned the horror he inflicted, but focused on their belief that his birth mother's heavy drinking during pregnancy left him with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Their experts said his bizarre, troubling and sometimes violent behavior starting at age 2 was misdiagnosed as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, meaning he never got the proper treatment. That left his widowed adoptive mother overwhelmed, they said.

Judge Elizabeth Scherer who cannot overrule the jury's recommendation, will formally issue the life sentence on November 1

Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill along with other members of the defense team enter the courtroom as the jury begins their second day of deliberations

The defense cut its case short, calling only about 25 of the 80 witnesses they said would testify. They never brought up Cruzs high school years or called his younger half-brother, Zachary, whom they accused of bullying.

In rebuttal, Satz and his team contended that Cruz did not suffer from fetal alcohol damage but has antisocial personality disorder - in lay terms, he's a sociopath. Their witnesses said Cruz faked brain damage during testing and that he was capable of controlling his actions, but chose not to. For example, they pointed to his employment as a cashier at a discount store where he never had any disciplinary issues.

Prosecutors also played numerous video recordings of Cruz discussing the crime with their mental health experts where he talked about his planning and motivation.

People are brought out of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School after the shooting

Medical personnel tend to a victim outside of Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland

Cruz was just 19 years old and had been expelled from Marjory Stoneman Douglas at the time of the massacre. In his guilty plea, he said he was 'very sorry' and asked to be given a chance to help others.

The shooting stunned the nation and reignited debate on gun control since Cruz had legally purchased the gun he used despite his history of mental issues.

On March 24, 2018, nationwide marches inspired by school shooting survivors and parents of victims brought together 1.5 million people -- the largest public turnout ever in defense of stricter gun control laws in America.

But the Parkland shooting prompted no significant reform and gun sales have continued to rise.

There have been more mass shootings, including one in May that left 19 young children and two adults dead at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

After the latest shootings, Congress did pass legislation to increase funding for school security and mental health care.
It was apparently created by the students themselves, university officials say

The pledge was led by Dr. Robert Englander, the associate dean for undergraduate education, at the school's white coat ceremony

The students committed to 'promoting a culture of antiracism' and acknowledged that the university was built on Dakota land

They also promised to fight 'white supremacy, colonialism, gender binary, ableism and all [other] forms of oppression'

Incoming medical students at the University of Minnesota gave a pledge vowing to 'honor all Indigenous ways of healing'

Incoming medical students at the University of Minnesota were forced to give a pledge vowing to 'honor all Indigenous ways of healing,' including those that have been 'historically marginalized by Western medicine.'

The students also pledged to fight 'white supremacy, colonialism [and] the gender binary' at the school's white coat ceremony on August 19.

In a video from the ceremony, Dr Robert Englander  the associate dean for undergraduate education  could be heard reading the pledge to the new students, donning their new doctor's coats.

It has been criticized by renowned critical race theory opponent Christopher Rufo, who tweeted out the video on Tuesday.

He then wrote on Wednesday: 'The most incredible thing about this clip is that the doctor almost certainly doesn't believe in what he's saying.

'But he submits anywaybecause the institutional powers now require otherwise intelligent people to falsify their own beliefs and repeat the left-wing copypasta.'

Dr Robert Englander, the associate dean for undergraduate education at the University of Minnesota's medical school, led the Class of 2026 in a woke pledge a their white coat ceremony on August 19

As part of the pledge, the students vowed to 'honor all Indigenous ways of healing,' including those that have been 'historically marginalized by Western medicine'

The new woke pledge was mocked online by anti-CRT activist Chris Rufo, who tweeted out the video on Tuesday

In the video, Englander notes the campus is located on Dakota land and many Native Americans continue to live in the area.

Englander became the dean of undergraduate studies at the medical school in 2015, after previously working at the Association of American Medical Colleges

But, he said, 'this acknowledgement is not enough,' before saying they must 'recognize inequities built by past and present traumas rooted in white supremacy, colonialism, the gender binary, ableism and all forms of oppression.

The students also committed 'to promoting a culture of antiracism, listening and amplifying voices for positive change' and pledged to honor 'all indigenous ways of healing that have been historically marginalized by western medicine.'

They then vowed to 'embody cultural humility' and affirmed 'that patients are the experts of their bodies.'

And the students concluded by saying: 'We are honored to accept these white coats.

'In light of their legacy as a symbol of power, prestige and dominance, we strive to reclaim their identity as a symbol of responsibility, humility and loving kindness,' a handout from the school reads.

The students also had to recognize that the campus was built on Dakota land

After a video of the pledge was posted online recently, it was ridiculed by users online, with many saying they will no longer go to a doctor who got their diploma from the school

The pledge is now being ridiculed online, with many Twitter users saying they will no longer go to a doctor who got their diploma from the University of Minnesota.

One Twitter user wrote that the school 'does not care about actual medicine,' saying: 'CRT is more important to them [than] the health of their patients.'

Another said he 'paid for and earned my MD or DO' but would not 'recite that tripe, and if they tried to withhold my degree, I'd sue them into oblivion,' while a third user wrote that he is 'struggling to imagine how it must feel to spend years learning everything modern science and empiricism can teach about the human body, only to be told to honor aromatherapy, crystals, trepanation, etc.'

He compared it to an 'astronomer being told the earth is the center of the universe.'

But university officials say the pledge was created by the students themselves.

Media relations manager Kat Dodge told Campus Reform that 'it is common practice at medical schools in the United States to build upon the intent of the Hippocratic Oath to promote humility, integrity and beneficence.

'Each year at the University of Minnesota Medical School, the incoming students work with faculty to write an oath that reflects these core elements, values and ethics the class aspires to uphold.'

University officials say members of the Class of 2026 wrote the pledge themselves

Dr. Englander then led the pledge at the ceremony back in August in his role as the associate dean for undergraduate education at the medical school.

Englander started his career as a pediatric intensivist at the University of Maryland, where he served as education director for the division of critical care medicine.

He was later promoted to associate program director for the residency training program and the director of undergraduate medical education for the Department of Pediatrics.

Englander then moved to Connecticut, where he worked at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and Connecticut Children's Medical Center.

There, he was an associate residency program director, eventually becoming the vice president for quality and patient safety.

More recently, Englander worked at the Association of American Medical Colleges, where he led national efforts around competency-based medical education, and worked on the Education in Pediatrics Across the Continuum project, which allowed him to first interact with leaders at the University of Minnesota.

He then joined the faculty at the university in 2015.

'I have always loved the challenge of combining vision with execution of work, and the University of Minnesota is giving me that opportunity,' Englander said in a statement at the time.

'I believe in continuous improvement, celebrating successes and then looking for the next way to improve again,' he continued, noting: 'I wanted to be in a place that dares to imagine that we can do things better, and I believe I have found that environment.'

Englander added: 'All of the steps I've taken in my career have been focused on training and outcomes.

'Now I get a chance to put my experience and passion to work in a way that will have a real impact on the kind of physicians we produce and the care they go on to provide.'
A former shadow minister was suspended by the Labour Party today amid claims she bullied her staff.

Christina Rees, the MP for Neath, has had the whip removed after the party began an investigation into complaints about her behaviour, MailOnline understands.

The 68-year-old, a former judo black belt and international squash player, was shadow Welsh secretary from 2017 to 2020 under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn.

She becomes the 14th independent in the House of Commons - joining others including Mr Corbyn - meaning there are now as many officially unaligned MPs as there are Liberal Democrats.

Christina Rees, the MP for Neath, has had the whip removed after the party began an investigation into complaints about her behaviour, MailOnline understands.

The mother of one was married to ex-Labour minister Ron Davies for 26 years until 1999. A year earlier he hit the headlines when he was mugged by a man he met at a gay cruising area on Clapham Common in London.

In a statement, Rees told the Guardian: 'There has been a complaint made against me to the Labour party, which is under investigation and I am therefore under an administrative suspension until the process is concluded.

'I'm not aware of the details of the complaint but I am fully cooperating with the investigation.'

Ms Rees was elected in Neath in 2015, replacing Blair era minister Peter Hain. She quit as a shadow minister in protest at Jeremy Corbyn and supported rival Owen Smith when he ran against the leader in 2016.

But she returned to the Corbyn fold the following year.

The mother of one was married to ex-Labour minister Ron Davies for 26 years until 1999.

A year earlier he hit the headlines when he was mugged by a man he met at a gay cruising area on Clapham Common in London. He later quit as Welsh secretary for what he said was a 'moment of madness'.
Truth Social goes live on Google Play Store as the Donald Trump-backed application clears content moderation concerns.

After months of back and forth, Google finally approves of Trump's Truth Social roll out in its Play Store, Engadget reports.

Truth Social Raises Content Concerns

Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), the company behind Truth Social, has been approved for distribution and will be available on Google Play Store soon.

The app, designed as Twitter's right-wing conservative counterpart, had problems involving massive glitches, financing, and regulatory investigations.

The Verge reports that Truth Social markets itself as a platform that encourages open conversations that are free and honest during the first launch in February.

However, Google expressed that their biggest concern was that Truth Social allowed violent threats and content that incites racism.

"Apps may be distributed on Google Play provided they comply with our developer guidelines, including the requirement to effectively moderate user-generated content," Google said.

Engadget says that Google requires that applications that want a place in their store need to have policies that prevent abusive behavior and mechanisms that enforce them.

Read More: Trump's Truth Social App Suddenly Became Most Downloaded on App Store

Truth Social Is Bound To Meet A Bigger Audience

According to CNBC, Truth Social has complied and agreed to enforce the content moderation policies and it is now available to 44% of phone users in the United States.

Axios writes the distribution of Truth Social may have a huge implication at the US midterm elections as nearly half of its population relies on Google's system and applications.

Devin Nunes, CEO of Trump Media & Technology Group, said that the development is "a significant milestone in our mission to restore free speech online," Bloomberg says.

However, while waiting on Google's final decision, Truth Social found a way around to make the app available for wide distribution.

In the past few weeks alone, TMTG made a knock-off of the application available for Android users to download straight from their website, according to Axios.

Despite this, Al Jazeera claims that Google Play Store remains the primary and easiest way for Android phones in the US to download their apps.

Nevertheless, Truth Social continues to appeal to a base of people who share the same views as Donald Trump, who restored his social media presence on the platform after his Twitter ban,

CNBC writes that Trump was inspired to create Truth Social after the controversy, following the event of his supporters storming the US Capitol after the previous national elections.

Furthermore, Digital World Acquisition Corp. warned that the company's reputation might be tarnished by its association to Trump, who is facing a federal criminal probe.

The Verge claims that Trump Media is also facing investigations at the moment under the Securities and Exchange Commission for alleged securities violation of a former executive.

Truth Social is not the only app that was flagged by Google for its content moderation policies, as it took Parler out of its stores for the same conditions last January.

Related Article: Truth Social App Ban Wave Starts: Disparaging, Tarnishing Donald Trump's Social Media Is Prohibited
A DEA task force have carried out the largest fentanyl bust in New York City history, blowing out of the water the previous record which was broken just days prior.

Around 300,000 rainbow fentanyl pills and 22 pounds of the drug in powdered form - with a combined street value of $9million - were seized from an apartment in the Bronx, say city officials.

A loaded Tec-9 semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine and a box of ammunition was also discovered in a closet in the apartment, prosecutors said in a press release.

Erickson Lorenzo, 30, and Jefry Rodriguez-Pichardo, 32, were arrested during the bust on Friday. Police allegedly found Rodriguez-Pichardo hanging from a third floor window sill with no fire escape beneath him.

Other items found include 11 GPS devices and a hydraulic device for opening doors.

Just last week 15,000 multi-colored fentanyl pills were discovered hidden in a LEGO box in Manhattan.

The fentanyl seized by the DEA Task Force last Friday - 300,000 rainbow pills and 22lbs in powdered form

A loaded Tec-9 semi-automatic pistol was found in the Bronx apartment where the drugs were recovered along with an extended magazine and a box of ammunition

The most recent bust was lead by the DEA's Long Island Task Force in collaboration with local law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.

Lorenzo and Rodriguez-Pichardo were both arrested at around 6.10am on Friday, October 7.

The two were allegedly in different bedrooms of the third floor apartment and Rodriguez-Pichardo was hanging from the window sill on the outside of the building when DEA agents discovered him.

The 22 pounds of powdered fentanyl was found between the kitchen, bedroom and living room and wrapped in clear plastic packaging, prosecutors say.

The approximately 300,000 multicolored fentanyl pills were inside two closets in the hallway of the apartment, which was located at 4030 Bronx Boulevard, and were organized by color in zip lock bags.

Rodriguez-Pichardo was hanging from the window sill of a third floor apartment at 4030 Bronx Boulevard when DEA agents discovered him

The approximately 300,000 multicolored fentanyl pills were in two closets in the hallway of the apartment, which was located at 4030 Bronx Boulevard, and were organized by color in zip lock bags

Frank Tarentino, the DEA agent in charge of the operation, said: 'There is no question this seizure of poisonous fentanyl saved lives.

'In todays world, the potential to overdose is dangerously high. There is no quality control in these fake pills and it only takes two milligrams of fentanyl to be lethal.'

The DEA have claimed that the rainbow colored fentanyl pills are part of a marketing scheme by Mexican drug cartels to drive addiction among kids and young adults.

They claim the Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel are responsible for mass producing the pills.

Since August these pills, which come in various brightly colored shapes and sizes, have been recovered in 26 states throughout the US, the DEA claim.

Some of the pills in the Bronx apartment looked like pharmaceutical-grade drugs such as Xanax and oxycodone, allegedly part of a scheme by drug trafficker's to deceive consumers.

The 22 pounds of powdered fentanyl was found in the kitchen, bedroom and living room and wrapped in clear plastic packaging, prosecutors say

Fentanyl is the deadliest drug in the US. Of the 107,622 deaths in the country in 2021 66 percent were related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl, CDC data shows.

Fatal overdoses are also on the rise. In 2021 they increased by nearly 15% from 93,655 deaths estimated in 2020.

This record-breaking bust comes around week after 15,000 pills were recovered in Manhattan on September 28. They were hidden in plastic bags in a LEGO box and were being carried in a tote bag by a woman on 10th Avenue, another release from prosecutors said.

New York City Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a statement following that bust: 'Disguising fentanyl as candy - and concealing it in children's toys - will never hide the fact that fentanyl is a deadly poison that harms our communities, our families, and our city.'

However, in the same statement it is indicated that the drugs were merely in the LEGO box 'to deter law enforcement attention,' an apparent contradiction.

On September 28 the fentanyl pills were found in a LEGO box in Manhattan, the NY Special Narcotics Prosecutor said

The DEA have claimed that the rainbow colored fentanyl pills are part of a marketing scheme by Mexican drug cartels to drive addiction among kids and young adults

NY Special Narcotics Prosecutor suggested that the pills were in the LEGO box to 'to deter law enforcement attention'

According to the prosecutors release last week's fentanyl bust in the Bronx was lead by the DEAs Long Island District Office Task Force, the Nassau County District Attorneys Office, the Suffolk County District Attorneys Office, the Hempstead Police Department, the New York State Police, and the Suffolk County Sheriffs Office.
If Hunter lied on his form to buy a gun, he could face five years in prison  he could get another 10 years for possessing a firearm while addicted to drugs

Joe Biden commenting on his son allegedly lying on a form to purchase a firearm could have done more to hurt than help Hunter avoid jail time, according to an expert on the Second Amendment.

The president weighing in on the case during an active investigation, could do more to motivate the U.S. attorney to indict Hunter Biden by bringing more attention to the case, constitutional attorney and law Professor Mark W. Smith told DailyMail.com.

Lying on a federal form to purchase a firearm could result in five years in prison and possessing a firearm as a person addicted to illegal substances could tack 10 more years onto the sentence.

But it's highly unlikely Hunter Biden would ever serve a full sentence, Professor Smith noted.

'Whatever it is, he can be pardoned by his dad,' he said. 'As a practical matter, again, he has certain advantages that you and I would not have if we were in similar situations.'

'So, I think that they can make other decisions that you and I would not be able to make because well, we can't get a pardon from dad.'

Legal scholars claim that President Joe Biden's decision to weigh in on Hunter's gun probe could be a politically move that hurts Hunter's chances of avoiding federal charges

An image found on Hunter Biden's laptop shows him posing naked and holding a semi-automatic firearm by his side

President Biden, 80, appeared to admit on national television Tuesday evening that his son lied when he said he was not addicted to drugs when purchasing a firearm.

Hunter, 52, faces potential charges for allegedly providing a false statement on a federal form.

Biden told CNN's Jake Tapper in a wide-range interview that he is 'proud' of his son for overcoming drug addiction and for writing a book detailing the problems he had with substances.

He also insisted that he was not aware of the gun purchase or Hunter lying on the form about his drug use at the time.

'He came along and said, by the way, this thing about a gun  I didn't know anything about it,' Biden insisted.

'But turns out that when he made application to purchase a gun, what happened was I guess you get asked  I don't guess  you get asked a question, 'are you on drugs, or do use drugs?' He said no. And he wrote about saying no in his book,' the president said in a confusing recount of the events when Hunter bought a firearm.

'So I have great confidence in my son,' he concluded.

A federal case against Hunter was reportedly assembled by agents who must now wait on Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss - a Trump appointee - to decide whether charges should be brought against Biden's only living son.

Tom Fitton, the president of conservative watchdog Judicial Watch, said that Biden weighing in on the case further 'highlights the conflict of interest the Justice Department has.'

'The fact that he [Attorney General Merrick Garland] hasn't appointed a special counsel is a scandal,' he told DailyMail.com.

Fitton also speculated that 'maybe these comments are our conscious political operation to pressure the Justice Department.'

Biden appeared to confirm reports that Hunter (right) lied on a federal form saying he was not addicted to drugs when purchasing a firearm

When asked if Biden helped or hurt the investigation into his son, Smith said it may have been politically advantageous, but could be detrimental legally when it comes to his son avoiding jail time.

He said that Biden deciding to comment on Hunter's gun purchase could be a calculated move putting political considerations  like the midterm elections and a potential 2024 run  above the factors that could land his only surviving son behind bars.

'I think that certainly could be a factor,' Smith said when asked about the prospects. 'And I think it's not a crazy factor.'

'I mean, just step back for a second,' Smith added. 'All these federal laws that we're talking about applying to Hunter Biden, what do they all have in common? Oh, that's right, there are federal laws. Well, who has control over pardons involving violations of federal law? President Joe Biden.'

Professor Mark W. Smith is a Second Amendment scholar who runs the Four Boxes Diner YouTube channel. He said the first family may not be worried about a charge because the president can pardon his son

Politically, Smith said that Biden could gain points by commenting on the case and removing some voters' assumption of guilt with silence. But legally, his comments could motivate the Justice Department to pursue an indictment after the president brought more attention to the investigation.

'I think there's two answers,' he said. 'There is a political answer and there is a technical legal answer.'

'It's not helpful to the Biden family or Joe Biden or to Hunter Biden,' Smith added. 'Talking about Hunter Biden and his potential criminal problems doesn't make Hunter Biden look good.'

'Talking publicly about Hunter in the press might even increase the pressure on the U.S. attorney to prosecute. Why? Because the public conversation put more focus on the issue. And when you put public pressure on any prosecutor, including on the U.S. attorney's office, then that increases the risk of an indictment in my view.'

'A prosecutor might prefer for a case to just die a natural death without having to make a decision to indict, but when there is a bright spotlight on the case, then the prosecutor might have to act and put the legal fight into the hands of a judge and jury to decide the issue.'
A bombshell statement from Saudi Arabia states the Biden administration reached out and pleaded with them to delay the OPEC deal to cut oil production until after the midterms.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said Thursday morning that US officials 'suggested' postponing the decision to reduce output by two million barrels a day by a month until after November 8, when millions of Americans will cast their ballots.

The Kingdom also brushed off suggestions it sided with Russia by insisting it took a 'principled position' on the Ukraine war and said the OPEC decision was entirely based on economics, not politics.

The White House responded furiously hours after the statement, claiming Saudi Arabia is 'trying to spin or reflect' and reiterated that Biden will 're-evaluate' the relationship with the longstanding allies.

Republicans responded by saying it was 'ridiculous' for Biden to blame foreign countries on the hike in gas prices - and urged him to focus on domestic production.

GOP Rep. Tom Tiffany wrote to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demanding Congress hold hearings on if the Biden administration were involved in 'solicitation of a foreign in-kind contribution' as part of the 'midterm campaign efforts'.

The OPEC decision last week has left the Biden administration scrambling and bracing for another spike in gas prices with less than a month before the midterms.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby shot back: 'The Saudi Foreign Ministry can try to spin or deflect, but the facts are simple,' in a statement Wednesday. 'In recent weeks, the Saudis conveyed to us - privately and publicly - their intention to reduce oil production, which they knew would increase Russian revenues and blunt the effectiveness of sanctions.'

'The Government of the Kingdom clarified through its continuous consultation with the U.S. Administration that all economic analyses indicate that postponing the OPEC+ decision for a month, according to what has been suggested, would have had negative economic consequences,' Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said

Last week OPEC+ announced it would cut oil production by two million barrels per day, in a major blow to the Biden administration that for months had asked them to instead increase production. Production cuts are already jacking gas prices back up - $3.91 is the average cost per gallon as of Thursday, up eight cents from when the cut was announced last week.

'The country that benefits the most from this 2 million barrel cut is Russia,' Kirby said in a call with reporters.

The cut 'allows [Putin] to continue to fund his war making machine and it certainly gave him, Mr Putin, a sense of comfort here,' Kirby continued.

On Wednesday State Department spokesman Ned Price refused to confirm reports the Biden administration had begged the Saudis to wait and spare them the political consequences in next month's election.

'I certainly can't confirm that report. What I can confirm is that we conveyed a consistent message to the Saudis: energy supply needs to meet energy demand. We have made the point repeatedly that we have a multiplicity of interests with Saudi Arabia; energy is one of them,' Price said.

'And in the context of those discussions regarding energy, we have had senior members of the administration travel to Saudi Arabia in recent months. This was notthis engagement did not take place solely in the context of October 2022 or September 2022,' he added.

But a Saudi statement released hours later implied that the U.S. did ask for at least a one-month delay.

'The Government of the Kingdom clarified through its continuous consultation with the U.S. Administration that all economic analyses indicate that postponing the OPEC+ decision for a month, according to what has been suggested, would have had negative economic consequences,' bin Farhan Al Saud said.

It was never likely that such a request would have been granted as experts believe that Saudi Crown-Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the cut at least in part to spite Biden and Democrats in the midterm elections.

Biden himself had a controversial meeting with the crown prince, beginning with a fist bump rather than a handshake, in July.

Rep. Michael McCaul, lead Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said that Biden should focus less on Saudi oil and more on production here at home.

'High gas prices are a direct result of President Biden's war on traditional U.S. energy production. Attempting to blame foreign countries every time gas prices rise is ridiculous. Voters won't be fooled,' he said in a statement.

The Texas Republican said the White House's latest quarrel with the Saudis would 'alienate Saudi Arabia and harm U.S. national security.'

Victoria Coates, Donald Trump's former special energy envoy to Saudi Arabia, told DailyMail.com that Biden's 'outsourcing' of the energy secretary is a 'national disgrace'.

Vandenberg Coalition Advisory Board member and Senior Fellow at the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation added that Biden has placed the American people 'at the mercy of foreign wars, dictators and cartels'.

'The proper response is not to cut off arms sales to Saudi Arabia, an ally of more than seventy years that is taking daily direct fire from Iranian proxies in Yemen.

'It is to embrace our potential as a major energy producing nation that can responsibly protect our citizens against shocks in international energy markets.'

After OPEC+ announced the decision, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called the move a 'mistake' and accused the Saudis of 'aligning with Russia.'

The foreign minister said such an accusation is intended to 'distort the facts' and claimed Saudi Arabia has taken a 'principled position' with respect to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Saudi Arabia rejected assertions that it cut oil production to help Russian President Vladimir Putin

Biden himself had a controversial meeting with the crown prince, beginning with a fist bump rather than a handshake, in July.

'The Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would first like to express its total rejection of these statements that are not based on facts, and which are based on portraying the OPEC+ decision out of its purely economic context,' bin Farhan Al Saud said in a statement.

The foreign minister said that Saudi Arabia supports UN resolutions regarding the war and rejects 'any infringement on the sovereignty of countries over their territories.'

'The Kingdom stresses that while it strives to preserve the strength of its relations with all friendly countries, it affirms its rejection of any dictates, actions, or efforts to distort its noble objectives to protect the global economy from oil market volatility,' bin Farhan Al Saud said.

But Kirby said Washington presented Riyadh with analysis showing there was 'no market basis' for production cuts and 'they could easily wait till the next OPEC meeting and see how things developed.'

'Other OPEC nations communicated to us privately that they felt coerced to support Saudi's direction.'

In a press call Kirby said Saudi Arabia had been 'twisting arms' to get other nations to agree to the cut, and 'more than one' had privately expressed concerns about doing so.

Kirby said the U.S. would keep a close eye on the next OPEC meeting in December to see where the Saudis stand on Russian aggression.

The production cut incensed lawmakers, who questioned why the U.S. had been selling arms to the Middle Eastern nation and ignoring human rights abuses and its role in the war in Yemen if it wasn't going to get oil out of the deal.

Biden claimed that Riyadh would face 'consequences' as aides announced the U.S. would be reevaluating its relationship with the Saudis.

'Theres going to be some consequences for what they've done with Russia,' Biden said in a CNN interview aired Tuesday evening.

'I'm not going to get into what I'd consider and what I have in mind,' he added. 'But there will be - there will be consequences.'

But the Saudi statement showed no ill will to the U.S.

'The Kingdom affirms that it views its relationship with the United States as a strategic one that serves the common interests of both countries. The Kingdom also stresses the importance of building on the solid pillars on which the Saudi-US relationship has stood over the past eight decades.'
Kanye West doubled down on his anti-Semitic tweet last night and claimed he was just 'calling out bad business' when he promised to go 'death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE'.

The rapper, who has a history of mental illness, appeared at the Nashville premiere of Candace Owen's new documentary, The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, which accuses the BLM organization of misappropriating millions of dollars in donations.

'Do you think that the comment came just out of the blue? I do feel that in Hollywood when, especially with black entertainers, I've had a lot of bad experiences.

'People use the anti-Semite idea to cover up bad business. To say if you call someone out on bad business then you're being anti-Semitic.

'So I feel happy to have crossed the line of that idea so that we can speak openly about things like getting canceled from the bank.'

JP Morgan Chase broke up with Kanye in this letter that was posted by Candace Owens on Twitter. Kanye has been locked out of his accounts

Kanye West continued his return to Twitter with a disturbing tweet where he suggested he would be 'going death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE' while bringing back his 'White Lives Matter' T-shirt

The rapper, who has a history of mental illness, appeared at the Nashville premiere of Candace Owen's new documentary, The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, which accuses the BLM organization of misappropriating millions of dollars in donations

Kanye's recent troubles began at his Paris Fashion Week show where he sent models down the runway bearing the slogan 'White Lives Matter'.

He too thinks BLM is a scam that conned Americans and millions around the world out of money under the guise of enhancing race equity.

He enraged many but won the support of others who said his assessment was fair, and that he was being unfairly admonished for speaking out.

It took a turn when he then tweeted that he wanted to go 'death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE' days later. He was locked out of his social media accounts and has now been cut off by JP Morgan Chase, the bank where he held the accounts for his label Yeezy.

On his way to a car after the event last night, Kanye doubled down on his comments.

West and Owens both say BLM scammed donors out of millions of dollars

He then made the incorrect claim that he is the 'richest black man in American history' - a title that belongs to Vista Equitys Robert F. Smith.

'A lot of this stuff for me as the richest black man in American history, that put $140million in JP Morgan, and never even had a chance to... not even get to deal with them. We'll speak at a different time,' he said.

In 2021, West was inaccurately described as the richest man in America after Bloomberg reported the valuations of his companies at $6.6billion.

Much of that figure came from sales that hadn't yet been realized and were never an indication of his personal wealth.

JP Morgan Chase has declined to comment on why it cut ties with the rapper.

Yesterday, Owens - a firebrand Republican and Conservative commentator - tweeted on Kanye's behalf, since he has been banned from social media.

She shared a letter that he'd received from the bank that informed him to take his business elsewhere.

Owens and West promoting his White Lives Matter t-shirts at his show in Paris

West on Tucker Carlson's FOX show last week, defending his White Lives Matter t-shirts

'Dear Ye,

'We are sending this letter to confirm our recent discussion with [associate's name] that JP Morgan Chase Bank has decided to end its banking relationship with Yeezy, LLC, and its affiliated entities.

'We ask that you promptly transfer your business to another financial institution before November 21, 2022.'

Owens tweeted: 'Earlier today I learned that @kanyewest was officially kicked out JP Morgan Chase bank.

'I was told there was no official reason given, but they sent this letter as well to confirm that he has until late November to find another place for the Yeezy empire to bank.'

She earlier defended him, claiming his comment 'wasn't anti-Semitic' and that 'honest people' know as much.

'If you are an honest person, you did not think this tweet was anti-Semitic. You did not think that he wrote this tweet because he hates or wants to genocide Jewish people. This is not the beginning of a Holocaust,' she claimed.

Owens' documentary promises to expose the BLM organization's misuse of funds that were donated in 2020, after George Floyd's murder by white cops in Minneapolis.

Among other celebrities who attended the event last night was Kid Rock.

A trailer for the documentary suggests that BLM spent donors' money on prostitutes and strippers, rather than on working to stamp out systemic racism in America.

It has been widely reported how the organization's leaders have spent millions on lavish properties across the country.
An 11-year-old boy is the 'ringleader' of a crime spree in Blackpool, MPs have heard.

Conservative MP Scott Benton made the claim as he raised concerns about a 'gang of teenagers' committing 'hundreds' of offences in an area of the Lancashire seaside town in recent weeks.

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt encouraged Mr Benton, MP for Blackpool South, to seek a debate on how to tackle anti-social behaviour.

He said: 'Residents in the Talbot and Brunswick area of Blackpool have been plagued by anti-social behaviour in recent weeks, with hundreds of different crimes being committed by a gang of teenagers.

Blackpool has been plagued by a gang of children who have gone on a crime wave in recent weeks, committing hundreds of offences, according to Blackpool MP Scott Benton. Pictured is Blackpool Tower

'The ringleader is an 11-year-old boy who has been responsible for over 80 different offences, including assaulting a female police officer.

'Sadly, the efforts of Lancashire Police to bring him to justice have been compromised by Blackpool Council's children's directorate, who refuse to criminalise teenagers.

'Can we have a debate in this House regarding anti-social behaviour, the misery it causes to communities and whether the police have the appropriate powers to tackle these problems?'

Ms Mordaunt - whose own constituency of Portsmouth North has been terrorised by gangs of violent anti-social youths in recent months - replied: 'I'm so sorry that his community are suffering from this series of anti-social behaviour and criminal activity.

'He will know that it takes a team of people to redress this situation, it's about education, it's about the local authority, it's about a good policing approach and I think this will be an excellent topic for a debate, and I'd encourage him to apply for it in the usual way.'

Mr Benton, MP for Blackpool South, claimed efforts to bring the gang's 11-year-old 'ringleader' to justice had been 'compromised' by Blackpool Council's children's directorate, 'who refuses to criminalise teenagers'. Pictured is a file image of Mr Benton speaking at a Commons' debate

MailOnline has approached both Blackpool Council and Lancashire Police for comment.

Mr Benton's claims come a day after Lancashire Police announced it had arrested three children during a week-long crackdown on county lines drugs gangs.

The criminal groups are known to coerce children and vulnerable young adults into transporting narcotics in cities and rural areas.

Lancashire's clampdown came as part of a nationwide week of action by police and saw officers arresting 46 people - including 34 men and nine women, along with the trio of under-18s.

Detectives also seized cash, weapons - including four machetes, six knives and a knuckleduster, mobile phones and a haul of suspected Class A and Class B drugs worth thousands of pounds.

As part of the operation, police also visited and safeguarded 160 vulnerable people and provided educational visits to schools in Lancashire.

Lancashire Constabularys Force lead for County Lines, Becky Smith said: 'We are working harder than ever to crack down on county lines criminals who bring drug dealing and violence into our communities.

'This weeks activity is a snapshot of the work carried out across Lancashire every single day to disrupt those involved in organised crime and tackle county lines.'
If you are reading this, it means that I have committed suicide and obviously failed to delete this post from my queue.

Please don't be sad, it's for the better. The life I would've lived isn't worth living in because I'm transgender. I could go into detail explaining why I feel that way, but this note is probably going to be lengthy enough as it is. To put it simply, I feel like a girl trapped in a boy's body, and I've felt that way ever since I was 4. I never knew there was a word for that feeling, nor was it possible for a boy to become a girl, so I never told anyone and I just continued to do traditionally 'boyish' things to try to fit in.

When I was 14, I learned what transgender meant and cried of happiness. After 10 years of confusion I finally understood who I was. I immediately told my mom, and she reacted extremely negatively, telling me that it was a phase, that I would never truly be a girl, that God doesn't make mistakes, that I am wrong. If you are reading this, parents, please don't tell this to your kids. Even if you are Christian or are against transgender people don't ever say that to someone, especially your kid. That won't do anything but make them hate them self. That's exactly what it did to me.

My mom started taking me to a therapist, but would only take me to christian therapists, (who were all very biased) so I never actually got the therapy I needed to cure me of my depression. I only got more Christians telling me that I was selfish and wrong and that I should look to God for help.

When I was 16 I realized that my parents would never come around, and that I would have to wait until I was 18 to start any sort of transitioning treatment, which absolutely broke my heart. The longer you wait, the harder it is to transition. I felt hopeless, that I was just going to look like a man in drag for the rest of my life. On my 16th birthday, when I didn't receive consent from my parents to start transitioning, I cried myself to sleep.

I formed a sort of a 'f*** you' attitude towards my parents and came out as gay at school, thinking that maybe if I eased into coming out as trans it would be less of a shock. Although the reaction from my friends was positive, my parents were pissed. They felt like I was attacking their image, and that I was an embarrassment to them. They wanted me to be their perfect little straight christian boy, and that's obviously not what I wanted.

So they took me out of public school, took away my laptop and phone, and forbid me of getting on any sort of social media, completely isolating me from my friends. This was probably the part of my life when I was the most depressed, and I'm surprised I didn't kill myself. I was completely alone for 5 months. No friends, no support, no love. Just my parent's disappointment and the cruelty of loneliness.

At the end of the school year, my parents finally came around and gave me my phone and let me back on social media. I was excited, I finally had my friends back. They were extremely excited to see me and talk to me, but only at first. Eventually they realized they didn't actually give a s**t about me, and I felt even lonelier than I did before. The only friends I thought I had only liked me because they saw me five times a week.

After a summer of having almost no friends plus the weight of having to think about college, save money for moving out, keep my grades up, go to church each week and feel like s**t because everyone there is against everything I live for, I have decided I've had enough. I'm never going to transition successfully, even when I move out. I'm never going to be happy with the way I look or sound. I'm never going to have enough friends to satisfy me. I'm never going to have enough love to satisfy me. I'm never going to find a man who loves me. I'm never going to be happy. Either I live the rest of my life as a lonely man who wishes he were a woman or I live my life as a lonelier woman who hates herself. There's no winning. There's no way out. I'm sad enough already, I don't need my life to get any worse. People say 'it gets better' but that isn't true in my case. It gets worse. Each day I get worse.

That's the gist of it, that's why I feel like killing myself. Sorry if that's not a good enough reason for you, it's good enough for me. As for my will, I want 100% of the things that I legally own to be sold and the money (plus my money in the bank) to be given to trans civil rights movements and support groups, I don't give a s**t which one. The only way I will rest in peace is if one day transgender people aren't treated the way I was, they're treated like humans, with valid feelings and human rights. Gender needs to be taught about in schools, the earlier the better. My death needs to mean something. My death needs to be counted in the number of transgender people who commit suicide this year. I want someone to look at that number and say 'that's f***ed up' and fix it. Fix society. Please.

Goodbye,
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Lucy Letby is a 'dedicated nurse' who 'wanted to care for babies she looked after' not murder them, her barrister told her trial today.

Ben Myers KC told Manchester Crown Court there were failings in the care of newborns at Countess of Chester Hospital but 'she should not get the blame' based 'firmly on coincidence'.

On day four of her trial at Manchester Crown Court, where she is accused of murdering seven premature and vulnerable babies, the jury was told Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS.'

Another post-it note said: 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. I am a horrible evil person.'

But Mr Myers insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish, not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children, that she'd done her best to care for'.

He added: 'The fact that Lucy Letby has been present at the time of the deterioration of a child has itself become the explanation of that deterioration, even though there's no evidence to show she has caused that to happen. Miss Letby is adamant she's done nothing intentionally to harm these babies'.

The barrister pointed at his client sitting in the dock and told jurors: 'It is important to be careful that blame is not heaped on that woman when there may be others who have made mistakes or a system which has failed.' He added that absence of evidence 'does not convert into evidence of guilt'.

In some cases, the defence say, no one could say why a particular child deteriorated or died. He said: 'She should not get the blame if she is not responsible and it is amazing, is it not, how with allegations like this everyone turns and focuses on Lucy Letby. Some people, we say at the outset, with the rather trusting presumption because the allegations have been brought that she is guilty, she must be guilty.'

Mr Myers asked the jury to consider the birth condition of the babies Letby is supposed to have harmed, claiming some 'should not have been in the Countess of Chester in the first place'.

He said: 'We are hardly starting from a base line of robust good health. Look very carefully to what's happened on the way to the events we are looking at.' He said identifying problems before they escalate involves doctors and nurses watching, recording and communicating, but this may be difficult if a unit is 'understaffed and over-stretched'.

The evidence emerged on the fourth day of 32-year-old Letby's trial, where she is accused of seven murders and the attempted murders of ten other babies at Countess of Chester Hospital by injecting them with air, milk, insulin or other liquids such as saline or water. She denies all 22 charges and is being supported by her parents Susan and John Letby at Manchester Crown Court.

Lucy Letby (left) is standing trial for murder over the deaths of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Defence Barrister Ben Myers KC at Manchester Crown Court today (right) where he claimed that his client is being unfairly blamed for the deaths of babies at a Chester hospital

The jury was told Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'. But Mr Myers said insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children'

Parents of Lucy Letby, Susan and John Letby, arrive at Manchester Crown Court

Letby (pictured) - who is accused of murdering seven premature babies and trying to kill ten more - took up to three attempts to poison infants by injecting insulin, milk or even air into their tiny bodies, a court heard today

Mr Myers said: 'The defence say that Lucy Letby was a dedicated nurse. She trained hard to be a neo-natal nurse and what she wanted was to care for babies she looked after.

'In no way did she want to harm them. The defence say she is not guilty of causing intentional harm to any baby or to killing any baby.

Full indictment against Lucy Letby Lucy Letby is charged as follows: Count 1 - Charged with murder of Baby A on June 8, 2015 Count 2 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby B between the June 8, 2015 and June 11, 2015 Count 3 - Charged with murder of Baby C on June 14, 2015 Count 4 - Charged with murder of Baby D on June 22, 2015 Count 5 - Charged with murder of Baby E on August 4, 2015 Count 6 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby F on August 5, 2015 Count 7 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 7, 2015 Count 8 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 9 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 10 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 26, 2015 Count 11 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 27, 2015 Count 12 - Charged with murder of Baby I on October 23, 2015 Count 13 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby J on November 27, 2015 Count 14 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby K on February 17, 2015 Count 15 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby L on April 9, 2016 Count 16 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby M on April 9, 2016 Count 17 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 3, 2016 Count 18 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 19 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 20 - Charged with murder of Baby O on June 23, 2016 Count 21 - Charged with murder of Baby P on June 24, 2016 Count 22 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby Q on June 25, 2016 Advertisement

'She loved her job. She cared deeply about the babies and also cared for their families.

'She had a fulfilling life, had friends, a life outside work.

'You won't get the answers to this case looking at this woman in the dock now. This is how she is and where she is six years after starting to face allegations like this.

'You can imagine that must be utterly gruelling for anyone.

'This is an important part of her case. The requirement to keep context in mind and to distinguish how she was when events were said to have taken place, compared to how she is now.

'With these allegations we are dealing with a real person who is where she is now. Anyone who approaches this as some kind of a done deal has got this very badly wrong.'

He then cited the Post-it note, mentioned at the end of the prosecution opening, on which Letby had written, 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'.

Mr Myers said: 'This is the anguished outpouring of a young woman in fear and despair when she realises the enormity of what's being said about her, in the moment to herself.'

Mr Myers said at the time it was written she was dealing with employment issues, including a grievance procedure with the NHS trust.

The Post-it note, again enlarged and shown on screens to the jury, included the words: 'Not good enough. I'm an awful person. I will never have children or marry. Despair' and, 'I haven't done anything wrong'.

Mr Myers said the paperwork and notes found in Letby's possession showed she was the type of person who scribbles things down a lot and hangs on to bits of paper, and 'nothing more extraordinary than that'.

As the fourth day of Letby's trial continues, the court has heard so far:

Letby, 32, denies murdering seven premature babies and attempting to murder 10 more over 12 months. The deaths occurred at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby was arrested three years after the death of her first alleged victim, Baby A;

ICU nurse is alleged to have injected babies with insulin, air or pumped with milk to kill them - often during night shifts when parents were less likely to be there;

Letby allegedly targeted twins on more than one occasion - and in some cases one was murdered and their sibling survived;

She is said to have searched for the families of her alleged victims' parents on Facebook and social media, including on Christmas Day;

In some cases, Letby is alleged to have tried to kill babies on up to four occasions, including two times in one shift;

Nurse was 'smiling' after one child's death and sent her parents a sympathy card, which was 'not normal'; On a separate occasion, a paediatric consultant claimed he walked in on Letby as she was trying to kill a child;

Doctors moved her off night shifts after being concerned about correlation between suspicious deaths and her presence;

Lucy Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest on suspicion of murdering seven babies including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'; Police discovered yellow and green post-it notes in the ICU nurse's Chester house including one that said: 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. I am a horrible evil person.'

She photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after allegedly murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive';

One doctor spoke to Letby before 'Baby P' died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?';

Mr Myers said the jury had been shown Letby's text messages, her Facebook searches on the families of babies she is alleged to have harmed and, 'pieces of paper', and mentioned 'amateur psychology'.

But he said the 'foundation' of the case is medical evidence.

He told the court: 'What the case will come down to is the medical evidence and what it can safely prove and what it can't and what we can safely conclude.'

Mr Myers said causes of a baby's deterioration or death are not always clear and there may be a number of reasons.

Letby 'told doctor, 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?' and photographed brothers lying dead together in a cot' Letby, 32, was today accused of taking a photograph of the dead babies in a cot when they died within 24 hours of each other in June 2016. The nurse allegedly tried to kill their sibling Baby N, who had a blood disorder, on three occasions in 12 days but failed. Letby photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive', the court heard this morning. One doctor spoke to Letby before Baby P died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?', the murder trial was told. The nurse also spent time comforting their heartbroken parents after she allegedly injected air into the tiny bodies of the siblings - known as Baby O and Baby P - to compromise their breathing. Baby P would be the last child she murdered, the court heard. Her final victim Baby Q survived an attack on June 25 2016, it is alleged. She was then taken off frontline duties before being arrested the following month, the court heard. Advertisement

He added that in this case the babies were 'clinically fragile', and in conditions that could change 'very swiftly and deteriorate very rapidly'.

He said there are five key issues in the medical evidence: the birth condition of the baby, whether there were any problems in the health or care of the child, whether the evidence proves deliberate harm was done, whether Letby was present at the relevant time, and whether there were failings in care by other people or the unit as a whole.

Mr Myers showed the jury a prosecution exhibit, a grid with the names of staff on duty across the top and across one side the names of the children allegedly attacked.

An X marked Letby being on duty at the time when a child was said to have been harmed or killed, eight times on day shifts, 16 times on night shifts.

But Mr Myers said this was a 'self-serving document'.

He said it did not show the treatment each child was receiving, the health of the baby in question, collapses by babies when Letby was not present, shortcomings in care of others, how busy the unit was, and what Letby was doing at the time of each event.

Mr Myers said the defence would look at the prosecution's expert medical evidence and whether it proves harm was done deliberately.

He said: 'In cases like this, there's a danger of an expert being drawn into fulfilling an absence of explanation.'

The jury was told this can lead to a 'harm-based' explanation which may not be the only explanation and that this was an example of 'confirmation bias'.

Mr Myers added: 'Doctors don't always have the answers and nor do medical experts.

'The fact that Miss Letby can't explain a particular event does not mean she must be responsible for it.'

Mr Myers then outlined the defence case for each of the counts of murder and attempted murder, adding: 'Miss Letby is adamant she's done nothing intentionally to harm these babies.'

He said with Baby A, the first murder count, the defence does not accept that an air embolus, or air bubble, was the cause of death. Letby is accused of injecting air into the child.

Mr Myers said the 'polite' way of describing the care of child A on the unit was 'sub-obtimal'.

With Baby B, who was Baby A's twin sister, who Letby is accused of trying to kill, it was a 'good example' of the 'assumption of guilt' and experts had been 'influenced by the theory of harm'.

Baby C was a baby boy Letby is alleged to have murdered by injecting him with air through a nose tube.

Mr Myers said C was a 'very premature' baby, born at 30 weeks and weighing only 800g.

He said such babies were vulnerable, especially to infection, and C should have been at a specialist children's hospital.

Baby D was a baby girl Letby is alleged to have murdered with air.

Mr Myers said the hospital failed to provide adequate care.

He said it is 'beyond dispute' that Baby D should have been given antibiotics hours before she was treated with them, and there was more evidence that infection played a part in her death rather than Letby killing her with air.

Children's nurse Lucy Letby (pictured left and right), 32, is alleged to have gone on a year-long killing spree while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Police found notes in her home including one that said: ''I AM EVIL I DID THIS'

Lucy Letby 'tried to murder her final baby victim after injecting him with excess air and either water or saline' The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25, 2016, the day after she allegedly killed Baby P. The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him. The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor. Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'. The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets. 'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role. 'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.' The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard. Following that review, the decision was made to arrest Lucy Letby on July 3 2018, said Mr Johnson. Advertisement

Ben Myers KC told jurors the Crown alleged Letby injected Baby E with a fatal amount of air and attacked him in front of his mother.

He said: 'We say there is no clear explanation in his case for what happened. That being so, it is not right to rely on the assumption of guilt.'

He next turned to allegations that Letby attempted to murder Baby F - the twin brother of Baby E - and Baby L by poisoning them with insulin. The barrister said there was 'nothing in fact' to establish any such actions.

Baby G - who Letby is accused of attempting to murder on three occasions - was an 'extremely premature' baby who was 'high risk' with predicted problems, he said.

The defence did not accept Letby did anything to contribute to Baby G's health problems in the neonatal unit.

Baby H, said to be have been attacked by Letby twice, was another example of 'sub-optimal care' by the Countess of Chester Hospital and 'nothing to do with Lucy Letby', he said.

Ben Myers KC said the defence did not accept Letby caused any harm to Child I, a baby girl she is said to have tried to kill on three occasions before she succeeded on the fourth attempt.

He said: 'We will say her collapses and ultimately death were part of a series of clinical problems which may well have been inevitable given her extreme prematurity.'

Mr Myers said the Countess of Chester Hospital was 'well out of its depth' with Child J - who Letby is said to have tried to murder - and knowing how to treat her.

He said an assumption of deliberate harm had been made rather than an alternative explanation of a baby receiving inadequate care.

Child K - subject of another count of attempted murder - was said to have been harmed with the deliberate dislodging of a breathing tube, but Mr Myers said the probable cause was the child inadvertently moving the tube herself.

Her case was another example of 'sub-optimal care' in that she should have been treated at a more specialist unit, Mr Myers said, adding: 'She should not have been in the Countess of Chester in the first place.'

Lucy Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest on suspicion of murdering seven babies including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS', a court heard today.

Police discovered yellow and green post-it notes in the ICU nurse's Chester house including one that said: 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. I am a horrible evil person'.

The words 'Hope, Panic and Fear' were among other words crowded on to a piece of paper, which also read: 'I will never have children or marry. I'll never know what it's like to have a family'. Some of the other scribbled lines included the word 'HATE' in capitals, along with 'There are no words', 'I can't breathe' and 'Kill'.

Concluding the prosecution opening, which began on Monday, Nick Johnson KC showed a yellow Post-it note on TV screens to the jury, and said: 'She wrote, 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough'. 'I am a horrible evil person' and in capital letters, 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'.'

Mr Johnson said it was found after Letby was arrested in July 2018. Her house on Westbourne Road in Chester was searched, 'interesting items' were discovered, he said.

'But I want to show you one note in particular,' Mr Johnson told jurors. Highlighting the yellow Post-it note with the words written in ink by Letby. Referring to her words, including about being 'evil', Mr Johnson said to the jury: 'Well, ladies and gentlemen, that in a nutshell is your task in this case. Whether or not she did these dreadful things is the decision you will have to make when you have heard all the evidence.'

But opening the defence case this afternoon, Letby's barrister, Ben Myers KC, insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children, that she'd done her best to care for'.

She photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive', the court also heard this morning. One doctor spoke to Letby before Baby P died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?', the murder trial was told.

The nurse also spent time comforting their heartbroken parents after she allegedly injected air into the tiny bodies of the siblings - known as Baby O and Baby P - to compromise their breathing. Baby P would be the last child she murdered, the court heard. Her final victim Baby Q survived an attack on June 25 2016, it is alleged. She was then taken off frontline duties before being arrested the following month, the court heard.

Concluding the prosecution opening, which began on Monday, Mr Johnson said: 'I have already told you that the police found a large quantity of hospital paperwork relating to many of the children whose deaths and collapses you are now considering.

'They also found some other interesting items. There were some Post-it notes with closely-written words, some of which included the names of some of her colleagues.

'On some of the notes were phrases like as 'Why/how has this happened - what process has led to this current situation.

''What allegations have been made and by who? Do they have written evidence to support their comments?'

'In her writings, she expressed frustration at the fact that she was not being allowed back on to the neo-natal unit and wrote, 'I haven't done anything wrong and they have no evidence, so why have I had to hide away?'

'And notes also expressed concern for the long-term effects of what she feared was being alleged against her and there are also many protestations of innocence'.

Letby, 32, was today accused of taking a photograph of the dead babies in a cot when they died within 24 hours of each other in June 2016. The nurse allegedly tried to kill their sibling Baby N, who had a blood disorder, on three occasions in 12 days but failed.

In total, she is accused of murdering seven premature babies and attacking 10 more over a year by poisoning them with insulin, injecting air into their bloodstreams or over-feeding them milk.

Baby P suffered a sudden and 'acute deterioration' before preparations were put in place to move him to another hospital, the court heard today.

Just before the planned transfer, a doctor was said to be 'optimistic' about his prospects but then 'all of a sudden Lucy Letby said to him something like 'he's not leaving alive here, is he?'', said prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said today. Shortly after that exchange Baby P collapsed and died, Manchester Crown Court heard.

The KC said said: 'That remark surprised (the doctor) but Lucy Letby's prediction came true. After all, she knew what she had done to him and therefore she knew what was likely to happen. It is certainly what she intended because it was something she had done to so many other children.'

A coroner recorded the death as 'prematurity' but independent experts who were tasked with reviewing Child P's case said the most likely cause was air injected into his stomach which compromised his breathing.

After Child P's death, Letby spent time with his parents and took a picture. She denies murdering seven babies and the attempted murder of ten more.

Pediatrician Dr Sandie Bohin and fellow expert witness Dr Dewi Evans arrive at Manchester Crown Court for Day 4 of Letby's trial

The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25 2016, the day after she allegedly killed baby P.

The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him.

The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor.

Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'.

The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets.

'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role.

'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.'

The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard.

Letby's parents, Susan and John, are supporting her at her six-month trial at Manchester Crown Court.

She denies all 22 charges. The hearing continues
The teen is still in critical condition in the hospital fighting a high fever

Police confirmed Cantu's car had a license plate registered to a different vehicle, but have not confirmed whether it was stolen

The officer said he believed Cantu's car had been stolen

Brennand has been fired and charged with two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant and was released after posting bail

DailyMail.com can reveal that Brennand slapped handcuffs on Cantu after he opened fire and while the teen was on the pavement gasping for air

Rookie San Antonio cop James Brennand, 25, shot 17-year-old Erik Cantu as he sat in his car eating a cheeseburger in a McDonald's parking lot

Rookie cop James Brennand slapped handcuffs on seriously wounded 17-year-old Erik Cantu after shooting him up to five times in a McDonald's parking lot, DailyMail.com can reveal exclusively.

Then the San Antonio officer ordered Cantu's female passenger to 'turn around.'

At the time, Cantu had already gotten out of his 2008 BMW 1281 and was keeled over on the pavement gasping for air, according to the girl's horrifying account shared exclusively with DailyMail.com.

The girl, also 17, miraculously wasn't hit in the barrage of 10 bullets, fired by the cop who has since been fired and criminally charged for his actions.

Rookie San Antonio cop James Brennand, 25, shot 17-year-old Erik Cantu as he sat in his car in a McDonald's parking lot

Cantu, who was shot several times by Brennand as he sat in his car eating a McDonald's cheeseburger, is currently on life support after several of his organs were punctured during the shooting

DailyMail.com can reveal that Brennand slapped handcuffs on Cantu after he opened fire and while the teen was on the pavement gasping for air

Cantu is still in the hospital on life support, family attorney Brian Powers told DailyMail.com Thursday.

'He is currently fighting a high fever and remains attached to mechanical ventilation,' said Powers.

He said Cantu's family is grateful for the prayers and messages of support they have received.

And in a statement from the family, he said: 'Erik feels your presence. Please continue to believe and hope that our boy opens his eyes soon.'

The girl was in the front passenger seat when Cantu drove to McDonald's on Blanco Road in San Antonio late on October 2.

She has been left in shock and is also feeling some guilt because it was her decision to eat outside the fast food restaurant that night.

Cantu, who she is dating, wanted to dine inside, but she was tired and pleaded with him to use the drive-through so they could just eat in the car, sources said.

After picking up their order at the window, they parked in the lot and were listening to music as Cantu took his first few bites.

Brennand is pictured in a mugshot after turning himself into police before posting his $200,000 bail

That's when the cop spotted the maroon car and reportedly suspected it was stolen.

Police confirmed Cantu's car had a license plate registered to a different vehicle, but have not confirmed whether it was stolen.

Brennand abruptly opened the door and demanded Cantu get out.

The girl has said they were both startled and fearful, not understanding what was happening, sources told DailyMail.com.

Brennand's bodycam footage shows the initial encounter.

As Cantu questioned the officer's orders, he attempted to put the car in reverse and the door caught Brennand, who rapidly fired several shots into the driver's side of the vehicle.

Cantu tried to drive away, but Brennand continued shooting, firing a total of 10 shots, four or five of which hit the teen.

The girl heard the loud cracks of gunfire as they drove off. They then stopped a block away.

The girl helped Cantu unfasten his seat belt, and they both stepped out. Cantu was holding his shot arm, not knowing he'd been hit elsewhere .

'He thought it was just his arm,' a source said.

He was crying 'help' and telling her to 'call an ambulance,' the source added.

She cradled his head on her lap on the pavement. She saw blood coming from his stomach and was also screaming out for help.

The officer caught up with them moments later. According to the girl's account, Brennand cuffed Cantu's hands behind his back, while telling her to look away.

While it is standard procedure for cops to handcuff a suspect even before administering aid to avoid potentially unruly behavior, several people close to Cantu told DailyMail.com they found it wildly inappropriate given the officer is the one who repeatedly shot the unarmed teen.

They also found it bizarre that hed be telling his passenger to look away, regardless of his intention.

Authorities have yet to release the bodycam footage of the cuffing. They say Brennand administered CPR while he waited for paramedics.

According to his LinkedIn page, Brennand previously served in the US Army as a military dog handler. He enlisted in 2016. Brennand was stationed outside of Seattle

Brennand and his wife Danielle Arnold pictured in a photoshopped image created by their realtor when Arnold could not be present when the pair closed on a home in 2021

Law enforcement initially charged Cantu with evading arrest and assault on a police officer, but those charges have since been dropped.

Cantu remains under sedation on life support at University Hospital in San Antonio, where he has had to undergo a number of surgeries to repair major organs that were damaged by the gunfire.

Brennand, 25, a probationary officer, has been fired by the police department and charged criminally with two counts of aggravated assault by a peace officer.

He turned himself in to police Tuesday night and was released the next day after posting a $100,000 bond.

He is a married former soldier who was commended for his firearm skills while in the police academy.

Eric Cantu pictured on his Facebook page in September 2022. He is still in critical condition

Family attorney Powers said that Cantu faces a long road to recovery but that his family are thankful for the prayers they have received.

'Erik and our family would like to thank all of our family, friends, the great city of San Antonio and everyone around the world that has sent their heartfelt prayers and blessings,' Powers said in a statement.

'Erik is still in critical condition and is being monitored closely. Surgeries were performed to repair injures to a few major organs as a result of the penetration of multiple bullets. Erik is currently on a life support system that is keeping his lungs operating and remains on a vast amount of sedatives to hopefully ease the discomfort and pain.

'He has a great medical staff that has been working diligently around the clock to provide him great care. Erik is struggling and we know that recovery will not be easy for him. Every moment is critical and the uncertainly is quite painful. We ask that everyone please keep Erik in your thoughts and prayers.'
Convicts including murderers sent to fight for Russia in Ukraine have been officially pardoned of their crimes after being badly wounded on the frontlines.

Stanislav Bogdanov, 35, who was a decade into a 23-year sentence for killing a magistrate when he agreed to go fight for the Wagner mercenary group, was filmed receiving his pardon after losing his right leg from the knee down.

He was pardoned alongside Andrey Arteev, 35, a robber who also lost his leg, and Rustam Borovkov, 31, a hijacker who lost his right arm.

Meanwhile Russia confirmed five mobilised soldiers have been killed in Ukraine, the first known to have died after Putin began drafting men three weeks ago.

Stanislav Bogdanov, 35 (circled left) is a convicted murderer who went to fight for Wagner in Ukraine and had his leg blown off, meaning he has been pardoned and can go free

The soldiers, who were not named, came from the city of Chelyabinsk near the border with Kazakhstan, local outlet 74.ru reported.

'Unfortunately, the military commissariat confirmed the information about the death of five South Uralsmen,' the local governor's office said.

Meanwhile, Russian state media also published footage of four soldiers receiving pardons after being wounded.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, a man dubbed Putin's chef because he provides catering to the Kremlin, has been offering prison inmates clemency in return for six months fighting with his Wagner mercenary group in Ukraine.

He has been filmed in prisons warning men that the only way out of his private army is to retire or in a coffin.

Bogdanov was one of those who signed up, having been convicted of beating magistrate Sergey Zhiganov to death in the city of Veliky Novgorod ten years ago while trying to steal bank cards.

Bogdanov (circled right) is pictured alongside Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin (centre) and his fellow pardoned combatants

Also pardoned were Andrey Arteev, 35 (front left), a robber who also lost his leg, and Rustam Borovkov, 31 (back right), a hijacker who lost his right arm.

He explained how he and his comrades had come under fire from a Ukrainian tank while trying to hold a position.

One of his fellow soldiers was shot by the tank, and the second shot mangled his leg, leaving him bleeding to death.

But other soldiers came to save him, he explained: 'Thanks to the guys who pulled me out and didn't leave me. They risked their lives to save mine. I am very grateful.

Explaining why he went to war, Bogdanov added: 'I wanted to try and change my life. This only happens once in a lifetime.

'Maybe I was created for something else, and not just to serve a sentence and spend the rest of my life there. The training was really hard.'

Another convict Andrey Arteev, 35, had been imprisoned for theft, robbery and extortion, and was near the start of a five year sentence.

He denied being 'cannon fodder' at the front but admitted he was wounded by an exploding mine.

'My leg was torn off,' he said. 'I survived, that's the most important thing.

Stanislav Bogdanov (left) and Vladimir Gutman (right) agreed to exchange their prison sentences in return for six months on the frontlines in Ukraine

'I am so grateful to those guys who reacted quickly, applied a tourniquet, gave me an anaesthetic injection and got me out.'

He, like Bogdanov, said he would have stayed with the Wagner group if not for his injury. 'I found a family,' he said.

An unseen official in a video from Prigozhin's Ria Fan media outlet hands out pardons and military awards to the convicts.

'You have earned this pardon with your blood and sweat - and your heroism,' he said.

Pardoned, too, was Rustam Borovkov, 31, serving 13 years for robbery and hijacking, who lost his right arm.

All prisoners recruited as fighters who survive six months will be pardoned under the Putin scheme.
A former pub landlord denied sending thousands of pounds in coronavirus bounce back loans to fund ISIS in Syria and possessing videos which would be 'useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism'.

Tarek Namouz, of no fixed address, appeared at Kingston Crown Court in south-west London on Thursday via video-link from Wandsworth jail.

The court heard that the 42-year-old is accused of entering into an arrangement for money or other property to be made available to another which may be used for terrorism.

Namouz pleaded not guilty to eight counts of entering into funding an arrangement between November 13 2020 and May 25 2021.

He also pleaded not guilty to two counts of possessing terrorist information in the form of two videos, which the court heard was likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, on May 25 2021.

A trial, expected to last two weeks, has been set to begin at Kingston Crown Court on November 21.

Namouz, who spoke only to confirm his name and to enter his pleas, was remanded in custody.

Former pub landlord Tarek Namouz, 42, pleaded not guilty to sending Covid-19 bounce back loans to ISIS and will go on trial at Kingston Crown Court in November

In May 2020, six weeks into the UKs first coronavirus lockdown, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak launched the bounce back loan scheme.

In total 47bn was paid out in loans to help keep small British businesses afloat during the unprecedented lockdown.

In a previous hearing at the Old Bailey, prosecutor Jonathan Polnay said that, in summary, it is alleged the defendant sent 'the proceeds of coronavirus bounce back funding loans to ISIS'.

Tyrone Smith, KC, defending, said: 'It is intended that the matter should be contested.'

Mr Justice Sweeney said it was a 'serious case' which would be heard by Judge Peter Lodder, the Recorder of Richmond sitting at Kingston Crown Court.
Destitute Syrian refugees who asked for donations by livestreaming in TikTok received only a third of the total donated amount, a report said.

Children of displaced Syrian families livestream in TikTok, begging for help. These children got the attention of some social media users and sent digital gifts with an equivalent cash value.

The problem was only a shard of the total donated amount was received by the refugees, a BBC report said.

Syrian Refugees Received Only a Small Portion

In a new investigation, BBC used some 30 TikTok accounts livestreaming from Syrian refugee camps. A computer program was used to chafe some information from the accounts.

The investigation found that each account received up to $1,000 an hour from viewers of the social media.

The destitute families, however, told BBC that they received only a small portion of the money.

TikTok declined to disclose how much it gets from digital gifts. The social media company only hinted that the amount is less than 70 percent.

TikTok Commission

As part of the test to track where the money goes and how much, a reporter from Syria posed as a refugee living in the camp.

The reporter contacted one of the so-called agencies affiliated with TikTok to open an account. Upon obtaining the account, the reporter started to livestream and begged for help.

A BBC employee in London sent digital gifts to TikTok amounting to $106 using another account.

After the livestream, the balance of the reporter in Syria was only $33. Apparently, Tiktok got the bigger slice of the deal

Read Also: TikTok Live Gifts: How Can TikTokers Earn Diamonds, Exchange It For Money?

TikTok 'middlemen'

The BBC investigation claimed that TikTok has "middlemen" working with TikTok-affiliated agencies, also known as "live streaming guilds." These agencies were the ones who provided the refugees with material support, such as smartphones and gadgets necessary for livestreaming.

The middlemen, who are members of the guilds, admitted to BBC they earn from commissions they received from TikTok. At the end of each livestream, the middlemen earned their commissions depending upon the total amount of gifts received from the viewers.

BBC alleged TikTok used these middlemen as part of its strategy to build up their users base and increase the time spent on apps per user.

How much these middlemen earn is appalling. While the streamer gets a third of the gifts, the money transfer facilities skimmed some 10 percent and the middlemen got around 35 percent of the balance.

A streamer at the end of the stream received only a measly sum of $19 out of the total amount of $106.

The TikTok modus operandi as a whole is reminiscent of the Free Basics of Facebook. It differs only in the manner the company raked in money from its users.

Opposite of Fundamental Dignity

Marwa Patafta of Access NOW said the report has shown that Tiktok violated its own policy.

Tiktok, she said, claimed on its website that its priority is to ensure the community of users with "fundamental dignity and respect."

TikTok has done the opposite, she alleged.

The social media company has an obligation to abide by the guiding principles on business and human rights of the United Nations, she said.

Related Article: Hot to Earn Money on TikTok: How Many Followers Do You Need to Start Getting Monetized?
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They're some of the most popular places to visit in the world, drawing millions of excited children across the US every year.

But Disney theme parks are breaking parents with extortionate ticket prices and eye-watering costs when families get inside.

Costs for Disneyland in California rocketed to up to $244 for just a day, while valet hit $65 and preferred parking soared to $50.

Meanwhile customers have been left outraged at the 'ridiculous' prices at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, with hidden charges battering their wallets.

Yet Disney is not the only firm to have ratcheted up the prices since the pandemic, with Universal Orlando and SeaWorld other attractions to have brought in surges.

Universal Orlando can set a visitor back for the day around $209, with the cheapest park ticket starting at $164 for children.

And SeaWorld offers an array of tickets but the standard day passes sell at a surprising $99, with days out including food and parking coming in at $175.

But one company that does offer a budget day out is Six Flags, with tickets still from around $50 despite its CEO saying it had become a 'cheap day care center for teenagers'.

Here DailyMail.com breaks down the price differences at each resort and any hidden costs that can affect your trip:

The cheapest single-day options, which include one-day tickets, a single meal and drink and the cheapest parking availability, are ranked: 1. Six Flags, $103.98; 2. Disney World, $148; 3. SeaWorld, $174.98 and; 4. Universal Studios, $208.99

SeaWorld San Diego

Affordable options to visit SeaWorld San Diego are available when purchasing date-specific tickets, which are priced at $99.99.

Alternatively, a two-day ticket is also $99.99, while visitors can add on an all-day dining bundle to a single- and date-specific ticket for a total price of $144.98.

The dining bundle includes one entree, a side or dessert and a drink, and is available every 60 minutes while inside the theme park.

Annual passes, or the park's 'FunCard,' are priced at $109.99 and provide unlimited access to SeaWorld San Diego all year.

A single-day ticket for SeaWorld San Diego is the same price as a two-day ticket, while add-ons for dining plans will tack on an additional $50

Annual passes, or the park's 'FunCard,' are priced at $109.99 and provide unlimited access to SeaWorld San Diego all year

Other hybrid ticket options are also available, including a two-park ticket for access to Sesame Place San Diego - a children's theme and water park - for $179.98, and a San Diego 3-for-1 Ticket, which provides access to SeaWorld, the city's zoo and the San Diego Safari Park, for $173.

Tickets for children aged 3 to 9 are $163 for the 3-for-1 option.

While at the park, SeaWorld offers an abundance of options to participate and interact with aquatic life.

A dolphin up-close encounter is $69.99 while an in-water interaction is $169. A walrus up-close encounter is $69 while a beluga in-water interaction is $199.

SeaWorld does offer options to skip lines and reserve seats for shows and presentations, with prices at $14.99 for either. It offers a combined 'quick queue premier' option, which includes the ability to skip lines and reserve seats, for $39.99.

General parking is listed at $30, while up-close is $35 and VIP is $45. Both the up-close and VIP options refer to how close visitors can park to the park's entrance.

Visitors have reported a 5 percent surcharge added to all food and beverage purchases, which the park has since said it implemented to cover rising supply costs.

In total, if purchasing a single-day ticket with a dining bundle, a walrus or dolphin up-close encounter, a 'quick queue premier' slot and general parking, an individual's cost at SeaWorld San Diego will cost a minimum $283.97 if not purchasing additional food or merchandise.

If not opting for an up-close encounter or the 'quick queue premier,' an individual cost would be $174.98.

Six Flags

There are 27 Six Flags parks, and each share the same ticket pricing. Though, this may change seasonally as different parks hold separate, individual events.

A single-day ticket is $49.99 if purchased online, or $79.99 at the gate. If you're going as a group of 15 or more, tickets are available for $42.99 per person.

Season tickets are available, starting at $79.99 and up to $249, with various perks slotted for each type, which include the gold, platinum and diamond packages.

Six Flags employs more than 52,000 seasonal employees and 2,100 full-time at their 27 parks across North America

Six Flags remains the cheapest of the five, with the cheapest single-day ticket for $49.99

Perks include free parking, unlimited park visits at an individual Six Flags, unlimited visits to all Six Flags locations, discounted food and merchandising and discounts for friend tickets.

An dining plan can be added with the purchase of a ticket, which includes one meal, one snack and one beverage for $23.99. There's a slightly more luxurious option available for the dining plan plus a 'Drink All Day Bottle,' a souvenir bottle with free refills, for $39.99.

At all Six Flags, general parking is $30. Preferred parking slots are available for $45, and valet is $75.

Before entering the park, Six Flags offers its 'FLASH pass' varieties, which allow visitors to wait virtually for rides.

There's the 'regular' pass for $70, which provides the option to wait virtually, then the goal for $90, which says it will cut wait time in half, and then platinum at $160, which is advertised as a '90 percent reduction in wait time.'

Should you decide to opt for the park's all-day picture pass, Six Flags-themed photography will be $24.99.

All together, if buying options for one person, a single-day ticket purchased online, an added meal plan minus the free refill cup and general parking will cost a total of $103.98.

This is without playing any of the park's games, which will cost a minimum $5.

Universal Orlando

Universal Orlando allows park visitors to disclose whether they are Florida residents, which would allow them to visit during the park's 'blockout' dates. Single-day ticket prices are not affected if you are a Florida resident.

The cheapest park-to-park ticket is available for adults starting at $164 and for children aged 3 to 9 for $159. If just visiting either Universal Studios or Islands of Adventure, these tickets are $109 and $104, respectively.

If visiting the park during its high-traffic days, like the week of Christmas, tickets for adults are $214.

Universal does sell its own express passes as separate from the tickets. These provide access to a separate line entirely at most rides.

Universal Orlando allows Florida residents to access the park during its 'blockout' periods, or times when out-of-state residents are not allowed to enter

An unlimited pass, which allows visitors to skip lines as many times as they want, is $119.99. A general express pass, which allows visitors to skip lines once per ride, is $89.99.

There are two add-ons available at the purchase of a ticket, including a photo package and a 'VIP Experience.'

The photo package starts at $69.99, while the 'VIP Experiences,' advertised as 'exclusive backstage access' with the addition of an unlimited express pass perks, is $239.99.

The park does not offer any dining packages, though it does sell souvenir cups for $17.99, which provide free refills throughout the day.

Parking at the park starts at $27 but can cost upward of $60 if opting for the 'prime parking' option.

If purchasing a ticket during one of the park's slow days, adding on the cheapest parking option in addition to a single souvenir cup - at the assumption that food is being brought into the park - one person will spend an initial $208.99.

It is assumed this would be more with the purchase of in-park food and merchandising.

Walt Disney World

Orlando's Walt Disney World has four options available for visitors: Disney's Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, the Magic Kingdom Park and Disney Hollywood Studios.

A single-day, single-park ticket starts at $109 during the resort's slowest days.

If you decide you want to visit one of the other park's during your day, a 'park-hopper' option is available, which allows guests to visit a second park starting at 2pm - though 'the ability to visit a park is subject to the park's capacity limitations,' according to its website.

This option starts at $204.

A single-day, single-park ticket starts at $109 during the Walt Disney World's slowest days

Additional perks are available, including a 'park hopper' option which allows guests to change parks by 2pm on the day of visit

While purchasing your ticket, a 'Memory Maker' option is available for anyone wanting to add on photos taken at the park. This is $69.

All guests pay an upfront fee for parking accessible to all four parks starting at $25. Preferred parking is available and ranges between $45 and $50.

Inside the park, the cheapest option for dining includes a burger with fries between $11 and $13 and a beverage for an additional $3 to $4. Assuming these are the lesser of the two options for both, a single meal totals $14.

If looking to buy any merchandise at the park, prices do vary. A pair of Mickey Mouse ears will cost $39.99.

In total, if purchasing a single-day, single-park ticket during one of the resort's slow days, adding on general parking and a single helping of the cheapest meal option, one person's trip to Walt Disney World would cost $148.

This is if the guest does not buy merchandising and does not buy more than one meal during the Magic Kingdom's 8am to 6pm hours.

Disneyland

Disneyland differs from Walt Disney World in its offering of a single-day 'Tier 0' ticket, which is offered for the park's slowest days of the year. This is $104.

If purchasing a ticket at the park's second-lowest tier, tickets are $114. The highest-tiered ticket is now $179.

A 'park-hopper' option is available as an add-on to the ticket as a separate purchase and is listed at $65. This means if purchased alongside the 'Tier 0' ticket or the highest-tiered ticket, this would cost between a total $169 or $244.

Disneyland announced its recent price hikes for tickets, which rose an average of 8 percent

If purchasing a 'park hopper' ticket during one of the park's busiest days, a ticket will cost upward of $244

The park does provide a 'Tier 0' ticket, its cheapest option at $104 that is valid during the park's slowest days

Disneyland's beat-the-line option, 'Genie+' is an available option at $25 if purchased before arriving. This price will vary if purchased at the park.

Regular parking is priced at $30, while preferred parking and a hotel valet are listed at $50 and $65, respectively.

In the park, visitors are now subject to recently increased food and beverage prices.

A turkey leg is now $12.99, while a beverage is $4.89. Coffee is $3.79. A single corn dog is $10.59, while the park's signature Dole Whip is $6.49.

Merchandise at the park varies between a few dollars and hundreds of dollars, though Mickey Mouse ears are still tabbed at $39.99 - up $29.99 from the previous year.

In total, if visiting the parking during a valid 'Tier 0' day, adding on general parking, a single corn dog and a single drink, one person will spend $149.48.
Fresh strikes have been announced in the rail industry as union bosses say Avanti West Coast will walk out over two days in the coming month.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said its members working as train managers on Avanti West Coast will strike on October 22 and November 6 in a row over rosters.

This row is said to be separate from disputes over pay, jobs and conditions across the railway industry which has led to a series of strikes this year and continue to cause unrest throughout the sector.

It is understood that rosters were introduced earlier this year to help improve the resilience of Avanti's services and further consultation is taking place about December's rosters.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: 'Avanti are one of the worst operators we have ever tried to negotiate with.

Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) general secretary Mick Lynch claimed Avanti members had been treated 'appallingly'

'They have treated our members appallingly and this strike action is the culmination of months of neglect and a strong response to the arrogance bosses have shown.

'Avanti should never have been given any extension to their franchise contract for all the chaos they have caused passengers, and their contempt of their staff is part and parcel of their disastrous approach.'

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: 'We're disappointed by the RMT's decision to go on strike in the coming weeks which we think is premature.

'This is completely unfair on our customers who will again bear the brunt of more unnecessary disruption to their plans.

'We would urge the RMT to reconsider this course of action and work with us to resolve this dispute.'

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said they were 'disappointed' by the RMT's decision to go on strike in the coming weeks branding it as 'premature' (stock image)

It emerged last week that Avanti West Coast has been placed on a short-term contract renewal by the Government after it provided an 'unacceptable' service to rail users.

The train company has been given until April 1 next year to improve its services following a reduction of its trains, the Department for Transport (DfT) said.

The operator reduced its timetable from seven trains per hour to a minimum of four per hour on August 14.

This involved running just an hourly service in each direction between Manchester and London plus additional services at the busiest times.

The route had three trains per hour before the coronavirus pandemic and prior to the timetable change had two services per hour with some extra trains.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham had written to the Transport Secretary and urged for the train company to be stripped of its contract unless the axed services were reinstated soon before the government made its announcement.

Mr Burnham praised the Government for taking action but warned he is 'hugely concerned' about its 'failing service' lasting a further six months.

He said: 'Putting Avanti West Coast on notice marks a significant shift in tone under the new secretary of state.

'At last, there is a clear recognition of the crisis engulfing the country's most important railway line and the management failure that has led to that.

'However, the lack of an acceptable rescue plan from the company - and clear conditions from the Government - means very few people in Greater Manchester will support this extension.'

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham wrote to the Transport Secretary and urged for the train company to be stripped of its contract unless the axed services were reinstated soon

Mr Burnham added: 'The damage that Avanti's failing service is inflicting on our economy, and the huge disruption to passengers, is completely unacceptable.

'The company has shown itself to be unable to stabilise their service and fix problems with ticketing and the on-board experience for passengers.

'The thought of another six months of what we're currently experiencing is a huge concern.'

Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: 'We need train services which are reliable and resilient to modern day life.

'Services on Avanti have been unacceptable and while the company has taken positive steps to get more trains moving, it must do more to deliver certainty of service to its passengers.

'We have agreed a six-month extension to Avanti to assess whether it is capable of running this crucial route to a standard passengers deserve and expect.'

Avanti West Coast said in a statement: 'We are already delivering on our commitment to increase the number of services we are running between Manchester and London, with three or four trains an hour departing Manchester Piccadilly at the key times of the day.

'We remain focused on providing a reliable train service for our customers and restoring a full timetable of three trains an hour all day between London and Manchester in December.

'Our revised timetable, with no reliance on overtime, is also proving more reliable - in the last week we have run 300 trains between London and Manchester with approximately one in 30 of them cancelled mainly because of short-notice sickness.

'That compares with one out of 13 trains cancelled back in mid-July.

'Nevertheless, we know that at the moment we're not delivering the service our customers rightly expect and we apologise for the enormous frustration and inconvenience this is causing.

'We would like to thank our customers for their patience and understanding.'
Vladimir Putin has rained down more kamikaze drones on Ukraine as he continues his brutal campaign of retaliation for the destruction of the Crimean bridge.

A strike using the Iranian-made Shahed-136 'suicide' drones near Makrariv, a small city located 31 miles west of Kyiv, destroyed critical infrastructure, sending rescue workers rushing to the scene.

Throughout the capital region, residents who had started to return to normality after being bombarded during the opening months of the war are again waking up to air raids sirens each morning.

It was not clear if the explosive-packed drones caused any casualties.

Ukrainian officials said 13 people were killed and 37 wounded in the past day in Russian missile strikes that targeted nine regions of Ukraine.

Rescuers work at the site of a residential building heavily damaged during a Russian attack in Mykolaiv today

A man weeps over the corpse of his cousin after a Russian strike in Mykolaiv today

The Russian military resumed widespread attacks in Ukraine on Monday following an explosion that damaged the Kerch Bridge linking Russian with the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

The 12-mile span holds importance as a symbol of Moscow's power and carries military supplies from Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

The speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament said on Thursday Russian forces struck more than 70 energy facilities in Ukraine this week.

He threatened an 'even tougher' response to future attacks by 'the Kyiv regime', although Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the bridge bombing.

'All the organisers and perpetrators of the terrorist attacks must be found; those who resist must be destroyed,' State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin wrote on Telegram.

On Monday, Putin said a massive barrage of missile strikes across Ukraine was retaliation for what he called Kyiv's 'terrorist' actions targeting the Kerch Bridge.

Mr Putin vowed a 'tough' and 'proportionate' response to Ukrainian attacks that threatened Russia's security.

Ukraine has accused Moscow of using Iranian-made Shahed-136 'suicide' drones as part of multiple deadly strikes on Ukraine

Iranian Shahed-136 UAVs: Facts and figures Ukraine has accused Russia of using Iranian-made Shahed-136 UAVs - also known as suicide drones - against military and civilian targets. Tehran has denied selling the drones to Russia, but there is mounting evidence that Moscow is deploying the weapon. Here are some facts and figures about the deadly drone: Weapon type: Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) In service since: 2021

2021 Made in: Iran

Iran Maker: HESA (Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industries Corporation)

HESA (Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industries Corporation) Weight: 440lbs

440lbs Warhead: 80lbs

80lbs Length: 12 feet

12 feet Wingspan: 8 feet

8 feet Range: 600 miles

600 miles Flight height: 13,000ft max.

13,000ft max. Speed: 120 miles per hour

120 miles per hour Used in: Yemen, Iraq and Ukraine Iranian-made Shahed-136 UAVs Advertisement

Kyiv was hit at least four times during Monday's massive strikes, which killed at least 19 people and wounded more than 100 across the country.

Kyiv said 83 missiles or drones were launched against the country striking the capital and several other cities.

Russian forces have made early morning attacks a daily occurrence in southern Ukraine as the Ukrainian military wages a counteroffensive aimed at recapturing occupied areas.

In the southern city of Mykolaiv, overnight shelling destroyed a five-story apartment building as fighting continued along Ukraine's southern front.

The Mykolaiv regional governor, Vitaliy Kim, said an 11-year-old boy was pulled from the rubble after six hours and rescue teams were searching for seven more people.

He said the building was hit by an S-300 missile, a type ordinarily used for targeting military aircraft but the Russian military appears to be increasingly using for unprecise ground strikes.

Ukraine's military said its current air defences have shot down dozens of incoming Russian missiles and Shahed-136 drones, the so-called kamikaze drones that have played an increasingly deadly role in the war.

Ukraine's air force command said on Thursday its air defence shot down six Iranian drones from over the Odesa and Mykolaiv regions during the night.

Ukrainian officials said that Iranian instructors based in the occupied regions of Ukraine have trained Russians how to operate the drones.

Some Nato allies this week pledged to send advanced weapons to Ukraine, including air defence systems that the government in Kyiv has said are critical to defeating the invading Russian forces.

Britain said on Thursday it would provide missiles for advanced Nasam anti-aircraft systems that the Pentagon plans to send to Ukraine in coming weeks. It is also sending hundreds of additional aerial drones for information gathering and logistics support, plus 18 more howitzer artillery guns.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said 'these weapons will help Ukraine defend its skies from attacks and strengthen their overall missile defence alongside the US Nasams'.

A view shows the city centre without electricity after critical civil infrastructure was hit by a Russian missile attacks in Lviv

Ukrainian servicemen stand near the body of a civilian near the rubble of a destroyed house following shelling in Yakovlivka

The systems, which Kyiv has long wanted, will provide medium- to long-range defence against missile attacks.

The pledge came as Nato defence ministers led a meeting in Brussels of the Western military alliance's secretive Nuclear Planning Group.

Nato plans to hold a nuclear exercise next week amid concerns over Mr Putin's insistence he would use any means necessary to defend Russian territory, including the illegally annexed regions of Ukraine.

Nato is keeping a wary eye on Russia's movements, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture. Russia is expected to hold its own nuclear exercises soon, possibly at the same time as Nato or just after, according to Nato diplomats.

Mr Putin met on Thursday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of a regional summit in Astana, Kazakhstan.

UN officials expressed hope a day earlier that the meeting would lead to an extension of agreements that led to the resumption of Ukrainian grain exports and allow Russia to ship fertilisers.

'We are determined to transport Russia's grain and fertilizer to underdeveloped countries through Turkey,' Mr Erdogan said, adding that Ankara and Moscow could jointly designate the countries the products would go to.

The war in Ukraine has created food shortages and price increases by slowing shipments of agricultural products.
Former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has overtaken former Vice President Mike Pence as the third favorite candidate to win the Republican nomination in 2024, according to bookmakers.

And it comes less than 48 hours after she fled the Democratic Party.

British gambling company Betfair found that Gabbard's odds of winning the GOP presidential nomination stand at 10-1.

Former President Donald Trump is still the favorite with 11-8 odds, followed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis with 12-5 odds.

Pence, who had been in third place, moved to fourth with 16-1, according to Newsweek.

Former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has overtaken former Vice President Mike Pence as the third favorite candidate to win the Republican nomination in 2024, according to bookmakers

Former President Donald Trump (left) is still the favorite with 11-8 odds, followed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (right) with 12-5 odds

The inclusion of Gabbard, who left the Democratic Party on Tuesday, bumps former Republican Vice President Mike Pence down to the fourth spot

Gabbard, who left Congress in 2021, announced Tuesday that she was leaving the Democratic Party, charging that her former colleagues were 'under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness.'

She blasted Democrats for 'racializing every issue' and stoking 'anti-white racism.'

And said they were 'hostile' to people of faith and demonized the police.

Gabbard ended her statement by saying that Democrats were 'dragging us ever closer to nuclear war.'

Her announcement was met with excitement by a number of figures on the right, welcoming her to the fold.

Republican New Hampshire Senate hopeful Don Bolduc, for instance, said Wednesday that Gabbard would be joining him soon on the campaign trail in his bid to unseat Democratic incumbent Sen. Maggie Hassan.

Gabbard had already become a frequent guest on Fox News' airwaves and appeared in February at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.

Elected in 2012, Gabbard spent her early years in Congress leading the Congressional Future Caucus with former Republican Rep. Aaron Schock - an effort to work across the aisle and make politics less partisan.

In 2016, Gabbard seemingly joined the left-wing of her party when she left a Democratic National Committee post to campaign for Sen. Bernie Sanders, who she felt the DNC too heavily favored in his presidential campaign against eventual Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

In 2020, she launched her own presidential bid, vying for the Democratic nomination against Sanders, President Joe Biden and others.

That bid garnered a lot of attention, but only two delegates.

She eventually endorsed Biden, but was not invited to speak at the 2020 Democratic Convention - a snub only afforded to Gabbard, and not any of the other Democratic primary candidates who ran against the now-president.

During her 2020 run, Clinton suggested Gabbard was a Russian asset, which inspired Gabbard to file a defamation lawsuit against the former secretary of state.

The lawsuit was later dropped.
Italian opera star Andrea Bocelli is suing a luxury jet service alleging the company provided him an older, noisier plane than previously agreed upon.

The 64-year-old filed the suit against Private Jet Services of Seabrook, New Hampshire, is seeking $569,000 for refunds of 15 flights, the amount paid for alternative flight arrangements, lawyer fees and damages.

Specifications in the contract between Bocelli and Private Jet Services include what jet model and year of manufacture is acceptable and that it 'ideally should not be 'older' than 4 years.'

Additional requirements say the pilot is not allowed to make any on-board announcements about weather conditions and is not allowed to mention air turbulence 'to avoid undue anxiety to Mr. Bocelli.'

According to the lawsuit, Bocelli was provided a Falcon 2000 manufactured in 1996 during a December 2, 2021, flight instead of an agreed-upon Falcon 2000LX.

During that flight, which flew from Santa Ana, California, to Cleveland, the attendant announced turbulence and 'caused (Bocelli) to be anxious and to fear for his safety during the last 20 minutes of the flight.'

Andrea Bocelli, 64, alleges that Private Jet Services breached a contract while he flew with the firm during his 2021 tour

Bocelli, who has a fear of flying, had conditions that his planes be of a certain year and model and that attendants were not allowed to announce turbulence

During a December 2, 2021, flight, Bocelli was allegedly given a plane manufactured in 1996, and an attendant announced turbulence

The world-renowned tenor was specific in his requirements for the jet service because he has a fear of flying, according to attorney Michele Kenney.

'He is also not a very keen flyer, as he has fear of flying and can feel anxiety related to safety issues during air travel,' Kenney said.

'In particular, he is sensitive to the elevated noise that an older airplane tends to make in flight, with such elevated noise causing him more anxiety.'

Private Jet Services agreed to use Falcon 2000LX models for shorter, domestic flights, and other aircraft for transatlantic flights during his 2021 tour.

A representative of the company did not immediately respond to an inquiry for comment by DailyMail.com.

The lawsuit added that the company apologized for the incorrect aircraft and the attendant's mistake.

It does not say whether it was able to provide the correct aircraft during any portion of the tour.

A representative said the company was unable to find acceptable aircraft for Bocelli's final five tour dates.

Because of this, the company canceled the final flights and did not provide a refund, requiring Bocelli to charter new flights with a separate company, costing him over $300,000.
Ofgem will launch a new campaign to help people understand how they can reduce their energy use and slash bills this winter, the regulator's boss revealed today.

Chief executive Jonathan Brearley said his organisation was working with energy firms to help them assist customers through what will prove to be a tough winter.

Households in Britain will not pay more than 34p per unit of electricity they use and 10.3p for gas under the Government's price cap which will last for two years.

However bills will still be twice what they were a year ago as Britons try to keep their homes warm amid the price crisis exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

For the average household - counted as one with 2.4 people in it - this means they will pay around 2,500 a year, although those that use more will pay more.

Mr Brearley told a conference organised by trade body Energy UK in London today families can save money by, 'only having your heating on when required, turning off lights when you leave the room and switching devices off standby, for example.'

Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley said his organisation was working with energy firms to help them assist customers through what will prove to be a tough winter

Energy experts at Octopus have provided a series of eight top tips which they say could save households 488 a year - including these six shown above

Working out how to use less energy while still staying comfortable will be important for millions of people this winter as the cost-of-living squeeze continues to bite.

'All of us could be thinking about how to reduce our energy use where possible,' Mr Brearley told a conference organised by trade body Energy UK in London today.

How you could save 488 a year on your energy bill with these top tips Energy experts at Octopus have provided a series of eight top tips which they say could save households 488 a year: BOILER FLOW TEMPERATURE (70 SAVING) Octopus advises that the default boiler flow level which sets the temperature of water when it leaves the unit is normally too high, and can be reduced. Experts say you should turn down a combi boiler to 50C for heating and 55C for hot water, which could save 70 per year. For a boiler and a hot water cylinder, the boiler flow temperature should be just over 60C for heating and hot water, and 60C for the hot water cylinder. DON'T USE YOUR TUMBLE DRIER (60 SAVING) The Energy Savings Trust advises that air drying your clothes on a washing line or clothes horse could save you 60 a year instead of using a tumble drier. PLUG DRAUGHTS ON DOORS (45 SAVING) You could save 45 a year by avoiding wasting energy by plugging gaps around doors and windows that could cause drafts, Octopus says. You can find draughts using the back of your hand, or with a thermal camera. CHECK YOUR THERMOSTAT (128 SAVING) Using your thermostat as an on/off switch or boost for energy can cause more gas to be wasted. Octopus advises that you should set it and leave it on when it's required - leaving it between 18C and 21C. It says turning down the temperature by 1C could save you 128 a year. CUT YOUR SHOWER TIME (70 SAVING) A typical household could save 70 a year by reducing the time spent in the shower to four minutes. CHANGE TO LED LIGHTBULBS (80 SAVING) Changing to LED lightbulbs when its time to replace bulbs can saved between 5 to 13 per bulb per year, according to the Energy Savings Trust. Experts say another 20 per year can be saved by ensuring you switch off the lights when you leave the room. INSULATE YOUR HOT WATER TANK (35 SAVING) Experts say an 80mm-thick jacket for your hot water cylinder could save 35 a year. A foam tube can also be used to insulate exposed hot water pipes. PULL YOUR CURTAINS EARLY Pulling your curtains before it gets dark can also help your home retain more heat with less energy. TOTAL POTENTIAL ENERGY BILL SAVINGS: 488 Advertisement

'This is not only the most direct way to reduce our bills. It directly helps with security of supply, contributes to decarbonisation and saves money for the public finances.'

He said that innovation foundation Nesta recently launched a campaign to convince people to reduce their boiler's flow temperature which can save cash without reducing the temperature inside homes.

'They claim that you can save roughly 9% on your gas bill if you do so,' he said and it will save the Treasury around 500 million according to Nesta estimates.

Mr Brearley added: 'Organisations such as the Energy Saving Trust recommend only having your heating on when required, turning off lights when you leave the room and switching devices off standby, for example.

'Ofgem is working with the energy sector and interested groups to help consumers navigate this information and we will shortly be launching a campaign to explain the support available, how to reduce energy consumption, and what customers should expect from their providers.'

It comes as Liz Truss is expanding a public information campaign to save energy this winter despite rejecting Jacob Rees-Mogg's plans over Government concerns they were too 'nanny state'.

The Prime Minister said yesterday that the Energy Secretary is working on a plan to advise people and businesses how to 'use energy more efficiently'.

Government sources had previously ruled out a public information plan amid reports Downing Street was blocking a 15million campaign proposed by Mr Rees-Mogg.

Downing Street now says plans from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) will be incorporated into an existing scheme.

The advice will come following warnings there could be planned three-hour blackouts to ensure the national grid does not collapse over pressure from the war in Ukraine.

Conservative former pensions minister Guy Opperman urged Ms Truss during Prime Minister's questions to 'have a nationwide mailout campaign' on energy reduction.

Ms Truss replied: 'Well (he) is absolutely right and I know the Energy Secretary is working on a plan to help companies and individuals use energy more efficiently.

'We're also working on this across Government, I was delighted to speak to my friend yesterday and I hope we'll be able to start this going in No 10 straight away.'

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said they are considering how to 'further expand' the existing 'help for households' advice website with guidance from Beis.

Pressed if Mr Rees-Mogg's proposal is being folded into the current plans, the spokesman said campaigns are 'iterative and we've been discussing how to expand it'.

The Times had reported his own campaign had been blocked by Downing Street over Ms Truss's fears it would be too interventionist.

Asked on LBC last week why the PM would block a public information campaign, climate minister Graham Stuart told LBC radio ministers are 'hesitant' to tell people what to do, adding: 'We're not a nanny state Government.'

Meanwhile the chief executive of the energy trade body has called on the Government to proceed 'carefully' when putting a cap on how much revenue wind farms can make to avoid repeating past mistakes which put off investment in the UK.

Energy UK boss Emma Pinchbeck also told the conference in London today that banning cheap solar power would be a 'false economy'.

'Cuts to green policies in 2015 have added to the cost of bills today,' she said at the Energy UK conference.

'It seems scarcely believable to me that we would make the same mistakes again with, for example, reforms that make it harder or ban cheap solar power. False narratives often lead to false economies.'

Reports in recent days have suggested that the Government could ban farmers from putting solar panels on their land.

A person turns down the temperature of a gas boiler in Basingstoke, Hampshire (file image)

Ms Pinchbeck said: 'On which note it is also very important that the Government proceeds carefully with the revenue cap on low carbon generators and other measures announced in the energy price Bill.'

On Tuesday the Government announced that it would put a 'cost-plus-revenue' limit on what some wind and solar farms in England and Wales could make.

The Government insists that the policy is not a windfall tax, however industry figures say that it amounts to one.
Cuba Gooding Jr. returned to court in Manhattan on Thursday to face the woman he groped in a nightclub in 2019 as she read a victim impact statement to the court.

Gooding Jr. previously pleaded guilty to one-count of forcible touching. The charge was in relation to a 2018 incident with a waitress at TAO in New York City. That woman was not in court on Thursday but another victim, Kelsey Harbert, was.

Kelsey was the woman whose breast he fondled at the Magic Hour Rooftop in New York City in 2019.

He was never charged over that incident - a decision that outraged Harbert, who told reporters on Thursday that she was robbed of justice.

Cuba Gooding Jr. returned to court in Manhattan on Thursday to face the woman he groped in a nightclub in 2019 as she read a victim impact statement to the court

Kelsey Harbert with her attorney Gloria Allred on Thursday. She said that he escaped justice

In 2019, Gooding Jr. groped Kelsey Harbert's breast at the Magic Hour Rooftop in Manhattan

The case is all but closed but the parties returned to court on Thursday to allow Harbert to read her victim impact statement.

She is due to give a press conference with her attorney, Gloria Allred, later.

After she reported the incident to police, Gooding Jr. was accused of a string of other offenses in both L.A. and New York that included forcible kissing and touching on waitresses.

He has always denied wrongdoing, insisting that any acts were consensual, but apologized for making women feel 'uncomfortable'.

The plea deal was reached in April this year.

If he complies with its terms, the charge will be reduced to a violation and his criminal record will be wiped clean.

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. appears in New York Criminal Court for his sentencing hearing after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of forcibly touching a woman at a New York nightclub in 2019

Gooding Jr. pleaded guilty to one count of forcible touching for the 2018 incident. The other charges were dropped

Gooding Jr., 54, will now have his criminal record scrubbed

Harbert says it is too soft an agreement for Gooding Jr.

Gooding Jr had been facing six groping charges over three alleged incidents which occurred in 2018 and 2019.

One of the women alleged Gooding pinched her buttocks.

Another said he squeezed her breast at the Magic Hour rooftop in New York City in June last year.

One woman alleged that he raped her in 2013 in a hotel room. He has not been charged over that claim.
Terrifying video footage shows an avid Mexican hunter being gored by a buffalo before he died at a hospital during a hunting trip in the central Argentine city of Entre Rios.

Mario Canales, 64, and a friend were kneeling about 100 feet away as they aimed and fired at the one-ton beast in the town of Punta Caballos.

Canales, who was holding a .408 caliber rifle, was unable to bring down the buffalo when it chased him and his friend.

Avid Mexican hunter Mario Canales (left) and a friend (right) take aim at a one-ton buffalo moments before the animal approached them and gored Canales before he died while he was being rushed to a hospital in Entre Rios, Argentina, last Frida

The 64-year-old Canales practiced law for over 30 years and was the president of the Mexican Hunting Federation

Mario Canales, an expert Mexican hunter, is chased by a buffalo in Argentina before it gored him

The buffalo rammed the longtime sportsman with its horn and continued to attack him before the groups hunting tour guide aimed his .458 caliber rifle and fired five shots at the buffalo and killed it.

The hunters loaded Canales body into a pickup truck because they had no cellphone reception to call an ambulance and rushed him to a local hospital, Argentine news outlet Pagina 12 reported.

Canales went into shock and died before arriving at the hospital.

An autopsy revealed that Canales suffered multiple rib and sternum fractures as well as blows to the abdomen.

The hunting group's guide fired five shots and killed the buffalo after it attacked Mexican hunter, Mario Canales, who later died at a hospital in the Argentine province of Entre Rios

An investigation was opened by the Entre Rios prosecutor's office. Killing a buffalo is illegal in Argentine

Authorities in Entre Rios, Argentina, cordon off the area where the hunting accident took place

The Entre Rios prosecutors office opened an investigation into the incident and interviewed the three friends who traveled with Canales for the hunting excursion. While hunting is legal, it is against the law to kill a buffalo because it is a wildlife animal.

Canales wife and children traveled to Entre Rios municipality of Gualeguaychu to claim his remains, which were cremated.

Canales was a lawyer with over three decades of experience and the president of the Mexican Hunting Federation.

"Huge sadness for the departure of a great man and [a] much better friend," the hunter's organization said in a statement. "[A] conservationist and tireless fighter for hunters' rights, his generous friendship leaves an indelible mark on us."
A female physics teacher who was fired for flirting with a sixth form pupil and told him he would get a 'big reward' if he got into Cambridge University is spared being struck off.

Newly qualified Ms Qingqing Duan emailed the boy into the night and early morning while working at Brentwood School in Essex.

She slipped the student, referred to only as Pupil A, a handwritten note with her phone number and messaged him that he was 'sweet' and was her friend outside work, adding: 'You might be my first student who goes to Cambridge [smile face emoji]. You can ask me for a big award if you make it.'

A misconduct hearing was told she also gave Pupil A personal information, including about a crush she had on a teacher and told him not to share it.

Qingping Duan was a newly qualified physics teacher at Brentwood School in Essex (pictured)

She asked if Pupil A 'saw her as a teacher, girlfriend, friend or soulmate' and told him that she would give him a gift if he obtained a grade 9.

She chatted with Pupil A outside the classroom about him 'having a crush on her' and, apparently concerned about the note, warned him: 'Don't do anything silly if you want to be friends - and destroy the letter.'

Ms Duan's bosses received an email from Pupil A's parents expressing concerns.

A meeting was held with Pupil A's parents. Ms Duan was suspended and sacked after a disciplinary hearing later that month.

The teacher was fired form her

At the misconduct hearing she admitted the allegations as well as failing to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with sixth form students by cuddling them prior to an exam.

But she avoided a prohibition order after Neil Hillman, who chaired the Teaching Regulation Agency hearing in Coventry, underlined: 'The panel also had regard to Ms Duan's remorse for the incidents and considered she had shown a level of insight into her shortcomings as a teacher, notably her failure to fully understand or appreciate safeguarding issues and professional boundaries, as well as the need to improve her behaviour management.

'This was demonstrated by the fact that, following her dismissal, Ms Duan had voluntarily undertaken additional safeguarding training.'
An RAF pilot who successfully flew a plane carrying refugees out of Afghanistan just 10ft away from a bus on the runway said that receiving an honour for his brave actions was 'awesome'.

In August last year, a suicide bomb went off at Kabul Airport just before Group Captain Kevin Latchman attempted to take off with 365 people on board a C-17 plane.

Amid the 'chaotic scene', Group Capt Latchman made the decision to launch on the pitch-black runway following a power cut, narrowly missing the bus that had driven into their path.

Last Thursday, he was given the Air Force Cross for leadership and bravery by the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace.

RAF Group Captain Kevin Latchman flew 365 refugees out of Kabul Airport in the pitch dark shortly after a suicide bomb went off, causing a power cut. He has been awarded the Air Force Cross for leadership

The RAF Pilot was invested with the honour by the Prince of Wales

Babies were thrown over barbed wire towards troops at Kabul airport in a desperate bid to get them out of the country during the west's ignominious exit from Afghanistan in August last year

Group Capt Latchman said: 'Receiving the honour today was fantastic, it's really nice to be recognised for something like that and it was a team effort.

'Everything about Operation Pitting was a team effort and I ended up being in the wrong place at the wrong time but did the right thing.

'It was amazing to see the Prince of Wales today and have the family here, it's quite awesome. I've never been through the front gates of Buckingham Palace before and I may not ever do it again.

'I spoke to the Prince of Wales about the incident itself, he was aware of it and I spoke about my decision-making, what happened.'

Civilians prepare to board a plane during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport on Wednesday, August 18

US troops at Kabul airport used tear gas to control crowds of frantic Afghans who are trying to climb over to be put on evacuation flights. Footage shows shots being fired into the air in the darkness to disperse crowds

Operation Pitting was a British military operation to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans from the country amid the Taliban takeover last August.

It was while in the air they realised the bus had been missed by 10ft.

Group Capt Latchman had made the decision to force the plane into the air early.

He added: 'What was running through my head at the time was actually that clear decision-making process, it was quite instinctive.

'It was quite clear I couldn't stop, it was quite clear I couldn't get to my speed, so we were left with one option.

'The enormity of it hit in later once we were at a height, and that's when the shock kicked in.'
The Jury is out and has decided on Alex Jones' fate.

The Infowars founder and host have recently been ordered by a jury of his peers to pay nearly a billion dollars to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and an FBI agent for the suffering they went through.

The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting happened on Dec. 14, 2012, leaving 20 children and six adults dead, per the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Alex Jones $1 Billion Penalty Details

Alex Jones has been the target of a weeks-long trial to decide how much monetary compensation he should pay for the emotional damages he caused to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that happened almost a decade ago, per Engadget.

However, the trial had recently ended with a Connecticut jury's decision to award the victims' families and a former FBI agent $965 million as compensation for emotional damages (in the case of the victims' families) and defamation damages (for the former FBI agent), per Gizmodo.

However, it isn't known how much money Jones' victims will receive at the end of the day.

Read More: Meta Connect 2022: Mark Zuckerberg Announces Zoom, Microsoft Teams Integration to VR

The Texas Tribune called the amount the largest award to date in a "multipronged" legal battle by the victims' families to hold Jones responsible for the conspiracy theories and hoaxes he aired out in his Infowars show.

You may remember that Jones told his audience on Infowars that the shooting was staged and was meant as a pretext for confiscating guns within hours of the shooting. He eventually began to say that the grieving parents were paid actors to hammer the point home. Afterward, he repeated his message in the years that followed.

As a result of Jones' hoaxes and conspiracy theories, the victims' families became the target of harassment and threats by conspiracy theorists who accused them of faking their children's death and emotions.

This abuse happened even when Jones' social media accounts and pages were banned by Facebook, YouTube, and other social media platforms.

Can Jones Pay The Money?

Not only has Jones repeated his hoaxes and conspiracy theories to his audience, but he also got richer after being banned from various social media platforms.

According to Bernard Pettingill, a forensic economist hired by the victims' families to testify during Jones' trial, Jones' net worth could be as high as $270 million due to his conspiracy theories about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Pettingill also mentioned that Jones withdrew $62 million in 2021.

Additionally, Jones' Infowars show and its parent company, Free Speech Systems, have filed for bankruptcy protection.

As such, it could be possible that Jones would be unable to pay the full amount. However, the Infowars host mentioned that he would appeal the ruling while he was hosting Infowars.

"Do these people actually think they're getting any of this money?" Jones said, adding that the verdict was a joke and that he could keep the victims' families in court for years.

Related Article: Sandy Hook 'Tribute' Pages Will Be Deleted By Facebook
Asylum seekers facing removal to Rwanda could have their claims processed in as little as three weeks from arrival, the High Court heard today - as more migrants were pictured arriving in Dover.

The charity Asylum Aid has brought a legal challenge against the Home Office, with judges told that the procedure is 'seriously unfair'.

In April, then-home secretary Priti Patel signed what she described as a 'world-first agreement' to deport some asylum seekers to the east African nation in a bid to deter migrants from crossing the Channel.

However, the first deportation flight - due to take off on June 14 - was grounded amid a series of legal challenges against individual removals and the policy as a whole.

The High Court today heard a challenge against the government's Rwanda policy. Pictured: Migrants arriving at Dover today

Smugglers are charging migrants up to 2,800 each - as total to cross in four years passes 75,000 Migrants are paying people smugglers up to 2,800 per person to reach the UK amid a shortage of boats, according to new reports today. Even so, the issues do not seem to be holding back the tide of crossings, with another 800 migrants making the perilous journey across the English Channel yesterday. The latest arrivals bring the total so far this year to 36,463 people in 899 boats - an average of 41 people per vessel. It also means more than 75,000 migrants have arrived in Britain after crossing the Channel since current records began four years ago. Advertisement

Charlotte Kilroy KC, for Asylum Aid, told the High Court in London today that the process is 'highly abbreviated' and lacks safeguards.

Ms Kilroy said in written submissions: 'It is intended, absent delays introduced by legal challenges, to be capable of completion 'end to end', i.e. from start to removal, within two-three weeks.

'The procedure is seriously unfair and gives rise to a real risk that individuals may be removed from the jurisdiction without having had effective access to legal advice and thus to the courts.'

The court heard that after a notice of intent is issued, asylum seekers are given seven days' notice of their planned removal to Rwanda, which is increased to 14 days if the person is not in detention.

The Home Office will then make a decision, which may be accompanied by the formal removal direction that requires five working days' notice before the proposed removal date, judges later heard.

'There is a real problem with not giving people enough time to put their full case which has a chance of succeeding,' said Ms Kilroy.

'Seven, or even 14 days, is far too short a period to afford an effective opportunity to gather evidence and make representations on the wide range of complex issues raised,' she continued in written submissions.

Extensions are possible, the barrister argued, but 'individuals are not informed that they may seek extensions, there is no policy or guidance to case workers on granting them, and they are granted for short periods on a restrictive basis, if at all'.

In April, then-home secretary Priti Patel signed what she described as a 'world-first agreement' with the East African nation (pic - scenes at Dover today)

However, the first deportation flight - due to take off on June 14 - was grounded amid a series of legal challenges against individual removals and the policy as a whole

The Home Office has argued that seven days will be 'sufficient' in many cases and that individuals and their solicitors can request extensions.

'It is not an 'accelerated' process or a 'mirror' of any other system,' Edward Brown KC, for the department, said in written arguments.

He continued: 'The process is designed to determine, without delay, the issue of admissibility and possible removal to Rwanda, whilst giving sufficient opportunity to the individual to make representations in relation to that decision.

'Any notionally longer standard time period, none having been identified, would inevitably disrupt the balance with other critical factors, such as the fact of immigration detention and the wider public interest in asylum, immigration and border control.'

'The time periods are flexible and adequate to the procedure in question,' he added.

Mr Brown later said in written arguments: 'The relevant question is whether the period, including any extension, is sufficient for the purpose in question. The evidence demonstrates that it is.'

A group of people thought to be migrants walk through the Border Force compound in Dover

'In many cases, seven days will be sufficient, particularly if an applicant chooses to make no representations ... In more complex cases, a longer period may be necessary,' the barrister added.

Last month, several asylum seekers - along with the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) and groups Care4Calais and Detention Action - told judges at the High Court that Rwanda is an 'authoritarian state' which 'tortures and murders those it considers to be its opponents'.

However, Home Office lawyers argued that the Rwandan authorities have given 'detailed assurances' over the processing of asylum claims and the ongoing treatment of individuals.

The hearing before Lord Justice Lewis and Mr Justice Swift is due to finish on Friday, with judgment in both cases expected at a later date.
Kevin Spacey suffered a major setback in his sexual assault case after his star lawyer got Covid, a diagnosis that nearly upended the whole trial.

Attorney Jennifer Keller showed symptoms of Covid and tested positive Thursday morning, the court in New York heard.

She won't be allowed back into court for six days, meaning that she will miss most of the testimony from the defense witnesses.

Keller's positive case nearly caused a significant delay in the trial, but Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled the case should continue as all the jurors and defense team were vaccinated.

Keller forensically cross examined Spacey's accuser Anthony Rapp over his claim the actor put his body on top of his in a sexual way in 1986 when he was 14.

She will have to test negative twice 24 hours apart to come back into court on day six, Judge Kaplan said.

Kevin Spacey's lawyer Jennifer Keller tested positive for Covid on Thursday

Keller cross examined Spacey's accuser Anthony Rapp over his claim the actor put his body on top of his in a sexual way in 1986 when he was 14. Seen here in a court sketch

Rapp's lawyer Richard Steigman suggested that the court 'regroup next week' and that the situation was 'problematic.'

The judge said Keller will have to test negative twice 24 hours apart to come back into court on day six

Judge Kaplan agreed and said he was trying to 'save the trial.'

After some confusion over the COVID protocols Judge Kaplan called the jury in and asked them if they were all fully vaccinated, to which they said they were.

He told them they could remain in court so long as they were masked and tested on Sunday and Tuesday.

Spacey and his defense team, as well as Steigman, had to do the same as they had had close contact with Keller.

Spacey put on a white mask and put up his hand to ask the judge for some at home testing kits.

Several of Spacey's supporters in the public gallery gave their contact details to the court as they had been around Keller. They too, like Spacey, will have to wear masks and test on Sunday and Tuesday.

Rapp did not put on a mask and only some of his legal team did.

Judge Kaplan joked that in some of the other cases he has presided over 'jurors would be running for the exits.'

Without Keller, Spacey's defense moved forward with attorney Chase Scolnick questioning witnesses.

Spacey shook his head in frustration after his own lawyer insulted one of his films in court.

Scolnick mentioned the 1994 dark comedy The Ref while questioning a witness and said that it was 'not a great movie'.

Turning to Spacey he said: 'No offence.'

Spacey shook his head.

Scolnick tried to recover by saying it 'wasn't critically acclaimed,' causing Spacey to shake his head again.

Referring to Seven, one of Spacey's most well known films, Scolnick erred again when he called it the 'Brad Pitt movie.'

Without Keller, Spacey's defense moved forward with attorney Chase Scolnick questioning witnesses

Rapp is seeking $40million for mental and emotional suffering and loss of work. He's seen entering court this week

The case continued with testimony from Rapp's forensic psychologist Lisa Rocchio.

Rapp told the forensic psychologist hired by his lawyers that he was raped by a late Oscar-nominated actress when he was 17, the trial heard.

During a session with Lisa Rocchio, Rapp claimed that around 1988 he was set upon by Susan Tyrrell, who was 40 at the time.

Rocchio agreed with Spacey's lawyer Chase Scolnick that it would have been an 'act of sexual violence' as Rapp was under 18 at the time.

It would also have qualified as statutory rape due to Rapp being legally a child, the court heard.

The court heard Thursday how Rapp on told the forensic psychologist hired by his lawyers that he was raped by a late Oscar-nominated actress Susan Tyrrell when he was 17

Tyrrell died in 2012 aged 67 and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the 1972 film Fat City. She was known as a character actress who made her name on the stage playing offbeat and eccentric roles.

Rocchio testified that Rapp claimed that Tyrrell lifted up her skirt and 'initiated a sexual encounter.'

During cross examination Scolnick asked Rocchio if during a session Rapp called the encounter with Tyrrell 'shocking and inappropriate,' and she confirmed he did.

Scolnick said that the incident happened in California and pressed Rocchio on whether Rapp told her it was statutory rape. She said he didn't say that.

Scolnick asked: 'That was an act of sexual violence?' Rocchio said yes.

The questioning came as Scolnick sought to undermine Rocchio's claim that the PTSD she diagnosed in Rapp was due to the incident with Spacey.

Scolnick asked if a '40-year-old woman having sex with him (Rapp) when he was under age' would qualify as an event which could bring on PTSD.

Rocchio said yes.

The court also heard that Rapp told Rocchio that when he was 14 he was raped by an 18-year-old man.

Rocchio said that Rapp told her it was 'consensual.'

During another traumatic incident, when Rapp was an adult he was having a massage, fell asleep and woke up to find the masseuse 'fondling his penis,' the jury heard.

Keller's positive case nearly caused a significant delay in the trial but Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled the case should continue as all the jurors and defense team were vaccinated

Under cross examination earlier this week, Rapp said that when he was 14 and appearing in the Broadway play Precious Sons, Ed Harris, who played his father, would lie on top of him and say he wanted sex.

Rapp conceded that 'to some degree' he was used to the physical act because it happened to him every night at the theater.

But he denied being jealous of Spacey's career and said that he was not driven by anger towards the man he claims sexually assaulted him.

The jury heard that in the play Precious Sons there is a scene where Harris' character comes in drunk and gets on top of Rapp on the couch, mistakenly thinking he is his wife.

Harris announces that he wants his wife to 'love me for an hour and a half.'

Keller said that this meant he 'wants to have sex' which Rapp agreed with.

Keller said: 'You felt that Ed Harris' character climbed on top of you so many times that you became accustomed to the act of having a man crawl on top of you?'

Rapp replied: 'To some degree, yes.'

Rapp denied that he was jealous of Spacey's career and that he became 'enraged' every time he read about him winning another award.

Keller contrasted Spacey winning his second Oscar for American Beauty in 1999 with Rapp's failed music career where he sold just 26 CDs after one gig.

She said that if Spacey was 'Kevin nobody' then Rapp would not have continued to tell people about his 'Kevin Spacey story'.

After Rapp asked her to repeat the question she said: 'I don't need to'.

Keller said to Rapp: 'Do you really expect us to believe that you were not envious of someone who won multiple Oscars, Tonys, was nominated for multiple Emmys and Golden Globes?

'You wanted to be that person, didn't you?'

Rapp replied: 'I did not want to be this person'.

Challenged that he wanted Spacey's career, Rapp said: 'No ma'am. I wanted to work as an actor. If awards were part of it that's great, that was not why I was an actor'.

In the public gallery of the court sat Rapp's husband Ken, who was seen arriving with him to court last week

Spacey put on a white mask and put up his hand to ask the judge for some at home testing kits on Thursday

Rapp, an actor who appears in the TV series Star Trek: Discovery and was in the original cast of hit Broadway musical Rent, is seeking $40million from Spacey in damages in the civil case.

The trial is the first time a jury will decide on allegations against Spacey which were first made in the media by Rapp in 2017.

As a result Spacey was fired from the Netflix series House of Cards and his legacy as the Oscar-winning star of films like American Beauty and The Usual Suspects has been stained.

Spacey was fired from the Netflix series House of Cards as a result of the allegations

Rapp originally sued Spacey in September 2020 for battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and sexual assault.

The sexual assault claim was dismissed in June because it was beyond the statute of limitations.

In a statement on Twitter after Rapp first made his claims, he said that if the incident did happen then 'I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.'

The case was brought through the law that temporarily lifted the statute of limitations on sex crimes that allowed Virginia Roberts to bring a now-settled case against Britain's Prince Andrew earlier this year.

Another individual, identified only as CD, had also sued Spacey and also claimed he was sexually assaulted by the actor in the early in 1980s when he was 14.

CD claimed he first met Spacey when he was 12 when he was teaching a course in Westchester County outside of New York and CD was his student.

Spacey invited CD to his apartment where he 'engaged in sexual acts including performing anal intercourse on (Spacey) and oral sex,' a complaint stated.

CD's case was thrown out in June last year after he refused to use his real name during court proceedings.

Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that 'the threat of significant media attention  however exacerbated by the modern era  alone does not entitle a plaintiff to the exceptional remedy of anonymity'

The case is far from the only claims against Spacey.

He due to face a criminal trial next year in London on five charges of sexual assault against three men, dating back 17 years, while he was artistic director of the Old Vic theatre.

Once that is concluded he faces a separate UK trial at the High Court in a lawsuit brought by one accuser seeking hundreds of thousands of pounds for 'psychiatric damage'.

Born in New Jersey in 1959, Spacey studied at New York's prestigious Juilliard School and made his professional stage debut in 1981.

Spacey won the Oscar for Best Actor at the 2000 Academy Awards for his performance in American Beauty - but now his legacy has been stained

He won a best supporting actor Oscar for his role in 1995's The Usual Suspects and best actor for American beauty in 2000.

In 2015 he received an honorary knighthood and a special Olivier award for his contributions to British theatre.

He was accused of groping an 18-year-old at a bar in Massachusetts in 2016 but the case was dropped when the accuser refused to testify about a missing phone.

In August a judge in the US ruled he must pay $31million to MRC, the producers of House of Cards, for his firing in 2017.

Among the roles taken away from Spacey was oil tycoon J. Paul Getty in Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World which was reshot using Christopher Plummer.

A Netflix biopic of Gore Vidal starring Spacey has been permanently shelved.

The trial comes on the fifth anniversary of the MeToo movement at a time when its momentum appears to be stalling after Johnny Depp's defeat of Amber Heard in their defamation case earlier this year.

Harvey Weinstein is due to go on trial in Los Angeles later this month for rape and sexual assault allegations. He was jailed for 23 years in 2020 for similar crimes.
An Iowa boy was given a 'megadose' of opioids while recovering from having his tonsils taken out at a Des Moines hospital, which blamed a cyber-attack for the wrong dosage.

Jay Parsi, three, of Urbandale, had his tonsils taken out on September 30, but came back to the hospital a few days later after he continued to not eat or drink much.

On October 3, his surgeon highly recommended the little one come back to the emergency room for fluids.

While waiting for their son to receive fluids, his parents Kelley and Raj learned the hospital had suffered from a cyber-attack and certain systems had been taken offline at MercyOne Children's Hospital, causing staff to treat patients without electronic access to records and ordering medication.

Jay was eventually admitted into the hospital overnight and was given a steroid, as well as, Tylenol mixed with codeine, an opioid, the next morning.

Later, a resident doctor came into the room to inform Kelley that her son had been given a 'megadose' of pain medication for his age and size. The doctor told the family that it was due to the hospital having to manually administer and order dosages due to the computer system being down, the Des Moines Register reported.

But Jay's mom was skeptical of the excuse.

'They never did explain how a downed computer system led to this,' Kelley told the Register. I think they were trying to say it was written down wrong or the pharmacy read it wrong, but then, why wouldn't anyone check?

'It was an awful, awful experience...We didn't know what to do.'

Jay Parsi, three, of Urbandale, had his tonsil taken out on September 30, but came back to the hospital a few days later after he continued to not eat or drink much

Jay was eventually admitted into the hospital overnight and was given a steroid, as well as, Tylenol mixed with codeine, an opioid, the next morning

Later, a resident doctor came into the room to inform Kelley that her son had been given a 'megadose' of pain medication for his age and size

Due to the 'megadose' - which was 'five times his prescribed dose and two times his body weight' - hospital staff equipped Jay's room with Narcan, in case his heart rate or oxygen levels decreased.

Jay was monitored for six hours without any reaction to the medication. Kelley suspects he did not take the full dosage as Jay had fought the nurse while they had administered it.

'I anxiously watched monitors all day but he was up talking and tolerated it well,' the mother wrote on Instagram.

Jay was back up and running by the weekend.

DailyMail.com has contacted the family for comment.

Despite their son's safe return home, the family said they are now 'scared to death' to go back to the hospital.

MercyOne became suspect to a cyber-attack on October 3 and announced it was having an 'IT security issue.' The incident is still being 'investigated.'

The doctor told the family that it was due to the hospital having to manually administer and order dosages due to the computer system being down from the cyber-attack. Due to the 'megadose,' hospital staff equipped Jay's room with Narcan, in case his heartrate or oxygen levels decreased. Jay was monitored for six hours without any reaction to the medication

Jay is pictured being held by his father Raj inside the hospital

The incident took place at MercyOne in Des Moines (pictured)

Almost 300 hospitals have been effected by the cyber-attack, including MercyOne.

The attack caused some hospitals to divert ambulances and postpone appointments.

CommonSpirit Health - which operates MercyOne and is the second largest nonprofit healthcare system in the US - reportedly had its system attacked by ransomware. The attack affected more than 140 hospitals across 21 states.

The hospital's systems are still currently down, according to the Des Moines Register.

MercyOne shut down its systems on October 3 as a 'precautionary step.'

Mike Wegner is the president of MercyOne. The hospital's systems are still currently turned off as a 'precautionary step'

CommonSpirit has not yet revealed how patient information has been affected by the attack, but many hospitals continue to remain offline.

Brett Callow, a threat analyst with Emsisoft, told the Register a ransomware attack is the most likely answer and hospitals are keeping their systems offline to protect the data and it often takes months for a system to fully recover.

'There are a number of groups that would have been likely to have carried out an attack like this,' he told the outlet.

At least 15 healthcare systems - affecting 120 hospitals - have been hit with ransomware attacks this year, according to the Register.

Callow said patient and payroll information was stolen from at least 12 hospital systems.

In 2020 and 2021, more than 150 ransomware attacks against healthcare organizations occurred, which affected 1,700 hospitals.
A high school senior at a Virginia high school said she's 'traumatized' after a botched chemistry demonstration set multiple students and her teacher on fire.

Bethanne Piland, 19, attended her second-period chemistry class at Dinwiddie High School Wednesday when her teacher conducted an experiment that went horribly wrong as students in the first and second rows were in flames within seconds.

'My friends were burning, and I was burning,' Piland told DailyMail.com. 'I froze and I was just afraid. I'm still replaying it in my head.

'I couldn't see their faces, they were faced down on the ground. I was thinking oh, are they dead? Are they going to be okay?' Piland told WTVR.

William Massello, the science teacher experimenting using methanol, had attempted to make a water bottle with a flame fly across the room.

When the trick failed, Masello added more gas to the bottle which ignited the explosion.

Immediately, Massello went to help the students on fire while another student rushed to pull the fire alarm, according to Piland.

'I was frozen in space and when I looked down that is when I noticed the fire on my pants,' Piland said. 'I was the only one in there when the teacher put the fire out.'

Piland said the two boys right beside her were two of the three students sent to the hospital. She wasn't injured in the incident.

'His hair was crispy,' she said as she recalled what one of them looked like. 'His skin was peeling and his lip was busted.'

Senior Bethanne Piland, 19, was sitting in her chemistry class at Dinwiddie High School in Virigina when suddenly an experiment led to an explosion

Dinwiddie High School, in Virginia, sent students home after the explosion occurred early morning around 9am on Wednesday

William Massello, a science teacher, was conducting an experiment for students using methanol to make a water bottle fly across the room with a flame

Different rumors on how the explosion occurred are being spread by students that weren't present in the chemistry classroom, but Piland is determined to share the truth.

'The teacher didn't do anything wrong,' Piland told DailyMail.com. 'It's not his fault.'

Piland also debunked claims that an altercation in the classroom led to the explosion after chemicals were spilled over.

'People need to know what happened,' she said.

Medical professionals arrived at the scene and treated three students that suffered burn injuries with one needing to be airlifted to the hospital, according to the County of Dinwiddie Fire Department.

Massello was also sent to the hospital and another student was later treated for a minor burn.

After witnessing her friends on fire, Piland is traumatized and afraid to go back into the chemistry room.

'It's not going to get out of my head,' Piland said. 'It's not going to be the same.'

The school has arranged for students in Massello's chemistry class to learn in a different classroom when they return in person on Friday.

Piland fears she will never recover from the horrid images from Wednesday but is insistent she heads back to school for the remainder of her senior year.

Police said the circumstances leading up to the explosion is under investigation as multiple students are in the hospital

Parents waited outside the school waiting to pick up their children as it was unknown what caused the explosion

The horrific explosion occurred on the second floor of the science building with students in surrounding classrooms immediately evacuating.

One eyewitness said that one student's hair caught on hair.

Meanwhile, other students said they smelled 'burning' and 'chemical fumes' after the blast.

The explosion came as a shock to many as the 18-year high school teacher had performed the same experiment for years.

A past video from 2017 showed a student holding onto a water bottle with gas as it flung across the classroom as the flame ignited.

Piland said that she keeps replaying the scene in her head and fears it will not go away anytime soon

Footage captured in October 2017 shows a student holding onto a bottle filled with the gas, and a flame shooting out of the bottom before it shoots across the classroom

Medical professionals arrived at the scene and treated three students that suffered burn injuries with one needing to be airlifted to the hospital

The unexpected blast took place in a room on the second floor of the building during a science class

Tammy Jean Moore-Edwards, whose cousin was in the classroom at the time of the incident, previously told DailyMail.com that she initially heard about the explosion on an emergency scanner.

She said: The school did an awesome job in the way they handled everything, and when I heard it on the scanner, I was a nervous wreck.

My cousin told me that the teacher Mr. Massello had been mixing a liquid in a bottle, to make a rocket. My son told me that he had the same experiment the year before.

But when it didnt work, he added more, and it just blew up. He was the only one right at the desk, but the students sitting up the front got the blast from the explosion.

Kids started running out of the classroom, screaming and freaking out. There was smoke and the table and floor was on fire.

The students at the front were the ones who got covered in the gas, which is why they got burned.

You dont have to touch anything, just because he was close enough it got on him and he was a good distance away it just exploded everywhere.

The sprinklers didnt go off, which is kinda scary. Mr. Massello had been letting something else burn out in the sink which was used to dispose of chemicals as well, but I dont know why he was doing that.

My cousin told me that there was one boy holding his hands and his leg, she said he was burned on his pant leg. Another lad at the front had his hair catch on fire, though not for very long.

Its like something that you see in movies. Its terrifying.

Dinwiddie Fire Department said they are still investigating the events leading up to the explosion, and the status of those were hospitalized is not available.

Students at the Dinwiddie school with be learning online on Thursday and return back in-person on Friday.
New York attorney general Letitia James sought a preliminary injunction on Thursday to prevent Donald Trump from moving around assets as part of her $250 million civil lawsuit against the former president.

On the same day that James filed a lawsuit against Trump last month, the Trump Organization quietly registered a new entity, Trump Organization II, the court filing said Thursday.

The new business is a foreign corporation registered out of Delaware.

Investigators expressed concern that Trump could move assets from the family real estate business they're probing to a new entity and avoid liability in the suit.

'The Trump Organization has since refused to provide any assurance that it will not seek to move assets out of New York to evade legal accountability,' the attorney general's office claimed.

New York AG Letitia James announced Wednesday that her office is suing former President Donald Trump and his adult children

James' suit also names three Trump children: Don Jr., Ivanka, and Eric

Thursday's filing also expressed concerns that Trump and other defendants in the suit could be using the same 'fraud and misrepresentation' as they prep Trump's financial statements for the current year.

'Indeed, in many areas, the Trump Organization has continued using practices they knew to be improper or fraudulent,' the motion said.

Trump attorney Alina Habba said the Trump team had in fact provided assurance that they would not move assets.

'The OAGs filing is nothing more than a thinly-veiled attempt to keep this case with Justice Engoron rather than have it transferred to the Commercial Division where it belongs. We have repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper. This is simply another stunt which Ms. James hopes will aid her failing political campaign,' she said in a statement.

James also called for an independent monitor to oversee the submission of financial disclosure documents to accountants and lenders

Trump stands accused of inflating the value of his properties to obtain favorable loans and sometimes deflating their value for tax purposes.

In last month's suit James specifically named Trump and his three adult children, Don Jr., Eric, and Ivanka Trump, and said they 'persistently' inflated the value of assets.

James said Thursday that three weeks after she filed suit the former preisident and his son Eric have refused to accept service of the lawsuit, and sought permission to serve them electronically.

James announced the suit last month following a review of 'millions of documents' with a team of investigators, and told reporters she was suing Trump for 'violating the law as part of his efforts to generate profits for himself, his family and his company.'

James said he did so 'to cheat the system and to cheat all of us,' and is seeking $250 million  while asking a judge to 'permanently' bar Trump and his adult children 'from serving as an officer or director in any corporation or similar similar entity registered and or licensed in New York.'

She also wants to bar Trump and his adult children from obtaining lending in the state, or engaging in commercial real estate purchases for a period of five years  hitting at a business that is at the heart of their livelihood.

Trump would maintain his financial interest in the property even if a judge rules against him in the suit.
Police shot dead a knife-wielding Romanian national after using a stun grenade, baton round and Taser to try and stop him smashing up their station, The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has confirmed.

Marius Ciolac, 35, was gunned down on Friday, October 7, after smashing the windows of parked vehicles in the car park of Ascot Drive police station in Derby as well as a window at the newly built 9.5million police station.

The IOPC, investigating the incident, today said Derbyshire Police officers in an armed response vehicle were called to the building by the force at around 9.55am after officers inside reported seeing a man with a knife in the car park causing damage to property. This included smashing glass in the entrance door and windows around it.

Attempts were made to stop him by police, 'including using a multi-bang stun grenade, discharge of a baton round and a Taser, before a police firearm was discharged at about 10.03am,' the IOPC confirmed.

Initial findings of a post mortem have showed Mr Ciolac died from a single gunshot wound to the abdomen.

Derbyshire Police officers in an armed response vehicle were called to the building by the force at around 9.55am after officers inside reported seeing a man with a knife in the car park causing damage to property

Marius Ciolac died after one shot was fired from a police issue firearm, which will be subject to further ballistics tests, the IOPC said today

Mr Ciolac was given first aid by officers and paramedics at the scene before being taken by ambulance to hospital in Nottingham, where he sadly died later that morning.

'We can confirm one shot was fired from a police issue firearm, which will be subject to further ballistics tests,' a statement released by the watchdog said this afternoon.

'Three knives of various sizes were recovered from the scene.'

The IOPC statement added: 'Our investigators are working hard to establish all the circumstances surrounding the death of Marius Ciolac, aged 35, a Romanian national with no family in the UK.

'Although Mr Ciolac has been named, formal identification has yet to take place.

'The provisional finding of a post mortem examination held on Monday was that Mr Ciolac died from a single gunshot wound to the abdomen.'

The IOPC is still in the process of investigating and contacting members of the public who are potential witnesses

IOPC Regional Director Derrick Campbell said: 'We have made contact with Mr Ciolac's family in Romania and Italy to explain our role, and our heartfelt sympathies are with them and everyone else affected by this tragic incident.

'A lot of rumour about the tragic events of Friday morning has been reported and while it is natural for people to want answers quickly about what happened, I would ask that people show patience and refrain from further speculation out of respect for Mr Ciolac's family and for everyone involved.

'We are committed to carrying out a full and thorough investigation of all the circumstances. While there is still a lot of work to do, we have gathered initial accounts from the officers involved and other witnesses from the emergency services.

'CCTV footage has been reviewed and we are gathering a large amount of police body worn video.

'We are also in the process of contacting members of the public identified as potential witnesses who may be able to assist our inquiries.'

All police officers are being treated as witnesses at this stage.

HM Coroner has been informed and an inquest will open in due course.
A 42-year-old-man was hunting Elk in Idaho when a mountain lion emerged from the wilderness and began stalking him.

Jared Erickson - from Paradise, Utah, just south of the Gem state - was lucky to get away with his life after the encounter with the lion in which he was forced to fire his gun twice.

After the second shot he was able to scare off the mountain lion, which then returned into the wilderness disappointed.

Jared Erickson, 42, was hunting Elk in Idaho when a mountain lion emerged from the wilderness and began stalking him

Once about 20 feet away the lion suddenly lurches forward with both front legs extended

Erickson pulled out his pistol and phone upon noticing the big cat. With his left hand he filmed the lion as it moved menacingly towards him, one slow stride at a time.

In his right hand Erickson holds a Glock pistol pointed at the lion, prepared in case it chose to strike.

During the video Erickson can be heard breathing heavily as he moved backwards with the gun in hand.

'Get back,' he can was heard warning the lion firmly.

The lion begins to increase its pace until once about 20 feet away it lurches forward with both front legs extended. At that very moment the Erickson fires a singlehanded shot with the gun in his right hand.

Its unclear whether it was a warning shot or Erickson was aiming for the cat, but it dashes a few meters before turning back to face Erickson once more.

The moment Erickson fired his pistol, causing a cloud of dust to form where the bullet struck the ground

Erickson then fires a second shot causing the lion to walk away dejectedly and seemingly unfazed by its near-miss encounter with death

Erickson then fires a second shot causing the lion to walk away dejectedly and seemingly unfazed by its near-miss encounter with death.

Erickson uploaded the video, filmed with his left hand, of the encounter to Instagram where it has accrued 25,000 likes in just two days.

He posted it with the caption: 'Not what I expected going elk hunting. Good think I was packin!'

Erickson pulled out his pistol and phone. With his left hand he filmed the cat as it moved menacingly towards him, one slow stride at a time

People commented on the video expressing how lucky he was to have had the gun and to have survived.

Mountain lions can be found throughout Idaho. Game agencies have estimated that across the approximately 300,000 square miles of forest in the western states there are between 20,000 and 40,000 mountain lions.

Mountain lion attacks are rare and unlikely to be fatal. There are 27 fatal mountain lion attacks on record in North America.
Businesses were today urged to do more to support their workers' health and wellbeing after the number of Britons not employed due to long-term sickness reached a record high.

Work and Pensions Secretary Chloe Smith told firms it was 'crucial' they invest in their employees to prevent 'even more people being inactive due to long-term poor health'.

Official figures published this week revealed the number of long-term sick people rose to just under 2.5 million in the three months to August.

This was an increase of almost 170,000 from the previous three months, data from the Office for National Statistics showed.

Ms Smith focused on the issue as she stressed how a 'healthy workforce supports a healthy and growing economy' amid Prime Minister Liz Truss's ambitions to boost economic growth.

The Cabinet minister hailed firms who offered private counselling sessions to support their workers' mental health, as well as companies who have introduced 'on your feet' days to stop employees spending too long in front of computers.

Work and Pensions Secretary Chloe Smith told firms it was 'crucial' they invest in their employees to prevent 'even more people being inactive due to long-term poor health'

Official figures published this week revealed the number of long-term sick people has risen to just under 2.5 million

Ms Smith hailed companies who have introduced 'on your feet' days to stop employees spending too long in front of computers

The Work and Pensions Secretary outlined Government efforts to help people back to work in order to fill the more than 1.2million vacancies at firms across Britain.

But, in a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank, Ms Smith warned that businesses also needed to play their part.

'In return for the Government helping businesses to fill their vacancies, we're expecting employers to invest in their workforces' progression and health,' she said.

'And doing so is a crucial step to ensure we don't face similar labour market challenges in the future.

'We can pull out all the stops to help businesses fill their vacancies. We need employers to help people to start, and stay and succeed.'

Ms Smith noted that sickness absence was estimated to have cost employers an estimated 9billion a year even before the Covid crisis.

'We know this holds businesses back and that in turn holds back growth,' she said.

The Work and Pensions Secretary highlighted how - out of the nine million classed as 'economically inactive' in Britain - around 2.5 million are long-term sick, which is up by 378,000 since before the pandemic.

She said: 'Many employers are doing great work to support the health and wellbeing of their workforce.

'But to truly address this issue and prevent even more people being inactive due to long-term poor health - and to prevent even more businesses facing shortages in what they can recruit and the talent they need - more needs to be done.'

Ms Smith praised Sawday's, a Bristol-based travel company, who offer up to four sessions of private counselling for those employees who may need it, have a trained mental health first aider in each of their teams, and offer contact with a mental health support specialist.

The Work and Pensions Secretary said muscular-skeletal issues were also 'another principal cause of people becoming long-term sick'.

'Again, there are things employers can really do to help in that area,' she added.

'For example, aware of the detrimental impact of spending many hours in front of the computer, the Cornwall-based print supplier Forms Plus have organised an "on your feet day" where every hour staff get together to do two minutes of exercises.

'When businesses put in place a holistic approach to looking after their staff, it increases the chance that common issues will be avoided, talent can be retained, people have a better opportunity to reach their potential and the company will thrive.'
A British woman and her son have been repatriated to the UK from a refugee camp in north east Syria - the first Britons allowed to return to their home country since the war against the terrorist organisation ended.

The woman was allegedly trafficked into the war-torn country as a child by an older relative for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

The mother and son's return could potentially mark a shift in policy from the British government, which has until now refused to repatriate British nationals who joined ISIS other than on a 'case by base basis'.

'UK officials have facilitated the repatriation of two British Nationals from #Syria,' wrote Jonathan Hargreaves, the UK Special Representative for Syria.

'In line with longstanding policy we consider each request for consular assistance in Syria on a case by case basis, taking into account all relevant considerations including national security.'

The move might give hope to those campaigning for the repatriation of Shamima Begum, the ISIS bride who ran away from her home in London to join the terror group at 15. She had her British citizenship removed by the government in 2019.

The Atma refugee camp on the Turkish-Syrian border. A British national was permitted to return to the UK with her son for the first time since the ground war with ISIS ended

Children gather outside their tents, at al-Hol camp, which houses families of members of the Islamic State group, in Hasakeh province, Syria, May 1, 2021. The mother and son's repatriation could potentially mark a shift in policy from the British government

Women walk in the al-Hol camp that houses some 60,000 refugees, including families and supporters of the Islamic State group, many of them foreign nationals

ISIS bride Shamima Begum (pictured), who ran away to join ISIS at the age of 15, made a renewed appeal to be allowed to return to the United Kingdom in July, claiming she could be a 'voice against radicalisation'

Campaigners welcomed the step, with human rights NGO Reprieve saying the woman was 'a victim of trafficking, taken to Syria by a male relative when she was a young girl' and that 'she and her child have suffered extreme trauma'.

'Our research shows that the majority of the British women being held in prison camps in north-east Syria were trafficked by ISIS for sexual exploitation and domestic servitude,' Reprieve Director Maya Foa said in a statement.

She called on the government to follow the example of allies including the US, France, Germany and the Netherlands and 'repatriate all British families from unlawful detention.'

Details of the case are vague, with the name of the woman and the camp she was held in being withheld and the announcement made in the middle of the night. Reprieve supported efforts to protect her identity.

As many as 60 Britons, including 35 children, are thought to be held in squalid detention camps in Syria set up for families of captured or killed ISIS fighters.

Most were captured by Syrian Kurdish forces in the final days of the ground war in early 2019 and have been held in indefinite detention in sprawling camps such as al-Hawl in the north-east of Syria.

Their fate has been an issue of much debate about whether to bring them home or leave them to wither in Syria.

The matter has been further complicated by the fact that the British government removed the citizenship of some of those who travelled to the Middle East to join ISIS, including Shamima Begum, who fled her home in 2015.

It is argued that many of these individuals would pose a security risk should they be permitted to return to Britain, given that they ran away to join a hostile group at war with the UK.

But many of these individuals are or were very young when they went to Syria - either voluntarily or trafficked against their will - and they have children who grew up in the camps or have known little more than life in war-torn Syria.

The conditions within these camps are so poor and unhygienic and life so miserable that some argue it is counts as a 'cruel or unusual punishment' to leave British citizens there.

In 2021, Human Rights Watch estimated that 43,000 foreign nationals - including men, women, and children - linked to ISIS were being held in similar conditions without any form of trial.

A Syrian boy carries a bucket of water at the Sahlah al-Banat camp in the countryside of Raqa, in northern Syria, on September 19, 2022

A Syrian girl carries a water container at the squalid Sahlah al-Banat camp for displaced people in the countryside of Raqa, in northern Syria, on September 19

Other countries have already slowly started to repatriate their citizens, with Australia announcing that they would bring about 60 people, 20 women and 40 children, home from the camps.

Meanwhile, Finland was reprimanded by the UN watchdog yesterday for violating the rights of Finnish children left to languish for years in life-threatening conditions in Syrian camps for family members of suspected jihadists.

In the findings, which echoed a previous ruling concerning France's responsibility towards French children stuck in the camps, the committee said 'prolonged detention of child victims in life-threatening conditions amounts to inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.'

The committee, whose 18 independent experts are tasked with monitoring the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, issued the findings after considering a case filed on behalf of six Finnish children currently held at the Al-Hol camp in Syria's northeast.

Since their relatives brought the case to the committee in 2019, three of the children have been able to leave the camp on their own initiative with their mother, and eventually arrived back in Finland.

'The remaining three child victims, currently between five and six years old, are still detained in closed camps in a war-like zone,' the committee said.

The petition from their relatives also mentioned 33 other Finnish children held at the camp without access to legal assistance.

A Syrian girl washes clothes in a water basin at the Sahlah al-Banat camp

Syrian children sit outside a tent at the Sahlah al-Banat camp

Housing around 56,000 people, Al-Hol is the largest of a number of camps in the region holding relatives of suspected jihadists, mostly women and children.

Leaving these women in the camps would also pose the threat of further radicalisation, some experts argue, as the camps are ruled over by a hard core of ISIS followers who dictate the conditions in the camp.

Shamima Begum made a renewed appeal to be allowed to return to Britain in July, claiming she could be a 'voice against radicalisation'.

The 22-year-old was stripped of her British citizenship in 2019. Now, she says she wants to be 'used as an example' to warn other Brits of the dangers of turning to extremism.

Begum, who left the UK in 2015 alongside friends Amira Abase and Kadiza Sultana, is now living in the Al-Roj prison camp in Syria, where she was captured.

Speaking to iNews from the camp while she awaits a trial by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces, she insisted that she wants to be 'as British as possible', but conceded that she expects she will spend the rest of her life in Syria.

Begum's parents were born in Bangladesh. She left school in Bethnal Green, East London to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State.

There, she married an ISIS fighter and gave birth to three children, all of whom died young. Her youngest child died in the prison camp in Syria's north-east in 2019.

She has made previous attempts to restore her British citizenship, but failed in her Supreme Court bid to return to the UK and fight her case in person.

The Supreme Court ruled on national security grounds that she cannot return to Britain to pursue an appeal against the decision. The law states a person's citizenship can be stripped if they are deemed to be in the public interest.
She said she felt violated by the judge's ruling and has since publicly criticized him, and says she intends to burn the original album before handing it over

The judge ordered that she hand over the book: she complained, and won the right to edit the photos to hide her body

He presented a list of items he wished to keep from the marriage, including a series of nude boudoir photographs she took years ago

Lindsay Taylor - formerly Lindsay Marsh - filed for divorce from her husband Chris in April 2021, after 25 years together

A woman is calling out a Utah judge for ordering her to hand over a photo album of nude photos as part of her divorce to her ex-husband, after the man requested the 'boudoir-style' set as part of the separation.

Lindsay Taylor, 43, previously of North Salt Lake, commissioned the racy shoot years ago in an effort to save her then-waning union to ex Chris Marsh, 45, with the impression the intimate pictures might save their marriage.

That attempt, however, failed - and when she filed for divorce in April of last year, Taylor said that he wanted to keep the album for himself, for sentimental purposes.

The request shocked the woman, who asserted in court that the appeal was the move of a jilted, scorned man - as opposed to one motivated by supposedly cherished memories.

Perhaps more shocking, the Davis County divorce judge presiding over the case sided with her ex, ruling in favor of his nostalgia argument - citing how Taylor etched heartfelt messages to her then hubby on the album's pages.

He ruled that as long as the pages were properly censored, Marsh should be awarded the set.

A bitter legal battle over custody of the boudoir albums has since ensued, with Taylor in complete disbelief over Judge Michael Edwards' ruling.

She is now on a warpath against both the jurist and her former partner, asserting she will burn the book before adhering to such demands.

Lindsay Taylor commissioned the racy shoot years ago in an effort to save her then-waning union to ex Chris Marsh, with the impression the intimate pictures might save her marriage

Marsh, 45, told The Salt Lake Tribune the books were full of memories, inscriptions and photos, stressing they were not 'inappropriate-type books.' He further insisted that he wanted to keep the album for himself, for sentimental purposes - a desire a judge deemed reasonable

'Women's bodies aren't property for people, or in my case, these three men - my ex-husband, his attorney and this judge - to decide what should be done with it and who should be able to see it,' Taylor said earlier this week, speaking to several outlets including CNN, where she sat for a televised interview.

'I want to shed some light on the misogyny in the Utah court system,' she told CNN's Michael Smerconish this week as she continues to fight the order.

Davis County Judge Michael Edwards ruled Taylor had to hand over the images to her ex, but said her body could be edited out. Taylor has since refused to adhere to the order

'These photos contain graphic nudity of my body.'

Visibly irate and speaking to multiple other outlets about the ruling, Taylor says she is at a loss as to why her ex-husband would still want the personal gifts she gave him years ago, after their falling out.

'If things I wrote were so important to you,' she said, referring to her ex, 'why didn't you save all the anniversary cards and birthday cards and valentine's day cards?

'Everything I wrote to you over the years, you did not keep any of those, but somehow these are really important.'

She called out Judge Edwards, who was appointed to the Second District Court of the couple's native Davis County in September 2018.

'There's no way a judge is going to order that,' Taylor said, dumbfounded by the demand, which she has until the end of the year to abide by, or face legal action.

She has also said that the situation is not only 'violating,' but 'humiliating.'

'Women's bodies aren't property for people, or in my case, these three men - my ex-husband, his attorney and this judge - to decide what should be done with it and who should be able to see it,' Taylor said this week, speaking to outlets including CNN, where she sat for an interview

'You are, like, "Please ask for that in court, please look like an idiot and ask for that in court,"' Taylor argued this week, for what she claims is a lack of concern for her privacy.

She added that she did not understand why her ex-husband would still want the personal gifts she gave him years ago - especially after the dissolution of their marriage.

However, Judge Edwards disagreed, writing in his ruling delivered last month that due to the graphic nature of the photos, the couple should turn the images over to the professional photographer who shot them, so they could be properly edited before being brought over to the husband, 'for the memory's sake.'

The couple had been wed for more than 25 years before Taylor filed for divorce.

Taylor (pictured) offered to take the book back to the photographer to have a copy of the book made with her images edited out - but he refused, saying that the images were art which should not be altered. She was then ordered to hand the book over to a third-party to have the images edited out

The ruling read: 'The Court orders that the parties are to turn these photos over to the person who took the pictures originally and produced the photo books.

'That person is then to do whatever it takes to modify the pages of the pictures so that any photographs of the Petitioner in lingerie, or that sort of thing, or even without clothing, are obscured and taken out.

'Due the words are maintained for the memorys sake,' he then disclaimed.

Furthermore, in a move seemingly meant to address Taylor's concerns over photos of her own body coming out of her possession, Edwards said she may take the book back to the original photographer before handing it over and having a copy made, with her body edited out.

The male photographer who took the snaps, a friend of Taylor's, apparently refused, according to the divorcee, who told the court the lensman insisted that the images were art which should not be altered.

She was subsequently ordered by Edwards to hand the book over to a third-party to have the images edited out - by a man that Taylor did not know.

Lindsay Taylor filed for divorce in April 2021 after 25 years together, her ex-husband Chris Marsh (pictured together) said that he wanted to keep her boudoir album, for the memories

This incensed the Utah woman, whose entire original argument rested on the fact that the highly personal photos would be viewed by someone whom she no longer felt a connection to.

'I had five days to collect the books from the original photographer and drop them off to some stranger so that he could see these images because you cannot edit without seeing the images.'

Taylor said the thought of handing the book over to a stranger was even more traumatic and rang the judge's clerk to ensure she hadn't misunderstood the ruling.

'I just want to clarify,' she recalled saying. 'The judge has ordered me to give nude photos of my body to a third party that I don't know without my consent?'

When it was confirmed that was what the judge desired, she refused.

Taylor has told of her shock at being ordered by a judge to hand over a photo album of her 'boudoir style' nude photos to her ex-husband, after he requested them as part of their divorce

The couple, who have two children together, had been together for 25 years before Taylor filed for divorce in 2021

Taylor is legally required to keep the originals until December, in case her ex objects to any of the edits. She then plans to hold a burning party, and throw them into the fire

When the original photographer found out her friend's predicament, she agreed to redact the photos, putting a series of big black boxes in front of all of the images - even the ones where she is clothed.

The messages, meanwhile, remained - which Taylor insists in itself is still 'violating.'

'These are things that were sensual and loving that I wrote to my husband that I loved,' Taylor has said of her husband of a quarter century. 'You're my ex-husband now.'

Marsh, meanwhile, insists that she only wants the photos to cherish the pair's past relationship, and only cares about the insciptions - claims Taylor has denied.

'I cherish the loving memories we had for all those years as part of normal and appropriate exchanges between a husband and wife, and choose to remember the food even though we are now divorced,' Marsh said in a statement.

'I sought to preserve only the handwritten love letters they contained.'

Earlier this week, he told The Tribune the books were full of memories, inscriptions and photos, stressing they were not 'inappropriate-type books.'

He said: 'I cherish the loving memories we had for all those years as part of normal and appropriate exchanges between a husband and wife and sought to preserve that in having the inscriptions.'

He added that their case raises wider questions for society, and could serve as a precedent in future cases.

'As boudoir photography becomes a more common way for a couple to share intimacy, where is the line of appropriateness when they split up?'

A criminal law professor at the University of Utah College of Law told KSL.com that the case as 'very strange' even though the judge ordered the images to be edited.

'In my opinion, the judge here has just made a mistake in the balancing of interests and has tipped things too far in one direction,' Paul Cassell said.

He added that with third parties handling the images, it creates a risk of distribution - whether intentional or not.

'And these are the kinds of cats that are very difficult to put back in the bag once they get out,' he said.

Meanwhile, Taylor is now calling for change, arguing that no woman should have to go through what she did during and now after her split.

She says it should be up to her, person actually in the intimate photos, to decide what happens to them.

'It's violating and it's incredibly embarrassing and humiliating,' she said.

According to Taylor, the divorce has already been finalized - however, she is still in possession of the contentious pictures.

This is because due to the wording of the judges ruling, she is legally required to keep the original books until December, in order to give her ex a chance to object to any of the edits made in court before obtaining the album.

Once that 90-day period ends, Taylor has said she will sooner destroy the book and its contents before adhering to the jurist's order.

She said she plans to hold a burning party and throwing them into the fire.

'It's going to be amazing,' she proclaimed.

DailyMail.com reached out to Judge Michael Edwards for comment on Thursday but was told by the district court's public information officer that judges are not permitted to comment on cases.

Taylor is still adamant that she will not succumb to the pressure.

'The only way I can hopefully protect someone else from going through the same situation is to tell my story and expose that these are the types of things that he thinks are OK,' she said.

Taylor has until the end of November to turn over the redacted album.
Fast fashion has been a hit with online shoppers lately. It is due to the fact that there is a wide array of selections to choose from, and it is significantly cheaper than other well-known brands. Companies like SHEIN and ROMWE, in particular, are climbing the fashion store ladder worldwide.

However, it seems that these fashion store apps aren't as secure as one might hope. Zoetop, the company that owns SHEIN and ROMWE, has been given a $1.9 million penalty for several counts of data breaches of their users' accounts.

How Bad Is It?

The data breach that Zoetop has been accused of extends to its users' personal information like credit card details, names, emails, and hashed passwords, according to The Verge. Around 46 million accounts were affected by this breach- 39 million of which are SHEIN accounts, and more than 800,000 of those belong to online shoppers from New York.

The allegations were based on a hack in 2018, which the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has been investigating. According to their office, 32.5 million accounts were not alerted of the data breach. Zoetop has only alerted a few accounts and even then, they failed to reset the passwords of the select accounts.

The company was also accused of denying the hack, claiming that there is no evidence of credit card information being stolen. In addition to that, they only notified customers of the breach after two years, when it appeared that the accounts were being accessed on the dark web.

Their tactics for damage control included informing its users that their passwords had simply expired after a year of not being changed and masking the breach by downplaying and calling it "suspicious activity," asking for customer verification.

In terms of financial troubles for the company, $1.9 million is barely a dent in its revenue. SHEIN alone is already valued at $100 billion.

As mentioned in thefashionlaw.com, the OAG accused Zoetop of failure to maintain security measures. Among these measures were password management, protection of sensitive customer information, monitoring of vulnerabilities, and incident response addressing the cyberattack.

Read Also: Cybersecurity Awareness Month: 5 Practical Steps You Can Take to Secure Your Social Media Accounts

It Does Not Stop There

Zoetop's SHEIN has not been a stranger to controversy. According to fashionmagazine.com, the fast fashion company has also been accused of stealing designs from independent creatives. It is rather perplexing how they manage to release around 500 to 2,000 designs per week.

There has also been some speculation that the company has also been using child labor in production. This could be in line with the fact that their products are unbelievably cheap, wherein dresses can cost only $4.

Sixth Tone traveled to Guangzhou, which is SHEIN's main production base in China, and spoke with workers, factory bosses, and workshop owners. They found that the conditions were poor and troubling, all so they could produce clothes quicker and cheaper than their competitors.

These four instances are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the questionable methods of the fast-growing fashion retailer.

Related Article: Best Tips for Shopping Safely Online in 2022
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Nurse Lucy Letby, who is accused of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill ten more, wrote 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS' on a Post-it note found at her home.

On day four of her trial at Manchester Crown Court the jury was told that messages written by Letby, 32, were found after her arrest including one that said: 'I killed them on purpose' and 'I will never have children or marry'.

The Post-it was among other papers and notes which also contained 'many protestations of innocence', Nick Johnson KC, prosecuting, told the jury.

Post-it note scribbled by Lucy Letby is shown to court The court was today shown a note penned by the nurse featuring the scrawled words: 'There are no words. I am an awful person. I pay everyday for that' 'No hope. I can't breathe. I can't focus' 'I'll never have children or marry I'll never know what it's like to have a family' 'Kill myself right now. Overwhelming fear. I haven't done anything wrong' 'Police investigation. Forget. Slander discrimination victimisation' 'Despair, panic, fear, lost, HATE' 'Hate myself so much. All getting to much everything taking over my life' 'I feel very alone and scared' 'What does the future hold. How can I get through it. How will things ever be like they were' 'I don't deserve to live' 'I DID THIS WHY ME' 'I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them, and I am horrible and evil person 'I don't deserve mum and dad. The world is better off without me' 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS' Advertisement

Letby denies attacking newborn children in a variety of ways, including poisoning, during an alleged killing spree on the neonatal unit at Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016.

Ben Myers KC, defending Letby, insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children, that she'd done her best to care for'.

He said in some cases the care infants had received at the Countess of Chester had been 'suboptimal' and that 'there were problems with the way this unit performed' that 'have nothing to do with Lucy Letby'.

'Interesting items' were found during a search of her house on Westbourne Road in Chester, including paperwork relating to many of the children who died or suffered collapses and Post-it notes with closely written words which included the names of some of her colleagues, Mr Johnson said.

'But I want to show you one note in particular,' Mr Johnson said, as a green Post-it note was shown on TV screens to the jury.

Mr Johnson said: 'She wrote, "I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them", "I am a horrible evil person" and in capital letters "I am evil I did this".'

Mr Johnson added: 'Well, ladies and gentlemen, that in a nutshell is your task in this case. Whether or not she did these dreadful things is the decision you will have to make when you have heard all the evidence.'

Along with the 'I am evil...' note, there were other written notes, the jury heard.

Mr Johnson said these included phrases such as 'Why/how has this happened - what process has led to this current situation. What allegations have been made and by who?' and 'Do they have written evidence to support their comments?'.

The prosecutor said that in her writings Letby expressed frustration because she was not being allowed back on the neonatal unit and wrote: 'I haven't done anything wrong and they have no evidence so why have I had to hide away?'

Mr Johnson added: 'Her notes also expressed concern for the long-term effects of what she feared was being alleged against her and there are many protestations of innocence.'

Concluding the prosecution opening statement, which began on Monday, Mr Johnson said that after Letby fell under suspicion, she was put on clerical duties where she could not pose a danger to children until she was arrested in July 2018.

Letby, who denies all 22 charges, was being supported by her parents Susan and John Letby for the fourth day of her trial at Manchester Crown Court.

The post-it note written by nurse Lucy Letby says: 'I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough'

Children's nurse Lucy Letby (pictured left and right), 32, is alleged to have gone on a year-long killing spree while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Police found notes in her home including one that said: ''I AM EVIL I DID THIS'

As the fourth day of Letby's trial continues, the court has heard so far:

Letby, 32, denies murdering seven premature babies and attempting to murder 10 more over 12 months. The deaths occurred at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby was arrested three years after the death of her first alleged victim, Baby A;

ICU nurse is alleged to have injected babies with insulin, air or pumped with milk to kill them - often during night shifts when parents were less likely to be there;

Letby allegedly targeted twins on more than one occasion - and in some cases one was murdered and their sibling survived;

She is said to have searched for the families of her alleged victims' parents on Facebook and social media, including on Christmas Day;

In some cases, Letby is alleged to have tried to kill babies on up to four occasions, including two times in one shift;

Nurse was 'smiling' after one child's death and sent her parents a sympathy card, which was 'not normal'. On a separate occasion, a paediatric consultant claimed he walked in on Letby as she was trying to kill a child;

Doctors moved her off night shifts after being concerned about correlation between suspicious deaths and her presence;

Lucy Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest on suspicion of murdering seven babies including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'. Police discovered yellow and green post-it notes in the ICU nurse's Chester house including one that said: 'I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them. I am a horrible evil person.';

She photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after allegedly murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive';

One doctor spoke to Letby before 'Baby P' died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?'

Later Mr Myers, representing Letby, gave a short introduction to her defence case and told jurors anyone who approached the matter 'as some kind of done deal has got this very badly wrong'.

He told the jury: 'The fact that Lucy Letby has been present at the time of the deterioration of a child has itself become the explanation of that deterioration, even though there's no evidence to show she has caused that to happen. Miss Letby is adamant she's done nothing intentionally to harm these babies'.

Letby 'told doctor, 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?' and photographed brothers lying dead together in a cot' Letby, 32, was today accused of taking a photograph of the dead babies in a cot when they died within 24 hours of each other in June 2016. The nurse allegedly tried to kill their sibling Baby N, who had a blood disorder, on three occasions in 12 days but failed. Letby photographed two of three triplets lying dead together in a cot after murdering them after telling a doctor that one of them was 'not leaving here alive', the court heard this morning. One doctor spoke to Letby before Baby P died, predicting his survival, so was surprised when the nurse replied: 'He's not leaving alive here, is he?', the murder trial was told. The nurse also spent time comforting their heartbroken parents after she allegedly injected air into the tiny bodies of the siblings - known as Baby O and Baby P - to compromise their breathing. Baby P would be the last child she murdered, the court heard. Her final victim Baby Q survived an attack on June 25 2016, it is alleged. She was then taken off frontline duties before being arrested the following month, the court heard. Advertisement

The barrister pointed at his client sitting in the dock and told jurors: 'It is important to be careful that blame is not heaped on that woman when there may be others who have made mistakes or a system which has failed.' He added that absence of evidence 'does not convert into evidence of guilt'.

In some cases, the defence say, no one could tell why a particular child deteriorated or died. Mr Myers said: 'She should not get the blame if she is not responsible and it is amazing, is it not, how with allegations like this everyone turns and focuses on Lucy Letby. Some people, we say at the outset, with the rather trusting presumption because the allegations have been brought that she is guilty, she must be guilty.'

Mr Myers asked the jury to consider the birth condition of the babies Letby is supposed to have harmed, claiming some 'should not have been in the Countess of Chester in the first place'.

He said: 'We are hardly starting from a base line of robust good health. Look very carefully to what's happened on the way to the events we are looking at.' He said identifying problems before they escalate involves doctors and nurses watching, recording and communicating, but this may be difficult if a unit is 'understaffed and over-stretched'.

He said in some cases the care infants had received at the Countess of Chester had been 'suboptimal', with staff being responsible for errors and sometimes 'unacceptable' delays in procedures.

In one case - that of Child J - Mr Myers said 'the hospital was well of its depth' with regard to treating her.

He added: 'We say there were problems with the way this unit performed, and they have nothing to do with Lucy Letby.'

He cited the significant number of children who recovered well once they were moved away from the Countess of Chester Hospital.

'The improvement in some of these children is evidence of how it did not always deliver the level of care it should have provided. To turn it back on Lucy Letby is unfair and inaccurate.'

Mr Myers added: 'The defence say that Lucy Letby was a dedicated nurse. She trained hard to be a neo-natal nurse and what she wanted was to care for babies she looked after.

'In no way did she want to harm them. The defence say she is not guilty of causing intentional harm to any baby or to killing any baby.

'She loved her job. She cared deeply about the babies and also cared for their families.

'She had a fulfilling life, had friends, a life outside work. You won't get the answers to this case looking at this woman in the dock now. This is how she is and where she is six years after starting to face allegations like this.

'You can imagine that must be utterly gruelling for anyone. This is an important part of her case. The requirement to keep context in mind and to distinguish how she was when events were said to have taken place, compared to how she is now.

'With these allegations we are dealing with a real person who is where she is now. Anyone who approaches this as some kind of a done deal has got this very badly wrong.'

Letby (pictured) was today accused of taking a photograph of the dead babies in a cot when they died within 24 hours of each other in June 2016

The jury was told Letby wrote handwritten messages found in her home after her arrest including one that said: 'I AM EVIL I DID THIS'. But Mr Myers said insisted the notes showed his client's 'anguish not guilt', telling the jury they were the 'outpouring of a young woman when she learnt she was being accused of killing children'

Letby denies all 22 charges and is being supported by her parents Susan and John Letby (pictured arriving at Manchester Crown Court this morning)

Mr Myers said the jury had been shown Letby's text messages, her Facebook searches on the families of babies she is alleged to have harmed and, 'pieces of paper', and mentioned 'amateur psychology'.

But he said the 'foundation' of the case is medical evidence.

He told the court: 'What the case will come down to is the medical evidence and what it can safely prove and what it can't and what we can safely conclude.'

Mr Myers said causes of a baby's deterioration or death are not always clear and there may be a number of reasons.

He added that in this case the babies were 'clinically fragile', and in conditions that could change 'very swiftly and deteriorate very rapidly'.

He said there are five key issues in the medical evidence: the birth condition of the baby, whether there were any problems in the health or care of the child, whether the evidence proves deliberate harm was done, whether Letby was present at the relevant time, and whether there were failings in care by other people or the unit as a whole.

Full indictment against Lucy Letby Lucy Letby is charged as follows: Count 1 - Charged with murder of Baby A on June 8, 2015 Count 2 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby B between the June 8, 2015 and June 11, 2015 Count 3 - Charged with murder of Baby C on June 14, 2015 Count 4 - Charged with murder of Baby D on June 22, 2015 Count 5 - Charged with murder of Baby E on August 4, 2015 Count 6 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby F on August 5, 2015 Count 7 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 7, 2015 Count 8 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 9 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby G on September 21, 2015 Count 10 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 26, 2015 Count 11 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby H on September 27, 2015 Count 12 - Charged with murder of Baby I on October 23, 2015 Count 13 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby J on November 27, 2015 Count 14 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby K on February 17, 2015 Count 15 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby L on April 9, 2016 Count 16 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby M on April 9, 2016 Count 17 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 3, 2016 Count 18 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 19 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby N on June 15, 2016 Count 20 - Charged with murder of Baby O on June 23, 2016 Count 21 - Charged with murder of Baby P on June 24, 2016 Count 22 - Charged with attempted murder of Baby Q on June 25, 2016 Advertisement

Mr Myers showed the jury a prosecution exhibit, a grid with the names of staff on duty across the top and across one side the names of the children allegedly attacked.

An X marked Letby being on duty at the time when a child was said to have been harmed or killed, eight times on day shifts, 16 times on night shifts.

But Mr Myers said this was a 'self-serving document'.

He said it did not show the treatment each child was receiving, the health of the baby in question, collapses by babies when Letby was not present, shortcomings in care of others, how busy the unit was, and what Letby was doing at the time of each event.

Mr Myers said the defence would look at the prosecution's expert medical evidence and whether it proves harm was done deliberately.

He said: 'In cases like this, there's a danger of an expert being drawn into fulfilling an absence of explanation.'

The jury was told this can lead to a 'harm-based' explanation which may not be the only explanation and that this was an example of 'confirmation bias'.

Mr Myers added: 'Doctors don't always have the answers and nor do medical experts.

'The fact that Miss Letby can't explain a particular event does not mean she must be responsible for it.'

Mr Myers then outlined the defence case for each of the counts of murder and attempted murder, adding: 'Miss Letby is adamant she's done nothing intentionally to harm these babies.'

He said with Baby A, the first murder count, the defence does not accept that an air embolus, or air bubble, was the cause of death. Letby is accused of injecting air into the child.

Mr Myers said the 'polite' way of describing the care of child A on the unit was 'sub-obtimal'.

With Baby B, who was Baby A's twin sister, who Letby is accused of trying to kill, it was a 'good example' of the 'assumption of guilt', Mr Myers said, adding that experts had been 'influenced by the theory of harm'.

Baby C was a baby boy Letby is alleged to have murdered by injecting him with air through a nose tube.

Mr Myers said C was a 'very premature' baby, born at 30 weeks and weighing only 800g.

He said such babies were vulnerable, especially to infection, and C should have been at a specialist children's hospital.

Baby D was a baby girl Letby is alleged to have murdered with air.

Mr Myers said the hospital failed to provide adequate care.

He said it is 'beyond dispute' that Baby D should have been given antibiotics hours before she was treated with them, and there was more evidence that infection played a part in her death rather than Letby killing her with air.

Ben Myers KC told jurors the Crown alleged Letby injected Baby E with a fatal amount of air and attacked him in front of his mother.

He said: 'We say there is no clear explanation in his case for what happened. That being so, it is not right to rely on the assumption of guilt.'

He next turned to allegations that Letby attempted to murder Baby F - the twin brother of Baby E - and Baby L by poisoning them with insulin. The barrister said there was 'nothing in fact' to establish any such actions.

Letby (pictured) - who is accused of murdering seven premature babies and trying to kill ten more - took up to three attempts to poison infants by injecting insulin, milk or even air into their tiny bodies, a court heard today

Lucy Letby (left) is standing trial for murder over the deaths of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Defence Barrister Ben Myers KC at Manchester Crown Court today (right) where he claimed that his client is being unfairly blamed for the deaths of babies at a Chester hospital

Lucy Letby 'tried to murder her final baby victim after injecting him with excess air and either water or saline' The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25, 2016, the day after she allegedly killed Baby P. The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him. The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor. Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'. The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets. 'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role. 'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.' The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard. Following that review, the decision was made to arrest Lucy Letby on July 3 2018, said Mr Johnson. Advertisement

Baby G - who Letby is accused of attempting to murder on three occasions - was an 'extremely premature' baby who was 'high risk' with predicted problems, he said.

The defence did not accept Letby did anything to contribute to Baby G's health problems in the neonatal unit.

Baby H, said to be have been attacked by Letby twice, was another example of 'sub-optimal care' by the Countess of Chester Hospital and 'nothing to do with Lucy Letby', he said.

Ben Myers KC said the defence did not accept Letby caused any harm to Child I, a baby girl she is said to have tried to kill on three occasions before she succeeded on the fourth attempt.

He said: 'We will say her collapses and ultimately death were part of a series of clinical problems which may well have been inevitable given her extreme prematurity.'

Mr Myers said the Countess of Chester Hospital was 'well out of its depth' with Child J - who Letby is said to have tried to murder - and knowing how to treat her.

He said an assumption of deliberate harm had been made rather than an alternative explanation of a baby receiving inadequate care.

Child K - subject of another count of attempted murder - was said to have been harmed with the deliberate dislodging of a breathing tube, but Mr Myers said the probable cause was the child inadvertently moving the tube herself.

Her case was another example of 'sub-optimal care' in that she should have been treated at a more specialist unit, Mr Myers said, adding: 'She should not have been in the Countess of Chester in the first place.

In total, Letby is accused of murdering seven premature babies and attacking 10 more over the course of a year by poisoning them with insulin, injecting air into their bloodstreams or over-feeding them milk.

Baby P suffered a sudden and 'acute deterioration' before preparations were put in place to move him to another hospital, the court heard today.

Just before the planned transfer, a doctor was said to be 'optimistic' about his prospects but then 'all of a sudden Lucy Letby said to him something like 'he's not leaving alive here, is he?'', said prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said today. Shortly after that exchange Baby P collapsed and died, Manchester Crown Court heard.

The KC said said: 'That remark surprised (the doctor) but Lucy Letby's prediction came true. After all, she knew what she had done to him and therefore she knew what was likely to happen. It is certainly what she intended because it was something she had done to so many other children.'

A coroner recorded the death as 'prematurity' but independent experts who were tasked with reviewing Child P's case said the most likely cause was air injected into his stomach which compromised his breathing.

After Child P's death, Letby spent time with his parents and took a picture. She denies murdering seven babies and the attempted murder of ten more.

Pediatrician Dr Sandie Bohin (left) and fellow expert witness Dr Dewi Evans (right) arrive at Manchester Crown Court for Day 4 of Letby's trial

The final incident, outlined by prosecutor Nick Johnson QC, was the alleged attempted murder by Lucy Letby of Baby Q on June 25 2016, the day after she allegedly killed baby P.

The Crown say the neo-natal nurse injected Baby Q with excess air and a clear fluid, possibly water or saline, into his stomach via a nasogastric tube in a bid to murder him.

The youngster was later transferred to another hospital, where he went on to make a 'rapid recovery' when removed from the 'orbit of Lucy Letby', said the prosecutor.

Mr Johnson said that following the events of June 2015 to June 2016, the consultants suspected the deaths and life-threatening collapses of the 17 children were 'not medically explicable and were the result of the actions of Lucy Letby'.

The prosecutor told jurors: 'No doubt they were acutely aware that making such an allegation against a nurse was as serious as it gets.

'They did not, at the time, have the benefit of the evidence that you are going to hear and the decision was made by the hospital to remove Lucy Letby from a hands-on role.

'She was moved to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children.'

The police were contacted and a 'very lengthy and complex' investigation followed which involved instructing independent paediatricians and other specialists to review many cases that passed through the neo-natal unit, the court heard.

Letby's parents, Susan and John, are supporting her at her six-month trial at Manchester Crown Court.

She denies all 22 charges. The hearing continues.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis lashed out at the single 'holdout' juror who convinced two others to give Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz life behind bars instead of the death penalty, saying execution was the only 'appropriate' punishment for him.

Cruz had been facing execution but the jury on Thursday voted against it, bringing an end to a months-long sentencing phase of his trial.

In 2018, he murdered 17 kids and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas School.

The victims' families had all asked for him to be put to death, but a single juror refused.

In Florida, the jury must decide unanimously to sentence someone to death.

After the juror refused, they persuaded two others into voting for life in prison without the possibility of parole, leaving the final count to 9 in favor of execution and three against.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis lashed out at the single 'holdout' juror who convinced two others to give Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz life behind bars instead of the death penalty, saying execution was the only 'appropriate' punishment for him

Cruz murdered 17 students and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Valentine's Day in 2018. He killed more people than any previous death row inmate in Florida

'If you have a death penalty at all, that's a case where you're massacring those students with premeditation, you deserve the death penalty.

'It was 11 to one with one hold out, refusing to authorize the ultimate punishment. That means this killer is going to end up getting a same sentence of people who have committed bad acts, but acts that did not rise to this level,' DeSantis said.

He also slammed the slow pace at which the trial has moved.

'We're four-and-a-half years after these killings and we're just now getting this? They used to do this, he would have been executed in six months.

'He is guilty. Everybody knew that from the beginning. Yet it takes years and years in this legal system that is not serving the best interest of victims.

'I just don't think anything else is appropriate except the capital sentence in this case,' he said.

Others are now asking what the point in having the death penalty in Florida is if it's not given to the worst killers.

Cruz murdered 17 students and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Valentine's Day in 2018 - more than any other death row inmate in the state's history.

Dave Aronberg, the Democratic Palm Beach State Attorney, asked afterwards: 'Its rare to get a death penalty verdict in South Florida.

'I respect the jurys decision in the Nikolas Cruz case, but if the death penalty doesnt apply to the slaughter of 17 innocents  nearly all children  then when?'

The execution chamber at Florida State Prison. The last person to be executed there was in 2019

His view was shared by countless others, many of whom say it is proof of why it should be abolished.

'I dont believe in the death penalty, but if this crime doesnt deserve it, what crime does? Just wonder if he was black would he get the death penalty? The death penalty should be abolished,' said one person.

The last person to be executed in Florida was Gary Ray Bowles. He murdered six men in random attacks and was executed in 2019

'If someone as guilty as Cruz avoids the death penalty, then outright abolish it completely.

'Makes zero sense to have it still if cases that clear cut dont receive the penalty,' quipped another.

Florida's death penalty law is that a jury must unanimously vote in favor of execution.

The last person to be executed in the state was Gary Bowles, a serial killer who randomly targeted men - some of them gay - on Interstate 59.

He was sentenced in 1999 and was finally executed in 2019 at Florida State Prison.

In the case of Cruz, it's unclear how many jurors voted for and how many voted against.

The decision horrified some of the victims' parents and relatives.

Corey Hixon, the special needs son of a teacher who was slaughtered, walked out of the courtroom while other parents held each other, incredulous at the verdict.

The parents of some of the children who were murdered watched on with incredulity today as the jury spared Cruz from death
Russian forces would be 'annihilated' by the West's military response if Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons against Ukraine, the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned Moscow on Thursday.

At the opening of a Diplomatic Academy in Belgium, Borrell said: 'Putin is saying he is not bluffing. Well, he cannot afford bluffing, and it has to be clear that the people supporting Ukraine and the European Union and the Member States, and the United States and NATO are not bluffing neither.

'Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated.'

Fears that Moscow could use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine have grown after Putin issued veiled threats as he staged the annexation of four occupied regions in the face of losses on the battlefield.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has warned Russia of 'severe consequences' if it launches a nuclear attack on its pro-Western neighbour.

Sweden's Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist, European Union Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Finland's Defence Minister Antti Kaikkonen gather during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium

Russian forces would be 'annihilated' by the West's military response if Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons against Ukraine, the EU's foreign policy chief warned Moscow on Thursday

'We will not go into exactly how we will respond but of course, this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict,' Stoltenberg said.

'Even any use of smaller nuclear weapons will be a very serious thing.'

A senior NATO official on Wednesday said that use of a nuclear weapon by Russia in Ukraine would result in 'almost certainly drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself'.

The alliance has stopped short of threatening to use its nuclear arsenal to respond as non-member Ukraine is not covered by its mutual self-defence clause.

The US and NATO has so far steered clear of intervening militarily in the Ukraine conflict for fear of sparking a catastrophic nuclear conflict with Moscow.

'The fundamental purpose of NATO's nuclear deterrent is to preserve peace and deter aggression and prevent coercion against NATO allies,' Stoltenberg said.

'Circumstances in which NATO might have to use nuclear weapons are extremely remote.'

It comes after Russia threatened World War Three if its foe Ukraine is granted membership into NATO.

Fears that Moscow could use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine have grown after Putin issued veiled threats as he staged the annexation of four occupied regions in the face of losses on the battlefield

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has warned Russia of 'severe consequences' if it launches a nuclear attack on its pro-Western neighbour

'Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three,' TASS quoted Alexander Venediktov, the deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, as saying.

Venediktov, who is deputy to Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, a powerful Putin ally, said he felt Ukraine's application was propaganda as the West understood the consequences of Ukrainian membership of NATO.

'Apparently, that's what they are counting on - to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again,' Venediktov said.

'The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves,' he added.

'We must remember: a nuclear conflict will affect absolutely the whole world, not only Russia and the collective West, but every country on this planet,' Venediktov said. 'The consequences would be disastrous for all mankind.'

The warning comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of NATO on September 30.

Just hours earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had formally proclaimed the annexation of up to 18 per cent of Ukraine.

However, Ukraine's membership bid was seen as largely symbolic, since full membership would require consent from all 30 NATO members, and ongoing territorial disputes are an obstacle for countries to join the alliance.

Russia has threatened World War Three if its foe Ukraine is granted membership into NATO. Pictured: Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), in Astana, Kazakhstan, today

NATO defence ministers meet in Brussels as they discuss military aid to Ukraine, ahead of a meeting to plan an upcoming nuclear exercise

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) and Turkish Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar chat at the start of the second day of a NATO Defense Ministers Council meeting

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to unleash his massive nuclear arsenal as he rails against the United States for driving NATO's eastward expansion.

However, the expansion is most often driven by Russia's neighbours, fearful of Russian domination and the repression and corruption that comes with it.

NATO's courting of ex-Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia, countries the Kremlin regards as part of its own sphere of influence, has inflamed the Kremlin and led them to declaring the countries' accession as red lines.

Putin on Sept. 21 warned the West he was not bluffing when he said he would be ready to use nuclear weapons to defend Russian territory after announcing his intentions to snatch Ukrainian sovereign land.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said the world faces the biggest risk of nuclear Armageddon since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. NATO is due to hold an annual nuclear preparedness exercise dubbed 'Steadfast Noon' next week.

Russia and the United States are by far the biggest nuclear powers, controlling about 90 per cent of the world's nuclear warheads.

The current situation is something akin to a powder keg, as NATO countries walk the line of refusing to allow Russia to veto any country's membership - 'no third country has a say in such deliberations', while at the same time avoiding a scenario that would lead to open war with the authoritarian state on its eastern flank.

'NATO's 'open door policy' is based on Article 10 of its founding treaty,' the military alliance writes on its website.

'Any decision to invite a country to join the Alliance is taken by the North Atlantic Council on the basis of consensus among all Allies. No third country has a say in such deliberations.'
Wisconsin Democratic Senate hopeful Mandela Barnes' campaign wants former President Barack Obama to appear alongside him on the campaign trail as he slips behind in the polls to Republican Sen. Ron Johnson.

Politico reported Thursday that Barnes' campaign has privately reached out to Obama's team to get the former president on the campaign trail in the weeks preceding the November 8 election.

Politico also said that Wisconsin Democrats have also discussed bringing in President Joe Biden - and are in various stages of planning to have Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Bernie Sanders campaign for Barnes in the important race.

Wisconsin was once viewed as Democrats' best opportunity to take out a sitting Republican U.S. senator.

Wisconsin Democratic Senate hopeful Mandela Barnes' (left) campaign wants former President Barack Obama (right) to appear alongside him on the campaign trail as he slips behind in the polls to Republican Sen. Ron Johnson

Republican incumbent Sen. Ron Johnson (left) has gained ground against Democrat Mandela Barnes (right) after hammering him for weeks on crime. The two candidates participated in a debate Friday

Barnes, who had once been leading the race, has fallen behind Johnson, a top ally of former President Donald Trump, who has pummeled him in ads suggesting he supports the progressive mantra of defunding the police.

In an early general election ad, Johnson called Barnes 'dangerously liberal on crime' and linked him to the so-called 'squad.'

Supporters of Barnes, who is black, have claimed the ads are racist.

Barnes only recently started hitting back, highlighting Johnson's support of Trump and controversial statements the Republican senator has made about the January 6 Capitol attack.

Speaking to reporters in late September, Barnes said Johnson 'could not care lerss about public safety.'

'If he did, he wouldn't have supported an insurrection that left 140 officers injured,' Barnes said, according to the Cap Times.

Barnes, who was once leading the race, sits at 46 percent - a six point deficit, versus being only one point behind the Johnson in September

Barnes repeated the attack line during Friday night's debate against Johnson.

Barnes also slammed Johnson for statements he's made about abortion, including telling Wisconsin women to 'move' if they didn't like the state's laws.

'I can't think of more callous out of touch or extreme position to take,' Barnes said.

The Democrat pointed to what happened to a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim who had to travel to Indiana to secure an abortion.

'That's Ron Johnson's America,' he said.

A poll released Wednesday showed Johnson with 62 percent of support from Wisconsin likely voters.

Barnes had fallen six points behind to 46 percent.
South Korea has scrambled fighter jets after Kim Jong Un's warplanes flew towards the border and launched a ballistic missile into the ocean.

Around 10 North Korean military aircraft were seen flying near the de-facto border overnight, in what it says is a response to 'provocative action' by its southern neighbour.

The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff says planes were seen flying as close as 12km north of the boundary between the two countries late on Thursday and early on Friday.

In response F-35 jets and other warplanes were scrambled by the South, while there were no reports of clashes in the air.

Shortly afterwards a short-range ballistic missile was fired by Kim's troops towards its eastern waters, the latest in a series of launches that have seen tensions rise in the peninsula.

The JCS said the missile lifted off from the North's capital region at 1.49am and that it had boosted its surveillance posture and maintains military readiness in close coordination with the United States.

It comes a day after the authoritarian country launched two long-range cruise missiles over the Yellow Sea, with Kim saying his nation is 'at full preparedness for actual war'.

South Korea has scrambled fighter jets after North Korean warplanes were seen flying towards the border

There have been increased tensions between the two countries in recent weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (pictured) ordered missile tests

The North Korean warplanes were seen within 12km of the border between the two nations (pictured)

It is the second time in a week that the South has scrambled jets, after Kim sent 12 warplanes close to the border for bombing drills on October 6.

A total of 30 fighter jets were scrambled by South Korea after eight North Korean fighter jets and four bombers flew in chilling formation towards the boundary between the two countries.

They are thought to have carried out air-to-surface firing exercises, with Yonhap media saying they were flown in 'apparent protest' to recent bombing drills between the US and South Korea.

The North Korean military said it undertook the latest foray and missile test in response to 'provocative action' by Seoul near their common border.

A North Korean army spokesman said the South Korean army on Thursday had conducted 'artillery fire for about 10 hours near the forward defence area of the KPA Fifth Corps,' according to a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.

The Korean People's Army 'took strong military countermeasures' in response to the 'provocative action,' the statement said.

The KPA 'sends a stern warning to the South Korean military inciting military tension in the frontline area with reckless action,' the agency's report said.

Meanwhile, the JCS said the South Korean air force 'conducted an emergency sortie with its superior air force, including the F-35A, and maintained a response posture, while carrying out a proportional response manoeuvre corresponding to the flight of a North Korean military aircraft'.

A spokesman for South Korea's military said he had no information regarding the South Korean artillery fire reported by the North.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said it was aware of the latest missile launch and had assessed that 'it does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies.'

'We will continue consulting closely with our allies and partners to monitor the DPRK's destabilising ballistic missile launches,' it said, referring to North Korea by the initials of its official name.

Japanese defence minister Yasukazu Hamada said the missile flew on an 'irregular' trajectory - a possible reference to describe the North's highly manoeuvrable KN-23 weapon modelled on Russia's Iskander missile.

'Whatever the intentions are, North Korea's repeated ballistic missile launches are absolutely impermissible and we cannot overlook its substantial advancement of missile technology,' Mr Hamada said.

'North Korea's series of actions pose threats to Japan, as well as the region and the international community, and are absolutely intolerable.'

It comes a day after the North tested yet more missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads in the Yellow Sea.

The missiles flew 1,240 miles before moving in oval and figure eight patterns for almost three hours in a display of their apparent manoeuvrability before hitting targets, the Korean Central News Agency said.

Kim personally oversaw the tests as images showed him applauding inside a tunnel with his cronies, a cigarette in his right hand.

He 'highly appreciated' the test, state media said afterwards, which showed North Korea's nuclear forces are at 'full preparedness for actual war' and sent a 'clear warning to the enemies.'

Kim appears to be capitalising on the Ukraine war - which has tied up the UN and its sanctioning body - to carry out tests of weapons that would typically have drawn retaliatory measures.

Though North Korea is not technically forbidden from testing cruise missiles, it has also tested a flurry of ballistic rockets in recent weeks which are forbidden.

Kim is also thought to be gearing up for a banned nuclear test at its underground testing site, which would be its first in five years.

North Korea on Wednesday tested two long-range cruise missiles (left) which Kim Jong Un (right) said demonstrated that his nuclear forces are at 'full preparedness for actual war'

Kim is pictured overseeing the cruise missile test alongside his top officials, applauding with what appears to be a cigarette in his right hand as the weapons hit their targets

Kim said North Korea will 'focus all efforts on the endless and accelerating development of the national nuclear combat armed forces,' KCNA reported Thursday.

Kim made acquiring tactical nukes - smaller, shorter-range weapons designed for battlefield use - a top priority at a key party congress in January 2021.

'The latest test means the North is operating tactical nuclear capability on cruise missiles, which are harder to detect for their low-altitude flight,' Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification told AFP.

'It is a testament to Pyongyang's capability to mount nuclear warheads,' he said, adding that cruise missiles can also have irregular flight paths making them harder to intercept.

Many experts believe Kim's goal is to eventually win US recognition as a legitimate nuclear state and the lifting of said sanctions, though the international community to date has shown no sign of allowing that to happen.
Donald Trump ordered a complete withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and Somalia after he lost the 2020 election, the January 6 committee said at their Thursday hearing.

The memo was written to the acting Secretary of Defense on November 11 to take effect on January 15, 2021 - just before President Joe Biden was meant to take office.

The revelation was made by GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who is retiring from Congress at the end of this year after facing opposition from Trump over his re-election.

Trump National Security Council Official Gen. Keith Kellogg said he warned the former president that it could be 'catastrophic' in a video played by Kinzinger.

He also played footage of Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Mark Milley stating of the US's then-ongoing conflicts there, 'Yeah we lost, we need to let that issue go to the next guy.'

Lawmakers say it's proof that Trump knew he lost the 2020 election.

'These are the highly consequential actions of a President who knows his term will shortly end,' Kinzinger said.

Trump's order was clearly never carried out.

A video of former US President Donald Trump is played during a hearing by the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol

The panel showed a memo signed by Trump directing for the immediate withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and Somalia

The withdrawal ended up happening under President Joe Biden at the end of August

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley testified to the committee that Trump said of some of the US's ongoing conflicts, 'Yeah we lost, we need to let that issue go to the next guy'

Biden was widely criticized for his end-of-August 2021 Afghanistan troop withdrawal, which came amid the Taliban's lightening fast offensive to take back the country from its US-backed government.

But if Trump had withdrawn them earlier, 'it would have been a debacle,' Kellogg said.

At other points of the hearing, lawmakers showed yet more evidence that people closest to Trump in the lead-up to the January 6 attack knew that the election was settled.

The committee showed footage of their deposition from former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for the first time.

When asked by Cheney if Trump should abide by courts that were throwing out his legal challenges to the election, Pompeo replied that 'we should all comply with the rule of law to the best of our ability.'

Asked if he believed the election was over after the Electoral College met on December 14, Pompeo replied: 'Yes.'

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson was shown recalling a conversation between her old boss, ex-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and Trump, after the election.

She recalled Trump saying 'something to the effect of, "I dont want people to know we lost, Mark. This is embarrassing. Figure it out."'

Unlike in previous hearings, the panel is having no live witnesses at its Thursday event

The committee also used newly unveiled messages obtained from the Secret Service to show that Trump was aware he lost - and that those around him knew there was danger coming.

'Just fyi. POTUS is pissed - breaking news - Supreme Court denied his lawsuit. He is livid now...' one email read.

More documents show that the Secret Service was warned by multiple tips about the Proud Boys, the far-right military group accused of playing a key role in the violence that day.

'Their plan is to literally kill people. Please please take this tip seriously and investigate further,' one message passed to the Secret Service read.

Multiple correspondences between agents on the day of the riot show agents were aware that at least some people who had come to DC that day were armed.

'With so many weapons found so far, you wonder how many are unknown. Could be sporty after dark,' one agent texted another.

A post on a pro-Trump message board alerted by the agency called then-Vice President Mike Pence a 'dead man walking' if he didn't do the 'right thing' to overturn the election.

Rep. Pete Aguilar later said that, in the hours before the riot on January 6, agents were 'concerned' about Trump wanting to move to the Capitol.

'Agents were poised to take president trump to the Capitol' later that afternoon, Aguilar said, until the directive was blocked by senior agent Robert Engel.

Cassidy Hutchinson said at an earlier hearing that Trump lunged for Engel's neck when the agent refused to take Trump up to the Capitol after his Stop The Steal rally.

Committee Vice Chair Rep. Liz Cheney indicated at the outset that the Thursday hearing is largely focusing on Trump and the interactions others had with him between Election Day 2020 and the January 6 attack.

'None of this would have happened without him,' Cheney said pointedly. 'He was personally and substantially involved.'

She said he was driven by a 'motivation to spur others to do his bidding.'

And if he doesn't see justice, Cheney warned that another attack on US democracy - that has an even greater chance of succeeding - could follow.

'Why would we assume those institutions will not fall?' she said.

'Any future president inclined to attempt what Donald Trump did in 2020 has now learned not to install people who could stand in the way.'
Georgia police admitted on Thursday that they do not know where Leilani Howell, the mother of missing toddler Quinton Simon, is - a day after naming her as the main suspect in his death.

Quinton was last seen on October 5 when his 22-year-old mother reported him missing.

She claimed she woke up at 9.30am and he was nowhere to be found.

Now, a week later, police say they believe Quinton is dead and that his mother is responsible for his death.

They have not yet arrested or charged her, saying they want to ensure they have watertight evidence beforehand to secure a conviction.

Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said on Thursday he does not know where Leilani Howell, Quinton Simon's mother, is. She is the main suspect in her son's death

Quinton Simon vanished on October 5. Police believe he is dead, but they have not yet found his body

But detectives on Thursday admitted they do not know where Leilani is.

'I do not know where she is right now, today,' Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said at a press conference.

He insisted however that he does not think she is a 'flight risk'.

Quinton, 18 months, was normally cared for by his grandmother, Billie Jo Howell. She'd taken legal custody of him from his mother.

A week before he vanished, Leilani was ordered by the state to start paying child support.

She was due to be charged $150 a month starting November 1. The amount would be lowered to $100 if one of her two sons died.

Police have not yet revealed what kind of evidence they have against her.

One of Quinton's babysitters, Diana McCarta, said she received a text early that morning, at 5:30am tell her she did not need to come over to watch him that day.

Later that same morning, McCarta then got text from Quinton's grandmother asking if she had seen the 20-month-old toddler.

Quinton is pictured with his stepfather, Danny Youngkin, mother Leilani and another young boy. They lost legal custody of him for unknown reasons. He was being cared for by his grandmother, but Leilani and Danny were who reported him missing

'I got a text at 9 o'clock, saying 'have you seen Quinton?' said McCarta.

Babysitter Diana McCarta says she received an 'odd' text from Quinton's stepfather the morning he vanished, telling her she didn't need to look after him that day

Police in Savannah, Georgia, said they were investigating the little boy's disappearance as a criminal matter and no longer as a missing person's case

'I immediately go to their house and try to help them look, but they didn't want that. So I have just been waiting around like everyone else.'

The police were then called with Quinton reported missing at 9am.

Since that time, a massive search involving local police and the FBI have seen dumpsters, drains and ponds searched together with the Simon's home.

Cellphone data is being analyzed by the police who have now determined Quinton's vanishing is a criminal investigation.

Investigators returned to the home with sniffer dogs on Wednesday with Chatham County Police say a further update will be made on Thursday.
Kohanbash was assisted by two other men who helped in the manufacturing and sale of the products

A Brooklyn, New York, man has been sentenced for his involvement in a scheme to make and sell counterfeit military uniforms that failed to meet safety protocols.

Ramin Kohanbash, 52, received a sentence of 40 months in prison after pleading guilty in June 2019 to charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking of counterfeit goods.

According to a release from the United States Department of Justice, Kohanbash directed 'the development, manufacture, and importation' of $20 million worth of U.S. military uniforms and gear that were passed off as 'genuine American-made products.'

Instead, the products were made in China and widely failed to meet safety guidelines dictated by the military.

The implications of Kohanbash's actions could have been deadly for many American servicemen and women.

'Some of these products lacked crucial safety features or failed to meet safety specifications, endangering the health and safety of the military personnel who wore them,' DOJ representatives said.

More than 13,000 counterfeit jackets 'not resistant to enemies' night vision goggles' were distributed to U.S. Air Force bases around the world, officials said.

Ramin Kohanbash, 52, received a sentence of 40 months in prison after pleading guilty in June 2019 to charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking of counterfeit goods

Kohanbash directed 'the development, manufacture, and importation' of $20 million worth of U.S. military uniforms and gear that were passed off as 'genuine American-made products'

Roughly 18,500 non-flame-resistant hoods were also given out to Air Force members.

Along with the man's three-year prison sentence, a judge ordered him to forfeit the $20 million he made from the sales.

Additionally, Kohanbash will have to make restitution to companies that were 'victimized by his conduct,' United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha said.

One of the victims, a Rhode Island company, lost more than $600,000 after they unknowingly distributed the products given to them by Kohanbash.

The products were made in China and widely failed to meet safety guidelines dictated by the military. The implications of Kohanbash's actions could have been deadly for many American servicemen and women

The equipment that could have failed American troops According to DOJ officials, more than $20 million in counterfeit uniforms and gear were sold by the three men Kohanbash provided Klein with genuine clothing, apparel, and gear, which Klein then reworked to made in China and adorned with false labels U.S. law prohibits the making of military equipment in certain countries, one of those being China Klein manufactured the goods that contained counterfeit markings resembling those registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 13,332 counterfeit jackets not resistant to enemies night vision goggles were distributed to Air Force bases 18,597 hoods that were not flame-resistant were sent to U.S. Air Force bases For his work, Klein was paid $10.9 million by Kohanbash Advertisement

Representatives with the company also reported 'significant damage to its relationships with longstanding military clients.'

'American servicemen and women risk their lives every day in defense of the nation,' said U.S. Attorney Cunha. 'But the risks they face should never come from the uniforms they wear, and the equipment they carry.

'In this case, Defendants' actions did exactly that, substituting substandard, foreign-made knockoffs for American products. I am tremendously pleased that the defendants charged in this matter are being held accountable for their actions.'

Another conspirator in the case, Bernard Klein, 40, was sentenced in 2021 for his role in the scheme that put American lives in danger.

Klein was ordered to spend 18 months in prison, followed by three years of federal supervision. He was also required to pay a fine of $15,000 and restitution in the amount of $400,000.

In a civil case, Klein also paid nearly $350,000 to resolve liability to the U.S. under the federal False Claims Act.

The 40-year-old admitted at the time to arranging the manufacture of the counterfeit goods in China and Pakistan.

Court documents in 2021 revealed that the two men worked together to pull off the plan, with Klein being paid $10.9 million by Kohanbash for his work.

'Klein was provided samples of genuine clothing, apparel, and gear by Kohanbash, for reverse engineering in China,' documents said.

Bernard Klein, Kohanbash's co-conspirator, 'was provided samples of genuine clothing, apparel, and gear by Kohanbash, for reverse engineering in China,' documents said

'American servicemen and women risk their lives every day in defense of the nation,' said U.S. Attorney Cunha. 'But the risks they face should never come from the uniforms they wear, and the equipment they carry

'Prior to the approval of mass production of the counterfeit goods, Klein provided a preproduction sample of the counterfeit and falsely labeled goods to Kohanbash, and Klein emailed photographs of the counterfeit goods, as well as false hangtags and labels, to Kohanbash for approval,' the DOJ said in 2021.

The products were sold to the United States military and its suppliers, and the men used false certification letters claiming that the uniforms and gear were made in the U.S.

U.S. laws prohibit the manufacturing of military products in some countries, China being one.

A third man also charged in this incident is scheduled to be sentenced on October 20, 2022.

U.S. laws prohibit the manufacturing of military products in some countries, China being one

Terry Roe, 49, of Burlington, ND, managed the company that sold uniform items and gear to the United States military and its Base Supply centers, the National Guard, police, and other government agencies.

Roe was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking in counterfeit goods; mail fraud and aiding and abetting; and trafficking in counterfeit goods and aiding and abetting.

'The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), the law enforcement arm of the Department of Defense (DoD) Office of Inspector General, is fully committed to protecting the integrity of the DoD supply chain,' said Patrick J. Hegarty, Special Agent in Charge of the DCIS Northeast Field Office.

'Supplying counterfeit products to the DoD endangers the lives of American service members and betrays the public's trust. This investigation and subsequent prosecution demonstrate DCIS' ongoing commitment to working with its law enforcement partners to hold individuals who defraud the DoD accountable.'

Civil settlements with Klein, Kohanbash, and Roe have recouped an estimated $2 million.

The cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sandra R. Hebert, Richard B. Myrus, and Lee H. Vilker.
Shocking surveillance camera footage captured the terrifying moment a nine-year-old boy was abducted at gunpoint when his mother was walking him to school in the central Mexican city of Huehuetoca.

The boy was holding his mother's hand as they were walking in front of another parent and child Monday at 7:55 a.m. when two gunmen jumped out of a red Nissan Platina in the neighborhood of Benito Juarez.

A gunman grabbed the frightened boy and rushed him into the car while the other assailant hit the woman on the side of the head with a gun and snatched her belongings.

The abductors fled and later contacted the boy's family to request a $200,000 ransom in exchange for his release.

A kidnapper points his gun at a mother and her nine-year-old son while his accomplice grabs the woman moments before they forced the boy into a car in Huehuetoca, Mexico, on Monday morning. The child was rescued Wednesday after police tracked down seven abductors, including a teenage girl, to a home three miles away from where the kidnapping took place

The nine-year-old boy was found blindfolded inside one of the bedrooms where his captors were holding him after requesting $200,000 from his family to secure his release

State of Mexico and Huehuetoca cops launched a search with the assistance of intelligence agents who were able to track the boy and his abductors to two residences just five miles away in the Huehuetoca village of San Miguel Jagueyes.

Cops raided the home Wednesday night and rescued the boy. His eyes were covered with a piece of cloth that prevented him from making eye contact with his captors.

Four adult males, Moises Alexander, Erick Mateo, Omar Avelardo, and Leonel Eduardo, were taken into custody along with two adult females, Glenda and Lucila Guadalupe. A teenage girl was also arrested.

The last names of the six adult suspects were not released to the public in accordance with their due right process.

Lucila Guadalupe was among among the six adult kidnappers who are in police custody. A teenage girl was also arrested. The group was part of a gang that was involved in robbing residents who live in the Valley of Mexico - Mexico City and the eastern part of State of Mexico

Omar Avelardo is one of the seven kidnapping suspects who have yet to be arraigned. They're expected to make their first court appearance in the coming days

A mother holds on to her nine-year-old son moments before he was abducted on a central Mexico street while she was taking him to school

The defendants formed part of a gang that terrorize residents in the Valley of Mexico, an area that spans Mexico City and the eastern half of State of Mexico, prosecutors said.

The seven suspects are expected to appear before a federal State of Mexico judge for their arraignment.

The boy was the second child kidnapped this week in State of Mexico.

Glenda Marielos is one of the seven adductors linked to the kidnapping of a nine-year-old boy in the central Mexican municipality of Huehuetoca

A woman walks with her son in the Huehuetoca neighborhood of Benito Juarez just seconds before he was kidnapped Monday

The distraught mother runs down the street after he son was kidnapped by two men at gunpoint

David Navarrete, 10, was reportedly abducted by his father while his mother was walking him to school Monday morning in the municipality of Nezahualcoyotl.

Navarrete was rescued later in the day, according to the State of Mexico prosecutor's office.

The kidnappings moved the Huehuetoca city government to increase police presence at 150 pre-schools, elementary and high schools as well as trade schools and universities.

'I understand - the concern of the parents - that it is a situation that has dismayed us, that is condemned, it has no name ' Huehuetoca Mayor Milton Castaneda said, as quoted by Mexican newspaper El Universal.

There have been 2,827 children under the age of 17 kidnapped between January 1, 2021 and June 10, 2022, according to National Registry of Missing and Non-Located Persons. At least 22 percent of the kidnappings were reported in State of Mexico.
A New York woman has been arrested after allowing her 10-year-old son to get a large tattoo of his name in block letters across his forearm, police said.

Crystal Thomas, 33, was arrested for endangering the welfare of a child and released on an appearance ticket.

The boy was staying in a motel with his mother and older sibling when he learned that a man in neighboring room could give him a tattoo.

His mother allowed him to go next door and get the tattoo and did not supervise him, police said.

The tattoo was identified by the school nurse after the 10-year-old boy went to them to have Vaseline applied over it.

Crystal Thomas, 33, was arrested this month for allowing her son to get a 'six to eight inch' tattoo across his inner forearm

The tattoo was performed in a room in a motel in which Thomas was staying with her two children, understands Lloyd Police Chief James Janso based on interviews his department carried with Thomas and her son.

Thomas and her two children had been staying in the Highland Motel in Highland, near Poughkeepsie, for several weeks before her arrest this month.

A 'gentleman in the room next to them' was performing tattoos and the 10-year-old boy expressed an interest in getting one, Janso told DailyMail.com.

'She wasn't in the room with him,' he added.

'It's not a professional job,' said Janso of the tattoo which is on the 10-year-old's inner forearm and is 'around six to eight inches in length'.

The Highland Motel in Highland, between New York City and Albany, in which Crystal was staying for several weeks with her children and where the tattoo was done, police said

Lloyd Police became aware of the tattoo after the boy visited his school nurse to request Vaseline to apply to the new tattoo.

The school nurse reported the tattoo to the school resource officer who in turn contacted the police.

The Lloyd Police Department are in the process of trying to locate the man that performed the tattoo and according to Janso his investigators have leads.

The suspect is no longer at the motel, which is generally only host to people for 'transient stays', Janso said.

It is currently unclear what sort of relationship Thomas had with the tattooist, Janso said.

Thomas had been staying in the motel for several weeks before she allowed her son to get the tattoo

Thomass son and his sibling were taken in by child protective services.

Although she has been released from police custody it is not known whether she has custody of the children again.
Democrats recently asked for information from Texas grid operator about the impact of the crypto mining operations on the state's vulnerable energy grid, climate change, and the subsidies paid for by the retail consumers.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren and six other Democrats, in a letter on Oct. 12, told the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to give details on how much electricity the crypto mining companies have consumed.

The lawmakers have also expressed concern about the contribution of this undisclosed energy consumption to the carbon dioxide emissions for the last six years these companies operated.

Crypto Mining Energy Consumption

Warren, in a statement to The Verge, said she has been working so "the public understands the economic and climate risks from crypto."

The energy consumption of these crypto-mining companies has equaled the need of the entire country, she claimed.

The lawmakers cited the data from the seven large crypto miners showed they are operating with at least 1,045 megawatts (MW), enough power to provide power to over 800,000 homes.

They expressed worry about the reported plan of these companies to increase their total capacity to 2,399 MW a few years from now.

This projected increase, the lawmakers said, is a whopping 230x bump, enough to power a city of 1.9 million homes.

Also Read: Global Warming Is Real: Sea Ice Hits New Low

Carbon Emissions

Warren and fellow lawmakers said this large amount of energy use would adversely impact the air quality and the amount of greenhouse gas released into the atmosphere.

The taxpayers, they said, should stop paying subsidies, especially when their power grid is on the verge of collapse.

Soaring Demand For Energy

The state's power grid company asked Texans to cut energy consumption in July to avoid continuous blackouts.

ERCOT resorted to consumption cuts amid soaring demand that threatened to outpace the supply, Reuters reported.

The lawmakers wondered how much ERCOT paid to the crypto mining companies to trim down their energy consumption.

A Bloomberg report said Riot Blockchain, Inc. has raked in at least $9.5 million from credits it has earned for shutting down its Bitcoin mining rigs during an extreme heat wave in July.

Home of Crypto Mining Companies

Over the years, Texas has attracted some 30 crypto mining companies because of thousands of acres of land available, cheap electricity, and lower state taxes.

This interest to set up shop in Texas was fueled further by the state governor's favorable endorsement.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbot, in his tweet last year, said: "Count me in as a crypto law proposal supporter."

Tweet

The lawmakers feared the soaring energy demand might cripple the state's vulnerable power grid.

Crypto Mining Dirty Secret

Skeptics of cryptocurrency call it "fake money." Despite of bad reviews it gets, the crypto market has grown to unprecedented heights.

The market capitalization of some 19,000 cryptocurrencies has reached $1.75 trillion, almost the same size as that of Italy's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Aside from being called "fake money," crypto has a dirty secret most people do not know.

In an article published State of the Planet, crypto mining companies consume a lot of energy.

Bitcoin, for example, has an annual power consumption of 150 terawatt hours. This staggering energy requirement is enough to power Argentina's 45 million population.

To produce that amount of energy would also emit some 65 megatons of carbon dioxide, the article said.

Crypto is obviously a major contributor to global warming, it said.

Related Article: Bitcoin Mining Company CleanSpark Raises $35 Million in Capital - Will This Pave the Way for Sustainable Crypto Mining
An anti-vaxxer who feared that children would contract Covid from a social worker carrying out welfare checks at a flat has been found guilty of attempted murder after using two Swiss Army-style knives to try and kill him.

Sulai Man, 34, tried to kill 61-year-old Themba Nkomo with the two pen knives after police had forced their way into a flat in Wood Green, Haringey, north London, on August 6 last year.

Mr Nkomo was stabbed eight times, including three penetrating wounds to his torso, jurors were told.

But after officers went to the social worker's aid, Man also launched an attack on PC David Turpin and PC Luke Smith.

The defendant, also known as Sulai Bukhari, denied attempting to kill the social worker and assaulting the two officers with Swiss Army-style knives.

His defence was that he was acting in the occupants' defence despite not living at the address at the time.

Sulai Man, 34, has been found guilty of attempted murder after using two Swiss Army-style knives to try and kill a social worker. Pictured: Scene on Noel Park Road

The convicted man also told jurors that he was concerned about the occupants contracting Covid and that he was not in favour of vaccination.

On Wednesday, at the Old Bailey, he was found guilty of attempted murder by a majority of ten to two.

He was also convicted of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm to the two officers.

Prosecutor Simon Ray had previously told jurors the history of social services contact with the family, with the last visit by a Haringey Council social worker two months earlier.

After officers went to social worker Themba Nkomo's aid, Man also launched an attack on PC David Turpin and PC Luke Smith. Pictured: Scene following stabbing

On the day of the attack, Mr Nkomo had requested police assistance to carry out the welfare checks.

Officers used bolt cutters to cut chains on the door blocking access to the flat.

Meanwhile, Man hid around the corner in the communal area before launching his attack.

Mr Ray said: 'Mr Sulai Man ran at Mr Nkomo and stabbed him in the chest.

'Mr Nkomo fell to the floor. Mr Sulai Man continued to stab him whilst he was on the floor.

'The police heard Mr Nkomo shout and immediately ran out to help.

'The defendant ran away and PC Turpin followed. The defendant turned and launched himself at PC Turpin.'

Jurors heard the officer initially felt what he thought was a punch. He lost his balance and fell to the floor, using his legs to try to fend off the defendant, the court heard.

PC Smith, who was wearing a stab vest, then tackled the knifeman on the floor where he attempted to strike out at his torso.

Mr Nkomo was stabbed eight times, including three penetrating wounds to his torso, jurors were told. Pictured: Police approaching the scene Friday

At the Old Bailey (pictured), Man was found guilty of attempted murder by a majority of ten to two

The defendant, who wore all black with a mask covering his face, was quickly restrained on the ground and arrested.

The incident was caught on the officers' body-worn cameras, CCTV, a neighbour's doorbell camera and by mobile phone.

The defendant was heard to say words to the effect that he was protecting his family and questioning why the police were involved in a 'civil matter'.

Mr Ray added that although Mr Nkomo did not suffer life-threatening injuries, the attack could have had a detrimental effect.

'The prosecution say what is clear is that the defendant was intending to cause much greater harm to the victims,' he said.

'The fact the injuries did not result in death can be put down to luck and, in the case of Mr Smith, protection given to him by the stab vest he was wearing.'

Sentencing was adjourned to a later date for psychiatric and pre-sentence reports to be completed.
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Horrified tourists visiting New York City watched on from their hotel room as responders found and collected the body of a woman who plunged to her death from a 54th floor Times Square rooftop bar.

The unidentified 26 year-old, believed to be from from Hollis in Queens, fell to her death from Bar 54 at the Hyatt Centric on Wednesday afternoon. Her death was initially reported as a suicide, but the fall may have been accidental.

It's believed that staff at the bar also tried in vain to grab the woman moments before she fell 27 floors and landed on a ledge on the skyscraper hotel.

Other eyewitnesses told police the woman was 'seen jumping' to her death around 3:30pm Wednesday. She was seen making a phone call, before climbing onto a piece of furniture, then jumping over the side of the terrace.

A couple, who were staying at the hotel across the street, told DailyMail.com that they witnessed emergency services collecting the body after the woman fell to the 27th floor.

They saw responders covering the dead body with a white sheet. It was later removed from the hotel.

In a shocking clip filmed from their hotel room window, at least two people were seen dealing with the situation at Hyatt Centric.

It's currently unclear if she jumped from the rooftop bar or if her fall was accidental.

Among the guests with rooms at the hotel on Wednesday evening was a group of influencers and celebrities, who were staying in the building after a movie premier in Times Square.

Tourists from overseas at the hotel last night said that they heard sirens outside their rooms after the tragedy.

But many residents at the four-star hotel told DailyMail.com that they were not aware of what had happened on Wednesday.

Locals said that the street was blocked off by ambulances and police cars in the evening as they responded to the ordeal.

A first responder is seen about to cover the woman's body with a white sheet on the 27th-floor balcony of the hotel

A couple, who were staying across the street from Hyatt Centric Times Square, saw the commotion from their room. A white sheet is seen over the dead body after the woman plunged to her death

The woman, 26, fell from Bar 54, plunging 27 flights, and landing on the balcony on the 27th floor (pictured)

The balcony where the woman, 26, fell to her death at Bar 54 on Wednesday

Onlookers were horrified to see a woman jump from a Times Square rooftop bar. The 26-year-old landed on a balcony 27 floors below and was pronounced dead on the scene. Medical examiners are seen removing the woman's body

Horrified tourists saw the moment the woman's body was covered by a white sheet on the 27th floor of the building

Eyewitnesses told police the woman was 'seen jumping' to her death around 3:30pm Wednesday

'Perched above the bright lights of Times Square,' the bar is described as New York City's 'highest open-air hotel rooftop bar' on the hotel's website.

A Hyatt staffer told the New York Daily News: 'She walked right by me and I didnt think anything of it. She was a young girl with a reservation for the bar.'

Explaining what happened next, the worker added: 'Its easy (to jump) because the tables and chairs are right near the glass.

'She didnt say anything. Everybody came running saying, She jumped! She jumped! At first I thought they were playing.

'The woman cleaning on the 27th floor heard the crash and found her body on the balcony,' the worker told the Daily News: 'Were lucky she didnt land on the sidewalk. Its crazy.'

The horrifying incident happened just before 3.30pm Wednesday, before the bar had opened its doors.

According to the hotel's website, Bar 54 is open Sunday through Thursday from 4pm to midnight.

Emergency services found the 26-year-old woman unresponsive and unconscious on the balcony and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Her official cause of death will be determined by the city medical examiner.

The woman jumped from Hyatt Centric's 54th floor roof top bar in Times Square. Police have not said if the woman was a guest at the hotel or visiting the bar. The bar was closed for the rest of yesterday, according to a hotel employee

According to police, she plunged 27 floors from the rooftop of Bar 54 and landed on the 27th floor balcony below. Pictured: The Bar 54 terrace

The horrifying incident happened just before 3.30pm, with emergency services finding the 26-year-old woman unresponsive and unconscious on the balcony. Pictured: Hyatt Centric hotel

She was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. Her official cause of death will be determined by the city medical examiner. Pictured: The outside of Hyatt Centric

In a statement, Hyatt Hotels Corporation General Manager Tom Blundell expressed his condolences to the family and said the hotel is working closely with local authorities

Police have not said if the woman was a guest at the hotel or visiting the bar, which requires reservations. Standard rooms at the Hyatt location cost upwards of $600 a night.

'Soak in stunning river-to-river views of the Chrysler Building and lower Manhattan from 54 floors up at New York City's highest open-air hotel rooftop bar,' reads the hotel's website.

'Perched above the bright lights of Times Square, Bar 54 is an unforgettable location featuring chic, intimate indoor space and an expansive outdoor terrace - perfect for enjoying delicious craft cocktails, fine wines and light gourmet fare.'

The bar was closed for the rest of yesterday, according to a hotel employee.

A spokesperson for the NYPD confirmed yesterday's narrative of events.

In a statement, Hyatt Hotels Corporation General Manager Tom Blundell said: 'We are deeply saddened by the situation that occurred this afternoon at our hotel and our thoughts go out to the individual's family and those who have been affected.

'We are working closely with local authorities and all inquiries should be directed to the New York Police Department.'

Police have yet to identify the woman who jumped 27 floors to her death from the highest rooftop bar in New York City on Wednesday

In a statement, Hyatt Hotels Corporation General Manager Tom Blundell said: 'We are deeply saddened by the situation that occurred this afternoon at our hotel and our thoughts go out to the individual's family and those who have been affected
Bellar is one of three currently on trial for participating in the foiled 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer

The defense also said Bellar never shook his fists at the juror, but instead had been cheering over some skittles had been offered as a birthday treat

Bellar's defense attorney agreed he had seen the juror's looks, but said Bellar was 'behaving' and that the juror should not be dismissed

The prosecution also said Bellar was returning the flirtation, and even once pumped his fists in affirmation towards her

Prosecution complained that a juror was flirting with 22-year-old defendant Paul Bellar by smiling, winking, and nodding at him

The trial for three men accused of assisting in the kidnapping plot of Governor Gretchen Whitmer was derailed Wednesday after the prosecution accused a juror of flirting with one of the defendants.

Assistant Attorney General Bill Rollstin complained that the juror - an unnamed 'young' woman - was smiling, nodding, and making eyes at 22-year-old defendant Paul Bellar.

Rollstin said Bellar was returning the flirtation, winking at the juror and even pumping his fists in affirmation at her.

Defense Attorney Andrew Kirkpatrick agreed that he had seen the two looking at each other, but insisted Bellar never gestured at her and had merely been cheering over some skittles had been offered as a birthday treat.

Jackson County Circuit Judge Thomas Wilson said he too had noticed interactions between Bellar and the juror. He said he be 'paying close attention' to the pair.

Though Wilson noted he hadn't decided whether he would dismiss the juror, he said he would refrain from speaking with her about the accusations.

Beller, along with Pete Musico and Joe Morrison, is charged with providing material support for a terrorist act. The three men were part of the Wolverine Watchmen militia group, and are charged with assisting and organizing the foiled 2020 plot to kidnap the liberal Michigan governor over her restrictive COVID-19 mandates.

Prosecution complained that a juror was flirting with 22-year-old defendant Paul Bellar (above) by smiling, winking, and nodding at him

From left: Paul Bellar, Joe Morrison, and Pete Musico. The three men were part of the Wolverine Watchmen militia group, and are charged with assisting and organizing the foiled 2020 plot to kidnap liberal Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer

Rollstin raised his complaints about the juror during a trial recess on Wednesday, according to the Detroit Free Press.

'We're very concerned about this juror,' Rollstin told the judge.

Kirkpatrick sprung to his client's defense.

'The shaking of the fist is because of Skittles,' he told the judge. ''Cause guess what? It's his birthday today.'

Kirkpatrick also seemed to concede that the juror was giving Bellar eyes, but said he did not think it was something to dismiss her over.

'I have noticed her kind of looking. He knows. But he's not winking at her. He's not doing anything to encourage her,' he said. 'I don't think that's a basis to get rid of this juror.

'Maybe she likes him - maybe she doesn't. There's no way of telling what's in the juror's mind,' Kirkpatrick added.

Judge Wilson said the interactions had been apparent enough to draw his attention.

'I see her looking directly at your client, and a number of times I've seen smiles coming out of her face. It's enough that it's drawing my attention,' he said.

'I'm going to be paying close attention,' he added. 'I don't know if I'm going to kick her off or not.'

Defense said Bellar had not been gesturing to the juror accused of flirting, but had merely been grasping a handful of Skittles he was enjoying as a courtroom birthday treat

The plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer was foiled by the FBI, who infiltrated the paramilitary militia group organizing it

Attorneys for the other two defendants characterized the accusations as sexist.

'Simply because a young woman is looking over here - [concluding] it must be some flirtation involvement is just sexist,' said Musico's attorney, Kareem Johnson. 'People have laughed during this trial. People have smiled during this trial.'

'I completely object to the court even addressing the juror. She's supposed to look over here,' Johnson added.

Morrison's attorney, Leonard Ballard, agreed, saying it would be 'egregious' were the judge to speak with the juror over the accusation.

'Where's the basis for saying she's gonna lie? Because she's a woman? Because she's young?' he said.
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A couple who bought a 25 lottery ticket and won a 3million Cornish mansion have put it up for sale for 4million just weeks later because they say they can't afford the property's upkeep, MailOnline can exclusively reveal.

Uttam Parmar, 58, from Leicestershire, won the stunning house with panoramic views of the Camel Estuary and neighbours including Gordon Ramsay on August 12  and put it on the market on October 8 with the hope of making a profit of 3,999,975.

The huge prize also included 50,000 for the family and the home is mortgage-free, with stamp duty and legal fees covered.

But Mr Parmar and his wife Raki, 53, are already cashing in just eight weeks after the lottery win  despite hints to the contrary.

The Parmars have decided to return to their home in Leicestershire in the Midlands, saying they have chosen not to keep their Cornish property as a holiday home.

They say they are quite content to stay in their large modern red-brick detached home in a quiet close in Appleby Magna, Leicestershire.

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Mr Parmar said of his prize property: 'It is a fantastic house in a beautiful Cornish location but the price of it comes with a price to keep it and we can't afford to. We are selling it and not keeping it as a holiday home.

'We considered moving there and staying there but with all the costs et cetera it was a lot so we decided to sell it.

'We have an agent dealing with it and we're leaving him to sort it out.'

The lucky winner added: 'I'm quite a normal guy, there's some celebrity neighbours but I'm not in that showbiz league.

'It would be nice to meet a celebrity in the neighbourhood but we'd be a bit out of our depth.'

Mr Parmar and his wife Raki said the family had spent time at the house 'chilling out' before deciding to give it up.

Uttam Parmar, 58, (left), wife Raki, 53, and son Aaron, 26, in front of the 3million mansion in Cornwall. After winning the dream home in August for 25, Mr Parmar said: 'I've now won my own piece of paradise.' But now it is up for sale

The couple put it on the market last weekend with the hope of making a profit of 3,999,975

The operations manager for electronic component firm Alps Alpine, added: 'If we could afford to keep it we would. It is beautiful. But we are looking to buy some land or a smaller property instead.'

'We considered moving there and staying there but with all the costs et cetera it was a lot so we decided to sell it.

Mr Parmar added: 'I hope it sells for 4million but let's see.'

The eco-mansion is insulated with recycled newspaper and a 'green roof' covered in grasses, moss and flowers which reuses water, helps wildlife and improves air quality. It comes with 5.3 acres of rolling land running down to the River Camel.

The four-bedroom property was built with 'no expense spared' and commands views of outstanding natural beauty in the surrounding countryside and is a short distance from the picturesque village of Rock on the coast  where celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay lives with his family in his 4.4million mansion across the Camel Estuary from Padstow.

But it appears that Mr Parmar will not be swapping Leicestershire for Cornwall  not even keeping the property as a holiday home. Instead will sell the house and take the cash.

Speaking outside the home in Wadebridge this summer he had hinted that they would keep it, declaring: 'We have a large extended family, so no doubt they'll all be asking to have their next birthday parties here'.

He said: 'We've holidayed in Cornwall over the years and always thought it would be incredible to have a place here  and now we do  we're still pinching ourselves.

The dream 3million five-bedroom house, which overlooks the Camel Estuary in Cornwall, was won with a 25 lottery ticket

The house commands views of outstanding natural beauty in the surrounding countryside in Wadebridge

Inside, the home also has a large, open-plan kitchen and dining area for entertaining guests, with floor-to-ceiling windows

The property comes with five acres of land included, as well as its own hot tub with panoramic views of the stunning Cornish countryside

He added: 'We're not sure if we'll rent, sell or live in it yet  it's the best dilemma we've ever had! Whatever we decide, it's a life changing win for the whole family.'

But MailOnline has spotted it on the RightMove website, where it appeared five days ago.

Mr Parmar bought a ticket for the Omaze Million Pound House Draw in July. After having entered the competition eight times before without winning, he and his wife finally walked away with the grand prize.

He was at a hospital when he found he had won the four-bedroom dream home with a 25 ticket.

He said after winning the mansion: 'When Omaze called to tell us we'd won a prize, we were actually at the hospital. We were so excited that we might have won the grand prize, we called our son Aaron, 26, to see if the winning entry code matched ours. When he triple checked the numbers matched, we must've burst his eardrums screaming down the phone'.

'Although, we still didn't believe we'd won until we got back to our house and Omaze told us in person.

'I've entered every Omaze draw since they started, so patience really is a virtue, as I've now won my own piece of paradise  this house is definitely my favourite one they've offered.'

A video shows Mr Parmar and his family celebrating their astonishing win in the draw and their reaction to seeing the luxury home for the first time.

The house includes a suntrap terrace, a hot tub and its own courtyard with exposed brick walls and an open fireplace. Inside, the property also has a large, open-plan kitchen and dining area for entertaining guests.

With a sleek modern design, the home won an award for the best new build in Cornwall in 2020.

The four-bedroom house also includes a stylish private courtyard for entertaining guests

The home's sleek modern design won it an award for best new build in Cornwall in 2020

The competition was the ninth run by Omaze, whose Million Pound House Draw has raised 6.75million for good causes

The spacious 4,200 square-foot house also includes five acres of land in the Cornish countryside. Local estate agents estimate it could fetch up to 15,000 a month in rent at peak seasons.

Mr Parmar said: 'I've always considered myself a lucky person, firstly because of my wonderful family  but I've also won a few bits such as a TV and coffee table, which I was pretty happy with to be honest.

'I never dreamed I'd win anything as extravagant as a 3million house though'.

The prize draw raised money for Blood Cancer UK, a charity dedicated to funding research into cancers such as leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

Gemma Peters, Blood Cancer UK's chief executive, said: 'We are so grateful to Omaze for choosing us as its charity partner for the Cornwall house draw.

'Blood cancer is the UK's third biggest cancer killer, and the money this partnership has raised will help us to give support and information to people who are affected by blood cancer  as well as fund lifesaving research that will bring forward the day when blood cancer is finally beaten.'

James Oakes, chief international officer at Omaze, said: 'We're delighted that Uttam has won his dream home  and was able to contribute to this fantastic 1million raise for Blood Cancer UK in the process.'

The competition was the ninth run by Omaze, whose Million Pound House Draw has raised 6.75million for good causes.

The next house draw is for a stunning 2million home in Marbella, Spain  raising money for Teenage Cancer Trust.
No motive has been shared, but an advocate for the victims say they attended a women-only lesbian festival which banned trans attendees - to Rivers' fury

Police arrived at the scene in 2016 right after midnight when they received calls of gunshots in the neighborhood and found Rivers drenched in blood

A transgender rights advocate will finally stand trial next week for murdering a lesbian couple and their 19 year-old son in 2016, after campaigning against a lesbian festival the victims attended which banned trans guests.

Dana Rivers, 67, was charged with shooting Charlotte Reed, 56, and her wife Patricia Wright, 57, and their son Benny Diambu-Wright, 19 in Oakland during November 2016. Rivers knew her victims, according to investigators.

The suspect's trial has taken years due to delays in the doctor's report that will assess whether the 67 year-old alleged killer is mentally-fit to stand trial.

Experts have also pored over the state of the alleged killer teacher's mental health at the time of the murders. Women's rights advocate Kara Dansky has shared updates on the case on her website.

Rivers was caught by police fleeing the family's Oakland home located in the 9400 block of Dunbar Drive on November 11, 2016, while drenched in blood and carrying brass knuckles, ammunition and knives.

Police arrived at the home after receiving reports of gunfire after midnight and found Diambu-Wright shot dead in the front of the house, which had been set ablaze.

The former teacher, who became a transgender rights activist in 1999 after being fired from Center High School for openly discussing her transition to a female with students, was arrested at the scene and booked at Alameda County Jail.

COVID-19 restrictions in jails also delayed the progress of the doctor's report.

Cops have never shared a motive for the killings, but Rivers was part of a group called Camp Trans. Its members campaigned against MichFest, an annual, women-only lesbian festival held in Michigan until 2015.

MichFest refused to admit trans women, to the fury of some LGBT campaigners - including Rivers. She and others picketed MichFest in a bid to express their fury, and Rivers may have met her victims during that protest.

MichFest ended in 2015 amid continued controversy over the transgender-exclusion, although it remains. Reed and Wright were both regular attendees, although prosecutors have yet to state an explicit motive for the triple murder.

Dana Rivers, 67, will finally appear in court on Monday after she allegedly murdered a couple and their son in their California home on November 11, 2016

Patricia Wright (left), her wife Charlotte Reed (right) were found stabbed and shot multiple times in their Oakland home. Their son Benny Diambu-Wright, 19, was also found shot dead in front of the home

Wright was a semi-retired teacher at Esperanza Elementary School and had been married to Reed, a US Air Force veteran and businesswoman, for more than a year.

Reed and Wright adopted Diambu-Wright from Africa together, but Wright also had another son separately. He was not injured in the triple-murder.

That son, Khari Campbell-Wright previously said Rivers was an acquaintance. In a 2016 interview with the East Bay Times, he suggested it was a random act of violence.

'My mom had no part in it. My brother had no part in it. Wrong place, wrong time,' Campbell-Wright said.

The married couple is pictured on Facebook riding a motorcycle after getting hitched. River attempted to escape on the same motorcycle the night of the murders.

Wright, left, and Rivers, right, knew their killer. A motive hasn't been disclosed, but they attended a lesbian festival which barred trans women - to the fury of Rivers

Wright and Reed share two other children together. Their son Diambu-Wright, who was also killed, was from Africa

Rivers is formally known as David Warfield. She was terminated from her job at Center High School in Antelope after transitioning

Rivers is a US Navy Veteran and former award-winning teacher when she went by the name David Warfield in the 1990s.

The veteran notified Center High School in Antelope about her plans to undergo surgery to change her gender and was put on leave before she was fired.

Rivers gained media attention in 1999 following her termination and the launch of a lawsuit against the school that reached a $150,000 settlement.

The alleged murder was in the spotlight for a short period of time and appeared on several television shows, including the Today show.

Now, Rivers will be in the limelight once more as her three-day trial begins on October 17.

She denies murder, and has been held in jail without bond since the double-slaying.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was interrupted by protesters at her Bronx town hall Wednesday night over her vote to approve military aid to Ukraine to combat the Russian invasion.

'I believed in you, and you became the very thing you sought to fight against. That's what you've become,' one of the protesters yelled at The Squad member. 'You are the establishment.'

Two men shouted down AOC during the question-and-answer period of the town hall, in which many of the seats were empty.

'You originally ran as an outsider, yet you've been voting to start this war in Ukraine, you're voting to start a thermonuclear war with Russia and China. Why are you playing with the lives of American citizens?' the first man said, identified only by his Twitter handle of @Noggatone.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was interrupted by protesters at her Bronx town hall Wednesday over her vote to approve military aide to Ukraine to combat the Russian invasion

The first protester, identified only by his Twitter handle @Noggatone, yelled at AOC saying she was 'voting to start this war in Ukraine' and applauded former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard for leaving the party

'You originally ran as an outsider,' @Noggatone shouted at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez during her Bronx town hall Wednesday evening

My friend @Noggatone and I confronted Congresswoman @AOC on her support for Nuclear War and Ukrainian Nazis. I call her out for being a coward in the face of the party that will push us all into Nuclear war right now. Will she stand up like @TulsiGabbard and fight for peace? pic.twitter.com/aQiQvQSWIN  Jose Vega - Vote Diane Sare! (@JosBtrigga) October 13, 2022

He then applauded former Democratic presidential candidate and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's decision this week to leave the Democratic Party.

Gabbard branded her ex-colleagues as an 'elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness,' who were 'dragging us ever closer to nuclear war.'

'Tulsi Gabbard, she's left the Democratic Party because they're a bunch of war hawks,' the man said.

A second protester named Jose Vega, who posted video of the incident on Twitter, joined in.

'You voted to mobilize and send money to Ukrainian Nazis,' he shouted.

'You have done nothing. Tulsi Gabbard has shown guts, where you've shown cowardice,' he continued.

The interruption was met with a mix of shouts - and some applause - as the congresswoman asked the men to wait their turn, as there was apparently a line of constituents waiting to ask AOC questions.

'I will get to the issue,' she said.

When asked why she wouldn't immediately explain her votes to send military assistance to Ukraine, she answered: 'Because you are being rude to everyone around you.'

A Twitter user named Jose Vega claimed responsibility for the disturbance Wednesday. His Twitter profile he is a fan of the late conspiracy theorist Lyndon LaRouche.

LaRouche started as a Marxist and socialist sympathizer in his twenties during World War Two and then became more radical.

He ran for state offices in Illinois in 1986 and ran for President in 1996.

Vega wrote: 'My friend @Noggatone and I confronted Congresswoman @AOC on her support for Nuclear War and Ukrainian Nazis. I call her out for being a coward in the face of the party that will push us all into Nuclear war right now. Will she stand up like @TulsiGabbard and fight for peace?'

The progressive left - which historically has held a more anti-war stance than their mainstream Democratic counterparts - has quietly backed the war effort.

In February, as Russia started its invasion of neighboring Ukraine, Ocasio-Cortez called the move in a tweet 'indefensible.'

At the time she called for targeted sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and his oligarchs.

She's since voted in favor of military aid funding.

A spokesperson for AOC has yet to return DailyMail.com's request for comment on the incident.
'Instead of using their final days in power to make life for Americans any better, Democrats are doubling and tripling down on their partisan theatrics'

Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich called the hearing 'partisan theatrics' designed to distract from matters like inflation, the border crisis and crime

She said that 30 witnesses had pled their Fifth Amendment right to remain silent during testimony with the committee

Cheney also said the committee has sufficient information to make criminal referrals to the Justice Department for multiple individuals

The subpoena for Trump's testimony expires at the end of this congressional term, which is in December

Former President Donald Trump tore into the January 6th panel as he questioned why they waited so long ' to subpoena him to give testimony and hand over documents related to the Capitol riot.

'Why didnt the Unselect Committee ask me to testify months ago? Why did they wait until the very end, the final moments of their last meeting? Because the Committee is a total BUST that has only served to further divide our Country which, by the way, is doing very badly - A laughing stock all over the World?' he wrote on Truth Social after the hearing had wrapped.

He did not comment on whether he would comply with the subpoena.

In an unprecedented move, Republican Rep. Liz Cheney called Trump a 'key player' of the carnage and said the committee needs to hear from him 'under oath'.

The seven Democrat and two Republican members agreed and voted 9-0 after a hearing that included evidence Trump planned to declare he won the election in November 2020 - even if he was losing.

The vote closed out what is likely to be the committee's last public hearing before issuing its report in November or December.

'We must seek the testimony under oath of January 6th's key player,' Ranking Member Liz Cheney said in conclusion of the day's meeting

The subpoena for Trump's testimony expires at the end of this congressional term, which is in December

The panel was also shown video footage of Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and other top Democrats huddled in a secure location in the Capitol, calling round various officials begging for them to call in the National Guard.

'We must seek the testimony under oath of January 6th's key player,' ranking member Cheney said in conclusion of the day's meeting.

The subpoena for Trump's testimony expires at the end of this congressional term, which is in December.

'We need to hear from him,' chairman Bennie Thompson said. 'It is our obligation to seek Donald Trump's testimony.'

Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich called the hearing 'partisan theatrics' designed to distract from matters like inflation, the border crisis and crime.

'Instead of using their final days in power to make life for Americans any better, Democrats are doubling and tripling down on their partisan theatrics,' he wrote on Twitter. 'They are simply bitter, power hungry & desperate. Pres Trump will not be intimidate by their meritless rhetoric or un-American actions.'

Cheney also said the committee has sufficient information to make criminal referrals to the Justice Department for multiple individuals.

She said that 30 witnesses had pled their Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination during testimony with the committee, as she played clips of Roger Stone, John Eastman, Jeffrey Clark repeatedly answering questions with 'Fifth.'

The subpoena comes more than a year after the committee began probing his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

The January 6th panel plans to vote to subpoena former President Donald Trump on Thursday in likely what is to be its last public hearing, according to multiple reports

If the subcommittee votes to subpoena Trump on Thursday that subpoena expires at the end of this congressional term, which is in December

The committee has already interrogated dozens who are in the president's orbit and previously said it is still considering subpoenaing Trump or former Vice President Mike Pence.

Chairman Bennie Thompson told reporters the committee did not plan to subpoena Pence.

In its wide-ranging probe the committee has conducted more than 1,000 interviews and depositions and handed out 100 subpoenas.

Ranking Member Liz Cheney said that Thursday's hearing would focus on Trump's 'state of mind' and 'intent' revolving the Capitol riot and moves to overturn the election.

The committee dove into previously unseen material to demonstrate the president's mindset to the public.

In one interview, former White House communications director Alyssa Farah said that after the election Trump at one point looked up at the TV screen where President Biden was talking and said, 'Can you believe I lost to this f***ing guy?'

Trump also ordered a complete withdrawal from both Afghanistan and Somalia on Nov. 11, 2020, to take effect Jan. 11, 2021, just days before the Jan. 20 inauguration. Committee members claimed this proved Trump knew he had lost and would not be able to withdraw troops in a second term. The order was never carried out as Trump's senior defense officials warned against it.

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson was shown recalling a conversation between her old boss, ex-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and Trump, after the election.

She recalled Trump saying 'something to the effect of, 'I don't want people to know we lost, Mark. This is embarrassing. Figure it out.''

Meanwhile Rep. Zoe Lofgren said Trump was planning as early as July 2020 to declare victory if he lost against Joe Biden.

'Trump planned as early as July that he would say he won the election, even if he lost,' the panel member said was told to them by former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale.

She added: 'The evidence shows that his false victory speech was planned well in advance  before any votes had been counted. It was a premeditated plan by the president to declare victory no matter what the actual results was. He made a plan to stay in office before election Day.'

New footage also showed Pelosi and Schumer huddled together as rioters breached. the Capitol on Jan. 6 begging Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller to send in the National Guard.

'We have some senators who are still in their hideaways. They need massive personnel now. Can you get the Maryland National Guard to come, too?' Schumer questioned Miller.

The call came after video showed an exacerbated Schumer saying: 'I'm going to call up the effin' Secretary of DOD.'

Trump in a Truth Social post after the hearing said he had recommended Pelosi to put the National Guard on watch as lawmakers voted to certify the election, but she declined. Such a claim has not been proven.

'Why didnt Crazy Nancy Pelosi call out the troops before January 6th, which I strongly recommended that she do. It was her responsibility, but she didnt like the look. Crazy Nancy failed the American People!'

Separately, the Department of Justice is conducting its own investigation into the events surrounding Jan. 6. Pence's former chief of staff Marc Short and Trump's former national security aide and staunch ally Kash Patel were both seen leaving a DC federal courthouse where the grand jury investigating the Capitol riot meets.

Neither one would comment on what they had discussed.

As the committee wrapped up its public foray, Republican Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., on Twitter called it 'nothing more than a partisan panel desperately trying to score political points.'

'The illegitimate January 6 Committee's vote to subpoena President Trump is a political hatchet job read by a political hatchet committee,' Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., wrote on Twitter.

'This committee is illegitimately formed, in violation of House rules, and is organized to search and destroy perceived political enemies.'
He added he was looking forward to 'our joint Eurovision' in Liverpool next year

In a moving address he thanked the UK for its support of his country in the war

A Ukrainian broadcaster who commentated on this year's Eurovision from a bomb shelter has thanked the UK for its support of his war-torn country.

In a moving address at tonight's National Television Awards (NTA), Timur Miroshnychenko said it the help Ukraine has received from Britain has been 'priceless'.

Speaking tonight he said he was looking forward to next year's 'joint Eurovision', which is being hosted in Liverpool due to security concerns in Ukraine.

The 36-year-old melted hearts around the world earlier this year when video emerged showing him celebrating Ukraine's victory at Eurovision 2022 from an underground bunker.

Traditionally the winner of the contest hosts the next edition, but safety fears surrounding the ongoing illegal invasion by Russian forces meant the decision was taken to host it in the UK, which finished second.

Speaking at the OVO Arena in Wembley tonight while presenting the award for best TV presenter at the awards, Mr Miroshnychenko said: 'Thank you for having me. First of all, on behalf of all Ukrainians, I want to say thank you Britain for your tremendous support.

'Not only that night in May but all 232 days of full-scale war. It's priceless really.

'I've seen so many Ukrainian flags around the city. I've heard so many words of support and sympathy. We greatly appreciate it.

'But at this very moment, despite the continued bombardment, the chance to break our spirits and launch us into darkness - we remain defined.

'I'd like to ask you to be with us, to stand with Ukraine and don't get used to war. And, of course, we are looking forward very much to our joint Eurovision in 2023.'

Mr Miroshnychenko thanked the UK and the British public for its support of Ukraine during the ongoing war with Russia

Mr Miroshnychenko commentated on this year's Eurovision from a basement in Ukraine amid the threat of Russian missile strikes

Mr Miroshnychenko has commentated or presented the Eurovision song contest for Ukraine since 2007 and e co-hosted the song contest final in 2017 in Kyiv after Ukraine's victory in the 2016 competition.

In the early days of the war he contributed by driving refugees to safety and transporting aid, before returning to Kyiv when Russian forces were pushed back.

The war-torn nation ended on 631 points while the UK finished second with 466 points. Spain finished third with 459 with Sweden fourth on 438.

Kalush Orchestra, who won the contest for the nation, delivered an emotional rendition of their song Stefania, which has become a war anthem for Ukraine during the invasion.

Mr Miroshnychenko won hearts around the world when video showed him celebrating the win from a bomb shelter where he had been commentating on the event.

He leans forward in anticipation as the audience points come in, before standing up and banging the table in excitement as the win for Ukraine is confirmed

The television host then stands, arms wide in a triumphant pose, cheering the win for Ukraine

On his screen, folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra can be seen jumping with excitement as they are announced as the winners of the song contest

He could be seen leaning forward in anticipation as the audience points come in, before standing up and banging the table in excitement as the win for Ukraine was confirmed.

The television presenter then stood, arms wide in a triumphant pose, cheering the win for Ukraine.

On his screen, folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra could be seen jumping with excitement as they were announced as the winners of the song contest.

He leaned forward to the screen again, watching the group celebrate live in Turin, before waving a hand in the air and cheering some more.

Inside the bomb shelter, plaster was coming from the walls, leaving brick exposed.

Speaking before told the Telegraph: 'We have to be underground because you never know.

'You don't have a schedule of air raid alerts when Russia decides to launch their missiles... we have to be underground not to interrupt the broadcasts.'

Tonight's NTAs are being hosted by Joel Dommett, who has taken on the role for the second year running.

This year's NTAs are being hosted by Joel Dommett (pictured) at the OVO Arena in Wembley, London

Sir Lenny Henry attending the National Television Awards tonight, where he is receiving the Special Recognition Award for his career

Sir Lenny Henry is to be presented with the coveted gold Special Recognition Award at the annual ceremony on Thursday night.

This year's National Television Awards will honour the 64-year-old and his trailblazing career in UK television, which has endured for nearly 50 years.

Sir Lenny has been a mainstay on TV for nearly 50 years, starting with his 1975 victory on New Faces at the age of 16 which led to further acclaim on such era-defining shows as Tiswas and Three of a Kind.

Breaking new ground for black talent, he went on to experience huge success with his own sketch comedy series before playing a key role in the formation of Comic Relief.

More recent projects have seen him diversify into acting, most notably on stage as Othello and on screen in the big-budget Amazon Prime series, Lord of the Rings: the Rings of Power.

Among those congratulating Sir Lenny for his achievements as a writer, campaigner, comedian and presenter will be Hollywood superstar Whoopi Goldberg, who says, 'If you want to know what a superhero looks like, take a look at Sir Lenny Henry.'
This is the horrifying moment two Florida fathers go berserk at each other after allegedly shooting each others' daughters.

The video starts with Frank Allison, 43, yelling obscenities at William Hale, 35, after the pair are said to have fired the rounds during a road rage incident near Jacksonville.

'That's what you get!' Allison is heard yelling. Allison then offers his shirt to his 14-year-old girl Shelby, who is being helped by cops after she was allegedly shot in the back by Hale.

After a back-and-forth between Allison and police, Hale is then seen being read his rights.

His five-year-old daughter, who is not seen in the footage, was allegedly shot by Allison in the leg.

Hale declines needing a lawyer before police say they will ask him questions, which is not shown on video.

Much of the video is muted, as both Allison and Hale relay information to the police, including Allison, who said he 'would never, never put (his daughter) in a position.'

'Do I have to ride in an ambulance?' Shelby, who suffered a punctured lung, is heard saying. Both fathers were arrested on charges of attempted murder.

The bodycam opens its footage with Frank Allison, 43, yelling obscenities at William Hale, 35, after the pair of father shot each other's daughters

Allison starts walking away from Hale before he starts speaking with a police. His 14-year-old daughter, Shelby, is seen blurred out on the ground next to him as she receives treatment

Hale is seen at the end of the footage while shirtless. Police read him his rights before he declines needing a lawyer

The two fathers were driving on US Highway 1 near Callahan, Florida

William Hale, 35, from Douglas, Georgia (left) and Frank Allison, 43, from Callahan, Florida (right) have both been charged with attempted murder following Saturday's road rage shooting

Both girls are expected to survive, but the sheriff of Nassau County, Bill Leeper, condemned both fathers for their stupidity in what a witness said was high-speed 'cat-and-mouse' game.

'What is scarier than one crazy driver with a gun? Two crazy drivers with a gun,' Leeper said on Monday.

'But it could have been very easily turned out that way because two people were acting stupid and let their tempers get the best of them. There could have been two dead kids because of two stupid grown men.'

Hale was driving a black Dodge Ram near his home with five occupants inside, including his mother Britney.

Allison was driving a gray Nissan Murano with three occupants, including his wife Jessica and daughter Shelby, all heading home to Georgia.

Both were on US Highway 1 near Callahan around 6pm.

They both accused each other of 'brake checking,' driving erratically and dangerously.

Jessica Allison wound down the window and began making offensive gestures at the Hale vehicle, and the Hales then threw a water bottle into the Allison vehicle.

Frank Allison is seen with his wife Jessica. The couple, from Callahan, Florida, were both allegedly involved in actions leading up to the shootings

Sheriff Bill Leeper condemned both men for their stupidity that could have left two children dead

Frank Allison opened fire while driving, believing he had hit the Hales' tires - when in fact he had hit the girl.

Hale fired back, striking Allison's daughter who was riding in the car with one of seven or eight rounds he unloaded into the speeding vehicle.

The mother of one of the children who was shot can be heard on a 911 call.

'My daughter's been shot  please help me,' she says.

A child can also be heard weeping on the call.

'I don't want to die,' the child can be heard saying, according to News4Jax.

Both drivers continued heading north, with their injured daughters in the back.

The pair saw a Nassau County Sheriff's Office patrol car and stopped, then began arguing and fighting with each other by the side of the road, and the deputy had to break up the fight.

The pair were booked into jail on attempted murder charges.
A convicted sex offender has appeared in court after being arrested when a schoolgirl was heard screaming and crying in the bathroom of an elementary school.

Logan Allen Nighswonger, 32, is accused of climbing over a 6-foot fence of McAuliffe Elementary School in Riverside, California, before heading into the building on August 19.

He was then spotted coming out of the girls restroom where his victim, a 10-year-old girl, was found in distress at around 12.30pm.

A campus administrator spotted him trying to escape the complex after leaving the bathroom and heard a child 'screaming and crying'.

It is unclear if the girl suffered any physical injuries, and a witness watched the offender jump another fence to get off school property.

Nighswonger has appeared in Riverside Superior Court ahead of Jude Gale ORane after being charged with forcible lewd acts on a child.

Logan Allen Nighswonger, 32, is accused of climbing over a 6-foot fence of McAuliffe Elementary School in Riverside, California, before assaulting a 10-year-old girl

A campus administrator spotted him trying to escape the complex after leaving the bathroom and heard a child 'screaming and crying'

Court records show that Nighswonger has two prior misdemeanor convictions for annoying a minor

The convicted sex offender is accused of cornering and groping his victim for a period of time before fleeing, according to court documents.

He has also been charged with accessing a K-12 campus without permission and a sentence-enhancing allegation of committing a sexual assault during a burglary.

Another witness made a note of a car that Nighswonger drove off in, before passing the licence plate number on to the police in a 911 call moments later.

Nighswonger was tracked down to Placentia, where he was where he was apprehended without incident on Melrose Street less than four hours later.

Court records show that Nighswonger has two prior misdemeanor convictions for annoying a minor.

Annoying or molesting a child is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in county jail and a maximum $5,000 fine.

He is currently being held in the Larry D. Smith Correctional without bail, and appeared at the Riverside Hall of Justice on Thursday

Annoying or molesting a child is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in county jail and a maximum $5,000 fine

He is currently being held in the Larry D. Smith Correctional without bail, and appeared at the Riverside Hall of Justice on Thursday.

Alvord Unified School District Superintendent Allan Mucerino said: Children should never experience a situation such as this, and it deeply saddens me that this incident occurred.

It gives us pause and reinforces our commitment to school safety in recognition that, even when we follow safety best practices and do everything in our power to secure our campuses, there continues to be threats, which we will continue to work tirelessly to mitigate.

Riverside police Chief Larry Gonzalez added: The safety of our students and staff at school will always remain amongst our top priorities.

When that safety is put at risk, we will do everything within the law to quickly find and arrest the person responsible.
Continued need highlighted to solve U.S. cases of missing, murdered indigenous persons: report

Xinhua) 09:48, October 13, 2022

Performers are seen at the annual Gathering of Nations Powwow and Miss Indian World Pageant in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the United States, on April 27, 2019. (Xinhua/Richard Lakin)

There are currently about 500 Native Americans in Oklahoma who are missing, or their murder is unsolved.

NEW YORK, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- On Indigenous Peoples' Day, local Native American groups are reminding Oklahomans that disappearances and murders continue to plague their relatives, reported local news media KFOR on Monday.

The murder rate for Native American women is more than 10 times the national average, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

"Missing and murdered indigenous people is an epidemic," said Carmen Harvie, president of the Oklahoma state chapter of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People.

Harvie said there are currently about 500 Native Americans in the state who are missing, or their murder is unsolved.

"Every case, no matter what lifestyle you have, they deserve equal media attention, equal missing reports need to be done," she said. "If your loved one went missing you would want them to be found. Time is of the essence."

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)
Netflix's new series "Glitch" revolves around two friends hunting for clues in an alien mystery. Courtesy of Netflix



By Lee Gyu-lee



Director Roh Deok, who helmed Netflix's new genre-bending Korean original series "Glitch," said that working on the series has led her to reach a turning point in her career.





Director Roh Deok of Netflix's original series "Glitch" / Courtesy of Netflix

"This project took up about two to three times the turnaround time of a film. And a lot has happened during the process, personally. I think the way I approach the actors and production staff has changed a lot," the director said during an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Jongno District, central Seoul, Wednesday.



"In the past, my priority was focused on making a good project. But with this one, I also learned to be there for the staff and those working together and put faith in them, which I felt actually helped them. This series has become a turning point."



Released last Friday, the series debut for the director, whose previous work includes the romance film, "Very Ordinary Couple," revolves around an ordinary woman in her 30s, Hong Ji-hyo (Jeon Yeo-been).



One day, her boyfriend, Lee Si-gook (Lee Dong-hwi), disappears. As she reunites with her former friend and UFO enthusiast, Heo Bo-ra (Im Jin-ah), to find the secret behind Si-gook's disappearance, she faces her ability to see aliens and her past that she has been trying to avoid.



It is scripted by Gin Han-sai, who wrote Netflix's hit series, "Extracurricular."





A scene from the Netflix series "Glitch" / Courtesy of Netflix



The director said she had been developing a similar story on her own years ago, so when she was offered the script for "Glitch," she didn't hesitate to take it.



"I wanted to unfold a story about finding an identity but I couldn't finish the story. Then, I came across the 'Glitch' script that was similar to what I was developing five to six years ago," she said.



"I felt I had to do it, because if I didn't take it, someone else would do it, and then the story that I was originally developing would just look like plagiarism. So it only felt right that I should direct it; not to have the project be on someone else's hand."



The 10-part series sets a quirky tone flipping through genres from thriller and mystery to comedy with sci-fi elements of extraterrestrial beings.



Roh noted that the series challenges the stereotype of putting a story into categorized genres. "This is a new journey of deviating from the conventional genre story that we usually come across," she said.





Director Roh Deok, left, talks with actors during a shooting of the series "Glitch." Courtesy of Netflix
Dramatic video shows lawmen engaging in the thrilling rescue of a hiker trapped beneath a boulder deep in the mountains of Washington state, braving high-speed winds to airlift the 28-year-old to safety.

Ben Delahunty became trapped Monday, officials said, after traversing dangerous terrain in the Lake Viviane area of the Enchantments mountains, straying several hours from the nearest trailhead.

Hailing from nearby Montana, Delahunty thankfully was with a friend for the ill-advised trek, who called local police when he realized the boulder was too heavy even for the combined strength of the two men.

Officials said the rock was roughly the size of a refrigerator, and hopelessly pinned Delahunty, whose wrist and both legs had both become wedged under the boulder's massive weight.

Police said that Delahunty became trapped after standing on the boulder on the isolated cliffside, causing it to shift under his weight.

Shortly after his friend became trapped, the unnamed partner called RiverCom dispatch at roughly 9:30 am, pleading for help.

It would be another three hours before rescuers arrived on the scene, and many more hours before Delahunty was eventually freed.

Dramatic video shows lawmen engaging in the thrilling rescue of a hiker trapped beneath a boulder deep in the Enchantment mountains of Washington state, braving high-speed winds to airlift the man, 28-year-old Ben Delahunty, to safety

Delahunty became trapped after standing on the boulder.

Chelan County Emergency Management Sgt. Jason Reinfeld told The Seattle Times that the hiker initially 'felt really stable' on the boulder, then all of a sudden, the 'rock started to slide and he ended up underneath it.'

'They were nearly on a cliff side and the boulder was also being held in place by a tree,' Reinfeld added of the dangers of the rescue.

'According to him, he was on the boulder, it felt really stable  hes not a heavy person,' Reinfeld added. 'It just all of sudden started to slide and he ended up underneath it.

Heart-pounding forage released by the Chelan County Sheriff's Office showed the perils lawmen face while engaging in the rescue, protecting Delahunty from highspeed winds before he was safely airlifted away - more than eight hours after he'd become trapped

Upon arriving at the scene at roughly 12:20pm, officers from the Chelan County Sheriff's Office soon realized that a rescue would be even more difficult than anticipated, as paramedics were not able to reach the area where Delahunty was trapped without safety ropes.

Nearly five hours would pass before first responders could free Delahunty, removing the rock with an array of extrication equipment. However, the rescue was still far from over.

While freed from his craggy confinement, Delahunty's legs were left badly injured by the crushing weight of the rock, leaving him unable to walk, officials said.

Rescuers then had to figure out how to get the injured hiker safely off the desolate mountainside without the use of his legs.

Upon arriving at the scene at roughly 12:20pm, officers from the Chelan County Sheriff's Office soon realized that a rescue would be even more difficult than anticipated, as paramedics were not able to reach the area where Delahunty was trapped without safety ropes

Nearly three hours would pass before first responders reached Delahunty, at which point they were able to remove the rock and free the hiker. But the rescue was far from over

Freed from his craggy confinement, Delahunty's legs were left badly injured by the crushing weight of the rock, leaving him unable to walk, officials said. Rescuers then had to transport him safely from the desolate mountainside

Officials said that Delahunty became trapped after standing on the boulder on the isolated cliffside, causing it to shift under his weight

What's more, by the time he was freed, winds had picked up so much that the first attempt to hoist him from his position by helicopter, as well as an attempt to wheel him to a nearby landing zone, were unsuccessful.

It would be another two hours, at around 4:45pm, before there was enough of a break in the weather for officials to again attempt a hoist operation - this time successfully.

Heart-pounding footage released by the Chelan County Sheriff's Office shows the perils lawmen faced while engaging in the rescue, before Delahunty was safely transported to Central Washington Hospital.

It shows the rescuers holding Delahunty in place as the group is pelted by deafening winds, as the pulsing blades of a helicopter overhead can be heard.

The footage shows the rescuers holding Delahunty in place as the group is pelted by deafening winds, as a helicopter can be seen waiting to safely transport the hiker away

Their efforts would not be in vain, however, with Delahunty finally airlifted away at roughly 4:45pm - more than eight hours after he became trapped

Their efforts would not be in vain, however, with Delahunty finally airlifted away at roughly 4:45pm - more than eight hours after he had become trapped.

Video of the operation shows rescuers being brutally battered by winds he was hoisted into the air by the aircraft.

Officials said Delahunty sustained 'significant injuries' to his leg but is expected to recover. The extent of his injuries have not been specified.

After Delahunty was saved, rescuers on scene hiked out again to the isolated trailhead, arriving at about 11 pm, to retire extrication equipment used in the complex rescue.

Due to the tools' weight and the distance from any traversable trail, the equipment - which was used to pry Delahunty from the rock - was left nearby overnight and retrieved Tuesday by helicopter.

The incident occurred while Delahunty and his friend had been exploring the mountains near Lake Viviane

Several local agencies participated in the intricate operation, including members of Cascade Ambulance, Chelan County Mountain Rescue, Wenatchee Valley Fire Department, Snohomish County Helicopter Rescue Team, and Chelan County Emergency Management.

A union for firefighters in Wenatchee Valley posted the nail-biting video of the rescue.

The Chelan County Fire District 3 also provided additional equipment to free the hiker.

'Ive been involved in search and rescue for 15 years, and I havent seen a rescue as complicated as this one to accomplish,' Reinfeld told the Times of the dangers of the successful operation.

'Something heavy trapping somebody is dangerous if you can drive up to it with equipment but having to do it so remotely just adds another level of complication and hazard.'

Wenatchee Valley Fire Department Chief Brian Brett added that this was the first time his department had been forced to use extrication equipment for a mountain rescue.

'This was definitely something a movies made out of,' the fire chief said.

Delahunty remains hospitalized, but police say he is expected to recover.
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected former President Donald Trump's appeal to have an independent figure review more than 100 classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago.

It marked a setback for the former president as he battles the Department of Justice and its investigation into his handling of sensitive documents.

In a 35-word order, the justices turned down Trump's emergency request to lift an appeal court's ruling that stopped the special master from reviewing documents marked as classified among the 11,000 files seized by the FBI on Aug. 8.

None of the nine justices issued a public dissent.

Two days earlier, the Justice Department had urged them to deny Trump's request.

In a filing, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued Trump would suffer 'no harm at all' if the classified documents were temporarily withheld from the special master, federal judge Raymond Dearie.

The Supreme Court rejected Donald Trump's appeal to let a special master review more than 100 classified documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida

The ruling was terse and offered no explanation or public dissents from any of the justices

Federal agents seized some 11,000 documents from Trump's club and political headquarters, Mar-a-Lago in Florida. The search sparked a political storm

Veteran Brooklyn judge, Raymond Dearie, has been appointed 'special master' charged with reviewing the records and filtering out those that may be protected by claims of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege

And she said Trump had 'no plausible claims of ownership' over the documents.

Trump's lawyers have argued that some may be protected under attorney-client privilege or executive privilege, but the government argues that simply does not make sense in the case of documents that have been classified.

Federal officials obtained a court-approved warrant to search Trump's residence after suspecting that not all presidential documents in his possession had been returned after his presidency ended.

Investigators searched for evidence of potential crimes related to unlawfully retaining national defense information and obstructing a federal investigation.

Trump has denied wrongdoing and has called the investigation politically motivated.

Trump went to court on Aug. 22 in a bid to restrict Justice Department access to the documents as it pursues a criminal investigation.

His latest appeal was an effort to overturn a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit which had found in favor of the Justice Department and exempted about 100 classified records from review by the special master.

The 100 or so files marked classified were among about 11,000 documents taken from the President's Florida estate by FBI agents looking to retrieve White House files

The court's 6-3 conservative majority includes three justices appointed by Trump, who left office in January 2021. Its Thursday ruling offered no explanation of their decision

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon last month agreed to Trump's request to temporarily block the government from using the seized materials in its investigation until the special master determined if any could be deemed personal or subject to attorney-client confidentiality or executive privilege - a legal doctrine that shields some White House communications from disclosure - and thus off limits to investigators.
Brooks argued that his sixth amendment rights are being violated in the trial

When asked by Brooks if she saw him driving the SUV that barreled behind her on the parade route, she retorted: 'No I don't have eyes in the back of my head'

She was questioned and cross-examined by Brooks, who is representing himself

On Day 9 of Waukesha parade killer Darrell Brooks' trial, a member of the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies troupe testified about what she saw

A surviving member of the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies troupe slapped back at accused Waukesha parade killer Darrell Brooks when he asked if she saw him driving the SUV that barreled down the route killing six people.

Laura Thein took the stand on Thursday in a trial that has seen numerous delays due to Brooks' outbursts and interruptions which have escalated since he decided to represent himself.

Brooks, 40, is accused of driving his car through the Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin on November 21, 2021, killing six people between the ages of eight and 81, and injuring more than 60 people.

Three of those people were members of the Dancing Grannies troupe and one of them was the husband of a Dancing Grannies member. All of them were friends - and like family - to Thein, who performed in the parade but was not hit.

Thein told the court how she was performing in the parade with her troupe to 'Winter Wonderland,' when she noticed a red streak flash by as the vehicle barreled past her from behind.

She testified that she did not witness anyone get hit by the vehicle as it 'happened in a matter of seconds.'

On cross-examination, Brooks asked her if she got a look at who was driving the vehicle and when she responded she hadn't, he pushed with 'so you didn't get a look at the driver at all?'

Thein snapped back with, 'No I don't have eyes in the back of my head.'

Dancing Grannies member Laura Thein fired back at accused Waukesha parade killer Darrell Brooks when he asked if she saw him driving the SUV that killed six people last year

Brooks, 40, accused of driving his car through the Christmas parade in Waukesha , Wisconsin, on November 21, 2021, killing six people, cross-examined one of the survivors Thursday

Thein also gave an emotional account of the tragedy as she recalled seeing the aftermath of the attack.

'It all happened in a matter of seconds,' she said. 'And after the car kept going, I looked down the road and all I seen were bodies. I thought I was in a war. Because there were so many.'

Tamara Durand, 52; LeAnna Owen, 71; and Virginia 'Ginny' Sorenson, 79, who were part of the Dancing Grannies troupe, were killed in the attack. William Hospel, 81, the husband of another Grannie, also died after being struck.

'We were like sisters,' Thein said of the Dancing Grannies. 'We were a sisterhood.'

Thein said it was Tamara Durand's first parade.

'She was so excited about being a granny,' said Thein. 'She worked for months and months to learn all the routines. That was the first and last parade she ever did.'

Thein said her husband was driving the 'music vehicle,' which she was in front of. And said the red SUV came from the side and hit Bill and Tamara.

'I saw a streak of red going past,' Thein said. 'It just whizzed past me.'

'I didn't see them get hit it happened so quick,' Thein continued. 'I screamed in my head or out loud. I said, 'What is he doing? Where is he going?' It was so unusual. If he was going down the parade route, he was going to hurt a lot of people.'

She testified that she never saw the SUV slow down.

'It came from the right, hit two people and came in the middle, hit two more people and hit two more,' Thein said

The two others who were also struck and killed were 52-year-old Jane Kulich and 8-year-old Jackson Sparks.

Thein also gave an emotional account of the tragedy as she recalled seeing the aftermath of the attack that claimed the lives of four of her friends

Thein spoke fondly of Virginia Sorenson, one of the Dancing Grannies who died

Thein points out her friend Bill Hospel seconds before he was struck at the parade

Thein said it was Tamara Durand (pictured) first parade. She was also killed in the attack

Brooks is charged with six counts of first-degree intentional homicide, 61 counts of recklessly endangering safety, six counts of hit-and-run causing death, two counts of bail jumping, all felonies, and one count of misdemeanor battery.

Later on Thursday morning, Brooks argued for about an hour that his sixth amendment rights are being violated in the trial.

Brooks said he has not received requested documents, such as certification of prosecutors' licenses to practice law and an affidavit proving Dorow's oath of office.

'I'm basically sitting here confused because I don't understand why these proceedings are allowed to continue,' Brooks said.

Brooks, who is representing himself, plans to call at least 12 witnesses to the stand.

Prosecutors have said they could wrap up their case on Monday.

Earlier this week, Brooks apologized to the victims' families and the court for his erratic behavior in the courtroom.

Darrell Brooks, 40, who is accused of killing six people during a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, apologized for his erratic behavior in the courtroom last week

Brooks was thrown from the courtroom last week after repeated interruptions, outbursts, and a spat with the judge - only to appear shirtless while livestreaming in from a sperate room.

Brooks has been acting as his own attorney since last week, when he demanded Judge Jennifer Dorow dismiss his public defenders.

Since then, he has been interrupting the judge and on Thursday was ejected soon after when he got into a spat with the judge over his decision to wear prison attire in the courtroom.

On Monday morning, a solemn Brooks appeared before the court and just before witness testimony began, he announced that he wanted to apologize to the court for his actions last week.

'I just want to state this for the record that I would like to issue the court an apology from me in regards to my actions last week during the trial,' Brooks said.

Brooks was thrown from the courtroom on Thursday after repeated interruptions, outbursts, and a spat with the judge - only to appear shirtless while livestreaming in from a sperate room

'I just want the court to understand it's very emotional right now, not only for just the whole situation of the trial, the families here that have to go through, you know, everything that's going to be involved with the trial.

But also my family as well, myself, it's very, very emotional. But not to excuse my actions and I should carry myself with better respect. I wasn't raised that way. And I owe you, your honor, and the court an apology.'

Brooks continued 'And I want to stand up as a man and tell the whole court, and you your Honor, I want to apologize to the bailiffs that I want to apologize for my actions. Like I said, that's not how I was raised. I come from a Christian background. My mother did not raise me that way. She did not raise me to act out out of frustration and irritation and anger.'

'And I just wanted everyone to know that I apologize for my actions and I'm going to try my best to, whatever happens, to conduct myself with respect and with respect to the court. And I just wanted you all to know that. The prosecution, the judge, bailiffs, clerks, reporters, everybody, audience, everybody here. I just wanted you all to know that.'

Opening statements and witness testimony on Thursday were delayed due to Brooks' incessant outbursts.

Waukesha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Dorow continually refused to budge, and after sending Brooks off to another courtroom explained that she would not back down despite his attempts to make a 'mockery' of the proceedings.

Once there, he took off his jail uniform shirt and sat on the defense table with his back to the camera. He could be seen gesturing and jabbing the table with his finger.

With his microphone muted at all times except when called on to speak or answer questions, Brooks could be seen wildly gesticulating in the other courtroom, arguing with court police, and holding up his objection sign to everything Judge Dorow said

Brooks also stuffed a laminated sign reading 'objection' into the waistband of his orange prison attire after the judge muted his microphone so she could read off his charges

Opening statements on Thursday were delayed due to Brooks' incessant outbursts

'It's very clear to this court that everything that he has done as outlined by the state and as made evident the court of this proceeding that it is the sole intent of Mr. Brooks to make mockery of this process,' she said, as Brooks could be seen on a video feed with his shirtless back to the camera.

'It's important for the justice system to go forward with this proceeding. We are at the stage where we are at with Mr. Brooks muted in another courtroom because of his defiant actions, no one else,' she added.

With his microphone muted at all times except when called on to speak or answer questions, Brooks could be seen wildly gesticulating in the other courtroom, arguing with court police, and holding up his objection sign to everything Judge Dorow said.

At one point, Brooks stuffed a laminated sign reading 'objection' into the waistband of his orange prison attire after the judge muted his microphone.

After a judge ordered Darrell Brooks to be taken to an adjacent courtroom, he yelled at the judge, pulling down his mask to be heard more clearly

Clearly annoyed with Brooks' antics, which included reading Bible passages, Judge Dorow begged the man to cooperate so court proceedings could continue

At one point, the 40-year-old appeared to fall asleep during the middle of the day

Despite his outbursts, Waukesha County District Attorney Sue Opper insisted Brooks was competent to stand trial.

'At no time as has anyone in this case had a competency concern,' she said, 'I'm thoroughly convinced he is 100 percent competent to proceed trial. We are 100 percent convinced that his conduct [is]... deliberate and intentional. He is attempting to derail these proceedings.'

Judge Dorow agreed with Opper's assessment.

'I share your observations,' the judge said, adding she felt his behavior was merely an act of 'defiance' instead of a sign of poor mental health.

On day three of the Brooks' trial, he was ejected from the courtroom while he asked the court to adjourn the trial over claims he was suffering from COVID-19.

On the second day he was ejected while repeatedly interrupting jury selection proceedings, read long passages from the bible, then appeared to fall asleep on the video feed from the other courtroom. And on the first day, he was also ejected after his disruptive behavior during jury selection.
Crime in the state's largest city, Portland, is also spiraling out of control and the mayor estimates 6,000 people are living on the streets

They have railed against their states woke policies like defunding the police, getting rid of bail and teaching critical race theory in schools

The movement has already gained support from residents in nine Eastern Oregon counties, with those in two others set to vote on it next month

Conservative Oregonians fed up with the state's woke politics are planning to secede from the state and join Idaho instead.

Members of the Greater Idaho movement are pushing their state legislators, as well as their counterparts in Idaho, to redraw Oregon's border so that the eastern two-thirds of the state become part of Idaho.

The movement has already gained support from residents in nine Eastern Oregon counties, with those in two others set to vote next month on whether they want their lawmakers to work on redrawing the border.

State legislatures of both Idaho and Oregon would also have to sign off on the plan before it goes forward to the United States Congress.

Doing so makes sense, spokesman Matt McCaw argues, because Idaho's politics more closely match those residents' conservative views.

'It makes more sense for Eastern Oregonians to get state-level governance coming from Idaho, where they share their values, share their culture, share their politics, than it does to be governed by Western Oregon,' he told FOX News Digital on Thursday.

He went on to explain that liberals in western cities like Portland, Eugene and Bend have enforced their woke policies on the conservative majority of the state  much of which actually voted for former President Donald Trump in the last election.

But the state was ultimately called for President Joe Biden after the liberals in the populous cities voted for the Democrat. At the same time, though, Idaho voted 63.9 percent for Trump, with just 33.1 percent of the vote going to Biden.

'It's always been a problem, because the west side has many more voters,' McCaw said. 'They have the numbers to dictate what happens statewide.'

Now, he and other supporters of the Greater Idaho movement argue, they are being subjected to woke policies like defunding the police, doing away with bail for some criminals and teaching critical race theory in schools.

Matt McCaw, the spokesman for the Greater Idaho movement, argues it makes sense to move the Oregon-Idaho border because Idaho's politics more closely match those residents' conservative views

Supporters of the movement argue that the eastern part of the state ignores the conservative views of those in the western part of the state

The group envisions 15 whole counties and two partial counties joining Idaho for these reasons, with residents in Morrow County and Wheeler County set to vote next month on the proposal

The group envisions 15 whole counties and two partial counties joining Idaho for these reasons, with residents in Morrow County and Wheeler County set to vote next month on the proposal.

If the measure is passed in Morrow County, commissioners there will be required to meet three times a year to discuss how best to promote their country's interest in 'any negotiations regarding the relocation of the Oregon-Idaho state border.'

And if it is passed in Wheeler County, local officials would have to pressure their state counterparts to proceed with plans to moving the border.

And officials in Idaho, at least, already seem interested in the measure.

Republican State Rep. Barbara Ehardt recently introduced a resolution stating that representatives would continue discussions about the border, noting that Oregon has resources that would be 'highly beneficial to Idaho' like timber, minerals and water.

Idaho had already become a favorite location for conservative Oregonians to relocate to, FOX Digital reports, as they search for a lower cost of living.

In fact, back in 2020, Idaho's Republican Gov. Brad Little told FOX and Friends he understood why Oregonians would 'like to have a little more autonomy, a little more control, a little more freedom.'

But McCaw says it is now time to move forward, as the organization's website lays out their grievances with Oregon's liberal government, which, it says, 'ignores eastern Oregon because none of our legislators are in the ruling party.'

As a result, the group claims, Oregon Gov Kate Brown and other Democratic leaders have been able to pass woke laws, like the one restricting the amount of fossil fuels by creating carbon caps and trades 'which will increase the cost of energy dramatically in upcoming years.

'This will force Oregonians to make a living as white-collar workers or as dependents,' the site says. 'That's not the Oregon I know.'

It adds that businesses won't be able to survive the new regulations, and will make Oregon unable to compete with other states.

At the same time, advocates for secession argue, Oregon's schools teach 'radical theories on race, gender, sexuality and anti-Americanism' while politicians 'won't stand up to the never-ending series of radical social experiments such as defunding the police and letting rioters and arsonists run wild.'

They railed against the state's woke bail reform laws, which they say let 'thousands of hardened criminals' get released from prison early, while 'infringing on your Second Amendment right to defend your family.

But in Idaho, advocates say, they would pay fewer taxes, explaining that the average Idahoan paid $1,722 less in taxes in 2019 than the average Oregonian.

And they would not be subject to the same homeless crisis Oregon is facing, or its high crime rates.

'We're not leaving Oregon; northwestern Oregon left us,' the secessionists argue on their site, urging residents to 'vote YES to preserve old Oregon as a part of Idaho.'

The move comes as crime in the state's most populous city, Portland, continues to spiral out of control

Portland's mayor also estimates that there are 6,000 homeless people on the streets

Critics, however, believe the number of homeless residents is far higher

The move comes as crime in the state's most populous city, Portland, continues to spiral out of control.

Overall crime in the city is now up a whopping 23.6 percent over last year, according to statistics from the Portland Police Department, with robberies up 37 percent and larcenies up 18 percent.

Sexual offenses, meanwhile, are also up 10 percent as the mayor's office estimates there are about 6,000 homeless people living on the street  though critics say they believe the number is actually much higher.

The secessionists say they would rather just kick Portland out of the state, but they realize Democrats in the Oregon State Legislature and in the United States Congress 'would never allow it.

'They are more likely to let us join Idaho,' the website says, noting the Gem State 'doesn't have a homeless problem' like Oregon does and 'doesn't restrict the building of new homes.'

The group claims that Oregon Gov Kate Brown (pictured) and other Democratic leaders have been able to pass woke laws due to the liberal support from eastern cities like Portland

Members of the group were even invited to share their ideas with the Idaho state legislature, where they received wide support from Republican lawmakers.

Rep. Laurie Lickley said at the time: 'I think this is a broader conversation we need to have throughout the United States and from our rural communities to our urban areas who ... forget where their food comes from.

But Democratic State Sen. Michelle Stennett worried about the logistics of moving the border, such as Oregon's higher minimum wage and legalization of cannabis.

'How do you blend criminal justice systems and jurisdictions?' she asked. 'Where does your tax base come from?

'There's just a lot that isn't being talked about that would need to be fleshed our for this to even be considered,' she said at the time.
Police say they took advantage of him in 2018 after his brother's crime, after he'd just inherited $400,000 from his late mother's estate

Moore and his partner Mike Donavan were arrested last week on charges of exploiting Zachary

His brother was spared execution by three jurors today who voted against the death penalty

He said he would have 'much to say' in the coming days and weeks but that 'today is for the victims' voices to be heard'

Zachary Cruz, now 21, told DailyMail.com: 'My thoughts and prayers are with the victims of my brother's crimes'

Nikolas Cruz's brother Zachary said on Thursday that his 'thoughts are with his brother's victims' after he was spared the death penalty in a shock courtroom decision.

Zachary, now 21, lives in Virginia with gay couple Richard Moore and Mike Donavan.

Last week, they were arrested on charges that they exploited Zachary by offering him a job and taking him in to their home in 2018 when he was a teenager, after his brother became one of the most notorious mass murderers in US history.

Police say that young Zachary had just received $400,000 from his late mother's estate and had a 'mental incapacity' that the married men took advantage of.

In a statement to DailyMail.com on Thursday through Moore, Zachary said he would have 'much to say' in coming days but that he did not wish to comment on the jury's decision to spare his brother today.

They voted 9-3 in favor of the death penalty but because they were not unanimous, Nikolas will be spared execution.

'My thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims of my brother's crimes today. I will have much to say in the coming days and weeks about the Broward State Attorney's office, and the Broward School division. Today is not the day for that.

Zachary Cruz, now 21, lives in Virginia with the gay couple who took him in after the shooting in 2018. He told DailyMail.com in a statement that he had 'much' to say, but that 'today was for the victims' voices to be heard'

The jury voted 9-3 in favor of the death penalty but because they were not unanimous, Nikolas will be spared execution

'Today is a day for the victims to find a peace in knowing that this legal process is finally over. Today is a day for the families to have their voices heard,' he said.

Richard, however, was more vocal.

'Today's verdict brings to an end this long public life-or-death sentencing trial of Nikolas Cruz. Our family sends out prayers to all the victims and their families.

'Our country has a real issue with mental illness, and we must apply all available resources and efforts to address and prevent the next Parkland.

'I am grateful that this jury understood mental health issues better than Broward County Schools did.

'My focus and the focus of our family is to be here for Zach as he moves out of the shadows of his brother's trial.

Cruz with his legal guardians, Richard Moore and Mike Donavan. The married couple took him in in 2018 when he was a teenager. They were arrested last week on suspicion of fraud. Police say they exploited his mental incapacity

Moore and Donavan deny that they exploited Zach or his 'mental incapacity' and say they have only ever cared for him. They were arrested on fraud charges last week

Police say the couple took advantage of Zachary's 'mental incapacity'. The couple insist he is mentally capable and living with them under his own free will

'I do not believe that I could ever be as strong of a person as Zachary Cruz is,' he said.

Moore attended the trial with Zachary, grinning in the public gallery as he watched him give testimony.

They have repeatedly insisted that they do not wish him any harm, and that they only want to protect him from his brother's critics.

The jury's verdict shocked and outraged others, namely the victims' families and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

Disgust: The families of Cruz's victims were sickened by the jury's decision to spare him. Above, Anne Ramsay and Michelle Thomas

Tony Montalto holds back tears at a press conference after the verdict was returned

He said it was the only appropriate sentence for a crime of this magnitude.

Others are asking why Florida still has the death penalty if it can't be applied in the most brutal mass murders.

In order for Cruz to have been sentenced to death, the jury had to decide unanimously that he should be executed.

It is the result of the law in Florida.

No one has been executed in the state since 2019. The last person was a serial killer who shot dead five men.

As the jury foreman read out the verdict today, the families of some of the victims stormed out of court, cried and shook their heads in disbelief.

The judge is yet to formally sentence Cruz. Before she does, victims will be given a chance to oppose the decision.
The Project host Lisa Wilkinson will no longer be required to give evidence

Prosecution called other witnesses instead. The witness list has been shortened

Ms Higgins was due to finish giving evidence on Monday, but was 'unavailable'

He has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent

She alleges Bruce Lehrmann raped her after a drunken night out in March 2019

She pointed to accused rapist in court: 'Nothing was fine after what you did'

Brittany Higgins has told a court she's 'not a monster' when asked if she made up her rape allegation after earlier blowing up at her accused rapist from the witness stand.

Ms Higgins made a sensational return to the trial of her former colleague Bruce Lehrmann on Friday as she told the jury she was being 'embarrassed in front of a court' when she was grilled about telling Lisa Wilkinson her accused rapist took her underwear off.

She also faced questions over text messages she exchanged with her boss in the days after the alleged sexual assault.

Lehrmann is accused of having non-consensual sex with the former political staffer inside Parliament House after a night out in Canberra in March 2019.

The former political staffer has pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent in the ACT Supreme Court.

On Friday morning, defence lawyer Stephen Whybrow put to Ms Higgins that, when she left her former chief-of-staff Fiona Brown's office after revealing her rape claim, she was more concerned about her career being in jeopardy.

Ms Higgins replied: 'It was absolutely a concern but it was a moment of... I'd let it out. For the first time I'd let it out. I was holding it in pretending it was fine.

Pointing at Lehrmann in the courtroom, she almost shouted: 'Nothing was fine after what you did to me. Nothing.'

Brittany Higgins (pictured) is due to return to the witness stand in the ACT Supreme Court trial of her accused rapist

Ms Higgins (centre) was declared 'unavailable' to attend court on Monday, absent for four days

Ms Higgins claims she told Ms Brown about the allegations against Lehrmann on the Tuesday after the alleged assault. But Mr Whybrow put to her that she didn't tell Ms Brown until the Thursday.

Ms Higgins replied: 'I don't accept that. The first person I disclosed it to was to Ms Brown.'

When Mr Whybrow asked about emails she sent to Lehrmann on the Monday and Tuesday after the alleged assault - where they had exchanges about work, namely an email list he wanted to add her to - he put to her that they were 'completely cordial and normal' because 'there was no sexual assault'.

'Wouldn't say normal,' Ms Higgins replied.

'After a trauma, you kind of go through a strange holding period of an extended, freeze, I guess. But I was trying to maintain calm because he had higher station in the office than me. I was scared.'

Mr Whybrow said to Ms Higgins: 'I am putting to you there was no sexual assault.'

She replied: 'I know that's what you think. I don't accept that at all.

'It was me compartmentalising my life and caring about my job more than my own life... which is f**ked up, sorry... and my career I'd been building towards my entire life.'

Mr Whybrow then referred Ms Higgins to her interview with federal police where she spoke about an attempt by Lehrmann to kiss her 'before March 22' in 2019.

'Yes I recall being definitive. I don't know if I should gave been so definitive,' Ms Higgins replied.

Bruce Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty to one count sexual intercourse without consent

She said the attempted kiss would have occurred during a sitting week, and on a Wednesday, because 'that's when we went out as a team'.

Mr Whybrow said: 'I put to you this incident did not occur - there was no occasion where Mr Lehrmann tried to kiss you.'

Ms Higgins replied: 'That is incorrect.'

Mr Whybrow responded: 'I put to you that it did not happen between March 2 and March 26... there was no sitting week between March 2 and 26, 2019.'

'I just know that we went to the Kingo [Kingston Hotel] and he made an attempt to kiss me during that week,' Ms Higgins replied.

Mr Whybrow asked Ms Higgins about a meeting she had with Ms Brown and her then-boss, former Coalition minister Linda Reynolds, in the ministerial office where she alleges the rape took place.

He put to Ms Higgins that Ms Reynolds told her 'if something had happened and you wanted to talk about it, you are within your rights to go to the police'.

'Broadly accurate,' Ms Higgins replied.

Mr Whybrow, quoting Ms Reynolds, said: 'You will be supported in whatever you decide to do.'

Ms Higgins replied: 'It had all these provisions on it, so saying it at face value sounds broadly OK but in the context of where they were saying it, how they were saying it, in the context of the [upcoming] election... it felt threatening.'

Mr Whybrow asked Ms Higgins if Ms Reynolds told there would be no impact on her career.

She replied: 'The words that were said and the context were very different. She said nice things, as I've repeatedly stated. I saw it as threatening and her subsequent behaviour... my job was on the line.'

Mr Whybrow showed Ms Higgins of a photograph of a bottle of champagne within a WhatsApp exchange between her and Ms Brown.

She responded: 'I was being polite to my employer as I left parliament house.'

Defence lawyer Stephen Whybrow showed Brittany Higgins of a photograph of a bottle of champagne within a WhatsApp exchange (pictured) between her and her former chief of staff Fiona Brown. She responded: 'I was being polite to my employer as I left parliament house.'

Wr Whybrow asked if she deleted those messages from her phone prior to handing it over to police.

Ms Higgins said her WhatsApp data was wiped when she changed phones.

Mr Whybrow put to Ms Higgins that she was embarrassed after being found naked in Ms Reynold's office, and therefore 'fabricated' the allegation.

'You did what you thought was necessary to have people believe you had been [sexually assaulted],' he said.

Ms Higgins replied: 'I'm not a monster. I would never do something like that.'

Ms Higgins was asked whether she told Lisa Wilkinson on January 21, 2021, that Lehrmann removed her underwear.

'I didn't wear underwear that night with the dress on the basis that it had lines. I know that's salacious ... But I didn't wear underwear with that dress on the basis that it had lines. I'm a 20-year-old girl, we care about stuff like that.'

Ms Higgins was shown a Q&A between her and Channel 10 TV host Lisa Wilkinson on January 21, 2021 - before her interview on The Project was recorded.

Mr Whybrow asked if she recalled being asked by Ms Wilkinson: 'So he removed your panties?'

'And you said "Yeah". Do you recall giving and answer to that question?' he asked.

Ms Higgins responded: 'Yes. yes I do but it was wrong. I didn't wear underwear and I was embarrassed but that wasn't the interview itself and there was no stat dec [statutory declaration] on that... I was embarrassed by it... I continue to be embarrassed by it in front of a court.'

Mr Whybrow also asked Ms Higgins about a photograph of a large bruise on her thigh, which was shown to the court last week. He asked why Ms Higgins didn't mention the photograph in conversations with police.

Mr Whybrow then said the photograph didn't come up until police did 'extractions' of her phones in January 2021.

'In those extractions there is no reference to this bruise before January 2021,' he put to Ms Higgins.

Ms Higgins replied: 'I don't think I sent it to anyone. I sent to to [News Corp journalist] Samantha Maiden and Lisa Wilkinson... but until I was making a police complaint, why would I send that around?

Mr Whybrow: 'I put to you that the bruises and injury you sustained is a fabrication.'

Ms Higgins replied: 'I reject that completely.'

When Mr Whybrow asked Ms Higgins about doctor appointments she told police she attended, she lashed out.

'I put it to you that you did say to both those officers that... you had doctors' appointments,' he said.

Mr Higgins responded: 'Going to the doctor was a really big f**king deal for me... Yes, I agree [that I told police I went to medical centres]. I wasn't perfect.'

Mr Whybrow later put to Ms Higgins 'that Mr Lehrmann did not assault you'.

'I obviously don't agree, he raped me,' she responded.

Mr Whybrow said: 'He didn't come into the ministers office.'

'He was in there physically assaulting me. He was in my body,' Ms Higgins replied, loudly.

The defence lawyer referenced the point in Ms Higgins' police interview where she told police that her memory on the way to parliament 'wasn't the best' - to which she agreed.

Mr Whybrow said: 'You told police that Bruce said to you "just be quiet or they don't let you in". I suggest to you that he never said that to you.'

Ms Higgins responded: 'I disagree. It's one of the few things I do have. Like sitting on the [windowsill in the ministerial suite].'

He then suggested to her that she told Lehrmann she also had to get something from parliament house, which Ms Higgins disagreed with: 'There was no reason I had to pop back to parliament at 2am or whatever it was.'

Ms Higgins acknowledged that she told police in her initial interview that she couldn't remember being lead into the suite by security, or how she got to Ms Reynolds' couch.

She agreed that she may have let herself in to the minister's office, but disagreed when Mr Whybrow asked her whether she and Lehrmann turned in different directions once they arrived in the defence suite.

Channel 10 host Lisa Wilkinson will no longer be required to give evidence in the trial of Brittany Higgins' alleged rapist as the witness list was drastically shortened

Ms Higgins maintained she sat on a windowsill in a common area of the suite, rather than in the minister's office.

Mr Whybrow put to Ms Higgins: 'Whilst you were in Ms Reynolds' you removed you dress and lay down on the couch.'

'No,' she replied.

Mr Whybrow said: 'I suggest you removed your dress at some stage.'

Ms Higgins responded: 'It may have been removed off my body but I'm not entirely sure.'

'Once again, I always thought it was scrunched around my waist. Other people's accounts is that I didn't have it.

'When I threw up, I don't remember having to pick up my dress and redress the next morning.

The new evidence comes after Ms Higgins sat in the witness stand last week and was due to continue being cross-examined by Mr Whybrow on Monday.

However, the prosecution told the court she was 'unavailable' until Friday this week.

The trial continued with other witnesses but the court has banned their evidence from being published until Ms Higgins has completed her evidence.

The court previously heard Ms Higgins and Lehrmann returned to Parliament House after a night out drinking with defence department colleagues.

The former Liberal Party staffer claims she fell asleep on the couch and woke up to Lehrmann having sex with her.

Former Coalition defence minister Linda Reynolds, Ms Higgins' boss at the time of the alleged assault, is due to give evidence in court on Tuesday.

Senator Michaelia Cash is also expected to be in the witness box early next week before the Crown closes its case.
Tests need permission from the Monarch, and while the Queen has never granted it, Charles is 'supportive'

Four bodies have been discovered and historians hope to run tests on them to check if they are the brothers

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The infamous 539-year-old mystery of 'The Princes in the Tower' could soon be solved, with King Charles said to be 'supportive' of plans for a DNA investigation of bones believed to be those of the two boys.

The Queen refused permission for testing of the remains but the new monarch, who is a fan of archaeology having studied it at Cambridge, is said to back an analysis of the bones believed to be those of Princes Edward and Richard.

The tale goes that Edward, who was set to become king following his father's death, and his younger brother, were locked in the Tower of London in 1483 by their scheming uncle who would instead claim the crown - as Richard III - for himself.

The two brothers - aged 12 and nine - were declared illegitimate heirs by Richard, then the Duke of Gloucester, and were never seen again. Legend has it that the pair were murdered at his request to secure his succession.

This theory was popularised by William Shakespeare in his Richard III play, though some historians suggest the story is simply a piece of Tudor propaganda spread after his death to smear his legacy. But with no first-hand accounts or DNA evidence, the disappearance of the brothers remains a mystery.

For years experts and history fanatics have wanted to run tests on the remains of four children, two found in the Tower of London in the 1600s and two in the grounds of Windsor Castle in the 1700s, who some have suggested could be those of the princes.

Because the bodies are now interred in royal crypts, experts need permission from the monarch to carry out the tests. According to Tracy Borman  joint chief curator of Historic Royal Palaces which manages some of our unoccupied royal palaces  the late Queen blocked any such investigation. However Charles 'takes a very different view' and is said to support DNA testing, according to Borman.

Speaking at Sandon Literature Festival in Staffordshire, she said: He has said he would like an investigation to go ahead, so that we can determine, once and for all, how the young royals died.

The infamous 539-year-old mystery of 'The Princes in the Tower' (pictured: A painting by Sir John Everett Millais, 1878, part of the Royal Holloway picture collection) could soon be solved, with King Charles said to be 'supportive' of plans for an investigation into their deaths

According to Tracy Borman  joint chief curator of Historic Royal Palaces which manages some of our unoccupied royal palaces  the late Queen blocked any such investigation but Charles (pictured) 'takes a very different view'

Richard III's demise in battle brought about the end of the War of the Roses and the centuries-long feuding between Yorkists and Lancastrians. It ushered in the era of the House of Tudor, led by Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Their son, Henry VIII, would become one of England's most famous monarchs

Shakespeare claimed in his play Richard III that the all-powerful regent Duke of Gloucester murdered the princes at the Tower of London - a theory which has essentially become English folklore.

Richard III's brother, Edward IV, died unexpectedly in 1483, leaving Richard as Lord Protector in charge of his nephews, Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York.

The children were taken into custody in 1483 by their uncle and vanished soon afterwards. Richard III was crowned at Westminster Abbey on July 6 that same year.

The future King Richard III, 1452-83, organises kidnap and murder of his two nephews in order to inherit the throne of England - in an illustration from The History of England, c. 1850 - which tallies with Shakespeare's version of the story

He famously met his own grim end at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the last decisive battle of the War of the Roses, and was replaced by Henry VII.

His body was taken to nearby Leicester and buried without ceremony - and was astonishingly only found in 2012 under what had become a car park.

The discovery of Richard III's body has sparked a renewed interest in the tale of the Princes in the Tower.

However, the Church of England, with backing from the Queen and ministers, repeatedly refused to permit forensic testing to see if bones buried in Westminster Abbey were those of the princes.

This would see the bones submitted to carbon dating to match their deaths to Richard IIIs reign with DNA tests to prove their identities.

Last year, researchers claimed they had found evidence that Richard III may not have killed the princes, but instead allowed the older boy, Edward V, to live in secret under a false name in a rural Devon village.

They believe Edward's mother Elizabeth Woodville made a secret pact with Richard III, and that the idea that he would have had the boys murdered was actually propaganda spread by the Tudors following the end of the War of the Roses.

But despite a pair of skeletons being found in the Tower in 1674, 200 years after their supposed death, no evidence of Edward and Richard's murder has ever been discovered  and now researchers believe a series of 'Da Vinci Code'-style clues suggest it may be because they were never killed.

The findings are part of the Missing Princes Project, led by Philippa Langley, the historian responsible for a dig that found the remains of Richard III in a Leicester car park in 2012.

Langley and colleagues followed a paper trail including medieval documents that led them to Coldridge, where royal Yorkist symbols are carved into the local church, St Matthew's.

The findings hint at a secret deal struck between the boys' mother and Richard III, that allowed Edward V to live his life under the fake name 'John Evans'.

In the church there is also an effigy of 'John Evans' gazing directly at a stained glass window that depicts Edward V, suggesting they were one and the same person.

Despite a pair of skeletons being found in the Tower in 1674, 200 years after their supposed death, no evidence of Edward and Richard's murder has ever been discovered  and now researchers believe a series of 'Da Vinci Code'-style clues suggest it may be because they were never killed

King Richard III may not have killed the young 'Princes in the Tower' more than 500 years ago but instead allowed the older boy, Edward V (depicted with his brother Richard of Shrewsbury), to live in secret under a false name in a rural Devon village, researchers have said

Researchers found a series of 'Da Vinci Code'-style clues at a church in a Devon village, including a giant crown with 41 small deer inside, floating above a depiction of Edward V in stained glass. John Evans was 'Parker' of the deer estate in Coldridge

There is an effigy in the church that includes a scar on the chin, matching a similar image of a face that holds a crown in the stained glass window of Edward V

Researchers followed a paper trail including medieval documents that led them to Coldridge, where royal Yorkist symbols are carved into the local church, St Matthew's (pictured)

'With all the secret symbols and clues, it sounds somewhat like the Da Vinci Code. But the discoveries inside this church in the middle of nowhere are extraordinary,' John Dike, lead researcher on the project, told the Telegraph.

Clues found in St Matthew's church suggesting it was linked to Edward V Effigy of John Evans: There is an effigy in the church that includes a scar on the chin, matching a similar image of a face that holds a crown in the stained glass window of Edward V Broken shied: On the empty tomb of John Evans there is a shield that includes the name John EVAS, which could be a clue to Edward V (EV) and asa (AS), Latin for in sanctuary. Stained glass: There is a giant crown with 41 small deer inside, floating above a depiction of Edward V in stained glass. John Evans was Parker of the deer estate in Coldridge. Graffiti: Within the church is an etching showing the word KING in inverted writing, written on the tomb of John Evans, as well as nine carved lions that may symbolise the year Edward V may have been able to reclaim the throne from Richard IIII, 1509. Sunne in Splendour: There is a tiny symbol carved in the ceiling of St Matthew's Church that depicts part of the Sunne in Splendour, a symbol of the House of York linked to the princes. Scarred face: Within a part of the glass window is a mysterious face that is thought to show John Evans himself, baring a scar and deformed mouth. He wears an ermine jacket and carries a crown. Woman with a snake tongue: There are three carvings showing a Tudor woman with a snake-like tongue, possibly depicting a slur against the mother of Henry Tudor. Rose of York: This symbol appears throughout the church, including in the tiles of the floor, which is unusual for a church in Devon. Window Sunne: Within the window is the depiction of the Yorkist Sunne in Splendour, sitting adjacent to similar images in the roof. A prayer desk: This medieval prayer desk has the inscription 'Pray for John Evans, Parker of Coldridge, maker of this work in the third year of the reign of King Henry VIII'. The team believe the desk was made the same year as the stained glass windows, 1511. Advertisement

Langley started the Missing Princes Project five years ago, and so far has more than 100 lines of inquiry into the fate of the older of the pair of brothers.

Described as a 'Da Vinci Code-style' investigation, the team have been following a trail of medieval documents and clues hidden in an ancient parish church.

'The idea of a missing prince lying low in Devon might appear fanciful at first,' said Dike, 'but the discoveries inside this church in the middle of nowhere are extraordinary'.

Their unexpected discovery suggests that Edward was sent to live out the rest of his life on the land of his half-brother in Devon on the condition he kept quiet.

This was part of a deal between his mother and Richard III, that was upheld by his successor, Henry Tudor, according to Dike.

'Once you take all the clues together, it does appear that the story of the princes in the Tower may need to be rewritten,' he added.

No conclusive evidence has ever been found that Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury were murdered and some revisionist historians believe it may have been invented as part of a plot to smear Richard III.

The last time the boys were actually seen was in the summer of 1483, when they were spotted playing by the Tower of London.

The bones found under a staircase in the tower now lie in an urn in Westminster Abbey, and the Queen is said to have refused to allow scientists to analyse them.

However, the team say the paper trail leading to the arrival of Edward V in Devon is strong, with considerable evidence he was John Evans.

Historians know that in March 1484, Elizabeth Woodville, mother of the two princes, left Westminster with her daughters after reaching a deal with Richard III.

She then wrote to her exiled rebel son, Thomas Grey, Marquis of Dorset, telling him to come home as Richard agreed to pardon him.

On March 3, royal documents show that Richard sent a follower on a mission from Yorkshire to Coldridge in Devon, which sits within Grey's seized lands.

Soon after this event, John Evans suddenly appeared in the village, and was given the title Lord of the Manor, the researchers discovered.

No record has been found of Evans' life before he arrived in Devon, with the prestigious titles, which also included 'Parker' of the 130-beast-strong deer park behind the church, appearing out of the blue.

'This man John Evans was given these prestigious titles despite apparently arriving out of the blue, which is odd to say the least,' Dike said.

'It is possible that Edward was sent here to live in secrecy as part of the deal that we know was agreed between Richard and his mother.'

It was the chantry at the local St Matthew's Church that led Dike and colleagues to publish their findings, as this was built by John Evans in 1511, and full of symbolism, including a glass depiction of a 'saint-like' boy King, Edward V.

Within the church is an etching showing the word KING in inverted writing, written on the tomb of John Evans, as well as nine carved lions that may symbolise the year Edward V may have been able to reclaim the throne from Richard IIII, 1509

This medieval prayer desk has the inscription 'Pray for John Evans, Parker of Coldridge, maker of this work in the third year of the reign of King Henry VIII'. The team believe the desk was made the same year as the stained glass windows in 1511

Yorkish symbolism appears throughout the Devon church, which researchers say is an unusual discovery for a rural building

There are only two other glass portraits of Edward V and one is in the royal window at Canterbury Cathedral, prompting Dike to ask 'why is a royal portrait of Edward V in this rural church in the middle of nowhere?'

He suggests Edward was sending a message to future generations, revealing the truth of his royal identity.

In the glass there is a large crown above Edward's head, and it is littered with pictures of 41 tiny deer, further adding to the suggestion it was Evans sending a message of who he really was.

Edward V would have been 41 years old when the chantry was built in 1511.

Other symbols include the name John Evans being incorrectly spelt EVAS, with the team suggesting the EV stood for Edward V and AS for 'asa', which is Latin for in sanctuary.

There are also symbols linking the church to the House of York throughout the building, including in the floor tiles and carved into the wooden roof.

'To have all these symbolic details in such a remote and inaccessible church, which in 1500 would have only been accessed by cart track, and is right in the centre of rural Devon, suggests the presence of a person of importance,' Dike explained.

'An ideal location for Thomas Grey, with the probable agreement of Richard III or later Henry VII, to place his half brother out of the political arena.'

A Buckingham Palace spokesman declined to comment.
Now, however, it seems the bank sent the letter in September before West began his recent run of highly controversial antics

It first appeared that the bank kicked West out following a series of recent anti-Semitic statements

A letter shared by conservative commentator Candace Owens Wednesday night revealed that West had been told by JPMorgan Chase to bank elsewhere

Kanye West was told in late September, before his fashion week antics and anti-Semitic stream of posts, that he would no longer be welcome to bank with JPMorgan Chase.

On Wednesday evening, conservative commentator Candace Owens tweeted out images of a letter sent to Kanye West from the bank advising him he had until November 21 to transfer his accounts elsewhere.

No reason was provided for the bank's decision, nor did Owens offer one.

However, the insinuation of the tweet's timing is that West was de-banked following several recent controversial episodes, including sending models down his runway during Paris fashion week wearing shirts that read 'White Lives Matter,' in addition to the targeted bullying of a Vogue fashion editor on his Instagram page, and a series of anti-Semitic statements that earned him removal from Instagram and Twitter.

Owens made the announcement hours before a bizarre reunion between West and fellow Kim Kardashian ex Ray J (and non-ex Kid Rock) on the red carpet for the DailyWire's latest film - The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM.

In reality, the letter arrived shortly after West gave an interview to CNBC, in which he claimed he was mulling taking his business elsewhere, according to the Daily Beast.

'I'm moving my money over from JPMorgan over to Bank of America, possibly, because I go and move $140 million over to JPMorgan and [CEO] Jamie Dimon never calls me,' West said at the time.

'I find out Jing Ulrich is one of the heads of the board at Adidas and one of the heads of the board at JPMorgan, and they already treat me a certain way at Adidas. It doesnt matter how much money you move over there,' he added.

The rapper, who has a history of mental illness, appeared at the Nashville premiere of Candace Owen's new documentary, The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, which accuses the BLM organization of misappropriating millions of dollars in donations

PICTURED left to right: Kanye West, Colby Covington, Candace Owens, and Ray J at the premiere of Owens' new documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, an anti-BLM film

JP Morgan Chase broke up with Kanye in this letter that was posted by Candace Owens on Twitter. Kanye has been locked out of his accounts

Owens shared her thoughts Wednesday evening about the purported corporate cancelation of Kanye by Chase Bank

West claimed that despite banking hundreds of millions with Chase, CEO Jamie Dimon (pictured) did not pay him any personal attention

Canceled: Kanye promised to 'go death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE' in a shocking tweet last weekend

The letter from Chase read: 'We are sending this letter to confirm our recent discussion with [associate's name] that JP Morgan Chase Bank has decided to end its banking relationship with Yeezy, LLC, and its affiliated entities.

'We ask that you promptly transfer your business to another financial institution before November 21, 2022.'

JPMorgan Chase did not offer an explanation as to why it cut ties with the music and design mogul, and declined to comment when approached by the Daily Mail.

West has also publicly disparaged his partnerships with Gap and Adidas.

In September West ended his relationship with Gap and Adidas placed its highly successful partnership with West under review.

'We are proud of our team that has worked tirelessly throughout our collaboration with Ye and the iconic products that were born from it. We also recognize that all successful partnerships are rooted in mutual respect and shared values.

'After repeated efforts to privately resolve the situation, we have taken the decision to place the partnership under review,' the company said in a statement last week.

On Wednesday evening, hours before West walked the red carpet at the premiere of Owens' new anti-BLM documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM, the conservative firebrand tweeted:

'Earlier today I learned that @kanyewest was officially kicked out JP Morgan Chase bank.

'I was told there was no official reason given, but they sent this letter as well to confirm that he has until late November to find another place for the Yeezy empire to bank...what has landed us in to these times is an ongoing discussion which I would like to open up,' she wrote.

Following his Paris fashion week 'White Lives Matter' news cycle, Ye sat down with Fox News' Tucker Carlson to expand upon some of his more controversial views

Though apparently unrelated, the timing of West's ban from Chase arrived soon after Motherboard leaked an unaired clip from his interview with Tucker Carlson, which heard him saying Planned Parenthood was created to 'control the Jew populations' through eugenics.

'When I say Jew, I mean the 12 lost tribes of Judah, the blood of Christ, who the people known as the race black really are,' he added. 'This is who our people are. The blood of Christ. This, as a Christian, is my belief.'

The clip was notably absent from the interview when it aired on Fox News last week.

Nevertheless, the aired portions of West's interview remained rife with bizarre statements, including a suggestion that his children had been replaced with 'professional actors' in his home to 'sexualize my kids.'

He also pushed the anti-Semitic trope about Jewish people being good with money, saying 'I prefer my kids knew Hanukkah than Kwanzaa. At least it will come with some financial engineering,' before chuckling.

West's Twitter was suspended last weekend after he wrote, 'I'm a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I'm going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.'

He added: 'The funny thing is I actually can't be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also. You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.'

His attack on Jewish people arrived just a day after sharing screenshots on Instagram revealing messages sent to Diddy in which West, 45, accused the rapper of being controlled by Jewish people trying to silence his 'White Lives Matter' message.

Owens and West promoting his White Lives Matter t-shirts at his show in Paris

Following his attendance at Owens' premiere last night, West told reporters that he felt 'happy to have crossed the line of that idea so that we can speak openly about things like getting canceled from the bank.'

'People use the anti-Semite idea to cover up bad business. To say if you call someone out on bad business then you're being anti-Semitic.

'Do you think that the comment came just out of the blue? I do feel that in Hollywood when, especially with black entertainers, I've had a lot of bad experiences,' he said.

Many have speculated that West - who has said he suffers from bi-polar disorder - is in the midst of a psychological episode.
Amber Heard and her new legal team have filed a 16 point argument in her appeal against Johnny Depp over their defamation trial.

According to the documents filed to the Court of Appeals of Virginia, Heard, who owes Depp $10.3 million in damages, claims her ex-husband misled the jury into believing she was on trial for statement prior to her domestic abuse allegations.

Depp, who only owes Heard $2 million as a result of the trial, sued her for defamotory statements made in her 2018 Washington Post op-ed piece about sexual violence, which Heard said did not name Depp as an abuser directly.

Heard claimed the trial had a lack of 'clear and convincing evidence' for actual malice, the very standard of a defamation case, and called out the court's alleged failure to invalidate the damages awarded to both her and Depp after ruling they both defamed each other.

'Inherently and irreconcilably inconsistent,' the appeal stated of the damages awarded to both.

Amber Heard filed a 16 point appeal argument in her defamation trial with ex-husband Johnny Depp. Heard, calling out lack of evidence in the contentious case that saw her owe $10 million

Heard claimed the trial failed to prove actual malice and accused Depp's team of suggesting that he could be awarded damages from statements outside the 2018 op-ed piece at the center of the trial, which unfolded years of their tumultuous relationship

Heard's 16 point argument begins with a claim that the heated defamation trial, which gripped the nation over the summer, should've been dismissed as is because it belonged in a more appropriate setting than Fairfax, Virginia.

Depp's team had pushed for the trial to be held in Fairfax county because that is where the Post is printed.

Heard's team also argued that the court erred in not allowing into evidence the fact that Depp lost a similar defamation trial against his ex-wife in the United Kingdom, and his statements following that loss.

They also condemned the court for allowing testimony about Heard's lie that she donated $3.5 million to the ACLU from her divorce settlement despite telling the UK court that she had.

At the heart of her appeal was the claim that the court mistakenly allowed Depp to argue or suggest that damages could be awarded based on statements prior to the publication of the 2018 op-ed piece.

Much of the couple's disorderly conduct was put on display in the trial, including allegations that they attacked each other during their tumultuous relationship before their 2016 divorce.

Arguing that Depp's allegations against his ex-wife should have been solely centered on the op-ed piece, Heard's team claims the court wrongly ruled that the statements made in the Post were 'actionable as statements of fact rather than non-actionable expressions of opinion.'

In other words, the lawyers argued that Heard should have been protected by the First Amendment, and that Depp had no case because he was never named in the op-ed piece.

'The trial court erred in denying the motion to set aside the jury's verdict with regard to Mr. Depp's failure to prove that the allegedly defamatory statements in the challenged op-ed each conveyed a defamatory meaning about him by implication and that any such implication was both designed and intended by Ms. Heard,' the appeal document states.

Specifically, Heard took issue with the implication that she had published the op-ed pieces headline, 'I spoke up against sexual violenceand faced our culture's wrath. That has to change,' which she claimed was not the case.

Representatives for Heard and Depp could not be immediately reached for comment.

Heard filed all 16 points of argument in the Court of Appeals of Virginia

At the end of the defamation trial, Depp, 59, was awarded $10million to $15million in compensatory damages and $5million in punitive damages.

The judge later capped the damages at the state's maximum of $350,000 leaving Depp with a total of $8.35million.

Meanwhile, Heard won one of her three countersuit claims related to statements made by Depp's lawyer suggesting the actress and her friends had trashed their apartment before calling the police.

The actress was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages out of the $100 million she sought.

A day after Heard's team filed an appeal, Depp's team did the same to overturn the couple million the actor owes to his ex-wife.

The Pirates of the Caribbean actor's team said they filed an appeal to ensure 'all information is considered by the court' while they return to consider Heard's appeal.

Before filing an appeal, Heard's attorney asked the judge to throw out the decision and declare a mistrial.

It was argued that one of the jurors on the case should not have been eligible to serve because his summons was intended for his father, who had the same name and lived at the same address.

Judge Penny Azcarate shot down the request claiming there was no 'evidence of fraud or wrongdoing' by the juror and that the jury's verdict should stand.'
A 'woke' jail governor has prompted outrage after appointing an inmate to serve as a job interviewer for prison warders.

The move to grant criminals a say in selecting staff members was branded 'political correctness gone mad' by the Prison Officers' Association (POA) last night.

The trade union revealed that a 'rogue' deputy governor at High Down prison had selected an inmate to serve on an interview panel.

It will scrutinise officers who apply to work on one of the jail's residential units.

The jail, at Sutton in Surrey, holds 1,200 adult male offenders. Its former inmates include the paedophile pop star Gary Glitter.

The association last night asked the Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis to intervene  and get the idea scrapped.

A 'rogue' deputy governor at High Down prison (pictured) has prompted outrage after appointing an inmate to serve as a job interviewer for prison warders

After being approached about the High Down case last night the Ministry of Justice announced it was stepping in to prevent prisoners taking on such 'clearly inappropriate' roles.

The union's general secretary Steve Gillan said: 'This is supposed to be a law enforcement agency, not a kindergarten. What's next? Putting criminals on a jury to make sure the other jurors meet their requirements?

'I can't get my head around what this rogue deputy governor is trying to achieve. We've already had complaints from officers at High Down, and others saying they just won't apply to have applications looked at by this board.

'One of them simply said 'I'm not being interviewed by a prisoner'.'

Mr Gillan added: 'It is political correctness gone mad.'

The jail, at Sutton in Surrey, holds 1,200 adult male offenders. Its former inmates include the paedophile pop star Gary Glitter (pictured)

A similar scheme was floated in an internal document earlier this year by HM Prisons and Probation Service, it emerged.

The proposals were scrapped after the POA complained.

But now the manager at High Down has decided to go ahead with the 'ridiculous' policy, to the anger of prison officers.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'This is clearly inappropriate and has been stopped with immediate effect. All prison governors will be instructed not to repeat this in future.'
Scenes from the Haribo-themed immersive media content, "Wild Gummy Sanctuary," on view at the exhibition "Welcome to the Haribo World," at the Insa Central Museum in downtown Seoul / Courtesy of Peopulley









By Park Han-sol







Haribo's instantly recognizable collection of multihued gummy bears has arrived in Seoul for its first-ever media art exhibition.







Held as a centennial celebration of the global confectionery brand's signature Goldbears, "Welcome to the Haribo World" has turned the Insa Central Museum in downtown Seoul into a 1,300-square-meter interactive universe of mouth-watering gelatinous sweets.







The show, co-hosted by Haribo and Seoul-based digital content company Peopulley, aims to visualize the jelly brand's 100-year history while dazzling visitors' eyes with immersive media technology and hands-on activities, according to curator Lee Myung-ho.







"Under the theme of 'Unleash Your Inner Child,' the exhibition is meant to wow visitors of all ages with its colorful glitter, while introducing how the confectionery brand has led the last century with an army of 1.5-centimeter-tall teddy bear-shaped jellies," he told The Korea Times.







Lee's dream of curating the Haribo-themed show was realized after he flew all the way to Germany and knocked on doors at the company's headquarters, as well as the original Bonn-based Haribo Store, with handwritten letters back in 2018.







"Welcome to the Haribo World" starts with "Hariboian's Room," a jelly-obsessive collector's bedroom brought to life with an archive of stuffed toys, clothes, mugs and magazines all featuring the animal-shaped sweets.







What follows is a series of media art-focused sections, decked with projection mapping, augmented reality and stop-motion animation.







A mirrored room with motion sensors transforms people facing the reflective surface into gigantic Goldbears gummies of any one of six colors and flavors. "Wild Gummy Sanctuary" invites viewers to an imaginary, digitally rendered forest that is home to gelatinous wildlife.







Digitally rendered installation view of the media art exhibition "Welcome to the Haribo World" / Courtesy of Peopulley





There is also Haribo Square, with a candy store, beauty salon, cafe, record shop and a cinema dotting the jelly-filled 100th Avenue.







One of the notable sections of the exhibition is the Hans Riegel Library, a visual archive of the brand's century-old history. Named after the company's founder, the room presents everything from the gummy design studio  with sketches, plaster prototypes and molds  to the origin story of Goldbears.







Sweets maker Riegel used a recipe for pastilles to produce the first fruit-flavored gummy bear named Tanzbaren in 1922. With looks resembling the real-life animal much more closely than the present-day version, Tanzbaren came in two colors: yellow and purple.







The sugary bears were then rebranded in 1960 as Goldbaren, or Goldbears, which we all know today, with the slogan edited to target adults in addition to its already established fan base of children. After gaining success throughout Europe, the brand entered the U.S. market in 1982.







The show's highlight is marked by a carnival zone featuring an array of jelly-themed interactive activities, including a photo booth equipped with a trampoline and a game that can be played on a digital screen projected onto the entirety of all four walls.







Before leaving the museum, visitors can witness how the iconic bear-shaped sweets have been reinterpreted by five contemporary artists of Korea on the surface of a moon jar and on canvas.







"Welcome to the Haribo World" runs through March 12, 2023, at the Insa Central Museum.


Residents in Victoria forced to evacuate their homes due to the flood crisis will be offered one-off emergency payments, Premier Daniel Andrews has announced.

Affected adults will each be eligible for a $560 payment with an additional $280 per child.

Inner-city Melbourne residents were ordered to evacuate their homes on Friday, along with hundreds in regional areas inundated with floodwaters.

At least 500 homes across the state have been flooded with another 500 isolated with 42 suburbs placed on a Watch and Act alert.

Premier Daniel Andrews announced the emergency payments on ABC Radio on Friday morning

Residents and children affected by Victoria's flood crisis are eligible for one-off payments . Pictured is a child in the flooded town of Rochester on Friday

Speaking of the emergency payments, Mr Andrews told the ABC's Virginia Trioli on Friday: 'It's about getting people through that immediate challenge where they're not in their home because their property has been flooded.'

'(The payment) deals with food, shelter, medicines and things of that nature.'

Affected residents can now apply for payments which came into effect 9am Friday.

'We'll put extra staff on and get those payments made as quickly as we can,' Mr Andrews said.'

The Melbourne suburb of Maribyrnong, along with the regional areas of Benalla, Wedderburn, Seymour, Carisbook and Rochester were the areas of biggest concern for authorities on Friday.

Evacuation orders have been given for suburbs in Victoria including Wedderburn, Maribyrnong in Melbourne's inner city, Benalla, Carisbrook and Rochester

'This has been a significant flood event and it's far from over,' Mr Andrews said.

He also hopes the Mickleham quarantine facility cab be reopened to accommodate flood victims with his staff in contact with Commonwealth officials.

Affected residents can apply for the one-off payment here.
Sharron Davies has waded into the debate over whether transgender prisoners with male genitalia should be held in women's prisons.

The retired Olympic swimmer voiced her support of proposed reforms announced by Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis this week which will prevent transgender women who are yet to undergo gender confirmation surgery from being housed in female prisons.

'It seems crazy that someone can identify after they've committed a crime when they identify as a man and they are male,' she said on GB News' Dan Wootton Tonight.

'For them to identify as a woman to be put into a women's prison is so offensive... When before they were actually arrested they were quite happy to be a man.

'We need to be respectful, anybody, no matter how you identify, needs to be safe and secure... However these people who are using the system and loopholes should not be treated with the same kind of respect.'

The 59-year-old mother-of-two suggested prisons create dedicated wings for transgender prisoners convicted of sex crimes as an alternative to placing them in male-only jails.

The retired Olympic swimmer voiced her support of proposed reforms announced by Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis this week which will prevent transgender women who are yet to undergo gender confirmation surgery from being housed in female prisons

'This will not be a blanket rule; exemptions to these new rules will be considered on a case-by-case basis,' Mr Lewis (pictured) said

The new procedures are likely to be brought in later this year but will not be a 'blanket rule'.

Under the reforms, transgender prisoners with male genitalia should no longer be held in the general women's estate. The policy will also apply to transgender women convicted of sex crimes.

'This will not be a blanket rule; exemptions to these new rules will be considered on a case-by-case basis,' Mr Lewis said.

He told delegates at the Conservative Party conference last week: 'It cannot be right that transgender prisoners, when convicted of serious sexual offences or those who have not had reassignment surgery, are housed in a general women's estate.

'This will end  we have a duty of care to all those behind bars. One case of a sex attack or an inappropriate relationship formed with a female prisoner by a transgender inmate is one too many and we've had too many in recent years.'

Last month Sussex Police were forced to apologise after Home Secretary Suella Braverman accused it of 'playing identity politics and denying biology' around sexual offences committed by a transgender woman years before transitioning.

Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis spoke about transgender prisoners during the Conversative Party conference

Sally Ann Dixon, from Havant in Hampshire, was jailed for 20 years for 30 indecent assaults against five girls and two boys in the 1980s and 1990s when she was John Stephen Dixon

The force initially said it would not 'tolerate any hateful comments' about gender identity 'regardless of crimes committed', but later said its response was 'inconsistent with our usual style of engagement' and had been deleted.

Sally Ann Dixon, from Havant in Hampshire, was jailed for 20 years for 30 indecent assaults against five girls and two boys in the 1980s and 1990s when she was John Stephen Dixon.

According to press reports of the court case, Dixon is serving the sentence at Bronzefield women's prison in Surrey.

Some people on social media objected to the force referring to Dixon in the headline of its press release as a woman convicted of the crimes.

In a written statement to Parliament published on Tuesday, Mr Lewis said: 'On 4 October I announced reforms to our policy for the allocation of transgender prisoners.

'Further detail about these reforms will be announced when we publish our updated transgender prisoners policy framework before the end of the year.'

According to press reports of the court case, Dixon is serving the sentence at Bronzefield women's prison in Surrey

He also announced plans which could see thousands more burglars, robbers and other thieves being made to wear a GPS tag after being freed from jail.

The expansion of a Ministry of Justice scheme, being tested by 19 police forces in England and Wales, to include offenders serving shorter sentences could mean a further 2,000 will be monitored over the next three years, according to a separate written statement to MPs.

The policy will now apply to criminals who served sentences of 90 days or more and the changes will come into force on October 26.

Electronic monitoring will be a compulsory condition on the offender's licence for the remainder of their sentence up to a maximum of 12 months, other than in exceptional circumstances, he said.

'Expanding the project to offenders serving shorter sentences will increase the number of offenders captured by the legislation by around 2,000 by March 2025,' he said.
According to an October 6 court filing, federal authorities are investigating the Tesla CEO for his behavior pertaining to his bid to buy Twitter

Elon Musk is being investigated by United States federal authorities in relation to his bid to acquire Twitter.

Lawyers working for the online platform claimed in a court filing unsealed in Delaware on Thursday that Musk is currently under investigation by federal authorities for his conduct as it pertains to his buyout of the popular social media company.

'Elon Musk is presently under investigation by federal authorities for his conduct in connection with the acquisition of Twitter, wrote attorneys for Potter Anderson Corroon LLP in a filing dated October 6.

According to an October 6 court filing, Musk is under federal investigation for his conduct in his bid to buy Twitter

Last week Musk's deposition was delayed in a suit with Twitter that is attempting to force him to go through with his original $44 billion buyout offer

Twitter executives are considering requesting that Musk pay interest to make up for the delays. Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal is pictured here in July

Twitter's legal team is now attempting to get its hands on Musk's communications with the FTC and the SEC as it is revealed that the billionaire is under federal investigation

The social media company had requested access to documents that Musk has handed over to authorities.

'Through counsel, he (Musk) has exchanged substantive correspondence with those authorities concerning their investigations,' wrote the attorneys.

'Twitter wants those documents, because they bear upon key issues in this litigation.'

According to a Bloomberg report, Twitter is also attempting to gain access to communications between Musk and the Federal Trade Commission.

Earlier in 2022, the US Securities and Exchange Commission sent an inquiry to Musk about the initial disclosure of his major stake in Twitter. The letter was sent in April and the SEC released it in May.

In early April, Musk disclosed he had acquired a more than 9% stake in Twitter. He did so one week later than regulations allow. He also used a filing generally reserved only for passive investors.

Just days later he set off on a highly publicized, but noncommittal, effort to buy the company for $44 billion.

Last week, Musk's deposition in the company's lawsuit aimed at forcing him to go through with the $44 billion buyout was delayed.

Both sides are continuing in an attempt to iron out a deal that would halt a non-jury trial in Delaware on October 17.

Among the many issues they are said to be discussing is whether the Tesla CEO will try to make the deal contingent on his original $12.5 billion debt-financing package, as banks try to weasel their way out of the agreement.

The banks could argue that Musk's antics in delaying the agreement have sufficiently damaged Twitter, enough to qualify as a material adverse effect, letting them walk away, the New York Times reports.

And Musk could even foil his own deal by refusing to sign a letter certifying Twitter is solvent, though the judge in the case is likely to force the billionaire to sue the banks for the agreed-upon money under the New York law that governs them.

Twitter executives, on the other hand, are trying to make sure Musk won't back out of his agreement again, seeking a reaffirmation of the specifics in the previously-agreed-to contract.

They are also considering options like court supervision of the closing process, and requesting that Musk pay interest to make up for the delays.

Musk said in July he was walking away from the takeover agreement because he discovered Twitter had allegedly misled him about the number of fake accounts, among other claims.

Part of Musk's case was based on allegations by Twitter whistleblower Peiter 'Mudge' Zatko that became public in August.
The Queen Consort could be crowned using her late mother-in-laws stunning diadem, worn exclusively by British queens.

Although the iconic silver, gold, diamond and pearl piece was made for George IV in 1820, it has since only ever been worn by female family members.

It was so loved by the late Queen that she wore it on the way to her own coronation in 1953, although the Imperial State Crown was used in the actual ceremony.

From 1952 onwards she also sported it en route to every state opening of parliament.

Finally, in 2019, she opted to wear it for the entire event after confirming that the Imperial State Crown was too heavy for her as a woman well into her 90s.

Yesterday the Mail exclusively revealed that Buckingham Palace are quietly re-thinking their original plans to use the Queen Mothers coronation crown when Camilla is crowned alongside her husband next May amid political sensitivities.

The Queen Consort could be crowned using her late mother-in-laws stunning diadem, worn exclusively by British queens

Although the iconic silver, gold, diamond and pearl piece was made for George IV in 1820, it has since only ever been worn by female family members

The issue is not the crown itself, which was made for the Queen Mother personally, but the fact that it contains the Koh-i-Noor diamond, whose ownership is disputed by India.

Both Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary sported the diamond in their coronation crowns, too.

One option is to remove the diamond from its detachable platinum mount at the front of the crown and replace it with another gem.

Officials could also opt for an entirely different crown altogether - and many of those with a passion for royal regalia believe the King George IV Diamond Diadem would be the perfect option.

Made from silver and lined with gold, it has a distinctive openwork frame set with 1,333 diamonds and a narrow band edged with pearls.

It has four distinctive crosses-pattee - the front cross set with a four-carat pale yellow brilliant diamond - as well as four sprays representing the national emblems of England, Ireland and Scotland, roses, shamrocks and thistles.

Yesterday the Mail exclusively revealed that Buckingham Palace are quietly re-thinking their original plans to use the Queen Mothers coronation crown when Camilla is crowned alongside her husband next May amid political sensitivities

It was made by Rundells in 1820 and, together with a diamond-studded loop (which was broken up to help make Queen Victorias Garter armlet), the bill for the diadem amounted to the huge sum of 8,216.

This included an 800 hire charge for the diamonds - stones were regularly hired for use at coronations up to 1837 - computed on a percentage of the value of the stones.

Normally the stones would have been returned to Rundells after the coronation, but in this case there is no sign that the delicately worked diamond sprays and crosses have been disturbed.

The Diamond Diadem has been regularly worn by queens regnant and consorts ever since.
Global wildlife populations have fallen by an average of 69 per cent per cent in less than 50 years, conservationists have warned.

Comparing this to the population of humans, that would be the equivalent of losing everyone from Europe, the Americas, Africa, Oceania and China.

WWF's latest Living Planet report assesses the abundance of almost 32,000 populations of 5,230 species of animals around the world.

Species in freshwater lakes, rivers and wetlands have been worst hit, declining by an average of 83 per cent since 1970.

The report reveals that the population decline was driven largely by the loss of natural habitat for agriculture, while climate change is also increasingly a threat to wildlife.

The WWF are urging an increase in conservation and restoration measures across the globe to prevent figures like this rapidly rising.

WWF's latest Living Planet report assesses the abundance of almost 32,000 populations of 5,230 species of animals around the world. Pictured: A mountain gorilla in the Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo

The worst population declines are in Latin America, home to the world's largest rainforest, the Amazon, where increasing deforestation is destroying trees and the species that rely on them. Pictured: Soybean fields, with isolated Brazil nut trees, cutting through the rainforest in the Tapajos region in the Amazon, Brazil

BIODIVERSITY IN THE UK The UK has 50 per cent of its nature richness left compared with historic levels. This makes it one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. Once common wildlife such as skylarks and hedgehogs are no longer everyday sightings. While 92 per cent of sea grass habitat and 97 per cent of wildflower meadows have been lost since 1970. Advertisement

This year's report is the most comprehensive in its 24-year history, adding 838 new species and just over 11,000 new populations since the previous report in 2020.

It is based on data from the Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) Living Planet Index (LPI).

The worst declines are in Latin America, home to the world's largest rainforest, the Amazon, where increasing deforestation is destroying trees and the species that rely on them.

Wildlife population sizes in the region have declined by 94 per cent on average in the past half century, the report said.

The Amazon pink river dolphin is just one of these species seeing a catastrophic loss.

Between 1994 and 2016 its population in the Mamiraua Sustainable Development Reserve in the Brazilian state of Amazonas fell by 65 per cent.

Auricelia Arapiun, leader of the Tapajos Arapiuns Indigenous Council in the Para state of the Brazilian Amazon, said: 'The decline in animals across our land is stark  we used to see armadillos every day, now we see none.

'Jaguars used to be hard to spot, but because their hunting grounds and the trees that were their habitats have been destroyed, they come to our villages and kill our dogs.

'We have to keep a very careful eye on our children. This never used to happen, they would hunt and roam in the forest.'

Experts said the Amazon is fast approaching a tipping point where it will cease to be a functioning rainforest, without which the world cannot avert dangerous global warming.

If 'we lose the Amazon, we lose that fight' against climate change, WWF chief executive Tanya Steele warned.

Conservationists warn the UK is not immune to wildlife declines, with just half of its nature richness left compared with historic levels. Once common wildlife such as skylarks and hedgehogs (pictured) are no longer everyday sightings

In the UK, 92 per cent of sea grass habitat and 97 per cent of wildflower meadows have been lost. Pictured: Seagrass bed in Porthdinllaen on the Llyn Peninsula, north west coast of Wales

Europe, central Asia and North America have seen lesser declines in populations, but ZSL scientists said these areas had already seen reductions in nature by 1970 when the data begins.

Conservationists warn the UK is not immune to wildlife declines, with just half of its nature richness left compared with historic levels.

This makes it one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world.

Once common wildlife such as skylarks and hedgehogs are no longer everyday sightings, while 92 per cent of sea grass habitat and 97 per cent of wildflower meadows have been lost.

In South and Western Australia, the number of Australian sea lion pups has reduced by 64 per cent.

Additionally, on average, monitored populations of oceanic sharks and rays have decreased by 71 per cent in the last 50 years.

The report points to the consumption habits of wealthy countries and our reliance on fossil fuels as the propelling force driving this detrimental loss.

Wildlife population sizes in Latin America have declined by 94 per cent on average in the past half century, the report said. The Amazon pink river dolphin (pictured) is just one of these species seeing a catastrophic loss

In South and Western Australia, the number of Australian sea lion pups (pictured) has reduced by 64 per cent

Every year, 10 million hectares of forest is lost  an area around the size of Portugal, hitting the climate, food security and millions of people's livelihoods.

There are some bright spots of wildlife bucking the declines, such as numbers of loggerhead turtle nests increasing 500 per cent along the coastline of Chyrsochou Bay, Cyprus, between 1999 and 2015 thanks to targeted conservation efforts.

In the UK, once-extinct common cranes have been reintroduced, with the population reaching more than 200.

Plus, in the Virunga Mountains of east Africa conservation efforts have helped increase mountain gorilla numbers from 480 in 2010 to 604.

However, Dr Mike Barrett, executive director of science and conservation at WWF, warned that 'at the moment we are losing nature still, so we're heading the wrong way.'

Experts said the Amazon is fast approaching a tipping point where it will cease to be a functioning rainforest, without which the world cannot avert dangerous global warming. Pictured: Spider monkeys in the forest canopy of the Amazon jungle, Brazil

Ms Steele has urged new Prime Minister Liz Truss and her team to ensure the UK 'is not complicit in the destruction of nature here and around the world'.

She said the UK should start by legislating to remove products from British shops, ranging from food to gold, that are linked to driving deforestation in other countries, and to support farmers here to farm sustainably and restore nature.

'Despite the science, the catastrophic projections, the impassioned speeches and promises, the burning forests, submerged countries, record temperatures and displaced millions  world leaders continue to sit back and watch our world burn in front of our eyes,' said Ms Steele.

'The climate and nature crises, their fates entwined, are not some faraway threat our grandchildren will solve with still-to-be-discovered technology.

'Across the world, and in the UK, nature is on its knees and our leaders are risking catastrophic consequences for people, planet and our economy by failing to act.'

When world leaders meet in Montreal in December for the biodiversity conference Cop15, the UK should play a leading role in making sure an action plan is agreed to ensure nature is starting to recover by the end of this decade, she added.
Microsoft has heralded a 'new era' of computing with the launch of new devices in its touchscreen Surface range.

The Redmond, Washington-based tech giant has revealed the 1,099 Surface Pro 9, a 2-in-1 detachable with the 'power of a laptop and the flexibility of a tablet'.

It's also revealed the 999 Surface Laptop 5, a 'powerhouse laptop' with all-day battery life, and the 4,699 Surface Studio 2+, an update on its all-in-one PC.

All three devices run Windows 11 and are compatible with the Surface Slim Pen 2, the firm's stylus for drawing and jotting notes.

Microsoft has said the new devices take Windows 'into the next era of computing', but an analyst claims the products only show 'incremental' updates.

Microsoft has debuted the Surface Pro 9 (left), Surface Laptop 5 (right), and Surface Studio 2+ (centre)

The Surface Pro 9 (pictured) is two-in-one device with the power of a laptop but the flexibility of a tablet

NEW MICROSOFT PRODUCTS Devices - Surface Pro 9 (1,099) - Surface Laptop 5 (999) - Surface 2+ (4,699) Apps - Microsoft Designer - Image Creator Advertisement

Panos Panay, Microsoft's chief product officer, detailed the new products  which also include two apps powered by AI  in a lengthy blog post.

'Today, we shared our vision for the next era of the Windows PC,' said Panay, who is often considered the 'father' of the Surface brand.

'The next wave of computing is here. We continue to look forward to what you'll achieve with these amazing products.'

SURFACE PRO 9

Surface Pro 9 is the latest Surface Pro, the tech company's family of flagship 2-in-1 hybrid devices.

Like its predecessors, Surface Pro 9 has a tablet screen and stand that comes with a detachable keyboard, and so it can be used as either a tablet or a laptop.

It features a 13-inch display with high-grade aluminum casing in a new set of metallic colours.

Microsoft says it's the most powerful Pro ever, combining 'the power and flexibility of a tablet with the performance of a laptop'.

The firm also touted the device's high refresh rate  how many times per second the display is able to draw a new image.

Surface Pro 9 has a refresh rate of 120Hz  meaning it is refreshing an image 120 times per second.

'With incredible levels of quality, performance and versatility, the edge-to-edge display on Surface Pro 9 is stunning,' Panay said.

Like its predecessors, Surface Pro 9 has a tablet screen and stand that comes with a detachable keyboard and so can be used as either a tablet or a laptop

Surface Laptop 5 (pictured) is more than 50 per cent more powerful than its predecessor, Microsoft says

The device works with the Surface Slim Pen 2, which is sold separately, so users can take notes on the display 'like writing with pen and paper'.

'A Surface display is more than a sheet of glass. Its a canvas, a journal, a notepad, an editing bay and a cinema screen,' said Panay.

'Its a vibrant sheet of pixels that transforms into the combination of experiences that keep you informed, productive, entertained and connected.

It's released on November 8, with prices starting at 1,099.

SURFACE LAPTOP 5

Microsoft also announced the Surface Laptop 5, which is released on October 25 and starts from 999  making it the cheapest of the new devices.

Surface Laptop 5 is 50 per cent more powerful than its predecessor thanks to a new Intel processor.

The 'super-lightweight' device also comes with 'all-day battery life', although the firm admitted battery life varies 'significantly' based on usage, network, signal strength and other factors.

Microsoft says: 'Surface Laptop 5 is sleek and elegant, providing all-day battery life as our customers have come to appreciate and expect'

The device's processing power has been designed for multi-tasking  in other words, having several applications open at once.

'From the effortless opening and fast log-in with Windows Hello, to the touchscreen, precision touchpad and perfect typing experience, Surface Laptop 5 offers the craftsmanship, comfort and capabilities to jump in and produce your best work,' Panay said.

SURFACE 2+

Lastly, the Surface 2+, an updated version of the Surface Studio 2 released four years ago, costs a whopping 4,699 and is released on November 1.

The large-screen desktop is designed to be used like an artist's canvas and can be folded down into a range of angles to draw and work on.

Microsoft said it gives creators 'a large canvas to express yourself at any angle'.

In addition, Microsoft confirmed that a new set of Adaptive Accessories to help those with a disability more easily use their PC will go on sale this autumn.

The large-screen desktop is designed to be used like an artist's canvas and can be folded down into a range of angles to draw and work on

The accessories have been designed for those who may have difficulty using a traditional keyboard and mouse.

Commenting on the new range of devices, industry expert Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said: 'Compared to previous years this is a relatively incremental update to Microsoft's Surface line of products.

'This appears to reflect a wider trend in 2023 where tech companies are taking existing products and making small improvements to keep the product line fresh.

'There's nothing wrong with that, but it reflects the slowing innovation curve when it comes to PCs, smartphones and other consumer electronics devices.'

TWO NEW APPS

During the event to unveil the new devices, the US firm also announced two new apps that are powered by artificial intelligence (AI).

Microsoft Designer uses various AI  including a text-to-image system called DALL-E  to generate designs and images as a user needs them for whatever content they want to create.

'This is an amazing example of the power of cloud-based AI and what it means expressed through an application,' he said.

'Designer helps you create from your own content or ideas and makes it easy to design social media posts, invitations, and much more, fast.

'It also automatically helps you get a variety of unique images and designs that are generated just for you. I'm so excited for this app, it's going to be a game changer for me personally.'

Meanwhile, a new Image Creator app, which will enable users to generate their own images by entering a description into an AI-powered app, is to be integrated into Microsoft's Bing search engine and Edge web browser.
This is when people pay a ranch to hunt animals on the land that is enclosed by a fence, which some say makes it easier to hunt than in the wild

He shared the images of the prized animal on social media that has been met with criticism, specifically because the animal was killed in high-fence hunting

A hunter who killed a massive 648-inch elk on a ranch in Idaho has come under fire for paying the landowner to track and shoot the animal dead in what is known as high-fence hunting - and he could have paid up to $15,000 for the prized creature.

Brian Dhooghe, who shot what could possibly be a record-setting elk, said one of the main reasons for the kill was to process the meat for his sausage making business in Washington.

High-fence hunting is a controversial practice because people are tracking animals in land that is enclosed by a high fence, which makes them easier targets than if they were out in the wild.

On the other hand, it was created to stop poachers from slaughter them in large numbers.

Dhooghe shared images on Facebook of himself standing with the dead carcass, which have hundreds of negative comments with some saying 'you gotta be ashamed' for killing 'something so beautiful.'

However, others have come to his rescue praising him for the feat and using the meat.

Cindy Norris-Brown, from Colorado, commented on the picture sharing: 'For those asking why you would kill such a beautiful animal when your family relies on the meat to survive so kids don't go hungry that is why.'

Brian Dhooghe shared images on Facebook of himself standing with the dead carcass, which have hundreds of negative comments with some saying 'you gotta be ashamed' for killing 'something so beautiful'

DailyMail.com has reached out to Dhooghe for comment.

High-fence hunts are a multi-million dollar business in the US, which can be likened to trophy hunting in Africa - a business that is also surrounded in controversy.

Such game preserves are located across the US and range in price.

For example, at the Rocky Mountain Elk Ranch in Idaho, hunters can expect anywhere from $2,900 to $17,000 for a single Elk, while buffalos can cost as much as $10,500.

Dhooghe killed the prized elk at Broadmouth Canyon Ranch, but pricing is not available on its website or Facebook page.

Speaking with Outdoor Life Magazine, Dooghe said the trip to the Idaho ranch was a 50th birthday gift from his wife and he had initially paid to shoot a 500-inch elk until the guides told him about the recorder breaking beast.

However, others have come to his rescue praising him for the feat and process the meat into food. The elk has 648-inch antlers

High-fence hunts are a multi-million dollar business in the US. Such game preserves are located across the US and range in price. Pictured is another elk killed on the same ranch as Dhooghe's prized animal

'They had told us this potential record was walking around, but I wanted a nice, big, sexy-looking bull to mount on the wall. And this thing is definitely not that,' Dhooghe told Outdoor Life.

'He's ugly. I mean he's awesome, but kind of freaky lookin'. It looks like something prehistoric, like, what the hell is that thing?'

On the first day of his stay at the ranch, Dhooghe killed a 571-inch bull and the next day joined a group who were on the hunt for a 300- and 400-inch bull.

While staking out in wooded area, the large bull stepped into view.

High-fence hunting is not only a thing in America, as in February 70 hunters in Spain slaughtered nearly 450 deer and wild board in a single day

Participants were each charged $977 for the shoot, which is legal under Spanish law. But animal rights groups say the use of fencing is unethical and have condemned the hunt after images of the animals' carcasses were shared online

'We're all sitting there when up comes this thing,' Dhooghe said. 'We saw him close to 400 yards, so I put him in my scope and the damn thing didn't even fit in there!'

Dhooghe pulled the trigger when the elk was 150 yards away, shooting a bullet directly to the animal's heart and killing it.

High-fence hunting is not only a thing in America, as in February 70 hunters in Spain slaughtered nearly 450 deer and wild board in a single day.

Participants were each charged $977 for the shoot, which is legal under Spanish law.

But animal rights groups say the use of fencing is unethical and have condemned the hunt after images of the animals' carcasses were shared online.

Each hunter killed around six or seven animals, a figure much higher than on an average day's hunt, they say.
'Pools have distinct personalities  some evoking a sense of tranquillity, others a more solemn feeling,' he says

Walls documented 1,000 pools from the U.S to Australia for the tome, but just 89 lagoons made the cut

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We all know that looking at pictures of pools is almost as satisfying as being in them - and photographer Brad Walls underscores this notion in some style.

His captivating new book Pools From Above, published by Smith Street Books and Abrams & Chronicle, features 89 aerial images of heavenly pools across Australia, the U.S and Mexico - narrowed down from the staggering 1,000 pools that he has photographed overall.

Speaking to MailOnline Travel, Walls, 30, reveals that he first became interested in photographing pools when he was travelling and would capture bodies of water as a way to document his memories of the trip. The idea grew from there. The photographer, who hails from Sydney, Australia, says that its the less-appreciated elements of swimming pools that he fell in love with  their curves, sharp edges, diverse blue hues and the way elongated shadows play against their surfaces. These qualities are lost unless the pool is viewed from above, he suggests.

He reveals that he used two techniques to track down the pools that he photographed in the tome. Firstly, he reached out to a list of owners and architects of houses that hed admired for their pool architecture, and secondly, he enlisted the help of Google Maps to identify dense areas of aesthetically-pleasing pools. Once he was on the grounds of the properties, Walls used a drone to take birds-eye-view shots of the pool from about 10m (33ft) to 20m (66ft) in the air.

Reflecting on what he learned from the experience, Walls says: As much as Im drawn to their visual features, Ive come to learn that pools have distinct personalities  some evoking a sense of tranquillity, others a more solemn feeling. Pools, often appreciated merely as architectural objects, retain an innate ability to trigger involuntary memories. For me, they can evoke the smell of my favourite food, or resurrect memories of my favourite holidays.

Below are 18 of the mesmerising aerial shots of pools that appear in the book, from one owned by Robert Downey Jr to examples that appeared in hit Hollywood films, and swimming pools that have been masterminded by world-famous architects

Behold, Walls' favourite photograph from the book, taken at a house in Los Angeles. He reveals that he was the first photographer to be granted access to the property in 40 years. 'The owners love and cherish their property and are very selective with who they let in,' he explains, adding that he 'even had security personnel' with him on the shoot. 'For this reason, it stands out to me,' he says. Walls describes the dwelling, which was designed by the lauded American architect John Lautner, as 'arguably the most renowned piece of architecture, if not in Los Angeles but in Malibu'. 'I hope I did the pool justice,' he adds

This glamourous picture shows a pool in Los Angeles' Beverly Crest neighbourhood that is a star of the silver screen - it was used as a film location in both the 1998 hit The Big Lebowski, starring Jeff Bridges, and in 2003's Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, which featured Lucy Liu, Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz. It's owned by socialite John Goldstein and was designed and built between 1961 and 1963 by John Lautner

This picture was taken at a 1960s private home on LA's Mulholland Drive designed by Lautner that Walls notes was 'prominently used as a location for the film Lethal Weapon 2', starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. The pool, installed after the shoot, is the only one that Walls swam in, he reveals. 'It was the last pool I photographed in LA at the end of the trip - a celebration of sorts,' he says. One of the 'lovely' owners - the property belongs to John McIlwee and the Broadway producer Bill Damaschke - gave him the whole house for the day, and told him: 'Take a swim, feel the vibe. Make it your canvas.' Walls adds: 'People like this truly made the experience of making the book'

LEFT: The eye-catching checkerboard tiles of the pool area at the Hotel Panamera in Tulum Beach, Mexico, are the subject of this colourful shot, which is appropriately titled 'Retro'. RIGHT: Walls snared this picture-postcard shot in Miami Beach, Florida

This gorgeous swimming pool can be found in Le Chacuel, a property that's available to rent on Airbnb in Yucca Valley, California. Walls notes that the 'luxurious' site was designed by the architect Mila Morris

This striking picture of a circular lagoon - titled 'Swan' - was captured in Malibu

A picturesque pool in Vaucluse, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. The picture's title - 'Suns Out Buns Out' - is a nod to the text that's printed on the inflatable floating in the water

This vibrant lagoon can be found at the San Cristobal horse stables in Mexico city, designed by the famous Mexican architect Luis Barragan in 1968, Walls reveals

Autumn leaves float over the water in this peaceful shot of a pool in Toorak, a suburb in Melbourne, Australia

This dynamic shot shows rows of swimmers doing laps in the 50m (164ft) Prince Alfred Park Pool in the Australian city of Surry Hills

LEFT: The stylish pool that features in the shot is located in The Bird Streets, a neighbourhood that's set above Los Angeles' Sunset Strip. RIGHT: This stunning bird's eye shot was captured in Malibu. Walls titled it 'One Lap Only'

This dreamy swimming pool is set in the grounds of Robert Downey Jr's property in Malibu, Walls reveals. He adds that the Iron Man actor's home has been built using the Binishell method, meaning it's a reinforced concrete structure that has a rounded roof

An idyllic pool in the Californian resort city of Palm Springs is the subject of this picture, titled 'Patchwork'. How do the pools that Walls photographs look so pristine? He reveals: Many of the pools in the book are very well kept, with constant maintenance, especially in places like Palm Springs where the main feature of the house is the pool'

LEFT: The 'Raging Waters' water park in the suburb of Prospect in Sydney, Australia, was the setting for this tranquil picture, titled 'Breathe'. RIGHT: This picture, titled 'Romanticism', shows a sleek lagoon in the Californian neighbourhood of Bel Air

This serene picture shows a lagoon in a Palm Springs property that was designed by the Austrian-American architect Richard Neutra in 1946. Walls reveals that it was the subject of the legendary US photographer Slim Aarons' most famous picture - the 1970 photograph 'Poolside Gossip', which showed then-owner Nelda Linsk and her friends lounging at the water's edge
The ex-wife of former Today show weatherman Steve Jacobs has spoken of how she found inner peace at the end of a 30-day trek across Spain.

Rosie Jacobs, 42, whose alcohol battle and relationship troubles are well-documented, recently completed the Camino de Santiago, a 800km pilgrimage trail across northern Spain which she found life-changing.

Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail Australia this week, the former television producer revealed how she put her demons to rest during the adventure, allowing her to re-enter the world an empowered single woman.

Rosie Jacobs (pictured), the ex-wife of former Today show weatherman Steve Jacobs, has spoken of how she found inner peace at the end of a 30-day trek across Spain

'[The Camino] was physically huge and really challenging and rewarding,' said the travel writer.

'But it was also mentally quite a challenge in terms of the internal voice that you use to get yourself through something like that, and the processing you go through.

'And I think as well, it was quite a spiritual journey and a really soulful adventure.'

Rosie (pictured on the trek) recently completed the Camino de Santiago, a 800km pilgrimage trail across northern Spain which she found life-changing

Rosie, who walked the Camino alone without the security of a tour group, said there were two reasons why she decided to take on the momentous challenge.

The first was to pay tribute to a friend who recently died, while the second was to celebrate her achievements after a difficult few years.

Rosie went through a messy divorce from Steve in 2017 and previously struggled with alcoholism.

'It was quite a spiritual journey and a really soulful adventure,' Rosie told Daily Mail Australia

She also had an acrimonious break-up with former AFL player Matt Shir between 2018 and 2019.

'[I saw the trek] as a celebration of the fact that I've gone through quite a lot of emotional stuff in the last five years or so, and I feel like I've done a huge amount of personal exploration and changes and healing,' she said.

'And I've reached a point now where I feel like I'm coming out the other side. And I'm really at peace with who I am and where I'm at, and it feels it good.'

Rosie, who walked the Camino alone without the security of a tour group, said she took on the momentous challenge to pay tribute to a friend who recently died, and also to 'celebrate' her achievements following a difficult few years

Rosie added of her personal struggles: 'In the last five years I was diagnosed with complex PTSD, so there's been a lot of work for me in terms of understanding that and finding ways to manage that.'

'[I have been] making sure I sleep enough and making sure I do nurturing things for myself physically. Quitting alcohol was one of the things that was really big for me on that level. That really helped me manage anxiety,' she explained.

By the end of the Camino, Rosie said she was a changed woman.

Rosie said of her personal struggles: 'I was diagnosed with complex PTSD, so there's been a lot of work for me in terms of understanding that and finding ways to manage that'

By the end of the Camino, Rosie said she was a changed woman

Rosie also lifted the lid on her dating life, confirming she's happily single after quietly splitting from her latest flame Alex Daly.

'It's been quite a while since Alex and I separated, and in that time I've come to really enjoy, for the first time in my adult life, being independent and solo,' she said.

'And I actually have enough on my plate at the moment that keeps me really busy. Being a single mum with two young girls and having my own business as a travel journalist. I have never felt so fulfilled and content.'

Rosie also lifted the lid on her dating life, confirming she's happily single after quietly splitting from her latest flame Alex Daly. (The former couple is pictured together in happier times)

Rosie didn't rule out the possibility of finding love in the future, revealing she still hopes to one day find someone 'magical enough' to sweep her off her feet

What is the Camino? The Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of Saint James, is an annual Christian pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, in the North West of Spain. The network of trails have been walked by pilgrims since the early ninth century, and are currently listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Every year, hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world walk the Camino trails, either on their own or in organised tour groups. Stretching around 780 km over hilly terrain, the trek typically takes hikers around 30 days to complete. Legend has it that the remains of the Apostle Saint James the Great were buried at Santiago. Advertisement

Rosie didn't rule out the possibility of finding love in the future, revealing she still hopes to one day find someone 'magical enough' to sweep her off her feet.

As for her relationship with ex-husband Steve, things have never been smoother.

The former couple share custody of their two daughters Isabella and Francesca, with Steve having the girls for a month while Rosie walked the Camino.

Rosie described Steve as a 'great dad', adding: 'We have always put the girls first.

'Steven and I share our time with the girls 50/50. We are taking that as it comes, and we just juggle the dates between us.

'But our girls have been born into a world where from the day they arrived, Steven was already travelling for work almost every day of the year... so that's all they've ever known with him.

'It's actually weird for them to have time with him, without him dropping everything and having to jump on a plane. So it's been great! He's had this time with the girls for the first time in a long time.'

Rosie started her career as a television producer, but is perhaps best known for hosting a variety of shows on Nine, 10, Foxtel and The Weather Channel.

She married Steve in 2010, and they officially divorced in 2019.

As for her relationship with ex-husband Steve, things have never been smoother. The former couple (pictured in December 2015) share custody of their two daughters Isabella and Francesca, with Steve having the girls for a month while Rosie walked the Camino

Steve and Rosie married three years after meeting on the set of the Today show, where he was a star weather presenter and she was a behind-the-scenes producer.

They separated in late 2017, just a few months after relocating to Vanuatu in what friends described as a 'last-ditch attempt' to save their seven-year marriage.

She moved on with a Canadian commando Dylan Nash, then AFL player Matt Shir.

Steve and Rosie married three years after meeting on the set of the Today show, where he was a star weather presenter and she was a producer. (Pictured together in February 2016)
Kim Kardashian admits she's 'exhausted' by her ex Kanye West's rants about never being able to see his kids... which her sister Khloe Kardashian called 'gaslighting.'

Kim, Khloe and Kendall Jenner were all having lunch on the new episode of Hulu's The Kardashians - entitled We're Built For This - when she discusses an Instagram rant West went on in early March.

While West claimed in the since-deleted post that he hadn't seen his kids in a week, Kim shot back at that notion in the episode.

Gaslighting: Kim Kardashian admits she's 'exhausted' by her ex Kanye West's rants about never being able to see his kids... which her sister Khloe Kardashian called 'gaslighting'

Kanye claims: While West claimed in the since-deleted post that he hadn't seen his kids in a week, Kim shot back at that notion in the episode

The siblings were discussing the backlash from Kim's Variety interview where she told women to, 'get your f***ing a** up and work.

Kendall adds, 'It's gotten completely out of control, all the false narratives that people believe in.'

Kim adds, 'It's exhausting, today I'm just exhausted,' while Kendall says it's the same with the 'narrative' she's dealing with her ex Kanye West, who posted that he can't see his kids.

Discussing: The siblings were discussing the backlash from Kim's Variety interview where she told women to, 'get your f***ing a** up and work

'Kanye posted I can't see the kids and I'm like you were here this morning, stop with this narrative. I can't take it any more. But I don't want to go back and forth on the internet,' Kim says.

Khloe adds, 'It's all gaslighting, all of it.. all if it is whatever narrative everyone wants to believe. We should by them all lighters for Christmas and say it's 'cause you gaslight everyone.'

'It's actually going to be my Christmas gift. I have a whole list to give them to,' Khloe adds, while Kim jokes, 'You send the lighter, I'll send the lamp.'

Gaslighting: Khloe adds, 'It's all gaslighting, all of it.. all if it is whatever narrative everyone wants to believe. We should by them all lighters for Christmas and say it's 'cause you gaslight everyone.

Back in mid-March, West took to share a photo of his daughter North's backpack, which featured pins of West, Kim and an alien.

'This was on my daughters back pack when I was "allowed" to see her last week,' West began in the caption.

'This is why I go so hard for my family I am wired to protect my family at all cost As the priest of my home Don't worry Northy God is still alive,' he added.

Photo: Back in mid-March, West took to share a photo of his daughter North's backpack, which featured pins of West, Kim and an alien

Kim commented shortly after the post, stating, 'Please stop this narrative, you were just here this morning picking up the kids for school.'

Kim would later delete the comment and West would ultimately delete the post as well.

Kim and Kanye were married in 2014 and split in 2021, with the Kim declared legally single in March 2022.
Members of ARMY, the fan club of K-pop superstar band BTS, pose after participating in a "plogging" event on Gwangalli Beach in Busan, Thursday. They have arrived in the city ahead of the group's concert, which will be held on Saturday to support Busan's bid to host the World Expo 2030. Yonhap
Tori Spelling says she 'hated' being away from her five children for a month filming new show Love at First Lie in Malta.

The Beverly Hills 90210 legend, 49, told MailOnline that the MTV dating series is more dramatic than Love Island after producers were forced to call security when a huge row kicked off on set.

In an exclusive interview, Tori, who's based in Los Angeles, revealed she was 'nervous' to take on the presenting role but channelled American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, 47, to make the debut series a success.

'I felt safe they had their dad there': Tori Spelling says she 'hated' being away from her five children for a month filming new show Love at First Lie in Malta

She said: 'I was away from my children for almost a month, which was brutal.

'I hated being away from my kids and that was the longest I've ever gone. It was right when their school started so it was really hard to pull them out.

'I was so excited that Dean was with the kids and so I felt safe that they had their dad there the whole time and I was grateful for that.

'The good thing is we were filming for so many hours and I never had a day off because it's filmed in real time so working and not having a moment to focus on how sad I was without them  that was good.'

'Drama unfolds': The Beverly Hills 90210 legend told MailOnline that the MTV dating series is more dramatic than Love Island after producers were forced to call security when a huge row kicked off on set

Talking about the show, Tori added: 'Drama unfolds like no other, I was there for it and I got to watch the drama play out in such crazy ways. You mix people in relationships and money  and people go nuts.

'There was one moment where there was so much drama happening that security had to be called onto stage to break it up  that was crazy.'

Tori, who shares Liam, 15, Stella, 14, Hattie, 11, Finn, 10, and Beau, five, with husband Dean McDermott, 55, believes Love at First Lie has the potential to garner as many fans as popular dating series Love Island.

She said: 'I hope it will have audiences as big. That's your jam in the UK isn't it? Love Island?

'I think this show is so unique, but it has a fun, cheeky flair to it and I think people are going to love it.'

'Brutal': The actress said filming for a month in Malta was the longest time she's ever been away from her five children (Tori pictured with her family and brother Randy)

Family: Tori says she was 'grateful' her children had their dad to take care of them while she spent the month away from her home in Los Angeles filming the MTV series

Tori explained the new show, which airs tonight on MTV at 10pm, will see 12 couples compete to win a cash prize.

Some of the pairs are in genuine relationships while others are faking their romances for the chance to walk away with the lump sum.

It is up to the cast to eliminate the fakers but if they choose to out one of the real love birds then the money pot will decrease in value.

The couples live together in Malta and are filmed 24/7 so there's every opportunity for the deceiving pairs to get found out.

Tori said: 'Even when they're in bed, we never stopped filming them.

'Even the fake couples pulled it off, getting into a tiny bed together.

'I used to watch the live feed even after my hosting duties were done, I used to go to the producers and just stare at them  this is how invested I was.'

Show time: Tori explained the new show, which airs tonight on MTV at 10pm, will see 12 couples compete to win a cash prize  some are in genuine relationships and others are faking their romance

Tori admits she was apprehensive taking on hosting duties  but says she rose to the challenge by becoming emotionally invested with the contestants and wearing glamorous outfits.

She said: 'I was nervous taking on a show like this because I was like wow it's a lot of pressure. In my mind I'm like okay what am I doing here?

'So, I put on my best Ryan Seacrest hosting voice except I was totally glam and all about the fashion but then I was such like a fan girl  I've been told I'm a very unique host because I was so invested the whole time.

'When people were eliminated, I was crying on stage. It was so silly, but I felt like their room mother, the den mum in the dorm or something. I definitely got really close to them and invested and it was hard to see them go.'

She even says filming the show, which stars a mix of contestants from the US and UK, has enhanced her love for British men  though she's useless at imitating the accent.

Tori added: 'I love British men because I think they're so brilliant.

'I'm a joker so I love that cheeky, banter and everything they say sounds so great. They sound smarter. It's a British production company and a lot of the times the writing in my script there would be lines and I'd say 'we don't say that in the US', but I was like, but I want to say it because I just sound so chic. But no, I cannot do a British accent!'

Love at First Lie airs every Thursday at 10pm on MTV
A young woman left two Australian radio hosts horrified after admitting she masturbated while watching a disturbing scene from the Netflix series about serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, starring Evan Peters as the 'Milwaukee Monster' who killed, mutilated and ate 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991, has become the most-watched series on the streaming platform since its release last month.

During a segment on The Kyle and Jackie O Show about women who are attracted to murderers, one listener called in to reveal she'd become aroused by a scene in which Dahmer listened to a man's heartbeat and expressed his desire to eat it.

A young woman left Australian radio hosts Kyle Sandilands (left) and Jackie 'O' Henderson (right) horrified after admitting she masturbated while watching a disturbing scene from the Netflix series about serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer

The woman confessed: 'I never ever thought I would be one of these people. I am a happily married mum of three. But when I started watching Jeff, because my friends told me to, something just switched in me.

'And there was one particular episode where he's got his head over his victim's heart and he's listening to the beat and you can just hear the beat.

'And something just came over me and I had to look after myself, if you know what I mean, and now it's a regular thing.'

During a segment on The Kyle and Jackie O Show about women who are attracted to murderers, one listener called in to reveal she'd become aroused by a scene in which Dahmer listened to a man's heartbeat and expressed his desire to eat it

A shocked Henderson exclaimed: 'You're masturbating over Jeffrey Dahmer!'

'Not just masturbating over Jeffrey Dahmer, but over him listening to a heart that he's harvested out of someone's chest,' added Sandilands.

The woman explained the scene was 'so far away from my normal life and it just took me to this other place' when she heard the heartbeat 'echoing in my head'.

Sandilands was shocked when the woman, a happily married mum of three, said 'something just switched in me' when she watched the scene of Dahmer cuddling up to a would-be victim

Sandilands said the woman had 'evil' inside her, but she insisted she wasn't the only person to find the Dahmer series darkly appealing.

'It is outside of my norm. I don't think I'm the only one. I reckon there are other people listening right now who are going to give it a go,' she said.

'They're going to find that episode and there's something about it. I'm telling you, I'm not the only person.'

The conversation ended with the woman telling Henderson to rewatch the scene, but she flat-out refused and moved on to the next caller.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, starring Evan Peters as the 'Milwaukee Monster' who killed, mutilated and ate 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991, has become the most-watched series on the streaming platform since its release last month

In the first episode, Dahmer listens to a terrified man's heartbeat and says he wants to eat it

The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is striking a chord with viewers and has become one of Netflix's most-popular English-language series of all time in just a few weeks.

Created by Ryan Murphy and starring Evan Peters, the show chronicles the shocking murders of 17 young men and boys at the hands of the American serial killer between 1978 and 1991.

It retells the story of Dahmer from the perspective of his victims, and explores major mistakes Wisconsin police made in handling the probe of the notorious mass murderer, who made national headlines for acts of cannibalism and necrophilia.

The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is striking a chord with viewers and has become one of Netflix's most-popular English-language series of all time in just a few weeks. (Pictured: Evan Peters portraying Jeffrey Dahmer on the show)
Hugh Jackman celebrated his 54th birthday by flashing the Wolverine hand claw towards admiring photographers.

The X-Men star not only made the three-finger sign as he made his way along the streets of New York City, he also dropped a peace sign and a thumbs up before continuing on his way while carrying a bag full of goodies.

The flashing of the hand claw comes just a couple of weeks after he and Ryan Reynolds set social media ablaze when they confirmed he would reprise his role as Wolverine in Marvel Studios' Deadpool 3.

Birthday had claw: Hugh Jackman flashed the Wolverine hand claw when he acknowledged admiring photographers who wished him a happy 54th birthday in New York City

The seemingly always vibrant Jackman lit up with a big beaming smile when one of the photographers caught his attention with a birthday wish.

The acclaimed Australian actor opted for a casual-cool look for the first part of his special day in blue jean, a light blue dress shirt and dark brown ankle boots.

With the sun glaring down and the temperature topping out just under 70 degrees Fahrenheit, he also donned mirror sunglasses and had his hair cut short and pushed back off his face.

Beaming: The acclaimed actor first acknowledged the photographer by flashing a peace sign

The claw sign: Jackman then dropped the Wolverine hand claw, which comes about two weeks after he confirmed he would reprise his role as Wolverine in Marvel Studios' Deadpool 3

Casual-cool: The Aussie native opted for a casual-cool look for the first part of his birthday dressed in blue jeans, a light blue dress shirt and dark brown ankle boots

After being greeted with the birthday wish, Jackman first reciprocated by dropping the peace sign, which he then followed up with the Wolverine hand claw and then a thumbs up.

He proceeded to get a bit animated with his body language, like they were two old friends, the closer he got to the photographer.

Being a gentleman, the Logan star gave thanks for the birthday wish and then continued on with his walk.

Mr happy go lucky: The seemingly always vibrant actor also dropped a thumbs up in thanks for the birthday wish

Fan friendly: Jackman looked like he was greeting an old friend when he greeted another admiring photographer on his birthday

Birthday bites: The Australia native was carrying a bag of goodies he bought from a gourmet market, seemingly on the way back to his New York City apartment

There was also another paparazzi photographer who greeted him by acknowledging his special day.

'There's the birthday boy,' the man, who goes by the handles @247papaofficial and @wavypeter, yelled out amid the loud noises of road construction along the street.

And again, the longtime leading man couldn't have been more gracious by giving him a wave towards his way along with his infectious smile.

'Happy birthday brother,' the man added, for which Jackman thanked him with a fist bump, and later took to his Instagram page and thanked him again, writing, 'Thank you brother, @wavypeter.'

More birthday wishes: Jackman also waved hello to another paparazzi photographer who wished him a happy birthday

Old pals: The Logan star acted like he was an old friend of the photographer

Gracious: Jackman thanked the photographer for the birthday wish with a fist bump, and later took to Instagram to thank him again

Late last month, Jackman teamed up with Reynolds for a funny teaser video to make the announcement that he would be back as Wolverine in the third installment of Deadpool.

The social media clip begins with Reynolds at home struggling to come up with ideas for the third movie.

By the end of it, he admits he has one great idea that fans will love. Jackman then nonchalantly enters the scene in the background and walks up a staircase

'Hey, Hugh. You want to play Wolverine one more time?' Reynolds asks, for which he shoots back casually, 'Yeah, sure, Ryan.'

Marvel fans on social media erupted over the announcement.

Hilarious: Late last month, Jackman teamed up with Reynolds for a funny teaser video to make the announcement that he would be back as Wolverine in the third installment of Deadpool

Huge announcement: The two actors and longtime friends could be seen joking with each other in the social media post that confirmed Jackman would reprise his Wolverine role

The Deadpool star would also share a birthday wish to his longtime friend, and of course, it would come in the form of a joke.

'Happy birthday @thehughjackman Long live your casually tossed hair and effervescent charm,' he shared along with a photo of the leading man standing arm-in-arm.

Jackman had been adamant for years that he would never play Wolverine again after starring in 2017's Logan, according to a slew of publications that included Wired.

He currently holds a Guinness World Record for 'longest career as a live-action Marvel superhero' having played Wolverine for 17 years.
She has been promoting her upcoming period film Armageddon Time in style.

But Anne Hathaway really took things to the next level on Wednesday.

The actress, 39, wowed in a dazzling silver dress decked out with large pearl beads at an event for her new flick at Alice Tully Hall in New York City.

All that glitters! Anne Hathaway wowed in a dazzling silver dress decked out with large pearl beads at a New York Film Festival event for her new flick at Alice Tully Hall in New York City

The long sleeve frock covered much of her figure and fell down to her calves, where they met a matching pair of beaded boots.

Even her necks were coated in a shimmering shade of silver.

Her jet black tresses were styled into a straight yet voluminous do that was swept over her head and down her back.

She wore a pair of dangling silver earrings and coated her complexion with a light touch of pink blush, dazzling eye shadow, and liner to accentuate her brown eyes.

Just bead it! The long sleeve frock covered much of her figure and fell down to her calves, where they met a matching pair of beaded boots.

Anne stars opposite Jeremy Strong, Banks Repeta, Jaylin Webb, and Anthony Hopkins in the upcoming drama Armageddon Time directed by James Gray.

'A deeply personal coming-of-age story about the strength of family and the generational pursuit of the American Dream,' reads the plot for the film on IMDb.

Hathaway plays the role of Esther Graff in the coming-of-age semi-biographical story inspired by Gray's upbringing in Queens, New York, in the 1980s. Graff's character is based on Gray's real-life mother.

Big names: Anne stars opposite Jeremy Strong, Banks Repeta, Jaylin Webb, and Anthony Hopkins in the upcoming drama Armageddon Time directed by James Gray

Coming soon: The film will have a limited release in the United States on October 28, 2022, and a nationwide release on November 4

The film will have a limited release in the United States on October 28, 2022, and a nationwide release on November 4.

In addition to Armageddon Time, Anne is attached to a slew of other projects. She is currently filming The Idea Of You, a film based on a romance book inspired by Harry Styles.

The actress is set to play Sophie, a divorced 40-year-old woman who falls for 24-year-old boy bander Hayes Campbell.

New role: Hathaway plays the role of Esther Graff in the coming-of-age semi-biographical story inspired by Gray's upbringing in Queens, New York, in the 1980s. Graff's character is based on Gray's real-life mother

Jeremy and Anne: Jeremy Strong and Anne Hathaway hit the after party for the Armageddon Time premiere at the New York Film Festival

Hugs: Anne Hathaway gives Jeremy Strong a hug at the Armageddon Time after party

Red carpet: Jeremy Strong hits the red carpet at the New York Film Festival screening of Armageddon Time

Anne and Josh: Anne Hathaway poses with Josh Charles at the Armageddon Time after-party at the New York Film Festival

Cast and director: Jeremy Strong, Anne Hathaway, director James Gray, Banks Repeta and Jaylin Webb attend the Armageddon Time premiere during the 60th New York Film Festival

Jeremy and Anne: Jeremy Strong and Anne Hathaway pose on the red carpet

Tovah: Tovah Feldshuh poses with a black and white dress at the Armageddon Time screening at New York Film Festival
Australian streaming service Stan has revealed Russell Crowe's anticipated thriller Poker Face will premiere next month.

The film, directed by and starring Crowe, will debut November 22.

Poker Face features an array of Aussie stars led by Hunger Games star Liam Hemsworth.

Australian streaming service Stan has revealed Russell Crowe's anticipated thriller Poker Face will premiere November 22

Other stars include rapper RZA, Aden Young (Rectify), Steve Bastoni (Fires), Daniel MacPherson (Neighbours), Brooke Satchwell (upcoming Stan Original Series Black Snow), Paul Tassone (The Code), Matt Nable (upcoming Stan Original Film Transfusion, The Dry), Benedict Hardie (Joe vs. Carole), Jacqueline McKenzie (Stan Original Series Bloom) and Molly Grace (Savage River).

Liam's sister-in-law Elsa Pataky (Fast and Furious franchise) and Jack Thompson (High Ground) will also appear in the film.

The big budget action flick was put on pause last year after a number of crew members tested positive to Covid.

Chris Hemsworth's wife, Elsa Pataky (pictured), will make a cameo in the high octane outing which is set inside the glamorous world of high-stakes poker

Elsa's brother-in-law, Liam Hemsworth (pictured), will also star in the film

Crowe is set to direct and star in the high octane outing which is set inside the glamorous world of high-stakes poker.

The film was shot both at Fox Studios and across a number of New South Wales landmarks, including the $100million Crown Residence penthouse at Barangaroo and the Kiama coastline.

It marks Crowes second directorial outing following his 2014 AACTA Award-winning The Water Diviner.

In a statement obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Crowe said: 'This was quite an extreme project for me, came on to my radar very fast.'

The film was shot both at Fox Studios and across a number of New South Wales landmarks, including the $100million Crown Residence penthouse at Barangaroo. It marks Crowes second directorial outing following his 2014 AACTA Award-winning The Water Diviner

'Rewriting and casting in a five week period while the city went into hard lockdown. Trying to manage resources and people without the usual ability to meet and talk frequently over many months as you normally would do in pre-production on a film certainly put unusual pressures in place,' he continued.

'Somehow though, those pressures have played into the movies favour and taken the subject out of a certain realm of fantasy and grounded it in a reality.'

'What do we leave behind? What is our legacy? What is left to do for a man who has everything he needs, except time?' the statement concluded.

Poker Face is produced by Australian actor Addam Bramich, Keith Rodger, Ryan and Gary Hamilton.

Poker Face is produced by Australian actor Addam Bramich, Keith Rodger, Ryan and Gary Hamilton and is written by Aussie screenwriter Stephen Coates

Written by Aussie screenwriter Stephen Coates, Poker Face was originally slated to be directed by Gary Fleder, who was responsible for 1995 crime thriller Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead.

However, scheduling issues and some internal studio conflict led to Crowe taking the reins.

Crowe stars in the lead role of Jake - a grizzled tech billionaire who finds himself the subject of a violent home invasion.

In a statement obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Crowe said: 'This was quite an extreme project for me, came on to my radar very fast.' Pictured: Daniel MacPherson

In August 2021, Crowe confirmed that at least one crew member had tested positive to Covid-19 just six days before the end of the shoot.

'Unfortunately 6 days from the end of our shoot on PokerFace we have had a confirmed positive COVID case amongst our crew and a second possible positive under further investigation by our PokerFace Covid team and NSWHealth,' he wrote on his Instagram account.

'For the safety of cast and crew and the wider community, the production has been immediately paused and everyone instructed to isolate whilst the situation is looked into.

'We have followed strict protocols with cast and crew being tested three times a week for the past 11+ weeks.'

Crowe directs the film and stars in the lead role of Jake - a grizzled tech billionaire who finds himself the subject of a violent home invasion

Crowe said the entire crew had been masked while on set, with the exception of three individuals who had medical exemptions.

'We feel for the crew members involved, like all the people on this show they are both very committed team players and diligent in their approach to their work responsibilities,' he continued.

'We also feel for the wider community going through these difficult times. We hope this situation will be confined and we can be back up and running very soon.'

The Stan Originals film will premiere November 22.
Bella Hadid got an adorable custom cake from her older sister Gigi Hadid in celebration of her 26th birthday, which she rang in on Sunday, October 9.

Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, the supermodel shared a snap of the confection that had a variety of her favorite things - including an image of the Palestinian flag - drawn on with icing.

She also uploaded shots taken during her surprise birthday bash in New York City, which was attended by Gigi, their mother Yolanda, her boyfriend Marc Kalman and a slew of her closest pals.

So sweet: Bella Hadid got an adorable custom cake from her older sister Gigi Hadid in celebration of her 26th birthday, which she rang in on Sunday, October 9

Someone was able to capture the moment Gigi presented her younger sister with the custom creation, which Bella accepted with a beaming smile

'My sister made me this cake [SOBBING EMOJIS] @gigihadid,' captioned the runway maven, who boasts nearly 56million followers on the platform.

Bella, who is of Palestinian and Dutch descent, often vocalizes support for the people of Palestine on social media amid the country's decades-long conflict with Israel.

Gigi also drew Bella's favorite food, which happens to be pizza, as well as a camera symbolizing her professional career as a high fashion model.

Shopping bags, a can from Bella's drink line Kin Euphorics and clinking champagne flutes were also featured.

As a nod to Bella's equestrian background, Gigi made sure to include a drawing of a horse.

'Happy Bday Bella' was written out atop the cake in black icing, along with a large '26.'

Custom confection! Bella Hadid got an adorable custom cake from her older sister Gigi Hadid in celebration of her 26th birthday, which she rang in on Sunday, October 9

'My sister made me this cake [SOBBING EMOJIS] @gigihadid,' captioned the runway maven, who boasts nearly 56million followers on the platform

Someone was able to capture the moment Gigi presented her younger sister with the custom creation, which Bella accepted with a beaming smile.

Bella posed with the cake in hand after blowing out her birthday candles.

For her special day, the Vogue covergirl cut an edgy figure in a vintage oversized leather jacket layered over a sheer black lace sweater dress.

Her dark brown hair looked freshly blown out and she kept her bangs swept to one side.

Surprise! She also uploaded shots taken during her surprise birthday bash in New York City, which was attended by Gigi, their mother Yolanda, her boyfriend Marc Kalman and a slew of her closest pals

Edgy: For her special day, the Vogue covergirl cut an edgy figure in a vintage oversized leather jacket layered over a sheer black lace sweater dress. Her dark brown hair looked freshly blown out and she kept her bangs swept to one side

The birthday girl completed the fashion-forward ensemble with some yellow-tinted sunglasses and a radiant makeup look.

Thinking she was just grabbing dinner at Lucali, Bella was taken totally off guard as she realized her tight knit friend group and family members had turned out to celebrate with her.

A sparkling tiara was placed atop the LA native's head and she ditched her jacket to show off her sexy dress in all its glory.

Birthday girl: A sparkling tiara was placed atop the LA native's head and she ditched her jacket to show off her sexy dress in all its glory

Bella then made her rounds posing for photos with friends including hairstylist Evanie Frausto, IMG models Paloma Elsesser and Precious Lee, Senior Beauty Editor at Large for i-D, Jawara, makeup artist Nadia Tayeh

Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, who is the Global Fashion Editor-at-Large for VOGUE magazine and was recently the target of Kanye West's online attacks, turned out for the intimate shindig in the city

Say cheese! Bella seen with hairstylist Evanie Frausto and IMG models Paloma Elsesser and Precious Lee

Thinking of her: Though he appeared to be absent from the festivities, Bella received a handmade birthday card from WME/IMG Vice President, Luiz Mattos

Bella then made her rounds posing for photos with friends including hairstylist Evanie Frausto, IMG models Paloma Elsesser and Precious Lee, Senior Beauty Editor at Large for i-D, Jawara and makeup artist Nadia Tayeh.

Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, who is the Global Fashion Editor-at-Large for VOGUE magazine and was recently the target of Kanye West's online attacks, turned out for the intimate shindig in the city.

Gigi recently slammed Kanye for his mean-spirited rants about Karefa-Johnson and her fashion credentials after she spoke out against his controversial White Lives Matter-themed show during Paris Fashion Week, which then prompted the 45-year-old rapper to pull Gigi into the drama.

Girls on film: In another Instagram slideshow Bella shared film snaps from the evening

Beaming: Bella had a huge smile on her face while surrounded by friends and family

Candid: In one candid shot, Bella stood up and addressed her birthday guests with an excited grin

Though he appeared to be absent from the festivities, Bella received a handmade birthday card from WME/IMG Vice President, Luiz Mattos.

Lucali owner Mark Iacono was on site helping whip up brick-oven pizzas for the brunette beauty and her birthday crew.

In a heartfelt caption included with her first of many birthday-related Instagram slideshows, Bella predicted that her 26th year is bound to be a 'special one.'

All love: Bella is sen holding hands with two of her friends from across the dining table at Lucali

Yummy: Lucali owner Mark Iacono was on site helping whip up brick-oven pizzas for the brunette beauty and her birthday crew

Floral wonderland: On the morning of her birthday, Bella received countless floral arrangements - many of which consisted of stunning pink, red and white roses - that were delivered to her apartment

She also gave a shout-out to beau Marc for helping put together the surprise party.

'Best surprise .!.! Thank you to my baby, my friends and family for making me feel so loved on my solar return . 26 is going to be a special # year .. I feel it ' Bella wrote.

On the morning of her birthday, Bella received countless floral arrangements - many of which consisted of stunning pink, red and white roses - that were delivered to her apartment.

Back to work! After spending the weekend celebrating, the fashion fixture was back to work on set of a top secret photoshoot. She shared a brief Instagram Story video while sitting in a hair and makeup chair

After spending the weekend celebrating, the fashion fixture was back to work on set of a top secret photoshoot.

She shared a brief Instagram Story video while sitting in a hair and makeup chair.

Bella rocked a pair of sparkling pink jewel earrings and kept comfy in a light pink robe covered in red hearts.

She blew a kiss to the camera before signing off.
The cancer research charity founded by the late Olivia Newton-John has made a significant discovery in the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Professor Matthias Ernst, the director of the Melbourne-based ONJ Cancer Research Institute and head of La Trobe's School of Cancer Medicine, led a study presenting a solution to the difficulties of treating one of the most aggressive forms of cancer.

The study, published in the Cell Reports scientific journal on Wednesday, suggests a novel drug target could improve pancreatic tumours' response to immunotherapy.

The cancer research charity founded by the late Olivia Newton-John (pictured) has made a significant discovery in the treatment of pancreatic cancer

Professor Ernst cautioned the study was still in its early stages with years more research required before it goes to human clinical trials.

However, he is hopeful the ONJ Institute can push the findings towards clinical trials in the future, saying the study has 'strong rationale' to continue development.

'Because we work in the same building as our oncologist colleagues at Austin Health, our discoveries in the laboratory can be quickly translated into patient trials,' he said.

Professor Matthias Ernst, the director of the Melbourne-based ONJ Cancer Research Institute and head of La Trobe's School of Cancer Medicine, led a study presenting a solution to the difficulties of treating one of the most aggressive forms of cancer. (Newton-John is pictured with her husband John Easterling and daughter Chloe Lattanzi)

What is pancreatic cancer? The pancreas is an organ behind the lower part of the stomach that aids in digestion and metabolising sugars. Pancreatic cancer is almost completely unresponsive to immunotherapy, which reactivates the immune system to recognise and remove cancer cells. It does not show symptoms in the early stages and spreads rapidly through the body with other treatments involving surgically removing the pancreas, radiation or chemotherapy. The survival rate as low as 11 per cent five years after diagnosis. Advertisement

Professor Ernst's research shows inhibition of haematopoietic cell kinase (HCK), a protein found in a type of immune cell, improves the response of pancreatic cancer to immunotherapy in preclinical models.

The drug has also been theoretically proven to limit the process of metastasis, reducing the spread of cancer cells to other areas of the body.

Another member of the research team, Postdoctoral Research Fellow co-lead Dr Ashleigh Poh from the ONJ Institute, said this could mean big things for pancreatic cancer treatment because most patients suffering from it don't respond to existing anti-cancer drugs.

'The survival rate of pancreatic cancer has not improved over the past few decades,' Dr Poh said.

'We hope to eventually translate these findings into the clinic and improve survival outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients.'

The pancreas is an organ that sits behind the lower part of the stomach and aids in digestion and metabolising sugars.

Pancreatic cancer is almost completely unresponsive to current immunotherapy, which reactivates the immune system so it can recognise and remove cancer cells.

It does not present symptoms during the early stages and spreads rapidly throughout the body, with other treatments involving surgically removing the pancreas, radiation or chemotherapy.

Approximately 4,260 new cases are diagnosed every year in Australia, with the survival rate as low as 11 per cent five years after diagnosis.
Dakota Johnson rocked a pair of wide-leg jeans on her way to the Madame Web film set in New York City on Wednesday.

The 33-year-old star, who is playing the film's titular superhero, paired her trendy denim pants with an ivory sweater, oversized shades, a necklace of bright blue beads and a large black leather bag.

Dakota's arrival on set coincided with the first glimpse of her costar Tahar Rahim, who is rumored to be playing the villain in the film.

Trendy superhero: Dakota Johnson, 33, rocked a pair of wide-leg jeans on her way to the Madame Web film set in New York City on Wednesday. The star, who is playing the titular superhero, paired her trendy denim pants with an ivory sweater, oversized shades, a necklace of bright blue beads and a large black leather bag

The 41-year-old Rahim is a French actor of Algerian descent. Prior to being cast in the superhero blockbuster, Tahar received critical acclaim in the 2009 french film A Prophet and received Golden Globe nominations for his work in The Mauritanian and The Serpent.

The Serpent proved Rahim's talent for playing villains as the eight-part limited series saw him play Charles Sobhraj. A notorious french serial killer, fraudster and thief, Sobhraj preyed on Western tourists traveling through South Asia in the 1970s. His many crimes earned him the nickname 'the Serpent' due to his snake-like ability to avoid the authorities.

Currently imprisoned in Nepal, Sobhraj inspired the role that would take Tahar Rahim's career to new heights and secure him the coveted part in Madame Web. 'Tahar Rahim's unnerving performance brings reptilian menace to The Serpent,' lauded Rotten Tomatoes.

Madame Webb: The star reportedly beat out a long list of A-listers for the role, becoming the frontrunner after a months-long search

Not your typical cab driver: Slated to be released on February 16, 2024, Madame Web has been described by Deadline as 'Sony's version of Doctor Strange' due to her psychic sensory powers being similar to Benedict Cumberbatch's mystical physician

Caught in the web: Tahar Rahim, 41, was spotted on the Madame Web set for the first time on Wednesday. The French actor of Algerian descent is rumored to be playing the film's villain

Details of Rahim's role in Madame Web have not been released by the studio, but it has been rumored that his character is Ezekiel Sims, which these latest images seem to confirm. The besuited and barefoot Sims possesses similar powers to Spider-Man and has been both ally and enemy to the iconic superhero in the Marvel comics.

A wealthy, superhuman businessman, Ezekial Sims also has a mane of unruly grey hair similar to the style that Tahar is sporting on set. The connection between this rumored villain and Johnson's Madame Webb is unknown, but the Fifty Shades of Grey star will not be the only Spider-Woman in the film.

Actresses Sydney Sweeney, 25, Celeste O'Connor, 23, Isabela Merced, 21, and Zosia Mamet, 34, are all rumored to be playing multiple versions of the superhero, according to online sources. Details are slim on how all of these incarnations of the web-slinger will interact throughout the film, but that hasn't stopped many fans from coming up with various theories.

Career boost: Prior to being cast in the superhero blockbuster, Rahim received critical acclaim for his work in The Serpent, playing a notorious french serial killer who preyed on Western tourists traveling through South Asia in the 1970s

The villain? Details of Rahim's role in Madame Web have not been released by the studio, but it has been rumored that his character is Ezekiel Sims (pictured). The besuited and barefoot Sims is a wealthy, superhuman businessman who also has a mane of unruly grey hair similar to the style that Tahar Rahim is sporting on set

Slated to be released on February 16, 2024, Madame Web has been in development since 2019 and has been described by Deadline as 'Sony's version of Doctor Strange' due to Madame Web's psychic sensory powers being similar to Benedict Cumberbatch's mystical physician.

Many A-listers were reportedly considered for the lead, with Johnson becoming the frontrunner after a months-long search. The actress has had a highly successful run these last few years, recently earning solid reviews for her performance in Cha Cha Real Smooth and an acclaimed turn in 2021's The Lost Daughter.

It remains unclear as to how close the film will stick to its source material. Madame Web is depicted in the comics as an elderly woman who is connected to a life-support system in the shape of a spider web. After the casting of Johnson in the title role, insiders stressed to Deadline that the film will most likely be going in a whole new direction.
She barely puts a foot wrong when it comes to her red carpet style.

And Myleene Klass was once again on fine form on Wednesday as she put on a sizzling display while attending the 2022 Attitude Awards at The Roundhouse in London.

The musician, 44, flaunted her washboard abs and cleavage as she donned a black lace bra beneath her leopard print blazer.

Wow: Myleene Klass was once again on fine form on Wednesday as she put on a sizzling display while attending the 2022 Attitude Awards at The Roundhouse in London

Myleene oozed confidence as she posed up a storm in her racy ensemble while proudly showcasing her incredible figure.

The mother-of-three teamed her bra and blazer with form-fitting black trousers and towering black platform heels.

She accessorised her head-turning look with a gold clutch bag and a selection of coordinating jewellery.

The former Hear'Say star swept her brunette locks into a sleek ponytail, while she highlighted her features with a radiant make-up palette.

If you've got it: The musician, 44, flaunted her washboard abs and cleavage as she donned a black lace bra beneath her leopard print blazer

The invite only event, powered by Jaguar, celebrates some of the biggest LGBTQ+ names from from film, TV, music and theatre.

Myleene's outing came after she shared a poignant post discussing her love for her family while marking Baby Loss Awareness Week.

In an Instagram post on Sunday, she revealed that discovering Microchimerism has given her a 'huge amount of peace' in a poignant message at the start of Baby Loss Awareness Week.

Work it: Myleene oozed confidence as she posed up a storm in her racy ensemble while proudly showcasing her incredible figure

Glam: The former Hear'Say star swept her brunette locks into a sleek ponytail, while she highlighted her features with a radiant make-up palette

In October 2020, she revealed that she suffered four miscarriages before welcoming son Apollo.

The former Hear'Say star posted an intimate black and white snap of herself cuddling her 'rainbow baby' youngest child and declared: 'I carry my lost babies in my heart!'

Myleene penned: 'On the day that marks the start of Babyloss awareness week, I get one last hug from my son before I leave for the Baftas.

'My documentary Myleene Klass: Miscarriage and Me has been nominated and in Avas words, win or lose, we won.

Wild thing: The mother-of-three teamed her bra and blazer with form-fitting black trousers and towering black platform heels

Details: She accessorised her head-turning look with a gold clutch bag and a selection of coordinating jewellery

'Apollo is our rainbow baby. Four babies have gone before him. In the time I have been campaigning for better miscarriage care for women and their families, I discovered something called Microchimerism.

'In short, the cells of every baby you carry are transferred into your own body and for those who go on to have their rainbow baby, into them as well.

'When I hug my son, I hug them all. Each day, I literally carry my lost babies in my heart. In my body. They never leave you. I get a huge amount of peace knowing this.

Walk this way: Myleene happily showed off her glam look as she strutted her stuff outside

Strike a pose: Myleene was in good spirits as she posed with PR Simon Jones

'I promise to continue my work campaigning for better miscarriage care for women and their families. To break the 3 miscarriage rule, the lack of data, the lottery postcode and absence of aftercare.

'I stand with @tommys @oliviablake_mp and all the people continuing to affect change for those who need it or will come to need it.

'In breaking the last taboo, may we one day all awake from the nightmare of babyloss and miscarriage, until then, we continue to call for change, holding our babies in our hearts till we can hold them again in our arms.'

Say cheese! The duo smiled at the camera as they enjoyed their night at the awards
Gizelle Bryant's questionable sense of style has been a hot topic among her Real Housewives of Potomac castmates and viewers of the show.

But her best friend and co-star Robyn Dixon has defended Gizelle's sartorial chops and also accused some of their fellow Housewives of being less then stellar in the wardrobe department.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia this week, the 43-year-old said she's happy to let Gizelle 'do her own thing' when it comes to fashion.

EXCLUSIVE: Real Housewives of Potomac star Robyn Dixon (pictured) has defended friend Gizelle Bryant after Gizelle was trolled by her castmates online over her fashion

'She's a very confident woman and she likes what she likes, so if she were to ask me for advice I'd definitely give my honest opinion,' she explained.

'But she likes what she likes, so there's no point really in telling her my opinion about something.'

Robyn then said that she found it interesting that some of her castmates, who have also had their own fashion faux pas, decided to single out Gizelle.

'I was cracking up after it was Candiace [Dillard] and Karen [Huger] that were chiming in about Gizelle's confessional look, and the ones that I saw that came out shortly after of them weren't the greatest either,' she said.

Gizelle (pictured) was targeted by her castmates, including Candiace Dillard and Karen Huger, for sporting 'skunk hair' and shiny vinyl in a confessional for the new season of RHOP

'So I just feel like people need to be careful before attacking somebody. We shouldn't throw stones because you never know when that same criticism will turned right back onto you,' Robyn continued.

'It was so comical to me, hilarious, when their pictures came out and everyone was like, "What a minute? They're talking about Gizelle and they look like THAT?"'

Robyn said that there's plenty of drama in store for fans of RHOP, including a physical altercation between Mia Thornton and Wendy Osefo.

Candiace called Gizelle's style 'criminally offensive' in a scathing subtweet last month

Karen compared Gizelle's hair to a 'skunk' after slamming Gizelle's style on the show

Some fans jumped to Gizelle's defence, with one pointing out Candiace and Karen's style

'I think that this is gonna be one of those situations where people are gonna be split on where they find the fault,' she said cryptically.

'Both of them were wrong for their behaviour, but people will be split on whether Mia was justified in doing what she did,' she added.

This season of the Real Housewives of Potomac sees Robyn and her ex-husband-turned-fiance Juan Dixon attempt to navigate a prenup before walking down the aisle for the second time.

Robyn told Daily Mail Australia that some of her RHOP co-stars don't have the greatest confessional looks either. Wendy Osefo (left) and Ashley Darby (right) are pictured

'What a minute? They're talking about Gizelle and they look like THAT?' Robyn said. Karen Huger is pictured

Meanwhile, Ashley Darby is dealing with a confusing separation from Australian husband Michael, while Candiace Dillard is freezing her eggs while trying to balance her budding music career and tumultuous marriage to Chris Bassett.

A dramatic season trailer also shows Mia hurling a drink at rival Wendy, while fan favourite Karen Huger loses her temper against old friend Charrisse Jackson-Jordan.

Outside of the show, Robyn is busy with her successful hat line Embellished and her hit podcast Reasonably Shady with Gizelle.

Stream the brand-new season of The Real Housewives of Potomac on Hayu from October 10, delivering the drama the same day as the USA
President Yoon Suk-yeol arrives for work at the presidential office in Seoul, Oct. 13. Yonhap





President Yoon Suk-yeol said Thursday he is looking carefully at "various possibilities" on how to further strengthen U.S. extended deterrence against North Korea's growing nuclear threat.







The remark came after a Chosun Ilbo newspaper report that South Korea has asked the United States to have strategic assets, such as nuclear aircraft carriers or nuclear submarines, deployed to waters around the Korean Peninsula on a rotational basis around the clock in the event of a nuclear test by the North.







"As I said the other day, there are diverse opinions across our nation and in the United States regarding extended deterrence, so I am listening to them carefully and looking carefully at various possibilities," Yoon told reporters when asked to comment on the report.







"I'd like you to understand that it's difficult for a president to openly confirm or give a clear answer on such security issues," he added.






Paris Hilton was pretty in pink when she stepped into Los Angeles' famous open-air mall The Grove as she was seen for the first time since revealing she was sexually abused at boarding school.

The 41-year-old heiress was strolling through the upscale shopping center en route to an event held at the women's clothing store Maje.

She slipped into a Little House On The Prairie chic print dress with a cut that emphasized her enviably petite frame.

Bright spirits: Paris Hilton was pretty in pink when she was spotted heading into Los Angeles' famous open-air mall The Grove

The Simple Life reality star's stylish ensemble featured a plunging neckline that hinted at just a trace of her cleavage.

Letting her signature platinum blonde hair flow out from under her white pageboy cap, she matched the hat with a pair of sunglasses.

Balancing expertly on a pair of white heels, she accessorized with a fuzzy pink handbag and softened her features with makeup.

Her latest glamorous outing comes just days after she attended a protest at the Utah boarding school she was shipped off to as a rebellious teenager.

Place to be: The 41-year-old heiress was strolling through the upscale shopping center en route to an event held at the women's clothing store Maje

Swanking about: Letting her signature platinum blonde hair flow out from under her white pageboy cap, she matched the hat with a pair of sunglasses

Over the last couple of years Paris has alleged that she was 'verbally, mentally and physically abused' at Provo Canyon School.

She claimed in her 2020 documentary This Is Paris that her parents had her torn from her bed at night and packed off to Provo.

The school has responded to the allegations with a statement saying in part: 'Please note that PCS was sold by its previous ownership in August 2000. We therefore cannot comment on the operations or patient experience prior to that time.'

Off she goes: Balancing expertly on a pair of white heels, she accessorized with a fuzzy pink handbag and softened her features with makeup

What if: The Simple Life star shared that she wanted 'probably two or three' children 'and I would want twins first - or I don't know, it's hard to say'

Undeterred, Paris attended a protest near the school over the weekend and held up a sign that demanded: 'SHUT DOWN PROVO.'

She claimed she was sexually abused after being forced to undergo cervical exams performed by staff members in the early hours of the morning while attending the boarding school for troubled teens in the 1990s.

The reality star said her childhood was 'stolen' by the alleged abuse at Provo Canyon School where she spent 11 months when she was 17 years old.

Speaking to the New York Times, Paris, who has campaigned to regulate 'troubled teen centers' since initially going public in 2020 with alleged physical and mental abuse incidents at the school in 2020, said she had tried to 'black out' the reported incidents.

Devastating: Paris has detailed alleged sexual abuse she endured while attending a Utah boarding school for troubled teens in the 1990s

She said: 'Very late at night  this would be around three or four in the morning  they would take myself and other girls into this room, and they would perform medical exams.

'This wasn't even with a doctor. It was with a couple different staff members, where they would have us lay on the table and put their fingers inside of us. And I don't know what they were doing, but it was definitely not a doctor and it was really scary

'It was really scary, and its something that I really had blocked out for many years. But its coming back all the time now, and I think about it. And now, looking back as an adult, that was definitely sexual abuse.'

Paris further detailed the alleged incidents on Twitter, writing: 'Sleep-deprived & heavily medicated, I didn't understand what was happening.

Tragic: The reality star said her childhood was 'stolen' by the alleged abuse at Provo Canyon School where she spent 11 months aged 17 (pictured aged 18l)

'I was forced to lie on a padded table, spread my legs & submit to cervical exams. I cried while they held me down & said,"No!" They just said, "Shut up. Be quiet. Stop struggling or you'll go to Obs."'

'It's important to open up about these painful moments so I can heal & help put an end to this abuse.

'This was a recurring experience not only for me but for other #survivors. I was violated & I am crying as I type this because no one, especially a child, should be sexually abused. My childhood was stolen from me & it kills me this is still happening to other innocent children.'

She tweeted Universal Health Services, who purchased Provo Canyon School in 2000, the year after her alleged abuse, urging them to shut down the center.

She wrote: 'Stop prioritizing profit over people @UHS_Inc. I demand you take immediate action starting by shutting down Provo Canyon School by April 1st, 2023.

'END CHILD ABUSE AT UHS or retweet if you agree. #ShutDownPCS #UHSTakeAction #EndChildAbuse

Paris married dashing businessman Carter Reum this past November over the course of a three-day extravaganza including a carnival on the Santa Monica Pier.

Paris, whose sister Nicky is a mother of three, revealed earlier this year that she wants to have multiple children with Carter.

'SHUT DOWN PROVO': Her latest glamorous outing comes just days after she attended a protest at the Utah boarding school she was shipped off to as a rebellious teenager

She told E! News' Daily Pop in January that she 'cannot wait' to be a mother, gushing: 'That is definitely one of my top priorities.'

The Simple Life star shared that she wanted 'probably two or three' children 'and I would want twins first - or I don't know, it's hard to say.'

Paris, who is the eldest of four siblings and has already had eggs extracted for IVF, dished: 'Like I always wish I had an older brother, 'cause I feel like if I did they would protect me and things like that...in school. So maybe a boy first.'
Gigi Hadid looked ready for business as she stepped out for dinner in New York City on Wednesday night.

The 27-year-old stunner highlighted her model physique in a fitted black pinstripe suit with vinyl lapels and white piping trim.

She was joined by her stylish older half-sister Alana Hadid, 37, and several friends.

Stunner: Gigi Hadid looked ready for business as she stepped out for dinner in New York City on Wednesday night. The 27-year-old stunner highlighted her model physique in a fitted black pinstripe suit with vinyl lapels and white piping trim

Gigi tucked the hem of her skintight trousers into a pair of black leather booties with a chunky sole and square-toes.

The mother-of-one's bright blonde tresses were styled back in a sleek braid.

Gigi - who is rumored to be dating 47-year-old Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio - gave her look a pop of color by rocking sapphire drop earrings.

She toted her belonging in a large black leather bucket bag that she slung over her shoulder while approaching the restaurant with her dinner crew.

Bonding time: She was joined by her stylish older half-sister Alana Hadid, 37

Alana turned heads in a bright red midi skirt with a daring thigh-high slit. She styled it with an oversized band tee and classic black leather jacket.

Alana let her long brunette hair flow out from under a red pleather beret with 'Palestine' embroidered on the front in green and white lettering. Red, white, green and black are the colors featured on the Palestinian flag.

Gigi and Alana, as well as sister Bella, sister Marielle and brother Anwar, are of Palestinian descent on their father Mohamed Hadid's side.

The sisters, particularly Bella, have used social media in recent years to voice their support for the people of Palestine amid their decades-long conflict with Israel.

Celebrate: Gigi recently helped her younger sister Bella Hadid celebrate her 26th birthday over the weekend at Lucali, a pizza joint in New York City

Custom confection: For her younger sister's special day, the Vogue covergirl presented her with a custom cake

Their continued support has spawned backlash, with many accusing Gigi and Bella of being anti-Semitic.

Gigi fired back at the inflammatory claims in an Instagram post last year, where she stressed that anti-Semitism is something she condemns.

'I condemn anti-Semitism,' wrote the runway maven in response to the criticism. 'I do not wish any more deaths upon Israelis, just as I feel about Palestinians. What I do want is equal rights for Palestinians.'

Bella took to Instagram on Wednesday to slam rapper Kanye West's recent string of revolting anti-Semitic posts -- one of which saw him vow to go 'death con 3 on Jewish people.'

She pledged her support for the Jewish community and declared she would not stand for 'hatred or violence.'

Custom confection! Bella Hadid got an adorable custom cake from her older sister Gigi Hadid in celebration of her 26th birthday, which she rang in on Sunday, October 9

Gigi helped Bella celebrate her 26th birthday over the weekend at Lucali, a pizza joint in New York City.

For her younger sister's special day, the Vogue covergirl presented her with a custom cake.

Bella shared a snap of the confection, that had a variety of her favorite things - including an image of the Palestinian flag - drawn on with icing, to Instagram on Wednesday.

'My sister made me this cake [SOBBING EMOJIS] @gigihadid,' captioned the runway maven, who boasts nearly 56million followers on the platform.

Gigi also drew Bella's favorite food, which happens to be pizza, as well as a camera symbolizing her professional career as a high fashion model.

'My sister made me this cake [SOBBING EMOJIS] @gigihadid,' captioned the runway maven, who boasts nearly 56million followers on the platform

Shopping bags, a can from Bella's drink line Kin Euphorics and clinking champagne flutes were also featured.

As a nod to Bella's equestrian background, Gigi made sure to include a drawing of a horse.

'Happy Bday Bella' was written out atop the cake in black icing, along with a large '26.'

Someone was able to capture the moment Gigi presented her younger sister with the custom creation, which Bella accepted with a beaming smile.

Bella posed with the cake in hand after blowing out her birthday candles.

Yikes: Gigi recently found her self in a bit of drama after Kanye West lashed out at her in another impassioned rant last week in which he branded her a 'privileged Karen' and a 'zombie'

Screengrabs: In the latest exchange West lashed out as he shared a screenshot of a comment made by Gigi on Instagram in which she claimed the rapper did not treat 'V' like a friend

Gigi recently found her self in drama after Kanye West lashed out at her in another impassioned rant last week in which he branded her a 'privileged Karen' and a 'zombie'.

The rapper and the supermodel have been caught up in a war of words after she leapt to the defense of Vogue contributing editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, who West had been accused of 'bullying' online.

In the latest exchange West lashed out as he shared a screenshot of a comment made by Gigi on Instagram in which she claimed the rapper did not treat 'V' like a friend.

While no further context was provided it appeared she was referencing late designer Virgil Abloh after West had been criticized for referencing the designer in his rants.

Gigi penned: 'Finally.... Thank u! Even people who knew him for a percentage of the time knew kanye did not treat V like a friend ++ V LOVED GKJ.... He's watching. [sic]'

In response Kanye shared in all caps: 'Im not finna get ran over by Hollywood again. Gigi you a privileged Karen.

Fuming: In response Kanye shared in all caps, 'Im not finna get ran over by Hollywood again. Gigi you a privileged Karen. 'You were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. Youre a zombie'

Warning: West later shared an image of text that read: 'Nobody say nothing to me in private that they wouldn't say in public. I'm not yall's personal hard drive [sic]', captioning the post: 'Jesus is king'

'You were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. Youre a zombie. You speak up here but didnt speak up when my child was kidnapped on her birthday. [sic]'

Tensions between West and Hadid began brewing this week when the rapper took aim at stylist Karefa-Johnson after she criticised his controversial White Lives Matter clothing at his Paris Fashion Week show.

In his posts, West insulted Karefa-Johnson's style and scoffed 'this is not a fashion person', before going on to share the ominous text 'this means war'.

He also shared a text exchange with a person called Mowalola - presumably fashion designer Mowalola Ogunlesi who Ye picked to head up Yeezy Gap a few years ago - in which he has been urged 'not to insult' the writer.

The exchange prompted Hadid to comment that West didn't have 'a percentage of her intellect', and said there was 'no point to his s**t'.

Fury: West caused outrage worldwide when he and Candace Owens wore the incendiary shirt at a fashion show

Hadid wrote: 'You wish u had a percentage of her intellect. You have no idea haha. If theres actually a point to any of your s**t she might be the only person that could save u. As if the honor of being invited to your show should keep someone from giving their opinion ..? Lol. Youre a bully and a joke.'

Hadid and Karefa-Johnson have worked together in the past, with the stylist telling ELLE earlier this year that she shares a 'true friendship' with the model and there is 'deep respect and trust' between them.

Hadid later added on her Story that Karefa-Johnson was 'one of the must important voices in our industry and could school that disgraceful man in more ways than he knows.'

She also shared a lengthy statement from Vogue writer Jose Criales-Unzueta who accused West of 'publicly bullying' the stylist and said of his latest collection 'It's not smart. It's not interesting. It's not nuanced. It's dangerous.'
Jessica Chastain recounted her trip to war-torn Ukraine earlier this year while promoting her latest movie on Wednesday on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC.

The 45-year-old Oscar-winning actress while looking stunning in a little red Roland Mouret dress was asked by Jimmy, 54, about going to Ukraine in August and meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

'So I have some friends who are from the Ukraine in the industry. You know, I reached out to them to tell them how sorry I was. A friend of mine had to leave his house and everything behind. You know, I said, if there's anything I can ever do, please let me know, my heart's just breaking for you,' Jessica said.

Ukraine trip: Jessica Chastain recounted her trip to war-torn Ukraine earlier this year while promoting her latest movie on Wednesday on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC

She said about a month later she was asked if she'd be willing to go to Ukraine.

'Isn't that the worst when you say is there anything I can do? And then somebody says, yes, actually there is,' Jimmy quipped.

'Actually when I was invited, I was ''Oh, incredible'' because sometimes I feel so useless. I wanted to do whatever I can to help or amplify something,' Jessica said.

Jessica said she got on a plane and flew to Warsaw, Poland, then drove for four and a half hours.

Kyiv photo: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is shown with Jessica in August in Kyiv after she traveled to the war-torn country

Ukrainian friends: 'So I have some friends who are from the Ukraine in the industry. You know, I reached out to them to tell them how sorry I was. A friend of mine had to leave his house and everything behind. You know, I said, if there's anything I can ever do, please let me know, my heart's just breaking for you,' Jessica said while reading a red Roland Mouret mini dress

'I got on a train for 12 hours with my friend. No translator, no security,' she added.

She said Zelenskyy's administration helped once she got over the border and helped bring her to the capital city Kyiv.

'I went to Irpin and I saw the destruction there and met with families. I went to a children's hospital. I met incredible people in Kyiv. It's hard to talk about now because it's so sad what's going on now,' Jessica said.

Sad situation: 'I went to Irpin and I saw the destruction there and met with families. I went to a children's hospital. I met incredible people in Kyiv. It's hard to talk about now because it's so sad what's going on now,' Jessica said

Jimmy asked if the experience matched her expectations.

'I understood how sad it would be. And I knew I had to go. I don't want to get emotional. But it felt like when I was meeting the kids at the hospital, my heart was going out to them. There was a girl with her mom and she needed new legs. That was really devastating,' Jessica said.

Jessica said she also had lunch with families sharing an apartment in Irpin and noticed bullet holes in a mirror, the ceiling and even in the chair she was sitting in.

Getting emotional: 'I understood how sad it would be. And I knew I had to go. I don't want to get emotional. But it felt like when I was meeting the kids at the hospital, my heart was going out to them. There was a girl with her mom and she needed new legs. That was really devastating,' Jessica said

'And there's little kids. There's like a six-year-old and a four-year-old. I just don't understand what is happening to the world. I'm so lucky to get to do what I do and even with what is happening in Iran right now, if if there's any way I can use my platform to help amplify other stories, you know, desiring freedom and equality and safety, then I just feel it's my responsibility,' Jessica said.

Jimmy showed a picture of Jessica with Zelenskyy from her trip in August.

Jessica said being escorted to meet Zelenskyy felt like 'being in a video game'.

Video game: Jessica said being escorted to meet Zelenskyy felt like 'being in a video game'

'There was a few times on that day where I thought, should I be doing this? This feels very scary,' she said.

Jessica said Zelenskyy was grateful for her visit.

'He kept asking, are they still talking about us in the press in the United States?,' she said.

Very scary: 'There was a few times on that day where I thought, should I be doing this? This feels very scary,' she said

'He said, the more that the people talk about it, we really need help. And he said, we really are afraid of what's going to happen in the fall and the winter. You know, with if our electricity's cut off,' Jessica relayed.

She added: 'He wanted to make sure, please talk to people, talk to your friends. I think that's what he's been trying to do is make sure the world doesn't forget about them.'

Jessica was promoting her true crime drama The Good Nurse also starring English actor Eddie Redmayne, 40.

The Good Nurse is scheduled to be released in selected theaters on October 19 before being made available on Netflix on October 16.
Presley Gerber couldn't contain his passion while out on a stroll with his new girlfriend Lexi Wood in New York City on Wednesday.

The 23-year-old model and son of Cindy Crawford was seen locking lips with Lexi in Manhattan's SoHo neighborhood, just under a month after he was seen with his previous girlfriend Gaia.

The brother of Kaia Gerber looked casual and relaxed while wearing a white Malibu Rum sweatshirt and slim-cut jeans.

Romantic outing: Presley Gerber, 23, couldn't contain his passion while out on a stroll with his new girlfriend Lexi Wood in New York City on Wednesday

He stuck to the casual look with black high-top sneakers covered in blue and red designs, and he added a stylish set of horn-rimmed glasses to his look.

Lexi looked chic in a black leather biker jacket with white snake embroidery over her torso.

She wore a tiny black crop top underneath the jacket and paired it with a black-and-white plaid miniskirt emphasizing her toned legs.

The brunette beauty completed her outfit with short black stockings, black loafers, and hoop earrings.

Lovebirds: The young lovers shared a passionate kiss on the street as he wrapped an arm around her and she hugged him tightly

Relaxed style: Presley wore a casual Malibu Rum sweatshirt with slim jeans and high-top sneakers, while Lexi had on a cool black biker jacket with a plaid miniskirt and black loafers

The lovebirds interrupted their walk as Lexi hugged Presley and he wrapped one of his arms around her for a kiss, while he held a Fiji water bottle and a lit cigarette in his other hand.

Presley also kept his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder as they walked after picking up coffees to go and Takis.

Presley celebrated their time together in the Big Apple by posting a sweet photo of the two holding hands while gazing upon the Brooklyn Bridge.

Later, she posted a photo of the two embracing, though their heads were cropped out.

Lexi hails from Toronto, but she currently splits her time between New York City and Los Angeles.

Great view: Presley celebrated their time together in the Big Apple by posting a sweet photo of the two holding hands while gazing upon the Brooklyn Bridge

Embraceable: Later, she posted a photo of the two embracing, though their heads were cropped out. Lexi hails from Toronto, but she currently splits her time between New York City and Los Angeles

Presley doesn't appear to have announced their relationship with much fanfare, and neither appears to have featured the other on their main Instagram pages yet.

The son of Rande Gerber was most recently linked to his girlfriend Gaia, who described herself as a 'blogger.'

They were seen kissing in Malibu back in mid-September, but the couple seem to have gone their separate ways since then.
Melissa Suffield has revealed she rushed her two-year-old son River to hospital three times in the last two weeks as she urged parents to 'trust your instincts.'

The former EastEnders star, 29, took to Instagram on Tuesday to reveal she had serious concern's for River's health as he battles a 'nasty virus'.

Alongside a picture of her son enjoying a biscuit in hospital, she explained: 'Back to A&E again. Thats three visits in the last 16 days.'

Doting mother: Melissa Suffield has revealed she rushed her two-year-old son River to hospital three times in the last two weeks as she urged parents to 'trust your instincts'

Melissa continued: 'Given 3 loads of nebuliser (he was NOT a fan) and some meds and he perked right up. Very much enjoyed having a biscuit in bed and making a friend who he called Baby, even though she was older than him.'

'Have been sent home with inhalers to wean from the various nebulisers and some more meds.

'Basically very pleased we went in as its absolutely where we needed to be. Always trust your instincts.

'Just a nasty virus being nasty. Fingers crossed it passes quickly now, I am not up for a 4th visit next week, but more than anything just pleased hes better now.'

Melissa shares River with her cruise director husband Robert Brendan, who she has been with for over ten years.

Poorly: The former EastEnders star, 29, took to Instagram on Tuesday to reveal she had serious concern's for River's health as he battles a 'nasty virus'

Since giving birth - she has been open about her post-partum figure, posting to her Instagram account dubbed the confident mama.

She recently posed in a baby pink underwear set to showcase her curves and reminded fans that bodies don't need to bounce back after having a baby - as she showed off parts of her own body.

With her blonde locks pulled into a high bun, the beauty appeared natural for the inspiring video.

Overlaying the video with text, Melissa wrote: 'Remember when we were pregnant and our bellies were precious? And then suddenly, they weren't valued by society anymore?'

Sweet: The mother-of-one is married to cruise director Robert Brendan and they welcomed son River in March 2020

She then showed her body from different angles, detailing 'new rolls', stretch marks, stomach overhang and a stomach that is 'not flat'.

Before ending the video with: 'What if we reminded ourselves that we're still beautiful and valued. And that we deserve to feel respected and valued by others and ourselves.'

Penning a lengthy caption, the actress urged women to see their bodies as normal when they change, rather than 'gross'.

Uplifting: Since giving birth - she has been open about her post-partum figure, posting to her Instagram account dubbed the confident mama

She wrote: 'At what point do we stop viewing our bodies as amazing and start viewing them as used up and broken? Why do we see these postpartum bodies as such a thing we have to overcome and make our peace with?

'The goal is always to return to the exercise plan, the jeans, the pre baby figure (once a doctor signs you off), but youre not the same person you were anymore. So its ok that you look a little different too.'

'Were changing constantly, in so many ways- imagine if we lived in a world that hadnt taught us to beat ourselves up when it happens? Imagine if we just continued to move through our lives finding joy and fun, and working to be the best versions of ourselves.

'Imagine if when we looked down and saw a stomach like mine, we didnt immediately think gross and instead thought normal.'

Before concluding: 'Because it is. It IS normal. There are SO many types of bodies, and each and every one of them is a normal and beautiful thing. Only you can tell yourself enough times that you believe it.'
Laura Csortan stripped down to a skimpy tangerine bikini while on a Bali getaway on Thursday.

The model, 45, looked to be in the best shape of her life as she flaunted her toned stomach and trim pins.

The star had plenty of fun in the sun as she relaxed at Sunday Beach Club, one of the the tourist mecca's most popular venues.

Laura Csortan, 45, (pictured) showcased her sensational bikini body as she relaxed on an idyllic holiday in Bali in photos she shared to Instagram on Thursday

'Bali bliss,' the star captioned the photo.

Elsewhere, she shared photos of herself in a bikini while strolling up the beach.

She also shared another of her holding up a delicious-looking cocktail.

The model looked to be in the best shape of her life as she flaunted her toned stomach and trim pins in the skimpy bikini while on a bean bag on the beach

Another saw her relaxing on a bean bag on the beach.

Laura made headlines in 2017 when she quickly snapped back into shape after giving birth to her daughter Layla Rose in November 2016.

Despite her impressive weight loss, Laura downplayed the achievement at the time.

'Bali bliss,' the star captioned the photo set. She later showed herself indulging in a cocktail

The former Wheel of Fortune host told Daily Mail Australia: 'It's taken me almost two years to start getting back somewhat of a routine.

'And even still, I don't have much of one to be honest since I'm really busy!

'I mean I literally have a two-year-old stuck to my hip 24/7, so I just do not stop.'
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Dwayne Johnson led the star arrivals at the premiere of the superhero flick Black Adam, which was held at AMC Empire 25 in New York City on Wednesday night.

The 50-year-old actor, who plays the film's titular character, showed off his buff physique in a bright red double-breasted jacket and matching trousers.

Bringing the glam factor were Johnson's stunning co-stars Sarah Shahi and Quintessa Swindell, who hit the red carpet in floor-length gowns.

Star-studded: Dwayne Johnson led the star arrivals at the premiere of the superhero flick Black Adam, which was held at AMC Empire 25 in New York City on Wednesday night. Bringing the glam factor were Johnson's stunning co-stars Sarah Shahi and Quintessa Swindell, who hit the red carpet in floor-length gowns

Johnson, who often goes by his nickname 'The Rock,' went shirtless beneath his suit jacket which gave a peek at the intricate tribal tattoo on his chest.

The Red Notice star was freshly groomed and strolled the step-and-repeat photo op in a pair of black patent leather loafers.

He flashed a beaming smile for shutterbugs before reuniting with his Black Adam castmates.

Johnson mingled with actress Arielle Kebbel, who starred in his HBO comedy Ballers from 2015 until its final season in 2019.

Red hot! Johnson, who often goes by his nickname 'The Rock,' went shirtless beneath his suit jacket which gave a peek at the elaborate tribal tattoo on his chest

Suave: The Red Notice star was freshly groomed and strolled the step-and-repeat photo op in a pair of black patent leather loafers

Confidence: Johnson oozed confidence upon his arrival at the big premiere

Kebbel put on a busty display in a busty champagne toned dress while enjoying her reunion with Johnson ahead of the screening.

He also hung out with comedians Tracy Morgan and Keegan-Michael Key.

Shahi, who plays Egyptian goddess and superhero Isis, flaunted her runway-worthy frame in a sizzling red cut-out gown with a harness-inspired bodice.

The star of Showtime's The L Word star, 42, styled her silky brunette tresses in quirky space buns with the rest of her hair left down.

Pals: He hung out with comedians Tracy Morgan (pictured) and Keegan-Michael Key

Peace! Morgan threw up a peace sign while rocking a pair of blingy silver chains

Former co-stars: Johnson mingled with actress Arielle Kebbel, who starred in his HBO comedy Ballers from 2015 until its final season in 2019

Keegan-Michael Key poses for red carpet snap with Johnson during the premiere on Wednesday

Swindell dazzled in a flowing snakeskin dress that was covered in multi-color sequins that brought the print to life.

Her braided brunette hair was worn in a tight updo and she opted for a radiant makeup look for the evening.

The 25-year-old Euphoria star plays Maxine Hunkel aka Cyclone, who is the granddaughter of android superhero Red Tornado.

Reunited: He flashed a beaming smile for shutterbugs before reuniting with his Black Adam castmates; (L-R) Pierce Brosnan, Noah Centineo, Dwayne Johnson, Aldis Hodge and Quintessa Swindell

Sizzling: Shahi, who plays Egyptian goddess and superhero Isis, flaunted her runway-worthy frame in a sizzling red cut-out gown with a harness-inspired bodice. The star of Showtime's The L Word star, 42, styled her silky brunette tresses in quirky space buns with rest of her hair left down

Playful: Johnson and his co-stars appeared to be having a blast; (L-R) Pierce Brosnan, Noah Centineo, Dwayne Johnson and Aldis Hodge

Social media sensation-turned-actor, Noah Centineo, oozed confidence as he posed up with his co-stars in an oversized gray blazer and matching trousers.

He completed the look with a fitted black tee and a pendant chain necklace.

Centineo plays the role of superhero Atom Smasher, who is a member of the Justice Society of America and boasts super strength as one of his powers.

Aldis Hodge looked hunky as he gave a glimpse of his chiseled chest in a plunging silky dress shirt under a black jacquard suit jacket.

Dazzling: Swindell dazzled in a flowing snakeskin dress that was covered in multi-color sequins that brought the print to life; Swindell seen with co-stars Noah Centineo and Aldis Hodge

Hunk: Aldis Hodge looked hunky as he gave a glimpse of his chiseled chest in a plunging silky dress shirt under a black jacquard suit jacket

Attendees: Also in attendance was comedian Keegan-Michael Key and his wife Elisa Pugliese

James Bond alum Pierce Brosnan reaffirmed his heartthrob status as he hit the red carpet in a blue velvet jacket, white dress shirt and sheeny black trousers.

His salt-and-pepper hair was worn in a stylish coif.

Also in attendance was comedian Keegan-Michael Key and his wife Elisa Pugliese.

Once the red carpet wrapped, Johnson and the rest of the attendees headed inside the theater for a streaming of the highly-anticipated DC Comics-based movie.

Johnson was captured enjoying a sweet reunion with Brosnan, who went in for a hug.

Showtime! Once the red carpet wrapped, Johnson and the rest of the attendees headed inside the theater for a streaming of the highly-anticipated DC Comics-based movie

Close pals: Johnson was captured enjoying a sweet reunion with Brosnan, who went in for a hug

Self-promo: Johnson handed out shots of what appeared to be his Termana Tequila brand

Cheers! The Jungle Cruise actor seen clanking glasses with a photographer

Cheers! The Jungle Cruise actor seen clanking glasses with a photographer

The Jungle Cruise actor took the opportunity to hand out glasses of what appeared to be his Termana Tequila brand.

He was captured clanking glasses with a red carpet photographer.

Black Adam is centered on the antihero of the same name and follows him after he is released from thousands of years of imprisonment into the modern world.

Premise: Black Adam is centered on the antihero of the same name and follows him after he is released from thousands of years of imprisonment into the modern world; Johnson pictured as the titular character

Longtime coming: Development on the project began in the mid-2000s, although filming did not commence until April of last year

Development on the project began in the mid-2000s, although filming did not commence until April of last year.

The superhero-centric feature subsequently had its official world premiere in Mexico City on October 3.

Although its debut date has ben pushed around several times, Black Adam is currently set to have its wide release in the United States on October 21.
Demi Rose put on an eye-popping display as she showcased long blonde locks in a series of sizzling throwback snaps on Wednesday.

The model, 26, ensured she caught the attention of her 19.9million Instagram followers as donned a tiny blue bikini top and semi sheer skirt.

Demi left little to the imagination in the snaps as she posed up a storm on a recent St Luca getaway.

Sizzling: Demi Rose put on an eye-popping display as she showcased her blonde hair in a series of sizzling throwback snaps on Wednesday

Accentuating her pretty features with make-up, the stunner let her lightened locks cascade down past her shoulders as she relaxed on her luxurious hotel bed.

The bejewelled top barely contained her ample bosom while the figure hugging skirt accentuated her hourglass figure.

Web star Demi gazed off into the distance in one snap before looking down at her curvaceous figure as she soaked up the sun by the pool.

Blonde babe: Demi showcased her blonde locks (left) that she rocked this summer (right, pictured earlier this month)

Wowza: The bejewelled top barely contained her ample bosom while the figure hugging skirt accentuated her hourglass figure

Yes please: She captioned the snaps: 'Throwback to a Blonde moment in St Lucia I actually have quite a few photos that I hadnt posted from this trip Want to see more?

She captioned the snaps: 'Throwback to a Blonde moment in St Lucia I actually have quite a few photos that I hadnt posted from this trip Want to see more?'

It comes after she sent temperatures soaring in a sizzling snap from her Ibiza getaway earlier in the day on Monday.

Demi showed off her tiny waist in a figure-hugging sheer red midi dress as she posed on a small rowing boat.

She sported a dewy bronzed makeup look, while her long dark tresses fell past her shoulders in loose waves.

Wow! It comes after Demi showed off her tiny waist in a figure-hugging sheer red midi dress in a sizzling snap from her Ibiza getaway

The influencer accessorised with a stylish pair of sunglasses and captioned the post: 'Friendly reminder: you dont need to do what everyone else is doing'

It comes after Demi spoke openly about her sexuality and her troubled childhood in a candid Instagram Q&A.

The model, who found fame when she was romantically linked to rapper Tyga, has not previously discussed her sexuality but admitted to her followers that she is open to dating women.

Speaking out: The post comes after Demi spoke openly about her sexuality and her troubled childhood in a candid Instagram Q&A

Asked 'Boys, girls or both?' by a follower, she responded: 'I went through a phase of liking girls more than guys. Now I'm more into guys. It just depends.'

Detailing what she's looking for in partner she went on to share that she's on the hunt for someone 'inspiring, honest, well put together, a deep soul that's open minded, kind, ambitious and thoughtful'.

The glamour model also reflected on her tough bringing in a series of candid statements.

On the hunt: Detailing what she's looking for in a partner she went on to share that she's on the hunt for someone 'inspiring, honest, well put together, a deep soul that's open minded'

In 2020, Demi revealed in a tearful video that she had dealt 'with abuse as a child' but clarified in her latest post that it had been 'parental abuse' that she suffered.

She was asked by a fan 'Growing up was it hard to be Demi Rose?' to which she responded: 'Growing up it was very hard getting bullied in school, having parental abuse, and then at the age of 17 becoming a full-time carer for my mother who had a heart attack, which caused a stroke and she became disabled, wheelchair bound.

'She was disabled for seven years and then both of my parents then passed away four years ago.

'I get misjudged a lot but honestly those who meet me say I'm the nicest and that warms my heart.

'I'm grateful for all the bad because it made me who I am I now have so much empathy for going through what I have.'
JoJo Siwa debuted a major hair change as she arrived at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.

The 19-year-old dancer ditched her signature long blonde locks for a funky bubblegum pink pixie cut.

Siwa beamed with confidence while showcasing her new bold look on the red carpet.

Switching it up! JoJo Siwa debuted a major hair change as she arrived at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards in Los Angeles on Wednesday night. The 19-year-old dancer ditched her signature long blonde locks for a funky bubblegum pink pixie cut

To match her vibrant pink coif, the Dance Moms alum rocked a hot pink feather top.

She paired the eye-catching top with a black tulle skirt that had a silver sequin waistband.

Siwa wore pink socks and chunky silver sneakers.

Siwa started dancing when she was just five-years-old. At age nine she became a household name after joining the cast of the hit Lifetime reality series Dance Moms.

Beaming: Siwa beamed with confidence while showcasing her new bold look on the red carpet

New look: The dancer ditched her signature long blonde locks for a funky bubblegum pink pixie cut

The show chronicled young competitive dancers - and their equally competitive mothers - who performed for choreographer Abby Lee Miller's dance company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

She joined during the fifth season and departed during the second half of season six. Siwa went on to make cameos in later seasons.

Britt Stewart showed off her chiseled arms in a black strapless mini dress with striking gold embroidery.

Funky style: To match her vibrant pink coif, the Dance Moms alum rocked a hot pink feather top

A bit of sparkle: She paired the eye-catching top with a black tulle skirt that had a silver sequin waistband

Electric: Siwa looked to be in a good mood on the red carpet of the industry event

The Dancing With The Stars pro's voluminous brunette hair was styled in loose curls that brushed the tops of her shoulders.

Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin flaunted her enviable hourglass shape in a skintight black long-sleeve dress.

She was joined by Pussycat Dolls member Jessica Sutta, who stunned in a black and white patterned bodysuit and treaded patent leather boots.

Fit: Britt Stewart showed off her chiseled arms in a black strapless mini dress with striking gold embroidery

Considered the 'most prestigious dance event of the year,' the Industry Dance Awards & Cancer Benefit Show is an annual event 'in celebration of creativity, industry innovation, and the fight against cancer.'

It brings the dance community together for one special night to recognize 'dancers, educators, pioneers, and dance icons for their outstanding achievements and artistic contributions in 2022.'

This year's ceremony was held at Hollywood's iconic Avalon theater and featured spectacular performances from dance's elite.

Stunners: Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin flaunted her enviable hourglass shape in a skintight black long-sleeve dress. She was joined by Pussycat Dolls member Jessica Sutta, who stunned in a black and white patterned bodysuit and treaded patent leather boots

Abby and JoJo: Abby Lee Miller poses with JoJo Siwa on the red carpet at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Abby: Abby Lee Miller is all smiles on the red carpet at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Abby and Noah: Abby Lee Miller poses with Noah Lands at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Allison: Allison Holker Boss rocks a colorful ensemble at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Jessalynn and JoJo: Jessalynn Siwa and daughter JoJo Siwa pose on the red carpet at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Happy night: Siwa posed with young social media star Everleigh Rose Smith at the event

Allison and Stephen: Allison Holker Boss poses with husband Stephen 'tWitch' Boss at the 2022 Industry Dance Awards

Stylish: Singer Vincint donned a white top with a plaid skirt with black boots

Having fun: Dance professional Wil Thomas wore a maroon suit with a black shirt to the event

Stalwart: Veteran dancer Derek Hough donned a tan coat with black pants
Pierce Brosnan was as drawn to his wife Keely Shaye Smith as ever when she joined him on Wednesday at the New York City premiere of his new DC superhero film Black Adam.

The 69-year-old former James Bond actor couldn't keep his hands off the 59-year-old journalist, and the lovebirds  who have been married 21 years  held hands on the red carpet of the AMC Empire 25.

Pierce appears in Black Adam as Kent Nelson, who goes by Doctor Fate as part of the Justice Society of America, a group of superheroes to try to stop the murderous rampage of the title character, played by Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.

Cute couple: Pierce Brosnan, 69, couldn't keep his hands off his wife Keely Shaye Smith, 59, as she joined him Wednesday at New York premiere of his new DC superhero film Black Adam

The Irish actor looked particularly stylish at the premiere with a shimmering blue velvet tuxedo jacket featuring peaked lapels.

He dressed the rest of his ensemble down with lustrous black pants and patent leather loafers.

The Mamma Mia star completed the ensemble with a luxury wristwatch featuring a leather band, and he wore his salt-and-pepper hair swept back.

Keely looked elegant in a lovely black sequined dress that showcased her legs and and her strappy black open-toe heels.

Blue mood: Pierce looked particularly stylish at the premiere with a shimmering blue velvet tuxedo jacket featuring peaked lapels. He was seen holding hands with his wife

Back in black: Keely looked elegant in a lovely black sequined dress that showcased her legs and and her strappy black open-toe heels

Matching: The brunette beauty stayed on point with a black velvet jacket that nicely complemented her husband's, and she matched her dress with a black sequined clutch

Passion: The Irish actor married Keely, his second wife, in 2001 and is still clearly as smitten with her as ever

Committed: The former 007 star was previously married to Australian actress Cassandra Harris from 1980 until her death from ovarian cancer at age 43 in 1991

The brunette beauty stayed on point with a black velvet jacket that nicely complemented her husband's, and she matched her dress with a black sequined clutch.

She wore her long brunette locks parted at the side and cascading down her shoulders, and her large round diamond earrings gleamed in the light.

Pierce paused his affectionate displays with his wife to catch up with his costar Dwayne Johnson, who was unmissable in a scarlet suit.

The two pals beamed and shared a hug on the red carpet.

The Thomas Crown Affair star also stopped to pose with his costars Noah Centineo, Aldis Hodge and Quintessa Swindle, who play other members of the Justice Society of America.

Costars: Pierce paused his affectionate displays with his wife to catch up with his co-star Dwayne Johnson, who was unmissable in a scarlet suit

Happy to see each other: The two pals beamed and shared a hug on the red carpet

The whole gang: The Thomas Crown Affair star also stopped to pose with his costars Noah Centineo, Aldis Hodge and Quintessa Swindle

Superhero force: His costars play members of the Justice Society of America

During an appearance Tuesday on The Tonight Show, Pierce discussed his latest role as Doctor Fate.

'It was the last thing on my mind to be playing a superhero like Doctor Fate,' he admitted.

The actor got a laugh from the crowd when he described the experience of wearing his long-running character's bulky costume.

'Everyone wants to know what it was like putting on the costume. What was it like putting on the helmet? You can't see a thing! It's darkness,' he said.

He also had kind words for Dwayne, calling him a 'magnificent fellow.'

'He's kind of monolithic and beautiful and owns this role,' he added.

Defense: Pierce appears in Black Adam as Kent Nelson, who goes by Doctor Fate as part of the Justice Society of America, a group of superheroes to try to stop the murderous rampage of the title character, played by Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson
President Yoon Suk-yeol answers reporters' questions as he enters his office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Thursday. Joint Press Corps



Debate heats up over redeployment of US tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea



By Nam Hyun-woo



A number of ideas are being floated to enhance Seoul's deterrence after South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol hinted that he will keep all options open, including the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons, in order to deal with North Korea's increasing belligerence.



"With various opinions being raised in South Korea and the U.S. over the extended deterrence, we are now listening and thoroughly studying various possibilities," Yoon told reporters Thursday when asked about the chance of sharing nuclear weapons with the U.S. He refused to elaborate further citing security concerns.



Recently, not only Yoon but also his aides have been using similar rhetoric whenever they were quizzed about Seoul's intention to ask the U.S. to deploy nuclear weapons on South Korean soil or other measures to cope with North Korea's ever-increasing security threats.



The North has been conducting a barrage of missile tests since last month, claiming the launches are "tactical nuclear drills," and the Kim Jong-un regime is anticipated to carry out its seventh nuclear test in the near future.



Calls are mounting, especially from the ruling conservative People Power Party (PPP), for South Korea to consider redeploying tactical nuclear weapons.





Former South Korean President Roh Tae-woo signs the Joint Declaration of the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula at Cheong Wa Dae, in this Feb. 17, 1992 file photo. Korea Times file



Turning the clock back



South Korea declared itself as a nuclear-free state in the early 1990s, to join the world's efforts to exit the Cold War era. Reportedly, U.S. Forces Korea possessed hundreds of tactical nuclear weapons since the 1950s. The weapons were removed from the Korean Peninsula after the Joint Declaration of the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which was adopted by the two Koreas in 1991 and took effect in February of the following year.



The recent calls for redeploying nuclear weapons in South Korea mean that the joint declaration will no longer be viable. And if that is the case, Seoul and Washington must consider turning the clock back to bring U.S. tactical nuclear weapons back here.



"The time has come," PPP interim leader Chung Jin-suk wrote on Facebook, Wednesday. "If the North carries out the seventh nuclear weapons test, the 2018 comprehensive military agreement between the two Koreas and the 1991 denuclearization declaration should be scrapped."









The redeployment of tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea will be a warning to the North that if the regime stages a nuclear strike on the South, Seoul will respond with an immediate nuclear response, experts said. This will be more effective than the current U.S. pledge of extended deterrence, which gives protection to its non-nuclear ally by deploying strategic assets, they said.



This will be helpful for Seoul to regain its balance against the North, but observers said chances are slim, citing the strategic gravity that the U.S. has to shoulder and potential opposition from China.



"This is like an eye for an eye," a Seoul-based defense analyst said asking not to be named. "If the U.S. abandons its commitment to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and decides to bring back tactical nukes to South Korea, there will be no grounds for Washington to refuse calls for deploying such weapons in Japan or Taiwan."



"And most importantly, China and Russia will not sit back. We should remember China's relatively recent economic retaliation concerning Seoul's decision to deploy a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery here," the analyst added.



In its latest national security strategy released on Wednesday, the U.S. reaffirmed its commitment to completely denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, meaning both South and North Korea, through diplomacy.





The U.S. carrier USS Ronald Reagan is escorted as it arrives in Busan, South Korea on Sept. 23. AP-Yonhap
Model Jesinta Franklin has praised Seafolly for not retouching her photos as she fronts a new international campaign for the Australian swimwear brand.

The 31-year-old wife of AFL star Lance 'Buddy' Franklin posted one of the images on Instagram, showing her in a bikini behind the wheel of a van.

Jesinta, a mother of two, thanked the PR team at Seafolly for not editing out the 'scrunched' skin on her stomach, which she has from 'growing my babies'.

Jesinta Franklin has praised Seafolly for not retouching her photos as she fronts a new international campaign for the Australian swimwear brand

'How cool is this? Seafolly hasn't retouched the loose skin you can see on my tummy from growing my babies in this shot,' she wrote.

'I haven't seen these pics and I know it's not super obvious, but it seriously makes me so happy to see such a big brand post pics like this unretouched.'

Jesinta continued: 'Trust me, it's not common for campaign images to have minimal to no retouching. Love it. Thanks, team.'

The model and mother of two, 31, took to Instagram to thank the PR team at Seafolly for not editing out the 'scrunched' skin on her stomach, which she has from 'growing my babies'

Jesinta announced earlier this month she had partnered with Seafolly to be the face of the fashion brand in Australia, the United States and parts of Asia.

She has previously done local campaign work with Seafolly, but this is her first stint as a global ambassador.

The footy WAG said at the time she had felt 'insecure' about her body since giving birth and saw the ambassadorship as a way to boost her confidence.

Jesinta announced earlier this month she had partnered with Seafolly to be the face of the fashion brand in Australia, the United States and parts of Asia

Jesinta rose to fame in 2010 when she was crowned Miss Universe Australia.

She married Buddy of the Sydney Swans in 2016 after four years of dating. They are parents to daughter Tullulah, two, and son Rocky, one.

The former beauty pageant queen-turned-fashion influencer recently qualified as an accredited AFL player agent.

Rumours had circulated for months that the Franklins would be moving to the Gold Coast so Jesinta could make her mark in the business world.

However, this speculation proved to be incorrect as Buddy re-signed with the Swans for another year before the AFL Grand Final last month.
Kaia Gerber was spotted looking comfortable and casual as she stepped out for a beverage run in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

The 21-year-old daughter of 90s supermodel Cindy Crawford was clad in an oversized green T-Shirt.

Kaia paired the tee with loose-fitting white trousers as she emerged from a coffee shop clutching a green smoothie.

Errand: Kaia Gerber was spotted looking comfortable and casual as she stepped out for a beverage run in Los Angeles on Wednesday

Kaia, whose made a name for herself in the modeling world in recent years, slipped her feet into a pair of dark brown Birkenstock slides.

Her shiny brunette hair was styled in a center part and fell over her shoulders in sleek texture.

Kaia was spotted rocking black sunglasses as she exited a black vehicle before walking into the establishment.

She carried a small green purse over her shoulder and held onto an iPhone protected by a foam green case.

Her look: The 21-year-old daughter of 90s supermodel Cindy Crawford was clad in an oversized green t-shirt

While Gerber has followed in her mom's footsteps, building a notable career as a fashion model, she's also leaned into acting.

She starred in the hit American Horror Story series by Ryan Murphy in 2021, and she's now working on more acting roles.

And speaking to Flaunt magazine in an interview published in September, she described acting as 'hard.'

'Theres so many things you cant control,' she explained. 'So much is coming from other people.

Cover girl: Kaia sat down with Flaunt magazine to discuss her acting journey

'I can rehearse something a million times, and then get there, and I dont know what youre going to give me that day, where youre going to be at that day, or where Im even going to be at emotionally that day.'

Kaia's been on-set in Los Angeles working on the star-studded comedy Mrs. American Pie.

Kaia will have a recurring role in the Apple TV+ miniseries playing a manicurist named Mitzi.

The plot follows a woman who aspires to achieve a place in Palm Beach's high society, and also stars Kristen Wiig, who will portray Maxine Simmons.
Gogglebox Australia star Yvie Jones fell into a deep 'carb coma' after indulging in 'the best pasta sauce in the world' on Wednesday.

The 49-year-old whipped up several helpings of the Sicilian recipe, but it seems her eyes were too big for her belly as she was close to passing out in her bed.

She documented her dinner on Instagram, first showing the beautiful dish of pasta topped with homemade sauce and a big helping of parmesan cheese.

Gogglebox Australia star Yvie Jones (pictured) fell into a deep 'carb coma' after indulging in 'the best pasta sauce in the world' on Wednesday

The next few Stories showed Yvie eating the dish before another video, taken a few hours later, cut to the television personality dressed in pyjamas in bed with her mouth comically hanging open.

'I'm in a carb coma because I just had more pasta,' she said. 'For everyone asking for the recipe - no, no, no. What an a**hole. Carb comas clearly make me an a**hole.'

She went on to say she couldn't give away her secret pasta sauce recipe - despite it being the best in the world because everyone who has it 'loses their s**t over it'.

The 49-year-old whipped up several helpings of the Sicilian recipe, but it seems her eyes were too big for her belly as she was close to passing out in her bed

'The very first job I ever had was in a fruit shop and I convinced the Nonna to teach me her Sicilian pasta sauce. I just wore her down over six months,' she said, stumbling over her words.

In the next video, Yvie was shocked by how difficult it was for her to get a sentence out.

'I just watched that last Story back and I'm not even making any sense. I can't even talk properly. I'm in such a carb coma. Carbohydrate coma.'

She documented her dinner on Instagram, first showing the beautiful dish of pasta topped with homemade sauce and a big helping of parmesan cheese

It comes after the podcaster revealed she was blocked from opening an account on the adult content website OnlyFans.

She was also rejected by the exclusive dating app Raya, which is reserved for celebrities, the super-rich and social elites.

Yvie believes her applications were turned down because the website administrators had trouble identifying her.

The next few Stories showed Yvie eating the dish before another video, taken a few hours later, cut to her dressed in pyjamas in bed with her mouth comically hanging open

She explained to co-star Angie Kent on her podcast Two Girls One Pod she wears glasses in her daily life, but her driver's licence and passport photos show her without glasses.

'You have to prove who you are. You have to put a photo of your ID next to you, and I can't see without my glasses,' she said.

This meant she had no luck taking non-blurry photos to prove her identity. 'I get rejected from all the sexy time,' she added.
Emily Ratajkowski enjoyed what looked to be an exciting night out on Wednesday.

The 31-year-old model put her spectacular physique on display in a racy fishnet dress that featured a gold bra and underwear beneath.

The beauty was seen dancing the night away and eating Chinese takeout from a container in two clips shared to her Instagram Stories, while her friend Molly Howard declared that the star is in 'her b**** era.'

Having fun! Emily Ratajkowski enjoyed what looked to be an exciting night out on Wednesday, as she put her spectacular physique on display in a racy fishnet dress

Ratajkowski - who ended her four-year marriage to husband Sebastian Bear-McClard in July due to his rumored cheating - appeared to have no care in the world as she swayed to the music in the sexy ensemble.

The star wore her luscious brown locks down for the night. In another clip she continued to dance while also enjoying noodles from a container with a pair of chopsticks.

She was also featured in a snap on Ziwe Fumudoh's Instagram, as the two enjoyed dinner while looking glamorous together.

Dancing the night away: The model wore nothing but a gold bra and underwear beneath, and was seen dancing the night away in two video clips

'B**** era': Her friend Molly Howard declared that the star - who split from husband Sebastian Bear-McClard in July due to his rumored cheating - is in 'her b**** era'

Earlier in the day the Inamorata CEO opened up about her mindset after ending her marriage.

'One of the things I write about in the last essay of the book [My Body] is about control and kind of understanding that one of the best ways to actually be happy and have some semblance of control is letting go,' she explained to Variety.

'I'm newly single for basically the first time in my life ever, and I just feel like I'm kind of enjoying the freedom of not being super worried about how I'm being perceived.'

Yum: Later in the night the Inamorata CEO was also seen chowing down on Chinese takeout from a container with a pair of chopsticks as she continued to dance

Dinner: She was also featured in a snap on Ziwe Fumudoh's Instagram, as the two enjoyed dinner while looking glamorous together

Emily did not confirm nor deny OK! Magazine's report that she was 'secretly dating' two-time Oscar winner Brad Pitt, which his rep denied on August 29.

At 58, the Oklahoma-born movie star is 27 years older than Ratajkowski, whom he's said to have met at the 2020 Vanity Fair Oscar party in Beverly Hills (while she was still married).

People reported Brad and the London-born SoCal native to be 'spending a lot of time together' on September 27.

Rumors swirling: Emily has not confirmed nor denied OK! Magazine's report that she was 'secretly dating' two-time Oscar winner Brad Pitt (R), which his rep denied on August 29

It's over: Emily raises 19-month-old son Sylvester Apollo Bear with the 35-year-old Funny Pages producer who was allegedly a 'serial cheater'; Pictured May 14

Emily raises 19-month-old son Sylvester Apollo Bear with the 35-year-old Funny Pages producer, who was allegedly a 'serial cheater.'

Ratajkowski and Sebastian were last pictured together vacationing in Italy on June 19.

The catwalk sensation famously wed Bear-McClard at a New York City courthouse in February 2018 - just two months after she ended her three-year, live-in relationship with music producer Jeff Magid.

Aside from her personal life, the star has also been busy with work and is ready to join the ranks of Joe Rogan and other podcasters with her new thrice-weekly show High Low with EmRata, which premieres November 1 on Apple Podcasts.
Trevor Noah's last day at the The Daily Show is scheduled for December 8, Paramount Global said Wednesday.

The set date of the last edition of the Comedy Central series hosted by Noah, 38, comes weeks after Noah said he would be departing the show during a September 28 taping.

Comedy Central will resume airing episodes of the series January 17, noting that 'additional details' are set to be announced.

The latest: Trevor Noah's last day at the The Daily Show is scheduled for December 8, Paramount Global said Wednesday

'The Emmy-winning franchise will embark on a reinvention as it has done so successfully in the past,' the network said.

It was not immediately clear if the network had picked his successor, or interim hosts, when filming resumes early next year. The show's team of correspondents includes Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta, Desi Lydic, Dulce Sloan and Roy Wood Jr.

Noah and his team are slated to cover the midterm elections in Atlanta next month.

The show will commemorate Noah's time at the helm of the show with a December 5 episode that takes a 'celebratory look back at his greatest moments.'

The set date of the last edition of the Comedy Central series hosted by Noah, 38, comes weeks after Noah said he would be departing the show during a September 28 taping

Noah and his team are slated to cover the midterm elections in Atlanta next month

Noah was seen appearing last month at the Emmy Awards in LA

Noah said in a statement that Paramount exec Chris McCarthy 'has been an amazing leader and partner who has helped me realize my dream of working not just in front of the camera, but also behind the scenes, producing content which now airs across the Paramount family.'

He added: 'Im truly excited to see what the future holds.'

McCarthy called Noah 'an incredible talent who has left an indelible mark on The Daily Show and were grateful for his creative partnership over the past seven years.'

Noah made his announcement last month in saying that he felt gratitude after seven years of hosting the show, which Jon Stewart left in 2015.

'I realized, after the seven years, my time is up,' the Johannesburg, South Africa-born TV personality said.

Noah and former The Daily Show host Jon Stewart were seen on set in 2015

Noah said that 'so many people didnt believe in us,' adding that 'it was a crazy bet to make' to anoint him host of the series.

'I still think it was a crazy choice - this random African,' he said. 'I wanted to say thank you to the audience for an amazing seven years. Its been wild. Its been truly wild.'

Noah said that traveling recently gave him a better perspective on what he wanted out of his future.

'I miss learning other languages,' he said. 'I miss going to other countries and putting on a show.'

Noah's departure comes amid a time a number of his colleagues have ended their shows, including Conan OBrien last year and Samantha Bee earlier this year.
Jessica Chastain donned multiple bold ensembles as she appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday to promote her new Netflix film The Good Nurse.

The Oscar-winning actress, 45, made her way to the filming in a pink dress with coat and ruffled bottom with dark heels.

The Zero Dark Thirty actress had her wavy red locks parted and wore brown sunglasses as she made her way to filming.

The latest: Jessica Chastain, 45, donned multiple bold ensembles as she appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday to promote her new Netflix film The Good Nurse

The 5ft4 beauty donned a red skirt as she made her way out, clad with blush heels.

The Sacramento, California-born star wore a light layer of makeup as she made her way out of the taping.

The Good Nurse, directed by Tobias Lindholm, is slated to begin streaming on Netflix October 26.

The thriller is adapted from the book of the 2013 book of the same name, which tells the haunting true story of Cullen, who is confirmed to have killed at least 29 people but is suspected of killing possibly upwards of 400 people, and how Chastain's character, a nurse named Amy Loughren, helped stop him.

The Zero Dark Thirty actress had her wavy red locks parted and wore brown sunglasses as she made her way to filming

The 5ft4 beauty donned a red skirt as she made her way out, clad with blush heels

The Sacramento, California-born star wore a light layer of makeup as she made her way out of the taping

The trailer opens with Amy waiting at a diner when the door opens and Charlie walks up to Amy's table as he asks, 'What's going on?'

'Just, you know, work's been pretty awful without you there. You and I were partners,' Amy asks, though Charlie says, 'I don't wanna talk about work.'

'Is it because... what they're saying is true?' a visibly nervous Amy asks Charlie, who opens his eyes and looks at Amy.

Later at work her character notices a chart and says, 'Oh my God, there's insulin in her system' as a Code Blue alert goes off and she races down the hall.

The officers visit Amy at home, revealing that Cullen has been to nine different hospitals, as Amy adds, 'No, the hospital would've done something.'

Amy meets with a fellow nurse, asking if she remembers working with Charlie and she says she does.

The award-winning actress held a marker in her hand as she made her way to the studio

Chastain appeared to be in a pleasant mood following the taping with Kimmel

'There was a rumor about him. They found insulin in a dead guy's saline bag,' which clearly alarms Amy.

She returns home one night to her girls, and is petrified to find Charlie there waiting for her, as one of the girls asks, 'Why are you being weird, mom?'

The trailer shows a number of dramatic shots with the other officer saying Charlie will just get a new job at another hospital and it's all gonna continue.

The trailer ends back where it began - in the diner - with a new wrinkle, revealing Amy is wired and the officers are listening in, as the trailer comes to an end.

The thriller is adapted from the book of the 2013 book of the same name, which tells the haunting true story of Cullen, who is confirmed to have killed at least 29 people
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Emily Ratajkowski and Karlie Kloss were among the sensational star-studded guest list at W Magazine's 50th anniversary bash, thrown by Lexus and Shun Lee in New York on Wednesday.

Emily, who recently confirmed she is 'newly single' and 'enjoying her freedom' amid rumors she's been dating Brad Pitt following her split from husband Sebastian Bear-McClard, was flashing the flesh in a daring ensemble.

The 31-year-old supermodel put her impressively slender figure on jaw-dropping display in a completely see-through net dress from Tory Burch with nothing but skimpy nude lingerie underneath.

Brunette bombshells: Emily Ratajkowski (left) and Karlie Kloss (right) were among the sensational star-studded guest list at W Magazine's 50th anniversary bash, thrown by Lexus and Shun Lee in New York on Wednesday

Emily, who recently published a book of essays called My Body, frolicked around the party in the head-turning ensemble that left almost nothing to the imagination.

The headline-grabbing fashionista wore her luxurious dark hair in a retro chic curly do reminiscent of the 80s and allowed her locks to cascade freely over her shoulders.

Balancing expertly on a sky-high pair of saucy black ankle-strap stilettos, she heightened the impact of her already breathtaking screen siren features with makeup.

While making a splash with her skin-baring ensemble, she swanned around the fete and mingled with such models as Harley Viera-Newton, whose father is the president of Capitol Music Group.

When you got it: The 31-year-old supermodel put her impressively slender figure on jaw-dropping display in a completely see-through net dress from Tory Burch with nothing but skimpy nude lingerie underneath

Looking fab: Emily, who recently published a book of essays called My Body, frolicked around the party in the head-turning ensemble that left almost nothing to the imagination

On the town: While making a splash with her skin-baring ensemble, she swanned around the fete and mingled with such models as Harley Viera-Newton, whose father is the president of Capitol Music Group

Dynamic duo: Harley and Emily made their way to right up near the DJ booth, where they could be spotted dancing up a storm and apparently thoroughly enjoying the music selection

Backdrop: Emily's declaration that she is 'single' and 'enjoying her freedom' came on the heels of unconfirmed rumors that she is involved with Brad Pitt

Harley and Emily made their way to right up near the DJ booth, where they could be spotted dancing up a storm and apparently thoroughly enjoying the music selection.

Meanwhile Karlie, who is married to Jared Kushner's brother Joshua, cut a glamorous figure of her own in a pale pink sequined backless dress for the evening's festivities.

Amplifying the glitz factor with blood-red lipstick and gleaming gold heels, she swanned about the party and mingled with names like Christy Turlington and the latter's daughter Grace Burns.

As the trio posed up together on a luxurious black sofa, they were joined by Meadow Walker, the daughter of the late Fast And Furious star Paul Walker.

Meanwhile: Karlie, who is married to Jared Kushner's brother Joshua, cut a glamorous figure of her own in a pale pink sequined backless dress for the evening's festivities

Family time: Amplifying the glitz factor with blood-red lipstick and gleaming gold heels, she swanned about the party and mingled with names like Christy Turlington (left) and the latter's daughter Grace Burns (right)

Quartet: As the trio posed up together on a luxurious black sofa, they were joined by Meadow Walker (far left), the daughter of the late Fast And Furious star Paul Walker

City girls: The amount of family resemblance between Christy and her daughter was in sharp evidence as they stood together side by side for the cameras

Meadow and Grace, who are best friends, could be seen enjoying a bit of one-on-one time with each other as they swirled among the glittering cavalcade of celebrities.

Meryl Streep's daughter Grace Gummer posed for a family group shot with her DJ husband Mark Ronson and her sisters-in-law, DJ Samantha Ronson and Succession actress Annabelle Dexter-Jones.

Annabelle's Succession co-star Jeremy Strong, who has attracted a deluge of negative attention for his intense acting process, arrived at the party on the arm of his psychiatrist wife Emma Wall.

Glee alum Dianna Agron brought the glitz in a blue sequined gown, Geena Davis defied her 66 years in a youthfully low-cut gown and Girls star Jemima Kirke was seen modeling a gold cocktail dress.

Bottoms up: Meadow and Grace, who are best friends, could be seen enjoying a bit of one-on-one time with each other as they swirled among the glittering cavalcade of celebrities

All together: Meryl Streep's daughter Grace Gummer (second from left) posed for a family group shot with her DJ husband Mark Ronson (second from right) and her sisters-in-law Samantha Ronson (left) and Annabelle Dexter-Jones (right)

What a night: Comedian Ziwe Fumudoh (left), who is friends with Emily Ratajkowski, and movie heartthrob Simon Rex (right), who drew critical acclaim for last year's film Red Rocket, were at the knees-up as well

Wedded bliss: Annabelle's Succession co-star Jeremy Strong, who has attracted a deluge of negative attention for his intense acting process, arrived at the party on the arm of his psychiatrist wife Emma Wall

So many stars: (from left) Glee alum Dianna Agron brought the glitz in a blue sequined gown, Geena Davis defied her 66 years in a youthfully low-cut gown and Girls star Jemima Kirke was seen modeling a gold cocktail dress

Jennifer Aniston's smoldering second ex-husband Justin Theroux could be glimpsed amid the revelers enjoying a bit of a hobnob with pop artist Nate Lowman.

Pharrell Williams was unmistakable in an extravagantly puffy anorak and sparkly shades, while model Lily Chee also hinted at the winter to come with a clutch trimmed in what may have been faux fur.

James Gandolfini's son Michael Gandolfini, who stepped into his father's iconic role of Tony Soprano for last year's film The Many Saints Of Newark, was also among the invited guests.

Comedian Ziwe Fumudoh, who is friends with Emily Ratajkowski, and movie heartthrob Simon Rex, who drew critical acclaim for last year's film Red Rocket, were at the knees-up as well.

Wine o'clock: Jennifer Aniston's smoldering second ex-husband Justin Theroux could be glimpsed amid the revelers enjoying a bit of a hobnob with pop artist Nate Lowman

Autumn: Pharrell Williams was unmistakable in an extravagantly puffy anorak and sparkly shades, while 19-year-old model Lily Chee also hinted at the winter to come with a clutch trimmed in what may have been faux fur

Legacy: James Gandolfini's son Michael Gandolfini, who stepped into his father's iconic role of Tony Soprano for last year's film The Many Saints Of Newark, was also among the invited guests

Meeting of the avant-garde: Martini in hand, indie film legend Chloe Sevigny rocked an oversize polka-dot blazer as she mugged for the photographers alongside Canadian artist Aurel Schmidt

Martini in hand, indie film legend Chloe Sevigny rocked an oversize polka-dot blazer as she mugged for the photographers alongside Canadian artist Aurel Schmidt.

The Vampire Diaries bombshell Nina Dobrev slid into a skintight dress, while gender-bending fashion designer Harris Reed sported a look reminiscent of Vogue's former creative director at large Grace Coddington.

A few updates from the party also surfaced on social media, as on Ziwe's Instagram where the funnywoman posted a snap of herself seated at a table with Emily.

One of Emily's friends also posted a clip of her dancing and wrote that the sizzling supermodel was 'in her b*** era' - a phrase Emily used to describe her own mindset on TikTok recently.

Clotheshorses: The Vampire Diaries bombshell Nina Dobrev (left) slid into a skintight dress, while gender-bending fashion designer Harris Reed (right) sported a look reminiscent of Vogue's former creative director at large Grace Coddington

Chow down: A few updates from the party also surfaced on social media, as on Ziwe's Instagram where the funnywoman posted a snap of herself seated at a table with Emily
Paul Walker's daughter Meadow Walker appeared in better spirits as she attended W Magazine's star-studded 50th Anniversary shindig on Wednesday night in New York City.

The 23-year-old model hit the red carpet, which was decked out in red balloons and magazine covers, in a plunging black slip dress.

One day prior, she was captured sobbing as she walked away from her husband Louis Thornton-Allan, 24, during a lunch date at a restaurant in the Big Apple.

Brave face: Paul Walker's daughter Meadow Walker appeared in high spirits as she attended W Magazine's star-studded shindig on Wednesday night in New York City

Despite the afternoon drama, Meadow looked eager to mingle with fashion's elite at the nighttime party.

She styled her slinky black dress, which had a velvet bust and semi-sheer skirt, with sandals and an edgy silver wrist cuff.

Her jaw-length raven tresses were parted down the middle and bumped under to create an effortlessly chic silhouette.

Meadow had pale blue eyeshadow swiped across her lids and a generous dusting of pink blusher on her cheeks.

Dramatic day: The day before, she was captured sobbing as she walked away from her husband Louis Thornton-Allan during a lunch date at a restaurant in the Big Apple

Chic: The 23-year-old model hit the red carpet, which was decked out in red balloons and magazine covers, in a plunging black slip dress

She completed the 60s-inspired glam with a glossy lip and radiant complexion.

Meadow gave her ensemble some sparkle by tucking her essentials away in a glitzy rhinestone purse.

Meadow was accompanied by supermodel Christy Turlington's daughter Grace Burns, 18.

She also spent time with 53-year-old Turlington, who looked ageless in a pillowed black leather mini dress that showcased her killer legs.

Effortless: Her jaw-length raven tresses were parted down the middle and bumped under to create an effortlessly chic silhouette; seen with Grace Burns

Close pal: Meadow was accompanied by supermodel Christy Turlington's daughter Grace Burns, 18

Bonding: She also spent time with Turlington, who looked ageless in a pillowed black leather mini dress that showcased her killer legs

The trio grabbed a seat at a nearby booth after chatting among partygoers in the event's main area.

Tuesday afternoon proved to be an emotional one for Meadow as she fled lunch with her husband Louis, whom she recently celebrated her one-year-wedding anniversary with.

In the photographs, which were captured on October 11, Meadow broke down in tears at the table, before walking away from her spouse.

A tearful Meadow was seen crouching down in a doorway before returning to her husband at the table.

Ready to party: Despite the afternoon drama, Meadow looked eager to mingle with fashion's elite at the nighttime party

Chatty: The trio grabbed a seat at a nearby booth after chatting among partygoers in the event's main area

Fashion's elite! Meadow, Christy and Grace also spent time with runway maven Karlie Kloss

On Tuesday, Meadow and Louis shared a cryptic Instagram exchange, after he posted a photo of himself underneath an statue, which hung close to his head.

He captioned the post: 'Please break please break please' to which Meadow responded: 'I dont like this caption. NEVER BREAK NEVER BREAK.'

Dailymail.com has contacted representatives for the pair for comment.

This comes days after Meadow took to Instagram on Sunday to wish her husband a happy one-year anniversary.

Tearful: On Tuesday, October 11, a visibly emotional Meadow fled lunch with her husband Louis, whom she recently celebrated her one-year-wedding anniversary with. She broke down in tears at the table, before walking away from her spouse, 24

'Happy anniversary my love! One year married to you,' she wrote on a fairly dark image that shows the loving couple hugging amid the backdrop of what appears to be an outdoor horse stable.

On her Instagram stories, the beauty posted a picture of her husband smiling in a grey and white jacket with his hair messed up, captioned, 'ONE YEAR' with a red heart.

She also shared a lovely video from their wedding last year.

Meadow and her husband became engaged in August 2021, and tied the knot three months later in October in the Dominican Republic.

Mystery: On Tuesday, Meadow and Louis shared a cryptic Instagram exchange, after he posted a photo of himself underneath an statue, which hung close to his head

The model and actor have been spotted recently looking very much in love as they walked their Goldendoodle around Manhattan.

The model is the only daughter of the late Fast & Furious actor Paul Walker who died in 2013 at the age of 40, following a car crash.

Paul's Fast & Furious co-star, Vin Diesel, walked Meadow down the aisle. The actor is also her godfather and the two remain very close.

During an interview with Extra TV, Vin opened up about his relationship with Meadow since Paul's tragic passing almost 10 years ago in 2013 due to a car accident.

Post: Meadow took to Instagram on Sunday to wish her husband happy one-year anniversary

Picture-perfect: She also shared a video from their wedding last year

'She takes good care of me, to be honest,' the actor stated. 'She is the first person on Father's Day to wish me Happy Father's Day...I feel very protective.'

A source close to the model opened up to Us Weekly, and expressed, 'Meadow counts Vin and his kids as family and will talk to them on days shes struggling, and she has their backs too.'

Meadow took over her father's charitable organization, The Paul Walker Foundation, which also gives scholarships to marine biologists.
Sir Lenny Henry is to be presented with the NTAs' coveted gold Special Recognition Award at the annual ceremony on Thursday night.

This year's National Television Awards will honour the 64-year-old and his trailblazing career in UK television, which has endured for nearly 50 years.

Celebrity fans will be seen paying tribute to the comedian and fundraising Comic Relief frontman when the awards are broadcast live on ITV from the OVO Arena, Wembley.

Loved-up: Sir Lenny Henry is to be presented with the NTAs' coveted gold Special Recognition Award at the annual ceremony on Thursday night

Sir Lenny has been a mainstay on TV for nearly 50 years, starting with his 1975 victory on New Faces at the age of 16 which led to further acclaim on such era-defining shows as Tiswas and Three of a Kind.

Breaking new ground for black talent, he went on to experience huge success with his own sketch comedy series before playing a key role in the formation of Comic Relief.

More recent projects have seen him diversify into acting, most notably on stage as Othello and on screen in the big-budget Amazon Prime series, Lord of the Rings: the Rings of Power.

Icon: This year's National Television Awards will honour the 64-year-old and his trailblazing career in UK television, which has endured for nearly 50 years (pictured on Tiswas in the '70s)

New role: More recent projects have seen him diversify into acting, most notably in the big-budget Amazon Prime series, Lord of the Rings: the Rings of Power

Among those congratulating Sir Lenny for his achievements as a writer, campaigner, comedian and presenter will be Hollywood superstar Whoopi Goldberg, who says, 'If you want to know what a superhero looks like, take a look at Sir Lenny Henry.'

There will be two notable faces missing from Thursday's NTAs ceremony though as MailOnline revealed on Wednesday that Ant and Dec have pulled out of attending after being struck down with Covid.

The TV duo, who have won best presenter at the NTAs for 20 consecutive years, are suffering from flu-like symptoms and are 'bed bound' with the contagious infection.

Big break: Sir Lenny has been a mainstay on TV for nearly 50 years, starting with his 1975 victory on New Faces at the age of 16 (pictured)

Comedic talents: Breaking new ground for black talent, he went on to experience huge success with his own sketch comedy series before playing a key role in Comic Relief

A Britain's Got Talent spokesperson announced on Wednesday that the pair are 'unwell' and won't be working until they recover.

A source told MailOnline: 'Ant and Dec are gutted. They love the NTAs, it's the best night in TV, and for them it's an event they always look forward to.

'They're both feeling really poorly but will be watching the show from bed and hope to be well and working again soon.'

Varied career: Sir Lenny has taken on notable acting roles in recent years, appearing in dramas such as ITV's Broadchurch in 2017

Loved-up: Lenny Henry pictured with his partner Lisa Makin earlier this month

A spokesperson for Ant and Dec told MailOnline: 'After both feeling unwell Ant and Dec have tested for Covid and unfortunately have both tested positive.

'The duo will be postponing work commitments whilst they recover.'

The pair confirmed the news on their Instagram account, sharing a picture of their positive tests as they quipped: 'we even get ill together!'

Their absence at the star-studded NTAs won't go unnoticed by viewers, who have voted for Ant and Dec to win best presenter for over two decades.

But this year This Morning host Alison Hammond, 47, is tipped to finally end their winning streak.

Loose Women's Nadia Sawalha has also pulled out of the event due to illness and shared a video from her sickbed on Wednesday.

Watch the National Television Awards this Thursday 13th October, Live from The OVO Arena Wembley on ITV and ITV Hub from 8pm

Oh no! Ant and Dec have pulled out of attending the National Television Awards and Britain's Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician after being struck down with Covid, MailOnline can reveal
Lady Mary Charteris and Lady Victoria Hervey looked incredible as they attended a launch party to celebrate new residents' club, The Other House South Kensington, in London on Wednesday.

Mary, 35, flashed her black bra through a mesh spotted blouse which she teamed with wide legged trousers.

The model and DJ added a pop of colour to her ensemble in an eye-catching pink jacket, and accessorised with a simple gold pendant necklace.

Hotspot: Lady Mary Charteris and Lady Victoria Hervey looked incredible as they attended a launch party to celebrate new club, The Other House South Kensington, on Wednesday

Mary took took to the DJ decks at the event, providing music to the guests throughout the evening.

Lady Victoria cut a smart figure in an embroidered black cropped blazer, which she wore over a white ruffled blouse.

The socialite, 46, wore a pair of black skinny trousers and elevated her frame in a pair of towering heels.

Victoria added braces to her chic trousers and wore one black leather fingerless glove on her hand.

Chic: Mary, 35, flashed her black bra through a mesh spotted blouse which she teamed with wide legged trousers

Stunning: The model and DJ added a pop of colour to her ensemble in an eye-catching pink jacket, and accessorised with a simple gold pendant necklace

Entertaining: Mary took took to the DJ decks at the event, providing music to the guests throughout the evening

Also in attendance was Game Of Thrones actress Laura Pradelska who flashed her toned abs through a dazzling hot pink blazer and trouser co-ord.

Celebs Go Dating and Made In Chelsea star Sophie Hermann looked sensational in a white ensemble as she posed up a storm at the event.

Sophie posed alongside former co-star Victoria Baker Harber, who dazzled in a glamorous pink sequined strapless mini dress.

Victoria elevated her frame in a pair of clear pointed toe heels.

Hugo Taylor made a solo appearance without his wife Millie Mackintosh in an all black outfit including a leather jacket.

Sensational: Lady Victoria cut a smart figure in an embroidered black cropped blazer which she wore over a white ruffled blouse

Fashionista: The socialite, 46, wore a pair of black skinny trousers with the glamorous number and elevated her frame in a pair of towering heels

Glamorous: Celebs Go Dating star Sophie Hermann looked sensational in a white ensemble as she posed up a storm at the event

Dressed to impress: Sophie (right) posed alongside former co-star Victoria Baker Harber (left) who dazzled in a glamorous pink sequined strapless mini dress

Big Brother star Kate Lawler cut a casual figure in blue skinny jeans and a crisp white top which boasted puff sheer sleeves.

X Factor star Diana Vickers, 30, looked effortlessly chic in a white woven blazer which she teamed with brown checked trousers.

Guests enjoyed a spectacular evening of surprises from The Lion King cast, sets from DJ Fat Tony and DJ Mary Charteris, as well as live performances from pianists, violinists, and saxophonists.

Other attendees included Lady Emily Compton, Astrid Harbord, Pips Taylor, Nicki Shields, Mika Simmons, Sarah Ann Macklin, Sophie Perkins and Sarah Lindsay.

Looking good: Hugo Taylor made a solo appearance without his wife Millie Mackintosh

Casual: Big Brother star Kate Lawler cut a casual figure in blue skinny jeans and a crisp white top which boasted puff sheer sleeves

Over 500 guests were in attendance and enjoyed a number of cocktails and different canapes.

The Other House South Kensington is a apartment-style living members' club, cocktail bar and a holistic health and wellness space, which officially opened this month.

Pianist Matt Goodman played an intimate candlelit performance in the downstairs club, The Keeping Room, usually only accessible to residents.

Music was supplied by Lady Mary Charteris and DJ Fat Tony, who curated The Other House's playlists, and had guests dancing until the early hours.

Showcasing The Other House's holistic health and wellbeing offering, tarot card readings also took place in The Other Space.

Chic: X Factor star Diana Vickers, 30, looked effortlessly chic in a white woven blazer which she teamed with brown checked trousers
This photo released Thursday by the North's official Korean Central News Agency shows the test-launch of long-range strategic cruise missiles at an undisclosed location in North Korea, Wednesday. Yonhap









By Jung Min-ho







North Korea test-launched two long-range cruise missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads on Wednesday, Pyongyang's state news agency reported the next day. Leader Kim Jong-un, who supervised the test, praised it as a successful display of the military's expanding nuclear strike capabilities and a stark warning to its "enemies."







According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the missiles struck their targets as planned after traveling 2,000 kilometers in figure-eight trajectories. The cruise missile type, which is more difficult to detect by radar and has greater accuracy than a ballistic one, is a significant threat to South Korea and its allies, especially if it carries nuclear weapons in the tip.







Kim said the cruise missile test proved its combat readiness again and vowed to continue expanding its nuclear weapons capabilities, the KCNA reported.







"Strengthening national defense for our dignity, sovereignty and right to life has been a consistent, unchanging principle," he was quoted as saying. "We should focus on developing our nuclear weapons capabilities endlessly at an accelerated pace."







A TV screen shows file images of North Korea's missile launch during a news program at Seoul Station in Seoul, Thursday. AP-Yonhap





South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the cruise missile test had been detected immediately, and is still under analysis. The JCS also said JCS Chairman Kim Seung-kyum will hold trilateral talks with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts  Mark Milley and Koji Yamazaki, respectively  in the U.S. on Oct. 20. to discuss cooperation against North Korea's increasing threats.







While North Korea's nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) targeting the U.S. mainland have been the focus of international attention, it has been demonstrating other types of weapons recently, including a submarine-launched ballistic missile, in an apparent bid to expand its arsenal and ratchet up the threat level.







Analysts warn that the war in Ukraine and the intensifying rivalry between Washington and Beijing have created a favorable environment for Pyongyang to develop its latest weapons with little or no concern about the consequences. They also say the North will likely conduct ICBM and nuclear weapons tests in the coming months.







Some experts believe North Korea has refrained from conducting tests on nuclear weapons and ICBMs because of the National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, scheduled to open on Oct. 16. It is an important event for President Xi Jinping, who is seeking to secure a precedent-breaking third term there. Once it is over sometime next week, North Korea is expected to demonstrate more serious threats, including possibly its first nuclear weapons test since 2017, according to the experts.







"I think it is all but certain that North Korea will not only test a nuclear weapon after China's National Congress but will also test an ICBM and more missiles in the weeks ahead," Harry Kazianis, president of the think tank, Rogue States Project, told The Korea Times.







"The reasons for North Korea's boldness is simple: It has no reason to hold back anymore. It knows the Biden administration had no way to punish North Korea without some form of Chinese or Russian help  And they have no incentive to help  that means they likely won't even help enforce existing sanctions," he said.







Kazianis added the war in Ukraine and rising tensions surrounding Taiwan have soured any chances of help from the two most important allies of North Korea.







"Both nations have large problems with Washington and see no reason to be willing to do anything about North Korea. In fact, both nations love the fact that Washington will have to divert attention and resources away from them. So for Russia and China, the more tests that the Kim family does they see as a positive," he said.







North Korean leader Kim Jong-un smiles during his visit to Mangyongdae Revolutionary School in Pyongyang, Wednesday, in this file photo released Thursday by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap





Cheong Seong-chang, director of the Center for North Korean Studies at the Sejong Institute, agrees. But considering the dates on which the North conducted nuclear weapons tests in the past, he believes its next test won't take place until early next year.







"Given that there are no major political events planned for November or December, my best guess is that it will conduct its nuclear weapons test around the birthday of Kim (believed to be Jan. 8) or his father Kim Jong-il (Feb. 16)," he said.







This year, North Korea has fired more than 40 ballistic and cruise missiles in more than 20 launch events at an unprecedented pace. China and Russia, permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, have rejected U.S.-led proposals to impose additional sanctions on the North.










Jamie Lee Curtis wasn't in the mood for Sunrise showbiz correspondent Steve Hargrave on Thursday morning.

The American-born A-lister, 63, spoke to the breakfast program to promote her latest screamfest, Halloween Ends, and was left less than impressed by his corny gags.

Famed for her roles in horror flicks, Steve began the segment by giving the scream queen a 'proper Halloween intro' playing the franchise's famous theme on a mini keyboard.

Jamie Lee Curtis (left) wasn't in the mood for Sunrise showbiz correspondent Steve Hargrave (right) on Thursday morning. The American-born A-lister, 63, spoke to the breakfast program to promote her latest screamfest, Halloween Ends, and was left less than impressed by his corny gags.

But despite his best efforts, the Hollywood legend quickly snapped back.

'That was a fail,' she said after Steve messed up a few notes, adding: 'That was a complete fail'.

Steve explained he'd been 'practising for days' before trying to scare her with spooky sound effects.

He attempted to trick her into believing someone had broken into her house, before he put on a Michael Myers mask from the film Halloween.

Famed for her roles in horror flicks, Steve began the segment by giving the scream queen a 'proper Halloween intro' playing the film series famous theme on a mini keyboard. Pictured at her Hollywood walk of fame hand and footprint ceremony in LA

Jamie made her feature film debut playing teenage babysitter Laurie Strode in John Carpenter's seminal slasher film Halloween. She's again reprising the role in Halloween Ends (pictured)

But clearly an old pro, the mother-of-two calmly said 'oh boy' before revealing she's not scared at all.

'Yeah, you know what, darling? Let me just say this. You know, it's gone a little [The mask] actually looks kind of silly on you. It's not scary to me at all.

'Michael has no personality. He's not like this cute dude with a beard and earpods sticking out of his ears with a really sad little music maker. He's a monster, and you're not a monster,' she added.

Steve then asked if he should 'stick to his day job' to which Jamie responded: 'Without question - because apparently, you're good at it!'

Curtis originated the role of babysitter Laurie Strode, who becomes the the target of Myers' killing sprees

Jamie made her feature film debut playing teenage babysitter Laurie Strode in John Carpenter's seminal slasher film Halloween.

After Jamie left, Steve chatted to fellow Sunrise star Edwina Bartholomew.

'Steve, you tried to scare her, the unscareable woman - she wasn't having a bar of it?' Eddy asked.

'I get used to scaring people with this face, I can't help it,' he joked.

Iconic: The decades-long franchise began in 1978 with John Carpenter's iconic film Halloween, which gave fear-stricken audiences their first look at the infamous Michael Myers. Curtis (pictured) originated the role of babysitter Laurie Strode, who becomes the the target of Myers' killing sprees

Final chapter: Halloween Ends is the final chapter in the David Gordon Green-directed trilogy that kicked off in 2018 with Halloween. The sequel Halloween Kills was released in 2021

'She is also someone who loves to take the mickey. Every time I've interviewed her she keeps you on your toes. This time was no different, it's called Halloween Ends, as you say, so I knew this interview was going to be a very spooky experience.'

The clip the went viral on social media, with many viewers cringing at the 'awkwardness' of the encounter.

'Thought she was a bit nasty really,' one person wrote.

'She's bloody rude!' added another.

'It was uneasy viewing. Never seen her act like that before,' one person commented.

'Thought she had a better sense of humour than that!' commented another.

Big return: Fans were delighted when Curtis signed on to head Gordon Green's Halloween trilogy as an older Laurie Strode, who has her sights set on ending Myers' bloodbath for good

Halloween Ends is the final chapter in the David Gordon Green-directed trilogy that kicked off in 2018 with Halloween. The sequel Halloween Kills was released in 2021.

It's part of a decades-long franchise that began back in 1978 with John Carpenter's iconic film Halloween, which gave fear-stricken audiences their first look at the infamous Michael Myers.

Curtis originated the role of babysitter Laurie Strode, who becomes the the target of Myers' killing sprees.
She is due to give birth any day now to her first child with boyfriend Jake Ankers.

And Charlotte Crosby enjoyed her last date night with her beau at Hutong in The Shard on Wednesday night before welcoming her little one.

The Geordie Shore star, 32, showed off her blossoming baby bump in a stylish light blue dress as she sat on Jake's knee for a sweet couples photo.

Expecting: Pregnant Charlotte Crosby enjoyed her last date night with her beau Jake Ankers at Hutong in The Shard on Wednesday night days before welcoming her little one

She completed her look with nude heels and wore her honey tresses in a bouncy blow dry while opting for a glamorous makeup look.

'OUR VERY LAST DATE NIGHT BEFORE PARENTHOOD,' Charlotte captioned the post. 'Can I have appreciation for the heels please.

'39 weeks and literally still in the heels. What a gorgeous surprise, thank you Jake for just absolutely everything. I love you so much.

Pregnant: The Geordie Shore star, 32, showed off her blossoming baby bump in a stylish light blue dress for the evening out

Out and about: 'OUR VERY LAST DATE NIGHT BEFORE PARENTHOOD,' Charlotte captioned the post. 'Can I have appreciation for the heels please!'

'Ready for this next adventure/ chapter with you and our baba! We gonna be the little A team with such an amazing man by our sides.'

Charlotte added on her Instagram Story: 'We are on our final date night and it's so romantic.

'It literally feels like we are minutes away from having our daughter, all of our friends and family have been trying to guess the weight.'

It comes after last month Charlotte revealed she's planning to welcome her baby by C-section over a natural birth, since her ectopic pregnancy in 2016 has left her with PTSD.

Dapper: Charlotte also snapped a picture of Jake as they sat at the restaurant and picked their food

The reality star told new! magazine: 'I've never really been keen to push a baby out of my vagina. I'm too scared to have a natural birth.

'There's always been something scary about it for me and when I had the ectopic pregnancy [in 2016] it scared me even more.

'Because I went through that horrendous time where I almost died, I know how things can go drastically wrong.'

Charlotte recently admitted she hasn't forgiven ex Gary Beadle after she went through the ectopic pregnancy alone while he was filming Ex On The Beach.

In 2016, while the television personality was going through the traumatic experience, Gary, now 34, was out in Thailand filming the reality show where he slept with Jemma Lucy and also had a threesome.

As a result of the ectopic pregnancy, Charlotte's fallopian tube had ruptured and was releasing toxins into her body.

Happy couple: TV star Charlotte is due to give birth in the coming days (pictured with boyfriend Jake)

Charlotte is just weeks away from giving birth to her first child with her boyfriend Jake.

Jake and Charlotte decided to start trying to get pregnant in December last year, not long after they started dating.

Speaking on her Charlotte Crosby Always On podcast, she said: 'At this age there's not really wasting any time. January came around and I got my period and it was a really sad day. I just cried, I cried and cried on the toilet. I told Jake and he was really gutted about it.'

The couple then decided to stop trying, realising it was quite soon into their romance to welcome a child, and bought ovulation sticks to refrain from having sex on her fertile days.

But then in February on Valentine's Day, Charlotte found it strange when she wasn't in the mood to drink or have sex during a surprise romantic getaway to a swanky London hotel. And then her period was late.

Charlotte recalled: 'Lo and behold I was pregnant. Obviously I was over the moon but I was shocked and I was scared. I was like 'uh oh' and went into this state of panic.

'Am I gonna be a good mother? My whole body is about to change. My whole life is about to change? Will this change our relationship? My whole freedom's gone, my life's gone... All of a sudden I'm freaking out.'

Candid: It comes after last month Charlotte revealed she's planning to welcome her baby by C-section over a natural birth, since her ectopic pregnancy in 2016 has left her with PTSD
Acclaimed actress Vanessa Redgrave received her damehood from the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace on Thursday.

Dame Vanessa, 85, is being recognised for services to drama.

The actress has been nominated for six Academy Awards during her career, winning the Oscar for best supporting actress in 1977 for her role in Julia, in which she starred alongside Jane Fonda.

Dame Vanessa said: 'I was thrilled when I heard that the Prince of Wales was doing the investitures today.

'He gave me my British Academy Fellowship in Covent Garden Opera House in 2010.'

'You don't compare going for an investiture at Buckingham Palace with any other achievement, whatever it is,' she continued. 'It is unique.'

Special day: Acclaimed actress Vanessa Redgrave received her damehood from the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace on Thursday

Family support: Dame Vanessa Redgrave (second right) alongside (L-R) daughter Joely Richardson, son Carlos Nero and his wife Jennifer Nero were all in attendance

When it was announced she was being made a dame in the New Year Honours, she said she was 'surprised and grateful to join this wondrous group of British artists whose work has inspired me and audiences the world over'.

As well as her acting career she has also been a tireless activist for a number of causes, including calling for better support for the cultural sector and joining protests in 2020 over plans to cut jobs following the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

She had her family in tow, including daughter Joely Richardson, son Carlos Nero and his wife Jennifer Nero.

The event comes after three generations of the legendary Redgrave acting dynasty turned out to the Roksanda SS23 show during Frieze London on Tuesday.

Acclaimed: The actress has been nominated for six Academy Awards during her career

She won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 1977 for her role in Julia, in which she starred alongside Jane Fonda, (pictured left)

Busy lady: As well as her acting career she has also been a tireless activist for a number of causes

Important: Vanessa has called for better support for the cultural sector and joining protests in 2020 over plans to cut jobs following the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic

Picture perfect: The family cut a fine figure as they posed on the steps of Buckingham Palace

Oscar-winning actress Vanessa was joined by her daughter Joely, 57, Richardson and granddaughter Daisy Bevan, 30, at the Serpentine Gallery for the fashion event.

Joely has previously admitted she was more of a daddy's girl and is proud of her late father, director Tony Richardson, who won an Oscar for the 1964 film Tom Jones.

He divorced Vanessa in 1967 and later revealed he was bisexual. He died of complications from AIDS in 1991 at 63.

The dynasty is one of the UK's most famous acting families, with Vanessa winning Oscar, Tony, Golden Globe and Emmy Awards throughout her career.

Congratulations: Meanwhile, Conservative former minister Dame Andrea Leadsom was honoured for political service at the Investitures

Meanwhile, Conservative former minister Dame Andrea Leadsom was honoured for political service at the Investitures.

The MP for South Northamptonshire, entered Parliament in 2010 after a 25-year career in banking and finance.

A prominent Brexiteer, the former business secretary resigned as leader of the House of Commons in 2019 amid a backlash against former prime minister Theresa May's Brexit plan.

Dame Andrea said she was 'deeply honoured' to be recognised when her damehood was announced in June last year, adding: 'It is an immense privilege to be recognised for service to politics.'
The two blonde beauties of Heart FM are known for their incredible sense of style.

And Thursday morning was no different as Amanda Holden and Ashley Roberts made Leicester Square pavements in London their runway as they leave another day of radio work.

Donning an all-grey ensemble to match the gloomy weather, 51-year-old Amanda looked sensationally chic in an autumnal high-neck midi dress.

All-grey ensemble: Donning an all-grey outfit to match the gloomy weather, 51-year-old Amanda Holden looked sensationally chic in an autumnal high-neck midi dress

Fashionista: Co-star and former Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts, 41, looked incredibly stylish in her oversized brown shirt and statement red asymmetrical leather paneled skirt

She kept warm with a pale grey chequered trench coat, finishing off with a pair of suede grey pointed court heels.

The TV personality held a white top-handle handbag and accessorised with a glamorous cat-eye sunglasses.

Blonde beauty Amanda wore her warm golden tresses in a light curl which framed her face perfectly.

Co-star and former Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts, 41, looked incredibly stylish in her oversized brown shirt and statement red asymmetrical leather paneled skirt.

Keeping warm: Amanda kept warm with a pale grey chequered trench coat, finishing off with a pair of suede grey pointed court heels and held a white top-handle handbag by Kate Spade

She held a statement red Bottega Veneta knotted bag on her arm, with a 1,700 price tag, which perfectly colour matched with her patent leather pointed heels.

She threw her blonde locks into a low messy bun and let her fringe run free on her model-like face, where she wore a sleek pair of trendy thin black sunglasses.

Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda took to her Instagram to share a behind-the-scenes look at her gorgeous autumnal outfit on Thursday.

Speaking to her 1.8million followers, Amanda said: 'Good morning, happy Thursday!

Super stylish: Ashley held a statement red Bottega Veneta knotted bag on her arm, with a 1,700 price tag, which perfectly colour matched with her patent leather pointed heels

Chic: She threw her blonde locks into a low messy bun, letting her statement outfit do all the talking as she walked through Leicester Square in London on Thursday

'I am in a really soft, snuggly wool dress from Reiss today - I just thought I wanted to wrap up as it looked a bit chilly out there this morning but no doubt I'll get out and I'll start sweating!'

Ashley also revealed where her stylish look was from in sexy mirror selfies at work.

She tagged her top from ASOS, Ganni skirt and Kurt Geiger heels which added some height to her svelte frame.

Behind the scenes: Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda took to her Instagram to share a behind-the-scenes look at her gorgeous autumnal outfit on Thursday

Svelte: Ashley also revealed where her stylish look was from in sexy mirror selfies. She tagged her top from ASOS, Ganni skirt and Kurt Geiger heels which added some height to her frame

The appearance comes after Amanda celebrated on Friday morning after successfully completing the gruelling Three Peaks Challenge live on her Heart Breakfast radio show.

The presenter popped champagne at the top of the UK's highest mountain Ben Nevis after having summited three peaks in total within 24 hours in a bid to to raise funds for Globals Make Some Noise.

Speaking after the difficult feat - which saw her climb the highest mountains of Wales, England and Scotland - an exhausted Amanda revealed that it was 'the hardest thing Ive ever done in my life!'
Victoria Beckham has made it clear that green is the colour of the season by wearing two dresses in the hue.

The 48-year-old designer wore a glorious one-shouldered form-fitting dress from her own collection and perspex heels to attend The Today Show in New York on Thursday.

And in the early hours. she was pictured leaving her hotel in another silk number which had a generous leg split going up the front after getting up at 5am to get ready.

Green really is the colour to be seen in! Glam Victoria Beckham showed off some skin as she sade a statement in TWO glorious dresses in NYC on Thursday, pictured left at The Today Show

The stylish number had a plunging neckline, in-built belt to cinch her in at the waist and suede cross over sections.

She boosted her height with nude and black heels and accessorised perfectly with dark shades and a matching green over-the-shoulder bag.

The brunette beauty wore her tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a glamorous and bronzed makeup look as she stepped out.

Looking good: The fashion designer, 48, showed off her impeccable sense of style in the sophisticated number which flaunted her toned and tanned legs

Strutting her stuff: The stylish number had a plunging neckline, in-built belt to cinch her in at the waist and suede cross over sections

Victoria shared a video of herself getting ready on social media, saying that her instant whitening waterline pencil was a godsend because she had been up since 5am.

She said: 'This pencil has saved me. I looked very tired because we had quite a long day yesterday.'

She then shared the moment her team struggled to get her microphone into her dress as she said: 'This used to happen to me all the time when I was singing.'

The sound man could then be heard laughing at the thought of her pop past.

Victoria said: 'Do you find that funny? Sound man finds that funny.'

Looking fine in lime: And while in The Today Show studios, she stood out wearing a brighter number from her eponymous line

Looking good: She wore her hair down and in loose waves as she posed for a couple of snaps

Perfect: Victoria enhanced her flawless complexion with a subtle makeup look

The outing comes after Victoria reached out to son Brooklyn and daughter-in-law Nicola Peltz with a heartfelt message after they squashed feud rumours earlier this month with a reunion with a reunion at her Paris Fashion Week show.

The fashion designer took to Instagram to share a picture of the couple alongside the message: 'I love you all so much', which Nicola went on to re-share.

Victoria also uploaded an image of her parents Jackie and Anthony Adams with the couple, with the star seemingly delighted to have things back on track with her loved ones.

It came just days after Brooklyn and Nicola attended Victoria's debut Paris Fashion Week show where they finally put to bed speculation that they had fallen out with the Spice Girl.

Elegant: She boosted her height with a pair of sling back stilettos with red toe caps

Who needs 8 hours sleep? Victoria shared how she got ready that morning as she promoted her beauty products - as she admitted she had been up since 5am

She said: 'This pencil has saved me. I looked very tired because we had quite a long day yesterday.'

She then shared the moment her team struggled to get her microphone into her dress as she said: 'This used to happen to me all the time when I was singing' as the sound man chuckled

Jaw-dropping: The fashion designer showed off her incredible figure in the fitted dress

Putting on a further united front, Victoria's gushing post featured Nicola and Brooklyn - as well as other family members - in the audience at her fashion show.

Victoria was seen chatting to her son Brooklyn outside her Paris Fashion Week show while Nicola socialised with Cruz's girlfriend Tana Holding as the family reunited following feud rumours.

The couple attended and arrived half an hour early to show their support, with 'lots of hugs' going on when they were all reunited for the first time since this summer, said a source in the room.

The look: She boosted her height with nude and black heels and accessorised perfectly with dark shades

Here she comes: Victoria oozed confidence as she arrived on Madison Avenue

Glowing: The brunette beauty wore her tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a glamorous and bronzed makeup look as she stepped out

And video footage taken outside the event shows Victoria laughing with her son Brooklyn, while Nicola socialised with Cruz's girlfriend Tana Holding and Harper Seven.

Victoria couldn't hold back her tears as she broke down while taking to the runway of her Paris Fashion Week debut show - reaching out to hug her husband David during the appearance.

Afterwards, the family got together to celebrate with cocktails, as a source said: 'There were a lot of smiles and a lot of love in the room, it was a lovely family atmosphere.'

Victoria posted the snap to her Instagram as she gushed over the support, penning: 'It's Paris baby!! I'm so grateful for my family, @BritishVogue and @VogueMagazine for always supporting me on this journey xx VB'.

Relaxed: Victoria placed her hands in her pockets as she strolled around the shops

Moving on: The outing comes after Victoria reached out to son Brooklyn and daughter-in-law Nicola Peltz with a heartfelt message after they squashed feud rumours earlier this month with a reunion with a reunion at her Paris Fashion Week show

The family appeared overjoyed to welcome Brooklyn and Nicola to the show, despite a media storm surrounding the feud between Nicola and her mother-in-law Victoria.

Reports of a feud between Victoria and Nicola were rife for weeks, with Brooklyn's wife adding fuel to the fire in a Grazia interview.

Claiming that she was 'blanked for days' by her mother-in-law during the design process of her wedding dress in the interview, the actress had reportedly enraged her in-laws by 'washing the family dirty linen in public'.

Oh dear: Reports of a feud between Victoria and Nicola were rife for weeks, with Brooklyn's wife adding fuel to the fire in a Grazia interview

Initially, rumours of a rift began as Nicola did not wear a Victoria Beckham wedding dress - which she claimed during the interview was her original plan, before being told the designer's atelier could not make her a dress.

In the bombshell Grazia interview, she revealed: 'We connected to start designing the dress, and then a few days went by and I didn't hear anything. Victoria called my mom and said her atelier couldn't make it.'

Doting husband Brooklyn made his position clear amid the family feud, telling the publication that Nicola is his 'number one priority' and that they 'have each other's back 100 per cent'.

Tense: The family appeared overjoyed to welcome Brooklyn and Nicola to the show, despite a media storm surrounding the feud between Nicola and her mother-in-law Victoria

But insiders said Nicola was pushing a 'false narrative', leaving Victoria 'bemused' as to why she keeps 'stoking the rumours of a feud' rather than shutting them down.

And Nicola telling her side of the story has led to even more family drama, with David defending his wife Victoria as he had a rare confrontation with son Brooklyn.

According to MailPlus writer Alison Boshoff, David told Brooklyn 'we don't do this in our family' as he 'lost his temper' with the budding chef.

Love: Doting husband Brooklyn made his position clear amid the family feud, telling the publication that Nicola is his 'number one priority'

Trouble: Initially, rumours of a rift began as Nicola did not wear a Victoria Beckham wedding dress
Lauren Goodger was pictured giving Dreamboys and Big Brother star Lotan Carter a kiss as she puts a brave face on weeks after her alleged assault by ex Charles Drury.

Former TOWIE star Lauren, 36, and Lotan, 33, were pictured at a garage in Chelmsford as the hunk stepped in to help her with her flat tyre.

A source told MailOnline: 'Lauren and Lotan are just friends and share the same management. He offered to help to change her tyre for her but they hadn't met before that.

Popular lady: Lauren Goodger gave Dreamboys hunk Lotan Carter a kiss after he supported her following 'assault' - weeks after she was linked to secret wealthy businessman

He put his arm around her as they posed for a picture - the pair are said to be just friends

'He has a girlfriend of two years and they have a child together, so they are nothing more than friends.'

Lauren was linked to a wealthy businessman last month but it's not known if they are still seeing one another.

Personal trainer Lotan, who is Louie Spence's nephew, appeared happy to be helping Lauren on the day and was seen carrying his little girl Willow in his arms.

Lauren had a big smile on her face as he put his arm around her. She looked lovely wearing a black top and burgundy leggings.

A source told MailOnline: 'Lauren and Lotan are just friends and share the same management. He offered to help to change her tyre for her but they hadn't met before that'

What a man! Lotan looked incredibly muscular as he helped change Lauren's tyre

Happy again? Lauren had a big smile on her face as he put his arm around her. She looked lovely wearing a black top and burgundy leggings

Love! Lauren was linked to a wealthy businessman last month but it's not known if they are still seeing one another - Lotan is in a two-year relationship

The reality star, who is mother to daughter Larose, 14 months, is said to be focusing on her mental health after daughter Lorena died minutes after her birth in July.

Lorena was born with two knots in her umbilical cord, tied around her neck and despite ten doctors fighting to save her, she passed away shortly after her birth.

Lauren was then allegedly assaulted on the day of her baby's funeral. Her boyfriend Charles, 25, was later arrested and bailed following the incident.

Tough time: The reality star, who is mother to daughter Larose, 14 months, is said to be focusing on her mental health after daughter Lorena died minutes after her birth in July.

Awful: She suffered further heartache following the death of her ex-boyfriend Jake McLean - who lost his life when his car plunged 70ft off a cliff in Turkey that same month

Support system: No doubt Lauren needs all her friends around her at this difficult time

She suffered further heartache following the death of her ex-boyfriend Jake McLean - who lost his life when his car plunged 70ft off a cliff in Turkey that same month.

Lauren recently took to social media to thank fans for their support.

She penned: 'Just want to say thank you to everyone for all the love & support in this horrendous terrible whirlwind in my life the last few weeks! I do read your messages thank you.

Her love: Lauren had her beloved daughter Larose in her arms at the time

Lauren recently took to social media to thank fans for their support. She penned: 'Just want to say thank you to everyone for all the love & support in this horrendous terrible whirlwind in my life the last few weeks! I do read your messages thank you'

Happier times: The former TOWIE star, 36, is moving on from her ex Charles Drury, 25, who allegedly attacked her - he was later arrested and bailed following the incident

"During this traumatic time I've lost but I've also gained some values in this awful heartbroken time  some new friends and become closer to my current ones & some family.

'It really has shown me who is meant to be in my life and I love each and every one one of you thank you.

' I only have a few and that's all I need and it's taught me some life long lessons however hard it's been.'
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Production for the sixth series of The Crown has moved to Mallorca, as the cast continue to shoot scenes replicating Princess Diana's final weeks.

Elizabeth Debicki, who plays the late Princess, was spotted filming on board a luxury yacht moored on the Spanish island, which is standing in for France, alongside her co-star Khalid Abdalla, who plays Dodi Fayed.

The Australian actress was dressed casually in loose-fit jeans and a grey vest as she was helped aboard the yacht before joking with crew members.

Lights, camera, action: Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana, was spotted filming scenes for The Crown on Thursday, on board a luxury yacht in Mallorca alongside her co-star Khalid Abdalla, who plays Dodi Fayed

Khalid meanwhile was in a white shirt and denim shorts as he carried a rucksack aboard, ready for another busy day on set.

Elizabeth was in great spirits, smiling as she was handed a life vest by a member of the yacht's crew before happily chatting with some production staff.

The Princess and Dodi were in a car crash while driving through the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris, France in August 1997 - dying later from sustained injuries during the accident.

Safety first: The Australian actress was dressed casually in loose-fit jeans and a grey vest as she was handed a life vest once aboard the yacht before joking with crew members

Off duty princess: A casually dressed Elizabeth was in great spirits, smiling as she was handed a life vest and chatting with the yacht's crew and production staff

Getaway: It's thought the Netflix show is currently shooting scenes portraying the month before Diana and Dodi's tragic accident, when Diana's sons famously joined their mother and her beau for a holiday

It's thought the Netflix show is currently shooting scenes portraying the month before the tragic accident, when Diana's sons famously joined their mother and her beau for a holiday.

Last month Rufus Kampa, 16, who plays a young Prince William and Will Powell, who takes on the role of Prince Harry were spotted on set in Mallorca, which stood in for Saint-Tropez, where the real couple stayed aboard a super-yacht owned by Dodis father Mohamed Al Fayed.

While he is not believed to feature in The Crown the half brother Dodi, Omar Fayed, previously spoke about his memories of holidaying with the Diana, her sons and Dodi.

Real life: Dodi and Princess Diana are pictured on their Saint Tropez holiday in 1997

Low-key appearance: Khalid meanwhile was in a white shirt and denim shorts as he carried a rucksack aboard, ready for another busy day on set

Shooting scenes: Mallorca is standing in for Diana and Dodi's holiday destination of Saint-Tropez

Family getaway: Last month Rufus Kampa, 16, who plays a young Prince William and Will Powell, who takes on the role of Prince Harry were spotted on set in Mallorca for more scenes

Memories: While he is not believed to feature in The Crown the half brother Dodi, Omar Fayed, previously spoke about his memories of holidaying with the Diana, her sons and Dodi

Happy times: Although he was just nine years old at the time of the trip, he recalled that spending time with Diana and her sons was 'delightful'

Although he was just nine years old at the time of the trip, he recalled that spending time with Diana and her sons was 'delightful' and the period surrounding their relationship had 'lovely family vibes'.

In an interview with Tatler last year, Omar said: 'I met Princess Diana a few times and Princes William and Harry. They came to my dad's house, too, and were super delightful.

'There were so many stories that came out of that period, but for the people who were in it, it was lovely family vibes.'

Final weeks: The real life couple are pictured on board Dodi's father's yacht in July 1997, just a month before they died

Finale: The sixth season of the show is its final, with the last two series covering the Royal Family in the 1990s to 2003, which includes Diana's death

In May 2020, Omar's father's yacht which had hosted the royals and Dodi was sold for 171,000, with some observers telling The Sunday Express that the bid was surprisingly low, sparking fears that the memory of Diana was 'fading'.

Royal author Margaret Holder, who penned Diana: The Caring Princess, a look at the Princess of Wales' life published in 1999, said she felt it was: 'a shame that this historic boat didn't attract a higher bid as a remarkable souvenir of the last days of Diana's life.'

The boat was used by Dodi as the venue for lavish parties in the South of France, mainly in St Tropez.

Back to work: The Crown resumed production on its sixth and final series last month in Barcelona after filming was paused for a single day following the death of Queen Elizabeth II

The sixth season of the show is its final, with the last two series covering the Royal Family in the 1990s to 2003, which includes Diana's death.

The Crown resumed production on its sixth and final series last month in Barcelona after filming was paused for a single day following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

Diana star Elizabeth was seen filming one of the late royals' final public appearances, when she visited the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo, just four days after work on the series was paused following the monarch's passing.

Lead star: Diana star Elizabeth was seen filming one of the late royals' final public appearances, when she visited the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo, just four days after work on the series was paused

Feeling good: Elizabeth made a couple of crew members laugh as they waited for the day's filming to commence

Huge production: The show has taken over a super yacht in Mallorca for the past few weeks of filming

No doubt The Crown is adhering to a strict filming schedule to ensure its sixth and final series is released by Netflix on time, having been pushed back by its day-long pause in the wake of The Queen's passing.

It was revealed that filming for The Crown been suspended for one day as a 'mark of respect to the late monarch', who passed away aged 96 on September 8 at Balmoral Castle.

Netflix had reportedly devised a plan, also named Operation London Bridge like the official funeral plan for the Queen, to outline what the production company for The Crown would do in the event of her passing.

One of the show's creators Stephen Daldry said when the show first premiered in 2016 the cast would likely stop production, saying: 'It would be a simple tribute and a mark of respect. She's a global figure and it's what we should do.'

Peter Morgan, writer of the drama, was quoted after news of the Queen's death was confirmed as saying: 'The Crown is a love letter to her and I've nothing to add for now, just silence and respect. I expect we will stop filming out of respect too.'

Feeling the heat? At one point the lead actress put a hand to her head as the sun shone down on the plush yacht
Geena Davis spoke out about actor Bill Murray, claiming that he insisted on using a massaging device on her during 'bad' audition in hotel suite, later screaming at on set.

And on Wednesday, the actress stepped out for the W Magazine 50th Anniversary presented By Lexus at Shun Lee in New York City.

The 66-year-old wowed in a plunging black and white dress featuring a sheer skirt for the event.

The latest: Geena Davis spoke out about actor Bill Murray, claiming that he insisted on using a massaging device on her during 'bad' audition in hotel suite, later screaming at on set. And on Wednesday, the actress stepped out for the W Magazine 50th Anniversary presented By Lexus at Shun Lee in New York City

The star sported a black and white low-cut dress that featured a bottom portion that was sheer.

Geena paired the number with sleek tresses, opting for a deep side part.

Her appearance at the W bash comes days after she called out actor Bill Murray for alleged inappropriate behavior on the set.

Geena detailed her unpleasant experiences working with Bill Murray on their 1990 crime comedy Quick Change in her memoir Dying Of Politeness.

Striking: The 66-year-old wowed in a plunging black and white dress featuring a sheer skirt for the event

The acting icon revealed on Friday to The Times of London how Murray allegedly created an uncomfortable atmosphere during her audition for the film, which he starred in and also co-directed with Howard Franklin.

She claimed that Murray, also screamed at her in front of 'hundreds' of people on set because she was allegedly late, though she says she was merely delayed by the wardrobe department.

According to a Times summary, '[Davis is] introduced to [Murray], she writes, in a hotel suite, where Murray greets her with something called The Thumper, a massage device he insists on using on her, despite her emphatically refusing.'

The concerning encounter was followed up by a more humiliating incident when the Royal Tenenbaums actor allegedly lost his temper while filming Quick Change.

'Later, while theyre filming on location, Murray tracks Davis down in her trailer and begins screaming at her for being late (shes waiting for her wardrobe), continues to scream at her as she hurries onto the set and even as she gets there, in front of hundreds of cast, crew, curious passers-by,' the publication added.

Looking great: The star sported a black and white low-cut dress that featured a bottom portion that was sheer

Chic: Geena paired the number with sleek tresses, opting for a deep side part

Strike a pose: Geena posed with Karlie Kloss and Lynn Hirschberg

'That was bad,' Davis said of her audition with Murray as she mused about how she might have handled the incident differently.

'The way he behaved at the first meeting I should have walked out of that or profoundly defended myself, in which case I wouldnt have got the part. I could have avoided that treatment if Id known how to react or what to do during the audition. But, you know, I was so non-confrontational that I just didnt...' she said.

However, she conceded that her words could be construed as victim blaming when it was pointed out to her.

'Ha. Point taken. Theres no point in regretting things, and yet, here I was regretting. And yes, exactly, it wasnt my fault,' she said.

Drama: The appearance came after Geena detailed her unpleasant experiences working with Bill on their 1990 crime comedy Quick Change in her memoir Dying Of Politeness

Earlier this week, it was claimed that Murray had paid a female staffer $100,000 after he kissed and straddled her on set, leading to the film being canned, according to Puck.

The 72-year-old comedian was working on Being Mortal earlier this year when he is said to have interacted with the unidentified woman.

Murray had been overly friendly and allegedly 'sexual' with one female production staffer - whose name has been kept anonymous, according to Puck.

The film: Davis pictured with co-star Bill Murray (L) and Randy Quaid (center) in their 1990 film Quick Change

The actor claims that he believed the woman had been flirting with him and at one stage, he and the woman were close to a bed.

It was then that he allegedly began kissing her body and straddling her, leaving her unable to move because of his weight on top of her.

Murray then moved in to kiss the woman on the mouth, although the pair were both wearing face masks, it is claimed. The alleged action took place in front of witnesses.

Murray immediately said his antics were meant to be playful but the woman saw it as sexual and was said to be horrified by what had occurred, according to Puck.

Allegations: The acting icon revealed on Friday to The Times of London how Murray allegedly created an uncomfortable atmosphere during her audition for the film, which he starred in and also co-directed with Howard Franklin; pictured February 2022

The woman immediately complained, with her allegations backed up by a second staffer who saw what happened, it is claimed.

The April incident on the set of the $20 million movie - controversial comedian Aziz Ansari's directorial debut - caused Disney to shut down production, and there's no indication as to whether the movie will ever be completed.

Searchlight suspended the production of the film, although the exact reasons were not detailed in an any company memo distributed to the crew.

It would be Aziz Ansari's directorial debut.

A source told Puck how Murray felt terrible over what had happened, particularly that fellow crew members lost their jobs as a result of the production halting.

Murray and the woman eventually reached a settlement with the actor paying her just over $100,000 in exchange for complete confidentiality as part of a non-disclosure agreement, Puck reported.

Film: The 72-year-old actor had the complaint filed against him in the spring before new film Being Mortal (pictured, the book its based on) was temporarily shelved, it was claimed

The woman is also said to have waived any rights to legal claims she might have been able to make against the producers, including Searchlight and Disney.

Speaking on CNBC in April, Murray was coy with the details when he was asked what happened.

'I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn't taken that way. As of now we are talking and we are trying to make peace with each other,' Murray said.

'We are both professionals, we like each others' work, we like each other I think and if we can't really get along and trust each other there's no point in going further working together or making the movie as well. It's been quite an education for me.

'The world's different than it was when I was a little kid,' he added. 'Things change, times change.'
The big screen adaptation of Matilda The Musical arrives in cinemas on November 25 and ahead of the anticipated release, a new trailer has been unveiled.

Newcomer Alisha Weir stars alongside screen legend Emma Thompson in the movie version of the Tony and Olivier award-winning musical.

The brand new teaser shows the young actress standing up to Miss Trunchbull (Thompson) after witnessing the horrors of her new school Crunchem Hall.

Coming soon: The big screen adaptation of Matilda The Musical arrives in cinemas on November 25 and ahead of the anticipated release, a new trailer has been unveiled

The trailer opens with Matilda on her way to her first day of school as the voiceover sets the scene with the words:

'Once upon a time there was a little girl who was trapped. this is the story of her great escape.'

The eager schoolgirl is then seen meeting her teacher Miss Honey (played by Lashana Lynch and shocking her with her intellect.

'What I really like is reading, it's like a holiday in your head,' she tells Miss Honey.

Unrecognisable: Newcomer Alisha Weir stars alongside screen legend Emma Thompson in the movie version of the Tony and Olivier award-winning musical

Another force for good in the tale, the story-loving librarian Mrs. Phelps (Sindhu Vee) exclaims: 'Your mind Matilda! Your parents must think they won the lottery with a child like you.'

'Oh yeah they just love me at home,' replies Matilda sarcastically, before she's seen eagerly trying to tell her mum, played by Andrea Riseborough, about her first day of school, only to be met with disdain.

'Yuck I'd rather eat vegetables,' her mum tells her.

The mischievous Matilda is then seen thinking up small and cheeky acts of rebellion and revenge against her parents with hilarious results.

Star: The trailer opens with Matilda on her way to her first day school as the voiceover sets the scene with the words: 'Once upon a time there was a little girl who was trapped'

Force for good: The eager schoolgirl is then seen meeting her teacher Miss Honey (played by Lashana Lynch) and shocking her with her intellect

Family: She's seen eagerly trying to tell her mum, played by Andrea Riseborough, about her first day of school, only to be met with disdain

The drama then moves to Crunchem Hall where Matilda is warned about the villainous Miss Truchbull.

Emma Thompson makes a big entrance in the trailer, telling Matilda: 'I like troublemakers Wormwood, they make such a lovely sound when they snap,' before flinging a child by her hair across the playground.

Miss Honey is adamant that Matilda should be 'be very careful,' warning her 'Miss Trunchbull she's dangerous,' only for Matilda to declare 'So am I'.

Rebel: The mischievous Matilda is seen thinking up small and cheeky acts of rebellion and revenge against her parents with hilarious results

School days: The drama then moves to Crunchem Hall where Matilda is warned about the villainous Miss Truchbull

Skills: Matilda shocks Miss Honey with her extraordinary powers in more scenes from the trailer

Directed by Tony Award-winning director Matthew Warchus (Matilda The Musical), the film is produced by Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan for Working Title, Jon Finn (Billy Elliot), and Luke Kelly of The Roald Dahl Story Company.

Screenwriter Dennis Kelly adapts the Royal Shakespeare Companys production for the big screen, with original music and lyrics by Tim Minchin.

The musical became an instant hit when it opened at the RSCs Courtyard Theatre in Stratford in November 2010; after which it transferred to the Cambridge Theatre in London.

Roald Dahls Matilda The Musical will be released in cinemas across the UK & Ireland by Sony Pictures UK on 25 November 2022. It will be released on Netflix UK in Summer 2023

Villain: Emma Thompson makes a big entrance in the trailer, telling Matilda: 'I like troublemakers Wormwood, they make such a lovely sound when they snap,'

Careful: Miss Honey is adamant that Matilda should be 'be very careful,' warning her 'Miss Trunchbull she's dangerous,' only for Matilda to declare 'So am I'
John Cleese stepped out for dinner in Chelsea on Wednesday night after Graham Norton took aim at him for speaking out against cancel culture.

The Monty Python star, 82, looked downcast for the outing after presenter Graham, 59, branded him a 'man of a certain age' who is 'now suddenly facing accountability'.

BBC talk show host Graham said free speech is not 'consequence free' and that 'cancel' culture was the 'wrong word' to use - instead saying it should be 'accountability'.

Outing: John Cleese stepped out for dinner in Chelsea on Wednesday night after Graham Norton took aim at him for speaking out against cancel culture

John cut a casual figure for his outing in a black coat, grey cable knit jumper and dark jeans as he headed to Manicomio restaurant.

He completed his dinner look with a blue cap and had on comfortable black trainers.

Norton took a swipe at the Fawlty Towers star on Wednesday describing him as a 'man of a certain age' who has said 'whatever he likes for years' and is now being held accountable.

Having his say: The Monty Python star, 82, looked downcast for the outing after presenter Graham, 57, branded him a 'man of a certain age' who is 'now suddenly facing accountability'

Talking about 'cancel' culture at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, he said, as reported by the Telegraph: 'The word is the wrong word. I think the word should be ''accountability''.

'John Cleese has been very public recently about complaining about what you can't say.

'It must be very hard to be a man of a certain age who's been able to say whatever he likes for years, and now suddenly there's some accountability.'

Taking aim: BBC talk show host Graham said free speech is not 'consequence free' and that 'cancel' culture was the 'wrong word' to use - instead saying it should be 'accountability'

He continued: 'It's free speech, but not consequence free. I'm aware of the things I say.'

Cancel culture refers to the 'cancelling' of people, brands and other pop culture such as movies and shows over what some deem to be offensive.

The 'cancelling' can be in the form of taking someone off television to revoking sponsorship deals, boycotting products and on social media.

It comes as Monty Python legend Cleese recently told the BBC he would never work for them again  because the broadcaster would 'cancel' him in five minutes.

Outfit: John cut a casual figure for his outing in a black coat, grey cable knit jumper and dark jeans as he headed to Manicomio restaurant

Cleese said he would turn down any overtures from the corporation because he believed it would either censor or axe him almost immediately.

The Fawlty Towers creator was speaking to the BBC on Radio 4's Today programme when he was making the remarks.

He said: 'The BBC have not come to me and said would you like to have some one hour shows, and if they did I would say ''not on your nelly''.

'I wouldn't get five minutes into the first show before I would be cancelled or censored.'

Stepping out: He completed his dinner look with a blue cap and had on comfortable black trainers

Cleese, who is an outspoken critic of woke culture, is joining GB News to present a show alongside comedian Andrew Doyle.

It is understood it will be in a discussion format looking at issues including 'wokery' and 'cancel culture' as well as free speech.

When questioned about his thoughts on the limits of free speech he told presenter Amol Rajan: 'Somebody once said to me: 'Everyone's in favour of free speech, particularly for the ideas that they like.''

Criticism: Norton took a swipe at the Fawlty Towers star on Wednesday describing him as a 'man of a certain age' who has said 'whatever he likes for years' and is now being held accountable

Then responding to whether free speech should extend to those spreading opinions and misinformation about public health matters, he added: 'If there's a factual response to something like that, then that should be made.

'That's the job, to put the facts out there, and then to have opinions slightly separate and have a proper argument about it, but not to try to avoid a public debate and then try and get yourself through [on] social media.'

In July, Cleese slammed woke culture for having a 'disastrous' effect on comedy.

Opinions: Talking about 'cancel' culture at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, he said, as reported by the Telegraph : 'The word is the wrong word. I think the word should be ''accountability''

Bold: The Monty Python legend, pictured at the Social Democratic Party Conference in Manchester on Saturday, recently said he would turn down a return to the BBC if they asked him

He told FreedomFest in Las Vegas that he does not believe comedians have the freedom to be funny any more, blasting today's cancel culture as the 'death of creativity'.

Cleese said: 'I think it's particularly worrying at the moment because you can only create in an atmosphere of freedom, where you're not checking everything you say critically before you move on.

'A lot of comedians now are sitting there and when they think of something, they say something like, 'Can I get away with it? I don't think so. So and so got into trouble, and he said that, oh, she said that.' You see what I mean? And that's the death of creativity.'




Korea's Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun met with Lithuania's Ambassador to Korea Ricardas Slepavicius on Thursday and discussed ways to boost bilateral trade and investment, the industry ministry said.







During the talks in Seoul, the two sides also discussed signing a memorandum of understanding regarding the cooperation of various industry fields, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.







The two nations have sought deeper industry ties, particularly in advanced and innovative sectors, such as the bio and laser fields.







Ahn also asked for the European nation's support for Korea's bid to host the World Expo in the southeastern port city of Busan in 2030, the ministry added.







Lithuania opened its embassy in Seoul last year. Before then, Lithuania had been represented by its embassy in China. (Yonhap)


Chip and Joanna Gaines have released the first official trailer for their new show called Fixer Upper: Welcome Home  The Castle.

Premiering Friday, October 14 on discovery+, HBO Max and the couple's own Magnolia Network, the limited series will document their renovation of a 100-year-old estate in their native Waco, Texas.

Known as Cottonland Castle, the local landmark is the main event as the Fixer Upper stars aim to return this historic property to its former glory across eight episodes.

New: Chip and Joanna Gaines have released the first official trailer for their new show called Fixer Upper: Welcome Home  The Castle

Cottonland Castle: Built in 1913, the landmark property in Waco, Texas provided the Fixer Uppers with their latest challenge

'This castle is one of the most impressive properties in the entire Waco, Central Texas area,' Chip declares in the trailer. 'I've wanted it for two decades.'

Chip and Joanna's passion for the historic castle is soon put to the test as the scale of their project becomes clear. 'This is a way bigger renovation than we anticipated,' confesses Joanna. 'Zero steps forward, twelve steps back,' is how Chip describes the process at one point.

The renovation looks to be a massive undertaking for the powerhouse pair, with Magnolia's Chief Branding Officer, Kate Barton, previously deeming it the 'most challenging restoration project Chip, Joanna and team have ever completed.'

On the set: He wore plaid and she had on a cap as they were seen outside the castle

Big: Chip and Joanna's passion for the historic castle is soon put to the test as the scale of their project becomes clear. 'This is a way bigger renovation than we anticipated,' confesses Joanna. 'Zero steps forward, twelve steps back,' is how Chip describes the process at one point

Crumbling ceilings, water leaks, window mishaps and design problems abound in this first glimpse of the highly anticipated show. The most challenging aspect seems to be their goal of recapturing the 1913 property's authenticity.

'One of the biggest things is how do we make this feel as accurate to that time period as possible,' says Joanna, 44. 'Getting the same exact stone from 100 years ago has been a challenge.'

Apparently referring to the accurate restoration of an intricately tiled floor, Chip, 47, describes the challenge as 'such an exotic, elaborate puzzle' before lamenting the different lengths of flooring.

Fun and frustration: Joanna couldn't help but giggle as Chip described the maddening problems of installing her intricate window selections

But the couple's hard work seems to pay off as their vision starting taking shape. 'Wow,' gushes Chip near the end of the trailer. 'When we bought this place it was a figment of our imagination, but now this house is coming together.'

The Magnolia Founders keep their big reveal under wraps, but they do allow for a few glimpses of the final look to be shown in the trailer. Viewers can see a porcelain tub in one of the castle's beautifully appointed bathrooms while antique furnishings tastefully adorn a sampling of the many refurbished rooms.

This renovation is the fulfillment of a 20-year-old dream for the pair, who first met in 2001 before getting married in 2003. Writing in the winter 2019 issue of Magnolia Journal, the mother of five wrote, 'For nearly two decades, Chip watched and waited, persistently putting in offers whenever the castle was relisted.' She went on to commend her husband for seeing the property's 'beauty and potential,' ultimately crediting him with their design adventure that ends in success. 'We did it,' Joanna declares at the end of the trailer. Audiences will soon be able to tune in and see how they did for themselves.

Work it out: He has on a blue shirt and tie as she models a denim shirt

Out with the old, in with the new: Construction chaos ensued as the couple's team went to work ripping out what had to go and making way for Chip and Joanna's vision
Pregnant Daisy Lowe enjoyed a relaxing stroll in Primrose Hill, London, on Thursday.

The newly-engaged model, 33, who is expecting her first child with her property developer fiance Jordan Saul, bundled up in a coat, concealing her baby bump.

Just last week, the couple announced the news that they're starting a family.

Stepping out: Pregnant Daisy Lowe bundled up in a chic leopard print coat while enjoying a relaxing stroll in Primrose Hill on Thursday

Daisy wore a dark pair of leggings and a cropped red T-shirt underneath her eye-catching jacket.

Daisy, who is the daughter of Pearl Lowe and Gavin Rossdale, teamed the look with black combat boots.

She wore her dark locks out and around her shoulders and light makeup.

Chic: Daisy wore a dark pair of leggings and a cropped red T-shirt underneath her eye-catching jacket

All in the details: Daisy, who is the daughter of Pearl Lowe and Gavin Rossdale, teamed the look with black combat boots

She appeared in high spirits as she took her adorable pet pooch for a walk and at one point, chatted on the phone.

Last week, Daisy announced her pregnancy via Instagram as she posted a sweet snap of her blossoming bump - admitting 'Im oscillating wildly between excitement & nervousness'.

It came just weeks after she and Jordan announced their engagement to social media, with her beau Jordan popping the question after two years of dating.

Relaxed: She wore her dark locks out and around her shoulders and light makeup

Happy news: Last week, Daisy announced her pregnancy via Instagram

Smitten: Daisy is property developer fiance Jordan Saul

Taking to Instagram to reveal the news to her 403k followers, Daisy penned: 'I wanted to share some news with you - Jordan & I are having a baby.

'We are absolutely bursting at the seams with happiness. Im oscillating wildly between excitement & nervousness with a dash of morning sickness thrown in for good measure! Big love to all of you'.

And in the snap, the beauty cradled her bump while sporting a figure-hugging slip dress - as the camera caught her stunning side profile.

'We are absolutely bursting at the seams with happiness. Im oscillating wildly between excitement & nervousness with a dash of morning sickness thrown in for good measure! Big love to all of you'

Daisy also shared an ultrasound baby scan picture in the post, as fans and friends rushed to the comments to congratulate the couple.

'The best news! Congrats x', wrote Dermot O'Leary, as stars such as Clara Amfo, Zoe Ball and Jessie J all took to the comments to offer their well wishes.

Daisy is daughter to Bush guitarist Gavin Rossdale and fashion designer Pearl Lowe.
Euphoria star Sydney Sweeney flaunted her God-given assets in a La Perla bra and matching Fendi faux fur coat in a new fashion spread shot by Sharif Hamza.

'I have terrible stage fright,' the Spokane-born, LA-raised 25-year-old confessed in her ELLE cover story.

'So I wish someone would've told me how much, as Sydney, I would have to speak, because I feel safer in my characters.'

Glam: Euphoria star Sydney Sweeney flaunted her God-given assets in a La Perla bra and matching Fendi faux fur coat in a new fashion spread shot by Sharif Hamza

For the Women in Hollywood issue, Sydney wore daring designer clothing selected by stylist Alex White.

Hairstylist Hos Hounkpatin coiffed Sweeney's ombre blonde locks for the shoot and make-up artist Melissa Hernandez brought out her natural beauty.

The two-time Emmy nominee is the newest member of the Marvel Comic Universe/Sony Spider-Man Universe, and she's currently in Manhattan filming a mystery role in S.J. Clarkson's Madame Web, which Sony Pictures won't release until February 16, 2024.

'I fought for the character,' Sydney - who's practiced mixed martial arts since middle school - cryptically noted.

The Spokane-born, LA-raised 25-year-old confessed in her ELLE cover story: 'I have terrible stage fright. So I wish someone would've told me how much, as Sydney, I would have to speak, because I feel safer in my characters'

Leggy lady: For the Women in Hollywood issue, Sydney wore daring designer clothing selected by stylist Alex White

Ready for her close-up! Hairstylist Hos Hounkpatin coiffed Sweeney's ombre blonde locks for the shoot and make-up artist Melissa Hernandez brought out her natural beauty

'It's been a really incredible journey that I'm very, very excited to be a part of.'

On Tuesday, Sweeney was spotted for the first time on the Madame Web set wearing glasses, a red wig, and a schoolgirl-style costume while strutting alongside co-star Dakota Johnson in Grand Central Station.

But the in-demand Zoomer is best known for her role as Cassie Howard in Sam Levinson's critically-acclaimed teen drama Euphoria, which HBO renewed for a third season in February.

'It was like, "Cassie, no. Why?" Oh man, it was rough for Cassie,' Sydney said of the second season.

Action! The two-time Emmy nominee is the newest member of the Marvel Comic Universe, and she's currently in Manhattan filming a mystery role in S.J. Clarkson's (R, pictured Tuesday) Madame Web, which Sony Pictures won't release until February 16, 2024

Sydney - who's practiced mixed martial arts since middle school - cryptically noted: 'I fought for the character. It's been a really incredible journey that I'm very, very excited to be a part of'

Who could she be? On Tuesday, Sweeney was spotted for the first time on the Madame Web set wearing glasses, a red wig, and a schoolgirl-style costume while strutting alongside co-star Dakota Johnson (R) in Grand Central Station

'There was a moment when I was like, "How fast can this girl unwind?" But, as an actor, that's so fun to play. I love going to these insane places. So I kind of hope that next season I might be able to find some more insanity.'

Just like Cassie, Sweeney 'was highly sexualized in high school because I had boobs.'

'It's kind of funny: What was being said about Cassie in Euphoria, the public then decided to do to me in real life,' the SAG Award nominee noted.

'Which I thought was so crazy, because we were trying to show a character who was so hypersexualized, and what could have been the cause and effects for her. And they just continue to do it.'

More to come! But the in-demand Zoomer is best known for her role as Cassie Howard in Sam Levinson's critically-acclaimed teen drama Euphoria, which HBO renewed for a third season in February

Sydney said of season two: 'It was like, "Cassie, no. Why?" Oh man, it was rough for Cassie. There was a moment when I was like, "How fast can this girl unwind?" But, as an actor, that's so fun to play. I love going to these insane places. So I kind of hope that next season I might be able to find some more insanity'

'What was being said about Cassie in Euphoria, the public then decided to do to me in real life': Just like Cassie, Sweeney 'was highly sexualized in high school because I had boobs'

'It's important for every set to have one': The SAG Award nominee is grateful to be in an industry where there are intimacy coordinators like Amanda Blumenthal for her numerous sex scenes on the hit show (pictured with Jacob Elordi)

Sydney is grateful to be in an industry where there are intimacy coordinators like Amanda Blumenthal for her numerous sex scenes on the hit show.

'I've always felt comfortable with mine. They're very collaborative and very supportive. I think it's important for every set to have one,' Sweeney said.

The Fifty-Fifty Films founder has no intention of slowing down as in the past week, she signed on to executive produce and star in Sony Pictures' Barbarella reboot as well as Universal Pictures' The Caretaker.

'Time to save the universe!' Sweeney has no intention of slowing down as in the past week, she signed on to executive produce and star in Sony Pictures' Barbarella reboot as well as Universal Pictures' The Caretaker

Coming soon! But first, audiences can next catch the Fifty-Fifty Films founder as South Dakota waitress Penny Jo Poplin in Tony Tost's (M) indie action crime drama National Anthem, which is still in post production

'It means a lot that I'm playing characters that resonate with viewers, and characters that challenge me as an artist,' Sydney gushed.

'It's an amazing moment.'

But first, audiences can next catch Sweeney as South Dakota waitress Penny Jo Poplin in Tony Tost's indie action crime drama National Anthem, which is still in post production.
Cynthia Bailey insists infidelity played no role in her separation from estranged husband Mike Hill as she opened up about their split following nearly two years of marriage.

Speaking with People on Wednesday, Bailey said Hill, who previously landed at the center of cheating allegations but denied them, was never with another woman during their marriage.

The Real Housewives Of Atlanta alum, 55, also said the decision to separate was mutual, and that the two had simply outgrown one another.

'Mike never had sex with another woman during our marriage': Cynthia Bailey insists infidelity played no role in her separation from estranged husband Mike Hill as she opened up about their split following two years of marriage

'There was no infidelity to my knowledge. Mike never had sex with another woman during our marriage,' she told the magazine. 'At the end of the day, it just came down to a number of things. And I respect Mike and respect our marriage too much to go into the details of those things, but it was nothing scandalous, we just outgrew each other.'

Bailey and Hill realized they weren't as compatible as they initially thought once they moved in together after being bicoastal.

'People say all the time, "You don't really know someone until you life with them." And for us, our relationship was bicoastal for a long time. Once we were able to be with each other on a more consistent basis  and we started really, really getting to know each other  we realized we weren't as compatible as we thought we were,' she said. 'So we did something about it, simple as that.'

Bailey also insisted their separation was 'not a tragic ending for us' and that the two made the decision to part ways out of 'love and respect' for one another.

'I would do it 100 times over': Cynthia spoke glowingly of her ex, and insisted she did not regret their marriage while calling him her 'best friend'; pictured 2019

'This is not a tragic ending for us. This is two people who have enough love and respect for each other to be truthful about their relationship in terms of asking themselves, "Are we truly happy together? How do we want to move forward?" And then who were brave enough and loved one another enough to make that choice together,' she said.

Cynthia spoke glowingly of her ex, and insisted she did not regret their marriage while calling him her 'best friend.'

'I love Mike. I respect him. I honor our marriage. I have no regrets about marrying him, I would do it 100 times over,' she said. 'I've had an incredible marriage to Mike. Mike is my best friend. Friendship is the nucleus of a marriage. It's one thing to walk away from a marriage, it's another thing to walk away from a friend and I don't want to lose both. So it's very important to me that we keep our friendship intact.'

In a statement to People, Hill praised his ex and said they would remain friends: 'I love Cynthia and will always love her because she is a phenomenal woman and a beautiful person. Even though our relationship is ending, our friendship remains rock solid and for that I am grateful. ... I can smile knowing she'll always be there for me as I will be for her.'

Happier times: Bailey and her now estranged husband pictured during a shoot for Sophisticated Weddings

While Cynthia is still looking for love, she is staying open to what her next relationship looks like and is remaining focused on herself.

'Oh, Cynthia Bailey is still looking for love," the reality star said. 'I live for love. I'm always going to go for it. Until I get this thing right, I absolutely will never give up on love. And the right person for me, I'm never going to give up on him, because love is a beautiful thing and I deserve love just like everybody deserves love.'

'Now I don't know if that [love] looks like a marriage again,' she added. 'I don't know what it looks like  and to be honest, I can't try to plan for it because it'll come when it comes. So right now, the love I'm leaning into is self-love. I'm focused on myself and my heart and my career and all the things I want to do. The rest will come.'

Cynthia confirmed the end of her nearly two-year marriage to Mike on Wednesday morning, insisting they have remained 'good friends' since their split.

It's over! Bailey confirmed the end of her nearly two-year marriage to Hill on Wednesday morning, but insisted they have remained 'good friends' since their split; seen in 2021

In a statement, the Real Housewives of Atlanta alum told People that 'God does not make mistakes' and that she truly believes in her heart that Mike 'coming into' her 'life was destiny.'

'I jumped in, both feet first and gave it my all,' the reality star stated. 'Although that journey has come to an end, I am so grateful for our continued friendship, and the beautiful memories that we made together.'

She continued: 'God willing, I will find love again. Whatever is destined to be, will be; and I could not be more excited for my next chapter!'

'I pray my friends, family, and fans will continue to be along for the ride with me in this awesome thing we call 'life!' Thank you for your continued prayers, support, and well wishes,' the mother-of-one added.

Sad: In a statement, the Real Housewives of Atlanta alum, 55, told People that 'God does not make mistakes' and that she truly believes in her heart that Mike 'coming into' her 'life was destiny'; pictured doing a photo shoot for Sophisticated Weddings

Hill told the outlet: 'I love Cynthia and will always love her because she is a phenomenal woman and a beautiful person.'

'Even though our relationship is ending, our friendship remains rock solid and for that I am grateful,' he reflected. 'Honestly, we've been thinking about going our separate ways for the last few months, so it was good for us both to have that time to process it all privately and I can smile knowing she'll always be there for me as I will be for her.'

The former couple, who would have celebrated their second wedding anniversary over the weekend, first met while appearing on an episode of Steve Harvey's talk show in January 2018.

'I jumped in, both feet first and gave it my all,' the reality star stated. 'Although that journey has come to an end, I am so grateful for our continued friendship, and the beautiful memories that we made together'

Optimistic: She continued: 'God willing, I will find love again. Whatever is destined to be, will be; and I could not be more excited for my next chapter!'

Bailey was previously married from Peter Thomas from 2010 to 2017 and engaged to Leon Robinson, who is the father of her 22-year-old daughter Noelle.

In November 2021, the duo both denied claims that he cheated on the Real Housewives Of Atlanta alum by sending nude photos and videos to another person.

The exes dismissed the infidelity hearsay to TMZ, calling the gossip 'stupid' and 'not true.'

Short-lived romance: Bailey and Hill ended their marriage, two years after they wed at the Governors Towne Club in Acworth, Georgia, in front of 250 guests; seen in June 2022

At the time, a Twitter user claimed the sportscaster had sent nude photos and video to them via Snapchat, but the accuser's account went dark not long after.

Despite the gossip, Cynthia told the world they were doing 'great' while Mike shrugged when asked why people would make up such claims.

'Rumors are rumors,' Bailey added, before Hill said they would consider 'legal action' if the claims persist.

'We'll take care of it the way it's supposed to be taken care of,' he said, also telling TMZ he hopes the online accuser can 'get help.'

The drama began when a Twitter user claimed to have nude photos and video of Hill.

She posted screen recordings of his alleged Snapchat profile to the account, which also showed him typing to her on the app in another video, per Page Six.

First husband: Bailey was previously married from Peter Thomas (pictured) from 2010 to 2017

Then, things got graphic as they posted a side-by-side photo of a penis and a screenshot from Hill's Instagram Story that appeared to show him wearing the same clothing and sitting on the same chair.

The Twitter user has since deleted their account.

Bailey, who left The Real Housewives of Atlanta after 11 seasons, recently told Page Six she made her exit in order to 'protect' her marriage to Hill.

'After going through my divorce with my ex [Peter Thomas], I'm very protective of my second marriage because, you know, I really want it to work, and I want to do everything that I can to protect it and to protect Mike.
Paul Mescal cut a dapper figure as he attended the Aftersun UK premiere during the 66th BFI London Film Festival at the BFI Southbank on Thursday.

The actor, 26, wore a stylish brown pinstripe suit and a white T-shirt which he teamed with a pair of smart black shoes.

He accessorised with a gold chain as he posed on the red carpet alongside co-stars Frankie Corio and director Charlotte Wells.

In style: Paul Mescal. 26, cut a dapper figure as he attended the Aftersun UK Premiere during the 66th BFI London Film Festival at the BFI Southbank on Thursday

Paul, who plays the character of Calum in the drama, which is set for release in the UK on 18 November, could be seen smiling as he stood with his arm around the shoulder of Frankie, who plays Sophie.

The actress cut a casual figure in a blue denim jacket and a red skirt while she wore a pair of white trainers with a rainbow on the side.

Charlotte, who directed the film, looked smart in an all-black ensemble with an oversized velour shirt.

Looking good: The actor wore a stylish brown pinstripe suit and a white T-shirt as he posed on the red carpet

Cast: He accessorised with a gold chain as he posed on the red carpet alongside co-stars Frankie Corio (left) and Charlotte Wells(right)

Aftersun, written and directed by Charlotte, tells the story of a woman who reminisces about going on a childhood summer holiday to Turkey with her father, with the flick being shot on location in the country.

She has described the feature as 'emotionally autobiographical' as she sought to explore the relationship between a young daughter and her father.

The movie won the jury prize when it premiered during the 2022 Cannes Film Festival as part of International Critics' Week.

Dressed up: Charlotte, who directed the film, looked smart in an all-black ensemble with an oversized velour shirt

Telling the tale: Aftersun, written and directed by Charlotte Wells, tells the story of a woman who reminisces about going on a childhood summer holiday to Turkey with her father

Aftersun will be distributed in the UK and Europe, India, Latin America and the US.

Rotten Tomatoes' critics' consensus reads: 'Led by Frankie Corio's tremendous performance, deftly ushers audiences to the intersection between our memories of loved ones and who they really are.'

The movie will be released in the US on October 21 and in the UK on November 18.
Brian Austin Green joked about the pains of aging as he underwent platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections to prevent hair loss and new hair growth.

On Thursday, the Beverly Hills, 90210 star, 49, revealed the secret behind his full head of hair requires a few visits with Dr. Gabriel Chiu, who guest stars in Netflix's reality TV series Bling Empire alongside his wife Christine Chiu. Chiu, via Instagram.

'PRP treatment to help with hair loss. Im getting old @drchiubhps did an amazing job Thank you so much,' he captioned a picture with the plastic surgeon.

Hair help: Brian Austin Green joked about the pains of aging as he underwent platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections to prevent hair loss and new hair growth on Thursday

In addition to a photo of himself smiling next to Dr. Chiu, the father-of-five shared footage of himself receiving the PRP injections as he laid down with his eyes shut.

In the video, he can be seen chatting with his doctor during the procedure, which is a 'three-step medical treatment in which a persons blood is drawn, processed, and then injected into the scalp,' according to Healthline.

The outlet claims that some in the 'in the medical community think that PRP injections trigger natural hair growth and maintain it by increasing blood supply to the hair follicle and increasing the thickness of the hair shaft.'

Brave: In a new Instagram post, the Beverly Hills, 90210 star, 49, revealed the secret behind his full head of hair requires a few visits with Dr. Gabriel Chiu, who guest stars in Netflix's reality TV series Bling Empire alongside his wife Christine Chiu. Chiu

'PRP treatment to help with hair loss. Im getting old @drchiubhps did an amazing job Thank you so much,' he captioned a picture with the plastic surgeon

The renowned and board-certified surgeon's website explains the first step is a consultation with Dr. Chiu, who will address the client's hair loss concerns.'

Last week, Green celebrated his girlfriend and Dancing With the Stars pro Sharna Burgess became an American citizen after living in the United States for 12 years.

In June, the pair welcomed their first child together, a baby boy, who they named Zane.

Sharna's partner, actor Brian Austin Green, also attended the important event. The couple share a son, Zane, who they welcomed in June this year

Beverly Hills, 90210 star Brian was first linked with Sharna in 2020 after the two were set up by a mutual business friend. The actor opened up to People about their first meeting.

'On our first date, we just completely lost track of time and the same thing happened the next time. It became something noticeably different from anything I'd ever experienced before,' he revealed.

In 2021, the couple competed together on Dancing With The Stars and were eliminated after one month on the show.

Brian was first linked with Sharna in 2020 after the two were set up by a mutual business friend

After welcoming Zane earlier this year, Sharna announced on Instagram that she will be taking a break from professionally dancing on the competition show full time to focus on raising her new son.

Brian shares a son Kassius with his fellow Beverly Hills, 90210 cast member, Vanessa Marcil. The couple were engaged to be married, but ended their relationship in 2003.

One year later, he began to date actress Megan Fox after the two met on set of Hope & Faith. The two stars became engaged in 2006, but chose to end their engagement in 2009.

Brian was previously married to actress Megan Fox from 2010 until their divorce was finalized in 2021; seen together in 2019

However in 2010 the actors reconciled and said, 'I do,' that same year. After separating in 2020, their divorce was finalized in 2021. They share and currently co-parent their three sons, Noah, Bodhi, and Journey.

During an interview on The Viall Files podcast, Sharna expressed how well both Brian and Megan put their children first, despite their divorce. 'Something I respect so much about Brian and Megan is the way these kids are No. 1 at all times.

'Their communication, they're making priority and time for them. They're making sure they are loved and they have as much consistency as they can,' the dancer added.

'It keeps them so balanced and these kids have handled the last few years so amazingly because of that. It's really, really beautiful to see and it's a huge credit to them.'
Golden Globe winner Awkwafina was completely covered in dirt and leaves while filming a forest scene in New York City on Thursday for the third season of Comedy Central's Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens.

The 34-year-old rapper-turned-actress cracked a smile in her bizarre costume of a long-sleeved floral top, white sweatpants, black slides, and a crumpled fascinator in her frizzed-out hair.

Awkwafina (born Nora Lum) doesn't just play a thinly-veiled version of herself in the comedy show, she co-created it with showrunner Teresa Hsiao back in 2018.

Mess! Golden Globe winner Awkwafina was completely covered in dirt and leaves while filming a forest scene in New York City on Thursday for the third season of Comedy Central's Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens

On Wednesday night, SAG Award winner Jennifer Esposito - who plays Brenda - shared a selfie video from the set of Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens.

In it, the 49-year-old Brooklyn native - who used to be married to Bradley Cooper - pretended to punch her onscreen love interest BD Wong as his stretcher was being loaded on to the back of an ambulance.

'Acting is not easy work,' Jennifer captioned her Instagram post.

What happened? The 34-year-old rapper-turned-actress cracked a smile in her bizarre costume of a long-sleeved floral top, white sweatpants, black slides, and a crumpled fascinator in her frizzed-out hair

HBIC: Awkwafina (born Nora Lum) doesn't just play a thinly-veiled version of herself in the comedy show, she co-created it with showrunner Teresa Hsiao back in 2018

'Sometimes you must handle the situation. @wongbd this should teach you. @norafromqueens who is Brenda really?'

And on September 13, the 61-year-old Emmy nominee - who plays Nora's father Wally - shared his first 'season three selfie' alongside his onscreen mother, Lori Tan Chinn, who plays Nora's grandmother.

The semi-autobiographical Asian-American series also features SNL star Bowen Yang, Pitch Perfect's Chrissie Fit, and rapper Jon 'Dumbfoundead' Park.

BTS: On Wednesday night, SAG Award winner Jennifer Esposito - who plays Brenda - shared a selfie video from the set of Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens

Season three is hazardous! In it, the 49-year-old Brooklyn native (R) - who used to be married to Bradley Cooper - pretended to punch her onscreen love interest BD Wong (L) as his stretcher was being loaded on to the back of an ambulance

Jennifer captioned her Instagram post: 'Acting is not easy work. Sometimes you must handle the situation. @wongbd this should teach you. @norafromqueens who is Brenda really?'

But first, you can catch The Bad Guys star as traffic cop Rebecca Quincy who falls for Nicolas Cage's Count Dracula in Chris McKay's horror-comedy Renfield, which Universal Pictures will release on April 14.

Awkwafina first found fame in 2012 when her My Vag music video went viral on YouTube, but it also got her fired from a her job at an unnamed office company.

The daughter of a South Korean immigrant mother and a Chinese-American father has since been accused of cultural appropriation for her 'blaccent.'

'#wallyandgrandma': And on September 13, the 61-year-old Emmy nominee - who plays Nora's father Wally - shared his first 'season three selfie' alongside his onscreen mother, Lori Tan Chinn, who plays Nora's grandmother
Jennifer Lawrence was seen on the Montauk, New York set of her new movie No Hard Feelings on Thursday.

The Oscar-winning beauty had a youthful appearance as she had a fresh tan while wearing a light blue floral print shirt with a frayed denim mini skirt and Chuck Taylor Converse sneakers while exiting a building.

The 32-year-old star was shooting a scene with two of her male costars. One was was Andrew Feldman whom she held hands with and the other was Kyle Mooney.

Hot stuff: Jennifer Lawrence was seen on the Montauk, New York set of her new movie No Hard Feelings on Thursday

Cute look: The Oscar-winning beauty had a youthful appearance as she had a fresh tan while wearing a light blue floral print shirt with a frayed denim mini skirt

Lawrence's character smiled as she seemed to be in a sunny mood.

Her costar Andrew seemed more interested in his snack that he took bites out of than he did in his lady friend.

Andrew had on a white and gray striped shirt with beige shorts, blue socks and blue sneakers.

She has been shooting the movie in the Hamptons neighborhood of Long Island, New York for the past several weeks.

An official description of the film has not yet been released.

But Vogue describes the R-rated romp as 'a Harold and Maudetype comedy based on a Craigslist ad in which a mom was seeking someone to date her son before he went to college.'

Could it be love? The 32-year-old star was shooting a scene with was was Andrew Feldman whom she held hands with

Happy with this man: Lawrence's character smiled as she seemed to be in a sunny mood

Hungry? Her costar Andrew seemed more interested in his snack that he took bites out of than he did in his lady friend

The American Hustle star serves as a producer on the project, which the production company calls an 'R-rated comedy with a heart.'

She was signed onto the movie one year ago, with Deadline breaking the announcement at the time.

Gene Stupnitsky, who introduced Jennifer to her husband Cooke Maroney, 38, co-wrote the script and is directing.

Thanks to that introduction and her subsequent marriage in October 2019, the Silver Linings Playbook star is now a working mother.

Casual boy: Andrew had on a white and gray striped shirt with beige shorts, blue socks and blue sneakers

New York days: She has been shooting the movie in the Hamptons neighborhood of Long Island, New York for the past several weeks

The happy couple welcomed their son, Cy, in February.

The on-set sighting comes after Lawrence, sometimes referred to by fans as JLaw, recently admitted she felt like a 'commodity' following her role in Hunger Games.

'When I reflect now, I cant think of those following years, [because there was] just a loss of control,' the actress revealed.

The dorky dude gets the cute gal: She seemed to be out of his league

Another star: They were also seen with, far right, Kyle James Kozub Mooney is an American actor, comedian, and writer, who was a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 2013 until 2022

She made the remarks to Francine Stock during an onstage interview for the London Film Festival's Screen Talk series.

'Between The Hunger Games coming out and winning the Oscar [for 2012s Silver Lining Playbook], I became such a commodity that I felt like every decision was a big, big group decision,' the star noted.

And while speaking with Vogue as the magazine's September cover star, she made strong statements about politics.

She sure can look elegant: Lawrence seen in London at the Causeway European premiere during the 66th BFI London Film Festival at the BFI Southbank on October 8

The Kentucky native specifically mentioned the issues her father's Trump support has caused.

'I just worked so hard in the last five years to forgive my dad and my family and try to understand: Its different. The information they are getting is different. Their life is different,' she said, referencing details conveyed by conservative media.

She said to the publication, 'Ive tried to get over it and I really cant. I cant.'

Her next film: From director Lila Neugebauer and starring Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry, Causeway will debut from Apple TV+ on November 4
Halle Bailey shared a first look of herself as Ariel in the upcoming live-action remake of The Little Mermaid as she tweeted the film's poster on Thursday morning.

In the stunning image, uploaded to her Twitter, the 22-year-old actress can be seen in character while perched on a rock in the ocean while rocking a green, iridescent tail and purple seashell bra.

'Words cant describe how immensely honored I feel to play the mermaid of my dreams, Ariel in Disneys The Little Mermaid,' she wrote.

Part of Your World: Halle Bailey shared a first look of herself as Ariel in the upcoming live-action remake of The Little Mermaid as she tweeted the film's poster on Thursday morning

The star, who first rose to fame as one half of the musical duo Chloe x Halle alongside her sister, added: 'Come under the sea with me, in theaters May 26, 2023.'

Last month, she admitted to feeling 'pressure' to do the best possible job after taking on the iconic role.

The performer, who has been a lifelong fan of the 1989 Disney original - based on Hans Christian Andersen's Danish fairytale, explained she didn't want to disappoint fans with her portrayal of the redheaded mermaid.

The Little Mermaid: In the stunning image, uploaded to her Twitter, the 22-year-old actress can be seen in character while perched on a rock in the ocean while rocking a green, iridescent tail and purple seashell bra

'Words cant describe how immensely honored I feel to play the mermaid of my dreams, Ariel in Disneys The Little Mermaid,' she wrote

But her casting sparked an inevitable outcry from a minority of fans, with some claiming she was unsuitable for the role because of her ethnicity.

She told E! News: 'I definitely think that because I love this movie so much, and I've treasured it since I was a little girl, I did put a bit of pressure on myself.

'Just because I want to deliver all of the feels that I saw when I was a little girl.'

Support: Hannah, 61, who played the mermaid Madison in the 1983 smash hit movie Splash, alongside Tom Hanks, recently showed her support for Bailey on Twitter

Black: 'The little mermaid is black/I met her/there!' Hannah tweeted along with the hashtag #dontbearacistdork

The actress also insisted that she gave her '110% percent' to the film and is proud of herself and her performance in the forthcoming adaptation.

The film, which also stars Jonah Hauer-King, Art Malik, Noma Dumezweni, Javier Bardem and Melissa McCarthy, goes on general release next May.

Just days after the first trailer for movie brought waves of racist trolls out of the woodwork, Halle found support from another big-screen mermaid in Daryl Hannah.

Amazing: 'Halle, you were absolutely amazing! 'I'm SO proud of you & your beautiful performance as Ariel,' Benson began

The blonde beauty, 61, played the mermaid Madison in the 1983 smash hit movie Splash, alongside Tom Hanks, and she showed her support for the young actress on Twitter.

'The little mermaid is black/I met her/there!' Hannah tweeted along with the hashtag #dontbearacistdork.

The actress's praise comes just after Jodi Benson - the voice actress who portrayed the original Ariel in the animated classic - showed her support as well.

Release: TThe trailer first debuted at the D23 Expo in Anaheim last month, with Variety reporting that the video amassed over 104 million global views in a week

The tweet got over 4.5K retweets and over 42K likes in just under a day after it was posted on Wednesday evening.

Bailey herself hasn't responded to Hannah, or the original voice of The Little Mermaid, Jodi Benson, 60, who showed her support on her Instagram story.

'Halle, you were absolutely amazing! 'I'm SO proud of you & your beautiful performance as Ariel,' Benson began.
Irina Shayk sent her 19.9 million Instagram followers into a tailspin on Thursday when she posted sultry new images of her in a shimmering gown.

The 36-year-old Russian supermodel wore the stunning 'piece of art' for a photo shoot to promote the 30th anniversary of Thierry Mugler's perfume called Angel.

A muse for the French fashion house, Irina oozed glamour in the haute couture creation that was designed by her close friend, the late Mugler.

Shimmering goddess: Irina Shayk, 36, sent her Instagram followers into a tailspin on Thursday when she posted sultry new images of her in a shimmering gown. She wore the 'piece of art' for a photo shoot to promote the 30th anniversary of Mugler's perfume

Sensational in sequins: The nearly six-foot-tall Russian supermodel looked exquisite in the sequin gown as it captured the light. Fitting her like a glove, the dress was gradually tapered downward and stiletto sandals graced her feet

The nearly six-foot-tall Russian stunner looked exquisite in the sequin gown as it captured the light.

Fitting her like a glove, the dress was gradually tapered downward and stiletto sandals graced her feet.

Shayk's exposed neckline and plunging chest were kept bare while diamond earrings dangled from single long strands on either ear. Flawless makeup finished the look along with a sleek straight hairstyle that allowed the supermodel's famous face to shine.

'Wearing this piece of art by Thierry...' Shayk captioned the post, referencing Mugler's founder. Manfred Thierry Mugler passed away at his Paris residence in January of this year at the age of 73. He reportedly died of natural causes and Irina was one of many celebrities to post a heartfelt tribute to the beloved fashion designer on Instagram.

Designer and muse: Shayk was a close friend of Mugler's founder, Manfred Thierry Mugler, who passed away at his Paris residence in January of this year at the age of 73

'Gone to soon,' she wrote with a trinity of broken-heart emojis. The Hercules star went on to call her late friend a 'god of fashion.' The love was mutual between the iconic designer and his supermodel muse. Mugler penned a fawning caption to Shayk on Instagram last year, calling her his 'jewel' and thanking her for bringing 'joy and beauty' into the world.

Mugler originally rose to prominence in the late 1970s and dominated the runways of Europe in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He emerged with an outrageous signature style that included cinch-waisted silhouettes and pronounced power-shoulders. Openly gay, the genre-busting French designer was a pioneer of inclusivity who often worked with drag queens and trans models.

While honoring the storied past of the French fashion house, she also gave a nod to its future by tagging Casey Cadwallader  the current creative director of Mugler. 'We all came to celebrate the 30th anniversary of ANGEL,' she captioned. 'Thank you, team of Angels, for making it happen.... @cadwallader.'

In good company: Shayk was accompanied by a selection of the brand's other 'muses' who are all 'strong, bold, daring, confident, empowering individuals'

Posing up a storm: The Hercules star had diamond earrings dangling from single long strands on either ear. Flawless makeup finished her look along with a sleek straight hairstyle that allowed the supermodel's famous face to shine

The legacy that remains: Irina's shimmering gown was designed by her late friend Thierry Mugler. 'Wearing this piece of art by Thierry...' Shayk captioned the post, referencing the iconic fashion designer

With its sweet candy scent, the brand's blockbuster fragrance called Angel turns 30 this year and Shayk is undoubtedly at the forefront of its celebratory campaign. According to Mugler's website, she is accompanied by a selection of the brand's other 'muses' who are all 'strong, bold, daring, confident, empowering individuals.'

This illustrious lineup includes Chinese actress and model Yilan Hua, poet and activist Kai-Isaiah Jamal, 'Gen Z idol' Jazelle, artist Nina de Lianin, artist and model Raya Martigny, and Sudanese supermodel Ariish Wol.

'Digging into your eyes is a fascinating living dream,' Thierry Mugler once wrote of Irina's famous green gaze. 'Green is the color of the spirit,' he told Elle back in 2017. 'Its the color of the heart chakra. Judging by these latest images, the iconic designer's eponymous fashion house has chosen the perfect supermodel.

Claws of glamor: The Russian stunner's manicured nails matched the spectacular sheen of her gown

The Muses: Shayk's fellow muses in the campaign were selected by the current creative director of Mugler, Casey Cadwallader, 37 (white shirt, upper right). This illustrious lineup includes poet and activist Kai-Isaiah Jamal (black suit, upper middle), artist Nina de Lianin (diamond necklace, upper left), and Sudanese supermodel Ariish Wol (blue dress, center)

The main event: The supermodel was undoubtedly at the center of Mugler's celebratory campaign




German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will visit Korea next month for a summit with President Yoon Suk-yeol on developing bilateral ties, and jointly tackling supply chain and energy issues, Yoon's office said Thursday.







Steinmeier will pay an official visit to the country from Nov. 3-5 and meet with Yoon on Nov. 4.







The two plan to discuss "ways to develop Korea-Germany relations and cooperate on economic security issues, such as the establishment of a stable global supply chain and the response to the energy crisis," the office said.







They also plan to exchange views on key regional issues, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula.







"Germany is a friendly nation that shares with us the values of freedom, human rights, and the rule of law, and our biggest trading partner in Europe," the office said. "Moreover, Germany is a key member nation of the European Union, which is playing a leading role as chair of the G-7 in responding to global issues."







Steinmeier's visit, which will be the first by a German president in four years, comes as the two countries will mark 140 years since they began bilateral exchanges next year.







Yoon held a summit with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York last month, and the two agreed to work to deepen the bilateral relationship at every level. (Yonhap)


He's noted for being one of the muscular actors working in Hollywood thanks to years of bodybuilding.

And Dwayne Johnson revealed on The Tonight Show on Wednesday that he had to tone down the fake muscle padding that is a fixture of almost all superhero suits because he was more than muscular enough already.

The 50-year-old former pro wrestler joked with Jimmy Fallon that it originally looked like he was filming a Saturday Night Live sketch when he was initially fitted for a padded suit, before he put his foot down.

Natural: Dwayne Johnson, 50, admitted he had to tone down the fake muscle padding in his Black Adam suit because he was already muscular enough during Wednesday's Tonight Show appearance

'You were telling me when they were making this super suit for you, for Black Adam,' Fallon said. 'I mean you are The Rock. You are Dwayne Johnson. You are in just awesome shape.

'And you got the suit, and the first one had like pads in it, right?' he inquired.

Dwayne explained that even the most ripped superhero stars still get an extra boost from their costumes.

'Dude, with the muscle  with the superhero costumes, all throughout the superhero  like Marvel and DC, they all have these muscle pads,' he explained while clearly trying not to criticize any of the earlier actors or films.

Standard: 'Dude... with the superhero costumes, all throughout the superhero  like Marvel and DC, they all have these muscle pads,' he said while trying not to criticize others

Too much: He joked that it looked 'ridiculous' when he tried on the first Black Adam suit with padding. 'It looked like you and I were going back to SNL to do a sketch'; still from Black Adam

'Which is just what you do,' he quickly added to downplay the critique. 'So, you can imagine that muscle suit, Black Adam muscle suit, with muscle padding on top of my body.'

He joked that, 'It looked like you and I were going back to SNL to do a sketch. It was like ridiculous.

'So I asked them to remove the muscle padding. And I really wanted to work hard. I wanted to get in the best shape of my career for this because I felt like Black Adam just commanded that kind of performance,' he explained.

'I got one shot with Black Adam, it is the most important movie of my career and I pushed all chips in. I worked my a** off and thats what were gonna do,' he added.

'So the suit is basically just skintight,' Fallon clarified.

'It's my skin!' Johnson said, 'So now it's a very thin material that is on my body.'

Working for it: 'So I asked them to remove the muscle padding. And I really wanted to work hard. I wanted to get in the best shape of my career for this because I felt like Black Adam just commanded that kind of performance,' he explained

Nothing to hide: 'So the suit is basically just skintight,' Fallon clarified. 'It's my skin!' Johnson said, 'So now it's a very thin material that is on my body'; still from Black Adam wit Aldis Hodge

Johnson clarified elsewhere in his Tonight Show appearance that his massive muscles were essential to flesh out Black Adam, as he is supposed to be as powerful as Superman, though he noted that Black Adam isn't limited by Superman's desire not to kill his enemies.

The Fast & Furious franchise star filmed a joking segment with Fallon in which he filmed multiple fame promo clips for his superhero film using different regional accents.

He put on a cowboy hat and adopted a Texas accent while standing in front of a desert backdrop, and wore a shaggy blond with while standing with a surf board to film a San Diegospecific ad.

His DC comics film Black Adam premieres in theaters nationwide on October 21.

Personalized: The Fast & Furious franchise star filmed a joking segment with Fallon in which he filmed multiple fame promo clips for his superhero film using different regional accents
Mike Tindall is said to be entering I'm A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here! but he won't be joined in any bushtucker trials in the jungle by former Countdown host Nick Hewer.

'Not a chance,' Hewer, 78, tells me. 'Eat odd things? Why would you do that? There is some price to personal dignity. I can't understand it.'

Hewer, who was Lord Sugar's right-hand man on The Apprentice, has ruled out Strictly Come Dancing as well.

'They had a go to get me involved about two years ago, but I declined,' he confesses.

'I told them I'd be a big disappointment. Nobody is stitching me into a satin shirt in bright yellow.'

Mike Tindall is said to be entering I'm A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here! but he won't be joined in any bushtucker trials in the jungle by former Countdown host Nick Hewer

'Not a chance,' Hewer, 78, tells me. 'Eat odd things? Why would you do that? There is some price to personal dignity. I can't understand it'

Hewer, who was Lord Sugar's right-hand man on The Apprentice, has ruled out Strictly Come Dancing as well

Rick Stein's biggest fan?

He landed in hot water with planners after building a summerhouse at his seaside home in Cornwall without permission.

Now Rick Stein has added an extractor fan to the kitchen he uses for his cookery shows  and again the TV chef, who's 75, failed to get the go-ahead from officials at the local council.

However, he was given retrospective consent after none of his neighbours in Padstow objected.

In an odour assessment, air quality specialist Bob Thomas said: 'The proposed kitchen would be for domestic use, with occasional use as a studio for filming cookery programmes. Although the kitchen may prepare some fried or highly spiced food, scale of production would be small.'

Princes William and Harry's old nanny Tiggy Pettifer is knitting socks to auction for one of the monarch's key charities, the Atlantic Salmon Trust.

Someone has bid 500 for the creations of Tiggy, who is an advanced fly fishing instructor. What a catch!

Christy's girl graces the party

Hitting the town with your mother might not appeal to all teenage girls, but when mum's a supermodel, it does guarantee entry to the most sought-after events.

Christy Turlington, 53, who was one of the original supermodels in the Nineties, was joined by her daughter, Grace Burns, 18, at a magazine party in New York.

Grace, whose father is Hollywood actor Edward Burns, has followed in her mother's footsteps with a modelling career and landed her first front cover, on Pop Magazine, earlier this year.

'I can't take any credit or responsibility for this,' Christy said at the time.

Christy Turlington, 53, who was one of the original supermodels in the Nineties, was joined by her daughter, Grace Burns, 18, at a magazine party in New York

Jamie Theakston could be forgiven for sounding tired on his Heart FM breakfast radio show yesterday, as he had an even earlier start than usual.

'It was 2am when my doorbell rings and it's the police, who say, 'Mr Theakston, your car has been stolen. It's just appeared on a tracker and it's about an hour away,' ' he says.

But it soon dawned on the DJ who the culprit was. 'Earlier my son said, 'Dad there's a lady using the bathroom.' She'd told him there was a traffic jam outside and asked if she could use the toilet.'

Theakston says: 'I quickly realised that the woman had nicked the keys off the table in the hallway.'

Happily police tracked down his vehicle. He adds: 'It was quite a dramatic night.'

Faith in their film

Claire Foy, who played the late Queen in the first two series of Netflix hit The Crown, stars with Olivier award-winner Jessie Buckley in the new film Women Talking  and the pair had plenty to talk about on the red carpet at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

Foy, 38, says it was 'magic' to work on the movie about women in a religious colony struggling with their faith after a series of sexual assaults.

And Buckley, 32, says of the plot: 'This is a conversation starter that can be debated and thought about again in ten years' time.'

Claire Foy, who played the late Queen in the first two series of Netflix hit The Crown, stars with Olivier award-winner Jessie Buckley in the new film Women Talking  and the pair had plenty to talk about on the red carpet at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

That's not a lot, Lottie

Lottie Moss claimed earlier this year that her stripping off for adult website OnlyFans was a source of pride for her family.

Speaking about her supermodel half-sibling Kate Moss, she insisted: 'My sister said: 'I am super proud of you.' I think she was also happy that I'm not doing exactly as she's doing. She's, like: 'Get out of my lane!'

Sadly, the money doesn't appear to be pouring in for Lottie, 24. Accounts published this week for Lottiem Ltd, which handles earnings from her modelling work, show she had just 66,000 in capital after owing creditors 170,599 last year.
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Joy Corrigan looked incredibly toned as she posed in pink string bikini in images to her Instagram page on Thursday.

The 27-year-old Victoria's Secret veteran gave fans a good look at her curves while in the little suit by BLACKBOUGHSWIM as she posed outdoors. The siren has been enjoying an early autumn vacation at the Hotel Wailea in Hawaii.

'Beach Barbiecore,' she wrote in her caption as she noted she had on sunglasses by Quay and was holding a purse by Bottega Veneta. Barbiecore is the pink aesthetic has become a fashion staple in the past year.

Hot stuff: Joy Corrigan looked incredibly toned as she posed in pink string bikini as she shared images to her Instagram page on Thursday. The 27-year-old Victoria's Secret veteran gave fans a good look at her curves while in the little suit by BLACKBOUGHSWIM as she posed outdoors

The fun suit highlighted her trim waist and endless legs as she added a gold belly chain that had flower pendants. She also held her arms up which pulled up her bikini top, flashing underboob.

The 5ft 8in runway sensation wore her long blonde hair down in glamorous barrel curls but she also held the locks up on her head.

The Massachusetts-born influencer accessorized the beach outfit with a pair of sunglasses by Quay, a company Jennifer Lopez used to rep.

Highlighting her stunning facial features she wore a touch of delicate makeup, including light pink blush and matching lipstick on her pout.

Several people were seen behind her with a couple staring at the star who posed by a swimming pool.

She has fans: Several people were seen behind her with a couple staring at the star who posed by a swimming pool

Making sure everyone knows who the designer is: And tagged the swimsuit designer on her photo

The model recently looked nothing short of sensational as she showed off her figure while hula hoping down the runway at Beach Bunny's fashion show at Miami's The Paraiso Tent.

The cover girl sizzled in a tiny pink thong bikini as she strutted down the catwalk before showcasing her hoop skills at the South Beach venue amid Miami Swim Week.

Joy looked in her element as she wowed onlookers with her incredibly lean and toned figure, with her tiny two-piece showing plenty of skin.

Just hanging out in her swimsuit: The 5ft 8in runway sensation wore her long blonde hair down in glamorous barrel curls

Her swimwear featured gold chain detailing on the halterneck top and bottoms and a crossover section which went across her washboard abs.

The beauty boosted her height with a pair of towering nude platform heels, with Joy donning no other accessories so not to draw attention away from her killer body.

In a January interview with Maxim , the model discussed her laid back attitude towards showing her body in front of the camera.

Bling it on: The Massachusetts-born babe accessorized the beach outfit with bracelets

'I love to be sexy and I love to show skin 'cause I work out really hard to get the body that I have. I've always been very free-spirited about it,' she explained.

The stunner added: 'I try to keep every shot I do very classy and a visual showcase of the beauty of what a woman can look like. That's my goal.'

She was raised on a backwoods farm, surrounded by livestock, with six brothers and three sisters in North Carolina.

'I would never have dreamed I would be where I'm at today. I knew there was something else, and something bigger, but I had no idea what it was. I just knew I had to get out of that town, and as soon as I was old enough I moved. I love my family, but I realized there's more out there,' the model explained.

She has confidence: In a January interview with Maxim, the model discussed her laid back attitude towards showing her body in front of the camera

When she was young, she said she 'would go to church every Sunday and every Wednesday' and wasn't 'allowed to wear skirts above' the knees.

'But there was a part of me that wanted to be free and show the world I can be sexy,' she said of bucking her strict upbringing. 'They [her parents] werent too proud of me cause they didnt get that I wanted to show my body and promote feeling sexy as a woman. Now theyre proud of their daughter.'

The entrepreneur, who has worked for brands like Guess, Victoria's Secret, and Jimmy Choo, has been modeling since she was 14-years-old after getting scouted in a mall in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Corrigan has created Naked Species, a clothing line with her sister, Gina.
An auction day has been confirmed for this year's season of The Block.

The five renovated homes in Gisborne South, Victoria, will go under the hammer on Saturday, November 6, reports TV Tonight.

Each house has five bedrooms and three bathrooms, and is listed with a price guide of $4million to $4.4million

An auction day has been confirmed for this year's season of The Block. (Pictured: Scott Cam)

Built on 4.04 hectare lots, it is likely the homes will reach record-breaking sales for The Block after one house last season went for $4.4million.

It is still unconfirmed whether Channel Nine will show off the completed houses before auction day.

The Block had to cancel its open inspection for the last two seasons due to the Covid pandemic.

The five renovated homes in Gisborne South, Victoria, will go under the hammer on Saturday, November 6. Each house has five bedrooms and three bathrooms, and is listed with a price guide of $4million to $4.4million. (Pictured: Ankur Dogra and Sharon Johal)

Assuming all the homes reach the higher end of the price guide, they will resell on auction day for an estimated $22million in total, according to Sydney-based buyer's agent Jack Henderson.

Mr Henderson says Nine can expect a windfall of approximately $8million after buying a single parcel of land worth $11million for the latest season of the reno show.

The network bought the 70-acre spread in the Macedon Ranges in September 2021 for $11m, then subdivided it into seven 10-acre blocks, each worth about $3m, with five being used for the contestants' houses.

It is still unconfirmed whether Channel Nine will show off the completed houses before auction day. (Pictured: The Block contestants Omar and Oz)

The Block has been a blockbuster in 2022, with each episode scoring an average 750,000 viewers or more in the metro ratings since its premiere in August.

Nine is already making preparations for next year's season.

Producers recently spent $14.3million on a row of five homes in Hampton East, in Melbourne's Bayside, 14km from the CBD.

The classic brick dwellings on Charming Street were sold to Micjoy Pty Ltd, a company owned by Nine, between June 29 and July 1.

Only one of the five properties purchased along the row of homes at numbers 14, 16, 18, 20, and 22 has two bedrooms. The other four boast three to four bedrooms.

The size of each block ranges from 575 to 703 sqm.
Waystar Royco may soon crown a new king in the north.

As the corporate battles continue to escalate on Succession, the HBO series' upcoming season will get a temporary reprieve from its usual location within the concrete jungle of Manhattan.

For season four, the Emmy-winning drama will move at least some of its deal-making and family backstabbing to the Scandinavian mountains of Norway, according to Variety.

Battle royale: HBO hit Succession will move from Manhattan to Norway for at least part of its upcoming fourth season

The Norwegian setting will be the backdrop as the sale of media conglomerate Waystar Royco to tech mogul Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgard) moves closer and members of the Roy family travel to Matsson's homeland.

'From the beginning, [showrunner Jesse Armstrongs] idea was that the tech company was going to be led by someone from a Scandinavian country,' producer Scott Ferguson told the outlet.

'In the writers room, around February, Jesse had an idea for an episode they wanted to be in [Matssons] part of the world.'

Mogul moves: Alexander Skarsgard returns at tech billionaire Matsson and gets the Roy family to head to his Scandinavian homeland

Cast members such as Skarsgard and Sarah Snook (Shiv) have been shooting at locations in western Norway including Atlantic Ocean Road, the Romsdalen Gondola, and the Juvet Landscape Hotel.

Cinema fans may recall the Juvet from the 2014 film Ex Machina starring Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson and Alicia Vikander.

'When we saw images of the remarkable architecture and setting of Juvet we got really excited, Ferguson added.

Nature chic: Locations include the futuristic Juvet Landscape Hotel, which was featured in the 2014 film Ex Machina

Billion dollar view: 'Norway is a glorious, natural setting. It immediately seemed like a perfect place for a family gathering in the series,' said producer Scott Ferguson

'Norway is a glorious, natural setting. It immediately seemed like a perfect place for a family gathering in the series. We studied different countries, but we realized Norway just has this exceptional landscape  like nowhere else in the world.'

As expected further plot details for the fourth season are being kept tightly under wraps.

At the end of last season, the series left off with ruthless Waystar CEO/family patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox) withholding control from his children: Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kiernan Culkin), Conor (Alan Ruck) and Shiv (Snook).

Boss dad: Brian Cox returns as ruthless Waystar CEO and family patriarch Logan Roy

Iron throne: Logan's four children (played by Jeremy Strong, Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Alan Ruck) continue to wrestle for control of the company

In addition to Skarsgard, HBO confirmed the return of Dagmara Dominczyk, Arian Moayed, Juliana Canfield, Annabelle Dexter-Jones, Justin Kirk, Stephen Root, Hope Davis, and Cherry Jones as guest stars for the upcoming fourth season.

In September, the HBO series won Outstanding Drama Series at the 2022 Emmy Awards.

Matthew Macfadyen, who plays Shiv's husband Tom, took home Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series and showrunner Jesse Armstrong won for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series.

Making nice: Cast members Kieran Culkin, Jeremy Strong, Brian Cox and Sarah Snook on friendly terms off screen at a TV event in June 2022

The series, which many believe is loosely based on News. Corp mogul Rupert Murdoch's family, has been a hit since premiering in 2018.

While filming on the fourth season began in June 2022, HBO has yet to announce an exact premiere date.
Melissa McCarthy confessed her first attempt at discussing the birds and the bees with her teenage daughter, Vivian, could have gone better.

While appearing on Glennon Doyle's We Can Do Hard Things podcast, the 52-year-old Oscar nominee revealed she initiated the conversation 'incredibly awkwardly' as they picked up dog poop in their backyard.

To her 15-year-old's horror, McCarthy recalls telling her eldest: 'There are different parts of bodies  uh.'  I was just like, 'Let me be awkward and get through it.'

Parenting fail: Melissa McCarthy confessed her first attempt at discussing the birds and the bees with her teenage daughter, Vivian, could have gone better; seen in 2016

Her little girl responded by saying: 'Oh dear God, is this happening?'

The Life of the Party actress joked about the 'really a wonderful time' for their chat, which she wanted to squeeze in before Vivian's health class went over sex that week.

McCarthy admitted she hopes to 'have a better talk with them' about intimacy after not learning much about the topic in Catholic school.

Cringeworthy: While appearing on Glennon Doyle's We Can Do Hard Things podcast, the 52-year-old Oscar nominee revealed she initiated the conversation 'incredibly awkwardly' as they picked up dog poop in their backyard; seen in 2019

As 'a midwestern former Catholic' who was taught 'a lot about' the immaculate conception', McCarthy quipped part of her still expects a 'lightning bolt' to come down when talking about intercourse.

The mom-of-two, however, encourages her girls to find 'that person' who is 'incredibly happy when you succeed and incredibly supportive when you fail' when they start dating.

'And if those are ever switched, that's the biggest red flag on earth and nothing should make you feel uncomfortable,' she warned.

Family-of-four: In addition to Vivian, McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone, share 12-year-old Georgette

The actress added that their future partners should be 'incredibly kind and respectful and only' lift them up.

'That whoever your love will be, and it may change and you don't have to pick a side, you can pick a side, you don't have to pick a side, you never know what's gonna happen,' she concluded.

In addition to Vivian, McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone, share 12-year-old Georgette.
Joe Giudice was reportedly 'left with nothing' from the sale of his and ex-wife Teresa's longtime family home, which sold in June after 16 months on the market.

In new property records, obtained by The Post, the father-of-four, who was deported to Italy after serving nearly three years in federal prison for fraud, reportedly did not earn a dime from the transaction.

'The seller is not receiving net proceeds from the sale. Net proceeds from the sale means the net amount due to the seller on the settlement sheet,' the property records said of Joe, while Teresa got '100% of the $2 million.'

Breaking even: Joe Giudice family home reportedly 'was left with nothing' from the sale of his and ex Teresa's longtime family home, which sold in June after 16 months on the market; seen in 2016

Despite receiving the profits of the sale, the reality star's 'mounting debt' from their 'past fraud cases essentially left her with nothing' as well

'At the end of the day, neither one of them received any proceeds from the house,' the source said. 'Teresa didn't get money. Joe didn't get money.'

They added: 'They had a mountain of debt, which they discussed in divorce.'

Family home: In new property records, obtained by The Post, the father-of-four, who was deported to Italy after serving nearly three years in federal prison for fraud, reportedly did not earn a dime from the transaction; seen in 2015

In December 2021, the former couple's New Jersey mansion was put back on the market after a pending offer from March fell through.

The Montville, New Jersey mansion was in escrow following the sale, however just before Thanksgiving the 10,000 sq ft home was re-listed for $2,248,888 million per The New York Post.

Teresa, 50, had first listed the 6-bedroom, 5.5 bathroom home in September 2020 for $2.5 million but slashed $250,000 off the price tag in January 2021 before it was said to be sold two months later.

Real estate woes: In December 2021, the former couple's New Jersey mansion was put back on the market after a pending offer from March fell through; Teresa pictured in February 2020

The Real Housewife of New Jersey and her former spouse had purchased the home in 2002 for $530,000.

As Joe owned a construction business, the couple customized their house from the ground up and the mansion was completed in 2008.

They had raised their four daughters: Gia, 21, Gabriella, 18, Milania, 16, Audriana 13, in the home, until 2014 when when the couple was convicted and ultimately jailed for bankruptcy fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and failing to pay taxes.

Memories: Teresa and her ex Joe had raised their four daughters: Gia, 21, Gabriella, 18, Milania, 16, Audriana 13, in the home, until 2014 when when the couple was convicted and ultimately jailed for bankruptcy fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and failing to pay taxes

Amenities: When the reality star filed for divorce in July 2020, she got ownership of their garish mansion - which sits on 3.7 acres and boast amenities including: a gourmet chef's kitchen, an in-ground pool, a Cinderella staircase and a two-story great room; pictured 2020

Teresa did time in jail in 2015 and Joe began his 41-month sentence in 2016, however in October 2018 a judge ruled that he would be deported back to his native Italy after completing his federal sentence.

When the reality star filed for divorce in July 2020, she got ownership of their garish mansion, which sits on 3.7 acres and boast amenities including: a gourmet chef's kitchen, an in-ground pool, a Cinderella staircase and a two-story great room.

'In our divorce settlement, I get the house and Joe walked away with nothing because I paid off all his debt,' Teresa shared in a Bravo confessional.

Over the top: The Real Housewife of New Jersey and her ex-husband Joe (who owned a construction business) had purchased the home in 2002 for $530,000 before customizing it from the ground up

'It's hard for me to sell the house,' she continued. 'Joe and I built the house together; we raised our four daughters in that home...[but] I am ready for a new beginning. I'm looking for a fresh start.'

Less than a year after meeting her now-husband Louie Ruelas, the pair purchased a 7-bed, 7.5-bath house for $3.35 million just down the road from her old home.

That same month she had slashed $250,000 off the sale price of her former mansion after it sat on the market for nearly six months.

New home: On October 7 Teresa and her now- husband Louis Ruelas moved into their new shared home which boasts 7-bedrooms, 7.5-bathrooms which they purchased in January 2021 for $3.35 million; pictured September 6

Grand entrance: The foyer boasts a spiral staircase that the couple had lightened up with a white coat of paint and new carpeting

She also brought in interior designer Jimmy DeLaurentis to completely change up the home's decor, before she received the now defunct offer from a buyer in March 2021.

Amid the reported sale, the pair moved into their new property  dubbed Clarence Manor  which sits on 5.6 acres with 7,728 square feet of indoor living space on October 7.

The mansion boasts a home theater, an exercise facility, a six-car detached garage and a pool complete with with waterfalls, a slide, and a cabana.
Patti LuPone says she won't be on stage for 'a very long time' as she gives up her Actors' Equity card... after she was swept up in social media backlash
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South Korea lost track of a missile fired during last week's live-fire drills held in response to a North Korean intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) launch, Seoul officials said Thursday, in a failure that raised questions over the missile's performance.







The missile was one of the two Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles that the South Korean military fired into the East Sea following the North's IRBM launch on Oct. 4. The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) also fired two ATACMS missiles in the combined drills.







The missile went out of contact, meaning it remains unknown whether it hit an intended target. The three other missiles accurately hit mock targets, according to informed sources.







After the drills, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles were fired for precision strikes at the targets, and that the allies demonstrated their combined force to deter additional North Korean provocations.







Also in response to the North's IRBM launch, the South Korean military mobilized a Hyunmoo-2C ballistic missile.







But it fell inside a military base after an abnormal flight. Its warhead was found around 1 kilometer back of the launch point and just 700 meters away from the nearest civilian home, a JCS official said, requesting anonymity. (Yonhap)


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The 8/4 Memorial Committee is seeking artists, artist teams, designers, or architects to design a public artwork to serve as a memorial for the victims of the tragic events that took place in The Oregon District neighborhood of Dayton, Ohio, on August 4, 2019. Eligible artists are invited to provide the necessary information via The Contemporary Daytons website at https://codayton.org/events/call-for-entry/. The submission deadline is December 5, 2022. Up to 5 artists will be selected and paid a stipend of $1,500 each to present a final design. The winning artist or artist team will receive an award of $200,000 to create the public art memorial.

The RFQ and project expectations were carefully established following several public input surveys and meetings. The goal of the public artwork will be to memorialize the lives lost in the 8/4 event as well as everyone affected; include community engagement to inspire hope, unity, and healing; and provide a meditative space for reflection and remembrance.
Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum salutes during a parliamentary audit at the JCS headquarters in Seoul, Oct. 6. Yonhap



The top military officers of South Korea, the United States and Japan will hold trilateral talks in the U.S. next week, Seoul's military said Thursday, as they are cranking up security cooperation to counter evolving North Korean threats.



Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum and his U.S. and Japanese counterparts  Gen. Mark Milley and Gen. Koji Yamazaki, respectively  are set to meet next Thursday (Washington time) for the Trilateral Chief of Defense (Tri-CHOD) meeting, according to the JCS. It did not provide other details.






The J&K administrative council on Monday had approved the proposal for authorising departmental stores to sell beer and other Ready to Drink (RTD) beverages in urban areas. (Representational image/AFP)

SRINAGAR: Opposition parties and some social and religious groups in Jammu and Kashmir are up in arms against the governments allowing the sale of beer and other alcoholic beverages at departmental stores in the Union Territory, terming the move as anti-people.

The J&K administrative council which met here on Monday under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, approved the proposal for authorising departmental stores to sell beer and other Ready to Drink (RTD) beverages in urban areas.

The administrative council approved incorporation of liberal provisions in Jammu and Kashmir Liquor License and Sale Rules, 1984 and Excise Policy, 2023-24 for grant of License JKEL-2A for retail sale of beer and Ready to Drink (RTD) beverages in departmental stores in urban areas of UT, a statement issued by the government had said.

The Congress was the first to react, describing the move as the worst gift of the BJP to J&K particularly Jammu which, it said, is the historic Hindu pilgrimage destination in the country.

The partys J&K unit working president, Raman Bhalla, said, The people of Jammu gave 25 MLAs to BJP in the last elections, and it has returned the favour with a worst gift. Such disastrous decisions will tarnish the image of Jammu-`Holiest City of Temples and the region being the historic pilgrimage destination for it has the most revered shrine of Mata Vaishnodevi.

He added, The government earlier resorted to wholesale opening of liquor shops across J&K and now approving sale of alcoholic beverages at common departmental stores will only further encourage our youth to indulge in alcoholism.

National Conference (NC) leader Rattan Lal Gupta termed the move as obnoxious and anti-people and urged the Lt. Governor to withdraw the decision without any second thought.

He said, What an irony that the J&K is a Dev Bhumi of Shri Amarnath Ji, Mata Vaishno Devi Ji, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah, Chhati Patshahi (a reference to a Gurdwara in Srinagar named after Guru Hargobind Sahib) and Jammu being known as the City of Temples across the nation. These pious and sacred places are being converted into alcoholic by the LG administration.

He said that the disastrous effect of this decision will soon be more visible in Jammu and less in Kashmir Valley. This can be well gauged from the fact that there are already more than 210 liquor shops in Jammu while Srinagar has only five liquor shops, he asserted.

Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), an amalgam of Muslim religious, social and educational organisations, said, Kashmir being a Muslim majority place such directives show utter disregard for the tenants of Islam which deeply hurts the sentiments of Muslims in J&K. It asserted that open sale of beer and other alcoholic beverages will further promote addiction which is a major issue in Kashmir especially among our youth, something that the authorities also claim to be concerned aboutit will also encourage immoral behaviour.

The MMU asked that while consumption of alcohol is banned in many states of India why is it being encouraged in J&K.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday pronounced a split verdict in the Karnataka Hijab ban case.

A bench of justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia pronounced the judgement today.

Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the petitions against the hijab ban, while Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed them.

One of the lawyers representing the petitioner said that the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice of India and he will decide whether a new bench will hear the matter or the matter gets referred to a larger bench.

Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed appeals challenging the Karnataka High Court's order which had upheld the state government's order to ban wearing hijabs in educational institutions of the state Justice Gupta said, "There is a divergence of opinion. In my order, I have framed 11 questions. First is whether the appeal should be referred to the Constitution Bench."

Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the appeals and set aside the Karnataka High Court order.

"It's a matter of choice, nothing more nothing less," Justice Dhulia said while pronouncing the order.

The apex court had earlier reserved its order on various petitions challenging Karnataka High Court upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutes.

The arguments in the matter went on for 10 days in which 21 lawyers from the petitioners' side and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, Karnataka Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi argued for the respondents.

The court was hearing various pleas against Karnataka HC's judgement upholding the Karnataka Government's decision to direct educational institutes to prescribe uniforms in educational institutes.

Addressing the court, Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, in his rejoinder submission had said that the Karnataka Government Circular which enforced the dress code has no reference to the Popular Front of India (PFI).

Various petitioners have approached the apex court challenging the Karnataka HC order upholding the Karnataka government's order which directs strict enforcement of schools and colleges' uniform rules.

One of the appeals in the top court has alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practising their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation".

The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India".

A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit.

The hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry.

After this, boys of several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka.

As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue.

On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges.
HYDERABAD: A spell of 10-centimetre rainfall on Wednesday night yet again exposed the citys poor infrastructure, with the annual drain desilting and strategic nala development plan (SNDP) works of the GHMC proving ineffective.

While authorities described Wednesdays rainfall as bad luck and admitted they were unprepared for urban flooding, this is not the first time such an incident has taken place. Similar flash floods were witnessed in October 2020 as well.

With the IMD predicting three more days of rainfall, inundation may be the new norm during monsoon hereon. Since Wednesday, key roads in Begumpet, Borabanda, Panjagutta and Kukatpally are severely waterlogged, while cars and autos were also washed away in the two-hour rain spell in Yousufguda and Borabanda.

Residents are also reeling from flooding, with areas like Parsigutta still under the sludge. Even upstream areas of Borabanda and Bachupally were flooded, with authorities blaming encroachments on drains for the same.

According to highly-placed sources, officials had decided to go for an annual desilting in 2020 as pre-monsoon works were proving ineffective. As many as 2.45 lakh cubic metres and 2.23 lakh cubic metres of sludge were removed during the exercise in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

However, this time around, the GHMC failed to finalise tenders for the work, with only 6 of the total 42 being allotted.

Sources said that in many instances, engineers were in cahoots with contractors and deliberately delayed the works.

A senior GHMC official, requesting anonymity, said that contractors and engineers were deliberately shying away from the desilting work, to get specific relaxations in the exercise. Further, bills of `800 crore are yet to be cleared for work already executed.

The official cited above blamed urbanisation and encroachment of drains for flash floods in upstream areas. He blamed the release of water from upstream Gopi Cheruvu for the inundation of Borabanda. The official further said that drain widening work in other affected areas, like Nadeem Colony in Tolichowki and adjacent areas, will be taken up as part of the SNDP Phase-2.
The petitioner pointed out that the said beneficiary company was not in existence in the records of the ministry of corporate affairs. (Photo: PTI)

HYDERABAD: Justice K. Lakshman of the Telangana High Court on Wednesday set aside a work order given in favour of GIOPEL Import Export PVT Ltd by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The Judge allowed the writ petition filed by Ravi Press Photo contending that the work order was given to a shell company.

The petitioner pointed out that the said beneficiary company was not in existence in the records of the ministry of corporate affairs.

Accordingly, it was neither technically nor financially qualified to carry the work order. Having set aside the orders in favour of GIOPEL, the judge said that it must now be given to the next eligible party.

The ASI in May 2021 invited customised bids of official documents in the office of the Director (Epigraphy). Five bids were received. None of the bidders were said to be qualified leading to a fresh tender.

The evaluation committee found only one bid as qualified and disqualified the petitioner. The work, however, was allotted to GIOPEL through nomination.

In a detailed judgment, Justice Lakshman pointed out that the official respondents have not mentioned any special circumstances that necessitated them to select the beneficiary company.

He also pointed out there is no approval of the competent authority obtained before resorting to a single source of selection.

Pointing to the shortcomings of the selected beneficiary, Justice Lakshman pointed out that the company is a strike off company. Its annual turnover for the last four financial years was nil. The said company is not eligible for award of the said work. That there is a lack of transparency and fairness in awarding work, Justice Lakshman said.

The court dubbed the award of the work order in favour of GIOPEL as arbitrary, illegal, unfair, non-transparent and in violation of the guidelines issued by the Central Vigilance Commission.

The judge also observed that it is open to the ASI to issue fresh tender notification if necessary.
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy greets Jennifer Larson, US Consulate General, Hyderabad, at the camp office on Wednesday. (Photo by arrangement)

VIJAYAWADA: Consul General of USA in Hyderabad, Jennifer Larson, met Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan separately on Wednesday. Several issues of mutual interest were discussed by Larson during her maiden visit to Andhra Pradesh after assuming office.

She lauded the chief minister for adopting the best practices vis-a-vis handling the Covid19 pandemic despite financial constraints. It was also noted that AP stood first in achieving the GDP growth rate. She expressed her delight at the style of functioning of the American Corner in Visakhapatnam, the third in India.

The chief minister told her that his government was giving top priority to education, healthcare and agriculture sectors. He urged her to encourage more investments in the state from the US and promised all the requisite support for this.

Jennifer Larson paid a courtesy visit to AP Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan at Raj Bhavan and explained to him the liberalised process of grant of visas for Indian students pursuing higher education in the US and also for other categories of visas.

The governor discussed the potential for US investment in trade and commerce in AP and in supporting the states tourism sector. The governor and the US consul general held discussions for more than 30 minutes.

The consul general was accompanied by political and economic chief Sean Ruthe, deputy consul general William Marshall and public affairs officer David Moyer.

Jennifer Larson will visit the Maris Stella College on Thursday. It hosts a US government-sponsored English Language Fellowship program. She will also launch the US consulate-sponsored English Access Microscholarship programme for the disadvantaged youth.

She said, After a month on the job, I am pleased to be able to travel to Vijayawada, so early in my tenure. My conversations with governor Biswabhusan Harichandan and chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy underscored the close and growing ties between the US and AP.

It is also a privilege to be able to meet the 50 young women at Maris Stella College who are learning English through the US consulate-sponsored Access Microscholarship Programme.
TRS leaders, MLAs, and MPs have suddenly become active on social media after getting instructions from the party's high command. (DC file image)

ADILABAD: TRS leaders, MLAs, and MPs have suddenly become active on social media after getting instructions from the party's high command.

Surprisingly many of them have created their accounts on social media, especially on Twitter, and started postings and tweets in favour of their party while also targeting the BJP and the Congress on the eve of the Munugode byelection. Notably, many of these leaders are deeply into the Munugode election campaign.

Some of the MLAs engaged their own social media team with experts to publicise the partys programmes, schemes and achievements in various fields at the national level. Several TRS MLAs opened their accounts on Twitter. TRS leaders are creating mandal-wise groups with people and party sympathisers on Whatsapp.

Asifabad Zilla Parishad chairperson Kova Laxmi created her official account on Twitter a few days ago and started posting tweets about her visits to the villages and about the government programmes.

She has engaged a team of experts to handle social media for her.

TRS senior leaders including MLAs have been asked by the leadership to be active on social media and further popularise the government welfare schemes and development works in their respective assembly segments. The MLAs and others are creating special pages on social media and launching youtube channels for their own campaigning and to strengthen the party.

Kova Laxmi tweeted about the Munugode election and urged the people to vote for the TRS candidate. She wrote about the skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel under the BJP rule. She re-tweeted many posts of IT minister KT Rama Rao critical of the opposition parties.

Asifabad Zilla Grandhalaya Samstha chairman Kanaka Yadav Rao said almost all families even in interior areas were having smartphones these days and even the middle-aged are active on social media.

TRS party social media wing is giving training to active party workers especially youth in handling social media accounts and spreading the partys messages to the people. The wing forms the mandal, divisional and district-level social media committees to reach out to the masses.

Meanwhile, the BJP conducted a training recently for party activists and youths in Adilabad. Social media conveners of the party from Hyderabad said social media would play a key role in the next elections.
The apex court was hearing arguments on pleas challenging the Karnataka High Court verdict refusing to lift the ban on Hijab in educational institutions of the state (Photo: ANI)

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court said on Thursday it is not the "interpreter" of the Holy Quran and it has been argued before it in the Karnataka Hijab ban matter that courts are not equipped to interpret religious scriptures.

The apex court, which was hearing arguments on a batch of pleas challenging the Karnataka High Court verdict refusing to lift the ban on Hijab in educational institutions of the state, made the observation after a counsel for one of the petitioners said the judgement under challenge is touching upon the Islamic and religious perspective.

"The one way is to interpret the Quran.... We are not interpreters of the Quran. We cannot do it and that is the argument raised also that the courts are not equipped to interpret religious scriptures," a bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia said.

The top court heard submissions of several lawyers, who appeared for the petitioners and argued on various aspects including the wearing of Hijab being a matter of privacy, dignity and also autonomy, and whether the practice of wearing it is essential or not.

One of the advocates argued the way the high court interpreted the matter on Islamic and religious perspective was a "wrong assessment".

"The high court might have said anything, but now we are taking an independent view in the appeals," the bench maintained.

Advocate Shoeb Alam argued that wearing Hijab is a matter of one's dignity, privacy and autonomy.

"On one end, I have my right to education, right to go to school, right to get inclusive education with others. On the other hand, there is my other right, which is right to privacy, dignity and autonomy," he said.

Alam said the impact of the government order (GO) banning Hijab in educational institutions with prescribed uniforms is that "I will give you education, give me your right to privacy, surrender it. Can the State do it? The answer is an emphatic 'no'."

He said the State cannot come up with a GO asking a person to surrender her right to privacy at the doorstep of the school.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal suggested that the matter should be referred to a Constitution bench.

"Wearing of a Hijab is the expression of what you are, who you are, where are you from ," he said.

Sibal said the question is if the right to wear Hijab is available to a woman at a public place, is her right extinguished when she enters a school.

"You cannot destroy me," he argued, adding Hijab is now a part of the persona and also a part of the cultural tradition.

Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves said the most important issue in this case is whether the practice of wearing Hijab is essential to religion or not.

He contended once the practice has been established, it is covered by Article 25 of the Constitution.

Article 25 of the Constitution deals with freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion.

Gonsalves argued the high court judgment is a verdict where the perception is of the "majority community", where the minority point of view is seen "very partially and very wrongly".

"It is basically a majoritarian judgment. The judgement read as a whole is basically from a majoritarian perspective point of view. It does not conform to the kind of constitutional independence that a judgement ought to have," he said, while arguing the apex court should set aside the judgement on this ground alone.

Gonsalves wondered, "What is the difference? If you can wear a turban, why cannot you wear a Hijab?".

"The 'dress', 'undress' arguments in unfortunate because Muslim girls are in fact undressed if they are told to take off the Hijab by the security guard .," he said.

While hearing the Hijab controversy, the Supreme Court recently remarked if the right to dress would also mean a right to undress.

The remark by Justice Gupta was in response to an argument that the right to dress forms part of the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression.

Gonsalves argued that constitutional morality, in the context of minority rights, is the ability to see an issue through the eyes of the minority.

"It has to be cultivated. A person from the majority may not get the answer quickly, may not understand the intensity of feelings quickly," he said.

Senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, appearing for one of the petitioners, said the second largest religion that is practised across the world is Islam.

She said across the country, the people practising Islam recognise wearing Hijab as a part of their religious and cultural practice.

At the outset, senior advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing for one of the petitioners, told the bench he would take a little longer time to argue the case.

"This is too serious a matter. I would like to assist your lordships to the best of my ability," he said.

Dave said the court should have referred this matter to a larger bench.

"My endeavour is to persuade your lordships as to why this judgement is required to be set aside. This matter is far too serious than a uniform," he said, adding, "this matter requires very serious attention by your lordships. Your lordships are the custodian of the fundamental rights of the citizens."

The arguments in the matter will continue on September 19.

The state government's order of February 5, 2022 by which it had banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges, was referred to in the apex court.

Several pleas have been filed in the top court against the March 15 verdict of the high court holding that wearing Hijab is not a part of the essential religious practice which can be protected under Article 25 of the Constitution.
Grain harvest season arrives in China

Chinadaily.com.cn) 10:03, October 13, 2022

Tourists pose with crops in Duanzhuang village of Shijiazhuang, capital of North China's Hebei province, Oct 5, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]

Autumn grain harvest has entered its peak season in China, with 56.4 percent of autumn grain having been harvested, the Economic Information Daily reported on Wednesday.

According to official data, the integrated mechanization rate in wheat, corn and rice surpassed 97 percent, 90 percent and 85 percent, respectively.

This year will also be a bumper grain harvest to realize a target of 1.3 trillion catties (650 million tons), said Zeng Yande, head of the development and planning department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)




The state auditor on Thursday requested the prosecution investigate 20 people, including top security officials of the previous Moon Jae-in government, on charges of covering up and distorting facts in the 2020 death of a South Korean fisheries official at the hands of North Korea.







The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) announced the result of its two-month inspection into the liberal Moon government's handling of the death of the 47-year-old official near the western Yellow Sea border between the two Koreas, which has resurfaced as a politically sensitive issue under the conservative government of President Yoon Suk-yeol.







The BAI requested the prosecution investigate 20 people from five government agencies involved in the case, on charges including dereliction of duty, abuse of power and creating false official documents.







Among them are former National Security Adviser Suh Hoon, former National Intelligence Service chief Park Jie-won and former Defense Minister Suh Wook, sources said.







Suh, the former defense minister, was questioned by the prosecution over the case earlier in the day.







At that time, the Coast Guard and the military had concluded the official, Lee Dae-jun, was killed by the North's coast guard while attempting to defect to the North. In June, they reversed the conclusion and said there was no evidence to suggest the defection attempt.







The BAI accused the authorities of deliberately excluding facts suggesting Lee did not intend to defect.







The Coast Guard failed to take necessary steps in the early hours of the incident in accordance with the crisis management manual, the BAI said.







The BAI found the presidential National Security Office ordered the government agencies, including the defense ministry, to highlight his attempt to defect despite insufficient evidence.







The BAI also questioned the defense ministry's change of its position on whether Lee's body was incinerated by the North's military.







The former Moon administration officials and the main opposition Democratic Party called the probe a political reprisal and accused the Yoon government of pressing the BAI to launch the probe for political reasons. (Yonhap)


VIJAYAWADA: BJP SC Morcha national general secretary Bhola Singh, MP, has called upon Dalits in Andhra Pradesh to dethrone ruling YSR Congress for adopting anti-Dalit and anti-people policies in the state.

Speaking to reporters after attending the state executive committee meeting of BJP SC Morcha here on Wednesday, he declared that a discussion is going on nation-wide about YSR Congress governments anti-people policies in AP. This is because people, especially Dalits, are unhappy because of anarchy and corruption going on in the state during the last three and half years.

Bhola Singh maintained that a large number of Dalits are languishing in poverty in Andhra Pradesh, as welfare schemes intended for them have been stopped. Further, 500 cases have been booked against Dalits who questioned the governments anti-Dalit policies.

The BJP leader said there is no protection for women in AP and they are being subjected to rapes and physical assaults. Properties of some of them have even been looted.

He stated that Dalits in the state are living in fear. They can get over their fear once they defeat the YSR Congress in the assembly general elections scheduled in the state in 2024.

Bhola Singh described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as Dalit Bandhu. He listed out a series of welfare schemes initiated by the BJP-led NDA government in the country. He called upon SC Morcha leaders and activists to educate Dalits about these schemes, so that they can benefit from them.

BJP SC Morcha AP president Gudise Devanand vowed to dethrone YSR Congress government in the next assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh.
Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao inspects the progress of construction of BRS permanent office building in Vasant Vihar, New Delhi, on Wednesday (DC)

HYDERABAD: TRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, who is currently camping in Delhi, is said to have met with senior party leaders at his official residence in Tughlak Road on Wednesday and discussed plans for expanding the activities of the newly-launched national party Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in various states.

Rao reportedly told party leaders that BRS would begin operations in various states following the November Munugode Assembly bypoll. He stated that the approval of the Election Commission to rename TRS as BRS would take a month and is expected by the first week of November.

The party has submitted the resolution copy passed in TRSs general body meeting on October 5 renaming TRS as BRS to the EC on October 6 and is awaiting approval from the EC. The partys application is currently being reviewed by the EC.

Roads and Buildings minister Vemula Prashanth Reddy, Rajya Sabha members D.Damodar Rao, J.Santosh Kumar, V.Ravichandra and other leaders were present in the meeting.

Later, the CM inspected the progress of construction of BRS permanent office building in Vasant Vihar along with Vastu advisor Suddala Sudhakar Teja, minister Prashanth Reddy, MPs Damodar Rao, Santosh Kumar, and Ravichandra.

The CM directed them to speed up the works and ensure completion in the next six months.

The CM inspected the BRS temporary office accommodation on Sardar Patel Road on Tuesday, where the BRS will operate until the permanent office is ready.

It may be noted that after attending Uttar Pradesh former CM Mulayam Singh Yadav's funeral on Tuesday, Rao left for Delhi directly. He is expected to camp in Delhi for two more days.
VISHAKHAPATNAM: Let him first wash off the dirt he is into out of greed. Why talk about others, was the sharp reaction from ruling YSR Congress MP from Visakhapatnam, MVV Satyanarayana, against his fellow MP, V Vijayasai Reddy.

Vijayasai Reddy sprang a surprise during his press conference on Tuesday by referring to Satyanarayanas housing project in Kurmannapalem in the city. He said this was an unheard-of land development agreement, according to which the land owner will get one per cent and builder 99 per cent of the shares.

Reddy wondered why the media was not exposing such deals. He warned of legal action against another housing project of the Lok Sabha member if it was found that he violated norms.

In an interview to Deccan Chronicle, Satyanarayana said Vijayasai Reddys family was acquiring properties by hook or by crook in the coastal city.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: Your own party MP raised serious questions about your housing projects.

A: I have been a realtor  and I started it much before entering electoral politics. There were several claimants to the property and all of them approached me with proposals. The issue got resolved by mutual consent at a Lok Adalat in 2017 when I wasnt an MP.

Q: But, a senior leader of your party says a builder appropriating 99 per cent of the share is unheard of.

A: When he defends the Dasapalla agreement ratio, stating that it was between the owner and the developer, the same logic applies here too. There is no rule defining the ratio. Unlike him, I am doing my project on private land and not trying to grab any government land. We had fought against the grab of government land while we were in the opposition.

Q: Do you see a scam in the Dasapalla lands deal?

A: The YSR Congress launched an ideological war against Telugu Desam, using the insider trading charge in Amaravati as a weapon. We found fault with TD leaders who bought lands there. How different is their action from Vijayasai Reddys daughter buying properties left, right and centre, by hook or by crook, in and around Visakhapatnam?

Q: He says her in-laws are wealthy and investing in real estate.

A: We should look into the nature of the lands they are owning and the benefits being accrued to the owners who otherwise have been denied the right for decades. Everyone knows the methods employed by his men. They are sitting in a guest house to lay their hands on such properties. Some lands were in D Patta category and some in 22A.

Q: Why do both MPs differ and openly quarrel?

A: I am a man of self-respect. He likes Ghulamgiri, which I cannot. He thinks I was instrumental in media reports about his family members acquiring properties. I am least interested in such cheap politics.

Q: Vijayasai Reddy threatened to enter the real estate business if he is confronted again.

A: He announced his foray into the media, real estate and what not. He just stopped short of announcing the launch of a new political outfit.
BJP leaders Tarun Chugh, V Muralidharan, N Ramchander Rao, Pratap Narain Sarang, and others on Thursday submitted petitions to the Election Commission of India seeking its intervention in the goings on in Munugode constituency. (Photo By Arrangement)

HYDERABAD: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday charged the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government with moving its Secretariat from Hyderabad to Munugode and with abuse of power using its officials to unduly influence voters in the constituency. The BJP also sought intervention of the Election Commission of India to ensure that names of 25,000 bogus voters enrolled into the Munugode constituency voters list be removed.

The BJP leaders, led by party general secretary and Telangana affairs in-Charge Tarun Chugh met with the Election Commission of India officials in Delhi to submit a petition listing irregularities in Munugode and sought ECI action in cleaning up of the voters list, stop misue of official power by TRS government.

The BJP leaders also submitted a separate petition to the ECI seeking the immediate transfer of Rachakonda commissioner of police Mahesh Bhagwat saying that the official had been in his current post for more than three years. As per ECI guidelines, no official who has been in the same post for three years of more, should be allowed to continue in the position in a constituency going to polls as such officials can unduly influence voters and ground level government staff, Chugh said.

The BJP MLC N Ramchander Rao, who was part of the party delegation that called on the ECI along with Chugh, Union Minister V Muralidharan, senior party leader Pratap Narain Sarang, said in the past when new voters were added in a constituency going to polls, the number never usually exceeded 2,000 or so. But this time, the TRS had 25,000 named added, all of these people are from constituencies surrounding Munugode. The ECI said it will look into our submissions, and also examine our plea for deploying central government observers and central forces to ensure a free and fair election, he said.
A school in-charge directs a class 10 student wearing hijab arriving in line with other students before the commencement of the annual SSLC exams at a government school in Bangalore on March 28, 2022. (AFP)

BENGALURU: The hijab ban will continue in the state, asserted minister for primary and secondary education B.C. Nagesh on Thursday after the Supreme Court gave a split verdict on the hijab ban imposed in schools and pre-university colleges in Karnataka.

The state government on February 5 this year issued a circular banning hijab in schools and pre-university colleges of the State. The matter reached the High Court of Karnataka which upheld the decision of the state government and the issue was later taken-up in the Supreme Court and the two-judge bench pronounced its split verdict on Thursday.

In the verdict, Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed appeals challenging the High Court's order while Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said wearing hijab is a matter of choice.

Stating that he expected a "better" SC verdict on hijab, Nagesh told reporters that We are clear that no student can wear hijab inside the classroom and maintained that the High Court of Karnataka verdict on hijab which upholds the state government s decision to ban hijab is still valid".

Minister for Kannada and culture Sunil Kumar told reporters that There is no going back on the ban imposed on wearing hijab by the state government. The circular issued by the state government on not wearing hijab will stay.

In Karnataka, the minister said no students will enter the classroom wearing hijab and that all students should attend classes in uniforms.

He blamed that the Congress and the Popular Front of India (PFI) for backing some students to move to the Supreme Court, and a big conspiracy was behind the ordinary students knocking at the doors of the Supreme Court against ban on hijab.

The minister asked the students to change their mindset and follow the state government decision and stated that there was opposition to wear hijab even in certain Muslim countries such as Iran and Iraq.
HYDERABAD: The ruling TRS candidate Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy is poorest among the candidates of major parties contesting the Munugode Assembly bypoll scheduled for November 3, as per the election affidavits submitted to the Election Commission of India by the candidates.

These affidavits show that Prabhakar Reddy and his wife K. Aruna Reddy together own movable assets worth Rs 6 crore and immovable assets of Rs 7.73 crore. Their net worth stands at Rs 13.78 crore.

Of this, Prabhakar Reddy owns movable assets of Rs 3.79 crore and immovable assets of Rs 3.89 crore, totalling Rs 7.68 crore, while his wife Aruna owns movable assets of Rs 2.26 crore and immovable assets of Rs 3.84 crore totalling Rs 6.1 crore.

Prabhakar Reddy has liabilities of Rs 1.78 crore taken in the form of hand loan while his wife has liabilities of Rs 22.95 lakh, also in the form of hand loan. Interestingly, Prabhakar's assets came down when compared with his previous affidavit filed during 2018 Assembly polls.

In 2018, he declared total movable assets of Rs 4.96 crore (including his wife's) and immovable assets of Rs 14.32 crore, totalling Rs 19.28 crore. This time, his total assets came down to Rs 13.78 crore.

On the other hand, BJP's Rajgopal Reddy declared astounding assets in his name at Rs 222.66 crore, a huge increase from Rs 24.55 crore in 2018. He has liabilities of Rs 61.54 crore obtained from banks and private individuals. Rajgopal's wife Komatireddy Laxmi's total assets stand at Rs 52.44 crore.

Rajgopal disclosed assets totaling Rs 24.55 crore on his name and Rs 289.75 crore on his wife's name, for a combined total of Rs 314.35 crore, in 2018. However, this time, Rajgopal's holdings rose significantly to Rs 222.66 crore while his wife's assets plummeted to Rs 52.44 crore, making a total of Rs 275 crore. If both of their assets are taken into account, the value of their combined assets has decreased by Rs 38 crore during the 2018 Assembly elections.

Congress candidate Sravanthi declared total assets worth Rs 25.61 crore on her name. Of this, movable assets are valued at Rs 65.23 lakh and the immovable assets Rs 24.96 crore. She declared movable assets of Rs 1.23 crore along with her husband and immovable assets of Rs 39.77 crore, totalling Rs 41 crore.

In so far as criminal cases are concerned, Prabhakar Reddy was convicted in a cheque bounce case in September 2012 by XIV Metropolitan Magistrate, which imposed simple imprisonment for one month. However, he filed an appeal against this. Later, both the parties compromised in Lok Adalat and the case was disposed of by acquitting the appellant.
HYDERABAD: TRS president and Chief Minister K.Chandrashekar Rao on Thursday reportedly held discussions for the second day at his official residence in Delhi with party MPs and few senior leaders on national politics and expanding BRS activities to various states after Munugode bypoll.

The CM, who has been camping out in Delhi since Tuesday, visited the BRS temporary office space in Sardar Patel Road and checked on the progress of construction works of BRS permanent office in Vasant Vihar on Wednesday.

Rao is learnt to have told party leaders that the welfare programmes the Telangana government was implementing  such as Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bima, and 24x7 free electricity for agriculturewere receiving a great deal of support from farmers in different states. BRS will extend these programmes to the entire country if it were to play a significant role in the formation of the next government at the Centre after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he told party leaders.

Rao reportedly made reference to the incident in which thousands of farmers from the Jajpur district in Odisha under the leadership of Navnirman Krushak Sansthan chairman Akshaya Kumar launched a padayatra on Thursday from the Dhanmandal railway station to Bhubaneswar on demanding the implementation of TS government's Rythu Bandu, Rythu Bima and free power for the agriculture sector.

Rao is learnt to have informed party leaders that various sarpanches from Telangana bordering areas of Maharashtra had sent him requests to meet him and had urged him to contest local body polls in Maharashtra on behalf of BRS. The CM also informed party leaders that he would meet farmers from Odisha, Maharashtra, and other states soon to discuss these issues.
Police in northern Bengalurus Mahalakshmi Layout have seized 1,580 kg of red sanders by arresting a five-member gang.

Siddaraju, 35, Devaraj, 22, Prajwal, 21, Venkatesh, 40, all from Mandya district, and Tamil Nadu native Govindaswamy, 46, are the arrested suspects. Vinayak Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), said the Mahalakshmi police raided three places based on specific inputs and arrested five people.

Two of the suspects carried red sanders in a sack and were waiting for trustworthy customers near Iskcon Temple. Suspecting something amiss, local residents called the police. The police rushed to the spot and took the suspects into custody. Based on their questioning, three more arrests were made.

Police said Govindaswamy had stored pieces of red sanders at his farmhouse in Tamil Nadu. The police raided the farmhouse and seized the red sanders.

Three red sanders logs were smuggled out of the Gonikoppal forest in Mandya district and taken to Govindaswamys farmhouse by a Mahindra Bolero. The suspects badly needed money. So they brought two red sanders logs to Bengaluru in order to sell them to their known customers, a police officer said. The SUV has also been seized.

Its illegal to cut, store, transport and sell red sanders, which is mostly cultivated in Andhra Pradesh.
Bangalore University students withdrew their three-day protest on Wednesday after authorities agreed to consider their demand to ban public vehicles inside the Jnanabharathi campus.

Vice-Chancellor Dr Jayakara S M convened an emergency meeting with the representatives of the police department, BBMP, and BMTC on Wednesday where even representatives of students, teaching and non-teaching staff were present.

Varsity officials said the meeting resolved to notify the government about curbing public access to the campus. We have decided to fix a time for the movement of public vehicles inside the campus and no vehicle will be allowed before or after that time, said a BU official.

Officials convinced students that alternative arrangements must be made for people living in the neighbourhood who depend on the varsity road for transportation. This will be discussed with the government and, once an alternative arrangement is made, we will ban public access to the varsity, the official said.

The traffic police have agreed to lay over 100 barricades across the campus to contain speed of vehicles passing through the campus. There will be speed restrictions inside the campus and for that there will be barricades at various places across the campus, an official said.

Sensor cameras

As decided at the meeting, sensor cameras will be fixed at all entry and exit gates of the campus to monitor speeds of vehicles. The varsity will also constitute a Student Safety Committee soon.

After consulting all the stakeholders, it was decided that we will start implementing short-term solutions by enforcing strict traffic and security measures from Thursday. The speed of the vehicles will be restricted by adding barricades and installing humps through a scientific process. However, a complete ban on vehicles into the campus is unlikely for the moment and the decision on the same has to be taken by the government, Jayakara said.

DCP Laxman Nimbargi (West) said, We have recommended to the university to form a security committee consisting of former police officers, home guards and a supervising officer who will review the security of the campus every day. Additional CCTV cameras will be installed to monitor unlawful activities. As a security measure, a command center has also been proposed to track the activities within the 1,100-acre campus space.
At least 18 flood survivors, including eight children and nine women, died of severe burns in Pakistan, when an overcrowded air-conditioned bus they were travelling in caught fire, police officials said on Thursday.

The incident happened near the Nooribad police station in Pakistans Sindh province on Wednesday night.

The bus with 80 flood-affected people on board, was heading towards Karachi from Khairpur Nathan Shah, in Dadu district, according to Geo.tv.

Deputy Commissioner Jamshoro confirmed that the number of fatalities has risen to 18, which included eight children and nine women, the report said.

"The fire may have been caused by a short circuit in the air conditioner," the report said, quoting police officials.

Some passengers even jumped out of the bus to escape the fire, police said.

According to the police, rescue work is underway, and firefighters have rushed to the scene to douse the flames, while the injured were shifted to a local hospital in Jamshoro and Nooribad.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has directed the deputy commissioner and superintendent police of Jamshoro to ramp up rescue efforts.

Murad has demanded a report from officials on the incident.

Dadu district is among the worst flood-hit districts in Sindh province.

More than 1,700 people have been killed, 33 million displaced and a third of the country was submerged under water in the worst floods to hit Pakistan, brought about by unprecedented rains since mid-June.

Bus fires are common in Pakistan, where safety standards are compromised and traffic rules are often flouted.




The mayor of the central Korean city of Daejeon is running for the presidency of the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), an umbrella organization for cities, local and regional governments, and municipal associations around the world, during its ongoing congress here, officials said Thursday.







Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo is one of four candidates competing in the primary UCLG presidential election set to take place on the day on the sidelines of the UCLG World Congress, which opened in the central city, 140 km south of Seoul, on Monday for a five-day run.







Two candidates will be selected to compete in the final UCLG presidential election slated for Friday, the officials said.







The UCLG is the only international organization of local governments officially recognized by the United Nations, with around 240,000 local governments from 140 countries as members.







On Thursday, participants in the UCLG congress plan to attend discussion sessions on various themes, including culture and urban diplomacy, territorial multilevel governance, sustainable finance, and safe and resilient cities. They will also visit the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, both located in Daejeon.







Meanwhile, the Daejeon mayor signed a friendly city agreement with China's Xian in the morning, increasing the number of the city's sisterhood and friendship cities to 38 in 27 countries. (Yonhap)






A girl child has the right to wear hijab in her house or outside, and that right does not stop at her school gate, Supreme Court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia declared on Thursday.

"The child carries her dignity and her privacy even when she is inside the school gates, in her classroom. She retains her fundamental rights. To say that these rights become derivative rights inside a classroom is wholly incorrect," he said.

In his separate judgement, Justice Dhulia allowed appeals against the Karnataka High Court's March 15 judgement which upheld the ban on hijab in classrooms of the government's Pre University Colleges.

"All the petitioners (girl students) want is to wear a hijab! Is it too much to ask in a democracy? How is it against public order, morality or health or even decency or against any other provision of Part III of the Constitution? These questions have not been sufficiently answered in the High Court judgement," he said.

Also read | 'Divergent views': Supreme Court delivers spilt verdict in Karnataka hijab ban case

Justice Dhulia said there shall be no restriction on the wearing of hijab anywhere in schools and colleges in Karnataka.

"Under our Constitutional scheme, wearing a hijab should be simply a matter of Choice. It may or may not be a matter of essential religious practice, but it still is, a matter of conscience, belief, and expression," he said.

"If she (a Muslim student) wants to wear hijab, even inside her classroom, she cannot be stopped, if it is worn as a matter of her choice, as it may be the only way her conservative family will permit her to go to school, and in those cases, her hijab is her ticket to education," he added.

Maintaining that the question of diversity and our rich plural culture important in the context of our present case, Justice Dhulia further said, "Our schools, in particular our Pre-University colleges are the perfect institutions where our children, who are now at an impressionable age, and are just waking up to the rich diversity of this nation, need to be counselled and guided, so that they imbibe our constitutional values of tolerance and accommodation, towards those who may speak a different language, eat different food, or even wear different clothes or apparels!"

This is the time to foster the student's sensitivity, empathy and understanding towards different religions, languages and cultures. This is the time when they should learn not to be alarmed by our diversity but to rejoice and celebrate this diversity. This is the time when they must realise that in diversity is our strength, he wrote.

"A girl child for whom it is still not easy to reach her school gate. This case here, therefore, has also to be seen in the perspective of the challenges already faced by a girl child in reaching her school. The question this court would put before itself is also whether we are making the life of a girl child any better by denying her education merely because she wears a hijab!," he asked.

Justice Dhulia said one of the best sights in India today, is of a girl child leaving for her school in the morning, with her school bag on her back.

"She is our hope, our future. But it is also a fact, that it is much more difficult for a girl child to get education, as compared to her brother. In villages and semi urban areas in India, it is commonplace for a girl child to help her mother in her daily chores of cleaning and washing, before she can grab her school bag. The hurdles and hardships a girl child undergoes in gaining education are many times more than a male child," he said.
Congress has tweaked its route for the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Telangana to include Hyderabad in the itinerary following a demand from the state unit, which felt that avoiding the state capital will not bring in political dividends in the poll-bound state.

Rahul Gandhi and the yatris will take a detour from Vikarabad and walk to Hyderabad on October 31 where the top Congress leader will visit the iconic Charminar, sources said.

With the programme for the yatra in Hyderabad is yet to be finalised, it is to be seen whether Rahul will also visit the adjacent Shri Bhagya Laxmi Mandir.

In Telangana, the yatra will be in two phases. On October 16, the yatra will enter Telangana for three days from Bellary and then re-enter Karnataka in Raichur. On October 23, the yatra will again enter Telangana and exit the state to enter Maharashtra on November 6.

Sources said the yatra went through big cities like Mysuru and Bellary in Karnataka but the initial itinerary did not have any city for Telangana. This led to the re-working of the route to include Hyderabad, they said.

Congress will target both the ruling TRS and BJP, which is trying to increase its footprint in the state, sources said. The BJP is indulging in communal politics as elsewhere and with the yatras stated objective is to promote unity, the saffron party will face the music, they said.

While TRS supremo and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has made clear his intention to go national with an anti-Congress line, the Congress is not going to go easy on its opponent.

A visit to Hyderabad will also be a message to AIMIM and its chief Asaduddin Owaisi, which has been at loggerheads with the Congress.

The state government under KCR is facing anti-incumbency. The government is involved in corruption. Then the BJP is playing the politics of division and communal polarisation. As a responsible national party, we will counter it and the Bharat Jodo Yatra is a strong platform to do so, a senior leader said.
This week is Baby Loss Awareness Week (October 9-15) and The Western Trust is raising awareness for the Human Milk Bank and the benefits of donating breast milk after a baby is lost in pregnancy or soon after birth.

Liz Bailie, Human Milk Bank Co-Coordinator has urged mums who sadly lose their precious baby to consider donating milk in memory of them so that their babys legacy can live on.

Liz explains: Parents can find that expressing milk for the Human Milk Bank can be comforting which helps the bereavement process. Parental grief is very complex and personal and this may not be a choice for everyone.

We have many mums who express for donation following the loss of their baby."

One of The Trust's bereaved donor Mums, Maxine McFarland, shared her son Daniels story in a bid to encourage other mums to donate.

Maxine said: "Our beautiful little boy Daniel was born with Edwards syndrome, a rare and life limiting condition.

"He was a very special boy indeed and we are so grateful for him. Sadly, his esophagus did not join up with his stomach. This meant that Daniel was unable to feed at all.

"As a mother, my job was to love and feed my baby. Without doubt I could love Daniel and did, but I was unable to feed him in any way. I was devastated.

"With the help of staff at NICU I was able to express and give small amounts of colostrum to Daniel for his comfort and, indeed, mine.

"Later I was given a double pump and all the equipment and advice required to express milk for the milk bank.

"There are some technical and scientific aspects to pumping and storing milk but with support and information I was able to overcome these challenges and get into a routine."

Baby Daniel lived for 39 hours over three calendar days. He was buried three days later.

Maxine continued: "The first opportunity I had to pump was the evening of his funeral, day six. I pumped off 80mls from very full breasts.

"I felt positive. I pumped 8-12 times a day for the next three days and got nothing. With self-compassion, I decided to take the next day off and perhaps accept that my body would not be able to do this.

"However, when I pumped that evening I got 20mls which encouraged me. The next day I got 40-60mls each pump and was able to donate milk after just a few weeks of approximately five pumps a day.

"In my process I was so conscious of how challenging it is for some mums of babies in NICU who perhaps, like me, may not be able to pump milk right away or where supply is affected by medication or shock and stress.

"These mums really need the milk that other mums can provide, and their babies depend on it. I know firsthand the devastating feeling of not being able to feed your baby.

"I am very grateful that I was able to provide milk for the milk bank and learn that Daniels milk helped many premature and surgical babies and hopefully brought comfort to their mummies."

The bank helps babies with major gut or heart problems by providing milk to their home. Through the generosity of its donors, the milk bank provides very special help for the nations most vulnerable babies.

The Western Trust Milk Bank opened in August 2000. Since then it has helped thousands of neonatal babies all over Ireland.

In 2021 their Human Milk Bank processed a total donation of 2,142 litres of donor expressed milk and provided approximately 1,427 litres of breast milk to 27 neonatal units in hospitals across Ireland, helping 844 babies, including 100 sets of twins and 11 sets of triplets.

For more information on the Western Trust's Human Milk Bank, please visit: https:// westerntrust.hscni.net/ service/human-milk-bank/
Stormont leaders have warned valuable services in Northern Ireland face grave uncertainty over the UK Governments failure to replace the EU funds lost after Brexit.

The leaders of the regions five main political parties have written a joint letter to Simon Clarke, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, calling for the European Social Fund (ESF) to be replaced in its entirety.

The ESF improves employment and education opportunities and employs about 1,700 people directly in Northern Ireland.

The party leaders describe the fund as an integral part of the local economy and across all our communities, supporting more than 17,000 of our most vulnerable people.

The letter is signed by Sinn Feins Michelle ONeill, the DUPs Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the Alliance Partys Naomi Long, the UUPs Doug Beattie and the SDLPs Colum Eastwood.

The loss of the ESF programme and the current failure to replace ESF funding leaves many of the projects funded by the ESF facing grave uncertainty and a potential cliff edge, the letter states.

Some will be forced to cease operations and their valuable services will be lost to our communities.

The letter also warns that the loss of the European Regional Development Fund will have a negative impact on the growth of small businesses.

In addition, the loss of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), particularly in the current precarious economic circumstances, will have a negative impact on the growth of small businesses and our transition to a zero-carbon economy, it added.

The leaders urged the Conservative Party to honour its commitment made in its manifesto to replace the ESF in its entirety.

As leaders of the main parties at Stormont, we would urge the UK Government to honour that commitment and provide certainty and security for the many people who depend on these programmes by fully replacing the European Social Fund, it concludes.
October 13, 2022 -- Siliconarts signed a Ray-Tracing GPU IP 'Raycore' license agreement with Verisilicon, the world's No. 7 semiconductor IP company and No. 1 in China.

GPU-specialized fabless Siliconarts supplies GPU design assets (IP) to global semiconductor companies. Domestic IP technology has been applied to the GPU market led by big global companies.



Siliconarts announced on the 29th of September that it has signed a Ray-Tracing GPU IP 'Raycore' license agreement with Verisilicon, the world's No. 7 semiconductor IP company and No. 1 in China. Verisilicon designs and supplies high-performance, low-power GPU IP that integrates Raycore into its own IP.



Siliconarts started the industry's first Ray-Tracing GPU IP in 2011. Ray-Tracing is a 3D computer graphics processing technique. The path of light from a virtual light source reflected off various object surfaces is traced and implemented as a pixel. Although the object is realistically implemented, there has been a limitation in that it is difficult to process a lot of data in real-time.



Siliconarts developed a real-time Ray-Tracing IP with a 'multi-instruction/multiple data processing (MIMD) parallel structure' that deals with only one data per structure. Real-time, low-power, high-quality 3D graphics that increase usage are realized. Siliconarts also signed an MOU with NEWGEN GRAPHICS Co., a US startup, to supply Raycore IP in 2020.



With this contract as an opportunity, Siliconarts will begin to enter the global GPU market in earnest. According to Verified Market Research, a market research firm, the GPU market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 33% from $33 billion last year to $477 billion in 2030. This is because the demand for AI semiconductors is rapidly increasing as new markets such as Metaverse expand.



Siliconarts is targeting the low-power immersive GPU market for servers and PCs. Based on technology and patents, it will secure competitiveness among big overseas fabless such as NVIDIA and AMD. Siliconarts released a general-purpose GPU IP 'RAIV' used in AI semiconductors last year. It is also developing its own metaverse chip that implements Ray-Tracing.



Raycore is optimized for metaverse service using low power consumption while supporting high-quality immersive 3D graphics in real-time, said Hyung-min Yoon, CEO of Siliconarts. He also said, "Through this contract, we will build strategic partnerships and preoccupy relevant markets."






Minister Coveney welcomes Welsh ministerial delegation led by First Minister Mark Drakeford to Cork

Press release

On 14 October, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney, T.D., will lead the Irish Governments attendance at the Ireland-Wales Forum in Cork.

Following the inaugural Forum in Cardiff in 2021, the event provides brings together Irish and Welsh ministers to exchange views and learning on key issues to include trade and economic cooperation, as well as renewable energy.

Minister Coveney will be accompanied by Michael McGrath T.D., Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform and Dara Calleary T.D., Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

Speaking ahead of the Forum, Minister Coveney said:

I am delighted to co-chair this second Ireland-Wales Forum with First Minister Drakeford today. It is an important opportunity to assess progress in our ambitious framework for Ireland Wales cooperation published last year. It is also an opportunity to deepen cooperation in important sectors such as renewable energy.

Minister McGrath highlighted the importance of his engagement. He said: The Forum provides us with an ideal opportunity to further develop the wide range of projects and collaborative networks that have been built up through the Ireland Wales Programme, building on the strong economic, sporting and cultural ties which we have historically enjoyed."

Minister Calleary went on to say that he welcomed the opportunity to discuss trade cooperation and economic development with his Welsh counterpart, Minister for Economy, Vaughan Gething and to share Irelands approach to regional enterprise development.

The Forum concludes a two-day programme in Ireland led by First Minster Drakeford. The overall programme showcases the breadth of the Ireland Wales relationship, including partnerships in the cultural, academic and business spheres.

ENDS

Press Office

October 13 2022

Notes for Editors The Ireland-Wales Shared Statement and Joint Action Plan 2021-25 was launched by Minister Coveney and First Minister Mark Drakeford in March 2021. It sets a framework for the Ireland-Wales relationship as both countries work to increase cooperation and collaboration across a range of sectors. A key commitment within the Shared Statement was to inaugurate a new high-level annual Ireland-Wales Forum to engage political, economic and broader stakeholders to build relationships, reflect on ongoing collaboration and consider opportunities for further cooperation. The inaugural Ireland Wales Forum was held in Wales in 2021. This is the first time that the event will be held in Ireland. This years Ireland Wales Forum will focus on bilateral relations, trade cooperation and economic development, as well as renewable energy policy. A joint communique will issue by the Government of Ireland and Welsh Government following the Forum and will be available here on the afternoon of 14 October. The Welsh delegation will comprise the First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford MS, the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd, Lesley Griffiths MS, and the Minister for Economy, Vaughan Gething. In addition to the Ministerial Forum, the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr. Deirdre Forde, will welcome the Welsh First Minister and his delegation to City Hall. The broader programme includes engagements with the British Irish Chamber of Commerce, the National Museum of Ireland, University College Cork, MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine research and innovation, and members of the Cork Chamber of Commerce.

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The Lenovo-owned Motorola planned to accelerate the adoption of 5G in India and announced the entire schedule of the software rollout. On Thursday, the company stated that the software that enables 5G support for Indian carriers on its smartphones has already begun. In addition, the recently-launched Moto Edge 30 Ultra and Moto Edge 30 Fusion will now support Airtel 5G Plus and Jio True 5G. The remaining nine Motorola phones will likely receive the software by the first week of November.

Motorola accelerates 5G software rollout

Prashanth Mani, Executive Director, Motorola Asia Pacific, explained how Motorola is deploying 5G services for faster adoption in India. He said Motorola 5G smartphones in India, across categories, have hardware support for 11 to 13 5G bands including all 8 Sub 6GHz 5G bands that have been announced in India. We have already started the rollout of OTA software updates for enabling 5G across both SA (Reliance Jio) and NSA (Airtel & Vi) 5G modes simultaneously on Motorola devices, enabling consumers to experience seamless 5G across operators.

The announcement came after the top Indian bureaucrats met with the leading telecom and smartphone companies to discuss 5G adoption regarding the delay in the rollout of 5G software in India. The smartphone brands - Apple, Samsung, Google, HMD Global (Nokia Mobile), and Asus, are still in progress with the 5G software testing. However, Chinese brands such as Realme, Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, and iQOO have released the OTA update to most of their phones.

Samsung promised to begin the rollout for some of its phones in November, and Apple mentioned earlier this week that its 5G iPhones would get an OTA update in December. On the other hand, Google said it is working toward providing 5G support in two of its phone models, Pixel 6a and Pixel 7, as soon as possible.

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in.
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SEATTLE  Non-profit ArtsFund has announced a gift of $10 million dollars from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. The funding will be used to support Washington arts organizations effected by the pandemic.

Following the donation, ArtsFund will now form an advisory panel that will distribute grants to arts, cultural and tribal groups. Called Community Accelerator Grants, funding will be awarded in amounts of $2,500 to $25,000 starting next year.





. . .




A four-seat light aircraft piloted by a student under training crashed at Ulsan Airport on Thursday, leaving him seriously injured, fire authorities said.







The single-engine Cessna 172 operated by Korea Aerospace University as a trainer aircraft went down around 11:55 a.m. at the airport in Ulsan, 307 kilometers southeast of Seoul, while it was flying at a low altitude to make a landing, according to firefighters and airport authorities.







The Korea Aerospace University student was flying in from the school's flight training center in Uljin, 162 km north of Ulsan.







Rescuers mobilized a hydraulic machine to break the aircraft and pull out the 20-something student who sustained serious injuries and was unconscious, and transported him to a hospital for treatment.







No other damage was reported and the affected aircraft did not catch fire, the officials said.







The transport industry plans to dispatch inspectors to look into the exact cause of the crash, they also said. (Yonhap)


gettyimagesbank



By Lee Yeon-woo



A survey has found that Koreans spend 40 percent of their lives using the internet for streaming content or shopping online.



According to a survey from cybersecurity company NordVPN, Koreans spend 34 years of their lifetimes logged into the internet. Considering that the average Korean person's life expectancy is 83.5 years as of 2020, 40 percent of their lives are spent online.



The survey showed that Koreans spend 69 hours  almost three full days  on the internet per week, NordVPN said Thursday.



Korea came in second place right behind Brazil, whose people spend 41 years using the internet during their lifetime.



"During COVID-19, people relied more than ever on information technology and the internet in their daily lives," said Cho Sung-woo, country manager of NordVPN. "Modern people tend to rely more on the internet, not only for work but also for their hobbies. It's not easy to cut back on online activities."



According to the survey, 43.7 percent of Koreans responded that they couldn't go a day without the internet.



This survey was conducted last year on 1,000 Koreans aged between 18 and 54, from Nov. 15 to 19, to examine Korean internet users' online activities. The results were also compared to NordVPN's other survey results conducted in 15 other countries, the company said.



The survey found that Koreans spend most of their time watching short video content, such as YouTube videos. They spend an average of 12 hours and 35 minutes a week doing this. Korea was the country that spends the most time watching short videos among the 16 countries surveyed.



After short videos, it appears that streaming platforms such as Netflix are where Koreans spend the second-most amount of time online. Koreans spend an average of seven hours and 38 minutes a week watching movies and dramas, almost an hour more compared to Taiwan and Singapore.



Online shopping comes third, with an average of four hours and 39 minutes per week and social media follows with an average of four hours and 12 minutes per week.



"Koreans have a love-hate relationship with social media. They scroll their social media feed endlessly, but worry whether it might invade their lives at the same time," Cho said.



Cho also urged people to take cybersecurity more seriously so as not to fall victim to online scams or data breaches.


Cabinet approves Rs22,000-cr compensation to OMCs for losses in domestic LPG

The union cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wenesday approved the proposal of the ministry of petroleum and natural gas to give one time grant amounting to Rs22,000 crore to three public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs). The grant will be distributed among Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).

The approval will help the PSU OMCs to ensure unhindered domestic LPG supplies and also support the procurement of Make in India products.

Domestic LPG Cylinders are supplied at regulated prices to consumers by the public sector Oil Marketing companies, namely, IOCL, BPCL, HPCL.

During the period from June 2020 to June 2022, the international prices of LPG increased by around 300 per cent. However, to insulate consumers from fluctuations in international LPG prices, the cost increase was not fully passed on to consumers of domestic LPG. Accordingly, domestic LPG prices have increased by only 72 per cent during this period. This has led to significant losses for these OMCs.

Despite these losses, the three PSU OMCs have ensured continuous supplies of this essential cooking fuel in the country.
Rights activist and organisations share 2022 Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Prize Committee has awarded the 2022 Peace Prize to one individual and two organizations - human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus, the Russian human rights organisation Memorial and the Ukrainian human rights organisation Center for Civil Liberties.

The Peace Prize laureates have for many years promoted the right to criticise power and protect the fundamental rights of citizens. They have made an outstanding effort to document war crimes, human right abuses and the abuse of power. Together they demonstrate the significance of civil society for peace and democracy, says a citation issued by the Nobel Prize Committee.

What we like to show is the importance of civil society, Berit Reiss-Andersen, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said while announcing the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize on 7 October 2022.

Ales Bialiatski was one of the initiators of the democracy movement that emerged in Belarus in the mid-1980s. He has devoted his life to promoting democracy and peaceful development in his home country. Among other things, he founded the organisation Viasna (Spring) in 1996 in response to the controversial constitutional amendments that gave the president dictatorial powers and that triggered widespread demonstrations. Viasna provided support for the jailed demonstrators and their families. In the years that followed, Viasna evolved into a broad-based human rights organisation that documented and protested against the authorities use of torture against political prisoners.

Government authorities have repeatedly sought to silence Ales Bialiatski. He was imprisoned from 2011 to 2014. Following large-scale demonstrations against the regime in 2020, he was again arrested. He is still detained without trial. Despite tremendous personal hardship, Bialiatski has not yielded an inch in his fight for human rights and democracy in Belarus.

The human rights organisation Memorial was established in 1987 by human rights activists in the former Soviet Union who wanted to ensure that the victims of the communist regimes oppression would never be forgotten. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Andrei Sakharov and human rights advocate Svetlana Gannushkina were among the founders. Memorial is based on the notion that confronting past crimes is essential in preventing new ones.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Memorial grew to become the largest human rights organisation in Russia. In addition to establishing a centre of documentation on victims of the Stalinist era, Memorial compiled and systematised information on political oppression and human rights violations in Russia. Memorial became the most authoritative source of information on political prisoners in Russian detention facilities. The organisation has also been standing at the forefront of efforts to combat militarism and promote human rights and government based on rule of law.

During the Chechen wars, Memorial gathered and verified information on abuses and war crimes perpetrated on the civilian population by Russian and pro-Russian forces. In 2009, the head of Memorials branch in Chechnya, Natalia Estemirova, was killed because of this work.

Civil society actors in Russia have been subjected to threats, imprisonment, disappearance and murder for many years. In December 2021, the authorities decided that Memorial was to be forcibly liquidated and the documentation centre was to be closed permanently. The closures became effective in the following months, but the people behind Memorial refuse to be shut down.

The Center for Civil Liberties was founded in Kyiv in 2007 for the purpose of advancing human rights and democracy in Ukraine. The center has taken a stand to strengthen Ukrainian civil society and pressure the authorities to make Ukraine a full-fledged democracy. To develop Ukraine into a state governed by rule of law, Center for Civil Liberties has actively advocated that Ukraine become affiliated with the International Criminal Court.

After Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Center for Civil Liberties has engaged in efforts to identify and document Russian war crimes against the Ukrainian civilian population. In collaboration with international partners, the center is playing a pioneering role with a view to holding the guilty parties accountable for their crimes, the citation reads.
French writer Annie Ernaux wins 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature

The 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to French author Annie Ernaux, for the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements and collective restraints of personal memory.

Making the announcement of the award of Nobel Prize in Literature 2022 to Annie Ernaux on 6 October 2022, Mats Malm, Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, said, Its a very strong prose, both brief and uncompromising.

Born on 1 September 1940, in Lillebonne, France, Annie Therese Blanche Ernaux is a French writer, professor of literature and Nobel laureate. Her literary work, mostly autobiographical, maintains close links with sociology.

Ernaux was born in Lillebonne in Normandy and grew up in nearby Yvetot, where her parents ran a cafe and grocery in a working-class part of town. In 1960 she travelled to London where she worked as an au pair, an experience she would later relate in 2016's Memoire de fille (A Girl's Story). Upon returning to France, she studied at the universities of Rouen and then Bordeaux, qualified as a schoolteacher, and earned a higher degree in modern literature in 1971. She worked for a time on a thesis project, unfinished, on Pierre de Marivaux.

In the early 1970s, Ernaux taught at a lycee in Bonneville, Haute-Savoie, at the college of Evire in Annecy-le-Vieux, then in Pontoise, before joining the National Centre for Distance Education, where she was employed for 23 years.

Ernaux started her literary career in 1974 with Les Armoires vides (Cleaned Out), an autobiographical novel. In 1984, she won the Renaudot Prize for another of her works La Place (A Man's Place), an autobiographical narrative focusing on her relationship with her father and her experiences growing up in a small town in France, and her subsequent process of moving into adulthood and away from her parents' place of origin.

Early in her career, Ernaux turned from fiction to focus on autobiography. Her work combines historic and individual experiences.

A Woman's Story, A Man's Place, and Simple Passion were recognised as The New York Times Notable Books, while A Woman's Story was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Shame was named a Publishers Weekly Best Book of 1998, I Remain in Darkness a Top Memoir of 1999 by The Washington Post, and The Possession was listed as a Top Ten Book of 2008 by More magazine.

Ernaux is the 16th French writer, and the first Frenchwoman, to receive the literature prize. In congratulating her, the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, said that she was the voice "of the freedom of women and of the forgotten".

Many of Ernaux's works have been translated into English and published by Seven Stories Press. Ernaux is one of the seven founding authors from whom the Press takes its name.

Ernaux supported Jean-Luc Melenchon in the 2012 French presidential election. In 2018, Ernaux expressed her support for the yellow vests protests.

Ernaux, who has traces of anti-Semitism in her political outlook, has repeatedly indicated her support for the BDS movement, a Palestinian-led campaign promoting boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel. In 2018, the author signed a letter alongside about 80 other artists that opposed the holding of the IsraelFrance cross-cultural season by the Israeli and French governments. In 2019, Ernaux signed a letter calling on a French state-owned broadcasting network not to air the Eurovision Song Contest, which was held in Israel that year. In 2021, after the Operation Guardian of the Walls, she signed another letter that called Israel an apartheid state, claiming that "To frame this as a war between two equal sides is false and misleading. Israel is the colonising power. Palestine is colonised."
ActionAid Ireland is calling for young people in Louth aged 14 to 18 to write a five-minute speech for the ActionTalks national speech writing competition. The top prize for the national winner is a 500 voucher.

The competition, now in its ninth year, is an opportunity for young people to explore the root causes of local and global injustices and inequalities. This years themes focus on the climate emergency, womens rights and unpaid care work and economic injustice.

Karol Balfe, CEO of ActionAid Ireland said: We are delighted to launch the ActionTalks speech writing competition again this year. The world is facing multiple crises and many injustices are growing globally. Young peoples voices need to be heard on important global issues. This competition is an opportunity for young people to explore some of the causes of these current crises and also explore solutions and alternatives to create a more just, fair and sustainable future. We cant wait to see what students come up with this year.

ActionAid works with women and children, as they take the lead in claiming their human rights to build a more just world. ActionAids Womens Rights programme, funded by Irish Aid, Department of Foreign Affairs, works to eliminate violence against women and girls. Irish Aid programmes are funded by Irish citizens and are part of Irelands important global role.

To take part in the ActionTalks competition, students are invited to write a 600 to 800 words speech on three specific topics, on rich countries paying their fair share for the climate crisis and how women and children have been particularly affected, the issue of how womens rights are undermined by the undervaluing of care, both paid and unpaid and how this should be a whole of society human rights issue and how education is a right for all and that we need structural change to address this.

Karol Balfe continued: Its really easy to enter, students just email their speeches in, and fifteen students will go forward to the regional finals, where the winners get a 50 voucher each. Then in March, six finalists present their speeches to a panel of expert judges, the overall winner can get a 500 voucher, and 100 for the teacher. Based on previous years, we are sure that entrants will come up with innovative, well-researched, and creative speeches, using their own unique perspective.

Entries will be submitted by email in written form and fifteen successful entrants will go forward to the regionals final, with six regional winners winning a 50 voucher each. At the national final in March, the six finalists will be asked to present their speech to a panel of esteemed judges. The national prize is a 500 voucher for the winner and a 100 voucher for their teacher. To enter, students can ask their teacher for details or visit https://actionaid.ie/speech- writing-competition/
Louth County Council, in partnership with business representative group Love Drogheda, recently announced the launch of Lu Festival of Light, a wonderfully creative urban animation showcase and family festival. This novel and free event will open to coincide with Irelands traditional Halloween festivities on the 28  31 October and will continue from the 2  5 November.

Drogheda, known as the gateway to the Boyne Valley, was one of the first settlements in Irelands Ancient East and is home to many of Irelands ancient tales. Locals and visitors from around the country are in for a truly mystical experience with spectacular lighting shows visually regaling the stories of these popular myths and legends including Lu and the Salmon of Knowledge, the Goddess of Boinn, Caer and Oengus and the tale of Tain Bo na Cualinge.

Developed in full cognisance of the need to conserve as much energy as possible, the lighting used in the shows will be battery powered LED fixtures, where possible, along with laser projection.

The aim of the festival is to promote the town as a tourism location and attract visitors from far and wide as Mayor of Drogheda, Councillor Michelle Hall explains:

We are absolutely thrilled to launch the amazing Lu Festival of Light today. As the evenings draw in, this phenomenal urban animation project will proudly light up Drogheda in celebration of Louths role in our renowned mythological heritage. In doing so, it will attract visitors to the town bringing a boost in business to local shops, restaurants, and hotels in the area. Lu Festival of Light has it all and we look forward to welcoming visitors, young and old, to our town.

Narrated by Mystical Ireland author Anthony Murphy with music composed by Ryan Vail, the visually dramatic and artistic lighting shows, funded by the Failte Ireland Urban Animation Capital Investment Scheme, will feature striking animations, music from renowned uilleann pipe musician Cormac OBriain and visual effects projected on to St. Peters Church, the Old Abbey, and St. Laurences Gate.

A sample of what visitors can expect includes a full-scale building projection of the mythical story of the salmon of knowledge. With bells sounding out from St. Peters Church, the legendary story will be narrated as water appears to slowly fill up the church and the salmon swims in and out of details on the building. All these historic and well-known sites will come to life transforming the finer details of the architecture and telling local mythological stories in a way that has never been done before.

The lighting shows, created by lighting and film production company, Visual Spectrum, will take place from 7.00pm to 9.30pm on the 28th and 29th of October and from 6.30pm to 9.30pm on the 30th and 31st October and 2nd to the 5th of November.

Colin Hindle, Festival Officer at Failte Ireland said; Lu Festival of Light is an exciting addition to the visitor offering in Drogheda and adds another unique experience for visitors to enjoy in Irelands Ancient East. The festival uses spectacular light animations, part funded under Failte Irelands Urban Animation Scheme, to tell the many myths and legends associated with the region, tying into the ancient theme of the area. I would like to congratulate Louth County Council and Love Drogheda on their development of this festival, which truly shines a light on the many visitor attractions Drogheda has to offer.

As well as the incredible lighting shows, there is a busy schedule of satellite events and activities planned to include music, street performers, walking tours of the town and a spooks tour with 100 local school children dressed up for Halloween in association with the Puca Festival.

Thomas McEvoy, Director of Services, Louth County Council added; We are proud to be one of only seven counties that received funding under the Failte Ireland urban animation capital investment scheme. The Lu Festival of Light is an original addition to Droghedas Arts and Cultural events and follows on from several excellent creative attractions in the area including the Highlanes Gallery, Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda Millmount Museum and the DRAWDA urban art trail featuring incredible murals that focus on key figures and moments from our mythological past.

This is a free event; no tickets are required. Visitors are asked to consider public transport links, where possible, and parking will also be available in car parks in the town. Visit www.lufestivaloflight.com and follow the festival social media pages for a list of parking locations, a full schedule of events, and special offers in local hotels, pubs, restaurants, and stores.
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A 23 year old woman who was spotted by a Garda detective leaving a shop without paying for an 8 toy egg, has been given a four month suspended sentence at Dundalk District Court.

Nancy McDonagh with an address at Haypark Avenue, Belfast and Lord Edward Street, Kilkenny was charged with theft arising out of the incident at Applegreen Service Station, Newry Road on August 7th last.

The court heard Ms. McDonagh was followed by the detective and signed the guards notebook admitting the offence.

She gave the name Tina at Dundalk Garda Station, but the Defence barrister said there may have been some confusion as that is his clients middle name.

The defendant had 14 previous convictions.

The barrister added the 23 year old is just out of quite a fractious and difficult relationship and would like to train in childcare.

However, Judge Eirinn McKiernan replied: She has a terrible record. Shes learning no lessons.

Ms. McDonagh addressing the court claimed that its three months since her last offence and shes been trying to obtain work and has printed out CVs but said: Its very easy to get into trouble but its hard to get out of it.

Judge McKiernan imposed a four month sentence, suspended for 18 months on the defendant entering a bond to be of good behaviour but warned her Youll be going into custody if you do it again within 18 months.
President Yoon Suk-yeol, center in bottom row, poses with Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo, front row sixth from left, dignitaries and heads of local governments around the world during the opening ceremony of the 7th United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) World Congress held in the central city of Daejeon, Wednesday. Yonhap









By Lee Hyo-jin







Over 1,200 city government officials from around the world gathered in Daejeon to discuss ways for cooperation in tackling global crises at the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) World Congress hosted by the Daejeon Metropolitan Government.







The UCLG is a global network of cities and metropolitan governments, committed to representing the voices of local municipalities. With 240,000 local governments from 140 countries as members, it is the world's largest organization of regional governments and the only such organization recognized by the United Nations.







Since 2004, it has been holding the UCLG World Congress every three years where mayors, councilors and elected representatives of member states come together to boost cooperation and prosperity.







The seventh such event, held at the central city of Daejeon, kicked off on Monday and will run through Friday. It is the largest-scale international event to be hosted in the city since the Daejeon Expo in 1993.







Under the theme "Local and Regional Governments Breaking Through as One," the event is taking place at a newly built international convention center which the city has decided to establish after being announced as the host country for the 2022 UCLG World Congress.







On the fourth day of the event, Thursday, heads of municipal governments gathered at a meeting to share insights on various topics including urban diplomacy, multi-level governance and ways to build safe and resilient cities.







The attendees were also invited to smaller group meetings on a variety of issues including feminism, culture and climate change.







Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo poses with renowned futurist Thomas Frey during the 7th United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) World Congress held in the central city of Daejeon, Thursday. Courtesy of Daejeon Metropolitan Government





The international event also featured a "smart city show" where visitors were offered exhibitions on smart city models, future mobility, self-driving delivery vehicles and extending reality contents.







Meanwhile, Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo declared his bid for the presidency of the UCLG, becoming one of the four candidates competing for the post. The vote will be held on Friday, according to Daejeon city officials.







The opening ceremony held on Wednesday was attended by President Yoon Suk-yeol, Foreign Minister Park Jin, Minster of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, UCLG President Jan van Zanen who is also mayor of The Hague, as well as former U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, among others.







"A set of global crises such as the pandemic and climate change has highlighted the importance of solidarity between not only countries, but also among local governments," Yoon said in his congratulatory speech. "It is deeply meaningful that Daejeon, the city of science and technology, is hosting the 7th UCLG World Congress."







In his opening speech, Ban stressed the importance of partnerships between cities in order to achieve the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals amid continuing global uncertainties due to climate change and health crises.


The Adoption Authority of Ireland has said that the lack of shame around adoption has encouraged older women to come forward to look for information about their children who were adopted.

Under the Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022, services have been set up so that people affected by adoption can state whether they would like to contact their birth relatives.

It also gives access to people who were adopted, boarded out or had their birth illegally registered to their birth certificates, birth, care, and medical information.

The services are provided free of charge by the Adoption Authority and the child and family agency Tusla.

The authority said that 1,288 people have applied for their birth information since the services were launched a week ago.

Of the applications so far, 1,176 were made from people living in Ireland, with the rest coming from countries including the UK, the US, Australia and Canada.

Thirteen of the UK applications were made by people living in Northern Ireland.

Adoption Authority chief executive Patricia Carey said that people who have contacted the scheme are seeking reunion with their relatives, to find out how their children are, and adopted people are seeking information about themselves.

Adopted people are looking for their birth certificates. For many adopted people it will be the first time they will see the document  their own true identity, the identity they were born with, she told RTEs Morning Ireland programme.

She said that this was a landmark development for Ireland, where 50,000 people have been adopted since 1953.

Ms Carey said they are expecting between 5,000-7,000 people to come forward before the end of the year.

I think that part of the growing up in Ireland is that people have changed their minds.

People are having conversations that nobody is ashamed (of)  this whole concept of secrecy around adoption is hopefully and thankfully waning.

So we have had mothers in their 80s coming to us and saying for the first time I want to make contact  maybe mothers who before said I never want to have contact or were slightly fearful, but I think now thats a very small cohort.

We deliberately targeted nursing homes and places where older people will be living  community centres, GPs  to ensure they have information and particularly people who are maybe not digitally savvy, that they have a paper copy of what this legislation means.

Leaflets have been sent out to homes across Ireland informing them of what the legislation provides for.

Ms Carey said 98% of applications for the service have come through the dedicated website Birthinfo.ie, but added that people can call the authority as well to receive information on 01 230 9300.
Rep. Chung Jin-suk, the interim chief of the ruling People Power Party, speaks at a party emergency response meeting in the southern city of Daegu, Oct. 13. Yonhap



Ruling party leader Chung Jin-suk called Thursday for significantly bolstering the U.S. nuclear umbrella for South Korea to cope with intensifying nuclear threats from North Korea.



Chung issued the call a day after he called for scrapping a 1991 inter-Korean declaration on denuclearization, stressing that strengthening the alliance with the U.S. is the only feasible option to deter the North.



"It should not be overlooked that North Korea's recent missile provocations involve not just ballistic missiles but 'tactical nuke' simulations," Rep. Chung of the People Power Party (PPP) said. "We need to take all necessary measures in terms of defense and security."



"Reinforcing the South Korea-U.S. military alliance like an iron wall is the only solution. We need to dramatically strengthen the U.S. extended deterrence, or the nuclear umbrella, and these matters should be discussed as central issues between the two countries."



Calls have grown in South Korea for the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons or the country's own nuclear armament as the North has sharply escalated threats with a series of missile launches that Pyongyang said simulated nuclear missile strikes on the South.






As per section 1.4.2 (iii) of the Directive on Access to Information: "For Projects approved by Bank management where the Board of Directors has delegated the approval authority, the PSD shall be disclosed at the start of the relevant no-objection notification period to a member country of the Bank in accordance with Article 13 (iii) of the Agreement Establishing the EBRD."

Project Description

The provision of a senior loan of up to US$ 2,8 million (in MNT equivalent) under the EBRD's Local Currency Programme. The loan will be provided in two tranches to Transcapital NBFI LLC Mongolia within the Central Asian Women in Business Programme (CA WiB) for on-lending to women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

Project Objectives

The project objective is to promote and support women entrepreneurship in Mongolia and, more broadly, women's participation in business by assisting women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to access finance, know-how and advice, including in the country's regions. The financing gap is a major obstacle in enabling the transition of women-led MSMEs.

Transition Impact

ETI score: 75

The project contributes to the objectives of the Women in Business programme in Central Asia which is expected to generate transition impact under the Inclusive and Competitive qualities. The loan will promote female entrepreneurship and, more broadly, women's active participation in business, alleviating gender inclusion gaps in terms of "access to finance" and "employment and business". The project is the second sub-operation with Transcapital under the CA WiB and expands the success of the first loan, signed in 2021.

Client Information

TRANSCAPITAL NBFI LLC

Established in 2001, TCMN is one of the largest non-bank financial institutions (FI) in the country and has the highest MSE lending share among its peers in a fragmented market, where non-bank FIs account for a market share of around 5 per cent. The company provides loans to MSMEs, households and individuals in the Ulaanbaatar area (19 branches) and 15 rural provinces of the country (16 branches). TCMN has been the Bank's client since 2013.

EBRD Finance Summary

USD 2,800,000.00

The EBRD finance US$ 2.8 mln

Total Project Cost

USD 2,800,000.00

The EBRD finance US$ 2.8 mln

Additionality

Financing structure: the EBRD provides local currency financing on terms not readily available in the market.

Knowledge, innovation, and capacity building: the EBRD provides expertise, innovation, knowledge and capabilities that are material to the timely realisation of the project's objectives, including support to strengthen the capacity of the client.

Environmental and Social Summary

Category FI (2019 ESP) and Low Risk. Transcapital is an existing client and has been visited by ESD to review their project appraisal processes, typical features of their lending portfolio, and their monitoring methods. They have EHSS risk management practices in line with PR9, and also apply labour and OHS practices to their own staff in line with PR2 and PR4. They have been reporting as required throughout the relationship with the EBRD, and have maintained the required processes and procedures over this time. They will apply the required PRs to the new transaction, along with the Bank's EHSS Procedures for Corporate, SME and Microloans.

Technical Cooperation and Grant Financing

A. Technical Cooperation (TC)

The Central Asian WiB TC Programme includes two linked TC components:

(i) tailored capacity-building for partner banks.

Funding source: We-Fi

Amount/currency: US$ 5.0m at the CA WiB Programme level

Funding status: Confirmed

(ii) capacity-building for women-led MSMEs via the Advice for Small Businesses (ASB) team.

Funding source: We-Fi

Amount/currency: US$ 4.5m at the CA WiB Programme level

Funding status: Confirmed

B. Co-investment grants / Concessional Finance (Non-TC)

The project involves a First Loss Risk Cover mechanism of up to 10 per cent of a WiB loan (limited to 70 per cent per a single sub-loan) which translates into up to US$ 0.28 mln for the project; the first loss risk cover will compensate for credit losses of TCMN as a result of its participation in the Programme.

Funding source: We-Fi

Amount/currency: US$ 0.28m

Funding status: Confirmed

Non-TC: A first-loss guarantee is provided by the SME Local Currency Special Fund to fund a first loss for the benefit of the EBRD.

Company Contact Information

Mr B. Yesugen

yesugen@transcapital.mn

+97670111000

www.transcapital.mn

Transcapital Building, Partisan's Street, Sukhbaatar District, 4th khoroo, Ulaanbaatar 14250, Mongolia



PSD last updated

13 Oct 2022

Understanding Transition

Further information regarding the EBRDs approach to measuring transition impact is available here.

Business opportunities

For business opportunities or procurement, contact the client company.

For business opportunities with EBRD (not related to procurement) contact:

Tel: +44 20 7338 7168

Email: projectenquiries@ebrd.com

For state-sector projects, visit EBRD Procurement:



Tel: +44 20 7338 6794

Email: procurement@ebrd.com

General enquiries

Specific enquiries can be made using the EBRD Enquiries form.

Environmental and Social Policy (ESP)

The ESP and the associated Performance Requirements (PRs) set out the ways in which the EBRD implements its commitment to promoting environmentally sound and sustainable development. The ESP and the PRs include specific provisions for clients to comply with the applicable requirements of national laws on public information and consultation as well as to establish a grievance mechanism to receive and facilitate resolution of stakeholders concerns and grievances, in particular, about environmental and social performance of the client and the project. Proportionate to the nature and scale of a projects environmental and social risks and impacts, the EBRD additionally requires its clients to disclose information, as appropriate, about the risks and impacts arising from projects or to undertake meaningful consultation with stakeholders and consider and respond to their feedback.

More information on the EBRDs practices in this regard is set out in the ESP.

Integrity and Compliance

The EBRD's Office of the Chief Compliance Officer (OCCO) promotes good governance and ensures that the highest standards of integrity are applied to all activities of the Bank in accordance with international best practice. Integrity due diligence is conducted on all Bank clients to ensure that projects do not present unacceptable integrity or reputational risks to the Bank. The Bank believes that identifying and resolving issues at the project assessment approval stages is the most effective means of ensuring the integrity of Bank transactions. OCCO plays a key role in these protective efforts, and also helps to monitor integrity risks in projects post-investment.

OCCO is also responsible for investigating allegations of fraud, corruption and misconduct in EBRD-financed projects. Anyone, both within or outside the Bank, who suspects fraud or corruption should submit a written report to the Chief Compliance Officer by email to compliance@ebrd.com. All matters reported will be handled by OCCO for follow-up. All reports, including anonymous ones, will be reviewed. Reports can be made in any language of the Bank or of the Bank's countries of operation. The information provided must be made in good faith.

Access to Information Policy (AIP)

The AIP sets out how the EBRD discloses information and consults with its stakeholders so as to promote better awareness and understanding of its strategies, policies and operations following its entry into force on 1 January 2020. Please visit the Access to Information Policy page to find out what information is available from the EBRD website.

Specific requests for information can be made using the EBRD Enquiries form.

Independent Project Accountability Mechanism (IPAM)

If efforts to address environmental, social or public disclosure concerns with the Client or the Bank are unsuccessful (e.g. through the Clients Project-level grievance mechanism or through direct engagement with Bank management), individuals and organisations may seek to address their concerns through the EBRDs Independent Project Accountability Mechanism (IPAM).

IPAM independently reviews Project issues that are believed to have caused (or to be likely to cause) harm. The purpose of the Mechanism is: to support dialogue between Project stakeholders to resolve environmental, social and public disclosure issues; to determine whether the Bank has complied with its Environmental and Social Policy or Project-specific provisions of its Access to Information Policy; and where applicable, to address any existing non-compliance with these policies, while preventing future non-compliance by the Bank.

Please visit the Independent Project Accountability Mechanism webpage to find out more about IPAM and its mandate; how to submit a Request for review; or contact IPAM via email ipam@ebrd.com to get guidance and more information on IPAM and how to submit a request.




A newly established prosecution unit on fiscal crimes will take over the investigation into allegations of corruption involving a government-funded solar panel project launched under the previous administration to enhance renewable energy generation, sources said Thursday.







The move follows findings by an office under the prime minister last month that identified 2,267 cases of irregularities in the spending of government funds set aside under the previous Moon Jae-in administration to promote the installation of solar panels.







The office found that such irregularities led to the misappropriation of about 261.6 billion won ($183.2 million) of the funds, and has since requested the Supreme Prosecutors Office look into 1,265 of the cases on suspicions of illegally pocketing subsidies or loans out of the public purse.







Legal sources said the Supreme Prosecutors Office was to assign some of the requested cases to the fiscal crime investigation unit Thursday.







It marks the first investigation assigned to the fiscal crime investigation unit that began its operation at the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors Office last month to root out fiscal fraud, tax evasion and other crimes targeting state coffers. (Yonhap)






By Michelle Devane, PA

Almost 80 per cent of people support the introduction of a dedicated public transport garda unit, amid concerns over anti-social behaviour, a new survey shows.

The research also found 93 per cent of people have witnessed anti-social behaviour while using public transport.

The survey, which took in the views of more than 1,300 people in Dublin, asked commuters how safe they feel on buses, trains, the Dart and the Luas.

It was conducted by Dublin members of the Fianna Fail parliamentary party who sought to quantify anecdotal evidence of assaults and anti-social behaviour on the transport systems.

There have been calls from Fianna Fail TDs and senators, as well as other politicians and transport workers, for a dedicated garda unit on public transport following high-profile incidents of assault and harassment.

Fianna Fail members renewed those calls for more policing on Thursday following the startling results of the survey.

It also found that more than 30 per cent of people had been a victim of anti-social behaviour and 73 per cent indicated that they had failed to report an incident of anti-social behaviour on public transport.

Fianna Fail senator Mary Fitzpatrick said it is clear that people feel unsafe.

The Dublin Central based senator said: Government is rightly investing in public transportation and we are encouraging people to leave their private car at home and take public transport.

However, it is now clear that people feel unsafe.

The fact that a significant number of people have indicated that they have either witnessed or experienced anti-social behaviour indicates that those feelings are justified.

Fianna Fail TD for Dun Laoghaire, Cormac Devlin, said existing reporting methods need to be radically overhauled because they are not fit for purpose.

The partys spokesman on Dublin described it as worrying that more than 90 per cent of respondents had witnessed anti-social behaviour.

Despite these alarming numbers, 73 per cent of respondents stated that they did not report such incidents, he said.

This points to a bigger issue that the existing reporting methods are not fit for purpose and must be radically overhauled in order to make it easier and less complicated for those (who in real time) witness anti-social and criminal behaviour on public transport  Luas, bus or Dart.

This is an item that both the Minister for Transport, the NTA, public transport operators and An Garda Siochana must tackle collectively and fast.

The Garda said it does not intend to establish a dedicated unit for transport. Photo: PA Archive

Dublin North West TD Paul McAuliffe said: Its clear from these results that people are worried about their safety on public transport and this is worrying in terms of the economic impact on the city and on the night-time economy.

As Dublin Fianna Fail Oireachtas members we want more people shopping in the city centre and enjoying its night-time venues.

We want Dubliners to feel safe and to be safe.

The Dublin members of the Fianna Fail Parliamentary Party will present their findings to Assistant Garda Commissioner for Dublin on Thursday.

Last month Taoiseach Micheal Martin said he would engage with Minister for Justice Helen McEntee and Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan on the policing issue.

However, the Garda said it does not intend to establish a dedicated unit for transport, despite calls from unions over many years to do so.
On Wednesday, October 12, around 30 students and community members of Harvard and MIT disrupted an ExxonMobil geoscience recruitment event hosted at MIT for both MIT and Harvard students. The disruption came a day after our allies at Brown University took similar action, disrupting another recruitment in this series by the company. Together, were rising up to make clear to our universities that opening our campuses to employers whose core business models are predicated on undermining all of our future but most especially, our futures as young people, is completely reprehensible. Our actions as at MIT and Brown are only the beginning: this is a clarion call for fossil free universities, now.

Arvind Srinivasan

Already, student activists have made landslide progress on fossil fuel divestment. Last fall, we moved Harvard to divest its $53 billion endowment from the fossil fuel industry. In the mere two months after Harvards announcement, about a dozen other institutions from universities like the University of Minnesota to philanthropic foundations like the Ford Foundation and even pension funds like ABP pension fund made similar commitments. Now, were pushing these institutions to go further. A movement to expose and dismantle fossil fuel companies roles in climate research initiatives, Fossil Free Research, is surging internationally. From the University of Cambridge to Princeton, where student activism successfully compelled a commitment to dissociation from 90 oil and gas companies including its longstanding research partner ExxonMobil, students are making clear that fossil fuel majors shouldnt be able to mooch off of universities prestigious name brands to greenwash their reputations or weaponize critical science and policy research to serve their bottom line of climate denial and delay.

And as our action shows, were fighting end Big Oils recruiting capabilities on campus, taking a page from our allies in the United Kingdom where the push for Fossil Free Careers has already made historic headway with the recent announcement that Birkbeck, University of London will be the first higher education to ban fossil fuel employers from its university careers service.

Companies driving climate breakdown and community devastation, from historic floods in Pakistan to Hurricane Ians destructive tear through Florida, arent good faith employers. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the case of ExxonMobil, a company notorious for lying about the reality of climate change for decades and even more egregious, launching concerted campaigns to silence critics  including Harvards own researchers  and skew the publics understanding of the climate crisis.

Arvind Srinivasan

And its not just that Exxon knew; its that Exxon knows that its business model turns on continued planetary and human harm, which is why the company continues to engage in climate subterfuge. Last year, in a leaked recording, Exxon lobbyist Keith McCoy directly invoked the companys history of joining shadow groups to work against some of the early efforts on climate' as well as to its continued efforts to undermine climate policy under the Biden Administration. Moreover, a 2021 study by researchers Geoffrey Supran and Naomi Oreskes shows how ExxonMobils climate change messaging has mimicked tobacco industry propaganda to downplay the stakes of the climate crisis and deflect its outsize responsibility  as the fifth biggest producer of cumulative greenhouse gas emissions in recent history, according to CDPs 2017 Carbon Majors Report  on individual consumers.

Welcoming Big Oil to recruit on campus is not only a massive ethical failure on the part of universities. It is also a fundamental failure to achieve the essential outcome of their careers services: to direct young people into jobs that can support our futures and our ability to contribute to larger society. In a decarbonizing world, there is no future in the fossil fuel industry for anyone. Fossil fuel jobs are already on the decline. Meanwhile, green jobs are proliferating. These are the jobs that universities should be directing students toward. Universities should host employers that will unite students in the fight against climate change and for a just renewable energy economy, not invite their complicit in pushing the world past the safe limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius of planetary warming.

Arvind Srinivasan

Especially for as prestigious and well-resourced universities as Harvard, MIT, and Brown, there is no excuse for hosting an Exxon recruitment event. Indeed, these universities responsibility to lead the way in cutting ties to oil and gas giants is proportional to their outsized societal influence. And its also a core part of their credibility as climate actors; we cant trust our universities to act in good faith on climate action pledges while they cozy up to fossil fuel majors.

Not just students but people everywhere see the writing on the walls. This spring, a consultant quit her work with Shell after 11 years: Ive come to the point where I cant live with my own conscience for continuing to support a company that just so blatantly doesnt care about whats happening with the climate and the people that it will harm, said Caroline Dennett. Meanwhile, public relations firms are coming under fire from employees for working with oil and gas giants, with 400 PR agencies already having pledged to decline future contracts with these companies.

As a senior at Harvard, I study the ethics of climate change. The irony of my universitys contribution to the climate crisis through its morally reprehensible ties to Big Oil, on gross display in recruitment events like that we disrupted, is not lost on me; indeed, it weighs on me every day. I want my university and all of higher education to step up to this crucial moment. Their way to do so is clear: cut ties to Big Oil. So for all of our peers, its time to leverage our power as future degree-holders and workers to ensure they do so.

Ilana Cohen is an organizer with Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard and Fossil Free Research.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

There are likely more than 57,000 locations, with sites in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, that are contaminated with the toxic forever chemicals known as per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Thats the result of a new study and mapping effort from Northeastern Universitys PFAS Project Lab published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters Wednesday. In the absence of rigorous testing, the researchers used a new method to predict where the persistent environmental toxins would be found.

Environmental Science & Technology Letters

While it sounds scary that there are over 57,000 presumptive contamination sites, this is almost certainly a large underestimation, study co-author and Northeastern Universitys Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute director Dr. Phil Brown said in a press release emailed to EcoWatch. The scope of PFAS contamination is immense, and communities impacted by this contamination deserve swift regulatory action that stops ongoing and future uses of PFAS while cleaning up already existing contamination.

The Problem With PFAS

PFAS are a major environmental and public health concern to which federal regulators are just now catching up. It was perhaps predictive of their overall toxicity that they emerged during the same Manhattan Project that gave us the atomic bomb, the study authors noted. Today, there are more than 12,000 chemicals that fall under the PFAS umbrella, and they have at least 200 known uses, appearing in everything from firefighting foam to astro turf to stain-and water-resistant clothing.

PFAS have been linked to a variety of health problems including cancer, immune suppression, hormone disruption and developmental and reproductive problems, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Because they have a tendency to disperse throughout the environment once they enter it, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that most U.S. residents had been exposed to them in some way. The majority of people whose blood serum the agency tested tested positive for four common PFAS. Around 200 million people in the U.S. drink PFAS-contaminated drinking water, according to the study. The chemicals are even present in most rainwater that falls around the world and the umbilical cord blood of newborns, according to two recent studies.

Not only do we all have PFAS in our bodies, but we also know that PFAS affects almost every organ system, study co-author and scientist emeritus and former director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program Dr. Linda Birnbaum said in the press release. It is essential that we understand where PFAS are in our communities so that we can prevent exposures.

Despite the urgency, testing is well below the need for it. While industry has been aware of the risks posed by certain PFAS since the 1960s, the EPA just proposed non-binding drinking-water safety limits for two of the most dangerous, common PFAS in June and proposed regulating the same two PFAS under the Superfund Law in August. So far, the only federal water testing for PFAS excludes private wells and reports at a higher level than the EPAs new safety limits.

At the state level, 19 states have passed regulations and some states have tested drinking water and then tried to locate the source of contamination. However, this form of testing is time consuming, under-resourced and can miss less obvious sources.

Mapping Presumptive Contamination

In order to fill in some of these gaps, the study authors decided to map something called presumptive PFAS contamination.

We know that PFAS testing is very sporadic, and there are many data gaps in identifying known sites of PFAS contamination. Thats why the presumptive contamination model is a useful tool in the absence of existing high-quality data, senior paper author and PFAS Project Lab co-director Dr. Alissa Cordner said in the press release.

But what exactly is the presumptive contamination model?

A presumptive contamination approach posits that, in the absence of high-quality data to the contrary, PFAS contamination is probable near facilities known to produce, use, and/or release PFAS, and to protect public health, the existence of PFAS in these locations should be presumed until high-quality testing data is available, the study authors explained.

The research team identified three types of sites likely to be contaminated with PFAS.

AFFF Discharge Sites: These are places where the firefighting foam known as Fluorinated AFFF has been released, usually to either fight fuel fires or as part of training. They include military bases, major airports, firefighting training areas and the sites where major fires caused by incidents like plane or rail crashes or chemical explosions were put out. Industrial Sites: These are industrial manufacturing areas known to either produce or use PFAS. It is possible to predict whether an industrial process might involve PFAS by looking at its North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. Sites Related to Contaminated Waste: PFAS often ends up in wastewater, so the sludge for wastewater treatment plants can be contaminated. This contamination can spread to agricultural land if the waste is used on crops.

The scientists then used reliable, publicly-available data to integrate all of these sites into a map of presumptive PFAS contamination. In total, they located 57,412 sites, among them 49,145 industrial facilities, 4,255 wastewater treatment plants, 3,493 military sites and 519 major airports.

Air department Sailors scrub the flight deck after validating the shipboard firefighting system during an aqueous film forming foam system test aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Adam K. Thomas

PFAS contamination at these locations is very likely, Dr. Cordner said in the press release.

The data is also publically available via the PFAS Sites and Community Resources map put together by the PFAS Project Lab, Silent Spring Institute and the PFAS-REACH team.

The team also checked their work against more than 500 known PFAS-contaminated locations and found that 72 percent of them were either on the map or covered by the mapping model.

Ultimately, the researchers hope that their map can be a tool for both other scientists and state and federal regulators to better understand and manage PFAS pollution in the U.S.

PFAS testing is expensive and resource intensive, study co-author and Northeastern University post-doctoral researcher Dr. Kimberly Garrett said in the press release. We have developed a standardized methodology that can help identify and prioritize locations for monitoring, regulation, and remediation.
Uzbekistans Ambassador to India, Dilshod Akhatov, will address a press conference today, October 13, in Hyderabad. The relocation of Indian medical students from Ukraine to Uzbekistan will be one of the major issues which will be discussed.

According to the official press release regarding the conference, at the request of the Indian government, Uzbekistan's Management of Higher Education Institutions (MHEIs) is offering 2,000 seats "to relocate Indian medical students from Ukraine to government medical institutes in Uzbekistan".

It may be noted that Indian medical students from Ukrainian universities have been demanding to be accommodated in Indian medical colleges. However, the Centre has refused to comply. The matter has reached the Supreme Court and the upcoming hearing is scheduled for November 1.

The students are in a quandary about their academic future. Many are still opting for online classes, while a few others have taken the risk to return to Ukraine to complete their degrees. A student, who wishes to remain anonymous, informs EdexLive that many more are planning to return, claiming that there is no other solution if they are not accommodated in India.

Amidst this tension, comes the news of accommodation in Uzbekistan. The press conference will take place in Hyderabad. Along with the relocation of students, the Uzbekistan-India bilateral relations will also be discussed.




New Zealand to tax greenhouse gasses that livestock make from 2025

New Zealand's greenhouse gasses tax on cattle and sheep burping and peeing, a world's first to tackle climate change, will come into force in 2025 but farmers in the country have criticised the proposal, Al Jazeera News reported.

The main lobbying organisation for the sector, Federated Farmers, claimed that the tax would "rip the guts out of small-town New Zealand" and have an impact on food production because farms would be replaced with trees.

Andrew Hoggard, president of Federated Farmers, said their plan was to keep farmers farming, but he predicted that farmers would sell their land very quickly.

Only 5 million people live in New Zealand, but there are 26 million sheep, 10 million dairy and beef cattle.

Farm animals produce greenhouses gasses especially the methane from cattle burps and nitrous oxide from their urine. Agriculture, which was previously exempt from New Zealand's emissions trading programme, is responsible for nearly half of the country's overall greenhouse gas emissions.

The proposal, according to New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, would make New Zealand's farmers the best not just in the world but for all of humanity.

In 2020, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declared a climate emergency. She said New Zealand's farmers are set to be the first in the world to reduce agricultural emissions, positioning their biggest export market for the competitive advantage that brings in a world increasingly discerning about the provenance of their food.

A price for biogenic methane would be determined based on recommendations from the Climate Commission, while prices for long-lived gases like carbon dioxide would be set annually based on domestic emission prices for other sectors.

The plan will give farmers financial incentives to use technology to reduce sheep and cow burps, and it will reinvest the money they spend on emissions into the industry.

By 2050, the government promises to cut greenhouse gas emissions and achieve carbon neutrality. A commitment to reduce farm animal methane emissions by 10% by 2030 and up to 47% by 2050 is a part of that plan.

- Al Jazeera News




China's total seafood exports hit US$15 billion in first eight months this year

Data from China's General Administration of Customs showed that the country exported US$15 billion worth of seafood products between January to August 2022, 13.56% higher year-on-year, Fish Information & Services reported.

Total export volume for the eight months of this year was 2.4058 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.66%.

In August 2022 alone, China exported US$1.8 billion worth of seafood, 1.68% higher year-on-year, with a total export volume of 301,900 tons, a year-on-year decrease of 2.8%.

The top ten markets for China's export of aquatic products and products in the first eight months were Japan, the US, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Mexico, which together accounted for China's export value of this product, which was 74.37%.

With an export value of US$2.5 billion, up 7.4% year over year, Japan was the most significant export market for aquatic products in the first eight months. The export value for the month of August was US$289 millio, a decrease of 10.89% from the same period last year.

- Fish Information & Services




Argentina's government to meet wheat industry over crop issues

Argentina's government is expected to meet with wheat millers and exporters over this year's crop size following a severe drought in the country, Reuters reported.

After significant reductions in production forecasts, domestic millers are concerned about a shortage of wheat. A spokesperson for the agriculture secretariat said they will examine the issues millers raise there.

When asked about the meeting and whether any potential additional export restrictions might be implemented to safeguard domestic supply, the spokesperson said nothing is confirmed.

When asked if there might be tighter limits on wheat exports, a spokesperson for Argentina's economy ministry, which is above the agricultural secretariat said that is not how it is.

A source from the wheat milling sector said that the agricultural secretariat had called him for a meeting but provided no other information.

A meeting would be held "in the coming days," according to a different source at the nation's CIARA-CEC grains exporting chamber, to discuss concerns about the effects of the drought and worries among wheat millers about a shortage of grains for the domestic market.

The important Rosario grains exchange has reduced Argentina's anticipated 20222023 wheat harvest to 16.5 million tonnes, which would be the lowest in seven years and far below the bumper 23 million tonnes in 20212022. Argentina is a major wheat exporter.

According to official data, the nation's farmers have already formally declared 8.85 million tonnes of wheat will be exported in 20222023. The current season's wheat harvest export limit is 10 million tonnes.

- Reuters




Uganda's feed producers and poultry farmers at odds over import duty





Ugandan animal feed manufacturers under the umbrella body, the Uganda Animal Feeds Manufacturers Association(UAFMA), told the country's parliament that a import duty of 10% and VAT of 18% by URA on concentrate feed will help protect local industries from unfair competition from imports.

However, local poultry farmers protested the import duty and VAT, arguing that they will see the prices of eggs and poultry products increase.

UAFMA members recently made their case before the Parliamentary Committee on Trade, Tourism and Industry chaired by the Mbarara City South MP Mwine Mpaka.

"We support the tax because (this) is going to help our economy to develop its own capacity to manufacture animal and poultry feeds," said Aimable Mbarushimana, a member of UAFMA. "One of the lessons we have learned from COVID is self-sustenance and supporting local manufacturers is one of the ways in doing this.

"We need to have capacity building since what we import from outside can be be manufactured locally."

With the import duty, local feed manufacturers can be empowered to limit the import of animal feed concentrate.

"From 2001, we started a programme to help support farmers produce sunflower locally and reduce on importing," said Tony Gadhoke, chief executive officer of Mukwano Industries. "This programme has been a huge success with over 100,000 farmers documented to have benefited from growing sunflower and soya beans that they supply to us but over the years, many have run out of business because we (could not) buy all that they produce because of the lack of market for our locally manufactured animal feeds. This is attributed to the importation of feed concentrate into the country."

"We can't afford to have a country that imports everything including what it can produce locally," said David Waliggo, a policy, legal and tax consultant with UAFMA. "We need to protect our market from foreign dumping. We need to protect our country by imposing VAT and import duty on items coming from abroad."

Committee chairperson Mwine Mpaka urged UAFMA to return with proper documents indicating the capacity of the local manufacturers to produce feed concentrate and animal feed locally.

- Nile Post




France's pork production falling since start of 2022

France's pork production has declined since the beginning of 2022, according to a news release from France AgriMer.

French and European quotations of pig carcasses have reached record levels due to the decline in supply and the increase in production costs, including feed and energy. The price of feed reached a peak, at 395/tonne (US$384) last July.

The profitability of French pig farms remains low, despite a slight improvement compared to the very deteriorated situation at the beginning of the year.

Following the decline in Chinese purchases, French exports of pork and slaughter meat declined in comparison to 2021 and 2020.

- The Pig Site




Prosecutors questioned former Defense Minister Suh Wook from the previous administration Thursday as part of their investigation into the 2020 death of a South Korean fisheries official at the hands of North Korea.







The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office is looking into allegations the Moon Jae-in administration concluded without sufficient evidence that the official was killed while attempting to defect to the North.







Critics have accused the Moon administration of drawing the conclusion to curry favor with Pyongyang.







It marks the first time for the prosecution to question a high-ranking official from the Moon government.







Prosecutors suspect that confidential documents from the defense ministry and the National Intelligence Service (NIS) were deleted following the official's death.







The investigation also centers on allegations that Park Jie-won, a former head of the NIS, and his predecessor, Suh Hoon, destroyed intelligence documents.







Prosecutors are expected to summon the two former NIS chiefs sometime soon for questioning.







The 47-year-old fisheries official, Lee Dae-jun, was fatally shot by the North's coast guard near the Yellow Sea border between the two Koreas, a day after going missing while on duty on board a fishery inspection vessel.







The Moon government concluded the official was shot and killed while trying to defect to the North. But the Coast Guard and the military reversed the conclusion in June, saying there was no evidence to suggest such motives. (Yonhap)


The Manx Government has donated 300,000 from its international development budget to support the humanitarian work by the Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Following the launch of the DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal, the government pledged 150,000 to support the frontline charities providing life-saving aid to the six million affected by the extreme flooding.

An additional 150,000 has also been donated to the DEC Afghanistan Appeal to further the work of charities helping those facing acute hunger, cold, and lack of medical care as a result of the ongoing humanitarian crisis.
Manx actor nominated for NTA



Joe Locke / Twitter

A Manx Actor has been nominted for a National Television Award.

Joe Lock is nominated for the Rising Star award. The 19-year-old played Charlie Spring in the Netflix drama Heartstopper.

The series has also been nominated for Best New Drama.

The winners will be announced at the National Television Awards in London tonight.


By Tom Plate





To lose one's sense of decency by raising the threat of nuclear weapons just once  here we're talking directly to you, Vladimir Putin  may be dismissed as a mere unfortunate slip; but to raise it more than once can suggest mindlessness, or madness.



A measure of narcissism may be acceptable as a common human foible; but as a defining characteristic of a major global political figure, it is rarely without cost to others. Indeed, for the rampant egomaniac, prolonged reflection becomes irresistible generally only when admiring oneself in a mirror.



It is very hard to imagine the full extent of an unprecedented catastrophe until the blow-up happens in front of you. The predictions of loss from a nuclear war range from regional obliteration to planetary catastrophe.



To be sure, "experts" could be dug up to downplay the worst that could happen  or even deny that it ever would happen at all. But that sort of radioactive denial was anything but the case last week in Santa Barbara, California, fortunately, where an important international Zoom seminar took place.



Santa Barbara, draping decorously on the sun-splashed coast of the Pacific Ocean about 90 miles north of far more populous Los Angeles, is a lively intellectual center of West Coast policy thinking that includes a major university and high-level, nonprofit think tanks.



One of the most relevant these days is the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF), founded in 1982 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan international education and advocacy organization. NAPF's policy aspirations include not only global nuclear nonproliferation but also complete elimination of all nuclear weapons from the face of the earth.



That's an excellent idea. As Richard A. Falk, professor emeritus of international law at Princeton, stated, "Nuclear dangers have become more salient than any time at least in this century." The always provocative policy sage was the lead star in a mostly grave NAPF international panel discussion on the nuclear dangers intensified by the Ukraine war.



But Falk being Falk  his extraordinary 1971 book "This Endangered Planet: Prospects and Proposals for Human Survival" was recently named one of only six "Books for the Century" by America's very influential Foreign Affairs magazine  he insists that the deadly swirl of crisis interconnectedness cannot be contained by a sloppy system of roiling national interests; it is all related. It demands systemic, careful, persistent attention by powerful global consensus.



Falk's landmark book, an examination of existential environmental crises as well as nuclear, called for "a revolution in consciousness that would reimagine how people and societies could organize themselves for sustainable life."



Well, that hasn't happened yet. Falk  now 91  conceded that "we know what to do, but we don't know how to get it done".



The credentialed discussants also concurred with Falk's curt dismissal of the timeworn geopolitical method of divide and conquer. The tactic can yield short-term success to make leaders look good; but it is obviously a toxic deterrent against reaching consensus on big global challenges. The Ukraine war  so tragic, so unnecessary  stands out as a severe regression in world reordering.



The unseemly primal lust with which Washington by proxy jumped into the regional crisis and made it an increasingly global one stunned many.



In effect, knee-jerk muscular policies inadvertently hop on to the road to war. Propaganda blasts in all directions make all who disagree with you the devils of our epoch. Demonization swells up further during the run-up to war. In the process of painting the enemy into a corner of evil, you invite a commensurate counter-reaction from the designated devil.



That cycle takes you over the edge of reason: You may forget that only God is perfect, and the fact of the matter is that you're not God. Any suggestion that you think you might be puts you into the category of the super-narcissist. Fair-minded skeptics become very uncomfortable with simple-minded binary thinking and will quickly look for third options to escape.



Falk asked: Why is it that it's the largest states which tend to be the most simplistic explainers of the difference between the forces of good and evil? China and Russia are no saints in this respect, of course, but the United States itself has parlayed its international brand of American exceptionalism into, in Falk's words, a preposterous "permanent innocence."



Take the mounting Taiwan tension. You cannot send a message to China that it would face what Russia is now facing, to no small extent due to Western proxy involvement, if it tried to take Taiwan by military means, without in effect firing up the Chinese military further. It is close to hyper as it is; so further U.S. threats are a puerile prescription for peace.



The same goes for the dealings with Moscow, which are so misdirected now. In effect the West is challenging Russia's right to be one of the hegemonic powers. What if the obvious-to-everyone proxy U.S. campaign in the Ukraine doesn't lead to regime downfall but instead to a desperate Putin using nuclear weapons?



Note that at the United Nations, all five of the permanent members of the Security Council are nuclear-armed; worse yet, four of these five do not even renounce the first use of these heinous weapons whose genetic effects last for generations. Only China does.



But would Beijing stick to that long-held policy in a severe showdown that began with conventional weapons? Who knows? But at least it starts in the right place, as should the other four supposed U.N. leaders. Professor Falk gets it right: humanity's existence is not worth putting at risk.





Tom Plate, distinguished scholar of Asian and Pacific studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, is the Pacific Century Institute's vice-president. His first book  "Understanding Doomsday, on the nuclear arms race"  was published in 1971. His article was distributed by the South China Morning Post.






Microsoft's $68.7 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard will have to gain approval from various regulators around the world before the deal can go through, including the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA, which first announced its investigation in July, published a summary of its initial probe in September and recommended a more in-depth inquiry. As Ars Technica notes, a Phase 2 investigation could end up prohibiting a merger or requiring the entities involved to sell parts of a company. Now, shortly after the CMA published the full text (PDF) of its decision, Microsoft released a scathing response (PDF), accusing the regulator of relying "on self-serving statements by Sony."

In its response that it has shared to Ars, the tech giant said the CMA's decision was rooted in the concern that Activision's catalogue of games, specifically the Call of Duty franchise, will allow Xbox to "foreclose its competitors." Microsoft called that concern "misplaced," arguing that the CMA is overstating the importance of Activision Blizzard's games when it comes to competition in the space. It also said that it plans to make Call of Duty more accessible by adding Activision's titles to its Game Pass subscription service.

Sony did not welcome the idea of this "increased competition," the company said, stressing that its rival "protect[s] its revenues" by not making newly released games available through PlayStation Plus. Microsoft also said that there's no basis for the idea that making Call of Duty available on Game Pass would make people more likely to buy an Xbox console. The company said CoD games would also be available for purchase on PlayStation and buying them would be cheaper than buying an Xbox for Game Pass access.

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The CMA has adopted Sony's complaints "without the appropriate level of critical review," Microsoft continued. It added: "The suggestion that the incumbent market leader, with clear and enduring market power, could be foreclosed by the third largest provider as a result of losing access to one title is not credible." Microsoft wrote in its response that it's looking forward to working with the CMA through Phase 2, and it sounds like it's determined to make the regulator understand the benefits of the deal.

As for Sony, a spokesperson repeated its stance in a statement sent to Reuters, calling the deal "bad for competition, bad for the gaming industry and bad for gamers themselves." Microsoft's acquisition would give the Xbox ecosystem "a unique combination of tech and content," they said, which in turn would give the tech giant a dominant position in gaming that would have "devastating consequences for consumers, independent developers, and Sony itself."
New strategy needed to avert nuclear nightmare



The Yoon Suk-yeol administration is weighing various measures to strengthen deterrence against ever-mounting nuclear threats from North Korea. Yet it is tricky to sort out viable options as there are risk factors to consider. What's certain is that South Korea needs a new strategy as the Kim Jong-un regime is going all out to develop and deploy tactical nuclear warheads that can devastate the South.



On Thursday, Yoon said he is looking carefully at "various possibilities" on how to strengthen U.S. extended deterrence against the nuclear-armed North. He declined to give further details, saying it is difficult to mention specific options given the sensitive nature of security-related matters. However, it is certain that Seoul is actively discussing the issue with Washington.



There are some possible options, including the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons, which were withdrawn from the South in 1991. Some hardline lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) are calling for South Korea's own nuclear armament, floating the idea of "a nuke for a nuke." However, it is unfeasible for the country to push for a nuclear weapons program as it goes against the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and will trigger a domino effect in East Asia.



The redeployment of U.S. tactical nukes is not without problems either. Washington appears reluctant to accept this option as it could be used to justify the North's nuclear program and intensify a nuclear showdown in the region. Thus it is necessary to find a viable solution for coping with the North's nuclear blackmail more effectively.



Some feasible options could include deployment of U.S. strategic assets such as nuclear-powered aircraft carriers or nuclear submarines to waters around the Korean Peninsula on a rotational basis around the clock. Such a measure will significantly enhance U.S. extended deterrence against the North's nuclear threats, while sticking to the principle of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. Seoul and Washington are reportedly discussing this option, which is seen as a method for the U.S. to "share" its nuclear arms with its Asian ally.



There are growing calls for the two allies to overhaul their coordinated strategy that has so far focused on how to prod the North to denuclearize. Now the security situation on the peninsula has changed greatly as Kim has vowed not to give up his nuclear arsenal and refused to return to dialogue.



The North's nuclear menace has become an increasingly real threat to the South. For the past two weeks, Pyongyang conducted seven rounds of missile launches, including short- and intermediate-range missiles. It reportedly carried out tactical nuclear weapons drills under the guidance of Kim. On Wednesday, the North fired two long-range strategic cruise missiles that flew 2,000 kilometers to hit a target in the West Sea.



In this situation, the Yoon administration should work more closely with the Biden administration to find a fundamental solution to the North's growing security threats. Most of all, it is imperative to prevent the Kim regime from conducting its seventh nuclear test. It will be far more difficult  arguably impossible  for the allies to realize their shared goal of denuclearizing the North, once Pyongyang completes the final stage of its nuclear program.






BEIJINGU.S. chip-equipment suppliers are pulling out staff based at Chinas leading memory-chip maker and pausing business activities there, according to people familiar with the matter, as they grapple with the impact of Commerce Department semiconductor export restrictions.

State-owned Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. is facing a freeze in support from key suppliers including KLA Corp. and Lam Research Corp. , the people said. The suspensions follow last weeks sweeping curbs imposed by the U.S. on Chinas chip sector, ostensibly to prevent American technology from advancing Chinas military power, though the impact might reach further into the industry.

The U.S. suppliers have paused support of already installed equipment at YMTC in recent days and temporarily halted installation of new tools, the people said. The suppliers are also temporarily pulling out their staff based at YMTC, the people said.

Chip-making equipment vendor Applied Materials Inc. on Wednesday slashed its sales projection for the current quarter by about $400 million, citing the restrictions. The company, one of the largest producers of chip equipment in the world, counts Chinas leading chip-makers among its many customers. It generated more than 27% of its sales from China in the second quarter, or nearly $1.8 billion. A large portion of those sales go to multinational firms that operate in China and are expected to be exempt from controls targeting Chinese chip-makers.

Applied said it was pursuing export licenses and authorizations, but added that it expected a similar impact to sales in the first quarter of next year.

U.S. chip equipment manufacturers have dozens of employees stationed at YMTCs factory. They play a crucial role in operating the factory and developing its manufacturing capabilities, as they bring in expertise on highly technical chip production tools, people familiar with the situation said. If the halt is extended, customers such as YMTC face being cut off from upgrades, maintenance expertise and future technology they need to develop chips.

YMTC, KLA and Lam Research didnt respond to requests for comment.

While the moves might be temporary, they are immediate signs of business disruptions facing Chinese chip makers and U.S. technology suppliers as Washington escalates its efforts to stifle Chinas emerging semiconductor industry. The U.S. export control measures, which restrict companies sending chips and chip-making equipment to China, are some of the broadest the U.S. has enacted against Chinas semiconductor industry. They veer from previous actions that often targeted individual companies and a narrower subset of technology.

The rules, announced Friday by the Commerce Department, add new license requirements for advanced semiconductors and chip-making equipment destined to a facility in China. Licenses for facilities owned by U.S. and U.S.-allied firms would be decided on a case-by-case basis, while Chinese-owned facilities would face a presumption of denial.

Intel Corp. and South Korean memory maker SK Hynix on Wednesday said they had secured exceptions to keep their China-based facilities running. Other U.S. and allied firms were expected to receive similar approvals.

Even before Commerce issued the rules, Nvidia Corp. in August warned its business could be impacted by new licensing requirements. The company, soon after, said it had secured authorization to continue developing some of the advanced chips in China that could have been impacted, as well as to support its U.S. customers and fulfill orders at a Hong Kong facility until next September.

I believe the U.S. government intends to force the more advanced production facilities of Chinese companies like SMIC and YMTC to shut down entirely, Gregory Allen, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said. However, the more advanced Chinese production facilities of South Korean and other internationally-owned companies will merely be prevented from expanding beyond their current production footprint.

The potential impact on Applied Materials and other leading U.S. chip-industry players underlines how American companies bottom lines are being increasingly impacted by the Biden administrations bid to curb the growth of Chinas industry. Chip-industry advocates have long argued that overly broad export controls could end up hurting U.S. industry by depriving it of money to fund innovation and keep ahead of China.

American companies dominate the global chip-production equipment supply chain, with a combined share of 41%, while Chinas is 5% or lower, according to a Boston Consulting Group analysis.

The Commerce Departments measures are far reaching because they restrict the ability of U.S. persons to support the development or production of some of the most cutting-edge chips in China.

U.S. persons would include those with American passports and green-card holders as well as U.S. companies, said Kevin Wolf, a former Commerce Department official and a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.

KLA is known for its inspection and testing equipment and Lam Research for etching machines. Another major American supplier to Chinas chip industry, Applied Materials, produces tools including those that deposit layers of materials on wafer surfacesall critical steps in producing chips. China, the biggest market for the three U.S. chip equipment suppliers, contributes around 30% of the companies revenues.

Share prices of Applied Materials, KLA and Lam Research have all dropped by more than 20% over the past month.

Beyond the broad new restrictions targeting Chinas chip sector, the U.S. last week placed YMTC on a list of companies the Commerce Department is concerned about, called an unverified list. Companies on the list could be added to a more restrictive export blacklist if its concerns arent allayed.

Based in Chinas central Hubei province, YMTC is a maker of flash memory chips used for storage, and Chinas largest maker of memory chips overall. It is responsible for about 6% of global memory output, according to market tracker TrendForce.

The company last year began shipping a type of advanced memory chip containing 128 layers, putting it within the scope of new U.S. restrictions. More layers allow a chip to store more data.

YMTC is controlled by the Hubei government and Chinas national integrated circuit fund. Previously, it was a unit of Chinese chip conglomerate Tsinghua Unigroup Co., which in recent years has been heavily indebted and completed a yearlong asset restructuring in July

Yoko Kubota, Raffaele Huang& Asa Fitch

: wsj.com
Continuing its emergency special session, the General Assembly today condemned the Russian Federations attempted illegal annexation of the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, and demanded it immediately withdraw all its military forces from Ukraine territory.





By the terms of the text, titled Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations  adopted by a recorded vote of 143 in favour to 5 against (Belarus, Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Syria) with 35 abstentions  the Assembly demanded that the Russian Federation immediately reverse its decisions of 21 February and 29 September related to the status of the four abovementioned regions.





These acts are a violation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and inconsistent with the principles of the United Nations Charter, the Assembly declared. It called on all States, international organizations and United Nations agencies not to recognize any alteration by the Russian Federation of the status of the four regions of Ukraine.





[The Assemblys eleventh emergency special session resumed on 11 October after the Security Council on 30 September failed to adopt a resolution intended to condemn the Russian Federation referendums that preceded Moscows proclamation of its annexation of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. (See Press Release SC/15046 for details.) The draft Council resolution also would have declared that the referendums taken from 23 to 27 September in parts of those regions are neither valid nor form the basis for any alteration of the status of these regions of Ukraine, including any purported annexation by the Russian Federation.]





In the discussion today, many Member States deplored the Russian Federations aggression towards its neighbour and its attempted annexation of Ukrainian land as blatant disregard for the bedrock principles on which the Organization was founded. The Czech Republics representative said the Russian Federations organizing of fake voting amidst the war is yet more proof of the intimidation and violations Ukrainian citizens are facing.





Some speakers were more neutral in their approach, while a handful sided with the Russian Federation. Among them was the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, whose delegate said that the people of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia voted to be a part of the Russian Federation. He also added that illegals acts of aggression against former Yugoslavia, as well as Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, by the United States and other Western countries, have yet to be addressed by the Security Council.





The representative of Papua New Guinea expressed dismay that the Russian Federation as a permanent member of the Security Council could threaten nuclear war with such ease. Council members do not solely represent their own interests, but peace and security on a global scale. Take a hard look at your respective actions and ask whether you deserve a seat, he said.





Several delegations, such as Brazil and India, expressed worries that their concerns and suggestions were not included in the draft text, with Brazils representative underscoring that his delegations calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities were left out.





India joined several other speakers in expressing deep worry that the people of the global South were feeling pain from a food, fuel and fertilizer shortage, and sky-high price increases, as a result of the war.





Some delegates stressed the need to promote dialogue and diplomacy so that peace can prevail. They expressed concern that not enough was being done to bring parties to peace talks.





The representative of the United States said that the path to peace does not run through placations. The only way to bring peace is to show what we will not tolerate, she said.





Canadas delegate dismissed the Russian Federations claims of Russophobia. We do not seek Russias destruction; what we seek is for the Russian Federation to live up to its commitment and to act as a steward of peace, he said.





The Russian Federations representative reiterated that the populations of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia voted that they did not want to return to Ukraine and that more than 100 international observers from Italy, Germany, Venezuela, Latvia and other countries, who observed the referendum, recognized its outcome as legitimate. He called todays text a politicized and openly provocative document that risks destroying any efforts towards a diplomatic solution to the crisis.





Also speaking today were the representatives of Guatemala, Ireland, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Ecuador, Slovakia, Republic of Korea, Australia, Chile, Viet Nam, Colombia, Moldova, Federated States of Micronesia, Croatia, Hungary, Spain, Cyprus, Argentina, Portugal, Greece, Liberia, Belgium, Japan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, New Zealand, Slovenia, Uruguay, Syria, Montenegro, Ghana, Cambodia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Palau, Timor-Leste, Germany, France, China, Venezuela, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Angola, Algeria, South Africa, Pakistan, Egypt, Bangladesh, Thailand, Mauritius, Brazil, Cuba and Bolivia, as well as the Permanent Observers for the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta.





A representative of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance also spoke.





The representatives of Rwanda, Pakistan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo made statements in exercise of the right of reply.





The Assembly will meet again at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 19 October, to consider the tenth annual report of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals.




Adtomica, a boutique independent marketing agency, has expanded its operations into the Indian market. With its office in Gurugram, Adtomica is currently in the process of building and further expanding its team in India.

Adtomicas creative team across the region is being headed by Abhay Kaul, co-founder. He will also handle the business and administrative side of things. Jess Tang, Chief Strategy Officer and other co-founder, will focus the agencys creative energy. They are both based out of the agencys Singapore office.

This is our official entry into India, but we have been working with both Indian and international brands, ever since our inception. I believe that creative talent needs to be given the freedom to experiment, trial and error, to achieve innovation, says Kaul.

Having Jess on board will add tremendous value to our larger vision and her experience will help us flourish across the globe. Within a short span of a month since she joined, we have already produced 2 short human stories filming People with Intellectual Disabilities, as well as an exciting event launch with Activision in Singapore, he added.

Talking about her association with Adtomica, Tang said, I am really excited and can no longer ignore my passion to dedicate my expertise towards the agencys vision and purpose. With the combination of cultures, expertise and experience of multiple APAC countries, we believe that young marketers will get to experience a hybrid agency model that pushes them to build their personal brand and hopefully alongside, their personal stamp in the industry. Our past experience with agencies and brands alike will help us grow and also showcase a global outlook and approach towards creating impactful narratives for our partner brands.

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Thursday, October 13, 2022

The Albuquerque Death Cafe was to take place at Historic Fairview Cemetery this Sunday, October 16, to discuss death among the tombstones. However, the weather forecast is cold and rainy (rare for Albuquerque). We will instead hold it online through Zoom and stay warm and dry at home.

The objective of the Death Cafe is to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives. Its an interesting, unstructured conversation with no specific agenda. The ABQ Death Cafe offers a relaxed, confidential and safe setting to discuss death, drink tea (or your favorite beverage) and eat delicious cake or cookies. Now that the event is online, please bring your own refreshments.

To RSVP and get the Zoom link for this event, join the ABQ Death Cafe Meetup Group here. Learn more about Death Cafes here.

Your Death Cafe Host

All of these Albuquerque Death Cafes are hosted by Gail Rubin, Certified Thanatologist, and a pioneering death educator. Rubin is a public speaker, a published author of three books, host of a TV interview series and podcast, a blogger, a funeral industry trade journalist, a Certified Funeral Celebrant, and an innovator in the funeral business.

She created a conversation-starting game called The Newly-Dead Game, introduced the Death Cafe movement in the United States, and held the first Before I Die Festival west of the Mississippi in 2017. Albuquerque Business First named her one of their 2019 Women of Influence.

Her YouTube channel, @GailRubin, features a range of videos about the funeral business, with playlists focused on Tools of the Trade, videos from Historic Fairview Cemetery, and sessions from the Before I Die New Mexico Festival.

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By James Varney, RealClearInvestigations

September 28, 2022

Strung out on drugs half her life, Brandi Edwards, 29, said the longest she held a job before getting sober four years ago was about two and a half months.

I worked at an AT&T call center, a day-care center for a month, fast food places, but I had to take drugs to get out of bed in the morning and when I did show up, I wasnt productive, the West Virginia mother of three told RealClearInvestigations. The first paycheck came along and I was out of there.

In jail for the ninth time on drug-related charges, and separated from her children, Edwards had an awakening in looking hard at what Id lost. Now clean for four years after rehab, she is married and back in her childrens lives with a home in Princeton, W. Va., and a steady job.

But such success stories are too infrequent to offset the massive cost of the opioid epidemic to the American workforce. Only a couple of people in her former addict circle have returned to productive life, she says, while most are dead or incarcerated.

That toll on labor, haunting Americas working present and future probably for years -- if not decades -- to come, is largely invisible and underreported because it is difficult to measure, according to physicians, counselors, economists, workers and public officials. But its staying power is suggested by other lasting national challenges, including the porous southern border -- a major conduit for smuggled, Chinese-made fentanyl -- and economic and social traumas set in motion by the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to untold years of productivity lost from fatal overdoses, the nations labor participation rate has shrunk steadily since 2000. Precise correlation is elusive, but any graph of that decline would stand in sharp contrast to the rise of opioid addiction in the U.S. And while it is difficult to calculate just how much drug use has caused absenteeism, tardiness and stretches of disability, the connection is strong, as Brandi Edwards experience suggests.

Weve been writing about this for years but it doesnt seem to get a lot of traction, said Dr. Gary Franklin, a research professor at the University of Washington who served as the medical director of the states Department of Labor and Industries. People have not realized how much opioids contribute to disability and lost productivity, and I dont know if anyone has been able to put a number on that.

Headline figures on lives lost in the opioid epidemic have been fairly clear for years. In 2021, more than 107,000 people died from drug overdoses, a nearly 15% increase from the year before and more than double the grim tally recorded in 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control. All told, overdose deaths are seven times higher than they were in 1999.

Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, which law enforcement has tracked from labs in China along trafficking routes through Mexico on the southern border, are now driving the overdose epidemic. The CDC attributed 69,000 overdose deaths to synthetic opioids in 2020, 82% of the nation's total that year. Heroin overdoses, meanwhile, went up 7% in 2020 to 13,000, according to CDC figures.

That means synthetic opioids and heroin dwarf cocaine and methamphetamines, although totals for both of those have been rising for a decade and often cause overdose deaths in combination with opioids. The National Institutes of Health shows fewer than 5,000 people killed by cocaine alone and fewer than 10,000 by what it dubs "psychostimulants," which includes methamphetamines, in 2020.

Less precisely, economists since at least 2017 have pegged at over $1 trillion the epidemics annual dollar cost in terms of deaths, law enforcement and lost productivity.

But the amount attributable to deaths - $550 billion of the $1 trillion - is largely conjecture because it is derived from actuarial estimates for lost years; for example, the decades cut from what would have been a normal working life for someone who fatally overdoses at age 45.

Then there is the less lethal side of the equation -- one that workers and employers grapple with daily. Roughly 8% of workplace fatalities in 2020 - 388 of 4,786 - were attributed to "unintentional overdose from nonmedical use of drugs," according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the agency said it is unclear "how many of these deaths involved opioids specifically."

A post on a neighborhood social media platform asking about opioids dire impact in the workforce unleashes a barrage of firsthand horror stories. Homeowners speak of an inability to hire handymen, painters, landscape workers and the like.

If Im lucky enough to have an employee that can pass a [urine analysis] the chances of them doing so after the first check is slim, wrote a tree surgeon in suburban New Orleans. Tree men get a terrible rap. People think we are all crazy, wild, no fear having, hard working dopeheads.

But he acknowledged some truth to the stories of workplace abuse of prescription opioids, mentioning laborers common habit of relying on increasingly higher-milligram dosages of pain pills like Percocet.

Workers didnt wake up one day and say, Hmmm, great day to go down a road that will cost me it all, " he wrote. "Then its inevitable. We get hurt. Usually pretty badly. So we start out getting a few .5 [mg] maybe 7.5. Later, as our careers go so does the pain, so do the amounts needed to consume to keep it at bay.

A National Safety Council study reported that more than 75% of U.S. employers have been affected by employees prescription drug use, according to congressional testimony, and the National Institutes of Health estimates some 3 million Americans, including workers, are addicted to opioids.

Edwards managed to break her addiction and return to the workforce with the help of Jobs & Hope, a statewide West Virginia placement initiative launched in 2019 that claims more than 1,500 success stories. But with a budget of $3.1 million it cannot handle all of the 200-250 addicts referred to it each month, said Deb Harris, the groups lead transition agent.

Businesses have been largely receptive to such programs, but the state is still trying to regain its footing from the flood of pills that hit it early in the 21st century, according to Dr. Matthew Christiansen, director of West Virginias Office of Drug Control in the Department of Health and Human Services.

We dont keep a running tally at the state level, but the numbers have probably stayed pretty consistent or maybe gotten a little bit worse because of an increase in overdose deaths due to fentanyl, Christiansen said.

The Centers for Disease Control does keep a tally, although it hasnt publicly updated the grim numbers on its opioid dashboard since 2017. The figures from that year show that the biggest economic hit has come in the Appalachian states around the Ohio Valley and in New England, two regions where opioids and synthetics have torn a hole through the workforce.

For example, West Virginia, long considered ground zero in the opioid epidemic, had the biggest annual per capita loss due to opioids at $7,247, according to the CDC figures that include overdose deaths. That tops Ohio, where the per capita cost in 2017 was $6,226, and New Hampshire at $5,953. Ohio saw the highest overall economic cost, at $72.58 billion, followed by Massachusetts at $36.91 billion, according to the CDC.

Fixing opioid disorder costs is complicated by the fact much of it is now driven by black-market synthetic drugs like fentanyl and thus can no longer be tracked through prescriptions. Nor is substance abuse a topic that workers - or many employers - are comfortable quantifying. All those involved in coping with the epidemic, however, peg the cost as staggering.

Its difficult to measure these things but its likely a substantial part of the labor decline, said Michael Betz, an economist at The Ohio State University who researches opioid disorder issues. Youre piecing together different pieces of evidence, but when you look at the decline in labor participation rates and opioid disorder figures, they match up pretty similarly.

Franklins team did calculate the odds opioids influenced the disability bills Washington state taxpayers foot each year for roughly 100,000 workers, a relatively uncomplicated tally since Washington is one of four states with a centralized government system and not a private workers compensation insurance market.

We found that two prescriptions of opioids for more than 7 days in the first six weeks after an injury doubled the risk of a worker being on disability one year later, he said.

Answers to broader questions on opioids baleful economic impact, however, are scarce.

Productivity losses due to anything is an extremely complex analysis and is not routinely tracked, Franklin said.

To date, the nation's prime age labor workforce has not recovered to where it was at the beginning of 2020 and is now the lowest it has been in 45 years. The hit has been especially pronounced among older adults, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Between 2015 and 2019, adults 50 years old or older "were an estimated 22 percent less likely to be in the labor force (either employed or actively seeking work), a GAO report found. In addition, people in that age group "were an estimated 40 percent less likely to be employed; and employed older workers who misused opioids were twice as likely to have experienced periods of unemployment."

Once again, however, pinpointing the precise connection between opioids and lost productivity remained elusive, as "the data did not allow GAO to determine causality."

Middle-aged white men have long comprised the single biggest group of annual overdose deaths, but between 2015 and 2020 the rate among black men skyrocketed to 54.1 per 100,000, topping white mens 44.2 per 100,000, according to the Pew Research Center.

Local economic conditions play some part in all this but they arent the key role; the main driver is the increase in supply, Betz said.

That leads some experts on the topic to conclude that opioids catastrophic hit to the United States workforce has been misconstrued. For a time, as deaths rose early on, particularly among middle-aged white men, and labor participation rates began their decline, the phrase deaths of despair took hold among some researchers.

Under this theory, the opioid epidemic fed on declining economic prospects, particularly for middle-aged white men facing unemployment or shrinking incomes.

But the deaths of despair theory reverses cause and effect, according to some physicians and people dealing with the fallout from opioids, including their more deadly synthetic cousin fentanyl.

Weve debunked that, said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, a faculty member at Brandeis University whose practice has specialized in opioid addiction. Rather than economic conditions leading to overdose deaths its really the other way around - its not the economy driving them to death, its the opioid crisis affecting the economy.
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MPs have asked the new government to re-consider a 'disappointing' response to its report on the impact of the Australian free trade agreement (FTA) on the UK agriculture sector.

The previous government had not addressed the reports central recommendation, the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee said today.

This was for the government to commit to core standards on key agricultural issues, such as food safety and animal welfare for Australian produce entering the UK.

In a letter to the new Defra Secretary Ranil Jayawardena, EFRA said the previous government response had been to re-state that the Australia FTA would not lower the standards that UK producers have to meet.

But the previous governments response, EFRA said, did not engage with the central concern of farmers about food entering the UK which were made to lower standards and therefore cheaper, thus disadvantaging UK producers.

Dr Neil Hudson, MP for Penrith and The Border, and member of EFRA, said the response to the committee's report was "incredibly disappointing and unsatisfactory".

"We have been clear that core standards of animal welfare must be baked into these agreements," Dr Hudson said.

"It is so important that our fantastic UK farmers are not compromised and undercut by produce that is cheaper to produce to lower standards."

He said the new government must address MP's concerns, as it was 'absolutely critical' that trade deals were 'balanced'.

"Currently that is not the case and the Australia and New Zealand Deals are one sided and not of equal benefit to the UK.

"This was particularly concerning, because a similar approach to future trade agreements with larger food exporting countries  such as Brazil and the USA  could have a much greater impact on the UK than the Australia FTA.

The committee has asked Mr Jayawardena to review and update the government response to EFRA's report in order to reassure UK farmers that their concerns were being listened to.

Specifically, they asked the government to commit in the Agriculture, Food and Drink Exports Council trade strategy to increase UK food exports by at least 278m  the expected loss to the sector from the Australia FTA.

The government must also expand the agri-food Trade Advisory Group to provide it with more expertise on animal welfare, health and the environment.

And more additional resources must be provided to the Trade and Agriculture Commission to produce advice on trade agreements.

The first new trade deal negotiated since the UK left the EU, the Australian FTA removes most tariffs on trade in goods between the UK and Australia.

The government says the deal will increase UK GDP by 0.08%, or 2.3 billion, by 2035, although it estimates that the UK farming and food sector will lose 278 million.
Two vegan activists have been charged by the police after dumping milk onto the floor of two department stores in London.

The activists, part of Animal Rebellion, were charged by the Metropolitan Police on Friday 7 October following the stunt.

Sofia Fernandes Pontes and Steve Bone were both charged with criminal damage, both over and under 5,000, as well as theft.

Animal Rebellion responded by saying its supporters would "continue to take nonviolent direct action".

Sofia Fernandes Pontes, one of those charged, said she poured the milk to "reflect the severity of the climate, ecological, and animal emergencies".

"I took action because I believe change is possible, but only if Liz Truss and Ranil Jayawardena step up and make the bold decision to support a plant-based future.

I am completely willing to face the consequences of my action and let a jury of ordinary people decide my fate."

Last month, Animal Rebellion activists blockaded Arla and Muller dairy sites across the UK, breaking a High Court injunction.

Following the stunt, Muller said: "We are disappointed to be targeted by a small number of activists who don't represent the 96% of adults in Britain who choose milk every week, and we will ensure that supplies are maintained.

"Dairy is affordable and packed with nutrients that benefit our bodies. During a cost of living crisis it is wrong to try to prevent it from reaching families, including vulnerable members of society."
4th century "rare" Roman mosaic floor unearthed in Syria's Homs

Xinhua) 10:08, October 13, 2022

Photo taken on Oct. 12, 2022 shows part of a Roman-era mosaic panel in al-Rastan, Homs, Syria. A well-preserved Roman-era mosaic panel was discovered in a residential suburb in the Syrian central province of Homs, local antiquities authorities announced on Wednesday. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua)

HOMS, Syria, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- A well-preserved Roman-era mosaic panel was discovered in a residential suburb in the Syrian central province of Homs, local antiquities authorities announced on Wednesday.

The relic, which dates back to the 4th century, is inlaid with thousands of colored mosaic pieces made of small grains and glass in a pattern unique among existing excavations, Syrian archeologists told Xinhua in the city of al-Rastan, where it was discovered.

Twenty meters long and six meters wide, the flooring panel belongs to a building's hall, probably a castle, said the archeologists from Homs and Damascus, adding that some other fragments to the entire mosaic are yet to be unearthed.

Nevertheless, more than 90 percent of the painting's details are intact, said Hummam Saad, director of the excavation and archaeological studies at the Directorate General for Antiquities and Museums, who dubbed it the "most complete and rare" painting unearthed in Syria.

He noted that with detailed precision, the mosaic depicts a rare scene of Amazon characters, a water deity and nymphs of Greek mythology, while showing names of the kings who participated in the legendary Trojan War fought in western Anatolia.

Hussam Hamish, director of Homs' archeology department, told Xinhua that the relic was found in very good condition and is of "global significance" in terms of the depicted ancient spectacle and the craftmanship involved.

Eight other mosaic panels have been detected in al-Rastan, and the excavation work is continuing, according to Syrian archeologists.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
By Mark Peterson





In recent months I have seen numerous "complaints" or "criticisms" of Confucianism on my YouTube channel. I've seen criticisms of genealogy, of ancestor ceremonies and of the seonbi (the well-educated man who takes and passes exams in traditional times). People are calling for an end to Confucianism as they know it.



All of these are complaints about Confucianism  keeping track of genealogical records, carrying out ancestor ceremonies and indeed, the idea of the seonbi. All of these are connected to Confucianism and are seen as manifestations of various aspects of Confucianism.



I've studied Korean history and lived in Korea learning to respect Confucianism as one of the world's great "religions"  or maybe the term "belief system" is better in light of the fact that many say Confucianism is not a "religion." There is no god figure in Confucianism and we are even told that we do not know about the next life, in spite of the fact that the primary ritual is making offerings to departed spirits. We are told that we cannot know about the situation of the departed spirits, and we are told, by Confucius himself, to not even ask about the situation of the departed spirits.



The "jokbo" or printed genealogy books are seen as closely connected to Confucianism and the link to the domination of the male line, associated with Confucianism. The jokbo helps keep track when one performs the ceremonies for various ancestors  again, the key ceremony of Confucianism. And the seonbi is the Confucian scholar who is studying the Confucian texts in preparation to pass the exam to get a government position.



For all of these I've seen criticism in recent weeks. But it occurs to me there is a solution. And the solution is not from an outside source, but the answer lies in Korean history.



Korean Confucianism has not always been attached to patrilineality, or male dominance. Confucianism entered Korea in the late Three Kingdoms period. And from that time until a point in the late 17th century, Korean Confucianism was not part of a male-dominant society. Rather, Korean Confucianism flourished in a largely egalitarian society.



Inheritances were shared equally between sons and daughters in a household. Ancestor ceremonies were shared between sons and daughters on a rotational basis. Genealogies kept track of male and female ancestors and male and female descendants. The male domination that is seen in the late Joseon period was absent. Confucianism does not have to be associated with male domination.



The answer to Korea's Confucianism dilemma is not to discard Confucianism, but to look back into Korean history to when Confucianism was practiced in an egalitarian way.



It will be an uphill battle  it is almost universally assumed that Confucianism means male domination. But we see in history that this is not true.



Specifically, looking at each of these aspects of social action, we can see an egalitarian way to live in a Confucian society. Genealogy  I've written before in this space about the "Palgojodo," or "Eight Great-Great-Grandfathers Chart." This was a system of genealogical reckoning that includes not just the male line, but all the female lines in such a way as any one person recognizes their eight great-great-grandfathers.



In Korea today, when you ask someone how many great-great-grandfathers they have, they'll often answer "just one." In the Korea of the future, we only have to look back as the way Koreans reckoned relationships before the late 17th century. And this is the equivalent to the way genealogy is reckoned in the West  the concept of the family tree, with many branches, not just one ascending line.



Ancestor ceremonies can be greatly simplified  in fact, they would have to be if one starts to recognize all of one's ancestors, from the male lines and all the female lines. And if daughters have equal inheritance and ceremonial rights with the sons, the dominance of the male line is diminished and the role of the "jongson" (eldest son's line) will disappear. There was not a role for the eldest son of the eldest son when all the children were equal heirs to property and ceremonies.



The seonbi will be even more important when scholarship and studies are considered virtues in and of themselves, not as a part of the male-dominated political system. I was pleased to learn recently that 70 percent of the incoming class of diplomats in recent years have been women. For women to gain prominence in diplomatic and academic fields (they are already well-established in medical fields), we will see a new interpretation of the seonbi in Korea  a scholar-official separated from the constraints of late-Joseon Confucianism.



The way to preserve Confucianism, one of the great world religions, is to re-envision the practices of Confucianism  the jokbo, the ceremonies and the seonbi.





Mark Peterson (markpeterson@byu.edu) is professor emeritus of Korean, Asian and Near Eastern languages at Brigham Young University in Utah.




Germany imported home textiles worth $3.297 billion during the first half (H1) of 2022. China remained its top supplier with shipment valued at $910.958 million (27.62 per cent), even as its share declined by 38.30 per cent from $1.475 billion in H1 2021. Turkiye, Poland, Netherlands and Pakistan were among the top five supplier countries.

Turkiye exported home textiles worth $353.726 million to Germany in January-June 2022, amounting to 10.73 per cent of the latters total imports, according to Fibre2Fashions market insight tool TexPro. Its supply increased by 14.23 per cent year-on-year.

Germany imported home textiles worth $3.297 billion during the first half (H1) of 2022. China remained its top supplier with shipment valued at $910.958 million (27.62 per cent), even as its share declined by 38.30 per cent from $1.475 billion in H1 2021. Turkiye, Poland, Netherlands and Pakistan were among the top five supplier countries.

Poland shipped home textile products worth $295.758 million, that is 8.97 per cent of Germanys total imports. But the supply declined by 12.41 per cent from $337.654 million in H1 2021.

Germanys imports of home textiles from Netherlands amounted to $289.741 million in H1 this year which was 8.79 per cent of its total imports. But it decreased by 31.13 per cent from $420.699 million in January-June 2021. Pakistans shipment of home textiles to the European country rose by 21.63 per cent to $247.193 million from $203.235 million of H1 2021, as per TexPro.

In addition to these, Germany also imported home textiles from other countries. Its imports were valued at $195.616 million (5.93 per cent) from India; $132.584 million (4.02 per cent) from Czech Republic; $95.787 million (2.90 per cent) from Belgium; $72.632 million (2.20 per cent) from Austria; and $57,449 million (1.74 per cent) from Vietnam.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) and the Norwegian Consumer Authority (NCA) have drawn up guidelines for the way in which the clothing industry can use the Higg Material Sustainability Index (Higg MSI) in their communications involving sustainability claims targeting consumers.

Major clothing brands use the Higg MSI to bolster their sustainability claims of materials. However, without any explanation, the data from the Higg MSI about the used materials could be unclear to consumers, and can easily become misleading, according to a press release by ACM.

The Netherlands ACM and the Norwegian Consumer Authority have drawn up guidelines for the way in which the clothing industry can use the Higg Material Sustainability Index (Higg MSI) in their communications involving sustainability claims targeting consumers. Major clothing brands use the Higg MSI to bolster their sustainability claims of materials.

We find it positive that the clothing industry is committed to making the environmental impact of its materials more transparent for consumers. This helps consumers make more sustainable choices. It is important that they do so properly so that consumers are not misled. With these guidelines, we explain how businesses can do just that, said Edwin van Houten, director of ACMs consumer department.

Last spring, the NCA conducted an investigation into a Norwegian clothing company. That company used the Higg MSI in its customer communications about the sustainability aspects of the materials used in its products. The NCA concluded that these sustainability claims on the basis of the Higg MSI were misleading, and demanded that the company stop using these claims.

Following the NCAs investigation, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which is the organisation behind the Higg Index suite of five tools, one of which is Higg MSI, decided to suspend temporarily the use of Higg MSI in communicating sustainability claims to consumers.

The SAC subsequently contacted various European regulators, including ACM and the NCA, for further guidance. In response to these consultations, ACM and NCA decided to publish these guidelines about the Higg MSI.

For making it possible to use the Higg MSI as a tool to support and substantiate certain sustainability claims, ACM and the NCA have drawn up guidelines covering for the documentation and substantiation of sustainability claims for materials based on the Higg MSI; the types of claims that can be made; and how such claims should be presented to consumers.

Businesses that use the Higg MSI for its sustainability claims about materials should clearly indicate that this concerns general, average data that have no direct link to the production process of that specific product.

Enterprises should indicate that a comprehensive impact analysis of the used materials has not been made, but rather an impact analysis for four categories, and that this is a cradle-to-gate analysis (which is a sustainability impact analysis from production to sales).

In addition, it should be clear to consumers that the Higg MSI only compares the environmental impact within a single type of material, not between materials. This means that the impact of organic cotton is compared with conventional cotton, and not with polyester, for example.

Finally, the underlying data must be up-to-date and be validated by a third party, added the release.

Although the recommendations are meant for the use of the Higg MSI in communicating sustainability claims about materials, they are also important for the entire clothing industry, both for developers and providers of data instruments as well as for clothing companies that use these types of instruments. This guidance is based on the authorities' interpretation of current European Union (EU) law, but is not a legally binding ruling.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)
The US apparel and footwear industry has contributed $470 billion in retail sales of the US economy in 2021. Last year US apparel and footwear production accounted for 2.8 per cent and 1.9 per cent of the US market, respectively.

In 2021, the average American spent a record-breaking high $1,101.52 for 69.1 pieces of clothing and $310.68 for 7.4 pairs of shoes, according to a report by the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA).

The US apparel and footwear industry contributed $470 billion in retail sales of the US economy in 2021. Last year US apparel and footwear production accounted for 2.8 per cent and 1.9 per cent of the US market, respectively. In 2021, the average American spent a record-breaking high $1,101.52 for 69.1 pieces of clothing and $310.68 for 7.4 pairs of shoes.

The average effective tariff rate on apparel and footwear, respectively, remains 5.04 times and 4.22 times higher in 2021.

Indirect US apparel and footwear industry employment hit record highs in 2021, due in large part to the increase in demand for labour in distribution and warehousing.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)
Iranian investors were recently urged by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) to import more jute and jute products from Bangladesh. DCCI president Rizwan Rahman made the request while meeting Iranian ambassador in Dhaka Mansour Chavoshi. He also called for exploring the scope of direct shipping services between Chittagong or Mongla port and Chabahar port.

Iran can also import garments, light engineering products, leather goods, tea, pharmaceuticals, ceramic items, agro-processed food and electronics goods from Bangladesh, he said.

Iranian investors were urged by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) to import more jute and jute products from Bangladesh. DCCI president Rizwan Rahman made the request while meeting Iranian ambassador in Dhaka Mansour Chavoshi. He also called for exploring the scope of direct shipping services between Chittagong or Mongla and Chabahar port.

Bilateral trade between both sides was worth $18.74 million in fiscal 2020-21, Rahman said.

He suggested forming a joint business forum engaging leading chambers from both sides to facilitate bilateral commercial partnerships and ensure greater engagement of the private sector and stressed on organising sector-specific dialogues, business-to-business meetings and exchanging delegations for furthering trade.

Chavoshi said the bilateral trade volume is not satisfactory, but there is huge scope to enhance trade.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Katana closes $35M Series B round led by VC firm Northzone, with the participation of Lightrock and existing investors Atomico and 42CAP.

Already an industry-leading manufacturing ERP, Katana will continue to move upmarket and expand its feature range to support the more complex needs of SMB manufacturers with omnichannel sales strategies.

Funds will drive extensive product development plans for Katana's platform approach to building an end-to-end manufacturing ecosystem.

Katana, an industry-leading manufacturing ERP software has closed a $35 million Series B round, bringing the total funding to date to $51 million. Funds will be used to scale up Katana's features for small to medium-sized manufacturers, allowing them to manage D2C and B2B sales in an intuitive, industry-leading software solution.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012005045/en/

Katana's management team (from left to right: Hannes Kert, Kristi Schumann, Brett Astrid Vomma, Priit Kaasik, Gristel Tali, Kristjan Vilosius, Oliver Vesi) (Photo: Business Wire)

The investment round is led by global VC firm Northzone, an early investor in Spotify, Personio, and Trustpilot, with the participation of impact-focused growth investor Lightrock, alongside previous investors Atomico and 42CAP. Katana continues to be supported by their angel investors, including Sergei Anikin (former CTO at Pipedrive, also serving as Katana's Chairman of the Supervisory Board), Sten Tamkivi (Co-founder of NFTPort and former Skype executive), and Ott Kaukver (CTO of Checkout and former CTO of Twilio).

"I am thrilled to welcome investors to our board who share our team's vision. We're equally grateful for the continued support of our previous investors and angel investors. From offering software to single-person workshops to bigger and bigger manufacturers over time, Katana now serves over 1300 companies across 80 countries. This investment helps us continue to develop a manufacturing ERP platform customers love, as well as offer support to an under-served market which is having its own incredible renaissance.", saysKristjan Vilosius, Katana's Founder and CEO.

"We've been deeply impressed with Kristjan and the team, who combine strong product skills, essential to building something as complicated and powerful as a basic ERP system, with commercial savviness and drive. We believe this unlocks the next category in modern-day, modular, user-friendly software, and has the potential to be a defining business in that category" adds Michiel Kotting, a partner at Northzone, also joining Katana's board

The end of the 'Made in China' era

As the 'Made in China' era of manufacturing ends, manufacturers are moving closer to consumers, selling directly via their own websites or online marketplaces often in tandem with a B2B strategy. Consumers are offered a wealth of choice and opt for brands that align more closely with their personal values, with a trend in choosing sustainable, ethically made, or organic products over mass-produced options. There is a rise in D2C manufacturing, resulting in a wave of new-generation manufacturers looking for software that helps them manage their business holistically, connecting all the facets of their business beyond inventory management.

Most traditional business suites for manufacturing are yet to catch up with today's usability standards, proving a barrier as they lack modern API functionality and generally do not integrate well with business essentials like e-commerce stores, accounting platforms, and shipping operators. As a result, the ERP space is known for poor UX/UI and low customer satisfaction. Katana's integration-led approach gives manufacturers an ecosystem of tools and features as opposed to the traditionally siloed, monolithic enterprise solution. By bringing manufacturing software into the digital era and matching the standards of consumer technology and other SaaS verticals, Katana is already named an industry leader in the manufacturing software space by Gartner and is consistently top-ranked in support and ease of use by customers.

Since closing Series A in 2021, Katana launched an open API, app marketplace, and over 60 integrations and feature releases, laying the foundation for the next stage of Katana's evolution. With Series B funding secured, Katana will continue to develop its plug-and-play platform approach by introducing more advanced accounting integrations and more world-class software services to an increasingly extensive app marketplace.

To support these plans, Katana continues to expand its international team, which increased from 30 to over 140 since the close of Series A. Introducing new product development teams will amp up feature releases while expanding customer support teams globally will ensure that stellar customer satisfaction continues to be a key differentiator as Katana serves new markets and larger customers.

About Katana

Founded in 2017, Katana offers everything companies need to keep manufacturing, uniting all the processes, tools, and software manufacturers require with an intuitive and easy-to-use ERP. Global from day one, Katana's portfolio of over 1300 companies ranges from hobby makers to multi-million dollar manufacturing businesses. To date, Katana's founding team has raised over $51 million in funding from VC firms and angel investors and scaled its team of six to 140 employees across North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.

About Northzone

Northzone is an early stage venture capital fund built on experience spanning multiple economic and disruptive technology cycles. In 2022, Northzone announced their tenth fundraise of 1bn to invest from seed to pre IPO startups. Founded in 1996, it has invested in the likes of Personio, Wagestream, Truelayer, iZettle, Northzone is one of the most experienced venture capital funds in Europe, with offices in London, New York, Stockholm, Amsterdam and Oslo.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012005045/en/

Contacts:

Alina Akk

alina.akk@katanamrp.com
BEIJING, SHANGHAI and BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Jacobio announced it has entered into a clinical trial collaboration agreement with Merck on clinical study of combination therapy between Jacobio's KRAS G12C inhibitor JAB-21822 and Merck's epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor Erbitux (cetuximab).





This clinical study aims to evaluate the efficacy of JAB-21822 in combination with cetuximab in patients with KRAS G12C-mutated colorectal cancer. Jacobio is the sponsor of the combination study, and Merck will provide cetuximab for clinical trials in China and Europe under the collaboration agreement.

"Our preclinical studies have shown that the combination of JAB-21822 and cetuximab can enhance the anti-tumor activity of JAB-21822 inhibitors in colorectal cancer tumor models, regressing tumors and delaying tumor regrowth after drug discontinuation. We look forward to new treatment options for patients through our collaboration with Merck," said Dr. WANG Yinxiang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Jacobio.

About JAB-21822

JAB-21822 is a KRAS G12C inhibitor independently developed by Jacobio. Jacobio has initiated a number of Phase I/II clinical trials in China, the United States and Europe for patients with advanced solid tumors, including monotherapy for STK11 co-mutated non-small cell lung cancer first-line treatment; combination therapy with SHP2 inhibitor, PD-1 monoclonal antibody and cetuximab.

About ERBITUX (cetuximab)

ERBITUX is an IgG1 monoclonal antibody targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). As a monoclonal antibody, the mode of action of ERBITUX is distinct from standard non-selective chemotherapy treatments in that it specifically targets and binds to the EGFR. This binding inhibits the activation of the receptor and the subsequent signal-transduction pathway, which results in reducing both the invasion of normal tissues by tumor cells and the spread of tumors to new sites. It is also believed to inhibit the ability of tumor cells to repair the damage caused by chemotherapy and radiotherapy and to inhibit the formation of new blood vessels inside tumors, which appears to lead to an overall suppression of tumor growth. Based on in vitro evidence, ERBITUX also targets cytotoxic immune effector cells towards EGFR-expressing tumor cells (antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity [ADCC]).

ERBITUX has obtained market authorization in over 100 countries worldwide for the treatment of RAS wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer and for the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Merck licensed the right to market ERBITUX, a registered trademark of ImClone LLC, outside the U.S. and Canada from ImClone LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, in 1998.

About Jacobio

Jacobio Pharma (1167.HK) is committed to developing and providing new and innovative products and solutions to improve people's health. Our pipeline revolves around novel molecular targets on six major signalling pathways: KRAS, immune checkpoints, tumor metabolism, P53, RB and MYC. We aim for our key projects to be among the top three in the world. Our vision is to become a global leader recognized for our impact in drug R&D together with our partners. Jacobio has R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai and Boston with our Induced Allosteric Drug Discovery Platform (IADDP) and our iADC Platform.

Please visit us at www.jacobiopharma.com

About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across life science, healthcare and electronics. More than 60,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices - the company is everywhere. In 2021, Merck generated sales of  19.7 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck's technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as MilliporeSigma in life science, EMD Serono in healthcare, and EMD Electronics in electronics.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1474816/Logo.jpg

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Korea's antitrust watchdog said Thursday it has decided to slap a combined 2.6 billion-won ($1.82 million) fine on global pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca and local generic maker Alvogen on charges of forging a shady deal to avoid competition.







Alvogen suspended its plan to release a generic version of Zoladex, a treatment for prostate and breast cancer initially developed by AstraZeneca, in return for gaining exclusive rights to sell three types of products made by the British-Swedish drugmaker here.







"We have detected and regulated collusion, in which the parties agreed to ban the production and release of a generic under development," the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said in a statement.







Generic drugs are produced with identical substances to the original product and have the same effect on patients. They are manufactured when the patent of the original expires.







According to the FTC, AstraZeneca approached Alvogen after being aware that the Korean player has been developing a generic version of Zoladex since 2014, considering the move a "significant threat" to its business.







The FTC said the two companies forged the deal in September 2016. While the agreement was intended to run through the end of 2020, the two parties suspended the deal in January 2018.







Alvogen has not yet released the generic version of Zoladex.







"The deal has not only cut off the possibility of lower drug costs, but it also hindered innovation in the pharmaceutical market by reducing incentives for research and development," the FTC added.



"It has increased the medical cost burden on consumers and taken away their potential right to choose generics."







The FTC said it has made a preliminary decision to impose a 1.1 billion-won fine on AstraZeneca and a 1.5 billion-won one on Alvogen. (Yonhap)










TOKYO, Oct 13, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) signed a Statement of Cooperation on October 10 with the State Government of South Australia aimed at accelerating development of the local hydrogen industry. By proposing diverse solutions incorporating its Groupwide products, technologies and services, MHI looks to collaborate with South Australia in the state's transition to clean energy and development of a hydrogen economy.The Statement of Cooperation was signed by The Hon Peter Malinauskas MP, Premier of South Australia, and MHI Senior Vice President Osamu Ono, who concurrently serves as Chief Regional Officer of both the Asia Pacific and India as well as President of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. Specifically, MHI will propose solutions in the following areas: growing a globally competitive hydrogen export sector through the development of a hydrogen export strategy and strategic partnerships; fostering advances in new technologies and new industrial opportunities through research partnerships; projects that accelerate the development of large-scale industrial decarbonization programs; and developing near-term Australian domestic markets through the establishment of a hydrogen ecosystem.On signing the Statement of Cooperation, The Hon Premier Malinauskas MP expressed his hopes for the newly agreed partnership: "This Statement of Cooperation is a commitment from the State Government and industry partners to work together to accelerate the development of South Australia's hydrogen economy. South Australia is open for business and we are ambitious about hydrogen."MHI Group, by contributing to the development of a hydrogen value chain and the acceleration of industrial decarbonization in South Australia, looks to assist in driving the state's economic development and realizing a sustainable society.About MHI GroupMitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group is one of the world's leading industrial groups, spanning energy, smart infrastructure, industrial machinery, aerospace and defense. MHI Group combines cutting-edge technology with deep experience to deliver innovative, integrated solutions that help to realize a carbon neutral world, improve the quality of life and ensure a safer world. For more information, please visit www.mhi.com or follow our insights and stories on spectra.mhi.com.Source: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.Copyright 2022 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
DKSH Management Ltd. / Key word(s): Acquisition

DKSH Strengthens its Healthcare Own Brands Business With the Acquisition of two Ear Care Brands



13.10.2022 / 07:00 CET/CEST





Media release

DKSH has signed an agreement to acquire two ear care brands from Noru Pharma for Australia, New Zealand, and selected markets in Asia. The acquisition is in line with DKSH's strategy to grow in higher value-added segments and services and it expands its Healthcare Own Brands business to 14 markets in Asia Pacific.

Zurich, Switzerland, October 13, 2022 - DKSH has purchased the two ear care brands, Audisol and Audiplugs, from Noru Pharma in Australia, New Zealand, and selected markets in Asia. Audisol's product range addresses daily needs in ear treatment, while Audiplugs has a complete range of high-quality earplugs in the market. The brands are present in Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, and DKSH plans to introduce them to other markets over time.



The acquisition is in line with DKSH's strategy of expanding its Healthcare Own Brands business and fits well into previous acquisitions in Australia and New Zealand, strengthening the base for further growth in this region. The acquired portfolio generates net sales of over CHF 2 million and recorded solid growth in past years. DKSH will continue to outsource production to established manufacturers for this portfolio.



Bijay Singh, Head Business Unit Healthcare at DKSH, commented: "The acquisition reflects our ambition of further expanding market coverage. Following the acquisition of Hahn Healthcare last year, we are now entering Australia and New Zealand with our Own Brands business. The over-the-counter pharmacy market there shows attractive growth potential."

About DKSH

DKSH's purpose is to enrich people's lives. For more than 150 years, we have been delivering growth for companies in Asia and beyond across our Business Units Healthcare, Consumer Goods, Performance Materials, and Technology. As a leading Market Expansion Services provider, we offer sourcing, market insights, marketing and sales, eCommerce, distribution and logistics as well as after-sales services. DKSH is a participant of the United Nations Global Compact and adheres to its principles-based approach to responsible business. Listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange, DKSH operates in 36 markets with 33,100 specialists, generating net sales of CHF 11.1 billion in 2021. The DKSH Business Unit Healthcare distributes pharmaceuticals, consumer health and over-the-counter (OTC) products as well as medical devices. With around 7,920 specialists, the Business Unit generated net sales of CHF 5.6 billion in 2021. www.dksh.com/hec

For more information please contact:



DKSH Holding Ltd.

Till Leisner

Head, Group Investor & Media Relations, Sustainability

Phone +41 44 386 7315

till.leisner@dksh.com



Demet Bicer

Manager, Group Media Relations

Phone +41 44 386 7117

demet.bicer@dksh.com

End of Media Release


First presentation of ERADICATE phase 3 study data

Study met its primary and secondary endpoints comparing ceftobiprole versus daptomycin with or without aztreonam

Basel/Allschwil, Switzerland, October 13, 2022

Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd (SIX: BSLN), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to meeting the needs of patients with severe bacterial and fungal infections, announced today that an abstract on the successfully completed phase 3 ERADICATE study1, evaluating ceftobiprole in the treatment of adult patients with bacterial bloodstream infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus, (SAB), has been selected for a late breaking oral presentation at IDWeek 2022. The ERADICATE data will be presented by Thomas Holland, M.D., Associate Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine and Chair of the ERADICATE Data Review Committee.

IDWeek is the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), jointly held with other infectious diseases societies in the U.S. and will take place in Washington, D.C. from 19 to 23 October 2022.

Positive topline results of the ERADICATE study, demonstrating non-inferiority to daptomycin, with or without aztreonam, for the primary objective, had been reported in June 2022.2

Dr. Marc Engelhardt, Chief Medical Officer, said: "This will be the first comprehensive presentation of the phase 3 ERADICATE study data. The study is the largest double-blind randomized study of a new antibiotic treatment conducted in SAB, which remains an area of high unmet medical need with limited treatment options available. The positive results underline the potent activity of ceftobiprole for treating serious bacterial infections and enable us to proceed with an NDA submission of ceftobiprole in the U.S."

Basilea is planning to submit a New Drug Application (NDA) for ceftobiprole to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) around year-end 2022.

Ceftobiprole at IDWeek 2022



22 October 2022, 1:45 p.m. ET (19:45 CEST)



Late Breaking Clinical Trials -



LB2302 - Ceftobiprole Compared to Daptomycin With or Without Optional Aztreonam for the Treatment of Complicated Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia (SAB): Results of a Phase 3, Randomized, Double-Blind Trial (ERADICATE) - Thomas L. Holland, Sara E. Cosgrove, Sarah B. Doernberg, Oleksandr Pavlov, Ivan Titov, Boiko Atanasov, Maziar Assadi Gehr, Marc Engelhardt, Kamal Hamed, Daniel Ionescu, Mark Jones, Mikael Saulay, Jennifer Smart, Harald Seifert, Timothy C. Jenkins, Nicholas A. Turner, Vance G. Fowler Jr.

For further information please visit idweek.org.

About ceftobiprole

Ceftobiprole medocaril, the prodrug of the active moiety ceftobiprole, is a cephalosporin antibiotic for intravenous administration, with rapid bactericidal activity against a wide range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. This includes methicillin-susceptible and resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA, MRSA) and susceptible Pseudomonas spp.3 The brand is currently approved and marketed as Zevtera and Mabelio in a number of countries in Europe and beyond for the treatment of adult patients with hospital-acquired bacterial pneumonia (HABP), excluding ventilator-associated bacterial pneumonia (VABP), and for the treatment of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP). Basilea has entered into license and distribution agreements in Europe, Eurasian countries, Latin America, China, Canada, Israel, and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions.

About the ceftobiprole phase 3 program

The ERADICATE study1 was a randomized, double-blind, multicenter phase 3 study, which enrolled 390 patients with SAB. The study compared the safety and efficacy of intravenous ceftobiprole medocaril with intravenous daptomycin, with or without intravenous aztreonam for coverage of Gram-negative pathogens, for up to 42 days of treatment. Patients were enrolled at more than 50 study centers in Eastern and Central Europe, Israel, Latin America, the Republic of South Africa, and the U.S.

The second study of the program, the TARGET study4, was a randomized, double-blind, multicenter phase 3 study, which enrolled 679 patients with acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) and compared the safety and efficacy of intravenous ceftobiprole medocaril with intravenous vancomycin plus intravenous aztreonam. The study was conducted at more than 30 clinical centers in the U.S. and Europe.

The two phase 3 studies were conducted under Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) agreements with the U.S. FDA.

Basilea's ceftobiprole phase 3 program is funded in part (up to USD 136.4 million, which is approximately 70% of the total potential program costs) with federal funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), under contract number HHSO100201600002C.

About Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB)

Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia is a leading cause of bloodstream infections, responsible for a broad variety of complications and has been associated with significant morbidity and a mortality of 20 to 40%.5, 6 Several studies have demonstrated that MRSA bacteremia is associated with a significantly higher mortality rate compared with MSSA bacteremia.7, 8 Infections of the inner lining of the heart or heart valves (infective endocarditis) and bone infections (osteomyelitis) are common complications of SAB.

About Basilea

Basilea is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company founded in 2000 and headquartered in Switzerland. We are committed to discovering, developing and commercializing innovative drugs to meet the needs of patients with severe bacterial and fungal infections. We have successfully launched two hospital brands, Cresemba for the treatment of invasive fungal infections and Zevtera for the treatment of bacterial infections. In addition, we have several preclinical anti-infective assets in our portfolio. Basilea is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange.

Disclaimer

This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements, such as "believe", "assume", "expect", "forecast", "project", "may", "could", "might", "will" or similar expressions concerning Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd and its business, including with respect to the progress, timing and completion of research, development and clinical studies for product candidates. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For further information, please contact:

Peer Nils Schroder, PhD



Head of Corporate Communications & Investor Relations

Basilea Pharmaceutica International Ltd, Allschwil

Hegenheimermattweg 167b

4123 Allschwil

Switzerland Phone +41 61 606 1102 E-mail media_relations@basilea.com (mailto:media_relations@basilea.com)

investor_relations@basilea.com (mailto:investor_relations@basilea.com)

This press release can be downloaded from www.basilea.com.

References

ERADICATE: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03138733

K. Hamed, M. Engelhardt, M. E. Jones et al. Ceftobiprole versus daptomycin in Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia: a novel protocol for a double-blind, Phase III trial. Future Microbiology. 2020 (1), 35-48 Basilea ad hoc announcement: Basilea announces positive results of phase 3 ERADICATE study with ceftobiprole in Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB). June 28, 2022: https://www.basilea.com/newsnews_1371 (https://www.basilea.com/newsnews_1371) Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) Zevtera: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/9164/smpc (https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/9164/smpc) [Accessed: October 12, 2022] TARGET: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03137173

J. S. Overcash, C. Kim, R. Keech R et al. Ceftobiprole Compared With Vancomycin Plus Aztreonam in the Treatment of Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infections: Results of a Phase 3, Randomized, Double-blind Trial (TARGET). Clinical Infectious Diseases 2021 (73), e1507-e1517 A. G. Jensen, C. H. Wachmann, F. Espersen et al. Treatment and outcome of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia: a prospective study of 278 cases. Archives of Internal Medicine 2002 (162), 25-32 J.-L. Wang, S.-Y. Chen, J.-T. Wang et al. Comparison of both clinical features and mortality risk associated with bacteremia due to community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2008 (46), 799-806 S. I. Blot, K. H. Vandewoude, E. A. Hoste et al. Outcome and attributable mortality in critically ill patients with bacteremia involving methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Archives of Internal Medicine 2002 (162), 2229-2235 S. E. Cosgrove, G. Sakoulas, E. N. Perencevich et al. Comparison of mortality associated with methicillin-resistant and methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia: a meta-analysis. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2003 (36), 53-59

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BANGKOK, Oct 13, 2022 - (ACN Newswire) - With a unique heritage in dermatology as well as decades of cutting-edge innovation, Galderma is the leading company solely dedicated to advancing dermatology and skincare solutions. Through trusted partnerships with healthcare professionals, Galderma ensures to meet individual consumer and patient needs with superior outcomes and offers cutting-edge, premium brands that fit people's individual needs, across the full spectrum of dermatology through aesthetics, consumer care, and prescription medications.As the market leader in the Philippine-derived derived Sensitive Skincare Market, its leading Consumer brand, Cetaphil was eyeing a move online. In addition to its range of classic best-sellers, including the cult-favorite Gentle Skin Cleanser, Cetaphil has introduced new ranges in recent years, including Cetaphil Baby, and Cetaphil Pro AD Derma, and Cetaphil Bright Healthy Radiance which was launched at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the emerging consumer trend for science-driven skincare, Galderma knew the potential of expanding its reach and introducing its brand benefits to a broader audience.E-commerce Market EntryGalderma was determined to establish a presence in the newly minted playground, that is e-commerce. The opportunity presented itself when COVID-19 hit. E-commerce boomed and became a significant priority for the group's strategy. Being the market leader for sensitive skincare in the offline retail space, Galderma was determined also to secure its top position in the online marketplace leaderboards.The ChallengeGalderma identified the strong presence of competition in the online market, and specifically in the online marketplaces such as Lazada, Shopee, and Zalora.The group's competitors have been in e-commerce for a number of years now and knew how to operate in an online environment and win the market. This means that Galderma needed a rapid go-to-market strategy with the accumulated know-how and technology to utilize the major market shift.Choosing aCommerceaCommerce account management team was able to recognize a gap in the market and developed an innovative approach to enter a highly saturated market.Galderma entered a client partnership agreement with aCommerce for end-to-end services including e-commerce platform design and development, performance marketing, order fulfillment and warehousing, delivery and logistics, customer service call centers, creative production, marketing planning, and strategy, and channel management.With aCommerce as the largest end-to-end e-commerce enabler in the region, processes are more streamlined, reducing long-term unit costs operating under the economies of scale principle.aCommerce team started formulating Galderma's strategy on multiple channels such as Lazada, Shopee, Zalora, Edamama, and now expanding outright services to Grab.The StrategyUsing keyword and search data, aCommerce team analysis of the market has shown that consumers are shifting towards dermatologically-backed, and science-driven products in the skincare industry, where consumers are increasingly well informed and constantly looking for each and every ingredient in the product.The online consumers are very well aware of ingredients and their benefits - and aCommerce team highlighted Galderma's quality ingredients and supporting science in each campaign, assets, search ads, and throughout the brand's online presence. While focusing on educating consumers about Galderma's benefits, the team knew how to balance the premium brand positioning of Galderma together with the marketplaces promo-driven audience and created a strategy that complemented the brand's position in the market.Collaboration, Technology, and Creative ThinkingData presented by aCommerce allowed Galderma to execute bundling and sampling strategies shifting assortments that started with 50+ SKUs to a selection that is growing by the day.Using the analytics on consumer behavior, the team analysis detected that consumers usually purchase specific items together, allowing the team to respond quickly to the shifting demands by creating the right bundles.Success and AchievementsaCommerce team achieved success utilizing extensive market experience working with the top brands from various industries, relationships with the platforms and marketplaces, understanding of the market, the focus on innovating our systems and technologies, and a dedicated team that embodies the aCommerce DNA.aCommerce (SET: ACOM) revolutionized e-commerce enablement with a cutting-edge platform & technology stack, EcommerceIQ. Proprietary software includes innovative omnichannel management software. We drive brands to achieve e-commerce goals with high-performance digital marketing, online store development & management, data & analytics, customer care, fulfillment & delivery services. Visit https://acommerce.asia.Released for aCommerce Group by MT Multimedia Co LtdWasana Wongsiri (Jiab), T: +66 84 359 0659, E: wasana.w@mtmultimedia.comSource: aCommerce Group PCLCopyright 2022 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
STOCKHOLM, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- H2 Green Steel and Hydro Havrand have signed an agreement to explore opportunities for developing new large-scale green hydrogen production facilities.

Hydro Havrand, Hydro's green hydrogen company, is teaming up with H2 Green Steel with the aim to accelerate the decarbonization of heavy industry through green hydrogen. Under the agreement, the companies will explore the possibility of producing green hydrogen for off-takers in the Nordics and Brazil.

"With this partnership H2 Green Steel takes an even clearer direction into the green hydrogen economy. When we choose partners to work with, we go to companies that share our values and that truly want to take action to transform hard-to-abate industries. We find that in Hydro Havrand and we complement each other's competences and capacities," says Kajsa Ryttberg-Wallgren, Executive Vice President and Head of Business Unit Hydrogen at H2 Green Steel.

Replacing natural gas and other fossil fuels with hydrogen made from renewable electricity is the key to reducing CO2 emissions in several industrial processes. By investing in hydrogen production, the two companies are aiming to both cut emissions and create sustainable jobs.

"For the hard-to-abate sectors, green hydrogen is key to reach net zero. This partnership is built on our companies' complimentary capabilities in green hydrogen and combine Hydro Havrand's industrial and energy expertise with H2 Green Steel's capabilities in the decarbonization of the steel industry. This demonstrates our resolve to decarbonize hard to abate industry through strong industrial partnerships," says Per Christian Eriksen, Head of Hydro Havrand.

The agreement, in the shape of a Memorandum of Understanding, covers:

Investigating opportunities in Brazil : The companies are looking into possibilities for a green field project for production of green hydrogen. If realised, the hydrogen production facility will enable approximately 5 million tonnes of green steel through direct iron reduction, in a plant owned by H2 Green Steel, abating approximately 9,5 million tonnes of CO2 per year. In addition, the parties are evaluating supplying green hydrogen to other offtakers in hard to abate sectors.

: The companies are looking into possibilities for a green field project for production of green hydrogen. If realised, the hydrogen production facility will enable approximately 5 million tonnes of green steel through direct iron reduction, in a plant owned by H2 Green Steel, abating approximately 9,5 million tonnes of CO2 per year. In addition, the parties are evaluating supplying green hydrogen to other offtakers in hard to abate sectors. Investigating opportunities in the Nordics: As both companies have their base in Nordic countries, they will also explore the potential for a large-scale hydrogen production facility the Nordics.

Collaborating in areas such as definition of hydrogen production plant design requirements, system standardization and optimization. In addition, combined efforts plan to be dedicated to ensuring security of supply and safe operation of hydrogen production, storage and utilization.

All projects are pending successful feasibility studies and will be subject to obtaining any necessary regulatory clearances. The ambition is to execute projects from the second half of the decade.

CONTACT:

Karin Hallstan, Head of Public and Media Relations, phone: +46 76 842 81 04, email: press@h2greensteel.com

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/20623/3647552/1638064.pdf Hydro Havrand and H2 Green Steel partnership_press release_final https://news.cision.com/h2-green-steel/i/hydro-havrand,c3100325 Hydro Havrand

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Oscillate Plc - Appointment of Steve Winfield

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED WITHIN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS DEEMED BY THE COMPANY TO CONSTITUTE INSIDE INFORMATION AS STIPULATED UNDER THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) NO. 596/2014, AS AMENDED ("MAR"). ON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA A REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE, THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

Oscillate plc

AQSE: MUSH

("Oscillate plc" or the "Company")

BOARD CHANGES: APPOINTMENT STEVE WINFIELD

The Company is pleased to announce the appointment of Stephen "Steve" David Winfield as a Non-Executive Director of the Company with immediate effect.

Stephen Winfield has served as commercial director and board member of multiple businesses. He has a track record of building, financing and selling various products and businesses from the ground up. His experience spans 10 years in building and managing teams across the technology, food and beverage and healthcare sectors, primarily alongside Professor Sir Christopher Evans OBE.

He has managed over 170m of transactions acting as a director of companies and helped raise in excess of 20m to date for private businesses in the UK. Steve is currently an Executive Director of Igraine plc.

Further information on Steve Winfield (aged 29):

Steve Winfield does not currently hold any equity in the Company.

Current Directorships Previous Directorships Upzone Consulting Ltd

Namale Investments Ltd

Namale Capital Ltd

Think Tyres Limited

Igraine Plc Qbrand 21 Holdings Ltd

QB Fitness Ltd

QB Rentals Limited

Excalibur Healthcare Services Limited

Keeping Record Tech Limited

Q21 PJ Ltd

Dum Dum W12 Limited

Steve Winfield was a director of BTA Works Ltd (company number 09912932) within 12 months of being put into voluntary liquidation. Secured creditors were paid in full.

Except as set out above, there is no further information regarding the Proposed Directors, that is required to be disclosed pursuant to Rule 4.9 of the AQSE Growth Market Access Rulebook.

The Directors of the Company, accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.

Enquiries

Company:

Fungai Ndoro

Direct Office Line: 020 7638 9271

Corporate Adviser:

Peterhouse Capital Limited

Guy Miller & Mark Anwyl

Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7220 9796
13 October 2022

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED WITHIN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS DEEMED BY THE COMPANY TO CONSTITUTE INSIDE INFORMATION AS STIPULATED UNDER THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) NO. 596/2014, AS AMENDED ("MAR"). ON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA A REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE ("RIS"), THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

Igraine plc

AQSE: KING

("Igraine" or "the Company")

Purchase of Oscillate Plc Shares

and

Notice of AGM

SHARE PURCHASE

Igraine Plc is pleased to announce that it has [today] purchased 21,475,000 ordinary shares of Oscillate plc, representing approximately 10.2% of Oscillate's issued share capital, for a total consideration of 268,437. This diversifies the Igraine holding with the idea of obtaining pre-IPO positions in companies that have sufficient cash resources to undertake transactions.

Simultaneously with the share purchase, it has been agreed that Stephen Winfield, Executive Director of the Company, will join the board of Oscillate Plc as a non-executive director.

Oscillate Plc is an investment issuer listed on the AQSE Growth Market Exchange seeking investments in the medical cannabis sector, special situations, and investments in the medical psychedelic industry, that will include investments into businesses or assets involved in the development of potential treatments for mental health issues. Oscillate has announced that it owns 46,668,622 ordinary shares in AQSE Growth Market quoted Psych Capital Plc, having taken part in the IPO through a further placing of 350,000 into Psych Capital. Oscillate also subsequently purchased 2.5m warrants to subscribe for ordinary shares in Dev Clever Holdings plc for a consideration of 250,000.

NOTICE OF AGM

The Company also announces a notice convening an Annual General Meeting ("AGM") of the Company is to be held at the offices of Peterhouse Capital Limited at3rd Floor, 80 Cheapside, London, EC2V 6EE, at 10.30 a.m. on 10 November 2022. The Notice of AGM has been posted to shareholders and will shortly be available at https://igraineplc.com/

The Directors of the Company, who have issued this RIS announcement after due and careful enquiry, accept responsibility for its content.

Enquiries

Company

Steve Winfield (Executive Director)

info@igraineplc.com

+44 (0) 20 3778 0755

AQSE Growth Market Corporate Adviser

Peterhouse Capital Limited

Guy Miller / Mark Anwyl

Tel: +44 (0) 207 469 0930
October 13, 2022

International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital, Tokyo, employs Philips' augmented reality (AR) surgical navigation solution to treat first patients in Japan, helping to bring the patient benefits of minimally-invasive spine surgery to Japan's aging population

New data published in European Spine Journal on the clinical use of ClarifEye showed a 98% accuracy of pedicle screw placement during minimally invasive procedures, comparable to values reported in literature for other navigation and robotic systems

Amsterdam, the Netherlands - Royal Philips - to Japan, highlighting positive results in the first patients treated by the International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital (Tokyo, Japan) using this innovative 3D AR solution. Installed on a Philips interventional X-ray system in a hybrid operating room at Mita Hospital, ClarifEye helped the hospital's orthopedic surgeon Dr. Ken Ishii to successfully treat patients with spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spaces in the spine) and scoliosis (sideways curvature of the spine) via minimally-invasive image-guided procedures.

Due to its aging population, the number of spine surgeries performed each year in Japan continues to increase. Lumbar spinal canal stenosis, the most common spinal disease, is currently found in approximately 10.8% of the country's 70-79 year olds [1]. In patients with severe symptoms, surgical procedures are typically performed, including excision of the compressed area and fixation of the bone with screws or other fixtures. Traditionally, these fixation devices have been placed through a large incision with direct observation of the affected vertebra. However, they are now increasingly being placed via minimally-invasive procedures performed through small incisions, minimizing bleeding and soft tissue damage, reducing postoperative pain, and making treatment available to patients at risk from the trauma of open surgery. Philips' augmented reality surgical navigation solution - ClarifEye - combines 2D and 3D visualizations at low X-ray dose with 3D AR navigation into one system. It enables surgeons to define and navigate critical trajectories for precise device placement while avoiding damage to fragile neurological and vascular structures close to the patient's spine.





"The benefit of performing spine surgery in the Hybrid OR includes the ability to acquire 3D CT images at low dose, having a lot of space, and being able to use the large monitor," said Dr. Ken Ishii, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital. "The addition of a new navigation system helps to create an even safer surgical environment. Compared to existing navigation systems, ClarifEye has no reference frame-related errors, and it's wonderful that it achieves real time imaging with pedicle segmentation. ClarifEye is a new technology that truly offers minimally invasive surgery for patients and clinical staff."

"Mita Hospital's positive experience of using ClarifEye to deliver the benefits of minimally-invasive therapy to its spine patients mirrors that of hospitals in Europe and the Middle East who also recently adopted the system," said Karim Boussebaa, General Manager Image Guided Therapy Systems at Philips. "ClarifEye adds a new dimension in surgical precision for patients. It is a great example of how we are innovating procedures and helping clinicians to deliver on the Quadruple Aim of better health outcomes, improved patient and staff experiences, and lower cost of care."

ClarifEye's live-video computer vision and AR technology uses non-invasive position markers applied to the patient's skin to track patient positioning and overlays the resultant live video onto a 3D cone-beam CT of the patient's spinal column. It enables surgeons to visualize the outside and inside of the patient in the same image, together with the planned and real-time trajectory of a Philips ClarifEye needle, without the need for live X-ray imaging. The system eliminates the cumbersome reference frames used by other systems, giving surgeons unimpeded access to the patient.



New data in European Spine Journal

Intra-operative image guidance has been shown to increase clinical accuracy and improve outcomes, with patients subject to fewer revision surgeries compared to the previous standard of care [2,3]. Data published in Scientific Reports demonstrated that in open deformity cases, ClarifEye had a better accuracy than similar surgeries performed by the same surgeon with no help from intra-operative navigationon the clinical use of ClarifEye for minimal invasive procedures showed a 98% accuracy of pedicle screw placement, which is comparable to values reported in literature for other navigation and robotic systems [5].

Physicians sharing experiences during expert session at EUROSPINE

On 20 October at 12.15-13.15 CET Philips is organizing an expert session.





[1] Shoji Y et al, Prevalence of lumbar spinal stenosis, using the diagnostic support tool, and correlated factors in Japan: a population-based study, Journal of Orthopaedic Science, Volume 18, Issue 6, 2013, Pages 893-900, ISSN 0949-2658.

[2] Dea N et al, Economic evaluation comparing intraoperative cone beam C T based navigation and conventional fluoroscopy for the placement of spinal pedicle screws: a patient level data cost effectiveness analysis. The Spine Journal (2016) 16: 23 31.

[3] Fichtner J et al, Revision Rate of Misplaced Pedicle Screws of the Thoracolumbar Spine - Comparison of Three-Dimensional Fluoroscopy Navigation with Freehand Placement: A Systematic Analysis and Review of the Literature. World Neurosurg. (2018) 109: e24 e32.

[4] Elmi-Terander A at el, Augmented reality navigation with intraoperative 3D imaging vs fluoroscopy-assisted free-hand surgery for spine fixation surgery, a matched-control study, Nature Sci. rep. 2020 Jan 20;10(1):707.

[5] Scarone P at el, Percutaneous thoraco-lumbar-sacral pedicle screw placement.

accuracy results from a multi-center, prospective clinical study using a skin marker-based optical navigation system, European Spine Journal, Sept 2022.

[6] Clinica Santa Chiara, Locarno.

For further information, please contact:

Joost Maltha

Philips Global Press Office

Tel: +31 6 10 55 8116

Email: joost.maltha@philips.com

Fabienne van der Feer

Philips Image Guided Therapy

Tel: + 31 622 698 001

E-mail: fabienne.van.der.feer@philips.com

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips.

Attachments
On-site solar power helps Ontex to achieve carbon neutral operations by 2030 and reduce grid energy dependency.

The Ontex factory in Ortona now houses one of Italy's largest systems for on-site solar power generation and consumption, producing a large part of the hygiene product plant's electricity.

The new solar installation, developed, financed and operated by Menapy Italia, will produce more than 10 Gigawatthours of green power per year, equivalent to the average consumption of around 3,400 households and saving an estimated 3,700 metric tons of CO 2.

Ontex [Euronext: ONTEX] (BSE:ONTEX) has activated a large solar installation at the site of its factory in Ortona, Abruzzo region, Italy. The new solar installation will produce more than 10 GWh of electricity per year, equivalent to the yearly consumption of around 3,400 households.

The company is opening solar power installations in Europe and the Americas to produce more energy on-site and achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2030. Ontex's factories in Italy and eight other European countries run on 100% electricity from renewable sources. The Ontex Group's total is 91% electricity from renewable sources.

In times of energy constraints, Ontex plans to become carbon neutral and less dependent on energy from the grid through on-site renewable energy generation, energy conservation, purchase of energy from renewable sources, and carbon offsets for the remaining carbon emissions.

Annick De Poorter, Ontex's Executive Vice President for R&D and Sustainability, said: "We can now produce around a quarter of the electricity we need to manufacture essential hygiene goods at our factory in Italy. This is another step towards our goal to have carbon neutral operations by 2030.

The solar system was developed and financed by the company Menapy Italia srl, who also installed Ontex's solar power in Eeklo, Belgium and Segovia, Spain.

Federico Dotto, Country Manager, Menapy Italia srl, said: "We should shift our power supplies from oil, coal, and natural gas to wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, which are a clear winner when it comes to boosting the economy. Companies across Europe are working hard to reduce their energy needs and improve their impact on the environment. As Menapy, we are proud to support Ontex in achieving their ambitious sustainability goals, which are also a sound business decision

Construction took nine months and included the clearance and conservation of war devices and memories from the area.

Since 2017, all of Ontex's European factories run on electricity from renewable sources, combining own solar generation with the purchase of renewable electricity via Energy Attribute Certificates (EAC's). More rooftop solar capacity is being installed at Ontex plants in Eeklo, Belgium, Puebla, Mexico and Segovia, Spain.

About Ontex

Ontex is a leading international provider of personal hygiene solutions, with expertise in baby care, feminine care and adult care. Ontex's innovative products are distributed in more than 110 countries through leading retailer brands, lifestyle brands and Ontex brands. Employing some 9,000 people all over the world, Ontex has a presence in 21 countries, with its headquarters in Aalst, Belgium. Ontex is listed on Euronext Brussels and is part of the Bel Mid. To keep up with the latest news, visit ontex.com or follow Ontex on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

About Menapy

Menapy develops, finances and operates on-site corporate solar power solutions using roofs, ground and parking (PV carports). Menapy serves high-consuming multinational companies all over Europe, with offices in Belgium, France, Spain and Italy. As impact investors, the company creates optimized flexibility and quality by staying independent from installers or component manufacturers. Read more at www.menapy.com LinkedIn YouTube

ONTEX GROUP NV Korte Keppestraat 21 9320 Erembodegem (Aalst) 0550.880.915 RPR Ghent Division Dendermonde

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005496/en/

Contacts:

Contact information

Ontex

Investors Geoffroy Raskin, +32 53 33 37 30, investor.relations@ontexglobal.com

Media Maarten Verbanck,+32 492 72 42 67, corporate.communications@ontexglobal.com

Menapy

Federico Dotto, Country Manager Italia, +39 377 3994 457

Tom Pollyn, Managing Partner, +32 477 062 247
COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) through its CI Advanced Bioenergy Fund I (CI ABF I) has secured a site for a large industrial scale biogas plant located in Wallonia, Belgium. Together with Belgian developer Cryo Advise, CIP will jointly develop the biogas plant towards expected Final Investment Decision by the end of 2023.



The biogas plant will use green sustainable feedstock - agricultural and industrial organic waste - to produce biogas which can either be injected into the existing natural gas grid or be liquified for use as green fuel for transportation. The plant will recirculate the organic materials as nutrients (fertilizer) for the agriculture production in the region and produce biogen CO 2 which can be used in the production of e.g., green ammonia.

The plant will deliver on both the long-term need for energy security and independence, decarbonization of hard to abate sectors, as well as provide circular solutions to environmental concerns in agriculture.



"We continue to see great potential in an efficient conversion of organic waste to green gas and green fuels - and believe that advanced bioenergy plays a key role in the green transition of the transportation sector and replacement of fossil natural gas. Securing the site in Belgium together with our local partner Cryo Advise represents an important milestone in what we consider one of the key projects of our Advanced Bioenergy Fund. We look forward to finalizing the development of the project which will contribute significantly to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and create new local jobs," says Thomas Dalsgaard, Partner at CIP.

The Danish biogas technology provider, Lundsby Biogas A/S, will as minority shareholder take part in the development of the project.

CI ABF I is investing in advanced bioenergy plants in Europe and North America. It enables institutional investors to contribute to the energy transition and participate in the decarbonization of hard to abate sectors through the production of advanced biofuels and biogas. The fund reached second close of ~EUR 500 million in September 2022 and has a target fund size of EUR 1 billion. In addition to the biogas plant in Belgium, CI ABF I is currently building a pipeline of advanced bioenergy projects across its target markets in Europe and North America.

About Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners

Founded in 2012, CIP today is the world's largest dedicated fund manager within greenfield renewable energy investments and a global leader in offshore wind. The funds managed by CIP focus on investments in offshore- and onshore wind, solar PV, biomass and energy-from-waste, transmission and distribution, reserve capacity and storage, Power-to-X and advanced bioenergy.

CIP manages ten funds and has to date raised approximately EUR 19 billion for investments in energy and associated infrastructure from more than 135 international institutional investors. CIP will accelerate its role in the global energy transition and aims to have EUR 100 billion under management in green energy investments by 2030. CIP has approximately 350 employees and offices in Copenhagen, London, Hamburg, Utrecht, New York, Tokyo, Singapore, Seoul, and Melbourne. For more information, visit www.cip.dk

About Cryo Advise

Cryo Advise is a project development and a consulting company in the field of LNG and BioLNG. Cryo Advise sees (Bio)LNG as part of the fuel mix of the future due to economic and environmental benefits. Cryo Advise uses its 30 years of experience in cryogenics to ensure that small and medium-sized (Bio)LNG systems are developed at the highest level, built with high reliability and operated under the safest conditions.

For further information, please contact:

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners

Simon Mehl Augustesen, VP - Chief Communication & Marketing Officer

Phone: +45 30526721

Email: siau@cip.dk

Thomas Knig, Partner - Investor Relations,

Phone: +45 7070 5151, Email: tkon@cip.dk
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, eighth from left, and SK Innovation CEO Kim Jun, sixth from left, declare SK Innovation's new vision of "all-time net zero" with participants of an event to celebrate the oil refiner's 60th anniversary at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of SK Innovation



Korea's oldest refiner declares 'all-time net zero' in celebration of 60th anniversary



By Park Jae-hyuk



SK Innovation seeks to remove greenhouse gases equivalent to the amount it has produced since its establishment in 1962, by the time the oil refiner marks its 100th anniversary in 2062, the company said at Thursday's event to celebrate its 60th anniversary.



"The global energy market has changed rapidly as it transitions to eco-friendly and sustainable energy sources that help to satisfy the needs of future generations," SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said during the event held at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry headquarters in Seoul.



Introducing SK Innovation's low-carbon energy supply and various other net zero efforts, the chairman described the oil refiner's future as a global green energy company leading the eco-friendly energy industry.



"New changes toward net zero have begun once again at SK Innovation," he said.



SK Innovation's new goal was upgraded from its previous goal of "2050 net zero" which aims to reduce net carbon emissions to nearly zero by 2050 against the 2019 baseline.



To fulfill the ambitious new plan, SK Innovation CEO Kim Jun declared the new vision of "all-time net zero," along with two new employees who joined the company in July.



"All-time net zero is our promise to take responsibility for the previous generation's conduct and hand over a sustainable world to future generations," said the CEO, who joined the company in 1987, when it was state-owned and called the Korea Oil Corp.



The new employees also vowed to contribute to the goal of all-time net zero.





SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, left, and SK Innovation CEO Kim Jun look around an exhibition on SK Innovation's 60 years of history at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap
LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Data Bridge Market Research Published Latest Cosmetics Market Study by in-depth analysis about current scenario, the Market size, demand, growth pattern, trends, and forecast.The first class Cosmetics Market report has a key data about the market, emerging trends, product usage, motivating factors for customers and competitors. This is a detailed market research report that serves this purpose and gives the business a competitive advantage. The most excellent market report evaluates the existing state of the market, market size and market share, revenue generated from the product sale, and essential changes required in the future products. The data included in the credible Cosmetics Market report not only lends a hand to plan the investment, advertising, promotion, marketing and sales strategy more valuably but also assists in taking sound and efficient decisions.





An all-embracing Cosmetics Market report displays the systematic investigation of existing scenario of the market, which takes into account several market dynamics. The market report also helps to get idea about the types of consumers, their reaction and views about particular products, and their thoughts for the improvement of a product. Geographical scope of the products is also taken into consideration comprehensively for the major global areas which helps characterize strategies for the product distribution in those areas. Cosmetics Market research report can be used to obtain valuable market insights in a cost-effective way.

Global cosmetics market is expected to gain significant growth in the forecast period of 2022 to 2029. Data Bridge Market Research analyzes that the market is growing with the CAGR of 5.8% in the forecast period of 2022 to 2029 and is expected to reach USD 377,243.22 million by 2029.

Get Sample Report in PDF Version along with Graphs, Charts and Figures @ https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/request-a-sample/?dbmr=global-cosmetics-market

Cosmetics are used to enhance the beauty and physical appearance of a personage. Chiefly, these cosmetic products are manufactured from artificial sources. The purpose of cosmetic products is mainly intended for external cleaning, perfumes, changing appearances, correct body odor, protect skin, and conditioning among others. Ranging from antiperspirants, fragrances, make-up, and shampoos, to soaps, sunscreens, and toothpastes, cosmetics and personal care products play an essential role in in all stages of a consumer's life.

Major factors driving the growth of the cosmetics market are rising awareness regarding skin care routine, innovative product branding and advertising strategies. Increasing developments in sustainable cosmetics are creating opportunities for the growth of the market. However, growing awareness regarding side effects of synthetic chemicals is acting as a major restraint for the market growth. Increasing movement across consumers for transparency and traceability of ingredients used in products are acting as a major challenge for the growth of the market.

This global cosmetics market report provides details of market share, new developments, and product pipeline analysis, impact of domestic, and localized market players, analyses opportunities in terms of emerging revenue pockets, changes in market regulations, product approvals, strategic decisions, product launches, geographic expansions, and technological innovations in the market. To understand the analysis and the market scenario contact us for an Analyst Brief, our team will help you create a revenue impact solution to achieve your desired goal.

Some of the major players operating in the global cosmetics market are

Procter & Gamble,

L'Oreal S.A.,

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc.,

Coty Inc.,

Shiseido Company, Limited,

Colgate-Palmolive Company,

Kao Corporation,

Beiersdorf Group,

Unilever,

Amorepacific,

Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc.,

evlon, Inc.,

LMVH,

Oriflame Cosmetics Global SA,

Espa,

Henkel AG & Co.

KGaA,

Mary Kay ,

, Natura&Co,

CHANEL,

KOSE Corporation

Access This Premium Research Report @ https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/checkout/buy/enterprise/global-cosmetics-market

For instance,

In November 2021 , The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. announced the partnership with Florida A&M University for a new talent and development program to build the next generation of Black beauty leaders in Travel Retail. This development was in line with company's commitment to Racial Equity. This enabled the company to create an exclusive internship and scholarship program with Florida A&M University .

, the partnership with for a new talent and development program to build the next generation of Black beauty leaders in Travel Retail. This development was in line with company's commitment to Racial Equity. This enabled the company to create an exclusive internship and scholarship program with . In November 2021 , Procter & Gamble announced the deal to acquire Indie skin care brand Farmacy Beauty. With this acquisition, the company wishes to double down on skin care products it offers in the market. The company aimed at refreshing the older demographic due to its brand portfolio.

The investment made in the study would provide you access to information such as:

Cosmetics Market [Global - Broken-down into regions]

[Global - Broken-down into regions] Regional level split [ North America , Europe , Asia Pacific , South America , Middle East & Africa ]

, , , , & ] Country wise Market Size Split [of important countries with major market share]

Market Share and Revenue/Sales by leading players

Market Trends - Emerging Technologies/products/start-ups, PESTEL Analysis, SWOT Analysis, Porter's Five Forces, etc.

Market Size

Market Size by application/industry verticals

Market Projections/Forecast

Highlighted points of Cosmetics Market Size

Includes information on upcoming trends and challenges that will influence market growth.

Help companies strategize and leverage all forthcoming growth opportunities.

The study was conducted using an objective combination of primary and secondary information including inputs from key participants in the Cosmetics Industry

Contains a comprehensive market and vendor landscape in addition to an analysis of the key vendors.

Presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources by an analysis of key parameters such as profit, pricing, competition, and promotions.

Global Cosmetics Market Scope and Market Size

Cosmetics market research is segmented on the basis of product type, nature, category, packaging type, distribution channel and application. The growth among segments helps you analyze niche pockets of growth and strategies to approach the market and determine your core application areas and the difference in your target markets.

On the basis of product type , the global cosmetics market is segmented into skin care, hair care , fragrances, make up, and others. In 2022, skin care segment is expected to dominate the market as the consumers are becoming more concerned for their healthy skin. Social media has also played an important role in advertising of skincare brands.

, the global cosmetics market is segmented into skin care, , fragrances, make up, and others. In 2022, skin care segment is expected to dominate the market as the consumers are becoming more concerned for their healthy skin. Social media has also played an important role in advertising of skincare brands. On the basis of nature , the global cosmetics market is segmented into organic and inorganic. In 2022, inorganic segment is expected to dominate the market as these products are highly affective. Hair colors, anti-acne creams, anti-wrinkle creams, and various other products are manufactured with inorganic ingredients to enhance their outcome.

, the global cosmetics market is segmented into organic and inorganic. In 2022, inorganic segment is expected to dominate the market as these products are highly affective. Hair colors, creams, anti-wrinkle creams, and various other products are manufactured with inorganic ingredients to enhance their outcome. On the basis of category , the global cosmetics market is segmented into mass product, premium product, and professional product. In 2022, mass product segment is expected to dominate the market due to presence of wide a product range, distribution network, and affordable prices. The cosmetic products are being manufactured in mass due to increasing demand in the market.

, the global cosmetics market is segmented into mass product, premium product, and professional product. In 2022, mass product segment is expected to dominate the market due to presence of wide a product range, distribution network, and affordable prices. The cosmetic products are being manufactured in mass due to increasing demand in the market. On the basis of packaging type , the global cosmetics market is segmented into bottles and jars, tubes, containers, pouches, sticks, pumps & dispensers, blisters and strip packs, and aerosol cans. In 2022, bottles and jars segment is expected to dominate the market as large portion of products are usually packaged in either a jar or bottle. Jars are good for products that may not pour well or that a customer may not want to buy in large portions, as jars come in a wide array of sizes. Bottles are good for liquid products that consumer want to be dispensed by a certain method (pump, sprayer) and want larger volumes of.

, the global cosmetics market is segmented into bottles and jars, tubes, containers, pouches, sticks, pumps & dispensers, blisters and strip packs, and aerosol cans. In 2022, bottles and jars segment is expected to dominate the market as large portion of products are usually packaged in either a jar or bottle. Jars are good for products that may not pour well or that a customer may not want to buy in large portions, as jars come in a wide array of sizes. Bottles are good for liquid products that consumer want to be dispensed by a certain method (pump, sprayer) and want larger volumes of. On the basis of distribution channel , the global cosmetics market is segmented into offline and online. In 2022, offline segment is expected to dominate the market as it is a traditional form of distribution channel focusing on bricks and mortar, with its sales through supermarkets, specialty stores, pharmacies, and salons. The customers can get a wide range of options, suggestions, and samples through these stores that improve their decision making.

, the global cosmetics market is segmented into offline and online. In 2022, offline segment is expected to dominate the market as it is a traditional form of distribution channel focusing on bricks and mortar, with its sales through supermarkets, specialty stores, pharmacies, and salons. The customers can get a wide range of options, suggestions, and samples through these stores that improve their decision making. On the basis of application, the global cosmetics market is segmented into women and men. In 2022, women segment is expected to dominate the market as the cosmetic market is highly women centric with a wide range of products available for women.

Know More about This Report @ https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-cosmetics-market

Global Cosmetics Market: Regional Analysis

Global cosmetics market is segmented on the basis of countries into the U.S., Canada, Mexico, U.K., Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, Russia, Belgium, Luxembourg, Turkey, Rest of Europe, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia & New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E., Egypt, Israel, Rest of Middle East and Africa, Brazil, Argentina, Rest of South America.

All country based analysis of the cosmetics market report is further analysed based on maximum granularity into further segmentation. On the basis of product type, the global cosmetics market is segmented into skin care, hair care, fragrances, make up and others. On the basis of nature, the global cosmetics market is segmented into organic and inorganic. On the basis of category, the global cosmetics market is segmented into mass product, premium product and professional product. On the basis of packaging type, the global cosmetics market is segmented into bottles and jars, tubes, containers, pouches, sticks, pumps & dispensers, blisters and strip packs, and aerosol cans. On the basis of distribution channel, the global cosmetics market is segmented into offline and online. On the basis of application, the global cosmetics market is segmented into women and men.

Table of Contents:

Introduction Market Segmentation Executive Summary Premium Insights Global Cosmetics Market: Regulations Market Overview Global Cosmetics Market, By Product Type Global Cosmetics Market, By Nature Global Cosmetics Market, By Category Global Cosmetics Market, By Packaging Type Global Cosmetics Market, By Distribution Channel Global Cosmetics Market, By Application Global Cosmetics Market, By Region Global Cosmetics Market: Company Landscape SWOT Analyses Company Profile Questionnaires Related Reports

To check the complete Table of Content, clicks here https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/toc/?dbmr=global-cosmetics-market

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Anti-Acne Cosmetics Market, By Product Type (Emulsions, Mask, Creams & Lotions, Gels, Cleanser & Toner, Face Wash & Others), Type (Pharmacological and Non-Pharmacological), Availability (General Departmental Store, Supermarkets, Drug Stores, Brand Outlets and Online Sales), End User (Women and Men), Distribution Channel (Direct Tender, Retail Sales and Others), Country (Germany, France, U.K., Italy, Spain, Russia, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, Turkey, Ireland and Rest of Europe, Japan, China, Australia, South Korea, India, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Rest of Asia-Pacific, U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Rest of South America, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE,Egypt, Israel and Rest of Middle East and Africa) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-anti-acne-cosmetics-market

Vegan Cosmetics Market, By Product (Skin Care, Hair Care, Makeup, Others), Distribution Channel (E-Commerce, Hypermarket/Supermarket, Departmental Stores, Specialty Stores, Others), Country (U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Rest of South America, Germany, France, Italy, U.K., Belgium, Spain, Russia, Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Rest of Europe, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific, U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Israel, Rest of Middle East and Africa) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-vegan-cosmetics-market

Mineral Cosmetics Market, By Product (Face Cosmetics, Lips Cosmetics, Eye Cosmetics, Others), Type (Iron Oxides, Zinc Oxide, Mica Powders, Titanium Dioxide, Organic Oils, Others), Distribution Channel (Retail Distribution, E- Commerce, Beauty Centre and Spas), Category (Organic, Inorganic), Country (U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Rest of South America, Germany, France, Italy, U.K., Belgium, Spain, Russia, Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Rest of Europe, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific, U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Israel, Rest of Middle East and Africa) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-mineral-cosmetics-market

Luxury Cosmetics Market By Type (Organic and Convectional Products), Product Type (Skincare, Haircare, Makeup and Fragrance), End-User (Male and Female), Distribution Channel (Supermarkets and Hypermarkets, Speciality and Monobrand Stores, E-Commerce and Others) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-luxury-cosmetics-market

Organic Cosmetics Market, By Product Type (Organic Skin Care, Organic Hair Care, Organic Fragrances, Organic Make Up, Others), Distribution Channel (Supermarkets/Hypermarkets, Exclusive Retail Stores, Multi Branded Retail Outlets, Online Channels, Beauty Parlours/Salons, Others), Gender (Male, Female), Country (U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Rest of South America, Germany, France, Italy, U.K., Belgium, Spain, Russia, Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Rest of Europe, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific, U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Israel, Rest of Middle East and Africa) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-organic-cosmetics-market

Waterless Cosmetic Market, By Gender (Men, Women), Category (Skincare, Haircare, Fragrances, Makeup and Color Cosmetics, Others), Sales channel (Online Retailers, Specialty Stores, Supermarkets/ Hypermarkets, Other Sales Channels), Country (U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Rest of South America, Germany, France, Italy, U.K., Belgium, Spain, Russia, Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Rest of Europe, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific, U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Israel, Rest of Middle East and Africa) https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-waterless-cosmetic-market

About Data Bridge Market Research:

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She has over 20 years' experience and joined the Fluidra headquarters in Sant Cugat del Valles in early October

Fluidra, global leader in pool and wellness equipment and connected solutions, has appointed Clara Valera as new Investor Relations and Business Development Director, reporting directly to Xavier Tintore, Chief Financial and Transformation Officer (CFTO).

Clara Valera joined the Fluidra headquarters in Sant Cugat del Valles (Barcelona) in early October. She holds a degree in Business Administration and Management from the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas in Madrid and has over 20 years' experience.

Valera started her career at the consultancy Deloitte to subsequently start a new professional project in the United Kingdom. For the last fifteen years she has worked for Mondi plc, a global leader in packaging and paper, listed in the London Stock Exchange. Since 2017 she held the position of Group Head of Strategy and Investor Relations and was previously Manager of Strategy and Business Development.

Clara Valera will lead the Investor Relations and Business Development team together with Cristina del Castillo, Investor Relations Director, Pol Neiro, Corporate Business Analyst; and Victor Riera, M&A Director.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005501/en/

Contacts:

Press:

Sarah Estebanez, sestebanez@tinkle.es, +34 636 62 80 41

Xana Pena, xpena@tinkle.es, +34 674 73 47 82

Carlos Jaramillo, cjaramillo@tinkle.es, +34 664 11 18 01
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Kingfisher Metals Corp. (TSXV:KFR)(FSE:970)(OTCQB:KGFMF) ("Kingfisher" or the "Company") is pleased to announce initial drill results from the 100% owned 511 km2 Goldrange Project. Goldrange is located approximately 25 km south of the town of Tatla Lake in the Chilcotin region of Southwest British Columbia.

Highlights

2.86 g/t Au over 40 m including 5.56 g/t Au over 9 m, 5.05 g/t Au over 6 m, and 19.91 g/t Au over 1 m in hole GR22-018

58.88 g/t Au over 1 m in hole GR22-019, 19.54 g/t Au over 2 m in hole GR22-016, 10.39 g/t Au over 1 m in hole GR22-017, and 9.55 g/t Au over 2 m in hole GR22-020

Across the Cloud Drifter Trend, drilling has intersected quartz-sulfide vein and breccia at the Pad 400, West, and East Cloud Drifter target areas, as well as the Langara Zone

Dustin Perry, CEO states "Initial results from the ongoing 2022 drill program continue to show the robust nature of the gold system at Goldrange. With 2.86 g/t Au over 40 m, drill hole 18 surpassed the 100 GT mark (grade x thickness) on only the fourth hole of the program."

The Goldrange Project covers a significant deformation zone with numerous precious metal veins across the project. Mineralization at Goldrange occurs within the orogenic Yalakom Gold Belt, which is host to the Bridge River District that includes the past-producing Bralorne Mine. Several areas of historical hand mining are located within the project that date back to the 1930s.

The 2022 drill program (Figure 1) at the Goldrange Project was designed to follow up on the initial 2021 program as well as test a much broader area across the Cloud Drifter Trend. Ongoing drilling is focused on testing structural corridors across the trend. The initial six drill holes of the 2022 program (Tables 1 and 2) included within this release are located within the Pad 400 Target Area. Drilling in 2021 intersected highlights from this target including 73.4 g/t Au over 1 m and 6.9 g/t Au over 9 m. Remaining drill hole results from the Cloud Drifter and Langara zones are pending.

The Pad 400 Target Area is structurally controlled vein and breccia hosted mineralization that outcrops within an incised gulley. Where it outcrops, it grades up to 128.9 g/t Au in surface sampling. Mineralized veins and breccia throughout the Pad 400 Target Area are hosted within strongly quartz-carbonate-sericite altered quartz diorite or within adjacent sedimentary rocks. Gold is closely associated with elevated Ag, Bi, Te, As, Sb, Cu, Zn, and Mo.

Highlight intercepts from the Pad 400 Target Area are listed in Table 1 and plotted on Figures 1-5.

Figure 1: Diamond Drill Hole and Section Locations in the Pad 400 Target Area, Cloud Drifter Trend

Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Au g/t GR22-015 no significant intercepts GR22-016 75 77 2 19.54 and 112 117 5 0.55 GR22-017 82 83 1 10.39 and 85 106 21 0.57 and 114 115 1 3.35 GR22-018 43 44 1 2.97 and 118 119 1 2.21 and 141 180 40 2.86 incl. 141 150 9 5.56 incl. 161 162 1 19.91 incl. 174 180 6 5.05 GR22-019 93 95 2 3.77 and 127 128 1 3.08 and 132 133 1 58.88 GR22-020 85 87 2 9.55

*True widths are not known at this time. All widths reported are drilled widths.

Table 1: Highlight Drill Intercepts, Pad 400 Target Area

Hole Easting (m) Northing (m) Elevation (m) Depth (m) Azimuth Dip GR22-015 388582 5705826 1503 201 310 80 GR22-016 388582 5705826 1503 148 327 76 GR22-017 388616 5705883 1469 227 247 46 GR22-018 388616 5705883 1469 226 235 45 GR22-019 388469 5705848 1476 203 139 70 GR22-020 388469 5705848 1476 203 151 64

Table 2: Diamond Drill Collars (NAD 83 - Zone 10)

Figure 2: Section A-A'

Figure 3: Section B-B'

Figure 4: Section C-C'

Figure 5: Section D-D'

Exploration Update

A total of 27 diamond drill holes, over 7089 m, have been completed in the Cloud Drifter Trend. In addition to the six drill holes included in this release, an additional two drill holes were completed at the Pad 400 Target Area bringing that total to 1626 m. Drilling at the Western Target Area included 5 holes over 1884 meters and drilling at the Eastern Target Area included ten holes over 1986 meters. Drilling is currently ongoing at the Pad 400 Target Area. Four drill holes at the Langara Zone have been completed over 1594 m.

Rotary Air Blast (RAB) drill results from the Langara and Day Trip zones are pending. Deep penetrating induced polarization (IP) geophysical surveys were completed at the Eastern Target Area at the Cloud Drifter Zone as well as at the Day Trip Zone. These surveys expand both the lateral and depth extents from previous survey coverage. Geophysical and RAB drill results will be released once final data is received.

Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QAQC)

All drillholes in this release are NQ sized (47.6 mm diameter). A continuous series of one-metre-long half-split core samples was taken down the entire length of each drill hole. Sample lengths were reduced to a minimum of half a meter to avoid crossing lithologic contacts or other features deemed important by Kingfisher geologists.

Unlabelled certified reference materials (CRM) were inserted systematically throughout the sample sequence along with blanks and duplicate samples. In addition to the systematic insertion of duplicates, duplicates were also collected from conspicuously mineralized samples. Half-split core samples for duplicates were further split into quarter core samples before submission for analysis. Upon receipt of duplicate analyses, the results from each of the quarter cores were averaged before integration into the assay database. The total number of blanks, duplicates and CRM samples equals approximately 5% of the total samples taken.

Core samples were shipped to MSALABS, located in Langley, British Columbia for preparation and analysis. MSALABS is an ISO17025 and ISO9001 accredited laboratory and is independent of Kingfisher Metals and its Qualified Person. Samples were prepped using the SPL430, CRU-220 and analyzed for 48 major and trace elements with ICP-MS after a four-acid digestion (method code IMS-230). Following sample preparation, a 500 g split from each sample was sent to MSALABS Val-D'Or location for Au analysis using Chrysos PhotonAssayTM (method code CPA-Au1). Selected samples were also subjected to Au fire assay and gravimetric check assays. A 30 g split from each check assay sample was analyzed for Au using a lead collection fire assay fusion that was digested and analyzed using AA (method code FAS-111). A 30g split from the check assay samples that assayed >10 ppm Au was analyzed using a lead collection fire assay fusion with a gravimetric finish (method code FAS-415).

Qualified Person

Dustin Perry, P.Geo., Kingfisher's CEO, is the Company's Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, and has prepared the technical information presented in this release.

About Kingfisher Metals Corp.

Kingfisher Metals Corp. (https://kingfishermetals.com/) is a Canadian based exploration company focused on underexplored district-scale projects in British Columbia. Kingfisher has three 100% owned district-scale projects that offer potential exposure to high-grade gold, copper, silver, and zinc. The Company currently has 103,057,272 shares outstanding.

For further information, please contact:

Dustin Perry, P.Geo.

CEO and Director

Phone: +1 778 606 2507

E-Mail: info@kingfishermetals.com

Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Mineralization hosted on adjacent and/or nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's property. This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information in this news release relate to, among other things: formulation of plans for drill testing; and the success related to any future exploration or development programs.

These forward-looking statements and information reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant operational, business, economic and regulatory uncertainties and contingencies. These assumptions include; success of the Company's projects; prices for gold remaining as estimated; currency exchange rates remaining as estimated; availability of funds for the Company's projects; capital, decommissioning and reclamation estimates; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); no labour- related disruptions; no unplanned delays or interruptions in scheduled construction and production; all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals are received in a timely manner; and the ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

The Company cautions the reader that forward-looking statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic; fluctuations in gold prices; fluctuations in prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); fluctuations in currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); operational risks and hazards inherent with the business of mineral exploration; inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks and hazards; our ability to obtain all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in a timely manner; changes in laws, regulations and government practices, including environmental, export and import laws and regulations; legal restrictions relating to mineral exploration; increased competition in the mining industry for equipment and qualified personnel; the availability of additional capital; title matters and the additional risks identified in our filings with Canadian securities regulators on SEDAR in Canada (available at www.sedar.com). Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described, or intended. Investors are cautioned against undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.

SOURCE: Kingfisher Metals Corp.

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Webhelp, a leading global provider of customer experience and business services, has partnered with SGS, the leading certification company, for a long-term initiative to safeguard content moderator health and well-being.

This partnership led to SGS developing the Wellness and Content Moderation (WellComo) label to assess the strength and maturity of practices that businesses use to protect the health of content moderation colleagues on the front line.

Webhelp supported by sharing its considerable experience in the field and by offering several operational sites for pilot audits. Webhelp's approach to well-being as an overarching component of working methods is one of the many ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) initiatives that the Group has undertaken as part of its ongoing commitment to health and wellness.

The growing use of social media and other digital platforms, such as marketplaces, dating and gaming apps, has accelerated the need for trusted content moderation professionals. While the task of fostering safe and secure digital environments can be challenging and complex, it has become essential for businesses to gain the trust of users and business partners.

WellComo was developed by SGS to showcase the vital role employers must play in protecting content moderators. It assesses working methods and best practices, including specific processes, workplace conditions, well-being programs and wellness technology.

SGS's meticulous scoring methodology includes assessing 37 requirements that are scored after site visits, employee interviews, and process reviews. After a site audit, SGS awards a label from as high as Diamond down to Committed.

Webhelp is rolling out this performance approbation label across all trust and safety sites to ensure quality standards for its people. After audits of five key sites, in India, Jordan, Latvia and the UK, Webhelp is proud to be awarded Diamond level for all these locations.

"Jointly developing this trust and safety label with SGS is a huge step for Webhelp. More importantly, we hope it will inspire companies in the trust and safety industry to pursue higher standards and well-being practices for their content moderation teams, as they play a vital role in keeping the internet safe," said Paul Danter, Co-CEO, Digital Content Services at Webhelp.

"We are proud to have built WellComo, which standardizes an activity that is becoming more and more important in society. We believe that the well-being of content moderators is now a key factor, not only in terms of respect for human rights, but also in terms of productivity and quality of service," added Olivier Audebert, Technical and Development Director at SGS. "Webhelp greatly supported us to identify the specificities and strategic stakes of the content moderation profession through multiple field experiments. WellComo has greatly supported Webhelp on its well-being mission, and together we remain committed to ensuring that more companies and their employees can benefit in the future."

As a people-first company, Webhelp invests in its global teams, and their development and mental well-being, so that people feel empowered and supported to provide clients and their customers with quality service and expert knowledge. As one of the first BPOs (Business Process Outsourcing) to join the Trust Safety Professional Association, Webhelp has invested heavily in the industry and currently provides its 3,500 moderators with membership to the organization.

END

About Webhelp

Webhelp designs, delivers, and optimizes unforgettable human experiences for today's digital world creating game-changing customer journeys. From sales to service, content moderation to credit management, Webhelp is an end-to-end partner across all B2C and B2B customer journeys. Its over 110,000 passionate employees across more than 55 countries thrive on making a difference for the world's most exciting brands. Webhelp is currently owned by its management and Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (Euronext: GBLB), a leading global investment holding, as of November 2019.

For more information on Webhelp, visit Webhelp.com

About SGS

We are SGS the world's leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. Our 96,000 employees operate a network of 2,700 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.

For more on SGS Certification, visit Certification SGS.

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Contacts:

Abigail Blackburn

abigail.blackburn@webhelp.com

M: +31 651634328
The first public release of this incredibly rare and highly acclaimed vintage from Olivier Bernstein

Cult Wines, the company actively redefining the fine wine market, is pleased to announce the limited availability of an exclusive number of hand-numbered Olivier Bernstein Romanee-Saint-Vivant (RSV) 2017. Following their successful sale of Bernstein's 2017 RSV 1-of-1 jeroboam for an impressive 57,000, the company has made a small selection of standard 75cl and magnums available to purchase for wine enthusiasts around the world. Given the tiny volume of Romanee-Saint-Vivant produced by Bernstein, demand is expected to be high.

Each bottle will sold with an NFT issued by Olivier Bernstein that guarantees ownership whilst the wine remains at Bernstein's Maison. If customers choose to take ownership through the NFT, they will have access to a marketplace to be able to resell the NFT on a future market. If, however, the buyer takes delivery of the wine to bonded storage or elsewhere, the NFT will be burnt. Collectors have three options to add this highly covetable wine to their cellar, beginning at 10,000:

One standard bottle (75cl)

One case of three standard bottles (75cl each)

One magnum (150cl)

Bernstein is well known for pioneering maverick wine making methods in Burgundy. Acclaimed critic Jeb Dunnuck explains, 'Bernstein is playing at a very high level, and these are absolutely thrilling Burgundies that readers would love to have in the cellar. Unfortunately, the quantities are minuscule, and yes, they are expensive.' In 2017, he was finally able to access a tiny parcel within RSV to make a single barrel in his first and currently only vintage from this prestigious vineyard.

RSV, a Grand Cru part of the prestigious 'Vosne-Romanee' appellation, produces small quantities of the world's most nuanced and desired Pinot Noirs. They are impressive in their youth and suitable for decades of ageing, where they develop complex and unforgettable nuances. With a limited number of producers crafting small quantities of ultra-premium wine, demand far exceeds supply, making RSV wines instant collector's items.

Partnering with Bernstein, Cult Wines provides an innovative new channel that provides all collectors and enthusiasts access to an iconic, highly acclaimed and exclusive Burgundian wine. The partnership is Cult Wines' latest transformative offering to the wine industry, and the first of many exclusive releases with world renowned producers.

Wines are available to purchase until October 31st, visit https://www.wineinvestment.com/learn/olivier-bernstein/rsv-2017/ for more information or contact RSVBernstein@cultwines.com.

-ENDS-

ABOUT CULT WINES

Founded in 2007, Cult Wines is forging the future foundations of the fine wine market by creating products and experiences that unlock opportunities for producers and consumers. Empowering people through technology, data and access to a global community, Cult Wines endeavors to re-define the fine wine market making it accessible, secure and rewarding. Headquartered in the UK, Cult Wines has offices in Canada, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the US. For more information, please visit www.cultwines.com or find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

ABOUT OLIVIER BERNSTEIN

The elusive Olivier Bernstein rose to fame just over two decades ago when he left a successful career in international business to pursue his passion for wine. Since his first vintage in 2007, Bernstein has been winning the plaudits of leading Burgundy critics such as Allen Meadows and Jancis Robinson. His wines, nearly exclusively Grand Cru but with some Premier Cru sites, are becoming some of the most sought-after in the Cote de Nuits as collectors are now starting to appreciate the extraordinary quality as the wines enter their optimum drinking windows. To Bernstein, Burgundy is the ultimate wine making region, with each of his wines being a personal interpretation of the grapes from that vintage.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221011005719/en/

Contacts:

Sian Parry

Global Head of PR and Social Media

+44 (0)207 1000 950

sparry@cultwines.com
BILBAO (dpa-AFX) - BBVA (BBVA) announced that the bank will increase its sustainable finance target by 50 percent. The company said it is now upping the ante again to 300 billion euros for the period 2018-2025. On February 28, 2018, BBVA announced its first sustainable financial target of 100 billion euros. In July 2021, the bank doubled this target to 200 billion euros. As of June 30, 2022, the bank had reached 112 billion euros. BBVA financing of sustainable operations rose 50 percent in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period prior year. Copyright(c) 2022 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
PR professionals can enter by November 30, 2022, on www.davosawards.com

DAVOS, Switzerland, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- TheBest PR Leader Regional Awardsfor 2022 have been launched successfully by the World Communications Forum Association (WCFA). PR professionals from all over the world are welcome to submit their applications and win global recognition.





You can submit your entries until 30 November 2022 on www.davosawards.com

These awards are location-specific and aim to recognize public relations professionals who have shown outstanding performance, made a significant contribution to the industry, their organisations and can prove their campaigns have had a measurable effect.

"Today's PR champions are the visionaries who improve the communications industry from each corner of the world. Celebrating their achievements is an endorsement of the incredible value they bring to our community and an acknowledgement that their hard work is making a difference to the future of the PR industry," says Maxim Behar, President of World Communications Forum Association (WCFA).

The 6 award categories fall under the world's top market regions:

- Africa Best PR Leader

- Asia-Pacific Best PR Leader (incl. Australia)

- Europe Best PR Leader (incl. the United Kingdom)

- Middle East Best PR Leader

- North America Best PR Leader

- South America Best PR Leader

The global expert judges will seek for individuals who present strong leadership skills, creativity and innovation, valuable contribution to society, high business performance, adaptability in the face of unforeseen challenges, and the development of talent and the industry.

Among them are the Jury Chair - Francis Ingham, Director General of PRCA and Chief Executive of ICCO; Afua Foriwaa Boafoh, Head of Media Relations at GIHOC Distilleries Company; Catalina Rousseau, Senior Partner, President & CEO of BDR Associates Communication Group; Claudia Dare, Director Partner of LatAm Intersect PR; James Wright, Global CEO of Red Havas & Global Chairman of Havas PR Global Collective; Mariam Safaryan, PR Director of SPRING PR Company; Paul J. Oyier, Senior Communications Advisor & Alternate Director to Cabinet Secretary of National Treasury & Planning; Sergii Bidenko, Co-founder and Chairman of UPRA, Board Member of ICCO and Director & Owner of Bayka.Agency, and Sherine Zaklama, CEO and Managing Director of Rada Research & Public Relations.

Partners of the Awards are PR Newswire - a part of Cision Group Ltd. and O'Dwyer's Public Relations News.

The winners and finalists will be announced during a virtual ceremony and will receive a special trophy and a professional certificate by the World Communications Forum Association, signed by the WCFA President Maxim Behar.

For more information, please contact mainoffice@wcfaglobal.com

About Best PR Leader Regional Awards:

The Best PR Leader Regional Awards, launched by the World Communications Forum Association in 2022, are location-specific awards to celebrate exceptional professional work by Public Relations experts from all over the world. The Awards recognize strong leadership skills, creativity and innovation, valuable contribution to society, high business performance, adaptability in the face of unforeseen challenges, and the development of talent and the industry. Winning a Best PR Leader Regional Award is an opportunity for professionals to pitch themselves as the best, to stand out from the competition, increase their credibility, and strengthen business relationships.

About World Communications Forum Association:

The World Communications Forum was founded in 2010 in Davos, Switzerland, where the Association was registered in 2014. The WCFA is a n organization committed to active global discussions and exchanges focused on the development of communications expertise of its members and be an active voice in its key role in business, society, and politics. Every year the forum gathers prominent representatives of the communication and public relations sector from around the world, who, through dialogue and discussion, exchange experiences and ideas to shape the art of global communications. In 2021, the WCFA organized its 'Global Communications Summit' on Zoom, bringing together more than 450 top communications experts globally.

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LEI 213800O8BDOGHJMTCP32

LEI 213800SPVHJCCUH13862

YORKSHIRE WATER ANNOUNCES MEASURES TO IMPROVE ITS FINANCIAL RESOURCES

13 October 2022

Yorkshire Water announces today that it has agreed with Ofwat that intercompany loans owed by another Kelda Group company, totalling 941.3 million on 31 March 2022, will be repaid by March 2027. It is anticipated that the repayment will include capital injections and cash generated in Yorkshire Water that could otherwise have been distributed to shareholders via dividends. A portion of this, c.100 million will be invested during the remainder of AMP7 to reduce storm overflow spills.

These two measures combined, will further strengthen the operational resilience and financial resources of Yorkshire Water for AMP8. The investment to reduce storm overflow spills will look to achieve a minimum reduction of 20% in permitted spills per year by March 2025 from the 2021 baseline.

The intercompany loans were originally made in connection with the acquisition of Kelda Group plc in 2008 and are excluded from the calculations of reported gearing and interest cover for covenant purposes. It is anticipated that reported regulatory gearing will reduce to no higher than 72% at the end of AMP7 and interest cover will improve as these loans are repaid.

Yorkshire Water's shareholders have agreed to support the repayment of the intercompany loans and the additional investment to reduce storm overflow spills. This means shareholders will have foregone dividends for nine years during AMP6 and AMP7. It demonstrates the shareholders' continuing commitment to invest in improved performance at Yorkshire Water, to protect the environment and to ensure the financial resilience of the business into the future.

Commenting, Yorkshire Water and Kelda Holdings CEO Nicola Shaw said:

"We understand the importance of continuing to have robust financial structures in place and believe that the repayment of the intercompany loans will continue our resilience into the future in a time of significant external economic uncertainty.

"Our shareholders have committed to helping us make this repayment, including the additional investment in storm overflows which will have a significant impact on our rivers and coastlines here in Yorkshire."

Notes

c100million investment is after the application of regulatory mechanisms.

For press enquiries, please contact:

Emily Brady, Communications Manager

Email: emily.brady@yorkshirewater.co.uk

For debt enquiries, please contact:

David Gregg, Head of Corporate Finance

Email: debtir@keldagroup.com
Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Modernizing Investor Relations with Q4 Engagement Analytics and Reimagining the Capital Markets Event Experience with Q4 Virtual Events

Q4 Inc. (TSX: QFOR) ("Q4" or "the Company"), a leading capital markets communications platform provider, is excited to announce the European launch of Q4 Engagement Analytics and Q4 Virtual Events. Both products are part of the Q4 Capital Connect platform, which enables public companies across all industries and market caps to seamlessly launch and measure the impact of a complete investor relations strategy.

Q4 Engagement Analytics aggregates the actions of investors and shareholders visiting an investor relations website or IR-related events powered by Q4, turning behavioral data into powerful leading indicators of stock movement and ownership changes. This solution allows IROs to identify the content that each investor is most interested in, spot new investors in the early stages of researching their company, and assess engagement from target investors between meetings. In addition, these analytics can accelerate management's awareness of activist interest in the company and show data backed evidence of return on time invested into investor relations. The expansion of Engagement Analytics into Europe marks an enhancement in Q4's ability to track European investor behavior online. Upcoming releases of the product will provide public companies with deeper contextual insights into the performance of their digital content versus their peers and include seamless integrations with Q4's CRM workflow tools to enable clients to turn insights into action.

The Q4 Virtual Events platform is designed to elevate the investor event experience and deliver innovative and engaging public company earnings events. The innovative platform empowers investor relations professionals with the most essential requirements of being a public company: consistent, impactful, and effective investor communications. Q4 Virtual Events currently delivers over 1,100 events each quarter to companies worldwide and is backed by industry leading support to provide customized, secure virtual events. Enhanced features such as new customization of speaker profiles, archived content through event chaptering, additional custom fields for event registration, and enhanced video and audio capabilities are planned for release within the next several months.

"We are very excited to launch both Engagement Analytics and Virtual Events in Europe to drive strategic, efficient, and more effective interactions on a global scale across the capital markets," said Darrell Heaps, Q4's CEO. "The innovative technology that powers Engagement Analytics allows Q4 clients to be proactive, make informed strategic decisions, and prioritize investor engagements. With Virtual Events, our priority is to deliver a seamless experience for our clients so they can focus on strategy while scaling and deepening relationships with their investors."

About Q4 Inc.

Q4 Inc. (TSX:QFOR), is a leading capital markets communications platform that is transforming the way publicly traded companies, investors and investment banks make decisions to efficiently discover, communicate and engage with each other. The Q4 end-to-end technology platform facilitates interactions across the capital markets through its IR website products, virtual events solutions, capital markets CRM, shareholder and market analytics tools. The firm is a trusted partner to more than 2,650 public companies globally including many of the most respected brands in the world. Q4 is based in Toronto, with offices in New York, London, and Copenhagen. To learn more about Q4, please visit www.q4inc.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005215/en/

Contacts:

Investor Relations: Sara Pearson, ir@q4inc.com

Media Inquiries: Heather Noll, media@q4inc.com
LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan speaks during the online "CEO F.U.N Talk" event on Oct. 6. Courtesy of LG Electronics



By Kim Jae-heun



LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan held an online event called "CEO F.U.N Talk" with some 7,000 employees, Oct. 6, to urge them to build the company into a winning brand that customers are enthusiastic about, it said, Thursday. The event was the fourth time the CEO has met with his staff online to communicate with them.



"In order for LG Electronics to be loved steadily over time and generations, we have to establish the brand with its own value and character. The two most important assets that we must maintain and develop for the company's future are 'people' and 'brand,'" Cho said. "We need to build stronger brands that people go wild for as their demands become more varied day by day."



The electronics company also shared the brand's orientation to provide "better lives for customers and better global environment through its innovative smart life solutions" with the employees.



It set as the company's future brand direction the three key values: uncompromising quality, human-centered innovation and warmth to power a smile.



The talk was followed by a Q&A session with management and the employees.



In response to one question about how to build the company brand's fan base, Cho said, "We will achieve it by actively communicating with our patrons, while creating more offline spaces for them to experience our services and products."



He added, "The brand of LG Electronics is built by gathering stories of our staff working closely with our customers. I ask our staff to become ambassadors of the LG brand to create customer value in their current positions."



Participants of the event also shared their opinions with Cho and left some 3,000 comments online.



"We know LG makes the best home appliances and we heard from our parents that LG is a good brand, but the company needs to increase its brand awareness with young generations too," a university student from the company's external advisory panel said during the event.


LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 200 Chinese and German musicians have performed classical works from their countries to celebrate the 50th anniversary of China-Germany diplomatic relations on 13 October 2022, hosted by CMG Europe.

Works from Beethoven, Wagner and Schumann alongside traditional and classical Chinese music were played for worldwide television broadcast by members of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and China National Opera House.

TheChina-Germany 50: A Shared Journey concert is part of the second China-Europe Music Festival hosted by CMG Europe.

Dr Hans-Peter Friedrich, former vice president of the Bundestag, sent a message supporting the aims of the concert.

"Music is the common language of the people, it brings hearts together and that is why this concert is a wonderful bridge between the hearts of the people in China and in Germany," he said.

He noted that both Germany and China have benefited greatly from their partnership over the past half century, calling for all participants to work together to address common goals with courage and determination.

Wu Ken, Chinese ambassador to Germany, said the relationship between Germany and China had allowed the countries to transcend differences and create win-win situations. "The concert is an opportunity to promote cultural exchange and enhance mutual friendship," Ambassador Wu said.

"In the current complicated international situation, music and art can be a medium to build a bridge between China and Germany," said Jiang Qiudi, head of CMG EUROPE. She said she hoped the event would celebrate the sentiment behind a Chinese saying, "Nothing, not even mountains and oceans, can separate people with shared goals and vision."

The Chinese version of the program will be broadcast on October 13 on CMG's music channel, as well as on radio and digital platforms. The English version will be aired on CGTN. The concert will also be broadcast across a range of German-language media.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920276/CGTN_Image.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/chinese-and-german-musicians-join-hands-to-celebrate-the-50th-anniversary-of-china-germany-diplomatic-relations---cmg-europe-301648444.html
VisionSpring is launching a $70 million initiative, Livelihoods in Focus , to correct the vision of more than 6 million people by 2030.

initiative, , to correct the vision of more than 6 million people by 2030. The initiative will focus on low-income tea, coffee, cocoa and artisan workers in India , Bangladesh , Ghana , Kenya and Uganda.

, , , and Uganda. Correcting vision and providing eyeglasses in targeted communities will improve workers' income and well-being, unlocking over $1 billion in new earning potential.

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On this World Sight Day, as the global community focuses its attention on the 1 billion people who still do not have the eyeglasses they need to see clearly, VisionSpring announces a transformative $15 million gift from MacKenzie Scott. The gift catalyses the launch of VisionSpring's strategic initiative Livelihoods in Focus - a $70 million effort that will create more than $1 billion of new income among tea, coffee, cocoa and artisan workers by 2030.

"The gift from Ms. Scott is an incredible acknowledgement of the power of a simple pair of eyeglasses to unlock earning, learning, safety and wellbeing for people vulnerable to poverty," said CEO of VisionSpring Ella Gudwin. "And, with this powerful endorsement of our work, we are embarking on a multi-year journey to put Livelihoods in Focus, addressing the massive vision care gap among agricultural and artisan workers in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. We need many more philanthropic investors, along with governments, companies and NGOs to join in bringing the wonder of clear vision to everyone," she added.

Livelihoods in Focus builds on VisionSpring's 20 years of experience and robust evidence gathered in the tea-growing region of Assam, India. A rigorous randomised controlled trial there found that a simple pair of eyeglasses lifts productivity by 22-32% among workers. When the economic benefits seen in Assam are extended to new farming and artisan regions with similar characteristics, scaling the effort has the potential to unlock more than $1 billion in new income earning potential for workers and their families.

Laura Hattendorf, Senior Advisor and former Head of Grants and Investments at Mulago Foundation, said: "Eyeglasses and VisionSpring's approach yields the highest return on donor investment that we have seen across our portfolio. The income created per donor dollar is among the best - if not the best - we've ever seen."

VisionSpring has targeted the tea, cocoa, coffee and artisan communities because the need for vision correction is acute and the work is vision intensive -- especially at near distances for tasks such as hand pollination, picking tea, sorting and removing debris from harvests, intricate handcrafted work, and mobile banking.

VisionSpring routinely finds that 65-85% of workers acquiring eyeglasses through its vision access programs have never had their sight tested before and become first-time wearers of glasses. For workers the benefits of this 700 year-old technology are immediate. They gain improved productivity, income and well-being the moment glasses move from case to face. Research also shows that eyeglasses improve quality of life, reducing depression and anxiety, and increasing involvement in religious and family life.

MacKenzie Scott's gift is believed to be the largest, single private donation towards solving the problem of uncorrected blurry vision as a poverty intervention. Dr. Jordan Kassalow, founder of VisionSpring, said: "It is a big win for the sector as a whole and all of the organizations working on an issue that has been hiding in plain sight."

Find out more here: VisionSpring.org .

About VisionSpring

Nearly a billion people could see clearly to earn, learn and be safe if they could acquire a pair of simple eyeglasses. VisionSpring is a pioneering, international social enterprise creating access to affordable eyewear, everywhere.

Founded in 2001, VisionSpring works to address the systemic dysfunction of an optical market which has failed to deliver access to affordable eyeglasses for consumers earning less than $4 per day. For many of these individuals, the lack of access to affordable eyeglasses leads to the loss of employment and educational opportunities and participation in a host of other activities.

We are filling the market gap by using innovative distribution strategies to sell radically affordable, durable, attractive eyeglasses. By employing innovative high-volume, low-margin business-to-business model coupled with philanthropic investments, we can deliver radically affordable eyeglasses to low-income individuals in emerging and frontier markets where they work, learn, and live.

To date, we have provided 8.7 million consumers with the corrective eyeglasses they need to sustain productivity, livelihoods, enhance learning outcomes and overall quality of life. As a result, a cumulative $1.8 billion in increased earning potential has been created at the household level.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/mackenzie-scott-15m-gift-to-visionspring-will-help-unlock-1-billion-in-income-for-agricultural-workers-and-artisans-301648457.html
Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Gold79 Mines Ltd. (TSXV: AUU) (OTCQB: AUSVF) (the "Company" or "Gold79"), through its wholly-owned US subsidiary, is pleased to announce an Exploration and Option Agreement (the "Agreement") with Kinross Gold USA Inc. ("Kinross"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kinross Gold Corporation (TSX: K) (NYSE: KGC) on its Jefferson Canyon Gold-Silver Project located in Nye County, Nevada, approximately 7 kilometers from Kinross's Round Mountain operations.

Mr. Derek Macpherson, President & CEO, stated, "We are pleased to welcome Kinross, a senior gold mining company, as a partner at Jefferson Canyon and as a strategic investor. The agreement with Kinross is a strong endorsement of Jefferson Canyon's potential and will accelerate exploration while allowing Gold79 shareholders to retain a significant interest in what we view as a very prospective project. With Jefferson Canyon only 7 kilometers from Kinross's operating Round Mountain Mine, we believe Kinross is better positioned to quickly and cost effectively advance Jefferson Canyon."

The terms of the Agreement include:

Initial cash payments and cost reimbursements from Kinross totaling US$50,000.

A commitment to purchase up to 9.9% of the issued and outstanding shares of Gold79 on a partially diluted basis (for no greater than US$200,000).

Kinross will make ongoing lease payments of US$75,000 per year for the term of the agreement, this first payment of which is due within 30 days of closing.

Kinross is required to spend US$600,000 in exploration work and will be responsible for making the payments to keep the unpatented claims in good standing.

During the term of the agreement, Kinross has the option to acquire 70% of the project for a cash payment of US$5,000,000 to Gold79 and form a joint venture LLC, and a second option to acquire an additional 10% of the project for a further payment of US$5,000,000 to Gold79.

The term of the Agreement is four years commencing from receipt of the pending drill permit, with a potential extension of up to two years, subject to certain conditions.

If an LLC is formed, in the event that either party is diluted below 10%, its interest converts to a 1% net smelter returns (NSR) royalty.

Mr. Gary Thompson, Chairman, stated, "We are excited to be working with Kinross on the Jefferson Canyon Project as the proximity to the Round Mountain Mine complex makes Kinross the natural partner. This agreement will allow Gold79 to focus more of its resources on the Gold Chain project in Arizona, where we are permitted to drill multiple high-potential targets, while Kinross advances Jefferson Canyon."

Red Cloud Securities Inc. acted as an advisor to Gold79 with respect to this transaction.

Jefferson Canyon Permitting Update

The Company continues to work on permitting the Jefferson Canyon Project for an initial drill program. All permitting work was previously completed by Gold79 and the application was deemed complete by the United States Forest Service ("USFS"). Issuance of the final permit by the USFS is pending.

About Gold79 Mines Ltd.

Gold79 Mines Ltd. is a TSX Venture listed company focused on building ounces in the Southwest USA. Gold79 holds 100% earn-in option to purchase agreements on three gold projects: the Jefferson Canyon Gold Project and the Tip Top Gold Project both located in Nevada, USA, and, the Gold Chain Project located in Arizona, USA. In addition, Gold79 holds a 36.6% interest in the Greyhound Project, Nunavut, Canada under JV by Agnico Eagle Mines Limited.

For further information regarding this press release contact:

Derek Macpherson, President & CEO

Phone: 416-294-6713

Email: dm@gold79mines.com

Website: www.gold79mines.com.

Book a 30-minute meeting with our CEO here.

Stay Connected with Us:

Twitter: @Gold79Mines

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Gold79Mines

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gold79-mines-ltd/

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

This press release may contain forward looking statements that are made as of the date hereof and are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions which involve risks and uncertainties associated with our business including any strategic discussions, private placement financings, the uncertainty as to whether further exploration will result in the target(s) being delineated as a mineral resource, capital expenditures, operating costs, mineral resources, recovery rates, grades and prices, estimated goals, expansion and growth of the business and operations, plans and references to the Company's future successes with its business and the economic environment in which the business operates. All such statements are made pursuant to the 'safe harbour' provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under, applicable Canadian securities legislation. Any statements contained herein that are statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements require us to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. We caution readers of this news release not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual results or conditions to differ materially from current expectations. Please refer to the risks set forth in the Company's most recent annual MD&A and the Company's continuous disclosure documents that can be found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Gold79 does not intend, and disclaims any obligation, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140328


The five HKTDC autumn tech fairs have gathered more than 1,100 exhibitors to showcase an array of cutting-edge technology products, solutions and information and to help industries capture cross-sector business opportunities.



Smart Government Pavilion and Hong Kong Innovation Pavilion feature an array of solutions designed to help drive smart city development and enhance the efficiency and efficacy of public services, in addition to several award-winning solutions.



Industry representatives and star speakers examine the latest tech development trends and share updated industry news at today's Symposium on Innovation & Technology. Topics include ESG trends, the metaverse and high-speed data transmission.

HONG KONG, Oct 13, 2022 - (ACN Newswire) - Committed to promoting the development of the innovation and technology (I&T) industry and generating business opportunities across different sectors, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is organising five autumn technology fairs* under its brand-new EXHIBITION+ hybrid model.The events bring together more than 1,100 exhibitors showcasing an array of cutting-edge information and communication technology products, electronic and lighting products, and exciting new smart city solutions. The physical fairs started their four-day run (13-16 October) today at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC). From now until 23 October, exhibitors, buyers and industry professionals from around the world can also build connections and participate in smart business matching through the Click2Match platform.Presenting tech products and solutions for various industriesThe five technology fairs* are all signature events for the I&T industry. Presented under the theme "Innovations for Better Living", this year's fairs aim to promote exchanges between local companies and exhibitors across various countries and regions. At the same time, the events seek to encourage the application of I&T in different areas; generate cross-sector business opportunities; and promote better living through I&T. Among the fairs, the HKTDC International ICT Expo spotlights an array of smart city solutions falling under four topics: Digital Business, Smart Living, Transportation and Mobility, and Governance and Infrastructure.A highlight of the expo is the pair of pavilions - the Smart Government Pavilion (Booth: 1E-A02) and the Hong Kong Innovation Pavilion (Booth: 1E-A22) - organised by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) under the theme "Smarter Hong Kong". The former features more than 40 solutions from over 20 government departments and public organisations designed to help drive smart city development and enhance the efficiency and efficacy of public services. The solutions encompass seven topics, including smart mobility, smart living, smart environment, smart government, smart airport, smart village, and combatting COVID-19 through I&T. Among the solutions are a traffic data analytics system jointly developed by OGCIO, the Transport Department and the Hong Kong Observatory; the smart water meter system from the Water Supplies Department; the HA Go one-stop mobile app developed by the Hospital Authority as a pilot trial of telemedicine services; and the hiker safety system from the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department.The expo also features the So French So Innovative pavilion (Booth: 1E-C12) that will showcase multinational I&T enterprises and start-ups from France, including Dragages, STMicroelectronics, Thales, Veolia and more.Other renowned exhibitors include Autotoll, Hikvision, HKBN Enterprise Solutions, IVC Consulting Group (SAP reseller), NEC, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Yonyou. Among the organisations running pavilions at the expo are Big Data for Business (B4B) Challenge, Cyberport, Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP), Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Hong Kong, and the Smart City Consortium.This year's HKTDC Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition) presents three thematic zones: Hall of Fame, Startup Zone and Smart Tech. They are showcasing a huge array of electronic products and accessories, smart home products and innovative tech solutions in the fields of robotics, unmanned technologies, augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) and artificial intelligence of things (AIoT). Highlight products include a smart radar (Booth: 1D-B20) and an automatic pill dispenser (Booth: 1E-A36) developed by local start-ups.In addition to local exhibitors, the Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition) has attracted a variety of exhibitors from Mainland China. Enterprises from Shenzhen, Shunde District in Guangdong, Zhejiang Province and the Zhongguancun technology hub in Beijing are presenting at their physical pavilions. Meanwhile, online pavilions are featuring exhibitors from Taiwan and Korea as well as Jiangsu Province, Shenzhen and Xiamen from the mainland.At electronicAsia, jointly organised by the HKTDC and MMI Asia Pte Ltd, printed circuit boards, chips and solar and photovoltaic renewable energy solutions are featured.Meanwhile, the HKTDC International Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition) and HKTDC International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo are displaying a spectrum of smart and green lighting products. Among them are flexible track lighting systems (Booth: 1C-D17) and smart ceiling lamps (Booth: 1C-C05). A pavilion organised by Zhejiang exhibitors presents an array of lighting products at the physical fair, while Guangdong, Jiangsu, Xiamen and Taiwan exhibitors are showcasing their offerings in online pavilions.The Outdoor and Tech Light Expo features the Innobuild Zone, highlighting building-related technologies and products. Among the highlights are solutions for driving sustainable development and enhancing living environments, such as a smart toilet system (Booth: 1C-A01) that uses Internet of Things technology to improve management effectiveness.During the fairs, a series of forums, panel discussions and seminars have been arranged to keep industry participants updated and informed. Highlights include:Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition) and electronicAsia- Symposium on Innovation & Technology (13 October)-- Co-organised by the HKTDC and the Hong Kong Electronics & Technologies Association, the symposium took place today and was accompanied by an online simulcast. Presented under the theme "Innovate for a Sustainable Future", the event featured industry representatives and star speakers examining the latest tech development trends and sharing topical industry updates. Topics covered included environmental, social and governance (ESG) trends, the metaverse and high-speed data transmission.- Hong Kong Electronic Forum (15 October)-- Jointly organised by the HKTDC, Messe Munchen and the Hong Kong Electronic Industries Association, the forum will explore the latest microelectronic and chiplet applications.- Startup Smart Launch (13 and 14 October)-- Multiple Startup Smart Launch sessions enable start-ups to promote innovative ideas and explore commercialisation opportunities for their smart ideas and products.International ICT Expo- B4B Challenge 2021-22 Award Ceremony cum 2022 Conference (14 October)-- This event, co-organised by the HKTDC and the B4B Challenge, will examine how the real estate industry can boost energy efficiency and advance sustainable development.- So French So Innovative Conference 2022 (14 and 15 October)-- The HKTDC and So French So Innovative will jointly present this conference to cover ways to combat climate change and drive sustainable development.- Smart City Development in Hong Kong - The Way Forward (14 October)-- Jointly organised by the HKTDC and the Smart City Consortium to discuss the Smart City Blueprint 3.0.- Smart Mobility and the Digitalisation of Transportation Symposium (14 October)-- The HKTDC and ITS Hong Kong have invited industry experts to discuss solutions for intelligent transportation systems and smart mobility.- Meet the Giants Panel Discussion - AI, The New Era of Connection (15 October)-- Discussing and dissecting the applications of artificial intelligence to smart cities and their latest developments.Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition) and International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo- Beyond Illumination - Smart Solutions for Energy Efficiency Seminar (14 October)-- Exploring smart lighting solutions for a sustainable future; looking into the latest trends in green construction technologies and energy-saving solutions.- Seminar on Testing and Certification Services for Lighting Products (14 October)-- Examining the mounting pressure and expanding opportunities in lighting product sustainability, as well as the standards and testing involved in their import and export.EXHIBITION+ helps SMEs expand business opportunitiesThis year's five autumn technology fairs have adopted the new EXHIBITION+ hybrid model. It combines four key exhibition elements, including HKTDC-organised physical fairs, the smart business-matching platform Click2Match, online-to-offline seminars under the Intelligence Hub, and the hktdc.com Sourcing platform. EXHIBITION+ extends the physical fairs' face-to-face interactions to an online smart business matching platform to help global exhibitors, buyers, and industry professionals connect proactively with business partners in order to venture into new frontiers together.* The five autumn technology fairs are the HKTDC Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition), electronicAsia (organised by the HKTDC and MMI Asia Pte Ltd), HKTDC International ICT Expo, HKTDC Hong Kong International Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition) and the HKTDC Hong Kong International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo.Websites- Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition): https://hkelectronicsfairae.hktdc.com- electronicAsia: http://www.electronicasia.com- International ICT Expo: https://ictexpo.hktdc.com- Hong Kong International Lighting Fair (Autumn Edition): https://hklightingfairae.hktdc.com- Hong Kong International Outdoor and Tech Light Expo: https://hkotlexpo.hktdc.com- Highlight Product Lists: https://bit.ly/3rc6pLp- Activity details: https://www.hktdc.com/event/ictexpo/en- Photo download: https://bit.ly/3yBu9wNAbout HKTDCThe Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 to promote, assist and develop Hong Kong's trade. With 50 offices globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a two-way global investment and business hub. The HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to create business opportunities for companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the mainland and international markets. The HKTDC also provides up-to-date market insights and product information via research reports and digital news channels. For more information, please visit: www.hktdc.com/aboutus. Follow us on Twitter @hktdc and LinkedInMedia enquiriesPlease contact the HKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department:Snowy Chan, Tel: +852 2584 4537, Email: snowy.sn.chan@hktdc.orgFrankie Leung, Tel: +852 2584 4298, Email: frankie.cy.leung@hktdc.orgSource: HKTDCCopyright 2022 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Dr. Albert Garcia Romeu will serve as head researcher for the Love Pharma's MicroDoz sponsored trial to be conducted at the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research

The MicroDoz Therapy team is sponsoring a study to evaluate the effectiveness of psilocybin in treating Cannabis Use Disorder in 12 patients conducted by Dr. Albert Garcia Romeu and colleagues

This study builds upon the Company's major research initiative, to identify and target addiction treatment solutions

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / LOVE Pharma Co. ("LOVE" and or "The Company") (CSE:LUV)(FSE:G1Q0), the Company is pleased to provide the following update on the advancement of the previously announced trial focused upon clinical applications for psilocybin assisted therapy for addiction to be conducted at Johns Hopkins.

"LOVE is actively working to identify and assess biotechnology and pharmaceutical solutions to address addiction, with intent to grow its pharmaceutical presence in the underserved addiction treatment market," said Mr. Zach Stadnyk, Love Pharma President and CEO. "Since acquiring MicroDoz, the LOVE team has worked diligently to design and prepare to launch this comprehensive study relating to the potential of psilocybin assisted treatment for cannabis use disorder, and we are excited to advance this initiative."

The study will be led by Dr. Albert Garcia-Romeu and will help to establish consumer confidence and guide the development and use of psilocybin products for addiction treatment. Albert Garcia-Romeu, Ph.D. is a member of the Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences faculty at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he studies the effects of psychedelic drugs in humans, with a focus on psilocybin as an aid in the treatment of addiction. (https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/profiles/details/albert-garciaromeu)

This pilot trial will serve as a foundation to advance the research to larger scale trials and drive future licensing and commercialization opportunities.

Johns Hopkins Study Highlights:

MicroDoz Therapy is sponsoring a study to test the effectiveness of psilocybin in treating Cannabis Use Disorder in 12 patients. The proposed study timeline includes the following, which is subject to potential changes

Final regulatory approval and hiring of study coordinator - October-November

Initial patient recruitment - December-January

Complete patient treatment - Q1 2024

Complete follow-ups - Q2-Q3 2024

Data generated in the study will be available to MicroDoz Therapy Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Love Pharma.

LOVE is excited to officially launch this research initiative at Johns Hopkins this Fall and will continue to update shareholders as milestones are achieved (for which there is no guarantee). Sponsoring a successful pilot trial will allow the company to advance further clinical research initiatives.

Zachary Stadnyk, CEO and Director

About Love Pharma Inc.

With a focus on the global sexual Health and Wellness markets, Love Pharma Inc. (CSE: LUV) (FSE: G1Q0) was founded in 2020, with a mission to bring to market innovative products that enhance sexual health and wellness while providing an improved quality of life. Love Pharma holds exclusive licenses to produce market, package, sell, and distribute patent-protected therapeutic and pharmaceutical products throughout Europe, the United Kingdom, and North America.

For further information, please contact:

Investor Relations

Telephone: 1 (604) 343-2977

E-mail: investors@love-pharma.com

www.love-pharma.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain statements contained in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively "forward-looking information") as those terms are used in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and similar Canadian laws. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated", "anticipates" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Company's current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. In particular, this release contains forward-looking information relating to the business of the Company, financing, and certain corporate changes. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof and the Company is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

SOURCE: Love Pharma Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720264/Love-Pharma--Johns-Hopkins-University-Psilocybin-Trial-Advances-Toward-Launch-in-2022
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Usha Resources Ltd. ("USHA" or the "Company") (TSXV:USHA)(OTCQB:USHAF)(FSE:JO0), a North American mineral acquisition and exploration company focused on the development of drill-ready battery and precious metal projects, is pleased to announce that it has filed its 43-101 technical report (the "Technical Report") which has been prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"), on the Company's Nicobat Project, in relation to the proposed spinout of the Company's Nickel-Copper-Cobalt property located in Northwest Ontario.

The Technical Report, entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report on The Nicobat Project" and dated April 19, 2022, has been prepared for the Company by Andrew Tims, P.Geo, who is a "Qualified Person" as such term is defined in NI 43-101. The Technical Report is available on www.sedar.com under the Company's profile.

The Technical Report has been filed as part of the process for USHA's previously announced spinout transaction (the "Spinout") to transfer the Nicobat Nickel-Copper-Cobalt property to its wholly-owned subsidiary, Formation Metals Corporation ("Formation Metals" or "FMC"). Under the terms of the Arrangement dated May 10, 2022, if approved, USHA shareholders will be issued one (1) share of FMC with respect to every five (5) shares of USHA owned on the share distribution record date (the "Share Distribution Record Date"), which will be predetermined by USHA's Board of Directors and announced by a news release -in advance. Holders of USHA options and warrants, who exercise their options and/or warrants before the Share Distribution Record Date, will also be entitled to receive one (1) share of FMC with respect to every five (5) shares of USHA.

Upon completion of the Arrangement, USHA shareholders will ultimately own shares in two public companies:

USHA, which will be focused on its US-based assets, including the Jackpot Lake lithium brine project.

Formation Metals, which will be focused on nickel at the Nicobat project.

Completion of the Arrangement is subject to a number of conditions, including the following conditions which must be met:

the approval by the shareholders of USHA at a special general meeting (the "Meeting" );

); the approval of the Supreme Court of British Columbia; and

the acceptance of the Arrangement by the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Arrangement cannot be completed until all the above conditions are met.

The Technical Report documents and confirms the results of historical prospecting and exploration activities completed by previous owners of the property and recent data compilation, review and exploration targeting work completed by the Company. It also provides additional information on the project's history, regional geology, mineralization styles and exploration targets, and provides recommendations for exploration work.

The Nicobat Nickel Property

The Nicobat Nickel Property is a nickel-copper-PGE project located in Dobie Township, Northwest Ontario 21 kilometres south of New Gold's Rainy River Mine which hosts the Zone 34 nickel discovery.

Historic exploration work between 1952 and 1972 included over 15,000 metres of drilling, 220 drill holes and numerous bulk samples that identified a non-compliant historic resource of 5.3 Mt grading 0.24% Ni that contained a high-grade zone of approximately 225,000 tons grading 0.87% Ni.

Recent exploration work includes over 4,000 metres of drilling that has confirmed high-grade nickel-copper shoots do exist and are considerably better than previously recorded in the historical drilling, with drillhole A-04-15 intersecting from surface to approximately 63.75 metres a weighted average of 1.05% nickel and 2.18% copper that included an approximately 9.8-metre interval of 1.92% Ni from 53.95 to 63.75 metres.

The targeted feeder conduit measures approximately 305 metres by an average of 60 metres in width to a depth of 245 metres that is potentially open at depth and down-plunge to the north and is composed of cumulate textured olivine gabbro. This magma conduit sits in a larger norite body at the base of the Dobie Gabbro. The historical assessment data records high-grade "ribs", one of which includes the zone described above. Future work will, therefore, focus on making the historic resource compliant current and expanding on the work completed to assess for other high-grade "ribs" and the potential high-grade feeder zone as shown in the model below.

Qualified person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Andrew Tims, P.Geo., a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

About Usha Resources Ltd.

Usha Resources Ltd. is a North American mineral acquisition and exploration company focused on the development of quality battery and precious metal properties that are drill-ready with high-upside and expansion potential. Based in Vancouver, BC, Usha's portfolio of strategic properties provides target-rich diversification and consist of Jackpot Lake, a lithium project in Nevada; Nicobat, a nickel-copper-cobalt project in Ontario; and Lost Basin, a gold-copper project in Arizona. Usha trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol USHA, the OTCQB Exchange under the symbol USHAF and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol JO0.

USHA RESOURCES LTD.

"Deepak Varshney" CEO and Director

For more information, please call Tyler Muir, Investor Relations at 1-888-772-2452, email tmuir@usharesources.com, or visit www.usharesources.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking information" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and are based on a number of estimates and/or assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned that such forward-looking information are neither promises nor guarantees and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties, uncertain and volatile equity and capital markets, lack of available capital, actual results of exploration activities, environmental risks, future prices of base and other metals, operating risks, accidents, labour issues, delays in obtaining governmental approvals and permits, and other risks in the mining industry.

These statements include proposed terms of the spinout transaction, proposed business plans for each of Usha and FMC, the listing of FMC's Shares, the anticipated benefits of the transaction, and disclosure of additional details concerning the transaction. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Usha cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by many material factors, many of which are beyond their respective control. Such factors include, among other things: determination of acceptable terms for the proposed spinout transaction, risks and uncertainties relating to the receipt of approvals to proceed with and complete the transaction and the satisfaction of the conditions precedent to the completion of the transaction, unexpected tax consequences, the market valuing Usha and FMC in a manner not anticipated by management of the Company, the benefits of the spinout transaction not being realized or as anticipated, and each of Usha and FMC being unable to add additional properties to their respective portfolios. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not undertake to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

The Company is presently an exploration stage company. Exploration is highly speculative in nature, involves many risks, requires substantial expenditures, and may not result in the discovery of mineral deposits that can be mined profitably. Furthermore, the Company currently has no reserves on any of its properties. As a result, there can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

SOURCE: Usha Resources Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720045/Usha-Resources-Announces-Filing-of-Nicobat-Nickel-Project-43-101-Technical-Report-in-Preparation-for-Planned-Spinout
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Safar is a major new collection of over 64 artworks by 24 Saudi and international artists at AlUla's International Airport. Spanning both the Executive Terminal and the Commercial Terminal, Safar highlights and celebrates AlUla's cultural legacy, natural wonders and community and includes works by artisans of AlUla's Madrasat Addeera Art and Design Centre, opened by Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) to train and upskill the next generation of creatives.

Safar - meaning travel in Arabic - is a fitting name for this important collection of sculpture, photography, textiles, paintings, and design pieces found at the gateway to AlUla. AlUla has long been a place of artistic journey: a historic hub of cultural transfer, which is now being revived as an oasis of art and creativity.

A long-standing place of passage, AlUla has always welcomed traders, merchants and pilgrims who have - for millennia - portrayed their experiences of AlUla's spectacular cultural landscape through literature and art. The Safar art collection continues this legacy, linking the narratives of the past through the contemporary perspectives of artists of our time: a journey through the airport and a journey through AlUla's past heritage and future vision.

The collection was conceived by The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) and facilitated by Capsule Arts, presenting work by significant Saudi and international artists such as Dana Awartani, Shaikha Al Mazrou and Zahrah Al Ghamdi(all of whom have a longstanding relationship with Arts AlUla) as well as emerging artists such asStephanie Neville, Sandrah Boutros and Nidanin Woodwork.

Speaking to Arts AlUla's vision for a new - and local - creative community, works by the 10 Saudi artists and 6 regional artists sit alongside those by artisans from Madrasat Addeera, the first Art and Design Center in AlUla which offers craft programmes for local artisans. In a piece entitled 'Our Living Tradition', artisans from Madrasat Addeera investigate the Order of Nature as a design tool and how language is intrinsic to traditional arts and cultures. Their paintings all mirror the same underlying square grid pattern (the basis of textile techniques such as Al Sadu weaving: a new addition to UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage) but feature different patterns that originate from the varied traditional crafts that span the region.

Safar's artworks are in dialogue with AlUla's unique physical and cultural landscape. Two sculptures by Shaikha Al Mazrou reference local rock engravings in a deep brick orange resin, while two framed diptychs by Dana Awartani continue the heritage narrative through intricate traditional patterns inspired by aerial views of AlUla's famous heritage sites. Meanwhile, Farah Behbehani's embroidered textiles serve as an ode to the community of AlUla through a local craft, and Ranim Halaky's 'Conversations through time' is a striking typographic raw steel installation that has been created in collaboration with the community, presenting their voice in sculptural form.

Alongside this, the work of emerging artists such as Stephanie Neville, Sandrah Boutros and Nidanin Woodwork is presented as a contemporary cabinet of curiosities in the Executive Terminal Library. This includes works inspired by AlUla's rich heritage of textile and crafts, alongside photography from The Royal Commission for AlUla's archive that depict the surrounding landscapes.

Commenting on the project, Nora Aldabal, Executive Director, Arts and Creative Industries for the Royal Commission for AlUla said, "We are delighted to unveil the Safar art collection: a continuation of our ongoing cultural programming, setting the standard for engaging contemporary artists within the Kingdom. Safar represents the depth and breadth of Arts AlUla's relationship with the arts: a major new collection that follows recent world-class events such as Desert X AlUla 2022, the Cortona on the Move artist residency, What Lies Within and the launch of Wadi AlFann.

Not least because of its airport setting, the Safar art collection reconnects AlUla with local, regional and international visitors in its next chapter as a centre of artistic exploration, expression, and production. The arts are a vital contributor to the region's character and identity, the quality of life for its local community and the region's economic future. We look forward to sharing it with all who come to AlUla."

Fly to AlUla International Airport with Saudia Airlines, FlyDubai and FlyNas. International arrivals from Dubai International Airport, Kuwait International Airport and Cairo International Airport (from October 5th); domestic arrivals from Riyadh, Jeddah and Damman. The airport is 35km (a 30 minute drive) from AlUla city centre.

For all Safar imagery and further information (backgrounders, quotes, biographies), please see the media kit here .

For more information, please visit:

experiencealula.com

@artsalula

@experiencealula

@alulamoments

About AlUla:

Located 1,100km from Riyadh, in North-West Saudi Arabia, AlUla is a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage. The vast area, covering 22,561km, includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains and ancient cultural heritage sites dating back thousands of years covering the periods when the Lihyan, Dadan, and Nabataean kingdoms reigned.

The most well-known and recognised site in AlUla is Hegra, Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site. A 52-hectare ancient city, Hegra was the principal southern city of the Nabataean Kingdom and is comprised of more than 100 well-preserved tombs with elaborate facades cut out of the sandstone outcrops surrounding the walled urban settlement. Current research also suggests Hegra was the most southern outpost of the Roman Empire after conquering the Nabataeans in 106 CE.

In addition to Hegra, AlUla is home to fascinating historical and archaeological sites. These include:

Ancient Dadan, the capital of the Dadan and Lihyan Kingdoms, which is considered one of the most developed 1st-millennium BCE cities of the Arabian Peninsula

Jabal Ikmah, an open-air library with thousands of ancient rock art and inscriptions

AlUla Old Town, a labyrinth of more than 900 mudbrick homes developed from at least the 12 th century

century The Hijaz Railway and Hegra Fort, key sites in the layered story of this route of passage

About The Royal Commission for AlUla:

The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) was established by the royal decree in July 2017 to protect and safeguard AlUla, a region of outstanding natural and cultural significance in North-West Saudi Arabia. RCU is embarking on a long-term plan to develop and deliver a sensitive, sustainable transformation of the region, reaffirming it as one of the country's most important archaeological and cultural destinations and preparing it to welcome visitors from around the world. RCU's development work in AlUla encompasses a broad range of initiatives across archaeology, tourism, culture, education and the arts, reflecting the ambitious commitment to cultivating tourism and leisure in Saudi Arabia, outlined in Vision 2030.

About Arts AlUla:

The creation of Arts AlUla within The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) is a commitment to crafting the next chapters in a millennia of artistic creation - celebrating cultural inheritance, presenting the art of our time, and shaping a future propelled by creativity.

AlUla has long been a consistent and ever-evolving hub of cultural transfer. It has been a place of passage, a crossroads for trade, and home to successive civilizations who carved, sculpted and inscribed their lives into the landscape. The work of Arts AlUla seeks to preserve this legacy: fuse the old with the new; the local with the international, keeping the arts central to the spirit of AlUla as a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage.

Throughout 2022, Arts AlUla will bring to fruition a series of new initiatives, projects and exhibitions. The artwork curation will speak to RCU's vision for the continued development of AlUla's contemporary art scenes: positioning the arts as a key contributor to AlUla's character, the quality of life for its local community and the region's economic future.

Arts AlUla focuses on transferring the talents of the Saudi nation and the local AlUla community into meaningful long-standing social and economic opportunities. This is a key part of the Journey through Time masterplan bringing together the 15 different landmark destinations for culture, heritage and creativity across AlUla.

About AlUla International Airport:

AlUla International Airport is a newly-renovated airport and the gateway to AlUla. Just 35km (a 30-minute drive) from AlUla city centre, the airport opens AlUla to a global community. Visitors can fly to AlUla International Airport with Saudia Airlines, FlyDubai and FlyNas. International arrivals from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, Dubai International Airport, Kuwait International Airport and Cairo International Airport; domestic arrivals from Riyadh, Jeddah and Damman.

The airport is 2.4 million square meters and comprises an Executive Terminal and Commercial Terminal. Together these terminals have a total capacity of 400,000 passengers.

Press office:

For more information, interview requests or press trip enquiries, please contact Caroline Blake or Rosie Stamp at Flint Culture:

caroline.blake@flint-culture.com / rosie.stamp@flint-culture.com

+44 7721 859 847 / +44 7870 556947

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920403/Arts_AlUla_Safar.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920404/Arts_AlUla_Logo.jpg

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Up to US$200,000 funding per year for each selected proposal, up to 3 years

Targeting autoimmune disease, renal disease, pain and neurodegenerative disease, bone disease or platform technologies for drug discovery

Application period: January 5, 2023 February 28, 2023. How to apply.

Asahi Kasei Pharma, subsidiary of diversified Japanese multinational company Asahi Kasei, is publicly calling for new proposals for drug development research as part of its efforts for open innovation to promote pharmaceutical research and development through enhanced cooperation with universities, research institutes and enterprises around the world. The application period begins at 5:00 a.m. GMT on January 5, 2023 and ends at 8:00 a.m. GMT on February 28, 2023.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005087/en/

Asahi Kasei Pharma's Open Innovation team is seeking to fund innovative proposals from researchers around the world for up to US$200,000 per year, per project in 2023 for proposals about state-of-the-art pharmaceutical drug developments. Joint research opportunities will then be pursued with the drug discovery researchers together with their parent institutions in hopes to create new innovative drugs for diseases that currently have unmet needs or pioneer new platform technologies for drug discovery. How to apply: https://www.asahikasei-pharma.co.jp/a-compass/en/recruit.html

Asahi Kasei Pharma established its Open Innovation Department in October 2016 with the mission to further strengthen and enhance global licensing and alliance-building activities, and has since funded around 5 proposals per year on average with a total of over 20 funded proposals for state-of-the-art pharmaceutical drug developments as well as collected a wealth of creative new ideas. The Open Innovation team is seeking to fund innovative proposals from researchers around the world for up to US$200,000 per year, per project for this upcoming round in 2023. Asahi Kasei Pharma will then pursue joint research opportunities with the drug discovery researchers together with their parent institutions in hopes to create new innovative drugs for diseases that currently have unmet needs or pioneer new platform technologies for drug discovery.

Asahi Kasei Pharma has demonstrated a successful track record in developing new drugs in the realms of autoimmune, renal, neurological, and bone disease, so the organization can provide the greatest contribution from correlating research areas and subjects.

"Asahi Kasei Pharma believes that nobody should have to give up what they would like to do because of illness," said Osamu Matsuzaki, Primary Executive Officer and Head of R&D and Business Development at Asahi Kasei Pharma. "We believe great science comes from working together, and we are excited for the opportunity to accomplish this mission with researchers all over the world."

Open Innovation works to establish research collaborations related to innovative drug targets and candidate drug compounds up to the preclinical stage as well as advanced drug discovery technologies. Advancements in exploring a new mechanism of action for treating refractory autoimmune disease is one of the most promising outcomes of the research so far, with many more on the horizon. Asahi Kasei believes that these continued efforts to advance drug discovery and research technology will further contribute to life and living for people around the world.

Outline of the call for proposals

Target applicants:

Researchers at universities, research institutes, and enterprises outside Japan

(researchers based in Japan should refer to the Japanese website)

Research areas and subjects:

Autoimmune disease new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Renal disease new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Pain and neurodegenerative disease new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Bone disease new drug candidates Platform technologies for drug discovery drug formulation, analysis methods and organic synthesis

Funding:

Up to US$200,000 per year for each selected proposal

Research period:

1-3 years (milestones will be set for each year, and the content of the research will be reviewed as needed based on the research results)

Submissions will be assessed with respect to their potential as concepts for collaborative research and fostering of research. Further information is available on Asahi Kasei Pharma's Open Innovation website.

About Asahi Kasei Pharma

In accordance with the mission, "to sincerely care for each individual life and solve their unmet medical needs with a wealth of ideas and solid science," Asahi Kasei Pharma operates pharmaceutical and diagnostic businesses in the Health Care Sector of the Asahi Kasei Group. Asahi Kasei Pharma has developed numerous innovative drugs in the fields of immunology, neurology, critical care, musculoskeletal disorders, and other rare diseases, contributing to society by providing highly innovative medications to patients who suffer from diseases with previously unmet needs.

To learn more, visit https://www.asahikasei-pharma.co.jp/en/.

About Asahi Kasei

The Asahi Kasei Group contributes to life and living for people around the world. Since its foundation in 1922 with ammonia and cellulose fiber businesses, Asahi Kasei has consistently grown through the proactive transformation of its business portfolio to meet the evolving needs of every age. With more than 46,000 employees around the world, the company contributes to a sustainable society by providing solutions to the world's challenges through its three business sectors of Material, Homes, and Health Care. Its health care operations include devices and systems for acute critical care, dialysis, therapeutic apheresis, transfusion, and manufacture of biotherapeutics, as well as pharmaceuticals and diagnostic reagents. For more information, visit https://www.asahi-kasei.com/.

Asahi Kasei is also dedicated to sustainability initiatives and is contributing to reaching a carbon neutral society by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.asahi-kasei.com/sustainability/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005087/en/

Contacts:

Media Inquiries North America

ATTN: Jonathan Todd

Asahi Kasei America, Inc.

aka-info@ak-america.com

https://www.asahi-kasei.com



Media Inquiries Europe

ATTN: Sebastian Schmidt

Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH

AKEU-Info@asahi-kasei.eu

https://www.asahi-kasei.eu
Company continues to ramp up its recently announced growth strategy featuring 'Centers of Excellence' for Neuro-Recovery Care to broaden access to robotic rehabilitation

Bionik Laboratories Corp. (OTCPINK:BNKL) ("Bionik" or the "Company"), a robotics company providing neurological functional recovery solutions to stroke survivors and others with functional and mobility challenges, today announced the appointments of Richard Russo, Jr. as Chief Executive Officer and President, who previously served as Chief Financial Officer. Filling the role as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer will be Dan Gonsalves, formerly Bionik's Corporate Controller. Both appointments are effective immediately.

Mr. Russo and Mr. Gonsalves will implement the Company's recently announced strategic growth plan featuring a roadmap of branded outpatient care centers, commercial expansion to new global markets, and new efforts to amplify data collection and analysis across its devices.

Bionik Laboratories' InMotion robotic devices are installed at 450 locations worldwide, including more than 300 in the United States. As the Company looks ahead, it intends to focus on four areas of growth with its new executive team. These areas include:

Establish Bionik-Owned 'Centers of Excellence': The recently announced initiative is intended to further establish Bionik as the stroke recovery experts through Bionik owned and operated neuro-care centers to be located throughout the US. The first such center, located in Clermont, Florida, was acquired by Bionik in September 2022, with further acquisition candidates being evaluated.

The recently announced initiative is intended to further establish Bionik as the stroke recovery experts through Bionik owned and operated neuro-care centers to be located throughout the US. The first such center, located in Clermont, Florida, was acquired by Bionik in September 2022, with further acquisition candidates being evaluated. Continue Commercial Expansion Globally: Bionik InMotion devices are present across 20 countries worldwide, and the Company will continue its efforts to expand InMotion's presence to new markets including the EU, China, Canada, and Brazil.

Bionik InMotion devices are present across 20 countries worldwide, and the Company will continue its efforts to expand InMotion's presence to new markets including the EU, China, Canada, and Brazil. Enhanced Data Collection Capabilities: A recent whitepaper found patients utilizing InMotion robotic devices measured upwards of 15-20% improvement over a 14-day time-frame. The new data suggests additional sessions with InMotion robots improve a patient's ability to move more smoothly, with intention, and in a controlled manner. Bionik will continue to enhance this level of data collection and use its centers of excellence as another vehicle for collection to further provide patients and clinicians with a personalized rehab experience. With the first flagship center from Bionik now operating, additional data collection efforts are underway.

A recent whitepaper found patients utilizing InMotion robotic devices measured upwards of 15-20% improvement over a 14-day time-frame. The new data suggests additional sessions with InMotion robots improve a patient's ability to move more smoothly, with intention, and in a controlled manner. Bionik will continue to enhance this level of data collection and use its centers of excellence as another vehicle for collection to further provide patients and clinicians with a personalized rehab experience. With the first flagship center from Bionik now operating, additional data collection efforts are underway. Focus on New Technology Products: A focus on IoT and data integration with existing products is expected to further enhance Bionik's cloud-connected data analytics platform InMotion Connect to continue to provide positive patient outcomes. Real-time performance metrics, prediction metrics for treatments and outcomes, and more will lead towards the build of a large data-set to further AI-powered outcomes.

"Bioniks' new strategic plan is designed to bring neuro-recovery care centers nationwide to showcase and provide additional accessibility to our technology and solutions through a patient care model that goes beyond the boundaries of insurance," said Rich Russo Jr., President and CEO of Bionik. "With my appointment as CEO, I'm excited to have the confidence of the Board to lead Bionik through the next stages of growth and development."

"The global neurorehabilitation devices market alone is projected to reach $4.9 billion by 2028," said Dan Gonsalves, CFO and Executive Vice President at Bionik. "With a growing installed base of InMotion devices driving awareness and usage and a global distribution strategy, Bionik expects to build on its upward trajectory."

Bionik's InMotion Therapy helps stroke survivors and those with other neurological conditions to regain arm and hand movement by training shoulder protraction/retraction, flexion/extension, abduction/adduction, internal/external rotation, elbow flexion/extension and hand grasp/release. InMotion robotic devices guide the patient through specific tasks, aiming to improve motor control of the arm and hand by increasing strength, range of motion and coordination, and assisting with the provision of efficient, effective, intensive sensorimotor therapy.

To learn more about Bionik, please visit www.bioniklabs.com.

??About Bionik Laboratories Corp.

Bionik Laboratories is a robotics company focused on providing rehabilitation and mobility solutions to individuals with neurological and mobility challenges from hospital to home. The Company has a portfolio of products focused on upper and lower extremity rehabilitation for stroke and other mobility-impaired patients, including three products on the market and three products in varying stages of development. For more information, please visit www.BIONIKlabs.com and connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Forward-Looking Statements

Any statements contained in this press release that do not describe historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements, which involve assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies, and expectations, are generally identifiable by use of the words "may," "should," "would," "will," "could," "scheduled," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "intend," "seek," or "project" or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements regarding (i) the plans and objectives of management for future operations, including plans or objectives relating to the design, development and commercialization of robotic rehabilitation products and the roll-out of its recently-announced Neuro-Recovery Centers of Excellence strategy, (ii) a projection of income (including income/loss), earnings (including earnings/loss) per share, capital expenditures, dividends, pipeline of potential sales, capital structure or other financial items, (iii) the Company's future financial performance, including as a result of the acquisition and rebranding of the Company's Neuro-Recovery Centers of Excellence, and the future financial performance of any such Centers of Excellence the Company may acquire or launch (iv) the market and projected market for our existing and planned products and services and (v) the assumptions underlying or relating to any statement described in points (i), (ii), (iii) or (iv) above. Such forward-looking statements are not meant to predict or guarantee actual results, performance, events or circumstances, and may not be realized because they are based upon the Company's current projections, plans, objectives, beliefs, expectations, estimates and assumptions, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and other influences, many of which the Company has no control. Actual results and the timing of certain events and circumstances may differ materially from those described by the forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties. Factors that may influence or contribute to the inaccuracy of the forward-looking statements or cause actual results to differ materially from expected or desired results may include, without limitation, the Company's inability to obtain additional financing or increase revenue, the inability to meet listing standards to uplist to a national stock exchange, the significant length of time and resources associated with the development and sale of our products and related insufficient cash flows and resulting illiquidity, the continued impact on the Company's business as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Company's inability to expand the Company's business, including its recently-launched Neuro-Recovery Centers of Excellence strategy, significant government regulation of medical devices and the healthcare industry, lack of product diversification, volatility in the price of the Company's raw materials, and the Company's failure to implement the Company's business plans or strategies. These and other factors are identified and described in more detail in the Company's filings with the SEC. The Company does not undertake to update these forward-looking statements.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005376/en/

Contacts:

Media:

FischTank PR

bionik@fischtankpr.com

Investor Relations:

Stephanie Prince

PCG Advisory

sprince@pcgadvisory.com

646.863.6341
EQS-News: Volatus Aerospace Corp.

Volatus Aerospace Adds Over 500,000 km of Oil & Gas Pipeline Right of Way Surveillance with Acquisition of Synergy Aviation Ltd.



13.10.2022 / 13:45 CET/CEST

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



Volatus Aerospace Corp. (TSXV: VOL) (OTCQB: VLTTF) ("Volatus" or "the Company") announced today that it has signed an arm's length definitive agreement dated Oct 12, 2022, to acquire Alberta-based Synergy Aviation Ltd. This acquisition will solidify Volatus' position in Western Canada providing privileged access to much of the oil and gas industry. Synergy's leadership in the sector combined with Volatus' drone technology solutions will position the Company with a strong competitive advantage to introduce innovative, efficient, green, remotely operated drone solutions to fulfill regulatory and asset monitoring requirements. Founded in Alberta in 2014, Synergy Aviation is an industry leader in aerial surveillance, pipeline integrity monitoring, and specialized geomatics, patrolling and inspecting more than 500,000 KM of pipeline right of way stretching from the coast of British Columbia to the Manitoba/US border. The company provides Canada's largest oil & gas producers and pipeline operators with uninterrupted, consistent and highly detailed right-of-way integrity data. "Pipeline inspection, much like other long linear inspection requirements, has traditionally been completed using crewed helicopters and small fixed wing aircraft," said Glen Lynch, CEO of Volatus Aerospace. "Leveraging Synergy's oil & gas presence combined with our existing pipeline operations in Ontario will allow us to introduce the power of innovative drone solutions to meet regulatory compliance and asset management requirements with improved efficiencies and a material reduction in greenhouse gas emissions." "There are nearly 5 million kilometers of oil & gas pipeline in North America requiring annual inspections and, in many cases, weekly patrols to meet regulatory and asset management requirements," said Todd Tkach, President of Synergy Aviation. "Becoming part of Volatus gives us the added geomatics capabilities, market reach, and the opportunity to disrupt traditional methods in this sector." Synergy recorded unaudited revenues of $7 million with a 14% EBITDA (Earnings before Interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization) during the first nine months of 2022 and is targeting year end revenues of $9 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Volatus will make an equity investment of $2.29 million in Synergy Aviation over the course of 10 months from closing in exchange for newly issued shares that will represent 51% of all outstanding shares. The investment will be used by Synergy for ongoing expansion activities. The transaction is scheduled to close on October 31st conditional on satisfactory completion of due diligence, approval of the respective Board of Directors, and regulatory approval by the TSX Venture Exchange. Subject to operational and financial metric as defined in the definitive agreement, the Synergy investors will have an option, expiring in December 2024, to sell the remaining 49% equity to Volatus at the same valuation at Closing in exchange of Volatus shares based on 30 days VWAP (volume weighted average price) on date of Closing. This announcement marks another step in a series of interrelated technology, regulatory, and commercial milestones intended to drive and scale the commercialization of drone technologies. Recent announcements include the launch of the Aerieport drone nesting station, regulatory authority to remotely operate a drone at an airport, the remote operation of drones in Las Vegas from our operations center 3,000 km away, and most recently, a collaboration agreement with Accipiter Radar to provide for larger scale deconfliction between drones and low flying aircraft. The combination of these events with other Volatus technologies provides large scale opportunities in oil and gas, power distribution, and rail throughout the markets served by Volatus. About Volatus Aerospace: Volatus Aerospace Corp. is a leading provider of integrated drone solutions throughout North America and growing into Latin America and globally. Volatus serves civil, public safety, and defense markets with imaging and inspection, security and surveillance, equipment sales and support, training, as well as R&D, design, and manufacturing. Through our subsidiary, Volatus Aviation, we are introducing green and innovative drone solutions to supplement and replace traditional aircraft and helicopters for long-linear inspections such as pipeline, energy, rail, and cargo services. Volatus is committed to carbon neutrality; the fostering of a safe, equitable and inclusive workplace; and responsible governance. Forward-Looking Statement This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Corporation with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or statements formed in the future tense or indicating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" (or other variations of the foregoing) be taken, occur, be achieved, or come to pass. Forward-looking information includes information regarding (i) the business plans and expectations of the Corporation; and (ii) expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Forward-looking information is based on currently available competitive, financial and economic data and operating plans, strategies or beliefs as of the date of this news release, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors may be based on information currently available to the Corporation, including information obtained from third-party industry analysts and other third-party sources, and are based on management's current expectations or beliefs. Any and all forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflects expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Forward-looking information reflects the Corporation's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to it and on assumptions it believes to be not unreasonable in light of all of the circumstances. In some instances, material factors or assumptions are discussed in this news release in connection with statements containing forward-looking information. Such material factors and assumptions include, but are not limited to: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Corporation; meeting the continued listing requirements of the TSXV; and anticipated and unanticipated costs and other factors referenced in this news release and the Circular, including, but not limited to, those set forth in the Circular under the caption "Risk Factors". Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this news release and, other than as required by law, the Corporation disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Source: Volatus Aerospace Corp. TSXV: VOL Contact Details Abhinav Singhvi +1 833-865-2887 abhinav.singhvi@volatusaerospace.com Company Website https://volatusaerospace.com

News Source: News Direct



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Video monitors show the result of a United Nations General Assembly special emergency session vote in favor of a resolution condemning Russia's illegal referendum in Ukraine, Wednesday, Oct. 12, at U.N. headquarters. AP-Yonhap



The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to condemn Russia's ''attempted illegal annexation'' of four Ukrainian regions and demand its immediate reversal, a sign of strong global opposition to the seven-month war and Moscow's attempt to grab its neighbor's territory.



The vote in the 193-member world body was 143-5 with 35 abstentions. It was the strongest support from the General Assembly for Ukraine and against Russia of the four resolutions it has approved since Russian troops invaded Ukraine Feb. 24.



Ukraine's U.N. ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, called the vote ''amazing'' and ''a historic moment.'' U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said supporters were ''holding our breaths'' and called it ''a monumental day.'' European Union Ambassador Olof Skoog called it ''a great success'' that sends ''a resounding message to Russia that they are and remain isolated.''



The Western-sponsored resolution was a response to Russia's announced annexation last month of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. Moscow acted following Kremlin-orchestrated ''referendums'' that the Ukrainian government and the West have dismissed as sham votes conducted on occupied land amid warfare and displacement.



During two days of speeches at the assembly's resumed emergency special session on Ukraine speaker after speaker accused Russia of violating key principles of the United Nations Charter _ respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all U.N. member nations.



There was intense lobbying by supporters of the EU-facilitated resolution ahead of Wednesday's vote.



U.S. envoy Thomas-Greenfield told the assembly before the vote that when the United Nations was established on the ashes of World War II it was built on an idea _ ''that never again would one country be allowed to take another's territory by force.''



Afterward, she told reporters the vote means ''that in the eyes of the world and the United Nations, Ukraine's borders remain the same.''



''The resolution also sends an enormously important signal to Moscow and to everyone: It does not matter if you as a nation are big or small, rich or poor, old or new. If you are a U.N. member state, your borders are your own and are protected by international law,'' Thomas-Greenfield said. ''They cannot be redrawn by anyone else by force.''



A key issue for the resolution's Western backers was how many countries would support it, and the result went beyond their most optimistic expectations.



The General Assembly voted 141-5 with 35 abstentions March 2 to demand an immediate Russian cease-fire, withdrawal of all its troops and protection for all civilians. On March 24, it voted 140-5 with 38 abstentions on a resolution blaming Russia for Ukraine's humanitarian crisis and urging an immediate cease-fire and protection for millions of civilians and the homes, schools and hospitals critical to their survival.



But the assembly voted by a far smaller margin April 7 to suspend Russia from the U.N.'s Geneva-based Human Rights Council over allegations Russian soldiers in Ukraine engaged in rights violations that the United States and Ukraine have called war crimes. That vote was 93-24 with 58 abstentions.





United Nations Ambassador from Ukraine, Sergiy Kyslytsya, far right top, use a binocular in the U.N. General Assembly, before it voted on a resolution condemning Russia's illegal referendum in Ukraine, Wednesday, Oct. 12, at U.N. headquarters. AP-Yonhap



A 2014 resolution affirming Ukraine's territorial integrity and declaring the referendum that led to Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula illegal was adopted by a vote of 100-11 with 58 abstentions.



Among the surprise supporters of Wednesday's resolution were the ''yes'' votes from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council as well as Brazil.



Russia's U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, had appealed to countries to vote against the resolution, calling it ''a politicized and openly provocative document'' and denouncing its sponsors as ''unscrupulous Western blackmailers.'' He expressed regret the vote was not by secret ballot, as Russia sought but the assembly rejected.






Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI) will soon begin building its new gigawatt electrolyzer manufacturing plant in Guadalajara, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain, reaffirming the company's commitment to expanding the green hydrogen economy in Europe and globally.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005344/en/

Cummins Spain electrolyzer manufacturing facility (Photo: Business Wire)

Last year, Cummins announced it had selected Spain as the site of a new proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer plant. Earlier this year, the company purchased more than 530,000 sq. ft. (50,000 sq. m.) of land in the industrial area of Guadalajara, Castilla-La Mancha, where it is now preparing to begin construction.

"We're excited to be a part of Guadalajara and put down our roots in Spain. The growing hydrogen economy here continues to be an attractive environment for Cummins to increase its global electrolyzer manufacturing footprint," said Amy Davis, Vice President and President of New Power at Cummins. "With the support of the Spanish government and European Union, Spain's hydrogen market has great potential. This facility will poise Cummins to help European customers transition their energy supply and meet ambitious sustainability goals. This plant is also another step toward achieving Cummins' own carbon neutrality targets."

Construction of the new PEM electrolyzer plant is anticipated to be complete at the end of 2023. It will initially create approximately 150 high-skill jobs, with the potential to add another 200 jobs as production grows. The more than 200,000 sq. ft. (20,000 sq. m.) facility will house system assembly and testing and have the capacity to produce 500MW of electrolyzers per year, scalable to more than 1GW per year.

Cummins' investment in Spain adds to the company's global efforts to scale development and manufacturing of zero-emissions technologies and ultimately reduce carbon emissions. The company also recently announced the expansion of PEM electrolyzer manufacturing capacity at its Oevel, Belgium, factory to 1GW.

"Green" hydrogen produced through water electrolysis using renewable electricity is a key enabler to economy-wide decarbonization. Once produced, hydrogen can be stored as a liquid or a gas and transported. As an alternative to fossil fuels, hydrogen is a viable zero-emissions solution for some of the world's most energy intensive and hardest-to-abate sectors, such as heavy-duty commercial transportation, manufacturing, industrial processes and chemical production.

"By increasing our ability to meet demand for hydrogen generation technology, this facility will help accelerate the global clean energy transition and the role of hydrogen as a viable alternative energy source in Europe," said Alexey Ustinov, Vice President of Electrolyzers at Cummins. "Cummins is committed to helping the European Union produce more hydrogen domestically, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and securing a sustainable future."

Cummins has a long history of advanced technology and engineering capabilities and innovates across a broad portfolio of market-leading renewable hydrogen technologies. It has been part of many of the world's hydrogen "firsts," including powering the world's largest PEM electrolyzer in operation at 20MW in Becancour, Canada; the world's first megawatt-scale demonstration plant for storing wind energy in the natural gas grid in Windgas Falkenhagen, Germany; the world's first 100% hydrogen-powered passenger train fleet in Lower Saxony, Germany; and the world's first hydrogen refueling station for ships, cars, trucks and industrial customers in Antwerp, Belgium.

About Cummins

Cummins Inc., a global power technology leader, is a corporation of complementary business segments that design, manufacture, distribute and service a broad portfolio of power solutions. The company's products range from internal combustion, electric and hybrid integrated power solutions and components including filtration, aftertreatment, turbochargers, fuel systems, controls systems, air handling systems, automated transmissions, electric power generation systems, microgrid controls, batteries, electrolyzers and fuel cell products. Headquartered in Columbus, Indiana (U.S.), since its founding in 1919, Cummins employs approximately 59,900 people committed to powering a more prosperous world through three global corporate responsibility priorities critical to healthy communities: education, environment and equality of opportunity. Cummins serves its customers online, through a network of company-owned and independent distributor locations, and through thousands of dealer locations worldwide and earned about $2.1 billion on sales of $24 billion in 2021.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005344/en/

Contacts:

Cummins Inc.

Jon Mills Director External Communications

001 317-658-4540

jon.mills@cummins.com
Atos and its partners are awarded the development and supply contract for the key RRF management information system

Paris, 13 October 2022 - Atos and its partner ecosystem have been chosen by the Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Territories to develop and supply the "Management IT System" for the Reseau Radio du Futur (RRF - future radio network), the secure and resilient broadband network for domestic security and rescue services. The amount set out in the framework agreement for Lot 3, awarded to the Atos-led consortium, is 43 million over 7 years.

The RRF aims to build a secure, priority, broadband national mobile communication system (4G and 5G) for emergency services, both in the field of public safety and personal and public emergency response. This system is a significant technological and organizational step change and will be used by up to 300,000 users in security and emergency services, such as the national gendarmerie, the national police, the fire brigade and civil security personnel.

In this context, Atos and its partners will be tasked with designing and delivering the network's "information and management system", a key portal that will interface with RRF users and RRF management. It will allow security and rescue forces to receive commercial offers, submit orders, receive invoices, manage their equipment (such as terminals, tablets or 4G keys), as well as managing the network's service quality and main components. It will also make it easier for users to share best practices.

All features will be customized taking into account the specific business needs of the different user categories. The Atos-led ecosystem will ensure the security and resilience of the interface and enable the scalability of the system.

"We are proud to have been chosen by the Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Territories and to be involved in a major project to support our national security and emergency services. This is further proof of the government's confidence in Atos' expertise on high-stakes projects. RRF Lot 3 is essential to the system's success, as it will be its main showcase and will help converge good practice around its use. With this in mind, we will work closely with the system's users to customize its functionalities and speed up its deployment, and with the other industrial players in the program to ensure optimal integration," explains Yannick Tricaud, CEO Atos France and Atos Southern Europe.

Atos has also been chosen as part of the consortium led by Airbus and Capgemini for Lot 2 of the RRF ("Integrator, Core Network, MCX and Terminal"), which is intended to equip the RRF with all the capabilities needed to fulfil its role as a mission-critical mobile communications operator.

These new contracts underscore Atos' position as a key technology partner to the public sector and security and emergency services, and demonstrate the value of its sovereign technology offering.

***

About Atos

Atos is a global leader in digital transformation with 112,000 employees and annual revenue of c.  11 billion. European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high performance computing, the Group provides tailored end-to-end solutions for all industries in 71 countries. A pioneer in decarbonization services and products, Atos is committed to a secure and decarbonized digital for its clients. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea) and listed on Euronext Paris.

The purpose of Atos is to help design the future of the information space. Its expertise and services support the development of knowledge, education and research in a multicultural approach and contribute to the development of scientific and technological excellence. Across the world, the Group enables its customers and employees, and members of societies at large to live, work and develop sustainably, in a safe and secure information space.

Press contact

Lucie Duchateau - lucie.duchateau@atos.net - +33 (0) 7 62 85 35 10

Attachment
Schuler's Compact Press Series for compression molding achieves economical, efficient, and sustainable manufacturing

CANTON, MI / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Schuler North America, subsidiary of Schuler Group GmbH, will exhibit at CAMX, North America's largest composites and advanced materials expo, in Hall D, Booth E7. The show will take place October 17-20, at the Anaheim Convention Center, in Anaheim, California.

Schuler will present its portfolio of innovative compression molding technologies to the market. This includes iComposite 4.0, compression molding press lines, local service and modernization support, and Schuler's Digital Suite solutions.

"CAMX provides an opportunity to showcase the unique ways we push the boundaries of quality, efficiency, and economy for our customers. In fact, we recently sold a 16,000-ton hydraulic molding press-from Schuler's Compact Press Series-to a market leader within the wastewater industry," explains Kevin McAllister, President of Schuler North America. "This new order exemplifies many capabilities that Schuler will present during the show."

The tailored hydraulic molding press has optimized production of the customer's fiber-reinforced plastic component parts weighing 500 pounds or more. The installation height of the new press is 40 percent less than a classic composite press. The press reduces energy consumption by incorporating weight compensation of dynamic components. The compression molding enhances productivity and material savings-effectively reducing operational costs for the customer while meeting sustainability standards.

"Schuler's innovative technology has greatly reduced the part production cycle time for the customer," states Tiago Vasconcellos, Director of Sales at Schuler North America. "This is exceptional as the market demand of fiberglass production, and material applications of fiber-reinforced plastics with glass fibers, is rapidly increasing."

Schuler's modular Compact Press Series will be of interest to CAMX attendees as the design reduces oil compression and provides faster thermoplastic application and compression molding. The series can achieve minimal scrap rates, even at the highest of outputs, due to the adaptive congruent bending system and effective parallelism control.

Schuler will also present, "Smart Factory and Sustainability Standards for Composites and Advanced Materials," to address iComposite 4.0 and the digital future of forming technology. The presentation will take place October 18, at 1:00 PM, Room 209B.

Website

Registration Page: CAMX 2022

Schuler North America: CAMX Presentation Details

Schuler Group: Composite Presses

Attachments

Bio_Kevin McAllister_Final.pdf

Bio_Tiago Vasconcellos_Final.pdf

Captions

Img.jpg: Schuler will promote its portfolio of innovative compression molding technologies at CAMX 2022.

###

About Schuler Group-www.schulergroup.com

Schuler offers customized cutting-edge technology in all areas of forming-from the networked press to press shop planning. In addition to presses, Schuler's products include automation, dies, process know-how, and service for the entire metalworking industry. Schuler's Digital Suite brings together solutions for networking forming technology and is continuously being developed to further improve line productivity and availability. Schuler customers include automotive manufacturers and suppliers, as well as companies in the forging, household appliance, and electrical industries. Schuler presses are minting coins for more than 180 countries. Founded in 1839 at the Goppingen, Germany headquarters, Schuler has approximately 5,000 employees at production sites in Europe, China and the Americas, as well as service companies in more than 40 countries. The company is part of the international technology group ANDRITZ.

Schuler's global portfolio of world-renowned brands include BCN (Bliss Clearing Niagara) Technical Services, Muller Weingarten, Beutler, Umformtechnik Erfurt, SMG Pressen, Hydrap Pressen, Wilkins & Mitchell, Beche, Spiertz Presses, Farina Presse, Liebergeld, Peltzer & Ehlers, Schleicher, and Sovema Group.

About Schuler North America-www.schulergroup.com

Schuler North America (Schuler), headquartered in Canton, Michigan, is the North American subsidiary of Schuler Group. Schuler provides new equipment, spare parts, and a portfolio of lifecycle services for all press systems-including preventative maintenance, press shop design and optimization, turnkey installations, retrofits for existing systems, and localized production and service. Schuler's best-in-class position in the metalworking and materials industry serves automotive manufacturers and tier suppliers, as well as home appliance, electronics, forging, and other various industries.

Schuler North America

7145 Commerce Blvd.

Canton, MI 48187

Jaime Bartholomai

Marketing & Communications Manager

E: jaime.bartholomai@schulergroup.com

C: +1 734-865-0133

www.schulergroup.com

SOURCE: Schuler Incorporated Canton

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720189/Schuler-Presents-Energy-Saving-Technology-at-CAMX
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Rockland Resources Ltd. (the "Company" or "Rockland") (CSE:RKL) has engaged EM Strategies (a WestLand Resources Inc. company), based in Reno to assist with permitting of a maiden drill program on the Company's keystone Lithium Butte Property, in Juab County, Utah. EM Strategies specialize in third party and proponent work with the BLM, state and county governments to provide permit acquisition and regulatory compliance services. The geologic team on the Lithium Butte Project have extensive previous experience working with EM Strategies on a variety of projects in the Great Basin.

The 4,460-hectare (11,020-acre) Lithium Butte property is located in Juab County in west-central Utah, and is interpreted to be highly prospective for lithium (Li) mineralization hosted in claystone volcanic tuff breccia units. The property has excellent logistics and can be worked on a year-round basis. The Lithium Butte property is interpreted to have lithium mineralization in claystone tuff units similar to Nevada's Clayton Valley-Tonopah region.

The Company's initial property visit in May (Press Release June 29, 2022) comprised ten grab samples with a peak values of 4,080 parts per million lithium (ppm Li), with five grab samples of the tuff-breccia that had strongly developed clay alteration averaging 2,142 ppm Li. Additional sampling in July (Press Release August 23, 2022) returned a continuous interval of 25.2 metres at 1,388 ppm Li, including 8.0 metres at 2,155 ppm Li and 0.7 metre at 3,540 ppm Li. Activities since July have included geological mapping, extensive soil geochemistry, and prospecting.

"Our field geological team has been making terrific strides in locating both historic and new occurrences spread out over both our recently staked basins in Utah. As we continue to define new targets we feel this is the right time to begin the drill permitting process on initial high priority lithium targets." stated Mike England, CEO of Rockland Resources.

"Management has moved quickly on the Lithium Butte project by engaging EM Strategies at this early stage to get a jump on the permitting process directed at the Company's maiden drill program." commented Richard Sutcliffe, President of the Company.

Rockland further announces it has signed an agreement with Zimtu Capital Corp. to provide select aspects of its ZimtuADVANTAGE marketing program (https://www.zimtu.com/zimtu-advantage/). Zimtu shall receive a one-time sum of $65,000 from Rockland Resources for 3- months of coverage and reports from Rockstone Research, and for attendance in the 2022 Zimtu European Road Trip. Based in Switzerland, Rockstone Research broadens the market awareness of publicly and privately held companies, particularly in German speaking regions.

Program QA/QC - Previous and recent sampling on the Lithium Butte Property was carried out by Dr. Richard Sutcliffe, P. Geo., a Qualified Person as defined in NI43-101, who is also responsible for reviewing and approving the geological contents of this news release. Samples were transported in sealed bags by the Project Manager and shipped to Activation Laboratories ("Actlabs") in Ancaster, Ontario. Actlabs is an independent ISO/IEC 17025 certified laboratory. Li analysis will be performed using sodium peroxide fusion and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).

About Rockland Resources Ltd.

Rockland Resources is engaged in the business of mineral exploration and the acquisition of mineral property assets for the benefit of its shareholders. In addition to the Utah Lithium Property, the Company is acquiring the 41,818-hectare Elektra claystone project concessions that are contiguous with Gangfeng Lithium's Sonora Lithium Clay Project located in Sonora, Mexico. The Company also holds and option to earn a 100-per-cent interest in the Cole Gold Mines property, located in Ball township, Red Lake mining division, Ontario. The Cole Property hosts high-grade gold mineralization in a classic Red Lake-type structurally controlled gold deposit environment.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Dr. Richard H. Sutcliffe, P.Geo.

President and Director

For further information, please contact:

Mike England

Email: mike@engcom.ca

Neither the Canadian Stock Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Investors are cautioned that these forward looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and by those made in our filings with SEDAR in Canada (available at WWW.SEDAR.COM).

SOURCE: Rockland Resources Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720268/Rockland-Resources-Engages-Consultants-for-Drill-Permitting-Lithium-Butte-Claystone-Portfolio-in-Juab-County-Utah
LAVAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE/TSX:BHC) ("Bausch Health") will release its third quarter financial results on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022. Bausch Health will host a conference call and live webcast at 8:00 a.m. U.S. EDT to discuss the results and provide a business update. All materials will be made available on the Investor Relations section of the Bausch Health website prior to the start of the call.

Conference Call Details

Date: Thurs., Nov. 3, 2022 Time: 8:00 a.m. U.S. EDT Webcast: http://ir.bauschhealth.com/events-and-presentations

A replay of the conference call will be available on the investor relations website.

To participate in the live Q&A session, please register using this link to receive a PIN, which will be sent an hour before the conference call.

Supplemental Disclosure

At the Company's annual meeting of shareholders held on June 21, 2022, the Company's shareholders approved amendments to the Company's Amended and Restated 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the "Plan"). The Company has relied on the exemption for "Eligible Interlisted Issuers" under Section 602.1 of the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") Company Manual, the effect of which is that, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions prescribed by the TSX, the Company will not have to comply with certain Canadian requirements in connection with the Plan.

About Bausch Health

Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE/TSX: BHC) is a global diversified pharmaceutical company whose mission is to improve people's lives with our healthcare products. We develop, manufacture and market a range of products primarily in gastroenterology, hepatology, neurology, dermatology, international pharmaceuticals and eye health, through our controlling ownership interest in Bausch + Lomb Corporation. With our leading durable brands, we are delivering on our commitments as we build an innovative company dedicated to advancing global health. For more information, visit www.bauschhealth.com and connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Investor Contact:

Christina Cheng

ir@bauschhealth.com

Media Contact:

Kevin Wiggins

corporate.communications@bauschhealth.com

SOURCE: Bausch Health Companies Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720134/Bausch-Health-to-Announce-Third-Quarter-2022-Results-on-Nov-3
**Part five of Mindtech's guide to synthetic data questions the validity of describing synthetic data as reaching 'Peak of Inflated Expectations'**

**Mindtech's Chameleon platform is already generating automatically annotated synthetic data for a whole host of applications**

Mindtech Global, developer of the world's leading platform for the creation of synthetic data for training AI, has today revealed its view on where it believes synthetic data is on the 'hype curve'.

In the fifth instalment of the company's extensive guide to synthetic data, VP Product Management Chris Longstaff raises doubts about Gartner's assessment of synthetic data as having reached the "peak of inflated expectations"-fuelled by technological advances as well as media hype.

Longstaff believes that label is potentially misleading, as it throws the synthetic images that companies like Mindtech are using to train merchant market visual AI models in with other variations of synthetic data-synthetic audio data or synthetic infrared data, for example-which are relatively nascent.

He explained: "Gartner's AI Hype Cycle lumps in synthetic images, which are already used to train incredibly high accuracy models that are out there in commercial applications right now, with all these other, evolving types of synthetic data that have yet to prove their worth. It's not really helpful and it is giving potential users the wrong impression about synthetic imagery and the technology's state of readiness."

You can read part five of Mindtech's guide on synthetic data, providing practical tips for data engineers and real-world use cases for data training, here: https://medium.com/mindtechglobal/is-a-single-category-for-synthetic-data-in-gartners-hype-cycle-appropriate-38e2eb9892e5

Ends.

Mindtech Global www.mindtech.global

Mindtech Global is the developer of the world's leading end-to-end 'synthetic' data creation platform for the training of AI vision systems. The company's Chameleon platform is a step change in the way AI vision systems are trained, helping computers understand and predict human interactions in applications ranging across retail, smart home, healthcare and smart city.

Mindtech is headquartered in the UK, with operations across the US and Far East and is funded by investors including Mercia, Deeptech Labs, In-Q-Tel and Appen.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005474/en/

Contacts:

Media contact:

Cat Lenheim, cat@thoughtldr.com

+44 203 417 0717 +44 7511 117587


MOSCOW (dpa-AFX) - The UN General Assembly voted with an overwhelming majority to condemn Russia's attempts to seize four Ukrainian regions.



Russia's attempt to annex by force the eastern Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson is illegal and invalid, says the resolution adopted by the Assembly on Wednesday.



143 nations voted in favor of the resolution while four countries - Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua, and Syria stood on the side of Russia.



35 countries, including China and India, abstained from voting.



It was the highest number of votes against Russia at the UN forum since its invasion of Ukraine in February, and even more than the 141 nations that voted in March to unequivocally condemn Russia's war against Ukraine.



In a statement on the United Nations General Assembly Vote, US President Joe Biden said, by attacking the core tenets of the UN Charter, Russia is tearing at the very foundations of international peace and security.



'Nearly eight months into this war, the world has just demonstrated that it is more united, and more determined than ever to hold Russia accountable for its violations. Together with the UN General Assembly, we will not tolerate illegal attempts at annexation or the theft of a neighbor's land by force,' he added.



The vote delivers a resounding rebuke to Russia for its aggression against Ukraine, according to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.



'Today's remarkable vote at the United Nations General Assembly is a powerful reminder that the overwhelming majority of nations stand with Ukraine, in defense of the UN Charter, and in resolute opposition to Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine and its people,' he added.



Meanwhile, Russian forces continued to attack civilian targets in Ukraine Thursday.



They carried out a 'kamikaze' drone attack in capital Kyiv, the regional military administration said on Telegram.



Shelling on residential buildings in the southern city of Mykolaiv also has been reported.



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At this year's event in London, MeasureUp has demonstrated the benefits of its training methodology during the session 'Not only what but how: The student at the heart of the certification'.

MIAMI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- MeasureUp has attended the E-ATP 2022 conference, the largest assessment-focused community event in Europe, organized by the Association of Test Publishers (ATP) from October 11 to 13 in London. Here , MeasureUp has joined industry leaders on a collective mission to build better and more equitable testing experiences.





During the conference, MeasureUp demonstrated to the attendees how their companies can improve the pass rate for their certification programs by placing the student at the center of the process, using an approach whereby students learn from their mistakes, helping to build a positive mindset, which inevitably sets them up for success. One of the great moments of the conference came on Wednesday, with the session 'Not only what but how: The student at the heart of the certification', led by Sam Brocal and Rosa Torralba from MeasureUp and Liberty Munson, Director of Psychometrics at Microsoft. This session addressed the success that both organizations have been able to achieve over the years by using this student-oriented approach.

Sam Brocal and Rosa Torralba, CEO and Content Manager of MeasureUp respectively, explained how their practice tests help to build self-confidence, making students feel more relaxed and confident in their knowledge and ability when facing the exam. In the words of Rosa Torralba, "This is done by emulating the exact exam experience, with the same user interface, question types, difficulty, and time allotted. In this way, the student has a real feel for the official exam and once they see the exam after having passed the practice test, their confidence sky rockets."

In addition to the self-confidence gained by using a practice test that looks and feels like the real exam, the student can take advantage of a detailed discussion at the end of each question that explains why each answer option is either correct or incorrect, as well as a list of online references for further study. Rosa Torralba goes on to mention that "thanks to all of this, MeasureUp increases the student's confidence, who, by practicing with such a real simulation of the official exam, becomes familiar in such a way that fears and insecurities gradually decrease."

About MeasureUp

MeasureUp , part of the Media Interactiva business group, is the world leader in exam simulations and evaluations for official certifications in the IT sector.

With over 400 tests and more than 33,000 questions, its customers can prepare for the certification exams of the largest technology manufacturers. MeasureUp is the official provider of companies such as Microsoft, and is an authorized provider for Cisco, CompTIA, VMware, AWS, and PMI among others.

Since joining Media Interactiva in 2014, MeasureUp has sold more than four million practice tests and assessments in 189 countries.

More information:

www.measureup.com

www.mediainteractiva.com

https://twitter.com/Med_Interactiva

https://www.facebook.com/mediainteractiva

https://www.linkedin.com/company/media-interactiva/

https://www.instagram.com/media_interactiva/

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920549/MeasureUp_EATP.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/measureup-talks-about-the-psychology-behind-certification-success-at-the-european-atp-conference-in-london-301648573.html
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Big Ridge Gold Corp. (TSXV: BRAU) (OTCQB: ALVLF) ("Big Ridge") is pleased to announce additional diamond drill results from its Phase I exploration drill program at the past-producing Hope Brook Gold Project, located in southwestern Newfoundland and Labrador. The drill holes reported in this press release are from drill holes that targeted the shallow southwestern extension of the Hope Brook Deposit.

Mike Bandrowski, President & CEO of Big Ridge, commented, "Drilling continues to intercept gold and copper mineralization outside the current resource envelope to the southwest, further supporting our thesis of continued mineralization to the southwest and potential resource expansion."

Highlights:

Drill hole HB-22-178 intersected 0.95 g/t Au over 11.7 m including 8.86 g/t Au over 1.0 m, Drill hole HB-22-179 intersected 0.95 g/t Au over 32.6 m including 2.83 g/t Au over 8.7m and Drill hole HB-22-182 intersected 0.86 g/t Au over 31.3 m including 5.38 g/t Au over 1.0 m and 1.28 g/t Au over 11.8 m.

Drilling continues to intersect gold and extend mineralization outside and along the projected trend of the current resource envelope that is based on a gold price of US$1,200 per ounce and 3.0 g/t Au cut-off grade.

The company has released 45 drill holes to date and 41 of those results have intersected gold mineralization. These initial drill results have primarily focused on near-surface mineralization to the southwest of the current resource estimate. The Phase 1 drill program results continue to demonstrate that Hope Brook remains open for resource expansion and there are a series of assays pending from additional drill holes testing the 240 Zone and Main Zone.

Phase I Results

Results from the Phase I drill program continue to extend gold and copper mineralization to the southwest of the former producing Hope Brook open pit. The holes reported in the press release confirm near-surface mineralization in an untested gap in the current resource envelope, southwest of the resource envelope and also show the deposit remains open to the southwest.

Copper mineralization which was recovered by past mine operators as a by-product credit and is known to be associated with gold mineralization at Hope Brook, has not been included in the historic resource estimates. Big Ridge's initial drill results have generated copper assays ranging from 0.05% Cu to 0.90% Cu in the majority of holes reported to date.

Table 1 - Significant Intercepts from Reported Holes

Hole number From

(m) To (m) Length(1)(m) Au g/t(2) Cu % Lithology HB-22-171B NSV HB-22-172 53.9 63.0 9.1 0.59 - Vuggy silicified, Argillic (Qtz Ser Py Po) HB-22-173 63.3 66.2 2.9 0.61 - Silicified zone 81.0 86.9 5.9 0.55 - Argillic (Qtz Pyrophyllite), mafic dyke units HB-22-174B 181.8 203.5 21.7 0.41 0.09 Vuggy silicified and mafic dyke units incl. 189.2 196.3 7.1 0.50 0.23 HB-22-175 196.1 214.5 18.4 0.63 - Vuggy silicified, Argillic (Qtz Pyrophyllite), mafic dyke units incl. 207.3 211.2 3.9 1.66 - HB-22-176 201.5 234.7 33.2 0.54 - Vuggy silicified, Argillic (Qtz Pyrophyllite), mafic dyke units incl. 222.1 229.8 8.7 0.77 - HB-22-177 242.0 256.5 14.6 0.46 0.06 Vuggy silicified, Argillic (Qtz Pyrophyllite), mafic and intermediate dyke units incl. 250.7 254.1 3.5 0.59 0.13 HB-22-178 226.2 237.8 11.7 0.95 0.08 Vuggy silicified and intermediate dyke units 277.8 278.8 1.0 8.86 - light grey to cream brecciated pyrite cap unit HB-22-179 247.2 279.7 32.6 0.95 - Argillic, Vuggy silicified, intermediate dyke zones incl. 251.5 260.3 8.7 2.83 0.12 Vuggy silicified zone, py HB-22-180B NSV HB-22-181 546.0 562.0 16.0 0.21 - Vuggy silicified and Argillic (Qtz, Sericite, Pyrophyllite) HB-22-182 237.2 268.5 31.3 0.86 - Alternating intervals of Vuggy silicified and Argillic (Qtz Pyrophyllite) incl. 242.2 243.2 1.0 5.38 - incl. 255.2 267.0 11.8 1.28 -

Intervals are presented in core length; holes are generally planned to intersect mineralization as close to perpendicular to strike as possible; true widths are estimated to be 75% of downhole length when hole and mineralized horizons orientations are considered. Assays results presented are not capped. Intercepts occur within geological confines of major zones but have not been correlated to individual structures/horizons within these zones at this time. NSV - No Significant Values.

To view drill hole locations in plan and sections please click on the following link:

https://bigridgegold.com/site/assets/files/5577/pr4_2022_drilling_-_plan_longitudinal_x-sections_rev3_e.pdf

About Hope Brook

The Hope Brook Gold Project is an advanced stage, high-grade gold project that produced 752,162 ounces of gold from 1987 - 1997. Hope Brook hosts an indicated gold resource totalling 5,500,000 tonnes grading 4.77 grams per tonne gold for 844,000 ounces and inferred resources totalling 836,000 tonnes grading 4.11 grams per tonne gold for 110,000 ounces based on a 3.0 gram per tonne cut-off grade and a long-term gold price of US$1,200, according to a technical report for Big Ridge Gold Corp., prepared by authors Michael Cullen, P. Geo., and Matthew Harrington, P. Geo., of Mercator Geological Services Limited and Jeffrey Burke, P. Geo., and titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Hope Brook Gold Project, Newfoundland And Labrador, Canada", April 6, 2021.

The Hope Brook gold deposit is a high-sulfidation epithermal gold deposit hosted in the Proterozoic aged Whittle Hill Sandstone and is intruded by a Late Proterozoic quartz-feldspar porphyry sill-dike complex of the Roti Intrusive Suite. The deposit in located adjacent to and within an extensive advanced argillic alteration envelope which includes pyrophyllite, kaolinite, andalusite, and alunite. The principal gold mineralization occurs in a buff-colored massive, vuggy silicic alteration with an associated, less developed grey silicic alteration with pyrite, chalcopyrite and lesser bornite. Gold mineralization is also found with pyrite in units of advanced argillic alteration adjacent to or near silicic alteration horizons. The altered and mineralized zone is cut by mafic dykes whose contacts are often mineralized. All of the altered and mineralized sequences and the intruded dykes have been folded.

Hope Brook is located 85 kilometers east of Port aux Basques, Newfoundland. The project has well maintained infrastructure on site, including an operational 28-person camp, an 1,100-meter airstrip, an ice-free docking facility and importantly, connection to the provincial electrical power grid via an on-site substation.

Significant exploration potential remains on the 26,000-hectare concession providing a great opportunity to expand the mine area as well as surface showings throughout the concessions.

This press release was compiled and reviewed by William McGuinty, P.Geo., VP Exploration of Big Ridge and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.

Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC)

Big Ridge's 2021-2022 drilling program, Quality Assurance/Quality Control and compilation of results employ a strict QA/QC program consistent with NI 43-101 and industry best practices. The Hope Brook project is supervised by Big Ridge's Vice President Exploration, William McGuinty P. Geo.

Drill core is logged and split with half-core samples packaged and delivered to ALS Global's geochemistry laboratory in Moncton, New Brunswick. Samples are dried and subsequently crushed to 70% passing a 2 mm mesh screen. A 250-gram split subsample is pulverized to a nominal 85% passing a 75-micron mesh screen. The remaining crushed sample (coarse reject) and pulverized sample (pulp reject) are retained for further analysis and quality control. All samples are analysed by Fire Assay with an Atomic Absorption (AA) finish using a 50 g aliquot of pulverized material. Samples are also analysed for copper using ICP AES with four-acid digestion. Big Ridge inserts third party reference control and blank samples in the sample stream to monitor assay performance and performs duplicate sampling of both pulp and reject material. 10% of samples submitted are part of the Company's laboratory sample control protocols.

About Big Ridge Gold Corp.

Big Ridge Gold Corp. is an exploration and development company managed by a disciplined and experienced team of officers and directors. The Company is committed to the development of advanced stage mining projects using industry best practices combined with strong social license from our local communities. Big Ridge owns a 100% interest in the highly prospective Oxford Gold Project located in Manitoba and the Destiny Gold Project in Quebec. Big Ridge is the operator of the Hope Brook Gold Project located in Newfoundland and Labrador.

For more details regarding the Company's projects, please visit our website at www.bigridgegold.com

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD,

Mike Bandrowski,

President & CEO

For further information, including a copy of the corresponding report filed with Canadian securities regulators, please visit www.sedar.com or contact:

Mike Bandrowski,

President & CEO

BIG RIDGE GOLD CORP.

18 King St. East, Suite 1400

Toronto, ON, M5C 1C4

Tel: 416-540-5480

Email: Mike@bigridgegold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Table 2 - Drill Hole Locations*

Hole number Depth Azimuth Dip Northing Easting Elevation HB-22-171B 704 325 -69 5287568 418201 5166 HB-22-172 182 325 -60 5287452 417603 5118 HB-22-173 173 325 -73 5287452 417603 5118 HB-22-174B 272 325 -44 5287330 417677 5120 HB-22-175 290 325 -52 5287330 417677 5120 HB-22-176 317 326 -47 5287232 417637 5123 HB-22-177 320 326 -54 5287232 417637 5123 HB-22-178 311 325 -47 5287257 417663 5126 HB-22-179 335 325 -53 5287257 417663 5126 HB-22-180B 701 325 -70 5287517 418152 5164 HB-22-181 320 325 -45 5287174 417592 5124 HB-22-182 359 325 -54 5287174 417592 5124



* Hole collars are in NAD83 / UTM Zone 21N coordinates drilled NQ diameter. Elevations are adjusted for modelling purposes

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "intends", "estimates", "envisages", "potential", "possible", "strategy", "goals", "objectives", or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events, and include, without limitation, statements with respect to Big Ridge's intentions with respect to Caprock's shares. All forward-looking statements are based on Big Ridge's and its employees' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information currently available to them. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to Big Ridge, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Big Ridge does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on our behalf, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140402
In this image provided by the U.S. Army, soldiers, from the 3rd Battalion, 321st Field Artillery Regiment of the 18th Field Artillery Brigade out of Fort Bragg N.C., conduct live fire testing at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., on Dec. 14, 2021, of early versions of the Army Tactical Missile System. Ukrainian leaders are begging the U.S. and Western allies for air defense systems and longer-range weapons to keep up the momentum in their counteroffensive against Russia and fight back against Moscow's intensified attacks. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says allies are committed to sending weapons "as fast as we can physically get them there. AP-Yonhap





Ukrainian leaders are pressing the U.S. and Western allies for air defense systems and longer-range weapons to keep up the momentum in their counteroffensive against Russia and fight back against Moscow's intensified attacks.







Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday said allies are committed to sending weapons ''as fast as we can physically get them there.'' And he said defense leaders meeting in Brussels are working to send a wide array of systems, ranging from tanks and armored vehicles to air defense and artillery.







But there are still a number of high-profile, advanced weapons that Ukraine wants and the U.S. won't provide, due to political sensitivities, classified technology or limited stockpiles.







A look at some of the weapons Ukraine will or won't get:







In a meeting with about 50 defense leaders this week, Austin and Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, discussed plans to send more air defense weapons to Ukraine and also increase training for Ukrainian troops.







''We know that Ukraine still needs even more long-range fires, and air defense systems and artillery systems along with other crucial capabilities,'' Austin said Wednesday. He said allies talked about a number of air defense systems.







The U.S. has already provided 20 of the advanced High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, and has promised 18 more.







And the Pentagon has said it will deliver the first two advanced NASAMS surface-to-air missile systems to Ukraine in the coming weeks, providing Kyiv with a weapon that it has pressed for since earlier this year. The systems will provide medium- to long-range defenses against Russian missile attacks.







Germany is now delivering its first IRIS-T surface-to-air missile system, which has a range of about 25 miles (40 kilometers). It has promised a total of four.







Overall, the U.S. has sent Ukraine $16.8 billion in weapons and other aid since the war began on Feb. 24. That aid has included hundreds of armored vehicles, 142 155mm Howitzers and 880,000 rounds of ammunition for them, plus thousands of Javelin anti-tank and Stinger anti-aircraft weapons and 60 million rounds of bullets.






Main Zone sampling of historic drill holes returns up to 51.4 g/t Au over 1 m and up to 6.29 g/t Au over 2.85 m in trenches

Summer prospecting identifies westward Extension of No 4. Zone at surface

First drill program and fall prospecting completed, assays pending

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / E2Gold Inc. (TSXV:ETU)(OTCQB:ETUGF) (the "Company" or "E2") is pleased to report on the results from the summer sampling program at its Band-Ore project near Thunder Bay, Ontario. Highlighted zones include 26.7 g/t Au over 2.0 m in a drill hole and 5.91 g/t Au over 1.8 m in trenches. Additionally, the Company has completed a seven hole, 1,000 m drill program testing two historic Resources1, the Main Zone and the No. 4 Zone.

Eric Owens, CEO, stated, "These high grade values are consistent with previous reporting and demonstrate the strong presence of the mineralized zones both at surface and at depth." Dr. Owens continued, "We look forward to follow-up assays from our recently completed drill program."

The Band-Ore project hosts two historic Resources: the Main Zone (706,000t @ 6.86g/t Au for 155,726 oz gold) and the No. 4 Zone (616,000t @ 4.84g/t Au for 95,668 oz gold).

Table 1. Selected Confirmation gold assay results from historic drill holes, trenches and prospects

Note to Table: Selected intervals of drill core, chip-channel samples at historic trenches, and grab samples from prospects were taken at the Main Zone, No 4. Zone and other prospects on the property and are reported in Table 1.

Gold mineralization in the Main Zone is principally hosted in variably sheared, silicified, and pyritic quartz-feldspar porphyry. However, the highest gold values from the confirmation sampling program are hosted in metabasalt with quartz-sphalerite-pyrite veins near the southern contact with feldspar porphyry.

Figure 1. Location of prospects and Historic Resources at Band-Ore showing historic results.

Confirmation Sampling at the No. 4 Zone yielded up to 6.36 g/t Au over 1.0 m from drill core. Here, gold mineralization is hosted in silicified, pyritic, sericite schists interpreted as altered and deformed felsic volcanic rocks.

Newly recognized alteration 1 km west of the No. 4 Zone, yielded anomalous gold, up to 0.25 g/t Au, from silicified pyritic schists, and suggests potential continuation of the zone in this direction. This extension has yet to be drill tested.

Qualified Person: Eric Owens, Ph.D., P.Geo. acts as a Qualified Person for E2Gold, and has reviewed the content of this press release.

ABOUT E2GOLD INC.

E2Gold Inc. is a Canadian gold exploration company with a large flagship property, the 80 km long Hawkins Gold Project, which covers seven townships in north-central Ontario, about 140 km east of the Hemlo Gold Mine, and 75 km north of the Magino and Island Gold Mines. The property is anchored by the McKinnon Zone Inferred Resource of 6.2 Mt grading 1.65 g/t Au, for 328,800 ounces of gold.2 E2Gold is committed to increasing shareholder value through the development of targets at Hawkins and future potential of the Band-Ore property.

Note 1: Historic resources are not compliant with National Instrument 43-101, and should not be relied on. They provide guidance for exploration only, and is not intended to imply the presence of an economic deposit.

Note 2: NI 43-101 Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate on Hawkins Gold Project, Ontario, by P&E Mining Consultants, effective date September 10, 2020.

For further information please contact:

Eric Owens

Chief Executive Officer

Tel. (416) 509-5385

Email: eric.owens@e2gold.ca

Ellie Owens

President

Tel. (647) 575-2888

Email: ellie.owens@e2gold.ca

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward Looking Statements - Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of E2Gold, including with respect to the receipt of all regulatory approvals. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: E2Gold Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720295/E2GOLD-Reports-Band-Ore-Sampling-Results
Anderson, South Carolina--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - JZZ Technologies Inc. (OTC Pink: JZZI) ("JZZ" or the "Company"), a diversified company focused on digital media, biotechnology acquisitions related to human life extension longevity and active lifestyle real estate development, has acquired its first land parcel as part of its new realty development division. The project kicks off construction and development of residential projects to be carried out by its recently acquired subsidiary LION Developments, LLC in South Carolina.



The initial parcel is located in Anderson County, South Carolina. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, LION Developments, JZZ expects the residential developments to be ready for sale within the 2023-2024 time horizon. This project, along with other projects already on contract for development by LION, account for nearly $2 million in revenue to JZZ in the next twelve months.



JZZ and its LION Development Group are targeting residential and commercial projects throughout the southeast. South Carolina and the surrounding southeast region are ranked in the top five areas for real estate performance in the current market climate.



Coupled with its extensive database of seniors and executives, the Company will be able to effectively market its residential offerings to a broad and receptive audience that are seeking senior living and quality of life options. This integrated approach will help JZZ to maximize cash flow and profits from a growing list of real estate projects.



Charles Cardona, CEO of JZZ Technologies, Inc. stated, "We are really encouraged by acquiring our first land package to kick off our development projects. We expect to see a whole roster of land development as we continue to review projects and negotiate new projects. The Company anticipates significant increases in revenues as we expand our Active Lifestyles development division."

The Company has targeted South Carolina for its profile as one of the best real estate growth markets in the US, mainly due to migration by homeowners fleeing high tax, high regulation, and high crime regions. Real estate figures from Redfin confirm that home prices in South-Carolina were up 13.2% year-over-year in August 2022. At the same time, the number of homes sold fell 12.8% and the number of homes for sale fell 3.7%.

About LION Development Group LLC

Based in South Carolina, LION Development Group and its founders have over 30 years of combined experience in the acquisition, development, and management of residential and commercial properties in South Carolina, North Carolina, Florid a, and Georgia. LION has successfully completed dozens of real estate projects in these regions over the past three decades and holds a reputation for excellence in the communities that it serves.

About JZZ Technologies, Inc .

JZZ Technologies, Inc. is a diversified company engaged in several business sectors. Its Active Lifestyle Digital media business includes online media and apps (www.activelifestylemedia.com), content creation, and digital marketing, targeted to active adults 55+. Its strategic biotechnology and bioscience related to Human Life Extension seeks opportunities in quality of life businesses that support the aging population, and its Active Lifestyle Development division acquires, manages, and operates commercial and residential real estate and housing development projects. For more information, please visit www.jzztechnologies.com.

Press Contacts:

JZZ Technologies, Inc.

Charles Cardona, CEO

ceo@jzztechnologies.com

DISCLAIMER and FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained herein are "forward-looking" statements (as such term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). Because such statements include risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and such Forward-Looking Statements are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created thereby. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical fact in this announcement are forward-looking statements, including but not limited to the viability of the Company's business plans, the effect of acquisitions on our profitability, the effectiveness, profitability, and the marketability of the Company's products; the Company's ability to protect its proprietary information; general economic and business conditions; and the volatility of the Company's operating results and financial condition. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on current expectations, assumptions, estimates, and projections about the Company and the industry. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances or to changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, management cannot assure the public that their expectations will turn out to be correct. Investors are cautioned that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140367
TAMPA, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- AACSB International (AACSB) announced today the appointment of Ronald (Ron) Tuninga as its new vice president and managing director for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). He will lead continued growth within EMEA, including strategic planning, operations, outreach and engagement activities, and advocating for the value of business education and AACSB accreditation.





Tuninga will continue the work of Tim Mescon, executive vice president and chief officer of EMEA, who will retire in December 2022 after having established the Amsterdam (the Netherlands) office in 2014 and growing membership in EMEA by nearly 60 percent.

"Ron's natural ability to connect and engage with members and stakeholders will be an incredible asset to AACSB as we continue to expand in EMEA and deepen our relationships with educators, business, and government," said Geoff Perry, executive vice president and global chief membership officer and managing director of Asia Pacific. "We are focused on improving the quality of business education worldwide and helping schools contribute to society in positive and meaningful ways. Ron's experience and network will have an immediate impact on the value we provide across the EMEA region and globally."

An innovative and entrepreneurial leader with global expertise in both the public and private sectors of higher education, Tuninga is the former vice president of academic affairs at Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences, chair of the Research Centre International Business at HAN University of Applied Sciences (the Netherlands), pro vice chancellor (Enterprise) and dean of the Faculty of Business and Law at Kingston University London (United Kingdom), and dean at AVT Business School in Copenhagen (Denmark). He was also the former director dean at the Maastricht School of Management (the Netherlands). Tuninga holds a PhD from Temple University (Philadelphia, USA), an MA in economics, an MBA in international business, and an MSc in marketing.

"I am so excited to welcome Ron to the AACSB leadership team and look forward to seeing the impact he will have in growing AACSB's reach and influence within EMEA," said Caryn L. Beck-Dudley, president and CEO of AACSB. "He's dedicated his entire career to advancing and supporting quality education globally and will be one of the driving forces behind AACSB's vision to accelerate transformation and innovation within business education."

Tuninga has been involved in international projects funded by the Dutch government, World Bank, European Union, United Nations, and other international organizations. He has also been actively involved as a volunteer with AACSB. Tuninga is based in AACSB's office in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and will be connecting with AACSB members at the EMEA Annual Conference, November 23-25, 2022, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

About AACSB International

Established in 1916, AACSB International (AACSB) is the world's largest business education alliance, connecting educators, learners, and business to create the next generation of great leaders. With a presence in more than 100 countries and territories, AACSB fosters engagement, accelerates innovation, and amplifies impact in business education. Learn how AACSB is transforming business education for a better society at aacsb.edu.





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The Only Unified Investment and Risk Management Platform for Crypto, FalconX 360 Makes Crypto Investing Simple with New Industry Changing Capability

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- FalconX , a digital assets platform for institutional investors, today announced the launch of FalconX 360, the industry's first and only unified investment and risk management platform for crypto that provides institutional investors full-spectrum execution capabilities and end-to-end reporting across their entire digital asset portfolio.





With FalconX 360, for the first time ever, institutional investors can get cross-margining capabilities across their crypto investments within a single user interface. Through one platform, FalconX clients now have access to 94% of the global liquidity, position and post-trade data for certain OTC derivatives trading, institutional staking and the ability to borrow against all their balances and positions - all with a built-in risk management engine.

Complete Command and Control When You Need It Most

In the wake of the largest de-risking ever seen in the crypto and traditional finance markets, FalconX is delivering much-needed stability and ease of use for institutional investors.

Volatile markets demand that portfolio managers and traders monitor and manage all forms of risk-operational, market and counterparty-in real time across their entire portfolio. But fragmentation across crypto trading platforms and exchanges has made it impossible to get a unified view of assets and liabilities and seamlessly execute strategies, as investments are scattered across dozens of portals and accounts. That makes risk management inefficient and cumbersome, and it is nearly impossible for investors to gauge their overall position in the market.

FalconX 360 solves that problem, giving institutions complete command and control to access opportunities and lower risk across the entire digital assets ecosystem, all from a single dashboard, for optimal operational efficiency. FalconX 360 serves institutions with everything they need throughout the entirety of their crypto journey.

"Institutions just lost over $2B with the largest deleveraging in the crypto market we've ever seen, and investors are hungry for a solution to mitigate risk and properly balance their portfolio to protect their positions and their clients' interests," said Samir Ghosh, Head of Product. "FalconX 360 is the answer, with our built-in treasury management solution and cross portfolio margin tools, investors now have the ability to optimize their market exposure through a single, simplified portal with unprecedented stability, visibility, security and risk controls."

The Right Solution From Startup To Scale

As the shift toward digital asset transformation continues, more institutional investors are entering the market and experienced investors are looking to scale their strategies so they are well-positioned at the forefront of the future of finance. Yet, the status quo poses significant operational risks: the tools and relationships required to scale returns are fragmented, individual credit providers cannot easily assess risk, and multiple users in a fund accessing multiple platforms is disjointed and difficult to audit.

By combining complete crypto liquidity, visibility, and management in a single solution, FalconX 360 not only makes it easy to execute any type of trade across virtually every cryptocurrency liquidity venue on a single account, but it also allows investors to manage risk across their entire portfolio through FalconX's proven single-counterparty solution.

"FalconX 360 is extremely comprehensive, streamlining crypto management with unprecedented operational and capital efficiency," said Alessandro Balata, Portfolio Manager with Fasanara Capital. "The responsiveness of the team and the platform capabilities are impressive, allowing management of all our accounts in a simple and intuitive manner."

Comprehensive, Simple-To-Use Platform Is the Future of Crypto Investing

FalconX 360 supports institutional investors in various stages of investing from first trade to more sophisticated portfolio management including staking, derivatives, and prime services. Investors can take advantage of FalconX's entire suite of prime brokerage offerings with superior capital efficiency and a clear picture of their positions across every liquidity venue.

"Fragmentation across platforms and relationships makes it hard to get a big-picture view and can also introduce security concerns. There are plenty of platforms to trade, borrow or manage operations. FalconX integrates all of these into a user-friendly platform," said Josh Anderson, President, Geometric Management Ltd. "They've been a great partner, responsive and thoughtful about our business needs."

Key features of the platform include:

The ability to see and manage cross-portfolio margin to remain secure in your position and drive capital efficiency.

Access pricing from 70+ liquidity venues with built-in smart order routing, treasury management, risk management and operations.

Real-time tracking of balance/positions with built-in cross-platform reporting all in one place- a capability that would take months of technical integration to build DIY. FalconX 360 eliminates that burden, allowing institutions to focus on serving investors, rather than building a complex, bespoke system they now have to maintain.

FalconX's exclusive new Orderbook module allows investors to trade directly with FalconX, while simultaneously benefiting from the best prices across global liquidity venues. Unlike other platforms that only offer U.S. liquidity, Orderbook allows investors to tap into global exchanges to access a much deeper liquidity pool. FalconX's sophisticated treasury management allocates capital efficiently such that FalconX can reliably source liquidity at the best price.

Scalability to expand crypto activities from trading to lending to derivatives, with complete visibility across all activities and the ability to shift capital to meet margin requirements, all in one platform.

Access to FalconX's continued innovation, including analytics and insights based on historical trading to optimize future investment performance to maximize returns.

High-touch service and personalized solutions to help institutional investors build out their digital asset business.

"FalconX 360 is the foundation for the future of investing - the platform on which we'll build more value-added services to give investors the confidence and security to realize the full potential of truly global digital asset investing," said Raghu Yarlagadda, Founder and CEO of FalconX.

To learn more or get started with FalconX today, visit https://falconx.io .

About FalconX

FalconX is a fully comprehensive digital asset platform that allows institutions to access and manage all of their crypto strategies through a single interface and seamless workflows, making it easy to execute trading, prime services and clearing all in one place. FalconX's crypto-as-a-service offering powers leading banks, FinTech institutions and investment applications to easily add crypto to their product offerings with a goal of enabling the next billion users to enter the crypto space. The company is backed by investors including Accel, Adams Street Partners, Altimeter Capital, American Express Ventures, B Capital, GIC, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Sapphire Ventures, Thoma Bravo, Tiger Global Management and Wellington Management. FalconX has offices in Silicon Valley,?New York,?Chicago, Bengaluru and?Malta. For more information visit falconx.io ?or follow them on Twitter ?and LinkedIn .

Media Contact

Shannon Tucker

falconx@nextpr.com

813-526-1195

This material is for informational purposes only and is only intended for sophisticated or institutional investors. This material is not (i) an offer, or solicitation of an offer, to invest in, or to buy or sell, any interests or shares, or to participate in any investment or trading strategy, (ii) intended to provide accounting, legal, or tax advice, or investment recommendations, or (iii) an official statement of FalconX or any of its affiliates. Any information contained in this material is not and should not be regarded as investment research, debt research, or derivatives research for the purposes of the rules of the CFTC or any other relevant regulatory body.

Prior to entering into any proposed transaction, recipients should determine, in consultation with their own investment, legal, tax, regulatory and accounting advisors, the economic risks and merits, as well as the legal, tax, regulatory and accounting characteristics and consequences of the transaction. This material does not constitute investment advice. To the extent permitted by law, FalconX does not accept any liability arising from the use of this communication. This material may contain information regarding structured products which involve over the counter derivatives. Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, over the counter derivatives are only permitted to be traded by "eligible contract participants" ("ECP"s) as defined under Section 1a(18) of the CEA (7 U.S.C.  1a(18)). Do not invest in a structured product unless you are an ECP as relevant and fully understand and are willing to assume the risks associated with the product.

Solios, Inc. is registered as a federal money services business with FinCEN. FalconX Bravo, Inc. is provisionally registered with the U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a swap dealer. FalconX Limited is a registered Class 3 VFA service provider under the Virtual Financial Assets Act of 2018 with the Malta Financial Services Authority. FalconX Limited, FalconX Bravo, Inc., nor Solios, Inc. are registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission or the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

"FalconX" is a marketing name for FalconX Limited and its subsidiaries. For information about which legal entities offer trading products and services, if you are considering entering into a derivatives transaction, or would like more information, please reach out to your Sales or Trading representative.

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Constellation Brands' 2022 Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Impact Report highlights notable progress made in its key ESG focus areas: serving as good stewards of the environment; enhancing social equity within its industry and communities; and promoting responsible beverage alcohol consumption.



VICTOR, N.Y., Oct. 13, 2022- an evolution of the company's Corporate Social Responsibility reports - highlighting established commitments and targets to positively impact the planet and its people, and progress made toward achieving them.

To enable Constellation to better meet stakeholder expectations regarding information provided on these important topics, and to better reflect the company's ongoing efforts to address pressing environmental and societal needs that are important to its communities, consumers, and employees, this ESG Impact Report has been prepared with reference to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board alcoholic beverages standard. The report also considers the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures in developing and disclosing Constellation's approach to managing climate risk and opportunity and references the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals.

"While Constellation has a rich history demonstrating its commitment to doing well by doing good, we believe the social, economic, and environmental challenges of today's world require greater accountability, which is why we've bolstered our ESG commitments as a core tenet of our long-term business strategy," said Bill Newlands, Constellation Brands' President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are extremely proud of the progress we've made to help our communities and planet thrive, and we are excited to share it with our stakeholders. I sincerely thank our Constellation team members, as well as our non-profit, industry, and community partners, and broader stakeholders, for their continued support and collaboration. Together, we are striving to create a future that is truly Worth Reaching For."

Constellation's ESG ambitions are grounded in the following three focus areas:

Serving as good stewards of the environment - modeling water stewardship for the beverage alcohol industry; and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through energy conservation and renewable energy initiatives.

modeling water stewardship for the beverage alcohol industry; and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through energy conservation and renewable energy initiatives. Enhancing social equity within the industry and local communities - championing the professional development and advancement of women in the beverage alcohol industry and local communities; enhancing economic development and prosperity in disadvantaged communities; and championing an inclusive culture characterized by diversity in background and thought, which reflects the consumers and communities that the company serves.

championing the professional development and advancement of women in the beverage alcohol industry and local communities; enhancing economic development and prosperity in disadvantaged communities; and championing an inclusive culture characterized by diversity in background and thought, which reflects the consumers and communities that the company serves. Promoting responsible beverage alcohol consumption - ensuring the responsible promotion and marketing of the company's products.



This report details notable progress that Constellation has made in these focus areas, including:

Established and began implementing a three-year strategy and operating plans to restore approximately 1.1 billion gallons of water withdrawals from local watersheds, while improving accessibility and the quality of water for communities where the company operates between fiscal year 2023 and fiscal year 2025.

Established and began implementing a three-year strategy and operating plans to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions by 15% by fiscal year 2025 (from a fiscal year 2020 baseline).

Invested approximately $75 million in female-led or founded businesses through August 2022.

Helped more than 3,500 women receive services and training to help advance their careers in partnership with Dress for Success in calendar year 2021.

Committed to invest approximately $15 million in minority-owned businesses through August 2022.

Helped more than 4,700 Hispanic families strengthen their financial security through financial empowerment and housing counseling programs in calendar year 2021 through support of UnidosUS.

Increased female representation and overall ethnic diversity among Constellation's U.S. salaried employee population to 43% and 22%, respectively, in fiscal year 2022 progressing toward the established goals of 50% and 30%, respectively, by fiscal year 2026.

Supported the efforts of Responsibility.org to empower adults to make a lifetime of responsible alcohol choices as part of a balanced lifestyle and help eliminate drunk driving.

"As part of our commitment to environmental stewardship and our communities, we've embedded our ESG strategy into our beer, wine and spirits business operations across the globe and we've established ESG oversight at the highest levels of the organization," said Mike McGrew, Constellation Brands' Executive Vice President and Chief Communications, CSR, and Diversity Officer. "By establishing ESG as a strategic business operating imperative, we can better meet stakeholder expectations, reflect our values, and more directly help the communities that sustain our business to thrive in the process."

To read the full 2022 ESG Impact Report, click here. To watch a brief video highlighting Constellation's ESG strategy click here.



FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS



This news release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. The word "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. These statements may relate to our business and ESG strategies, future prospects, plans, events, performance, targets, goals, or objectives, future operations, future environmental, financial, or social metrics, or expected actions of third parties. All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements. No assurances can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur.

The forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and should not be construed in any manner as a guarantee that such results will in fact occur. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this news release and Constellation Brands does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

In addition to risks and uncertainties associated with ordinary business operations, the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are subject to the risk, uncertainty, and possible variance from our current expectations regarding: future global economic conditions; market conditions; regulatory conditions; unanticipated environmental liabilities and costs; changes to governmental rules and regulations; the actions of competitors; consumer expectations and preferences; and other factors and uncertainties disclosed from time-to-time in Constellation Brands' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 28, 2022, its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended August 31, 2022, and its Registration Statement on Form S-4, as amended from time to time, which could cause actual future performance to differ from current expectations.

ABOUT CONSTELLATION BRANDS

At Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ and STZ.B), our mission is to build brands that people love because we believe sharing a toast, unwinding after a day, celebrating milestones, and helping people connect, are Worth Reaching For. It's worth our dedication, hard work, and the bold calculated risks we take to deliver more for our consumers, trade partners, shareholders, and communities in which we live and work. It's what has made us one of the fastest-growing large CPG companies in the U.S. at retail, and it drives our pursuit to deliver what's next.

Today, we are a leading international producer and marketer of beer, wine, and spirits with operations in the U.S., Mexico, New Zealand, and Italy. Every day, people reach for our high-end, iconic imported beer brands such as Corona Extra, Corona Light, Corona Premier, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, and Pacifico, our fine wine and craft spirits brands, including The Prisoner Wine Company, Robert Mondavi Winery, Casa Noble Tequila, and High West Whiskey, and our premium wine brands such as Meiomi, and Kim Crawford.

But we won't stop here. Our visionary leadership team and passionate employees from barrel room to boardroom are reaching for the next level, to explore the boundaries of the beverage alcohol industry and beyond. Join us in discovering what's Worth Reaching For.

To learn more, visit www.cbrands.comand follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.



MEDIA CONTACTS INVESTOR RELATIONS CONTACTS Mike McGrew 773-251-4934 / michael.mcgrew@cbrands.com (mailto:michael.mcgrew@cbrands.com)

Amy Martin 585-678-7141 / amy.martin@cbrands.com (mailto:amy.martin@cbrands.com) Joseph Suarez 773-551-4397 / joseph.suarez@cbrands.com (mailto:joseph.suarez@cbrands.com)

David Paccapaniccia 585-282-7227 / david.paccapaniccia@cbrands.com (mailto:david.paccapaniccia@cbrands.com)



A downloadable PDF copy of this news release can be found here. http://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/8eb63e46-5dbe-40bb-8783-3ba8e7a6a870


MIDDLETOWN, CT / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / MediTelecare , the nation's leading provider of behavioral telehealth and tele-technology services to residents of post-acute and long-term care facilities, recruited employees and volunteers to join their fundraising efforts and participate in the Alzheimer's Association's Greater Hartford Walk to End Alzheimer's.

MediTelecare helps patients and families across the U.S. through its telehealth-based behavioral healthcare initiative in skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities, and independent living communities in 26 states. With a large population of resident patients fighting Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, MediTelecare supports the Alzheimer's Association's mission to lead the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support.

MediTelecare's Senior Vice President of Business Development & Customer Experience, Bernadette Greatorex, recently joined the Alzheimer's Association Connecticut Chapter Board of Advisors to further drive both organizations' efforts in the fight against Alzheimer's.

"Alzheimer's disease research and care is a cause that has always been extremely important to me, so it's gratifying to be able to help the Alzheimer's Association through my service on the board and MediTelecare's continued fundraising efforts," said Greatorex. "I know every dollar, no matter the amount, moves research closer to a cure for Alzheimer's every day."

"Bernadette Greatorex's involvement as a board member at the Connecticut Chapter has been invaluable," said Ginny Hanbridge, Executive Director, Connecticut Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. "Her ongoing leadership in gathering support for the Walk To End Alzheimer's in Eastern CT has made a tremendous difference, and she demonstrates her passion for our mission on a daily basis. We are very fortunate Bernadette is so committed to the Alzheimer's Association."

The use of telehealth resources helps MediTelecare support Alzheimer's patients and families by offering increased access to services, reduced personal expenses, increased analytics resulting in personalized patient care, and an accessible HIPAA-compliant cloud-based document repository.

The Connecticut Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association will host the Greater Hartford Walk to End Alzheimer's at Rentschler Field in East Hartford on Sunday, October 16. Registration is at 8:30 am. Learn more, sign up, or donate to the cause here .

About MediTelecare

MediTelecare, an industry leader in providing technology-enabled behavioral telehealth services to residents of skilled nursing and long-term care facilities, delivers technology devices, a digital hub, and APP software products and services. Including a suite of virtual tools used by its employed psychology and psychiatry providers together with facility staff for 247 virtual referral, scheduling, and clinical cloud interoperability. Proprietary digital clinical assessment and reporting analytics, MediReview, and MediReport, help staff identify and provide consistent care follow-up. MediTelecare services hundreds of facilities with over 30,000 residents, providing over 300,000 patient encounters.

About the Alzheimer's Association

The Alzheimer's Association is a worldwide voluntary health organization dedicated to Alzheimer's care, support, and research. Our mission is to lead the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia - by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's and all other dementia. Visit alz.org or call 800.272.3900.

Media Contact:

Anna Stevenson

York IE

anna@york.ie

SOURCE: MediTelecare

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Intelligent Trials Diversity Module Addresses Critical Need to Increase Study Access and Engagement

Medidata, a Dassault Systemes company, has launched the Intelligent Trials Diversity Module to help improve the equity of clinical trials by providing site-level participant demographic data including race, sex, age, and ethnicity. The new Intelligent Trials Diversity Module will help sponsors and clinical research organizations (CROs) benchmark the diversity of their trials and identify sites that are more successful at enrolling diverse patients. This insight will help bring diversity into the beginning of the feasibility process, all while accelerating trials.

Historically, clinical trials have been shown to recruit disproportionately white participants, which raises concerns about the generalizability of trial results to underrepresented patients. New Medidata research* shows that in the past decade 70% of sites did not enroll a single Black participant in Alzheimer's and lung cancer trials, two diseases that disproportionately affect Black Americans.

"Powering greater diversity is critical for our industry and a priority for Medidata. With this new offering, it is now possible to identify high-performing sites known to recruit diverse patients. This supports more representative outcomes, and promotes much needed equity within clinical research," said Fareed Melhem, senior vice president, Medidata AI. "By providing our standardized and analysis-ready demographic and operational data in a study's planning stages, sponsors and CROs can optimize planning and diversity performance from the start."

Medidata's Intelligent Trials brings together cross-industry real-time performance metrics, predictive models, and forecasting capabilities to provide a competitive edge in trial planning and execution. With the addition of the Diversity Module, sponsors and CROs can set goals by benchmarking diversity at the study level in the same indication. The new offering will also identify sites that are more successful at recruiting and enrolling diverse individuals based on industry data.

Medidata's research on clinical trial site diversity, based on a sample from more than 28,000 clinical trials across indications and more than 8.5 million patients, is available in the 2022 ASCO Quality Care Symposium abstract titled "How granularity of data matters in understanding and accelerating racial diversity in U.S. clinical trials," and in a newly released white paper, "The State of Black Participation in Clinical Trials." The white paper is the first of a series, with future reports to focus on additional measures of diversity beyond race, such as sex, age, and ethnicity.

Medidata's new Intelligent Trials offering supports the FDA draft guidance to industry, which makes a strong call to action for the enrollment of more participants from underrepresented racial and ethnic populations in the U.S. into clinical trials. Legislation like the Diverse and Equitable Participation in Clinical Trials (DEPICT) Act, which would mandate the inclusion of diverse populations, also shows the importance for the industry to address this critical issue.

*The sample included closed-enrollment, interventional, Phase I-III trials from 2010 to 2021 where race data was collected encompassing 972,773 patients and 4,003 global trials.

Medidata is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dassault Systemes, which with its 3DEXPERIENCE platform is positioned to lead the digital transformation of life sciences in the age of personalized medicine with the first end-to-end scientific and business platform, from research to commercialization.

About Medidata

Medidata is leading the digital transformation of life sciences, creating hope for millions of patients. Medidata helps generate the evidence and insights to help pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device and diagnostics companies, and academic researchers accelerate value, 2,000+ customers and partners access the world's most trusted platform for clinical development, commercial, and real-world data. Medidata, a Dassault Systemes company (Euronext Paris: FR0014003TT8, DSY.PA), is headquartered in New York City and has offices around the world to meet the needs of its customers. Discover more at www.medidata.com and follow us @Medidata.

About Dassault Systemes

Dassault Systemes, the 3DEXPERIENCE Company, is a catalyst for human progress. We provide business and people with collaborative 3D virtual environments to imagine sustainable innovations. By creating virtual twin experiences of the real world with our 3DEXPERIENCE platform and applications, our customers push the boundaries of innovation, learning and production to achieve a more sustainable world for patients, citizens, and consumers. Dassault Systemes brings value to more than 300,000 customers of all sizes, in all industries, in more than 140 countries. For more information, visit www.3ds.com

3DEXPERIENCE, the Compass icon, the 3DS logo, CATIA, BIOVIA, GEOVIA, SOLIDWORKS, 3DVIA, ENOVIA, NETVIBES, MEDIDATA, CENTRIC PLM, 3DEXCITE, SIMULIA, DELMIA, and IFWE are commercial trademarks or registered trademarks of Dassault Systemes, a French "societe europeenne" (Versailles Commercial Register B 322 306 440), or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005246/en/

Contacts:

Tom Paolella

Senior Director, Corporate Communications Affairs

+1-848-203-7596

thomas.paolella@3ds.com

Paul Oestreicher

External Communications Director

+1-917-522-4692

paul.oestreicher@3ds.com
San Francisco, California--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Dakshidin Corporation (OTC Pink: DKSC) has signed a distribution deal with one of the market's most exciting manufacturers of all-natural organic supplements.



STENERGY LLC offers a product named GluCora. Stenergy co-founder Sam Butero describes GluCora; "Health Canada has approved GluCora. As a result, we are bringing a product to the market that supports healthy glucose metabolism. In addition, we provide antioxidants for the maintenance of good health."



An essential bioactive constituent of GluCora is Banaba leaf extract, incorporated into a patented self-nano-emulsifying delivery system.



Sam Butero describes the benefits of GluCora as "our proprietary delivery system has much higher bioavailability; it quickly causes greater than 10% decrease in fasting blood glucose levels after just one week of supplementation without producing symptoms of hypoglycemia. Take two GluCora soft gel capsules before each meal, and GluCora helps the body not absorb the glucose in the food and store it as fat. This will greatly benefit many people who are discouraged from eating foods with a lot of carbohydrates, which will be used for energy or expelled. We want to market GluCora as a weight management product. The side effects for health-conscious people will be weight loss and increased energy. We aim to provide an affordable, natural product that will manage users' glucose levels and ultimately help them maintain an active and healthy lifestyle, regardless of what they eat."



Whitechapel CEO Christopher Haigh stated, "When we were introduced to Stenergy, we recognized the great synergy between Stenergy and DKSC. We look forward to a long and exciting relationship with Stenergy; we could not be more excited to work with Sam and his team to help bring GluCora to market. In addition, Haigh said, "Both Dakshidin and STENERGY LLC recognize the benefits of a closer working relationship and are exploring a Joint Venture." The companies will share relevant updates as they become available.



Stenergy Co-Founder Sam Butero said, "We have been looking for a marketing and distribution relationship that shares our philosophy and values in the health and wellness space and we found that partner in DKSC. We are pleased and excited to go down this road together."



About Dakshidin Corporation (DKSC)



DKSC has positioned itself as an innovator and industry leader in the quickly emerging Health and Wellness space with a focus on All natural and organic products.



About STENERGY LLC



Stenergy is a global health and wellness company focused on bringing natural products to market and distributing them globally. Stenergy's mission is to improve the health of the people and communities they serve, ensuring access to high-quality care and the latest technologies. For more information: www.stenergy-llc.com



Forward-looking statements

The information in this press release includes certain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Safe Harbor provisions of Federal Securities Laws. Investors are cautioned that such statements are based upon assumptions that in the future may prove not to have been accurate and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, including the Company's future financial performance. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in its forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations or any of its forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements that speak only as of the date of this release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events, or circumstances after this release except as required by law.



Contact:

Dakshidin Corporation

800 986 6418

dksc.corp@gmail.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140379
ICOMS FLOWMAKER, First Fully Implantable Electro-Physiological

Cardiac Assistance Device

Guillaume Buc, Chief Technical Officer

Sophie Jonquiere, Chief Procurement Supply Chain Officer

FineHeart S.A, a preclinical medical device company that has developed the ICOMS FLOWMAKER, a fully Implantable Cardiac Output Management System designed to address the unmet need of patients suffering from severe heart failure, today announced appointment of two experienced medical device experts to support the company's next clinical and industrial phases.

"We are very proud to welcome two internationally renowned executives who have both played a major role in the development and manufacturing of breakthrough implantable devices. Each of them has been captivated by the technological and clinical progress that the ICOMS FLOWMAKER represents. Their arrival gives us even more confidence as we head to the First-In-Human implantation our device, scheduled for 2023. I am also very pleased that Sophie Jonquiere has joined us thereby enhancing the feminization of our management committee, in line with our parity objectives. Furthermore, their arrival reinforces our ability to expand our industrial production capacities as we grow." declared Arnaud Mascarell, CEO co-founder of FineHeart

Guillaume Buc, Chief Technical Officer

Before joining FineHeart, Guillaume was Technical and R&D Director at Pixium Vision for more than 9 years. His expertise and passion were instrumental in the development of the PRIMA retinal implant, which is now in its commercialization phase. Prior to that, he held several strategic management positions at GE Healthcare in Europe for more than 25 years, before becoming Technical Director of the Interventional Cardiology Department. Guillaume holds an engineering degree from Ecole Polytechnique in applied mathematics, and from Ecole Nationale Superieure des Telecommunications de Paris in image processing and computer science.

"Few projects in healthcare have as many innovative features as the ICOMS FLOWMAKER. The scientific and technological breakthroughs achieved, based on the exceptional vision of FineHeart's founders, are colossal and unprecedented in the field of cardiac assist pumps. I am honored to lead the technical team of this company that is redefining the future of cardiology." said Guillaume Buc.

Sophie Jonquiere, Chief Procurement Supply Chain Officer

Sophie is a medical device manufacturing and supply chain specialist. For 15 years, she held various positions at Zimmer Biomet in the orthopedic implant activity, during the industrialization process, and then production management and distribution before heading up Manufacturing Operations for spinal implants and instruments for EMEA. She started her career as a Manufacturing Process Engineer at Hemodia. Sophie Jonquiere is an engineer, Materials Science and Engineering from INSA Lyon, and a graduate of IAE Bordeaux, Business Management.

"I am delighted to bring my know-how in medical device manufacturing processes to this extremely exciting and ambitious project. The ICOMS FLOWMAKER has everything it takes to change the lives of patients with severe heart failure, a disease impacting such a large number of people." said Sophie Jonquiere

About the ICOMS FLOWMAKER

The ICOMS FLOWMAKER is the first fully intraventricular, wireless flow accelerator that provides physiological support synchronized with the heart's natural contractions. It respects the natural blood flow and does not require aortic bypass surgery. It is the first miniaturized device barely 10 cm in size that is adjustable to patients' needs, like a pacemaker, to treat patients with varying degrees of severity. It has no external driveline as it is recharged via a wireless transcutaneous energy transfer system (TET). The device is implanted using a minimally invasive beating-heart procedure, commonly performed by cardiac surgeons, which, on average lasts 90 minutes.

About FineHeart

FineHeart is a medical device company that is developing its innovative ground-breaking product, ICOMS FLOWMAKER, with the potential to treat 200,000 patients with severe heart failure each year. First-In-Human trials are expected in 2023. FineHeart will initially target the 50,000 most severe patients who are eligible for cardiac assistance. Initial estimates value this market segment to be worth over US$5 billion.

Founded in 2010, FineHeart is based in Bordeaux employing close to 50 employees. It is led by a team of internationally renowned cardiac surgeons and electro-physiologists: Dr. Stephane Garrigue, PhD, CSO co-inventor of ICOMS FLOWMAKER; Dr. Philippe Ritter, MS, co-inventor of cardiac resynchronization (CRT); and Arnaud Mascarell, FineHeart's CEO. The company holds a portfolio of 72 patents in 18 families.

FineHeart is supported by a wide pool of public and private industrial and independent investors: Lauak Group, Doliam, Med-INNOV, FineHeart Founders' Holding representing domestic and international private investors, mainly from the cardiology sector, and the European investment fund Verve Ventures as well as historical shareholders Irdi, Aquiti, Galia, Broadview Ventures, and M Capital. FineHeart also benefits from the financial support of the European Union, Bpifrance, the New Aquitaine Region and the Centre Region.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005682/en/

Contacts:

Europe

Media Relations

Annie-Florence Loyer

afloyer@newcap.fr

+33 (6) 88 20 35

FineHeart Communications

James Palmer

j.palmer@orpheonfinance.com

+33 (0) 7 60 92 77 72


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed a modest increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended October 8th.



The Labor Department said initial jobless claims rose to 228,000, an increase of 9,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 219,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 225,000.



The slightly bigger than expected increase in jobless claims reflected a jump in claims in Florida in the wake of Hurricane Ian.



The report showed the less volatile four-week moving average also crept up to 211,500, an increase of 5,000 from the previous week's unrevised average of 206,500.



Continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment assistance, also ticked up by 3,000 to 1.368 million in the week ended October 1st.



The four-week moving average of continuing claims still dipped to 1,363,750, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised average of 1,371,750.



'While there have been some signs of a slight loosening in labor market conditions, the job market overall remains tight,' said Nancy Vanden Houten, Lead U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.



'Even as the economy slows, employers appear to be reluctant to lay off workers that they have struggled to hire and retain,' she added. 'We expect only a modest rise in unemployment and jobless claims as we head toward a mild recession in 2023.'



Last Friday, the Labor Department released its closely watched monthly jobs report, showing U.S. job growth slowed in the month of September but still came in slightly stronger than economists had anticipated.



The report showed non-farm payroll employment jumped by 263,000 jobs in September after surging by an unrevised 315,000 jobs in August and spiking by an upwardly revised 537,000 jobs in July. Economists had expected employment to leap by 250,000 jobs.



The Labor Department also said the unemployment rate dipped to 3.5 percent in September from 3.7 percent in August, while economists expected the unemployment rate to come in unchanged.



The unemployment rate matched its lowest level since just before Covid-19 lockdowns began to take effect in February of 2020, which was also matched in July. Unemployment has not been lower in over fifty years.



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Indian Muslim women wearing hijab walk past the vegetables market in Mumbai, India, Thursday. Petitions challenging the Karnataka hijab ban led to a split verdict in the Supreme Court of India. EPA-Yonhap



An Indian Supreme Court panel said on Thursday it was divided over a ban on hijabs in schools, and referred the matter to the chief justice, effectively leaving in place a state's ruling against the scarves worn by women that has sparked uproar.



Karnataka state's ban on the garment in schools in February triggered protests by Muslim students and their parents.



In response, Hindu students staged counter protests, adding to religious tensions at a time when some Muslims have complained of marginalization under a Hindu nationalist government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.



India's debate on the hijab comes as protests have rocked Iran after women objected to dress codes under its Islamic laws.



"We have a divergence of opinion," said Supreme Court Justice Hemant Gupta, one of two judges on the panel.



Gupta said he had wanted an appeal against the ban to be quashed while his colleague on the panel, Sudhanshu Dhulia, said wearing the hijab was a "matter of choice."



The chief justice would set up a larger bench to further consider the case, they said, but did not say by when that could happen. Supreme Court decisions apply nationwide.



Anas Tanwir, a lawyer for one of the Muslim petitioners who appealed against the Karnataka ban, told Reuters the split verdict was a "semi-victory" for them.



"Hopefully, the chief justice will set up the larger bench soon and we will have a definitive verdict," he said by telephone.



Muslims are the biggest minority group in India, accounting for 13 percent of the population of 1.4 billion, the majority of whom are Hindu.



The lack of a verdict disappointed some Muslim students in the town of Udipi, where protests first erupted.



"I have decided to stop going to college and will complete the rest of my education by correspondence," Ayesha Imthiaz, a 20-year-old student who is in the second year of a three-year degree told Reuters by phone.



Imthiaz was not one of the petitioners in the case, but said she had been following the case closely.



At least five of her Muslim friends had stopped attending college after the hijab ban was implemented, she said.



"I am not hopeful that the ban will ever be over-turned," Imthiaz said.



Critics of the ban say it is another way of marginalizing the Muslim community, adding that Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which rules Karnataka, could benefit from the controversy ahead of a state election due by May next year.



The BJP, which draws its support mainly from Hindus, says the ban has no political motive. (Reuters)


With the golden quarter around the corner, ecommerce organisations now prioritise web scraping when making decisions.

VILNIUS, LITHUANIA / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Over 82% of ecommerce organisations are now using web scraping to gather external data to help guide their decision-making, overtaking internal data collection (81%), which stands as the number one method in nearly every other sector. This is one of the key findings from the new Oxylabs white paper, Alternative Data Defines Competition in the US & UK Ecommerce Sectors , which demonstrates how web scraping is shaping the industry.

In cooperation with Censuswide, Oxylabs surveyed 500 UK-based and 501 US-based senior data decision-makers from UK and US ecommerce companies, gathering insights on attitudes towards data collection in the sector.

Not only has web scraping entrenched itself as the primary vehicle for decision-making, it has also become the most popular way to collect data in the ecommerce industry. When asked what methods the respondents use to acquire data, 75% of ecommerce organisations selected web scraping while 74% are using the runner-up, internal data collection. Other methods, such as the procurement of data from third-party aggregators, fall further behind at 65% for traditional, and 59% for alternative data. Such a trend isn't surprising as having control of the entire pipeline allows for greater flexibility and adaptability to business goals.

When asked which type of data do respondents use to make business decisions, third-party aggregators came in third behind web scraping and internal data, with only 66% viewing it as the most important source of data-driven decision-making. Such a trend might be caused by ecommerce companies and retailers mostly dealing with regular consumers. Third-party aggregators are often oriented towards B2B data, making their offerings more useful to internal decision-making rather than direct revenue generation.

Gediminas Rickevicius, VP of Global Partnerships at Oxylabs, said: "Web scraping overtaking internal data collection in any industry is a milestone moment. External data collection is an area where businesses across many sectors will compete fiercely with one another in the future, with ecommerce an important trendsetter in this respect. As external data offers exciting, unique, and profitable insights, getting to them first should be a priority for every business, whether involved in ecommerce or not. The reliance on data is clearly important, therefore it is no surprise that the budgets are also expected to increase over the coming year."

As the data access needs increased (cited by 85%, with 30% citing significant increases), so did the budgets for data departments (cited by 73%, with 27% citing significant increases). Additionally, 70% of respondents expect to continue expanding their data department budgets in the coming 12 months.

Rickevicius continued: "Ecommerce isn't the only industry heading towards significantly increasing the procurement of external data. These trends are visible throughout all industries, showing that external data, especially its advanced forms, has become an essential part of daily operations. Today's business optimisation is achieved through careful data-driven decision making, showing the immense importance of departments that support such processes."

"In ecommerce, where margins are thin and the competition is fierce, companies will take absolutely any advantage they can get. Web scraping has now proven itself as the way to do so. Through external data, businesses can monitor the competition, adapt to changing environments, and even predict consumer behaviour, all of which bring it closer to optimal performance," concluded Rickevicius.

To download your copy of the Oxylabs' Alternative Data Defines Competition in the UK & US Ecommerce sectors white paper, please visit HERE .

About Oxylabs

Established in 2015, Oxylabs is a premium proxy and public web data acquisition solution provider, enabling companies of all sizes to utilize the power of big data. Constant innovation, a large patent portfolio, and a focus on ethics have allowed Oxylabs to become a global leader in the data acquisition industry and forge close ties with dozens of Fortune Global 500 companies. In 2022, Oxylabs was named the fastest-growing public data gathering solutions company in Europe in the Financial Times' FT 1000 list.

Media Contact:

Vytautas Kirjazovas

Email: press@oxylabs.io

Website: www.oxylabs.io

SOURCE: Oxylabs

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720308/Web-Scraping-Overtakes-Internal-Data-Collection-to-Become-the-Primary-Vehicle-for-Decision-Making-Says-Oxylabs
NOIDA, India, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new report published by UnivDatos Markets Insights, thePrecision Farming Market was valued at more than USD 8 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 11% from 2022-2028. The analysis has been segmented into Offering (Hardware, Software, and Services); Technology (Guidance, Remote Sensing, and Variable Rate Application); Application (Yield Monitoring, Weather Tracking, Field Mapping, Crop Scouting, and Others); Region/Country.





Click here to view the Report Description & TOC

https://univdatos.com/report/precision-farming-market/

The Precision Farming market report has been aggregated by collecting informative data on various dynamics such as market drivers, restraints, and opportunities. This innovative report makes use of several analyses to get a closer outlook on the Precision Farming market. The Precision Farming market report offers a detailed analysis of the latest industry developments and trending factors in the market that are influencing the market growth. Furthermore, this statistical market research repository examines and estimates the Precision Farming market at the global and regional levels.

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Market Overview

The precision farming market demand is increasing at a significant rate over the years and is expected to witness influential growth during the forecasted period as well. Factors that are positively accentuating its market size include the need to mitigate greenhouse gases to minimize climate change, rapid adoption of advanced technologies in precision farming to reduce labor costs and increasing implementation of smart devices in agriculture.

Click here to view the Report Description & TOC

https://univdatos.com/report/precision-farming-market/

The global Precision Farming market report is studied thoroughly with several aspects that would help stakeholders in making their decisions more curated.

Based on the technology, the market is classified into guidance, remote sensing, and variable rate application. Among these, the variable rate application segment is anticipated to witness a substantial growth rate during the forecast period. The market growth is due to the early adoption of this technology by farmers. Variable rate application includes variable rate pesticides, variable rate fertilizers, and variable rate crops. The application of variable rate application in precision agriculture focuses not only on fertilizer application but also on many other areas.

Based on the application, the market is bifurcated into yield monitoring, weather tracking, field mapping, crop scouting, and others. Among these, the yield monitoring segment held a commendable share of the global precision farming market in 2020 and is expected to witness robust growth during the forecast period. Growth in this segment can be attributed to the benefits of climate change mitigation initiatives that enable farmers to effectively manage climate-related disasters and improve food security and agricultural decision-making. Yield monitoring includes off-farm field monitoring and on-farm yield monitoring.

Have a Look at the Chapters - https://univdatos.com/report/precision-farming-market/

Precision Farming Market Geographical Segmentation Includes:

North America ( United States , Canada , and Rest of North America )

( , , and Rest of ) Europe ( Germany , United Kingdom , Spain , France , and the Rest of Europe )

( , , , , and the Rest of ) Asia-Pacific ( China , Japan , India , South Korea , and the Rest of Asia-Pacific )

( , , , , and the Rest of ) Rest of the World

North America is expected to grow at a strong CAGR. The progress of modernization of agribusiness in the region is a major factor behind the growth of the regional precision farming market. Population growth is putting pressure on the agricultural industry to increase productivity thus increasing the adoption of advanced technology like precision farming.

The major players targeting the market include

Deere & Company

Trimble Inc.

AGCO Corporation

AgJunction Inc.

Raven Industries Inc.

Teejet Technologies

AG Leader Technology

AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc.

Granular Inc.

CropX Inc.

Competitive Landscape

The degree of competition among prominent global companies has been elaborated by analyzing several leading key players operating worldwide. The specialist team of research analysts sheds light on various traits such as global market competition, market share, most recent industry advancements, innovative product launches, partnerships, mergers, or acquisitions by leading companies in the Precision Farming market. The major players have been analyzed by using research methodologies for getting insight views on global competition.

Key questions resolved through this analytical market research report include:

What are the latest trends, new patterns, and technological advancements in the Precision Farming market?

Which factors are influencing the Precision Farming market over the forecast period?

What are the global challenges, threats, and risks in the Precision Farming market?

Which factors are propelling and restraining the Precision Farming market?

What are the demanding global regions of the Precision Farming market?

What will be the global market size in the upcoming years?

What are the crucial market acquisition strategies and policies applied by global companies?

We understand the requirement of different businesses, regions, and countries, we offer customized reports as per your requirements of business nature and geography. Please let us know If you have any custom needs.

Browse Other Related Research Reports from UnivDatos Market Insights

Precision Agriculture Market

Drip Irrigation Market

Precision Medicine Market

Agrivoltaic Market

Smart Plantation Management Systems Market

Precision Farming Market Report Coverage

Report Attribute Details Base year 2020 Forecast period 2021-2027 Growth momentum Accelerate at a CAGR of over 11% Market size 2020 USD 8 billion Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, Rest of World Major contributing region North America to Dominate the Global Precision Farming Market Key countries covered United States, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, France, China, Japan, India, and South Korea Companies profiled Deere & Company, Trimble Inc., AGCO Corporation, AgJunction Inc., Raven Industries Inc., Teejet Technologies, AG Leader Technology, AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc., Granular Inc., CropX Inc. Report Scope Market Trends, Drivers, and Restraints; Revenue Estimation and Forecast; Segmentation Analysis; Impact of COVID-19; Demand and Supply Side Analysis;Legal & Regulatory Framework; Competitive Landscape; Company Profiling Segments Covered By Offering; By Technology; By Application; By Region/Country

About UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI)

UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI) is a passionate market research firm and a subsidiary of Universal Data Solutions. We believe in delivering insights through Market Intelligence Reports, Customized Business Research, and Primary Research. Our research studies are spread across topics across the world, we cover markets in over 100 countries using smart research techniques and agile methodologies. We offer in-depth studies, detailed analysis, and customized reports that help shape winning business strategies for our clients.

Contact

UnivDatos Market Insights

Ankita Gupta

Director Operations

Ph: +91-7838604911

Email: Ankita.gupta@univdatos.com

Website: https://univdatos.com/

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TAIPEI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The 13th GCA & Connection+, organized by the Taiwan Ministry of Culture, was successfully concluded in the No. 5 Warehouse at the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. The theme of the 13th GCA is "Move on! The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics." The five-day event featured a comic exhibit, conferences, and networking for business exchanges, attracting 2,812 attendees and comic industry professionals to gather and celebrate the biggest comic event of the year. The comic exhibit showcased Taiwanese comics, while the conferences and networking presented an opportunity for copyright licensors to connect with potential buyers through matchmaking and topic discussions.





During the opening press conference, Deputy Minister Lee Ching-hwi from the Ministry of Culture stated that the Golden Comic Awards is a national award for Taiwan's comic industry that aims to encourage outstanding and dedicated comic artists/ editors. The Ministry of Culture hopes to support the comic industry through the Golden Comic Awards and inspire new ideas for the industry's future. As such, the Golden Comic Awards, since its 8th iteration, has organized special exhibits, networking, and cross-domain conferences in the hopes of striving forward and galvanizing the force of the industry in this annual gathering of comic artists. Deputy Minister Lee also shared that the theme this year: The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics, expresses the loneliness, confusion, and self-doubt experienced by comic artists throughout their creative journeys. The GCA hopes to rally the people of Taiwan and spotlight related events to show their support for comic artists and the industry through their actions and passion.

The Ministry of Culture also stated that the exhibition and business exchanges were held online last year due to the pandemic. This year, the GCA events returned offline and featured distinguished guests such as Culture Weaver from Japan, Nazca Edition from France, Tokyopop from Germany, and Hablar en Arte from Spain. The exhibit this year is titled "Move on! The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics" and showcased Taiwanese comics nominated for this year's GCA, mid-length and long-form comics, classics, internationally recognized comics, translated comics, and comics with music derivatives to introduce the public to the diversity of Taiwanese comics. For more information about GCA events, please visit our official website: http://gca.moc.gov.tw.

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DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Centurion Invest is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Muhsin Bayrak, Billionaire Real Estate Tycoon, a well-known philanthropist and, through his corporate holding and Investment Group, will soon operate the #1 crypto exchange in the region. AB Group holding Turkey has collaborated with Centurion & Co Dubai that is backed by a UAE family office to empower AB stocks Exchange in a multimillion-dollar deal.





Centurion has acquired majority stake in ABStocks a Regulated Turkish Exchange who is part of the AB Group Holding. This partnership will provide a 40M$ new innovation fund, for a technology based project in bodrum region to expand Centurion Invest to this region which is experiencing an increase adoption and interest in cryptocurrency. Centurion will offer the Turkish community exclusive tailored products through its Liquidity pools plans, CIX Crypto Visa Card and staking programs, as well as partner and referral offers.

The Rebranded Exchange will be empowered by an investment of 40M$ over the coming 3 years with new management and a clear cut new vision, counting the increase pairs trading to reach approximately 300.

AB stocks will become ABC exchange, A Centurion Company. The collaborative partnership will introduce new projects and opportunities with Centurion's prestigious partner: ABG Token. ABG Token is set to become a Real Estate Development and investment token to empower innovative, smart lifestyle, green, wellness projects in EMEA, including the exclusivity to invest in the ABGMeta the first Turkish Metaverse.

$CIX, Centurion Invest's native token and powers the ecosystem of this acquisition that will extend its utility to real estate and 84 Million new users. In fact, $CIX holders will get incremental benefits when buying real estate in any of AB Group Projects, such as, but not limited to discounts up to 10%. Furthermore, $CIX will strengthen the positioning of ABG token and our partner's Real Estate Group developments as an exclusive payment utility token, with multiple use cases across, rent, facility management, investment, and more.

A press conference will be held at one of the most prestigious AB Group lifestyle in BODRUM, Turkey on October 8, 2022 to announce to the international press, local Media and Leaders the promising roadmap of this exciting partnership.

A number of selective exclusive guest will take part in the event on October 8, in the city of Bodrum where the three will be major announcements.

The Group will host a Luxurious Launch Event to present to Turkish and Global Media the future partnership plans and vision, including:

The live launch of ABG Token, on Centurioninvest.com Exchange, making ABG Token accessible to trade to everyone around the world

The official announcement of ABC Exchange going live.

The Launch of CIX Crypto Visa card powered by CIX

CONTACT: contact@centurioninvest.com, +33 1 76 43 03 65

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/centurion-invest-secures-major-stake-deal-in-partnership-with-muhsin-bayrak-chairman-of-ab-group-holding-301648677.html
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The global single-use assemblies market size is expected to reach USD 39.96 billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 18.57% during the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Life science companies are eager to avoid the cost and time of cleaning needed with stainless steel. The augmented expansion of the international biotech industries has offered a growth environment, in which novel, disposable technologies are becoming more significant. As pharmaceutical companies, distributors, CDMOs, and manufacturers converge around the benefits of single-use assemblies, the industry will grow at a faster pace during the forecast period. From therapies for rare diseases to cancer research, the impact of single-use technology in accelerating cutting-edge research into these conditions is set to grow, thereby propelling industry growth.





Key Industry Insights & Findings from the report:

The filtration assemblies segment led the industry in 2021. Increased regulatory prospects and the need to diminish the risk of contamination have promoted the use of filtration assemblies for bulk and final fill operations.

The bag assemblies segment is expected to grow at a lucrative CAGR over the forecast period. Advantages, such as no need for validation or cleaning, lower shipping cost due to less weight, and low maintenance cost & capital investment drive the segment growth.

The filtration application segment held a larger revenue share in 2021. Implementation of single-use assemblies for filtration is rapidly increasing owing to benefits as it is time- & cost-effective and ready to use, unlike the conventional filtration systems.

The customized solutions segment captured the highest revenue share in 2021. Several companies offer customized solutions to fast-track pharmaceutical manufacturing and drug development.

The pharmaceutical & biotechnological companies end-user segment led the global industry in 2021. The growth of the current manufacturing facilities for biopharmaceuticals drives the demand for single-use assemblies.

The CROs & CMOs segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR over the forecast period. In recent years, CMOs have been integrating single-use technology into most or all their bioprocess.

The quick turnaround time and flexibility between process runs and various client projects allowed by single-use equipment can enhance the CMO efficiency, which aids in the reduction of the overall costs.

Read 150 page market research report, "Single-use Assemblies Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Bag Assemblies, Filtration Assemblies), By Application (Filtration, Storage), By Solution (Customized, Standard), And Segment Forecasts, 2022 - 2030", published by Grand View Research.

Single-use Assemblies Market Growth & Trends

In addition, the growing biologics market will further offer lucrative opportunities during the study period. Eradicating the risk of contamination is the major challenge faced by biopharmaceutical manufacturers, which currently involves high-level monitoring of critical manufacturing solutions. Single-use assemblies support manufacturers in overcoming this difficulty by eliminating or reducing the necessity for sterilization between the batches, thereby filtering the operational capability. SUTs are considered one of the important areas of growth among biomanufacturing companies, as several biopharmaceutical companies are venturing into disposable assembly offerings for the production of all sorts of biopharmaceuticals.

Moreover, SUTs are now being heavily adopted for the clinical manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals and have become more conventional within commercial manufacturing facilities. SUTs permit biologics manufacturers to reduce the facilities' footprint by almost 20% due to the need for utilities, which generate steam, water, and clean-in-place solutions. Furthermore, as per the research by BioProcess International, the engineers estimated that the capital expenditure for the single-use facility is 25-45% less than for a facility established on stainless-steel equipment. Similarly, they also estimated that single-use facilities need half the energy and water during operations and can be built in 18 months. Whereas the stainless-steel facility takes three years. Owing to such advantages, the adoption of single-use assemblies is increasing, thereby driving industry growth.

In recent years, CMOs have been integrating single-use assemblies into most or all their bioprocess. CMOs broadly use single-use assemblies for quicker processing and process changeover time. The quick turnaround time and flexibility between process runs and various client projects allowed by single-use assemblies can enhance the CMO efficiency, which, in turn, aids in the reduction of the overall costs. In addition, the growing number of CMO facilities are essentially fully single-use. CMOs adoption of single-use technology can save on campaign and facility costs, which helps reduce the operating costs and capital investments. Furthermore, single-use assemblies in CMOs decrease the complexity and reduces lead times in upstream processes.

They also enhance the quality of products by preventing cross-contamination in downstream processes, especially for processes handling potent or toxic materials, such as antibody-drug conjugates and viral vectors. Moreover, stringent regulatory requirements in the manufacturing systems also endorse the adoption of single-use assemblies in CMOs.COVID-19 has augmented an already rapidly rising demand for single-use assemblies as the SUTs allow for the speedy production and development of therapies and vaccines and improve accuracy and time. For instance, Aramus single-use bag assembly developed by Entegris, Inc. was used for the storage of COVID-19 vaccines as the vaccines need extremely low temperatures to preserve. With low leachable and extractable and an extensive operating-temperature variety, the patented single-use bags were ideal for cold chain storage and collection.

In addition, key manufacturers are also accelerating investment projects or increasing their capital expenditures. For instance, Pall Corp., invested USD 114 million to upsurge its single-use output. These investments comprise additional manufacturing capacity at 6 current manufacturing facilities in the United States and Europe. Moreover, MilliporeSigma, Thermo Fisher, and Cytiva have also augmented growth plans to support the industry's backlog. For instance, in March 2021 Merck announced the addition of a single-use assembly production unit at its Life Science Center in Molsheim, France. The investment of USD 26.25 million will accelerate the European expansion plans of the company for single-use products critical to manufacturing vaccines and lifesaving therapies. On the other hand, regulatory concerns due to leachable and extractable might hamper the growth of disposable assemblies in the forecast period.

Leachable and extractable are set of undesired impurities in the product stream, these are compounds that can move into the product from manufacturing systems, packaging containers, or other product-contact systems. Extractable is extracted from the contact materials under extreme conditions, such as treatment with a harsh solvent or elevated temperature conditions. Leachable compounds, on the other hand, are those that are leached into the final product from contact materials during normal or real-time storage conditions. North America dominated the global industry in 2021 due to the growth in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, advancement in SUT products, and increasing incidence of diseases, such as cancer coupled with increasing investments and funding in drug discovery research. Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a considerable CAGR over the forecast years owing to the strategic activities by key players coupled with funding by the government for biopharmaceutical R&D.

Single-use Assemblies Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global single-use assemblies market based on product, application, solution, end-user, and region:

Single-use Assemblies Market - Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Bag Assemblies

2D bag assemblies



3D bag assemblies

Filtration Assemblies

Bottle Assemblies

Tubing Assemblies

Other Products

Single-use Assemblies Market - Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Filtration

Cell Culture & Mixing

Storage

Sampling

Fill-finish Applications

Other Applications

Single-use Assemblies Market - Solution Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Customized Solutions

Standard Solutions

Single-use Assemblies Market - End-user Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Biopharmaceutical & Pharmaceutical Companies

CROs & CMOs

Academic & Research Institutes

Single-use Assemblies Market - Regional Scope Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

North America

U.S.



Canada

Europe

U.K.



Germany



France



Italy



Spain

Asia Pacific

Japan



China



India



South Korea



Australia

Latin America

Brazil



Mexico



Argentina

Middle East & Africa

& South Africa



Saudi Arabia



UAE

List of Key Players of the Single-use Assemblies Market

Thermo Fisher Scientific

Sartorius AG

Danaher Corp.

Merck KGaA

Avantor

Lonza

Saint-Gobain

Corning Inc.

Entegris

KUHNER AG

Check out more related studies published by Grand View Research:

Single-use Filtration Assemblies Market - The global single-use filtration assemblies market size is expected to reach USD 7.0 billion by 2026 and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 11.2%, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is significantly driven by the expansion of the biotherapeutics industry and budget constraints faced by small to medium-sized end users. At present, single-use technology has become a cost-saving strategy for contract manufacturers, thus most of the CMOs are inclined toward the use of disposable filter cartridges and tubing systems.

- The global single-use filtration assemblies market size is expected to reach by 2026 and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 11.2%, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is significantly driven by the expansion of the biotherapeutics industry and budget constraints faced by small to medium-sized end users. At present, single-use technology has become a cost-saving strategy for contract manufacturers, thus most of the CMOs are inclined toward the use of disposable filter cartridges and tubing systems. Single-use Bioprocessing Market - The global single-use bioprocessing market size is expected to reach USD 51.9 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 16.0% from 2021 to 2028. The adoption rate and demand for single-use equipment have significantly increased in the past few years. This is due to the commercial advantages including cost and time-saving advantages associated with it, thereby driving the market.

- The global single-use bioprocessing market size is expected to reach by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 16.0% from 2021 to 2028. The adoption rate and demand for single-use equipment have significantly increased in the past few years. This is due to the commercial advantages including cost and time-saving advantages associated with it, thereby driving the market. Single-use Bioreactors Market - The global single-use bioreactors market size is expected to reach USD 7.76 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It is expected to expand at a CAGR of 17.0% from 2021 to 2028. An increase in the demand for disposable bioreactors, coupled with the rapidly growing biopharmaceutical product demand, is leading to significant investments in this space. The outbreak of COVID-19 has created significant demand for single-use bioreactors as there is high demand for large-scale vaccine production across the globe.

Browse through Grand View Research's Biotechnology Industry Research Reports.

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, U.S.-based market research and consulting company, provides syndicated as well as customized research reports and consulting services. Registered in California and headquartered in San Francisco, the company comprises over 425 analysts and consultants, adding more than 1200 market research reports to its vast database each year. These reports offer in-depth analysis on 46 industries across 25 major countries worldwide. With the help of an interactive market intelligence platform, Grand View Research Helps Fortune 500 companies and renowned academic institutes understand the global and regional business environment and gauge the opportunities that lie ahead.

Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, US

Grand View Research, Inc.

Phone: 1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519

Email: sales@grandviewresearch.com

Web: https://www.grandviewresearch.com

Grand View Compass | Astra ESG Solutions

Follow Us: LinkedIn | Twitter

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/661327/Grand_View_Research_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/single-use-assemblies-market-worth-39-96-billion-by-2030-grand-view-research-inc-301648402.html
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc. (CSE: VEGI) (OTCQB: VGGIF) (FSE: 77I) ("Boosh" or the "Company") a premier plant-based brand in the "better for you" food sector, filed its unaudited interim financial statements for the first quarter ended June 30, 2022 ("Q1 2023") on October 6, 2022. All amounts expressed are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

The Company reported sales of $1,449,387 and gross profit of $136,114 for the three months ended June 30, 2022 versus sales of $33,104 and gross profit of $10,109 for the three months ended June 30, 2021. The significant increase in sales and gross profit is attributable to contribution from Beanfields which the Company acquired on February 16, 2022.

Beanfields is a healthy, gluten-free, non-GMO, vegan, top eight allergen-free flavored bean-based chip. Beanfields' products include a broad offering of nine flavors, including Black Bean, Sour Cream and Onion, Fiery Hot and Nacho flavors capitalizing on the industry trends of 'better for you' in the salty snack category and have quickly gained popularity in stores in the U.S. and Canada.

Beanfields was founded in 2010 as a family run business based in California and was sold to new owners in 2016 who expanded the brand into $12M USD annual sales with 7,000 retailers across North America. Through this process their strategy was to focus on sales however their expenses ran high and by 2021 their sales had fallen to $8M annually from lack of operating capital. Since acquiring the company in February, Boosh has focused on maintaining current customer base, reducing overhead and increasing margins through optimization and scaling Beanfields operations for future growth.

Key initiatives include:

The sourcing of a secondary packaging supplier to improve the Company's supply chain and avoid shipping delays. The Company estimates this could result in costs savings of approximately 30% in packaging costs.

Optimization of SKUS to reduce production costs and focus resources on the Company's most profitable products.

Prioritizing key retailers like Whole Foods, Sprouts and Loblaws, which represent approximately 50% of Beanfields' sales. Remaining inventory gets allocated out through UNFI and KeHE, national distributors for the company.

Changing processes for direct-to-consumer sales which have historically generated zero profit on approximately USD$1M in sales.

Reduced number of spice ingredient suppliers from 5 to 2 for simplicity in production and approximately 7% cost savings on processes.

Modifying Ring production process to eliminate a major step in the manufacturing process and achieve approximately 25% cost savings.

Implement a simplified logistics plan with fewer freight forwarders providing improved relationships and projected cost savings with an estimated 10% savings.

Set up new distributor in NYC to service 4,000 independent retailers and food service to increase sales of the 1.5 oz size of chips which generate higher margins.

Reduced overhead by $45,000 a month by consolidating the Company's headquarters in Canada.

The current demand for Beanfields products from retailers across North America exceeds our current supply as we receive purchase orders for approximately $800,000 USD wholesale monthly, but we are working hard to eliminate this gap through pursuing a capital raise in order to ramp up production to meet demand.

Connie Marples

Founder/President

connie@booshfood.com

Telephone: 778 840 1700

www.Booshfood.com

About Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc.:



Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Boosh Food (www.booshfood.com) offers high quality, non-GMO, gluten free, 100% plant-based nutritional comfort foods for the whole family. Through a separate subsidiary, Beautiful Beanfields, (www.beanfields.com) the Company owns Beanfields, a plant-based chip brand sold in over 7,000 stores throughout North America. Boosh, good for you and good for planet earth.

The information in this news release includes certain information and statements about management's view of future events, expectations, plans and prospects that constitute forward looking statements. These statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, the actual results, expectations, achievements or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, the Company's expectations concerning the size of the Financing, its ability to close the Financing in whole or in part or at all and its plan for the proceeds of the Financing. Any number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements as well as future results. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward looking statements will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward looking statements or otherwise.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140416


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - NASA will make another attempt to launch the giant Moon rocket carrying Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission on November 14.



A 69-minute launch window will open at 12:07 a.m. ET.



Inspections and analyses over the previous week have confirmed that minimal work is required to prepare the rocket and spacecraft to roll out to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA said in a press release.



Teams will perform standard maintenance to repair minor damage to the foam and cork on the thermal protection system and recharge or replace batteries on the rocket, several secondary payloads, and the flight termination system.



The rocket was rolled back following Hurricane Ian earlier this month. The U.S. space agency said it plans to roll the rocket back to the launch pad as early as November 4.



NASA has requested back-up launch opportunities for November 16, at 1:04 a.m. and November 19, at 1:45 a.m., which are both two-hour launch windows.



If the launch on November 14 turns out to be successful, it would result in a mission duration of about 25-and-a-half days with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on December 9.



Two previous attempts to launch the 322-foot-tall stack, consisting of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, from Kennedy Space Center in Florida failed due to technical glitches.



The historic maiden test flight, originally scheduled for August 29, was abandoned after encountering an issue with one of the four RS-25 engines on the bottom of the rocket's core stage.



The second launch attempt on September 3 failed when engineers could not overcome a hydrogen leak in a quick disconnect, an interface between the liquid hydrogen fuel feed line and the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.



The third launch attempt, which was scheduled for September 27, was cancelled following adverse weather conditions due to Hurricane Ian.



The Artemis I test flight with no crew on board is aimed at laying the foundation for a sustained long-term human presence on and around the Moon.



Artemis 2 and 3 missions aim to send astronauts back to the lunar surface for the first time after half a century.



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DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Trintech, a leading global provider of cloud-based financial close solutions for the Office of Finance, today announced that it has been named one of Tech Titans' 20 fastest growing tech companies in 2022. Each year, Tech Titans recognizes a diverse group of technology organizations and leaders who are at the helm of the industry's innovation, transformation, and growth. This year's program honors the fastest growing technology companies based on three-year revenue growth from 2019 - 2021.

"It's an honor to be recognized once again by Tech Titans and to be named one of the top 20 fastest growing companies in Texas alongside so many innovative companies," said Teresa Mackintosh, CEO of Trintech. "This recognition is a testament to the hard work and unwavering commitment of the Trintech team in providing our clients with the highest level of support. Our growth over the past 3 years is a strong indicator of the market's recognition of Trintech as a leading financial close solution provider, and we anticipate continued momentum as we maintain the rapid pace of innovation across our portfolio of solutions."

Trintech is committed to providing world-class, innovative solutions that deliver increased efficiency, real-time visibility, collaboration and control to mid-market and enterprise organizations around the world. For over 35 years, Trintech has driven innovation and automation throughout the financial close process with solutions that empower finance and accounting teams with purpose-built technology. Trintech's solutions enable those teams to go beyond balancing the workload and eliminating manual work from the reconciliation and close process, to analyzing the data and applying human capital and intelligence to higher value tasks such as problem solving and evolving the business with time that is saved.

Trintech's excellence in both innovation and client support have been recognized with a variety of awards over the years including most recently "Easiest to Do Business With" and "Fastest Implementation" in G2's Fall 2022 Report.

###

About Trintech

Trintech Inc., a pioneer of financial corporate performance management software, combines technical and financial expertise to create innovative, cloud-based software solutions that deliver world-class financial operations and insights. From high volume transaction matching and streamlining daily operational reconciliations, to automating and managing balance sheet reconciliations, intercompany accounting, journal entries, disclosure reporting and bank fee analysis, to governance, risk and compliance - Trintech's portfolio of financial solutions, including Cadency Platform, Adra Suite, and targeted tools, ReconNET, T-Recs, and UPCS, help manage all aspects of the financial close process. Over 3,500 clients worldwide - including the majority of the Fortune 100 - rely on the company's cloud-based software to continuously improve the efficiency, reliability, and strategic insights of their financial operations.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Trintech has offices located across the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the Nordic countries, as well as strategic partners in South Africa, Latin America, and the Asia Pacific. To learn more about Trintech, visit www.trintech.com or connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Media Contact:

Kelli Shoevlin

214.957.5009

kelli.shoevlin@trintech.com

SOURCE: Trintech, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720151/Trintech-Named-a-Tech-Titans-Top-20-Fastest-Growing-Tech-Company
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Zimtu Capital Corp. (TSXv:ZC)(FSE:ZCT1) (the "Company" or "Zimtu") announces it has signed an agreement with Rockland Resources to provide select aspects of its ZimtuADVANTAGE marketing program (https://www.zimtu.com/zimtu-advantage/). Zimtu shall receive a one-time sum of $65,000 from Rockland Resources for 3- months of coverage and reports from Rockstone Research, and for attendance in the 2022 Zimtu European Road Trip. Based in Switzerland, Rockstone Research broadens the market awareness of publicly and privately held companies, particularly in German speaking regions.

The 2022 Zimtu Capital European Road Trip is designed to establish Zimtu and its partners as a trusted source for European investments. Each year, Zimtu fills a large bus with company representatives in the mining, tech & energy sectors, and drives across Europe to meet with investors at hosted events in Geneva, Zurich, Frankfurt & Munich.

To learn more about attending the 2022 Zimtu Capital European Road Trip as a company or an investor, visit: https://event.zimtu.com/

ZimtuADVANTAGE is a program designed to provide opportunities, guidance, cost savings and assistance to clients covering multiple aspects of being a public company. The services of this program include the following: Zoom with Zimtu; Zimtu Connect - all major news/events/important updates sent to email distribution list, Lead Generation campaigns; Blog Posts; Digital Awareness campaigns; Influencer Marketing; Social Media Distribution of company news/important updates through Zimtu accounts including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube & Instagram; Rockstone Reports & Distribution; Video News Releases - major news releases will be translated to video format, which will be distributed on all social media platforms and to Zimtu Connect subscribers; and Zimtu Question Period.

About Rockland Resources Ltd.

Rockland Resources is engaged in the business of mineral exploration and the acquisition of mineral property assets for the benefit of its shareholders. Rockland is focused on its district scale (41,520 acres) land position prospective for lithium in mining friendly Utah, USA. Other assets include an option on the 41,818-hectare Elektra claystone project concessions that are contiguous with Gangfeng Lithium's Sonora Lithium Clay Project located in Sonora, Mexico as well as an option to earn a 100-per-cent interest in the Cole Gold Mines property, located in Ball township, Red Lake mining division, Ontario. The Cole Property hosts high-grade gold mineralization in a classic Red Lake-type structurally controlled gold deposit environment.

About Rockstone Research

Rockstone Research is specialized in capital markets and publicly listed companies. The focus is on exploration and mining companies, greentech and technology ventures, as well as commodity and stock markets. Research reports are available in English and German, published on international financial websites. For more information and sign-up for free newsletter, visit https://www.rockstone-research.com.

About Zimtu Capital

Zimtu Capital Corp. is a public investment issuer that aspires to achieve long-term capital appreciation for its shareholders. Zimtu Capital companies may operate in the fields of mineral exploration, mining, technology, life sciences or investment. The Company trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "ZC" and in Frankfurt under the symbol "ZCT1". For more information, please visit https://www.zimtu.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

ZIMTU CAPITAL CORP.

"David Hodge"

David Hodge

President & Director

Tel: 604.681.1568

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Zimtu Capital Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720336/Zimtu-Capital-Announces-IR-Contract-With-Rockland-Resources-Ltd
Regulatory News:

Pernod Ricard (Paris:RI) announces today that it will significantly increase its minority stake in Sovereign Brands' portfolio of super premium wine and spirits brands. This additional investment will strengthen the already successful and ambitious long-term partnership initiated in September 2021.

At the closing of this transaction, Pernod Ricard will fully consolidate Sovereign Brands in its financial statements due to various call options through which Pernod Ricard may look to further increase its stake in the partnership in the future.

Sovereign Brands is a family company founded by brothers Brett and Brian Berish, who are among the industry's most innovative and creative beverage alcohol brand builders, in the world's leading spirits market, the United States. It is currently one of the fastest-growing companies in the beverage alcohol industry. The consolidation of Sovereign Brands is expected to be accretive on Pernod Ricard's operating margin*.

Over the last 12 months, and in the frame of their long term partnership, Pernod Ricard and Sovereign Brands have already significantly accelerated the growth of Sovereign's exciting brand portfolio including French super-premium sparkling wine Luc Belaire (circa 1 million 9L cases in 2021), a range of Caribbean rums sold under the Bumbubrand (circa 300K 9L cases in 2021), the Brazilian gin McQueen and the Violet Fog and the French liqueur Villon. Both companies have also initiated a number of joint incubation projects, with an initial brand planned for a full scale launch in the coming months.

This additional investment is in line with the Pernod Ricard strategic plan Transform Accelerate and reflects its ambition to further enhance its consumer-centric portfolio development and invest in anticipated growth categories. This partnership is a winning combination of like-minded companies committed to build global brands that tap into cultural trends and foster strong brand advocacy.

Closing, which is expected to occur in November 2022, remains subject to fullfilment of customary closing conditions, including regulatory clearances.

"Our partnership with Sovereign Brands has already proven to be very successful, with brands such as Bumbu and Luc Belaire now reaching an ever growing number of consumers in the US and abroad. I believe we are perfectly matched as two consumer-centric companies with a shared commitment of creativity, innovation and brand building" says Alexandre Ricard, Chairman and CEO of Pernod Ricard.

Brett Berish, CEO of Sovereign Brands, stated: "In the year since we first announced our partnership with Pernod Ricard, everything that we could have hoped for from the relationship has come to pass. With the upcoming launch of our innovative first joint brands together, it's the perfect time to deepen our partnership.".

*Accretive effect on Pernod Ricard's profit from recurring operations estimated to c.+3% on a full-year basis

About Pernod Ricard

Pernod Ricard is the No.2 worldwide producer of wines and spirits with consolidated sales amounting to 10,701 million in fiscal year FY22. The Group, which owns 17 of the Top 100 Spirits Brands, holds one of the most prestigious and comprehensive portfolios in the industry with over 240 premium brands distributed across more than 160 markets. Pernod Ricard's portfolio includes Absolut Vodka, Ricard pastis, Ballantine's, Chivas Regal, Royal Salute, and The Glenlivet Scotch whiskies, Jameson Irish whiskey, Martell cognac, Havana Club rum, Beefeater gin, Malibu liqueur or Mumm and Perrier-Jouet champagnes. The Group's mission is to unlock the magic of human connections by bringing "Good Times from a Good Place", in line with its Sustainability and Responsibility roadmap. Pernod Ricard's decentralised organisation empowers its 19,480 employees to be on-the-ground ambassadors of its purposeful and inclusive culture of conviviality, bringing people together in meaningful, sustainable and responsible ways to create value over the long term. Executing its strategic plan, Transform Accelerate, Pernod Ricard now relies on its "Conviviality Platform", a new growth model based on data and artificial intelligence to meet the ever-changing demand of consumers.

Pernod Ricard is listed on Euronext (Ticker: RI; ISIN Code:FR0000120693) and is part of the CAC 40 and Eurostoxx 50 indices.

About Sovereign Brands

Sovereign Brands is a family-owned, international wine spirits company headquartered in the USA. The company is owned and operated by brothers Brett and Brian Berish. Sovereign has a portfolio of successful brands including Luc Belaire, a smash-hit line of French sparkling wines, which has earned global acclaim for its exquisite taste and striking packages, and is available in more than 80 countries around the world. The company's portfolio also includes McQueen and the Violet Fog, an extraordinary gin from Jundiai, Brazil, and Bumbu, a critically-acclaimed line of rum products. Sovereign's newest release is Villon, an exquisite French liqueur. The company is planning to launch new brands and extensions to its portfolio in 2023 and beyond.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005753/en/

Contacts:

Pernod Ricard Contacts

Investor relations

Florence Tresarrieu Global SVP Investors Relations and Treasury

+33 (0) 1 70 93 17 03

Edward Mayle Investor Relations Director

+33 (0) 1 70 93 17 13

Charly Montet Investor Relations Manager

+33 (0) 1 70 93 17 13

Media

Emmanuel Vouin Head of External Engagement

+33 (0) 1 70 93 16 34

Jessica Whyte International Press relations Manager

+33 (0) 1 70 93 24 23

Sovereign Brands Contact:

Sophie Lawrence, Marketing Communications Director

+1 212 343 8366
US Representative Grace Meng, Democrat of New York, speaking at a rally for an Asian-American hate crime bill in 2021, joined by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other officials. AP-SCMP





Asian-American leaders and advocates called on politicians and government officials Wednesday to stop anti-Asian rhetoric and scapegoating in the lead-up to the increasingly polarized U.S. midterm elections on November 8.



"Politicians must be careful with what they say," said Representative Grace Meng, Democrat of New York. "We ask this of politicians from all political parties."



Meng's comments came as the activist group Stop AAPI Hate released "The Blame Game", a report focused on recent inflammatory language by political figures and candidates in the elections. (AAPI refers to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.)



Voters will choose all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 34 of the Senate's 100 members, in addition to legions of state and local officials.



According to the report, factors fueling a rise in hateful words and deeds include the sharp decline in U.S.-China relations, growing concern over Chinese espionage and a tendency to link Asians to the spread of Covid-19.



Even as deaths and illness from the coronavirus wane, the number of reported hate incident cases has doubled to over 11,000 since 2020, including 2,250 in which Asian-Americans were scapegoated for the pandemic.



China is a source of growing economic, security and diplomatic concern for many Americans. But Meng and others in the 78-member Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus called on lawmakers and government officials to avoid using vague and overly broad anti-China statements.



They said it was important to be as specific as possible when referring to alleged Chinese espionage and actions by the Communist Party of China, to avoid fanning racism in the coming election and beyond.



The incidents the report cited included an online posting earlier this month by former president Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform slamming his former transportation secretary Elaine Chao, referring to her as Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell's "China loving wife, Coco Chow!"



Others included the all-caps tweet "CHINA GAVE US COVID" in March by Mehmet Oz, a doctor and Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania. Trump has also continued to refer to the pandemic as the "China virus" in postings as recently as July.



The report referred back to June 2021, when Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida called China a "hostile foreign power" and said the duty of every governor included protecting against its threatening activities. "China remains the biggest threat," DeSantis, considered a potential Republican candidate for president in 2024, said.



China has not done itself any favors concerning U.S. opinion, between its aggressive military exercises in the Taiwan Strait after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei; its rapid military build-up; growing nuclear arsenal; repeated vows to dominate key industries globally; and claims of having a superior political and ideological system.



A Pew Research survey released last month found 82 percent of American respondents had an "unfavorable opinion" of China, up from 79 percent in 2020 - results similar to those in many European and East Asian nations.



But, advocates noted, it is Asian-Americans who too often get hurt by broad-brush, race-tinged statements uttered by their own elected representatives that spread bigotry and bias.





The cover of the Stop AAPI Hate report "The Blame Game" features this photograph of a bus shelter advertisement in New York City, part of efforts by the Asian-American community to raise awareness and discourage hate speech and action. SCMP
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Happy Belly Food Group Inc. (CSE: HBFG) (OTCQB: VGANF) ("Happy Belly" or the "Company"), a Quick Serve Restaurant ("QSR") and Consumer Packaged Goods ("CPG") wellness company bringing delicious foods and retail brands to customers, is pleased to announce that it has closed on its immediately accretive and non-dilutive acquisition of Lettuce Love Cafe, a Quick Serve Restaurant (QSR).

"It gives me great pleasure to officially welcome Lettuce Love Cafe into our growing portfolio of Happy Belly brands," said Shawn Moniz, CEO of Happy Belly Food Group. "Lettuce Love is a well known and established QSR whose primary business is serving delicious and healthy meals comprising mainly of gluten free bowls, soups, sandwiches, wraps, salads, and much more at competitive consumer price points. Lettuce Love has significant growth potential for scalable operations and increased profitably. We welcome the opportunity to work with talented and driven individuals that can benefit from Happy Belly's team and resources. As an emerging growth business, we are perfectly suited to help accelerate their growth and profitability."

"The opportunity to become part of something larger than what we were is a very exciting and inspiring opportunity," said Neven Madzarac, former owner of Lettuce Love Cafe and current Senior Operations Manager of Happy Belly Food Group. "Happy Belly has an impressive team that can accelerate our organic growth and help scale our operations more quickly and efficiently then we could on our own. I look forward to growing the Lettuce Love brand under the Happy Belly portfolio as we enter 2023".



The acquisition of Lettuce Love is immediately accretive and non-dilutive to shareholders as the company increases its QSR footprint with the potential for significant organic growth. It will contribute to Happy Belly's growth plan and path to profitability as it provides positive EBITDA to the companies bottom line and allows for integration into our multi-branded shared resourcing model. This acquisition marks the second QSR transaction in 2022; which is aligned to the companies plans to continue delivering shareholder value through accretive M&A.

Transaction Details

Happy Belly Food Group will assume financial liabilities of approximately $168,000 for 100% ownership of Lettuce Love Cafe brand and its Burlington location (the Oakville location has been removed from the acquisition). Based on 2022-2023 forecasted financials for the acquired location, the acquisition cost is an estimated 2.8x multiple of EBITDA. This does not include forecasted growth from new locations, nor cost synergies from Happy Belly's shared resource pool and infrastructure.



Post closing the company will look for additional synergies and savings as the brand will be internally resourced and supported by the existing Happy Belly team.

About Lettuce Love Cafe



Lettuce Love was created solely with your health in mind for delivering delicious gluten-free meals, smoothies & treats. Ingredients and products used are sourced from sustainable, fair-trade, non-GMO sources, are local and organically farmed when available. We proudly prepare all our menu selections fresh, at the time they are ordered to provide the maximum nutritional benefits. Often surprising and seducing hard core carnivores with many of our vegan and gluten free dishes, Lettuce Love Cafe, offers a warm welcome to everyone.

Lettuce Love



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/6625/140429_c6112ef3841de9b2_001full.jpg

About Happy Belly Food Group

Brands



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Happy Belly Food Group Inc. (CSE: HBFG) (OTCQB: VGANF) ("Happy Belly" or the "Company"), a Quick Serve Restaurant ("QSR") and Consumer Packaged Goods ("CPG") wellness company bringing delicious foods and retail brands to customers. It offers a growing number of CPG and QSR brands through its portfolio of Holy Crap Foods, YamChops, LumberHeads Food Co., Lettuce Love Cafe, and Heal Wellness. For more information please visit: www.HolyCrap.com, www.YamChops.com, www.LumberHeads.com, www.HealWellness.ca, www.LettuceLoveCafe.com and www.HappyBellyFG.com.

Happy Belly Food Group

Shawn Moniz

Chief Executive Officer

FOR FUTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT:

www: www.happybellyfg.com or email hello@happybellyfg.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release, which has been prepared by management.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" with respect to the Company within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur, and include the future performance of LumberHeads Food Co. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. There are uncertainties inherent in forward-looking information, including factors beyond the Company's control. There are no assurances that the business plans for Happy Belly described in this news release will come into effect on the terms or time frame described herein. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis and other disclosure filings with Canadian securities regulators, which are posted on www.sedar.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140429
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc - Transaction in Own Shares

For immediate release

13 October 2022

FINSBURY GROWTH & INCOME TRUST PLC

(the "Company")

MARKET PURCHASE OF COMPANY'S OWN SHARES

The Company announces that it has today purchased 13,726 of its own shares ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 782.37 pence per Ordinary Share. Such shares will be held in treasury by the Company.

The transaction was made pursuant to the authority granted at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on 9 February 2022.

Following this transaction, the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury is 9,737,878; the total number of Ordinary Shares that the Company has in issue, less the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury following such purchase, and therefore, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 215,253,425.

The figure of 215,253,425 may be used by shareholders as the denominator for calculations of interests in the Company's voting rights in accordance with the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

For and on behalf of

Frostrow Capital LLP

Company Secretary

For further information, please contact:

Victoria Hale

Frostrow Capital LLP

Tel: 020 3 170 8732
The high prevalence of chronic illnesses as well as the rise in their incidence rate is estimated to raise need for clinical trials

The pharmaceutical and biotechnology businesses are increasing their R&D efforts, which is estimated to assist the global market thrive

WILMINGTON, Del., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- By 2030, the clinical trials market size is likely to surpass value of US$ 83.5 Bn. According clinical trials market analysis, in 2019, the global clinical trials market was worth more than US$ 46.7 Bn. As per clinical trials market data, the global market is expected to develop at 5.4% CAGR during the forecast period, from 2020 to 2030. The high prevalence as well as rising occurrence of chronic illnesses, along with the expansion of R&D in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology businesses, are anticipated to fuel the growth of the global clinical trials market in the forthcoming years.





Globally, the main causes of disability and death are chronic diseases including neurological disorders, chronic respiratory diseases, chronic kidney diseases, cancer, cardiac strokes, and diabetes. Researchers now face new obstacles and possibilities due to development and spread of several infectious and chronic illnesses. These diseases require timely detection, prevention, as well as treatment, which calls for the development of novel diagnostic tools, medications, tests, and vaccinations.

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In order to meet the unmet demands in the healthcare sector, clinical research institutions, biotechnology businesses, and diagnostic laboratories are working to create newer diagnostic tests. This is also anticipated to emerge as one of the key clinical trials market trends. The bulk and research rigor of the biopharmaceutical industry, which contributes toward close to 85% of total expenditures, are the primary drivers of the life science industry's R&D investment.

Global Clinical Trials Market: Key Competitors

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings

Parexel International Corporation

Charles River Laboratories, Inc.

Medpace Holdings, Inc.

IQVIA, Inc.

PRA Health Sciences, Inc.

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Global Clinical Trials Market: Segmentation

Phase

Phase I

Phase II

Phase III

Phase IV

Study Design

Interventional Trials

Observational Trials

Expanded Access Trials

Indication

Autoimmune/Inflammation

Pain Management

Cardiovascular

CNS Condition

Oncology

Diabetes

Obesity

Other

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Modernization of healthcare in terms of both infrastructure and services have pushed the healthcare industry to new heights, Stay Updated with Latest Healthcare Research Reports by Transparency Market Research:

Nanorobotics in Medicine Market: The nanorobotics in medicine market is expected to reach US$ 12.6 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 10.3% from 2022 to 2031.

Ophthalmic Drugs Market: The ophthalmic drugs market is expected to reach US$ 50.2 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 6.83% from 2022 to 2031.

Homeopathic Products Market: The global homeopathic products market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 32.4 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 11.6% from 2022 to 2031.

Pain Management Therapeutics Market: The global pain management therapeutics market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 98.0 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 2.9% from 2022 to 2031.

Peptide Therapeutics Market: The global peptide therapeutics market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 91.25 Bn by 2031 at a CAGR of 8.8% from 2022 to 2031.

Collagen Peptide & Gelatin Market: The global collagen peptide and gelatin market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 7.8 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 5.0% from 2022 to 2031.

Premenstrual Syndrome Treatment Market: The global premenstrual syndrome treatment market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 1.9 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 3.4% from 2022 to 2031.

Synthetic Biology Market: The global synthetic biology market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 74.7 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 21.3% from 2022 to 2031.

Dyspareunia Treatment Market: The global dyspareunia treatment market is anticipated to reach more than US$ 1.02 Bn by the end of 2031 at a CAGR of 4.1% from 2022 to 2031.

About Transparency Market Research

Transparency Market Research, a global market research company registered at Wilmington, Delaware, United States, provides custom research and consulting services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insights for thousands of decision makers. Our experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools & techniques to gather and analyse information.

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The Elder Law Practice of Douglas R. Jones & Cynthia Orlicek Jones brings 30+ years of experience and an unparalleled track record of helping hundreds of families with Estate Planning and Elder Law across Arkansas.

Cabot, Arkansas--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - The Elder Law Practice of Douglas R. Jones & Cynthia Orlicek Jones, a Cabot-based Law practice with 30+ years of experience, has been helping seniors going into nursing homes qualify for assistance to help pay financially-crushing long-term care costs. They just announced the release of their eBook, How To Avoid Costly Mistakes, Qualify For Medicaid & Protect Your Family's Assets When Admitting A Parent To A Nursing Home that is available for a free download for a limited time.





Elder Law Practice of Douglas R. Jones & Cynthia Orlicek Jones Announces Release of New eBook



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Founded by Douglas R. Jones and Cynthia Orlicek Jones, Elder Law Practice has focused on Estate Planning and Elder Law since 1987. Doug and Cindy are married attorneys that have helped hundreds of families navigate the logistical, legal, and financial decisions that come with choosing long-term care for their aging parents. Besides their legal expertise, they can provide an empathetic scope to their clients with both of them having personal experience with their aging parents.

Over the years, they realized that most people were unprepared for this pivotal stage of their loved one's life, and it was costing them dearly. Due to this lack of preparation, many families found themselves overwhelmed and making last-minute decisions without proper advice, guidance or planning that was costing them not only tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars but the peace of mind that comes with taking care of an aging parent. It's why Doug and Cindy started their thriving practice in the first place and continue to serve families after three decades of practice.

In this short, practical, and highly actionable eBook, Doug and Cindy aim to inform families about their options when admitting their parents to long-term care. They understand most legal advice regarding Estate and Elder care is complex and difficult to grasp for most people. It's why the eBook is written for anyone looking to get ahead with their planning or find new alternatives they weren't aware of, with Doug Jones noting:

"With over 7 out of 10 children admitting a parent into long-term care, it's important to have a trusted resource to navigate the complex challenges that arise. We decided to release this eBook to help families understand what options are available to them before they rush into a decision that negatively impacts their family's future. We want to give families the peace of mind that comes with knowing they've taken care of their loved ones while protecting them so they can focus on care, love, and support." -Douglas R. Jones, Founder, Elder Law Practice

The short, practical, value-filled eBook reveals the biggest mistakes most families make with long-term care and how to reduce out-of-pocket expenses, reduce the length of penalties caused by uncompensated transfers and increase the chances of having their Medicaid applications accepted and much more. For every common mistake the eBook reveals, there is an actionable insight that can be immediately applied.

Besides a successful law practice, the lawyers regularly write blogs, create YouTube videos and informational content to help families navigate long-term care. Additionally, they are members of several nationally-recognized organizations, including the Elder Counsel, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the Life Care Planning Law Firms Association that showcase their unwavering commitment to serving their clients.

To learn more about Elder Law and download their eBook free for a limited time, visit:

https://go.arkelderlaw.com.

Media Contact:

Contact: Jeremy McGilvrey

Address: 1 Riverway Ste. 1724, Houston, TX 77056

Phone: (800) 746-1522

Email: Hi@JeremyMcGilvrey.com

Website/URL: https://www.jeremymcgilvrey.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140358
Strategic Energy Briefing from the Stratfor Center for Applied Geopolitics at RANE is open to the public

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RANE (Risk Assistance Network + Exchange) will host a special virtual briefing session examining the outlook for the global energy market on October 19 at 9:00 am EDT / 2:00 pm BST.



European energy markets were roiled when Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Supplies tightened after the West imposed sanctions on Russia, and after an alleged act of sabotage, Nordstream 1 is severely damaged and unable to deliver natural gas to Europe.

Europe has spent the months since the Ukraine invasion stockpiling energy reserves, but questions remain over whether there is enough to get through the winter, and if Russia will start targeting the continent's maritime oil and gas industry or elsewhere.

"The European Union's push to reduce its reliance on Russian natural gas means that Moscow's window to use gas exports to pressure European states is closing fast, which increases the probability of Moscow taking drastic action before its "energy weapon" is gone forever," says RANE's Eurasia analyst Matthew Orr.

RANE's European sales director, Marketa Kytkova says, "RANE is excited to support our European clients on a topic impacting companies in the region and to share our expertise on a situation that is critically important now and in the future."

Join RANE's panel of experts and get strategic intelligence on the risks ahead for Europe's energy situation, and how that could affect supplies and prices for global businesses.

For more information about the briefing, and to enroll, please visit https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8873942170223045388

About RANE

RANE.

Contact:

Emily Donahue

pr@ranenetwork.com

512.744.4309
Tashkent, Uzbekistan--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - In August, the Humans super-app changed the cost of its services: it introduced a lower transfer fee, and added the ability to earn more cashback and transfer it to friends. As a result, the service experienced 48% turnover growth month-to-date, while top-ups of Humans accounts have increased by 32% compared to the same period last month. Daily purchases increased by almost a quarter, while revenue growth for the last month was 4%. Despite the fact that Humans is Uzbekistan's first national super-app, Uzbeks quickly mastered the new product and continue to actively use it.





Humans unveils growth



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Humans has announced its initial business indicators for autumn 2022: in many areas, the super-app managed monthly growth of up to 30%, and in the first days of October turnover grew by 48% compared to the same period last month. The main driver of this growth was the new terms introduced by Humans in August and September. The team discussed which products help businesses grow faster while simultaneously benefiting customers.

Lower fees and increased customer activity

An important step was to increase service availability. Back in the summer, the company reduced the transfer fee to 0.25% for UzCard and Humo cardholders. At the same time, fees were dropped for in-app transfers between Humo customers, and transfers between Humans VISA cardholders remain free. The new terms were announced on August 25. The company notes that it has not spent a lot of resources on promotion: it has pushed notifications to customers, made social media posts, and published news items on 3-4 Uzbek Telegram channels for news. The small investment in marketing paid off quickly-many times over.

This can be seen in the figures in the latest report: the volume of transfers from Humans VISA bank cards to third-party cards increased by 21% over the last week alone, and transfers from UzCard cards to UzCard and HUMO are up by 32%. What's more, the volume of transfers from HUMO cards to HUMO and UzCard cards increased by 111% in the first days of October in comparison with the same period last month.

According to Vlad Dobrynin, the founder and CEO of Humans Group, Uzbekistan has many convenient payment services, but most of them charge high transfer fees. Humans offered clients an alternative, and the reasonable transfer rate made the service popular.

Reaching the client through cashback

Humans is considered Uzbekistan's only super-app. The app combines the functionality of a mobile carrier, a fintech service, and an online payment system. Clients can communicate, pay for purchases by Visa bank card, transfer money, and earn cashback on a single platform. Using multiple services at the same time yields additional benefits. For example, enjoy free mobile communications or exchange cashback for a smartphone.

One of the key indicators for any super-app is the demand for its services in combination rather than in isolation. Cashback encourages customers to perform more in-app transactions in order to earn rewards. The innovation of the last two months is increased cashback for certain categories of purchases. For example, when paying for groceries at a Korzinka supermarket, the customer receives 5% of the total in the form of cashback. And when paying for an annual subscription to the web version of Kundalik, an online student record system, the entire amount - 8,000 soums - is returned as cashback.

On October 4 alone, the volume of purchases made using the Humans VISA card amounted to 1.2 billion soums. This is 40% higher than the average daily value last week, and month-on-month growth reached 98%. According to Vlad Dobrynin, the experiment was a success - on October 4 alone, cashback amounting to 199.3 million soums was credited to customers, which is 16% higher than the average daily value last week.

"The Korzinka example shows that customers understand how cashback works and have learned how to benefit from it. We plan to connect even more partners with increased cashback, and offer new ways to earn and spend it. For example, the range of gadgets you can get in exchange for cashback will expand", says the founder of Humans.

Not only can cashback be saved, it can also be transferred to friends. This option also appeared recently. In the first days of October, Humans users already transferred 158 million soums of cashback to one another, which is 55% more than in the first days of September.

In general, cashback has prompted customers to start using Humans services more actively. For example, on October 4 alone, they spent 1.15 billion soums on in-app purchases of telecommunication services, which is 23% more than in the same period in September.

The new terms had a positive impact on daily turnover: now it stands at 7.2 billion soums, which is 18% higher than the average daily value last week. From October 1 to 4, turnover amounted to 23 billion soums, which is 48% more than in the same period in September.

"We expanded the range of opportunities for our clients and achieved the desired result. There has never been anything like this on the Uzbek market. We radically changed the user experience. And now we can confidently say that clients have learned to get the most from Humans. But we aren't forcing the client to make additional efforts to receive quality services at competitive prices. By using several of our services in a single app, clients can save money - and the potential is unlimited. The 4% growth in Humans' revenue over the past month only indicates that customers like the service and are actively using it", notes Vlad Dobrynin.

About Humans

The Humans Group is developing an ecosystem of services in finance, telecommunications, and employee search, to meet primary motivators and needs common to all people. Currently, the Humans Group includes three projects:

- Humans.uz fintech platform, the first and only super app in Uzbekistan

- Humans.de all-in-one super app in Germany, that combines a fintech service, mobile services, and an online payment system with a cashback function. The launch is scheduled for 2022

- Humans.net employee search platform in the US

Group offices are located in the USA, Singapore, Germany, Poland and Uzbekistan. The company employs over 850 people.

Press contact:

Natasha Ikonnikova

Uzbekistan, Tashkent

natasha.ikonnikova@humans.net

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140440
Verticalmove is an award-winning Staffing and IT Services company with over 20 years of experience acquiring and retaining top talent for ambitious start-ups and Fortune 500 companies across the United States, Europe and Canada.

Scottsdale, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Verticalmove, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based Staffing and IT Services company with 20+ years of experience helping start-ups and Fortune 500 organizations, has announced the release of their 2022 Compensation Report available to download free for a limited time.





Verticalmove, A World-Class Talent Acquisition Firm Announces Release of 2022 Compensation Report



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Verticalmove was launched in 1999 by Matthew Allen, a leading expert in professional talent acquisition and retention. Allen recognized the acceleration of IT and digital advancements meant businesses would need to attract and retain top-tier engineering and development talent if they wanted to stay relevant. In addition, cultural shifts translated into candidates demanding more from their employers with more options than ever.

During the last 26 years, Verticalmove has helped its clients attract the brightest executive, technical, sales, and marketing professionals through executive search, contingent search and contract staffing engagements that provide them with a competitive advantage to build high-performing, collaborative cultures.

In releasing their 2022 Compensation Report, Verticalmove aims to help hiring managers, firms and candidates access the latest compensation data with key insights that take into account recent economic and cultural shifts.

The goal of releasing the report is to help both companies stay ahead of talent acquisition challenges to produce the highest number of placements, save hiring managers time and increase productivity, profits and innovation - while helping candidates gain instant access to the latest compensation of their peers with founder Matthew Allen noting:

"We're living in a world where the status quo of talent acquisition is rapidly changing. When it comes to compensation, both candidates and leading brands are placing an emphasis on transparency during the hiring process. We're thrilled to release our report and help businesses, hiring managers and candidates access industry-specific data, insights and trends so they can leverage them into successful hires that create a win for all parties." -Matthew Allen, Founder & CEO of Verticalmove

To date, Verticalmove has helped countless businesses attract and retain hundreds of technical professionals with an unprecedented 6:1 submittal-to-offer ratio on average, and a 85% offer acceptance rate. They serve their clients through a passive and exclusive network of 800,000+ professionals with IT Consulting Solutions, Headhunting & Staffing, and Payroll Services.

Verticalmove's mission is to produce the highest number of placements, with fewer resumes, in the least amount of time. In doing so, they help businesses generate more successful hires while consuming less resources. Allen and his team believe their rigorous process, vast expertise, unmatched network and proprietary technology are responsible for their track record.

On the candidate side, Verticalmove helps software developers and engineers who are looking to find roles and opportunities with some of the world's leading brands. Using their experience and connections, Verticalmove has helped candidates land roles with some of the most admired brands such as Salesforce.com, Disney Streaming, UnitedHealth Group, American Express, CVS Health, Workday, Activision and many others with top-tier compensation, benefits and career opportunities.

To learn more about Verticalmove and download their 2022 Compensation Report, visit: https://www.verticalmove.com.

Media Contact:

Contact: Jeremy McGilvrey

Address: 1 Riverway Ste. 1724, Houston, TX 77056

Phone: (800) 746-1522

Email: Hi@JeremyMcGilvrey.com

Website/URL: https://www.jeremymcgilvrey.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140446
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / The Power Play by The Market Herald has announced the release of new interviews with Baroyeca, Power Metals, Star Navigation and Peloton Minerals discussing their latest news.

The Power Play by The Market Herald provides investors with a quick snapshot of what they need to know about the company's latest press release through exclusive insights and interviews with company executives.

Baroyeca (TSXV:BGS) receives assay results from the western extension of the La Ye Target on the Atocha Project

Baroyeca announced the remaining assay results from its Phase 2 drilling program at its Atocha silver and gold project in Tolima, Colombia. The company drilled approximately 1,400m in 12 holes. Raul Sanabria, P.Geo., President of Baroyeca, sat down with Daniella Atkinson to discuss the results.

For the full interview with Raul Sanabria and to learn about Baroyeca, click here.

Power Metals (TSXV:PWM) intersects high-grade Cesium at its Case Lake Property

Power Metals (PWM) announced drill results from the West Joe Dyke at its Case Lake Property in Cochrane, Ontario. Drilling on the West Joe Dyke has intersected multiple pollucite intervals with up to 24.07 % Cs2O. Johnathan More, Chairman and Director of Power Metals, sat down with Sabrina Cuthbert to discuss the results.

For the full interview with Johnathan More and to learn about Power Metals, click here.

Star Navigation (CSE:SNA) signs LOI with LAPSSET to track vehicles in Eastern Africa's largest infrastructure project

Star Navigation Systems Group (SNA) has received a Letter of Intent (LOI) from the LAPSSET Corridor Development Authority (LCDA) to purchase its tracking and monitoring technology. CEO Amir Bhatti sat down with Daniella Atkinson to explain how the LAPSSET Corridor will deliver socioeconomic development and prosperity.

For the full interview with Amir Bhatti and to learn about Star Navigation Systems Group, click here.

Peloton Minerals (CSE:PMC) reports AMT & IP Geophysical surveys commencing at Golden Trail

Audiomagnetotellurics and Induced Polarization geophysical surveys are commencing on Peloton Minerals' (PMC) Golden Trail Property. Surface work has been completed for a DEEPEM geophysical survey conducted at the Boulder Copper Porphyry Property. Ted Ellwood, CEO of Peleton Minerals, sat down with Daniella Atkinson to discuss the news.

For the full interview with Ted Ellwood and to learn about Peloton Minerals, click here.

Interviews for The Power Play by The Market Herald are released daily. To learn more about the companies featured in The Power Play or to explore our other interviews visit? The Power Play by The Market Herald.

About The Market Herald

The Market Herald Canada is the leading source of authoritative breaking stock market news for self-directed investors. Our team of Canadian markets reporters, editors and technologists covers the entire listed company universe in Canada. We cover over 3,985 businesses, their people, their investors, and their customers. We write the stories that move the Canadian capital markets.

DISCLAIMER: Report Card Canada Media Ltd. ("Report Card") is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Market Herald Limited, an Australian company ("Market Herald"). Report Card is not an advisory service, and does not offer, buy, sell, or provide any other rating, analysis or opinion on the securities we discuss. We are retained and compensated by the companies that we provide information on to assist them with making information available to the public. All information available on themarketherald.ca and/or this press release should be considered as commercial advertisement and not an endorsement, offer or recommendation to buy or sell securities. Report Card is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority in any province or territory of Canada, will not be performing any registerable activity as defined by the applicable regulatory bodies and do not provide nor claim to provide investment advice or recommendations to any visitor of this site or readers of any content on or originating from themarketherald.ca. Market Herald and/or its affiliates and/or their respective officers, directors or employees may from time to time acquire, hold or sell securities and/or commodities and/or commodity futures contracts in certain underlying companies mentioned in this site and which may also be clients of Market Herald's affiliates. In such instances, Market Herald and/or its affiliates and/or their respective officers, directors or employees will use all reasonable efforts to avoid engaging in activities that would lead to conflicts of interest and Market Herald and/or its affiliates will use all reasonable efforts to comply with conflicts of interest disclosures and regulations to minimize any conflict. All the information on this document and/or the website - themarketherald.ca - is published in good faith and for general information purpose only. Report Card does not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability, and accuracy of this information. Any action you take upon the information you find on this document and/or website (themarketherald.ca) is strictly at your own risk. Report Card will not be liable for any losses and/or damages in connection with the use of our website. From our website, you can visit other websites by following hyperlinks to such external sites. While we strive to provide only quality links to useful and ethical websites, we have no control over the content and nature of these sites. These links to other websites do not imply a recommendation for all the content found on these sites. Site owners and content may change without notice and may occur before we have the opportunity to remove a link which may have gone 'bad'. Please be also aware that when you leave our website, other sites may have different privacy policies and terms which are beyond our control. Please be sure to check the Privacy Policies of these sites as well as their "Terms of Service" before engaging in any business or uploading any information.

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SOURCE:?The Market Herald

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720387/The-Power-Play-by-The-Market-Herald-Releases-New-Interviews-with-Baroyeca-Power-Metals-Star-Navigation-and-Peloton-Minerals-Discussing-Their-Latest-News
Strong year-over-year revenue growth of 10%, with sustained gross profit margin of 50%

Newly appointed CEO, Andrew Glashow, to lead next phase of accelerated company growth

Completes first harvest after quarter-end through joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada

LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (OTCQB:CLSH)(CSE:CLSH), (the 'Company' or 'CLS'), a diversified cannabis company operating as Cannabis Life Sciences, today announced its financial results for the fiscal quarter ended August 31, 2022 ("Q1 2023"). All amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars.

Q1 2023 Financial & Operational Highlights

Net revenue for Q1 2023 was $6.0 million Dispensary revenue increased 4% to $3.9 million Production revenue grew 23% to $2.2 million

Gross profit for Q1 2023 was $3 million, or 50% of net revenue

Net loss for Q1 2023 was $1.3 million.

EBITDA for Q1 2023 was $374 thousand

Strengthened senior leadership team with the appointment of Andrew Glashow as Chief Executive Officer, and David Zelinger to the Board of Directors as an independent board member

CLS-owned brand, City Trees, became Nevada's number one selling cannabis brand in their product categories

Management Commentary

"I am thrilled to report solid revenue growth driven by both our retail dispensary and highly visible brand offerings in Nevada's wholesale market," said Andrew Glashow, President and Chief Executive Officer of CLS. "Since stepping in as CEO, I have been delighted by the performance of the entire team and want to thank them for their dedication which helped drive sustained gross margin and profitability. Looking ahead, we are focused on deliberately managing our expenses while leveraging the scale we have built to expand our profitability and deliver strong value for our shareholders."

Mr. Glashow added, "Subsequent to the quarter end, we completed our first harvest through our joint venture with the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada. While the cost of that project is reflected in our current financial results, the high-quality flower we cultivated is only just coming to market and is expected to produce meaningful top- and bottom-line expansion throughout the remainder of our fiscal year."

Subsequent Events

Completed first flower harvest through joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada

Announced that, following receipt of the requisite approval of debenture holders and the Canadian Securities Exchange, it amended the terms of its outstanding unsecured convertible debentures (the "December Debentures") issued on December 12, 2018.

Outlook

Despite headwinds which have impeded growth in the broader cannabis industry, the Company expects to expand its wholesale market share in Nevada as it sells through the cannabis grown through its joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe. In addition, the Company expects to improve its profitability by reducing its annual corporate expenses by approximately $2.0 million while actively managing rising labor costs. This is anticipated to be achieved through a combination of a $1.0 million reduction in interest expense as a result of the recent restructuring of the Company's December Debentures as well as continued thoughtful management of the Company's corporate overhead expenses.

Q1 2023 Financial Results

Three Months Ended August 31, (In thousands) 2022 2021 YoY% Change Net Revenues $ 6,045 $ 5,501 10% Dispensary Revenue $ 3,889 $ 3,746 4% % of revenue 64% 68% * Production Revenue $ 2,156 $ 1,755 23% % of revenue 36% 32% * Gross Profit $ 3,022 $ 2,915 4% Gross Margin 50% 53% * Net Income $ (1,332 ) $ 4281 -412% Net Income Attributable to CLS $ (1,148 ) $ 428 -369% EBITDA $ 374 $ 1,352 -72%

Q1 2022 and 2021 net Income was positively impacted in the amounts of $348 and $1,174, respectively, by non-recurring payments received related to a confidential settlement agreement to resolve the action and a secured promissory note dated and executed by IGH in favor of the Company effective on June 11, 2021.

The Company's consolidated financial statements, as well as its accompanying management discussion and analysis ("MD&A") have been included in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on EDGAR (www.sec.gov) as well as SEDAR (www.sedar.com). Please refer to the Company's MD&A for additional detail and discussion on the Company's results from operations.

Financial results are also available on the Company's website (https://www.clsholdingsinc.com/investors).

About CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH) is a diversified cannabis company that acts as an integrated cannabis producer and retailer through its Oasis Cannabis subsidiaries in Nevada and plans to expand to other states. CLS stands for "Cannabis Life Sciences," in recognition of the Company's patented proprietary method of extracting various cannabinoids from the marijuana plant and converting them into products with a higher level of quality and consistency. The Company's business model includes licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation and consulting services. https://www.clsholdingsinc.com. Twitter: @CLSHoldingsUSA

Oasis Cannabis has operated a cannabis dispensary in the Las Vegas market since dispensaries first opened in Nevada in 2015 and has been recognized as one of the top marijuana retailers in the state. Its location within walking distance to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas, in combination with its delivery service to residents, allows it to efficiently serve both locals and tourists in the Las Vegas area. In February 2019, it was named "Best Dispensary for Pot Pros" by Desert Companion Magazine. In August 2017, Oasis commenced wholesale offerings of cannabis in Nevada with the launch of its City Trees brand of cannabis concentrates and cannabis-infused products. http://oasiscannabis.com

Founded in 2017, City Trees is a Nevada-based cannabis cultivation, production and distribution company that offers a wide variety of products with consistent results. City Trees products are available in numerous dispensaries throughout the state of Nevada. https://citytrees.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and 'forward-looking statements' as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, the 'forward-looking statements'). These statements relate to, among other things, the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our business, the results of our initiatives to retain our employees and strengthen our relationships with our customers and community during the pandemic, the effect of our initiatives to expand market share and achieve growth, the expected development of our business and joint ventures, results of operations and financial performance, future liquidity, working capital and capital requirements, the effects of the additional dilution in our common stock that may occur as a result of the amendments to our convertible debentures, and anticipated future events. The continued spread of COVID-19 could have, and in some cases already has had, an adverse impact on our business, operations and financial results, including through disruptions in our cultivation and processing activities, supply chains and sales channels, and retail dispensary operations as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession. In some cases, you can identify forward looking statements by terminology such as 'may,' 'might,' 'will,' 'should,' 'intends,' 'expects,' 'plans,' 'goals,' 'projects,' 'anticipates,' 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'predicts,' 'potential,' or 'continue' or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered together with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. See CLS Holdings USA filings with the SEC and on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com for additional details.

Contact Information:

Corporate:

President and CEO

Andrew Glashow

888-438-9132

Investor Relations:

Rob Kelly

416-992-4539

rob@mattio.com

investors@clsholdingsinc.com

SOURCE: CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720152/CLS-Reports-Fiscal-First-Quarter-2023-Financial-Results


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Online streaming platform Netflix will charge $6.99 per month for its latest advertising-supported tier, which the company will debut in the U.S on November 3. The company's 'Basic with ads' tier will have an average of four to five minutes of commercials each hour and won't provide users the ability to download movies and TV series. A certain number of TV series and movies will not be available in the beginning due to licensing restrictions.



Ads will be 15 or 30 seconds in length and will play before and during Netflix's content. Companies will have the ability to prevent ads from appearing on content they feel unsuitable. To help advertisers understand its reach, ratings company Nielsen will use its standard digital audience measurement, Digital Ad Ratings, in the U.S. starting next year.



Netflix is launching this plan with commercials after rejecting the concept for many years. The company was forced to take this step as its subscribers have come down during the last quarters.



The company's Chief Operating Offer Greg Peters said that it will announce its third quarter earnings after the market closes on Tuesday and plans to unveil subscriber forecasts for the advertising service.



Netflix has tied up with Microsoft for its advertising-supported service. The streaming company will have hundreds of advertisers at launch and has nearly sold out its inventory, the company said in a statement.



The platform said that at first, there will be no advertising within kids programming and new movies. Older films will have mid-roll advertising.



Netflix priced the service so that any customer who switches to the ad-supported service from the ad-free basic plan will have a 'neutral to positive' effect on the company's revenue, said Peters.



This works out to Netflix getting at least $3 a month per user in advertising revenue. 'We want to offer consumers choice and figure out what the best offering is for them,' Peters said during the conference call.



Video resolution for Netflix's advertising tier will be 720p rather than 1080p, the quality of Netflix's standard plan that costs $15.49 per month. The company's basic plan without advertising is $9.99 per month with 720 p resolution.



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Edmonton, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - TrustBIX Inc. (TSXV: TBIX) (OTCQB: TBIXF) ("TrustBIX" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association ("CFGA") has selected its BIX Impact ESG reporting solution to support the launch of the On-Farm Climate Action Fund for producers in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Quebec.

"The program supports producers interested in adopting beneficial management practices ("BMPs") that store carbon and reduce greenhouse gases in areas such as nitrogen management, cover cropping and rotational grazing practices," explains Cedric MacLeod, Executive Director of the CFGA. "We engaged TrustBIX because of their established trust and track record in the livestock sector for programs of this nature."

Carlene Schneider, CFGA Knowledge Translation and Transfer Manager adds, "BIX Impact streamlines the application and reporting process for everyone, enabling our advisors and verifiers to engage producers in the program faster. It also allows CFGA to focus more resources on the farmer and on-farm implementation and support through the planning process."

"Our goal is to help producers implement new management practices that enhance carbon removal opportunities that make a real difference to their operation with support from the Agriculture Climate Solutions On-Farm Climate Action Fund," says Travis Quirk, OFCAF Project Manager.

This project uses BIX Impact, the latest enhancement to the BIX platform, allowing TrustBIX customers to strategically qualify operations, aggregate data for strategic sourcing and ESG reporting. It allows multiple programs to be run concurrently for producers and ensure their information remains private and confidential.

TrustBIX has worked closely with CFGA to develop producer resources supporting them to navigate the online application process, including linking the application to CFGA mentor networks, reference resources, training opportunities and access to technical support. "This project builds on TrustBIX's extensive experience with chain-of-custody solutions for all levels of the supply chain, from producers to consumers and our goal to become a global leader for traceability in the agri-food business," says TrustBIX Chief Innovation Officer, Tom Ogaranko.

About the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association

Incorporated in 2010, the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) provides a national voice for all Canadians who produce hay and forage products and for those whose production is dependent upon forage/grassland production.

The $200-million On-Farm Climate Action Fund is an initiative to help farmers tackle climate change. The objective of the fund is to support farmers in adopting beneficial management practices (BMPs) that store carbon and reduce greenhouse gases, specifically in the areas of:

nitrogen management

cover cropping

rotational grazing practices

The Canadian Forage and Grassland Association is working solely on supporting the rotational grazing practices stream in Alberta, British Columbia, Quebec and Saskatchewan provinces.

About TrustBIX (TSXV: TBIX) (OTCQB: TBIXF)

As an innovative leader, TrustBIX provides agri-food traceability and chain of custody value solutions. The Company's goal is to create a world where we trust more, waste less and reward sustainable behaviour by addressing consumer and agri-food business demands. The proprietary platform, BIX (Business InfoXchange system), is designed to create trust without compromising privacy through innovative, blockchain-derived use of technology and data. By leveraging BIX and its unique use of incentive solutions, TrustBIX delivers independent validation of food provenance and sustainable production practices within the supply chain - Gate to Plate.

ViewTrak Technologies Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, provides a suite of hardware and software solutions to the livestock industry in Canada, United States, Mexico and China, such as Auction Master Pro, Market Master, Feedlot Solutions and pork grading probes.

The Company's Insight technology offers an edge-to-enterprise supply chain solution that brings asset situational awareness to dealers, equipment fleets, and civil construction managers. The platform allows for the tracking, protection, and identification of movement of assets using self-powered and self-reporting cellular tags and cloud-based suite of tools.

For more information, visit www.trustbix.com, or follow TrustBIX on Twitter @TrustBIX_Inc, LinkedIn TrustBIX and Facebook @TrustBIXInc.

Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains certain forward-looking information and reflects the Company's present assumptions regarding future events. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results, levels of activity, performance, and/or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

Certain statements contained in this document constitute forward-looking statements and information within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. When used in this document, the words "may", "would", "could", "should", "will", "intend", "plan", "propose", "anticipate", "believe", "forecast", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions used by any of the Company's management, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the Company's internal projections, expectations, future growth, performance and business prospects and opportunities and are based on information currently available to the Company. Since they relate to the Company's current views with respect to future events, they are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update any such factors or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments except as required by applicable securities legislation, regulations or policies.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Hubert Lau

President and CEO

Telephone: (780) 456-2207

Email: info@trustbix.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy of accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140326
"Another record quarter for NHOA driven by energy storage coupled with a booming EV fastcharging network roll-out:

revenues as at September 30 th reach 100 million at group level, mainly thanks to a 28x growth year-on-year in Energy Storage.

Atlante further accelerated its infrastructure roll-out with now 1,300 fast and ultra-fast points of charge online and under construction in Southern Europe, with almost 2,000 sites in pipeline.

Execution of the project portfolio in the third quarter is running according to schedule in all 4 continents and this gives visibility towards the high-end of the 140-160 million guidance for 2022 revenues, despite the slower than expected ramp-up in e-Mobility.

The continuous increase in backlog and order intake for NHOA Energy coupled with a stable pipeline of around 1 billion gives visibility on 2023 growth well beyond the macro scenario, confirming Energy Storage as the growth engine of the Group," commented Carlalberto Guglielminotti, CEO of NHOA Group

Regulatory News:

NHOA (NHOA.PA, formerly Engie EPS) is pleased to release the unaudited Q3 2022 Trading and Operational Update containing the performance indicators as of 30 September 2022.

2021 2022 Q3 2022 TRADING AND OPERATIONAL UPDATE Notes Data in Q3 2021 FY 2021 H1 2022 Q3 2022 Var% vs Var% vs 30 Sep 2021 30 Jun 2022 Consolidated Sales[1] m 11,7 32,9 82,2 99,8 +753% Consolidated Cash and Credit Lines available for withdrawal[2] (1) m 49,0 151,0 151,7 113,4* -25% includes the impact of the conversion of a USD30 million cash credit line into a dedicated bond facility to support the growth in energy storage contracts portfolio BY GLOBAL BUSINESS LINE Notes Data in Q3 2021 FY 2021 H1 2022 Q3 2022 Var% vs Var% vs 30 Sep 2021 30 Jun 2022 STORAGE Sales[1] m 3,1 15,9 73,0 88,4 2.75% Backlog[3] (2) m 40 193 143 152 +7% 12-month Order Intake (3) m 34 208 208 223 +7% Online Capacity MW 185 188 188 201 +7% Projects Under Development [4] (4) MWh 106 720 751 776 +3% Pipeline (5) m 833 764 1.031 984 -5% Projects in which NHOA is shortlisted 6 4 5 4 -1 Notes Data in Q3 2021 FY 2021 H1 2022 Q3 2022 Var% vs Var% vs 30 Sep 2021 30 Jun 2022 e-MOBILITY Gross Sales including intercompany (Atlante) [1] (6) m 8,6 17,3 11,0 15,3 +39% Sales[1] (7) m 8,6 17,1 9,1 11,3 31% +23% PoC Conversion Rate:  PoC Stellantis Group EV Sales PoC 7% 18% 17% 16%  PoC outside Stellantis Total PoC PoC 11% 40% 50% 43% Manufacturing Capacity PoC 1.750/week 2.250/week 2.750/week 2.750/week Notes Data in Q3 2021 FY 2021 H1 2022 Q3 2022 Var% vs Var% vs 30 Sep 2021 30 Jun 2022 INFRASTRUCTURE Sales[1] (8) m N/A N/A N/A N/A Utilization Rate (9) N/A N/A N/A N/A Sites Microgrids online and under construction 1 22 59 119 +60 Fastcharging PoC online and under construction 624 760 932 1.302 +370 V2G Microgrid Capacity online and under construction MW 31 31 33 33 stable EV based stationary storage equivalent [4] (10) MWh 32 32 34 34 stable Pipeline of New Sites under assessment (11) 774 835 1.455 1.953 +498 of which under development (12) 73 69 164 412 +248

[1] Sales refers to Revenues Other Income. Q3 2022 Sales refers to (unaudited) Revenues Other Income as at 30 Sept 2022 [2] Including cash deposits and cash collateral to guarantee securities on projects in execution [3] Figures published until 4 October 2021 also include e-MOBILITY Backlog. Starting from the release of Q3 2021 Trading and Operational Update, Backlog is communicated only for Global Business Line Storage [4] FY 2021 and Q1 2022 figures updated on a Like for Like basis. 5,6MWh previously included in the NHOA Energy on "Projects Under Development" reclassified on Atlante "EV based stationary storage equivalent". Please also refer to notes (4) (10)

Notes to the Q3 2022 Trading and Operational Update

(1) Cash and Credit Lines available for withdrawal represents the cash in the bank accounts of NHOA, including cash deposits, coupled with the cash credit facilities approved and not withdrawn and still available as of the relevant reporting date. A portion of the liquid assets serves as cash collateral to guarantee securities on projects in execution.

(2) Backlog means the estimated revenues and other income attributable to (i) purchase orders received, contracts signed and projects awarded (representing 100% of Backlog as of the date hereof), and (ii) Project Development contracts associated with a Power Purchase Agreement, where the agreed value is a price per kWh of electricity and an amount of MW to be installed (nil at the date hereof). When any contract or project has started its execution, the amount recognized as Backlog is computed as (A) the transaction price of the relevant purchase order, contract or project under (i) and (ii) above less (B) the amount of revenues recognized, as of the relevant reporting date, in accordance with IFRS 15 (representing the amount of transaction price allocated to the performance obligations carried out at the reporting date).

(3) 12-month order intake represents the cumulated value of new purchase orders received, contracts signed and projects awarded in the 12 months preceding the relevant reporting date.

(4) Projects Under Development is an indicator representing the capacity equivalent of Backlog, in terms of signed turnkey supply or EPC contracts and therefore excluding Project Development contracts associated with a Power Purchase Agreement, (please see Note (2) above). As of 30 June 2022, 5.6MWh related to the V2G Drosso have been reclassified to EV based stationary storage equivalent in Atlante, considering that Atlante has started the construction phase (please also refer to Note 10).

(5) Pipeline means the estimate, as of the release date, of the amount of potential projects, tenders and requests for proposal for which NHOA has decided to participate or respond. On a quarterly basis NHOA will disclose in its Trading Operational Updates the number of projects in which NHOA is officially shortlisted.

(6) Gross Sales including Intercompany (Atlante) refers to revenues recognized by the Global Business Line e-Mobility under Italian GAAP, including intercompany business transaction with Atlante, that are not included in group revenues on a consolidated basis.

(7) Please note that Backlog Order Intake are not monitored by NHOA at the Global Business Line e-Mobility level, given the strong correlation between sales of charging devices (Points of Charge "PoC") and EV sales, which are monitored through the Conversion Rate performance indicator.

(8) Sales are Not Applicable for this Trading and Operational Update, as no material sales figures are expected during the launch phase of Atlante (i.e. throughout 2022).

(9) Utilization Rate is calculated, over the reference period, as the aggregate utilization time of all PoC divided by the aggregate time of availability of the same PoC, expressed as a percentage. Utilization Rate is Not Applicable for this Trading and Operational Update, and first Utilization Rate data will be disclosed when a materiality threshold of n.10 different sites is achieved (in operation for at least 6 months).

(10) Please note that the data in MWh represents the EV based stationary storage equivalent, i.e. the maximum battery capacity of Vehicle-to-Grid services that can be delivered by the Atlante Network at the relevant reporting date and includes the portion of stationary storage coupled with fastcharging technology in any Atlante charging station or e-Mobility Hub.

(11) Pipeline of New Sites under assessment includes the total number of sites, as of the relevant reporting date, which are actively pursued after prospecting activity and following a first internal screening for high level feasibility. At this point, the full contractual documentation remains to be finalized and signed, all the required permits have not yet been awarded and construction has not started.

(12) of which under development, being a sub-category of "Pipeline of New Sites under assessment", includes sites for which a more detailed feasibility activity commences, including detailed discussions with site owners and exchange of documentation. For the sites included in the "under development" sub-category there would be a reasonable degree of confidence that they can be converted into fastcharging stations within the next six months (subject to interconnection and timely delivery of hardware).

Additional notes

Please note that the indicators "Contracts Secured"and "Subscriptions/Total PoC" are no longer included as performance indicators in the Quarterly Trading and Operational Update.

As announced on July 14 2022, NHOA has been informed that ENGIE notified Guam Power Authority about the fact that 2019 pricing is no longer sustainable in current market conditions. For this reason, considering that Contracts Secured were almost entirely represented by the tender awarded in Guam to ENGIE, former majority shareholder of NHOA, Contracts secured is no longer included as a performance indicator.

Considering the current market conditions of the energy sector and energy price volatility, commercialization of Subscriptions has been put on hold and, for this reason, the indicator Subscriptions/Total PoC is no longer included in the Quarterly Trading and Operational Update.

The Q3 2022 Trading and Operational Update will be illustrated in the investor conference call scheduled on 14 October 2022 at 9:00am CEST. Dial-in details and presentation will be available on the corporate website nhoa.energy.

NHOA

NHOA S.A. (formerly Engie EPS), global player in energy storage, e-mobility and EV fast and ultra-fast charging infrastructure, develops technologies enabling the transition towards clean energy and sustainable mobility, shaping the future of a next generation living in harmony with our planet.

Listed on Euronext Paris regulated market (NHOA.PA), NHOA forms part of the CAC Mid Small and CAC All-Tradable financial indices.

NHOA, with offices in France, Spain, United States and Australia, maintains entirely in Italy research, development and production of its technologies.

For further information, go towww.nhoa.energy

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Forward looking statement

This release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are not undertakings as to the future performance of NHOA. Although NHOA considers that such statements are based on reasonable expectations and assumptions at the date of publication of this release, they are by their nature subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual performance to differ from those indicated or implied in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include without limitation those explained or identified in the public documents filed by NHOA with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF), including those listed in the "Risk Factors" section of the NHOA 2021 Universal Registration Document filed with the AMF on 6 April 2022 (under number D. 22-0251). Investors and NHOA shareholders should note that if some or all of these risks are realized they may have a significant unfavorable impact on NHOA.

These forward looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology, including the verbs or terms "anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "expects", "intends", "may", "plans", "build- up", "under discussion" or "potential customer", "should" or "will", "projects", "backlog" or "pipeline" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and that are to different degrees, uncertain, such as statements about the impacts of the Covid19 pandemic on NHOA's business operations, financial results and financial position and on the world economy. They appear throughout this announcement and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding NHOA's intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, NHOA's results of business development, operations, financial position, prospects, financing strategies, expectations for product design and development, regulatory applications and approvals, reimbursement arrangements, costs of sales and market penetration. Important factors that could affect performance and cause results to differ materially from management's expectations or could affect NHOA's ability to achieve its strategic goals, include the uncertainties relating to the impact of Covid-19 on NHOA's business, operations and employees. In addition, even if the NHOA's results of operations, financial position and growth, and the development of the markets and the industry in which NHOA operates, are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods. The forward-looking statements herein speak only at the date of this announcement. NHOA does not have the obligation and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013006017/en/

Contacts:

Press Office: Claudia Caracausi and Davide Bruzzese, Image Building, +39 02 89011300, nhoa@imagebuilding.it

Financial Communication and Institutional Relations: Chiara Cerri, +39 337 1484534, ir@nhoa.energy
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / Fury Gold Mines Ltd (TSX:FURY)(NYSE American:FURY) ("Fury") is pleased to announce the completion of the share sale transaction announced on October 3, 2022 (the "Transaction").

Fury sold 17 million common shares at C$0.40 per share in the capital of the Dolly Varden Silver Corporation ("Dolly Varden"), representing approximately 7.4% of the outstanding common shares, to a well known institutional investor. The proceeds of the Transaction will be used to finance continued exploration at Fury's Eau Claire and Eleonore South Joint Venture projects in Quebec and for general working capital.

Fury's ownership interest in Dolly Varden has been reduced from 76,504,590 shares, representing 33% of the outstanding common shares of Dolly Varden, to 59,504,590 shares, representing 26% of the outstanding common shares of Dolly Varden. Fury continues to have two nominees on Dolly Varden's board of directors under its Investor Rights Agreement with Dolly Varden and will continue to hold its remaining shares in Dolly Varden for investment purposes. Fury will evaluate its investment in Dolly Varden on an ongoing basis and may increase or decrease its holdings in Dolly Varden in the future, subject to its rights and obligations under the Investor Rights Agreement, a copy of which has been filed under Fury's and Dolly Varden's SEDAR profile.

About Fury Gold Mines Limited

Fury Gold Mines Limited is a well financed Canadian-focused exploration company positioned in two prolific mining regions across the country and holds a 59.5 million common share position in Dolly Varden Silver Corp. Led by a management team and board of directors with proven success in financing and advancing exploration assets, Fury intends to grow its multi-million-ounce gold platform through rigorous project evaluation and exploration excellence. Fury is committed to upholding the highest industry standards for corporate governance, environmental stewardship, community engagement and sustainable mining. For more information on Fury Gold Mines, visit www.furygoldmines.com.

For further information on Fury Gold Mines Limited, please contact:

Margaux Villalpando, Investor Relations

Tel: (844) 601-0841

Email: info@furygoldmines.com

Website: www.furygoldmines.com

Forward-Looking Information

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which relate to the future operations of the Company and other statements that are not historical facts. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes". Specific forward-looking information contained in this release primarily relates to statements that suggest the use of proceeds from the Transaction by Fury and Fury's investment in Dolly Varden. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially.

No regulatory organization has approved the contents hereof.

SOURCE: Fury Gold Mines Limited

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/720423/Fury-Completes-the-Sale-of-Dolly-Varden-Common-Shares-to-an-Institutional-Investor
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - SBD Capital Corp. (CSE: SBD) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of new executive management team for the Company, in addition to the resignation of Mr. Aleem Nathwani as the Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Mr. Nathwani will continue to be a director of the Company.

About the New Management Team and Directors

Brief biographies of the members of the newly appointed manage team of the Company are as follows:

Chris Irwin, Chief Executive Officer and Director - Mr. Irwin is currently a director of the Company and is a graduate of Bishop's University (B.A., 1990), the University of New Brunswick (Bachelor of Laws, 1994) and Osgoode Hall Law School (Masters of Laws, 2009). He was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1996. Mr. Irwin represents several public companies, is an officer and/or director of several public companies, and serves or has served on the audit committee of several public companies.

Arvin Ramos, Chief Financial Officer - Mr. Arvin Ramos holds a degree in commerce and a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario. Mr. Ramos has over 17 years of business experience, having supported a broad range of industries, including mining, technology and banking. Mr. Ramos serves as CFO of several junior mining companies.

Carly Burk, Secretary - Ms. Burk is a Corporate and Securities Law Clerk with Irwin Lowy LLP since February 2018. Ms. Burk holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Southampton, and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from Carleton University. Ms. Burk serves as the Corporate Secretary of several public and private entities.

The Company confirms that there have been no material developments, other than those disclosed through news releases and Form 7 Monthly Progress Reports filed on the Company's profile with the Canadian Securities Exchange, since the filing of its last Form 7 filing on September 9, 2021.

On August 5, 2022, the Company received a cease trade order (the "Cease Trade Order') from the Ontario Securities Commission (the "OSC") for failure to file its audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2022, annual management's discussion and analysis for the same period and management certifications of annual filings (collectively, the "Annual Filings"). The Annual Filings and interim financial statements, related management's discussion and analysis and management certificates for the interim period ended June 30, 2022 have been filed with the applicable reporting jurisdictions. The Cease Trade Order was revoked by the OSC on September 27, 2022.

The Company acquires controlling interests in industrial companies in the manufacturing and distribution business. The Company's cash-generating unit is alcohol and liquor sales, which generated revenue of $14,832 during the financial year ended March 31, 2022. The Company would like to thank its shareholders at this time for its patience. The Company is working diligently to reinstate trading and increasing shareholder value.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

SBD Capital Corp.

Aleem Nathwani

Director

Tel: (416) 361-2515

Email: aleem.nathwani@gmail.com

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140515
Canada is known as the Gateway to the Americas. However, the Great White North is a very appealing location in its own way, with a less complex market than its American neighbor.

Canada is a good example of a country where launching a business is a simple process that can be completed in a day and a half. You can both apply and get approval for a new business license online.

In addition, the cost of living is lower in Canada than in the U.S., making it an attractive destination for entrepreneurs. The Canadian government also offers several programs and incentives for businesses, including tax breaks and subsidies.

But what is really driving Canadas economy?

In this article, well look at some of the factors driving Canadas economy and making it one of the strongest in the world.

A Strong Economic Foundation

One of the things that makes Canadas economy so strong is its foundation. The country has a well-educated workforce, abundant natural resources, and a stable political environment.

All of these factors contribute to making Canada an attractive destination for businesses and investors. And as a result, Canada has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the developed world.

A Diversified Economy

Another factor that is driving Canadas economy is its diversity. The country has a diverse range of industries, including agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, oil and gas, manufacturing, tourism, and more.

This diversity provides a buffer against economic downturns in any one sector. For example, suppose the oil and gas industry is struggling. In that case, the agricultural or tourism sectors can help to prop up the economy.

Furthermore, another industry that is helping the economy is the gambling industry. Canada is home to some of the worlds largest brick-and-mortar and the best online casinos, which you can find at Casinogrizzly.com. This industry is growing rapidly and is expected to generate even more revenue in the coming years.

A strong But Cost-Effective Labor Force

The Institute for Management Development places Canada in the top ten for global workforce competitiveness, placing the country at number eight. This is because the available labor force is more highly educated and specialized at a lower cost than in the United States.

Canada is one of the top countries in terms of the percentage of its population having a post-secondary education, with 63% of people aged 25-34 holding degrees or certificates. Canada is proud of its skilled and technically proficient workforce, which it largely attributes to the abundance of high-caliber vocational training options across the country.

Canadas innovation and technology industries, which include green technology, healthcare, and sophisticated manufacturing, are well-supported by the countrys large and diverse pool of technology and innovation expertise.

Canadas Difficulty in Attracting Foreign Investment

Although there are many benefits to entering the Canadian market, there are also some challenges to be aware of.

The most typical one involves dodging rules. Beyond federal legislation, each province also has its own set of regulations. Suppose you want to send goods across the country.

In that case, youll need to adhere to the packing, labeling, certification, and customs laws of every state they pass through. The export of certain goods to specific countries or markets abroad is subject to additional rules, such as quota agreements.

In addition to regular payroll expenses, businesses will face additional expenses related to their employees time and effort. For instance, health insurance is often provided by employers. Canada provides its workers generous benefits, such as paid vacation and public holidays.

You may also have to deal with unfamiliar tax rules, social and political issues that impact your firm, and the lengthy and perhaps legal process of setting up a physical presence. While all these challenges might seem daunting, they are nothing that cant be overcome with the help of a good business partner or advisor.

Is Canada Richer Than the U.S.?

No, the United States is richer than Canada. Canada has a sizable economy, but it pales compared to the United States, which is projected to have the largest economy by 2025. Canadas GDP was $1.6 trillion, while the U.S.s was $21 trillion.

The U.S. also has a much larger population, which gives it a higher GDP per capita. Additionally, the United States has a much higher standard of living than Canada.

While Canadas economy is nothing to scoff at, it doesnt quite stack up to the United States. The United States has a larger economy and a higher standard of living. It is projected to remain one of the richest countries in the world for years to come.

Looking To The Future

Despite some challenges, Canada is an attractive destination for businesses and investors. The country has a well-educated workforce, abundant natural resources, a diversified economy, and a business-friendly environment. These factors are all helping to drive Canadas booming economy.

As the global economy continues to change and evolve, Canada is well-positioned to weather any storm. With its strong fundamentals, the country is poised for continued growth and prosperity in the years ahead.
Next Play Capital, a Redwood City, CA-based minority-owned venture investment firm focused on investing in access-constrained venture funds and venture-backed companies, closed its third flagship fund, at $200m.

Fund III adds 11 new institutional limited partners (LPs) who embody the values that reflect Next Play Capitals diverse LP community.

The fund will invest in high-level funds and venture-backed companies across sectors, stages, and geographies.

Led by Managing Partner Ryan Nece, Next Play Capital is a venture investment platform focused on investing in access-constrained funds and venture-backed companies across consumer, fintech, and IT/SaaS verticals. With $425 million in assets under management, its community of professional athletes, GPs, entrepreneurs, CEOs, and investors provides an ecosystem to access funds and companies that are generally inaccessible to most investors. The firms diversified flagship structure is complemented by direct investment strategies via one dedicated fund and 24 special purpose vehicles (SPVs) to date.

Since its formation in 2014, Next Play Capital has invested with 34 general partners (GPs) and 54 companies.

FinSMEs

13/10/2022
Notably.AI, a Dallas, TX-based provider of a platform that allows teams to collect, analyze, and share qualitative research, raised USD1.5M in funding.

The round was led by Sentiero Ventures.

The company intends to use the funds to invest in engineering, machine learning capabilities, and in the overall growth.

Founded by Brittany Fuller and Allison Marshall, Notably is a company using AI and data to help researchers and product organizations streamline research and analysis. Their product has been used to support mid-market and enterprise software companies, as well as clinical researchers, government entities, and nonprofits. Notably has supported teams from organizations such as Alloy, Gem, Seattle Childrens Hospital, AWS, Salesforce, Walmart, Dropbox, and more.

FinSMEs

13/10/2022
Tatum, a blockchain applications development company, raised $41.5M in funding.

The round was led by Evolution Equity Partners, Octopus Ventures, 3VC, Tensor Ventures, Depo Ventures, Leadblock Fund, Circle, and founders of Bitpanda.

The company intends to use the funds to accelerate marketing, educational efforts and community building efforts.

Led by CEO Jiri Kobelka, Tatum provides a blockchain development platform to speed up the creation of blockchain applications and enable functionality and quality. The platform simplifies the creation of complex blockchain operations into single lines of application code, streamlining the entire Web 3.0 development process, from common blockchain operations to ones with pre-built features such as smart contracts, fee and payment solutions, real-time alerts, virtual accounts, out-of-the-box crypto-exchange functions and a key management system. The framework incorporates 42 different protocols and integrates the use of APIs to fit into existing development processes.

After initial investments totaling around $8m, the company developed the complete platform and began to attract customers, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to new technology startups. Tatum also joined Berkeley SkyDeck in 2021 as one of 16 companies worldwide accepted from thousands of applicants and received some funding as a result.

Tatum, which has over 90,000 customers and adds over 7,000 new ones per month, was founded in Czech Republic, with offices in the UK, with a corporate center located in Miami, Florida and offices around the world.

FinSMEs

13/10/2022
Tehtris, a Paris, France-based technology leader against cyber espionage and cyber sabotage, raised 44M (including 36m in growth equity) funding round.

The round was led by Jolt Capital, with participation from Tikehau Ace Capital, Open CNP, and Nouvelle-Aquitaine Co-Investissement.

The company intends to use the funds to accelerate growth and expand operations.

Founded in 2010 by Elena Poincet and Laurent Oudot, Tehtris develops and markets the TEHTRIS XDR Platform (eXtended Detection and Response) cyber defense solution that detects and neutralizes known and unknown cyber threats in real-time and without human action in companies and public administrations. The platform provides an extended capability to detect and respond to security incidents. Interoperable, the platform replaces some of the limited traditional products by orchestrating different cybersecurity solutions with its Artificial Intelligence, behavioral analysis engine and real-time updated threat database (Cyber Threat Intelligence), for augmented and hyper-automated remediation. Its sensors support operated security service provider partners, who monitor millions of IP addresses and analyze tens of billions of events on systems, networks, and the cloud every week.

Since its 20M Series A financing in November 2020, the company has created 220 jobs in France and Europe and opened subsidiaries in Germany, Spain, Japan, and Canada. Tehtris employs more than 260 people in Europe and customers in more than 120 countries.

FinSMEs

13/10/2022

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919207/TEHTRIS_New_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Tehtris
Zerion, a San Francisco, CA-based provider of a wallet for web3 users, raised $12.3m in Series B funding.

The round was led by Wintermute Ventures with participation from Placeholder, Mosaic, Polymorphic Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Alchemy Ventures, Sergej Kunz, Anton Bukov and Orest Gavryliak, Yunt Capital, and Gregoire Le Jeune.

The company intends to use the funds to advance the development of its wallet for Web3 users.

Founded in 2016 by Evgeny Yurtaev (CEO), Alexey Bashlykov (CTO) and Vadim Koleoshkin (COO), Zerion is a smart Web3 wallet and investing tool that enables anyone with a mobile phone to manage their DeFi and NFT portfolios. With a focus on user-centered design and a technology stack that aggregates across every major wallet, network and decentralized exchange, users are offered a single point of entry for managing their digital assets, including NFTs.

For more than 5 years, Zerion has enabled DeFi investors, NFT collectors and Web3 builders to track their portfolios and trade hundreds of assets at the best rates. Since adding swaps to their web and mobile apps, trading volume through Zerion has grown from $47M in 2019 to more than $1.5B today. After raising $8.2M in July of 2021, the team has been working on turning its wallet product into the primary interface for Web3. The wallet launch in last May was accompanied by a generative NFT that evolves as users make transactions in their wallet. The wallet allows Web3 citizens to take control of their digital assets, identities and data. Over 60kZerion wallets holding more than $100M have been created in less than six months since the launch of the wallet.

The interface serves 400K monthly active wallets from over 150 countries.

FinSMEs

13/10/2022
Deputy Secretary and Health Officer for Marion County addresses the audience. Photo credit: Ocala Star-Banner.

Contact:

Communications Office

NewsMedia@flhealth.gov

850-245-4111

Marion County, Fla.  Today, State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo, Deputy Secretary for Health Dr. Kenneth Scheppke, and Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris, alongside community partners, visited the expansion of the Coordinated Opioid Recovery (CORE) in Marion County - a comprehensive network of addiction and opioid treatment.

This year, Florida has experienced over 4,000 reported fatal overdoses. In Marion County, Emergency Medical Services reported that in 2021, teams responded to over 3,000 overdose calls. Current data indicates Marion County is in the top 10 counties in Florida with the highest fatal overdose rates.

The CORE Network is the first of its kind in the nation, coordinated through the Florida Department of Health, Florida Department of Children and Families, and the Agency for Health Care Administration. The full-scale treatment approach of the CORE Network expands every aspect of overdose response and creates an all-inclusive sustained system of care and patient navigation to holistically address all primary and secondary impacts of substance use disorder.

The existing standard of care for substance use disorder is outdated. The current overdose response in most of the United States treats the acute overdose, without providing access to sustainable care, said Dr. Kenneth Scheppke, Deputy Secretary for Health. Thats exactly why weve developed CORE. This program facilitates the necessary connections among local emergency response and specialty health care networks to not only respond to an acute overdose, but to connect individuals suffering from substance use disorder to sustainable and long-term care.

In the wake of Hurricane Ian, there is also concern of increased substance use and overdose deaths due to the impact on individuals mental health and the disruption of normal pharmaceutical supply chains. It is critical that community partners provide resources to their communities as we recover from the effects of Hurricane Ians devastation. We must remain vigilant both now and in the long-term to prevent overdose deaths.

We are grateful for the leadership of Governor DeSantis in championing the development of the CORe Network - a comprehensive model of care in addressing the opioid epidemic, said Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris. We must break down the traditional siloed approach and episodic treatment of this disease if we want to break the cycle of addiction. Partnership and collaboration are key to the success of this approach, and we could not be prouder at DCF to be a part of this first-of-its kind model, along with the Department of Health and so many other community partners.

Substance abuse is a chronic multifaceted life-threatening disease. If an individual in Marion County overdoses, specialized emergency medical services protocol will begin stabilization while transporting the patient to a specialty hospital with attained specialty expertise in addiction medicine. Once all emergent health threats are stabilized, the patients long term care needs will then be transferred to an expert multi-specialty outpatient practice to support sustainable recovery.

CORE provides a personalized treatment umbrella ranging from primary care to mental health support. By facilitating these connections in Marion County, CORE disrupts the revolving door of addiction by connecting overdoses to sustainable care in real time.

If you, or someone you know, is struggling with substance use disorder and would like more information on CORE in Marion County, you may contact the Ocala Fire Rescue at 352-266-4769 or the Marion County Health Department.

If you suspect an overdose, call 911 immediately. The state of Florida has deployed resources that can be posted in public areas to ensure Floridians remain vigilant of the signs of overdose, how to respond, and where help is available.

About the CORE Network

CORE was successfully piloted in Palm Beach County for nearly two years and will be expanding in up to twelve additional counties to help patients break free from the deadly cycle of overdose. Floridians battling with addiction can utilize CORE for stabilization and to receive medication assisted treatment from a network of specialized medical experts that will help guide them on a sustained pathway to healthy success.

Florida is proud of its efforts in fighting the opioid epidemic and continues do so with access, evidence-based care, and lifelong comprehensive treatment. Information about CORE and various recovery resources.

About the Florida Department of Health

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts.

Follow us on Twitter at @HealthyFla and on Facebook. For more information about the Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.
From September 14 to 16, 2022, President Xi Jinping attended the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Samarkand and paid state visits to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan upon invitation. As the visit came to a conclusion, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi briefed the accompanying journalists on the visit.

Wang Yi said that in the mid-autumn season, President Xi Jinping embarked on the trip to Central Asia, which has received international attention. The visit takes place at a time when the world is undergoing accelerating changes unseen in a century, a protracted COVID-19 pandemic, profound adjustments in major-country relations, the spread and spill-over of geopolitical conflicts and mounting difficulties and challenges facing humanity at large. Domestically, the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is soon to be held. The vast land of China is brimming with vigor and vitality. The Chinese people are united in a common effort and ushering in bright prospects for Chinas national rejuvenation. Being the first overseas visit by President Xi Jinping since COVID-19 began, the visit is of major significance and the timing of the visit is rather special. It is a major diplomatic action of the CPC Central Committee vis-a-vis Eurasia in light of both domestic and international imperatives, and an important landmark visit undertaken at a crucial and historic juncture. The global media have closely followed the visit with intense coverage. Cooperation, security, development, openness, mutual trust, and respect became the key buzzwords in international mainstream media coverage. International commentary described the choice of Central Asia as President Xi Jinpings first overseas visit since COVID-19 as one of major strategic significance and a strategic step China has taken to unite with its SCO friends in order to penetrate the attempted encirclement by the United States. It fully shows the strong confidence and influence of President Xi Jinping, and the growing international standing and influence of China.

Over three days and two nights, President Xi Jinping flew to Nur-Sultan and then Samarkand and, within a 48-hour stay, attended nearly 30 multilateral and bilateral events with a twin focus on security and development. Despite its brevity, the visit has had many highlights and created fruitful outcomes. With the visits facilitation, the expansion of the SCO took a new step forward. The visit also successfully steered Chinas relations with relevant countries to new levels. It is a visit that pointed the way forward in turbulent times and reinvigorated the ancient Silk Road. Against the overarching backdrop of turbulence and mounting risks and challenges in todays world, President Xi Jinping's visit to Central Asia has added vigor and vitality to the Silk Road connecting Asia and Europe and stabilizing factors to the regional and international landscape that are currently at a crossroads. The visit has created more favorable international conditions for Chinas new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects and fully demonstrated the extraordinary vision and sense of responsibility of a major country and a major political party that care about the world and stay at the forefront of the trend of the times.

I. Carry forward the Shanghai Spirit and open a new phase of development of the SCO

Wang Yi said that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the SCO Charter, and the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on Long-term Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation Between SCO Member States. Over the past years, the SCO has carried forward the Shanghai Spirit featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for the diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development, and played an active role in and made contributions to Eurasian and international affairs. Meanwhile, today's world has witnessed the rising challenge of unity vs division and cooperation vs confrontation. The SCO is faced with various tests in safeguarding regional peace and security. Its member states face serious challenges in upholding their own security and stability. Bearing in mind the new circumstances, tasks and difficulties facing the SCO and its member states, President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the Samarkand Summit. The speech focuses on the importance of this milestone year to the SCO in the course of its development, provides insights and guidance on the future of the SCO from a strategic and overall perspective, and puts forward major initiatives and proposals on greater unity among the member states and the future development of the SCO.

President Xi Jinping gave an insightful review of the success of the SCO, attributing it to the organizations commitment to political trust, mutually beneficial cooperation, equality, openness and inclusiveness, and equity and justice, and said these five points fully embody the Shanghai Spirit, which is the source of strength for the development of the SCO, and the fundamental guide that the SCO must continue to follow in the years to come. The commitment to these five points is a practice of true multilateralism that rises above traditional bloc politics. It is an answer to the question of what new type of regional cooperation is required in the new era and how to advance it, offering significant guidance for the SCO's development and the sound and equitable development of international relations.

As for the future development of the SCO, President Xi Jinping pointed out that under the new circumstances, the SCO, as an important constructive force in international and regional affairs, should keep itself well-positioned in the face of changing international dynamics, ride on the trend of the times, constantly enhance strategic independence, consolidate and deepen solidarity and cooperation and build a closer SCO community with a shared future. To this end, President Xi Jinping put forward five suggestions, emphasizing that we need to enhance mutual support, expand security cooperation, deepen practical cooperation, enhance people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and uphold multilateralism. These suggestions echo the common aspirations of every member state to seek unity, stability and development, and draw a road map for the progress of the SCO and a new blueprint for its cooperation.

Through concerted efforts of President Xi Jinping and other participating leaders, the summit adopted over 40 outcome documents covering economy, finance, technology, culture, institution-building, external exchanges and so on. Particularly, under the initiative of the Chinese side, heads of state of the SCO member states adopted four major statements on international energy and food security, tackling climate change, and keeping supply chains secure, stable and diversified. The Chinese side also announced that it is ready to establish a China-SCO base for training counter-terrorism personnel, host a forum on industrial and supply chains, set up a China-SCO Big Data Cooperation Center, and provide developing countries in need with emergency humanitarian assistance of grain and other supplies worth 1.5 billion yuan. These tangible measures meet the needs of various countries, and show that China not only presented the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative, but also carried out the initiatives with real actions. At the summit, President Xi Jinping called for continued efforts to achieve the complementarity of the Belt and Road Initiative with national development strategies and regional cooperation initiatives, expand sub-multilateral cooperation and sub-regional cooperation, and create more growth drivers in cooperation. The other countries responded positively, saying that they will continue to tap into the potential of cooperation in various fields, build the SCO into an anchor of regional security and stability, and make greater contributions to world peace and development.

It is particularly noteworthy that before the summit, an increasing number of countries had applied for joining the SCO. China and other member states of the SCO together adopted a holistic approach to these applications and conducted equal-footed consultations. At the summit, the SCO accepted Iran as a member state, supported the starting of the procedure for the accession of Belarus, granted Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar the status of SCO dialogue partners, and reached agreement on admitting Bahrain, the Maldives, the UAE, Kuwait and Myanmar as new dialogue partners. This is a new and the largest round of expansion for the SCO. It helps consolidate the standing and influence of the SCO as an organization for regional cooperation with the largest population and the largest landmass in the world, and demonstrates once again the dynamism, ability to unite, and appeal of the Shanghai Spirit. The expansion also fully shows that the SCO is not an isolated and exclusive "small circle", but an open and inclusive "big family". The SCO, as a new type of international organization consisting of 26 countries, has shown stronger vitality and more promising prospects, and will definitely inject more positive energy and new impetus into safeguarding peace and prosperity of the Eurasian continent and the world, and play an exemplary role in promoting the building of a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind.

Samarkand, renowned as the pearl on the Silk Road, witnessed the glory and splendor of the ancient Silk Road. Today, the famous historic city has borne witness to yet another landmark and important moment for the Eurasian continent. Through the concerted efforts of all the parties, the Samarkand Summit had more participating leaders and more outcome documents than any previous summit in the history of the SCO. Uzbekistan, as the rotating chair of the SCO and host country of the summit, attached great importance to the summit and made it a national priority. The Chinese side provided staunch political, logistic and COVID-response support and made positive contributions to the success of the summit. This is an example of how China works with other SCO members in the spirit of solidarity and coordination by means of giving each other support when needed. At the summit, the Samarkand Declaration of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was signed and released, which fully absorbed the main elements of the series of important initiatives China had made.

II. Write a new chapter of good-neighborly friendship between China and Kazakhstan, and between China and Uzbekistan under the guidance of building a community with a shared future

Wang Yi said that both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are major Central Asian countries, as well as China's key neighbors to the northwest and comprehensive strategic partners. The two countries are also among the first group of countries to support and jointly contribute to the Belt and Road Initiative. During his visit to Central Asia nine years ago, President Xi Jinping proposed the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative in Kazakhstan, the first time for him to come up with this Initiative, and made a special trip to Samarkand, hence a "Silk Road bond" with the two countries. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Kazakhstan, and between China and Uzbekistan. Next year will be the tenth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. Chinas relations with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan relations are at a fresh historic starting point. Visiting Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan again after those years and the fact that both countries are on President Xi Jinpings first overseas trip since the onset of COVID-19 fully shows the high level and uniqueness of China's relations with the two countries, as well as the close friendship and deep trust between him and the heads of state of these two countries.

The heads of state of both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan attached great importance to the visit and treated President Xi Jinping as their most honored guest by personally directing and planning the visit and extending full diplomatic protocol and the highest level of reception. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev personally went to the airport to greet him and bid him farewell. He held a grand welcome ceremony at the Ak Orda Presidential Palace and awarded President Xi Jinping with the Order of the Golden Eagle, or "Altyn Qyran" Order, the highest order of Kazakhstan awarded to individuals, and personally invited a famous Kazakh meritorious artist to sing in Chinese the song "Ying Shan Hong", which is known to every household in China. Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev took time from his busy schedule of receiving more than 10 leaders attending the SCO Summit to greet President Xi Jinping at the airport with a spectacular ceremony. He awarded President Xi Jinping the first Order of Friendship, the highest honor conferred by Uzbekistan on foreign individuals, and invited him to plant an oak tree symbolizing the evergreen friendship between Uzbekistan and China. President Mirziyoyev also designated the prime minister of his government to oversee the entire reception. These special and heart-warming arrangements demonstrate the political will of the two heads of state for friendship with China and the profound goodwill of the people of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan towards China.

President Xi Jinping held warm and friendly talks with President Tokayev and President Mirziyoyev, which produced a broad range of practical results. President Xi Jinping signed and issued joint statements respectively with the two presidents, which comprehensively summarize the achievements and experience accumulated during the past 30 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations and chart the course for future growth of relations. As announced, China and Kazakhstan will work for the goal and vision of building a community with a shared future defined by lasting friendship, a high degree of mutual trust and sharing weal and woe, while China and Uzbekistan will, bearing in mind the long-term development of China-Uzbekistan relations and the future welfare of the two peoples, implement the vision of a community with a shared future at the bilateral level and give bilateral relations a whole new characterization. President Xi Jinping outlined the essential components of what makes a community with a shared future, putting firm mutual support before all else. In Kazakhstan, President Xi Jinping stressed that the unbreakable friendship between China and Kazakhstan will contribute to the growth of positive and progressive forces in the world and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. He stressed that China is ready to work with Kazakhstan to be each other's strong supporters for development and rejuvenation. President Tokayev said that President Xi Jinping's visit demonstrates the two sides' commitment to opening another 30 golden years of Kazakhstan-China relations, which is of special and great significance in the current volatile and complex international environment, Tokayev noted, adding that this will make a new milestone in the history of Kazakhstan-China relations and that Kazakhstan will continue to firmly uphold the one-China policy and be a good partner and good friend that China can always rely on under all circumstances. In Uzbekistan, President Xi Jinping pointed out that China and Uzbekistan have always respected each other, enjoyed good neighborliness and worked in partnership for mutual benefits and that China is ready to work with Uzbekistan to implement the vision of a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future and deepen all-round cooperation for mutual benefit. Mirziyoyev said that President Xi Jinping's historic state visit to Uzbekistan will elevate the Uzbekistan-China comprehensive strategic partnership to a new height and that China is a reliable friend and comprehensive strategic partner of Uzbekistan, adding that Uzbekistan is firmly and unequivocally committed to the one-China principle, and firmly supports China's position on matters concerning its core interests and that Uzbekistan will always be trustworthy as well as a good neighbor, good friend and good partner for China.

During the tour, China reached wide-ranging consensus on the future direction and priorities of cooperation with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan respectively and agreed with them to continue to engage in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, speed up the alignment of development strategies, and promote pragmatic cooperation in the fields of trade and economy, energy, railway and connectivity. Nearly 30 bilateral cooperation documents across a broad range of areas, including finance, water conservancy, digital economy, green development, culture, and sub-national cooperation, have been signed. Among them, the memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project marks important progress in the construction of a major transport route in the Eurasian continent. In addition, the completion of the restoration project of historical and cultural sites in Khorezm region, which was commenced during President Xi Jinping's visit to Uzbekistan in 2013, has become another highlight of cultural cooperation between the two sides.

Wang Yi said that the launch of the concept of a community with a shared future between China and Kazakhstan and between China and Uzbekistan at the bilateral level is an integral part of the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. It will certainly enable their millennia-old traditional friendship to brim with renewed vigor and vitality and better benefit the Chinese people and the people of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, while making China-Kazakhstan and China-Uzbekistan contributions to regional peace and stability and development.

. Deepen strategic communication with all parties to inject positive energy into the peaceful development of the Eurasian continent

Wang Yi said that President Xi Jinping also held bilateral meetings in Samarkand with the leaders of 10 countries attending the SCO Summit at their request and attended the trilateral meeting between China, Russia and Mongolia. Among them are both old friends with whom President Xi Jinping has met several times in recent years and new friends met for the first time. The meetings covered many topics, reached significant depth and produced substantive results, which play an important role in guiding the growth of bilateral relations and promoting regional peace and stability by setting the direction and outlining the priorities.

President Xi Jinping held his second face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin this year, which was also the first meeting between the heads of state of China and Russia on the international occasion since the outbreak of the pandemic. The two heads of state positively evaluated the fruitful strategic communication maintained between the two countries this year, and said that they will continue to strongly support each other on issues concerning each other's core interests, strengthen coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks, promote the enhancement of solidarity and mutual trust among all parties, and safeguard the common interests of vast developing countries and emerging markets.

The heads of state of China, Russia and Mongolia held an in-person meeting for the first time after three years. President Xi Jinping fully recognized the achievements of trilateral cooperation among China, Russia and Mongolia, and put forward four proposals on promoting the trilateral cooperation, stressing the need to firmly grasp the right direction of the trilateral cooperation, elevate cooperation within the framework of the SCO, implement well the projects under the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor, and cultivate more deliverables of the trilateral cooperation.

President Xi Jinping met with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon respectively. This is the third time this year that President Xi Jinping and the heads of five Central Asian countries have met, fully reflecting the close ties between China and Central Asian countries. President Xi Jinping reiterated his support for Central Asian countries in safeguarding national independence, sovereignty and security, opposition to any external forces' interference in the internal affairs of Central Asian countries, and support for Central Asian countries in strengthening integrated cooperation. All parties agreed to expand and strengthen the China+Central Asia (C+C5) Meeting mechanism to maintain security and stability in Central Asia and promote common development in the region.

President Xi Jinping also met with the leaders of Iran, Belarus, Pakistan, Mongolia, Turkiye and Azerbaijan separately, reaching many new and important common understandings on advancing the development of bilateral relations. They also exchanged views and formed synergy on promoting the political settlement of regional hotspot issues such as Iranian nuclear issue, Afghanistan and the Middle East issues. The Chinese and Belarusian heads of state issued a joint statement and unanimously decided to upgrade China-Belarus relations to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership.

I would like to point out in particular that in response to the recent attempts by certain countries to undermine China's sovereignty and interfere in China's internal affairs, the leaders of the above-mentioned countries took the initiative to reiterate during their meetings that they will continue to firmly abide by the one-China principle and firmly support China's position on issues related to Taiwan, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and other core interests. This shows once again that it is clear to all who stands for fairness and justice. China enjoys abundant support for its just cause.

Wang Yi said that so far this year, from the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 to the BRICS Summit, from the High-Level Dialogue on Global Development to the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO in Samarkand, each time we can strongly feel the international community's firm support for China and eager expectation for deepening friendship and cooperation with China. President Xi Jinping, with his far-sighted strategic vision, open and inclusive broad-mindedness, and charismatic personality of valuing goodwill and friendship, has won China more and more understanding, respect and recognition internationally. Under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, China has become a constructive force in international relations for dialogue and cooperation, for unity and openness, and for peace and development, and has played an increasingly important role for the long-term stability and sustainable development of the Eurasian continent and the world at large.

IV. Expound on the bright future of China's development and look forward to the new journey of a major country and a major political party.

Wang Yi said that last year we celebrated the centenary of the founding of the CPC, and many countries were impressed by the CPC's remarkable achievements over the past century. They hoped to find out about the secret of China's "two miracles" of rapid economic development and long-term social stability, and they had profound interest in China's system, path, theory and culture. Next month, the 20th National Congress of the CPC will be convened, which will draw a magnificent blueprint for China's future development. The international community will focus more on China and the CPC.

The leaders of the countries who met President Xi Jinping during his visit took the initiative to wish the 20th National Congress of the CPC a full success. They expressed confidence in China's development prospects and the hope to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with China on all fronts. They said they looked forward to China playing a greater role in international affairs. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said that President Xi Jinping is a truly great leader, who enjoys the heartfelt support of the Chinese people, and that China will surely achieve its magnificent goal of building a modern socialist country in all respects as scheduled. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said that President Xi Jinping is a great statesman in today's world, and Uzbekistan is convinced that under President Xi Jinping's wise leadership, China will have not only a bright today but also a brighter tomorrow.

On various occasions during this visit, President Xi Jinping shared stories about China and the CPC by presenting Chinas history and reality, and theories and practices, and shared experience in state governance with leaders of other countries. It showed the image of a confident, open and progressive major country and major Party on a new journey, and further enhanced understanding of, support for and recognition of the CPC.

President Xi Jinping expounded on the significance and overall goals of the 20th National Congress of the CPC. He pointed out that at this national congress, the CPC will fully review the major achievements made and valuable experience gained in China's reform and development endeavors. It will also formulate programs of action and overarching policies to meet China's new development goals on the journey ahead in the new era and the new expectations of the people. President Xi Jinping stressed that we will continue to follow the Chinese path to modernization to achieve the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and we will continue to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. By doing so, we will create new opportunities for the world with new advances in China's development and contribute our vision and strength to world peace and development and human progress.

President Xi Jinping introduced China's reform and development, stressing that China has continued to respond to COVID-19 and promote economic and social development in a well-coordinated way. The fundamentals of China's economy, characterized by strong resilience, enormous potential, ample room for policy adjustment and long-term sustainability, will remain sound. This will greatly boost the stability and recovery of the world economy and provide more market opportunities for other countries. President Xi Jinping pointed out that China has entered a new development stage and is making active efforts to foster a new development paradigm. China stands ready to continue to share development achievements with other parties and learn from each other's development experience. All parties are welcome to board the express train of China's development. China's door of opening-up and friendly cooperation will always be open to the world.

President Xi Jinping made an insightful explanation of China's diplomatic visions and propositions. He pointed out that human society "has both sunny and rainy days in its development", described the GSI and the GDI with a clear focus, and called on all countries to stay true to the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security and build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture. He called on all parties to foster global development partnership, and achieve more robust, greener and more balanced global development. Regarding certain countries that are obsessed with geopolitical games and bloc confrontation, President Xi Jinping clearly pointed out that we should remain firm in safeguarding the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law, practice the common values of humanity, uphold true multilateralism, jointly improve global governance, reject zero-sum game and bloc politics, and work together to ensure that the international order is more just and equitable.

Leaders congratulated China on its outstanding achievements in economic and social development under the strong leadership of President Xi Jinping, particularly the victory of the battle against extreme poverty and the completion of the building of a moderately prosperous society. They spoke highly of the two great initiatives proposed by President Xi Jinping, namely the Belt and Road Initiative and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. They believed that the GDI and the GSI put forward by China are of important strategic significance for solving the risks and challenges facing the world today.

Wang Yi said that President Xi Jinping's visit, which covers neighboring Central Asia, focuses on the Eurasian continent and reflect global changes, is yet another successful practice and vivid embodiment of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. Over the past ten years since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, China, through vigorous and determined endeavor, has overcome difficulties and made pioneering and historic achievements in its diplomatic work. In the new era, China has pursued its development in the context of human development, and constantly pooled the greatest common denominator of the interests of the Chinese people and the people of other countries. China has firmly stood on the right side of history and followed the trend of the times. We have pursued the right path, brought benefits to the world, and enjoyed popular support. The 20th National Congress of the CPC soon to be held will sound a new clarion call, and China's diplomatic cause will also embark on a new journey. We must unite more closely around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, follow Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, especially Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, strive to break new ground in major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and continuously make new contributions to building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting world peace and development!
Former police officer charged with shooting teenager on bail in U.S. Texas

Xinhua) 10:19, October 13, 2022

HOUSTON, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- A former police officer on charge of shooting a 17-year-old who was eating at a McDonald's parking lot in San Antonio of the U.S. state of Texas was released on bond on Wednesday, authorities said.

James Brennand was arrested on Tuesday night and charged with two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office. He was released after posting 100,000-U.S.-dollar bond for each count.

The victim, identified as Erik Cantu, has been in critical condition after being shot multiple times on Oct. 2 by Brennand, a probationary officer with seven months of experience responding to an unrelated disturbance call at the time. Brennand has since been fired.

Cantu was on life support and non-responsive, Cantu's family said on Tuesday in a statement released to local media outlets.

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said on Tuesday that the charges would change if Cantu succumbs to his injuries.

"It was unjustified, both administratively and criminally," McManus told reporters.

The charges and arrest came within hours of a protest held in front of San Antonio Police Department's headquarters demanding Brennand's arrest on Tuesday.

A pre-hearing is set for Nov. 23, according to Bexar County Jail records.

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)
Toronto, Oct. 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Monitored wildlife populations  mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish  have seen a devastating 69 per cent drop on average since 1970 according to WWFs Living Planet Report (LPR) 2022. The report highlights the stark outlook of the state of nature and urgently warns governments, businesses and the public to take transformative action to reverse the destruction of biodiversity.

The LPR found that populations of species in North America declined by an average of 20 per cent between 1970 and 2018, and while this decline is not as steep as other regions, it does not mean that Canada is safe from catastrophic losses. In fact, the Living Planet Report Canada 2020 showed that species of global conservation concern  assessed as threatened on the IUCN Red List  declined in Canada by 42%, on average, from 19702016.

With its biggest dataset yet, featuring almost 32,000 populations of 5,230 species, the Living Planet Index (LPI), provided within the report by ZSL (Zoological Society of London), shows it is within tropical regions that monitored vertebrate wildlife populations are plummeting at a particularly staggering rate.

The biggest declines globally were seen in monitored freshwater populations, which have fallen by an average of 83 per cent. Habitat loss and barriers to migration routes are responsible for about half of the threats to monitored migratory fish species.

The Living Planet Report contains shocking figures directly related to our interlinked climate and biodiversity crises and in response we must see transformative systems change if were to halt and reverse nature loss and secure a flourishing future for people and nature, said Dr Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International. Government leaders must step up at COP15. The world is watching.

The report comes at a pivotal time. World leaders are due to meet at the 15th Conference of Parties to the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD COP15) this December in Montreal for a once-in-a-decade opportunity to course-correct for the sake of people and the planet. WWF is advocating for leaders to commit to a Paris-style agreement capable of reversing biodiversity loss to secure a nature-positive world by 2030.

The findings of the LPR show the urgency with which we need to act as we approach CBD COP15 in Montreal. If we are going to reverse the dramatic species declines shown in this report, its important that Canada recognizes the role protected areas can play in helping us meet global biodiversity targets. Whats more is that when protected areas are established in a way that considers Indigenous rights, biodiversity and climate benefits at the same time, they can help us curb both biodiversity loss and the effects of climate change in a just and equitable way, says Megan Leslie, WWF-Canadas President and CEO.

Dr Andrew Terry, Director of Conservation and Policy at ZSL, said: The Living Planet Index highlights how we have cut away the very foundation of life and the situation continues to worsen. Half of the global economy and billions of people are directly reliant on nature. Preventing further biodiversity loss and restoring vital ecosystems has to be at the top of global agendas to tackle the mounting climate, environmental and public health crises.

Around the world, the report indicates that the main drivers of wildlife population decline are habitat degradation and loss, exploitation, the introduction of invasive species, pollution, climate change and disease.

The LPR report makes clear that delivering a nature-positive future will not be possible without recognising and respecting the rights, governance, and conservation leadership of Indigenous Peoples and local communities around the world.

-ENDS-

Notes to Editors:

For further information and interview requests, please contact:

media@wwfcanada.org

*The 2022 global Living Planet Index (LPI) shows an average 69% decline in monitored vertebrate wildlife populations. The percentage change in the index reflects the average proportional change in animal population sizes tracked over 48 years - not the number of individual animals lost nor the number of populations lost.

the number of individual animals lost nor the number of populations lost. The LPR 2022 is the 14th edition of WWF's biennial flagship publication.

The full Living Planet Report 2022 and summary versions of the report are available. At this link, you will also find B-roll footage and images.

and summary versions of the report are available. At this link, you will also find B-roll footage and images. Please note that successive iterations of the LPI are not directly comparable as they contain different sets of species. It is also important to note that the 1970 baseline holds different significance for the various regions monitored. In Europe and North America, pressures had been impacting species and habitats for many decades prior to 1970 so while the declines in these regions are ostensibly not as steep, it does not mean biodiversity is more intact in these regions. In fact, the reports Biodiversity Intactness Index shows that Europe is one of the regions that scores lowest for biodiversity intactness. Conversely, tropical regions would have started at a more intact baseline in 1970 but have since experienced more rapid changes to their ecosystems.

The LPI is an early warning indicator on the health of nature. This years edition analyses almost 32,000 species populations - with more than 838 new species and just over 11,000 new populations added since the previous report came out in 2020. It provides the most comprehensive measure of how species are responding to pressures in their environment driven by biodiversity loss and climate change, also allowing us to understand the impact of people on biodiversity.

The Fifteenth Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) is scheduled to take place in Montreal, Canada, 7-19 December, under the Presidency of China.

WWF-Canadas Living Planet Report Canada (LPRC) 2020 analyzed wildlife population trends and found that populations of Canadian species assessed as at risk nationally by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) have declined by 59 per cent, on average, from 19702016.

World Wildlife Fund Canada

WWF-Canada is committed to equitable and effective conservation actions that restore nature, reverse wildlife loss and fight climate change. We draw on scientific analysis and Indigenous guidance to ensure all our efforts connect to a single goal: a future where wildlife, nature and people thrive. For more information visit wwf.ca.

WWF

WWF is an independent conservation organization, with over 30 million followers and a global network active in nearly 100 countries. Our mission is to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which people live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world's biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption. Visit panda.org/news for the latest news and media resources; follow us on Twitter @WWF_media







ZSL

ZSL (Zoological Society of London) is an international conservation charity working to create a world where wildlife thrives. From investigating the health threats facing animals to helping people and wildlife live alongside each other, ZSL is committed to bringing wildlife back from the brink of extinction. Our work is realised through our ground-breaking science, our field conservation around the world and engaging millions of people through our two zoos, ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo. For more information, visit www.zsl.org.
This press release was originally disseminated on April 6th, 2022.

ANGUILLA, British West Indies, Oct. 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- KMT-Hansa Corp. (KMT or the Company) announced: (i) the appointment to the Corporations Board of Directors (the Board) of three new directors, (ii) the resignation of the three incumbent directors and (iii) the resignation of KMTs Chief Executive Officer.



The following individuals have been appointed to the Board:

Robert (Bob) Duffield  Mr. Duffield is currently the Executive Chairman of GreyList Trace Limited, a company that has developed a globally unique asset tracing and risk screening technology. Mr. Duffield has been involved in the cyber security sector for over 25 years, prior to which he was an investigative reporter for BBC and Channel 4 television. Bob has two postgraduate degrees in social anthropology from Oxford University and served for 10 years as a Councilman of the Corporation of London and as a sitting member on the City of London Police Committee.





Louis Guiraud  Mr. Guiraud has a BSc and a MSc in Finance from Paris Dauphine University and started his career as a real estate portfolio analyst. He then transitioned to the tech industry and over the past 10 years worked in product innovation and marketing. Recently, Mr. Guiraud was the Go-to-Market and Innovation Director for Connectik Technologies Global Limited, a private company that builds digital ecosystems in emerging markets across industries (health, education, financial inclusion, security, risk management) with the aim of generating inclusive growth in close collaboration with governments and large organisations (e.g. Red Cross, UN). Mr. Guiraud is currently the Chief Product Officer of T4HTechnology for Humanity, a Connectik spin-off.





Jay Vieira - Mr. Vieira is a lawyer specializing in securities and corporate law. Mr. Vieiras practice focuses on financings, mergers and acquisitions and going public transactions. Mr. Vieira represents several mid-market public companies and assists companies in listing on the TSX, the TSX Venture Exchange and the Canadian Securities Exchange. He also represents brokerage firms and has helped numerous clients with their M&A and cross border transactions. Mr. Vieira has a particular expertise with the Capital Pool Company program, and often acts as a strategic advisor to his clients. Mr. Vieira has experience in representing clients in Canada and the US as well as South America, China and Europe. Mr. Vieira acts as a director and officer for several public companies. From 2016 to 2019, Mr. Vieira was Vice President, Corporate & Legal Affairs for Distinct Infrastructure Group Inc., an TSXV listed infrastructure contractor. Prior to joining Distinct Infrastructure Group Inc., Mr. Vieira was a partner at the law firm Blaney McMurtry LLP and Fogler Rubinoff LLP. Mr. Vieira was called to the Ontario Bar in 1999.



Concurrent with the above appointments, each of Edward Chan, Dickson Ng and Jim Sintros have reigned as directors of the Company and Mr. Chan has also resigned as the Chief Executive Officer of KMT. KMT would like to thank Messieurs Chan, Ng and Sintros for their contributions and wish them best of luck in their future endeavours.

The Company also announces that the Board have initiated a review process to explore, review and evaluate a broad range of strategic alternatives. The Boards strategic review process will encompass an evaluation of the Companys current strategic direction, operations, market valuation and capital structure and will consider appropriate alternatives for the Company which may include one or more of the following: continuation as a standalone public company, strategic investor investment, acquisition by or a merger that may involve all or part of our business or assets and any other strategic alternatives that may be identified during its strategic review

For further information please contact:

Jay Vieira

Director and Chief Executive Officer

Email: vieira@kmthansacorp.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.




October 13, 2022

International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital, Tokyo, employs Philips augmented reality (AR) surgical navigation solution to treat first patients in Japan, helping to bring the patient benefits of minimally-invasive spine surgery to Japans aging population

New data published in European Spine Journal on the clinical use of ClarifEye showed a 98% accuracy of pedicle screw placement during minimally invasive procedures, comparable to values reported in literature for other navigation and robotic systems

Amsterdam, the Netherlands  Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, today announced expanded rollout of its augmented reality (AR) surgical navigation solution - ClarifEye - to Japan, highlighting positive results in the first patients treated by the International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital (Tokyo, Japan) using this innovative 3D AR solution. Installed on a Philips interventional X-ray system in a hybrid operating room at Mita Hospital, ClarifEye helped the hospitals orthopedic surgeon Dr. Ken Ishii to successfully treat patients with spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spaces in the spine) and scoliosis (sideways curvature of the spine) via minimally-invasive image-guided procedures.

Due to its aging population, the number of spine surgeries performed each year in Japan continues to increase. Lumbar spinal canal stenosis, the most common spinal disease, is currently found in approximately 10.8% of the countrys 70-79 year olds [1]. In patients with severe symptoms, surgical procedures are typically performed, including excision of the compressed area and fixation of the bone with screws or other fixtures. Traditionally, these fixation devices have been placed through a large incision with direct observation of the affected vertebra. However, they are now increasingly being placed via minimally-invasive procedures performed through small incisions, minimizing bleeding and soft tissue damage, reducing postoperative pain, and making treatment available to patients at risk from the trauma of open surgery. Philips augmented reality surgical navigation solution - ClarifEye - combines 2D and 3D visualizations at low X-ray dose with 3D AR navigation into one system. It enables surgeons to define and navigate critical trajectories for precise device placement while avoiding damage to fragile neurological and vascular structures close to the patients spine.





The benefit of performing spine surgery in the Hybrid OR includes the ability to acquire 3D CT images at low dose, having a lot of space, and being able to use the large monitor, said Dr. Ken Ishii, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, International University of Health and Welfare, Mita Hospital. The addition of a new navigation system helps to create an even safer surgical environment. Compared to existing navigation systems, ClarifEye has no reference frame-related errors, and its wonderful that it achieves real time imaging with pedicle segmentation. ClarifEye is a new technology that truly offers minimally invasive surgery for patients and clinical staff.

Mita Hospitals positive experience of using ClarifEye to deliver the benefits of minimally-invasive therapy to its spine patients mirrors that of hospitals in Europe and the Middle East who also recently adopted the system, said Karim Boussebaa, General Manager Image Guided Therapy Systems at Philips. ClarifEye adds a new dimension in surgical precision for patients. It is a great example of how we are innovating procedures and helping clinicians to deliver on the Quadruple Aim of better health outcomes, improved patient and staff experiences, and lower cost of care.

ClarifEyes live-video computer vision and AR technology uses non-invasive position markers applied to the patients skin to track patient positioning and overlays the resultant live video onto a 3D cone-beam CT of the patients spinal column. It enables surgeons to visualize the outside and inside of the patient in the same image, together with the planned and real-time trajectory of a Philips ClarifEye needle, without the need for live X-ray imaging. The system eliminates the cumbersome reference frames used by other systems, giving surgeons unimpeded access to the patient.



New data in European Spine Journal

Intra-operative image guidance has been shown to increase clinical accuracy and improve outcomes, with patients subject to fewer revision surgeries compared to the previous standard of care [2,3]. Data published in Scientific Reports demonstrated that in open deformity cases, ClarifEye had a better accuracy than similar surgeries performed by the same surgeon with no help from intra-operative navigation (94% vs 89.6%) [4]. In addition, data published in European Spine Journal on the clinical use of ClarifEye for minimal invasive procedures showed a 98% accuracy of pedicle screw placement, which is comparable to values reported in literature for other navigation and robotic systems [5].

Physicians sharing experiences during expert session at EUROSPINE

On 20 October at 12.15-13.15 CET Philips is organizing an expert session (also available online) during the EUROSPINE lunch symposia program. Dr. Peiro, Pediatric spine surgeon at Barcelona Children's Hospital Sant Joan de Deu and Dr. Scarone, neurosurgeon at Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC) Lugano [6], Switzerland will both share their experience with the hybrid OR and using Philips innovative navigation technology for minimally invasive procedures. The session will be moderated by Prof. Dr. Y.P. Charles, MD, PhD Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, France. You can sign up here .





[1] Shoji Y et al, Prevalence of lumbar spinal stenosis, using the diagnostic support tool, and correlated factors in Japan: a population-based study, Journal of Orthopaedic Science, Volume 18, Issue 6, 2013, Pages 893-900, ISSN 0949-2658.

[2] Dea N et al, Economic evaluation comparing intraoperative cone beam C T based navigation and conventional fluoroscopy for the placement of spinal pedicle screws: a patient level data cost effectiveness analysis. The Spine Journal (2016) 16: 23 31.

[3] Fichtner J et al, Revision Rate of Misplaced Pedicle Screws of the Thoracolumbar Spine - Comparison of Three-Dimensional Fluoroscopy Navigation with Freehand Placement: A Systematic Analysis and Review of the Literature. World Neurosurg. (2018) 109: e24 e32.

[4] Elmi-Terander A at el, Augmented reality navigation with intraoperative 3D imaging vs fluoroscopy-assisted free-hand surgery for spine fixation surgery, a matched-control study, Nature Sci. rep. 2020 Jan 20;10(1):707.

[5] Scarone P at el, Percutaneous thoracolumbarsacral pedicle screw placement.

accuracy results from a multicenter, prospective clinical study using a skin markerbased optical navigation system, European Spine Journal, Sept 2022.

[6] Clinica Santa Chiara, Locarno.

For further information, please contact:

Joost Maltha

Philips Global Press Office

Tel: +31 6 10 55 8116

Email: joost.maltha@philips.com

Fabienne van der Feer

Philips Image Guided Therapy

Tel: + 31 622 698 001

E-mail: fabienne.van.der.feer@philips.com

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and well-being, and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum  from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2020 sales of EUR 17.3 billion and employs approximately 78,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at www.philips.com/newscenter .

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Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Gas Engine Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2022-2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global gas engine market reached a value of US$ 5.05 billion in 2021. Looking forward, the market is projected to reach a value of US$ 6.74 billion by 2027, exhibiting a CAGR of 4.70% during 2022-2027. Keeping in mind the uncertainties of COVID-19, the analyst is continuously tracking and evaluating the direct as well as the indirect influence of the pandemic on different End-use industries. These insights are included in the report as a major market contributor.



Gas engines refer to internal combustion engines that operate on various gaseous fuels, such as natural gas, coal gas, producer gas, and biogas. They consist of a fixed cylinder and a moving piston and are widely used as heavy-duty industrial engines capable of running at full load continuously.

They can power automobiles, light trucks, medium-to-large motorcycles, and lawn mowers. Gas engines are more efficient, cost-effective, and reliable than their traditional counterparts that utilized an ignition source, such as a spark or small amount of pilot fuel. They also offer high electrical and thermal efficiency, low maintenance and operation costs, and environmental benefits. As a result, gas engines are rapidly gaining traction across numerous industries, including power generation, manufacturing, oil and gas, utilities, and transportation.



Gas Engine Market Trends



The rising need for clean and efficient power generation technology represents the primary factor driving the market growth. Besides this, the escalating demand for electricity due to rapid industrialization and urbanization, growing population, and infrastructure development has accelerated the adoption of gas engines in electric utilities to handle peak load demand effectively.

Additionally, governments of various countries are taking favorable initiatives, such as the implementation of stringent regulations, for minimizing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and air pollution. Along with this, the rising environmental concerns and the shifting preferences toward renewable energy sources among the masses are propelling the market growth.

Furthermore, the leading manufacturers are making heavy investments in research and development (R&D) activities to launch innovative gas engines to meet the need for higher power outputs and diesel engine standards. Other factors, including the emerging applications in the aerospace industry, easy availability of natural gas, and growing focus toward gas engine-based power plants and distributed power generation, are also anticipated to create a positive market outlook in the upcoming years.





Competitive Landscape



The competitive landscape of the industry has also been examined along with the profiles of the key players being Caterpillar Inc., China Yuchai International Limited, Cummins Inc., Doosan Corporation, General Electric Company, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd., JFE Holdings Inc., Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Rolls-Royce plc, Siemens AG, Volkswagen AG and Wartsila Oyj Abp.



Key Questions Answered in This Report

How has the global gas engine market performed so far and how will it perform in the coming years?

What has been the impact of COVID-19 on the global gas engine market?

What are the key regional markets?

What is the breakup of the market based on the fuel type?

What is the breakup of the market based on the power output?

What is the breakup of the market based on the application?

What is the breakup of the market based on the industry vertical?

What are the various stages in the value chain of the industry?

What are the key driving factors and challenges in the industry?

What is the structure of the global gas engine market and who are the key players?

What is the degree of competition in the industry?

Key Topics Covered:



1 Preface



2 Scope and Methodology



3 Executive Summary



4 Introduction

4.1 Overview

4.2 Key Industry Trends



5 Global Gas Engine Market

5.1 Market Overview

5.2 Market Performance

5.3 Impact of COVID-19

5.4 Market Forecast



6 Market Breakup by Fuel Type

6.1 Natural Gas

6.1.1 Market Trends

6.1.2 Market Forecast

6.2 Special Gas

6.2.1 Market Trends

6.2.2 Market Forecast

6.3 Others

6.3.1 Market Trends

6.3.2 Market Forecast



7 Market Breakup by Power Output

7.1 0.5-1 MW

7.1.1 Market Trends

7.1.2 Market Forecast

7.2 1-2 MW

7.2.1 Market Trends

7.2.2 Market Forecast

7.3 2-5 MW

7.3.1 Market Trends

7.3.2 Market Forecast

7.4 5-10 MW

7.4.1 Market Trends

7.4.2 Market Forecast

7.5 10-20 MW

7.5.1 Market Trends

7.5.2 Market Forecast



8 Market Breakup by Application

8.1 Mechanical Drive

8.1.1 Market Trends

8.1.2 Market Forecast

8.2 Power Generation

8.2.1 Market Trends

8.2.2 Market Forecast

8.3 Cogeneration

8.3.1 Market Trends

8.3.2 Market Forecast

8.4 Others

8.4.1 Market Trends

8.4.2 Market Forecast



9 Market Breakup by Industry Vertical

9.1 Utilities

9.1.1 Market Trends

9.1.2 Market Forecast

9.2 Manufacturing

9.2.1 Market Trends

9.2.2 Market Forecast

9.3 Oil and Gas

9.3.1 Market Trends

9.3.2 Market Forecast

9.4 Mining

9.4.1 Market Trends

9.4.2 Market Forecast

9.5 Others

9.5.1 Market Trends

9.5.2 Market Forecast



10 Market Breakup by Region

11 SWOT Analysis



12 Value Chain Analysis



13 Porters Five Forces Analysis

14 Price Analysis



15 Competitive Landscape

15.1 Market Structure

15.2 Key Players

15.3 Profiles of Key Players

15.3.1 Caterpillar Inc.

15.3.1.1 Company Overview

15.3.1.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.1.3 Financials

15.3.1.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.2 China Yuchai International Limited

15.3.2.1 Company Overview

15.3.2.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.2.3 Financials

15.3.3 Cummins Inc.

15.3.3.1 Company Overview

15.3.3.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.3.3 Financials

15.3.3.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.4 Doosan Corporation

15.3.4.1 Company Overview

15.3.4.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.4.3 Financials

15.3.5 General Electric Company

15.3.5.1 Company Overview

15.3.5.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.5.3 Financials

15.3.5.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.6 Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd.

15.3.6.1 Company Overview

15.3.6.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.7 JFE Holdings Inc.

15.3.7.1 Company Overview

15.3.7.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.7.3 Financials

15.3.7.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.8 Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd.

15.3.8.1 Company Overview

15.3.8.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.8.3 Financials

15.3.8.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.9 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

15.3.9.1 Company Overview

15.3.9.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.9.3 Financials

15.3.9.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.10 Rolls-Royce plc

15.3.10.1 Company Overview

15.3.10.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.10.3 Financials

15.3.10.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.11 Siemens AG

15.3.11.1 Company Overview

15.3.11.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.11.3 Financials

15.3.11.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.12 Volkswagen AG

15.3.12.1 Company Overview

15.3.12.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.12.3 Financials

15.3.12.4 SWOT Analysis

15.3.13 Wartsila Oyj Abp

15.3.13.1 Company Overview

15.3.13.2 Product Portfolio

15.3.13.3 Financials

15.3.13.4 SWOT Analysis

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/75bmpc

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NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kargo today announced that the company has reestablished a presence in the UK to provide local support to the companys growing list of European customers and publisher partners. A next-generation digital advertising platform, Kargo creates GDPR-compliant, memorable ad experiences that capture users attention and drive better outcomes for advertisers.



Kargo delivers exclusive advertising and content experiences across mobile, video and social, providing differentiated interactive commerce formats, attention metrics and other unique features. With more than 98% reach across premium, local UK publishers, UK advertisers already have access to huge scale with Kargos exclusive ad formats. Kargo is integrated with leading UK media companies including BBC, News UK and The Independent.

In the past 12 months, the company has seen more than 80% headcount growth with more than 50 employees based in the UK and across Europe. The company has also made a series of strategic acquisitions including attention-based technology company Parsec, social commerce company StitcherAds, and video player Ziggeo. Kargo has now dramatically expanded its footprint beyond its mobile-first roots to truly differentiate digital advertising experiences across channels.

"Kargo and News Corp have a strong history of using creative mobile advertising approaches to connect our premium publishers to many global blue-chip brands. We see Kargo as a strategic global revenue partner, and we are excited to welcome them back to the UK," said David Rowley at News Corp.

We are thrilled to be reconnecting with many of our publishers in the UK, said Tal Almany at Kargo. UK and European brands deserve performant creative and media capabilities which are pillars of Kargos offerings.

About Kargo

Kargo creates memorable digital advertising and content experiences. With a suite of impactful, exclusive advertising solutions, brands choose Kargo to make customer connections that count. Kargo is the leader for unique ad placements, with creative options that make the most of mobile, video and social media. For publishers, Kargo delivers technology that dramatically improves viewer experience, as well as inventory and page performance. Headquartered in NYC, Kargo is 400 employees strong with offices across the globe.

Contact:

Emily Riley

Riley Strategic LLC

914-330-1128

emily@rileystrategic.com
Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Metaverse Market for Automotive by Products (Software, Hardware), Technology (Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), Non-fungible Token (NFT), Blockchain), Function, Application & Region - Forecast to 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.





The global metaverse market for automotive is projected to grow from USD 1.9 Billion in 2022 to USD 16.5 Billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 31.4%. The concept of digital twin factories and virtual showrooms in the virtual space is in trend among automotive OEMs and dealers at present and has triggered the growth of the automotive metaverse industry.

Many software companies and startups have developed AR/VR technologies and are still doing research and development towards the incorporation of metaverse applications in the automotive sector. Users and customers are showing their interest in the NFTs and crypto to be used in the asset marketplace in the virtual space.

Metaverse technologies have made things much more convenient in the field of simulation and testing the vehicle. The metaverse market for automotive is dominated by established players such as NVIDIA (US), Roblox Corporation (US), Unity Technologies (US), Meta Platforms Inc. (US), and WayRay (Switzerland). They develop products and provide service offerings for the automotive metaverse ecosystem.

Advertisement applications to be leveraged at a higher level by automotive manufacturers and dealers during the forecast period.

Many automotive manufacturers and dealers have leveraged metaverse technologies to showcase their products in virtual space. OEMs have leveraged NFT releases, new product launches (of automobiles), virtual marketing events, and other resources. Meta, for instance, has been selling virtual billboards as part of its metaverse. The company has allowed dealerships to sell cars directly through its online platform and allowed digital purchase rights of virtual estates for showrooms. Many local dealerships across regions have leveraged this platform. With the rising usage of metaverse, the market for advertising in the metaverse will grow exponentially, with companies finding new ways to advertise on these platforms. The concept of virtual showrooms has grown rapidly across the automotive industry, where companies can advertise their products virtually without leveraging actual cars. The company plans to reduce costs by launching its cars only in the virtual space.

North America is likely to be the largest market during the forecast period.

North America has the largest metaverse market for the automotive industry. Software is expected to be the largest segment in this region, with top software and metaverse platform providers like Roblox, Unity Technologies, Epic Games, Upland, and Sandbox, among others, present in this region. The presence of top metaverse hardware providers like Microsoft, Meta, NVIDIA, and Qualcomm, among others, and a large part of the population using metaverse will make this the largest metaverse market for automotive. The US is expected to lead the market in this region due to the presence of most metaverse ecosystem providers in the country. Metaverse software and platform providers like Roblox (US), Unity Technologies (US), Upland (US), Sandbox (US), and Epic Games (US) have been key players in this region. These companies have been working with OEMs to provide software for the metaverse market for automotive. Roblox and Unity Technologies have worked with Hyundai for metaverse solutions. Similarly, Ferrari has worked with Epic Games for its metaverse offering for digital assets.

Premium Insights

OEM Shift to Metaverse-based Advertisements to Drive Market

Software to be Largest Segment

MR to Grow at Faster Rate

Virtual Platforms/Spaces to Occupy Largest Share

Advertising to Lead Market During Forecast Period

North America Projected to be the Largest Market

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Brand Promotions for Automotive OEMs Using Gamification

Growing Demand for Automobile Simulators in Related Industries

Availability of Affordable Hardware

Use of Metaverse in Automotive Design

Wider Adoption of AR/VR Across Industries

Restraints

Installation and Maintenance Cost of High-End Components

Health and Mental Issues from Extended Use

Opportunities

Incorporation of Metaverse in Automotive Infotainment

Continuous Developments in 5G and Higher Band Technologies

Virtual Experience as a Trial Before Buying Automobiles

Challenges

Cybersecurity and Privacy Challenges

Local Government Restrictions with Environmental Impact

Key Topics Covered:

1 Introduction

2 Research Methodology

3 Executive Summary

4 Premium Insights

5 Market Overview

6 Metaverse Market for Automotive, by Offering

7 Metaverse Market for Automotive, by Product

8 Metaverse Market for Automotive, by Technology

9 Metaverse Market for Automotive, by Application

10 Metaverse Market for Automotive, by Region

11 Competitive Landscape

12 Company Profiles

13 Analyst's Recommendations

14 Appendix

Companies Mentioned

Aston Martin

Automotive OEMs

BMW Group

Carcivic

Carzso

Decentraland

Epic Games

General Motors

Holo-Light

Holoride

Honda Motor Company

Hyperlink Infosystem

Hyundai Motor Company

Infiniteworld

Jidu Auto

Mercedes-Benz AG

Meta Platforms Inc.

Metavrse

Mg Motors

Microsoft

Nissan Motors

Nvidia

Oxbotica

Qualcomm

Roblox Corporation

Sandbox

Somnium Space

Sony Corporation

Tata Motors

Tech Mahindra

Terranet Ab

Toyota Motor Corporation

Unity Technologies

Upland

Varjo

Volkswagen AG

Volvo

Wayray

Xr Labs

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/rgzzzu

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Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Fiber Reinforced Polymer Rebars Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Resin Type, Fiber Type, and Application" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) rebars market is expected to grow from US$ 215.88 million in 2021 and is projected to reach US$ 421.02 million by 2028; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.2% from 2022 to 2028.



Reinforced concrete is a composite material that can perform its designated functions only if an adequate bond exists between the reinforcement and concrete. Generally, a steel reinforcing bar is used as reinforcement in concrete structures. FRP rebars have great potential to overcome challenges such as structural and durability deficiencies.

FRP rebars have several advantages over conventional steel; it has higher tensile strength and fatigue resistance and lower creep deformation and unit weight. FRP rebars have been used as internal reinforcements for concrete structures. Their primary advantages over common reinforcing steel rebars rely on their lightness, durability, mechanical properties, and electromagnetic neutrality. For this application, interfacial properties between the rebars and surrounding concrete play a significant role in the mechanical performance of the reinforced concrete structure.



Based on application, the market is segmented into highway bridge and construction, marine structures and waterfronts, water treatment plants, and others. In 2021, the highway bridge and construction segment held the largest share in the market. Increased government spending on infrastructure development projects such as highways has led to the dominance of the highway bridge and construction segment.



Based on geography, the fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) rebars market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), South & Central America (SAM), and the Middle East and Africa (MEA). In 2021, North America dominated the market. Growing construction activities with increased government spending on infrastructure development led to the dominance of North America in the fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) rebars market.



The chemicals & materials industry faced unprecedented challenges upon the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The shortage of raw materials and manpower, the shutdown of factories, and other operational difficulties associated with COVID-19 safety protocols adversely affected the fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) rebars market. The lockdown measures heavily impacted the supply and production of FRP rebars.

As the construction industry is susceptible to economic cycles, construction companies and workers were particularly exposed to the consequences of a sharp decline in economic activity amid the pandemic. Operational shutdown in the construction industry varied by location and project type, depending on the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the timing and stringency of containment measures.

According to European Commission, construction output in the European Union grew by 3.9% in January 2022 compared to December 2021; construction production in Europe similarly increased by 3.9%. Nevertheless, the successful implementation of mass vaccination drives in 2021 resulted in a rise in business activities. With economies reviving their operations, the demand for FRP rebars is expected to rise globally in the coming years as key FRP rebars manufacturers have started resuming their operations, along with restoring their normal production capacities.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction



2. Key Takeaways



3. Research Methodology



4. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market Landscape



5. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market - Key Market Dynamics



6. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars - Market Analysis



7. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market Analysis - By Resin Type



8. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market Analysis - By Fiber Type



9. Global Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market Analysis - Application



10. Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Rebars Market - Geographic Analysis



11. Impact of COVID-19



12. Industry Landscape



13. Company Profiles



14. Appendix



Companies Mentioned

Owens Corning

Kodiac Fiberglass Rebar

Marshall Composite Technologies, LLC-

Tuf-Bar

Armastek USA

Pultron Composites

FiRep Inc.

Pultrall, Inc.

Schock Bauteile GmbH

Dextra Group

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/moyub9

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Isle of Man, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Douglas Insights is continuing to add more markets to its comparison engine. It has recently added the Root Beer Market engine to its database. The reports involve everything from drivers and opportunities to restraints. It's a compilation that allows for opinions by market researchers and even analysts regarding the growth of a market. Douglas Insights is the world's first comparison engine for market research reports. It has access to all information, allowing the company to understand the private and public markets.

Compare the report and make your decision - https://douglasinsights.com/root-beer-market

Market Overview:

Root beer is a drink that people or manufacturers can brew using different kinds of roots and herbs. Some of the more common roots used for artificial beverages are the sassafras roots. These modern root beers are carbonated soft drinks that are generally quite sweet and have a lot of foam. Initially, root beer used to be a more medicinal beverage, but it has quickly become one of the most popular non-alcoholic drinks in America.

The root beer market is likely to grow over the next few years. It can also be segmented differently depending on various features such as alcohol content, distribution channels, etc. The COVID-19 pandemic created a lot of distribution issues that affected the demand for the root beer market. Root beers can also be carbonated or non-carbonated, depending on the company. There is also a rise in disposable income amongst people, which allows them to go to more restaurants and spend their money on all kinds of food and drink. People are also okay with spending more money on root beer if it's premium.

Market Growth Drivers

There is also a growing need for artisanal drinks, including all kinds of root beer which drives the market demand forward. Other factors include the growing global population and the rising amount of restaurants and bars. People are also more likely to know about root beer because of the growing implementation of American culture. There also arent as many rules and regulations regarding the operation of this kind of beer which helps create a better preference for the manufacture of this root beer.

Request for Free Sample: https://douglasinsights.com/report/2882?sample=true

There is also an increasing need for new and innovative flavors for root beer, driving market demand. Root beers are top-rated as they manage to be both spicy and sweet. Root flavors are now readily available in many different flavors, which will drive the market forward. Unlike traditional beers, there is a lot more variety in the kind of root beers available in the market. They have a unique flavor that makes them stand out from other beers.

There is also the fact that many people are opting for non-alcoholic drinks nowadays as there is growing awareness regarding the harmful effects of alcohol in peoples lives. Many people want a spicy drink that doesn't have alcohol content, and root beer is quite an excellent option.

However, with all the drivers, there are also certain restraints. The significant limitations are that root beer can sometimes be alcoholic, depending on the kind of beer you opt for. There is an increase in the campaigns against alcohol which will restrict the market growth. The other restriction is that many people don't like the taste and think it's not very interesting compared to some of the beer flavors available in the market. This distaste could be because people have a lot of choices due to the increased flavored alcohol readily available, which may restrict the market growth significantly. However, there are opportunities for growth since root beer is something that competitors can remarket with newer flavors.

Root Beer Market Report Coverage

Report Attributes Details Market Size in 2021 $697 Mn Market Size Projection in 2031 $XX Mn CAGR (2021-2028) 4.5% Largest Market North America Growth Drivers Growing need for artisanal drinks, Growing global population, The rising amount of restaurants and bars & Strategic investment by key players Segmentation By Product, By Type, and By Distribution Channel Regional Analysis North America (US, Canada), Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Rest of Latin America), Europe (U.K, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Russia and Rest of Europe), APAC (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia, ASEAN and Rest of Asia Pacific), ME (GCC Countries, Israel, and Rest of Middle East) & Africa (South Africa, North Africa and Central Africa) Key Companies Covered Keurig Dr. Pepper, Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC., Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Co., Dad's Root Beer, Sprecher Brewing Co. Inc., The Berghoff, Bundaberg Brewed Drinks, Whole Foods Market IP, L.P., Warped Wing Soda Co, Stewarts Restaurants, Inc.

Segmentations

By Product

Alcoholic

Non-Alcoholic

By Type

Conventional

Diet

By Distribution Channel

On-Trade

Off-Trade

Key questions answered in this report

COVID 19 impact analysis on global Root Beer industry.

What are the current market trends and dynamics in the Root Beer market and valuable opportunities for emerging players?

What is driving Root Beer market?

What are the key challenges to market growth?

Which segment accounts for the fastest CAGR during the forecast period?

Which product type segment holds a larger market share and why?

Are low and middle-income economies investing in the Root Beer market?

Key growth pockets on the basis of regions, types, applications, and end-users

What is the market trend and dynamics in emerging markets such as Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa?

Unique data points of this report

Statistics on Root Beer and spending worldwide

Recent trends across different regions in terms of adoption of Root Beer across industries

Notable developments going on in the industry

Attractive investment proposition for segments as well as geography

Comparative scenario for all the segments for years 2018 (actual) and 2031 (forecast)

Compare the report and make your decision - https://douglasinsights.com/root-beer-market

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Similar Market Research Report Comparisons:

Saffron Beer Market : The global Saffron Beer Market is projected to grow in the foreseen years. Saffron Beer is a luxury, handcrafted beer and a premium alcohol product. Saffron is a naturally occurring luxury spice with a distinct taste and aroma.

Craft Beer Market : Rapidly expanding craft and small brewery businesses are further expected to assist in flourishing the global sector. However, access to other alcohol-based beverages can hamper the markets development.

Ginger Beer Market : The Ginger Beer Market is a niche market that has seen significant growth in recent years. The popularity of ginger beer has exploded in recent years, with more and more people looking for the unique flavor that it offers. This demand has led to a sharp increase in the number of ginger beer brands on the market, as well as a corresponding increase in the amount of money being spent on ginger beer each year.

Beer Cans Market : The North American region is expected to be the largest market for beer cans, due to the high consumption of alcohol in the region. Europe is also expected to be a key market for beer cans due to the growing popularity of craft beers.

About Douglas Insights-

Douglas Insights UK limited is the first company to provide comparison of market research reports by Table of content, price, ratings and number of pages. We understand the value of time. Productivity and efficiency are possible when you take prompt and assured decisions. With our advanced algorithm, filters, and comparison engine, you can compare your preferred reports simultaneously, based on publisher rating, published date, price, and list of tables. Our data portal enables you to find and review the reports from several publishers. You can evaluate numerous reports on the same screen and select the sample for your best match.
Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Essential Oils Market By Product Type, Application (Food & beverages, Cosmetics & Toiletries, Aromatherapy, Home Care, and Health Care), Source (Fruits & Vegetables, Herbs & Spices, Flowers), Method of Extraction and Region - Global Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global essential oils market size is estimated to be valued at USD 8.8 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 15.3 billion by 2027, recording a CAGR of 11.8% in terms of value

The essential oils market is driven by the rise in the use of essential oils in the food & beverage industry like- candies, confectionery, pickles, and soft drinks and in aromatherapy in treating numerous disorders such as mental illnesses, respiratory infections, digestive control, olfactory disorders, and sleep disorders, among others.

Essential oil is a potent aromatic component isolated from an odoriferous plant of a single botanical species. It is highly concentrated and volatile and is made of various chemical constituents, which give it the characteristic fragrance that is inherent to its parent plant.

Furthermore, the use of essential oils in the food industry, as antioxidants, flavorings, or colorants, has also increased, and they can also be used for food preservation. The use of essential oils to improve both food safety and shelf-life of meat products has been mostly used in food products, mainly in fresh beef, chicken, lamb, or rabbit meat.

By application, the aromatherapy is projected to grow rapidly during the forecast period

The rising popularity of aromatherapy and other alternative medicine is increasing in demand, as are the relaxing effects of essential oils when applied through a massage. The health industry has begun to incorporate essential oils in aromatherapy applications to treat Alzheimer's, bronchitis, and various cardiovascular problems.

Changing lifestyles and their consequences, such as high stress and depression, along with increasing disposable incomes, results in an increase in demand for aromatherapy. Ginger oil, pine oil, oregano oil, and wintergreen oil are some of the essential oils used on a large scale in alternative therapies.

The National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA), the Alliance of International Aroma Therapists, and The Canadian Federation of Aroma Therapists have established standards for aromatherapy certification in the US and Canada. This would allow the essential oil industry to use different oils for various aromatherapy products, globally.

By type, the orange essential oil is widely used in all the domains due to the presence of the high amount of vitamin C and appealing fragrance

Oranges are full of vitamin C and offer several health advantages. The rind of the sweet orange, Citrus synesis, is used to make orange essential oil. Cold pressing, a technique used to extract the oils from the rind, is used to accomplish this. Brazil is the leading orange producer in the world producing about 30% of the world's output.

Orange oil, which is energetic, is one of the most widely used options in aromatherapy. The oil can decrease various kinds of pain such as inflammation, muscle spasms, tissue damage, pain from bone fractures, headache, etc.

The Asia Pacific market is being driven by an increase in demand for domestic products brought on by an expanding middle class

The Asia Pacific region is mostly segmented into India, China, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, and Rest of Asia pacific. The improving standard of living and high per capita income in the region, along with higher expenditure, are driving up the demand for essential oils, which has been significantly influenced by the growth of the wellness and leisure sectors.

The demand for citrus-based essential oils like orange and lemon has also attracted a lot of consumer interest in some of nations. The product is becoming more widely used in the personal care and household products sectors, and the usage of citrus essential oil in tastes, odorants, and pharmaceutical substances has lately increased.

With emerging economies, growing industrialization, increasing demand for processed foods, and consumer preference for quality products, ingredient suppliers are becoming increasingly optimistic about the growth of the food & beverage industry.

Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 352 Published September 2022 Forecast Period 2022 - 2027 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2022 $ 8.8 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2027 $ 15.3 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 11.8% Regions Covered Global

Market Dynamics

Macroeconomic Indicators



Rise in Depression and Anxiety Disorders

Increasing Demand for Organic Food

Drivers

Increase in Demand for Aromatherapy

Increasing Demand for Natural Ingredients and Clean Label Products

Increased Use of Essential Oils in Homecare Products

Use of Essential Oils as an Additive in Feed

Demand for Essential Oils in Cosmetic & Fragrance Industry

Restraints

Depletion of Natural Resources

Side Effects Associated with Specific Essential Oils

Opportunities

Powdered Essential Oil to Create New Opportunities

Challenges

Prevalence of Synthetic/Adulterated Products

Leading players profiled in this report:

Cargill, Incorporated (US)

DSM (Netherlands)

Givaudan (Switzerland)

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (US)

Sensient Technologies Corporation (US)

Symrise (Germany)

Robertet SA (France)

MANE (France)

doTERRA (US)

NOW Foods (US)

Lebermuth, Inc. (US)

BIOLANDES (France)

Norex Flavours Private Limited (India)

India Essential Oils (India)

Falcon (India)

FAROTTI S.r.l. (Italy)

Rocky Mountains Oils, LCC (US)

Young Living Essential Oils, LC. (US)

Essential Oils of New Zealand Ltd. (New Zealand)

VedaOils (India)

HCP Wellness (India)

Vital Herbs (India)

CV Rasayana Wangi (Indonesia)

Alchemy Chemicals (India)

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/s7reod

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Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) Analyzers: Global Market" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The current report provides detailed exposure to the in vitro diagnostic analyzer market. This report highlights the current and future market potential of in vitro diagnostic analyzers along with a detailed analysis of the drivers, challenges and opportunities in the market.

Due to recent rapid technological advancements and automation, the range and complexity of diagnostic tests have increased significantly. Disease detection is now possible before the appearance of symptoms, predicting beneficial and adverse treatment outcomes.

The growing focus on point-of-care (POC) diagnostics leads to the development of compact and portable analyzers. As more IVD tests become compatible with POC environments, healthcare providers may take advantage of evolving IVDs to effectively treat life-threatening illness, optimizing healthcare delivery.



The report also covers market projections to 2026 and market rank for key market players. It covers the competitive environment, patent analysis and regulatory scenario. The report details the market shares of IVD analyzers based on test type, automation, design, application and end-user.

The market is segmented into immunoassay analyzers, clinical chemistry, hematology and hemostasis analyzers, molecular diagnostic analyzers, POC analyzers and others based on test type. By automation, analyzers are categorized into semi-automated and fully automated analyzers. Applications are infectious disease, diabetes, oncology, cardiology, nephrology and others.

The market is segmented into hospitals, diagnostic centers, pharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations and academic research institutes, by end users.

This report includes the company profiles of key players with detailed information about business segments, financials, product portfolios and recent developments. The report also describes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on this market.

This report will provide a detailed analysis of key factors governing the growth of the IVD analyzers industry, providing strategic insights and recommendations for those looking to expand.

Company profiles of major players, including Abbott Laboratories, Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc., Quidel Corp, Roche and Siemens Healthineers AG



Report Includes

27 data tables and 22 additional tables

An overview of the global market for In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) analyzers

Estimation of the market size and analyses of global market trends, with data from 2019 to 2021 and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2026

Characterization and quantification of market potential for In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) analyzers by region, type, automation, application, therapeutic area and end user

Information on new detection technologies and description of technological advances in fluidics for POC testing

Coverage of regulatory landscape, product recalls, pipeline products, and discussion on future perspective, strategies, and developments of the industry

Identification of market drivers, restraints and other forces impacting the global market and evaluation of current market trends, market size and market forecast

Market share analysis of the key companies of the industry and coverage of events like mergers & acquisitions, joint ventures, collaborations or partnerships, and other key market strategies and a relevant patent analysis

Key Topics Covered:



Chapter 1 Introduction

Study Goals and Objectives

Reasons for Doing this Study

Scope of Report

Methodology

Geographic Breakdown

Analyst's Credentials

Custom Research

Related Research Reports

Chapter 2 Summary and Highlights

Highlights of the Market for Ivd Analyzers

Chapter 3 Ivd Analyzers Market: Background and Technology

In Vitro Diagnostic (Ivd) Analyzer Overview

Chapter 4 Market Dynamics

Market Dynamics

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Opportunities

Ivds for Neglected Infectious Diseases

New Detection Technologies

Technology Advancements

Multiple Detection in a Single Instrument

Chapter 5 Market Breakdown by Analyzer Type

Immunoassay Analyzers

Clinical Chemistry Analyzers

Hematology and Hemostasis Analyzers

Molecular Diagnostic Analyzers

Point-Of-Care (Poc) Analyzers

Other Analyzers

Chapter 6 Market Breakdown by Automation

Semi-Automated Analyzers

Fully Automated Analyzers

Chapter 7 Market Breakdown by Therapeutic Area

Infectious Diseases

Diabetes

Oncology

Cardiology

Nephrology

Other Therapeutic Areas

Chapter 8 Market Breakdown by End-user

Global Market for Ivd Analyzers by End-user

Diagnostic Laboratories

Hospitals and Clinics

Research Institutions

Other End-users

Chapter 9 Market Breakdown by Region

Global Market for Ivd Analyzers, by Region

North America

U.S.

Canada

Mexico

Europe

Germany

U.K.

France

Rest of Europe

Asia-Pacific

China

Australia

Japan

Rest of Asia-Pacific

Rest of the World

Chapter 10 Regulatory Scenario

Ivd Regulations in North America

United States

Canada

Mexico

Ivd Regulations in Europe

Ivd Regulations in Asia-Pacific

Ivd Regulations in Row (Latin America, Africa and Middle East)

Chapter 11 Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic

Impact of Covid-19 on the Ivd Analyzer Market

Covid-19 Impact on Device Manufacturers

Chapter 12 Competitive Landscape

Market Share Analysis

Recent Developments of Key Market Players

Chapter 13 Company Profiles

Abbott Laboratories

Becton, Dickinson and Company

Biomerieux Sa

Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc.

Danaher

Ekf Diagnostics Holdings plc

Mindray Medical International Ltd.

Quidel Corp.

Roche Diagnostics Corp.

Siemens Healthineers AG

Sysmex

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/9v0v6h

Attachment
Boston, MA and Memphis, TN, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital today announced the largest academic collaboration of its kind to transform and accelerate the identification of vulnerabilities in pediatric cancers and translate them into better treatments.

The collaboration is supported by a new joint funding investment by all three institutions of more than $60 million over five years. This investment will support infrastructure development and scientific work by a team currently composed of more than 80 collaborating investigators, data scientists and research staff. The effort is expected to reach 100 members as each institution adds employees.

By combining the intellectual leadership, technical expertise and institutional resources of the three institutions, this new collaboration is designed to address critical gaps in knowledge related to the biological basis of childhood cancer, and how it might more effectively be treated. The Pediatric Cancer Dependencies Accelerator project, notable for its large scale of investment, number of collaborating scientists and scientific scope, will accelerate progress in the development of new treatments for aggressive childhood cancers by:

Developing and deploying genome editing techniques to identify hidden vulnerabilities (dependencies) in a range of high-risk childhood brain, solid and blood cancers.

Leveraging emerging technologies to characterize the genetic and epigenetic landscape of pediatric cancers.

Developing model systems where none currently exist for high-risk childhood cancers that have poor outcomes.

Identifying effective combination therapies and mechanisms of drug resistance and shortening the timeline for developing new therapies.

Developing computational approaches to mine and integrate data and developing innovative software tools for data sharing.

The project is co-led by Charles W.M. Roberts, MD, PhD, St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center director, Kimberly Stegmaier, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, vice chair of Pediatric Oncology Research, and Francisca Vazquez, PhD, Broad Institute Cancer Dependency Map Project director.

Despite many advances, cancer remains the number one cause of death by disease for children in the U.S., Roberts said. It can take decades in a research lab to understand mechanisms and develop new treatments. Through this project, we believe we can now leapfrog barriers to rapidly identify therapeutic vulnerabilities in childhood cancer and translate those into targeted therapies in the clinic much faster.

Our first-generation Pediatric Cancer Dependency Map project was wildly successful but just the tip of the iceberg, Stegmaier said. I am so excited about this unprecedented collaboration among three extraordinary institutions. The PedDep Accelerator will uncover novel, and much needed, new therapeutic targets while also revealing the mechanistic underpinnings of a wide range of childhood cancers, providing a treasure trove of data for our research community.

"The PedDep Accelerator exemplifies the power of deep collaboration and of bringing a multidisciplinary team together across institutions to tackle an important disease challenge that affects children worldwide," Vazquez said. "Through data sharing and tool development, we are committed to creating a resource that the scientific community can leverage to make a real impact on childhood cancers. I am excited to see the impact this project will have on the pace of therapeutic discovery for pediatric tumors."

Pediatric cancer: An opportunity for innovation and discovery

The collaboration builds on groundbreaking research initiatives from each institution. Over the past decade, the St. Jude-Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project and other large-scale sequencing efforts have yielded rich insights into the genomic landscape of pediatric cancers, including the understanding that most disease-driving genetic mutations are not druggable. Developing precision therapies will require identifying cancer dependencies and vulnerabilities that are not revealed by mining genomic datasets alone.

The Cancer Dependency Map (DepMap) Initiative at Broad has developed extensive, world-class datasets and computational infrastructure that has impacted research and target discovery programs worldwide. Launched in 2015, the Pediatric Cancer Dependency Map Project (PedDep) served as a proof-of-concept to apply the DepMap approach to childhood cancers. For example, whole-genome CRISPR screens have now been effectively deployed at scale to identify vulnerabilities in hundreds of adult cancers, and proof of principle has been established that these approaches can also identify weaknesses in childhood cancers, which often have much simpler genomes. Large-scale drug screening capabilities have also been developed. That infrastructure and expertise will be leveraged and expanded through this effort.

The project will rely on modeling expertise from St. Jude and Dana-Farber in the creation of patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models that use cancer cells from patients, and thus more closely match the biology of the disease as it appears in the clinic. Computational biologists at St. Jude will contribute a breadth of expertise on the analyses of epigenomic and genomic characterizations, data visualization and the development of computational pipelines. Additionally, St. Jude infrastructure will facilitate combination drug screening and in vivo CRISPR- and drug-screening approaches.

Cross-functional groups will include Broad, Dana-Farber and St. Jude investigators, focusing on three core disease areas (brain tumors, hematological malignancies and solid tumors) and bringing to bear pan-cancer expertise in data science, functional genomics and large-scale drug screening. Together, researchers at these institutions will enhance and accelerate progress by combining unique strengths and resources to address the greatest challenges to understanding and treating pediatric cancers.

###

About the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard was launched in 2004 to empower this generation of creative scientists to transform medicine. The Broad Institute seeks to describe the molecular components of life and their connections; discover the molecular basis of major human diseases; develop effective new approaches to diagnostics and therapeutics; and disseminate discoveries, tools, methods, and data openly to the entire scientific community.

Founded by MIT, Harvard, Harvard-affiliated hospitals, and the visionary Los Angeles philanthropists Eli and Edythe L. Broad, the Broad Institute includes faculty, professional staff, and students from throughout the MIT and Harvard biomedical research communities and beyond, with collaborations spanning over a hundred private and public institutions in more than 40 countries worldwide. For further information about the Broad Institute, go to http://www.broadinstitute.org.

About Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is one of the worlds leading cancer centers with a unique and equal balance of cancer research and treatment. Dana-Farbers mission is to reduce the burden of cancer through scientific inquiry, clinical care, education, community engagement, and advocacy. Dana-Farber is a federally designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School.

We provide the latest treatments in cancer for adults through Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center and for children through Dana-Farber/Boston Childrens Cancer and Blood Disorders Center. Dana-Farber is the only hospital nationwide with a top 5 U.S. News & World Report Best Cancer Hospital ranking in both adult and pediatric care.

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and cures childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to 80% since the hospital opened 60 years ago. St. Jude freely shares the breakthroughs it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing and food  so families can focus on helping their child live. To learn more, visit stjude.org or follow St. Jude on social media at @stjuderesearch.

Media Relations Contacts

Karen Zusi-Tran  Broad Institute

Desk: (617) 714-8600

kzusi@broadinstitute.org

Ellen Berlin  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Desk: (617) 632-5357

Ellen_berlin@dfci.harvard.edu

Emily Gest  St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital

Desk: (901) 595-0260

Cell: (901) 568-9869

emily.gest@stjude.org

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LAS VEGAS, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dr. Andrea Small-Howard, President and Chief Science Officer of Gb Sciences (OTCQB:GBLX), a leading plant-inspired, biopharmaceutical research and drug development company, is demonstrating the potential efficacy of their proprietary cannabis-inspired mixtures today at the Canna Pharma 2022 Conference in San Diego, California. Dr. Small-Howard explains Gb Sciences' novel process for developing disease-specific, cannabinoid therapeutics in her presentation entitled "Case Studies: Identification of Minimum Essential Therapeutic Mixtures from Cannabis Plant Extracts by Screening in Cell and Animal Models." Gb Sciences' case studies include scientific evidence demonstrating the potential efficacy of their cannabinoid-based therapeutic mixtures designed to treat Parkinson's disease, chronic pain, or inflammation using their novel minimal essential mixture approach.

"Medicinal cannabis has shown great promise for the symptomatic treatment of many serious human disorders, but concerns around safety, consistency, legality, psychoactivity, and non-standardized routes of delivery, such as smoking and vaping, have slowed the adoption of the use of medical cannabis within traditional, physician-guided patient treatment programs. To address these challenges, we hypothesized that within Cannabis plant extracts, there would be a minimal essential mixture of compounds that preserves whole plant benefits, but with the manufacturing, quality control, and regulatory benefits of single ingredient therapies," said Dr. Andrea Small-Howard.

Minimal essential mixtures (MEM) is a term Gb Sciences has coined from their proprietary research after deeming that a simplified mixture represented a happy medium between whole plant medicines and single ingredient drugs. Minimum Essential Mixtures are designed to retain increased therapeutic effectiveness from molecular synergies within the original plant extracts, but with the manufacturing efficiencies, quality assurances, and regulatory advantages of single ingredient drugs. Gb Sciences' disease-specific MEM are produced for clinical evaluation using synthetic homologs of cannabis-based ingredients incorporated into sophisticated oral delivery modalities including Oral Dissolving Tablets (ODT), Oral Thin Films (OTF), time-released oral nanoparticles, and gel capsules to increase the stability, bioavailability, and ease-of-use of these ingredients relative to the non-standardized delivery methods used for Cannabis plant extracts.

Gb Sciences was recently published in Pharma's Almanac discussing the strategy behind their plant-inspired minimum essential mixtures, which provides context for the case studies being presented today.

To learn more about Gb Sciences, visit www.gbsciences.com.

About Gb Sciences and GbS Global Biopharma

Gb Sciences, Inc. is a plant-inspired, biopharmaceutical research and development company creating patented, disease-targeted formulations of cannabis- and other plant-inspired therapeutic mixtures for the prescription drug market through its Canadian subsidiary, GbS Global Biopharma, Inc. The 'plant-inspired' active ingredients in its therapeutic mixtures are synthetic homologues identical to the original plant compounds but produced under current Good Manufacturing Practices. Gb Sciences' intellectual property portfolio contains six issued U.S. and three issued foreign patents, as well as 17 U.S. and 51 foreign patent-pending applications. In its drug development pipeline, Gb Sciences has five preclinical phase product development programs. Gb Sciences' lead program for Parkinson's disease is being prepared for a first-in-human clinical trial. Gb Sciences' formulations for chronic pain, anxiety, and depression are currently in preclinical animal studies with researchers at the National Research Council Canada. The company also received positive preclinical proof-of-concept data supporting its complex mixtures for the treatment of Cytokine Release Syndrome and its lead candidates will be optimized based on late-stage preclinical studies at Michigan State University. Gb Sciences' productive research and development network includes distinguished universities, hospitals, and Contract Research Organizations. To learn more, visit www.gbsciences.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain statements relating to future results or events, which are forward-looking statements. Words such as "expects", "intends", "plans", "may", "could", "should", "anticipates", "likely", "believes" and words of similar import may identify forward-looking statements. These statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only the Company's belief regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Company's control. It is possible that the Company's actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements. Further, information concerning the Company and its business, including factors that potentially could materially affect the Company's business and financial and other results, are contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release, and we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or correct any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur or of which we hereafter become aware.

Contact Information:

Madeleine Moench

madeleine@newswire.com



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WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Global Lead Acid Battery Market is valued at USD 26.07 Billion and according to Vantage Market Research's recent analysis the size is expected to reach over USD 63.44 Billion by 2028, exhibiting a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.3% during the forecast period.



As the world increasingly relies on the automotive sector, the need for lead-acid batteries is rising significantly globally. Some of the determinants fueling the market demand are SLI applications in the automotive sector, an increase in renewable energy production, and high demand for devices for energy storage.

Brazil, India, the US, And the development of the telecommunications sector in nations such as the UK is driving the need for UPS (uninterruptible power supply) systems for power backup, leading to the cost-competitive adoption of lead-acid batteries as an energy source. While the use of the lead acid battery is nothing new, production methods have been refined in recent years to meet the rising demand. New production techniques allow for lead acid batteries with higher performance, making them even more useful in a variety of applications. As the demand for lead acid batteries continues to grow, it's expected that we'll see even more innovative uses for this versatile material.

Interestingly, the Vantage Market Research study notes that much of the growth in the lead acid battery will come from Asia-Pacific countries such as Japan, China, India, and South Korea where demand for these products is expected to increase at a CAGR of 3% to 5% respectively.

Get Access to the In-depth Free Sample Report @ https://www.vantagemarketresearch.com/lead-acid-battery-market-1240/request-sample

Top Companies Profiles in the Lead Acid Battery Market:

Harbin Coslight Power (China)

Clarios (US)

GS Yuasa (China)

Panasonic (Japan)

Narada Power (China)

Exide Industries (India)

EnerSys (US)

Chaowei Power (China)

Exide Technologies (US)

Hitachi Chemical (Japan)

HBL Power Systems (India)

NorthStar (Sweden)

Okaya Power (India)

XUPAI Battery (China)

Crown Battery (US)

East Penn (US)

Teledyne Technologies (US)

Rolls Battery (Canada)

C&D Technologies (US)

Amara Raja Power System (India)

HOPPECKE (Germany)

Hankook AltasBX (Korea)

Camel Power (Malaysia)

Leoch International Technology (Hong Kong)

Key Insights and Findings from the In-depth Report:

The global lead acid battery market was valued at USD 26.07 billion in 2020 and is all set to surpass USD 63.44 billion by 2028, exhibiting a CAGR of 7.3% during the forecast period 2022-2028.

China will remain a chief market and is projected to account for over 55% of East Asia's lead acid battery market through 2028. China exported 36.45 million starter lead-acid batteries in 2020 and 47.45 million in 2021.

Germany is emerging as a key market for lead acid batteries in Europe, accounting for over USD 2,508.9 Million in 2021, driven by the development and expansion of the automotive industry.

The Asia Pacific accounts for the lion's share of the lead acid battery industry in 2021 with a significant CAGR of 16.5% and is projected to continue its position over the forecast timeline. The growth is attributed due to the significant demand for lead acid batteries in several industries and the high adoption rate owing to government measures that stimulate this industry in this region.

Market Dynamics & Growth Drivers:

Growing Demand for Cost-Effective Solutions for Energy Storage to Drive Market

Cost or expense is an important factor, in any business that defines the success of a business in the current scenario. Costs of energy storage become an important factor, especially for industries, and hence various companies invest heavily in battery storage solutions. The growth can be attributed to the increase in demand for energy-efficient solutions around the world. The demand for lead-acid batteries has steadily increased over the years with the advent of electric and hybrid vehicles.

Now, however, new production methods in the global lead acid battery market are making it possible to mass-produce high-quality lead acid batteries at a fraction of the cost. This is resulting in a growing demand for these batteries, especially from the automotive industry. With the help of these new production methods, it is hoped that lead acid batteries will finally be able to fulfill their potential and become a key material in a wide range of automotive industries.

To stay ahead of the game, Vantage Market Research suggests manufacturers need to be able to produce these batteries quickly and efficiently. In line with this, several market players are aggressively competing in the global lead acid battery market. Clarios is one of the key manufacturers of lead-acid batteries. The company has several state-of-the-art production facilities which have enabled the company to meet the ever-increasing demand for these batteries. Furthermore, the company is engaged in continuously improving its process to deliver quality products to maintain the fierce market competition.

Limited Time Offer | Buy this Premium Research Report with Exclusive Discount and Immediate Delivery @https://www.vantagemarketresearch.com/buy-now/lead-acid-battery-market-1240/1

In this competitive market, even marginal price differences become alarmingly important in determining which manufacturer is the leader in the lead acid battery market. Although lithium-ion batteries are likely to be further evolutions in the battery storage space, the price difference, which makes a significant difference to the overall cost, becomes an important factor in the preference for lithium-ion batteries. Lead-acid battery technology is inexpensive compared to other battery storage system types. This difference plays an important role in price investing. To extract the highest potential from big-ticket investments, pricing plays an important role as it maximizes the overall investment potential.

Scope of the Report:

Report Attributes Details Market Size in 2021 USD 26.07 Billion Revenue Forecast by 2028 USD 63.44 Billion CAGR 7.3% from 2021 to 2028 Base Year 2021 Forecast Year 2021 to 2028 Key Players Harbin Coslight Power (China)

Exide Industries (India)

EnerSys (US)

Clarios (US)

GS Yuasa (China)

Panasonic (Japan)

Narada Power (China)

Chaowei Power (China)

HBL Power Systems (India)

NorthStar (Sweden)

Crown Battery (US)

Exide Technologies (US)

Hitachi Chemical (Japan)

East Penn (US)

Teledyne Technologies (US) and others

Low-Cost Substitutes in Energy Storage Space are Restraining the Market Growth

Until now, lead-acid batteries were the most cost-effective technology. However, with the expansion of battery storage technology options, especially lithium-ion technology, the market for lead-acid batteries is declining in the cost-friendliness aspect. In the lead-acid battery market, prices are falling in almost all sectors. At the same time, NiMH batteries are a mature and proven technology for hybrid applications. Nickel-Metal Hydride is used by OEMs, including Lexus, Honda, and Toyota. The OEMs opt for these batteries for their performance, longer lifecycle, and safety in hybrid applications. Along with NiMH (nickel-metal hydride) batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries are also a cost-effective option for battery storage users. They are a more efficient and cheaper alternative to lead-acid batteries. Furthermore, our report on the lead acid battery market highlights some of the challenges faced by lead acids battery manufacturers, such as high raw material costs and intense competition from other materials.

Browse market data Tables and Figures spread through 173 Pages and in-depth TOC on Lead Acid Battery Market Forecast Report (2022-2028).

The report on the Lead Acid Battery Market highlights:

Assessment of the market

Premium Insights into Industry

In-depth Competitive Landscape

COVID Impact Analysis

Historical Data, Current Data, and Forecast Data

Top and Emerging Company Profiles

Global and Regional Dynamics



Regional Analysis:

China is the Largest Manufacturers and Exporter of Lead Acid Battery

The Asia Pacific is in a unique position to provide high-quality battery products at competitive prices. The region has a strong presence with several state-of-the-art production facilities spread across South Korea and China that are capable of producing a wide range of lead acid batteries to meet the needs of the clients. China will remain a chief market and is projected to account for over 55% of East Asia's lead acid battery market through 2028. China exported 36.45 million starter lead-acid batteries in 2020 and 47.45 million in 2021. China, Singapore, India, Japan, and South Korea are considered to be major hubs of industrial activity and offer huge market growth opportunities for lead-acid batteries in the region.

Chinese manufacturers have developed innovative production methods that allow them to mass-produce high-quality lead acid batteries at competitive prices. This has made China a major supplier to many companies around the world. Asia Pacific lead acid battery market is supported by a strong domestic market as well as exports to key markets across the globe.

Recent Developments

January 2021: EnerSys is partnering with Travel Centers of America (TA) to offer Odyssey display and NorthStar PRO Group 31 batteries for heavy-duty applications at all TA locations across the United States.

EnerSys is partnering with Travel Centers of America (TA) to offer Odyssey display and NorthStar PRO Group 31 batteries for heavy-duty applications at all TA locations across the United States. December 2021: GS Yuasa Corporation said that Tata AutoComp GY Batteries Limited, a subsidiary of GS Yuasa International Ltd., the equity-method affiliate plans to increase its annual production capacity of motorcycle lead-acid batteries to 8.401 million units. The aim is to capture a major market share in India.

Customization of the Report:

The report can be customized as per client needs or requirements. For any queries, you can contact us at sales@vantagemarketresearch.com or +1 (202) 380-9727. Our sales executives will be happy to understand your needs and provide you with the most suitable reports.

Browse More Research Topics on Semiconductor and Electronics Related Reports:

EV Battery Market is valued at 26.8 USD Billion in 2021 and is projected to attain a value of 129.95 USD Billion by 2028.

Micro Battery Market was estimated to be valued at USD 321 million in 2021 and is projected to attain a value of USD 1084.76 million by 2028.

Solid State Battery Market is valued at USD 84.26.02 Million in 2021 and is projected to attain a value of USD 721.35 Million by 2028.

Battery Management System Market is valued at USD 6,182.50 Million in the year 2021 and is projected to reach a value of USD 17,118.80 Million by the year 2028.

About Vantage Market Research:

We, at Vantage Market Research, provide quantified B2B high quality research on more than 20,000 emerging markets, in turn, helping our clients map out constellation of opportunities for their businesses. We, as a competitive intelligence market research and consulting firm provide end to end solutions to our client enterprises to meet their crucial business objectives. Our clientele base spans across 70% of Global Fortune 500 companies. The company provides high quality data and market research reports. The company serves various enterprises and clients in a wide variety of industries. The company offers detailed reports on multiple industries including Chemical Materials and Energy, Food and Beverages, Healthcare Technology, etc. The companys experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants use proprietary data sources and numerous statistical tools and techniques to gather and analyse information.

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San Francisco,CA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bitwage, the world's leading provider of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency payroll, invoicing, and benefits solutions, today announced its partnership with ForUsAll to offer the first-ever one-stop-shop for cryptocurrency 401(k) combined with cryptocurrency payroll.

The decision to introduce these products was based on overwhelming demand from customers, which was measured by a waitlist posted by Bitwage. It was clear that companies and employees desired direct access to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as part of their company-sponsored retirement plans.

Through Bitwages integration with ForUsAll  a modern 401(k) provider that provides access to crypto, financial wellness, low fees and more  companies across the U.S. now have access to an easy-to-use, fully compliant 401(k) retirement plan that enables employees to automatically contribute a portion of their paycheck to crypto via ForUsAlls self-directed crypto window.

Our goal is to provide a complete crypto payroll and benefits suite for employers and their workforce, said Bitwage CEO, Jonathan Chester. ForUsAll is one of the most seamless and compliant services on the market. Together, we create a one-stop-shop of crypto benefits and services that can scale to thousands of employees.

Crypto contributions in the 401(k) can be made on a pre-tax or post-tax (Roth) basis. This results in increased tax savings for users, because cryptocurrency held or traded in a Roth 401(k) account would accrue zero capital gains taxes, no matter how much the balance increases by the time an investor retires.

ForUsAlls 401(k) platform  called Alt401(k)  was especially compelling for Bitwage due to its robustness. Through the Alt401(k), employers have the choice to include cryptocurrency via a self-directed alt window inside the 401(k) alongside their investment lineup. From there, participants are able to transfer up to 5% of their portfolio into a cryptocurrency window where they can invest in a range of vetted institutional quality cryptocurrencies. ForUsAll closely monitors allocations, alerting employees when their overall cryptocurrency allocation exceeds 5% of their portfolio, making it easy to rebalance.

Other key features of the ForUsAll Alt401(k) include:

A full turn-key automated 401(k) for employers, with both traditional and alternative investment options

Employees can transfer up to 5% of their balances into a secure account that has exposure to certain cryptocurrencies

Employees will be able to buy, hold, and sell a curated list of highly vetted, institutional-quality cryptocurrencies

Employees will get ongoing portfolio monitoring and education

This exciting partnership represents a natural progression in our mission to provide our customers with the very best, cutting-edge digital asset benefits, concluded Chester.

For more information visit:

https://www.bitwage.com

Contact:

Jonathan Chester, CEO

press@bitwage.com

About Bitwage

Bitwage is the global leader in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency and stablecoin payroll with services across invoicing and benefits services. The company also offers resources to employers, employees, and freelancers with their robust, online platform. Bitwage is headquartered in San Francisco, California with operations in the US, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. After a simple sign-up process, employees and freelancers are able to receive any percentage of their wage in Bitcoin with unique bank accounts offered in US, EU, and UK. International users can also receive their wages faster & cheaper than traditional banking channels through blockchain technology, receiving Bitcoin or fiat on the other end. Bitwage has processed $150MM in transactions with over 50,000 users and 2,000 companies. Since their inception in 2014, Bitwage has received $4MM in funding from Draper Associates, BnkToTheFuture, Overton VC, Candela Reach Capital, Plug and Play, BPI France and many others.

About ForUsAll

ForUsAll is a tech-enabled 401(k) provider that is pioneering the inclusion of cryptocurrency in retirement plans. Founded in 2012 by the same team that helped build Financial Engines, the largest registered investment advisor in the country, ForUsAlls mission is to provide everyday Americans with the tools they need to build a brighter financial future. With $1.7B in assets under management, ForUsAll serves more than 80,000 retirement savers across over 500 plans, and is trusted by businesses that insist on a 401(k) experience their employees will love.

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MONTREAL, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Quebecers will have access to better glaucoma care thanks to one intrepid ophthalmologist. Dr. Hady Saheb, a glaucoma specialist at the MUHCs McGill Academic Eye Centre (MAEC), pledged to run 50km while blindfolded to raise $40,000 for the MUHC Foundation in support of glaucoma care. With the help of a sighted guide, he completed his run and raised $40,000 the process.



I treat patients who have become blind or have a medical condition that could cause vision loss. Blindness is one of the most devastating conditions a patient can live through, and glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness in Canada and worldwide. With better awareness we can prevent blindness. I ran blindfolded because I wanted to put myself in the shoes of those who live with vision loss and blindness, and better understand their struggles and fears.

Dr. Hady Saheb, Glaucoma specialist and ophthalmologist, McGill Academic Eye Centre, McGill University Health Centre

Dr. Saheb completed his final 5km on Friday, October 7th with supporters looking on. He hopes that his run will raise awareness of glaucoma and encourage more people to have regular eye exams. The funds raised will support equipment and programs to help individuals living with glaucoma, vision loss and blindness receive the very best care.

We are inspired by Dr. Sahebs determination and empathy. He already provides life-changing care in his clinic every day, but he went the extra milequite literallyto ensure the well-being of his patients. We are grateful to him for his support of the MUHC Foundation, which will in turn provide important resources to the McGill Academic Eye Centre.

Julie Quenneville, President and CEO, McGill University Health Centre Foundation

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness for people over 60 years of age. The most common form is caused by a build-up of pressure in the eye. The pressure damages the optic nerve, leading to vision loss or blindness. Most frightening of all, glaucoma can develop without warning signs, putting more individuals at risk. Thanks to Dr. Saheb, fewer Quebecers will experience blindness as a result of glaucoma.

About the McGill University Health Centre Foundation

The McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) Foundation raises funds to support excellence in patient care, research and teaching at the McGill University Health Centre, one of the top university hospitals in Canada. Our Dream Big Campaign to change the course of lives and medicine is raising millions of dollars to solve humanitys deadliest puzzles: infectious diseases; end cancer as a life-threatening illness; fix broken hearts through innovative cardiac care; detect the silent killersovarian and endometrial cancersearly; create the best skilled health care teams in Canada; and much more. We are rallying our entire community to solve the worlds most complex health care challenges.

Tarah Schwartz

Director, Communications & Marketing

McGill University Health Centre Foundation

tarah.schwartz@muhc.mcgill.ca

Kelly Albert

Senior Communications Officer

McGill University Health Centre Foundation

kelly.albert@muhc.mcgill.ca

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bc9096a3-9224-40c2-ad20-54c1e72492f2
TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Sunwing is unveiling its new creative campaign and commercial More, More, More, which hones in on what customers really want on their all inclusive getaways: more value and experiences. Sunwings colourful, vibrant, energetic and undeniably cool commercial spot captures the on trend, carefree vibe of the 1970s, and is rich with vacation inspiration and wanderlust. The campaign moves beyond what Sunwing is already well known for  vacations at accessible prices with mass appeal  and shows how Canadians not only save more upfront on a Sunwing vacation but they can also do more, explore more and celebrate more in destination. Directed by Scott Cudmore, an award-winning filmmaker and vision behind some of Canadas most prominent brands, Canadians can watch More, More, More come to life in paradise at the following link: https://bit.ly/3fQsyfV.



Over the past year, our team has shown unwavering dedication to reimagining Sunwings value proposition and brand persona so we can continue to grow with our customers at every stage. This has culminated with a more fun, vibrant and energetic brand that offers the breadth of travel products, services and experiences that our customers crave, said Samantha Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer at Sunwing Travel Group. With so much change over the past two years, it was important for us to listen to our customers and find out what matters most to them as we prepared for our winter season. We discovered that Canadians are looking to unlock more value, beyond just price, so they can get the most out of their hard-earned vacations and have an unforgettable experience in destination. Our new brand identity highlights just that. From discounts on spas and excursions to exclusive perks, room upgrades and more, were excited to show Canadians how they can get more under our wing.

Sunwing has brought a fresh, lively and youthful energy to its new brand positioning and marketing campaign that is rooted in unforgettable travel experiences, which includes radio, out-of-home, social media, digital video and a cinema buy with commercial placements at Cineplex theatres this fall. The campaign also includes a fresh, more youthful tone of voice that further captures the energy and excitement of travel.

In celebration of the new commercial spot, Sunwing is helping Canadians get in on the action with an interactive social media contest where they can share their best dance moves on TikTok and Instagram for a chance to win an all inclusive Sunwing vacation for two to Planet Hollywood Cancun in Mexico!

How to enter:

Canadian citizens and permanent residents can enter on TikTok and/or Instagram*

To enter, upload a 5-15 second TikTok video or a 5-15 second Instagram reel using an original dance to the audio More, More, More

Entrants must use the hashtag #MoveMoreWithSunwing in the video caption

Must follow @sunwingvacations on the platform the video will be submitted on (TikTok or Instagram)

Maximum one entry per person per platform

Contest closes on Friday, October 28, 2022

*Terms and conditions apply. Follow and visit @sunwingvacations on TikTok at tiktok.com/@sunwingvacations and on Instagram at instagram.com/sunwingvacations for more information.

About Sunwing

The largest integrated travel company in North America, Sunwing has more flights to the south than any other leisure carrier with convenient direct service from airports across Canada to popular sun destinations across the U.S.A., Caribbean, Mexico and Central America. This scale enables Sunwing to offer customers exclusive deals at top-rated resorts in the most popular vacation destinations as well as cruise packages and seasonal domestic flight service. Sunwing customers benefit from the assistance of the companys own knowledgeable destination representatives, who greet them upon arrival and support them throughout their vacation journey. The company supports the communities where it operates through the Sunwing Foundation, a charitable initiative focused on the support and development of youth and humanitarian aid.

For more information:

Melanie Anne Filipp

Director, Corporate Communications & Media Relations

Sunwing Travel Group

1-800-387-5602 | media@sunwing.ca

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d659ebc7-14db-4769-bb6f-051f11e7502b

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f2f63128-c418-4598-beef-6be476ecfd87

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8d9ac51e-fa5e-414c-9714-1cc1c8f03697

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7c7342d6-847d-4072-bb63-d4b442c305c4
Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Branded Generics Global Market Report 2022" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global branded generics market is expected to grow from $280.40 billion in 2021 to $303.10 billion in 2022 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.1%. The branded generics market is expected to reach $414.35 billion in 2026 at a CAGR of 8.1%.



North America was the largest region in the branded generics market in 2021. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in the branded generics market report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East and Africa.



The increasing prevalence of chronic diseases will drive the growth rate of branded generics market. Chronic diseases are long-lasting sicknesses that often cannot be healed, however, they are curable and controllable. Chronic diseases are increasing due to the increasing use of tobacco products, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, excessive use of alcohol, and others.

Customers across the globe are more inclined toward branded generics to treat chronic diseases as they purchase them at a lower cost than usual medications. For instance, in September 2020, according to a research report published by American Action Forum, chronic disease prevalence and costs are rising in the United States.

They are expected to keep rising as the disease prevalence among children and young adults rises. Chronic disease is a serious healthcare problem since the rising cost of chronic disease in the United States totals $3.7 trillion annually, which is around 19.6% of the country's gross domestic product. Thus an increase in the prevalence of chronic diseases is expected to boost the demand for branded generics during the forecast period.



The strategic partnership is a key trend in the branded generics market. The companies operating in branded generics are entering into a partnership with relevant companies to leverage each other's resources and expand into new markets. In December 2021, Biocon Ltd, an India-based fully integrated biopharmaceutical company that develops affordable biosimilars, generic formulations & complex APIs, entered into a partnership with Tabuk Pharmaceuticals.

The partnership will open the door for Biocon's entry into the MENA area, which will now include Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and Iraq. This will help create a robust worldwide portfolio of goods, either directly or through strategic alliances, to provide patients all over the world with access to inexpensive treatments. These medications' marketing authority will be held by Tabuk Pharmaceuticals, which is also in charge of their registration, importation, and promotion in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern nations. Tabuk Pharmaceuticals is a Saudi Arabia-based company that manufactures and markets branded and generic pharmaceutical products.



Reasons to Purchase

Gain a truly global perspective with the most comprehensive report available on this market covering 12+ geographies.

Understand how the market is being affected by the coronavirus and how it is likely to emerge and grow as the impact of the virus abates.

Create regional and country strategies on the basis of local data and analysis.

Identify growth segments for investment.

Outperform competitors using forecast data and the drivers and trends shaping the market.

Understand customers based on the latest market research findings.

Benchmark performance against key competitors.

Utilize the relationships between key data sets for superior strategizing.

Suitable for supporting your internal and external presentations with reliable high quality data and analysis

Scope

Markets Covered:



1) By Drug Class: Alkylating Agents; Antimetabolites; Hormones; Anti-hypertensive; Lipid Lowering Drugs; Anti-depressants; Anti-psychotics; Anti-Epileptics; Other Drugs

2) By Route of Administration: Topical; Oral; Parenteral; Other Routes of Administration

3) By Application: Oncology; Cardiovascular Diseases; Diabetes; Neurology; Gastrointestinal Diseases; Dermatology Diseases; Analgesics and Anti-inflammatory; Other Applications



Key Topics Covered:



1. Executive Summary



2. Branded Generics Market Characteristics



3. Branded Generics Market Trends And Strategies



4. Impact Of COVID-19 On Branded Generics



5. Branded Generics Market Size And Growth



6. Branded Generics Market Segmentation

7. Branded Generics Market Regional And Country Analysis



8. Asia-Pacific Branded Generics Market



9. China Branded Generics Market



10. India Branded Generics Market



11. Japan Branded Generics Market



12. Australia Branded Generics Market



13. Indonesia Branded Generics Market



14. South Korea Branded Generics Market



15. Western Europe Branded Generics Market



16. UK Branded Generics Market



17. Germany Branded Generics Market



18. France Branded Generics Market



19. Eastern Europe Branded Generics Market



20. Russia Branded Generics Market



21. North America Branded Generics Market



22. USA Branded Generics Market



23. South America Branded Generics Market



24. Brazil Branded Generics Market



25. Middle East Branded Generics Market



26. Africa Branded Generics Market



27. Branded Generics Market Competitive Landscape And Company Profiles



28. Key Mergers And Acquisitions In The Branded Generics Market



29. Branded Generics Market Future Outlook and Potential Analysis



30. Appendix



Companies Mentioned

Pfizer Inc.

GlaxoSmithKline plc

F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.

Mylan N.V.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/iaqbyp
LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MetAlert, Inc. (OTC: GTXOD), a pioneer in the field of health & safety, wearable GPS human and asset tracking systems, announced it has retained Investcore Media and Strategic Innovations to provide digital marketing services aimed at building greater awareness for its medical wellness devices geared for the senior and autistic healthcare market. With a targeted consumer base around 34 million people across 24 countries where MetAlert has an existing business presence in over 20 of those countries.



Investcore Media will assist in providing a range of digital marketing services incorporating content strategy, data analytics, search-based marketing, collateral creation, and social media strategies aimed at increasing the MetAlert brand in the telehealth and remote patient monitoring (RPM) industry.

Strategic Innovations will assist MetAlert in shareholder communications in developing internal shareholder and media communications for better transparency. Shareholder communications is a critical element to any business plan to help keep the investment community informed on current and upcoming investor related events.

The media team will also be working on developing a national marketing campaign to include investor conferences and healthcare expos across the United States. Strategic innovations will also be handling shareholder communications through social media and will soon be introducing the Ambassador Shareholder program. A specialized program with benefits for the longstanding shareholders of the company.

Metalert has made some major business changes recently, including adding a new public relations and marketing team which has already resulted in new domestic and international media attention. The media has been quick to take note of the Company's new direction, in a recent article Market Herald wrote - Metalert has always been a company to watch. They were one of the first to bring GPS wearable technology to the market and continue to be a leader in the field. Now, they are expanding their product offerings to include telemedicine services, other wearables that integrate with their GPS SmartSole platform, and new fall detection and remote patient monitoring (RPM) product called RoomMate. And in another article from Market Herald, Metalert is quoted as saying that "Our primary focus is and always will be to protect and grow shareholder value. We are confident that our new name and symbol better reflect our commitment to this goal."

Since the rebranding went effective two weeks ago, MetAlert has received a significant amount of media coverage both domestically and internationally. The Company was mentioned in dozens of media outlets including FOX News, ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, Yahoo Finance, NY Business Digest, PubCo Insights, Belmont Star and Herald Market and Security Solutions Watch just to name a few, and internationally MetAlert news was reported in Mexico, Canada, Japan, India, Thailand, Brazil, Germany, and New Zealand.

For a link to the recent press: https://bit.ly/3rNde6y

The Company has several scheduled interviews in the coming weeks and will continue its media campaign to increase brand awareness for MetAlert and explain its broader vison centered around solutions that improve health, safety, wellness, longevity, and quality of life.

For all press or sales inquiries, please contact us at info@metalert.com

Patrick Bertagna MetAlert CEO commented, We are in a transformational period right now as MetAlert promises to keep all its innovative elements but also build out its portfolio with complimentary business silos. We truly believe knowledge is health and the technologies and solutions we plan to bring to the marketplace will have a significant positive impact on the senior and autistic communities we have been serving for years.

MetAlert will be temporarily trading under the ticker symbol GTXOD for one more week until a new permanent ticker symbol will be assigned to the Company. Click here to watch short video update.

About MetAlert

MetAlert, Inc. (OTC: GTXOD) a pioneer in smart, mobile, and wearable tracking and recovery location-based solutions, supported through a proprietary IoT enterprise monitoring platform and intellectual property portfolio. The Company offers a global end-to-end solution of hardware, software and connectivity and develops two-way GPS tracking technologies, which seamlessly integrate with consumer products and enterprise applications. Utilizing the latest in miniaturized, low power consumption GPS, Cellular, RF, NFC and BLE technology, enabling subscribers to track in real time the whereabouts of people or high value assets. Known for its game-changing and award-winning patented GPS SmartSole -- think Dr. Scholls meets LoJack, the worlds first invisible wearable technology tracking device created for those at risk of wandering due to Alzheimers, dementia, autism, and traumatic brain injury. MetAlerts business model is built around technology innovation and holds dozens of patents, with many issued patents in the area of GPS tracking. The company has international distributors servicing customers across the globe with subscribers in over 40 countries and is a U.S. Military Government contractor. Other customers include public health authorities and municipalities, emergency and law enforcement, private schools, assisted living facilities, NGOs, small business enterprises, senior care homes, and consumers. www.MetAlert.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/metalertinc

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/metalertinc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/metalertinc/

About Investcore Media

Investcore Media specializes in content and brand awareness through social media management, distribution of company news across platforms, management of company message forums, online ad campaigns, and monthly analytical reports. We assist companies in developing their brand exposure within the investment community by leverage social engagement and outreach. www.investcoremedia.com

About Strategic Innovations

Strategic Innovations understands that not all companies have the same needs and is committed to providing tailored services for each client. This team of social media, investor relations and public relations specialists has been brought together with one goal - helping companies tell their story in a way shareholders and investors can truly appreciate.

www.solutionsnow.info

Forward Looking Statements:

This news release contains forward-looking statements. The terms and phrases expects, would, will, believes, and similar terms and phrases are intended to identify these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by MetAlert considering its experience and its perception of current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that MetAlert believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Many factors could cause MetAlerts actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Certain risk factors that may cause actual results to differ are set forth in MetAlerts Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (which may be obtained on the SEC Website). These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on MetAlerts forward-looking statements. MetAlert has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required.

Disclaimer: MetAlert does not warrant or represent that the unauthorized use of materials drawn from the content of this document will not infringe rights of third parties who are not owned or affiliated by MetAlert. Further MetAlert cannot be held responsible or liable for the unauthorized use of this documents content by third parties unknown to the company.

General information, investor relations, wholesale licensing, consumer purchase:

MetAlert, Inc.

Tel: 213.489.3019

Email: ir@metalert.com

MetAlert

United Kingdom,London

Nelson Skip Riddle

Tel: +44 7785 364100

Email: nsriddle@metalert.com
a rock chip sampling program has been conducted to identify new areas for detailed field work



VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- United Lithium Corp. (CSE: ULTH; OTC: ULTHF; FWB: 0ULA) (ULTH or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has established a large land position in a historic lithium-beryllium producing area of Gunnison County of Colorado. The Company has completed staking of over 300 unpatented lode claims covering more than 9 square miles (nearly 25 square kilometers) near Ohio City, Colorado, surrounding the Black Wonder granite. The Patriot Lithium Project hosts numerous pegmatite bodies, several of which have been mined for Li-Be. United Lithiums claim block covers or surround all past LCT (lithium, cesium, tantalum) pegmatite production in the Ohio City area.



A reconnaissance rock chip sampling program was carried out in conjunction with the staking program to identify new areas for detailed field work. Samples have been submitted to the laboratory and assays are awaited.

Michael Dehn, CEO of United Lithium stated, We are planning an integrated exploration program to evaluate the Ohio City area land holdings. The program will include local area detailed geologic mapping and additional rock chip sampling. With anomalies well-defined, targets with be drilled in the coming year when permits and contracts are in place.

A general outline of the United Lithium claims is presented below. The area staked covers the public lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). There are private property holdings within the USFS lands and the claims are positioned and located to recognize the pre-existing, titled ownership rights.

Map 1 Patriot Lithium Project Lode Claims (red), Gunnison County, Colorado, USA

Historic Lithium  Beryllium Pegmatite Mining in the Ohio City Area

The Patriot Lithium project is part of the Quartz Creek pegmatite field. It is located 17 miles due east of City of Gunnison, in Gunnison County. The Patriot Lithium Project comprises three blocks of claims that are located between Parlin and Ohio City, Colorado and illustrated on Map 1. The two northern Ohio City claim blocks are separated by privately owned lands and a highway right-of-way. A sequence of younger, Paleozoic rocks separate the Ohio City claims from the southern Parlin claimblock. More than 1,800 individual pegmatite bodies were mapped around the Black Wonder granite by the US Geological Survey. The mapped pegmatites demonstrate zonation where the pegmatites closest to the Black Wonder granite are less evolved while the more distalpegmatites are geochemically evolved and commonly enriched in lithophile elements like Li, Be, Sn, Cs, Rb, etc. The more evolved pegmatites hosted lithium and beryllium former mines and occurrences, including the well-known Brown Derby pegmatite mine, as well as the Bazooka, White Spar and Opportunity pegmatites.

Reconnaissance Rock Chip Geochemical Sampling

A geological crew worked in conjunction with the staking crew in the Ohio City  Parlin areas, highlighting areas for coverage, and more importantly, collecting 243 surface rock chip samples from many pegmatite outcrops for geochemical analysis. Lithium minerals were identified in a number of the outcrop samples, including abundant lepidolite, spodumene and tourmaline (elbaite), while beryl was the chief beryllium mineral. Other minerals reported in the pegmatites from this area, but not recognized in hand specimens, include monazite, columbite, tantalite, microlite, rynersonite, gahnite, zircon, allanite, amblygolite, pollucite and stibiotantalite.

The pegmatites of the Ohio City- Parlin area contributed to the economic development of the region and contributed significantly to the war efforts of the 1940s and 1950s. The Brown Derby pegmatite mines were of particular note for their Li and Be production as well as a locale for several collectible mineral species.

Map 2 Location of the major lithium-rich mines and occurrences in the Quartz Creek pegmatite district. : From Hanley et al 1950.

Photo 1 The Brown Derby pegmatite, main gallery in July 1980. From 2015 Conference Paper - Quartz Creek pegmatite field, Gunnison County, Colorado: geology and mineralogy by Mark Ivan Jacobson, Mines Museum of Earth Science, Colorado School of Mines

Map 3 The Bazooka Spodumene Prospect, Quartz Creek Pegmatite District: From Staatz et al, 1955

Photo 2 Large Lepidolite Crystals in Pegmatite from near the Brown Derby Deposit

All claims still require final approvals from the Bureau of Land Management.

Mark Saxon (FAusMM), Technical Advisor to the Company, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure or Mineral Projects) and has prepared or reviewed the scientific and technical information in this press release.

References

Jacobson, M. A. 2015. Quartz Creek pegmatite field, Gunnison County, Colorado: geology and mineralogy, Conference Paper

Staatz, M. H. and A. F. Trites, Jr. 1955, Geology of the Quartz Creek pegmatite district, Gunnison County, Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 265, 111 pp.

Hanley, J. B., E. W. Heinrich and L. R. Page. 1950. Pegmatite investigations in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah, 1942-1944: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 227, 125 pp.

On Behalf of The Board of Directors

Michael Dehn

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director

For further information, please contact the Company at:

michaeldehn@unitedlithium.com

www.unitedlithiumcorp.com

About United Lithium Corp.

United Lithium Corp. (CSE: ULTH) is an exploration & development company energized by the global demand for lithium. The Company is targeting lithium projects in politically safe jurisdictions with advanced infrastructure that allows for rapid and cost-effective exploration, development and production opportunities.

The Company's consolidated financial statements and related management's discussion and analysis are available on the Company's website at https://unitedlithium.com/ or under its profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward-looking. The Company provides forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited those identified and reported in the Companys public filings under the Companys SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4addca48-88f0-423d-bae0-f80bc2b3d56d

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/23fc9b38-e8d4-4032-8077-b8103f986d41

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/69cad3c5-2622-4116-8dde-c08091b7cb66

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3e178ee4-0f1c-4b2c-bc10-01cc323305c0

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Toronto, ON, Canada, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As the real estate and development industry continues to navigate global demands to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, QuadReal Property Group (QuadReal) is advancing an updated strategic pathway to decarbonize its portfolio by 2050. There are also several key milestones in advance of this date, especially a 50 per cent carbon reduction of its global portfolio by 2030.

QuadReals net-zero strategy builds on its original 2016 mandate to achieve an 80 per cent carbon reduction goal across its Canadian operations. Since 2016, QuadReal has demonstrated leadership in reducing carbon emissions across its Canadian portfolio and will use key learnings to accelerate and deepen its sustainability goals in both its Canadian and international assets.

Sustainability has always been a key component of QuadReals investment and management strategies and is becoming more and more of a precondition for the long-term financial feasibility of our programs, says Lucy Fletcher, Managing Director, Global Portfolio Management, QuadReal. As active managers, expanding our carbon reduction targets to net zero across our entire portfolio will allow us to meet and exceed our fiduciary responsibility to all our stakeholders and clients, and help lead the market in innovation and execution.

QuadReals net-zero targets align with leading global carbon commitment programs including The Climate Pledge and The Race to Zero Campaign. The measurement framework for QuadReals net-zero target also aligns with the science-based carbon reduction goals set by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). QuadReals strategy includes reductions of scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions, with Canadian property-level plans to be in place by 2025.

Just as green-certified buildings have outperformed in the past decade, we believe net-zero buildings will outperform the market in the coming decade, says Jamie Gray-Donald, Senior Vice President of Sustainability & Environmental, Health & Safety, QuadReal. Our pathway to net zero includes very specific interim targets to help inform next steps at the property level and will be applied to all the real estate we manage. We are also committed to being transparent in our approach and measurement tools so we can help lead the real estate industry in the transition to a net-zero economy.

To achieve interim targets and ensure accountability, carbon audits will replace energy audits and will inform property-level net-zero transition plans. Carbon reductions at the property level will be driven by two strategies: replacing fossil fuels with low-carbon electricity options combined with building upgrades that allow energy to be used more efficiently. QuadReal expects building efficiency upgrades to provide a 40 per cent reduction in emissions, based on previous retrofits. The companys commitment will also allow offsets or credits to cover a maximum 10 per cent of baseline emissions.

QuadReals Pathway to Net Zero  Timeline at a Glance

2025: Net-zero property-level plans in place for global portfolio

Net-zero property-level plans in place for global portfolio 2030: 50% carbon reduction of QuadReals directly managed portfolio (tracked emissions include all landlord utilities and QuadReals corporate emissions)

50% carbon reduction of QuadReals directly managed portfolio (tracked emissions include all landlord utilities and QuadReals corporate emissions) 2040: All Canadian offices achieve net-zero emissions, 50% carbon reduction of QuadReals international portfolio (tracked emissions to include all tenant utilities and embodied carbon from new development and refurbishment)

All Canadian offices achieve net-zero emissions, 50% carbon reduction of QuadReals international portfolio (tracked emissions to include all tenant utilities and embodied carbon from new development and refurbishment) 2050: Global portfolio is net-zero carbon (tracked emissions to include all property emissions, both landlord, tenant and resident)

In addition to focusing on its own net-zero targets, QuadReal plans to continue sharing its tools and programs with international partners and industry peers. By aligning with and supporting groups such as The Canadian Climate Institute, the Net-Zero Advisory Body, the Canadian Green Building Council, Center for Active Design and Fitwel, QuadReal hopes to help propel the real estate industry forward in mitigating climate risk and achieving net zero.

-30-

About QuadReal Property Group

QuadReal Property Group is a global real estate investment, operating and development company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its assets under management total $67.1 billion. From its foundation in Canada as a full-service real estate operating company, QuadReal has evolved its capabilities to invest in public and private debt and equity markets. QuadReal invests directly via programmatic partnerships and through operating companies in which it holds an ownership interest.

QuadReal seeks to deliver strong investment returns while creating sustainable environments that bring value to the people and communities it serves. Now and for generations to come.

www.quadreal.com

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Charleston, SC, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Each year, Jeff Cook, founder and CEO of Jeff Cook Real Estate, partners with local animal shelters across South Carolina to cover animal adoption fees for his birthday. This year, for their annual event known as Jeff Cooks Birthday Pawty, one of the shelters they will be partnering with is the Charleston Animal Society to sponsor 100 animal adoptions.

If you live in South Carolina and are interested in adopting a new pet for FREE, below is a list of where the Jeff Cook Real Estate team will be hosting their annual "Jeff Cook's Birthday Pawty" event and the participating dates.

Charleston Animal Society - October 17th - 23rd

Columbia PetsInc - October 23rd

Greenville County Animal Care - October 22nd

North Myrtle Beach Humane Society - October 15th

The annual Pawty event is a part of the Jeff Cook Cares initiative. In an effort to contribute to the community that has supported him for 20+ years, Jeff Cook created Jeff Cook Cares in 2015. Jeff says, Jeff Cook Cares provides our company with a chance for us to give back 1% of our proceeds to local organizations and families. By incorporating opportunities for Jeff Cook Real Estate agents to support their community, weve been able to implement a sense of pride in our local areas. We believe that by increasing our philanthropic efforts each year, we can all reap the benefits of a healthy and happy community.

Looking back on the past few months, Jeff Cook Real Estate has held other impactful events surrounding the Jeff Cook Cares initiative.

In August they organized a Back-To-School supply drive in order to help teachers and students start the new school year off with everything necessary for success. A total of just over $1,600 worth of school supplies was donated to various organizations across SC including Closet of Hope and Charleston HALOS.

Each year the Jeff Cook Real Estate team coordinates a Day of Giving where all of their sales offices statewide have the chance to choose an organization they would like to sponsor or serve. In September, they were able to make a number of efforts to pay it forward.

Folly Beach Clean Up (Folly Beach, SC)

Volunteering at the Grand Strand Horses Healing Heroes (Myrtle Beach, SC)

The Blood Connection Blood Drive (Summerville, SC)

Volunteering in the Restore at Habitat for Humanity (Greenville, SC)

Serving Food to the Hungry (Columbia, SC)

Food Drive at the Pilgrim's Inn Womens and Childrens Shelter (Rock Hill, SC)

Looking forward to the end of 2022, Jeff Cook Cares will be hosting a Toy Drive nearing the holiday season to provide gifts to families in their communities and help spread some joy.

With the Jeff Cook Real Estate team being present in different areas across South Carolina, they are able to serve multiple communities. Jeff says, we want to try to change people's lives for the positive, pay it forward, and give back the blessings we have been given.

If you are interested in supporting the Jeff Cook Cares initiative or have questions, please email sponsorships@JeffCookRealEstate.com.













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NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A new report, released today by New Classrooms Innovation Partners and Transcend, highlights the role innovative learning models can play in modernizing K-12 education.

"While sectors such as energy, healthcare, and transportation have undergone fundamental transformations over the last two decades, the K-12 sector has remained centered on a delivery model patterned after the American factory," said Joel Rose, CEO of New Classrooms and co-author of the report. "It is time to support an overdue transition from an industrial paradigm of schooling to a student-centered one  especially for students in the most marginalized communities."

Out of the Box: How Innovative Learning Models Can Transform K-12 Education, which explores strategies and recommendations to drive collaboration among policymakers, advocates, funders, and educators in order to modernize the educational delivery model, was funded by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The report's title, Out of the Box, was inspired by Malcolm McLean's breakthrough idea from the 1950s  bypassing the increasingly congested interstate highways and instead putting shipping containers from trucks directly onto ships. Despite meeting sharp resistance, McLean's out-of-the-box idea and commitment to his vision would ultimately bring about a new level of standardization and interoperability to the sector. Today, an estimated $14 trillion in goods spend some time inside of a big metal box.

"The story of Malcolm McClean is not only about the impact of a physical box. It is about the importance of thinking outside of one," said Jenee Henry Wood, Head of Learning at Transcend and co-author of the report. "Innovative Learning Models enable the actualization of a student-centered approach and are designed to help move us to learning that is equitable and responsive to the needs of the 21st century."

As part of the release, New Classrooms and Transcend invite education influencers, advocates, funders, educators, administrators, and policymakers to attend Out of the Box: A Conversation about the Future of School Thursday, Oct. 13 at 2 p.m. ET. Registration is free and features some of the most important and influential voices in K-12 education.

The paper comes on the heels of Transcend's launch of the Innovative Models Exchange, a free, searchable, and shareable library of adoptable, innovative learning models.

"Despite innovation across nearly every sector of society, a one-size-fits-all approach has governed mainstream schooling in America for more than a century. This platform was launched to put tools for a redesign in the hands of more school communities," shares Jeff Wetzler, Transcend co-founder. "The Models Exchange is a free resource for those inspired to reimagine schools but who don't want to start from scratch. The Exchange helps them find, learn, and borrow from innovative programs created by others across the country."

About New Classrooms

Founded in 2011, New Classrooms Innovation Partners is a national nonprofit on a mission to personalize education by redesigning how a classroom works - from the use of technology, time, and physical space to the instruction and content that engages each student. The founders of New Classrooms were the leaders of an initiative within NYC Public Schools called School of One, which TIME named as one of the Best Inventions of the Year. New Classrooms' innovative learning solutions, Teach to One 360 and Teach to One Roadmaps, ensures each student is learning the right math lesson, at the right time, and in the right way that best meets their strengths and needs. It is used by thousands of students in schools nationwide. For more information, visit our website or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.

About Transcend

Transcend is a national nonprofit that supports school communities to create and spread extraordinary, equitable learning environments. The organization was founded on a belief that we must reimagine schooling, using a community-driven approach so all children can realize their infinite potential. Transcend pursues its mission by partnering directly with schools on design journeys while also sharing powerful models, tools and insights across the sector. To date, Transcend has worked directly with hundreds of schools and leaders in over 30 states, and has influenced thousands more. Ultimately, Transcend strives to fuel significant leaps in education so all young people can thrive in and transform the world. For more information, visit our website or follow us on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Contact Information:

Michelle Ward

Senior Director of Communications

mward@newclassrooms.org

212-920-6130 ext. 2020



Related Images











Image 1: Out of the Box





Out of the Box report cover by New Classrooms and Transcend









This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com.

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Toronto, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Hillsdale Investment Management  CFA Society Toronto Research Award. This years award-winning paper entitled Outsourced Fund and Risk Taking: A Tale of Two Contracts is authored by Saurin Patel, Ivey Business School, Western University, Jung Hoon Lee, Owen Graduate School of Management, Vanderbilt University, and Shyam Venkatesan, Ivey Business School, University of Western Ontario.

The winning paper highlights the importance of a properly structured incentive agreement, including co-branding, co-management, co-location and performance-based fees, in modifying the asymmetric payoff of a typical investment management contract. The authors find that the introduction of these measures leads to less risk-shifting which otherwise leads to significant welfare loss by investors in outsourced funds. We wholeheartedly agree. said Chris Guthrie, CFA, President and CEO, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.

The Hillsdale Investment Management  CFA Society Toronto Research Award is open to global researchers conducting research related to Canadian capital markets including both academics (e.g. professors and students) and practitioners. Research papers are reviewed by a panel of CFA charterholder investment experts to ensure they are in line with the rigorous values and standards embodied in the CFA designation.

"Teaming up with CFA Society Toronto to support and encourage applied research efforts aligns with Hillsdale Investment Managements commitment to continuously invest in our process to produce the highest quality strategies for our clients. We believe our award advances new ideas and innovative concepts for the benefit of the entire investment community, said Harry Marmer, CFA, Executive Vice President, and partner of Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.

Research Paper Abstract

We investigate the effect of compensation contracts on the conditional risk choice of outsourced mutual funds. Unlike the results from the existing literature, outsourced funds display two times more "strategic" risk-shifting than in-house managed funds to maximize the value of payoffs. We further establish that compensation contracts, along with outsourcing status, have a causal effect on risk-shifting. Our evidence shows this behavior to be more consistent with a motive to manage the risk of contract termination and less with the motive to exploit the optionality in portfolio manager compensation contracts. Fund families can employ additional mechanisms to mitigate the intrinsic risk-shifting behavior of the outsourced managers.

Media contacts CFA Society Toronto

Esther Filer, Manager, Marketing and Communications

CFA Society Toronto

Phone: (416) 366-5755 X 235

E-mail: media@cfatoronto.ca

Twitter: @cfatoronto

About CFA Society Toronto

Founded in 1936, CFA Society Toronto is part of the worldwide network of CFA Institute member societies that lead the investment profession globally by promoting the highest standards of ethics, education and professional excellence for the ultimate benefit of society. CFA Society Toronto is the largest Society in over 160 global financial markets representing the interests of more than 11,000 investment professionals in the Greater Toronto Area through advocacy, education, events, and professional development. For more information visit http://www.cfatoronto.ca or follow us on Twitter @cfatoronto and on LinkedIn CFA Society Toronto.

About Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.

Celebrating over a quarter of a century of investment excellence, Hillsdale Investment Management is an independent, employee-controlled, and client-aligned investment boutique serving a select group of institutional and private wealth investors. Hillsdale engages in disciplined active investment management, specializing in equities, alternatives, ESG, and customized mandates. Hillsdale is recognized for investment and service excellence  a reflection of its relentless pursuit of research and development and of the dedication of its employees. For more information, please refer to www.hillsdaleinv.com

Chartered Financial Analyst and CFA are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

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MONTREAL, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Osisko Metals Incorporated (the "Company or "Osisko Metals") ( TSX-V: OM ; OTCQX: OMZNF ; FRANKFURT: 0B51 ) and the Northwest Territories Power Corporation (NTPC) are pleased to announce that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that outlines the process of negotiating power connection to the Taltson hydroelectric grid and power purchase agreements.



The MOU will allow both parties to explore, discuss and establish mutually agreeable arrangements through which NTPC can supply and sell hydroelectric power and how Osisko Metals can purchase this electricity and any related services for use at the Pine Point Project site. The sale of excess electricity generated at the Taltson Hydroelectric Facility will be a significant part of the discussions. Depending on the time of year, available capacity from Taltson facility ranges from approximately 3.5 megawatts to 8 megawatts.

The MOU does not commit either party to a power connection agreement but does provide a framework to continue the informal discussion between NTPC and Osisko Metals that has been underway over the past several years.

Jeff Hussey, President and COO of Osisko Metals Incorporated also commented, The Pine Point Project would require additional power when production begins, currently projected to be in 2028. The potential to access clean hydropower is an attractive opportunity that we want to explore further with NTPC. Our preference is to find ways to maximize the consumption of hydroelectric power, thereby reducing the Projects carbon footprint and reducing operating costs.

Diane Archie, Minister Responsible for NTPC, commented, The Government of the Northwest Territories is optimistic about the potential to welcome a new industrial customer in the South Slave to utilize excess capacity from the Taltson Hydroelectric Facility. The Memorandum of Understanding between NTPC and Osisko Metals is a positive sign of future economic growth, benefiting all residents.

Cory Strang, President and CEO of NTPC mentioned, NTPC is committed to being the power provider of choice in the NWT and we look forward to advancing discussions with Osisko Metals on how we can support their efforts to bring the Pine Point Project back into operation. A potentially new industrial customer in the South Slave using the Taltson systems excess hydroelectricity capacity will help to moderate electricity rates for all customers.

NTPC is a wholly owned subsidiary of NT Hydro, which in turn is 100 percent owned by the Government of the Northwest Territories.

Media Contacts:

Jeff Hussey

President and COO

Pine Point Mines Ltd.

Email: info@osiskometals.com

Doug Prendergast

Manager, Communications

Northwest Territories Power Corporation

Email: dprendergast@ntpc.com

About Osisko Metals

Osisko Metals Incorporated is a Canadian exploration and development company creating value in the critical metals space. The Company controls one of Canadas premier past-producing zinc mining camps, the Pine Point Project, located in the Northwest Territories for which the 2022 PEA has indicated an after-tax NPV of $603M and an IRR of 25% is based on the current Mineral Resource Estimates that are amenable to open pit and shallow underground mining and consist of 15.7Mt grading 5.55% ZnEq of Indicated Mineral Resources and 47.2Mt grading 5.94% ZnEq of Inferred Mineral Resources. Please refer to the technical report entitled Preliminary Economic Assessment, Pine Point Project, Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada dated July 30, which has been filed on SEDAR. The Pine Point Project is located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories, near infrastructure, and paved highway access, and also has an electrical substation as well as 100 kilometres of viable haulage roads already in place.

The Company is also in the process of acquiring, from Glencore Canada, a 100% interest in the past-producing Gaspe Copper Mine, located near Murdochville in the Gaspe peninsula of Quebec. The Company is currently focused on resource evaluation of the Mount Copper Expansion Project that hosts a NI43-101 Inferred Resource of 456Mt grading 0.31% Cu (see April 28, 2022 press release). Gaspe Copper hosts the largest undeveloped copper resource in Eastern North America, strategically located near existing infrastructure in the mining-friendly province of Quebec.

For further information on this press release, visit www.osiskometals.com or contact:

Robert Wares, CEO of Osisko Metals Incorporated

Email: info@osiskometals.com www.osiskometals.com

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves predictions, expectations, interpretations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and constitute forward-looking information. This news release may contain forward-looking information pertaining to the Pine Point Project, including, among other things, the results of the PEA and the IRR, NPV and estimated costs, production, production rate and mine life; the expectation that the Pine Point Project will be an robust operation and profitable at a variety of prices and assumptions; the expected high quality of the Pine Point concentrates; the potential impact of the Pine Point Project in the Northwest Territories, including but not limited to the potential generation of tax revenue and contribution of jobs; and the Pine Point Project having the potential for mineral resource expansion and new discoveries. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management, in light of managements experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, including, without limitation, assumptions about: favourable equity and debt capital markets; the ability to raise additional capital on reasonable terms to advance the development of its projects and pursue planned exploration; future prices of zinc and lead; the timing and results of exploration and drilling programs; the accuracy of mineral resource estimates; production costs; operating conditions being favourable; political and regulatory stability; the receipt of governmental and third party approvals; licenses and permits being received on favourable terms; sustained labour stability; stability in financial and capital markets; availability of equipment; and positive relations with local groups. Forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information are set out in the Companys public documents filed at www.sedar.com . Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
WESTPORT, Conn., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HMG Strategy, the Worlds #1 digital platform for enabling technology executives to reimagine the enterprise and reshape the business world and recently recognized as a Top 10 Producer of Tech Events by Business Chief, is excited to be hosting its 2022 San Diego Technology Executive Leadership Summit in Partnership with SIM San Diego at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla at Aventine on October 25. HMG Strategys highly interactive events bring together the worlds most distinguished and innovative business technology and security leaders to discuss the most pressing leadership, innovation, strategic, cultural, technology and career challenges and opportunities that they face today  and into the future.



This popular and long-standing CIO summit will bring together the top CIOs, CISOs, technology executives and industry experts from the Greater San Diego area who will share their insights on the roles that technology executives can play in helping to design fresh go-to-market business models.

CIOs and technology executives are taking on expanded responsibilities such as oversight for supply chain operations, logistics, procurement and P&L accountability, said Hunter Muller, President and CEO of HMG Strategy. CEOs are counting on technology executives to help identify opportunities for new revenue streams and go-to-market strategies for their companies.

World-class technology executives and industry experts speaking at the 2022 San Diego Technology Executive Leadership Summit in Partnership with SIM San Diego on October 25 will include:

Mike Anderson , Chief Digital and Information Officer, Netskope

, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Netskope Joshua Barons , Head of Information Security, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

, Head of Information Security, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Amy Benton , VP, IT, Travere Therapeutics

, VP, IT, Travere Therapeutics Louise Brandy , SVP & CIO, Quidel

, SVP & CIO, Quidel Eric Dube , President & CEO, Travere Therapeutics

, President & CEO, Travere Therapeutics Todd Felker , Executive Healthcare Strategist, CrowdStrike

, Executive Healthcare Strategist, CrowdStrike Todd Friedman , CISO, ResMed

, CISO, ResMed Suresh Gunasekaran , President and CEO, UCSF Health

, President and CEO, UCSF Health Houman Haghighi , Partner, Business & Corporate Development, Menlo Ventures

, Partner, Business & Corporate Development, Menlo Ventures Dan Hedstrom , VP & CIO, Cubic Corporation

, VP & CIO, Cubic Corporation Steve Hoyt , Executive Director Information Technology, Aspen Neuroscience

, Executive Director Information Technology, Aspen Neuroscience Abe Lietz , SVP & CIO, KinderCare Education

, SVP & CIO, KinderCare Education Christopher Longhurst , Chief Medical Officer & Chief Digital Officer, UC San Diego Health System

, Chief Medical Officer & Chief Digital Officer, UC San Diego Health System Aviva McPherron , CIO, NuVasive

, CIO, NuVasive Barb Munro , Co-Founder and Membership Chair, SIM San Diego; Co-Founder, Partner, The Carrera Agency

, Co-Founder and Membership Chair, SIM San Diego; Co-Founder, Partner, The Carrera Agency Tony Olzak , CTO, Trace3

, CTO, Trace3 Albert Oriol , CIO, Rady Childrens Hospital

, CIO, Rady Childrens Hospital Gautham Pallapa , Senior Executive Advisor, VMware, Inc.

, Senior Executive Advisor, VMware, Inc. Steve Phillpott , President, SIM San Diego; CIO/CDO, Solidigm

, President, SIM San Diego; CIO/CDO, Solidigm Bhavin Shah , Founder and CEO, Moveworks

, Founder and CEO, Moveworks Yasmin Shah , CEO, CIO, SeenADriver

, CEO, CIO, SeenADriver Jessica Sica , CISO, PETCO Animal Supplies

, CISO, PETCO Animal Supplies Mark Taylor , CEO, Society for Information Management

, CEO, Society for Information Management Maria Zack , Professor and Chair of Mathematical, Information and Computer Sciences Point Loma Nazarene University

, Professor and Chair of Mathematical, Information and Computer Sciences Point Loma Nazarene University John Zavada, Chief Administrative Officer, PETCO Animal Supplies



Valued Partners for the 2022 San Diego Technology Executive Leadership Summit in Partnership with SIM San Diego include 8x8, Akamai, Automation Anywhere, BetterCloud, Centripetal, CrowdStrike, Darktrace, Delphix, Fortinet, Intelliswift, LastPass, LogicMonitor, Moveworks, Netskope, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, Ping Identity, ReliaQuest, RingCentral, SafeGuard Cyber, SentinelOne, SHE Information Technology, Sigma, SIM San Diego, Slalom, Snowflake, Tanium, Tonkean, Trace3, Upwork, Varonis, Zoom, and Zscaler.

To learn more about the 2022 San Diego Technology Executive Leadership Summit in Partnership with SIM San Diego and to register for the event, click here.

HMG Strategy will also be hosting its 2022 HMG Live! Global Women in Technology Summit on October 17. In this digital summit which is designed by female technology executives for female technology executives, CIOs, CISOs and other female technology leaders will explore the role of the future-forward female tech leader in inspiring performance through purposeful leadership.

Top-tier female CIOs, CISOs and industry leaders speaking at the 2022 HMG Live! Global Women in Technology Summit on October 17 will include:

Alissa Abdullah , Deputy CSO, SVP of Cybersecurity Technology, Mastercard

, Deputy CSO, SVP of Cybersecurity Technology, Mastercard Robin Brown , CIO, Protein North America, Cargill

, CIO, Protein North America, Cargill Christine Converse Hogan , CIO Advisor, Zoom

, CIO Advisor, Zoom Kirsten Davies , CISO, Unilever

, CISO, Unilever Candice Dixon , Coalition Development Director, NPower

, Coalition Development Director, NPower Cindy Finkelman , Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal

, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal Chandy Ghosh , COO & General Manager, Sinch

, COO & General Manager, Sinch Dax Grant , CEO, Global Transform

, CEO, Global Transform Klara Jelinkova , VP and University CIO, Harvard University

, VP and University CIO, Harvard University Ebele Kemery , Managing Director, Head of Global Technology Diversity Equity & Inclusion, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

, Managing Director, Head of Global Technology Diversity Equity & Inclusion, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Rashmi Kumar , SVP & CIO Global IT, Hewlett Packard Enterprise

, SVP & CIO Global IT, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Laura Whitt-Winyard , Former CISO, Malwarebytes

, Former CISO, Malwarebytes Angela Yochem, EVP, Chief Transformation & Digital Officer, Novant Health



Valued Partners for the 2022 HMG Live! Global Women in Technology Summit include 8x8, Akamai, BetterCloud, Darktrace, Delphix, Fortinet, LastPass, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, Ping Identity, RingCentral, SafeGuard Cyber, Tonkean, Upwork, Zoom, and Zscaler.

To learn more about the 2022 HMG Live! Global Leadership in Technology Summit and to register for the event, click here.

HMG Strategy will also be hosting its 2022 Silicon Valley CIO Executive Leadership Summit at The Ameswell Hotel in Mountain View, CA on October 27. Top-tier technology leaders and industry experts speaking at this popular in-person event will explore different ways in which technology executives have adapted their leadership styles to help galvanize the team around a shared mission, to stimulate a collaborative and inclusive culture that can spark innovation and drive successful business outcomes.

World-class technology executives speaking at the 2022 Silicon Valley CIO Executive Leadership Summit will include:

Chris Bedi , CIO, ServiceNow

, CIO, ServiceNow Mark Egan , Partner, StrataFusion

, Partner, StrataFusion David Hahn , CISO, CDK Global

, CISO, CDK Global Emily Heath , Board of Directors, Chair of Technology & Cyber Security Committee, Member of Audit Committee, Norton LifeLock

, Board of Directors, Chair of Technology & Cyber Security Committee, Member of Audit Committee, Norton LifeLock Tony Leng , Managing Director, Practice Lead and OMP, Diversified Search

, Managing Director, Practice Lead and OMP, Diversified Search Adhir Mattu , SVP & CIO, Marvell Semiconductor

, SVP & CIO, Marvell Semiconductor David Morris , Founder & Chairman, HiPER Solutions

, Founder & Chairman, HiPER Solutions Wendy M. Pfeiffer , CIO & SVP, Nutanix

, CIO & SVP, Nutanix Sahaar Rezaie , Executive Director, Genesys Works

, Executive Director, Genesys Works Sarah Richardson , SVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Tivity Health

, SVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Tivity Health Parul Saini , Global Head of Business and Enterprise Applications, Uber

, Global Head of Business and Enterprise Applications, Uber Ravi Thadani , Interim CIO/Head of IT Business Applications, AMD

, Interim CIO/Head of IT Business Applications, AMD Kathryn Ullrich , Managing Partner, Technology and Diversity, DHR Global

, Managing Partner, Technology and Diversity, DHR Global Dr. Branden Williams, Business Identity Specialist, Ping Identity

Valued Partners for the 2022 Silicon Valley CIO Executive Leadership Summit include 8x8, Akamai, Automation Anywhere, BetterCloud, Darktrace, Delphix, Fortinet, LastPass, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, Ping Identity, Qumulo, RingCentral, SafeGuard Cyber, ServiceNow, Strata, Tonkean, Transmit Security, Upwork, Zoom, and Zscaler.

To learn more about the 2022 Silicon Valley CIO Executive Leadership Summit and to register for the event, click here.

To learn more about HMG Strategys upcoming CIO and CISO Summits, click here.

About HMG Strategy

HMG Strategy is the world's leading digital platform for technology executives to reimagine the enterprise and reshape the business world. The HMG Strategy global network consists of more than 400,000 CIOs, CTOs, CISOs, CDOs, senior business technology executives, search industry executives, venture capitalists, industry experts and world-class thought leaders.

HMG Strategys global media model generates more than one million impressions per week, providing vast opportunities for business technology leaders and sponsor partners to promote themselves and their brands.

HMG Strategy was founded in 2008 by Hunter Muller, a leadership expert who has worked side-by-side with Fortune 2000 executives with strategic planning and career ascent for the past 30+ years.

HMG Strategys regional and virtual CIO and CISO Executive Leadership Series, authored books and Digital Resource Center deliver unique, peer-driven guidance from CIOs, CISOs, CTOs, CDOs and technology executives on leadership, innovation, transformation and career ascent.

HMG Strategy offers a range of peer-led research services such as its CIO & CISO Executive Leadership Alliance (CELA) program which bring together the worlds top CIOs, CISOs and technology executives to brainstorm on the top opportunities and challenges facing them in their roles.

HMG Strategys Global Peer Actionable Insights Services Stack is a unique set of research services that are designed to keep business technology executives up to speed on the latest leadership, business, technology and global geo-economic trends that are impacting businesses and industries.

To learn more about the 7 Pillars of Trust for HMG Strategy's unique business model, click here .

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/73e88b70-5666-49d1-b905-f0dd2cec1eed
DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Montana and Wyoming farmers can benefit from this alliance and have the opportunity to optimize their input applications by using Augmenta Mantis. The revolutionary VRA control device offers automation to a range of in-season inputs such as Live VRA for Nitrogen, Fungicide, Harvest Aids (Desiccants and Defoliants), and Plant Growth Regulators or fertilizer applications in different zones (Multizone) for various Montana crops such as cereal, pulses, and oil seeds.

Torgerson's customers now have the opportunity to reduce input costs, and chemical loads, and maximize yield potential. Users of Augmenta's Solution in these crops have noticed an increase in their savings of input usage up to 20% on average while maintaining or even increasing their yield.

"This new technology partnership gives our customer base a huge advantage by providing a new path towards crop protection and time savings, soil fertility optimization, all while being more eco-friendly," states Jed Bengtson, Sales and Marketing Director for Torgerson's.

"We are delighted to have partnered with Torgerson's LLC. Through this collaboration, we enable Montana and Wyoming farmers to automate applications and save inputs more easily than ever before," said Jim Evangelopoulos, Augmenta Co-founder and General Manager.

To learn more about how the Augmenta Mantis System works, click here https://www.augmenta.ag/. To find Torgerson's locations, click here https://www.torgerson.biz/.

About Torgerson's LLC

Torgerson's today is a 14-store complex of Agriculture and Construction dealerships across MT and WY. Beginning in 1912 in Ethridge, MT, the heritage of local business partners runs deep. Today they strive to offer the very best solutions for their customers to help them achieve their goals, along with their own. Being on the cutting edge of technology has been part of the heritage and continues.

About Augmenta AgTech

Augmenta is the creator of an innovative real-time VRA retrofit system that fully automates impactful farming agrochemical applications. Its growing global presence includes Europe, CIS, North and South America, and Australia. Its stated mission is to augment the capacity of arable land in a way that is beneficial for both farmers and the environment.

Contact Information:

Nota Moustaka

Field Marketing Specialist

nota@augmenta.ag

+306947676535



Related Images











Image 1: Augmenta _ Torgerson's









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SCRANTON, Pa., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Critter Control , an industry leader in the humane removal of nuisance wildlife, is excited to announce the grand opening of its new Scranton, Pennsylvania franchise today. Owned and operated by first time franchisee, Steven Austin, the new location will serve the greater Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area.



Were excited to begin serving the Scranton area as autumn is in full swing, said franchise operator, Steven Austin. Each season brings about its own wildlife challenges and were proud to be part of the humane solution to many local homeowners animal problems, while providing jobs for area residents looking to be a part of some exciting work.

Pennsylvania is home to 66 species of mammal wildlife and with temperatures beginning to cool in autumn, many will be looking for a warm place to call home. Combine that with the fall foliage that covers homeowners yards, attracting many different types of animals, and many residents will find themselves with some form of critter problem in the upcoming months. The best course of action when dealing with animals in the home is to seek professional help.

Steven couldnt be more ready to take on the wildlife needs of Scrantons residents, said Joe Felegi, General Manager of Critter Control. There is a lot of opportunity in the area and thanks to Critter Controls robust training program, hes ready to handle whatever comes his way.

Established in 1983, Critter Control is a nuisance wildlife removal service that prioritizes the humane removal of animals from homes and yards. With the launch of each new franchise comes an intensive, hands-on training session to ensure the success of each new franchise operator. The training sessions are held at Critter Controls Atlanta headquarters, with simulated environments that prepare teams for any wildlife scenario. The companys attention to safety, ongoing education and training allows its franchise owners to operate to the utmost success and confidence.



Critter Control of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will be open Monday through Friday from 8:00am  5:00pm, and will also provide services on Saturdays and Sundays by appointment only. The franchise offers discounts to senior citizens of the area experiencing wildlife issues. Residents in need of immediate assistance can contact the new Critter Control location at (570) 203-2378 and https://www.crittercontrol.com/office-finder/pennsylvania/scranton-wilkes-barre.

About Critter Control

Founded in 1983, Critter Control is an industry leader in the removal of rodents, raccoons, bats, birds and other nuisance wildlife. The Atlanta-based company operates franchises and corporate-owned locations in more than 100 markets throughout the U.S. and Canada. Learn more about Critter Control at www.crittercontrol.com.
AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GAST Clearwater, a US-based next-generation water treatment company, artificial beach and property developer, announced today that they would be presenting a 10-year guaranteed waterproofing solution and methodology for Surf Pools & Lagoons at the Surf Park Summit to be held in San Diego, California next week. Dr. Gast, the principal engineer of GAST Clearwater, will be presenting this paper on Monday, Oct. 17, 15:45 local time during the Surf Pak Summit explaining their waterproofing solution and methodologies.

The industry has been plagued for many years with numerous projects faced with failing or deteriorating waterproofing solutions, compounds, or products that perish under wave-generating velocities, costing developers and operators millions. Not only do current technologies and methodologies limit design, application, and guest experiences, but they also come at a high financial cost, both CAPEX and OPEX.

GAST Clearwater also announced that its waterproofing would be backed by a 10-year guarantee, ensuring a watertight solution for the lifetime of the surf pool/lagoon. GAST Clearwater's parent GAST Global is one of the world's oldest and largest waterproofing companies, with over 13 000 successful projects globally. "As GAST Clearwater expands globally as the No. 1 artificial beach / urban lagoon developer, we are delighted to provide a much-needed waterproofing solution to a longstanding problem within the surf pool industry, coupled with our A.L.T.E.P. water treatment solution enabling developers to use sewerage water, we can now offer a turnkey single point responsibility solution to developers and wave generating companies, backed by full warranties & guarantees," said Mr. Kevin Gast, Co-Founder & CEO of GAST Clearwater.

Earlier this month, its co-founder and CEO Kevin Gast participated in the panel discussion about the Future of Water at the Goldman Sachs annual Water Symposium hosted in New York.

Mr. Gast spoke in depth during the symposium about GAST Clearwater's groundbreaking A.L.T.E.P. (Advanced Low Tension Electroporation Process) System that has been dubbed the "Tesla" of water treatment due to its capabilities of treating a wide variety of "dirty waters" with no chemicals, no biologicals, no membranes, and a very high throughput that also destroys PFAS. GAST Clearwater's A.L.T.E.P. system represents an evolutionary leap in the water treatment space that is set to revolutionize and disrupt various markets as a result of its low cost, low maintenance, sustainability, and eco-friendliness that provides an unparalleled tool for the Surf Park industry & Artificial Beach industry.

Contact Information:

Bryce Petty

VP Corporate Development

bpetty@gastglobal.com









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Image 1: Mr. Kevin Gast Co-Founder & CEO





Portrait of Mr. Kevin Gast CEO GAST Clearwater









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BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gradient , the Cybersecurity Mesh innovator, today announced it has won the 2022 Cybersecurity Technology of the Year Award from the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council . MassTLC presented the award at a live reception held at the Verizon Innovation Center in Boston, MA, on October 11th. Gradient VP Product and Partnerships, George Harper, was in attendance to accept the award.



"We are thrilled to be recognized with this prestigious award from MassTLC, said Gradient CEO, Christian Wentz. With cyber attacks on the rise, the failure of traditional enterprise cyber defense techniques to keep up, and the looming threats to post quantum cybersecurity, the landscape has never been more challenging. This award is a testament to Gradients position at the vanguard of cybersecurity innovation; and a clear affirmation that were developing the kind of solution that enterprises need most right now.

Credential compromise is involved in 60-80% of all cyber breaches today, making it the leading attack vector left unprotected by current generation cybersecurity products. With its Cybersecurity Mesh solution, Gradient eliminates this threat entirely. By anchoring the credentials our digital world uses today, Gradient Cybersecurity Mesh is able to prevent compromises in everything from secure remote access sessions for remote work, cloud applications, and critical infrastructure.

Gradients technology is particularly timely in that it prevents credential-based attacks like those used recently against Uber, EA, Microsoft and SolarWinds, without cumbersome, manual Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) interrupting work flow. As a seamless overlay solution on top of existing applications and infrastructure, it enables powerful capabilities like next-gen Zero Trust Remote Access, cloud microsegmentation, and other elements of a Zero Trust Architecture.

This is the second industry award Gradient has received thus far in 2022. In June, Gradient was honored with a highly-coveted MassVentures START Award as one of the top ten most promising companies translating deep tech innovation into commercial adoption in 2022. The award entailed access to advisors, connections to Massachusetts business and government leaders, and a $100K grant towards commercialization.

For further information on or to request a demo of Gradients Security Mesh solution, visit: https://www.gradient.tech/

About Gradient Technologies

Gradient is pioneering technology that secures the worlds digital systems against ransomware and malware by preventing cyber attacks before they happen, at machine speed. Gradient Security Mesh is the only cybersecurity solution that continually protects and communicates, via patented secure hardware attestation, the complete security posture of every platform. Gradients mission is to secure the connected world, deploying to anything that runs code.
Las Vegas, NV, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Hemp Inc. (OTC PINK: HEMP): On October 6, 2022, President Biden announced that he will pardon all prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana and will call on federal regulators to review how the drug is classified.



The pardons will affect approximately 6,500 people convicted of federal offenses for simple possession from 1992 through 2021, as well as thousands of people in Washington D.C., according to senior administration officials. President Biden is also calling on governors to take similar actions.

Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit, Mr. Biden said. Criminal records for marijuana possession have also imposed needless barriers to employment, housing and educational opportunities.

The president wants to end what he calls a failed approach to marijuana that disproportionately affects people of color with simple possession convictions, officials said.

Among additional steps, the president will also direct the attorney general to issue certificates of pardons that individuals can show to law enforcement and employers, two administration officials said.

Mr. Biden also plans to direct the Department of Health and Human Services and attorney general to review the status of marijuana as a schedule 1 controlled substance, a category that also includes heroin and LSD, the officials said.

Mr. Biden said marijuanas status is higher than the classification of methamphetamine and fentanyl, which have driven the U.S. overdose epidemic.

More than half of U.S. states have legalized cannabis for some purpose, and legalization enjoys support from two out of three Americans surveyed in a 2021 Gallup poll.

The president is taking the steps after some lawmakers in both parties expressed support for decriminalizing marijuana possession, but opposition from other lawmakers derailed the prospects for legislation.

Due to the political sensitivities, the Biden administration had been sidestepping taking a stand on decriminalizing marijuana possession.

Yet Mr. Biden, while campaigning for president, had championed loosening of marijuana laws and said he would decriminalize marijuana, which would prevent people from being incarcerated for possession, and expunge criminal records.

Under the plans, the attorney general will develop an administrative process for issuing the certificates of pardon to eligible individuals under the plan.

About Hemp, Inc.

With more than 10 years of experience in growing and processing hemp in North America, Hemp, Inc. has an established network of industry professionals in every segment of the industrial hemp industry. Hemp, Inc. has the largest industrial multipurpose hemp processing facility in North America, an 85,000-square foot facility in Spring Hope, N.C. Its mission of providing green solutions that help make the world a better place continues to flourish as the company advances an ever-growing portfolio of revenue and value-generating synergistic businesses. Hemp may be the salvation in retooling America for greener, more sustainable domestic manufacturing.

To catch up with the latest news on Hemp, Inc., be sure to check out:

Hempcrete Approved for U.S. Residential Construction

Hemp Inc. See Significant Increase in Revenue Over the Last 3 Quarters

Global Hemp Fiber Market Rising at an Annual Rate of 6.9%

Hemp, Inc. Offers CBD-CBG Topical Pain Relief Roll-On

Hemp, Inc.'s Chief Visionary Consultant Bruce Perlowin Brings Opportunity to Hemp, Inc. (August 8, 2022)

Hemp Inc.'s CBDA and CBGA Products on Sale Now (July 19, 2022)

Hemp Inc.'s Chief Visionary Consultant Bruce Perlowin talks with Stock Day podcast about Hemp Inc.'s super potent line of CBD/CBG/CBN Products (July 7, 2022)

Healthy Products for Healthy Living: A Look into Hemp, Inc.'s Pure, Premium, and Potent CBD and Wellness Products (June 16, 2022)

Hemp, Inc. Releases New High Potency CBD/CBG Vanilla Flavored Coffee Enhancer (June 9, 2022)

Hemp, Inc.'s King of Hemp CBD-CBG-CBN Natural Sleep Aid Capsules in Stock and On Sale (May 26, 2022)

King of Hemp Natural and Vanilla-Flavored CBD/CBG "Super" Tinctures Now in Stock (May 12, 2022)

The Company will continue to keep its shareholders up to date on all pertinent material events, product releases, production plans, and inventory availability. Those interested in distributing on a large-scale basis should email sales@hempinc.com or call 877-436-7564 for more information. The entire product line includes tinctures, gummies, capsules, and edibles in a variety of sizes, potencies, flavors, and formulas with a future focus on healthy foods for healthy living.
ATLANTA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Faith Works, Georgia's unified body of faith leaders fighting against the anti-voting law SB 202, announced today that it would crisscross Georgia during the month of October for a series of local rallies to highlight early voting opportunities and showcase the work of local faith institutions who are promoting the democratic ideal of voter participation. Earlier this month, Faith Works announced a massive effort to ensure that over 1,000 local churches, synagogues, mosques, and other faith institutions create their own customized voter engagement campaigns to ensure every person within their local congregations has the information and ability to vote this Fall.

In Faith Works' view, after a record turnout by African-American voters in the 2020 election, extremists in Georgia constructed and spent millions of dollars on a campaign designed to minimize and invalidate various communities throughout the state from voting, most specifically voters of color, for this year's election. The anchor of this effort was Georgia's new anti-voting law, SB 202, which passed without debate or discourse. SB 202 significantly diminishes the ability to request and submit absentee ballots, minimizes voting opportunities across the state, makes it a crime to offer food or water to people waiting in long lines to vote, and places the politically controlled legislature in control of the State Election Board, rather than the elected Secretary of State. To learn more about Faith Works, please go to FaithWork.Vote.

"In 2020, African Americans in Georgia made voting history, and we are clearly on the verge of doing it once again," stated AME Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, the Presiding Prelate of the Sixth Episcopal District and a founding member of Faith Works. "Despite every effort by extremists to minimize black turnout this voting cycle, our communities are responding like never before with urgency and enthusiasm. With early voting finally rolling out next week, Georgia will see that our communities are organized and determined. People of faith will not be intimidated or marginalized, and I am so proud that it is the state's faith institutions who are supporting and promoting the ideals of our democracy."

FAITH WORKS TOUR LOGISTICS

The following regional rallies are scheduled throughout the month of October. Please note that in addition to the participation of Faith Works' statewide faith leadership, guest speakers are showcased for each event. The event will be open, and local multi-denominational congregations have been invited to each event. Each event will also be live-streamed on YouTube, Facebook, and the Sixth Episcopal District AME Church's website.

In addition to the planned rallies listed below, Faith Works' statewide leadership will meet with local clergy for strategic planning purposes, and onsite GOTV activities will be organized during each stop along the tour.

Media wishing to cover the tour or travel with the Faith Works' leadership may contact Matthew Frankel at (917) 617-7914.

FAITH WORKS GET-OUT-THE-VOTE RALLIES

Macon - Tuesday, October 18 at 7:00 pm

New Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church -- Dr. James L. Bumpus, Lead Pastor

475 Church St, Macon, GA 31217

Guest Speaker: Rev. Thurmond Tillman, First African Baptist Church, Savannah, Georgia=

Columbus - Wednesday, October 19 at 7:00 pm

St. James AME Church -- Rev. Joseph Baker, Lead Pastor

1002 6th Ave, Columbus, GA 31901

Guest Speaker: Dr. Anthony Corbett, President, General Baptist Convention of Georgia and Pastor, Lundy Baptist Church, Macon

Augusta - Thursday, October 20 at 7:00 pm

Bethel AME Church - Rev. Augusta Hall, Pastor

623 Crawford Avenue, Augusta, GA 30901

Guest Speaker: Dr. Jamal Bryant, New Birth Baptist Church, Atlanta

Savannah - Monday, October 24 at 7:00 pm

St. Philip AME Church -- Dr. Jai Haithco, Lead Pastor

613 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Savannah, GA 31401

Guest Speaker: Dr. Da'Henri Thurmond, St. Paul CME Church, Savannah

Valdosta - Tuesday, October 25 at 7:00 pm

New Life Ministries -- J. Bernard Braswell II, Lead Pastor

5651 Inner Perimeter Rd, Valdosta, GA 31601

Guest Speaker: Rev. Paul Little, Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Macon

Albany - Wednesday, October 26 at 7:00 pm

Shiloh Baptist Church, Rev. Perry Simmons

325 W. Whitney Avenue, Albany, GA 31701

Guest Speaker: Rev. Lorenzo Heard, Second Mt. Olive Baptist Church and Chair-Elect Dougherty County Commission

Atlanta - Thursday, October 27 at 7:00 pm

St. Philip AME Church, Rev. William D. Watley, Ph. D., Lead Senior Pastor

240 Candler Rd., Atlanta, GA 30317

Guest Speaker: Dr. Charles Goodman, Lead Pastor, Tabernacle Baptist Church, Augusta

#. #. #

Contact Information:

Matthew Frankel

MDF Strategies

matthew@mdfstrategies.com

917-617-7914



Related Files

Faith Works Tour -Standalone.pdf

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com.
WARSAW, Poland, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A global advocacy group for vaping, World Vapers Alliance (WVA), launches the #BackVapingBeatSmoking campaign in Warsaw to encourage Polish policymakers to embrace harm reduction and vaping. As part of their #BackVapingBeatSmoking campaign, the WVA delivered the message that vaping can save one million lives in Poland and 19 million lives in Europe to representatives of the PIS, Platforma Obywatelska.







World Vapers Alliance team in front of the Polish Sejm





World Vapers Alliance team in front of the PIS office

The WVA presented their  Vaping Products Directive  to show how vaping needs to be treated to fulfil its full potential for public health. Additionally, the WVA unveiled an art installation in the shape of the falling domino moved across the Polish capital to draw attention to the importance of tobacco harm reduction.

Only in Poland, more than one million smokers could potentially switch to vaping if the Government embraced harm reduction. This means, one million lives could be saved from tobacco-related illnesses if politicians stop banning flavours, raising taxes and lowering nicotine levels in e-liquids. In Poland, more than 70 thousand people die every year from tobacco smoking, and if politicians dont change their approach to harm reduction, this number will keep growing, said Michael Landl, director of the WVA.

The partner of the World Vapers' Alliance is the Polish organization "Law for people" which addresses civil liberties issues and the dangers of over-regulating the market for goods and services.

We are joining forces with the World Vapers Alliance to demand changes from the Polish politicians as the situation around harm reduction becomes very disturbing for consumers, businesses and the civil society. The current government implemented recently increased taxes on e-liquids not realising the possible consequences for public health. We want a thorough analysis and broad public debate to precede legislative actions that interfere with the daily lives of Poles. said Sara Lament-Hamodi, Coordinator of the Prawo dla ludzi campaign.

The Polish installation comes as a part of the broader #BackVapingBeatSmokin campaign that the group launched last week in Strasbourg. WVA hosted a protest art installation with the message Dont Let 19 Million Lives Fall in front of the European Parliament to draw attention of the EU policymakers to the Europe-wide need to embrace harm reduction.

In the following weeks, WVA will host similar installations in Czech Republic, Italy, Portugal, and Belgium. The group is also running a Europe-wide petition asking the EU policymakers to acknowledge vaping as a tobacco harm reduction mechanism and refrain from overregulating the most successful smoking-cessation aid in the upcoming review of the EU tobacco regulation. The petition will be delivered to the European Parliament in Brussels in November.

Earlier this year, more than 24,000 EU citizens raised their voices in the Commission-run public consultation on tobacco legislation asking the regulators not to ban vaping. Public institutions must listen to the consumers. 5% of Polish adult populations are vapers, and its time their voices are heard! added Landl.

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c46270c2-72b6-4c15-a884-8b0e8bd12cf6

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8faf32fd-7243-4665-a56f-4c0b2eebe512
Luxembourg  13 October 2022  Subsea 7 S.A. (Oslo Brs: SUBC, ADR: SUBCY) today announced that, on 13 October 2022, Societe Generale SA informed the Company that it recently crossed above, and subsequently below, the 5% threshold provided for by Luxembourgs Transparency Law of 11 January 2008 on transparency requirements for issuers of securities as amended (the Transparency Law).

On 10 October the total number of voting rights in the Company (attached to shares or through financial instruments) held by Societe Generale SA was 15,009,859 representing 5.0% of the voting rights in the Company.

On 11 October the total number of voting rights in the Company (attached to shares or through financial instruments) held by Societe Generale SA was 14,899,082 representing 4.97% of the voting rights in the Company.

The voting rights in the Company held by Societe Generale SA were attached to shares and financial instruments with similar economic effect according to Article 12 (1) (b) of the Transparency Law.

A copy of the notification received from Societe Generale SA is available on the Subsea 7 website www.subsea7.com.

*******************************************************************************

Subsea 7 is a global leader in the delivery of offshore projects and services for the evolving energy industry, creating sustainable value by being the industrys partner and employer of choice in delivering the efficient offshore solutions the world needs.

Subsea 7 is listed on the Oslo Brs (SUBC), ISIN LU0075646355, LEI 222100AIF0CBCY80AH62.

*******************************************************************************

Contact:

Katherine Tonks

Investor Relations Director

Subsea 7 S.A.

Tel +44 (0)20 8210 5568

ir@subsea7.com

www.subsea7.com

Attachments
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hagens Berman urges GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE: EAF) investors who suffered significant losses to submit your losses now.



Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/EAF Contact An Attorney Now: EAF@hbsslaw.com 844-916-0895

GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE: EAF) Investigation:

GrafTech is one of the worlds largest suppliers of graphite electrodes used in electric-arc steelmaking, a fast-growing part of the steel industry because of its relatively low costs and more environmentally friendly setup.

The investigation focuses on GrafTechs past assurances that its graphite electrode facilities (including GrafTech, Mexicos Monterrey, Mexico facility which is reportedly responsible for about 25% of GrafTechs total production) provide unique competitive advantages and that it can continue to open up incremental capacity in Monterrey. The company has also assured investors that it minimizes its environmental footprint and that it focuses on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives.

GrafTechs assurances may have come under question on Sept. 16, 2022, when it disclosed that on Sept. 15, 2022 Mexican regulators visited the Monterrey facility to review the facilitys environmental and operating permits, instructed the facility to wind down operations within 7 days, and determined that GrafTech Mexicos operating license was no longer in effect.

This news sent the price of GrafTech shares down more than 8% lower on Sept. 19, 2022, wiping out over $100 million of shareholder value.

Were focused on investors losses and whether GrafTech misrepresented its ability to produce more product in Monterrey and its ESG policies and procedures, said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.

If you invested in GrafTech and have significant losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firms investigation, click here to discuss your legal rights with Hagens Berman.

Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding GrafTech should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email EAF@hbsslaw.com.

About Hagens Berman

Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs rights complex litigation law firm focusing on corporate accountability through class-action law. The firm is home to a robust securities litigation practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.
TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Over the last 16 years a group of friends of Jamaica and Jamaican volunteers have thrown fabulous galas and wonderful walkathons to help improve early childhood education in Jamaica.



This passionate group, led by their visionary founder Karl Hale, has raised millions of dollars to build 25 Kindergartens across Jamaica, increasing access to and the quality of the education of thousands of 3 to 6 year-olds over the last decade.

Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation (HHJF) has done this work through a long and impactful partnership with Food For The Poor Canada and Food For The Poor Jamaica.

Hundreds of volunteers have had the opportunity to work alongside Food For The Poor (FFP) staff and contractors to hammer and paint as well as spend time with the teachers, parents and children of the community.

Their most recent school, the 25th school, was built this August in the parish of St. Catherine, Jamaicagiving the community of Linstead a beautiful new school that will allow more children to be better educated. 30 volunteers enjoyed the incredible experience of giving back by building a school over a period of four days!

Samantha Mahfood, Executive Director of FFP Canada, shared, The impact on one child or one community is important, but the impact that HHJF has made on 25 communities and thousands of children is a sea-change for the island of Jamaica. She continued, The board and staff of Food For The Poor Canada thank Helping Hands Jamaica for all their work. We look forward to our continued partnership and building more schools each year.

Samantha Mahfood and Andrea Slipek from FFP Canada look forward to attending the 16th Annual Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation Gala.

On Friday, October 21, 2022, the Palais Royale Ballroom will be immersed in the music, vibrancy, food and culture the island of Jamaica offers.

Every sponsorship, table, ticket purchase, donation of funds, time and in-kind items help to advance their vision based on three simple words - PARTICIPATE, EDUCATE, ELEVATE!

To purchase tickets please click here .

About Food For The Poor Canada

Food For The Poor Canada (FFPC) empowers communities in Latin America and the Caribbean through five areas of investment: food, health, housing, education, and income-generating projects.

FFPC meets urgent needs while building community and social infrastructure. FFPC utilizes the pre-existing networks of local affiliated organizations to provide effective and accountable distribution and project management and to sustain and grow the communities they serve. Through trusted partners, FFPC has strengthened its emergency preparedness and is able to respond to emergencies with impact and immediacy.

Over the last 14 years, FFPC and its donors have built 188 homes, 37 schools, provided 25 million meals as well as shipped and distributed $43,000,000 in food, educational and medical supplies to communities in LAC.

For interviews or more information, contact:

Samantha Mahfood

Executive Director

(416) 921-4008

Samantham@foodforthepoor.ca

www.foodforthepoor.ca

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2cb571b7-9158-4b86-9176-6a8759d18fdd

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/38feced1-22f8-4df5-a2df-8e9eedb077fe
TACOMA, Wash., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pierce County Alliance (PCA), founded in 1972, will celebrate its 50th Anniversary on November 2nd from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. at its Tacoma headquarters. A nationally recognized substance abuse treatment provider, Pierce County Alliance has been serving the people of the Pacific Northwest and has received national recognition for its pioneering work with Drug Treatment Courts, medication assisted treatment (MAT) and Child Placing Agency Services, including foster home licensing.



PCA 50th Anniversary Celebration

November 2, 2022 from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m.;

510 Tacoma Avenue South in Tacoma

RSVP to Phi Rhea at 253-304-1971

PCA invites all interested parties to its 50th Anniversary celebration. We are excited to join with our many community partners to celebrate a half-century of success in the provision of substance abuse treatment and youth services. said Terree Schmidt-Whelan, PCAs Executive Director.

PCA is one of the leaders in the development of programs, systems and public policy regarding criminal justice treatment and was one of the first in Washington State to collaborate with local courts to develop drug treatment alternatives to incarceration, said Barry J. Reid, PCAs Board President. Due to its achievements, PCA is regularly awarded significant governmental grants to expand its work in helping persons struggling with substance abuse.

PCA has become a nationally recognized agency in the field of drug courts, continued Reid. PCA is regarded as a great place to work, where dogs are welcome to work with their person in the agency, and the work environment reflects the agencys people-centered philosophy towards both clients and staff.

About Pierce County Alliance

The Pierce County Alliance is a nationally recognized agency providing substance abuse treatment in the Pacific Northwest. The agency has worked in collaboration with federal, state, and local justice systems to address treatment issues of the offender population with programs such as TASC (Treatment Alternatives to Street Crime). These efforts were substantially expanded with the advent of drug treatment courts in the early 1990s. PCA, in conjunction with the Pierce County Superior Court and the Pierce County Council, began one of the earliest felony drug court programs in the country.

Over its 50-year history, PCA has expanded into many complementary areas including: the Family Recovery Court, mental health therapy, substance use, medication-assisted treatment, problem gambling disorders, youth services and foster care programs. PCA also provides drug court treatment services for the Thurston County Superior Court. In 2021, Terree Schmidt-Whelan, PCAs Executive Director was inducted into the Stanley M. Goldstein Treatment Court Hall of Fame by the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.
The FIA made one lapse after another during the Japanese Grand Prix and can expect another round of criticism in the coming weeks. We list the biggest misses by Formula 1's governing body.

Article continues under ad

Tractor on track

The biggest scandal took place early in the race. Carlos Sainz had skidded off the track and for this a safety car and not much later even the red flag was called in by race control. A logical decision, but in the frenzy things went horribly wrong. A tractor to remove Sainz sat on the race track, while drivers were still driving by through the rain on the track behind the safety car. Because Gasly was catching up with the pack and hadn't yet had chance to slow down for the red flag, he was going through at top speed given the conditions.

Pierre Gasly was furious over the team radio and also after he got out of his car at the red flag. It reminded him of his late friend, Jules Bianchi, who collided with a crane at the same track in 2014 and died from it a year later. Gasly received support from many other drivers.

Lando Norris and Sergio Perez, among others, expressed their dissatisfaction on social media during the red flag. Indeed, not only Gasly but also Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo had come across the car. With the rain, this was a particularly dangerous situation. Instead of the FIA reaching out, it called Gasly to account and handed out a severe penalty.

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Indeed, in a statement, the FIA seemed to pin the focus more on Gasly, as he was driving too fast. Gasly himself denied this after the race, but even if Gasly had not been speeding, the FIA was still going against their own rules. This is because the crane is not allowed to enter the track until all cars are in the pit lane or driving in one long line behind the safety car. This was not the case, the drivers were still too spread out on the track.

Not racing in the rain

Although we eventually covered half of the race distance and even full points were still handed out, you can also question the race organisers' decision to wait so long to continue the race. Drivers and teams suggested much earlier to go out on the track with the full wets to run the track dry.

This was not done and so three-quarters of an hour was left to race. By then the track was so dry that the drivers wanted to swap full wets for intermediates in no time. So what do you have full wets for? The argument is always the lack of visibility due to the spray coming off the tyres, but you have known for a long time now that this is a problem. So why not work on a tyre where that is less, or accept the fact that there is less visibility, so drivers have to drive more quietly and so we just have rain races like before.

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Poor Flag control

Then there was the flagging off. The race was run on time and so, as in Singapore, the winner drives one more lap from the moment the clock reaches zero. Now, however, Verstappen was already flagged off, crossing the line with two seconds left on the clock. The Dutchman, therefore, continued full throttle and drove a green time in the first sector. However, that proved to be no longer necessary.

Point count

And then there was the point scoring. Since the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix ended in a fiasco after points were handed out for a race that was never run, F1 and the FIA set up a nice schedule so that it was clear to everyone at what percentage of the race how many points would be handed out.

During the race, then, it was strange that a calculation came into view with the full points. At that point, you assume that the stats had not yet been updated, but once the penalty for Leclerc was known, it suddenly came on the screen that Verstappen was the world champion. Nobody understood. Indeed, according to the rules in place since Belgium, Verstappen would get 19 points, Perez 14 and Leclerc 12, leaving Verstappen one point short of becoming world champion.

However, there appears to be a catch. The FIA's statement makes it clear that this distribution of points only applies if a race does not resume. That was not the case in Japan. Although the race was not completely finished, it was resumed and finished under race conditions, so full points could 'just' be paid out. That this was again so unclear to everyone says enough about the rulebook and the FIA's communication. These are very vague and unclear.

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The Japanese Grand Prix again showed many weaknesses in the FIA's way of doing things. It cannot prevent huge dangers like a tractor on the track, it is passive when it rains and a lot of rules are very unclear for all involved. It sometimes makes the sport unnecessarily difficult and that will have to improve in the future if you want the new public to take you seriously.

This article was originally written by Tim Kraaij for the Dutch edition of GPblog.
South Africa: Spotlight on GBVF as Limpopo gears up to host summit

The Limpopo provincial government will on Friday host a gender-based violence and femicide summit to collectively fight the scourge that has been named the second pandemic after Coronavirus.

The summit will be held under the theme: 'Accountability, accelerate and amplify now', at The Ranch resort, in Polokwane.

The summit will be a precursor to the upcoming National Presidential GBVF Summit, in November 2022.

The summit follows the Presidents mandate earlier this year to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide to facilitate a second Presidential Summit to afford delegates to echo their voices regarding the scourge.

The GBVF summit aims to deepen the understanding of GBVF in the province, with a specific focus on the impact of GBVF by target groups, namely, women, the elderly, children, people with disabilities, pregnant women, LGBTQIA + individuals and men.

The GBV summit will also accelerate actions and accountability by key government departments and other stakeholders, provide a space for wider collaborative engagements between all stakeholders and strengthen the overall response to the prevention of GBVF in the province amongst others.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Traditional wedding customs displayed in E China's Zhejiang

People's Daily Online) 10:45, October 13, 2022

According to the local wedding customs in east China's Zhejiang Province, people marry off their daughters with a luxurious dowry, and all members of the wedding procession, who serve to see the bride to her new home, were dressed in red clothes, which expresses the wishes of happiness and auspiciousness.

Photo shows the wedding procession in Ninghai county, Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Ninghai County Committee)

On Oct. 10, 2022, over 40 performers, all dressed in red costumes, put on a show to make a display of the traditional wedding customs in Zhaxia village, Qiantong township, Ninghai county, Ningbo city, east China's Zhejiang Province.

As the procession moved forward along the road, the bride was seen sitting in the bridal sedan chair, wearing a phoenix coronet and an embroidered vest. Her dowry included articles such as furniture and sewing kits.

Photo shows the wedding procession in Ninghai county, Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Ninghai County Committee)

Photo shows the wedding procession in Ninghai county, Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Ninghai County Committee)

Photo shows the wedding procession in Ninghai county, Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Ninghai County Committee)

(Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming)
Toyota and Google Cloud announced an expanded partnership that brings together Toyota and Lexus next-generation audio multimedia systems and Google Clouds AI-based speech services. Customers can now experience the first results of the partnership in the latest generation Toyota Audio Multimedia and Lexus Interface infotainment systems, including in 2023 models such as the Toyota Corolla family, Tundra and Sequoia and Lexus NX, RX and all-electric RZ.

With the growing popularity of voice assistants in everyday life, consumers increasingly expect accurate and consistent voice interactions. The machine learning capabilities required to provide high-quality speech results have traditionally relied on a connection to the cloud, as natural language processing is extremely complex and can require specialized computers.

Vehicles equipped with Toyotas latest-generation Automotive-Grade Linux-based Audio Multimedia and Lexus Interface infotainment systems already leverage Google Clouds Speech-to-Text service to perform accurate automatic speech recognition for in-vehicle queries. Toyotas Voice Assistant, which leverages technology from Google Cloud, was co-developed between the Toyota Motor North America Connected Technologies and Toyota Connected organizations since 2018. The partnership highlights the AI and machine learning innovation brought forth in the latest Toyota and Lexus infotainment systems.

The strength of the partnership announced today is that Toyotas next-generation system will no longer require an internet connection for natural-speech functions.

Expanding the collaboration between Toyota and Google Cloud, the partnership aims to drive future innovation with the addition of Speech On-Devicea new Google Cloud AI product that equips embedded devices with the same powerful, AI-based speech recognition and synthesis available in the cloud, regardless of internet connectivityto future Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

The future vehicle-native Speech On-Device will enable voice requests to be served directly by vehicles multimedia system processors, without the need for internet connectivity, to power voice queries in select vehicles. Now, with voice interactions served locally instead of by the cloud, drivers will not have to worry about a tunnel or dead zone affecting voice commands.

Googles Speech On-Device Technology. Speech On-Device builds on innovations from Google Assistant and Google Pixel that enable fully featured speech models to run locally on small devices at the edge with only a fraction of the model size and computing requirements. The new product makes it possible for Google Cloud customers to bring high-quality speech services to disconnected environments, presenting new opportunities across a variety of use cases, from cars to televisions and even kiosks.

By working closely with Toyota to understand its in-vehicle device requirements and capabilities, we were able to provide server-like quality while using only a small fraction of the processing power to ensure the best possible experience for drivers. Umesh Vemuri VP, Global Strategic Customers & Industries, Google Cloud

With Toyotas next-generation multimedia system in development upon the brands native platform, vehicle-embedded Speech On-Device will be used as a component of the nextgen Toyota Voice Assistant. These technologies combined allow voice requests to be served directly by vehicles multimedia system processors, without the need for internet connectivity, to power voice queries in select vehicles.
Hyundai Motor Group announced a new global strategy to transform all vehicles to software-defined vehicles (SDVs) by 2025. The initiative, presented during the Groups Unlock the Software Age global online forum, will give customers the freedom to upgrade the performance and functionality of their vehicles remotely.

The Group also shared plans to transform the customer experience throughout the vehicles entire lifetime and deliver a new era of mobility via constantly evolving software technology.





Hyundai Motor Groups constantly evolving mobility and software technology will ensure that all models, including those already purchased, remain up to date. This will enable vehicle functions, including safety, convenience, connectivity, security, and driving performance, to be upgraded via Over-The-Air (OTA) software updates. Based on the Groups next-generation EV platform, integrated controller, and an internally developed Connected Car Operating System (ccOS), all Group vehicles will be equipped to receive OTA software updates by 2025.

The Group expects 20 million vehicles to be registered to its connected car service worldwide by 2025. Connected car data will network with future Group mobility solutions, including Purpose Built Vehicles (PBVs), Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), robotaxis and robots.

By establishing a new data platform, Hyundai plans to provide innovative services through connecting and processing the various data generated throughout the car life cycle, as well as promoting the creation of an open ecosystem in partnership with diverse industries such as logistics and accommodation.

The Group will also invest heavily in software technology to integrate hardware and software technologies and enhance and internalize mobility technology capabilities. By 2030, the Group plans to invest 18 trillion won (US$12.6 billion) in resources, including the establishment of a new Global Software Center to bolster its software capabilities and accelerate software-defined Vehicle development.

Over-The-Air (OTA) software updates for all HMG models by 2025. From 2023, all newly launched vehicles of Hyundai Motor Group will be equipped to receive Over-The-Air (OTA) software updates enabling customers to keep their vehicles up to date. This transformation will apply not just to electric models, but also internal combustion engine vehicles. All of the Groups vehicle segments sold worldwide will evolve to be software-defined by 2025.

Customers will be able to upgrade the performance and functionality of their vehicles anywhere at any time, without any need to take them to a service center. Because the vehicle can constantly be updated, its residual value will also be enhanced. The Group initially introduced this service in 2021, and from 2023 will expand it across vehicle models in global market regions able to receive Connected Car Services (CCS). By 2025 all Hyundai Motor Group vehicles will be equipped to receive OTA software updates.

The Group will also offer FoD (Feature on Demand) services next year. This will give customers the ability to select and purchase functions and features that meet their needs and tastes, and the freedom to create vehicles that best match their lifestyles.

The vast amount of data generated by the 20 million subscribed vehicles to the Groups CCS will provide the basis for the further development of personalized services. The Group plans to continuously offer customized services that can enhance individual customer requirements and handle vehicle big data exceptionally quickly and ultra-reliably.

Next-generation EV platform to accelerate SDV transformation. The Group plans to reduce the time required for all mass-production processes significantly, including planning, design, and manufacturing, by developing a shared hardware and software platform for vehicles. This will enable vehicle components to be shared across different vehicle segments, leading to more efficient vehicle development and greater cost reductions. Reducing vehicle complexity will further enhance the effectiveness of SDV technology.

Constantly upgradeable vehicle software will bolster Hyundai Motor Groups ability to secure diverse and stable revenue streams by providing fresh vehicle features and functionality and leveraging selected data to offer personalized services for each customer. The Groups profitability will also be improved by shortening vehicle development time and reducing costs through platform standardization.

The Group will also introduce vehicles in 2025 based on its two new EV platforms, eM, and eS. The new EV platforms will be created under the Groups Integrated Modular Architecture (IMA) system.

The eM platform is being developed specifically for EVs across all segments and will provide a 50% improvement in driving range on a single charge compared to current EVs. The eM platform is also being developed to support Level 3 or higher autonomous driving technology and OTA software update features.

The Groups eS platform will be developed as an EV skateboard exclusively for Purpose Built Vehicles (PBVs), with a fully flexible structure to meet B2B demands, and provide tailor-made solutions for companies operating in the delivery, logistics, and car-hailing sectors.

The Groups Integrated Modular Architecture will facilitate the standardization and modularization of key EV components. By standardizing the batteries and electric motors, for example, which currently vary across each EV model, the Group will flexibly apply common components to each vehicle, thus efficiently expanding its lineup.

The Group is also similarly integrating the vehicle controller. Previously, the software system needed to be upgraded separately for each controller to upgrade the functions of vehicles. However, an integrated controller delivers a solution to make this process more systematic and efficient. Thus, the overall number of controllers can be significantly reduced by integrating the lower-level electrical components managed by top-level controllers.

The integrated controller will enable the efficient development of diverse vehicle segments and strategic models optimized for each region and ease the process of adding new features and improving performance. The cycle of software updates will be shortened, whereas the frequency will increase. The technology also enables the Group to respond flexibly and swiftly to meet rapidly changing market and customer needs.

The infotainment and Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) that the Group already mass produced are both currently undergoing function advancements with the introduction of the latest integrated controller technology. By 2025, both comfort and driving controllers will also be gradually integrated.

The electrical and electronic architecture can be thought of as an organically connected structure that improves the function of a vehicles electrical device components. To develop the growing number of electrical components with systematic efficiency, Hyundai Motor Group chose to implement Domain centralized architecture, which structures groups and integrates controllers throughout the vehicle into four areas, Comfort, Driving, Infotainment, and ADAS. As this architecture significantly reduces development complexity and enables software updates to be carried out effortlessly without any requirement to manually modify the controller, it is ideal for presenting a variety of vehicle segments, and region-specific models tailored for different countries. It also enables us to respond flexibly to what consumers want in this fast-changing market. Hyung Ki Ahn, Vice President of Electronics Development Group

Connected Car Operating System (ccOS). Hyundai said that its internally developed Connected Car Operating Systems (ccOS) will prove key to the Groups ambition to take the lead in providing transformative global mobility solutions. The ccOS software platform can be applied to all controllers and can maximize hardware performance through extremely high computing power.

To collect and process the large amount of information generated by connected cars efficiently, high-performance information processing semiconductors are required. The Group is working with NVIDIA, collaborating on loading an optimized ccOS onto NVIDIA DRIVE.

The Group signed a technology development agreement with NVIDIA in 2015 and is conducting research to apply connected car technology to commercialized mass-produced vehicles.

Based on its integrated controllers and internal software platform, the Group is also significantly strengthening its competitiveness in autonomous driving technology.

The Groups advanced ccOS operating system will support the software technology required to analyze and process data ultra-rapidly, provided by the data collection capabilities of technology such as the sensors within the cameras, radars, and LiDARs mounted on the vehicle.

This year, the Group will apply an advanced Highway Driving Pilot (HDP) on the Genesis G90, which is a Level 3 technology for autonomous driving based on the second-generation integrated controller. The Group is also developing its Remote Parking Pilot (RPP) for Level 3 autonomous driving. The Group is developing a third-generation integrated controller based on the next-generation high-performance semiconductor to advance autonomous driving technology. The new integrated controller will enable even faster computation and more efficient control by installing a higher performance CPU and increasing the integration between controllers compared to the currently commercialized second-generation integrated controller. The third-generation integrated controller will become the basis for the Groups expansion of mass-producing autonomous driving Level 3 vehicles as well as the commercialization of Level 4 and Level 5 autonomous driving levels in due course. It is also being developed to deliver improved heat dissipation, lower noise levels and reduced production costs. Woongjun Jang, Senior Vice President and Head of Autonomous Driving Center of Hyundai Motor Group

Innovative services and new mobility experiences. The Group is also building a new data platform that can combine and process data generated throughout the vehicles entire life cycle, including manufacturing, production, and operation, which will be used to create a broad range of innovative services.

The Groups data platform will focus on technology capable of identifying how data at each stage of the vehicles life cycle is generated, in addition to selectively collecting and analyzing the necessary data to provide valuable services to customers. Data collated through the vehicles high-performance controller will be continuously processed and analyzed with deep learning technology to ensure optimum speed and efficiency.

To this end, the Group is steadily strengthening its staffing and resource capabilities to enable it to create valuable information and services by quickly and stably processing large amounts of data. In addition to the tens of thousands of connected cars worldwide, data will be harvested from multiple additional sources, such as traffic signals, infrastructure, and satellite navigation mapping. In addition, the Group plans to contribute to the creation of a new mobility system by connecting various future mobility devices based on data connectivity and scalability.

Future mobility and new challenges. The Group foresees a future where the mobility industry paradigm is entirely transformed, enabling people to enjoy convenient, seamless travel, even if they dont own a car. The Groups mid-to-long-term strategy will accommodate a new dimension of mobility service and software will be the core technology that delivers this future by seamlessly connecting new mobility devices and services.

To ensure it continues to lead in the provision of mobility solutions, Hyundai Motor Group will establish a Global Software Center to respond preemptively to changes in the future mobility market from a long-term perspective. The new Global Software Center will develop software-defined mobility devices and solutions, surpassing the vehicle market to enter the mobility and logistics market. It will also establish a system for self-developed mobility devices to connect to smartphone ecosystems while developing technologies and businesses that can connect and control mobility devices under one urban OS and make autonomous driving possible.
The Jeep brand will showcase a 100% electrified presence at the 2022 Paris Motor Show (Mondial de LAutomobile 2022), with a stand fully dedicated to the introduction of the all-new fully electric Jeep Avenger, the brands first BEV.





The all-electric Jeep Avenger will offer Jeep brand capability that is rightsized for the European market delivering a targeted electric range of 400 kilometers (249 miles), combined with modern and technologically advanced interior, with plenty of space for people and cargo.

Customers will be able to make reservations for a launch edition of the new BEV immediately after the press conference on 17 October.

The Jeep Avenger will join an already fully electrified European line-up which include 4xe plug-in hybrid versions of the Jeep Wrangler, Compass, and Renegade. It will also be followed early next year by the launch of the 4xe version of the all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee. In countries such as Germany and France, the Jeep brand offers only electrified SUVs and by the end of the year almost all of the major markets in Continental Europe will offer only electrified SUVs.

The Jeep fully electric plan, revealed in September, builds upon this 4xe momentum, calling for the development of a portfolio of capable, fully electric vehicles for Europe. The brand will introduce four zero-emission vehicles in Europe by 2025, with offerings in the main volume segments, including the Jeep Recon and the Wagoneer S, two all new and all-electric vehicles that will compete in the global mid-size SUV segment.

As a result, all the Jeep vehicles on sale in the region will be 100% electric by 2030.
Green River Police Department reports for Oct. 1

At 6:48 p.m., officers responded to a report of a disturbance between neighbors. Officers met with the individuals involved in a verbal dispute. Officers issued Matthew Tebedo, of Green River, citations for alleged disturbing the peace and disorderly conduct, then issued trespass warnings to both individuals and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

At 8:08 p.m., officers responded to a report of a hit and run collision. It was reported one vehicle was traveling east on River View Drive when a second vehicle, which was conducting a left-hand turn in the intersection with Cedar Street, struck the rear passenger side of the first vehicle, then left the area. Officers gathered information, located the second vehicle, and met with the driver. Officers issued the driver Rebekah Myers, of Green River, citations for alleged leaving the scene of an accident and failure to provide proof of liability insurance. Officers then completed a report of the incident.

At 8:48 p.m., officers responded to a report of a disturbance on Bridger Drive. On arrival officers contacted several individuals who were causing a disturbance outside the apartments. Several individuals were warned for disturbing the peace, but one individual continued to cause a disturbance. Officers placed Jasmine Jones, of Hudson, Wyoming, under arrest for alleged disturbing the peace and Jones was found to have an active warrant out of Rock Springs. Officers transported Jones to the Sweetwater County Detention Center and completed a report of the incident.

At 10:45 p.m., officers responded to a report of a juvenile runaway that had been reported to the Rock Springs Police Department. Officers located the juvenile, contacted RSPD, transported the juvenile to Rock Springs, and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

Oct. 2

At 1:35 a.m., officers responded to a report of a juvenile runaway. Officers were later notified the juvenile had returned home. Officers gathered information and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

At 12:55 p.m., officers responded to a report of a subject shooting an airsoft gun from a vehicle at people at the Loaf N Jug on Bridger Drive. Officers located a vehicle matching the description and met with the driver. Officers gathered information, and completed a report of the incident.

At 2:16 p.m., officers responded to a report of a barking dog complaint on Monroe Avenue. Officers located the dog and made contact at the residence. Officers met with an individual, advised of the complaint, gathered information, and completed a report of the incident, which was forwarded to Animal Control.

At 7:24 p.m., officers responded to a report of harassment and stalking. While on scene officers ascertained an individual had an active warrant out of Rock Springs, and placed Patrick Richardson, of Green River, under arrest. Officers transported Richardson to the Sweetwater County Detention Center and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

Oct. 3

At 9:02 a.m., officers responded to a report of a two-vehicle collision. It was reported one vehicle turned onto Cedar Street from Riverview Drive and was traveling north on Cedar Street, when the front of the vehicle collided head on with a second vehicle, which was completing a right-hand turn from Elm Street to Cedar Street. EMS was called and transports were made. Both vehicles were towed. Officers gathered information and completed a report of the incident.

At 7:52 p.m., officers responded to a report of a juvenile runaway. Officers made contact with several juveniles, and while speaking with them found that they were in possession of suspected marijuana. Officers issued citations for alleged possession of a controlled substance to three juveniles. Officers gathered information, turned the juveniles over to a parent or guardian, and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

At 11:14 p.m., officers responded to a report of domestic violence. Officers met with an individual who reported an altercation with another individual, who had previously left. Officers gathered information, attempted to locate the other individual, and completed a report of the incident.

Oct. 4

At 2:38 p.m., officers responded to a report of vandalism at Scotts Bottom Road. Officers met with an individual who reported that someone was placing sticks and rocks on the mountain bike trail. Officers gathered information and completed a report of the incident.

At 4:31 p.m., officers responded to a report of a juvenile asking people for a ride at Expedition Island. Upon arrival, officers ascertained the juvenile was a runaway with an active warrant. Officers were able to take the juvenile into custody without incident and transported the juvenile to the Sweetwater County Juvenile Detention Center.

Oct. 5

At 8:05 a.m., officers responded to a report of domestic violence. Officers met with individuals involved in a verbal dispute. Officers gathered information and completed a report of the incident. The GRPD did not release the address officers responded to.

At 9:16 a.m., officers received a nuisance complaint for excessive weeds exceeding twelve inches in length in the front yard of a residence on West Flaming Gorge Way. Officers observed the property in violation of City ordinance and contacted the owner. Officers advised of the complaint, issued a verbal notice to abate, and completed a report of the incident.

At 12:42 p.m., officers received a nuisance complaint for excessive weeds exceeding twelve inches in length in the front yard of a residence on East Flaming Gorge Way. Officers observed the property in violation of City ordinance and contacted the owner. Officers advised of the complaint and issued a verbal notice to abate. Officers did a follow up showing the nuisance has been abated, and completed a report of the incident.

At 12:44 p.m., officers observed a property in violation of City ordinance with weeds exceeding twelve inches in length in the front yard of a residence on East Flaming Gorge Way. Officers contacted the owner, advised of the complaint, and issued a verbal notice to abate. Officers did a follow up showing the nuisance has been abated, and completed a report of the incident.

At 1:06 p.m., officers responded to a report of a fraud on West Teton Boulevard. Officers met with an individual who reported he received a text from who they thought was a known individual asking them to purchase gift cards and send the pictures back to them. Monetary losses were reported. Officers gathered information and completed a report of the incident.

At 2:20 p.m., officers responded to a report of vandalism on Schultz Street. Officers met with an individual who reported they have had multiple LED solar lights in their yard knocked over several times during the summer. Officers met with the suspected individuals, gathered information, and completed a report of the incident.
John Mark Bartek, 66, passed away Tuesday, October 4, 2022 at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County in Rock Springs, Wyoming. He was a life-long resident of Rock Springs. He died following a lengthy illness.

He was born December 18, 1955 in Rock Springs, Wyoming; the son of Clarence Bartek and Ardean Robertson.

Mr. Bartek attended schools in Rock Springs, Wyoming and was a 1974 graduate of Rock Springs High School. He earned Mine Maintenance Certificates at Western Wyoming Community College.

He married Karen Albertini on June 4, 1983 in Rock Springs, Wyoming they later divorced.

Mr. Bartek worked for Jim Bridger Power Plant for 36 years as a Plant Mechanic.

He enjoyed spending time with his grandson Hunter and hunting.

Survivors include his son, John Bartek of Rock Springs, Wyoming; one daughter, Sarah Romero of Rock Springs, Wyoming; one grandson, Hunter Bartek; several cousins.

He is preceded in death by his paternal grandparents; maternal grandparents; and his parents

Cremation will take place; a Celebration of Life will take place at a later date.

Condolences may be left at http://www.vasefuneralhomes.com.
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Realme is working on the Realme 10 (RMX3630), which is expected to go official in a few months since it has been certified by multiple certifying authorities. Now we know there's also a Pro+ version in the works since it has bagged NBTC certification.



Realme 10 Pro+ 5G NBTC certified

The Thai certifying authority reveals the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G has model designation RMX3686 but doesn't divulge anything else. However, the smartphone has bagged certifications from authorities of other countries as well, suggesting the launch will happen within a few months.



Realme 9 Pro+

Details are scarce about the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G, but we already know the Realme 10 will come with the Helio G99 SoC, 8GB RAM, and Android 12. It will pack a 5,000 mAh battery with 33W charging support and sport two cameras on the rear panel. But note that we are talking about the 4G version, and Realme could launch a 5G variant with different specs.



Realme 10's schematic shared on FCC's website

Source (in Thai)
Samsung will roll out OneUI 5 and Android 13 to S22 family in October

Samsung will release the OneUI 5 update to the Galaxy S22 series by the end of October. The news was broken at Samsung's Developer Conference 2022 (keynote in the source link).

The firmware, carries Android 13 and a slew of features, like deeper Material You integration, improved Dynamic theming and a new Dynamic lockscreen, improved widget stacking, multi-user support for the first time on Samsung, new clever multitasking gestures - double swipe from the bottom for quick split-screen and swipe from the top right corner for pop-up view, text recognition in the Gallery, a Privacy Hub and more.

An October release would make Android 13's arrival a month faster than last year's OneUI 4 update which came to the Galaxy S21 series in November, which itself arrived nearly a month faster than OneUI 3.0 did on the Galaxy S20 series in December of 2020.

Samsung just shipped the OneUI 5 Beta 4 to the Galaxy S22 series but it's unclear if it will be the final one before the finished firmware arrives.

The Galaxy S22 series will be first in line to receive OneUI 5 by the end of October but there will of course be some market variations.

Samsung will release the full roadmap of the OneUI 5 rollout by the end of the month.

Source | Via
The National Association of Women in Construction held its scholarship fundraiser, belles, bags and basket event earlier this year. The group is holding its 10-year anniversary celebration in November.
The governors office announced cost of living adjustments for government of Guam retirees and survivors totaling $19.3 million will be released Friday.
The Republican gubernatorial team of former Gov. Felix Camacho and Sen Tony Ada spoke about building permit problems, the COVID emergency and the housing shortage during a Guam Association of Realtors forum Thursday.

The Democratic ticket of Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero and Josh Tenorio did not attend the forum.

Camacho, a two-term governor who came out of retirement to run for office, said he felt he had to step off the sidelines and offer myself during this difficult time.

He said the building permit process was frustrating, and its well known among contractors, engineers, property owners  anybody whos had to experience this permit process knows that there are many problems.

As property sits vacant, these economically beneficial projects are delayed and end up costing more than what was originally budgeted, Camacho said. Also as you wait for the occupancy permit, you know, these construction improvements are sitting there and become a target for robbers and vandals that would destroy it.

The government also suffers because tax revenue is lost while businesses are not operating.

He said solutions could include allowing time for the new digital tracking system to work, implementing mandatory time limits for the review and issuance of permits and establishing procedures for dealing with problematic permit applications.

On the issue of the economy, Camacho and Ada said the COVID-19 health emergency has lasted too long and should be ended.

No ones wearing masks any longer, Ada said. Theres no more social distancing. Theres no protective barriers. We need to open up our agencies back to normal operating hours so that our community can come back and start making a living again, because the longer that they continue to hamper the ability of the private sector to get back to normal.

The Realtors also asked about Guams housing shortage, and Camacho said Guam should pursue designation as a Substantially Underserved Trust Area under the federal government.

He also said the government doesnt have all the answers, and solutions would need to come from the private sector also.

Were open to thinking outside the box and looking for opportunities, he said.
The Hagatna Post Office has been renamed after Guams first postmaster, Atanasio Taitano Perez.

On Oct. 11, President Biden signed a measure into law officially naming and designating the Hagatna Post Office as the Atanasio Taitano Perez Post Office, according to a news release from Del. Mike San Nicolas.

In a White House notice, Biden thanked San Nicolas for his leadership.

We are so proud to honor the work, legacy, memory and family of Atanasio Taitano Perez with this official naming and designation of the Hagatna Post Office, which we find particularly meaningful as a reflection of the character of our community to value the contributions of those who have worked hard for the betterment of our island and the well being of our people, San Nicolas said in the news release.

According to an entry in Guampedia, Perez was born in Hong Kong in 1874, and in the late 1800s, his father decided it was time for the family to return to Guam.

Perez, who spoke CHamoru, English, Spanish, Portuguese and Cantonese-Chinese, was appointed as a clerk and interpreter for the governor in 1899. He became the islands first postmaster in 1901 when the first post office was directed to be established on the island.

He was later appointed an associate justice on the high court of appeals and became an associate justice on the Guam Higher Court of Equity.

Statesman

He was also involved in the movement to petition Congress to establish a permanent civilian government, with U.S. citizenship, for the people of Guam.

In 1925, according to the Guampedia article, he addressed visiting members of the U.S. House of Representatives on behalf of the CHamoru people.

Gentlemen of Congress, the CHamorus today occupy an anomalous position. One of the masterpieces of American literature tells of a man, who, because of the proud contemptuousness with which he regarded his country, was made an outcast from the land and became A Man Without a Country. We also are without a country. Since 1899 the question of the status of the CHamorus has been intermittently discussed in Washington, but no effective steps have been taken to grant us citizenship in the country we look on as our own.
Protesters lined the roadside Thursday at Chief Quipuha Park roundabout in Hagatna, in opposition to the militarys reapplication for a permit to detonate munitions along Tarague Beach.

Local activist group Prutehi Litekyan: Save Ritidan organized the protest and has launched a letter-writing campaign to the Guam Environmental Protection Agency. The GovGuam agency is reviewing Andersen Air Force Bases permit application for the 40-year-old open detonation and burn range along the islands northern coast, but Prutehi Litekyan wants the permit denied.

Chants of do your job EPA could be heard from the street.

Paige Aguon, 21, from Mangilao, said she had come to fight for her rights and for the future generations and those who cant speak: our land, our sea animals and our oceans.

Were talking about hazardous waste going near our aquifer, to our jungles, to our ocean, said group member Monaeka Flores. This is air that we breathe, its going to be close to homes, schools, ranches, farms, all in the north. And we as a community should be extremely upset that this is even considered.

She said the detonations along Tarague, without an updated assessment of alternatives, was a failure on the part of the Air Force. Thursdays protest was just the beginning of actions aimed to pressure Guam EPA.

Guam EPA have said they are reviewing the militarys application alongside stricter guidelines on open burn and open detonation activities handed down by the U.S. EPA in June. At a minimum, a review of alternative disposal methods will be required, the local regulator has said.

Joint Region Marianas public affairs officer Cmdr. Katie Koenig on Thursday provided the newspaper with a letter sent from Andersen officials to Guam EPA in June, which indicated that the evaluation of alternatives to open burn and detonation on base and an assessment of environmental impacts were being performed.

The results of this assessment are ongoing and will be provided to GEPA as soon as they are available, Koenig said.

She added that a similar assessment was recently completed separate munitions site at Andersen, which found open detonation to be the safest and most environmentally conscious option.

The Department of Defense respects Prutehi Litekyans right to peaceful protest and the DoD is committed to acting as good stewards of the environment in order to preserve and protect the beautiful island we all call home, Koenig said in a statement.
Guam is in an economic pandemic emergency, said Republican Sen. James Moylan, who is running for congressional delegate.

We need the support and continued support of the federal government, and thats the voice I can bring to D.C., Moylan said Thursday during an online candidates town hall hosted by the Guam Association of Realtors.

Former Speaker Judith Won Pat, the Democratic candidate for Congress in the general election, said this is a critical time for Guam to leverage its strategic value to benefit the local community.

I will be fighting to secure our families, strengthen our economy, and protect our environment because all of these determine whether Guam thrives or not, Won Pat said.

When asked why they are running for office, Moylan said he wants to address Guams high prices and provide housing and medical support for the islands veterans.

Decisions in Washington have a large impact on our lives, and I want to make sure that federal laws, policies and programs are good for Guam, Won Pat said.

Most of the questions posed by the panel of realtors were related to real estate issues such as flood insurance, the secondary mortgage market, taxable sales and protecting the private information of real estate clients.

Won Pat and Moylan both said they support measures and incentives which will make it easier for residents to buy a home.

One of my staff told me there are four of them living together to rent a place because they cant afford rent, Won Pat said. I have another staffer who lives with her mother, father, sisters, brothers and she has to sleep on the couch because they cant afford to buy a home either.

Moylan said he supports tax cuts as an incentive for home construction. GovGuam now has a huge budget, he said, and that extra government revenue should instead benefit home buyers. I absolutely will continue to fight for these issues in Washington, D.C., he said.

Won Pat, during her closing statement, said it will take good, old-fashioned hard work to get results in Washington. I have a record of building strong relationships and listening to stakeholders and following through.

Its critical, I believe for Congress, for a Republican representative to be in that seat to move the island forward as we grow together, Moylan said. We have this critical shortage of homes on our island and it can be solved with relationship building with the United States Congress and the relationships Ive established with the congressional candidates and getting their endorsements.
Michael Lujan Bevacqua is an author, artist, activist and the curator for the Guam Museum.




Haiti - Crisis : Important meeting of the PM with a high-level American delegation





On Wednesday October 12, 2022, Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry, accompanied by Jean Victor Geneus the Minister of Foreign Affairs and other collaborators, received, behind closed doors, a high-level American delegation led by Brian Nichols, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, and composed, among others, of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Director of the International Bureau of Narcotics and Law Enforcement, the Counselor for Hemispheric Affairs, the Deputy Military Commander of Southcom, the Charge d'Affaires of the United States of America in Haiti as well as senior advisers and staff from the White House, of the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.



This meeting was an opportunity to discuss several topics related to the current situation and in particular the humanitarian crisis and the issue of security.



Nichols tweeted, "The U.S. remains a steadfast partner of the Haitian people & will continue to support Haiti in this critical time. I met with Haiti's Government leaders, including Ariel Henry, to reaffirm our commitment to help address the cholera epidemic & insecurity impeding that response.The time has come for political leaders in Haiti to put aside their differences to find a path toward sustainable peace..."



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37871-haiti-flash-the-usa-is-preparing-a-series-of-visa-restrictions-against-gangs-and-their-supporters.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





A Coast Guard vessel patrols PAP Bay

Following the attack by sea on the night of October 7 to 8 of the facilities of the company "Les Moulins d'Haiti" by men of the "5 seconds" gang from the Village de Dieu led by Chief "izo" https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-37841-haiti-insecurity-the-5-seconds-gang-attacks-the-facilities-of-les-moulins-d-haiti.html , at the request of the Government of Haiti and in collaboration with the Department of State, the United States sent one of its Coast Guard vessels (a US military entity) to patrol the bay of Port-au-Prince.



84 killed in one month

In its report published earlier this week, the Citizen Organization for a New Haiti (OCNH) reveals that 84 cases of assassinations including 7 women and 4 police officers were recorded during the month of September 2022. The OCNH notes a clear increase criminal acts in the country which increased from 57 assassinations in June, 49 in July, and 57 in August 2022.



Brian Nichols met the Montana group

Brian Nichols, Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs met with Montana Accord officials to discuss the urgent need to address the cholera outbreak and fuel blockage that are hampering the humanitarian response and said in insisting "Stakeholders must urgently develop consensus on an agreement that leads to improved security, elections and prosperity for all Haitians."



Gunmen demand jobs and amnesty

The armed men of the populous neighborhoods of the metropolitan region demand from the government of employment, amnesty, the withdrawal of the wanted notices and their integration for the unblocking of the situation, according to Jean Rebel Dorcenat, Spokesperson of the of the National Commission for Disarmament, Dismantling and Reintegration (CNDDR), he considers it necessary to sincerely negotiate with all young people in possession of firearms on national territory in order to pacify the country.



Haiti - Hungary Cooperation

The Ambassador of Hungary to Cuba, Balazs Heincz, paid a courtesy visit to the Ambassador of Haiti Regine Lamur. As part of this meeting, they agreed to boost cooperation sectors between their two countries, particularly in drinking water and sanitation, a key axis for Hungary and a priority for Haiti.



The French Ambassador at Franketienne

"It is a privilege to discuss with Franketienne, at home, the situation in Haiti. I wanted to pay tribute to one of the greatest feathers, crowned by the French Academy. His experience, his humanism and the sense of history with which he is imbued also make him one of the greatest voices Fabrice Mauries, Ambassador of France in Haiti.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Korean Movie | 2022

 Horror

Directed by Tak Se-woong ()

111min | Release date in South Korea: 2022/10/19

TV version: "Drama Special 2022 - TV Cinema - Devil in the Lake"

Synopsis

Bo-yeong moves into the mansion of the previously wealthy grandmother, Wang, as a caregiver with a dangerous intention.



Mother Kim, the only blood relative of Wang who hired Bo-yeong, sets conditions such as 'Do not bring anyone, especially children,' and 'Do not go near the reservoir'.



Ominous and bizarre signs continue in grandmother Wang's huge mansion located next to a reservoir called 'Gwimot', where people are dying, and Bo-yeong finds out that foreigners who have visited the place have suffered a mysterious death...
Published on 2022/10/13 | Source

New illustrated poster added for the upcoming Japanese-Korean documentary "Soup and Ideology" (2021)

Advertisement

Directed by Yonghi Yang

Narrated by Yonghi Yang,...

A Japanese-Korean co-production

Synopsis

The parents were vehemently opposed to the Japanese son-in-law. The mother carefully cooks stuffed chicken for her Japanese son-in-law who is greeting her for the first time in Osaka. Her family is full of incomprehensible things, but it's just amazing to the husband. One day, the mother tells her memories of her hometown, Jeju Island, which she had never told anyone. Now, with painful memories that are gradually being forgotten, they go to Jeju Island together for the first time since born eating white boiled chicken cooked by the son-in-law.



"Even if we have different opinions, let's eat together". We are a family.

Release date in Korea : 2022/10/20
Page Content

The Hawaii State Department of Education (HIDOE) and the Hiroshima Prefectural Board of Education Japan recently signed an agreement of education collaboration to further commit the relationship between Hiroshima and Hawaii. The new agreement comes as Hiroshima and Hawaii celebrate the 25th anniversary of their sister-state relationship.

Dignitaries from Hawaii and Hiroshima who attended the event to commemorate the signing included State of Hawaii First Lady Dawn Amano-Ige representing Gov. David Ige, Hiroshima Prefectural Governor Hidehiko Yuzaki, HIDOE Superintendent Keith Hayashi, and Hiroshima Prefectural Board of Education Superintendent Rie Hirakawa.

The signed Statement of Intent on Education Cooperation acknowledges the cultural and educational benefits gained by establishing a formal relationship between the school districts, and signifies that both states will collaborate to expand these opportunities.

"We are excited to explore ways to deepen our collaboration with Hiroshima through activities like study tours and study abroad opportunities for students, teacher training and teacher exchange opportunities, and sister-school relationships," said Hawaii Superintendent Hayashi. Im very pleased that we are able to once again provide our students with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to experience other cultures and learn from their global peers, while teaching others what makes Hawaii so special. These experiences will benefit many more students in the years to come as we continue to work closely with our friends and colleagues in Japan.

Hiroshima Superintendent Hirakawa also emphasized the connection to the Hiroshima Prefectural Board of Educations promotion of global learning approaches and plans for learning innovation. Since 2011, we have been actively encouraging and supporting sister schools, exchanges and study abroad programs, she said. The Statement of Intent agreement will promote educational, friendly exchanges, and will encourage mutual understanding between Hiroshima and Hawaii."

Hiroshima Global Academy Principal Kazuhiko Fukushima and Kaiser High School Principal Justin Mew also formalized their new sister-school agreement at the ceremony. As International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme schools, both principals expressed an excitement to collaborate and learn from one another going forward. This is the newest sister-school agreement since 2015, and is Kaisers second Hiroshima sister-school, the first being with Kannabe Asahi High, which was established in 2013.

In addition to Kaiser, there are 11 HIDOE schools that have Hiroshima sister schools including:


"For this season of guest lectures, I have chosen creators whose thinking and works evoke feelings of pleasure, passion and a hope for the future", says Jenni Reuter , the curator of the lecture series.

The international lecture series on contemporary architecture curated by Associate Professor Jenni Reuter and organized jointly by Aalto University Department of Architecture and the Museum of Finnish Architecture continues online. In 20222023 six architects from various backgrounds are invited to share their thoughts and ideas on current trends in architecture.

Programme 20222023

Architecture Speaks: Andrew Waugh

Wednesday 2 November 2022, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)

Andrew Waugh is a Founding Director of Waugh Thistleton Architects, a practice dedicated to delivering beautiful buildings and places that acknowledge their effect on the environment. He is a world-renowned spokesperson for low impact architecture and innovative construction, and lobbies and lectures internationally, communicating the urgent need for change to mitigate the climate crisis. A pivotal player in the global shift towards renewable, bio-based materials, Andrew's innovative approach to design has been acknowledged by many awards including The RIBA President's Award for Research and a Stirling Prize nomination in 2018. The practice is currently engaged on both research and design projects throughout Europe and North America.

"Waugh Thistleton Architects have used solid wood on a large scale. Their works are an example of how buildings can be dismantled, reassembled and recycled", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

Architecture Speaks: Kerstin Thompson

Wednesday 9 November 2022, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)

Kerstin Thompson is Principal of KTA and Adjunct Professor at RMIT and Monash Universities. A committed design educator she regularly lectures and runs studios at various schools across Australia and New Zealand. Kerstin Thompson Architects (KTA) is a multi-award-winning architecture practice, founded by Kerstin Thompson in 1994 in Melbourne, Australia. The practice is well established as a significant and innovative reference point in Australian architecture and urban design. Known for astute design thinking, KTA designs creative, meaningful and site-responsive architecture that seamlessly combines form, interior and landscape to create coherent and compelling places. Clarity of approach and sensitivity to place are the guiding principles for each and every project.

"Kerstin Thompson's Bundanon Art Museum Bridge is an inspiring example of how a simple starting point can create a building where art, landscape and structures support each other", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

Architecture Speaks: Sebastian Irarrazaval

Wednesday 7 December 2022, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)

Sebastian Irarrazaval is trained as an architect at the Universidad Catolica de Chile and at The Architectural Association in London. He teaches at the School of Architecture of the Catholic University of Chile. He has been a visiting professor at various universities, including MIT and IUAV. His works have been exhibited in various exhibitions and biennials and have been widely published in specialized magazines. He has received various distinctions including the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennial of Urbanism and Architecture (2012), the RIBA International Prize (2016) and the RIBA International Fellowship (2018).

"In the works of Chilean architect Sebastian Irarrazaval, rhythm, repetition and a sense of materials create a grounded and effortless architecture", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

Architecture Speaks: Quintus Miller / Miller & Maranta

Wednesday 18 January 2023, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)

Quintus Miller was born in 1961 in Aarau, Switzerland. They studied architecture at the ETH Zurich, graduating in 1987. From 1990 to 1994, they worked as a design assistant at the EPF Lausanne and at the ETH Zurich. Since 1994, they have had their own office Miller & Maranta with Paola Maranta in Basel. They have worked as a visiting professor at EPF Lausanne from 2000 to 2001, as a guest professor at the Accademia di Architettura of the Universita della Svizzera Italiana in Mendrisio from 2007 to 2008, as a guest professor at the ETH Zurich from 2008 to 2010 and as a full professor for architecture at the Accademia di Architettura of the Universita della Svizzera Italiana in Mendrisio since 2009. Quintus Miller was a member of the commission for urban planning and architecture of the city of Luzern (2004-2008) as well as in the commission for fine visual arts in Riehen (2005-2010). They took part in the commission for historic preservation of the city of Zurich from 2005 to 2017 and of the city of Basel since 2011. In 2013 they received the Prix Meret Oppenheim from the Swiss Federal Office of Culture.

"Miller & Maranta belong to the Swiss architectural tradition, where one starts from the location and atmosphere. There has been no need to compromise on the quality of the work or craftsmanship in the construction of the buildings", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

Architecture Speaks: Carla Juacaba

Wednesday 25 January 2023, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)

Since 2000, Carla Juacaba has developed her independent practice of architecture and research-based in Rio de Janeiro. Her office is currently engaged in both cultural programs and private projects. After graduating she worked on the Atelier House, Rio Bonito House, Varanda House, Santa Teresa House, and a couple of exhibition designs. She is now living in London, teaching at Mendrisio Accademia in Switzerland, and is currently a Ph.D. student at ETSAM-UPM-Madrid.

"In her work, Carla Juacaba shifts effortlessly between the worlds of architecture, art and academia", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

Architecture Speaks: Pascal Flammer

Wednesday 8 February 2023, 1.152.30 pm (UTC+2)



Pascal Flammer lives and works in Zurich. He opened his office in 2005 and has been given a.o. the Swiss Art Award, the Weissenhof Architecture Award or the Best Family House Award. He has taught at the Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio, the GSD at Harvard University, the Sandberg Instituut in Amsterdam, ETH in Zurich, at Princeton University School of Architecture and at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design.

"Pascal Flammer became known to me through his own house (House Flammer), a simple house, where the roof and structures play the main role. The result is minimalist but effortless", says Jenni Reuter.

More information.

HT

Source: Museum of Finnish Architecture
Matti Pitkaniitty , the head of international co-operation at the Finnish Border Guard, told Helsingin Sanomat on Tuesday that there has been a big spike at the eastern border in the number of Ukrainians seeking temporary protection in Finland.

WHILE Russians seeking entry to Finland to avoid conscription have been a major topic of discussion recently, border officials have also detected an increase in the number of Ukrainians.

The increase has followed the partial mobilisation of the population announced on 21 September by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The busiest day occurred 10 days after the announcement, with the number of Ukrainians hitting 112. On other days, the number of arrivals has been a couple of dozen.

The number of arrivals increased so much that weve set up a separate registration point together with the police and immigration officials in Joutseno, Pitkaniitty said to Helsingin Sanomat.

The number remains low compared to the total number of Ukrainians who have sought refuge in Finland. The Finnish Immigration Service on Monday said that over 41,000 Ukrainians have sought temporary protection in Finland.

Whats noteworthy here, however, is that Ukrainians have previously flowed into the country across the internal border, meaning through Estonia and Poland, he said.

The phenomenon, he added, is likely explained by the change in the societal situation in Russia.

The war was previously encapsulated by the special military operation term in Russia, but the mobilisation has clearly made society part of the war. Also Ukrainians have thereby decided to mull over leaving. Also noteworthy is that theyve been allowed to leave by Russia, analysed Pitkaniitty.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
The Finnish public broadcasting company wrote yesterday that, according to leading experts in the field, the annual increment in the growing stock will fall short of the latest estimate by Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke).

THE GROWTH of Finnish forests is expected to slow down for several decades, reports YLE.

Luke stated one year ago that the growth has slowed down to 103.5 million cubic metres per year, representing a decline of a couple of per cent from its previous estimate. Statistics Finland, meanwhile, revealed earlier this year that the land use, land-use change and forestry sector appears to have become a source of emissions for the first time ever in part due to the slowing growth of the growing stock.

Lauri Mehtatalo, a professor conducting growth calculations at Luke, told YLE on Monday that it is possible that the growth falls short of 100 million cubic metres and even dwindles closer to 90 million cubic metres for a long time.

Changes in the age structure are the main reason for the slowing of growth that had begun in the 1950s. Finland utilised its forests intensively to accrue wealth after the World Wars. Clear felling and bog ditching created a single generation of productive forests, but one of the outcomes is that forests are roughly the same age, albeit with some differences between southern and northern parts of the country.

The large age groups have passed the stage of fastest growth and are in a stage where they no longer grow as much as earlier. Thats why the combined growth of all age groups has to slow, explained Mehtatalo.

When the growth of forests has increased for 50 years, it has pretty much maxed out. The growth will even out, and itll be interesting to see how much it decreases, he said.

Also changes in environmental factors, such as droughts and storm damage, may have contributed to the change, but not to the extent of changes in the age structure.

The growth slowing down closer to 90 million cubic metres would have significant repercussions for the forest industry, the use of forests in general and the climate goals of Finland, highlighted YLE.

The Finnish government has devised its national forest strategy on the assumption that the annual increment will be 110 million cubic metres a year. While the strategy is to be updated by the next parliamentary elections, the estimate conducted for the strategy work indicates that the increment will remain around 110 million cubic metres for the foreseeable future.

The assumption makes it possible to harvest industrial timber at the current rate well into next decade. The amount of stem wood harvested last year was 76 million cubic metres, signalling one of the biggest harvests in recent years.

Both Luke and Pellervo Economic Research have predicted that logging will remain at a high level also in 2023.

The Finnish government has outlined measures that seek to maintain the carbon sink at the current level and, in the longer term, strengthen the carbon sink. The sufficiency of the measures has been questioned by, for example, the Finnish Climate Change Panel.

If the growth of forests slows down by up to 10 per cent, it would require an adjustment of roughly 10 million tonnes in carbon dioxide calculations.

Although the difference between the annual increment and logging volume remained positive last year, the slowing growth of forests will narrow the difference and undermine future growth unless logging is reduced from the current level.

This looks bad, and the only solution is to reduce logging, Timo Pukkala, a newly retired professor of forest planning at the University of Eastern Finland, stated to YLE. Everything else is mostly wishful thinking.

He pointed out that reducing logging cannot undo the naturally slowing growth of forests. The biggest mistake, he added, would be to increase logging as it would further undermine the growth and carbon sink because the low growth rate of saplings.

Whether we cut or dont, theres no going back to what was, he summarised.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
Finland is the only country in Europe that has managed to reverse the trend in homelessness.

The Ministry of the Environment has appointed Juha Kaakinen to examine ways to achieve the objective to eradicate homelessness. According to the Government Programme, homelessness should be halved during this Government term and abolished by 2027. Homelessness has decreased but not enough to reach the target.

According to a survey conducted by the Housing Finance and Development Centre of Finland ARA in 2021, there were 3,948 homeless people living alone. Homelessness has decreased during the time the Cooperation Programme to Halve Homelessness has been implemented, which can be considered an important achievement. COVID-19 pandemic was feared to increase the numbers of evictions, but this was not the case. During 2020 homelessness decreased by 5.6% and during 2021 by 9%. During the previous programme on homelessness the decrease was 25.1%.

"Having a home is a fundamental right, and it is quite untenable that this is not realised in a prosperous welfare state like Finland. We need reasonably priced apartments, sufficient social security and services that support housing. Even if the trend is in the right direction, it is clear that we have not yet done enough," says Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Maria Ohisalo.

The proposal of the Rapporteur to be completed by the end of January 2023 explores concrete measures that are needed to eradicate homelessness and the role of different stakeholders in this work. Previously, rapporteur Juha Kaakinen served as CEO of Y-Foundation and Programme Director of the programme to reduce long-term homelessness.

"The particular strengths of Finland in reducing homelessness include the solid political consensus on the importance of the matter and cooperation among a broad spectrum of actors. With these strengths, it is quite possible to eradicate homelessness permanently, despite the current challenges," Kaakinen says.

Financial problems increase risk of losing one's home

Especially in the largest urban areas, where the majority of the homeless also live, housing prices cause problems especially for low-income individuals and special groups. The nature of homelessness has changed so that even more often it is associated with financial problems and even larger numbers of people are at risk.

Housing advice has proven an effective means to avoid losing one's home due to financial reasons. The legislative proposal of the Ministry of the Environment would improve access to housing advice, and this year the municipalities have already hired 23 new housing advisors.

"Housing advice can help people with their life management capabilities. It can prevent a wretched circle where financial problems lead to homelessness, which in turn aggravates the financial problems. With the additional funding granted by the State we can make sure that municipalities will continue to offer housing advice free of charge," Ohisalo says.

The reasons behind homelessness are manifold, which means that social services and specialised housing services are also needed. Healthcare and social welfare services have an important role in making sure that a person who has suffered from homelessness and has found a home is also able to keep it.

An assessment of the Cooperation Programme to Halve Homelessness is currently under way, but we already know that municipalities, towns and cities are now more strongly committed to taking action.

"Municipalities have good multidisciplinary expertise accumulated over a long period of time, and we must make sure that this is preserved now that the responsibility for healthcare and social welfare services moves to the new wellbeing services counties. The problem cannot be solved without close cooperation among different sectors, NGOs and the State," minister Ohisalo stresses.

The aim of the Government's housing policy is to eradicate homelessness by 2027. The Government Programme sets the objective of paying particular attention to improving access to housing advice and proactive prevention of homelessness. Of the groups of people, a particular focus will be on young people and immigrants.

HT

Source: Ministry of the Environment
Customs foreign trade statistics have reflected the state and development of the economy for 130 years. The past two years have seen changes and upheavals in global trade and the Finnish economy, more recently in terms of the sanctions imposed against Russia and the energy crisis. How will these changes affect Finlands foreign trade, and what does the future look like? This is what the Customs Statistics festive seminar in Helsinki today will focus on.

The purpose of the statistics on foreign trade compiled by Finnish Customs is to meet the needs of society. Foreign trade statistics enable businesses to monitor the development of foreign trade, to obtain information on the market situation, and to use statistical information in developing their activities.

In 2022, foreign trade statistics have been important especially in analysing the impact of sanctions set by the EU against Russia, and in terms of the changes that have occurred in foreign trade.

 They used to say that knowledge is power. Maybe you dont hear that saying too often nowadays. It could be because all operations are based on information to an ever-greater extent, and everyone must have the prerequisites for acquiring information. It is no longer a privilege for the few. Instead, access to information and the ease of its use are among the basic pillars of society. Statistics provide facts for everyone. Customs is pleased to serve everyone who requires information, and guides people to the right sources. It is a good idea to contact Customs Statistics when necessary, says Mr Hannu Makinen, Director General of Finnish Customs, who will open todays festive seminar in Helsinki.

From timber to sanctions  what do foreign trade statistics tell us?

Finlands geographical location has always affected our foreign trade. When Customs started compiling statistics on foreign trade in 1892, the most significant products that Finland exported were sawmill products, cardboard and paper. Finlands most important trading partner was Russia. After Finland became independent, its main trading partner was the United Kingdom until the early 1970s. However, Finlands trade with the Soviet Union increased considerably due to war reparations.

Finlands trade with Russia collapsed in the spring due to Russias attack against Ukraine and the sanctions imposed by the EU. However, the decline in trade had started even earlier. Nowadays, more than half of Finlands import and export takes place within the European Union.

 Times have changed since the early years of foreign trade statistics, and there have been many twists and turns in the history of Finlands foreign trade. However, statistics also indicate a pattern of stability. Our main export product 130 years ago was timber, and the forest industry continues to hold its top place in Finlands exports. Other currently significant fields of export include the chemicals industry, as well as metals, machinery and vehicles, and the electrical and electronics industry. Today our most important trade agreement is our EU membership, says Mr Olli-Pekka Penttila, Director of Statistics, about the history of foreign trade statistics.

Also attending the Customs Statistics festive seminar as speakers are Ms Sanna Kurronen, Senior Economist at the Bank of Finland, and Mr Jyri Hakamies, CEO of the Confederation of Finnish Industries. Ms Kurronen will focus particularly on the current energy upheaval, and Mr Hakamies will speak about free trade.

You can attend the live event from 14.00 to 16.00 here.

HT

Source: Finnish Customs
Speaking at the "Russia Energy Week-Energy Epoch, Revolution & Shift" event at the Russia state-affiliated media - RT, Putin said, "Russia is ready to start these supplies, the ball is in the EU's court, so to say.

Russia on Wednesday said that Moscow is ready to supply additional gas to Europe in the autumn-winter period, adding that the ball is in the EU's court, according to Reuters.

If they want to, just let them open the tap and that's it. We are not restricting anyone in anything, including our readiness to supply additional volumes in the autumn-winter period," Reuters reported.

He said that the European prosperity of the last decades was based on cooperation with Russia.

"I have repeatedly said that Nord Streams has no political background, it is a purely commercial project, involving Russian and European companies on an equal footing, so its fate should be decided jointly by Russia and our partners in the European Union. I should say that repairing the undermined gas pipelines running under the Baltic Sea is, of course, possible, but it will only make sense in case of their economically sound operation, and of course, in case of ensuring the safety of the route," Reuters quoted Putin as saying.

Further, the Russian President said that the Nord Stream leaks are "international terrorism."

"There is no doubt that this is an act of international terrorism...," said Putin on Wednesday about the leaks on the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Europe.

"World economy, energy experiencing an acute crisis, associated with the subversive actions of individual countries. Orchestrators of Nord Stream sabotage seek to finally break ties between Russia and EU, to weaken Europe," Reuters quoted Putin as saying.

The Russian President further stated that the beneficiaries of the Nord Stream bombing are clear - the US and countries with alternative supply routes.

He also blamed Ukraine for using terrorist methods for sabotaging Russian infrastructure in the backdrop of the Crimea bridge blast.

"Kyiv regime has been using terrorist methods for a long time - they themselves post it on the internet, realise their mistake, and immediately erase it," said Putin.

"Mechanism of spot pricing for gas could see Europe lose 300 billion euro," said Putin on the Group of Seven (G7) pledge to put a cap on the price of Russian oil sold worldwide.

Putin called an oil price cap discussed by European leaders "a threat to the well-being of billions of people", after saying Russia will not sell to countries implementing it.

He also said that Russia will revolutionise its own energy industry, and link projects to Asia.

"We will continue to enhance our experts to develop markets across the world, expand the geography of our experts - soon identify key projects, such as the Power of Siberia 2 Pipeline in Mongolia as well, as the Asian and European gas transit infrastructure needs to be connected, continue to ... terminals and transit infrastructures - all the goals have been set and I am confident that Russian Government will do all those need to be done."

HT

Source: ANI
(JTA) - Episode three of "The Patient," the well-received psychological thriller series on Hulu about a serial killer who kidnaps his therapist, involves a flashback to an Orthodox wedding.

Ezra, son of the protagonist therapist Alan Strauss and Reform cantor Beth Strauss, is marrying an Orthodox woman named Chava. Guitar in hand, Beth sings "Dodi Li," a traditional Jewish wedding song, knowing that women are not allowed to sing in the presence of men in this Orthodox community. As she performs, some men get up to leave. Ezra and his bride stay but look uncomfortable.

The moment gets at the tension that Ezra's transition out of the Reform lifestyle of his upbringing and into Orthodoxy has wrought within the Strauss family. But the scene was not originally written this way.

Although the show's creators Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg are both Jewish, they weren't aware of the Orthodox prohibition against women singing in front of men and had first written the moment as a nice memory of a mother singing at her son's wedding. The show's consultant, Rabbi Menachem Hecht, a teacher at the Modern Orthodox YULA yeshiva high school in Los Angeles, informed the duo of the rule - which thrilled them because they said it made the scene more interesting and complicated. The final product got across the viewpoints of both denominations in a fair way, Hecht said.

"There's definitely a way to run that scene where it just makes Orthodox Jews look anti-women and bigoted," Hecht said. "The point wasn't just to make them look bad. It was to show how there could be real tension here."

The scene and the consultation behind it points to the level of Jewishness that Fields and Weisberg wove into the fabric of "The Patient," which debuted on Aug. 30 and is still releasing weekly episodes on FX on Hulu through the finale on Oct. 25. The pair, who also created the acclaimed Cold War spy drama "The Americans," have spoken at length about their Jewish backgrounds - Fields as the son of a Reform rabbi and Weisberg as the son of Reform parents who attended a Conservative Synagogue.

In "The Patient," Alan - played by the non-Jewish Steve Carell, a casting choice they were asked to defend on a press tour - is a widower, having lost his wife Beth (Laura Niemi) to cancer. She was a cantor at a Reform synagogue and their son Ezra (Andrew Leeds) turned to Orthodox Judaism in college, a path that his parents didn't understand. A deranged new patient named Sam (Domhnall Gleeson) kidnaps Alan in an attempt to cure his own murderous impulses. Part of Alan's work with Sam is getting him to understand other viewpoints - just because someone says something that Sam doesn't like or perceives as rude, it doesn't mean they deserve to die.

"I think on some level consciously and on some level unconsciously, we were dealing with general and specific themes of intolerance, and it seemed interesting to explore the challenges of differences that from the outside might seem relatively small but from the inside seem like a chasm," Fields told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Fields and Weisberg don't spend screen time educating the viewer on the intricacies of Orthodox practice that show up in the series. In another scene, Ezra, his sister and their families are having dinner at Alan and Beth's house. Beth serves her daughter's children ice cream as Ezra's children look on, unable to partake, eating food they brought in Tupperware. The entire scene is less than a minute long, so the audience needs to understand quickly what is happening.

"We are not believers in exposition. We don't want to spell it out. We used to joke on 'The Americans' that 'who could understand this? We barely understand this.' Nobody's going to understand it, but as long as they feel it, that's what's good," Weisberg said.

Fields and Weisberg worked with the production design and set decorating team to ensure that all the details were right, such as paper plates for Ezra's family, who could not eat on the dishes that are normally used to serve unkosher food.

Though Beth's actions in that scene might seem cruel to some, they fit the character of a woman who devoted her life to Reform Judaism.

Reform Rabbi Robyn Frisch, of Temple Menorah Keneseth Chai in Philadelphia, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that when her son turned to Orthodox Judaism at age 16, she felt rejected at first.

"We raised our kids we thought with this meaningful Jewish life. He never said it straight out, but there clearly things we did that were not what he wanted," Frisch said.

She said her work with interfaith couples as the director of the Rukin Rabbinic Fellowship for 18Doors - a national nonprofit organization that helps interfaith couples and families - helped her eventually accept her son's choices. She added that she wants to start a nonprofit like 18Doors for families with children who become Orthodox, to help them through the challenges and blessings of such a change.

"To be a Jew in America is to know a bunch of people who have gone through similar iterations of this sort of family dynamics," Fields said.

In addition to the family divides, Judaism plays an important role in other aspects of the story. In one episode, Alan dreams of himself in the barracks of Auschwitz.

"It seemed obvious to us that a Jewish person locked in a guy's basement facing death as Alan Strauss was would associate with that imagery," said Weisberg. "We grew up with that imagery and that history really infused in our lives, in synagogue, in Sunday school, in our regular schools, and at home. Anybody tries to kill me, I'm going there."

As Alan tries to teach Sam about empathy, so that he can start thinking of his victims as people and consider what their families need, he talks about Jewish rituals associated with death, including the Mourner's Kaddish. The episode released this Tuesday is titled "Kaddish," for the prayer that holds significant meaning to Fields and Weisberg.

"I remember my dad telling me about the Kaddish when I was very young. It's not like he sat down and explained prayers to me, but I remember him saying that it was a prayer that began as students giving thanks for their teachers, and then it became something that we said to give thanks for everybody, for those who meant something to us in life," said Fields. "And it was a prayer of thanks, not a prayer of loss, and that always stuck with me."

Fields and Weisberg recorded versions of the prayer for Carell, who had to recite it in its entirety in the show.

"I loved being able to assure him that he sounded great when he was saying it, because in any American congregation, it's not like there's the right way," Weisberg said. "Every Jew is saying it differently and pronouncing all the words differently, so he sounded a lot like me and everybody else I knew."

When the pair first reached out to Hecht, he assumed that the main plot of the show revolved around Jewish themes.

"They put so much thought into it and so many resources into this Orthodox story, and I figured that was the show. And then when I finally saw the script I was like, 'Wait, this isn't the show at all, this is like a minute and a half of the show across the whole season,'" Hecht said. "I just thought this speaks to who these folks are who are putting this together and the degree to which they're approaching this with a sense of respect and with seriousness and with rigor."

Fields said it was a product of how deep their Jewish identities run.

"It's been really meaningful to be able to tell a story that we hope is relatable to everybody, that we hope ultimately is about everyone's common humanity and common experience, but is expressed through particular character dynamics that are just deep inside us culturally," he said. "One doesn't often get the chance to do that, so it means a lot."
(JTA) - When Rabbi Rachel Timoner's dad Eli told his family of his decision to end his life, Rachel knew what would soon be asked of her: to officiate his funeral, something he had told her he wanted since she became ordained.

This presented a challenge for Rachel, the senior rabbi at Brooklyn's Congregation Beth Elohim. Being her father's rabbi "wasn't what I wanted," she says in the new documentary, "Last Flight Home," which chronicles Eli's final days from the perspective of his family. The film, directed by Rachel's sister Ondi Timoner, is a raw, intimate document of the realities of end-of-life care, as well as a meditation on the ways Jewish law encourages setting one's affairs in order before the moment of death.

A former airline executive and prolific fundraiser for Miami's Jewish federation, Eli Timoner was felled by a stroke in his 50s and spent 40 years of his life with a physical disability - the first in a series of painful steps that led to him losing much of his wealth and stature in the business and philanthropy world. (He suffered his stroke a few months after a plane operated by his airline, Air Florida, crashed into the Potomac River, killing 78 people; the film doesn't discuss the crash, but January, one week before its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, marked 40 years since it happened.)

When Eli's health began to get markedly worse in 2020, he began to insist that he end his own life and began the legal process by which he could acquire the lethal medication in California.

"He made a sudden decision, and he was very adamant about it," Ondi Timoner told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. "He would go from calling one of us to the next, to the next: 'Please, help me die. If you love me, help me die.' He was saying the Shema to Rachel."

Ondi's first instinct, she said, was to grab a camera. As a prolific director, her documentaries (including "We Live In Public" and "Coming Clean") have won awards at the Sundance Film Festival. But at first, she didn't think she was filming anything more than a memorial video, and only wanted "to bottle up and capture his personality, his voice, for the family." So she filmed gatherings even as she grieved along with her subjects (including her dutiful mother Lisa and apprehensive brother David), who often pop out from behind the camera to share a tender moment - or even attempt to "direct" a scene.

It was only in the months after Eli's death, as Ondi was editing the footage and seeing the gut reaction her friends and family had to watching someone in pain make the decision to end his own life, that she decided to try to turn it into a feature film.

The film chronicles the two weeks in early 2021 before Eli takes the "goodbye powder," as a series of doctors sign off on his death and he bids farewell to his family and friends from the comfort of his Pasadena home, where he is on bedrest. It also depicts the "T-team," as the Timoners call themselves, helping Eli go through the traditional Jewish end-of-life ritual of viddui, or seeking forgiveness for one's sins before death. Later, after his death, we also see them performing the act of tahara, or cleaning his body for burial.

"I'm more of just a generally spiritual person, but it was these rituals. They were like touchstones for us," Ondi said.

During the process, Rachel finds herself less and less willing to be her father's rabbi. "As he's getting closer and closer to death, I am more and more clear that I am his daughter," she says in the film.

But there was a happy coda after all the grief, Ondi said. Six months after Eli's death, the "T-team" reunited at the Telluride Film Festival to screen the documentary - where Rachel, in her capacity as rabbi, officiated Ondi's wedding to her partner, Morgan Doctor, who composed the music in the film.

"It was the most perfect hour of our lives," Ondi said. She recalled how Eli had blessed their union on camera, on his deathbed (a moment that made it into the film). Now they were getting married at an event celebrating his life, under a makeshift huppah that included a tablecloth from Eli's mother, with the entire family present once again.

"If you think about the film, and you think about what Dad says to me the night before he dies: I say, 'So wasn't it important to say goodbye to all these people?' And he says, 'Yes, but look forward. Don't look back,'" Ondi recalled. "And I feel like that was the energy that this occasion brought."

For a Jewish family that was never particularly spiritual growing up, Ondi said, their patriarch dying brought everyone, including Eli, closer to Judaism.

That was true even though "Last Flight Home" captures the Timoners helping someone end his life, which is emphatically discouraged by Jewish law and tradition. The Central Conference of American Rabbis, the rabbinical arm of the Reform movement that includes Rachel Timoner, announced in August that it would support Canada's laws permitting medical aid in dying. It said it would not support California's law, which the Timoners relied on, because America's lack of universal healthcare "means that we cannot be certain that an individual in the U.S. considering medical assistance in dying is not being affected by their own or their family's financial situation, or by obstacles to obtaining necessary and appropriate treatment."

Though Rachel Timoner is a prominent activist on a range of social issues, she didn't anticipate end-of-life care being one of them. But knowing how the image of a rabbi paying for her father's life-ending drugs on film would seem to the Jewish community, she wrote an op-ed in the Forward prior to the movie's release explaining her decision.

Eli Timoner, Lisa Timoner, Rachel Timoner, Ondi Timoner and David Timoner in an archival image taken at Boeing HQ in Seattle, Oct. 30, 1979, featured in Ondi's film "Last Flight Home."

"I do not wish to create controversy on this issue, and I would not have chosen to make this film," Rachel Timoner wrote. "I would not have chosen for my father's death to be viewed by the public at all, and I would not have chosen to champion this issue. But I have cared for others who desperately wished for this choice at the end of their lives, and I think it might be time for the Jewish people to reconsider our views on this important matter."

Now there's a good chance "Last Flight Home," and the Timoners' story, will become a Jewish face of the right-to-die debate. Death With Dignity, an organization that advocates for policies allowing medically aided death, reached out to Ondi Timoner after the film's screening to ask if they can use it in their own materials.

It's a prospect she welcomes, she said, adding, "It's a dream for me as an artist, and as a daughter, that my father's suffering could come to this kind of healing for people."

"Last Flight Home" opened Oct. 7 at New York's IFC Center and Oct. 14 in Los Angeles, with other cities to follow.
(JTA) - It is rare that one can say attending a funeral was an uplifting experience. Yet the funeral Thursday for Judah Samet, who died Sept. 27, 2022, was exactly that, because remembering Judah can bring only positive feelings. He was a teacher of Torah at his Tree of Life synagogue, possessor of a unique and vigorous voice and sense of humor, veteran of the paratroop division of the Israeli army, lover of Golden Grahams, generous tipper and possessor of what he termed a "Bergen-Belsen stomach."

Samet, a longtime pillar of Pittsburgh's Jewish community who spoke frequently about his experience during the Holocaust, vaulted onto the national stage on Oct. 27, 2018, when a gunman entered his synagogue and murdered 11 Jews during Shabbat services. Samet, whom I and others in the community knew as Judah, had arrived a few minutes late and was warned away, remaining in his car outside the synagogue as gunshots sounded. The following February, Judah was a guest of President Donald Trump during the State of the Union address.

"I'm going to say a Jewish blessing that you say only when you meet a head of state," he told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review at the time. "I have permission to do it."

The State of the Union was a far cry from Judah's childhood in Hungary, where he was born in February 1938. As a young child, he was forced by the Nazis from his home and shipped with his family first to a labor camp in Austria and then to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. His father died of typhus three days after liberation, but the rest of the family made their way to prestate Israel. He moved to Pittsburgh in the 1950s, ultimately joining his father-in-law's jewelry business there and remaining a committed community member until his death at 84 on Tuesday, the second day of Rosh Hashanah.

At his funeral, Judah's son-in-law, the playwright David Winitsky, spoke of a time they went out to the casual restaurant Eat N'Park together and his father in law praised the service the waitress gave the table. Yet, he wasn't content just with complimenting her - he told her that he would let her manager know what a good job she was doing. He said to his son-in-law that it is important to make someone else's day better whenever you can.

This simple message seems uncomplicated enough, but then one thinks about the occasions when Judah was on his own - the years he was in a labor camp and in Bergen Belsen, in the Israeli army, and the terrifying moments he spent in his car parked outside the door of the Tree of Life, the synagogue he attended for over 40 years while a police detective and the man who shot 11 Jews inside the building traded gunfire.

Judah's drive to inspire others to better their lives and the lives of those around him was most evident in his tireless efforts to educate young people in Pittsburgh and beyond about the Holocaust. After not speaking about his experience for many years, he began sharing just over a decade ago, and he ultimately delivered hundreds of talks that reached the ears of tens of thousands of people, according to Lauren Bairnsfeather, executive director of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh.

Judah knew his words had an impact because of the countless letters he received from students over the years about what his story meant to them.

Judah's sister Miriam Cohen, born in Israel when their mother remarried after the war, recounted at the funeral that one time at the Pittsburgh community Yom Hahoah commemoration, a family arrived that looked out of place. At the end of the service, the teenaged daughter came up to Judah and gave him a big hug. She said she wanted her parents to meet him after he had spoken at her school.

Another eulogist talked about what Judah said to students, that he knew teen girls did not like their mothers but that their mothers were the only ones who would do anything and go through anything to care for them. As he said about his mother in a 2012 Holocaust Center interview, "She was a tower of strength. ...Her mind was dedicated 24 hours a day to saving her family." After hearing how his own mother told him and his siblings to eat lice to sustain themselves in the camps and how she foraged food for them, many students did what he said and went home to hug their mothers.

It was Judah's 81st birthday when the president of the United States led both houses of Congress in singing to him at the State of the Union address, watched by millions on national television. He was a guest of the first lady, sitting in her box; who knows how many Americans were educated about the Holocaust and antisemitism just by hearing a small snippet of the story of Judah's life.

Elizabeth Samet said that when her father received his stomach cancer diagnosis in June he told her that if this was it, the end of his life, that was OK with him. That ability to accept what he had and not try to change what might not be possible to change, though he had defied the odds so many times before, is characteristic of great strength.

My personal favorite memory of Judah is from July 4, 2019, at the morning minyan at Beth Shalom, where Tree of Life and New Light, the congregation my husband leads, join together. After we prayed, Judah proudly showed all the attendees the photos he had received from the White House photographer of himself with the first lady and proclaimed what a wonderful country this is to live in. Though he had experienced America at its worst, he remembered it as its best - as a place that welcomes people like him, survivors and immigrants who can improve their own lives and so many others.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.
(JTA)  Three Jewish women have sued to protest Kentuckys restrictive abortion laws on religious freedom grounds, arguing that they violate Jewish teachings as to when life begins and place undue burdens on their ability to use in vitro fertilization to achieve pregnancy.

The suit is at least the third religious freedom lawsuit to be filed by Jews against a state abortion restriction since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade this summer. It follows a synagogues challenge to Floridas laws and a Jewish pro-choice groups lawsuit in Indiana.

The Kentucky suit challenges the states current law, which was written to go into effect following the Supreme Courts ruling that ended a constitutional right to abortion; the law bans all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, with very few exceptions, and defines life as beginning at the moment of fertilization.

The law also forbids the disposal of unborn life throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stage  leaving women and their doctors concerned about the implications of IVF, which can result in surplus embryos.

The women behind the lawsuit  Lisa Sobel, Jessica Kalb and Sarah Baron  argue that Kentuckys definition of when life begins does not comport with Jewish law. They also argue that the law interferes with their religious freedom, they say, because the state would force them to continue to pay to keep embryos produced through IVF frozen indefinitely.

As a mom, as a woman, this directly affects me, it affects my health care, Sobel told the Louisville Courier-Journal. And then its a personal affront to my personal religious views, on top of it. As somebody who is a person of faith, thats just wrong to me.

Plaintiffs religious beliefs demand that they have more children through IVF, yet the law forces Plaintiffs to spend exorbitant fees to keep their embryos frozen indefinitely or face potential felony charges, the lawsuit states. The three plaintiffs are all in their thirties and say they must rely on IVF for future pregnancies to avoid health risks; Sobel says she and her husband cant conceive any other way.

While Jewish law is still developing around IVF, most rabbinic opinions agree that embryo donation, an option that some anti-abortion activists urge, is problematic according to halacha, or Jewish law, because of the outside possibility that it could result in unintended incest in the future. They also tend to agree that passively allowing embryos to be destroyed, such as by not refrigerating them, is permissible.

Claiming the state abortion law substantially burdens the plaintiffs right to religious expression, the suit also says the law is in violation of Kentuckys Religious Freedom Restoration Act, as well as violating the states constitution by granting preference to theocratic Christian teachings over other religious beliefs.

The Kentucky lawsuit is part of a newly emerging trend of Jews hoping to use religious freedom protections as a pressure point against state abortion restrictions driven largely by Christian activism. A nondenominational congregation in Florida sued that state over its abortion law in June, saying that its 15-week abortion ban prohibits Jewish women from practicing their faith free of government intrusion and this violates their privacy rights and religious freedom.

And last month Hoosier Jews For Choice, a newly formed Indiana Jewish abortion-rights group, sued over Indianas own law banning abortions in the state with very few exceptions. That lawsuit, backed by the American Civil Liberties Union, also claimed that the abortion law (which had not yet gone into effect) was in violation of the states Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

American Jews support abortion rights more than any other religious group, according to polling. Non-Orthodox Jews have been at the fore of advocacy against the current sweep of abortion legislation, while some Orthodox groups have said they applaud the Dobbs v. Jackson decision while still believing that abortion should be permitted in some cases. Scholars of Jewish law largely agree that it requires abortion when the pregnant persons health is at risk, though there is disagreement about what constitutes such a risk.
(JTA)  It seemed like a headline out of the 19th century: a warning of Jew-free zones at the University of California-Berkeley.

Thats the phrase being employed by some prominent pro-Israel groups this week to describe a dispute at UC Berkeleys law school, where nine student groups recently voted to adopt by-laws that state they will not invite any visiting speakers to campus who hold views in support of Zionism, the apartheid state of Israel, and the occupation of Palestine.

But is the Jew-free label accurate? Not according to Jewish leadership at the university. Heres a rundown of the controversy, and where people have come down on it.

How did the UC Berkeley situation start?

In August, nine student groups at the UC Berkeley law school (out of more than 100) signed a statement authored by the group Berkeley Law Students for Justice in Palestine.

Under the justification of protecting the safety and welfare of Palestinian students, the statement pledges not to invite speakers that have expressed and continued to hold views  in support of Zionism, the apartheid state of Israel, and the occupation of Palestine, as reported by J. The Jewish News of Northern California.

The student groups who backed the pledge include Women of Berkeley Law, Berkeley Law Muslim Student Association, Asian Pacific American Law Students Association and the Queer Caucus, according to the organizing group. The statement also expressed support for the goals of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement targeting Israel.

Opposition was swift and came from the highest office at the law school. Erwin Chemerinsky, the schools Jewish dean, wrote to the student body to condemn the pledge, calling it troubling and noting that taken literally, this would mean that I could not be invited to speak because I support the existence of Israel, though I condemn many of its policies.

Chemerinsky further pointed out that UC Berkeleys chancellor, Carol Christ, has denounced the BDS movement in the past, and that the school has an Antisemitism Education Initiative specifically designed to parse anti-Zionist rhetoric.

The law schools Jewish Students Association board also authored an Aug. 27 statement opposing the petition, writing that it alienates many Jewish students from certain groups on campus, and noting that their group was one of the few affinity groups not contacted during this process.

Even as all of this was happening, Chemerinsky insisted publicly that UC Berkeleys law school was still a welcoming environment for Jewish students and speakers, calling the petition a minor incident and any outside attempts to spotlight it as indicative of campus-wide antisemitism nonsense.

Does the story end there?

No. Last week, about a month after the law student petition circulated, Kenneth Marcus, formerly the head of the federal governments Commission on Human Rights, published an op-ed in the Los Angeles Jewish Journal claiming that Berkeley now has Jewish-free zones.

It is now a century since Jewish-free zones first spread to the San Francisco Bay Area, wrote Marcus, who is also a Berkeley Law alum and founder and chairman of the pro-Israel legal group Louis Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law. He compared the Berkeley Law petition to 19th-century signage in American cities with phrases like No Jews, Dogs, or Consumptives, and added that the incident was a sign of university spaces go[ing] as the Nazis infamous call, judenfrei. Jewish-free.

Other pro-Israel groups quickly followed suit in condemning Berkeley. Hadassah CEO Rhoda Smolow said the students actions are not only antisemitic; they are anti-education. StandWithUs repeated Marcus Jew-free zones comment in the subject line of a press release, threatening legal action against the school in the form of filing a Title VI civil rights violation complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.

The Jewish Journal op-ed also occasioned several open letters opposing the Berkeley student groups who signed the by-laws, from the American Association of Jewish Lawyers & Jurists (which accused the law school of having tolerated, condoned, and by such inaction, encouraged an antisemitic environment); more than 100 Jewish student groups nationwide, including more than a dozen Hillel and Chabad chapters as well as several Jewish fraternities; and a number of pro-Israel groups including AIPAC and the World Jewish Congress, alongside the American Jewish Committee and the Jewish National Fund.

Among others rising up in anger following the publication of Marcus op-ed: Barbra Streisand, who tweeted Oct. 1, When does anti-Zionism bleed into broad anti-Semitism? Streisand then linked to Marcus article.

So is Berkeley Law actually banning Zionist speakers?

No. The law schools policies around guest speakers remain unchanged, and the vast majority of law student groups have not backed the pledge to oppose such speakers.

Jews at UC Berkeley are mad, too  but mainly at Marcus, and others who claim the school is now a breeding ground for antisemitism.

The idea .. that the Berkeley law school has Jewish-free zones is preposterous, two Jewish faculty members, Ron Hassner and Ethan Katz, wrote in an op-ed in J.

Hassner is the Helen Diller Family Chair in Israel Studies and co-director of the law schools Helen Diller Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies, while Katz is chair of an advisory committee on Jewish student life and co-director of the Berkeley Antisemitism Education Initiative.

They wrote that fears about an antisemitic environment at Berkeley dont hold up to scrutiny, pointing to the law schools recent hosting of Zionist speakers including Yossi Shain, a member of the Israeli Knesset. The pair added that the actions of nine law student groups dont change Berkeleys deep institutional commitment to Jewish studies and Israel studies.

Panic-mongering around anti-Zionism on U.S. campuses serves no purpose, other than to offer free advertisement for extremist ideas, and to erode needlessly Jews sense of basic safety and security in places where Jewish life is actually thriving, Hassner and Katz wrote, while also condemning the law student anti-Zionist campaign as nakedly discriminatory, bigoted and an outrage.

Chemerinsky also spoke up, again, both in a response to the Jewish Journal and in his own op-ed in The Daily Beast. There is no Jewish-Free Zone at Berkeley Law or on the UC-Berkeley campus, he wrote.

Why Berkeley?

For one, theres the Bay Area citys reputation as an incubator for progressive activism, which has made it a regular target of right-wing campus free speech protests. But theres something else, too.

The Berkeley law schools Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies is a recent recipient of a $10 million donation from the Helen Diller Institute, money which was used to expand its Israel Studies programming  including guest speakers. When the donation was announced last year, pro-Palestinian law student groups, including the group that later organized the petition protesting Zionist guest speakers, called on the school to reject the money.

They pointed to a long list of past objectionable donations by the Diller family, including to Canary Mission, an anonymous group that has published the personal information of Israel critics; the American Freedom Defense Initiative, a group led by Jewish anti-Islam blogger Pamela Geller; and to efforts to oppose a rent control ballot initiative.

At the time, the school rejected students calls to return the money, possibly laying the groundwork for the intra-campus dispute today over Zionist guest speakers, some of whom (including Shain) were funded by the Diller endowment.

The Dillers foundation had previously donated $10 million to UC Berkeley across two separate donations: half to fund the campus Center for Jewish Studies, and half to endow the Helen Diller Family Chair in Israel Studies.

Since the work of faculty like Hassner and Katz is made possible in part by the Diller familys generosity, donor concerns are another factor at play. Donors to university Israel studies programs are increasingly looking for assurance that their money is going toward research and political speech they agree with  often with the encouragement of groups like StandWithUs, who push donors to build pro-Israel safeguards into their large-dollar donations. Reassuring the public that all is well with Israel-related matters at Berkeley also reassures the donors.

Earlier this year at the University of Washington, a donor withdrew a $5 million gift from the schools Israel Studies program because she didnt approve of its endowed chair signing a letter critical of Israel. Katz signed a letter sent at the time to UWs president supporting the affected professor.

What could happen now?

As of now the initial student letter hasnt prompted much action on campus, apart from a strong rebuke from UC Berkeley administration. But the reactions to it could be a signal of something more.

The forceful public tactics being employed by pro-Israel groups well versed in campus controversies are a sign that their approach to UC Berkeley may follow a by-now familiar playbook, much to the chagrin of Jewish faculty on campus who would prefer to keep things quiet.

StandWithUs, which is threatening to file a Title VI complaint, brings to mind several similar investigations that the U.S. Education Departments Office of Civil Rights has opened up against schools in recent years for allegedly fostering antisemitic environments on campus. Most recently, the Brandeis Center and campus antisemitism watchdog group Jewish On Campus succeeded in opening an investigation at the University of Vermont by filing a complaint about ad-hoc student groups that said they wouldnt admit Zionist students, among other things (the schools administration has vigorously denied the allegations).

Marcus declined to tell JTA whether the Brandeis Center would also be looking to file a complaint against UC Berkeley. But the organization argues that any campus anti-Zionist speech or activity is tantamount to discriminating against Jewish students, and that universities have an obligation to oppose such speech by any legal means. The Brandeis Center wants the federal government to define anti-Zionist activity in the same way, and uses Title VI as a means of pressuring universities to take action against students who may be engaging in such activity.

Will they do so in this instance?

Marcus told JTA in a statement that the center is prepared to take whatever action is required, but did not elaborate on what that action could be.
It's unbelievable to see what happened to my city, my friends, my community.

Hurricane Ian decimated Fort Myers Beach, along with homes, businesses, roads and vehicles, and left much of the area unrecognizable. It has been described as an apocalyptic scene. The death toll is currently at 109 deaths in the United States, the vast majority in Florida.

Two Holocaust survivors in their 90s are among the many Southwest Floridians displaced by Hurricane Ian last week. The couple lived in a mobile home park in Fort Myers.

But the Category 4 storm with winds up to 150 miles per hour destroyed their...
A picture shows a view of an Israeli military base at Rosh Hanikra, known in Lebanon as Ras al-Naqura, at the border between the two countries, Oct. 4, 2022.

WASHINGTON (JTA) - The Biden administration is still hoping to close a deal between Israel and Lebanon on a maritime border. Still, Israel is citing the deal's apparent collapse to prepare for tensions on its northern border.

"Special Presidential Coordinator Amos Hochstein continues his robust engagement to bring the maritime boundary discussions to a close," a National Security Council spokeswoman told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. "We remain in close communication with the Israelis and Lebanese. We are at a critical stage in the negotiations and the gaps have narrowed. We remain committ...
ZANU PF will on Saturday use a National Railways of Zimbabwe train to transport its supporters to a party rally to be addressed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in Mutasa, Manicaland province as campaigning for the 2023 polls gathers steam.

The party has been using various modes of transport that include school and the Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) buses to ferry party supporters to rallies.

The star rally is scheduled for Beaulieu Primary School in Mutasa South constituency.

It comes after Zanu PF Mutasa South MP Misheck Mugadza won the March 26 by-elections, defeating Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) candidate Regai Tsunga, who was recalled last year from Parliament by MDC-T leader Douglas Mwonzora.

Mugadza told NewsDay that Zanu PF supporters would be transported to Mnangagwas star rally on a passenger train from Rusape to Mutare.

He said they would then be taken to the rally venue by Zupco buses.

This is a celebration event and we want everyone to be there. We are not bussing people, but we want people to attend and eat with their President, Mugadza said.

We are expecting over 10 000 Zanu PF supporters and friends of our President Mnangagwa to come. There is a train that is going to ferry people from Makoni district to Mutare where they will connect to the venue using Zupco buses.

Mugadza said the event was scheduled for an earlier date, but was postponed because Mnangagwa had other commitments.

Senior Zanu PF members who refused to be named said a resolution was made to direct all Zupco buses in Mutare to the rally.

Yes there was a resolution that will see party supporters being ferried to the venue in Mutasa district by Zupco buses, the source said.

Zanu PF Makoni district co-ordinating committee chairperson Albert Nyakuedzwa also confirmed that party supporters would be transported by railway to Manicaland.

I was not in the meeting when the train issue was discussed, but some of our supporters are going to be ferried to the rally by train. We have also organised other modes of transport, Nyakuedzwa said.

Meanwhile, Zanu PF officials in Hwedza district have petitioned party leaders expressing disgruntlement over the just-ended central committee elections, which they allege were rigged.

Top party officials like Foreign Affairs deputy minister David Musabayana (Hwedza North MP) and former Transport deputy minister Michael Madanha signed the petition seeking to nullify the weekend election results.

Musabayana and Madanha contested and lost to Bertha Choto and Esther Gwatidzo, respectively.

They claim that candidates were denied the right to observe or verify ballot papers, and suspicious movement of ballot papers, while their agents were not allowed to observe the voting process, among other complaints.

They want a re-run of the elections. The party is yet to respond to the petition. Newsday
(JNS)  Between 2017 and 2022, 92.82 percent of the articles in leading U.S. college newspapers that strayed from journalistic objectivity were anti-Israel, according to a report from Alums for Campus Fairness.

ACF surveyed 75 leading college and university newspapers. Of all the articles about Israel exhibiting a bias, 181 were biased against Israel and 14 portrayed it positively.

Coverage spiked during periods of tension between Israel and Hamas, including in November 2018, May 2019, November 2019 and May 2021. There is an intense fixation on Israel, with nearly 1,500 stories on the to...
(JNS)  The heavily Jewish town of Surfside, Florida, passed a resolution last week establishing a twin city relationship with the Samaria Regional Council.

Passed by a 5-0 margin, the partnership encompasses some three dozen Jewish communities and will honor Samaria Regional Council Chairman Yossi Dagan with a ceremonial key to the town.

Surfsides first Orthodox Jewish mayor, Shlomo Danzinger, told JNS the move was motivated in part by a desire to thank Israel for its help in the search and rescue operation at the site of the collapse last year.

On June 24, 2021, Champlain To...
(JTA)  Couscous lovers who frequent the grocery store Trader Joes may have noticed a change in the grain aisle: The chains brightly colored purple boxes of Israeli Couscous are now simply known as Pearl Couscous.

The Nosher, a sister website to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, first reported the label change after word of it spread on the popular Facebook group Kosher Trader Joes.

The move raised questions in the group about whether Trader Joes was trying to distance itself from Israel, a move that some companies have made for political reasons. But a spokesperson f...
New UK Prime Minister Liz Truss pledged "wholehearted" support for the Jewish State during a speech at the Conservative Friends of Israel conference on Monday.

"I am so pleased to be here for the first time at the CFI event as your prime minister," Truss was quoted as saying by the Jewish Chronicle.

"As you know I am a huge Zionist, I am a huge supporter of Israel, and I know that we can take the UK-Israel relationship from strength to strength."

"In this world - where we are facing threats from authoritarian regimes who don't believe in freedom and democracy - two free democracies, the UK...
(JNS)  Wellesley Colleges student newspaper endorsed the controversial Boston Mapping Project last week in an article penned by the editorial board, claiming the project provides a vital service.

The project, published this past summer by BDS supporters, links a range of Massachusetts-based Jewish groups, synagogues, schools, police departments, media and other institutions that the anti-Israel activists claim participate in harmful activities and should be dismantled. The projects website hosts a map with the locations of their targets and information about them, inclu...
(JNS)  It has often been said that the media is a pillar of democracy because it keeps our politicians honest.

Lifting the veil of secrecy in which authorities like to cloak themselves, revealing inconvenient truths that expose the inadequacies and worse of government actions and subjecting all politicians to forensic questioning without biasthis is how the media acts in the public interest.

But when the media doesnt deliver, truthfulness goes out of the window, propaganda and ignorance take over and democracy stumbles.

We see this in much Western coverage of Israel, with newspaper...
In an interview with Maariv last week, former Israeli Air Force commander Amir Eshel made several startling admissions about the role he and other IDF generals played in scuttling former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahus most significant strategic policies. His most startling admissions related to former U.S. president Donald Trumps Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

In 2019, then-Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz appointed Eshel to serve as his interlocutor with the Trump administration and its Middle East peace plan. In this position, Eshel accompanied Gantz to the White House to...
On the eve of The Day of Atonement, Erev Yom Kippur, it is traditional for Jewish families to recite the Kapporeth prayer in the morning before Yom Kippur as part of our atonement, asking G-d to forgive our sins of the past year; and to give charity in support of our request for forgiveness and to be written into the Book of Life.

This year I recited the Kapporeth prayer on behalf of 19 relatives. Among these 19 relatives are one Holocaust survivor, two second-generation Holocaust survivors, five third-generation Holocaust survivors and six fourth-generation Holocaust survivors.

In o...
(JNS) It is an article of faith among European leaders, the political intelligentsia and the Biden administration that two states for two peoples is the only solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Failure to achieve this goal is usually blamed on Israel, with many accusers going so far as to assert that Israel has no right to exist and accusing it of being an apartheid colonial entity perpetrating ethnic cleansing against the indigenous population of Palestine.

With Israeli elections set for Nov. 1, the public debate is heating up, and Prime Minister Yair Lapid has been v...
(JNS)  On Sept. 21, U.S. President Joe Biden addressed the U.N. General Assembly. In his speech, he referred to a negotiated peace between the Jewish and democratic State of Israel and the Palestinian people. He added that such a peace is the best way to ensure Israels security  and give the Palestinians the state to which they are entitled.

Entitled?

The pernicious political fantasy of the two-state solution has been so thoroughly inculcated into the minds of most Western leaders that it is almost axiomatic. It leads to the assumption that, while the time may not...
Fighter jets participate in flight training

China Military Online) 10:48, October 13, 2022

A fighter jet attached to an aviation brigade of air force under the PLA Western Theater Command takes off for a flight training exercise on September 18, 2022. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Yu Zeqi)

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)


CHARMED by President Mnangagwas open door policy and far reaching economic reforms, more investors will be coming from the European Union (EU) which is prepared to extend loans to the private sector as relations between the 27-member bloc and Zimbabwe continue to improve.

After presenting his credentials to President Mnangagwa at State House in Harare yesterday, incoming EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr Jobst Von Kirchmann, said the bloc is available for constructive dialogue with Harare.

Prior to the advent of the Second Republic, relations between Zimbabwe and the EU were strained after the latter sided with Britain in unjustifiably sanctioning the country following its land reform programme that redressed land inequities.

But President Mnangagwas Zimbabwe is Open for Business policy has seen a number of European countries setting up shop in the country in yet another remarkable feat that Ambassador Kirchmann said can only be deepened.

My mission here is targeting constructive dialogue with Zimbabwe. I said this today when the President said the EU no longer has sanctions on Zimbabwe, that is exactly what makes it possible for us to engage on trade aspects, we are the fourth largest Zimbabwean trading partner in the country.

Ambassador Kirchmann said with relations between Zimbabwe and the EU having thawed since the dawn of the Second Republic, there is scope for further co-operation especially in trade, a thrust that dovetails with President Mnangagwas foreign policy that places international trade at the heart of diplomatic relations.

We are seeing more and more investors coming (to Zimbabwe), the latest from France and Germany. We have at least US$105 million worth of investment currently, which of course creates jobs. I am very happy that the European Bank, the biggest bank in the world, has opened a credit facility for the private sector. I had a meeting with them last week to see how we can enlarge that facility into the future, to also increase further investment from the private sector, he said.

Zimbabwe is a signatory to the Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU which goes beyond trade in goods, and include services and investment, trade-related areas such as sustainable development, competition, trade facilitation as well as further improvement in trade in goods and rules of origin.

Zimbabwes Vision 2030 has also piqued the EU, which is now coming on board with financial packages to accelerate the nations goal of becoming an upper middle-class economy in eight years time through inclusive development as outlined in the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).

The European Union and its member states stand ready to support that. Currently we are investing around 60 million euros to support the health sector, in the coming years we will support greener and climate smart agriculture.

The President today outlined how important it is for there to be more productivity and sustainability in agriculture. Together with other members of the EU, we will have around 162 million euros which we will invest in greener and smarter agriculture, Ambassador Kirchmann said.

The EU envoy, who was among four ambassadors who presented their credentials yesterday, also lauded Zimbabwe for improving the role of women in decision making through progressive quotas that have been introduced by President Mnangagwa.

On his part, Switzerland Ambassador-designate, Mr Stephanie Rey, described relations between his country and Zimbabwe as excellent. Herald
THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has been accused of being too secretive on the delimitation roadmap as opposition parties raised fears yesterday that the process could be rigged in favour of the ruling Zanu PF party.

The concerns were raised by various electoral stakeholders including political parties during a Twitter space discussion hosted by the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (Zesn) on Wednesday.

Zec did not attend the online discussion, despite having received an invitation from Zesn.

Zec says it has already deployed delimitation committees to various districts and provinces and the commission is hoping to have new constituency boundaries by December. Delimitation involves redrawing of electoral boundaries according to population sizes in the districts. The process is conducted every 10 years following a national census.

The last delimitation, conducted in 2008 in terms of the old Constitution and based on the Registrar-Generals voters roll, was disputed with critics and the opposition saying it was skewed in favour of the ruling party. The current exercise is being conducted using the April 2022 population and housing census data.

Political parties, however, said they were in the dark on how the electoral body was running the exercise.

Citizens Coalition for Change secretary for elections Ian Makone said: The way Zec is carrying out the delimitations process is quite disturbing. Zec informed us that the most important aspect of the delimitation process is the voters roll. That has not been availed to our people. How will they confirm where they belong in terms of their constituencies in the absence of the voters roll? That alone raises questions on issues of transparency. Then there is the issue of engagement. We have written to Zec several times inquiring about the voters roll and demanding it to be availed to the public for inspection. However, we did not get any favoaurable response from Zec, which makes us question the credibility of the whole delimitation process.

Gweru Urban MP Brian Dube (MDC Alliance) said: Zec has not been keen on updating on the activities that they are doing. We need to have a statement from the Minister of Justice explaining in detail the process that has been done so far. The other challenge is that we dont have a clear framework for complaints against Zec. In terms of how they have conducted themselves, they do not meet the minimum standards required in terms of the principles, guidelines and model laws of Sadc in terms of their character, attitude and behaviour especially in handling the preparations for next years elections.

Linda Masarira, leader of the Labour, Economists and African Democrats party said: Whatever timetables Zec has set are just meant to theoretically fulfil the constitutional provision without taking into consideration the stakeholders and their input. There might be something clandestine happening between Zec and the ruling party because we are all being sidelined from knowing what process is taking place.

Zimbabwe First (ZimFirst) secretary-general Tafadzwa Tom said: The truth is there is no engagement whatsoever with Zec with regards to delimitation. We must work hand-in-hand with Zec in all its processes to pave way for a free, fair and credible election.

Patriotic Zimbabweans (PZ)leader Charles Muchineripi-Mutama said lack of transparency had dented the credibility of the outcome of the delimitation exercise.

But Zec spokesperson Jasper Mangwana rubbished the accusations saying they have conducted engagement meetings with various stakeholders such as civil society organisations and traditional leaders on the upcoming delimitation.

There are also other civic society organisations, which have submitted to the commission what they are calling proposed delimitation reports which they have done and the commission can only peruse, but that will not really define how we are going to be doing our processes, Mangwana said.

They are entitled to their own opinion, but as a commission we will follow the law and the Constitution. We cannot simply conclude the process because they have submitted documents. The commission is the one mandated by the law to carry out delimitation . . . they should allow the commission to do its work.

Opposition parties raised fears that Zec may be conniving with Zanu PF, a charge vehemently denied by ruling party information director Tafadzwa Mugwadi.

They must take their concerns to election authorities if they are genuine concerns. Their reason for taking them to pliant social media trolls and ghost platforms clearly attests to their mischief and lack of being genuine, Mugwadi said. Newsday
BLVD Hospitality, in partnership with ESI Ventures, has revealed plans for the re-launch of Santa Monica's historic, iconic hotel, The Georgian, unveiling in January 2023.

Located on Ocean Avenue perched above the Santa Monica waterfront, The Georgian has been a fixture of the Southern California coastline since it first opened in 1933. Seeing several iterations over the years, regular guests to the hotel and world-renowned restaurant, the Red Griffin, ranged from Hollywood stars Charlie Chaplin, Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe to First Mother Rose Kennedy.

BLVD acquired the landmark hotel in August 2020 with the intent to restore one of Los Angeles' most recognizable and photogenic hotels to its former glory. The next chapter for The Georgian will see a restoration of the 84 guest rooms and 28 suites, alongside new and refreshed offerings including the famous ocean-view Sunset Terrace, Dining Room, and Sunset Bar. In addition to The Library and gymnasium, The Georgian will also be home to two private meeting and dining spaces, The Gallery and The Writer's Room. The Gallery will showcase an evolving curation of work by international artists on a quarterly basis. Additional details around the food and beverage program are expected over the coming months.

Known as Santa Monica's First Lady due to being one of the first high-rises built along Ocean Ave, the turquoise Period Revival-meets-Art Deco monument offers a rare glimpse into Old Hollywood and golden-age California history. BLVD's vision will re-energize the hotel in a way that revives the iconicity that emanated from its doors in the 1930s and decades following. Refining its presence for a new era, the project is being approached as a historically-inspired restoration rather than a redesign by London and Los Angeles-based boutique interior architecture and design firm, Fettle. The Georgian has already secured numerous lifestyle partnerships such as Harry Josh Pro Tools who will be supplying hair dryers and other hair tools for the guest rooms and suites.

The refreshed concept will embrace much of the hotel's retained original detailing, while thoughtful materials and an elaborate art program combine to create a series of spaces which brings a new chapter to The Georgian for generations to come. Touches including fully custom Art Deco furniture, ornate lighting, rare imported Italian marble, and the Sunset Bar's Havana Deco-inspired floor pattern set an architecturally striking stage for a very modern set of operations and service standards.

The re-imagined property will once again be a bastion of culture and inspiration for global jet setters and local tastemakers alike. From legendary sunset views to her rich enigmatic history, it's here inside The Georgian where Los Angeles' best-kept secrets will continue to live and thrive.

Hotel website
The St. Regis Bal Harbour, the exquisite Forbes Five-Star and AAA Five Diamond resort celebrating its 10th anniversary year, introduces a new spa concept, The St. Regis Spa, featuring an all-new menu of luxury treatments and wellness experiences in 14,000 square feet of indulgence with 12 treatment rooms, whirlpool, sauna, steam room, and relaxation lounge. Inspired by Caroline Astor and reflecting the resort's sense of place on Miami's most glamourous stretch of beach, The St. Regis Spa welcomes guests back with best-in-class products and one-of-a-kind experiences.

With its sleek, contemporary design, the Forbes Five-Star St. Regis Bal Harbour Spa pays homage to the original Iridium Room at The St. Regis New York, where the city's aristocrats and iconoclasts gathered to revel in a private world of spectacle and glamour.

The St. Regis Bal Harbour Spa is a jewel box designed for indulgence and defined by joie de vivre. Upon entering the scented welcome lounge, guests can select a treatment from the Caroline Collection, Wellness Collection, Body, Massage, or Facials, all of which feature products from the world's best-known spa and beauty brands including Sothy's, Omorovicza, and Intraceuticals. An exclusive enclavea private invitation to experience the extraordinary. From lush surroundings to precious ingredients, every aspect of the spa experience is carefully crafted to captivate and celebrate.

The most coveted treatment, and one that exemplifies Caroline Astor's opulence, is the 24K Gold Wrap, a 90-minute bespoke journey designed to relax and reconnect mind and body while leaving the skin hydrated and luminous. The experience starts with an invigorating full-body exfoliation using a golden sugar scrub, followed by a gentle scalp massage. While the cleansing mask works to warm and detoxify the skin, a harmonious hydro massage leaves the mind deeply relaxed. This exquisite treatment is exclusive to The St. Regis Bal Harbour Spa and cannot be had anywhere else in the world.

The Spa's spacious couples' treatment rooms are particularly special, with a two-person soaking tub, private rain showers, and separate treatment areas. At 90-minutes long, The Four Elements Couples Journey is the perfect way to experience this luxurious space. The natural treatment starts with a personal consultation, and includes an immersive full body exfoliation, hydro bath, back and scalp massage, and uses CBD products to target inflammation, nourish the skin, and promote deep relaxation.

Whether guests are in town for holidays, a wedding, business meeting, or to enjoy the famed Bal Harbour Shops, The St. Regis Bal Harbour Spa is the perfect place to relax and recharge just steps away from a pristine beach and the Atlantic Ocean. The ultimate destination for wellness and tranquility in Bal Harbour, The St. Regis Spa also offers a comprehensive menu of massages, facials, and body wraps that can be tailored to each guest.

The St. Regis Bal Harbour is the ultimate playground for today's jetsetter, where every guest suite boasts an expansive oceanfront view, and no luxury is out of reach. In its tenth anniversary year, the glamorous oceanfront resort is once again setting the bar in Bal Harbour.

For more information about The St. Regis Bal Harbour, make a reservation, or book a spa treatment, visit stregisbalharbour.com or call (305) 993-3300.

Hotel website
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants and White Lodging broke ground today, October 12, 2022, on the first-ever Kimpton hotel in San Antonio. The hotel is anticipated to open in late 2024. Representatives from Kimpton and White Lodging, the hotel's owner and operator, the City of San Antonio and Visit San Antonio attended to share remarks about the hotel's future in the city.

The new 10-story Kimpton hotel will be located at 423 S Alamo in downtown San Antonio. It will feature 347 rooms, a high-end restaurant, lobby bar, rooftop pool and lounge and more. In addition to luxury guest suites, the new Kimpton will also have more than 10,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space. Kimpton and White Lodging are working with HKS Architects and KTGY Simeone Deary Design Group to bring the hotel to life.

Hotel website
Scandinavian design encounters the Czech capital: Zleep Hotels is celebrating the next milestone in its European expansion on 12 October 2022 with a topping-out ceremony for Zleep Hotel Prague. This first hotel in the Czech Republic will feature 166 rooms as well as a lobby, reception, and snack bar in Scandinavian design. Zleep Hotel Prague is to be completed by 2024 as part of a mixed-use development project consisting of an international school, residential units, offices and a retail area. It is located in the Waltrovka development zone, a project being carried out by the Penta Group that includes modern residential and commercial buildings and a two-hectare park.

"With the topping-out ceremony for Zleep Hotel Prague, we are able to write a new chapter in the success story of our brand, bringing us a good deal closer to the scheduled opening. Thus, we are looking forward to 2024 and the opening of this hotel, which is a perfect addition to our portfolio," said Peter Haaber, CEO Zleep Hotels. "In addition, we would like to express our gratitude to our partner Penta Real Estate. Thanks to their expertise, we have been able to establish a presence in Eastern Europe for the first time and help meet the high tourist demand for the Czech capital."

The brand's portfolio currently includes 15 hotels in Denmark and Sweden. In addition to Prague, Zleep Hotels are under construction in Hamburg, Frankfurt, Madrid, and Zurich. Additional hotel openings are in the planning stage.

Hotel website
Radisson Hotel Group has today announced the appointment of Lachlan Hoswell as Managing Director, Australasia. The appointment comes as the Group continues to bolster its presence in the region, delivering on its recently announced APAC Expansion Plan, which named Australasia as a key strategic market for the business.

In his new role, Hoswell will spearhead Radisson Hotel Group's growth in the region, a role that will see him leverage on his experience in the hospitality industry which spans more than two decades. Prior to joining the Group, Hoswell held leadership roles in APVC Holdings Pty Limited, a subsidiary of Accor Hospitality, as well as senior positions at Wyndham Vacation Resorts South Pacific, and Daikyo Australia. Most recently, he held the position of Company Director, General Counsel and Commercial Officer of Minor Hotels Australia and New Zealand. During his time there, Hoswell led development for the group that saw it grow by over 50% in key hotel markets such as Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Auckland, and Wellington. Hoswell has extensive experience in negotiating hotel management agreements, hotel leases and franchise agreements. In conjunction with leading development he also oversaw the legal and property asset teams.

In his position as Managing Director, Australasia, Hoswell will be supporting his team and driving the growth of the Group's portfolio across major towns, cities and upcoming destinations across Australia and New Zealand. He will also lead operations and be responsible for all strategic initiatives in the region, working closely with key business partners to strengthen Radisson Hotel Group's branding in-market. Hoswell will be based in the recently established Australian Business Unit in Sydney.
The Indigo Road Hospitality Group (IRHG), which owns, operates, and manages restaurants and boutique hotels throughout the country, has appointed Christopher Amato to the newly created position of director of culture. His responsibilities include working alongside the company's existing leaders to ensure they're demonstrating and upholding IRHG's standards of internal hospitality, while also introducing these foundations to new IRHG employees.

Amato first joined the IRHG in 2015, serving as a vital member of O-Ku Atlanta's opening team. In 2017, he moved to open another Indigo Road restaurant, where he took on the role of assistant general manager. Shortly after that, Amato moved into the general manager position, overseeing day-to-day operations and set an example of professional, comforting, and charismatic hospitality. Eventually, he returned to his roots, rejoining the O-Ku Atlanta team as general manager in early April 2020, assisting the restaurant in reopening its doors and welcoming patrons back to their beloved West Midtown sushi spot.

Amato's early interest in food stemmed from his family's Italian heritage, which ultimately inspired him to pursue a career in the restaurant and hospitality industry. In 2013, he graduated from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI with degrees in culinary arts and food service management. Following graduation, Amato worked at Jean-George's Spice Market in New York City before relocating to Atlanta and joining Ford Fry's team. During his tenure with Fry, Chris worked at The Optimist prior to opening St. Cecilia in Buckhead and Superica (previously The El Felix) in Alpharetta's Avalon development.

Amato enjoys working on his fitness, tending to his houseplants, listening to podcasts, and caring for his two pit bulls, Daniel and Duke.

View Christopher Amato's LinkedIn Profile

Christopher Amato is a graduate of Johnson & Wales in Providence, Rhode Island - United States
Natalie Hickernell, SHRM, SCP, joined Reside in May and is responsible for building all human resources systems, programs, policies, and procedures globally. She aims to attract and retain world-class talent to ensure Reside has the right team assembled to achieve its business objectives. Having spent 19 years at BridgeStreet Global Hospitality before moving to WYAK, Natalie's insight into HR within the corporate housing sector, as well as people ops, business analysis & intelligence, has already proven invaluable.

Reside Worldwide, Inc

Woodinville, Washington

United States Website
Commonwealth Hotels announced today that Amber Das has been appointed the general manager of the Candlewood Suites Indianapolis South. Ms. Das brings over 10 years of hospitality experience to her new role as general manager having previously served as the food service director for Quest Food Management.

Prior to joining Das served in various leadership roles in diverse markets. In addition to her most recent role, Das served as general manager for the Fairfield Inn and the Holiday Inn Express both in Anderson, Indiana. Das holds a Bachelor's Degree from Columbia Southern University in Orange Beach, Alabama.
On October 6, 2022 Guestcentric - award-winning and leading provider of cloud-based solutions to support direct online distribution for premium hotels in over 50 international markets, celebrated 16 years in business.

Guestcentric added over 160 new hotels and small groups to its global portfolio in 2022 YTD. The companys rapid expansion encompasses International markets including, but are not limited to the EMEA regions (Denmark, Finland, Bulgaria, Spain, and Portugal to name a few), the USA, and more recently Africa.

Currently, Guestcentrics portfolio comprises around 55% small hotel groups, such as Small Danish Hotels in Denmark, Fletcher Hotels in the Netherlands, MX Hotels in the Americas, and Discovery Hotel Management in Portugal, and 45% independent hotels, including the iconic Grand Hotel Pupp, Hotel Covell, and Hotel Wood Norton.

Co-Founded in 2006 by CEO & President, Pedro Colaco and VP of North America, Filipe Machaz, Guestcentric continues to deliver powerful and innovative digital solutions to help hotels more efficiently streamline their operations, reduce operational costs, and grow their direct business. The companys vision since its inception is to continuously empower independent hotels and small groups to compete on a level-playing field in todays demanding online travel market challenged by the ongoing talent shortage.

In 2016, Guestcentric acquired Great Hotels of the World, a global sales and marketing hotel representation company for upscale independent hotels specializing in bleisure travel and the MICE market. To support local hotels and economic recovery during the Covid-19 crisis in 2020 in Portugal (home to its EMEA Headquarters), Guestcentric launched Small Portuguese Hotels, a national soft brand that is now represented by over 140 independent hotels.

In line with changing legislations and guest behaviors, Guestcentric continues to enhance and diversify its product range to help hotels adapt and thrive, launching new payment gateways and integrations to support hotels across the EMEA market.

Catering to a diverse portfolio of independent hotels, small groups, and casinos across the USA - the global hub of technological innovation - Guestcentrics San Diego office delivers user-friendly, flexible, intelligent, and customized business solutions and products that leverage personalization and customer loyalty.

Guestcentric also continues to diversify its services to support hoteliers in the talent-short landscape, launching its Lab Division - a Hotel Digital Optimization Agency service and Account Management for top-performing hotels and groups.

On a global scale, Guestcentric is renowned for delivering exceptional customer service. Currently, 98% of Guestcentric clients would recommend the companys products and services to industry peers. Furthermore, in 2022 YTD, Guestcentric also shows a 90% client renewal rate.

In commemoration of Guestcentrics 16-year milestone, Pedro Colaco said: Guestcentric has experienced phenomenal growth in its 16 years of serving hotels worldwide. The years 2020 and 2021 were very challenging due to the pandemic. Yet, the bounce back and growth both for our hotels and GuestCentric in 2022 has been remarkable. In the acceleration of this growth, we will continue to bring cost-effective hotel e-commerce solutions to independent hotels and small groups, providing exceptional customer service to our clients worldwide.

Filipe Machaz added: In Guestcentrics US Office, we pride ourselves on delivering powerful technology combined with a boutique service for our clients. The US travel landscape is vibrant with innovative ideas and digitally-savvy professionals boasting a wealth of creative ideas to adapt to the rapid pace of digital evolution. We are grateful for the continued opportunity to collaborate in the development of tailor-made solutions to address the ever-changing online travel market demands.

About GuestCentric

GuestCentric is a leading provider of cloud-based digital marketing software and services that help extraordinary hoteliers promote their brand, drive direct bookings and connect with customers on all digital platforms. GuestCentric's all-in-one platform provides hotels with the only unified solution for managing their guests' online journey: award-winning, high impact websites; an integrated, easy-to-use booking engine; social media marketing and publishing tools; a GDS chain code and a channel manager to offer rooms on Amadeus, Booking.com, Expedia, Galileo, Google, Sabre, TripAdvisor and hundreds of other channels. GuestCentric is a proud provider of solutions that maximize direct bookings to hotel groups and independent hotels from collections such as Design Hotels, Great Hotels of the World, Leading Hotels of the World, Relais & Chateaux, Small Luxury Hotels and Small Danish Hotels. GuestCentric is featured on Skift Travel Tech 250, a list of the top 250 travel tech companies shaping the modern-day travel experience.

Melissa Rodrigues

Content Manager

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Woodlands Partnership Votes to Approve Name Change

SHELBURNE FALLS, Mass.  After a final vote from its entire board on Tuesday, the Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership has changed its name to the Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts.

"The background of the name change is that there have been a number of comments over the past several years by members of the board about the appropriation of the name 'Mohawk Trail' as it applied to our public body," said board Chair Henry Art.

The partnership's executive committee voted at its meeting last month to bring a proposed name change to the full board. In addition to changing the name, the partnership is requesting the state legislature, along with the U.S. Forest Service and Department of Agriculture, officially recognize the change.

Aside from the appropriation of the term Mohawk, Art said there are several other reasons for the change, including the fact that the trail is part of only a third of the municipalities in the partnership.

"A woodlands partnership devoted to forest conservation and sustainable natural resource based economic development really has very little to do with a state highway, which might confuse the relationship that we do have," he said.

Board member Jeffrey Thomas suggested the name Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts, rather than Western Massachusetts. He said he thinks this name will help keep the group localized to the region.

"I didn't get involved in his thinking that I was going to be working to support a forest project in Southwick, or Sunderland, or Becket," he said. "... [Northwest Massachusetts] is more specific, and it would help put in some guardrails against scope creep for this group. And I worry about scope creep for dilution of effort, but also dilution of resources."

Art believes a broader name will allow the partnership to expand to other relevant communities, if the group decided to do so. He explained the enabling legislation for the partnership allows them to start adding more members as soon as next summer.

"In the future, we might want to extend our boundaries even farther south and east, which will get us even farther from the Route 2 corridor that's given its name to the partnership ... So if we want to increase to include Pittsfield and to include Greenfield and to include Hancock, which are currently not in the partnership geography, we can do that, but we should have a reason."

Also approved by the board was the partnership's 10-year plan, which it has been working on for several months.

"I think everybody who is provided reactions to the drafts as they went through, is to be thanked enormously. I personally think that the plan is so much better than it was a year ago," Art said.

The partnership held two information sessions, where the public could give feedback on the plan and organizational in August and September. Hayden said they received good feedback from the meetings and discussions with the select boards of various municipalities in the partnership.

"Some folks who have been opponents of the partnership, in terms of philosophically opposed to the idea of more active forest management, offered input about the importance of climate change," said said Lisa Hayden, administrative agent for the partnership. "Which, of course, the partnership recognizes it's in the enabling legislation creating us. But it was good feedback in that we could have been more overt in putting forth climate change within the plan."
Pittsfield Awarded LAND Grant

BOSTON  During Climate week in September, the Baker-Polito Administration awarded the city $280,000 to fund the Saw Mill property acquisition.

The Baker-Polito administration announced the awarding of $12,013,525 in grant funding for park improvements and open space acquisitions in 43 communities across the state.

"Investing in these important open space projects will make Massachusetts parks more resilient to climate change, increase the availability of open space and improve access to the outdoors for people in communities across the state," said Gov. Charlie Baker. "Our administration is proud to assist communities and land trusts acquire new land for parks and open space that will make available natural resources for children, their friends and family, and others to recreate locally."

Pittsfield received a LAND, or Local Acquisitions for Natural Diversity, grant that assists municipal conservation commissions in acquiring land for natural resource protection and passive outdoor recreation purposes.

The parcel includes 52.3 acres that protect approximately quarter-mile of frontage on the Housatonic River and directly serves the city's efforts to develop a greenway of protected lands for hiking, bird watching, and fishing at the river's edge.

The grants, administered through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs' Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities (PARC), LAND, and Conservation Partnership Grant Programs and funded through the capital budget, will aid municipalities and land trusts to protect land for future generations for outdoor recreation purposes.

The PARC Grant Program was established in 1977 to assist cities and towns in acquiring and developing land for park and outdoor recreation purposes. Any community with an up-to-date Open Space and Recreation Plan is eligible to apply for the program. The LAND Grant Program was established in 1961 to assist municipal conservation commissions in acquiring land for natural resource protection and passive outdoor recreation purposes. The Conservation Partnership Grants provide funding to assist non-public, not-for-profit corporations in acquiring interests in lands suitable for conservation or recreation purposes.

"These great local projects being awarded through the PARC, LAND, and Conservation Partnership Grant Programs today will significantly help communities in their efforts to be more resilient to the impacts of climate change," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Beth Card. "The Baker-Polito administration has prioritized investing in parks and outdoor recreational amenities that are well designed to handle the more severe weather events that are expected to continue."

There are two categories of PARC grants: the Small Town grant category for towns with less than 35,000 residents, with a maximum grant award of $100,000, and a separate category for cities and towns with more than 35,000 residents, which has a $400,000 grant award maximum.
Faculty Forum at Simon's Rock

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass.  The Faculty Forum series at Bard College at Simon's Rock returns for the fall semester and is open to the public, beginning on Monday, Oct. 17.

The Faculty Forum provides an opportunity to hear from Simon's Rock faculty about the scholarly and creative work they do outside the classroom.

In an informal setting that encourages discovery and dialogue, faculty will discuss their works-in-progress or their recently completed projects, according to a press release.

Faculty Forums will be held in-person at 4:15 p.m. on various Mondays during the fall semester and in various locations on campus at Bard College at Simon's Rock.

More information about each Faculty Forum will be available on the Simon's Rock Event Calendar throughout the semester.

Kaethe Minden: Oct. 17

Assistant Professor of Mathematics

Before Simon's Rock, Kaethe taught at Marlboro College as a Mathematics Fellow and as a graduate student at CUNY. Her academic interests are in the fields of logic and set theory - particularly large cardinals and forcing. Some recent work connects to combinatorial group theory, involving infinitary Latin squares. Kaethe started teaching at Simon's Rock in 2019.

Manon Hutton-Dewys: Nov. 14

Visiting Faculty in Music; Professor of Piano, Applied Music Program

American pianist Manon Hutton-DeWys has long been earning praise and recognition for her performances of classical and modern music. In Musical America, Christian Carey wrote: "Hutton-DeWys did an admirable job creating legato lyricism in a solo line that resides amidst a tremendously active accompaniment. Her sensitive dynamic shadings and subtle use of rubato demonstrated an artist possessing a great deal of promise." Manon has performed in some of classical music's best-known venues, including Weill and Zankel Halls at Carnegie Hall, and the Salle Cortot at the Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris. She has also appeared at Symphony Space, Bargemusic, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Steinway Hall, the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, Northeastern and Tufts Universities, and The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, home to radio station WNYC. Manon holds degrees from the City University of New York Graduate Center, Mannes College of Music, Bard College, and Bard College at Simon's Rock. Her research, for which she received a 2017 Elebash Research Grant, focuses on early twentieth-century American music. She formerly served on the faculty of Lehman College and Greenwich House Music School and on the Executive Board of the Piano Teachers' Congress of New York. Hutton-DeWys has two solo albums: Soirees Musicales (2021) featuring the works of 19th-century pianist composers, and Parallels (forthcoming 2022), featuring variations by Copland and Beethoven and preludes by Debussy and Ruth Crawford-Seeger. A native of New York's beautiful Hudson River Valley, Manon started teaching at Simon's Rock in 2017.

David Franco: Nov. 28

Assistant Professor of French and Spanish

Dr. Franco's research examines the notion of heroism in 17th century French drama, with Greek mythology and Classical tragedy as points of reference. His current book project, entitled Corneille: a Tragedy of the Ethos, focuses on the works of Pierre Corneille, and challenges the myth of a dazzling cornelian hero by showing his struggle to obtain recognition. His work has appeared in French Studies, The French Review, and at Classiques Garnier. A native Spanish speaker, Dr. Franco has extensively taught both language and Literature classes in French, Spanish and English. He has presented his work at the annual conference of SE17 (Socie?te d'E?tudes du dix-septie?me sie?cle franc?ais) and at the University of Gent, Belgium. He joined the faculty at Simon's Rock in 2019.

Kati Garci-Renart: Dec. 12

Assistant Professor of Dance

Kati Garcia-Renart's performance experience includes various venues in Spain and throughout the United States. She is currently the director of the Kaatsbaan Academy of Dance in Tivoli, NY, and is a long-time faculty member of Kaatsbaan's Extreme Ballet (summer intensive course). Kati Garcia-Renart was previously a visiting professor at Bard College. She has been teaching at Simon's Rock since 2010.
Name: Dave Bossio

Organisation: Samsara

Job title: CISO

Date started current role: January 2022

Location: Snoqualmie, Washington

An industry veteran with over two decades of experience in information security and operating mission-critical services, Dave Bossio joined Samsara as CISO in March 2022. He previously served as senior vice president, Security Integration, at Salesforce, where he drove the information security strategy across all business units and new acquisitions. Prior to Salesforce, he spent 17 years at Microsoft, where he was head of Windows Security and Platform Integrity.

What was your first job? I was working on an electrical engineering degree at the University of Washington, and had the opportunity to speak with a recruiter about joining the nuclear Navy. I was looking for a different experience coming out of college, and knew that I probably wasnt going to be as passionate about designing circuits as I would becoming a submarine officer. I spent eight years in the Navy directing ship and nuclear power plant operations, including personnel development, equipment installation, maintenance, and training.

How did you get involved in cybersecurity? After my time in the Navy, I worked as a product manager for GE before joining Microsoft as a program manager with the Windows security team. Being able to build new features and capabilities into the Windows platform gave me the incredible opportunity to focus and grow as a security professional during almost 20 years with the company. I eventually became head of Windows Security and Platform Integrity, overseeing the security program management team, managing public key infrastructure, cryptography, data protection, security services, and authentication in Windows Security. One notable achievement during my tenure was delivering the Xbox One security infrastructure, including a $20 million game disk security project and one of the largest scale cloud key management services in the world, supporting Windows and Xbox Live signing, licensing, authentication and encryption.

What was your education? Do you hold any certifications? What are they? After graduating with an electrical engineering degree from the University of Washington, I earned an MBA from Marymount University. I also hold a Six Sigma certification, a well-regarded verification of professional skills development, and achieved the highest Master Black Belt for improving overall process engineering within complex business practices.

Explain your career path. Did you take any detours? If so, discuss. My father was former military and always encouraged his kids to join. While I was the only one of my siblings to bite, it provided me with a non-traditional, albeit well-rounded, career path. I had a technical degree, joined the Navy, and gained a wealth of process reengineering and security knowledge at GE and Microsoft. It was during my last years at Microsoft that I was drawn to security operations and knew I wanted to get more involved with that side of the business. I joined Salesforce in 2018, becoming the main point of contact for security and overseeing the platforms integrations for all mergers and acquisitions. My background in engineering and security operations has well prepared me for my new role as CISO at Samsara.

Was there anyone who has inspired or mentored you in your career? Beyond the obvious familial and military connection I have with my father, he has been a constant source of inspiration to me personally and professionally. He grew up in a logging community in Idaho, was the first in his family to go to college, and provided opportunities for his four children.

What do you feel is the most important aspect of your job? The CISO role can be different depending on the business, some interpret it more for compliance while others look for an engineering focus. For me, the job requires a strong combination of both, and what appealed to me about joining Samsara. For many organisations today, the most important aspect is to set a strategy and drive a culture of security throughout the entire company. A solid security strategy gets the resources and support to ensure the right processes and programs are in place. When it comes to being an agent for culture change, readers likely already know this doesnt mean just hosting team happy hours. Its all about driving how security is prioritised by the business. From respecting the value of customer data and treating it with the level of diligence it so rightly deserves, to how product features are built and deployed, to the way we work with customersits imperative to ensure that security is a forethought, not an afterthought.

What metrics or KPIs do you use to measure security effectiveness? Its key to track compliance metrics like patching and vulnerability management and violations in specific time periods as well as the ability to meet service level agreements in resolving security issues and incidents. Its also increasingly important to oversee what access people have to customer data and how frequently its granted or removed. We want to ensure were only allowing access to the systems and controls people need at the moment in time they are doing their job.

Is the security skills shortage affecting your organisation? What roles or skills are you finding the most difficult to fill? The market is incredibly competitive for engineering talent and even more so for security engineering and operationstech companies often have the same exact needs to fill. Even as salaries for security professionals continue to spike, some of the data Ive seen shows that one out of every three security jobs remains unfilled. I think a contributing factor here is that this kind of specialisation and focus has yet to become a clear career path for people coming out of college today. Another challenge is hiring at the right talent level. You can always train people for different roles, but when youre building a security culture and program you have to make sure you have the right level of seniority from the beginning.

Cybersecurity is constantly changing  how do you keep learning? I read a lot to keep up on the industrys best practices, tools, and capabilities, and monitor as many threat intelligence feeds as possible. Im also active in our local CISO forums in the Seattle area, and learn so much from the people we hire from different businesses and backgrounds. No one company has cornered the market in terms of security capabilities, and a lot of learnings come from a better understanding of other organisations' approaches.

What conferences are on your must-attend list? The RSA conference has always been the marquee industry event for me in terms of the speakers and education for security generalists. From a hacker community perspective, Black Hat has been a great place to sharpen up on the state of the art and learn where threats are coming from.

What is the best current trend in cybersecurity? The worst? Passwordless, multifactor authentication continues to be the single best thing that companies can do to have the most impact when it comes to maintaining proper access to systems and services. The worst would be not having good vulnerability management programs in place. Taking the maintenance and services of systems seriously must be part of the normal course of running a business.

What's the best career advice you ever received? Dont sweat the small stuff. I was given this advice from a mentor early in my career and internalised it that, while details are extremely important, you can lose sight of the long term goal or strategy if you are too hung up on some small tactical issues. As I grew in my career it also helped me step away from issues that would be better handled by people on my team with better subject matter expertise and were closer to the problem, giving them the space to make the best decisions.

What advice would you give to aspiring security leaders? Develop a passion for security. While it may not be the first thing young people coming out of college with technical degrees think of, it's a space Im encouraging my own children to aspire to because theres an incredible amount of opportunity. As security leaders grow, they can have an impact across a lot of different aspects of a company. Also, be sure to continue your education in different aspects of security, and consider new avenues through certifications or peer learning.

What has been your greatest career achievement? Being certified as a Navy submarine officer was incredibly rewarding, and I was very proud to run operations on behalf of our captain and crew. Looking back, the opportunity to be on the bridge of a submarine and give orders in a variety of contexts and make tough decisions is what taught me how to handle pressure in different situations. Ultimately, its about understanding whats really a crisis and leading with a cool head.

Looking back with 20:20 hindsight, what would you have done differently? I really dont have a lot of regrets. While I couldnt have planned my career path, I wouldnt change a thing. Everything from the decision to join the Navy to the experiences and opportunities Ive had along the way were overall positive and got me to where I am today.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be on a two-day visit to Egypt starting Saturday as India continues to put an age-old partnership between two of the worlds oldest civilizations on a new trajectory.

Jaishankars first bilateral trip to the African nation comes nearly a month after his colleague and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited Cairo to pave way for the enhancement of military and security cooperation between the two countries.

Just around the same time, Jaishankar too met Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in New York during a high-level meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, while meeting with Rajnath Singh on September 19, stated that his country takes pride in the close historical ties it has with India and aspires to activate the partnership commensurate with their capabilities in all fields.

As India continuously grows its capability to manufacture advanced cutting-edge technologies and systems in the defence sector under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, Egypt is one of the several countries which has maintained its interest in acquiring made-in-India Tejas fighter aircraft for its air force.

With Egypt proposing joint manufacturing of military hardware with India, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two countries during the defence ministers visit was described as a milestone event by New Delhi.

In New York, Shoukry hoped that Indias upcoming G20 Presidency in 2022-23  Egypt has been invited as a Guest Country by the Narendra Modi government  will not only strengthen consultation and coordination mechanisms between the two countries but also contribute to restoring activity in the global economy and ensure that the negative repercussions of the current international tensions are contained.

He also welcomed the Indian companies interest in investing in Egypt, especially in the field of green hydrogen production in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZONE) in Ain Sokhna located in the Gulf of Suez, northwest of the Red Sea.

Discussions between Jaishankar and Shoukry will continue, this time in a much more detailed way in Cairo as they sit down for talks on a range of bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest over the weekend.

Jaishankar will also be interacting with the Indian community based in Egypt, including students, and address a gathering of the Egyptian and Indian business communities.

Egypt has also been one of Indias largest trading partners in Africa and the promotion of bilateral trade, commerce and investments will be one of the focus areas during the EAMs visit.

The MEA, in a statement on Thursday, mentioned that India-Egypt bilateral trade touched a record high at US$ 7.26 billion during FY 2021-22. Indian investment in Egypt exceeds US$ 3.15 billion. Over 50 Indian companies are actively present in Egypt in a range of sectors like manufacturing, chemicals, energy, infrastructure, retail, etc.

EAMs visit to Egypt will provide an opportunity to review the entire gamut of our bilateral and multilateral relations and to exchange views with the Egyptian leadership covering the whole range of issues of mutual interest. The visit provides an opportunity to deepen cooperation and explore new initiatives in the bilateral partnership, said the ministry.

The warm and friendly relations between the two nations, which are underpinned by historical and cultural linkages, are expected to get only stronger in the coming times.

Interestingly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is yet to visit Egypt after coming to power in 2014. The closest he came to visiting Cairo was in March 2020 but the trip had to be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

As things pan out, it may not be a big surprise if PM Modi visits the largest city in the Arab world soon.

Also Read: Egypt proposes joint manufacturing of military hardware with India
With increasing pressure from China in the East China Sea, Taiwan is planning to build new warships by 2025 and 2026.

The island nation is under strain from China which has doubled the number of ships that patrol the waters around Taiwan on a daily basis. The Chinese military pressure on Taiwan increased after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosis visit to Taipei, reports Bloomberg.

Taiwan intends to build a new anti-submarine frigate and another similar one with anti-aircraft capabilities, the news agency reported, citing official sources from the Taiwanese Defence Ministry.

Maintaining stability and prosperity of our homeland is the responsibility of every member. We will keep contributing our part to make it safe and free.

Lets celebrate our #NationalDay #DoubleTenthDay together!  pic.twitter.com/OCkjxzIcdY   Ministry of National Defense, R.O.C.  (@MoNDefense) October 10, 2022

The island nation has been on its guard for the past couple of years at least, but an invasion threat from China has increased lately. With the Communist Party of China (CPC) holding its seventh plenary session later this week and President Xi Jinpings repeated assertions about reunifying Taiwan with China, the threat has only mounted.

The once-in-five-years congress of the CPC is almost likely to endorse the unprecedented third term for Xi, who has listed among his many goals for attaining the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, with the reunification of Taiwan.

Pelosis visit, the highest-ranking US official to visit the island, triggered large-scale military exercises by an angry China which blockaded the waters, fired missiles over Taiwan and increased the intensity of its warplanes breaching Taiwans air defence identification zone (ADIZ). It also conducted military exercises in the vicinity of the island and also the Korean peninsula with live-fire drills.

Chinese belligerence has made Taiwan resolute about the need to resist a possible Chinese invasion. It has also alerted the US to the heightened possibility of a conflict in the region.

Earlier this week Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen said that the country will boost its defences by mass producing precision missiles and warships. In her speech on Taiwans National Day on October 10, Tsai said that Taiwan will take the responsibility for its self-defence and will not leave anything to fate.

The country plans to develop small but mobile precision weapons like anti-ship missiles that can be fired from a truck and then moved away to a safe location. India Narrative has earlier reported that it is also building an indigenous submarine.

Tsai added that the Taiwanese people have arrived at a consensus  to defend our sovereignty and our free and democratic way of life. There is no room for compromise on this. I call on the Beijing authorities that resorting to war must not be the option for cross-strait relations.

Also read: Defiant Taiwan begins live-fire drills to deter Chinese assault

Are the drums of war beating once again for Taiwans remote islands?
The world is slowly understanding the importance of living sustainably. With global warming and climate change rearing their ugly heads, sustainable living is the only way to survive while preserving our resources. Innovative designs are one way we can make the situation better. Like this environment-friendly toilet that's already earning a lot of praise online.

Japanese toilet with attached sink helps save water, wins praise online

Japan definitely leads the way when it comes to great design and innovation. And this time the country has produced a masterpiece to save water.

A picture that has gone viral shows a Japanese toilet with an attached sink. It's clear why the design became an instant hit online. Once you're done washing your hands in the attached sink, you get to use the dirty water for the next flush.

The said invention was shared on Twitter by a page named Fascinating. The caption along with the pictures read, "On many Japanese toilets, the hand wash sink is attached so that you can wash your hands and reuse the water for the next flush. Japan saves millions of litres of water every year doing this."

Check out the post:

On many Japanese toilets, the hand wash sink is attached so that you can wash your hands and reuse the water for the next flush. Japan saves millions of liters of water every year doing this. pic.twitter.com/HmDGu73iqa  Fascinating (@fasc1nate) October 11, 2022

The post has over one lakh likes and several comments by people praising the invention. Many were impressed by the smart thinking and lauded how this invention not only conserves water but also saves space.

One user wrote, "I had one of these when I lived in Japan, except there was no space for soap, so it functioned mostly as a small, decorative fountain." Another user wrote, "an excellent design in more ways than one but I find it slightly unsettling." A third one added, "I like the Japanese people. I really really do."

Reusing grey water domestically is an excellent idea.  Pompey Andy (@Pompey_Andi) October 11, 2022

I had one of these when I lived in Japan, except there was no space for soap, so it functioned mostly as a small, decorative fountain.  David Canmore (@David__Canmore) October 11, 2022

an excellent design in more ways than one but I find it slightly unsettling  Pamplemousse (@pamplemousse747) October 11, 2022

This is how you become a (water) millionaire  habits (@habits) October 11, 2022

I like the Japanese people. I really really do  Objection My Lord Twita (@tysalihu) October 11, 2022



Some people did have some mixed feelings. One user wrote, "Do people really not know how toilets work? The water for washing the hands is clean water from the toilet tank. It has never touched the bowl or any germy surface. The water from the little faucet drains back into the tank." Another wrote, "That miniscule "sink" is totally inadequate to wash your hands. Water will go everywhere." A third said, "My back hurts just looking at it."

 Bobby Griz (@NrthEastKngdm) October 11, 2022

Do people really not know how toilets work? The water for washing the hands is clean water from the toilet tank. It has never touched the bowl or any germy surface. The water from the little faucet drains back into the tank.  Maitre_P (@Maitre_Paine) October 11, 2022

That miniscule "sink" is totally inadequate to wash your hands. Water will go everywhere.  delet   (@OlivierOrOliver) October 11, 2022

Its slightly ridiculous, when you think about it, that fresh water is ever used for flushing toilets. I'm sure the poo and wee wouldn't mind if they were flushed with non-drinkable water.  Bungle1976 (@bungle_1976) October 11, 2022



According to a lot of people, these kinds of toilets are also available in the United Kingdom. It was suggested that houses there have this system generally to save space rather than conserve water.

What are your thoughts about this innovative idea?

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In Pakistan, where incidences of honor killing are relatively prevalent, a woman is raped every two hours, according to a recent survey, highlighting the unsafe conditions for women in the country.

AP

The investigation, carried out by Pakistani channel SAMAA TV's Investigation Unit (SIU) based on data gathered from the home department and Ministry of Human Rights in the province of Punjab, also unearthed that while the number of women being accused of rape continued to increase, the conviction rate remained a dismal 0.2 percent.



"Newly collected and compiled data showed that as many as 21,900 women were reported to have been raped in the country from 2017 to 2021. This meant that around 12 women were raped across the country daily, or one woman every two hours," said the survey.

Many cases go unreported:

Representational Image

The surveyors believe these reported cases may only be the tip of the iceberg since women hesitate to report incidents to the police due to societal stigma and fear of retaliatory violence.



According to the data, there were 3,327 reported rape cases in 2017. According to the research, this rose to 4,456 cases in 2018, 4,573 cases in 2019, 4,478 cases in 2020, and 5,169 cases in 2021.

AFP/ File

In 2022, the media reported 305 rape cases across the country. As many as 57 cases were reported in May, June (91), July (86), and August (71).

According to recent media reports, Punjab saw about 350 rape incidents between May 2022 and August 2022, although no information was available for the year's first four months.

In Pakistan, 44 courts heard up to 1,301 cases of sexual assault against women in 2022. In 2,856 cases, the police have filed charges. However, just 4% of the cases went to trial.

The report highlighted that the conviction rate in rape cases remained at an abysmal 0.2 percent.

AFP

Pakistan tops Anti-women bias in courts among other countries:

In 2020, the United Nations Development Programme ranked Pakistan top among the 75 countries with an anti-women bias in courts.

In July this year, a report released by the World Economic Forum placed Pakistan as the second-worst country in terms of gender parity and put it at the 145th spot in a survey of 146 countries. The only worse performer than Pakistan was Afghanistan.

Pakistan (145th) has a population of 107 million women, and in 2022 will have closed 56.4 percent of the gender gap that affects them.

Representational Image

Since the publication of the WEF report, Pakistan has recorded its most incredible overall parity level to date.

International bodies, such as the United Nations, have encouraged Pakistan to act against the country's increasing number of honor killings.

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan data, 1,957 incidents of honor killings were reported over the past four years, according to a report by The Express Tribune. The average rate of honor killing in women between 15-64 years was 15 per million women per year. "This may be yet another dubious world distinction we have achieved," the article in the newspaper commented.

(With PTI inputs)

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Forestry expert introduces new lilac varieties to inhospitable land in Qinghai

People's Daily Online) 10:58, October 13, 2022

Located at an elevation of about 2,300 meters, in Xining, the capital city of northwest Chinas Qinghai Province, 70 percent of floral plants grown in the citys downtown are lilacs.

Zhang Jinmei checks the flowering of lilacs at a seedling breeding base of Xining forestry science research center in northwest China's Qinghai Province, May 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Wu Gang)

As the city flower of Xining, the lilac found its way to the city thanks to efforts taken by Chinese researchers, including Zhang Jinmei, head of the Xining forestry science research center, who is also a delegate to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

In the 1990s, lilacs were widely planted in the downtown area of Xining. However, superior varieties were not planted on a large scale.

Zhang Jinmei (C) discusses the growth of lilacs with colleagues at a seedling breeding base of Xining forestry science research center in northwest China's Qinghai Province, May 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Wu Gang)

"Our research on lilacs has not kept up with the pace of the promotion of the floral plant. We also hadn't cultivated any superior lilac varieties or mastered any experience regarding introduction of new varieties to the city or localization of them," Zhang recalled.

Zhang told herself that she would try her best to cultivate superior varieties of lilacs that could survive in Xining. In 1998, Zhang began to cultivate seedlings for several varieties of lilac at a planting base that covered an area of 480 mu (32 hectares) located in the city.

Zhang Jinmei checks the flowering of lilacs at a seedling breeding base of Xining forestry science research center in northwest China's Qinghai Province, May 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Wu Gang)

She then explored various breeding methods to find the best one for local conditions. In 2013, Zhang began working at the Xining forestry science research center, focusing on the breeding and protection of rare and endangered lilac varieties.

Syringa pinnatifolia Hemsl., a lilac species endemic to China, was once rated as an endangered species because of its low reproductive rate and slow growth rate.

To collect a variety of specimen, Zhang and members on her research team visited many places in and out of Qinghai Province until they finally discovered two lilac plants.

Photo taken on May 6, 2021 shows lilacs in bloom at a seedling breeding base of Xining forestry science research center in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (Xinhua/Wu Gang)

Two years later, they eventually solved difficulties regarding breeding and planting of Syringa pinnatifolia Hemsl., successfully cultivating seedlings of Syringa pinnatifolia Hemsl. for the first time.

Thanks to the efforts of Zhang and her team of forestry experts, the Xining forestry science research center has built the country's first lilac germplasm resource bank.

"We are making full use of the lilac germplasm resource bank to study the diversity and breeding of the plant, striving to make contributions in introducing more varieties suitable for the plateau environment and to building Qinghai into an eco-friendly place," Zhang expressed.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming)
Arrow Insurance Agency is Westlands first location in the BC city of Fort St. John. The acquisition of Emsland & Associates adds another Kamloops, BC location for Westland. Meanwhile, IBMG Canada in Toronto gives Westland another key location in the Greater Toronto Area.

Were thrilled to welcome Arrow Insurance, Emsland & Associates, and IBMG Canada to the Westland team, said Westland president and COO Jamie Lyons. As we continue our growth journey across Canada, we feel privileged to join forces with these three outstanding brokerages, each of whom have tremendous leadership and passionate employees.

Lyons added that Westland is looking forward to working with the three broker teams to continue serving their respective communities and make a difference in the lives of their clients.

Read more: Westland Insurance acquires two more brokerages

Last month, Westland Insurance acquired the brokerages Montridge Advisory Group and BST Insurance. Based in Vancouver, BC, Montridge Advisory Group is an employee benefits advisor, while the Pickering, ON-based BST Insurance Brokers is a full-service P&C brokerage. The latter is Westland's first location in Pickering.
This post is part of a series sponsored by AgentSync.

Floridas struggles to retain a property and casualty (P&C) insurance market have made headlines and spurred a special legislative session this year. With a package of regulatory overhauls and an unprecedented move for state-backed reinsurance, it remains to be seen whether the reforms can plug the holes of Floridas beleaguered system.

General struggles in P&C across the country

As climate change increases the number and severity of natural disasters and their accompanying damages, states particularly vulnerable to drought or floods have struggled to maintain coverage options for homeowners.

California has stop-gap measures enabling the insurance commissioner to put a moratorium on home insurance cancellations in disaster areas. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the biggest insurers pulled out of homeowners insurance in Louisiana. That state now maintains its P&C market through smaller, more localized insurers, which the state tailors its regulatory culture to, as evidenced by this years legislative packages.

Overall, a McKinsey report echoes the anecdotal evidence of these states: P&C insurance has in recent years left larger incidents uninsured, and tends to perform better for smaller carriers interested in localized coverage and underwriting. Unfortunately, theres still no widespread solution that delivers that coverage at a more affordable rate for consumers. Fewer insureds often means more expensive coverage for those who do retain it.

Broadly speaking, then, Florida is hardly alone in needing to address a property insurance market that has as many challenges as it does opportunities. Yet, in a season thats seen relatively few disastrous incidents thus far, why are so many insurance companies leaving Florida?

Why is homeowners insurance so expensive in Florida?

Theres no single reason homeowners insurance has ballooned  although its true that the typical Florida homeowners insurance premium is three times the national average. Instead, there are a few reasons. For one thing, insurers underwriting and premium assessments havent kept up with rising risk, which has eaten into surpluses and caused losses in profitability. However, a few factors unique to Florida have created a snowball effect that goes well beyond the market adjustments we see in other coastal states (more on how these create a perfect storm for carriers later on):

Roof coverage and replacement rules: Florida law requires homeowners to replace roofs that have sustained 25 percent or more in damage. However, carriers may require homeowners to meet a deductible for coverage, or may reject a roof claim outright.

Assignment of benefits: An assignment of benefits, or AOB, allows a homeowner to sign their policy benefits over to a roofing company so the roofer can directly approach an insurance carrier about the cost and reimbursement of roofing repairs, or enlist a public adjuster to back up their assessment of damage.

Attorney fee multiplier: A court case in 2017 affirmed and strengthened a legal principle in Florida that an attorney can collect as much as 250 percent of a typical attorney fee if they win a lawsuit on behalf of a homeowner. The rule is based on the understanding that these are typically contingency cases, meaning attorneys only get paid if they win. So, homeowners suits can be unattractive when compared to other cases where your firm is guaranteed compensation for their billable hours. The idea of the fee multiplier was to encourage attorneys to take on cases on behalf of homeowners.

For an anecdotal perspective on how these factors have played out in recent years, several media outlets have profiled homeowners whose stories have a similar thread:

A Florida property owner is approached by a roofing contractor who asserts that the propertys roof has substantial enough damage to warrant a total replacement. The contractor assures the homeowner that the damage will be fully covered by their insurance; in fact, if the homeowner will just sign an AOB, the contractor and their legal team can even handle the insurance end of the roof replacement for them, no hassle!

The Florida property owner signs the AOB, and then has to wait for months, or years, while the roofing contractor engages an insurance carrier. The carrier may dispute that the roof has damage equaling or exceeding 25 percent of its value. The roofing contractor then sues the carrier for the benefits, leading to months of protracted litigation, and often resulting in coverage for a brand new roof as well as tens of thousands of dollars in attorneys fees, incentivized by those 100 to 250 percent multipliers.

If the carrier wins, it still has to pay its attorneys fees.

Taken together, these rules have yielded a crisis for the Florida homeowners insurance industry. Consider: Florida has largely avoided a major hurricane season since 2018. Florida homeowners compose 9 percent of annual claims in the U.S. However, Florida accounts for 79 percent of annual homeowners claims lawsuits.

The downstream result is premiums that have risen in triplicate for some property owners, and insurers have become increasingly unwilling to take the risk of insuring roofs over the age of 10 years old.

Florida P&C market in crisis as insurers leave, ratings downgraded

The Florida homeowners insurance crisis reached a fever pitch in the last year as insurers have backed out of the state entirely.

In a proclamation calling for a special session of the legislature in late May 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis justified the emergency measure with stats such as, the Florida insurance industry has seen two straight years of net underwriting losses exceeding $1 billion each year, and Citizens Property Insurance, the State of Floridas public insurer of last resort, has seen an increase of 399,822 policies since the beginning of 2020 and is on track to be over 1 million policies by year end.

So, very clearly, the market is losing money, and more people are being forced onto the state-backed insurer after their insurers leave the market.

And, to be clear, insurers are certainly leaving the market.

In July 2022, Bankers Insurance Group became the thirteenth insurance company to begin liquidating or stop offering new policies just this year. For perspective, the Tampa Bay Times noted there were 63 P&C insurers required to report financials in the state as of the end of 2020 (a list that included companies in the process of liquidation even then). That same year, the Times said, an analysis of the market showed only four companies had demonstrated profitability at all.

And, lest you think condominium owners in Florida have it better After a tragic building collapse that killed 98 people in Surfside, Florida, in 2021, a $1 billion insurance settlement has driven P&C carriers away from insuring Florida condos. For carriers that choose to remain in the Florida condo market, theres so little competition that prices can double, triple, or more and consumers have no option to shop elsewhere.

Floridas special session P&C insurance legislation

With the available pool of insurers facing contractions of more than 10 percent, DeSantis and the legislature went back to the table after the regular session to address some of the underlying factors that have driven market collapse in the last five years.

May 24, 2022, the legislature passed sweeping legislation aimed at reforming the market, with the Florida governor signing it into law two days later.

Provisions of the law include:

$2 billion allocated to a Reinsurance to Assist Policy program, giving insurance companies assistance to place reinsurance contracts for coverage

$150 million in grants to Florida homeowners for home hardening, aiming to make homes more resilient to storm damage

Requirements that carriers cover roofs less than 15 years old, or roofs that have at least five years of useful life remaining

New standards for attorney fee multipliers and attorneys fee assignments, disincentivizing frivolous claims

Some lawmakers in Florida sought to bar policyholders from contesting claims denials in court altogether, while others defended claims suits, saying theyre an important enforcement mechanism that incentivize carriers to pay claims in the first place.

Other criticisms argued that the laws dont go far enough to protect consumers, who will likely not see reduced or even plateauing premium costs for years after the laws implementation. One property insurance law group criticized the law as one-sided, admitting policyholder and contractor fraud has played a role, but saying:

The F word is not a one-way street Contrary to popular belief, insurance companies continue to avoid their contractual and statutory obligations despite their incessant concerns about defending rampant lawsuits. Actually addressing the truly frivolous litigation is step one in beginning to solve our property insurance market issue, but why stop there?  The same efforts need to be targeted at combating the unspoken immunity that is insurer fraud

Demotech homeowners P&C insurance rating downgrade

While Florida legislators hope the new law will forestall more P&C market turbulence, there are still choppy waters ahead.

For one thing, Florida insurance carriers rely heavily on Demotech, a ratings agency, to provide judgments about solvency for the carriers in the state. In July, Demotechs plans to downgrade the ratings of 17 P&C carriers brought swift furor from the Florida Association of Insurance Agents (FAIA) and state regulators. By downgrading these carriers, Demotech would be signaling to consumers that these carriers arent adequately pricing and underwriting their contracts, and warns of placing contracts with them.

A downgrade could also have secondary repercussions, as many mortgage backers require homeowners to hold insurance policies with companies that meet certain solvency standards.

The FAIA and state regulators didnt name which carriers Demotech planned to downgrade, but seven were made public in the beginning of August.

With the number of active P&C carriers willing to provide new homeowner policies in the state hovering under 50, at this point, having 17 downgraded could be devastating to the overall sustainability of the market.

In an effort to keep the market afloat, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) took a truly unprecedented step, offering temporary reinsurance contracts with the full backing of the states insurance company, Citizens Property Insurance, and, further, the states guaranty association. A news release from Commissioner David Altmaiers office said the arrangement should satisfy requirements for mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Future of Florida homeowners insurance market remains uncertain

The Florida OIR and legislature are clearly making efforts to shore up the market, harden homes, and retain a profitable environment safe for consumers. Yet, just as these extreme conditions didnt arise overnight, real solutions will take time.

It remains to be seen how effective this years actions will be, as well as what the legislature may propose in next years session to further bolster the Florida P&C market. In the meantime we will hope for Florida to see clear skies, smooth water, and sunshine.

At AgentSync, theres little we can do to directly affect P&C claims and Florida market conditions. However, for carriers, MGAs, and agencies, we can help streamline producer and adjuster licensing, verification, and appointments. For more on how, check out our solutions.

Topics Trends Florida Market Homeowners
PORTLAND, Maine (AP)  The owner of a former chemical plant that dumped mercury into the Penobscot River must pay at least $187 million to remove the contamination in a resolution to a decades-long legal battle.

A federal judge on Tuesday approved the settlement calling for Mallinckrodt U.S. LLC to pay for remediation of mercury released by the now defunct HoltraChem plant in Orrington.

The plant discharged six to 12 metric tons of mercury from 1967 until the early 1970s, according to a previous court-ordered study. Environmental groups have longed pushed for the remediation of the river.

Its long past time for Mallinckrodt to make it right, and this ruling will go a long way toward restoring the Penobscot, so people can go back to fishing, eating lobster, and enjoying this river, Jesse Graham, co-director of Maine Peoples Alliance, said in a statement.

The plant operated until 2000 and was located about 135 miles (215 kilometers) north of Portland, just south of Bangor. Maine Peoples Alliance and Natural Resources Defense Council also filed a complaint about the mercury pollution in 2000.

The companys financial obligations under the settlement will not exceed $267 million, court papers said.

The settlement states that Mallinckrodt will pay independent trusts that will fund and implement remediation of the river and nearby communities, Maine Peoples Alliance said in a statement. The plant made chlorine bleach used by paper mills.

A federal judge ruled in 2015 that Mallinckrodt was responsible for the cleanup of the river. The company owned the site from the 1960s to 1982 and is the only former plant owner that is still in business.

The settlement means the parties in the case believe that it is in their mutual interest to resolve their differences regarding remediation issues and move forward cooperatively and productively with remediation actions intended to reduce mercury exposures and accelerate the recovery of the Penobscot River estuary, court papers state.

The company has already spent millions of dollars cleaning up the 235-acre (95-hectare) facility site and paying for studies ordered by the court. Representatives for the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the settlement.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Pollution Maine Chemicals
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP)  A malfunctioning heater sent a dangerously high level of carbon monoxide into a Pennsylvania day care center early Tuesday, sickening dozens of children  some of whom were unconscious as they were rushed to the hospital _ and several adults.

More than 30 people were hospitalized. All were listed in stable condition.

Emergency responders went to the Happy Smiles Learning Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on reports of an unconscious child, and evacuated the building after a firefighters CO monitor was triggered.

The leak was caused by a malfunctioning heating unit and a blocked venting system, investigators said. They noted the building did not have carbon monoxide detectors.

A new city ordinance requires CO detectors in child care facilities by Oct. 27, while legislation that would require them in all child care facilities statewide recently cleared the state Senate. The bill is awaiting action in the House.

Happy Smiles owner Jesenia Gautreaux said she will have CO detectors installed.

A staffer called Gautreaux at home to tell her a child had collapsed, Gautreaux told The Morning Call newspaper of Allentown. She arrived at the center within minutes and saw the boy in an ambulance, she said. He looked ill, she said, but gave her a thumbs-up.

He was a little dizzy and out of it, she told the newspaper, adding that other children cried as they evacuated. I believe they were scared and worried about their friends.

Of the patients treated by hospitals in the Lehigh Valley Health Network, symptoms included headache, dizziness and nausea, and several were unresponsive prior to arrival, Dr. Andrew Miller, chief of pediatric emergency medicine, said in a statement.

Some patients who had very high levels of carbon monoxide in their blood and required more aggressive treatment were transferred to hospitals in Philadelphia, about 50 miles away, he said.

City inspectors shut down the building and the day care facilitys license was suspended as a result of the leak.

There will be multiple inspections needed from the Health Bureau, Building Standards, Fire Department _ in order for this facility to reopen, city spokesperson Genesis Ortega said via email.

Eight staffers were at the child care center, which usually cares for about 40 kids each day. Gautreaux said she plans to have the furnace repaired and reopen the day care center soon.

The centers last state inspection was conducted late last year, and state records show the only problem found was a door that remained locked when the fire alarm sounded. That was soon repaired, and no sanctions were issued.

Photo: Emergency responders work on the scene of a carbon monoxide leak at a day care center in Allentown, Pa. on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (Zach DeWever/WFMZ-TV via AP)

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Pennsylvania
An arbitration agreement buried behind a hyperlink that does not give consumers clear notice they are waiving their right to a jury trial when they agree to the companys terms and conditions is not valid, a Pennsylvania appeals court has ruled in a case of an Uber rider injured in a motor vehicle accident.

Uber argued that when riders register for its ridesharing service they signify that they agree to be bound by the mandatory arbitration provision found in the hyperlinked terms and conditions, thereby relinquishing their right to a jury trial. A trial court agreed and granted Ubers motion to compel arbitration but on appeal the Pennsylvania Superior Court has reversed, ruling that a stricter burden of proof is necessary to demonstrate a partys assent to arbitration where the important right to a jury trial is at stake.

In a strongly-worded opinion by Judge Daniel McCaffery that calls for more judicial scrutiny of the growing use of arbitration agreements, the court ruled that the Uber approach is inadequate because it does not inform users in an explicit and upfront manner that they are giving up a constitutional right to seek damages through a jury trial proceeding.

The opinion guides firms on how they may achieve this stricter burden of proof by: (1) explicitly stating on the registration websites and application screens that a consumer is waiving a right to a jury trial when they agree to the companys terms and conditions, and the registration process cannot be completed until the consumer is fully informed of that waiver; and (2) when the agreements are available for viewing after a user has clicked on the hyperlink, the waiver should not be hidden in the terms and conditions provision but should appear at the top of the first page in bold, capitalized text.

The appeal arose out of a motor vehicle accident that occurred in 2019. Shannon Chilutti, who is wheelchair bound, was injured while riding in a car provided by Uber Technologies on the way home from a medical appointment. After Uber insisted her injury claims must go to arbitration, Chilutti and her husband both filed suits.

The court said the case concerned whether parties should be deprived of their constitutional right to a jury trial when they purportedly enter into an arbitration agreement via a set of hyperlinked terms and conditions on a website or smartphone application that they never clicked on, viewed, or read.

The trial court granted Ubers petition to compel arbitration of the claims, determining the plaintiffs had not been forced out of court. But the Superior Court has now decided that the trial court failed to consider the importance of the protected constitutional right to a jury trial. The Superior Court reversed and remanded the case back to the lower court, concluding that plaintiffs are legally entitled to relief and that they demonstrated there was a lack of a valid agreement to arbitrate; therefore, they are entitled to invoke their constitutional right to a jury trial.

In Shannon Chiluttis case, according to the court, the terms and conditions agreement was encapsulated in tiny, blue font at the very bottom of a cluttered webpage. The relevant text was not underlined or capitalized. With respect to Keith Chilutti, he was on the fifth screen of the registration process, after he had already provided substantive personal information, when the Terms and Conditions page could be reviewed in small font that, again, was not underlined or capitalized.

The appeals court said Uber did not inform the Chilluttis in an explicit and upfront manner that they were giving up a constitutional right to seek damages through a jury trial proceeding. Instead, the court noted, the plaintiffs did not click on or access the terms and conditions before their registration process was completed; rather they merely created a user account. Furthermore, the definition of arbitration is not in the agreement; nor is there any explanation of binding and non-binding arbitration. Notably, if a party wants to review the rules that govern arbitration, they must click on a second hyperlink.

Further, the court said the term, arbitration, is ambiguous in that there is nothing to explain its meaning and any non-lawyer subscriber could easily believe that arbitration is simply another step in the litigation process that does not involve relinquishing the constitutional right to a jury trial in its entirety.

The court noted that Pennsylvania has a well-established public policy that favors arbitration, and this policy aligns with the federal approach of the Federal Arbitration Act [(FAA]. However, the court noted that the FAA does preempt state law in all cases, warning that the evolution and effect of arbitration provisions has substantially weakened the constitutional right to jury trial in civil proceedings. The court further noted that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has stated that one of the consequences of the shift away from the civil justice system and toward private adjudication is that corporations are routinely stripping individuals of their constitutional right to a jury trial.

The sluggish recognition regarding the copious usage of arbitration agreements in present day contracts and the ramifications of these agreements on a partys right to a jury trial raises concern, especially in the context of Internet contracts like the one at issue herein where the parties are of purported unequal bargaining power, the opinion continues. While some courts have taken small bites at the issue, there is a need for greater scrutiny regarding a partys waiver of their constitutional right to a jury trial in terms of these arbitration agreement matters, the opinion states.

The opinion further contends that if the issue on appeal involved a confession of money judgment, the court would have no qualms in striking a judgment based on the inconspicuous use of the provision in question. The same would apply to a criminal conviction where no colloquy was provided, or the defendant was not advised of his right to a jury trial. We see no reason why the same analysis should not be afforded herein where a constitutional right a jury trial in a civil action is clicked away without the benefit of any protections the law provides, Judge McCaffery wrote.

In ruling as it did, the state appeals court went beyond a federal appeals court standard (Berman v. Freedom Fin. Network, U.S. 9th Cir. 2022) that held so-called clickwrap agreements that use pop-ups to grab users attention generally more acceptable that browsewrap agreements that use only hyperlinks, like Ubers.

Judge Alice Beck Dubow joined in the opinion written by Judge McCaffery. Judge Victor Stabile dissented.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has returned to court to stop Donald Trump and the Trump Organization from potentially evading the consequences of her recent lawsuit that charges them with fraudulent and illegal business activity, citing concerns over the formation of a new Trump corporation in Delaware.

James wants the Supreme Court of New York County to keep the Trump Organization from moving assets out of New York and to issue a preliminary injunction to stop the Trump Organization from using financial documents that she alleges are misleading, including Trumps 2021 statement of financial condition, in any new business deals.

According to the Office of the Attorney General, in September around the same time James filed her lawsuit, the Trump Organization registered a new entity with the New York secretary of state called The Trump Organization II LLC, a foreign corporation that was incorporated in Delaware on September 15, 2022. The OAG fears this may be used to transfer assets out of New York or potentially shield funds that might be available to satisfy any disgorgement award.

OAG said it expressed to the Trump Organization its concerns about whether the company is taking steps to avoid the jurisdiction of the court or make it difficult to obtain relief against the corporate entities. The OAG said counsel for the Trump Organization has offered to provide assurance and/or reasonable advance notice to address its concerns but made no concrete proposals for how to implement those assurances or enforce them.

Trumps attorney, Alina Habba, told CNBC that her firm has repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper.

James is concerned that Trump and his organization will continue to engage in the fraudulent and illegal business activity as alleged in the AGs September 2022 lawsuit, such as loans and insurance renewals, between now and a trial, for which a date of mid-October 2023 has been proposed.

New York AGs Financial Fraud Suit Against Trump Details Insurance Scenarios

James has also asked Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron to appoint a monitor to oversee the Trump Organizations financial disclosures until trial. The monitor would oversee the submission of financial disclosure information to any accounting firm compiling Trumps 2022 statement of financial condition; financial disclosures to lenders and insurers required by continuing obligations or to obtain new financing and insurance; and any corporate disposition of significant assets.

Since we filed this sweeping lawsuit last month, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have continued those same fraudulent practices and taken measures to evade responsibility. Today, we are seeking an immediate stop to these actions because Mr. Trump should not get to play by different rules, James stated.

The OAG is also asking the court for permission to serve Donald Trump and his son, Eric, electronically, as the OAG said both defendants and their counsels have refused to accept service of the complaints for almost a month.

The OAGs lawsuit alleges that Donald Trump, his children and other senior executives at the Trump Organization, falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to obtain more favorable loan, insurance, tax and other financial benefits. From 2011 to 2021, Trump and the Trump Organization knowingly and intentionally created more than 200 false and misleading valuations of assets to defraud financial institutions, the suit alleges.

After the suit was filed, Habba, Trumps lawyer, told the New York Times the charges are meritless. The former President called the New York AG a racist for going after him and his family and labeling the lawsuit a witch hunt. His sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, also blasted the suit as a witch hunt.

While the bulk of the fraud charges concern bank loans, the suit also charges the Trumps with insurance fraud under state laws that prohibit the submission of false information as part of an application for commercial insurance or to claim a benefit under an insurance policy. The suit provides details on two insurance scenarios where Aon Risk Solutions was the broker and the Trumps are alleged to have submitted false information: a surety bond program with Zurich North America, and directors and officers liability coverages from Everest National and Tokio Marine HCC.

In its original complaint the AG seeks to permanently bar the Trumps from serving as officers or directors in any New York corporation; bar Trump and the Trump Organization from entering into any New York real estate acquisitions for five years; and award disgorgement of all financial benefits obtained through the persistent fraudulent practices, estimated to total $250 million.

In conjunction with the lawsuit, James said she also referred the matter to the U.S. Attorneys Office and the Internal Revenue Service for possible criminal investigation.

Topics New York
This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Aon and Zurich Insurance.

Aon Announces New Lineup for UK Commercial Risk Team

A summary of these new hires follows here.

Insurance broker Aon plc has announced a new lineup for its UK Commercial Risk leadership team with two appointments.

James Baum (previously head of UK Commercial Risk and Aons Global Broking Centre) is taking a new role as head of Wholesale and Specialty Broking. In this role he will continue to lead the Global Broking Centre in London and be responsible for delivering cohesive broking strategies across all the international wholesale markets.

Jane Kielty is becoming the head of Commercial Risk UK, focused on bringing together all delivery parts of Commercial Risk in the UK to further improve service and capability for clients across the country. Kielty will retain her UK Chief Commercial Officer responsibilities until a successor is appointed; this process is now underway.

Both appointments are subject to approval from the Financial Conduct Authority.

In their new roles, Baum and Kielty will work closely together to build on existing momentum and alignment across both retail and wholesale broking, to improve delivery of solutions and capability for clients, and to optimize results for them when accessing the London, specialty and UK markets.

Both Baum and Kielty remain members of Aons UK Leadership Team, focused on driving growth and delivering solutions for clients through its Aon United strategy.

***

Zurich Appoints Seach as Group CUO, Succeeding Robinson

Zurich Insurance Group has appointed Penny Seach, currently chief underwriting officer EMEA, to the role of group chief underwriting officer, effective Jan. 1, 2023.

Seach will report to Sierra Signorelli, CEO Commercial Insurance. Hayley Robinson, who has held this role since June 2021, has decided to step down at the end of the year due to family health reasons.

Seach has more than 25 years of insurance experience with various multinational insurance companies. She joined Zurich in 2017 and has a strong track record of leading large diverse teams across geographies and disciplines.

Robinson will continue in her role through the end of the year, working alongside Seach to ensure a seamless transition.

Penny is a very experienced and capable successor for this important role, which is also a testament to our strong internal talent pool, said Signorelli. She has successfully led the EMEA underwriting business, strengthened the team and further advanced alignment with the Groups strategy and governance. I am very confident that Penny will continue to successfully drive underwriting performance and ensure consistency across markets.

Signorelli thanked Robinson for her contribution to Zurich and the underwriting businesses since she joined the group in 2018. She has been a tremendous asset to the Commercial Insurance team and a highly valued and respected colleague. I was saddened to hear of Hayleys personal circumstances and her decision to step down from her role. I wish her and her family the very best for the future, Signorelli added.

Topics Commercial Lines Business Insurance New Markets Aon
Alphabet unit Google could face antitrust charges next year over its digital advertising business, with EU regulators frustrated over the slow pace of settlement talks with the company, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Googles ad business is Alphabets biggest moneymaker, accounting for about 80% of annual revenue, despite efforts over the past decade to push into selling hardware, subscription services and cloud computing technology.

The European Commission launched an investigation into Googles adtech business in June last year, concerned that the U.S. tech giant may be getting an unfair advantage over rivals and advertisers.

The company, which risks its fourth billion-euro fine, subsequently sought to settle the case but concessions were minor and very preliminary, one of the people said. Google has racked up more than 8 billion euros ($7.7 billion) in EU antitrust fines in the last decade.

The EU competition enforcer is likely to issue the charges early next year although the timing may still change, one of the people said.

The Commission declined to comment. Google, which is the worlds leading seller of online advertising, well ahead of Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms Inc., had no immediate comment.

Topics Europe Google
A Minnesota man pleaded guilty Tuesday to filing fraudulent insurance claims for a staged arson he attempted to portray as a politically-motivated attack.

Federal officials said Denis Molla, 30, of Brooklyn Center, falsely reported to law enforcement in September 2020 that someone had lit his camper on fire and that three unknown males were near his home when he heard an explosion.

Molla told officials his garage door was vandalized with a spray painted Antifa symbol and words stating Biden 2020 and BLM. He claimed his camper was targeted because it had a Trump 2020 flag displayed on it.

Police discovered that Molla started his own property on fire and spray painted the graffiti on his own garage. He them submitted multiple insurance claims seeking coverage for the damage to his garage, camper, vehicles, and residence caused by the fire, court documents show.

Molla also created and allowed others to start two GoFundMe accounts to benefit Molla and his family. In total, Molla submitted more than $300,000 in fraudulent insurance claims, of which he received approximately $61,000 from his insurance company. Molla also received more than $17,000 from individual donors via GoFundMe.

Molla pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Fraud Minnesota
The Asphalt Sales Company in Olathe, Kansas, will pay $82,798 in civil penalties and improve pollution controls to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the company failed to adequately control stormwater runoff from its asphalt production and demolition landfill facility. EPA says these failures led to illegal discharges of pollutants into Cedar Creek.

Uncontrolled runoff from manufacturers and landfills not only harms streams and rivers, but it also limits the publics use and enjoyment of those waters, said David Cozad, director of EPA Region 7s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. EPAs enforcement actions demonstrate our commitment to protecting vital watersheds and creating a level playing field with businesses who are complying with the law.

In the settlement documents, EPA alleges that the Asphalt Sales Company failed to comply with certain terms of its Clean Water Act permit, including failure to construct and/or maintain adequate stormwater controls; allowing stormwater to bypass existing stormwater controls; and failure to conduct and/or document required inspections of the facility.

In addition to paying the penalty, the company agreed to submit a plan to EPA outlining how it will return to compliance, including the installation and maintenance of effective stormwater controls at the facility.

Under the Clean Water Act, industrial facilities that propose to discharge into protected water bodies are required to obtain permits and to follow the requirements outlined in the permits to reduce pollution runoff. Failure to obtain a permit or to follow the requirements of a permit may violate federal law.

Source: EPA

Topics Kansas
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is committed to reducing health risks associated with toxic air pollution and is working to update and strengthen Clean Air Act standards for commercial sterilizers to achieve that goal. As part of that process, EPA is conducting an open house meeting with the community of Ardmore, Oklahoma.

The open house will provide an opportunity for individuals to talk one-on-one with staff from EPA about EtO emissions and risk information impacting Ardmore residents. EPA aims to improve public understanding of the risk; help the community and the industry reduce risk from EtO in the near-term; and hear input as EPA continues to develop regulations to reduce air pollution from commercial sterilizers.

The the event will be held October 18, 2022 at Ardmore Public Library (Smith Room) 320 E. St. NW Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

Source: EPA

Topics Pollution Oklahoma
The parent company of Universal Property & Casualty Co., the second-largest property insurer in Florida, projects its total losses from Hurricane Ian to be about $1 billion, well below its $3 billion reinsurance coverage.

The statement came a week after Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the largest in the state, revised its projected losses downward to no more than $2.6 billion. The relatively mild numbers have made some wonder if Ian could turn out to be less costly to the industry than initially feared. Some recent estimates of total industry-wide losses from Ian have been as high as $47 billion in Florida.

Fort Lauderdale-based Universal said Tuesday that its expected losses are not huge because it holds a relatively small market share in the hardest-hit areas of southwest Florida. While the carrier commands 7.9% of the entire Florida market based on total insured value  down from about 10% late last year thanks to an effort to shed policies  it has just 3.8% in Charlotte, Desoto, Lee and Sarasota counties, which saw the worst of the winds in Ian. Universal does not write flood insurance policies.

And many of its wind policies in those four counties are for condominiums and renters, which would not cover roofs and external structures damaged in the storm.

Through early this week, Universal had received about 18,000 claims, half the number of claims received by that point after Hurricane Irma hit in 2017, the company said in a news release. The company said it had claims professionals in the Fort Myers area immediately after the storm, and has been able to handle most Ian claims in-house.

Our thoughts are with all impacted Florida residents, CEO Stephen Donaghy said in a statement. Were focused on helping our policyholders rebuild and return to normalcy. Our claims, catastrophe response and customer service teams are on the ground and on the phone, helping our policyholders in their time of need.

Some Florida insurance executives have speculated that total loss projections made by a number of national analysis firms, some of which initially underestimated losses from Hurricane Irma in 2017, may have overcompensated this time. One recent estimate, by RMS, a Moodys Analytics firm, pegged total losses from Ian at as high as $74 billion for the five states where it touched. The estimate does not include flood losses, but does factor in potential litigation costs.

But that model may not be considering the fact that the Florida Legislature in the last three years has approved several measures designed to reduce claims litigation and attorney fees, some Floridians have said.

Other companies with significant exposure in the southwest Florida counties have not released their estimated loss numbers. Olympus Insurance, which earlier this year held about 13,800 policies and $11 billion in exposure in the counties with the most damage, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

HCI Group, which includes Homeowners Choice P&C Insurance and TypTap Insurance, had about 19,000 policies in force in the four counties, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulations quarterly reports. So far, HCI has seen about 10,000 Ian claims and expects another 2,000 over the next month.

The Tampa-based company said that the losses from Hurricane Ian would result in a $78 million net loss for the third quarter of this year. Total estimated losses from the storm have not been released, a spokesman said.

But HCIs update to shareholders this week provided some data that suggests that Ian may not have the impact that Irma had, and that industry-wide projections for Ians impact could be a little high. An estimated 560,000 homes in Ian, for example, were exposed to hurricane-strength winds above 74 mph. Thats less than a third of the number of homes in that category during Irma five years ago, HCI noted.

The HCI companies policies exposed to those severe winds so far are projected to be about 21,000, less than half of the number in Irma.

Whatever the final number on HCIs losses, the company said it has ample resources and significant reinsurance protection for the remainder of the contract year. Part of that reinsurance picture for HCI and others is Floridas Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, which was recently questioned by some in the industry after Ian made landfall.

FHCF is more solvent than speculated, the presentation noted. For Ian, some carriers might use little to no reinsurance limit provided by the FHCF. Others might fully exhaust their entire FHCF coverage. Any limit not utilized by an individual carrier will be available in the future.

United Property & Casualty Insurance Co. on Wednesday also said it has received about 19,000 Ian claims. It expects to see as much as 30,000 total, with at gross estimated loss of $1 billion, the company said in a statement.

As of Wednesday, Oct. 12, the OIR reported that 495,667 claims have been filed due to Ian. Total estimated insured losses have reached almost $5 billion.

Photo: Part of Fort Myers Beach, Florida, after Ian. (AP Photo/Alex Menendez)

Topics Profit Loss
Auto insurance costs have become the central issue in the election for Georgias next insurance commissioner.

John King, the Republican incumbent appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp, says hes looking for ways to protect consumers but also strike a balance to make sure insurers dont flee the state.

Democrat Janice Laws Robinson, who was also her partys nominee in 2018, is more direct, saying Kings efforts have been ineffective and she will do a better job of stopping Georgia drivers from paying increasing premiums.

Its a sharp contrast in the downballot race to be Georgias insurance regulator. The office is also in charge of investigating fires and regulating building safety.

Official figures for Georgias insurance market run years behind, but the state had the 10th most expensive average premiums in 2019, according to the Insurance Information Institute, with an average premium of $1,259.49, up from 13th most expensive in 2017. The question burst into public view in August when King issued a statement declaring himself angry and disappointed that Allstate Corp. had chosen to raise rates by 40% in a single year.

The statement highlighted that since 2008, Georgia has allowed insurers to set most auto rates without advance approval from the commissioner.

King said that despite his lack of formal power, most companies still seek approval and that his office gets a chance to examine loss figures and try to bargain rates down.

No other insurance company has gotten the rate increase that theyve wanted, King told The Associated Press. We negotiated it because they understand we have to be able to take care of Georgians.

But at the same time, King said some rate increases are appropriate, saying many insurers are losing money on policies.

My primary role is to be the consumer advocate, to protect consumers, while at the same time not wreck the industry in the process.

King said he wants to tighten the provision that Allstate used to raise rates, but Robinson said that other parts of state law still give the commissioner the power to challenge rate increases.

The insurance commissioner is not doing the job period, Robinson told a gathering of insurance agents in August. The last three insurance commissioners have sat back every single time and said `There is nothing we can do. Thats not true. There is something we can do.

King was police in Doraville when Kemp appointed him after former Commissioner Jim Beck was indicted in 2019. The office became Kings permanently after Beck was convicted in 2021 of stealing more than $2.5 million from the state-chartered insurer of last resort. Also a general in the Georgia National Guard, King is Georgias first Hispanic statewide official, having been born in Mexico.

King said that he has successfully cleaned up an office that was antiquated and beset by cronyism and scandal. He also highlights expanded efforts to investigate insurance fraud and improved response time for arson investigators statewide

Robinson is an insurance broker from Coweta County. Born in Jamaica, she became involved in Democratic politics and first sought the statewide office in 2018, losing narrowly to Beck.

She pledges more aggressive regulation of how insurers set rates and choose to offer coverage, saying that her experience as an insurance agent showed her insurers use data in a way that may discriminate against nonwhite people, poor people, older people, military veterans and LGBTQ people.

King said some of the behavior that Robinson alleges is already illegal under state law and that his office is on guard against it, suggesting that Robinson is misinformed.

King supports the plans of Kemp, his political patron, to sell federally subsidized individual health insurance policies through private brokers, instead of the federal marketplace used now under the Affordable Care Act. Democratic President Joe Bidens administration has been seeking to block the plan.

Robinson declined to comment on her position on that plan. She told attendees at the state Democratic Party convention that she would support efforts to expand the state-federal Medicaid program to cover all adults and to try to expand the number of companies that offer policies on the federal marketplace. Most Georgia counties now have at least three insurers offering plans, federal data shows. A handful of counties mostly in southeast Georgia only have two, while three counties in and around Vidalia only have one.

King has raised $1.18 million through Sept. 30 for his election bid, including contributions from a number of insurance interests. Robinson has raised $123,000.

Top photo: Democratic nominee for Georgia insurance commissioner, Janice Laws Robinson, speaks to the press in August.(Steve Schaefer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Auto Georgia
Niamh O'Gorman has been appointed as sustainability lead for Accenture in Ireland. Niamhs new role will see her take responsibility for shaping and delivering Accentures environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy locally, as well as supporting clients in the delivery of their ESG commitments. Niamh has held a number of senior roles in Accenture over the past 22 years, most recently leading the risk and regulatory practice in Ireland. She is an MD in the firms financial services practice, a role which she will continue with alongside her focus on the firms sustainability agenda. She holds a BEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from UCD. She lives in Dublin.

Deb Mangone has been appointed as country manager for Pfizer Healthcare Ireland. Deb has held various positions at Pfizer since joining the company in 2001, most recently as VP for Pfizer Hospital, EU2 Cluster Lead. Her prior Pfizer roles included Finland country manager, VP executive operations, NYHQ site lead and chief of staff to CEO, Albert Bourla, playing a lead role on business strategies and operations. She has also previously held senior roles with Kozmo.com, EY and Tompkins Associates. She holds BS and MS degrees in Industrial Engineering from North Carolina State University and an MBA from Columbia University. She is from New York, USA, and now lives in Dublin.
1. EMBRACE GENTLE, NOURISHING CLEANSERS

Our skin is more sensitive and easily irritated in the winter months, so we need to give it some extra TLC with gentle, non-stripping cleansers that feel like a hug.

Think milk-based and creamy like Kate Somervilles excellent Goat Milk Cleanser, or oil and balm-to-oil cleansers like Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm, Nunaia Superfood Cleansing Balm and Medik8 Lipid-Balance Cleansing Oil.

2. EXFOLIATE LESS

The Inkey List PHA Toner. 13.95 from cloud10beauty.com

Getting rid of dead skin cells and resurfacing our skin is great, but we need to dial it back this time of year. Our skin is more prone to dryness, redness and irritation, so it needs more nourishment than exfoliation.

Try and exfoliate no more than once a week and consider using one of the gentlest exfoliating acids around; Polyhydroxy Acid (PHA)  its super effective, but theres very little chance of it annoying your skin. Why? Its a much larger molecule, which means it works much slower than its cohorts.

I love The Inkey Lists PHA Toner this time of year and Medik8s Press and Glow Toner, too.

3. USE A RICHER MOISTURISER

CeraVe Moisturising Cream. 17 for 454g tub from millies.ie

Put a lid on your lighter moisturisers and think about introducing something slightly thicker for the winter months.

We need barrier-maintaining creams and moisturisers that will hydrate, lock in moisture and help strengthen, calm and soothe our skin.

Look for skin-boosting, skin-repairing ingredients like ceramides, glycerin and hyaluronic acid. A great affordable all-rounder is CeraVe Moisturising Cream, a creamy, intensely hydrating miracle worker that can be used on the face and body (its suitable for kids, too).

4. INTRODUCE A FACE OIL

Codex BIA Nourishing Facial Oil. 85 from millies.ie

If your skin is prone to dryness, dehydration or inflammation, or if you feel like your regular moisturiser just isnt cutting it, think about introducing a face oil to your routine.

Not only will it help to lock in moisture and leave your skin looking and feeling more comfortable and hydrated, it will also help to soothe, balance and reduce redness.

Use at night either after your regular moisturiser or in place of it, or during the day after your regular moisturiser. If youre applying makeup, make sure to wait a few minutes so the oil can fully sink in.

5. TAKE SHORTER, COOLER SHOWERS

Codladh Sleep Body Oil. 33 from groundwellbeing.com.

Long, hot showers can strip essential moisture from your skin and leave it feeling dry and tight and sometimes quite irritated.

During the winter months, try to have a shorter shower and use warm or lukewarm water instead of hot. Your skin will be significantly happier, more comfortable, and less dehydrated as a result.

Also, heres an easy hydration hack for winter: when you have a shower or bath, a great way to instantly trap moisture in your skin afterwards is to apply body oil or thick body cream to damp skin. Your skin will thank you for it (and youll feel amazing, too).

One of my current favourites is Codladh Sleep Body Oil from Irish wellness brand GROUND Wellbeing.

8. START SLUGGING

Eucerin Aquaphor Soothing Skin Balm. 12 from McCauley Pharmacy

A brilliant way to heal and repair dry, dehydrated or stressed skin is to slug. An odd term, I know, but stick with me.

Slugging is an age-old method (our mothers and grandmothers were doing it decades ago: hello Ponds Cold Cream) of applying an occlusive barrier on top of your skincare at nighttime  as the very last step after moisturiser.

By occlusive, I mean something that nothing can get through; think Vaseline or Eucerin Aquaphor Skin Soothing Balm.

Cleanse your skin, as usual, dampen your skin with a non-irritating face mist or just plain water, apply your hydrating serum, and then your regular moisturiser.

Immediately after this, apply your occlusive balm. A small amount will work for your whole face. And thats it. You can also spot-slug apply your occlusive product to only the areas that need it; sides of the nose, forehead, etc.

Prices are subject to change and may differ across retailers.
Im no fan of heights, but within minutes of meeting Maria Young of Green Spaces for Health, Im on the rooftop of St Johns Central College of Further Education and Training.

Marias bringing about a dozen of us on a talk and walk through South Parish, to show what can be done to support wildlife and sustainability in Corks city centre.

Were carefully picking our way over the mechanical arteries of St Johns College  and Im coming to terms with being 17m above street level  when someone says: Theyre nice and active today".

Were here because of the bees. Its a cloudless, blue-skied, late September day and the bee hive has been here since 2019  with extra stories added since then.

The forage is brilliant here. We believe the bees forage for about 4km around, says Maria.

Beehives at Cork College of FET Douglas Street Campus. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

From the minute she took up her Green Spaces for Health role in 2019, Maria was keen to have a hive in South Parish.

After public consultation and a call out for anyone similarly interested and with bee-keeping experience, a constellation of enthusiastic individuals quickly convened  among them St Johns College principal Paula McCarthy, environmental science lecturer John Deane, environmental science student Matt ONeill, whod kept bees in his native Massachusetts, and Mark Riordan of Hive Mind, who provided vital training and the first bee colony.

We went door-to-door in the neighbourhood, asking would ye start planting for the bees, and for biodiversity? recalls Maria.

We started with 3,000 bees. It went up to 70,000 that first summer. Mark Riordan thinks its one of the best hives he has.

St John's Park, Parkowen. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

Its about creating a constituency of biodiversity, says John Deane. If people try to support pollinators, it supports everything.

From our rooftop vantage point, Maria points to the old red brick building at CIE, Capwell, where Emer Bambrick, sustainability senior manager at Bus Eireann, hopes to install swift boxes. The buildings preserved so it may not happen.

They may have to be installed elsewhere on CIE grounds. Or Green Spaces for Health will help source a nearby location, says Maria, who confirms St Johns College has agreed to take swift boxes if needed. We might be extending the menagerie, Maria tells Deane.

St. John's Park, Parkowen. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

Down off the roof, we walk to the Quaker graveyard, purchased by that community for use as a burial ground in the 1600s.

Its a live graveyard  there was a burial recently, says Maria. Here, Green Spaces for Health have planted four native oak trees  theyve also planted one on the grounds of St Fin Barres Cathedral and another in 12th century graveyard Parkowen.

Earlier, outside Anglesea Street Fire Station, Maria showed us a London Plane tree and spoke about the South Parish tree audit, which counted and mapped some 1,190 trees  only 18% were native.

The most sobering figure? All these South Parish trees combined would cover the carbon footprint of 1.3 persons.

Wed all need one South Parish worth of trees to deal with our emissions, says Maria, citing however what Dr Eoin Lattice, academic supervisor on the tree audit, said: The multitude of other benefits are enough, on their own, to make the case for urban trees.

Illustrating native tree importance, Maria compares the Sycamore  very common here but native to Southern Europe  with our native oak.

The Sycamore doesnt support a fraction of what the native oak supports. Because the insects and other species havent evolved with it over thousands of years.

Quaker Graveyard. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

Part of the Quaker graveyard is being re-wilded and tall grasses wave around ancient headstones. Theres a magnificent beech tree, which Maria confirms is in good health.

Out on Quaker Road, we stand under a mass of ivy and Maria says the ivy run is the last run of the bees before they bed down for winter.

Two weeks ago, standing under this, you should have heard the buzz, she says.

At Parkowen (a few headstones still remain), Maria describes how the community Gardai first approached Green Spaces for Health about this place that none of the neighbours wanted to come to  there was a lot of junk and needles.

Since her organisation got involved in 2019, a hedgerow has been installed and various planted areas. Now theres a medicinal plot (feverfew, skullcap and chamomile are among the plants) and a tree nursery with 100 trees.

If we could start tree nurseries all over Cork City, wed have no tree shortage in future years, comments Maria, describing how locals greeted their first efforts to regenerate here.

Martha Halbert, Cork City Council and Maria Young, Green Spaces for Health at the Quaker graveyard. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

They said dont bother planting, itll get vandalised. There was only one instance of vandalism. Which shows what happens when you have a presence in a place.

People said we dont like the re-wilding, so we cut a bit. Then they said oh, we miss the tall grass. So the message? Persevere!

The tour finishes in Cork Flower Studio, Douglas Street, where Justine Looney spoke about making the business more sustainable  no more plastic wrapping for flowers but instead glass vases, incorporated in the cost and which most customers return when buying new flowers.

The business has a zero-waste policy with all cuttings used for smaller displays.
Catherine ODonnell and her 13-year-old son James Monaghan will be forever hand-in-hand'' and side-by-side, mourners at their funeral heard.

The pair had been in the post office when the explosion killed them at the service station in Creeslough, Co Donegal.

Just before 2pm, their hearses arrived at St Michaels Church in the village.

A large crowd of around 600 gathered along the route to the church and stood silent as their hearses passed.

Later, mourners heard that James was about to launch into life and was full of life, full of joy.

Catherine O'Donnell and her 13-year-old son James Monaghan

Fr John Joe Duffy said: James never stopped talking. He was just a very joyful person.

He also had his aunts and uncles wrapped around his fingers.

James mother Catherine was described as bubbly and full of life, she was intelligent and she loved parties, they heard.

Fr Duffy said Catherine was in the middle of organising a party when she died.

He also said: She was a glam lady who loved shopping.

He said she was also a Garth Brooks fan and had stayed up for hours to get tickets to go and see him when he performed in Ireland recently.

She was also a loving woman, a loving partner, a loving daughter and someone who was much, much loved."

At just 13, James had had a discussion recently with his mother about going to his first disco.

There was, said Fr Duffy, much debate about the event.

He was just a child about to take off in life, he said. We are all struggling to come to terms with the heartbreaking and incomprehensible loss.

He thanked Mulroy College principal Fiona Temple, who attended with members of James' class.

Mourners comfort each other as they arrive for the funeral mass of James Monaghan and and his mother Catherine O'Donnell. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Also thanked were staff from Letterkenny Mortuary, where he reminded mourners, people had worked round the clock on victims of last Fridays blast to make sure they could be returned to their families as soon as possible.

Prayers were also said for, among others, Catherines daughter Paige, who died very young, and her father Ned, who also predeceased her.

Thursday will see more funerals for victims of last weeks blast.

Martina Martins funeral will be held at 11am in St Michaels Church in Creeslough, and Leona Harpers will be held at 2pm in Ramelton.
The head of the Department of the Environment has said he is not aware of the specifics regarding a 2bn European fund for the rollout of biomethane production which Ireland has failed to apply for.

Speaking at the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), secretary-general of the Department of the Environment Mark Griffin said I dont know the reason for that with regard to the missed application.

In my long experience in the civil service, Ive never known Ireland not to put their hand out for EU money  weve been extraordinarily successful at it,

he said.

Under questioning from Sinn Feins Matt Carthy, Mr Griffin said there was a proposal there, I know that for a fact.

I need to find out what happened, he said.

I was aware of two large projects that were being mooted for the funding from REPowerEU, Mr Griffin said, in reference to the 210bn funding programme instituted by the European Commission last March with a view to ensuring continuity of energy supply in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ireland is one of just two European nations which failed to apply for the initiative, which is expected to deliver 37bn in biomethane funding alone in the coming years.

Biomethane is a natural gas alternative made from agricultural and food waste via a process known as anaerobic digestion.

Its widespread use  particularly applicable in an Irish context given the size of the States agricultural industries  would be expected to reduce emissions across the economy, while also contributing to the decarbonisation of the agrifood sector.

As I understand it, the two funding projects I saw at one stage, one related to biomethane was to be funded from REPowerEU, Mr Griffin told PAC vice-chair Catherine Murphy.

Biomethane is a very important part of our climate action plan. We want to increase the level of biomethane pumped into the gas network, he added.

A representative from the Department of Public Expenditure, Ken Cleary, told the committee it was not that Ireland has lost out on anything.

He said that the commission agreed 20bn in funding grants on October 4, of which Irelands potential take would be 89m, but that money cannot be applied for before next year.

Well come up with funding proposals and Id expect that biomethane will be part of that conversation, he said.

National Broadband Plan

Meanwhile, the committee heard from Mr Griffin that Irelands 2.7bn National Broadband Plan has now connected more than 20,500 premises (against a target of 540,000 premises in rural Ireland by the year 2026) to date, which is exceeding expectations for this stage of the project.

He said 102,000 premises will have been passed, meaning a connection would now be available, by the end of next January. The initial target for passed premises for the end of 2021 had been 115,000.

Last month, it emerged National Broadband Ireland, the company charged with the rollout of the project, had been sanctioned to the tune of 150,000 for failing to meet its targets to date.

Programme director for the department Ferghal Mulligan told the committee the sanctions doled out in 2023 are likely to be substantially more in terms of key performance indicators.
Jailed teacher Enoch Burke claims he was allegedly defamed in a newspaper article published last weekend.

The High Court heard on Thursday morning that Mr Burke, who has spent over a month in Mountjoy Prison over his failure to stay away and not try to teach at the school where he works, wants to sue parties, including the Sunday Independent, over an article published in the Sunday newspaper.

In a fresh development, Mr Burke's sister Ammi Burke told Mr Justice Brian O'Moore that while the allegedly defamatory article had been temporarily removed by the publisher, as a matter of urgency her brother wished to come to court and seek an order under Section 33 of the 2009 Defamation Act.

It is understood that the allegations are denied. The granting of that order would ensure the article would not be republished in the future, the court heard.

Ms Burke, a qualified solicitor, said the article made false and defamatory allegations about her brother being moved to another part of Mountjoy Prison because he had been annoying other prisoners.

Ammi Burke told Mr Justice Brian O'Moore that while the allegedly defamatory article had been temporarily removed by the publisher, as a matter of urgency her brother wished to come to court and seek an order under Section 33 of the 2009 Defamation Act. File picture

She said the claims were wrong and said the Irish Prison Service had confirmed the allegations contained in the article were not true and that the information is false, and that there was no problem with Enoch Burke. She said her brother's case has been the subject of many national, local and international media reports, as well as commentary on social media.

Her brother was concerned that what he claims are the damaging and untrue allegations in the report could be repeated, particularly in the international media, and could also prejudice his ongoing case with Wilson's Hospital as well as damaging his reputation.

She added there had been many subsequent defamatory posts on social media about her brother. She said there had been correspondence with the publisher of the article, but they were not happy with the response.

She said while the article had been taken down, her brother had no assurance that it would not be republished and had decided to seek an urgent injunction against the newspaper. She added the matter was so urgent that her brother should be allowed to come before the court at some stage on Thursday.

Mr Justice O'Moore said that he was prepared to allow Mr Burke to come before the court on Friday morning but rejected the application for Mr Burke to be produced before the court by the prison authorities any earlier.

The judge also said that given the article had been taken down he was not prepared to make any order against the newspapers without them having notice of Mr Burke's application. He told Ms Burke her brother was being accommodated with an early return date to make his application regarding the article.

'Bemused'

As the judge in charge of the High Court's chancery list, the judge said that he was now taking charge of the court action between Mr Burke and his employer that had resulted in the teacher's incarceration for contempt of court.

The judge said that he was "bemused" by the claim that the article could prejudice the ongoing issues between Mr Burke and the school. The judge said that he had not seen the article and added that he would not in any way be influenced by any media reporting of the dispute.

He said that on Friday he also wanted to hear from both the school and Mr Burke about managing the case with a view to having the matter fully heard before the High Court as soon as was possible.

Mr Burke was committed to prison last month until he agrees to obey the order not to attend at or attempt to teach any classes at Wilson's Hospital School.

The school obtained an order committing Mr Burke, who had been suspended pending the hearing of a disciplinary hearing into allegations of misconduct against him, to prison over his failure to comply with the injunction. Arising out of his refusal to purge his contempt, he has been behind bars at Mountjoy Prison since early September.

Mr Burke has brought an appeal before the Court of Appeal against orders including the granting of the temporary ex-parte injunction against him, and the subsequent decision to keep the injunction in place pending the final hearing of the matter.

He also has appealed against the High Court's dismissal of applications brought by him aimed at setting aside his suspension from the school. The appeal is due to be mentioned before the Court of Appeal on Friday. Mr Burke has not appealed the High Court orders committing him to prison for contempt.
The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to condemn Russias attempted illegal annexation of four Ukrainian regions and demand that Moscow immediately reverse its actions.

The vote in the 193-member world body was 143-5 with 35 abstentions, the strongest support from the General Assembly for Ukraine and against Russia of the four resolutions it has approved since Russian troops invaded their smaller neighbour on February 24.
Asia Myanmar Junta Jails Japanese Journalist for Three More Years for Immigration Breach: Embassy Source

A group of activists hold placards of Japanese journalist Toru Kubota during a rally in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo in July.
Burma Chinese-Backed Power Plant Opens in Myanmars Rakhine State

Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai (center) attends the inauguration ceremony of the gas-fired Kyaukphyu Power Plant on Oct. 10, 2022 in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine State. / Chinese Embassy in Myanmar Facebook

A Chinese-backed power plant that forms an important part of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) scheme in Myanmars western Rakhine State opened this week, signaling that Beijing is moving forward with its projects in post-coup, conflict-torn Myanmar.

The US$180-million, gas-fired 135-MW power plant in the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) was opened on Monday by Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai and the regimes deputy minister for electric power, Dr. Aung Zeya, according to Myanmar state-owned media.

The project was developed by Kyauk Phyu Electric Power Co. Ltd., a joint venture between Chinese state-owned firm Power China Resources and Myanmars Supreme Group.

China is a major investor in Myanmar, and has placed importance on projects that will give it access to the Indian Ocean. A crucial part of Beijings Belt and Road Initiative, the estimated 1,700-km-long CMEC will connect Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province in southwest China, with Myanmars major economic hubslinking first with Mandalay in central Myanmar, then forking east to Yangon and west to the Kyaukphyu SEZ in Rakhine State.

Hailing the Kyaukphyu power plant as evidence of successful bilateral cooperation between China and Myanmar in the power sector, the Chinese ambassador said the power plant would play a key role, as Kyaukpyu is an important hub on the CMEC, and talked about further cooperation in all sectors in Myanmar.

With Myanmar facing a massive power shortfall amid growing domestic demand, China has become its major electricity supplier, including through cross-border power interconnection projects, due to its lower prices, among other factors.

From Rakhine State in the countrys west to Kachin in the north, planning or construction of power projects backed by mammoth Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) is underway in at least seven states and regions. The agreements were made under the now ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government.

Chen said Chinese companies are now implementing many power projects including hydro power plants in Ye Ywa in Mandalay, Paung Laung in Naypyitaw and Tha Htay in Rakhine; natural gas-fired plants in Tha Hton in Mon State and Thaketa in Yangon; and a solar plant in Minbu in Magwe Region.

According to the Chinese Embassy in Myanmars Facebook page, the ambassador said during the opening ceremony that Myanmar-China cross-border power interconnection projects are accelerating, and China is now calmly discussing and implementing the important projects like [the] Kyaukphyu SEZ and China-Myanmar interlink Ruili-Kyaukphyu railway.

The comments come as Myanmar is in social and political turmoil sparked by the military coup last year.

Unlike other countries that condemned the takeover, China referred to it as merely a cabinet reshuffle. Along with Russia, it has backed the regime at the UN, leaving the Security Council unable to take action against the regime, which has killed more than 2,300 people so far.

During a visit to China in April this year, the regimes foreign minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, received a warm welcome from his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. Beijing said it would help safeguard Myanmars sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity no matter how the situation changes.

In July, Wang reaffirmed his countrys continued support for Myanmars military regime, vowing to protect its neighbor and its legitimate interests.
Burma Myanmar Junta Solar Projects Attract Only Two Bidders

Myanmars first solar power plant in Minbu, Magwe Region.

Only two companies in Myanmar have made bids for regime tenders for solar power projects, according to an investigation by The Irrawaddy.

In May, the regime cancelled tenders invited under the now-ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government for 26 solar power projects after Chinese firms that won tenders stalled on the projects.

The NLD in May 2020 invited bids for the construction of 29 ground-mounted solar projects capable of generating a total of 1 gigawatt of power under a 20-year build, operate and own contract.

Chinese companies and their partners won the bids to build 28 out of the 29 plants, the Ministry of Electricity and Energy announced in September 2020.

The regime in June invited new tenders for 18 solar projects in Yangon, Naypyitaw, Mandalay, Ayeyarwady and Magwe regions capable of generating 610 megawatts.

The electricity ministry has received bids for only two solar projects in Yangon and Thazi Township in Mandalay Region, according to a leaked ministerial document, even after it extended the deadline for submissions.

Gold Energy Co, a subsidiary of Asia World Co, owned by crony Tun Myint Naing, and the Consortium of Zeya and Associated Co Ltd and Royal GK Pte Ltd made bids for the projects.

Chinese firms did not compete because of security concerns. Other companies did not compete because they think the projects are not commercially feasible because of the volatile currency, the director of a power company in Myanmar told The Irrawaddy.

Zeya and Associated is operating liquefied natural gas-fired power plants in partnership with Hong Kong-based VPower Co in Yangon.

Some 50 companies from China, India, Thailand, Japan and domestic joint ventures made bids for solar projects under the NLD government. The fact that only two companies made bids this time show investors lack of confidence in the regime, said the director.

The minimum investment was set at US$20 million per site, with each project expected to generate 30 to 40 megawatts.
Burma Myanmar Junta Transfers Over 120 Political Prisoners from Mandalay's Obo Jail

The entrance of Obo Prison in Mandalay. / The Irrawaddy

More than 120 political prisoners from Mandalays Obo Prison were transferred to other prisons last week, according to prison sources.

Among those transferred were student leaders, democracy activists and protest leaders.

They were transferred to different prisons to make sure they cannot establish connections with one another, said a prison source.

The majority of them were transferred to Taung Lay Lone Prison in Taunggyi, southern Shan State. They were moved out of Obo Prison in 10-wheeled trucks around 11 p.m. on October 7.

A family member of one political prisoner said: It is easy and convenient for us to send [food] to prisons in town. It is a violation of human rights to transfer these prisoners to remote prisons. It is impossible to send [food] bimonthly now, and it will even be difficult for us to send food once a month or every two months. And we are struggling to make ends meet.

88-Generation student U Dein Daung, Mandalay protest leader Ko Myat Thu, poet Ko Shar, and striking medical doctor Ye Hein Aung from Patheingyi Hospital were among the prisoners transferred to other prisons, according to Spring Mandalay, an anti-junta group based in Mandalay.

Also transferred were Ko Naung Htet Aung, the ex-chairman of Yangon University of Educations Student Union who staged a hunger strike against executions and torture in prison, and teacher Aung Naing Thu.

Former political prisoner U Tun Kyi said: The regime harbors grudges against political prisoners and is taking revenge against political leaders including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and U Win Myint as well as activists and students.

The regime has dispersed political prisoners because it fears they might rally if large numbers are kept in a single prison, he said.

The regime can only abuse us physically, they cant imprison our revolutionary spirit, added U Tun Kyi.

The regime also moved around 100 political prisoners from Obo Prison in the last week of September.

In April, the regime transferred over 100 political prisoners from Monywa Prison to Minygan and Obo prisons. Ousted Sagaing Region chief Dr. Zaw Myint Naing and other political prisoners were transferred from Monywa Prison to Myingyan Prison in Mandalays Myingyan in August.

Since last years coup, 12,623 people have been detained for resisting the junta, with 1,531 of them given prison sentences, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.
War Against the Junta Myanmar Resistance Attacks, Ambushes Leave Nearly 30 Regime Forces Dead in Two Days

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Nearly 30 regime personnel were killed in the last two days as Peoples Defense Force groups (PDFs) continued to attack and ambush regime targets in Sagaing, Magwe, Bago and Tanintharyi regions and Mon State.

Over 100 houses were burned down by junta forces in raids in Magwe and Sagaing regions, while three civilians were killed and at least 17 injured in an arbitrary attack in Mon State.

The Irrawaddy has rounded up the following reports of the PDFs attacks and the regimes atrocities.

12 regime forces killed by PDF land mines in Sagaing

At least 12 regime soldiers were killed and more than five others injured in Chaung-U Township, Sagaing Region on Tuesday when Chaung-U PDF groups ambushed a military detachment raiding villages and burning houses in the township, the group said.

On Tuesday morning, 70 regime forces using 30 civilian detainees as human shields raided villages in the west of the township. The PDF group said it had to abandon its plan to ambush the detachment using mines, due to the presence of civilian human shields.

The regime forces burned down over 70 houses in Maethaekyokwin Village. Chuang-U PDF group started to attack regimes forces at noon while they were heading to Innma Village after the arson attack.

In the shootout, two junta soldiers were killed and some were injured. Due to the PDF ambush, the regime forces retreated to nearby Kinmonhtaw, a pro-regime village.

At 4 p.m. on that day, the PDF group used land mines to ambush the regime forces while they were traveling to the town of Chaung-U from the pro-regime village.



A military detachment is hit by a mine near a burning village in Chaung-U Township on Tuesday. / Video: Chaung-U PDF

In the attack, 10 more soldiers were killed and five others injured, said Chaung-U PDF.

A PDF aerial video shows the military detachment being hit by a mine attack near a burning village.

Five soldiers killed by PDF land mines in Sagaing

The PDF-South Monywa group claimed to have killed five regime soldiers in Monywa Township, Sagaing Region on Tuesday night when they used several land mines to ambush a military vehicle carrying injured soldiers from nearby Chaung-U Township on the Chaung-U-Monywa highway.

Two soldiers killed in PDF ambush in Sagaing

Two regime soldiers were killed and others injured in Monywa Township, Sagaing Region on Tuesday evening when the resistance group Brave Heart Army (BHA) used three land mines to ambush a military jammer vehicle carrying 30 soldiers on the Mandalay-Monywa highway, the PDF group said on Wednesday.

Resistance fighters escaped from the area without any casualties amid arbitrary attacks by the junta forces.

Two regime forces killed in PDF ambush on military flotilla in Sagaing

Two regime soldiers were reportedly killed in Mingin Township, Sagaing Region on Tuesday when Mingin-PDF and allied resistance groups ambushed a military flotilla of 12 motorboats on the Chindwin River.

In the attack, two regime soldiers were killed by 40-mm explosives fired by PDF groups.

At the same time, a camp of Mingin-PDF was raided by two military motorboats and around 100 foot soldiers, who occupied the camp. During the raid, regime forces burned down the PDF camp as well as 28 houses in a nearby village, the PDF group said.

Junta soldiers, police killed, injured in Mon State

A number of junta soldiers and police officers were killed or injured in Kyaikto Township, Mon State on Wednesday morning when an armed group attacked regime forces standing guard at the bottom of the famous Kyaik Htee Yoe Golden Rock pagoda in Kin Mon Chaung village.

Three Buddhist pilgrims were killed and more than a dozen injured when regime forces randomly attacked the crowd of pilgrims with both firearms and two explosives.

Quoting witnesses, local news site Kyaikhto Information Team said on Thursday that the regime forces arbitrarily fired into the crowd minutes after the armed group retreated from the area in a vehicle.

Three junta soldiers killed, injured in Magwe

A junta soldier was killed and two others injured in the town of Yesagyo, Magwe Region on Tuesday afternoon when four PDF groups attacked three regime forces eating at a teashop, said Phoenix Special Guerrilla Force, which coordinated the attack.

Regime forces attacked in Magwe

Clashes broke out in Pakokku Township, Magwe Region for three days when PDF groups from Pakokku and Myaing townships jointly attacked a military detachment, the resistance group Young Force-UG, which was involved in the clashes, said on Wednesday.

On Monday, three hours of intense fighting broke out in the township when the combined PDF groups attacked regime forces who had raided villages near the border of Pakokku and Myaiing townships.

The PDF group said they had to retreat from the clash due to a lack of ammunition. Regime forces are believed to have been injured in the fighting.



PDF members fight regime forces in Pakokku Township, Magwe Region on Monday. / Video: Young Force-UG

On Sunday, the PDF groups also used drones to drop bombs on regime forces who were looting and burning houses in a village near the border. Military casualties were unknown.

The clash started in the township on Saturday when the PDF groups attacked the military detachment raiding villages between the two townships, according to PDF groups.

PDF videos show fierce clashes between the PDF groups and regime forces as well as regime forces being bombarded by PDF drones while raiding a village.

Three soldiers killed in PDF attacks in Tanintharyi

Three regime troops were killed during a shootout with combined resistance forces in Tanintharyi Township, Tanintharyi Region on Wednesday morning, the PDF group Nagar Sitthe, which coordinated the attack, said.

The 20-minute clash broke out near a village when the PDF groups ambushed the military detachment. No PDF casualties were reported.

Two regime forces killed in PDF attacks in Bago

Two junta soldiers were killed in five hours of fighting with two PDF groups in Nattalin Township, Bago Region on Tuesday, said Myanmar Revolution Force-Nattalin, which was involved in the clashes.

Around 9 a.m. on that morning, the combined PDF groups attacked a military detachment heading to a village in the township. The intense clash ended at 2 p.m. on that afternoon, the PDF group said.

On that evening, combined resistance forces were forced to retreat from the area as more military reinforcements arrived.

However, the PDF groups again attacked regime forces stationed at a nearby village at 10:30 p.m. Military casualties were unknown.
Analysis Myanmars Stoic President Overlooked by International Community

Myanmars elected president, U Win Myint. / The Irrawaddy

The international community and diplomats appear to have forgotten that Myanmars President U Win Myint remains behind bars.

During a meeting with junta chief Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyitaw in August, the United Nations special envoy on Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer only asked about detained State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her Australian economic advisor Sean Turnell.

Representatives of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have repeatedly called for a meeting with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi but have barely mentioned the 70-year-old U Win Myint.

The president is now under confinement and presumably hopes to be released. But he is aware that he cannot expect much from the junta.

This is not new to me, U Win Myint told a court hearing.

He has deep mental scars left by the death of his son during an earlier jail term.

He won four seats in four elections with the National League for Democracy since 1990 and had been jailed in prison cells and his presidential residence.

It is unknown where U Win Myint is being held in Naypyitaw but we know his wife Daw Cho Cho is with him.

The couple have lived together in

a hamlet in Ayeyarwady Region, a small apartment in Yangon and then the presidential residence.

A woman who asked for anonymity from Tamwe, U Win Myints Yangon Region constituency, told The Irrawaddy that she keeps her ears open for news about U Win Myint.

The media mainly reports about Mother Suu but we also always try to learn about Mr President. We pray for their health, she said.

The details surrounding his detention at the presidential residence on February 1, 2021, were revealed when U Win Myint addressed a court in Naypyitaw in October last year.

That morning two army commanders entered his room and tried to force him to resign because of ill health.

The testimony contradicts the regimes narrative which has repeatedly claimed there was no coup and the military takeover was constitutional.

The regime issued a gagging order on lawyers who repeated U Win Myints testimony, barring them from speaking to the media and foreign agencies.

U Win Myint is widely recognized by his colleagues as a strong-minded politician. When asked what he needed while in detention, U Win Myint said nothing special, according to his colleagues.

U Win Myint is as fit as a fiddle, a lawyer told The Irrawaddy, quoting a court source who saw the president last month.

The always-slim Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, however, has lost weight, said the lawyer. She was transferred from house arrest to solitary confinement at Naypyitaw Prison after her 77th birthday on June 19.

The two face five more corruption charges. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been given 26 years and U Win Myint received a five-year sentence for breaching COVID-19 rules and misusing his power on the Union Election Commission.

The regime has refused foreign diplomats access to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, saying defendants are not allowed to meet envoys.

Some observers believe diplomatic meetings might be allowed in time as a means to address the regimes numerous crises.

But U Win Myint might well remain overlooked.
Guest Column Challenges Await New Contractor as India Rejigs Plan for Completion of Kaladan Project in Myanmar

The Kaladan Project in Indias Mizoram State / Special arrangement

The Indian government has fine-tuned plans to complete the delayed Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project in Myanmar, considered crucial for New Delhis ambitious Act East Policy.

A corpus of 17.8 billion rupees (US$216.32 million) has been earmarked for completion of the stalled project in Myanmars troubled Chin State contiguous to the Indian border state of Mizoram. The estimated cost will be adjusted owing to fluctuations or change in the availability of essential commodities required for the project.

The part that has remained incomplete in the project is a two-lane highway measuring 109 km from Paletwa in Chin State to Zorinpui at the border of the two countries, which passes through rugged terrain and a conflict zone.

The other components of the project have been completed in Myanmar, including the construction of the Sittwe Port on the Kaladan River mouth in Rakhine State, a river terminal at Paletwa and dredging of the Kaladan River.

The details of the plan to construct the highway have been mentioned in the new agreement inked by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs with IRCON International Limited as the project implementing agency (PIA). IRCON is a government firm under the Indian Ministry of Railways with experience of implementing projects in foreign countries.

According to the 32-page agreement, which was made available to The Irrawaddy, the highway will be constructed by local sub-contractors to be decided by IRCON and completed within 40 months. Another clause allows relaxation of the deadline due to reasons beyond the control of the implementing agency such as war, riots, civil disorder, earthquake, fire, explosion, storm, flood, pandemic or other adverse weather conditions, strikes, lockouts or other industrial action

Early this year, the Indian government terminated the contract with a joint venture of Engineers Projects India Limited (EPIL) and C & C Construction Co. Ltd, which was tasked to construct the highway in Myanmar.

The new agreement stipulates that the PIA shall acquire a basic knowhow of the relevant local customs of the country in which the project is to be implemented and whenever required, the client (ministry of external affairs) shall advise the PIA in writing of relevant local customs and the PIA shall, after such notifications, respect such customs.

Further, the agreement says that IRCON will liaise with local bodies and obtain their approvals for the work and for relocating existing utilities as deemed necessary. The firm will deploy adequately experienced and suitably qualified personnel at the site for execution of the project.

The Indian governments cautious approach can be understood against the backdrop of the harrowing experiences of the Indian employees who were earlier engaged with the project in Myanmar. In 2019, 10 people including four Indians and a Myanmar lawmaker were abducted by the Arakan Army from two boats between Paletwa and Kyauktaw. Two among the Indian abductees were employees of EPIL.

A government official said that there was a better chance of the project being expedited with the engagement of local sub-contractors. There were reports that a section of the local populace was unhappy with the proposed highway in Myanmar. The chances of interference by armed groups could be reduced if local groups and businessmen are associated, he said.

The two-lane highway has two sectionsa stretch of 67 km from Paletwa to Kaletwa and another of 41.5 km from Kaletwa to Zorinpui. Whatever work was done earlier by the previous firms will be reassessed and the highway reconstructed at all the stretches where it was completed. The agreement points out that repairs are needed owing to the damaged condition of the highway due to rains and lack of drainage.

Environmental clearance is not applicable in the project as the agreement states. IRCON will plant 17,000 trees as compensatory afforestation, similar to the number of trees that would be chopped down for the project. Around 9,000 trees having varieties of mango, jack fruit and teak are falling in the alignment. Any variation in numbers of existing trees shall not be considered as a change in scope, it states

The Indian governments plan to expedite the Kaladan project coincides with the eruption of conflict in Chin and Rakhine states between the junta and the Arakan Army. Some places like Paletwa have been adversely impacted and around 600 residents from these areas have fled their villages and relocated to Mizoram.

It is not known if IRCON has been successful in identifying local sub-contractors for the highway. The firm was unable to disclose information on sub-contractors after an application under the Right to Information Act was submitted by this correspondent.

Several deadlines have been missed since the execution of the project commenced 12 years ago. The next deadline is 2023 but completing the highway in the existing circumstances could be extremely challenging for the implementing agency.

Rajeev Bhattacharyya is a senior journalist in Assam, India.
October 13, 2022



Business Researcher Scott J. Reynolds will present on business ethics Oct. 19 as part of the Dr. Bill Stratton Distinguished Scholar Research Seminar Series.

The presentation is open to faculty, students and the community and will be held at 3 p.m. in room 506 in the Business Administration building on Idaho State University's Pocatello campus.

Reynolds is a professor of business ethics, chair of the Department of Management and Organization and the Michael G. Foster Endowed Professor at the Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. His research focuses on ethical decision-making, which has been published in numerous top management and business ethics journals and won several awards. Reynolds presentation will focus on the concept of a team's moral identity.

Good ethical behavior is the foundation for strong relationships, and every business relies on relationships to accomplish their objectives, Reynolds said. Thus, stronger relationships with employees, customers, suppliers and every other critical stakeholder makes it much more likely that the business will succeed.

Reynolds is the first presenter in the new Dr. Bill Stratton Distinguished Scholar Research Seminar Series, named after former College of Business Dean, Dr. Bill Stratton. This series will provide our University and community with a variety of insights, networking and research collaboration opportunities within the business world.

"Dr. Stratton has been a great mentor to me and his years of outstanding service as Dean and decades as a great Management Professor have made every part of our College and community better," said Dr. Shane Hunt, College of Business Dean.
NC2 on Azure offers a seamless hyperconverged infrastructure and unified management spanning private and public cloud environments to accelerate hybrid cloud adoption. NC2 on Azure enables customers to deploy and manage their workloads in their own Azure account and VNet enabling them to keep the operating model simple and consistent between Azure and on-premises.

With license portability of Nutanix term-based software and the ability to leverage all Microsoft Azure benefits, NC2 on Azure provides customers the investment protection and choice to run their workloads in a hybrid cloud environment. NC2 on Azure is now generally available to customers on Azure dedicated bare metal nodes in North America Azure regions, with additional global Azure regions to follow in 2023.

Organisations are embracing hybrid multicloud to easily scale from on-prem to the public cloud, optimise costs for performant and secure workloads, and tap into a flexible subscription model, said

Nutanix CEO and president Rajiv Ramaswami. NC2 on Azure gives our customers a frictionless on-ramp to Azure with consistent management of apps and data across their hybrid multicloud environment.

While public cloud has solidified as a crucial investment for businesses, many customers need to run and manage workloads across public and private cloud environments, said Microsoft executive vice president, cloud + AI group Scott Guthrie. NC2 on Azure provides consistent management for businesses infrastructure across on-premises and cloud, reduces network latency, and increases cost efficiency.

Customers can now run workloads on NC2 on Azure and manage Azure instances from Nutanix's management interface. This enables customers to run hybrid workloads seamlessly across private clouds and Microsoft Azure without needing to re-architect their applications. The expected result is simplified and consistent IT operations across clouds, hybrid cloud adoption in hours, and lower total cost of ownership when compared to other cloud deployment solutions.

Customers can also take advantage of Azure Hybrid Benefit as well as Extended Security Updates to improve cost, security, and efficiency. Nutanix customers will be able to port their existing term licenses to NC2 on Azure or get on-demand consumption of Nutanix software through the Azure Marketplace, enabling frictionless movement between private clouds and Microsoft Azure.

Customers are struggling with the reality of managing workloads across private and public clouds, and this challenge is not going away, said The Enterprise Strategy Group senior analyst Paul Nashawaty. This Nutanix and Azure solution addresses key challenges many enterprises are facing by providing unified management across clouds with applications, data and license portability.

Customers can leverage NC2 on Azure to:

Simplify and optimise disaster recovery, eliminating the need to maintain a secondary site by utilising Microsoft Azure's on-demand capacity for failover.

Access on-demand capacity bursting to Microsoft Azure, rapidly scaling capacity while leveraging existing applications and tooling.

Migrate and modernise their datacentres by easily moving their existing applications and data as-is without costly and time-consuming refactoring or retooling.

As we strive to financially protect 39 million customers around the world with our products and services, we continue to see hybrid cloud as a key milestone in our digital transformation journey, said Unum assistant vice president of IT delivery David Fitzgerald. With NC2 on Azure, we are excited about leveraging a seamless hybrid cloud platform for disaster recovery as well as to migrate and run workloads in Azure to handle a myriad of hosting scenarios. We can now, on-demand, expand our Nutanix Cloud Platform to Azure regions without having to re-factor our applications. We look forward to continuing our strong partnership with Microsoft and Nutanix.

"TCS has a long track record of embracing technology innovations to satisfy customer demand and enable them to focus on business outcomes, said TCS senior vice president and global head or partner ecosystems and alliances Dinanath Kholkar. Microsoft Azure and Nutanix have been popular technology choices of TCS customers looking for digital transformation, and NC2 on Azure is an attractive option for us to help our customers extend and migrate their on-prem workloads into a cloud space more easily. The ability to rapidly deploy and burst workloads through NC2 on Azure is vital to our customers hybrid and multicloud strategy.

Kholkar added, TCS Microsoft Business Unit (MBU) is looking forward to taking this solution to our joint customers.

About Nutanix

Nutanix is a global leader in cloud software and a pioneer in hyperconverged infrastructure solutions, making clouds invisible, freeing customers to focus on their business outcomes. Organisations around the world use Nutanix software to leverage a single platform to manage any app at any location for their hybrid multicloud environments. For more information, click here or follow us on social media @nutanix.
The average company with data in the cloud faces $28 million in data-breach risk, according to a new report from Varonis . The Great SaaS Data Exposure examines the challenge CISOs face in protecting data across a growing portfolio of SaaS apps and services such as Microsoft 365.

New report from Varonis sheds light on the state of SaaS data security

The study highlights how hard-to-control collaboration, complex SaaS permissions, and risky misconfigurations  such as admin accounts without multi-factor authentication (MFA)  have left a dangerous amount of cloud data exposed to insider threats and cyberattacks.

For the report, researchers at Varonis analysed nearly 10 billion cloud objects (more than 15 petabytes of data) across a random sample of data risk assessments performed at more than 700 companies worldwide.

Key findings from the Varonis report include:

Companies face dangerous cloud data risks. In the average company , 157,000 sensitive records are exposed to everyone on the internet by SaaS sharing features, representing $28 million in data-breach risk.

Broad internal data exposure is a real problem One out of every 10 records in the cloud is exposed to all employees  creating an impossibly large internal blast radius, which maximizes damage during a ransomware attack. Missing MFA makes attackers' jobs easier. The average company has 4,468 user accounts without MFA enabled, making it easier for attackers to compromise internally exposed data.

Sitting-duck admin accounts leave companies vulnerable. Out of 33 super admin accounts in the average organization, more than half did not have MFA enabled. This makes it easier for attackers to compromise these powerful accounts, steal more data, and create backdoors.

Untenable permission structures pose a big challenge. Companies have more than 40 million unique permissions across SaaS applications, creating a nightmare for IT and security teams responsible for managing and reducing cloud data ris

Get the Report: The Great SaaS Data Exposure

"Cloud security shouldn't be taken for granted. When security teams lack critical visibility to manage and protect SaaS and IaaS apps and services, it's nearly impossible to ensure your data isn't walking out the door," says Brian Vecci, Field CTO, Varonis.

"This report is a true-to-life picture of over 700 real-world risk assessments of production SaaS environments. The results underscore the urgent need for CISOs to uncover and remediate their cloud risk as quickly as possible."

Additional Resources

About Varonis

Varonis is a pioneer in data security and analytics, fighting a different battle than conventional cybersecurity companies. Varonis focuses on protecting enterprise data: sensitive files and emails; confidential customer, patient, and employee data; financial records; strategic and product plans; and other intellectual property. The Varonis Data Security Platform detects cyber threats from both internal and external actors by analyzing data, account activity, and user behavior; prevents and limits disaster by locking down sensitive and stale data; and efficiently sustains a secure state with automation. Varonis products address additional important use cases including data protection, data governance, Zero Trust, compliance, data privacy, classification, and threat detection and response. Varonis started operations in 2005 and has customers spanning leading firms in the financial services, public, healthcare, industrial, insurance, energy and utilities, technology, consumer and retail, media and entertainment, and education sectors.


Vector Technology Solutions (VTS), a subsidiary of New Zealands largest gas and electricity distributor Vector has entered a partnership with Claroty, the security company for cyber-physical systems across industrial, healthcare, and commercial environments.

Vector says the partnership, a first-of-its-kind for New Zealand, will enable thec ompany to offer Clarotys entire range of cybersecurity products and services across the whole ANZ region, helping organisations combat todays advanced cyber security threats.

The agreement makes VTS the first Claroty Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) Partner in New Zealand, offering managed operational technology security, visibility, vulnerability management and anomaly detection using the Claroty Platform.

Vector says thatwWhile VTS will initially focus its efforts on New Zealands energy sector, the company is looking to expand its services to a range of new sectors right across the ANZ region in the near future.

Aaron McKeown, Chief Information Security Officer at Vector, said: Our expertise combined with Clarotys software will give critical infrastructure providers deep visibility into their industrial environments, comprehensive security controls, and actionable insights that allow them to better assess and improve their security posture. Together, we will enable these essential service providers to detect and respond to cyber threats more quickly and effectively than ever before.

Jason Payne, Head of Channels & Alliances, ANZ at Claroty, said the agreement with Vector was a first for Claroty in New Zealand: It will support our goal of expanding our presence in New Zealand, especially in the energy sector, and comes at a time when organisations of all kinds, but especially operators of critical infrastructure, are facing growing threats. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the acceleration of digital transformation and remote access across all critical infrastructure sectors has compressed years of industrial change into months, leading to significantly heightened cyber risk.

Tersia Eaton, GM Commercial at VTS, agreed the partnership with Claroty was timely.

The agreement will assist New Zealand enterprises to counter the ever-growing number and sophistication of cyber threats  and in the coming years, we will be looking to expand our services into new industries across the wider ANZ region. We are excited to see where this partnership will take us in the future., Eaton said.

According to New Zealands National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), incidents affecting nationally significant organisations in 2020-2021 increased by 15 per cent year on year - and similarly, the Australian Cyber Security Centre noted an increase of cybercrime reports by 13 per cent, with one quarter of all reports affecting critical infrastructure organisations.
Ride-sharing service inDrive has launched in Sydney, offering a flexible platform for riders and drivers alike.

Claiming to have more than 150 million downloads in 47 countries, inDrive differentiates itself from other ride sharing platforms by bringing transparency and fairness through its process.

How inDriver works in Sydney

inDrives model allows riders to set a suggested fare for the selected route and then negotiate with the driver to reach an agreed amount.

Ideally suited to longer routes and fares in Sydney, the minimum ride starts at $20. From there, inDrive says riders and drivers will be able to negotiate prices during long distance rides in peak hours.

This can include trips to the airport where transport tariffs can make trips for many Sydneysiders prohibitively expensive.

However, through a negotiation feature, drivers and riders will be able to settle and agree on the final fare.

Getting from A to B with inDrive

The passenger makes their request for a ride, indicating a starting point and destination, their suggested price, and any additional comments for the driver, such as a request for a childrens car seat or an additional stop.

From there, drivers have the ability to either accept the offered fare or make a counteroffer. The passenger is then presented with offers from multiple drivers and can then choose the right driver best suited to the passengers needs, taking into consideration the fare amount, driver information and ratings, estimated time of arrival, and vehicle make/model.

Australian drivers have described the app as flexible and with a positive user experience, and riders appreciate the benefits of the easy-to-use app and fair pricing.

inDrives fair fares for all

Unlike the industry-wide use of machine algorithms, inDrives peer-to-peer model allows people to negotiate directly.

inDrive does not manipulate prices but works outside of the standard ride-sharing algorithms to ensure riders and drivers arrive at a fare that is fair for both parties.

Importantly, for the first six months in Sydney, it will not charge drivers commissions for rides, ensuring they make the most from the work they do.

After the six-month period passes, inDrive guarantees that driver commissions will continue to be the lowest in Australia.

It is obvious that Sydneysiders are exhausted by the ride-share options currently available and are ready for a new experience, one that is both fair and benefits both riders and drivers, said inDrive Australia country manager Mike Chauhan.

Our innovative model has led to inDrive becoming one of the fastest-growing ride-sharing platforms in the world, and Sydney is ready for something different, something fun and something fair for all.

Its the transparent, honest system which Australia has been waiting for, said Chauhan.
End-to-end encrypted messaging platform Signal will phase out support for plaintext SMS and MMS messages in its Android app over the next few months.

However current users will have to wait for an update to the Android app before they are able to export their existing plaintext messages to another messaging app on their phones. The current version of the Android app is 5.51.7 (on Android 11) and it lacks any means of exporting messages.

In a blog post on Wednesday, Signal Messenger, the company behind Signal said while it had offered support for plaintext messages all these years, it no longer made any sense to do so.

This means that only Signal-to-Signal text messages will come through after the support ends.

Users can export their messages to another app on their phones right away or else later, the company said, adding that it would send in-app notifications to remind users to switch.

"Exporting your SMS messages is optional, but it will let you keep your SMS message history in a new place on your phone. Your Signal messages will remain safe, secure, and unchanged," the post said.

The company said there were three reasons for this change. One was that plaintext SMS messages were inherently insecure.

There was also the issue of cost, with providers in many parts of the world charging high messaging fees. "...weve heard repeatedly from people whove been hit with high messaging fees after assuming that the SMS messages they were sending were Signal messages, only to find out that they were using SMS, and being charged by their telecom provider. This is a terrible experience with real consequences," the post said.

A final reason advanced was that there were "serious UX and design implications to inviting SMS messages to live beside Signal messages in the Signal interface".

"Its important that people dont mistake SMS messages sent or received via the Signal interface as secure and private when in fact they are not.

"And while we flag the difference between them in the app, we can only do so much on the design side to prevent such misunderstandings."
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.
"I believe in the ability of cinema, literature and historians to work on our past and reopen chapters on which the transitional justice process has failed because curtailed by politics," says Lotfi Achour, a Tunisian filmmaker living in France. He has just directed a powerful 14-minute film called Angle Mort (Blind Spot) that was broadcast in June on Arte.

The public can also see two other recent works with equally evocative titles by artists clearly committed to fighting the pact of silence. They are Memory, a play directed by Sabah Bouzouita and Slim Sanhaji shown in Tunis in January; and an adaptation of Death and the Maiden by contemporary Argentine-Chilean writer Ariel Dorfman which is given local resonance by a Tunisian playwright.

There is also an exhibition called The Transformation of Silence, continuing until October 14 at a chapel in the Carthage Institute of Higher Commercial Studies (IHEC), in which artists Hela Ammar and Souad Mani express through photos and installations the need not to forget their countrys past.

Shadowy figures

In his film Blind Spot, Achour returns to the tragedy of Kamel Matmati, whose trial before the specialized transitional justice chambers began in May 2018, inaugurating this process in Tunisia. More than four years later, no judgment has been handed down either in this case of enforced disappearance, or in any of the 204 trials for serious human rights violations examined since then by the 13 specialized courts across the country. The story of Matmati remains emblematic: on October 7, 1991, during a big roundup targeting Islamists, this 27-year-old opponent of former President Ben Ali was kidnapped while he was at work. In Blind Spot, he returns to speak to us 30 years later, asking the question his mother asked during a 2016 public hearing and before the Court of First Instance of Gafsa two years later: "Where did you put my sons body?"

Achour, who is trying his hand at animation for the first time, uses a technique that gives the human silhouettes a ghostly texture and appearance, shadowy and obscured. The film is almost all in black and white, with only the red stain of Matmati's blood when one of his torturers strikes the final blow. "When the trial opened four months after my death, did the judges know I had been murdered? Matmati asks in the film. Why did they let my mother scour the prisons for me when I was no longer of this world?

For Achour, this story shows "one of the big state cover-ups under Ben Ali. In cases of assassination by the security forces, Ben Ali was presented with several scenarios, like the prisoner had escaped or had a heart attack. And he chose which big lie would be used, says the filmmaker. Its from this angle that I want to approach a series on the crimes of the dictatorship. Finding the right form is for me as important as the story itself. Each time its a matter of finding the form most suited to the material," says the filmmaker.

The Tunisian filmmaker Lotfi Achour returns with his film Angle Mort to an event that is under trial before the specialised transitional justice chambers, which began in May 2018 and is still not over.  D.R.

The return of old demons

These three emotionally charged projects add an artistic and aesthetic dimension. This allows their creators to bring back strong events for the public, whereas the countrys transitional justice process has been gradually submerged by disenchantment, and the emotions expressed on social networks when victims of human rights violations testified on television during the Truth and Dignity Commission hearings have gradually subsided.

Memory keeps spectators on the edge of their seat. The play makes us feel, with fear rising as we watch, all the suffering of a former victim carried away by the madness of revenge. The story is about Kenza and Morthada, a couple of former opposition activists. One night, a doctor visits their home and Kenza thinks she recognizes, in the man's voice, that of her torturer. Kenza decides to take him hostage to extract a confession from the man who tortured and raped her -- to the music of Franz Schubert's Death and the Maiden. Kenzas drama recalls the story of Islamist opponent Sami Brahem, who, in his testimony before the Truth Commission, told how the psychiatrist of the prison where he was jailed in 1991 subjected them to "experiments" with homosexual tendencies.

"We found in the original text of Death and the Maiden a dose of humanity, which touched us, Slim Sanhaji, co-director of Memory, told Justice Info. There are themes that resonate with us and bring us together."

The fabric of remembrance

The Transformation of Silence is also a transitional justice exhibition. Its curator, sociologist and visual arts researcher Marianna Liosi, was awarded a grant from the Memory and Justice programme of the Merian Centre for Advanced Studies in the Maghreb (MECAM) in Tunis. The Transformation of Silence is the result of her research in the first Arab Spring country. Liosi called on two artists, who express themselves through video installations, sculptures and photographs. Sound plays an important role in the exhibition, echoing the voices, claims and frustrations of the post-January 2011 revolution.

"What appealed to me most in the work of Hela Ammar and Souad Mani is that they work, each in their own way, on the long-term history of their country. I believe that art can help to reconstruct, even to restore the fabric of remembrance, "says Liosi.

The exhibition The Transformation of Silence, which closes on 14 October at the Chapelle Saint-Monique in Carthage, mixes historiographical and contemporary narratives by two artists working with photography and installation, Hela Ammar and Souad Mani.  Olfa Belhassine

Mapping a region in turmoil

In her photographic series entitled Tarz (embroidery), lawyer and artist Hela Ammar mixes images of Independence with images of the Revolution, and connects them with embroidery in red silk thread. Tunisias two great transitions are thus linked, leading us to reflect on the fragmentation of memory and its necessary reunification, which was the aim of the Organic Law on Transitional Justice covering July 1955 - December 2013.

Souad Mani, a teacher at the School of Fine Arts in Gafsa, has long photographed around this part of the country where there was an aborted revolution in 2008, a predecessor to the revolt that broke out two years later in Sidi Bouzid. Gafsa, a land of phosphate mining, has experienced injustice, including that related to air and soil pollution because of mining that benefits the countrys coastal areas. It is the memory of this unfair system that Souad Mani tried to relay in a digital creation and through an installation where she exhibits various objects found abandoned in Gafsa: bills, receipts, medical prescriptions, leaflets of election campaigns from the time of Ben Ali.

"These small documents trace bits of the political and activist past. They become cartographies resurrecting the whole history of the places. Perhaps these raw objects will evolve in a second phase towards a more elaborate creation, so well show the public how this project developed," explains Liosi.

Memory received the Nejiba Hamrouni Award at the last Carthage Theatre Days and continues to tour in Tunisia and abroad. Blind Spot has won many awards internationally but has unfortunately not been selected for the short film section of the next Carthage Film Days.
European Parliament lawmakers on Thursday put the Ukrainian people and detained Wikileaks founder Julian Assange on a shortlist for the EU's top award, the Sakharov Prize.

The winner of the 50,000-euro ($48,000) prize -- which recognises human rights champions -- is to be announced next Wednesday.

The shortlist, drawn up by MEPs sitting on the European Parliament's foreign affairs and development committees, comprised three entries.

One is the "brave people of Ukraine, represented by their president, elected leaders, and civil society" for their endurance fighting the Russian invasion.

Another is Assange, a 51-year-old Australian held in a high-security British jail as he battles an American demand for his extradition to face trial for divulging US military secrets about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The third is Colombia's Truth Commission, a body started in 2018 that seeks to shed light on atrocities committed during Colombia's five-decade conflict that ended in 2016.

Last year's winner of the Sakharov Prize was Alexei Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition activist and outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin who survived a 2020 poisoning with the Soviet-designed Novichok nerve agent.
Ukraine could extradite Russian war crimes suspects to the International Criminal Court (ICC) even though Moscow is not a member, the tribunal's prosecutor said on Thursday.

Kyiv authorities could send Russians to the Hague-based court if trials could not take place in Ukraine for legal reasons, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said.

Russia, which invaded Ukraine on February 24, refused to join the ICC when the court was set up in 2002 to try people for offences including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

"Legally yes it wouldn't represent an obstacle to our jurisdiction," Khan told journalists at the headquarters of the EU's judicial agency, Eurojust.

"Certainly if there was a need... and there was a reason why those trials could not take place in Ukraine, whether it's because of some legal additional provisions that we have or not, I am sure that we would get the cooperation from Ukraine," he added.

The ICC opened its own probe into the war in Ukraine shortly after Russia invaded, but has said it is keen for Ukraine to bring suspects to justice where possible.

- Timetable unclear -

Khan would not say when the ICC expects to file its own first charges. The court would wait until the "evidence is sufficient", he said.

"We are moving forward, we have focus, but I will make announcements at the right time."

But the EU's justice commissioner Didier Reynders said Khan had told him that "the first cases should already be on the International Criminal Court's table likely before the end of the year, and the first trials could start".

Reynders was speaking after an EU justice ministers' meeting in Luxembourg.

Kyiv has already convicted 10 people over crimes committed during Russia's invasion, Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin told journalists.

It has indicted a total of 186 people, mostly in absentia, and filed court papers for 45 people.

Ukraine will meanwhile file war crimes charges over Russia's bombardment of Kyiv and other cities this week, said Kostin.

"All of the hits of every missile, every drone, every damage of civil infrastructure, every Ukrainian who was killed or wounded by these missile attacks, all of them are documented and criminal proceedings were opened," he said.

Ukraine's allies have pledged more powerful air-defence systems after days of devastating Russian attacks that President Vladimir Putin said were retaliation for a deadly explosion at a Crimean bridge.

Several Western leaders have described the Russian strikes as a war crime.

Romania meanwhile said it had joined an international investigation team probing war crimes along with Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia, along with Eurojust and the ICC.
Mexican lawmakers have approved an extension of the armed forces' public security role until 2028, fueling controversy over what critics see as the country's militarization.

The lower house of Congress passed the reform promoted by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's ruling party by 339 votes to 154, after a heated debate Wednesday that continued late into the night.

The plan has already been endorsed by the Senate.

Before coming to power in 2018, Lopez Obrador had vowed to send the military back to the barracks.

But under his presidency, the armed forces have kept their role in tackling cartel-related violence and even gained more responsibility, including control of ports and customs and major infrastructure projects.

Amnesty International has voiced alarm at what it called "the process of militarization of public security in Mexico."

The latest reform comes amid a scandal over a huge leak of classified military files obtained by a group of hackers called Guacamaya, who have targeted several Latin American countries.

The leaks left Mexico's military facing allegations that some of its members have links to drug cartels, that it spied on the government's opponents and engineered a reform giving it control of the National Guard, which was previously under civilian command.

"How are we going to give more power to the military if the hacked documents show that some of them have ties to crime and have protected human rights violators?" opposition lawmaker Salvador Caro asked during the debate.

Accusations that the armed forces were involved in the disappearance of 43 students in 2014 -- one of the country's worst human rights tragedies -- have added to the controversy.

In August a truth commission said that the military shared "clear responsibility" for what it called a state crime, either directly or through negligence.
The G7 and IMF on Wednesday pledged their unwavering financial support to Ukraine as the country suffers from Russian missile attacks and needs billions of dollars in monthly aid.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared via video link to call for more help at a finance ministers meeting in Washington for the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, just days after Russias rocket salvo on Kyiv and other cities.

We see that Russian terrorist attacks can be intensified, Zelenskyy said through an interpreter at the meeting dedicated to supporting Ukraine.

Therefore, we must intensify our cooperation to help in a symmetrical way to rebuild what was destroyed and ensure the financial stability of our state, he said, adding that next year Kyiv will start with a budget deficit of 38 billion dollars was faced.

IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Ukraines borrowing needs in 2023 will be between $3 billion and $4 billion per month.

She said that at Zelenskyys request, the IMF will set up the Economic Forum of Ukraine to share information and clarify the countrys financing needs.

We are moving with you towards a strong Ukraine, she said.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said meeting Ukraines needs requires a unified and coordinated effort.

But together, the G7, the international financial institutions and all of Ukraines partners can help Ukraine win this war and rebuild to become the prosperous and secure democracy that the Ukrainian people fought so hard for, she said.

The United States has allocated $65 billion in aid, including military equipment, to Kyiv since February.

 Rise with Ukraine 

Earlier, Yellen and other finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of the Seven Prosperous Democracies had their own talks about Russias war in Ukraine.

We call on Russia to end its unjust and brutal war immediately, the statement said.

The G7 will stand by Ukraine for as long as needed and remain strongly committed to supporting Ukraines urgent short-term financing needs, the statement added.

The G7 also discussed efforts to impose a price cap on Russian oil, to deny the country a key source of funding for its war and stem soaring energy prices.

The group  which includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States  said it had made significant progress on all key aspects of the proposal, but gave no details.

The G7 welcomed Australias entry into the coalition. One of the challenges the G7 face is winning over countries around the world to the idea of ??a price cap.

 Putin warning 

Hours earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin slammed the proposal, which the United States has been pushing and which the EU supports pending details from the G7.

Some Western politicians are destroying the global market economy with their careless decisions and are effectively endangering the well-being of billions of people, Putin said at an energy forum in Moscow.

Moscow has warned it would cut oil supplies to countries that impose such a cap.
A feisty and little-known senator has emerged as a kingmaker in Brazils very close presidential election.

Many Brazilians first saw Simone Tebet, a lawyer and university professor, when she took the stage for the campaigns first televised debate on the evening of August 29, alongside right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro and left-wing icon and ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

And surprisingly, Tebet made a strong impression.

When Bolsonaro once insulted a journalist who was asking questions at the debate, the senator jumped to her defense, pointing a finger at the president and saying in a firm voice, Im not afraid of him.

Tebet, 52, took third place in the first ballot with four percent of the vote, well behind Lula, who received 48 percent, and Bolsonaro with 43 percent.

But her share of the pie is 4.9 million votes  and the difference between the top two was 6.1 million.

Tebet immediately became an advertising candidate. And she supported Lula.

 Third Option 

Tebets candidacy was organized by centrist parties and backed by part of the Brazilian establishment in order to mitigate the polarization caused by far-right President Bolsonaro and the left-wing hero of the working class and poor, Lula, of the Workers Party.

Tebet comes from the 125,000-inhabitant town of Tres Lagoas, where she was mayor from 2005 to 2010. It is located in the central-western state of Mato Grosso do Sul, whose economy is based on agribusiness.

Tebet is married to a politician from her state and they have two daughters. She is Catholic and describes herself as a feminist.

Tebet played a prominent role on a congressional committee examining the governments handling of the coronavirus pandemic in 2021. And while on that panel, she loudly clashed with Bolsonaro allies.

Tebet was also the first woman to head the Constitutional and Judiciary Committee of the Brazilian Senate, which is considered the most important body in the chamber.

But her biggest leap of fame came with her presidential bid, which was touted as a third way between right and left.

Tebet managed to fill an empty lagoon, said Marco Antonio Teixeira, a professor of political science at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Sao Paulo.

She was successful because she presented herself as a real third option, strong in her criticism of Bolsonaro and the Labor Party in a balanced way and not just looking for confrontation, Teixeira said.

In the presidential debates, she challenged Bolsonaro and urged him to show respect for women; The President has a penchant for statements that are seen as sexist.

This helped Tebet win third place from centre-left candidate Ciro Gomes, who polls say would take that spot.

 Conservative and close to agribusiness 

Halfway through Bolsonaros term, Tebet backed his government with 86 percent of the votes cast in the Senate, including one that extended gun-carrying rights to land outside rural properties, according to investigative news outlet Agencia Publica.

Tebet owns three estates, one of which is on land claimed by indigenous peoples in Mato Grosso do Sul.

She broke with Bolsonaro after joining the congressional commission investigating the pandemic that has killed more than 680,000 people in Brazil.

During the campaign for the first round of presidential elections, Tebet pledged to make transparent the vast sums of money managed by Congress, boost spending on science and technology, and provide scholarships for middle school students to prevent school dropouts.

Now that analysts are saying Lula needs to move toward the center to attract new supporters, Tebet  who has said Brazil is conservative and unwilling to legalize abortion  is an important figure to have on his side.

Last week, she officially endorsed Lula in the Oct. 30 runoff, while denying that the gesture meant she had given up trying to create a third path in Brazilian politics.

However, Tebets party, dubbed the Brazilian Democratic Movement, chose to remain neutral in the race between Bolsonaro and Lula.

Whats at stake is bigger than any of us, she said.

Tebet said she will vote for Lula because of his commitment to democracy and the constitution, which she doesnt see in Bolsonaro.

But she slammed Lula, who is said to have lifted millions of people out of poverty during his 2003-2010 rule, for not actually looking in the rear-view mirror and making new suggestions about how he would govern when he returns the power comes

Tebet speaks to agribusiness and women much more directly than Lula, Teixeira said.

It could attract centrist Lula voters who are fed up with tensions over polarization between Bolsonaro and Lula, he added.
As Native Americans this week celebrated Indigenous Peoples Day  the holiday increasingly recognized in the United States in place of Columbus Day  members of the continents hundreds of tribes shared a common concern: the ongoing extinction of their ancestral languages .

The United States is currently home to 6.8 million Native Americans, or 2 percent of the population.

Members of Long Islands Shinnecock Nation gathered at sunrise to honor this weeks holiday, which has been adopted by more than a dozen U.S. states and cities amid a growing view that Italian explorer Christopher Columbus was little more than genocide and colonization brought to America in 1492.

And further north on the Atlantic coast, people from America and the Caribbean ate together while they discussed, danced and sang.

But while their ancestors saw their communities decimated by centuries of colonization, descendants today fear their culture and language could be swallowed up in a single generation by English and Spanish.

Anthony Sean Stanton, the 64-year-old leader of the Narragansett tribe, condemned the invasion of the 21st century and said his people must hold on to what we have because once its gone, its gone forever. .

Farther west, the Lakota  a prominent Sioux subculture primarily based in North and South Dakota  also fear the extinction of their language, which is currently spoken by 1,500 people, compared to 5,000 speakers two decades ago.

For many communities, including the Lakota, the intergenerational transmission of languages ??ceased in the mid-1980s, said linguist and activist Wilhelm Meya, who serves as president of The Language Conservancy (TLC) in Indiana.

There is a very small window of opportunity to try to bring the language back before the last speakers of that language die. And this is a story that is being repeated in hundreds of communities in North America, he said.

We are at the forefront of trying to prevent this total collapse of indigenous languages ??in North America.

 hunger for language 

According to TLC, about 2,900 of the approximately 7,000 languages ??spoken worldwide are at risk.

At this rate, the organization says, nearly 90 percent of all languages ??could become extinct in the next 100 years.

According to the nonprofit, Native American languages ??are dying out even faster, with more than 200 already extinct.

The best conservation strategy is to teach these languages ??in schools, says Meya, who notes that the federal government finally allowed communities to adopt this language in the early 1970s.

He is also pushing for the development of other materials in the native languages, including translation of animated series and documentaries, as well as the creation of dictionaries and support for teacher training.

Anything we can do to reach the young people who are very, very hungry for their language, Meya said. They want their culture, they want their identity.

 Part of what I am 

Miya Peters, an 18-year-old member of the Wampanoag tribe on the US northeast coast, is one such example. She learns her language through a partnership between her tribal school and a public school.

I love it. Its hard. Its very different, she said. But its a part of me. So it always gives me this encouragement to just go ahead and bring it back.

Meya and his colleague Travis Condon want to continue the work of Kevin Locke, a passionate defender of his Lakota language and culture.

The 68-year-old flautist, hoop dancer and storyteller died unexpectedly on September 30th.

He was definitely a warrior for his tribe, you know, a messenger for humanity, Meya said.

The linguist stressed the need for government investment in language preservation.

It took the federal government 100 years and billions of dollars to eradicate Native American languages ??through the boarding school system, he said. And it will take the same amount of resources to bring back the indigenous languages ??in North America.
Police investigating a spate of baby deaths at a UK hospital found a note reading Im evil I did this at the home of a nurse accused of killing her, a court said on Wednesday .

Another read: I dont deserve to live. I killed her on purpose because Im not good enough to take care of her. Im a terribly evil person.

Newborn nurse Lucy Letby, 32, stands trial at Manchester Crown Court in northwest England, charged with seven murders and 15 attempted murders.

The crimes, which she denies, allegedly took place between June 2015 and June 2016 at the Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester.

Prosecutor Nick Johnson said the notes were found among papers and other notes that also contained many protestations of innocence.

He told jurors at the end of his opening statement that Letby was assigned clerical duties when she became a suspect prior to her July 2018 arrest.

A subsequent police search of their Chester home found papers relating to many of the children who died or collapsed.

The note shown to the court reading Im angry, I did this was written in capital letters.

The attorney said other papers found indicated Letby was frustrated at not being allowed to return to the neonatal unit and claims she was innocent.

I did nothing wrong and they have no proof, so why did I have to go into hiding? one read.

The trial, which opened Monday and is expected to last six months, was told Letby used various methods to attack the newborns.

They included insulin poisoning and injected air into her bloodstream, causing her to stop breathing, prosecutors have claimed.

Most babies are born prematurely, including twins and triplets. The youngest was just a day old.

The charges relate to 17 children, none of whom can be named due to a court order. Some have reportedly been attacked more than once.

Defense attorney Ben Myers, representing Letby, told jurors it would be appallingly unfair to convict his client without hearing evidence.

He told them the defense would argue that in some cases it was not clear why the child died or why his condition deteriorated.

Letby is a dedicated nurse and only wants to look after the babies she cares for, he said.

The defense says they are not guilty of intentionally harming or killing a baby, he added.
The Iranian president on Thursday accused the United States nemesis of destabilizing the Islamic Republic, which has been rocked by nearly a month of women-led protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini.

Outrage over the 22-year-old womans death three days after her arrest by Irans notorious vice squad has fueled the biggest wave of street protests and violence in the country in nearly three years.

Young women, students and schoolchildren were at the forefront of the protests, shouting anti-government slogans, setting fire to their headscarves and confronting security forces on the streets.

Chants of woman, life, freedom, the protest movements catchphrase, were heard again overnight in the northwestern city of Bukan, where protesters burned the Iranian flag, in video confirmed by AFP.

Protesters also rallied in the capital Tehran, Isfahan in the south, Mashhad in the northeast, Rasht in the north and Aminis western hometown of Saqez.

Irans ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi again blamed the United States, its bitter enemy since the 1973 Islamic Revolution and key adversary in a standoff over Irans nuclear program.

Following Americas failure to militarize and sanctions, Washington and its allies have resorted to failed destabilization policies, he said in Kazakhstan.

 Thousands imprisoned 

Gunshots and tear gas were fired on Wednesday as security forces confronted protests in which rights groups say at least 108 people have already been killed.

New online videos showed the publics reaction to security forces as they attempted to arrest protesters, sometimes forcing officers to flee.

In video verified by AFP, women are beaten and pursued by security forces in Rasht, Gilan province.

Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights said workers in the energy industry have joined protest strikes this week at the Asalouyeh petrochemical plant in the southwest, Abadan in the west and Bushehr in the south.

Deadly unrest has particularly rocked Sanandaj in Aminis western home province of Kurdistan  but also Zahedan in Irans southeastern Sistan-Balochistan province, where demonstrations erupted on September 30 over the reported rape of a young girl by a police commander.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency charged that law enforcements unregulated use of shotguns with bullets has resulted in the injury of many protesters, including the elderly, teenagers and even children.

In a report released on Wednesday, HRANA said it had the names of at least 106 people killed by security forces and knew of another 11 dead who had not been identified.

At least 94 others were killed in Zahedan, one of the few Sunni-majority cities in predominantly Shia Iran, HRANA said, adding that 20 security forces were killed, including six in Zahedan.

The number of detainees is estimated at at least 5,500 people, the rights group said.

 Deepening of the Rift 

As part of its widening crackdown, Iran has restricted internet access and blocked social media platforms such as Instagram and WhatsApp.

The United States, which imposed fresh sanctions on Iran amid the Amini protests, said it would take steps to ensure Iranians have online access.

Irans continued violent crackdown on peaceful protesters is an attack on human rights, said US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman.

I have spoken to major US tech companies and urged them to  provide additional services and communications to the Iranian people.

The bloody crackdown by the clerical state has drawn widespread condemnation.

Permanent repression is not the answer, Comfort Ero, president and CEO of think tank International Crisis Group, said in a tweet.

The governments violent crackdown only widens the gulf between a state that wont give in to demands for more freedom and a society that wont stop asking for it.

An Iranian investigation found Amini had died of a long-standing illness rather than reporting beatings.
Neanderthals and humans coexisted in France and northern Spain for up to 2,900 years, model research suggested Thursday, giving them plenty of time to potentially learn from or even breed with one another.

While the study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, found no evidence that humans interacted directly with Neanderthals around 42,000 years ago, previous genetic research has shown that they must have done so at some point.

Research by Swedish paleogeneticist Svante Paabo, winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine last week, helped reveal that people of European descent  and almost everyone in the world  have a small percentage of Neanderthal DNA.

Igor Djakovic, a PhD student at Leiden University in the Netherlands and lead author of the new study, said we know that humans and Neanderthals met and integrated in Europe, but we have no idea in which specific regions this actually happened. .

Exactly when this happened has also proven elusive, although previous fossil evidence suggests that modern humans and Neanderthals lived on Earth at the same time for thousands of years.

To find out more, the Leiden-led team examined the radiocarbon dating of 56 artifacts  28 each for Neanderthals and humans  from 17 sites in France and northern Spain.

Artifacts included bones as well as distinctive stone knives believed to have been made by some of the last Neanderthals in the region.

The researchers then used Bayesian modeling to narrow down the potential date ranges.

 Never really went out 

Then they used optimal linear estimation, a new modeling technique they borrowed from biological conservation science, to get the best estimate for the time when the regions last Neanderthals lived.

Djakovic said the basic assumption of this technique is that well likely never discover the first or last members of an extinct species.

For example, we will never find the last woolly rhino, he told AFP, adding that our understanding is always fragmented.

Modeling found that Neanderthals became extinct in the region between 40,870 and 40,457 years ago, while modern humans first appeared around 42,500 years ago.

This means the two species coexisted in the region between 1,400 and 2,900 years, the study says.

During this time, there is evidence of a large spreading of ideas among both humans and Neanderthals, Djakovic said.

The period is associated with major changes in the way people produce material culture, such as tools and ornaments, he said.

There was also a quite serious change in Neanderthal-made artifacts, which began to look much more like human-made ones, he added.

Given the shifts in culture and the evidence in our own genes, the new timeline could further bolster a leading theory for the end of Neanderthals: human mating.

Propagating with the larger human population could have meant that Neanderthals were effectively swallowed up into our gene pool over time, Djakovic said.
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE)  WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, is reminding buyers of the securities of Kohls Corporation (NYSE: KSS) between October 20, 2020 and May 19, 2022, both dates inclusive (the Collection Period), of the importance November 1, 2022 deadline for the plaintiff.

SO WHAT: If you purchased Kohl securities during the Class Period, you may be entitled to compensation without payment of expenses or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join Kohls class action lawsuit, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=8539 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll free at 866-767-3653 or by email [email protected] or [email protected] for information about the Class Action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you want to appear as lead plaintiff, you must call the court by November 1, 2022 at the latest. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other group members in conducting the litigation.

WHY ROSES LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified advisors with a track record in leadership positions. Frequently, companies that issue notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or meaningful recognition from peers. Many of these law firms do not actually conduct securities class actions, but are merely intermediaries who refer clients or work with law firms that actually conduct the cases. Be wise in choosing a lawyer. The Rosen law firm represents investors worldwide and focuses its practice on securities class actions and shareholder derivatives litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest-ever settlement of a securities class action lawsuit against a Chinese company. Rosen Law Firm was ranked #1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for the number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 every year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday stressed the need to punish all Russian murderers and torturers and called for more air defense systems to counter Moscows renewed offensive.

Zelenskyi told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) that holding the perpetrators accountable was necessary to ensure lasting peace on the continent.

We must continue our dialogue to hold Russia as the aggressor state and each of the Russian murderers and torturers accountable for all the crimes in this war, for every manifestation of terror, he said via video link.

Once these legal mechanisms are in place and operational, it will be one of the strongest guarantees of long-term peace.

The Ukrainian head of state submitted a similar appeal to the United Nations at the end of September.

The International Criminal Court, based in The Hague, launched its own probe into the war in Ukraine shortly after Russias invasion in February, but said it was keen for Ukraine to bring suspects to justice where possible.

The prosecutor at the International Criminal Court said Thursday Ukraine can extradite Russian war criminals to the court in The Hague, although Moscow is not a member.

Zelenskyy also accused PACE of turning a blind eye to Ukraines 2014 annexation of Crimea.

In fact, since 2014, attempts have been made to write off everything that Russia has done against Ukraine and European values. To write off under the guise of stories that it is necessary to maintain dialogue with Russia at all possible levels, he said.

Zelenskyy called on Europe to diplomatically isolate Russia as he again called for modern anti-aircraft and missile defense systems to protect our skies from Russian terror.

If this is done, it will be a fundamental step towards ending the entire war in the near future, he said.

Europe can take the lead in efforts to compensate for the damage caused by this war, he said.
Kang Hoon shared some of his behind-the-scenes stories with Nam Ji Hyun while filming their newly-concluded series "Little Women." Here's what the rising actor revealed.

Kang Hoon Shares Experience Working With Nam Ji Hyun

In his recent interview, Kang Hoon revealed his true feelings about working with Nam Ji Hyun. According to the actor, he was grateful for her as she guided him throughout the filming of the series.

Kang Hoon played the role of Ha Jong Ho in "Little Women," while Nam Ji Hyun immersed herself in the character of Oh In Kyung.

Kang Hoon recalled his first meeting with Nam Ji Hyun. He said that he had a good time meeting the actress for the first time. As they got along, he did not feel any difficulties filming the drama because of Nam Ji Hyun's guidance and immediately got comfortable working with her.

Kang Hoon Mistakenly Calls Nam Ji Hyun by Kim Go Eun's Character in 'Little Women'

In one of their scenes, Kang Hoon needed to hug Nam Ji Hyun and called her after her character Oh In Kyung. But he made a mistake and called her Oh In Joo, which was the character played by actress Kim Go Eun. The actor was surprised by what he said and immediately apologized to his co-star.

Since most of his scenes were with Nam Ji Hyun, Kang Hoon got nervous when he finally met other co-stars and hid behind Nam Ji Hyun's back because he was shy. But even though they were already sharing the frame with other stars, Kang Hoon was thankful for Nam Ji Hyun who had helped him act comfortably.

"The Red Sleeve" star admitted he gained a lot of strength on the spot.

What's Next For Kang Hoon?

After his drama's successful finale, Kang Hoon is ready to meet the viewers again with another series.

The new Korean actor is currently filming the Korean adaptation of the Taiwanese drama "Some Day or One Day," also known as "Into Your Time." The show is said to be released in the first half of 2023 on Netflix.

Ahn Hyo Seop and Jeon Yeo Bin are also joining him in the series.

Another project to anticipate from him is "Flower Scholar's Love Story." Kang Hoon will return to work in a historical-romance drama. Shin Ye Eun, Ryeo Un, and Jung Gun Joo are all confirmed to headline the drama with him. It is also expected to premiere next year.

What are your thoughts about Kang Hoon and Nam Ji Hyun's on-screen chemistry in "Little Women"? Tell us in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity updates, keep your tabs open here at KDramastars.

KDramastars owns this article.

Shai Collins wrote this.
In an interview with Marie Claire Korea, Kim Go Eun clarifies her wedding rumors and also reveals her real relationship status.

Kim Go Eun starred in the recently concluded thriller series "Little Women" and is now gearing up for her silver screen return.

Kim Go Eun Clarifies Wedding Ring Rumors in Recent Interview

Following the conclusion of "Little Women," the rumors of Kim Go Eun being secretly married has resurfaced once again.

In an exclusive interview with Marie Claire Korea, the actress finally addressed the subject and also revealed the real status of her heart.

She begins to clarify the issue by saying how she loves routines and traditions. Kim Go Eun stated, "I like doing the same thing every day, wearing the same set of clothing and more."

"Ever since I began acting, my fans have already expressed their interest in the ring I'm wearing," she said. "It wasn't a wedding band nor an engagement ring."

The "Little Women" star showed her appreciation for things with sentimental value as she revealed that the ring she has worn was a birthday gift from her beloved mother.

Kim Go Eun loves to utilize the accessories she has in her possession instead of changing them regularly. With this, she clarifies that she's not seeing anyone at the moment.

Even more so, Kim Go Eun jokingly said she doesn't have interest in relationships right now, and is focused on her growing career as an actress.

In case you missed it, you can watch Kim Go Eun's interview with Marie Claire Korea here:

What's Next For Kim Go Eun This 2023

Kim Go Eun recently starred in the thriller drama "Little Women" with Nam Ji Hyun and Park Ji Hu in which the three of them played the role of sisters who grew up in poverty.

"Little Women" received high praises from fans all over the world, and recorded its highest score during its final episode.

At the moment, Kim Go Eun is gearing up for her forthcoming film "Hero" opposite Jung Sung Hwa, Na Moon Hee, Jo Jae Yoon, Park Jin Joo, Lee Hyun Woo and more.

It is a musical drama film based on the story of An Jung Geun, the South Korean activist who assassinated the Prime Minister of Japan. Moreover, "Hero" is scheduled to air in the first half of 2023.

In addition to that, Kim Go Eun is also preparing to hold her first ever offline fanmeeting in a while entitled "Come in Closer" in the later half of the year. Stay tuned for more updates!

KDramastars owns this article.

Written by Elijah Mully.
Kim Yoo Jung sets the internet into a frenzy after she dropped new photos from her Busan trip. A particular snap of her showcased her mature transformation, which immediately caught the public's attention.

Kim Yoo Jung Drops Photos From 27th BIFF With '20th Century Girl' Co-Stars

Even before her scheduled movie premiere on Netflix, Kim Yoo Jung consistently hyped her fans with her current whereabouts and SNS posts. In particular, on October 11, the "Love in the Moonlight" lead actress shared several snaps on Instagram.

Most of the photos were taken at the 27th Busan International Film Festival, which Kim Yoo Jung attended together with her "20th Century Girl" co-stars Byeon Woo Seok, Park Jung Woo, and Roh Yoon Seo.

After the red carpet, the cast members along with Director Bang Woo Ri attended the press conference where they answered some questions from the audience and gave teasers on what to look forward to in the new Netflix movie.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Kim Yoo Jung Gets Involved in Love Triangle in New Netflix Film '20th Century Girl'

Some behind-the-scenes photos from the event were revealed on Kim Yoo Jung's social media account. She captioned her post with, "Here and there at the Busan International Film Festival! NETFLIX Original Movie '20th Century Girl.'"

Kim Yoo Jung Surprises Many With Her Daring Photo

However, among the snippets that the "Backstreet Rookie" star shared, fans were impressed with one of the pictures where Yoo Jung flaunted her mature look while enjoying her moment at the beach in Busan. Her sexy charm captured the fans' attention, and as of now, the post has already collected half a million heart reactions from the public.

On the other hand, the "Lovers of The Red Sky" star is finally meeting the viewers starting October 21 with her fresh Netflix movie "20th Century Girl."

The coming-of-age movie depicts the story of a painful but heart-fluttering first love experience of Na Bo Ra, a 17-year-old lady whose mission is just to know information about her friend's crush. Little did she know that during the process, Bo Ra would find her first love.

Former Child Actress Kim Yoo Jung Confirmed To Star in New Drama

Kim Yoo Jung is also returning to drama as she confirmed her participation in the much-awaited series "Sweet and Spicy Chicken" (working title). The former child actress will work with veteran actor Ryoo Seung Ryong, idol-actor Cha Eun Woo, and Ahn Jae Hong.

The said drama is said to be released in 2023 on Netflix. Further details about the project are yet to be confirmed by the movie's production.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: THIS 'Itaewon Class' Star Fangirl's Over Kim Yoo Jung

What can you say about Kim Yoo Jung's latest Instagram post? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramastars.

KDramastars owns this article.

Shai Collins wrote this.
New week, new stories to tell! K-drama fans who have been following their favorite series should look forward to the upcoming episodes of "Bad Prosecutor," "Blind" and more to be released this week!

'Love in Contract'

To recall, Jung Ji Ho (Go Kyung Pyo) and Choi Sang Eun (Park Min Young) finally started living as husband and wife under one roof. They had a housewarming party to celebrate their relationship. Though it's all a sham, the two had their first kiss in front of the guests.

In the upcoming episodes 7 and 8, will Sang Eun be able to comfortably face Ji Ho after he gave her an unexpected kiss? Let's all find out this Wednesday and Thursday at 10:30 p.m. (KST) on tvN.

'Bad Prosecutor'

Prosecutor Jin Jung (Doh Kyung Soo) proved his enemies wrong after he found pieces of evidence against their Chief Prosecutor Lee Jang Won (Choi Kwang Il), who was involved in Park Ye Young's (Lee Hyo Na) murder case.

As the drama's story continues to progress, the ever-righteous and humorous Detective Jin Jung is ready to face another case with his squad. Viewers should also anticipate the teamwork between Jin Jung, Shin A Ra (Lee Se Hee), and Kim Tae Ho (Kim Tae Woo).

Catch "Bad Prosecutor" every Wednesday and Thursday at 9:50 p.m. (KST) on KBS.

'One Dollar Lawyer'

After winning a new case, Joo Young (Lee Chung Ah) and Cheon Ji Hun (Namgoong Min) spend more time getting to know each other's stories. Since they have been consistently working together for a while already, they've established a good connection, which built a strong foundation of trust for their next case to solve.

"One Dollar Lawyer" airs every Friday and Saturday at 10 p.m. (KST) on SBS.

'Blind'

Another intense week is waiting for the viewers as Judge Ryu Sung Hoon (Ha Seok Jin), Detective Ryu Sung Joon (Ok Taecyeon), and Jo Eun Ki (Jung Eun Ji) discovered a new prime suspect behind the Joker murder case.

Ahn Tae Ho (Chae Dong Hyun) was accused as the culprit behind Yeom Hye Jin's (Baek Seung Hee) case. However, as the story progresses, it is revealed that someone is manipulating him. His life is in danger now.

Will the trio be able to prove Ahn Tae Ho's innocence and finally name the real mastermind behind all the murders happening in the city? Let's all find out in the forthcoming episodes of "Blind."

"Blind" occupies the Friday and Saturday slots at 10:40 p.m. (KST) on tvN.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 'Blind' Episode 8: Ok Taecyeon Tries To Save Chae Dong Hyun From Danger

Which among these currently airing K-dramas do you enjoy watching? Share it with us in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, follow and subscribe to KDramastars.

KDramastars owns this article.

Shai Collins wrote this.
Parks remove barriers, fences to provide easy access for tourists

People's Daily Online) 11:23, October 13, 2022

Going to a park near their homes has become an option for many Chinese citizens and tourists looking for ways to enjoy their weekends or holidays. During the National Day holiday, 23.8 percent and 16.8 percent of citizens and tourists respectively went to parks located in the city suburbs and downtown areas.

Citizens take photos at a flower expo park in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Oct. 1, 2022. Saturday marks the first day of China's week-long National Day holiday. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua)

Some cities have taken the initiative to remove park barriers so that tourists and citizens can have more convenient access to them. Starting September, Beijing's Chaoyang district began taking down barriers and fences at 52 parks. Shanghai also has announced that it will open some parks 24 hours a day.

During the National Day holiday, the central green forest park located in Tongzhou district, east of Beijing, became one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city, receiving 120,000 tourists during the seven-day holiday. Since opening two years ago, the park has received nearly 5 million tourists.

Covering 11.2 square kilometers, the central green forest park has no fences or walls, and is directly connected with the roads outside it, allowing tourists to enter it conveniently.

Beijing kicked off a campaign to take down park barriers and fences in July, using the Yuan Dynasty city wall relics park and Qingfeng Park as pilot parks. The Yuan Dynasty city wall relics park is 4.8 kilometers from east to west. Fences and barriers in 19 of the parks entrance areas have been removed to make it easier for tourists to enter.

Twenty years ago on Oct. 1, 2002, the southern part of the West Lake scenic area in Hangzhou, capital city of east China's Zhejiang Province, was opened to tourists for free. With no fences or walls, and all admission fees dropped, the West Lake scenic area has since become a park for the people.

The West Lake scenic area has resulted in enormous economic and social benefits for Hangzhou. By 2017, the city's tourism revenue was 10 times the figure in 2002. The area has significantly enhanced local residents' sense of happiness. Many people regard Hangzhou as one of the most liveable cities in China.

In recent years, several localities around the country have taken various measures, including opening parks to the public for free and extending their opening hours, to offer convenience to tourists when they visit those parks.

Statistics suggested that at least 90 percent of the parks in Shanghai have extended opening hours and around 60 percent of the parks in the city are open 24 hours a day.

Parks also showcase the sound ecological environment of a city. On Sept. 9, 2022, the first phase of Beijing's Wenyu River Park was opened to tourists. Covering 30 square kilometers, the Wenyu River Park is the largest "green lung" of Beijing. It is also home to more than 600 species of plants and animals, and animals under state protection have been spotted inside the park.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming)
An Air Canada Airbus A220-300 airliner from Toronto arrives at Halifax Stanfield International Airport in Enfield, N.S. on Monday, June 28, 2021. The Montreal-based airline plans to resume flights to Japan, with routes from Vancouver to Tokyo Haneda and Vancouver to Osaka, starting next summer. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
Liberal MP for Ottawa-Vanier Mona Fortier rises during Question Period, in Ottawa, Monday, May 2, 2022. The federal government says it doesn't know how many of its employees are expected to speak an Indigenous language as part of their job. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
My relationship with my cultural identity has always been a complicated one. As many children of immigrants can relate, I often felt disconnected from my parents country of origin in an attempt to assimilate to American life.

I was born in Manhattan, New York, and have always defined myself as a New Yorker first and an Iranian-American second. From a young age, I have watched from the periphery as Iran has experienced political turmoil, sanctions, and threats of aggression and force from the United States and other countries. I always felt like an outsider looking in, never fully grasping the plight of Iranians living in Iran but struggling to understand the regions complicated history.

After the recent death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police custody for allegedly improperly wearing her head scarf, women have led demonstrations across the country; images of women cutting their hair, burning head scarves, and throwing their defiance in the face of the morality police have taken over social media. These women are being lauded for their bravery and relentless resistance that has been ongoing for almost 2 weeks now. This fight has become more than a condemnation of the dress code; the hijab is a symbol of the oppressive laws that govern women under the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979.

My parents were both raised in Tehran and left during the Islamic revolution. Their plight of leaving their country, families, and everything they had ever known behind is a shared experience by most of the 1.5 million Iranians who also left Iran and now inhabit the United States. I visited Iran twice-once as a child, an experience I cannot remember well, and a second time the summer before I started college. As a newly minted high school graduate and staunch feminist about to embark on my undergraduate experience, I had some anxiety about visiting Iran, but also a lot of curiosity. What I am ashamed to admit now was that I also harbored preconceived notions about the women of Iran, mainly that they were submissive because after decades of oppression, what else could one expect?

Strolling through the streets of Tehran, I was enamored with the fashion-forward women testing the boundaries of their confinement and expressing their individuality through their fashion styles. While the Islamic Republic requires women to wear loose fitting clothing and cover their hair with head scarves, the women in Tehran were bold, confident and fearless in their dress. Their hair, voluminous and freshly highlighted, was flowing out of their fashionable, vibrant headscarves, which were lightly resting on their heads about halfway down their scalp (technically, all their hair should be covered).

Women wore capris, exposing their ankles, and their feet were donned with designer sandals and open-toed heels. They were unafraid when pushing these limits and gracefully displayed their beauty, keeping me in a state of enthrallment. I remember a specific trip to the local womens pool club where modelesque women walked around in their bathing suits and a full face of tattooed makeup, conversing about everything from recent plastic surgeries they had to current events. My many conversations with some of these women made it clear that they were extremely educated and knowledgeable about politics, science, and world events (more than 60 percent of university graduates in Iran are women). They took pleasure in their appearances and staying on top of fashion trends but knew that their intellect and education harness their true power beyond their physical attributes.

As I sit here and prepare for another day of seeing patients, flipping through social media, and watching reels and images of the woman I found so inspiring decades ago putting their lives at risk for freedom, I reflect on their bravery. Despite massive oppression, they rise. They not only rise, but they also excel, they supersede, they vanquish. This gives me hope that the patriarchy that keeps women oppressed all over the world will continue to be met with unbridled resistance.

This week, a few of my patients who know my background have asked how Im doing, have offered support, and communicated their understanding of the situation. I am grateful to have these relationships with my patients. I am thankful for their initiatives to educate themselves on these issues and bring awareness to them in their own personal lives. Similarly, when abortion rights were stripped from the women in Texas, where I now live, many of my patients came in and had conversations with me about how concerned they were for the futures of their daughters and women everywhere who would lose access to a lifesaving medical procedure and to personal choice. A few of them even asked me with trepidation in their voices if I was going to move back to New York and abandon them. One said, We should stay and fight. While I have the option to leave Texas, most people in Iran are unable to leave. However, they shouldnt have to leave. None of us should have to leave anywhere. Women should not have to fight for their right to life in Iran, in the U.S., or in any other part of the world.

As doctors, we are emotionally invested in the lives of our patients, but we are all carrying our own personal struggles with us every day, which sometimes makes it difficult to be fully present with our patients. When patients simply ask how we are doing, it makes a big difference. I have always believed that treating patients is not just about treating an illness or a problem but about taking a holistic approach, understanding their cultural context, values, aspirations, and fears, and then advocating for them. As I treat my patients and have these conversations with them, I think about who is going to advocate for the women of my motherland.

Who will honor their struggle? Who will acknowledge their bravery and their sacrifice? How will they be portrayed in our history books? When will they finally be set free to accomplish all the things they are destined to accomplish? I dont know the answers to these questions, but over the last week, I am continually reminded of the women I met decades ago who changed my perspective on what true bravery is. They are not submissive; they are resilient. They are a force to be reckoned with. They are the women I have emulated my whole life. They are woven from the same indestructible fabric my parents are from. As my heart breaks for Iran, I feel closer to my cultural identity than I ever have before. Many women in the United States, like women in Iran, are trying to achieve the same outcome-the right to bodily autonomy and freedom of choice. I hope the women of Iran know that my patients are rooting for them thousands of miles away in Texas.

Jessica Kiarashi is a neurologist and can be reached on Twitter @jkiarashimd.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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AID AFTER IAN

Keys eligible for more federal hurricane assistance

Photos by ROB ONEAL/Keys Citizen Entire contents of homes are seen at the curb on Rose Street, in one of the islands hardest-hit neighborhoods during the passing of Hurricane Ian to the west of Key West on Sept. 27. ROB O'NEAL/Keys Citizen Homes and businesses were destroyed by a massive fire on Flagler Avenue as effects from Hurricane Ian were felt across the Lower Florida Keys. ROB ONEAL/Keys Citizen Flood waters persist well into the afternoon of Sept. 28 at the corner of Flagler Avenue and 5th street.

The Florida Keys has been approved by the federal government to receive more federal assistance to help local recovery efforts for Hurricane Ian.

President Joe Biden granted a Major Disaster Declaration for the state of Florida, triggering the release of federal funds to help people and communities recover from Hurricane Ian.

The federal funding will include what is known as Individual Assistance for private property owners and people who suffered damages from storm surge, flooding and strong winds in the Florida Keys. The emergency declaration covers nearly 25 counties in Florida, including Monroe County.

More than $268 million in federal disaster assistance has been approved for more than 178,000 individuals and households to help jumpstart their recoveries, Federal Emergency Management Agency stated in a news release on Wednesday, Oct. 12.

We are grateful that our state and federal officials worked diligently to add us to this list, Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi said in a prepared statement on Tuesday. Our residents are now eligible for the assistance many need.

FEMA Individual Assistance can help with temporary lodging expenses, basic home repairs and other essential disaster-related needs.

From the beginning, Ive fought hard for the people in Monroe County hit the hardest by Hurricane Ian, Florida Keys federal House Rep. Carlos Gimenez said in a statment. After weeks of advocacy on behalf of Keys residents from my office, the entire Florida delegation, Governor DeSantis and our local FEMA officials, today Monroe County is eligible for FEMAs individual assistance, in addition to the Category A designation for debris removal. This is a huge win for Monroe County as recovery efforts continue.

Monroe County Hurricane Ian affected individuals and households can apply with FEMA online at http://www.DisasterAssistance.gov. or by calling 1-800-621-3362.

The Keys-based group Monroe County Community Organizations Active in Disasters (COAD) is working to meet the unmet needs of the community, and with the City of Key West, has established a hotline for people to report if they have had damage as a result of the storm. Group members have also gone door to door, trying to assess peoples damage from Hurricane Ian, said Leah Stockton, Keys area president of the United Way of Collier and the Keys.

So far, 200 households, including live-aboard vessel owners, reported significant damage to COAD representatives, Stockton said.

We are now connecting resources to those needs, Stockton said.

The COAD is using the website http://www.keyshelp.org to connect people who suffered damage in the storm with resources. There is a Hurricane Ian tab on the website.

Stockton encouraged property owners with flood damage to immediately report their claims to FEMA, she said.

National Flood Insurance Program Florida policyholders who had flood damage from the hurricane now have a 90-day window to renew their policies. The extension applies to policies with renewal dates beginning Aug. 25 through Oct. 23.

Policyholders whose policy renewal date is in this range should contact their agent or insurance company. FEMA also extended the proof of loss requirement for flood insurance policyholders in Florida who suffered flood damage from Hurricane Ian from 60 to 365 days. For information on how to file a flood insurance claim, visit at https://www.floodsmart.gov/how-do-i-start-my-flood-claim on the Internet.

The Key West Housing Authority had 94 units of its housing stock damaged, with 84 of those units significantly damaged, Housing Authority Executive Director Randy Sterling said. No resident has had to be displaced, Sterling said. All units currently have refrigerators and working hot water heaters, and all but two units have working stoves. Those without working stoves have microwaves, Sterling said.

The Housing Authority units suffered between 2 to 2.5 feet of flooding, causing more than $2 million worth of damage, Sterling said. Crews will start working next week on repairing interior damage to the units, Sterling said.

The City of Key West damage assessment lists 422 properties damaged in the storm, with 128 listed as damaged or destroyed, according to a city assessement.

In addition to damage on land, there were significant damages to the Florida Keys commercial trap fishermen.

From Key West to the Marquesas Keys, trap damage was severe. From the Marquesas Keys to the west, at least 80% of the traps are gone, said Josh {span}Nicklaus, president of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermens Association.

Nicklaus found rope and buoys from traps from a line 7 miles from where it was supposed to be, he said.

The highest wind speed during Hurricane Ian at Smith Shoal, 11 miles northwest of Key West, was recorded at 95 mph. There are at least 50,000 to 70,000 traps between Smith Shoal and the Dry Tortugas, said Bill Kelly executive director of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermens Association.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has filed an executive order to waive the commercial spiny lobster trap tag requirements for the 2022-2023 license year.

This waiver is in response to the significant losses suffered by Florida commercial spiny lobster fishermen as the direct result of Hurricane Ian. In order to assist commercial fishermen in their return to business, all spiny lobster traps in or on Florida waters are not required to have a current-year trap tag for the remainder of the 2022-2023 commercial spiny lobster season, according to FWC.

tohara@keysnews.com
Global Telecommunication Services company Entegro is hosting a week-long, national recruitment roadshow later this month as part of its latest expansion drive to meet growing demand for its fixed network services contracts with top-tier clients in Ireland, the UK, and the US.

A variety of positions are available immediately as wholly Irish-owned Entegro continues to grow its reputation as a market leader of fixed network design and deployment services. Entegro works on key digital infrastructure programmes across the globe, enabling connectivity to homes, towns and cities.

Entegro is currently working on life-changing infrastructure projects with National Broadband Ireland, Virgin Media IE, SIRO and Cityfibre as well as Fibrus, Lumen, Ciena, Voneus, Jurassic Fibre and E-Net, all of which aim to improve connectivity and bridge the digital divide between people, homes and businesses in both rural and urban settings all over the world.

This is our biggest recruitment drives to date. Were looking for enthusiastic candidates who want to join a dynamic industry, develop new skills and play their part in building digital networks for future generations., Jim Doyle, Entegro CEO, said.

Were recruiting personnel with all levels of experience that are willing to join and develop their careers, including Field Technicians at all levels; those with Fibre Splicing and with Testing experience and Civils experience for roles that will be based from our Baldonnell base in Dublin.

Weve immediate starts available in either Dublin or Kilkenny for Fibre Design Engineers as well as GIS personnel. Some roles are Dublin-based, others involve work from our headquarters in Kilkenny. We also have attractive, hybrid, field-based roles to fill, he said.

The recruitment drive opens on Monday, October 24, at the Maldron Hotel in Portlaoise with the roadshow moving daily to The Dolmen Hotel in Carlow on the 25th ; Maynooths Glenroyal Hotel on the 26th; the Glenview in Wicklow on the 27th and finishing up at the Maldron in Newlands Cross on Friday, October 28.



The Entegro team has grown significantly in recent months and continues to advance within the fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) market, having evolved its fixed-line capability through the emphasis placed on innovation and internal tool development. Its top-tier clients in Ireland, the UK and the US continually rely on and place trust in the companys expertise and resources to deliver success through quality solutions.



The group of highly-skilled employees within the organisation can call on their collective expertise for engineering success and delivering Network Ingenuity for both clients and company alike, Fintan Shortall, COO, said.

Through our Certified Training Centre located in Kilkenny, in conjunction with our in-house training and development initiatives, Entegro continues to attract talent. Weve opened a graduate program for Design Engineers and continue to develop our existing GIS apprenticeship program. We look forward to meeting potential new recruits through our Roadshow and to further progressing our already highly-skilled talent pipeline internally, he added.
Ten local authorities, including Kilkenny County Council, have been awarded funding to appoint biodiversity officers to deliver and drive local action for biodiversity.

The new biodiversity officers will have a wide variety of responsibilities. Among other things, they will be required to: develop and implement a county biodiversity plan, advise the local authority on biodiversity related issues and the authoritys obligations in relation to protecting biodiversity, establish a county biodiversity forum, assist local authority departments in integrating biodiversity into their actions and policies through training and supporting information dissemination and promote new biodiversity initiatives based on best conservation practice.

Once appointed, this will bring the total number of biodiversity officers employed in local authorities around the country to 14, with funding for a further 15 officers to be provided as part of efforts to take greater action for biodiversity at the local level. A full national rollout is expected to be completed in the next three years.

Todays move represents a further practical step in the acceleration of the States response to the biodiversity crisis and follows several measures taken by Government to address biodiversity loss this year. This includes the publication of the 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan, which is currently out for public consultation, as well as Heritage Ireland 2030 published in February this year.

Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, TD, welcomed the announcement.

Its fantastic to see the next tranche of Biodiversity Officers are now being recruited around the country. These ten new posts, and the funding for a further 15 that I announced as part of Budget 2023, will have an enormous impact on the ground in helping to deliver action for nature at the local level. The declaration by the Dail of a biodiversity emergency in 2019 sent a clear signal of how seriously we as a country need to take the biodiversity challenges ahead, and our objectives in the Programme for Government demonstrate this urgency. Todays announcement is another step in the right direction and it reflects my commitment to ensuring that these objectives are fulfilled and that all local authorities have a sufficient number of heritage and biodiversity officers among their staff complement.

Chairperson of The Heritage Council, Martina Moloney, said:

The vision for biodiversity, as stated in the National Biodiversity Action Plan, is that biodiversity in Ireland is valued, conserved, restored and sustainably used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people. This is a vision shared by the Heritage Council and our work in ensuring the continued progression of the Pilot Biodiversity Officer Programme is a reflection of our own objectives.

Virginia Teehan, Chief Executive of The Heritage Council, said: The most important element in continuing to progress this essential programme has been our collaboration with the CCMA, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. It is thanks to our shared vision and objectives that within the next few months, more local authorities, and the country as a whole, will be able to benefit from the expertise, enthusiasm and determination of dedicated biodiversity officers.

Moira Murrell, Chair of the CCMA Rural Development, Community, Tourism, Culture & Heritage Committee said: The County and City Management Association is delighted to support this important Biodiversity Officer Programme. The expertise Biodiversity Officers bring will significantly strengthen local authority efforts to protect and encourage appreciation of biodiversity in our areas. This resource focus indicates the seriousness with which we take the biodiversity challenge and our ambition to integrate biodiversity considerations across all of our operations.

Addressing biodiversity loss, restoring ecosystems and employing nature-based solutions will also form important elements in our climate action plans.

The scheme will be evaluated in 2025 to inform future provision.
A new episode of the White House Historical Association's 1600 Sessions Podcast has been released about Kilkenny man James Hoban, the designer of the White House. It explores, White House builder James Hobans Irish Roots and features Stewart McLaurin, President of the Association, who travels to Hobans birthplace to discover the architectural styles and designs that influenced the young Irishman before he left Ireland.



Born in Callan in 1755, Hoban was raised near Desart Court, the estate of the Earl of Desart. He worked as a wheelwright and a carpenter until his early 20s when he managed to secure an advanced student place at the Royal Dublin Society School of Drawing in Architecture, paid for by the Desart family. There he studied under Thomas Ivory, a significant figure in the building of Georgian Dublin, who would be a strong influence on Hobans career. Hoban excelled at his studies and was presented with a medal in 1780 by the Duke of Leinster for his drawings of architectural details.



Local folklore says that Hoban also designed the Palladian Rossenarra House near Kilmoganny in Kilkenny in 1824, although there is no actual evidence of this. The painter Sir Joh Lavery died there in 1941 as he was a relation of the owners.

After the American Revolution Hoban emigrated to the US and by 1795, had established himself as an architect in Philadelphia. He travelled to South Carolina in 1787 where he was responsible for many buildings including the Charleston County Courthouse. This building so was admired by George Washington while he was on his Southern Tour in 1791 that he subsequently summoned Hoban to Philadelphia (the then temporary capital) in 1792.



There, Hoban was named the winner of a competition to design the Presidents new home. His original drawings featured three storeys and a nine bay facade, but under the influence of Washington this was changed to two storeys and an 11 bay facade. Washington also insisted that the entire front of the mansion be faced in white stone.



By all accounts a modest yet capable man, Hoban was appointed to also supervise the construction of the President's residence at a salary of 300 guineas a year and remained in Washington for the rest of his life. In total the Kilkenny man devoted 29 years of his life to the White House, including a rebuild from 1815 to 1829 after a fire, when his use of white paint to camouflage the blackened building gave rise to the name, White House.



In the report, Stewart McLaurin speaks to a number of Irish people about James Hobans life, influences and background, including Laurie Grace of the James Hoban Society of Ireland, Brother Christy OCarroll of Callan, Ciaran OConnor the State architect and architects Merlo Kelly and Brian OConnell.



Laurie Grace, outlines Hobans early life near Callan and how the spectacular design of Desart Court possibly influenced his design of the White House decades later. He also highlights how the very high standard of architecture in Dublin in that era shaped Hobans aesthetic and how prestigious buildings such as the Royal Exchange (now Dublin City Hall) and Leinster House would have influenced the young Hoban too.

The modern monument to Hoban constructed in 2008, near his birthplace (to mark the 250th anniversary of his birth) also features prominently.



Ciaran OConnor, the State architect, describes how Palladian architecture was the defining architectural style of Ireland at the time and how Leinster House (then the home of the Duke of Leinster) was a prime example. Merlo Kelly, shows Stewart the interior of the old Newcomen Bank building near City Hall. Records show that Hoban, worked for Ivory on the design of the building and its three oval rooms have distinct echoes of the oval rooms he would later feature in the White House building. She explains how Hoban also absorbed influences relating to form, detailing and clever use of space from the Dublin building.



Finally architect Richard OConnell talks about the Rotunda building on Dublins Northside and its influence on Hoban. He describes how Richard Cassels, a German brought the Palladian style to Ireland and explains how it is grounded in geometry and symmetry with columns a notable design feature. O'Connell explains how Palladian buildings typically have a central axis or bay flanked by extensions of columns or wings on either side. Another characteristic of these buildings is that they become more refined as the building goes up, often culminating in an apex. He reveals that all of these elements were used by Hoban in the White House design.



George Washington wanted the White House to make a statement and be a house suitable for the first gentleman. As an 18th century landowner he was aware of the classics and architecture and wanted a building that would convey the status of the presidency. Both he and Hoban as former citizens of the British Empire, would have been influenced by the styles favoured by aristocrats such as the Duke of Leinster in Ireland, and Hoban had the skill to re-imagine this type of design in an American context.



Hoban was also employed at times to supervise the construction of the Capitol as well as other public and private buildings in Washington. In his personal life, he married a Susannah Sewell, with whom he had ten children, one of whom James, later became district attorney in Washington.



James Hoban died in Washington in December 1831 leaving an estate worth $60,000. His life had exemplified the 'rags to riches' of the American dream: he had certainly travelled a long way from the cottage on the Desert estate to creating an iconic and enduring symbol of American power at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.



The episode can be viewed at https://www.whitehousehistory.org/the-white-house-1600-sessions/white-house-builder-james-hobans-irish-roots
A US citizen recently died in the Donbas region of Ukraine, according to the US State Department. Pictured is the Department of State seal, in Washington, D.C., on February 21, 2021.
The House select committee investigating January 6, 2021, is holding their last hearing before the midterm elections Thursday. Pictured are some members of the committee in Washington, DC, on June 21.
This December 2020 photo shows Agape Boarding School in Stockton, Mo. Scheduled hearings were cancelled on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022, in the state of Missouri's effort to shut down a Christian boarding school whose staff members have been accused of abuse by numerous current and former students.
Amb. Cho Tae-yong, front, is seen taking questions during a parliamentary audit session held at the South Korean embassy in Washington on Oct. 12. Yonhap



South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Cho Tae-yong acknowledged the need to consider "creative" ways to deal with North Korea's growing nuclear arsenal on Wednesday, amid calls for the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons to South Korea.



Cho also noted the nuclear threat posed by North Korea has become a "real threat."



"(We) may need to quietly review creative solutions in accordance with changes in the environment," the top South Korean diplomat in the U.S. said in a parliamentary audit session in Washington.



The remarks came in reaction to a call from a ruling party lawmaker for the Seoul government to consider requesting the deployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons to South Korea.










Police on Thursday referred Lee Jun-seok, the ousted former leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), to the prosecution for indictment over false accusation charges in connection with his sexual bribery allegations.







Hover Lab, a far right-wing YouTube channel, first raised allegations that Lee had received sexual services paid for by Kim Sung-jin, a businessman seeking his influence, in 2013, and attempted to cover up the case afterward.







Denying the allegations, Lee sued two commentators of the channel, including lawyer and former lawmaker Kang Yong-seok, for slander.







In response, Kim's lawyer sued Lee for making a false accusation.







Wrapping up an investigation into the case, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it referred Lee to the Seoul District Prosecutors Office on charges of making false accusations against the two commentators.







Police, however, dropped charges related to claims that Lee had attempted to cover up the sexual bribery allegations.







Last month, police did not refer Lee for allegedly receiving sexual favors, saying that Lee is not punishable since the seven-year statute of limitations had expired.







Police at the time did not clarify whether Lee had received such favors.







But legal sources say the decision to refer Lee over false accusation charges could effectively mean that police have determined Lee had received sexual favors.







The scandal has persistently dogged Lee, whose membership has been suspended for a total of one year and six months, effectively thwarting his run in the 2024 general elections. (Yonhap)


An "X" mark is drawn on a scene from the eighth episode of "Little Women," which includes controversial dialogue about the Vietnam War / Screenshot from Twitter



Some dramas face backlash in certain countries over disrespectful scenes



By Kwak Yeon-soo



Korean drama series are going global as they have become available to a wider range of viewers due to streaming platforms that offer subtitles in multiple languages. While enjoying global popularity, the Korean drama production industry now faces the new task of becoming culturally sensitive.



Several dramas have come under fire for containing racist stereotypes and undertones, sparking a backlash from foreign viewers and forcing their governments to take action.



"Little Women" was removed from Netflix in Vietnam for its depiction of the Vietnam War. Following a written request from the Authority for Broadcasting and Electronic Information in Vietnam, Netflix removed the series from its service in the Southeast Asian country.



The controversial scenes appeared in episodes three and eight, where a Korean veteran who took part in the Vietnam War explains that the killing ratio for Korean troops was 20 to 1 (meaning one Korean soldier killed 20 Vietnamese). The episodes also included other forms of discriminatory terms directed at Vietnamese soldiers during the war, which many viewers found overtly offensive.



Studio Dragon, the production company of "Little Women," apologized for any "discomfort that a particular scene may have caused" after Vietnamese viewers complained about historical distortions.



Netflix's "Narco-Saints," titled "Suriname" in Korean, was also hit for portraying the South American country as a drug trafficking hub.



Albert Ramdin, the Surinamese foreign affairs minister, denounced the series for including a negative depiction of its people and culture, and warned the country will take legal action against the producers of "Narco-Saints."



"Suriname no longer has the image that emerges in the series or no longer participates in these kinds of practices," Ramdin said.



Netflix said it did not intend to offend the country.



"The stories on our service are not intended to be disrespectful or hurt the sentiments of any community or group. However, the members may have different perspectives about what's acceptable on-screen and want to make their own decisions about what to watch," a Netflix Korea official said.



Recent controversies have raised the need for content creators to consider how to deal with culturally sensitive topics.



"The real problem here is the lack of respect for the country and its people. 'Narco-Saints' is inspired by a true story, so the storyline that involves gang activity and drug dealing in Suriname make sense. However, it leaves me wondering whether it was necessary to put the country's name as the (Korean) title of the show and whether the production company would have done the same thing if it had been set in a country with higher national stature," Yun Seok-jin, a drama critic and professor of Korean Language and Literature at Chungnam National University, said.



"As for 'Little Women,' it's a shame that the screenwriter didn't take into full account when depicting the Vietnam War, an epic tragedy. Those scenes weren't really necessary," Yun added.





A scene from Netflix's "Narco-Saints," titled "Suriname" in Korean / Courtesy of Netflix
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Periods of rain. Low 36F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch..

Tonight

Periods of rain. Low 36F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch.
Auburn, IN (46706)

Today

Rain likely. Snow may mix in. Temps nearly steady in the mid to upper 30s. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Rain likely. Snow may mix in. Low 38F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch.
For the ARMYs, every 13th of October signifies #HappyJiminDay! Tomorrow, the vocalist and dancer of BTS and ARMY's Mochi will celebrate his 27th birthday, and ARMYs have prepared several fan projects to celebrate this special day.

The fan projects span charity events, installations, billboards, and advertisements that garnered the crowd's attention, resulting in a boosted local economy. These birthday fan projects prove why Jimin is one of the most loved K-pop idols in the industry, not just on the South Korean scale but on an international scope.

Birthday Efforts to Commemorate #HappyJiminDay

For the ARMYs, assembling birthday efforts for Jimin is a way to give back to the member who reminds them to love and care for themselves. Thus, to spread the love that BTS has been campaigning for, several fan clubs organized charity events and fundraising activities for the benefit of supporting human trafficking and sexual exploitation victims in Romania, funding Girl Child Education in India, and food rescue drive and rural development support in South Africa.

As ARMYs refer to October as "Jimtober," Korean ARMYs have coordinated a three-day festival focusing on installations that underscore Jimin's room from BE. ARMYs from Peru embodied Jimin's creativity and artistry through a presentation at Lima's The Fantasy Fountain.

To honor Jimin's hometown, some ARMYs prepared a giant Jimin doll near Busan Port in Yeongdo. The doll will be erected from October 9 to 15, 2022. Of course, a K-pop idol's birthday celebration will not be complete without LED screen greetings. In the front row, billboards in New York flaunted who owns October, while buses in Busan had Jimin stickers.

Simultaneous advertisements are also flashed in airports and malls worldwide to unite for Mochi's day.

Jimin's birthday ad can now be spotted on multiple screens in New York Times Square!



The ad is displayed on an 18K sq. foot screen known to be the largest single LED with the best resolution in the Square.



Catch it from Oct. 10 to 16 at 20 Times Square! pic.twitter.com/foEekKGvGR  Jimin Global  | Happy Jimin Day (@JiminGlobal) October 11, 2022

#HappyJiminDay2022: Humanitarian & Economical

Fans have spearheaded "JIMINLAND," an event at Seongsu Yeonbang with activities that helped boost the local economy, benefiting businesses around the complex. Due to the economic benefit of the event, it was extended for four days. According to fans who went to "JIMINLAND," they did not endure the long lines and the weather because they wanted to participate in the different booths and activities whole-heartedly.

Alongside, the long queues have captured the attention of non-ARMYs as well. Replicating the "JIMINLAND" in Seongsu Yeonbang, another "JIMINLAND" is seen in Yeongdo, which features Jimin displays, a giant little Jimin doll, and a flower wall that entices visitors in spite of their age, gender, and nationality.

Another evidence of how impactful Jimin is in the local economy is that his visit to Jeju Island became a way for tourists to visit the island, resulting in a significant increase in Jeju Island's brand ranking.

Also, fans are curious to have what Jimin has since whenever the BTS vocalist and dancer wears specific clothing or jewelry, fans would immediately open their wallets to avail themselves of such. Therefore, resulting in out-of-stock products. Jimin's music and cuisine choice is also influencing factor that drives social media interests and trends.

With these circumstances, it demonstrates how colorful October is for the ARMYs and how valuable a Park Jimin is to every ARMY.

Missing Jimin's angelic voice? You may stream to 'With You' OST feat. Ha Sungwoon here.

What about you? What's your birthday wish for BTS' Jimin? Comment below your birthday greetings.
New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI/GPRC): Recent news reports suggest that India's freelance digital space is estimated to grow upto the value of USD 20-30 billion by 2025. This shows the excellent graph of digital marketing, especially in the past 3 years, despite the dismal COVID-19 pandemic. This is the era of digital mavericks and marketing agencies that aren't afraid of grabbing the chance and taking industry to the next level. Just like Glossour (www.glossour.com), the fastest-growing agency in the Indian subcontinent, as per a recent online survey.

Yash Mishra, the Founder-CEO of Glossour, is at the helm of this groundbreaking growth and his success reflects the everlasting need for good content as well as service in the digital marketing industry. Yash founded Glossour two years ago because he wanted to provide digital marketing & branding solutions within the gamut of a one-of-a-kind, top-quality, 360 setup. He recognized, early on, the need for out-of-the-box marketing strategies that could attract business without making the client sound desperate.

Also Read | Kerala: After Human Sacrifice Case, Woman Detained for Running Black Magic Centre at Malayolapuzha.

In just two years, the company has reached a leadership position in the market and it continues to expand and connect with clients as well as brands across the globe. Its current client list includes more than 800 brands that represent individual businesses as well as corporate groups. Glossour's expertise remains in the digital marketing domain and using it for the future. Glossour Digital Marketing Agency is reported to provide the best in class services when in comes to Reputation management, SEO, PR campaigning services, All Digital Ads Placement (PPC, Google Ads), YouTube Artist Promotions and many more. Their services information are available on their insta handle : @glossour.

Glossour has branches all over India as well as the US & it is now going to open an office in Dubai soon. Talking about its Dubai plans, Yash says, "Glossour is now expanding in Dubai, where we are already getting lots of love from prospective clients. We are hoping to cash in on the enormous scope for digital campaigning in the city."

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Team Glossour is made up of professionals who possess a combined experience of 30+ years in various departments of digital marketing and the latest technology. At present, Glossour is considered a one-stop destination for all your digital marketing solutions. With the Best Digital Marketing Agency honour in its kitty now, it is only a matter of fact that Yash Mishra's ambitious venture is headed towards a bright future!

This story is provided by GPRC. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/GPRC)

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Bengaluru (Karnataka)/Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 13 (ANI/NewsVoir): MYRE Capital, India's first Neo-Realty investment platform has successfully closed the second offering in Vaishnavi Tech Park (VTP), Bengaluru. Post witnessing a huge demand with 38 per cent oversubscription to the last offering in VTP, MYRE Capital launched another property in the same building and closed the opportunity with equal enthusiasm and demand from investors. The property was oversubscribed yet again by 30 per cent.

Bengaluru being the IT/ITES capital of the world, has witnessed continued increasing demand from MNCs and has been able to sustain market growth whilst keeping vacancies in single digits. Vaishnavi Tech Park (VTP) is located strategically at the intersection of Outer Ring Road (ORR) and Sarjapur Micro Market. ORR is the largest IT hub of Bangalore whilst the Sarjapur Micro Market has a 0 per cent vacancy rate. These micro markets are home to some of the most prominent MNC tenants, including - LinkedIn, Deloitte, Microsoft, Accenture, HCL, Tata, Wipro. Due to the favourable micro markets, investors have shown 100 per cent commitment as MYRE Capital has been able to bring to the table a rare off market opportunity. Bengaluru has always been one of the top cities for commercial real estate investments as per MYRE Capital's Neo Realty Survey.

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Speaking on the development, Aryaman Vir, Founder & CEO, MYRE Capital said, "At MYRE Capital we strive to bring the best available real estate investment opportunities for our investors. We value the trust that our investors have instilled in us and we are overwhelmed with the response received for the both the opportunities in VTP. T With the closure of this property, we have reached an AUM of Rs 200 crore and we target to reach Rs 350 crore by the end of the fiscal year."

"It has been a phenomenal year so far for MYRE Capital as we are also in works to launch India's First Neo-Realty alternative investment fund to cater to this ever-rising demand for Grade-A assets in commercial real estate. Apart from this, we have also garnered investor interest to invest in overseas CRE opportunities. We are in talks with an international platform to bring a variety of global selection of curated real estate investment opportunities for Indian investors," Vir added.

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The entire VTP building has been designed for IGBC platinum rating and has been leased to Smartworks, the market leader in managed leasing solutions, for a total tenure of nine years. Managed leasing comes with an additional layer of rental security and stability with minimal vacancy risk. This is because the operator is liable to pay the rental agreed upon irrespective of sub-tenant occupancy as per contract.

This asset offered by MYRE Capital is pre-leased and managed so investors can look to earn stable monthly rental income and long-term capital appreciation. The assets are spread across NCR, Mumbai, Pune, and Bangalore. Since inception, MYRE has maintained a 100 per cent occupancy rate across its portfolio and has 35,000+ users on its platform.

MYRE Capital, a venture by Morphogenesis, is a tech-enabled NEO-Realty fractional ownership platform that provides easy access, transparency, and liquidity to a curated selection of rent-yielding commercial real estate assets. Each asset is shortlisted based on stringent criteria involving predictive analytics across 150+ data points, 25 years of industry expertise, and our proprietary technology solutions. The company was founded by Aryaman Vir with his expertise in technology, finance, and real estate.

MYRE Capital provides real estate owners and developers a reliable source of stable finance whilst providing potential investors and stakeholders with end-to-end investment management and execution thus enabling them to redevelop trust in this asset class and reposition the Indian real estate market on a global platform.

This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)

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Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 13 (ANI/NewsVoir): Titan Eye+, the most trusted eye care brand in the country, incessantly encourages people to pay attention to their eye health and has been working towards a healthier future.

Titan Eye+ marks World Sight Day 2022 with the announcement of its vision of a future where every Indian has 20/20 vision, with or without visual aid. The brand aims to break its record and conduct 1 Million eye screenings through on-ground activations across 800+ stores and 5000+ optical shops.

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The brand's innovative initiative of online eye screening is a 10-second test that gives users an indication of whether they suffer from any eyesight problems. With the rationale to promote health and education in the field of eye care, Titan Eye+ has already conducted 7 lac eye screenings this year. In April 2022, the brand made a Guinness World Record for conducting 1 lakh + eye tests - the most online tests conducted in 24 hours.

www.instagram.com/reel/CjpLmCeMXVR/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

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World Sight Day, marked annually on the second Thursday of October, is a global event meant to draw attention to blindness and vision impairment; coordinated by IAPB in cooperation with the World Health Organization. The day is especially important for India, as India is home to the world's largest number of blind people, making up more than 30 percent of the globe's blind population.

75 to 80 percent of all cases of blindness in India can be prevented with a simple procedure and early detection becomes all the more crucial. To raise further awareness Titan Eye+ will also be on a panel discussion on the occasion of World Sight Day where industry veterans talk about the importance of eye health and the benefits of early detection.

Commenting on the brand's continued efforts, Maneesh Krishnamurthy, Marketing Head EyeCare Division, Titan Company Limited, said, "Titan Eye+ has been pioneering eye health awareness since inception. However, with an estimated 38 Cr. Indians still unaware, we needed an approach that could be accessible, affordable and fast. From April '22, we have screened 1 million Indians outside our stores with our innovative yet simple red-green 10-sec test. The eye test is self-administered and can be taken on a mobile phone. Based on the screening results and risk assessment, the test will recommend a follow-up comprehensive eye test by a Qualified Optometrist. With the strength of our Titan Eye+ 800 stores and 5000 partner optical outlets, we've planned to break our world record this World Sight Day."

Titan Eye+ is India's leading optical retail chain with over 800 stores across 400+ cities and towns. The brand is available online at www.titaneyeplus.com. The Titan Eye+ stores host a variety of over 1000 frames and sunglasses from 40+ brands like Titan, Fastrack, RayBan, Vogue, Oakley, Tommy Hilfiger, and other premium brands like Cartier, and Dior, among many others.

Titan Eye+ stores offer a customized range of lenses for every prescription power and lifestyle need. Stylish frames start at Rs 599, while high-quality lenses start at INR 399, making them the ultimate shopping destination for all budgets. Contact lenses from Bausch and Lomb, Alcon, and J&J are also available.

Titan Eye+ has constantly been pushing the edge on innovation and has recently launched ClearSight Lenses and Smart Eyewear, Titan EyeX. Core differentiations of Titan Eye+ are their zero error, free eye test by qualified optometrists, and award-winning customer service.

This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content in this article. (ANI/NewsVoir)

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Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 13 (ANI): The Hyderabad cybercrime police busted a transnational gang and arrested 10 persons, including two Chinese nationals, for their alleged involvement in a big investment fraud spread across the country, an official said on Wednesday.

The amount of the investment fraud went over Rs 903 crore.

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Hyderabad police commissioner CV Anand informed that the investment fraud had connections with foreign countries which included Cambodia, Dubai and China.

"The Hyderabad cybercrime police arrested 10 people, including two Chinese nationals, for their alleged involvement in a big investment fraud running into nearly Rs 903 crores spread across the country," Anand said.

Also Read | Karnataka Hijab Ban Row: Supreme Court To Deliver Judgement Tomorrow.

The police also conducted raids on the call centres, which were operational from the national capital and other places in the country.

"The Cybercrime police conducted raids on a few call centres operated from Delhi and other places and managed to break the network of fake investment companies that have been duping investors through mobile applications, using bank accounts of people by paying them commissions," Anand said.

Taking to Twitter, Anand said, "In a significant breakthrough, the cybercrime wing of HCP busted a transnational gang involved in Rs 903 crore investment fraud who has connections in Cambodia, Dubai and China. Perpetrators lured gullible investors through fake investment apps and laundered money."

He further said that the arrested persons were the authorised money changers and they "exploited" all the norms.

"Being the authorised money changers, these accused took advantage and exploited all the norms. Arrested 10 persons, including two Chinese nationals. This type of fraud has ramifications across the country and can have devastating effects on our economy," he tweeted.

"A harmonized approach and coordination among law enforcement agencies, financial institutions, administrators and regulators can help combat this menace threatening national security and economy," Anand added in his tweet. (ANI)

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New Delhi, Oct 13 (PTI) Asking a pre-university schoolgirl to take off her hijab at her school gate is an "invasion" of her privacy and dignity, Supreme Court judge Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said on Thursday.

While setting aside the Karnataka High Court verdict refusing to lift the ban on headscarf in educational institutions in the state, Justice Dhulia said under the constitutional scheme, wearing hijab should be simply a "matter of choice".

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A bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia delivered split verdicts on the Karnataka Hijab ban row and referred the matter to the Chief Justice of India for constitution of an appropriate bench to consider the contentious issue.

In his separate 73-page judgement, Justice Dhulia observed that the hurdles and hardships a girl child undergoes in gaining education are many times more than a male child.

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"She is our hope, our future. But it is also a fact, that it is much more difficult for a girl child to get education, as compared to her brother," he said.

"Asking a pre university schoolgirl to take off her hijab at her school gate, is an invasion on her privacy and dignity. It is clearly violative of the Fundamental Right given to her under Article 19(1)(a) and 21 of the Constitution of India," he said, adding, "It is still her Fundamental Right, not a derivative right' as has been described by the high court."

The judge said wearing hijab may or may not be a matter of essential religious practice, but it still is a matter of conscience, belief, and expression.

"If she wants to wear hijab, even inside her class room, she cannot be stopped, if it is worn as a matter of her choice, as it may be the only way her conservative family will permit her to go to school, and in those cases, her hijab is her ticket to education," he said.

Justice Dhulia said whether wearing hijab is an essential religious practice in Islam or not is not essential for the determination of this dispute.

"If the belief is sincere, and it harms no one else, there can be no justifiable reasons for banning hijab in a classroom," he said, adding, "Under our constitutional scheme, wearing a hijab should be simply a matter of choice."

He noted that in any case, as to what constitutes an essential religious practice, in all its complexities, is a matter which is pending consideration before a nine-judge Constitution bench of the apex court and it may not be proper for him to go any further into this aspect.

Justice Dhulia said we live in a democracy and under the rule of law and the laws which govern us must pass muster the Constitution of India.

"Amongst many facets of our Constitution, one is trust. Our Constitution is also a document of trust. It is the trust the minorities have reposed upon the majority," he observed.

The judge noted that fraternity, which is our constitutional value, would require us to be "tolerant", and as some of the advocates would argue to be, reasonably accommodating towards the belief and religious practices of others.

He said the question of diversity and our rich plural culture is important in the context of this case.

Justice Dhulia noted that schools, in particular the pre-university colleges, are the perfect institutions where the children, who are at an impressionable age and are just waking up to the rich diversity of this nation, need to be counselled and guided so they imbibe the constitutional values of tolerance and accommodation towards those who may speak a different language, eat different food, or even wear different clothes.

"This is the time to foster in them sensitivity, empathy and understanding towards different religions, languages and cultures. This is the time when they should learn not to be alarmed by our diversity but to rejoice and celebrate this diversity. This is the time when they must realise that in diversity is our strength," he said.

Justice Dhulia said the unfortunate fallout of the hijab restriction would be that "we would have denied education to a girl child."

He observed that this case has also to be seen in the perspective of the challenges already faced by a girl child in reaching her school.

"The question this court would put before itself is also whether we are making the life of a girl child any better by denying her education merely because she wears a hijab!," he noted in the verdict.

The judge further said, "All the petitioners want is to wear a hijab! Is it too much to ask in a democracy? How is it against public order, morality or health? or even decency or against any other provision of Part III (fundamental rights) of the Constitution."

He noted these questions have not been sufficiently answered in the high court judgement and the state has not given any plausible reasons either in the February 5, 2022 government order or in the counter affidavit before the high court.

The state government's February 5, 2022 order had banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges.

"It does not appeal to my logic or reason as to how a girl child who is wearing a hijab in a classroom is a public order problem or even a law-and-order problem. To the contrary reasonable accommodation in this case would be a sign of a mature society which has learnt to live and adjust with its differences," Justice Dhulia said.

He said one of the best sights in India today is of a girl child leaving for her school in the morning with her school bag on her back.

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New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Thursday asked former Popular Front of India (PFI) chief and founding president of Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) Erappungal Abubacker to approach the trial court first for bail.

The Bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta on Thursday refused to entertain Abubacker's petition seeking bail on medical grounds and said that in an Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) case, remedy for bail lies first before the trial court and then the appeal comes before the Division Bench of the High Court.

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Justice Mendiratta also said that this court does not have the jurisdiction to deal with the matter and therefore no interim orders can be passed.

After the court's refusal, the counsel appearing for Abubacker E. decided to withdraw the petition.

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Abubacker E through his son Amal Thahseen stated that he was a 70-year-old person suffering from numerous serious and rare medical ailments.

Abubacker was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on September 22 following countrywide raids and charged with sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). He, along with others, has been in judicial custody since October 6, the plea stated.

The plea stated that the petitioner was admitted to the hospital on various days during police custody and the trial court rejected the specific requests for the family members to meet the petitioner owing to which the details regarding his medical condition and treatment during detention is also unknown.

Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Akshai Malik, who appeared for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), opposed the petition on the maintainability ground. He submitted that under the NIA Act and the UAPA, the applicant should have moved to the trial court first and then come in for appeal.

The plea also stated that the NIA has not demanded further police custody of the petitioner which establishes that no further information or material is sought to be recovered from him and no purpose exists for prolonging his continuous detention in custody, especially during his deteriorating health condition.

The petitioner has no role or involvement in the alleged crime as he has been under extensive medical treatments, such as biopsy, laparoscopy, chemotherapy cycles etc. since 2019, thus, under no stretch of the imagination can such serious allegations being levelled against him, in the absence of any definitive material or specific allegation, the petition said.

It also stated that the present crime involves numerous FIRs and complaints across India, wherein over 200 arrests have been made to date.

"Hence, there exists no definitive period as to the completion of the investigation and, thus, under critical medical conditions, the petitioner cannot be compelled to languish in custody, which would ultimately prove to be fatal for his life and well-being," the petition said. (ANI)

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New Delhi, Oct 13 (PTI) BJP's Amit Malviya claimed on Thursday that Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot is on the "path of rebellion" from the Congress as he shared a short video of him in which he is seen praising the work of public sector undertaking Coal India and some decisions of Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi.

The video shows the veteran Congress leader addressing an event.

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"Make no mistake. Gehlot is on the path of rebellion. After inviting Gautam Adani, despite Rahul Gandhi's derision, he now heaps fulsome praise on Coal India and minister Pralhad Joshi, for helping Rajasthan at critical times. This is in sharp contrast to Congress's belligerence," BJP's IT department head Malviya claimed.

The three-time Rajasthan chief minister has been a vocal critic of the BJP but he appeared to have strained his ties with the Congress leadership after his loyalist MLAs held a separate meeting in Jaipur in defiance of the party's directive for a meeting of the legislative party.

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It was then believed that Gehlot will contest the Congress presidential poll with the tacit support of the Gandhi family, and a new leader will replace him at the helm in Rajasthan.

However, the turn of events resulted in the party leadership nudging Mallikarjun Kharge to contest the poll, where Shashi Tharoor is also in the fray, with suspense continuing over Gehlot's fate as chief minister. Assembly polls are due in Rajasthan in the second half of 2023.

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Kochi, Oct 13 (PTI) Mohammed Shafi, the prime accused in the sensational human sacrifice case which resulted in the death of two women, will be subjected to a psychological examination, city police commissioner C Nagaraju said on Thursday.

Also, he said a detailed forensic examination will be conducted at the crime scene, including the house of the accused and the adjacent property at Elanthoor village in Pathanamthitta district, where the victims' bodies were buried after being cut into pieces.

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Bhagaval Singh (68), a massage therapist, and his wife Laila (59) were arrested along with Shafi (52), after details of the gruesome murders came out on October 11.

According to the police, Shafi had convinced the couple that human sacrifice would solve their financial woes and bring them prosperity.

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Following this, they allegedly "sacrificed" two women who used to earn their daily bread by selling lottery tickets on streets.

The police commissioner said the victims' bodies were decomposed but a DNA examination will be conducted after collecting samples from their relatives.

"Shafi is a sexual pervert and a sadist with a mindset to cause injury, harm, and death. We will conduct a proper psychological examination on him. An expert doctor from the Thrissur government hospital will conduct his psychological evaluation," Nagaraju told PTI.

On further investigation into the case, he said, "We will thoroughly examine the house, the land where the bodies were buried, and in fact, the whole property. They have cleaned the premises after the murder. So, we need to examine the traces of dry blood from the scene," Nagaraju said.

The officer said Shafi is a history-sheeter with around 10 cases against him in the last 15 years. The cases range from rape of a 75-year-old to simple theft and drunken driving.

"The rape of the 75-year-old woman in 2020 was brutal as he had inflicted severe injuries on her private parts. Similar injuries were made on the latest victims also," Nagaraju said.

Shafi was arrested in that rape case but was on bail after the government had to free up space in prisons during the pandemic, keeping in sync with a government regulation, he added.

The court on Thursday granted 12-day police custody of the three accused for collecting evidence and further investigation into the crime.

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Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], October 13 (ANI): A fire that broke out at the studio of a production house in the Kudghat area of South Kolkata on Thursday morning has been brought under control, an official said.

Thick smoke was seen billowing out, which could be seen from far-off areas after a massive fire broke out in the studio and godown of Eskey movies Thursday morning.

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As many as 10 fire tenders reached the production house- located at 27, Baburam Ghosh road in the Kudghat area, Kolkata- to extinguish the fire.

The wrath of fire turned the huge expensive equipment of the studio of Eskey movies into ashes.

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The fire department was seen firefighting after reaching the spot to tame the flame.

"After hours of fire fighting the blaze has been contained and no casualties have been reported", the fire department said.

The cause of the fire is not clear yet. Police have arrived at the spot to investigate the matter.

Earlier, the same incident was reported from Howrah, West Bengal after a fire broke out in a Howrah garage on October 4.

Upon receiving the information about the blaze in the garage that falls under the Domjur Police Station area, fire tenders rushed to the spot to extinguish the fire.

The blaze, which Prime Facie suggests was triggered by a short circuit, caused extensive damage to the two-wheelers and four-wheelers parked in the garage. (ANI)

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New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI): Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan attacked Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for visiting Dubai amid the alleged case of human sacrifice in the state, alleging that the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) is not taking the investigation seriously.

While talking to ANI, the Union Minister said, "In Kerala, two women were butchered in the name of Black Magic and there is a huge allegation that CPM is trying to hush up such a serious case."

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The BJP leader demanded an explanation from the CM for being abroad and "not" speeding up the enquiry in the case.

"The Chief Minister should have immediately come back to Kerala so that the investigation is speeded up. But, instead of that, he delayed his return. In this way, he actually gave the message that he is not much interested in the enquiry. If he had something really urgent, he should come and explain. The Ministry of External Affairs was not informed about the visit," he said.

Also Read | Meta Again Rejects Allegations Made by The Wire Claiming Them False.

Earlier, the Kerala Police apprehended three persons for allegedly kidnapping and killing two women as part of black magic rituals in Kochi. The three arrested have been identified as Mohammed Shafi, Bhavagal Singh and his wife Laila.

As per the remand report, "For getting economic prosperity, the two accused, Bhagaval Singh and Laila conspired for the crime with the help of prime accused Muhammed Shafi."

According to the report, one of the victim women was cut into 56 pieces by the accused in the 'human sacrifice' case. The remand report further revealed that the accused Muhammad Shafi and the woman accused Laila inserted a knife into the vagina of the victims.

"Then she agreed and went with Shafi to the home of Bhagaval Singh and Laila in the Pathanamthitta district. There, the accused strangled her with a plastic cord around her neck to make her unconscious. After that, Shafi mutilated Padma's private parts using a knife and slit her throat. After that, they chopped her into 56 pieces and put the mutilated body parts into buckets and buried them in a pit," the report detailed.

A day after the alleged human sacrifice case in Kerala came to the fore, Kerala police on Wednesday revealed that the alleged accused of the case possibly ate the flesh of the victims.

In a press meeting, Kochi commissioner CH Nagraju, said that Shafi, the main accused, is a pervert and has a criminal past.

The issue came to the fore on Tuesday as three persons, including one woman, were suspected of luring and killing the woman allegedly as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals, City Police Commissioner CH Nagaraju confirmed earlier on Tuesday.

Police arrested three persons, identified as one Shafi, and the husband-wife pair of Bhagaval Singh and Laila.

The Ernakulam magistrate court on Wednesday remanded all three accused on judicial custody for a 14-day duration which will end on October 26.

Police are also investigating if any sexual exploitation has been done by the prime accused. (ANI)

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Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], October 13 (ANI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the 'New India' takes pride in its sages, culture, traditions, heritage and is strengthening national unity.

Citing Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Dham, Ujjain Corridor's inauguration on Tuesday and Ram Temple in Ayodhya, CM said is keeping the country's ancient identity and traditions alive.

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Yogi was speaking after unveiling the 'Statue of Dignity' of Hindu philosopher and social reformer Ramanujacharya in Ayodhya on Wednesday.

"Our Vedas, Upanishads, and sacred teachings of Indian sages provide a new vision and inspire us towards public welfare," he said.

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Highlighting the spiritual and religious heritage of India, Yogi Adityanath said, "It is a matter of immense pride that after 120 years, the statue of Swami Ramanujacharya (statue of dignity) has been unveiled on the holy land of Lord Shri Rama. India is the land of infinite knowledge and wisdom taking forward the tradition of 'Vedas'. Ramanujacharya Ji's sacred teachings showed us the 'dvait marg' to avoid invaders."

The Chief Minister also urged the people to associate with the traditions of Sanatan Dharm and contribute towards the welfare of all and nation-building to realize the goal of 'Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat'.

"In every era, great souls, thinkers, philosophers, social reformers have been descending on our land to give direction to the country and society while their teachings have inspired generations," he further said. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
China's geospatial industry sees strong growth

13:17, October 13, 2022 By Sun Yahui ( People's Daily

From the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System tens of thousands of kilometers above the ground, to the map applications in our mobile phones, the rapid technological development has made China's geospatial industry one of the most powerful engines driving the country's digital economy, by highly integrated with smart city construction, digital government, health governance and smart lifestyles.

A laser radar system developed by CHC Navigation is exhibited at the 2022 Conference of Chinese Geospatial Industry and Sciences held at the Binhu International Convention and Exhibition Center, Hefei, east China's Anhui province, Aug. 11, 2022. (People's Daily Online/Yuan Bing)

With geospatial technologies, one can easily find available parking space on a mobile phone via satellite navigation, browse the information of all the companies in an office building through 3D scene platforms, and manage underground pipelines with advanced devices that can "see through" the ground surface.

Recently, the 2022 Conference of Chinese Geospatial Industry and Sciences was held in Hefei, east China's Anhui province.

As the highest-level, largest-scale and most influential conference of China's geospatial industry, the event was highlighted by a series of technological advances.

At the conference, Chinese drone giant DJI displayed a dock, which makes drone operations completely automated and unattended. CHC Navigation based in Shanghai presented its latest breakthroughs in long-range laser radar, which made China a step closer to the independent development of high-precision long-range laser radars.

Industry-leading spatial-intelligent infrastructure company Qianxun SI also brought a new technology that helps with the impacts of ionospheric variability on unmanned aerial vehicle surveying, high-precision laser radar ranging and other scenarios.

Photo taken on Dec. 22, 2020 shows an international exhibition center in Deqing Geographic Information Town, Huzhou, east China's Zhejiang province. (People's Daily Online/Ding Junhao)

The Chinese geospatial industry has achieved fruitful results in innovation and shown strong resilience.

According to statistics released by the conference, the total output of China's geospatial industry reached 752.4 billion yuan ($105 billion) in 2021, up 9.2 percent year on year. The compound output growth rate of the industry stood at 11.5 percent in the recent five years and 17.5 percent in the past decade.

The constantly expanding industry is driving employment growth. As of the end of 2021, there were over 164,000 entities engaged in the industry, up 18.5 percent from a year ago. Enterprises accounted for 94.7 percent of these entities.

Around 35,800 entities in the industry were newly registered last year, up 29.2 percent year on year. Besides, nearly 4 million people were working in the industry as of the end of 2021, growing 18.5 percent from a year ago.

Deqing county, Huzhou, east China's Zhejiang province has established a 3D model of its territory that precisely presents its landscape. Based on the model, the county launched a series of digital applications to assist its farming, disaster management, pandemic control and other work.

A 5G-enabled autopilot bus carrying passengers runs on a road for automatic driving testing in Deqing Geographic Information Town, Huzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, June 15, 2019. (People's Daily Online/Xie Shangguo)

In Hefei, geospatial technologies are employed for the ecological conservation of the Chaohu Lake, one of the major freshwater lakes in China. The city has set up a digital platform to share data and trace sources of pollution, which is able to perform real-time monitoring of water quality and volume, and algal bloom on the Chaohu Lake.

Encouraging the development of smart city construction, digital twin and geospatial technologies will create new opportunities for China's geospatial industry.

Xu Guanhua, former Minister of Science and Technology of China and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, noted that massive geospatial data have been generated and stored through basic surveying, satellite remote sensing and major engineering projects launched over the past years.

Making good use of such data will be a key priority for future development, and making these data serve the demand of the country will accelerate the industry's development, Xu said.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming)
New Delhi, October 13: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off Vande Bharat Express from Una Himachal railway station today during his visit to the mountain state. Heralding a new era of comfortable and enhanced rail travel experience, the new Vande Bharat Express is now ready for a commercial run.

Running from Amb Andaura to New Delhi, it will be the fourth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in shorter duration. Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections 2022: PM Narendra Modi To Launch Rs 3,000 Crore 'Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana' Tomorrow.

Talking about the inauguration of Vande Bharat, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said that railway expansion has taken place in Himachal Pradesh due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts and on Thursday, Vande Bharat train will be flagged off from Una to Delhi.

"Himachal Pradesh is a second home for PM Modi. Vande Bharat train will be flagged off from Una to Delhi. Due to PM Modi's efforts, railway expansion has happened in Himachal Pradesh. Bulk Drug Park is also being built," said Thakur.

It accelerates to 100 Km/h in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.This is the fourth Vande Bharat train in the country, the other three being run between New Delhi - Varanasi and New Delhi - Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra and between Gandhinagar and Mumbai. Vande Bharat Express is a new-age train redefining passenger travelling in India.

PM will also dedicate IIIT Una to the nation and lay the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park in Una in a public function. After that, in a public function at Chamba, Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of two hydropower projects and launch Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in Himachal Pradesh, read a press statement from the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday. PM Narendra Modi Promises Airport in Ankleshwar To Aid Economic and Industrial Growth of Bharuch.

Modi will lay the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park at Haroli in Una district, built at the cost of over Rs 1900 crore. "The Park will help reduce dependence on API imports. It is expected to attract investment of around Rs. 10,000 crores and provide employment to more than 20,000 people. It will also give a fillip to economic activities in the region," the statement read.

PM Modi will lay the foundation stone of two hydropower projects - the 48 MW Chanju-III Hydro-electric Project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju Hydro-electric Project. Both these projects will generate over 270 million units of electricity annually and Himachal Pradesh is expected to get annual revenue of around Rs 110 crore from these projects.

Prime Minister will also launch Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in Himachal Pradesh for upgradation of around 3125 km of roads in the state. More than Rs 420 crore has been sanctioned by the Central Government under this phase for the upgradation of 440 kms of roads in 15 border and far-flung blocks of the state.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Huvina Hadagali (K'taka), Oct 13 (PTI) Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday alleged that the previous Congress government in the State was like an ATM (any time money) for its high command, and money from the State was taken in suitcases by that party to fight elections elsewhere.

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He accused Congress president Sonia Gandhi of betrayal, recalling that she had fought and won the Lok Sabha elections from Ballari in 1999 by making false promises, and then giving up the seat in favour of the Gandhi family bastion of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, the other constituency from where she had contested and won that polls that year.

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"They (Cong) allege BJP government here is giving money to its high command. The former Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) is saying such things out of his experience, as he has had the practice of giving money to Congress high command for five years in the past (2013-18). Such a culture doesn't exist in the BJP, if there is such a tradition and history it is in the Congress party and its high command," Bommai said.

Addressing a rally as part of BJP's 'Jana Sankalpa Yatra' here, he said the Congress government in Karnataka was like an ATM for the party high command for five years, and if there were elections elsewhere, money was taken in suitcases from here.

"Looting Karnataka, the then Congress government sent money as tribute offering to its high command, with what morality are they speaking? They should be ashamed. Having involved himself in such a transaction, your State party president (D K Shivakumar) is facing inquiry today. I pity him, he is going through things for trying to protect your (Congress) high command," he added.

Bommai, along with BJP strongman B S Yediyurappa, is on a Statewide tour in the run-up to Assembly polls next year, and the duo is scheduled to cover 52 Assembly segments till December 25.

Noting that the Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi is reaching Ballari on Friday, the Chief Minister, while recalling Sonia Gandhi winning Lok Sabha election from there and then giving it up, said, " After taking votes from people this region, she never turned back, she made false promises and did injustice to you. Now they (Cong) are coming back, shouldn't you question them and give them a message that their false promises and betrayal will not work anymore?"

Recalling that people during 1999 Lok Sabha election had sought all-round development of Ballari region, and that Sonia Gandhi and the Congress, which was then in power, had promised Rs 3,000-crore package, he said, "Where is Rs 3,000 crore? What development? Other than Rs 1,500- crore thermal plant which was for the entire State nothing was done to Ballari...With what face are you coming?"

The Chief Minister at the rally made BJP ticket aspirants of Huvina Hadagali Assembly constituency take a pledge that they would unitedly work for the party's victory, irrespective of whoever among them is fielded as the candidate during 2023 polls.

Reminding that BJP lost the constituency last time as two candidates from the party had contested as rivals, Yediyurppa said based on a survey, ticket would be given this time and whoever contests, workers should unitedly work for his or her victory.

He called on the BJP workers to take up mass public contact programmes from now and inform people about the work by the governments at the Centre and the State, aimed at winning over 150 seats (out of total 224).

Yediyurappa said Rahul Gandhi is doing padyatra in the State in search of an address, as the party has no address across the country.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Srinagar, Oct 13 (PTI) A rally of a group of bikers from Bahrain was flagged-off here on Thursday, with the Tourism Department terming the expedition as a positive sign for Kashmir tourism.

Bahrain Bikers rally to Downtown Srinagar by a group of 18 bikers from Bahrain was flagged off by Secretary Tourism Sarmad Hafeez from Sangarmal here in presence of Director Tourism Kashmir Fazlul Haseeb and President Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI) Sheikh Ashiq.

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The secretary tourism termed the biking expedition of Bahrain Bikers as a positive sign for Kashmir Tourism and said the department and stakeholders are doing lot from a long time which is now showing results on the ground.

He expressed hope the expedition would open gates for many other such activities as Kashmir has much to offer in adventure tourism.

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Hafeez also expressed gratitude to Bahrain Bikers and KCCI for organizing the biking expedition and said the MoU signed between KCCI and Bahrain Small & Medium Enterprises Society (BSMES) in September this year is showing its fruitful results.

The secretary Tourism said Kashmir has a potential to become biking capital of the world.

He said activities like biking expedition would give a positive message to outside world as outside people have certain perceptions about visiting Kashmir.

Kashmir has a potential to become world's best adventure tourism destination. We want to make it hub of adventure tourism and will make Kashmir a dream destination in adventure tourism, he said.

Speaking on the occasion, group leader of Bahrain Bikers, Ali Ansari, praised the hospitality and generosity of Kashmir and its people.

He said they received lot of love and affection from the people wherever they visited in the valley and expressed his gratitude to KCCI for facilitating such a wonderful biking expedition to Kashmir.

Bahrain Bikers trip started from Leh where they visited several places like Nubra, Leh, Kargil and in Kashmir they visited Sonamarg and Pahalgam.

(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, Oct 13 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Thursday delivered a split verdict on a batch of pleas challenging the Karnataka High Court judgement refusing to lift the ban on hijab in educational institutions of the state.

While Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the appeals against the high court verdict, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed them.

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"There is divergence of opinion," Justice Gupta said at the outset while pronouncing the verdict.

In view of the split verdict, the bench directed that the appeals against the high court verdict be placed before the Chief Justice of India for constituting an appropriate larger bench. PTI ABA MNL

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(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Thane, Oct 13 (PTI) The Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC) in Thane district of Maharashtra has announced to increase the ex-gratia of its employees by Rs 900 to take the total amount to Rs 11,000, an official said.

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Municipal commissioner and administrator Vijaykumar Mhasal made the announcement on Wednesday after holding talks with the representatives of the civic workers unions.

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Spokesperson of the civic body Sunil Zalke said the decision will benefit 4,317 employees of the corporation.

A provision of Rs 4 crore was earlier made for the payment of ex-gratia. Now Rs 75 lakh will be required for the additional ex-gratia payment, 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)
San Diego, Oct 13: American Jessica Pegula booked a spot in the quarterfinals of the San Diego Open, and a berth at the WTA Finals at Forth Worth, with a straight-set win against compatriot CoCo Vandeweghe. The No.4 seed Jessica Pegula closed out the night under the lights with a 6-3, 6-1 win over fellow American CoCo Vandeweghe while another American also reached the last eight when 2022 Australian Open finallist Danielle Collins defeated Italy's Martina Trevisan 6-2, 6-4.West Indies' T20I Tour of Pakistan in 2023 Likely to Be Postponed

In her first match of the week, Pegula needed just 69 minutes to defeat her former Top 10-ranked compatriot and won 12 of the last 14 games after falling behind an early break at 2-0. She also made personal history -- the win clinches Pegula's qualification for the singles field at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas which begins on October 31. The victory was also a measure of revenge for U.S. No.1 Pegula, who lost her only prior meeting against Vandeweghe earlier this year in Charleston in three sets.

Pegula said her game plan coming into the rematch was simple, said a report on the WTA Tour website. "When she's on with her serve and her returns, it's really tough. My goal was just to try and attack and put pressure on her serve when I got the chance," Pegula was quoted as saying after her win. "On my serve, I thought I just had to serve smart and be ready for a big return. She's got so much easy power, so sometimes she can put a lot of pressure on you, so I was just trying to focus on those two things."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 13, 2022 03:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Seattle (US), Oct 13 (AP) The Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre announced a USD 710 million gift from the Bezos family, the largest gift the centre has ever received and one of the largest to go to any single cancer research organisation in recent years.

The donation will fund 36 new research labs, the building of a large research facility, investments in clinical trial infrastructure and immunotherapy research over ten years, the centre said on Wednesday.

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Thomas Lynch, president and director of the centre, rebranded this month as Fred Hutch, but widely known as The Hutch, said he worked with Mike and Jackie Bezos, who made the gift, to understand what motivated their giving.

Jackie Bezos is the mother of Amazon found Jeff Bezos, while her husband, Mike, is Jeff Bezos' stepfather. Jeff Bezos, the world's second wealthiest person, stepped down from his role as CEO of Amazon in July 2021.

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Lynch learned the Bezos family deeply valued collaboration in research and treatment.

But don't underestimate the importance of urgency," Lynch said in an interview. "Because I think that's something that I feel passionately about and I know that Mike and Jackie feel passionately about being able to bring cures to patients soon.

The Bezos family has previously given almost USD 68 million to The Hutch's research since 2009, the centre said.

It declined to say whether Mike and Jackie Bezos had given through their foundation or through another entity. A communications firm that previously worked with the Bezos Family Foundation directed requests for comment back to The Hutch.

In a statement, Mike Bezos praised the merger of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle Children's Hospital and UW Medicine earlier this year into a unified adult cancer research centre.

We hope our investment in The Hutch leads to answers for the most pressing medical questions, Bezos said. We also hope this inspires others to join us now in pursuing scientific and medical breakthroughs.

This new donation comes as President Joe Biden has called on the private sector and foundations to join a reignited cancer moonshot and move the US closer to the goal he set in February of cutting US cancer fatalities by 50 per cent over the next 25 years.

The size of the gift and the investments in complementary areas are a testament to the trust that philanthropists like the Bezos family have in the academic community to deliver value back to society, said Peter Kuhn, a cancer researcher and professor at the University of Southern California.

If you take the friction out of the system of how an academic institution like The Hutch can work with its academic partners and commercial partners in both the therapeutic and the diagnostic world, that's how we get acceleration, Kuhn said.

The centre hopes to accelerate the pace of clinical trials, Lynch said, with the aim of reviewing and opening trials within 90 days.

The work researchers and clinicians will be able to do at The Hutch will also benefit patients and researchers elsewhere in the country, said Nilofer S. Azad, an oncology professor at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Centre at Johns Hopkins University.

We can really use scientific knowledge in ways that are practical towards changing patient care, but that does require significant resources, she said.

Fred Hutch, which merged with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance in April, received another major gift in September of USD 78 million from Stuart and Molly Sloan, a sign philanthropic donations to the expanded centre are increasing.

In 2021, it reported that about USD 86.4 million or 8 per cent of its overall revenue of USD 984 million came from philanthropic donations.

Research gives you hope and gives us hope that options might be different for the next patients down the road, Lynch said. (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 Boston, Oct 13 (AP) Prosecutors asked a Texas jury on Wednesday to sentence a woman to death for killing a pregnant woman and stealing her unborn daughter from her womb.

The appeal came as the penalty phase of Taylor Parker's capital murder trial began for the October 2020 murder of Reagan Simmons-Hancock and theft of her unborn baby. The Bowie County jury previously found Parker guilty of capital murder.

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Prosecutor Kelley Crisp told jurors that the evidence would show Parker, 29, faked a pregnancy and repeatedly lied before killing Simmons-Hancock, 21, at the woman's New Boston home on October 9, 2020, to get the infant she claimed to have been carrying. The baby also died.

Parker's attorneys hope to persuade the jury to spare Parker's life and let her serve life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Defense attorney Jeff Harrelson said they would show that Parker was mentally ill.(AP)

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(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], October 13 (ANI): Ahead of 20th National Party Congress which is set to take place in China on October 16, the Organisation for Research on China and Asia (ORCA) held its first Expert Scholars' Dialogue event in New Delhi on Tuesday to interpret and indicate the dynamics and trends which will be influencing the outcomes of the Congress.

The event was attended by more than 50 people and saw the active participation of audience members, comprising fellow China scholars, defence experts and embassy representatives and the opening remarks were delivered by ORCA's director, Eerishika Pankaj, the official statement of ORCA's Expert Scholars' Dialogue Event said.

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The event was chaired by two experts in the field of China studies, Dr Bali Deepak and Dr Jagannath Panda, who exchanged views on the upcoming National Party Congress (NPC) in China.

The theme of the dialogue event was "The 20th National Party Congress: Xi Jinping's Political Future and Policy Implications for China".

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The two field experts introduced the upcoming Party Congress of China by underlining several important developments in the build-up to the Congress on October 16.

According to Dr Panda and Dr Deepak, the National Party Congress is set to make changes that will have wide-ranging implications for China's economic and foreign policy. These events in the build-up of the quinquennial Congress are necessary to interpret and indicate the dynamics and trends influencing the outcomes of the Congress, the press release stated.

On the subject of factions in the Party, Dr Deepak detailed the ties of Party members to the financial world in Shanghai, which has become a target of Xi's anti-corruption campaign and a sign that Xi would like to limit the influence of Party elders and will, in turn, affect China's finance and business sectors.

The importance of State-Owned-Enterprises (SOEs) and private companies involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and other such foreign policy and overseas development initiatives were also discussed during the event.

Xi's emphasis on politics over economics has suffocated SOEs which have less flexibility and manoeuvrability in their operations and policy implementation. SOEs have been a major driver of growth and policy change for decades in China but the current political culture in China inhibits innovation by these organisations, the official statement of ORCA's Expert Scholars' Dialogue Event stated.

Furthermore, the speakers also discussed other topics like the shortcomings of China's poverty alleviation campaign, the scope of foreign policy engagements with India and other powers and growing economic inequalities in China.

The closing remarks were delivered by Rahul Karan, Research Associate, ORCA, the release added. (ANI)

(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], October 13 (ANI): India and Portugal held the third round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOCs) in Lisbon where the two sides reviewed bilateral relations and discussed cooperation in defence, cultural and people-to-people relations among others.

The consultations were co-chaired by Sanjay Verma, Secretary (West) in MEA and envoy Rui Vinhas, Director General for Foreign Policy in Portugal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Diplomat Verma also called on Francisco Andre, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation in Portugal, a Ministry of External Affairs press release read.

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The two sides carried out a comprehensive review of bilateral relations with a focus on issues like high-level political engagements, implementation of migration and mobility agreement, deepening of trade and economic ties and explored new and existing co-operation avenues in science and technology, defence, cultural and people-to-people relations, etc.

The two sides also exchanged views on global and regional issues of common interest and agreed to work closely in multilateral cooperation, including at the UN, the Communidade dos Paises da Lingua Portuguesa (CPLP) and at the EU level to follow up on the outcomes of the India-EU Leaders' Summit held in Porto in May 2021.

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Both sides also agreed to work in new fields such as food sustainability, mutual recognition of educational qualifications, air connectivity, visa waivers and climate action. Secretary (West) also had substantive discussions with the Executive Secretary of CPLP, Zacarias da Costa to discuss cooperation with Lusophone countries.

The Indian side reiterated the invitation for the participation of CPLP countries in the Lusophone Festival proposed to be held at Goa in December 2022. India became an observer of the CPLP in July 2021, the press release added.

Secretary (West) also interacted with other officials, academicians, business representatives and members of the Indo-Portuguese community at a reception organised by the Mission where Millets based recipes were served to generate awareness about the International Year of Millets 2023 and food sustainability.

The Indian delegation earlier participated in the Europe-India Strategic Dialogue, a Track 1.5 initiative of Anant-Aspen Centre; Institut Montaigne, Paris and Fundacao Oriente, Lisboa; which touched upon issues such as free trade, energy, connectivity and regional security. Secretary (West) also interacted with Foreign Minister Joao Cravinho during a round table discussion organised by Fundacao Oriente.

India and Portugal share historic and friendly bilateral relations with shared values of democracy and sustainable development, strengthened by frequent high-level exchanges. Both sides agreed to hold the next round of Consultations at a mutually convenient date in New 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)
Mexico City, Oct 12 (AP) A man in central Mexico has been charged with crimes against animals after he allegedly entered a pen at a nature park with his dogs, which proceeded to kill 32 deer at the facility.

Prosecutors in Puebla state said Wednesday the man entered the holding pen at the Volcanic Park in June with several dogs of various breeds and allowed or encouraged them to bite the deer to death.

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The suspect was identified only by his first name, in keeping with Mexican law.

Puebla state law prohibits animal cruelty, neglect or mistreatment and establishes prison sentences of four to eight years if the crimes result in the death of the animal.

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It was not clear how the suspect got into the pen at the privately operated adventure and nature park located on the slopes of the Pico de Orizaba volcano, Mexico's highest mountain.

The park advertises the deer, zip-lines and various rides among its attractions. (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 Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI): US Charge d'Affaires in India Patricia A. Lacina visited Bhutan from September 26 to October 1 and joined Minister of Agriculture and Forests Lyonpo Yeshey Penjor in a ceremonial event to commemorate years of successful bilateral partnership in health leading up to and combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

In partnership with COVAX and the Bhutan Foundation, the United States has provided more than 680,000 vaccine doses to Bhutan, including 51,480 doses of Pfizer vaccines that arrived on September 18, 2022.

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A US Embassy press release said CDA Lacina also met Health Minister Lyonpo Dechen Wangmo to discuss bilateral cooperation on COVID-19 and congratulated her for the exhaustive efforts made by Bhutan to combat the pandemic.

CDA Lacina said that Bhutan stands as a model on global health issues, a fact the whole world recognizes.

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"When the COVID pandemic struck, the government implemented a detailed plan to protect the country's front-line health workers and safeguard its citizens. The United States is proud to have supported Bhutan in this remarkable achievement, through US government-provided vaccines and other assistance and through more than a decade of wide-ranging health cooperation," Lacina said.

For over a decade, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has collaborated with the Royal Center for Disease Control (RCDC) of Bhutan's Ministry of Health, building capacity for influenza surveillance, pandemic preparedness, and influenza vaccine introduction, which was leveraged for COVID-19 response, the press release added.

Since the pandemic began, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and other US government agencies have worked closely with Bhutan, bolstering Bhutan's pandemic preparedness and response. USAID has also supported livelihood interventions for Bhutanese, focusing on women and youth, who experienced economic hardship during the pandemic. Over the past 20 years, the United States has provided USD 9 million in foreign assistance to Bhutan.

The US government is partnering with Bhutan to prioritize COVID-19 relief and support to livelihoods, clean energy, disaster resilience, and in the recent past, forestry management, biodiversity conservation, and water security. (ANI)

(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, October 13: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday arrested Chhattisgarh-based IAS Sameer Vishnoi, Sunil Agarwal of Indramani Group and Laxmikant Tiwari, uncle of absconding accused Suryakant Tiwari in connection with a Prevention of Money Laundering case pertaining to disproportionate assets.

IAS Ranu Sahu IAS, was reportedly missing and she will have to appear before the ED, said sources. Vishnoi was on Wednesday questioned by the ED officials regarding the alleged commission of Rs 25 per tonne coal unearthed from the mines. Delhi Excise Policy Scam: ED Seizes Rs 1 Crore From Businessmans House.

The ED conducted raids at locations in Chhattisgarh for two consecutive days and recovered around Rs 4 crore. The Income Tax had earlier written a letter to the Chhattisgarh government in which it was alleged that a few officials very close to Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel were involved in getting commission/bribe from coal and other businessmen. However, no action was taken by the state government in this respect. Delhi Liquor Policy Row: Time of Officers Being Wasted for Dirty Politics, Says CM Arvind Kejriwal on CBI and ED Raids.

According to the information, IAS J.P. Maurya and Ranu Sahu's premises were among those raided by the central anti-money laundering agency.

The ED team also searched the premises of three IPS officials. Earlier, when the raids were being conducted, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel had termed it as "political raids".

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 13, 2022 12:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Mumbai, October 13: In its continued crackdown on smuggling, the Customs Department seized 15 kgs gold and foreign currencies of Rs 22 lakh in 24 hours, for which seven passengers have been arrested, an official said here on Thursday.

The haul by Mumbai Airport Customs was carried out during October 11-12 at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, as part of the intensified drive to catch gold and foreign currency smugglers. Mumbai Airport Witnesses Chaos, Long Queues Due to Sudden Rush of Passengers (See Pics and Video).

See Photos:

Mumbai Airport Customs seized 15 kg of gold valued at Rs 7.87 crores on October 11 and 12 in four cases and foreign currency worth Rs 22 lakh in two different cases. Seven passengers were arrested: Customs pic.twitter.com/DvD4OdewpP  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

An Indian national, who flew from Dubai to Mumbai by an Emirates flight EK-500, was found with 9.9 kgs gold worth Rs 5.20 crore, hidden in a specially designed chest belt with nine pockets and wrapped around his chest and shoulder.

The accused revealed that the gold was handed over to him at Dubai by two Sudanese nationals who have also been nabbed and the trio has been sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

An Indian arriving from Chennai by an IndiGo flight 6E-6149, which had earlier arrived from Sharjah, was detected carrying 1.88 kgs gold dust worth nearly Rs one crore, concealed in his underwear. Navi Mumbai International Airport Should Be Completed by 2024, Says Ajit Pawar.

In another detection, the Customs sleuths retrieved 1.068 kg and 1.185 kgs gold dust - totally worth over Rs 1.10 crore - in packets hidden in the underwear of two passengers, arriving here from Jeddah by a Saudia flight SV-772.

A Sudanese national, who landed here by an Emirates flight EK-504 from Dubai, was nabbed with gold dust of 973 gms in wax in eggs form, worth Rs 51 lakh, concealed in his rectum.

Besides, the Customs nabbed two Indians, who were about to board a SpiceJet flight SG-13 to Dubai, each carrying Dh 50,000 (Rs 11.20 lakh) and Dh 45,000 (Rs 10.08 lakh), concealed in round cavity of biscuits stuffed in their pockets, after they had crossed the Customs declaration counter.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 13, 2022 12:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Varanasi, October 13: A 70-year-old man was beaten to death when he intervened in a drunken brawl outside his house in the Varanasi's Jaiprakash Nagar locality.

Varanasi Police Commissioner A. Satish Ganesh said the incident took place at around 11.30 p.m. on Wednesday night when the victim, identified as Pashupati Singh, and his son Rajendra Singh, who owns a beer shop in the area, came out of the house to intervene in a drunken brawl between two groups of locals. UP Shocker: With No Stretcher Available, Man Dies Outside Hospital in Shahjahanpur, Congress Tweets Video.

The situation took an ugly turn when both groups began to assault Rajendra for intervening. Pashupati saw his son being attacked and rushed to rescue him.

One of the inebriated members of the group hit Pashupati on the head with a stick. The elderly man died on the spot while the miscreants fled leaving behind an injured Rajendra. Madhya Pradesh Shocker: Woman Pulled Out of House in Daylight, Forced To Parade Half-Naked in Satna; Three Arrested.

The father and son were rushed to a hospital where doctors pronounced Pashupati dead while Rajendra is being treated for multiple injuries. The Police Commissioner said that the matter was under investigation and the accused would be arrested soon.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 13, 2022 08:51 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
"The tiger had killed 13 persons - six in Wadsa, four in Bhandara district and three in Brahmapuri forest range in Chandrapur district - from December last year," the official said, adding that the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Nagpur had, in a meeting on October 4, directed that this "conflict tiger" be captured.
The canine was a highly trained, ferocious, and committed. Had been trained to locate and bring down terrorists, they added. Zoom was injured in the encounter in Tangpawa area of the south Kashmir district on Monday. Security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in the Tangpawa area after receiving specific input about the presence of terrorists there.
Lebanese President #MichelAoun (@General_Aoun) said that Syrian refugees will start returning to their home country by the end of next week. pic.twitter.com/ZFfbuGjuvc IANS (@ians_india) October 13, 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.)
Nepal PM Sher Bahadur Deuba dismisses 4 ministers representing Janata Samajbadi Party from cabinet: President Office



Deuba made the decision after Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) made alliance with opposition for upcoming elections. The vacant ministries now will fall under Deuba pic.twitter.com/Dw2UaJE4uv ANI (@ANI) October 13, 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.)
New York Governor Kathy Hochul says President Biden has ignored her repeated requests for help with the growing U.S. migrant problem, which she says is caused by the large number of migrants coming to New York City. However, she did not address whether the president's open-border immigration policies were at fault, New York Post reported.

"We really are looking for a federal response to this - to take ownership of a crisis, and we'll be there to help, but this belongs to the federal government," Hochul told reporters in Manhattan.

In the past few weeks, 18,600 asylum seekers have come to New York City, overwhelming the schools in all five boroughs.

Mayor Eric Adams has declared an emergency and said that "every community" should expect migrants since the city's homeless shelters have reached record numbers.

Asylum seekers who want to stay in the U.S. legally can do so while their cases are being decided.

"We want the federal government to see that this is a humanitarian crisis," Hochul said.

READ NEXT: US Migrant Crisis: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Follows Ron DeSantis, Sends 2 Buses of Migrants to Kamala Harris' Residence

New York City Shelters Are Now at Capacity Due to U.S. Migrant Problem

Adams told residents Tuesday that shelters for migrants will be built in "every community." He stressed that the shelters in the city are now full.

Adams announced a state of emergency in response to the humanitarian crisis, claiming that the city needed $1 billion in federal money to deal with the flood of migrants.

Over the weekend, about 2,000 Latin American asylum applicants landed in New York City.

According to Daily Mail, an estimated 700,000 unauthorized immigrants were in the city before the recent 20,000 that were brought in.

From October 2021 to August 2022, Customs and Border Patrol reported 2.15 million migrant interactions for the first time. The number has never been more than 2 million for a whole fiscal year.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul Says Us Migrant Problem in NYC Needs "Federal Solution"

Gov. Kathy Hochul argued that the state can only do so much in response to the busloads of thousands of migrants coming from border states and urged the Biden administration to offer a "federal solution."

During an interview with Bloomberg Television's David Westin, Hochul said she had raised the issue with the White House.

"Let's look at federal facilities, federal staff to help supplement the city," she said.

Hochul also claimed that she has been working with New York City "almost hourly" since the migrants started showing there to ensure that the issue does not "get out of control."

Bloomberg noted that Hochul is currently up in the polls against her Republican rival, U.S. Representative Lee Zeldin, for governor in November's general election.

In the most recent Siena College survey, Hochul is ahead with 54% to Zeldin's 37%, but she is spending millions of dollars on advertising to fend off Zeldin.

Hochul, a native of Buffalo, New York, was appointed governor last year when Andrew Cuomo resigned due to alleged sexual harassment.

The state's economic picture was brighter back then, tax collections were better than expected, and New York passed its largest-ever state spending plan. Hochul and other government officials are bracing for a downturn.

READ MORE: Tim Ryan Rakes Over $17M in Campaign Donations, Some Come From Drug Companies in Opioid Crisis

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Written by: Bert Hoover

Watch: Gov. Kathy Hochul addresses migrants being bused into NYC from Texas - From CBS New York
The governments of Mexico and the United States have agreed to help out and accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants as they flee the country under the regime of Nicolas Maduro. The move takes inspiration from how Ukrainian refugees were admitted following the Russian invasion.

The United States will accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants at U.S. airports, while Mexico will take back Venezuelans who come to the U.S. illegally over land. This decision comes as more and more Venezuelans flee their country.

The policy will be effective immediately, with Venezuelans who illegally enter Mexico or Panama after Wednesday being deemed ineligible to come to the U.S. under the offer. According to the Associated Press, Venezuelans who try to cross the border and seek asylum will be immediately returned to Mexico under Title 42, the pandemic rule that suspends asylum rights in the U.S. to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

U.S. and Mexico Taking Inspiration from Ukraine on Venezuelan Migrant Issue

The two countries are adopting a plan based on the "Uniting for Ukraine" program, which was implemented when Russia invaded the Eastern European country last February. Under that plan, Ukrainians could enter the United States by securing a sponsor and applying from outside the country, according to Reuters.

The decision comes as Venezuelan migrants cross over Guatemala and Honduras and into Mexico to flee the country. They all plan to enter the United States and have a better life there. With the increase in the influx of Venezuelan migrants, they have now become the second largest nationality arriving at the U.S. border, with Mexicans still being the largest.

With this plan, the Department of Homeland Security stated that it will depend on Mexico "keeping in place its independent but parallel effort" in taking back the Venezuelans who cross the border illegally.

"These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way," said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. He also warned that Venezuelans who illegally cross the southern border of the United States will not be accepted and will be returned to Mexico. He also stated that they will be ineligible for this process in the future.

READ NEXT: Ron DeSantis in Legal Trouble: Martha's Vineyard Migrants File Class-Action Lawsuit While Bexar County Sheriff Investigating Governor's Actions in Flying Migrants to Massachusetts

How Can Venezuelans Qualify for the Program?

According to Spectrum News-1, the plan aims to address the unusual number of Venezuelans crossing over to the United States by land. They usually undertake perilous journeys to reach the U.S.-Mexico border. It hopes this could limit the number of Venezuelans at the southern border.

In order to qualify for the program, a Venezuelan citizen must find a person or organization based in the United States to support their request. They then must enter the United States by air. If they illegally had crossed over Mexico or Panama by October 12, they will be deemed ineligible for the program.

The Mexican government also stated that the United States will provide an additional 65,000 temporary visas to migrants for non-agricultural jobs. Around 20,000 of these jobs will be allocated to Central Americans and Haitians.

READ MORE: Ron DeSantis Threatened to Send Plane Full of Migrants to Joe Biden's Home, But It Never Appeared: What Happened?

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: White House considers new program for Venezuelan migrants - WPLG Local 10
A former Donald Trump employee has told Federal Bureau of Investigation agents about moving boxes of Mar-a-Lago documents on the order of the former president, according to people familiar with the probe.

The Washington Post reported that the witness account with the security camera footage can present key evidence of Trump's behavior as investigators sought the return of classified documents.

Sources noted that FBI agents have collected witness accounts stating that Trump told people to move boxes to his residence at Mar-a-Lago after his advisers received a subpoena in May for any classified documents they still possess.

The people that have knowledge of the investigation spoke on the condition of anonymity. Their description has been corroborated by the security-camera footage.

Sources said that the Trump employee was working at Mar-a-Lago and is currently cooperating with the Justice Department.

The same Trump employee has also been interviewed multiple times by federal agents.

READ NEXT: Donald Trump Net Worth 2022: Forbes Releases New Estimate of Former President's Wealth Amid New York Business Fraud Case

Donald Trump Employee on Mar-a-Lago Documents

The Trump employee initially denied handling the Mar-a-Lago documents, which were classified as sensitive. However, following conversations revealed that they moved boxes of Mar-a-Lago documents at Trump's request.

A Trump spokesperson has released a statement saying that U.S. President Joe Biden's administration had "weaponized law enforcement," as reported by The Guardian.

Multiple witnesses have told the FBI that they tried to convince Trump to cooperate with the National Archives and Records Administration, as well as the Justice Department.

One witness said that Trump was angry after a House Oversight Committee investigation was started, telling aides that they had "screwed up."

One aide who spoke to Trump claimed that the former president said that "they're my documents."

Aside from the investigation on Trump's handling of classified documents, the former president also faces a civil lawsuit filed against him and his three adult children by New York's Attorney General Letitia James.

Donald Trump's Legal Cases

The FBI seized the Mar-a-Lago documents in the former president's Florida residence, with about 100 documents that were marked classified.

Investigators found the materials stored in various locations of the Mar-a-Lago property. Business Insider noted that some of these documents were found inside a closet in Trump's office and in a storage area of a basement.

Meanwhile, the civil lawsuit filed by James is focused on Trump's financial statements, which reflected "a pattern of fraud." James said in her filing that the Trump Organization's business practices were "fraudulent or misleading."

Trump is also under investigation for the January 6 riot that took place at Capitol Hill. A House committee is reviewing the role the former president and his allies may have played, according to The New York Times report. More than a dozen of former federal prosecutors are involved in the January 6 inquiry.

Trump is also involved in a Georgia Criminal Inquiry, wherein Fulton County district Attorney Fani T. Willis is looking if the former president interfered with the 2020 presidential election.

READ MORE: Donald Trump Admits He Didn't Win Presidential Election 2020 During Interview With Presidential Historians

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Trump lawyer speaks with federal investigators in Mar-a-Lago case, report says - from CBS News


Senior U.S. officials said Wednesday that the U.S. government would help Haiti with security and humanitarian aid.

Moreover, they also promised to pull the visas of current and former members of the Haitian government who had ties to criminal groups, Associated Press reported.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as a U.S. delegation arrived in the Caribbean country immobilized by gangs and antigovernment protests and facing severe water, fuel, and other supply shortages.

The U.S. officials would not say which Haitian officials would have their visas taken away or how many. They also noted that the move also extends to their immediate families.

Also, U.S. officials say that the government is working with Mexico on a U.N. resolution that would suggest specific punishments and other solutions to Haiti's problems.

The officials did not want to talk about how the help would be distributed, but they did say that the U.S. Coast Guard would send out a large cutter at the request of the local authorities.

In response to the cholera outbreak, they only said that bleach, water jugs, and oral rehydration salts would be sent, but they did not say when, how, or what kind of security and humanitarian help will be sent.

READ NEXT: Haiti Economy Appears Close to Collapse as Violence Soars, Nation at Breaking Point

Cholera Problem in Haiti Increases

Authorities in Haiti had reported 18 deaths and over 260 suspected cholera cases in Port-au-Prince and adjacent areas as of Sunday.

"Cholera has arrived amid serious ongoing social and political unrest," said Dr. Carissa Etienne, director of the Pan American Health Organization.

Etienne also said the crisis in Haiti complicates their attempts to provide humanitarian assistance and respond to the cholera problem.

She warned on Wednesday that the number of cases is probably much higher because most of them are in areas where street violence and gang activity are getting worse, ABC News noted.

The U.S. assistant secretary of state for the Western Hemisphere, Brian Nichols, arrived in Haiti on Wednesday to meet with politicians and civil society leaders, including Prime Minister Ariel Henry and a powerful group pushing for a two-year transitional government and resisted Henry's request for foreign troops.

Nichols was accompanied by senior White House advisers, the military deputy commander of the US Southern Command, and other officials.

The trip happens a few days after Henry asks for foreign troops to be sent immediately to help with security.

Gangs have blocked off a large gas station, and protests against Henry have worsened the situation.

"The delegation will assess how the U.S. government can continue to provide various forms of assistance and promote accountability for those responsible for criminal acts," the U.S. State Department said.

Canada Is 'Carefully Considering' Pleas From Haiti

As Haiti quickly falls into chaos, a high-ranking Haitian official has asked Canada and the U.S. to put together a strike force to fight the gangs that are causing the humanitarian crisis.

Haiti's ambassador to the U.S. said the two countries should take the lead in fighting Haitian gangs that have restricted access to a major fuel facility, CBC reported.

"We wish to see our neighbours like the United States, like Canada, take the lead and move fast," said Bocchit Edmond about providing security assistance.

He also said that Henry is under a serious threat and that another head of state could be assassinated in Haiti if nothing is done fast, noting Jovenel Moise assassination in 2021.

Canada's only statement to date regarding the appeal of foreign assistance to Haiti is that it is "carefully considering" it in consultation with "Haitian authorities and our international partners."

READ MORE: Haiti: Gang Kills and Burns Former Senator and Nephew

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Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: U.N. Calls For "Rapid Action Force" To Haiti - From CBS Miami
A member of the far-right extremist group Oath Keepers testified against its founder Stewart Rhodes and four associates on Wednesday.

Terry Cummings revealed that the group had a massive cache of weapons stashed in a Virginia hotel room. Rhodes and other members of the extremist group were on trial for seditious conspiracy, though several members were cooperating with the government in the case against its leaders.

One of those was Cummings, who testified that he contributed to the group's so-called quick reaction force they had staged at the hotel outside of Washington in case they needed weapons.

According to the Associated Press, Cummings also showed the jury an AR-15 firearm and an orange box for ammunition that he contributed.

"I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military," said Cummings, a combat veteran who joined the Oath Keepers in Florida two years ago.

Cummings was the first Oath Keepers member present during the January 6 Capitol insurrection to testify during the trial.

He told the jury that he traveled to Washington on January 6 with other Oath Keepers to be part of a VIP security detail for former President Donald Trump's rally at the White House Ellipse before the riot.

He noted that he saw it as a chance to express his First Amendment rights and personally see a president speak, which he had never experienced yet. He said he thought the weapon was more of a "show of force" and was not intended to be used offensively.

Cummings noted that he and fellow Oath Keepers kept the weapons in the hotel room in Virginia because they knew that bringing them to Washington D.C. would be illegal.

READ NEXT: House Passes Bill Reforming Election Law to Prevent Another January 6 Insurrection

Oath Keepers Ready to Hand Out Weapons to Extremists During January 6

The Justice Department alleged that the stockpile held in the Virginia hotel was to aid in an armed rebellion against the government and stop the peaceful transfer of power from Donald Trump to President-elect Joe Biden.

Prosecutors said during the trial that teams of Oath Keepers guarded the arsenal and were prepared to hand them out to extremists in the capital if needed.

This weapons cache was used as the centerpiece for the DOJ's case against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and co-defendants Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, and Thomas Caldwell.

According to CBS News, they are on trial for multiple felony charges. The most serious of these charges is seditious conspiracy, and all four have pleaded "not guilty" to this charge.

Prosecution Reveals Encrypted Signal Messages Between Stewart Rhodes and Regional Oath Keepers Leaders

According to Politico, DOJ prosecutors revealed several encrypted signal messages between Stewart Rhodes and the Oath Keepers' regional leaders as they organized their plans for January 6.

Those messages showed that their goal was to prevent Joe Biden from taking office, with Trump invoking the Insurrection Act, which the group believes would allow them to stop Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential elections.

One message, which Georgia Oath Keeper Brian Ulrich sent on December 20, 2020, said, "Trump acts now maybe a few hundred radicals die trying to burn down cities." He then added, "Trump sits on his hands, Biden wins, millions die resisting the death of the 1st and 2nd amendment."

Ulrich has pleaded guilty to his seditious conspiracy charge, though Rhodes and his associates have continued to assert their innocence.

They claimed that the trip was all about providing security to VIP attendees of Trump's speech at the Ellipse. They also argued that they never managed to deploy those weapons in Washington.

READ MORE: January 6: Dominican Rebublic-born Immigrant Capitol Police Officer Dealing With Pain After Capitol Insurrection

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Oath Keepers 'Seditious Conspiracy' Trial Continues - From 23 ABC News KERO
A Treasury Department watchdog is investigating if Florida Governor Ron DeSantis used COVID-19 relief funding to pay for migrants' transport to Martha's Vineyard.

In a letter obtained by ABC News, the department's inspector general office said it has audit work "planned" on DeSantis' recent transport of undocumented migrants to Massachusetts, among other places.

The letter was sent in response to Massachusetts congressional members' request that the Treasury should review the Republican governor's compliance with requirements placed on the use of COVID-19 relief funds. The COVID-19 relief funds were created through the CARES Act and the Local Fiscal Recovery Fund under the American Rescue Plan Act.

Richard K. Delmar, Treasury Department's deputy inspector general, said in the letter that they have already sought information from the state of Florida about the appropriate use of the fund. The letter was sent to Senator Edward J. Markey and five Massachusetts Democratic House members.

DeSantis Communications Director Taryn Fenske said the Florida Office of Police and Budget spoke with the Treasury inspector general's office "weeks ago" regarding the use of interest on the COVID-19 relief funds.

READ NEXT: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Warns More Migrants Be Sent to Martha's Vineyard; Massachusetts Seeks Human Trafficking Probe Against Governor

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' Use of Relief Funds

This year, the Florida legislature allotted $12 million for a state program to transport undocumented migrants to "sanctuary destinations."

The New York Times reported that the program was funded with interest generated from the $8.8 billion in aid that the state had been provided through the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan of 2021.

Taryn Fenske noted that "reviews by Treasury are typical." Despite the Treasury Department inquiry, the Times reported that Florida's use of the relief funds may be allowed Treasury guidelines.

The department's guidance noted that state and local governments can place funds in "interest-bearing accounts," adding that the funds "are not limited to using that interest for eligible uses." Migrants from Texas and Arizona have also been sent to other liberal states such as New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

Migrants in Florida Sent to Martha's Vineyard

A civil right law firm filed a federal class action lawsuit against Ron DeSantis and others last month for sending around 50 immigrants from San Antonio, Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts without resources in place.

Alianza Americas' Executive Director Oscar Chacon noted that DeSantis used the migrants to launch a "hate-filled agenda." In a statement, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said they were probing whether the migrants were victims of crimes.

DeSantis slammed the investigation, saying the probe was an "overreaction," NPR reported. On Sean Hannity's show on Fox News, he said the migrants chose to go to Martha's Vineyard voluntarily.

Taryn Fenske then scrutinized activists and accused them of being "opportunistic" while using undocumented migrants "for political theater."

The migrants flown to Massachusetts were reportedly taken to a military base to receive shelter and humanitarian support. The White House, migrants' advocates, and Democratic officials had denounced DeSantis' move.

READ MORE: Texas, Arizona Keep Sending Buses of Migrants to Washington; DC Mayor Devotes $10 Million to Help

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Treasury Department Looking Into DeSantis' Migrant Flights - From WPLG Local 10
King Charles III is displaying a collection of sentimental family photos in his office, which includes a wedding photo of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

U.S. Magazine reported that King Charles met with U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss on Thursday at Buckingham Palace. A video shared on Twitter by ITV's Lizzie Robinson showed Truss doing a curtsy before shaking the king's hands and a few pictures displayed in the monarch's office.

One of the pictures is a portrait of Harry and Meghan from their royal wedding in 2018, surrounded by their family. Photographer Alexi Lubomirski took the wedding photo of the two at Windsor Castle after their wedding ceremony at St. George's Chapel.

Members of the family surrounded the Sussex couple, with Queen Elizabeth seated beside the bride and groom next to Prince Philip. According to People, King Charles and Camilla were standing behind the late royal couple.

Markle's mother, Doria Ragland, was beside her daughter while Kate Middleton was sitting with Princess Charlotte on her lap, and Prince William posed behind them.

READ NEXT: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Are 'D-Listers' and 'Poor' for Hollywood Life, Royal Biographer Says

King Charles III Coronation

King Charles III's coronation date will reportedly take place at Westminster Abbey on May 6, 2023. It coincides with the fourth birthday of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's son, Archie. Buckingham Palace announced it.

According to MARCA, many have noticed the coincidence between the king's coronation and his grandson's fourth birthday. A Twitter user said: Imagine you choose your grandchild's birthday for your coronation and... He is trending in your country, NOT YOU."

A rift between the Duke of Sussex and his family emerged after he and his wife decided to step down from their royal duties in January 2020. They then left the U.K., which has since started tensions between the royal family and the Sussexes. Since the queen's death, the Sussex couple's children, Archie and Lilibet, remain without royal titles.

Prince Harry Memoir

The Independent reported that King Charles III is waiting for Prince Harry's memoir to be released before he announces whether Archie and Lilibet will inherit titles.

A new book entitled "The New Royals" by Vanity Fair's royal correspondent Katie Nicholl said that Charles wants to read his son's bombshell memoir.

Nicholl noted that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's two children inherited the right to be an HRH, with Archie a prince and Lilibet a princess. However, the royal correspondent said Archie and Lilibet's royal titles were not updated on the royal family's website.

The king was reportedly "reluctant" to make any title changes in general. Once Charles becomes King, the Sussex children will fall into the 1917 Letters Patent, which means that all grandchildren of the monarch can inherit their respective Royal Highness titles.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will ultimately decide if their children will use the titles. Another royal correspondent, Victoria Arbiter, said it is still unknown whether the king's grandchildren's titles will be official or not.

READ MORE: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Opt Not to Hold Daughter Lilibet's Christening in the U.K. As It's Likely Be in California: Royal Sources

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: King Charles Has Photo of Meghan Markle & Prince Harry on Display at Palace Meeting - From Access
Army officials in Mexico believe that they have the possible location of Ovidio Guzman Lopez, the son of Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera, after they intercepted communications between members of the said cartel.

According to Borderland Beat, documents leaked by "Guacamaya" hackers revealed that Mexico's Ministry of Defense (SEDENA), with the help of U.S. authorities, intercepted radio conversations between members of the Sinaloa Cartel, who spoke about El Chapo's son.

In the conversations, Ovidio was referred to as "the Old Man" and "the Mouse." Members of the Sinaloa Cartel located in the Sierra de Sinaloa were discussing setting up a meeting with El Chapo's son. At first, the radio voice, identified only as "UIM1," asked for "the Old Man," to which "UIM2" replied that he would talk to his boss to see if they could meet.

The SEDENA documents revealed that the location of the Sinaloa Cartel members in the conversations exercised control over the Sierra de Sinaloa, where Ovidio could also reportedly be found. A second intercepted communication on August 9 noted that one of the persons taking part in the conversation endorsed his loyalty to his boss.

The leaked documents showed that "UIM1" told "UIM2" that he and the boss "El Raton" had his loyalty. Ovidio has been commonly known as "El Raton" or "El Nuevo Raton" for years.

READ NEXT: Mexico: Government Hack Reveals How Mexican Military Sold Weapons, Information to Mexican Drug Cartels

New Details to Capture El Chapo's Son, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, Emerge After Hackers Accessed Mexico's Defense Ministry Data

A group of hackers, calling themselves "Guacamaya," managed to gain access to Mexico's Ministry of Defense data. They managed to steal at least six terabytes of files from SEDENA's servers, which included confidential emails, documents, and videos.

Some of the confidential documents revealed new details about the operation known as "Culiacanazo," which was an operation to capture Ovidio Guzman Lopez.

The operation was reportedly carried out to fulfill an arrest warrant issued by the Federal Court of the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C., on April 2, 2018, "for crimes of organized crime for the purpose of stockpiling and trafficking weapons, kidnapping, collection of flat and crimes against health."

According to the hacked documents that summarized what happened, the operation reportedly started at 3:15 p.m. in Culiacan city in Sinaloa state on October 17, 2019. The Army managed to capture Ovidio, but members of the Sinaloa Cartel loyal to El Chapo's sons launched attacks all over the city.

Two minutes later, or at 3:17 p.m., the security forces asked Ovidio "to persuade his brothers" to stop the attack to prevent more bloodshed. The information showed that Ovidio was able to talk to his brother Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and asked him to order the cessation of the attacks.

However, his brother responded with a refusal and made threats against the military personnel and their families. Because of this, the president reportedly "folded his hands before the Sinaloa Cartel" after a few hours.

The military report noted that "at 7:30 p.m.," the Army received the order from President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to stop the operation to arrest Ovidio. The hacked report also revealed that nine people died that day, contradicting the official version, which said there were only eight deaths.

According to Reuters, Lopez Obrador admitted that he was the one who personally ordered Ovidio's release, which led to his administration's embarrassment as Sinaloa Cartel forces overwhelmed Mexican authorities.

The president previously said that he ordered the release of El Chapo's son to protect the citizens caught in the crossfire between government forces and the Sinaloa Cartel.

Rewards for Capture of El Chapo's Sons, Known as the Los Chapitos

The four sons of El Chapo, known as Los Chapitos, had reportedly assumed leadership roles in the Sinaloa Cartel after their father was arrested and extradited to the U.S.

Ovidio Guzman Lopez, Joaquin Guzman Lopez, Ivan Archivaldo Guzman, and Jesus Alfredo Guzman had allegedly shared control of the Sinaloa Cartel along with their uncle Aureliano "El Guano" Guzman and co-founder Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada.

Last December, the U.S. State Department offered $5 million rewards for any information that could help federal agents arrest El Chapo's four sons. U.S. investigators said that the Los Chapitos manage around 11 laboratories in their home state of Sinaloa that produce up to 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine monthly.

The State Department noted that the Los Chapitos are high-ranking members of the Sinaloa Cartel and are subject to a federal indictment for their involvement in the illegal drug trade.

The Sinaloa Cartel is one of Mexico's largest and most powerful drug trafficking organizations. The group was founded in the late 1980s and headed by El Chapo.

Under El Chapo's leadership, the Sinaloa Cartel earned its reputation through violence and outfought several rival groups. El Chapo was sentenced to spend the rest of his days in the ADX Florence "supermax" prison in Colorado after being sentenced to life imprisonment in 2019.

READ MORE: El Chapo's Sinaloa Cartel Continues to Thrive Despite the Drug Lord's Absence: Report

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: El Chapo's Son Captured, Then Released During Shootout in Mexico - From CBS News
A new movement is popping up all over the world with the launch of Circles: relaxed, networking events led by members of the Wedo Womens Inspire Network.

Locally Trudy Carmody is hosting the Laois Circle in Webmill Mountmellick, Beale Centre, Irishtown, Mountmellick on the first Wednesday of the month (2nd November and 7th December for Christmas lunch) from 10am until 12pm.

The Womens Inspire Network empowered by Wedo is a new movement to encourage women to start a business and become new leaders. 56% of freelancers are women and as Wedo is a new app for freelancers, this is the perfect fit to create a global community.

Wedo helps you build a community, automate your payments and invoices, manage your calendar and gives you video & audio conferencing tools that take away the pain involved with running a freelance business.

Indiana Gregg, founder of Wedo.ai said, "

"Women run great companies and are underrepresented when it comes to both investment and in leadership. Women who are leaders who have blazed tails in business need to help those who are on their way up. Womens Inspire Network was initially an Irish online womens network and with Wedo has already begun to expand globally. With Circles we get the opportunity to meet up in real life as well as online. We hope more women in leadership will join Wedo and the Women's Inspire Network to unite women's networks across the globe

Samantha Kelly, the founder of Womens Inspire Network said, "During the pandemic we saw the need to learn to use technology that we might have put off before: we HAD to learn zoom, social media etc. Valuable relationships can be built online, which we have seen with the rise of social audio and hybrid events.

"Now with Wedo launching, we can nurture those relationships even more with groups and communities. With Circles, no one is left behind. Particularly in smaller towns, where there might not be a network yet, there is still a need for community and sharing knowledge. It can be very isolating to start a business and it is especially difficult for women over the age of 40, who might not have any experience with social networks and technology before starting their businesses.

"Magic can happen over a cup of tea, so our circles are relaxed, with tea/coffee and you just never know who that next useful introduction can be.

"We want to be the women youre excited to meet when starting your business. Welcoming, friendly and adding value with tips to keep you from making the mistakes we made and avoid some of the challenges we had, or offer solutions to women who are experiencing similar challenges.

So join Trudy on Wednesday, 2nd November from 10am  12pm. Women in business are invited along for a cup of tea, expert advice and business networking opportunities.
Staff at Portlaoise hospital are encouraging people to educate themselves on the signs of blood clots and act fast if they suspect a clot, which they say can happen to anyone, young or old.

The Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise (MRHP) nurses and midwives made the appeal on World Thrombosis Day when they said clots are preventable in many cases and very treatable if caught on time but can be potentially fatal if the signs are ignored.

The HSE said latest figures suggest that 1 in 12 Irish people will experience a blood clot in their lifetime. Thrombosis occurs when a blood clot blocks a vein or artery. If the clot later breaks off and travels to the lungs, it can prove fatal.

One in four people who get a clot will die from it. To raise awareness a special information stand was set up in the MRH Portlaoise on Thursday, October 13 to educate patients and staff about thrombosis.

Paula Dunne, is the Clinical Nurse Manager from the Anticoagulation Clinic at MRH Portlaoise.

Blood clots can be very serious and need to be treated quickly. While staying healthy and active can help prevent blood clots, people should seek medical help immediately if they have one or more of the following symptoms; swelling or pain in one leg or calf with associated warmth or redness in a leg, shortness of breath or rapid breathing, chest pain, which may be worse when you breathe in, or if you have a cough and are coughing up blood, she said.

Emma Mullins is the the Assistant Director of Midwifery at MRH Portlaoise.

A blood clot in a leg is called deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Pregnancy and giving birth can increase your risk of having a DVT because of changes to your hormones and circulation.

Many pregnant women get swollen ankles and legs at some stage. Swelling on its own doesnt mean you have a DVT. But if youre worried, phone your GP, obstetrician or midwife, she said.

Sandra McCarthy is the Director of Nursing at MRH Portlaoise.

If you're at risk of blood clots  for example, you're in hospital  follow the advice of your Doctor about preventing clots. This may involve wearing stockings that improve your blood flow or taking medicine to reduce the risk of clots (anticoagulants).

There are also things you can do to help avoid clots. Keep moving  even if youre sick in bed, try to move your legs and feet every 90 minutes and drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration. You should also avoid sitting for long periods, smoking and drinking alcohol, she said.

Thrombosis Ireland founding member and Thrombosis Patient, Ann Marie ONeill, urged everyone to be aware of the risk of clot and act on signs.

We would like every person in Ireland to be aware of Thrombosis and know their risk and not to be afraid to ask for a blood clot risk assessment. We would like them to be informed of the signs & symptoms of a blood clot and to seek immediate action if they experience symptoms by, contacting their doctor, she said.

The HSE and Thrombosis Ireland have developed a Blood Clot Alert Card, to be given to all patients as they are discharged from the hospital.

Go to following link to view it https://bit.ly/3VuJAAO

Need to know INFO ON CLOTS

Research has discovered you are more likely to get a clot if;

You are admitted to the hospital and for 90 days after you go home

Are pregnant or have had a baby less than 6 weeks ago

Have active cancer or are receiving cancer treatment

Have one or both legs immobilised, for example in a leg cast

Are overweight or have a BMI greater than 30

OTHER TIPS

 1 in 4 people die from causes related to blood clots.

 1 in 5 cancer Patients will get a blood clot.

 The number one cause of preventable death in hospitals is VTE.

 No.1 cause of direct maternal death in our maternity hospitals, the greatest risk being in the first week after giving birth and the risk is still high for a further 5 weeks.

 1 in 12 people will experience a life-threatening blood clot in their lifetime

 In Europe, there are 544,000 VTE-related deaths every year.

 In addition to the disease burden, VTE can cause a significant global economic burden.

 Multiple diagnostic tests and treatments, prolonged hospital stay, follow-up care including recurrent VTE can be extremely costly. By focusing on VTE prevention, healthcare systems can save money, improve outcomes and, ultimately, save lives.

For more log in to Thrombosis Ireland www.thrombosis.ie
Ten local authorities have been awarded funding to appoint biodiversity officers to deliver local action for biodiversity.

The programme is being delivered by the Heritage Council and the County and City Management Association (CCMA) with the support of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS ).

Officers will be required to develop and implement a county biodiversity plan, advise the local authority on biodiversity issues, establish a county forum, assist departments in integrating biodiversity into their actions and policies, and promote new biodiversity initiatives based on best conservation practice.

Funding for a further 15 officers to be provided in the coming years will bring the total number of biodiversity officers employed in local authorities up to 29.

Commenting on the news, Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, TD, said, "Its fantastic to see the next tranche of Biodiversity Officers are now being recruited around the country. These ten new posts, and the funding for a further 15 that I announced as part of Budget 2023, will have an enormous impact on the ground in helping to deliver action for nature at the local level.

"The declaration by the Dail of a biodiversity emergency in 2019 sent a clear signal of how seriously we as a country need to take the biodiversity challenges ahead, and our objectives in the Programme for Government demonstrate this urgency. Todays announcement is another step in the right direction and it reflects my commitment to ensuring that these objectives are fulfilled and that all local authorities have a sufficient number of heritage and biodiversity officers among their staff complement.

Chairperson of The Heritage Council, Martina Moloney, said, "The vision for biodiversity, as stated in the National Biodiversity Action Plan, is that biodiversity in Ireland is valued, conserved, restored and sustainably used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people. This is a vision shared by the Heritage Council and our work in ensuring the continued progression of the Pilot Biodiversity Officer Programme is a reflection of our own objectives.

Chief Executive of The Heritage Council, Virginia Teehan, also commented.

She said, "The most important element in continuing to progress this essential programme has been our collaboration with the CCMA, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. It is thanks to our shared vision and objectives that within the next few months, more local authorities, and the country as a whole, will be able to benefit from the expertise, enthusiasm and determination of dedicated biodiversity officers."
Four members of a group who gardai have claimed are members of an organised crime gang have been granted bail in the High Court.

William Connors, 46, with an address given as 44 Acorn Downs in Newbridge; James Connors, 23, with an address at 1 Drumcairn Park in Tallaght, Dublin; Larry Connors, 19, with the same address given as William Connors; Larry O Reilly, 22, with an address listed as The Bram Stoker Hotel in Dublin 3; and Michael Connors, 23, with an address given as 1 Kiltalown Hill in Tallaght, all appeared before Naas District Court on October 12.

They are charged with a number of offences which allegedly took place on April 26 last at Rathmoylan in County Meath.

These alleged offences included: the handling of stolen property (a black Audi jeep valued at 45,000), attempted burglary, and possession of articles with the intention that they be used in the course of, or in connection with a theft or burglary.

The first two charges allegedly took place in Rathmoylan, but the documented location where the possession of articles charge was listed was the Lidl branch in Newhall, Naas.

William Connors was also charged with being in possession of a cloned car registration plate.

It was alleged that the group was chased by gardai from Rathmullen to Naas on April 26 last, where their vehicle (which was allegedly being driven by William Connors) eventually crashed into a roundabout.

A garda with the National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau told the court that the men were accused of committing burglaries across a number of counties, such as Kildare, Cavan, Carlow and Louth, as well as in Northern Ireland.

The garda also said that the group, who are all related through marriage, allegedly targeted elderly residents, as well as members of the Asian community, as they were of the belief that members of that community may have more high-value jewellery or cash.

It was also alleged that during the course of one burglary, the group obtained 250,000 worth of jewellery.

At a second hearing a number of charges were withdrawn against the defendants.

Larry OReilly appeared by videolink from Mountjoy Prison and the court heard that he is serving a a sentence with a release date about three months away.

Defending solicitor Tim Kennelly said that the defendant had a High court bail application that day. He also said that every effort should be made to have the books of evidence ready as soon as possible.

Sgt Dave Hanrahan said that a book of evidence was not yet available and he commented that this is a large and complex investigation involving five defendants.

The cases against the other four, who appeared personally in court, were also adjourned by Judge Desmond Zaidan.

Read more Kildare news
A mother-of-four killed in the Creeslough service station tragedy had an abundance of love, her funeral service has been told.

President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and the Taoiseachs aide-de-camp were among those who attended the service for Martina Martin.

Mrs Martin, 49, was working in the shop when the explosion took place at a service station in the rural Co Donegal village.

Her family walked behind the hearse as it arrived at St Michaels Church in Creeslough on Thursday morning.

Crowds once again lined the streets and gathered at the entrance to the church to say goodbye to another member of their community.

Her co-workers provided a guard of honour as her coffin was brought into the church.

Representatives of Mulroy College in Milford, where two of her children attend, were also part of the honour guard.

Martina had an abundance of love, Fr John Joe Duffy told the congregation.

She was sensitive to the needs of others and to those who are sensitive to the needs of others, life offers innumerable opportunities to practice the commandment of love.

Real love requires hard work and patience. It requires doing up rotas on a board in the kitchen of the house telling you, the children, what your tasks are; emptying the bins, which Im sure you did without fail.

Putting out the bins, washing the dishes, which Im sure great care was given to, and taking Dusty, Sophie and Junior for a walk.

Dusty being the dog and Sophie and Junior being the cats. She offered you that love, that love in helping you prepare for the realities of life, and she did it so very well.

For real love, for her, was a way of life.

Her quick wit, her straight talking was done and given with love and with goodness.

The mourners attending the funeral were also told that Mrs Martin loved the people of Creeslough.

And we, each and every one of us who knew her, very much loved her, Fr Duffy added.

She was very special to us. She was very special to her colleagues and she was very special to us all.

If we were having a bad day, the quick wit would lift us up. She cared for the customers in another way.

Martinas friends describe her as your mother hen, your mother hen to the core, she lived for you.

She lived for you, her children. She never missed a birthday and loved to meet for a coffee to catch up.

Martina was a beautiful person, her beauty inside radiated in that kind of cheeky mischievous smile which flowed out to you when you met her.

She was the voice of reason when others were hurting.

She never minced her words and was the kindest friend you could ever have. She was the life and soul of any night-out, she didnt dwell on the problems she was facing, but put others first.

Mourners were told how she worked at the heart of the community in an exceptionally nice place, and that customers would have met her naturally friendly face.

She was at work as normal, doing what she did, doing what she liked, doing what she loved, doing what was routine to us all and then, what turned out as a normal day, ended up a very different way to the way that it ordinarily would, Fr Duffy added.

All things changed, events outside our control, outside the control indeed of any one of us, those few seconds of time last Friday have impacted so much on you as a family and on so many other families and on all of us.

Seconds that changed in time, that led to the changing for future generations of our village, our community and communities beyond. The events of last Friday will be forever etched in our hearts.

He said that the community of Creeslough was growing in strength each day to get through the hours and days ahead.

Creeslough is a small village, but it is now more than just that. It is now a word for determination, for resolve and for togetherness and how important togetherness is, Fr Duffy added.

This tragedy has reignited within all of us, myself included, that each one of us are only as strong as the families we have around us, only as strong as the community that surrounds us.

At the end of the service Fr Duffy urged people affected by the tragedy to contact local counselling services, which he said he intended to do himself.

The funeral of Leona Harper is taking place at St Marys Church in Ramelton, Co Donegal.

The 14-year-old had been in the service station to buy ice-cream when the explosion happened on Friday.

Sarah McLachlans song Angel was played as her coffin was led to the altar.

The funerals of Jessica Gallagher, 24, and Martin McGill, 49, were held in Creeslough on Tuesday, while those of Catherine ODonnell, 39, and her son James Monaghan, 13, were held in Creeslough on Wednesday afternoon, and a service for James OFlaherty, 48, was held in the morning in Derrybeg.

The funeral of the oldest victim of the tragedy, 59-year-old Hugh Kelly, will take place in St Michaels on Friday morning.

Funeral details for the youngest victim, Shauna Flanagan Garwe, five, and her father Robert Garwe, 50, have yet to be announced.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned Moscow on Thursday, October 13, that its forces would be "annihilated" by the West's military response if President Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons against Ukraine.

"Putin is saying he is not bluffing. Well, he cannot afford bluffing, and it has to be clear that the people supporting Ukraine and the European Union and the Member States, and the United States and NATO are not bluffing neither," Mr. Borrell said at the opening of a Diplomatic Academy in Brussels.

"Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated."

Fears that Moscow could use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine have grown after Putin issued veiled threats as he staged the annexation of four occupied regions in the face of loses on the battlefield.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has warned Russia it faces "severe consequences" if it launches a nuclear attack on its pro-Western neighbor.

Read more NATO holds nuclear talks amid Putin threats

"There would be a sharp response  almost certainly drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself," a senior NATO official said Wednesday.

But the alliance has stopped short of threatening to use its nuclear arsenal to respond as non-member Ukraine is not covered by its self-defense clause.

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The US and NATO has so far steered clear of intervening militarily in the Ukraine conflict for fear of sparking a catastrophic nuclear conflict with Moscow.

Read more Subscribers only Biden administration focuses national security strategy on China and Russia

Le Monde with AFP
The Medgaz pipeline in Almeria, Spain, in June 2022. JON NAZCA / REUTERS

In the province of Castellon, on the east coast of Spain, a business leader from the National Association of Frits, Glazes and Ceramic Pigments (ANFFECC) anonymously expressed his disappointment about the effects of Algerias suspension of the treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation, which was announced on June 8, 2022. The treaty had bound the two countries for 20 years. "Immediately, customs stopped distributing our products to our customers. And the transit ships no longer wanted to load up goods in Spanish ports, since they were no longer guaranteed to be able to unload in Algeria."

Algiers has also decided to freeze "bank debits for foreign trade operations of products and services to and from Spain," the entrepreneur continued. "Invoicing through another headquarters in another country is also impossible, because any Spanish certificate of origin is automatically blocked. In our case, this means a 20% loss in sales." According to the ANFFECC, the breakdown of trade relations has already cost the sector more than 50 million. Until the suspension of the treaty, Algeria was the second largest consumer of those goods behind Italy.

Read more Algeria ends 2-decade friendship treaty with Spain

Four months after the adoption of these retaliatory measures against Madrid following the decision of Pedro Sanchez's socialist government to support Morocco's claims over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, the damage can already be measured. Between June and July, the halt in transactions between the two countries resulted in 235 million in lost revenue for the Spanish economy. Exports to Algeria amounted to 66 million in June and barely 28 million in July, a total of 94 million over the two months, compared to 329 million in June and July 2021, according to statistics from the Spanish Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Trade.

Overpriced air links

Madrid wanted to believe that the angry response of Algiers, which supports the Sahrawi independence fighters of the Polisario Front, would be short-lived. "Algeria is a reliable partner," Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares kept repeating. Unfortunately, it is clear that the conflict is set to last.

In an interview with the Algerian news website TSA published October 4, the President of the Algerian-Spanish Circle of Commerce and Industry (CCIAE), Djamal Eddine Bouabdallah, confirmed that "since June 8, there has been no trade" between the two countries "except for gas and oil." He added that "the most affected companies are Algerian industrial SMEs," especially in the ceramics, paper and spare parts sectors, as well as "water desalination plants, which were maintained by Spanish companies."

The Spanish association of beef producers, Provacuno, also complained about the situation. "Before 2020, Algeria was our first destination for export outside the European Union [EU], with almost 20,000 tonnes sold per year. With the pandemic, the country restricted imports, and in 2021 we could only sell during Ramadan. The diplomatic crisis has prevented traffic from recovering," said its director, Javier Lopez.

As with ceramics, the sector fears losing its share of the market, which could then be difficult to recover once the crisis is over. Meanwhile, other countries are likely to benefit from this situation. While Spanish exports to Algeria have collapsed, French exports have actually increased by 32% in the first half of 2022.

Read more Subscribers only PM Elisabeth Borne visits Algiers to build on warming Franco-Algerian relations

In addition, air links between the two countries have become very infrequent and expensive, following Air Algerie's decision not to serve Spain, and Algiers stopped Iberia from resuming pre-pandemic schedules.

Gas bills could go up

For Spain, however, the most important thing is to maintain gas flows. Until November 2021, Algeria supplied it with nearly half of its imports via two undersea pipelines: the Medgaz pipeline, between Almeria and Beni Saf; and the Maghreb-EU pipeline, which crosses the Strait of Gibraltar and runs through Morocco. But in October 2021, Algiers cut off the Maghreb-EU pipeline due to a crisis with Rabat. As a result, Algeria now only supplies a quarter of the gas imported by Spain, through the Medgaz pipeline and LNG tankers. So far, this supply has not been affected by the diplomatic crisis between the two countries.

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"Algeria has turned on a fourth compressor on its Medgaz pipeline to increase its flow to Spain and we have asked it to continue maintenance on the pipeline that passes through Morocco because we hope that at some point it can return to operation. Each time, we have been able to see that it is a reliable country," said Teresa Ribera, the Spanish minister for energy transition, in an interview with Le Monde in early September. "The relationship with Algeria is a strategic and historical one that goes far beyond gas and which I am sure will return to normal as soon as possible."

While deliveries have continued relatively normally in recent months, the bill, on the other hand, is expected to rise considerably. Algeria has been renegotiating with the Spanish company Naturgy and the Algerian company Sonatrach for months, to try to revise the gas supply contract's prices. Until now, the rate applied to Spain was linked to the Brent price. However, Algiers now wants it to be set on the Dutch market's TTF index, which is much higher and used as a reference across the rest of Europe. While the terms of the contract are protected by a confidentiality clause, the bill, according to experts, could rise by 70% for Spain.

Sandrine Morel(Madrid (Spain) correspondent) Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.
PLANS by biopharmaceutical company Eli Lilly to create over 300 permanent jobs in Limerick as part of a 400m investment have taken a big step forward.

Local council planners have granted conditional permission for a major manufacturing facility in Raheen, with construction of this expected to deliver 500 temporary jobs.

Eli Lillys investment, announced earlier this year, is expected to bring scores of new workers to Raheen in roles such as engineers, scientist and operations personnel.

They will use the latest biologics manufacturing technology to produce treatments.

The news has been welcomed by both Minister of State, local TD Niall Collins and Limerick Chamber chief executive Dee Ryan, who said: Its a very important project and a very important investment decision for Limerick.

Mr Collins added: These are high-end jobs that will further boost the local economy and demonstrate Limerick is an attractive place for these cutting-edge companies to locate.

Welcoming the planning decision, Dave Riordan who has been appointed Site Lead for the Limerick facility commented: This decision is a very positive milestone in Lillys plans to invest in Limerick. Having graduated from the University of Limerick myself, I am delighted that Lilly has chosen the city for this major expansion of our global manufacturing footprint."

Mr Riordan added that the new facility is designed to use the very latest biopharma manufacturing technology to maximise productivity and sustainability and minimise the impact on the environment.

!I am confident that Lillys arrival to Limerick will bring many additional benefits to the local community, the city and the region in the years ahead.

There were three submissions in relation to Eli Lilly's planning application from neighbouring landowners who were concerned about the impact of further building on the water course of the Loughmore Canal.

Local farmer and former Limerick hurling boss Tom Ryan said as the Raheen industrial estate has grown, its led to extensive flooding on my lands.

Hes also concerned about the condition of the discharged water, a fear reflected by his neighbour Sarah Mulcahy.

In her submission, she wrote: My lands have been flooded due to the destruction of the Loughmore Turlough and my livestock has had exposure to pollution. As council has a responsibility for animal welfare, no further development should be permitted in the Raheen industrial estate.

Despite this, local planners have given Eli Lillys project the green light, with Mr Collins calling on council and IDA Ireland to engage with the land and property owners to address their legitimate concerns, adding: The last thing we want to see is a project of this significance delayed.

Eli Lilly has secured permission for a 10-year period for a large manufacturing campus on the edge of the industrial estate.

At the heart of its plans is a four-storey manufacturing building which will measure around 18,534 square metres, with a 33 metre height. Also included in the vast application is a two-storey canteen, laboratory and administration complex.

Some 199 car parking and motorcycle spaces are also proposed as well as a visitor centre, with underground works to link the factory to the local water supply.
A MAJOR shake-up of garda management across the Limerick garda division has been announced following the roll-out, last month, of the new divisional policing model.

Limerick native, Chief Superintendent Derek Smart, has been appointed as the new head of the Limerick division - replacing Chief Superintendent Gerard Roche, who was appointed to the role in February 2018.

Chief Superintendent Smart (pictured below) is currently based in Thurles, County Tipperary, while Chief Supt Roche, who has been in the force for nearly 35 years, will take up a new role in Galway city next month.

Other changes, announced this Thursday, include the appointment of the recently-promoted Chief Superintendent Brian Sugrue as regional Chief Superintendent for the Southern Region.

Currently based at Henry Street garda station in Limerick city, he will be stationed at Thurles garda station going forward.

Under the new operational model, Superintendent Aileen Magner, formerly of Newcastle West garda station, has been assigned responsibility for the Limerick City North Community Engagement Functional Area while Superintendent Andrew Lacey will transfer from Nenagh to Roxboro Road garda station where he will have responsibility for the Limerick City South Community Engagement Functional Area.

Superintendent Paul Reidy has been assigned responsibility for the Limerick County Community Engagement Functional Area, which incorporates the former Newcastle West and Bruff garda districts.



Superintendent Dermot OConnor, formerly of Roxboro Road garda station, will oversee all crime-related activity across the entire Limerick division while Superintendent Kieran Ruane has been assigned responsibility over the Performance Assurance brief.

All of the changes, announced this Thursday, will come into effect from October 17.
THE GARDAI in Bruff marked the centenary celebrations of An Garda Siochana in style including inviting one family who have given almost 100 years continuous service to the force.

Current and retired members, as well as relatives of gardai who died while serving, were invited to the special event in Bruff garda station on Wednesday evening of last week.

They were greeted by Chief Superintendent Gerry Roche, Acting Superintendent of County Limerick Pat Brennan and Bruff-based Inspector Gearoid Thompson.

Insp Thompson said it was important to honour retired gardai, those who passed away while serving in Bruff and current members as part of the centenary celebrations.

He said it was a privilege to welcome two former guards in their nineties - Tom Coleman and John Crilly, who was brought to the function by recently retired Ballylanders garda John Curtin.

Tom Coleman and John Crilly would have joined in the early 1950s. It was wonderful they could attend. We were also delighted to welcome Sean Brennan who is the father of current Bruff sergeant Mike Brennan and Valerie who is a sergeant in Store Street in Dublin. Seans father Michael joined the guards in 1923 so between Sean, his father and his two children they have 99 years service and counting.

Sean had the distinction of serving with his father and both son and daughter before he retired in 1999. And to top it off Michaels brother John also served in the early days of the force. Not to mention Denis Hurley - the father of Mikes wife Noelle - also served in Bruff. Its a unique and very proud family story, said Insp Thompson.

Many stories were told as attendees reminisced. An old Ford Anglia patrol car added to the nostalgia.

Medals were presented to the families of two Bruff gardai who died while serving.

Relatives of Garda Jim Byrne, who was shot on duty in 1946, attended. Two nephews - Jim and Hugh Byrne - and Jims wife Helen travelled from Wicklow.

The husband and parents of Garda Annette Ahern (nee Courtney), who died unexpectedly in 2017, were also presented with a medal in her memory. Gary Ahern and his parents-in-law John and Brenda came from Cork.

Insp Thompson said it was very poignant as they remembered the gardai who had gone before them.

A commemorative plaque was presented to Catherine Hogan, the daughter of recently deceased Mary Hogan who was the cleaner for decades in the old and new stations.

A plaque was also presented to Detective Sergeant Ted Riordan -the only current member who served in both the old and new Bruff stations.

A special cake with a picture of the station was cut by retired sergeant Bill Harhen as he was instrumental in the transition from the old to the new station.

The night was a celebration of garda staff and the massive contribution they make. They were also given commemorative coins. For me, personally, it was great to see retired members who had a big influence on me when I first came down to the Limerick Division and who meant a lot to me. It was a wonderful day and night, said Insp Thompson, who thanked Chief Supt Roche, Acting Supt Brennan, Garda Tommy Commane, the Little Blue Heroes, St Josephs Foundation, Sgt Lorraine Mulcahy for all her work organising the event, and all the attendees.
A man has died in a two-car collision in Kenmare, Co Kerry, gardai said.

The crash happened on the N70 at Dromquinna at about 5.50pm on Wednesday.

The Garda said a man in his 20s, who was a rear seat passenger in one of the cars, died at the scene.

His body has been taken to University Hospital Kerry where a post-mortem examination will take place.

There were two other occupants of the car  a female driver in her 20s who received medical attention at the scene and a man in his 20s who was a front seat passenger.

He was taken to University Hospital Kerry.

The driver of the other car, a woman in her 40s, and her passenger, a teenage girl, were treated at the scene for their injuries.

Gardai closed the road on Wednesday for a forensic collision investigation.

Diversions are in place and it is expected to be Thursday before the road is reopened.

Gardai have appealed for witnesses.

Any road users who may have camera footage, including dash-cam footage, and were travelling on the N70 in the townland of Dromquinna between 5.30pm and 6pm are asked to make this footage available to Gardai.

Anyone with information can contact Killarney Garda Station on 064 663 1222, the Garda confidential line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) is calling for the urgent implementation of recruitment and retention plans for hospitals this winter.

The call comes following the publication of HIQA inspection reports into three Irish hospitals including Cork University Hospital, Cavan and Monaghan Hospital, and St Columcille's Hospital.

According to INMO General Secretary, Phil Ni Sheaghdha, subsequent action is now "key".

She said, "We welcome the role HIQA has played in inspecting into Cork University Hospital, Cavan and Monaghan Hospital and St. Columcilles Hospital. We know following HIQAs report into University Hospital Limerick that subsequent action following HIQAs reporting is key.

"Bespoke recruitment and retention measures are needed hospital by hospital this winter. The funding allocated in the Winter Plan to implement the Safe Staffing Framework is welcome to ensure that a safe nursing to patient staffing and skill mix ratio exists in each emergency department is key.

"As outlined in the HSE Winter Plan published this week, each ED should conduct an urgent analysis to identify and address gaps and risks, each hospital must move to undertake this process immediately."

According to the Assistant Director of Industrial Relations for Southern Region, Colm Porter, HIQA's findings into Cork University Hospital are "particularly dark".

He said, "On the day that HIQA carried out its inspection (June 15th) 62 people were without a bed. Since then, over 4469 patients have been on trolleys in Cork University Hospital. The hospital is the most overcrowded hospital in Ireland today. The bed deficit that currently exists in both CUH and the wider Cork community is adding to the pressure in this Emergency Department.

"HIQAs report raises questions on the safety of staffing levels in CUH. A bespoke taskforce is now needed to tackle the ongoing issues in Cork University Hospital, focusing on staffing and timely discharging of patients in order to improve patient flow.

According to HIQA's inspection at Cork University Hospital, the emergency department was noted as "still overcrowded" despite hospital management's efforts to mitigate risks.

Waiting times for triage, medical review and admission to an inpatient bed were all noted as representing "a risk to patients".

The report stated this was acknowledged by staff in the emergency department and hospital management who had put short-term mitigation measures in place, and were progressing "longer-term substantive plans".

Inspectors noted overcrowding compromised the dignity, privacy and confidentiality of patients attending and receiving care

in the hospitals emergency department and was not in line the National Standards for Safer Better Healthcare or consistent with the human rights-based approach to healthcare promoted by HIQA.

The report states: "As previously noted by HIQA, the challenges in the emergency department faced by hospital management at Cork University Hospital reflect challenges also experienced in other emergency departments across the country. Given this, more also needs to be done at local, regional and national levels to address the issues of insufficient capacity and ineffective patient flow, which are key contributing factors to the overcrowding and long waiting times in emergency departments."
New Delhi: Over 100 energy experts from across the world will discuss latest developments for sustainable and production of advantaged oil and natural gas at the three-day 5th South Asian Geoscience Conference, GEO India 2022.

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri will inaugurate the three-day conference to be held in Jaipur from Friday.

Organized by the Association of Petroleum Geologists (APG), over a hundred experts from India and other countries including the US, Norway and the European Central will participate to discuss the issues and share their experiences.

Apart from India, more than a hundred geology and geophysics experts from other countries including the USA, Norway, UK are going to attend this conference. The conference will brainstorm on the role of oil and gas in the context of energy transition in the fast-changing world. Hence, Fossil Fuels, Decarbonization and Changing Energy Dynamics is chosen as a theme for the conference," the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas said in a statement.

Rajesh Kumar Srivastava, patron, APG and CMD, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) said that the GEO India conference has grown in stature in the last 15 years as an international conference.

APG President S N Chitnis (Executive Director in ONGC) informed that over 200 technical papers will be presented in the conference, which is being participated by over 1500 geoscientists and 600 delegates.

Apart from presentation of technical papers, plenary discussions will be held by global experts in this conference to achieve the goal of zero carbon dioxide emissions together with production of HC to meet the energy requirement of India in the future", he added.

Experts like Justin Murphy, Zaheer Ibrahim, Charles Boyette from the USA, Desikan Sundararajan from Norway, among others along with industry experts from India will share their cutting-edge research and technology at the conference.
A total of 65% of Indians invest a part of their income in one form or the other and gold has emerged as a popular choice of investment, showed a survey by Axis My India, a consumer data intelligence company.

The survey highlighted that with 53% preferring gold as an investment tool, 35% of population showed awareness towards digital gold and 10% of people said that they had already invested in digital gold.

Specifically, in metros cities, gold (65%) is the highest investment option, followed by fixed deposits (44%), and mutual funds (37%)..

Gold as an investment instrument is higher among females (65%) than males (41%) reinstating the traditional sentiment of trust placed upon the yellow metal.

The survey also showcased a future intention to invest in gold as 58% population in metros showed interest in gold investment, followed by mutual funds (35%) and stocks (23%).

According to Axis My India, digital gold method of investment showed an increasing popularity with the young population as 15% of them in the age group of 18-24 years, showed a strong intent to invest into digital gold. Of those who invest in digital gold  55% are males and 45% are females, 48% belong to 25-34 years, and 56% are married with kids.

Pop Strata wise, 11% in metros, 11% in tier-I and 8% in tier-II have already done digital gold investment, which shows its increasing reach across pop strata.

The trust factor was prominent while looking for investment into gold as a 76% population purchased bullion from a trusted brand only and 54% population said that if there is a government of India backed company which makes investing easier in digital gold, they will try investing in digital gold.

Further, an interesting observation was the increasing influence of digital modes of investment as 24% of people were found to have tried some form of digital investment. An increase in investment was observed with age as the investment pattern depicted an incline with age 67% of 25-34 invest as compared to 76% in the age group of 35-44 years.

Of the 24% population that invests through digital modes, 28% of the population was male and 19% female. Safety and security are the major motivators behind people investing followed by saving tax, and profits.

Pradeep Gupta, chairman and managing director, Axis My India, said, Rapid digitalisation has perforated through major cities of India and its impact can be witnessed into the investment patterns of people. Digital modes of investments are catching up and one needs to ensure a supporting infrastructure in terms of digital literacy and addressing concerns around safety. This is the next big revolution as it is impacting day to day functioning of people. Our survey was concentrated on studying how investments are changing with changing demographics and times, and what trends can be predicted based on the pulse of the public."

The survey was conducted among 5,000 men and women across varied age-groups, socio-economic status and occupations in tier-I, II and III cities. The survey saw a participation of 52% males and 48% females, 36% metros; 39% tier I towns, 25% tier-II towns.
NEW DELHI: Vested Finance, an investment platform that enables Indians to invest in the US markets, through its affiliated entity, VF Securities, has acquired a FINRA-registered US broker-dealer.

Vested is the only fintech platform operating in India that has obtained a license from FINRA, which is the regulatory body for brokers and dealers in the United States.

FINRA is regulated and audited by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The organization is dedicated to protecting investors and safeguarding market integrity in a manner that facilitates vibrant capital markets.

A government-authorized not-for-profit organization, it oversees more than 624,000 brokers across the country and ensures that the industry performs fairly and honestly.

Having a broker-dealer license comes with the following benefits for Vested investors.

Investments through the Vested platform are now under US broker-dealer regulations: Investments through the Vested platform have always been covered under the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) insurance through its clearing firm, Drivewealth, and Securities and Exchange Commission jurisdiction. Now that Vested is a US broker-dealer, securities investments through the Vested platform also come under US broker-dealer regulations.

Investors can now access over 5,000 stocks and ETFs via Vested: So far, investors were able to invest in 1,500+ stocks and ETFs through the Vested platform, but with this license, they can now get access to a wide universe of 5,000+ securities on Vested. To get access to all these securities, Vested users with an existing classic account can update to the all-access account free of cost.

Viram Shah, co-founder and chief executive officer, Vested Finance, said, First, the broker-dealer license helps us build deeper trust with our customers as investors on our platform now know that they are investing via an entity that is regulated both as an RIA and a broker-dealer in the US. The US regulations ensure that investors can participate in the market with confidence. Further, investors will now have access to a wider gamut of securities on our platform which gives them more investing options."
In light of upcoming nuclear drills between Russia and the military alliance, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine would be crossing a "very important line."

Next week, NATO will conduct its "Steadfast Noon" exercise. The meticulously prepared manoeuvres take place every year at roughly the same time and last for about a week. They don't involve any live bombs, but they do involve fighter jets that can transport nuclear warheads.

NATO anticipates Moscow's nuclear force exercise sometime this month. Russia typically conducts its own exercises around the same time. Stoltenberg said NATO will closely monitor" what Russia is up to.

Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed."

He added that even any use of a smaller nuclear weapon will be a very serious thing, fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine, and of course that would have consequences."

Stoltenberg's remarks came after a meeting of NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group. The meeting was held among defense ministers in Brussels, as concerns deepen over Putins insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

The meeting, which typically takes place once or twice a year, took place against a background of intense tension as some NATO allies, led by the US, provided Ukraine with cutting-edge weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

Although Russia has not yet altered its nuclear posture, NATO is closely monitoring its movements in its conflict with Ukraine. Putin's nuclear drills, however, might make it harder for NATO to discern what Russia's intentions may be, potentially raising the risk of an accident.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters Wednesday, Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise." But what we dont want is to do things out of routine," he added.

This is a routine exercise and its all about readiness," Wallace said, just as NATOs meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance  to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that."

"Steadfast Noon," which was conceived before Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, will involve 14 NATO members. The majority of the exercises will take place over 1,000 kilometres (625 miles) away from Russia.

NATO as an organization lacks any weapons. The United States, the United Kingdom, and France continue to have complete control over the nuclear weapons that are ostensibly associated with the alliance. France, however, is adamant about preserving its nuclear autonomy and refuses to attend meetings of the Nuclear Planning Group.

In response to Ukrainian forces using Western weapons and forcing the Russian army to retreat in some areas, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and ordering a partial mobilisation to shore up the eroding front line.

Putin has repeatedly hinted that he might use nuclear weapons to defend the Russian gains as his war plans have gone awry. Additionally, the threat is intended to deter NATO members from supplying Ukraine with more advanced weapons.

French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with France 2 television that France wouldn't retaliate with a nuclear attack. and emphasised that leaders have obligations when using nuclear rhetoric. He claimed to have talked to Putin "multiple times."

We have a (nuclear) doctrine, which is clear," Macron said. The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are."

Too many people are talking about it," he said.

(With inputs from AP)
Singapore Airlines Ltd (SIA) is in confidential discussions with the Tata Group to explore a potential merger of Vistara, their joint venture airline, with Air India to give the Singaporean carrier a bigger foothold in South Asia. The discussions seek to deepen the existing SIA-TATA partnership and may also include a possible integration of Air India and Vistara.

Tatas has 51% stake in Vistara and the rest 49% is with the SIA. Tatas is also the owner of Air India.

SIA said in a statement that no definitive terms had been agreed on a deal that would form a more formidable competitor to the country's dominant airline IndiGo as well as Middle Eastern rivals that carry a large share of India's international traffic.

"In line with its multi-hub strategy, SIA is currently in confidential discussions with Tata to explore a potential transaction in relation to the securities of Vistara and Air India Ltd, a subsidiary of Tata (the 'potential transaction').

"The discussions seek to deepen the existing partnership between SIA and Tata, and may include a potential integration of Vistara and Air India," the filing to the Singapore Stock Exchange said.

India's domestic, int'l traffic flows likely to double in a decade

The Singaporean carrier, which operates full-service carrier Vistara, said India had strong domestic and international traffic flows that were expected to double in a decade, which compares to its more mature home market.

Tata owns all of Air India after completing its purchase of the previously state-owned Indian national carrier in January.

SIA, which was focused on repairing its balance sheet, did not take part in the bidding process, but Campbell Wilson, a former senior executive at the Singaporean carrier, started as Air India's new chief executive in July.

The Indian airline is rebuilding its fleet and targeting a domestic market share of at least 30% over the next five years as it looks to repair its reputation after years of losses.

It is also launching more services to North America, where its use of Russian airspace gives it a shorter flight time than rivals that have avoided it since Moscow began its invasion of Ukraine in February.

"SIA converting its stake in Vistara into a stake for the Tata-led airline group makes sense," said Brendan Sobie, an independent analyst based in Singapore. "The creation of this group will improve the position of all the Tata airlines and SIA's investment in the Indian market."

Air India and Tata, which also controls low-cost carrier AirAsia India, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Shukor Yusof, head of Malaysia-based aviation consultancy Endau analytics, said SIA did not have a good track record in mergers and acquisitions.

It owned a 20% stake in Virgin Australia that was wiped out after the Australian carrier entered voluntary administration in 2020.

In 2012, SIA sold its 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic to Delta Air Lines for $360 million, well below its initial purchase price of 600 million pounds in 2000.

"Whilst the pact with Tata over Vistara appears to be working well, biting into Air India may be more than it can chew," Shukor said. "But India is the next frontier in aviation with China shut and slowing, and SIA can afford to punt and lose millions if it doesn't work out."
While addressing the Indian community in Australia, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed that the Australian authorities had assured him of the redressal of the visa backlog issue, especially of Indian students, by the year's end.

The visa backlog issue is a prime concern of students who are trying to return to educational institutions in the country following the COVID pandemic.

Also Read: 'Hard nuts can be cracked', External Affairs Minister Jaishankar on UNSC reforms

"I want to tell you that it was something that I took up with different ministers when I was in Canberra. We have a particular problem that students are facing," he said while addressing the Indian Community on Tuesday.

Delighted to interact with the Indian community in Sydney.



Shared my assessment of the rapid growth in the India-Australia relationship since 2014.



Underlined the new areas of focus in our partnership, including education, technology, resources and mobility. pic.twitter.com/BIipzrYVWE  Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) October 11, 2022

The minister, who is on a two-day visit to Australia, said that he was assured that the situation has improved and about 77,000 Indian students are back in Australia. He said the numbers of visas from India should and could be much more. That's why the government will work with Australian authorities to sort out the issue by the end of the year.

He also highlighted the fact that it's not just a problem for students but also for many other Indians who want to travel due to family reasons. He also applauded the resumption of tourism in Australia and other countries of the world post-COVID pandemic.

There will be a legal framework for talented Indians to move to another country for work, said S Jaishankar

S Jaishankar also stressed two issues that would transform the issues of partnership on mobility and mutual recognition degrees and qualifications. This includes partnerships on mobility and mutual recognition degrees and qualifications. While elaborating on Partnership on Mobility, Jaishankar said, "It means that Indian skills and talents that are in demand in Australia will have a legal framework, an agreed methodology by which they move from one country to another,"

Notably, India is finalising such agreements with a lot of countries like Japan, the UK, and France.

"We are close to concluding one with Germany. And we, I think we've done some preliminary work in this with Australia. So I'm very much hoping that that is one area where we can see rapid progress because we know that in many domains, there are skill shortages in Australia," he said.

S Jaishankar also said the government is working on the issue of mutual recognition of degrees and qualifications for the convenience of people who are planning to move to another country for work.

S Jaishankar expressed hopes of opening additional consulates in Australia in the future. He also said there was also an interest reiterated during his visit for Australia to open a consulate in Bengaluru.

"India is today very strongly on a recovery path," S Jaishankar

While talking about Indias struggle during the COVID pandemic, S Jaishankar said that India is very strongly on a recovery path.

He agreed that every country in the world went through a lot of hardships during the COVID pandemic. There was hardly any country that was untouched by the COVID pandemic. Moving ahead he said it is the time for every country to focus on coming out of COVID in a better and faster way.

He said that the COVID pandemic has led the country to massively upgrade its health infrastructure. "What normally would have taken us decades to do happened due to Covid in a matter of a few months," he said.

After talking about COVIDs contribution to Indias digital transformation, the minister stressed the importance of digitisation in the country.

"We can deliver public services in India on a scale that you cannot even imagine. It is happening only because today we have the digital backbone and the leadership. Prime minister's vision of how to apply technology for good governance that is today yielding results on the ground.

He also mentioned the governments schemes that were launched during COVID pandemic to ensure food security and financial stability among Indians.

(With inputs from PTI)
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Multiple sources tell CNN, the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack will vote to subpoena former President Donald Trump, pictured here at rally in September at the Covelli Centre in Youngstown, Ohio.
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It's a busy week for Dan Tomasek. The Longford based musician is putting together the final touches to ensure his debut physical release goes off without a hitch.

Up to this point the musical output under the name of Daniel Scany (pictured) has been through streaming services.

Now Leave all d bad behind, a six track EP, will be available to buy in a physical form from Friday October 7.

Originally from Czech Republic Dan has lived in Longford for the last 13 years. His musical output to date is a smooth grove, vocal driven, highly stylized pop with a heavy European influence.

I try to experiment with different types of music. I think it's international. The EP will be a fusion of three different genres, it really is a different type of music. There is a lot of positive energy in it. I am really looking forward to the release, he says of his latest offering.

The influences that shape the Daniel Scany sound are varied: I really like Post Malone at the moment, but I'm also mad about Bad Bunny. I grew up listening to J Cole. I really just like any music that makes me happy or makes my mood better.

The EP release is not an overnight sensation: I started when I was 14 back in the Czech Republic. I started rapping, freestyle rap battles, that sort of thing. When I moved to Ireland I learned to play guitar. I taught myself with my dad's guitar, just watching YouTube tutorials, learning chords. That was when my singing developed, that was when I started to decide I wanted to do this for a living.

Dan says Longford is a nurturing place for musical artists: There are a lot of people to support you. For the type or music I create, international music, it's a bit different. It is something new, something different. Something I hope will be very popular.

The Daniel Scany videos on YouTube have a very local flavour. He will be hoping his EP release will propel him on to the next stage of his music career: I'm promoting it on all social media and once it's out I'll be selling physical copies of CDs with a cool creative jacket cover.

Daniel Scany's Leave all d bad behind is available to buy in a physical form from Friday October 7.
Liam Cosgrove talks to Evelyn Neary over the continued rise of Cian's Kennels, a charity set up in memory of her late son

A charity set up in memory of a brave Longford teenagers courageous fight with cancer has added yet another accolade to its ever growing awards portfolio after it was named a finalist in the National Lottery Good Causes Awards.

Cians Kennels, initiated following the tragic passing three years ago of 15-year-old Killashee schoolboy Cian Neary, has achieved more in its fledgling infancy than most mainstream charities could hope to accomplish in a lifetime.

In a bid to preserve the St Brigids Killashee youngsters legacy and more notably his long held devotion to his beloved labrador Cooper, Cians Kennels sole ambition has always been about bringing pets like the Nearys truly special canine family member closer to sick children and their families.

Having opened the doors to its state of the art 100,000 facility on the grounds of Crumlins Childrens Health Ireland (CHI) in May, the organisation was among 35 finalists out of around 300 entries nationwide.

It was an exceptional feat for its founders, Cians parents Enda and Evelyn Neary and a band of fifty or so volunteers who have helped transform the lives of sick children up and down the country.

It was a great recognition to get, said a delighted Evelyn, as she reflected on the award this week.

We only really opened in May and we were up against other people who have been 20 years or more in operation, so to achieve what we did was fantastic.

By Evelyns own admission, the extraordinary successes enjoyed by an establishment she helped mastermind comes with its own emotional tugs and poignant recollections.

Its bittersweet, she confided.

Cians Kennels, to me is like therapy. I get so much more out of it than what other people might think.

Its a distraction in some ways. All of the planning and everything else that goes with that is hard work and it does take motivation, but when you see it all come together it makes everything worthwhile. READ MORE BELOW PHOTO

Caption: Michaela Cox, Marcus Reid, Emma Farrouj, and Evelyn and Enda Neary at the National Lottery Good Causes Awards held at Killashee House on October 1

That sense of inner satisfaction would warm even the most dispassionate of hearts. Evelyn and Endas determination to make an establishment named after their much cherished son the success it has undeniably become looks set to break new and even higher ground over the coming months.

Having successfully managed a pilot by offering its services to children and families attached to the hospitals St Johns Oncology Unit, those advances has seen the charity being given the green light to extend its reach hospital-wide.

We are now in the process of communicating with the relevant ward managers which is exciting, added Evelyn.

Being able to boast a six strong voluntary board of directors as well as two sets of panels of volunteers in the midlands and Dublin is more than noteworthy.

So too is Evelyn and Endas vision to add a second vehicle to its fleet as well as a second panel of Dublin based volunteers.

Our plan is to extend the service at the hospital with immediate effect and the new childrens hospital while also bringing it to other care facilities for sick children, added an enthusiastic sounding Evelyn.

We just want to help as many sick children as we possibly can.

Those yearnings to reach out to families who have gone through similar journeys to those of the Nearys is of course linked to how Cian gained valuable strength through his own deep-seated relationship with Cooper.

And not surprisingly, the moment cant pass without mentioning a canine companion who will forever hold a unique place in the hearts of Evelyn and the wider Neary family.

Ah hes spoilt rotten, said Evelyn, while breaking out into mild laughter.

Hes three now and will always be a special pet for us.

In between trying to find Cooper a female companion, Evelyn is busy preparing for what will be the charitys first chance to hold a public celebration of its achievements to date in the wake of Covid-19.

On November 12, Cians Kennels will host its inaugural ball at a venue which holds treasured memories for Evelyn and Enda and Cians brother Shane.

We decided to choose the Ardilaun Hotel in Galway as it is so close to our hearts, said Evelyn.

We had such special, happy times there with Cian both pre and post his illness.

Its really a celebration of all what we have achieved to date. It will also be the first public gathering we would have had with everyone, from invited guests, to sponsors and volunteers.

It will basically be a room full of people who have in some and so many different ways been part of our journey.

On the evidence of that remarkable and staggering odyssey to date, its an adventure that has many more chapters to write over the months and years ahead.

*For more details on next months inauguration ball, simply log onto cianskennels.ie
A Cavan man with a chronic diabetic condition was going through a difficult time when he stole four energy drink cans from a Longford supermarket, a court has heard.

Forty-six-year old married father of four, Robert Beamish, of Robin's Nest Beherna, Knocktemple, Virginia, Co Cavan, pleaded guilty last week to shoplifting at SuperValu, Hazelwood Shopping Centre, Lanesboro Road, Longford on July 30 last.

The court was told on the day of the incident, Mr Beamish had been waiting on a friend to collect him from the town.

It was during that wait for his friend who, was later involved in a serious road traffic accident that the alleged offence occurred.

Defence solicitor Brid Mimnagh said Mr Beamish had gone into the store, picked up the items but was ultimately stopped by a security guard.

She added his friend has yet to be discharged from hospital, revealing also that her client was a married father of four who was continuing to battle a very serious diabetic condition.

New zoned land tax "completely unworkable" in Longford, meeting hears New land tax under regulations due to be rolled out from next month has been branded as "completely unworkable" for counties like Longford.

All of the goods were recovered and were in a resaleable condition, she said.

It was a very difficult time for him.

Presiding Judge Bernadette Owens was told Mr Beamish was hoping to go back to his chosen profession as a contract cleaner.

Judge Owens took on board the mitigation offered up to the court and acknowledged how the goods taken in the incident had been recovered.

She said the difficulty Mr Beamish was facing was that it was his second time to be convicted under the Theft Act.

She consequently fined him 150 and gave him five months to pay.
An eyewitness has told the Detective Garda Colm Horkan murder trial that he heard the "shooter" say: "If I didn't kill him, he would have killed me."

The Central Criminal Court also heard today (Thursday, October 13) that the accused man, Stephen Silver, told gardai that the detective's gun kept going off as they grappled over it.

Gda Enda Rowley told prosecution counsel Michael Delaney SC that when he arrived at the scene in Castlerea he saw the body of Gda Horkan lying on the ground at the junction of Main St and Patrick St while Gda Aidan Fallon was holding the arm of Mr Silver, who was in handcuffs. Gda Rowley, Gda Fallon and a third garda put Mr Silver into a patrol car and brought him to Castlerea garda station.

On the way, Gda Rowley noted that Mr Silver said: This has been a serious bad night. I didnt know he was a guard. He was wearing a Tommy Hilfiger jacket. I was wearing a luminous jacket. I was going for a pizza. He knew James [Coyne, Mr Silvers friend] but he didnt know me. I thought this sort of thing only happened in America. What is going on in Castlerea?

Gda Rowley described Mr Silver as agitated and somewhat non-compliant. At the station Gda Rowley cautioned Mr Silver and asked if he was the one who shot Det Gda Horkan. He noted his response as: No, well yes. We were grappling over it and it went off. It kept going off.

Gda Rowley asked, did you pull the trigger?

Yes, Mr Silver responded.

How many times? the garda asked.

Mr Silver replied: It kept going off, the gun. My ears are ringing, I never used a gun. I cant hear anything. Can you get me a tea? Im in shock.

Gda Rowley returned to the scene of the shooting and was present when a doctor pronounced Gda Horkan dead at 3.07am.

Stephen Silver (46), a motorbike mechanic from Aughavard, Foxford, Co Mayo has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Det Gda Horkan on June 17, 2020 at Castlerea, Co Roscommon. He is charged that he committed the murder knowing or being reckless as to whether Det Gda Horkan was a member of An Garda Siochana acting in accordance with his duty. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.

Marcus Silvera told prosecution counsel James Dwyer SC that he is from Brazil but now lives on Main St, Castlerea. On 17 June 2020, shortly before midnight, he heard what he knew to be a shooting. I am used to shooting in Brazil so I know what a shot is, he said.

He went to his window and as he walked he heard four more shots, ten to 15 seconds after the first shots. From the window he could see a body in the middle of the road facing away from him and another man with long hair, a black leather jacket and a bag on his back. He looked like a biker and he was walking around, over and back, like making an eight symbol and he was shouting towards the body: Hes a fucking wanker, he is a fucking wanker. I didnt do anything, he is a fucking bollocks.

Mr Silvera said he saw a male and female garda walking towards the man. The female garda shouted at him to put his hands behind his back and get on his knees. The man got to his knees and put his hands behind his head. She asked, where is the gun and Mr Silvera remembered the man replying, over there and pointing towards a car parked further along the street. The female garda told him to remove his backpack, which he did, before throwing it to his left side. He kept saying, why are you doing this to me, I didnt do anything all the time, he wouldnt stop.

The gardai handcuffed the man with his hands to the front while he was still on his knees but they then told him to move to the curb so he stood up and walked to the curb. Throughout, Mr Silvera could hear the man saying, I didnt do anything, he is a fucking wanker."

While one garda carried out CPR, the witness heard the man saying, you are doing it wrong, you are doing it wrong. He told the garda to do 15 compressions and then mouth to mouth. The garda, he said, told the man to shut up.

After gardai had tried compressions three times, the man said: Look, leave him alone, he is dead, he is gone, he is a fucking wanker, just leave him alone, he is gone.

When two gardai grabbed the shooter by either arm, Mr Silvera said, the man began to lose his head and got seriously angry. He said repeatedly that he hadnt done anything and asked: Why are you doing this to me?

Under cross-examination, the witness told Gerardine Small SC, for Mr Silver, that he also heard the shooter say: If I didnt kill him, he would have killed me.

The trial continues in front of Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of seven men and five women.
Notorious 'tiger kidnapper' and gangland criminal Paschal Kelly has opened an appeal against his conviction and 18-year sentence for a 92,000 post office robbery, during which three women were tied up and abducted.

Kelly (56) was one of a gang of three men who burst into the home of postmistress Susan Lawlor at Seabury Drive, Malahide, Dublin on September 25, 2014. He was sentenced to 18 years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in 2018.

The gang used cable ties to bind Ms Lawlor, her daughter and an Italian student who was staying at the home. The women were brought to a field where they were held overnight before the gang drove them to the Bayside Post Office in Sutton, Dublin.

At one stage Kelly threatened to burn them alive in a car by pouring petrol over it. The raiders eventually left with the cash.

Kelly with last addresses in Cootehill, Co Cavan, and Castlepollard, Co Westmeath, was convicted of trespass and the false imprisonment of Ms Lawlor, her daughter, Emma Carter, and student Gabriella Saisa.

He was also convicted of robbery, of threatening to kill the three women and of possession of a stolen vehicle, all on the same date.

The father-of-two had denied all charges.

Today at the Court of Appeal, Kelly's lawyers submitted a total of ten grounds of appeal against his conviction and four grounds against his sentence.

Martin O'Rourke KC, for the appellant, said that the trial judge had erred when allowing the evidence of a prosecution witness identifying Kelly from CCTV to go before the jury. Mr O'Rourke said that without this evidence, the judge would have to direct the jury to find Kelly not guilty.

Counsel said that no-one had specifically identified Kelly as "the perpetrator" of the crime but that it was the contention of two Garda witnesses that they had made an identification of the driver of the car used in the robbery.

He said there was no evidence that either detective told their superior that they saw the driver when they were interviewed over the discharge of a weapon as they gave chase during the robbery.

Mr O'Rourke said that it was "critical" that in the early stage in the investigation neither guard gave a description of the driver as Kelly.

Reliability of identification and the question of fairness in admitting the evidence were the issues at play, said counsel.

"This is a case where the unreliability of the evidence means it should not be put to the jury," said counsel.

Mr O'Rourke then played CCTV frame-by-frame to the three judges, footage which he said could not positively identify his client.

"You can't facially identify the person," said Mr O'Rourke of the CCTV. "The person had their hood up, so you can't see a hairline. What you can see is a man in his 50s or 60s with a beard," he said, adding that a jury could not make a facial identification based on the CCTV.

"The jury should have been sufficiently told to not make an identification from that," he said.

The appeal, before presiding judge Mr Justice John Edwards, sitting with Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy and Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, was then adjourned to December 19, when counsel for the State Roisin Lacey SC will reply to Mr O'Rourke's submissions.

The trial heard that Kelly's 60 previous convictions include assaults, escaping lawful custody, robbery and road traffic offences. In March 2015 he was sentenced for threatening to kill a Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) officer and failure to provide tax returns.

He received ten years for a post office robbery in 1997 and four years for another robbery offence in 1989.
The funeral service for mother-of-four Martina Martin has heard that she was the ultimate mammy bear and a friendly face who worked at the heart of the Creeslough community.

Mrs Martin, 49, was working in a shop when the service station explosion took place in the rural Co Donegal village.

The family walked behind the hearse as it arrived at St Michaels Church in Creeslough.

As the service began, Mrs Martins daughter Grainne brought forward a family picture to the altar as a symbol to represent her mother.

Among the other symbols were a Harry Potter pillow, a coffee cup, and Black Magic chocolates.

Parish priest Father John Joe Duffy told the congregation that Mrs Martin had an abundance of love and was sensitive to the needs of others.

She also had a quick wit and was a straight talker who lived life to the full, he said.

Martina was a beautiful person. Her beauty inside radiated in that kind of cheeky, mischievous smile which flowed out to you when you met her.

She was the voice of reason. When others were hurting, she entered into the situation.

She was a straight talker who never minced her words. The kindest friend you could ever have, the life and soul of any night out.

She didnt dwell on the problems she was facing in any way  in her own situations of life or challenges of life  but put others first.

Fr Duffy said that Mrs Martins friends described her as a mother hen to the core, and that her children described her as the ultimate mammy bear.

She stuck up for you through thick and thin, protected you and kept you safe and taught you right from wrong, the priest said.

The service also heard that she was a friendly face who worked in the villages main shop.

She certainly had an influence on others of which was inspirational, working in our local shop which was a hub at the very heart of our community.

Each time you would go there, you met that friendly face.

Fr Duffy said that she was in a very happy place in the community.

She loved Creeslough, she felt very much like home always in Creeslough, where your families originated from. She loved the people of this community, and each and every one of us who knew her very much loved her.

If we were having a bad day, the quick wit would lift us up.

If you picked up a bar of chocolate  somebody said to me, they remember fondly  and there was a bigger bar of chocolate available at the same price or a better bargain, she would say You know you can get a bigger one? And that was Martina looking out for people.

The service also heard that Mrs Martin was one of the frontline workers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

We have all of us, as a world, struggled through Covid. But she was one of the people who was on the front line serving her community together with her colleagues, who gave us such tremendous service through that time.

The only place that was opened even when this church was closed was the shop, and she was there with you, her colleagues, at the front line, being a place of comfort, and being a place of consolation for us.

The priest told the congregation that Creeslough had come together with determination to overcome the tragedy.

Creeslough is a village, yes a small village, but it is now more than just that. It is now a word for determination, for resolve, for togetherness.

And how important togetherness is. This tragedy has reignited within all of us, myself included, that each one of us are only as strong as the family we have around us, only as strong as the community that surrounds us.

President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and the Taoiseachs aide-de-camp were among those attending the service.
A pharmaceutical company is to cut hundreds of jobs from its operations in Dublin.

Novartis is cutting 400 jobs at its global service centre at Elm Park by the end of 2024.

The Swiss pharma company said the move was a strategic decision following a review of its operations in many locations.

In a statement, the company said the centre will continue to play a critical role, focused on commercial and scientific operations.

It said there are around 1,000 people working at its centre, but that this may be reduced to 600 employees over a phased period of time.

It comes after the pharma firm announced a company overhaul plan in April and its plans to cut 8,000 jobs worldwide.

It states on its company website that Novartis is one of Irelands leading employers in the healthcare industry.

It currently employs approximately 1,500 people across three locations in Cork and Dublin.

Novartis recognises that announcing such an intention has a significant impact on people and creates uncertainty, it said in a statement.

Novartis is committed to keeping associates informed in as transparent and timely a manner as possible. Novartis will consult with employee representatives on these proposals, as required under Irish law.

In a statement, Tanaiste and Minister for Enterprise Leo Varadkar sent his sympathies to all Novartis employees affected by the announcement.

Although the jobs losses are not unexpected, I know it will come as a major blow to workers and their families, Mr Varadkar added.

Im glad to see that Novartis has reiterated its commitment to Ireland, recognising the high quality of our workforce, and that it will keep employees informed in as transparent and timely a manner as possible.

I have also asked my officials and IDA Ireland to keep me informed of developments, especially regarding precisely how many roles are at risk before the end of 2024 and what the redundancy package will be.

The Government will make all necessary state assistance available to the workers and help them find new employment, education and training opportunities.

Given the nature of the work and sector involved, I would hope they can find new employment quickly.

Although we live in uncertain times, the Government is doing everything we can to keep the economy in good health and to sustain our current record levels of employment.
Leo Varadkar has said a temporary ban on residential tenancy evictions may lead to a glut of homelessness occurring when it ends.

The Tanaiste added the Government is weighing up the pros and cons of a ban over the winter months, and that he has no ideological objection to such a measure.

The Fine Gael leader made the comments in response to calls from Labour leader Ivana Bacik in the Dail to immediately impose an eviction ban in a bid to improve security for private sector renters this winter.

It comes as a new report from national housing charity Threshold found termination of tenancies is the biggest issue facing renters at present.

Mr Varadkar said: In terms of an eviction ban or a no-fault eviction ban over the winter period, thats something the government is weighing up at the moment.

I certainly have no ideological objection to that. We introduced it when I was taoiseach as head of the last government, although that was during the Covid crisis and there were restrictions on movement and the circumstances were different.

But he said the Government needs to examine the pros and cons of the policy.

The obvious advantage is fewer people losing their homes over the winter period, he said.

The obvious disadvantage is that when it ends, you may see a glut of homelessness occurring at that time, which is harder to deal with.

And indeed it may accelerate the number of landlords leaving the sector and might result in a higher level of homelessness next year.

And nobody wants to do anything that helps a problem get a bit better for a few months, only to make it much worse in a years time. We have to weight it up.

The Tanaiste added that a ban could only be introduced as part of a wider response as Taoiseach Micheal Martin had indicated.

Ms Bacik told the Tanaiste during Leaders Questions that a temporary eviction ban was urgently needed.

The fear of termination of tenancy is the biggest fear confronting renters, the fear of eviction. And with over 10,000 people on the homeless list I think we know just how serious that fear is, the Dublin Bay South TD said.

A report by Threshold published on Thursday found that the most pressing issue facing those renting in the private sector in Ireland is the fear of termination of their tenancies.

The organisation recommended the removal of no-fault evictions from the Residential Tenancies Act.

Ms Bacik added: Renters are worried theyll lose their home, theyre worried that they will be evicted from their homes. And we do need to see urgent action from government on this.

The most recent Government figures show there are now 10,805 people homeless across Ireland.

The Department of Housings August report, showed there were 7,585 adults and 3,220 children in emergency accommodation across the country.

This is up from the 7,431 adults and 3,137 children recorded in emergency accommodation in July.

It represents a 32% increase overall compared with a year ago, and child homelessness is up 47% compared with the same time last year.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: October 13 2022

Funding Will Support Innovation To Help Scale Sustainable Solutions.

Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that $18.1 million is now available through the Natural Carbon Solutions Innovation Challenge for the development of innovative nature-based solutions that lower emissions and sequester carbon through novel products and services. The funding will support innovation, help build capacity, inform policy, and refine best practices to enable the scaling of sustainable solutions. Today's announcement supports the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 85 percent by 2050.

"New York is leading the fight against climate change by spurring innovation and revolutionizing the ways we reduce carbon emissions," Governor Hochul said. "The $18.1 million available today will help attract companies with cutting-edge technologies, knowledge, and products to lower carbon emmissions and create a more resilient, cleaner future for New Yorkers."

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), which will administer the funding through its Natural Carbon Solutions Challenge, is seeking proposals from private companies, research institutions, and other organizations for innovative solutions that produce low-emissions products or sequester carbon in durable materials. Solutions of interest include methods to increase carbon sequestration, reduce waste methane emissions, and support the needs of New York's building stock, particularly for building shell retrofits and new construction that are key to achieving New York's energy conservation goals. In addition, this solicitation seeks approaches that can benefit underserved communities and environmental justice areas by using novel approaches to optimize land use to increase carbon sequestration, resilience and renewable energy deployment, reducing air and water pollution, providing cost savings for energy services, and stimulating job creation in climate smart industries.

New York State Energy Research and Development Authority President and CEO Doreen M. Harris said, "New York State is an innovation pioneer and as we look to achieve our ambitious clean energy goals, we must lead the way in stewarding our natural resources to benefit the climate. When we bring innovative solutions to scale, we energize the supply chain, and this directly impacts local communities by stimulating their economies and creating family-sustaining jobs of the future."

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner and Climate Action Council Co-Chair Basil Seggos said, "This significant investment to ensure solutions to reduce emissions and sequester carbon in the development of products and services in New York will help us reach our target of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions 85 percent by 2050 as required in the nation-leading Climate Act. The funding announced by Governor Hochul will provide companies with the tools they need to supply advanced technologies that decarbonize our economy and ensures a cleaner, greener future in our efforts to protect the environment and tackle climate change."

New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, "New York State has always been a leader in innovation, which is exactly the approach we need to tackle climate change in a big way. I'm proud of the role agriculture is taking to address climate change, as well as the work of all of our partners on the Climate Action Council. The Natural Carbon Solutions Innovation Challenge is yet another tool we as a State will now have to lower emissions and sequester carbon, helping us to reach our goals for a more sustainable future."

NYSERDA will accept applications through November 29, 2022. To learn more about this program, please register attend the NYSERDA webinar on Thursday, November 3, 2022 from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. Funding for this initiative is provided through the State's 10-year, $6 billion Clean Energy Fund and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

Today's announcement builds on New York State's investments in research, development, and commercialization to support innovators and companies accelerating the low emissions and carbon sequestering technologies needed to meet the state's goal for economy-wide carbon neutrality. NYSERDA's Innovation program is deploying $800 million over 10 years as direct investments via grants and wrap around commercialization support. More than $680 million in private investments and $200 million in project finance capital have been created, and more than 450 innovative clean energy products have been commercialized as a result of NYSERDA's technology and business development investments, including LED lighting systems, home appliances, longer-lasting batteries, and more efficient heating-and-cooling systems.

State Senator Michelle Hinchey said, "New York is all-in on the fight against the climate crisis, and the latest round of the Natural Carbon Solutions Innovation Challenge is a critical step toward meeting our CLCPA goals. This model program incentivizes businesses to take bold, forward-looking action on climate-smart solutions, like carbon sequestration and emissions reduction, demonstrating the kind of cooperative effort we need to protect our planet for New Yorkers for generations to come."

Assemblymember Michael Cusick said, "Making investments of this sort to stimulate innovative thinking to reduce emissions is critical and will help move New York closer to achieving our Climate Act greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal - positively impacting all New Yorkers and securing a clean, healthier future for all."

Assemblymember Donna Lupardo said, "I am very happy to see NYSERDA promoting the Natural Carbon Solutions Innovation Challenge. In order to meet the state's aggressive climate goals, we have to actively promote natural carbon sequestration and emission reduction in new and innovative ways. This is also what we had in mind when Sen. Hinchey and I passed the Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act; acknowledging the significant role New York agriculture can play. What we need now is sustainable support for these scalable initiatives."

New York State's Nation-Leading Climate Act

New York State's nation-leading climate agenda is the most aggressive climate and clean energy initiative in the nation, calling for an orderly and just transition to clean energy that creates jobs and continues fostering a green economy as New York State recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. Enshrined into law through the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, New York is on a path to achieve its mandated goal of a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040, including 70 percent renewable energy generation by 2030, and to reach economy wide carbon neutrality. It builds on New York's unprecedented investments to ramp-up clean energy including over $35 billion in 120 large-scale renewable and transmission projects across the state, $6.8 billion to reduce buildings emissions, $1.8 billion to scale up solar, more than $1 billion for clean transportation initiatives, and over $1.6 billion in NY Green Bank commitments. Combined, these investments are supporting nearly 158,000 jobs in New York's clean energy sector in 2020, a 2,100 percent growth in the distributed solar sector since 2011 and a commitment to develop 9,000 megawatts of offshore wind by 2035. Under the Climate Act, New York will build on this progress and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent from 1990 levels by 2050, while ensuring that at least 35 percent with a goal of 40 percent of the benefits of clean energy investments are directed to disadvantaged communities, and advance progress towards the state's 2025 energy efficiency target of reducing on-site energy consumption by 185 trillion BTUs of end-use energy savings.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: October 13 2022

About 20 percent of All Medical Students in New York Now from the Black and Hispanic/Latino, Pacific Islander, and Native American Demographic.

Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that the state has doubled its investment - committing more than $2.4 million - in diversity programs managed by the Associated Medical Schools of New York to help bring more traditionally unrepresented students to the physician workforce. Funded in part through the state Department of Health, these programs are designed to encourage students from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in medicine - including those who are Black, Hispanic/Latino, Pacific Islander, or Native American - to get accepted into and complete medical school in New York.

"For far too long, communities of color in New York have faced disparities in their access to healthcare and have endured poorer health outcomes, both of which have resulted partially from their under-representation in the medical field," Governor Hochul said. "By doubling our commitment to programs that champion diversity in medicine, we can ensure that our state's healthcare workforce is more representative of our state's population and help right historic wrongs."

While more than 30 percent of the state's population is Black or Hispanic, only 12 percent of physicians represent those demographics. Research has shown that patients seeing doctors from their own background have better health outcomes, which makes diversifying the state's physician workforce imperative to improving the overall health of New Yorkers and addressing disparities.

New York State is now providing more than $2.4 million to diversity in medicine programs, which are designed to close gaps in the medical profession, doubling the funding commitment made last year. This funding is expected to serve more than 800 students through new and existing diversity initiatives, including Bridges to Medicine, AMSNY's successful post-baccalaureate program at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University.

New York State Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett discussed the importance of this commitment today during an event at SUNY Downstate, and how these programs are helping to build diversity at medical schools statewide. For the first time, about 20 percent of all medical students in New York are now from traditionally underrepresented populations, including Black and Hispanic/Latino, Pacific Islander and Native American backgrounds.

Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett said, "There are few things more important to our goals of improving health equity than the work of ensuring that the medical profession is as diverse as the New Yorkers they serve. Having a trusted voice and someone who understands the unique facets of your life experience can change a person's understanding of their own health. This funding makes an investment in the people who make that a reality, and it will help for years to come by improving diversity, equity and inclusion to achieve better health outcomes for those who are traditionally underserved."

Launched in 2017, the Bridges to Medicine is a year-long post-baccalaureate line of study designed to increase the representation of students from traditionally underrepresented and low socioeconomic backgrounds seeking admission into medical schools. Accredited as Master of Science in Physiology program in 2020, students participate in co-mingled classes as first-year medical students

Of the 57 medical students enrolled in Bridges to Medicine between 2017 and 2021, 88 percent were accepted into medical schools. In addition, six students from the program's first cohort were matched to SUNY Downstate for their residencies.

In addition to Bridges to Medicine, the state's investment is supporting new, innovative initiatives to ensure underrepresented students are prepared for medical school. The funding is supporting a program to encourage Black male athletes interested in entering medicine; MCAT preparation programs; research and physician shadowing opportunities; a web-based program to match students with faculty mentors; and community resources to help medical students with housing, nutritional resource, and other life skills, such as financial literacy.

The increased funding is also supporting more students at AMSNY's preexisting programs:

Associated Medical Schools of New York (AMSNY), a consortium of the 17 public and private medical schools in New York State, launched its first diversity pipeline programs in 1985 and has continually provided opportunities for underrepresented students to prepare for and enter medical school. The state Department of Health has provided funding for these programs since 2002 in an effort to help broaden the demographics of people entering the medical profession in New York.

Associated Medical Schools of New York President and CEO Jo Wiederhorn said, "The state Department of Health's commitment represents a historic investment in the physician pipeline in New York State and will improve the diversity of the healthcare workforce. Our programs have shown results for over 35 years and now we will be able to really scale the impact. Over 94 percent of students in AMSNY's four Post Baccalaureate programs, go on to medical school with approximately half going on to primary care specialties, often in underserved areas."

State University of New York Downstate President Dr. Wayne J. Riley said, "We are encouraged by the impact the Bridges to Medicine program has had on our students' abilities to transition into their first year of medical school. In a community where the diversity is so great, in addition to providing quality healthcare, we are proud that our patients recognize and appreciate the reflection of their diverse and unique backgrounds. Our Bridges to Medicine Master's program is a benefit to the students and an even greater benefit to the community."

State Senator Jamaal T. Bailey said, "Diversity and representation in medicine is critical to addressing persistent racial health disparities. It is vital that our state continues to invest in programs like Bridges to Medicine that will not only provide opportunities for medical students of color but improve the health of our communities through increased access to quality, culturally competent care. Our communities deserve to have physicians they trust who understand their needs. I applaud Governor Kathy Hochul, Commissioner Mary Bassett, and the New York State Department of Health for their work to increase diversity in the medical field, create pathways to careers in medicine for communities of color, and inspire the next generation of healthcare leaders."

Assemblymember Brian Cunningham said, "I express my gratitude to the New York State Department of Health and AMSNY for their visionary leadership and support for programs increasing diversity in medicine," "We are fortunate to have many talented medical students and practitioners right at home in District 43, here at SUNY Downstate. Through this funding, not only are we enhancing medical services available in underserved areas like Brooklyn, but also providing incomparable opportunities to BIPOC students. These programs enable a diverse pool of medical students to pursue opportunities they might not otherwise have access to, so on behalf of myself and my constituents, I thank you."

Assemblymember Pamela J. Hunter said, "I am immensely proud to have been the primary advocate in the Assembly for the funding of the Diversity in Medicine program for multiple state budgets. Increasing the diversity of our doctors and nurses leads to better health outcomes as we enable new practitioners in the medical field who are directly invested in their communities. I look forward to the expansion of these programs and the many benefits it will have for our medical students as well as their future patients."
DUBLIN, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Aircraft lessor SMBC Aviation Capital said on Tuesday it will start offering its airline customers carbon credits aligned to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal in leasing contracts.

Chief Executive Peter Barrett said that in a "hard to abate sector", carbon offsetting was an interim measure to lower its impact on greenhouse gas emissions.

The world's second largest aircraft leasing firm owns, manages or has commitments to buy a total of 730 aircraft.

Owned by a consortium including Japan's Sumitomo Corp and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Irish-headquartered SMBC will initially invest $53.3 million in carbon credits based on energy efficient cookstove projects.

SMBC said in a statement that the scheme, which is certified by Gold Standard and Verra, will reach 3.2 million households in Africa, Asia and the Americas.

The airline sector, and the leasing firms who now control more than half the world's fleet of the aircraft they use, have limited options in the short term to reduce their carbon footprint, with most efforts focused on offsets, more fuel efficient aircraft and sustainable aviation fuel.

Rival leasing giant Avolon said last year it was investing up to $2 billion in electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft being developed by Britain's Vertical Aerospace. (Writing by Conor Humphries; Editing by Alexander Smith)
(Alliance News) - Kavango Resources PLC on Wednesday said it has received encouraging results from surveys at one of its licences on the Kalahari copper belt.

Kavango is a London-based, Botswana-focused metals exploration company. The Kalahari copper belt, which runs for nearly 1,000 kilometres from northeast Botswana to western Namibia, is a prime focus in the company's exploration of sediment-hosted strata-bound copper-silver deposits.

The company, which has held two prospecting licences in the Kalahari belt since January 2020, reported survey results showing high quality data down to 4 kilometres of depth, as well as high contrast resistivity sections delineating major folding and faulting, at its PL082/2018 licence.

Kavango conducted controlled-source audio magnetotelluric surveys over PL082/2018 to obtain these results, and said it was the first company on the belt to use CSAMT in this manner.

Current interpretation highlights a steeply dipping deformation zone within the licence area, against which steeply folded lithologies sit. These deep seated structures are believed to be pathways for fluid flow and minerals mobilisation, which is a key component of mineralising systems in the belt.

To date, the deformation zone is believed to be coincident with the northern zone soil copper anomaly.

KCBRC001, the current hole being drilled on PL082/2018, is designed to test a different CSAMT signature, and targets the highest soil copper values.

Kavango is planning additional work to improve its interpretation of the geology and structure of the licence by collecting closer spaced data using an even closer station spacing than the current 50 metres.

Chief Executive Officer Ben Turney said that one of Kavango's competitive edges was its "commitment to trialling remote sensing technology across our portfolio".

"From what we've seen of the results so far from our CSAMT surveys over PL082, this technology has potential to become transformational for exploration in the Kalahari copper belt," he added.

Kavango shares were trading 3.3% higher at 2.01 pence each in London on Wednesday mid-morning.

By Holly Beveridge; hollybeveridge@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - UK energy regulator Ofgem on Thursday urged consumers to cut their usage with winter approaching, although the government is downplaying any threat to electricity supplies over the cold period.

The call comes a week after Prime Minister Liz Truss ruled out an official government energy-saving campaign to encourage less consumption this winter.

"All of us should be thinking about how to reduce our energy use where possible," Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley said in a speech published on the regulator's website.

"This is not only the most direct way to reduce our bills. It directly helps with security of supply, contributes to decarbonisation, and saves money for the public finances," he added.

Wholesale gas and electricity costs are at an all-time high, he pointed out, "hitting families and businesses."

Despite massive government subsidies to cap electricity bills, households still face bills twice as high as last year, he said.

"And we are heading into winter, in the middle of a major European land war where Russia is using gas as a geopolitical weapon," he warned.

The UK's National Grid operator ESO has also introduced financial incentives to reduce consumption at key times.

In contrast, the government recently said it was not sending Britons any instructions on saving energy, and has downplayed fears of energy blackouts this winter.

UK climate minister Graham Stuart told London radio station LBC last week: "We're... hesitant to tell people what they should do when we're not a nanny-state government."

Elsewhere in Europe, governments are encouraging energy saving in the face of soaring gas and electricity prices and supply risks, and are implementing measures to reduce consumption in government offices and public buildings.

Brearley also played down the potential risk of power cuts in the UK.

A National Grid report earlier this month warned that in an extreme scenario of a halt to gas imports from Europe, combined with insufficient local production, power cuts of several hours could be implemented.

"I understand why the media coverage has concentrated on the worse-case scenario preparations. So to be clear, we do not think a supply emergency is likely," he said.

He repeated the government's view that the overall picture for the UK "remains favourable" and that it is in "a stronger position than many European countries" as it is less dependent on Russian gas.

However, he admitted that it was likely to be "another challenging winter".

source: AFP

Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
(Alliance News) - UK Prime Minister Liz Truss was under fire from her own MPs as they demanded more U-turns on her tax-slashing agenda after she ruled out spending cuts to balance the books.

The PM's leadership was in renewed peril as she was accused of "trashing the last 10 years" of the Tories' record at a bruising meeting with backbenchers.

MPs piled pressure on her to restore market confidence in her government, with reports suggesting she is facing mounting calls to reverse or delay her plan to cancel a rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%, due in April.

Truss has insisted this and other tax cuts will boost growth, but the so-far unfunded measures in Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng's mini-budget have sparked chaos in the financial markets.

Mel Stride, the Tory chair of the Commons Treasury Committee, said that given Truss's commitments to protect public spending, there was a question over whether any plan that did not include "at least some element of further row back" on the GBP43 billion tax-slashing package can reassure investors.

"Credibility might now be swinging towards evidence of a clear change in tack rather than just coming up with other measures that try to square the fiscal circle," Stride said.

Conservative former minister David Davis called the mini-budget a "maxi-shambles" and suggested reversing some of the tax cuts would allow Truss and Kwarteng to avert leadership challenges for a few months.

"If they do that, I think people like Mel Stride and others will come in behind them, and they buy some time," he told ITV's Peston.

Damian Green, a former deputy prime minister, said Conservative MPs are openly discussing reversing some of the mini-budget measures, as they question how else she can reduce debt after she rejected public spending reductions.

"It is indeed a topic of conversation around the tea rooms of the House of Commons as well, because we can all do the rough maths and see that it's very difficult," he told BBC Radio 4's PM programme.

"One of the obvious ways would be possibly to defer some of the tax cuts or the failure to put taxes up."

As MPs openly discussed the prospect of ousting the PM, an attempt to win over mutinous MPs at a meeting of the Tory backbench 1922 Committee on Wednesday evening failed.

Addressing the group, Truss said small businesses would have faced "devastation" if the government had not acted to cap energy prices, according to aides.

But she was met with open criticism, with MPs reportedly raising concerns about soaring mortgage rates and the Tories' slump in the polls.

Commons Education Committee Chair Robert Halfon told Truss she had "trashed the last 10 years of workers' Conservatism".

The PM and chancellor are expected to meet with critical MPs from next week to try to assure them that Kwarteng's medium-term fiscal plan on October 31 will address their concerns.

But Jacob Rees-Mogg suggested the government could ignore Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts accompanying the strategy if they predict low growth and rising debt.

The business secretary told ITV's Peston that "its record of forecasting accurately hasn't been enormously good" and that the chancellor could draw on "other sources of information".

Earlier on Wednesday, Truss insisted during her second Prime Minister's Questions that she was "absolutely" not planning public spending cuts, but insisted taxpayers' money will be used well.

But the remarks failed to prevent another day of economic turbulence, which saw a rise in the cost of government borrowing and the pound fall against the euro and dollar.

Since Kwarteng's September 23 mini-budget, the value of sterling has fluctuated and yields on government bonds, the cost of state borrowing, rose to such an extent that the Bank of England was forced to intervene to prevent problems for pension funds.

Truss was also warned by senior advisers that it was "no longer credible" to press ahead with large tax cuts without risking a financial crisis, The Times newspaper reported.

She has already abandoned plans to cut the 45p rate of income tax for top earners.

Economists have suggested that restoring confidence in the government's grip on the national finances will require tens of billions of pounds' worth of spending cuts or tax rises.

source: PA

Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Experts criticize U.S. poor response to COVID-19 as potential fall surge underway

Xinhua) 13:24, October 13, 2022

People gather on the National Mall during an event protesting vaccine mandates and other pandemic restrictions in Washington, D.C., the United States, Jan. 23, 2022. (Photo by Aaron Schwartz/Xinhua)

Some researchers said the United States is already starting to see early signs of a resurgence. According to an NPR report, virus levels in wastewater are up in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Vermont and other parts of the Northeast, potentially "an early-warning sign of what's coming."

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Experts blame the U.S. government for the country's failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic, while U.S. health officials expect another fall and winter surge as people head indoors during the colder weather.

Some researchers said the United States is already starting to see early signs of a resurgence. According to an NPR report, virus levels in wastewater are up in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Vermont and other parts of the Northeast, potentially "an early-warning sign of what's coming."

The United States is currently averaging about 39,000 new cases, 340 new deaths and 3,300 new hospitalizations each day, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Experts warned there could be a "significant undercount" in cases, with most people testing positive on rapid tests that go unreported or foregoing testing altogether.

People visit the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., the United States, May 30, 2022. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

Infections and hospitalizations have started rising in some parts of New England and some other northern areas, such as the Pacific Northwest, according to David Rubin, director of the PolicyLab at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, which tracks the pandemic.

"We're seeing the northern rim of the country beginning to show some evidence of increasing transmission," Rubin said. "The winter resurgence is beginning."

U.S. health officials expect another fall and winter COVID-19 surge as immunity from vaccination wanes off and people head indoors as the weather turns colder.

A medical staff member inoculates a person with a dose of COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccine clinic in San Antonio, Texas, the United States, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

As of Oct. 6, about 68 percent of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated with their initial series, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But less than half of the fully vaccinated population has received a booster dose.

"The United States, among the richest, most advanced nations in the world, remains wholly unprepared to combat new pathogens," according to a piece in The New York Times.

Both the COVID-19 and monkeypox outbreaks have revealed deep fissures in the nation's framework for containing epidemics, said the piece. "Add to that plummeting public trust, rampant misinformation and deep schisms -- between health officials and those treating patients, and between the federal government and states."

The most intractable hurdle to a coordinated national response arises from the division of responsibility and resources between U.S. federal, state and local governments, along with gaps in communications between the public health officials coordinating the response and the doctors and nurses treating the patients, according to the report.

A muddled response to future outbreaks seems almost inevitable, said the report.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
Former leading UN official says event is opportunity to celebrate progress

Many international experts are voicing expectations that the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which is expected to open on Oct 16 in Beijing, will generate successes not only for China but also the world.

Erik Solheim, former executive director of the United Nations Environmental Programme and former UN under-secretary-general, said that after 40 years of unprecedented economic growth and poverty reduction, China should focus on how to take the next step toward a high-quality and people-centered society.

He said the 20th CPC National Congress is an opportunity to celebrate Chinas progress since it initiated the reform and opening-up drive in 1978, consequently eradicating extreme poverty, extending life expectancy to the level of developed countries and becoming a global leader in renewable energy and green development.

China should set new high ambitions for its global leadership toward an ecological civilization and shared prosperity for humankind, the Norwegian politician said.

He said China is already ahead of all other nations in new green technologies and can help lead the world on climate and the environment.

At a time of much global uncertainty, Chinas leadership is critical to create a stable world order for economic progress and green development, he said.

Carlos Martinez, a British commentator and co-editor of Friends of Socialist China, said the 20th CPC National Congress will likely emphasize common prosperity.

Alleviating poverty, reducing inequality, preventing the unchecked expansion of capital and ensuring all people in China benefit from Chinas growing economic strength  these are all tremendously important in terms of working toward the second centenary goal of building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious, he said.

He pointed to Chinas commitment to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, and said he believes the Congress will reaffirm the Partys commitment to the climate and biodiversity.

He said China is leading the way with renewable energy, electric vehicles, afforestation, pollution reduction and biodiversity preservation.

With an increasingly urgent climate crisis, this (Chinas) leadership is indispensable, he said.

Martinez believes China will continue to pursue a foreign policy based on peace, development and mutually beneficial cooperation.

However, the 20th CPC National Congress will inevitably have to seriously consider Chinas defense capacity, and the need to foster domestic innovation and consumption, in the face of increasingly hostile forces led by the United States, which is attempting to contain China.

Bernard Dewit, chair of the Brussels-based Belgian Chinese Chamber of Commerce, has traveled to China almost every year since the 1980s but has not been able to during the past three years because of COVID-19.

He said the Congress will need to focus on measures to support the economy and hopes Chinas pandemic-control policies could adapt to ease travel for businesspeople and tourists from the rest of the world.

Dewit added that he hopes Chinas economy will remain open to foreign investment and to partnerships between Chinese and foreign companies in China and abroad.
Editors note: Since its founding more than 100 years ago, the Communist Party of China has led the country in making remarkable achievements at home as well as contributing to global development and peace. Combining political theory and practice to make those remarkable achievements, the CPC has set a great example for the world. Three experts share their views on the CPCs governance philosophy with China Daily.

Platos The Republic, which is the foundation of Western political thought, is the key for foreigners to understand todays China. The republic Plato envisaged more than 2,300 years ago is somewhat similar to the Peoples Republic of China. Chinas governing party can be called the guardian party because of its similarities to the Guardians that ruled the ideal republic Plato envisaged. The Communist Party of China founded the Peoples Republic of China and has led China to achieve enormous social and economic progress unique in speed, size and global impact.

Xi Jinping has been the CPCs leader since 2012, and his lifelong values and goals guide the continuation of the Partys highly successful system of government that is essential for achieving Chinas national rejuvenation. Xi emerged as Chinas leader with close to four decades of experience and constant evaluation in diverse government roles in the Partys highly competitive leadership training and selection system.

It is a mark of the effectiveness of the Party leaderships selection process that Xis personal values and goals exemplify the rare type of statesman-philosopher, as he is seeking to institutionalize the ideals and pragmatic goals that he manifested in his early articles and during his work as a minor government official and in his books as Chinas leader on The Governance of China in four volumes.

My new book, China in 2049: The Meaning of Xi Jinping, presents my analysis, as a Western trained lawyer, businessman and political scientist who is not Chinese, about the importance of Xis values and formative experiences that created his goals as Chinas leader seeking a constructive shared future for humankind.

The book also explains why and how the economic growth and national security of the United States and China must and can be aligned to peacefully coexist. My goal is to help the policymakers of the two countries to find a constructive instead of a catastrophic shared future.

A Chinese friend once asked me what in my view, as a foreigner, is the most important change in China. The answer is: people in China have become more confident.

The Chinese people have transitioned from timidity and uncertainty about their position in the world to being confident and proud of what China has achieved in just over four decades, something which no other country has been able to do.

The Chinese peoples pride in their country is justified, because the Party has propelled China to a position of global leadership, commensurate with its economic power and population, which comprises more than 20 percent of the global total.

For 38 of the last 40 centuries, Chinas was the worlds largest and most technologically advanced economy. Then it started looking inward, which did not turn out well because the economic, technological and military advances made by other countries made China vulnerable to foreign exploitation.

But when pushed into the corner, the Chinese people produced a unique system of government that could defend the countrys sovereignty and make astonishing economic and social achievements. The Partys people-centered government policies have enabled China to leap from being one of the poorest countries to becoming the worlds second-largest economy.

Hence, future Chinese generations must never forget that without a stable, strong political leadership capable of formulating and implementing successful long-term economic and social planning, Chinas fate could easily turn out differently.

Many foreign observers used to say that Chinas success was temporary, because it has a political system different from that of Western countries.

In 2020 Eric Schmidt, a key US government adviser and former Google CEO, summed up Chinas advantage in developing and applying new technologies to industries that will control the future, saying: China is simply too big. There are too many smart people in China.

Yet many Americans used to say Chinas one party-led system of government, socialism with Chinese characteristics and the Chinese economy dominated by State-owned enterprises ought to fail because Chinas policymakers are not doing what the US thinks they should. But China could not, would not and should not copy other countries systems of government and economic management.

Chinas political and economic systems are not failing. Instead, the Party leadership is enabling China to become the worlds largest economy. For many Americans, who did not expect the speed and global impact of Chinas success, this is a traumatic shock.

Researchers at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University released in July 2020 a landmark study examining Chinese public opinion over a 13-year period, covering the policy impact of three of Chinas government administrations. The study titled Understanding CCP Resilience: Surveying Chinese Public Opinion Through Time was the longest-running independent effort to determine Chinese citizens satisfaction level with the governments performance.

Edward Cunningham, director of the Ash Centers China Programs said: Since the start of the survey in 2003 to its conclusion in 2016, Ash Center researchers found that Chinese citizen satisfaction with government has increased virtually across the board. From the impact of broad national policies to the conduct of local town officials, Chinese citizens rate the government as more capable and effective than ever before. These strong satisfaction rates counter the argument that as Chinas economy continued to expand and economic inequality increased, citizen satisfaction levels would drop as their relative demands increased.

Many Americans cannot understand or accept Chinas success, because they unrealistically assumed that China would copy non-Chinese models of government and economic management.

But the reality is that Chinas century-old party rapidly adapts to changing circumstances, and is capable of formulating and implementing successful long-term economic, social and national security policies. The CPC has enabled the country to implement socialism with Chinese characteristics and increase Chinas per capita income from $50 to more than $10,000 and lifted close to 800 million people out of abject poverty. These achievements underpin the legitimacy of the Party.

China has a population of over 1.4 billion and the US 334 million. So the US economic stability and national security depend on Americans accepting and understanding the reality of the CPCs success and US policymakers reciprocating the CPCs policy of peaceful coexistence.

The author is chairman of the America China Partnership Foundation.

The views dont necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

Vanguard behind the countrys achievements

By Song Xiongwei

The past century has witnessed the Communist Party of China leading a revolution, founding the Peoples Republic and relentlessly pursuing economic development and social change for the better. The Chinese people have changed their fate, made great contributions to humankind, and are now on way to realizing national rejuvenation.

With its membership growing from just over 50 when it was established in 1921 to more than 96 million, the Party today is leading a country of more than 1.4 billion people and has become the worlds largest governing party with significant global influence.

As Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, addressed a ceremony marking the centenary of the founding of the Party on July 1, 2021, the image China presented to the world was one of a thriving country that is advancing toward national rejuvenation.

In its more than 100-year history, the Party has made extraordinary historic achievements on behalf of the people. Today, it is leading the people on a new journey toward realizing the second centenary goal of developing China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and beautiful.

Under the Partys leadership, China has made milestone economic and social achievements, consolidated its position as the worlds second-largest economy and realized its first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

The Partys governing principle is based on Marxism, and it has implemented scientific theories to develop the country and strengthen inner-Party democracy. A key reason why the Party has been able to fulfill enormous tasks, inconceivable for any other political force, is its adherence to Marxism. So upholding the Partys scientific theories can further develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, and modernize Chinas governance system and capacity.

However, it is also important to uphold the Partys centralized and unified leadership, guarantee political stability, and ensure that the country follows the socialist path.

The Party has a materialistic worldview, and works for the betterment of the people. It views the people as the fundamental force behind the advance of history, regards itself as a tool for realizing the peoples interests, and takes the mass line as the fundamental guideline for its work. Since its founding in 1921, the Party has always followed the people-first principle. In contrast to many Western political parties, the original aspiration and the mission of the CPC are to achieve national rejuvenation and bring happiness to the Chinese people.

The past decade has seen the Party making even more remarkable achievements in terms of improving peoples living standards, eradicating absolute poverty, strengthening the education system, and improving healthcare services and disease control.

The Party has fought to establish its leadership, and has been striving to consolidate the peoples support. One of the partys valuable historical experiences is to follow an independent path. According to the Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century released last year, the Party has always followed an independent path, relied on its own efforts to drive forward the countrys development, and firmly believed that Chinas affairs should be managed by the Chinese people.

No wonder Chinas governance system, long derided in the West, has proved more effective in advancing the countrys development and offers more choices than Western democracy. Also, unlike developed countries which took several centuries to industrialize, China has completed the process in a matter of decades, achieving the twin miracles of rapid economic growth and enduring social stability, thanks to the Partys leadership.

The CPC has always attached great importance to fostering high-caliber Party officials. With the CPCs political guidelines clearly defined, how officials perform their duties makes a great difference to the overall performance of the Party.

The task of national governance hinges on having the right people for the job. Over the past hundred years, the CPC has always insisted that its members have both the integrity and the ability to deliver, giving priority to the former, and has appointed officials based on merit. Dismissing cronyism and clique culture, the Party has brought together people from different walks of life to fight for just causes and improve the well-being of all the Chinese people.

It has reformed the official selection system, in order to build a contingent of competent and professional Party officials who are honest and upright, firm in their ideals and conviction, willing to serve the people, diligent in their work, and ready to take on responsibilities.

The Party is capable of responding to the risks and challenges faced by China. It is also good at rectifying its mistakes and reforming, improving and purifying itself. It has no special interests of its own, nor does it represent any interest group. And it has always advanced peoples interests.

The world is undergoing unprecedented changes as China moves toward realizing national rejuvenation. And the Party is prepared to meet the peoples needs for a better life and ensure the country can overcome any challenges and withstand any tests.

The author is a professor of politics and law at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee.

The views dont necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

Leadership has improved Chinas global standing

By Wael Khalil Yassine

China is facing the most immoral and unprecedented attacks from myriad quarters because of its ability to remove the obstacles to its economic growth at a time when almost all other countries are encountering economic downturn, which began with the global financial crisis.

Victorious over the fiercest enemy of humankind, poverty, and having largely contained the spread of the novel coronavirus, China is progressing on the development path following the people-first principle, which is considered ideal for governance and global leadership, because it builds mutual trust among countries and promotes beneficial interactions between them instead of sowing the seeds of division and using threat and coercion.

This is how the Chinese leadership devised the countrys realistic and ethical policy and made it strategically credible. Equally important, its leaderships quality does not come from manipulation of rules and principles; it has developed through appropriately handling bilateral, multilateral and international affairs. No wonder the Chinese leadership has been fulfilling its promises and commitments toward not only friendly partner countries but also those with which it doesnt have very good relations.

This is the way to prompt countries to work together and shoulder their respective responsibility in cooperative endeavors, and move forward together on the path of development, peace and prosperity.

The Chinese concept of cooperation is based on mutual trust and mutual understanding, which is different from the Western concept of implicit threat of force.

Chinas focus on leadership quality highlights the importance of choice and the ability to use opportunities in a way that it leads to peace and prosperity, rather than frictions and war. The Chinese leadership also aims to improve the countrys position on the global stage through political means and reforms, and bolster national strength as part of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Thats why Chinese leaders have been seeking to expand the circle of Chinas partners who support its development concept.

China supports its partner countries, and backs decisions that safeguard and promote the rights of the people while rejecting and denouncing the US-led Wests decisions and moves, including imposing sanctions on other countries and using long-arm jurisdiction, aimed at reinforcing the hegemony of the major powers.

China has helped establish regional and international institutions such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which do not necessarily fully comply with the international rules and criteria set by the US-led West. In this way, the Chinese leadership maintains its moral character without trying to overhaul the existing international order.

Chinas leadership has always (and continues to) put peoples interests first and deal with other countries based on the principle of mutual benefit, which is in contrast to what the Western, especially US, leaders do. In fact, drunk on the spirit of dominance and expansion, many US and other Western leaders rarely, if ever, take peoples interests into account.

Chinas concept of nation building stems from its adherence to the Constitution and the rule of law.

As President Xi Jinping has said, the achievement of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects has put higher demands on governance in accordance with the law. Hence, the need to push forward scientific legislation, better implement the rule of law, ensure fair justice and deliver good governance.

The Chinese leadership realized early that when a political system is based on the principle of hegemony and expansion and does not put peoples interests first, the failure of policies and peoples anger and indignation against the leaders would be the final harvest. And when it puts the interests of the people at the forefront and deals with other countries with respect and on an equal footing, peoples support and diplomatic success will surely follow.

The author is chairman of the Middle East Studies and Development Center, an independent think tank in Lebanon.

The views dont necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

SOURCE: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/

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Editors note: China Daily presents a series of analyses to explain why and how China, led by President Xi Jinping, addresses the questions of the times by advancing peace, progress, openness and cooperation in the world.

Answers to questions of the times in interests of entire human community

In response to looming security challenges, headwinds against global recovery and setbacks to global development, President Xi Jinping brought up a number of questions of the times this June.

Where is the world headed: Peace or war? Progress or regression? Openness or isolation? Cooperation or confrontation? These are questions of the times that we are confronted with, Xi said in the keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum in Beijing on June 22.

At the forum, Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, stressed the need to jointly maintain world peace and stability, promote sustainable global development, pursue win-win cooperation and expand openness and integration.

Xis remarks help the world better identify priorities, shape agendas and deliver actions on outstanding issues such as geopolitical conflicts, the COVID-19 pandemic, food and energy crises, and economic downturns, observers said.

Over the past 10 years, led by the CPC, the country has displayed great courage, wisdom and boldness in soundly answering the questions of the times in a holistic manner and helping to address the worlds common needs, they added.

Xi unveiled a wide range of plans and measures at a number of major international and regional events to further advance global peace, progress, openness and cooperation.

China remains a supporter of global peace and stability as it becomes bigger and stronger, which showcases Chinas great sense of duty as a major country, said Parakhat Durdyev, Turkmenistans ambassador to China.

China enjoys great potential in the economy, technology and culture, and working with China means good access to ideal cooperation for development, he added.

At the High-level Dialogue on Global Development on June 24, Xi announced that China will upgrade the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund to a Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, and add $1 billion to the fund on top of the $3 billion already committed.

Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Sept 16, Xi said that next year China will host an SCO ministers meeting on development cooperation and an industrial and supply chains forum, and will set up the China-SCO Big Data Cooperation Center to create new engines of common development.

Xu Bu, president of the China Institute of International Studies, said that led by Xi, Chinas answers to the questions of the times are in the interests of the entire human community, focus on the theme of global development and lead the worlds efforts in pursuing peace and development.

Currently, human society is at a new crossroads, because geopolitical and security issues are increasingly prominent, unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, economic globalization is suffering from headwinds and global supply and production chains witness serious challenges, he said.

Xis remarks on the questions of the times constitute a Chinese solution to tackle the worlds deficit in governance, trust, peace and development, and serve as part of Chinas contribution to boosting global cooperation on development, he added.

China is an active player supporting international development as it pushes for building a community with a shared future for mankind, basing its actions on South-South cooperation, building on the important platform of the Belt and Road Initiative and seeking to help other nations in fulfilling the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, he said.

As promoted by the BRI, East Africa now has highways, and China-Europe freight trains have become an important lifeline ensuring the stable, smooth flow of global and regional logistics.

China has signed more than 200 cooperation documents on jointly building the Belt and Road with 149 countries and 32 international organizations, Vice-Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu said at a news conference on Sept 29.

Jia Qingguo, director of the Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding at Peking University, said that in the future world order, non-Western countries such as BRICS members may play a larger role in rule-making, and values such as peace, development, state sovereignty and mutual benefits are likely to get more attention.

A sustained world order requires international efforts to find ways to manage and contain divergences and to work together to address challenges to the world order. In particular, major countries need to do the right thing with a sense of foresight, courage and wisdom, Jia said.

In a prerecorded video offering congratulations on the 73rd anniversary of the founding of Peoples Republic of China, Maltese President George Vella noted that the pandemic has highlighted once more the importance of multilateralism and solidarity among states.

He said it is important that more countries such as China remain active supporters of effective multilateralism and demonstrate active respect for international law and institutions.

Wang Chao, president of the Chinese Peoples Institute of Foreign Affairs and president of the United Nations Association of China, said that Chinas answers to the questions of the times were based on the Chinese nations unchanged belief in reasonably tackling differences among civilizations, seeking common ground while shelving differences, and learning from each other.

China never subscribes to the idea that a major country should necessarily be a bully, and the nation believes that nations  whether big or small, rich or poor  are equal members of the global community and are entitled to participate in international affairs on an equal footing, Wang said.

Ren Lin, head of the Department of Global Governance at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Institute of World Economics and Politics, said that facing the questions of the times, countries should advance the joint building of the community with a shared future for mankind.

It is important to examine deeds rather than words when evaluating whether a country subscribes to genuine multilateralism or not, Ren said. Unlike some Western countries hypocrisy in sugarcoating their unilateralist moves with the pretext of multilateralism, China has been practicing multilateralism with tangible actions that honor openness, inclusiveness, benefits for all and win-win cooperation.
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Did King Charles choose this date to take a jab at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Did King Charles choose this date to take a jab at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

The date of King Charles III's coronation, according to royally interested social media users, was chosen on purpose as a jab at his son Prince Harry and daughter-in-law Meghan Markle.

The official coronation of the future monarch will take place at Westminster Abbey on May 6, 2023, the fourth birthday of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's son Archie, according to a statement released by Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.

"So King Charles The Cruel has set his Coronation for the 6th of May next year... AKA his grandson Prince Archie of Sussex's 4th birthday," one critic tweeted in response to the news. "Chile how ghetto. I hate it here. Anyway, Harry when's that memoir dropping."

"Imagine you choose your grandchild's birthday for your coronation and.... He is trending in your country, NOT YOU #Archie ," another person noted, while yet another critic tweeted, "So the a-hole scheduled his coronation on his youngest grandson's birthday?"

"Royalists freak out when the Sussexes release a picture two days after the rest of the family or does anything when a birthday pic of the Cambridge kids is released, saying it overshadows them," another Twitter user noted. "But by all means schedule your coronation on Archie's birthday. The audacity."

An apparent riff between the Royal Family

The apparent slight comes two weeks after the royal family's website demoted Harry and Markle, and relegated their images to the very bottom of the page.

Since the Sussexes resigned from their positions in January 2020 and left the UK in what has come to be known as "Megxit," tensions between the royal family and the Sussexes have remained high.

Meghan explains the terrible treatment she's received, having been called 'crazy' and 'histerical'

Prior to Queen Elizabeth II's passing on September 8, the couple, who are also parents to a 1-year-old daughter named Lilibet, had only sometimes traveled back to the UK from their new home state of California.

Harry and Markle appeared to be treated unfairly several times during the late monarch's funeral, notably when they were made to sit separate from the rest of the family, despite their decision to attend and pay their respects.

When Harry and Markle had a conversation with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, their estranged connection with his family became official.

The multiracial former actress from the United States claimed during the startling interview that a senior royal, who shall remain nameless, once voiced concern over "how black" her and Prince Harry's potential offspring might be. Winfrey then prompted the prince to identify the offender.
The United States military loves slapping an acronym on anything that moves. Actually, things that dont move are equally likely to be described with a jumble of letters when words would do the trick just fine.

Sometimes its obvious that the acronym-izer shouldve put more thought into the process, and we get some unintentionally hilarious descriptors.

1. PMS

Every Professor of Military Science is used to the giggles because every new set of students is equally immature.

2. MANPADS

While were on the subject of bodily functions, anyone whos carrying a Man-Portable Air-Defense System better be ready for a few comments about whether they might need a diaper.

3. MANCOC

A male chicken is usually called a rooster but it's also known as a cock.

Students at the Armys Maneuver Advanced NCO Course must've gotten mighty tired of questions about their MANCOC. Perhaps that's why it's now called the Senior Leader Course.

4. DICC

Richard Cheney is known as Dick to his friends.

But those guys likely were not nearly as tired as the intelligence officers answering questions about their Defense Intelligence Collection Cell.

5. DISCO

John Travolta is king of the disco in "Saturday Night Fever." (Paramount)

Spending an evening processing requests down at the Defense Industrial Security Clearance Office isnt nearly as glamorous as the acronym might suggest.

6. MAGIC CARPET

Aladdin and Princess Jasmine take a magic carpet ride. (Disney)

OK, maybe the acronym for Maritime Augmented Guidance with Integrated Controls for Carrier Approach and Recovery Precision Enabling Technologies wasn't unintentional. Someone put a lot of effort into making that one work.

7. DRBOB

One Dr. Bob is a noted folk artist. The other co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous.

The future of commissaries and exchanges may be in the hands of the Defense Resale Business Optimization Board, but how many New Orleans folk art fans think of the famed painter behind the citys Be Nice or Leave signs? What about the AA members who know Dr. Bob as Bill W.s cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous?

8. FARP

Rick and Morty should be your preferred source for fart humor. (Adult Swim)

Everyone at the Forward Area Refueling Point is tired of your fart jokes.

9. FAP

We can't really go there.

The Fleet Assistance Program, aside from assigning Marines to extra duties outside the normal chain of command, raises an entire set of issues that we cant really discuss here.

10. BLT

Who wouldnt enjoy a delicious Battalion Landing Team?

BONUS: AOC

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., listens as President Joe Biden speaks at the 45th Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Gala to kick-off the White House's celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month at the Walter Washington Convention Center, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

For years, the Army Operating Concept was just a military plan for the future. Now, the acronym causes convulsions in a large portion of our news-watching population. Handle with care.

Keep Up With the Best in Military Entertainment

Whether you're looking for news and entertainment, thinking of joining the military or keeping up with military life and benefits, Military.com has you covered. Sign up for a free Military.com membership to have military news, updates and resources delivered directly to your inbox
A Navy investigation into the death of Seaman Kyle Mullen determined the young sailor died of pneumonia that was aggravated by an enlarged heart. However, the investigation also provided further evidence that SEAL recruits are not given adequate care and the course has fostered a culture where seeking help in emergency situations is discouraged.

Mullen, who died in California just after completing the torturous "Hell Week" portion of the Navy's Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, or BUD/S, was found to have perished in the line of duty, according to the report provided to Military.com on Wednesday.

Another broader investigation was also ordered into the training program after reports emerged that the program is rife with drug use, cheating and abuse. Cmdr. Ben Tisdale, a spokesman for the Naval Special Warfare Command, confirmed that "administrative actions" have already been taken against the commanders of the special warfare center and training program as well as the senior medical staff under their command.

Read Next: How Trauma Before Service is Shaping a Generation of Troops

The initial investigation, which includes documents like the military's autopsy report of Mullen, dozens of interviews with officials and sailors, and medical records from paramedics, paints a clear picture of a sailor who was struggling for days with symptoms but was not afforded the care he needed.

The investigation also made clear that recruits -- including Mullen -- are driven to hide symptoms and pain either out of a desire to complete the training, a fear of being made to start over or fear of being dropped from the program entirely.

The drive to push on at any cost is true of many SEAL recruits, and one medical professional on the training course told investigators that he "'takes it with a grain of salt' when students say they want to continue."

Another sailor explained that "'the kids don't want to quit,' so even if a student had a significant medical complaint they would be unlikely to disclose it."

Combined with that drive to push on, the report also highlighted a dangerous message that recruits were told by leadership -- calling outside doctors can only lead to trouble.

A post-Hell Week flier given to the recruits explicitly said "DO NOT go and see other/outside medical providers" before explaining, in all capital letters, that "if you go and see other medical personnel who do not understand Hell Week, they may admit you to the hospital or give you medicines that are not compatible with training."

As a result, one sailor told investigators that "he and the other students were instructed not to call 911 and not to go to the emergency room."

One doctor interviewed by investigators explained that instead, the command promises to see recruits anytime, though that is typically done over the phone.

In a statement released Wednesday, Rear Adm. Keith Davids, the commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, said the normally secretive wing of the Navy "remains committed to transparency, and we welcome the opportunity to review our assessment and selection programs, and help us look for additional ways to improve and prevent this kind of tragedy from happening again."

Several Navy officials interviewed for the investigation outlined that during the training course, medical conditions like Mullen's are routine.

According to the investigation, in the early days of Hell Week, the 24-year-old Mullen was doing fine. However, by Thursday -- day four of seven -- things had taken a turn. One sailor told investigators that Mullen had become so swollen that he had gained "a significant amount of weight," and that by Feb. 3, he "was in 'full messed up mode.'" Mullen told some sailors that his knees hurt.

Another sailor described Mullen's breathing as "sounding like 'gurgling water'" while sleeping and that he and others were "pretty concerned."

One sailor noted that Mullen was "in the worst medical shape out of anyone in the class" in the last days of Hell Week, and many reported seeing him with bottles full of dark-colored liquid that he was coughing up. A few sailors remarked they thought it was actually darkened spit from chewing tobacco.

By the fifth day, Friday, one sailor recalled that Mullen could "barely walk." The investigation said that Mullen received supplemental oxygen that day. A medical form in the report also showed that Mullen was evaluated, and course officials heard crackling in his lungs and his right leg was swollen.

He was found fit to train but told to follow up with post-Hell Week medical checks. Several sailors noted that Mullen's attitude improved after Hell Week finished, though he needed to be wheeled out of the classroom in a wheelchair and one sailor described him looking like the "Michelin man" from all his swelling. A doctor attached to the medical department at the command told investigators that both the swelling and wheelchair were common.

He would die that night.

Mullen's report is filled with instances of the recruit doggedly pushing forward as medical issues mounted. One of Mullen's friends in the program told investigators that Mullen explicitly said he was "worried about getting rolled" -- slang for being made to restart the training.

One sailor who was part of Mullen's boat crew recalled that on the fourth day of training, Mullen suddenly woke up from a nap with blood coming out of his mouth. The sailor tried to get Mullen to get medical attention, but he refused. "I don't want to be a b***h," Mullen told the sailor.

"I don't want to be seen as the guy who keeps going to medical," he added.

After the sailor prevailed on Mullen, the two looked out of the tent where they were recovering to try and get help but an instructor spotten the pair and "told them to go back to the tent."

Another sailor, assigned to keep an eye on recruits after Hell Week ended, remembered seeing a seemingly delirious Mullen "talking to himself in the bathroom and saying, 'I can't believe I'm such a p***y.'"

In Mullen's case, the instructions for recruits not to seek outside medical help proved disastrous. After Hell Week, the same sailor who spotted Mullen in the bathroom called the duty physician, concerned about Mullen's trouble breathing. The person on the other end said Mullen could go but reiterated the warning about outside medical care.

Another trainee said Mullen "was 'so adamant' about not going to the hospital" that despite asking multiple times, he waited until medical checks the next morning. Meanwhile, his fellow sailors were left not knowing what to do about their rapidly deteriorating friend.

"They should have made an executive decision to take [Mullen] to the hospital," one sailor said in his interview.

Ultimately, it's not entirely clear what led to Mullen's death. The autopsy report pins the death on a pneumonia infection but notes that the sailor's enlarged heart was a contributing factor.

A memo from a Navy cardiologist specialist in the report notes other contributing factors included "the use of prohibited performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), possible swimming induced pulmonary edema (SIPE), and the rigorous physical demands of BUD/S Assessment and Selection."

After his death, Mullen was found "in possession of and suspected of misusing several PEDs," including human growth hormone and testosterone. One entry in the report notes that all the substances found "are commonly abused to increase muscle mass."

The role that the drugs played in his death is a matter of debate for the Navy experts in the report. One doctor wrote that "Mullen's heart size being 64.7% over the upper limit of the reference range suggests that his exposure to anabolic agents may have been large" and another noted that such drugs have been noted to cause Mullen's symptoms. Yet a third expert pushed back on the idea of a "possible correlation" between the drugs and pneumonia as "speculative" and lacking evidence.

In response to the death the Navy has announced that it is adding a cardiac screening program as well as increased prevention measures for pneumonia and it is extending the observation period to 24 hours for recruits who make it past Hell Week. They will also begin to screen for performance-enhancing drugs through urine tests.

"Kyle's death will not be in vain," Davids promised in his statement. "We have a moral obligation to learn everything we can from Kyle's tragic death so that we can ensure the safety of all future candidates."

-- Konstantin Toropin can be reached at konstantin.toropin@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @ktoropin.

Related: Outside Investigation of SEAL Training Underway in the Wake of Death and Reports of Drug Use, Navy Confirms
Conakry, Guinea (PANA) - The Guinean government believes that the delay in the start of the political dialogue is due to the attitude of some political parties which disapprove of the legal proceedings launched a few days after the junta took power in September 2021
BEIJING  The Chinese government on Thursday accused Washington of Cold War thinking and appealed for efforts to repair strained relations after President Joe Biden released a national security strategy that calls for out-competing China and blocking its efforts to reshape global affairs.

The foreign ministry also accused Washington of trade protectionism after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the United States would reinforce its global supply chains to guard against geopolitical coercion by China, Russia and other governments.

Bidens document Wednesday accused China of trying to erode U.S. alliances and create more permissive conditions for its own authoritarian model. It called for out-competing China in political alliances and global governance as well as business, technology and military affairs.

U.S.-Chinese relations are at their lowest level in decades, strained by disputes over technology, security, Taiwan and human rights.

Cold War thinking and zero-sum games, sensationalizing geopolitical conflicts and great power competition are unpopular and unconstructive, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning. She called on Washington to meet China halfway and promote China-U.S. relations back to a healthy and stable track.

The White House document calls for the United States to maintain a competitive edge over China, which has antagonized Japan, India and other neighbors with an increasingly assertive foreign policy and growing military.

China's multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative to build ports, railways and other infrastructure across Asia and Africa has fed concern in Washington, Moscow and other capitals that Beijing is trying to build its strategic influence and undermine theirs.

China, with the second-largest global economy and military, is the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to do it, the document says.

Mao, speaking at a regular news briefing, said China was a defender of the world order and rejected sensationalizing geopolitical conflicts and great power competition.

Mao criticized the weaponization of economic and trade issues after Yellen said Wednesday the United States was trying to reduce reliance on China and other Asian suppliers of semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries, solar panels and other technology.

President Xi Jinping's government is spending heavily to reduce its need for U.S. and other Western technology by developing its own creators of processor chips, artificial intelligence, aerospace and other know-how. Beijing is pressing Chinese companies to reduce reliance on global supply chains by using domestic vendors whenever possible, even if that increases costs.

We know the cost of Russias weaponization of trade as a tool of geopolitical coercion, and we must mitigate similar vulnerabilities to countries like China, Yellen said in Washington.

The United States should abandon unilateralism and protectionism," Mao said, and work with the international community to maintain the security and smooth flow of the industrial and supply chain."
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va.  Jondanae Garza was in elementary school when the first cut of steel for the USS Gerald R. Ford was made in 2005. Now 17 years later, she shares a milestone with the Navys newest and most technologically advanced warship  both are deploying for the first time.

The Ford departed Oct. 4 from Naval Station Norfolk, embarking on a two-month-long deployment to train with North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies. During the special deployment, which comes after nearly two decades of construction, the crew will hone the capabilities of the warships 23 new technologies.

One of those technologies is the advanced damage control system  a unique system Garza has learned as part of her duties as a second class hull maintenance technician for the ship. She is one of 26, among a crew of approximately 4,000 sailors, who work with this new technology.

Some of my friends  other sailors  are jealous that I am on this carrier, 25-year-old Garza said with a laugh. Being on this ship, with it being a brand new classification, there is a lot of cool stuff on here.

The Ford is the first new class of aircraft carrier designed in over four decades, ushering in a new generation of warships outfitted with never-before-seen technologies intended to boost the Navys striking power for at least the next 50 years. The Navy invited reporters aboard the $13 billion carrier two days after it deployed to see some of the technology in action, which includes new aircraft-launching technology, electromagnetic weapons elevators and dual-band radar.

The warship is carrying the Navy into the 21st century, said Capt. Paul Lanzilotta.

I dont like buzzwords, so Im not gonna say game changer or transformational, but its the now, Lanzilotta said of the Ford.

Sailors and crew members gaze out of the hangar bay at the sunset as a helicopter flies past the USS Gerald R. Ford CVN-78 in the Atlantic Ocean on Oct. 6, 2022. (Kendall Warner/The Virginian-Pilot/TNS)

The new technology extends beyond the warships defensive capabilities.

Below deck, the advanced damage control system allows Garzas team to easily plot the location of fires and flooding  or anything that would threaten the survivability of the more than 1,100-foot-long carrier. That enables the Fords Damage Control Division to quickly dispatch sailors, whether they be hull technicians like Garza or firefighting damage control members, to the incident.

You type it in to the advanced damage control system, then boom, its right there. You are able to think faster about what is needed to respond and you know exactly where you are going, Garza said.

The easy-to-use touchscreen program replaces paper plotting across several pages of the ships blueprints with a grease pencil, cutting the divisions response time down by about 10 valuable minutes, Garza said. The system also allows for quick searches of necessary equipment and parts to make repairs, rather than manual searches through drawers.

Garza, who is a Norfolk transplant from Las Vegas, reported to the Ford in 2020. While she has spent the past two years learning the ins and outs of the ship, the past two months have been dedicated to mastering the advanced damage control system.

Just days into the first deployment, the system, Garza said, has already reduced vulnerabilities caused by human error and communication breaks. When someone called in a potential issue over radio, damage control members were dispatched to the wrong location on the ship.

When they caught it from central control, plotting from the advanced damage control system, they got the right location and called us on our radios, so we were able to correct ourselves quickly, Garza said.

Garza also works with the machinery control and monitoring system, another technology that is unique to the Ford. The system features sensors that detect flooding and when the sprinklers have been activated, and immediately alerts watchstanders.

As soon as those sensors kick off, we are able to go do our task, Garza said.

The Ford is the first of a series of new carriers to be completed that will replace the current Nimitz class. It will be joined by the John F. Kennedy in 2024. The Enterprise is scheduled to join the fleet in 2028 and the Doris Miller in 2032.

Cmdr. Jim Gun Boss Fish said the Fords sailors will be instrumental in training future generations of service members for this new generation of carriers.

There are sailors on board here who are learning about this ship. And theyre going to do and teach things about the ship that their grandkids are going to carry with them when theyre on the Doris Miller, Fish said.

In the meantime, some of the technology that makes the Ford-class carriers so unique will be implemented in the Nimitz class warships to improve the capabilities of the Navys older warships. For Garza, this means she will have the opportunity to step up as a leader when she is transferred to another carrier in the coming years.

When I go to a different type of ship I can help junior sailors. I can try to summarize (the new methods) so they understand it and I can go on to the advanced damage control system and show them how to use it, Garza said.

According to Garza, fresh sailors will adjust quickly to the high-tech carrier because the digital systems throughout the warship replaces dated methods with a technology they are familiar with  touchscreens. At the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center in Norfolk, where Garza was previously assigned, everything was keyboard-centric.

When I got here, it was way easier. (The touchscreens) and how to actually use (the advanced damage control system) are super easy to understand, Garza said.

Garza will be attached to the Ford until 2025. She said she hopes her next carrier will be a Nimitz class  for the experience.

But I am so used to the Ford and the new tech, maybe I need to try for the USS John F. Kennedy, she said.



2022 The Virginian-Pilot. Visit pilotonline.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Navy turns 247 today, and like all good birthdays, it comes with plenty of well-wishing and greeting cards. Sadly, Russia seems to be crashing the party.

As scores of government officials, brands and even journalists turned to social media to wish the U.S. Navy a happy birthday, some have elected to use pictures of warships that don't belong to the American fleets. They're Russian.

In just one example of a government agency forgetting the difference between ships and , the Twitter account for the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) job recruitment department tweeted out a birthday message Thursday morning, since deleted, that was set against a gorgeous sunset image of three Russian warships moored in a river of a major city.

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Meanwhile, Carlos Martel, the director of field operations for the CBP's Los Angeles office, sent the Navy birthday greetings, also subsequently deleted, with a graphic that featured both a Russian warship and fighter jets amid the Navy seal and the Statue of Liberty, for good measure.

Then there was Esther Joy King -- a congressional hopeful for Illinois' 17th district -- who went with a dramatic photo of a Russian Slava-class cruiser taken from the water and set against an evening sky for her birthday wish. The choice of ship is a bit striking since it's the same class as the Moskva -- the flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet that was sunk by Ukraine in mid-April.

Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., went with a shot of three Russian ships at sea. A handful of local TV news stations went with the same image of three Russian warships, complete with decorative flags hoisted stem to stern, anchored neatly in a line.

To be fair, the goofs are far from new or unique. In 2012, the Democratic National Committee showed Russian ships in its tribute to veterans. The Air Force's birthday usually draws a few foreign jets into its imagery, and occasionally public officials and brands will mix up the Army and Marine Corps, too.

It even happens in Russia. Earlier this summer, an image of a Russian Navy Day poster cropped up online that featured a U.S. Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.

For its part, the Navy is taking its birthday as an opportunity to release some slick new videos that are guaranteed to feature only American gear.

The sea service said that it is commemorating the day "by premiering its latest 'Forged by the Sea' marketing campaign, developed to change Gen Z's current mindset about Navy service," according to a press release.

The campaign, which features a variety of new ads, is aimed at 17- to 24-year-olds and will run "on the digital and social media platforms most popular with Gen Z."

-- Konstantin Toropin can be reached at konstantin.toropin@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @ktoropin.

Related: US Army Misses Recruiting Goal; Other Services Squeak By
BRUSSELS  Russian President Vladimir Putin would be crossing a very important line if he were to order the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned Thursday, as both the military alliance and Russia are due to hold nuclear exercises in the next few days.

NATO is holding its exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon, next week. The long-planned maneuvers are conducted around the same time every year and run for about one week. They involve fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but do not involve any live bombs.

Russia usually holds its own maneuvers around the same time, and NATO is expecting Moscow's exercise of its nuclear forces sometime this month. Stoltenberg said NATO will closely monitor what Russia is up to.

Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed.

He added that even any use of a smaller nuclear weapon will be a very serious thing, fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine, and of course that would have consequences.

Stoltenberg's remarks came after a meeting of NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group, which was held among defense ministers in Brussels, as concerns deepen over Putins insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

The meeting, which usually happens once or twice a year, comes amid high tension as some NATO allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

Irresponsible and reckless rhetoric is dangerous, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said of Russian threats to potentially use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. However the U.S. has not seen the need to make any changes to its current military posture or response, Austin said.

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also warned Putin not to cross that threshold. Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated, he said in a speech in Bruges, Belgium.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russias movements in its war with Ukraine, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture. Putin's nuclear exercises though could make it more difficult for NATO to understand what Russia's intentions might be, potentially increasing the risk of an accident.

Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise, U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters Wednesday. But what we dont want is to do things out of routine.

This is a routine exercise and its all about readiness, Wallace said, just as NATOs meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance  to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in "Steadfast Noon," which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 1,000 kilometers (625 miles) from Russia.

NATO as an organization doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries  the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

With the Russian army retreating in some places when faced with Ukrainian forces armed with Western weapons, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and declaring a partial mobilization to buttress the crumbling front line.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signaled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect Russian gains. The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television, French President Emmanuel Macron suggested that France would not respond with a nuclear strike. He also warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric and said he has spoken to Putin several times.

We have a (nuclear) doctrine, which is clear, Macron said. The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.

Too many people are talking about it, he said.

___

Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Tara Copp in Washington contributed to this report.
Army leaders are weighing whether to revamp the service's Basic Leader Course to include more time in the field -- and that could mean longer school, too.

The potential overhaul of the course, or BLC, would be part of the service's effort to get all of its troops more extensive combat training, as well as a broader shift away from counterterrorism operations and toward conventional warfare.

The 22-day school is a requirement for soldiers to be promoted to sergeant, a pivotal transition in which soldiers would then hold a leadership role and be effectively responsible for the professional development and well-being of others. But now virtually all of that required schooling is spent in the classroom.

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"One of the things we're looking to improve on is field craft," Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Grinston told reporters Wednesday. "We're calling it Basic Leader Course 3.0. At some point, we took out the field training exercise, and we're looking to bring it back."

The school has slowly phased out combat skills training in favor of administrative coursework and bringing soldiers up to speed on personnel policies, such as the Army sexual assault and prevention programs. A soldier's unit is expected to keep its troops honed on warfighting, but non-combat arms units don't always have opportunities for that.

A shift in the curriculum has already started. Army planners have integrated land navigation back into three BLC schools as a pilot program, after that training was removed in 2018. Roughly half of the students have failed that portion of BLC, but the data is limited, given that the trial is new. There is also a trial for other combat tasks, including using hand grenades, moving under direct fire and applying a tourniquet.

That list could grow as the service also looks to bolster soldiers' abilities to lead an attack on an enemy position and patrol.

"In the future, we absolutely want to go where you do field craft overnight," Command Sgt. Maj. Daniel Hendrex, the top enlisted leader of the Army's Training and Doctrine Command, or TRADOC, told Military.com.

Plans for BLC's overhaul are expected to be finalized within about a year, according to Hendrex. Then, it could take another year or two to implement that plan.

The changes would likely mean the schooling is a day or two longer, taking more of soldiers' time, and will require more funding, two things that are difficult to balance, especially in the National Guard and Reserve, Hendrex said.

"It needs to grow, but it's going to cost money," he said.

The combat skills currently measured in the pilot programs are from the Army's expert badge tests, which the service and particularly Grinston have placed a huge emphasis on. The Expert Soldier Badge, for the first time, rates a non-combat arms soldier on being proficient in basic infantry tasks -- another part of the service's strategy to place an emphasis on combat training for troops outside of jobs that traditionally focus on fighting.

The Army's rationale is that in a conventional war, any soldier can find themselves in a gunfight. Army planners anticipate future wars could force more soldiers operating from austere frontline positions rather than the sprawling and relatively safe bases in Iraq and Afghanistan during the post-9/11 wars.

"I want to make sure all NCOs understand their tactical tasks on a baseline," Grinston said. "For an infantry soldier, going out to the field is like, 'This is great; I do this all the time.' There are other [soldiers] that don't know how to do that. Who makes sure that when you see an NCO, they have these basic skills?"

-- Steve Beynon can be reached at Steve.Beynon@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevenBeynon.

Related: Land Navigation Is Coming Back to the Army's Basic Leader Course
12.10.2022 LISTEN

Johnson Ayin,e a member of the NPP regional communication team in the Upper East Region said If we are to look at the role of an MP, our MPs are failing us.

He was speaking in a discussion on Apexnews Ghanas flagship programme on Friday, October 7, 2022, dubbed: Speak Out Upper East.

Speaking on the topic, What is your general overview with regard to our representatives from this part of the country? Do you think they represent the region well development-wise? Mr. Ayine said: What I am seeing as somebody who is from the north and who has been a political actor for over decades, I think we havent gotten enough from our representative of Parliament and this is a fact.

"It is something that they cannot run away from it. They can say they are doing it to their satisfaction, they say that there are obstacles, and what have you. But everybody knows that to become a Member of Parliament, there are A, B, C, and D challenges that you will face. But conveniently, some of them always tell that their role is to go and pass laws.

What they are forgetting is that an MPs main role is to scrutinize the executive properly. To make sure that they put the executive on its track to do the deliverables. But they say passed laws, what laws? Laws are there for you to pass but your job is to scrutinize them. In the process of securitizing what the executives are supposed to do, you ought to also make sure that whatever the executive is doing, is of benefit to the country and your constituency in particular.

So, you need to leverage that opportunity that has been given to you to scrutinize. Scrutinizing government expenditure or government businesses does not necessarily mean that if they come to parliament, maybe there is a perception that there is corruption, lets sight an example like Pwalugu Multi-Purpose dam oh the money is too big, so I have to go and make sure that somebody is not corrupt No. Scrutinizing does not necessarily mean that you should make sure that there is only value for money. But the project that is going to be executed, will it benefit the state? Is it of benefit to wherever am coming from? Is it something that is of priority? So, the scrutinization is not limited to the perceived corruption aspect alone, it goes beyond that."

Mr. Ayine believes the MPs have the responsibility to communicate back to their constituents.

But unfortunately in Ghana, we have allowed our MPs. They go there and make augment on our behalf without our consent and after the argument whatever comes out, they dont come back to communicate to us and they claim they are representing the good people of Bolga, representing the good people of Talensi when small consultation has not been done to know whether your people like it or not.

He extended his call to the MPs saying, I want to call on the Ghanaian legislatures to make good use of the existing technology, and the existing polarization of media in the country. Today, any MP that wants to sample the opinions of his or her constituents can easily use the radio station, social media, and online portals and gather information but they dont do it. They hardly even come to social media because their perception is on social media they are insulting people, they dont want to engage the media, and the media have difficulty getting them to engage on their platforms. That is why you see them talking too much when they are in opposition and when they are in government they are silent.

So, if we are to look at the role of an MP, our MPs are failing us. Unfortunately, you have this part of the country the Caucus is weak, you hardly find or even who is their Caucus leader, you hardly hear them having Caucus meetings, and you hardly hear them moving as Caucus to go and find out what is happening at ABCD, you hardly see your Caucus demanding good result from policymakers implementers. That is the difficulty we have. They go there and put party interest first more than their community, constituency, and the region.
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The Libyan Post Telecommunications and Information Technology Holding Company (LPTIC) Thursday signed an agreement with the American company Cisco and held a met with a delegation from Nokia to develop the telecommunications sector, as part of the Libyan State's digital transformation plan
12.10.2022 LISTEN

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) will be going to poll to elect regional executives ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Madam Fawzia Abagnamah Yakubu has declared her intention to contest the Regional Women's Organizers position.

She believes that proactive and strategic women's leadership is key to the victory of the NDC in 2024.

She stated, In my quest to contribute my quota to the realization of victory 2024 and agenda 15/15 in the Upper East Region, after wide consultations, I have decided to pick nomination forms to contest for the position of Upper East Regional Women's Organizer.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Hey folks, let me share with you what I witnessed on Monday, 10 October 2022, when I went shopping. For the security, safety and protection of the image of the shop in question, I will neither mention its name, nor location.

When I was in the queue waiting for my turn at the checkout to pay for my groceries, I could see at the front of the checkout a security officer in casual dress obstructing two Eastern Europeans from leaving the shop. There was a loud talk. They had become a cynosure. Many shoppers in the queues were inquiring what had happened and what was going on?

One of the Eastern Europeans, a white man of course, had filled a very beautiful big carrier bag he was holding with items removed from the shop shelves but not paid for. As he tried to exit the shop, the anti-theft device installed at the door went off.

He was confronted by both a uniformed and a casual dressed security officers. While the uniformed officer retreated to his normal manning position, the other officer brought the shoplifters into the checkout area as said above.

As all eyes were set on them with tongues wagging, the shoplifters became so embarrassed.

From the unfolding events, one could tell that the Eastern European being ordered to empty his pockets, but not subjected to a pat-down search as the officer has no authority for that type of search, was becoming increasingly agitated.

His accomplice, although he had personally not stolen anything from the shop, told both the store manager and the security officer that he was ready to pay for the stolen items so they should let go his colleague who had actually stolen the items.

The manager agreed, took him to the checkout staff at where I was queuing up and got him pay for the stolen items.

After payment, the manager and the security officer started walking back to the shop floor with the carrier bag containing the stolen items.

The Eastern European who had agreed to pay for them, asking his colleague who actually stole the goods to leave the shop when the commotion became so intense with the likelihood of the police being called for them, followed the manager onto the shop floor. All the while, he was asking the manager to give him back the items since he has already paid for them.

The manager refused. He asked him to call the police if really wanted to be given the items.

He told the Eastern European until he called the police and they came, he was not going to release the stolen items to him.

The checkout staff serving us said, He wanted to steal from us. For attempting to steal from us, he has a price to pay and that is the forfeiture of the items. He thought he was smart. Weve made him pay for them but withheld the goods from him

What a smart move by the store manager?

The guy went on his phone, left the shop and was hanging around. I saw his colleague who had actually stolen the items coming towards him when I left the shop.

I told the one on the phone, when passing him by that he had better forget about the items since he would be in trouble should he call the police over.

What was he going to tell the police? Should he tell them he had stolen from the shop, as could be proven by the close circuit television cameras (CCTV cameras), he would rather be in trouble. He will end up taken to the police station, statement taken from him and charged to court.

He could end up with a fine, a criminal record on his file and a ban from the shop.

That policy of the shop as witnessed by me is superb. It saves the shop from losing money by not calling the police.

If they called the police and the case went to court, both the security officer and the manager will have to attend as witnesses. They have to be paid by the shop, although they will not have worked to earn the shop any money for that day. Again, their policy could be for the avoidance of any inconveniences relating to transportation, arranging for replacement personnel while they are away from duty for that period of attending the court.

Anyone who shoplifts and is made to undergo the experience of the two Eastern Europeans under discussion, will be stupid if they called the police as it was suggested to the shoplifter by the shop manager as in this publication.

How I wish many shops could do the same.

They should only call the police for the shoplifters in the event of their inability to immediately pay for the items so stolen.

Kudos to the shop manager and the security officers. How I wish this fine policy of the shop in question could be replicated in other shops across the United Kingdom.

Rockson Adofo

Wednesday, 12 October 2022
13.10.2022 LISTEN

In Germany Supermarkets, stealing is on the rise. Whites steal and are aggressive, Whites from Ukraine and other white countries as my wife, a cashier at Netto Supermarket Chain (4500 branches across Europe) reports. Blacks keep quiet and enjoy the social benefits Germany offers.

2015: more than one Mio. economic and political migrants arrived in Germany. 2022: more than one Mio. Ukraine and other migrants arrived in Germany. Not all can be absorbed by our society, and not all have the qualifications we need. They will live in our social system.

2015 has seen pressure on the real estate market. Rising rent charges and a shortage of apartments and houses were the consequences. In the labor market, some companies took advantage of the situation and fired expensive German workers and replaced them with cheap foreign workforce easy to misuse. The face of established neighborhoods has changed. More Germans get the impression to be in the wrong place. More than 300.000 qualified migrants each year Germany is not capable to integrate.

2015 saw the beginning of a much larger problem. The number of migrants hitting Germany each year is going to increase enormously. So the internal problems. German-born citizens will support extreme right and left-wing parties, hate against foreigners will increase, and the focus on Africa will get sharpened. The common German will ask loudly why African rich nations send their people to Germany and Europe.

These voices might be followed by the idea to take over Africa again and stop standing at the sideline of African politics to advise rather than put ideas into action by force.

Ghana and Africa as a whole are playing "Animal Farm" (Author: George Orwell) over and over again. Mr. Johns will be replaced by another man with the wisdom to protect his interest by making Africans happy in their countries of birth and blessings, countries full of good memories of humanity, human identity and progress, and success.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said his country is a reliable energy supplier and is ready to resume deliveries to European Union member states. Putin said, however, that there will be no supplies for countries which have capped energy prices.

After the Nord Stream pipelines connecting Russia to Europe were damaged by a series of explosions, Putin said "the ball was in the EU's court" to resume deliveries.

"If they want to, then the taps can be turned on and that's it," Putin said.

Moscow is "ready to start deliveries" through parts of the pipeline not affected by the leaks, he added. Putin made no reference to EU sanctions against Moscow, nor to the alleged technical difficulties which interrupted supplies in the weeks prior to the Nord Stream incident.

Speaking at an energy industry meeting in Moscow, Putin blamed the EU for the current instability of global fuel prices, saying price-capping by some western governments was destroying the world market, and threatening the well-being of millioins of people.

International terrorism behind Nord Stream leaks

The Russian leader also said the Nord Stream leaks were the result of "international terrorism" and had benefitted the United States, Poland and Ukraine.

He claims that the damage to the Nord Stream reinforced the importance of other gas-transport networks, and had enabled the United States to further increase energy prices.

European leaders have been struggling to come up with a plan to tackle rising energy costs while maintaining sanctions on Russia.

More than half of the bloc's members have supported the idea of capping prices.

Putin said Russia "would not supply energy to the countries that limit their prices".

West destroying world market

The Russian leader claims that "with their cavalier decisions, some Western politicians are destroying the global market economy and are in fact posing a threat to the well-being of billions of people.

"Ordinary Europeans are suffering," Putin said, adding: "the population, like in the Middle Ages, has begun to stock up on firewood for the winter".

Ahead of a meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Putin proposed the creation of an energy hub in Turkey, using Russian gas transported by the Black Sea route.
Madam Kate Abena Gyamfua, NPP National Organizer

12.10.2022 LISTEN

Kate Abena Gyamfua, the ruling NPP's National Women's Organizer, has slammed the opposition NDC for criticising the Akufo-Addo's government for the current economic woes.

She blamed the current situation was as a result of the reckless borrowing by the previous Mahama-led NDC government.

She stated during a discussion on Accra-based Wontumi FM that the Finance Minister has been settling old outstanding debts left behind by the NDC for the past six years.

Ken Ofori-Atta is to be praised for the good work he is doing. This is because he has been paying all the debt NDC left in governance with interests and that's why our economy is not strong as it must be.

Ungrateful people(NDC executives), he(Ken Ofori-Atta) paid the debt NDC government left while in office in order to stabilize your lives including the lives of Ghanaians. The NPP came to meet all the havoc and they are smartly dealing with it in order to stabilize the economy, she stated.

The NPP Women's Organizer told her party communicators to rise and propagate the good works of the government to quell the propaganda machinery of the NDC.

She again called on Ghanaians to rally behind President Akufo-Addo and his government to solve the economic predicament.

Listen to her submissions below:
President Mahama's Administration embarked on a programme to expand facilities and address the increasing pressure on the country's maritime infrastructure for the business community and our neighbouring landlocked countries.

The interventions undertaken include the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority and Meridian Port Services collaboration to expand the Tema Port to create several hectares of port operational area including deep draft berths for vessels drawing 16 metres of water or more. The total investment was US$1.5 bn.

The first berth under this project was completed in 2016. In all, there is 4 berths of 1400 metres quay lengh that has container traffic capacity of almost 3 million Twenty-Footer Equivalent Units (TEUs). A 450 metres jetty was also constructed at the Tema Port to allow for the fast discharge of bulk cargo, in particular, cement and clinker.

Work was completed under phase one of the Takoradi Port Expansion Project involving the construction of 1.15 kilometres of breakwater into the sea. The second phase which involved further dredging and reclaiming of the sea to construct the leeside breakwater to create berthing facilities for direct landing and unloading of bauxite and manganese exports as well as clinker and limestone imports was completed.

Work was completed on an 800 Twenty-footer Equivalent Units Reefer Terminals to accommodate more freezer containers.

The Ghana Maritime Authority installed a Vessel Traffic Management Information System (VTMIS) to provide a 24-hour electronic surveillance and monitoring of Ghana's Coastline and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Work was also completed on the development of the Takoradi Logistics Platform by the Ghana's Shippers Authority to provide warehousing facilities for the Oil and Gas Industry.

Work started for the construction of a US$700 million Atuabo Free Port Project. The 2,000 acre port would have a fabrication yard, rig and ship repair facilities and logistics supply base. It is estimated to create over 5,000 jobs for the youth.

To improve transportation on the Volta Lake, three 50-seater high-speed passenger ferries were procured and delivered to Akosombo. In addition, a modular passenger/cargo ferry was completed and also delivered to Akosombo.

Anthony Obeng Afrane
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Wednesday ordered traditional healers to stop treating sick people in a bid to halt the spread of Ebola, which has already claimed the lives of 19 individuals in the impoverished East African country.

In a televised speech to the nation, the veteran leader also directed security officials to arrest all people suspected of having contracted the often-fatal viral haemorrhagic fever if they refused to go into isolation.

His instructions followed a regional ministerial meeting in Kampala to discuss the emergency response to the outbreak after Uganda last month announced its first fatality from the highly contagious disease since 2019.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had told the meeting from Geneva that clinical trials could start within weeks on drugs to combat the particular strain circulating in Uganda known as the Sudan ebola virus, for which there is currently no vaccine.

A statement issued by WHO said there were 54 confirmed cases and 19 deaths since the outbreak was first reported in the central district of Mubende on September 20.

Museveni said only one fatal case had been recorded in Kampala, a 45-year-old man of Congolese origin who had fled isolation in Mubende after a relative died, and had sought out the help of a witchdoctor.

He later succumbed to the disease in a hospital in the capital, Museveni said, adding that about two dozen people who had been in contact with the man were now in quarantine.

"Witchdoctors, traditionalists and herbalists should not accept sick people now. Suspend what you are doing," Museveni said.

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni said there had been one fatality in Kampala. By BADRU KATUMBA (AFP/File)

"There is no witchcraft here. Ebola is a disease. The communities in the affected areas should know Ebola is deadly and spread through contacts with the affected person."

Since the initial outbreak in the largely rural landlocked country, infections have been found in five areas including Mubende, according to WHO.

'High' risk of spreading

"Unfortunately, the Ebola vaccines that have been so effective in controlling recent outbreaks in DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) are not effective against the type of ebola virus which is responsible for the current outbreak in Uganda," Tedros told Wednesday's meeting.

"Several vaccines are in various stages of development against this virus, two of which could begin clinical trials in Uganda in the coming weeks, pending regulatory and ethics approvals from the Ugandan government."

A WHO assessment has found the risk of the Sudan ebola virus spreading to neighbouring countries was "high due to cross border movements between Uganda and other countries".

"Our primary focus now is to support the government of Uganda to rapidly control and contain this outbreak, to stop it spreading to neighbouring districts, and neighbouring countries," Tedros told reporters.

Ebola is named after a river in DR Congo where it was discovered in 1976. Human transmission is through bodily fluids, with common symptoms being fever, vomiting, bleeding and diarrhoea. Outbreaks are difficult to contain, especially in urban environments.

People who are infected do not become contagious until symptoms appear, which is after an incubation period of between two and 21 days.

The worst epidemic in West Africa between 2013 and 2016 killed more than 11,300 people.

Uganda has experienced several Ebola outbreaks, most recently in 2019 when at least five people died.

The neighbouring DRC has had more than a dozen epidemics, the deadliest killing 2,280 people in 2020. Late last month it declared an end to an Ebola outbreak that had emerged in the eastern province of North Kivu six weeks previously.

Last week the United States announced tighter screening for people who had travelled to Uganda.
The Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG), Upper Presbytery (UP) has dedicated a 10-bed capacity specialist Regional Psychiatric hospital in the Upper East Region.

The facility, one of the Presbyterian Primary Health care canters has been upgraded to a specialist Psychiatric hospital for the Region.

The 10-bed capacity specialist Psychiatric hospital has two consulting rooms, a nurses station, changing and rest room, washrooms, and an office for administrators, aimed at providing services in 1 adult Psychiatry, 2 Forensic Psychiatry, 3 drugs, and alcohol detoxification, 5 Geriatric Psychiatry, and 6 Psychotherapy services.

In his remarks, the in-charge of the facility Dr. Dennis Daliri indicated that the facility provides an opportunity to stop the practice of referring mental disorders to psychiatric facilities in the Southern part of the country for treatment.

He said the facility will position a Specialist Psychiatrist who will oversee the 15 districts in the region with the support of the Regional Director of health services.

Dr. Daliri noted they are already grateful for all the support in terms of staff and even the free Psychotropics they have received from the Directorate to assist in taking care of the patients.

In a keynote address, the Moderator of the General Assembly (PCG), Right Rev. Professor Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante explained the pivotal role the PCG plays in the lives of Ghanaians.

He indicated that PCGs mission is anchored on four thematic areas, as Christ commanded his disciples to go and be in the book of Acts 1: 8 thus the spiritual, moral, environmental, and social witness of the church.

Right Rev. Mante stated that they are serving as the prophetic voice of the voiceless, the provision of interventions and other social services.
The Ministry of Education has today launched a new report providing an in-depth, topical analysis of foundational learning in primary education in Ghana.

Entitled Spotlight onBasic Education Completion and Foundational Learning: Ghana, it is one of five country reports and a continental report on Africaproduced in partnership with UNESCOs Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA).

Launched along with a campaign supported by the Ministry, #BorntoLearn, this new initiative offers a diagnosis of the current state of foundational education in Ghana and identifies policy solutions that are critical for improving educational outcomes for all students in the country.

The report celebrates the great progress made toward accessible, high-quality education in Ghana. New data shows that 77% of children are now completing primary school, a figure considerably higher than 57%, where it stood two decades ago. Since 2017, the country has pursued ambitious reforms, including the introduction of free senior high school for all pupils, and the innovative one teacher, one laptop scheme introduced to ease the burden which the COVID-19 pandemic placed upon the education system. The report also notes the recent transformation of the Ghanaian approach to pedagogy, which places collaborative, student-centred learning at the forefront of curriculum.

Despite this progress, the report finds that significant challenges regarding the quality of education, remain prevalent. The majority of children (almost 80%) still do not acquire basic skills in literacy and numeracy by the time they reach the end of primary school. The report identifies the inconsistent delivery of education across the country as a particularly detrimental issue, with public schools in disadvantaged and rural areas bearing the brunt of weak provision.

The recommendations of the report have been designed with both the recent positive developments to the Ghanaian education system, and its ongoing challenges, in mind. They are structured around five key policy areas which are identified as having the potential to strengthen and improve learning in Ghana:

1. Improve teacher and school training: Introduce structured materials and support for professional learning sessions focusing on phonics and teaching at the right level. Provide structured, on-the-job education leadership training for all basic education schools.

2. Invest in more textbooks: Ensure that textbooks and other teaching and learning materials reach classrooms.

3. Look at innovative funding mechanisms: Explore new resourcing mechanisms for basic education, including results-based financing.

4. Enhance coordination across government: Assist Regional, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Education Officesto prioritize objectives and oversee their achievement, providing supportive supervision to this end.

5. Encourage local involvement: Consider ways of decentralizing decision making and enhancing local accountability.

Knowing how to read, write and make basic maths calculations sets the groundwork for success in school and beyond. Our vision in Ghana is for all learners to have these important skills when they finish primary school. There is still much work to be done, this is why the process through Spotlight is so critical in identifying the policy areas that we need to focus on to ensure we deliver the best educational outcomes for children and young people in Ghana, said Dr.Yaw Osei Adutwum, Minister of Education of Ghana.

If children are equipped with foundational skills in mathematics and reading from an early age, they are more likely to reach their potential later in school and in life. The Spotlight Reports have looked at the positive practices happening in Ghana and across the continent to improve childrens learning. A new peer-learning mechanism has been launched alongside this report hosted by the AU called the Leveraging Education Analysis for Results Network (LEARN). We look forward to Ghana participating and sharing with other countries on the continent the lessons they have learnt as they have implemented their own policies on foundational literacy and numeracy, said Manos Antoninis, the Director of the Global Education Monitoring Report.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey has thanked President Nana Akufo-Addo for his commitment and support that ensured that Ghana's Paris Mission is well-housed and in the best of conditions.

She lauded the President in Paris in her speech at the inauguration of the newly-renovated Ghana Mission in France.

President Akufo-Addo, with support from Madam Ayorkor Botchwey inaugurated the renovated Embassy on Tuesday, October 11, 2022.

In her speech, Madam Ayorkor Botchwey says: "Mr. President, our thanks go to you for your commitment and support that would ensure that our Paris Mission is well-housed and in the best of conditions. You insisted that we included Paris in the list of Ghanas Diplomatic Missions to benefit from the Societe Generale Bank credit facility acquired to purchase, construct, reconstruct and/or renovate Ghana Missions abroad."

Madam Ayorkor Botchwey noted: "Mr. President, you are right that the Paris Mission is significant and touches all aspects of diplomacy: bilateral, multilateral and economic diplomacy in all its forms and expressions in the prosecution of Ghanas foreign policy agenda."

She went on to thank Ghana's Ambassador to France, Ambassador Anna Bossman, saying "for your spirit of importunity and determination that has seen the successful completion of the project."

The Foreign Minister recounted that France is one of the first countries with which Ghana established diplomatic relations immediately after independence in 1957, adding that "Our long-standing relations with France have since grown and blossomed into fruitful and mutually beneficial cooperation, in many aspects of our national development, to the mutual benefit of our peoples."

Meanwhile, she told the Ghanaian community in France to see the renovated Embassy as their home, saying emphatically that "To the Ghanaian community, this is your home. By this renovation, your government is sending a strong message of the importance we attach to the interests of our citizens, which is the priority of our diplomacy. The beautifully fitted consular section should complement the high-quality services we provide for your satisfaction. Enjoy it as you cooperate with our officers, who are ever ready to assist you in all that you need. Let us keep the flag of Ghana high."
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Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame has revealed that some 187 persons have been convicted to various terms of imprisonment for their involvement in illegal mining in the Eastern Region since the current government took office.

According to him, the convicts were in 48 cases which came before the State and prosecuted.

Godfred Yeboah Dame, Attorney General and Minister of Justice made this known in a media engagement in the Eastern regional capital, Koforidua.

He mentioned that all the cases were conducted by the Eastern Region office of the Attorney-General headed by a Chief State Attorney, Emily Addo-Okyireh.

Following a directive of the Chief Justice designating the High Court 3 and Circuit Court B, Koforidua as courts to deal with illegal mining cases, the Office of the Attorney-General prosecuted all cases on illegal mining brought to its attention.

Most of the cases were tried in Circuit Court B, Koforidua presided over by Mercy Adei-Kotey (as she then was), now a Justice of the High Court.

The Attorney-General noted that the 187 convicted persons include 29 nationals of Niger, seven Nigerians and three Chinese.

A majority of the accused persons were tried and sentenced under the old section 99 of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703). Section 99(1) of Act 703 prescribed a penalty of a minimum fine of three thousand penalty units or imprisonment for a term of not more than five years for the offence of buying or selling minerals without a licence.

For the offence of undertaking a small-scale mining operation without a licence or acting in contravention of a provision of Act 703 in respect of which an offence is created, section 99(2) of Act 703 stipulated a penalty of a minimum fine of one thousand penalty units or to imprisonment for a term not more than three years.

In spite of this provision, the Office of the Attorney-General succeeded in ensuring that in 40 of the 48 cases referred to above, the maximum custodial sentences allowed under the law or close to the maximum were imposed on the accused persons, with the court exercising the discretion to impose a fine in eight of the cases.

Convictions since 2021  New Law

Thirty three of the convicted persons were convicted and sentenced under the new Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995) between August 2021 and September 2022 and are currently serving various prison terms of 15 years, 20 years and 18 years together with fines imposed in the various cases in which they were convicted.

These include 11 foreign nationals.

The passage of Act 995, spearheaded by the Akufo-Addo administration in 2019, enhanced the sentences for both buying and selling minerals without a licence and undertaking a mining operation without a licence to a term of a minimum 15 years imprisonment and maximum 25 years for a Ghanaian together with a fine of minimum 10,000 penalty units and not more than 15 two thousand penalty units.

In the case of a non-Ghanaian, Act 995 has enhanced the punishment for the same offences to a term of a minimum 20years imprisonment and maximum 25years together with a fine of minimum 100,000 penalty units and not more than 350,000 penalty units.

Dissatisfaction with sentencing in some cases Mr Dame however expressed displeasure with the decision of the Circuit Court in five of the cases involving the trial of 47 persons, which were filed before the passage of Act 995 but which were determined after the Act had come into force on 19th August, 2019, to impose sentences between three years and five years on the accused persons.

This, he said, is contrary to the law as Act 995 substituted the punishment regime provided for under Act 703 with a new punishment regime which increased the penalty for engaging in illegal mining operations and illegal trading in minerals.

In the view of the Attorney-General, the substitution of the former section 99 of Act 703 with a new section 99 under Act 995 implied that a court of law engaged with the conduct of a case pending before it, was obliged to apply the new penalties provided for by the law rather than applying the old penalties existing under the law which was no longer in force.

He indicated his resolve to resort to courts higher up the judicial architecture to ensure that the 47 accused persons serving what he considers to be softer prison terms under the old section 99 of Act 703 are punished under the new section 99 brought into being by Act 995.

Only one appeal pending, in 43 new cases involving 250 persons.

The Attorney-General indicated that of the 48 cases tried in the Eastern Region since 2017, and in respect of which convictions have been secured, only one is on appeal.

He is however confident about the chances of the Republic in the appeal.

He also indicated that there are currently about 43 new cases involving the trial of about 250 persons pending at Circuit Court B, Koforidua.

The 250 persons currently on trial include foreign nationals, some of whom are Chinese.

Cases from other region

The Attorney-General indicated that an update on the prosecution of illegal mining cases in other regions, particularly, Ashanti, Western and Greater Accra Regions will be provided in due course.

DGN online
The hullabaloo attending Rev. Dr. Agradaas latest gimmick is an uproar in futility. Because we are a people easily deceived to give up our resources for free. Every Sunday or Friday or Saturday, we intentionally gather at a place to be conned and robbed. After all, all the churches and all these religious organizations are purveying fake news and collecting huge sums of money from the people, offering nothing but empty promises of salvation after death.

The fundamental truth is that there is no God. There are no spirits, no ghosts, no witches and no supernatural power anywhere from the beginning of the world till date. There has never been any instance of a single miracle on earth except via magical tricks. All the accusations made of witchcraft are false and intended to trick you out of your money. The stories told of the causes of your misfortune are all fake. The directions given to you to expel evil from your life are all false.

It follows also that all those personages that preceded our time and claimed to have performed miracles and wonders are all liars. Those who were martyred for the cause of God died in vain. Those who sacrificed animals and human beings by fire acted in vain. And all those that spent money and time in the worship of God received no dividends and were indeed engaged in acts of waste and folly and futility. There is no God.

So the very foundation of every religion is per se fake and has nothing to offer anybody. Any worship of God at any time is an exercise in irrationality, unsupported by any proper reasoning or logic. Nobody on earth or in the skies and in the seas has any supernatural power to perform anything beyond the usual scientific tricks, and none of these so-called ministers of God can assert any force of the spirit or perform any miracles or wonders without recourse to magical tricks. Nobody possesses any spiritual power which another does not possess. But there is something called chicanery or magic with which another can easily cheat you and rob you. Those tricks are dime a dozen on earth, and there are some that are so complex that nobody can explain them except the confidence tricksters themselves.

The only thing which could have made religion attractive or useful is the moral code. But this ethical aspect of the religious establishment has never existed or has become a footnote and an appendix since the early days of the ministry of Christ. The edict of Christ to love our neighbors and to take care of their needs or to help the widows and the orphans have all long been obliterated from the core of religion and has long been substituted with the cold-blooded and wicked and depraved and exploitative behavior by the religious leadership.

For three hundred years of its existence after the death of Christ, the church was the butt of martyrdom, and thousands were exposed to wild beasts to be devoured, or even crucified like Christ. After three hundred years of suffering persecution, and under the auspices of Constantine, around 250 BC, the church got an upper hand and this time burned and tortured those who they characterized as heretics. The church developed a contretemps of torture and established an inquisition to hunt and hound its detractors. It imposed a thousand years of dark ages on human civilization and led the world in superstition and spurious persecution.

The church doesnt have any history of having done anything right at any time: The schools and hospitals and so-called charity organizations it established were all akin to the mafia establishments set up to advance its own interest and to further its deceptions. It has never acted in anybodys interest except its own, and at the very center of its methods is still the depraved heart with which it continues to fleece its members. As we speak, the religious establishments are hoarding over twenty per cent of the national treasury in its vaults, and have abandoned the masses to live in perpetual deprivation and extreme poverty.

As some religious leaders have made abundantly clear to their members, the churchs funds are not to be used to help its members. One famous church leader even said that the tithes paid by members will continue to be utilized the way the leadership deem fit and that those who disagree with the leadership could leave the church: You did not come here to seek profit from the Christ. You have already inherited all the gains you could get by his blood, he intoned to much applause by the sheepish congregation. As Pastor Otabil resentfully declared, Foolish born again Christians.

The church has no discernible function within society. Indeed, no religious establishment does except to create an avenue for the exploitation of the masses by those who are too lazy to work any honest job. The church promises prosperity and well-being to its followers if they pay tithes and offerings, only to leave them in their poverty to blame the government for their hardship. Within the church itself, Olive oil and even water and some fruits are sold for a fortune with the fake promises that these things will turn the members fortunes around. It appears to me that the more the congregation are deceived, the more they troop to church to be deceived.

So exactly what is the distinction between what Agradaa is doing and what these pastors and ministers have been doing since the beginning of time? Agradaa tells patent lies in a rather crude form that she will double money for those who come to give her their money. This has been her modus operandi from the very beginning, and so those who go to her should know what she does. In a not too subtle way, the ministers of God are also daily calling on their members to pay up in order to reap some reward somewhere in heaven. People are also aware that these promises are not fulfilled, and that by the wealth of these religious leaders, they are supporting a fancy lifestyle right here on earth while they are told to wait their turn for the enjoyment of these same fancy lifestyles after their deaths.

So both Agradaa and the ministers of god are in the same boat, purveying charlatanic advertisement because all of these people know very well that none of those promises they make in church and the benefits they purvey will accrue anywhere for anybody except themselves. They are patently and shamelessly ripping off the masses, all by false pretenses and claiming that they have been anointed by God to receive money on his behalf.

So why should anybody arrest Agradaa for false pretenses when false pretenses is the only method in vogue by these ministers of God to fleece the masses of our people?

Unless we are so manifestly clueless, we should indeed smell the pepper. We live in a country which is entombed by the religious charade and will certainly be destroyed on account thereof. Instead of building factories and inventing things, we are fixated on building huge temples for a non-existent God in which human parasites and saprophytes manipulate the minds of our people and openly rip them off without any repercussions. We have created a patently parasitic class of prophets and pastors whose stock in trade is to prey on the people, and we have given them tax incentives and other privileges to become efficient in their work of exploitation.

It is not as if we will not figure them out if we were to apply a modicum of commonsenseBut no, we must cease thinking and surrender ourselves for mass manipulation without any compunction. The extent of our devotion to God has been to impose humiliation and self-abnegation on ourselves as our article of faith in God. Self-immolation, as promoted by medieval Catholicism, has become our stock in trade, and our most enlightened people are caught up in crass superstition and vain metaphysics such that they must be trashed and deceived in order to feel holy and to achieve salvation. These people believe in spewing trash in their worship, engaging in juju practice, ritual murder for money, beating older people accused of witchcraft and behaving in ignorant ways that expose the futility of their formal education and lifes experience: The more educated the typical Ghanaian, the more stupid s/he tends to behave, sitting before these illiterate ministers to seek so-called spiritual directions as to how to run their lives.

And so what is exactly unique about what Agradaa has done to deserve any punishment? She is just following the paths charted by the pioneers of religion. She has cheated and continue to cheat people out of their money since the inception of his shrine and Jesus' ministry. And so is every one of these goons lying daily under the aegis of a God to fleece the masses. If Agradaa goes down, all of them should go down, or else we are merely engaged in a Sisyphean task of no consequence.

Dr. Samuel Adjei Sarfo, Esq.

Austin, Texas.

October 12, 2022.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

On the 29th of September, after the Igbo Day Celebrations in Abuja, I received in audience aggrieved members of Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB who attended the Igbo Day Celebrations as a mark of respect for Ndigbo and Ohanaeze.

The aggrieved IPOB members were worried at the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu, his deteriorating health conditions and the refusal of Igbo leaders to seek his immediate release.

They consulted me and our team at Igbo Think Tank ITT to express their grievances and seek alternative solutions. They threatened to make South East impossible for Peter Obi and his Obidients to hold rallies, and conduct elections.

They also extended their grievances to the APC government and promised to make Hope Uzodimma and Dave Umahi see hell in their APC campaigns.

We explained to them that the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu is due to the bloody implementation of Sit at Home, which has claimed hundreds of lives. Also, the penchant for insulting President Buhari, Fulani, Hausa and the same people whose hands it is to facilitate the political solution, is another factor responsible for Kanus continual detention and failure of the political solution.

We agreed that the best option is for the DoS Group led by Chika Edozien and the Auto-Pilot Group owned BY Simon Ekpa not to disrupt elections in Igbo land to allow those the majority South Easterners who believe in Nigeria to exercise their mandate.

Subsequently, we issued a statement on 0ctober 3rdtitled Igbo Think Tank Warns IPOB against Disrupting Elections in Igboland signed by Rev Obinna Akukwe (Vice Chairman) and Comrade Chuks Ibegbu( Secretary)and asked them to carry the message home.

I am glad that IPOB DoS issued a press release October 8th, titled We have no Plans to Disrupt Elections in Igboland, and signed by its spokesman, Emma Powerful.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees OF Igbo Think Tank, I laud IPOB for allowing election processes to continue in Igboland and ask the Auto-Pilot Group to follow suit.

I do hope that the Igbo politicians will reciprocate this gesture and seek speedy resolution to the detention palaver of Nnamdi Kanu.

I also sound a note of warning that the politicians should settle the rift between the DoS and the Auto-Pilot before the 2023 elections to avoid stories that break the heart.

Igbo Think Tank, ITT, in its effort to create a Japanese Industrial Model for the South East, believes that disrupting elections in the South East under any guise, is the handwork of fifth columnists, and any dissident secessionist should respect himself.

Rev Obinna Akukwe

Vice Chairman Board of Trustees

Igbo Think Tank ITT
Former Parliamentary Candidate for NDC in Anyaa Sowutuom, Emmanuel Adortey Allotey has faulted the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the worsening economic situation in the country.

He says the Akufo-Addo administration has failed to turn around the economy as promised in the build-up to the 2016 election.

He noted that the President lied his way into power.

The fundamental struggles of Ghanas economy have remained since the NPP took office under the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government, and the indicators appear to be unfavourable.

He mentioned that the NPPs constant attribution of the economic mismanagement to the NDC during its campaign was indicative that it was taking the citizenry for granted.

Speaking with Kwaku Owusu Adjei on Adwenekasa on Accra-based Original FM 91.9,Mr Allotey said,I think right from the onset, the foundations were established on deception. And when you build something on deception, within a matter of time, it is going to collapse. So basically, they came into office riding on lies. They came into office pretending that somehow they were going to reduce taxation and at the same time increase expenditure. So right from the word go, they were deceiving the people.

Right from the beginning, they absolutely lied to the country, especially when they made it look as if the whole of the problem was simply about the question of mismanagement when they knew it was not.

Emmanuel Adortey Allotey explained that the financial resources at the disposal of the NPP should reflect in the output of its various flagship programs but, unfortunately, that has not been the case.
The University for Development Studies (UDS) has held an investiture for its newly appointed and 5th Vice-Chancellor Professor Seidu Alhassan.

The event which was meant to officially outdoor the new Vice-Chancellor took place at Multipurpose Auditorium on Tuesday, October 11, 2022.

It was chaired by the Chairman of the University's Governing Council, Professor Wayo Seini and brought together family members, friends, management and staff of the University, lecturers, politicians and the academia.

Also present at the event were Vice President Dr Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia, MMBCEs, Deans and Directors, students and the traditional authority.

Vice President Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia in his remarks urged Tertiary institutions in Ghana to get accreditation for courses they offer to students.

He also the government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was committed to the provision of quality, accessible and affordable education in Ghana.

The Veep also pledged the support of the NPP government to the development of education in Ghana.

The Vice President tasked the new Vice Chancellor to work towards making the University one of the best in the country and beyond by continuing the good works of his predecessors.

Dr Bawumia urged the university community to allow cool heads and understanding to prevail in the UDS to strengthen and guide the Vice Chancellor, Professor Seidu Al-Hassans governance style.

I charge the new leadership to realign its programs with the governments priority agenda. Staff should rally behind the Vice Chancellor and the Governing Council to develop the UDS to serve its purpose of poverty reduction," he said

He added "The government expects the UDS to prioritize the rolling out of more Science" programmes.

The Chairman of the University's Governing Council, Professor Wayo Seini, in an opening remark, pledged the support of the Council for the development of the university.

The chairman also assured the Vice Chancellor of the Governing Councils unflinching support to enable him deliver his mandate.

Pto professor Wayo Seini commended the UDS hard-working staff for their steadfastness and urged Professor Seidu Al-Hassan to demonstrate full leadership by working with all staff members and external partners.

Professor Seidu Al-Hassan in speech he delivered, expressed gratitude to the Governing Council for endorsing his appointment which resulted from the recommendations of the Vice-Chancellors Search Party.

"Key to todays investiture, of course, are the people who brought me here: the Chairman, Professor Felix Asante and Members of the Search Committee of Vice-Chancellor that recommended my appointment and also the Chairman, Professor Wayo Seini and Members of the University Governing Council that approved my appointment. Thank you all for the confidence reposed in me and for the opportunity to serve this institution that is so dear to my heart, he said.

The 5th and new Vice Chancellor promised to live up to the expectations of the people who imposed confidence on him by appointing and endorsing him as the new VC for the UDS.

I will devote myself to doing justice to your faith in me and to advancing our indispensable mandate of fostering a closer interaction between academia and rural communities. I am ready to work with you, and all willing and inspired partners, he stated.

He appealed to those who also showed interest in the same position but were not picked to rally behind him for the interest of the university and its students.

He thanked the development partners of the university and the traditional authority for their support of the institution since its inception.

He also called for a united force from management, staff and students of the university by focusing on things that would bind the university community together to help the institution in attaining the needed development.

As we increase diversity, there is the need to work equally hard at building an inclusive environment where everyone feels a sense of belonging, where everyone can thrive regardless of his/her colour, religion, gender orientation, income, or ethnicity.
The Branch Treasurer of NPP Germany, Mr Kobina Ebo has said the Branch decision to launch a development fund will help the governing NPP to break the eight, a feat no Party in Ghana has ever achieved.

He noted that no political party in Ghana has broken the eight (8) year jinx in Ghana's multi-party democratic history.

Mr Ebo expressed optimism "I certainly believe and hope we are the ones to achieve this in 2024."

He continued, "The donations you make will provide a war chest, so to speak, with which NPP Germany will support our partys campaign activities towards Election 2024", an enthusiastic and all-beaming Branch Treasurer, justified. Touching on the need to assist members in straits, he said "in this initiative, welfare would mean to attend - to the best of our ability  to the socio-economic needs of our most vulnerable members and to support members who have fallen into difficult times, and the aged."

These were contained in a speech delivered by Mr Ebo at the Branch's Development Fund and unity dinner which was held in the German city of Dortmund on 1st October 2022. The colourful event was attended by hundreds of party supporters, the first of its kind in the history of the Branch, according to the Branch Chairman, Dr Felix Yamoah.

The event was attended by high-profile NPP members including Presidential hopefuls who took turns to talk to the gathering on a broad-range of issues.

Below is the list of attendees and those who made generous donations to the fund. Hon. Kennedy Agyapong MP, Assin Central Constituency and Hon. Joe Ghartey MP, Essikado-Ketan Constituency, both NPP flag bearer hopefuls, attended as co-chairs of the event.

Other stalwarts included Hon. John Kumah Dep Minister for Finance, Hon. Tina Mensah Dep Minister for Health, Hon. George Mireku Duker Dep Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Dr. Henry Kokofu Executive Director of Environmental Protection Agency, Hon. Akwasi Awua Ababio, Director of International Affairs

Office of the President, Hon. Stephen Asamoah Boateng fmr. Dir. Gen., State Interests and Governance Interests (SIGA) was the keynote speaker, Hon Sylvester Tetteh, MP for Bortianor-Ngleshie Amanfro and Mr. Kwame Prempeh, Deputy CEO of PPA.

Party national officers in attendance were Hon. Salam Mustapha, NPP National Youth Organizer, Hon. Frederick Kofi Ameyaw, NPP Director of International Affairs and Mr. Chris Lloyd, Deputy National Organizer. Former Director of Political Affairs at the Presidency, Hon Manaf Ibrahim and Asawase MP hopeful also graced the occasion.

The Branch also received generous donations of varying amounts from the following dignitaries who couldn't attend due to unforeseen circumstances. They were Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice President of Ghana, Hon. Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister for Energy, Hon. Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, CEO of NHIA, Hon. Dr Osei Yaw Adutwum, Minister for Education & MP-Bosomtwe, Hon. Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen, Minister for Trade, Hon. Bryan Acheampong, MP for Abetifi and Mr. Henry Nana Boakye, NPP National Organizer.
Wild populations of monitored animal species have plummeted nearly 70 percent in the last 50 years, according to a landmark assessment released Thursday that highlights "devastating" losses to nature due to human activity.

Featuring data from 32,000 populations of more than 5,000 species of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish, the WWF Living Planet Index shows accelerating falls across the globe.

In biodiversity-rich regions such as Latin America and the Caribbean, the figure for animal population loss is as high as 94 percent.

Globally, the report found that monitored animal populations had fallen 69 percent since 1970.

Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF International, said his organisation was "extremely worried" by the new data.

"(It shows) a devastating fall in wildlife populations, in particular in tropical regions that are home to some of the most biodiverse landscapes in the world," he said.

Mark Wright, director of science at WWF, said the figures were "truly frightening", particularly for Latin America.

"Latin America is renowned for his biodiversity of course, it's really important for lots of other things as well," he said.

Habitat degradation from development and farming is one of the main drivers of wildlife loss. By MICHAEL DANTAS (AFP)

"It's super important for regulating the climate. We estimate currently there's something like 150 to 200 billion tonnes of carbon wrapped up in the forests of the Amazon."

That is equivalent to 550 to 740 billion tonnes of CO2, or 10 to 15 times more than annual greenhouse gas emissions at current rates.

The index found that freshwater species had declined more than those found in any other habitat, with an 83-percent population fall since 1970.

The report found that the main drivers of wildlife loss are habitat degradation due to development and farming, exploitation, the introduction of invasive species, pollution, climate change and disease.

Lambertini said the world needed to rethink its harmful and wasteful agricultural practices before the global food chain collapsed.

"Food systems today are responsible for over 80 percent of deforestation on land, and if you look at the ocean and freshwater they are also driving a collapse of fishery stocks and populations in those habitats," he said.

With world leaders due to convene in Montreal for the COP15 biodiversity summit in December, the report authors called for an international, binding commitment to protect nature, similar to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

'Need to act now'

The Living Planet Report argues that increasing conservation and restoration efforts, producing and consuming food more sustainably, and rapidly and deeply decarbonising all sectors can alleviate the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.

It also calls for governments to properly factor into policymaking the value of services rendered by nature, such as food, medicine and water supply.

"We need to stress the fact that nature loss is not just a moral issue of our duty to protect the rest of the world. It is actually an issue of material value, an issue of security for humanity as well," said Lambertini.

Biodiversity-rich regions like Latin America and the Caribbean have seen animal population loss as high as 94 percent in the last five decades. By Juan BARRETO (AFP)

Some areas experienced more population loss than others -- Europe, for example, saw a wildlife population decline of 18 percent.

"But that also masks historic, very extreme losses of biodiversity," said Andrew Terry, director of conservation at the Zoological Society of London, which helped compile the data.

"We know that we're coming out of (a) low point in the state of biodiversity in the northern hemisphere."

In Africa, where 70 percent of livelihoods rely on nature in some form, the report showed a two-thirds fall in wildlife populations since 1970.

Alice Ruhweza, Africa regional director at WWF, said the assessment showed how there was a "huge human cost" when nature is lost.

The 2022 global Living Planet Index, which shows a 69% decline of monitored wildlife populations. By Julia Han JANICKI (AFP)

She said young people in particular were concerned about wildlife preservation, and would push governments to implement greater protective measures.

"We have a young, entrepreneurial and increasingly educated population that is showing more awareness around issues of nature," said Ruhweza.

"So the potential for transformative change is really significant. But the time is running short, and we need to act now."
It's the start of a new school term in Sudan, yet nine-year-old Zahra Hussein stays home helping with household chores, forced to drop out as her family's money grows ever tighter.

Zahra quit primary school a year ago after she had just started third grade in a rundown school building with old classrooms, cracked walls, broken desks and toilets with little running water.

Until then, she had attended school regularly, aced her exams and most recently, came top of her class.

"I had come third in my class in first grade," the young girl told AFP at her home in the village of Ed Moussa in Sudan's eastern state of Kassala. "My father doesn't have money anymore ... so he pulled me out of school."

Zahra is one of nearly seven million children in Sudan who no longer go to school, a victim of what aid agencies have warned is a "generational catastrophe".

Sudan is already one of the world's poorest countries, plagued by political instability, droughts, hunger and conflict, with an adult literacy rate of only around 60 percent according to the World Bank.

Sudan's children have for years faced mounting difficulties gaining access to proper education, especially in rural areas.

Sudanese teacher Mohamed Taha says local pupil numbers dropped after free school meals were cut. By Hussein ERY (AFP)

Families struggling with severe economic hardship were already pulling their children out of school under the three-decade rule of president Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted in April 2019.

More turmoil followed and Sudan has been reeling from the crippling aftermath of last year's military coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan that derailed a transition installed after Bashir's ouster.

Deepening political and economic crises, recurrent ethnic conflicts and prolonged school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic have compounded the education crisis.

Hundreds of teachers have repeatedly gone on strike against worsening living conditions.

On top of the political and economic instability, devastating floods this year damaged more than 600 schools, delaying the start of the academic year from July until October.

No school, no meals

Abdalla Ibrahim, who owns a coffee shop, has several of his seven children either working with him or at a bakery. By Hussein ERY (AFP)

Sudan was listed as the second worst -- after Afghanistan -- in a 2022 Risk Education Index, which ranked 100 countries on the vulnerability of their school systems.

"The education system in Sudan is very fragile and crippled with many underlying factors", from poor infrastructure to the quality of education, according to Arshad Malik, Save the Children's country director in Sudan.

"Out of 12.4 million in-school children, seven out of ten 10-year-olds are unable to read and understand a simple sentence," he said.

For children such as Zahra, Sudan's rundown school system still offers a way of getting ahead in life.

"I would go back to school right away if we found the money to buy meals or copybooks," she said.

Schools in Sudan had offered free lunches for pupils in some rural areas, providing an incentive for struggling families to send their children.

For many, the school meals -- including lentils, vegetables and biscuits -- were often the only food they would get during the day.

Map of Sudan locating the capital Khartoum.. By (AFP)

Sudan is already struggling with food shortages that have left a record 15 million people -- around one-third of the population -- facing "acute food insecurity".

In the nearby village of Wad Sharifai, schools stopped providing meals two years ago, severely impacting attendance, said a teacher there, Mohamed Taha.

Othman Abubakr, a day labourer who has nine children, says he could no longer afford to pay for the food, commute and school supplies for all his children.

"If meals were still available in school ... it could have helped," said Abubakr, who has kept only two of his children in school.

"Now, the children can help bring money home."

'Dire need'

Ohaj Soliman, a 43-year old labourer in Sudan, says he regrets that his children must work. By Hussein ERY (AFP)

Abdalla Ibrahim, who owns a coffee shop in Golsa, has several of his seven children either working with him or at a bakery.

Ohaj Soliman, a 43-year-old day labourer, says "putting the children to work is not good ... but we have been forced to".

Girls are especially vulnerable, warned a report last month by the United Nations children's agency UNICEF and Save the Children.

Sudanese girls are more likely to be married off early or taken out of school to do household chores, said Save the Children's Malik.

He estimates around four out of 10 girls have dropped out of school in Sudan, in comparison to three out of 10 boys.

Malik warned that, if no action is taken, the likely result is "more poverty and inequality".

Parents who pulled their children out of school are bracing for an uncertain future.

"I know it's the biggest disaster to leave children uneducated," said Abubakr. "But we are in dire need."
The Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) started electing new executives to replace the outgoing SRC Executives led by H.E Edem Vine Dei Tutu as they prepare to hand over the mantle of leadership this semester.

The election, which was initially scheduled for Tuesday, October 11 but rescheduled, was held online today, October 13, from exactly 8 a.m. and was expected to end at 4 p.m.

However, due to an appeal placed by some disqualified applicants, the elections have been suspended pending the verdict of the Schools Appeal Board.

The Electoral Commission wishes to notify the student populace of the suspension of the 2022 GIJ-SRC Elections pending a hearing of a matter at the School's Appeal Board.

The Electoral Commission has however met with all candidates, Agents and all stakeholders of this year's elections and has resorted to the suspension of the election, portions of the statement released by the Schools electoral commission read.

It adds Votes collected by the system have been secured and the necessary records have been taken.

The SRCs electoral committee, led by Mr. Harley Festus Kwabena, the commissioner, officially opened the nomination forms on Sunday, October 2 for interested applicants to pick up forms for the various positions.

The aspirants were vetted on October 6 and 7. Three candidates were disqualified for not meeting certain defined criteria enshrined in the GIJ-SRC Constitution.

This paved way for three positions the General Secretary position, Organizing Secretary and Financial Secretary to be contested unopposed with the candidates being endorsed or rejected on a YES/NO basis.

The said candidates are: Mr. Caleb Asante Annor - General Secretary aspirant, Daniel Kwame Zah - Organizing Secretary aspirant and Obed King Gaglo - Financial Secretary aspirant.

The keenly contested positions are:

Presidential

(I) Edinam Adoboe (Great Fire)

(ii) Bismark Owusu-Ansah (McCoy)

The Women's Commissioner race

(I) Mateenah Naa Djama Odoi

(ii) Ayinawu Alhassan Adam

Another tight competition, which is the portfolio responsible for overseeing students' welfare on an external level, the

External Affairs Commission

(I) Osman Abubakari-Sadiq

(ii) and Job Kwabena Laboja

Meanwhile, amid the controversy surrounding the upcoming elections, particularly the online mode and the disqualification of some aspirants, the GIJ SRC Electoral Commissioner, Harley Festus Kwabena, has assured the student body of free and fair elections.
The fight against illegal mining popularly known in Ghana as galamsey has elicited a slew of suggestions on how to achieve positive results.

Professor Kofi Agyekum, the University of Ghana's head of linguistics, recently asked government to use Rambo-style to combat illegal miners in the country.

Speaking in a discussion on Accra-based Peace FMs Kokrokoo Morning show, he said, Kwame, I now agree with you that we enforce that when we meet you there we must shoot you... where we have reached, we have to make up our mind that if you have decided to destroy the nation, the nation must also get rid of you.

But, speaking on the same show on Wednesday, October 12, the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, George Mireku Duker, took a different stance.

He argued that "we are not in junta regime for us to go and shoot people free, but to be able to end the activities and their menace, he said.

He adds. what we need is attitudinal change.

The Minister also urged members of the New Patriotic Party and the entire nation to stay focused on the fight and not be distracted by certain people and their propaganda.

According to him, government is moving ahead with its fight, regardless.

If the NPP don't exercise patience, some people will set an agenda for us. Let us remain focused. We are on track in the fight against galamsey. Government is in control," he stated.
Self-acclaimed evangelist, Patricia Asiedua previously called Nana Agradaa has been denied bail again.

She appeared before an Accra High Court for the second time today, Thursday, October 13 over an alleged money-doubling scam.

Some persons who claim to be members of Nana Agradaa's Weija-based Heavenwave Chapel were seen in several videos lamenting how the repented priestess has once again duped them after promising to double their money.

The Ghana Police Service quickly intervened and arrested the former fetish priestess on Sunday, October 9, and she was arraigned before an Accra High Court on Monday, October 10.

She was charged with one count of charlatanic advertisement and six counts of defrauding by false pretence by the state prosecutor.

However, after pleading not guilty to the charges against her, she was remanded on Monday by the presiding judge, His Honour Samuel Bright Acquah, for three days.

She reappear before the court today, October 13.

Te court presided over by His Honour Samuel Bright Acquah has remanded her for the second time and adjourned the case to Monday, October 17.
The Alliance For Footsoldiers Advocacy (AFFA) has rallied for support for President, H.E Nana Ado Dankwa Akufo-Addo in his fight against illegal mining, otherwise known as galamsey.

In a press statement, AFFA has charged politicians, chiefs, civil society organisations, and all Ghanaians to join forces and help the President to win the fight against galamsey.

We call on politicians, chiefs, security services, civil society organization, residents of mining communities and the general public to support President Akufo-Addo's unparalleled determination to crack the whip on illegal miners to safeguard our land and water bodies, the AFFA statement signed by its Executive Secretary has said.

Meanwhile, AFFA has said it is scandalized and dumbfounded by the decision of Freddie Blay, immediate-past National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to legally represent some suspected Chinese illegal miners standing trial.

It describes the decision by Freddie Blays firm to represent the accomplices of Aisha Huang as a slap on the face of President Akufo-Addos galamsey fight.

AFFA is by this press release calling on Mr. Blay to as a matter of urgency cease holding himself as lawyer for the suspected Chinese illegal miners. We further call on other lawyers and non-lawyers who identify themselves with the NPP to be circumspect with their actions and inactions on the subject of GALAMSEY, in order not to give credence to the perception that elements of the government are the main architects behind the menace, the release adds.

Below is a copy of the statement from AFFA:

RESCIND YOUR DECISION TO REPRESENT AISHA HUANG'S ACCOMPLICES - AFFA TO FREDDIE BLAY

The Alliance For Footsoldiers Advocacy (AFFA) is scandalized and dumbfounded by the decision of Freddie Blay, immediate-past National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to legally represent some suspected Chinese illegal miners standing trial.

As much as we appreciate the fact that Freddie Blay is a lawyer who has a fiduciary duty to represent clients who request for his services, we believe his decision to defend accomplices of Aisha Huang is unpopular, morally subversive, and a direct slap on the face of President Akufo-Addo's fight against illegal mining.

Freddie Blay's political status, vis-a-vis, former National Chairman of the ruling party and Board Chairman of GNPC imposes a tacit obligation of due diligence, moral reflection and principle of public perception on him, considering the level of public interest in the Aisha Huang case.

Indeed, the level of environmental degradation caused by activities of illegal mining, particularly foreign nationals who have no regard for the laws of Ghana on mining cannot be overemphasized.

AFFA is by this press release calling on Mr. Blay to as a matter of urgency cease holding himself as lawyer for the suspected Chinese illegal miners. We further call on other lawyers and non-lawyers who identify themselves with the NPP to be circumspect with their actions and inactions on the subject of GALAMSEY, in order not to give credence to the perception that elements of the government are the main architects behind the menace.

We call on politicians, chiefs, security services, civil society organization, residents of mining communities and the general public to support President Akufo-Addo's unparalleled determination to crack the whip on illegal miners to safeguard our land and water bodies.

Signed

Executive Secretary, AFFA
Seasoned Ghanaian Attorney, Captain Rt. Nkrabea Effah-Dartey has disclosed his relationship with the embattled Evangelist Patricia Asiedua also known as Nana Agradaa.

After reportedly being tagged as the lawyer for the accused scammer in her ongoing legal case, Lawyer Effah-Dartey has denied being her defense counsel.

Speaking to Kofi Adoma Nwanwani on his Kofi TV, he explained that he decided to quit being Agradaa's lawyer after he felt his spirit didn't align with the repented priestess' environment during his visits to her house.

"Agradaa, I beg you, she took me as her lawyer for a few weeks," he told the host.

He continued I went to her place on a visit. My spirit was not comfortable with her environment because I am a born-again Christian and I didn't feel comfortable so I stopped being her lawyer.

Though many did not expect Nana Agradaa to return to her alleged tricks after being let off the hook for her alleged "Sika Gari" scam, some people claiming to be members of her Weija-based Heavenwave church have lamented in several videos how they have been allegedly scammed by the "repented" trickster.

The Ghana Police Service quickly intervened and arrested the former fetish priestess on Sunday, October 9, and was arraigned before an Accra High Court on Monday, October 10.

She was charged with one count of charlatanic advertisement and six counts of defrauding by false pretence by the prosecutor.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Kidney and liver diseases are on the rise in some parts of the country due to illegal mining (galamsey), Deputy Minister for Information, Madam Fatimatu Abubakar.

Madam Abubakar, who said this during a radio interview in Accra on Tuesday, stated that the illegal small-scale mining in some parts of the country was having an alarming effect on the environment and consequently humans.

She stressed that swift action coupled with intelligence and intention is needed to fight this galamsey menace, adding that We have a lot of kidney and liver diseases as a result of this illegal mining.

She echoed the governments determination to nip the illegal act in the bud.

We cannot move the whole military into the mining areas. We need to solve this problem. There is so much that we need to do and I can say that the president is committed to fighting it. We need a proactive response and not a response to response, she indicated.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has been urged to pursue the vision of the renowned Ghanaian politician, teacher and king, Simon Diedong Dombo.

Chief of Duori, Naa Dombo III during a courtesy call on him by Vice President Bawumia as part of his tour of the Upper West Region, urged the latter to pursue the vision of the late Member of Parliament for Jirapa-Lambussie, who was a key founder of the Northern People's Party, the forebears of today's New Patriotic Party.

According to the Chief, the family acknowledged his contributions to re-igniting the link between the Dombos and Bawumia families that championed the vision of the Northern Peoples Party tradition.

He described his intervention as timely and prayed God grants him the strength and fortitude to soldier till the dream of the two families that started decades ago was achieved.

We acknowledge your intervention in re-establishing the link between the Dombos and the Bawumias. I am by this tasking you to pursue the vision of your father Dombo from where he left off. You have henceforth been tasked with the responsibility as a true son to achieve this dream that was birthed decades ago, he charged.

Naa Dombo III also bestowed on him a Chieftaincy title Leweh to wit the Chief (Dombo) has returned.

He explained that it was as a result of the traits of the late SD Dombo seen in Dr Mahamudu Bawumia that led the Dombo family to honour him with the title to encourage him to achieve his task. Dr Bawumia was also named as co-Chairman of the SD Dombo Foundation.

Dr Bawumia paid glowing tribute to one of the pillars of the NPP at his graveside where he laid a wreath and prayed for his peaceful repose.

The late Douri-Na was reputed to be the first educated chieftain in the Upper Region of Ghana.

He was one of the founders of the Northern People's Party and became its first Chairman with Mumuni Bawumia (the Vice Presidents father as Vice Chairman). The Northern Peoples Party later merged with other parties to form the United Party.

During the Second Republic, Dombo was also a member of the first Parliament on the ticket of the Progress Party after he was elected in the 1969 Ghanaian general elections.

He was Minister for Health and then Minister for Interior in the Busia administration.
The Director of Elections for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah has accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration of fueling the illegal small scale menace (Galamsey) in the country.

He described the governments approach towards the fight against Galamsey as a charade.

Speaking on the New Day show on TV3 with host Johnnie Hughes, Wednesday October 12, he said It is a complete charade.

The aspiring General Secretary of the NDC added the NPP brought the equipment and distributed them to their apparatchiks to do galamsey.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo recently admitted that the fight against Galamsey has not been an easy one.

He said he has not achieved the results he was looking for in the fight but the government is determined to win the battle against the menace.

Since I took office I have made it a central feature of my presidency to lead in the efforts to rid our country of this menace which we all now call galamsey. It has not been popular and we have not got the result that I was looking for, Mr Akufo-Addo said during a meeting with the National House of Chiefs and the Municipal, Metropolitan and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in Kumasi on Wednesday October 5.

He further told the National House of Chiefs that the task to protect the lands and the environment from the effect of Galamsey is a joint responsibility between the government and the traditional authorities.

Mr Akufo-Addo explained that 80 per cent of the lands in Ghana are in the custody of the chiefs.

READ ALSO: Galamsey fight is an ongoing battle; we'll win, we have the goodwill - Agric Minister

This means they have a role to play in protecting the resource, he said.

He said 80 per cent of the lands in this country continue to be under your custody, much of it having been acquired through the blood and sacrifices of your ancestors. The reminder of 20 per cent which I hold in trust of the people of Ghana, derived from state acquisition from you. What this means is that ultimately, the welfare of the state of the lands is our joint responsibility, although by statute the minerals in the soil belong to the president in trust for the people.

The chiefs on their part assured Mr Akufo-Addo that they are solidly behind his administration to apply appropriate measures against all persons involved in Galamsey in the country.

President of the National House of Chiefs, Ogyeahohoo Yaw Gyeb indicated that galamsey is having a negative effect on the environment and also threatens revenue mobilsation in the country hence, their resolve to support the President and government in fighting it

He said your relentless war against forest degradation and illegal mining in Ghana is of great importance to Ghanaians especially we the chiefs.

The effects of illegal mining on the environment threaten the survival of water bodies , farmlands, cocoa industry and even encouraging school dropouts, this undermins the revenue mobilsation drive in the country.

In view of this development [the Chiefs] are solidly behind your administration to apply the appropriate sanctions against persons who are engaged in the practice illegal mining irrespective of their status.

3news.com
Fivr persons, including a serving police inspector in the Bono Region, have appeared before a Sunyani magistrate court for allegedly defrauding 198 persons of various sums of money under the pretext of enlisting them into the various security services.

Inspector Daniels Kuatsien, 41; Prince Attah Edward, 48, a health assistant; Edward Badu, 36, a physician assistant; Kingsford Amankona Diawuo 32, a teacher on study; Clement Kobi, 34, a trader; and Nana Poku preyed on their victims to part them a total of GH1,556,500 for the phony recruitment.

They were charged with two counts of fraud and conspiracy to defraud by false pretence, contrary to Section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29).

Police prosecutor, Chief Inspector Emmanuel Sampson, told the court presided over by Eric Dening that the accused persons all lived in the Bono Region.

According to him, the six persons acted with a common purpose to defraud 198 people, including university graduates and Senior High School leavers, who had wanted an enlistment into various security agencies.

The case was, however, adjourned to be heard today.

Court documents available to DAILY GUIDE indicate that the sixth accused person, Nana Poku, is currently on the run and is being sought by the police.

Nana Poku is said to have introduced himself to the other accused persons as a presidential staffer at the Jubilee House in Accra at different places and times, claiming that he had connections to facilitate the recruitment of individuals into various security agencies in the country.

Nana Poku allegedly informed a prospective applicant would be required to pay between GH8,000 and GH9,000, depending on the area of preferred service.

The documents said Prince Attah Edward, who is a health assistant at the Disease Control Unit of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) in Sunyani, the Bono Regional capital, informed Inspector Emmanuel Daniels, who also spread the news to prospective applicants, and eventually managed to let their victims part with them various sums of money, totaling GH1,556,500.

Daily Guide
An Accra High Court has ordered the Medical Director of Saint Lucy Eye Clinic to appear in court with records on Dr Stephen Opuni, former Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD.

Dr Opuni and two others are facing 27 charges, including defrauding by false pretences, willfully causing financial loss to the State, money laundering, and corruption by public officer in contravention of the Public Procurement Act.

The Medical Director, Dr Kodjo Abalo, issued a medical report on behalf of Dr Opuni, which said that he had four surgeries performed on his left eye and needed a six-week excuse duty to rest and heal properly.

They have both pleaded not guilty to the charges and are on a GHS300,000.00 self-recognizance bail, each.

Mr Samuel Cudjoe, Counsel for Dr Opuni, told the court presided over by Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenuga, a Supreme Court Justice, sitting as a High Court Judge, that Dr Opuni was absent due to ill health.

He said the accused person had four different surgeries done on his left eye and a copy of the medical report had been presented to the Court.

The Counsel said as contained in the report, he was to be excused for six weeks to rest his eyes to heal properly, hence his inability to be present in court.

He told the Court that at the last adjourned date, he had the report, but he only showed it to the prosecution due to the details and confidentiality, he did not give them a copy.

We, therefore, pray for an adjournment from September 23, 2022, he said.

He said the basis of seeking the adjournment was because Dr Opuni was exercising his Constitutional rights under Article 19 (3).

Mr Cudjoe said the Court would not be doing anything wrong if it adjourned the matter.

Mrs Evelyn Keelson, Chief State Attorney, told the Court that Dr Opuni, who is on bail, was required to be present in court as undertaken in his bail conditions to the court.

She said, I have seen the medical report indicating that Dr Opuni had undergone four surgeries on the left eye and in the report, the Medical Director had said he needs six-weeks to rest the eye for proper healing.

The Chief State Attorney said the statement made by the Medical Director was not binding on the Court.

She said the Director did not indicate the basis for the six weeks in the report.

Mrs Keelson said under Section 169(2) of Act 30 of the Constitution, the Court could not adjourn the matter more than a month.

l pray that the court invite the Medical Director Dr Kodjo Abalo of the St Lucy Eye Clinic to give further and better particulars for his request for Dr Opuni to be excused for six weeks, she added.

She said alternatively, the Court could create virtual means to accommodate the Accused person, indicating that nobody had taken away or sought to take away Dr Opunis rights under Article 19(3) to be present at his trial.

Mrs Keelson said the Court could at its own discretion proceed with the matter without infringing on his rights, adding that the Court could grant Dr Opuni some days to rest but certainly not six weeks, especially when he was not on admission.

The Judge, after listening to the parties, said under the circumstances of the case, it was his view that to clear any doubt about the medical report, l will order the Medical Director, Dr Abalo to appear in court with all records on Dr Opuni.

The Registrar of the court is to ensure that the order is served on the said Medical Director per the address stated in the report.

Case is adjourned to Monday October 17, 2022 at 10am.

GNA
The National Chief Imam, Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu, has pledged his support to the efforts of the Birth and Death Registry to achieve the universal births and deaths registration across the country.

He also announced the commitment of the Muslim community in Ghana to national development through proper births and deaths registration.

The Chief Imam was welcoming a delegation from the Births and Deaths Registry to his residence in Fadama, Accra.

The delegation which was lead by Mrs Henrietta Lamptey, Registrar, visited the eminent cleric as part of efforts to rally support among key persons and stakeholders for its universal registration of births and deaths across the country.

Mrs Lamptey acknowledged the massive contribution of the Muslim community to the nation building and called for collaboration for accurate and timely collection of data for national development.

The Chief Imam later prayed for the Registrar and members of the delegation.

As part of reforms under the leadership of Mrs Lamptey, the Births and Deaths Registry has automated its operations and launched the universal births and deaths registration across Ghana to aid the accurate and timely collection of data for national development.

GNA
Since the French government lost its absolute majority in parliament, it's becoming harder to get legislation passed. However France has a handy tool called article 49.3  and it appears increasingly likely the Prime Minister will be using it. RFI looks at how this nuclear legislative weapon actually works and whether it's really the threat to democracy that detractors are claiming.

Article 49.3 of the French constitution, commonly known as "Le 49.3", is a mechanism that allows the executive to force laws through parliament without a vote.

Introduced in 1958 with the Fifth Republic, it was designed to overcome the shortcomings of the previous republic  notably political deadlock due to rapid changes of government.

Paragraph 3 of Article 49 allows "the prime minister, after deliberation by the council of ministers, to engage the government's responsibility before the National Assembly" by bypassing a vote on bills relating to state and social security budgets.

The 49.3 also provides for recourse by parliament. MPs can block the bill's adoption by "tabling a vote of no confidence  signed by at least 10 percent of members (58 MPs) and filed within 24 hours".

How does it work?

If the motion of no confidence gets a majority (289 MPs), the bill is rejected and the government must step down.

If the motion is rejected, the bill is passed and heads over to the Senate. The usual to-ing and frowing between upper and lower house continues, and the government can activate 49.3 again if needed.

Governments have made lavish use of the 49.3 in the past, but since 2008 it can be activated for only one bill per parliamentary session (per year), outside of the state and social security budgets for which there are no limitations.

Why is it in the news?

During parliamentary elections in June this year, President Macron's Renaissance party (formerly LREM) lost its absolute majority in parliament, making it harder to get legislation passed than before.

Prime Minister Elisabth Borne is expected to use Article 49.3 for the budget bill (PLF), which the National Assembly began debating this week. Opposition parties have already announced they will not vote in favour.

The question is not to know if we will use the 49.3 on the PLF but when, since it is out of the question for France not to have a budget, a leading member of Renaissance told FranceInfo.

The 49.3 mechanism will also most probably be used for the pension reform bill, which includes raising the legal age of retirement from 62 to 65 years of age.

The leftist Nupes alliance and far-right National Rally are set to vote against, although the right-wing Republicans (LR) could ultimately rally round the government and get the bill passed.

Is it unusual to trigger 49.3?

Far from it. Article 49.3 has been used 87 times since 1958, according to official government figures. Mostly by the Left.

Socialist prime minister Manuel Valls used it six times in 2015 and 2016 to push through the El Khomri labour law reform and the "Macron law" on finance. Both encountered opposition from within the Socialist Party itself.

Jacques Chirac, Raymond Barre and Edith Cresson all turned to article 49.3 eight times during their terms, while Georges Pompidou used it six times.

The record holder is the late Michel Rocard  Socialist prime minister under Francois Mitterrand from 1988 to 1991. With only a relative majority in parliament, he relied on it 28 times for 13 pieces of legislation.

"At the time it didn't stir up public opinion or the media," said Anne Levade, a professor in constitutional law.

"But to demonstrate how solid their majority was, some prime ministers later said, 'I would never use 49.3 because I don't need it'."

So far, Macron's government has used the 49.3 only once  in February 2020  to push through the first part of the pension reform bill.

The government had a comfortable majority, but triggered the mechanism to cut short parliamentary debate on the bill after opposition MPs tabled 41,000 amendments to obstruct its passage through parliament.

The bill became law in 2020, but was held back because of the Covid pandemic.

Why is 49.3 politically risky?

French media often refers to article 49.3 as a nuclear legislative weapon  both for what it can achieve and what it can entail.

Governments can push through sometimes-unpopular legislation, but they also risk being overthrown.

Whilst motions of no confidence had little chance of getting voted during Macron's first term, the government is now in a far weaker position.

Under the Fifth Republic, there's been only one successful motion of no confidence  which led to the resignation of Georges Pompidou's government  but it was not the result of the 49.3.

Denial of democracy?

While 49.3 is legal and has never brought down a government, its use has become synonymous with stifling democratic debate.

The opposition, of whatever political hue, tends to criticise it as undemocratic since it deprives elected representatives of their say on key issues.

In 2006, while still an opposition MP, Socialist Francois Hollande called article 49.3 a brutality a denial of democracy and a way of slowing down or stopping parliamentary debate".

Once president, however, he let his prime minister Manuel Valls use it. He has since said that "if a government no longer has this weapon, it means it can no longer carry out the policy it has chosen".

Jean-Louis Debre, president of the Constitutional Council between 2007 and 2016, has defended it as "an instrument that allows stability in government in the face of party divisions".

But Robert Badinter, another former head of the Constitutional Council and former justice minister, has expressed reservations.

"The 49.3 is indispensable for finance and budgetary matters. For the rest it has to disappear," he said in 2019. "You don't change a law that wasn't voted in parliament."
CPC Central Committee holds meeting to seek opinions from non-CPC personages on major report

Xinhua) 13:47, October 13, 2022

BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting on Aug. 31 to seek opinions and suggestions from non-CPC personages on the draft report to the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting and made an important speech.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Wu Chaolan)
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
The former deputy General Secretary of the opposition NDC and founder of the Atta Mills Institute, Samuel Koku Anyidoho has been blasting some people he thinks are deliberately destroying the party.

He jabbed the party's outgoing General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketia over his decision to contest for the chairmanship position of the party describing him as "greedy and destroyer."

In one of his numerous tweets on Wednesday, October 12, Mr. Koku Anyidoho issued a warning that the grassroots members of the party will chase away "aliens" who are maliciously destroying the party's prestige.

If some conscienceless aliens have not hijacked the NDC & thrown away its core values, why should it be tolerated for the General Secretary to currently be serving on the Parliamentary Services Board & now seeking to become Chmn & Leader of the Party? I weep for NDC; Ah! Ah! Ah! he bemoaned.

He continued It is very obvious that some usurpers in the NDC have decided that they will deliberately destroy the Party of JJ Rawlings - but they shall be resisted and chased out by the masses. Power to the people.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

We Ought To Have Same Sets Of Measuring Standards

To Assess Performances Of Each Passing Government And Or Political Parties

A YARDSTICK isnt just a stick a yard long, commonly marked with subdivisions, used for measuring but also any standard of measurement or judgement, even as it could also mean a benchmark, criterion, guideline, norm, barometer, scale or standard.

It is also a basis used for comparison, as in what kind of yardstick is he basing his criticism? or better still, a graduated stick like one yard long used for measurement.

Indeed, over the last sixty plus years of our nationhood since our Independence Declaration of 6th March 1957, or more specifically within the last thirty years of our Fourth Republican Dispensation, we have had the fortune or misfortune of experiencing the varying administration and leadership styles of six (6) personalities, namely late Flight Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, late Prof. John Events Atta Mills, John Dramani Mahama and the current President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

The act of measuring performances for comparison as to which one of them has been about the best there has been has been executed with such extreme passions and viciousness only within the last six years (2017-2022), with these inter-plays showcased extensively on radio, television, social media and any available platforms.

It is also only within this period that we have witnessed the employment and daily deployment of mass communication officers, extensively by the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and to a lesser extent, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) from unit levels, through town / village to constituency to district, region and nation as well as segregated by the mode of media platform, including radio and television with specialists - specific for Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, WhatsApp and TikTok.

There are also the deployment of another number of specialists for such specific areas as the Economy, Galamsey, Presidents Travels, IMF Bailout, Jubilee House Affairs, Banking Sector Reforms, 1D1F (one District, one Factory), 1V1D (one village, one dam), 1C1M$ (one constituency, one million dollars), Free SHS, NACOB, Breaking The Eight mantra and Government Promises  campaign and or general.

For the political party in government, it is estimated that there is a workforce of about five (5) thousand persons working 24-hour basis on defending as well as propagating the achievements and workings of both the government and its political party, who are remunerated in terms of allowances, be it monthly or per assignment and sometimes provided with some of the confiscated vehicles from the Tema Harbour (plus constant supply of free fuel per week drawn from the Osu Castle Depot).

These daily banters or appearances on the various media platforms between the two major political parties, make the exchanges light, playful and sometimes laced with teasing remarks and or good-natured railleries; and other times quite insulting with some issues discussed in most provocative manner or in joking language or repartee.

I have always marveled at the extent of propaganda  yes, propaganda these party apparatchiks have espoused and thereby calling into question THE TYPE OF TRUTHS LACING THE CONDUCT OF THEIR DISCUSSIONS or by what yardstick do they conduct all these discussions, no matter the platform? The worse conduct of any man is when he knows he is lying through the teeth and yet uses shouts, threats, mimicking, facial contortions and swearing to want to lend some semblance of truth to the arguments and yet knowing that he was only lying to the TV viewers, radio listeners and rally attendances; and worse still not caring the effect or impacts on the people by the lies he or she has spewed unto innocent Ghanaian audience  all in the quest for a higher national office?

They do not even have the decency of an apology with their own dictum: The foreign exchange rate will expose you, when what goes round comes back to haunt them, laughing at the boldness of the faces they make thereafter when they meet us as if our minds have been wiped clean of any remembrance.

And yet, they look at the current exchange rate of 10.80 Ghanaian Cedis to a US$1.00 and tell us that if it was rather the opposition party, NDC that was in power / government now, the exchange rate would rather have been 16.00 (sixteen Ghanaian Cedis) ghc to a United States Dollar ($), that obviously is a Kwaku Ananse joke. Please senior, take Ghanaians serious for once and not insult our intelligence, we honestly do not deserve this!

This is by the side

You see, propaganda has been defined as information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution or nation; the deliberate spreading of such information or rumors; the particular doctrines or principles propagated by an organization or movement of political party; the organized dissemination of information or allegations like Family & Friends or Papa No, to assist or damage the cause of a government or political party; and such information and or allegations. Yet when worse scandals now happen, we are hypnotized into believing that nothing has happened.

Propaganda could also be the official government communications to the public that are designed to influence opinion  the information may be true or laced or absolutely false but it is always carefully selected for its political effect.

You know, this phenomenon is more associated with communist  inferior tactics, employed by such governments and their players to make us believe even what does not exist as if it does, or when its sunny weather they are able with their propagandists to make us believe and accept that it is raining dogs and cats, or when eating gari without sauce to believe we are eating a sumptuous meal from the restaurant of a 10-star hotel.

That is the core work of the propagandists that they unleash on us each day on various media platforms, be it print, electronic or social. Indeed, the heights these have reached in our current dispensation are most unprecedented

Truth be told, this kind of propaganda was sort of alien to some limited extent to our Fourth Republican political dispensation till a new breed of politicians emerged after the government of former President John Agyekum Kufuor in 2008, when our politics became an ARAB SPRING affair with no retreat, no surrender; to the extent that former President Kufuor was interrogated as to why he did not ensure his Party candidate did succeed him?

This inquisition in the vilest manner, seemingly, is what is currently driving the mantle of BREAKING THE EIGHT.

When one judges a person by a designed set of standards, norms, benchmarks, criteria, indicators, basis, rule, scale, guideline or tape measure in a certain dispensation and turns round within the same environment or breath, on mounting the same stage to now be in the limelight and cry to the high heavens desiring a different set of measurements for his or her performances, is the highest form of HYPOCRISY.

But then also HYPOCRITES we all are under the Fourth Republican Dispensation because as they say MAN MUST EAT & SURVIVE  so when you hear an otherwise vociferous person, suddenly become quiet in the face of all the provocations, then know this is new norm most of our people face as part of their survival instincts.

In my small life here on earth, almost at my three scores and ten, I have come to appreciate that not all of us have the courage to decide that for the principles we hold dear, we should endure than the pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles that we do not really possess.

It seems that we have chosen to live the pretense of having some desirable or publicly approved attitudes in order that we may survive a certain dispensation; imbibing the practice of professing beliefs and acts, contrary to ones real character or actual behaviour, especially the pretense of virtue and piety. You see, you are not deceiving anybody than yourself as the real damage is the character traits you are showcasing for your own children to imbibe like a CRAB DOES NOT BEGAT A BIRD.

By the way, when will our politicians learn to apologize for the things they say and get them wrong later like when the fundamentals are wrong, the forex rate will expose you  so what has changed now?

Why do you still insult the intelligences of the electorate, thinking that we are DAFT - senseless, stupid, insane, crazy, giddy or foolish and not capable of reasoning for ourselves? Why do our leaders continue to take us for granted as simpletons?

Is that why our political class are implementing the FREE SHS programme as we are witnessing by the day and especially because their own children have access to a different education channel so that our children will grow to serve their children as we are serving them now?

We should learn or be humble to be measured in the way we insult when in opposition, when desiring the high offices of state, the insults, the innuendoes, the insinuations and aspersions of disparaging or derogatory natures because all these things come back to haunt us; making us now pretend to be students on excursion throughout the countryside than to stay in office and face the music of our previous lives. I also worry over the impact of these on our youth, especially as by our acts, we make them accept and believe that POLITICS IS ONLY ABOUT INSULTS AND WAITING FOR ONES TURN TO LOOT FROM THE STATE as the new rich class.

Do you recall all that was said about previous government about their fights against the then state of our rivers and their fight against the GALAMSEY MENACE; and then fast-forward to now and wonder what ought to be said now  same yardstick?

This is not how to build a nation, like GHANA?

But trust me, A CHANGE IS GONNA COME, sooner than later because as for the measurements men face here on earth, there can be only one YARDSTICK and never ever forget that because the foreign exchange rate will expose you for who you really are!

By Magnus Naabe RexDanquah, the Ghanaian - is a Land Economist & Appraiser,

Events Architect & Planner, SportBusiness Consultant, Social Commentator and an Author.
A Former United Nations Senior Governance Adviser, Professor Baffour Agyeman-Duah commenting on the fight against illegal small scale mining (Galamsey) said Ghana is a country full of hypocritical leaders.

In his view, the leaders, whether religious or political, know the cause of galamsey yet are playing the usual blame game.

Speaking on the Ghana Tonight show with Alfred Ocansey on TV3 Wednesday October 12, Prof Agyeman-Duah who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the John Agyekum Kuffuor Foundation said One thing we have to understand is that this country, our political leaders and leaders across board, religious leaders and all, there are a lot of hypocrites and dishonest people in leadership across board.

That is a fact, we are hypocrites and we are very dishonest. On Galamsey, everybody knows what is going on but for the sake of politics, to win power, when one government is doing something those in opposition will go around and say look when we come we will restore you but of course, when they come they will not restore them. That is the level of hypocrisy and dishonesty we have, that is what is killing us.

Meanwhile, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has told the National House of Chiefs that the task to protect the lands and the environment from the effect of Galamsey is a joint responsibility between the government and the traditional authorities.

Mr Akufo-Addo explained during a meeting with the Chiefs in Kumasi on Wednesday October 5 that 80 per cent of the lands in Ghana are in the custody of the chiefs.

READ ALSO: Govt's approach to fighting galamsey will fail - Mahama signals

This means that they have a role to play in protecting the resource, he said.

He said 80 per cent of the lands in this country continue to be under your custody, much of it having been acquired through the blood and sacrifices of your ancestors. The reminder of 20 per cent which I hold in trust of the people of Ghana, derived from state acquisition from you. What this means is that ultimately, the welfare of the state of the lands is our joint responsibility, although by statute the minerals in the soil belong to the president in trust for the people.

The chiefs on their part assured Mr Akufo-Addo that they are solidly behind his administration to apply appropriate measures against all persons involved in Galamsey in the country.

President of the National House of Chiefs, Ogyeahohoo Yaw Gyeb indicated that galamsey is having a negative effect on the environment and also threatens revenue mobilsation in the country hence, their resolve to support the President and government in fighting it.

He said your relentless war against forest degradation and illegal mining in Ghana is of great importance to Ghanaians especially we the chiefs.

The effects of illegal mining on the environment threaten the survival of water bodies , farmlands, cocoa industry and even encouraging school dropouts, this undermines the revenue mobilsation drive in the country.

In view of this development [the Chiefs] are solidly behind your administration to apply the appropriate sanctions against persons who are engaged in the practice illegal mining irrespective of their status.

3news.com
We are back to the issue of galamsey! The presidents meeting with the National House of Chiefs and the MMDCEs, media reports with pictures of polluted rivers, conversations on social media, etc. are contributing to this renewed sense of urgency to act.

The Economics of Galamsey

During my doctoral dissertation research work some twelve years ago on the political economy of resource governance in Ghana, I learned quite a bit about galamsey. I was quite struck by the personal risks to those involved including the possibility of death. I also noticed strong economic incentives  jobs and earning a livelihood. I understood, while not excusing, the trade-offs made by those who engage in galamsey.

The small-scale mining sector (in which galamsey occurs) also holds strong economic incentives for the State. In the Small Scale and Community Mining Operational Manual dated September 2021, the importance of the sector is captured as follows:

The sector employs about one million Ghanaians directly and many more indirectly. The sector also contributes to foreign exchange earnings and creation of ancillary economic activities. SSM stimulates local economy and also provides pathfinder clues for discovery of large deposits as well as provision of forward and backward economic linkages. Gold production from the sector has been increasing steadily over the past decade and in 2018, it reached an all-time high of 2.13 million ounces (43% of national production).

It is therefore clear that the State has a strong incentive in ensuring a thriving small-scale mining sector.

The States Policy Approach

In tracing the States policy approach in the fight against galamsey, it appears that regularization has been central (Small Scale Gold Mining Law, PNDCL 218, repealed and integrated into the new Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703). In my view, these laws provided a proper legal framework within which artisanal and small-scale mining could operate without disrupting its positive economic contributions to the economy. As the environmental consequences of galamsey gained traction, the State introduced another dimension to its policy approach  the use of the security forces (military in particular) to forcibly disrupt their activities. We have seen Operation Flush Out (Kufuor Administration in 2006), Inter-Ministerial Task Force on Illegal Small-Scale Mining (Mahama Administration in 2013), and Operation Vanguard (Akufo Addo Administration in 2017). One distinguishing feature of the regularization and use of force by the State is the attempt to provide alternative livelihoods to those involved in galamsey which came with the Akufo Addo governments approach.

As the conversations intensify, the question I keep asking is what is preventing the States policy approach  regularization and use of forcefrom becoming successful?

The Politics of the Fight Against Galamsey

As with any policy issue that needs a solution, one cannot overlook its partisan political dimensions. We have two major political parties (NPP and NDC) in Ghana, both of whom have over the years made efforts to deal with this menace. I do not doubt that both parties recognize the critical importance of the small-scale mining sector as well as the destructive nature of galamsey, which is an illegal unregulated activity. But at the same time, I know both political parties are sensitive to the political consequences of any proposed policy solution which include the potential response of voters in galamsey areas and the exploitation of any vulnerabilities by their political opponents. What will give both parties comfort is galamsey as a zero-sum issue. Dr. Abdul-Gafaru Abdulai captures the political dilemma well. (See The Galamsey Menace in Ghana: A Political Problem Requiring Political Solutions?).

Reconciling The Economics, Policy, And Politics

I have spent time reading and digesting the contents of the Small Scale and Community Mining Operational Manual dated September 2021. I have read several media reports on the National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme (NAELP) launched in October 2021. I have also read various updates on their (NAELP) social media page on Facebook. I have requested for and waiting for a full copy of the NAELP policy document.

I am of the strong belief that our policymakers duly understand the economic importance of the small-scale mining sector. They also understand the policy imperative to act:

Properly police the activities of the sector and Deal effectively with the menace of galamsey

The missing link between the economics and policy dimensions of galamsey is the most difficult part  the politics.

There is no denying the many political missteps in the fight against galamsey. But if we can build political consensus around the two policy documents I have referenced above, I see no reason why we cannot succeed in fighting galamsey.

Time and events will tell!

John Osae-Kwapong (PhD.) is a Democracy and Development (D&D) Fellow at CDD-Ghana, Associate Provost for Assessment, Accreditation, and Institutional Effectiveness, Baruch College, The City University of New York
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Former Ghana President, John Dramani Mahama has disclosed that he is yet to decide whether to run for the presidency again.

Speaking to VOA in Washington on Wednesday, October 12, the leading member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) said he will take a decision in the first quarter of 2023.

I havent [made up my mind to contest]. Its good to keep your opponents guessing.

Even if I am not running, I am not going to say I am not running. A decision will be taken early next year  the first quarter thats when well hold our partys primary for the presidential candidacy. So, well see, ex-President John Dramani Mahama shared.

Already, John Dramani Mahama is considered by many as the viable candidate to lead the NDC in the 2024 general elections.

While in opposition, he has been critical of the government and never shies away from commenting and making suggestions to address challenges facing the country.

He is one of many NDC leaders who have assured Ghanaians that the next NDC government will abolish the controversial electronic transaction levy (E-Levy).
Charles Kusi Appiah Kubi, the Executive Secretary of Ashanti Business Community, has said tax policies need to be more considerate of businesses.

Any policy that has to do with the business people must be designed with the business people, and that policy must sit well with the business people, he said on The Point of View.

Some businesses in Kumasi have closed their shops to customers for the past three days in protest of the uneven implementation of the Value Added Tax.

The protesting businesses have complained that the tax structure and its administration do not support the features of the fast-moving goods market.

They also said the lack of VAT compliance means the compliant businesses are competing with fellow businesses offering cheaper prices.

Mr. Appiah Kubi urged the government to be mindful of the greater good of the economy.

We did not set up our businesses because we want to pay tax. We set up businesses because we want to grow our economy, and when our businesses get better, that is when we can pay taxes.

While taxes have been described as necessary as the government seeks to widen the tax net, Mr. Appiah Kubi warned that some bitter pills can kill. It is not every bitter we must take.

---citinewsroom
Former President John Dramani Mahama has said a judiciary owes it a duty to deliver impartial justice to the people.

Speaking as a special guest at the Liberty Convocation, the former Ghanaian leader said: An Ombudsman owes a duty of care to the people to investigate all issues of malfeasance; a police force should exist to serve the people and not rein terror on them; an electoral commission owes a sacred duty of care to the people by ensuring that they are included in the electoral process and not excluded in the interest of the incumbent administration; an independent media owes it to the people to not only report facts without bias, but to hold the government of the day accountable.

Mr Mahama has, on several occasions, taken issue with Ghanas judiciary.

A few weeks ago, he said the image of Ghanas judiciary is broken under the leadership of Justice Anin-Yeboah and hoped a new Chief Justice leads an image-cleansing crusade in the future, since, in his view, the current Chief Justice cannot lead such a process.

Addressing a conference of lawyers of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Sunday, 28 August 2022, Mr Mahama bewailed that the judiciary has now become the butt of jokes, as a result of its biased rulings and decisions on cases with a political tinge.

Recently, he noted, so badly has the image of our judiciary deteriorated that many of our citizenry openly make a mockery of our justice system and of our justices.

The phrase, Go to court is, these days, is met with derisive laughter, instead of hope that one will truly get justice if he went to the court, Mr Mahama explained.

He said: If people are not poking fun about politics and inducements being used to sway the hand of justice in the lower courts, then it is poking fun and making statements about the 7-0 of the Unanimous FC verdicts, which, mostly, involve cases of a political nature in our Supreme Court.

This is an unfortunate development, he regretted, pointing out: One of the scariest existential threats to any democracy is when citizens think their judiciary holds no value for them or is of no use to them, and this is the security threat that the national security apparatus tried to draw the attention of the nation to, recently but was poorly received by the President and his party.

It is scary because it threatens the peace and stability of our democracy and we must quickly correct this fast-spreading notion, warned Mr Mahama.

He said it is a harbinger of danger.

If care is not taken, well get to a stage where people will have no qualms about taking the law into their own hands because they do not have the confidence that they can get any justice from the system, he cautioned.

Theres, therefore, the urgent need for the Ghanaian judiciary, to work to win the trust and confidence of the citizenry and erase the widely-held perception of hostility and political bias in legal proceedings at the highest court of the land, he urged.

Unfortunately, Mr Mahama noted, we have no hope that the current leadership of our Judiciary can lead such a process of change.

We can only hope that a new Chief Justice will lead the process to repair the broken image that our judiciary has acquired over the last few years, he said.

In March this year, too, Mr Mahama had cause to express reservations about the judiciary thus: We do have problems with the judiciary, I must say, adding: I think that it is necessary for some internal reforms to take place there.

It is necessary for the Chief Justice or whoever is responsible, to make some reforms, Mr Mahama said when he addressed the US Chapter of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) at Bentley University over the weekend.

Bemoaning how, in his view, most of the governance institutions have been politicised, Mr Mahama said: I give the example of the Judiciary  It is only in Ghana that a Supreme Court will make a decision that a birth certificate is not proof of citizenship.

There are many such funny judgments that have been given, he added.

I remember at one time, our colleague, Professor Raymond Atuguba, said that from research he had done, judges turn to give their judgments in favour of the political party or leader that appointed them.

He was subjected to such a whirlwind of indignation by the judiciary but if you bring it down to what is happening today, and you look at it and see who appointed who, you will find that there was some truth in the research.

The thing is, our Constitution gives the security of tenure to judges. Once you have been appointed, you cannot be removed.

That is why we give security of tenure so that you will have the courage, no matter who appointed you, to give judgment according to your conscience. That is what our judges should do. They must rise to the occasion, urged Mr Mahama.

Source: Classfmonline.com
National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyami has indicated that he will file an appeal against the court judgment on the defamation suit filed against him by the Minister of Energy, Matthew Opoku Prempeh aka Napo.

In his view, the court erred in its ruling.

In 2019, the Energy Minister who is also Manhyia South MP filed a suit against Sammy Gyamfi in relation to a comment made at a press conference by the NDC firebrand on the three kidnapped Canadian girls in Kumasi.

The said press conference was to debunk allegations by some elements in the New Patriotic Party (NDC) that the kidnapping incident was masterminded by the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress, Hon. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo.

The specific comment that constituted the basis for the suit was Sammy Gyamfis assertion that contrary to the above allegation, the ring leader of the kidnappers, one Seidu Mba was "alleged to be the errand boy of Matthew Opoku-Prempeh".

After three years of litigation, the General Jurisdiction High Court (12) presided over by Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah has ruled on the case in favour of Hon. Matthew Opoku Prempeh.

The court held that the comment by Sammy Gyamfi was defamatory and consequently awarded damages of GH500,000.00 and a cost of GH50,000.00 against the NDC National Communications Officer.

Reacting to the ruling in a statement, Sammy Gyamfi has indicated that his lawyers will challenge the decision of the High Court through an appeal.

It is my considered view that the honorable court erred as its decision is contrary to the evidence that was put before the court. More importantly, I hold the view that the courts decision to totally disregard the testimony of my witness, DW1, Mafus Jibril who testified that the said Seidu Mba was in fact the errand boy of Plaintiff and was in his company when he (DW1) was attacked in Manhyia sometime in 2012, constitutes a grave miscarriage of justice.

Consequently, my lawyers will be filing a notice of appeal and an application for stay of execution to challenge the decision of the High Court forthwith. Its my hope that justice will be served, Sammy Gyamfi has noted in a statement on his Facebook page.
Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has disclosed that he will not accept the court ruling on the defamation suit filed against him by Energy Minister Matthew Opoku Prempeh.

After three years of litigation, the Accra High Court has today found Sammy Gyamfi guilty of defaming the Energy Minister over comments made in 2019 in relation to the kidnapping of some Canadian girls.

The General Jurisdiction High Court (12) presided over by Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah ruled in favour of Hon. Matthew Opoku Prempeh and awarded damages of GH500,000.00 and a cost of GH50,000.00 against the NDC National Communications Officer.

Unhappy with the outcome of the case, Sammy Gyamfi has disclosed in a statement that he will be filing an appeal through his lawyers.

It is my considered view that the honorable court erred as its decision is contrary to the evidence that was put before the court. More importantly, I hold the view that the courts decision to totally disregard the testimony of my witness, DW1, Mafus Jibril who testified that the said Seidu Mba was in fact the errand boy of Plaintiff and was in his company when he (DW1) was attacked in Manhyia sometime in 2012, constitutes a grave miscarriage of justice.

Consequently, my lawyers will be filing a notice of appeal and an application for stay of execution to challenge the decision of the High Court forthwith. Its my hope that justice will be served, a post on the Facebook page of Sammy Gyamfi has said.

While insisting that the struggles continue, he adds that he is determined to pursue the matter to its logical conclusion.
The judge overseeing the trial against Air France and Airbus for involuntary homicide in the fatal 2009 crash of a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris has agreed to allow the recording from the black box flight recorder to be heard behind closed doors.

The judge agreed to a request of the victims' families, who had asked for the audio of the cockpit voice recorder, with the last four minutes of the flight before it crashed into the Atlantic, to be entered as evidence.

The recording will be played for the court and those involved, but not for the public or the press, while those in the room will be required to shut off any mobile phones or recording devices.

One of the lawyers for the association representing victims' families told the court on Wednesday that hearing the recording would be difficult, but was "absolutely necessary" in the "search for the truth that drives all of us.

Who is to blame?

Air France flight 447 stalled during a storm on its way to Paris from Rio on 1 June 2009 and crashed into the Atlantic. All 228 people on board were killed  216 passengers and 12 crew, including 61 French citizens.

The trial opened Monday, with Air France accused of insufficiently training the pilots who became disoriented by the weather, and Airbus for underestimating the gravity of a defective speed monitoring probe on the A330, which was later replaced on planes around the world.

The two companies deny responsibility.

The black boxes were found nearly two years after the crash, 3,900 metres underwater in May 2011.

The flight data recorder provided information about the speed of the plane when it went down, and the voice recording showed investigators that the pilots were confused about what was happening in the minutes before the crash.

While lawyers on both sides received a transcript of the recording, no one has heard it.

Lawyers for the pilots, as well for Air France, did not oppose the release of the recording in the trial provided it was not played for the public.

The last four minutes

During the first few days of the trial, experts who worked on the investigation testified about examining the black boxes and piecing together what happened in the last minutes of the flight, which ended when the aircraft hit the ocean at 300 kilometres an hour.

After their explanations, they broadcast a 4.5 minute digital reconstruction of the crash, which played to a silent courtroom.

During cross investigations, one expert revealed disagreements with the three others on certain parts of the report, though his conclusions clearly still point to the responsibility of Air France and Airbus.

The trial is due to run through 8 December.

(with wires)
"I think the whole thing is about a woman challenging a big shot," says Aminata Toure.

"This man needs to be challenged."

Toure makes no secrets about her plans to confront Senegalese President Macky Sall, whose government she once led, and of her goal to succeed him one day.

The 60-year-old former prime minister has surged to prominence in Senegal, staking a claim on becoming the West African country's first female president.

Toure's decision to sit as an independent MP has put an end to the presidential coalition's single-seat majority, throwing Senegalese politics into flux.

She fell out with Sall after he passed her over for the role of parliamentary speaker, even though she led his party list in legislative elections last month.

In an interview with AFP at her seafront villa in Dakar, Toure accused Sall of snubbing her, alleging he planned to run for a third term in 2024 and knew she would oppose the bid.

Sall has for months remained vague on whether he will seek to extend his tenure beyond the constitutional limit of two terms -- an issue that in Guinea and Ivory Coast has led to explosive violence.

A bid by Sall for a third term "may bring chaos to the country," Toure warned.

In 2012, when former president Abdoulaye Wade sought an unconstitutional third term, as many as 15 people are thought to have died in protests.

'Bold'

After education in France, Toure took up work with Senegal's branch of Planned Parenthood.

"That's when I was closest to the people," the daughter of a doctor and a midwife said.

Leyla Sharafi, a senior gender advisor at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) who worked for Toure, described her as an eager mentor to young professional women.

"Aminata was a visionary and transformational leader", Sharafi said. "She was very bold and fearless in standing up for what she believed in".

Macky Sall has for months remained vague on whether he will seek to extend his time in office.. By lionel MANDEIX, Lionel MANDEIX (Senegalese Presidency/AFP)

Toure first met Sall when they were teenagers attending communist meetings.

They began working together closely in 2012 when Toure left a senior role with the UNFPA in New York to run Sall's first presidential campaign.

He appointed her justice minister -- a job where in 2013 she introduced a landmark law allowing Senegalese women married to foreigners to pass their nationality onto their children, as men could.

She also oversaw a campaign investigating former Wade cabinet ministers for corruption.

One of them was Wade's son, Karim, who could be a 2024 presidential contender. Another was Toure's ex-husband, Oumar Sarr, the father of her first child. (She has two others with another husband and is the legal guardian of a 12-year-old orphan.)

Mamadou Bamba Ndiaye, a founder of Senegal's Workers' Communist League and a former leader of the Movement for Socialism and Unity, described Toure as "an intellectual" and "very serious about what she does... very courageous and even a pain in the neck".

Toure became prime minister in September 2013, losing her job the following July after losing in municipal elections in Dakar. She became a legislator in last month's elections.

'Old men'

Female presidents in Africa, a continent where politics are conservative and society is patriarchal, are extremely rare.

West Africa's only elected female head of state has been Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of Liberia from 2006-2018 and 2011 Nobel Peace laureate.

Others around the continent have been appointed as stand-ins, often after the death of the male president.

In Toure's favour is Senegal's rising prosperity and democratic stability -- and her cosmopolitanism.

In Toure's favour is her cosmopolitanism and Senegal's rising prosperity and democratic stability.. By JOHN WESSELS (AFP)

She is fluent in French and English and as comfortable chatting about Brazilian politics or the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan as she is about her strategy for winning local electoral districts.

But can she appeal to the average Senegalese voter?

"I am Senegalese -- I think I'm perceived as Senegalese -- but I'm a modern Senegalese", Toure said.

"Seventy percent of the population of Senegal is below 35 -- they're young people... including young women."

Her opponents write her off as simply disgruntled and ungrateful for the appointments Sall has given her. They say she has never won a significant political mandate.

Toure said the country was ripe for change.

She described other African leaders who have overstayed their welcome as "old men."

Sall, born in 1961, is "a modern guy -- he is a smart guy," she said.

"Why would he act like somebody who's 80 and ruin his reputation?"
Tragic stories of suffering and death have emerged from Tigray since 2020, when civil war erupted between the central Ethiopian government and the regional Tigrayan government.

In just one example, a professor who headed Ayder Hospital's oncology department in Mekelle, the capital city of Tigray, spoke of women's malnutrition and resulting childbirth complications and deaths.

It's not only the patients who are suffering. Despite being protected by international laws , healthcare workers and health facilities in the region are extremely vulnerable. Since the war broke out, healthcare workers have lost their jobs , been displaced , and been wounded, threatened or killed .

There have been reports of ambulances being obstructed and health workers being prevented from treating civilians.

There's a lack of medical supplies . Patients and healthcare workers have resorted to unusual measures. At one hospital, healthcare workers were reusing gloves and asking patients to bring white clothes that could be repurposed as gauze.

Tigray's healthcare systems were already under pressure before the war. The unfolding crisis will only worsen the situation. Action is crucial: the international community must recognise and acknowledge that accepted global norms related to healthcare workers' safety are being violated. They must condemn the situation in the strongest terms. Tigray's health sector needs support  both now and when the war ends.

Trying circumstances

Healthcare workers in Tigray were last paid in May 2021 . In July 2021, 50% of the region's roughly 20,000 healthcare workers did not report for normal duty. This figure includes all 741 health extension workers employed in posts across Tigray to provide primary healthcare services, including crucial maternal and child health services.

Read more: What people from war-torn Tigray told us about the state of their lives amid the war

The economic meltdown and the ongoing violence have prompted many healthcare workers to flee. Some have remained in the area, seeking refuge in camps for internally displaced people. Researchers found about 2,000 healthcare workers living in one such camp in Mekelle. Others have fled to neighbouring countries like Sudan.

During an interview with the BBC on 3 October 2021, the head of the Tigray region Health Bureau, Dr Hagos Godefay, reported that 22,000 health workers were displaced.

Those who have continued to work, along with international aid workers providing healthcare support, are extremely vulnerable. The regional Health Bureau reports that 37 healthcare workers have been killed and 78 wounded since the start of the war. The UN says 23 aid workers have died.

Fears for the future

Healthcare infrastructure has not been spared in this conflict. Seventy-eight percent of health posts (primary healthcare structures), 72% of health centres, and 80% of hospitals have been destroyed .

Educational facilities , including medical colleges, have also repeatedly come under attack. The resulting disruptions bode ill for the future  Tigray may experience a significant gap in the supply of skilled health professionals in the coming years.

Some students from the medical colleges have stepped up to provide services, despite not yet being qualified. This unfortunate situation imposes a responsibility beyond their capacity. It's also likely to cause extreme stress in their lives and may drive them out of the profession after the war.

The extreme and blatant disregard of healthcare workers' neutrality (which is guaranteed in numerous international agreements), the denial of access to basic services for civilians and wounded combatants, and the destruction of healthcare infrastructure in the Tigray war cannot be justified.

Looking ahead

It is a painful paradox. At a time when Tigray's citizens need it most, they cannot access good, reliable, safe healthcare. We fear that the situation won't improve.

We expect that Tigray's post-conflict period will be characterised by poor health outcomes due to the limited availability of healthcare workers and complete collapse of its healthcare system. The brain drain of health workers and collapse of the healthcare system, and sustained negative health outcomes in the population after the conflict, have been seen in several conflict areas such as Sierra Leone and Yemen .

Here's what's needed to address the situation:

global advocacy and a show of solidarity from the international community

mobilisation and financial commitment to rebuild the health workforce

demanding accountability from those who have flagrantly violated international law and ignored global norms around protecting healthcare workers even in times of conflict.

Fisaha Tesfay works as humanitarian coordinator for Tigrean diasporas living in Australia, New Zealand and East Asia to ease the humanitarian crisis in Tigray

Fasika Amdesellassie and Hailay Gesesew do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

By Hailay Gesesew, NHMRC Research Fellow (Public Health), Flinders University And

Fasika Amdesellassie, Surgeon, Ayder Hospital, Mekelle University And

Fisaha Tesfay, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Deakin University
The violence of the past is far from over. But it is disguised in many ways, made invisible and normalised. What started with the Spanish, Portuguese or the Ottoman empires continued with the British, French and Russian empires, and now the United States. Imperial political violence continues today in Palestine, Ukraine, Sudan, Yemen, Iran, to name but a few.

One of the disguises is restitution.

I'm a scholar of what I understand as catastrophic art  artworks which were made in worlds that empires destroyed, and were then taken to the imperial centres, or metropoles.

When talking about returning these artworks, the former imperial states speak of restitution. Restitution is taken to mean the return of objects to their homes or places of origin. It is confined to individual works of art, and human remains, that were brutally deported and displayed in museums or subjected to laboratory research. It includes animals too. These were hunted and taken to satisfy the interest of imperial science, museums and zoos.

But the language of restitution fails to take into account historical responsibilities.

As I discuss in a recent paper on catastrophic art , restitution fails to note that taking objects from Africa went hand-in-hand with the murder or destruction of knowledges in the continent. It thus eliminated the possibility for future knowledge practice and circulation.

Restitution ignores the annihilation of life forms  of social, political, ecological and epistemological organisation  that was perpetrated in Africa by the empires.

'Civilising mission'

I have been working on understanding the British colonial destruction of the Kingdom of Benin in 1897. The destruction was an imperial response to Oba (king) Ovonramwen Nogbaisi 's refusal to submit to control by imperial legislation. The kingdom was first made to disappear in a great fire and then turned into a British colony with a native council.

The British empire had already destroyed the Ashanti Kingdom (in 1874) in what is today Ghana and the German empire had destroyed Cameroon in West Africa (in 1884). At the Berlin Conference of 188485, representatives of predatory empires met and divided the continent of Africa between them into areas over which they would have sole rights.

The French destruction of the Kingdom of Dahomey in 189294 followed.

Read more: Germany is returning Nigeria's looted Benin Bronzes: why it's not nearly enough

The political violence of these empires was driven by what they termed a civilising mission. This meant conquest of land. And that meant the annihilation of life forms. It destroyed different knowledges and was followed by the extraction of artworks and human remains. Colonial ethnologists and ethnographers had the power to treat destroyed knowledges as objects or artefacts.

The murder of knowledges

As imperialists, they could create theories to prove that plundered knowledges were nothing more than objects. They stripped from these knowledge systems their ability to transmit knowledge.

In the Kingdom of Benin, art was never seen as art alone, but a system of knowledge that shaped life. The critical thinker, poet and Senegal's first president, Leopold Sedar Senghor , wrote of African art as social life, goodness, beauty, happiness, and the 'knowledge of the world'. A Benin Bronze artwork on display in the Humboldt Forum, Germany. Wolfgang Kumm/picture alliance via Getty Images

By denying that the artworks carried knowledge they brought with them, the colonial ethnologist or anthropologist could make scientific knowledge claims about these objects.

But the colonialist system of classification, categorisation and hierarchy denied the fact that the artworks carried knowledge they brought with them. This process destroyed the ability and right of an artwork to speak of life forms.

The objects were then put on display and turned into spectacles to entertain the masses, or sleeping beauties, as the philosopher Frantz Fanon put it in The Wretched of the Earth .

The empires used spectacle to institute imperial citizenship and to justify violence and destruction in the colonies.

To this day, the Louvre in Paris, the British Museum in London and the Humboldt Forum in Berlin continue to lay legal claim to, and to display, objects from Benin, Dahomey and Cameroon. The undisturbed display prevents any thinking of the objects as the colonial murder of knowledges.

A call for historical responsibility

States and museums see themselves under no historical, political or ethical obligation even to inquire into their colonial histories of murdering knowledge.

Quite the opposite. The language of restitution and provenance is a new spectacle, a way of remembering colonialism and writing colonial history. Restitution is declared and controlled in the metropoles and governed by museums, provenance researchers, archives and curators there.

Read more: Returning looted artefacts will finally restore heritage to the brilliant cultures that made them

In fact, the rhetoric of restitution celebrates colonialism and imperial relations of power.

In a speech at the University of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso on 28 November 2017, President Emmanuel Macron of France declared that African heritage must be showcased in Paris but also in Dakar, Lagos and Cotonou; this will be one of my priorities. Within five years I want the conditions to exist for temporary or permanent returns of African heritage to Africa.

A similar approach was taken in a presidential report on restitution that Macron commissioned.

The rhetoric of restitution also unfolded in Germany and Britain, demonstrating that the imperial will to know is the will to dominate .

Fazil Moradi does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

By Fazil Moradi, Associate Professor, Faculty of Humanities, Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study, University of Johannesburg
Ghana is Africa's largest gold producer , the sixth globally. It produced approximately 129 metric tonnes in 2021.

Gold mining in Ghana stretches back over 1000 years. It first served as a cultural heritage for decorating kings and queens from the Ashanti region. Gold also played an important role during the colonial era . In the early half of the 1890s, it became an official trading commodity. Currently, gold contributes 12% to Ghana's Gross Domestic Product.

Over the years, a new form of mining known as artisanal and small-scale mining has emerged in Ghana and has become a source of revenue and income for poor people living in rural areas. But it's dangerous for residents in mining areas and also to illegal mining operators. And operations continue to wreak havoc on the environment. Artisanal mining also affects farming, cocoa production, and freshwater fishing.

In the late 1980s, the Ghanaian government regularised artisanal mining to allow citizens of 18 years and above to obtain licenses. Today, artisanal mining exists in two forms: licensed and unlicensed operations. Licensed artisanal mining is also known as small-scale mining, whereas in local parlance, unlicensed mining is called 'galamsey', to wit, gather-to-sell.

Artisanal and small-scale mining employs approximately 1 million people in Ghana. An additional 5 million peoples' livelihoods depend on its proceeds.

Artisanal and small-scale mining also accounts for 40% of gold produced in Ghana, making it an attractive sector for revenue generation.

A major problem with unlicensed mining is government's inability to enforce mining laws. About 85% of artisanal and small-scale mining operators have no license to operate. This is because of the long hours it takes to process mining license applications , and the exorbitant fees charged by the minerals and mining commission.

The difficulty with enforcing mining laws prompted my research . I set out to understand why past and present governments have been unable to enforce laws, and to consider solutions to the problem.

Why it matters

Artisanal and small-scale mining is attractive to an average Ghanaian for a number of reasons.

Firstly, artisanal and small-scale miners can generate an income averaging $3 daily (GHS30) versus farming's $0.6 (GHS7). Mining income is double the daily minimum wage of GHS15. In the wake of high cost of living, people will choose mining.

Secondly, the increasing demand for gold has led to a global price increase .

Thirdly, artisanal and small-scale mining generates income all year round, whereas farming takes place three times a year in line withe country's three rainy seasons.

Nevertheless, people living in artisanal and small-scale mining areas remain the poorest, with no access to education and good roads. In addition, artisanal and small-scale mining is the major driver of environmental, safety and health problems in most mining areas.

Between 2015 and 2018 alone, artisanal mining contributed to more than 40,000 hectares of deforestation.

An additional 19,000 hectares of cocoa farms have been destroyed by artisanal mining operations between 2021 and the first half of 2022.

In some areas, illegal mining operators have reportedly taken over cocoa farms by force.

Illegal mining operations also cause 60% of the pollution of major rivers.

Illegal mining also affects people's health. It is responsible for more than 40% of mental health cases in some mining areas. Most illegal miners use dangerous chemicals such as mercury to separate gold from its ores, leading to the contamination of the land and rivers. Mercury causes neurological disorders.

The illegal mining crisis has been exacerbated by the entry into Ghana of undocumented Chinese nationals. They import heavy equipment such as excavators, intensifying the environmental impact of artisanal mining in most areas.

The law

Ghana has a broad and comprehensive legal framework for mining, with overlapping responsibilities for state institutions. This gets in the way of implementation.

I found that since 1992 parliament has enacted approximately 30 mining regulations . There are also a host of environmental laws, with various government agencies being responsible for enforcement.

Most importantly, the minerals and mining commission, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resource, could not enforce mining laws due to corruption , regulatory capture and clientelism.

Political influences and informal connections are the major obstacles to enforcing mining laws in the country. This includes politicians being either directly involved in illegal mining or having links with people in government .

Recent studies have shown that artisanal miners do not own most of the gold they mine, which raises concern over the potential involvement of politically exposed persons in illegal mining.

The 'partisan' composition of the minerals commission also makes it difficult for them to enforce mining laws. Over the years, the appointment of party members into these institutions has 'neutralised' its ability to perform their enforcement functions effectively .

My findings also show that politicians heavily control the decision-making processes in Ghana. This top-down approach to decision-making has led to lack of cooperation by local residents or communities in addressing illegal mining.

Missteps

Ghana has tried several times to address some of the problems associated with illegal mining. For example, in 2017, Citi FM launched a campaign against galamsey . In response, government deployed military personnel in illegal mining areas under operation vanguard and operation halt initiatives to evict operators forcefully.

The army seized, destroyed or burnt mining equipment.

But this jackboot approach failed. It triggered unrest which led to confrontations between the officers and some local residents.

My research suggests that operation vanguard resulted in the relocation of some illegal mining to areas where there was no army.

A more sustainable solution is required. Here are its elements.

Next steps

The first is enhancing the administrative capacity of the Environmental Protection Agency by, among others:

involving it in the award of mining concessions. This would place it at the heart of the system for enforcing mining regulations.

developing a robust reporting system to allow citizens to file complaints directly to the agency about individuals and companies engaged in illegal mining; and

empowering the agency to compel mining companies and individuals to provide periodic feedback on their mining activities. It must also have a quasi-judicial unit that can surcharge offenders and determine those that are liable for prosecution. This would reduce the long periods it takes to prosecute environmental-related offenders.

Ghana must also implement multilateral environmental agreements to which it is a signatory. This requires political will and commitment to reduce the current implementation delays .

Much of the problem with illegal mining has to do with how mining licenses are issued. The current practice where the minister grants concessions is discriminatory.

The creation of the community mining scheme is designed to reduce unfairness in the award of mining licenses and to encourage local-level participation in mining administration. The recent small-scale mining consultative forums organised by the Ministry of lands and natural resource also has the potential to promote citizen participation in decision-making.

But to sustain these initiatives, government must demonstrate that its commitment to citizen participation is credible and is not part of a rudimentary check-list.

Prince K. Bansah receives funding from the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat (GSS). He is affiliated with the Lincoln Centre for Ecological Justice (LCEJ). England.

By Prince K. Bansah, PhD research student, University of Lincoln
Nigeria is experiencing its worst flooding in over a decade. Over 1.4 million people have been displaced, 500 have been reported dead and thousands have been injured.

Flooding isn't a new challenge in Nigeria  it's one of the country's most prevalent natural disasters. During the rainy seasons, from March to July and mid August to mid October in the south, and July to October in the north, major rivers often burst their banks. Dams burst too. This causes flooding in numerous Nigerian states, among them Delta, Kogi, Anambra, Bayelsa, Adamawa and Niger.

Various experts have written for The Conversation Africa on Nigeria's flooding challenge and steps needed to alleviate their worst effects.

Here we share three insightful reads.

Environment researcher Adaku Jane Echendu explains that  unlike some natural disasters  floods due to rainfall can be controlled with proper planning and infrastructure.

She reveals that the main drivers of Nigeria's include poor, or non-existent, drainage systems, poor waste management, unregulated urban expansion and the lax implementation of laws.

Read more: Nigeria has a flooding challenge: here's why and what can be done

Floods can be particularly devastating in Nigeria's cities, causing the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. In a study of Lagos and Port Harcourt, disaster risk reduction and resilience specialist Olasunkanmi Habeeb Okunola found that a variety of factors make cities vulnerable. These include institutional failures, inadequate infrastructure and a lack of disaster education.

Okunola outlines what cities must do to better cope with the risk of floods. Key to this is the need for government, non-governmental agencies, community-based organisations and residents to join forces and prepare for floods, reducing their impact.

Read more: What Nigerian cities can do to cope better with flood risk

Flooding may seem to be an inevitable reality for Nigeria. But, argues water management expert Nelson Odume, risks can be minimised in a variety of ways. The most significant of these is coordinated spatial planning. This involves bringing urban planners and environmental practitioners together to organise the distribution of people and activities in a space.

He outlines the steps Nigeria needs to take to deal with flooding. These include installing gauging stations, developing suitable models for hydrological predictions, and collecting data that will enable accurate flood forecasting.

Read more: Why Nigeria is not prepared to deal with flooding

By Moina Spooner, Assistant Editor And

Wale Fatade, Commissioning Editor: Nigeria
13.10.2022 LISTEN

The Insurance Brokers' Association of Ghana (IBAG) on Thursday, October 13 started a two-day training workshop for insurance professionals, particularly Brokers, to enable active participation in the full implementation of the marine cargo business.

The training workshop which is being organised on the theme Essentials of Marine Cargo Insurance is aimed at building the capacity of its members. It is expected to cover various aspects including the Cargo clauses, Modern trends and Global issues on Cargo Insurance.

Speaking at the opening ceremony for the training in Accra at Mensvic Hotel on Thursday morning, IBAG President Mr. Shaibu Ali underscored the importance of the workshop, indicating that there is a lot of potential in the marine space that needs to be tapped.

He explained that through the workshop, IBAG is seeking to position brokers and writers to take advantage of the huge potential of marine insurance that can overtake motor insurance.

The key take from this workshop is going to be for the practitioners to go out there and tell people that marine insurance needs to be done and done locally. However, they can only do that if they know what Marine insurance is.

We are equipping them with the basics of marine insurance so that when they go out there they will be confident enough to talk to marine insurers, Mr. Shaibu Ali explained.

He further admonished participants of the workshop to take full advantage of the training and capitalise on the new laws on cargo import to explore the marine space.

The new laws say that if you default and you dont insure your cargo you the importer you can go to jail for up to three years. So once the law has been reshaped like this, it now behoves writers to position ourselves to make sure that we rekindle all the expertise and knowledge in marine insurance to be able to better serve the customers. That is the essence of this training, the President of the Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana indicated.

Delivering a speech as a representative of the Commissioner of Insurance, Dr. Justice Ofori, Head of Reinsurance and Anti-Money Laundering at the National Insurance Commission, Mrs. Esther Armah said the decision by IBAG to organise the training is apt.

She said although the insurance industry is doing well, it must develop marine insurance to do even better.

With the support of the Marine Protocol, Marine and Aviation Insurance Database (MAID), and more importantly your expertise, the future looks promising.

On this bright note, I applaud IBAG and Mr. Adams, our facilitator, and wish you all the best, Mrs. Esther Armah shared.

On his part, the President of the Ghana Insurers Association (GIA), Mr. Seth Aklasi commended IBAG for organising what he described as a wonderful programme.

He said with Ghana recording $45 billion worth of imports and exports per year, the importance of Marine Insurance cannot be understated.

In this regard, he stressed that putting together a workshop to train insurance professionals, especially brokers about the benefits of insuring imported or exported goods locally is the right way to go.

The fact is that if we do know a product we will not be able to sell it.

I believe that after these two days we will go back to our offices well-equipped to engage clients to get the best deal for them, Mr. Seth Aklasi intimated.

In all, the two-day workshop is training over 150 insurance professionals from the insurance sector.

The training workshop is being facilitated by Mr. Hilton Derek Adams, Head of Marine & Aviation, Munich Reinsurance Company of Africa (Pty) Limited, South Africa.

Hilton D. Adams joined Munich Re about 36 years ago. He worked within the Marine/Aviation Department from day one. Over the years, he also did all Classes of Business in addition to his Marine / Aviation Responsibilities as a Client Manager. Hilton is currently Head of Marine & Aviation  plus Client Management duties and responsible for all Technical matters for the entire African Business handled by Munich Re  Africa.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Electoral Commission (EC) has served notice to revoke the registration of 17 political parties if they fail to respond in writing justifying why they should be maintained on the electoral roll.

According to the electoral management body, all the 17 listed political parties have no national and regional offices as required by the Act governing political parties.

Reacting to the move, political science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo, called on all stakeholders to support the Electoral Commission in its bid to enforce its regulatory mandate.

Democracy is expensive, so if you have political parties worth their salt, and they satisfy all the requirements that make them political parties and say we practice multi-party democracy, then they should all be on the ballot papers if we have the resources.

So the need to cut off these parties shouldnt be because they are expensive to maintain but because they are not political parties but election machines. The EC can invoke some aspects of the Political Parties Act to cancel their registration and if they disagree, they can go to court, he said.

Between May and June 2022, the EC embarked on a nationwide exercise to inspect the offices of all registered political parties in Ghana.

But after the exercise, the EC invoked Section 15 (3) (c) of the Political Parties Act of 2000, Act 574, which mandates it to cancel the registration of Political Parties which do not have offices at the National and Regional levels.

Affected political parties are:
Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor has said that the fight against illegal small scale mining (Galamsey) is tough.

However, he said the government will not relent on its efforts in fighting the menace to protect the environment.

Addressing a press conference in Accra on Thursday October 13, the Damongo Lawmaker said It is going to be a tough fight but the Ghanaian people should be rest assured that we are fully committed to this fight and we are never going to relent in our efforts.

I am very confident that if all of us work together in good faith, we take out partisan politics out of it and see this as a national canker or national issue as it truly is, and pull our weight together, we definitely will be able to protect our environment and protect our country, protect our forest, protect our land scape, protect our water bodies for ourselves and our children and future generations.

Recently, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo also admitted that the fight against Galamsey has not been an easy one.

He said he has not achieved the results he was looking for in the fight but the government is determined to win the battle against the menace.

Since I took office I have made it a central feature of my presidency to lead in the efforts to rid our country of this menace which we all now call galamsey. It has not been popular and we have not got the result that I was looking for, Mr Akufo-Addo said during a meeting with the National House of Chiefs and the Municipal, Metropolitan and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in Kumasi on Wednesday October 5.

READ ALSO: Police destroy over 400 bags of cannabis

He further told the National House of Chiefs that the task to protect the lands and the environment from the effect of Galamsey is a joint responsibility between the government and the traditional authorities.

Mr Akufo-Addo explained that 80 per cent of the lands in Ghana are in the custody of the chiefs.

This means they have a role to play in protecting the resource, he said.

He said 80 per cent of the lands in this country continue to be under your custody, much of it having been acquired through the blood and sacrifices of your ancestors. The remainder of 20 per cent which I hold in trust of the people of Ghana, derived from state acquisition from you. What this means is that ultimately, the welfare of the state of the lands is our joint responsibility, although by statute the minerals in the soil belong to the president in trust for the people.

The chiefs on their part assured Mr Akufo-Addo that they are solidly behind his administration to apply appropriate measures against all persons involved in Galamsey in the country.

President of the National House of Chiefs, Ogyeahohoo Yaw Gyeb indicated that galamsey is having a negative effect on the environment and also threatens revenue mobilisation in the country hence, their resolve to support the President and government in fighting it.

He said your relentless war against forest degradation and illegal mining in Ghana is of great importance to Ghanaians especially we the chiefs.

The effects of illegal mining on the environment threaten the survival of water bodies, farmlands, cocoa industry and even encourage school dropouts, this undermines the revenue mobilisation drive in the country.

In view of this development [the Chiefs] are solidly behind your administration to apply the appropriate sanctions against persons who are engaged in the practice of illegal mining irrespective of their status.

-3news.com
Dr Ewuradjoa Ahimah Nunoo has explained it is breastfeeding and not breast sucking that prevents breast cancer as perceived by many.

She spoke to Class News Prince Benjamin at the maiden edition of the Pink October: Breast Cancer Educational Talk organised by Duala Medical Center and Ghana Armed Forces Medical Services.

A medical doctor, she reacted to the popular rumour that sucking of female breasts especially by their male counterparts aids in preventing breast cancer.

She was firm in saying, It is not the mechanical action of the breast being sucked.

There are hormones that are produced when you breastfeed, and one is called prolactin, she explained.

That [prolactin] actually prevents breast cancer, she noted.

It is the sucking of a baby on the [lactating] mothers breast nipples that prevents breast cancer and not necessarily an adult male sucking the breasts, no, she clarified.

When the male is sucking, breastmilk is not being produced, and that hormone prolactin is not being produced, she stressed.

According to the multiple award-winning health advocate, it is the breastmilk production and that hormone being secreted that prevents breast cancer and not because the nipple is being sucked. It is not the sucking action.

Thus, she stressed, a baby sucking on the mothers nipple after she is done lactating will also contribute nothing to breast cancer prevention.

At the event which took place today, Thursday, 13 October 2022, at the Garrison Methodist-Presbyterian Church, Burma Camp, Accra, it was revealed that every 12 months a woman breastfeeds, she reduces her risk of breast cancer by about 5%.

Also, according to a study conducted by Yale researcher, Tongzhang Zheng, among women in China, breastfeeding for at least two years reduces a woman's risk of developing breast cancer by 50%.

Part of Chinese culture is long term breastfeeding.

Source: classfmonline.com
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has commended the Securities and Exchange Commissions (SEC) of Ghana and Nigeria for successes chalked in building the securities markets in both countries.

Dr Bawumia also commended them for advancing the capital market integration agenda.

A statement issued in Accra by SEC, Ghana, said Dr Bawumia gave the commendation when a delegation from the securities markets of Ghana and Nigeria paid a courtesy call on him at the Jubilee House.

The visit was to officially inform the Vice-President about the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Securities and Exchange Commissions of Ghana and Nigeria.

Dr Bawumia emphasised the importance of having a robust and vibrant domestic securities market to support the private sector and the economy to thrive.

He urged the heads of the two regulatory bodies to urgently accelerate the integration agenda and operationalise cross-border transactions to enable the private sector to access capital for growth.

He said for the Capital Market Integration Agenda to be successful, there was the need to have a robust payment and settlement system in place.

The Vice President urged the West Africa Securities Regulators Association to foster closer relationships with the African Export-Import Bank and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System for mutual benefit and assured the delegation of the government's support for the sector.

Rev. Daniel Ogbarmey Tetteh, the Director-General of SEC Ghana, expressed gratitude to the Vice President for their continuous support of the securities market.

Mr Lamido Yuguda, the Chairman of the West Africa Securities Regulators Association and Director General of SEC Nigeria, said the securities markets of Ghana and Nigeria continued to enjoy close collaboration for 19 years following the signing of an MoU in 2003.

He said the new MoU would unlock huge opportunities for both countries and accelerate the capital market integration agenda.

Mr Yuguda emphasised the need to tap into the vast opportunities offered by the securities market to solve infrastructure deficits that had bedevilled the West African Region.

He said the operationalisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) would offer good opportunities for capital and the securities market.

The delegation also visited the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) to inspect the trading floor of the Exchange and interact with GSE staff and market operators.

The Director Generals of the two countries were accompanied by Mrs Deborah Mawuse Agyemfra, Deputy Director General Legal of SEC Ghana; Mr Paul Ababio, Deputy Director General Finance of SEC Ghana, and Mr Ekow Afedzie, Managing Director of Ghana Stock Exchange.

The rest are Ms Abena Amoah, Deputy Managing Director of Ghana Stock Exchange; Mr Temi Popoola, CEO of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX); Directors and Heads of Department from SEC Ghana, and other dignitaries from SEC Nigeria, NGX, GSE and some staff of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana.

GNA
Mali's proposed new constitution will shift the balance of executive power from the parliament towards the president. Junta leader Colonel Assimi Goita received a draft of the proposed constitution this week. The document, which is a key part of the military's bid to retain power until 2024, has not been made public.

According to drafting commission chairman Professor Fousseyni Samake, if the constitution is accepted, the president will determine the political line which the government will then turn into law.

The president will no longer have the right to dissolve parliament.

The text of the "preliminary draft constitution" arrived two months after it was originally due. Professor Samake said the deadline had been extended.

Delivering the draft, Samake warned Goita, "any constitution will be subject to challenges, criticism and controversy."

Questioned by journalists, Samake said that the draft document contained 195 articles. Mali's first constitution after independence, in 1960, had 52 articles; the current basic law has 122.

No question of a federation

The most important element, apart from the shift towards a presidential regime, is the insistance of the constitution that Mali wil remain a unitary state, according to Professor Samake. "There will be no federation, no regional autonomy," he insisted.

Ethnic Tuaregs launched a campaign for independence or special status in northern Mali a decade ago.

Jihadists joined that rebellion, transforming it into the springboard for an Islamist insurgency that has since swept into neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso.

On the question of local languages, Fousseyni Samake said the commission had tried to take "a dynamic approach to the problem of national and official languages".

The professor offered no further details on the question, crucial in a country which continues to use French as the official language, and in which there are at least 13 local tongues, including Peul and Bambara.

Religion in a divided nation

Relations between the state and religion form another crucial and sensitive aspect of the draft constitution.

According to Fousseyni Samake, one of the crucial efforts of his commission has been to define what exactly is meant by a secular state.

He stressed that religious leaders had been involved in discussions before the drafting stage, and that Mali will remain a secular nation in which which religious freedom is guaranteed.

The new constitution proposes the establishment of an upper house, or senate, as well as a government spending oversight body, the National Accounts Court. The High Court of Justice and the High Commission for Communities will both be abolished.

Malian authorities, dominated by the military which seized power in August 2020, cite the drafting of a new basic law as one of the reforms needed for the "refoundation" of the state.

They announced the commission in June after extending military rule until 2024, and have said the constitution will be put to a referendum in March 2023.

The military has pledged to hold elections in February 2024 and to hand over power in March of the same year.

Mali has suffered three coups since 1991 and five since independence in 1960.
13.10.2022 LISTEN

Europeans took Africa as colonies, enslaved its people with the collaboration of local chiefs, exploited natural resources for small money, triggered genocide like in Rwanda, pushed indigenous producers aside to sell their products and services, and corrupted already corrupt minds in Africa on all levels of society. The white man wants 100% control over Africa willing to share 20% of the profit and declares it a humanitarian aid and investment for Africans to stay close to the cradle and grave where God had placed them. Superpowers and rich foreign nations use Africa as a political and military battlefield to be seen in history and among their voters as strong nations.

This age-old strategy was working well for the white man in the past and still today. But cracks in the white man's thinking become more and more obvious. On two basic fronts, the future will make or break the white man in his relationship and attitude toward Africa:Overpopulation and exploited natural resources.

In a heated debate a few weeks ago between Falko Drossmann (SPD, MP, and members of the German Defence Committee) and me, he defended the extension of the support contract with Mali and the newly signed agreement with Niger. He argued that as a former German soldier he was on peacekeeping missions in Africa therefore he knows Africa well and its problems. To be a German soldier in Africa does not mean he knows Africa only that he was in Africa, full stop.

This and similar comments from white politicians who never have lived in Africa side by side with common Africans jump constantly to the wrong conclusions repeating the same old stories again and again that did not solve past or present African problems. Growing Overpopulation and its effects on our white society felt by the common white man opens up more cracks in the old beliefs of the white men in power.

Natural Resources are a given blessing but not endless. South Africa had Gold in abundance but in less than 20 years is empty. Ghana has oil for 30-40 years, and Cobalt in DR Congo will get finished in about 15 years. Nigeria will eventually no longer have oil for export and the list goes on.

All natural resources that will stay with Africa are the beauty of the soil, if not poisoned by artificial fertilizers and other chemicals in the ground. Aid support is not only costly, even though for a few private companies big business, but a political burden for citizens of the white man's world. Military interventions and starving people with pictures of skinny babies about to die were all the affordable dark side of a greedy white mind.

The bookkeeping of profits and losses increasingly gets out of balance and jumps into negative territory of only making financial and political losses. Even the most simple-minded white politician is going to understand the negative effects of the old white mindset.

The whites came to Africa to exploit it not to be exploited by African problems.

Overpopulation of the highest order and the disappearance of natural resources will turn the tables. To benefit from Africa in the next 1-2 generations only works when Africa is strong - and strong also means united and mature. It is the changed people of Africa that will change leaders among themselves to see the continent through the storms ahead or drown in history.

For the white man, the balance sheet is simple: if he can't profit anymore from Africa let's dump the old idea of a dark place somewhere far from his heart.
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia says the chieftaincy institutions have a pivotal role to play in ensuring that peace and security prevail in Ghana.

I see the chieftaincy as a critical stakeholder in the governance architecture of the country, he said.

The Vice President said this in Wa during the Dumba Festival celebration by the chiefs and people of the Wala Traditional Area.

It was on the theme: Combating the Emerging Threat of Violent Extremism and Terrorism in Ghana: The Role of Traditional Authorities.

The Minister of the Interior, Mr Ambrose Dery, the Member of Parliament for the Wa Central Constituency, Dr Rashid Pelpuo, and representatives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) among others were in attendance.

Dr Bawumia, also the Chairman of the Police Council, called on the Regional and District Security Councils to put in measures to improve the security situation in the Wa Municipality and the region at large.

He said as part of measures to curb the ailing security situation in the region, the Government had deployed a special purpose investigation and intelligence team and other police personnel there to beef up security.

The government is keen on ensuring that the peace and hospitality that have always been enjoyed by the people in the Upper West Region are restored and the gap between the rural and urban areas bridged through the provision of sustainable facilities in these areas, he said.

Dr Bawumia called for peaceful co-existence among the diverse cultures in the Upper West Region to achieve the desired development.

The Vice President said the theme for the event was apt as it sought to reiterate the critical role of the traditional authorities in national development.

He assured the Wa Naa and the people of government's commitment to ensuring equitable development, where the Wa Municipality and the entire Upper West Region would not be left out.

He, therefore, said the request made by the Overlord of the Wala Traditional Area, Naa Fuseini Seidu Pelpuo IV, for the dualisation of major roads in the Wa Township, among others, would be granted in due course.

Naa Pelpuo emphasised the need to dualise the Bamahu-Airport stretch to ensure the free flow of traffic and appealed for the Wa Municipal area to be converted into a Metropolitan Assembly.

Other requests were the construction of a polyclinic at Busa and Sing and hostels for the Dr Hilla Limann Technical University.

The Wa Naa urged government to provide the Nursing Training College with a three-unit classroom block to facilitate the commencement of the Post-Basic Bachelor of Science in Critical Care Nursing this academic year.

He said the new Bachelor of Science programme had been delayed due to unavailability of funds and inadequate classroom facilities.

The chief, however, did not mince words to commend the Government for the many development interventions implemented in the Traditional Area and expressed the hope that the new requests would be granted.

The Vice President donated GH20,000.00 in support of the festival, former President John Dramani Mahama also gave GH10,000.00, while the regional branch of the NDC donated GH5,000.00 for the celebration.

GNA
The Principal of Winneba Technical Institute, Mr. Martin Young has expressed his appreciation to the Member of Parliament for Effutu Constituency, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo Markin for sponsoring over 300 students on scholarships to undertake training at the Winneba Technical Institute.

The MP has also provided laptops to tutors of the institute and provided start-up kits and working tools for graduands.

The Principal of the institute, Mr. Martin Young expressed his appreciation at a graduation ceremony of 56 graduands who undertook a six months Competency Based Professional Training in dressmaking at Winneba Technical Institute.

According to him, when the training with support from the German Government started, the school had no space to accommodate the students.

He added that through the support of the Effutu Traditional Council and the Assembly, they were given land to put up a residential facility for students.

"I thank the MP for providing the school with two pavilions serving as classrooms due to lack of classroom space and the walling of the school's dormitory which is about 60% complete," Mr Young stated.

He also thanked the chief of Pomadze for providing the school with a land with plans to develop it into a residential apartment for staff.

Mr Young, appealed to the Omanhene of Effutu Traditional Area and the Municipal Assembly to help them fence the school to protect their land from encroachers.

He hinted that the absence of a fence wall around the school will encourage people to steal the school lands.

He was also hopeful that the proficiency two program will take off in a month's time.

The Chairman of the occasion Nenyi Ghartey VII advised the graduands to apply what they have studied to improve their lives and that of their families. He noted that there is a vast difference between a wayside seamstress and one who has undergone Competency Based Training which must reflect in their work.

The Effutu Municipal Chief Executive, Alhaji Kasim Zubeiru, indicated that they can be self-dependent only when they put into practice what they have studied and do quality work for customers.

"Educating a future leader is much critical to the government, hence make your training count," he stressed.

The Effutu Municipal Director of Education, Mrs Judith Micah, reminded graduands that as they go out in their personal endeavours they should ensure to make a difference so that others will be encouraged to also enroll to be trained.
The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana is embarking on a political party clean-up exercise that will see some 17 political parties deleted from the electoral books.

The United Front Party (UFP) and 16 other parties have been found guilty of failing to comply with the Political Parties Act.

According to the Electoral Commission, it intends to invoke Section 15 (3) (c) of the Political Parties Act of 2000, Act 574, which mandates it to cancel the registration of Political Parties which do not have offices at the National and Regional levels.

In this vein, the following Political Parties are by this notice requested to show cause in writing to the Electoral Commission why their registration should not be cancelled.

The responses should reach the Commission not later than Thursday, 20th October, 2022, part of a statement from the EC has said.

The United Progressive Party (UPP), the party founded by Akwasi Addai is one of the many parties that risk being collapsed.

Below is a copy of the statement from the EC with the full list of the political parties.
Barely a week after the launch of the BraFie Youth in Agric project, The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs received 1000 acres of farmlands at a short engagement ceremony in Kumasi today.

Hon. Carmel Mouhtisab, while presenting the farmlands, lauded the team for the brilliant initiative and called on other farmland owners to support the project by leasing unused farmlands for onward allocation to young Ghanaians to go into farming.

Hon. Carmel Mouhtisab is a senior citizen and diplomat based in the Ashanti region. He is interested in youth entrepreneurship development and hopes to support and encourage Ghana's youth to participate fully in agriculture.

Receiving the farmlands on behalf of the chamber, the Chairperson of the Governing Council, Mr. Richard Addison, thanked the Hon. Carmel Mouhtisa for the gesture and assure him the lands will be put into reasonable use.

"We would like to thank you for this gesture and assure you that the lands will be put to reasonable use. In the coming days, we will prepare the land and allocate it to interested young people ready to invest in farming. We've written to many other senior citizens whom we know own farmlands, but you are among the few who have reached out to us, and today you are handing us these farmlands, we are grateful, and we appreciate the gesture," he said

Brafie Youth in Agric Projects is one of the Chambers' flagship projects to provide farmlands to young people and women by soliciting farmlands from chiefs, elders, and landowners through a national campaign and appeal. The Project is supported by SNV Ghana's European Union-funded green project.
The Development and Environmental Studies in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Wisconsin International University College on Wednesday, October 12, officially launched the Wisconsin Environmental Development Society (WEDS).

The Society is a club of students and Alumni of departments of the Development and Environmental Studies in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and all other interested students in the University community.

The Wisconsin Environmental Development Society was launched with support from Prudential Life Assurance, Sambus Geospatial, Wittiesgh, and MAJI FRESH.

The main objective of WEDS is to provide students with experience and opportunities in the environmental and development field.

In addition, WEDS has been birthed to educate the Wisconsin University community about issues relating to environment and development while helping to protect the environment for the benefit of Ghana and the World at large.

In a short address, WEDS President Ibrahim Nii Adu Konney added that the new society wants to partner with various stakeholders to embark on activities that will address the many environmental challenges in the country.

We want to let the students gain exposure. When we get the exposure I think we can collaborate with other people to help with the fight against environmental challenges. Basically, thats it.

We want to partner with other stakeholders so that we can help avert the numerous environmental challenges that are happening, Ibrahim Nii Adu Konney said.

He further called on students and members of the new society to work hard to achieve its set targets.

In her address, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Prudential Life Insurance Ghana CEO, Dr. Hazel Berrard Amuah explained the decision to partner with WEDS, noting that As an insurance company, we are not only interested in the profits we make but we are genuinely interested in the health, wealth, and well-being of our customers as well as Ghanaians. We have a robust ESG strategy that is based on 3 strategic pillars of making health and financial security accessible, stewarding the human impacts of climate change, and building social capital.

She noted that recognising the implications of global warming all over the world, her outfit believes it is only fitting that they do their part as responsible corporate and global citizens in the climate battle.

Dr. Hazel Berrard Amuah

Dr. Hazel Berrard Amuah added, We believe that the climate challenges the world is facing now cannot be resolved by a few. Every person, institution, and nation needs to contribute their quota for us to make a significant impact.

She said with this in mind, Prudential Life Insurance Ghana will partner more with Wisconsin International University College to embark on other initiatives.

We are truly excited about this journey and we know that together we can achieve great things, Dr. Hazel Berrard Amuah concluded.

On his part, Dr. Louis Doe Atsiatorme who delivered an address on 'Climate change and the right of the African child; the role of educational institutions' applauded the decision to set up WEDS.

He said it is important to save the environment to protect children who are the future leaders of the country.

The children we see today are the parliamentarians, directors, and heads of department and decision-makers tomorrow.

They will not only inherit the responsibilities of looking after the earth and take decisions for the betterment of the environment, but they comprise nearly half the population.

Furthermore, children all over the world are highly vulnerable to the effects of environmental degradation therefore involving them in environmental management in the participatory process on the environment will safeguard the future sustainably of any actions taken to improve the environment, Dr. Louis Doe Atsiatorme said.

According to him, if action is not taken immediately to protect the environment, the consequences will be dire.

If we do not act now, the price we will pay for it will be too expensive to bear.

"The Wisconsin Environment and Development Society has set the pace in the Wisconsin International University College Ghana Community by forming this society. I welcome you on board, happy birthday, Dr. Atsiatorme shared.

Closing the launch of WEDS, the President of Wisconsin International University College, Prof. Obeng Mireku assured members of the schools support.

He also charged the leadership to work hard to leave behind a strong society to ensure that their followers will continue the good works.

Prof. Obeng Mireku

The school pledges its support and assured you that whatever you have to do we are here for you.

Bring good projects and you shall be supported. Build a good rich legacy so that others can follow you.

Our campaign must be strengthened and stretched as wide as possible, Prof. Obeng Mireku stressed.

The official launch of WEDS was concluded with a tree-planting exercise on the campus of Wisconsin International University College, Ghana.
The Chief Imam for the Laribanga Community in the West Gonja Municipal, Alhaji Mumuni Zanakawa has donated Mathematical sets to all the final year students in the Laribanga Electoral Area.

This he said was his little contribution towards supporting the students to write their exams well and produce better results for the community.

At a short ceremony to hand over the items, the religious leader admonished the students to imbibe the spirit of hardwork, respect for their teachers and discipline, adding that, "discipline and the fear of God are key ingredients to success in life".

Whilst encouraging parents to invest heavily in the education of their wards, he asks the school pupils to hasten slowly in life, be patient and take their studies very seriously since, the future belongs to them.

He offered special prayers for all the candidates and expressed confidence in the ability of the students to make the Laribanga community very proud in the impending examination.

The Assemblyman for the Laribanga Electoral Area, honourable Karim Amidu, thanked the Imam for his continuous support to the Laribanga Community, noting that this was not the first time he was rolling out such an intervention.

He requested for special prayers for the students and the teachers, cautioning the children against indulging in any exam malpractices.

He said the only sure way to a bright future is hardwork, diligence and the support of God, urging the students not to relax but continue to work hard towards achieving their ultimate goal.

The Assemblyman used the occasion to wish the students the very best of luck in their exams, pledging the full support of the community.

On behalf of the students and various schools, the headmasters expressed gratitude to the Iman for the kind gesture and encouraged the pupil to put the materials to good use.

This is the second time the Chief Imam was making such donations after assuming the office of Chief Imamship of Laribanga in July 2021.
A former Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana Mr Kwame Agyema-Budu has donated 3,300 mathematical sets and other learning materials to all final year Junior High School Students in the Ejisu Municipality.

The material which was presented on Thursday, October 13, 2022 was shared among all 52 basic schools in the Ejisu Municipality.

As part of the presentation, Mr Budu pledged to take transport fares of all final year students who will be commuting from their various communities to their designated examination centers in the Municipality.

The former ECG boss in an interview with this reporter explained the motive behind his support to the students.

"The presentation forms part of my resolution to improve quality education and skills acquisition in the Municipality.

"I also wanted to ensure that no candidate lacked basic learning inputs required for their final examination.

"These materials will ease pressure on parents and guardians as well as help students who for many reasons may not be able to get them to write the exams successfully," he stated.

Mr Budu called on stakeholders and other benevolent institutions in the country to make Ejisu Municipality their designated point anytime they want to help Ghanaian students.

Receiving the materials on behalf of the students, the Municipal Director of Education for Ejisu, Mr Kwabena Owusu eulogized the former ECG boss for the kind gesture.

The education director said the Maths set will aid the candidates to write and pass well.

Mr Kwabena Owusu who had earlier on called on the former ECG boss to help the Directorate foot bills of students who live in remote areas said he was relieved after his calls were heeded.

He assured that teachers in the Municipality will continue to do their best for students in the area to come out of the exams with flying colours.
Drone tech developer DroneShield [ASX:DRO] released its September quarter results, ending the period with a bank balance of $7.5 million.

Drone tech developer DroneShield [ASX:DRO] released its September quarter results, ending the period with a bank balance of $7.5 million.

DroneShield said it reported a positive operating cashflow quarter, with customer receipts totalling $3.6 million.

DRO shares were up 6% in late afternoon trade but are down 20% over the past six months.

Source: tradingview.com

DroneShields September quarter

DroneShield reported a positive operating cashflow quarter in September, with multiple larger sized contracts received, including a $2 million European DroneSentry order and a $1.8 million US Department of Defence DroneGun order.

DRO reported the second-highest cash receipt quarter of $5.6 million, up 103% on 2Q22.

However, that figure included government grants and tax incentives of $2 million.

Actual customer receipts for the quarter came in at $3.6 million.

If you remove the government grants, DRO ends the quarter with a negative operating cash flow of about $1 million.

Looking forward, DRO said it has a $50 million sales pipeline for the remainder of 2022.

A further $180 million is slated for 2023 onwards.

DroneShield did caution that these sales pipeline figures are not definitive, there is no assurance that any of the companys sales opportunities will result in sales.

DRO said it will steer its sales pipeline towards US and Australian government customers.

Right now, more than 75% of the firms revenues come from defence and 15% from the intelligence community.

But DRO said there is a major opportunity for continued expansion into other markets including civilian airports, prisons, stadiums, and corporates.

Source: DRO

Australian Highlights:

Dro is on target with $3.8 million received from its two-year electronic warfare contract with the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) that ends mid-2023

An $800,000 one-year contract for AI services ends in 2022

Opportunities to extend DoD contracts arising across sub-sectors

Launching a testing facility in NSW to drive further Australian sales

Conversations in progress to adopt Counterdrones in Defence

US Highlights:

$1.8 million US Defence order for its DroneGun MKIII units, the largest US sale to date

Its US civilian airport drone deployment dispatched and opened for further sales of this nature

Acquisition plans with varied US Governments

Further demos and events planned for US Government

Europe Highlights:

Drone highlighted that the situation in Ukraine suggests further dispatching of Counterdrone equipment to Ukraine since the start of the war

$2 million European order for its DroneSentry systems as European Governments tighten their defence systems

Working with Special Operation Forces in Budapest

In its investor presentation accompanying its September quarter results, DroneShield said many governments are looking to extend their budgets to include Counterdrone software and technology.

Even Australias own government is looking to increase its defence against drone attack.

From drone tech to fintech

Now, lets switch from drone tech to fintech.

The fintech sector has been hit hard lately, as the market punished many fintech stocks for their growth at all costs strategy in a tightening macroeconomic environment.

In the current climate, investors are prioritising companies with profitability firmly in sight, if not there already.

Investors want their stocks to preserve and not incinerate capital.

That said, with the right choices, some fintechs can grow into very sturdy, lucrative businesses.

Our market expert Ryan Clarkson-Ledward has done the necessary research required for discerning these.

Hes discovered three profitable fintech stocks flying under the radar. One of them, he says, is a start-up wrestling with the big banks  and winning.

Download Ryans free research report on three exciting fintechs here.



Regards,

Kiryll Prakapenka,

For Money Morning


file photo The Saharanpur Police have asked Pakistani nationals living on a long-term visa, to inform the administration in case a relative from that country visits them. The Saharanpur Police have asked Pakistani nationals living on a long-term visa, to inform the administration in case a relative from that country visits them.



They have also been directed to inform the officials of the foreigner registration office and the police if they plan to move out of the district.



Over 50 such individuals are staying in the district on a long-term visa and 30 of them are women, married to locals.



Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Saharanpur, Vipin Tada has instructed them to 'strictly stick to the terms and conditions on the basis of which their long-term visas were granted'.



The SSP office has collected information pertaining to the Pakistan nationals' home cities, work, expiry dates of their visas, and relatives that have visited over the past few months.



These Pakistani nationals have been asked to immediately inform the police in case they notice any suspicious activity in the area where they are staying.



They have also been advised to get 'verification' done regularly.




October 13, 2022 Open (Not Ukraine) Thread 2022-171 News & views not related to the Ukraine conflict ... Posted by b on October 13, 2022 at 14:52 UTC | Permalink Comments next page  next page 
67% of pre-COVID equivalent. In August 2022, total passenger volumes at Auckland Airport were 67% of the pre-COVID equivalent in the financial year to 30 June 2019, the last full year not impacted by the COVID pandemic. International passengers (excl. transits) were 54% of the pre-COVID equivalent in August 2018 with transit passengers and domestic passengers at 46% and 84% respectively.

Key Points:

 The international passenger recovery continued in August with passenger movements for the month recovering to 54% of the pre-COVID equivalent, an increase from 50% in July 2022. Compared to the prior month, passenger movements were marginally down in August reflecting the school holidays falling in the prior month of July;

 Short-haul international passenger movements were 66% of the pre-COVID equivalent, with Australia 65% and Pacific Islands 70%. Cook Islands is still proving popular, recovering to 96% compared to August 2018 and Fiji at 86%. Long-haul international passenger movements were 36% of the pre-COVID equivalent. Excluding countries with more restrictive border policies in place (China, Japan, Hong Kong) the long haul recovery was 52%;

 Domestic passenger movements in August 2022 were 84% of the pre-COVID equivalent, but down slightly on the 87% recovery in July 2022; and

 Queenstown once again is proving popular with domestic passenger movements 106% of August 2018 and international passengers 98%.

Sept 2022 Monthly traffic preview

71% of pre-COVID equivalent. In September 2022, total passenger volumes at Auckland Airport were 71% of the pre-COVID equivalent in the financial year to 30 June 2019, the last full year not impacted by the COVID pandemic. International passengers (excl. transits) were 58% of the pre-COVID equivalent in September 2018 with transit passengers and domestic passengers at 53% and 87% respectively.

Key Points:

 The international passenger recovery continued in September with passenger movements for the month recovering to 58% of the pre-COVID equivalent, an increase from 54% in August 2022;

 Short-haul international passenger movements were 70% of the pre-COVID equivalent, with Australia 68% and Pacific Islands 76%. Long-haul international passenger movements were 41% of pre-COVID equivalent and up from 36% in the prior month;

 Quarantine requirements were removed by Hong Kong from 26 September, Japan from 11 October and Taiwan from 13 October. Mainland China still requires passengers to quarantine upon arrival.. Recovery on Asian routes is strengthening with 12% more passengers travelling on the route compared to month prior and representing a recovery, relative to September 2018, of 34%;

 The leadup into the busy summer season saw a number of airlines returning to Auckland including United Airlines resuming San Francisco to Auckland services 3rd October, Air Asia X (launching Kuala Lumpur via Sydney to Auckland services) and American Airlines (launching Dallas to Auckland services) at the end of October, with Air Canada resuming Vancouver to Auckland operations in November. October will also see Air New Zealand resume flights to Chicago;

 Domestic passenger movements in September 2022 were 87% of the pre-COVID equivalent, an increase from the 84% recovery in August 2022; and

 Queenstown airport passenger numbers have recovered to exceed pre-COVID equivalent levels with international passenger 112% of pre-COVID and domestic passengers 109%.

Please see pdf for full report

August 2022 Monthly traffic update and September 2022 Preview

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Marianas Visitors Authority Managing Director Priscilla Maratita Iakopo, right, accepts the Pacific Asia Travel Association Gold Award for Tourism Destination Resilience (Global) during the online awards ceremony on Oct. 7, 2022. MVAs submission highlighted the CNMI Tourism Resumption Investment Plan or TRIP and travel bubble with South Korea implemented in 2021.
Infowars founder Alex Jones speaks to the media after appearing at his Sandy Hook defamation trial at Connecticut Superior Court in Waterbury, Connecticut, Oct. 4, 2022.
The Committee of the Vice Chancellors and Directors requested the civil society to understand that ragging has been in existence in Sri Lankan universities for 70 years, with damaging consequences.

The Committee of the Vice Chancellors and Directors (CVCD) notes with concern the recent spate of incidents of ragging and student indiscipline that have occurred with the resumption of on-site academic activities in the state universities. The CVCD categorically condemns all forms of ragging in educational institutions of Sri Lanka. None of the Vice-Chancellors condone or support ragging, or act to protect perpetrators.

However, the CVCD believes that ragging is a complex issue that needs many interventions for it to be eliminated from the Sri Lankan Universities. It must be recognized that it is carried out in a novel, sophisticated manner, using technology, with the collective power of the student groups backed by certain political elements. It uses a network of individuals and starts even before the students enter the universities and continues for a long period thereafter.

Representational Image: University students in one of state universities in Sri Lanka are engaging in ragging [ Photo: Special Arrangement]

The CVCD has also noted the introduction of cyber ragging, in addition to physical, mental, or sexual forms. These complexities require a comprehensive strategy planned by Universities, law enforcement authorities, political parties, and media with the support of the civil society for its prevention and elimination. There needs to be a strong movement against ragging in civil society to encourage the new entrants to universities, and their parents, to stand up to organized groups of student perpetrators motivated by political intentions.

The universities are faced with multiple issues in their efforts to eliminate ragging. These include the lack of legitimate complaints with evidence or clues for identification of perpetrators; lack of a robust system for protection of victims and witnesses; inaction of law enforcement authorities to fully implement the provisions of the Act No 20 of 1998 on prevention of ragging, and slowness of the judicial and disciplinary procedures. In many instances, dissemination of one-sided information obtained from highly vocal student movements opposes the university administration in taking action against the student perpetrators of ragging. It is common for protests to be stage-managed in front of University Grants Commission or the Ministry of Education to pressurize authorities to withdraw or mitigate punishments that have been handed to perpetrators after due process.

In the past, there have been instances where instead of supporting the VCs and University authorities in taking stern actions against ragging and other acts of student indiscipline and violence, undue influences have been made by external forces to the legal and disciplinary processes. This aims to protect perpetrators with scant regard to the rights of the victims and the harm caused to them. The CVCD views with grave concern the fact that perpetrators abuse provisions in the legal system and exploit the facility of taking their complaints to the Human Rights Commission. This occasionally escalates to severe harassment of VCs and university authorities.

The CVCD requests the civil society to understand that ragging has been in existence in Sri Lankan universities for 70 years, with damaging consequences. The CVCD notes that the recent reduction or near-elimination of ragging as has occurred in some universities, was the result of active intervention by university authorities led by the VCs, who risked their lives and positions.

Hence, the CVCD reiterates its commitment to fight ragging in the Universities and to eliminate it. In this endeavour, it wishes to seek the support of the media, civil society, and the Government of Sri Lanka without which, this will be impossible to achieve.
OPINION | CNMI SBDC Network provides all entrepreneurs an opportunity to further their career through SEED to Sail
My job with the Post has evolved since October 2000, when I began work with The City Paper. In 2008, both publications became aligned via former owner SouthComm Inc. I have served as Post managing editor since 2011.

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(Natural News) Around 782,900 Americans were reported to have sought medical attention, emergency room care and/or hospitalization following their Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination. Another 2.5 million reported missing school, work or other normal activities due to a health-related event after getting the same for outside researchers to analyze shots.

The reports were made to the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) V-Safe program, a new vaccine safety monitoring system to which users can report issues through their smartphones. The CDC then released the data to the Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN) after they were sued for not providing the data when it was initially requested.

It took numerous legal demands, appeals, two lawsuits and over a year, but the CDC finally capitulated and agreed to a court order requiring them to do what they should have done from day one, release the V-Safe data to the public, said Aaron Siri, a lawyer representing ICAN in the case. (Related: First batch of FOIA documents released by FDA about Pfizers covid vaccines shows 1,223 DEATHS already reported in early February 2021.)

The nonprofit organization then posted a dashboard summarizing the data they received from the CDC, which covered the period of December 14, 2020 to July 31, 2022.

Out of the 231 million Americans who received at least one dose of the vaccine at the time, only around 10 million utilized the V-Safe program, reporting around 71 million symptoms.

The most commonly reported symptoms were chills (3.5 million), swelling (3.6 million), joint pain (4 million), muscle or body aches (7.8 million), headache (9.7 million), fatigue (12.7 million) and general pain (19.5 million). Of these, around 4.2 million were reported to be severe.

Users of the V-Safe program also filled in data for around 13,000 children younger than two years old, showing over 33,000 symptoms, including pain, loss of appetite and irritability.

ICAN, an initiative founded by film producer Del Bigtree, stated that the newly released data reveals shocking information that should have caused the CDC to immediately shut down its COVID-19 vaccine program, especially considering the percentage of people who reported needing to get care or having to miss daily activities on top of the reported adverse events.

While CDC researchers already presented summaries of the V-Safe data during meetings with their vaccine advisory panel, they refused to release the same for outside researchers to analyze, saying that the V-Safe program raised no new safety concerns.

This did not deter ICAN from pressing to obtain more data. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman ordered the parties to meet and confer about the data to be released.

Pitman said the parties will file a joint status report that proposes any additional deadlines they determine are necessary for the resolution of the matter.

Tracking vaccine safety through mobile

The V-Safe initiative was created to complement the CDCs vaccine safety monitoring system and let inoculated individuals report their experiences, including serious suspected side effects, directly to the CDC through their smartphones.

Several public health experts have expressed their doubts about the platforms effectiveness, but since its release, it garnered positive reviews as a way to make everybody part of the process, said Dr. Kathryn Edwards, founder of the Vanderbilt Vaccine Research Program and the principal investigator for the CDC-funded Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment Network.

The federal government has various systems to monitor vaccine safety and other pharmaceutical products once they reach the marketplace. The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), jointly run by the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration, serves as a repository for reports on health problems that could possibly be side effects of vaccines. Healthcare providers are required to report certain adverse events.

VAERS receives tens of thousands of reports each year, but these reports frequently lack details and sometimes contain errors that are not enough to establish causal relationships between the vaccine and the adverse event.

In contrast, V-Safe allows the CDC to track people over time to see how they are doing post-vaccination.

Vaccine safety experts have criticized the U.S. for leaning too heavily on a passive system that relies on people reporting issues that may or may not be related to the shots as opposed to active surveillance that scans large volumes of electronic health data.

While V-Safe requires individuals to opt-in and with no control group to compare results to, many still believe that the tool is a step forward  if only the CDC is more open to releasing its data.

Visit Vaccines.news for more information about the adverse effects of the COVID-19 shots.

Watch ICAN lawyer Aaron Siri as he breaks down CDCs V-Safe data below.

This video is from The Highwire with Del Bigtree channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Big Pharma, mainstream media cover-up serious adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccines.

Whistleblower: Pfizer vaccine trial data was falsified, participants who experienced adverse effects were ignored.

COVER-UP: New York physician assistant says she was forced to stop reporting covid vaccine injuries.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

GCN.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Ben Armstrong applauded the major victories in exposing the flaws of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines during a recent episode of The Ben Armstrong Show. The host was referring to Florida surgeon generals warning regarding mRNA vaccines and attorney Thomas Renzs lawsuit against gain-of-function researchers Peter Daszak and Ralph Baric.

On Friday, Oct. 7, Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo announced that the Sunshine State no longer recommends mRNA COVID-19 vaccines for men between the ages of 18 and 39.

Ladapo said this announcement was made following an investigation conducted by the Florida Department of Health that was carried out using techniques for evaluating vaccine safety.

This analysis found that there is an 84 percent increase in the relative incidence of cardiac-related death among males 18 to 39 years old within 28 days following mRNA vaccination, Ladapo said in a statement. With a high level of global immunity to COVID-19, the benefit of vaccination is likely outweighed by this abnormally high risk of cardiac-related death among men in this age group. (Related: Newly released CDC data shows nearly a third of people who got vaccinated experienced significant adverse events.)

As such, the State Surgeon General recommends against males aged 18 to 39 from receiving mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, the statement concluded. Those with preexisting cardiac conditions, such as myocarditis and pericarditis, should take particular caution when making this decision.

Armstrong said this official statement from a state-level government agency should not be ignored, but mainstream media outlets and public health agencies will still try to do so.

Eighty-four percent increase in death. Thats the warning from the surgeon general of Florida, and theyre gonna try to censor that. But I thought, when its the government giving out data, thats it. You have to obey that. Its the be-all-end-all, said Armstrong, commenting on the hypocrisy that will come from mainstream news sources reacting to the Florida surgeon generals announcement.

Lawsuit filed against SARS-CoV-2 gain-of-function lead researchers

The second victory against the COVID-19 vaccines, Armstrong noted, is attorney Thomas Renzs lawsuit against EcoHealth Alliance President Peter Daszak and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researcher Ralph Baric.

Renz named Daszak and Baric specifically as defendants because they are primarily responsible for the deaths of his plaintiffs due to their involvement in funding gain-of-function research on SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Renz is representing the estates of two people who died due to COVID-19. He filed the case on Oct. 5 in the Supreme Court of New York.

The lawsuit alleged that Daszak and Baric conspired to circumvent restrictions on funding gain-of-function research, and transferred both money and technology to Wuhan Institute of Virology researcher Dr. Zheng Li, known as the Bat Lady for her extensive research on bat-borne viruses. It was this act that led to the coronavirus being weaponized and released upon the world.

In addition to being responsible for the deaths of the plaintiffs, Renz further charges Daszak and Baric for negligent failure to warn, breach of warranty, negligent infliction of emotional distress, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence, assault and battery, medical monitoring and fear of contracting illness and wrongful death.

Armstrong noted that lawsuits like Renzs make it more difficult for governments to ignore the truth regarding the coronavirus pandemic and the COVID-19 vaccines.

Foreign countries cant ignore this. Theyre gonna look at this and say, Oh my gosh, what the heck did America do? Thats whats gonna happen, guaranteed, he said.

Watch this episode of The Ben Armstrong Show as Ben Armstrong discusses the latest victories against the COVID-19 vaccines.

This video is from the channel The New American on Brighteon.com.

More related articles:

Pfizer DID NOT test its COVID-19 vaccine for possible effects on male fertility.

Pfizer CEO backs out of testifying at EU parliament after reports of backdoor dealings with European Commission president.

The Zelenko Report with Ann Vanderstel: Pfizer avoided strict regulation thanks to emergency use authorization, says Karen Kingston  Brighteon.TV.

Study finds mRNA material in BREAST MILK of vaccinated mothers.

Study confirms COVID-19 vaccines SHED and SPREAD via aerosols.

Sources include:

Brighteon.com

ResistTheMainstream.org

Renz-Law.com

SarahWestall.com
(Natural News) New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) declared a state of emergency Friday over the ongoing flood of migrants into the Big Apple  complaining that the citys infrastructure is unable to sustain them and taxpayers will be on the hook for $1 billion for housing and social services.

(Article by Baxter Dmitry republished from NewsPunch.com)

This is unsustainable, Adams said. New York City is doing all we can but we are reaching the outer limit of our ability to help.

Which is interesting because just over a year ago, while campaigning, Adams proclaimed he wanted to turn NYC into even more of a sanctuary for illegal immigrants.

Instead of admitting the error of his ways and perhaps reassessing his far-left political outlook, Adams took shots at Republican governors for relocating migrants from the southern border region to Democratic enclaves in the northern US.

This is a humanitarian crisis that started with violence and instability in South America, and its being accelerated by American political dynamics, he said.

This crisis is not of our own making but one that will affect everyone in this city now and in the months ahead.

NY Post report: Hizzoner also again refused to fault President Biden for his controversial border policies but finally called on the mayor of El Paso, fellow Democrat Oscar Leeser, to stop sending busloads of migrants to the Big Apple.

New York cannot accommodate the number of buses that we have coming here to our city. El Paso, the city manager, the mayor, they should stop sending buses to New York, Adams said.

Read more at: NewsPunch.com
(Natural News) Back the Blue proponents and other worshippers of law enforcement might want to know that a pro-life Tennessee couple with 11 children was recently terrorized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) jackboots without explanation.

Paul Vaughn of Centerville was targeted by the gun-toting thugs at around 7:20 a.m. on Thursday, October 6. They began banging on the door with guns pointed, yelling and screaming and ordering the residents to open up!

When I opened the door and saw the guns pointed at me, I asked them what they wanted, who they were looking for, and they said they wanted me, Vaughn explained in an October 10 interview with Fox News Tucker Carlson.

Vaughn added that at the time of the incident, some of his children were heading out to the car to go to school. Armed agents [went] to the kids and [held] the kids with a long gun outside of my driveway and [did] not let them go into the house.

That is absolutely, as my wife said in the video said, unacceptable, Vaughn further explained.

That video can be seen below:

Video of the FBIs arrest of Paul Vaughn of Centerville, Tennessee. DOJ charged him with conspiracy against rights secured by the FACE Act, and committing FACE Act violations for blocking the entrance to an abortion clinic. Paul tells me the footage was taken by his wife. pic.twitter.com/KSDvLRSrlF  Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) October 7, 2022

Since when is it a crime to try to save unborn human life?

Vaughns wife captured the footage, in which she, too, is heard asking the armed jackboot thugs why they were banging on my door with a gun.

Are you not going to tell me anything? she asked.

No, we are not, one of the arrogant agents responded.

Another agent was then heard stating, I tried, to which Vaughns wife then shot back: No, you didnt! You did not try!

Vaughn is one of 11 pro-life activists who were slapped with federal charges this week for their involvement in a peaceful pro-life rescue that occurred in 2021 at an abortion clinic in Mt. Juliet near Nashville.

That clinic is now closed due to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which automatically triggered Tennessee state statutes that prohibit abortion as it once was available in the Volunteer State.

That rescue reportedly took place on March 5, 2021, which prompted an indictment by a federal grand jury in Nashville. The indictment claims Vaughn and the other pro-lifers aided and abetted by one another, used force and physical obstruction to injure, intimidate and interfere with employees of the clinic and a patient who was seeking reproductive health services [abortions].

Actual video footage of the event, however, refutes this claim. It shows that the pro-lifers were peaceful and never hurt anyone.

Even so, Vaughn and the others could now face as much as $250,000 in fines and up to 11 years in prison for their participation in the rescue.

The Biden regimes Department of Justice (DOJ) is claiming that the 55-year-old father is a violent extremist who is a physical threat to others, according to Carlson.

Vaughn himself said the allegations made against him are made up and being used to justify to go after peaceful people who disagree with them politically.

When asked by Carlson what his children thought about the FBI raid, Vaughn responded that they are still trying to work through what happened as it was obviously traumatic to them.

Fortunately, we do a lot of studying about historic Christianity and missionaries in the past [who faced] persecution, Vaughn further stated.

If this type of subject matter interests you, more stories of a similar nature can be found at FBICorruption.news.

Sources for this article include:

LifeSiteNews.com

DailySignal.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Britons declining the lethal Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine are truly blessed as they are farther from the grave than those who chose to get injected.

Figures from the U.K. Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that one in every 110 vaccinated Britons had died by Jan. 31, 2022. Meanwhile, only one in every 187 unvaccinated Britons had died as of the same period. Unfortunately, this discrepancy is just increasing every passing day.

More up-to-date figures from the ONS showed that one in every 73 vaccinated Britons had died as of May 31, 2022. This spike in deaths among vaccinated Britons was definitely a cause for alarm as 43 million people in the U.K. had been injected with at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose.

According to the countrys National Immunization Management system, this means that 19.6 million remain unvaccinated in England. This directly contradicted claims by the British government and the mainstream media that only between three million and five million Britons are yet to be injected.

These figures prove we definitely have a serious problem, the Daily Expose pointed out. There is no other conclusion that can be found for the fact mortality rates per 100,000 are the lowest among the unvaccinated other than that the COVID-19 injections are killing people.

Government and mainstream media would never tell you this. The extraordinary amount of your hard-earned money spent on these experimental, harmful injections, and the amount of propaganda theyve used to coerce the public into taking them is disgraceful and amounts to a crime against humanity. This is why they will never admit the damage they have done. (Related: UK covering up THOUSANDS of COVID-19 vaccine deaths.)

UKHSA: Vaccinated individuals account for 90 percent of COVID-19 deaths

Downing Street has been adamant in pushing boosters, but new research has shown that the boosters are only boosting vaccine deaths. Moreover, the U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA) itself bared that vaccinated individuals accounted for 90 percent of all COVID-19 deaths in England. It also revealed that four of five deaths in the U.K. are among those injected with COVID-19 booster doses.

The figures published July 6 by the ONS covered the period between Jan. 1, 2021 and May 31, 2022. Calculations done by the Expose found that between Jan. 1, 2021 and Jan. 31, 2022, a total of 394,178 vaccinated individuals died. In contrast, only 104,659 unvaccinated individuals died. Given these computations, it wont be long before hundreds of thousands of Britons will soon be buried.

Aside from this, the ONS data further revealed that mortality rates per 100,000 are lowest among the unvaccinated in every age group. This leads to the conclusion that the COVID injections are, in fact, killing people.

Given these alarming numbers, British cardiologist Dr. Aseem Malhotra called for the immediate suspension of the COVID-19 vaccine. He joined many Britons weary of the narrative that vaccines are necessary for normal life to resume.

There is a strong scientific, ethical and moral case to be made that the current COVID vaccine administration must stop until all the raw data has been subjected to fully independent scrutiny, he wrote. Until all the raw data on the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have been independently analyzed, any claims purporting that they confer a net benefit to humankind cannot be considered to be evidence based.

From experience, Britons have come to realize that the vaccines are no wonder cure for COVID-19 as the vaccinated are not only dying  they are being killed. The experimental vaccines have failed to produce the desired results and people have the right to do whatever they want with their bodies.

Watch this video about Britons shutting down a COVID-19 vaccine center in Bristol.

This video is from the Fritjof Persson channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Vaccine die-off: Fully vaccinated and triple-vaccinated deaths skyrocket.

Trail of death: Latest actuarial data connects excess deaths to covid vaccine mandate.

Thousands of non-COVID excess deaths in the UK likely caused by COVID-19 vaccines.

Sources include:

Expose-News.com

Inverse.com

ConcernedAmericanDad.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) The US on Monday condemned the utter brutality of Russian president Vladimir Putin for conducting a US-style Shock and awe bombing campaign in Ukraine.

(Article by Chris Menahan republished from InformationLiberation.com)

Russia struck dozens of military and infrastructure targets early Monday in retaliation for Ukraines bombing of the Crimean bridge.

From a friend in Kyiv this morning. pic.twitter.com/szsRVLxedG  edmac (@echomadman) October 10, 2022

Joe Biden said the strikes showed the utter brutality of Mr. Putins illegal war on the Ukrainian people.

The Bridge of Glass in the very heart of Kyiv pic.twitter.com/CvsRfTEAoJ  Illia Ponomarenko ?? (@IAPonomarenko) October 10, 2022

Security camera footage shows the moment a person walking along the Glass Bridge in Kyiv, Ukraine, was nearly hit by a missile. The bridge was one of several areas in Kyiv and other cities struck by Russian forces on Monday morning. https://t.co/B0KkkAlcRYpic.twitter.com/3lQF228aNk  CBS News (@CBSNews) October 10, 2022

These attacks only further reinforce our commitment to stand with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes, Biden said. Alongside our allies and partners, we will continue to impose costs on Russia for its aggression, hold Putin and Russia accountable for its atrocities and war crimes, and provide the support necessary for Ukrainian forces to defend their country and their freedom.

BREAKING?: Multiple Missile Strike central Kyiv, target is the decision making centres along with SBU HQ. pic.twitter.com/zbWeLBqeTD  Syrian Girl ??? (@Partisangirl) October 10, 2022

?? ??????Arrival at electrical substation in Lvov region today pic.twitter.com/ygJzHgoIzx  AZ ???? (@AZgeopolitics) October 10, 2022

???????Fire in Lviv after arrival pic.twitter.com/DiHWebeQtF  AZ ???? (@AZgeopolitics) October 10, 2022

???????Video of the morning arrival at Thermo Power Plant TPP-6 in Kiev. As the local authorities have already stated, blackouts will begin today in the Kiev region in 2 hours. pic.twitter.com/rf9r9Qhi5d  AZ ???? (@AZgeopolitics) October 10, 2022

???????Krivoy Rog Thermo Power Plant pic.twitter.com/1tiKKQ1C0t  AZ ???? (@AZgeopolitics) October 10, 2022

WATCH: Ukrainian girl was filming in Kyiv when a Russian missile hit across the street pic.twitter.com/5V9sLEFNu9  BNO News (@BNONews) October 10, 2022

WATCH: BBC reporter was live on air when the Ukrainian capital was hit by Russian missiles pic.twitter.com/KVDC3wK7zJ  BNO News (@BNONews) October 10, 2022

Ukraine allegedly duping some poor truck driver into serving as an unwitting suicide bomber to strike the Crimean Bridge and kill multiple civilians was an act of heroism but Russias bombings are atrocities and war crimes.

Ive been dreaming of this moment. pic.twitter.com/MIqVZu7YRt  Alexander S. Vindman (@AVindman) October 8, 2022

Read more at: InformationLiberation.com
(Natural News) The administration of President Joe Biden has announced a $500 million grant to stimulate domestic fertilizer production.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack unveiled the program late last month. It is called the Fertilizer Production Expansion Program.

Under the new program, grants will be issued to support independent, innovative and sustainable American fertilizer production meant to supply American farmers with domestically-made and relatively cheap fertilizer. The goal is to expand the manufacturing and processing capacity for fertilizer and nutrient alternatives in the 50 states and Americas territories.

Recent supply chain disruptions have shown just how critical it is to invest in the agricultural supply chain here at home, said Vilsack. USDA [U.S. Department of Agriculture] believes in the growth of innovative, local businesses owned and shared by people who can best serve their own unique communitys needs, fill gaps and build opportunities.

This new program comes several months after the USDA announced a plan to make $250 million available to push for more American-made fertilizer. The money for the program will be drawn from the Commodity Credit Corporation, a government-owned company meant to support farmer income and operating costs.

Grant holders will be given a minimum of $1 million and a maximum of $100 million. Each grant term will last only five years.

Increase domestic production of fertilizer  that is not a phrase we have ever heard from the federal government, said Emerson Nafziger, an agronomist and crop specialist with the University of Illinois Extension.

While Nafziger is interested in seeing the results of the USDAs program, he is still skeptical and is interested to hear what other agriculture policy watchers and experts have to say about the effort.

Industry expert: $500M grant money may not be enough

Other agriculture experts had similar sentiments. Corey Rosenbusch, president and CEO of The Fertilizer Institute, noted the $500 million grant money is very small. A nitrogen plant can cost between $2 to $4 billion to construct, he said. But he added that any amount that can strengthen domestic fertilizer production will be beneficial for the industry.

Nafziger said the main concerns of farmers right now are the high prices for nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers  and the lack of available global supply.

It is a new world in terms of prices and availability of fertilizers in particular, he said. That is what people are thinking about this fall.

In 2021, when fertilizer supply was yet to be affected by the supply chain crisis, the U.S. imported $262.6 million worth of urea ammonium nitrate fertilizers from Russia. The economic sanctions placed upon Russia following its invasion of Ukraine has made Russian fertilizer virtually disappear from the global market.

Other major exporters of fertilizer to the U.S. have struggled to keep up with demand.

Its a frustrating situation for individual farmers because they need to make an effort to see if they can get all the fertilizer that they need, said Nafziger. He added that many farmers he has spoken with have been told by vendors to buy as much fertilizer as they can now because nobody knows what the price situation will be by next spring.

Most people got most of what they had hoped to get, said Nafziger, admitting that price, not supply, was the main issue of American farmers.

Learn more about the fertilizer supply situation in America at FertilizerWatch.com.

Watch this episode of the Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, discusses how Hurricane Ian obliterated North American fertilizer production.

This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related articles:

USDA launches $500 million grant program for domestic fertilizer production.

Hurricane Ian just threw another wrench into the supply chain by hammering transportation, ports, package carriers and fertilizer production.

Nitrogen fertilizer prices are expected to rise  and the cost of natural gas is no longer the only factor.

United Nations BEGGING Russia to export fertilizer so Western nations dont suffer a worsening food collapse.

FAMINE AHEAD: High fertilizer prices could cause global grain production to PLUMMET by 40%.

Sources include:

JustTheNews.com

AgWeb.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) More evidence has emerged this week that the Wests financial system is teetering on the brink of collapse, as Europeans worry that they wont have enough affordable energy to heat their homes this winter.

During a speech in Washington, D.C., Bank of England Gov. Andrew Bailey first warned that market volatility went beyond bank stress tests, which is frightening in an of itself, before he reinforced that there is a serious risk to UK financial system stability, adding that a program to bail out pension funds is temporary, according to Zero Hedge.

However, Bailey then dropped a bombshell.

My message to the funds involved and all the firms is youve got three days left now. Youve got to get this done. The essence of financial stability is that it (intervention) is temporary. Its not prolonged, he said in a chilling warning that sent shockwaves through financial sectors around the world. Im afraid this has to be done, for the sake of financial stability, he added, per the BBC.

Meanwhile, according to the Financial Times, heres why traders are not selling more UK bonds:

Traders say the reluctance of some investors to offload larger quantities of gilts is in part a consequence of the BoEs approach to making purchases.

The central bank has only bought gilts at close to the prevailing market level and has rejected offers it deemed too expensive. Investors may get a slightly better price by selling their bonds to the central bank rather than on the open market, but the difference is measured in small fractions of a percentage point. In return, they have to face the uncertainty of whether the BoE will actually accept their offer to sell, or potentially leave the bank holding unwanted gilts in a market where the price may have moved against them in the meantime.

Clients dont like the uncertainty  they say you take the risk and you can charge us for it, one gilt trader at a big investment bank said. You sell the bond wherever the market is  theres no buying force coming from the BoE.

The way that the bank has structured this intervention is they can only buy assets if people put offers into them, but nobody is putting offers in, noted Craig Inches, head of rates and cash at Royal London Asset Management.

But after Baileys comments in Washington, the sell-off began in earnest, paving the way for what many see as a collapse of gargantuan proportions in the not-too-distant future, barring a miracle of some sort, because the destructive cycle has already begun: As the global currencies plunge, the U.S. dollar becomes stronger; and as the U.S. dollar becomes stronger, the more global currencies plunge in value.

This was coming because it has always been this way before, Big Short Michael Burry tweeted Monday, adding, how anyone over the age of 40 did not see it coming is a riddle. The answer is Greed.

The BBC noted further:

Earlier, pensions industry body the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association had warned against the help ending too soon.

It suggested the support should be extended until 31 October, when Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng is due to detail his economic plan explaining how he will balance the public finances. The statement will be accompanied by independent forecasts on the prospects for the UK economy.

As the Bank has made clear from the outset, its temporary and targeted purchases of gilts will end on 14 October, a Bank of England spokesperson reiterated on Wednesday, as reported by CNBC.

The Governor confirmed this position yesterday, and it has been made absolutely clear in contact with the banks at senior levels. Beyond 14 October, a number of facilities, including the new TECRF, are in place to ease liquidity pressures on LDIs, the BoE spokesperson added.

Sources include:

CNBC.com

BBC.com

ZeroHedge.com
(Natural News) A police bodycam video from January 2020 recorded a suspect in Texas admitting to his involvement in a cash-for-ballots scheme. The suspect named Deborah Peoples, who is running as county judge for Tarrant County under the Democratic Party, as the mastermind behind the vote fraud. The footage taken on Jan. 3, 2020 came from an officer of the Fort Worth Police Department (FWPD). It first appeared in a September 2020 article on the Gateway Pundit following a public record request. The FWPD also verified the videos authenticity to the Epoch Times. According to the nighttime video, the police officer identified the bicycle-riding suspect as Charles Jackson, who was stopped for riding in the wrong direction on a public street. However, this was not the first time Jackson had a brush with law enforcement at Fort Worth. During a 2016 encounter with the same officer, Jackson  who was homeless at the time  had trouble explaining why he had $1,000 in cash. Jackson stated that it had something to do with the elections. The officer then warned him that meddling with elections could have serious repercussions and let him go. But instead of heeding the officers warning, the suspect ended up being arrested and charged with giving false information on a voting application. He pleaded guilty in April 2019 in exchange for a minor sentence of 10 days jail time, with credit for 10 days served. The judge handling the case also enforced a gag on all parties in the case. Almost a year later, Jackson admitted to the police officer that flagged him for riding in the wrong direction that Peoples supposedly paid him $200 in cash for every fraudulently cast absentee ballot he could bring in months prior to the 2016 presidential election. He even bragged that Peoples, the chairwoman of the Tarrant County Democratic Party at the time, personally gave him the money. (Related: Texas Democrats paid homeless man to falsify ballots: Police body camera footage.) According to Jackson, he was given the personal voting registration information of elderly Texans. He was then told to visit them and deceive them into signing absentee ballot documents. Jackson then falsified these as county election forms to verify that their personal data was accurate, subsequently casting their votes for Democratic candidates on the ballots. Jackson gets paid between $900 and $1,200 weekly for the scheme

Moreover, the suspect said in the 2020 footage that an individual he knew as a close associate of Peoples bailed him out of jail.

Theyre trying to get me for 10 years. I didnt know it was that bad. It turned out theyd been stealing votes, Jackson told the policeman in the video. I can talk now. Im done with it. Deborah [Peoples] gave me cash, said Jackson.

The suspect also divulged that he was paid between $900 and $1,200 weekly for his tasks. Aside from the regular payments he received, he was also rewarded with a motorcycle and extra bonuses.

A press release from the Tarrant County Sheriffs Office (TCSO) said it will not investigate voter fraud claims as shown in the bodycam footage. According to the statement, Sheriff Bill Waybourn believes it would be inappropriate for his office to investigate with Peoples at the center of the claims and him endorsing candidates on the ballot.

Waybourn has endorsed several Republican candidates on the ballot, including county judge candidate Tim OHare.

Meanwhile, a TSCO representative said they had brought the video to the attention of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. They added that the office had received complaints about the bodycam footage, with others raising possible concerns about potential vote fraud.

Follow VoteFraud.news for more news about cash-for-ballot schemes across the United States.

Watch the video below to know more about Project Veritas report about a cash-for-ballots scheme in Minnesota.

This video is from the Libertarian channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

U.S. Postal Service now going into the election fraud business full-time with new division that will handle all mail-in ballots.

FBI refused to investigate ballots-for-cash scheme in Minneapolis, so Project Veritas did the job instead.

Stunning: Montana election integrity organization found more than 120,000 invalid votes cast during 2020 election.

Project Veritas releases another Ilhan Omar video showing cash-for-votes harvesting scheme.

Election integrity watchdog outlines proof of election fraud  straight from three whistleblowers.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

Star-Telegram.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Moscow has warned that the European Unions (EU) decision to turn away from Russian energy will lead to very deplorable consequences that will be felt for decades.

Speaking to Russia-1, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov warned that Europe attempting to reduce its reliance on Russian energy imports could lead to their deindustrialization for up to 20 years. (Related: Europe now feeling the effects of Russian energy supply cutbacks as winter approaches.)

Peskov added that Europeans are now paying more for energy, thereby depriving their economy of competitiveness.

Production is collapsing. Deindustrialization is coming. All this will have very, very deplorable consequences for the European continent over probably, at least, the next 10 to 20 years, said Peskov.

The press secretary noted that the EU had a good relationship with Russia before the energy crisis. But the EU started developing the idea that it had to rid itself of its dependency on Russian energy, which is what led to the continents current energy crisis.

America benefiting from Europes energy crisis

Peskov noted that the only country benefiting from the EUs mistaken belief that it needs to reduce its reliance on Russian energy exports is the United States, which is making crazy money by selling natural gas to Europe at exorbitant prices that the continents nations are more than willing to pay.

He noted that Americas prices are three or even four times higher than what it costs to purchase the same amount of Russian natural gas, adding that the Europeans are making their economy less competitive as they pay.

Data from financial analysis firm Refinitiv Eikon show that American producers of liquefied natural gas (LNG) boosted their exports to Europe in September.

Preliminary tanker tracking data from Refinitiv Eikon stated that a total of 87 cargo ships departed from U.S. ports last month, carrying 6.3 million metric tons (6.94 million tons) of LNG. This is slightly higher than Augusts 6.25 million metric tons (6.89 million tons).

But Refinitiv Eikon noted that the U.S. exported around seven million metric tons of LNG per month to Europe earlier this year. The decrease can be attributed to production constraints caused by plant outages, including an explosion at the Freeport LNG plant, Americas second-largest LNG plant and exporter, which has put Americas output far below full processing capacity despite increased demand and prices.

Freeport is expected to partially reopen its facilities in November, with a goal of reaching full capacity by March 2023.

Almost 70 percent of the cargo ships containing LNG, or 4.37 million metric tons (4.82 million tons), went to Europe. In July and August, 56 percent and 63 percent of Americas LNG exports went to Europe, respectively.

Spot prices for U.S. natural gas at the Henry Hub, a distribution hub in Louisiana and a benchmark for LNG spot and future prices, rose to $7.88 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), the highest spot price recorded since 2008, as soaring global prices are keeping demand for American LNG strong.

In Europe, meanwhile, spot prices for natural gas averaged at a much higher rate of $57.90 per mmBtu, with a sharp surge seen following the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines.

Learn more about Europes energy crisis at NewEnergyReport.com.

Watch this episode of the Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks to Michael Yon about how Europes green energy policy is responsible for its own destruction.

This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Europe in deindustrialization spiral due to energy crisis, warns Goldman Sachs.

European energy crisis is going to last a lot longer than just one winter, crucial analysis finds.

TO ASHES: Desperate Europeans burn TREES for warmth following destruction of Nord Stream pipelines.

America likely sabotaged Nord Stream pipelines to provoke Russia and make Europe more reliant on American natural gas.

British banks prepare for possible winter blackouts, suggest revival of lockdown policies to safeguard energy supply.

Sources include:

RT.com

Reuters.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Europe is having trouble producing green renewable energy these days because ironically enough, fossil fuels are needed to produce parts for things like solar panels and wind turbines.

Photovoltaic (PV) solar technology producers across Europe are now at serious risk of going under because of soaring energy prices, which is soon to be followed by energy shortages. (Related: Banking kingpin Goldman Sachs says Europe is now in a deindustrialization spiral due to the energy crisis.)

Right now, upwards of 35 gigawatts (GW) worth of PV manufacturing projects across Europe risk being mothballed, as one report put it. Skyrocketing energy costs are making it difficult, if not impossible, for producers to continue operating.

Rystad Energy said the energy crisis is stifling the continents efforts to build a solar supply chain within its borders. Russias invasion of Ukraine and everything that has followed threatens to undo the progress that has been made thus far, not to mention the now-very serious risk of Europe being plunged back into the Dark Ages.

Building a reliable domestic low-carbon supply chain is essential if the continent is going to stick to its goals, including the REPowerEU plan, but as things stand, that is in serious jeopardy, said Audun Martinsen, Rystads head of energy service research.

High energy prices, Martinsen went on to say, could not only decimate Europes now-fledgling green energy endeavors but also increase reliance on overseas manufacturing.

That overseas manufacturing, which takes place in China and elsewhere, runs virtually entirely on fossil fuel energy. The transportation used to get those same products to Europe and elsewhere once produced then requires even more fossil fuel energy.

PV plants in Europe are already closing due to impossible economic conditions

Already in France, a PV module manufacturing plant owned by Maxeon Solar Technologies has shuttered, citing sky-high energy prices that made it prohibitively difficult to continue operating.

Not only were inflated energy prices a factor but so were inflated raw material prices, not to mention ever-rising taxes on imports, said a Maxeon spokesperson about the situation.

The production price of the Porcelette plant no longer allows us to be competitive on the European market, the spokesperson added in a statement sent to PV Tech, which describes itself as the number-one source for in-depth and up-to-the-minute news about the PV industry.

The now-shuttered Maxeon facility, located in the north of France, was first inaugurated in 2012. According to a company press release, the facility had a 44MWp (megawatts-peak) production line capable of producing 150,000 solar panels annually.

One report on all this asked the following question about the situation:

The obvious question, if renewables are so cheap, why dont these plants relocate to a large plot of land, disconnect from the grid, and power their manufacturing facilities from their own low-cost renewable energy products?

The answer, of course, is that renewable energy is a joke in terms of its alleged ability to replace reliable and abundant fossil fuel energy. Relying entirely on renewable energy as Europe tried to do is proving to be a dismal failure  and now the continent is about to pay a serious price for this mistake.

Higher power prices should make them more competitive if they are really the lowest cost solution, one commenter wrote. I guess the lack of subsidy is the deciding factor.

Wind and solar are subsidy mining operations, first and last, added another.

With kickbacks to the politicians providing the subsidies, interjected someone else.

That is possibly the most determinantal factor in their continued political existence, added another about the political racket surrounding the renewable energy scam.

As more developments emerge about the energy situation in Europe, we will keep you informed at EnergySupply.news.

Sources for this article include:

WattsUpWithThat.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Former federal agents, prosecutors, lawyers, medical professionals, researchers and volunteers from the United States and all over the world recently formed a group called FormerFedsGroup Freedom Foundation (FFFF) to expose how Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) hospital protocols kill people.

Specifically, the group seeks to expose the Food and Drug Administrations death protocol, force hospitals to administer safe and efficacious treatments for Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) and assert legal right to refuse harmful mandates. It also wants to call a halt to vaccine passports and draconian Digital ID systems.

The New Jersey-based nonprofit has compiled more than 250 cases through its COVID-19 Humanity Betrayal Memory Project, according to the Epoch Times.

Families who have lost a loved one to COVID-19 mostly blame hospital protocols. Hospitals were rewarded with federal funding to ban certain treatments like ivermectin as medication for coronavirus while promoting remdesivir and ventilators.

Participating in the FFFF project were siblings from Texas named Clover and Jodi Carroll, whose mother Carolyn died because of the medical tyranny that was forced on her and thousands of people across the country.

Their mother was assigned to palliative care on her first day in the hospital, July 5, 2021. After eight days, they were told she was doing well only to find out two days later that she was put on a ventilator.

It was almost like it was so robotic that they could not think outside the prescribed protocol, Jodi said. Were a family of business people who think outside the box. We think of creative solutions, so our rationale was: Well, gosh, if what youre doing right now isnt working, why not try something else?

And so the siblings started researching and found a link to connect with Dr. Peter McCullough, who advocates early-treatment protocols. McCullough has been censored on every Big Tech platform, and mainstream media has been trying to destroy his credibility because of his lack of conformance to the official guidance and protocols. (Related: Prather Point: COVID-19 vaccine is the biggest medical-biological catastrophe of all time, says Dr. Peter McCullough  Brighteon.TV.)

Meanwhile, every petition for their mothers treatment was met with strange behaviors and attitudes. Staff shut down discussions about the use of ivermectin and other treatments recommended by the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care (FLCCC) Alliance. FLCCC is a group of leading critical care specialists dedicated to helping prevent and treat COVID-19 by advancing protocols based on the latest science, data and clinical observations.

The Carrolls eventually got a lawyer who successfully obtained an order from a judge to force the hospital to administer FLCCC protocols. However, according to Jodi, hospital attorneys nullified the injunction before it came time to administer the medicine, citing a lot of reasons why they couldnt and wouldnt administer the medication.

But the most offensive, Jodi said, was the Hippocratic Oath, claiming they could do no harm. Ive come to call it the hypocritical oath.

We now are pivoting everything that we are doing to wake up the sheep  and I dont mean that as a derogatory term, Clover said. The sheep are the people who just dont know, and the wolves are those who dont want to know and are fighting to keep others from knowing.

Ivermectin reduces 92 percent of COVID-19 deaths, study finds

A recent study from Brazil has found that ivermectin is 92 percent effective at stopping mortality caused by the coronavirus.

Brazilian research scientist Dr. Flavio A. Cadegiani said his study back home showed a dose-response effect, meaning that the more you used [ivermectin], the more protection you had.

The study titled: Regular Use of Ivermectin as Prophylaxis for COVID-19 Led Up to a 92% Reduction in COVID-19 Mortality Rate in a Dose-Response Manner: Results of a Prospective Observational Study of a Strictly Controlled Population of 88,012 Subjects was published in the journal Cureus.

The papers authors have found that people who used ivermectin regularly every 15 days for at least six to eight weeks had up to a 92 percent reduction in mortality. Cadegiani also conducted research on drugs that evaluated whether their use could impact COVID-19 infection and mortality rates.

In 2020, renowned epidemiologist Dr. Harvey Risch of Yale Medical School and other scientists and physicians said in a Senate testimony that thousands of lives could have been saved if treatments such as ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine had not been suppressed.

More stories about deadly hospital protocols can be found at HospitalHomicide.com.

Watch the video below that talks about the award-winning ivermectins safety and effectiveness to fight COVID-19.

This video is from the Heaven Reigns channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

STUDY: Ivermectin reduces covid death risk by 92%.

Lawsuits claim hospitals specifically targeted unvaccinated patients with forced remdesivir and respirator treatment  a DEATH sentence.

Dying man refused right to try ivermectin, put on ventilator in a hospital that REFUSES to administer treatments that work.

Three doctors sue FDA, HHS for interfering with ivermectin prescription for COVID.

Sources include:

WND.com 1

FormerFedsGroup.org 1

FormerFedsGroup.org 2

Covid19CriticalCare.com

WND.com 2

Cureus.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Males who identify as females are still required to register with the federal governments Selective Service System (SSS), according to its website.

According to the military conscription system, those born male and changed their gender to female  i.e. male-to-female (MTF) transgenders  are still required to register. In contrast, those born female and changed their gender to male  i.e. female-to-male (FTM) transgenders  are not required to register.

Individuals who have changed their gender to male will only be asked to complete a status information letter request form and provide a copy of their birth certificate.

The SSS referenced the definition laid down by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which defined transgender as people whose gender identity and/or expression is different from the sex assigned to them at birth, [such as] the [biological] sex listed on an original birth certificate. Under OPM rules, a transgender woman is someone born male at birth but identifies as female. Meanwhile, a transgender man is someone born female but identifies as male.

Current military conscription rules mandate the SSS registration of almost all male American citizens and immigrants aged between 18 and 25 years. The draft is based on biological sex, not the sex people identify as.

Writing for Rebel News, journalist Ian Miles Cheong recounted an executive order (EO) President Joe Biden passed upon taking office. The EO stated that anyone who identifies as transgender should be treated by their chosen gender identity. Biden even put forward the possibility of MTF transgenders being placed in military units composed entirely of biological females.

Despite the Biden administrations push for equity, inclusivity and transgender representation  its clear that the military doesnt care how you identify on a piece of paper, but rather what body parts you were born with, wrote Cheong.

Ukrainian MTF transgenders learn that biology still matters in a war

Perhaps a stark example of Cheongs point was seen during the opening months of the Russia-Ukraine war. Kyiv declared martial law, and with it came mandatory military service for all Ukrainian males aged 18 to 60. Some MTF transgenders, however, opted to flee  only to be stopped at the border and ordered to return to the frontlines.

The Guardian recounted two such cases.

Judis, a transgender woman, fled her hometown in the Luhansk region toward the Ukrainian capital. She attempted to cross over to the border with Poland, but two border guards stopped Judis in her tracks. The guards accosted her and conducted a physical examination inside an office.

Ukrainian border guards undress you and touch you everywhere. You can see on their faces [that] theyre wondering what are you? like youre some kind of animal or something, Judis recounted. Afterward, one of the guards said, Youre a guy, so get out of here and told me that I should be grateful they didnt call the police.

Another transgender woman, 24-year-old Alice, was also refused passage to Poland.

Alice recounted that three border guards took her and her partner Helen to a building near the border crossing. The officers then conducted a physical examination, concluding that the two were men.

We tried to explain our situation, but they didnt care, said Alice.

Ukrainian FTM transgender activist Olena Shevchenko put in his two cents on the predicaments of Judis and Alice.

Technically, the law applies to trans people as well  including both certified transgender men and transgender women who had not changed their documents. But it sounds like Ukrainian border guards are preventing even trans people with a valid certificate reflecting their new gender from leaving Ukraine, and nobody knows why, said Shevchenko.

For more stories about gender politics, visit GenderConfused.com.

Watch this video that explains why Ukrainian transgender women such as the likes of Judis and Alice must fight in the frontlines against Russia.

This video is from the SJWellFire: Final Days Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Bidens new woke military has a model in Maos China.

Swiss government considering GENDER-NEUTRAL military conscription.

First transgender officer in U.S. Army indicted for allegedly conspiring to aid Russia.

American Medical Association now pushing for transgender troops on the front lines of war.

US military goes full speed ahead toward max LGBT inclusion with diversity panels, all-gay helicopter crew.

Sources include:

HeadlineUSA.com

SSS.gov

RebelNews.com

TheGuardian.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) In order to fix all the heart damage caused by its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine for the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19), drug giant Moderna has announced another new injection that the company claims has the ability to repair heart muscle.

CEO Stephane Bancel told SkyNews Business Australia that the new shot, which also contains mRNA technology, will grow back new blood vessels and revascularize the heart of folks who took the Fauci Flu shot and now suffer from spike protein damage throughout the cardiovascular system.

Describing the new injections as therapy and even science fiction medicine, a gleeful Bancel called this latest development super exciting  though he did also let it slip out in his excitement that the new jab will inject mRNA in peoples heart[s]. (Related: Modernas covid injections also trigger AIDS-like syndrome.)

Moderna plans to inject people with mRNA FOREVER

Moderna is basically admitting that its covid injections have destroyed the hearts of millions of people who now require additional pharmaceutical tampering to keep their hearts going  or so goes the implication.

Chances are these new quick-fix shots will cause even more damage, which will then result in another new mRNA injections from Moderna, and on and on it goes into infinity.

The situation is so bad that just this week, Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo issued new guidance for men aged 18-39 essentially urging them not to take the shots because of the heart risks involved.

All people are at risk from Fauci Flu shots, but young, otherwise healthy men seem to be specific targets for cardiovascular destruction. The latest research shows that young men who get jabbed for covid suffer an 84 percent increased risk of cardiac-related death.

Moderna seems to know all this, which explains why it is now unleashing a new cure for the previous round of jabs caused.

And we are now supposed to just believe and put our lives on the line for proven liars and murderers with an obvious depopulation plan? wrote a commenter, perplexed that anyone could believe any of this deception anymore.

The vaxxed are the test subjects for the development of products that they (the elite) are going to want to use to prolong THEIR OWN lives, among other things, suggested another, offering another angle to this massive chemical experiment on the unwitting masses.

Albert Bourla over at Pfizer must surely be trying to develop a similar heart-fix injection to compete with Moderna, suggested another person.

Its like a race to see who can kill more people faster, this person added.

It is difficult not to see the obvious parallels between this worldwide pharmaceutical experimentation project and the chemical drug experiments that took place during the Holocaust.

Back then, drug experiments were conducted within the confines of Germany and a few surrounding countries. Today, these drug experiments have gone global with billions of willing participants.

Another person objected to the idea that all of this is experimental in the sense that he believes these bioweapons are obviously very well-tested-out before being released for their true intended purposes of causing miscarriages, damaged immune systems, sterilization, injuries, and ultimately death for all those deemed as unnecessary.

 otherwise, they quite simply would not be devoting such immense funding and effort to distributing this bioweapon program worldwide, this same person added.

They would look really silly among themselves if they spent all their resources and the weapon really never worked, and no arms manufacturer would distribute a weapon that never worked.

Want to learn more about the dangers and ineffectiveness of Fauci Flu shots? Check out ChemicalViolence.com.

Sources for this article include:

Newspunch.com

NaturalNews.com

FloridaHealth.gov
(Natural News) A researcher from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has warned that the SARS-CoV-2 spoke protein used in the mRNA Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines could induce brain diseases.

In a pre-print study published Aug. 16 in the journal Diseases, Dr. Stephanie Seneff and her colleagues wrote that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein acts like a prion. This protein can transmit its misfolded shape onto normal prions, causing neurodegenerative diseases that wreak havoc in the human brain.

She cited compelling evidence showing that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein contains amino acid sequences previously established as prion-like proteins. These proteins responsible for neurodegenerative issues are then produced by the body in the same manner as the proteins responsible for COVID-19.

Seneff and her co-authors added that while tracing the various pathways through which the proteins were expected to travel and distribute throughout the body, they found some highly concerning biological consequences that would be expected to occur with increased frequency as a consequence. Specifically, the contribution of spike proteins to neuroinflammation and neurodegenerative diseases as well as clotting disorders and suppressed prion protein regulation in the context of insulin resistance and health complications that it could induce.

The study authors briefly touched on the hypothesis of the late Nobel Prize laureate Dr. Luc Montagnier on the inserts of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in the SARS-CoV-2 genome, arguing that the virus was most likely engineered as bioweapons. (Related: Vaccinated people found to be 600% more likely to die from covid variants than unvaccinated people.)

While the spike proteins from the natural COVID infection do pose risks, those risks are nowhere near the damage that can be potentially inflicted on a persons body by the spike proteins from mRNA vaccines.

In a separate study, the researchers also found that there are incidents of thromboembolic events and hemorrhagic stroke cases that could occur within 28 days after getting the BNT162b2 or CoronaVac jabs.

Because of this, Seneff urged parents not to vaccinate their children with mRNA shots due to the wide spectrum of harm that they can inflict on the body.

Seneff previously warned of COVID-19 vaccine dangers

This is not the first time Seneff has tried to warn people about the dangerous effects of the COVID-19 vaccines. In 2021, she wrote a paper discussing the safety concerns surrounding the vaccines, especially considering the rapid speed at which they came from controlled trials to mass deployment.

She reviewed the components and the intended biological response to the vaccines, including the production of the spike protein itself, and their potential relationship to a wide range of acute and long-term induced pathologies that include blood disorders, neurodegenerative diseases and autoimmune diseases.

Some of the potential induced pathologies she listed back then discussed the relevance of prion-protein-related amino acid sequences with the spike protein, urging health authorities to clarify the long-term effects of the vaccines to better assess their risks and benefits, especially as they are using novel technologies.

Seneff also called the governments rushed actions to vaccinate people perverse for getting Pharma to produce expensive drugs, untested, and then throwing them out to the public with the false promise that theyre safe, when theyre not.

She insisted even then that it was wrong of public health officials to impede on the ability of doctors to use safe and established natural methods by repurposing drugs to treat COVID and alleviate symptoms early on.

It is morally reprehensible what the government is doing. They should have been promoting safe methods as they discovered them and instead, they just blocked everything, she said.

Visit VaccineDamage.news for more about the adverse effects of vaccines.

Watch Dr. Stephanie Seneff explain to the New Americans Veronika Kyrylenko how the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines induce brain diseases.

This video is from The New American channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Dr. Stephanie Seneff from MIT issues urgent warning against vaccinating children against covid.

STUDY: mRNA vaccines present tragic and even catastrophic side effects.

Covid vaccines could trigger prion-linked brain degeneration similar to mad cow disease?

For anyone under 80, COVID vaccines are deadlier than COVID itself.

Sources include:

TheNewAmerican.com

Authorea.com

DPBH.NV.gov

TheEpochTimes.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) Once again, more proof has emerged that the FBI should be disbanded because it is nothing more than an agency whose sole purpose is to create false narratives and protect the deep state regime to the detriment of our Constitution.

According to a new report from the Crime Prevention Research Center, the bureau has significantly undercounted  likely on purpose  the number of times armed citizens have used their firearms to stop criminals and criminal behavior, Fox News reported this week. Turns out that a good guy with a gun stops criminal behavior many more times than Americans have been led to believe.

Although collecting such data is fraught with challenges, some see a pattern of distortion in the FBI numbers because the errors almost exclusively go one way, minimizing the life-saving actions of armed citizens, says the report by Crime Prevention Research Center founder and president John Lott, the network added.

An introduction to the report states:

The shooting that killed three people and injured another at a Greenwood, Indiana, mall on July 17 drew broad national attention because of how it ended  when 22-year-old Elisjsha Dicken, carrying a licensed handgun, fatally shot the attacker.

While Dicken was praised for his courage and skill  squeezing off his first shot 15 seconds after the attack began, from a distance of 40 yards  much of the immediate news coverage drew from FBI-approved statistics to assert that armed citizens almost never stop such attackers: Rare in US for an active shooter to be stopped by bystander (Associated Press); Rampage in Indiana a rare instance of armed civilian ending mass shooting (Washington Post); and After Indiana mall shooting, one hero but no lasting solution to gun violence (New York Times).

In fact, Lott and his research team found that lawful uses of a firearm to prevent crime are a lot more common than the 4.4 percent of instances the FBI frequently touts.

Evidence compiled by the Crime Prevention Research Center shows that the sources the media relied on undercounted the number of instances in which armed citizens have thwarted such attacks by an order of more than ten, saving untold numbers of lives. Of course, law-abiding citizens stopping these attacks are not rare, the report states.

What is rare is national news coverage of those incidents. Although those many news stories about the Greenwood shooting also suggested that the defensive use of guns might endanger others, there is no evidence that these acts have harmed innocent victims, Lott noted further.

According to the FBI, armed citizens only thwarted active shooter incidents in 11 of 252 instances between 2014 and 2021. The bureau describes active shooter incidents as any involving an individual who kills or attempts to kill people in a public, populated area, but it doesnt include incidents the agency deems is related to other criminal activity like robbery or drug turf battles.

An analysis by my organization identified a total of 360 active shooter incidents during that period and found that an armed citizen stopped 124, Lott noted in his report. A previous report looked at only instances when armed civilians stopped what likely would have been mass public shootings. There were another 24 cases that we didnt include where armed civilians stopped armed attacks, but the suspect didnt fire his gun. Those cases are excluded from our calculations, though it could be argued that a civilian also stopped what likely could have been an active shooting event.

He added: The FBI reported that armed citizens thwarted 4.4% of active shooter incidents, while the CPRC found 34.4%.

Lott speculated as to why there was such a large discrepancy between the actual occasions where an armed citizen stopped another armed criminal and what the FBI claims: misclassified shootings and overlooked incidents.

We tend to believe there is a third reason: Political narrative that justifies more gun control.

Sources include:

FoxNews.com

CrimeResearch.org
(Natural News) More than 1,000 illegal migrants successfully crossed from France to the United Kingdom on Sunday, October 9, via the English channel. Traveling in a fleet of 25 boats, these asylum seekers completed the passage with the assistance of border authorities and activists.

The U.K. Ministry of Defense (MoD) noted that there had been no uncontrolled landings involved.

The MoD slammed Russia for its illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine as thousands of refugees made their journey during another historic year for illegal migration in one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes.

Last year, over 28,000 migrants reached England by boat, up from only 8,400 in 2020, even as the U.K. claims migrants who travel through safe countries such as France will not be allowed to seek refuge in England.

Only a small fraction of Channel migrants ever get deported.

The English Channel is one of the most dangerous and busiest shipping lanes in the world, with many migrants coming from the poorest and most chaotic parts of the world. Many ask to claim asylum once they are picked up by U.K. authorities.

In an attempt to deter people from making the dangerous journey across the channel, the government signed an agreement with Rwanda to deport migrants in April. This is for the asylum seekers to process their claims.

However, the numbers crossing the Channel continued to rise since the announcement of the policy, with the plan widely condemned by charities and campaign groups, which launched a series of legal challenges, leading the policy to be put on hold until the decision is reached in the courts.

The first flight, which was due to take off last June 14, was grounded amid the legal snafu.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the government still wants to go ahead with the plan, adding that it was her dream to see the first flight leave for Rwanda. She also noted that she was seeking asylum partnerships with other countries as well.

Braverman also talked about the need for closer cooperation with France as well as an increased police presence on the French coastline with the use of drones to monitor crossings.

British government: Illegals will not be allowed to start a new life here

A government spokesperson said the continued rise of dangerous Channel crossing is a clear abuse of immigration laws, which risks the lives of vulnerable people while funding vile criminal gangs.

Despite the lies [that] they have been sold by the smugglers, migrants who travel through safe countries to illegally enter the U.K. will not be allowed to start a new life here, the spokesperson said.

Migrant crossings along the Channel also caused a major political headache for the U.K., which promised tighter border controls after leaving the European Union.

Tensions have risen between London and Paris as the U.K. government accused France of not doing enough to stop the crossings.

So far, there had been over 26,000 crossings this year. But the numbers could still rise as now is the current peak time of the year for those who want to enter the U.K. through the channel.

Last month, the U.K. vowed to speed up the removal of Albanians who illegally entered the country as official statistics showed they were the largest single group making small-boat crossings. In previous years, asylum seekers were from war zones. (Related: Migrant wave is an invading army of young men, ready to pick up arms, warns journalist.)

Last year, Iranians were the biggest group, accounting for 30 percent of all small boat arrivals, followed by Iraqis, who made up 21 percent. Eritreans and Syrians made up 11 and nine percent, respectively.

In 2021, 75 percent of all small boat arrivals were men aged 18 to 39, with around five percent of the arrivals being men aged 40 or over. Seven percent were women over 18 and 12 percent were children under 18, but three-quarters of them were male.

Watch the video about the U.K. deporting asylum seekers to Africa.

This video is from the Greekinsider channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

UK government now wants Britons to house non-Ukrainian refugees.

Swedish PM admits failure of integrating migrants, laments society becoming too weak.

Russian ambassador to the UN claims his country does not plan to occupy Ukraine.

Sources include:

Europe.InfoWars.com

BBC.com 1

BBC.com 2

ArabNews.com

Brighteon.com
(Natural News) The Ukrainian government issued a warning to its citizens to cut back on the use of electricity after Russia fired missiles into the countrys infrastructure, once again killing civilians as President Vladimir Putin gets increasingly desperate following damage to a vital bridge connecting Crimea and his country.

The advisory comes amid a second day of air raid warnings sounding in cities throughout the country after the largest-ever wave of missile and drone strikes on Ukraine, reports said.

On Tuesday, more than a dozen cities were attacked, with Putins forces primarily targeting infrastructure. Energy plants in the central Ukraine region of Dnipropetrovsk suffered serious damage from the strikes, which came on the heels of a televised address from Putin who said he ordered the attacks to include military, communications, and other targets after the Crimea bridge attack.

Already, the damage is extensive enough that Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal is calling on citizens to limit their use of electricity, claiming that the Russian missile strikes have damaged at least 11 infrastructure facilities in eight different regions of Ukraine and the capital of Kyiv. We must be prepared for temporary disruptions of electricity, water supplies and communication, he announced on social media and elsewhere.

11 important infrastructure objects damaged in eight regions of Ukraine and Kyiv. We must be prepared for temporary disruptions of electricity, water supplies and communication,  Ukrainian Prime Minister @Denys_Shmyhal  Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) October 10, 2022

The Russians fired missiles at energy infrastructure in the Pavlograd and Kamian districts. There is serious destruction. Many settlements still do not have electricity, Dnipropetrovsk regional governor Valentin Reznichenko also said following the Tuesday strikes from Russia.

Meanwhile, The Hill reported that in various cities Tuesday, Ukrainians were sent scurrying toward shelters as sirens sounded and mobile phones blared warnings to take cover.

The Russian defense ministry admitted that Ukrainian infrastructure was now being targeted in a Telegram post: Today, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue launching the massive attack using high-precision long-range air- and sea-based armament at the facilities of military control and energy system of Ukraine.

The Hill also cited Ukrainian defense officials who claimed that several of the Russian missiles were downed by Kyivs air force: The Ukrainian air force said Russian bombers over the Caspian Sea launched missiles toward Ukraine early Tuesday, but at least four of the missiles were shot down.

Video clips posted to social media also allegedly showed some power plants being targeted by Russian missiles.

Russias retributory air strikes are heavily focused on Ukraines energy grid. This video shows a thermal power plant being destroyed in Kiev. The damage from the attacks was so severe that Ukraine is ending all electrical exports to Europe, saying its own grid is now unstable. pic.twitter.com/AhhFY0ZSt8  Clint Ehrlich (@ClintEhrlich) October 10, 2022

Some strikes were reportedly carried out with drones manufactured by Russias ally, Iran:

Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv regional military administration, said there were three explosions at two energy facilities in the Lviv region.

The Ladyzhynska power plant in the west-central city of Vinnytsia was also hit by so-called kamikaze drones, according to the plants owner, the DTEK Group.

?? Update: Network data show major sustained impacts to infrastructure across much of #Ukraine after a series of reprisal attacks by Russia; energy facilities have been targeted per Presidents office ?? ? Report: https://t.co/S0qJQ7CJD3 pic.twitter.com/kp93hav9xD  NetBlocks (@netblocks) October 10, 2022

The Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure will reverberate across the European continent. Because of the damage, Ukrainian government officials announced that the country could no longer sell surplus electricity to other countries.

Todays missile strikes, which hit the thermal generation and electrical substations, forced Ukraine to suspend electricity exports from Oct. 11, 2022 to stabilize its own energy system, Ukraines energy ministry said in a statement on its website, according to Reuters.

Sources include:

Reuters.com

CNN.com

TheHill.com
(Natural News) An official from Ukraine has confirmed that Ukrainians suspected of collaborating with the Russian military are being hunted and killed.

Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Anton Gerashchenko recently told the Daily Mail that members of the Ukrainian intelligence service were killing Ukrainians suspected of aiding the Russians in regions where Kyiv has expelled the ongoing invasion. (Related: Ukraine territories annexed by Russia could serve as potential launchpads for further military action.)

A hunt has been declared on collaborators and their life is not protected by law, the Daily Mail quoted Gerashchenko as saying. Our intelligence services are eliminating them, shooting them like pigs.

The British news outlet featured numerous examples of individuals currently in Ukrainian custody and facing prosecution for helping the Russian invasion. According to the Daily Mail, Ukrainian officials are compiling lists of alleged collaborators.

The news outlet highlighted the harrowing situation in Balakliya, eastern Ukraine. Russian occupiers spent about six months running Balakliya until Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the full liberation of the town on September 8.

An unnamed Ukrainian official called the targeted individuals losers. The suspected collaborators are reportedly facing retribution because Russia did not permit them to cross the border.

Documents shared by Ukrainian government officials seemed to confirm at least 29 retribution killings. The Daily Mail discovered another 29 suspicious deaths of individuals suspected of helping the Russians.

The Ukrainian officials attitude toward collaborators is reflected in past public statements emphasizing the importance of neutralizing the threat of alleged traitors  with or without due process.

If I could have the opportunity to check all of our countrys citizens for involvement in cooperation with the Russian Federation, I would definitely do it, because this is a very dangerous situation. And it doesnt matter where those moles are today. We need to find and poison these rats, Ukraines National Defense Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said last August, appearing to urge support from the public in helping identify collaborators.

We need to ensure that none of them remain on our territory. This is a matter of our national security. And their presence in any agencies is very, very dangerous. Why? Because the Russian Federation does not give up hope of achieving its main goal  to destroy us as a state.

Hundreds of Ukrainians charged with high treason and collaborative activities

Ukraines State Bureau of Investigation had declared 881 legal cases connected to charges of high treason and collaborative activities as of September. Additionally, 1,164 people are being investigated for involvement in treason and collaborative activities.

Ukrinform reported last month that 315 people were served with notice of charges and 216 people were put on a wanted list. Most cases were opened in Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson regions, as well as the city of Kyiv.

Zelensky appeared to hint in remarks in April that extrajudicial handling of such accusations would be deemed necessary. Regarding antiheroes. Now I do not have time to deal with all the traitors. But gradually they will all be punished, Zelensky said at the time.

He then announced that the ex-chief of the Main Department of Internal Security of the Security Service of Ukraine Naumov Andriy Olehovych and the former head of the Office of the Security Service of Ukraine in the Kherson region Kryvoruchko Serhiy Oleksandrovych are no longer generals.

In July, Zelensky also moved to strip Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova and Security Service Head Ivan Bakanov of their titles in response to hundreds of cases of alleged treason under their leadership.

Follow UkraineWitness.com for more news about Ukraine and its war against Russia.

Watch the video below about the crackdown of pro-Russian supporters who are labeled as traitors in Ukraine.

This video is from the Russia Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Massive escalation of Russias invasion of Ukraine being planned as Donetsk Peoples Republic leader seeks liberation of all Russian cities in Ukraine.

Democratic Ukraine threatens five years in prison for any citizen who votes to join Russia.

Biden admin agrees to provide sophisticated artillery to Ukraine but itll take YEARS to deliver.

Billions of dollars worth of American arms and aid disappear into a black hole once they enter Ukraine.

Sources include:

Breitbart.com

AlJazeera.com

Brighteon.com
Scientists at the National University of Singapore have discovered how plants control the development of stomata, the tiny openings on their surface, to reduce water loss under dry circumstances.

Worsening Situation for Plants

Due to drought, more powerful storms, and rapid warming, plant communities will shift.

According to the Fourth National Climate Assessment, increased temperatures and changing precipitation patterns would cause considerable changes in plant groups and increase habitat loss from the beaches to the tops of mountains. Subsequent assessments only increase the urgency of this situation from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Wolfgang Buermann, a geographer at Boston University, claims that the development of plants may significantly impact the climate. He says that there are several methods for plants to modify the Earth's atmosphere's temperature. Plants use the energy from the sun to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, which they then convert into the carbohydrates they require to thrive. Since carbon dioxide is one of the most prevalent greenhouse gases, its removal from the atmosphere may help to slow down the planet's overall warming.

Also Read: Scientists "Reprogram" Crops to Help Adapt with Climate Change

Biological Processes

The gas exchange between plants and the atmosphere depends on stomata found on the leaves' surface. Stomata, where water vapor escapes from the inside of the leaves, are also the main locations of water loss. Plants have two stomatal reactions to preserve water when there is a water shortage: they restrict the growth of new stomata and seal the pores of existing ones.

These reactions, which are regulated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA), are essential for plant drought adaptation and are especially pertinent for maintaining agriculture in the face of climate change. However, it remained unclear how ABA reduces stomatal output.

The study group from the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore, under the direction of Assistant Professor LAU On Sun, described the mechanism behind this drought-mediated inhibition of stomatal growth in the most recent edition of Science Advances.

Discovering the SPEECHLESS

They discovered that the critical stomatal regulator SPEECHLESS (SPCH) is directly phosphorylated by the core kinases of the ABA signaling, which are active during drought. The process of phosphate group added to a molecule is known as phosphorylation. ABA phosphorylates the SPCH protein at two different locations, and this phosphorylation causes SPCH to degrade.

Since SPCH encourages stomatal growth, its phosphorylation resulted in lower amounts of SPCH and fewer stomata, while the removal of these sites (S240/271A sample) had the opposite effect. Additionally, and this is crucial, the researchers showed that plants with the modified SPCH phosphorylation sites had varying levels of drought tolerance.

According to Prof. Lau, "Our results demonstrate that a specific 'code' underlies a key plant water conservation response. This is exciting because it suggests that by manipulating the code, we could optimize crop plants for various growing conditions, from conventional to urban farming, and fine tune their drought tolerance."

Related Article: French Farmer Uses Sustainable Crop to Defy Drought

For more news update about alternative lifestyle and the environment, don't forget to follow Nature World News
Feature: A Cuban student's affection for Chinese poems

15:00, October 13, 2022 By Yosley Carrero ( Xinhua

HAVANA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Yinet Ferrer, the first-prize winner of this year's Fifth International Classical Chinese Poetry Recitation Contest in Cuba, said she has been inspired by Chinese poetry.

By presenting "bu suan zi yong mei" or "Ode to the Plum Blossom" in English, one of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong's most famous poems, Ferrer won her entrance into the online contest and kept contesting till the final.

"Even though I have been presented many awards during my student life, none of them makes me prouder than this one," said the third-year Chinese-language student at Cuba's Confucius Institute in Havana.

Ferrer, who works as a psychopedagogue at Jose de la Luz y Caballero High School in Havana's El Cerro district, started to study "Ode to the Plum Blossom" three months prior to the contest.

"Amid the world's present challenges, Chinese poetry has inspired me," Ferrer, 26, told Xinhua. "This poem sends a very strong message of optimism, faith and persistence to overcome obstacles no matter what the circumstances."

She began studying Chinese in 2015, enrolling in a course at the House of Chinese Arts and Traditions in Havana's Chinatown. She said Chinese poetry has unlocked vast knowledge about China's rich culture and its work ethics.

"I want to write a novel on the Chinese presence in Cuba, but that is a future plan," she said. "For the moment, I am very much enjoying the prize."

Over the past few years, the study of the Chinese language and culture has been on the rise in Cuba thanks to the work of social organizations and institutions such as the Confucius Institute, which has seen thousands of students graduate since its founding in 2009.

Chinese language professor Chang Xiaoyu told Xinhua that poetry continues to be an effective tool for teaching China's extensive history.

"Chinese poems transmit the beauty of our language, which effectively constitutes a platform to promote our values, principles and philosophy of life," Chang said.

(Web editor: Cai Hairuo, Wu Chaolan)
On Monday, the Maui County Council passed a new bill that will limit the amount of blue light pollution produced by the island's outdoor lighting fixtures during the night. The objective is to reduce the amount of artificial light that every year causes harm or even death to tens of thousands of sea turtles, migratory birds, and other wildlife.

Maui's Bill 21

Maui's new bill mandates that all outdoor lighting fixtures, except for neon, restrict short wavelength content to only 2% of blue light. Mercury vapor must not be used for installing new outdoor lighting fixtures.

Except for neon, all other outdoor lighting fixtures must be pointed downward. All lighting fixtures must be completely shielded to ensure that no light is shining over the ocean, which is another requirement.

The bill has a three-year phase-in period before it becomes effective on July 1, 2023, giving organizations time to comply. The bill has many exemptions built in. For instance, the majority of non-oceanfront private homes and aviation lighting that is necessary for safe aircraft navigation are exempt.

According to the bill, additional exemptions include sporting events held at night, authorized special events held on grounds owned by the state department of education, private schools, nonprofit organizations, and county parks and facilities.

The price of replacing bulbs and making adjustments to lighting fixtures has drawn criticism. An earlier draft of the bill was opposed by the Office of Corporation Counsel. In June, county attorneys outlined several concerns they had with the bill, including its effects on rodeos, outdoor concerts, night markets, and private sporting venues, as well as public safety concerns.

Kelly King, the bill's sponsor, along with Shane Sinenci, Alice Lee, Keani Rawlins-Fernandez, and Mike Molina were the five council members who voted in favor of Bill 21.

King claimed that the final bill reflects months of research by her and others on the best available science for dealing with the current state of Maui's light pollution and its effects. Any environmental legislation will likely face opposition, according to King. In this case, the outdoor event and hotel industries were the main opponents of the lighting bill.

Read also: According To Study, Monarch Butterflies Might Become Disoriented as a Result of Light Pollution

Impacts of Light Pollution

According to scientists, light pollution poses a serious threat to wildlife. Bright onshore lighting can cause endangered sea turtles to become disoriented and wander inland, where they may cross roads and be attacked by dogs or other predators, or even hit by cars.

Bright lights can throw off fledgling endangered seabirds as they make their first trips out to sea from burrows. The young birds risk being hurt or eaten by feral cats, rodents, or other animals if they tire and fall to the ground.

Environmentalists are suing the Grand Wailea resort on Maui to demand that it change its lighting to protect the Hawaiian petrels. It's unclear how Monday's vote will impact the outcome of that lawsuit, which is presently in the settlement stage.

Earthjustice is suing the resort, and David Henkin, the organization's lead attorney, said he couldn't comment on that. He was however pleased that the council had approved the new lighting regulation, Honolulu Civil Beat reports.

Related article: Artificial Light Masks Natural Light Cycles, Affects Both Human and Animal Behavior
This week, a strong cold front is sweeping over the eastern part of the United States, bringing with it a range of dangerous weather, including severe thunderstorms, flooding rains, high winds, and a sharp temperature drop.

severe weather danger moved toward the Southeast

As of writing, no casualties or serious damage have been reported in southeastern Wisconsin.

According to PowerOutage.US, more than 23,000 consumers in the state were without power at one time, as per FOX News.

On Wednesday evening, a line of strong storms generated Tornado Warnings in and around Nashville.

No significant damage has been reported, although the potential of heavy thunderstorms will persist until the evening.

The second severe weather season occurs in the fall when cold air from Canada begins to flood south into the United States and collides with warmer, more humid air coming north from the Gulf of Mexico.

This is what the FOX Forecast Center predicted for the rest of the week.

On Wednesday afternoon and evening, severe thunderstorms are most likely throughout sections of the mid-South, notably in the red-shaded areas on the map below.

However, isolated severe storms as far north as Kentucky and southern Ohio and as far west as the Ark-La-Tex region are likely.

The greatest threats in these locations are damaging wind gusts and huge hail, while an occasional tornado cannot be fully ruled out.

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee because of the danger.

The cold front will arrive in the eastern United States on Thursday, bringing a line of thunderstorms east of the Appalachians.

Heavy rain may threaten areas of the Southeast on Wednesday as tropical moisture pushes northward from the Gulf of Mexico.

From the central Gulf Coast to Georgia and South Carolina, one to two inches of rain is probable, with isolated amounts of up to three inches in a few areas.

However, flash flooding will be a problem by Thursday when the heavy rain moves to the Northeast, where moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic will combine and surge into the region ahead of the approaching cold front.

"It'll be a messy mess," Merwin said. "Thursday's nighttime commute will be chaotic."

A widespread region of one to three inches of rain is predicted in the Northeast, with locally higher amounts possible in northern New England, upstate New York, and northeastern Pennsylvania.

Also Read: Severe Weather and Flash Floods Wreak Havoc in the Southwestern United States Causing Massive Flight Delays

Scattered showers and storms Thursday afternoon

Higher moisture levels and increased cloudiness will aid to maintain recent nighttime temperatures, as per The Washington Post.

Expect mid-60s before sundown before dropping to the mid-50s to low 60s. Winds will be 5 to 10 mph out of the south.

From the morning on, there will be lots of clouds. The number of sunny intervals we get may influence how intense the afternoon and evening rains develop.

The biggest stormy weather window looks to be between 3 and 9 p.m. High temperatures will reach the low 70s before the showers and storms arrive. It's conceivable that a few storms will turn severe.

If this is the case, the biggest danger would be isolated destructive wind.

The levels of weed pollen and mold spores are low/moderate. Pollen from trees and grass is scarce.

On Thursday, the Storm Prediction Center issued a Level 1 of 5 "marginal risk" for storms, as well as a marginal risk for extreme rainfall.

Rainfall rates of an inch or more per hour may cause localized floods, particularly in metropolitan areas.

Related article: Severe Weather Warnings Issued for New Zealand Due to Heavy Rain and Snowfall
Cockroaches have been depicted in movies and various accounts to survive a nuclear war alone; this is in addition to living microorganisms such as the tardigrades that is believed to withstand the impact of a nuclear blast and its radiation afterward.

While considered a pest in both domestic and agricultural settings, these bugs have been around Earth long before the emergence of modern humans and animals.

Experts have considered the notion that cockroaches alone will survive a nuclear apocalypse.

However, they claimed this is only partially true since the survivability of cockroaches will still depend on its species and location should a nuclear explosion occurs.

In addition, they also claimed that other animals could also survive a nuclear disaster and this is especially the case for radiation-resistant insects.

Animal studies have shown that cockroaches have existed for millions of years, even surviving the dinosaur-killing asteroid 66 million years ago, which wiped out almost all species across the planet.

The cockroach's high survivability is due to its relatively high tolerance to radioactivity.

Earlier this year, Nature World News has also covered a number of animals that could survive during a nuclear war.

Cockroach Nuclear War Survival

Paul Eggleton, an entomology researcher at the Natural History Museum in London, told Newsweek that in all of his readings, it seems to portray that cockroaches surviving a nuclear war is an urban myth but with a resemblance of truth to it.

While an actual nuclear apocalypse has not occurred yet, all assessments regarding the cockroach's survival is based on morphological features.

Cockroaches, like most insects, are less impacted by radioactivity than mammals.

In general, bugs possess slow cell cycles, wherein cells are prone to radiation damage during cellular division. Insect cells divide less frequently compared to mammalian cells, which includes human cells.

As a result, insects are less likely affected by an instant radiation blast since it captures their cells less dividing, Eggleton added.

Also Read: How Did Cockroaches Actually Survive the Meteorite That Wiped Off Dinosaurs?

Extinct Cockroach Species

The discussion about the cockroach nuclear war survival comes as a previously though extinct cockroach species was found on Lord Howe Island in Australia.

The wingless cockroach specimen was last seen over 80 years ago.

They were thought to became extinct due to the introduction of rats on the island.

According to the Smithsonian Magazine, there are approximately 4,500 cockroach species worldwide but only 30 species are considered as pests, which are considered a nuisance or plague for humanity.

In the United States, the most common species is the American cockroach (Periplaneta americana) and German cockroach (Blattella germanica).

Cockroaches, although considered to be a successful species, experts have reportedly agreed that a lot of insects will also survive a nuclear event, as well as arthropods like scorpions.

A number of invertebrates could also survive, The Guardian noted.

Without removing any credit to the bugs, the survivability of cockroaches is also high due to their adaptability when it comes to eating food, including carcasses.

In a theoretical nuclear apocalypse world, these animals can almost eat anything organic.

Related Article: Survival 101: Here are 7 Animals That Can Survive a Nuclear War
Severe storms have been forecasted to strike the Northeast United States ahead of a looming cold front by the end of the week, according to US meteorologists.

The adverse weather will hit some of the major metropolitan areas across the East Coast, including those from Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and to New York City, where urban flash flooding could occur.

Northeast Severe Storms

The severe weather threat will shift from the Midwest and into the east starting Thursday, October 13.

The severe thunderstorms will transpire as a cold front progress through the Northeast US, which is at risk of experiencing a new round of widespread disruption.

AccuWeather meteorologists said the severe weather could bring the following weather hazards:

intense downpours

urban flooding

isolated tornadoes

travel delays

damaging wind gusts

poor visibility

Furthermore, strong winds and isolated tornadoes could also knock down power lines and cause sporadic power outages.

Also Read: Severe Thunderstorms, Winter Snow Expected as Cold Front Crashes Through Northeast US

What is a Cold Front?

When a weather front passes over an area it can lead to a change in the weather.

A number of fronts, including warm front or cold front, lead to a variety of weather events like heavy rain, gusty winds, thunderstorms, and tornadoes, according to the Center for Science Education of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR).

During a cold front, the occurrence of thunderstorms is possible, while a warm front could see a low stratus clouds.

Normally, the skies clear up once these fronts has passed.

Being part of a weather front, a transition zone between two distinct air masses on the Earth's surface, both cold and warm fronts are similar weather phenomenon with a mixture of different ingredients.

Each air masses, cold air and warm air, have unique temperature and humidity characteristics.

In most instances, there is a turbulence ongoing in a front, which serve as the borderline where the two different air masses collide with each other.

The turbulence alone can cause clouds and storms, UCAR added.

US Cold Fronts

In short, a cold front occurs when a cold air mass pushes into an area or larger region, replacing the existing warmer air mass.

In the US, cold fronts can occur at any time of the year, especially during the winter season from December to February, as well as during its onset and aftermath.

This year, cold fronts have been reported across the US, mainly in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast.

In most cases, cold air masses from Canada moves southward into the North American nation, causing localized weather disruption that result cooler temperatures with instances of rainfall.

In relation to the latest AccuWeather cold front forecast, the National Weather Service (NWS) said that wind, snow, and sub-freezing temperatures due to the "strong cold front" are on the way from Thursday to Friday, October 14.

This could likely extend until Saturday, October 15, the US weather agency said.

The NWS said temperatures could go down on Thursday night.

In addition, all areas between eastern Utah and western Colorado are expected to experience the freezing temperatures by Friday morning and Saturday morning.

Related Article: Cold Front Could Hit the Northeast US This Week Similar to a November Weather
Larry the cat went viral on social media in recent days after being seen chasing off a fox outside 10 Downing Street in London, England.

It is not clear how the fox stumbled upon the premises of the United Kingdom's Prime Minister's Office.

Fortunately, the chief mouser was out there to protect the vicinity of the government office, which was also stalked by other animals in the past including a pigeon.

In December 2020, Larry was also filmed in a scuffle with a pigeon.

The tabby cat stalked the bird outside the prime minister's official residence, where members of the press watched and recorded the incident with their cameras.

The mouser was also seen interacting with other cats in the neighborhood since its decade-long government career.

Larry's Fox Chase Video

The viral video was posted by the official Twitter page of Larry the Cat earlier this week with a caption of "fox off."

The 1-minute footage showed Larry slowly walking towards the fox amidst of what appears to be a nighttime scrimmage between the two animals.

It ended up with Larry the Downing Street cat winning the so-called "political catfight" in the heart of the British government on Monday evening, October 10.

The footage garnered almost 100,000 likes, more than 10,000 retweets, and almost 2,500 quote tweets as of Thursday, October 13.

The viral tweet also received multiple feedback in the comment section, where a majority of Twitter users supporting the UK government cat.

Other comments warned Larry to be careful as the short clip shows that he was likely chasing an adult fox.

Nevertheless, the cat was commended for his bravery during the fox chase, which ended up the fox running away as Larry stood his ground.

Larry's fox fight was captured on camera by Sky News outside the official residence of the incumbent UK Prime Minister Liz Truss, according to the Huffington Post.

Also Read: More than 500 New Species was Discovered by the Natural History Museum in 2021

Larry The Downing Street Cat

Since 2011, the British government appointed Larry as the first new chief mouser at No. 10 after replacing its predecessor and previous incumbent, Sybil the cat, who became tenured in September 2007 and retired in January 2009.

Sybil was the first chief mouser for ten years following the retirement of Humphrey the cat in 1997.

According to the UK government's website, Larry spends most of his days greeting guests to the residence, inspecting security defenses, and testing antique furniture for purposes of napping quality.

His daily responsibilities as the chief mouser includes implementing tactics against mouse occupancy inside the house.

Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office

In his official title, Larry became the "Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office" since February 15 in 2011.

The appointment came after the feline was recruited from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home following recommendations for his exemplary mousing skills.

While there are reported instances where Larry had some lazy day moments, the chief mouser still has proven to be an effective part of the UK administration.

Larry the cat is currently 14 years old and is believed to have been born in January 2007.

Related Article: Cat Hormones Offer Clue on Why These Felines Tolerate Cohabitation
NEW DELHI, INDIA: An Indian patient with the symptoms of bacterial meningitis lies on his bed at a special ward of the Hindu Rao Hospital in New Delhi, 10 May 2005. An outbreak of bacterial meningitis in the Indian capital has infected more than 170 people with 15 confirmed deaths from the disease, a spokesman for the New Delhi Health Ministry said. (Photo : Photo credit should read MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Doctors in India are facing a rash of antibiotic-resistant "superbug infections," a disease that directly caused 1.27 million deaths worldwide in 2019.

According to the BBC, the western Indian state of Maharashtra is currently facing a pandemic of antibiotics-resistant superbugs.

Due to this resistance, antibiotics did not work on most of the infections at the 1,000-bed Kasturba Hospital.

A global report said that millions are already dying from drug-resistant infections.

The largest study to date mentions malaria and AIDS among the causes of the annual death toll, in which India is one of the country's worst hits.

Doctors call the "antimicrobial resistance" responsible for the deaths of nearly 60,000 newborns annually, and it gets worse every year.

A 'Hidden' Pandemic

Doctors at Kasturba Hospital carried out tests to find out which antibiotic would be most effective in tackling five main bacterial pathogens, but all seem to be barely effective.

The pathogens include E.coli (Escherichia coli), commonly found in intestines after consuming contaminated foods; Klebsiella pneumoniae, which can infect the lungs to cause pneumonia, and the blood, cuts in the skin and the lining of the brain to cause meningitis; and the deadly Staphylococcus aureus, a food-borne bacteria that can be transmitted through air droplets or aerosols.

Tests showed that some of the main antibiotics were less than 15% effective in treating infections caused by these pathogens.

"As almost all our patients cannot afford the higher antibiotics, they run the real risk of dying when they develop ventilator-associated pneumonia in the ICU," said Dr SP Kalantri, medical superintendent of the hospital.

Health officials warned of a "hidden pandemic" of antibiotic-resistant infections if people refuse to learn after Covid outbreak.

A new report by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) says that resistance to a powerful class of antibiotics, such as carbapenems had risen by up to 10% in just one year alone, while only 43% of the pneumonia infections in India were treated with first line of antibiotics in 2021.

Things have gotten so bad that 6 out of 10 patients in one of the AMRI Hospital's ICU have drug-resistant infections.

"The situation is truly alarming. We have come to a stage where you are not left with too many options to treat some of these patients," said Saswati Sinha, a critical care specialist.

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More Harm Than Benefits

Dr Kalantri said that the situation in hospitals has been desperate, and that more antibiotics is likely to result in more harm than benefits.

Even public health experts said antibiotics have been prescribed "indiscriminately."

For instance, patients were treated with antibiotics during the chaotic treatment of Covid-19 which only resulted in more adverse effects.

An ICMR study of 17,534 Covid-19 patients in Indian hospitals last year found that more than half of them who acquired drug-resistant infections died.

However, doctors are not to blame entirely.

Crowded public hospitals, lack of knowledge about antibiotics, and hospital infections due to poor hygiene and sanitation are to blame as well.

India may need to invest more diagnostic labs, infectious diseases physicians, and more training to reduce hospital infections according to experts.

Related article: Explaining How Tardigrades Manages to Survive Under Extreme Conditions
Royal Marines spearheaded the UKs largest combined amphibious exercises in years as they cleared the way for a formidable joint force to land in Cyprus. The exercise was a rehearsal of Joint Theatre Entry  military parlance for the landing of lots of different military elements from air, land and sea into a potentially hostile region.

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A Wildcat helicopter flies towards Hurst Point (Picture source: Royal Navy)

Forces launched from the sea from a Royal Navy task force deployed on a European security mission  known as Littoral Response Group North  which is operating across the Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa and the Adriatic this autumn.

More than a thousand sailors and Royal Marines are deployed with this response force, which is led by amphibious flagship HMS Albion and includes RFA Argus, RFA Mounts Bay, HMS Defender and three helicopter squadrons.

This potent group came together with elements from the British Army and RAF to operate in the waters around the RAF base in Akrotiri, on the southern-most tip of Cyprus.

Royal Marines of Arbroath-based 45 Commando led the way, forming a beachhead after launching from landing craft from Albion and Merlin helicopters based on RFA Mounts Bay and RFA Argus.

It paved the way for the British Armys 17 Port and Maritime Regiment of the Royal Logistic Corps to offload equipment from cargo ship Hurst Point, with a Royal Navy Puma drone providing surveillance overhead.

After establishing logistics, the joint force was then ready to forge inland and complete further objectives, being tested in a range of real-world scenarios from war fighting to disaster relief and humanitarian aid.

As commandos led the way, a range of infrastructure was brought ashore for Royal Engineers to build a camp able to support 500 personnel and designed to house people in the event of a crisis.

Captain Simon Kelly, task group commander and Commanding Officer of HMS Albion, said: Very few Armed Forces have the ability to deliver joint amphibious effect on this scale and at this pace.

The landing craft and helicopters of the Littoral Response Group North task group were a key part of supporting the Army and RAF in exercising this key UK capability.

Our time alongside in Cyprus also provided a fantastic opportunity to support the British High Commission, demonstrating the UKs commitment to the island.

A Mexeflote raft lands at shore to allow vehicles onto land (Picture source: Royal Navy)

The exercises  known by the codename Austere Wolf  tested how the Littoral Response Group North operates, looking at how quickly it is able to come together, hit a coastline and push forward inland from a beachhead.

Lieutenant Colonel Paul Timmins Royal Marines, HMS Albions Amphibious Operations Officer, said: Exercise Austere Wolf has offered us a unique opportunity to integrate land, sea and air elements in this environment.

We have had the opportunity to develop the Royal Navys Littoral Strike capability further, allowing us to deliver joint combined amphibious operations more effectively.

As supplies rolled ashore, 45 Commando strike teams  comprised of small determined bands of commandos chosen for each specific mission  continued to forge inland, tasked with clearing the ruins of Old Paramali, an abandoned village around 16 miles from Akrotiri.

The marines worked closely with the Armys 33 Engineer Regiment and, with fire support from teams, including Viking armoured vehicles, from their brethren in 45 Commando and 29 Commando Royal Artillery, they cleared the village at pace.

1 Military Working Dogs Regiment were then deployed to search the captured village to collect intelligence to shape future operations, while engineers used Dragon Runner bomb disposal robots during a bomb disposal training scenario.

Back at the beachhead, as vehicles streamed ashore, a mock explosive device on the slipway created an emergency for the task force to react to.

This is when support ship RFA Argus and her on-board medical facilities came into their own.

Casualties were rapidly moved from the battlefield to Argus using Merlin helicopters from 845 Naval Air Squadron, and were treated and assessed while trialling new equipment.

Lieutenant David Roper, Officer Commanding of RFA Argus Medical Facilities, said: RFA Argus has a world-class medical facility that provides timely access to deployed hospital care for the Royal Navy, along with its allies and partners.

We deliver consultant-led damage control resuscitation and surgery as well as specialist diagnostics such as Computerised Tomography (CT Scan), x-ray imaging and pathology services. This has allowed us to trial new equipment and techniques to better improve medical support to the frontline.

Once Austere Wolf was over, HMS Albion headed to Limassol to conduct defence engagement activity.

The ships flight deck hosted a reception and amphibious capability demonstration attended by the Defence Minister for the Republic of Cyprus, supporting the culmination of the British High Commissioner's Security Policy Event.

Hurst Point with RFA Argus in the background (Picture source: Royal Navy)
Our County Editor

Dave Hinton is editor of The News-Gazette's Our County section and former editor of the Rantoul Press. He can be reached at dhinton@news-gazette.com.
MANZINI  Unionised civil servants should be on all fours and pray that there are no technical glitches that might stall the roll-out of their cost-of-living adjustment (CoLA).

The unionised civil servants last Wednesday, through the Public Sector Unions (PSUs) of Swaziland (Eswatini), concluded negotiations on CoLA, albeit claims of being held to ransom.

The PSUs, who represent about 21 535 civil servants, signed a collateral agreement with the employer, which awarded them three per cent CoLA of the monthly basic salary across the board and also a once-off payment of one per cent of annual basic salary across the board to their members.

The CoLA and once-off payment shall be backdated to April 1, 2022. The unionised civil servants were left out in a similar deal which was endorsed by government in June and paid to un-unionised civil servants, who include State security officers, politicians and managers in the civil service.Given that the Government Negotiation Team (GNT) and the PSUs signed the collective agreement, the Principal Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Public Service, Sipho Tsabedze, was sought for comment on whether the unionised civil servants would be paid this month their CoLA. Tsabedze said: We are working and hoping that it is deposited into their accounts this month; however, what could derail the process could be technical glitches.

Arise

He said the technical glitches would arise from the fact that the Treasury Department, in the Ministry of Finance, would have to sift the names of the unionised public servants as there was a group that had been awarded same in the past months. The PS said government would be certain that every civil servant would be remunerated the revised amounts if the negotiations had not resulted in the parties negotiating signing collective agreements with government at different timeframes. On the other hand, the joint negotiation forum (JNF) has reverted to being fortnightly. This was further confirmed by the President of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), Mbongwa Dlamini. He said this was because they had almost addressed all the items on the agenda and those that were left needed the PSUs and the GNT to update each other on how far they had been dealt with.

Government had E220 million as the budget for CoLA, through the Appropriations Act No. 1 of 2023. Also, E55 million was set aside for the 2016 Salary Review Appeals and E15 million for the engagement of a consultant to undertake a salary review of the entire public service. It is worth noting that the lowest paid civil servant, who is a cleaner, will get E85.71 more per month as cushion against inflation. This calculation was for an employee who is paid on Grade A 1 Notch 1.
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A clinical trial to evaluate the antiviral drug tecovirimat, also known as TPOXX, in adults and children with monkeypox has begun in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The trial will evaluate the drug's safety and its ability to mitigate monkeypox symptoms and prevent serious outcomes, including death. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and the DRC's National Institute for Biomedical Research (INRB) are co-leading the trial as part of the government-to-government PALM partnership. Collaborating institutions include the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, the aid organization Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

TPOXX, made by the pharmaceutical company SIGA Technologies, Inc. (New York), is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of smallpox. The drug impedes the spread of virus in the body by preventing virus particles from exiting human cells. The drug targets a protein that is found on both the virus that causes smallpox and the monkeypox virus.

"Monkeypox has caused a high burden of disease and death in children and adults in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and improved treatment options are urgently needed," said NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. "This clinical trial will yield critical information about the safety and efficacy of tecovirimat for monkeypox. I want to thank our DRC scientific partners as well as the Congolese people for their continued collaboration in advancing this important clinical research."

Since the 1970s, monkeypox virus has caused sporadic cases and outbreaks, primarily in the rainforest areas of central Africa, and in west Africa. A multi-continent outbreak of monkeypox in areas where the disease is not endemic, including Europe and the United States, has been ongoing since May 2022 with the majority of cases occurring in men who have sex with men. The outbreak has prompted recent public health emergency declarations from the WHO and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. From Jan.1, 2022 to Oct. 5, 2022, the WHO has reported 68,900 confirmed cases and 25 deaths from 106 countries, areas and territories.

According to the WHO, cases identified as part of the ongoing global outbreak are largely caused by monkeypox virus Clade IIb. Clade I, which is estimated to cause more severe disease and higher mortality than Clade IIa and Clade IIb, especially in children, is responsible for infections in the DRC. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has reported 3,326 cases of monkeypox (165 confirmed; 3,161 suspected) and 120 deaths in the DRC from Jan. 1, 2022 to Sept. 21, 2022.

People can become infected with monkeypox through contact with infected animals, such as rodents, or nonhuman primates or humans. The virus can transmit among humans by direct contact with skin lesions, body fluids, and respiratory droplets, including through intimate and sexual contact; and by indirect contact with contaminated clothing or bedding. Monkeypox can cause flu-like symptoms and painful skin lesions. Complications can include dehydration, bacterial infections, pneumonia, brain inflammation, sepsis, eye infections and death.

The trial will enroll up to 450 adults and children with laboratory-confirmed monkeypox infection who weigh at least 3 kilograms (kg). Pregnant women are also eligible to enroll. The volunteer participants will be assigned at random to receive either oral tecovirimat or placebo capsules twice daily for 14 days, with the dose administered dependent on the participant's weight. The trial is double-blinded, so participants and investigators do not know who will receive tecovirimat or placebo.

All participants will stay at a hospital for at least 14 days where they will receive supportive care. Study clinicians will regularly monitor participants' clinical status throughout the study, and participants will be asked to provide blood, throat swab, and skin lesion swab samples for laboratory evaluations. The study is primarily designed to compare the average time to healed skin lesions among those receiving tecovirimat versus those receiving placebo. Investigators will also gather data on multiple secondary objectives, including comparisons of how quickly participants test negative for monkeypox virus in the blood, overall severity and duration of disease, and mortality between groups.

Participants will be discharged from the hospital once all lesions have scabbed over or flaked off, and after they test negative for monkeypox virus in the blood for two days in a row. They will be followed for at least 28 days and will be asked to return for an optional study visit after 58 days for additional clinical and laboratory tests. An independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board will monitor participant safety throughout the duration of the study.

The trial is led by co-principal investigators Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum, M.D., Ph.D., director-general of INRB and professor of microbiology at Kinshasa University Medical School in Gombe, Kinshasa; and Placide Mbala, M.D., Ph.D., operations manager of the PALM project and head of the Epidemiology Department and the Pathogen Genomic Laboratory at INRB.

I am happy that monkeypox is no longer a neglected disease and that soon, thanks to this study, we will be able to prove that there is an effective treatment for this disease." Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum, M.D., Ph.D., Director-General of INRB and Professor of Microbiology, Kinshasa University Medical School in Gombe, Kinshasa

For more information, please visit clinicaltrials.gov and search identifier NCT05559099. The trial timeline will depend on the pace of enrollment. A separate NIAID-supported trial of TPOXX is ongoing in the United States. For information about the U.S. trial, visit the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) website and search TPOXX or study A5418.

PALM is short for "Pamoja Tulinde Maisha" a Kiswahili phrase that translates to "together save lives." NIAID and the DRC Ministry of Health established the PALM clinical research partnership in response to the 2018 Ebola outbreak in Eastern DRC. The collaboration has continued as a multilateral clinical research program composed of NIAID, the DRC Ministry of Health, INRB and INRB's partners. PALM's first study was the randomized controlled trial of multiple therapeutics for Ebola virus disease, which supported the regulatory approvals of the NIAID-developed mAb114 (Ebanga) and REGN-EB3 (Inmazeb, developed by Regeneron) treatments.
After the fall of communism in Romania, thousands of children were discovered in institutional orphanages across the country. Because of high child-to-caregiver ratios, these children were neglected, with overall low levels of caregiving and very regimented non-individualized care. Without a foster care program at that time in Romania, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers Charles Zeanah, Charles Nelson and Nathan Fox set up a new grant-funded foster care intervention program. This program was well supported, with frequent visits by a dedicated team of social workers to foster families.

Children were randomly selected to participate in this foster care program providing scientists an unusual opportunity to study what happens to children's brains when they're deprived of attention and emotional connection. A new study by the group published on Oct. 7 in Science Advances shows that early deprivation continues to affect brain development well into adolescence.

We know from years of animal work that experiences early in life shape brain development but until now, this has never been shown conclusively in humans." Margaret Sheridan, Clinical Psychologist, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Margaret Sheridan is the lead author on a new study showing that deprivation in early childhood shapes the development of brain structure through adolescence.

Sheridan and a team of researchers from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project published their findings today in Science Advances. Their research shows that children who were randomly placed out of institutional care and into well-supported foster care before the age of 3 had changes in areas of the brain that support higher-order problem solving years later, when the children were 16.

In addition, children placed into high-quality foster care before 3 years old saw typical brain development from 9 to 16 years, in areas related to emotional reactivity, language, and executive function, but this pattern was altered to children who were deprived of family care.

"Here we show that that the opportunities that a child has in early life to learn and grow will impact not just their behavior but their actual brain development and brain structure for years to come," says Sheridan. "Children need invested caregivers supporting their development from a very early age."

The Bucharest Early Intervention Project, launched in 2001 is a landmark study of the impact of institutionalization, a severe form of neglect on child development. It is the only randomized controlled trial of foster care as an alternative to institutional rearing. Between the ages of 6 and 33 months, 68 children were removed from orphanages and placed in high-quality foster care. Families who received a foster child were frequently visited by a social work and given significant financial support, which helped families integrate and provide support.

The children have been tracked throughout their childhoods, and initial evidence of the negative impact of institutionalization on development changed the way Romania approached childcare and family leave.

"This new evidence shows what doesn't happen to children matters just as much as what does happen for child brain development," says Sheridan.
A personal mission inspires Mary Dioise Ramos every day, and now she'll have a chance to bring positive change to people suffering from Alzheimer's disease and related dementia.

The assistant professor of nursing in Kennesaw State University's Wellstar College of Health and Human Services was awarded a $149,974 grant from the Alzheimer's Association as well as a separate grant from the Asian Resource Center for Minority Aging Research. Both grants will shed light on caregiving for Alzheimer's patients in Filipino and Filipino-American communities.

This is something personal for me because my grandmother has Alzheimer's. Despite the abundance and importance of Filipino-American caregivers in the healthcare workforce, there is scarce research about them. As an immigrant who grew up in the Philippines, I embark on a journey as a nurse scientist to advocate for promoting health equity among Filipino-American communities. So, this is especially meaningful for me." Mary Dioise Ramos, Kennesaw State University's Wellstar College of Health and Human Services

The research will involve conducting surveys in Filipino and Filipino-American communities regarding quality of life of both persons with dementia and their care partners, and conduct focus groups discussing opportunities and challenges regarding managing health and healthcare. From there, Ramos said she hopes to develop and test effective strategies for caregivers, as well as provide support for them, so they can determine solutions while caring for relatives.

A nurse for almost 20 years, Ramos specializes in caring for the older adults. Through the work on this grant, she hopes to bridge the gap between nursing and people caring for older adult family members by giving them the tools to identify dementia-related illnesses and provide optimal care at home.

"Part of our role as nurses is to educate and empower family members to make decisions regarding care," she said. "We consider family to be our care partners, so we want to prepare them for this role the best we can and ease both the financial and emotional burdens of caregiving."

Ramos has taught at KSU since 2018 and has worked with the First-Year Scholars program through the Office of Research on this project. Last year, she had three students present their research on caregiving at the Symposium of Student Scholars, projects that helped produce the initial study on caregiving for older adults in underserved communities.

"Students get exposure to important aspects of health equity through this study, something they'll deal with in their careers as nurses," Ramos said. "The great thing about Kennesaw State is students are encouraged to pursue research with relevance."
Two new papers from Mass General Brigham demonstrate the effectiveness of bringing COVID-19 health care services to where people need them the most. At the beginning of May 2021, a team from Mass General Brigham began providing COVID vaccinations to underserved populations living in the greater Boston area by sending mobile health units to 12 predominantly low-income and racial/ethnic minority communities in Massachusetts. Using community health vans, teams offered easily accessible vaccination on a walk-in basis without regard to insurance, immigration status, or ability to pay. In a paper published today in The American Journal of Public Health, Mass General Brigham authors describe the success and challenges of the new program, which had higher vaccination rates among adolescents, non-white populations, and people of Hispanic ethnicity compared to vaccination rates in the state and in the local communities.

"To date, our program has provided almost 20,000 COVID-19 vaccination doses," said corresponding author Priya Sarin Gupta, MD, MPH, medical director of the Mass General Brigham and Kraft Center Community Care Van Initiatives. "Our goal was to take COVID-19 health and vaccination services to the community and meet people where they are. The data from the first few months of Mass General Brigham's Community Care Vans, sometimes called our 'clinics on wheels,' show us that if you build it -; and you build it well -; they will come."

In their AJPH paper, Sarin Gupta and colleagues outline what it took to build their program well and implement it effectively. Key elements to the program included:

Engaging and partnering with community nonprofit organizations, local departments of health, and school board representatives;

Staffing vans with trained, multilingual staff members and engaging a large volunteer network;

Identifying the right places and times to reach communities that have been hardest hit by COVID-19.

The program also used a "double equity" model, engaging with a local transportation company that was at risk of downsizing because of economic losses during the pandemic.

In a companion paper recently published in Preventive Medicine, investigators analyzed results from the first three months of the program. From May 20 to Aug. 18, 2021, the community health vans held 130 sessions and administered 2,622 COVID-19 vaccine doses. During the study, just 20 percent of people who received a vaccine from one of the mobile clinics self-identified as white. More than 56 percent listed their ethnicity as Hispanic (compared to the state's vaccination rate of about 18 percent). Additionally, participants were more likely to be adolescents -; the average age of people vaccinated at the mobile clinics was 31 years old. These early findings allowed the program to iterate and expand to more communities to maximize the program's reach to communities serving people of color and those with high rates of health-related social needs.

The authors note that mobile health units could be used to help address other community health needs beyond  and sometimes entangled with -; COVID-19. The vans are now expanding their offerings to include a menu of services to offer care for preventable and chronic conditions, including offering high-blood pressure screening.

Already, we are seeing participants come to us who are interested in getting vaccinated, and also get screened for high-blood pressure while they are there -; and vice versa. Some participants ask us, 'What are you going to provide next?' It gives me hope. If we can provide care with cultural humility and ensure that everyone has access, we can begin to overcome barriers such as mistrust." Priya Sarin Gupta, MD, MPH, Medical Director of the Mass General Brigham and Kraft Center Community Care Van Initiatives
A new study that links the location of brain injury to levels of depression in patients following the injury has identified two distinct brain networks; one associated with increased depression symptoms and one associated with decreased depression symptoms. The large-scale study led by researchers with University of Iowa Health Care expands on previous findings and suggests that these brain networks might be potential targets for neuromodulation therapies to treat depression.

Neuromodulation therapies such as transcranial magnetic stimulation, or deep brain stimulation, are emerging as new non-pharmacological treatments for mood disorders. However, understanding which areas of the brain to target to get the best therapeutic effect is still limited.

The new findings, which are published in the journal Brain, used brain imaging scans and depression scores from 526 patients who had acquired localized areas of brain injury from a stroke or other type of traumatic brain injury. A detailed statistical analysis of the patients' data allowed the researchers to correlate the brain lesion locations with levels of depression experienced by the patients in the months following the brain injury.

We found some really interesting results identifying specific brain structures that were associated with higher levels of depression post lesion, and surprisingly, also found some areas that were associated with lower-than-average levels of depression post lesion." Nicholas Trapp, MD, UI assistant professor of psychiatry and lead author of the study

Risk and resilience networks in depression

Using data from functional brain scans of healthy subjects to understand how these structures were interconnected, the researchers then discovered that the risk and resilience regions were not randomly scattered within the brain. Instead, regions most strongly associated with increased depression coincided with the nodes of the so-called salience network, which is involved in task reorientation, attention, and emotion processing.

In contrast, peak resilience regions that were associated with less depression, were part of a network known as the default mode network, which is thought to be involved in introspection, or self-referential thinking.

"Previous studies have suggested nodes of this network may be hyperactive in people with depression, who are prone to ruminating," says Trapp, who also is a member of the Iowa Neuroscience Institute. "It's possible that lesions within this network may alter that circuit in a way that leads people to report less depression."

Patients whose brain lesions did not fall within either network had an average score of depression following their brain injury and provided a comparison group in the study.

Strength in numbers

The initial lesion mapping approach used by Trapp and his colleagues is a powerful tool for inferring if a brain region is required for a behavior, emotion, or cognitive ability. If damage to a specific area leads to loss of the ability, the area is most likely required for the ability. However, identifying an effect when the regions are spread across a network within the brain requires data from many patients, which may have hindered earlier smaller studies.

Trapp and his team were able to conduct they study thanks to two large patient registries: the Iowa Neurological Patient Registry based at the UI, and the Vietnam head injury study, which is affiliated with researchers at Northwestern University.

"Being able to identify these brain regions is really a product of having a large sample to study," Trapp says. "It's very challenging to recruit these patients and collect the data that's required. The decades of efforts here at the University of Iowa (establishing and maintaining the Iowa Neurological Patient Registry) positions us extremely well to do these types of studies."

Potential new targets for neuromodulation

Trapp hopes the findings will improve understanding of the causes of depression and potentially lead to better treatments.

"This could open the doors to potential studies looking at deep brain stimulation, or non-invasive forms of stimulation like TMS, where we might be able to modulate the specific brain areas or networks that we've identified, to try to get antidepressant effect, or potentially other therapeutic effects," he says.

In addition to Trapp, the UI research team included Aaron Boes, Joel Bruss, Kenneth Manzel, and Dan Tranel, of the UI Department of Neurology, and Jordan Grafman of the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago

The study was funded in part by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and the Kiwanis Neuroscience Research Foundation.
Researchers say they plan to roll out a new malaria vaccine next year after tests on children in West Africa found it to be up to 80 per cent effective.

More than 100 malaria vaccine candidates have undergone trials on humans in recent decades but none has previously met the World Health Organizations 75 per cent plus efficacy target.

Scientists have warned that progress has stalled in the fight against the mosquito-borne disease, which caused over 640,000 deaths in 2020, the majority of them children in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Researchers from the University of Oxford and the Health Sciences Research Institute (IRSS) in Nanoro, Burkina Faso say a booster shot of the candidate malaria vaccine, called R21, showed 80 per cent efficacy on children who received the highest dose one year after an initial three-dose course.

Seventy-eight per cent efficacy was maintained for two years after the booster was administered during the trial involving 450 children aged between five- and 17-months-old at the Clinical Research Unit of Nanoro. There were no serious side effects, the researchers say.

This is yet another first in the history of malaria vaccine research IRSS Regional Director Halidou Tinto, Professor in Parasitology and Trials Principal Investigator

It means that we can maintain an efficacy of more than 75 per cent over the long term if we administer a booster dose and this should enable children living in malaria-endemic regions such as Burkina to be very well protected against malaria at the age when they are most vulnerable.

The vaccine  which Tinto describes as an improved version of the RTS,S vaccine that is being rolled out in a number of African countries  had already shown 77 per cent efficacy in the first year in an earlier trial in 2021.

The phase two trial has been extended for a further two years to assess whether additional booster doses are needed to maintain this high efficacy over time.

Tinto says he is optimistic that the latest results can also be replicated in an ongoing phase three trial involving 4,800 children in Burkina Faso, Mali, Kenya and Tanzania. Results are expected later this year.

2023 rollout

The R21 vaccine, developed at the University of Oxfords Jenner Institute, is licensed for production by the Serum Institute of India (SII).

We are already planning, in collaboration with our partners  to take a programmatic deployment of R21 from 2023 on a population of at least 250,000 children in Burkina Faso, in order to accelerate the agenda for the deployment of this vaccine on a large scale in Africa, said Tinto.

He said SII was committed to producing at least 100-200 million doses of the R21 vaccine per year subject to the WHO issuing a recommendation for its deployment. This will supplement the only vaccine currently recommended by WHO (RTS,S) whose current production capacity cannot meet global demand, Tinto added.

RTS,S, the worlds first malaria vaccine, was recommended by the WHO in October 2021, for use in children at risk in Sub-Saharan Africa and other regions with moderate to high transmission of malaria caused by the Plasmodium falciparum parasite.

However, scientists have stressed the need for further vaccine development and research investment.

Jenner Institute director Adrian Hill, co-author of the R21 study published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases, said this was the best data yet from any malaria vaccine.

We are delighted to find that a standard four dose immunisation regime can now, for the first time, reach the high efficacy level over two years that has been an aspirational target for malaria vaccines for so many years, he said.

He said the vaccine would give durable protection to the most important group who need it: young African children. But he stressed that the 77 per cent accuracy of the vaccine was dependent on other control measures such as insecticides and bednets, which should continue to be used.

James Tibenderana, who will take over as the chief executive of the non-profit Malaria Consortium in October, described the results as remarkable.

Tibenderana, who was not involved in the R21 trials, said the fast-paced development and roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines showed that it was possible to shorten the time-frame for vaccine development and distribution while still mitigating risks.

I hope these results motivate increased and sustained investments in research and development for malaria vaccines, and their equitable access, because they prevent malaria infections and save lives, he said.
Tuberculosis can be tough to detect. Diagnosis usually requires coughing up a sputum sample from the lungs, which can be unpleasant, impractical, and even hazardous. But in a promising new study, a multinational team of researchers may have found another way to identify the bacterial disease.

Having patients spit into a cup, then loading saliva into a commercially available testing cartridge can detect the bacteria that causes TB, they found-;even though the cartridge is designed to use sputum.

If additional studies confirm the cartridges can reliably use saliva, the novel process could simplify widespread tuberculosis screening, especially in clinics with limited resources. That could enhance efforts to find and treat people with TB and help control global spread of the deadly infection.

"What we wanted to do in this study was to try to improve on the standard diagnostic technologies," said senior author Dr. J. Lucian "Luke" Davis, MD, who is an associate professor of epidemiology (microbial diseases) at the Yale School of Public Health and of medicine (pulmonary) at the Yale School of Medicine

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified a need to test for TB by other means than sputum, he explained. To be useful, any such test would need to pick up at least 90% of infected people.

"We were able to meet that threshold in this project," Davis said. The study provides an important proof of concept that the approach can work in routine clinical settings, and not just in specialized laboratories, he said.

Another window on tuberculosis

In the current study, the researchers examined the accuracy of a next-generation molecular testing cartridge called GeneXpert MTB/RIF Ultra (Xpert Ultra), made by the Sunnyvale, California-based company Cepheid. Widely used worldwide, the test runs automatically to detect DNA from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which causes TB.

With a sputum sample, the test is nearly as sensitive as gold-standard culture techniques. How it might perform with saliva, though, had not been previously investigated.

The research team recruited clinic patients who were already known to have tuberculosis. Per routine, each participant first coughed up a sputum sample, with which the researchers confirmed infection by both culturing it and cartridge testing.

Then, each provided saliva, which the team loaded into another Xpert Ultra cartridge.

The results were encouraging. Among 78 people with culture-confirmed TB, the cartridges picked up 70 cases using saliva, which works out to 90% sensitivity.

Among people living with HIV, the test did less well, picking up just under three-fourths of known tuberculosis cases. By contrast, in HIV-negative people, it found 95% of cases. (Because of their altered immune response, tuberculosis-affected people living with HIV tend to have fewer tuberculosis bacteria than their HIV-negative counterparts.)

The study was intentionally small, intended to get an idea of whether the method works. The researchers have not yet tried testing children's saliva, nor that of people with non-productive cough-;both groups that could benefit from saliva testing.

What easier testing could mean

In 2020 alone, tuberculosis killed 1.5 million people worldwide, surpassed in lethality only by COVID-19. Both diseases spread readily through the air. The United Nations aims to end the TB epidemic by 2030. But with 10 million people newly infected just in 2020, meeting that goal will require aggressive efforts at early detection.

For many years, TB detection has required a sputum sample. In fact, Davis said, tuberculosis researchers and clinicians have long been taught not to accept samples that look like saliva. That's because saliva might not contain enough bacteria to show up under the microscope or grow in culture.

Even with a good sputum sample, though, traditional diagnostic techniques can miss a lot of cases. And there are other downsides to sputum. Coughing it up risks infecting people nearby, including medical providers. And some people can't produce sputum on demand, while others feel stigmatized by the request, Davis explained.

But times are changing. Molecular diagnostic techniques are widely available. After endorsement by the WHO in 2010, the Xpert Ultra has sold millions of cartridges in 130 countries at about $10 each. Cepheid receives an additional $10 subsidy from the global health initiative UNITAID on every cartridge sold, meaning that Cepheid receives around $20 per unit, Davis said.

The test was a "game-changer," Davis said, proving both faster and more sensitive than microscope-based TB diagnostics.

Evidence that the test might also work with saliva is welcome.

"Some people find it a little bit uncomfortable [to produce sputum], especially around [other] people," said lead author Patrick Byanyima, an international scientist in training at Makerere University and a member of the Infectious Diseases Research Collaboration in Kampala, Uganda, both longtime collaborators with the Yale School of Public Health.

Participants were much more receptive when asked for a saliva sample.

In many cases, the patients will not need to really move far away from the rest while they're giving the specimen. That was the beauty of saliva." Patrick Byanyima, Lead Author

Previous research has explored the use of saliva in TB diagnosis. But the current study is the largest of its kind, and the first to use a widely available testing device.

Having demonstrated saliva testing is feasible, the researchers plan next to test larger groups, such as members of patients' households. They also aim to see if procedural tweaks, like asking people not to eat or brush their teeth before providing a sample, might improve test performance.

The study appears online in Microbiology Spectrum. The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health.
MANZINI  Investigations have started at His Majestys Correctional Services (HMCS) regarding the march of some of their officers to Cabinet on Tuesday.

This was said by the HMCS Public Relations Officer, Gugulethu Dlamini. She said given that the actions of the junior officers were deviant from the Correctional Services Act of 2017, investigations had started in order to follow the laws that guided the institution. Dlamini also said at the moment, the HMCS did not recognise the association as the regulations guiding its operations were yet to be passed in Parliament. For now, the association cant operate, Dlamini said.

She said this when sought for comment on what would happen as their officers had expressed a need for better remuneration, through the petition delivery. She was asked how would they know the officers who participated and if the staff association had not used means within its scope to express the needs of its members. It is worth noting that Section 38 (3) of the Correctional Services Act of 2017 states that where a correctional services officer is suspended as a result of an internal disciplinary proceedings emanating from a misdemeanor (excluding a criminal offence), such officer may receive the full or such portion of that officers salary, not being less than half, as the commission may determine.

Essential

On the other hand, the Act in Section 114 reads: The Correctional Services, as a disciplined force, shall remain an essential service. In section 115, it states that a staff association as members of a disciplined force, shall have a right to associate with associations having similar interest and objectives while in Section 116, it reads: Notwithstanding the provisions of section 3 of the Industrial Relations Act No. 001 of 2000, disputes arising under this Part, shall be dealt with in terms of the mechanism provided under section 96 of the Industrial Relations Act No. 001 of 2000 or its successor.
A web-based app shows potential for advancing the communication skills of children with developmental disorders in low- and middle-income countries, according to a recent study co-authored by Georgia State University researchers.

The self-guided app, designed to be used by caregivers in South Africa, provides structured activities that encourage caregiver-child communication and can be implemented into daily routines.

It has the potential to make a difference in how families interact with their children with significant communication disabilities." MaryAnn Romski, Lead Author, Regents' Professor in Georgia State's Department of Communication and Department of Psychology

Romski and co-author Rose Sevcik, Regents' Professor in Georgia State's Department of Psychology, have been collaborating with researchers in South Africa since a 2002 College of Arts & Sciences faculty trip to the country. They saw firsthand the differences between the United States and South Africa in the degree of communication support offered to children with developmental disorders.

"The children receive intervention once a month for 30 minutes," Romski said. "In the U.S., it would be two to three times a week for an hour."

This contrast is due to a limited number of speech-language pathologists in South Africa.

Furthermore, many families lack the means to bring children to the hospitals where support is provided. To combat this issue, Romski, Sevcik and their colleagues set out to create a more accessible alternative.

"The purpose was to develop an app to be used by rural families," said Romski. "We took the intervention protocol we'd developed in the U.S. and modified the material for an app."

The team of U.S. and South African researchers, including University of Pretoria Professor Juan Bornman, conducted focus groups in which they asked families and speech-language clinicians in South Africa for their input in developing the software.

What they created was a web-based, self-guided app with instructions in both English and Setswana, one of several official languages of South Africa, that provided caregivers with structured activities they used at home with their children.

The app consisted of 48 sessions in three topic areas: creating communication opportunities, modeling communication and responding to the child's communication. In their own homes over the course of 12 weeks, caregivers and children completed the guided activities together.

The app was given the Setswana name "Nna le wena," meaning "me and you."

Researchers recruited families whose children were receiving speech-language therapy at local hospitals. While half of these families continued with therapy only, the other half were asked to use the app, installed on a tablet provided by researchers, in addition to therapy.

According to the study, published in a special family-themed issue of the Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, there was a modest difference between groups in their objective measures of progress, which the authors noted could be a result of sample size and the standardized assessment measures.

However, the feedback from caregivers was encouraging. More than half of those who completed at least 44 of the 48 sessions reported that their children showed progress in their communication skills, such as using words instead of crying.

"While it seems minor, they're actually big leaps in what a child can do," said Romski. "The children become more intentional in how they're communicating."

While caregivers had previously relied on a professional to help their child only once a month, "Nna le wena" offered caregivers in South Africa a blueprint for supporting their child's development at home.

"This framework may also have usefulness in other countries around the globe, including the U.S., to support and empower caregivers as the drivers of early communication interventions," the authors wrote.
MANZINI  This is war for our salaries!

Lowly ranked personnel in the two law enforcement agencies (REPS and HMCS), who are demanding the implementation of Phase II of the salary restructuring exercise, have responded to the statement by the National Commissioner (natcom) of Police, William Tsitsibala Dlamini. REPS is the Royal Eswatini Police Service while HMCS stands for His Majestys Correctional Services. Dlamini, through the office of the Chief Police Information and Communications Officer, Superintendent Phindile Vilakati, on Tuesday said, as a police service, they bore witness to a shocking act of ill-discipline and defiance when a group of police and correctional officers marched to deliver a petition to the Cabinet Offices on the now much publicised matter of Phase II of the salary restructuring exercise.

He said: This unfortunate act was despite the fact that the minister of Public Service has held several meetings with the Police Staff Association and leadership on the matter and last Friday he issued a statement outlining progress and how this issue would be addressed going forward. As a police service, we would like to state that such behaviour goes against the set standards of acceptable code of conduct for its members.

In response to this, the junior officers said they were governed by the Police Service Act of 2018, which in Section 67 specified what was the role of the Police Staff Association. The Police Service Act of 2018 in Section 67 (1) reads: There shall be established an entity to be known as the Royal Eswatini Police Service Staff Association whose main objectives shall be, in consultation with its general membership and the national commissioner, to make representations to relevant Government Negotiation Structures on social and welfare interests of the Police Service, which includes but not limited to remuneration, salaries, allowances or any other payment, pension or conditions of service.

Fear

Given this law, the officers said they did not fear anything as they were in a war to improve their salaries, which was a mandate assigned to the staff association by the Act governing them. The officers said they did not wake up and decide to deliver petitions; but had at instances engaged the management of the REPS in seeking that their issues be addressed as well.

We did nothing wrong other than to elevate our quest to be paid in a manner which will compensate us for the risks and astute behaviour we have to uphold at all times. We delivered a petition to our minister (of police), who is the Prime Minister (PM), Cleopas Dlamini, one officer said in their responses to the NATCOM.

The officers said the delivery of a petition to the PM was a resolution of members, which was taken in their meeting at Caritas, Manzini this past Saturday. The officers said this resolution was within the ambits of the law that regulated their formation and they were not deterred by any intimidation as they expressed their concerns to the minister responsible for their welfare.

The officers further quoted Section 67 (3) of the Police Service Act of 2018, which reads: The Royal Eswatini Police Service Staff Association shall be independent of and not associated with a body or organisation outside the Police Service, including any impediment or undue influence from non-members in the execution of its mandate. They said the Act also stated that membership to the Royal Police Service Staff Association shall be open to members of the police service below the rank of assistant commissioner. The officers said: The executive of REPS should not seek to influence decisions by the staff association as they are not members.

Restructuring

The junior officers were of the view that the management would be ecstatic that the staff association members had taken their mandate to government seeking the implementation of Phase II of the salary restructuring exercise following the partial implementation done in 2014. One of the officers rallied the other members of the staff association to return to Cabinet on Tuesday to get responses from the premier as they were within their rights. Following the submissions shared by the various members of the Police Staff Association, its Secretary General Sergeant Dumsile Khumalo said: The members informed us on Saturday that we should now take a backseat as they were going to take the issues in their own hands. So, I cant say much on the issue anymore.

Meanwhile, the Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati said there was no war in this issue as the NATCOM was addressing it. She said Dlamini was visiting all regions to engage police officers on these issues. Vilakati said the Police Service Act had the code of conduct on how police officers had to act. She said there were also policies which guided the manner in which police officers had to handle themselves.
Fairbanks, AK (99707)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun during the morning will give way to cloudy skies this afternoon. High 38F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Overcast. Low 28F. Winds light and variable.
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Agencies | Riyadh

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain is exploring ways to enhance joint economic cooperation with neighbouring GCC countries.

This was emphasised by Finance and National Economy Minister Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa as he chaired Bahrains delegation at the 117th meeting of the GCC Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee, and the joint meeting of the Ministers of Finance and Governors of the Central Banks in the GCC countries with the Director General of the International Monetary Fund.

The meeting is being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the participation of the GCC Secretary General. During the 117th meeting of the Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee, discussions focused on ways of boosting joint cooperation and reviewed issues on the meetings agenda.

The meeting also cast light on developments related to studies and projects that the Office of Economic and Development Affairs is following up on. It also spotlighted the developments of the programme to achieve economic unity among the GCC member states by 2025.

Shaikh Salman also participated in the joint meeting of the finance ministers and central bank governors of the GCC countries with the Director General of IMF. Discussions focused on the latest developments in the global and regional economy, and a number of related topics.

In addition, Shaikh Salman participated in the high-level event organised by the Ministry of Finance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and IMF, which was held under the theme Working Together to Address Food Insecurity.

The event was held on the sidelines of the joint meetings held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in the presence of Finance Ministers and Central Banks Governors in the GCC countries, international, Islamic and Arab financial institutions and institutions of the Arab Coordination Group During the function, the latest developments related to food security were discussed alongside ways of enhancing cooperation and joint action between various international financial institutions.
Appeals being filed after rejection of candidatures for upcoming Bahrain election

Appeals being filed after rejection of candidatures for upcoming Bahrain election

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Staff Reporter

Many poll hopefuls filed their appeals yesterday after their nominations were rejected by the electoral committee.

This follows the committee rejecting many candidatures over criminal accusations, address issues, absence of name in the voters list as well as lack of Arabic proficiency.

Among the prominent citizens whose candidatures were rejected was Hassan Rajab and Hamid Samir, who filed the nomination to represent the Second Electoral Constituency of the Capital Governorate.

Former lawmaker Ali Shamouts candidature was as well rejected.

Saeed Al Sammak, who filed the nomination to represent the Sixth Electoral Constituency in the Capital Governorate, also had his candidature rejected while Isa Rabies (Eighth Electoral Constituency) nomination was subjected to rejection by the electoral authorities.

It is learnt that eight electoral appeals were filed in the Capital Governorate while seven appeals were filed in the Southern Governorate.

Meanwhile, candidate Murad Ali Murad lodged a complaint against the candidature of Adel Al Asoomi, alleging that there is a discrepancy with regard to the residential address he has produced before the electoral committee.

Speaking to members of the media earlier, Issa Sami Al Mannai, the Undersecretary for Justice and Islamic Affairs within the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments, said potential candidates can file appeals through the national portal bahrain.bh.

The electronic appeals service that can be found in the electoral website will be available round the clock during this specific period and the ministry has issued a set of guidelines for the process.

According to the law, any potential candidate has the right to appeal the decision by the electoral supervisory committee before higher judicial authorities and a decision will be taken by the higher judicial authority within seven days of filing the appeal.

In the meanwhile, close to 300 observers belonging to civil societies and non-governmental organisations will be taking up the electoral role to function as poll monitors.

According to Legislation and Legal Opinion Commission President and Election Executive Director Nawaf Abdullah Hamza, the authorities will be striving to ensure the commitment to uphold citizens constitutional rights of choosing their representatives throughout the two decades since the launch of the first legislative term in 2002.

He has stressed that the electoral process will be monitored and supervised by the judiciary throughout all its stages, to ensure transparency and the integrity of the elections.

And that the higher committee will continue to cooperate with independent civil societies to monitor the electoral process.

Among the 561 candidates contesting in 40 parliamentary and 30 municipal council seats, 107 are women, creating a milestone in the empowerment of women within the democratic process.

The candidate lists will be displayed until today and the potential candidates can challenge the supervisory committees decisions till evening.

The committees must issue their final decisions by October 15, which can be challenged in court no later than October 18, and the court rulings must be issued by October 25.

The final list of candidates will be announced on October 26.

The Kingdom will head to the polls on November 12 with a run-off fixed on November 19.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain is a model for the peaceful coexistence of the many different faiths who live and work side by side, thanks to Bahrains religious freedom and openness to a pluralistic world.

This was according to a leading bishop in an interview with the Crux, well-known for its coverage of the Vatican and the Catholic Church, For many of the Catholics in Bahrain, who have been eagerly awaiting this visit since the King of Bahrain personally invited the Pope, this is like a dream come true, Bishop Paul Hinder, the Apostolic Administrator for the Vicariate Apostolic of Northern Arabia, said ahead of the historic visit by Pope Francis to Bahrain upon an invitation from His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

Highlighting Bahrains unique religious composition and tolerance, Bishop Hinder noted: The Kingdom has been very welcoming to the expatriate Christian community and provides a climate of openness and tolerance for people of different beliefs to practise their faith.

Bahrain is a vibrant community with a rich cultural mix  a model for peaceful co-existence of the many different faiths who live and work side by side in the island nation. Schedule The Pope will visit Bahrain on November 3-6 and will take part in the Bahrain Dialogue Forum: The East and The West for Human Coexistence.

The Forum, on November 3-4, is within Bahrains keenness and strategic direction to build bridges of dialogue between leaders of faith and leaders of thought, culture and media, in cooperation with Al Azhar, the Catholic Church, the Muslim Council of Elders, and international institutions concerned with dialogue, human coexistence and tolerance.

Relations Bishop Hinder said that relations between Bahrain and the Vatican have progressed greatly in recent years. In 2014, His Majesty King Hamad presented a model of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia to Pope Francis and also extended an invitation to the Pontiff to visit the Kingdom.

This was followed by visits of the Crown Prince His Royal Highness Prince Salman in 2020 and the Kings representative who again renewed the invitation in 2021, he told the Crux.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Staff Reporter

From electricity and water bills to unemployment and traffic jams, all civic issues are finding a place in the electoral slogans raised by the Bahraini candidates as they attempt to woo the voters since the filing of nominations.

Woman candidates have added empowerment of women as well to the agenda.

Manal Ibrahim, who is contesting from the eighth constituency of Southern Governorate Municipal Council, said she intends the democratic empowerment of Bahraini women by contesting in polls.

The Southern Governorate Municipal Council has maximum male members and I want to make a difference by contesting in polls.

Among the 561 candidates contesting in 40 parliamentary and 30 municipal council seats, 107 are women, creating a milestone in the empowerment of women within the democratic process.

Candidate Ibrahim Al Nafii has an electoral agenda that calls for setting up more colleges catering to Bahraini students.

He wants these colleges to be affiliated to the University of Bahrain and should offer courses related to agriculture and petroleum engineering.

Candidate Ahmed Al Salloum is ambitious in legislating laws that exclusively reserve many jobs for Bahrainis. He also seeks more projects under the public housing schemes apart from suggesting amendments to the Commercial Registration laws.

Former Parliament member Ali Yaqoub Al Muqla said he is running for the polls to work on behalf of the citizens supporting their needs.

He also wants to contribute towards His Majestys welfare projects that are vital to the progress of the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, many poll hopefuls are waiting to hear on their appeals after their nominations were rejected by the electoral committee over criminal accusations, address issues, absence of name in the voters list as well as lack of Arabic proficiency.

Among the prominent citizens whose candidatures were rejected was Hassan Rajab and Hamid Samir, who filed the nomination to represent the Second Electoral Constituency of the Capital Governorate.

Former lawmaker Ali Shamouts candidature was as well rejected.

Saeed Al Sammak, who filed the nomination to represent the Sixth Electoral Constituency in the Capital Governorate, also had his candidature rejected while Isa Rabies (Eighth Electoral Constituency) nomination was subjected to rejection by the electoral authorities.

Speaking to members of the media earlier, Issa Sami Al Mannai, the Undersecretary for Justice and Islamic Affairs within the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments, said potential candidates can file appeals through the national portal bahrain.bh.

The electronic appeals service that can be found in the electoral website will be available round the clock during this specific period and the ministry has issued a set of guidelines for the process.

According to the law, any potential candidate has the right to appeal the decision by the electoral supervisory committee before higher judicial authorities and a decision will be taken by the higher judicial authority within seven days of filing the appeal.

The committees must issue their final decisions by October 15, which can be challenged in court no later than October 18, and the court rulings must be issued by October 25. The final list of candidates will be announced on October 26.

The Kingdom will head to the polls on November 12 with a run-off fixed on November 19.
MANZINI - The SADC Executive Secretary, Elias Magosis visit to the King alone, is a serious egg on our face and means that we are on our own, says MSFs Barnes Dlamini.

The Multi-Stakeholder Forum (MSF) executive member said this following the statement of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Executive Secretary Magosi, that he was pleased to learn from His Majesty King Mswati III that the situation was calm in the country as there was stability. The SADC executive secretary and the secretariat team were in the country on Tuesday afternoon and they met the King at Ludzidzini Royal Residence. Dlamini said they were equally shocked that the SADC secretariat was in the country. He said this was because as role players in the whole political saga, the SADC secretariat should have informed them that they would be in the country.

Issue

The political activist said they did not have an issue that SADC would come and see the King first, but to meet him (King) and leave sent a wrong message to emaSwati. He said this was because as MSF, they took it upon themselves to approach SADC about the political challenges the country was facing. He said they were the ones who asked for SADC intervention and even formulated terms of reference for the anticipated political dialogue. We also went beyond that and presented the terms of reference from our point of view. Even before that, we gave them a dossier and they returned and acknowledged receipt and that they were doing something about it, Dlamini said.

However, he said thereafter, SADC told them that there was a framework which they had already given government. He said they did this without telling them that there was a framework that had been formulated. In that regard, he said their expectations from SADC was to say it would come to the country to make a follow-up on the framework it gave the country. On the other hand, he said for the SADC secretariat to say all was well and good in Eswatini, yet peoples houses and government infrastructure were being targeted by arsonists, meant that emaSwati were on their own in the political issues they were facing. This even defeats our efforts of telling emaSwati to calm down and that confrontations would not help anyone and encourage them to at least go to the roundtable to talk things over. This is a serious egg on the face of the mass democratic movement, especially the leadership, Dlamini said.

He said this was because they had always been told that they should not trust SADCs approach. However, he said they gave SADC the benefit of the doubt. In that regard, he said they were disappointed by the organisations conduct. He said they had tried each and every avenue and engaged the regional block on their problems. He added that they believed that even the world had seen that they had tried, but all they had been getting was an egg on their faces. Thereafter, he said they would have to reassembly and reengage to see who else they would approach.

Meanwhile, the Political Party Assembly (PPA) is of the view that there is no peace in the country when depressed students commit suicide, police deliver petitions and some members of Parliament (MPs) are still in jail.

Suicide

PPA Chairperson Nombulelo Motsa, who is also the president of the Economic Freedom Fighters of Swaziland (EFFSWA), said according to their analysis, there was no peace in the country, especially when tertiary students were committing suicide due to depression, which was caused by the lack of allowances, among other things. Just yesterday (Tuesday) we saw some police officers marching to deliver a petition to the Prime Ministers Office, which means that they, as law enforcers who are also supposed to provide security, are aggrieved, the PPA chairperson said. She emphasised that there was nothing peaceful in the country as every time workers and mass democratic movements organise activities such as marches and protest actions, they dodged bullets from members of the State security organs.

The chairperson said there was no freedom of expression in the country. She alleged that if one opened his/her mouth, he/she could be charged, depending on what that individual was saying. Again, she said if a group of people were seen talking in one voice, that could be an offence. On top of that, our incarcerated Members of Parliament (MPs) Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza (Hosea) and Mthandeni Dube (Ngwempisi) are still languishing in jail. This alone too, means there is no peace in the country, the PPA chairperson said.
BARRIE, ON, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - Ryan Turnbull, Member of Parliament for Whitby, on behalf of the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclunsion, alongside Jeff Lehman, Mayor of Barrie, Tim Kent, Chief Executive Officer of Redwood Park Communities Inc., and Lieutenant-Colonel Shawn Critch, Divisional Commander, The Salvation Army in Ontario announced an investment of over $4.5 million to support the construction of 12 transitional housing units in Barrie.

Govt of Canada logo (CNW Group/Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation)

The Government of Canada is contributing a federal investment of nearly $1.4 million through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund (NHCF). Additionally, the City of Barrie is contributing just over 420,000, Redwood Park Communities Inc. is providing approximately $2.1 million, and The Governing Council of The Salvation Army in Ontario is contributing $500,000 to the project.

The Redwood Park Family Transitional Housing project will provide transitional housing for vulnerable groups, especially women and children in crisis. The building will have a shared space that will help foster a sense of community through the availability of a communal kitchen, common social areas, and a private space for counselling and other support.

Completion of the project is estimated by May 2023.

Quotes:

"Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. Through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, our government is investing in affordable housing here in Barrie and across Canada. Women and children in crisis often face immense difficulties in accessing affordable homes and critical support services. Today's announcement will help ease some of these difficulties and give them an opportunity at a fresh start by accessing the resources they need to succeed This is one of the ways our National Housing Strategy continues to ensure no one is left behind".  The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion

"Our Government is providing Canadians not only with safe, affordable housing but is also working hard to strengthen our communities, which is why we are proud to have invested in the Redwood Park Family Transitional Housing project. This new investment will help ensure that those most vulnerable can enjoy a safe and stable environment leading to better outcomes, community engagement, and cohesion".  Ryan Turnbull, Member of Parliament for Whitby

"The housing crisis means there are more people needing help in Barrie, and until this project, there hasn't been anywhere for families experiencing homelessness to stay together. This project is an important step toward a more compassionate community, and one that will help support those most in need in our city."  Jeff Lehman, Mayor, City of Barrie

"We are so happy to see this building becoming a reality through the generosity of our community and this support from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. This is the type of collaborative effort needed to address the housing crisis that is leaving so many of our neighbours vulnerable. Like any housing project, it is really about people and the positive impact of having a safe, affordable, hopeful place to call home - not just on the people who will live here but also for their families for generations to come."  Tim Kent, Chief Executive Officer, Redwood Park Communities Inc.

"The Salvation Army is deeply grateful to the Government of Canada for their investment through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund (NHCF) in support of this Redwood Park Communities and Salvation Army housing project in Barrie. Our primary goal through this endeavour is to see the lives of individuals and families transformed with successful and supported long-term housing, and we believe this project is foundational in achieving those desired outcomes."  Lieutenant-Colonel Shawn Critch, Divisional Commander, The Salvation Army in Ontario

Quick facts:

The National Housing Co-Investment Fund (NHCF) is a program under the National Housing Strategy (NHS) that gives priority to projects that help people who need it most, including women and children fleeing family violence, seniors, Indigenous peoples, people living with disabilities, those with mental health or addiction issues, veterans, and young adults.

is a program under the National Housing Strategy (NHS) that gives priority to projects that help people who need it most, including women and children fleeing family violence, seniors, Indigenous peoples, people living with disabilities, those with mental health or addiction issues, veterans, and young adults. With a budget of $13.2 billion , the NHCF plans to:

, the NHCF plans to: Create up to 60,000 new homes



Repair up to 240,000 homes



Create or repair at least 4,000 shelter spaces for victims of family violence



Create at least 7,000 new homes for seniors



Create at least 2,400 new homes for people with developmental disabilities

Budget 2022 proposes to advance $2.9 billion in funding under the NHCF to accelerate the creation of up to 4,300 new units and the repair of up to 17,800 units.

in funding under the NHCF to accelerate the creation of up to 4,300 new units and the repair of up to 17,800 units. The Government of Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is an ambitious, 10-year plan that will invest over $72 billion to give more Canadians a place to call home.

Related links:

As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford and that meets their needs. For more information, please visit cmhc.ca or follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.

authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that by 2030, everyone in has a home they can afford and that meets their needs. For more information, please visit cmhc.ca or follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook. To find out more about the National Housing Strategy, visit: www.placetocallhome.ca.

Check out the National Housing Strategy Housing Funding Initiatives Map to see affordable housing projects that have been developed across Canada .

SOURCE Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation

For further information: Media contacts: Arevig Afarian, Office of the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, [email protected]; Media Relations, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, [email protected]
An industry first for the Canadian market, the training centre will serve Audi and Volkswagen

MILTON, ON, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - The CWB Group is thrilled to announce an exciting new collaboration with Volkswagen Group Canada, a dedicated OEM collision repair training centre to serve Audi and Volkswagen. Our centre of excellence for repair training will be located at the CWB Group facility in Milton. It will showcase an OEM training environment utilizing the latest equipment and developing technician skills in repairing modern vehicles according to factory standards.

Additionally, the training centre will focus on helping the industry through several initiatives:

Improve competency of repair technicians, including welding certification

Organize events with Skills Canada to attract youth to the trade

Support Women's Industry Network to attract women to the collision repair industry

Industry education sessions on safe and proper repair  insurance companies, repairers, government

"We are proud to partner with Volkswagen Group Canada to provide continuous education to their Automotive Repair Technicians to enhance their skills and remain competitive in the global automotive sector," said Bill Gwynne, Vice-President, Industry Solutions at the CWB Group.

"The partnership between Volkswagen Group Canada and the CWB is a long-term commitment by both parties and will be evident for years to come. Not only through the technicians that will be coming to the Canadian Collision Repair Academy (CCRA) for training but also the many vendors and manufacturers that have stepped up to support this initiative," shared Jon Vieth, Business Development and Sales Manager at the CWB Group.

"The creation of the Canadian Collision Repair Academy is a significant milestone for our market as it represents the first body repair training centre of its kind for any OEMs in Canada. The vision for creating this training centre results from the participation and hard work of numerous stakeholders: Volkswagen Group Canada Inc., the CWB Group, equipment manufacturers and distributors. The facility will allow Volkswagen and Audi to deliver body repair training to support safe and proper repair techniques according to factory guidelines," said Scott Wideman, Collision Program Manager at VGCA. "I would like to thank all the stakeholders for making this dream a reality and for their commitment to our shared vision. The opportunities and the potential for the Canadian Collision Repair Academy are tremendous, and I look forward to furthering the training and advancement of the body repair industry, especially as vehicle technology evolves. This will all be made possible through this significant achievement; a body repair training centre developed in Canada for Canadians!"

The OEM collision repair training centre has been made possible by the support of various equipment suppliers and distributors:

Celette Diversitech Equipment Solutions Filco Inc. Flatline SSI Fronius Canada Pro Spot International Spanesi Americas Titanium Tools Wielander & Schill

About CWB Group:

The CWB Group is headquartered in Milton, ON, and is supported through CWB Certification, CWB Education, CWB Registration, CWB Consulting, and the CWB Association membership; the CWB Group provides a comprehensive and integrated service to the welding and joining industry. With staff and offices across the country, the CWB Group is accredited by and operates under the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) as a Certification Body for the administration of the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) welding-related standards.

About Volkswagen Group Canada Inc.:

Volkswagen Group Canada Inc., headquartered in Ajax, Ontario, offers Canadian drivers exceptional vehicles, along with expert service. Volkswagen Group Canada is comprised of three brands: VW Canada, Audi Canada, and Lamborghini. Volkswagen Group Canada is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany  Europe's largest automaker and one of the world's leading manufacturers of automobiles and commercial vehicles. With its program "TOGETHER  Strategy 2025", the Group is laying the foundations for becoming a global leader of sustainable mobility.

SOURCE The Canadian Welding Bureau

For further information: MEDIA CONTACTS: Volkswagen Group Canada Inc.: Thomas Tetzlaff, [email protected]; CWB Group: Rhea Gill, [email protected];
New five-stamp set celebrates achievements in Canadian aviation

Images relating to this release are available at https://dehavilland.com/en/media

SIDNEY, BC, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - Today at Viking Air Limited's facilities in Sidney, British Columbia, De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited ("De Havilland Canada") owner Sherry Brydson and Canada Post representatives unveiled a new Canada Post stamp celebrating the DHC-2 Beaver's contribution to Canadian aviation. The DHC-2 Beaver is one of five achievements featured in Canada Post's new "Canadians in Flight" series.

Canada Post explained its selection of the iconic DHC-2 Beaver this way:

Image of DHC-2 Beaver postage stamp released by Canada Post on October 13, 2022 (CNW Group/De Havilland Aircraft of Canada) L to R: Sherry Brydson, owner of De Havilland Canada and Suromitra Sanatani, Canada Posts Chair of the Board of Directors, unveil the DHC-2 Beaver postage stamp at Viking Air Ltd. in Sidney B.C. on October 13, 2022 (CNW Group/De Havilland Aircraft of Canada)

The Beaver is considered the best bush plane ever built and was named one of Canada's top 10 engineering achievements of the 20th century. The all-metal plane's short takeoff and landing capability  along with its ability to be fitted with wheels, floats or skis  made the Beaver ideal for accessing and connecting remote areas of the country.

"We are honoured that Canada Post has chosen the DHC-2 Beaver to be part of this new series celebrating achievements in Canadian aviation," said De Havilland Canada CEO, Brian Chafe. "This is a special day for our company and for the people whose lives have been improved by this amazing aircraft over the past seven and a half decades, with many more to come."

The new stamps will be available at postal outlets across Canada starting Monday, October 17, with pre-sales beginning today at www.canadapost.ca .

Some key facts about the DHC-2 Beaver:

De Havilland Canada began designing the DHC-2 Beaver in 1946; company engineers surveyed bush pilots from remote communities of Northern Canada and several countries on what mattered most to them in a new aircraft.

and several countries on what mattered most to them in a new aircraft. Pilots requested a rugged and reliable all-metal aircraft capable of carrying a half-tonne payload with good takeoff, landing and climb performance; as well, an aircraft that could operate year-round on wheels, floats or skis from isolated outposts, and exposed to climatic conditions ranging from the blazing sun to sub-zero cold, ice, and snow.

The first DHC-2 Beaver flew from the runway at Toronto's Downsview Airport on August 16, 1947 , 75 years ago this summer. De Havilland Canada produced a total of 1,692 DHC-2 Beavers over the aircraft's 20-year production period.

Downsview Airport on , 75 years ago this summer. De Havilland Canada produced a total of 1,692 DHC-2 Beavers over the aircraft's 20-year production period. The DHC-2T MK III Turbo Beaver  a turboprop variant  was first flown on December 30, 1963 . 60 of these aircraft were produced between 1963 and 1968.

. 60 of these aircraft were produced between 1963 and 1968. In 1983, De Havilland Canada awarded Viking Air Limited the contract to build spare parts for the DHC-2 Beaver and DHC-2 MK III Turbo Beaver; as well, many of the engineering drawings and production tooling for these parts were transferred to the Sidney, British Columbia company.

company. In 1987, the Canadian Engineering Centennial Board named the DHC-2 Beaver one of the top ten Canadian engineering achievements of the 20th century.

In 2006, Viking acquired the Type Certificates for seven De Havilland Canada aircraft, including the DHC-2 Beaver.

Today, over 750 of these iconic aircraft remain operational worldwide.

About De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited

With more than 5,000 aircraft delivered, De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited (De Havilland Canada) is well established across the globe and our talented team of aviation professionals is dedicated to advancing our near-100-year reputation for excellence in innovation, production and customer support. Our aircraft operate reliably in some of the world's harshest climates and provide vital connections between rural communities and urban centres  transporting essential cargo and millions of passengers annually. Our aircraft also support a wide variety of special mission operations including aerial firefighting, search and rescue, medical evacuation, reconnaissance and coastal surveillance. In February 2022, De Havilland Canada became the operating brand for the companies that previously operated as Longview Aviation, Viking Air Ltd, Pacific Sky Training and De Havilland Canada. https://dehavilland.com

SOURCE De Havilland Aircraft of Canada

For further information: John Paul Fraser, De Havilland Canada, [email protected]
New project will improve the capacity of communities to address challenges related to the pandemic faced by Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers.

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - COVID-19 presented significant challenges to accessing resources for Autistic people and their families. With the abrupt closures of schools, therapy centres, respite services and recreational programs, many were suddenly without support. In addition, due to the pandemic, many people in Canada, including Autistic people, continue to experience increased stress, anxiety, and depression. Disrupted routines and restricted or reduced access to programming, services and activities has had, and continues to have, a negative impact.

Today, as we recognize Autism Awareness Month and reflect on how we can better support Autistic Canadians, Ryan Turnbull, Member of Parliament for Whitby and Michael Coteau, Member of Parliament for Don Valley East on behalf of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health announced funding for a community-based project aimed at addressing the negative impacts of COVID-19.

Autism Ontario will receive $361,374 to compile and disseminate 3,300 kits (the Indigenous Resources Kits and the Culturally Inclusive Resource Kits) containing culturally-inclusive resources for marginalized and racialized Autistic individuals and their families across Ontario, Alberta, and Yukon. In addition, Autism Ontario is partnering with autism-based professionals to organize, host, and lead online, fun, interactive, and educational meetings to guide families in using the items in their Resource Kits.

Projects funded through the Autism Spectrum Disorder Strategic Fund, such as the project with Autism Ontario, will provide opportunities for Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers to access knowledge, resources and skills that are essential to achieving and maintaining optimal health and wellbeing.

Quotes

"Our government is working to improve the health and well-being of people on the autism spectrum and to supporting their families and caregivers. To do so, we are committed to work with organization like Autism Ontario to help provide community-based autism resources. By investing in culturally-inclusive resources, we are helping marginalized and racialized Autistic individuals and their families get the support they need."

The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos

Minister of Health

"Our Government is committed to helping Autistic individuals avoid any barriers when it comes to their health and wellbeing. Finding the right resources is key to getting the right support and this is why Autism Ontario's resources will make a real difference in the lives of those who need them."

Michael Coteau,

Member of Parliament for Don Valley East, Ontario

"As we take the opportunity to raise awareness of Autism in October, it's important to focus on how we can support Autistic people, their families and their caregivers. Projects supported by the Government of Canada's Autism Spectrum Disorder Strategic Fund, like the one announced today, are essential in helping Autistic individuals access the tools they need to stay healthy and well."

Ryan Turnbull,

Member of Parliament for Whitby, Ontario

"Autism Ontario is excited to be part of the Autism Spectrum Disorder Strategic Fund and to launch the Community Care Project which provides resources kits for culturally diverse families of autistic people. Through this project, we are able to share thoughtfully curated resource kits with families and provide employment opportunities for autistic individuals. By partnering with SAAAC Autism Centre, we are delighted to create job opportunities for autistic adults who will work to fulfill the production of the 3300 resource kits. Through our community partnerships with SAAAC, Autism Calgary, Autism Yukon, Autism Society Alberta, Chiefs of Ontario, Arabic Community Centre of Toronto, Community Family Services Ontario, SOCH Mental Health and Professional Subject Matter Experts, we are able to curate resources that consider various cultural backgrounds. In addition, where possible, we have made it our priority to support autistic-led/employed small business products. We hope by adopting a multi-sectoral approach, we can continue supporting autistic individuals and families in their communities to have access to meaningful supports, information, and connections so they are equitably and seamlessly supported across their life course."

Jessica Bethel,

Director of Education and Training, Autism Ontario

Quick Facts

Autism (also referred to as autism spectrum disorder, or ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by communication difficulties as well as social and behavioural differences. Each person on the autism spectrum is unique, and the term "spectrum" refers to the wide variation in strengths and challenges.

According to the 2019 Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth (CHSCY), 1 in 50 (or 2.0%) Canadian children and youth aged 1 to 17 years were diagnosed with autism.

Budget 2018 allocated $20 million over five years to better support the needs of Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers. Of this overall investment, $9.1 million was allocated to establish the Autism Spectrum Disorder Strategic Fund to support community-based projects that pursue innovative program models, help reduce stigma, and integrate health, social and educational components to better serve the complex needs of Autistic Canadians and their families.

over five years to better support the needs of Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers. Of this overall investment, was allocated to establish the Autism Spectrum Disorder Strategic Fund to support community-based projects that pursue innovative program models, help reduce stigma, and integrate health, social and educational components to better serve the complex needs of Autistic Canadians and their families. The Government of Canada is working collaboratively with provinces, territories, families, Indigenous organizations and other stakeholders toward the creation of a national autism strategy to better support Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers.

is working collaboratively with provinces, territories, families, Indigenous organizations and other stakeholders toward the creation of a national autism strategy to better support Autistic individuals, their families and caregivers. On November 15-16, 2022 , the Public Health Agency of Canada is hosting a virtual national autism conference to bring together the views of Autistic Canadians, their families and caregivers, advocates, provinces, territories and Indigenous Peoples towards the development of a national autism strategy.

Associated Links

Statement from the Minister of Health on Autism

Autism: About, causes and co-occurring conditions

Autism Spectrum Disorder - Highlights from the 2019 Canadian Survey on Children and Youth (report)

National autism strategy

SOURCE Public Health Agency of Canada

For further information: Marie-France Proulx, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, 613-957-0200; Media Relations: Public Health Agency of Canada, 613-957-2983, [email protected]; Public Inquiries: 613-957-2991, 1-866-225-0709
PIGGS PEAK  Confusion has continued to reign at Ndzingeni umphakatsi.

A house and vehicle belonging to a prince was set alight while he was away at Ludzidzini for the ceremony of kubusisa (blessing) of chiefs by His Majesty the King. The prince is one of the about 50 chiefs who were blessed by the King at Ludzidzini Royal Residence. According to some of the residents who wished to remain anonymous, a Mercedes Benz vehicle and house belonging to Prince Wonder Dlamini were set alight. The prince is now known as Chief Mavelebaleni. He is the son of the late Chief Mmemo, who was the chief of Ndzingeni. The fire was put out before it caused further damage. The prince could not be reached for comment as he was at Ludzidzini Royal Residence. However, some senior residents of Ndzingeni confirmed the incident and that the matter was also reported to the police.

Police

Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati confirmed that a vehicle and a house were set alight. The matter is still being investigated by the police. Noteworthy, Ndzingeni had two factions with one choosing Mavelebaleni as the chief, while the other chose Prince Fana. However, it was confirmed yesterday that Chief Mavelebaleni was the one who had been taken to Ludzidzini to be blessed by the King as chief of the area.
BRANDON, MB, Oct. 12, 2022 /CNW/ - The skilled trades are essential to Canada's economy and few sectors are as essential to Canadians' everyday lives. Smart investments are needed to support Canadians from all backgrounds in taking up apprenticeship training now, and to help kick-start lucrative careers in well-respected skilled trades.

Today, the Minister of Northern Affairs, Minister responsible for PrairiesCan and CanNor, the Honourable Dan Vandal, on behalf of the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, was in Brandon, Manitoba, to announce over $2 million in funding to the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation (BNRC). The BNRC Apprentice Incentive Program will provide financial incentives to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) so that they can hire at least 300 first-year apprentices in eligible Red Seal trades found predominantly in the construction and manufacturing sectors. This includes apprentices from equity-deserving groups, including women, Indigenous people, newcomers, persons with disabilities, racialized communities (including Black Canadians) and 2SLGBTQI+.

First-year apprentices in eligible Red Seal trades will get the hands-on experience and training they need to progress toward becoming certified journeypersons in the Red Seal trades as a result of connecting with these job opportunities. The organizations that are being funded under the Apprenticeship Service will distribute financial incentives to SMEs and provide additional supports, such as help navigating the apprenticeship system. To help Canadians facing barriers to a career in the skilled trades, the incentives are doubled for SMEs who hire from equity-deserving groups.

Today's announcement builds on the 15 Apprenticeship Service projects announced since May 2022. To date, the Government has invested over $393 million in 19 projects that will enable SMEs to create over 42,000 new apprenticeship positions across Canada, with the aim of launching meaningful, well-paying careers in the skilled trades from coast to coast to coast.

The Government of Canada is investing nearly $1 billion annually in apprenticeship supports through grants, loans, tax credits, Employment Insurance benefits during in-school training, project funding and support for the Red Seal program. Announced in Budget 2019, the Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy is strengthening existing apprenticeship supports and programs by helping apprentices and key apprenticeship stakeholders, including employers, to participate and succeed in the skilled trades.

Quotes

"Canada needs more skilled trades workers. We need to help more people become welders, bricklayers, electricians and other Red Seal Trade workers. That's why the Apprenticeship Service program is so critical. It's helping thousands of Canadians seize these great job opportunities, and it's making sure businesses have the skilled workers they need to thrive."

 The Honourable Carla, Qualtrough Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion

"One of the keys to Canada's economic recovery is to tackle the labour shortage and find ways to increase the number of Canadians working in the skilled trades. Our government's funding of the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation project will help more people in Southwestern Manitoba, pursue careers in high-demand and well-paying trades found predominantly in the construction and manufacturing sectors."

 The Honourable Dan Vandal, Minister of Northern Affairs, Minister responsible for PrairiesCan and CanNor

"The need for the Government of Canada's investment in apprentice training and financial incentives to help businesses hire first-year apprentices is being addressed. The joining of these two forces will go a long way to help employment shortages across all industries. Post-pandemic, preparing individuals for the workforce for today and tomorrow in manufacturing and construction industries is vital for our future as our country continuously grows."

 Kerrie Vinthers, Apprenticeship Program Coordinator, Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation

Quick Facts

According to the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, in order to meet the demand for skilled journeypersons in Red Seal trades, an average of approximately 75,000 new apprentices will need to be hired per year over the next five years. The top trades most at risk of not meeting the demand include welder, industrial mechanic (millwright), bricklayer, boilermaker, cook and hairstylist.

According to BuildForce Canada, the construction industry needs to recruit 309,000 new workers over the next decade (2021 to 2030), driven predominantly by the expected retirement of 259,100 workers (22% of the current labour force).

There are more than 195,000 SMEs in Canada who work in the eligible Red Seal trades. The Apprenticeship Service will help them hire more first-year apprentices, which will help fulfill Canada's labour market needs.

who work in the eligible Red Seal trades. The Apprenticeship Service will help them hire more first-year apprentices, which will help fulfill labour market needs. Measures in Budget 2022 to support skilled trades workers include:

$84.2 million over four years to double the funding for the Union Training and Innovation Program to help apprentices from under-represented groups beginand succeed incareers in the skilled trades through mentorship, career services and job matching.

over four years to double the funding for the Union Training and Innovation Program to help apprentices from under-represented groups beginand succeed incareers in the skilled trades through mentorship, career services and job matching.

A new labour mobility deduction, which would provide tax recognition on up to $4,000 per year in eligible travel and temporary relocation expenses to eligible tradespersons and apprentices. This measure would apply to the 2022 and subsequent taxation years.

per year in eligible travel and temporary relocation expenses to eligible tradespersons and apprentices. This measure would apply to the 2022 and subsequent taxation years.

$2.5 million in 20222023 for Employment and Social Development Canada to launch a new union-led advisory table that brings together unions and trade associations. The table will advise the Government on how to help workers navigate the changing labour market, with a particular focus on skilled mid-career workers in at-risk sectors and jobs.

in 20222023 for Employment and Social Development Canada to launch a new union-led advisory table that brings together unions and trade associations. The table will advise the Government on how to help workers navigate the changing labour market, with a particular focus on skilled mid-career workers in at-risk sectors and jobs. To highlight the value of skilled trades workers and the wide range of supports available to build a successful and fulfilling career in the trades, the Government launched an advertising campaign earlier this year to promote the skilled trades as first choice careers for young people. The campaign website (Canada.ca/skilled-trades) provides Canadians with information about what the skilled trades are, how to become a tradesperson, and what financial supports are available to them while in training.

Associated Links

Canada.ca/skilled-trades

Apprenticeship Service

Support for apprentices

Budget 2022

Follow us on Twitter

Backgrounder

Apprenticeship Service

Apprenticeships offer a great way to get the hands-on work experience needed to pursue a career in the skilled trades. Employers play a fundamental role in Canada's apprenticeship systems, however many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) do not always have the resources to offer apprenticeship training opportunities.

Organizations funded under the Apprenticeship Service will distribute financial incentives to SMEs who hire apprentices, and provide additional supports, such as help navigating the apprenticeship system, onboarding apprentices, and creating welcoming workplaces. SMEs with 499 or fewer paid employees are eligible for the funding.

Under the Apprenticeship Service, SMEs will receive $5,000 for each new, first-year apprentice hired, for a maximum of two eligible apprentices per year, and can use the incentive to pay for upfront costs such as salaries and training. In addition, to boost diversity in the Red Seal trades, this incentive will be doubled to $10,000 for employers who hire from equity-deserving groups, specifically women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous people, members of the 2SLGBTQI+ communities, newcomers and other racialized communities.

Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation

Apprentice Incentive Program Project

Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation is receiving $2 million for its BNRC Apprentice Incentive Program. The BNRC Apprentice Incentive Program project will provide financial incentives to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Brandon, Manitoba, to hire at least 300 first-year apprentices in eligible Red Seal trades found predominantly in the construction and manufacturing sectors. This includes apprentices from equity-deserving groups, including women, Indigenous people, newcomers, persons with disabilities, racialized communities, including Black Canadians, and 2SLGBTQI+.

Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation will work with its network of SMEs as well as engage with the Indigenous communities and local immigration organizations to hire first-year apprentices from equity deserving groups. It will also match apprentices with employers and support them through the provincial apprenticeship registration process.

SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada

For further information: For media enquiries, please contact: Tara Beauport, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, 343-576-1628, [email protected], Media Relations Office, Employment and Social Development Canada, 819-994-5559, [email protected]
The new one-stop, customizable tool to access up-to-date data for the retail industry adds richer consumer behaviour information through Environics Analytics' FootFall, ClickScapes, and DemoStats databases

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - Retail Council of Canada (RCC) is excited to announce a new partnership with Environics Analytics that will provide retailers with access to exclusive consumer behaviour information to help better understand customers and their evolving behaviours. This new data will be added to RCC's recently launched RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD, the one-stop resource to find the most relevant Canadian retail information.

Now, in addition to real-time data on retail sales, the economy, retail job numbers, consumer spending, and pandemic metrics, the new Environics Analytics information will provide Canadian data on buyer visits to physical stores, websites, and apps, as well as comprehensive demographics by region and by retail vertical.

"RCC's recent member survey showed retailers believe that quickly accessing relevant data and improving the quality of that data should be a top priority for their business, especially now when everything can change so quickly," said Diane J. Brisebois, President and CEO, Retail Council of Canada. "That's why RCC has been so passionate about creating a tool that leverages the most powerful databases in a way that makes sense for retailers. Including the new addition of Environics Analytics' FootFall, ClickScapes, and DemoStats products to the RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD is going to dramatically benefit Retail Council of Canada members who will also have additional access to the deep content and richer filtering options."

"With so many data inputs to consider, retailers need effective tools to better understand - and reach - their customer. Having these additional metrics allows retailers to ask better questions, discover stronger insights, and ultimately make more effective decisions that drive impact," said Jan Kestle, President of Environics Analytics. "Environics Analytics is thrilled to provide some of our latest marketing and analytics tools to the RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD and help extend the benefit of our expertise to more retailers in Canada."

About the Environics Analytics Products added to the Retail Pulse Dashboard:

FootFall provides information on actual consumers that physically visit retail stores. It allows retailers to identify which locations, including competitor stores, have the most or least visits and how these are trending over time, category, season, responding to marketing or new neighbouring businesses.

ClickScapes provides a view of the digital behaviour of Canadians by capturing visits to thousands of mobile apps and websites. From this information, retailers can understand the profiles of the visitors to their websites, and those of their competitors, as well as trends in digital for their environments by region, and by retail vertical. ClickScapes harnesses "big data" and makes it easy to understand.

DemoStats is Canada's most up-to-date and comprehensive demographic database for current year as well as projections for three, five, and ten years into the future. While based on Statistics Canada information, the database provides information on significantly more variables than is customarily accessible. It is an essential tool for retail marketers to understand consumer demand, trends, gain a 360-degree view of their markets, and strategize for future growth  which is especially important as retailers' consumer bases continue to change at an unparalleled frequency.

The RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD, developed by RCC in collaboration with KPMG in Canada's visualization team, Lighthouse, collects and consolidates data from various sources, including Statistics Canada, Moneris Data Services, and Environics Analytics to allow users to find critical information across multiple retail sectors, regions, and timeframes. Regularly updated overview information on the retail industry is available to everyone. RCC members, however, have access to much richer data, enhanced filtering, comparisons, and customization. The RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD is hosted on the Retail Council of Canada website.

View the RETAIL PULSE DASHBOARD introductory video.

About Environics Analytics

Environics Analytics (EA) is the premier marketing and analytical services company in Canada, helping thousands of customers across every industry sector turn data and analytics into strategy, insights, and results. Established in 2003, we specialize in using best-in-class data, analytics expertise, and purpose-built software (including software-as-a-service platforms ENVISION and SPOTLIGHT) to address key challenges in areas such as consumer profiling and segmentation, multichannel media planning and execution, trade area analysis, merchandising strategies and site location decision-making. Environics Analytics is a Bell Canada company.

About Retail Council of Canada

Retail is Canada's largest private-sector employer with over 2 million Canadians working in our industry. The sector annually generates over $78 billion in total compensation. Core retail sales (excluding vehicles and gasoline) were over $433B in 2021. Retail Council of Canada (RCC) members represent more than two-thirds of core retail sales in the country. RCC is a not-for-profit industry-funded association that represents small, medium, and large retail businesses in every community across the country. As the Voice of Retail in Canada, we proudly represent more than 45,000 storefronts in all retail formats, including department, grocery, specialty, discount, independent retailers, and online merchants. www.retailcouncil.org .

SOURCE Retail Council of Canada

For further information: Michelle Wasylyshen, [email protected]
The Canadian Council of the Blind and Fighting Blindness Canada's Report Card on Vision Health in Canada shows that progress in vision care is slow as COVID-19 pandemic continued in 2021.

OTTAWA, ON, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - World Sight Day  "The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Vision Health in Canada 2021" report card found that vision care in Canada has not returned to pre-pandemic levels due to significant staff shortages, surgical backlogs and people not keeping their doctor appointments or having their regular eye examinations.

Alt text: Ramya Amuthan, a Canadian living with low vision and Fighting Blindness Canada Ambassador, wearing a maroon top and smiling for the camera (CNW Group/Canadian Council of the Blind) FIGHTING BLINDNESS CANADA Logo (CNW Group/Canadian Council of the Blind)

Despite substantial commitments from governments of over $2 billion across Canada to provide capacity to clear the backlog of people needing treatment, wait times and the delivery of eye care have not returned to pre-pandemic levels, underlying the urgent need for a national eye care strategy.

Canadians cannot access specialized care to prevent blindness, despite the fact that 3 out of 4 people can stop vision loss with early diagnosis and access to treatments. Two-thirds of Canadians have not had an eye exam in the past year, and it is estimated that there were 108,000 fewer eye surgeries performed in Canada in 2021 compared to 2019. There were 1.8 million fewer optometrist visits in 2021 compared to 2019.

Report card highlights:

Progress in vision care is happening, but not quickly enough.

The current study found that the number of eye surgeries had increased by 25% in 2021 compared with 2020 but 108,000 fewer eye surgeries were performed in 2021 compared to 2019.

However, this number was still 20% below 2019, indicating a persistent gap in surgery capacity.

The net result is that surgical volumes in 2021 did not return to pre-pandemic levels and the surgical wait times continued to grow, leading to vision loss that could have been prevented.

Despite funding, staff shortages remain a critical issue.

In March 2022 , the federal government announced that $2 billion would be available to provinces to reduce the surgical backlog.

, the federal government announced that would be available to provinces to reduce the surgical backlog. Despite this, the backlog continued to grow due to staff shortages including being ill due to COVID-19 or severe burnout.

A survey conducted by Statistics Canada in 2021 reported that 25 to 40% of health care workers were considering leaving their place of employment or changing their jobs. This is of concern as the health care system struggles to overcome the continued impact of the pandemic.

The backlog of specialized eye care has led to severe and, in some cases, irreversible outcomes for certain Canadians living with vision loss. Canadians with vision loss continue to be underserved, and many are going blind or losing vision despite the medications and treatments available.

It is crucial that we design systems and policies that correct this dangerous trend. Visit StopVisionLoss.ca and sign the petition asking the Canadian government to deliver a national eye care strategy and to address the backlog in eye care that is leading to today's preventable blindness crisis.

Statements:

"While we saw some progress on vision health care in Canada in 2021, we are nowhere near pre-pandemic levels. This is adding to the crisis of preventable blindness. Even with funding commitments from federal and provincial governments, staff shortages mean eye care is majorly under-resourced in Canada ," says Dr. Keith Gordon , Principal Investigator for the Report Card and Research Officer, Canadian Council of the Blind . "It is critical for Canadians to understand the importance of managing their vision health, and that they can access care and treatment in a timely manner. The time is now for passage of Bill C-284 to implement a national eye care strategy."





in 2021, we are nowhere near pre-pandemic levels. This is adding to the crisis of preventable blindness. Even with funding commitments from federal and provincial governments, staff shortages mean eye care is majorly under-resourced in ," says . "It is critical for Canadians to understand the importance of managing their vision health, and that they can access care and treatment in a timely manner. The time is now for passage of Bill C-284 to implement a national eye care strategy." "Our health care system continues to face critical challenges brought on by the pandemic. Our latest findings on the state of vision health care in Canada show that despite some progress, we are still facing a crisis when it comes to surgical backlogs and growing wait times to access critical eye care," says Doug Earle , President and CEO, Fighting Blindness Canada. "Canadians need to take urgent steps to stop preventable blindness by receiving an eye examination and signing our petition for a national eye care strategy at StopVisionLoss.ca. Together we can stop preventable blindness in Canada ."





show that despite some progress, we are still facing a crisis when it comes to surgical backlogs and growing wait times to access critical eye care," says "Canadians need to take urgent steps to stop preventable blindness by receiving an eye examination and signing our petition for a national eye care strategy at StopVisionLoss.ca. Together we can stop preventable blindness in ." "Optometrists play a critical role in examining patients and identifying preventable diseases that cause vision loss. We care about our patients, and it is concerning that they wait to receive eye care when we know the importance of treating these conditions as soon as possible," said Dr. Stephanie Kwan , OD and Optometry Partner, Specsavers in Hamilton , Ontario. "Not only do Canadians need to get their vision checked at least every two years, but they also need to ensure they are receiving a comprehensive eye exam. Specsavers has found that using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is helping optometrists to identify early-stage eye disease and manage these patients effectively with accurate referrals. Our data shows that 34% of patients who were assessed with OCT had signs of vision-threatening diseases."

About "The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Vision Health in Canada 2021"

The Canadian Council of the Blind and Fighting Blindness Canada conducted a follow-up study to the Cost of Vision Loss and Blindness in Canada report. The follow-up was intended to review the current state of vision health in Canada, the current impact of the pandemic on people living with vision loss, and the overall vision health of Canadians in 2021. Quantitative data from various Canadian sources were combined with quantitative and qualitative data from a new survey of Canadians living with vision loss, conducted in July 2022. In addition, interviews were conducted with ophthalmologists, optometrists, and vision care stakeholder organizations to determine whether the quantitative data is supported by their lived experience. The 2022 Report Card on Vision Health in Canada 2021 was made possible by unconditional grants from a number of Canada's leading research-based pharmaceutical companies, corporate partners, and key members and stakeholders of the vision loss community. The Canadian Council of the Blind and Fighting Blindness Canada would like to express our appreciation to Alcon, AbbVie Allergan, AGTC, Bayer, Novartis, Roche and Specsavers for their generous support.

About the Canadian Council of the Blind

The Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB) is the Voice of the Blind in Canada, a membership-based charity that brings together Canadians who are living with vision loss, the blind, deaf-blind, and partially-sighted. Advocating for its members, the CCB works to promote a sense of purpose and self-esteem along with an enhanced quality of life. Based on a belief in ability, not disability, the CCB is a vibrant network of active members across Canada. Each chapter is unique to its geographic area and engages in a variety of social and recreational activities based on the interests of its local members. Visit CCBNational.net or call 1-877-304-0968 for more information.

About Fighting Blindness Canada

Fighting Blindness Canada (FBC) is the largest charitable funder of vision research in Canada. FBC has invested over $40 million to research sight-saving cures and treatments for blinding eye diseases. With the support of its generous donors, FBC has funded over 200 research grants which have led to over 600 discoveries such as stem cell treatments, neuroprotective therapies, technological developments, pharmaceuticals, and gene therapies. Visit FightingBlindness.ca or call 1-800-461-3331 to learn more.

SOURCE Canadian Council of the Blind

For further information: For more information, or to request an interview, please contact: Rob McEwan, Argyle Public Relationships, [email protected], 416-968-7311 ext 242
The NEW Timbits Trick-or-Treat Bucket can be filled with your choice of 31 Timbits  for $9.99 , or it can be purchased without Timbits for $3.99 . Canadians will love getting into the Halloween spirit by sharing the 31 Timbits  with family and friends.

Timbits Trick-or-Treat Bucket can be filled with your choice of 31 Timbits for , or it can be purchased without Timbits for . Canadians will love getting into the Halloween spirit by sharing the 31 Timbits with family and friends. The Timbits Trick-or-Treat Bucket is the perfect size for Trick-or-Treaters to collect candy with on Halloween, or use it for storing your treats to give out to Trick-or-Treaters.

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW/ - The Halloween spirit has arrived at Tim Hortons with the NEW Timbits Trick-or-Treat Bucket, now available for a limited time at participating Tims restaurants, while supplies last.

"Tim Hortons is thrilled to make Halloween extra spooktacular for our guests this year with our fun Timbits Trick-or-Treat Buckets," said Markus Sturm, Senior Vice President of Consumer Goods, Digital and Loyalty.

The new Tim Hortons Timbits Trick-or-Treat Bucket comes filled with 31 Timbits and is the perfect bucket for collecting candy on Halloween (CNW Group/Tim Hortons)

"We love that our Timbits Trick-or-Treat Buckets will become a new part of so many Trick-or-Treaters' traditions and I'm looking forward to seeing some adorable ghosts and ghouls with their bright orange Timbits buckets this Halloween."

ABOUT TIM HORTONS

In 1964, the first Tim Hortons restaurant in Hamilton, Ontario opened its doors and Canadians have been ordering Tim Hortons iconic Original Blend coffee, Double-Double coffees, Donuts and Timbits in the years since. Over the last 55 years, Tim Hortons has captured the hearts and taste buds of Canadians and has become synonymous with serving Canada's favourite coffee. Tim Hortons is Canada's largest restaurant chain operating in the quick service industry with nearly 4,000 restaurants across the country. More than a coffee and bake shop, Tim Hortons is part of the Canadian fabric and guests can enjoy hot and cold specialty beverages  including lattes, cappuccinos and espressos, teas and our famous Iced Capps  alongside delicious breakfast, sandwiches, wraps, soups and more. Tim Hortons has more than 5,100 restaurants in Canada, the United States and around the world. For more information on Tim Hortons visit TimHortons.ca

SOURCE Tim Hortons

For further information: [email protected]
Event focused on the exchange of ideas to strengthen global value chains in foreign trade

NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2022 /CNW/ -- The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA)  a global network connecting over 300 World Trade Center (WTC) locations in nearly 100 countries  hosted World Trade Center businesses across Latin America for the "Point WTC Guadalajara 2022: Logistics Challenges in Latin America / WTCA Latin America Regional Meeting" on September 22-23, 2022 to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing logistics operations in the Americas.

A total of 30 WTCA Member representatives from 25 WTC locations in Latin America gathered in person in Guadalajara, Mexico  home to WTC Guadalajara, an important logistics hub for the movement of goods in Latin America  for the first time in nearly three years to attend the seminar on the challenges and opportunities facing logistics operations. WTCA Members across Latin America also showcased their developments and business models; introduced new topics around free trade agreements and the financing of WTC-branded projects; and shared best practices on how to work efficiently in a virtual environment and how to become B Corp certified. The seminar was also livestreamed for those unable to attend in person.

Panel discussions focused on topics such as challenges in the post-COVID era for maritime and air cargo industries, logistics challenges deriving from cross-border e-commerce, how to rebuild disrupted global supply chains and the opportunities for U.S. and Latin American companies with nearshoring as an option to reconfigure Global Value Chains (GVCs). Expert speakers included Jorge Acevedo, President and CEO of WTC Nuevo Laredo and WTC Guanajuato; Jimmy Avendano, Fulfillment Officer at Amazon-USA; Luis Aviles, Senior Executive at the Air Service Development Houston Airport System; Jaime Granados, Head of Trade and Investment Division of the Integration and Trade Sector of the Inter-American Development Bank; Federico Lepe, General Manager at WTC Guadalajara; Jorge Morones, CEO of WeCargo Technologies; Edgar Patino, former Chairman of the Peruvian National Port Authority; Michelle Porrino, Executive Director at WTC San Luis Potosi; Yiovan Reynoso, Director of the Logistics Committee at Index Guanajuato; Xavier Rius, Executive Chairman of the Institute for Careers and Innovation in Logistics Spain; Aurelio Lopez Rocha, Chairman of WTC Guadalajara; Carlos Ronderos, Regional Director-Latin America at the WTCA; Augusto Solano, Chairman of the Association of Colombian Flower Exporters (Asocolflores); Javier Solis, Managing Director of WTC Nuevo Laredo; and Robin van Puyenbroeck, Executive Director-Business Development of the WTCA.

"There is a revolution in the world of e-commerce that has no limit. It is a situation that all companies must take advantage of, but especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are the largest generators of employment in Latin America. There is a golden opportunity for them to enter international markets and being a part of the WTCA can open many doors," reflected Carlos Ronderos, Regional Director-Latin America at the WTCA.

During the event, Jaime Granados, Head of Trade and Investment Division of the Integration and Trade Sector of the Inter-American Development Bank, stressed that, "Cross-border e-commerce in Latin America grew by 40% from 2020 to 2021. However, this growth is low compared to other regions worldwide, which demonstrates that the region still has great opportunities to continue promoting its growth in the international market, including nearshoring."

The event follows the recent Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) the WTCA signed with the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration (ITA) to formalize its cooperation in facilitating and promoting global trade by combining the strengths of the ITA's and the WTCA's global networks. This partnership will help further drive corporate investment and trade opportunities for U.S. companies seeking to increase exports and imports.

"The WTCA, along with WTC Guadalajara, is proud to have hosted leaders from Latin America for an insightful exchange of ideas that will benefit businesses in the Americas," said Robin van Puyenbroeck, WTCA Executive Director-Business Development, who also moderated a discussion on logistics with WTC businesses serving as first-class logistical hubs. "This seminar furthered the WTCA's goal to help local economies across the globe and greatly amplified our WTC brand value proposition in the world of logistics."

MEDIA CONTACTS:

World Trade Centers Association (WTCA)

Chanelle Kasik

Phone: +1 212 432 2644

Email: [email protected]

Violet PR

David Margolis

Phone: +1 917 331 4855

Email: [email protected]

About World Trade Centers Association (WTCA)

The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) is a network of more than 300 highly connected, mutually supporting businesses and organizations in 92 countries. As the owner of the "World Trade Center" and "WTC" trademarks, the WTCA licenses exclusive rights to these brands for Members to use in conjunction with their independently-owned, iconic properties, facilities and trade services offerings. Through a robust portfolio of events, programming and resources that it offers its Members, the goal of the WTCA is to help local economies thrive by encouraging and facilitating trade and investment across the globe through Member engagement. To learn more, visit www.wtca.org.

SOURCE World Trade Centers Association
Bello Maigari, a member of the house of representatives, has described the 2023 budget proposal as organised corruption by civil servants....

Bello Maigari, a member of the house of representatives, has described the 2023 budget proposal as organised corruption by civil servants.

Maigari, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), spoke on the floor of the house of representatives during the budget debate by lawmakers on Wednesday.

On October 7, President Muhammadu Buhari presented a record N20.51 trillion appropriation bill to a joint session of the national assembly.

A breakdown of the budget shows that N744 billion is earmarked for statutory transfers, N6.557 trillion for debt service, N8.271 trillion for recurrent (non-debt) expenditure, while the sum of N4.934 trillion is for contribution to the development fund for capital expenditure.

Speaking on Wednesday, the lawmaker representing Jalingo/Yorro/Zing federal constituency of Taraba state, alleged that the budget is a submission of organised corruption.

This our budget, I will say, is a submission of organised corruption by the civil servants, he said.

Mr Speaker, you just mentioned that it is only this government (Buharis administration) that implements 100 percent capital projects, but 50 percent of the amount in this capital project goes to the pocket of civil servants.

He accused the ministry of works of deliberately proposing funds incapable of executing and completing projects.

Mr Speaker, the issue of splitting budget  they can propose a project of N3 billion or N4 billion; you allocate only N50 million for that project. For Gods sake, how can we do that project? A project is supposed to be N6 billion and they make a proposal of N150 million. And the N150 million will be released 100 percent to them. They cannot go to the site because the money will not be enough for the contractor to go to the site, he added.

The legislator asked his colleagues to scrutinise the appropriation bill when the heads of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) come to defend their proposals.

I think we have to look at this budget very critically. It is very important that at the committee work, they should look at these projects. We have to look at this very seriously, he said.

Lawmakers, who also spoke on the budget estimate, criticised the proposed figure for debt servicing and petrol subsidy.

Toby Okechukwu, deputy minority leader, said subsidising petrol is against the law.

We need to take some steps back and let me remind you  the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) that was done by this parliament presupposes that subsidy should have been withdrawn; subsidising petroleum products is a breach of that law, he said.

I will suggest and advise this parliament to be courageous and do its job. Suddenly, we are reducing the subsidy to six months  because its been an election issue. The government had no courage to undertake that enterprise. The subsidy is coming off from the second half of next year. It has been political. It is not driven by patriotism.

I think this house should be courageous to face the reality and ensure that we retool the budget so that it can be effective for Nigerians.

Tahir Monguno, chief whip, said the federal government needs to improve its revenue generation to reduce borrowing.

The observation I want to make is with regards to revenue generation. There is a need for government to bring more Nigerians into the tax net so that there will be more tax for the purpose of implementing our budget, he said.

We have had a situation where we had some challenges in terms of revenue to implement the budget. We are going to do that by way of focusing more searchlights on revenue generating agencies so that whatever revenue they generate, it will be brought to government coffers.

Onofiok Luke from Akwa Ibom, said it is a time bomb for the president to allow subsidy to subsist till mid-June 2023.

Mr President, right from when he was a candidate of his party, running for election in 2014 to 2015 called subsidy a fraud and then gave a commitment that when he come into office, that he will remove subsidy, Luke said.

It is time bomb for the president to allow the removal of subsidy till the mid year when a new administration is coming to force.

This is a budget of transition and sustainability. For this budget to answer its name appropriately, Mr President has to do the needful as a strong leader which he is, to be able to address the issue of subsidy.
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has reiterated the call to remove Iyorchia Ayu as the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Par...

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has reiterated the call to remove Iyorchia Ayu as the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Wike explained that he has accepted Atiku Abubakar as the presidential candidate of PDP and Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Rivers State as the partys running mate, but Ayu must resign.

He pointed out that Ayus resignation was the only precursor for reconciliation in the party.

The governor spoke while hosting the Cross River candidates for governorship, senatorial, House of Representatives, House of Assembly elections, and local government party chairmen at his private residence in Rumueprikom.

A statement by Wikes Special Assistant, Media, Kelvin Ebiri, quoted him as saying: We have finished presidential primaries, we have a presidential candidate. Is Wike saying remove presidential candidate? Is Wike saying remove vice and presidential candidate? So, what are you begging me for? All I am saying, and I will continue to say is that you have taken president, give us (national) chairman.

Nobody wants to speak the truth. If I am saying remove the presidential candidate, if I am saying remove the vice-presidential candidate, then you will say why is he doing this.

Ive accepted the presidential candidate, I have accepted the vice-presidential candidate, whats the problem again. You, fulfil your part. Let the South have something, that is all Im preaching. You cannot have a presidential candidate, national chairman, director general of the campaign.

He (national chairman) said if the presidential candidate comes from the north, he will resign , which means he has had this in mind. Now, the thing has come to reality, now resign, no. And people are saying go and talk to Wike.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja will today deliver judgment in an appeal instituted by the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People ...





The Court of Appeal in Abuja will today deliver judgment in an appeal instituted by the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, seeking to quash terrorism charges brought against him by the Federal Government.





The appellate court is to deliver the make-or-mar verdict in the afternoon, as contained in a notice communicated to Kanus legal team and the Federal Government.





Ifeanyi Ejiofor, one of the lawyers in Kanus legal team, confirmed receipt of the notice for judgment delivery.





He said, We wish to inform UmuChineke and all followers of Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu that we have just received notification from the Court of Appeal, Abuja Judicial Division, that the long-awaited judgment in Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanus Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CR/625/2022 between Nnamdi Kanu and the Federal Republic of Nigeria will be delivered tomorrow, 13th October 2022, at 2pm.





We are very excited with this news as we look forward to a victorious outing. The legal team is leaving no stone unturned as we have been working assiduously behind the scene.





Kanu had faulted the order of Justice Binta Nyako of a Federal High Court, Abuja, which ordered him to answer seven out of the 15-count terrorism charge against him.





He had prayed the Court of Appeal to quash the entire charges and set him free on various grounds, among which the purported offences were not committed in Nigeria.





Justice Hanatu Sankey, who led a three-man panel of justices that heard the appeal, had reserved judgment.
MBABANE  Yesterday may have marked the end of chieftancy disputes in some areas, following the blessing of chiefs by Their Majesties.

At least 50 local chiefs were blessed. Also to receive the Kings blessings were eight chiefs based in South Africa, tindvuna and the King of the Mamba clan. The chiefs were first introduced to the Queen Mother at Ludzidzini Royal Residence, where they were presented by their respective senior family members from the royal kraals where they came from.

Presented

Thereafter, they were then presented to His Majesty King Mswati III at Ngabezweni Royal Residence. A total of 23 chiefs from the Shiselweni Region were presented to Their Majesties, while 12 from the Hhohho Region were presented, five from the Lubombo Region and 11 from the Manzini Region. Eight other chiefs who are ruling in the royal kraals in the Republic of South Africa were also blessed by Their Majesties. Among the chiefs presented to Their Majesties was the newly-installed King of the Mamba Clan Umntfwana Sibonelo Mamba, who will now be known as King Maloyi III. Mamba was the first to be presented to Their Majesties. He was presented (kuchuba) to the King with two cows.

Yesterday also saw Inkhosatana Gelani Simelane presenting Sikelela Simelane, who will be known as Chief Bhozongo. Sobantu Dlamini presented Napoleon Mandla Dlamini to Their Majesties as the new Chief of Nkhaba, following many disagreements regarding the rightful chief of the area. Napoleon will now be the official Chief of Nkhaba and he will now be known as Chief Mnisi.
A 51-year-old man, Oluranti Badejo, has reportedly beaten his wife, Folashade Badejo, to death in Mowe, Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area ...





A 51-year-old man, Oluranti Badejo, has reportedly beaten his wife, Folashade Badejo, to death in Mowe, Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.





Ogun police spokesman, SP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident in a statement on Thursday.





According to Oyeyemi, the suspect was arrested after the matter was reported at Mowe Divisional Police Headquarters by a younger sister of the deceased wife.





The complainant had reported that she got information from her elder sisters daughter that the woman, who lived with her husband at 7, Madam Felicia Street, Orimerunmu in Mowe, has been beaten to death by her husband.





Acting on the report, the DPO of Mowe division, SP Folake Afeniforo, was said to have quickly sent detectives to the scene, where the suspect was arrested.





The lifeless body of the victim was there and then evacuated to the mortuary in Shagamu for post-mortem examination.





Preliminary investigation, it was learnt, revealed that the suspect strangled the deceased during a scuffle as a result of minor disagreement.





Oyeyemi spoke further that when the husband realized that he had killed his wife, he used hot iron to burn parts of the body of the deceased, so as to look as if she was electrocuted.





However, he said their eight-year-old daughter witnessed the whole thing; saying it was the daughter who testified seeing her father strangulating her deceased mother to death.





Meanwhile, the State Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, had directed that the suspect be taken to the Homicide section of the State CIID for further investigation and diligent prosecution.
Delta Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, insists that the creation of State Police will address the insecurity challenge in Nigeria. Okowa mad...

Delta Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, insists that the creation of State Police will address the insecurity challenge in Nigeria.

Okowa made the remark at the annual conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) vice presidential candidate said many Nigerians agree that the establishment would reduce the crime rate.

Okowa lamented that the Federal Government had remained indifferent on the issue to the detriment of the people.

The governor assured that a PDP-led administration would empower states to run their separate police system.

NAN quoted him saying indigenes will ensure the protection of lives and property in their areas and curb criminal activities.

State Police would help in the effective enforcement of anti-open-grazing law in the states, Okowa added.

He affirmed that the PDP would encourage power devolution to the states for better development in the country.

The chieftain said this would attract and stimulate investment in states across the six regions.
Controversies continue to rage over the recent killings in Taraba State leading to tension between the community and the state chapter of th...





Controversies continue to rage over the recent killings in Taraba State leading to tension between the community and the state chapter of the Fulani socio-cultural association, Tabbital Pulaku International.





At least 12 persons were killed on October 2, 2022, by vigilante groups in Zudai village, near Dogon-Ruwa community in Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State. While members of the community alleged that the victims were bandits, the Fulani socio-cultural association countered that they were innocent of the crimes that led to the termination of their lives by local vigilante groups.





Bello Ahmed Belal, chairman of Tabbital Pulaku International in Taraba State, who avowed that a particular tribe was targeted further stated that the vigilante group went after our people in the name of killing bandits.





While noting that there are bad people in all tribes Belal affirmed: It is wrong to go to homes and kill some people because their tribal persons are involved in banditry.





He suggested that the so-called kidnappers should have been identified instead of the vigilante going after anybody related to them.





The State Police Command, it would be recalled, had also earlier declared that the victims were not bandits as alleged in some quarters.





However, residents of the community on Wednesday, October 13, 2022, rallied to make a public declaration and insisted that those killed by the vigilantes were bandits and not innocent people. The public declaration was spearheaded by the trio of Mallam Hansi, Evangelist Jocob Ali and Wakili Sani Anema. The community in its statements affirmed that the operation that led to the killing of the bandits was a coordinated effort to liberate the communities in the area from the hands of bandits.





According to them, some kidnapped victims were rescued at the scene of the tussle between the vigilante and the bandits.





The residents further insisted that they stand on what they described as the true picture of what took place in the council and therefore urged security agencies to capitalize on the efforts of the vigilante groups by assisting in making their community and its surroundings safe and inhabitable for bandits and kidnappers.





Similarly, the council caretaker chairman, Micah Danbaba Dakka, had also earlier affirmed that the victims were bandits who had terrorised communities in both Bali and Gassol local government areas of the state.





The residents went ahead to list members of the community who have been victims of kidnapping including the village head of Dadin Kowa, Abdulaziz Yunusa. Others mentioned were Amos Yonana, Alhaji Dauda Bappa Isa, and Malam Manu, the Chief Imam of Dadin Kowa.
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Partly cloudy skies. A shower of rain or wet snow possible. Low 34F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. A shower of rain or wet snow possible. Low 34F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
A massive waterway project between the Yangtze and the Huaihe rivers is set to test its water diversion and navigation capabilities by the year's end. The project, with a length of over 1,000 kilometers, will be the second major north-south waterway after the existing Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, which zigzags some 1,794 km. The trial will come after six years of construction, which started on Dec 29, 2016 at an estimated cost of 91.27 billion yuan ($12.6 billion), said Zhang Xiaowu, chairman of Anhui Provincial Group Ltd for Yangtze-to-Huaihe Water Diversion. The project will benefit some 50 million people living in 14 cities, including 12 of Anhui province's 16 prefecture-level cities, and two of neighboring Henan province's 17 prefecture-level cities, he said. The project aims to support the urban and rural water supply for the 14 cities, as well as to develop shipping between the Yangtze and Huaihe rivers. The Yangtze is China's longest river, and the Huaihe, originating in Henan province, flows eastward for 1,000 km through Henan, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces before emptying into the Yangtze at Sanjiangying in Yangzhou, Jiangsu province. Liu Bo, chairman of China Railway No 4 Engineering Group Co Ltd, or CREC4, which is building the project, said it is one of the country's 172 major water conservancy undertakings and has been dubbed the "No 1 Project" for Anhui's infrastructure. The Yangtze traverses southern Anhui for some 400 km while the Huaihe runs through northern Anhui. From south to north, the project is divided into three sections  water diversion from the Yangtze to Chaohu Lake in central Anhui, the canal link between the Yangtze and Huaihe rivers and northward water transmission. The total length includes 723 km of the newly developed three sections, over 400 km of the existing Yangtze waterway in Anhui and the existing Huaihe navigable waterway. The project also aims to improve the natural environment of Chaohu Lake and Huaihe River through irrigation and water replenishment, Liu said. The estimated total investment in the Anhui section, jointly approved by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Transport, is set at about 87.5 billion yuan. Expenses for the Anhui section have reached 78.47 billion yuan, which is 89.6 percent of the total. That lays a solid foundation for testing of water diversion and navigation in Anhui this year, according to the Anhui Provincial Development and Reform Commission. Liu of CREC4 said the projects his group has helped build are making good progress. CREC4 builders finished assembling the steel cross strut for a main tower on Qinglong (Blue Dragon) River Bridge in Hefei, capital of Anhui, on July 22, marking another project milestone. The total length of the bridge project is 1,250 meters, while the bridge itself is 814 m. The project includes the demolition of the old bridge as well as building a new bridge and connecting lines. It is a double-tower cable-stayed bridge with a main tower that is 72 m high. A cable-stayed bridge is one in which the bridge deck's weight is supported by diagonal tension cables attached to one or more towers. On the main tower, the steel cross strut is designed with a steel structure shaped like the "hovering of a blue dragon", and its construction was a difficult task to complete, said Chen Zihua, a publicity staffer for CREC4. The steel cross strut weighs 46 metric tons. A 460-ton crane was used to hoist it 55 m high into position with one lift, he said. Another bridge, on Yulan Avenue in Hefei, built as part of the water diversion project, opened to traffic on July 28, making travel more convenient for residents living on both sides of the Paihe River. In 2023, the whole project is set to be opened for water diversion and navigation, sending water from the Yangtze to northern Anhui and eastern Henan.


The National Bank of Bahrain has announced the retirement of Jean-Christophe Durand from his current position as Chief Executive Officer, effective December 31, 2022 and the appointment of Usman Ahmed as its Group Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2023.

The transition falls in line with NBBs strategic plans to spearhead a strong and dynamic banking sector, appointing experienced and qualified individuals to propel the bank into the highest tiers of the banking and finance industry, locally and regionally, the bank said.

NBB Chairman Farouk Yousuf Almoayyed said: We would like to extend our sincere gratitude and appreciation to Mr Durand for his instrumental contributions to the bank, and for his role in cementing NBBs position as a leading responsible banking group in the Kingdom. Upon joining the bank as its CEO in December 2016, Mr Durand has prioritised strategic leadership to ensure effective financial management and business expansion, steering NBBs transformation into a digitally-driven entity aligned with global digitalisation agendas.

He has also successfully guided the bank on its recognised sustainability journey, while strengthening NBBs role as a value-adding partner to the Kingdom. The bank wishes him a happy, well-earned retirement and the best of luck on this upcoming stage, said Almoayyed.

We would also like to welcome Mr Ahmed in his Group CEO role, and express our utmost confidence in his abilities to take up the reins of our national institution and to continue steering it towards the highest levels of success in the industry, he added.

Ahmed joins the bank with over 27 years of diverse international banking experience in emerging markets across the EMEA and Asia Pacific regions. Prior to his most recently held position at Citibank, Ahmed has held various senior leadership roles over the past 14 years, serving in multiple capacities as CEO, Managing Director and Board Member. His experience spans across regional and country leadership positions, encompassing Corporate & Investment Banking, Capital Markets, Commercial, Consumer and Islamic Banking in vital cities and countries across the globe, including, London, Hong Kong, Dubai, the Philippines, Pakistan, Bahrain and Malaysia.

Ahmed has also previously served as a director on various boards, including the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers, the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance, the American Chambers of Commerce in Malaysia and Bahrain, the Association of Banks in Malaysia, the Bahrain International School Association, Injaz Bahrain and the Financial Industries Collective Outreach Malaysia.  TradeArabia News Service
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Partly cloudy early followed by increasing clouds with showers developing later in the day. High 51F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low near 35F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
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Getaway House Homochitto offers the opportunity to unplug, unwind or take an adventure
Florius, a leading, Netherlands-based mortgage lender, has used Avaya technology to significantly enhance the customer experience while simultaneously enabling its contact centre agents to adapt to a hybrid work environment.

The Automated Quality Management capabilities of Avaya OneCloud, integrated with Florius business applications, has empowered remote employees with digital tools to raise the quality of all customer interactions through advanced, real-time speech analytics, said a statement.

The customer journey is very important to us, said Seif Alhamrany, head of the Advisory Team at Florius. We are committed to a fast turnaround for mortgage applications, so we need to put the customer in the center, have fast access to as much information as possible, and automate processes as much as possible.

Changed workloads during the pandemic forced Florius to quickly adapt to a hybrid work scenario. By the same token, direct insight into the changed contact behaviour of customers became essential during this time of uncertainty. We need to adapt very fast to provide our customers with the best service and also to provide our employees with the best solutions said Deliane Schimmel, Managing Director, Advisory & Service, Florius.

Using Avaya solution, Florius was able to remotely introduce AI-powerd speech analytics and quality management tools, which monitored 100% of customer calls and then provided guidance on the next best answer. This gave agents direct insight into topics that would usually require training, while also enabling them to work according to more flexible schedules from home.

A good example of this came when there was amended legislation concerning delayed mortgage payments. Employees did not have to be trained on this first, because they were provided with the correct knowledge in real-time - during conversations where payment and COVID were discussed. As a result, the agent was able to give the right answer quickly, because they immediately had the right information and could share it with the customer, explained Alhamrany.

Avaya and NTT, the Avaya partner that integrated the solution, worked closely with Florius to integrate the Avaya solutions with the companys CRM system, a step that broadened the view of the customer journey and provided new insights for agents.

Florius has always built its reputation on the experiences it provides to its customers, and this use of advanced technologies to draw intelligence from voice conversations is just the latest in a long line of innovations. Were proud to be supporting Florius as it continues to push the boundaries of great customer experience, said Nidal Abou-Ltaif, President, Avaya International. -TradeArabia News Service
Travelport, a global technology company that powers bookings for thousands of travel suppliers worldwide, has announced several new supplier connections are delivering more content to travel retailers on Travelport+.



Travelports new and expanded agreements with Booking.com and Hertz will now bring more options for accommodation rates and car rentals to retailers using Travelport+, and Travelport-connected agencies will also gain access to more options from Air France-KLM and Lufthansa Group NDC content at the end of 2022.



This is the fourth chapter in our delivery of Travelport+, where were giving agents access to more supplier options and fuelling their ability to sell more air, hotel, and car offers as we broaden and expand our content catalog, said Jen Catto, Chief Marketing Officer at Travelport.



This update also helps our supplier partners reach even more of the right customers, with the ability to tailor products to drive sales through the indirect retail channel. As with everything we build, with the end traveller in mind, more options mean a more relevant customer experience.



More Air Content

As the demand for travel surges, Travelport is ensuring that travel retailers have more options readily available for their customers by providing even more content to help ensure everyone gets the best possible retailing experience.



Air France-KLM NDC content is being introduced on Travelport+, and Travelport will also be starting the rollout of Lufthansa Group NDC content in 2022. Travelport is also adding three new airlines to the platform  Congo Airways, FlyGTA and US-Bangla Airlines, along with 11 new ancillaries, and four more airlines now offer Branded Fares.



More Hotel Choices

Travelports new partnership with Booking.com unlocks a new range of rates across 140,000 hotel properties accessible through the Travelport+ platform, and will grow to over one million properties in early 2023. Travelport is also standardizing more hotel content to make workflows easier for developers and agents, so that retailers and travellers benefit from more property and room choice, easier searches, and superior clarity on rates.



Jeremy Cornuau, Director Global Distribution Partnerships at Booking.com commented: By offering travel retailers a wider range of rates for accommodation properties on Travelport+, we are making it easier for them to search and book the most desirable options. With more information and more choices all in one place, together, were creating a smarter, simpler shopping experience for everyone.



More Car Rental Options

As car rental prices are a key focus area for many travellers, Travelport+ is now offering Hertz pre-paid car rental rates through an expanded content distribution partnership. Travel retailers using Travelport+ will now have more revenue-generating opportunities with car rentals booked through the platform and be able to provide a better customer experience with greater traveller satisfaction.



Cheryl Reynolds, Senior Director  Distribution Strategy and Revenue Integrity at Hertz commented: We are delighted to provide Hertz prepaid rates on Travelport+. This additional content will further our relationships with our mutual agency partners and ensure customers have a choice when selecting the ideal product for their travels.



Simplifying Exchanges

In addition to an expanding travel content offering, Travelport is heavily focused on making the process of managing exchanges even easier for agents using the Travelport+ platform. In the coming months, customers that have upgraded to Travelport+ will have access to Travelports next generation Automated Exchanges, which automates complex manual ticket-change tasks and simplifies trip management. With its tremendously improved graphical workflow, Automated Exchanges will dramatically lower costs and preserve valuable time for both agents and travellers.  TradeArabia News Service
Wyoming Business Tips for Oct. 17-23

A weekly look at issues facing Wyoming business owners and entrepreneurs from the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network, a collection of business assistance programs at the University of Wyoming.

By Mandy Bailey, Community Navigator Pilot Program advising and education director, Wyoming SBDC Network

The Wyoming Community Navigator Program was created to assist small-business owners -- especially rural, veteran, women and minority-owned business owners -- and connect them with available resources and business assistance so that they may continue to enrich our communities.

While Wyoming has many tremendous opportunities for small-business owners, navigating all of the resources available, as well as navigating the inherent challenges of starting a business or running a small business, can be very overwhelming. The Wyoming Community Navigator Program, with the help of its hub, the Wyoming SBDC Network, is here to help.

The Wyoming Community Navigator Program operates under a hub-and-spoke model in which the program collaborates with organizations across the state to help small-business owners in every stage of business. These partners include Wyoming Smart Capital Network, UW Extension, Wyoming Womens Business Center, Wyoming Library to Business, The Local Crowd and the Wind River Development Fund.

Small businesses create economic diversification and vast employment opportunities in rural Wyoming communities. The past two years have shown us how important small businesses are to our state. The Wyoming Community Navigator Programs goal is to ensure all small-business owners across the state know that they are not alone in pursuing their business ownership goals. We are linking business owners to critical resources statewide to diversify the economy and strengthen communities one small business at a time.

To learn more about partner organizations and available resources or to schedule an appointment with an adviser, go to www.wyomingcommunitynavigator.org. Do not miss opportunities to help your business.

For more information, go to www.wyomingsbdc.org.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers no-cost advising and technical assistance to help Wyoming entrepreneurs think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their business. In 2021 alone, the Wyoming SBDC Network helped Wyoming entrepreneurs start 80 new businesses; support 4,077 jobs; and bring a capital impact of $9.2 million to the state. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by UW with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

To ask a question, call 1-800-348-5194, email wsbdc@uwyo.edu, or write Dept. 3922, 1000 E. University Ave., Laramie, WY 82071-3922.
(Informacion remitida por la empresa firmante)

Iphofen, Germany (News Aktuell).- The Knauf Group is supporting the Romanian governments energy-saving and renovation offensive by substantially expanding its local plant capacity. The Knauf Insulation Group unit is building another insulation plant next to its current site in Tarnaveni, north of Sibiu. Together with the expansion of its existing production facility, which has been in operation since 2008, the dual site will thus multiply its annual output. Knauf is investing close to EUR 135 million in total at the Tarnaveni site.

At the same time, a new factory for plasterboard technology is being built in the town of Huedin, Transylvania, at a cost of around EUR 76 million. In total, Knauf is directly creating around 200 new jobs through the local investments, many of which are for highly qualified personnel. Both plants are being built in the region around Cluj, where they will be strategically located to supply Romania and the surrounding countries with modern building systems.

As the worlds market leader for modern and sustainable lightweight construction, Knaufs expansion supports the governments ambitious plans for energy-efficient building refurbishment and the repair of the countrys housing stock. Romanias Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca welcomed Knaufs initiative: These German investments in our country are a signal of trust that strengthens economic relations. We highly appreciate Knaufs recent commitment. The company has been expanding its presence in Romania for many years.

The commitment demonstrates our trust and confidence in the country and our employees. We look forward to becoming part of the local community, said Alexander Knauf, Managing Partner of the Knauf Group. Together, we are setting new standards for building and living in Romania. I am very pleased that with this investment of more than EUR 200 million, we can support the energy saving initiative by providing the necessary building materials.

The national redevelopment plan envisages a six-fold increase in the building area of appropriately renovated properties in Romania over the next few years, in a best case scenario. Romania has set aside around EUR 30 billion in funding for this purpose in its Recovery and Resilience Fund (PNRR) alone until 2026. This will be supplemented by additional funds, from the EU Structural Funds, for example. The government thus wants to better equip the population against fluctuating and rising energy prices. In addition, energy-efficient building refurbishment strengthens regional development by creating growth, jobs and increases in property values.

Also in view of climate change, the building sector is the focus of Romanias modernization offensive. A large share of the countrys current housing stock is in need of renovation. New buildings are to be constructed in an energy-efficient manner in the future. The demand for the respective building materials is therefore quite high. In the European Union, 35 percent of CO2 emissions currently come from buildings. The use of insulating materials reduces dependence on energy imports and reduces the financial burden on users, especially low-income households. The use of dry construction technology also has a lower CO2 intensity compared to regional solid construction, is ideal for prefabrication and the material is fully recyclable.

Romania increasingly important to Knauf

The importance of the Romanian market for the Knauf Group has increased in recent years. While the country initially imported Knauf building materials, the company now produces a good share of the products to cover the local demand here and exports to neighboring regions. In doing so, Knauf always promotes good neighborliness. The sister site in the Czech Republic serves as a model for the new insulation plant in Romania. There, too, Knauf prefers to source its raw materials from the region and supports local communities, in renovating older residential buildings or community facilities such as kindergartens or playgrounds, for instance.

Knauf Group The Knauf Group is an internationally operating family-owned company based in Iphofen, in the Franconia district of Bavaria in Germany. The manufacturer of construction materials operates over 300 manufacturing plants and sales organizations in more than 90 countries on all continents and is a global leader in the manufacture of gypsum-based construction material and systems, energy-efficient insulation materials and system solutions in the ceilings sector. Founded in 1932, the Knauf group achieved a turnover of  12.6 billion in 2021 and employs around 40,000 people world-wide. Visit our website for further information on the Knauf Group at www.knauf.com.

Press Contact:

Dr. Tobias K. Stricker | Phone: +49 (0)9323/31-2252 | Fax: +49 (0)9323/31-2241 | tobias.stricker@knauf.com

Knauf Gips KG | Am Bahnhof 7 | 97346 Iphofen | Germany I Local Court of Wurzburg | HRA 2754
Northwest Medical Group recently opened a new office in Michigan City, where its presence continues to grow.

The health care group, which operates hospitals in Valparaiso, LaPorte and Knox, built a new 9,500-square-foot medical office at 6923 West 400 North in Michigan City to meet the growing need for healthcare in LaPorte County. It is its third location in Michigan City.

The new medical building houses the internal medicine physicians Joseph Arulandu and Vinay Tumuluri. It's also home to Northwest Health Bariatric and Weight Loss Services, as well as the Michigan City offices where the general and bariatric surgeons Adam Conn and Andrew Martin see patients in the area.

More physicians and specialists will be adding office hours in the new Michigan City office in the next few months.

Northwest Health has more than 700 physicians and more than 3,000 employees in Northwest Indiana. It serves patients with more than 60 access points, including five emergency departments, outpatient surgery centers, urgent care centers, an ambulance service and physician offices

For more information, visit NWMedicalGroup.com.
GARY  The Gary/Chicago International Airport is upgrading its maintenance fleet with a new step van, dump truck and Bobcat track loader  about $250,000 in purchases approved Wednesday by the airport authority board.

The two trucks will replace "hand-me-downs from O'Hare," Executive Director Dan Vicari said. Upkeep of the older vehicles had become expensive and time consuming, and "we can't afford to have that happen any longer," he told the board.

A 2001 Ford F150 pickup will be replaced by a Ford Utilimaster step van at a price of $69,999. A 2001 F350 dump truck will be replaced with a Chevrolet 6500 HD dump truck with a snowplow for $103,474. And the operations department will add a Bobcat T66 compact track loader to its equipment at a cost of $76,151.

The monthly meeting included a summary of airport operations in September. Operations Manager Ken Cast reported 2,066 take-off and landing operations for the month, 31 fewer than in the same month last year, which he said was a result of fewer military operations at the airport.

Operations for the year through September are up nearly 6%, to 16,731.

Fuel sales of 303,986 gallons in September were up 17.9% from September 2021, Cast said, and year-to-date top 2.6 million gallons, up 29.8% as compared with the first nine months of 2021.

The U.S. Customs facility at the airport handled 10 arrivals in September, with 42 people passing through customs. The flights arrived in Gary from Canada, the Bahamas and the Czech Republic.
VALPARAISO  A 44-year-old Valparaiso man who was sent to a state mental facility after tearing up three of the four padded cells at the Porter County Jail is back and has been determined competent to stand trial for murder.

Michael Bachar is scheduled to appear Tuesday before Porter Circuit Court Judge Mary DeBoer to move forward with his case.

Bachar, who is represented by defense attorney Mark Chargualaf, had rambled on incoherently during his initial hearing in July 2021 about the Bible and his case.

Chargualaf filed a motion seeking to have Bachar evaluated by two mental health professionals to determine his competency to "understand the nature of the proceedings and assist in his defense."

Porter County Sheriff Dave Reynolds said at the time that it was unusual to have to send a county inmate with mental health problems to the Indiana Department of Correction while his case proceeds.

Yet Porter, like other counties, does not have the proper resources at its jail to hold and treat someone with severe mental health issues, he said.

The padded cells at the county jail are designed for short-term stays and require round-the-clock supervision, Reynolds said. Bachar was in a padded cell for 35 of his 44 days with the county, which is not right, he said.

DeBoer had entered not-guilty pleas on Bachar's behalf to the charges of murder and felony strangulation.

Bachar is accused of strangling George Batey, 60, of Valparaiso, who later died of asphyxiation, officials have said.

Bachar, who had been living with Batey in the 700 block of Center Street in Valparaiso, said Batey punched him May 18, 2021, and he defended himself by grabbing Batey by the throat "while telling (Batey) to stop and apologize," according to charging documents.

Bachar said Batey "had some sort of Satan in him" and Batey "wasn't going to stop until he (Bachar) made him stop," police said.

Bachar reportedly told police he did not really care if Batey died and knew it was a possibility, but that that was not his intention, charges state.

An autopsy revealed that Batey died from asphyxiation from manual strangulation and a loss of oxygen to the brain, according to charging documents. His death was ruled a homicide.
Jennifer-Ruth Green is doubling down on her unsupported claims that U.S. Rep. Frank J. Mrvan, D-Highland, personally was responsible for portions of her military records being included in a recent Politico Magazine profile of her candidacy.

The Republican seeking to represent Northwest Indiana in Congress was a guest Tuesday night on the top-rated "Hannity" program on the Fox News Channel.

During the approximately four-minute segment, Green again alleged "Congressman Frank Mrvan, a sitting member of Congress, he illegally obtained my records," which she said Mrvan used to "smear" her because "he is losing this race."

"He has nothing to stand on, and so this is what he decided to go after, and it's a very traumatic thing for me," she added.

The records detailed by Politico show that during her tenure in the U.S. Air Force, Green washed out of flight training; failed to meet standards for leadership, professionalism and judgment; and suffered sexual abuse while deployed to Iraq.

In an exclusive interview with The Times, Mrvan said neither he, nor anyone affiliated with his campaign, provided Green's military service record to Politico.

Politico said it obtained Green's military service record in connection with a standard request for the documents using the federal Freedom of Information Act  not from anyone associated with Mrvan's campaign.

Additional documentation relating to incidents described in the profile was provided directly by Green's campaign, according to Politico.

Even Sean Hannity, host of the "Hannity" program, felt compelled after reciting Politico's defense of its reporting to ask Green: "Do you have evidence to the contrary?"

Green offered no evidence to sustain her claims.

Instead, she said: "Look, you and I know, 30 days before an election you would have to have a willing suspension of disbelief to believe in any sort of way that Congressman Mrvan, and his cronies, and the media, and the mob of the media who works for liberal Dems and their double standard, are not behind this."

Green also said she was thankful to Fox News for its reporting on her allegations, as well as people who have supported her by using a specific hashtag on social media websites and donating to her congressional campaign.

The hashtag and Green's campaign donation website have repeatedly been promoted this week on her behalf by the Indiana Republican Party.

"I have felt the support. Congressman Frank Mrvan is behind this," Green said. "We are not backing down."

Green's campaign has shared a copy of a letter Green sent Oct. 3 to a federal prosecutor in Virginia, the U.S. Air Force and the Department of Defense requesting an investigation of how her military records were obtained by Politico.

The letter suggests it was a "politically motivated" leak. But the letter does not accuse, or even mention, Mrvan as the alleged source of the leak.
HOBART  First Unitarian Church of Hobart has hired a full-time minister after going over three years without one.

The Rev. Tom Bozeman started Aug. 1 at the Universalist church. Before this role, he was a minister at five churches in Massachusetts and Washington.

"Some people are lucky enough to do things for a living and quickly discover the beauty and challenge in that," said Bozeman, who's been a minister for 12 years. "You get to focus your energy, time and gifts on what you find most valuable."

First Unitarian offers a Universalist approach that has a rich variety of spiritual beliefs, including Christianity, Buddhism and humanism. Anyone walking through the door can fit in, Bozeman said. The Sunday service begins at 11 a.m.

Leading up to August, First Unitarian's worship team was responsible for finding guest speakers to conduct the weekly service. Barbara Langel, board of trustees vice president, said the pandemic made it easier to find substitute ministers when services were hosted via Zoom.

Bozeman landed in the Region after finding the ministry position through the Unitarian Universalist Association. The UUA is a national organization helping ministers find positions at Universalist churches. The worship team conducted surveys within the organization, which led them to discovering Bozeman.

"I have found his sermons to be what I need them to be  spiritually comforting and challenging," said Tina Porter, of Valparaiso. "The worship and service he provides allows me to challenge what I think I know. I feel different."

This is the first time in at least 24 years that the church has hired a full-time minister, Porter said. She and her husband attend service weekly and have led worship on Zoom.

Throughout the pandemic, the congregation stepped up to ensure that the Sunday service continued without a contracted minister, she said. Even though it was difficult, hard work has kept the congregation whole, allowing the church to still make dedications to the Black Lives Matter and Pride movements.

"We kept moving forward toward justice and freedom for everyone, but without a minster, we were without that persistent and spiritual direction," she said. "It hasn't been smooth sailing, but I'm so proud of the congregation for the work they've done."

Porter said there's been an added freshness to the church since Bozeman took over, and she is looking forward to learning more about his spiritual approach.

"Pastor Tom has years of experience and he's been able to learn from those experiences. Having someone there who's directed us when we were spinning our wheels in the wrong direction has helped."

Bozeman said he's been welcomed with warmth from church members.

"So often in society we can pass things over in a habitual way where we might say hello or goodbye in a way that feels more routine," he said. "Here there's more thoughtfulness and consideration."
Many people interpreted Dr. Latours position as relativist  as asserting that there was no such thing as objective truth. At times his statements came across to some as comical, like his remark in a 1988 essay that the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II could not have died of tuberculosis because the bacteria was only discovered in 1882.

Some of the critique was indeed ridiculous, he said in an interview with Science magazine in 2017. I certainly was not anti-science, although I must admit it felt good to put scientists down a little. There was some juvenile enthusiasm in my style.

Dr. Latour was a prime target during the so-called science wars of the 1990s, which pitted traditional, positivist thinkers against social constructionists like himself. Alan Sokal, a mathematician at New York University and a leading positivist, once invited those who, like Dr. Latour, believed that the laws of physics are mere social conventions to leap from Dr. Sokals 21st-floor apartment to test whether gravity was real or just a social construct.

Dr. Latour declined, but also insisted that Dr. Sokal and others were missing his point. In fact, he said, he was very much pro-science, and felt that he was doing it a favor by demystifying its means of intellectual production  the better to demonstrate to skeptics the extensive work that goes into it.

I think we were so happy to develop all this critique because we were so sure of the authority of science, Dr. Latour told The New York Times Magazine in a profile of him in 2018. And that the authority of science would be shared because there was a common world.

To the surprise of many of his erstwhile combatants, during the last 20 years, Dr. Latour became an ally and defender of the research establishment in the face of anti-science attacks from corporate and conservative interests.

Beginning with a 2004 article in the journal Critical Inquiry, he raised the concern that the critical methods and perspectives that he and other philosophers had applied to truth claims in the 1980s and 90s had been hijacked and perverted by climate change deniers and conspiracy theorists.
That imbalance must be remedied. The problem this recording poses is that the people on the call seem to see power among the citys constituents as a zero-sum game, and in that game, they openly disparaged other groups because of their identities.

Instead of allying with other disadvantaged groups, they diminished them. Their discussion was anti-Black, anti-Indigenous, anti-Jewish.

They were doing the work of white supremacy. And not because they see white power as one and the same as their own. At one point in the recording, while discussing whether the Council member Mark Ridley-Thomas, who is Black, will continue to be paid after his indictment on corruption charges, Martinez says, Its not us. Its the white members on this Council that will [expletive] you in a heartbeat.

Intra-minority racism is complex in some ways, but simple in others.

Racism is perpetuated by those who benefit from it. Anti-Black racism benefits those whose appearances are least Black. White supremacy benefits those who are white, or those are white-adjacent in both appearance, culture and affect.

I, too, wish that we were destined for the idealized future that some activists long for: an America that, as it becomes less white, also becomes less racist and more racially egalitarian and accepting.

But that hopeful future isnt destined, no matter how much more racially tolerant we believe our children are, no matter how much more often racial diversity is presented in pop culture, no matter how often we have multicultural potlucks at work.

That is in part because some of the allyship we experience is performative. During the Summer of Protest in 2020, you would have thought that Martinez stood in solidarity with Black people and Black lives. She filed a motion to reduce funding to the Los Angeles Police Department  to defund the police  and she issued a tweet endorsing the policy, saying:

Today we intrdcd a motion to cut funding to the LAPD, as we reset our priorities in the wake of the murder of #GeorgeFloyd & the #BlackLivesMatter call that we all support to end racism. This is just one small step. We cannot talk about change, we have to be about change.
A month after a two-person fishing team at an Ohio contest scandalized the competitive fishing world when organizers said they engorged walleyes with lead balls to increase their weight, a grand jury indicted both men on Wednesday on felony charges of cheating and attempted grand theft.

The pair, Jacob Runyan, 42, of Ashtabula, Ohio, and Chase Cominsky, 35, of Hermitage, Pa., also face one count each of possessing criminal tools, a felony, and of unlawful ownership of wild animals, a misdemeanor.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. OMalley said in a statement that the mens actions were not only dishonorable but also criminal. Mr. Runyan and Mr. Cominsky could not be reached for comment on Wednesday, and it was unclear who their legal representation was or if they had any.

On Sept. 30, the pair participated in the Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament in Cleveland, where the indictment said they did knowingly engage in conduct designed to corrupt the outcome of the event.
These are the plaintiffs from the Sandy Hook case heard in Connecticut, what they said in court, and the breakdown of the total of $965 million in damages awarded to them by the jury:

Compensatory Damages

Robbie Parker, father of Emilie, 6, who was killed at Sandy Hook. Mr. Parker and Emilies mother, Alissa, the only parent to testify who was not a plaintiff, described years of vitriol from Mr. Joness supporters after Mr. Parker was mentioned by name repeatedly on Mr. Joness broadcasts. While the jury was instructed not to consider whether Mr. Jones mentioned each plaintiff by name in his Sandy Hook broadcasts, Mr. Parker was singled out for years of attacks by Mr. Jones, who repeatedly aired a clip of a news conference the night after the shooting in which Mr. Parker, the first Sandy Hook relative to speak publicly, let out a short, nervous laugh upon finding a sea of cameras and reporters, when he expected to find only one. Mr. Jones falsely claimed that the laugh was proof Mr. Parker was an actor.

Defamation/slander damages, past and future: $60 million

Emotional distress damages, past and future: $60 million

Total damages: $120 million

William Sherlach was the husband of Mary Sherlach, the Sandy Hook school psychologist, who was killed in the hallway shortly after the gunman entered the school. Mr. Sherlach said he received notes and emails from conspiracy theorists, including a printed note on his car windshield, saying Robbie Parker was an actor.

Defamation/slander damages, past and future: $9 million

Emotional distress damages, past and future: $27 million
While the Ukrainian program received bipartisan support, Republicans have been less welcoming to the Venezuelans, more than 150,000 of whom have been apprehended at the U.S. southwestern border from October 2021 through the end of August.

These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the Homeland Security secretary, said in a statement about the new program on Wednesday.

How Times reporters cover politics. We rely on our journalists to be independent observers. So while Times staff members may vote, they are not allowed to endorse or campaign for candidates or political causes. This includes participating in marches or rallies in support of a movement or giving money to, or raising money for, any political candidate or election cause. Learn more about our process.

Announcing a new policy less than a month before the midterm elections is a calculated and political decision by the White House, John Thomas, a Republican strategist, said.

This is more of an effort to soften peoples anger on whats happening on the southern border, Mr. Thomas said. It also gives the administration a talking point that they are doing something.

But it is not clear that the humanitarian parole and expansion of Title 42 will significantly stem the number of border crossings, as Venezuelans make up only a fraction of the migrants crossing illegally.

Advocates for immigrant rights have been urging the White House to create a humanitarian parole program for migrants from particularly unstable countries, including Venezuela.

But they are not supportive of a plan that ties humanitarian parole to expelling thousands of other Venezuelan migrants to the dangerous northern border region of Mexico.
Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey and a possible 2024 presidential candidate, is raising questions about how a fellow Republican with presidential ambitions plans to handle federal aid after a hurricane.

In an interview last week, Mr. Christie noted that Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida had sought federal support for cleanup after Hurricane Ian  and could seek additional aid through a congressionally approved package  despite having voted against federal aid for Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey and other states when he was a member of Congress in 2013.

I remember at the time his argument was, I wont vote for this because theyre not paid for, Mr. Christie said of Mr. DeSantiss approach to the funding for the Sandy aid package, which totaled nearly $10 billion. I think those are symbolic votes and they feel like they can get away with those votes.

He questioned whether Mr. DeSantis would still maintain that a federal aid package must be clearly paid for now that he is managing the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. I trust as governor that hell act like a governor and not like a congressman, Mr. Christie said. As a congressperson, you can sit down in Washington and make symbolic votes, he added. When youre governor, you have to look eye to eye to the people who have lost everything.
A long-serving aide to former President Donald J. Trump was captured on security camera footage moving boxes out of a storage room at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trumps residence in Florida, both before and after the Justice Department issued a subpoena in May demanding the return of all classified documents, according to three people familiar with the matter.

The footage showed Walt Nauta, a former military aide who left the White House and then went to work for Mr. Trump at Mar-a-Lago, moving boxes from a storage room that became a focus of the Justice Departments investigation, according to the people briefed on the matter. The inquiry has centered on whether Mr. Trump improperly kept national security records after he left the White House and obstructed the governments repeated efforts to get them back.

As part of its investigation, the Justice Department has interviewed Mr. Nauta on several occasions, according to one of the people. Those interviews started before the F.B.I. executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 8 and carted off more than 11,000 documents, including about 100 that bore classification markings. Mr. Nauta has answered questions but is not formally cooperating with the investigation of Mr. Trumps handling of the documents.

His lawyer, Stanley Woodward Jr., declined to comment. Taylor Budowich, a spokesman for Mr. Trump, accused the Biden administration of colluding with the media through targeted leaks in an overt and illegal act of intimidation and tampering.
Every time Jolles introduces a subject, two choices appear at the bottom of the screen. Which one you take dictates the joke in a way that enables you to avoid opinions you might disagree with. Akella uses a similar device, though it asks less about your opinions than your knowledge of references or your demographic. As a result, boomers will get different punch lines (not to mention larger fonts) than millennials will.

These specials are the culmination of two worrying hallmarks of the culture today: how fragmentation incentivizes pandering to niches or fandoms, and the cheap, double-edged appeal of interactivity, a useful artistic tool that often becomes a crassly commercial one. These comics are not only aware of all this, but they also adopt the posture of a skeptic more than an evangelist. Their specials are sly enough to satirize themselves.

As is so often the case, David Letterman got there first. In the early 1980s, he often simultaneously spoofed and exploited the overhyping of technological innovation, particularly in themed episodes like the custom-made show, written by Chris Elliott and Matt Wickline. It began with a populist introduction: Letterman said he was taking power away from network executives and giving it to the people, letting them decide everything from what he would wear to the order of guests. The studio audiences response to multiple-choice questions, recorded by an applause meter, was the key metric. Of course, the crowds choices gave Letterman a chance to sarcastically marvel about the wonders of democracy.

Its asking too much of these young comics to display Lettermans light touch, but also, our current internet age demands a blunter tone. This reveals itself less in the onstage jokes by Akella than in what comes in between  the questions for the viewer and the onscreen text that riffs on them. If you click on Gen Z when asked about your age, the script will ridicule you for easily giving up data to TikTok.
These collaborations are a two-way street: The artist gets access to a well of inspiration, while the scientists enjoy seeing their lifes work reach new audiences. Zelinskie helps interpret the scientific process in her artworks, while scientists give feedback on the integrity of each piece. I try to do my research and understand their careers and work so I can understand the science they are trying to teach me, Zelinskie said. I wish these subjects werent so separate.

When she saw the process that NASAs space visuals developers used to create images from working on the Webbs first deep field images with multiple wavelengths, layered in color channels, Zelinskie realized the process mirrored that of making a traditional silk-screen with four layers  white, yellow, red and blue  applied one at a time. For the interactive pegboard Deep Field, she used digital files of each different wavelength to create the layers for the printed silk-screen, which visitors can augment with small plastic colored pegs, mimicking the process of finding new stars in the dark spots of deep space.

The artworks take cues from Pop Art, like the halftone screen-prints that recall Warhol, or recognizable, figural sculptures like Ring Nebula, which recreates the Southern Ring Nebula in a 3D-printed cloud of copper around two aquamarine gems representing the two stars in the center that are ejecting dust and gas. Zelinski is careful to toe the line between abstraction and a more traditional science display like those in a museum or visitors center. Scientists can be very analytical and didactic, she said. I am always pushing to make things more creative, without losing the educational thread.
They were the men and women behind Southern Californias Light and Space movement. Some of them were called the Finish Fetish artists because of their manipulation of surfaces. Starting in the 1960s, Robert Irwin, Larry Bell, Peter Alexander, Helen Pashgian and other artists began experimenting with new materials and technologies  including acrylic, urethanes and resin  that were often polished to a high sheen or rendered so that they disappeared altogether.

Jack Brogan, a laconic, denim-clad craftsman raised in Tennessee, was their all-important collaborator and fabricator, even if his contributions often went unrecognized.

When Mr. Alexander began to make his luminous resin cubes, he turned to Mr. Brogan for help. For John McCrackens high-gloss fiberglass and resin plinths and planks, Mr. Brogan pushed the artists already laborious process further  sanding, painting and burnishing the work until it shone like glass. And for Mr. Irwin, with whom he had his longest and most intimate collaboration, he engineered all manner of material acrobatics.

Mr. Brogan died in his sleep on Sept. 14 at his home in Santa Monica, Calif., his wife, the abstract painter Edith Baumann, said. He was 92.
LONDON  When Jacques Testard started his own publishing company in 2014, he wanted a name that suggested a crazy endeavor. Testard called the imprint Fitzcarraldo Editions, a reference to the 1982 Werner Herzog movie in which a rubber baron tries to haul a 320-ton steamboat over a hill in the middle of the Amazon rainforest.

It was not a very subtle metaphor on the stupidity of setting up a publishing house, Testard, 37, recalled recently. Publishing often feels like youre just digging a hole in the ground and chucking money into it, he added.

Eight years later, Fitzcarraldo Editions seems far from a madmans folly. It is one of Britains most talked-about publishing houses, with a reputation as the English-language imprint of choice for Nobel laureates. When the French writer Annie Ernaux was awarded the 2022 literature prize last week, she became Fitzcarraldos third author to gain the honor since the houses founding, after Olga Tokarczuk, of Poland, in 2019, and Svetlana Alexievich, a Belarusian journalist and writer, in 2015. Fitzcarraldo Editions is also the British publisher for Jon Fosse, a Norwegian author and playwright, who is regularly among bookmakers favorites for the award. (It has also published one book by Elfriede Jelinek, although she received the Nobel in 2004, a decade before Fitzcarraldo began.)

And Fitzcarraldo is making waves outside the Nobel. Since 2017, a dozen of the houses books, including Fernanda Melchors Hurricane Season and Maria Stepanovas In Memory of Memory, have been nominated for the International Booker Prize, one of the highest-profile awards for translated fiction. In 2018, Tokarczuks Flights won that one, too.
The presentation, which included commentary from three prominent feminist Chaucer scholars, caused a stunned reaction among medievalists  including amazement that the researchers, who had given only the barest hint of the discovery in advance, had pulled off a publicity coup akin, as the literary scholar Jonathan Hsy put it on Twitter, to a Beyonce album drop.

Their findings arrive at a moment when medieval studies has been particularly fractious, with heated disputes about race, gender and diversity spilling out of scholarly journals and onto Twitter. And alongside the excitement about the new discovery, a number of scholars expressed unease that the findings would be weaponized against feminist scholars, who have sometimes been accused of trying to cancel Chaucer.

Holly Crocker, a medieval literature scholar at the University of South Carolina, called the new documents very exciting but said the exoneration narrative some saw in them was overplayed.

I am eager to see how the conversation unfolds, she wrote in an email, but I remain insistent that the questions feminists have raised about the intersection of rape culture and womens labor should shape our collective approach to these documents.

The Chaucer case may touch on highly charged, up-to-the-minute issues of sex, power and consent. But the discovery was the fruit of old-fashioned archival shoe leather.

Sobecki said that for the past six years, he had been talking on and off with Roger, the chief medieval records specialist at the National Archives in Britain, about where they might uncover new material relating to Chaucers life buried in the miles and miles of documents that the archive preserves.

In 1993, the scholar Christopher Cannon had caused a stir with the discovery of a second copy of Chaumpaignes raptus document. In it, the reference to raptus had been removed, raising the suspicion that there had been some effort to clean the story up.
The time Priya and I cracked the code on Reading While Parents was when we invented the shell game. We sat a hundred feet apart on a beach and each whipped out a book  she, My Brilliant Friend, and then the rest of the Neapolitan novels; I, some early books in the Knausgaard odyssey, I think  and convinced our then toddler son to carry a shell from Mama over to Papa, then another shell from Papa to Mama. And so on for, like, four hours. He was slow back then, so each round trip could take several minutes. Dont tell me I never invented any parenting techniques.

Has a book ever brought you closer to another person, or come between you?

My third book, Winners Take All, on the billionaire class and its weaponizing of do-gooding to tighten its grip on power, was partly inspired by a fellowship I had at the Aspen Institute. After the book came out, I was mysteriously disappeared from my fellowship classs online discussion forums and told my voice would no longer be welcome at the institute.

Which writers  novelists, playwrights, critics, journalists, poets  working today do you admire most?

Nikole Hannah-Jones, for showing that you can change the national conversation and the teaching of history and even this venerable newspaper with the power of keystrokes on a laptop. Maggie Nelson, for stretching our imaginations about identity. Katherine Boo, for demonstrating how to write about people as if they were more real to you than yourself. George Packer, for combining indefatigable reporting with a refusal to give up on the country. Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, for giving marginalized subjects so much dignity. Clint Smith, for showing how we can be honest about our past but magnanimous about how hard it is going to be for millions to let go of problematic, cherished illusions. Asne Seierstad, for cinematic storytelling built on obsessive reporting. Masha Gessen, for their siren warnings to ward off autocracy before it is too late. Parul Sehgal, for elevating book criticism and updating it for our more global and plural age. Michael Lewis, for making complex storytelling look easy. Svetlana Alexievich, for the confidence to let her subjects speak for themselves. Ta-Nehisi Coates, for putting his finger on the nub of the American ailment. Adam Serwer, for reminding us that todays fascism wasnt born yesterday. Larissa MacFarquhar, for profiles that make me love her subjects and resent Larissa. Jhumpa Lahiri, for fearless self-reinvention.

Your new book, The Persuaders, is about the fight for hearts and minds in an age of polarization. What writers are especially important or effective in that effort?

In The Persuaders, I ended up writing about several people who themselves have written books. It was daunting but unavoidable, because I was looking for people doing the best thinking about how the cause of democracy can overcome right now.

I write about Alicia Garza, a leading activist in the Black Lives Matter movement, whose book The Purpose of Power takes her own progressive movement to task for what she views as a tendency toward insularity. I write about the scholar Loretta Ross, the author of Reproductive Justice and other books, who is doing vital teaching about how the pro-democracy cause can be thicker-skinned and more capable of strategic grace. I write about Linda Sarsour, who wrote a book called We Are Not Here to Be Bystanders, who makes surprising connections between her conservative Muslim upbringing and the upbringing of millions of white Americans and men who today feel unprepared for the new world that is dawning  a connection that helps her be empathetic about the transitional anxieties quaking the country. Diane Benscoter, who wrote a book called Shoes of a Servant, is a former cult member turned cult deprogrammer, and she has a lot to teach us about how we can win back some of the far rights dupes. George Goehl is a veteran community organizer who has worked extensively in rural America, and his newsletter, The Fundamentals of Organizing, is a great way in to the philosophy that underpins his work: the idea that people are conflicted and many-sided and can change if you listen and show respect while also standing firm in your values . Anat Shenker-Osorio is a messaging expert who I hope will write a book on her method of persuading not by diluting ones vision but rather by playing to the bases passion and inspiring that base to woo the moderates in their lives.
A few months ago, monkeypox regularly made headlines as a major new disease outbreak. Then it largely vanished from the news.

What happened in the meantime? The virus receded: Since a peak in early August, reported monkeypox cases in the U.S. have fallen more than 85 percent through yesterday.

The rise and fall of monkeypox provide lessons on the spread of diseases  an aspect of public health that experts acknowledge we still know far too little about. Covid has made clear that much of the world was not prepared for a deadly pandemic. Monkeypox, while nowhere as dangerous as Covid, can shed light on our vulnerabilities (as my colleague Apoorva Mandavilli explained).

Todays newsletter will look at why monkeypox declined, and what that might mean for future outbreaks.
Delta lost about $35 million in revenue in the third quarter because of cancellations and other disruptions caused by Hurricane Ian, which devastated parts of the southeastern United States at the end of September. The airline expects to take a similar hit in the current quarter because of the hurricane.

Delta said it was optimistic about its revenue forecast for the rest of the year, though Decembers performance may be slightly subdued compared with the past. That is mainly because of where holidays fall this year: There are more days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and more return travel than usual will be pushed into 2023 because New Years Eve falls on a weekend.

The positive notes extend to other carriers. American provided a preview of its financial results this week, saying revenue was slightly higher than expected in the third quarter. The airline reported that revenue was up 13 percent from the same period in 2019, above its previous forecast of a 10 to 12 percent increase. American is expected to announce its full results next Thursday.

International Airlines Group, which owns several carriers in Europe, including British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia, said Thursday that sales were coming in as expected for this time of year with no signs of weakness.

Travelers were undeterred by fast-rising ticket prices in the spring, allowing airlines to recoup higher costs paid for fuel and other expenses. Fares have since fallen and are slightly above where they were in 2019, but may rise again. Hopper, the travel booking site, recently said it expected Thanksgiving flights to be about 22 percent more expensive and Christmas flights to be about 31 percent more expensive than in 2019.

Delta said it expected to continue to be able to recoup cost increases through higher fares, but that sentiment is not universally shared.

Our experts have cast doubt on carriers ability to continue to pass costs through to travelers, Christopher Raite, an analyst at the investment research firm Third Bridge, said in an email. As consumers spend excess savings and make up for lost travel, our analysis suggests that demand will wane for leisure travel, increasing the importance of a business travel recovery for U.S. airlines.
Fraud on Zelle, the instant-payments system owned by seven of the nations biggest banks, has been rising in the past year, leaving hundreds of thousands of defrauded customers with little recourse for recovering their stolen cash.

In recent weeks, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, has been demanding answers from banks about the scope of the problem. She grilled bank leaders at a Senate hearing last month and followed up with a scathing report about the data that a handful of banks sent her. Now, shes targeting one particular bank for fraud levels she called profoundly troubling: Wells Fargo.

Days after the hearing, Wells Fargo sent Ms. Warren, who sits on the Senates Banking Committee, information she had sought for months about its fraud claims rate on Zelle transactions. The numbers raised alarms, Ms. Warren said in a letter she sent last week to Charles Scharf, the banks chief executive.

The data indicates that Wells Fargo customers are reporting fraud and scams on the banks Zelle platform at a rate that is nearly 2.5 times higher this year than it was in 2019, and that the rate of reported fraud and scams this year is more than twice as high for Wells customers than it is for customers of other banks, Ms. Warren wrote.
PARIS  France began pumping natural gas directly to Germany for the first time on Thursday, part of a landmark agreement struck by both governments to help each other confront Europes energy crisis as Russia cuts off gas supplies to Europe.

Volumes of gas capable of producing around 31 gigawatt-hours per day of electricity began flowing early on Thursday into Germany, the French network operator GRTgaz said. The connection has a maximum capacity of 100 gigawatt-hours per day, equal to the power output of four nuclear reactors, or about 10 percent of the amount of liquefied natural gas that France imports each day, the company said.

GRTgaz said that months ago it had begun modifying its pipeline networks to be able to send gas to Germany. For years, the German economy had relied on Russian gas exports, but Moscow slashed them this year in response to Western sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine.

France gets its gas from the Netherlands, Norway and Russia, according to the International Energy Agency, although supplies from Russia were cut off in September. It also receives deliveries of liquefied natural gas from several L.N.G. terminals.
The number of Adderall and generic-equivalent prescriptions has been rising in recent years, according to figures from IQVIA, a data analytics company. Total prescriptions rose by about 16 percent, to 41.2 million last year from 35.5 million in 2019.

Over the years, concerns have been raised about the overprescribing of Adderall for children and young adults with A.D.H.D., and about its abuse as a study aid among college students. The teenage mental health crisis that exploded during the pandemic put a spotlight on sharp increases in some prescriptions, like Adderall.

Dr. David Goodman, director of the Adult Attention Deficit Disorder Center of Maryland, said about 4 percent of adults and 8 percent of children have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and large numbers of them go untreated  roughly 70 percent of adults and 40 percent of children. He said growing awareness about the condition appears to be leading to a surge in demand for medications.

In addition, he said, the telehealth start-ups made it cheaper and less time-consuming to get a diagnosis, although he questioned whether all of those were accurate.

I can understand why there are shortages, because theres an increased demand of people who are seeking these medications, said Dr. Goodman, who is also an assistant professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He received $18,000 in 2021 as a consultant for drug companies.
And there is little research to address the issue head on. A previous study, published in 2000, surveyed doctors and found that three quarters of them said some patients addressed them by their first name. But little else was available in the medical literature, and looking at emails offered a novel approach. The medical center supplied Dr. Yang and his colleagues with a trove of email exchanges, allowing analysis of 29,498 messages from 14,958 patients sent from Oct. 1, 2018, to Sept. 30, 2021.

The changing behavior they saw in the emails differs from even the recent past when it was all but unheard-of to call doctors by their first names, notes Jonathan Moreno, a professor of history and sociology of science at the University of Pennsylvania. He saw it in his own family, he added.

My father was a psychiatrist with his own sanitarium in Beacon, N.Y., where I grew up, he said. Patients, their families, staff, townspeople never addressed him as anything but Dr. or referred to him as the doctor. I dont remember my parents ever referring to his colleagues or their own caregivers as anything but doctor, unless they were close friends.

Popular culture of the 1960s and 70s reflected that tradition, Dr. Moreno noted, with medical dramas like Dr. Kildare, which involved a young intern  Dr. Kildare  and his mentor, Dr. Gillespie. There also was the popular drama Marcus Welby, M.D., starring a kindly family doctor whose patients always called him Dr. Welby but who called patients by their first names. That television tradition seems to be one of the few that survived into the 21st century, Dr. Moreno said.

Doctors may not enjoy the real worlds tilt toward informality. The survey in 2000 showed that 61 percent were annoyed when patients addressed them by their first name.

Their annoyance makes sense, said Debra Roter, an emeritus professor of health, behavior and society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Using a first name can violate the boundary between doctor and patient.

Doctors might find it is undermining their authority, Dr. Roter said. Theres a familiarity that first names gives people.
Hurricane Ian has dominated both local and national news coverage in recent weeks. How do you approach the different facets of hurricane coverage?

There is so much news in this region that it is more manageable to think of it in pieces. Sometimes you feel as if youre in the middle of the vortex: How many articles have been written this week? How many different topics have come up? Because were coming at it from a news lens, most things are not necessarily related. Theres stuff happening in court. There are natural disasters. There are these things that arent related  they just happen to happen at the same time.

You always know in an election year that the fall  when storm season and election season overlap  is going to be very busy. Youre hoping theres no storm, but you have to pivot depending on any given moment. In 2018, we were covering the midterms, and Hurricane Michael hit the Panhandle. Its 2022 and were covering the midterms, and Hurricane Ian hits southwest Florida.

What audience are you thinking about in your report?

Florida is a microcosm of the country, generally speaking. Theres a lot of interest from people in other places about this state because they have connections to it, either through family or work or vacation. You want the people who are represented in the stories, in the communities that you are in, to feel represented. And you want people nationally and internationally who maybe have never been in a hurricane to understand what it means.

You want it to be informational, not just for the locals. Its a balancing job, trying to let people who might not be in southwest Florida understand the geography of this place.
The 14th Amendment has played an important role in the legal fight over abortion. As Mr. Liptak writes:

In challenging the law, Mississippis sole abortion clinic focused on the 14th Amendment, which says that states may not deprive any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law. Justice Alito wrote that the amendment, adopted in 1868, had not been understood to address abortion, which he said was at the time a crime in most states. The joint dissent responded that only men had participated in the adoption of the amendment. So it is perhaps not so surprising, they wrote, that the ratifiers were not perfectly attuned to the importance of reproductive rights for womens liberty, or for their capacity to participate as equal members of our nation. These days, Justice Alito wrote, women have political clout. In the last election in November 2020, women, who make up around 51.5 percent of the population of Mississippi, constituted 55.5 percent of the voters who cast ballots, he wrote.

What does the 14th Amendment say and what does it have to do with abortion? To understand this reasoning, students can use the following resources (either individually or in a jigsaw activity) to take a closer look at the Constitution, the history of abortion rights and how the amendment has been interpreted by the Supreme Court.

A look at the 14th Amendment: Have students read this introduction to the 14th Amendment from the National Constitution Center, which gives context to the time in which the amendment was ratified. Then read Section 1 of the amendment, which Mississippis abortion clinic based its challenge on.

What rights does the 14th Amendment protect? Abortion is not specifically mentioned. How might this amendment apply to abortion?

A look at history: In the majority opinion, Justice Alito argued that for an unwritten liberty right to be legitimate, it must be deeply rooted in the nations history; he believed abortion was not.

Have students read The Fight Over Abortion History. What do historians say about whether abortion has always been a crime? How should the fact that only men participated in the adoption of the amendment, as the dissenters wrote, affect our understanding of this amendment? Does the fact that women have political clout now, as Justice Alito argued, matter?
The scares are as banal as the visuals. Argento made his reputation on tangled yarns where witchy women usually wielded the knife. At 82, hes finally resorted to a straightforward male-sicko-slays-sex workers tale. He and co-writer Franco Ferrini may believe theyre saying something or other about misogyny. (Even Dianas non-murderous clients are varying degrees of awful.) Still, the writers seem to have spent little time developing their villain, who is so dashed off that the baddie doesnt even commit to a weapon, reaching for garrotes, blades, nooses and steering wheels as though from a random grab bag. (At least Arnaud Rebotinis spidery synthesizers set the right mood.)

Yet, while its easy to dismiss Dark Glasses as the work of a master gone soft, Pastorellis prickly, sharp-tongued Diana is perhaps the most charismatic leading lady of Argentos career. She dominates her surroundings  a rarity in his films  and delivers a performance that creeps close to camp (particularly while being strangled by a snake). The best moments of the film involve Dianas unsentimental alliance with Chin, the orphan who offers her more protection than shes able to afford him. Their quirkily endearing relationship allows the horror legend to dabble in a genre thats wholly new to him: the odd couple comedy.

Dark Glasses

Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 26 minutes. Watch on Shudder.
One of the many pleasures of the feverish Decision to Leave is that the director Park Chan-wook clearly had as much fun making the movie as you will have watching it. A heady, baroque mystery infused with the kind of old-fashioned romantic fatalism that makes noir-darkened hearts flutter, it is a story of impossible love  though even a determined admirer may wonder if its also impossible to get a handle on this sly, ingeniously slippery movie.

Never fear, though, as someone once cautioned me about visiting Venice, you will get lost. But navigating a mysterys enigmas, sifting through its clues and unlocking its secrets are what draw us to stories like this, and here, even if you find yourself at an apparent dead end, Park will guide you back on track. Both times that Ive seen Decision to Leave I questioned whether the movie was overly addled or I was, both being possible. Whos the lovelorn gangster, I wondered. What does this or that plot kink have to do with the mystery woman? And why does one detective keep thumping his partner with an electric massager?

Park drops you into the movie so abruptly that you would be forgiven for thinking that you had missed the first 15 minutes (or a prequel). As the staccato of bullets fills the soundtrack, a flurry of rapidly deployed scenes zip by, and the movie jumps from two detectives shooting at an indoor firing range and chatting, and then working a case and talking some more. The opening draws you right in with its destabilizing jump cuts, controlled freneticism, narrative ellipses and oddball swerves  cut to a fog-wreathed discussion about insomnia  which creates an inviting ambiguity. Its unclear whats happening; it will remain unclear for a while.

Theres a dead body, of course, which soon materializes with the first glints of the main story. While hiking, a man has died under suspicious circumstances, leaving a broken watch and beautiful widow, Seo-rae (Tang Wei, wonderful), whos called in for questioning by the two detectives. The lead investigator, the sleep-challenged Hae-joon (Park Hae-il), is instantly and conspicuously drawn to her. By contrast, the other detective, Soo-wan (Go Kyung-pyo), the guy with the electric massager, is more leery, harshly noting that she doesnt seem especially upset by her husbands death. Hae-joon replies that his wife wouldnt be either, a revelatory comment about a man who proves more complicated than he appears.
Eternal Spring revisits an incident from 2002, when members of the spiritual movement Falun Gong hijacked local television programming in the city of Changchun, China. Their goal was to air a video that contradicted the Chinese governments negative portrayal of the practice, which combines elements of Buddhism, Taoism and Chinese breathing exercises. China, seeing Falun Gongs popularity as a political threat, had banned the group in 1999.

This documentary, directed by Jason Loftus, incorporates animation to revisit these past events. In an eye-catching early sequence, the cartoon equivalent of a fluid single take depicts law enforcement rounding up several people suspected of being involved in Falun Gong or of hijacking the TV signal.
Movies about the immediate aftermath of the Holocaust often focus on the long journey to begin life anew, but Plan A dramatizes attempts by some survivors first to seek retribution  on a huge scale. The directors, Doron and Yoav Paz, fashion an undercover thriller from the true story of some 50 Jewish vigilantes called the Avengers who tried to poison millions in German cities.

Max (August Diehl) returns to Germany in 1945 to search for his family and finds antisemitism still widespread. He meets a Jewish brigade of the British Army that is secretly targeting war criminals for off-the-books executions. Theyre efficient  cue a montage sequence of Nazis being shot in the head  and Max helps them until he learns of the Avengers, or Nakam, which means revenge in Hebrew.
If youre hoping to land squarely on an aye or a nay about the sex-work industry, Sarah Joness documentary-narrative feature, Sell/Buy/Date, wont help. And thats a good thing.

Jones  who wrote, directed and stars in the film  doesnt treat the tensions between exploitation and empowerment, personal agency and systemic cruelties, as binaries. Instead, they are riveting, confounding and, as exchanges between Jones and her mother attest, personal. Why Jones travels with her deceased sisters journal factors in mightily, too.

In 2016, Joness solo show of the same name became an Off Broadway hit. Yet the announcement that shed be turning it into a movie was met with a barrage of criticism on social media  much of it from sex workers who wanted ownership of their stories. (Laverne Cox pulled out as an executive producer; Meryl Streep stayed on.)
In the late 1940s, the president of Peru, Gen. Manuel Odria, had a bright idea, or so he thought, about the colonization of the Amazon: start with criminals, convicted or not. This penal colony, called Sepa  which began operating in 1951 and was mostly shut down in the early 1990s  was often a dumping ground for political opponents of whatever leadership was in power at the time. Far from so-called civilization and wanting in many resources, it was an environment in which prisoners were obliged to form functioning communities or die.

Sepa, Nuestro Senor de los Milagros, a short but crucial documentary made in 1986, depicts life in the colony. Sepa was populated by all manner of criminals, some violent, some not: sex offenders, thieves, small-scale drug traffickers. But, partially because the environment compelled the inhabitants to work together, this green hell, as an interviewee calls it, was in a sense far more functional than most prisons: There were no gangs, no alcohol or drug abuse, and little violence.
After the photojournalist Ernest Withers died in 2007, a bombshell investigation revealed that the respected Memphis photographer, known for taking over a million pictures of 20th-century Black life during his career, had also been a paid informant of the F.B.I.

The documentary The Picture Taker, directed by Phil Bertelsen (Who Killed Malcolm X?), uses this fact as an entry point into a compelling biography of Withers, whose photographs helped chronicle important events in the civil rights movement, including the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s final days spent supporting the 1968 sanitation workers strike in Memphis.

The Picture Taker presents several perspectives on Witherss link to the F.B.I. and noticeably does not come down on a particular side  unlike Judas and the Black Messiah, a 2021 historical drama about the murder of the activist and Chicago Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton, which took up similar subject matter.
Some stories can seem too difficult to tell, though that doesnt seem to have crossed the mind of the director Chinonye Chukwu. In Till, her haunted and haunting movie about Emmett Till, the 14-year-old whose barbaric murder in Mississippi in 1955 by white supremacists helped galvanize the civil rights movement, Chukwu revisits the past while doing something extremely difficult. She makes this grim American history insistently of the moment  and she does so by stripping the story down to its raw, harrowing emotional core.

In brisk strokes both sweeping and detailed, Chukwu  who shares the script credit with Michael Reilly and Keith Beauchamp  revisits Tills life, winding back the clock to Chicago in 1955. There, the cherubic-faced Emmett (a tender Jalyn Hall) lives with his widowed mother, Mamie (a superb Danielle Deadwyler), in a cozy house and is eagerly preparing to visit relatives in Mississippi, a trip that hangs over his mother like a worrying cloud. Yet Mamie dotes on Emmett (she calls him Bo) and, as a gift, buys him a wallet at a department store, where she tartly rebuffs a white salesclerk who tries to steer her toward the basement.

By the time that Emmett is riding a train to the South  midway through the trip, the Black passengers stand and move en masse to the rear  a divided world of post-World War II optimism and jarring racial segregation has opened up. These divisions widen once Emmett arrives in Mississippi, where he stays with the family of Mamies uncle, a sharecropper, Moses (John Douglas Thompson). Soon, Emmett is helping Moses and his children pick cotton under the relentless sun  the palette suggestively lightened  and the camera sweeps over Black bodies toiling in the field as Antebellum America comes to unsettling life.

The horrors of that world soon emerge with devastating consequences. Emmett, along with some relations, visits a small grocery store that caters to Black customers but is run by white people. Things rapidly spiral downward when Emmett walks into the store and meets the contemptuous gaze of the woman behind the counter. The Northern salesclerk who insulted Mamie earlier was just a better-mannered racist; he was also an ugly foreshadowing. Now, away from Mamie and the life he knows, Emmett amiably tries to engage the woman, Carolyn Bryant (Haley Bennett), whose hostility ends in catastrophic violence. That evening, several white men kidnap, torture and murder Emmett, throwing his mangled body in a river.
The thing is, Im not sorry.

It was a jailhouse interview with Sorokin that piqued Palmers interest. Sorokins love of fashion  and her disdain for anyone who dressed poorly, in her eyes  was a trope of the Netflix show. Its also true about the real Sorokin, said Palmer, who dressed in business formal clothing when interviewing Sorokin, even at Rikers Island.

At Rikers, Sorokin was frank with her. The thing is, Im not sorry, she told Palmer the day after she was sentenced in 2019 to four to 12 years in prison for grand larceny, among other charges. Id be lying to you and to everyone else and to myself if I said I was sorry for anything. I regret the way I went about certain things.

After serving out her criminal sentence, Sorokin, who is from Germany, was soon rearrested by immigration officials on charges of overstaying her visa. Palmer covered Sorokins exploits while in detention as well. She went from con artist to artist, selling drawings she made while serving time. Her art dealer, Chris Martine, posted her $10,000 bond to secure her release, he said.

While in detention she had access to the internet and stayed in touch with Palmer. It was Sorokin herself who told Palmer the day she would be released.

When your source is a con artist

To secure the interview, the day of Sorokins release from the Orange County Correctional Facility in Goshen, N.Y., Palmer waited for about five hours outside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in Lower Manhattan where Sorokin was transferred.
Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2022 shows the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur district, Bangladesh. (Xinhua) DHAKA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The architectural heritage across the Islamic world is impressively rich and Bangladesh, as a Muslim-majority country, is no exception. There are many iconic Islamic structures including mosques, palaces, tombs and fortresses in Bangladesh. A more recent addition to the heritage of Bangladesh is the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge, built with Chinese government funds. Weng Changmin, deputy manager of the project, told Xinhua recently that it had taken over four years to build the bridge, which officially opened to traffic on Sept. 4. The structure is a testament to the friendship between China and Bangladesh. The bridge design incorporates an Islamic-style dome and a Chinese knot, reflecting the bonds between China and Bangladesh and the cultures of the two places, he said. The 2.96-km bridge, formally known as the Bangmata Begum Fazilatun Necha Mujib 8th Bangladesh China-Friendship Bridge, crosses the Kocha River in Pirojpur district, 185 km southwest of the capital Dhaka. It has become an unexpected tourist hotspot in the region. "I've come to see the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge," visitor Nasreen Jahan Mukta told Xinhua. "It is incredibly beautiful. People in southern Bangladesh regions have benefited a lot from the bridge. China has always been a friend and hopefully will remain a friend of Bangladesh. Many thanks to them." Another visitor, Shahnewaz Khan, said the gate and railings on both sides of the bridge are made in a pattern similar to Muslim mosque design and are very beautiful. "Many thanks to the Bangladesh government and the Chinese government for this," he said, noting that the bridge had put an end to another dangerous ferry service in the region. Another tourist, Saiful Islam, spoke of how difficult it had been to cross the river before. "We had a lot of trouble while going to the other side. Now that there is a bridge, we can come and go from Pirojpur to Kaukhali without any difficulty. And we don't have to wait for the ferry." Eight Bangladesh-China friendship bridges have been built with Chinese aid across Bangladesh since the 1980s. Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2022 shows the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur district, Bangladesh. (Xinhua) Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2022 shows the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur district, Bangladesh. (Xinhua)
Government Meets Cross Frontier Group

The Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister met the Cross Frontier Group this afternoon.

This is part of the ongoing contact between the Government and the Group, which is constituted by economic and social actors from Gibraltar and the Campo de Gibraltar.

The Chief Minister briefed the Group, in general terms, on the latest state of play regarding the negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union on the future relationship of Gibraltar.

A general discussion ensued during which the point was made on the importance of finding technical solutions to the challenges that remain.

There was agreement that the priorities and concerns of the citizens of Gibraltar and of the Campo de Gibraltar should come first and that work should continue to enhance the area of shared prosperity in the region which depends on a fluid border.
Officer Iurato, who was hired in 2018, was taken to surgery at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Chief Brian Gould of the Bristol Police Department said. He was released from the hospital after 11 a.m. Thursday, officials said.

Nathan Brutcher, who was also shot, was taken to a hospital for treatment. His condition is unknown, and it was not clear whether he had been shot by the police or by his brother. But officials have not identified him as a suspect in the attack.

Neighbors said they were shocked on Thursday morning as police officers swarmed their quiet residential area. Several reported hearing screaming and at least a dozen gunshots the night of the shooting.

Norberto Rodriguez, who lives across the street from where the shooting occurred, said that on Wednesday night he saw a man dressed in camouflage emerge from the house with a gun. Another man ran out, apparently to restrain him, and the man with the rifle shot the second man, Mr. Rodriguez said.

Robyn Lauzon, who lives nearby, said she heard a series of rapid gunshots and then a woman yelling, You killed them.

She was screaming it like bloody murder, but we dont know who she was yelling it about, Ms. Lauzon said. Then every siren in the world came.

The incident was all the more shocking for its setting, she added.

Its a little sleepy town where this kind of thing doesnt happen, Ms. Lauzon said. Ive never heard a gunshot in my life.
The problems may be deep, but Sasse clings to the surface of things. America seems to be tearing apart at the seams, he writes, so much so that there are, today, effectively, two different Americas. (Somewhere, John Edwards is tearing out his $400 hair.) The term disruption recurs throughout the book, a reliable sign that an author was vaguely tech-savvy a decade ago. Facebook and Twitter are frowned upon, naturally, while italics are strategically deployed throughout the text to give concepts a weighty air. Our world is nudging us toward rootlessness, when only a recovery of rootedness can heal us, he writes, and the word connections is occasionally rendered as connections, which I gather makes it more significant. Sasse has a weakness for the melodramatic single-sentence paragraph. Were hyperconnected, and were disconnected. Or: We live  and work  in unusual times. And, in case you hadnt heard: America is an idea.

Them relies on exactly the roster of social scientists and assorted thinkers youd expect to see in a work of this kind. Kudos to the senator for reading Robert Putnam, Bill Bishop and many other luminaries of the America-is-coming-apart genre, but their presence only underscores the books secondhand feel. (Chapter one relies so heavily on Putnam that the senator could have skipped it and just encouraged readers to pick up Bowling Alone and Our Kids.) Sasse summons the ghosts of the American Revolution, but in the most Founders 101 way possible. Ben Franklin makes an appearance to say, A republic, if you can keep it, whereas James Madison shows up to remind us that if men were angels, no government would be necessary. I learned more from Hamilton, and I never even saw it with the original cast.

I may have expected too much from this book; my impressions are likely colored by my disappointment. In addition to his time in the Senate, Sasse is a scholar (with a Ph.D. in history) and an educator (the former president of Midland University in Nebraska), and with his early willingness to question Donald Trumps candidacy he seemed a promising and thoughtful new voice on the shrinking center-right. Published just weeks before the 2018 midterms  when Trump was promising to make the elections all about migrant caravans and Brett Kavanaughs Supreme Court confirmation  Them was an opportunity for this lawmaker-teacher-historian to offer a meaningful alternative to the politics he decried.

Instead, Them is on the dulling edge of political thought, a book that can safely be omitted from the syllabus of any University of Florida seminar unless Sasse himself teaches it. Genuine wisdom will require not just acknowledging the disruption of our ways of making a living, but also our way of thinking about ourselves, our identities and our places in the world, Sasse offers in a typically vapid sentence. He cautions us not to tackle Americas troubles with a formula or a silver bullet or a one-size-fits-all solution, an impressive trifecta of triteness.
Stop me if youve heard this one before: Were now engaged in a trade war with China.

Actually, you probably havent heard this one before. Im not talking about Donald Trumps clumsy tariffs aimed at reducing Americas trade deficit. Im talking instead about the sweeping new controls the Biden administration imposed last Friday on exports of technology to China  controls meant to constrain other advanced countries as well as the United States.

Unlike the Trump tariffs, these controls have a clear goal: to prevent or at least delay Beijings attempts to produce advanced semiconductors, which are of crucial military as well as economic importance. If this sounds like a very aggressive move on the part of the United States, thats because it is.

But it needs to be put in context. Recent events have undermined the sunny view of globalization that long dominated Western policy. Its now apparent that despite global integration, there are still dangerous bad actors out there  and interdependence sometimes empowers these bad actors. But it also gives good actors ways to limit bad actors ability to do harm. And the Biden administration is evidently taking these lessons to heart.

It wasnt supposed to turn out this way. The postwar world trade system, with its limits on protectionism and waves of tariff reduction, emerged partly out of the view that trade promoted peace. This was the firm belief of Cordell Hull, F.D.R.s secretary of state, arguably the father of that system. The European Union grew out of the 1951 Coal and Steel Community, established with the explicit goal of making war impossible by binding European industry together.
Franklin Roosevelt tried to keep the press from photographing him being transferred into and out of his wheelchair. In 1964, the cover of Fact Magazine read, 1,189 Psychiatrists Say Goldwater Is Psychologically Unfit to Be President! with one calling him a dangerous lunatic. In 1972, Thomas Eagleton was kicked off the Democratic ticket as vice president when it was revealed that he had been hospitalized for depression. In 1975, the columnist Garry Wills argued that George Wallace was unfit for office not because of his history of racism, but because he had a physical disability as a result of being shot.

Today, politicians as diverse as Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Representative Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina use wheelchairs, and even their most virulent political opponents generally dont bring up their disabilities. But when it comes to invisible disabilities, and in particular ones that involve communication or mental function, stigma is trickier to detect and dispel.

Theres a better way to talk about disability and elected office. Congress is a workplace in which our leaders (and their staffs) may or may not need reasonable accommodations. All private U.S. businesses with more than 15 employees and government employers at all levels are required to grant reasonable accommodations. Not all potential accommodations are considered reasonable. The Americans With Disabilities Act exempts employers from accommodations that would cause an undue hardship given the resources of the employer or that would directly threaten the safety of the employee or others. But most accommodations that disabled workers need are considered reasonable, especially with the rise of inexpensive assistive technology that embeds accessibility in everyday life.

Your cellphone and its accessories can be great sources of assistive technology, including magnifying devices, wireless headphones that can work as hearing aids, apps that control actual medical hearing aids and cameras that correct for color blindness. And most of us are now carrying with us the whole internet, on which you can look up something that you might have forgotten.

Almost everyone also carries a screen now, and while automated captioning is still not as accurate as professional stenography of the kind used by Mr. Fetterman, artificial intelligence is improving speech recognition rapidly. Learning to work over Zoom and Slack, a necessity during Covid, likewise has made work significantly more accessible for disabled Americans with vastly different needs. Assistive technology is part of the modern workplace, and we all use it in ways most people dont even notice. Im a dyslexic writer. Spell-check is my assistive tech.
If the past 30 years werent convincing enough, the current crisis shows that a new approach is sorely needed.

During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union showed they could sit down and discuss ways to reduce the risk of nuclear war. But nearly any ways in which Americas relations with North Korea might be improved  such as through economic cooperation or development assistance  are held hostage to Washingtons insistence that Pyongyang disarm first.

President Donald Trumps attempt at diplomacy with Mr. Kim foundered on this very shoal: According to North Koreas foreign minister, Ri Yong-ho, Mr. Kim had asked for some sanctions to be removed in exchange for his agreement to dismantle the Norths most important nuclear facility (Mr. Trump said Mr. Kim had asked for all sanctions to be removed in exchange for the closing of that facility). Not without complete disarmament, Mr. Kim was told. The talks collapsed in 2019 without an agreement, and Mr. Kim has used the subsequent years to build up his arsenal.

There is precedent for the United States to finesse the situation. Israel, India and Pakistan have nuclear weapons, but Washington chose to live with that so long as they didnt brandish their weapons.

Although Israel has never acknowledged its nuclear capability, it remains the worst-kept secret in the world. But it does not openly flaunt its capability, which made it much easier for Arab neighbors like Egypt not to pursue their own nuclear programs in response. The United States turned a blind eye to India until it conducted a round of tests in 1998. Washington pragmatically set aside its concerns over those tests to enable cooperation in other areas.

Had the Trump administration taken this approach three years ago, we might be in a very different place today. No, North Korea would not be disarmed by now. But we could be exploring other steps to reduce tension, might have secured commitments of good behavior from Pyongyang and perhaps even some gesture toward disarmament in exchange for sanctions relief and economic assistance. This is far from ideal, but vastly preferable to Pyongyang stockpiling weapons.

Mr. Kim may see opportunities in a more relaxed U.S. attitude, too. He wants nuclear weapons as protection but is smart enough to know that they also make him a target. He was willing to engage with Mr. Trump and may eventually be willing to do the same with President Biden.
Mr. Trump, by contrast, faced what the New York Times correspondent Maggie Haberman, the author of a new book on Mr. Trump, called the worst predicament he could imagine: being turned into a loser by the entire country. He took extraordinary measures, including a phone call he made to Georgias secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, four days before the storming of the Capitol, in which Mr. Trump said, I just want to find 11,780 votes. This was an unambiguous act of constitutional wrongdoing.

But the Jan. 6 committees members are focused on something else. They have set themselves up less as investigators than as defenders of Americas democracy. This is the wrong venue for such a mission. The committee has wound up too partisan to carry it out. You can blame Republicans for nominating Trump defenders to the committee or Democrats for freezing them out, but the fact is the committee has seven Democrats and two Republicans, Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, both in open rebellion against their Trumpified party (and both now on their way out of Congress).

The almost complete removal of oppositional checks leaves the committee ill suited to what is really a very delicate task. The Jan. 6 march on the Capitol was both a protest questioning the integrity of the 2020 election (protected by the First Amendment) and a violent assault on the integrity of the 2020 election (punishable by law).

On top of that, there are two different contexts for understanding the event: judicial and civic. In the judicial context, those judges who ruled against more than 60 Trump-initiated and Trump-linked lawsuits to reopen vote counts and reverse election results did exactly the right thing. A courtroom is the wrong place to reward doubts about the legitimacy of elections. Overruling elections from the bench would undermine democracy and provide tomorrows lawyers with incentives to undermine it further.

But in a civic context, matters are different. Citizens have a right to examine the matter as freely and doggedly as they wish.

The committee jumbles all these contexts together. Ms. Cheney recently complained that Ron DeSantis, the Republican governor of Florida, is, right now, campaigning for election deniers. She went on: Either you fundamentally believe in and will support our constitutional structure or you dont. But, of course, it is not unconstitutional to question the integrity of an election, and a person who does so is not necessarily an enemy of democracy.

In June the committee chairman, Representative Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, opened the hearings by mentioning that he had taken an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. He added that that oath was put to the test on Jan. 6.
No amount of money can begin to make the victims of Alex Jones whole, but may this verdict bring some measure of peace to those who will know a lifetime of grieving over the loss of so many precious, innocent lives.

Oren Spiegler

Peters Township, Pa.

To the Editor:

The jurys nearly $1 billion award is a win for all of us. Its the penalty for tormenting, for lying, for torturing already decimated lives. But more than that, the award is an emblematic message to all of the liars whose twisted agendas have damaged our country and made our lives miserable during the past several years. The sheer size of the award is a tipping point demonstrating that were done tolerating harmful deception.

There will be more juries waiting for the liars and perpetrators who have assaulted all of us during the past two years by making a mockery of the truth and undermining our democracy.

William Goldman

Los Angeles

To the Editor:

As a mother who lost her 6-year-old during the Sandy Hook tragedy, Ive watched as Sandy Hook has captured the attention of the nation, again. But when the latest trial unfolded, I made the decision that it will not have mine. Of course, my unwavering support goes out to each Sandy Hook family that has chosen the courtroom as their platform to fight back against those who claim that this horrific event never happened, and I am glad they received their justice.

However, instead, Ive dedicated my life to creating a space that provides a glimpse of the light my daughter, Catherine, gave the world. Her pure love for animals and nature and her reminder to have compassion for all living things permeate the Catherine Violet Hubbard Sanctuary, 34 acres in the heart of Newtown, Conn. The sanctuary is a beacon of inspiration, a safe haven of peace, and a subtle reminder that goodness and light prevail above all else. For me, its the belief that a kinder world is possible.
Because her work tended to be improvisational and personal, or big and unwieldy, Crate & Barrel has distilled her glyphs and applied them to practical household goods. The only exception in this first group, which has the theme of celebration, is a menorah that Ms. Hartman said is based on an unrealized sketch drawn for a 1995 invitational at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, in San Francisco.

The company has made a multiyear commitment to bringing her vision to light, said Sebastian Brauer, Crate & Barrels senior vice president of product design. It is planning future collections that will center on Lucias fascination with sea life and her symbolic treatment of hands.

Were going to be absolutely respectful to the original nature of her work; our job is to translate it into the right objects, Mr. Brauer said.

Asked about the practice of cherry-picking surface features of Ms. Eamess designs and working with raw sketches she hadnt resolved, he said, We are trying to bridge art and commerce, in the end. Thats the tension that lies between the highly artistic nature of her work and commercializing it in todays world.

Mark Masiello, the founder of Form Portfolios, the company that introduced the Eames Office to Crate & Barrel and assisted in developing the products, said, What were doing here is forming a new chapter in the book on Eames.
Reporting here from the Hot Tub Time Machine, dial set to 2010. Business analysts and those with even a passing interest in mens wear will remember that as the year when Suit Supply became a worldwide phenomenon. It was also when, for the first time, novel technology enabled men to customize their own suits online without having to submit to pesky nuisances like tailors or the bother of going into a store.

As it happens, 2010 also coincided with certain other shifts in the evolution of fashion, and this may be the place to note a fact about mens wear that is generally too little appreciated. As a masculine uniform, the suit has changed remarkably little in 400 years, say historians of costume. (Regarding which: Harry Styles in a dress would have been no big whoop to inhabitants of preindustrial eras, when men and women alike wore tunics and aristocratic boy children were attired in frocks until graduating to two-legged garments in a rite of passage known as breeching.)

In other words, while suits have always been with us, their proportions shift constantly along with tastes, and by the second decade of this century, the influence of the American designer Thom Browne had crept into every corner of an industry floundering for direction. For anyone unaware of Mr. Brownes influence, lets put it this way: Honey, he shrunk the suit.

Mr. Browne made jackets snugger and shorter, billboarding the male posterior. He designed skinny trousers so short suddenly men had ankles again.
Elvira Golombosi and her partner, Hector Lasso, first started selling their jewelry line, Oraik, in 2015 at the Las Dalias market in Ibiza. The intimate setting allowed them to have direct connection with their clients, which is still a priority for the couple. I like to know where all our pieces go, says Golombosi. The designer, who is originally from Ukraine, first visited Ibiza on holiday in 2013 and felt an immediate connection to its bohemian aesthetic; she and Lasso now live there about half the year. Eventually, through word of mouth, their talismanic pieces  a ring in the shape of a jaguar with diamond eyes or a gold bracelet with two snake heads  became so coveted by the islands insiders that, as of last year, the couple shifted to selling through studio appointments and scheduled appearances at the Sabina Estates, an exclusive development with villas designed by multiple architects including David Chipperfield. Golombosi, who designs the jewelry, sculpts each shape from soft wax while Lasso makes a cast of it and sets the stones. They have always worked in an organic way, creating pieces that look like they could be found in an archaeological museum, says Golombosi. This summer, she had the urge to create a collection of pendants inspired by the zodiac. The symbols of the zodiac are both ancient and figurative, so I wanted to do my own version of it, she explains. The result: disks of gold with childlike reliefs that are colored with a centuries-old enamel technique and feature small gemstones. The couple has created a limited series of 50 pendants per symbol, launching this week for pre-order, and by the end of the year they will be available at Love Adorned in New York City. $1,600 each, without chain, oraik.eu.
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WASHINGTON  The Federal Communications Commission is poised to block the sale of new telecommunications equipment from the Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE in the United States, according to three people with knowledge of the plans.

The agency is expected to vote on rules that would forbid the sale of new electronics produced by companies on a list of firms that pose a security threat to the United States. The F.C.C. named Huawei and ZTE, which make gear for wireless networks, as security threats in 2020.

It is unlikely that the ban would stop the sale of equipment that the F.C.C. has already approved, said one of the people with knowledge of the agencys plans.

A law signed into law last November by President Biden required the agency to pass the rules within a year.
My heart was racing, she said. I thought, Oh, God, what if they get my bank account information? What if they hack my friends and get their bank account information?  not knowing how far this is going to go.

Fortunately, Ms. Geoffroy was able to reset her password that night. Nothing appeared to have been stolen, she said, but she felt horrible that the hacker had sent messages to her friends with the same compromised link that she had mindlessly clicked on  which another friend originally sent to her. That friends account disappeared after the link was sent, and she has not been able to get in contact with that person.

A lot of people I know dont think this stuff is going to happen to them, she said. They dont realize it can happen and it will happen.

Justin Cappos, a professor of computer science and engineering at New York University, said one thing that makes the gaming industry vulnerable is that developers are not hired to create secure software. They are hired to deliver games fast and frequently.

If you are writing code that is meant for security, you often will spend a lot of time checking certain aspects of what is happening in the program to make sure everything is OK, Dr. Cappos said. You probably wont have that same way of working through things if your primary goal, the main thing you care about, is to be fast.

According to the Akamai report, gaming is the industry most hit by distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks, in which an attacker uses an automated technique to overwhelm servers with requests, severely slowing down the service or taking it offline altogether. These attacks can eat into a companys bottom line as it scrambles to restore access and address customer complaints.

Akamai warned that as the gaming industry expands, it will attract more cybercrime.

Financial crime is happening to younger and younger players all the time because they are in the gaming ecosystem now, Mr. Lauro said.
Most jurors wanted the gunman who killed 17 people at a Parkland, Fla., high school to be executed, but three of the 12 jurors voted for a sentence of life in prison, the jury foreman said on Thursday.

The foreman, Benjamin Thomas, told CBS Miami that one juror had said there was no way she could vote to execute the gunman, Nikolas Cruz, because she believed that he was mentally ill, and that two more jurors ultimately voted with her. The jury must be unanimous in order to sentence someone to death in Florida.

There was one with a hard no  she couldnt do it  and there was another two that ended up voting the same way, Mr. Thomas said.

He said that he had voted for the death penalty and was disappointed with the verdict but respected other jurors decisions.

It didnt go the way I wouldve liked or the way I voted, but thats how the jury system works, Mr. Thomas told the television station. Everybody gets their vote; everybody gets to decide. We went through all the evidence and some of the jurors just felt that was the appropriate sentence.

Mr. Thomas said that the jurors had largely made up their minds by Wednesday evening, when they adjourned for the day after nearly seven hours of deliberations, but that some jurors had wanted to sleep on their decision. He said that if a juror says that they will only vote one way, theres nothing else you can do, so we voted and moved on.

He said that he felt bad for the relatives of the victims, knowing that the decision had hurt many of them.

Much of the evidence at trial was graphic, and Mr. Thomas said it had been difficult to endure. A lot of things you never wanted to see and you never want to see again, he said.
Carolina Reyes was surprised when she heard that an assistant teacher at her child-care center in suburban Maryland was quitting for a job cleaning high school classrooms. The hours  6 p.m. to midnight  seemed crummy. And the work hardly seemed more satisfying.

But then Ms. Reyes, who owns the center, heard about the salary  $24 per hour, compared with the $15 she was able to offer.

The worker was only one of several Ms. Reyes lost recently  part of a national exodus from the child-care profession. The shortage is contributing to a crisis for parents, as child-care providers close their doors or limit enrollment in response to a labor market in which they cannot compete.

There are 100,000 fewer child-care workers than there were before the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Even as private-sector employment fully rebounded over the summer from the job losses caused by Covid-19, the child care sector shrank and was 9.7 percent smaller last month than it was in February 2020, federal data shows.
The jurys decision that the gunman who killed 17 students and teachers at a Florida high school should not be executed has focused attention on the states death penalty statute, renewing a debate about how many jurors votes should be needed to condemn to death a person convicted of a capital crime.

The current law requires a unanimous vote in favor of the death penalty after a jury weighs the evidence about aggravating and mitigating factors in the case. If even one juror dissents, the death penalty is off the table, and the defendant will receive a sentence of life in prison without parole.

That has not always been the protocol in Florida, a state with 330 inmates on death row and a long history of capital punishment going back to 1827, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

Before 2016, jurors in Florida cases could recommend a death sentence by a simple 7-to-5 majority. And judges could override juries sentencing decisions to impose capital punishment even when jurors thought it was not warranted. At that time, Florida was one of only three states that allowed a simple majority of jurors to recommend execution.

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down part of Floridas law in early 2016, ruling in Hurst v. Florida that the law gave too much power to judges and not enough to jurors in deciding whether defendants should be put to death. The Sixth Amendment requires a jury, not a judge, to find each fact necessary to impose a sentence of death, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote for the majority.

The ruling stalled executions in the state and set off a scramble in Tallahassee to overhaul Floridas capital punishment law. The legislature first revamped the law to allow a 10-2 majority to recommend the death penalty, but the Florida Supreme Court, taking into account the Supreme Court decision, ruled that such a provision would also violate the states constitution.

So in March 2017, the legislature adopted a new sentencing law requiring a unanimous jury recommendation for a judge to impose the death penalty.

Most of the 17 states where the death penalty is legal now have a similarly high bar. Alabama is the only outlier, allowing a 10-2 jury vote to recommend execution.

In Florida, the jurors must decide unanimously that the prosecution has proved at least one aggravating factor  for instance, that a killing was especially heinous  beyond a reasonable doubt. Then they must decide whether the aggravating factors outweigh any mitigating circumstances, like the emotional state or mental health of the defendant.

That is the statute under which jurors decided to spare Nikolas Cruz, the profoundly disturbed young gunman who killed 17 people with a semiautomatic rifle at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County in February 2018. Mr. Cruzs lawyers argued that his brain had been damaged from birth by fetal alcohol syndrome, which they said had been misdiagnosed and had led to a slew of developmental problems and violent behavior.

The jurys decision will doubtless renew debate over the states requirements for condemning a defendant to death. Several relatives of Parkland murder victims said on Thursday that the system had let them down, and wondered aloud whether, if a premeditated mass killing did not merit the death penalty under Florida law, any crime would.

In January 2020, the Florida Supreme Court reversed its previous position and opened the door for lawmakers to revamp the death penalty statute yet again, although they have not done so yet. A majority on the court ruled that its decision about the 10-2 jury vote provision had rested on a faulty reading of the U.S. Supreme Courts decision in 2016.

The high courts ruling in Hurst v. Florida did not, in fact, mean that a jury could only recommend a death sentence unanimously, the Florida judges wrote; it meant only that a jury had to be unanimous to find that a defendant was eligible for the death penalty because of aggravating factors. Once that hurdle is cleared, the Florida court said, the final decision on whether the defendant should be executed does not necessarily have to be unanimous.
If the rumors were true, the remains of a World War II-era boat were partially submerged somewhere in the shallow waters of Lake Shasta in Northern California.

James Dunsdon, a volunteer firefighter who collects military vehicles, was determined to find it. One day last fall, he hiked for miles along the lakes receding shoreline. Then he spotted it, plainly visible and partly exposed: a remarkably preserved 36-foot military landing craft.

It just came over the horizon like a ghost, he said. There it was with original World War II paint and timbers and steel and in the position with the ramp down. It was as if the boat had sunk while making a beach landing, he said.

The Higgins boat had once carried American troops into battle during the Allied invasion of Sicily in the summer of 1943, a seminal moment in the war in Europe. It was then deployed in the Battle of Tarawa in the Pacific that fall, when U.S. forces invaded the Japanese-held Gilbert Islands (now part of the nation of Kiribati), according to the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, which is part of the U.S. Forest Service.
The actions of the campus over the past month have shown the world that Michigan State University will not accept micromanagement by board members of the operations of this great institution, Dr. Stanley said.

Board members did not respond immediately to a request for comment. But in September, Pat OKeefe, a board member and businessman, told The Detroit News, that the board was just doing its job.

It is vitally incumbent upon each and every one of us to operate from a foundation of honesty, integrity and transparency  and raise questions, concerns and, where and when necessary, take action when we feel these tenets are not adhered to, Mr. OKeefe said.

Some members of the eight-member board, which is elected by voters, disagreed about the seriousness of the accusations. The turnover in leadership, they said, could further destabilize the university, which is still trying to recover from the revelation that Lawrence G. Nassar, the doctor for both the university and U.S.A. Gymnastics, had abused young female athletes for decades. The scandal led to Mr. Nassars conviction, the universitys multimillion-dollar settlement with victims and the ouster of two presidents.

The Nassar case has also played a role in the tensions between Dr. Stanley and the board members.

Because of the Nassar controversy, the Michigan State Legislature requires the president and a board member of every public university to review all Title IX reports involving accusations of sexual misconduct of a university employee and submit a certification to certain divisions of the State Legislature and the state budget director. If a university fails to submit its certification, it risks losing 10 percent of its state funding for annual operations.
The jury weighing the Parkland gunmans sentence had to decide which carried more weight: the aggravating factors, aspects of the 17 murders he committed that would justify imposing a death sentence, or the mitigating circumstances raised by the gunmans defense lawyers as they argued for life imprisonment instead.

In laymans terms, mitigating circumstances are reasons to show a defendant mercy. The Florida capital punishment statute lists eight kinds of possible mitigating circumstances, some in specific terms and others in open-ended language that offers defense lawyers broad latitude.

Two of the listed possibilities are that the defendant was under the influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance when the crime was committed, and that the defendants ability to appreciate the criminality of his or her conduct or to obey the law was substantially impaired. And the eighth listed possibility is a catchall, allowing consideration of any other factors in the defendants background that would mitigate against imposition of the death penalty.

Lawyers defending the gunman, Nikolas Cruz, focused on aspects of his life that they said had left him a damaged person from birth, with a slew of developmental problems and sometimes violent behavior that overwhelmed his adoptive mother.

Melisa McNeill, the lead public defender in his sentencing trial, told jurors during her closing argument on Tuesday that he had been poisoned by his biological mothers heavy drinking while she was pregnant with him. That, Ms. McNeill argued, had led to fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, which was misdiagnosed by experts throughout Mr. Cruzs life.

Were there things about Nikolass life that you wish hadnt happened? she asked the jury. Are there things that he didnt get that you wish he would have gotten? Was he missing people in his life that you wish he hadnt missed?

If they answered yes, she said, Thats mitigation  thats a reason for life.

Other possibilities listed in the statute that did not figure in the Parkland case include whether the defendant was an accomplice rather than the main actor in the crime, acted under extreme duress or had no significant record of prior criminal activity.
WASHINGTON  In conversations with American executives this spring, top officials in the Biden administration revealed an aggressive plan to counter the Chinese militarys rapid technological advances.

China was using supercomputing and artificial intelligence to develop stealth and hypersonic weapons systems, and to try to crack the U.S. governments most encrypted messaging, according to intelligence reports. For months, administration officials debated what they could do to hobble the countrys progress.

They saw a path: The Biden administration would use U.S. influence over global technology and supply chains to try to choke off Chinas access to advanced chips and chip production tools needed to power those abilities. The goal was to keep Chinese entities that contributed to potential threats far behind their competitors in the United States and in allied nations.

The effort, no less than what the Americans carried out against Soviet industries during the Cold War, gained momentum this year as the United States tested powerful economic tools against Russia as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine, and as China broke barriers in technological development. The Russian offensive and Beijings military actions also made the possibility of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan seem more real to U.S. officials.
WASHINGTON  Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Mexicos foreign minister on Thursday for the second time in just over a month, as the Biden administration focused on Latin America amid politically perilous levels of migration at the southern U.S. border.

Mr. Blinken joined several top Biden administration officials at an event with the minister, Marcelo Ebrard, officially titled a high-level security dialogue. It was billed as a discussion about protecting the health and safety of American and Mexican citizens, including from gun and drug smugglers.

But immigration was inevitably a key theme of the meeting, at a moment of vast migration across Central and South America  a subject with explosive political resonance less than a month before the midterm elections.

Biden officials chose their words carefully on the sensitive topic of immigration, avoiding phrases like border crisis and emphasizing that the effects of social and economic upheaval in the region, thanks in part to the pandemic, are not unique to the United States.
It is one of the great ironies of the 2022 midterm campaigns: A topic Democrats have cast as an existential issue hanging over the election is practically invisible on the nations airwaves, despite nearly a billion dollars in overall ad spending this year.

Since Labor Day, Democrats have shelled out just $4 million for television advertisements that mention the words insurrection, January 6th, or January Six, according to data provided to The New York Times by AdImpact, a firm that tracks political ads.

With the House committee investigating the assault on the Capitol voting on Thursday to subpoena former President Donald J. Trump, the gulf between what Democrats in Washington are pointing to as the stakes of this years election  and what candidates are actually doing with their money  is particularly striking.

Instead of hammering Republicans on their defense of the Capitol riot, Democratic candidates and allied groups have concentrated a plurality of their ad dollars on abortion, which has consumed more than 40 percent of the partys television ad spending on Senate races since Labor Day, and other subjects that appear to motivate voters at a much higher clip than Jan. 6.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida said Thursday that the state would ease election rules for three counties that were the hardest hit by Hurricane Ian, allowing them to create super polling centers and to extend early voting by a couple of days.

He signed an emergency order on Wednesday that will also allow voters in those counties in southwest Florida  Lee, Charlotte and Sarasota  to request by phone that their mail-in ballots be sent to a different address from the one kept on file.

The move by Mr. DeSantis came two weeks after Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm along the Gulf Coast, leading to more than 100 deaths in Florida and to widespread destruction, including to early voting sites and Election Day precincts.

Election officials expected that many of those sites would not be available, placing another burden on workers who had already been dealing with threats and misinformation.
Mr. Lee appears particularly spooked by the $6.3 million in campaign contributions  a small portion of that through ActBlue, an online Democratic fund-raising tool  that have flowed to Mr. McMullin, who has vowed to caucus with neither party if he wins.

How Times reporters cover politics. We rely on our journalists to be independent observers. So while Times staff members may vote, they are not allowed to endorse or campaign for candidates or political causes. This includes participating in marches or rallies in support of a movement or giving money to, or raising money for, any political candidate or election cause. Learn more about our process.

Mr. Lee was exaggerating a little when he told Mr. Carlson, Evan McMullin is raising millions of dollars off of ActBlue, the Democratic donor database, based on this idea that hes going to defeat me and help perpetuate the Democratic majority. But his fears were clear.

Mr. Romney, who declined to be interviewed for this article, has explained his decision not to endorse Mr. Lee or Mr. McMullin by saying both are good friends.

But the personal divide between him and Mr. Lee over the events surrounding the 2020 election remains deep, and is playing a role now, according to Stuart Stevens, a senior official in Mr. Romneys 2012 presidential run who is also an outspoken critic of Mr. Trump and his supporters.

Mr. Romney became the first senator from a presidents party ever to vote to convict him after Mr. Trumps 2020 impeachment trial, when he sided with Democrats to try to throw Mr. Trump out of office for abuse of power, for conditioning military aid to Ukraine on President Volodymyr Zelenskys launching an investigation into Mr. Biden.

Mr. Romney again voted to convict Mr. Trump in 2021 for inciting the attack on the Capitol.

Mr. Lee, in contrast, was an active participant in the effort to keep Mr. Trump in office. He cheered Mr. Trump on for weeks in late 2020, and privately offered in a text to the White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, a group of ready and loyal advocates who will go to bat for him.

Mr. Lee also endorsed a plan to have legislatures in a very small handful of states carried by Mr. Biden put forward pro-Trump electors, as part of a scheme to allow Vice President Mike Pence to reject Mr. Bidens victory.
In a statement, Ms. Peters offered her deepest condolences to the Bardell family but declined to comment on the specifics of the case because it was the subject of continuing litigation. But she promised to cooperate with any investigations into the matter.

In instances where we have failed at upholding our mission, we are taking steps to find out what happened, how it happened and how we can prevent it from happening in the future, she said.

At the forefront of their requests is increased use of compassionate release. Congress passed a law in 1984 authorizing the practice for extraordinary and compelling reasons, such as terminal illnesses. But top prisons officials, leery of releasing repeat offenders, have been cautious despite negligible risk and provisions in the First Step Act of 2018 that were intended to spur greater use of the practice.

The Justice Department seems hellbent on wasting millions to incarcerate people who pose no risk to public safety, and it makes no sense, said Kevin Ring, the president of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a prisoners rights group based in Washington. It is as dumb as it is cruel.

Judge Dalton recommended that Mr. Garland or the inspector general, Michael E. Horowitz, investigate the circumstances of Mr. Bardells confinement and treatment, the failure of the B.O.P. to respond to his medical needs, and the B.O.P.s misrepresentations in connection with the compassionate release briefing regarding the seriousness of his condition.

Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, wrote on Twitter that the details unveiled in this case are appalling, and may not be isolated. He called on the Justice Departments inspector general to investigate B.O.P.s treatment of medically vulnerable individuals both while incarcerated and upon their release.

Mr. Bardell was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison in June 2012, after pleading guilty to distributing pornography of adolescent children on a file-sharing network.
The Thomases are among thousands of families across the country thrust into the deep end of the child welfare bureaucracy, often abruptly, with little to no guidance or resources to make an unforeseen transition to child rearing. President Bidens budget this year proposes to add $20 billion over a decade to help such families navigate the child welfare system.

Specifically, the administration wants to increase the number of foster children who live with relatives, known as kinship care, by reimbursing states at a higher rate if they place children with family members instead of in group homes or institutions. The administration also proposes more money for programs that help such families, and to expand a tax credit to include people who take legal guardianship of young family members.

Like all presidential budgets, Mr. Bidens has little chance of being entirely funded by Congress, and it is unclear how much of the billions for child welfare reform  historically a yearslong, legislative effort  will survive. But Democrats in the House and Senate both included versions of Mr. Bidens proposal in spending bill drafts.

At minimum, the plans signal the Biden administrations mission to repair fractures in some of the most vulnerable and overlooked families in the country. They are also a tacit acknowledgment that public policy has failed to keep up with the reality that children in foster care do best when placed with relatives.

Yet many family members still struggle with their care, as was the case with the Thomases. The couple, who supported themselves in Spain on their Social Security income, had to rely on food pantry donations and used furniture from friends once they arrived back in the United States to set up a home.
WASHINGTON  The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol voted on Thursday to subpoena former President Donald J. Trump as it presented a sweeping summation of its case placing him at the center of a calculated, multipart effort to overturn the 2020 election, beginning even before Election Day.

At what may have been its final public hearing and just weeks before midterm elections in which control of Congress is at stake, the panel knit together evidence and testimony from its nine previous presentations while introducing new revelations about Mr. Trumps central role in numerous plots to maintain power.

The committee laid out in vivid detail how Mr. Trump, enraged and embarrassed that he had lost the election and unwilling to accept that fact, sought to join the crowd he had summoned to Washington on Jan. 6, 2021, as it marched to the Capitol  knowing that some of his supporters were armed and threatening violence as Congress met to certify his defeat.

None of this is normal, acceptable or lawful in our republic, said Representative Liz Cheney, Republican of Wyoming and the committees vice chairwoman.
The House committee investigating what led to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack held its ninth  and potentially final  hearing of the year on Thursday, rehashing the panels arguments that President Donald J. Trump was directly responsible for inciting the violence. In a surprise move at the end of the hearing, the panel voted unanimously, 9 to 0, to subpoena Mr. Trump to provide both documents and testimony about the attempts to overturn the election.

Here are four takeaways from the hearing.

The committee wants Trumps testimony.

The committees chairman, Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi, said that given Mr. Trumps almost singular role in propelling the events of Jan. 6, he must answer questions directly in front of the American people.

The need for this committee to hear from Donald Trump goes beyond our fact finding, Mr. Thompson said. He must be accountable. He is required to answer for his actions.

Its unclear whether Mr. Trump will agree to a dramatic sit-down with investigators.

Mr. Trump believes he is his own best spokesman and can explain his actions to anyone, and he often ignores the counsel of lawyers, who would almost certainly tell him not to appear voluntarily. Since it became public that the House select committee planned to subpoena Trump for his testimony, the former president has been telling aides he favors doing so, so long as he gets to do so live, according to a person familiar with his discussions. However, it is unclear whether the committee would accept such a demand.
WASHINGTON  Huddling with congressional leaders in a secure location as the Capitol was under siege on Jan. 6, 2021, Speaker Nancy Pelosi was emphatic: There had to be a way to show the public that the government could function and the transfer of power could continue.

She asked: Was there a way to return to the Capitol and continue the ceremonial counting of electoral votes to certify the election that had been disrupted as a mob of President Donald J. Trumps supporters began assaulting the building?

The answer Ms. Pelosi received shocked her: They could not return to the House floor  and lawmakers still trapped in the chamber were putting on gas masks to prepare for a breach.

Do you believe this? Ms. Pelosi muttered quietly, repeating the phrase as the scale of the attack dawned on her in real time.
Thomas Collins, executive director of the commission, said in an interview that the Hobbs campaign had never seriously negotiated over the format of a debate  and that, in any case, the organization was neither willing nor able to accommodate what officials there viewed as an ultimatum from the secretary of states team about policing the content of the event.

He shared an exchange of letters and emails between the commission and Nicole DeMont, Hobbss campaign manager, who wrote in an email that Hobbs was willing and eager to participate in a town-hall-style event but would not join a debate that would only lead to constant interruptions, pointless distractions and childish name-calling.

On Wednesday, Lake repeated her challenge to debate Hobbs and accused Arizona PBS, which did not respond to a request for comment, of cutting a back-room deal with that coward to give her airtime that she does not deserve.

Days earlier, Lake tried to ambush Hobbs during a town hall event at which the candidates made separate appearances onstage  a stunt that was clearly intended to embarrass the Democrat.

Hobbs has said she was simply reacting to the way Lake conducted herself during a Republican primary debate in June, in which she dodged questions and repeated falsehoods about what happened in 2020. I have no desire to be a part of the spectacle that shes looking to create, because that doesnt do any service to the voters, Hobbs said Sunday on CBSs Face the Nation.
Three days after President Donald J. Trump posted a tweet summoning his followers to Washington for a wild protest on Jan. 6, 2021, Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers militia, started reaching out to allies in other far-right organizations.

Among them was a man named Jeremy Liggett who ran a group in Florida called the B-Squad, an offshoot of the pro-gun Three Percenter movement.

Their exchanges were the first evidence presented at the seditious conspiracy trial of Mr. Meggs and four other Oath Keepers that the militia had sought to create what prosecutors have referred to as an alliance with the Proud Boys and the Three Percenters, both of which have several members who have been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

The two Floridians seemed to agree that Mr. Trump wanted groups like their own to sow disorder on Jan. 6 and discussed how many men  and weapons  they were planning to bring to Washington that day, according to online messages shown at the trial on Thursday.
Similarly, in Arizona, Blake Masters won the Republican nomination for Senate with the help of Mr. Trumps endorsement, which arrived months after Mr. Masters recorded a social media video in which he looked directly into the camera to tell viewers, I think Trump won in 2020. At the time, Mr. Trump made clear he was snubbing another Republican candidate who the former president believed had not done enough to support the lie that the election was rigged.

But at a debate last week with Senator Mark Kelly, the Democratic incumbent, Mr. Masters agreed that Mr. Biden had been legitimately elected. He said that Mr. Biden had probably won because social media companies suppressed negative news about Hunter Biden, the presidents son.

But pressed on whether he thought there had been a problem with the counting of votes in 2020, as Mr. Trump has claimed, Mr. Masters declined.

I havent seen evidence of that, he said.

Three days after the debate, Mr. Masters mingled with attendees before a Trump rally in Mesa, Ariz. In a brief interview as he shook hands and posed for pictures, Mr. Masters said he stood by his position on election fraud.

Asked which position, Mr. Masters replied, Both.

Completely consistent, he said.

Mr. Masters smiled, turned and headed toward the stage where he would soon stand side by side with the former president.
Rix feels that this problem is loaded with dynamite and he wanted you [Sterling] to know about it, as he says that the situation forces him to disregard our stated policy of paying no attention to the race or religion of applicants, the memo said. Mr. Glover wrote that he approved of the decision.

Stanfords report said that there was a sharp drop in enrollment in the fall of 1953 from the two high schools cited by name in the memo, Beverly Hills High School and Fairfax High School. No other schools experienced such a sharp reduction in students enrolling at Stanford at that time, the document said.

Mr. Glovers memo was first revealed by Charles Petersen, a postdoctoral fellow at Cornell University, who wrote about it in August 2021 in his Substack newsletter, Making History. Dr. Petersen had found the memo and other documents, including admission files with the word Jews written across them, in the universitys archives while researching a book he is writing about the history of meritocracy.

Im happy to see Stanford took my Substack so seriously, Dr. Petersen said in an interview after the report was published.

He said that the university chose to focus its investigation narrowly on antisemitism in admissions, but that he would have liked for it to also examine how the practice connected more broadly with racial inequality at the school.

Stanford really wanted to maintain the university as a safe space for white Anglo Saxons, he said. If it had been any other group, if it had been Black applicants, Latinx applicants, Asian applicants, once the numbers reached a certain point, the university would have done the same thing.

The task force also provided recommendations for improving campus life for Jewish students, including the creation of a standing advisory committee to address their present-day needs. Dr. Tessier-Lavigne wrote that the university had accepted the recommendations and that the historical anti-Jewish bias documented by the task force was not part of the schools admissions process today.
SEOUL  North Korea on Friday launched a short-range ballistic missile, as well as a barrage of rockets inside a maritime buffer zone near the border with South Korea, shortly after its war planes flew close enough to the border for Seoul to respond with a show of force by deploying its own warplanes.

The missile launch was North Koreas 26th weapons test this year that involved either ballistic or cruise missiles, more than in any other year, and the sixth such test this month. The combination of missile and rocket tests and air force maneuvers signaled that the North was intent on keeping tensions high on the Korean Peninsula.

Under United Nations Security Council resolutions, North Korea is banned from testing ballistic missiles, as well as nuclear weapons. But the North and its leader, Kim Jong-un, have used a period of stalled diplomacy with Washington to develop and test more weapons.

The launch on Friday  Thursday in the United States  took place from Sunan District of Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, and the missile flew 435 miles to the waters off the east coast, South Koreas defense officials said.
PARIS  A Moroccan-born man convicted three decades ago in the grisly killing of a wealthy widow on the French Riviera will not get a new trial, a top French court ruled on Thursday, the latest twist in one of Frances most enduring murder mysteries.

Omar Raddad had been found guilty of the 1991 murder of Ghislaine Marchal, 65, who lived by herself in a large villa north of Cannes. Police found her dead in the locked basement of an annex to the villa, where a message written in Ms. Marchals own blood seemed to accuse Mr. Raddad, her gardener at the time.

Mr. Raddad, now 60, has always maintained his innocence. He was released from prison more than two decades ago, but sought a new trial to reverse his conviction and clear his name.

France was long captivated by the unresolved mysteries of the brutal murder and by the social undertones of the case, which involved two protagonists from starkly different backgrounds: a wealthy victim from a prominent family, and a working-class Arab immigrant who was unable to read or write and spoke little French.
LUTZERATH, Germany  For months, die-hard environmental activists have camped in the fields and occupied the trees in this tiny farming village in western Germany, hoping that like-minded people from across the country would arrive and help stop the expansion of a nearby open-pit coal mine that threatened to swallow the village and its farms.

They had reason to be optimistic. Mass protests led the German government to step in and save an old-growth forest from coal expansion just two years ago. And the Green party notched its best showing ever in elections last year, a sign of how fighting climate change had become a winning political issue in Europes largest economy.

If there were 50,000 on the street, politicians would have to do something, said Eckardt Heukamp, 58, the last farmer remaining in Lutzerath, who put up some of the protesters in apartments on his property. Others built tree houses, pitched tents or moved into abandoned houses in the village.

But the hoped-for surge in protesters never materialized. And last week, the government effectively sealed Lutzeraths fate by announcing that RWE, Germanys largest energy company, needed the coal under the village  to make up for gas that had stopped flowing in from Russia.
PARIS  After taking a few steps back to get a running start, Hadj Benhalima dashed toward the building, pushed against its wall with his foot, propelled himself upward and stretched out his arm.

At the peak of his leap, he flipped off a light switch, more than 10 feet off the ground. A click sound rang out, and the bright lights of a nearby barbershop went off instantly.

Oooh, his friends cheered, as Mr. Benhalima, a thin 21-year-old dressed all in black, landed back on the sidewalk. It was the second store sign he had turned off on a recent nighttime tour across Pariss upscale neighborhoods. Many more would follow as he soared up and dropped back down across the city.

Over the past two years, groups of young athletes practicing Parkour  a sport that consists of running, climbing and jumping over urban obstacles  have been swinging around big French cities switching off wasteful shop signs at night, in a bid to fight light pollution and save energy.
MOSCOW  In an apparent move to solidify Moscows hold over European energy markets, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Thursday offered to export more gas via Turkey and turn the country into a regional supply hub for Russian gas exports to European countries.

Mr. Putin was meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey on the sidelines of a summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, days after Moscow launched the biggest aerial barrage against Ukraine since its invasion in February.

Mr. Erdogan has sought to position himself as a mediator between Moscow and Kyiv, and has previously hosted preliminary peace talks in Istanbul in March, although those discussions were inconclusive. On Thursday, the two leaders did not discuss the topic of a Russian-Ukrainian settlement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov said.

The Russian and Turkish leaders have had a complicated relationship with sometimes mutual benefits. For Mr. Putin, the benefits include energy and arms sales, investment and a close connection to a member of NATO, which is trying to isolate him. For Mr. Erdogan, the benefits involve cheap energy, a large export market, renewed Russian tourism and, crucially, apparent Russian acquiescence to his efforts to crush Kurdish separatism in Syria, where Russia supports the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad.
Civilians in the Russian-occupied Kherson region of Ukraine were being asked to evacuate on Friday, a move that Ukrainian officials called a sign of panic, as Kyivs forces continued their biggest advance in the south since the war began.

The first civilians fleeing from Kherson were expected to arrive later in the day in Russias Rostov region, which borders eastern Ukraine, according to Russian state news media reports.

Kyivs forces crashed through Russias Kherson front line early this month and have continued to make gains as part of an advance toward the city of Kherson itself. In the past month, Ukraines forces have retaken more than 600 towns and villages that were under Russian occupation, including 75 in the Kherson region, Ukraines Ministry for Reintegration of the Temporary Occupied Territories said in a statement.

On Thursday, Russia made the decision to organize assistance for the departure of residents of the Kherson region, Russias deputy prime minister, Marat Khusnullin, said on Russian state television.
LONDON  Britains government faced intensifying calls on Thursday to retreat from tax-cutting plans that have alarmed financial markets, as questions continued to swirl about the future of the countrys new prime minister, Liz Truss, and her beleaguered chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng.

On a day of political turmoil, the foreign secretary, James Cleverly, warned colleagues against trying to oust Ms. Truss. And Mr. Kwarteng rejected suggestions that the backlash against his so-called mini-budget, which includes unfunded tax cuts and a costly package to help consumers with energy bills, could cost him his job, insisting: Im not going anywhere.

Mr. Kwartengs plans, outlined on Sept. 23, rattled financial markets, sent the currency plunging, increased government borrowing costs and prompted lenders to withdraw some home purchase loans.

Since then, Mr. Kwarteng has been forced into one retreat, shelving plans to reduce income taxes for the highest earners, but that has failed to stabilize jittery financial markets.
KYIV, Ukraine  The Kyiv region of Ukraine was hit by an airstrike early Thursday that is believed to have been delivered by so-called kamikaze drones, a regional official said, adding to concerns about Russias increasing use of the self-destructing weapons.

There were no injuries, according to the regions governor, Oleksiy Kuleba, who did not specify the locations that were hit, citing security concerns. But the use of such weapons has left many people on edge in an area of Ukraine that until this week had largely been spared since the early months of Russias full-scale invasion in February.

Mr. Kuleba said on the Telegram social media app that three kamikaze, or self-destructing, drones had been used in the attack. Rescuers were working at the scene, he added, urging people to remain in shelters until an alert was lifted, which came later on Thursday morning.

Russia has been deploying dozens of Iranian-made drones as part of a scaled-up offensive on civilian and infrastructure targets far from the front lines. Ukraines military said this week that its air defenses were managing to shoot down a significant number, but not all, of the drones.
As unrest erupted across Iran calling for an end to the Islamic Republics rule last month, with young women in big cities and small towns tossing their headscarves onto bonfires to chants of Women, Life, Freedom, two teenage girls left their homes to join the protesters.

It was the last time their relatives would see them alive. One family searched frantically for their daughter for 10 days, posting desperate appeals for information on social media; the other found out the fate of their daughter within hours of her disappearance.

But the grim result was the same. The missing teenagers had been killed by the security forces, their families and human rights groups said. One girls skull was smashed, and the other girls head was cracked by baton blows. Their bodies were handed back to their families bruised and disfigured. They were both just 16.

The two teenagers  Nika Shakarami and Sarina Esmailzadeh  have become the new faces of the protests that have convulsed the country for the past month, the largest and most sustained bout of civil unrest to grip Iran since 2009. Their images appear on posters secretly plastered on walls in cities across Iran and on banners carried by protesters, their names a rallying cry for the fury being directed against the rulers of the Islamic Republic.
The Iraqi Parliament elected Abdul Latif Rashid, 78, a Kurdish British-educated engineer and former minister, as president on Thursday, the first step in breaking a crippling deadlock that has left the country without a new government for the past year.

The election of a new president paved the way for the nominee for prime minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, to form a government. Mr. Sudani, a former human rights and labor minister, now has 30 days to present his cabinet choices to Parliament  a process usually carried out in back-room negotiations between parties before the cabinet is presented for approval.

Members began voting less than an hour after Katyusha rockets targeted the heavily guarded Green Zone, where Parliament is based, and other areas of Baghdad, including near the train station. No one had taken responsibility for the attacks by nighttime in Iraq.

Parliament members elected Mr. Rashid in a secret ballot over the current president, Barham Salih, also a Kurd, who was felled by inter-Kurdish politics. In the Iraqi political system, the president is always a member of the Kurdish minority.
The Saudis have defended their decision, saying it was based on economics, not politics, and that OPEC Plus decisions are reached by consensus among the members, not decided by Saudi Arabia alone. Saudi commentators have taken umbrage at the assumption by the United States that it can dictate the kingdoms oil policy.

Jim Krane, an energy research fellow at Rice Universitys Baker Institute, said he did not think the Saudis were seeking to help Mr. Putin, but that his interests overlapped with theirs when it came to oil.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabias de facto ruler, has announced multiple spending programs in the hundreds of billions of dollars aimed at diversifying his economy away from oil, launching new industries and building a futuristic new city in the desert. And for all of that, he will need the capital that high oil prices can bring, Mr. Krane said.

He said that OPEC had previously prioritized price stability and maintaining long-term demand for oil. In recent years, the cartel appeared to be comfortable with prices between $60 and $80 per barrel. But last week, while the price was approaching $100 per barrel, they cut output instead of increasing it, to push up the price.

Stability is taking a back seat to politics and economic self-interest, Mr. Krane said.

The public feud began after OPEC Plus, an expansion of the original cartel to include Russia and other oil-producing countries, announced on Oct. 5 that it would cut output by 2 million barrels per day.

The decision came despite efforts by White House officials to persuade Saudi Arabia to use its clout in the organization to keep output steady. The move was announced one day before the European Union adopted a sanctions package that was intended to cap the price of Russian oil, and it was widely seen as weakening the sanctions effectiveness.
BIRR Garda Station is holding an Open Day on Saturday October 15 next.

The day is open to the general public and will aim to provide positive engagement within the community, as well as allowing people interested in a career in the force to have a chat with some people.

The Open Day will take place at the Emmet Square station from 11am until 3pm in the afternoon, and a Sensory Hour is being run from 11 to 12 to allow autistic people attend.

People will get a tour of the station, including the cells, and children can also get their fingerprints taken if they want.

The Open Day will also feature horses and dogs with the Garda Mounted unit and Garda Dog Unit both represented, as well as other specialist branches, and emergency services like the fire brigade.

Sergeant Kyle Griffin in the station said he expects the animals, and a hoped for visit from the Garda helicopter, to be among the main attractions.

An Garda Siochana Open Day is among a series of events hosted by the Gardai to commemorate 100 years since the formation of the Civic Guards in February 1922 which was later renamed An Garda Siochana.

At 3pm a medal presentation ceremony will take place in Dooly's Hotel during which fifty retired members will be presented with medals.

To celebrate 100 years, a National Centenary Planning Committee, as well as several sub-committees and Divisional Centenary Committees, have worked together to plan and deliver a wide, inclusive programme of events to engage in a unique way the communities across Ireland that the Gardai serve. The series of events will offer members of the public an excellent way to see the behind the scenes of policing.
nternational Credit Union Day takes place on Thursday October 20, this year. This is an

important date in the credit union calendar and is celebrated in Ireland and across the world.

Credit Unions hold a special place in the lives of Irish people and a large percentage of the

population are members of their local Credit Union. The Credit Union is also one of the most trusted brands in the country for many years now.

St Brigids Credit Union is part and parcel of the community. Every year we support many local organisations, clubs, schools, and societies within the Common Bond.

With Head Office on Church Street in Clara and branches in Moate, Ferbane and Banagher our friendly staff are ready and more than willing to give of their time and expertise to answer all your questions regarding your financial needs  that unique Credit Union personal service!

With offerings such as Mortgages, the MYCU Current Account and Debit Card, and our standard personal loans, it is a one stop shop for all your financial service requirements.

Around the World, International Credit Union Day will be marked with different events.

We wish our fellow Credit Unions, our colleagues, and our members the best and say thank you to our loyal members who continue to support their local Credit Union.

Happy International Credit Union Day 2022.
THE Thomas MacDonagh Museum in Cloughjordan will host another special event in the Museum on Friday, October 14th, at 7.30pm to launch the Digital Memories Collection and the Museums new website, www.macdonaghmuseum.ie.

The Digital Memories Collection is a temporary exhibition accessible online on the Museums new website, and in person in the Museum from October 15th to December 31st, 2022. The Collection marks the conclusion of a significant six-month project undertaken by the Museum directors to digitise 140 objects from the Museums vast collection, and create a new website.

This digitisation project was made possible thanks to a significant Community Heritage grant from the Heritage Council, supported by the specialist web design talents of Kola Digital and the photography skills of Ben Hutchinson. You can check out the new website now by visiting www.macdonaghmuseum.ie

The Digital Memories Collection has its origins in Heritage Week 2022, when the Museum hosted a Create Digital Memories event. Members of the public were invited to identify a personal object that was meaningful to their life story and bring it to the Museum on Monday and Tuesday, August 15th-16th.

The 32 objects in the Digital Memories Collection were shared with the Museum by members of the Cloughjordan community, and each one tells an interesting or unusual story. The Collection contains many major themes including the social and cultural history of Cloughjordan since 1820; 20th century Irish politics on local, national and international issues; technological innovations in the home and in business; and international activism on social justice issues. There are also deeply personal themes linked to arts & crafts, literature, memorabilia, skills and travel, with stories that evoke specific memories of families and friends around the world, both past and present.

The objects within the Digital Memories Collection were brought forward by a cross-section of the community that reflects the diversity of people in Cloughjordan. Many had deep family roots in Cloughjordan while others had moved here in recent years from other parts of Ireland, from the UK, the US, and India. The Museum recorded what the object was, why it was meaningful, took a high-quality photograph and created a catalogue entry.

Generous funding from the Heritage Council has enabled the Museum to start digitising the permanent collection and organise it on the website under multiple themes: The MacDonagh Family; Cloughjordan; Music; Folklife; Books, Manuscripts & Paper; Gaelic Revival; Rebellion & Commemoration.

Some highlights from the Permanent Collection include: Thomas MacDonaghs magnum opus Literature in Ireland: Studies in Irish and Anglo-Irish; A wooden Maid of Eirinn Harp Emblem of the Gaelic Revival; A type, capital letter Q from the printing press on which the original Proclamation of the Irish Republic was printed; A beautifully illustrated hardback bound copy of the Official Handbook of the Irish Free State; A William Hodgins Token Penny.

Digitisation of the Thomas MacDonagh Museum Collection will support the curation of online exhibitions, the growth of its online audiences and encourage research and collaboration with individuals and groups from around Ireland and abroad.

For queries about upcoming events in Thomas MacDonagh Museum in Cloughjordan email info@macdonaghmuseum.ie. National Heritage Week 2022 Events are posted here: https://www.heritageweek.ie/projects-events-2022.
The UK will for the first time give Ukraine a number of powerful missiles to defend against Russian airstrikes, but it is not providing the weapons that launch them.
More than 200 Indigenous men from various communities gathered together in Sask. to focus on healing and wellness. They unpacked the root causes of violence and addictions, and shared advice about how to move forward for the sake of future generations.
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Jury foreman Benjamin Thomas said three of the jurors didn't vote for the death penalty. One was a "hard no," and two others voted..
The head of the Western military alliance has warned there would be "severe consequences" if Russia used nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
SAN DIEGO (AP)  The Biden administration agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants at U.S. airports, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russias invasion, while Mexico has agreed to take back Venezuelans who come to the U.S. illegally over land, the U.S. and Mexico said Wednesday.



Effective immediately, Venezuelans who walk or swim across the border will be immediately returned to Mexico under a pandemic rule known as Title 42 authority, which suspends rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19.



Any Venezuelan who illegally enters Mexico or Panama after Wednesday will also be ineligible to come to the U.S. under the offer.



The U.S. offer of parole for up to 24,000 Venezuelans is modeled on a similar program for Ukrainians who fled Russia's invasion and will hinge on Mexico keeping in place its independent but parallel effort to take back Venezuelans who come illegally, the Department of Homeland Security said.



The moves are a response to a dramatic increase in migration from Venezuela, which leapfrogged over Guatemala and Honduras in August to become the second largest nationality arriving at the U.S. border after Mexico.



"These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.



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Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia:

New York-based private-equity firm Veritas Capital closed its eighth flagship fund, Veritas Capital Fund VIII, at $10.7 billion.

The buyout fund was "significantly oversubscribed," as demand exceeded its hard cap and the initial target of $8.5 billion, said a press release from the technology investor with over $45 billion of assets under management.

Since its inception, Veritas has identified and driven the transformation of more than 115 companies that provide critical products and services to government-related and leading commercial customers, the release said.

"Consistent with Veritas' predecessor funds, Fund VIII will continue leveraging the firm's proprietary intellectual property and applying its focused, successful playbook that has been in place over the last 25 years," it added.

Fund VIII received commitments from a combination of new and existing investors from across the globe, including leading institutions, endowments and foundations, family offices, and pension plans.

Investors in Fund VIII include Philadelphia Public Employees Retirement System; Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund, Salem; Montana Board of Investments, Helena; Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System, Harrisburg; and Adams County Retirement Plan, Brighton, Colo.

"We are grateful to our global base of investors for their continued confidence, and we appreciate additional support from several new partners," said Ramzi Musallam, Ch......................

To view our full article Click here
"The List" is PAPER's monthly roundup of the biggest fashion launches, capsules and collaborations. Scroll through, below, to see October's newest arrivals.

One Georgia, the campaign movement for Georgia governor candidate Stacey Abrams, launched two merch collaborations with Brandon Blackwood (t-shirts and tote bags) and Atlanta-based unisex lifestyle brand Honor Roll ("SYA" hoodies and long-sleeve shirts).

Its been a pleasure to create something special for such an inspiring person," Blackwood said, while Honor Roll co-founders Blair Caffey and Chris Duncan said: "We believe Stacey Abrams vision for Georgia strongly aligns with the mission and value of this brand. Our motto, excellence is a process, is all about striving for greatness no matter how insurmountable the odds may seem, and this is what we see in Stacey Abrams."

Available now at store.staceyabrams.com
Eurora Solutions, a provider of an AI-backed cross-border trade compliance platform, has opened a research and development center in Tartu, Estonia.

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The Innovation and Research Centre is focused on AI/machine learning research as well as the ongoing development of the platform, both to expand its functionality and to ensure it can be quickly adapted to future legislative changes to international trade.

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Currently, 30 data scientists and machine-learning engineers are working at the center, and Eurora plans to increase the headcount to 60 experts.

The need to futureproof the platform is highlighted by the European Commissions plans to introduce new legislation to add product safety and transport security compliance requirements to cross-border trade. Any specific requirements will have to be proven to have been met before particular goods or products containing certain components are allowed to even leave the warehouse. According to Eurora, many companies are already struggling to comply with the current regulations.

The Eurora platform already verifies the accuracy of parcel data, and its functionality can easily be extended to verify compliance with transport security or product safety.

As similar legislative changes will also be introduced in Singapore in 2023, Eurora is set to open a new office in the country later this month to assist e-commerce companies in the region to comply with the increasingly complex regulatory requirements.

Marko Lastik, the founder and group CEO of Eurora, said, The Innovation and Research Centre forms a key part of our growth strategy. Processing large volumes of data is a core requirement in international trade. To efficiently automate cross-border e-commerce duties and tax declarations, the implementation of data science and machine learning is needed. Euroras technology is already used to send more than one billion postal parcels a year. This puts us up to three years ahead of our peers. To stay ahead of the competition and so futureproof our operations, we plan to continue investing in research and development by doubling the number of scientists at the center to 60.

Using AI and machine learning, Euroras B2B compliance platform automatically processes 5,000 requests per second with up to 98% accuracy. The companys AI uses over 500 million records of training data from real transactions of the worlds largest logistics service providers. The platform can be used by online sellers, marketplaces, logistics and postal companies to automate tax and duty declarations and assign the appropriate HS code. It operates at a fraction of the time and price of hybrid or manual code allocation solutions commonly used today.

Kaie Hansson, the head of Euroras Innovation and Research Centre, said, We work daily to bring new products and services to the international market. One of the research areas will be the application of new language groups. For example, Chinese, French or Spanish have different syntaxes of languages, conventions of descriptions, use of punctuation marks, presence of symbols and position of important words in the description. All this requires the machine to make thousands of decisions to classify the goods accurately and calculate the correct taxes based on the destination country.

The opening of the new center follows a successful US$40m Series A funding round earlier this year and aligns with the companys growth strategy. In recent months, Eurora has opened a UK central office in London and a US central office in Miami, in addition to a series of high-level appointments. Chris Lentjes, a Pitney Bowes and DHL veteran with more than 20+ years of industry experience, became Euroras US CEO; and e-commerce heavyweight Walter Trezek joined Eurora as the non-executive chairman of the supervisory board. Eurora also plans to open an engineering hub in Dubai later this month.
Photo: (Photo : Pixabay)

A Texas mom will spend the rest of her life in prison for leaving her seven-year-old bedridden daughter home alone with her younger siblings so that she could go out partying, People Magazine reported.

The case started in January 2020 when Bay City police conducted a welfare check at the home of Lauren Kay Dean. When the officers arrived at the scene, they discovered the body of Jordynn Barrera.

According to prosecutors, Barrera had cerebral palsy and Down syndrome. The young girl was non-communicative and required a feeding tube. The child's doctor later told police that Barrera needed round-the-clock care.

Dean charged with capital murder of a person under the age of 10

Cops determined during their investigation that Dean, then a 26-year-old single mother, had left her sick daughter home alone with her two younger siblings, aged five years and three months. She then went to a bar near her home called Shade's Nightclub. While she was having fun there, her daughter died while left alone without adult supervision.

The other two kids were not harmed but were removed from the home, according to Yahoo. The mom of three was initially charged with three felony counts of endangerment and abandonment of a child, placing the kids in imminent danger of bodily injury. Dean was subsequently charged with capital murder of a person under the age of 10 for the death of Barrera.

According to the Bay City Tribune, Dean decided to plead guilty to spare herself a trial and the possible death penalty sentence. She was given a life sentence instead for the murder charge. Dean also was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the other charges. Those sentences will be served concurrently.

Dean was booked into the Matagorda County Jail soon after. She did not address the court when her plea deal was entered.

Read Also: Long Waiting Lists and High Costs Hinder Many Children's Access to Mental Health Care

Child abandonment is a serious matter in the U.S.

More than 7,000 American kids are left orphaned or abandoned each year, according to SK Pop. The likelihood of low self-esteem, emotional disorders, and other physical and mental problems in these children is high.

The concept of child abandonment in the United States is extremely broad. It encompasses a variety of punishments and actions that range from state to state.

Child abandonment happens when a parent or guardian either neglects their kid's needs or completely abandons them, disregarding their safety and welfare. It also transpires when a parent or guardian drops their kid at a certain location without the intent of picking them up again.

Some examples of child abandonment include leaving a kid in the care of another individual without making arrangements for their upkeep, six months without a regular visitation schedule with the kid, refusing to answer the summons of child protection or child custody, and leaving a child home alone for a sufficient period to risk harm.

Related Article: Mother and Daughter Team Up To Tackle Lack Of Affordable Housing For Senior Citizens in Nashville
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San Diego International Airport, California, has achieved the highest level of certification under the Airports Council Internationals (ACI) Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) program  Level 4+ Transition.

The airport achieved this certification through a series of programs that have increased the use of carbon-free electricity and all-electric vehicles, facilitated carbon-emission reductions by airline and ride-share partners, and enabled carbon-offset purchases by passengers, among other efforts.

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The ACI Airport Carbon Accreditation program provides a common framework for active carbon management through six levels of certification. San Diego International is one of only three North American airports to achieve Level 4+ Transition certification and the only airport in California to reach the milestone. To achieve Level 4+, SAN has demonstrated that it continues to reduce carbon emissions under its direct control (emissions from building energy use and fleet vehicles), is on a trajectory to meet international net zero emission targets through implementation of its carbon management plan, has offset its remaining direct carbon emissions, and has effectively partnered with tenants responsible for Scope 3 emissions at the airport.

Kimberly Becker, San Diego County Regional Airport Authority president and CEO , said, Since achieving Level 3+ Carbon Neutrality in 2018, our team has been working with our airline partners, ground transportation providers, and passengers to reduce their emissions which is a key component of achieving Level 4+ accreditation. Its through collaboration that this goal was met and I would like to acknowledge the hard work of the airport authority team and the aviation partners that are committing to new ways of reducing emissions.
An Accra Circuit Court has remanded 30 persons into police custody for allegedly attacking the Neoplan Police Station.



The accused persons have been charged for conspiring to cause unlawful damage and stealing two AK47 Riffles.



Their pleas were not taken and ordered by the Court presided over by Mrs Afia Owusua Appiah to make their next appearance on October 26, 2022.



Police Chief Inspector Samuel Ahiabor told the Court that the accused persons were drivers, drivers mates, commercial motorbike riders, traders and others, adding that they worked at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle.



He said on October 9, 2022, at about 1930 hours, one Isobah allegedly stole a cellular phone belonging to a young man.



The prosecution said when Isobah was being chased he jumped into the Odaw River to escape and was followed by his victim to retrieve the phone.



The prosecution said a struggle ensued between Isobah and the victim, which led to both drowning in the River.



It said Isobahs friend also got drowned when he jumped into the River to help his friend.



The Court heard that the accused persons without any provocation then marched to the Police Station and vandalised the charge office and the Station Officers office.



In the process, they caused damage to four television sets, three computers, sets of furniture, ceiling fans, doors, windows and other items belonging to the Neoplan Police Station of the Ghana Police Service.



Afterwards, the prosecution said they stole two AK 47 Riffles kept at the charge office and the next day, through intelligence, they were arrested and the Riffles retrieved.



The prosecution said the crime was still under investigations.

Source: GNA









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Saturday, 8th October 2022 was another great induction and inauguration of Global Peace Ambassadors of IPSPJ, Ghana. The occasion was blessed with attendance from government agencies, office of the President, office of the Minister of State, the Greater Accra Regional Police Commander, Ghana Tourist Authority, various consulates from different Embassies in Ghana, Traditional and Religious leaders International Delegates from IPSPJ Africa, and many other important dignitaries.



International Parliament for Safety, Peace and Justice, Ghana (IPSPJ Ghana) was established in the year March 2020 with the appointment of Amb. Ps. Alexander Obeng Boateng as the Ghana Global Regulatory Director and inaugurated in Nov 2020 during the COVID-19 season with an induction ceremony of National and Regional Executives by the International Africa President, Cardinal Prof. Esapa Sona Joseph Dominion who travelled to Ghana with other international IPSPJ delegates from other African countries.



The Saturday ceremony was spiced with the induction and inauguration ceremony of







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Source: IPSPJ Ghana News









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Executive Director of the Female Journalists for Women and Rural Development in Africa (FJWoRDA), Mrs. Shirley Asiedu Addo, in partnership with the B4 Foundation, has organized a free health screening, particularly breast cancer examination, for women in Brafoyaw, a community in Abura Asedu Kwamakese district of Central Region.



According to her, the devastating effects of breast cancer continue to wreak havoc in families and the community, "therefore the outreach was organized in a bid to promote awareness about breast cancer and to get women to seek early treatment, if anything is detected in their breasts".



She indicated that, "while the mass media is important in disseminating and creating awareness on pertinent issues affecting the communities, the effects of getting our hands to the plough and reaching to the communities physically can also not be underestimated. We as female journalists want to be part of the change that we want to see.



FJWORDA organized the exercise for about 150 women at Brafoyaw near Cape Coast.



Mrs. Shirley Asiedu urged women to go for regular medical check-ups to stay in good health.



"Women must understand the need to take care of themselves first before taking care of others," she stressed.



The Director of B4 Foundation, Madam Ursula Adadzewa Fynn, on her part, pledged the Foundation's commitment to supporting events that will save lives.



She advised the beneficiaries of the health screening exercise to practice personal hygiene and healthy eating habits.



She revealed that breast cancer is killing a lot of women, so called on corporate entities to unite with them to send their outreach programmes to underprivileged areas in the Region and across the country.

The Central Regional Director for the Gender Department, Ms. Richlove Amamoo also urged the participants to educate their daughters on sexual abuse and the need to be assertive to prevent men who seek to sexually abuse them.



An officer with the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU), Mr. Richard Twum Boadi also advised the women to report cases of abuses to the Police.

Source: Sally Ngissah/Peace FM News









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The Nigerian authorities say they are intensifying surveillance to prevent the importation into the country of cough syrups linked to the deaths of 69 children in The Gambia.



Nigerias National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (Nafdac) says the medicines manufactured by an Indian company, Maiden Pharmaceuticals, have not been found in Nigeria.



A spokesperson for the agency, Sayo Akintola told the BBC that the agencys "surveillance up to date has not found the controversial drugs in the Nigerian market".



The regulatory agency also added that the four paediatric medicines have not been registered in Nigeria, therefore they should not be in the country.



Nevertheless, the authorities have put "appropriate measures in place to prevent entry of these spurious products from the various ports of entry and have activated our internal surveillance mechanisms to mop up these products from the supply chain pipeline if they are ever found," the agency said.



Nafdac has also warned Nigerians to avoid the said syrups and report any "suspicion of adverse drug reaction and substandard and falsified medicines".



It says the effects of the toxic substances allegedly contained in the cough syrups include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache and acute kidney injury which may lead to death.



The products are Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup.



Maiden Pharmaceuticals had failed to provide guarantees about their products' safety, the WHO said.



In a comment to the ANI news agency Maiden said it was shocked and saddened over the incident.



The company said it followed Indian health protocols and was co-operating with an investigation.



The Gambia has already started withdrawing the medicines from circulation.



The WHO had expressed fears that the Gambia might not be the only country where the cough syrups had been sold.

Source: BBC









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Leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nkrabeah Effah Dartey, has refuted assertions that his defence of Aisha Huang is part of a grand plan by the government and his party to get the alleged 'galamsey' kingpin acquitted.



According to him, a former officer of the Ghana Immigration Service introduced him to Aisha Huang in 2017 to replace her previous lawyer, who was leaving the country,



He added that he is defending Aisha because, as a lawyer, he swore an oath to defend anybody who comes to him for help and also because the alleged 'galamsey' kingpin is paying for the services he is giving her.



"Aisha Huang is a Chinese woman whom I first got in touch with in the year 2017. My friend, who used to be an immigration officer by the name Moses, called me one afternoon to meet him at Kempinski Hotel for some discussions.



"So, I went to Kempinski, and when I got there, Moses was sitting with a Chinese woman. He then told me that the woman he was sitting with (Aisha Huang) was a Chinese woman who had a case in court and needed representation.



"I accepted to represent the woman and charged her. After she had paid me, I became her lawyer," he said in Twi in an interview on Kofi TV, which GhanaWeb monitored.



Effah Dartey, who is a two-time Member of Parliament for Berekum, also maintained that his client was innocent and that the state was just harassing her for a crime she never committed.



He added that the eight witness statements the Attorney General, Godfred Dame, has indicated he will be presenting will amount to nothing.

Source: Ghanaweb









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The Attorney General, Godfred Dame, on Tuesday, told an Accra High Court that, the state has evidence to prove that some four foreigners charged as accomplices of galamsey kingpin, Aisha Huang were indeed engaged in illegal mining activities.



The Attorney General, during proceedings on October 11, 2022, told the court that the evidence gathered by the state against the suspects include five receipts issued to the foreign nationals as proof of purchase of small-scale mining sites.



According to the Attorney General, the suspects were engaged in criminality as the laws of Ghana bar foreigners from engaging in small-scale mining.



The four suspects are made up of three Chinese nationals; Shi Yang alias Philip, Li Wei Guo and Shi Mei Zhi, as well as a Vietnamese national, identified as Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen.



They are all facing a provisional charge of engaging in small scale-mining without a licence, contrary to section 99(2)(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) as amended by Act 995 of 2019.



However, the Vietnamese national is facing a separate charge for remaining in Ghana after the expiration of a permit contrary to sections 20(1) and 52(1)(d) of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573).



The three Chinese nationals have all pleaded not guilty to their charge while the court was compelled to defer the plea of the fourth suspect due to the absence of an interpreter.



Responding to the prosecutions evidence against the suspects, their lawyer, Lucie Ekelebe Blay who was holding brief for Freddie Blay challenged the substance of the receipt.



According to the lawyer for the accused persons, the supposed purchase of mining sites by her clients did not materialise as they were duped in the process.



Her argument nonetheless was deemed as enough grounds to prove the prosecutions case according to the Attorney General.



In his response to the defence lawyer, Godfred Yeboah Dame maintained that the suspects breached the law by their attempt to own a mining concession as the law prohibits foreigners from engaging in small scale mining.



The court, citing various factors such as the nature of the alleged offence committed by the suspects, their flight risk possibility and the severity of punishment if they are found guilty, denied the four bail till the end of their trial.



The case against the four has been adjourned to Tuesday, November 1, 2022.



Aisha Huang



The states case against alleged galamsey kingpin Aisha Huang was called after that of her alleged accomplices was adjourned.



Presiding Judge Lydia Osei Marfo, during a sitting on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, refused the plea of her lawyer, Nkrabea Effah Dartey, after the latter argued that his client deserved bail.



According to the judge, all arguments previously made against his plea for bail, including his client's flight risk, remain and will not be changed.



She added that his constant presence in court with his client would be the only way to ensure the case is heard accordingly for the determination of his client's fate.



State Prosecutor Godfred Dame, on his part, reiterated government's commitment to ensuring the case is duly heard and that the accused are prosecuted if found guilty.



Aisha Huang is in court over charges of mining without a license and engaging in the sale and purchase of minerals, four other charges, including undertaking a mining operation without a license.



She is also facing four other charges, including undertaking a mining operation without a license, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, illegal employment of foreign nationals, and entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entry were filed at the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court on Friday, September 16, 2022.



Her case has since been adjourned to October 24, 2022, for case management.









Source: ghanaweb.com









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BIG DAWOOD, Ghanaian security personnel, philanthropist, and lover of kids has made a benevolent gesture towards citizens of Accra by offering free bus rides to commuters of the Teshie-Nungua, Ashaiman, and Accra Mall routes.



The philanthropist, Big Dawood, recounts his experience driving his dads school bus when trying to acquire driving skills and making money with the bus as a trotro driver and after releasing his career goals in the security industry he wanted to revisit those days and be able to offer free rides to commuters who use public transport.

This gesture was made on Friday 7th October 2022 and was a huge surprise to individuals who joined the car only to be told, they didnt have to make any payments for their transportation amidst the economic challenges in the country. The passengers were also gifted chocolates as part of his expression of love towards the passengers.

As this gesture formed part of his birthday celebrations, he also further went ahead to cut his birthday cake with trotro drivers at the Ashaiman bus station.

Big Dawood also donated various items to the New Life Orphanage home in Nungua where he also spent time with the children to encourage them.

These activities were also preceded by the sharing of about 5000 packs of food to the less privileged in various parts of the city, Accra.

Big Dawood also in the past has collaborated with My Voice for the Poor NGO (Europe) in 2021 to present over 3,000 textbooks to St. Peters R/C Basic School in Central Region & he is also the Country Representative of My Voice for the Poor NGO in Ghana.

BIG DAWOODs accomplishments as a businessman, negotiator, foreign relations Ambassador, land developer, and conflict resolution specialist, are accumulating as quickly as his reputation.

Source: Peacefmonline









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National Organizer of the New Patriotic Party, Henry Nana Boakye, has lashed out at former President John Dramani Mahama for his recent verbal attack on the Judiciary and the media.



According to him, as a statesman, it is incumbent on the former president to rise above this kind of politics and rather learn to project the judiciary and the media when ever he gets the chance to speak on any international platform.



The former president recently reiterated his call on Ghanaian judges to deliver justice impartially to the people.



While asking the Ghanaian media to report facts without bias, and also to hold the government of the day accountable, Mr Mahama also had cause to complain about the Electoral Commission (EC) saying the electoral body owes it a sacred duty of care to the people by ensuring they are included and not excluded in the electoral process in the interest of the incumbent administration.



In series of tweets, Mr Mahama said A judiciary owes it a duty to deliver impartial justice to the people; an Ombudsman owes a duty of care to the people to investigate all issues of malfeasance; a police force should exist to serve the people and not rein terror on them; an electoral commission owes 



But speaking on Okay Fm's Ade Akye Abia programme, Nana B, as the NPP National Organizer is affectionately called, pointed out that the former has benefitted from the impartial nature of the judiciary and the media, and so he should not behave as if the judiciary and the media are working against him or his party.



To him, Mr Mahama had his time in court when he was not satisfied with the results of the 2020 general elections so he should not blame the judiciary or the media with their abysmal performance in court.



"As political parties, we may have have our differences about the judiciary. My political party the NPP has had its own differences with the judiciary but that does mean the party or its leader should speak against them and make the world feel they are not a trust worthy institution in a country that is democratically independent.



"He should know that a former president he owes it a duty to project state institutions and help shape their activities without criticizing and condemning their work both locally and internationally," he added.





Watch Video Below





Source: Isaac Kwame Owusu/Peacefmonline/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, George Mireku Duker has lashed out at Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV, who claims to be the Chief of Dompim-Pepesa, over his allegations against him.



Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV alleged that the Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, Deputy Lands Minister, George Mireku Duker and the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Chief Executive, Benjamin Kessie are culprits in the galamsey trade.



To him, the involvement of these appointees and other government officials has made the combat against the illegal mining (galamsey) a living hell for the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the people of Ghana.



I know not of any company but I know of the very people who are behind the operations of galamsey in my area. First and foremost the Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah is involved.



The MP for the area, Tarkwa Nsuaem, Honorable George Mireku-Duker is also involved and the MCE, Benjamin Kessie is also involved I have told you I am not going to disclose my arsenals to you.



They said they were going to sue, so let them sue. Ill let out my arsenals at the right time, he said in an interview on Joy FMs Super Morning Show.



But the Deputy Minister has refuted the claims.



According to him, his accuser is bitter about something that happened in the past involving the two of them.



He explained that Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV's accusations are born out of malice because he (Mireku Duker), who was the Chief of the community in 2008 till he abdicated his throne to vie for parliamentary seat, didn't hand over the reins to him (Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV).



He disclosed that Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV is his nephew but not Chief of the area.



"Dompim-Pepesa, I, Mireku Duker was the Chief there as at 2008. This Dakyi guy is my nephew; he is my direct nephew. My sister is his mother...All that he is doing is because I didn't make him the Chief. I didn't hand over to him..."



As a result, Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV has made it his assignment to vilify him and aims to bring him down.



"This person who is parading himself (as Chief) did the worse things during the 2020 elections. He organized press conferences, led independent candidate against me and so forth. So, he is so bitter", he said while addressing the issue on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" programme.



Hon. Mireku Duker stated categorically that he has "never done mining before" and never engaged in galamsey.



"This is not something you can hide...Any person who does mining, the small-scale miners will know that you are a miner...The people will know when you do mining. It won't take Nathaniel Dakyi to tell Ghanaians that Mireku Duker is involved in galamsey. I mean it doesn't add up. Everybody knows that he is someone consistently hates me because he thinks I didn't support him to become Chief of Dompim", he stated.





He vowed to file a law suit against Nana Nyonwah Panyin IV regarding the allegations.He stressed; "During the election time, he said a lot of things against me and because it was in the campaign season, I didn't mind him but for this recent one, I will not let it slide. I have engaged my lawyers who as I talk right now are preparing his writ for court. I believe the court is an open forum where, due to democracy, you can present every evidence you have and prove to Ghanaians if Mireku Duker does galamsey but if it's not true, then the law will deal with him accordingly."

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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.

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George Mireku Duker, the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, says the Akufo-Addo government hasn't lost the battle against galamsey but is on the right track to ending this menace.



Joining the Wednesday panel on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" show to discuss the galamsey situation, the Deputy Minister advised the government and the New Patriotic Party not to lose sight of their vision.



He cautioned the ruling party saying some people are setting an agenda to derail them.



"If the NPP don't exercise patience, some people will set an agenda for us. Let us remain focused. We are on track in the fight against galamsey. Government is in control," he stated.



Also subtly touching on calls for illegal miners to be shot on-site, Hon. Mireku Duker replied; "We are not in junta regime for us to go and shoot people free".



To him, for the nation to end galamsey, "what we need is attitudinal change".





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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.

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The Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG) last Sunday took its reorganisation exercise to the Savannah Region where 45 elected regional and constituency executives of the party were sworn into office to steer the affairs of the party for the next four years.



The exercise formed part of the partys preparations towards the 2024 general election.



The new party officers elected through popular acclamation include chairmen, vice-chairmen, secretaries, organisers, youth organisers treasurers filed their nominations to contest the various positions of the party at the regional and constituencies levels.



The constituencies are, Damongo, Yape-/Kawsugu, Daboya-Mankarigu, Salaga North, Salaga South, Bole-Bamboi and Sawla-Tuna-Kalba.



The swearing-in ceremony held at Damongo, the Savannah regional capital was supervised by officials of the Electoral Commission.



Work hard



Addressing executives and party faithful at the conference, the Founder of LPG, Kofi Akpaloo charged the new executives to work hard to improve on the fortunes of the party in the 2024 general elections.



He outlined a number of programmes and policies the party intended to roll out to rescue Ghanaians from the current economic situation when given the mandate in 2024.



He mentioned child benefit policy, ban on importation of food items, such as rice and chicken, income supplement policy as some of the interventions.



He explained that the reason why his government intended to introduce all these policies when given the nod was to stimulate and grow the economy, saying, "The Ghanaian economy is sleeping and we need to wake it up from the slumber, but to do so we don't need magic, we need innovative ideas".



Parliamentary seat



The Savannah Regional Chairman of LPG, Jindayu Mahama, aka Kasapa said the time had come for the people of Ghana to do away with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP).



Mr Mahama said Ghana needed a new leader with a vision for development, which Mr Akpaloo stood for.



On the parliamentary seats, he sent a clear signal to the NPP and NDC that his focus was to snatch the Damongo constituency seat.



Earlier, Mr Akpalo paid a courtesy call on the Overlord of the Gonjaland, Yagbonwura Sulemana Tuntunba Boresa to seek his blessings as the party gears up for the 2024 elections.



He reiterated his commitment to the development of the region, adding that the region was endowed with numerous natural resources including arable lands and that his government would utilise these resources for the benefit of the people.



For his part, the Yagbonwura thanked the 2020 Presidential candidate of the LPG for the visit and pledged his support for party.

Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The involvement of New Patriotic Party-affiliated defense lawyers in the case involving Chinese galamsey kingpin, Aisha Huang, and her accomplices may create an impression of a fixed match if the prime suspect is acquitted and discharged by the court.



This is the observation of Director of Legal Affairs for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Abraham Amaliba.



Speaking to Accra-based Joy FM on Freddie Blays legal representation for Aisha Huangs co-accused persons, the legal practitioner admitted that it was professionally right for the former chairman of the New Patriotic Party to offer his services to the client.



He, however, believes that lawyers from the NPP fold should have used their conscience in deciding whether or not to accept the offer especially as its government was waging war on illegal small scale mining (galamsey).



Accepting the legal representation duties he said would rather lead to people pointing accusing fingers at the government, to the extent that it is disinterested in combating the menace.



Already Nkrabea Effah Darteh who is known to be connected to the NPP is the one representing Aisha Huang. Now to have the immediate past chairman of the NPP also join forces to defend these galamseyers, it gives the impression that government as it were, is not interested in fighting the menace.



One would have expected that such lawyers who are from the NPP stock would allow their conscience to guide them and for them to desist from providing such services because it goes a long way to point fingers at the government, Amaliba said



The NDCs Director of Legal Affairs further suggested that Freddie Blay's defense of persons involved in galamsey betrays his knowledge of what transpired at the cabinet level.



He stated that the former chairman of NPP who used to sit in cabinet openly defending Aisha Huangs accomplices shows that it is going to be a fixed match and nothing will happen to Aisha Huang. Fixed match connoting that that the outcome of the trial would have been predetermined in the favour of the accused persons.



If at the end of the day it is found out that Aisha Huang is to be acquitted and discharged, then people will be making their deductions and saying that then the whole trial was what somebody will sayit was a fixed match.

How can your Attorney General be prosecuting somebody in this matter of national interest then you have lawyers connectedand not just any lawyers.. you have the former Chairman of the NPP who sits in cabinetuntil now he used to sit in cabinet...and I want to believe that cabinet abhors the galamsey taking place in this country.



So if you have the chairman who sat in cabinet seen openly defending a galamseyer, it creates the impression that clearly this is going to be a fixed match and nothing will happen to Aisha Huang, he emphasized.



Freddie Blay to represent Aisha Huangs accomplices



Aisha Huang together with her four other accomplices made a court appearance yesterday October 11 for the state to continue with their prosecution.



Private attorney Lucy Ekeleba Blay said in court that she was holding brief for Freddie Blay in the case of the four accomplices. Another NPP affiliated lawyer, Nkrabea Effah Darteh is representing the main accused, Aisha Huang.



Meanwhile, Attorney General Godfred Dame has indicated his office readiness to fast-track the prosecution of Aisha Huang for her past and previous crimes.



Aisha Huang and her accomplices have been remanded into custody until November 24, 2022 following the judge refusal to grant them bail.

















Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Political Parties Outside Parliament (PPOP), a group of political parties with no representation in the Legislative House, has called on the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to arrest the leader and founder of Ghana Union Movement (GUM), Rev. Christian Kwabena Andrew.



The parties say Rev. Christian Kwabena Andrew, popularly called 'Osofo Kyiri Abosom', has raised false accusations against the Electoral Commission.



Addressing a press conference in Accra, they said; "Recently, the Leader of the Ghana Union Movement has also accused the Electoral Commission of recruiting Electoral Officers with the ruling NPP."



"How can one make such a baseless and unfounded accusations?", the parties questioned.



They appealed to the IGP, Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, to "invite the Leader of GUM to investigate some of these allegations as all Political Parties were given the names of the Electoral Officers and also granted the opportunity for us to provide feedback on each of them we felt had some known political affiliations".



"One cannot then turn around to just drag the name of such a reputable institution that is the back bone of our democracy into disrepute without any substantive proof," they added.

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/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.

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South Africa: Mapisa-Nqakula lobbies for increased women participation in Parliament

National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, has reiterated that increased participation of women in parliamentary processes is critical in accelerating the transformation of our society to meaningfully change gender relations across the spectrum.

Addressing the opening session of the 145th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) held in Kigali, Rwanda, on Wednesday, Mapisa-Nqakula said there is unprecedentedly a wide convergence of understanding that gender equality, gender mainstreaming and women's participation should be placed higher on the developmental agenda of the nations and parliaments.

We believe that Parliaments law-making, oversight and enhancement of public participation hold hope for the meaningful translation of these ideals and commitments to improve the lives of ordinary women. We all agree that a gender-sensitive Parliament must go beyond women's representation, which only reflects numbers.

It is more about improving the lives of women, especially the poorest and the needy. We owe it to the future generation to succeed in building societies that are more fit for women [and] it should start with empowering both the girl and the boy child, Mapisa-Nqakula said.

She noted that the IPU Women in Parliament report of 2020 is not encouraging for a world whose leaders have expressed their commitment to women's empowerment and to ensure a just and equitable society.

The statistics also show that out of its members, more than 80 Parliaments have less than 20% representation of women. What is even more disturbing is that the report also shows that there are Parliaments with less than 5% representation of women amongst us here, including some reporting 0% representation of women. This has to change, Mapisa-Nqakula said.

She also warned that unless many systemic barriers to women's participation at the apex of political leadership and decision-making are addressed, the status of women will not improve.

These barriers include disempowering legislation, patriarchal gender roles in society, conservative traditions, and religious fundamentalism that continue to reproduce undesirable stereotypes and inadequate support and recognition of women in individual households.

I wish to reiterate what I recently said in one of our international parliamentary fora, whilst we recognise many achievements made in the representation of women in our parliaments, we are still far from the ideal scenario articulated in numerous commitments we made, the Speaker said.

She further called on the Assembly to explore the possibility of imposing penalties on all parliaments who are members of the IPU who seem not to be moving to ensure there is proper gender representation in their Parliaments.

The five-day session, taking place from 11 to 15 October 2022, brings together delegates from 178 Member Parliaments, and will see global parliaments engaging on the overall theme "Gender equality and gender-sensitive parliaments as drivers of change for a more resilient and peaceful world. SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
National Communications Officer of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has indicated his resolve to file an appeal to challenge a decision of a High Court that went against him.



Sammy Gyamfi was dragged to court by Energy Minister, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh for some wild allegations against his persona.



Mr Gyamfi alleged that one of the suspects arrested in connection with the kidnapping of two Canadian girls in Kumasi, Seidu Yakubu aka. Mba, was his (Dr Prempeh's) errand boy.



An accusation Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh sought the court's redress.



After three years in court, the General Jurisdiction High Court (12) in Accra, presided over by Justice Charles Gyamfi Danquah on Thursday, October 13, 2022, ruled against the NDC activist, ordering him to pay GH500,000 in damages to the Plaintiff, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh.



But the ruling has not gone down well with Sammy Gyamfi.



He believes that the court erred in its judgement and has thus vowed to file an appeal to challenge the decision.



It is my considered view that the honourable court erred as its decision is contrary to the evidence that was put before the court, he said in his response.



Statement of claim



In the plaintiffs statement of claim, he averred that Sammy Gyamfi had greatly injured his positive image by falsely linking him to one Seidu Yakubu, aka Mba, the alleged ringleader in the kidnapping of the two Canadian girls in Kumasi.



The lawyers said the defendants statement had dented Napos image both in Ghana and abroad, considering the fact that the said statement was widely captured in the media and other electronic platforms.



The statement said over his entire public and private life, Napo has led a decent lifestyle worthy of emulation and so Sammy Gyamfi had no justification to link him with miscreants to dent his image.



According to him, Sammy Gyamfi, by his statement, intentionally portrayed Napo as a person who supports thuggery, kidnapping and other illegal acts without any proof.



Plaintiffs request



Therefore, lawyers for Napo prayed the court to restrain Sammy Gyamfi and his agents from further making or publishing defamatory words against him.



They also urged the court to order Sammy Gyamfi to apologize and retract the defamatory statement with the same prominence the defamatory words received within seven days after the judgment.



Read below his full unedited response



Sometime in 2019, a defamation suit was filed against me by Manhyia South MP and now Minister for Energy, Hon. Matthew Opoku-Prempeh, in relation to a comment made at a press conference I addressed on the three kidnapped Canadian girls in Kumasi.



The said press conference was to debunk allegations by some elements in the New Patriotic Party that the said kidnapping incident was masterminded by the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress, Hon. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo.



The specific comment that constituted the basis for the suit was my assertion that contrary to the above allegation, the ring leader of the kidnappers, one Seidu Mba was "alleged to be the errand boy of Matthew Opoku-Prempeh".



After three years of litigation, the court today held that the said comment was defamatory and consequently awarded damages of GH500,000.00 and cost of GH50,000.00 against me.



It is my considered view that the honorable court erred as its decision is contrary to the evidence that was put before the court. More importantly, I hold the view that the courts decision to totally disregard the testimony of my witness, DW1, Mafus Jibril who testified that the said Seidu Mba was in fact the errand boy of Plaintiff and was in his company when he (DW1) was attacked in Manhyia sometime in 2012, constitutes a grave miscarriage of justice .



Consequently, my lawyers will be filing a notice of appeal and an application for stay of execution to challenge the decision of the High Court forthwith. Its my hope that justice will be served.



I am most grateful to my brother and lawyer Edudzi Kudzo Tameklo, and my learned colleagues, Beatrice Annan Esq., Seth Nyaaba Esq. and Gideon Abotsi Esq. who have been representing me in court on this matter.



It is worthy of note, that this is only the decision of the court of first instance and not final. I am determined to pursue this matter to its logical conclusion.



The struggle continues.



Sammy Gyamfi Esq.

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.

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FILE - A migrant family from Venezuela walks to a Border Patrol transport vehicle after they and other migrants crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and turned themselves in, Wednesday, June 16, 2021, in Del Rio, Texas. The Biden administration is developing plans for Venezuelans with financial sponsors to be granted parole to enter the United States, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted after Russia's invasion, U.S. officials said Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
The Wynn Las Vegas Debuts New Milestone Hybrid Satellite

October 13, 2022 Chad Holloway Executive Editor U.S.

For their Fall Poker Classic (FPC) satellites scheduled for 5 p.m. PT on October 13th and 14th, Wynn Las Vegas is debuting a new hybrid format. The $300 buy-in Milestone satellites  which will award seats into the FPCs $1,600 buy-in, $1M GTD No-Limit Holdem tournament  allow players two routes to securing a seat:

A player who accumulates 150,000 in tournament chips (The Milestone) or more will instantly be awarded one (1) Tournament Prize. Upon verification from the tournament supervisor that the player has achieved the Milestone, the player will cease play and the total of his/her chips will be removed from play.

The Tournament will conclude when the number of players remaining is equal to the number of $1,600 prizes generated based on the Tournament Prize Formula, less the amount of players who have previously won the prize by reaching the Milestone.

Any Tournament prize pool residual funds, less than a full $1,600 prize, will be paid to the last player eliminated prior to the number of remaining players being equal to the amount of Tournament Prizes remaining.

Trying Something New

For years we have struggled with the challenge that traditional satellites present, specifically the slow decline in action as the seats creep up, Wynn Director of Poker Operations Ryan Beauregard told PokerNews. Satellites come to a standstill and take much longer than they should, which is amplified even more when the seat value goes up. We had to find an incentive for players to continue playing.

He continued: Ultimately, we conceived this event which is a bit of a hybrid. The Milestone creates the incentive to be aggressive, and players must continue to play when the tournament normally starts to slow as players begin to tighten up. By creating that incentive to drive action, it gives below-average stacks a chance to chip up, because now there are chips going into the pot (from players striving to get to the Milestone). In the previous system, the above average stacks stop risking chips, making it increasingly more difficult for anyone else to get action.

Wynn Director of Poker Operations Ryan Beauregard

A similar concept has been around on the European Poker Tour (EPT), but there are some slight differences. On the EPT, players can win a second seat because once they reach the qualifier that amount is removed from play but not the overage, theoretically allowing players to continue playing to win a second seat. At Wynn, that is not an option.

As for the 150,000-chip mark, Beauregard explained how they arrived at that number.

We inflated the number of chips slightly relevant to the player-to-seat ratio. By removing more chips from play, it creates a unique dynamic in which players are forced to continue playing aggressively to reach the Milestone. If they dont reach the milestone, they still need to accumulate enough chips to stay alive and reach the point that the seats and players remaining reach parity.

Once a player believes theyve hit the 150K mark, its their responsibility to inform a tournament supervisor, who will verify the stack. A player who assists another in counting their chip stack or notifying them that they have reached the Milestone is not in breach of the rules. Theres also a rule in place that players must keep their chips in full stacks of 20 for easier counting and verification.

It actually wont be the first time Wynn has hosted such a satellite as they tested the concept in a prior tournament.

We did test the idea in a 60-player employee event, said Beauregard. It created some very interesting dynamics, and was a lot of fun trying to figure out the changes in strategy as people approached the milestone.

Check out the PokerNews room review of Wynn Poker here!

Milestone Satellite Structure

The single-day events will start players with 20,000 in chips and play 30-minute levels with a 10-minute break every four levels. Play will be nine-handed. Registration and re-entries will be open until the start of Level 9.

If successful, players can expect more milestone satellites at the Wynn.

Yes, that would be ideal, said Beauregard when asked about the future. As always, we will listen to the feedback and make adjustments if needed for future events. After playing myself, Im confident that, in some form, it will become the satellite standard.

Level Small Blind Big Blind Ante 1 100 200 200 2 200 300 300 3 200 400 400 4 300 600 600 5 400 800 800 6 500 1,000 1,000 7 600 1,200 1,200 8 800 1,600 1,600 9 1,000 2,000 2,000 10 1,500 3,000 3,000 11 2,000 4,000 4,000 12 3,000 6,000 6,000 13 4,000 8,000 8,000 14 5,000 10,000 10,000 15 6,000 12,000 12,000 16 10,000 15,000 15,000 17 10,000 20,000 20,000 18 15,000 30,000 30,000 19 20,000 40,000 40,000 20 30,000 60,000 60,000 21 50,000 75,000 75,000 22 50,000 100,000 100,000 23 75,00 125,000 125,000 24 100,000 200,000 200,000 25 150,000 300,000 300,000

2022 Wynn Fall Classic Schedule

How to Win a Seat in the $15M Gtd. Historic WPT World Championship

Sharelines Check out the new "Milestone" hybrid satellite making its debut this week at @Wynnpoker.
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NBC News harmed the disabled community by conducting an interview with Senate candidate John Fetterman that promoted a Republican ableist smear.

Here is a video clip of the interview conducted by Dascha Burns that was based on the premise that Fetterman requires the use of closed-caption technology due to an auditory processing issue caused by a stroke:

Pennsylvania Lt. Governor and Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman sat down with @DashaBurns in an exclusive interview using closed captioning. Fetterman discussed his recovery after suffering a stroke in the primaries and his race against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz. pic.twitter.com/0fee1cKXgY  NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) October 11, 2022

NBC Nightly News based their entire interview around how John Fettermans disability and his need for assistive technology make him unfit for office. NBC tried to paint Fettermans disability as a disqualifying factor or a concern for voters in Pennsylvania.

An Expert On The ADA, Pennsylvania, And Political Science Responds To NBC News

Readers may already be aware that I have Cerebral Palsy. I am also a trained political scientist with a specialization in industrial and labor relations with specific training in the Americans with Disabilities Act. I have even devised and administered a course for workplaces about the ADA, accessibility, and hiring practices involving disabilities.

The NBC News interview was discriminatory to John Fetterman and the disabled community. Dascha Burns, the interviewer, was not interested in Fettermans policy positions but instead wanted to talk about the candidates temporary disability and use it as a factor that should give voters concern.

The interview was based on the discriminatory premise that persons with disabilities are less fit for employment.

NBC Nightly News might also be surprised to find out that a deaf individual couldnt hear their questions without hearing aides. They would also be shocked that a person with mobility issues might need a wheelchair or that a person with an unseen disability might need assistance in some way.

Fetterman uses assistive technology, at least temporarily. Gov. Greg Abbott also uses assistive technology, and so do Sen. Tammy Duckworth and Rep. Madison Cawthorn. Every over the age of 80 member of Congress who needs visual or auditory assistance is in the same situation as Fetterman.

The difference is that Fettermans issue is temporary. He is expected to make a full recovery, and his auditory processing issue will resolve.

NBC Nightly News pushed a stereotype about differently-abled persons that they are somehow less qualified if they need assistance in any way. The network has done damage and harm to the disabled community.

NBC News Should Apologize For The Interview And Send Everyone Involved For Ableist Training

Apologizing for the interview is not enough. The mainstream media lacks disability community representation, and so every NBC News employee needs to be required to attend training to understand and resolve their ableism.

The media allowed Donald Trump to get away with mocking a disabled reporter in 2016, and the mainstream press spreads cultural stereotypes about differently-abled persons that create barriers to employment and full participation in society.

John Fetterman should demand an apology, but also NBC News should apologize for smearing the entire American disabled community with the most explicit example of media ableism and discrimination that I have ever witnessed.

The 61 million American adults who are living with a disability deserve to be respected and heard.
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It has been a long time coming. In what will definitely be the last public hearing prior to the election and possibly the last hearing prior to the publication of the final report, there were tempered expectations. The public was told to expect further evidence of Trump receiving warnings about impending violence and doing nothing to tamper down on the possibility of violence. Indeed the opposite.

Committee Chair Bennie Thompson from Mississippi began the hearing by reviewing the lack of partisanship in the investigation, noting that the vast majority of witnesses were Republicans, former Trump staff, and others in law enforcement as apolitical witnesses.

Liz Cheney noted that they would prove Trumps state of mind with a premeditated plan that he had prior to election day and followed that plan going forward to the point that even after Trump had been told repeatedly that there was no fraud, he still went forward with no facts, only denial. She also mentioned the unsettling truth that the Republic could not survive with a man who serves only himself and a party that only serves only the man. The evidence would prove that Roger Stone was on the same page regarding an earlier plan to declare victory.

Rep. Lofgren of California emphasized that Trump had planned on declaring victory no matter what the vote count and do so on election night and called for the states to stop counting ballots. An almost comic dictatorial move disenfranchising millions.

The very first new evidence presented was a video of Roger Stone stating that he hoped that Trump would win but that Trump was going to declare victory anyway and that possession is 9/10s of the law. Roger Stone was also present at the Willard Hotel on January 5th and 6th and maintained contact with the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys, along with Mark Meadows. Lofgren went on to note that people from both the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys have been charged with Seditious Conspiracy, implying that Stone was closely associated with these groups. This was especially true with Enrique Tario, head of the Proud Boys.

Lofgren ended by reiterating that Trump had all this planned out prior to the election, and the people most involved in the January 6th attack were aware of the plan early. As Cheney said, this evidence is direct proof of Trumps state of mind. He intended to declare victory and steal the election no matter the results.

The film of Roger Stone admitting they were going through with the plan to declare victory and use the maxim that possession is 9/10s of the law was the most compelling evidence early in the hearing.
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The Supreme Court rejected Trumps request for their intervention in the classified documents with a one-sentence statement.

The Court wrote:

NEW: The Supreme Court has denied Trump's request to vacate the 11th circuit's stay of Judge Aileen Cannon's order requiring DOJ to turn over classified material from Mar-a-Lago to Special Master Raymond Dearie for his review. pic.twitter.com/WuCtBskGEP  Daniel Barnes (@dnlbrns) October 13, 2022

The Supreme Court appears to have no interest in getting involved in the Trump mishandling of government documents because there is no question of unsettled law.

The conservative majority on the Supreme Court has not done Trumps bidding because they have a very narrow view of executive power. Trumps idea that a president or ex-president can do anything that they want and hold unlimited power is a theory that the Court does not agree with.

Donald Trump still thinks that his judges will bail him out of any trouble that he gets into.

The Supreme Court has rejected Trump, which means that he has nowhere else to go on this issue.

Trump went to court and lost again.
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Not all polls are created equal, as everyone knows. Additionally, a poll  even if perfectly accurate, is nothing but a snapshot in time. The real value in polls is when the average of all the polls points to a change of direction or a surge. At least a new poll from Emerson College polling gives a snapshot of the movement toward Tim Ryan post-debate with J.D. Vance. This poll says the race is tied. Emerson College:

The latest Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey of Ohio voters finds Republican JD Vance and Democrat Tim Ryan in statistical dead heat in the US Senate Election; 46% plan to vote for Vance and 45% plan to vote for Ryan. Nine percent are undecided. Since last month, Vances support has increased by two points and Ryans support has increased by five points.

It is a race pitting men against women. Interesting because this implies that there are a significant number of married couples where the husband will break one way with the wife secretly (often), canceling out the vote.

Spencer Kimball, Executive Director of Emerson College Polling, said, Men are breaking for the Republican candidate and women are breaking for the Democratic candidate in the US Senate Election; men for Vance over Ryan 53% to 40%, while women for Ryan over Vance 49% to 39%. A higher share of women are undecided at 11%, compared to 6% of men.

Democrats are riding the headwinds against GOP-MAGA extremism with respect to the danger of fascism and extremist abortion. The MAGAs will run on an increasingly dour economic outlook. The economy is a significant concern going into the general election because fascism rarely arises in good economic times. No. Fascism takes hold much more strongly when things are tough all around, and the fascist movement has a solid group to blame, in this case, the Democrats.

Thus, it is critical that Democrats keep the Senate going into 2024. Losing the Senate would all but seal a MAGA Congress making a peaceful transition that much more difficult, as weve seen before.

It is good to see the strong Democratic candidates running well against MAGAs in states that should be leaning right were it not for Trumps loyal picks.
On October 12, the United States and five allies expressed profound concern about escalating violence in the mountainous, northern Ethiopian province of Tigray, where civil war rages.

The U.S., Australia, the U.K., Germany, The Netherlands and Denmark called for unhindered humanitarian access and accountability for human rights abuses as a condition for any durable solution to the conflict.

Samantha Power, administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), tweeted on October 11: Resumed hostilities in northern Ethiopia are having a devastating impact on civilians. An airstrike killed over 50 people at a school and [refugee] site, violence has forced 340,000 people to flee in Afar and Tigray, and fighting makes it very difficult to reach people with assistance.

Esleman Abay, a journalist at the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC), responded to Power by accusing USAID of supporting the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), which is fighting Ethiopian government forces.

It's USAID arm & fund TPLF terror group for all this crisis? tons of @USAID food aid for civilians found in trenches which was meant for Tigray civilians not TPLF. @SamanthaJPower's @USAID kept supporting & feeding TPLF terrorists, he tweeted.

That is false.

Abay accompanied his tweet with a video showing sacks of USAID foodstuffs that appeared to have been plundered. But the presence of those USAID provisions does not indicate USAID is arming, supporting or funding the TPLF. USAID supplies, like those from other relief organizations, have been looted during the conflict. There is no evidence showing the United States is aiding the TPLF. In fact, the U.S. has threatened all parties to the conflict with sanctions.

Tigray Peoples Liberation Front forces have been at war with the Ethiopian National Defense Forces since November 2020. In March 2021, Ethiopia confirmed that neighboring Eritrean troops had joined its side of the fighting.

A truce brokered in March broke down in August. Renewed peace efforts have stalled.

The U.N. Commission of Human Rights Experts last month warned civilians in northern Ethiopia are at risk of further atrocity crimes. Its chair said the humanitarian crisis in Tigray is shocking, both in terms of scale and duration.



The United States says more than 5 million people in Ethiopia need humanitarian aid, and as many as 900,000 in the Tigray region are living under famine conditions, more than anywhere else in the world today.

The U.S. and others have tried to support civilians caught in the conflict. Assistance has not been extended to active combatants, although Tigray forces have stolen humanitarian aid and other resources.

In late August, USAID said Tigray forces looted its warehouses in the neighboring Amhara region, which Tigray rebels entered after fighting renewed that month.

We do have proof that several of our warehouses have been looted and completely emptied in the areas, particularly in Amhara, where TPLF soldiers have gone into, said Sean Jones, USAID's mission director in Ethiopia.

Polygraph.info reached out to USAID to clarify the nature of that proof. USAID did not reply by the time of publication.

Tigray forces also seized 12 fuel tankers from the World Food Program, imperiling its ability to deliver humanitarian aid, the United Nations said.

In April, USAID said the U.S. is the largest donor of humanitarian aid to the northern Ethiopia response efforts, and we remain committed to helping all people in need across Ethiopia.

The U.S. has provided more than $995 million in humanitarian assistance to northern Ethiopia since the crisis began, including more than $885 million through USAID and nearly $110 million through the U.S. Department of State, USAID said.

But only a sliver of assistance for civilians is getting through.

Less than 10 percent of the needed humanitarian supplies, however, have reached the Tigray region over the past month due to obstruction of aid access. Let me repeat that: less than 10 percent of needed supplies, a senior White House official said in September 2021.

Earlier this month, the European Union called the Tigray situation one of the worst man-made humanitarian crisis in the world.

Power said earlier that obstruction by all sides had hampered efforts to get aid to those in need. During a visit to Ethiopia in August, she warned of the perils of dehumanizing rhetoric.

The Ethiopian government has called U.S. actions in response to the Tigray crisis misguided and regrettable.

Some Ethiopian government supporters have conflated U.S. criticism of the Ethiopian militarys actions in Tigray and role in the humanitarian catastrophe with support for the TPLF.

Critics likewise cite U.S. relations with the TPLF, which ruled Ethiopia from 1991 to 2018, as evidence that the U.S. supports Tigray rebels.

But U.S. support to Ethiopia, including roughly $1 billion in annual aid, continued under the administration of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

The U.S. is threatening sanctions against the warring parties to encourage a peaceful solution.

On September 17, President Joe Biden approved an executive order establishing a sanctions regime to increase pressure on the parties fueling this conflict to sit down at the negotiating table and, in the case of Eritrea, withdraw forces.
Aiken, SC (29801)

Today

Clear skies. Scattered frost possible. Low 34F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Clear skies. Scattered frost possible. Low 34F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
Stephanie Hill is the education reporter for the Aiken Standard. Follow her on Twitter @stephanie_hill2 and Instagram @stephaniehillnews.
NORTH CHARLESTON  At Ashley Acres, the staff is simply dying to welcome new patients to the asylum.

Literally. They're all cursed nurses, possessed nuns, ghastly beasts and mad scientists reaching from beyond the grave to clutch whatever life forces they can and drag them into the afterlife.

Well, at least their characters are, according to the macabre tale Nate Shoemaker has woven to create the Charleston area's newest haunted house this October, Southern Screams.

Shoemaker has been crafting demented dreamlands since he was a teenager, always drawn to horror movies and Halloween haunts. He grew up going to haunted houses and started designing them in South Florida about 20 years ago.

If you go WHAT: Southern Screams WHEN: 7-10 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday nights; 7-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights, Halloween night WHERE: Holy City Brewing, 1021 Aragon Ave. PRICE: $20 general admission, $35 VIP (faster line + beer), $145 get buzzed (faster line + beer and burger + Stardust Tattoo flash tat) +$5 scare with care glow necklace MORE INFO: southernscreams.com

He spent many October evenings in his high school years visiting Halloween Horror Nights, Universal Studios theme parks' haunted house pop-up.

When he moved to Charleston in 2019 with his partner, he noticed there was only one local haunted house attraction: Boone Hall Fright Nights. He wanted to amp up the scare factor in town.

"Why doesn't one of the most haunted cities in the world have another haunted house?" he asked.

So he took it upon himself to build one. Last year, he constructed a 4,000-square-foot haunted house in his own backyard in West Ashley. Without any advertisement, it drew about 1,000 people.

Then Holy City Brewing reached out about a possible collaboration. So this year, he built the over-5,000-square-foot Southern Screams haunted house behind the North Charleston brewery, right on the swamp.

Ashley Acres features 20 rooms and a graveyard, and more than 40 scare actors.

When you "enter if you dare," you're immediately hit with an overpowering stench.

"It smells like burnt corpse," said Shoemaker of the "Slaughterhouse" perfume.

There are more smells throughout: cotton candy in the circus tent, a sterile hospital scent in the shower, decay in the dissection chamber.

Throughout the maze are gory scenes lit up by strobe lights and masked by smoke.

There's the butchery, with a masked meat-slicer sawing away at his latest meal, while a decapitated head bakes in the microwave.

There's the lab, with a scientist cutting away at a gut-splayed corpse, a disemboweled surfer boy strung up in the corner.

There's the classroom with a creepy girl who follows you around, a message repeated on the chalkboard: "I will not commit murder again."

There's the stuffed animal room, with giant teddy bears dangling from the ceiling, a few severed arms and legs swinging from the door frame on your way out.

There's the shock therapy room, with a strapped-down woman thrashing as she's being zapped by bolts of blinding electricity. (Shock Therapy is actually also the name of the marshmallow cream ale Southern Screams brewed in collaboration with Holy City.)

And there's the black-lit clown room, which may just be your worst nightmare.

Integral to the scares is a team of actors who put on the theatrics in order for Shoemaker's terrifying vision to be brought to life.

Joe Spiotta is the director of talent and an actor at Footlight Players.

"I love theatrics, I know theatrics, all kinds of theatrics," said Spiotta, who manages the team behind the scream.

Half an hour before sunset and show time, he grouped the actors into an interior courtyard for a pep talk.

"One, two, three, Scare!" he yelled as the team posed for their daily group picture by a tombstone.

The clowns, butchers and monsters were all smiles before the night of horror ahead.

One of them is Frank Ruopoli, who got his start scaring people in 1997. Ruopoli was very in touch with the theater and music scenes at the time; his wife was a theater major, and they were in bands together.

Somewhere along the line, he ran into a man who owned a mansion on Rutledge Avenue. For Halloween, he'd transform it into a haunted house. Ruopoli got involved as a spookster, and then the House of Doom moved into the old Charleston County Library building. He said both were big hits with the locals.

It's been since the early 2000s that Ruopoli was a haunted house actor. Southern Screams encouraged him to give it another go, especially since some of the proceeds go to the Charleston Animal Society. Ruopoli got his terrier-chihuahua mix, Trudy, from there.

While he loves the holidays because they bring people together, interestingly enough, Ruopoli isn't big on scaring others.

That doesn't mean he hasn't; a few times he's frightened people to the point that they wet their pants.

"I guess I gave them their money's worth," he said with a laugh.

Andrea Raupach saw a posting for the Southern Scream auditions and, at 47 years old, decided to give it a shot. It was a bucket-list item of hers and her very first foray into acting. But she loves horror movies, trick-or-treating and all things Halloween.

"It's fun to get in the land of make-believe for a while," she said.

She's a creepy nun, and she has a jump scare she's proud of.

"I'm normally not a prankster, but I like it in this setting," she said.

Julie Crist, a Flowertown Players stage manager, is a transplant from Boone Hall Fright Nights. She said a few people made the transition, especially those who live more in the North Charleston or Summerville area. This is much closer to home.

She personally was a fan of Southern Scream's management, since it's gay-owned and operated.

That also appealed to 17-year-old Sydni Baldoni, who met partner Laura Letton while working together at Fright Nights.

The duo transferred to Southern Screams this year and are twin clowns; they heard about the new haunted house at a Charleston Pride event.

Interestingly enough, Baldoni has heart problems, so being the scarer instead of the scare-ee is a necessity.

"It's so cathartic, actually," Baldoni said.

Crist has high anxiety and a startle reflex.

"I could never attend one of these, so being the scarer makes it so much better," she said. "Backstage, I walk up to a clown covered in blood and they're giving me watercooler talk."

High-anxiety guests also have the option to wear glow necklaces, which cost a little extra. That's a cue to the actors to not follow them around in a room or target them while scaring.

That doesn't mean those guests won't leave with a racing heart and a nightmare or two stored up for the next few nights. But that's the point, right?
PELION  Twenty miles southwest of Columbia, expansive farms and mobile homes replace the strip malls and housing complexes that populate much of the city's suburbs. In this rural corner of Lexington County, the lack of broadband internet service is a hurdle in education, health care and other facets of every day life.

Comporium, one of several internet providers in Lexington, applied for an American Rescue Plan Act grant from Lexington County to fill in gaps in broadband.

The project would cost $14 million total, $9.4 million of which Comporium requested from the county. It would take about 14 months to complete and would bring internet to more than 2,000 properties, said Ben Spearman, vice president of Comporium.

The segment of Lexington County in question, from west of Swansea to the border of Aiken County, is currently without a reliable internet connection.

The county received 35 grant applications for the remaining $16 million in ARPA money, and has not decided how it will allocate the funds.

"Broadband is becoming essential," said Lexington County Chairman Scott Whetstone, whose District 1 covers the area.

Connectivity, or the lack thereof, affects rural areas in most counties in South Carolina, and has received significant attention from state leaders in the last few years. In May 2022, Gov. Henry McMaster signed a law which invested $400 million, largely funded by ARPA, in broadband infrastructure.

Earlier this month, McMaster and U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn celebrated bringing internet to more than 100,000 homes in South Carolina.

Comporium is hoping Lexington County will grant it ARPA money, Spearman said. If the company is turned down, it will continue applying for grants, he said.

"We're gonna try to find money somewhere because, you know, we're not gonna give up on these areas," Spearman said.

Because the state has allocated money to expand broadband, Lexington County is also considering applying for funding from the state to work with an internet company to fill in the gaps, Whetstone said.

"It's very rural out there and it's very spread out," Whetstone said. "So the cost to provide fiber service out there for true broadband is very expensive  but we want to do as much as we can."

In Lexington, poor internet connection severely limits education for students in the area, Spearman said.

"We had put hot spots in during the pandemic, and it wasn't unusual to drive up and see a student there at 10 o'clock trying to get access to information," Spearman said. "So if a child can sit at home and get access to the library or some other resources, I mean, it's very important."

During the pandemic, Pelion schools worked with internet providers to get hot spot connections installed to allow for remote learning, said Pelion Middle School Principal Jessica Keisler.

"Many families continue to use these hot spots," Keisler said. "These hot spots helped our students and their families tremendously.

However, when multiple people are competing for access on the same connection, faulty internet is still an issue, Keisler said.

Connectivity affects more than just education, however.

In rural areas, transportation is a challenge, which inhibits people from getting to doctor appointments, Spearman said. Without internet, telehealth, a popular choice for many, is not an option, he said.

"We've got to make sure we take care of all our population," Spearman said. "So having a patient with high-speed internet on a video screen to make some kind of diagnosis" is critical.

Additionally, people who would otherwise work from home end up spending time commuting to Columbia, Spearman said.

While necessary, installing broadband is not a small project, Whetstone said.

"You know, with water and sewer, you can always dig a well or put a septic tank down," Whetstone said. "They're ... just as good as public water and public sewer. But the broadband speeds play a big thing."

Because of this, developers are often discouraged from building in these areas, which would, in turn, stimulate growth in the area, Whetstone said.

Broadband would "catch us up to where we should be, as far as providing a service to those citizens," he said. "Plus, ... anytime you get something like that, for a developer who's going to put a neighborhood in, (internet is) a selling point."
COLUMBIA  Richland County School District Two board members spent a half-hour Oct. 11 trying to come up with policy to hold themselves and the superintendent accountable for taxpayer dollars spent on things like hotel room upgrades and rental cars for business trips.

Without naming anyone specific, some of the Northeast Columbia school district's board members said they've seen the administration approve advanced compensation for out-of-town conferences, and seen board members overspend at those conferences and fail to pay back the difference.

One board member even described bullying emails to the superintendent demanding that he approve such requests.

The 28,000-student school district's board decided to limit such travel expenses to a set amount per board member determined in the annual district budget, no longer allowing the administration to approve advanced payments for board members attending conferences.

They also voted to amend policy to bar board members who incur extra expenses from further travel until whatever extra costs they add are repaid.

Some board members described concerns about past situations they viewed as an abuse of the old policy.

"We need to include that we will not allow board members to purchase vehicles and use school district money, when the conference is in one location and everything that we need to attend is in one building," said board member Monica Scott.

Lindsay Agostini, another board member, was more specific. Without naming anyone, Agostini said a sitting board member once used an advance to rent a car in San Diego despite the airport, hotel and conference center being within short or walkable distances of each other.

Agostini called the expenses "exorbitant" and "excessive."

Before successfully moving to add the sentence, "No advanced payment or advanced compensation to board members will be made," to school district policy at the Oct. 11 meeting, board member Cheryl Caution-Parker said Richland Two has a history of members failing to pay back funds for business trips.

"These funds are taxpayers' money  taxpayers," she said, adding that if the district were to approve advances for board members, she thinks there needs to be a deadline to pay the money back.

Richland Two secretary Teresa Holmes said she agreed that the failure to pay back the difference for business trip expenses is a problem, but pushed back on the idea that the spending itself is a problem.

On the subject of rental cars and whether they're a reasonable or necessary expense for board members, Holmes said board members make those purchases for the entire group attending rather than for themselves.

James Manning, board chairman, said board members asking for advanced compensation put the superintendent and chief financial officer  who ultimately decided whether to approve or deny the requests  in awkward positions.

Manning also said Superintendent Baron Davis has had his job threatened by board members who asked for advances and were denied or paid less than what they asked for.

Manning said the superintendent received replies from board members who were denied advanced compensation that included language such as, "We'll see how this reflects on your evaluation."

Rifts among Richland Two board members have become increasingly familiar in 2022.

After a board retreat in February with a leadership consulting firm, a consultant said the board needs to work on addressing "dysfunction" among themselves. Months later, Holmes pressed charges against McFadden for threatening the life of a public employee after a heated verbal exchange between the two in a behind-closed-doors board meeting.

In June, Gov. Henry McMaster called on the Office of the Inspector General to conduct an investigation of Richland Two's leadership, using the same word: dysfunction.

Agostini and fellow board member Monica Scott both questioned how the administration approved 10 conferences for Davis to attend over the past year while board members attended about half that. Manning, in response, said he never saw this line of questioning for previous superintendents.

"When we had White superintendents we didn't have an issue with them traveling," Manning said. To Davis, Manning said, "Now that you are our superintendent we seem to have an issue with where you're going and what you're doing?"

Scott said Manning's comment was inappropriate, while Caution-Parker said it was accurate.

"I do believe the community needs to know when a board member asks for advanced compensation," Caution-Parker said. "No, I don't know everybody's financial situation, but if you can't afford it then don't do it. That's the bottom line."

The vote to change the advance approval policy passed 6-1 with Scott dissenting. The vote to limit future travel after excessive expenses was unanimous.

Click here for more news from Columbia, S.C.
IRMO  Six years after volunteering to care for an African American cemetery with ties to its own history, an Irmo-area Lutheran church has received state funds to further its preservation efforts of the burial grounds that date to the 1800s.

St. Michael Lutheran Church plans to use $40,000 in earmarked state funds, along with $15,000 the church raised privately, to survey, enclose and erect a memorial at St. Michaels Lutheran Church African American Cemetery.

"There is a history of disappearing Black cemeteries," said Pastor Frank Anderson, especially in areas of expansive residential and commercial growth like that taking place in the area surrounding the cemetery.

"We have an obligation to care for their burial place as well as we care for our burial place," Anderson added.

Not long after Anderson took over as pastor at St. Michael in 2016, his daughter spotted a group of headstones in the trees while out jogging half a mile south of the church and a quarter-mile from the shores of Lake Murray.

After she asked him about it, Anderson decided to see the grave sites for himself, hacking his way through vines and underbrush. Anderson noticed field stones every few feet, indicating more graves than those topped with marble headstones.

The marking of graves with these larger stones was a common practice among the families of enslaved African Americans.

The hair on the back of my neck stood up, Anderson said.

In all, Anderson and his congregation would locate roughly 120 field stones across the quarter-acre site, including one with initials carved in.

Great care was put into that, he said.

There are also about 30 headstone markers with dates stretching from 1888 until 1928 when the dam was built to create Lake Murray.

Peering down at one headstone Anderson read the name July Spence, so named because he was born on the 4th of July.

A bit of genealogy research would lead him just five minutes down the road to Pleasant Spring AME Church and a discovery of a shared history. July Spence was one of the founding members of Pleasant Spring. Having died before the creation of the lake, hes buried apart from his wife who was interred at Pleasant Spring.

"This was one community for a long time," Anderson said.

Some of that shared history also has a painful connection to slavery.

In 1842, St. Michael's congregation included a list of 70 Black members, all enslaved, recorded using their first names, gender and the name of the slaveholding family. Those members were required to sit in the gallery of the original church building that has since been torn down. And they were not allowed to be buried in the church's cemetery.

In 1876, with the formation of Pleasant Spring, Black members were expelled from St. Michael.

"We have an opportunity to tell the story about the White and Black people who lived in this community but were buried separately," Anderson said.

The Rev. Marion Reeves, pastor at Pleasant Spring, had been surprised to hear from Anderson when the St. Michael congregation began preservation efforts. Since then, the two congregations have partnered on various activities at the cemetery.

"It brought the churches together," Reeves said.

Reeves said he appreciates the designation of the cemetery from a historical standpoint.

"With a lot of older cemeteries, they become overgrown, construction comes in and building takes place on them," he said. "Things like that can usually get lost if we're not careful."

While Pleasant Spring is down to just 65 members today, it was a vibrant community when it was formed.

"Those earlier and founding members, when you consider the times they were in, had to endure a lot to survive," Reeves said.

For example, Reeves said there was no Black school in the area until 1953. Black students had to travel to Booker T. Washington High School in downtown Columbia. It was the church that opened an elementary school to teach Black youth.

"Were still here and its because of (those early founders) and the work they did," Reeves said.

St. Michaels Lutheran Church African American Cemetery sits on private land owned by members of St. Michael Church, Anderson said. Working with the landowner, the church is seeking a landscape architect to begin the process of creating an enclosure to mark the cemetery land.

Anderson said they are also hoping for some aid from a University of South Carolina geology professor to use ground-penetrating radar to locate any unmarked graves.

"We hope that people will be inspired by what were doing to keep more cemeteries from being desecrated or eliminated," Anderson said.

Editors Note: This story has been changed to reflect correct funding amounts for cemetery preservation efforts.
NORTH CHARLESTON  One hundred nonprofits and government agencies that support crime victims will benefit this year from $32 million in federal grants.

S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson visited the Lowcountry on Oct. 13 as part of his tour across the state to present local agencies with new federal funding. At a news conference held in North Charleston's City Hall, Wilson commended roughly 50 people in attendance who represent local nonprofits and law enforcement. Roughly one-third of the federal grants awarded to the state this year were distributed to agencies based in the Lowcountry and Grand Strand.

"Nearly $10 million is being put on the streets of this region of South Carolina by the people standing up here today," Wilson said. "The men and women standing up here representing these organizations ... they're here to give a voice to the voiceless, hope to the hopeless and give power to the powerless."

Ninety percent of the federal grant money comes from the Victims of Crime Act, passed by Congress in 1984 to provide aid for local and state agencies that assist crime victims. The funds are generated through fines and penalties paid by those convicted of federal crimes. The Crime Victim Services Division, housed within the S.C. Attorney General's Office, is tasked with distributing the funding each year.

The grant money will help pay for projects that serve victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse and human trafficking, Wilson said.

Doors to Freedom is a Dorchester nonprofit that provides survivors of sex trafficking with holistic support, including education, therapy and health care. This year, it received $330,000 from the federal fund.

Its director, ChristaBeth Turner, thanked Wilson's office at the press conference.

"We would not be able to do what we do at the level of excellence that we strive for without the support of this grant," she said.

More than $5.2 million will be distributed across 17 organizations throughout Charleston County.

Michelle Harrington attended the Attorney General's news conference Oct. 13 on behalf of Carolina Youth Development Center. The organization's roots date back to 1790 when the Charleston City Council passed an ordinance to establish an orphanage in the city, known as the Charleston Orphan House.

The organization has relocated to North Charleston, but it continues to function as a group home for roughly 100 children up to the age of 21 who are in crisis.

"When kids come to us, a lot of times, we're kind of the last stop," Harrington said.

She said some clients enter the program after being homeless. With the center's continuous support and guidance, many undergo a transformation.

"We've had several youth just this past year, who went from kind of failing out of school, to not only attending high school, but graduating," she said. "We have a few that have gone on to college this fall."

Federal grants make up a "large percentage" of the organization's budget, Harrington added.

In other counties, such as Williamsburg, Hampton and Berkeley, the only agencies to receive the federal grants are the local Sheriff's Offices.
South Carolina's test scores are back to pre-pandemic levels, but its academics still rank far below other states.

It's consistently one of the worst states for public K-12 education, according to a host of news outlets and other groups that assess education across the country. Data the S.C. Department of Education released last month shows why this is.

More coverage To read more in-depth stories from The Post and Courier's Education Lab, go to postandcourier.com/education-lab.

South Carolina high school students experienced widespread failures in most major academic subjects during the 2021-22 school year. Over a third of them failed algebra, and over half failed U.S. history and biology.

Northwest Evaluation Association, a nonprofit education research group, published an analysis in January that showed over the previous three school years, COVID-19 disrupted students' academic performance more than any other recent school disruptions or natural disasters, including Hurricane Katrina's impact on New Orleans.

The learning loss students experienced during the pandemic has dominated educators' conversation since COVID-19 forced many to teach students remotely. Now, based purely on test scores, South Carolina students have recuperated.

But experts warn that better test scores don't mean students have recovered psychologically or emotionally from the pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found over a third of high school students struggled with mental health issues during the pandemic. Half of the students said that they felt persistently sad or hopeless. Visits to children's emergency rooms skyrocketed in South Carolina, going up nearly a third since March 2020. Suicide attempts, particularly among teenage girls, have also increased.

Patrick Kelly, director of government affairs at Palmetto State Teachers Association, said that report cards are almost solely a measure of outputs and don't capture everything students are experiencing, including disruptions due to the mental health crisis.

"We can't be blind to it, and we can't be numb to it when we talk about student achievement," he said.

Along with the still-prevalent mental health issues, Barnett Berry, a research professor at the University of South Carolina, pointed out the report cards don't actually shed that much light on why some students are doing better, and what is causing others to continue struggling.

"We need an accountability system that tells us not just who is not doing well, but also why," he said. "The report card we need should also give us information about what needs to be done next."

The paper found on average, 46.76 percent of elementary and middle school students met or exceeded expectations in English language arts last school year, compared with 45.2 percent in the school year ending in 2019. In math, there was a minor decrease with 38.86 percent of students meeting or exceeding expectations in 2022, whereas 45.2 percent did in 2019.

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High school students' scores remained fairly flat with 76.52 percent scoring a "C" or higher in English in 2022 compared with 73.49 in 2019, and about 68 percent doing the same in Algebra for both years.

Students of color showed minor improvements in most subjects. The largest gains were seen in Black and Hispanic high school students' English scores. The percentage of Black high school students scoring a "C" or higher rose from about 66 percent in 2019 to approximately 70 percent last school year. The percentage of Hispanic students earning the same scores grew from 69.9 percent to 73.2 percent.

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This is notable because minority students' academic progress was disproportionately impacted during the pandemic. McKinsey & Company, a global consulting agency, discovered that in math, schools where the student population was mostly Black ended the 2020-21 academic year with six months of unfinished learning. Those in low-income schools were seven months behind.

While the improved test scores are encouraging, Sherry East, president of the South Carolina Education Association, cautioned against giving them too much weight, especially since the state has numerous systemic issues in its education system.

The Post and Courier interviewed over 200 educators, students, business leaders, and politicians for its 2018 investigation "Minimally Adequate" that looked at problems with South Carolina education. The newspaper found that the state's school system was plagued by racial and economic disparities that disproportionately hurt Black students' progress. Many rural school districts struggled to find qualified teachers, and oftentimes students there didn't get access to arts courses or high-tech career training.

East pointed to the high failure rates for elementary and middle school students in key subjects as indicators of the work that still needs to be done. On average, over a fourth of these students failed English language arts in 2022, and more than a fourth failed math.

"Before the pandemic, we knew we should be alarmed about our reading scores, and that's what we should focus on," she said. "Literacy and math need to be our focus, especially in the early grades."

A study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a group focused on improving children's well-being, found that students not reading at grade level by the end of third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school than students who were.

East suggests the state use some of the around $3 billion of federal relief funds it received to make sure elementary school students are getting the proper amount of attention from teaches in the classroom. This can be done by reducing class sizes, hiring more teacher aids, or bringing in interventionists to assist students who are struggling with certain topics.
This story is part of an ongoing series on teacher shortages by the Education Collaborative, a partnership between The Seattle Times, Dallas Morning News, Christian Science Monitor, AL.com, The Hechinger Report, The Sacramento Bee, and The Post and Courier.

In her second-grade classroom outside Seattle, Fatima Nunez Ardon often tells her students stories about everyday people realizing their dreams. One day, for example, she talked about Salvadoran American NASA astronaut Francisco Rubio and his journey to the International Space Station.

Another day, she told them her own life story  how she, an El Salvadoran immigrant who arrived in the U.S. in middle school speaking very little English, came to be a teacher.

Nunez Ardon took an unusual path to the classroom: She earned her teaching degree through evening classes at a community college, while living at home and raising her four children.

Community college-based teaching programs like this are rare, but growing. They can dramatically cut the cost and raise the convenience of earning a teaching degree, while making a job in education accessible to a wider diversity of people.

In Washington state, nine community colleges offer education degrees for teaching grade school and up. All of the programs started within the last decade.

Around the country, education programs remain far more common at four-year institutions. Six other states  Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Nevada and New Mexico  have community colleges that offer degrees related to K-12 education, according to Community College Baccalaureate Association data.

The expansion comes at a good time: Teacher shortages have worsened in the past decade, and fewer undergraduates are going into teacher training programs. The number of people completing a teacher-education program declined by almost a third between the 2008-09 and 2018-19 academic years, according to a report in March from the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.

More community colleges around the country are starting to offer teacher education, said CCBA President Angela Kersenbrock. In all, 51 community college-based teaching programs have launched across the country since the early 2000s.

And theyre attracting students like Nunez Ardon, who became certified to run a K-8 classroom in June, at the age of 36. Its likely she wouldnt have pursued a classroom career otherwise.

Growing new educator programs

Teacher shortages predate the pandemic. For years, the number of people graduating from teacher education programs has fallen short of demand. In 2018, 57,000 fewer students nationwide earned education degrees than in 2011.

To fill gaps in staffing, schools in Washington state have had to turn to underqualified employees. The number of waivers granted for staff who had not completed certification requirements rose to 8,080 in the 2019-2020 school year, from less than 2,800 a decade prior, according to a 2021 report from the states Professional Educator Standards Board.

The state in recent years has encouraged Grow Your Own programs, or alternative pathways to classroom certification. Some are run by schools, others by colleges. Theyre seen as a way to buffer the teacher shortage and to grow a workforce more representative of the student body. Statewide, 50% of Washington students are people of color, while 87% of classroom teachers are white.

Learn and teach

At Yakima Valley College, like other Washington community colleges, teacher candidates are assigned a residency at a partner school for the second half of the two-year program.

Students must first have an associate degree before starting the program. Classes are primarily in the evenings. While juggling their work and school load, teacher candidates are also taking a series of tests required by the state to get certified.

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By the time they finish their residency, they have fulfilled all of their requirements not only of the program but also of the state, said Elizabeth Paulino, who runs Yakima Valley Colleges teacher education program.

Demand from local schools

There has been pushback against community college degree programs in education in Washington and nationally, as universities with teacher education programs grapple with declines in enrollment, said Debra Bragg, the founder and former director of the University of Washingtons Community College Research Initiatives.

Community colleges argue that theyre a good place for teacher training because theyre open-access  there is no selective admissions process  and that they are attracting students that the universities probably are not attracting and probably wont attract, she said.

Nunez Ardon said this was the case for her.

For one thing, she was place-bound by her growing family, and the nearby University of Washington doesnt offer a bachelors degree in teacher education. Cost was another factor. The program Nunez Ardon attended at Highline College costs roughly $7,100 a year  far less than nearby universities  and allowed her to live at home and accommodated her work schedule.

Schools are calling

Many education programs at Washington community colleges grew in response to demand from local schools.

Connie Smejkal, Centralia Colleges dean of teacher education, said area superintendents were calling frequently to say they were struggling to hire and retain teachers.

Their need was extraordinary, she said.

In 2016, Centralia and Grays Harbor community colleges launched a teacher education program in collaboration, anticipating that neither would have enough students to run a full program on their own. Each planned to have an initial cohort of 12 teacher candidates. But student interest was high: There were more than 80 applicants to Centralia alone for the first cohort.

We realized how thirsty the community was to become teachers, Smejkal said. The next year, Centralia and Grays Harbor formed their own separate programs, and between the two schools, 175 people have completed degrees.

Smejkal said everyone from last years cohort who was interested in classroom teaching had signed a contract with a school before graduating.

Peter Finch, superintendent of West Valley School District in Yakima, said hes experienced no shortage of general education teachers since the launch of Yakima Valley Colleges program.

He also said the teachers hired from the local program have so far been predominantly Latinx, and half had been bilingual Spanish-English speakers, better matching the districts student demographic and support needs.

Meanwhile, Nunez Ardon spends her days at Madrona Elementary School in SeaTac as a teacher and role model to young students she sees herself in  and in whom she hopes to inspire the same curiosity and passion to learn.
Art in the exhibition "Flight" at the Aiken-Rhett House Museum explores the role of enslaved people in 19th Century Charleston and tells the story of some of their escapes from bondage. Provided
South Carolina native Kardea Browns Food Network show Delicious Miss Brown is rooted in family recipes and memories of cooking with her mother and grandmother.

In her new cookbook, set to hit stores Oct. 28, Brown will explore her Gullah-Geechee heritage, sharing the story of how she became passionate about cooking along the way.

Dedicated to her mother and grandmother, The Way Home: A Celebration of Sea Islands Food and Family with over 100 Recipes is the culmination of a dream thats been years in the making, Brown said.

Its just something that Ive always thought about, Brown told The Post and Courier. I spent that year between 2019 and 2020 visualizing how I wanted this cookbook to look.  I wanted it to tell a story of me and my family and how I got my start in cooking.

Brown was born on Wadmalaw Island and lived in Charleston for a while before moving to Atlanta. Growing up, she spent summers at her grandmothers house on Wadmalaw and soaked up the most important lessons she could, mainly those about how to cook good food.

Brown dedicates the first 25 pages to sharing this story with readers, and the book's 100-plus recipes point to her upbringing. One example is her take on her great-grandmothers fried shrimp.

Browns great-grandfather made shrimping nets by hand for a living, meaning her great-grandmother had the opportunity to cook with plenty of shrimp. She became known for serving top-notch fried shrimp.

In the book, Brown puts her spin on the recipe, making buffalo fried shrimp with blue cheese. The shrimp are fried, tossed in a homemade buffalo sauce and topped with blue cheese crumbles.

That recipe is one of several in the book described as New Gullah Cuisine, which Brown called her contemporary take on family recipes. Its the type of food she served at her traveling New Gullah Supper Club meals before she became a Food Network star.

Limpin Susan, okra stew, cornbread with molasses butter and Sea Island collard greens are a few of the other New Gullah Cuisine recipes found in the nearly 300-page cookbook.

Brown will kick off her book tour ahead of its release at Blue Bicycle Books in downtown Charleston on Oct. 27.

On the screen, Brown will soon start filming season eight of Delicious Miss Brown. After producing previous seasons on Edisto Island, the new season will be filmed at Browns new home that is under construction in Ravenel.
GREENVILLE  An electric car company is establishing its headquarters in Greenville County thanks to a relocation grant by the South Carolina Research Authority.

Dash EV will set up its home base at 355 South Main St. in the Camperdown development in downtown Greenville and initially create at least 10 new jobs.

The family-owned micromobility company is known for its production of "Dash," an electric and solar-charged car aimed at growing the carsharing industry at universities and in cities like Greenville and Clemson University.

South Carolina's "commitment to green energy and electric vehicles provides the perfect opportunity for us to provide an affordable zero-emission carsharing program for the Greenville and Clemson communities to get to school, work, grocery shopping and more, Dash EV founder and CEO Roman Kuropas said in a statement.

The company ran a pilot carsharing program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Colorado State University, University of Washington and University of Pittsburgh from 2015 to 2016, according to a study on its website, which supplied each school with four of its cars and a mobile phone app to access the vehicles.

The SCRA began interacting with Illinois-born Dash EV in 2020 with help from Greenville County and city officials. The authority introduced the electric car manufacturer to potential partners and clients and awarded it a relocation grant to move its headquarters to the state.

SCRA executive director Bob Quinn said in a statement that the company brings "job creation potential."

Operations will be online by mid-December and interested candidates can apply to Dash at www.innovaevcarshare.com.
Duke Energy proposes new programs to help grow South Carolina economy by helping customers use 100% renewable energy
COLUMBIA  Days after investigators charged Alex Murdaugh with shooting his wife and son in a pair of grisly homicides that shocked the nation, the disbarred attorney stood in a Walterboro courtroom and declared he wanted a trial by God and my country.

He will get his wish in just a few months.

State court officials have scheduled Murdaughs double murder trial to begin Jan. 30 in Colleton County before Judge Clifton Newman, setting the stage for what will surely be one of the closest-watched criminal proceedings in South Carolina history. The trial is expected to last some three weeks, through Feb. 17, according to a scheduling order signed by 14th Circuit Chief Administrative Judge Bentley Price.

Murdaugh, 54, has pleaded not guilty to charges he killed his wife, Maggie, with a rifle and son Paul with a shotgun on the grounds of the prominent familys Colleton County hunting estate on the evening of June 7, 2021.

But state prosecutors with the S.C. Attorney General's Office have said their 13-month investigation collected substantial evidence that all pointed back to Murdaugh, the scion of a powerful and wealthy family of Lowcountry lawyers.

Their case will be tested before Newman, a no-nonsense circuit judge who has overseen the sprawling web of pre-trial criminal matters involving Murdaugh for more than a year. In a murder mystery saga that speaks to power and privilege in rural South Carolina, Newman has shown Murdaugh no special treatment. He was the judge who in October ordered Murdaugh detained without bond at the Richland County jail, where he's been stuck for the last year.

Soon after the trial date's release, both sides claimed victory.

"This is the date the state wanted and the defense agreed to it," said Robert Kittle, a spokesman for the S.C. Attorney General's Office.

Murdaugh's own attorneys had pushed for a trial as early as October, though state prosecutor Creighton Waters long suggested January would be more realistic.

"We appreciate the Court accommodating our request for a speedy trial," Murdaugh lawyers Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin wrote in a statement. "Alex is looking forward to his day in court and we are confident that he will be acquitted after an impartial Colleton County jury considers all the evidence. Alex continues to hope that everyone responsible for Maggie and Paul's death will eventually be brought to justice."

The Murdaugh killings have been the stuff of tabloid headlines, cable documentaries, network TV interviews and true-crime podcasts for more than a year.

The notoriety has trained a harsh and unwelcome spotlight on the Murdaugh family, which for more than a century has swayed the administration of justice in the states 14th Judicial Circuit.

The shooting deaths also accelerated the unraveling of Alex Murdaugh, a once-prominent trial attorney whose forefathers simultaneously ran the 14th Circuit Solicitors Office and a high-powered Hampton law firm for much of the past century.

Murdaugh was cast out of the family firm and tossed into a Richland County jail cell last fall as a decade of alleged embezzlement, fraud, money laundering and drug use came to light in the pages of criminal indictments and civil lawsuits against him.

All told, Murdaugh faces some 90 charges alleging he surreptitiously stole nearly $8.8 million from legal settlements and fees owed to his clients, law partners and others who trusted him.

Murdaugh, in rare public statements and through his attorneys, has admitted to much of that misconduct. But his legal team insists he had nothing to do with the deaths of Maggie, 52, and Paul, 22.

Griffin and Harpootlian requested a speedy trial shortly after Murdaughs July 14 indictments. They said they wanted their client acquitted so state investigators can renew their search for the real killer or killers.

The public also eagerly awaits answers.

Murdaughs July 14 indictments offered no narrative of how the slayings were carried out, no indication of the killers motive and no mention of any other suspects.

Creighton Waters, the prosecutor in charge of the state grand jury, told the judge during a July 20 bond hearing that Murdaughs other alleged criminality provides the background and the motive for what happened on June 7, 2021.

Otherwise, spectators know little about what prosecutors have on Murdaugh.

Now, they need only wait three more months to find out.
MYRTLE BEACH  The former owner of a Myrtle Beach gentlemen's club was arrested Oct. 13 by state revenue agents on charges of tax evasion.

David Joseph Bean, 68, of Myrtle Beach, faces four counts of tax evasion. He was arrested by agents from the South Carolina Department of Revenue, according to a news release issued Oct. 13 by the department's Public Information Office.

Bean operated Seaboard Ventures Inc., doing business as Derriere Gentlemens Club of Myrtle Beach, and was responsible for filing state Admissions Tax returns, according to the release.

For tax years 2016-2019, Bean failed to report at least $882,783 in admissions revenue, according to the arrest warrants. Bean evaded at least $44,142 in state Admissions Tax, according to the warrants.

In November 2021, The Post and Courier reported that the club was temporarily closed in March 2020 after allegations it was operating as a brothel.

According to a February 2020 report by WPDE, Bean was charged with 183 counts of prostitution and one count of failure to report in connection to a New Year's Day shooting in January 2020.

A total of eight people were arrested and charged in connection to the prostitution investigation at Derriere's Gentlemen's Club. While Myrtle Beach police were investigating the Jan. 1 shooting at the strip club, police said they found evidence of additional criminal activity, prompting further investigation, according to news reports.

Bean was incarcerated in the J. Reuben Long Detention Center at 11:50 a.m. Oct. 13.
ISLE OF PALMS  The police chief appeared at a city council meeting the day after accidentally shooting himself while cleaning his gun inside the public safety building. His bandaged left hand peaked out of his suit jacket  the only indication of his injury.

Kevin Cornett, who has served as police chief of the small island since 2019, spoke briefly at an Oct. 11 meeting about an unrelated matter. The shooting was not mentioned during nearly two hours of back-to-back meetings held that day, which were posted online.

Cornett was not placed on any type of administrative leave as a result of the Oct. 10 incident, said City Administrator Desiree Fragoso. She initially declined to comment further on "personnel matters," and directed additional questions to the Police Department.

When contacted Oct. 11 via email, Cornett told reporters Fragoso would be the point of contact regarding the shooting.

Fragoso said Oct. 13 the city was conducting an internal investigation into the accidental discharge. Once it's complete, the city will request State Law Enforcement Division to review its findings. Fragoso said Cornett would not be involved in the internal process.

The Criminal Justice Academy  South Carolinas lone law enforcement training center  will not impose disciplinary actions on the chief or require additional training from Cornett, said Maj. Florence McCants. If that were to happen, it'd be Isle of Palms' judgment call, she said.

The Isle of Palms Police Department isnt required to report the incident to the Academy, and Cornetts law enforcement certification is not at risk, she added.

The department could use the incident as a reminder for all its officers, who sometimes grow accustomed to cleaning and handling these weapons, McCants said.

An Isle of Palms officer responded just after 3 p.m. Oct. 10 to police headquarters in reference to an accidental firearm discharge, according to an incident report. Cornett's hand had already been bandaged and he was being taken to a nearby hospital for treatment, it states. No one else was injured in the shooting.

What happened to Cornett is an example of how even the most experienced gun owners might be at risk of an unintentional shooting. He is far from the first police officer to accidently shoot himself, or someone else.

A 2019 investigation by the Associated Press documented 1,422 officers who unintentionally discharged a gun since 2012 at 258 agencies. The AP report only provided a snapshot of the issue, because law enforcement agencies are not required to report such shootings and no one tracks them.

Maurica Manyan, 25, was fatally shot in August while training to become a library police officer in Washington, D.C. A retired police lieutenant is charged with involuntary manslaughter in her death, which some witnesses described as the result of a joke gone wrong, according to The Washington Post.

A Charleston police officer was shot in the arm when a gun was unintentionally discharged during a department training session in 2019.

Seth Stoughton, a law professor for the University of South Carolina, said its always concerning when a police officer unintentionally discharges his or her weapon.

They almost always result from a violation of one or more of the basic rules of firearm safety, he said.

Stoughton, a former police officer, said that following a negligent discharge, officers usually face a combination of discipline and training.

Sometimes officers  including police chiefs  mess up, Stoughton said.

Still, administrative discipline and remedial training should be  and often is  imposed.

It doesnt necessarily raise questions about the officers judgment or fitness of duty, he said.

Accidental firearm discharges are an unfortunate reality in any context where there are guns, said Ian Adams, a former police officer and USC criminology professor. By nature, accidental shootings rarely result in criminal charges, he said  particularly if the shooting involved only one person and there were no serious injuries. These cases can be described as a workplace accident, he said, acknowledging there was outcome bias.

Theres a lot of accidents in life that we dont consider crimes until they cause somebody elses life to be taken or seriously injured, he said.

It is standard protocol that most agencies conduct an internal affairs investigation into any accidental discharge, he said.

The Charleston Police Department, for instance, requires its officers to submit a detailed report to the chief in the instance of an accidental shooting. A critical incident review board will review the facts and evidence of all firearm discharges, according to the department's policy.

Isle of Palms has its own policies on handling firearms, which requires a report detailing the weapon used and injuries reported. If the weapon's discharge resulted from a malfunction, the department's armorer is required to submit a report about the serviceability of the weapon.

On its face, theres a potential compliance issue, Adams said of Cornetts case. His accidental discharge seemed relatively minor, though still worth considering through the lens of general officer safety.

Accidents happen, Adams said, but firearm safety is extraordinarily important. Lapses in judgment could be the cause of someones injury or death.

All instances of an officer mistakenly firing their weapon should be given a thorough internal investigation so officers can learn from their errors and make their workplace safer, he said. An investigation would also reveal whether the discharge was a result of a mechanical or human error.

If a mechanical error is discovered in either the gun, its holster or the interaction between the two, it would have even more serious implications for workplace safety, Adams said. He suspected the vast majority of accidental discharges were caused by the person firing the weapon and not the gun itself.

Isle of Palms should outsource its internal investigation to another agency, given the departments small size and potential discomfort of the chiefs involvement, Adams said.
Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations.
A tiny bit of a mystery was solved this week when The Post and Couriers Jessica Holdman reported that it was a contractor, and not a state employee, who opened the cyberdoor a decade ago that allowed hackers to steal the Social Security numbers and other sensitive data of 6.4 million S.C. taxpayers.

Its unlikely that well ever learn many more details, such as who actually stole our data from the S.C. Department of Revenue or whether the state paid ransom in an effort to keep the data from being sold on the dark web  much less how much if it was paid and what became of the data if no ransom was paid.

And while wed love to know the answers to those mysteries, its hard to criticize state officials for refusing to say  particularly since the FBI took over the investigation and put a freeze on releasing details. Nor is it entirely clear that the FBI is wrong to limit information about cybercrimes that could involve ransom: If governments and businesses announced that they had not paid ransom, then the very strong implication would be that everyone who doesnt say that did pay. And that would provide hackers information about who they should target.

In any event, there are more important lingering issues to deal with than whether and how much ransom might have been paid.

In the decade since hackers breached the Revenue Department, such crimes have come to be seen as inevitable. We barely notice when the latest mega-corporation announces that its records have been hacked. If we arent having our credit monitored, then shame on us.

But South Carolinas data breach wasnt inevitable, and even though it happened at the dawn of such massive breaches  it was at the time the largest state government data breach in U.S. history  it wasnt so early that there was no way to prevent it.

Criminals got their hands on our most sensitive financial information because that unidentified contractor opened a phishing email  which even in 2012 we all knew was dangerous.

The breach was consequential because the Revenue Department didnt bother to encrypt the personal information we were all required by law to provide to it; thats also something that was met with a duh from most people even back in 2012.

Compounding the problem, the criminals had a month to snoop around inside the agencys computer system looking for the best information to steal, because the vital position of computer security director had been vacant for a year, because Revenue Director James Etter just didnt consider the cybersecurity post important enough to fill.

That is, this wasnt simply a failure of security. It was a failure of governance, based on a bad decision made by an agency director. And yet then-Gov. Nikki Haley declared repeatedly that no one in South Carolina could have done anything to prevent the breach.

As such, it should serve as a reminder to state and local agency directors of how important it is to fully understand the full scope of their duties, and not just their primary mission  and as a reminder to state legislators and governors of how important it is to fully understand the work that is done by state agencies, and ensure that its being done, even if it isnt the priority of an individual director.

Fortunately, cybersecurity no longer has to be as high a priority for every agency director as it was a decade ago. After two years of treading water, the Legislature finally responded to the breach by creating a central authority to set and enforce internet security standards across the government. This replaced a system that left that job to individual agency directors, who arent experts in cybersecurity and might not want to spend money or adopt time-consuming security procedures to protect our personal data.

But at the Revenue Department, across state and local government, in our businesses and in our personal lives, security still ultimately relies on the decisions every one of us makes every time we receive an email or text that asks us to click a link or open a document or provide passwords or other sensitive information. At the most basic level, security requires that we recognize that such requests should never be taken at face value, unless they are replying to requests we made of the sender.

Government agencies and businesses should have policies against such actions, and they should enforce them through random checks  IT departments sending out suspicious emails to see who falls for the bait, for instance  followed by education and, if necessary, punishment for people who are exposing those entities to threats.

It might well be that hackers wouldnt be able to make off with millions of our state tax records again, but as we are reminded every day, theres no shortage of hackers, and theres plenty of other damage they can do if we dont all keep up our guard.
SPARTANBURG  The family of an Upstate man who died in police custody earlier this month is demanding answers that it said it isn't getting after numerous requests.

Lavell Lane, 29, of Gaffney was arrested the evening of Oct. 2 on a charge of walking in the roadway and was then taken to the Spartanburg County Detention Center, family members said. He died at the facility the next day.

During an Oct. 12 news conference, the family said they have not been told how Lane died and that their requests for information have been denied by the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office, which has cited an active investigation by the State Law Enforcement Division.

The family said they were requesting video and audio recordings of what transpired during the night and early morning that Lane was housed in the detention center.

We just want justice. Just release the video, said Andy Reese, Lavells father, at the news conference outside the detention center. I stay up all night, cant sleep, tossing and turning, waiting for a call from my son.

The sheriff's office has denied The Post and Couriers request for reports associated with Lane, citing an active investigation by their office, the coroners office and SLED, which also denied requests for comment.

More than 10 family members, their lawyer and some activists gathered outside the detention center for the second time since Lanes death to demand answers.

The family remembered him as a young man finding his way. Lane was from Brooklyn, N.Y., and attended Howard University, where he competed on the track team. His mother, Beverly Lane-Reese, said he was the valedictorian of his high school. His parents live in Gaffney.

Lanes family said he had a mental illness. Andy Reese said his son had been arrested by the same officer just days before the Oct. 2 arrest, so the illness should have been known.

Beverly Lane-Reese said she doesnt want another family to have to go through the same.

I carried him for nine months, and I had to put him in the ground yesterday," she said. "He didn't die from natural causes. He did not die from natural causes."
At Camp Hail Vale in Colorado yesterday, President Biden gave Remarks On Protecting And Conserving Americas Iconic Outdoor Spaces (the link is to the White House transcript). The Examiner has posted full video along with its story here). He established the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument.

Biden paid tribute to the 10th Mountain Division and worked his son Beau into the remarks:

Just imagine  and I mean this sincerely. I say this as a father of a man who won the Bronze Star, the Conspicuous Service Medal, and lost his life in Iraq. Imagine the courage, the daring, and the genuine sacrifice  genuine sacrifice they all made.

Beau Biden died at Walter Reed Hospital in 2015 as a result of an aggressive brain cancer that Joe Biden attributes to his sons exposure to toxic burn pits while serving in Iraq six years earlier. Fox News reports that it has reached out to the White House for clarification on Bidens comment.

Its hardly worth noting the old mans daily fabrications and falsehoods at this point. They have become routine. We are to be faulted for highlighting them. In this case it is almost cruel. When he said Beau Biden lost his life in Iraq, he obviously meant although I have no proof of causation, I say this as a father of a man who lost his life as a result of his service in Iraq. There is nothing to see here. Something or other was obviously top of mind.
Scott wrote earlier today about the first days testimony in the trial of Igor Danchenko. I want to elaborate on the most significant point that emerged from the testimony of FBI supervisory intelligence analyst Brian Auten: the FBI offered Christopher Steele $1 million if he could come up with evidence to support the wild allegations in his dossier on Donald Trump. This at a time when the FBI knew that, to date, Steele had nothing.

TechnoFog has a summary and partial transcript of Autens testimony, which is worth quoting at length:

Auten was asked about the FBIs efforts to corroborate the Steele allegations just before the first FISA application was submitted. He stated they looked through FBI systems to determine whether or not we could verify, corroborate, confirm, or disconfirm the information in those reports. Durham then asked about corroboration: Q: And between September 19th of 2016 and October 21st, when the FBI submitted the FISA application, were you able to confirm or corroborate in any of the FBI system the very serious allegations that were contained in the dossier reports? A: No. The FBI also made inquiries with other members of the intelligence community to find corroborative information. They came up empty. Q: And what can you tell the jurors about whether or not any of the intelligence agencies that the FBI contacted for corroborative information produced any corroborative information? A: We did receive information back from a number of different agencies. Q: Then, as to the information that you received back from the agencies, did they corroborate the specificity of specific allegations that were contained in the dossier reports? A: Not corroborating the specific allegations, no. Auten was also present for the FBIs interview of Steele in October 2016, just weeks before the first FISA application was submitted. Q: When you and Mr. Varacalli, and Mr. Gaeta, and Mr. Guessford met with Christopher Steele in early October of 2016, did Christopher Steele provide any corroborative information for the information that was contained in his reports, in the dossier reports? A: Not for the allegations, no. Then Durham asked about the FBI offer to pay Steele to corroborate his information  what we might call the million dollar question. Here is Autens testimony on that matter:

So Steele brought his dossier, which he was paid to fabricate by the Hillary Clinton campaign, to the FBI. The FBI quizzed Steele and found that he had no evidence to back up the anti-Trump allegations in his paper. The bureau carried out its own investigation and could find nothing to support the anti-Trump claims. In a sane world, even assuming the FBI did not know that Hillary Clinton was behind the dossier, the bureau would have closed its investigation and moved on.

But no. Apparently desperate to discredit Donald Trump, the FBI joined the Clinton campaign in offering Steele $1 million if he could find somethinganything!on Trump.

We already knew that the Russia collusion hoax was the worst political scandal in American history, by far. But this meddling in a presidential election by federal law enforcement is utterly unacceptable. A number of FBI employees must have known of the offer to Steele, and someone at a senior level must have authorized the $1 million bribe. Autens testimony confirms, as we knew, that interest in the FBIs plot against Trump, which went by the name Crossfire Hurricane, went to the very top of the agency. And we know that mid-level FBI employees like Peter Strzok and Lisa Page schemed to deny Trump the 2016 election or, failing that, to disable his nascent presidency.

Until now, I have thought that the FBI could be reformed. But this is too much. The rot goes too deep, and the FBIs violation of the public trust is too comprehensive. The bureau should be shut down, the J. Edgar Hoover building should be razed to the ground, every FBI employee should be retired, and a brand new federal law enforcement agency, with new personnel and with far stronger controls to prevent meddling in domestic politics, should be established.
David Marcuss New York Post column reminds me. I meant to note the exposure of the Biden administrations big lie about the whipping of illegal immigrants by outnumbered border agents last year. The Post runs Marcuss column with a blow-up of the email exposing the lie and a photograph documenting the underlying incident. It runs a companion news story here.

Marcus calls for the departure of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Yet the administration touted the lie and has never retracted it or apologized for it. They all have to go.

The email was sent to Mayorkas and other DHS officials by Marsha Espinosa, assistant secretary of public affairs for DHS. It was sent hours after President Biden falsely accused the agents of strapping migrants and promised they would pay, and hours before Mayorkas presser.  Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) October 12, 2022

In a final tweet in this chain Melugin adds: Also worth pointing out, I reached out to DHS on Monday and gave them two full days to respond to this story. I followed up with them again this morning before we went on the air, and I still have received no response whatsoever.

UPDATE: Our friend Roger Kimball observes in his lively Spectator column today (paywall down): Alejandro Mayorkas has no shame.
In a bid to intensify efforts to advance the fight against corruption in its development projects, the World Bank Group says it sanctioned 35 firms and individuals in 2022.

This is according to the World Bank Group Sanctions Annual Report for 2022 released on its website, a copy of which was obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja

It said out of the 35 sanctioned firms and individuals, 32 were debarred with conditional release, making them ineligible to participate in projects and operations financed by the institutions of the World Bank Group.

The statement said three firms were sanctioned with conditional non-debarment, leaving them eligible, as long as they continued to meet certain agreed conditions while under sanction.

It said the institution also recognised 72 cross-debarments from other Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), while 30 World Bank Group debarments were eligible for recognition by other MDBs.

According to the World Bank, its sanctions system is resolute in maintaining its anti-corruption oversight on development financing.

It said this was made possible by the joint report of the World Bank Groups Integrity Vice Presidency (INT), Office of Suspension and Debarment (OSD), and Sanctions Board.

This illustrates how in a time of increasingly complex global challenges and historic development support by the World Bank Group, the institutions sanctions system was resolute in maintaining its anti-corruption oversight of the institutions development financing.

It said INT is the independent unit within the World Bank Group that works to detect, deter, and prevent fraud and corruption in World Bank Group-financed operations and by the banks staff and corporate vendors.

It said OSD was tasked with impartially reviewing whether there was sufficient evidence that an entity investigated by INT had engaged in sanctionable misconduct and if so, determining an appropriate sanction.

The statement also said the Sanctions Board was an independent administrative tribunal that served as the second and final tier of review for contested sanctions cases.

Together, the offices of the sanctions system play a critical role in helping the World Bank Group safeguard the resources it deploys from the damaging impacts that fraud and corruption can have on development.

The statement said in the report, World Bank Group President David Malpass was quoted as saying our institution continues to provide historic levels of support around the world.

It remains critical that these funds are used in a transparent and accountable manner and only for their intended purposes.

We must be continually vigilant against corruption in the projects supported by the Bank Group.

The offices that comprise the sanctions system work together to send a clear message: corruption has no place in development.

According to the statement, a full list of the firms and individuals currently debarred by the World Bank Group can be found at: www.worldbank.org/debarr.

(NAN)
Ecobank Group has announced six finalists for the fifth edition of its fintech challenge. The finalists come from the Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, South Africa and Togo.

The bank said the six companies stood out from a competitive pool of over 700 applicants from 59 countries in and outside Africa. They will compete for the top price of $50,000 at the grand finale, which is being held at the Ecobank Pan African Centre in Lome, Togo, on Friday 28 October.

The finalists for the 2022 edition, in alphabetical order, are: Cauri Money, Senegal, DizzitUp, Togo, MaishaPay, Democratic Republic of Congo, Moni Africa, Nigeria, Paycode, South Africa, and Touchand Pay, Nigeria.

This fifth edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge, which is sponsored by Arise, will allow all finalists to benefit from Ecobanks Fintech Mentoring Programme. During this programme, Ecobank will help them to explore opportunities including:

Rolling out their products on a pan-African scale: an opportunity to further integrate with Ecobank and potentially launch their products or services in all or part of Ecobanks 33-country pan-African ecosystem.

Access to the Groups pan-African Banking Sandbox to test and develop their products in the pan-African market.

Priority access to Ecobanks venture capital partners to explore funding opportunities.

Tomisin Fashina, Ecobank Group Executive, Operations and Technology, said: I am impressed by the growing number of applications for the Ecobank Fintech Challenge. Applications have grown from about 412 applications in 2018 to over 700 in 2022. This demonstrates a definite paradigm shift within the African continent, with Africans desire to transform technological innovation into a real lever for socio-economic development. We thank all applicants for their participation and applaud the highly impressive quality of their entries. We look forward to partnering with them for their groundbreaking digital financial solutions to our continents unique challenges and to help promoting financial inclusion on the continent.

Gavin Tipper, CEO of Arise, partner and co-sponsor of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge 2022 competition, said: Fintechs play a central role in creating innovative digital solutions that improve customer experience, deliver value propositions and reduce costs. Our investments in fintechs are based on collaborative partnerships that advance financial inclusion on the continent and offer opportunities for mutual synergies with our balanced investment portfolio.

The Ecobank Fintech Challenge is designed to identify innovative fintechs that are ready to grow, that we can partner with, mentor and give access to Ecobanks 33 African markets, so that they can realise their potential and become pan-African success stories. This competition is in line with Ecobanks Fintech strategy of building partnerships with African fintechs to help transform digital finance and banking.

The Ecobank Fintech Challenge is organised in collaboration with partners across Africa and the world, including Arise, gold sponsor of the 2022 edition, Global Finder, TechCabal, Africa Fintech Network and Konfidants.
After several successful shows in the countrys theatres, the stage play, Ada The Country, is set to hit Nigerias capital city, Abuja.

Directed by celebrated playwright, Kenneth Uphopho, the play will be staged at the Musa Yaradua Centre, Wuse, Abuja, on the 21st of October at 6:00 p.m. and the 22nd of October at 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p. m.

It features veterans and rising stars in the Nollywood industry who are expected to bring their talent in the different forms of the art to the stage ranging from music and acting to dancing to bear.

Among those expected to perform in the play are veteran actresses Joke Silva, Kate Henshaw, Chioma Chigul Omeruah, Tosin Adeyemi, and Bamike Adenibuyun.

Produced by Doyenne Circle, the acclaimed stage musical highlights the power of the Nigerian woman, her autonomy, resourcefulness and might.

Ada The Country

Ada The Country was created by Marian Ogaziechi; the story of Ada the Country has been in the works for about ten years.

Renowned poet, Titilope Sonuga, pieced the story together, infusing poetry, music and dance elements.

The stage play tells the story of Ada, a young lady who loses her 9-month-old daughter and property in a fire incident in which she barely survives.

The traumatic experience sends her into depression, but with the support of women across different generations, who have been through such harrowing experiences, she walks through a process of restoration.

It revolves around womens experiences across different age grades, expressed through theatre.

Previous showing

The musicals first live run in April was held at the Shell Hall of the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

The star of the stage play was brought to life by Kate Henshaw as she portrayed her pain after losing her daughter in a fire incident.

Actress Kemi Lala Akindoju directed the show.

The producers say Ada The Country is a rallying call for women as they show support to one another in a male-dominated world.

The show also highlights the power of the female folk as a metaphor for the struggle for survival.

Ms Ogaziechi, the founder of Doyenne Circle, says that with the musical, her outfit seeks to mentor and motivate women, challenging them to be better than their best in everything from career to relationships and lifestyle through storytelling.
Ex-Big Brother Naija star Patrick Fakoya famously known as Rico Swavey is dead.

Tobi Bakre, his close friend, broke the news of his death on Instagram on Thursday morning.

Tobi, who shared a picture of himself and Rico on his Twitter page, wrote. We lost him. But thanks a lot, guys. God knows best.

The writing on the picture read, This is how I will always remember you, rest in peace, my brother.

Rick Swavey was involved in a ghastly car accident on Tuesday that left him hospitalised and in critical condition.

Friends and celebrities opened a fundraiser for the ex-Big Brother Naija Season 3 star.

Fellow BBNaija ex-housemate Tobi Bakre, on his Twitter page, solicited help for Rico.

Sharing a picture of the hospitalised Rico Swavey on Instagram noted that the accident victim was placed on life support.

He tweeted, Please help save Rico. He had a bad car accident; we must keep him on life support and continue to pay the rising medical bills while we pray for Gods miracle.

We cant do it alone. Please click on the link to donate at ricoswavey.com, he added.

We lost him. But thanks a lot guys. God knows best pic.twitter.com/W4nPi0vGrz  Tobi Bakre (@tobibakre) October 13, 2022

Fellow reality tv star Alex Asogwa, aka Alex Unusual, who shared the news about the accident on her Twitter page on Tuesday, also called for donations on her Instagram page.

She wrote, Whatever you can do to support them will be highly appreciated as he is on life support and fighting for his life. Please, @ricoswavey_official needs our help #ricoswavey #prayforricoswavey.

Ricos management confirmed the current condition of Swavey on his Twitter page Hello everyone, Rico Swavey is not disposed to handle his socials right now as he was involved in a ghastly accident and is currently on life support. While his situation is critical and doctors are on him, We implore your support and prayers, his management wrote.

Hello everyone, Rico Swavey is not disposed to handle his socials right now as he was involved in a ghastly accident and is currently on life support. While his situation is critical and doctors are on him, We implore your support and prayers. Signed:

Management.  Rico Swavey  (@iamricoswavey) October 12, 2022

Other celebrities and media personalities also joined in soliciting support for Rico across various social media platforms. Prayers were also being held on Twitter spaces for the star.

Dark Tuesday

Rico was involved in a ghastly motor accident on Tuesday. The bad news was conveyed by his fellow Big Brother Naija season 3 ex-housemate, Alex Unusual.

Alex made this known via her Twitter page. She explained that Rico Swavey was still being revived when she left the hospital.

She urged the public to remember Rico in their prayers because of his precarious situation.

Details of what caused the accident and where it happened are yet to be known. But a video of Ricos car shows the extent of damages to the vehicle. The front of the vehicle was bashed in, and the windshield shattered.

Rico Swavey became a reality TV star and ex-BBnaija housemate by default. Moreover, he ventured into the Nigerian movie industry, known as Nollywood.

Known for his role in the Life 101 drama series, Rico, two years ago released a song titled Afrosantana.

He had a good music and movie career in his lifetime.
2022 has been a rollercoaster of thrillers as Nollywood producers keep Nigerians on their feet with suspense-filled crime and psychology movies.

To this end, Oyako Celine media, in collaboration with bimmybatfilms, has produced a new crime thriller titled WOKE featuring Nollywood stars from two generations.

The cast of the movie is a blend of Nigerian mega stars and young stars like Kunle Remi, Zack Orji, Tina Mba, Adedimeji Lateef, Linda Osifo, Lanre Adediwura, Ohakwe Chinedu Luis, shade Emmanuel, Iyke Adiele, Ivy Agbo, Bright Wonder Obasi, Emmanuel Igwe, Uloko Energy, George Nanakwesi Chux and other talented acts.

WOKE which means to Look Up in the Yoruba language, also stands for Stay Woke in urban English.

The movie, shot in Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria, is a crime thriller about Greg, a former secret service agent, persuaded by his wife to take a job brought to him by his former colleague, Chuks, a police inspector, which he accepted.

The mission is to find and rescue the kidnapped daughter of a renowned kingpin Tega, widely known for corrupt practices but constantly evading justice.

According to the filmmakers, WOKE sheds a bright light on the current situation in Nigeria, showing how many things have gone bad due to poor character judgements and pointless sentiments.

The movie shows a possibility of a better Nigeria, the kind we dream about and pray for, if only its citizens decide to look up and stay woke by taking the necessary actions best for the country, disregarding all sentiments that would, over time, lead to regrets.

The crime thriller was produced by Gertrude Preye Augustine-Seibi, directed by Abimbola Olagunju, shot by Taiwo Shittu and edited by Olamide Aremo.

Inspiration

The producer told PREMIUM TIMES that the inspiration was drawn from the situation of things in Nigeria.

She said: This is a crime thriller, and drew inspiration from the current situations of the country, people overlooking countless wrongs based on sentiments and nepotism. This movie is meant to paint a mental picture of how great things can get if we raise our heads and stay woke.

Ms Preye revealed this is her first cinema project and that others acknowledged that streaming platforms are a target for the movie.

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Getting on streaming platforms is our end goal. After releasing Woke to the cinemas, we would like this great piece to be enjoyed worldwide and how best to do that, if not getting on streaming platforms. She said.

WOKE is set to premiere on 30th October at Blue Pictures Cinema, Lagos, Nigeria.

The major goal of this movie is to change the current bias narratives we have adopted for years so that the country can achieve the desired change. She said while speaking on the hopeful impact of the movie.

WOKE will be showing in cinemas across Nigeria from the 4th of November, 2022.
The Senate has begun deliberations on the 2023 budget proposals presented by President Muhammadu Buhari last Friday.

Many lawmakers who contributed to the debate during plenary on Wednesday complained about the rising recurrent expenditure and the consistent borrowing to fund annual budgets.

The lawmakers also suggested ways to improve revenue generation and garner more money to fund the budget.

The total expenditure for the 2023 fiscal year is put at N20.5 trillion with Non-Debt Recurrent Costs of N8.27 trillion, Capital Expenditure of N5.35 trillion and N2.42 trillion spending by Government-Owned Enterprises.

Statutory transfers  where the National Assembly budget falls  are put at N744.11 billion, Personnel Costs of N4.99 trillion, Pensions, Gratuities and Retirees Benefits of N854.8 billion and Overhead cost of N1.11 trillion.

The debt service for the coming year was pegged at N6.31 trillion, and the sinking fund at N247.73 billion  to retire certain maturing bonds.

During the debate, lawmakers took turns to question the parameters of the budget and proffer solutions alike.

Borno senator Ali Ndume lamented how the recurrent expenditure for annual budgets has been on the rise with 2023 put at N8.2 trillion  the highest.

He said the nation needs to concentrate on the capital side.

He noted that the recurrent expenditure in the 2023 budget proposal is about 43% of the entire budget  a case that should not be accepted.

We cannot continue to borrow money to fund 1% of the population, he said. We need to launch an investigation into why the recurrent expenditure is going up instead of coming down  especially at a time when technology is the thing.

Similarly, Betty Apiafi (PDP, Rivers) said the Treasury Single Account (TSA) is known to be fraudulent and should be investigated. She said there have been reports of leakages from the TSA which should be checked.

The TSA needs to be reviewed. We need to cut and shut down all forms of leakages. We need to cut costs and improve revenue, she said.

For Smart Adeyemi (APC, Kogi West), wealthy Nigerians with dormant funds in their bank accounts, should lend them to the country.

Mr Adeyemi portrayed all sense of seriousness when he said some banks have money  foreign currencies  of some Nigerians that are idle in the accounts.

The security should find themand ask them for it. They are there in the banks. Fixed deposits. We need to ask them for the money

He also stressed the need for the country to diversify. The lawmaker warned against importing iron and steel when Nigeria has an incomplete steel complex that could bring income.

He also said rather than import crude oil, the government should get dormant refineries working.

Senators Abba Moro (PDP, Benue) and Ibikunle Amosun (APC, Ogun) talked about an increase in the allocation for education and the need to invest more in infrastructure respectively.

On his part, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, agreed that the government needs to reduce the deficit, block leakages and think of ways to save. He also advised the government to reduce incidents of abandoned projects.

Mr Lawan also urged committees to properly scrutinise the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) during budget defence sessions and find out how the 2022 budget allocations were implemented.

He also urged MDAs to honour invitations and appear before the panels with relevant documents that will help the committees make informed decisions.

After the appropriations bill was read for the second time and passed, the lawmakers adjourned the plenary till 15 November to allow committees to carry out the budget defence sessions.
Some government officials have questioned the latest global data on out-of-school children by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

Officials of the federal and Lagos education ministries expressed the doubt at an event on Wednesday.

UNESCO in September announced that Nigeria now has about 20 million out-of-school children. It noted that there were 244 million children and youth between the ages of 6 and 18 who are out of school globally.

According to the statistics, India, Nigeria and Pakistan have the highest figures for out-of-school children globally.

The government officials who spoke as panellists at the annual education summit organised by the Education Writers Association of Nigeria (EWAN) emphasised the need for an independent and accurate data collation system in the country rather than depending on data from international agencies.

The summit was tagged Towards safe schools in Nigeria.

Participants at the summit also discussed the violent attacks on schools by criminals and other forms of violent incidents in schools.

Officials query figures

The Director of Senior Secondary Education, Federal Ministry of Education, Binta Abdulkadir, said the UNESCO figure is inaccurate because the federal government has been able to reduce the number of out-of-school children through the Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA).

The federal government has taken a number of steps that have greatly reduced the figure in recent times. BESDA is one of the steps and through it, we have got over four million children back to school in no fewer than 17 states of the federation, she said.

BESDA is an intervention programme funded by the World Bank with the aim to increase equitable access for out-of-school children, improve literacy and strengthen accountability for results at the basic education level.

The Basic Education Commission had earlier stated that 17 states of the federation as of July 2022, received over N65 billion as intervention funds to combat the rising figure of out-of-school children between 2019 and 2021.

The states include all 13 states in the North-west and North-east geo-political zones, as well as Niger, Oyo, Ebonyi and Rivers states.

As of November 2021, the Federal Ministry of Education noted that about 924,590 of the previous figure of 10.2 million out-of-school children in Nigeria had been enrolled on the BESDA programme.

On his part, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Education, Tokunbo Wahab, also expressed doubt about the UNESCO figure. He urged reporters to query some of the data from international agencies before using them.

It is not fair on the countries, we should interrogate, lets start questioning these data from international organisations, he said.

However, despite the claims of the officials and the actions of the government, many schools in the North-west and North-central remain closed or partially open due to fear of attacks by terrorists.

PREMIUM TIMES has reported attacks on schools in states such as Kebbi, Niger, Zamfara and Kaduna. In many such cases, students and officials are kidnapped for ransom by terrorists.

Nigeria not alone

Giving his keynote speech, the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, represented by the Director of General Services, Federal Ministry of Education (FME), Vivian Wategire, noted that the attacks on schools are not limited to Nigeria.

In the period between 2012 and 2016 alone, more than 600 teachers were reportedly killed in attacks while more than 19,000 were displaced, he said.

He acknowledged that the security situation in the country has had a domino effect on the literacy level of Nigerians as insurgency also destroyed 497 classrooms and left 2.8 million school learners in need of education-in-emergency support.

He said this has led to approximately 6 of every 10 children under the age of 18 years experiencing some form of violence and half of the children experiencing violence before the age of 10.

It has also aggravated the already challenging out-of-school menace plaguing Nigeria, he said.

Despite this situation, we are not deterred in our commitment to creating a good environment for education, which would increase literacy levels in the country. Our actions and policies towards safe schools show the federal governments commitment to the present and the future of this country.

As the apex body in charge of education in the country, we are essentially committed to developing and increasing literacy which fits into the larger spectrum of the Federal Governments commitment/responsibility to the children, youths and the whole country, he noted.

Federal govt initiative

Mr Adamu said the government in collaboration with the UN Special Envoy for Global Education and a coalition of Nigerian Business leaders initiated the Safe Schools Initiative (SSI) during the World Economic Forum on Africa (WEFA) in Abuja on May 2014

They also launched the Safe Schools Fund as an initial response, with capitalization from the federal government and the private sector, and indicative grants from the African Development Bank.

He also noted that the federal government in March 2019, signed the Instrument Ratifying the Safe Schools Declaration, thereby signalling the countrys commitment to endorse and uphold the principles of the Safe Schools Declaration (SSD).

He added that the National Council on Education in August 2021, approved the National Policy of Safety and Violence-Free Schools in Nigeria and its implementation guidelines as reference documents for all education stakeholders.

He called for more collaboration between the government and the people to actualize the possibility and reality of safe schools in Nigeria against all odds.

Health insurance for students

Speaking on universal access to health, the newly appointed first female Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Folasade Ogunsola, recommended that students should be covered under the National Health Insurance Scheme.

I think it is mandatory that all students, whether primary, secondary or tertiary, are on the National Health Insurance Scheme.

She also said the psychological health of students is as important as physical health, as more students are battling depression as a result of bullying, sexual harassment and other social vices.

She recommended the need for the formulation and implementation of policies across all institutions to deal with such social vices and ensure that everyone knows about the policy.

Citing UNILAG as an example, she noted the institution as a result of some cases of sexual harassment a few years back, had the sexual harassment policy, bullying, anti-bullying policy, which we adopted together as a safeguarding policy.

She said new employees in the school are made to read and sign the policy, and students are trained to know that these policies exist.

She also recommended that schools should be renovated to accommodate people with disabilities, stressing the need for adequate funding.

Advocacy, partnership for change

In his opening address, the chairman of EWAN, Mojeed Alabi, said Nigeria is sitting on a keg of gunpowder if it does not address the security of schools.

The assignment before us is to ensure that there is security at every level. If we do not address the security of schools in Nigeria, we can never address other problems confronting the nation, ranging from economy to unemployment, he said.

The EWAN boss also noted that the safety of schools is the responsibility of everybody, as the NSCDC in charge of the safety of schools cannot do that alone.

He added that safety of schools is not limited to violent attacks only, and that is why we are having this discussion to proffer solutions that will be domesticated even right from the top to the various homes.

He also reiterated the associations responsibility as the fourth estate of the realm to drive advocacy and partnerships for change at all levels of education.

It is beyond reporting. We have reported and listened. It is now left for us to engage in advocacy to partner with everybody  from the university, basic education, and middle education, and we are telling you that this commitment is very important for all of us. We are ready to mobilise everybody, he added.

In his remarks, the Lagos education official, Mr Wahab, commended EWAN for demonstrating a high sense of professional responsibility as the watchdog of the society.

You have equally expressed your organisations readiness through advocacy programmes like this to join the state governments efforts to ensure safety and improved security system in schools, he said.

Lagos State efforts

Speaking further, Mr Wahab, who admitted that the security situation in the country is worrisome, highlighted the Lagos State governments commitment to achieving quality education which is the third pillar of the administrations development agenda.

This is not by accident; rather, it underscores the state governments genuine commitment to achieving quality and sustainable educational growth through policy formulation and implementation, he said.

As part of the measures to scale up security in public schools and institutions, he said the current administration has taken a lot of initiatives including the provision of perimeter fencing in all public schools, banning the use of public schools for social parties and sensitisation programmes on the danger of drugs, cultism and violence in schools.

He added that the state has installed street lights in schools, as well as rewards of excellence in academic programmes in schools and institutions, among others.

He, however, urged the government at all levels to formulate and implement policies that would help us to rise up to the challenges posed by insecurity in our schools.

This in turn would help us to achieve peace and harmony in our schools and colleges while our school calendars and programmes would run as planned, thus making our educational system gain global relevance, he said.

The Deputy Director of Lagos State Safety Commission (LSCC), Ajose Olatunde, also noted that the Lagos State government has been passionate about safety in schools.

Mr Olatunde said the LSCC has initiated safety programmes for the 2000 schools in the state.

More recommendations for safety

The panellists advocated for the provision of close-circuit Television (CCTV) cameras to help monitor and ensure adequate security of lives and properties in schools.

In her comments, the Director of Secondary Education hinted at a high-level safe school initiative that is being organised by the Federal Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education.

They are doing everything humanly possible to see that each and every school secondary school in Nigeria is provided with these facilities. So that we can have minimised of this insecurity in our schools, she said.

Also, the Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ahmad Audi, represented by the Lagos Commandant, Edenabu Emeka, said they have recommended the deployment of CCTV cameras for schools.

He said the agency has been charged to ensure safety in schools in conjunction with playing an advocacy role not only to the school but to the ministry governments, traditional institutions, women associations as well as other relevant stakeholders

Other panellists included representatives from the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the West African Examination Council. While representatives from educational bodies, including the National Education Council (NECO), were called to share their experiences on safety in schools and insecurity.
The PACFaH@Scale, a Bill and Melinda Gates-funded project, anchored by the development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC) will today join other experts at the future of health conference to discuss financing and the benefit of investing in reproductive health and rights.

The event, with the theme The political economy of health; investing in the future of Nigeria, aims to provide a high-level platform for key stakeholders in policy, governance, economics and healthcare to discuss the factors that influence Nigerias health policies.

The experts will focus on how political, social and economic factors shape individual and population health outcomes; health service development within the economic and political context, and how to create a national health service that meets the needs of all Nigerians.

The president of the Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria (SOGON) and the project director SOGON- PACFAH @Scale project, Habib Sadauki, will speak in the first-panel session tagged The Economy of health.

Mr Sadauki will speak on the benefit of investing in reproductive health rights. She will also highlight the importance of health financing with a focus on women and children.

Other speakers in the first session are Lancet Nigeria commissioner, Obinna Onwujekwe; Special Adviser to the Nigerian President on finance and economy, Sarah Alade; a senior health specialist at the World Bank Group, Onoriode Ezire and founder, flying doctors healthcare investment company, Ola Brown.

Stay on this page as PREMIUM TIMES provides live updates of the session scheduled to commence by 10:50 a.m.



01:02 p.m: This brings us to the end of the session. The panelists are leaving the podium and its a wrap.

Thank you for staying with us.

01:00 p.m: She said President Muhammadu Buhari is concerned about the healthcare system and the NDP has provided a broader perspective on approaches to take.

12:59 p.m: Ms Alade, the Special Adviser to the Nigerian president on finance and economy, takes the mic. She said there is a need to encourage investors to see opportunities and reasons why they should invest in the country.

12:56 p.m: Mr Sadauki said maternal mortality has also increased as a result of insecurity. He said all of these challenges must be addressed to prevent population explosion in the country.

12:54 p.m: He noted that the country needs to step up efforts in addressing insecurity, especially in the northern part of the country. He said many women no longer have access to contraceptives due to ongoing security issues.

12:53 p.m: He said the government must prioritise the allocation of more resources to Family Planning and reproductive healthcare systems.

12:51 p.m: He said the low usage of contraceptives has been worsened by declined funding of Family Planning. He said last year, the government failed to include a line for family planning.

12:48 p.m: Mr Sadauki, the president of SOGON and the project director SOGON- PACFAH @Scale project, is speaking on the fertility rate in Nigeria and the north in specific. He said there is a close relationship between poverty and healthcare.

12:44 p.m: He said until we get our governance right, we cannot achieve a lot. He noted that issues of corruption need to be addressed in the countrys system.

12:42 p.m: Mr Onwujekwe takes the mic. He said he is an advocate for more health with available resources. He said the federal government needs to get the budget right in order to achieve a substantial result.

12:39 p.m: He said the importance of accountability and transparency in nation-building is inevitable. He said stakeholders must support states and local government to produce a strong accountability framework.

12:36 p.m: The next panellist, Mr Ezire, is speaking on health priorities. He said if nothing is done urgently, PHC will be de-emphasised. He said state and local government and other stakeholders must come on board and work together.

12:34 p.m: Ms Brown said technology investment is crucial to achieving effective healthcare delivery.

12:32 p.m: The moderator takes the podium to continue the panellist discussion. He calls Ms Brown to speak on technology investment.

12:25 p.m: Ms Brown ends her presentation and leaves the podium.

12:24 p.m: She explained that investing in healthcare is a vital way to solve unemployment issues in the country. If we reposition healthcare as a solution to all Nigerias problems, then we can find solutions to the larger problems facing our society, she said.

12:22 p.m: Ms Brown said healthcare is directly and indirectly linked to all of these challenges. She said many people are choosing other developed countries because healthcare has solved the challenges of many countries around the world.

12:21 p.m: She said the insecurity challenges in the country have further worsened the situation as people no longer feel safe in their homes. She said this is coupled with a lack of opportunities for young people in the country.

12:20 p.m: She said the young population are leaving the country in large numbers due to poor healthcare delivery in Nigeria.

12:18 p.m: Ms Ola takes the podium for her presentation. She said the government needs to look at healthcare in a holistic way and most importantly, ensure it solves problems.

12: 17 p.m: The next panellist is the founder, flying doctors healthcare investment company, Ola Brown.

12:14 p.m: He said government at all levels must prioritise health and learn from the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr Ezire ends his presentation and leaves the podium.

12:12 p.m: He said the productivity of the country is a function of the state and the status of the health of the people.

12:10 p.m: He said investment in health is directly related to the economy.

12:07 p.m: Mr Ezire said the importance of allocating more resources to health can not be over-emphasised. He said population size must be considered when allocating funds to the health sector.

12:06 p.m: The next panellist, Senior health specialist World Bank Group, Onoriode Ezire, takes the podium to give his presentation.

12:05 p.m: He said until the country invests and addresses population explosion, nothing can be achieved in terms of national development.

12:02 p.m: He said family planning is key to addressing maternal and newborn death rates. He also said contraceptive information is central to achieving gender equality in the country.

12:01 p.m: He said some health indices like maternal mortality, and under-five mortality are strongly related to the economic development of the country.

12:00 p.m: Mr Sadauki said the way a country finances its health care system is a major determinant of the health of its people. He said several studies have shown that the health of a nation significantly boosts its economic development.

11:58 a.m: He said only 22 per cent of women are using any method of family planning noting that health is key to any developing nation.

11:57 a.m: He said by 2050, the countrys population is estimated to be 543 million. He said there is growing disparity across the country with regards to fertility rate.

11:56 a.m: Mr Sadauki takes the podium to give his presentation. He said Nigeria has a population of over 200 million people and an annual growth rate of 3.2 per cent.

11:55 a.m: The moderator, Mr Okunola, takes the podium to introduce the next panellist, president of SOGON and the project director of SOGON- PACFAH @Scale project, Habib Sadauki.

11:54 a.m: Mr Onwujekwe ends his presentation and leaves the podium.

11:53 a.m: He said the country needs to improve efficiency to achieve good health. He said thoughtful use of existing institutions is an approach to achieve better governance and prioritisation of health.

11:51 a.m: Mr Onwujekwe said the capital investment in Africa is very low. He said investment should be the focus for health actors in the region.

11:50 a.m: The next panellist, Lancet Nigeria commissioner Obinna Onwujekwe takes the podium for his presentation.

11:48 a.m: She said no one is safe until everyone is safe. She ends her presentation.

11:46 a.m: She said the UHC is a basic economic growth engine and the current administration, having understood the nexus, has provided a strategic framework.

11:45 a.m: Ms Alade said the national progress so far in healthcare delivery is considerable but below the global threshold.

11:43 a.m: She said the healthcare and economy nexus is being amplified more than ever before by the pandemic. She said the National Development Plan (NDP) approaches its sustainability and ultimate success through human capital development.

11:42 a.m: She said the challenges include but are not limited to inadequate funding and low health insurance penetration.

11: 41 a.m: Ms Alade said healthcare is very important for every successful nation. She said the Nigeria health system has some challenges just like many African countries.

11:38 a.m: The first-panel session is tagged The economy of health. Mr Okunola welcomes the first panellist, Special Adviser to Nigerian president on finance and economy, Sarah Alade, to the podium.

11:35 a.m: The first-panel session is about to commence as the moderator, Senior health specialist, health population and nutrition, world bank, Olumide Okunola, takes the podium.

11:33 a.m: He said 83 million Nigerians are currently in the group. He ends his speech and leaves the podium.

11:32 a.m: Mr Sambo said the government has made health insurance compulsory for all Nigerians. He said the new NHIA law provides vulnerable group funds for people who cannot afford to pay premiums as recommended by the Lancet Nigeria Commission.

11:31 a.m: The Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Mohammed Sambo, takes the podium to give his speech.

11:30 a.m: He said the country must take policy analysis very seriously. He ends his speech.

11:29 a.m: He said for an administration to be successful, there must be well-designed policies. Oftentimes, our policies are not well designed, hence policies that work for other countries fail in Nigeria, he said.

11:27 a.m: Speaking on administrative matters, he said the health sector must be handled by competent hands if the country must experience positive change.

11:24 a.m: Mr Osagie said a majority of leaders wait until there is a pandemic or epidemic before taking action. He said with or without outbreaks, health should always take the lead.

11:22 a.m: He said the general public has to engage in the battle of holding political leaders responsible. We must let our leaders know that health is a key priority as no government can be successful without prioritising health, he said.

11:20 a.m: He explained that a country that earns more should have the wherewithal to invest in health but some countries lack the political will to do so.

11:18 a.m: He said political will is another aspect to be taken seriously. He noted that if the political will is missing, not much can be achieved.

11:16 a.m: Mr Osagie said it is crucial for persons interested in health to be interested in the revenue generation and expenditure of the country. He said the countrys expenditure directly affects the budget for the health sector.

11:13 a.m: The chairman, Metis capital partners, Hakeem Osagie, is ready to give the opening presentation. He will be speaking virtually.

11:07 a.m: Mr Akabueze said the conference is timely and he looks forward to the outcome. He ends his speech and leaves the podium.

11:05 a.m: He said the government is also following the BHCPF closely to ensure it is distributed to states to achieve its purpose.

11:03 a.m: He also said the country must prioritise revitalising the Primary Health Care system (PHC) if its to achieve UHC. He said the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) is a move towards achieving success at the PHC level.

11:00 a.m: He said state and local governments also need to step up funding for health. He noted that local funding is critical to achieving health sustainability.

10:57 a.m: He said to further strengthen healthcare financing, the country needs to explore innovative ways to sustainably finance the health sector in Nigeria. We are strengthening our partnership with private sectors in terms of capital projects, he said.

10:55 a.m: Mr Akabueze said the government understands the need to significantly invest in the countrys health sector but there are certain challenges restricting this investment.

10:53 a.m: He however said the governments ability to further finance health care services is constrained by revenue deficit. This is coming at a time the COVID-19 pandemic continues to mount pressure on the health sector.

10:51 a.m: He said the Nigerian government is also improving allocation to agriculture to ensure good security as well as Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).

10:49 a.m: Mr Akabueze said there has been a remarkable increase in budget allocation to the healthcare sector since the beginning of the present administration. He said the allocation has more than doubled in the last five years.

10:48 a.m: He said aside from the major healthcare allocation, there are other health-related spendings that the government invests in at both federal, state and local government levels.

10:46 a.m: He said it is imperative to ensure significant investment to achieve health care delivery and also achieve Universal Health Care by the year 2030.

10:44 a.m: Mr Akabueze said the Nigerian government prioritises the health sector in budget planning. He said the government remains committed to providing effective healthcare services.

10:43 a.m; The Director General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Ben Akabueze, takes the podium to deliver the keynote speech. He is represented by Olubisi Ayodele.

10:40 a.m: She urges all stakeholders to be passionate about changing the health situation in Nigeria.

10:39 a.m; She said annually, the conference brings together inspiring speakers to fashion actionable steps towards solving some of the challenges facing the Nigerian health sector.

10:37 a.m: She said when the conference debuted in 2015, the theme was, defining the health sector of our dreams. Today, we are still defining the health sector of our dream. This is the 8th Edition and we are excited to be hosting this event in person, she said.

10:36 a.m: Ms Ihekweazu said the theme of the conference was chosen to redefine what the countrys health agenda should be. She said the political season affords us a window of opportunity to put health on the agenda of political discourse.

10:35 a.m: All is set for the commencement of the 2022 future of health conference. The Managing Director of Nigeria Health Watch, Vivianne Ihekweazu, takes the podium to give the opening remarks.
Nigeria has joined the majority of the countries of the world to condemn the Russian annexation of Ukrainian territories.

In a vote at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, Nigeria joined 142 other countries including the US, UK and Germany to condemn the annexation.

Nigeria is one of the 143 countries that voted in favour of the resolution condemning Russias annexation of about 15 per cent of Ukraines territory after a referendum condemned as illegal by many countries in the world.

However, about 18 African countries abstained from voting, indicating that Russian influence in Africa is still high.

Countries that abstained include the Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Algeria, Zimbabwe, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Congo, and Guinea.

Others are Mali, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Uganda, Tanzania, Eswatini, and Togo.

China and India, two Russian allies that have refused to condemn Russias actions in Ukraine, also abstained from voting, joining 15 other non-African countries that abstained.

A total of 143 Member States voted in favour, with five voting against, and 35 abstentions. The countries who voted against were Belarus, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Russia and Syria.

The UN, however, passed the resolution calling on countries not to recognise the four regions of Ukraine which Russia has claimed. The UN also demanded that Moscow reverse course on its attempted illegal annexation.

Russia in September held a referendum in Eastern Ukraine where it claimed that the peoples of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson had voted to become part of Russia.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia in an elaborate signing ceremony announced the four regions as officially part of Russia, stating that any attack or attempt to reclaim them will be an attack on Russia.

Russia had initially proposed that the voting be done in secret but was countered by Albania who argued that it would establish a dangerous precedent if such a substantive issue of peace and security was voted on in secret.

Chiamaka Okafor is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe.
A political support group within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Elders Forum for Atiku 2023, has advised the partys presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to revisit the composition of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC).

The group stated that this became necessary to avoid the mistake made in 2019 where the Director-General of the Atiku Presidential Campaign Organisation, Gbenga Daniel, defected to another party.

The group stated in a protest letter to Atiku that he should make Raymond Dokpesi the director general of the Atiku Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCO) 2023.

The group titled its letter to Atiku as: Protest against the composition of directors in the national campaign management committee.

The letter was signed by its National Coordinator, Lawrence Okojie and the National Secretary, A.K Peters.

It stated in the letter that its attention had been drawn to the list of the newly-appointed directors in the National Campaign Management Committee (NCMC).

We, the Elders Forum for Atiku 2023 write to protest the composition of the Directors and Deputy Directors at the NCMC.

We strongly believe that proper considerations were not taken in arriving at these appointments as not all the Deputy Directors-General are duly committed in the matter.

We believe that competence, loyalty, sincerity, experience and resilience in the struggle should be the essential ingredients that should have been considered in the selection of directors and deputy directors of the NCMC.

We, therefore, strongly request that His Excellency should revisit these developments and do the needful to spare us a Gbenga Daniel Part 2 in this 2023 presidential run, the group stated.

It advised Abubakar to ensure that a person of repute such as Mr Dokpesi is appointed the Director-General Atiku Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCO) 2023.

It added that the group believed in the capacity of Mr Dokpesi to mobilise and work with everyone for the success of the PDP at the 2023 general elections.

It is on record that from national sensitisation to the success at the presidential primary, the galvanising role of Dokpesi as leader of the Presidential Technical Committee cannot be undermined moving forward, it added.

Mr Okojie, who led members of the forum in a protest to submit the letter at the Abuja residence of Atiku on Wednesday, told journalists that the PDP needed Mr Dokpesi to coordinate the affairs of APCO.

He said that even before anyone identified with Atikus presidential ambition, Mr Dokpesi took it upon himself to mobilise support for the candidate and carried everyone along.

Mr Okojie said the forum with its coordinators in all the 36 states and members across the grassroots was ready to work in all the polling units for Atikus success.

The National Women Leader of the forum, Deborah Makinwa, said they needed Mr Dokpesi to continue where he stopped.

Mrs Makinwa, who said that she had been supporting Atiku from zero party to now, urged him to employ more women into his campaign council.

Some of the inscriptions on the banners carried by the protesters were we want Dokpesi to remain the champion of the presidential campaign, activate the presidential campaign without delay, allow the D-Gs to choose their Deputy Directors etc.

(NAN)
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has challenged renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, to ensure his client, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), complies with the order compelling the union to end its ongoing strike.

The three-member panel of the court described as worrisome ASUUs failure to obey the earlier order of the National Industrial Court in Abuja compelling the union to call off the almost eight months old strike.

In the lead ruling delivered on 7 October, Hamma Barka, the presiding justice of the three-man panel, urged Mr Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, to stay the course of his years-long advocacy for rule of law and obedience to lawful court orders with the ASUUs case.

In conclusion, my Lords, permit me to express the view that I have known Mr Falana, SAN, for a long time as an advocate of the rule of law, and obedience to lawful orders made by courts of the land. He has championed that cause in numerous cases.

I challenge him to aid the obedience of lawful court order re made, Mr Barka wrote in the certified true copy of the ruling obtained by PREMIUM TIMES.

This newspaper reported how the Court of Appeal, about a week ago, on 7 October, ordered ASUU to obey the National Industrial Courts order given on 21 September.

It granted ASUU a conditional permission to file an appeal against the decision of the lower court.

The three-member panel of the court predicated the permission on ASUUs compliance with the order of the National Industrial Court within seven days.

It will be exactly one week on Friday since the order was given, but ASUU has yet to call off its strikex which started almost eight months ago.

Mr Falanas team had, however, complained about the delay in the release of the certified true copy of the Court of Appeals decision to enable them to advise ASUU appropriately.

The certified true copy of the Court of Appeals decision seen by PREMIUM TIMES bears stamps dated 12 October (Wednesday), indicating that it was released five days after the ruling was delivered on 7 October.

Where Falana was right

ASUU had, through Mr Falana, applied for an order of stay of execution of the National Industrial Courts order, and the leave to file an appeal against it.

But Mr Falana, during the hearing, withdrew the prayer for stay of execution of the National Industrial Courts order, opting to pursue only the prayer for leave to appeal against the lower courts ruling.

The federal governments lawyer, James Igwe, also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, opposed the application, arguing that ASUU, still in disobedience of the lower courts order, was seeking an order of the Court of Appeal with dirty hands.

Although Mr Barka, in his ruling, ordered ASUU to comply with the National Industrial Courts order, he agreed with Mr Falana there can be a justifiable reason not to obey a court order.

Such an exception is when the order is given without jurisdiction or the affected party is challenging the validity of the order.

It was on the basis of the consideration of the exceptional situation that the court granted ASUU the conditional permission to file its appeal.

Supreme Court held that the common law rule precluding persons in disobedience of the court order against them from being heard in respect of the matters which they stand in disobedience permits of an exception where the order disobeyed was made without jurisdiction or where the party in disobedience is challenging the validity of the order.

In view of this state of law, I am inclined to granting the application for leave to appeal the decision of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria delivered on 2nd day of September 2022 as prayed on the condition that the order of the lower court is obeyed immediately, the ruling read in part.

ASUU embarked on the ongoing strike on 14 February, accusing the federal government of refusing to implement a 2009 agreement on matters bordering on increased funding of universities and increasing lecturers salaries.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Thursday, struck out the terrorism charges filed against Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) by the Nigerian government.

The court struck out all the remaining seven charges against Mr Kanu.

It followed an earlier ruling of the trial judge, Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja, in April dismissing eight of the 15 amended counts filed against him by the federal government.

In a judgement on Thursday, the Court of Appeal panel led by Jummai Sankey struck out all remaining charges against Mr Kanu, ruling that the lower court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

The court held that Mr Kanus extradition from Kenya in June 2021 to Nigeria without following the extradition rules was a flagrant violation of Nigerias extradition treaty and a breach of the IPOB leaders fundamental human rights.

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It held there was no denial by the Nigerian governments lawyer, David Kaswe, in the appeal as to the submissions of Mike Ozekhome, Mr Kanus counsel, that the separatist leader was extraordinarily renditioned from Kenya.

The appellate court held that the failure of the federal government to adequately respond to Mr Kanus arguments gave merit to the appeal.

The court further said also the Federal High Court failed to examine the findings of the prosecution as it would not have tried Mr Kanu on the grounds that the IPOB leader was not illegally brought into the country.

The charges struck out include the ones instituted against Mr Kanu before he was brought back to Nigeria last year.

It ordered Mr Kanus release from the custody of the State Security Service (SSS), where the IPOB has been held since he was brought back to Nigeria.

Background

Mrs Nyako had on 8 April while ruling on the IPOB leaders preliminary objection challenging the validity of the charge, struck out eight of the 15 counts.

The separatist leader was accused of various offences in the 15 counts, including treasonable felony and terrorism, offences he allegedly committed in the course of his Biafra nation agitations.

The trial judge had ruled that Counts 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 were incompetent for not disclosing any valid offences against the defendant.

However, in a judgement on Thursday, the Court of Appeal panel led by Jummai Hanatu, held Mr Kanus forcible repatriation from Kenya to Nigeria in June 2021, was in violation of the countrys extradition law.

The judge had asked the prosecution to proceed to trial on the remaining seven charges, ordering the prosecuting lawyer, Shuaibu Labaran, to file a fresh proof of evidence before May 18, the next hearing date.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the judge, in a separate ruling on 8 April, validated the federal governments repatriation of Mr Kanu from Kenya to face the charges pending against him in Nigeria.

Below are the full details of the seven charges that were struck out

The judge ordered that the case proceeds to trial on Counts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 13 and 15.

Five of the sustained charges have to do with alleged acts of terrorism, including professing to be a member and leader of IPOB, a proscribed organisation, issuing inciteful and deadly threats against individuals, and issuing directives, among others.

Count 15 has to do with the illegal importation of a radio transmitter he declared as used household items in violation of section 47 (2) (a) of the Criminal Code Act. Cap, C45 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

Full details of the counts:

Count 1

The prosecution alleged that Mr Kanu, of Afara Ukwu, Umuhahia North Local Government Area of Abia State, as a member of and leader of proscribed IPOB sometimes in September 2021, committed an act of terrorism against Nigeria and its people by allegedly making a broadcast received and heard in Nigeria with intent to intimidate the population, threatened that the people would die and that the whole world would standstill. The offence is said to be punishable under section 1(2)(b) of the Terrorism Prevention Amendment Act 2015.

Count 2

The prosecution accused him of committing an act in furtherance of an act of terrorism against Nigeria and its people made a broadcast received and heard in Nigeria within the jurisdiction of the court with intent to intimidate the population, issued a death threat against anyone who flouted his sit-at-home order.

Mr Kanu allegedly ordered whoever flouted the order should write his/her will, and as a result banks, schools, markets, shopping malls, and fuel stations domiciled in the eastern states of Nigeria must not open for business. Citizens, and vehicular movements, in the eastern states of Nigeria, the prosecution said, were grounded as a result of the sit-at-home order.

The prosecution said the offence is punishable under section 1(2)(b) of the Terrorism (Prevention) Amendment Act (2013).

Count 3

The prosecution also alleged that on diverse dates between 2018 and 2021 within the jurisdiction of this court, Mr Kanu professed himself to be a member and leader of IPOB, a proscribed organisation in Nigeria.

This, the prosecution said was an offence contrary to and punishments under section 16 of the Terrorism Prevision Amendment Act 2015.

Count 4

M Kanu also, allegedly, on diverse dates between 2018 and 2021, made a broadcast received and heard in Nigeria inciting members of the public in Nigeria in furtherance of an act of terrorism against Nigeria and its people to hunt and kill Nigerian security personnel.

The offence, according to the prosecution, is punishable under section 1(2)(h) of the Terrorism Prevention Amendment Act 2013.

Count 5

Mr Kanu, also on diverse dates between 2018 and 2021, allegedly broadcasted furtherance of an act of terrorism against Nigeria and its people received and heard in Nigeria in furtherance of an act of terrorism, inciting members of the public in Nigeria to hunt and kill families of Nigeria security personnel.

The offence is said to be punishable under 1(2)(h) of the Terrorism Prevention Amendment Act 2013.

Count 13

Mr Kany also alleged between 2018 and 2021 made a broadcast received and heard in Nigeria with the intent to incite violence, in furtherance of an act of terrorism against Nigeria and its people, directed members of the public to burn down every federal facility in Lagos resulting in major economic loss to the federal government.

The alleged offences, the prosecution says, are punishable under section 1(2) of the Terrorism (Prevention) Amendment) Act 2013.

Court 15

The prosecution also alleged that on diverse dates between March and April 2015 Mr Kanu was illegally imported into Nigeria and kept in Ubulisluzor in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State, a radio transmitter known as Tram 50L concealed in a container of used household items which he declared as used household items.

The alleged offence was said to be contrary to section 47(2)(a) of Criminal Code Act CapC45 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

Appeal Court terminates Nnamdi Kanus trial, orders IPOB leaders release
The senator representing Ondo South Senatorial District, Nicholas Tofowomo, has written the Federal High Court in Akure, demanding judgement on the pre-election case he instituted seeking the disqualification of a former deputy governor of the state, Agboola Ajayi, as the senatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023.

Mr Tofomowo lamented the delay in delivering judgement despite the conclusion of all the relevant processes.

The senator lost the ticket to return to the Senate on the platform of the PDP to Mr Ajayi, who had returned to the party after his foray at the Zenith Labour Party where he contested for governor in the last governorship election.

At the senatorial primaries in May, Mr Ajayi scored 78 votes to defeat Mr Tofomowo, who polled 74 votes to become the partys candidate for Ondo South.

The senator is, however, challenging the eligibility of Mr Ajayi, with reference to his academic qualifications.

Besides Mr Ajayi who is the first defendant, the PDP and the electoral commission, INEC, were also joined as the second and third defendants respectively in the suit. The suit was filed on 5 July 2022, by the plaintiffs lawyer, Femi Emodamori.

In the suit, the senator argued that Mr Ajayi did not meet the constitutional requirements for contesting the 2023 general election as contained in the interpretation and application of Section 66(1)(i) of the Nigerian Constitution and Section 29(5) & (6) of the Electoral Act 2022 as well as other relevant laws.

Mr Tofomowos fresh concerns bordered on the failure of the court to deliver judgement after concluding the hearing in the case. Parties have also adopted their written addresses for judgement since August.

In a reminder letter dated 12th October and addressed to the Station Registrar of the Federal High Court, Akure Judicial Division, the senators lawyer, Mr Emodamori, said the court has not informed parties of the judgement date despite the fact that it has till 19th of this month under the Constitution to deliver its verdict.

The lawyer said, The Suit is a Pre-Election matter relating to the candidacy of the Peoples Democratic Party for Ondo South Senatorial District.

It was commenced by Originating Summons, and parties adopted their respective written addresses at the hearing of the case on 19th July, 2022, after his Lordship, Hon. Justice R. M Aikawa tentatively adjourned the case till 30th August, 2022 for judgement.

However, up until now, no date has been communicated to the parties for the judgement. By virtue of Section 294 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), every court is expected to deliver its judgement in writing not later than 90 days after the conclusion of evidence and final addresses by the parties. The 90 days period in the instant case would expire on or about 19th October, 2022.

Apart from the above constitutional provision and the understandably huge public interest in the case, it is most desirable for all the parties to know the outcome of the case promptly, for them to effectively prepare and execute their political campaign plans for the Ondo South Senatorial District.

Consequently, we hereby respectfully request that you kindly bring this letter to the attention of his Noble Lordship, Hon. Justice R.M Aikawa, for necessary action.
The West Africa Democracy Solidarity (WADEMOS) Network has expressed regrets over the recent counter-coup in Burkina Faso, fearing its adverse implication on the security situation and restoration of democratic governance in the country.

WADEMOS, launched in September in Accra, Ghana, to promote peaceful, stable, and democratic development in the West African region, said the coups could derail efforts to address the challenges facing the country.

It said in a statement, we are concerned that coups and counter-coups in Burkina Faso at this time will only serve to disrupt and derail the patient efforts already made by the Burkinabe people since the coup of January 2022 to reach a settlement of the security crisis caused by armed terrorist groups and an orderly restoration of democratic and constitutional government in the country.

Burkina Faso plunged into another political crisis with a group of soldiers staging the second coup in less than nine months in the country on 30 October.

Ibrahim Traore led the 30 October coup to become Burkina Fasos military leader, deposing Paul Henri-Damiba, who only came to power through his own coup in January.

The latest coup came barely two weeks after WADEMOS was launched in Accra during which speakers took turns to condemn the recent democratic collapse and backsliding in some West African countries.

Since 2020, there have been successful coups in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso, and failed attempts in Niger and Guinea Bissau.

Threat to cohesion

WADEMOS, in its statement on the latest coup, said the cycle of coups in Burkina Faso, in light of the escalation of deadly activities of terrorist groups in the country, could undermine the cohesion needed to confront the security challenges and defend the countrys sovereignty.

We are especially concerned, considering the sharp escalation recently in deadly extremist and terrorist attacks against the population, that a cycle of coups and counter-coups will weaken and undermine the cohesion and singleness of purpose that both the Burkinabe military and the society at large need to confront the very grave and continuing threats to the security and sovereignty of the country and its people.

The coalition, however, expressed satisfaction that the coup did not degenerate into fratricidal combats or violent reprisals within the Burkinabe military or society.

Greenlight

It also commended the new Traore-led junta for agreeing to the terms of the settlement for the exit of Col. Damiba.

The agreement lauded by the WADEMOS includes guaranteeing the safety and non-prosecution of the leaders of the former junta and their collaborators.

The regime also committed to pursue national reconciliation and to engage in broad consultations and agreed to honour existing commitments and plans, for an orderly return to democratic and constitutional rule by July 2024.

We commend the religious and customary leaders of Burkina Faso for their swift and patriotic intervention in brokering a peaceful and successful resolution to the crisis, thereby paving the way for a smooth regime transition and averting a potentially protracted and destabilizing conflict.

It expressed hope that the terms of the Seven Point agreement will be implemented in good faith in the interest of the people of Burkina Faso.

Recommendation

WADEMOS urged Mr Traores regime to work collaboratively and constructively with the diverse segments of Burkinabe civil society, media, and the political class, as well as with regional partners.

This, it said, would enable the government to build and sustain the mutual trust, united front, and regional solidarity the country desperately needs at this time to address the difficult challenges it confronts.

The network also expressed confidence that the people of Burkina Faso have the courage and determination to overcome their present challenges.

It promised to remain steadfast in its commitment to support and assist the processes of political transition in Burkina Faso.

WADEMOS is a transnational network of independent, non-partisan civil society organisations (CSOs) in West Africa.

It currently has a membership of over 30 CSOs located in 15 countries in West Africa.
An Iyaganku Chief Magistrates Court I in Ibadan on Thursday remanded a 27-year-old man, Oladotun Wahab, in a correctional centre for allegedly raping a 70-year-old woman in his neighbourhood.

The police charged Mr Wahab with rape and robbery.

The Chief Magistrate, Emmanuel Idowu, who did not take the plea of Mr Wahab for want of jurisdiction, ordered his remand in Abolongo Correctional facility, Oyo Town.

Mr Idowu gave the order pending the outcome of the case file at the Oyo State Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP).

He adjourned the matter until 15 December for mention.

Earlier, the prosecution counsel, Femi Oluwadare, told the court that Mr Wahab on 6 October, at about 2:25 p.m allegedly raped a 70-year-old woman.

Mr Oluwadare said the suspect raped the woman in an uncompleted building.

He said that Mr Wahab robbed the victim of N21,500 and her Itel cell phone worth N6,000.

The offence, he said, contravened the provisions of Section 357 and was punishable under Section 358 of the Criminal Code Laws of Oyo State 2000.

He said it also contravened section 1(2) (a) (b) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap RII, Vol.14, Laws of Federation of Nigeria 2004.

(NAN)
Day four of the war crimes trial of Kunti Kamara looked closely at the investigations in France and Liberia that produced evidence prosecutors are using in the case against the former commander of the United Liberation Movement for Democracy in Liberia.

Two Liberian leads in the investigation  Luther Sumo, a Lofa prosecutor and Patrick Massaly, Deputy Police Commissioner  testified by video link from Monrovia.

They both said that once they had the case material supplied by French investigators they set about finding alleged victims of Kamara in Foya in Lofa County, Liberia and witnesses to corroborate their stories.

The court heard that the Liberian government had not given official approval of the French investigation but the Ministry of Justice had tasked Liberian law enforcement with helping French investigators.

French investigators were not permitted to find victims or conduct interviews themselves. They sat in on interviews conducted by Liberians.

Deputy Police Commissioner Massaly, gave graphic detail of the stories his team heard from victims.

He collected some statements himself. All witnesses, he said, were clear that the defendant, going by the names Kunti Kamara Co Kundi or Kunti K had perpetrated most of the crimes himself and directed others.

Mr Massaly said victims described being forced to carry looted goods as far as 15 miles.

In another case recounted by multiple witnesses, Mr Kamara is alleged to have personally gone into the house of one of the four plaintiffs in the case and dragged a half-naked ailing woman out and shot her in the head right in the middle of the village, he said.

Another often repeated story recounted how the father of another of the plaintiffs had translated for a visiting international humanitarian organisation. The father told the organisation that a church and hospital had been destroyed by Ulimo under Kamaras command.

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Seeking retribution Kamara returned, tied the mans elbows behind his back and ordered a lieutenant known as Ugly Boy to chop open his rib cage with an axe. Numerous people reported that Kamara then had the heart cooked and ate it.

A female plaintiff described being sexually assaulted by Ulimo fighters. One raped her with a bayonet and when she began to bleed, poured salt onto the wounds before she was raped several more times she claimed.

Thirty years later she told us she was still feeling pain, Mr Massaly told the court.

Mr Massaly described Kamara chopping up body parts and putting them in a wheelbarrow and offering them for sale. People who refused to buy the meat were severely beaten.

Mr Massaly conceded that the team had no photos of Kamara from the time to show the witnesses in order to identify him.

A few of the witnesses identified him from pictures taken now said Mr Massaly though he conceded many could not recognise him. Some were too afraid to look at the picture of him, Mr Massaly said. It was too horrible to look into his face.

The defence lawyers made strong challenges to both Liberians asking whether they had taken the rape victim to have her medical injuries assessed for instance, or whether they had contacted the international humanitarian organisation for whom the murdered translator had worked. They had not.

The defence asked why there had been no exhumations of bodies, or DNA assessments among other forensic evidence.

The Liberian law enforcement and French investigators explained the tremendous challenges in working in this remote part of Liberia that was decimated by the war.

During the long war years there were no functioning hospitals, no birth certificates or death certificates were issued they explained. Local customs meant one person could go by several names.

Even now they explained to the jury, there was no electricity or running water in Foya. Police did not have enough memory on their phones to take photographs and there was no money for phone data.

Romuald Peruggia, lead French investigator who had worked on twenty to thirty crimes against humanity cases compared investigations in Liberia to Rwanda where he had worked for many years.

He said the distance from the crimes is similar (Rwandas genocide of as many as 1 million took place in 1994) but Liberia was much harder because of the bad roads, lack of development, lack of administration and fewer phones.

But he rejected the defence case that it was not possible to prove who killed someone with a case with no forensic evidence and based on testimonies alone.

Memories might have been erased, he said. Its difficult to distinguish between truth and lies. You must find other witnesses to corroborate. Our job is to find witnesses that havent been mentioned by anyone.

The French and Liberian investigators also reconstructed scenes in the settings where the alleged crimes took place. Those yielded new information too Peruggia said.

This is the fifth universal jurisdiction case to try accused perpetrators for crimes committed in Liberia.

All have been built on witness testimony alone. So far the track record is good for prosecutors  three of the four trials have led to conviction. But the defense team in Kamaras trial is making a stronger case of the absence of forensic evidence than other defense teams have.

It remains to be seen whether this will sway a jury that must find Kamara guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in order to convict.

During his testimony Investigator Peruggia revealed that he was working on another Liberian case.

There has been no public disclosure of an investigation by French authorities into a second alleged Liberian perpetrator. French law enforcement did not disclose any more information about the case.

Civitas Maxima, the Swiss-based human rights group that brought the evidence to French authorities that initiated the Kamara case, refused to comment on the second case.

The trial continues Friday with testimony from the plaintiffs in the case.

This story is a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the West Africa Justice Reporting Project.
The Presidential Campaign Organisation (PCO) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has denied reports that the party has suspended its presidential campaign.

The party said its campaign train will continue on Monday in Kaduna.

This was contained in a statement by Muhammad Bello, the media adviser to the PCO Director General, Aminu Tambuwal.

Mr Tambuwal, the Sokoto State Governor, dismissed the reports in Lagos on Thursday as he expressed shock at the claims.

The governor was reacting to reports that claimed the party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, decided to halt campaign activities to reconcile with the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and other aggrieved members of the party.

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That is far from the truth, he told journalists. In fact, it is fake news. People are looking forward to our coming to states, capitals and villages because PDP is the party to beat in 2023.

Other parties are afraid because they have not started (their campaigns). None of them have composed their campaign councils, not to even talk of starting. They are trying to throw spanners at our works, the governor said.

He described the report as one of those shenanigans when a party is doing well and its candidate is better.

What you begin to do is to cause mischief. It is not going to work. Well run our campaign, as I said before, it is going to be issue-based. We believe there are sufficient problems bedeviling our country. I believe in the candidature of Atiku and Okowa. I also believe that when we get there we shall do better for Nigeria; and, we hope we are able to convince Nigerians to vote for Atiku/Okowa come February 2023.

Mr Tambuwal assured that the campaign team will replicate the kind of scenario it had in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State where thousands of party supporters turned up for the kick off of its presidential rally last week Monday.

The party kicked off its campaign rally in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital last week where Atiku promised to end hunger in the country if elected as president.
The Nigerian Army has stated that it will not honour a court order to reinstate a colonel, Danladi Hassan, who was sacked in 2016.

In a letter to the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions dated 7 October, the army also said it will not pay the complainant his legal fees, salaries and allowances as directed by the court.

Mr Hassan, who led troops to recapture Bulabulin and Damboa from Boko Haram in 2014, was compulsorily retired in 2016.

He was retired alongside 37 other officers without strong reasons.

Following his forceful retirement, he approached the National Industrial Court (NIC) which in January 2019 ordered his reabsorption into the army.

The judge, Sanusi Kado, held that the army failed to convince the court of the disciplinary grounds for the forceful retirement.

The decision of the NIC forced the army to appeal the judgement at the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal.

The three-member panel of the Court, in a judgment in 2021, dismissed the appeal by the Nigerian Army, former Chief of Army Staff, and others for lacking in merit.

Following the non-compliance with the court order, the officer petitioned the House of Representatives to compel the army to reinstate him and pay his due.

We cannot obey that order  Army

In the letter signed by its Director of Legal Services, MU Wambai, on behalf of the chief of army staff, the army said the appellate court failed to factor in the peculiarities of military conditions of service in delivering its judgement.

Mr Wambai, a major general, said the petitioner had already exceeded the age for his rank and cannot be reinstated for that reason.

In the light of the above, it is the position of the NA that the Appellate Court did not appreciate the peculiarity of the Military Service while passing its Judgment when it ordered for the reinstatement of the Petitioner into the NA.

This is because the Officers Military Services was regulated by provisions of the then Harmonized Terms and Conditions of Service Officers 2012, particularly as it relates to Age Ceiling on a particular rank. The Petitioner who was a Colonel until his retirement in June 2016 is no longer promotable as a result of Age Ceiling and as such makes it difficult to reinstate him, he said.

On the payments of salaries and allowances, the army said he did not work for that period and so cannot be paid.

He, however, said the army has magnanimously granted the petitioner the privilege of retiring with his rank, pension, gratuity, certificate of service and identity card.

Also, the Petitioners request for payment of salaries and allowances over the period he was out of service

and when it is clear to him that he did not work for the period will amount to cheating on the Nigerian Army in particular and the Government of the Federation in general.

The NA. reiterates that it has done the needful by magnanimously granting the Petitioner the privilege to retain his substantive rank of Colonel, Gratuity, Pension, Certificate of Military Service and Retired

Officers Identity Card.

The Petitioners additional request for his reinstatement into the NA and payment of all his salaries and allowances for the period he did not work is difficult because of the peculiarity of Military Service.

 Under the Harmonized Terms and Conditions of Service Officer 2012, particularly Chapter 1 Paragraph 01.04 (0), Military Service of an officer is a period of unbroken Service in the Nigerian Armed Forces

from the date of commissioning to the date of retirement from Service except for Executive Commission/Special Duty/Branch Commission Officers whose Military Service commences from enlistment.

Also, with the chain of Service being broken, it will not be in the interest of the NA and public security to reinstate him to Military Service.

Additionally, Military Service is a Service which ensures that discipline is sustained through regimentation. Therefore, bringing the Petitioner back to Service as a Colonel when his juniors are already on the rank of General will affect Military discipline, as he will not be 100% loyal to his superiors who were formally his juniors; thereby same having a negative effect on the Military command and control. In view of the above, it is in the interest of justice that the NA recommends for the Petitioner to write to the Army Council to convert his Compulsory Retirement to Voluntary Retirement, he said.

Record of disregard for judiciary

The judgement ordering the reinstatement of Mr Hassan is not the only one disregarded by the army.

Many of his 37 colleagues compulsorily retired in 2016 got favourable judgements for their reinstatements but none was obeyed.

Among them are Abdulfatai Mohammed; Auwal Suleiman; Ayigbe Williams, Ojebo Ochanpa (deceased), A Adimoha, T O Oladuntoye, O C Egemole, O U Nwankwo and Bola Labinjo and his wife.

The dismissal and compulsory retirement issues were also deliberated upon by the Federal House of Representatives and the Senate, with a call on the Nigerian Army to reinstate the affected officers.
The police in Ogun say they have arrested a 23-year-old man, Edward Okache, who allegedly faked his abduction with the intention to extort N10 million from his parents.

The police said Mr Okache was nabbed with four others identified as Asamoah Ernest, Isiah Uti, Ephraim Anyijor, and Charity Lukpata who allegedly took part in the fake abduction.

Upon the news of his kidnap, his sister, Comfort Okache, called the Mowe Divisional Headquarters to report that her younger brother, travelling from Calabar to Lagos, had been kidnapped around the Mowe area of Ogun State.

According to the police spokesperson in Ogun, Abimbola Oyeyemi, the kidnappers demanded N10 million before Mr Okaches release.

Upon the report, the DPO of Mowe division, Folake Afeniforo, mobilised the divisions tactical teams to the area, police said.

Mr Oyeyemi said, Upon painstaking and enduring combing of the surrounding bush at Orimerunmu area, the victim was sighted in an uncompleted building with the duo of Asamoah Ernest, a Ghanaian, and Isiah Uti, where he was tied in both hands and legs.

Police rescued the acclaimed victim and arrested the two suspects found with him.

But on getting to the station, the two arrested suspects made a shocking revelation that the so-called victim was the person who planned with them to kidnap him in order for him to extort money from his parents to invest in an online business.

They also reportedly confessed that Mr Okache was introduced to them by Messrs Anyijor and Lukpata, who are both indigenes of Yala Local Government Area of Cross River.

They have all confessed to committing the crime, the police said.

The Commissioner of Police in Ogun, Lanre Bankole, directed that the case be referred to the anti-kidnapping unit of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligent Department (CIID), for discrete investigation and possible prosecution.
Day three of the war crimes trial of Liberian Kunti Kamara was all about setting the scene of Liberias civil war and the history that led up to it for the jury of six French citizens and three judges who will decide this case.

The court heard from three witnesses including French photographer Patrick Robert whose photographs took the war to the world stage and John Stewart, a former commissioner of Liberias Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

In emotional testimony Mr Stewart brought the first real sense of the tremendous suffering Liberians endured during the 14 years of war and the five years of turmoil that proceeded it.

He detailed many of the massacres, starvation and trauma he and fellow commissioners heard during the three years that they heard 22,000 testimonies across the country.

As a journalist during the war Mr Stewart had experienced much of it firsthand. He told the court that two out of every three Liberians had been forced to leave their homes. A million had fled the country.

The crimes committed are too horrific for me to describe in detail but this is what we experienced. It lives in the memories of our people, said Mr Stewart, pausing to regain his composure. We have not forgotten.

Mr Stewart rejected previous testimony from a French photographer who claimed the administration of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf chose not to hold a war crimes court, as the 2008 TRC Report recommended, because it would reopen old wounds.

Mr Stewart said the decision was based solely on the refusal of accused perpetrators  including President Sirleaf to face justice.

The TRCs only really controversial ruling had been to recommend Mrs Sirleaf be barred from holding office for thirty years for her support of Charles Taylors 1989 invasion. (She went on to win a second term as president and the Nobel peace prize.)

Just imagine, Mr Stewart challenged jurors. Senator Prince Johnson  the single most notorious person, with highest number of violations  is in parliament. George Boley, the second highest in terms of atrocities, is in parliament. We were threatened; some commissioners fled the country for their lives. I received so many death threats. All this because they do not want accountability.

Mr Stewart, 69, overcame fatigue from an overnight flight to rail against the culture of impunity that he said has carried into the administration of President George Weah.

Mr Weah has stopped a legislative push to create a Liberian war crimes court. The Weah government, plagued by corruption scandals, saw three top ministers placed on the US Magnitsky Sanctions List in August.

A culture of impunity continues in so many areas, Mr Stewart said. We failed to break this culture of impunity and fear. Because in Liberia human rights are violated with impunity. Journalists go to jail. Free expression is stifled. So for a combination of all these reasons we (the TRC) made these recommendations and because the Liberian people know that these acts will be repeated in the future if there is not accountability.

On cross examination by Kamaras defense lawyer Mr Stewart said he did not know whether Kamara was one of 5,000 perpetrators named in the report or was among others named in the TRC archive of testimonies including some that did not make it to the report.

But he was very clear that if Kamaras name was not among the testimonies, that did not absolve him of the war crimes for which hes accused. The testimonies were not exhaustive, Mr Stewart said. The TRC heard from 22,000 witnesses but he was certain there were many more who did not come forward.

Early in the day the jury heard from Patrick Robert, the veteran French photographer who visited Liberia dozens of times during the wars and whose graphic photographs  particularly of child soldiers  brought the worlds attention to Liberias war.

Mr Robert covered many of the other conflicts roiling the world at the time  the Kuwait war, the fall of the Soviet Union  but in the dozens of trips he took to Liberia nothing seemed to change, he said. The other conflicts were moving fast but this one was not.

Mr Robert detailed the ways in which depravity became routine and even something of which fighters were proud. He told of a fighter who had killed a woman holding a baby and asked him to take a picture of him with the body.

Because the conflict went on so long the situation degenerated, he said. Because the countrys timber and mining resources were under an international embargo the leaders had no choice but to fall into a mafia-like system. Diamonds were the easiest way of extracting wealth and so Taylor stoked a war in neighboring Sierra Leone and tried to do the same in Guinea, he said.

People were starving and desperate, including the combatants. Though Taylors National Patriotic Front for Liberia was not based on any ethnicity, NPFL recruits quickly turned on ethnic Krahn of then-President Samuel Doe and the long-maligned Mandingo.

When the Mandingo formed the United Liberation Movement for Democracy in Liberia (ULIMO) in 1992, the group Kunti Kamara joined, all leaders began using ethnicity as a recruitment tool.

It was no longer soldier to soldier, said Robert. Anyone from an opposing ethnicity was now someone you could kill. Everyone was the opposition. Once you can die because of your ethnicity why wont you fight for it instead of waiting to be killed? he asked rhetorically.

Robert showed the court a photo he had taken of a body with the chest cavity cut open and the heart removed. One of the charges against Kamara alleges he opened the chest of a victim and ate his heart.

Robert told the court he had been told more than once that consuming the heart of a victim was a spiritual practice that allowed the combatant to absorb his victims strength.

The court worked hard to give the jury a detailed and nuanced understanding of the context in which the war took place  a radically different world from which the all-white French jury has come.

A 1996 documentary by French filmmaker Christophe Naigen detailed Liberias history and the failures of the Americo Liberian elite that settled the country in 1822.

The film claimed the Americo Liberians subjugated the Indigenous population for the next 160 years until they were overthrown in a violent coup by an illiterate Indigenous army sergeant Samuel K. Doe.

The documentary and subsequent testimony by French author Thierry Paulais, who wrote a history of Liberia, described the despair most Liberians felt at Does corrupt and incompetent rule by 1989. He said most Liberians initially welcomed the invasion of Charles Taylor that year.

Paulais detailed the essential role of Liberias traditional societies in the depravity that was unleashed by the war. Human sacrifices and sexual violence had long been part of the cultural practices he said.

People ate body parts in initiation ceremonies and in rituals. Consuming an opponents heart meant absorbing his strength.

Paulais told the court that armed groups were fueled by ideas of vengeance. They were also not paid salaries and there were no supply lines, rations or food. Combatants were taught to pay yourself. So they took whatever they could.

When they arrived in a village combatants were vengeful to the civilians which allowed them to mete out extreme violence and objectification on the people.

He told the court that Liberias war was unique in its chaos. It was not an ethnic war in the way the Rwandan genocide was or the long running fighting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, he said. It was much more complicated than other conflicts which was part of the reason it went on so long.

The defendant, Kunti Kamara, was silent throughout todays proceedings, almost forgotten in the historic discussion of his country. Thursdays session will bring the focus squarely back to him with the testimonies of four Liberian witnesses including his accusers.

This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the West Africa Justice Reporting Project.
Gunmen have killed three members of the Anambra Vigilante Group (AVG) in Igbo-Ukwu, a community in Aguata Local Government Area of the state.

The incident happened on Sunday evening.

The victims were said to have gone to a bar in Nkwo Market of the community when the gunmen opened fire on them.

The gunmen reportedly shot two of the victims while they were drinking at the entrance of the bar, before shooting the third victim inside the bar.

One of the victims, identified simply as Shaba, was a senior officer with the AVG.

Sources said Shaba was a member of the Ebubeagu Security Network, a South-east security outfit which has been accused of extrajudicial killings in the region.

Other sources claimed that it was a retaliatory attack carried out by members of a kidnapping syndicate whose leader was reportedly exposed by Shabas team recently.

When contacted, the police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, confirmed the killing of the vigilante operatives.

He said the police had launched an operation to track down the the attackers.

Patrols have also been intensified within Aguata and its environs. Further development shall be communicated, said Mr Ikenga, a deputy superintendent of police.

Increased attacks

Attacks by gunmen have increased in the South-east in recent times.

The attacks often target security agencies, government officials and facilities.

The latest attack comes less than two weeks after gunmen killed five soldiers in Umunze, a community in Orumba South Local Government Area of the state.

The Nigerian government has accused the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied their involvement in the attacks.

The separatist group is leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of the South-south Nigeria.

The leader of the group, Nnamdi Kanu, is detained in Abuja where he is facing trial for terrorism.
The Labour Party (LP) is set to officially begin its presidential campaign in Nasarawa State, on 18 October.

The Chairman of the party in the state, Alexander Emmanuel, told journalists at a press conference on Thursday in Lafia that arrangements had been concluded for the exercise.

According to him, the party chose Nasarawa for the presidential campaign flag off due to the support the people of the state have shown to its presidential candidate, Peter Obi and his running mate, Yusuf Ahmed-Datti.

He commended the partys supporters across the country for their efforts thus far in canvassing more support for the Obi/Datti ticket.

Just like how other states of the country have been massively supporting the Labour partys presidential candidate, Nasarawa State was the first to organise street march in support of the Obi/Datti ticket.

And I think that should be the reason the LPs national leadership choose Nasarawa state for the campaign flag off on 18 October, 2022, he said.

Mr Emmanuel said they were putting finishing touches to arrangement to ensure a hitch-free campaign flag off, adding that party supporters and other Nigerians were expected from across the country to grace the occasion.

So, I am urging everyone who have been yearning for a better Nigeria to come out in their numbers to welcome Obi/ Datti to Lafia on Tuesday, October 18, he said.

The state chairman expressed optimism that the LP would win the 2023 general election given the confidence of Nigerians in Mr Obi and other candidates to turn things around for the better in the country.

(NAN)
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has called for an urgent improvement in access to clean water, proper sanitation, and hygiene to stop the recurring outbreaks of cholera in the country.

NCDC, in a public health advisory sent to PREMIUM TIMES Thursday, noted that a total of 233 Cholera deaths and 2,187 confirmed cases have been recorded between 1 January to 25 September 2022.

The disease control centre, which is leading the national response to the ongoing outbreak explained that the rise in Cholera cases in Nigeria has been exacerbated by limited access to clean water and sanitation facilities, open defecation and poor hygiene practices.

The centre noted that the risk of cholera transmission is higher in areas that lack adequate sanitation facilities and a regular supply of clean water, adding that without proper Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Nigeria will continue to be at risk of cholera outbreaks along with the associated suffering and deaths.

The last NCDC situation report for Cholera, spanning 1 August to 4 September, shows that 13 states of the federation accounted for 92 per cent of all cases recorded in 2022.

Yobe, Borno and Taraba States topped the infection chart, followed by Cross River and Katsina State.

NCDC intervention, collaboration

NCDC further disclosed that due to the recent increase in cholera cases, the multi-sectoral National Cholera Technical Working Group (TWG) in collaboration with partners has been supporting affected states in risk communication, active case search, case management, and WASH interventions.

It noted that the NCDC-led multisectoral TWG includes representation from the Federal Ministries of Environment and Water Resources, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.

NCDC and its partners have supported the affected states with commodities for case management and laboratory diagnosis, materials for risk communications, and response guidelines among other things.

However, medical interventions alone are not sufficient to address the root causes of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH)  of cholera outbreaks, it added.

Prevention

NCDC further emphasised that the long-term solution for cholera control lies in access to safe drinking water, maintenance of proper sanitation (especially the discontinuation of open defecation) and the practice of hygiene.

We continue to advocate State Governments to prioritise action for solutions that ensure access to and use of safe water, basic sanitation, and proper hygiene practices in communities, it noted.

The NCDC also urged Nigerians to keep their environments clean, use water that is boiled and stored safely, ensure food is cooked and stored in a clean and safe environment, avoid open defecation, and wash their hands regularly with soap and running water.

Cholera is preventable and treatable; however, it can be deadly when infected people do not access care immediately. Nigerians are advised to visit a health facility immediately if they have sudden onset of profuse watery diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, and weakness, it added.
A Federal High Court in Dutse, Jigawa State, on Thursday, struck out a N36 billion corruption case against a former governor of the state, Saminu Turaki.

The trial judge, Hassan Dikko, struck out the case over lack of diligence prosecution by the prosecutor, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Mr Turaki appeared at the court Thursday morning to face the 32-count corruption charge filed against him and his co-defendants 14 years ago.

The prosecution counsel was absent during Thursdays session.

The defence counsel, Michael Aondoakaa, pleaded with the court to strike out the case against the first defendant (Mr Turaki) for lack of diligent prosecution since neither the prosecution counsel nor the witness was in the court on Thursday when the matter came up.

Mr Aondoakaa, a former minister of justice and attorney-general of the federation, argued that the Thursday sitting was the sixth adjournment since the case was brought before the court and the EFCC has neither appeared nor given reasons for its absence.

The defence counsel pleaded with the court to strike out the charges against the former governor because the prosecution was not ready to proceed with the case.

The judge, Mr Dikko, in his ruling, struck out the case and discharged the first defendant, Mr Turaki, and ordered the prosecution (the EFCC) to do the needful when they are ready to proceed with the case.

The EFCCs spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, told PREMIUM TIMES that the anti-corruption agency will study the court ruling before it will come out with a definite stance on the case against the former governor.

Stalled for 14 years

Mr Turaki, who served a two-term as governor of Jigawa from 1999 to 2007, was first arraigned by the EFCC before Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja on 13 July 2007 on a 32-count charge of misappropriating N36 billion while in office.

Following his arraignment, he was granted bail in the sum of N100 million.

In 2011, the case was transferred to the Federal High Court, Dutse, after Mr Turaki successfully challenged the territorial jurisdiction of the Federal High Court in Abuja to hear the case.

He was subsequently re-arraigned on the same 32-count charge at the Dutse Division of the Federal High Court.

Due to the repeated absence of Mr Turaki from the court, the case was stalled for years, until he ran out of luck when EFCC arrested him on 4 July 2017 at an event in Abuja.

While the EFCC was trying to get a date for his trial before the court in Dutse, the annual vacation of Federal High Court judges started. EFCC was then confronted with the risk of holding the former governor in custody beyond the constitutionally permissible period.

Since he was arrested in Abuja, Mr Turaki quickly filed a rights enforcement suit before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, in Abuja, seeking to be released from the anti-graft agencys custody.

The EFCC opposed the suit arguing that Mr Turaki would again jump bail, based on his antecedence of jumping bail granted him by the Federal High Court in Dutse in 2011, and evading the arrest warrant subsequently issued by the same court.

Despite EFCCs objection, Yusuf Halilu of the FCT High Court granted bail to the ex-governor on conditions that he should submit his travelling documents to the registry of the court, produce two reasonable sureties residing in Abuja, and routinely sign a register to be opened at the EFCCs office every two weeks.

Reluctant to release Mr Turaki as ordered by the court, EFCC quickly charged him at Federal High Court to the Abuja division, which was the only division a judge was appointed to entertain all urgent cases from the entire northern region.

Mr Turaki pleaded not guilty to the 32 counts again and was again granted bail by the judge, Nnamdi Dimgba.

On 18 July 2017, the judge granted him bail in the sum of N500million with two sureties in the sum of N250million each.

Among other bail conditions, the judge directed Mr Turaki to report to the EFCCs headquarters on the first working day of every month.

The case was then transferred to the Dutse Division after Mr Turaki met the bail conditions, and Mr Dimgba signed the order for his release from custody.

Since then, the case has not made any progress due to Mr Turakis repeated absence from court until today(Thursday) when the court struck out the case on the ground of lack of due diligence from the EFCC.
Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu (OON), a foremost investor with specialization in strategy, threat assessment, risk analysis, integrated security systems, procurement, and training, just bagged the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON). President Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR) conferred this on him, alongside 441 other Nigerians and seven foreigners on 11 October 2022, in recognition of contributions to national development.

The awardees, drawn from different sectors of the economy and segments of the society, represent the best of talents, selfless leaders, patriots and believers in the Nigerian aspiration, in this round of national honours. To be privileged in receiving a national honour, from amongst more than 200 million Nigerians is no small feat.

Everyone honoured has worked tirelessly in their own capacity, many out of public limelight for decades, playing their own roles in defending the honour and glory of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In this class of awardees are Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (GCON), the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General; Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (Rtd) (CFR), the Comptroller-General of Customs and; Alhaji Abdullahi Abubakar (MON), the Imam that sheltered over 300 Christians against an angry mob. For more than thirty years, Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu (OON) has worked in the private sector to provide jobs for hundreds of people.

Beyond business, Alhaji Saleh is an exceptional philanthropist with great passion for involvement in life- impacting projects, which have provided economic empowerment for many rural communities, created employment opportunities and alleviated poverty. His support for religious groups has contributed to ethno-religious peace, tolerance, love and respect.

In addition to this, Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu (OON), the Chairman of Trade Modernisation Project (TMP) Limited, is committing over $3 Billion in private funding, in partnership with Huawei and Africa Finance Corporation, to enhance the revenue diversification drive of the Federal Government. Premium Times previously reported on how the Nigeria Customs Modernisation Project, being implemented by TMP, as a Public Private Partnership contract, will generate well over $176 Billion for the Federal Government, over 20 years.

Prior to this leap of faith in the Nigerian economy, Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu (OON) invested in the Aviation, National Security, Cybersecurity and Intelligence sectors. He has worked with different national and international security organisations. Alhaji Saleh has also coordinated transnational security partnerships, by building an extensive network of trusted global partners, in formal and informal circles. He has done this within an ecosystem that promotes global peace and security initiatives.

National honours are designed for individuals like Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu (OON), who not only excel in their careers and private lives, but go beyond their comfort to give back to their communities and country. A deserving recognition for a silent hero who continues to work out of the public limelight, the 2022 national honours continues a tradition of inspiring patriotism and endless commitment to the progress of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
As the fate of Zamfara State Governor, Mr Bello Mohammed Matawalle hangs in the balance over his eligibility or otherwise for the 2023 governorship election, palpable anxiety appears to have set in within his camp in the state. Matawalle is seeking re-election for second term of four years on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara State.

There is a pending case at the Federal High Court, Gusau where the plaintiffs are seeking Matawalles disqualification from the race over alleged perjury arising from certificate forgery and age falsification. As the campaigns for the election commence, some of the governors supporters have been accused of launching offensives against those suspected to be masterminds of the law suit seeking his disqualification. Available information in the state indicate that the governor has set out to clampdown on the opposition especially the dissenting voices suspected to pose a threat to his quest for the realization of his second term ambition. Even some well-meaning patriots in the state who are not active political players have not been spared as they have fallen victims of the unwarranted onslaught.

We are well aware how the Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the Governor, CSP Ibrahim N. Angbasa allegedly abandons his primary responsibilities to serve as the bulwark against those presumed to constitute threats against the Governors second term ambition. Among the methods being deployed are arbitrary prosecutions of opposition elements on phantom charges, arrest of social critics and threats to the freedom, safety and even life of anyone suspected to be opposed to the return of the Governor come 2023. The practices have been likened to the undemocratic methods witnessed under the military regimes of the past era. Howbeit, the governor seems to have transformed into an archetypal maximum ruler dressed in a false democratic robe.

It is public knowledge that Mr Matawalle has been dragged before the Federal High Court, Gusau on account of suspected false affidavit sworn to by him as it relates to Constitutional requirements of eligibility and in contravention of Electoral Act as amended in 2022. The case was instituted by Muazu Mannir Haidara and Incorporated Trustee of Majalisar Matasan Arewa Association.

Since the filling of the said suit, the Governor has become restless and irritant and has ordered the Chief Security Officer to track and deal with any threats against his second term bid. The desperation led to the illegal co-opting of the IGP Special Tactical Squad (STS) to carry out the arrest and detention of those perceived to be stumbling blocks to the governors precarious second term ambition.

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In the course of the said claampdown mission, operatives have allegedly arrested one Bashir Dahiru Umar, the Head of ICT at the National Examination Council (NECO), Headquarters, Minna, Niger State, for purportedly refusing to delete the 2018 academic record Governor Matawalle from the NECO server. Up to this day, he is still allegedly detained illegally at the Police Barracks, Constitution Road, Kaduna.

Furthermore, the Governor has been accused of using the instrumentality of his Chief Security Officers office to arrest and summarily detain several opposition elements using willing judges in the State Magistrate and High Courts. Some of the victims have not been traced. As I write this, one of the Governors critics and a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Zamfara State, Mr Mugira Yusuf is allegedly being tracked for arrest and detention by the CSO and his men for no offence other than having a dissenting view against the Governor.

In view of the foregoing and other unlawful acts, we call on the IGP to redeploy the CSO to the Zamfara State Governor, CSP Ibrahim N. Angbasa. He has compromised his oath of allegiance by becoming too partisan to be left unchecked. He constitutes a threat to democratic tenets and freedom of speech in the state. We have also started monitoring the activities of the Police Commissioner in the state. In the same vein, we urge the IGP to order for the immediate release of the NECO Head of ICT who is allegedly being detained illegally on the instruction of the Governor. We shall also monitor continuously if anything should happen to the NECO Head of ICT and the records of the Governor at the NECO headquarters.

Equally, we call for the transfer of the case regarding the false affidavit to Federal High Court Abuja where it was originally filed to guarantee the safety of the plaintiffs, counsels and witnesses.

As a coalition of balanced Civil Society Groups who are deeply concerned about good governance and safeguarding of our thriving democracy. It is our patriotic duty to consistently frown at tyranny and doggedly fight against any threat to freedom of our citizenry. We therefore use this medium to call on the Governor to honorably resign from Office in order to allow for justice to be speedily dispensed with. Furthermore, judging from the contradictory academic records of the Governor, we call on the APC to deploy its internal disciplinary mechanism by expelling him from their fold if pronounced guilty in order not to associate the ruling party with impunity and illegality.

On the heels of the foregoing, we are using this medium to call on the United Nations (UN), Amnesty International, National Democratic Institute (NDI), United States and United Kingdom to beam their searchlights on the ongoing undemocratic conduct and tyranny in Zamfara State as a way of safeguarding democracy and free choice. We trust that all true patriots and defenders of democracy will rise in opposition to the ongoing fiendish activities in Zamfara State.

 Tanimu Salihu Mafara, the Chairman of

Zamfara Alternative Forum wrote from Gusau on behalf of the forum.
The Kogi State Government on Wednesday responded to Dangote Industries Limiteds insistence on 100 per cent ownership of Obajana Cement Company, saying that DILs efforts at making Kogi States demand appear unreasonable had only justified the states protest against what it described as callous and deliberate asset grabbing.

The state government maintained that Obajana Cement Company was solely founded in 1992 and owned by the state, which held 100 per cent of its shareholding in trust for its people, long before DIL ventured into the state and longer still before Dangote Cement Plc came into existence.

In a detailed response to Dangote Groups advertorial, titled, Separating Facts From Fiction, the Kogi State Government noted that successive administrations had always invited Dangote Industries Limited and Dangote Cement Plc to prove that the Group paid anything at all for the purported acquisition of Obajana and its alleged 100 per cent ownership, but each time, DIL and DCP have woefully failed to do so.

In the response titled, Separating Acquisition From Asset-Grabbing, the Kogi State Government disclosed that it took a loan of at least 15million Deutsche Marks to conduct feasibility assessments, which confirmed the existence of those vast limestone deposits that DIL found so enticing years later.

Sadly, for over a decade after DIL and DCP started posting profits from the operations of the Obajana plant, the Kogi State Government was still labouring to pay off the said loan and interests accruing thereon, the statement highlighted.

The Kogi State Government said in the interest of humanity and truth, it was pertinent to ask the questions: How come years after DIL and DCP claim they acquired 100 per cent of the equity and assets of Obajana Cement Plc, Kogi State officials were still listed as shareholders of the company, holding shares for and on behalf of the people of Kogi State in filings made by DIL and DCP at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC)?

Is the above not evidence that DIL and DCP which do not deny that Kogi State invited them to invest in Obajana Cement Plc in the first place, are lying when they defend their rapacity and duplicity by claiming that Kogi State allegedly abandoned her allotted shares and was subsequently kicked out of the company she founded by them, thereby allegedly extinguishing all rights and interests of Kogi State and her people in the operations of the company?

By what rules of corporate acquisitions or even buy-outs are DIL and DCP operating in their highhanded dealings with Kogi State and people? At what point was DIL and DCP able to raise money and Kogi State Government not able to raise money to take up their allotments, resulting in the alleged transfer of Kogis shares in Obajana to DIL/DCP?

Which money or consideration did DIL provide in 2002 for the alleged acquisition of the 90 per cent equity in Obajana Cement Plc, which used to be vested in the Kogi State Government and what money or consideration did DIL and DCP pay in 2003 to acquire the remaining 10 per cent of Kogis shares in Obajana Cement Plc?

The state government invited Nigerians and all persons of goodwill everywhere to ruminate on the issues raised and draw conclusions on the ways and manner in which DIL and DCP have shamelessly gone about their conspiracy to dispossess Kogi State and her people of their rightful assets.
SINGAPORE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Azentio Software is delighted and proud to announce that it has been chosen as the winner of the 'Best Industry Cloud ERP Provider' award at the prestigious ICT Leadership Awards 2022, for its next-generation industry cloud enterprise resource planning solution - Azentio ONEERP.

The award was formally presented to Azentio at a ceremony held at the Conrad Hotel in Dubai, UAE on Tuesday, October 11th. The aim of the award programme, organised by CXO Insight Middle East, is to spotlight organisations that are making smart business decisions with emerging technologies and fueling the growth of the ICT sector in the region.

Azentio ONEERP is a highly scalable industry platform built future-ready with an API integrated industry ecosystem, delivered and supported with robust customer-focused models. Built on a state-of-the-art cloud platform, ONEERP provides industry cloud solutions that are engineered with best-in-class standards in financial and operational process management. Azentio's award-winning ERP solution provides integrated insights and visibility, high flexibility, resource optimization, and strong customer service support with best practices; all incorporated in a single ERP system, helping organisations gain resilience and real-time agility, and positioning them for growth.

Azentio's Chief Executive Officer, Tony Kinnear, commented, "As always, we are proud to see our cutting-edge solutions and products continue to get global recognition. Our winning ONEERP Cloud is a one-of-a-kind robust product that enables one source of truth for real-time data and business information, and automates essential business workflows across multiple industries efficiently." Kinnear later added, "Evaluating, selecting, and implementing a new Cloud ERP solution is a long-term strategic decision for the growth of any organisation. This win testifies to the strength of our product, its scalable architecture that enables future growth, and our commitment to continuous innovation."

Jeevan Thankappan, Managing Editor at CXO Insight Middle East, stated, "An independent panel of judges has chosen Azentio as the top performing industry-fit Cloud ERP solution offering best-in-class features to help businesses meet evolving customer demands, confirming yet again its leadership in the global ERP market."

Azentio's newest launch, ONEERP Cloud can be defined as a modern, fully unified and collaborative system that sets the stage for digital transformation. It enables innovation, optimises resources, and streamlines operations.

Being compatible with Industry 4.0, ONEERP Cloud possesses top-of-the-line capabilities to integrate diversified processes, connecting smart machines, logistics systems, production facilities and others. This is managed by linked devices with supporting meaningful data being collected for faster decision-making. ONEERP integrated smart system also utilises the capabilities of other code and no-code systems through integrations to support and extend functionalities. Technically reverberant, the software works with multiple cloud platform-agnostic considering OCI, AWS, and other cloud platforms. The multi-tenancy adds to its benefits by providing exclusive tenancy for a tenant in Azentio Cloud.

About Azentio Software

Azentio Software provides mission critical, vertical-specific software products for clients in banking, financial services, insurance, and ERP segments. The company has over 1,000 clients in more than 65 countries with a team of over 2,500 employees across offices in 9 countries globally. Azentio Software Private Limited is wholly owned by funds advised by Apax Partners.

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1712686/Azentio_Software_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Azentio Software Pvt Ltd
Grant Supports Local Suicide Prevention Efforts for Veterans and Their Families

AUGUSTA, Ga., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is continuing its mission of preventing veteran suicide by working with community organizations across the country, including the work of America's Warrior Partnership's (AWP) community branches.

Through the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program (SSG Fox SPGP), AWP was awarded $750,000 from VA to proactively support veterans on the Navajo Nation, in the Permian Basin area of Texas and New Mexico, the Florida Panhandle, Indianapolis, IN, and across the state of Alaska.

"We look forward to making an enhanced difference in the lives of veterans across the country before they are in crisis," said Jim Lorraine, the president and CEO of America's Warrior Partnership. "I'm proud of our team's vision for improving our veteran communities and excited to see the enhanced outcomes of this program. We congratulate our affiliate partners Upstate Warrior Solution serving Greenville, SC and Veterans One-stop Center of Western New York serving Buffalo, NY who were also awarded the VA Suicide Prevention grant."

The SSG Fox SPGP is a pilot, community-based grant program that will provide financial assistance to eligible entities to provide or coordinate suicide prevention services to eligible veterans and their families. Eligible entities have been awarded one-year, renewable funding. With its SSG Fox SPGP award, AWP plans to provide suicide prevention services to veterans in regions of the country in critical need of support.

About America's Warrior Partnership

America's Warrior Partnership is committed to empowering communities to empower veterans. At a national level, the AWP Network fills the gaps between veteran service organizations by helping nonprofits connect with veterans, their families, and caregivers via our WarriorServe proprietary technology platform. On a local level, the five community branches utilize AWP's proven Community Integration Model to work with local organizations, leadership and stakeholders to create a collaborative and cohesive structure of engagement and support for veterans, their families and caregivers. The holistic, one size-fits-one Model, is currently used in communities across the country. It has served to date over 58,000 veterans, and many more when including family members and caregivers, resulting in an estimated economic impact of over $302 million. The approach is a Four-Step Plan to connect, educate, advocate, and collaborate with both veterans and their communities. Our programs bolster nonprofit efficacy, improving their results, and empowering their initiatives. Preventing veteran suicide is the singular outcome of America's Warrior Partnership's work. For more information on America's Warrior Partnership visit https://www.americaswarriorpartnership.org . Information on the SSG Fox SPGP can be found at https://www.mentalhealth.va.gov/ssgfox-grants/ .

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, contact the Veterans Crisis Line to receive free, confidential support and crisis intervention available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Dial 988 then Press 1, chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat, or text 838255.

Reporters covering this issue can download VA's Safe Messaging Best Practices fact sheet or visit www.ReportingOnSuicide.org for important guidance on how to communicate about suicide.

SOURCE Americas Warrior Partnership
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Systems Planning and Analysis (SPA), Inc., is pleased to announce that Mr. Andrew Pahutski has joined the company as Vice President for Economic Security Programs. Mr. Pahutski will focus on expanding SPA's portfolio in the areas of economic security and international foreign direct investment.

Mr. Pahutski joins SPA after 27 years of combined civilian and military service. As a member of the Senior Executive Service, he held various leadership positions across the Office of Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Army. Most recently he served as Director, Foreign Investment Review, in the office of the Under Secretary of Acquisition and Sustainment Industrial Base Policy. In this capacity he served as both senior advisor to the Secretary of Defense and the Department of Defense's representative to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. Reviews are conducted on behalf of the President of the United States.

"Andrew brings an extraordinary depth of experience, expertise, and mission understanding that perfectly suits our commitment to high quality services," commented Dr. William Vantine, SPA President and CEO. "We are excited to welcome him in support of SPA's ongoing mission to protect the Nation's economic security, both domestic and abroad, from adversarial influence."

Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc. is a premier international provider of innovative, leading-edge solutions in support of complex National Security programs and defense priorities. SPA's capabilities include Advanced Analytics, Cost Estimating, Software Tool Development, System Engineering, DevSecOps, Strategy, Policy and Compliance, and Integrated Program Management. SPA employees are subject matter experts in numerous domains, including Land, Undersea, Surface and Air Warfare Operations; Intelligence Community, Radar and Sensor Systems; Unmanned Systems and Counter Systems; Nuclear Deterrence Policy, Safety and Security; Defense Industrial Base; Space Systems; Ballistic Missile Systems; Cybersecurity analysis and policy; and Hypersonics.

SOURCE Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc.
"It is very important to provide the market with this seven-year data so that carriers will have a more balanced perspective and price risk within the context of long-term trends," said George Hosfield, senior director of home insurance at LexisNexis Risk Solutions. "Given the unpredictable nature of extreme weather events like Hurricane Ian and their impact on catastrophic claims, as well as unforeseen events such as the COVID-19 public health crisis, carriers simply cannot afford to assess their books of business with limited or skewed data."

Louisiana, Texas, Colorado and Nebraska experience highest loss costs

While All Peril combined loss cost was down in 2021, Weather-Related Water, Non-Weather Water, Theft and Other perils loss cost increased in 2021. In particular, the frequency of Weather-Related Water claims soared by 329% in 2021, and the frequency of those catastrophic claims rose 222% driven, in part, by the February storm in Texas that left many with broken pipes. Hailstorms in Texas, hurricanes in Louisiana and fires in California and Colorado contributed to the majority of catastrophe claims in 2021. Louisiana and Texas experienced the highest loss cost in 2021, followed by Colorado and Nebraska, which had the highest loss cost on average from 2015 to 2021.

Theft peril severity and loss cost reverse a five-year decline

The U.S. Home Trends Report also analyzed pre- and post-COVID-19 trends. As more people returned to the office, Theft peril severity and loss cost rose, reversing a five-year decline. Conversely, Liability peril continued its downward trajectory with loss cost decreasing 13% and severity down 23%. As noted in the report, the large decrease overall could be a continuation of the pandemic effects from 2020, when there were fewer social interactions and decreased legal system availability. A multitude of additional byproducts of the pandemic such as upticks in worker absences likely due to variants and sub-variants, ongoing supply chain issues, material shortages and rising home rebuilding costs all had significant impacts on homeowners and home insurers.

Additional key findings by peril from the LexisNexis Home Trends Report include:

Wind : Wind loss cost decreased 35% and frequency decreased 36% from 2020 to 2021, while severity increased 2%. Loss cost and severity peaked in August 2021 , driven by Hurricane Henri, Hurricane Ida and several tropical storms. i

: Wind loss cost decreased 35% and frequency decreased 36% from 2020 to 2021, while severity increased 2%. Loss cost and severity peaked in , driven by Hurricane Henri, Hurricane Ida and several tropical storms. Hail : Loss cost of Hail claims decreased by 18% from 2020 to 2021, with 55% of Hail claims occurring in the second quarter. For the year, the U.S. experienced 3,763 major hailstorms. ii

: Loss cost of Hail claims decreased by 18% from 2020 to 2021, with 55% of Hail claims occurring in the second quarter. For the year, the U.S. experienced 3,763 major hailstorms. Fire and Lightning : In 2021, loss cost for Fire and Lightning decreased, but the severity of claims remained at a similar level to that of 2020. Colorado accounted for 42% of catastrophe Fire and Lightning losses in 2021, up from 1.2% in 2020, while California only accounted for 16%, down 75% from 2020.

: In 2021, loss cost for Fire and Lightning decreased, but the severity of claims remained at a similar level to that of 2020. accounted for 42% of catastrophe Fire and Lightning losses in 2021, up from 1.2% in 2020, while only accounted for 16%, down 75% from 2020. Non-Weather-Related Water: Non-Weather-Related Water loss cost increased 8% and frequency increased 2% from 2020 to 2021, while severity also increased 6%. California had the highest loss cost in 2021, 10% higher than Arizona .

"When we speak to the benefit of looking at trends within a seven-year context as opposed to simply a one-year snapshot, combined Wind and Hail peril data are a prime example of how home insurers can be caught flat-footed without the right amount of data in their arsenal," said Hosfield. "Certainly, it's a positive for insurers that Wind and Hail had decreases in loss cost for 2021 when compared to 2020, but the seven-year trend indicates an average increase of 18% per year. This is just one example that home insurance carriers should keep in mind to help meet loss-ratio objectives and growth targets, as well as to help gain a deeper understanding of the risk associated with a particular location."

Download the latest LexisNexis U.S. Home Trends Report.

About LexisNexis Risk Solutions

LexisNexis Risk Solutions harnesses the power of data and advanced analytics to provide insights that help businesses and governmental entities reduce risk and improve decisions to benefit people around the globe. We provide data and technology solutions for a wide range of industries including insurance, financial services, healthcare and government. Headquartered in metro Atlanta, Georgia, we have offices throughout the world and are part of RELX (LSE: REL/NYSE: RELX), a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers. For more information, please visit www.risk.lexisnexis.com, and www.relx.com.

Media Contacts:

Chas Strong

LexisNexis Risk Solutions

Phone: +1.706.714.7083

[email protected]

Donna Armstrong

Brodeur Partners for LexisNexis Risk Solutions

Phone: +1.646.746.5611

[email protected]

i "2021 Atlantic Hurricane Season", Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_Atlantic_hurricane_season

ii "Facts + Statistics: Hail," Insurance Information Institute, 2022, https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-hail

SOURCE LexisNexis Risk Solutions
BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company", NYSE: BHLB) and Berkshire Bank (the "Bank") announced today that Subhadeep Basu, Chief Financial Officer of the Company and the Bank, has resigned effective October 7, 2022, for personal reasons and to subsequently pursue other career interests. Mr. Basu has agreed to be available as an advisor to the Company to assist with transition matters through December 31, 2022.

The Company and Berkshire Bank have appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer Brett Brbovic, age 42, as Interim Chief Financial Officer, effective October 7, 2022, and is in the process of searching for a new Chief Financial Officer through an executive search process. Mr. Brbovic first joined the Company and Berkshire Bank from KPMG LLP in 2012 as Vice President and Controller and has served as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer since 2015.

Berkshire CEO Nitin Mhatre stated, "We're grateful for the contributions that Subhadeep has made in his service as CFO, and we wish him well in his future pursuits. Our Company has made strong financial progress during his tenure. Our leadership is committed to maintaining the momentum of our BEST strategic transformation and our entire Berkshire team is focused on our goal to be a high-performing, leading socially responsible community bank. Brett Brbovic is a Berkshire veteran with a solid history and I'm confident in his leadership of our financial team through this transition. We have retained the firm Spencer Stuart to conduct a national search process for the CFO position."

Mr. Basu added, "I am proud to have been part of Berkshire and working with a wonderful group of people. I am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to work together with Nitin, the Board and the team to help Berkshire progress to where it is now. My best wishes to the Berkshire team for continued success."

Mr. Mhatre also noted, "There have been no changes to the 2022 financial guidance that we provided in our last earnings call. We look forward to releasing our third quarter results as scheduled on October 20, 2022."

ABOUT BERKSHIRE HILLS BANCORP

Berkshire Hills Bancorp is the parent of Berkshire Bank . The Bank's goal is to be a high-performing, leading socially responsible community bank in New England, Upstate New York, and beyond. Berkshire Bank provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, wealth management, and investment services. Headquartered in Boston, Berkshire has approximately $11.6 billion in assets and operates 100 financial centers in New England and New York, and is a member of the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index. To learn more, call 800-773-5601 or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This document contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. You can identify these statements from the use of the words "may," "will," "should," "could," "would," "plan," "potential," "estimate," "project," "believe," "intend," "anticipate," "expect," "target" and similar expressions. There are many factors that could cause actual results to differ significantly from expectations described in the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of such factors, please see Berkshire's most recent reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect our expectations only as of the date of this document. Berkshire does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements.

CONTACTS

Investor Relations Contacts

Kevin Conn, SVP, Investor Relations & Corporate Development

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (617) 641-9206

David Gonci, Capital Markets Director

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (413) 281-1973

Media Contact:

Gary Levante, SVP, Corporate Responsibility & Communications

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (413) 447-1737

SOURCE Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.
CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BPOC , one of the longest-tenured healthcare private equity firms, announced today that it has been named to Inc.'s 2022 Founder-Friendly Investors List , honoring private equity and venture capital firms that have a track record of successfully backing founder-led businesses.

To compile the list, Inc. went straight to the source: entrepreneurs who have sold to private equity or venture capital firms. Founders detailed their experiences partnering with private equity and venture capital firms and shared data on how their portfolio companies have grown during these partnerships.

"BPOC's leadership team understands the commitment founders make to grow their businesses and works alongside them to achieve scalable growth in line with a founder's vision. We have a storied history of investing in founder-led businesses, often as the first source of outside capital for many entrepreneurs. This recognition from Inc. is a testament to our transparent and collegial approach as we strive to accelerate growth by investing in infrastructure, implementing operational improvements and connecting founders with our extensive network of industry experts," said Greg Moerschel, Managing Partner at BPOC. "We are honored to be named among such an elite group of investment firms and proud that the founders we partner with recognize our commitment to match their sense of purpose and drive throughout the entirety of the investment."

BPOC seeks to provide founders with strategic value-add services beyond capital resources, ensuring that all aspects of a founder's legacy are protected and strengthened. The firm's investment in operational improvement, technologies and operational expertise allows founder-led businesses to accelerate and scale growth, all while the company's management team retains the independence to lead the business they have built.

"From the initial investment, BPOC was an ideal partner to Paragon Medical, helping us reach the next phase of growth with significant operating expansion, investment in advanced equipment, and strategic planning with executive placements," said Toby Buck, CEO and Founder of Paragon Medical, a leading outsourced orthopedic contract manufacturing organization, and the company for which BPOC was named to the list. "BPOC's goal is to work alongside management to elevate companies to the next stage of growth, and we are proud to have worked side-by-side with the firm in the true spirit of partnership, building on Paragon's strong foundation."

The final list recognizes firms that entrepreneurs collaborate with and trust as they receive the financial support they need to help drive growth. All have successful track records of remaining actively involved with the businesses they invest in. In its fourth year, this year's list brought in Inc.'s most competitive applicant pool, featuring both private equity and venture capital firms across industry sectors.

To see the complete list, go to: https://www.inc.com/founder-friendly-investors/2022

Introduced in 2019, the Founder-Friendly Private Equity Firms list quickly established itself as one of Inc.'s most resourceful franchises. It has become a go-to guide for entrepreneurs who want to grow their companies while retaining an ownership stake.

ABOUT BPOC

Founded in 1996, BPOC is a Chicago-based private equity firm that invests exclusively in healthcare companies and is one of the nation's most experienced investors in the industry having raised five funds with total capital commitments of nearly $1.8 billion. BPOC has invested in numerous provider, manufacturing, outsourcing, distribution and information technology companies through growth equity, management buyouts and leveraged recapitalizations. For more information, visit www.bpoc.com .

ABOUT INC.

The world's most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community they need to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com .

The "Founder-Friendly Investors" award is a program designed by Inc. Magazine to help founder-led companies accelerate growth and create revenue. Private equity and venture capital firms that have exited U.S.-based, founder-led portfolio companies are eligible to apply. For investments to qualify, portfolio company founders must have remained actively involved in their business for at least one year post-investment. Winning firms are selected based upon their track record, reputation, leadership and founder references. BPOC is not aware of the number of advisers also surveyed for the award. Like all entrants, BPOC paid a fee to be considered for this award and pays a fee to Inc. Magazine to use the collateral associated with the use of the award. This award is not to be construed as indicative of BPOC's future performance. Reference to an award is only one piece of information relevant to an evaluation of an investment adviser such as BPOC. Finally, this award represents information as of a specific date and time and may not reflect important information related to an evaluation of the investment adviser which has occurred prior to, or subsequent to, the award.

CONTACT:

Alex Nye

M: 814 671 7497

E: [email protected]

SOURCE BPOC
CINCINNATI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Brikl , an online store technology that helps distributors, dealers, promotional businesses, and suppliers set up branded web stores, is proud to announce that Tiffany Kirksey has joined Brikl as its Director of Operations.

Prior to joining Brikl, Tiffany worked for Foot Locker for almost 24 years. During her Foot Locker career, Tiffany worked closely with development, search and data, infrastructure, eCommerce website production issues, and data security.

Brikl Appoints Foot Locker's Tiffany Kirksey as its Director of Operations

Her latest role was as the Senior Manager of Team Sales Marketing, where she managed the team store platform. By maintaining and working with developers on new enhancements and troubleshooting production issues, Tiffany and her team managed over 7,000 team stores per year for schools, clubs, and partnerships.

Tiffany states, "I am thrilled to be joining the Brikl team, a team that is leading the next generation of MicroStore technology! I look forward to learning more and working closely with the entire team. I can't wait to help make a difference by sharing my industry knowledge to help our clients and our platform grow."

"Tiffany brings unparalleled industry experience to Brikl's operations with a unique insight into backend and frontend solutions, from data security to driving value for businesses in our market," Jason Reinhardt comments. "So, not only does she have her ear to the ground when it comes to industry pain points, but she's able to bring pragmatic solutions to the table when it comes to our technology.

Maarten Boone, CEO of Brikl, comments, "We couldn't be happier to welcome Tiffany to the Brikl family. Her 24-year career at Eastbay Footlocker has armed her with the invaluable market and operational intelligence that will inform everything we do across our platform.

"We're incredibly proud of how our platform continues to be at the forefront of the market and how our next-generation online store technology continues to counter the complexity faced by promotional and teamwear businesses, decorators, and suppliers. As our specialist team grows, the benchmarks we'll set will be exponential."

About Brikl

Brikl is a leading online store technology for custom and promotional companies. Founded in 2016 by Maarten Boone, Tobias Meixner, and Jason Reinhardt, Brikl offers 15-minute online store setup, expedites the design process, and offers other specialist features.

For more information, visit www.brikl.com .

Media Contact:

Suz Pathmanathan

+31638261680

[email protected]

SOURCE Brikl
The Detroit-area HVAC company recommends homeowners take preventative measures in the fall so their HVAC units don't fail during the coldest months

DETROIT, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- C & C Heating & Air Conditioning, a leading Detroit-area heating and cooling company with more than six decades of experience, says homeowners should take the time during the milder fall months to prepare their heating systems for the upcoming winter.

C & C Heating & Air Conditioning recommends homeowners take preventative measures in the fall so their heating system doesn't fail during the coldest days of the year.

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so the saying goes," said Dayna Hottle, general manager of C & C Heating and Air Conditioning. "And that's also true of your heating system. It never fails  it's the coldest day of the year and your heating stops working. The best way to prevent this from happening is regular maintenance and some basic care."

Hottle said homeowners should:

Change the filter regularly. Most residential filters will last up to three months but may need to be changed more often when the HVAC system is constantly in use  like during the coldest days in winter. Turn on the heating unit before the weather gets very cold. By turning on the HVAC, boiler or furnace two to three times before very cold days set in, homeowners can gauge if there are odd noises or if no heat is blowing out of the system before it gets frigid outside. Update the thermostat and check the programming. Consider switching to a programmable or smart thermostat if one isn't already installed. These thermostats not only save money on energy costs, they can also be the source of some issues that can cause the heating system to fail. Homeowners should also check the programming on existing thermostats to ensure they are set correctly for winter. Visually inspect the heating system. If objects are lying around or on the system, remove them immediately. Most manufacturers recommend maintaining a 3-foot perimeter around the heating system so it can breathe properly. Contact a professional to conduct a yearly tune-up. During the typical maintenance call, a technician will inspect the system's parts for common issues, test the system's functionality and clean areas that are prone to an accumulation of dust or other debris.

"Not only does having regular maintenance help you stave off potential problems during the winter months, it also extends the lifetime of your system," Hottle said. "In addition to avoiding potential problems as the winter goes on, preparing your system for winter will also make it run more efficiently, which can help homeowners save on those expensive winter heating energy costs."

About C & C Heating & Air Conditioning

C & C Heating & Air Conditioning is a Detroit-area heating and cooling company with more than six decades of expertise installing and servicing all makes and models of heating and cooling equipment. Their technicians are highly trained and qualified and undergo annual background checks, random drug testing, extensive technical and customer service training and are North American Technician Excellence (NATE) certified. Services include HVAC maintenance and repair, duct cleaning, whole-home air filtration systems, indoor air quality systems and comprehensive maintenance agreements. For more information, call C & C Heating & Air Conditioning at (586) 439-3319 or visit their website at https://candcheat.com/

MEDIA CONTACT:

Heather Ripley

Ripley PR

865-977-1973

[email protected]

SOURCE C & C Heating & Air Conditioning
DALLAS, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On Saturday, October 15, 2022, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, Healthy Americas Foundation, and The Concilio will celebrate their 16th annual Vive tu vida! Get Up! Get Moving! event in Dallas. The event includes free health screenings, COVID-19 tests and vaccines and boosters, cooking demonstrations, health and wellness activities for the whole family, and referrals to community health services. Walkaround Elmo from Sesame Street will be on hand to greet kids and families, while free Sesame Street in Communities resources are distributed. The 2022 event series is sponsored nationally by the Siemens Foundation.

(PRNewsfoto/National Alliance for Hispanic Health)

"Good health starts at home, which is why we have partnered with the National Alliance for Hispanic Health to bring Get Up! Get Moving! to families in our local community for 16 years," said Florencia Velasco Fortner, CEO of The Concilio in Dallas. "It's one day of energizing and informative activities that inspire parents and their children to build a lifetime of positive healthy habits together."

"Reducing health disparities requires a multi-faceted approach, including continuous preventative care and early detection. We're honored to provide our CLINITEST Rapid COVID-19 Antigen Self-Test to the local health fair participants as part of this effort," said Dave Pacitti, President, Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.; Head of the Americas, Siemens Healthineers; and member of the Siemens Foundation Board of Directors. "We're committed to advancing health equity by promoting primary healthcare, diagnostic screening, workforce training for the healthcare sector, and capital loan support for community clinics, and thrilled to support Vive tu vida! Get Up! Get Moving! in Dallas," concluded David Etzwiler, CEO of Siemens Foundation.

"It is especially important that communities have access to health screenings, given the millions of important screenings that were missed or delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic." said Dr. Jane Delgado, President and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, the nation's leading Hispanic health advocacy group. "We also celebrate the 16th year of Vive tu vida! Get Up! Get Moving! in Dallas with The Concilio as well all the efforts to support individuals and families have the best health possible."

In addition, the event will feature the All of Us Research Program, a historic effort to gather data from one million or more people living in the US to accelerate research and improve health.

What: Vive tu vida! Get Up! Get Moving! event featuring:

Free Health Screenings: HIV/STI, vision, dental, flu vaccines, COVID-19 vaccines and tests, and more

HIV/STI, vision, dental, flu vaccines, COVID-19 vaccines and tests, and more Fitness: Dancing

Dancing Healthy snacks: produce giveaway and nutrition education

produce giveaway and nutrition education Family fun: Live music, raffles and much more!

Live music, raffles and much more! Science: Featuring the All of Us Research Program Where: Kiest Park, 3080 S Hampton Rd., Dallas, TX 75224 When: Saturday, October 15, 2022 from 9:00am to 1:00pm Cost: FREE!

To find a Vive tu vida! Get Up! Get Moving! event in your city, please visit www.healthyamericas.org/get-up-get-moving. To learn more about the All of Us Research Program, please visit www.JoinAllofUs.org/juntos.

SOURCE National Alliance for Hispanic Health
DENVER, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- CirrusMD, the fastest growing provider of on-demand virtual care, today announced that veteran digital healthcare executive, Jamie Hall has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer, and has been elected to the company's board of directors.

Jamie Hall named President & CEO of CirrusMD, fastest growing provider of on-demand virtual care.

"Jamie's history of successfully driving business growth and building innovative, mission-driven healthcare companies is perfectly aligned with CirrusMD's company culture and commitment to expanding access to care," said Kelsey Maguire, Managing Partner of the Blue Venture Fund. "We're thrilled to have him join and look forward to supporting him and the CirrusMD team in this next phase of growth."

Hall, who began his career with the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, brings a 30-year track record of growth and transformation across the healthcare ecosystem. Prior to CirrusMD, he served as Chief Commercial Officer at Transcarent and General Manager of BridgeHealth, where he served as President and CEO before its acquisition by Transcarent in October 2020. Prior to BridgeHealth, Hall held several executive leadership roles, including Chief Growth Officer at LifeNexus, and Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at CareWise Health. He also served as Senior Vice President of National Sales and Marketing at Landacorp, a SHPS company.

"I'm excited to join the talented, passionate team at CirrusMD and build upon the foundation that's been laid in delivering a uniquely better virtual care experience," said Jamie Hall. "We've made great strides in 2022 growing our business across some of the country's most respected self-funded employers, and commercial and government-sponsored health plans. I plan to help us strengthen those bonds further and grow our roster of blue chip clients and partners."

About CirrusMD

CirrusMD is a different kind of virtual healthcare company. In less than 60 seconds, patients begin chatting with one of our physicians, then dictate the pace and cadence of the encounter. CirrusMD's integrated care is delivered by multi-specialty, board-certified doctors who treat a broad range of conditions  from acute to chronic  across a spectrum of disciplines, from primary care to specialties including behavioral health and women's health. CirrusMD is available to nearly 10 million users across all 50 states, and offered through self-funded employers, as well as commercial and government-sponsored health plans.

Learn how CirrusMD is transforming virtual care at www.cirrusmd.com .

SOURCE CirrusMD
MSPs, Edge Providers, and Large Enterprises will find CloudFabrix's domain-agnostic, distributed, Robotic Data Automation fabric-based AIOps model appealing

PLEASANTON, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- CloudFabrix the inventor of Robotic Data Automation Fabric Platform and the Data-centric AIOps Leader , was named a Leader and Innovator in the 2022 Gigaom Radar for AIOps report for a 2nd consecutive year . The report evaluated 24 major AIOps vendors across Key criteria and evaluation metrics that should be applied when selecting an AIOps solution. The report segregates the 24 vendors across Leaders, Challengers, and New Entrants. CloudFabrix was identified as a Leader, Fast Mover, and Innovator that provides a complete AIOps solution, with a unique Robotic Data Automation Fabric and Distributed AIOps model, including for AIOps at the edge.

CloudFabrix Data-centric AIOps platform CloudFabrix Composable Analytics for AIOps

According to the report, "This year proved to be one of explosive growth in AIOps tooling and solutions. In some cases, AIOps functionality was achieved by bolting an artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) engine to existing software, via acquisition or internal development, and marketing it as an AIOps solution. Other vendors built entire platforms around homegrown or acquired AI/ML, jumping into a crowded arena competing with pure AI/ML solutions and platform tools." CloudFabrix's platform is homegrown, built with microservices, is cloud native and can run entirely in the cloud, in a hybrid deployment, or on-premises.

This year's report points out one key differentiation, among the 24 surveyed vendors dividing them into domain-agnostic and platform solutions and what it means for end users. The domain-agnostic solutions can be added to any environment with minimal interruption to the business, while platforms may require the displacement of several existing monitoring solutions.

CloudFabrix scored high ranks across the 3 categories, as identified by the report -

CloudFabrix is among 6 of the 24 vendors identified as Leaders and Fast Movers

 CloudFabrix's Data-centric AIOps solution is in the domain-agnostic category and integrates well with existing solutions, a business may have.

CloudFabrix is among 4 of the 24 vendors identified as Innovation players

 Each provides a complete AIOps solution with unique capabilities. CloudFabrix, with its Robotic Data Automation Fabric, provides a distributed AIOps model that's unique.

CloudFabrix is among 3 of the 24 vendors identified as AIOps for Edge vendors

 In the area of emerging technologies, IoT and other edge technologies may require some consideration. A few vendors have explored AIOps for the edge and made strides.

The report identifies CloudFabrix's key capabilities -

Ease of Deployment - CloudFabrix unifies observability, AIOps, and automation within a single SaaS cloud platform (cfxCloud) built on AWS. The platform is also available in AWS Marketplace .

- CloudFabrix unifies observability, AIOps, and automation within a single SaaS cloud platform built on AWS. The platform is also available in . Composable Services - RDAF powers multiple services deployed on top of the AIOps platform, including Log Intelligence, Asset Intelligence, and Service Intelligence.

- RDAF powers multiple services deployed on top of the AIOps platform, including Log Intelligence, Asset Intelligence, and Service Intelligence. Continuous ML - Unsupervised and supervised learning are both provided, along with topology detection with data models. Supervised learning is used in the Incident Room to detect possible root causes.

- Unsupervised and supervised learning are both provided, along with topology detection with data models. Supervised learning is used in the Incident Room to detect possible root causes. Broad data integration support RDAF is used to integrate data with new sources. In terms of IT operations management (ITOM) and SIEM, log data can be ingested from Splunk and Elasticsearch, and many more.

RDAF is used to integrate data with new sources. In terms of IT operations management (ITOM) and SIEM, log data can be ingested from Splunk and Elasticsearch, and many more. Log Intelligence - New this year is its Log Intelligence service.

- New this year is its Log Intelligence service. Data Fabric for Edge AI /IoT -The low-latency distributed data fabric allows cfxCloud to ingest, integrate, transform, and load data from or to any system.

-The low-latency distributed data fabric allows cfxCloud to ingest, integrate, transform, and load data from or to any system. Low Code / No Code - users can interact with and operationalize it using a set of more than 800 existing bots and create others via a self-service pipeline.

- users can interact with and operationalize it using a set of more than 800 existing bots and create others via a self-service pipeline. Service Management - Support is also provided for datastores and data lakes, IT service management (ITSM), configuration management database (CMDB), the collaboration platforms Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Twilio; and Terraform, Ansible, and Chef for automation.

Supporting Quotes

"CloudFabrix continues to impress us with its innovation and its ability. They have shown a pulse on the AIOps market and a quest to constantly improvise in the areas where they were at a disadvantage, across the 2 years we have evaluated them. We are hopeful they continue on this path as Digital Transformation and AIOps are becoming mainstream for enterprises," said Ron Williams, Principal Analyst, Gigaom.

Shailesh Manjrekar, Vice President of AI and Marketing, CloudFabrix said, "We are delighted and honored to be recognized as a leader by Gigaom for 2 consecutive years. This endorses us as a "Fast Mover," demonstrated by our recent launch of "Persona-based Composable Analytics for AIOps." He further asserted, "Our success and scalability are demonstrated by our recent wins with large global MSPs and Enterprises. We continue to strive to delight our customers and make their autonomous enterprise journey, a reality by democratizing Data-First, AI-First, and Automation everywhere strategies."

Resources:

About CloudFabrix

CloudFabrix is the leading Data-centric AIOps Platform vendor and the inventor of Robotic Data Automation Fabric (RDAF). RDAF delivers integrated, enriched and actionable data pipelines to operational and analytical systems. RDAF unifies Observability, AIOps and Automation for Operational Systems and enriches analytical systems. CloudFabrix empowers Business and IT leaders with AI-powered actionable intelligence to make faster and better decisions and accelerate IT planning and Autonomous operations. For more information, visit cloudfabrix.com

Media Contact / Press Enquiry:

Shailesh Manjrekar

[email protected]

408-421-4214

SOURCE CloudFabrix
With more than 200 visitors expected to attend the event, it paves the way for Coinllectibles to organise more in-person exhibitions to showcase its collectibles DOTs.

SINGAPORE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Metaverse Blockchain company Coinllectibles, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cosmos Group Holdings Inc. (OTC: COSG) is pleased to announce that Coinllectibles will be celebrating its first anniversary with an arts and collectibles exhibition at Centricity in the Landmark Chater House, Hong Kong on 25 & 26 Oct 2022.

During the 2-days event, at least US$1.11million worth of art and collectibles DOTs will be on display. The items on display are art and collectibles that are currently on sale in Coinllectibles' MetaMall.

The highlights of the exhibition include ceramics from the recently launched Coinllectibles Magnificent Series  with prices ranged between US$190,000 and US$282,000 each. In addition, luxury Swiss watch manufacturer Quinting will also be showcasing a specially curated selection of watches with the most expensive Quinting Panda, valued at US$208,000.

Commenting on the event, Gerald Gn, Corporate Finance Director at Coinllectibles, said, "Hong Kong has a very vibrant arts and collectibles market. In the last 2 years, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, we have been mainly reaching out to prospective collectors online. As a whole, we have seen good online traction and the results have been encouraging. However, with the Hong Kong government scaling back pandemic restrictions, we really want to take this opportunity to organise an in-person exhibition as part of our first anniversary celebrations."

On top of the exhibition, there will also be a Coinllectibles cocktail evening on 25 October 2022. This is an invite-only event and more than 100 art collectors and industry insiders are expected to attend. In total, more than 200 guests are expected over the 2 days.

"For the Coinllectibles team, we see the Hong Kong Extravaganza as a start of our offline engagement initiatives. In fact, our events calendar for 2023 is starting to get filled up as we are planning to participate in a number of regional as well as international art shows. With such offline initiatives complementing our online efforts, we are confident that it will give our brand greater exposure and, in turn, directly contribute to our sales results," Gerald added.

Commenting on the art and collectibles DOTs on display, Nancy Wong, Chief Asset Officer of Coinllectibles, said, "Among all the pieces on show, the key highlight is the Quinting Panda. This is the only one of its kind made by Quinting and they do not have other panda themed watches. On the face of the watch is a hand-painted artwork of a giant panda  the symbol for endangered species and the conservation efforts surrounding them. Adding to the significance, the giant panda is also the national treasure of China, which makes a fitting highlight for our event. From Coinllectibles' perspective, this is also just the start and we hope to show a wider range of valuable art and collectibles in time to come."

The Coinllectibles Hong Kong Extravaganza is an invite-only event. To get the tickets, please email [email protected]. For more information on Coinllectibles and its DOT offerings, please visit www.Coinllectibles.Art.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which are often indicated by terms such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "goal," "intend," "look forward to," "may," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "should," "will," "would" and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future business activities including the expansion into the decentralized financing space. These forward-looking statements are not promises or guarantees and involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described or projected herein include uncertainties associated with operating a business in Singapore and Hong Kong, risk of interference by the PRC government, ability to compete, that financial resources do not last for as long as anticipated, and that COSG is a holding company that may not realize the expected benefits of DOT's offered by Coinllectibles. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties and other risks can be found in COSG's regulatory filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including in its annual report on Form 10-K filed on April 15, 2022. Existing and prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. COSG undertakes no obligation to update or revise the information contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.

For media queries, please contact:

[email protected]

About Cosmos Group Holdings Inc

Cosmos is a business group that operates in two business segments:

Arts and Collectibles

Financing

Through Coinllectibles, the group provides authentication, valuation and certification (AVC) service, sale and purchase, hire purchase, financing, custody, security and exhibition (CSE) services to art buyers through traditional channels, as well as through leveraging blockchain technology through the creation of digital ownership tokens (DOTs).

With subsidiaries licensed under Hong Kong's Money Lenders Ordinance, the group currently primarily provides unsecured personal loan to private individuals, with a small portfolio of mortgage loans. The group is integrating the two business segments by offering secured financing services to prospective art and collectibles purchasers to provide a one-stop arts and collectibles purchasing and financing experience.

About the Company  Coinllectibles

Coinllectibles is a technology company supporting the collectibles industry with a focus on rare memorabilia and artworks that exist and have intrinsic value in the real world, whether tangible or intangible in nature.

Coinllectibles applies blockchain, marketplace, metaverse and DOT technologies as tools to disrupt and enhance the real world collectibles industry. The technology underpinning DOTs (digital ownership tokens) has multiple functional use cases that Coinllectibles is applying to areas including art, sports, watches, numismatics, limited edition toys, limited edition fashion wear and sneakers. DOTs have the power to transform our societies and some areas may be subject to regulations. Coinllectibles uses DOT technology solely to provide a legally-binding digital ownership token (DOT) to a tangible or intangible collectible.

Website: www.coinllectibles.art

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Coinllectibles

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coinllectibles/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/coinllectibles

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coinllectibles

Telegram: https://t.me/Coinllectibles

About Coinllectibles Fusion DOT

Coinllectibles prides the Fusion DOT as the industry "Gold Standard". Being a Gold Standard, a Fusion DOT contains the following on Arweave  (1) a sale and purchase agreement reflecting the purchase, by the person minting the Fusion DOT, of the underlying asset at a fair value with all rights and restrictions clearly detailed, (2) bailment terms governing the rights to possession whilst the underlying asset remains with Coinllectibles, (3) a transfer deed reflecting the transfer of the ownership of the underlying asset (together with all rights and restrictions) by the transferor to the holder of the Fusion DOT, (4) ownership title deed written into the description of the Fusion DOT and (5) the unequivocal identification file of the underlying asset, whose ownership is reflected in the title deed represented by the Fusion DOT.

SOURCE Cosmos Group Holdings Inc.
COVINGTON, Ky., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Commonwealth Hotels announced today that Lynsey Auguano has been appointed the general manager of the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Chicago Southeast Hammond. Ms. Auguano brings over 5 years of hospitality experience to her new role as general manager having previously served as the property's assistant general manager since joining the Fairfield Chicago Southeast Hammond in 2017.

Newly Appointed General Manager at Fairfield Inn & Suites Chicago Southeast Hammond

"We are thrilled to promote Lynsey," said Jennifer Porter, chief operations officer of Commonwealth Hotels. "We look forward to her strong leadership of the property's executive team."

As general manager, Auguano is responsible for overseeing and executing the hotel and property operations, including staff management, guest satisfaction, and community relations. Prior to joining the Fairfield Inn & Suites, Auguano served in various leadership roles in diverse industries; demonstrating her proven excellence in organizational leadership and results-driven performance. Auguano resides with her family in Indiana.

About Commonwealth Hotels, LLC

Commonwealth Hotels, LLC was founded in 1986 and is a proven partner in providing hotel management services with superior financial results. The company has extensive experience managing premium branded full service and select service hotels. Commonwealth Hotels currently manages 61 properties with nearly 7,600 rooms. Additional information may be found at www.commonwealthhotels.com.

Contact

Barbara E. Willen

Commonwealth Hotels, LLC

[email protected]

859.392-2254

SOURCE Commonwealth Hotels, Inc.
Pioneering concierge medicine management company Specialdocs and physician clients to offer compelling perspectives at the Concierge Medicine Forum October 20th  22nd

CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Terry Bauer, CEO of Specialdocs Consultants, a 20-year pioneer in concierge medicine transitions and management, and several of the company's affiliated physicians will offer insights on the extraordinary growth of this dynamic and enticing practice model at the upcoming Concierge Medicine Forum (CMF) in Atlanta. Reflecting the surging demand for personalized care, the industry's signature event is on track in 2022 to be the most well-attended conference to date, according to organizers.

"What we're seeing is a genuine recognition of the pillar stone of concierge medicine - the tremendous value of a long-term physician-patient relationship," says Bauer. "The impact of the pandemic made that crystal clear and has inspired thousands of people to thoughtfully reconsider how they chose to deliver and receive care." He cited a doubling in the number of physicians converting to the Specialdocs concierge medicine model in the last few years, as well as a 10% average annual industry growth rate of the U.S. concierge medicine market over the next 8 years, as forecast by Grand View Research.

Bauer will lead key sessions covering qualities necessary for success as a concierge physician, and how to communicate the enhanced level of care to concierge patients inside and outside the exam room. He'll also discuss the expanding plethora of paths to becoming a concierge physician. "The options go well beyond traditional conversions from fee-for-service models to acquiring a practice from a retiring physician, transitioning from hospital employment or within a group practice, or joining a successful local concierge practice," he said.

In addition, Specialdocs-affiliated physicians will be featured at the conference, sharing expert perspectives that include:

Dr. Deanna Aftab Guy , a Nashville -based concierge pediatric endocrinologist, recounts her year-long transition to concierge medicine, with "My Journey Started Here."

, a -based concierge pediatric endocrinologist, recounts her year-long transition to concierge medicine, with "My Journey Started Here." Dr. Zev Cohen , a concierge internal medicine physician in suburban New York , will address addiction treatment and management strategies in a concierge practice.

, a concierge internal medicine physician in suburban , will address addiction treatment and management strategies in a concierge practice. Dr. Uday Jani , a Delaware -based concierge internal and integrative medicine physician, will provide an inspirational take on moving forward from COVID-19, with "Notes from a Pandemic: Rethinking Gut Health, the Immune System and Personalized Medicine" and participate in a timely panel discussion titled "Cause & Deflect: When You Should Call in the Mental Health Professional to Help Your Patient."

"Sharing our passion for concierge medicine at CMF with insightful, long-time collaborators like Specialdocs and others is a privilege we look forward to each year," Michael Tetreault, CMF organizer and editor of Concierge Medicine Today. "We're all thrilled to see the soaring interest in membership medicine practices which continue to bring balance to physicians' lives and elevate the care offered to the patients and communities they serve."

A pioneer in concierge medicine since 2002, Specialdocs is celebrating two decades of transforming physicians' professional lives, empowering them to deliver exceptionally personalized patient care.

CONTACT:

[email protected]

SOURCE Specialdocs Consultants
CERRITOS, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Electrolit  the preferred, premium hydration beverage made from pharmaceutical quality grade ingredients  is pleased to welcome Enrico De La Torre as the company's new Commercial Director for the Canada office. This change goes into effect as of September 2022, following the welcoming of a new CEO and shows positive signs of expansion by laying down roots in Canada.

Enrico De La Torre

"I am honored to have the opportunity to turn Electrolit into a global powerhouse and I couldn't be more grateful to be joining such a dedicated team at a company that is quickly gaining momentum," said Enrico De La Torre. "We've seen an opening for growth in the industry when it comes to better for you beverages; I'm excited to continue expanding brand awareness and to bring high quality ingredients and functionality to consumers that want better performance and functionality from the products they purchase."

Since earning his Bachelors of Commerce and Marketing Management from the University of Guelph in 2009, Enrico has had over a decade of experience working in the commerce and marketing field with major industry players such as PepsiCo, RedBull, and Aurora Cannabis. In working for PepsiCo for over three years in field sales, Enrico developed the most efficient ways to manage high performing teams, increase profitability, and not only to reach but exceed goals. Going on to work at Red Bull, De La Torre contributed to the business through a variety of management roles and responsibilities in distribution, account management, and marketing, which he will transfer over to his work for Electrolit as he continues to make them a force to be reckoned with in the industry.

De La Torre's extensive background in working in the beverage industry has made him the ideal candidate for the Commercial Director of Electrolit Canada. De La Torre plans to increase overall brand awareness and expand distribution to make Electrolit readily accessible to Canadian consumers. Electrolit has seen tremendous growth in recent years and De La Torre's mission is to make Electrolit the preferred premium hydration beverage of choice in Canada.

Scientifically formulated with magnesium, sodium, potassium, calcium and glucose, Electrolit provides complete hydration when electrolytes and ions are low to replenish the body. Electrolit can be purchased at Walmart, Kroger, HEB, 7-Eleven and more, and through online channels. For more information, visit https://electrolit.com/ or follow them on Instagram or Facebook.

About Electrolit

Electrolit manufactures a scientifically formulated premium hydration beverage that replenishes the body after physical activity, intense heat, hangovers, or sickness. Formulated with magnesium, potassium, calcium, sodium glucose, and sodium lactate plus six ions for electrolyte absorption, Electrolit aids in recovery of the hydro electrolytic imbalance, fulfilling metabolic and hydration needs. Available in nine delicious flavors, Electrolit is currently offered in national, grocery, convenience and online channels across the nation, including Walmart, Kroger, HEB, 7-Eleven, AM-PM, Extra Mile and more. Electrolit is manufactured and owned by Pisa Pharmaceuticals, the largest pharmaceutical company in Mexico and Latin America.

Media Contact

Matt Kovacs

[email protected]

310-395-5050

SOURCE Electrolit
Carte Blanched is a fully integrated F&B studio delivering new and extraordinary culinary experiences

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LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ennismore, the fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company, today reveals Carte Blanched  a specialist in-house team of operators, chefs, mixologists and creatives who create bespoke, forward-thinking, authentic and culturally relevant food and beverage concepts for Ennismore's lifestyle brands.

Unique to Ennismore, Carte Blanched creates new and develops existing F&B brands for hotel owners, overseeing everything from conception through to opening and beyond to deliver extraordinary destinations for both locals and international guests. Across Ennismore's 100 lifestyle hotels, there are 190 restaurants and bars that generate approx. 50% of total revenue - a testament to each brand's connection to the local community.

The expertise of Carte Blanched is strengthened by a global network of hospitality collaborators and partners, including: Selin Kiazim & Laura Christie, founders of Oklava; Monica Berg & Alex Kratena, the multi award winning duo behind Tayer and Elementary; Kris Yenbamroong, LA's Night + Market; Andrei Soen, Singapore's Park Bench Deli; Layo Paskin & Zoe Paskin, the team behind Palomar, The Barbary, Evelyn's Table and The Blue Posts in London, and Tuscan Butcher Dario Cecchini, of cult Netflix show Chef's Table.

Within its portfolio, Carte Blanched has over 40 brands, and since 2021, it has opened 17 new outlets in Europe and the Middle East. Carte Blanched is behind some of those most coveted culinary experiences, including:

Tandoor Tina at 25hours Dubai - the smells, tastes, and colours of exotic and carefree travels around India with fresh, quality ingredients and bright flavours cooked in the Tandoor oven and on the grill

- the smells, tastes, and colours of exotic and carefree travels around with fresh, quality ingredients and bright flavours cooked in the Tandoor oven and on the grill Four Corners at The Hoxton, Barcelona - Italian American restaurant specialising in Detroit style pizza with a menu from Pizza Czar, Anthony Falco

Italian American restaurant specialising in style pizza with a menu from Pizza Czar, Seabird at The Hoxton, Southwark - Seafood restaurant boasting London's longest oyster list

- Seafood restaurant boasting longest oyster list Fi'Lia at SLS Dubai  Italian-Mediterranean cooking based on the philosophy of food passed down from one generation of women to the next, by Sara Aqel , winner of Michelin Bib Gourmands

 Italian-Mediterranean cooking based on the philosophy of food passed down from one generation of women to the next, by winner of Michelin Bib Gourmands Bibo at Mondrian Shoreditch - A lively space, perfect for casual lunches and spirited dinners with chef Dani Garcia

"The F&B experience is an integral part of what sets lifestyle hospitality brands apart from your traditional hotel brands, and Carte Blanched is how we ensure our restaurants and bars are authentic and culturally relevant globally and in local markets", said Sharan Pasricha, Founder & Co-CEO of Ennismore. "Carte Blanched is a completely new and unique approach to how we deliver extraordinary drinking and dining destinations - from concept to execution  for our owners and hotels. and is one of the vital ways which sets Ennismore apart from our competitors. I am incredibly proud of the team we have pulled together, who are the best in their field."

The launch of Carte Blanched comes alongside some exciting new projects, including:

Floating World - a fabulously excessive, Japanese-influenced restaurant that specialises in bold flavoured, easy-to-share food with stylish, immersive design and flamboyant cocktails

- a fabulously excessive, Japanese-influenced restaurant that specialises in bold flavoured, easy-to-share food with stylish, immersive design and flamboyant cocktails Dollars - a new sandwich bar concept in Partnership with Andrei Soen , the mastermind behind Park Bench Deli  the buzzy American sandwich spot and deli in the heart of Singapore

a new sandwich bar concept in Partnership with , the mastermind behind Park Bench Deli  the buzzy American sandwich spot and deli in the heart of Chet's  a Thai-Americana restaurant in partnership with LA based Kris Yenbamroong (Night + Market)

 a Thai-Americana restaurant in partnership with LA based (Night + Market) Bottega di Carna - a nose to tail Italian inspired restaurant in partnership with Dario Cecchini

a nose to tail Italian inspired restaurant in partnership with Mr Nakamoto  an American steakhouse with Japanese flavours inspired by the mid- Manhattan dining of the Mad Men era

Carte Blanched's services span from strategic development, market research, including local insider knowledge trend reports and culinary and beverage innovation, to brand identity creation, recruitment, training, and marketing and PR. In addition, before fully launching a new brand, the Carte Blanched team tests the concept to the public in a three-month pop-up at La Cave  its incubator kitchen situated beneath The Hoxton, Holborn  to obtain vital customer feedback and crucially build brand awareness.

The Carte Blanched team includes:

Sharan Pasricha , Carte Blanched Leader and Ennismore Founder  One of Conde Nast Traveller's '50 People Changing The Way We Travel', Sharan ensures seamless integration between the studio and other business functions within Ennismore

 One of Conde Nast Traveller's '50 People Changing The Way We Travel', Sharan ensures seamless integration between the studio and other business functions within Ennismore Jules Pearson , VP of Creative  Having been at Ennismore since the beginning, growing The Hoxton globally, Jules leads the creative, using marketing insights to create F&B brands and partnerships that are relevant now and remain so in the future

 Having been at Ennismore since the beginning, growing The Hoxton globally, Jules leads the creative, using marketing insights to create F&B brands and partnerships that are relevant now and remain so in the future Wayne Brown, VP F&B Development  Culinary  Wayne oversees chef collaborations utilising his experience leading hospitality concepts and groups, including Disruptive Restaurant Group, SBE and Marina Bay Sands

 Wayne oversees chef collaborations utilising his experience leading hospitality concepts and groups, including Disruptive Restaurant Group, SBE and Alex Ghalleb, VP of Operations  With over 20 years of experience in hospitality, including Soho House, Gold Notting Hill and Pizza East, Alex creates the seamless bridge between concept and reality

 With over 20 years of experience in hospitality, including Soho House, Gold Notting Hill and Pizza East, Alex creates the seamless bridge between concept and reality Nick Comaty , VP of Operations & Development for MEA, Turkey & India - Nick is based in Dubai , and has over 20 years of experience in hospitality, from independent venues such as Nammos Dubai and the Mina group to hotels such as the SLS Miami and Gramercy Park NYC, Nick creates, operates, and builds impactful experiences

Nick is based in , and has over 20 years of experience in hospitality, from independent venues such as Nammos Dubai and the Mina group to hotels such as the SLS Miami and Gramercy Park NYC, Nick creates, operates, and builds impactful experiences Gareth Evans , Beverage Director  With over two decades of experience operating Jason Atherton's award-winning bar venues worldwide, Gareth oversees all beverage collaborations

 With over two decades of experience operating award-winning bar venues worldwide, Gareth oversees all beverage collaborations Micaela Philippo , Brand Director  A creative and brand strategy specialist, having worked with concepts such as Pachamama, Chicama and Farm Girl, Micaela produces unique, research-based concepts with integrity

 A creative and brand strategy specialist, having worked with concepts such as Pachamama, Chicama and Farm Girl, Micaela produces unique, research-based concepts with integrity Caroline Strauss , Director of F&B Openings & Special Projects  Oversees the development of Carte Blanched projects in the Americas and openings globally. Caroline comes from independent F&B background, including Bar Lab and Starr Restaurants

 Oversees the development of Carte Blanched projects in the Americas and openings globally. Caroline comes from independent F&B background, including Bar Lab and Starr Restaurants Carmen Tomasic , Director of F&B, Asia Pacific - Based in Singapore , Carmen heads up F&B for Asia Pacific , drawing on a broad wealth of hospitality experience, from overseeing hatted restaurants and cocktail bars, to events with companies including Merivale group, QT hotels and Ultra Music festival

- Based in , Carmen heads up F&B for , drawing on a broad wealth of hospitality experience, from overseeing hatted restaurants and cocktail bars, to events with companies including Merivale group, QT hotels and Ultra Music festival Peter Macias , Global Executive Chef  Carte Blanched's very own Executive Chef, Peter joins the team with over 16 years' experience working in kitchens across Miami and Los Angeles , including Sawyer, Kettle Black, and Kimpton La Peer Hotel. Early in his career, Peter was mentored by Nina Compton and Michael Pirolo at Scarpetta in Fontainebleu

Ennismore's In-House Studios

Carte Blanched is one of Ennismore's four specialised in-house studios, obsessing every guest touch point. These studios  a unique offering in the hospitality industry - work with owners to elevate their property and create an authentic brand experience for their guests. They include AIME Studios  an award-winning interior & graphic studio; Staymore  a Digital Product & Tech Innovation lab; Ennismore Partnership Studio  which drives global partnerships and brand awareness, and Carte Blanched.

ennismore.com | carte-blanched.com

MEDIA CONTACT

Tara Breeze, Bacchus Agency

[email protected]

ABOUT ENNISMORE

Ennismore is a creative hospitality company with a global collective of entrepreneurial and founder-built brands with purpose at their heart. It curates and manages unique properties and experiences in some of the most exciting destinations worldwide.

Founded in 2011 by entrepreneur Sharan Pasricha, Ennismore and Accor entered a joint venture in 2021 to create a new autonomous entity, with Accor holding a majority shareholding. Creating the world's fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company, it brings together Ennismore's know-how in building brands with creative storytelling, design, and authentic experiences, with Accor's wealth of knowledge in delivering scale, network growth and distribution.

Under Sharan Pasricha, Founder & Co-CEO, and Gaurav Bhushan, Co-CEO, Ennismore comprises 14 brands - with 100 operating properties and a further 160 in the pipeline - and a collection of over 150 culturally relevant and diverse restaurants and nightlife destinations.

Ennismore puts innovation at the centre of everything it does, with four dedicated in-house specialist studios, which obsess every guest touchpoint, including Carte Blanched  a fully integrated F&B concept platform; a creative studio of interior and graphic designers; a digital product and tech innovation lab, and a partnerships and collaborations division.

Ennismore has been included in Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies lists in 2020 and 2021; ranked#29 in FT1000: Europe's Fastest-Growing Companies; and is part of FT Future 100 - the UK's fastest-growing businesses that are shaping the future of their sector.

The Ennismore brands: 21c Museum Hotel, 25hours Hotels, Delano, Gleneagles, Hyde, JO&JOE, Mama Shelter, Mondrian, Morgans Originals, SLS, SO/, The Hoxton, TRIBE and Working From.

SOURCE Ennismore
FE International, Inc., the global market leader in mid-market technology mergers and acquisitions (M&A), announces the acquisition of Focus on Force, a Digital Products Business, by K2 University.

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Launched in 2014, Focus on Force specializes in training and certifications across the Salesforce ecosystem. The business offers courses to help students learn cloud computing and prepare them to take certification exams. Since its inception, the company has accumulated a customer list of some of the most reputable names in consulting, banking and accounting.

After building a hugely successful business for the past seven years and with over a decade of expertise in end-to-end Salesforce implementation, the Founder of Focus on Force, Martin Gessner, was approached by a multitude of parties interested in acquiring the business. Ultimately, he decided to engage FE International as an advisor. "FE has been a great partner in the exit process, and joining forces with K2 University will provide us the opportunity to expand the breadth and type of training we can provide to assist everyone from those entering the Salesforce community to experienced professionals. It gives us the network, infrastructure and support we need to be able to take that next big step in our growth, and we couldn't be more excited about what the future holds."

Wahridj Gergian, Managing Director of K2 University, said, "K2 University is delighted to welcome Focus on Force to the K2 group of companies. This collaboration means we can continue to reinforce our position as a developer of talent across the Salesforce ecosystem as well as providing Focus on Force's community an enviable range of training solutions that continue to help people and companies thrive in an era of technical innovation."

"Focus on Force is a market-leading business in its niche, and Martin has done an incredible job of scaling the company to its current size and success. With the Salesforce service market projected to grow even further, Focus on Force is well positioned for the new owner to scale the company and take it to the next level. We're very happy to have been able to work with Martin and the team to achieve a great outcome for both parties," said Founder and CEO of FE International, Thomas Smale.

About Focus on Force

Focus on Force is a market-leading online platform supporting learning and certifications in the Salesforce ecosystem. Since its launch in 2014, Focus on Force has served more than 100,000 individuals and built an A-list network of corporate clients with some of the largest names in consulting, banking and accounting.

About FE International

Founded in 2010, FE is known for its extensive network of pre-qualified international investors. Its team includes experts in exit planning, valuation, accounting, legal and more.

FE serves clients worldwide with headquarters in New York and regional offices in Miami, San Francisco and London. It was named one of The Americas' Fastest Growing Companies in 2022, 2021 and 2020 by The Financial Times and is also a three-time Inc. 5000 company.

PRESS CONTACT

Kevin Oh

8004039067

https://feinternational.com/

SOURCE FE International
HOBOKEN, N.J., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Floating Point Group (FPG), a cryptocurrency prime brokerage, is partnering with ML Tech , a non-custodial investment management and trading platform. FPG will provide seamless access and monitoring of ML Tech's Algorithmic Trading Strategies from within FlowVault, FPG's cryptocurrency settlement and transfers platform for exchange-based trading.

How Floating Point Group works with ML Tech

"Institutional investors are looking for new sources of uncorrelated alpha in crypto markets," said Leo Mindyuk, Co-Founder of ML Tech. "Our partnership with Floating Point Group provides investors access to a curated selection of institutional-quality quantitative trading strategies managed by ML Tech within a secure FlowVault environment. With a number of trading strategies ranging from Delta Neutral Basis and Calendar arbitrage to Market Neutral Statistical arbitrage, investors can choose strategies that fit their risk/return appetite and deploy them directly via FlowVault."

FlowVault helps traders achieve superior returns by lowering trading fees, broadening access to exchanges, and opening up new pools of capital. FlowVault is a platform built for automation, security, and scale that gives traders direct access to exchange's trading APIs. Traders can transfer assets between exchanges and wallets without compromising on operational security.

ML Tech's separately managed account (SMA) model offers pre-trade/post-trade risk management as well as 24x7 alerting and monitoring while institutional investors benefit from full ownership, transparency, and insurance for funds on FlowVault.

About Floating Point Group

Floating Point Group is a crypto prime brokerage platform and agency trading desk for asset managers that removes the barriers and complications to access liquidity across a broad set of markets in order to deploy advanced cryptocurrency-centric strategies at scale. The company carries insurance for custodied cryptocurrencies and is regulated in the U.S.; FPG has also secured VASP registration in the Cayman Islands.

Floating Point Group is backed by Tribe Capital, Coinbase Ventures, FAST by GettyLab, Borderless Capital, CapitalX, Formulate Ventures, BoxOne Ventures, Seabury Global Markets, AngelList's Naval Ravikant, and a host of angel and institutional investors.

For more information, visit floating.group .

About ML Tech

ML Tech allows institutional investors to invest in algorithmic trading strategies that run on ML Tech's high frequency/low latency infrastructure, supplemented with 24*7 risk management and advanced performance analytics. Investors benefit from a single point of access to unique alphas built by experienced crypto trading teams. Trading teams benefit from access to institutional capital (100M+ capital to be deployed), lower fees across multiple exchanges and easy integration to leading crypto exchanges.

For more information, visit mltech.ai .

Media Contact:

Ditto PR

[email protected]

SOURCE Floating Point Group
Ford Atlanta Research and Innovation Center opens to attract and develop high-tech, high-demand talent and increase Black, Hispanic and female representation in the field



The new Atlanta location joins a global network of Ford centers designed to inspire innovation and creativity as the company transforms digitally to lead a new era of automated, connected and electrified vehicles



location joins a global network of Ford centers designed to inspire innovation and creativity as the company transforms digitally to lead a new era of automated, connected and electrified vehicles The city of Atlanta is selected for Ford's next City:One Challenge, program offers up to $150,000 in grants to local startups collaborating with residents to pilot mobility solutions

ATLANTA, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ford Motor Company is opening the Ford Atlanta Research and Innovation Center (FARIC) to advance the company's digital transformation in areas such as software-led connected vehicles, artificial intelligence, university research and more.

Doron Elliott, Senior Manager of In-Vehicle Infotainment at Ford, giving local Georgia university students a tour of the Research and Innovation Center garage where engineers will be developing new features for Ford vehicles. From left to right: Jay Bailey, Steve McLaughlin, Jim Buczkowski, Mayor Andre Dickens, Dr. Talitha Washington, Byron Amos

FARIC joins a network of Ford research and development facilities in Tel Aviv and Palo Alto dedicated to pioneering the future of transportation with automated, connected and electrified vehicles. Now, the new Atlanta location places Ford in one of the most diverse tech talent markets in the U.S. and enables the company to develop a pipeline of software experts with a variety of backgrounds.

"Ford is transitioning from a traditional automotive company to a digital products and services company driven by software innovation," said Jim Buczkowski, executive director for Ford Research, Advanced Engineering. "There's a high demand for tech talent across industries, and we have an opportunity to create non-traditional career pathways to attract and develop the expertise needed to stay competitive."

As the company undergoes the most profound transformation in its history, it remains committed to developing a workforce that reflects the communities and customers that it serves. For Ford, this includes attracting and retaining historically underrepresented talent, especially in the software engineering and high technology fields.

"Atlanta continues to attract and grow tech companies and startups; and we continue to attract a desirable talent base  particularly for Black tech talent. We look forward to this partnership with the Ford Atlanta Research and Innovation Center, which has the potential to help us grow an even more robust and diverse pipeline," said Mayor Andre Dickens.

Aside from serving as an innovation hub and delivering software solutions, the FARIC team will also focus on increasing Black, Hispanic and female representation in software engineering and high technology careers. Strategies include:

Leveraging relationships with regional Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and The Atlanta University Center Consortium to help make high-tech career opportunities more available to diverse students



Continuing to create and deepen relationships with regional colleges and universities, including HBCUs and Hispanic Service Institutions, to conduct pioneering research and address Ford's growing need for the new competencies required for electrification, connected vehicles and software engineering that are revolutionizing Ford products, technologies and services



Creating flexible, non-traditional career pathways for people interested in pursuing software and high-tech careers, including co-ops, internships, part-time work, and non-degree software programs in collaboration with Atlanta -based TechBridge and community partner City of Refuge

"Underrepresentation is a significant issue in software and engineering industries, especially when it comes to Black and Hispanic communities, which makes it particularly exciting to work with local colleges, universities and nonprofits to help bring greater diversity into the tech space," said Doron Elliott, senior manager of Ford In-Vehicle Infotainment, who will also oversee FARIC operations. "Building this critical talent base will enable Ford to continue to find innovative and efficient ways to develop cutting-edge products and services to meet the demands of a very diverse customer base."

New Workplace Design Standards

Located within the new 8West development on Atlanta's Upper West Side (889 Howell Mill Road NW), the 24,000-square-foot FARIC space is designed to surpass standard ADA compliance with a thoughtful, accessible layout that supports inclusion, flexibility, collaboration and innovation.

The all-new workspace supports individual needs while promoting creativity and team collaboration through an open and accessible floor plan designed to support the needs of a diverse and innovative team. It includes individual focus space, sit/stand desks, soft seating, and phone booth-style space where employees can take calls or work independently.

The meeting spaces extend beyond traditional conference rooms to an open collaboration space with a learning stair for large group meetings equipped with technology to incorporate virtual participants, a garage space for hands-on problem-solving and living-room-style seating for more casual brainstorms or catch-ups.

"We have learned so much over the last few years about flexible workspace and its power to inspire employees," said Jennifer Kolstad, Ford's global design & brand director. "We've created an environment at FARIC that allows individuals and teams to choose what kind of environment is most efficient in the moment."

People interested in pursuing career opportunities at FARIC should email [email protected].

Atlanta City:One Challenge

Ford will bring its next City:One Challenge to Atlanta. The crowd-sourcing platform, created by Ford, helps cities identify mobility solutions designed to address systemic mobility inequity, accessibility, safety and sustainability issues. It offers up to $150,000 in grants to startups and entrepreneurs to pilot mobility solutions with Atlanta residents.

The Atlanta City:One Challenge will focus on addressing income inequality and its impact on safety and access to mobility, particularly for women, aging adults, students, and people with disabilities.

Sponsored by AT&T, Delta Air Lines, the Metro Atlanta Chamber, and Novelis, the program is administered in part by student fellows from local colleges and universities, and proposals will be accepted MayJune 2023. Winners will be chosen by December 2023, and mobility pilots are expected to deploy in Atlanta neighborhoods by summer 2024.

Since 2018, City:One has distributed more than $1 million in grant funding to 15 mobility pilots across the country.

About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan, that is committed to helping build a better world, where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams. The company's Ford+ plan for growth and value creation combines existing strengths, new capabilities and always-on relationships with customers to enrich experiences for and deepen the loyalty of those customers. Ford develops and delivers innovative, must-have Ford trucks, sport utility vehicles, commercial vans and cars and Lincoln luxury vehicles, as well as connected services. Additionally, Ford is establishing leadership positions in mobility solutions, including self-driving technology, and provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. Ford employs about 182,000 people worldwide. More information about the company, its products and Ford Credit is available at corporate.ford.com

For news releases, related materials and high-resolution photos and video, visit www.media.ford.com.

SOURCE Ford Motor Company
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Frost & Sullivan Institute is dedicated to utilizing business practices to address key global challenges by 'innovating to zero'. Through its robust research methodology, the Institute has identified Companies that are moving the world in the right direction and recognized them with this year's Enlightened Growth Leadership Awards.

With performance indicators such as growth excellence, innovation to zero on key global priorities, customer value chain, and technology innovation forming the backbone of the selection process, the winners represent the best of the best.

"We have identified companies that have demonstrated success in merging business acumen with a moral imperative. We at the Institute believe that the award will not only highlight the best-in-class but also inspire others to become a part of the solution to some of the challenges facing the planet today," said Aroop Zutshi, Director, Frost & Sullivan Institute.

Frost & Sullivan Institute follows its proprietary, measurement-based methodology, combined with extensive research, in-depth analyses, and benchmarking, to shortlist recipients. Our Global think tank does a detailed review of all perspectives on how these companies are committed improving the future of the planet. With performance indicators such as growth excellence, innovation to zero on key global priorities, customer value chain, and technology innovation forming the backbone of the selection process, the winners represent the best of the best.

Frost & Sullivan Institute congratulates all recipients of the Enlightened Growth Leadership Best Practices Recognition. Join us as we recognize and celebrate the 2022 recipients at our Virtual Awards Banquet in November.

Recipients:

ResMed

RingCentral, Inc.

Roku, Inc.

Ryerson Holding Corporation

Salesforce

Schweitzer-Mauduit International, Inc.

Science Applications International Corp.

Seagen Inc.

SECURE Energy Services Inc.

ServiceNow

Shopify Inc.

Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc.

SM Energy Company

SMART Global Holdings, Inc.

Snap Inc.

South Jersey Industries Inc.

Southwestern Energy Company

Splunk Inc.

SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc.

SSR Mining Inc.

Sterling Infrastructure, Inc.

Sunrun Inc.

Syneos Health

Synopsys, Inc.

Take-Two Interactive Software,Inc.

TD SYNNEX

Teladoc Health

Teledyne Technologies Incorporated

Tenneco Inc.

Teradyne, Inc.

Tesla, Inc.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.,

T-Mobile

The Toro Company

Tourmaline Oil Corp.

TPI Composites, Inc.

Trex Company

TTEC Holdings, Inc.

Twilio

Twitter, Inc.

Tyler Technologies, Inc.

Uber Technologies, Inc.

UFP Industries

UltraClean Holdings, Inc.

Veeva Systems Inc.

Vermilion Energy Inc.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

Viatris Inc.

Viavi Solutions Inc.

Vistra

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.

Wabtec Corporation

Westlake Chemical Partners

Workday, Inc.

WSP Global Inc.

Zendesk, Inc.

Zoetis Inc.

Zoom Video Communications, Inc.

Zynga Inc.

About Frost & Sullivan Institute

The Frost & Sullivan Institute (FSI) is a non-profit organization dedicated to utilizing business practices to address global priorities. The genesis of the institute goes back to the vision of either creating, or becoming part of, a solution that addresses threats to humanity. The Institute has identified strategic imperatives for transformation and believes that we can truly accelerate innovation to zero. To learn more about FSI, visit www.frostandsullivaninstitute.org

About Frost & Sullivan

For six decades, Frost & Sullivan has been world-renowned for its role in helping investors, corporate leaders, and governments navigate economic changes and identify disruptive technologies, Mega Trends, new business models, and companies to action, resulting in a continuous flow of growth opportunities to drive future success. Contact us: Start the discussion.

Media Contact:

Prerna Mohan

Email: [email protected]

Related Links

www.frost.com

www.frostandsullivaninstitute.org

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
The only HRIS with native workforce planning capability for mid-sized and growing companies

LONDON and TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- HiBob , the company behind Bob, the HR platform transforming how organizations operate in the modern world of work, today launches its native Workforce Planning module, designed to help companies optimize for efficiency by enabling them to easily plan, track, and analyze their positions and people data.

HiBob Introduces Workforce Planning to its HR Platform bob

Workforce planning is the process of building a robust organization through attracting, hiring, and training suitable candidates within each department. Businesses use workforce planning to avoid under or overstaffing and to support hiring employees with appropriate levels of knowledge, skills, and experience. Ultimately it allows businesses to reimagine their teams' structures, support their people's growth and by extension the company's overall success.

Incorporating a workforce planning strategy enables companies to carefully respond to emerging economic or technological trends disrupting the workplace to build realistic business plans. It also ensures HR brings visibility and data to the finance team, and other executive stakeholders when deciding, executing, and tracking headcount planning. Companies that "workforce plan" are more likely to experience overall success through strategic control and care of staffing needs balanced with business requirements.

HiBob used customer feedback to develop this highly valued use case, collaborating with a select group of over 25 early adopters. These included Eurowag, Parimatch, LHV, Danish Industry, Fiverr and Landa who all acted as design partners helping to define an MVP, and build the prototype that culminated in the final module.

Ronni Zehavi, CEO and co-Founder of HiBob said: "Changes to the modern world of work caused by flexible, remote, hybrid models and dispersed teams have made HR technology imperative for business success. By the same token your workforce planning strategy needs to be equally as dynamic and agile. It impacts every department within an organization because it's more than just headcount planning, requiring cross-functional input.

It's the foundation of effective recruiting and hiring, it reduces spending, eliminates inefficient hiring practices, and enables accurate predictions of future job developments. Importantly it increases employee retention through higher levels of satisfaction. When all of these facets align with the company's long- term objectives and goals, workforce planning should ultimately help drive the business forward."

HiBob's Workforce Planning module includes the ability to plan for cycles including the creation and evaluation of different scenarios such as re-organizations, acquisitions or other large-scale disruptive changes. It streamlines position planning, turning spreadsheets into living, running processes with full visibility, analytics, and accuracy for HR and finance teams. It also pulls analytics to identify any problems with the execution process, identifies skills gaps - and in this way helps with succession planning - as well as tracking internal mobility when filling planned positions.

About HiBob

HiBob is on a mission to transform how organizations operate in the modern world of work with its HR platform 'Bob'. Leading the way for the future workplace, Bob offers resilient, agile technology that wraps all the complexities of HR processes into a game changing, user-friendly tool that touches every employee across the business.

HiBob is used by more than 2,500 multinational companies - including Cazoo, Gong, Hopin, Monzo, Happy Socks, Fiverr, and VaynerMedia. Organizations using Bob are able to accelerate hiring, retain the best talent, upskill and elevate employee engagement.

For more information about HiBob, visit www.hibob.com.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1917564/HiBob_1.jpg

SOURCE HiBob
--With More than Half a Million Filipinos Living in Los Angeles, Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) Seeks Support for Critical Services, Resources, Programming for Growing Community--

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Turning 50 this year, Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) will return to its first, in-person awards gala in three years. Known as the 2022 Barangay Awards, the awards show will pay tribute to the community heroes, or barangay captains, who through their leadership, courage, generosity and resilience are navigating the uncertain tides of the time. Presented by Bank of America, the annual Barangay Awards will take place on Saturday, October 15, at 6 p.m. PDT, at ROW DTLA, and is the largest fundraising event of the year for SIPA.

What better way to herald SIPA's 50th anniversary than to gather together in person and honor our community's heroes! Tweet this Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) announces the 2022 Barangay Awards recipients: Bank of America, the Basco family, Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation, and Sheila Lirio Marcelo. More information and ways to support SIPA today, whether through the purchase of event tickets or sponsorship, a monthly pledge or a one-time, tax-deductible donation, is available at www.sipacares.org.

"What better way to herald SIPA's 50th anniversary than to finally gather together in person and honor the heroes of our community," said Kimmy Maniquis, SIPA executive director. "Through the Barangay Awards, we will commemorate SIPA's past, present and future by recognizing some of our most generous and inspiring partners today."

This year's Barangay Awards recipients, or barangay captains, are Bank of America, the Basco family, Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation, and Sheila Lirio Marcelo. The Barangay Awards represent the Filipino/Tagalog word barangay which translates to a "village, barrio or one's most intimate community."

Derived by the word balangay which was a pre-colonial boat used to transport people from island to island, barangay is representative of the notion to build relationships within and across communities.

The Barangay Awards will aim to raise $200,000 for services such as mental health programming, small business training and resources, health and human services for seniors, and cultural and community programming. Funds raised will ensure the 50-year-old nonprofit can continue its next chapter and safeguard the longevity of the organization for another 50 years. More information and ways to support SIPA today, whether through the purchase of event tickets or sponsorship, a monthly pledge or a one-time, tax-deductible donation, is available at www.sipacares.org.

Established in 1972, SIPA is a beloved pillar in the HiFi community, widely known as an ambassador of the multicultural district. As one of the largest and longest-running Fil-Am nonprofits in the United States, SIPA is dedicated to improving the quality of life in HiFi and beyond to the greater Fil-Am community. Today, more than 4 million Filipino Americans live in the United States, the largest population of Filipinos outside the Philippines, with more than half a million Filipinos calling L.A. home.

For press inquiries only, please contact Jessica del Mundo at 10storyhouse PR for SIPA at 1-323-741-5600.

SOURCE Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA)
DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- HUAWEI CONNECT Dubai was held in the United Arab Emirates, with more than 3,000 industry stakeholders coming together to discuss around the theme of "Innovative Infrastructure to Unleash Digital". Representatives from Egypt's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Nigeria's Galaxy Backbone Limited, Huawei, and other organizations shared their latest digitalization practices, exploring new paths to industrial digital transformation.

Steven Yi, President of Huawei Middle East & Africa Area

Ken Hu, Huawei's Rotating Chairman, delivered a keynote outlining three ways the ICT ecosystem can help break through common barriers in digital transformation:

Boost digital infrastructure, including more robust connectivity and stronger, more diverse computing resources.





Help organizations go beyond simple cloud adoption and truly make the most of cloud, focusing on advanced technology services that drive leapfrog development.





Build out local digital ecosystems including partner development, strengthening the digital talent pool, and providing more support for SMEs.

Steven Yi, President of Huawei Middle East & Africa Area, gave the opening remark that expressed gratitude to customers and partners for their ongoing trust, and reaffirmed Huawei's commitment to contributing to local development. He also talked about three key initiatives of Huawei and its customers and partners to unleash digital productivity. Together, they work to build a solid digital foundation for all and reinforce local digital ecosystems to support the future of digital nations.

Innovative, scenario-based technologies enhance digital infrastructure to unleash digital productivity

Bob Chen, Vice President of Huawei Enterprise BG, discussed how multi-tech synergy is critical for finding the right technology for the right scenario. He explained in his keynote speech "Innovative Digital Infrastructure Accelerates Digital Transformation" that "Data is at the core of digital transformation, and data ingestion, transmission, storage, and analysis are key steps. Huawei provides full-stack products and product portfolios to support end-to-end data processing, accelerating customers' digital transformation."

In terms of data connectivity, Huawei unveiled NetEngine AR5710, a hyper-converged gateway that is ideal for small and midsize branches, and NetEngine 8000 F8, an ultra-compact universal-service aggregation router. These all-new products are helping lay a solid data foundation to further unleash digital productivity.

In terms of data transmission, Huawei has been exploring how to apply the fifth generation fixed network (F5G) evolution across various industries. In addition, Huawei and a Dubai customer jointly launched a digital pipeline corridor inspection solution based on the optical fiber sensing technology, enabling automatic pipeline corridor inspection.

Regarding data storage, Huawei and Commvault, a data management software company, jointly launched a data protection solution that provides enterprise customers with secure and reliable data protection from end to end. This helps create a reliable and efficient storage foundation, allowing enterprises to maximize the value of data.

Joy Huang, President of Huawei Cloud Strategy & Industry Development, pointed out that Huawei's approach to digital transformation has three pillars: greener infrastructure, ongoing innovation, and shared experience. Huawei Cloud aims to be the best digitalization partner for customers, and is working with partners and customers to unleash digital with Everything as a Service.

Innovative infrastructure is being deployed in industries to drive industrial digitalization

At the event, customers from various industries in the Middle East and Africa also shared their best practices with Huawei in digital transformation.

Dr. Hesham Farouk Ali, Egypt's Assistant Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, said that ICT would make education more people-centric and accelerate the transformation of both teaching and learning methods. Huawei's expertise in education and research networks, cloud, and AI is providing key support and laying groundwork for the digitalization of higher education in Egypt.

Baffajo Beita, CIO of Galaxy Backbone Limited, stated that Galaxy and Huawei have been innovating together to help Nigeria build a unified e-government cloud network, accelerating the government's digitalization and boosting the country's digital economy.

Huawei Empower Program: building a thriving digital ecosystem for global partners

At the event, Huawei launched the Huawei Empower Program, which aims to help develop a thriving digital ecosystem for global partners. Through this program, Huawei will conduct joint innovation with its partners via OpenLabs, empower partners with a new framework, a new plan, and an integrated platform, and create a talent pool through the Huawei ICT Academy and Huawei Authorized Learning Partner (HALP) programs. Huawei also announced an investment of US$300 million into this program over the next three years to support its global partners.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920448/image.jpg

SOURCE Huawei
EL PASO, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Hunt Companies Acquisition Corp. I (NYSE: HTAQ) (the " Company "), a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company, today announced that it will redeem all of its outstanding Class A ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 (the " public shares "), effective as of November 1, 2022, because the Company will not consummate an initial business combination within the time period required by its amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (the " Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association ").

As stated in the Company's registration statement on Form S-1, effective as of November 8, 2021, and in the Company's Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association, if the Company is unable to complete an initial business combination within 12 months of the closing of the Company's initial public offering, the Company will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten (10) business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the trust account and not previously released to the Company to fund tax obligations, if any, (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of public shares then in issue, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders' rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any) subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company's remaining shareholders and directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in the case of sub-articles (ii) and (iii), to its obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and in all cases subject to the other requirements of applicable law.

The per-share redemption price for the public shares will be approximately $10.16 (the "Redemption Amount"). The balance of the trust account as of June 30, 2022 was approximately $233,770,337, which includes approximately $320,337 in interest and dividend income (excess of cash over $233,450,000, the funds deposited into the trust account). In accordance with the terms of the related trust agreement, the Company expects to retain up to $100,000 of the interest and dividend income from the trust account to pay dissolution expenses. Accordingly, there is expected to be a total of $233,670,337 available for redemption of the 23,000,000 public shares outstanding, which results in a redemption price of approximately $10.16 per share.

The last day that the Company's securities will trade on the NYSE will be October 31, 2022. As of November 1, 2022, the public shares will be deemed cancelled and will represent only the right to receive the Redemption Amount.

The Redemption Amount will be payable to the holders of the public shares upon presentation of their respective stock or unit certificates or other delivery of their shares or units to the Company's transfer agent, Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company. Beneficial owners of public shares held in "street name," however, will not need to take any action in order to receive the Redemption Amount.

There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to the Company's warrants, which will expire worthless.

The Company's sponsor has waived its redemption rights with respect to the outstanding founder shares and the shares underlying the private placement warrants. After November 1, 2022, the Company shall cease all operations except for those required to wind up the Company's business.

The Company expects that NYSE will file a Form 25 with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the " Commission ") to delist its securities. The Company thereafter expects to file a Form 15 with the Commission to terminate the registration of its securities under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

About Hunt Companies Acquisition Corp. I

Hunt Companies Acquisition Corp. I is a special purpose acquisition company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, consolidation, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. It was formed to focus its search for a business combination target in renewable energy, critical infrastructure, real asset services and technology end markets.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may include, and oral statements made from time to time by representatives of Hunt Companies Acquisition Corp. I may include, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements regarding possible business combinations and the financing thereof, and related matters, as well as all other statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, words such as "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "might," "plan," "possible," "potential," "predict," "project," "should," "would" and similar expressions, as they relate to the Company or its management team, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company's management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). All subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are qualified in their entirety by this paragraph. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous conditions, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the Company's annual form on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2022. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release, except as required by law.

SOURCE Hunt Companies, Inc.
NOIDA, India, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new report published by UnivDatos Markets Insights, the Cocktail Syrups Market was valued at more than USD 4 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 5% from 2022-2028. The analysis has been segmented into Product (Fruit, Herbs & Seasonings, Vanilla, Others); Flavor (Sweet, Salty, Sour, Mint); Region/Country.

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https://univdatos.com/report/cocktail-syrups-market/

The Cocktail Syrups market report has been aggregated by collecting informative data on various dynamics such as market drivers, restraints, and opportunities. This innovative report makes use of several analyses to get a closer outlook on the Cocktail Syrups market. The Cocktail Syrups market report offers a detailed analysis of the latest industry developments and trending factors in the market that are influencing the market growth. Furthermore, this statistical market research repository examines and estimates the Cocktail Syrups market at the global and regional levels.

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Market Overview

A rise in disposable income, change in lifestyle, urbanization, emerging partying culture among millenniums, etc., are some of the key factors that are positively impacted the cocktail syrups market. Also, Over the past few years, young customers and the working-class population are increasingly adopting cocktail beverages as per their preferred flavors. Customers are loving the flavored alcoholic beverages with their specific choices. In addition to this, the demand for new alcoholic beverages with low ABV ranging from 4%-7% and a wide flavor range is increasing among the younger population.

Moreover, the growing home partying trend by entrepreneurs across the globe is also adding pace to the growing market of cocktail syrups. Entrepreneurs have produced unique drinks and mixers that compliment spirits and help people create cocktails that you would have at bars. Companies have been able to leverage the D2C ecosystem to bring these mixers closer to consumers at home. This has also played a pivotal role in improving the 'at home party experience. As per Global Drinks Intel. Magazine, Great Britain, and Ireland reveal that more than a quarter (28%) of all On-Premise users now choose to drink cocktails while out. This is notably higher than the global average of 25% that was recorded across all 25 markets in CGA's worldwide research.

COVID-19 Impact

The covid-19 pandemic has inflicted disruptions on manufacturing activities and supply chains across the globe. The pandemic-led interruptions and the lockdown norms implemented in various countries to contain the pandemic have bottlenecks in the bulk movement of non-essential goods. The factor also led to a decline in demand for consumer goods, electronics, etc., which adversely affected the growth dynamics of the Cocktail Syrups market. However, with the stabilization in economies, manufacturing activities would also spur the growth of the sectors, due to which the demand for Cocktail Syrups has started spurring.

Click here to view the Report Description & TOC

https://univdatos.com/report/cocktail-syrups-market/

The global Cocktail Syrups market report is studied thoroughly with several aspects that would help stakeholders in making their decisions more curated.

Based on the product, the market is fragmented into Fruit, Herbs & Seasonings, Vanilla, and Others. The fruits segment grabbed a significant market share in 2020. This is mainly due to the increasing standard of living and changing taste preferences, people are shifting to comparatively healthy drinks and snacks. The benefits of fruits cocktail syrups such as being low on carbs and fats, refreshing and available in different flavors, etc., are leading to the growth of this segment. However, the vanilla segment would witness a considerable CAGR during the forthcoming years.

Based on the flavor, the market is fragmented into sweet, salty, sour, and mint. The sweet segment to witness significant growth during the forecast period. The market of this segment is uplifting as Fruity and sweet cocktail syrups are quite popular among consumers in the U.S. as they perfectly balance the sourness or bitterness of hard spirits, like rum and whiskey. Consumers who are looking to experiment with hard liquor tend to favor these sweet cocktail syrups.

Have a Look at the Chapters - https://univdatos.com/report/cocktail-syrups-market/

Cocktail Syrups Market Geographical Segmentation Includes:

North America ( United States , Canada , and Rest of North America )

( , , and Rest of ) Europe ( Germany , United Kingdom , Spain , Italy , France , and the Rest of Europe )

( , , , , , and the Rest of ) Asia-Pacific ( China , Japan , India , Australia , and the Rest of Asia-Pacific )

( , , , , and the Rest of ) Rest of the World

Based on the estimation, the North America region grabbed XX% market share in 2020. A rise in the cafe, hotels, and restaurants across in North America region coupled with the growing adoption of western culture is leading to the growth in the cocktail syrups market. Moreover, the rising attractiveness of Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs) among millennials is also acting as a growth catalyst in the industry.

The major players targeting the market include

Kerry Group PLC

Liber & Co.

MONIN

The Simple Syrup Co.

ADM WILD Europe GmbH & Co. KG

Bristol Syrup Company

Dohler

Toschi Vignola s.r.l.

Giffard .

Competitive Landscape

The degree of competition among prominent global companies has been elaborated by analyzing several leading key players operating worldwide. The specialist team of research analysts sheds light on various traits such as global market competition, market share, most recent industry advancements, innovative product launches, partnerships, mergers, or acquisitions by leading companies in the Cocktail Syrups market. The major players have been analyzed by using research methodologies for getting insight views on global competition.

Key questions resolved through this analytical market research report include:

What are the latest trends, new patterns, and technological advancements in the Cocktail Syrups market?

Which factors are influencing the Cocktail Syrups market over the forecast period?

What are the global challenges, threats, and risks in the Cocktail Syrups market?

Which factors are propelling and restraining the Cocktail Syrups market?

What are the demanding global regions of the Cocktail Syrups market?

What will be the global market size in the upcoming years?

What are the crucial market acquisition strategies and policies applied by global companies?

We understand the requirement of different businesses, regions, and countries, we offer customized reports as per your requirements of business nature and geography. Please let us know If you have any custom needs.

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Cocktail Syrups Market Report Coverage

Report Attribute Details Base year 2020 Forecast period 2021-2027 Growth momentum Accelerate at a CAGR of over 5% Market size 2020 USD 4 billion Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, Rest of World Major contributing region North America to Dominate the Global Cocktail Syrups Market Key countries covered United States, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, France, China, Japan, India, and Australia Companies profiled Kerry Group PLC, Liber & Co., MONIN, The Simple Syrup Co., ADM WILD Europe GmbH & Co. KG, Bristol Syrup Company, Dohler, Toschi Vignola s.r.l., Giffard. Report Scope Market Trends, Drivers, and Restraints; Revenue Estimation and Forecast; Segmentation Analysis; Impact of COVID-19; Demand and Supply Side Analysis; Competitive Landscape; Company Profiling Segments Covered By Product; By Flavor; By Region/Country

About UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI)

UnivDatos Market Insights (UMI) is a passionate market research firm and a subsidiary of Universal Data Solutions. We believe in delivering insights through Market Intelligence Reports, Customized Business Research, and Primary Research. Our research studies are spread across topics across the world, we cover markets in over 100 countries using smart research techniques and agile methodologies. We offer in-depth studies, detailed analysis, and customized reports that help shape winning business strategies for our clients.

Contact:

UnivDatos Market Insights

Ankita Gupta

Director Operations

Ph: +91-7838604911

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://univdatos.com/

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SOURCE UnivDatos Market Insights Pvt. Ltd.
Cybersecurity and IT Leader will Help Drive Future Innovation

DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Inspira Enterprise, Inc. ("Inspira"), a global cybersecurity services organization, today announced that Kelly Bissell, a corporate vice president and leader of Microsoft's services group, has joined the company as a strategic advisor. As a strategic advisor, Bissell will advise the company to achieve its objective of simplifying the myriad of complexities that stand between organizations and their goals to achieve higher levels of cybersecurity maturity.

Kelly Bissell

Bissell has more than 30 years of experience in IT and cybersecurity and has held leadership roles at Microsoft, Accenture Security and Deloitte Cyber Risk Services. He is passionate about working with clients, regulators and law enforcement to reduce cybercrime. He maintains close relationships with national security advisors in several countries, staying tightly aligned with agencies working to secure nations across the globe. His experience will be invaluable to Inspira, as it furthers its mission to transform cybersecurity to make the world safer and more secure.

Inspira's broad spectrum of cyber advisory, transformation, and operations services  including its iSMART2 solutions  are empowering enterprise, mid-size and small business organizations to accelerate their adoption of end-to-end cyber solutions in support of their digital transformation goals. With his decades of cross-industry sector experience, Bissell will help guide Inspira's mission to offer outcome-based cybersecurity services and solutions.

Kelly Bissell, strategic advisor, Inspira Enterprise, said: "Maintaining high cybersecurity posture has become extremely difficult for businesses lacking the insights, resources and support to defend against threat actors around the globe. Helping clients become compliant and secure has long been one of my main initiatives, so Inspira's mission to reduce cybercrime and provide coverage to organizations struggling to create a cohesive cyber-strategy fits well with my goals. I look forward to what we can do together to make the world a safer place."

Amit Gandre, Americas Cybersecurity Head, Inspira Enterprise, said: "Organizations need trusted advisors who can simplify the dialogue around cybersecurity and define pragmatic strategies to strengthen their security posture. Kelly Bissell's understanding of the global threat landscape and cross-industry sector business priorities, coupled with his vast experience with defining services and solutions, will be instrumental in achieving Inspira's cybersecurity goals for the modern IT ecosystem."

About Inspira

Inspira Enterprise is a global Cybersecurity Risk Management & Digital Transformation service provider across the Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East, India and Africa regions. Inspira offers end-to-end cybersecurity services spanning advisory, transformation and operations powered by its proprietary iSMART2 (Intelligent | Simplified | Measurable | Adaptive | Risk Based | Threat Centric | Tailored) framework to mitigate cyber threats and risks.

Inspira's cybersecurity services enable cyber resilience by offering deep cyber expertise, global delivery network capabilities, advanced analytics, managed security services, and secure cloud services. Inspira is the unique service provider that offers iSMART2 packaged security offerings such as Security-in-the-Box, Vulnerability Management-in-the-Box and Integrated Cyber Threat Management for the clients that are looking for Security as a Service.

Connect with Inspira to build a flexible framework for IT orchestration and strengthen core business security with best-in-class cybersecurity solutions. Read more: www.inspiraenterprise.com

SOURCE Inspira
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- InsurTech NY, the largest InsurTech community in North America, announced today its third growth-stage InsurTech accelerator cohort.

InsurTech NY's carrier and broker members selected 32 startups, from a pool of more than 150 applicants in 29 countries, to participate in the hybrid insurance accelerator program. The accelerator starts in October and provides resources to help startups with traction, talent, and financing. Founders will work with insurers seeking to invest in startups, pilot new technologies, and provide risk capacity.

InsurTech Accelerator - 2022 Cohort

"We are proud to welcome our third cohort into the program to accelerate their growth," said David Gritz, Managing Director of InsurTech NY. "They are fortunate to be supported by a best-in-class alumni base of 48 startups. The alumni companies already recognize five exits and more than $373 million in up-round funding in less than two years."

Selected startups include:

Life, Health, and Benefits Lines: Atidot, Benekiva, BetterTradeOff, Cake, Canary Benefits, CoverGo, ForMotiv, FreeWill, GoGo Technologies, InvestSuite, Legacy Life, Monark HQ, PilotBird, Plum Life, Sunny Day Fund, and White Swan

Property and Casualty Lines: Boston Geospatial, CogniSure, DataCrest, Hepster, Highwing, Iluminr, Indemn, MeasureOne, PathSpot, PolicyDock, Protosure, Quantumerge, SureBright, Surefyre, Veruna, and Zelros

During the program, founders will work with 70+ mentors from carriers, brokers, and solution providers to identify opportunities, establish partnerships, and overcome challenges in their business. The accelerator will continue until its culmination at an in-person Demo Day in NYC on November 15.

About InsurTech NY

InsurTech NY is an international gateway to bring together the insurance innovation community. It brings together carriers, brokers, investors, and InsurTech startups via educational and networking events, a competition, and an accelerator. InsurTech NY's mission is to accelerate corporate innovation, drive talent to insurance, support innovation-friendly regulation, and improve access to investment. See more at insurtechny.com or meet its cohort companies at the Spring InsurTech Conference .

PR Contact: David Gritz

[email protected]

212-634-9516

SOURCE InsurTech NY
Historic Gift Funds New Center for Agricultural Innovation and Research Grants to Drive a Sustainable Future

DAVIS, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of California, Davis, today announced that philanthropists Lynda and Stewart Resnick, co-owners of The Wonderful Company, have pledged the largest gift ever to the university by individual donors. The $50 million pledge will support the school's longstanding commitment to address today's most pressing challenges in agriculture and environmental sustainability.

The $50 million gift will establish the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation, with $10 million of the Resnicks' gift to be directed toward annual competitive research grants through the Resnick Agricultural Innovation Research Fund. Their donation also supports UC Davis' $2 billion fundraising campaign, "Expect Greater: From UC Davis, for the World," the university's largest philanthropic endeavor to date.

"Protecting and preserving our planet for the future means we must take bold steps and push the boundaries of what's possible," said Stewart Resnick, who is also a member of the UC Davis Chancellor's Board of Advisors. "UC Davis is at the forefront of tackling climate change, developing groundbreaking technologies and solutions to reduce our collective carbon footprint, and creating a more sustainable agriculture system. This gift aims to help our greatest scientific minds rise to the great challenge of our time  the sustainability of our planet for future generations. Lynda, I, and The Wonderful Company are proud to partner with UC Davis to support this all-important work."

Design on the Resnick Center is expected to begin in 2022, with construction slated for completion by 2026. Once built, the new 40,000-square-foot, LEED-certified, state-of-the-art hub will house classrooms, research and lab spaces, and student career and advising support near the current plant sciences building off Hutchison Drive in Davis.

This initiative will unite experts from across UC Davis focused on five thematic research areas including identifying innovative solutions for agricultural byproducts, maximizing water and energy efficiencies, developing next-generation technologies, making crops more resilient and sustainable in the face of a rapidly changing climate, and expanding access to nutritious food. Ultimately, the center will explore new ways of balancing food production with leading sustainability practices while advancing the global agricultural industry with scalable solutions.

"Thanks to this historic gift from Lynda and Stewart Resnick, UC Davis will further expand its global reach, helping to shape the future of sustainable food production," said Gary S. May, chancellor, UC Davis. "This gift demonstrates a continued commitment to innovative environmental stewardship and allows us to create science-based solutions that can be rapidly deployed while mitigating the impacts of climate change."

The Resnick Agricultural Innovation Research Fund will provide grants to promote cross-collaboration and strengthen the network among research faculty, agricultural producers, food companies, pharmaceutical companies, commodity boards, and other key stakeholders. Beginning this year, competitive research grants will be awarded annually to UC Davis faculty and Cooperative Extension specialists focused on identifying value-added properties in pistachio, almond and pomegranate byproducts.

"Many specialty crop byproducts are treasure troves of compounds that can promote health, improve soil quality, influence microbial ecology, or be converted into valuable products," said Helene Dillard, dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. "This transformative gift will help increase the potential of these byproducts, enhance sustainability and create new markets."

The Center will provide student advising and career support including for more than 60 Wonderful Scholars enrolled at UC Davis. The Resnick-created Wonderful Scholarship program was initially established to provide college scholarships to the children of Wonderful employees from the Central Valley. It has expanded over the last 28 years to also award college scholarships to Wonderful Education Career Pathways Program students, as well as graduates of the Wonderful College Prep Academy and neighboring schools. Many of these recipients are first-generation college students.

The Wonderful Company, co-run by the Resnicks, is one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, whose iconic brands include FIJI Water, POM Wonderful, Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos, Wonderful Seedless Lemons, Teleflora, JUSTIN, JNSQ, and Landmark wines. Every year, the Resnicks invest in education, community development, and health and wellness initiatives across the Central Valley and beyond, a place-based giving approach centered on investing in, listening to, and collaborating with the communities where their employees live and work. To date, the Resnicks have invested more than $2.3 billion in philanthropy, with more than $1.3 billion invested in environmental sustainability, to help combat climate change and preserve the planet for future generations.

"The Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation will be a game-changer for research and teaching," said Shaun B. Keister, vice chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations. "Now, experts from diverse fields will have the critical resources and tools needed to train the leaders of tomorrow. The Resnicks' vision is a testament to what philanthropic partnerships with UC Davis can achieve."

Together, donors and UC Davis continually strive to advance and accelerate sustainability and social responsibility initiatives to create positive outcomes for the planet and people.

SOURCE The Wonderful Company LLC
Mattamy also offers package of support initiatives to help its Florida team members in need

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Mattamy Homes and the company's founder Peter Gilgan are donating $1 million to support Florida communities affected by Hurricane Ian  the funds will be split between and American Red Cross and the Florida Disaster Fund.

Mattamy has also announced a package of support initiatives to help its team members in this time of stress and to ease the burden for those who sustained damage during the storm. The initiatives include the following:

Matching Donations  Mattamy is matching team member donations to the American Red Cross or Florida Disaster Fund on a 3:1 basis, amplifying the support even more.

 Mattamy is matching team member donations to the American Red Cross or Florida Disaster Fund on a 3:1 basis, amplifying the support even more. Additional Paid Time off to Volunteer  For storm clean-up and/or food collection efforts.

 For storm clean-up and/or food collection efforts. Mental Well-Being  Enhanced support for mental health services for those affected by Hurricane Ian.

 Enhanced support for mental health services for those affected by Hurricane Ian. Legal Assistance  Reimbursement of legal fees for professional services related to insurance claims or other matters.

 Reimbursement of legal fees for professional services related to insurance claims or other matters. Additional Paid Time Off  Team members who sustained substantial damage during the storm will be granted additional paid days off to secure or repair their home or other property.

 Team members who sustained substantial damage during the storm will be granted additional paid days off to secure or repair their home or other property. Financial Assistance  Mattamy is offering interest-free loans to team members needing assistance with recovery efforts

"Mattamy has 850 US team members with over half located in Florida  together we are responding to the need as our team members join us in supporting those affected by the hurricane," says Peter Gilgan, Chairman & CEO of Mattamy Asset Management and Founder of Mattamy Homes. "It's times like these that we need to come together to support and take care of one another. As Mattamy's culture is built on caring, it was an easy decision, not to mention the right thing to do, to provide immediate and substantial assistance to our team and the community. With the full and unwavering support of the executive committee and the Board, we're proud to offer a program to provide help in this time of need."

About Mattamy Homes

Mattamy Homes is the largest privately owned homebuilder in North America, with 40-plus years of history across the United States and Canada. Every year, Mattamy helps more than 8,000 families realize their dream of homeownership. In the United States, the company is represented in 11 markets  Dallas, Charlotte, Raleigh, Phoenix, Tucson, Jacksonville, Orlando (where its US head office is located), Tampa, Sarasota, Naples and Southeast Florida  and in Canada, its communities stretch across the Greater Toronto Area, as well as in Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton. Visit www.mattamyhomes.com for more information.

About Mattamy Asset Management

Mattamy Asset Management is an asset manager focused on building a diversified portfolio of investments across geographies, asset classes and the spectrum of risk and return. Mattamy Asset Management is the parent company of Mattamy Homes Canada and Mattamy Homes U.S., which together comprise the largest privately held homebuilding platform in North America. Mattamy Asset Management is committed to achieving the best-possible long-term risk-adjusted returns for its clients and functioning as a socially responsible corporate citizen.

SOURCE Mattamy Homes Limited
TAIPEI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The 13th GCA & Connection+, organized by the Taiwan Ministry of Culture, was successfully concluded in the No. 5 Warehouse at the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. The theme of the 13th GCA is "Move on! The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics." The five-day event featured a comic exhibit, conferences, and networking for business exchanges, attracting 2,812 attendees and comic industry professionals to gather and celebrate the biggest comic event of the year. The comic exhibit showcased Taiwanese comics, while the conferences and networking presented an opportunity for copyright licensors to connect with potential buyers through matchmaking and topic discussions.

The 13th GCA Connection+ Opening Ceremony Press Conference & Exhibit/photo credit: TTV

During the opening press conference, Deputy Minister Lee Ching-hwi from the Ministry of Culture stated that the Golden Comic Awards is a national award for Taiwan's comic industry that aims to encourage outstanding and dedicated comic artists/ editors. The Ministry of Culture hopes to support the comic industry through the Golden Comic Awards and inspire new ideas for the industry's future. As such, the Golden Comic Awards, since its 8th iteration, has organized special exhibits, networking, and cross-domain conferences in the hopes of striving forward and galvanizing the force of the industry in this annual gathering of comic artists. Deputy Minister Lee also shared that the theme this year: The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics, expresses the loneliness, confusion, and self-doubt experienced by comic artists throughout their creative journeys. The GCA hopes to rally the people of Taiwan and spotlight related events to show their support for comic artists and the industry through their actions and passion.

The Ministry of Culture also stated that the exhibition and business exchanges were held online last year due to the pandemic. This year, the GCA events returned offline and featured distinguished guests such as Culture Weaver from Japan, Nazca Edition from France, Tokyopop from Germany, and Hablar en Arte from Spain. The exhibit this year is titled "Move on! The Adventure of Taiwanese Comics" and showcased Taiwanese comics nominated for this year's GCA, mid-length and long-form comics, classics, internationally recognized comics, translated comics, and comics with music derivatives to introduce the public to the diversity of Taiwanese comics. For more information about GCA events, please visit our official website: http://gca.moc.gov.tw.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920262/The_13th_GCA_Connection__Opening_Ceremony_Press_Conference___Exhibit.jpg

SOURCE Ministry of Culture of Taiwan
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Lifestyle and beauty expert and award-winning blogger Mercedes Sanchez is celebrating 15 years with Be Chic Mag  the digital lifestyle magazine that kicked off her career in television.

Beauty, fashion, and corporate wear shouldn't be sacrificed because of your budget, - Lifestyle Expert Mercedes Sanchez Tweet this Lifestyle Expert Mercedes Sanchez

To commemorate the anniversary, the Latina television personality is launching Career Style Tips  a column for women entering or returning to the workplace. Her readers (and viewers) have been loyal for 15 years because Mercedes is relatable and credible. She isn't afraid to speak about her personal skincare issues such as having suffered from adult acne or being unemployed after the 2008 recession. In her new column, Mercedes hopes to give women frank and executable advice on how to seamlessly enter or return to work post COVID such as the best ways to dress well for the office without breaking the bank.

"My goal has always been to write and produce content that is relatable," says Sanchez who's originally from New York and of Dominican descent. "I grew up in Manhattan's Lower East Side, an underserved neighborhood. Beauty, fashion, and corporate wear shouldn't be sacrificed because of one's budget. They should be inclusive, and I am proud to partner with lifestyle brands that are accessible."

During Hispanic Heritage Month, Mercedes was recognized as one of Ford Motor's "Legendary Women" under the Innovation category. The initiative honors the journey of Hispanic entrepreneurs who work daily to achieve their dreams and strengthen their community.

Mercedes launched her blog in 2007 and is recognized as one of the first Latina bloggers and influencers. She's been featured in The Zoe Report, Parade, Women @ Forbes, HuffPost, and BuzzFeed among others. Now, she offers savvy tips on outlets like the TODAY Show and Despierta America.

MORE ABOUT MERCEDES SANCHEZ

Mercedes Sanchez is a sought-after lifestyle expert based in New York City. Watch her on local and national television where she offers tips on the latest beauty and fashion trends and shopping recommendations for the entire family. Find her at MercedesSanchez.com.

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS & SMTs

With the holiday season around the corner, the lifestyle expert is working on the following television segments:

3 Ways to Entertain Your Guests

Gift Ideas under $35

Black Friday Deals

Winter Essentials: Beauty, Fashion, and Home

For interview requests, contact Mercedes HERE.

Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE MSPR
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Earlier today, My Stealthy Freedom released a copy of an October 6, 2022 letter from Founder and CEO Masih Alinejad to President Joe Biden with appreciation for his statements of support for the Iranian people, as they continue to bravely protest the brutality of the Iranian regime and plea for further U.S. action to "reorient U.S. policy towards listening to the demands of the Iranian people, not their oppressive rulers." Alinejad makes clear that "it is well past time to isolate the Iranian regime, while empowering the Iranian people to fulfill their democratic aspirations."

The letter outlines 13 ways that the Biden Administration can help, including by halting nuclear negotiations, introducing human rights as a condition of the negotiations, working with the private sector to ensure the Iranian people's voices are not suppressed, pursuing multilateral sanctions against Iran's senior leadership for human rights abuses, as well as diplomatically isolating Tehran.

Alinejad, an Iranian American journalist and activist for women's rights in Iran, was forced to leave Iran in 2009. Since her arrival in the U.S., the regime has continuously tried to silence her voice through kidnapping and assassination attempts on American soil. In the face of these threats, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has affirmed the U.S. Government's strong continued support for Alinejad's work to advance universal human rights, particularly her tireless efforts on behalf of women, the Iranian people, and all those unjustly detained by the Iranian government. In August 2022, the White House affirmed that the U.S. stands with Alinejad and all those in Iran who demand equal rights and dignity.

ABOUT MY STEALTHY FREEDOM

My Stealthy Freedom is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to challenging the compulsory hijab laws of the Islamic Republic. Founded by Masih Alinejad in 2014, My Stealthy Freedom supports Iranian women's rights and promotes the cases of women who through acts of civil disobedience to fight discriminatory laws. My Stealthy Freedom informs and educates the public about discriminatory laws in Islamic Republic that punish women and strives to empower Iranians to resist and be a voice for the voiceless in Iran.

SOURCE My Stealthy Freedom
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Media accreditation is now open for the upcoming launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, a pathfinder mission about Earth's water that will use new technology to address climate change and its impact on our environment.

NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than Monday, Dec. 5, for launch of the Earth-facing satellite on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex-4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

U.S. and international media interested in attending this launch must apply no later than 5 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 27. Media accreditation requests should be submitted at:

https://media.ksc.nasa.gov

A copy of NASA's media accreditation policy is available online. For questions about accreditation, please email: [email protected]. For other mission questions, please contact Kennedy's newsroom: 321-867-2468.

Para obtener informacion sobre cobertura en espanol en el Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitar entrevistas en espanol, comuniquese con Antonia Jaramillo at: [email protected] or 321-501-8425.

SWOT is an international satellite mission led by NASA and the French space agency Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) that will survey water on Earth's surface, observe the fine details of ocean surface topography, and measure how water bodies change over time. The Canadian Space Agency and the UK Space Agency also have contributed to developing SWOT. NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy is managing the launch.

NASA will post updates on launch preparations on the SWOT blog. For more information about SWOT, visit:

https://swot.jpl.nasa.gov/

SOURCE NASA
JUNO BEACH, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE) today announced that it plans to report third-quarter 2022 financial results before the opening of the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, Oct. 28, 2022, in a news release to be posted on the company's website at www.NextEraEnergy.com/FinancialResults. The company will issue an advisory news release over PR Newswire the morning of Oct. 28, with a link to the financial results news release on the company's website. As previously communicated, the company will make available its financial results only on its website.

John Ketchum, chairman, president and chief executive officer of NextEra Energy, Kirk Crews, executive vice president, finance and chief financial officer of NextEra Energy, and other members of the company's senior management team will discuss the company's third-quarter 2022 financial results during an investor presentation to be webcast live, beginning at 9 a.m. ET on Oct. 28. Results for NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: NEP) also will be discussed during the same investor presentation.

The listen-only webcast will be available on NextEra Energy's website by accessing the following link: www.NextEraEnergy.com/FinancialResults. The financial results news release and the slides accompanying the presentation may be downloaded at www.NextEraEnergy.com/FinancialResults, beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET on the day of the webcast. A replay will be available for 90 days by accessing the same link as listed above.

NextEra Energy, Inc.

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE) is a leading clean energy company headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida. NextEra Energy owns Florida Power & Light Company, which is America's largest electric utility that sells more power than any other utility, providing clean, affordable, reliable electricity to approximately 5.8 million customer accounts, or more than 12 million people across Florida. NextEra Energy also owns a competitive clean energy business, NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world's largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun and a world leader in battery storage. Through its subsidiaries, NextEra Energy generates clean, emissions-free electricity from seven commercial nuclear power units in Florida, New Hampshire and Wisconsin. NextEra Energy has been recognized often by third parties for its efforts in sustainability, corporate responsibility, ethics and compliance, and diversity. NextEra Energy is ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry on Fortune's 2022 list of "World's Most Admired Companies," recognized on Fortune's 2021 list of companies that "Change the World" and received the S&P Global Platts 2020 Energy Transition Award for leadership in environmental, social and governance. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.

SOURCE NextEra Energy, Inc.
Cybersecurity startup launches first-ever solution to address SaaS sprawl risks by nudging employees towards optimal security behavior.

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Nudge Security emerged from stealth today with the first-ever SaaS security solution to discover shadow IT and curb SaaS sprawl across any device or location. Nudge Security does what previous enterprise security solutions have failed to do: make employees core to the solution.

Nudge Security founders Russell Spitler and Jaime Blasco take on shadow IT and SaaS sprawl by nudging employees towards optimal security behavior.

"Today, every employee acts as their own CIO and can easily reach for a new cloud or SaaS tool to solve virtually any problem," said Ed Amoroso, Founder and CEO, TAG Infosphere and former AT&T CISO. "While organizations see massive gains in productivity and employee satisfaction from such unencumbered IT adoption, cybersecurity has been slow to adapt."

Nudge Security aims to help security teams to reclaim control over their SaaS security postures by working with employees, not against them.

"Employees are capable and willing to 'do the right thing' when it comes to security; the industry has just made it incredibly difficult for them to do so," said Russell Spitler, CEO of Nudge Security. "We are making security a sidecar to the employee experience, rather than a series of roadblocks and detours."

Unlike solutions that gate employees' SaaS access, Nudge Security discovers when employees create new SaaS assets and automatically nudges them towards desired choices. It continuously discovers historical and new SaaS assets without relying on network infrastructure, endpoint agents, browser extensions, or SaaS API integrations, taking only minutes to set up.

"Most SaaS security solutions focus on securing just a handful of already-known enterprise applications through API integrations, but there are tens of thousands of enterprise SaaS companies today, and mid-sized enterprises are adding a new SaaS account every two minutes," said Jaime Blasco, CTO of Nudge Security. "Nudge Security is the only company able to address SaaS security at scale across any application by tapping into the very source of SaaS adoption: employees."

Support for Nudge Security

Kevin Mandia, CEO of Mandiant, Strategic Partner of Ballistic Ventures

"Whether they're ready to admit it or not, every security leader is contending with a sprawling mix of cloud and SaaS providers, permissions, accounts, and identities. Until now, this emerging attack surface has been largely invisible and vulnerable to the types of supply chain attacks in the headlines week after week. Nudge Security recognized that securing the SaaS supply chain is one of the core challenges of modern cybersecurity, and that's why the Ballistic Ventures team was so eager to invest."

Nicole Perlroth, Nudge Security advisor, best-selling author, and CISA advisor

"For years, the industry has treated cybersecurity as a technology problem when, in fact, it is humans that play the biggest role in keeping enterprises cyber secure. Finally, Nudge Security has emerged to tackle the hardest soft problem in the industryhuman behavior."

Hector Aguilar, Former President of Technology and CTO of Okta

"I am of the opinion that SaaS sprawl is a good thing, you have to give your team the flexibility to explore and discover new tools that will help them become more effective at their job. Ideally all those apps should be authenticating in a centralized way using an identity provider like Okta, however, in the real world, it is imperative to have mechanisms in place to account, find and manage the sprawling of those apps and nudge users to help secure the flow of information."

Roger Thornton, Founding Partner of Ballistic Ventures, member of the Nudge Security Board of Directors

"Adversaries are constantly finding new ways to socially engineer employees and attack the vast supply chain of SaaS applications they're using to gain access to organizations. Every CISO is aware of the challenge they're up against, and now it's our job to make sure every CISO knows about Nudge Security and the way they enable employees to be a key part of an enterprise's defense."

Kunal Anand, CTO of Imperva, Founding Advisor of Nudge Security

"Security teams need to focus on fighting real adversaries, not their colleagues. Nudge Security alleviates the time spent chasing down employees to get them to follow security policies, and it does so in a friendly way that's more effective and less stressful for everyone involved."

Frank Dickson, Group Vice President of Security & Trust at IDC

"Nudge Security innovates beyond other cloud and SaaS security technologies by providing SaaS context quickly and efficiently across all applications and user accounts, managed and unmanaged, enabling security and IT professionals to modernize their SaaS governance efforts."

Chris Doman, Co-founder and CTO of Cado Security

"As more data moves to cloud and SaaS environments, threat actors are turning their sights on assets and user credentials of which security teams may have little to no awareness. Nudge Security has an innovative approach that helps security teams shore up their defenses against cloud and SaaS threats, starting at the critical point of making the unknown known."

Brian Chess, SVP Cloud & Infrastructure at Oracle Netsuite

"We need modern security approaches that address the attrition crises happening across the enterprise and especially within the security organization where burnout is rampant. Nudge Security understands the dynamics of modern work and is the only cybersecurity vendor working to make life easier for employees and security practitioners alike."

How Nudge Security works

Continuously discovers SaaS and cloud assets: accounts, OAuth grants, domains

Provides third-party risk and supply chain insights

Automatically nudges employees towards optimal security behaviors

Automates SaaS security posture tasks with playbooks

Earlier this year, Nudge Security announced $7 million in seed funding led by Ballistic Ventures. Nudge Security is now available with a free 14-day trial experience at www.nudgesecurity.io.

About Nudge Security

Nudge Security is transforming the human element of cybersecurity. Founded in 2021 by Jaime Blasco and Russell Spitler, the company secured funding led by Ballistic Ventures in 2022. Nudge Security is a remote company with outposts in Austin, Texas and Jackson, Wyoming. Visit www.nudgesecurity.com and follow on Twitter and LinkedIn .

Media Contact

[email protected]

SOURCE Nudge Security
NY-Exclusive Insurance Company Recognized by its Customers for Exceptional Satisfaction, Best in Price

EDMESTON, N.Y., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NYCM Insurance is proud to announce being ranked #1 in Customer Satisfaction Among Auto Insurers in New York and Best in Price in the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Auto Insurance Study.

NYCM Insurance President and CEO Cheryl Robinson (right) accepts the J.D. Power Award for Highest Customer Satisfaction from J.D. Power Director of Insurance Intelligence Robert Lajdziak.

J.D. Power members traveled to Edmeston, NY to present the award to NYCM Insurance at a press conference held at the NYCM Headquarters on Thursday, October 13. Speakers included NYCM Insurance President and Chief Executive Officer Cheryl Robinson, NYCM Insurance Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer, and Treasurer Michael Perrino, and J.D. Power Director of Insurance Intelligence Robert Lajdziak.

Robinson said, "Operating solely in New York, we feel especially honored to be receiving this award because it demonstrates what we see every day: Our employees, agents, and business partners truly express and demonstrate genuine care for people's well-being so that others have hope for a better tomorrow and the courage to persevere. We could not have achieved this without the dedication and passion displayed by Team NYCM daily."

While many people associate the J.D. Power Award with vehicle and manufacturing performance, the J.D. Power U.S. Auto Insurance Study provides national and regional analyses of customers' perceptions of their auto insurer's ability to meet their expectations by examining customer satisfaction in five factors: interaction, policy offerings, price, billing process and policy information, and claims.

"The J.D. Power award represents a brand's excellence in delivering a superior customer experience to its customers," said Lajdziak. "More importantly it also represents the culture of an organization putting the customer at the center of what they do every day. J.D. Power award winners continue to raise the bar at what a truly superior customer experience looks like."

Perrino said, "This is a tremendous accomplishment for all of Team NYCM. It shows that not only do we continue to display our steadfast commitment to exceptional customer satisfaction day-in and day-out, but we are also ranked best in price at a time when people are looking to save any place they can. To our customers, thank you for choosing us to protect what matters most to you."

About NYCM. NYCM Insurance is a property and casualty insurance carrier that has been providing coverage to residents and businesses in New York since 1899. The company has grown tremendously over the last 120 years and is currently under the direction of founder VanNess Robinson's great-great-granddaughter, Cheryl Robinson. Aside from the Edmeston headquarters, NYCM Insurance has three additional offices in Sherburne, Canajoharie and Orchard Park. With a team of over 850 employees, and a network of over 1,200 independent agents, NYCM Insurance is dedicated to providing superior service and a quality customer experience to their over 525,000 customers. Insurance lines include Home, Auto, Umbrella and Business. NYCM Insurance has maintained an A rating by A.M. Best Company for 75-years. To learn more about NYCM's services, visit www.nycm.com .

About J.D. Power

J.D. Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, J.D. Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world's leading businesses across major industries rely on J.D. Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

J.D. Power has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company's business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The J.D. Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Contact Information for Media Inquiries:

800-234-6926

[email protected]

SOURCE NYCM Insurance
A new exhibit opens the day after World Sight Day, celebrated each year to focus the world's attention on the importance of eye care

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On World Sight Day, eye care nonprofit Orbis International is pleased to announce the inclusion of artifacts from the second-generation Orbis Flying Eye Hospital DC-10 aircraft in a new permanent exhibition opening on Friday, October 14, 2022, at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. An example of humanitarian flight that combines innovations in medicine and aviation, Orbis will be featured in the new "Thomas W. Haas We All Fly" exhibition, which celebrates the breadth and depth of general aviation and its deep impact on society.

Orbis International and its iconic Flying Eye Hospital are featured in a new gallery at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. The Orbis exhibit includes a simulator used for training eye care professionals around the world in treating cataracts, the leading cause of blindness.

The exhibit will feature a simulator from the Flying Eye Hospital  the world's only fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board a plane  now currently in its third generation on an MD-10 aircraft. The simulator was used to train eye care professionals on cataract surgery, the leading cause of blindness in the world. Orbis has adopted simulation training, much in the same way that pilots learn to fly planes through simulation, to allow eye care teams to build their skills and confidence safely before progressing to real-life surgeries.

"From the earliest days of Orbis, we knew that bringing training from the world's best eye care professionals directly to the eye care teams who need it most would change the way the world sees," says Derek Hodkey, President & CEO of Orbis International. "It's what led to the launch of our Flying Eye Hospital exactly 40 years ago  making it an especially fitting time to look back on all the progress we've made. We are grateful to the National Air and Space Museum for shining this important spotlight on our work."

"The Orbis Flying Eye Hospital is a wonderful example of the use of general aviation for humanitarian purposes, something we wanted to highlight in the "Thomas W Haas We All Fly" gallery," said Dorothy Cochrane, National Air and Space Museum curator. "This is truly a unique way of reaching people in need."

Live Event

Orbis will join the museum's GE Aviation Lecture Series during a live conversation titled "The Flying Eye Hospital: Medicine Meets Aviation" on Thursday, November 17, 2022, at 8 p.m. EST. The event will be held at the museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center and also streamed online. The general public is invited to attend and learn about how aviation is increasing access to eye care in communities around the world.

During the conversation, Orbis's Vice President of Clinical Services and Technologies, Dr. Hunter Cherwek, and Director of Aircraft Operations and Maintenance, Bruce Johnson, will give an insider's view into what it is like to work on one of the world's most unique aircrafts and what is ahead for Orbis and its fight against avoidable blindness. The conversation will be moderated by Dorothy Cochrane, Curator of the Aeronautics Department at the Smithsonian Institution. The event is free to attend in-person or online, but registration is required here.

Forty Years of Innovation at Orbis

This year, Orbis is celebrating 40 years since the Flying Eye Hospital took its first flight. Since 1982, three generations of the Flying Eye Hospital have taken training to eye care teams in over 95 countries around the world. Orbis has continually harnessed the power of innovation to reach new heights in the fight against avoidable blindness.

Globally, 1.1 billion people live with vision loss, and 90% of cases are completely avoidable. Nine out of ten people with vision loss live in low- and middle-income countries, where quality eye care is often difficult, sometimes impossible, to access. An effective, lasting solution to this challenge is to ensure that eye care professionals in such countries can access quality ophthalmic training, building the skills they need to provide quality eye care to patients in their communities.

Over the past four decades, Orbis has conducted tens of millions of eye screenings and performed eye surgeries and laser treatments for hundreds of thousands of patients. Orbis has also trained hundreds of thousands of eye care professionals at all levels, including tens of thousands of medical doctors. The people Orbis trains go on to provide sight-saving care in their communities and, in many cases, go on to train eye care professionals themselves.

About Orbis

Orbis is a leading global non-governmental organization that has been a pioneer in the prevention and treatment of avoidable blindness for four decades. Orbis transforms lives by delivering the skills, resources and knowledge needed to deliver accessible quality eye care. Working in collaboration with local partners, including hospitals, universities, government agencies and ministries of health, Orbis provides hands-on ophthalmology training, strengthens healthcare infrastructure and advocates for the prioritization of eye health on public health agendas. Orbis operates the world's only Flying Eye Hospital, a fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board an MD-10 aircraft, and an award-winning telemedicine platform, Cybersight. For the past ten consecutive years, Orbis has achieved Charity Navigator's coveted four-star rating for demonstrating strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency, placing Orbis in the top 3% of U.S. charities. For the past two years, Orbis has earned GuideStar's platinum Seal of Transparency. In 2022, Orbis earned "accredited charity" status from the Better Business Bureau by meeting all 20 of their standards for charity accountability. To learn more, please visit orbis.org.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Orbis International

Kristin Taylor

Vice President, Global Communications and Marketing

[email protected]

SOURCE Orbis International
NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The point-of-care (POC) diagnostics market size is set to grow by USD 13.09 billion from 2021 to 2026, according to Technavio. In addition, the growth momentum of the market will accelerate at a CAGR of 10.41% during the forecast period. The growing geriatric population is notably driving the POC diagnostics market growth. However, factors such as product recalls may challenge market growth.

Get a comprehensive report summary that describes the market size and forecast along with research methodology. The FREE sample report is available in PDF format

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Point of Care Diagnostics Market 2022-2026

POC Diagnostics Market 2022-2026: Segmentation

Product

Hematology Diagnostics



Infectious Disease Diagnostics



Rapid Cardiovascular Diagnostics



Rapid Coagulation Diagnostics



Others

End-user

Hospitals And Clinics



Homecare Settings



Clinical Diagnostic Laboratories

Geography

North America



Europe



Asia



Rest Of World (ROW)

Learn about the contribution of each segment summarized in concise infographics and thorough descriptions. View a FREE PDF Sample Report

POC Diagnostics Market 2022-2026: Revenue-generating Product Segment

The hematology diagnostics segment will be the largest contributor to market growth during the forecast period. The high incidence rates of thalassemia and anemia are driving the demand for hematology diagnostic products. Blood-related diseases such as hemophilia, thalassemia, and leukemia are highly prevalent in North America. Such diseases can be treated by prescribing blood transfusion and chelation therapy.

POC Diagnostics Market 2022-2026: Vendor Analysis and Scope

To help businesses improve their market position, the POC diagnostics market provides a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the market. Some of these vendors include Abaxis Inc, Abbott Laboratories, altona Diagnostics GmbH, Becton Dickinson and Co., bioMerieux SA, Chembio Diagnostics Inc., Danaher Corp., DiaSorin SpA, EKF Diagnostics Holdings Plc, F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd., Johnson and Johnson, Meridian Bioscience Inc., Nova Biomedical Corp., PerkinElmer Inc., PTS Diagnostics, QIAGEN NV, Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd., Siemens AG, Trinity Biotech Plc, and Trivida Health Inc. The key offerings of some of these vendors are listed below:

Abbott Laboratories - The company offers POC diagnostic solutions with simple step-by-step instructions using a nasal swab and can be used for all ages.

The company offers POC diagnostic solutions with simple step-by-step instructions using a nasal swab and can be used for all ages. Becton Dickinson and Co. - The company offers POC diagnostic solutions for the direct and qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 antigens in nasal swabs from patients with signs and symptoms who are suspected of COVID-19.

The company offers POC diagnostic solutions for the direct and qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 antigens in nasal swabs from patients with signs and symptoms who are suspected of COVID-19. Danaher Corp. - The company offers POC diagnostic solutions for glucose, urine albumin, and HbA1c as well as total and differential white blood cell count.

The company offers POC diagnostic solutions for glucose, urine albumin, and HbA1c as well as total and differential white blood cell count. F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - The company offers POC diagnostic solutions to help both healthcare professionals and patients achieve improved clinical and health-economic outcomes by delivering robust, connected immediate results.

The company offers POC diagnostic solutions to help both healthcare professionals and patients achieve improved clinical and health-economic outcomes by delivering robust, connected immediate results. PerkinElmer Inc. - The company offers POC diagnostic solutions for the qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein antigen in nasal (NS) or nasopharyngeal (NP) swab specimens.

The report also covers the following areas :

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POC Diagnostics Market 2022-2026: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2022-2026

Detailed information on factors that will help the POC diagnostics market grow during the next five years

Estimation of the POC diagnostics market size and its contribution to the parent market

Forecasts on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the POC diagnostics market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of POC diagnostics market vendors

Related Reports

Pharmacogenomics Market by End-user and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2022-2026: The pharmacogenomics market share is expected to increase by USD 2.50 billion from 2021 to 2026.

Heart Attack Diagnostics Market by End-User and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2022-2026: The heart attack diagnostics market share is expected to increase by USD 5.34 billion from 2021 to 2026.

Point Of Care Diagnostics Market Scope Report Coverage Details Page number 120 Base year 2021 Forecast period 2022-2026 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 10.41% Market growth 2022-2026 USD 13.09 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth (%) 10.19 Regional analysis North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of World (ROW) Performing market contribution North America at 38% Key consumer countries US, Canada, Germany, UK, Japan, and China Competitive landscape Leading companies, competitive strategies, consumer engagement scope Companies profiled Abaxis Inc, Abbott Laboratories, altona Diagnostics GmbH, Becton Dickinson and Co., bioMerieux SA, Chembio Diagnostics Inc., Danaher Corp., DiaSorin SpA, EKF Diagnostics Holdings Plc, F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd., Johnson and Johnson, Meridian Bioscience Inc., Nova Biomedical Corp., PerkinElmer Inc., PTS Diagnostics, QIAGEN NV, Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd., Siemens AG, Trinity Biotech Plc, and Trivida Health Inc. Market Dynamics Parent market analysis, market growth inducers and obstacles, fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and future consumer dynamics, and market condition analysis for the forecast period. Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized.

Browse Health Care Market Reports

Table of Contents

1 Executive Summary

1.1 Market overview

Exhibit 01: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Overview



Exhibit 02: Executive Summary  Data Table on Market Overview



Exhibit 03: Executive Summary  Chart on Global Market Characteristics



Exhibit 04: Executive Summary  Chart on Market by Geography



Exhibit 05: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by Product



Exhibit 06: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by End-user



Exhibit 07: Executive Summary  Chart on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 08: Executive Summary  Data Table on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 09: Executive Summary  Chart on Vendor Market Positioning

2 Market Landscape

2.1 Market ecosystem

Exhibit 10: Parent market



Exhibit 11: Market Characteristics

3 Market Sizing

3.1 Market definition

Exhibit 12: Offerings of vendors included in the market definition

3.2 Market segment analysis

Exhibit 13: Market segments

3.3 Market size 2021

3.4 Market outlook: Forecast for 2021-2026

Exhibit 14: Chart on Global - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 15: Data Table on Global - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 16: Chart on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 17: Data Table on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

4 Five Forces Analysis

4.1 Five forces summary

Exhibit 18: Five forces analysis - Comparison between 2021 and 2026

4.2 Bargaining power of buyers

Exhibit 19: Chart on Bargaining power of buyers  Impact of key factors 2021 and 2026

4.3 Bargaining power of suppliers

Exhibit 20: Bargaining power of suppliers  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.4 Threat of new entrants

Exhibit 21: Threat of new entrants  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.5 Threat of substitutes

Exhibit 22: Threat of substitutes  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.6 Threat of rivalry

Exhibit 23: Threat of rivalry  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.7 Market condition

Exhibit 24: Chart on Market condition - Five forces 2021 and 2026

5 Market Segmentation by Product

5.1 Market segments

Exhibit 25: Chart on Product - Market share 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 26: Data Table on Product - Market share 2021-2026 (%)

5.2 Comparison by Product

Exhibit 27: Chart on Comparison by Product



Exhibit 28: Data Table on Comparison by Product

5.3 Hematology diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 29: Chart on Hematology diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 30: Data Table on Hematology diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 31: Chart on Hematology diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 32: Data Table on Hematology diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.4 Infectious disease diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 33: Chart on Infectious disease diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 34: Data Table on Infectious disease diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 35: Chart on Infectious disease diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 36: Data Table on Infectious disease diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.5 Rapid cardiovascular diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 37: Chart on Rapid cardiovascular diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 38: Data Table on Rapid cardiovascular diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 39: Chart on Rapid cardiovascular diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 40: Data Table on Rapid cardiovascular diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.6 Rapid coagulation diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 41: Chart on Rapid coagulation diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 42: Data Table on Rapid coagulation diagnostics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 43: Chart on Rapid coagulation diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 44: Data Table on Rapid coagulation diagnostics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.7 Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 45: Chart on Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 46: Data Table on Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 47: Chart on Others - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 48: Data Table on Others - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.8 Market opportunity by Product

Exhibit 49: Market opportunity by Product ($ million)

6 Market Segmentation by End-user

6.1 Market segments

Exhibit 50: Chart on End-user - Market share 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 51: Data Table on End-user - Market share 2021-2026 (%)

6.2 Comparison by End-user

Exhibit 52: Chart on Comparison by End-user



Exhibit 53: Data Table on Comparison by End-user

6.3 Hospitals and clinics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 54: Chart on Hospitals and clinics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 55: Data Table on Hospitals and clinics - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 56: Chart on Hospitals and clinics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 57: Data Table on Hospitals and clinics - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

6.4 Homecare settings - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 58: Chart on Homecare settings - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 59: Data Table on Homecare settings - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 60: Chart on Homecare settings - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 61: Data Table on Homecare settings - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

6.5 Clinical diagnostic laboratories - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 62: Chart on Clinical diagnostic laboratories - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 63: Data Table on Clinical diagnostic laboratories - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 64: Chart on Clinical diagnostic laboratories - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 65: Data Table on Clinical diagnostic laboratories - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

6.6 Market opportunity by End-user

Exhibit 66: Market opportunity by End-user ($ million)

7 Customer Landscape

7.1 Customer landscape overview

Exhibit 67: Analysis of price sensitivity, lifecycle, customer purchase basket, adoption rates, and purchase criteria

8 Geographic Landscape

8.1 Geographic segmentation

Exhibit 68: Chart on Market share by geography 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 69: Data Table on Market share by geography 2021-2026 (%)

8.2 Geographic comparison

Exhibit 70: Chart on Geographic comparison



Exhibit 71: Data Table on Geographic comparison

8.3 North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 72: Chart on North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 73: Data Table on North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 74: Chart on North America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 75: Data Table on North America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.4 Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 76: Chart on Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 77: Data Table on Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 78: Chart on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 79: Data Table on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.5 Asia - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 80: Chart on Asia - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 81: Data Table on Asia - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 82: Chart on Asia - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 83: Data Table on Asia - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.6 Rest of World (ROW) - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 84: Chart on Rest of World (ROW) - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 85: Data Table on Rest of World (ROW) - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 86: Chart on Rest of World (ROW) - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 87: Data Table on Rest of World (ROW) - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.7 US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 88: Chart on US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 89: Data Table on US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 90: Chart on US - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 91: Data Table on US - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.8 Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 92: Chart on Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 93: Data Table on Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 94: Chart on Canada - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 95: Data Table on Canada - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.9 Germany - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 96: Chart on Germany - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 97: Data Table on Germany - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 98: Chart on Germany - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 99: Data Table on Germany - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.10 UK - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 100: Chart on UK - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 101: Data Table on UK - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)



Exhibit 102: Chart on UK - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 103: Data Table on UK - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.11 Japan - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 104: Chart on Japan - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 105: Data Table on Japan - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 106: Chart on Japan - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 107: Data Table on Japan - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.12 China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 108: Chart on China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 109: Data Table on China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ million)

Exhibit 110: Chart on China - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 111: Data Table on China - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

8.13 Market opportunity by geography

Exhibit 112: Market opportunity by geography ($ million)

9 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

9.1 Market drivers

9.2 Market challenges

9.3 Impact of drivers and challenges

Exhibit 113: Impact of drivers and challenges in 2021 and 2026

9.4 Market trends

10 Vendor Landscape

10.1 Overview

10.2 Vendor landscape

Exhibit 114: Overview on Criticality of inputs and Factors of differentiation

10.3 Landscape disruption

Exhibit 115: Overview on factors of disruption

10.4 Industry risks

Exhibit 116: Impact of key risks on business

11 Vendor Analysis

11.1 Vendors covered

Exhibit 117: Vendors covered

11.2 Market positioning of vendors

Exhibit 118: Matrix on vendor position and classification

11.3 Abbott Laboratories

Exhibit 119: Abbott Laboratories - Overview



Exhibit 120: Abbott Laboratories - Business segments



Exhibit 121: Abbott Laboratories - Key news



Exhibit 122: Abbott Laboratories - Key offerings



Exhibit 123: Abbott Laboratories - Segment focus

11.4 Becton Dickinson and Co.

and Co. Exhibit 124: Becton Dickinson and Co. - Overview

and Co. - Overview

Exhibit 125: Becton Dickinson and Co. - Business segments

and Co. - Business segments

Exhibit 126: Becton Dickinson and Co. - Key news

and Co. - Key news

Exhibit 127: Becton Dickinson and Co. - Key offerings

and Co. - Key offerings

Exhibit 128: Becton Dickinson and Co. - Segment focus

11.5 Danaher Corp.

Exhibit 129: Danaher Corp. - Overview



Exhibit 130: Danaher Corp. - Business segments



Exhibit 131: Danaher Corp. - Key news



Exhibit 132: Danaher Corp. - Key offerings



Exhibit 133: Danaher Corp. - Segment focus

11.6 F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd.

Exhibit 134: F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 135: F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 136: F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - Key news



Exhibit 137: F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 138: F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd. - Segment focus

11.7 PerkinElmer Inc.

Exhibit 139: PerkinElmer Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 140: PerkinElmer Inc. - Business segments



Exhibit 141: PerkinElmer Inc. - Key news



Exhibit 142: PerkinElmer Inc. - Key offerings



Exhibit 143: PerkinElmer Inc. - Segment focus

11.8 PTS Diagnostics

Exhibit 144: PTS Diagnostics - Overview



Exhibit 145: PTS Diagnostics - Product / Service



Exhibit 146: PTS Diagnostics - Key offerings

11.9 QIAGEN NV

Exhibit 147: QIAGEN NV - Overview



Exhibit 148: QIAGEN NV - Product / Service



Exhibit 149: QIAGEN NV - Key news



Exhibit 150: QIAGEN NV - Key offerings

11.10 Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd.

Exhibit 151: Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 152: Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 153: Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 154: Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd. - Segment focus

11.11 Siemens AG

Exhibit 155: Siemens AG - Overview



Exhibit 156: Siemens AG - Business segments



Exhibit 157: Siemens AG - Key news



Exhibit 158: Siemens AG - Key offerings



Exhibit 159: Siemens AG - Segment focus

11.12 Trinity Biotech Plc

Exhibit 160: Trinity Biotech Plc - Overview



Exhibit 161: Trinity Biotech Plc - Product / Service



Exhibit 162: Trinity Biotech Plc - Key offerings

12 Appendix

12.1 Scope of the report

12.2 Inclusions and exclusions checklist

Exhibit 163: Inclusions checklist



Exhibit 164: Exclusions checklist

12.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

Exhibit 165: Currency conversion rates for US$

12.4 Research methodology

Exhibit 166: Research methodology



Exhibit 167: Validation techniques employed for market sizing



Exhibit 168: Information sources

12.5 List of abbreviations

Exhibit 169: List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provide actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

Contact

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

SOURCE Technavio
Navigating the Regulations from Patient Recruitment through Policies and Procedures

IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- TALG is attending the 2022 American Society of Human Genetics Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, California! TALG is a multi-jurisdictional law firm that solves complex problems, leveraging cutting edge technology for clients, whether in the courtroom or boardroom. We have a unique understanding of the needs of embryonic biotechnology firms with promising technology and the need for access to capital markets, while efficiently navigating the complex FDA compliance process. We have represented larger biotechnology and publicly traded biologics companies for over 10 years.

TALG is proud to announce that Ismail Amin, MBEE will be presenting in a Co-Lab session Friday, October 28, 2022, at 10:00 AM in CoLab Theater 3. Ismail is admitted to practice law in California, Nevada, Texas, and North Carolina. He attended the University of California, Irvine and obtained a double major in International Studies and Political Science. Ismail attended law school at Pepperdine University, and currently serves on the Dean's Council. During his tenure at Pepperdine, Ismail earned a Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Technology law from what is now known as the Palmer Center. In 2019, Ismail earned his Graduate Certificate from Stanford University in Genetics & Genomics. Most recently, Ismail earned his Master's degree in Biotechnology, Enterprise & Entrepreneurship from Johns Hopkins University.

TALG and ASHG are partnering to discuss navigating regulations in patient recruitment through policies and procedures Tweet this

The co-lab session will be covering the complexities of the regulatory issues in clinical trials and how they relate to all parties involved in the trial. The parties include the patient, the Clinical Research Organizations, and affiliated parties like healthcare providers. Navigating all the current regulations and keeping on top of all the changes to those regulations can be challenging. TALG is committed to helping any party involved maintain compliance!

See how to connect with TALG at the meeting here: https://talglaw.com/ashg-annual-meeting-2022/ then get registered for the meeting here: https://www.ashg.org/meetings/2022-annual-meeting/. See you at booth 513 in the exhibits hall, or better yet, attend Ismail's co-lab event!

https://www.ashg.org/meetings/2022-annual-meeting/

SOURCE Talg
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ridgewood Infrastructure, a leading investor in essential infrastructure in the U.S. lower middle market, today announced that Jeffrey Kightlinger joined the firm as a Senior Advisor focused primarily on water and utility infrastructure investments.

Mr. Kightlinger was the longest serving Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which is the largest municipal water provider in the United States, delivering an average of 1.5 billion gallons of water per day to 19 million residents in Southern California.

"We are thrilled to welcome Jeff to our team," said Managing Partner, Ross Posner. "His experience leading the largest municipal water system in the United States is unparalleled. Few have Jeff's perspective, relationships, and experience. We look forward to working with Jeff to continue creating compelling essential water investment solutions."

As CEO of Metropolitan Water, Mr. Kightlinger was responsible for the entirety of the southern California district's water and power operations, including five of the world's largest water treatment plants, aqueducts and reservoirs, as well as a total of twenty hydroelectric and solar power facilities.

"I am excited to be joining the team at Ridgewood Infrastructure and look forward to collaborating," said Mr. Kightlinger. "We are aligned in our focus on sustainably managing scarce water resources through investments that create beneficial outcomes for stakeholders." He added: "I have been impressed by Ridgewood's leadership in the sector; the team has invested more than $1 billion in water infrastructure and delivered projects such as the Vista Ridge Water Pipelinethe largest water infrastructure public private partnership in U.S. history."

About Ridgewood Infrastructure

Ridgewood Infrastructure is a leading infrastructure investor in the U.S. lower middle market with sectors of focus including Water, Utilities, Transportation, and Energy Transition. For more information, please visit www.ridgewoodinfrastructure.com .

Contact info:

For More Information:

Ridgewood Infrastructure

34 East 51st Street, 9th Floor

New York, NY 10022

Phone: (212) 867-0050

[email protected]

SOURCE Ridgewood Infrastructure
Rising Phoenix Resources mineral funds have posted annual cash on cash returns averaging 20% since 2021

DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Rising Phoenix Resources (RPR), a privately held asset management company, invites accredited investors to join its Capitol Peak Fund. Participation is open now through December 31st, 2022.

Since 2017, RPR investment Funds, comprised of nationwide oil and gas basin mineral royalty assets, have posted annual cash on cash returns exceeding a 20% average. Fund participation starts at $50K minimum and is open to accredited investors.

Rising Phoenix Resources Offers Accredited Investors Nationwide an Opportunity to Join its Capitol Peak Fund Now Through Dec 31, 2022

"Investing in RPR Funds is a great way to safely and prudently diversify your portfolio into an alternative asset class like oil and gas," notes Jace Graham, CEO & Founder, Rising Phoenix Resources. "The assets are producing, meaning the pump jacks are going up and down 24/7, 365 day a year, and we're generating consistent income streams pulling from hundreds of wells throughout the United States."

"Investors benefit from long term cash flows with distributions starting 60-90 days after your initial Fund purchasetrue mailbox money!," continues Graham.

RPR Fund investors are paid quarterly, based on the royalty payments collected for each Fund. The Fund's holding period is typically 2-3 years with a sale, however, RPR investors receive quarterly distributions with returns that typically outperform the stock and real estate markets.

Contact Investor Relations, at 214-949-1856 or email at [email protected] for Fund information or participation. Request the RPR Fund Investor Presentation.

About Rising Phoenix Resources

Rising Phoenix Resources (RPR), Dallas, TX, is a privately held independent natural resource company with four generations of energy sector experience. RPR identifies, acquires and manages income producing properties that allow investors to preserve capital investments and collect monthly cash flow, while awaiting future capital appreciation of the assets.Learn more about our current fund at www.capitolpeakfund.com

Contact:

Zach Sodolak

Marketing Manager

(831) 215-4465

Rising-phoenix.com

SOURCE Rising Phoenix Resources
EDWARDS, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Flight Test Museum Foundation, a nonprofit building the only museum in the world dedicated to test pilots and experimental air- and spacecraft, invites the public to its annual "Gathering of Eagles" fundraiser recognizing exemplary aviators, including two NASA astronauts.

The future 75,000-square-foot Flight Test Museum in Edwards, Calif., unites the rectangular shape of an airplane hangar with the dynamic geometry of a Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk aircraft. Rendering courtesy of Gensler.

The event and silent auction of rare memorabilia will be held on Saturday, Nov. 12 at the Antelope Valley Fair and Event Center, H.W. Hunter Pavilion in Lancaster, California, at 6 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase here. All proceeds will support phase two construction of the museum.

Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry, CEO of Roddenberry Enterprises, and executive producer of the groundbreaking Star Trek franchise, will serve as the event's honorary chairman and participate in a fireside chat with Bill "Evil" Gray, chief test pilot at the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School.

The Foundation's Eagle Award recognizes significant achievement in flight test and will be presented to the following individuals who will be in attendance:

Fred W. Haise, Jr.  NASA astronaut, Apollo 13; Commander, Space Shuttle Enterprise; Test pilot; Fighter pilot, Air Force and Marine Corps

 NASA astronaut, Apollo 13; Commander, Space Shuttle Enterprise; Test pilot; Fighter pilot, Air Force and Marine Corps Pamela A. Melroy  NASA astronaut, Space Shuttles Discovery & Atlantis; Commander, Discovery; Deputy Administrator, NASA; Test pilot, Air Force

 NASA astronaut, Space Shuttles Discovery & Atlantis; Commander, Discovery; Deputy Administrator, NASA; Test pilot, Air Force Todd "Leif" Ericson  Mission Director, Polaris Dawn; Test pilot, Air Force and Virgin Galactic

"Our national mission is to honor technological advances made by test pilots, preserve rare aircraft and spacecraft developed in the Aerospace Valley, and inspire the next generation through the future museum's STEM education programs," said Art Thompson, chairman of the Foundation's board of directors.

Along with tributes to trailblazers, such as Chuck Yeager, who broke the sound barrier 75 years ago in the Bell X-1, 35 notable air- and spacecraft, including the Lockheed A-12 "Oxcart" and the last remaining NASA Lunar Landing Research Vehicle, will be exhibited at the museum,

A panel discussion will include: Donald L. Mallick, Navy pilot, and research pilot for NASA Dryden (now Armstrong) Flight Research Center; Kelly Latimer, Air Force and Virgin Galactic test pilot, director of test flight at Virgin Galactic, and (first female) research pilot for NASA Armstrong; Jared "Rook" Isaacman, CEO, Draken International and Shift4, and commander of Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn; and Wesley R. Persall, flight test engineer for the Air Force and Scaled Composites, and principal test engineer for Blue Origin and The Spaceship Company.

The public can also support the fundraising campaign by visiting the Foundation's signed collectibles store.

About the Flight Test Museum Foundation

Founded in 1983, the Flight Test Museum Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to building the only museum in the world to honor the achievements of test pilots, preserve experimental and notable air- and spacecraft, and educate the public about the history of flight test.

Media Contact

Amy Akmal

[email protected]

(310) 993-7885 cell

SOURCE Flight Test Museum Foundation
MAYOR WILL HOLD PRESS AVAILABILITY WITH THE MEDIA

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --

WHO:

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria

Kevin Blackburn , Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco

, Federal Home Loan Bank of Martha Mosier , Berkshire Hathaway

Berkshire Hathaway Eric Johnson , CALHFA

CALHFA Darren Huston , NAREB

, NAREB Other experts

WHAT: In his speech, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria will discuss his Housing Action Package aimed at expanding the supply of housing in the city. He will also laud the San Diego Housing Commission's first-time homebuyer and closing cost forgivable loan programs. Mayor Gloria will hold a press availability with the media . At the event, potential homeowners will learn more about the homebuying process and assistance programs for first-time homebuyers. A California Housing Finance Agency official will discuss the state's down payment assistance program. HUD officials will discuss federal programs available. The event is coordinated by Berkshire Hathaway, the Impact Council and NAREB San Diego. The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and Berkshire Hathaway are prime sponsors. There will also be a panel discussion with representatives from Bank of America, CiB Bank, Union Bank and US Bank. Representatives of the San Diego Housing Commission will speak.

WHEN: Saturday, October 15, 2022

9:00am to 12:30pm

WHERE: Balboa Park Club Ballroom

2150 Pan American Road West

San Diego, CA 92101

REGISTER: tinyurl.com/bhhscalfthb

MEDIA CONTACT: KEVIN BLACKBURN @ 510-377-8999

[email protected]

SOURCE Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco
BRAND WILL CONTRIBUTE TWENTY ACRES OF GRASSLAND TO REGENERATIVE FARMLAND WITH EACH PURCHASE OF THE NEW CLASSIC MINI REGENERATE BOOT

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Evolving its Classic Boot silhouette with the environment in mind, Southern California-based global lifestyle brand UGG (a division of Deckers Brands [NYSE: DECK]) continues its purpose-driven journey towards a more regenerative world by unveiling its new Classic Mini Regenerate. Available for adults and children, the Classic Mini Regenerate is crafted with materials from Atkins Ranch, a ranch cared for with regenerative traditions to help restore soil, encourage wildlife diversity, capture carbon in the ground, and preserve the land for future generations.

MODEL & LAND PROTECTOR QUANNAH CHASINGHORSE AS THE FACE OF THE UGG CLASSIC MINI REGENERATE COLLECTION Classic Mini Regenerate in Chestnut, $160; available now Custom Classic Mini Regenerate; unavailable for sale, on display at UGG Fifth Avenue flagship until Nov. 9, 2022

"Announced on Earth Day 2022, and in partnership with the Savory Institute, UGG pledged to restore one million acres of farmland through regenerative farming practices. We believe regenerative agriculture can be one way to ease the climate crisis through practical action that can replenish and restore the planet," said Nicks Ericsson, Senior Director of Brand Purpose at UGG. "The new Classic Mini Regenerate is made with sheepskin from farms that practice regenerative agriculture to help restore soil, encourage wildlife diversity, capture carbon in the ground, and preserve the land for future generations."

UGG is proud partners of Savory Institute and Land to Market which promote verified regenerative farming solutions working toward ecosystem protection and reversing environmental degradation. By 2025, UGG has vowed to help restore one million acres of grassland into regenerative farmland. In year one alone, the brand has established a long-term grant with Land to Market to support regenerative farming practices on sheep farms in Australia, influencing over 200,000 acres and forty farms. Throughout this five-year commitment, UGG hopes to leave a legacy of transformation on the Australian sheepskin industry as the brand does its part to help these farms work regeneratively.

The Classic Mini Regenerate uses Land to Market-certified sheepskin sourced from farms that practice regenerative agriculture the way nature intended. The boot's SugarSole outsole is made from fast-growing sugarcane and offers the same cushioning and traction as the brand's signature Treadlite by UGG outsole  a supremely lightweight and ultra-durable outsole that delivers enhanced cushioning and traction. Additionally, low-impact materials combined with offsets purchased for the small remaining emissions they create, makes the Classic Mini Regenerate carbon-neutral.

Debuting in the UGG brand's Autumn/Winter 2022 Feels Like UGG campaign which launched on Sept. 11, the brand enlisted model and land protector Quannah ChasingHorse to be the face of the collection to highlight and celebrate the global importance of sustainability. To celebrate the release of the Classic Mini Regenerate, UGG also recruited the talent of Indigenous artist and friend of ChasingHorse Lenise Omeasoo  who famously created Quannah's hairpieces she wore at the 2022 Met Gala  to design and bead a one-of-a-kind pair of boots that beautifully tells a story of regenerative agriculture. Creating depictions of a regenerative ecosystem, Omeasoo included intricate plants and animals found in California in honor of the UGG brand's home state and eternal inspiration.

The Classic Mini Regenerate  available now at UGG.com and UGG retail stores, is just one way UGG is working to make positive strides for the planet. For every purchase of the Classic Mini Regenerate, UGG will contribute to the conversion of twenty acres of grassland to regenerative farmland. To get there, UGG will donate $6 per pair from the total purchase of every Classic Mini Regenerate sold in UGG retail stores and on UGG.com to the Savory Institute. Additionally, from Oct. 13 through Dec. 31, 2022, this overall maximum donation of $50,000 will go toward Savory Institute's mission to facilitate the large-scale regeneration of the world's grasslands and the livelihoods of their inhabitants through holistic management.

For more information on the UGG brand's sustainability mission, please visit: UGG.com/Purpose.

About UGG

Founded in 1978 by an Australian surfer on the coast of California, UGG is a global lifestyle brand renowned for its iconic Classic boot. First worn by Hollywood royalty, fashion editors and then the world, UGG designs and retails footwear, apparel, accessories, and homewares with an uncompromising attitude toward quality and craftsmanship. UGG is an environmentally and socially conscious brand which strives to be socially just, economically inclusive, and environmentally restorative. Delivering more than $1.5 billion in annual sales, UGG partners with the best retailers globally and owns concept and outlet stores worldwide in key markets including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Paris, London, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Beijing. For more information, please visit www.ugg.com @ugg #FeelsLikeUGG

HIGH-RES CAMPAIGN CONTENT

Credit: UGG

Press Contact:

UGG

Matty Magnin

PR Manager

Office: (212) 247-8552 x2772

Mobile: (917) 842-2391

[email protected]

SOURCE UGG
National Spine Health Foundation Applauds Proclamation, Effort to Raise Awareness



RESTON, Va., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- At the request of the National Spine Health Foundation (NSHF), Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has formally recognized the month of October as Spine Health Awareness Month to bring attention to a medical issue that impacts tens of millions of Americans each year.

U.S. Congress has also recognized National Spine Health Awareness month , shedding light on the spinal conditions and resultant back and neck pain affecting millions of Americans. NSHF is the nation's leading spine health patient education and advocacy organization, with a mission to improve patients' health outcomes and reclaim their lives from back and neck pain.

"On behalf of all Virginians who suffer from neck and back pain each year, we commend Governor Youngkin's recognition of October as Spine Health Awareness Month," said Dr. Rita Roy, Chief Executive Officer, National Spine Health Foundation. "The National Spine Health Foundation works year-round to ensure patients have access to the tools they need to make informed, confident decisions regarding their health, treatments, and recovery."

According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, lower back pain is the world's leading cause of disability. In the United States, it is cited as the primary reason for missed workdays, leading to billions of dollars in lost productivity annually.

Spinal conditions afflict people of all ages, and more than one-third of Americans nationwide suffer from neck or back pain each year. NSHF is the only patient-centered, non-profit organization dedicated to helping Americans ease their pain and overcome debilitating spine conditions through patient education and award-winning research.

In honor of Spine Health Awareness Month, NSHF will host the 14th Annual We've Got Your Back 5K and Wellness Fair on Sunday, October 16. Held at the International Tower at Reston Heights in Reston, Virginia, the race and fair will bring together elite runners, recovering and recovered patients, health industry experts, and other supportive community members to raise awareness and celebrate the importance of spine health.

For more information, visit www.spinehealth.org .

About the National Spine Health Foundation

The National Spine Health Foundation (NSHF), a 501-C(3) nonprofit organization, is the only patient-centered non-profit organization dedicated to spine health education and advocacy. Learn more at spinehealth.org

SOURCE National Spine Health Foundation
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- October 13, 2022  The word is out: Timeshare brands have been focused on taking great care of their guests. One example is the recent recognition received by Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated from J.D. Power for providing "An Outstanding Customer Service Experience" for phone interactions via its Owner Support team in 2022. With receipt of the certification, Holiday Inn Club Vacations became the first company in the timeshare or vacation ownership industry to achieve the prestigious honor from J.D. Power, a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services, and data and analytics.

Holiday Inn Club Vacations' new distinction for customer service is indicative of what the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) has known about the timeshare industry all along. According to a recent owner's survey conducted by the industry trade association: 90% of timeshare owners are happy with their overall ownership experience; 82% indicate that they would recommend timeshares in general; and 84% of owners would purchase a timeshare product again knowing at the time of purchase what they know today about their ownership experience.

"The beauty of timeshares is that the support and service provided by timeshare brands is a major part of the experience that owners can expect to enjoy while vacationing at properties in desirable destinations across the U.S. and around the world," said Jason Gamel, President and CEO of ARDA. "Our hats are off to Holiday Inn Club Vacations for being the first in the industry to receive this well-deserved honor from J.D. Power, and I am positive this will be the first of many for the timeshare industry".

A Vacation Option Transformed

Timeshare owners of today enjoy an array of positive attributes that reveal how far the industry has advanced since timeshares first emerged.

Long gone are the days when timeshares were only a fixed week/fix unit product without exchange options. Today, timeshare owners count flexibility as one of the top three reasons to purchase a timeshare, as they enjoy access to thousands of resorts worldwide, with spacious accommodations outfitted with all the comforts of home including multiple bedrooms, living room, fully equipped kitchen, and laundry. Now well regulated, the industry is also dominated by major and widely respected hospitality brands, including Marriott Vacations Worldwide, Hilton Grand Vacations, Disney Vacation Club, Wyndham Destinations, and of course Holiday Inn Club Vacations.

Brands treat their owners with desirable perks including unique, one-of-a-kind travel experiences. Holiday Inn Club Vacations, for instance, has rolled out new VIP Experiences for owners, with fully guided event travel experiences available every month, and with every detail handled by the company. Exclusive owner events from the major brands include culinary tours, multi-course meals, private concerts, behind-the-scenes tours, access to sporting events and much more.

To discover more about how far timeshares have come and how suited the industry is to a new generation of vacationers, please explore all the American Resort Development Association has to offer at www.arda.org.

Media Contact:

Paula Carreiro and Lauren Wire

[email protected]

About ARDA:

The American Resort Development Association (ARDA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, Washington, DC-based trade association for the timeshare industry, representing more than 350 privately held and publicly traded companies. ARDA's work including proactive advocacy touches every role within the timeshare industry. Developers, exchange companies, vacation clubs, timeshare resellers, timeshare owner associations (HOAs), resort management companies, industry vendors, consultants, and legal and regulatory experts are all part of the ARDA network, including popular companies such as Disney Vacation Club, Hilton Grand Vacations, Marriott Vacations Worldwide, Westgate Resorts, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, and Wyndham Destinations. As the U.S. is the global headquarters for the timeshare and shared ownership industries, ARDA is seen as a leader amongst its peers worldwide and regularly works with established and emerging associations and markets across the globe to help advocate for the interests of ARDA members and beyond.

SOURCE American Resort Development Association (ARDA)
BENTON HARBOR, Mich., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR), committed to being the best global kitchen and laundry company, in constant pursuit of improving life at home, will release its third-quarter financial results and presentation materials at 4:05 p.m. ET on Thursday, October 20, 2022. Whirlpool Corporation will then hold a conference call to discuss its performance with the investment community at 8 a.m. ET on Friday, October 21, 2022.

To participate in the conference call, dial 1 (888) 440-4038 and Conference ID 2610251. International participants should dial 1 (646) 960-0861 and Conference ID 2610251. Participants should dial in at least 10 minutes prior to the call, as they may experience longer than usual wait times.

The conference call will be webcast live on the Company's website at www.whirlpoolcorp.com and may be accessed by clicking on the "Investors" tab located at the top of the page. To listen to the live webcast, participants should visit the site at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call to download any required streaming media software. Key financial statistics, the earnings presentation, and an archived recording of the conference call will be available on the Company's website for at least 30 days.

About Whirlpool Corporation

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) is committed to being the best global kitchen and laundry company, in constant pursuit of improving life at home. In an increasingly digital world, the company is driving purposeful innovation to meet the evolving needs of consumers through its iconic brand portfolio, including Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag, Consul, Brastemp, Amana, Bauknecht, JennAir, Indesit and Yummly. In 2021, the company reported approximately $22 billion in annual sales, 69,000 employees and 54 manufacturing and technology research centers. Additional information about the company can be found at WhirlpoolCorp.com.

Website Disclosure

We routinely post important information for investors on our website, WhirlpoolCorp.com, in the "Investors" section. We also intend to update the Hot Topics Q&A portion of this webpage as a means of disclosing material, non-public information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors should monitor the Investors section of our website, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, presentations and webcasts. The information contained on, or that may be accessed through, our webpage is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this document.

SOURCE Whirlpool Corporation
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- WOW! Internet, Cable & Phone (NYSE: WOW), a leading broadband services provider, today announced the company has made a $30,000 donation to the American Red Cross to support their Hurricane Ian relief efforts across Florida.

This donation to the Red Cross will help keep shelters open and emergency response vehicles stocked with needed supplies. WOW! has customers, employees and facilities in Pinellas County and Tampa, communities that were severely impacted by flooding, wind damage and power outages. In Seminole County and Orange County, where the company has recently begun or will begin construction of its all-fiber network, significant rainfall caused flooding that damaged homes and businesses.

"Our hearts go out to our neighbors and friends affected by this historic and deadly storm," said Teresa Elder, CEO at WOW!. "We know the cleanup and rebuilding will take months and we are fully committed to working with the community and organizations like the Red Cross to help local residents and businesses recover."

To learn more about WOW!, please visit www.wowway.com .

About WOW! Internet, Cable & Phone

WOW! is one of the nation's leading broadband providers, with an efficient, high-performing network that passes 1.9 million residential, business and wholesale consumers. WOW! provides services in 14 markets, primarily in the Midwest and Southeast, including Michigan, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia. With an expansive portfolio of advanced services, including high-speed Internet services, cable TV, phone, business data, voice, and cloud services, the company is dedicated to providing outstanding service at affordable prices. WOW! also serves as a leader in exceptional human resources practices, having been recognized eight times by the National Association for Business Resources as a Best & Brightest Company to Work For, winning the award for the last four consecutive years. Visit wowway.com for more information.

SOURCE WideOpenWest, Inc.
YANTAI, China, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Being the traditional advantageous industry of Yantai and even Shandong Province, its wine industry is also a famous industry in China and abroad. Yantai is the birthplace of China's modern wine industry, the largest wine-producing area in China, the only "International Grapes  Wine City" in Asia, one of the seven largest coasts of vineyards in the world, an observer of the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV), and the only "partnership" member of the Global Wine Tourism Organization (GWTO) in China. After more than 130 years of development, Yantai's wine has become a beautiful business card for promoting the city for the rest of the world getting to know it.

Charm of chateau: Chateau Tinlot - Photo/Yao Nantong

Highly recognized by the world wine industry, Yantai wines have won more than 500 international awards in recent years and have made excellent achievements in international events such as the Berliner Wine Trophy, Brussels Grand Prix, International Wine & Spirit Competition and Decanter World Wine Awards, which have become a "new bridge" between Yantai and the rest of the world. In 2021, Yantai wine products were selected for the "China-EU 100+100" mutual recognition list of products with geographical indications, which has cast a positive influence on promoting the export of Yantai wines. In 2022, Yantai wines were ranked the 3rd regional brand of products with geographical indications with a brand value of 85.874 billion yuan and topped the list of regional brands of products with geographical indications in China for six consecutive years.

63 wineries have been built and are under construction in the city at the moment, forming a cluster of wineries represented by the project of Zhangyu International Wine City, the "One Belt, Three Valleys" winery gathering area in Penglai, and the Pula Valley winery cluster in Laishan. With the launching of wine tourism in Zhang Yu Wine Culture Museum, Chateau Zhangyu Castel, Chateau Junding, Chateau State Guest, Chateau Sifram and Chateau Wencheng, the wine culture and tourism industry is rapidly emerging. Since 2007, the Yantai International Wine Festival has been successfully held for 12 consecutive sessions and has been rated as one of the "30 most popular festivals" in China. It has played an important role in strengthening international exchanges and cooperation in the field of grapes and wine and promoting the wine culture.

Yantai wines have created a brand development path of tolerance, perseverance, openness and innovation over the past 130 years. Yantai wines have not only fostered an advantageous industry, but also a brand and symbol that integrates the taste of life and cultural symbols. It belongs to Yantai, to China as well as to the world.

Contact: Zhao Xiangyang

Tel: 0086535-6789710

E-mail: [email protected]

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920547/Chateau_Tinlot.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1802020/City_of_Yantai_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Yantai
Flipping the script on stretching and yoga, Yogi Aaron is giving people easy and accessible tools to feel their best and become pain-free

PUERTO JIMENEZ, Costa Rica, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Anyone over the age of 30 commonly jokes that everything starts to break down, right? Back pain, knee pain, shoulder pain, let's face it  everything pain. What does everyone typically recommend? Stretching. Contrary to popular belief, stretching could actually be making everything worse believe it or not. In his upcoming book Stop Stretching! A New Yogic Approach To Master Your Body and Live Pain-Free, Yogi Aaron is revealing the truth behind the dangers of stretching and how to find true relief from pain.

Yogi Aaron Releases New Book "Stop Stretching! A New Yogic Approach To Master Your Body and Live Pain-Free Come October 21

Launching October 21 on Amazon, Stop Stretching! A New Yogic Approach To Master Your Body and Live Pain-Free dismantles the common myths and harmful advice given to millions who experience pain and provides safe, therapeutic alternatives through Yogi Aaron's Applied Yoga Anatomy and Muscle Activation method. This groundbreaking book is divided into three parts where readers will learn:

Part 1: Stop Stretching: Why the conventional wisdom on stretching is causing more harm than goodand what to do instead.

Part 2: Applied Yoga Anatomy and Muscle Activation (AYAMA): Simple techniques to activate muscles and strengthen the neuromuscular system to finally swap pain and injuries for stability and strength.

Part 3: Dare to Live Pain-Free: How to release attachment to suffering and tap into the soul's purpose.

Bonus: 4 Yoga Sequences to Change Your Life: Easy yoga sequences to activate the muscles and build a strong and stable body that can withstand life's daily stressors.

"As a former Ashtanga practitioner, I had to unlearn a lot and relearn a new pain-free way of yoga during my teacher training with Aaron. The way he integrates his knowledge of Applied Yoga Anatomy and Muscle Activation is a mindful and safe way to practice yoga. In a short period of time, my shoulder pain got less and less and I felt more strength throughout my body. Now I look at some poses in yoga in a different light and have a much greater understanding of their impact on the body."  Hendrike Dreier

In a world full of gurus, masters, self-proclaimed experts, and enthusiasts selling products, philosophy, and ideas; the proof is in the pudding. Yogi Aaron has helped thousands of people dismantle the false teaching they have been told about stretching and their body to help them find the relief they have been seeking for years.

Yogi Aaron is sharing that knowledge with the masses in his new book Stop Stretching! A New Yogic Approach To Master Your Body and Live Pain-Free, come October 21. To mark the occasion, Yogi Aaron will be hosting a virtual launch party on Thursday, October 20th at 6 PM EST: http://smpl.ro/book-launch

To learn more about Yogi Aaron and his new book Stop Stretching! A New Yogic Approach To Master Your Body and Live Pain-Free, please visit: https://amzn.to/3xHJmMk

About Yogi Aaron

One of the most sought-after teachers today, Yogi Aaron is trailblazing a new path in the world of yoga. Known for his unorthodox perspectives on stretching and flexibility and how both cause more harm than good, his teachings aim to help as many people as possible live pain-free life so they can realize yoga's true intentions. He is the creator of the revolutionary approach to yoga  Applied Yoga Anatomy + Muscle Activation (AYAMA) and the online platform: The Yogi Club, host of the yoga podcast 'Stop Stretching', author of 'Autobiography of a Naked Yogi' and the forth- coming book 'Stop Stretching! New Tips On Activating Your Best Pain-Free Life', and is the Co-Owner of Blue Osa Yoga Retreat & Spa in Costa Rica where he leads The Yogi Club Yoga Teacher Training Immersions year-round for students from all across the globe.

PRESS CONTACT

Yogi Aaron

917 400 9797

https://YogiAaron.com

SOURCE Yogi Aaron
PR professionals can enter by November 30, 2022, on www.davosawards.com

DAVOS, Switzerland, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Best PR Leader Regional Awards for 2022 have been launched successfully by the World Communications Forum Association (WCFA). PR professionals from all over the world are welcome to submit their applications and win global recognition.

You can submit your entries until 30 November 2022 on www.davosawards.com

2022 Best PR Leader Regional Awards: Entries Open

These awards are location-specific and aim to recognize public relations professionals who have shown outstanding performance, made a significant contribution to the industry, their organisations and can prove their campaigns have had a measurable effect.

"Today's PR champions are the visionaries who improve the communications industry from each corner of the world. Celebrating their achievements is an endorsement of the incredible value they bring to our community and an acknowledgement that their hard work is making a difference to the future of the PR industry," says Maxim Behar, President of World Communications Forum Association (WCFA).

The 6 award categories fall under the world's top market regions:

- Africa Best PR Leader

- Asia-Pacific Best PR Leader (incl. Australia)

- Europe Best PR Leader (incl. the United Kingdom)

- Middle East Best PR Leader

- North America Best PR Leader

- South America Best PR Leader

The global expert judges will seek for individuals who present strong leadership skills, creativity and innovation, valuable contribution to society, high business performance, adaptability in the face of unforeseen challenges, and the development of talent and the industry.

Among them are the Jury Chair  Francis Ingham, Director General of PRCA and Chief Executive of ICCO; Afua Foriwaa Boafoh, Head of Media Relations at GIHOC Distilleries Company; Catalina Rousseau, Senior Partner, President & CEO of BDR Associates Communication Group; Claudia Dare, Director Partner of LatAm Intersect PR; James Wright, Global CEO of Red Havas & Global Chairman of Havas PR Global Collective; Mariam Safaryan, PR Director of SPRING PR Company; Paul J. Oyier, Senior Communications Advisor & Alternate Director to Cabinet Secretary of National Treasury & Planning; Sergii Bidenko, Co-founder and Chairman of UPRA, Board Member of ICCO and Director & Owner of Bayka.Agency, and Sherine Zaklama, CEO and Managing Director of Rada Research & Public Relations.

Partners of the Awards are PR Newswire  a part of Cision Group Ltd. and O'Dwyer's Public Relations News.

The winners and finalists will be announced during a virtual ceremony and will receive a special trophy and a professional certificate by the World Communications Forum Association, signed by the WCFA President Maxim Behar.

For more information, please contact [email protected]

About Best PR Leader Regional Awards:

The Best PR Leader Regional Awards, launched by the World Communications Forum Association in 2022, are location-specific awards to celebrate exceptional professional work by Public Relations experts from all over the world. The Awards recognize strong leadership skills, creativity and innovation, valuable contribution to society, high business performance, adaptability in the face of unforeseen challenges, and the development of talent and the industry. Winning a Best PR Leader Regional Award is an opportunity for professionals to pitch themselves as the best, to stand out from the competition, increase their credibility, and strengthen business relationships.

About World Communications Forum Association:

The World Communications Forum was founded in 2010 in Davos, Switzerland, where the Association was registered in 2014. The WCFA is a n organization committed to active global discussions and exchanges focused on the development of communications expertise of its members and be an active voice in its key role in business, society, and politics. Every year the forum gathers prominent representatives of the communication and public relations sector from around the world, who, through dialogue and discussion, exchange experiences and ideas to shape the art of global communications. In 2021, the WCFA organized its 'Global Communications Summit' on Zoom, bringing together more than 450 top communications experts globally.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920458/WCFA_PR_Leader_Awards_2022.jpg

SOURCE World Communications Forum Association
TAMPA, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- AACSB International (AACSB) announced today the appointment of Ronald (Ron) Tuninga as its new vice president and managing director for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). He will lead continued growth within EMEA, including strategic planning, operations, outreach and engagement activities, and advocating for the value of business education and AACSB accreditation.

Ron Tuninga

Tuninga will continue the work of Tim Mescon, executive vice president and chief officer of EMEA, who will retire in December 2022 after having established the Amsterdam (the Netherlands) office in 2014 and growing membership in EMEA by nearly 60 percent.

"Ron's natural ability to connect and engage with members and stakeholders will be an incredible asset to AACSB as we continue to expand in EMEA and deepen our relationships with educators, business, and government," said Geoff Perry, executive vice president and global chief membership officer and managing director of Asia Pacific. "We are focused on improving the quality of business education worldwide and helping schools contribute to society in positive and meaningful ways. Ron's experience and network will have an immediate impact on the value we provide across the EMEA region and globally."

An innovative and entrepreneurial leader with global expertise in both the public and private sectors of higher education, Tuninga is the former vice president of academic affairs at Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences, chair of the Research Centre International Business at HAN University of Applied Sciences (the Netherlands), pro vice chancellor (Enterprise) and dean of the Faculty of Business and Law at Kingston University London (United Kingdom), and dean at AVT Business School in Copenhagen (Denmark). He was also the former director dean at the Maastricht School of Management (the Netherlands). Tuninga holds a PhD from Temple University (Philadelphia, USA), an MA in economics, an MBA in international business, and an MSc in marketing.

"I am so excited to welcome Ron to the AACSB leadership team and look forward to seeing the impact he will have in growing AACSB's reach and influence within EMEA," said Caryn L. Beck-Dudley, president and CEO of AACSB. "He's dedicated his entire career to advancing and supporting quality education globally and will be one of the driving forces behind AACSB's vision to accelerate transformation and innovation within business education."

Tuninga has been involved in international projects funded by the Dutch government, World Bank, European Union, United Nations, and other international organizations. He has also been actively involved as a volunteer with AACSB. Tuninga is based in AACSB's office in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and will be connecting with AACSB members at the EMEA Annual Conference, November 2325, 2022, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

About AACSB International

Established in 1916, AACSB International (AACSB) is the world's largest business education alliance, connecting educators, learners, and business to create the next generation of great leaders. With a presence in more than 100 countries and territories, AACSB fosters engagement, accelerates innovation, and amplifies impact in business education. Learn how AACSB is transforming business education for a better society at aacsb.edu.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919601/Tuninga___Headshot___October_2022.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/492010/AACSB_Logo.jpg

SOURCE AACSB International
Since the inaugural event three years ago, thousands of users and prospects have joined ABCoA Deal Pack's User Conference and Virtual Boot Camps to increase product knowledge, streamline operations, and increase profit.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Advanced Business Computers of America, Inc. (ABCoA), a Software-as-a-Service company entrenched in the used car industry and known for Deal PackTM and cyclCRMTM, is hosting their fourth Deal Pack User Conference on October 17th and 18th at their headquarters in Jacksonville, Florida.

ABCoA Hosts User Conference For Finance Companies, BHPH and LHPH Dealers The Deal Pack User Conference covers Deal Pack's complete, cutting-edge ecosystem including cyclCRM, desking, digital document management and vaulting, loan servicing and collections tools, omni-channel payment processing, automated reporting, and its industry-leading, integrated accounting.

The User Conference covers Deal Pack's complete, cutting-edge ecosystem including cyclCRMTM, desking, digital document management and vaulting, loan servicing and collections tools, omni-channel payment processing, automated reporting, and its industry-leading, integrated accounting. Speakers provide in-depth training sessions of Deal Pack's Sales, Finance, and Service & Parts modules for retail, BHPH, and leasing dealerships, related finance companies, direct and indirect finance companies.

ABCoA hosts User Conferences to assist its users in reducing delinquency by using Deal Pack's powerful Collections module, how to keep their accounting balanced with Deal Pack's built-in, General Ledger module and real-time accounting, and the benefits of having a fully integrated dealer management software with best-in-class features and integrations. The User Conference also provides attendees a chance to review the latest features, integrations, and innovations Deal Pack has added, in addition to operational fundamentals and best practices.

"The Deal Pack User Conference is a great learning experience for our dealers and finance companies," said Karolina Jarvis, Marketing Assistant at ABCoA. "Not only do they see how to maximize Deal Pack's new and existing features, but they also have an opportunity to collaborate with other Deal Pack users much like a performance group. Our format encourages participation and feedback which directly impacts future development of Deal Pack; there is no cost to attend  breakfast, lunch, and dinner are provided, along with a special event; attendees meet the staff and tour our headquarters. We have a lot of fun!"

About Advanced Business Computers of America, Inc.

Advanced Business Computers of America, Inc. (ABCoA) is a Software-as-a-Service company focused on transforming the used car industry. Since 1983, ABCoA has helped used car dealerships and subprime finance companies achieve success with innovative and dependable software. Its cloud-native ecosystem supports every type of loan and seamlessly connects every part of business operations. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, ABCoA continuously elevates the standard for software in the subprime industry. Founding member of the Association of Dealer Management Software (ADMS).

Media Contact:

Evie Hedy, Vice President

Advanced Business Computers of America, Inc.

P.O. Box 54221

Jacksonville, FL 32245

+1(904)354-2073

[email protected]

SOURCE ABCoA
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Advancium Health Network, a public charity, dedicated to advancing healthcare services and health equity through philanthropic investment, announced today that it has received a charitable gift in the amount of $30M from the Maxine and Stuart Frankel Foundation, of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The Frankels will partner with Advancium to support and validate promising early-stage research. Advancium was launched by Deerfield Management and the Deerfield Foundation in February 2022 to advance research into life science technologies that address unmet medical needs affecting vulnerable populations including pediatrics.

ADVANCIUM HEALTH NETWORK

"The high rate of industry drug development and medical technology failures is largely due to a lack of available funding for academic researchers, which often requires them to prematurely seek private funding before evidence of efficacy has been established," said Mark Veich, president of Advancium and executive director Deerfield Foundation. "We are grateful for the support of the Frankel Foundation which will allow us to take on a number of new research projects that target critical unmet needs and provide the infrastructure needed to properly validate and de-risk promising new concepts at the earliest stages of their development."

The $30M donation from Maxine and Stuart Frankel will be allocated across Advancium programs and initiatives housed at New York City healthcare innovation campus, Cure, including:

The development of a new scientific research laboratory to be called the Maxine and Stuart Frankel Laboratory. The Frankel Laboratory will be available to residents of Cure Innovation Labs, a life sciences innovation hub launched by Advancium in February 2022 . Cure Innovation Labs provides specialized equipment and resources to support early-stage companies through research, development, regulatory and commercial milestones.

. Cure Innovation Labs provides specialized equipment and resources to support early-stage companies through research, development, regulatory and commercial milestones. Support of CobiCure, LLC, a not-for-profit launched by Advancium in June of 2022. CobiCure is focused on curing rare, life-threatening diseases in children, utilizing a venture philanthropy model to identify, develop and commercialize medical devices, therapies, and other technologies for pediatric patients.

The advancement of up to eight experimental life science and medical research projects per year over 10 years.

"We are excited to be partnering with Advancium and Deerfield Management to fill a major gap that exists in the process of moving promising early-stage research into the clinic and ultimately to patients in need," said Maxine and Stuart Frankel. "The Frankel Foundation is proud to support and advocate for this meaningful work and to contribute to the important vision and mission being developed collectively at Advancium."

About Advancium Health Network

Advancium Health Network is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization launched by Deerfield Management dedicated to advancing healthcare and health equity through a premier volunteer and philanthropic network of health industry, financial service, and public sector experts. Inaugural partners of the Advancium network include pediatric medical device company, CobiCure LLC and life sciences incubator, Cure Innovation Labs. For more information on Advancium Health Network, visit: https://advanciumhealth.org/

About CobiCure

CobiCure is a not-for-profit pediatric catalyst focused on curing rare and life-threating diseases in children around the globe. CobiCure is a resident of the Cure, a premier healthcare innovation campus located in New York City. For more information on how CobiCure is driving change, visit: https://advanciumhealth.org/cobicure.html

SOURCE Advancium Health Network
The company's single platform facilitates stronger customer experiences, insights, and engagement

MEXICO CITY, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Adyen (AMS: ADYEN), the global financial technology platform of choice for leading businesses, announces that it is launching its unified commerce solution in Mexico. Bolstered by the company's recently enabled full acquiring capabilities in the country, Adyen can now maintain end-to-end control of the payment flow for transactions occurring in-person and online. Engineered to consolidate data across all sales channels, unified commerce enables businesses to develop a deeper understanding of their consumers in a single overview. The extension of Adyen's unified commerce offering and local acquiring capabilities in Mexico underlines the business' commitment to growing its activities in the region.

"Our ambition is to help businesses succeed in the future of global commerce, and our unified commerce offering is an important part of this, as it enables them to cater to the ever-evolving needs of today's consumers," said Adyen COO, Kamran Zaki. "By launching our unified commerce solution and in-house acquiring capabilities in Mexico, we can not only facilitate online, in-store and in-app transactions through our single platform, but also connect businesses to key domestic and international banks to enable their card payments with greater speed and insights. We are very excited to extend this offering to Mexico and deepen our presence in the region."

Adyen's unified commerce solution enables businesses to implement the most forward-thinking consumer journeys by equipping them with best-in-class technology and insights. By providing a cohesive overview of all transaction activity, Adyen's single platform generates transparency into cross-channel consumer behavior. This rich data in turn empowers businesses to make more data-driven decisions - including how to best personalize consumer interactions to build stronger engagement and loyalty.

Unified commerce goes hand-in-hand with Adyen's recently enabled local acquiring capabilities in Mexico. Having direct payment connections to local and global card and banking networks not only increases speed and reliability, it also facilitates higher authorization rates for Mexican businesses. The company looks forward to becoming the financial technology platform of choice in Mexico, as it continues to power the future of commerce.

About Adyen

Adyen (AMS: ADYEN) is the financial technology platform of choice for leading companies. By providing end-to-end payments capabilities, data-driven insights, and financial products in a single global solution, Adyen helps businesses achieve their ambitions faster. With offices around the world, Adyen works with the likes of Facebook, Uber, H&M, eBay, and Microsoft. Adyen continuously improves and expands its product offering as part of its ordinary course of business. The launch of unified commerce and local acquiring in Mexico as described in this update underlines Adyen's continuous expansion and growth in new markets as part of its ordinary course of business.

For more information about local acquiring and its benefits, read more at: www.adyen.com/global-payment-processing

Media contact:

Kayla LaDuke

[email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1490851/Logo__Adyen_green_RGB_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Adyen Inc.
World's largest owner of A320 Family Aircraft

DUBLIN, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- AerCap Holdings N.V. ("AerCap") (NYSE: AER) announced today it has placed firm orders for 15 Airbus A321-200 Passenger to Freighter (P2F) aircraft conversions and an option for a further 15 A321P2F conversions with Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH 'EFW'. The aircraft are from AerCap's A321 passenger portfolio and are expected to begin delivery in 2023 through 2025.

"Extending the life of our A321 fleet will complement the Cargo portfolio and meet the strong demand from our diverse customer base, from which we've seen a significant appetite for this freighter," said Rich Greener, Head of AerCap Cargo. "The A321 freighter is the best-in-class and most fuel-efficient aircraft to replace the B757-200 freighter. This transaction is in line with our cargo portfolio strategy of diversifying our fleet with improved economics and returns. We look forward to working with the EFW team on this program and thank them for the trust they have placed in AerCap."

"We are glad to finalize the agreement with AerCap on the A321P2F conversions," says Jordi Boto, CEO of EFW. "Our young A320P2F family program has gone from strength to strength and gained traction very quickly in the market with a dozen aircraft already in operation."

About AerCap

AerCap is the global leader in aviation leasing with one of the most attractive order books in the industry. AerCap serves approximately 300 customers around the world with comprehensive fleet solutions. AerCap is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (AER) and is based in Dublin with offices in Shannon, Miami, Singapore, Memphis, Amsterdam, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Seattle, Toulouse and other locations around the world.

About EFW

Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (EFW), a subsidiary of ST Engineering and Airbus, combines various aviation activities under one roof including the development and manufacturing of fibre-reinforced composite components for aircraft structures and interiors of the entire Airbus family, the conversion of passenger aircraft into freighter configuration, maintenance and repair of Airbus aircraft as well as engineering services in the context of certification and approval. With almost 30 years of experience, and more than 40 conversion customers worldwide, thereof the largest Express carriers in North America and Europe but also renowned General Freight and Combination Carriers, EFW is the Centre of Excellence for freighter conversions driving the development of the Airbus freighter family.

About ST Engineering Aerospace

Similar to the A330P2F program, the latest conversion programs A321P2F and A320P2F are a collaboration between ST Engineering, Airbus and EFW, which is holding the STC (Supplemental Type Certificate) and leading the overall programs as well as marketing & sales efforts.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain statements, estimates and forecasts with respect to future performance and events. These statements, estimates and forecasts are "forward-looking statements". In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "might," "should," "expect," "plan," "intend," "will," "aim," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "predict," "potential" or "continue" or the negatives thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release are forward-looking statements and are based on various underlying assumptions and expectations and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions, and may include projections of our future financial performance based on our growth strategies and anticipated trends in our business. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. There are important factors, including the impacts of, and associated responses to: the Ukraine Conflict, the Covid-19 pandemic, our ability to successfully integrate GECAS' operations and employees and realize anticipated synergies and cost savings; and the potential impact of the consummation of the GECAS transaction on relationships, including with employees, suppliers, customers and competitors, that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results, level of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. As a result, we cannot assure you that the forward-looking statements included in this press release will prove to be accurate or correct. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the future performance or events described in the forward-looking statements in this press release might not occur. Accordingly, you should not rely upon forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results and we do not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable law, we do not undertake any obligation to, and will not, update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For more information regarding AerCap and to be added to our email distribution list, please visit www.aercap.com and follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/aercapnv.

SOURCE AerCap Holdings N.V.
ATLANTA, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Al Ries, known as the father of positioning, died on Oct 7 at age 95, his family made the public announcement Oct 12.

Ries was a legendary marketing maverick that remained a relevant and sought-after consultant and guru until the day he died. If every brand should own a word, positioning is the word owned by Ries.

Al Ries - father of positioning

Positioning put Ries on the marketing map and built his global brand. In the 1970s, Al Ries and his then partner Jack Trout rattled the creative agencies on Madison Avenue with their controversial concept of positioning.

In a three-part series, which ran in Advertising Age in 1972, they contended that marketers should forget communicating the benefits of a brand, but rather look inside the mind of the consumer. Success depends on finding an open hole in the mind and becoming the first to fill the hole with a brand.

Now 50 years later, the theory of positioning is still as relevant as ever. The rise of the internet has made our lives more over-communicated than ever, cutting through the clutter takes an even more skillful positioning strategy.

Following the Ad Age articles, Al Ries and Jack Trout published the now iconic book Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind which has sold over 4 million copies and been translated into 22 languages.

Rance Crain, former editor-in-chief of Advertising Age, who worked with Mr. Ries on the positioning series said, "Al was one of the most remarkable people I've ever known. He understood how things interconnected, and he had a way of making it all seem so logical and inevitable."

John Schnatter, founder of Papa John's, a Ries consulting client, and fan of the Positioning book said, "Al was a brilliant marketer, but an even better human being. He was a man of integrity who will be greatly missed."

Paul Kim, Vice-President of Samsung who hired Mr. Ries as a consultant said "Al was a true visionary, luminary and wonderful person. I really cherish the moments Al and Laura spent with us, and I can say they made a big difference in our Galaxy smartphone brand."

In 1994, Al's daughter Laura Ries joined her father, and the agency was renamed Ries & Ries, now called RIES. Together they co-authored five groundbreaking books including The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding and The Fall of Advertising & the Rise of PR.

Over the years, Mr. Ries served as a marketing consultant to dozens of companies around the world including Apple, Disney, Frito-Lay, Ford, Microsoft, Nvidia, Papa Johns, Samsung, Siemens, and Unilever.

In 2007, Mr. Ries and his daughter Laura partnered with Simon Zhang to launch RIES China in Shanghai. The agency has worked with many of the top Chinese companies, including Great Wall Motors, Wong Lo Kat, Robam, and Junlebao Dairy.

RIES will live on as a global positioning consulting company under the leadership of Laura Ries as RIES Chairwoman, and Simon Zhang as RIES CEO.

In 2005, Advertising Age voted "positioning" one of the 75 most important ideas of the past 75 years, in 2009 AdAge readers named Positioning the best book they have ever read on marketing, and in 2016 Mr. Ries was inducted into the AMA Marketing Hall of Fame.

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Mr. Ries served in both the U.S. Merchant Marines and the U.S. Army, where he was stationed in Korea for a year. After his service, he graduated from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana in 1950.

Mr. Ries is survived by Mary Lou Ries, his wife of 55 years; his children Charles Ries, Dorothy Ries Faison, Barbara Tien, Laura Ries; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

RIES WEBSITES : ALRIES.com RIES.com

CONTACT INFO

Laura Ries, Chairwoman of RIES

[email protected]

770-355-4955

SOURCE Ries
Alphawave IP Negotiates a Multi-Year Framework with a Leading North American Hyperscaler for a Potential Roadmap Delivering Over US$300 Million of Optical Products

LONDON and HOD HASHARON, Israel, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Alphawave IP Group plc ("Alphawave" or "Company") (LN: AWE), a global leader in high-speed connectivity for the world's technology infrastructure today announced the acquisition of Banias Labs, an Israel-based optical Digital Signal Processing ("DSP") chip developer for data centers for approximately US$240 million. The acquisition strengthens Alphawave's roadmap of optical DSP silicon products for data centers, a core high growth market for Alphawave.

Alphawave IP

Alongside the acquisition of Banias Labs, Alphawave has negotiated a non-binding, multi-year purchasing framework with a leading North American hyperscaler that proposes a multi-year roadmap for Alphawave to develop and sell a portfolio of optical products and DSPs, including coherent DSP technology from Banias Labs, with sales potentially ramping to over US$300 million.

Tony Pialis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Alphawave said: "Banias Labs optical DSP technology provides a strong strategic advantage for Alphawave, strengthening our roadmap of DSP silicon solutions for data centers. This acquisition enhances our portfolio of electrical and optical solutions in the most advanced process technologies. The multi-year purchasing framework includes coherent optical solutions, and with the Banias acquisition, Alphawave is expanding its total addressable market by delivering next generation coherent optical solutions for the most advanced data centers."

John Lofton Holt, Executive Chairman of Alphawave said: "We are pleased to welcome the talented Banias Labs team to Alphawave. This acquisition aligns with the strategic priorities that we articulated at our IPO, expanding our technology portfolio in high-speed connectivity to support long-term growth. Coherent optics will enable the next level of efficiencies in data center communications, addressing the increasing bandwidth and power efficiency requirements."

About Coherent Optics

Coherent optics is the next evolution of optical solutions, the cornerstone of the industry's efforts to achieve 800G and 1.6T Ethernet speeds while maintaining the required reaches inside and outside of data centers and also significantly reducing power consumption. Coherent technology is predominantly used today in long reaches of over 100km connecting data centers and in telecommunications. Banias Labs' optical DSP technology strengthens Alphawave's optical products roadmap by targeting a growing opportunity for coherent optical technology intra-data center, as shorter reaches adopt this technology.

Furthermore, Alphawave believes the significant engagement from a leading North American hyperscaler reflects the importance of this technology for the future of data center connectivity.

Key Acquisition Highlights

Key highlights are as follows:

This acquisition brings silicon-proven optical DSP technology, expanding Alphawave's product portfolio and strengthening its product roadmap.

Banias Labs' technology will expand Alphawave's addressable market and deepen Alphawave's commercial partnership with a leading North American hyperscaler.

Alphawave is committed to becoming an industry leader with a broad portfolio of PAM4 and Coherent DSPs, in the most advanced technologies, and for all forms of Data Center connectivity.

Background on Banias Labs

Founded in 2020, Banias Labs1 is a leading provider of coherent optical DSP semiconductor technology. Based near Tel Aviv, Israel, the key core technology leaders have worked together for over two decades and have a long track record of success in the silicon, IP, and communications segments of semiconductors. Banias Labs currently has approximately 50 employees the majority of whom are R&D focused.

Banias Acquisition Closing Details

Alphawave has acquired 100% of the shares of Banias Labs for a total cash consideration of US$240 million paid upon closing.

The acquisition is funded out of existing cash and additional financing. Alphawave has obtained US$210 million of Senior Secured Credit Facilities, comprising a five-year US$110 million Revolving Credit Facility and a five-year US$100 million Term Loan. The Company's Pro Forma net debt position after close is expected to be approximately US$35 million. Alphawave expects to continue to have a strong cash flow generation profile which combined with the additional facilities provides a solid platform to navigate this period of accelerated business expansion.

Outlook

The Company expects the ramp of new Optical products to start in 2024 and profitability to improve from 2023 levels as products go into high-volume production and generate additional revenue. Alphawave anticipates additional revenue synergies given the complementary nature of the technology and its contribution to the product roadmap. Alphawave reiterates its stand-alone outlook. Further details on the pro forma 2023 outlook and the long-term financial model will be communicated at the upcoming capital markets day on 13 January 2023.

Trading for Q3 2022 has been strong and the Company will publish its trading update for Q3 2022 next week, on 17 October 2022.

______________________________ 1 Banias Labs is the commercial name of Solanium Labs, the name under which the entity is registered in Israel.

Non-Binding Purchasing Framework Details

The non-binding purchasing framework agreement defines a potential portfolio of optical DSPs, including coherent solutions based on Banias technology, that Alphawave intends to develop over the next several years. The Company anticipates ramping up sales to the leading hyperscaler over a multi-year period, with the potential for aggregate sales to exceed US$300 million, subject to the Company qualifying the products for use in the hyperscaler's data centers on a timely basis and ensuring sufficient silicon availability to meet its usage demands. The portfolio of optical DSPs continues to build on the leading connectivity technology that Alphawave has been delivering to the industry as silicon IPs. In addition, the non-binding framework agreement contemplates the Company issuing future stock warrants of up to 2.5% of the issued share capital of the Company, with vesting based on purchases of Alphawave silicon products of up to US$700 million over the same period, and an exercise price based on the current trading price of the Company's shares, subject to downward adjustment if the Company's shares trade lower prior to issuance. The Company intends to solicit all required shareholder approvals, ahead of finalizing any warrant grants, which are not expected until at least 2024.

Presentation and webcast

A presentation for investors and analysts will be held today, 13 October 2022, at 8.30am BST. The webcast will be accessible via:

https://awaveip.zoom.us/s/89082807240?pwd=ODdkSGxlNzZwb3JhR2w2a0pUQWxIUT09

Passcode: 747970

Or by phone:

US: +1 669 900 9128 / +1 719 359 4580 / +1 253 215 8782

United Kingdom: +44 203 901 7895 / +44 208 080 6591 / +44 330 088 5830

Webinar ID: 890 8280 7240

Full list of dial-in numbers available https://awaveip.zoom.us/u/kegS2efSIo

A recording of the webcast and the presentation will be available later today on our website at Results, Reports & Presentations (awaveip.com)

Trademarks

All registered trademarks and other trademarks belong to their respective owners.

Contact Information:

Alphawave IP Group plc John Lofton Holt, Executive Chairman Jose Cano, Global Head of IR [email protected] +44 (0) 20 7717 5877 Brunswick Group Simone Selzer Sarah West [email protected] +44 (0) 20 7404 5959 Gravitate PR Lisette Paras Wynton Yu [email protected] +1 415 420 8420

About Alphawave IP Group plc (LSE:AWE)

Faced with the exponential growth of data, Alphawave IP's technology services a critical need: enabling data to travel faster, more reliably and with higher performance at lower power. Alphawave IP is a global leader in high-speed connectivity for the world's technology infrastructure. Our IP and custom silicon solutions therefore meet the needs of global tier-one customers in data centers, compute, networking, AI, 5G, autonomous vehicles, and storage. Founded in Toronto, Canada in 2017, by an expert technical team with a proven track record in licensing semiconductor IP, our mission is to focus on the hardest-to-solve connectivity challenges. To find out more about Alphawave IP, visit: awaveip.com

This announcement is issued by Alphawave IP Group plc (the "Company") and contains information which is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No.596/2014 as amended by The Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. By the publication of this Announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain. The person responsible for arranging for the release of this Announcement on behalf of the Company is Link Company Matters Limited, acting as Company Secretary.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919775/Alphawave_IP_Group_Plc_Alphawave_IP_Acquires_Optical_DSP_Chip_De.jpg

SOURCE Alphawave IP Group Plc
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Land Title Association (ALTA), the national trade association of the land title insurance industry, celebrates a new all-time high of record membership. With 6,500 member companies and a 90-percent retention rate, ALTA already has surpassed its 2020 membership record by 65 companies. In 10 years, ALTA's membership has increased by 57 percent.

"ALTA is honored to be the voice of 6,500 member companiesand to have their trust that we will represent their best interests in Washington D.C.," said ALTA CEO Diane Tomb. "At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, ALTA worked with industry partners across the nation to ensure remote online notarization was available to any Americans who needs it. Now, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a package of bills that included the ALTA-supported SECURE Notarization Act, and we continue to advocate for similar passage in the U.S. Senate. ALTA also has successfully advocated for retention of the current treatment of like-kind 1031 exchanges and endorsed federal legislation to fund the research and tracking of discriminatory covenants. As title insurance professionals face a changing market, ALTA provides education, training and networking opportunities to help our members continue to thrive.

"ALTA members play a critical role in the ability of American households to build wealth through homeownership and protect consumers by ensuring the proper transfer of real estate from seller to buyer, securing property rights and facilitating the growth of the secondary mortgage market. ALTA will support our growing membership as they continue to protect the property rights of millions of homeowners across the United States."

ALTA's active, committed and diverse membership includes title insurance companies, title and settlement agents, abstracters and real estate attorneys. The majority of these members are small business owners who rely on the variety of benefits and services that ALTA provides. For information on the benefits of ALTA membership, click here.

About ALTA

The American Land Title Association, founded in 1907, is the national trade association representing the land title insurance industry, which employs more than 120,000 people working in every county in the United States. More than two-thirds of ALTA's 6,500 member companies are considered small businesses. ALTA members conduct title searches, examinations and closings and issue title insurance that protects real property owners and mortgage lenders against losses from defects in titles.

Media Contact:

Megan Hernandez

Director of Public Relations and Marketing

American Land Title Association

[email protected]

SOURCE American Land Title Association
Abl announced the appointment of Michael Hinojosa, Barbara Jenkins, Bill Hite, Dwight Jones, Tammy Campbell and Michael Poore to the inaugural Advisory Board.

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Abl, a software company that uncovers and disrupts ineffective and inequitable academic pathways through transcript data analysis, announced an inaugural Advisory Board of former Superintendents who led the largest school districts across the country to support the company's strategic growth objectives and market expansion. The establishment of the new Board comes on the heels of news of Abl's recent expansion into large urban school districts across the country.

"I am thrilled about the opportunity to serve the Abl team to increase postsecondary opportunities and create equitable academic pathways for all students." Dwight Jones, former Colorado Commissioner of Education and Chairman of the Board noted. "The members of this board are excited to provide our knowledge, mentorship, and insights to help drive Abl's commitment to help districts be more strategic about operational processes to improve student outcomes."

In addition to his former role as the Colorado Commissioner, Mr. Jones served as Denver Public Schools Interim Superintendent and the superintendent of Clark County School District in Las Vegas,

Nevada, the nation's fifth largest school district. During his tenure there, he initiated a school reform agenda designed to raise the academic bar and ensure all of the district's 315,000 students were prepared for college, a career or the military. In July 2009, the Education and Resource Development Institute recognized Dwight for his work by presenting him the "Mike Kneale  Excellence in Education" Administrator of the Year Award.

Dr. Michael Hinojosa, the former superintendent of the Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD), joins the board after 27 years as a superintendent and CEO of six public education systems, including two stints in Dallas. In 2020 Dr. Hinojosa received the Urban Educator of the Year by the Council of the Great City Schools; the nation's highest urban education honor recognizing outstanding contributions in urban education. Under Hinojosa's leadership at Dallas ISDthe nation's 16th largest school district experienced an increase in student achievement and graduation rates, established a racial equity office, eliminated discretionary suspensions, and increased internet access and connectivity. He retired from Dallas ISD in June 2022.

Dr. Barbara Jenkins, is a nationally recognized education leader and the former superintendent of Orange County Public Schools (OCPS) in Florida, the nation's ninth-largest system. She spent more than 30 years in OCPS and served as superintendent from 2012 to 2022. In 2017, Jenkins was named Florida Superintendent of the Year and was one of four finalists for the national title. Under Dr. Under Jenkins' leadership, the district won the prestigious 2014 Broad Prize for Urban Education and received accolades from the College Board for increasing access to Advanced Placement coursework while simultaneously maintaining or increasing the number of students earning exam scores for college credit.

Dr. William R. Hite, Jr., is the former superintendent of The School District of Philadelphia (SDP). During his 10 years overseeing the district, the district opened new innovative high schools; expanded successful school models; and strengthened elementary and secondary school offerings. In 2020, Dr. Hite received the National School Foundation Association's (NSFA) 2020 Superintendent of the Year Award to recognize his leadership in engaging the community to ensure all students have the resources they need to succeed. Prior to joining the School District of Philadelphia as superintendent in June 2012, he served in that role for Prince George's County Public Schools in Maryland, where he was recognized nationally for bringing Advanced Placement courses to underserved students.

Dr. Tammy Campbell is the former superintendent of Federal Way Public Schools (FWPS) in Washington. Under her tenure, FWPS boosted college enrollment and completion; expanded access to Advanced Placement courses; and provided more opportunities for students in career and technical education programs to earn industry recognized certifications while still in high school. In 2021, she was awarded the district's first-ever Dream Maker Award. Campbell began her decades-long career in education as a classroom teacher.

Michael Poore is the former Superintendent of Little Rock School District in Arkansas. In 2021, he was named Superintendent of the Year by the Arkansas Association of Administrators. Prior to Little Rock, he was the Superintendent of the Bentonville School District,n where under his leadership, the Bentonville district implemented a Response to Intervention system, which resulted in improved achievement scores and also developed and implemented a Center for Advanced Professional Studies program that resulted in Ignite professional career development centers for project-based learning.

"It is an honor to welcome the inaugural Advisory Board to the Abl Leadership team. It is no secret that the pandemic exacerbated systemic inequities for underrepresented students and we are thrilled to have these leaders on board to help us find innovative solutions to improve advanced coursework pathways for underrepresented students" said Howard Bell, Abl CEO said.

With the guidance of these new members, Abl looks forward to continuing its important work to systematically modernize school scheduling and operations to strategically remove barriers to postsecondary success.

About Abl

Abl empowers districts to fulfill the promise of education by simplifying complex operational processes. We expose and disrupt ineffective and inequitable pathways through data analysis and intelligent tools so districts can intentionally design flexible and responsive schools that allow students to own their futures. Learn more at ablschools.com .

SOURCE Abl
MONTREAL, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - BCE Inc. (TSX: BCE) (NYSE: BCE) will hold its third-quarter 2022 results conference call with the financial community on Thursday, November 3, 2022 at 8:00 am eastern.

Participants will include Mirko Bibic, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Glen LeBlanc, Chief Financial Officer. Media are welcome to participate on a listen-only basis.

To participate, please dial toll-free 1-800-806-5484 or 416-340-2217 and enter passcode 1128694#. A replay will be available until midnight on December 1, 2022 by dialing

1-800-408-3053 or 905-694-9451 and entering passcode 6266597#.

A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available on BCE's website at

BCE Q3-2022 conference call.

About BCE

BCE is Canada's largest communications company, providing advanced Bell broadband wireless, Internet, TV, media and business communications services. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca or BCE.ca.

Through Bell for Better, we are investing to create a better today and a better tomorrow by supporting the social and economic prosperity of our communities. This includes the Bell Let's Talk initiative, which promotes Canadian mental health with national awareness and anti-stigma campaigns like Bell Let's Talk Day and significant Bell funding of community care and access, research and workplace initiatives throughout the country. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.

Media inquiries:

Marie-Eve Francoeur

514-391-5263

[email protected]

Investor inquiries:

Thane Fotopoulos

514-870-4619

[email protected]

SOURCE BCE Inc.
MELBOURNE, Australia and LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BioScience Managers, the international healthcare investment firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of David Atkins MBA PhD in the role of Managing Partner. Working alongside founder and Managing Partner, Jeremy Curnock Cook, David will be responsible for driving the future growth of BioScience Managers in new and existing geographies and to build on successes in digital health.

David has extensive experience in both the investment in and management of emerging technologies and operational experience within a broad range of businesses at the most senior level. He has deep experience in R&D, product development and commercialisation across biotech, medical device, IVD and data-driven solutions in all global markets. He joins after leading Congenica, a digital health scale-up in Cambridge, UK, through several major financing rounds that attracted a global network of investors that supported Congenica's rapid international growth. Previously, he held senior leadership roles in Johnson & Johnson, Danaher and Medicover. His 22 years at Johnson & Johnson included global and regional senior leadership positions. David began his career in Australia as a research scientist in the emerging field of human gene therapy.

BioScience Managers is a long standing and successful international investor in the biosciences space, headquartered in Melbourne Australia, but investing in healthcare companies globally, and with a keen focus on the fast-emerging digital health industry.

BioScience Managers' strategy is to take a meaningful stake in both private and public healthcare companies with clear technological and market advantages. With close to AUD$250m funds under management, BioScience Managers has a current portfolio of some 20+ investments in life sciences, digital health and techbio companies across Europe, the USA and Australia.

Current investments include Saluda Medical, that has developed and received FDA approval of its closed loop neuromodulation technology that enables real time measurement of spinal electrical nerve signals on the same electrode array that is used for stimulation in pain management; and Canary Medical Inc. that develops medical implant and data management devices that collects and processes medical data, including the first-ever smart knee in the world to receive FDA clearance. In partnership with the world's leading orthopaedic company, Zimmer Biomet, Canary is launching its smart knee into the USA market.

Notable successful exits have included Avita Medical in 2020 which delivered an 8 x return on investment.

Jeremy Curnock Cook, BioScience Managers' founder and Managing Partner said, "I am delighted to welcome David to the team at an exciting time in the convergence of bioscience and tech, with innovative companies driving solutions to the cost-effective improvement of healthcare and patient outcomes.

"David's skills and vast breadth of expertise align with the needs of BioScience Managers as we invest in the future of our firm and our investee companies. He has experience across a broad range of life science and healthcare, most recently in the application of digital health to genomics. He has worked in and led companies globally from start-up ventures, scale-ups, turnarounds and high-growth enterprises."

David Atkins, BioScience Managers' newly appointed Managing Partner said, "I am excited by the opportunity to help steer the growth of a successful investment team and to increase our ability to support the delivery of the promise of digital health for patients across the globe. I also welcome the opportunity to add value by proactively engaging with our current portfolio to deliver commercial success and returns for investors."

In addition to his full-time role at BioScience Managers David currently serves on the Board of the UK BioIndustry Association, is Trustee of Gene People and a member of the UK National Genomics Board.

About BioScience Managers - www.biosciencemanagers.com

BioSciences Managers is an international healthcare investment firm that finances and enables innovative science and technology with the potential to transform healthcare. Its team has a diverse skill set, decades of international experience and proven success in healthcare investing and in the pharmaceutical industry. Its strategy is to take a meaningful stake in private and public healthcare companies with clear technological and market advantages, adding value by proactively engaging with management to deliver commercial success and returns for investors. The firm has consistently delivered annualised net IRR >20% (up to 40%) for the funds that it has managed.

About David Atkins MBA PhD - www.linkedin.com/in/datkins1/

Accomplished global healthcare leader with global markets experience in a broad range of life science and healthcare. Expertise includes clinical and molecular diagnostics, anatomic pathology, wound management, minimally invasive and general surgery, orthopaedics, sterilisation, aesthetics and cell and gene therapy. Business leadership Internationally in US, Canada, EU, Emerging Markets (Middle East, Africa, Asia, Latin America). Start-up ventures, scale-ups, turnaround and high-growth enterprise expertise. Broad functional capability in sales and marketing, R&D pipeline, product development, QRC and operations and business development. Successfully led seed, series B and series C financing as well as operational experience in public markets.

David studied in the USA, Australia and the UK. He has an MBA, Finance from Columbia Business School, a Postgraduate Certificate in Pharmacology from UNSW, a PhD in Molecular Virology from John Innes Institute and a BSc in Biological Sciences from the University of East Anglia.

Media Enquiries

Charles Consultants

Sue Charles, [email protected], +44 (0)7968 726585

SOURCE BioScience Managers
The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter's unique one-shot balloon technology enables pulmonary vein isolation in 12 seconds, with customized energy delivery and one integrated 3D mapping solution1



IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Biosense Webster, Inc., part of Johnson & Johnson MedTech, today announced the European launch of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter  the first radiofrequency balloon ablation catheter. The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is indicated for use in catheter-based cardiac electrophysiological mapping (stimulating and recording) of the atria and, when used with a compatible multi-channel RF generator, for cardiac ablation.

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter's unique one-shot balloon technology enables pulmonary vein isolation in 12 seconds, with customized energy delivery and one integrated 3D mapping solution. HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter - the first radiofrequency balloon ablation catheter - indicated for use in catheter-based cardiac electrophysiological mapping of the atria and for cardiac ablation.

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9093651-biosense-webster-launches-heliostar-radiofrequency-balloon-ablation-catheter/

Europe is home to more than 11 million people living with atrial fibrillation (AF); 2 by 2030, the number of people with AF is expected to increase by up to 70%.3 In Europe, catheter ablation is a recommended first-line treatment option4 and is associated with a significant improvement in quality of life and significant reductions in AF burden and AF-related complications.5,6,7

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is fully integrated with the CARTO 3 System, a 3D mapping solution. The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter has a compliant balloon that can conform to varied pulmonary vein anatomy8, and provides the ability to achieve single-shot pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in 12 seconds.1 Use of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter, with the LASSOSTAR Catheter and CARTO 3 System, may reduce fluoroscopy time and exposure,9,10,11,** potentially benefitting both the patient and physician. Shorter procedure time may require less anesthesia and radiation and may result in less facility time. These time savings may also enable more procedures per day, facilitating patient access.12,13 The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is not commercially available in the United States.

"The HELIOSTAR catheter is an effective and efficient technology, enabling great results in less procedure time, which has many benefits to both my patients, myself and my staff," said Prof. Gian Battista Chierchia, Full Professor in Cardiology, HRMC, Brussels, Belgium, CMO Electrophysiology Frontiers.* "The high single-shot isolation success rate is particularly valuable when it comes to procedural efficiency, and at my institution we've been able to reproducibly perform procedures in 15 - 20 minutes."

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation catheter features ten gold-plated, irrigated electrodes and the amount of power delivered to each electrode can be customized based on anatomical location and known tissue thickness.8,12,16, HELIOSTAR is the only multi-electrode single-shot balloon with the flexibility to perform both circumferential and segmental ablation, enabling personalized PV ablation.8 The amount of power delivered to each electrode can be controlled independently1 and the catheter can deliver titrated radiofrequency energy for a customizable workflow.14

"The HELIOSTAR catheter is an exciting addition to my set of tools for delivering customizable, efficient and effective cardiac ablations. I have performed more than 120 cases with this tool at my institution to date, with an average left atrial procedure time of 35 minutes," said Prof. Tillman Dahme, Ulm University Medical Center  Department of Medicine II (Cardiology, Angiology, Pneumology, Critical Care Medicine), Germany.* "As AF prevalence continues to rise and impact more people in Europe and around the world, I am always looking for novel solutions like this to help me deliver better and more personalized treatments for my patients."

In a multicenter single-arm study, SHINE, the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter was an effective treatment for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF)10 and isolated targeted pulmonary veins (PV) in 98.8% of patients without the need for focal touch-up.10, Average time to isolation of each pulmonary vein was 9-12 seconds.10, In addition, the RADIANCE study demonstrated 86% freedom from documented atrial arrhythmia at 12 months.15,*** In September 2021, the first post-approval procedures were successfully performed with the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter at sites across Europe.

"Our goal at Biosense Webster is to utilize the latest science and technology to help electrophysiologists deliver the best possible outcomes for their patients," said Michael Bodner, Ph.D., Worldwide President, Biosense Webster Inc. "The launch of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter in Europe is an exciting milestone as we work together with the EP community to advance safe, effective and efficient treatment solutions for patients suffering from atrial fibrillation."

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is CE Mark approved and now available across Europe. For more information on HELIOSTAR, visit https://www.jnjmedtech.com/en-EMEA/product/heliostar-balloon-ablation-catheter. In addition, a Biosense Webster-hosted webinar titled "Clinical Results and Optimized Workflows with the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter" is scheduled to take place on Thursday, November 10, 2022, from 5:00  6:00pm CET. Guest speakers include Prof. Gian Battista Chierchia, Prof. Tillman Dahme and Prof. Boris Schmidt, Cardioangiology Center Bethanien, Frankfurt, Germany. To register, visit: https://cvent.me/Rkzgx0?RefId=Press+Release.

About Biosense Webster

Biosense Webster is the global market leader in the science and technology behind the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. Part of the Johnson & Johnson MedTech Family of Companies, the specialized medical-technology company is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and works across the world to advance the tools and solutions that help electrophysiologists identify, treat, and deliver care. Learn more at www.biosensewebster.com and connect on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Johnson & Johnson MedTech

At Johnson & Johnson MedTech, we unleash diverse healthcare expertise, purposeful technology, and a passion for people to transform the future of medical intervention and empower everyone to live their best life possible. For more than a century, we have driven breakthrough scientific innovation to address unmet needs and reimagine health. In surgery, orthopaedics, vision, and interventional solutions, we continue to help save lives and create a future where healthcare solutions are smarter, less invasive, and more personalized. For more information, visit https://www.jnjmedtech.com.

Cautions Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of future events. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections of Biosense Webster, any of the other Johnson & Johnson MedTech companies and/or Johnson & Johnson. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: uncertainty of regulatory approvals; uncertainty of commercial success; challenges to patents; competition, including technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; manufacturing difficulties and delays; product efficacy or safety concerns resulting in product recalls or regulatory action; changes to applicable laws and regulations, including global health care reforms; changes in behavior and spending patterns of purchasers of health care products and services; and trends toward health care cost containment. A further list and descriptions of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Johnson & Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 2, 2022, including in the sections captioned "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Item 1A. Risk Factors," and in Johnson & Johnson's subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.jnj.com or on request from Johnson & Johnson. Neither the Johnson & Johnson MedTech nor Johnson & Johnson undertakes to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information or future events or developments.

Always verify catheter tip location using fluoroscopy or IC signals and consult the CARTO 3 System User Guide regarding recommendations for fluoroscopy use.

Pellegrino, P.L., Brunetti, N.D., Gravina, D., Sacchetta, D., De Sanctis, V., Panigada, S., Di Biase, L., Di Biase, M., and Mantica, M. (2013). Nonfluoroscopic mapping reduces radiation exposure in ablation of atrial fibrillation. Journal of cardiovascular medicine 14, 528-533.

Earley, M.J., Showkathali, R., Alzetani, M., Kistler, P.M., Gupta, D., Abrams, D.J., Horrocks, J.A., Harris, S.J., Sporton, S.C., and Schilling, R.J. (2006). Radiofrequency ablation of arrhythmias guided by non-fluoroscopic catheter location: a prospective randomized trial. Eur Heart J 27, 1223-1229.

 The Johnson & Johnson MedTech Companies comprise the surgery, orthopaedics, vision and interventional solutions businesses within Johnson & Johnson's MedTech segment.

* Drs. Chierchia and Dahme are compensated by and presenting on behalf of Biosense Webster, and must present information in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements.

 Recommended first-line treatment for patients with symptomatic Paroxysmal AF episodes or persistent AF without major risk factors for AF recurrence, of as an alternative to AAD class I or III, considering patient choice, benefit, and risk.

 In a multicenter, single-arm study SHINE (n = 95), 100% of the targeted PVs were electrically isolated and no additional ablation with a focal ablation catheter was necessary.

** In a multicenter single-arm study, SHINE (n=95), fluoroscopy time was 10.9  9.1 minutes in per-protocol population while in a multicenter single-arm study RADIANCE (n=40), fluoroscopy time was 17.4  10.1 minutes without using LASSOSTAR Diagnostic Catheter.

 Tissue thickness is known per anatomical location or measured via intracardiac echocardiography.

 This data is based on 7 operators. PV isolation is defined as sustained PV entrance block on adenosine/isoproterenol challenge.

 In a multi-center single-arm study (SHINE, n=95), pure single shot isolation was achieved by one initial RF application (regardless of the duration of ablation). Time to isolation (mean  SD, sec) was 9.0  6.46 (LIPV), 12.0  11.58, (LSPV), 9.1  4.95 (RIPV), 8.9  6.22 (RSPV).

*** 86.4% (32/37) includes those both on/off AAD; 75.7% (28/37) off AAD. Based on n=37/39 pts, observational study.

1 Almorad, A. et al (2021). The optimized clinical workflow for pulmonary vein isolation with the radiofrequency balloon. Journal of interventional cardiac electrophysiology, 10.1007/s10840-021-01094-9. Advance online publication.

2 Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network (2016) Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 (GBD 2016) Results. Seattle, United States: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), 2017. Accessed 2018-04-20.

3 Zoni-Berisso M, Lercari F, Carazza T, Domenicucci S (2014) Epidemiology of atrial fibrillation: European perspective. Clin Epidemiol. 6: 213-220.

4 Hindricks G et al. 2020 ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation developed in collaboration with the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS): The Task Force for the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Developed with the special contribution of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) of the ESC. Eur Heart J. 2021 Feb 1;42(5):373-498.

5 Walfridsson, Hakan, et al. "Radiofrequency ablation as initial therapy in paroxysmal atrial fibrillation: results on health-related quality of life and symptom burden. The MANTRA-PAF trial." EP Europace. 17.2 (2015): 215-221.

6 Blomstrom-Lundqvist, Carina, et al. "Effect of catheter ablation vs antiarrhythmic medication on quality of life in patients with atrial fibrillation: the CAPTAF randomized clinical trial." JAMA. 321.11 (2019): 1059-1068.

7 Journal of Nursing: June 2019 - Volume 119 - Issue 6 - p 18 doi:10.1097/01.NAJ.0000559795.09114.0b.

8 SHINE Study Clinical Study Report (BWI_2017_01 12M Final Results). December 20, 2019.

9 Calkins et al, 2017HRS/EHRA/ECAS/APHRS/SOLAECE expert consensus statement on catheter and surgical ablation of atrial fibrillation, Europace (2018) 20, e1e160.

10 Schilling, R., Dhillon, G., Tondo, C., et al. Safety, Effectiveness, and Quality of Life Following Pulmonary Vein Isolation with a Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter in Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: One Year Outcomes from SHINE. Europace (2021) 23, 851-860.

11 RADIANCE Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter for the Treatment of Drug Refractory Symptomatic Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation (HELI-169). June 6, 2018.

12 Klein G, Lickfett L, Schreieck J, Deneke T, Wieczorek M et al. (2015) Comparison of 'anatomically designed' and 'point-by-point' catheter ablations for human atrial fibrillation in terms of procedure timing and costs in German hospitals. Europace. 17 (7): 1030-1037.

13 Yildiz M, Yilmaz Ak H, Oksen D, Oral S. Anesthetic Management In Electrophysiology Laboratory: A Multidisciplinary Review. J Atr Fibrillation. 2018;10(5):1775. Published 2018 Feb 28. doi:10.4022/jafib.1775.

14 Reddy, V. Y. et al (2019). Pulmonary Vein Isolation With a Novel Multielectrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter That Allows Directionally Tailored Energy Delivery: Short-Term Outcomes From a Multicenter First-in-Human Study (RADIANCE). Circulation. Arrhythmia and electrophysiology, 12(12), e007541.

15 Dhillon, G., Schilling, R. et al. Use of a Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter to Achieve Pulmonary Vein Isolation in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: Twelve-month outcomes of the RADIANCE Study. Journal of Electrophysiology, April 2020. doi: 10.1111/jce.14476.

225610-220831 US/EMEA

 Biosense Webster 2022

Media Contact:

Diane Pressman

908-295-0857

[email protected]

Investor Relations Contact:

Sarah Wood

732-524-2617

[email protected]

SOURCE Biosense Webster, Inc.
The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter's unique one-shot balloon technology enables pulmonary vein isolation in 12 seconds, with customized energy delivery and one integrated 3D mapping solution1



IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Biosense Webster, Inc., part of Johnson & Johnson MedTech, today announced the European launch of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter  the first radiofrequency balloon ablation catheter. The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is indicated for use in catheter-based cardiac electrophysiological mapping (stimulating and recording) of the atria and, when used with a compatible multi-channel RF generator, for cardiac ablation.

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9093651-biosense-webster-launches-heliostar-radiofrequency-balloon-ablation-catheter/

Europe is home to more than 11 million people living with atrial fibrillation (AF); 2 by 2030, the number of people with AF is expected to increase by up to 70%.3 In Europe, catheter ablation is a recommended first-line treatment option4 and is associated with a significant improvement in quality of life and significant reductions in AF burden and AF-related complications.5,6,7

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is fully integrated with the CARTO 3 System, a 3D mapping solution. The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter has a compliant balloon that can conform to varied pulmonary vein anatomy8, and provides the ability to achieve single-shot pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in 12 seconds.1 Use of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter, with the LASSOSTAR Catheter and CARTO 3 System, may reduce fluoroscopy time and exposure,9,10,11,** potentially benefitting both the patient and physician. Shorter procedure time may require less anesthesia and radiation and may result in less facility time. These time savings may also enable more procedures per day, facilitating patient access.12,13 The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is not commercially available in the United States.

"The HELIOSTAR catheter is an effective and efficient technology, enabling great results in less procedure time, which has many benefits to both my patients, myself and my staff," said Prof. Gian Battista Chierchia, Full Professor in Cardiology, HRMC, Brussels, Belgium, CMO Electrophysiology Frontiers.* "The high single-shot isolation success rate is particularly valuable when it comes to procedural efficiency, and at my institution we've been able to reproducibly perform procedures in 15 - 20 minutes."

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation catheter features ten gold-plated, irrigated electrodes and the amount of power delivered to each electrode can be customized based on anatomical location and known tissue thickness.8,12,16, HELIOSTAR is the only multi-electrode single-shot balloon with the flexibility to perform both circumferential and segmental ablation, enabling personalized PV ablation.8 The amount of power delivered to each electrode can be controlled independently1 and the catheter can deliver titrated radiofrequency energy for a customizable workflow.14

"The HELIOSTAR catheter is an exciting addition to my set of tools for delivering customizable, efficient and effective cardiac ablations. I have performed more than 120 cases with this tool at my institution to date, with an average left atrial procedure time of 35 minutes," said Prof. Tillman Dahme, Ulm University Medical Center  Department of Medicine II (Cardiology, Angiology, Pneumology, Critical Care Medicine), Germany.* "As AF prevalence continues to rise and impact more people in Europe and around the world, I am always looking for novel solutions like this to help me deliver better and more personalized treatments for my patients."

In a multicenter single-arm study, SHINE, the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter was an effective treatment for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF)10 and isolated targeted pulmonary veins (PV) in 98.8% of patients without the need for focal touch-up.10, Average time to isolation of each pulmonary vein was 9-12 seconds.10, In addition, the RADIANCE study demonstrated 86% freedom from documented atrial arrhythmia at 12 months.15,*** In September 2021, the first post-approval procedures were successfully performed with the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter at sites across Europe.

"Our goal at Biosense Webster is to utilize the latest science and technology to help electrophysiologists deliver the best possible outcomes for their patients," said Michael Bodner, Ph.D., Worldwide President, Biosense Webster, Inc. "The launch of the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter in Europe is an exciting milestone as we work together with the EP community to advance safe, effective and efficient treatment solutions for patients suffering from atrial fibrillation."

The HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter is CE Mark approved and now available across Europe. For more information on HELIOSTAR, visit https://www.jnjmedtech.com/en-EMEA/product/heliostar-balloon-ablation-catheter. In addition, a Biosense Webster-hosted webinar titled "Clinical Results and Optimized Workflows with the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter" is scheduled to take place on Thursday, November 10, 2022, from 5:00  6:00pm CET. Guest speakers include Prof. Gian Battista Chierchia, Prof. Tillman Dahme and Prof. Boris Schmidt, Cardioangiology Center Bethanien, Frankfurt, Germany. To register, visit: https://cvent.me/Rkzgx0?RefId=Press+Release.

About Biosense Webster

Biosense Webster is the global market leader in the science and technology behind the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. Part of the Johnson & Johnson MedTech Family of Companies, the specialized medical-technology company is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and works across the world to advance the tools and solutions that help electrophysiologists identify, treat, and deliver care. Learn more at www.biosensewebster.com and connect on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Johnson & Johnson MedTech

At Johnson & Johnson MedTech, we unleash diverse healthcare expertise, purposeful technology, and a passion for people to transform the future of medical intervention and empower everyone to live their best life possible. For more than a century, we have driven breakthrough scientific innovation to address unmet needs and reimagine health. In surgery, orthopaedics, vision, and interventional solutions, we continue to help save lives and create a future where healthcare solutions are smarter, less invasive, and more personalized. For more information, visit https://www.jnjmedtech.com.

Cautions Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding the HELIOSTAR Balloon Ablation Catheter. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of future events. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections of Biosense Webster, any of the other Johnson & Johnson MedTech companies and/or Johnson & Johnson. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: uncertainty of regulatory approvals; uncertainty of commercial success; challenges to patents; competition, including technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; manufacturing difficulties and delays; product efficacy or safety concerns resulting in product recalls or regulatory action; changes to applicable laws and regulations, including global health care reforms; changes in behavior and spending patterns of purchasers of health care products and services; and trends toward health care cost containment. A further list and descriptions of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Johnson & Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 2, 2022, including in the sections captioned "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Item 1A. Risk Factors," and in Johnson & Johnson's subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.jnj.com or on request from Johnson & Johnson. Neither the Johnson & Johnson MedTech nor Johnson & Johnson undertakes to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information or future events or developments.

Always verify catheter tip location using fluoroscopy or IC signals and consult the CARTO 3 System User Guide regarding recommendations for fluoroscopy use.

Pellegrino, P.L., Brunetti, N.D., Gravina, D., Sacchetta, D., De Sanctis, V., Panigada, S., Di Biase, L., Di Biase, M., and Mantica, M. (2013). Nonfluoroscopic mapping reduces radiation exposure in ablation of atrial fibrillation. Journal of cardiovascular medicine 14, 528-533.

Earley, M.J., Showkathali, R., Alzetani, M., Kistler, P.M., Gupta, D., Abrams, D.J., Horrocks, J.A., Harris, S.J., Sporton, S.C., and Schilling, R.J. (2006). Radiofrequency ablation of arrhythmias guided by non-fluoroscopic catheter location: a prospective randomized trial. Eur Heart J 27, 1223-1229.

 The Johnson & Johnson MedTech Companies comprise the surgery, orthopaedics, vision and interventional solutions businesses within Johnson & Johnson's MedTech segment.

* Drs. Chierchia and Dahme are compensated by and presenting on behalf of Biosense Webster, and must present information in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements.

 Recommended first-line treatment for patients with symptomatic Paroxysmal AF episodes or persistent AF without major risk factors for AF recurrence, of as an alternative to AAD class I or III, considering patient choice, benefit, and risk.

 In a multicenter, single-arm study SHINE (n = 95), 100% of the targeted PVs were electrically isolated and no additional ablation with a focal ablation catheter was necessary.

** In a multicenter single-arm study, SHINE (n=95), fluoroscopy time was 10.9  9.1 minutes in per-protocol population while in a multicenter single-arm study RADIANCE (n=40), fluoroscopy time was 17.4  10.1 minutes without using LASSOSTAR Diagnostic Catheter.

 Tissue thickness is known per anatomical location or measured via intracardiac echocardiography.

 This data is based on 7 operators. PV isolation is defined as sustained PV entrance block on adenosine/isoproterenol challenge.

 In a multi-center single-arm study (SHINE, n=95), pure single shot isolation was achieved by one initial RF application (regardless of the duration of ablation). Time to isolation (mean  SD, sec) was 9.0  6.46 (LIPV), 12.0  11.58, (LSPV), 9.1  4.95 (RIPV), 8.9  6.22 (RSPV).

*** 86.4% (32/37) includes those both on/off AAD; 75.7% (28/37) off AAD. Based on n=37/39 pts, observational study.

1 Almorad, A. et al (2021). The optimized clinical workflow for pulmonary vein isolation with the radiofrequency balloon. Journal of interventional cardiac electrophysiology, 10.1007/s10840-021-01094-9. Advance online publication.

2 Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network (2016) Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 (GBD 2016) Results. Seattle, United States: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), 2017. Accessed 2018-04-20.

3 Zoni-Berisso M, Lercari F, Carazza T, Domenicucci S (2014) Epidemiology of atrial fibrillation: European perspective. Clin Epidemiol. 6: 213-220.

4 Hindricks G et al. 2020 ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation developed in collaboration with the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS): The Task Force for the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Developed with the special contribution of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) of the ESC. Eur Heart J. 2021 Feb 1;42(5):373-498.

5 Walfridsson, Hakan, et al. "Radiofrequency ablation as initial therapy in paroxysmal atrial fibrillation: results on health-related quality of life and symptom burden. The MANTRA-PAF trial." EP Europace. 17.2 (2015): 215-221.

6 Blomstrom-Lundqvist, Carina, et al. "Effect of catheter ablation vs antiarrhythmic medication on quality of life in patients with atrial fibrillation: the CAPTAF randomized clinical trial." JAMA. 321.11 (2019): 1059-1068.

7 Journal of Nursing: June 2019 - Volume 119 - Issue 6 - p 18 doi:10.1097/01.NAJ.0000559795.09114.0b.

8 SHINE Study Clinical Study Report (BWI_2017_01 12M Final Results). December 20, 2019.

9 Calkins et al, 2017HRS/EHRA/ECAS/APHRS/SOLAECE expert consensus statement on catheter and surgical ablation of atrial fibrillation, Europace (2018) 20, e1e160.

10 Schilling, R., Dhillon, G., Tondo, C., et al. Safety, Effectiveness, and Quality of Life Following Pulmonary Vein Isolation with a Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter in Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: One Year Outcomes from SHINE. Europace (2021) 23, 851-860.

11 RADIANCE Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter for the Treatment of Drug Refractory Symptomatic Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation (HELI-169). June 6, 2018.

12 Klein G, Lickfett L, Schreieck J, Deneke T, Wieczorek M et al. (2015) Comparison of 'anatomically designed' and 'point-by-point' catheter ablations for human atrial fibrillation in terms of procedure timing and costs in German hospitals. Europace. 17 (7): 1030-1037.

13 Yildiz M, Yilmaz Ak H, Oksen D, Oral S. Anesthetic Management In Electrophysiology Laboratory: A Multidisciplinary Review. J Atr Fibrillation. 2018;10(5):1775. Published 2018 Feb 28. doi:10.4022/jafib.1775.

14 Reddy, V. Y. et al (2019). Pulmonary Vein Isolation With a Novel Multielectrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter That Allows Directionally Tailored Energy Delivery: Short-Term Outcomes From a Multicenter First-in-Human Study (RADIANCE). Circulation. Arrhythmia and electrophysiology, 12(12), e007541.

15 Dhillon, G., Schilling, R. et al. Use of a Multi-Electrode Radiofrequency Balloon Catheter to Achieve Pulmonary Vein Isolation in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: Twelve-month outcomes of the RADIANCE Study. Journal of Electrophysiology, April 2020. doi: 10.1111/jce.14476.

225610-220831 US/EMEA

 Biosense Webster 2022

Media Contact:

Diane Pressman

908-295-0857

[email protected]

Investor Relations Contact:

Sarah Wood

732-524-2617

[email protected]

SOURCE Biosense Webster, Inc.
Automotive Set for Record Year, Making CES a Top Auto Show

AMSTERDAM, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sharing the vision of a digital tomorrow, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) today announced Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, will deliver a pre-show keynote address at CES 2023.

Zipse will showcase how the future of mobility can merge the real and virtual worlds, and present BMW's vision of the 'ultimate digital driving machine' live in Las Vegas at 8 p.m. PST on Jan. 4, 2023, in the Pearl Theater at The Palms. He joins CEOs from John Deere and AMD as part of the keynote lineup at CES.

CTA today announced Oliver Zipse, Chairman of BMW AG, will deliver a pre-show keynote address at CES 2023. Tweet this Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, will deliver a pre-show keynote address at CES 2023.

"We are thrilled to welcome BMW Group to the keynote stage," said Gary Shapiro, President and CEO, CTA. "Under Oliver's leadership, the company is expanding the definitions of mobility and reshaping the automotive industry, while embracing a more sustainable circular economy model for manufacturing."

BMW's keynote address is part of the larger mobility story at CES 2023. The automotive sector will be bigger than ever, with nearly 300 exhibitors in a sold-out West Hall. The exhibits in West Hall will cover almost 25% more floor space than 2022, featuring the latest in self-driving tech, electric vehicles and personal mobility devices.

Owned and produced by CTA, CES 2023 will take place in Las Vegas on Jan. 5-8, 2023 with Media Days taking place Jan. 3-4, 2023. Attendees will experience new technologies from global brands, hear about the future of technology from thought leaders and collaborate face-to-face with other attendees. The show will highlight how innovations in sustainability, transportation and mobility, digital health, the metaverse and more are addressing the world's greatest challenges. Audiences will hear from industry experts during live keynotes, including leaders from John Deere, AMD and BMW. Visit CES.tech for all CES 2023 updates, registration details, and the media page for all press resources.

About CES:

CES is the most influential tech event in the world  the proving ground for breakthrough technologies and global innovators. This is where the world's biggest brands do business and meet new partners, and the sharpest innovators hit the stage. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), CES features every aspect of the tech sector. CES 2023 will take place in person in Las Vegas, and digitally, Jan. 5-8, 2023. Learn more at CES.tech and follow CES on social.

About Consumer Technology Association:

As North America's largest technology trade association, CTA is the tech sector. Our members are the world's leading innovators  from startups to global brands  helping support more than 18 million American jobs. CTA owns and produces CES  the most influential tech event in the world. Find us at CTA.tech. Follow us @CTAtech.

Upcoming Events:

SOURCE Consumer Technology Association
DENVER, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF) announced that the organization has received a $1 million grant from Karen and Rob Hale of the Fox Rock Foundation. DSF is a nonprofit collaborating with Denver Public Schools (DPS) high school students, families, and partners statewide to increase access and completion of post-high school learning and expand generational exposure to career and entrepreneurial opportunities.

DSF College Advisors, located inside 15 high schools, support students in college readiness and career exploration, financial literacy, access to tutoring, rich cultural experiences, test preparations, concurrent enrollment, college admissions, financial aid, and scholarships.

"Thanks to the incredible generosity of the Hale family, this funding will help hundreds of students receive wraparound support and guidance as they navigate through the college process," says Lorii Rabinowitz, chief executive officer of DSF. "DSF will be able to support even more students in selecting the pathway that best meets their academic and career goals."

Fox Rock Foundation is the private family foundation established by Karen and Rob Hale and their adult children, Trevor, Thomas, and Brett, to inspire health in our communities and our environment, with more opportunity for all. Building on the philanthropy of the Hales and their business, Fox Rock Foundation supports a wide variety of organizations within four principal areas of giving: education, health and wellbeing, conservation, and equality.

"The Foundation is excited to support DSF in its College Access programming that helps guide students through every step of the college application and financial aid process, whether they choose to attend a technical college, community college, or university," said Karen Hale. "We appreciate how DSF collaborates with high school students, families, and partners statewide to increase access and completion of post-high school learning and have been impressed with DSF's initiatives to expand generational exposure to career and entrepreneurial opportunities."

Fox Rock Foundation builds on the philanthropy of Granite telecommunications, where Rob Hale is founder and CEO, Granite Gives Back, FoxRock Cares, and other personal giving by the Hales. Through a variety of giving channels, the Hale family has pledged or donated more than $300 million to a broad range of worthy causes.

About Denver Scholarship Foundation

Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF) is a nonprofit helping to make college possible and building the educational and economic future of Denver by collaborating with Denver Public Schools high school students, families, and partners statewide to increase access and completion of post-high school learning and expand generational exposure to career and entrepreneurial opportunities.

DSF accomplishes this through its nationally recognized three-part program consisting of an evidence-based support system, actionable tools, and scholarships to help guide students to lifelong success.

Recognizing the challenges DPS graduates continue to face in enrolling in college, and those added on once enrolled, over the past 15 years DSF has built a comprehensive platform of continual student support, beginning in DPS high schools, and continuing throughout college in the State of Colorado.

Contact: Olivia Omega

303-931-2628

[email protected]

SOURCE Denver Scholarship Foundation
FARMINGTON, Conn., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BroadcastMed, the world's most innovative healthcare media company, has acquired Harborside, a leader in medical publishing and communications specializing in oncology. The acquisition expands BroadcastMed's total reach to over 2.8 million health care professionals across 16 adult specialties and 10 pediatric specialties, resulting in the addition of doctors, advanced practitioners, medical societies, medical affairs professionals, and health care marketers. The official announcement was made on October 4, 2022. This strategic investment is backed by 424 Capital, a growth capital partner.

BroadcastMed is committed to providing physicians and other allied healthcare professionals with convenient access to the very best in educational content. Harborside's mission is to advance the field of oncology through better information, continuing BroadcastMed's tradition of providing industry-leading clinical content to front-line healthcare professionals with the ultimate objective of improving patient outcomes.

The acquisition expands BroadcastMed's total reach to over 2.8 million health care professionals. Tweet this

The acquisition continues BroadcastMed's tremendous growth trajectory, which is driven by its vision to elevate and expand the global dialogue on healthcare. By reaching a wide audience of healthcare constituents and empowering connections, BroadcastMed is able to gather and analyze intelligence from those engagements to create more value for its clients.

"Our acquisition of Harborside will help advance the field of oncology communications to greater heights. BroadcastMed is committed to using our industry-leading media solutions to improve the ways in which specialty-centric clinicians share their subject matter expertise," stated Ross Joel, CEO.

"Acquiring Harborside allows BroadcastMed to take another strategic step forward in growing a multi-channel resource to serve all healthcare audiences," stated Peter Gailey, President.

Harborside leads the way in connecting oncology marketers and medical societies with health care professionals through advertising, sponsored content, video, events, podcasts and other custom solutions. With a reputation for high-quality, diverse offerings, and its partnerships with the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, the Advanced Practitioner Society for Hematology and Oncology, and other organizations, Harborside has gained an unmatched level of trust from clinicians.

Harborside provides print and digital advertising services for The ASCO Post, the Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology, and JNCCN-Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. In addition, Harborside provides advertising services for ASCO's suite of publicationsthe Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO), JCO Oncology Practice, JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics, JCO Precision Oncology, and JCO Global Oncology.

In January of 2022, Harborside expanded its services to the field of dentistry, beginning a partnership with the American Dental Association (ADA). The ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing more than 162,000 dentist members. Harborside is responsible for advertising and sponsorship sales for ADA Publishing (including the monthly Journal of the American Dental Association), SmileCon, and the ADA's comprehensive product portfolio, which includes database licensing, coding resources, custom surveys, continuing education, customized patient education, and more.

With decades of experience and more than 18,000 media productions to date, BroadcastMed is solidifying its position as a healthcare media company inspiring the future of medicine. BroadcastMed was the first media company in the world to livestream surgeries online. The company provides data-driven solutions to optimize marketing and education initiatives for healthcare organizations such as Mayo Clinic, Boston Scientific, Novartis, Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses, and the Institute for Functional Medicine.

About Harborside

Harborside is more than a leader in medical publishing and communicationsit is a destination that has earned the trust of doctors, advanced practitioners, medical societies, medical affairs professionals, and health-care marketers.

At Harborside, its mission is to help advance the field of oncology through better information. Harborside's reputation for high-quality, diverse offerings and partnerships with ASCO, NCCN, APSHO, ADA and other organizations have led to an unmatched level of trust from clinicians.

Standing at the nexus of oncologists, marketers, and societies, Harborside is uniquely positioned to deliver knowledge. Harborside is the foremost medical communications company that oncology clinicians turn to for accurate content, news, and education.

About BroadcastMed

BroadcastMed is the world's most innovative healthcare media company with an unwavering commitment to elevating and expanding the global dialogue on healthcare to improve patient outcomes. BroadcastMed helps the world's leading hospitals, medical device, association, and pharmaceutical companies create and distribute trusted educational content to physicians and allied healthcare professionals.

BroadcastMed has evolved into an industry staple for hospitals and healthcare companies hoping to actively engage physicians and healthcare professionals, launch new products, provide peer-to-peer education, advance continuing education (CE), participate in clinical affairs, and deliver patient-focused health information. BroadcastMed powers more than 200 client-branded content distribution platforms and has a total reach of more than 2.8 million health care providers. Ten of the Top 20 U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll Hospitals are BroadcastMed clients. For more information about BroadcastMed visit broadcastmed.com.

About 424 Capital

424 Capital is a growth capital partner that invests in lower middle-market companies within technology and tech-enabled services. 424 Capital works in partnership with founders and management teams to accelerate and scale for long-term growth. Focusing primarily on investments in healthcare and renewable energy, we invest in, empower, and enable companies to step up, stand out, and make a difference in the world. For more information about 424 Capital, visit 424capital.com.

SOURCE BroadcastMed
CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hardin County Independent in Elizabethtown and Brewed on Broadway and Pin Up Salon in Sesser have been awarded matching grants through the Landmarks Illinois Banterra Bank Preserve Southern Illinois Grant Program. Both businesses will use the grant funding to make necessary repairs to the historic buildings in which they operate. Representatives from Landmarks Illinois and Banterra Bank will host community events in Elizabethtown and Sesser next week to present checks to the grant recipients.

A Landmarks Illinois Banterra Bank Preserve Southern Illinois Grant will help pay for needed tuckpointing and masonry repairs on the historic building that houses the Pin Up Salon in Sesser, Illinois.

The Hardin County Independent, a local newspaper founded in 1870, has been awarded a $2,500 matching grant to help make electrical repairs in its downtown Elizabethtown building that it has operated in since 1925. Read more about this grant recipient at our website.

Brewed on Broadway, a coffee shop, and Pin Up Salon in Sesser are located in two downtown historic buildings owned by Rebecca and Kenny Benedict. A $2,500 matching grant will help pay for needed tuckpointing and masonry repairs at the buildings that sit across the street from each other. Read more about this grant recipient at our website.

Public check presentations Monday, Oct. 17

This is the first round of funding announced through the Landmarks Illinois Banterra Bank Preserve Southern Illinois Grant Program, which launched in the spring of 2022. Landmarks Illinois and Banterra Bank will host check presentations with both grant recipients on Monday, Oct. 17, 2022. Members of the community and the press are welcome to attend the check presentations.

Representatives of the Hardin County Independent will be presented with their grant at 9:30 a.m. at their office building at 196 W. 1st St. in Elizabethtown, Illinois. The Benedicts, along with their daughter Chelsea Zettler, will be presented with their grant at 3 p.m. at the Brewed on Broadway building at 102 W. Franklin Ave. in Sesser, Illinois.

About the grant program

The Landmarks Illinois Banterra Bank Preserve Southern Illinois Grant Program provides monetary assistance to preserve or rehabilitate historic structures in downtowns and other commercial corridors of Southern Illinois to support economic development. This is the first grant program Landmarks Illinois has targeted to a specific Illinois economic development region and is also the organization's first grant program offered to private building owners, developers and for-profit business owners.

Grants are awarded on a matching basis and range from $500 to $2,500, each based on project need. Grants are distributed twice a year. Grant application deadlines are January 1 and July 1 each year. Commercial property owners, nonprofit organizations or governmental bodies are encouraged to apply. Visit our website to read detailed grant guidelines and to submit an application.

About Banterra Bank

Founded in Southern Illinois, Banterra Bank approached Landmarks Illinois with the grant program concept, because they saw a need for preserving the region's historic downtown buildings and supporting small business development in the area. Banterra began as a single bank in Ridgway, Illinois in July of 1975. Today, Banterra has $2.7 billion in assets and is ranked in the Top Ten Percent of U.S. Charter Banks and Top Five Percent for Illinois Charter Banks by asset size. Banterra has almost 40 locations in Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Utah, as well as a specialty lending division that serves customers nationwide. For more information, call 866-BANTERRA (226-8377) or go to www.banterra.bank.

About Landmarks Illinois

We are People Saving Places for People. Landmarks Illinois is a membership-based, historic preservation nonprofit organization serving the people of Illinois. We inspire and empower stakeholders to save places that matter to them by providing free guidance, practical and financial resources and access to strategic partnerships. For more information, visit www.Landmarks.org.

Media Contact:

Kaitlyn McAvoy

Communications Manager

Landmarks Illinois

[email protected]

SOURCE Landmarks Illinois
Law school achieves notable milestones in global engagement, innovation, legal technology, corpus linguistics and scholarship during D. Gordon Smith's nearly seven years of service

PROVO, Utah, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BYU Law, a global law school focused on leadership in legal theory and practice, today announced that Dean D. Gordon Smith will step down following the 2022-23 academic year to return to the faculty.

"The past six and a half years have been the most challenging and rewarding years of my professional life," said Smith in a Town Hall message to faculty and staff that was reiterated in communication to students and on his social media posts. "BYU Law School is flourishing, and my enthusiasm for the Law School has never been greater. Nevertheless, I feel the time is right for me to return to a faculty role and projects to allow for someone with different gifts to build on the momentum."

Smith plans to return to the faculty where he previously taught classes in business associations, contracts, corporate finance, law and entrepreneurship, and securities regulation. Smith notes that he has several unfinished papers and plans to write a book exploring the history of the corporation to shed light on current debates in that field. Smith also wants to devote time to BYU Law's Inspiring Leadership Initiative and to the new Global Business Law Program.

"When I became the dean here at BYU Law there were certain things I wanted to accomplish. And while there is always work to be done, I feel that I have done what I came here to accomplish and feel comfortable handing over the reins," noted Smith, adding that his successor will have a consummate team of faculty and staff to continue the ambitious trajectory that the Law School has maintained over its first 50 years. In May 2016, Smith was appointed to an initial five-year term, which was extended for a second term with the potential to serve through May 2026. The second-longest serving BYU Law dean, Smith replaced James Rasband, who served as dean from 2009 to 2016.

Smith has led significant transformation in key areas, including legal innovation, technology, law and corpus linguistics, scholarship and global engagement.

In 2017, BYU launched LawX, a legal design lab committed to tackling access-to-justice issues with solutions that address pressing legal problems such as debt collection, eviction and asylum. The school has also established the Legal Technology Initiative, which helps law students develop technological competence to meet their professional responsibilities as attorneys, and provides opportunities for students to leverage their technical skills in the service of society and the improvement of the practice of law.

Smith also has been active in promoting access to justice beyond the Law School, serving on two Utah Supreme Court task forces that led to the creation of the Office of Legal Services Innovation, colloquially known as the "Utah Sandbox." The Sandbox allows for experimentation in legal services without committing to a particular regulatory path, and encourages interdisciplinary collaboration between lawyers and other professionals, such as accountants or social workers. The ultimate goal of the Sandbox is to facilitate the delivery of some legal services through technology or with nonlawyer experts, thus driving down the cost of legal services and making those services more accessible to broader segments of the population.

At the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020, Smith teamed with a colleague at the Law School and with counterparts at the University of Utah's SJ Quinney College of Law to advocate for a difference approach to bar licensure, granting the so-called "diploma privilege," which was already the policy in Wisconsin, where Smith taught before moving to BYU. In response to this advocacy, the Utah Supreme Court issued an order adopting an "emergency" diploma privilege, which has helped spur a nationwide debate on the efficacy of the bar examination.

One of Smith's passion projects has been to help ensure qualified students have the opportunity to achieve a law degree and desired career path with limited debt. Under his guidance, BYU Law tripled the amount of scholarships for students, introduced its full-tuition Achievement Fellowships Program, and started a program to counsel students on the risks of taking on too much debt. Throughout his tenure, BYU Law ranked as the best value private law school and achieved the notable ranking as the #1 best-value law school in 2021 National Jurist. When Smith took the helm, US News ranked BYU Law 38th out of 196 schools for best law schools in the country. Most recently BYU Law reached its highest ranking to date  coming in at no. 23 for 2023.

During his time as dean, BYU Law pioneered the discipline of law and corpus linguistics as the first law school in the U.S. to offer a course on the topic, the first to host an annual corpus linguistics conference, and the first to develop a dedicated Law and Corpus Linguistics Technology Platform. A methodology to understand the meaning of words by analyzing naturally occurring language in large collections of texts called "corpora," corpus linguistics is at the precipice of more mainstream use as legal professionals understand its potential to impact modern cases. BYU Law recently added the full Congressional Record Corpus to its suite, providing a new resource to bring objectivity to interpreting the law.

A catalyst to Smith's decision to step down has been the Law School's recent significant strides with its global leadership programs, including the annual Law and Leadership Conference, which focused on "peacebuilding" this year, during which participants discussed how we might change the world for the better in the wake of a global pandemic and civil unrest. This year, BYU Law also debuted an expanded Academies Program, partnering with top law firms to provide students early in their academic journey with hands-on experience in trial, deals, startups, energy deals, immigration, international arbitration, and peacebuilding. And after delays from COVID-related travel restrictions, BYU Law established Geneva and London Law Seminars offering students semester-long externships and coursework to gain valuable international experience. Passionate about the need for law schools and the legal community to engage in solving global legal problems, Smith is committed to further expansion of BYU Law's global programs during his remaining tenure.

Prior to his initial appointment as dean, he served as an associate dean for faculty and curriculum at BYU Law. An expert in law and entrepreneurship, Smith has written extensively on the role of law in promoting entrepreneurial action, and he co-founded the Law and Entrepreneurship Association. He was also a founding faculty member of the Crocker Innovation Fellowship at BYU. Smith received his bachelor's degree in accounting from BYU and his JD from the University of Chicago Law School. Prior to joining the faculty at BYU Law in 2007, he was a professor of law at the University of Wisconsin Law School. A Delaware corporate lawyer, Smith has published foundational articles on the theory of fiduciary relationships, and he is co-authoring a law school casebook on fiduciary law. Smith also served as a member of the Utah Work Group on Regulatory Reform Task Force committee for the Office of Legal Services Innovation, which reviews and recommends Utah legal sandbox recommendations to the Utah Supreme Court with a goal to improve access to justice.

BYU has launched a search committee for the next dean of BYU Law. The committee will welcome nominations and suggestions for consideration as they endeavor to review all potential candidates in the important process of recommending candidates for the deanship.

About BYU Law School

Founded in 1971 with its inaugural class in 1973, the J. Reuben Clark Law School (BYU Law) has grown into one of the nation's leading law schools  recognized for innovative research and teaching in social change, transactional design, entrepreneurship, corpus linguistics, criminal justice and religious freedom. The Law School has more than 6,000 alumni serving in communities around the world. In its most recent rankings, National Jurist recognized BYU Law as the #1 best-value law school in its 2021 ranking. For more information, visit https://law.byu.edu.

SOURCE BYU Law
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- During a globally broadcast webinar by Innovation Forum, sponsored by Everland, the Cambodian government outlined its commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, through forest conservation, whilst raising the country's GDP by 3% and creating nearly half a million jobs.

Following the Cambodian Ministry of Environment's pledge to cut the country's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reach carbon neutrality, representatives of the government, NGOs, and Indigenous Peoples from REDD+ project areas came together to discuss their collaborative efforts to halt deforestation through the United Nations mechanism Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+).

One of the primary ways the Cambodian government plans to preserve the country's forests is through implementing and scaling REDD+ projects, which have the potential to reduce deforestation rates by 50% within the decade.

Acknowledging the role that REDD+ projects play in mitigating the overall impact of deforestation, Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Environment, H.E. Chuop Paris said, "The Government of Cambodia had the opportunity to submit its long-term strategy for carbon neutrality by 2050, of which the National REDD+ strategy is a key component in meeting that objective, but it can only be achieved through the active participation and collaboration of private businesses, local communities, and partners."

As a community-based model, REDD+ projects ensure forest communities protecting their forests receive direct investment that finances sustainable livelihoods, to no longer rely on deforestation for subsistence or profit.

Cambodia's Minister of Environment H.E. Dr. Say Samal said, "Many Cambodians live close to forests, where for many generations they have been dependent on forest resources for their livelihoods, living sustainably and in harmony with the forests around them. In order to protect our culture and precious resources, we have planned for continuing economic growth and prosperity for our people, while also protecting our country's forests."

Panelists from the Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project by Wildlife Alliance and the Keo Seima REDD+ Project by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) delved into the ways in which partners ensure community members benefit directly from the protection of the forest under the REDD+ mechanism. Wildlife Alliance employs trained rangers to patrol Protected Areas and implement effective law enforcement in partnership with the government. This approach ensures 2,393 families, which corresponds to 13,289 people, are direct beneficiaries of carbon credit sales and project activities. Another example brought forward by representatives of the indigenous Bunong community is how support from WCS has helped them secure legal rights over their ancestral lands within the Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary REDD+ Project area so that they are no longer vulnerable to land-grabbing that has been a significant contributor to deforestation in the past.

This discussion is a part of a series launched by Everland and Innovation Forum that spotlights how the cooperation between governments, project developers, community members, and corporations who voluntarily offset unavoidable emissions, is the most scalable, effective, and immediate measure to stop deforestation and its damaging effects.

Discussing the importance of tackling deforestation and ensuring COP26 deforestation pledges made in Glasgow are realized, Josh Tosteson, President of Everland, said, 'As world leaders prepare to gather at COP27, we must remind ourselves that preserving forests is central to the climate fight, yet failures on past pledges have brought us to where we are today: carbon emissions from tropical deforestation this century are far higher than thought. With rates doubling in just two decades and continuing to accelerate, there is an urgency to act now. Through aligned, dedicated, and collective action, we can, in fact, end deforestation.'

To support the wider global ambitions to end deforestation, Everland launched The Forest Plan, which outlines its ambition to facilitate the development of up to 75 forest conservation projects in critical hotspots around the world. The plan was developed in response to pledges made by 141 countries at COP26 to end deforestation by 2030.

Notes to Editor

For the full webinar: https://www.innovationforum.co.uk/articles/how-redd-is-working-to-save-cambodia-s-forests

Media Contacts:

Aisha Ali, Stonehaven

[email protected]

Leticia Labre, Director of The Forest Plan

[email protected]

Mandy Miranda, Everland

[email protected]

About the Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary REDD+ Project

https://everland.earth/projects/keo-seima/

About the Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project

https://everland.earth/projects/southern-cardamom/

About Everland

Everland represents the world's largest portfolio of high-impact forest conservation (REDD+) projects in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Everland brings forest communities and corporations together in a common cause to protect some of the world's most important and vulnerable forests. Visit: www.everland.earth

SOURCE Everland
Caspar.AI joins forces with Vayyar Care to enhance predictive resident care in the senior housing business

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Caspar.AI , a leading provider of integrated monitoring technology and behavioral analytics to the senior living industry, has added Vayyar Care sensors, the world's most advanced touchless fall detection and activity tracking solution, to its offerings.

Caspar.AI Integrates Vayyar Cares 4D Imaging Sensors to Provide Actionable Behavioral Data in Retirement Communities

Caspar.AI's customers can now rely on Vayyar Care 's automatic, touchless fall detection capabilities to ensure rapid response and eliminate the possibility of resident falls going undetected. When a resident does not receive assistance for an hour or more after a fall, the impact on their health and longevity can be catastrophic.

Together, Vayyar Care and Caspar.AI overcome the limitations of standard fall alert devices, such as:

Buttons and pullcords which residents may not be able to operate after a fall;

Wearables such as pendants and fall detection watches which many residents forget or refuse to wear: and,

Passive technologies such as video cameras and microphones, which are intrusive.

Caspar.AI and Vayyar Care, by contrast, deliver 24/7/365 visibility alongside privacy, dignity and independence.

Caspar provides its retirement community clients with a suite of tools that enhance staff efficiency, such as automated resident check-ins, reducing the need for staff to walk the halls making rounds. Caspar's real-time dashboard enables personalized care planning for residents based on 30+ actionable data points. Caspar's edge Artificial Intelligence technology utilizes additional data from Vayyar sensors to shed new light on sleep quality, and physical conditions such as UTIs.

Insight reports detailing residents' activity, mobility levels and overall fall risk also serve to minimize the administrative burden on frontline caregivers. Research commissioned by Vayyar Care shows that senior care nurses are spending over eight hours per week on paperwork such as end-of-shift reports and fall risk assessments.

"I'm thrilled to welcome Vayyar Care to the Caspar.AI ecosystem and am confident that the new data streams provided by this exceptional solution will accelerate uptake of the predictive care model across the senior care industry," said Ashutosh Saxena, Co-Founder and CEO of Caspar.AI. David Cheriton, Co-founder and Chief Scientist of Caspar. AI says, "With fewer caregivers available to assist them, technological synergies such as this are vital in terms of ensuring the safety, well-being and comfort of older Americans, as well as the long-term sustainability of communities."

"Caspar.AI is one of the world's most forward-thinking care platform providers, with a vision that aligns perfectly with our own," said Marc McGrann, US Director of Sales at Vayyar Care. "I'm hugely excited about the potential of this strategic partnership to transform the senior living industry through proactive, predictive care and smarter work practices."

As well as providing a new level of visibility into care users' behavior, the partnership will enable Caspar.AI to enhance the smart home dimension of its offerings. By identifying when residents leave their apartments or suites, the company has automated the daily check-in process. Together with the energy savings, Caspar's communities save over $120,000 per year. By tracking residents' movements within their living spaces, Caspar.AI optimizes lighting, climate control, and home appliances to improve quality of life in all settings.

For more information, please contact [email protected]

About Caspar AI

Caspar.AI provides its retirement community clients with technology that increases efficiency while improving resident care. Automated check-ins, resident insights, and energy efficiency are three areas where Caspar.AI leads the industry. Caspar's edge AI technology, with seven patents granted, does not require cameras or wearables  yet it produces medical & behavioral data inside the home that no one else can.

PRESS CONTACT

Clark Lyons

4074733617

https://caspar.ai/

SOURCE Caspar AI
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sister Donna Markham, OP, PhD, President and CEO of Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), traveled to storm-ravaged Florida this week to present checks totaling $1 million to be distributed among Catholic Charities agencies in Florida serving those impacted by Hurricane Ian.

"I'm amazed by the excellent relief efforts planned and executed by Catholic Charities agencies in the two short weeks since Hurricane Ian devasted Southwestern Florida," said Sister Donna Markham. "What I've seen during my visit to Catholic Charities of Venice and St. Petersburg is nothing short of a miracle. I am forever thankful for the generosity of people across the country who continue to donate to CCUSA to support the long-term recovery efforts ahead."

Catholic Charities USA Presents $1M to Catholic Charities agencies in Florida impacted by Hurricane Ian Tweet this

All donations to CCUSA disaster response efforts go directly to the local Catholic Charities agencies working in the affected communities to provide relief and recovery support to their neighbors in need.

"We are honored and grateful to have such a significant donation from Catholic Charities USA," said Eddie Gloria, Chief Executive Officer, Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice, Inc. "This will go a long way in helping us to achieve our mission of providing help, creating hope and serving all, especially with so many now suffering the effects of this terrible hurricane that hit us head-on here in southwest Florida."

Maggie Rogers, Executive Director of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, said, "Hurricane Ian, while not as devastating for us as for our neighbors to the south, nonetheless created significant damage. We are grateful for the financial assistance Catholic Charities USA is providing, as it will aid us with our recovery."

CCUSA and its disaster response teams have a long history of mobilizing quickly to meet the needs of those affected by catastrophic events in the US and its territories. This work begins with direct relief  such as water, food and shelter  to meet immediate needs. It continues, sometimes for many years, with long-term relief efforts, including housing and home repairs, financial assistance and crisis counseling, that help individuals and families rebuild their lives.

To donate, please visit https://ccusa.online/Ian.

SOURCE Catholic Charities USA
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The CFP Board Center for Financial Planning ("Center") today announced the sponsors for the sixth annual Academic Research Colloquium ("Colloquium") for financial planning and related disciplines.

The Colloquium will be held in person at the Conrad Washington, DC, on October 24-25, 2022. An initiative of the Center for Financial Planning, the Colloquium is an international meeting of researchers, practitioners, graduate students and leaders of the financial planning practice.

"CFP Board and the Center for Financial Planning would like to thank our generous sponsors for their support of this year's Academic Research Colloquium," said CFP Board Center for Financial Planning Managing Director Kate Healy. "These contributions are essential in creating this in-person opportunity for researchers to share their cutting-edge financial planning research and advance the profession."

The 2022 Academic Research Colloquium sponsors are as follows:

Merrill Wealth Management  Premier Sponsor

Vanguard  Leadership Sponsor

Ballentine Partners  Partner Sponsor

Edward Jones  Partner Sponsor

 Partner Sponsor Goldman Sachs  Partner Sponsor

Morgan Stanley  Partner Sponsor

Prudential  Partner Sponsor

The Center Founding Sponsors are as follows:

Charles Schwab Foundation, in partnership with Schwab Advisor Services

Envestnet

Merrill

Northwestern Mutual

The Colloquium events will be held on October 24-25 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET:

To learn more about CFP Board Center's Academic Research Colloquium, including agenda and continuing education information, visit the CFP Board website.

ABOUT CFP BOARD

Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. is the professional body for personal financial planners in the U.S. CFP Board sets standards for financial planning and administers the prestigious CFP certification  one of the most respected certifications in financial services  so that the public has access to and benefits from competent and ethical financial planning. CFP Board, along with its Center for Financial Planning, is committed to increasing the public's awareness of CFP certification and access to a diverse, ethical and competent financial planning workforce. Widely recognized by the public, advisors and firms as the standard for financial planning, CFP certification is held by more than 93,000 people in the United States.



ABOUT THE CFP BOARD CENTER FOR FINANCIAL PLANNING

The CFP Board Center for Financial Planning seeks to create a more diverse and sustainable financial planning profession so that every American has access to competent and ethical financial planning advice. The Center brings together CFP professionals, firms, educators, researchers and experts to address profession-wide challenges in the areas of diversity and workforce development, and to build an academic home that offers opportunities for conducting and publishing new research that adds to the financial planning body of knowledge.

SOURCE Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc.
LA CROSSE, Wis., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Caravel Autism Health, a leader in the diagnosis and treatment of young children on the autism spectrum, has announced plans to open another children's autism therapy clinic in western Wisconsin. The new Caravel clinic at 3936 Circle Drive in Holmen, WI will offer local families a comprehensive range of services including diagnosis, evaluation, therapy, family support, and counseling. It is slated to open in November.

Caravel has been serving Wisconsin families living with autism since 2009 when the company opened its first clinic in Green Bay. Caravel's expert clinicians help children with autism develop skills, create connections with others, and gain confidence. They specialize in Applied Behavior Analysis therapy, which uses positive reinforcement to help young children build language and communication skills and improve focus. The effectiveness of ABA therapy is recognized by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Our mission is to change lives," explained Caravel CEO Mike Miller. "Giving children access to ABA therapy at a young age ensures they will reach their greatest potential. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of ABA providers in many communities. We are working to identify those regions and making the investment in new clinics. Each time we open the doors to a new clinic, we know we're bringing more resources and greater hope for families touched by autism."

"Caravel has served communities across Wisconsin for more than a decade," said Caravel Regional Director Alia McCann, MA, BCBA. "We've continued our efforts to bring ABA therapy to more families by opening clinics in eastern Minnesota recently, and we're thrilled to be adding another location for children in the La Crosse region."

Caravel is scheduling appointments for children and families in the La Crosse region. Parents of young children and others with questions about autism diagnosis and ABA therapy are invited to call 608-470-6434 or visit caravelautism.com.

About Caravel Autism Health

Since 2009, Caravel Autism Health has been devoted to helping families navigate the challenges of childhood autism. Our team of clinical experts specializes in the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of children on the autism spectrum. Caravel's research-based and data-driven programs are designed to provide better outcomes that help children with autism reshape their development and embrace new ways of interacting with the world.

SOURCE Caravel Autism Health
BLOOMFIELD, Conn., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Global health services company Cigna Corporation (NYSE: CI) will release its third quarter 2022 financial results on Thursday, November 3, 2022, and will host a conference call the same day.

Third quarter 2022 financial results will be released no later than 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET). Management will review these results on a conference call beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET. The call-in numbers are as follows:

Live Call

(888) 455-5036 (Domestic)

(773) 799-3981 (International)

Passcode: 1132022

Replay

(800) 819-5739 (Domestic)

(203) 369-3350 (International)

It is strongly suggested that participants dial in to the conference call by 8:15 a.m. ET on November 3. A replay of the call will be available from 12:30 p.m. ET on November 3 until 11:59 p.m. ET on November 17, 2022. Additionally, the conference call will be available on a live internet webcast at https://investors.cigna.com/events-and-presentations/default.aspx in the Investor Relations section of Cigna's website. Please note that this feature will be in listen-only mode.

A copy of the company's news release and financial supplement will be available on Cigna's website in the Investor Relations section at https://investors.cigna.com/home/default.aspx, no later than 6:30 a.m. ET on November 3.

About Cigna

Cigna Corporation is a global health services company dedicated to improving the health, well-being and peace of mind of those we serve. Cigna delivers choice, predictability, affordability and access to quality care through integrated capabilities and connected, personalized solutions that advance whole person health. All products and services are provided exclusively by or through operating subsidiaries of Cigna Corporation, including Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Connecticut General Life Insurance Company, Evernorth companies or their affiliates and Express Scripts companies or their affiliates. Such products and services include an integrated suite of health services, such as medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy, vision, supplemental benefits and other related products. Cigna maintains sales capability in over 30 countries and jurisdictions, and has over 190 million customer relationships around the world. To learn more about Cigna, including links to follow us on Facebook or Twitter, visit www.cigna.com.

Investor Relations Contact

Ralph Giacobbe

1 (860) 787-7968

[email protected]

Media Contact

Justine Sessions

1 (860) 810-6523

[email protected]

SOURCE Cigna
Miami-based Real Estate Investment Firm Adds to Its National Portfolio With 144-unit South Florida Apartment Complex

MIAMI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Miami-based real estate investment firm Circle Capital Partners, which specializes in multi-family acquisitions and development, land entitlement, and private and institutional capital raising, has completed the $22.22 million purchase of Heron Landing, a 144-unit apartment complex in the fast-growing Sunrise, Florida area.

Circle Capital arranged financing through Graystone Service Co. and will retain Weller Management to manage the 159,722-square-foot, 9.2-acre property built in 1989 and last sold in 1996 for $7.2 million.

The Heron Landing 144-unit apartment complex has been purchased by Miami-based Circle Capital Partners. The Heron Landing 144-unit apartment complex has been purchased by Miami-based Circle Capital Partners.

Circle Capital plans significant upgrades to the complex, including full interior renovations to 66 original apartments, and additional updates to 78 units that already have undergone improvements.

All 144 Heron Landing rental units are large two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments that average 1,053 square feet.

Circle Capital also will build a new free-standing state-of-the-art fitness center; create a resident lounge from a renovated adjoining building; refurbish the leasing center; install new signage and landscaping; and improve overall "curb appeal," according to Circle Capital co-founder Todd Linden.

"Heron Landing is an excellent example of our value-add strategy to serve investors and enhance resident living experiences in all the communities where we do business," Linden said. "This fully refreshed and modernized property will be a very attractive option in an already in-demand, fast-growing market."

Government lending agency Freddie Mac lists Broward County as the fifth-ranked rental market in the nation. Sunrise is one of the fastest growing communities Broward due to a strong economy, numerous quality-of-life attractions and top-rated public schools. Heron Landing is the only apartment complex among its competition to be zoned for the community's A+ rated elementary school directly across the street.

The property adds to the extensive portfolio of multi-family properties Circle Capital has acquired since its formation in 2019. Circle Capital purchased The Vue, a 178-apartment complex in Davie for $36.5 million in 2021, as well as more than $200 million worth of other real estate investments in Florida, Kentucky, Texas and South Dakota.

Linden and Circle Capital co-founder Richard Valdes have completed almost $4 billion in property transactions across the United States throughout their real estate, investment, institutional capital and equity placement careers.

"This latest acquisition checks all the boxes for our strategy to benefit investors, tenants and the local rental market," Valdes said. "It's especially exciting that Heron Landing is in our South Florida home, and we look forward to closing many more deals here and other dynamic markets across the country."

For more information, visit www.circlecapitalpartners.com .

PHOTO: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xr6z92610h9irfs/169-Twilight.jpg?dl=0

Media Contact:

Edward Gilhuly

305-807-6906

[email protected]

SOURCE Circle Capital Partners
The high prevalence of chronic illnesses as well as the rise in their incidence rate is estimated to raise need for clinical trials

The pharmaceutical and biotechnology businesses are increasing their R&D efforts, which is estimated to assist the global market thrive

WILMINGTON, Del., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- By 2030, the clinical trials market size is likely to surpass value of US$ 83.5 Bn. According clinical trials market analysis, in 2019, the global clinical trials market was worth more than US$ 46.7 Bn. As per clinical trials market data, the global market is expected to develop at 5.4% CAGR during the forecast period, from 2020 to 2030. The high prevalence as well as rising occurrence of chronic illnesses, along with the expansion of R&D in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology businesses, are anticipated to fuel the growth of the global clinical trials market in the forthcoming years.

Globally, the main causes of disability and death are chronic diseases including neurological disorders, chronic respiratory diseases, chronic kidney diseases, cancer, cardiac strokes, and diabetes. Researchers now face new obstacles and possibilities due to development and spread of several infectious and chronic illnesses. These diseases require timely detection, prevention, as well as treatment, which calls for the development of novel diagnostic tools, medications, tests, and vaccinations.

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In order to meet the unmet demands in the healthcare sector, clinical research institutions, biotechnology businesses, and diagnostic laboratories are working to create newer diagnostic tests. This is also anticipated to emerge as one of the key clinical trials market trends. The bulk and research rigor of the biopharmaceutical industry, which contributes toward close to 85% of total expenditures, are the primary drivers of the life science industry's R&D investment.

Global Clinical Trials Market: Key Competitors

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings

Parexel International Corporation

Charles River Laboratories, Inc.

Medpace Holdings, Inc.

IQVIA, Inc.

PRA Health Sciences, Inc.

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Global Clinical Trials Market: Segmentation

Phase

Phase I

Phase II

Phase III

Phase IV

Study Design

Interventional Trials

Observational Trials

Expanded Access Trials

Indication

Autoimmune/Inflammation

Pain Management

Cardiovascular

CNS Condition

Oncology

Diabetes

Obesity

Other

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Modernization of healthcare in terms of both infrastructure and services have pushed the healthcare industry to new heights, Stay Updated with Latest Healthcare Research Reports by Transparency Market Research:

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Seniors Can Learn About their Medicare Options from Home

BUFFALO, N.Y., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Baby boomers who are aging into Medicare or want to explore their options for 2023 can attend a virtual seminar from the comfort of their own homes. Buffalo Medical Group is offering a Virtual Medicare Shop & Compare Expo, 10 to 2:30 p.m., Monday, Oct. 31, 2022.

The webinar is an excellent opportunity for seniors to learn more about their Medicare options. Registration is desired, but not required. To register, visit: SeniorCareAdvantageOne.com.

The online seminar will several sessions, including a physician panel titled "The Benefits of Value-Based Healthcare;" Medicare 101 sessions, by independent, licensed brokers; as well as insurance company presentations. The event is hosted by Senior Care Advantage One, a program offered by Buffalo Medical Group.

Do not worry if you miss the webinar. You can still watch the Medicare information program online at SeniorCareAdvantageOne.com.

About Senior Care Advantage One

Senior Care Advantage One is not a new Medicare Advantage plan. Rather, it is a collaborative approach to care delivery that focuses on preventive care and providing care coordination resources. This program is open to senior patients of Buffalo Medical Group. More information about Senior Care Advantage One and Medicare informational resources are available at SeniorCareAdvantageOne.com.

SOURCE Senior Care Advantage One
Seniors Can Learn About their Medicare Options from Home

DAYTON, Ohio, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Baby boomers who are aging into Medicare or want to explore their options for 2023 can attend a virtual seminar from the comfort of their own homes. PriMED Physicians is offering a Virtual Medicare Shop & Compare Expo, 12 to 3 p.m., Wednesday, October 19, 2022.

The online seminar is an excellent opportunity for seniors to learn more about the differences between Medicare and Medicare Advantage and the many plan options available to them. To register, visit: GreaterDaytonSeniorCareAdvantage.com.

The webinar will include several sessions, including a physician panel entitled: "The Benefits of Value-Based Care;" Medicare 101 sessions by independent, licensed brokers; as well as insurance company presentations. The event is hosted by Greater Dayton Senior Care Advantage, a program offered by PriMED Physicians.

Do not worry if you miss the online seminar. You can still watch the Medicare information program online at GreaterDaytonSeniorCareAdvantage.com.

About Greater Dayton Senior Care Advantage.

Greater Dayton Senior Care Advantage is a collaborative approach to care delivery that focuses on preventive care and providing care coordination resources. This program is open to senior patients of PriMED Physicians. More information about Greater Dayton Senior Care Advantage and Medicare informational resources are available at GreaterDaytonSeniorCareAdvantage.com.

SOURCE Greater Dayton Senior Care Advantage
Top-ranked accounting, tax and advisory firms provide financial backing and forge strategic partnerships with the Atlanta-based construction tech startup, extending its national reach

ATLANTA, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ProNovos has partnered with eight major CPA firms to bring data-driven insights to construction contractors across the United States.

Bruce Orr

"In addition to being some of the most-respected accounting, tax and advisory firms in the construction industry, these companies share something else as wella deep commitment to helping contractors be the best they can be," said Bruce Orr, founder and Chief Data Scientist of ProNovos . "We're thrilled to announce these eight new relationshipsand counting. This is a major milestone for our company and a powerful affirmation of our mission."

The CPA firms, several of which have provided financial backing to ProNovos as part of the agreements, work with hundreds of contractors all over the country.

ProNovos will give contractors working with these companies fast and easy access to its technologies and analytics solutions . Armed with ProNovos tools, the CPA firms' construction leaders will provide their contractor clients with strategic and managerial advice to help reduce their risk, protect their profit margins and better position them for the future.

Heavily represented in INSIDE Public Accounting's 2022 rankings of Top 100 and Top 200 CPA firms, the eight new ProNovos partners are:

Columbus, Ohio -based GBQ Partners , which serves construction contractors across Ohio and the Midwest

-based , which serves construction contractors across and the Midwest Albuquerque-based REDW LLC , one of the largest certified public accounting and business advisory firms in the Southwest

, one of the largest certified public accounting and business advisory firms in the Southwest Tulsa, Oklahoma -based HoganTaylor LLP , which boasts a large roster of contractor clients in Oklahoma , Arkansas and Texas

-based , which boasts a large roster of contractor clients in , and Atlanta -based Smith + Howard , which brings more than 50 years of construction-industry experience to its contractor clients nationwide

-based , which brings more than 50 years of construction-industry experience to its contractor clients nationwide Indianapolis -based Somerset CPAs and Advisors , which serves contractors in the Midwest and across the country

-based , which serves contractors in the Midwest and across the country Boston -based AAFCPAs , which primarily serves contractors in Massachusetts and New Hampshire

-based , which primarily serves contractors in and Salina, Kansas -based Pinion (formerly KCoe Isom), which serves community-based contractors across the United States via 22 different offices

-based (formerly KCoe Isom), which serves community-based contractors across via 22 different offices Portland, Oregon -based Perkins & Co , an award-winning CPA firm that also maintains an office in Vancouver, Washington , and primarily serves specialty contractors in Oregon , Washington , Idaho , Montana and California

Incubated at Atlanta Tech Village, ProNovos has teamed with project managers, C-suite executives and construction-management academicians to build a suite of cloud-connected, mobile-ready analytical tools for the construction industry.

Contractors can use these tools to get paid faster, automate lagging financial instruments like the WIP and change course as needed based on real-time views of leading indicators. "In our experience, using ProNovos gradually shifts contractors' perception of their data," Orr said. "They start to see it as an essential part of the decision-making process rather than a means to an end."

The potential for ProNovos to spur such progress is part of its appeal to new ProNovos partners like Somerset CPAs and Advisors.

"Incremental gains can add up to game-changing impacts over time," said Somerset Principal Ken Hedlund (CPA, CGMA), a 30-year construction veteran and leader of Somerset's dedicated AEC practice. "Our view is that no matter how good you are today you can always get better."

ProNovos also allows contractors to step back from the day-to-day minutiae of management decision-making and Microsoft Excel manipulation and better assess their overall performance, added Bob Biehl (CPA, CCIFP), Director of Construction Industry Services for GBQ.

"Our clients' controllers and other financial decision-makers are increasingly interested in gleaning more insights from their data, all in one place," Biehl said. "At GBQ, empowering our clients' growth is a top priority, so we're excited about this partnership. The bottom line is that having more information helps contractors make better decisions."

More detailed information on each strategic relationship can be found at: https://pronovos.com/press-releases/

Press Contacts: At ProNovos: [email protected]; Bruce Orr, [email protected], (678) 908-0087.

SOURCE ProNovos
Issuers on the London Stock Exchange will be able to access CYE's wide range of services including cyber assessments, red-team attacks, data-driven solutions, and risk quantification as they protect themselves against future threats

LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- CYE , the industry leader in cybersecurity optimization platforms, announced today that it has become a member of the London Stock Exchange's Issuer Services Marketplace. CYE will build a unique solution for London-listed companies that includes a variety of security services drawing on its expertise in providing business insights and ability to place a dollar value on potential damage from cyberattacks.

Understanding and prioritising real security risks is a challenge for all companies. For public companies, the regulatory requirements often place much of the responsibility on board members. These challenges are further compounded by the fact that at any moment, any company could be vulnerable to an attack. As popular targets for cyberattacks, public companies, and those preparing to IPO, are bombarded with threats. The consequences of which, could mean a potential for stocks to decline or perform poorly on their exchanges, or worse. Solving these security concerns is up to CISOs, who are flooded with hundreds of security tools, offers from service providers, and a noisy digital footprint that has partial visibility of an ever-expanding attack surface.

As a response to these challenges, through the London Stock Exchange's Marketplace, CYE will offer a range of services to listed companies that include an all-in-one approach to cybersecurity with real business insights. These include security assessments and "red team" non-simulated attacks, as well as data-driven and mathematically-proven solutions that optimize the reduction of cyber exposure. The company will also offer in-person training and guidance for executives, employees, and IT and security professionals. The listed companies can also have access to CYE's flagship cloud-based platform, Hyver, which delivers solutions ranging from attack route visualisation to risk quantification and mitigation optimization.

"One of the biggest challenges facing our customers is defining clear decision-making parameters and making educated choices. We have seen firsthand from clients who are listed companies that they are valuable targets for hackers. Providing tools to visualise, quantify and mitigate risk, allows them to adjust accordingly and make the proper security investments based on their risk appetite, budget, and more," said Reuven Aronashvili, CEO and co-founder of CYE. "We are happy to be bringing CYE's solutions to London-listed companies, giving them access to our unique combination of red-team activity and technology. We are honoured to have been chosen as a trusted Marketplace member."

About CYE

CYE's cybersecurity optimization platform enables businesses to visualise, quantify, and mitigate cyber risk so they can make better security decisions and invest in effective remediation. CYE combines technology with red team activity to deliver the most comprehensive organizational security assessments and contextual risk analysis and insights.

With headquarters in Israel and offices in New York and London, the company serves Fortune 500 and mid-market companies in multiple industries around the world.

CYE is funded by investors including EQT Private Equity and 83North. Visit us at cyesec.com .

GKPR for CYE:

Contact: Rebecca Ash, Associate

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://gkpr.com

SOURCE CYE
VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Defense Metals Corp. ("Defense Metals" or the "Company"; (TSXV: DEFN) (OTCQB: DFMTF) (FSE: 35D) announces high-grade Rare Earth Element ("REE") assay results from one additional core drill hole, totalling 320 metres (m), collared within the northern area of Defense Metals' 100% owned Wicheeda REE Deposit.

Figure 1. Drill Section Hole WI22-67 (CNW Group/Defense Metals Corp.)

Infill drill hole WI22-67 (-60o dip / 197o azimuth) was drilled southward within the northern area of the deposit and yielded a broad mixed lithology mineralized intercept comprising dolomite carbonatite and syenite averaging 2.53% total rare earth oxide ("TREO") over 106 metres (m); including a high-grade zone of 3.42% TREO over 59 m1 (Figure 1). The assays reported for WI22-67 are partial from surface to a downhole depth of 155 metres. Assay results for the remaining 165 m to end of hole at 320 m are expected in the coming days.

Craig Taylor, CEO, and Director of Defense Metals stated: "With the release of this additional drill hole, we continue to establish excellent continuity of mineralization in sectional infill drilling. As we advance the Wicheeda Project we know these kinds of results will contribute significantly to our goal of upgraded resource categories necessary to support a future Preliminary Feasibility Study (PFS)."

Table 1. Wicheeda REE Deposit 2022 Diamond Drill Intercepts

Hole ID From (m) To (m) Interval (m) TREO2 (%) Ce 2 O 3 (%) La 2 O 3 (%) Nd 2 O 3 (%) Pr 2 O 3 (%) Sm 2 O 3 (ppm) Gd 2 O 3 (ppm) Eu 2 O 3 (ppm) Dy 2 O 3 (ppm) Tb 4 O 7 (ppm) Ho 2 O 3 (ppm) WI22-67 (197/-60) 30.7 137 106.3 2.53 1.22 0.87 0.28 0.10 307 149 66 36 13 4 including 41 100 59 3.42 1.65 1.19 0.37 0.14 381 184 80 40 16 4 WI22-62 (204/-50) 93 260 167 1.39 0.68 0.43 0.18 0.06 222 101 43 29 9 4 including 121 169 48 2.29 1.13 0.72 0.29 0.10 316 123 54 22 9 2 WI22-63 (204/-60) 148 187 39 2.29 1.12 0.79 0.25 0.09 246 120 47 26 9 3 including 175 184 9 5.08 2.45 1.84 0.52 0.19 472 215 91 49 17 5 WI22-64 (204/-65) 77 269.3 192.3 1.78 0.86 0.58 0.22 0.08 230 116 51 34 10 4 including 77 150 73 3.13 1.51 1.06 0.37 0.13 353 156 71 30 12 3 WI22-68 (220/-55) 109.4 233 123.6 3.58 1.69 1.29 0.38 0.14 376 160 71 35 12 3 including 212 230 18 6.70 3.11 2.50 0.71 0.27 619 260 111 47 18 5

18th International Rare Earths Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada

Defense Metals and many of its directors, management and advisors will be attending the 18th International Rare Earths Conference on October 17, 2022 to October 19, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Luisa Moreno, President and Director of the Company will be presenting on the "Wicheeda Deposit: The Next North American REE production".

About the Wicheeda REE Property

The 100% owned 4,244-hectare Wicheeda REE Property, located approximately 80 km northeast of the city of Prince George, British Columbia, is readily accessible by all-weather gravel roads and is near infrastructure, including power transmission lines, the CN railway, and major highways.

The Wicheeda REE Project yielded a robust 2021 preliminary economic assessment technical report (PEA) that demonstrated an after-tax net present value ([email protected]%) of $517 million, and 18% IRR3. A unique advantage of the Wicheeda REE Project is the production of a saleable high-grade flotation-concentrate. The PEA contemplates a 1.8 Mtpa (million tonnes per year) mill throughput open pit mining operation with 1.75:1 (waste:mill feed) strip ratio over a 19 year mine (project) life producing and average of 25,423 tonnes REO annually. A Phase 1 initial pit strip ratio of 0.63:1 (waste:mill feed) would yield rapid access to higher grade surface mineralization in year 1 and payback of $440 million initial capital within 5 years.

Methodology and QA/QC

The analytical work reported on herein was performed by ALS Canada Ltd. (ALS) at Langley (sample preparation) and Vancouver (ICP-MS fusion), B.C. ALS is an ISO-IEC 17025:2017 and ISO 9001:2015 accredited geoanalytical laboratory and is independent of the Defense Metals and the QP. Drill core samples were subject to crushing at a minimum of 70% passing 2 mm, followed by pulverizing of a 250-gram split to 85% passing 75 microns. A 0.1-gram sample pulp was then subject to multi-element ICP-MS analysis via lithium-borate fusion to determine individual REE content (ME-MS81h). Defense Metals follows industry standard procedures for the work carried out on the Wicheeda Project, with a quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program. Blank, duplicate, and standard samples were inserted into the sample sequence sent to the laboratory for analysis. Defense Metals detected no significant QA/QC issues during review of the data.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release as it relates to the Wicheeda REE Project has been reviewed and approved by Kristopher J. Raffle, P.Geo. (BC) Principal and Consultant of APEX Geoscience Ltd. of Edmonton, AB, a director of Defense Metals and a "Qualified Person" as defined in NI 43-101. Mr. Raffle verified the data disclosed which includes a review of the sampling, analytical and test data underlying the information and opinions contained therein.

About Defense Metals Corp.

Defense Metals Corp. is a mineral exploration and development company focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral deposits containing metals and elements commonly used in the electric power markets, defense industry, national security sector and in the production of green energy technologies, such as, rare earths magnets used in wind turbines and in permanent magnet motors for electric vehicles. Defense Metals owns 100% of the Wicheeda Rare Earth Element Deposit located near Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. Defense Metals Corp. trades in Canada under the symbol "DEFN" on the TSX Venture Exchange, in the United States, under "DFMTF" on the OTCQB and in Germany on the Frankfurt Exchange under "35D".

For further information, please contact:

Todd Hanas, Bluesky Corporate Communications Ltd.

Vice President, Investor Relations

Tel: (778) 994 8072

Email: [email protected]

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Cautionary Statement Regarding "Forward-Looking" Information

This news release contains "forwardlooking information or statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which may include, without limitation, statements relating to advancing the Wicheeda REE Project, drill results including anticipated timeline of such results/assays, upgrading the resource categories, completing the PFS, the Company's plans for its Wicheeda REE Project, expanded resource and scale of expanded resource, expected results and outcomes, the technical, financial and business prospects of the Company, its project and other matters. All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business strategies and the environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of rare earth elements, the anticipated costs and expenditures, the ability to achieve its goals, that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms. Such forward-looking information reflects the Company's views with respect to future events and is subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including the risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of exploration results, risks related to the inherent uncertainty of exploration and cost estimates, the potential for unexpected costs and expenses and those other risks filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. While such estimates and assumptions are considered reasonable by the management of the Company, they are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive and regulatory uncertainties and risks. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include, but are not limited to, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions, adverse weather and climate conditions, failure to maintain or obtain all necessary government permits, approvals and authorizations, failure to maintain community acceptance (including First Nations), risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of personnel, materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters), risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions, decrease in the price of rare earth elements, the impact of Covid-19 or other viruses and diseases on the Company's ability to operate, an inability to predict and counteract the effects of COVID-19 on the business of the Company, including but not limited to, the effects of COVID-19 on the price of commodities, capital market conditions, restriction on labour and international travel and supply chains, loss of key employees, consultants, or directors, increase in costs, delayed drilling results, litigation, and failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations. The Company does not undertake to update forwardlooking statements or forwardlooking information, except as required by law.

1 The true width of REE mineralization is estimated to be 70-100% of the drilled interval. 2 TREO % sum of CeO 2 , La 2 O 3 , Nd 2 O 3 , Pr 6 O 11 , Sm 2 O 3 , Eu 2 O 3 , Gd 2 O 3 , Tb 4 O 7 , Dy 2 O 3 and Ho 2 O 3 . 3 Independent Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Wicheeda Rare Earth Element Project, British Columbia, Canada, dated January 6, 2022, with an effective date of November 7, 2021, and prepared by SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc. is filed under Defense Metals Corp.'s Issuer Profile on SEDAR (www.sedar.com).

SOURCE Defense Metals Corp.
The Asia Pacific Automotive Smart Antenna Market is being significantly pushed by strong economic growth. Europe is expected to account for a significant part of the global automotive smart antenna industry.

NEWARK, Del., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As per the report published by FMI, the global automotive smart antenna market is projected to have a rapid-paced CAGR of 12.2% during the forecast period. The current valuation of the market is US$ 3.94 Billion in 2022. The market value of automotive smart antennas is anticipated to reach a high of US$ 12.45 Billion by the year 2032. The base year recorded a valuation of US$ 3.44 Billion.

The automotive smart antenna is anticipated to play an integral role in establishing communication to enhance the safety and performance of the vehicles. This product is allowing original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to fulfill customer requirements for infotainment services.

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While analyzing the automotive smart antenna market, an expert analyst reveals that gradual increase in the incorporation of wireless technology and positioning technologies such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G/4 LTE, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), and vehicle-to-anything (V2X) connecting technologies in vehicles is expected to drive the global automotive smart antenna market in the current and future years.

According to the findings of Future Market Insights, smart antennas are expected to reduce the overall costs and weight of automobiles with the benefits of easier cable routing and reduced cable length, without affecting the overall design of the automotive since they are completely invisible. Improvised connectivity in automobiles is enhancing the user's experience such as a stronger interface community, active steering, and improved connectivity. Therefore, the automotive smart antenna market is likely to have a significant rise in demand during the estimated period.

FMI has analyzed that automotive smart antennas are becoming the most pivotal component of position location systems and they are also crucial in telematics devices, allowing easy detection of locations. However, the lack of developed infrastructure in some developing countries may create a barrier to wireless technology and in-vehicle connectivity, hampering the progression of the automotive smart antenna in the coming years.

Key Takeaways from the Automotive Smart Antennas Market

Asia Pacific region is projected to dominate the global automotive smart antenna market with a market valuation of US$ 4,394.07 by 2032.

region is projected to dominate the global automotive smart antenna market with a market valuation of by 2032. The current market valuation for automotive smart antennas stands at US$ 3.94 Billion in 2022.

in 2022. The automotive smart antenna market is anticipated to record a CAGR of 12.2% during the period 2022-2032.

Passenger Vehicles segment is identified to be the largest adopter of automotive smart antennas.

"The rising concern about traffic congestion and the increasing demand for dashboard features are likely to create lucrative growth opportunity for the market players of the automotive smart antennas market."  Says an FMI Analyst

Browse Detailed Summary of Research Report with TOC: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/automotive-smart-antenna-market

Competition Landscape in the Automotive Smart Antennas Market

The market can be described as a competitive market. The key companies have adopted several strategies to broaden their customer base worldwide. Furthermore, the manufacturers are indulging in several growth strategies with frequent innovation of smart automotive smart antennas to provide consumers with a seamless, safe, and comfortable experience.

Ace Technologies Corp., Antenova Ltd., Beijing BDStar Navigation Co. Ltd., Calearo Antenne SPA, Continental AG, Harada Industry Co. Ltd., INFAC Corp., INPAQ Technology Co. Ltd., Koch Industries Inc., Lorom Industrial Co. Ltd., LS MTRON Ltd., Panasonic Corp., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. are some of the key players in the market.

Key Segments Covered in the Automotive Smart Antenna Report

By Frequency:

Ultra-High Frequency Automotive Smart Antenna

Very High Frequency Automotive Smart Antenna

High Frequency Automotive Smart Antenna

By Component:

Automotive Smart Antenna

Automotive Smart Tuner

Automotive Smart Transceivers

By Vehicle Type:

Automotive Smart Antenna for Passenger Cars

Automotive Smart Antenna for Light Commercial Vehicles

Automotive Smart Antenna for Heavy Commercial Vehicles

Automotive Smart Antenna for Battery Electric Vehicles

Automotive Smart Antenna for Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles

By Sales Channel:

Automotive Smart Antenna Sales through OEMs

Automotive Smart Antenna Sales through OESs

Automotive Smart Antenna Sales through IAMs

By Region:

North America

Latin America

Western Europe

Eastern Europe

APEJ

Japan

Middle East & Africa

Recent Developments in the Automotive Smart Antennas Market:

In August 2020 , Laird Connectivity launched a new product named Revie Flex 600 and announced to launch of the Revie Flex 700 flexible PCB antennas. This product is launched to accelerate the development of wireless products for 5G, NB-IoT, and LTE-M/CAT-M Applications. This would help the company to enhance its product portfolio and increase its revenue in the near future.

, Laird Connectivity launched a new product named Revie Flex 600 and announced to launch of the Revie Flex 700 flexible PCB antennas. This product is launched to accelerate the development of wireless products for 5G, NB-IoT, and LTE-M/CAT-M Applications. This would help the company to enhance its product portfolio and increase its revenue in the near future. In May 2020 , Airgain, Inc. launched their new product, high-power user equipment (HPUE) antenna-modem platform for the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) network using a module from Assure Wireless. This platform will enable superior performance for 4G and 5G communications. This will enhance the company's product portfolio.

, Airgain, Inc. launched their new product, high-power user equipment (HPUE) antenna-modem platform for the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) network using a module from Assure Wireless. This platform will enable superior performance for 4G and 5G communications. This will enhance the company's product portfolio. In January 2019 , Hella showcased its sensible and protected mobility options at the North American International auto exhibit which is the greatest motor exhibit in the USA .

, Hella showcased its sensible and protected mobility options at the North American International auto exhibit which is the greatest motor exhibit in the . In 2018, Hirschman Car Communication/TE Connectivity has introduced its Remote Tuner Module the subsequent step in vehicles' radio technology.

In 2018, Hella launched its new joint project with the business enterprise BHAP, offering digital components, as HELLA BHAP Electronics Co., Ltd.  In September 2018 , Airgain, Inc. launched OptumX antenna, a shot-glass MIMO LTE antenna.

, Airgain, Inc. launched OptumX antenna, a shot-glass MIMO LTE antenna. In September 2018 , Airgain, Inc. launched MULTIMAX FV 5-in-1 & 6-in-1 antennas.

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Table of Content

1. Executive Summary

1.1. Global Market Outlook

1.2. Demand-side Trends

1.3. Supply-side Trends

1.4. Technology Roadmap Analysis

1.5. Analysis and Recommendations

2. Market Overview

2.1. Market Coverage / Taxonomy

2.2. Market Definition / Scope / Limitations

3. Market Background

3.1. Market Dynamics

3.1.1. Drivers

3.1.2. Restraints

3.1.3. Opportunity

3.1.4. Trends

3.2. Scenario Forecast

3.2.1. Demand in Optimistic Scenario

3.2.2. Demand in Likely Scenario

3.2.3. Demand in Conservative Scenario

3.3. Opportunity Map Analysis

3.4. Product Life Cycle Analysis

3.5. Supply Chain Analysis

3.5.1. Supply Side Participants and their Roles

3.5.1.1. Producers

3.5.1.2. Mid-Level Participants (Traders/ Agents/ Brokers)

3.5.1.3. Wholesalers and Distributors

3.5.2. Value Added and Value Created at Node in the Supply Chain

3.5.3. List of Raw Material Suppliers

3.5.4. List of Existing and Potential Buyer's

3.6. Investment Feasibility Matrix

3.7. Value Chain Analysis

3.7.1. Profit Margin Analysis

3.7.2. Wholesalers and Distributors

3.7.3. Retailers

3.8. PESTLE and Porter's Analysis

3.9. Regulatory Landscape

3.9.1. By Key Regions

3.9.2. By Key Countries

3.10. Regional Parent Market Outlook

3.11. Production and Consumption Statistics

3.12. Import and Export Statistics

4. Global Automotive Smart Antenna Market Analysis 2017-2021 and Forecast, 2022-2032

4.1. Historical Market Size Value (US$ Mn) & Volume (Units) Analysis, 2017-2021

4.2. Current and Future Market Size Value (US$ Mn) & Volume (Units) Projections, 2022-2032

4.2.1. Y-o-Y Growth Trend Analysis

4.2.2. Absolute $ Opportunity Analysis

Download PDF Brochure @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/brochure/rep-gb-8257

About FMI  Automotive and Transportation

The Automotive and Transportation division of FMI provides exclusive coverage and actionable insights about automotive and transportation industry encompassing automotive, aviation, shipping and marine, and railway sectors. Market findings and competition intelligence of OEM, aftermarket, services and technology landscape have helped numerous industry stakeholders' right from automakers, component manufacturers, channel partners and service providers in taking informed decisions and keeping them up-to-date with market behaviour.

Have a Look at Trending Research Reports of Automotive Domain

Automotive Cylinder Liner Market : to grow with a year over year growth of 3.4% in 2021 reaching a value of about US$ 4,573.1 Mn by 2021 end, anticipated to witness a considerable CAGR of 3.5% by value during the period of 2022 and 2027.

Automotive Control Cable Market : is estimated to exceed US$ 2.5 Bn by 2022. The demand in the global automotive control cable market is expected to create an absolute dollar opportunity of nearly US$ 3.4 Bn through 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4.6% over the forecast period 2022-2029.

ADAS Sensors Market : is slated to top US$ 15 Bn in 2022. Increasing preference for enhanced driver comfort and safety in passenger vehicles is expected to boost sales at an impressive 14.1% CAGR over the forecast period, with the market valuation reaching US$ 43.2 Bn in 2030.

Automotive Display Units Market : witnessed historical CAGR of 6.2% for 2014- 2021. The global automotive display unit market is forecasted to witness a considerable value CAGR of 8.3% during the forecast period 2022 and 2029.

Automotive Active Purge Pump Market : is slated to witness impressive growth at 11.2% CAGR between 2021 and 2031. The overall market valuation will total US$ 192 Mn in 2031, up from US$ 66.3 Mn recorded in 2021.

About Future Market Insights, Inc.

Future Market Insights, Inc. is an ESOMAR-certified business consulting & market research firm, a member of the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce and is headquartered in Delaware, USA. A recipient of Clutch Leaders Award 2022 on account of high client score (4.9/5), we have been collaborating with global enterprises in their business transformation journey and helping them deliver on their business ambitions. 80% of the largest Forbes 1000 enterprises are our clients. We serve global clients across all leading & niche market segments across all major industries.

Contact:

Future Market Insights, Inc.

Christiana Corporate, 200 Continental Drive,

Suite 401, Newark, Delaware - 19713, USA

T: +1-845-579-5705

Enquiries: [email protected]

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1197648/FMI_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Future Market Insights
Pathologists Can Join the Global Community at PathVisions Booth 214 & Online

LAS VEGAS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Pathologists from Europe, Japan and the United States today jointly announced the debut of Digital Pathology Connections (DPC), a global community for professionals interested in the digital future of the anatomic pathology laboratory. Pathology professionals are invited to join DPC online or in-person at the Pathology Visions 2022 conference (PathVisions). PathVisions will be held October 16-18, 2022 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, hosted by the Digital Pathology Association.

Digital Pathology Connections logo

Unique from existing organizations, DPC is a global virtual community providing educational content and enabling robust discussions on trending topics in pathology, curated by pathologists at the forefront of digital transformation. The concept for DPC was catalyzed by the 2021 formation of The Global Task Force for Digital Pathology, an alliance of the Digital Pathology Association (DPA), European Society of Digital and Integrative Pathology (ESDIP), and Japanese Society of Digital Pathology (JSDP) to promote the global adoption of digital pathology. In the spirit of the Global Task Force, DPC is dedicated to accelerating an exchange of knowledge across borders, hosted on a platform powered by Leica Biosystems (LBS).

DPC charter members have experience leading digital transformation projects for their organizations, and are helping build the community by curating discussion topics and driving engagement with pathologists worldwide. Charter members include Sylvia Asa, MD, PhD (USA/Canada); Toby Cornish, MD, PhD (USA); Catarina Eloy, MD, PhD (Portugal); Giovanni Lujan, MD, PhD (USA); Naoko Tsuyama, MD, PhD (Japan); and Bethany Williams, MBBS, PhD (UK).

At Booth 214, DPC will also be hosting live conversations throughout the PathVisions conference:

Topic: Remote Working  Opportunities and Challenges

Hosted by DPC Charter Member Dr. Bethany Williams

Topic: The Evolving Role of the Pathologist

Hosted by DPC Charter Member Dr. Sylvia Asa

Topic: The Promise of AI-based Computational Pathology

Hosted by DPC Charter Member Dr. Giovanni Lujan

Inaugural DPC supporter Leica Biosystems is hosting the community's booth at PathVisions and the community's LinkedIn Group page, continuing the company's long-held commitment to innovation in anatomical pathology. LBS is a member and silver sponsor of the Digital Pathology Association and a founding supporter of the PathVisions conference.

"Leica Biosystems understands the need for pathologists to engage to advance the profession, whether in-person at conferences like PathVisions or virtually through an online community," said Dr. Anil Parwani, a pathologist with Ohio State University. "PathVisions is the ideal venue to launch the DPC because the conference is focused on providing opportunities to learn about cutting-edge, real-world, practical applications in the ever-evolving field of digital pathology."

For more information about DPC, please visit the community here.

SOURCE Leica Biosystems
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- An experienced employment law firm, Davtyan Law Firm ( www.d.law ) is extending its outreach further, this time to help employees in San Bernardino, California, and surrounding areas. DLaw's original office opened over seven years ago to help protect the rights of the working class in the Los Angeles area. DLaw's attorneys focus on assisting all Californians with navigating employment issues, such as workplace harassment, discrimination, unpaid wages, and wrongful termination. Their passion and dedication are what set them apart from other employment law firms in the area.

Founder and Managing Attorney Emil Davtyan is looking forward to seeing how his firm's experience and knowledge will help workers in and around the heart of the San Bernardino area. The entire team at DLaw desires to bring approachable, comprehensive, and caring legal services to all employees in this region.

DLaw also has offices in Los Angeles , San Diego , San Francisco , Fresno , Sacramento , Chico , San Luis Obispo , and Lake Tahoe , to protect all Californians from abusive employers.

Since its inception in 2015, DLaw's 50-plus lawyers and staff have helped hundreds of thousands of California workers recover nearly a quarter of $1 billion from their employers. To date, the firm has helped pursue nearly 3,000 cases.

"Hourly and low-wage workers are a collective group of people who make up the backbone of America," said Emil. "These hard-working individuals often don't have the resources and means to pursue their valid claims because employment law projects intimidation. If anyone has experienced unfair workplace treatment, they can look to us as the best place to help. We're always a phone call or online visit away from answering questions and offering free advice."

DLaw's newest office is located in the Tri-City Corporate Center in central San Bernardino at 473 E. Carnegie Drive, Suite 200, San Bernardino, CA 92408.

DLaw specializes in the following fields of employment law:

Wage & Hours Claims  California has strict laws regarding lunch breaks, rest breaks, overtime, expense reimbursements, off-the-clock work, minimum wage, etc. These laws change frequently and can be confusing.

Workplace Harassment & Discrimination  Employers are not allowed to discriminate or harass, based on certain protected classes such as race, age, and gender. In addition, California protects more classes including immigration status, sexual orientation, and others.

Wrongful Termination  There are several types of wrongful termination including those based on discrimination, contract violations, sexual harassment, and workplace retaliation.

Protected Leave Violations  California employees are entitled to a variety of protected leaves including FMLA (family and medical leave), new parental leaves, military service leave, and more. California's leave laws protect employees from unlawful discrimination, harassment, or retaliation as a result of requesting or taking protected leave. Employees have a right to take these kinds of leaves, and employers cannot take certain actions just because they exercised that right.

Workplace Retaliation  Workplace retaliation occurs when a business takes an adverse action against the employee who initially filed a complaint. If an employer punishes or fires an employee for exercising his or her employment rights, it is considered workplace retaliation and it may be illegal.

Are you a California employee who is treated unfairly at work? If so, please call 888-TRY-DLAW, visit the www.d.law website or email [email protected] . A representative is standing by 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to help with your employment law legal needs.

SOURCE Davtyan Law Firm, Inc.
A mobile replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Charlotte Motor Speedway hosts exhibit Oct. 20-23

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Energy is bringing The Wall That Heals, a mobile replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., to the Charlotte Motor Speedway Oct. 20-23.

The Wall That Heals honors the more than 58,000 U.S. service members whose names are inscribed on the wall of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in the nation's capital.

Visitors will also see a timeline of "The War and The Wall," learn about the legacy of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and view examples of commemorative items left at the wall in Washington. The free exhibit also includes a mobile education center that provides educational opportunities to learn about American heroes.

"We have a long history of honoring veterans in our communities, as well as supporting our employees who have served or are currently serving in the military," said Cameron McDonald, Duke Energy's vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer.

"Duke Energy is proud to bring The Wall That Heals to the Charlotte area and provide an opportunity for our community to honor all of those who served during the Vietnam War," McDonald said.

Since its debut in 1996, the exhibit has been on display in nearly 600 U.S. communities, in addition to an April 1999 tour of the four provinces of Ireland and a visit to Canada in 2005. More than 200,000 people nationwide visited The Wall That Heals exhibit in 2021.

The Wall That Heals is a program of VVMF, the nonprofit organization that built the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., in 1982. The Wall That Heals is the only traveling exhibit affiliated with the wall in Washington, D.C.

Learn more on Duke Energy's illumination website about the journey to bring The Wall That Heals to Charlotte and what it means to Duke Energy employees. General information about The Wall That Heals can be found here.

Duke Energy

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 28,000 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business and at least a 50% carbon reduction from electric generation by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The 2050 net-zero goals also include Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 emissions. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2022 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "America's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Contact: Shawna Berger

24-Hour: 800.559.3853

Twitter: @DE_ShawnaB

SOURCE Duke Energy
- Funds distributed to organizations throughout the state to aid Floridians during recovery from Hurricane Ian

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As Florida's response to Hurricane Ian continues, Duke Energy Florida has committed $95,000 to support local recovery and rebuilding efforts in communities that have been heavily impacted by the storm.

"During emergencies, our customers count on us," said Duke Energy Florida State President Melissa Seixas. "We are proud to work alongside the organizations that are on the front lines providing critical relief and recovery services across the communities we serve. We are grateful for their service to those impacted by this devastating storm."

Damage from Hurricane Ian caused more than 1 million customer outages within the company's service area. The majority of customers were restored within three days after the storm passed through the affected areas.

Many of the organizations that received funding are among those that are delivering disaster relief and recovery services, including meals, emergency services and supplies to individuals, families and communities across Florida.

Hope Partnership, an organization working to end homelessness and poverty in Central Florida, received a $5,000 donation from Duke Energy to provide blankets to those who have been displaced by Hurricane Ian.

"This week at our Client Care Day, we were able to distribute blankets to some of our neighbors who have been displaced by flooding from Ian," said Rev. Mary Downey, Hope Partnership CEO. "These individuals are currently staying in emergency shelters, so we were glad to be able to provide these blankets to make that time in the shelter a little more comfortable. Duke Energy provided the funding for these gifts, and we are so grateful to them for helping us continue to care for those most affected by the storm."

Duke Energy Florida has also committed $45,000 to help farmers and ranchers throughout the state rebuild after the devastating impacts of Hurricane Ian.

Florida Farm Bureau Federation received a $25,000 donation to its Hurricane Ian Relief Fund for Agriculture to support the recovery from agricultural-related losses.

"Like many residents in Florida, many farm and ranch families have suffered significant losses due to Hurricane Ian," said Jeb S. Smith, Florida Farm Bureau Federation president. "We are grateful for Duke Energy's support, which will help us assist our farm families throughout the state that are now recovering from one of the costliest storms in Florida's history."

The following community organizations received financial assistance to provide food, water and other disaster relief essentials to communities across Florida.

Statewide

Florida Farm Bureau Federation  $25,000

Florida Cattleman's Foundation  $10,000

The Alumni Association of the Wedgworth Leadership Institute for Agriculture and Natural Resources  $10,000

Hardee, Highlands and Polk counties

Hardee Help Center  $10,000

SendMeMissions  $10,000

Orange and Osceola counties

Foundation for Orange County Public Schools Inc. (OCPS)  $5,000

Public Schools Inc. (OCPS)  Osceola County Council on Aging Inc.  $5,000

Hope Partnership  $5,000

Seminole and Volusia counties

Christian Sharing Center Inc. dba The Sharing Center  $5,000

Meals on Wheels, Etc. Inc.  $5,000

Council on Aging of Volusia County Inc.  $5 ,000

Earlier this month, the company also announced a $100,000 donation to the American Red Cross with an additional $50,000 available in matching employee donations for communities in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina. An additional $100,000 was also provided to Volunteer Florida's Disaster Fund to support aid as part of the coordinated disaster response in Florida.

Duke Energy Florida also will be supporting these communities through employee volunteering and purchasing and distributing food and other needed items.

To contribute to the Florida Disaster Fund, visit floridadisasterfund.org or text DISASTER to 20222.

Contributions to support Hurricane Ian relief through the American Red Cross can be made here.

Duke Energy Florida

Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns 10,300 megawatts of energy capacity, supplying electricity to 1.9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers across a 13,000-square-mile service area in Florida.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 28,000 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business and at least a 50% carbon reduction from electric generation by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The 2050 net-zero goals also include Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 emissions. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2022 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "America's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Media contact: Audrey Stasko

Cell: 315.877.3031

Media line: 800.559.3853

Twitter: @DE_AudreyS

SOURCE Duke Energy
BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- While seemingly every brand has been racing toward the new technological playground known as the metaverse, Archer Roose - a leading canned wine company - has decided to participate in a different way, by highlighting the confusion behind what the metaverse actually is. And they've done so alongside Chief Creative Officer Elizabeth Banks.

Join Banks as she samples Archer Roose's new varietal, Bubbly Rose, in the metaverse . Archer Roose leaves it to their customer to decide for themselves if they've done a decent job of explaining and navigating the metaverse. At the end of the day though, the brand recognizes that perhaps wine is best enjoyed in real life.

"We love technology and innovation," says Marian Leitner, CEO of Archer Roose. "But as a wine brand, what we love is bringing people together here in the real world, telling stories, eating great food and drinking delicious wine. So, having some fun with the metaverse was easy for us."

Archer Roose has poked fun at marketing conventions in the past, introducing their partnership with Elizabeth Banks with a video called "Uninvited Guest." In it, Elizabeth Banks simply showed up at the CEO's house and wouldn't leave, forcibly making herself the brand spokesperson. Archer Roose also launched a rewards program by offering free poisonous snakes to consumers, only to eventually replace the program with an actual, reptile-free one.

"You're seeing every brand race to have a presence on the metaverse," says Banks, "But a lot of consumers don't really understand what that means. As a brand, there's an opportunity to connect and laugh with consumers and say, 'don't worry, you're not alone.'"

The new spot was created by Archer Roose's agency of record, Colossus . Archer Roose is a women-owned and -operated company. For this production, Colossus continued the "girl gang" approach using a largely female production crew, director and editor.

The "Archer Roose Metaverse" video can be seen here.

Archer Roose's new Bubbly Rose, can be purchased here .

About Archer Roose

Archer Roose takes pride in the craftsmanship of our wine. We return to the foundation of wine as it wasgarnering relationships with the winemaking community, preserving terroir, and sourcing the highest quality wine with the highest quality grapes. But we also shape the foundation of wine as it should bewith mindfulness to the planet and to the lifestyles of those who drink them. We create the new tradition, fitting Archer Roose wines into the modern lifestyle for the modern drinker.

For more information, please visit www.archerroose.com and check out our Instagram and Facebook.

About Colossus

Colossus is an advertising and creative company based in Boston, Mass. We are an independent creative company partnering with a select number of like-minded brands who view creativity as a business lever. We're built smallby designwhich keeps us nimble, efficient and adaptable to the needs of our clients. You don't need to be big in size to be a colossus in stature. After all, a tweet can topple the stock market. And Prince was only 5' 2". Our goal is to help brands break through the white noise of the mundane by shaping art, technology and commerce into meaningful experiences. For more information, please visit wearecolossus.com.

About Elizabeth Banks

Actress, producer, writer and director Elizabeth Banks is known for roles in both comedy and drama, as well as film and television. Her work includes stand-out performances in projects including The Hunger Games franchise, Love & Mercy, The LEGO Movie and Mrs. America. She is also a three-time Emmy nominee for her recurring roles in 30 Rock and Modern Family. On the production side, Banks made her directorial debut in 2015 with Pitch Perfect 2, and produced the Pitch Perfect franchise through her production company Brownstone Productions, along with her husband Max Handleman. Brownstone Productions' slate includes multiple film, television and digital collaborations across various networks and studios, including the critically-acclaimed comedy Shrill on Hulu, starring SNL's Aidy Bryant. Up next, Banks will be seen starring in the feature drama Call Jane alongside Sigourney Weaver, which premiered at Sundance and London Film Festival; The Beanie Bubble alongside Zach Galifianakis and Sarah Snook; and A Mistake directed by Christine Jeffs. Banks produced and directed Universal Pictures' comedy-thriller Cocaine Bear, which is set to release in February of 2023.

Media Contact:

Taylor Foxman / [email protected]

SOURCE Archer Roose
Russia extends deadline for foreign shares traded outside of Russia

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- With a November 11, 2022 deadline approaching, Marc Zboch of Emergent Global Capital is urging investors to convert their United States-issued American Depository Receipts (ADRs) into normal shares traded on the Russian exchanges.

According to Zboch, Russian law 114-FZ essentially cancels foreign shares traded outside of Russia. This means that Americans who were hoping that their frozen shares would someday trade again now have to worry about them becoming worthless forever.

Russia is allowing shareholders a brief window in which they can convert their U.S.-issued ADRs into normal shares traded on the Russian exchanges. Russia originally passed a law allowing investors to claim their shares directly from the Russian custodians by October 11, 2022. This date has been extended to November 11, 2022. After November 11, shareholders will no longer be entitled to claim the underlying shares through this program.

Navigating the bureaucratic conversion process can be challenging, Zboch said. "Depending on the particular shares you own and the type of conversion, you may have to open a Type-C account in Russia, collect evidence of your ownership, translate and apostille documents, courier documents or take other steps."

Many investors don't realize that their ADRs or Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) are not actual Russian shares, but rather tokens created to trade on international exchanges, Zboch said.

Emergent Global Capital continuously monitors the Russian government, depositary institutions and companies for changes. It offers full-service conversion for individual investors and consults with large institutions. Different stocks have different procedures. Emergent Global Capital helps gather all required information, translations and certifications needed for conversion. It also helps investors remotely set up Russian Type-C accounts and retrieve dividends they are owed.

With the deadline approaching, Zboch noted the time it takes for U.S. and Russian custodians to respond is taking longer. This will likely get worse as the November 11th deadline approaches.

Zboch suggests visiting the website RussiaDeadline.com , which has a list of all major Russian ADRs and GDRs. The site also shows the ratio of ADRs to Russian shares and gives additional information helpful for current valuation and conversion.

PRESS CONTACT

Hugh Taylor

3103837041

https://commsfactory.net/

SOURCE Emergent Global Capital
Maryland's largest HBCU connects students and therapists

BALTIMORE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- If 95% of surveyed students feel their mental health has been negatively affected within the past year, why is it that only 1 in 3 BIPOC Americans receive the help they need? This question begins to offer insight into the difficulties faced by many young adults from diverse backgrounds who do not get necessary mental health support. "Opportunities for economic mobility will not be possible unless we provide the counseling and support that is a major factor in ensuring student success," said Dr. Aisha Francis, President of Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, a private institution with 74% students of color. To reduce stigma and increase accessibility surrounding mental health, many institutions are turning to scalable technologies designed to assist their current campus counseling centers to provide inclusive, flexible, and equitable mental health resources and support.

Morgan State University is one of many schools launching a solution that gives students immediate access to licensed therapists based on needs and preferences including gender and ethnicity. "As the largest HBCU in Maryland, we are committed to expanding the promise and opportunity of higher education to a multiethnic, multiracial, and multinational student body. This means prioritizing mental health and wellness so our students can pursue academic success," said Dr. Sonya Clyburn, Director of Counseling Services at Morgan State University. "By using Uwill's environment, students can select counselors who match their ethnicity, language, or demographic preferences, which reflects our mission to offer students resources that are responsive to their unique needs."

The past eighteen months have exacerbated a nationwide campus mental health crisis... Tweet this

"As the leading teletherapy platform within higher education, we seek to provide a personalized approach to telehealth that allows students to get the support they need, when they need it, from a counselor they can connect with and relate to," said Michael London, Uwill Founder and CEO. "An emerging technology like ours helps colleges respond to the ongoing challenges students face."

Uwill aims to remove barriers by providing free and accessible therapy. According to the US Census Bureau, African Americans are approximately 1.5 times less likely to be covered by health insurance, one barrier noted in accessing therapy.

"Remaining free to students has been a priority. Insurance is not needed to receive help from Uwill, " said London. "One of the greatest difficulties facing underrepresented populations today is a lack of access to sufficient care because of stigma, family disapproval, or lack of opportunity," said Uwill counselor Stephanie Black Dos Santos, "Uwill's goal to ensure free therapy for all college students with easy and discreet access helps to overcome these obstacles."

Ultimately, In order to best support the whole student for success in college and beyond, it is critical to build a strong mental health foundation and provide all students with ample opportunities to get the help they need. "The past eighteen months have exacerbated a nationwide campus mental health crisis that affects both students and faculty alike," said Dr. Russell Swagger, president of Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University, a Wisconsin tribal university also partnered with Uwill. "Tribal colleges like LCOOC have felt this pain more acutely than other institutions  making it especially important that we meet the university community where they are and provide access to a diverse group of counselors. Uwill's ecosystem and broad counselor team are enabling us to do just that."

Morgan State University's partnership with Uwill also includes an immediate and direct crisis connection that has quickly gained popularity because it eliminates the common approach consisting of a combination of an in-take assessment, phone-tree, or triage. The solution has been designed to expand the capacity of Morgan State's counseling center and provide more students with the support they need. Utilizing its proprietary technology and counselor team, Uwill pioneered the first Higher Education therapist matching platform and wellness environment. The solution offers an immediate connection to an available licensed counselor based on student preferences, all modalities of teletherapy, a 24/7/365 crisis connection, wellness programming, detailed reporting, and support.

About Uwill

Uwill has become the leading mental health and wellness solution for colleges and students. The most cost-effective way to complement a college's mental health offering, Uwill partners with more than 100 institutions including Boston College, University of Michigan, American Public University System, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Uwill is also the teletherapy education partner for NASPA. For more information, visit uwill.com

Media Contact: Brett Silk

Cell Phone: 617-717-4545

Email: [email protected]



SOURCE Uwill, Inc
REDDING, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market research report titled, 'EV Battery Management Systems Market by Vehicle Type (Electric Cars, LCV, HCV, E-scooters & Motorcycles, and E-bikes), Configuration, Design, Topology, Voltage, Cell Balancing Method, and Geography  Global Forecast to 2029,' the EV battery management market is projected to reach $37.3 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 30.5% from 2022 to 2029.

Download Free Report Sample Now @ https://www.meticulousresearch.com/download-sample-report/cp_id=5337

A battery management system in an electric vehicle manages a rechargeable battery to ensure it operates safely and efficiently. BMS is designed to monitor the parameters associated with the battery pack and its cells, apply the collected data to eliminate safety risks and optimize battery performance.

The growth of this market is attributed to the increasing adoption of electric vehicles, the increasing safety concerns related to EV batteries, the increasing demand for fast charging batteries for e-mobility, and the increasing requirement for higher efficiency and performance of battery packs. However, the lack of standardized regulations for developing battery management systems and the high cost of battery management systems are expected to restrain the growth of this market. Furthermore, the increasing R&D investments for developing high energy density EV batteries and new cell chemistries for EV batteries offer potential growth opportunities for the players operating in this market.

Growing Demand for Fast-charging Batteries for E-mobility is Driving the Growth of the EV Battery Management Market

The demand for fast-charging batteries is increasing with the world's gradual shift toward electric mobility. While many different types of batteries are available in the market, fast-charging batteries are becoming increasingly popular due to their many benefits.

Speak to our Analysts to Understand the Impact of COVID-19 on Your Business: https://www.meticulousresearch.com/speak-to-analyst/cp_id=5337

Leading companies are focusing on investing in fast-charging infrastructure, in turn boosting the demand for fast-charging batteries. For instance, in 2022, BP p.l.c. (U.K.) and Iberdrola, S.A. (Spain) collaborated to invest USD 1 billion in rolling out a network of up to 11,000 rapid and ultra-fast public charging points across Spain and Portugal. The collaboration aims to install 5,000 fast-charge points by 2025 and the full network by 2030, including BP and Iberdrola's existing and future fast charging hubs. This rapid growth in fast-charging infrastructure supports the demand for EV battery management systems.

Increasing government subsidies and active infrastructure development by public utilities are contributing to the rapid deployment of fast public charging infrastructure worldwide. According to the Global EV Outlook 2022 report published by the International Energy Agency (IEA), in 2021, fast-charging installations in China reached 470,000, an increase of over 50% from 2020. In addition, the number of public fast chargers in Europe was up by over 30% (nearly 50,000 units), including 9,200 public fast chargers in Germany, 7,700 in the U.K., 6,700 in Norway, 4,500 in France, 2,600 in Spain, and 2,600 in the Netherlands. The U.S. has about 22,000 fast chargers, of which nearly 60% are Tesla superchargers. Korea has 15,000 fast chargers, a 50% increase from 2020.

Thus, the increasing deployment of fast-charging points has boosted the demand for fast-charging batteries, which is expected to drive the demand for EV battery management systems in the coming years.

The EV battery management systems market is segmented by vehicle type, configuration, design, topology, voltage, cell balancing method, and geography. The study also evaluates industry competitors and analyzes the market at regional and country levels.

Based on configuration, in 2022, the 96 to 132 cells segment is expected to account for the largest share of the EV battery management systems market. The large market share of this segment is attributed to the optimum weight to the power capacity of the battery pack, the increasing use of 96 cells to 132 cells in electric passenger cars, and the increasing lightweight battery packs with a high energy density trend.

Quick Buy  EV Battery Management System Market - Global Opportunity Analysis And Industry Forecast (2022-2029), Research Report: https://www.meticulousresearch.com/Checkout/51118385

Based on design, in 2022, the battery management systems segment is expected to account for the larger share of the EV battery management systems market. The large market share of this segment is attributed to the ability of the battery management systems to monitor the voltage and current in a battery pack, its cell balancing capabilities, and the ability to protect against overcharge and deep discharge.

Based on topology, in 2022, the modular BMS segment is expected to account for the largest share of the EV battery management systems market. It is the most preferred topology by battery manufacturers, offers significant computational power, and is safe as it does not require extensive wire harnesses. These factors are driving the growth of this segment.

Based on geography, in 2022, Asia-Pacific is expected to account for the largest share of the EV battery management systems market. The presence of prominent players in the EV battery management systems market is expected to contribute to this region's high revenue share. Additionally, the large share of this regional market is also attributed to the increasing investment by leading battery OMEs for setting up battery manufacturing capacities in emerging economies such as Thailand, Indonesia, and India and the growing number of start-ups offering numerous battery solutions.

The key players operating in the EV battery management market are Leclanche SA (Switzerland), Sensata Technologies Holding PLC (U.S.), Nuvation Energy (U.S.), Renesas Electronics Corporation (Japan), Eberspaecher Vecture Inc. (Canada), ST Microelectronics N.V. (Switzerland), Panasonic Corporation (Japan), LION Smart GmbH (Germany), Ewert Energy Systems, Inc. (U.S.), Navitas Systems LLC. (U.S.), NXP Semiconductors N.V. (Netherlands), Analog Devices, Inc. (U.S.), Merlin Equipment Ltd. (UK), BMS PowerSafe (France), and Maxim Integrated (U.S.).

To gain more insights into the market with a detailed table of content and figures, click here: https://www.meticulousresearch.com/product/ev-battery-management-market-5337

Scope of the Report:

EV Battery Management System Market, by Vehicle Type

Electric Cars

Battery Electric Vehicles



Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles



Hybrid Electric Vehicles

Light Commercial Vehicles

Heavy Commercial Vehicles

E-scooters & Motorcycles

E-bikes

EV Battery Management System Market, by Configuration

Up to 36 Cells

48 Cells to 84 Cells

96 Cells to 108 Cells

144 Cells to 180 Cells

More Than 180 Cells

EV Battery Management System Market, by Design

Protection Circuit Model

Battery Management Systems

EV Battery Management System Market, by Topology

Centralized BMS

De-centralized BMS

Modular BMS

EV Battery Management System Market, by Voltage

Low-voltage BMS

High-voltage BMS

EV Battery Management System Market, by Cell Balancing Method

Active Cell Balancing

Passive Cell Balancing

EV Battery Management System Market, by Geography

Asia-Pacific

China



India



Japan



South Korea



Thailand



Indonesia



Rest of Asia-Pacific

Europe

U.K.



Germany



France



Italy



Spain



Poland



Hungary



Norway



Sweden



Denmark



Rest of Europe

North America

U.S.



Canada

Latin America

Middle East & Africa

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About Meticulous Research

Meticulous Research was founded in 2010 and incorporated as Meticulous Market Research Pvt. Ltd. in 2013 as a private limited company under the Companies Act, 1956. Since its incorporation, the company has become the leading provider of premium market intelligence in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa.

The name of our company defines our services, strengths, and values. Since the inception, we have only thrived to research, analyze, and present the critical market data with great attention to details. With the meticulous primary and secondary research techniques, we have built strong capabilities in data collection, interpretation, and analysis of data including qualitative and quantitative research with the finest team of analysts. We design our meticulously analyzed intelligent and value-driven syndicate market research reports, custom studies, quick turnaround research, and consulting solutions to address business challenges of sustainable growth.

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SOURCE Meticulous Market Research Pvt Ltd.
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Farmhouse Inc. (OTCQB: FMHS) (the "Company") announced today that the Company has its Downtown Los Angeles ("DTLA") Cannabis retail dispensary business for sale. The DTLA dispensary is part of a 35,000 sq. ft. campus that is steps from the 10 freeway, near the up-and-coming Arts District, and close to the University of Southern California.

The dispensary comes with four licenses for retail, cultivation, distribution, and manufacturing with the opportunity to add more in the future. The cultivation business has two dry rooms, six flower rooms, and one properly sized vegetation and mom room. It is equipped with 300 luxx hps flower lights, is a gen-2 facility (considered top of the line when revamped in 2019), has a setup for salt nutrients, and additional automation.

"Farmhouse is connecting investors with an exciting opportunity to purchase a premium DTLA dispensary with a history of competitive revenue in a blossoming district of Los Angeles," said Evan Horowitz, CEO of Farmhouse.

The DTLA dispensary is currently under the control of a court-appointed receiver, Stoneblossom LLC. Tours are available by appointment at LA Farmers Inc. 824 E 17th St., Los Angeles, CA 90021. The sale is subject to court approval.

About Farmhouse, Inc.

Farmhouse has multiple divisions, including the WeedClub Platform, a professional social platform, that enables professionals to connect, discover products and services to scale their businesses. The Company believes it has established itself as the trusted brand to connect the industry through the WeedClub Platform and its @420 Twitter handle. In December 2021, the Company launched its NFT division to connect the cannabis and NFT industries through artist partnerships, NFT licensing and generative projects.

Forward Looking Statements

The Company cautions you that statements in this press release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations. The inclusion of forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation that any of our plans will be achieved. Actual results may differ from those set forth in this press release due to the risk and uncertainties inherent in our business.

SOURCE Farmhouse, Inc.
The Leading Sign, Graphics and Visual Communications Franchise Exhibiting at the 2022 PRINTING United Expo

CARROLLTON, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- FASTSIGNS International, Inc. , franchisor of FASTSIGNS, the leading sign, graphics and visual communications franchise in the nation, will attend the PRINTING United Expo (Booth #N1811) at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Oct. 19-21, which brings together businesses from across the printing industry. FASTSIGNS will showcase its available franchise opportunities nationwide, focusing in particular on opportunities through the company's co-brands with businesses such as print shops, photo processing and camera businesses, pack and ship stores and others, and a conversion program for independent sign businesses and printers.

"As our brand continues to grow across the nation, the PRINTING United Expo allows FASTSIGNS to share opportunities for co-brands and conversions with other businesses in our industry," said Mark Jameson, Chief Support and Development Officer at Propelled Brands. "We're proud to have over 760 locations operating around the world, with plans to target at least 400 more markets across the U.S. and Canada. With a nationally recognized brand, proven business model and support across our franchising network, we look forward to helping establish more business owners."

FASTSIGNS is currently seeking qualified franchisees with an emphasis on existing businesses to co-brand or convert. Owners of sign businesses can convert the business into a FASTSIGNS center to benefit from the proven business model and support system, or add a FASTSIGNS center to an existing business to receive training and support from the franchise system for just $15,000 down. By joining the FASTSIGNS family, franchisees receive local marketing and national brand marketing; sales support; technology support; supply chain and vendor discounts; and training.

"Prior to converting to FASTSIGNS, we were never able to achieve the sales goals we wanted. The processes and procedures allow us to obtain larger goals," said Jeff Chudoff, franchisee at FASTSIGNS of Maple Shade, New Jersey. "Doing business is so much easier and profitable. I'm disappointed I didn't convert sooner."

FASTSIGNS offers a special incentive for veterans and first responders, including paramedics, emergency medical technicians, police officers, sheriffs and firefighters, which includes a 50% reduction on the franchise fee -- a savings of $24,875. To date, FASTSIGNS operates more than 760 locations in 46 states and eight countries. Of these FASTSIGNS franchisees, around 14% are veterans.

For information about the FASTSIGNS franchise opportunity, contact Mark Jameson ([email protected] or 214-346-5679).

For more information about the PRINTING United Expo, visit https://www.printingunited.com/ .

For more information about owning a FASTSIGNS franchise, visit https://www.fastsigns.com .

About FASTSIGNS

FASTSIGNS is a leading national visual ideas company that creates a wide variety of comprehensive sign and graphics solutions. With over 35 years of experience, FASTSIGNS helps you achieve more than you ever thought possible. We are the worldwide franchisor of more than 760 independently owned and operated FASTSIGNS centers. FASTSIGNS locations span across the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Canada, Chile, Grand Cayman, Malta, the Dominican Republic and Australia (where centers operate as SIGNWAVE). FASTSIGNS is frequently recognized for franchisee satisfaction and through franchising awards which include being ranked #1 on Entrepreneur's Highly Competitive Franchise 500 List For The Sixth Consecutive Year for 2022 as well as being named a 2022 Best-in-Category Franchise by Franchise Business Review.

In 2021, Propelled Brands was formed, and is now the multi-brand franchisor for FASTSIGNS, NerdsToGo, MY SALON Suite and Salon Plaza brands.

To learn more visit fastsigns.com . Follow the brand on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/fastsigns , Twitter @FASTSIGNS or Facebook at facebook.com/FASTSIGNS . For information about the FASTSIGNS franchise opportunity, contact Mark Jameson ([email protected] or call 214.346.5679).

SOURCE FASTSIGNS International, Inc.
CHEVY CHASE, Md., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- FCP  welcomes Eric Mathias as Vice President for Commercial Investments, a new position that will provide a dedicated professional to source and execute FCP's commercial investments and developments throughout the Southwest U.S. FCP's current projects in these markets include several adaptive reuse and development assets in Dallas' burgeoning Design District submarket, including 1333 Oak Lawn, as well as CoRE, a purpose-built life science asset located outside Boulder, CO; mixed-use project Heritage Park in Gilbert, AZ, and Southbridge in Scottsdale, AZ.

Eric Mathias has joined FCP as Vice President for Commercial Investments, a new position that will provide a dedicated professional to source and execute FCPs commercial investments and developments throughout the Southwest U.S.

"We are thrilled to welcome Eric to FCP where he will leverage his existing relationships and execution experience to oversee our growing portfolio in major Southwest markets," said FCP Principal, Erik Weinberg. "The S.W. region is an area of focus and growth for FCP across all our sectors due to our belief that current demographic and job-growth trends will continue to benefit these markets."

"I'm excited to join FCP and to grow the firm's commercial portfolio in the Southwest," said Eric Mathias. "The firm has been active in the region for several years so I believe we are well-positioned to execute on new opportunities with our existing partners and to establish new partnerships with best-in-class regional operators and developers."

Prior to joining FCP, Mr. Mathias was a Vice President at Goldman Sachs based in New York focused on investing in real estate secondaries and co-investments. Mr. Mathias began his career on the real estate debt capital markets team at Goldman Sachs, where he was primarily responsible for sourcing and structuring financing for principal real estate investments. Mr. Mathias graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree from Wagner College.

About FCP

FCP  is a privately held real estate investment company that has invested in or financed more than $9.3 billion in assets since its founding in 1999. FCP invests directly and with operating partners in commercial and residential assets. The firm makes equity and mezzanine investments in income-producing and development properties. Based in Chevy Chase, MD, FCP invests both its commingled, discretionary funds and separate accounts targeted at major real estate markets in the United States. For further information on FCP, please visit www.fcpdc.com .

Media Contact: Karen Widmayer

KW Communications, LLC

[email protected]

301-661-1448

SOURCE FCP
The World's Number One Premium Mixer Brand introduces a uniquely refreshing spin on cocktail mixers in partnership with Maker's Mark Bourbon

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Fever-Tree, the world's #1 premium mixer brand, and the #1 ginger beer by value in the US, known for setting the standard for quality and innovation by crafting the finest mixers to complement premium spirits, announces the launch of Fever-Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer, just in time for Fall entertaining.

Fever-Tree & Maker's Mark

Fever-Tree Launches NEW Blood Orange Ginger Beer

Drawing on the expertise and shared passion for quality mixed drinks, Fever-Tree has worked in partnership with Maker's Mark, a premium bourbon brand, to develop this custom flavor profile, and is thrilled to launch the new Fever-Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer with their support.

As the leading producer of Premium Ginger Beer by value, Fever-Tree's newest release was specifically designed to pair with the characteristics unique to bourbon creating a delicious new take on the Kentucky Mule, and expanding the brand's award-winning Ginger Beer range for the first time.

Tasting Notes

Fever-Tree's Blood Orange Ginger Beer uses carefully and naturally sourced ingredients and combines the sweet characteristics from Italian blood oranges with the fiery, full-bodied taste of its signature Ginger Beer and a proprietary blend of three real gingers sourced for their distinctive, flavor profiles.

A juicy top note brings a wonderful balance to this flavored Ginger Beer, leaving long-lasting, sweet warmth on the palate and an exceptional mixer. In line with all Fever-Tree mixers, this ginger beer is non-GMO certified, made with no artificial sweeteners or colors and at only 35 calories per 6.8 fl. oz. bottle it can be used to create a deliciously light and refreshing long, mixed drink that will change how people enjoy a traditional mule.

Commenting on the launch, Charles Gibb , CEO of Fever-Tree USA said:

"Replicating the success we've had adding flavors to our Tonic range and reflecting our position as the #1 ginger beer brand in the US, we are delighted to innovate our ginger beer range to capitalize on the fastest growing and largest spirits categories  which is why we've created a liquid that pairs perfect with bourbon, vodka, and tequila."

"Fever-Tree's strength combined with category trends have created the perfect momentum for our Blood Orange Ginger Beer launch. Fever-Tree is always on the forefront of innovation and works with the best in class/leaders in the industry partners, like Maker's Mark, to ensure the best quality, flavor, and mixer to make the world's best drinks."

Emma White , Senior Brand and Innovation lead added:

"The story of Fever-Tree is one of a pursuit for the best, taking our teams around the world to identify the best quality naturally sourced ingredients."

"Our blood oranges are sourced from Italy as the sharp difference in temperatures between day and night creates the perfect climate. These optimal blood oranges are harvested between December - March to achieve their signature deep red blush that results in a bright, rounded, and zesty profile with a juicy finish."

Josh Clark , Senior Brand Manager at Maker's Mark continued:

"As an American heritage brand whose signature bourbon is aged to taste, Maker's Mark knows a thing or two about flavor. Using the best nature has to offer, we're mindful of where our ingredients come from to ensure the juice is worth the squeeze, so to speak."

"Fever-Tree takes the same care in sourcing and always delivers on flavor. Through this partnership, we both sought something that was dynamic but perfectly balanced and think we've achieved just that. With their Blood Orange Ginger Beer and some classic Maker's Mark, you have an innovative and delicious riff on the Kentucky Mule."

In keeping with its ethos of simple-to-make refreshing mules, Fever-Tree suggests the following signature serve:

Blood Orange Kentucky Mule

1 part Maker's Mark Bourbon

3 Parts Fever-Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer

Garnish with juicy blood orange wedge

Add bourbon to a highball glass or mule mug, add ice and top with Fever-Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer. Garnish with blood orange wedge.

Fever-Tree's Blood Orange Ginger Beer is available nationwide at spirits retailers such as Total Wine & More, Reserve Bar, local liquor stores, and grocery chains including Kroger, Publix, and Harris Teeter and this Fall on Amazon.

35 calories per 6.8 fl. Oz. bottle. MSRP $4.99/6.8oz 4-pack. To find a retailer near you, please visit: https://fever-tree.com/en_US/where-to-buy To learn more about Fever-Tree, visit fever-tree.com.

For more information, please contact Kelly Jones // Legend PR// [email protected] // 646.549.5916

About Fever-Tree

Founded in 2005, Fever-Tree is the global leading premium brand of carbonated mixers. It procures the world's finest ingredients from across the globe, including quinine from the Democratic Republic of Congo, ginger from Ivory Coast, India and Nigeria, and lemons from Sicily. Since its launch, Fever-Tree has collected a vast number of awards, including the Best Selling & Top Trending Tonic Water for eight consecutive years by Drinks International's surveys of the World's Best Bars. In the U.S. Fever-Tree's portfolio includes 16 mixers, comprising tonics, ginger ales, ginger beers and sparkling sodas that are available at leading retailers, bars and restaurants across the country.

About Maker's Mark Bourbon

In 1953, in Loretto, Ky., Bill Samuels, Sr., fulfilled his dream to create a handmade and delicious bourbon. He decided to make his whisky in small batches, using soft red winter wheat to enhance the softness and sweetness. He then rotated each barrel by hand for consistency and, finally, aged each barrel to taste. Bill Samuels, Sr., transformed bourbon from a "commodity" into a premium handmade spirit, and today Maker's Mark continues to make its bourbon the same way. At his side, co-founder and wife Margie Samuels left her own indelible mark on the brand. While Bill developed the smooth-tasting, wheat-based Maker's Mark Bourbon, Margie is responsible for the bourbon's name and label, standout bottle shape, iconic and signature look that still involves hand-dipping each bottle in red wax to this day, and so much more. Bill and Margie's time-tested approach seems to still be working just fine 60+ years later, as Maker's Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon was awarded a Double Gold medal at the esteemed San Francisco Spirits Competition in 2021. In recent years, Maker's Mark has introduced thoughtful, super-premium innovations to its portfolio, including Maker's Mark 46, Maker's Mark Cask Strength and Maker's Mark Private Selection, the industry's first-ever custom barrel program. Today, Maker's Mark is the largest distillery in the world to achieve B Corp Certification, a reflection of the brand's dedication towards building a more inclusive and sustainable economy and signaling a major milestone on the brand's environmentally conscious mission to "Make Your Mark "  now and for the future. For more information, visit www.makersmark.com.

WE MAKE OUR BOURBON CAREFULLY. PLEASE ENJOY IT THAT WAY.

Maker's Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky, 45% Alc./Vol. 2022 Maker's Mark Distillery, Inc., Loretto, KY.

SOURCE Fever-Tree
Interfaith non-profit uses creative storytelling and media to catalyze social change

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Odyssey Impact, an interfaith non-profit driving social change through innovative storytelling and media, announced today that Judge Victoria Pratt has been named Executive Director.

A former Chief Judge in Newark Municipal Court in Newark, New Jersey, Judge Pratt is an ideal fit to lead the organization connecting faith and secular communities. She is nationally recognized for her staunch commitment to reforming the U.S. criminal justice system.

Former Chief Judge Victoria Pratt Appointed Executive Director of Social Change Organization Odyssey Impact

"It is truly an honor to lead and amplify the galvanizing work of Odyssey Impact. Using media alongside the social change work of faith and secular leaders is what makes Odyssey unique and effective," Judge Pratt shared.

As a pioneer in procedural justice, she has championed transforming the culture of the court system by harnessing the power of dignity and respect.

"At Odyssey Impact, we foster deep community engagement using our award-winning films. We mobilize change makers, educators, and faith and secular leaders around pressing social issues. We facilitate difficult conversations on racial justice, gender inequities, religious intolerance, gun violence, and ending mass incarceration. We are thrilled to have Judge Pratt share her expertise and vision as she joins us in this critical work," said Marcia Fingal, Odyssey Board Chair.

Judge Pratt providing second chances to those in trouble has made a world of difference to individuals, who not only needed a chance to rehabilitate themselves, but also to those in need of psychological, medical, or housing assistance. She found that it is extremely powerful to acknowledge the person and their difficulties as part of the healing and rehabilitation process.

While presiding in her courtroom, Judge Pratt used procedural justice and innovative problem-solving as alternatives to punitive sentences. She offered alternatives to low-level offenders, such as targeted community service, attending counseling sessions, and her signature assignment of writing introspective essays to discover self-awareness and unpack the choices that landed offenders in court.

Judge Pratt's highly viewed TED Talk, "How Judges Can Show Respect," has been listed as one of the "Top 15 Most Viral Motivational Talks on Facebook," with over 37 million views. She has been featured in The Guardian and Forbes and on PBS. Considered a global expert, she has boots-on-the-ground experience working in Dubai, Ukraine, England, Scotland, Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago. Her book, "The Power of Dignity: How Transforming Justice Can Heal Our Communities," published by Seal Press/The Hachette Book Group, was released May 10, 2022, to stellar reviews.

More About Odyssey Impact

Based on a three-decade history of creating more than 1,000 films and videos, and reaching millions of viewers, Odyssey Impact works to empower coalitions of change makers to strengthen and engage communities through documentaries and social impact campaigns. Odyssey Impact makes it possible for powerful stories to connect communities and catalyze social change where needed.

For information about Odyssey Impact, visit www.odyssey-impact.org. To learn more about Judge Pratt, visit www.JudgeVictoriaPratt.com.

Juliana Oelkers

[email protected]

SOURCE Odyssey Impact
DUBLIN, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Virtual Customer Premises Equipment (vCPE) Market by Component, Solutions/Tools (Virtual Switches, Virtual Routers), Service, Deployment Mode, Organization Size, Application (Data Center and Enterprises) and Region - Global Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global virtual customer premises equipment Market size is expected to grow USD 2.8 billion in 2022 to USD 15.3 billion by 2027, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 40.2% during the forecast period.

By Deployment mode, the on-premises segment to grow at the highest market share during the forecast period

On-premises deployment refers to the deployment and availability of the vCPE software on the premises of an organization. Customers demand on-premises deployment of vCPE solutions as it helps control and maintain systems on the network. Customers can implement certain restrictions and monitor the network while using the software.

The on-premises deployment also ensures one-time investments, installation is one-time costs, and customers can get complete ownership of the infrastructure with one-time investments. On-premises deployment of vCPE provides more functionality such as IPAM, NAT, Firewall, and QOS Policies are supported by vCPE VNFs at customer premises.

By Organization Size, the Large Enterprises segment to hold the larger market size during the forecast period

Organizations with more than 1,000 employees are considered large enterprises. The adoption of the vCPE software among large enterprises is expected to increase in the coming years. To manage infrastructure, applications, and data across traditional CPE and vCPE technologies, enterprises are implementing vCPE technologies.

They have a substantial network infrastructure that allows them to coordinate daily operations with offices in different regions. To reduce network downtime, vCPE offers a less expensive method of managing their entire network from a single location.

By Application, the data centers and telecom service providers segment is expected to grow at the highest market share during the forecast period

Data centers and telecom service providers are the most significant application areas in the V-CPE market. The amount of data generated in telecom companies are exceptionally large, which requires quality storage solutions and services. The telecom service providers segment includes service providers who transport digital information or transfer data electronically over mobile networks.

The segment includes all Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), MNOs, CSPs, ISPs, wireless broadband or fixed wireless providers, and MVNOs. These operators include players that provide carrier services/network services over the wireless network. Telecom operators are the prime buyers of vCPE solutions, covering approximately 65%-70% of the vCPE market.

Mobile operators face several challenges, such as updating the legacy systems to meet the current demands of end-users, intense competition, high CapEx and OpEx, and lower RoI. Hence, they seek scalable and cost-effective solutions.

This, in turn, is expected to be the main reason for the rapid adoption of vCPE solutions and services by telecom operators. With V-CPE solutions, telecom companies can easily transfer their business functions from one geographic location to another.

Also, they can use virtual CPE as a new way to deliver broadband services to business customers, along with most CPE functions such as routing, NAT, VPN, or firewall through a virtual environment. The breakup of the profiles of the primary participants is given below:

Premium Insights

Rising Technological Advancements to Drive Market Growth

On-Premises Segment to Account for Largest Share During Forecast Period

Solutions/Tools Segment and United States to Account for a Higher Market Share

to Account for a Solutions/Tools and Rest of Asia-Pacific to Account for High Market Shares in 2022

to Account for High Market Shares in 2022 India to Grow at Highest CAGR During Forecast Period

Market Dynamics

Drivers

Adoption of Network Virtualization Among Enterprises

Efficient Deployment of Managed Services

Simplified Data Transfer

Restraints

Security Concerns in Network Virtualization

Transition to Virtualized Infrastructure from Legacy Infrastructure

Opportunities

Reduction of Hardware Dependency

Value-Added Services

Challenges

Limited Knowledge and Shortage of Skilled Workforce

Monitoring Complex Multi-Technology Virtual Networks Across Infrastructures

Industry Trends

Value Chain

Virtual Customer Premises Equipment Value Chain

Ecosystem

Virtual Customer Premises Equipment Market: Ecosystem

Market: Ecosystem

Technology Analysis

Software-Defined Networking

Cloud Computing

Edge Computing

Network Function Virtualization

Use Cases

Case Study 1: Verizon Provides Wireless Router Solutions

Case Study 2: Virtualization of Customer Premises Equipment

Tariff and Regulatory Impact

Soc2

Digital Millennium Copyright Act

Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act

Company Profiles

Key Players

Cisco

HPE

Juniper Networks

Broadcom

IBM

Arista Networks

Dell Corporation

Ericsson

Nec Corporation

Intel

Wind River

Rad Data Communication

Huawei Technologies

Verizon

Adva Optical Networking

Advantech

Spirent Communications

Start-Ups and SMEs

Versa Networks

Anuta Networks

Parallel Wireless

Altiostar

Noviflow Inc.

Cumucore

Nfware

Netelastic Systems

Voereir Ab

Brain4Net

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/9pddhr

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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SOURCE Research and Markets
This pandemic is a stark reminder that health is the backbone of prosperous, peaceful and secure societies.

The latest in this series of publications launches at the World Health Summit - Berlin , 1618 October.

, 1618 October. Combining voices of leaders in health for true Health Equity, it examines how we improve the the global state of physical and mental health and well-being for everyone.

LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- With investment in universal health coverage underperforming, future pandemics pose a real threat not only to the health of all people, but also to the very foundations of our healthcare services, systems and societies.

Health: A Political Choice  Investing in Health For All addresses the gaps in global health care and services and considers where targeted investment can help us to heal and thrive.

Health: A Political Choice  Investing in Health For All

Fourth in what is now a well-renowned series of titles, it calls on all leaders, policymakers and influencers in both the world's most established and underserved economies for an immediate global response. It covers the multisectoral collaboration required to address the challenges of and achieve the goal of true global health equity.

The title features 50 renowned authors' bespoke articles in a prestigious line-up including Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general; Axel Pries, president of the World Health Summit; Karl Lauterbach, Germany's health minister; Ayoade Olatunbosun-Alakija, chair, African Union, African Vaccine Delivery Alliance; Tharman Shanmugaratnam, G20 High Level Independent Panel on Financing the Global Commons for Pandemic Preparedness and Response; the Right Honourable Helen Clark, former prime minister of New Zealand; Jagan Chapagain, secretary-general, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; and Nicola Sturgeon, first minister of Scotland.

Authors explore how Covid-19 has changed ways countries deliver public health care; one city's adoption of the 'doughnut model' economy, so every resident can thrive without putting unmanageable pressure on the planet; and how important health workers are in making our global health system resilient.

Health: A Political Choice  Investing in Health For All is an official publication of The Global Governance Project, a joint initiative between GT Media Group, the Global Governance Program at the University of Toronto, and the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.

View Health: A Political Choice  Investing in Health For All now https://bit.ly/HAPC22

Twitter: @GloGovProj LinkedIn: Global Governance Project

Contact: Khaled Algaay ,[email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919821/HaPC22.jpg

SOURCE The Global Governance Project (GT Media Group Ltd)
HANGZHOU, China, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Hikvision recently added the eDVR Series into its expanding portfolio of security solutions for SMBs. Powered by embedded solid state drive (eSSD) technology, Hikvision's eDVRs are compact, durable, easy-to-use, and energy-efficient. All this means they are ideal for small-to-medium-sized businesses and residential applications.

"The eDVR Series is smarter, faster, more durable and more energy efficient than anything that's gone before, not only helping to minimize negative environmental impacts, but also delivering major energy and cost savings for our customers" says Wenson Zhou, Product Director at Hikvision.

New possibilities for efficiency and sustainability

1) Eco-friendliness and 45% energy saving

The ultra-low power consumption of chip-level eSSDs makes Hikvision eDVRs more sustainable. Since these devices don't have spindle motor engines built in, their energy consumption is 45% lower than that of the conventional DVRs, not only helping users to make long-term savings on their electricity bills, but also enabling them to reduce carbon emissions.

In addition, the use of eSSDs makes the products more durable than conventional DVRs that use HDD drives. This is because there are fewer moving parts, such as actuator arms. With longer product life cycles, the eDVR Series contributes to eco-efficiency and sustainability.

2) Endurable storage with a 25% improvement in efficiency

Being powered by "eSSD" technology, with solid-state storage components down to chip level, the Hikvision eDVRs have exceptional storage efficiency and system stability. The storage efficiency of eDVR Series is further enhanced by "scene adaptive bitrate control technology", which automatically optimizes encoding for video footage, and improves the coding efficiency by 25%. Specifically, complex scenes with human or vehicle movements are allocated higher bitrates to ensure great video quality. At the same time, low-complexity scenes with little or no movement are assigned a lower bitrate to optimize storage efficiency.

3) Compact design for ease of use and simplicity of installation

As the eDVRs are embedded with SSDs and have a "screwless" design, tool-free installation is made possible. Besides, without the traditional horizontal mounting requirements of conventional HDDs, the devices are also easier to assemble and set up. Thanks to this ease and flexibility of installation, both end-customers and installers can save time and reduce their maintenance and operating costs.

Compared to conventional SSD DVRs, Hikvision's eDVRs are highly compact, helping to save on space. They can fit anywhere - be it behind a monitor, under a table, on a bookshelf, or hidden inside a custom stand.

4) Smart motion detection

Embedded with Motion Detection 2.0 technology, the eDVR Series can distinguish human beings and vehicles from other objects in any given environment, enabling property owners to respond much more quickly and effectively to potential security breaches. The technology also enable property owners to search video footage based on the appearances of people or vehicles during a specific period of time, saving time and reducing their workloads and costs.

Effective for residential and SMB applications

The innovative features of the Hikvision eDVR Series make these solutions equally effective for residential, SMB, and commercial applications. In all cases, end-customers benefit from an easy and flexible installation process, low energy consumption, minimal maintenance requirements, and high performance video capture, storage, and processing.

The compact format of Hikvision eDVRs also increases the solution's versatility. For example, eDVRs can easily fit into residential homes. The devices' storage drives also operate with virtually no noise or vibrations, and generate very little heat, which makes them ideal for residential applications. These advantages, along with the eDVRs' affordability, functionality, and sustainability, also make the product range an ideal choice for SMBs such as convenience stores, grocery shops, restaurants, workshops, bars, and more.

To learn more about the eDVR Series, please visit Hikvision's official website.

SOURCE Hikvision Digital Technology
Bipartisan Announcement by U.S. Foreign Relations Committee Senators Warns Rule of Law Must be Upheld in Regard to U.S. ZEDE Investments

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 13, 2022, United States Senators Bill Hagerty (R-TN) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) issued a bipartisan warning that "[a]ny direct or indirect expropriation of U.S. investments in Honduran Economic Development and Employment Zones would be regarded as a direct assault on the guarantees of CAFTA-DR and surely trigger a devastating loss of private sector confidence."

Senators Hagerty and Cardin emphasized that U.S. investment in Honduran Economic Development and Employment Zones (ZEDEs) is guaranteed 50-years of legal stability under CAFTA-DR. The Senators also declared an intention to consider augmenting the U.S. investor protections of the Hickenlooper Amendment if the Honduran Government continued to disregard its obligations under CAFTA-DR. The Hickenlooper Amendment is a U.S. law that directs the President to suspend all aid to countries that engage in the expropriation of U.S. investments.

Senators Cardin and Hagerty, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, underscored that the failure to respect the Rule of Law in regard to U.S. investment in Honduran Economic Development and Employment Zones could jeopardize the huge job and economic growth opportunities in Honduras. Billions of dollars of private investment in Honduras, and the Partnership for Central America itself, are at imminent risk of being sidelined if the 50-year legal stability guarantee protecting U.S. investment in ZEDEs is not honored. In contrast, honoring international law and legal stability agreements with U.S. investors like Honduras Prospera Inc. (the U.S.-based promoter and organizer of Prospera ZEDE) sends a strong and stable message to the investment community; and promises to be a win-win for the thousands of Hondurans currently employed in Prospera and other ZEDEs.

Honduras Prospera seeks the prosperity of Honduras. Prospera has a regulatory system that is uniquely optimized to enable easy nearshoring. We remain committed to raising and investing $500 million in the country and creating 10,000 stable, well-paying Honduran jobs by 2025. Honduras Prospera is uniquely positioned to unite the best of Honduras with the best of the world. Already more than 500 (e)Residents and 100 businesses, many of which are U.S. based, operate within Prospera ZEDE and are creating jobs and opportunities for Hondurans. More and more U.S. companies are proactively seeking to relocate production and logistics facilities to Prospera from less stable parts of the world. Now is the time for Honduras to shine.

As always, Honduras Prospera Inc. stands ready to negotiate a sensible path forward on the premise of guaranteed legal stability for Prospera ZEDE investors.

SOURCE Prospera
IAB Privacy's Multi-State Privacy Agreement Provides Updated Contractual Framework to Ensure Privacy Compliance Across State Privacy Laws

Tech Lab's US State Privacy Signals Introduced as Part of the Global Privacy Platform to Support State-Level Consent Signaling

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of a continued effort to ensure that digital advertising participants keep consumer privacy at the forefront and comply with regulations, IAB and IAB Tech Lab have come together to update their privacy protocols and industry-level agreements to support marketers, agencies, publishers, and ad tech companies.

IAB Privacy's Multi-State Privacy Agreement (MSPA) provides an updated contractual framework to ensure privacy compliance across five new state privacy laws. It works in conjunction with IAB Tech Lab's US State Signals initiative , which was released today as part of the Global Privacy Platform (GPP) . The MSPA and US State Signals specifications are available for public comment until October 27.

The MSPA is an evolution of the Limited Service Provider Agreement (LSPA) put in place in 2020 to ensure compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The updated MSPA helps ensure compliance with CCPA, the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA, which goes into effect January 2023) and supports privacy legislation going into effect in 2023, including the Colorado Privacy Act (CoPA), Connecticut Data Privacy Act (CDPA), Utah Consumer Privacy Act (UCPA), and Virginia's Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA).

This MSPA agreement, in combination with IAB Tech Lab's Global Privacy Platform (GPP), including its state level signaling, will help member companies address the increasingly complex challenges of global privacy and manage the different consent signals from multiple jurisdictions.

The MSPA includes provisions covering:

"Gap transactions," such that it applies contractual terms for those "sales" of personal information where there is ordinarily no contract in place in the digital advertising distribution chain

Measurement and frequency capping, including when undertaking such activities using service providers

Contextual advertising and advertising on a publisher's first party segments

A "national" approach option to state privacy compliance that is set at the highest common denominator across the new state with privacy laws

Use of the IAB Tech Lab's technical specification for US State Signals in the GPP

"The patchwork of state regulations creates an increasingly complicated compliance landscape for the digital advertising industry," said Michael Hahn, EVP, General Counsel, IAB and IAB Tech Lab. "The IAB Legal Affairs Council has been focused on meeting this challenge for the past year, and we believe the MSPA  the product of collaboration from stakeholders across the industry  is a crucial tool to solve this challenge."

Hahn further explains that "We have found a way to solve for key advertising use cases that put consumers first, hews closely to the letter of the law, and, like the IAB Limited Service Provider Agreement, will be leveraged by small and large participants alike to meet their obligations."

IAB's MSPA and IAB Tech Lab's US State Signals initiatives help the digital advertising industry to comply with varying privacy regulations across the US. The announcements of these initiatives follow the IAB Tech Lab's recent launch of the GPP, which is a protocol designed to enable companies to manage user consent signals and privacy to be managed at a global scale.

"IAB Tech Lab's Global Privacy Platform provides the technology toolkit the industry needs so publishers and advertisers can work with their vendors to manage privacy and consent management compliance on a global scale. The GPP also helps to mitigate risk by increasing consumer transparency and control signals that publishers and advertisers receive," said Anthony Katsur, CEO, IAB Tech Lab. "We believe adopting both the Multi-State Privacy Agreement and the Global Privacy Platform will be a huge step forward for the industry. Privacy matters and so does compliance. We need to get both right."

To review the proposed standards and provide feedback, please go to www.iabprivacy.com/mspa.html for the MSPA and send your comments to [email protected]; and go to iabtechlab.com/us-state-signals for comments on the US State Signals.

About IAB

The Interactive Advertising Bureau empowers the media and marketing industries to thrive in the digital economy. Its membership comprises more than 700 leading media companies, brands, agencies, and the technology firms responsible for selling, delivering, and optimizing digital ad marketing campaigns. The trade group fields critical research on interactive advertising, while also educating brands, agencies, and the wider business community on the importance of digital marketing. In affiliation with the IAB Tech Lab, IAB develops technical standards and solutions. IAB is committed to professional development and elevating the knowledge, skills, expertise, and diversity of the workforce across the industry. Through the work of its public policy office in Washington, D.C., the trade association advocates for its members and promotes the value of the interactive advertising industry to legislators and policymakers. Founded in 1996, IAB is headquartered in New York City.

About IAB Technology Laboratory

Established in 2014, the IAB Technology Laboratory (Tech Lab) is a non-profit consortium that engages a member community globally to develop foundational technology and standards that enable growth and trust in the digital media ecosystem. Comprised of digital publishers, ad technology firms, agencies, marketers, and other member companies, IAB Tech Lab focuses on solutions for brand safety and ad fraud; identity, data, and consumer privacy; ad experiences and measurement; and programmatic effectiveness. Its work includes the OpenRTB real-time bidding protocol, ads.txt anti-fraud specification, Open Measurement SDK for viewability and verification, VAST video specification, and Project Rearc initiative for privacy-centric addressability. Board members/companies are listed at https://iabtechlab.com/about-the-iab-tech-lab/tech-lab-leadership/. For more information, please visit https://iabtechlab.com .

SOURCE Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB); IAB Tech Lab
MIAMI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- IFS, the global cloud enterprise software company, has announced the latest enhancements to IFS Cloud. The October 2022 release, part of a twice-annual release cycle of the software, contains numerous enhancements designed to help customers meet their environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals.

Of the new capabilities in the latest release of IFS Cloud, many features are aimed at making it easier and faster for customers to collect, manage and record key data that provides visibility into their environmental performance. These enhancements include:

New functionality to track indirect greenhouse gas emissions to assess an organization's overall carbon footprint in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. [Sustainability Hub]

The ability to help company and project teams connect and extract data from various sources and assess their performance in Scope 1 and 2 of the Sustainability Hub. [Sustainability Hub]

A new feature, enabling organizations to record vehicle usage and environmental costs in the planning and scheduling optimization (PSO) process, allowing companies to capture data around the performance of different vehicle types and compare the results, while also enabling report generation to support ESG initiatives. [Planning and Scheduling Optimization]

Reduce spare part inventory and increase refurbishment by empowering mobile service technicians to manage the return of unused inventory and uninstalled components easily and accurately, thereby reducing waste. [Service Management]

Christian Pedersen, Chief Product Officer, IFS, said: "IFS has come a long way in a short time in its ability to understand and track customers' ESG performance and support them on their journey to sustainability. We have concentrated on the element that represents the biggest challenge: data. Understanding data and being able to collect and interpret it is ultimately fundamental to any strategy. We are focused on making this easier and simpler for every organization to achieve."

Pedersen continued: "Your organization's environmental, social, and governance goals are in the spotlight. IFS tools and innovations provide the data to help drive towards your aims, show progress against commitments, and demonstrate accountability and transparency. Our message to our customers is: 'Stay focused on ESG goals and making an impact on the planet.'"

IFS's twice-annual release cycle, of which the October 2022 update is the latest example, allows customers to constantly evolve their solution without the need for major upgrades or migrations, clearing their road to focus on business transformation.

For more information about the October 2022 release of IFS Cloud, please visit: https://www.ifs.com/assets/cloud/what-is-new-in-ifs-cloud-22r2

About IFS

IFS develops and delivers cloud enterprise software for companies around the world who manufacture and distribute goods, build and maintain assets, and manage service-focused operations. Within our single platform, our industry specific products are innately connected to a single data model and use embedded digital innovation so that our customers can be their best when it really matters to their customers-at the Moment of Service. The industry expertise of our people and of our growing ecosystem, together with a commitment to deliver value at every single step, has made IFS a recognized leader and the most recommended supplier in our sector. Our team of 5,000 employees every day live our values of agility, trustworthiness and collaboration in how we support our 10,000+ customers. Learn more about how our enterprise software solutions can help your business today at ifs.com.

CONTACT:

IFS Press Contacts:

EUROPE / MEA / APJ: Adam Gillbe

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +44 7775 114 856

NORTH AMERICA / LATAM: Mairi Morgan

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1 520 396 2155

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Public/855/3647833/af9df2c0d631b10e.pdf 134 ESG goals October 2022 press release 008 https://news.cision.com/ifs/i/picture2,c3100598 Picture2

SOURCE IFS
Highest large deal TCV of $2.7 bn in last 7 quarters; quarterly attrition declined for 3rd quarter in a row

in last 7 quarters; quarterly attrition declined for 3rd quarter in a row Share buyback of 9,300 crores ( $1.13 bn ) and interim dividend of 6,940 crores ( $0.85 bn ) announced

BENGALURU, India, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Infosys (NSE: INFY) (BSE: INFY) (NYSE: INFY), a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting, reported strong Q2 performance with year-on-year growth at 18.8% and sequential growth at 4.0% in constant currency. Year-on-year growth was in double digits across all business segments in constant currency terms. Digital comprised 61.8% of overall revenues and grew at 31.2% in constant currency. Operating margin for the quarter increased sequentially by 150 bps to 21.5%. Large deal TCV for the quarter was robust at $2.7 bn, highest in last 7 quarters. FY 23 revenue guidance is revised to 15%-16%; operating margin guidance is also revised to 21%-22%.

"Our strong large deal wins and steady all-round growth in Q2 reflect the deep relevance and differentiation of our digital and cloud solutions for clients as they navigate their business transformation," said Salil Parekh, CEO and MD. "While concerns around the economic outlook persist, our demand pipeline is strong as clients remain confident in our ability to deliver the value they seek, both on the growth and efficiency of their businesses. This is reflected in our revised revenue guidance of 15%-16% for FY 23," he added.

31.2% YoY

CC Digital growth 18.8% YoY

4.0% QoQ

CC Revenue growth 21.5%

Operating margin

(in $ terms) 11.5% YoY

Increase in EPS

( terms) $2.7 bn

Large deal TCV

1. Key highlights:

For the quarter ended September 30, 2022 Revenues in CC terms grew by 18.8% YoY and 4.0% QoQ

Reported revenues at $4,555 million, growth of 13.9% YoY

Digital revenues at 61.8% of total revenues, YoY CC growth of 31.2%

Operating margin at 21.5%, decline of 2.1% YoY and increase of 1.5% QoQ

Basic EPS at $0.18, growth of 2.5% YoY

FCF at $589 million, decline of 17.3% YoY; FCF conversion at 78.6% of net profit For six months ended September 30, 2022 Revenues in CC terms grew by 20.1% YoY

Reported revenues at $8,999 million, growth of 15.7% YoY

Digital revenues at 61.4% of total revenues, YoY CC growth of 34.5%

Operating margin at 20.7%, decline of 2.9% YoY

Basic EPS at $0.34, growth of 0.8% YoY

FCF at $1,245 million, decline of 21.0% YoY; FCF conversion at 86.6% of net profit

"Operating margins in Q2 expanded sequentially by 150 bps, helped by our operational rigor. While supply side challenges are gradually abating as reflected in the reducing attrition rates, they continue to exert pressure on our cost structure," said Nilanjan Roy, Chief Financial Officer. "In line with the capital allocation policy, the Board has announced an interim dividend of 16.50 per share, an increase of 10% over FY 22 interim dividend and an open market share buyback of 9,300 crores," he added.

2. Capital allocation

The Board in its meeting held today approved the following:

Buyback of Equity Shares, from the open market route through the Indian stock exchanges, amounting to 9,300 crore (Maximum Buyback Size, excluding buyback tax) (app. $1.13 bn *) at a price not exceeding 1,850 per share (Maximum Buyback Price), subject to shareholders' approval.

*) at a price not exceeding 1,850 per share (Maximum Buyback Price), subject to shareholders' approval. Interim dividend of 16.50 per share (app. $0.20 per ADS*) vs. FY 22 interim dividend of 15. The total amount of interim dividend will be app. 6,940 crores (app. $0.85 bn *).

*USD-INR rate of 82.00

3. Client wins and Testimonials

Currys plc entered into a strategic collaboration with Infosys for technology and business process services, to help accelerate profitable growth of their business across key UK and European markets. "As part of our ongoing transformation, Infosys will help us design and deliver a next-generation Group Business Services capability. This collaboration will give us access to world-class digital operations across UK, Europe and India , benefitting our colleagues and customers with best-in-class technology, systems, and processes; and new sources of competitive advantage for our core business," said Bruce Marsh , Group CFO, Currys plc.

and , benefitting our colleagues and customers with best-in-class technology, systems, and processes; and new sources of competitive advantage for our core business," said Infosys Cyber Next platform and Palo Alto Networks strengthened Bpost's security posture as part of the cloud transformation journey. Rony Monnaie, CISO, Bpost , said, "While we embarked on our cloud transformation journey, Infosys drove several well-considered cybersecurity initiatives to protect our environment and improve Bpost's overall security posture. Today, both our employees and customers benefit from the secure foundation we now have to deliver and track both mail and parcels."

, said, "While we embarked on our cloud transformation journey, Infosys drove several well-considered cybersecurity initiatives to protect our environment and improve Bpost's overall security posture. Today, both our employees and customers benefit from the secure foundation we now have to deliver and track both mail and parcels." Spirit AeroSystems entered into a five-year collaboration with Infosys to co-innovate Aerostructure and Systems Engineering Services by leveraging Infosys' next-gen technologies. "At Spirit AeroSystems, we believe our ability to continuously advance our offering at design and engineering levels is one of our competitive differentiators. Our longstanding collaboration with Infosys means we are well-positioned to co-innovate on critical stages of product development, ensuring we continue to pursue the highest standards in quality and airworthiness. This strategic agreement further reinforces our strengths and will leverage mutual synergies to accelerate the development of world-class, sustainable aerostructures and services across our commercial and aftermarket business segments," said, Dr. Sean Black , Senior Vice President and Chief Engineer, Engineering and Technology, Spirit AeroSystems .

. Infosys collaborated with Telenor Norway to accelerate their IT modernization and establish Telenor as a product-based organization through a co-managed model. Commenting on this collaboration, Birgitte Engebretsen , CEO, Telenor Norway , said, "In current times, it is imperative for an organization like Telenor Norway to stay ahead of the curve and ensure that our customers are provided with superior service. To do this, we have to be future-ready. Staying true to our strategy of 'Beyond Connectivity', combined with our powerful collaboration with Infosys, we are excited to embark on this modernization journey that will empower us to serve our customers better."

, said, "In current times, it is imperative for an organization like Telenor Norway to stay ahead of the curve and ensure that our customers are provided with superior service. To do this, we have to be future-ready. Staying true to our strategy of 'Beyond Connectivity', combined with our powerful collaboration with Infosys, we are excited to embark on this modernization journey that will empower us to serve our customers better." "Infosys has been our technology partner for more than 5 years. Infosys has helped us transform not only our technology landscape, but also how we engage with students and colleagues helping us to develop new digital solutions and build new data platforms to gain real value and insights to better inform our decision-making," said Judi Turnbull , Director for Information Technology at Open University.

4. Recognitions

Infosys won the 'Most Outstanding Company in India  IT Services Sector' in Asia's Outstanding Companies Poll 2022. Asiamoney has designed this poll to acknowledge the listed companies that have excelled in areas such as financial performance, management team excellence, investor relations activities, and CSR initiatives

 IT Services Sector' in Outstanding Companies Poll 2022. Asiamoney has designed this poll to acknowledge the listed companies that have excelled in areas such as financial performance, management team excellence, investor relations activities, and CSR initiatives Recognized as India's Best Workplaces for Women 2022 by Great Place to Work

Best Workplaces for Women 2022 by Great Place to Work Recognized as UK's Best Workplaces in Tech 2022 by Great Place to Work

Recognized among Mexico's Best HR leaders of 2022 by Great Place to Work

Best HR leaders of 2022 by Great Place to Work Positioned as a leader in Power & Utilities Industry - Services and Solutions 2022 by ISG Provider lens study in the US

Ranked as a leader in HFS Top 10: Sustainability Services, 2022

Positioned as a leader in HFS Top 10: Capital Markets Services, 2022

Positioned as a leader in End-to-End Cloud Infrastructure Management Services 2022 by NelsonHall

Ranked as a leader in IDC MarketScape: Asia/Pacific SAP Implementation Services Vendor Assessment, 2022

Recognized as a leader in EMEA Service Providers for Energy Transition and New Business Models for Oil and Gas Companies 2022 Vendor Assessment by IDC

Positioned as a leader by NelsonHall in Supply Chain Transformation 2022

Ranked as a leader by NelsonHall in Mortgage & Loan Services 2022

Ranked as a leader in Data and Analytics (D&A) Services PEAK Matrix Assessment 2022 by Everest

Recognized as a leader in System Integration (SI) Capabilities on Amazon Web Services (AWS) PEAK Matrix Assessment 2022 by Everest

Recognized as a leader in ServiceNow Services PEAK Matrix Assessment 2022 by Everest

Positioned as a leader in System Integration (SI) Capabilities on Microsoft Azure PEAK Matrix Assessment 2022 by Everest

Ranked as a leader in Avasant's Digital Master's 2022 RadarView

Positioned as a leader in Avasant's Freight and Logistics Digital Services 2022-23 RadarView

Recognized as a leader in Avasant's Life Sciences Digital services 2022-23 RadarView

Ranked as a leader in Constellation ShortList Blockchain Technology Services

Positioned as a leader in Constellation ShortList Campaign to Commerce: Best-of-Breed Commerce Platforms

Ranked as a leader in Constellation ShortList Digital Transformation Services (DTX): Global

Positioned as a leader in Constellation ShortList Public Cloud Transformation Services: Global

Ranked as a leader in Constellation ShortList AI-Driven Cognitive Applications

Recognized as a leader in Constellation ShortList Customer Experience (CX) Operations Services: Global

Recognized as a leader in Constellation ShortList Metaverse Design and Services

Infosys BPM recognized as LEADER in Everest Group Financial Crime & Compliance Operations  Services PEAK Matrix Assessment 2022

Infosys BPM ranked as LEADER in Nelson Hall NEAT: Supply Chain Transformation 2022

About Infosys

Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting. Over 300,000 of our people work to amplify human potential and create the next opportunity for people, businesses and communities. With over four decades of experience in managing the systems and workings of global enterprises, we expertly steer clients, in more than 50 countries, as they navigate their digital transformation powered by the cloud. We enable them with an AI-powered core, empower the business with agile digital at scale and drive continuous improvement with always-on learning through the transfer of digital skills, expertise, and ideas from our innovation ecosystem. We are deeply committed to being a well-governed, environmentally sustainable organization where diverse talent thrives in an inclusive workplace.

Visit www.infosys.com to see how Infosys (NSE, BSE, NYSE: INFY) can help your enterprise navigate your next.

Safe Harbor

This Release contains 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or our future financial or operating performance and that are based on our current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about the Company, our industry, economic conditions in the markets in which we operate, and certain other matters. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as 'may', 'anticipate', 'believe', 'estimate', 'expect', 'continue', 'intend', 'will', 'project', 'seek', 'could', 'would', 'should' and similar expressions. Those statements include, among other things, statements regarding our business strategy, our expectations concerning our market position, future operations, growth, margins, profitability, attrition, liquidity, and capital resources, our ESG vision, our capital allocation policy, the effects of COVID-19 on global economic conditions and our business and operations, wage increases, change in the regulations including immigration regulation and policies in the United States, and corporate actions including timely completion of the proposed buy-back of our equity shares. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those implied by the forward-looking statements. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission filings including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022. These filings are available at www.sec.gov. Infosys may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the Company unless it is required by law.

Infosys Limited and subsidiaries Extracted from the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet under IFRS as at: (Dollars in millions)





September 30, 2022 March 31, 2022 ASSETS



Current assets



Cash and cash equivalents 1,828 2,305 Current investments 1,448 880 Trade receivables 3,122 2,995 Unbilled revenue 1,635 1,526 Other Current assets 1,178 1,159 Total current assets 9,211 8,865 Non-current assets



Property, plant and equipment and Right-of-use assets 2,339 2,429 Goodwill and other Intangible assets 1,072 1,042 Non-current investments 1,557 1,801 Unbilled revenue 174 124 Other non-current assets 1,287 1,294 Total non-current assets 6,429 6,690 Total assets 15,640 15,555 LIABILITIES AND EQUITY



Current liabilities



Trade payables 512 545 Unearned revenue 855 834 Employee benefit obligations 276 288 Other current liabilities and provisions 2,946 2,766 Total current liabilities 4,589 4,433 Non-current liabilities



Lease liabilities 685 607 Other non-current liabilities 489 521 Total non-current liabilities 1,174 1,128 Total liabilities 5,763 5,561 Total equity attributable to equity holders of the company 9,828 9,941 Non-controlling interests 49 53 Total equity 9,877 9,994 Total liabilities and equity 15,640 15,555

Extracted from the Condensed Consolidated statement of Comprehensive Income under IFRS for: (Dollars in millions except per equity share data)





3 months ended

September 30,

2022 3 months ended

September 30,

2021 6 months ended

September 30,

2022 6 months ended

September 30,

2021 Revenues 4,555 3,998 8,999 7,780 Cost of sales 3,170 2,675 6,315 5,184 Gross profit 1,385 1,323 2,684 2,596 Operating expenses:







Selling and marketing expenses 185 167 378 336 Administrative expenses 221 215 439 423 Total operating expenses 406 382 817 759 Operating profit 979 941 1,867 1,837 Other income, net (3) 65 65 145 142 Profit before income taxes 1,044 1,006 2,012 1,979 Income tax expense 295 272 574 540 Net profit (before minority interest) 749 734 1,438 1,439 Net profit (after minority interest) 748 733 1,437 1,437 Basic EPS ($) 0.18 0.17 0.34 0.34 Diluted EPS ($) 0.18 0.17 0.34 0.34

NOTES :

The above information is extracted from the audited condensed consolidated Balance sheet and Statement of Comprehensive Income for the quarter and six months ended September 30, 2022 , which have been taken on record at the Board meeting held on October 13, 2022 . A Fact Sheet providing the operating metrics of the Company can be downloaded from www.infosys.com. Other Income includes Finance Cost. As the quarter and six months ended figures are taken from the source and rounded to the nearest digits, the quarter figures in this statement added up to the figures reported for the previous quarter might not always add up to the six months ended figures reported in this statement.

IFRS INR Press Release: https://www.infosys.com/investors/reports-filings/quarterly-results/2022-2023/q2/documents/ifrs-inr-press-release.pdf

Fact Sheet: https://www.infosys.com/investors/reports-filings/quarterly-results/2022-2023/q2/documents/fact-sheet.pdf

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/633365/Infosys_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Infosys
DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) has announced the launch of the 5th edition of Tanween, its flagship annual creativity season, inviting creatives, professionals, students, curious learners and more to explore creativity and innovation under the tagline "Collaborate to Create", and will feature an exciting global lineup from October 27 - November 12, 2022.

Ithras Tanween festival returns for a 5th year and explores the creative power of collaboration

This edition includes 26 speakers, 7 workshops, 5 masterclasses, 18 talks and panels, the Tanween Hub including 4 hands-on experience stations, 3 installations, 5 immersive experiences, a graduate showcase, 1-to-1 consultation sessions for aspiring professionals and 5 of this year's Tanween Challenge projects. Key speakers include Electronic Arts cofounder Dave Evans and Stanford design professor Bill Burnett, Saudi creative industry "God Father" Kaswara Al-Khatib, Reebok cofounder Joe Foster, audio astronaut Reeps One, the green urbanista Huda Shaka, and the veteran architect of air Alan Parkinson. Other highlights include: Leading Saudi design advocate Princess Nourah Al-Faisal, serial brand collaborator designer Rami Afifi, graffiti legend Carlos Mare, architectural material wizard Marcus Farr and partners contributions including the Academy for Theater and Digitality supported by the Goethe Institute and Netherland Embassy supported artist Arne Hendriks.

Under the umbrella of "Collaboration", Tanween 2022 addresses the need for a creative collaborative process of cultures, with nature, by technology and for society. The Business of Creativity track explores new ways of creative collaboration through innovative brand crossovers, while Graphics & Communication takes a deep dive who is collaborating with whom to magnify and reach across cultures and audiences. The third track targets architects and designers building the next generation of spaces and products.

The top projects in the Tanween Challenges, designed to produce practical solutions to real-world issues while promoting design thinking and innovation, will also be exhibited, alongside the Tanween Grad Expo featuring some of the best young design talent in the GCC.

"Tanween is designed to celebrate, explore and inspire the creative process through connection," said Noura Alzamil, Head of Programs at Ithra. "We are excited to return this year with a theme striking at the importance of interconnectivity: collaboration. Collaboration requires the ability to reflect, to ideate and cooperate in the pursuit of new creative endeavors."

Since its inception, Tanween has welcomed almost 200,000 visitors. For information on Tanween and Ithra's ongoing programs, visit www.ithra.com.

CONTACT: Nour Aldajani [email protected] ; Nora AlHarthi [email protected] ; Domia Abdi, [email protected], Hadeel Eisa [email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920858/Ithra_Tanween_2022.jpg

SOURCE King Abdul Aziz Center for World Culture (Ithra)
BEIJING, SHANGHAI and BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Jacobio announced it has entered into a clinical trial collaboration agreement with Merck on clinical study of combination therapy between Jacobio's KRAS G12C inhibitor JAB-21822 and Merck's epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor Erbitux (cetuximab).

This clinical study aims to evaluate the efficacy of JAB-21822 in combination with cetuximab in patients with KRAS G12C-mutated colorectal cancer. Jacobio is the sponsor of the combination study, and Merck will provide cetuximab for clinical trials in China and Europe under the collaboration agreement.

"Our preclinical studies have shown that the combination of JAB-21822 and cetuximab can enhance the anti-tumor activity of JAB-21822 inhibitors in colorectal cancer tumor models, regressing tumors and delaying tumor regrowth after drug discontinuation. We look forward to new treatment options for patients through our collaboration with Merck," said Dr. WANG Yinxiang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Jacobio.

About JAB-21822

JAB-21822 is a KRAS G12C inhibitor independently developed by Jacobio. Jacobio has initiated a number of Phase I/II clinical trials in China, the United States and Europe for patients with advanced solid tumors, including monotherapy for STK11 co-mutated non-small cell lung cancer first-line treatment; combination therapy with SHP2 inhibitor, PD-1 monoclonal antibody and cetuximab.

About ERBITUX (cetuximab)

ERBITUX is an IgG1 monoclonal antibody targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). As a monoclonal antibody, the mode of action of ERBITUX is distinct from standard non-selective chemotherapy treatments in that it specifically targets and binds to the EGFR. This binding inhibits the activation of the receptor and the subsequent signal-transduction pathway, which results in reducing both the invasion of normal tissues by tumor cells and the spread of tumors to new sites. It is also believed to inhibit the ability of tumor cells to repair the damage caused by chemotherapy and radiotherapy and to inhibit the formation of new blood vessels inside tumors, which appears to lead to an overall suppression of tumor growth. Based on in vitro evidence, ERBITUX also targets cytotoxic immune effector cells towards EGFR-expressing tumor cells (antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity [ADCC]).

ERBITUX has obtained market authorization in over 100 countries worldwide for the treatment of RAS wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer and for the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Merck licensed the right to market ERBITUX, a registered trademark of ImClone LLC, outside the U.S. and Canada from ImClone LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, in 1998.

About Jacobio

Jacobio Pharma (1167.HK) is committed to developing and providing new and innovative products and solutions to improve people's health. Our pipeline revolves around novel molecular targets on six major signalling pathways: KRAS, immune checkpoints, tumor metabolism, P53, RB and MYC. We aim for our key projects to be among the top three in the world. Our vision is to become a global leader recognized for our impact in drug R&D together with our partners. Jacobio has R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai and Boston with our Induced Allosteric Drug Discovery Platform (IADDP) and our iADC Platform.

Please visit us at www.jacobiopharma.com

About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across life science, healthcare and electronics. More than 60,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices  the company is everywhere. In 2021, Merck generated sales of  19.7 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck's technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as MilliporeSigma in life science, EMD Serono in healthcare, and EMD Electronics in electronics.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1474816/Logo.jpg

SOURCE Jacobio Pharma
The project will allow windows to turn opaque and clear with little energy and low costs.

KENT, Ohio, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Last week, Dr. Clinton Braganza, the Manager of Research and Development and Principal Scientist at Kent Displays, Inc., visited co-researchers at Jeonbuk National University in Korea to continue research on the collaborative project, "Energy-saving bistable light shutters using carbon-based nanocomposites," with the Department of Nano Convergence Engineering at the University. Kent Displays is the maker of bestselling writing tablet, Boogie Board.

The "Energy-saving bistable light shutters using carbon-based nanocomposites" international joint research project commercializes carbon-based nanocomposites and furthers the economic prosperity of the United States and Korea. The ITECH research and development program under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology supports this collaborative work.

The research project is developing switchable light shutter on flexible substrates that allow windows to turn opaque to clear and back again using minimal electric power. This version does not need power to stay in either opaque or clear states, making it sustainable and potentially very cost-effective. The technology applications make it easier to sanitize than today's plastic blinds and will last longer. The electronic background also makes it possible to integrate with mobile apps for easier control.

The optical performance of these panels is unmatched in the industry, creating very high haze and opacity in the privacy state and high clarity at high angles in the clear state. In addition to constant improvement in research and development, Kent Displays also manufactured parts for the technology on their world class roll to roll manufacturing machines.

Braganza's visit to Korea was partly to visit his co-researchers, Prof. Seung Hee Lee, Dr. MinSu Kim (Principal Instructor) and DaYeon Lee (Graduate Researcher) from the Departments of Polymer Nano Science and Technology and Nano Convergence Engineering in Jeonbuk National University.

"This project allows our team [Kent Displays] to work on industry-leading research and to further our research team by hiring exceptional researcher David Starr," stated Braganza. "Kent Displays is located in what journalists call the new technical heartland of the United States, and we're excited to continue our work with Jeonbuk National University to commercialize this technology further."

Although more research is needed, Kent Displays and Jeonbuk National University are invested in supporting an international research opportunity to improve both the United States and Korean economy and technological prowess.

About Kent Display, Inc.

Founded in early 1994, Kent Displays has become the world leader in reflective bistable cholesteric liquid crystal display technology. Commercialized in the 1990s, this technology was globally licensed and continues to be licensed in applications for signage and instrumentation. In the early 2000s, Kent Displays made significant advances in extending the technology toward flexible materials and manufacturing.

SOURCE Kent Displays, Inc.
Former chairman of CareDx, Inc. and seasoned global industry executive with track record of transforming organizations will lead Kyverna and drive its growth as it aims to bring a new class of targeted gene therapies to treat severe immune-related diseases

Company plans to submit Investigational New Drug application for its lead program KYV-101, a novel CD19 CAR T-cell therapy, for the treatment of lupus nephritis

Dominic Borie, M.D., Ph.D., named president, research and development to continue advancing company's core program KYV-101 and strategic partnerships with Gilead and Intellia

Kyverna's therapeutic platform combines advanced T-cell engineering and synthetic biology technologies to suppress and eliminate autoreactive immune cells at the root cause of inflammatory disease

EMERYVILLE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Kyverna Therapeutics ("Kyverna"), a cell therapy company with the mission of engineering a new class of therapies for serious autoimmune diseases, today announced the appointment of Peter K. Maag, Ph.D., as the company's chief executive officer (CEO). Dr. Maag succeeds Dominic Borie, M.D., Ph.D., who has been named Kyverna's president of research and development (R&D). Dr. Maag also joins Kyverna's board of directors.

Peter Maag, PhD, Kyverna Therapeutics CEO

"We are thrilled to welcome Peter as Kyverna's new CEO," said Ian Clark, chair of Kyverna's board of directors. "Peter is an accomplished executive with extensive industry experience at private and public companies spanning three continents. His consistent record of driving transformational growth in healthcare through product innovation, creative business development, sequential financings, and sound investment strategies will be invaluable to progress Kyverna and deliver on its mission to help bring new and much-needed treatment options to patients with serious autoimmune and inflammatory diseases."

Dr. Maag has more than 20 years of executive management experience in the pharmaceutical and diagnostic industry. Most recently, he was executive chairman, president and CEO of CareDx where he had built the company from a small start-up into a public company and industry-leading powerhouse in transplantation through a series of BD&L and financing transactions. CareDx serves the transplant community with breakthrough technologies in more than 60 countries and has created a strong presence in this specialty market. Prior to joining CareDx in 2012, Peter held multiple positions in Novartis with increasing responsibilities. As President of Novartis Diagnostics, he drove growth and innovation in its blood-screening business. Previously, he led one of Novartis' key affiliates as country president, Germany, and lived in a dynamically growing market as country president, Korea. At headquarters in Switzerland, he served as the head of strategy for Novartis Pharmaceuticals and helped launch the Infectious Diseases franchise.

"I am passionate about patient care and am honored to be appointed to lead Kyverna and this extraordinarily talented team. This is such an exciting time to join the company with key milestones like our submission of an IND for our lead candidate, KYV-101 in lupus nephritis tomorrow. This important regulatory milestone will provide a runway to move KYV-101 into the clinical phase and brings us a step closer to developing a new treatment option for lupus nephritis," said Dr. Maag. "I believe that Kyverna is at the forefront of revolutionizing how we treat severe immune-related and inflammatory diseases with its new class of cell therapies. With multiple shots on goal, I believe that Kyverna is well positioned to transform how autoimmune diseases are treated."

Prior to joining Novartis, Peter worked at McKinsey & Company in New Jersey and Germany, focusing on pharmaceuticals and globalization strategies. Besides supporting various healthcare and tech companies in their growth efforts, he holds board and advisory positions at Phoenix Pharma SE, CareDx, MiroMatrix, and the Personalized Medicine Coalition. Peter studied pharmaceutical sciences in Heidelberg, London, and Berlin.

In addition to Dr. Maag's appointment, Kyverna announced that Dr. Borie will step away from his CEO role and has been named president of R&D.

"We are grateful for the significant contributions Dominic has made in bringing Kyverna out of stealth in 2020 and growing the company and building out Kyverna's core programs," added Mr. Clark. "Dominic has performed admirably, and we could not be more pleased that he will serve as president of Kyverna's R&D operations. We look forward to working closely with him and his team to continue moving forward our autologous and allogeneic programs, as well as our collaborations with Gilead and Intellia so that we can continue to strive to bring new treatments to patients rapidly."

About KYV-101

KYV-101 is an autologous version of a novel clinical-stage anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR T) construct with properties well suited for use in B cell-driven autoimmune diseases such as lupus nephritis, systemic sclerosis, and inflammatory myopathies. Kyverna has obtained exclusive, worldwide licenses from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to use this CD19 construct in both autologous and allogeneic CAR T-cell therapies.

About Kyverna Therapeutics

Kyverna Therapeutics is a cell therapy company with the mission of engineering a new class of therapies for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The Kyverna therapeutic platform combines advanced T-cell engineering and synthetic biology technologies to suppress and eliminate the autoreactive immune cells at the origin of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. In addition to aiming to develop next-generation chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR T) therapies in both autologous and allogeneic settings, Kyverna is creating synReg T cells, a synthetic version of Regulatory T cells (Tregs), powerful natural immune cells that control immune homeostasis through multiple immunosuppressive mechanisms. By offering more than one mechanism for taming autoimmunity, Kyverna is positioned to act on its mission of transforming how autoimmune diseases are treated. For more information, please visit https://kyvernatx.com.

SOURCE Kyverna Therapeutics
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- HUAWEI CONNECT 2022, themed "Unleash Digital", kicks off in Dubai today. Industry leaders, experts, partners, and guests from the Middle East and Africa gather to share their thoughts on technological innovation, ecosystem collaboration, and digital transformation. Ken Hu, Rotating Chairman of Huawei, delivered a keynote speech under the conference theme and called for enterprises to "embrace cloud for leapfrog development" for digital transformation. Joy Huang, President of Huawei Cloud Computing Strategy & Industry Development, delivered a speech "Unleash Digital with Everything as a Service".

oy Huang, President of Strategy & Industry Development, Huawei Cloud Jacqueline Shi, President of Global Marketing and Sales Service, Huawei Cloud Frank Dai, President of Huawei Cloud Middle East Dr. Tian Qi, Chief AI Scientist of Huawei Cloud William Dong, President of Huawei Cloud Marketing

Mr. Huang said that greener infrastructure, continuous innovation, and shared experience are the paths to digital transformation.

Huawei Cloud marks its presence with innovations in native technologies. At this event, three cloud native products are released globally: CCE Turbo for container engine and UCS for ubiquitous cloud native. CCE Turbo accelerates computing, networking, and scheduling to achieve ultimate scalability. For example, it helps Sina Weibo easily cope with traffic bursts by scaling out 3,000 pods in just one minute. UCS enables users to manage cloud native applications across clouds and regions with one consistent experience. GuassDB has been re-architected to become serverless, and now you can scale your GaussDB automatically in seconds. It's part of our Backend as a Service plan.

Many enterprise applications have to process hybrid requests. For example, a financial application may need to process loans and analyze transaction data as well.

To unleash the real-world potential of AI, Huawei Cloud focuses on three core AI technologies: foundation models, solvers, and knowledge computing. Huawei Cloud worked with partners to develop the Pangu NLP model for the Arabic language that supports hundreds of billions of parameters. The semantic understanding accuracy reached 95%. The OptVerse AI Solver combines operations research and AI, improving the solution speed by 100 times and modeling efficiency by 30 times. The upgraded knowledge computing provides a faster path to combine industry knowledge with AI, and integrates knowledge acquisition, modeling, management, and application all in one place, greatly improving the efficiency of using AI.

Application modernization is a must for digitalization. To ease this process, Huawei Cloud launches four pipelines for software development, data governance, AI development, and digital content production. Huawei Cloud also dives deep into digital technologies and distills them into aPaaS services to customers. At this event, two new core aPaaS services are released: KooMessage and KooSearch.

As a constant innovator, Huawei Cloud hopes to support customer growth with the cutting-edge technologies.

Unleash Digital Productivity and Embrace Cloud

At the Huawei Cloud TechWave Summit held on the same day, Jacqueline Shi, President of Marketing and Sales Service of Huawei Cloud, delivered an opening speech. She pointed out that the key to unleashing digital is to embrace the cloud, and cloud native is the way to realize digital transformation.

Following the "Everything as a Service" strategy, Huawei Cloud builds full-stack cloud native services covering Infrastructure as a Service, Technology as a Service, and Expertise as a Service. Huawei Cloud shares localization experience gained from global services, as well as the insights into businesses and industries in major regions, all of which constitute advanced technologies and solutions to serve more customers in a wider range of industries. "The key to making the most of cloud is to think cloud native, act cloud native. Cloud native has the path to agile and modern applications." said Jacqueline. To provide better local support, Huawei Cloud has built 70 AZs in 27 Regions around the world and rolled out 92 cloud services in the Middle East. Huawei Cloud is launching new Regions in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, another effort of Huawei Cloud to enlarge its global network and provide customers in the Middle East and Africa with more secure, stable, and low-latency networks.

Cloud Native 2.0 Architecture White Paper: https://www.huaweicloud.com/intl/en-us/about/cloudnative2_0/whitepaper.html

Drive Productivity with Digital Technologies

Human society is becoming digital and intelligent, presenting both challenges and opportunities. Frank Dai, President of Huawei Cloud Middle East, delivered a keynote speech "Inspire Innovation with Everything as a Service", introducing Huawei Cloud's approach to help customers in the Middle East make the most of cloud, improve digital resilience, and go further in digital transformation.

Cloud features efficiency, convenience, and scalability, much beneficial to digital transformation for enterprises. Frank said that countries in the Middle East have realized the value of cloud to digital economy. Building a digital infrastructure is essentially to make the most of cloud. Cloud once meant elastic computing resources to enterprises, who used IaaS services mostly. Now, cloud capabilities branch out to emerging fields such as AI, application development, and big data, with integrated development tools and consulting services accessible whenever needed. Huawei has shifted from helping you "migrate to a good cloud" to "make the most of cloud".

The local ecosystem is an indispensable force to digital transformation. According to Mr. Dai, in the Middle East, Huawei Cloud will work with stakeholders to develop the local digital ecosystem in three aspects, including building industry-specific digital capabilities, cultivating digital talent, and providing support for SMEs.

Dr. Tian Qi, academician of the International Eurasian Academy of Sciences, IEEE Fellow, and chief AI scientist of Huawei Cloud, introduced Huawei Cloud's innovations in Enterprise Intelligence (EI) services and described the value and potential of AI for scientific research, production, and daily life. Dr. Tian said, "AI for Science brings not only tech breakthroughs, but a total changeover in scientific research methods. It will help scientists overcome bottlenecks and leapfrog the technical gap."

Full-Stack Architecture Innovation and Ubiquitous Cloud Native

Cloud native is becoming the preferred choice for enterprises to move to the cloud, previously by Internet companies and now enterprises in traditional industries. Cloud native is poised for full-fledged development.

William Dong, President of Huawei Cloud Marketing, pointed out that in the future, applications, data, AI models, and digital content will become the core assets of a digital and intelligent enterprise. Enterprises will develop, run, and manage these resources in a converged pipeline, and cloud native will be the technology to help businesses navigate uncertainty.

Based on its own technical innovations and practices, Huawei Cloud believes that enterprises are not just migrating to the cloud, but also building on the cloud. Therefore, cloud native covers not only microservices, Kubernetes, and containers, but also big data, AI, and media services. This is called Cloud Native 2.0. Huawei Cloud provides a full-stack cloud native solution with leading capabilities.

Mr. Dong said that Huawei Cloud will dive deeper into cloud native and stay open to enrich its cloud native service portfolio. Huawei Cloud not only provides high-performance, stable, and reliable cloud native infrastructure, but also provides easy-to-use tools and pipelines easily accessible for application development, AI, big data, and digital content production during digital transformation. Huawei Cloud plays an active role in open source for cloud native development. In 2015, Huawei became the only CNCF founding member from Asia. Huawei keeps contributing to the community, ranking No. 1 in Asia and No. 6 in the world by committed code.

To extend cloud native to wherever customers run their services, Huawei Cloud, with its global layout and software-hardware synergy, overcomes geographical restrictions, abstracts away the differences of underlying IT resources, and eases global service deployment and management for customers. Cloud native is the path Huawei Cloud takes to realize Everything as a Service.

At the event, Huawei Cloud released the Cloud Native 2.0 Architecture White Paper, aiming to enable local customers with full-stack cloud native capabilities to take a quantum leap to the future.

By Local, For Local

In 2020, Huawei Cloud was launched in the Middle East. In 2021, Huawei Cloud launched a Region in Abu Dhabi. Huawei Cloud can now provide local support to quickly respond to customer needs. Currently, more than 50 governments and enterprises in the region are using Huawei Cloud services.

Huawei Cloud aims to build the cloud foundation for an intelligent world with ubiquitous cloud and pervasive intelligence. Empowering customers, partners, and developers with cloud native, Huawei Cloud stands ready to drive digital transformation for the local economy.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919565/image_1.jpg

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Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919569/image_5.jpg

SOURCE Huawei
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Bensamochan Firm announces a mass arbitration initiative against PayPal Holdings Inc. and Amazon.com together with Schreiber & Schreiber Inc. and certain other law firms. In those arbitrations, the firms will seek to represent those individuals, small companies, and sellers whose accounts with PayPal Holdings, Inc. or Amazon.com were frozen or limited after an alleged violation of their internal policies. The practice of dominating digital platforms to unilaterally seize users' money due to an alleged policy violation without due process has been going on for years. Despite the mounting complaints, those platforms have been maintaining the practice, partially due to the cost and difficulty for any small balance users to initiate an arbitration proceeding against those platforms.

If you have had funds seized from PayPal or Amazon for an alleged violation of their internal policies, you may be eligible to join the mass arbitration. Mass arbitration members may be able to join regardless of the amount seized from PayPal, Amazon or geographical location. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to visit www.paypalclassaction.net or Justitiadao.com, and follow the instructions there to complete the process. By completing the Contribution Agreement on either site, you will become a holder of certain governance DAO to participate in the group legal action against the platforms, subject to certain terms and conditions in the agreement. As of today, over four thousand people have opted to join with an aggregate claim amount in excess of Seven Million Dollars. In 2021, Liti Capital SA, a Swiss blockchain-based litigation funding provider, started a class action against Binance. This group arbitration is another indication that blockchain technology might be changing class action and mass arbitration arena going forward as the technology is making it easier to group global claimants and attorneys alike to join force in massive legal undertakings against dominant digital platforms.

The Bensamochan Firm announces a mass arbitration initiative against PayPal Holdings Inc. and Amazon.com. Tweet this

Media Contact: Christian Colmenares, [email protected]

SOURCE The Bensamochan Law Firm
CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, McDonald's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.52 per share of common stock payable on December 15, 2022 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 1, 2022. The dividend increase of 10% over the Company's previous quarterly dividend reflects confidence in the Accelerating the Arches growth strategy and a continued focus on driving long-term profitable growth for all stakeholders.

McDonald's has a strong history of returning capital to its shareholders and has raised its dividend for 46 consecutive years since paying its first dividend in 1976. The new dividend of $1.52 per share is equivalent to $6.08 annually. The Company is committed to its capital allocation philosophy of reinvesting in the business to drive profitable growth and returning all free cash flow to shareholders over time through a combination of dividends and share repurchases.

Upcoming Communications

For important news and information regarding McDonald's, including the timing of future investor conferences and earnings calls, visit the Investor Relations section of the Company's Internet home page at www.investor.mcdonalds.com. McDonald's uses this website as a primary channel for disclosing key information to its investors, some of which may contain material and previously non-public information.

About McDonald's

McDonald's is the world's leading global foodservice retailer with nearly 40,000 locations in over 100 countries. Approximately 95% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local business owners.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains forward-looking statements about future events and circumstances. Generally speaking, any statement not based upon historical fact is a forward-looking statement. In particular, statements regarding McDonald's plans, strategies, prospects and expectations regarding its business and industry are forward-looking statements. They reflect McDonald's expectations, are not guarantees of performance and speak only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, McDonald's does not undertake to update such forward-looking statements. You should not rely unduly on forward-looking statements. McDonald's business results are subject to a variety of risks, including those that are described in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2022 and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE McDonald's Corporation
First Segment of the Future World's Longest Elevated Pedestrian Loop Raised into Place

APPLE VALLEY, Minn., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- A big "step" in the construction of the Minnesota Zoo's Treetop Trail was taken earlier today as the official first segment of the trail was raised into place.

Members of the PCL Construction team hoisted a 20-foot by 8-foot piece of the trail, complete with railing, onto the Zoo's original monorail track using a crane/boom truck. This piece, one of hundreds to be placed on the project, will be the first segment of the Treetop Trail that Zoo guests will walk upon when they enter from the Zoo's Central Plaza.

"Today marks a major milestone for construction of the Treetop Trail. With this first completed section being raised, we are seeing, for the first time, the true transformation of the closed monorail into the world's longest elevated pedestrian loop  allowing our guests and partners to visualize how this momentous project will further immerse them in nature," said Minnesota Zoo Director John Frawley. "Thanks to the hard work and expertise of our staff and construction partners, we remain on track to open the Treetop Trail next summer and share this gift with Minnesotans and visitors from all over the world. We are grateful to all who have supported this project generously, including the State of Minnesota and our Treetop Trail donors."

"PCL Construction is excited to celebrate this project milestone at the Minnesota Zoo Treetop Trail, said Trent Johnson, District Manager for PCL. "We have partnered with the zoo on several endeavors since 2014 and are proud to lead construction on this project that makes use of the existing monorail structure and will offer amazing views to zoo visitors. We can't wait for the community to enjoy the Treetop Trail for generations to come."

Scheduled for completion in the summer of 2023, the 1.25-mile Treetop Trail will be the world's longest elevated pedestrian loop bringing guests up to 32 feet above the ground and providing them with an immersive experience in nature. Integrating into the monorail track's existing footprint, the Treetop Trail will be the ultimate reuse construction project.

For more information on Minnesota Zoo's Treetop Trail, follow its progress, and contribute to the project, please visit mnzoo.org/treetoptrail.

Link to images and video:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/x1yp4mbiiaql2za/AAC7tnq94T0jl8rCbwnHRuz1a?dl=0

ABOUT THE MINNESOTA ZOO

The Minnesota Zoo is a year-round destination providing a window into the natural world. With hundreds of species of animals, worldwide conservation efforts, and acres of scenic beauty, the Zoo is a resource to connect people, animals, and the natural world to save wildlife. The Minnesota Zoo is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and an institutional member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). For more information visit mnzoo.org .

ABOUT THE TREETOP TRAIL

Upon its completion in the summer of 2023, the 1.25-mile Treetop Trail at the Minnesota Zoo will be the world's longest elevated pedestrian loop. An inspired repurposing of the Zoo's original monorail trail, the walking path will bring guests up to 32 feet above the ground providing them a bird's eye view and access to hundreds of acres of hardwood forest, wetlands, wildlife, and, of course, the Zoo's beloved animals. The mission of the Treetop Trail is to provide a year-round, welcoming, and accessible journey into nature for people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities through self-guided experiences as well as special events and programming. https://treetoptrail.mnzoo.org/

SUPPORT

The Minnesota Zoo Foundation's Step Into Nature Campaign receives support from generous individuals, institutional partners, and from the citizens of Minnesota through a bonding appropriation. Institutional partners for the Minnesota Zoo Treetop Trail are the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, Target, and Best Buy Foundation.

To contribute, please visit https://treetoptrail.mnzoo.org/contribute/donate/

PROJECT PARTNERS

Adventure, Barr, Buro Happold, MIG, True North Consulting, Meyer Borgman Johnson, Nemer Fieger, PCL Construction, SIG, Snow Kreilich Architects, Ten x Ten, Victus Engineering, and Pegasus Group.

SOURCE Minnesota Zoo
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The global mobile phone accessories market size is expected to grow by USD 32.73 billion during 2021-2026, at a CAGR of almost 6%. The integration of advanced functionalities in smartphones, the growing preference for wireless mobile phone accessories, and the proliferation of low-priced smartphones are some of the major factors propelling the market growth. However, factors such as the growing market for counterfeit mobile accessories and the short shelf life of smartphones may impede the market growth.

Key Mobile Phone Accessories Market Driver

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Mobile Phone Accessories Market 2022-2026

One of the key factors driving market growth in the mobile phone accessories market is the integration of advanced functionalities in smartphones. The competition in the global smartphone market has intensified as smartphone manufacturers are focusing on integrating innovative features and technologies in their products to stay competitive in the market. Such latest innovations will allow users to employ their devices for several applications, such as taking high-definition videos and selfies, accessing mobile applications quickly, and playing high-definition games. All these activities will generate the demand for accessories such as power banks, earphones, headphones, protective cases, screen protectors, and others to use smartphones in effective ways, triggering the growth of the focused market during the forecast period. Request a Sample Report

Key Mobile Phone Accessories Market Trend

One of the prominent market trends in the mobile phone accessories market is the increasing focus on improving telecommunication network infrastructure. Smartphone manufacturers, government organizations, and telecommunication service providers are working in collaboration to improve the telecommunication network infrastructure to support high network bandwidth capacity. This is accelerating investments in the 4G/5G networks and developments in 4G/5G compatible devices. For example, in September 2018, Celcom Axiata Berhad, a Malaysia-based mobile telecommunications provider, announced that it had signed an agreement with Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson. Under this agreement, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson will supply Celcom Axiata Berhad with radio access network (RAN) equipment from its Ericsson radio system portfolio. This will accelerate the use of mobile phones for accessing online audio and video content which, in turn, result in high demand for mobile phone accessories.

Key Mobile Phone Accessories Market Challenge

One of the prominent market challenges that are hindering the growth of the mobile phone accessories market is the growing market for counterfeit mobile accessories. The counterfeit mobile accessories market records high growth in emerging economies such as Indonesia, Malaysia, India, and Taiwan in APAC. This demand is driven by the increased preference for low-cost products in the region and the high availability of counterfeit products. The easy availability of these products on every distribution channel, including physical and online retail stores, in each country, makes it difficult to control the sales of counterfeit items. The increasing sales of these products are reducing the total potential market for mobile accessories creating a challenge for the growth of the global mobile phone accessories market.

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Global Mobile Phone Accessories Market Segmentation

Product Type

Protective cases



Screen protectors



Headphones and earphones



Wired Chargers



Others

Geographic Landscape

APAC



Europe



MEA



North America



South America

The mobile phone accessories market share growth in the protective cases segment will be significant during the forecast period. There are several types of protective cases, such as slim and transparent covers, which are mostly for aesthetics, as well as ultra-rugged ones available in the market, which can survive even an intense impact facilitating the growth in the segment during the forecast period.

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Mobile Phone Accessories Market 2022-2026: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2022-2026

Detailed information on factors that will assist in mobile phone accessories market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the mobile phone accessories market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the mobile phone accessories market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of mobile phone accessories market, vendors

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Mobile Phone Accessories Market Scope Report Coverage Details Page number 120 Base year 2021 Forecast period 2022-2026 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 6% Market growth 2022-2026 USD 32.73 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth (%) 4.98 Regional analysis APAC, North America, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa Performing market contribution APAC at 63% Key consumer countries US, Canada, China, India, and Brazil Competitive landscape Leading companies, competitive strategies, consumer engagement scope Companies profiled Anker Technology UK Ltd, Apple Inc., AUKEY, Bose Corp., GN Store Nord AS, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd., HP Inc., Intex Technologies India Ltd., JVCKENWOOD Corp., Koninklijke Philips NV, LG Electronics Inc., Logitech International SA, Otter Products LLC, Panasonic Holdings Corp., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Sennheiser Electronic GmbH and Co. KG, Skullcandy Inc., Sony Group Corp, Vinci Brands LLC, and Xiaomi Inc Market Dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and future consumer dynamics, and market condition analysis for the forecast period. Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

1.1 Market Overview

Exhibit 01: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Overview



Exhibit 02: Executive Summary  Data Table on Market Overview



Exhibit 03: Executive Summary  Chart on Global Market Characteristics



Exhibit 04: Executive Summary  Chart on Market by Geography



Exhibit 05: Executive Summary  Chart on Market Segmentation by Product Type



Exhibit 06: Executive Summary  Chart on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 07: Executive Summary  Data Table on Incremental Growth



Exhibit 08: Executive Summary  Chart on Vendor Market Positioning

2 Market Landscape

2.1 Market ecosystem

Exhibit 09: Parent market



Exhibit 10: Market Characteristics

3 Market Sizing

3.1 Market Definition

Exhibit 11: Offerings of vendors included in the market definition

3.2 Market segment analysis

Exhibit 12: Market segments

3.3 Market size 2021

3.4 Market outlook: Forecast for 2021-2026

Exhibit 13: Chart on Global - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 14: Data Table on Global - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 15: Chart on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 16: Data Table on Global Market: Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

4 Five Forces Analysis

4.1 Five forces summary

Exhibit 17: Five forces analysis - Comparison between 2021 and 2026

4.2 Bargaining power of buyers

Exhibit 18: Chart on Bargaining power of buyers  Impact of key factors 2021 and 2026

4.3 Bargaining power of suppliers

Exhibit 19: Bargaining power of suppliers  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.4 Threat of new entrants

Exhibit 20: Threat of new entrants  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.5 Threat of substitutes

Exhibit 21: Threat of substitutes  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.6 Threat of rivalry

Exhibit 22: Threat of rivalry  Impact of key factors in 2021 and 2026

4.7 Market condition

Exhibit 23: Chart on Market condition - Five forces 2021 and 2026

5 Market Segmentation by Product Type

5.1 Market segments

Exhibit 24: Chart on Product Type - Market share 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 25: Data Table on Product Type - Market share 2021-2026 (%)

5.2 Comparison by Product Type

Exhibit 26: Chart on Comparison by Product Type



Exhibit 27: Data Table on Comparison by Product Type

5.3 Protective cases - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 28: Chart on Protective cases - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 29: Data Table on Protective cases - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 30: Chart on Protective cases - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 31: Data Table on Protective cases - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.4 Screen protectors - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 32: Chart on Screen protectors - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 33: Data Table on Screen protectors - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 34: Chart on Screen protectors - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 35: Data Table on Screen protectors - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.5 Headphones and earphones - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 36: Chart on Headphones and earphones - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 37: Data Table on Headphones and earphones - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 38: Chart on Headphones and earphones - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 39: Data Table on Headphones and earphones - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.6 Wired Chargers - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 40: Chart on Wired Chargers - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 41: Data Table on Wired Chargers - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 42: Chart on Wired Chargers - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 43: Data Table on Wired Chargers - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.7 Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 44: Chart on Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 45: Data Table on Others - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 46: Chart on Others - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 47: Data Table on Others - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

5.8 Market opportunity by Product Type

Exhibit 48: Market opportunity by Product Type ($ billion)

6 Customer Landscape

6.1 Customer landscape overview

Exhibit 49: Analysis of price sensitivity, lifecycle, customer purchase basket, adoption rates, and purchase criteria

7 Geographic Landscape

7.1 Geographic segmentation

Exhibit 50: Chart on Market share by geography 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 51: Data Table on Market share by geography 2021-2026 (%)

7.2 Geographic comparison

Exhibit 52: Chart on Geographic comparison



Exhibit 53: Data Table on Geographic comparison

7.3 APAC - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 54: Chart on APAC - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 55: Data Table on APAC - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 56: Chart on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 57: Data Table on APAC - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.4 North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 58: Chart on North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 59: Data Table on North America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 60: Chart on North America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 61: Data Table on North America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.5 Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 62: Chart on Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 63: Data Table on Europe - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 64: Chart on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 65: Data Table on Europe - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.6 South America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 66: Chart on South America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 67: Data Table on South America - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 68: Chart on South America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 69: Data Table on South America - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.7 Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

and - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 70: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

and - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 71: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

and - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 72: Chart on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

and - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 73: Data Table on Middle East and Africa - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.8 China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 74: Chart on China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 75: Data Table on China - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 76: Chart on China - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 77: Data Table on China - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.9 India - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 78: Chart on India - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 79: Data Table on India - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 80: Chart on India - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 81: Data Table on India - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.10 US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

Exhibit 82: Chart on US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 83: Data Table on US - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)



Exhibit 84: Chart on US - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)



Exhibit 85: Data Table on US - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.11 Brazil - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 86: Chart on Brazil - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 87: Data Table on Brazil - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 88: Chart on Brazil - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 89: Data Table on Brazil - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.12 Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 Exhibit 90: Chart on Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 91: Data Table on Canada - Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

- Market size and forecast 2021-2026 ($ billion)

Exhibit 92: Chart on Canada - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

- Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

Exhibit 93: Data Table on Canada - Year-over-year growth 2021-2026 (%)

7.13 Market opportunity by geography

Exhibit 94: Market opportunity by geography ($ billion)

8 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

8.1 Market drivers

8.2 Market challenges

8.3 Impact of drivers and challenges

Exhibit 95: Impact of drivers and challenges in 2021 and 2026

8.4 Market trends

9 Vendor Landscape

9.1 Overview

9.2 Vendor landscape

Exhibit 96: Overview on Criticality of inputs and Factors of differentiation

9.3 Landscape disruption

Exhibit 97: Overview on factors of disruption

9.4 Industry risks

Exhibit 98: Impact of key risks on business

10 Vendor Analysis

10.1 Vendors covered

Exhibit 99: Vendors covered

10.2 Market positioning of vendors

Exhibit 100: Matrix on vendor position and classification

10.3 Anker Technology UK Ltd

Exhibit 101: Anker Technology UK Ltd - Overview



Exhibit 102: Anker Technology UK Ltd - Product / Service



Exhibit 103: Anker Technology UK Ltd - Key offerings

10.4 Apple Inc.

Exhibit 104: Apple Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 105: Apple Inc. - Business segments



Exhibit 106: Apple Inc. - Key news



Exhibit 107: Apple Inc. - Key offerings



Exhibit 108: Apple Inc. - Segment focus

10.5 AUKEY

Exhibit 109: AUKEY - Overview



Exhibit 110: AUKEY - Product / Service



Exhibit 111: AUKEY - Key offerings

10.6 Bose Corp.

Exhibit 112: Bose Corp. - Overview



Exhibit 113: Bose Corp. - Product / Service



Exhibit 114: Bose Corp. - Key news



Exhibit 115: Bose Corp. - Key offerings

10.7 Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd.

Exhibit 116: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 117: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 118: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 119: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. - Segment focus

10.8 LG Electronics Inc.

Exhibit 120: LG Electronics Inc. - Overview



Exhibit 121: LG Electronics Inc. - Business segments



Exhibit 122: LG Electronics Inc. - Key news



Exhibit 123: LG Electronics Inc. - Key offerings



Exhibit 124: LG Electronics Inc. - Segment focus

10.9 Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Exhibit 125: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. - Overview



Exhibit 126: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. - Business segments



Exhibit 127: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. - Key news



Exhibit 128: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. - Key offerings



Exhibit 129: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. - Segment focus

10.10 Sony Group Corp

Exhibit 130: Sony Group Corp - Overview



Exhibit 131: Sony Group Corp - Business segments



Exhibit 132: Sony Group Corp - Key offerings



Exhibit 133: Sony Group Corp - Segment focus

10.11 Vinci Brands LLC

Exhibit 134: Vinci Brands LLC - Overview



Exhibit 135: Vinci Brands LLC - Product / Service



Exhibit 136: Vinci Brands LLC - Key offerings

10.12 Xiaomi Inc

Exhibit 137: Xiaomi Inc - Overview



Exhibit 138: Xiaomi Inc - Business segments



Exhibit 139: Xiaomi Inc - Key news



Exhibit 140: Xiaomi Inc - Key offerings



Exhibit 141: Xiaomi Inc - Segment focus

11 Appendix

11.1 Scope of the report

11.2 Inclusions and exclusions checklist

Exhibit 142: Inclusions checklist



Exhibit 143: Exclusions checklist

11.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

Exhibit 144: Currency conversion rates for US$

11.4 Research methodology

Exhibit 145: Research methodology



Exhibit 146: Validation techniques employed for market sizing



Exhibit 147: Information sources

11.5 List of abbreviations

Exhibit 148: List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Website: www.technavio.com/

SOURCE Technavio
PropTech firm welcomes former PayPal executive Susan Avelluto as new CPO, while experienced executive and author Jill Popelka joins Board of Directors

SOLON, Ohio, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- MRI Software, a global leader in real estate technology, announces that it has appointed Susan Avelluto to the role of Chief People Officer to help the company continue to build a culture that attracts and retains the best talent in the PropTech sector. Additionally, MRI announces that long-time business executive and author Jill Popelka is joining its Board of Directors.

Jill Popelka Susan Avelluto

"I'm thrilled to welcome Susan to the MRI team," said Patrick Ghilani, Chief Executive Officer of MRI Software. "She has an incredible track record of enhancing the employee experience and is passionate about connecting, empowering, and celebrating people. These values are at the core of MRI's mission. We are also delighted to have Jill join the Board of Directors and bring her own insights into what drives people and business success."

Avelluto, based in Ohio, was most recently the Global Head of Talent Development at PayPal, where she built and fostered a culture of learning and growth, performance development and feedback, and people analytics. She also created and implemented a wellness practice. Before PayPal, Avelluto held senior-level Human Resources positions at Huntington National Bank, JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America.

"I'm excited to join the MRI family and build on the company's amazing workplace culture, including strengthening our commitment to community engagement, social impact and DEI," Avelluto said. "I strive to create the best possible environment for people to be engaged, authentic, healthy and inspired. We will aim to continue to develop the full potential of employees within MRI, while fostering a working environment that enables the company to attract and retain the best talent in the real estate technology sector."

Popelka joins the MRI board with her own focus on people and culture. She served as President of SAP Success Factors, leading strategic direction, customer success, and business health for SAP's largest cloud line of business. Popelka's international work experience contributes a wealth of knowledge around driving client centricity, supporting growth, and creating value in new markets. She is passionate about shaping a people-centric culture and recently published a book, Experience, Inc.: Why Companies that Uncover Purpose, Create Connection, and Celebrate Their People Will Triumph. The Wall Street Journal bestseller offers readers a deep dive into what makes an unparalleled employee experience, why it makes people want to join organizations, and how companies can create it.

In addition to Popelka, MRI's Board also includes Patrick Ghilani and key representatives from the company's three investment groups: TA Associates, GI Partners, and Harvest Partners.

About MRI Software

MRI Software is a leading provider of real estate software solutions that transform the way communities live, work and play. MRI's open and connected, AI-first platform empowers owners, operators and occupiers in commercial and residential property organizations to innovate in rapidly changing markets. MRI has been a trailblazer in the PropTech industry for over five decades, serving more than two million users worldwide. Through innovative solutions and a rich partner ecosystem, MRI gives real estate companies the freedom to realize their vision of building thriving communities and stronger businesses. For more information, please visit mrisoftware.com.

Media Contacts:

(U.S. for MRI)

Rachel Antman (+1 212 362 5837)

[email protected]

(EMEA for MRI)

Platform Communications

Hugh Filman (+44 7905 044850)

or Katrina Trantau (+44 7597 163076)

[email protected]

(ANZ for MRI)

Heather Jones (+61 400 394 669)

[email protected]

SOURCE MRI Software
Small Business Administration lending at M&T Bank earns top marks in its communities, including Baltimore, Buffalo/Rochester, Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York City, Philadelphia, Richmond, Syracuse and Washington D.C.

BUFFALO, N.Y., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- M&T Bank (NYSE: MTB) announced today that it has earned designation as the sixth largest Small Business Administration (SBA) lender in the nation, extending its 14-year streak of ranking as one of the top 10 in the U.S. During the SBA's 2022 fiscal year, M&T provided 1,440 7(a) loans for a total of $203.8 million to help local small businesses pursue plans to expand and thrive. M&T rose to the sixth position nationally for its total loan volume, even though it only operates in 12 states across the eastern U.S.

The impact of M&T's consistently strong SBA performance nationally is felt in the local communities it serves. The bank was the leading small business lender in several markets and ranked highly in many others, including the SBA Districts of:

Baltimore : #1 lender with 250 loans for $36.69 million

: #1 lender with 250 loans for Buffalo / Rochester : #1 lender with 167 loans for $34.38 million

/ : #1 lender with 167 loans for Connecticut : #2 lender with 75 loans for $9.70 million

: #2 lender with 75 loans for Delaware : #1 lender with 52 loans for $7.12 million

: #1 lender with 52 loans for New Jersey : #2 lender with 131 loans for $13.38 million

: #2 lender with 131 loans for New York City : #2 lender with 308 loans for $32.76 million

: #2 lender with 308 loans for Philadelphia : #2 lender with 134 loans for $22.82 million

: #2 lender with 134 loans for Richmond : #1 lender (tied) with 39 loans for $4.41 million

: #1 lender (tied) with 39 loans for Syracuse : #1 lender with 82 loans for $8.56 million

: #1 lender with 82 loans for Washington, D.C. : #1 lender with 152 loans for $23.81 million

"While we're proud of our longstanding ranking among the top SBA lenders in the country, what matters most to us is meeting the local needs of small businesses in the communities we serve. For us, it's about making a difference in people's lives, helping business owners access funding so they can grow, hire more people and uplift our communities," said Christina Brozyna, head of business banking sales and operations.

Helping Local Small Businesses Grow

Behind each of M&T's SBA loans, there's the story of an entrepreneur who is determined to build a business that helps customers, provides jobs and strengthens their neighborhood.

Recently, M&T assisted Dr. Uzo Ihenko and his son Kelechi Chillis-Ihenko in accessing SBA lending to accelerate their vision for the Broadway Business Hub, starting with the opening of their UPS Store which will provide a range of business services in East Buffalo. It's one component of a major redevelopment project they're pursuing on Broadway between Michigan and Jefferson Avenues.

"Through our experience with M&T Bank, we've seen how much they care about people and helping local businesses grow," Dr. Uzo Ihenko said. "Launching our UPS Store will be a catalyst for our multifaceted project which will grow into a coworking space and new apartments. We're excited about our project's potential to strengthen the East Buffalo community and create opportunities for historically underrepresented entrepreneurs  and now thanks to M&T, we have the small business financing we needed to fuel our momentum."

In Connecticut, Spectrum Machine & Design, an advanced manufacturing and precision machining company, worked with M&T to secure SBA financing for new equipment that enabled the company to take on more work from a major FORTUNE 500 company. Founded in the garage of Connie and Gary Poesnecker in 1999, Spectrum Machine, which specializes in the aerospace and defense industries, has expanded significantly over the years and now occupies a 17,000-square foot facility in Windsor Locks.

"Securing SBA lending through M&T Bank helped us unlock new growth opportunities for our company. Their team invested time and energy to build a relationship with us  and importantly, they brought an existing knowledge of manufacturers' needs," said Gary Poesnecker. "The manufacturing industry consistently faces challenging issues, but with reliable partners like M&T, we're able to pursue creative solutions and focus on doing what we do best  leveraging our CNC machining skills to produce complex parts and tooling for our customers."

M&T's Deep Commitment to Local Businesses in New Markets

Since its founding over 165 years ago, M&T has focused on meeting the financing needs of local businesses to ensure they have capital to adopt new equipment and technology, expand operations and grow their workforce. The bank is now bringing its longstanding commitment to small business to new communities where it recently expanded in New England.

M&T is showing up in new and different ways for small businesses to provide added support and new programs that enable them to reach new customers, optimize operations and access guidance and expertise.

In August, M&T brought its innovative Spotlight Shop to Connecticut , offering local small businesses with an opportunity to market their products from a pop-up space in Bridgeport's popular Captain's Cove Seaport.

, offering local small businesses with an opportunity to market their products from a pop-up space in popular Captain's Cove Seaport. M&T recently launched its Multicultural Small Business Innovation Lab in Bridgeport , Connecticut , which helps local multicultural business owners access guidance and deepen skills to expand and strengthen their business. M&T is partnering with the University of Bridgeport's Innovation Center to lead the seven-week program and will fund grants of up to $6,000 that will be awarded during the Innovation Lab's pitch competition.

"We provide local businesses with the robust capabilities of a large regional bank, but we serve our customers through our longstanding community-bank operating model  which is defined by a deep understanding of our communities, a local workforce that cares deeply about the people they serve and banking solutions designed for the unique needs of local economies," Brozyna added.

About M&T

M&T Bank Corporation is a financial holding company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. M&T's principal banking subsidiary, M&T Bank, provides banking products and services in 12 states across the eastern U.S. from Maine to Virginia and Washington, D.C. Trust-related services are provided in select markets in the U.S. and abroad by M&T's Wilmington Trust-affiliated companies and by M&T Bank. For more information on M&T Bank, visit www.mtb.com.

Media Contacts:

National Media, Trade Publications and Buffalo, NY Media:

Maya Dillon

[email protected]

Upstate New York (excluding Buffalo):

Dave Lanzillo

(716) 842-5139

[email protected]

New York Metro (NYC, Long Island and New Jersey):

David Samberg

(201) 368-4515

[email protected]

Mid-Atlantic (Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, DC):

Scott Graham

(410) 244-4097

[email protected]

New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont):

Max Reiss

(917) 544-6528

[email protected]

 2022 M&T Bank. Member FDIC. NMLS# 381076 Equal Housing Lender.

SOURCE M&T Bank
- Paid Membership Community Creating and Delivering Wide Variety of Media Content Globally, with Goal of Preserving and Increasing Value of World-renowned Japanese Whisky -

KOBE, Japan, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- My Concierge Co., Ltd. based in Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture (Representative: Yusuke Fujiwara), has collaborated with Haselabo Co., Ltd. in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture (Representative: Kenichi Hashimoto), and the first Japanese national inducted into whisky's "Hall of Fame" hosted by the British "Whisky Magazine," Seiichi Koshimizu (former Chief Blender of Suntory), in order to contribute to the preservation and improvement of the value of Japanese whisky, which has gained worldwide acclaim, and its further development. Together, the trio brings to consumers the "Japanese Whisky Membership Community -- IN --," a paid membership online community launched on October 11, 2022 (available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese).

Official website: https://jwhisky.jp/en/

Image: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107378/202210047653/_prw_PI1fl_ttxKOZOT.png

Japan's whisky market saw its peak in 1983 but then faced a severe downtrend until 2008, from when its premium quality and value began to be recognized worldwide. The concept of this online community is not only to preserve this rediscovered value of Japanese whisky, but to share the thoughts and feelings of its makers and creators. Together with whisky fans from across the world, the community aims to discover the true meaning to the question "What is Japanese whisky?" and to provide truly one-of-a-kind media content, with original Japanese whisky-related videos at its foundation.

With Seiichi Koshimizu at the helm, this online community offers various media content featuring different figures in the Japanese whisky industry, such as famous bartenders and food producers, which are exclusive only to community members. The community also plans to create limited merchandise and hosts exclusive events which are only available to members. Membership registration to the online community requires an annual membership fee of 5,500 JPY.

Additionally, this community supports the sustainability of the whisky industry by donating a portion of the membership fees to organizations which actively plant "Mizunara" trees, and thus its members directly contribute to the Japanese whisky industry.

It is the community's goal to contribute to the future of Japanese whisky and the whisky industry together with its members.

Overview of "Japanese Whisky Membership Community -- IN --"

Name: Japanese Whisky Membership Community -- IN --

URL for members: https://jwhisky.jp/en/

Annual membership fee: 5,500 JPY (*Automatically renewed yearly subscription)

(*Automatically renewed yearly subscription) Pre-launch date: Sept. 16, 2022

Official launch date: October 11, 2022

Members receive access to view exclusive content, join events and purchase exclusive merchandise.

For more details, visit: https://lp.jwhisky.jp/en/

Company Overview

My Concierge Co., Ltd. was founded in 2016 as a company that provides reservation support and concierge services to foreign tourists looking to make reservations at high-end exclusive restaurants in Japan, and likewise acts as an official reservation channel to such establishments. Its staff is comprised of many different nationalities and the concept of the company is to bring Japan and the world together through the love of food and cuisine. During the sudden halt to international tourism in Japan due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company encountered legendary whisky blender Seiichi Koshimizu and Japanese restaurant owner and chef Kenichi Hashimoto, also founder of Haselabo Co., Ltd. which is designed to research ways of helping people with dysphagia enjoy eating food. This encounter resulted in the creation of a new way of reaching the world with the beauty of Japan: Japanese Whisky Membership Community -- IN --.

Company name: My Concierge Co., Ltd.

Locations:

(Kobe Office) KY Bldg. 4F, 4-9-21 Ninomiyacho, Chuo-ku, Kobe , Hyogo Pref.

Ninomiyacho, Chuo-ku, , Hyogo Pref. (Osaka Office) Parkcourt Yodoyabashi Bldg. 2F, 4-8-10 Koraibashi, Chuo-ku,

Koraibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka , Osaka Pref.- Representative: Yusuke Fujiwara

, Osaka Pref.- Representative: Capital: 8.15 million JPY

Official website: https://myconciergejapan.com

SOURCE My Concierge Co., Ltd.
MONTREAL, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - MY01, Inc. today announced that interim data used in the diagnosing of Acute Compartment Syndrome (ACS) from two ongoing, prospective, multi-center studies will be presented at the Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) Annual Meeting in Tampa, Florida. The results of these independent studies will be presented during three different sessions of the meeting.

A poster titled "Continuous Compartmental Pressure as an aid to Diagnose Acute Compartment Syndrome" will be presented and featured in the general interest poster tour. The poster demonstrates that, when used as an adjunct to clinical assessments, the MY01 device is a reliable method of monitoring intracompartmental pressure that led to zero missed cases of ACS. The poster presents the data from the first 47 patients of a planned cohort of 60 patients across three clinical sites.

Additional clinical data will be released during a Friday morning paper session titled "Clinical Trial of a New Device for Real-Time Muscle Pressure Measurements in Patients with an Upper or Lower Extremity Fracture at Risk for Acute Compartment Syndrome", and during a symposium session on Saturday morning titled "New Tools and Approaches in the Management of Compartment Syndrome".

"We are excited about the evidence that will be presented throughout the OTA annual meeting, and about introducing the positive outcomes associated with the MY01 device to the orthopaedic trauma community," said Charles Allan, CEO of MY01, Inc. "We believe continuous pressure monitoring with proven micro-electrical-mechanical systems (MEMS) technology offers objective data that can augment clinical assessments to provide peace of mind for clinicians and ultimately better outcomes for patients."





About MY01, Inc. MY01, Inc. is on a mission to empower healthcare professionals with the objective data to aid in the diagnosis of compartment syndrome, thereby improving patient outcomes. MY01 believes that adding actionable, quantitative data at the bedside can augment clinical assessments to provide more effective care. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec since 2015, MY01, Inc. leverages its expertise in microsensing technology to provide innovative diagnostic solutions.





Related Links

www.my01.io

SOURCE MY01, Inc.
CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Center for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) in collaboration with the Water Revolution Foundation (WRF) proudly created the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines, a specialized Sustainability Assessment Framework for the Superyacht industry.

This new Framework is aligned with the criteria of the GRI Guidelines, UN SDGs and EU legislative directives on Sustainability Reporting. In parallel an online version was created, whose interactivity bares an innovative aspect; it allows professionals to receive feedback on their status in the preparation for official reporting, using criteria and examples that have been chosen to reflect what most companies of this sector are likely to find relevant.

Sustainability Reporting Guidelines: a Sustainability Assessment Framework for Superyacht Industry created by CSE & WRF Tweet this

CSE has a strategic cooperation with WFR since 2019, aiming to provide top of notch training to professionals of the Superyacht industry worldwide. As a result of this cooperation, more than 120 professionals from leading companies in the Superyacht industry have been trained so far.

Nikos Avlonas, President of the Centre for Sustainability & Excellence (CSE) stated: "We are very excited for this brilliant collaboration with WFR in educating the yachting industry towards sustainability & creating practical tools that could make the difference".

Robert van Tol, Executive Director of the Water Revolution Foundation (WRF) stated: "Following our successful joint Sustainability-in-practice training course we continuously provide to land-based yachting professionals, Water Revolution Foundation and CSE now launch a set of guidelines to help the yachting sector get started with internal sustainability reporting. These directly serve those who completed the course, but also prepare many of their companies that will face non-financial reporting obligations in the near future".

About CSE - The Center for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) www.cse-net.org

CSE is one of the leading ESG Consulting and Educational organizations specializing in maximizing social, economic and environmental impact. CSE helps FORTUNE 500 and other organizations around the globe improve their ESG Ratings and create purpose-driven Strategies and ESG Reports.

CSE is also one of the leading Certification organizations that have qualified over 8,000 Sustainability and ESG professionals in 90 countries with its global Certified Sustainability ESG Practitioner Program.

For more information, contact us at [email protected]

SOURCE Center for Sustainability and Excellence
DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NexPoint, a multibillion-dollar alternative investment firm, announced today that it was included in the Dallas Business Journal's list of Best Places to Work for 2022.

NexPoint was named as a best workplace in the Medium category, which designates companies with 50-240 employees. Selections are based on an indexed score of employee responses to a survey conducted by Quantum Workplace. NexPoint is one of 30 honorees chosen from over 300 entries. Firms selected for the list had the highest employee survey scores among peer companies in their respective size categories.

"We are honored to be recognized as a top place to work by the Dallas Business Journal," says Lucy Bannon, Chief Communications Officer at NexPoint. "NexPoint strives to provide an environment and support that enables employees to do their best work. We are proud to not only receive this award but also to know that employees value our workplace culture."

The full unranked list of companies recognized in the Medium category is available on the Dallas Business Journal's website.

Winning companies will be honored on October 20, 2022, at the Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West Hotel.

About NexPoint

NexPoint is a multibillion-dollar alternative investment firm comprised of a group of investment advisers and sponsors, a broker-dealer, and a suite of related investment vehicles. NexPoint provides differentiated access to alternatives through a range of investment solutions, including public and private real estate investment trusts, tax-advantaged real estate vehicles, merger arbitrage and event driven strategies, other private real estate investments, closed-end funds, interval funds, and a business development company. NexPoint is based in Dallas, Texas and is part of a network of affiliates with expertise across the asset management and financial services spaces. For more information visit nexpoint.com.

Media Contact

Prosek Partners for NexPoint

[email protected]

SOURCE NexPoint
-- Financing led by General Catalyst, with participation from all existing investors and new leading institutional investors and mutual funds --

-- Proceeds to advance Odyssey's broad portfolio of precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines --

BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Odyssey Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering next generation precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines, today announced a $168 million Series B financing. This funding, which follows Odyssey's $218 million Series A announced in December 2021, brings the total capital raised to $386 million. The proceeds will enable Odyssey to advance its portfolio of precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines in support of its mission of developing innovative medicines to treat serious human diseases.

The Series B was led by General Catalyst, a leading global venture capital firm and active investor in the healthcare sector. Other new investors participating in the Series B financing include funds and accounts advised by Fidelity Management & Research Company, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., GreatPoint Ventures, Catalio Capital Management, Walleye Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, The Healthcare Innovation Investment Fund LLC, an investment fund associated with SVB Securities LLC, and other institutional investors. The financing also includes participation from all Series A investors including OrbiMed, SR One, Foresite Capital, Logos Capital, Woodline Partners LP, HBM Healthcare Investments, Colt Ventures and Creacion Ventures.

"Odyssey is pioneering next generation therapeutics by marrying a powerful drug discovery engine integrating machine learning, biology, and medicinal and structural chemistry with an exceptional leadership team of proven drug developers. We are pleased to partner with General Catalyst and our world-class syndicate of investors and believe the interest in our immunology and oncology pipeline and capabilities further validates our approach to therapeutic development," said Gary D. Glick, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Odyssey Therapeutics. "We have made tremendous strides since our launch in 2021, and we value the support as we advance multiple candidates into IND-enabling studies in 2023."

"At General Catalyst, we are committed to investing in companies driving powerful, positive and enduring change, and Odyssey's unyielding commitment to improving the lives of patients by targeting the underlying causes of serious inflammatory diseases and cancer aligns with our mission," said Elena Viboch, Partner at General Catalyst. "We are confident in Odyssey's vision, proven leadership and ability to pioneer and develop next generation therapeutics through their integrated platform approach, and we look forward to seeing Odyssey work toward achieving their mission of delivering life-enhancing medicines to patients in need."

"I am delighted to welcome our new Series B investors," said Jeff Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman of the Odyssey Board. "Their investment along with Odyssey's unique combination of experienced and talented drug hunters, new technologies and a broad and deep pipeline of novel targets will accelerate our discovery and development of life-enhancing medicines for patients in need."

Odyssey's immunology and oncology portfolio encompasses eight declared programs initially focused on small molecule and protein therapeutics. In addition, Odyssey is building an industry leading discovery engine that integrates artificial intelligence and machine learning for molecular design; a chemistry platform encompassing proprietary covalent libraries targeting multiple amino acids, molecular glues and natural products; and a functional genomics platform for novel target discovery.

About Odyssey Therapeutics

Odyssey Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing the next generation of immunomodulators and oncology medicines. Composed of an expert team of drug hunters, scientists and industry leaders in foundational biology, chemistry, and data sciences, Odyssey is transforming drug discovery to accelerate and drive the creation and efficient delivery of life-enhancing precision medicines to patients. For more information, please visit www.odysseytx.com and follow Odyssey Therapeutics on Twitter (@Odyssey_Tx) and LinkedIn.

About General Catalyst

General Catalyst is a venture capital firm that invests in powerful, positive change that endures  for our entrepreneurs, our investors, our people, and society. We support founders with a long-term view who challenge the status quo, partnering with them from seed to growth stage and beyond to build companies that withstand the test of time. With offices in San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York City, London, and Boston, the firm has helped support the growth of businesses such as: Airbnb, Deliveroo, Guild, Gusto, Hubspot, Illumio, Lemonade, Livongo, Oscar, Samsara, Snap, Stripe, and Warby Parker. For more: www.generalcatalyst.com.

SOURCE Odyssey Therapeutics
Orbex's revamped Affiliate program is highlighted by a custom CPA plan, which offers up to $1,000 commission per qualifying referred client.

LIMASSOL, Cyprus, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Orbex, a global multi-regulated financial services broker, has announced the launch of its new forex Affiliate Program featuring custom CPA deals of up to $1,000 per qualified client referral.

Orbex's revamped Affiliate Program reportedly combines one of the highest-paying CPA commission structures in the industry with expert support, cutting-edge reporting tools, and added ways to earn. As Orbex continues to expand and make waves in the FX and CFD industry, the new CPA model is designed to afford Orbex Affiliates a steady stream of income.

Orbex Affiliates can expect to be supported by a slate of added services, all readily available via the Cellxpert marketing platform, which enables users to serve ads and seamlessly track their clickthrough and conversion rates. Orbex's Cellxpert platform also provides access to a wide range of branded marketing resources and high-converting funnels.

Designed to suit the needs and requirements of today's FX Affiliates, Orbex's latest partner scheme lists the following benefits:

Some of the highest CPA rates in the industry of up to $1000

Custom plans and flexible withdrawals with $0 fees

fees A vast array of promotional tools to aid in traffic conversion

Sub-affiliate earnings, sponsorship opportunities, and exclusive added rewards

A state-of-the-art Affiliate panel for advanced ad serving, tracking, and reporting

Orbex Chief Marketing Officer, Drosoula Hadjisavva commented on the launch of the new Orbex Affiliate program:

"Partner marketing has quickly become the table stakes for business success in the financial services industry and beyond, as many consumers have come to distrust traditional advertising. In response, we here at Orbex, have long recognized the value in building robust partner ecosystems and the impact partners have on the company's ability to scale. Our latest affiliate program launch marks an important step in satisfying the requests we have been getting from potential affiliates, wishing to promote Orbex to their audiences in exchange for a commission on sales generated. We're excited to offer our valued partners the best workflow automation and remain committed to investing in digital transformation solutions as we go beyond business continuity requirements and into an extraordinary push for operational excellence."

In addition to its new Affiliate program, Orbex continues to offer its offline IB partners a lucrative lifetime revenue share scheme. To learn more about Orbex's Affiliate and IB partner opportunities click here.

About Orbex

Orbex is a leading global investment services firm offering award-winning forex and CFD trading services at some of the most competitive conditions. Since its inception in 2011, Orbex has committed to providing access to first-in-class trading and investing solutions backed by leading education, expert tools and the ongoing support needed to assist clients in navigating the global financial markets.

Contact:

***@orbex.com

Photo(s):

https://www.prlog.org/12936485

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE Orbex
Paying homage to its foundation around mall culture with a premier upgrade, Pacsun at Fashion Valley is the first location to showcase Pacsun's new brick-and-mortar vision. The 4,277 square foot space located on the upper level between Nike and Soleniverse, warmly greets guests with an open air facade and sizable windows displaying Pacsun's current styles and collections. The interior includes new fixtures and decor that tie into Fashion Valley's experience as an outdoor center, including updated colors and materials that refine the way Pacsun presents its products and enhance the overall store aesthetic.

"We are always looking for opportunities to improve our presence at prominent locations for consumers to be introduced and experience Pacsun firsthand through the best representation," said Joel Quill, Vice President of Retail at Pacsun. "Considering its prestige in the area and closeness to our routes, we thought Fashion Valley was a fitting starting point for all new stores in the future."

Within the redesign, additional IRL details modishly fuse Pacsun's physical and digital efforts with components that directly connect its social and digital channels, such as streaming video, showing seasonal campaigns and content from social channels. The store will also provide more convenient shopping options such as Buy Online Pick up in Store, and Same Day Delivery.

"Evolving over time, and keeping in touch with our community of consumers, is what has contributed to Pacsun maintaining its reputation as being at the cutting edge of youth culture," noted Brieane (Brie) Olson, President at Pacsun. "We are so grateful to be able to open more doors for our community, to provide a premium physical experience within spaces that encompass our brand ethos, and be able to integrate our recognized digital efforts for a holistic Pacsun experience."

The Fashion Valley opening adds to the over 300 Pacsun locations nationwide, joining the 20% that are located in outdoor malls and four new stores that opened just this year. Later this Winter, Pacsun's fresh look will also be unveiled at Lennox in Atlanta and Fashion Island in Newport Beach, CA., along with others around the country slated for 2023. Each location will have a similar foundation, with unique elements that embrace the region that they are in.

ABOUT PACSUN

Pacsun is a leading specialty retailer offering a cross section of emerging brands and trending fashion through the lens of youth culture. Throughout the contemporary, streetwear and active lifestyle markets, Pacsun partners with the best brands to offer curated collections, rare and exclusive products, and creative collaborations on every level. Founded in 1980, Newport, CA. Curated in Los Angeles. Follow @pacsun on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok.

SOURCE Pacsun
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Society of Ketamine Physicians, Psychotherapists, and Practitioners (ASKP3) is excited to announce the publication of the Patient Portal, a platform for patients and medical providers to learn more about ketamine as a treatment for pain and mood disorders.

Recent breakthroughs in the use of ketamine are changing the landscape of emerging treatment options for patients managing pain and mood disorders. The wide range of information about ketamine in news articles, blogs, and magazines can be confusing to the public seeking to learn more.

As leaders in ketamine education and research, the ASKP3 has the expertise to speak about the ethical clinical use of ketamine in the best interest of patients from the medical community perspective.

The new Patient Portal was developed with consultation of medical providers and patient advocates backed by the latest research collated by the ASKP3 membership of ketamine specialists. The portal offers comprehensive, fact-based information about ketamine, including an introduction to ketamine and how it is being utilized to treat pain and mood disorders, what patients should consider when determining if ketamine treatment is a good fit for them, and what to expect from treatment. The Patient Portal also has information for loved ones supporting patients, what to look for in a clinic, and ways patients can get more involved in advocating for their healthcare.

The aim of the Patient Portal is to help patients and the broader medical community become more informed regarding ketamine as a medication. ASKP3 plans to grow this site with new information as research progresses with the hope that by bringing the medical community together, patients will become more empowered to find the best care for their medical needs.

Sandhya Prashad, M.D., Medical Director at Houston Ketamine Therapeutics and President of the ASKP3, commented today: "There is a lot of confusing information on the internet about ketamine. I am excited that ASKP3's Patient Portal will provide a foundation for both patients and the broader medical community regarding ketamine as a treatment option, focused on neutral, fact-based science, to help patients make informed decisions about their healthcare."

About ASKP3: The American Society of Ketamine Physicians, Psychotherapists, and Practitioners is a non-profit organization comprised of a group of professionals dedicated to the safe and effective clinical use of ketamine for mental health disorders and chronic pain conditions. With over 500 active members worldwide, ASKP3 is in a prime position to further awareness and education regarding the safe, effective, and ethical use of ketamine treatment. www.askp.org

CLICK HERE to access the Ketamine Patient Portal.

Contact: Melanie Dixon, CAE

Executive Director

407-774-7880

SOURCE American Society of Ketamine Physicians, Psychotherapists, & Practitioners
NEW YORK and LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Paxos, the leading regulated blockchain infrastructure platform, confirms the Paxos Settlement Service has settled nearly $50 billion in total commodities. The Paxos Settlement Service for Commodities streamlines the settlement process to handle all complexity for market participants across gold, silver, platinum and palladium. Importantly, the service allows for a centralized operational process for settlements with counterparties that are both on and off the Paxos network.

The Paxos Settlement Hub delivers efficient, cost-effective, safer settlement with full transparency on the movement of both metals and cash in a single user interface. The Paxos Settlement Hub is now an all-encompassing network that, in addition to streamlined settlement, offers the options of simultaneous settlement with other Paxos Settlement customers. This ensures safe settlement for trading counterparties that are not yet Paxos customers. By connecting the London Precious Metals Clearing Limited and the cash-based correspondent banking network, Paxos allows customers to pre-fund and multilateral net settlements, creating a single platform where settlement occurs for both metals and cash.

Anoushka Rayner, Paxos' Head of Commodities Growth, commented, "While the over the counter (OTC) market offers many benefits, it also creates operational complexity and introduces settlement risk for participants. The lack of standardization and optimization leaves firms open to unnecessary risks as settlement occurs via different networks. However, those risks can be mitigated with the right technology. The Paxos Settlement Hub for Commodities is the first platform to connect the metals and cash settlement networks. Due to the Paxos Trust Company underpinning settlement, payments are easily managed and errors are minimized. Furthermore, funds are also securely held in a bankruptcy-remote account, fully segregated. Paxos makes settlement transparent and seamlessly controls the swap of metals and cash."

The network growth for Paxos Settlement Hub looks very promising as banks increase their pace to adopt services to not only bring efficiency today, but to also future-proof their technology strategy for the digital transformation on the horizon.

Paxos will attend the LBMA/LPPM Precious Metals Conference 2022 in Lisbon from October 16-18, 2022. To learn more about the benefits of the Paxos Settlement Service or request to meet our team, visit www.paxos.com .

About Paxos

Paxos is the leading regulated blockchain infrastructure platform. Its products are the foundation for a new, open financial system that can operate faster and more efficiently. Today, trillions of dollars are locked in inefficient, outdated financial plumbing that is inaccessible to millions of people. Paxos is replatforming the financial system to enable assets to instantaneously move anywhere in the world, at any time, in a trustworthy way.

Paxos uses technology to tokenize, custody, trade and settle assets. It builds enterprise blockchain solutions for institutions like PayPal, Interactive Brokers, Mastercard, MercadoLibre, Nubank, PicPay, Bank of America, Credit Suisse and Societe Generale. Paxos is a top-funded fintech company with more than $540 million raised from leading investors including Oak HC/FT, Declaration Partners, Founders Fund, Mithril Capital and PayPal Ventures. Paxos takes a global approach to modernizing the financial system.

Media Contact:

Becky McClain

[email protected]

SOURCE Paxos
Ex-Mastercard Exec hires American Express veteran to bolster US-led investment

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Global digital gifting company Prezzee has appointed Josh Berwitz as its North American President and Global Chief Growth Officer. This is the latest strategic hire in a senior recruitment drive which has seen Prezzee appoint a new Chief Digital Officer and Chief Marketing Officer this year.

Prezzee Doubles Down on US Expansion Appointing Josh Berwitz as North American President Tweet this Josh Berwitz

Josh will play a vital role in pushing for further growth and securing the business' position as the leading digital gifting company in North America as Prezzee makes key investments across its product portfolio, technology and partnership offering. He will lead a team of 40 across New York and San Francisco.

Prezzee was founded in Australia in 2014 and has since expanded into North America, New Zealand and the UK. In his role, Josh will be responsible for building the company's North American footprint and will be instrumental in the strategic leadership for Prezzee's growth globally.

Prior to joining Prezzee, Josh spent close to 25 years working at American Express where he held strategy, partnership and loyalty roles with increasing responsibility. Most recently, Josh was part of the company's Senior Management team where he served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Partnerships, Business Development and Lounge organization within the company's US Consumer Services Group.

Prezzee's Global CEO, Jamie Samaha, says: "Josh Berwitz brings an exceptional pedigree to Prezzee's global leadership team. Having spent over two decades at American Express within the consumer engagement and payments space, he brings ambition and confidence to Prezzee's expansion plans.

"Investing in our global leadership team enables the business to push ahead with our mission to drive deeper engagement and loyalty, by creating human connections through digital gifting. Our world-class executive team is focused on our accelerated growth plans across our key markets, especially in light of the current environment. Something I'm confident Josh and the team can deliver in the US."

Commenting on his appointment, Josh Berwitz said: "I am a firm believer that businesses have a duty to showcase how much they value their employees and it's clear that Prezzee's personalized digital gifting experience has a key role to play in helping companies across the US do exactly that.

"Having seen what the Prezzee team has already accomplished since its original inception in 2014, through to its global expansion over the past few years, it's an honor to be welcomed into the team. I've worked extensively in the loyalty and gifting space and look forward to further demonstrating the value Prezzee delivers to consumers, businesses and retailers alike while continuing on our growth journey."

For further information please contact Anna Jaycocks at [email protected]

About Prezzee

Prezzee is a global digital gifting business that prides itself on creating remarkable gifting moments for consumers, businesses and 1,000+ brand partners across the world. Founded in 2014, Prezzee has evolved from a two person Australian start-up to a global business with operations in North America, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

Website: www.prezzee.com

LinkedIn: @Prezzee

Facebook: @Prezzee

NOTES TO EDITORS

Biography - Josh Berwitz

US President and Chief Growth Officer

Josh Berwitz, Prezzee's US President and Chief Growth Officer, has almost 25 years of experience in the financial services industry and is responsible for ensuring Prezzee achieves its growth ambitions and secures its position as the leading digital gifting company in North America.

Prior to joining Prezzee, Josh spent his career at American Express where he progressed from B2B Industry Development Manager to the C-suite. His most recent role being Senior Vice president and General Manager of the Partnerships, Business Development and Lounge organization within the Global Consumer Services Group.

Josh also serves on the board of Counseling in Schools, a New Yorkbased non-profit organization that partners with schools to create and provide programs aimed at helping children to thrive academically, socially and emotionally.

SOURCE Prezzee
REIMS, France, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Rare Champagne is pleased to unveil a unique collection of Mathusalem 6-litre bottles of Rare Rose Millesime 2012, signed by William Amor, an exceptional artist who creates and glorifies discarded materials by giving them a second life, making them even more magnificent than before.

Rare Champagne, The True Exception

Created in November 2021, the collaboration aims to put "Art at the Service of Environment" by raising awareness about environmental issues by transforming abandoned plastic materials into delicate floral pieces of art. "This is a creative, artistic and solidary collaboration for the designer to honour Nature," says Maud Rabin, Rare Champagne Director.

Rare Champagne has partnered with French artist, William Amor on Les Creations Messageres, a collection of Mathusalem 6-litre bottles of Rare Rose Millesime 2012, whose ornament reveals an exceptional bouquet. Only recycled materials coming from Rare Champagne, combined with its own, were used to produce these works of art.

"I wanted to express the aromas of Rare Rose Millesime 2012, to interpret its elegance as a piece of royal jewelry, the tiara, ..." says the artist when asked to describe this unique creation. The recycled aluminum cap becomes the flower and leaf of the cherry tree and of the vine; a purified plastic bag, unsoldered then dried Italian style, coloured with pigments before being crumpled and ripped, becomes a flower. In between embossing and gem-setting, William Amor takes gravel from the champagne vats and turns them into crystal pendants called "Les Joyaux de la Courone"; he unravels fishing nets to create the pistils. True pieces of art, each Creation Messagere will be auctioned to support foundations dedicated to the environment.

Recently certified B Corp, Rare Champagne reaffirms its commitment to a sustainable future and its position as a mission-driven company, actively participating in a new global movement for a more regenerative, equitable and inclusive economy. The collaboration with William Amor is part of this commitment for a more beautiful planet that infuses the entire approach of the House.

ABOUT RARE ROSE MILLESIME 2012

Rare Rose Millesime 2012 adds a new dimension to the Maison's style. Its signature taste brings together three distinct families of aromas in perfect balance: floral, fruity and spiced, a genuinely virtuoso cuvee. Despite the tough weather conditions in 2012, Rare Champagne once again demonstrate its expertise and exceptional vision with Rare Rose Millesime 2012, the result of an ambitious challenge to blend a memorable vintage.

ABOUT WILLIAM AMOR

A self-taught artist, William Amor was the Winner of the 2019 City of Paris Grand Prize for emerging Talent in the category Arts and Crafts 2019 and is a laureate of the Banque Populaire Foundation. Through his work, he brings to life new projects that create meaning every day, turning what was considered by many as public waste into exquisite works of art. William Amor founded Les Creations Messageres to raise awareness about environmental issues by transforming abandoned materials that cause plastic pollution into delicate floral works, each one imbued with his philosophy and carrying a strong message of environmental awareness.

ABOUT RARE CHAMPAGNE

The noble origin of Rare Champagne dates back to a tribute to the Queen of France, Marie-Antoinette, and expresses its revolutionary spirit against the trivialization of vintages. Over the last forty years, Rare Champagne only declared twelve vintages. Regis Camus has entrusted Maud Rabin to be the Rare Champagne Director and Emilien Boutillat, Rare Champagne & Piper Heidsieck cellar master, with the perpetuation of the know-how and the signature style of the wine of Rare Champagne. The tiara designed by Arthus Bertrand adorning the precious bottle features the triumphant vine prevailing over the whims of weather. Rare Champagne is a wine of patience, with an unlimited potential for expression. Blossoming year after year, Rare Champagne expresses an elegant style: endless freshness, long-lasting minerality, with a radiant purity and subtle contrasts. Discovering Rare Champagne is an introduction to the French Art de Vivre, whose timeless elegance knows no borders.

CONTACT PRESSE

Rare Champagne

[email protected]

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919890/Rare_Champagne_Logo.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1919891/RARE_CHAMPAGNE_by_WILLIAM_AMOR__Marco_Strullu.jpg

SOURCE Rare Champagne
State restaurant associations, community organizations, and employers join National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation in Washington, D.C., to celebrate HOPES program

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Fifty representatives from across the country joined the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) in Washington, D.C., last week to celebrate the success of the Foundation's HOPES program, which has enrolled over 700 justice-involved individuals, connecting them with career opportunities and a road to independence in the restaurant, foodservice, and hospitality industry.

The HOPES program connects 700 justice-involved individuals with career opportunities in the restaurant industry. Tweet this Highlights of the event included a special cooking demo where HOPES participants showcased their culinary skills using a list of mystery ingredients. The Hospitality Opportunities for People (Re)Entering Society (HOPES) program represents a collaborative effort across seven states to identify, train, employ, and ultimately advance justice-involved individuals seeking independence and a career path in the restaurant industry. Find out more at ChooseRestaurants.org/HOPES.

The Hospitality Opportunities for People (Re)Entering Society (HOPES) program represents a collaborative effort across seven states to identify, train, employ, and ultimately advance justice-involved individuals seeking independence and a career path in the restaurant industry. Launched in 2019 through a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, HOPES facilitates work-readiness and restaurant industry-specific training through its network of state Departments of Corrections, state restaurant associations, and 13 community-based organizations. Once training is complete, the program connects participants with opportunities through its network of local and national employer partners, including MOD Pizza, Inspire Brands, and Dave's Killer Bread Foundation.

"I think it is important to extend opportunities to people regardless of what they've been through or mistakes they've made," said Deirdra Flowers, who is the HOPES Supervisor at Chicago's Lawrence Hall, a HOPES community partner site. "Employers should really take advantage of this opportunity because these individuals are good workers. They are dedicated. But also, it's important to be the person who says, 'It's ok. I want to help you.'"

HOPES partner sites like Lawrence Hall work in conjunction with local Departments of Corrections to identify potential candidates for the program. Upon enrollment, these individuals receive restaurant-industry specific training in six work-ready competency areas using the NRAEF's Restaurant Ready framework. HOPES community partners then provide participants with additional wraparound services, employment placement, and follow-up support, while local employment partners further engage participants with hands-on foodservice training and opportunities to build their career knowledge.

"HOPES is bringing the restaurant industry together to give justice-involved individuals an opportunity to carve out a future and a career," said Rob Gifford, president of the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. "I'm incredibly grateful for the chance to gather HOPES stakeholders, participants, and alumni in Washington to celebrate the program's wins and its work to create pathways of opportunity for everyone who wants to be part of our industry."

During the Washington event, participants and alumni of the program, as well as case managers, restaurant industry partners, and officials from local Departments of Corrections enjoyed three days of workshops, networking, and events. Highlights included a reentry simulation aimed at replicating some of the challenges justice-involved individuals face when reentering society, as well as a special cooking demo where HOPES participants showcased their culinary skills using a list of mystery ingredients. Attendees were also treated to a special session exploring motivation and resilience with HOPES alum Ernest Green, who is currently working at MOD Pizza, and Chicago Chef Lakisha Hunter, who trains HOPES participants at her food trailer, That Jerk Spot LLC.

"HOPES is needed," said Hunter, who was a young gang member before joining her high school's ProStart culinary arts program. In addition to her current food trailer, she has owned a restaurant, taught culinary arts in Chicago public schools, and recently started a non-profit, Rise Above the Ordinary. "Just to know that these individuals have a second chance and don't need to be held for the rest of their lives for a mistake they made. They did their time, were punished for it, and can now move forward."

Green, who was connected to the HOPES program at Chicago's Lawrence Hall through his pre-trial officer, said, "When you're there in person and experiencing it, I think it's almost surreal to see so many lives being changed one-by-one, and I'm just completely thankful for what they [Lawrence Hall and HOPES] have done to help me." Since joining MOD Pizza, Green has been promoted multiple times and now serves as a training manager.

HOPES is 100% funded through two grants, in the amounts of $4,499,472 and $4 million, awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration. Learn more about HOPES at ChooseRestaurants.org/HOPES. Visit ChooseRestaurants.org to learn more about the NRAEF and its work to provide access to meaningful jobs and careers in restaurant and foodservice.

About the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF): As the philanthropic foundation of the National Restaurant Association, the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation's (NRAEF) mission of service to the public is dedicated to enhancing the industry's training and education, career development and community engagement efforts. The NRAEF and its programs work to Attract, Empower and Advance today's and tomorrow's restaurant and foodservice workforce. NRAEF programs include: ProStart  a high-school career and technical education program; Restaurant Ready  partnering with community based organizations to provide "opportunity youth" with skills training and job opportunities; Military  helping military servicemen and women transition their skills to restaurant and foodservice careers; Scholarships  financial assistance for students pursuing restaurant, foodservice and hospitality degrees; and the Restaurant & Hospitality Leadership Center (RHLC)  accredited apprenticeship programs designed to build the careers of service professionals. For more information on the NRAEF, visit ChooseRestaurants.org.

Click here for the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation's 2021 Annual Impact Report.

SOURCE National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation
VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Ritchie Bros. (NYSE: RBA) (TSX: RBA) announced today that the company's third quarter financial results will be released before market open on Monday, November 7th.

Ritchie Bros. will host a conference call to discuss its results at 8:00 a.m. ET the same day.

Analysts and institutional investors may participate via conference call, using the following dial-in information:

Conference ID: 04106719

Participant Toll-Free Dial-In Number:

North America - 1-888-664-6392

UK - 08006522435

Canada: 1-416-764-8659

Media and other interested parties may listen to live webcast of the call at https://investor.ritchiebros.com .

Following the call, a replay will be available at the same website. A telephonic replay of the conference call can be accessed after 2:00 pm Eastern time, at 416-764-8677 or 1-888-390-0541 (using passcode 106719 #).

About Ritchie Bros .:

Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. (NYSE and TSX: RBA) is a global asset management and disposition company, offering customers end-to-end solutions for buying and selling used heavy equipment, trucks, and other assets. Operating in a number of sectors, including construction, transportation, agriculture, energy, mining, and forestry, the company's selling channels include: Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, the world's largest industrial auctioneer offering live auction events with online bidding; IronPlanet, an online marketplace with weekly featured auctions and providing the exclusive IronClad Assurance equipment condition certification; Marketplace-E, a controlled marketplace offering multiple price and timing options; Ritchie List, a self-serve listing service for North America; Mascus, a leading European online equipment listing service; Ritchie Bros. Private Treaty, offering privately negotiated sales; and sector-specific solutions GovPlanet, TruckPlanet, and Kruse Energy. The Company's suite of solutions also includes Ritchie Bros. Asset Solutions and Rouse Services LLC, which together provides a complete end-to-end asset management, data-driven intelligence and performance benchmarking system; SmartEquip, an innovative technology platform that supports customers' management of the equipment lifecycle and integrates parts procurement with both OEMs and dealers; plus equipment financing and leasing through Ritchie Bros. Financial Services. For more information about Ritchie Bros., visit RitchieBros.com.

SOURCE Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers
Mike Schroeder, Tulane Alumnus and Roundstone President, to Present Oct 25 Luncheon at Windsor Court Hotel

LAKEWOOD, Ohio, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Roundstone, a health insurance provider specializing in self-funded group captive solutions, today announced a lunch event as part of its Roadshow series raising awareness about a better health insurance alternative. The event, featuring Mike Schroeder, Tulane AB Freeman School graduate and Roundstone President, will be held at the Windsor Court Hotel on October 25.

Roundstone

"I'm excited to return for my 35th reunion and make some time to share a leading, innovative solution with the New Orleans-area business community," said Schroeder. "Employers are frustrated with rising costs and lack of transparency from fully-insured health plans. We offer something completely different  a health plan aligned with the employer's interests. Our goal is to demystify how self-funding in a group medical captive works to make it simple for business owners, HR professionals, and Finance executives to rally around."

The agenda features a panel with Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Company on their success with a self-funded health plan.

Details:

Windsor Court Hotel, 300 Gravier St, New Orleans

Tuesday, October 25, 10:30am-1:30pm

Who Should Attend?

Anyone responsible for health benefits at an organization

Roadshow agenda and registration here.

About Roundstone

Roundstone is on a mission to help small to midsize employers provide affordable, high-quality healthcare benefits. Founded as the first medical captive in 2005, our self-funded solution bands employers together to fund their benefits the way Fortune 500 companies do.

This captive funding strategy is an innovative and proven model that shares risk and offers protection, choice, transparency, flexibility, and cost savings over traditional fully-insured programs. The average client saves 20% compared to traditional insurance.

Honors and Recognition:

Roundstone has been recognized as an INC 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies honoree for the past five years.

Ernst & Young LLP announced Schroeder as an Entrepreneur of The Year 2022 East Central Award finalist.

Roundstone was named a Northeast Ohio Top Workplace by the Plain Dealer and cleveland.com for the third time.

Roundstone is headquartered in Lakewood, Ohio with representatives throughout the country. For more information on Roundstone, please visit: https://roundstoneinsurance.com. Stay connected with us on our blog, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

Media Contact:

Terri White

Director of Marketing

440.617.0333 x380

[email protected]

SOURCE Roundstone
More than 500,000 caregivers eligible to receive paid, comprehensive training from national and state leaders

in home care best practices

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Homebridge, a San Francisco based organization dedicated to quality in-home supportive services, has received a state grant of up to $16.2 million to strengthen California's caregiving workforce through the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) Career Pathways Program . The program, set to launch this month, will provide a broad array of training and career opportunities to the 550,000 IHSS home care providers who serve more than 650,000 residents statewide.

IHSS workers comprise a large portion of California's direct care workforce which currently outnumbers every single occupation in California. Demand for quality in-home care and supportive services will keep growing as California's over-65 population is projected to reach 8.6 million - 1 in 5 residents - by 2030 with an 88% increase in older adults with self-care limitations.

"Homebridge was founded on the principle that a skilled and supported caregiving workforce is fundamental to providing quality home care and we have upheld that value as a leader of exceptional provider training in the Bay Area since 1985," said Mark Burns, Executive Director of Homebridge. "We are honored to contribute our values and expertise to help meet the urgent and growing need for quality home care throughout California."

Homebridge will provide a complex offering of more than 65 different classes in five languages to thousands of participants beginning in early 2023. All IHSS and Waiver Personal Care Services (WPCS) Providers in California are eligible for the paid online and in-person courses designed to enhance skills and knowledge across a wide range of caregiving topics.

To develop this ambitious program, Homebridge is partnering with state and national organizations who are well-known and highly respected leaders in the field - Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), Futuro Health , PHI and the Zen Caregiving Project. The unique partnership will provide preparation and training that supports the broad diversity and increasingly complex needs of today's care recipients.

"San Francisco has long been a leader in funding training for caregivers in the In-Home Supportive Services program," stated Kelly Dearman, Executive Director of the San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS). "This leadership has helped pave the way for Homebridge to roll out their training statewide, and this broad range of programs will benefit our workforce with valuable educational and career opportunities as well as help address the critical shortage of caregivers in our City and state head on."

Homebridge is also partnering with two statewide organizations to better understand and address the critical needs of providers and consumers  the California IHSS Consumer Alliance (CICA) who represent California's IHSS consumers, and the California Association of Public Authorities (CAPA) who represent the Public Authorities who provide supportive services for IHSS providers. "It's a first!" commented Janie Whiteford, President of CICA. "Linking the voices of consumers with provider training and education has never been done like this before. We are delighted to be partnering with Homebridge to achieve this important milestone which will certainly improve the quality of care for thousands of Californians."

The IHSS Career Pathways Program, administered by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), emerged from an initiative of the California Master Plan for Aging (MPA) launched by the Newsom Administration in January 2021.

One of the MPA's five goals is dedicated to addressing the gaps in caregiving that is currently plaguing communities statewide. The plan aims to strengthen the direct care workforce and create one million high quality direct care jobs by 2031. The IHSS Career Pathways Program includes some of the MPA's key strategies for achieving this goal: providing training and career pathway opportunities and a heightened focus on equity and cultural and linguistic competence.

About Homebridge : Homebridge is California's only nonprofit dedicated to providing direct IHSS services and IHSS workforce training. The Homebridge client-centered model of care is tailored to provide innovative at-home and community based care for individuals with complex health, behavioral, and social needs. Homebridge care provides personal and intensive home care services that bridge the gap between healthcare and social services delivery.

About San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS)

About Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH)

About Futuro Health

About PHI

About Zen Caregiving Project

About California Association of Public Authorities (CAPA)

About California IHSS Consumer Alliance

CONTACT: Erin Saberi (916) 952-5080/[email protected]

SOURCE Open Square Connect
SAN DIEGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sempra (NYSE: SRE) (BMV: SRE) plans to release its third-quarter 2022 earnings by 7 a.m. ET, Thursday, November 3.

Sempra executives will conduct a conference call at 12 p.m. ET, Thursday, November 3. Investors, media, analysts and the public may listen to a live webcast of the conference call by registering on the Investors section of the company's website and clicking on the appropriate link.

Prior to the conference call, a slide presentation detailing the earnings results also will be posted by 7 a.m. ET, Thursday, November 3, on Sempra's website.

For those unable to obtain access to the live webcast, it will be available on replay a few hours after its conclusion on the company's website.

About Sempra

Sempra's mission is to be North America's premier energy infrastructure company. The Sempra family of companies have 20,000 talented employees who deliver energy with purpose to nearly 40 million consumers. With more than $72 billion in total assets at the end of 2021, the San Diego-based company is the owner of one of the largest energy networks in North America helping some of the world's leading economies move to cleaner sources of energy. The company is helping to advance the global energy transition through electrification and decarbonization in the markets it serves, including California, Texas, Mexico and the LNG export market. Sempra is consistently recognized as a leader in sustainable business practices and for its long-standing commitment to building a high-performing culture focused on safety, workforce development and training, and diversity and inclusion. Sempra is the only North American utility sector company included on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and was also named one of the "World's Most Admired Companies" for 2022 by Fortune Magazine. For additional information about Sempra, please visit Sempra's website at sempra.com and on Twitter @Sempra.

SOURCE Sempra
AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Austin, Texas-based Smart Charge America (SCA) has entered a partnership with Xeal Energy, which manufactures electric car chargers for commercial properties such as apartments, condos and workplaces.

The reCharge40, the first such collaboration between SCA and Xeal, is unique in that it requires no internet connectivity or ongoing networking fees to operate, while still providing advanced functionality of networked chargers, like payment processing and access control.

According to SCA founder and CEO Joseph Barletta, "Networked chargers are known for becoming inoperable when the network isn't functioning, leading to significant downtime. Our new electric car charger is 100% fully capable of all the smart charging functionality that networked car chargers are capable of. It just does it even smarter, with no ongoing fees, thus driving down the total cost of ownership including ongoing service and maintenance. This allows SCA to keep an uptime of more than 97% on all of our EV charging stations inside our network. With SCA's industry focus and installation prowess, coupled with Xeal's proven software technology and UI, we now have the missing ingredients to really start imposing our mission on the marketplace."

The reCharge40 is primarily marketed to commercial businesses looking to provide EV charging for their customers, employees, tenants and fleet. Barletta said, "This innovation is huge in the world of EV charging station costs. Ongoing fees like cellular networking fees and maintenance costs, over the life of a car charger, drastically cut into ROI. As Smart Charge America continues to drive down the cost of the charger, installation and service, we are making the adoption of EV charging infrastructure easier and more affordable to be able to put as many car chargers in the ground as possible." By 2025, Smart Charge America anticipates installing more than 40,000 charging ports per year across the top 50 EV-friendly cities in America.

The reCharge40, available for order now, will be sold exclusively through Smart Charge America, the only company that sells and installs its own EV charging stations for its customers. With a price that already beats the top competitors, an industry leading five-year warranty on parts and labor is also included.

Information on the Smart Charge America EV Charger is available at https://smartchargeamerica.com.

About Smart Charge America

Smart Charge America, which currently services 20 cities, has a goal of servicing the top 50 EV-friendly U.S. cities by 2025. Founded in 2007 by Louisiana native Joseph Barletta, Smart Charge America is committed to providing the infrastructure for sustainable electric mobility, one charging station at a time. As the largest dedicated U.S. seller, installer and servicer of electric vehicle chargers, Smart Charge America is leveraging its resources to innovate within its industry, drive down costs and quickly make affordable EV charging products accessible to residential, commercial and utility/municipal markets.

Smart Charge America encourages the widespread adoption of the electric vehicle lifestyle by building trust relationships with existing and future customers through educating about EV charging and by providing superior customer service to those who invest in EV charging stations.

Smart Charge America has partnered with One Tree Planted to plant one tree for each electric car charger installed. To date, SCA has planted more than 5,000 trees.

About Xeal Energy

Xeal is a hyper-growth, venture-backed technology startup headquartered in New York City. Xeal offers multifamily and commercial real estate owners and operators the ability to seamlessly install smart EV charging in their communities with little to no infrastructure upgrades. Clients manage these smart EV charging stations remotely through Xeal's dashboard, providing real-time data on charging sessions, energy management, utilization, and revenue share. Xeal's driver app employs a token-based technology for EV drivers to gain reliable access to charging stations without relying on cellular or garage IT infrastructure. Through Apollo, a groundbreaking decentralized communication protocol, building owners can remotely control and monitor smart charging stations through a bi-directional management channel between user smartphones and EV chargers to establish a more secure, reliable, and cost-effective way to stay connected. Xeal delivers an entirely self-sufficient smart charging experience for drivers, enabling 100% uptime, 50x faster processing speed, and a frictionless user experience. Experience Xeal's recent deployments here or visit www.xealenergy.com for more information.

SOURCE Smart Charge America
MIAMI, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- This year, Spirit of Children, the fundraising arm of Spirit Halloween specialty retail stores across America, has reached its $1 million milestone in donations to support the Child Life program at Nicklaus Children's Hospital. With a mission to make hospitals less scary for kids and their families, Spirit of Children brings fun and funding to hospitals on Halloween and all year round through monetary donations, as well as by providing costumes, accessories, decorations, and most needs for a Halloween party  including volunteers from local Spirit Halloween stores.

Spirit of Children reaches $1 million in donations to support the Child Life program at Nicklaus Children's Hospital. Tweet this Members of Spirit of Children pose with Nicklaus Children's Hospital Child Life specialists during yesterday's event. Nicklaus Children's Hospital patient and father play a "spooky" game of tic-tac-toe during yesterday's event. Nicklaus Children's Hospital patient shows off a new Rainbow Fairy Halloween costume courtesy of Spirit of Children and Spirit Halloween.

Yesterday's event at Nicklaus Children's Hospital offered patients and their families a break from the challenges of being in a hospital by allowing them the opportunity to celebrate Halloween with a costume party, reverse trick-or-treating, a seasonal parade, and other fun activities. Spirit of Children added to the fun by donating activity books, crayons, and treat bags, ensuring everyone gets a chance to enjoy Halloween this year  even those that couldn't join in on the fun in the lobby.

"Everyone at Spirit Halloween is incredibly dedicated to supporting Spirit of Children and helping to sustain the Child Life Programs at our partner hospitals throughout the year," said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. "What is most important to us is that, through the events and activities, children and their families have the opportunity to celebrate during the Halloween season and experience a sense of normalcy during a very trying time."

Child Life specialists play a vital role in helping sick children and their families cope with what can be a complex and challenging time in the hospital. While an estimated 50 percent to 75 percent of children develop fear or anxiety before and during a hospital stay, patients who benefit from Child Life services experience less emotional distress, better coping during the hospital stay, and a more positive physical recovery.

"At Nicklaus Children's Hospital, our Child Life specialists help normalize the hospital experience for children and promote the best possible outcomes through different interventions and activities, including play," explained Matthew A. Love, president and CEO of Nicklaus Children's Health System. "These individuals are crucial to the work that goes on behind the scenes at our hospital, so we thank Spirit of Children and Spirit Halloween for the funding they provide to expand on the work that we do."

Support from Spirit of Children's allows Nicklaus Children's to add staff, extend hours, and provide a wide variety of therapy programs and sensory times to equip staff with the resources needed to support patients throughout the year.

To support the Child Life program at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, visit https://www.nicklauschildrens.org/patient-resources/family-centered-care-services/child-life.

About Nicklaus Children's Hospital

Founded in 1950 by Variety Clubs International, Nicklaus Children's Hospital is South Florida's only licensed specialty hospital exclusively for children, with approximately 800 attending physicians, including more than 500 pediatric subspecialists. The 309-bed hospital, known as Miami Children's Hospital from 1983 through 2014, is renowned for excellence in all aspects of pediatric medicine with many specialty programs routinely ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report since 2008. In the 2022-2023 ranking, the hospital tied with two other hospitals as the number one children's hospital in Florida. The hospital is also home to the largest pediatric teaching program in the southeastern United States and since 2003 has been designated an American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Magnet facility, the nursing profession's most prestigious institutional honor. For more information, please visit www.nicklauschildrens.org

About Spirit of Children

At the heart of Spirit Halloween is Spirit of Children, a program which focuses on making hospitals less scary for kids and their families. Since its creation in 2007, Spirit of Children has raised more than $93 million for the Child Life department at hospitals across the United States and Canada. Donations to Spirit of Children stay within local communities, with 100 percent of funds going to Child Life Services. For the 2022 Halloween season, Spirit of Children will be supporting more than 150 hospitals across the country, with a goal to raise a record $18 million. Spirit encourages customers to help make a difference in a child's life this Halloween season by donating at their local Spirit Halloween or spreading awareness via Facebook and Instagram using #SpiritofChildren and #MoreCowbell in their photos. For more information, please visit: www.SpiritOfChildren.com.

About Spirit Halloween

Spirit Halloween ( SpiritHalloween.com ) is the largest Halloween retailer in the country, with over 1,450 locations in strip centers and malls across North America. Celebrating more than 39 years of business, Spirit is the premier destination for all things Halloween, offering one-stop shopping for everything from costumes to decor and party goods to accessories. In addition to being a fun and interactive event for shoppers, Spirit stores offer complete selections of costumes and accessories for infants/toddlers, children, 'tweens, teens, and adults, along with exclusive decor you won't find anywhere else. For more information, please visit: SpiritHalloween.com.

For more information:

Fuad Kiuhan

Nicklaus Children's Hospital

[email protected]

786 449 4797

SOURCE Nicklaus Childrens Health System
New Additions To The 17-Time Grammy Award Winning Artists' Critically Acclaimed 1987 Solo Album Include 14 Bonus Tracks, 12 of Them Previously Unavailable Digitally

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, A&M/UMe releases a digital-only 35th-Anniversary Expanded Edition of Sting's stunning second solo album, ...Nothing Like the Sun. The album title was lovingly adopted from Shakespeare's Sonnet No. 130 ("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun").

The 26-track Expanded Edition features the original 12 songs on the album plus 14 bonus tracks that consist of B-sides, remixes, alternate versions, and instrumentals (full track listing included below). Listen or purchase Sting's ...Nothing Like the Sun  Expanded Edition HERE.

A&M/UMe releases a digital-only 35th-Anniversary Expanded Edition of Stings stunning second solo album, ...Nothing Like the Sun. The album title was lovingly adopted from Shakespeares Sonnet No. 130 (My mistress eyes are nothing like the sun). The 26-track Expanded Edition features the original 12 songs on the album plus 14 bonus tracks that consist of B-sides, remixes, alternate versions, and instrumentals.

Building on the momentum of his 3x platinum debut solo album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles, ...Nothing Like the Sun tackled a litany of deeply rooted and profoundly personal subjects. As Sting reflected in the liner notes, "I look back on this album, and I realize that the record is about my mother, although I didn't see it at the time. It's about mothers and daughters, mistresses and wives, sisters... Every song has one of these themes. It surprised me." Sting's mother sadly passed away in late 1986, not long before four months' worth of intensive recording sessions for the next album got underway in earnest at AIR Studios in Montserrat in early 1987.

As a result, ...Nothing Like the Sun, which was Sting's first digital recording, is, for the most part, a subdued and reflective album with the exception being the up-tempo lead single, "We'll Be Together," an instant chart hit featuring Annie Lennox among its stellar background vocalists. Other key songs on the album showcased Sting's development as an acclaimed solo artist. The quirky, jazz-inflected "Englishman in New York" tipped its bowler to English ex-pat and expert storyteller Quentin Crisp, while "Fragile" paid homage to an American civil engineer killed in Nicaragua by the Contras. Some of the album's subject matter was born out of what Sting became aware of while participating in Amnesty International's Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986. Narrated in stirringly vivid detail, "They Dance Alone" recounts the actions Sting observed of wives and daughters of certain men in Chile who were tortured and murdered by the then-military dictatorship. These wives and daughters would dance the country's traditional dance known as the Cueca by themselves, with only photos of their missing loved ones pinned to their clothing.

Produced by Sting, Hugh Padgham, Bryan Loren, and Neil Dorfsman, ...Nothing Like the Sun featured a variety of A-list guitarists, including former Police-mate Andy Summers on the album's moving opening track "The Lazarus Heart," Hiram Bullock on the heartfelt cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing," and the triple threat of Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, and Fareed Haque on "They Dance Alone." Another notable topline ...Nothing Like the Sun collaborators include keyboardists Gil Evans and Kenny Kirkland, saxophonist Branford Marsalis, and drummer Manu Katche. In addition to handling arrangement duties and singing all of the album's lead vocals, Sting played bass and double bass, as well as Spanish guitar on "History Will Teach Us Nothing" and acoustic guitar on "Fragile."

...Nothing Like the Sun has been certified 2x platinum by the RIAA, topped the album charts in two countries, the UK and Japan, and also peaked at No. 9 on the US Billboard 200. The album's aforementioned lead single, "We'll Be Together," had a strong chart impact upon its release, ultimately reaching No. 7 on the US Hot 100. The album's second single, "Be Still My Beating Heart," was nominated for two Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 1989, and climbed to No. 2 on Album Rock Tracks, No. 15 on the Hot 100, and No. 37 on Adult Contemporary. The album's other three singles were "Englishman in New York," "Fragile," and "They Dance Alone." In the US, ...Nothing Like the Sun garnered three Grammy nominations in 1989, including Album of the Year. In the UK, ...Nothing Like the Sun received the BPI's Brit Award for Best British Album of the Year in 1988.

Listen or purchase Sting's ...Nothing Like the Sun  Expanded Edition HERE

Sting is managed by Martin Kierszenbaum, Cherrytree Music Company.

sting.com

facebook.com/sting

twitter.com/OfficialSting

instagram.com/theofficialsting

YouTube.com/StingVEVO

STING: ...NOTHING LIKE THE SUN  EXPANDED EDITION [digital only]

The Lazarus Heart Be Still My Beating Heart Englishman in New York History Will Teach Us Nothing They Dance Alone Fragile We'll Be Together Straight To My Heart Rock Steady Sister Moon Little Wing The Secret Marriage Conversation With A Dog [Bonus Track] If You There [Bonus Track] Up From The Skies [Bonus Track] Someone To Watch Over Me [Bonus Track] Ghost in The Strand [Bonus Track] Englishman in New York / Ben Liebrand Mix [Bonus Track] Englishman in New York / Ben Liebrand Mix (Edit) [Bonus Track] Fragile / dj MONK's Extended Vocal Remix Version [Bonus Track] Fragile / dj MONK's Radio Edit Version [Bonus Track] Fragile / dj MONK's Hard Rain Dub Version [Bonus Track] Fragile / Bedroom Rockers Remix Version [Bonus Track] We'll Be Together / Extended Mix [Bonus Track] We'll Be Together / Alternate Version [Bonus Track] We'll Be Together / Instrumental [Bonus Track]

SOURCE A&M/UMe
DURHAM, N.C., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Heart Initiative, the sponsor of the STRONG-HF (Safety, Tolerability and efficacy of Rapid Optimization, helped by NT-proBNP testinG, of Heart Failure therapies) study, announced today the premature termination of the trial. The decision was made after discussion with the study's executive committee, the study PI (Dr. Alexandre Mebazaa) and the Coordinating Center (Momentum Research, Durham, NC represented by Dr. Gad Cotter and Dr. Beth Davison), based on a recommendation from the Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) to stop the study. The DSMB recommended to terminate the study early due to a significantly lower risk of the primary endpoint  180-day all-cause death or heart failure (HF) readmission  in the "high intensity care" arm as compared to the "usual care" arm.

STRONG-HF is a randomized, multi-center, therapeutic strategy trial, designed to assess the safety and efficacy of early and rapid optimization of oral HF therapy supported by frequent visits and NT-proBNP measurements in patients after an acute HF admission.

Guideline-recommended oral HF medications for patients in the "high intensity care" arm were up-titrated to half optimal doses at discharge and to full optimal doses at 2 weeks post- discharge with safety visits 1 week after any up-titration and follow-up visits at 6 weeks and 3 months. At each visit, patients were assessed by physical examination for congestion and blood tests including NT-proBNP measurements.(1,2)

It was planned to enroll 1,800 patients in STRONG-HF. The DSMB decision was based on examination of data of approximately 1,000 patients who had at least 90 days follow-up.

Acute HF is a major contributor to morbidity and mortality of patients with heart failure (HF).(3) Patients admitted for acute HF are at high risk of readmission and death, especially in the first months after hospital discharge.(4,5) Recent analysis from a US registry showed that only a small percentage of patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction are treated with full doses of all guideline directed medical therapies.(6)

The study is an Investigator Initiated Study sponsored by Heart Initiative, Durham, North Carolina, USA and supported by Roche Diagnostics International Ltd. The coordinating center for the study was Momentum Research, Inc. from Durham, North Carolina, USA.

The full STRONG-HF trial results will be presented at the upcoming meeting of the American Heart Association, Nov 7th 2022 at 8:00 AM and submitted for publication shortly.

About Heart Initiative

The Heart Initiative is a non-profit organization created in 2009 whose mission is, through research, to increase public awareness and knowledge of cardiovascular diseases particularly heart failure, and to improve the early diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases through increasing usage of proven therapies and improving adherence. https://www.worldheartinitiative.org/

References:

1. Kimmoun A et al. Eur J Heart Fail (2019) 21, 14591467

2. Cotter G, et al. Eur J Heart Fail (2021) 11, 1981-1982.

3. Chioncel O et al. Eur J Heart Fail 2017;19:12421254.

4. Gheorghiade M, Vaduganathan M, Fonarow GC, Bonow RO. Rehospitalization for heart failure: problems and perspectives. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013;61(4):391403.

5. McDonagh T, Metra M et al, Eur Heart J (2021) 42, 3599-3726

6. Greene SJ, et al. J Am Coll Cardiol (2018) 72, 351-366

SOURCE Momentum Research
DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Students interested in learning about career opportunities in cybersecurity are invited to participate in a free virtual event presented by CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the technology industry and workforce, and Arizona State University's AZNext Workforce Training Accelerator, a program that is building a sustainable workforce development ecosystem.

"Inside Perspectives: Cybersecurity Experts Share Stories from the Field," set for 11 a.m. (MT) on Oct. 18, is designed for broadcast to classrooms. Students, parents and educators are encouraged to register for the event at https://connect.comptia.org/events/view/inside-perspectives-cybersecurity-experts-share-stories.

"As organizations expand their reliance on technology, robust cyber defenses are imperative," said Angel L. Pineiro, Jr., vice president, strategic academic relationships, CompTIA. "Those defenses start with people who, through education and professional certification, have developed robust cybersecurity skills."

Demand for cybersecurity jobs increased by 43% in the 12-month period between May 2021 and April 2022 compared to a nearly 18% increase in demand across the entire employment market, according to CyberSeek, the most comprehensive source of data on America's cybersecurity workforce. Jobs are available at all career levels, including entry-level positions as cybersecurity specialists, cybercrime analysts and other roles.

The program will feature three experts who will share their "day in the life" experiences of working in cybersecurity and why their chosen career is so rewarding. Scheduled speakers include Brigadier General Bernard Skoch (retired), U.S. Air Force, Cyber Defense; Leo Cruz, technical solutions architect, security, U.S. Public Sector  Cisco; and Mike Semel, president and chief compliance officer, Semel Consulting. Howard M. Cohen, senior resultant and creator of compelling content, will moderate the session.

The event is co-sponsored by the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences and the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

Visit Inside Perspectives: Cybersecurity Experts Share Stories from the Field for more information and registration.

About CompTIA

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $5 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the estimated 75 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world's economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for unlocking the potential of the tech industry and its workforce. https://www.comptia.org/

About Arizona State University

Arizona State University is the largest provider of lifelong teaching and learning in the world, with more than 74,000 students on four academic campuses in the Phoenix metropolitan area and an additional 54,000 digital immersion students. https://www.asu.edu/

Media Contact

Steven Ostrowski

CompTIA

[email protected]

630-678-8468

SOURCE CompTIA
Allegro Credit Installment Loan Solution on Sycle Practice Management Software Accelerates Digital Transformation for Hearing Industry Providers;

Partnership to Add Payment Options for Purchase of Hearing Aids and More

STAMFORD, Conn. and DENVER, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Synchrony (NYSE: SYF), a leading consumer financing company, today announced the availability of Allegro Credit, a point of sale consumer financing solution for the hearing industry, on Sycle's practice management platform.

Sycle, a practice management software for the hearing industry, is expanding its relationship with Synchrony to include both the CareCredit healthcare credit card and Allegro Credit installment loan financing solutions.

With the new integration, audiology providers can more quickly and easily deploy a comprehensive set of financing options  from a healthcare credit card to an installment loan. Sycle, a cloud-based practice management software for the audiology industry, is expanding its relationship with Synchrony to include both the CareCredit healthcare credit card and Allegro Credit installment loan financing solutions.

"Synchrony is committed to delivering the right financial product to the right patient, at the right time, through the right channel," said Greg Pierce, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Specialty, Synchrony. "Technology partnerships with leading organizations like Sycle are key to help providers ensure they can meet the demands of today's changing consumer behaviors. With this offering, patients can get the right financing solution for them and obtain the hearing technology they want and need to live connected lives."

Through the integration, when a patient wants to apply, the patient information is automatically transferred to the Allegro Credit application. All the provider or clinic staff member needs to do is complete a few fields of information and click "submit" to receive a credit decision within seconds. Plus, by using the Synchrony integration, clinics can identify patients who are pre-approved right from their Sycle practice management software prior to the patients' appointments, which may help them have more confident financial conversations knowing they can address potential cost concerns before they become a barrier to care. The Allegro Credit integration is in both Sycle platforms  Private Practice and Pro.

"Hearing care providers know how important hearing health is to a patient's qualify of life," said Joel Lockwood, President of Sycle. "By providing more financing choices, a greater number of patients may be able to accept hearing care recommendations without compromising care, helping to improve outcomes. We are additionally excited with this integration as it adds to the overall value our Sycle practice management platforms provide to hearing care professionals; saving them more time and enabling them to become more efficient so they can focus on delivering high quality care."

More information

Find detailed information about Allegro Credit and access a free demo of the new integration features by calling 888-881-7925 or contact [email protected]. If you do not currently accept Allegro Credit but are interested in learning more about how it can benefit your patients and practice or to enroll, call (800) 859-9975, Press 6, Press 2 or visit www.carecredit.com

About Synchrony

Synchrony (NYSE: SYF) is a premier consumer financial services company delivering one of the industry's most complete digitally-enabled product suites. Our experience, expertise and scale encompass a broad spectrum of industries including digital, health and wellness, retail, telecommunications, home, auto, outdoor, pet and more. We have an established and diverse group of national and regional retailers, local merchants, manufacturers, buying groups, industry associations and healthcare service providers, which we refer to as our "partners." We connect our partners and consumers through our dynamic financial ecosystem and provide them with a diverse set of financing solutions and innovative digital capabilities to address their specific needs and deliver seamless, omnichannel experiences. We offer the right financing products to the right customers in their channel of choice. For more information, visit www.synchrony.com and Twitter: @Synchrony.

About Sycle

Sycle is a global Software as a Service (SaaS) company headquartered in Lone Tree, Colorado with offices in Alabama and Vancouver. Sycle provides innovative solutions for managing a modern audiology practice. Sycle was founded in 2001 with a clear mission: To facilitate the delivery of better hearing to the world. It started as an idea to help audiologists better connect with their patients; today, Sycle has evolved into the audiology industry's number one practice management software. Over 8,000 clinics and 20,000 hearing care professionals in 13 countries worldwide depend on Sycle to run their businesses. Sycle develops software and integrations that eliminates tedious tasks and streamlines workflows. This allows clients more time with their patients and ultimately helps them treat more people suffering from hearing loss. To learn more, visit https://sycle.net.

Media Contacts:

Synchrony

Michelle Blaya

[email protected]

Sycle

Donna Fritz

[email protected]

SOURCE Synchrony
DUBLIN, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Solder Materials Market by Type (With Lead, Lead-Free), Product (Bar, Wire, Paste, Flux), Process (Wave/Reflow, Screen Printing, Robotic, Laser), End-Use Industry (Consumer Electronics, Automotive, Industrial) and Region - Global Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global solder materials market is projected to grow from USD 4.1 billion in 2022 to USD 4.9 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 3.8% from 2022 to 2027. The growth of the solder materials market is attributed to their high demand in consumer electronics, automotive and others industries.

Solder bar segment to be the largest product of solder materials

Solder bar melted into solder pots can be a faster, more automated method of soldering than hand-soldering with solder wire. Solder pots that have a pump creating a wave are called wave solder machines, solder fountains, or selective solder machines. Solder bar is used in various applications, including high-tech electronics and printed circuit boards.

Automotive to be the second-largest segment during the forecast period

Soldering materials are used for armatures, radiators, wire harnesses, car electrical systems and other parts required in the automotive industry. Strong alloys are commonly used in this industry. Soldering materials are not only used in new vehicle assembly but are also used in the repair and rework of damaged electronic components in vehicles.

Europe to be the second-largest market for solder materials

Emerging Europe is the second-largest market for solder materials, accounting for a share of 16.8%, in terms of value, in 2021. Henkel (Germany) is the leader of solder materials in the European region, as well as globally. The European automotive sector is proposing a plan comprising 25 actions to support a strong recovery of the sector and the economy of the region.

As part of the action plan, the sector calls for coordinated vehicle-renewal schemes for all vehicle types and categories across the EU. This action is intended to boost private and business demand, support economic recovery across the board as well as accelerate the rejuvenation of the vehicle fleet on Europe's roads.

Key Topics Covered:

1 Introduction

2 Research Methodology

3 Executive Summary

4 Premium Insights

4.1 Asia-Pacific to Witness Relatively Higher Demand for Solder Materials

4.2 Asia-Pacific: Solder Materials Market, by End-Use Industry and Country

4.3 Solder Materials Market, by End-Use Industry

4.4 Solder Materials Market, by Type

4.5 Solder Materials Market, by Product

4.6 Solder Materials Market, by Process

4.7 Solder Materials Market, by Country

5 Market Overview

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Market Dynamics

5.2.1 Drivers

5.2.1.1 Increasing Demand from Electronics Industry

5.2.1.2 Growing Usage in Automotive Industry

5.2.1.3 Growing Demand for Lead-Free Solder Materials

5.2.2 Restraints

5.2.2.1 High Cost of Lead-Free Solders

5.2.3 Opportunities

5.2.3.1 Emergence of Nanoparticle-Based Solder Materials

5.2.4 Challenges

5.2.4.1 Health Risks Associated with Soldering

6 Industry Trends

6.1 Porter's Five Forces Analysis

6.2 Supply Chain Analysis

6.3 Ecosystem Mapping

6.4 Technology Analysis

6.5 Trends/Disruptions Impacting Customers' Business

6.6 Trade Analysis

6.6.1 Import-Export Scenario of Solder Materials Market

6.7 Price Analysis

6.8 Key Conferences & Events in 2022

6.9 Regulatory Analysis

6.9.1 Restriction of Use of Hazardous Substances (Rohs) Regulations

6.9.2 Environmental Protection Agency (Epa)

6.9.3 Ipc J-Std-001 Standard Soldering Requirements

6.10 Patent Analysis

6.10.1 Introduction

6.10.2 Methodology

6.10.3 Document Type

6.10.4 Patent Publication Trends

6.10.5 Insights

6.10.6 Legal Status of Patents

6.10.7 Jurisdiction Analysis

6.10.8 Top Patent Applicants

6.10.9 Top 10 Patent Owners (Us) in Last 10 Years

6.11 Composition and Liquidus Temperatures of Key Solder Materials

7 Solder Materials Market, by Type

7.1 Introduction

7.2 with Lead

7.3 Lead-Free

8 Solder Materials Market, by Product

8.1 Introduction

8.2 Wire

8.3 Bar

8.4 Paste

8.5 Flux

8.6 Others

9 Solder Materials Market, by Process

9.1 Introduction

9.2 Wave/Reflow

9.3 Screen Printing

9.4 Robotic

9.5 Laser

10 Solder Materials Market, by End-Use Industry

10.1 Introduction

10.2 Consumer Electronics

10.3 Automotive

10.4 Industrial

10.5 Building

10.6 Others

11 Solder Materials Market, by Region

12 Competitive Landscape

12.1 Overview

12.2 Companies Adopted New Product Launch as Key Growth Strategy Between 2017 and 2022

12.3 Market Share Analysis

12.4 Revenue Analysis of Top Market Players

12.5 Company Evaluation Quadrant

12.5.1 Stars

12.5.2 Emerging Leaders

12.5.3 Pervasive Companies

12.5.4 Participants

12.6 Sme Matrix, 2021

12.6.1 Progressive Companies

12.6.2 Responsive Companies

12.6.3 Dynamic Companies

12.6.4 Starting Blocks

12.7 Competitive Scenario

12.7.1 Partnerships

12.7.2 Product Launches

13 Company Profiles

13.1 Key Players

13.1.1 Element Solutions Inc.

13.1.2 Lucas Milhaupt Inc.

13.1.3 Qualitek International Inc.

13.1.4 Fusion Inc.

13.1.5 Henkel

13.1.6 Senju Metal Industries Co. Ltd.

13.1.7 Koki Company Limited

13.1.8 Indium Corporation

13.1.9 Tamura Corporation

13.1.10 Stannol GmbH & Co. Kg

13.2 Other Players

13.2.1 Belmont Metals

13.2.2 Genma Europe

13.2.3 Accurus Scientific

13.2.4 Aim

13.2.5 Warton Metals Limited

13.2.6 Duksan Himetal Co. Ltd.

13.2.7 Inventec Performance Chemical

13.2.8 Fakri Metals

13.2.9 Digikey

13.2.10 Waytek

13.2.11 R.S. Hughes

13.2.12 Saru Silver Alloy Private Limited

13.2.13 Balaji Insulation Co.

13.2.14 Superior Flux & Mfg. Co.

13.2.15 Agni Solders

14 Appendix

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/mkcg1o

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Research and Markets

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SOURCE Research and Markets
NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- TUBES  Wines & Spirits by the glass, the Dutch company specializing in bottling wines and spirits in single serve glass and recycled plastic tubes, opens a new facility in Napa, California, in October 2022. This latest expansion brings the modern packaging solution to the U.S. market amid growing success in the gift, travel, sampling, and retail industries.

TUBES provides customers, consumers, and prospects an innovative and sustainable tasting tool through fully customizable elegant tubes of 50ml and 100ml.

Rudy Ruiz, TUBES Strategic Advisor and former CEO of Bacardi USA says, "after 30 years in the industry, I'm excited to see innovation through such a novel format. TUBES allows producers and retailers to bring products to modern consumers through unique tasting experiences."

A Solution to an Evolving Industry

TUBES created an ingenious marketing tool to get liquids on lips. With a single bottle of wine or spirit, brands can reach 7 to 14 clients, raising brand awareness while significantly reducing their waste, cost, and carbon footprint.

"This is my favorite innovation from the pandemic," said Laura Catena, Managing Director of Bodega Catena Zapata. "We made a 5 crus kit for our Adrianna Vineyard 'Vinos de Parcela' that allowed us to tell the story behind the wines in a brief 15-minute tasting." TUBES Founder Glen Ritzen adds, "we're honored to have won the trust of such iconic brands and thrilled to provide them with tools to extend their tasting room into people's homes."

Other acclaimed companies such as VINEBOX, Concha y Toro, Treasury Wine Estates, Vivant, Constellation Brands, Diageo, and Lucas Bols have partnered with TUBES to create entertaining and interactive tasting experiences to engage with their consumers. "In the US three-tier system connecting directly with the consumer is something brands will love" says Ruiz.

Cutting-edge Technology to Preserve Quality

TUBES U.S. facility has the capacity to bottle up to 20 million tubes per year using a patented technology designed to preserve the quality of wines and spirits. Products will be bottled in a full inert environment to avoid any influence of oxygen, maintaining the organoleptic qualities and taste bouquet of every beverage.

Once bottled, wine is preserved between 6-9 months in recycled plastic tubes, and up to 24 months in glass tubes allowing for a qualitative commercial shelf-life. Spirits can be kept in tubes even longer.

TUBES latest expansion will bring this innovative solution to the U.S. and continue to offer countless benefits for producers, retailers, and consumers without compromising the quality of the best wines and spirits. "In a highly competitive industry with unlimited choices, we saw an opportunity to scale the age-old tactic of trial with a modern twist," says Ritzen, "we're delighted to finally serve the U.S. divisions of the great brands we've worked with."

Click here to read more

For more information on TUBES, visit www.wineintubes.com

Contact :

Jen McLean

Sopexa USA c/o TUBES USA

[email protected]

SOURCE TUBES - Wines & Spirits by the Glass
Rise in cybersecurity mandates, developments in cellular-V2X technology, and surge in automotive cybersecurity threat have boosted the growth of the global V2X cybersecurity market.

PORTLAND, Ore., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research recently published a report, titled, "V2X Cybersecurity Market by Unit Type (On-Board Unit, Roadside Unit), by Vehicle Type (Passenger Car, Light Commercial Vehicle, Heavy Commercial Vehicle), by Propulsion Type (ICE, Electric and Hybrid, Others), by Communication (Vehicle-To-Vehicle, Vehicle-To-Infrastructure, Vehicle-To-Grid, Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2021-2031". As per the report, the global V2X Cybersecurity industry accounted for $0.72 billion in 2021, and is expected to reach $5.7 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 21.6% from 2022 to 2031. The report offers a detailed analysis of changing market trends, top segments, key investment pockets, value chains, regional landscapes, and competitive scenarios.

Download FREE Report Sample (353 Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, Figures) at https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/12654

Major determinants of the market growth

Rise in cybersecurity mandates, developments in cellular-V2X technology, and surge in automotive cybersecurity threat have boosted the growth of the global V2X cybersecurity market. However, high cost of implementation and challenges in making secure applications hinder the market growth. On the contrary, rise in demand for connected vehicles and improving vehicle security using adaptive security would open new opportunities in the future.

Covid-19 scenario:

The Covid-19 outbreak forced governments across the world to impose strict lockdown regulations and social distancing rules. Moreover, governments banned the import-export of non-essential raw materials, which created a huge gap in demand-supply.

The production of automotive suffered major losses during the pandemic due to lack of skilled workforce and raw materials. On the other hand, while the pandemic hampered the operations of numerous companies, the number of cyber-attacks increased drastically. This increased the demand for cybersecurity.

The pandemic accelerated the demand for connected mobility, autonomous vehicles, and smart cities, which created new opportunities for the V2X cybersecurity industry.

The on-board unit segment dominated the market growth

By unit type, the on-board unit segment held the largest share in 2021, accounting for more than three-fifths of the global V2X cybersecurity market. In addition, the segment is expected to manifest the highest CAGR of 21.9% during the forecast period, due to growing demand for advanced drive assist systems (ADAS) and connected vehicles. The report includes a detailed analysis of the roadside unit segment.

The light commercial vehicle segment to manifest the highest CAGR through 2031

By vehicle type, the light commercial vehicle segment is projected to register the highest CAGR of 22.3% during the forecast period. This is owing to increase in the implementation of V2X technology in light commercial vehicles to enable data exchange between vehicles and objects in the surroundings and between vehicles and the transportation infrastructure. However, the passenger car segment held the largest share in 2021, contributing to nearly two-thirds of the global V2X cybersecurity market, due to growing demand for semi-autonomous cars.

The electric and hybrid segment held the lion's share

By propulsion type, the electric and hybrid segment held the largest share in 2021, accounting for more than half of the global V2X cybersecurity market, due to increase in demand for fuel-efficient, high-performance, and low-emission vehicles along with stringent government rules & regulations toward vehicle emission. However, the ICE segment is expected to showcase the highest CAGR of 23.6% during the forecast period, owing to adoption of large number of V2X, ADAS, and other connected features equipped with ICE vehicles.

The vehicle-to-vehicle segment to showcase the highest CAGR by 2031

By communication, the vehicle-to-vehicle segment is expected to register the highest CAGR of 22.9% during the forecast period. Moreover, the segment held the largest share in 2021, contributing to more than one-third of the global V2X cybersecurity market, due to increase in use of vehicle-to-vehicle communication to improve traffic management and reduce accidents. The report includes analysis of the vehicle-to-infrastructure, vehicle-to-grid, and others.

Europe held the largest share

By region, the global V2X cybersecurity market across Europe held the largest share in 2021, accounting for more than one-third of the market. Furthermore, the region is expected to showcase the highest CAGR of 23.0% during the forecast period, owing to rise in adoption of telematics & GNSS in fleet management services and population increase in the region. The report includes an analysis of the market across North America, LAMEA, and Europe.

Interested to Procure the Data with Actionable Strategy & Insights? Inquire Before Buying - https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/12654

Major market players

Altran

APTIV

AUTOCRYPT Co., Ltd.

Autotalks Ltd.

Continental AG

ESCRYPT

Green Hills Software LLC.

HARMAN International

ID Quantique SA

Infineon Technologies AG

Karamba Security

NXP Semiconductors

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

SafeRide Technologies

Vector Informatik GmbH

The report analyzes these key players in the global V2X cybersecurity market. These players have adopted various strategies such as expansion, new product launches, partnerships, and others to increase their market penetration and strengthen their position in the industry. The report is helpful in determining the business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and developments by every market player.

Similar Reports We Have on Cybersecurity Industry:

Automotive Cybersecurity Market Expected to Reach $32.41 Billion, at 16.6% CAGR During 2021-2030

Railway Cybersecurity Market Expected to Reach $14.69 Billion, at 5.1% CAGR During 2021-2030

Military Sensors Cybersecurity Solutions Market by Platform, Application, Research Report 20202031

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We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Allied Market Research CEO Pawan Kumar is instrumental in inspiring and encouraging everyone associated with the company to maintain high quality of data and help clients in every way possible to achieve success. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
SUDBURY, ON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Today Vale Canada Limited officially opened the initial phase of its CDN$945 million Copper Cliff Complex South Mine Project in Sudbury, Canada.

"This first phase of the Copper Cliff Mine Complex South Project enhances our supply of low-carbon nickel and other critical minerals and adds to the long-term sustainability of our Sudbury operations," said Deshnee Naidoo, Executive Vice-President of Vale's Base Metals business. "The successful delivery of this project is a major accomplishment for Vale and great news for Sudbury and the Province of Ontario."

The celebratory event was attended by Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Mines Minister George Pirie, Sudbury MP Viviane Lapointe, Nickel Belt MP Marc Serre, Sudbury MPP Jamie West, Nickel Belt MPP France Gelinas, Greater Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger as well as local Indigenous leaders and officials from United Steelworkers Local 6500.

More than 12 kilometres of tunnels were developed to reunite the south and north shafts of Copper Cliff Mine, creating a new Copper Cliff Mine Complex. The project created 270 new jobs and spanned more than 5 million people hours moving over 600,000 tons of rock. Work comprised rehabilitating the south shaft, expansion for underground ore and waste handling systems and surface loadout and facilities, as well as the construction of new ventilation systems.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said, "Today's announcement demonstrates our government's commitment to safely extracting the province's critical minerals and strengthening our homegrown supply chains. This mine will create hundreds of new jobs for our skilled workers and be a major boost for the economy of this region. We are thrilled that Vale is deepening its commitment to Ontario and can assure them that there is no better place for investment than right here in Sudbury."

Phase 1 is expected to nearly double ore production at Copper Cliff Mine, adding roughly 10,000 tonnes per year of contained nickel and 13,000 tonnes per year of copper.

"Vale is investing $945 million in this expansion project that will increase Ontario's supply of low-carbon critical minerals and provide jobs for over 250 people," said George Pirie, Ontario Minister of Mines. "This is great news for the entire region and another example of how Ontario is a leader in developing the critical minerals we need for innovative technologies like electric vehicles. Our government knows the sector's best days are ahead and we will continue our strong support for the industry."

Feasibility studies are currently underway for future development phases of the Copper Cliff Mine Complex, with potential to deliver sustainable and responsibly sourced minerals essential for a low carbon economy well into the future.

SOURCE Vale Canada Limited
SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Global vaping brand VAPORESSO was recently recognized by the American MUSE Design Awards as being a global leader in creative design. The prestigious awards group granted VAPORESSO with 6 awards for product design (2 Gold and 4 Silver) for 6 products, following on from the brand's recognition by the 2022 Red Dot Awards.

The MUSE Design Awards is an international competition for any and all designers whose craftsmanship shifts paradigms. For the 2022 batch of entrants, VAPORESSO LUXE X and ZERO S both earned gold across a range of factors, whilst the XROS 3, XROS NANO, GEN 200, and GEN 80S earned silver.

The gold award-winning LUXE X was praised for its exceptional sci-fi-like appearance, raising the industry standard for product design and aesthetics. Aside from official recognition by awards programs, the LUXE X has also proven to be greatly sought after by consumers, with hundreds lining up in front of stores across the UK and France to be the first in line to purchase the products on launch throughout August.

Upon receiving the awards, VAPORESSO CMO, Thalia said, "At VAPORESSO, we take pride in being leaders in creative design and are committed to creating new and innovative products. These awards are further evidence that the creative industry at large recognizes our brand as being a market leader in product design, and confirms to us that we are on the right track."

In continuing to put users at the forefront of design innovations, the incoming LUXE XR is the newest iteration of the highly-popular LUXE X. This next-gen product is mod-able and features a whole new look, combining the latest in cutting-edge atomization technology with emerging fashion trends and user-friendly designs. The LUXE XR pod is equipped with COREX heating tech and fully compatible with GTX coils including 0.4ohm/0.6ohm/0.8ohm/1.2ohm sizes, allowing for different airflows and more customizability.

VAPORESSO continues to be at the forefront of atomization technology and products, with the new XROS 3 set to be officially released on October 28 and open for pre-orders from November.

About VAPORESSO

VAPORESSO was created in 2015 and is dedicated to establishing a smoke-free world while raising the quality of life for its users. Based on its continuous innovation, strict quality control, and substantial commitment, VAPORESSO creates products that can fit all levels and styles of vapers.

[email protected]

SOURCE VAPORESSO
KILLEEN, Texas, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Thousands of Marines, contractors and their families are coming forward to join claims against the U.S. government in Camp Lejeune Lawsuits.

Congress passed the Camp Lejeune Act as part of the PACT Act, which clears a path for servicemembers and their families to file personal injury lawsuits for illnesses suffered from pollutants. For decades, toxic chemicals contaminated the water supply that fed the North Carolina military base. While Veterans have been able to apply for VA disability benefits for exposure to the pollutants, any personal injury recovery was out of reach until now. Veterans and their families can now pursue a case under the PACT act in addition to disability claims through the VA, which can sometimes be more restrictive.

The Carlson Law Firm is representing clients who:

Served, lived or worked at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987; and

between 1953 and 1987; and Were diagnosed with a serious illness or birth injury.

"We are also representing clients who were in utero at the time their parent lived or worked at the base," Managing Partner Craig Carlson said.

The contaminated water led to serious birth injuries in the babies of pregnant women who consumed the water, as well as miscarriages. In addition, those who lived or served at the military base suffered from several types of cancer, aplastic anemia, female infertility, Parkinson's disease and several other conditions due to the water.

"Our clients' lives have been completely altered by their service in the military," Carlson said. "As a Veteran, I know the kinds of sacrifices the men and women in uniform make. I'm happy that the Camp Lejeune Justice Act allows them to recover, and I'm even more proud to help them get what they're long overdue."

Who is The Carlson Law Firm?

In addition to assisting with Camp Lejeune claims, The Carlson Law Firm is a Veteran Owned & Operated law firm that represents thousands of Veterans in several other legal matters that have affected active duty and retired military:

EFP/IED & State Sponsored Terrorism Lawsuits

PFAS water contamination claims

Defective Military Earplugs lawsuits against 3M

Defective Philips CPAP machines issued to several military members

Helping Veterans recover GI Bill losses from for-profit colleges like DeVry and the University of Phoenix

Our Camp Lejeune Lawyers are committed to ensuring our clients receive a just settlement.

Media Contact:

Kazia Conway

[email protected]

Follow The Carlson Law Firm: Twitter , Facebook , Linked In

SOURCE The Carlson Law Firm
DUBLIN, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Rearing Product Type (Equipment, Chemicals, Fertilizers, Pharmaceuticals), By Culture, By Species, By Culture System, By Production Type, By Distribution Channel, By Region, Competition Forecast & Opportunities, 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Vietnam aquaculture market is projected to witness impressive growth during the forecast period, 2023-2027

The growing demand for aquatic companion animals and increasing consumption of seafood in the country are driving the demand for the Vietnam aquaculture market. Seaweed, fish, mollusks, and other aquatic items can be produced through farming just as easily as they can be obtained by fishing in sea and ocean waters.

The demand for seafood products is expanding quickly, and the country is exporting more goods to its neighbors and to nations like Russia and Poland, which is positively impacting the market growth. Aquatic plants and animals are now being produced at significant levels to meet the growing consumer requirements. Rising penetration of commercial food chains and growing tourism industry are also supporting the growth of the Vietnam aquaculture market.



The rapidly growing e-commerce sector and use of social media platforms are boosting the growth of the FMCG industry. The availability of high-speed internet connection and the proliferation of smart devices are enabling the market players reach a wider set of consumers. Therefore, the emergence of online sales channels and enhanced security on online payments are expected to influence market demand positively.



The Vietnam aquaculture market is segmented on the basis of rearing product type, culture, species, culture system, production type, distribution channel, competitive landscape, and regional distribution. Based on species, the market is bifurcated into Aquatic Animals v/s Aquatic Plants.

Aquatic animals are expected to hold the largest market share in the forecast period, 2023-2027. Fish, shrimp, and other aquatic animals are in high demand as household pets and for consumption. Consumers are also drawn to aquatic plants like seaweed and microalgae to enhance aquarium decor at home, which might lead to significant growth in the Vietnam aquaculture industry over the next five years.



The major market players operating in the Vietnam aquaculture market are Ca Mau Seafood Processing & Service Joint Stock Corporation, Minh Phu Seafood Corporation, Vinh Hoan Corporation, Quoc Viet Co. Ltd, Dong Nam Seafood Corporation, Phuong Dong Seafood Co., Ltd., SOC Trang Seafood Joint Stock Company, Thuan Hung Fisheries Company Ltd.

Objective of the Study:

To analyze the historical growth in the market size of the Vietnam aquaculture from 2017 to 2021.

aquaculture from 2017 to 2021. To estimate and forecast the market size of Vietnam aquaculture market from 2023 to 2027 and growth rate until 2027.

aquaculture market from 2023 to 2027 and growth rate until 2027. To classify and forecast the Vietnam aquaculture market based on rearing product type, culture, species, culture system, production type, distribution channel, region, and company.

aquaculture market based on rearing product type, culture, species, culture system, production type, distribution channel, region, and company. To identify the dominant region or segment in the Vietnam aquaculture market.

aquaculture market. To identify drivers and challenges for the Vietnam aquaculture market.

aquaculture market. To examine competitive developments such as expansions, new product launches, mergers & acquisitions, etc., in the Vietnam aquaculture market.

aquaculture market. To identify and analyze the profiles of leading players operating in the Vietnam aquaculture market.

aquaculture market. To identify key sustainable strategies adopted by market players in Vietnam aquaculture market.

Competitive Landscape

Company Profiles: Detailed analysis of the major companies present in Vietnam aquaculture market.

Ca Mau Seafood Processing & Service Joint Stock Corporation

Minh Phu Seafood Corporation

Vinh Hoan Corporation

Quoc Viet Co. Ltd

Dong Nam Seafood Corporation

Phuong Dong Seafood Co., Ltd.

SOC Trang Seafood Joint Stock Company

Thuan Hung Fisheries Company Ltd

Report Scope

Years considered for this report:

Historical Years: 2017-2020

Base Year: 2021

Estimated Year: 2022

Forecast Period: 2023-2027

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Rearing Product Type:

Equipment

Containment Equipment

Water Pumps and Filters

Water Circulating and Aerating Equipment

Cleaning Equipment

Feeders

Others

Chemicals

Fertilizers

Pharmaceuticals

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Culture:

Freshwater

Marine

Brackish Water

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Species:

Aquatic Animals

Shrimps

Tilapia

Crustaceans

Mollusks

Others

Aquatic Plants

Seaweeds

Microalgae

Others

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Culture System:

Extensive

Semi-Extensive

Intensive

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Production Type:

Small Scale

Medium & Large Scale

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Distribution Channel:

Traditional Retail

Supermarkets and Hypermarkets

Specialized Retailers

Online Stores

Others

Vietnam Aquaculture Market, By Region:

Northern Region

Central Region

Southern Region

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/2i8qou

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]

For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900

U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Research and Markets
BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) will host its third quarter earnings conference call on Wednesday, November 2 at 9:00 a.m. CT (10:00 a.m. ET). Financial results will be released before the NYSE market opens.

The Company invites investors and other interested parties to listen to the live webcast of the conference call at www.vulcanmaterials.com. To participate by phone, call 800-343-4136 approximately 10 minutes before the scheduled start. For international calls, the number is 203-518-9843. The conference ID is 5944810.

A replay of the webcast will be available after the call at the Company's website.

Vulcan Materials Company, a member of the S&P 500 index with headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama, is the nation's largest supplier of construction aggregates  primarily crushed stone, sand and gravel  and a major producer of aggregates-based construction materials, including asphalt and ready-mixed concrete. For additional information about Vulcan, go to www.vulcanmaterials.com.

Investor Contact: Mark Warren (205) 298-3220

Media Contact: Janet Kavinoky (205) 298-3220

SOURCE Vulcan Materials Company
WINNIPEG, MB, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - PADM Medical PRECISION ECO Plant based procedural mask with earloops receives emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. FDA  It is the world's first plant based procedural mask to receive EUA for use in medical and healthcare settings

PADM Medical Group of Companies (PADM Medical Canada and PADM Medical USA), a global leader in the design and development of sustainable medical consumables and eco-friendly sustainable medical products, announced today that it has received its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)1 to market PRECISION ECO, the world's first plant based, procedural mask with ear loops for use in healthcare and medical settings2 in the United States of America3.

Billions of petroleum based, synthetic disposable surgical masks are discarded globally on an annual basis. Increasingly, governments and consumers are recognizing the environmental threats posed world-wide by this plastic pollution. Most disposable Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) consists of petroleum based, non-biodegradable polymers that can take up to 450 years to decompose in our landfills, rivers, lakes, and other natural environments.

PADM Medical's PRECISION ECO Plant Based procedural masks, made using ECOFUSE plant-based materials manufactured by Roswell Textiles from renewable crop resources, will help reduce the adverse impact on the environment of petroleum based, single use disposable face masks. The ECOFUSE materials are industrially compostable and by being plant based, help reduce the CO2 emissions of PRECISION ECO by approximately 55% compared to conventional petroleum-based masks. PRECISION ECO procedural masks generate carbon credits as a result of the net carbon reduction.

Additionally, the PRECISION ECO Compostable/Plant Based Procedural Mask with Earloops is a USDA Certified Biobased product under the USDA BioPreferred Program with a biobased content of 82%.

"The EUA on the PRECISION ECO product is a milestone. It is a reward to our commitment to making eco-conscious products to support the health and wellness of all individuals and our planet. This commitment drives us as a company as we continue to innovate for a greener and more sustainable world. We are working in collaboration with our global partners to develop the vast potential of our PRECISION ECO plant based/compostable masks." said Martin Petrak, PADM Medical Group CEO.

Derek Atkinson, VP of Business Development at TotalEnergies Corbion added: "We should not accept the limitations of the current way of doing things as being the only way. As we try to minimize the impact of our products on the environment, it is these developments that help us realize these ambitions." He continued, "as the supplier to PADM Medical Group of the high purity polylactic acid (Luminy PLA) needed in the production of these groundbreaking biobased surgical masks, we are delighted to learn that PADM has succeeded in obtaining Emergency Use Authorization from the US FDA."

For more information about PADM Medical and PRECISION ECO visit: www.padmmedicalusa.com

About PADM Medical

PADM Medical Group (padmmedical.com) is a global leader in design and development of medical devices, specifically eco-friendly sustainable medical consumables, and products. PADM Medical Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of the PADM Group of Companies. The PADM organization is an operationally diverse entity with a defining focus and expertise in highly technical and advanced manufacturing.

About TotalEnergies Corbion

TotalEnergies Corbion (formerly known as Total Corbion PLA) is a global technology leader in Poly Lactic Acid (PLA) and lactide monomers. PLA is a biobased and biodegradable polymer made from annually renewable resources, offering a reduced carbon footprint versus traditional plastics. The Luminy PLA portfolio, which includes both high heat and standard PLA grades, is an innovative material that is used in a wide range of markets from packaging to consumer goods, fibers and automotive. TotalEnergies Corbion, headquartered in the Netherlands, operates a 75,000 tons per year PLA production facility in Rayong, Thailand and has recently announced the intention to build a second plant in Grandpuits, France. The company is a 50/50 joint venture between TotalEnergies and Corbion. www.totalenergies-corbion.com

__________ 1 The product has not been FDA cleared or approved.

2 The product has been authorized by FDA under an EUA for use in healthcare settings by Health Care Practitioners (HCP) as PPE to provide a physical barrier to fluids and particulate materials to prevent HCP exposure to respiratory droplets and large particles during surgical mask shortages resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

3 This product is authorized only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of medical devices, including alternative products used as medical devices, during the COVID-19 outbreak, under section 564(b)(1) of the Act, 21 U.S.C.  360bbb-3(b)(1) unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner.

SOURCE PADM Medical
Yealink's SmartVision 60 provides an inclusive experience for hybrid meetings

XIAMEN, China, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Yealink (Stock Code: 300628), a global leading unified communications (UC) solution provider, has launched its brand-new artificial intelligence (AI)-powered 360-degree all-in-one camera, SmartVision 60, to a global audience at Microsoft Ignite, the technology giant's largest annual event for industry professionals and developers worldwide. The latest next generation product to be released by Yealink, the SmartVision 60 makes hybrid meetings accessible for everyone. Designed for small to medium-sized meeting rooms, the SmartVision 60 is fully compatible with Microsoft Teams and integrates an 10K resolution, 360-degree camera, two sets of multi-functional microphones, and a state-of-the-art speaker system, to deliver an inclusive and immersive experience for all hybrid meeting participants.

Yealink launches its brand-new intelligent 360-degree all-in-one camera, SmartVision 60, to a global audience at Microsoft Ignite

According to new McKinsey survey, 90% of organizations will be adopting a hybrid work model in the post-pandemic future of work. In light of this situation, a growing number of companies are considering how to ensure that all attendees can have the same experience in a hybrid meeting, even if they are not onsite. Yealink's SmartVision 60 solves the problem that remote attendees of hybrid meetings often encounter  not being able to see or hear properly, and generally feeling disconnected from what's going on. Instead, it ensures no one is left out.

360-Degree 10K Panoramic Camera, No Hidden Attendees

With the 360-degree coverage and center-of-the-table perspective, no one in the meeting will be hidden from view. What's more, the all-new 10K resolution camera delivers stunning images, with more detail than ever before.

Multi-Stream People Feed Feature, Include Everyone Equally

Seamlessly compatible with Microsoft Teams, the Multi-Stream People Feed feature creates individual video feeds of four in-room active speakers and stitches them together, showing the panoramic view of the room at the same time. The feature enables everyone at the conference table to appear front and center on the screen crystal-clear. No facial expressions and body language will be ignored again even in a hybrid meeting. Every conversation can be vivid and immersive.

Intelligent Voice Assistant and Transcription

With two sets of multi-functional microphones, the SmartVision 60 easily covers a 20-foot (6m) audio pickup radius from all angles in medium rooms. In addition to this, it supports AI features including Cortana voice assistant and automatic speech-to-text live transcription, with speakers identified by their names.

The SmartVision 60 is included in the Yealink MVC S60 Microsoft Teams Rooms system for native Teams meeting experience. The MVC S60 bundle video solution includes SmartVision 60 intelligent 360-degree all-in-one camera, MCore Pro mini-PC, MTouch Plus touch panel and WPP30 wireless presentation pod to enable hybrid yet high-quality Microsoft Teams conversations and collaborations. Integrated with leading PC manufacturers, the SmartVision 60 also allows users to choose a mini-PC from Dell or Lenovo for their Microsoft Teams Rooms.

Explore more about Yealink SmartVision 60 at Microsoft Ignite onsite at the Seattle Convention Center between October 12-14 or online here.

About Yealink Inc.

Yealink (Stock Code: 300628) is a global brand that specializes in video conferencing, voice communications and collaboration solutions with best-in-class quality, innovative technology and user-friendly experience. As one of the best providers in more than 140 countries and regions, Yealink is Top5 video conferencing provider (IDC Global Video Conferencing Market Statistics 2021), and ranks No.1 in the global market share of SIP phone shipments (Global IP Desktop Phone Growth Excellence Leadership Award Report, Frost & Sullivan, 2020). For more information, or to become a Yealink partner, please visit: www.yealink.com.

[email protected]

SOURCE Yealink
Zenoh, an innovative, power-efficient middleware, and Cyclone DDS, a best-in-class OMG DDS implementation, are poised to accelerate growth, innovation and adoption in robotics and autonomous vehicles

PARIS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ZettaScale Technology , an innovator of technologies to communicate, compute and store at any scale, is demonstrating its two advanced and highly anticipated protocols at ROSCon 2022. The company is showcasing Zenoh, which unifies data in motion, data at rest and computations from embedded microcontrollers up to the data center. It will also demonstrate Cyclone DDS, a best-in-class OMG DDS implementation that combines DDS (data distribution service) and TSN (time sensitive networking) capabilities.

ZettaScale is positioned to serve as a key enabler for R2X and V2X applications thanks to the significant advancements it's delivering in performance, energy efficiency, scalability and integration.

ROSCon 2022 is scheduled Oct 19 - 21 at the Kyoto International Conference Center in Kyoto, Japan. In addition to the demonstrations, ZettaScale, which is a gold sponsor of the event, will also be presenting a technical paper titled "Zenoh: How to Make ROS2 Work at any Scale and Integrate with Anything." The paper will examine how Zenoh can be leveraged to enable ROS2 communication across the Internet, REST pub/sub to ROS2, ROS2-MQTT communication, and ROS2 record/replay.

At ROSCon, ZettaScale will demonstrate how Zenoh can be readily used to add real-time monitoring and teleoperation to existing ROS2 based robots, including real-time video-streaming. The demonstration also will highlight how to easily integrate micro-controllers to extend the level of interactions of robots with their environments. ZettaScale will also unveil a new data-flow framework, Zenoh-Flow, which facilitates the development of robot swarms and autonomous driving.

"Zenoh is the most innovative protocol available on the market," said Angelo Corsaro, PhD, ZettaScale CEO. "It was designed ground-up to overcome the limitations of existing protocols and to address the requirements of next generation Internet scale and real-time applications, such as robotics, autonomous vehicles, and Internet-scale HPC. Innovation that challenges the status-quo and solves challenging user problems is our mantra."

Zenoh combines and extends the capabilities found in protocols such as DDS and MQTT (message queuing telemetry transport) with NDN (name data networking) to provide location-transparent abstractions for high performance pub/sub and distributed queries across geo-distributed and heterogeneous storage technologies.

The most recent release of the Zenoh protocol, code named Bahamut , delivers a number of enhancements, including a streamlined API for Rust, C, and Python; improved performance delivering more than 51 Gbps and 15us latency; support for a wide range of network transport; and much more.

In addition to Zenoh, the company will also demonstrate, in partnership with TTTech Auto , the capabilities of its Cyclone DDS protocol when combined with TSN. Current testing and reporting within the industry is highlighting that Cyclone DDS is the highest performance, most secure and reliable implementation of the OMG DDS standard available on the market.

Most recently, ZettaScale partnered with TTTech Auto to deliver MotionWise Cyclone DDS . The partnership combines TTTech Auto's Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) and safe real-time software expertise with ZettaScale's open-source Cyclone DDS. The product will be safety-certified under ISO 26262, and be made available for automotive and non-automotive applications, including those that are a part of ZettaScale's existing robotics and mission critical markets.

About ZettaScale

ZettaScale's mission is to bring to every connected human and machine the unconstrained freedom to communicate, compute and store  anywhere, at any scale, efficiently and securely. The company develops open source communication middleware that underpins next-generation robotics, transportation and mission critical applications. As devices in the physical world become connected, instrumented and interdependent, ZettaScale enables device creators to easily achieve robust, secure and scalable communication. https://zettascale.tech

ZettaScale was spun out from ADLINK Technology Inc. in 2022, with a strategic investment from TTTech Auto. ZettaScale has offices in the U.K., France and The Netherlands.

Contact

Ken Zeszutko / Z Corp PR & Digital / 321-213-1818 / [email protected]

SOURCE ZettaScale
MBE Designation Reflects the Organization's Ongoing Commitment to Foster Talent from Diverse Backgrounds

BOCA RATON, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Zeus Financial, LLC (member FINRA/MSRB/SIPC), a Boca Raton-based broker-dealer that provides price discovery and best execution and engages in new issue distribution of a broad range of fixed income securities, was recently awarded the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) designation by the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) in August 2022.

Zeus Financial's MBE designation is special among broker-dealers who seek to provide liquidity in fixed income investment products for institutional buyers. "The firm has been diverse since its founding in 2017," notes finance industry veteran and CEO Vincent "Vince" Butkevits. He adds, "We represent diverse backgrounds with a range of experience and expertise in the fixed income arena. Investing our time and knowledge in the next generation of traders will help us all grow stronger together."

"I'm proud to be part of an organization that creates pathways for talented individuals  including minorities and women  to learn from some of the best in the industry." Tweet this

Zeus is an employee-owned company with an average of 20+ years' experience among its traders and over 100+ years' combined experience in the C-suite alone. The company has much to offer the next generation of traders and financial professionals seeking to build generational wealth. Our commitment to diversity is displayed through Zeus' founding members: Chief Compliance Officer Ralph Achille is Haitian American, EVP MBS Trading Steven Hampton is of Latin American ancestry, Managing Director Pardeep Kumar is of Indian/Asian American heritage, and Majority Owner/Board Member Leticia Butkevits is of Puerto Rican descent.

Chief Operating Officer and Chief Risk Officer Gary Galarpe, who is Filipino American, believes that "the MBE designation is emblematic of Zeus Financial's ongoing push to find great talent." He also comments that, "I'm proud to be part of an organization that creates pathways for talented individuals  including minorities and women  to learn from some of the best in the industry."

Zeus Financial's enduring commitment to their MBE designation and to diversity will be on full display as their business continues to grow and be recognized in the financial community. Zeus strives to become an industry leader and epitomize the role that minority-owned broker-dealers should command in the fixed income trading business for years to come.

About Zeus Financial LLC

Headquartered in Boca Raton, FL with offices in New York, NY and Charlotte, NC, Zeus Financial, LLC (member FINRA/MSRB/SIPC) is a registered broker-dealer engaged in the wholesale distribution of a broad range of fixed income securities. Zeus seeks to offer both liquidity and new issue distribution to all of its institutional accounts in Mortgage-Backed Securities, Municipal Bonds, CDs and Structured Products. As a certified Minority Business Enterprise, Zeus is committed to finding the best talent to support its continued growth and innovation. For more information, visit www.zeusbd.com.

Media Contact:

Gary Galarpe, CCO/CRO

[email protected]

980-353-3495

SOURCE Zeus Financial, LLC
Zoe Barry Among the Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs at 2022 Builders and Innovators Summit

BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) is recognizing Zingeroo Founder and CEO Zoe Barry as one of the Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs of 2022 at its Builders and Innovators Summit in Healdsburg, California.

Zoe Barry Among the Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs at 2022 Builders and Innovators Summit

Goldman Sachs selected Zoe Barry from multiple industries to be honored at the two-day event. Zoe is the Founder and CEO of Zingeroo, making her the first woman to launch a brokerage or retail trading platform in the United States in the last decade. Zingeroo makes investing competitive, social, and educational and has raised $8.5M to date. The Zingeroo trading app launched in 3Q21 and is available for download in iOS store.

Zoe began her career on Wall Street working for the hedge fund Dawson Capital. She was inspired to found her first company in 2012, ZappRx, when a family member was diagnosed with a severe condition that required specialized therapy. ZappRx was best described as the "Amazon Prime for $100K/year specialty medication." As a sole founder, Barry raised over $42M for ZappRx before the company was acquired by Allscripts in June of 2019.

"We've worked tirelessly to bring a social and competitive experience to investing turning an otherwise lonely and difficult activity into a series of fun challenges among friends," stated Zoe Barry. "Zingeroo's motto is never boring. Our goal is to make investing exciting and educational  we are bringing scores of young people into the market for the first time who would otherwise be on the sidelines. By design, our interface encourages risk-management, education, and smart investing. While we got our start with stocks and options, we're more excited than ever to be expanding into crypto in the coming months."

"We're delighted to recognize Zoe Barry as one of the most exceptional entrepreneurs of 2022," said David M. Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs. "They have made extraordinary contributions to a wide range of fields, and all of us are looking forward to meeting with these innovative thinkers."

In addition to honoring the most exceptional entrepreneurs, the Summit consists of general sessions and clinics led by seasoned entrepreneurs, academics and business leaders as well as resident scholars.

About Zingeroo:

Founded by serial entrepreneur Zoe Barry, Zingeroo is a commission-free trading app that transforms investing into a series of fun, educational competitions between friends. Launched in Q3, 2021, Zingeroo has attracted legions of users, many of whom have come from other solo trading platforms along with many others who are investing for the first time ever.

Disclosure:

This is not an offer, solicitation of an offer, or advice to buy or sell securities, or open a brokerage account in any jurisdiction where Z-Squared Securities LLC (Z-Squared) is not registered. All securities and investments are offered to self-directed customers by Z-Squared, member FINRA & SIPC Z-Squared Securities LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Zingeroo Inc. (Zingeroo)."

Press Related Questions, please contact Sophia Anthony at [email protected].

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/zingeroo-honored-by-goldman-sachs-for-entrepreneurship-301649081.html



SOURCE Zingeroo
Lucknow, Oct 13 : The Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) has sought a report in connection with clashes in Sultanpur after some clerics alleged that action was being taken against one side.

The police have booked 55 people and arrested 30 in connection with the clashes during a procession for Durga idol immersion in Sultanpur on Monday.

At least 12 persons had suffered minor injuries in the incident.

Cleric Maulana Mehatrul Islam said that those booked in the case were mainly from the minority community.

Police have charged the accused with attempt to murder and registered a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Act, 2020.

Superintendent of Police, Sultanpur, Somen Barma said, "On the basis of CCTV footage and video clips of the incident, 55 people have been identified of whom 30 have been arrested. The arrested persons include the principal and maulvi of a madrassa who had reportedly incited the mob to hurl stones at the procession." The officer said that the statements of residents present at the spot would also be recorded. Cops are also making efforts to identify the people whose vehicles got damaged during the violence and get their case registered.

"Both sides were party to the violence," he said.

Around 6 p.m. on October 10, at least 50 people were taking out a procession for Durga idol immersion. When the procession reached Ibrahimpur locality, members of the minority community objected to the loud music and asked the processionists to lower the volume as they were offering 'namaz'.

An argument ensued which resulted in a clash between the two groups.
Bareilly, Oct 13 : The nephew of Uttar Pradesh minister Arun Kumar Saxena has been booked for allegedly trying to mow down workers of a restaurant when they refused to serve him food after closure of the outlet.

According to the complaint filed with the police, Amit Kumar Saxena, the nephew of Arun Kumar Saxena, abused the staff for failing to serve his colleague as the restaurant had closed.

He allegedly tried to ram his car into a group of restaurant workers for refusing to serve him. The workers were standing outside the restaurant when the incident took place.

SP City Bareilly Rahul Bhati said that the staff had to flee to save their lives and the car ended up destroying a cot lying there.

Inspector Meher Singh, in-charge of the police station of Prem Nagar said that when the police reached the spot, the accused had fled.

A case has been registered on the complaint of the hotel owner Naresh Kashyap's son Sushant Kashyap under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Kashyap claims to be a BJP worker.

He claimed that after the incident, he reached the minister's house to complain but was told that the minister was sleeping.
United Nations, Oct 13 : Maintaining its record of neutrality, India has abstained on a UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territories, declaring that it is consistent with New Delhi's "well thought out national position", and has called for a diplomatic solution.

The resolution, which received 143 votes, with only five countries voting against it, and 35 abstaining on Wednesday at the Assembly's emergency session, passed with the required two-thirds majority showing Russia's isolation.

The Assembly action followed Moscow's veto of a similar resolution on October 1 in the Security Council.

Explaining India's decision, Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj said that with its "firm resolve to strive for a peaceful solution through dialogue and diplomacy, India has decided to abstain".

At the same time, she directed criticism at Russia without naming it: "We have consistently advocated that no solution can ever be arrived at the cost of human lives. Escalation of hostilities and violence is in no one's interest." Prime Minister Narendra Modi "has said unequivocally that this cannot be an era of war", she said citing his remark in the presence of Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

She also quoted from External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's speech at the Assembly in September in which he implied support for Ukraine in the conflict, saying, "We are on the side that respects the UN Charter and its founding principles".

In the run-up to today's vote at the Assembly, India had voted with the West and in opposition to Russia on three procedural motions that did not affect its neutrality in a substantive way.

India had also abstained on the recent resolution in the Security Council and on the two resolutions in the General Assembly condemning Russia in March.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had spoken with Prime Minister Modi last week amid intense diplomatic push for support for the resolution.

During the call, according to the External Affairs Ministry, the Prime Minister had told Zelensky that there could not a be military solution and dialogue was the way to end the conflict. He also offered India's readiness to work on peace efforts.

Further, he emphasised the importance of respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of nations, the ministry said.

Before the vote at the Assembly, Russia's Permanent Representative Vasily Nebenza repeated Moscow's assertions that the four regions of Ukraine had voted in the 90 per cent range in referendums to join Russia.

Ukraine and several countries have called the referendums an illegal sham because they were held under military occupation.

Nebenza accused the Western countries of threatening nations with economic consequences if they did not vote with them and had demanded a secret ballot, which was rejected by the Assembly.

Moscow retained its support of four that it had in the two Assembly resolutions in March, although Eritrea abstained this time, while Nicaragua switched position to back Russia.

China abstained on the vote.

Although the West unleashed a high-pressure diplomatic campaign, it managed to get only two more votes than for the first resolution in March and three more than for the second one.

Speaking before the vote, US Permanent Representative Linda Thomas-Greenfield appeared to take a hard line against diplomacy and dialogue that she saw as placatory.

"The path to peace does not run through placations. The path to peace does not involve turning the other way in the face of these flagrant violations", she said.

"The only way to bring peace is to stop this aggression, to demand accountability, to stand together with conviction, to show what we will not tolerate", she added.

The Assembly session also witnessed a sideshow by Pakistan, which stuck to its gimmick of bringing up Kashmir regardless of the topic on the agenda.

Kamboj dismissed it as an attempt to misuse the UN forum with "frivolous and pointless remarks".

Islamabad's Permanent Representative Munir Akram, who abstained on the resolution, said that he looked forward to a "similar concern or condemnation" of what he called India's attempts to formalise the "illegal annexation" of Kashmir.

India has said that the people of Kashmir have exercised their right to self-determination by voting in several elections and electing governments.

Kamboj called on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism while declaring, "The entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir is and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India irrespective of what the representative of Pakistan believes - or covets." While explaining India's abstention, she said, "The path to peace requires us to keep all channels of diplomacy open. We, therefore, sincerely hope for an early resumption of peace talks to bring about an immediate ceasefire and resolution of the conflicta." "India stands ready to support all such efforts aimed at de-escalation," she said.

The global South has suffered collateral damage from the conflict's effects on fuel, food and fertiliser, Kamboj said.

"We must therefore not initiate measures that further complicate a struggling global economy," she said.

Speaking to reporters after the session, Ukraine's Permanent Representative Sergiy Kyslytsya called the vote "historic" and said that it was "very bad" for Russia that only four countries joined it.

Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal voted for the resolution, while Sri Lanka abstained.

Afghanistan and Myanmar, which continue to be represented by the elected governments that have been overthrown, voted for the resolution.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

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Brussels, Oct 13 : The European Commission has recommended that the member states of the European Union (EU) give Bosnia and Herzegovina candidate status under the condition of further reforms.

Oliver Varhelyi, European commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement, presented the Commission's Enlargement Package for 2022 at the European Parliament, Xinhua news agency reported.

Bosnia and Herzegovina submitted its application to join the EU in February 2016. In May 2019, the Commission adopted its opinion on the application. It identified 14 key legislative and institutional priorities for the country to fulfil.

These covered the fields of democracy and functionality, the rule of law, fundamental rights, and public administration reforms.

The case of other Western Balkan countries and Turkey was also reviewed by Varhelyi.

"The enlargement policy of the European Union is a geostrategic investment in our European continent's peace, stability, security and socio-economic growth," he said.
Patna, Oct 13 : Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Bihar Assembly Vijay Kumar Sinha slammed state Health Minister Tejashwi Yadav for "roaming out of the state" amidst the spike in dengue cases.

"The cases of dengue are rising every day with figures reaching above 3,500 in the state. Shockingly, the Health Minister of Bihar is outside of the state and enjoying life after sending his father to Singapore for treatment," Sinha said.

"...Beds in government hospitals are unavailable for poor patients while the private hospitals are taking hefty charges. The health system of Bihar has completely collapsed now and patients are feeling helpless," Sinha said.

"Tejashwi Yadav is holding 5 ministry portfolios and staying outside of the state. He is unable to handle the pressure of work. The Chief Minister should take cognizance of the situation and take back some of the ministries (from him)," the LoP asserted.

There is a "complete lack of communication" between the health department and civic agencies, he said, adding that the fogging is being carried out by the municipal corporation of Patna in only "those places where residents are registering complaints".

He said that the fight against dengue cannot be succeeded if fogging would take place in selective manners.

"As there is no regulatory body in the state, there is no check on the private hospitals amid rising cases of dengue," the LoP alleged.

According to an official of the health department, the tests in government hospitals are free "but as treatment facilities are not adequate, many patients are heading to private hospitals which charges Rs 3,000 for dengue Elisa test and Rs 1200 for IgG, IgM and Ns1 tests.
United Nations, Oct 13 : India has dismissed as "frivolous and pointless" Pakistan's attempts to raise the Kashmir issue while the UN General Assembly was engrossed in Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territories.

India's Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj on Wednesday poured ridicule on Islamabad's "mindset" that keeps bringing it up with 'falsehoods" regardless of the context, saying that it deserves "sympathy".

Pakistan should instead stop cross-border terrorism, she said.

Speaking after the Assembly had voted to condemn Russia's annexation of areas of Ukraine, Pakistan's Permanent Representative Munir Akram said he looked forward to "similar concern and condemnation about the attempts by India to formalise" what he termed the annexation of Kashmir.

In a muddled attempt at linking Kashmir to the Ukraine issue, he said that while Pakistan "endorses the basic principle reflected in the draft resolution that referenda cannot apply to people's and regions, which are part of a sovereign state and in an environment which is not free", it had abstained on the resolution.

He then added, "Under international law, the right of self-determination applies to people who are under foreign or called colonial domination and those who have not yet exercised the right to self-determination as in the case of Jammu and Kashmir." Pakistan routinely brings up the Kashmir issue regardless of the topic at the UN or its relevance.

Kamboj told the Assembly, "We have witnessed, unsurprisingly yet again, an attempt by one delegation to misuse this forum and make frivolous and pointless remarks against my country." "Such statements deserve our collective contempt and sympathy for a mindset which repeatedly utters falsehoods," she said.

Kamboj declared, "The entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir is and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India irrespective of what the representative of Pakistan believes - or covets." "We call on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism so that our citizens can enjoy the right to life and liberty," she said.

Later exercising Pakistan's right of reply to her comments, Gul Kaiser Sarwani, a counsellor in that country's UN mission, repeated its standard statement about Hindutva, RSS, the BJP and cow "vigilantism" and what it asserts is the condition of minorities.

India also abstained with 34 countries on the resolution, which received 143 votes, with only four countries joining Russia in voting against it.

India maintains that a referendum would be irrelevant because the people of Kashmir have voted in elections in India and have elected their own governments.

Moreover, a Security Council adopted on April 21, 1948, that Pakistan disregards requires it to withdraw its troops and interlopers from all of Kashmir.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

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Beirut, Oct 13 : Lebanese President Michel Aoun said that Syrian refugees will start returning to their home country by the end of next week.

"We will witness the beginning of the return of Syrians to their country in groups, which is an important issue for us," an official statement quoted the President as saying on Wednesday.

Minister of the Displaced Issam Charafeddine told Xinhua that Lebanon will start implementing next week his Ministry's strategy of returning 15,000 Syrian refugees monthly in cooperation with Syrian authorities, who have already opened 480 housing centres to receive the displaced from Lebanon.

He said that he had already submitted a list on September 25 to the Lebanese General Security, which is responsible for coordinating with Syrian authorities on refugees' return.

According to Charafeddine, the list contained 483 families willing to return to their homeland.

At the same time, he is receiving more lists of refugees wishing to return to Syria.

"Syrian authorities will offer all needed facilities to ensure a safe return for Syrian refugees. Moreover, Russia will offer food for returning refugees for months and support the reconstruction of infrastructure in destroyed areas of Syria," Charafeddine added.

Lebanon hosts the world's largest number of refugees per capita, with a government estimate of the Syrian refugees in the country at 1.5 million.

Having been struggling with a worsening financial crisis since late 2019, Lebanon has repeatedly said the influx of refugees weighs heavily on the country's economy and infrastructure.
Gir Somnath : , Oct 13 (IANS) In a case of suspected human sacrifice, a family in Dhara Gir Village of Gir Somnath district has been accused of killing their 14-year-old daughter, police said on Thursday.

The police and Forensic Science Laboratory team were collecting evidence in the case after the villagers informed the police that the family had sacrificed their daughter on Navratri's Atham (October 3) for financial benefits, and her death was not registered with the village panchayat. The villagers alleged that the minor's body was cremated in the family's farm at midnight.

Gir Somnath District Superintendent of Police Manoharsinh Jadeja told the local media that the parents were the suspects in the mysterious death of the minor.

Police collected her ashes from the farm of the Bhavesh Akabari on Wednesday. "During questioning, the father Bhavesh is constantly changing his statements. An FSL report can guide police in further investigation," said a police source.

According to a police officer, the girl was studying in Surat till six months ago, where Bhavesh had his business. For unknown reasons, the parents took her leaving certificate from the school and brought her to the native village and kept her in the farm.

Villagers are alleging that the child was sacrificed on October 3rd night with a hope that it will bring prosperity for the family. The family also had a false motion that the child would be reborn, so they kept the body for four days. After that in the presence of very few family members and relatives, the child was cremated in the farm which created suspicion in some villagers who informed the police.
Saharanpur : , Oct 13 (IANS) The Saharanpur Police have asked Pakistani nationals living on a long-term visa, to inform the administration in case a relative from that country visits them.

They have also been directed to inform the officials of the foreigner registration office and the police if they plan to move out of the district.

Over 50 such individuals are staying in the district on a long-term visa and 30 of them are women, married to locals.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Saharanpur, Vipin Tada has instructed them to 'strictly stick to the terms and conditions on the basis of which their long-term visas were granted'.

The SSP office has collected information pertaining to the Pakistan nationals' home cities, work, expiry dates of their visas, and relatives that have visited over the past few months.

These Pakistani nationals have been asked to immediately inform the police in case they notice any suspicious activity in the area where they are staying.

They have also been advised to get 'verification' done regularly.
Ramallah, Oct 13 : Palestinians staged a commercial strike in several West Bank towns and cities in solidarity with the Shufat refugee camp in East Jerusalem.

Most shops, universities, and schools in Ramallah, Nablus, Hebron, and Bethlehem were closed on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The strike was in response to Israel's closure of entrances leading to the Shufat refugee camp since October 8, after a shooting attack at a nearby Israeli army checkpoint killed an Israeli soldier and critically wounded another.

An Israeli army spokesman identified the assailant as 24-year-old Palestinian Odai Tamimi, a resident of the refugee camp.

An engineering unit of the Israeli army were measuring the dimensions of Tamimi's bakery and house to prepare for demolition when the attack happened, according to the spokesman.

Residents of Shufat told Xinhua on the phone that life was disrupted in the refugee camp and Anata neighbourhood after the Israeli authorities decided to collectively punish more than 130,000 Palestinian residents.

Ghassan Daghlas, the Palestinian official in charge of the settlements affairs file in the northern West Bank, told Xinhua that the Israeli army on Tuesday closed several main entrances to the city of Nablus in the northern West Bank, most notably the Hawara checkpoint.

The Israelis also closed the southern entrance connecting the northern West Bank with its central and southern towns and cities.

"The Israeli closure of the city is a deliberate policy to separate and isolate the Palestinian cities from each other," the official said, adding that the Israelis' actions will lead to tensions.

Israeli media outlets reported that the Israeli army decided to increase pressure on the city of Nablus and close its entrances and exits after a Tuesday shooting attack that killed another Israeli soldier, after which the perpetrator fled the scene.

Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz said the military operations at the West Bank against "terrorism" would continue.
Johannesburg, Oct 13 : The South African government said that the ongoing strike by workers of Transnet, the national port and freight-rail operator, is harming the economic growth prospects.

Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan, Minister of Employment and Labor Thulas Nxesi, and Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza in a joint statement issued on Wednesday also called for an end to the strike by Transnet workers who had gone on a strike on October 5 over salary disagreements, disrupting operations at the ports, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Government is extremely concerned about the negative impact on the South African economy, particularly, those sectors that are dependent on Transnet for their logistical services.

"We need to remind all that if we are able to, as soon as possible, resume exports of agricultural products (for example citrus, grapes, berries), mineral resources (for example coal, iron ore etc.), and other manufactured products, we will be contributing to sustaining hundreds of thousands of jobs across the economy," said the statement.

"It is the view of government, that it will be in the interests of the country to find a speedy resolution to this impasse and for parties to continue to engage and, where appropriate, to employ the facilitation services of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.

"Our country cannot afford further job losses in other sectors of the economy and the interruption of imports and exports to and from South Africa," the statement added.

The government urged parties to return to the negotiations table.

They were encouraged to balance the rights of workers who are affected by rising prices, against the long-term stability and growth of Transnet and the economy as a whole.

The three ministers also called on the workers not to destroy the property during the strike.

Many organisations representing steel makers, farmers, and the freight industry have expressed concern that the strike is affecting the economy.
Bucharest, Oct 13 : France will deploy armoured personnel carriers and tanks in central Romania by the end of October to strengthen the NATO battle group stationed there, the Defence Ministry in Bucharest said in a statement.

A company of armoured personnel carriers and a company of Leclerc tanks of the French Army will be dispatched to the town of Cincu in central Romania both by rail and on wheels, Xinhua news agency quoted the statement as saying.

The Battle Group Forward Presence (BGFP) was established in Romania in May by transforming the allied multinational elements within the NATO Response Force deployed in the country.

Led by France, the battle group is stationed at the Joint National Training Centre in Cincu, where it has been carrying out missions and training activities together with the Romanian Army.

France aims to step up its military presence in Romania and will deploy additional armoured vehicles and tanks there, French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Tuesday.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India has maintained accelerated growth momentum, after the contraction in 2020, by balancing the immediate needs of the economy with long-term structural reforms.

She said this on Wednesday while speaking in the first session of the 4th G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Washington DC on the sidelines of the ongoing IMF-WB annual meetings 2022.

She spoke on the global economy, focussing on India's economic development and policy responses, the Finance Ministry tweeted.

Sitharaman called for enhanced policy cooperation and sharing of experiences to deal with downside risks and their spillovers.

The Finance Minister is expected to make her interventions in several sessions during the two-day meeting, official sources said.
Tokyo, Oct 13 : Automaker Toyota has revealed that personal information of nearly 300,000 customers may have been exposed since July 2017.

In a statement, the car maker said that e-mail addresses and customer management numbers of some customers who subscribe to "T-Connect" have been leaked.

In total, 296,019 cases were found to have been leaked.

"We sincerely apologise for causing great inconvenience and concern to our customers," the company said.

In addition, the personal information that may be leaked is the e-mail address and customer management number, and "other information such as name, phone number, credit card, etc. is not affected," it added.

From December 2017 to September 15, 2022, a third party was able to access part of the company's source code on GitHub.

"It was discovered that the published source code contained an access key to the data server, and by using it, it was possible to access the e-mail address and customer management number stored in the data server," said Toyota.

The source code was made private on GitHub, and on September 17, "we changed the access key for the data server, etc., and no secondary damage has been confirmed".

Toyota is now individually sending an apology and notification to the registered email address of any customer whose email address or customer management number may have been leaked.

It said that the incident was caused by the inappropriate handling of the source code by the development contractor company.

"At this time, we have not confirmed any unauthorised use of personal information related to this matter, but it is possible that spam e-mails such as 'spoofing' or 'phishing scams' using e-mail addresses may be sent," said Toyota.
Washington, Oct 13 : The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised the updated Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 booster shots for children as young as five.

The updated booster shots aim to provide better protection against Covid-19 caused by the Omicron variant, Xinhua news agency quoted the FDA as saying on Wednesday.

The FDA had authorised updated Pfizer-BioNTech boosters for children ages 5 to 11, and Moderna's shots for kids ages 6 through 17.

The shots are administered at least two months following completion of the two-dose primary series or the most recent booster shot with the first generation vaccines.

The Pfizer-BioNTech new boosters were authorized for people ages 12 and up in September, while Moderna's shots were previously authorized for adults ages 18 and older.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which recommends how vaccines are used, also signed off immediately after the FDA authorization.

Updated Covid-19 vaccines add Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 spike protein components to the current vaccine composition, helping to restore protection that has waned since previous vaccination and targeting recent Omicron variants that are more transmissible and immune-evading, the CDC said in a statement also issued on Wednesday.

FDA's authorization of the updated vaccines for this younger age group, and CDC's recommendation for use, are critical next steps forward in the country's vaccination program, said the statement.

Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said children face an increased risk of exposure to the virus as they head back to school in person and families return to their pre-pandemic lives.

Although Covid-19 tends to be less severe in children than adults, kids do get hospitalized with the disease, Marks said.

Health officials are also concerned about the potential risk of long Covid even in children who have had mild illness from the virus.

"We encourage parents to consider primary vaccination for children and follow-up with an updated booster dose when eligible," Marks said.

Pfizer said it will ship up to 6 million booster doses for kids within the next week.

So far, about 68 per cent of the US population is fully vaccinated with their initial series, according to the latest CDC data.

But less than half of the fully vaccinated population has received a booster dose.

An analysis published by The Commonwealth Fund found that if more people in the US get their booster by the end of the year, about 90,000 Covid-19 deaths could be prevented this fall and winter.

But if booster vaccinations continue at their current pace, the nation could see a peak of more than 1,000 deaths per day this winter, according to the study.
27 August 2022, US, Cape Canaveral: The Artemis I rocket sits on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center, ahead of its expected launch on 29 August 2022. ( Photo: Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via ZUMA Press/dpaRoosens/BELGA/dpa/IANS) Image Source: IANS News

Washington, Oct 13 : The US space agency has now set the next launch attempt of the Artemis I Moon mission for November 14, after facing two failed attempts due to liquid hydrogen gas leak in one of the engines.

The liftoff of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft is planned during a 69-minute launch window.

Artemis I is an uncrewed flight test to launch SLS and send Orion around the Moon and back to Earth to thoroughly test its system before flights with astronauts.

"Teams will perform standard maintenance to repair minor damage to the foam and cork on the thermal protection system and recharge or replace batteries on the rocket, several secondary payloads, and the flight termination system," NASA said in a statement late on Wednesday.

The space agency plans to roll the rocket back to the launch pad as early as November 4.

NASA had pushed back the Artemis I Moon mission launch to November in the wake of hurricane Ian.

It said that over the coming days, managers will assess the scope of work to perform while in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).

Artemis I will provide a foundation for human exploration in deep space and demonstrate NASA's commitment and capability to extend human existence to the Moon and beyond.
Bengaluru, Oct 13 : The Supreme Court will on Thursday pronounce its judgement on a clutch of petitions challenging the High Court's verdict banning hijab in educational institutions of Karnataka.

The hijab crisis in the state has left the student community divided on communal lines and also challenged the law and order situation in the state.

Experts opine that the verdict will have a direct impact on the student community. The issue is already politicised and communal forces are at play.

The hijab crisis proved to be a shot in the arm for ruling BJP as it polarised Hindus, especially younger ones. The Hindu organisations began saffron shawl agitation in schools against wearing of hijab in classes and received support.

With Assembly elections of 2023 to be held in six months, the issue is going to impact the state, experts state.

Congress Legal Cell General Secretary Surya Mukundraj said that the hijab crisis is indeed politicised. This has become a sociological issue. This kind of strife between students was never experienced.

Girl students were pitched against girls. The Hijab issue was not a big issue. The ruling government (BJP) brought it out to divert corruption and scandal involving then minister K S Eshwarappa, he explained.

"In my opinion the girls should not have approached the court hastily over the issue. Secondly, the government circular in this regard should have been followed. However, education is a guaranteed right for all citizens. The rule which bans wearing of hijab would curtail educational rights. The girls should not be devoid of education. We believe that the Supreme Court will consider all these points while giving its verdict," he said.

Majority of Muslim students followed the rule by the government following the High Court's order and attended classes, exams by not wearing hijab.

The Karnataka High Court had dismissed the petition of six girls from Udupi Government Girls College seeking directions to the ruling BJP to allow them to wear hijab and attend classes.

Various organisations raised their voice regarding the issue. The Muslim organisations protested against the Karnataka High Court's verdict of dismissing petitions and ruling that wearing of hijab is not an essential part of Islam religion.

The Hindus accused the Muslim organisations of not respecting the court order and law of the land. They had given call to boycott Muslim traders, artisans.

The verdict is likely to impact the education sector as well as law and order situation in Karnataka.
Los Angeles, Oct 13 : Hollywood star Orlando Bloom has shared more about "one of the darkest times" of his life.

On Monday, the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' star recounted his physical and mental recovery after a near-fatal fall as a teen.

The actor detailed the accident, sharing that he was climbing up to a roof terrace when the drainpipe he was holding onto collapsed, reports people.com.

"When I was 19 I fell three floors from a window and broke my back," he said in a joint Instagram video with Unicef.

"I was very fortunate to survive the fall because my spinal cord was still just intact." "When I was in the hospital, I was told for the first four days that I may never walk again," Bloom recalled.

"That was really the beginning of what was a long and painful journey for me into recognising and understanding some of the patterns that had been in my life that had led me to having numerous accidents. And the culmination was breaking my back, which was a near-death experience." The star said that after his surgery, he was put into a back brace and started physical therapy. After just 12 days in the hospital, Bloom walked out on crutches.

Despite his "remarkable and unheard of" physical recovery, the actor said his mental health is what struggled when he returned home.

"I would say the months after the fall were quite a dark time," he admitted. "As somebody who'd sort of always been very active in my life, it felt very restrictive all of a sudden and I was in a lot of pain." "Mental health is particularly challenging because it's unseen," Bloom said in the clip, noting that he was able to improve by using his injury as a way to reflect on his life.

"There is always an opportunity for you to transform the pain, whether it be physical or mental, into the great, good fortune of your life," he continued. "And it is so important to reach out to people, to talk to people, to find somebody, in order to create the possibility for communication that leads to transformation and change. It starts with one moment, one conversation. It starts with one question: What's on your mind?" Back in a 2005 profile with GQ, Bloom shared that his accident changed his outlook on life.
Seoul, Oct 13 : Samsung on Thursday showcased its latest updates to software and services at an annual tech conference, which it said were aimed at improving overall user experience through technology innovations.

At the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) 2022 in San Francisco, the South Korean tech giant unveiled the upgraded, new user interface One UI 5 for its Galaxy products and a vision for a more connected home life, partly through expanded partnership with Google.

Samsung said the One UI 5 platform comes with new features for more personalized experiences, such as the new security and privacy dashboard that enables users to customize personal privacy settings by scanning vulnerabilities and recommending security updates.

It also comes with custom-built Modes and Routines and a Dynamic Lock screen that displays multiple visuals on Galaxy devices, reports Yonhap news agency.

Samsung's Bixby, the voice assistant platform, has improved to answer calls on users' behalf or share typed messages with the caller, according to the company.

Samsung said it would continue its efforts to provide "calm technology" by seamlessly connecting electronic devices.

Calm technology refers to a type of technology that requires minimal attention and work from users.

In early September, Samsung vowed to popularise its home automation platform, SmartThings, this year, in a bid to help provide a more connected and sustainable home life.

SmartThings is Samsung's software to connect and control home appliances, with more than 230 million users worldwide.

By the end of next year, Samsung plans to make all of its home appliances Wi-Fi enabled and allow home devices from 13 different brands that belong to the Home Connectivity Alliance (HCA) to be connected and controlled.

Samsung also said it has expanded partnership with Google to remove challenges facing homeowners who use multi, different smart home platforms.

The two tech companies will release a multi-admin feature in the coming weeks that makes it easier for users to connect devices on different ecosystems and control Matter-enabled devices through SmartThings or Google Home apps on Android.

'Matter' is an open standard for smart home technology that enables users to set up their device with their favourite platforms and ecosystems without changing hardware or software, according to Google.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Netflix has collaborated with the UK TV rating agency BARB to reveal how many people are watching its streaming shows and movies.

From the second week of November, BARB will publicly report the monthly reach and share of viewing for broadcaster groups and subscription video on-demand (SVOD)/advertising-based video on-demand (AVOD) services which account for more than 0.5 per cent of total identified viewing.

It will measure Netflix's daily streaming numbers as well as report on its monthly reach and share of total identified viewing.

"Back in 2019, at the RTS conference in Cambridge, I welcomed the idea of Netflix audiences being measured independently. We've kept in touch with BARB since then and are pleased to make a commitment to its trusted measurement of how people watch television in the UK," said Reed Hastings, Co-CEO of Netflix.

Justin Sampson, Chief Executive of BARB, said that the audience measurement continuously adapts to accommodate the new platforms and devices that are being used by people to watch their favourite television shows.

"We took a big step forward last year when we started reporting audiences to streaming services. Netflix's commitment to BARB sends a clear signal that what we're doing is valuable to new and established players in the market," he said.

Netflix has nearly 221 million subscribers worldwide.

For viewing from November 1, BARB will report Netflix viewing every day at both a service and a programme level to its clients.

According to BARB, the average daily viewing time to broadcasters' services was 159 minutes in September 2022, and the average for SVOD/AVOD services was 36 minutes per day.
Una/Chamba, Oct 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi during day-long visit of Himachal Pradesh on Thursday flagged off high-speed luxury fourth Vande Bharat Express and laid the foundation stones of Bulk Drug Park that will attract investment of around Rs 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people from Una town.

This is the Prime Minister's ninth visit to the state in the five years and second in almost a week.

He also inaugurated the Rs 128 crore Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) set up in Una well ahead of the Assembly polls in the BJP-ruled state.

Later in the day, the Prime Minister will also lay foundation stones for two hydropower projects of nearly Rs 700 crore and launch Rs 3,000 crore Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in Chamba town.

Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, who is leading the party's election campaign that has gained momentum, said this is the ninth visit of the Prime Minister which reflects his bonding with the state and its people.

He said Congress leaders were baffled due to the visits of the Prime Minister, as they knew the Congress would be completely wiped out from the state in the coming Assembly elections.

With the launch of the Vande Bharat Express service, the travel time between Delhi and Chandigarh would be brought down to three hours from October 19. It will run six days in a week, except Friday.

The Prime Minister's clarion call for Aatmanirbhar Bharat or self-reliant India has led to the country moving swiftly towards attainment of self-reliance across multiple sectors, through support of various new initiatives of the government.

One such key sector is pharmaceuticals, and in order to bring in Aatmanirbharta in this sector the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park at Haroli to be built at a cost of Rs 1,923 crore.

The park will help reduce dependence on active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) or pharmaceutical raw material imports. It is expected to attract investment of around Rs 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people. It will also give a fillip to economic activities in the region.

The foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Una was laid by the Prime Minister in 2017. Currently, more than 530 students are pursuing study in the institute.

Running from Amb Andaura to New Delhi, the inaugural run of Vande Bharat Express will be the fourth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in shorter duration.

It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.

The Prime Minister will later in the day lay the foundation stone of two hydropower projects -- the 48 MW Chanju-III Hydro-electric Project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju Hydro-electric Project.

Both these projects will generate over 270 million units of electricity annually and Himachal Pradesh is expected to get annual revenue of around Rs 110 crore from these projects.

Prime Minister Modi will also launch Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in Himachal Pradesh for upgradation of around 3,125 km of roads in the state.

More than Rs 420 crore has been sanctioned by the Central government under this phase for the upgradation of 440 km of roads in 15 border and far-flung blocks of the state.

Commuters of neighbouring Haryana will also get benefitted from the Vande Bharat Express train.

Responding to the start of the train, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the new train running between Una to Delhi will greatly benefit the people of Punjab and Himachal as well as Haryana.

The people of the state, who travel to Delhi or other cities for work, will be greatly benefitted from this train, he said.

After the flag off, the train will leave Una at 9.30 a.m. and will reach New Delhi at 3.30 a.m. via Sri Anandpur Sahib, Chandigarh and Ambala.

In his previous visit, Modi inaugurated development works and laid foundation stones of over Rs 3,650 crore spread across various sectors, comprising AIIMS Bilaspur, on October 5.

At the public meeting in Bilaspur town after inaugurating the development works, Modi stressed that in the last eight years, there was a new thought process.

"The double engine government has given the state new infrastructure in every step," he had said in the mass public address.

The Election Commission, which just concluded its three-day visit to the state, is likely to announce the election schedule in the next few days.

The BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections had won all the four seats that saw 72.25 per cent polling.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
Bucharest, Oct 13 : The Netherlands is not against Romania's accession to Schengen, visiting Prime Minister Mark Rutte said.

"Romania has taken many steps in the right direction in recent years...we can talk about accession to Schengen when all the conditions are met... But the Netherlands is not in principle against Romania's accession," Rutte told a joint press conference with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca on Wednesday.

The Dutch Prime Minister said that accession must be achieved "in a transparent and fair manner".

The Romanian President expressed optimism regarding his country's accession to the Schengen area.

Failure to meet this goal would lead to a rise in Euroscepticism, he said.

Iohannis reiterated that Romania meets the technical requirements for accession, and already acts as a de facto member of the Schengen area in terms of protecting European Union borders and participating in solidarity.

Interior Ministers of the Schengen area will vote in December on whether to approve Romania and Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen area, after a more than 10-year wait.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : A thief, who stole Karwa Chauth 'thalis' in Delhi, was arrested on Thursday, said police.

A senior police official said that the accused was identified as Navneet Kumar Singh, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, and 20 thalis (plates) were recovered from him.

An FIR was lodged at the Sadar Bazar police station.

On October 12, one Naresh Kumar Gupta, a resident of Mandawali reported that he came to Sadar Bazar to shop for the Karwa Chauth festival. He bought 20 sets of decorative Karwa Chauth plates and kept them in the MCD parking in a sack, which was later found missing.

A source said that a few more calls were also reported regarding the thefts of Karwa Chauth gift items.

The police examined CCTV footage and detected a biker to be the thief. The accused was finally nabbed within three hours of the incident.

During the interrogation, the accused disclosed that he ran a grocery shop in Noida. He came to purchase articles from the Sadar Market and seeing the decorative Karva Chauth thalis he decided to steal them.

"20 Decorative plates of Karwa Chauth Gift Hamper were recovered from him," the police said.
Houston, Oct 13 : A former police officer on charge of shooting a 17-year-old who was eating at a McDonald's parking lot in San Antonio, Texas, was released on bond, authorities said.

James Brennand was arrested on Tuesday night and charged with two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office.

He was released on Wednesday after posting $100,000 bond for each count, reports Xinhua news agency.

The victim, identified as Erik Cantu, has been in critical condition after being shot multiple times on October 2 by Brennand, a probationary officer with seven months of experience responding to an unrelated disturbance call at the time.

Brennand has since been fired.

Cantu was on life support and non-responsive, his family said on Tuesday in a statement released to local media outlets.

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said on Tuesday that the charges would change if Cantu succumbs to his injuries.

"It was unjustified, both administratively and criminally," McManus told reporters.

The charges and arrest came within hours of a protest held in front of San Antonio Police Department's headquarters demanding Brennand's arrest on Tuesday.

A pre-hearing is set for November 23, according to Bexar County Jail records.
Islamabad, Oct 13 : PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz set sail for London on October 5, less than 24 hours after her passport was returned to her through an order by the Lahore High Court, on party supremo and her father Nawaz Sharifs instructions, a media report said.

The decision to leave Pakistan forthwith was taken after concerns expressed in the reports of the government agencies regarding the preparations of arch-rival PTI's long march and its possible success, The Express Tribune report said.

Therefore, instead of waiting for the other shoe to drop, Maryam, like the rest of her siblings, took refuge under the wings of her father in London, the report quoted sources as saying.

They added that the decision was driven by fears of potential political fallout from former Prime Minister Imran Khan making strides towards the federal capital, virtually the political oasis of the PML-N-led coalition whose clout in provinces has been undercut after PTI's unabated march towards success at the ballot box in provinces.

To avoid any such potential political firestorm, the government agencies had revealed to Nawaz Sharif that there were fair chances Khan would succeed in his long march, The Express Tribune reported.

"Maryam Nawaz could have faced difficulties while staying in the country in case of a success of the PTI's possible long march," party sources said and shared that her return to Pakistan will be possible only when the dust settles on PTI's long march bearing down on Islamabad.

The father-daughter duo reunited last week after three years as she arrived in the UK to spend a month with Nawaz Sharif, who has been in London since November 2019.

She will reportedly undergo a medical procedure during this visit, and speculations are high that she and Nawaz Sharif will return to Pakistan together.

However, political experts said the development appeared 'counter-intuitive' as Maryam had been reportedly entrusted with the task of reorganisation of party and was expected to zoom around Punjab districts to campaign for the October 16 by-elections, The Express Tribune reported.

Maryam is the latest from the Sharif family to seek refuge in London under her father's wings as three of her siblings are already there, the sources continued and added that with the presence of Maryam, Nawaz Sharif has managed to secure his entire family abroad.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz are in Pakistan.

In the event of the success of the long march and the collapse of the federal government, the leaders of the party in Pakistan, including the Prime minister and his son may face hardship, the sources added.
New York, Oct 13 : One in five incidents involve language scapegoating of Asian-Americans, including Indians, by wrongfully blaming them for Covid, espionage or economic insecurity, says a new report by Stop AAPI hate, a coalition that addresses anti-Asian and Pacific Islander hate.

Coinciding with the US mid-term elections, the report, 'The Blame Game: How Political Rhetoric Inflames Anti-Asian Scapegoating', also found that "one in 10 tweets in 2020 by politicians about Asian Americans included racist or stigmatizing language".

Even as deaths and illness from Covid-19 recede, the number of reported hate incident cases has doubled to over 11,000 since 2020, including 2,250 in which Asian-Americans were scapegoated for the pandemic, the report said.

A national survey by AAPI in March estimated at least three million AAPIs experienced hate incidents between March 2021 and March 2022.

"We found 95 incidents (4 per cent of all scapegoating incidents) where Asians or Asian-Americans are blamed for national security reasons, alleging that community members are spies on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.

Second, we identified 15 incidents (1 per cent of all scapegoating incidents) where Asian Americans are blamed for being economic threats who take away jobs from "real" Americans," the report noted.

The report further said that "racial scapegoating, the act of unfairly blaming communities of colour for societal problems, is a political strategy that has been used throughout our country's history, often at a heightened level around elections by candidates seeking to rile up voters".

A third of the Senate, 33 members, and all of the House of Representatives, 435 members, will be contesting the mid-term elections on November 8.

"As we head toward the midterm elections, Stop AAPI Hate is deeply concerned about racial scapegoating of Asian-Americans," said co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate and executive director of AAPI Equity Alliance Manjusha Kulkarni.

"People of colour should be able to approach elections without fear that they will be targeted because candidates rely on drumming up fear and pointing blame to rile their base," Kulkarni said.

Indian-Americans account for over 1 per cent of the country's population and have one of the highest per capita incomes among ethnic groups.

While the community is concentrated in major areas like New York, New Jersey, California, and Texas, their votes might turn out to be decisive in case of close races in the states of Florida, Atlanta, and Pennsylvania.

AAPI, or the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, communities consist of approximately 50 distinct ethnic groups with connections to Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean, Hawaiian, and other Asian and Pacific Islander ancestries.

Stop AAPI Hate tracks and responds to incidents of hate, violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning, and child bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the US.
San Diego, Oct 13 : American Jessica Pegula booked a spot in the quarterfinals of the San Diego Open, and a berth at the WTA Finals at Forth Worth, with a straight-set win against compatriot CoCo Vandeweghe.

The No.4 seed Jessica Pegula closed out the night under the lights with a 6-3, 6-1 win over fellow American CoCo Vandeweghe while another American also reached the last eight when 2022 Australian Open finallist Danielle Collins defeated Italy's Martina Trevisan 6-2, 6-4.

In her first match of the week, Pegula needed just 69 minutes to defeat her former Top 10-ranked compatriot and won 12 of the last 14 games after falling behind an early break at 2-0. She also made personal history -- the win clinches Pegula's qualification for the singles field at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas which begins on October 31.

The victory was also a measure of revenge for U.S. No.1 Pegula, who lost her only prior meeting against Vandeweghe earlier this year in Charleston in three sets. Pegula said her game plan coming into the rematch was simple, said a report on the WTA Tour website.

"When she's on with her serve and her returns, it's really tough. My goal was just to try and attack and put pressure on her serve when I got the chance," Pegula was quoted as saying after her win.

"On my serve, I thought I just had to serve smart and be ready for a big return. She's got so much easy power, so sometimes she can put a lot of pressure on you, so I was just trying to focus on those two things."
Muzaffarnagar, Oct 13 : The Hindu Mahasabha has warned of serious consequences if any non-Hindu youth is found applying 'mehendi' on the hands of Hindu women.

Hindu women apply mehendi on their hands before the Karwa Chauth puja which will be held on Thursday night.

Vikram Saini, a BJP MLA from Khatauli, said the intensions of Muslim youth who have opened mehendi shops are "different" and they have "love jihad" on their minds.

"They conduct love jihad under the guise of this mehendi work. There have been many such cases. My request to Hindu women is to apply mehendi at home or from shops and beauty parlours opened by our community members," Saini said on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has opened 13 mehendi stalls and tasked its members with ensuring that Muslim male make-up artists do not apply mehendi or henna to Hindu women. They are verifying the details of the mehendi artists by checking their Aadhar cards.

Lokesh Saini, a Hindu Mahasabha member, said the move is to protect "our brothers and sisters" from falling prey to "love jihad".

Hindu women should go to those stall owners who understand the significance of Karwa Chauth, he said.
Islamabad, Oct 13 : The shocking murder of a young woman at the hands of her husband in a palatial farmhouse of Islamabad has brought to light the rising incidents of violence against women, including torture, kidnapping, rapes and murder, in Pakistan, government and non-governmental data has shown.

The data revealed that as many as 21,900 women were reported to have been raped in Pakistan from 2017 to 2021, Samaa TV reported.

This meant that around 12 women were raped across the country daily, or one woman every two hours.

These, however, are reported cases and could be just the tip of the iceberg since societal stigma and fear of retributive violence prevents women from reporting cases.

The data showed that in 2017, some 3,327 cases of rape were reported. This jumped to 4,456 cases in 2018, 4,573 in 2019, dipped to 4,478 in 2020 before rising to 5,169 in 2021.

In 2022, the media reported 305 rape cases across the country. As many as 57 cases were reported in May, June (91), July (86) and August (71).

As per media reports, in Punjab, around 350 rape cases were reported from May to August this year, but no data was available for the first four months of 2022, Samaa TV reported.

During this period, as many as 1,301 cases of sexual violence against women were heard in 44 courts of the country.

Moreover, the police filed charge sheets in 2,856 cases. But only 4 per cent of the cases went to trial.

The conviction rate in rape cases during this period remained an abysmal 0.2 per cent.

In 2020, the UN Development Program ranked Pakistan top among the 75 countries with an anti-women bias in courts.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Congress' Central Election Authority (CEA) has barred the party general secretaries and other office-bearers from voting in their assigned states in the party's presidential poll, and can instead vote in their home states.

In a circular, Madhusudan Mistry, the CEA chairman, said, "As you are well aware that the polling for the election of the Congress President is scheduled to be held on Monday, 17th October 2022 at all PCC Headquarters from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"In order to remain impartial and maintain transparency in the election process, the Central Election Authority has decided that no AICC General Secretaries/ State In-charges, Secretaries and Jt. Secretaries would be allowed to cast their vote in their assigned states." Therefore, they have been requested to cast their vote either at home state or at AICC Office, as per their choice, said the order.

Allaying fears of being identified, the Congress Central Election Authority (CEA) Chairman on Wednesday had assured the voters of the secrecy of the ballot in the October 17 party presidential poll.

While issuing standard protocol for the voting till the counting of the votes, Madhusudan Mistry said that there was no numbering on the papers and only counterfoil with detail will be kept with the election authority while ballot boxes will be sealed and unsealed in front of election agents. Ahead of counting of votes, all the ballot papers will be mixed so that no one would know how many votes the candidate got from a particular state.

He said that they have received a complaint that has been addressed by the CEA. In fray for the top post are Shashi Tharoor and Mallikarjun Kharge. Sixty-seven booths have been set up in all the states, the party's CEA has said.
Mumbai, Oct 13 : In its continued crackdown on smuggling, the Customs Department seized 15 kgs gold and foreign currencies of Rs 22 lakh in 24 hours, for which seven passengers have been arrested, an official said here on Thursday.

The haul by Mumbai Airport Customs was carried out during October 11-12 at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, as part of the intensified drive to catch gold and foreign currency smugglers.

An Indian national, who flew from Dubai to Mumbai by an Emirates flight EK-500, was found with 9.9 kgs gold worth Rs 5.20 crore, hidden in a specially designed chest belt with nine pockets and wrapped around his chest and shoulder.

The accused revealed that the gold was handed over to him at Dubai by two Sudanese nationals who have also been nabbed and the trio has been sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

An Indian arriving from Chennai by an IndiGo flight 6E-6149, which had earlier arrived from Sharjah, was detected carrying 1.88 kgs gold dust worth nearly Rs one crore, concealed in his underwear.

In another detection, the Customs sleuths retrieved 1.068 kg and 1.185 kgs gold dust - totally worth over Rs 1.10 crore - in packets hidden in the underwear of two passengers, arriving here from Jeddah by a Saudia flight SV-772.

A Sudanese national, who landed here by an Emirates flight EK-504 from Dubai, was nabbed with gold dust of 973 gms in wax in eggs form, worth Rs 51 lakh, concealed in his rectum.

Besides, the Customs nabbed two Indians, who were about to board a SpiceJet flight SG-13 to Dubai, each carrying Dh 50,000 (Rs 11.20 lakh) and Dh 45,000 (Rs 10.08 lakh), concealed in round cavity of biscuits stuffed in their pockets, after they had crossed the Customs declaration counter.
Bengaluru, Oct 13 : Ruling BJP in Karnataka is under pressure to cancel Muslim reservations in the state under different categories in education and government services, as per party insiders.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said that whatever the government does, will be done constitutionally.

Sources in BJP say that the party is in full swing after declaration of enhancement of reservations for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The party is claiming it to be its achievement.

Now, different community groups are exerting pressure and Hindutva organisations are pressuring Chief Minister Bommai to take a bold decision in this regard.

Panchamasali Lingayat, Kuruba and other communities are claiming reservation under different categories and have launched agitations. BJP MLA Arvind Bellad had openly stated that the reservation given to Muslims and Christians must be withdrawn and given to Hindu Other Backward Groups (OBC).

He maintained that the constitution provides caste-based reservation and does not provide religion based reservations. Now, the debate is on after CM Bommai's statement that his government would take decision as per the constitution.

The party is planning to cancel reservation to Muslims under 2A and 2B categories and provide the same to Panchamasali Lingayat community which is at loggerheads with ruling BJP government. The party leaders think that such a move would reap rich harvest of votes in the upcoming Assembly elections.

It would also polarise Hindu votes say party sources. Muslim community leaders have reacted sharply to the development and have warned the government not to get into the misadventure.

Former minister and Congress MLA U.T. Khader had stated that ruling BJP is doing everything possible to get votes. He has appealed that the reservation to Muslims should not be disturbed.
Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 13 : The Kerala CPI-M on Thursday tore into Union Minister of State for External Affairs V.Muraleedharan over his "unsavoury" remark on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his family's foreign trip.

Ever since the journey began, the social media is flooded with messages questioning the objective of the trip as the CM, along with his family had left for it just hours after the funeral of his party politburo colleague Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, last Monday.

A leading Malayalam TV channel in one of its weekly satire programmes termed the trip a "needless" one, when the state is passing through one of its worst ever financial crises and condemned the Congress-led Opposition for being silent on the issue.

It was after this, that the Congress state president K.Sudhakaran and Leader of Opposition V.D.Satheesan went hammer and tongs against Vijayan.

Soon came Muraleedharan's broadside asking the chief minister to come clean on his trip and to clarify whether it was according to what he had informed the External Affairs ministry.

"The least that can be expected is at least his party cadres should find out what has been the outcome of this 'pleasure trip'. State government's official statement that an official agreement has been inked wherein health professionals will be able to work in the UK is all humbug. When an agreement could have been signed by recruitment agencies in Kerala, there was no need for a 'family' trip of Vijayan," said the Union Minister.

"The Chief Minister had informed the External Affairs ministry that the expense of the trip would be borne by the state. Now, we wish to know if the expenses were met by the bourgeois community. Using the money of the diaspora to meet the expanses of a labour class political party leader's trip is indeed shameless. Huge foreign investments have come to Uttar Pradesh and it did not happen because the UP Chief Minister went with his family abroad. The only thing needed here is the state should be turned into an investment friendly one," said Muraleedharan.

But on Thursday morning, Govindan said it's unbecoming of a Union Minister to have spoken like this.

"It doesn't befit the position he holds as he should not have said all these. I will rather not reply to all such things. The present Left government is committed to the development needs of Kerala and to achieve that and accomplish the goals that the Left government has put up, there is no harm in such foreign trips," said Govindan.

Incidentally, while Vijayan was to have returned to the state on Wednesday, it has now been postponed to Friday, as he flew from the UK to Dubai, to be with his son who works there and he has no official engagements.
Till now, the new session in Jammu division used to begin in April-May while in the Kashmir division, students used to appear for final exams in October and the new session commenced in November every year.

Srinagar, Oct 13 (IANS) By implementing a uniform academic calendar, the J&K School Education Department has brought the students from Kashmir at par with their counterparts from other states and union territories. It<sng-qts>s yet another step towards integrating Kashmir with the rest of the country.

Till now, the new session in Jammu division used to begin in April-May while in the Kashmir division, students used to appear for final exams in October and the new session commenced in November every year.

From this year onwards students in both Jammu and Kashmir divisions from grade - 1 to 12 will appear in the examinations in March and the classes will start in April-May months.

The government had a valid reason to shift the exam session from November to March in Kashmir as the students despite appearing in Class 10th and 12th exams in November had to wait till the new academic term to enroll in professional courses out of J&K.

New academic sessions in all the outside universities and colleges commences in April-May. Students from Kashmir after appearing in exams were left with nothing to do for nearly four months. Holding exams early didn't serve any purpose. Students used to be in a hurry to complete their syllabus and sit for exams.

Trend has changed During the past few years the trend in Kashmir has changed. Parents, who can afford it, have been sending their wards to other states to pursue higher education. The government has also been sponsoring the meritorious students by providing them with scholarships and facilitating their admissions in different colleges and universities across the country. Implementation of the uniform academic calendar has ended a clash of sessions with the rest of the country.

Proposal to implement the uniform academic calendar was moved on many occasions during the former political regimes but it never saw the light of the day. Politicians, who ruled Jammu and Kashmir from 1947 to 2018 never made an attempt to integrate the education system of the Himalayan region with the rest of the country.

They cited inclement weather conditions as a reason for conducting exams in November but more than climate the former regimes had political reasons to do so. By having a different academic calendar than the rest of the country the Kashmir based leaders did a big disservice to students as it wasted their time. They had to wait for months together to join a college or a university.

Integration of academic calendar It seems that the former rulers wanted to send a message to Pakistan and its agents in Kashmir that they support their agenda of separatism and sedition. To have a different academic session from the rest of the country could have been a ploy to tell the people that Kashmir is different.

However, the August 5, 2019, decision of the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, led the regime to end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and turn it into a Union Territory, ended all the debates about Kashmir and merged J&K into the Union of India completely.

Integration of the academic calendar with the rest of the country is a message to one and all that Kashmir and its people are an integral part of India and no one can challenge it.

Pseudo mainstream politicians who used to play into the hands of separatists have become irrelevant and are struggling to make their presence felt.

During the past three years all the confusions have been cleared. All myths stand shattered. People who used to oppose a shift in academic session to March need to understand that winter is not something which has emerged in recent times. It has been the most important ingredient of Kashmir's geography since ages. Kashmiris are well equipped in their own way to negotiate the severity of the weather.

Progressive policies After 2019, the government has implemented progressive policies that have enabled the teachers and students to board the platform loaded with advanced technology. The infrastructure in schools has been improved to ensure that educational institutions keep on functioning even in difficult weather conditions.

Another aspect which the helmsmen have looked into is that schools and colleges reopen in Kashmir after a winter break in February and March. If the classes can commence and students can attend the schools in March then what's the harm in holding exams in that month? During the past three years many traditional systems have become redundant and stand replaced by state-of-the-art technology driven systems. All these changes have summed up in the convenience.

Students have been provided with many platforms and a host of opportunities to shape up their careers in the fast changing environment.

Winter no-excuse Generation-next of Kashmir is well connected with the outside world and has understood that winter is no excuse to stay away from studies. Students have realized that shifting to the March session would provide them with ample time to prepare for their exams. The March session has brought Kashmiri students at par with rest of the geographies across the country or beyond.

A few traditional political parties in Kashmir opposed the government's move to implement the uniform academic calendar but their rhetoric didn't find any takers.

Students in Kashmir have understood that the government's decision to implement a uniform academic calendar would go a long way in shaping up their careers. The move will provide them with a chance to look for more options.

Politicians failed to deliver It's unfortunate but true that the former political regimes in Jammu and Kashmir didn't pay much attention towards addressing the issues that touched the skin of a common man. Politicians in Kashmir despite having all the powers failed to deliver. They made big promises to improve the education sector but failed to convert their pledges into a reality.

Present dispensation in J&K led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, is working hard to address the issues which are important for a common man. Schemes are being implemented and the decisions that need to be taken are being taken without any delay.

Implementation of a uniform academic calendar is all set to open new doors for students as it would enable them to get ready for the crucial competitions and tasks which they have to accomplish.

--IANS dpb/

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Chandigarh, Oct 13 : Punjab Police, central security agencies and Maharashtra ATS on Thursday arrested a suspect from Mumbai in the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack case in Mohali near here.

The suspect, Charat Singh, was instrumental in providing logistical support and arranging weapon.

"He is key operative & associate of #Canada-based #BKI terrorist Lakhbir Singh @ Landa. @PunjabPoliceInd will strive to make the state crime-free as per vision of CM @BhagwantMann," Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav tweeted.

An RPG was fired from outside the street, which landed on the third floor of the Punjab Police's Intelligence Headquarters in Sector 77 of Mohali on May 9.

During investigation, police found that the attack was a conspiracy of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), backed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and local gangsters.

A 272-page chargesheet was filed in a court this week that framed charges against seven of the 13 accused in the case.

Seven accused, including a juvenile, have been arrested while the remaining are absconding.
Lucknow, Oct 13 : Nine working and a retired doctor of King George's Medical University (KGMU) have made their place in the list of top 2 per cent scientists from across the world for their research work, curated by Stanford University, US.

The scientists, according to an official release, were divided into 22 scientific fields and 176 sub-fields.

Dr Sudhir Singh, spokesperson KGMU, said that as many as 1,95,605 scientists are included in the database. This was updated to the end of citation year 2021.

Dr R.K. Garg has made it to the list for the fourth time and has topped among the scientists in the state. The selection was made from among top one lakh names.

The names from KGMU include Dr Amita Jain from the department of microbiology, Dr Rajesh Verma and Dr R.K. Garg, both from the department of neurology, Dr Sujit Kar of psychiatry department, Dr Rashmi Kumar (retd) paediatrician, Dr Shally Awasthy, paediatrician, Prof A.A. Mahdi of bio-chemistry department, Dr Suryakant of pulmonary medicine department and Dr Divya Malhotra of the oral and maxillofacial surgery department.

Researchers in the Lucknow University (LU) also find a mention in the list.

Research work done by the Lucknow University scholars and past pupils has found a place in a list of top 2 per cent scientists of the world published by Stanford University, said a press release from the Lucknow university.

Researchers from Stanford University have created a publicly available database of top-cited scientists and every year they publish the list of top 2 per cent scientists of the world in different branches of science and engineering.

Three researchers from LU have been included in the coveted list this year. Prof Amritanshu Shukla and Dr Roli Verma from the physics department and Prof Abhinav Kumar from the chemistry department have been included in the list for the second consecutive year.

Two alumni of LU, Narendra Tuteja and Renu Tuteja, have also found mention in the list.
Wellington, Oct 13 : Food prices were 8.3 per cent higher in September 2022 compared with September 2021 in New Zealand, the country's statistics department Stats NZ said on Thursday.

The annual increase was also 8.3 per cent in August 2022, the highest since July 2009, Xinhua news agency quoted Stats NZ as saying.

In September 2022, the annual increase was due to rises across all the broad food categories measured, with grocery food being the largest contributor to this movement, it said.

"Increasing prices for yoghurt, two-minute noodles, and tomato-based pasta sauce were the largest drivers within grocery food," consumer prices manager Katrina Dewbery said.

The second-largest contributor to the annual movement was fruit and vegetables. The items within this group that influenced this movement the most were capsicums, tomatoes, and broccoli.

Monthly food prices were 0.4 percent higher in September 2022 compared with August 2022. After adjusting for seasonal effects, they were up 0.9 per cent.

Fruit and vegetables fell 0.1 per cent, but after seasonal adjustment rose 3.9 per cent.

"This seasonal movement for fruit and vegetables indicates that based off previous patterns a larger fall in fruit and vegetables for the September month is more typical," Dewbery said.

"This helps explain why the overall seasonally adjusted movement is higher than the unadjusted increase."
Patna, Oct 13 : An Investigating Officer (IO) of Pirbahore police station here was suspended after he helped an accused former ward councillor get bail in a criminal case.

Ashfar Ahmed was allegedly involved in manhandling DSP town Ashok Kumar in Pirbahore police station on September 10.

Patna police then constituted a team to investigate the incident. It also said that there were CCTV cameras inside the police station that had captured the manhandling incident.

During the hearing of the case, IO Pramod Kumar failed to submit adequate proof, including CCTV footage and other technical evidence besides a case diary. The court observed that the Patna police did not mention any strong proof to establish that Ahmed had manhandled town DSP Ashok Kumar inside Pirbahore police station.

The officials believe that the case was managed at the level of the investigating officer. Hence, Patna SSP Manavjeet Singh Dhillon suspended him and ordered an inquiry against him.
Mysuru : , Oct 13 (IANS) The Karnataka Health department is concerned following a 12-year-old girl developing symptoms similar to monkeypox in Mysuru district of Karnataka.

The health officers in the district were also on high alert. However, official confirmation is yet to be received about the development.

The samples of the girl were sent to the laboratory in Bengaluru. The first case of monkeypox was found in the neighbourhood of Kerala's Kollam four months ago.

According to sources in the health department, the girl hails from K.R. Nagar. She has developed swollen lymph nodes and even after four days of treatment, she has not been cured.

The girl has been isolated and administered treatment. The reports are awaited and district authorities are yet to make an official statement in this regard.

Latest updates on Monkeypox Virus Outbreak
New Delhi, Oct 13: Plans are afoot to switch the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) to Russian fuel even as the situation around it remains "increasingly dangerous, precarious and challenging" as per the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) - the nuclear watchdog of the United Nations.

The IAEA team of experts present at the ZNPP reported that the connection to its last remaining operating 750 kilovolt (kV) power line was cut around 9 a.m. local time on Wednesday. The agency stated that the plant's emergency diesel generators automatically started operating to provide the six reactors with the electricity they need for cooling and other essential safety functions.

"Our team at #Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant informed me this morning that the plant has lost all of its external power for the 2nd time in five days. Its back-up diesel generators are now providing electricity for its nuclear safety and security functions," tweeted IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi Wednesday afternoon.

Calling the repeated loss of ZNPP's off-site power a "deeply worrying development," Grossi took to social media again in the evening informing that external power to the plant has been restored.

"ZNPP's operator says this morning's outage was caused by shelling damage to a far off sub-station, highlighting how precarious the situation is. We need a protection zone ASAP," he tweeted.

The fresh IAEA concerns on Europe's largest nuclear power plant come less than 24 hours after its top officials held talks with a Russian delegation in Saint Petersburg on issues of cooperation in ensuring the ZNPP safety in the light of "new legal realities" in the south-eastern Ukrainian region.

The Russian side was led by Alexei Likhachev, Director General of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom. It also included top diplomats; military officials; the head of the country's environmental, industrial and nuclear supervision service; and, the chief of Russian radiological, chemical, and biological protection forces.

After the high-level meeting, the IAEA Director General held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Russian port city Tuesday evening.

Putin spotlighted that when it comes to nuclear development, Russia occupies a leading position in the world having created a fast neutron reactor and currently developing shipbuilding, nuclear propulsion systems, and the first floating nuclear power plants.

"Of course, we see that today there are elements of excessive, dangerous politicisation of everything connected with nuclear activity. But we very much hope that, thanks to your efforts, we will be able to reduce all the rhetoric on this matter and bring this sphere of our activity and cooperation back to normal, despite all the turbulence and complex processes that are taking place on the world stage," the Russian President told Grossi.

The IAEA boss, who has been engaging in intense consultations with both Ukraine and Russia, focused on the urgent need to establish a safety and security protection zone around ZNPP in view of shelling at or near the nuclear power plant over the past many weeks.

Last week, Grossi met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv and will meet him again on Thursday following discussions with Putin.

"Now more than ever, during these extremely difficult times, a protection zone must be established around the ZNPP. We can't afford to lose any more time. The stakes are high. We must do everything in our power to help ensure that a nuclear accident does not happen during this tragic conflict, as it could cause even more hardship and suffering in Ukraine and beyond," he said.

The ZNPP, consisting of six power units with a total installed capacity of 6 GW, was built in the 1980s on the banks of the Kakhovka reservoir. Energodar, a satellite city, is located near the station, where station employees and their families live.

After announcing that the territory where the nuclear power plant is located has become part of the Russian Federation following the results of referendums, Putin signed a Decree on October 5 giving a new company the rights to ensure its stable operation.

Meanwhile, local media quoted Rosatom DG Likhachev as saying on Wednesday that several units of ZNPP which have been operating on the fuel of the American nuclear power plant equipment maker Westinghouse, will now switch to Russian fuel.

"This is a purely technological issue, not a political one," the head of Rosatom told the Russian news agency Interfax without specifying when it is planned to be done.

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative

Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War
Mumbai, Oct 13 : Telugu star Rana Daggubati, will be hosting the second episode of the docu-series 'The Journey of India'. The actor shared that India's progress with regards to sustainability is commendable and is because of collective efforts of individuals at all levels.

During the course of the episode, Rana will be seen alongside pioneer wildlife conservationist Latika Nath, and the two will highlight the grit, determination, and never-say-die spirit of individuals and communities of the country, who strive against all odds in their efforts to restore the right balance with nature.

Addressing the second episode of the series, Rana said, "'The Journey of India' demonstrates the rich fruits of India's collective hard work and sheer willpower. Our progress toward sustainability and becoming more conscious as a nation is commendable; there is so much to being an Indian that one can never be too proud." India's natural wealth is deeply ingrained in its cultural roots, from ancient species to sublime flora and fauna. In the upcoming episode of 'The Journey of India,' the narrator of the series, Amitabh Bachchan, who recently celebrated his 80th birthday, will introduce the viewers to the country's history of coexisting with nature, its roots in tradition, and its evolution over 75 years of independence.

Rana further mentioned, "Warner Bros. Discovery's contributions to bringing conservation initiatives to the forefront and igniting the green agenda are a step in the right direction for educating viewers on the importance of preserving our land's ecology. It's an honour for me to be a part of a show that highlights awe-inspiring achievements while emphasising the importance of preserving our motherland for future generations." From showcasing the radical absence of plastic in Asia's cleanest village Mawlynnong, to sustainability icon Vani Murthy's eccentric efforts in glamorising garbage, the upcoming episode will showcase the impeccable efforts of the country towards maintaining its ecology.

The second episode of 'The Journey of India', will be available from October 17 on discovery+ and Discovery's network of channels in India.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint (charge sheet) against journalist Rana Ayyub in connection with a Prevention of Money Laundering case lodged against her for misusing funds collected in the name of help and charity through a website ketto.com.

She has been accused by the ED of trying to cheat common people. The ED has claimed that she illegally acquired funds from the common public.

With this charge sheet, the trouble has mounted for Ayyub as the ED has made it a watertight case.

A copy of this was accessed by IANS where the case details were given.

"Funds totalling to Rs 2,69,44,680/-were raised on Ketto by Rana Ayyub. These funds were withdrawn in the bank accounts of her sister/father. Out of this amount, Rs 72,01,786/- was withdrawn in her own bank account, Rs 37,15,072/- was withdrawn in her sister Iffat Shaikh's account and Rs 1,60,27,822/ was withdrawn in her father Mohd Ayyub Waquif's bank account. All these funds from her sister's and father's account were subsequently transferred in her own account," read the order accessed by IANS.

The order further read that Rana Ayyub submitted information/documents of expense to the tune of Rs 31,16,770, however after verification of the claimed expenses, it surfaced that the actual expenses was only of Rs 17,66,970.

"Fake bills were found to have been prepared by Ayyub in the name of some entities to claim expenses on relief work. Expenses made for personal travel by air were claimed as expense for relief work," it said.

Investigations conducted by the Directorate of Enforcement have made it abundantly clear that the funds were raised in the name of charity in a completely pre-planned and systematic manner and the funds were not utilised completely for the purpose of which the funds were raised.

Investigations disclosed that instead of utilizing the funds for the relief work, Rana Ayyub parked some of the funds by opening a separate current bank account. She also created a Fixed Deposit of Rs 50 lakh from the funds raised on Ktto and subsequently did not utilize these for relief works.

She deposited a total of Rs 74.50 lakh in PM Cares fund and CM Relief Fund.

"Accordingly, at the stage of investigation, the proceeds of crime are quantified as Rs 1,77,27,704/ and the interest generated upon the said FD of Rs 50 lakh," the order read.

The ED official said that Ayyub allegedly misused the funds. She allegedly diverted the funds into other accounts for her personal expenses.

Earlier, on August 28, 2021, one Vikas Sankrityayan, had lodged a complaint with the Ghaziabad Police against Ayyub alleging that she cheated the general public in the name of charity.

Acting on his complaint on September 7, 2021 an FIR was lodged against her at the Indirapuram police station. She was booked under sections 403, 406, 418, 420 of the IPC, read with section 66D of Information Technology Act.

Later, on the basis of this FIR, the ED also initiated a money laundering probe against Ayyub.
Chennai, Oct 13 : Villagers of Ekanapuram will take out a protest march towards secretariat on Monday against the second proposed airport in the state capital.

It may be noted that the winter session of the Tamil Nadu Assembly is set to commence from Monday.

The second airport is scheduled to come up at Parandur and according to protesting villagers, the entire legacy and history of Ekanapuram would be wiped out if the land is acquired for the purpose.

According to officials who are in a special acquisition drive as part of the airport construction project, Ekanapuram -- a village in Kancheepuram district adjoining Chennai -- is one of the 13 villages that would be affected by the land acquisition.

A senior officer with the revenue department told IANS, "We had tried our best to save the homes of the villagers, but we were helpless. In the Kalpakkam no-fly zone and INS Rajali nearby, we were not able to save the homes of the villagers. We are ready to pay the best compensation possible".

The villagers have chosen Monday to conduct a protest in front of the secretariat as it would give them an impetus with the winter session of the Tamil Nadu Assembly commencing on the same day.

The protest is mainly due to the fact that all the homes in Ekanapuram have to be removed unlike most of the other villages where some monuments or memorials were destroyed.

G. Subramanian, Secretary of Ekanapuram Village People and Farmers board, who is spearheading the agitation while speaking to IANS said that the villagers will be protesting on Monday to bring to the notice the injustice being meted out to the village. He also said that the very existence of the village is being questioned, and hence the protest.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has announced the construction of a Rs 20,000 crore green field airport at Parandur which is 59 km away from the present airport at Meenambakkam in Chennai.

The proposed second airport at Parandur is estimated to cater to a traffic of 10 crore passengers a year while the present airport has a capacity of 2.2 crore passengers annually.

The state government had identified four sites and the Airports Authority of India inspected each site and had given a report. The four sites identified by the government were Pannur, Parandur, Tiruporur, and Padalam.

Pannur and Parandur were shortlisted and finally, Parandur was chosen.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Inspired by Peter Senge, Founder of Society for Organisational Learning, a group of young corporate professionals came together in 2002 to set up Smile Foundation to work with grassroots initiatives for effecting positive changes in the lives of underprivileged children, their families and communities.

Today, Smile Foundation has more than 400 welfare projects operational in 2,000 villages and communities spread across 25 states.

Santanu Mishra, Co-Founder & Executive Trustee of Smile Foundation, told IANS that the tracking mechanism, efficient delivery of services and measuring programme impact on the ground are going to be more robust, and Cloud technology and AWS have helped them use data effectively towards achieving that.

Here are the excerpt from an interview: Q1. What is the idea and vision behind the Smile Foundation? A: Smile Foundation was initiated in 2002 when a group of friends came together with the intention of giving back to the society. We were inspired by the thought and philosophy of Peter Senge, the founder of the Society for Organizational Learning who has propagated that "sustainability, social equality and the environment are now business problems and corporate leaders can't depend on the governments to solve them..." What triggered our thoughts was the liberalisation of the Indian economy in the 1990's which had brought with it a lot of positivity, hope and immense opportunities.

Business revived, and India became not just a market, but also an investment prospect for the developed world. Professionals like us, particularly those in the areas of finance and strategy, were the first ones to benefit from the transforming economy. Disposable incomes and settling down early became a reality for the working middle-class.

For the first time in India, professionals could think beyond just making a living, and contribute towards society.

Fuelled with enthusiasm, we gave a shape to our dream, and Smile Foundation was born. Having almost no experience of the development sector, and being committed to our respective careers, we thought it best to rely on the knowledge and expertise of development professionals, and let experienced social sector leaders take lead in the day-to-day operations and management of Smile Foundation.

Q2. What innovations has Smile Foundation brought into the non-profit space? A: In the initial years of Smile Foundation, the Indian economy had seen an unprecedented rise, forcing the developed (or higher income) countries to rethink their priorities, and the international grants that had been a major resource pool for the Indian development sector started drying up.

This trend was further augmented with the onset of recession in 2007, when the western world started focusing on their own economic turbulences rather than investing in social ventures in the developing (or middle income) countries. Many Indian non-profits had to close their doors, while others were forced to rethink their core values and change their modus operandi in the new environment.

On the one hand, the conventional resources of the development sector like international grants were dwindling every day, on the other, both the corporate and individual giving culture in India were still at a nascent stage. But where others saw challenges, we saw opportunities. Amidst all these adversities, we resolved to not just survive the odds, but also evolve as a sustainable Indian social institution -- committed to do real work on the ground, and make the society and businesses inclusive in the process of bringing change.

With this seemingly impossible dream in our hearts, we set out on the challenging and yet immensely rewarding journey of spreading smiles across the country. On our way, we had to make many difficult choices and constantly innovate - whether it was choosing to work on the ground through a service-delivery approach, practicing management principles and adopting a business-like approach in the development sector, creating a unique resource modeling keeping businesses at the centre, or promoting the concept of civic driven change. Yes, we almost always took the road less travelled, and as they say, that has made all the difference.

Today, when we look back on our journey of the last 15 years, we feel privileged to have been able to impact the lives of more than 1.5 million children and families every year, with the efforts of thousands of committed, passionate people including teachers, doctors, community mobilisers, trainers, development professionals, grassroots community organisations, and with the love and support of over 350 global brands, 5000 schools, hundreds of colleges, millions of children, youth, volunteers and individual supporters.

Q3. Tell us about the reach of your work. What are your plans for the next couple of years? A: Smile Foundation has more than 400 welfare projects operational in 2,000 villages and communities spread across 25 states of India. It covers areas such as education, healthcare, skilling and livelihood, women empowerment, etc. We would like to create more synergy with both governmental and corporate efforts and thus help expedite the process of development at the grassroots.

Smile Foundation will also continue to deploy appropriate technological solutions in project management and governance. The objective is to achieve better efficiency, optimise resources, promote good governance and create lasting impact on the ground.

Q. What types of challenges do you face while working and how do you solve them? A: One of Smile Foundation's major challenges is the difficulty in finding the right professionals such as doctors, teachers, project managers and community workers to work in remote areas. Also, retaining these professionals is another major problem as tackling development issues is a serious, long term and complex endeavour.

As corporations form the majority of our resource pool, one of the challenges is to meet the gaps between the output-driven expectations of the corporate and the outcome based impact that the social sector is designed to deliver. Generally speaking, in the development sector, input is not always equal to the output.

There are so many subjective processes and outputs which one needs to understand and appreciate. The social impact of a project on the ground can not immediately and fully be measured in figures; rather it is long-term and can be observed in the changing behaviour patterns and habits of a community. However, post the CSR mandate, as the corporate are becoming increasingly involved in development initiatives, they are also beginning to understand the dynamics of the social sector.

Even though our economy is surging ahead, and the income levels of individuals are multiplying, the giving culture in the country is still at a nascent stage. Individuals are generally inclined more towards religious giving, and are less likely to contribute towards social causes. It will take time for the Indian society to wake up to philanthropy, but the scenario has started changing and is hopefully going to get better in the coming years.

This sector has been struggling with trust deficit so changing the perception of people is another major task which we face. One big challenge of our sector is the lack of regulation and organisation.

Sometimes, we have to work in an imperfect environment. Although things are changing now, it will take some more time for it to be perfect. Self-governance can be a solution for the development sector. Smile Foundation has always been very particular in following and promoting practices of good governance.

Q. What are some of the emerging technologies that will further reshape education, healthcare and livelihood over the next 4-5 years? A: Next few years are going to be interesting for these sectors from the perspective of evolving technology. The tracking mechanism, efficient delivery of services and measuring programme impact on the ground are going to be more robust. Organisations working in these areas can also optimize operational efficiency and amplify outcome thanks to advanced and innovative technological solutions.

Education will witness newer online tech for teaching and learning. Monitoring tools for observing real-time performance of students are also possibilities. Among many innovations in healthcare, virtual consultation with super specialists even in remote areas will be a reality. Efficient tracking mechanism for specific diseases is also within reach. Skilling and livelihood sector will benefit from imparting in-demand skills and doing better employability mapping.

Q. What has cloud technology and AWS helped you to do that you couldn't do before? A: Cloud technology and AWS have helped us to use data effectively. With the help of Salesforce, we are able to track, manage and build effective engagement solutions for our support to provide regular updates and information and on the other hand, AWS gives us a useful means to host our donation platform which ensures better security. It also enables us in reducing cost through continuous optimization and effective utilization of resources in the long run.

Further, cloud technology has helped us manage our youth employability skill training programme, named STeP, more effectively across India. In healthcare, the Beneficiary Management System is making management of patient databases smoothly. In Smile on Wheels, the mobile healthcare programme, we are managing the supply chain of medicines pan India with the use of cloud technology.

Education Scholarship Management System has made the entire process of enrollment of students, assessment, disbursement of scholarships and funds for the students from primary school till engineering. We are planning to take a few more infrastructure on AWS in the near future. We believe this will help us achieve resource optimization soon.
New York, Oct 13 : Indian=American health justice lawyer Priti Krishtel has been chosen as this years McArthur Fellow for exposing inequities in the patent system to increase access to affordable, life-saving medications on a global scale.

The MacArthur Fellowship, which was announced on Thursday, is a $800,000, no-strings-attached award to extraordinarily talented and creative individuals as an investment in their potential.

"The 2022 class of MacArthur Fellows @macfound was announced today and I'm on the list! What a powerful validation of the change the movement is about to make. Let's go!!!" Krishtel, who is among 25 artists, activists, scholars, and scientists to win the fellowship, tweeted.

By distilling the technical aspects of the patent system to show its sometimes devastating impact on people's lives, Krishtel is galvanizing a movement to center people instead of only commercial interests in our medicines patent policy, the McArthur Foundation release stated.

Early in her career, Krishtel worked to increase access to antiretroviral (ARV) treatments at the height of the global AIDS epidemic.

She worked alongside patients dying of AIDS and saw first-hand how patent monopolies often reduced the availability of life-saving medications in lower income countries.

In 2006, Krishtel co-founded the Initiative for Medicines, Access, and Knowledge (I-MAK) to ensure the public had a voice in the pharmaceutical patent system.

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, Krishtel has argued powerfully that incentivizing innovation should not come at the expense of equity and public health.

"I think a lot about who owns our right to heal. We live in a hierarchy of health. Some people get medicine first, and some don't get it at all. Our ability to heal should not depend on our ability to pay or where we live... Medicine must always be a global public good," Krishtel was quoted as saying in the Foundation statement.

"The patent system is not working as intended. The system blocks competition and concentrates the power to access medicine in the hands of an elite few. It helps create that hierarchy of health," she added.

This year's class is composed of 15 women and 10 men, who hail from 15 states, the foundation said.

Krishtel received a B.A. (1999) from the University of California at Berkeley and a JD (2002) from New York University School of Law.

She worked with the Indian NGO Lawyers Collective (2003-2006) before co-founding the Initiative for Medicines, Access, and Knowledge (I-MAK) in 2006, where she is currently co-executive director.

Krishtel has published in a variety of scientific journals and media platforms, including Science, Journal of the International AIDS Society, The British Medical Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, The New York Times, and USA Today.
Mumbai, Oct 13 : The claws are out as 'Bigg Boss 16' contestants are all set to lock horns in the upcoming episode of controversial reality show, hosted by superstar Salman Khan.

The rivalry is growing between contestants Shalin Bhanot and Gautam Singh Vig. The former evidently has a soft corner for Tina Datta and the latter is discernibly charmed by Soundarya Sharma.

The captain of the house, Gautam leaves no stone unturned to make Shalin jealous by incessantly flirting with Tina. visibly begrudged Shalin returns the blow by pecking Soundarya on the cheek.

This does not go down well with Gautam, who disparages it as a cheap move. It will be interesting to watch how far this battle of love and jealousy in the house will go.

Another quarrel erupts in the Colors 'Bigg Boss' house with Archana Gautam plundering a piece of ginger from one bedroom to her own.

The food items were allotted as per the requirements of each of the four bedrooms by the captain. However, Archana's act spurs a massive ruckus in the house.

Later, the heat of all the bickering in the house is placated by a fun task assigned by 'Bigg Boss'. The master of the house commands the contestants to vote for who they think is the most talkative and has the most irritating voice.

The vote is carried out by prefixing it with 'Shut Up'. Elected with a sweeping majority of 12 'Shut Up' votes, Archana is summoned to the confession room along with Shalin to note the instructions of a unique task.

The most talkative contestant Archana has been given the task of being silent, while Shalin is appointed as her mouthpiece to parrot out her communication to the rest of the contestants.

Latest updates on Bigg Boss Season 16

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Beijing, Oct 13 : A rare protest against Chinese President Xi Jinping and his policies swiftly ended in Beijing Thursday, just days before he is set to secure a third term in power at a key meeting of the ruling Communist Party.

Photos circulating on Twitter showed two banners hung on an overpass of a major thoroughfare in the northwest of the Chinese capital, reports CNN.

"Say no to Covid test, yes to food. No to lockdown, yes to freedom. No to lies, yes to dignity. No to cultural revolution, yes to reform. No to great leader, yes to vote. Don't be a slave, be a citizen," reads one banner.

"Go on strike, remove dictator and national traitor Xi Jinping," says another.

The photos also show plumes of smoke billowing from the bridge.

Public protest against the top leadership is extremely rare in China, especially in the run-up to important political meetings, when authorities turn Beijing into a fortress to maintain security and stability, CNN said in its report.

The twice-a-decade Communist Party national congress is the most important event on China's political calendar.

At the 20th Party Congress beginning on Sunday, Xi is widely expected to break with recent norms and extend his rule for another term, potentially paving the way for lifelong rule.

Xi, the most powerful and authoritarian Chinese leader in decades, has waged a sweeping crackdown to crush dissent, both within the party and in wider society.

His draconian zero-Covid policy has fueled growing public frustration, as rolling lockdowns upend lives and wreak havoc on the economy.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday filed a prosecution complaint (charge sheet) against six people before a Special PMLA court in Bengaluru in connection with a money laundering case pertaining to gold loan scam.

Those charge-sheeted are: T.L. Praveen Kumar, Branch Manager of Bank of Baroda, S.K. Subramanaya Reddy, R. Ranganath, Narasimha Murthy K, Santha Kumari K and R. Kavitha.

The court has taken cognisance of the ED's prosecution complaint.

A money laundering investigation was launched on the basis of the FIR registered by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Anti-Corruption Branch, Bengaluru under various sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act).

Investigation by ED revealed that Kumar while working as a senior manager and branch head, Bank of Baroda, during the period 2017 to 2018 in collusion with Reddy and others had sanctioned 186 gold loans against the pledge of spurious gold ornaments to 57 borrowers with a mala-fide intention, by deviating from the extant guidelines of the Bank and caused wrongful loss to the tune of Rs 19.03 crore.

These borrowers were found to be relatives, friends and employees of Reddy.

The accused transferred the gold loan money received in the respective gold loan accounts to a personal account held in his name and in the name of his family members. Thus layering the proceeds of the crime was confirmed.

The spurious gold loan amount was used for their personal gains and for the gain of their accomplices and thereby generated proceeds of crime and laundered by way of acquiring/possessing immovable properties from the said proceeds of crime.

Earlier in the case, immovable properties of Rs 4.83 crore were provisionally attached.

Further investigation in the matter is on.
Ahmedabad, Oct 13 : Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday appealed to voters to ensure that Congress does not come to power in the poll-bound Gujarat.

Addressing a gathering after flagging off the 'Gaurav yatra' from Zanzarka village here, Shah said, "Congress people are smartly trying to divide voters on caste and creed lines, one should be aware about such evasive plans and not get trapped." Reminding people how women select a water pot (mud pot), the same way before voting for any party, electorate too should check its credentials and worthiness.

"Congress has never delivered development work; it has always indulged in caste politics and grabbed power on divide and rule policy," he claimed.

Shah enumerated the development work done by the BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and how he first led Gujarat on the growth path.

The Union Home Minister assured people that the development work will continue in the state.

After flagging-off the 'Gaurav Yatra' from Zanzarka, Shah, along with Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and BJP state unit president C R Patel, flew to Unai in Navsari, where he flagged-off two 'Gaurav Yatras', of which one will cover tribal belt and another Surat, Bharuch and other parts of Central Gujarat.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Delhi Police detained Gopal Italia, Aam Aadmi Party's chief in Gujarat for his alleged remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from the office of National Commission for Women (NCW) here.

He was earlier summoned by the National Commission for Women (NCW) for using derogatory words against women.

On Thursday, Italia was at the NCW office where a team of Delhi Police arrived and took him to the Sarita Vihar police station in South East Delhi.

As of now, the officials have not given any official statement on the status of his detention.

Further details were awaited.

Recently, two old videos of Italia had surfaced, one in which he criticises Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "neech" politics, and another in which he makes derogatory remarks against women.
Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 13 : Perumbavoor MLA Eldhose Kunnapilly, who has been absconding since a sexual assault case was lodged against him, reappeared on Thursday with a social media post claiming his innocence.

Caught in a sexual assault case, the Congress MLA's anticipatory bail plea is scheduled to be taken up on Saturday.

He had gone incommunicado as his mobile phones were switched off. Even his personal assistant and his friend's phones were not on.

In his social media post, he said he has done no wrong or anything against the law of the land.

He said God is his strength and that he will listen to his voters and takes on the woman by stating that criminal actions are gender neutral.

Stating that he is no trickster and not the one who goes after power, the MLA thanked all who are supporting him in crisis and those who withdrew their support. "Will live in the world till the last, honestly only," writes the 44-year old beleaguered legislator.

Kunnappilly, a two-time Congress MLA, is in trouble after a female school teacher in the state capital levelled serious allegations against him, including assault and sexual harassment.

Last week, the teacher approached the Thiruvanthapuram Police Commissioner and complained that she was assaulted by the Congress MLA at the famous tourist destination at Kovalam near Thiruvananthapuram.

The teacher alleged that she was also assaulted while travelling in a car with Kunnappilly. The woman on Wednesday appeared before the media and said for the past few months they were allegedly in a close relationship, but after there was a change in his behaviour, she was trying to withdraw, which he was not allowing.

On Thursday, the lady presented herself before the Crime branch police who recorded her statement.

Leader of Opposition and Congress legislator V.D.Satheesan said that Congress is a party which has the highest regards for women and there will be no going back on this and they will take strict against wrongdoers, when proved.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee President K. Sudhakaran has already said if the allegations against his party MLA Eldhose Kunnappilly are proved, he will be immediately expelled from the party.
Hyderabad, Oct 13 : The Telangana High Court on Thursday refused to grant a stay on publishing the final voters' list in Munugode Assembly constituency, where polling for the by-elections is scheduled on November 3.

The court asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to submit a report along with the final list of voters and the additions and deletions in the list since 2019.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice CV Bhaskar Reddy adjourned to Friday the hearing on the petition filed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleging irregularities in registration of new voters in the constituency.

The BJP has also sought a direction to the Election Commission to freeze the voters list prepared till July 31.

BJP secretary G. Premender Reddy, who filed the petition, alleged discrepancies in revision of voter list.

The petitioner requested the court not to permit the proposed declaration of the final voters list of Munugode constituency on Friday.

The court, however, refused to pass the order, saying addition, deletion, corrections to the voters list is an ongoing process.

It, however, asked the ECI to place details of all fresh voters who have registered in the last two months.

Appearing on behalf of the petitioner, Rachana Reddy submitted to the court that there are apprehensions about possible fake voters in the new list as nearly 25,000 voters were included in August and September.

ECI's counsel Avinash Desai argued that the new voter enrollment was undertaken in a transparent manner. He informed the court that there were 2.22 lakh voters in the constituency till January 2021 and since then 25,000 voters were added and 7,000 were deleted. The court was told that the constituency now has 2.38 lakh voters.

Meanwhile, a delegation of BJP leaders met the ECI officials in Delhi and lodged a complaint about 25,000 alleged fake voters in Munugode.

The delegation led by BJP general secretary in-charge of Telangana Tarun Chug demanded action by the ECI on fake voters and misuse of official machinery by the KCR government.

The delegation included Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan and former union minister of state Pratap Chandra Sarangi.
Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Hon'ble Prime Minister being accorded warm welcome on his arrival at Chamba on 13-10-2022 Image Source: IANS News

Una/Chamba, Oct 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi during day-long visit of Himachal Pradesh on Thursday flagged off high-speed luxury fourth Vande Bharat Express and laid the foundation stones of Bulk Drug Park that will attract investment of around Rs 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people, and two mega hydropower projects.

This is the Prime Minister's ninth visit to the state in the five years and second in almost a week.

Besides flagging off the train and laying the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park, he also inaugurated the Rs 128 crore Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) set up in Una well ahead of the Assembly polls in the BJP-ruled state.

Later, the Prime Minister laid foundation stones for two hydropower projects of nearly Rs 700 crore and launched the Rs 3,000 crore Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III at another function in Chamba town.

After launching development projects at both places, Modi at public meetings said these will have a positive impact on the region's progress and this became a reality with the state's double-engine government that has ensured "approvals for projects and their fast progress".

At both venues, chants of 'Modi hai toh mumkin hai' echoed in the air.

Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, who is leading the party's election campaign that has gained momentum, said this was the ninth visit of the Prime Minister which reflected his bonding with the state and its people.

He said Congress leaders were baffled due to the visits of the Prime Minister, as they knew the Congress would be completely wiped out from the state in the coming Assembly elections.

With the launch of the Vande Bharat Express service, the travel time between Delhi and Chandigarh would be brought down to three hours. From October 19, it will run six days a week, except Friday.

Running from Amb Andaura to New Delhi, the inaugural run of Vande Bharat Express is the fourth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speed in shorter duration.

It accelerates to 100 km per hour in just 52 seconds. The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.

The Prime Minister's clarion call for Aatmanirbhar Bharat or self-reliant India has led to the country moving swiftly towards attainment of self-reliance across multiple sectors, through support of various new initiatives of the government.

One such key sector is pharmaceuticals, and in order to bring in Aatmanirbharta in this sector the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park at Haroli to be built at a cost of Rs 1,923 crore.

The park will help reduce dependence on active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) or pharmaceutical raw material imports. It is expected to attract investment of around Rs 10,000 crore and provide employment to more than 20,000 people. It will also give a fillip to the economic activities in the region.

The foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Una was laid by the Prime Minister in 2017. Currently, more than 530 students are pursuing education in the institute.

After the inauguration and the public meeting in Una, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of two hydropower projects -- the 48 MW Chanju-III Hydro-electric Project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju Hydro-electric Project -- in Chamba, the historical town visited by a Prime Minister for the first time after 1981.

Both these hydro projects will generate over 270 million units of electricity annually and Himachal Pradesh is expected to get an annual revenue of around Rs 110 crore from these projects.

Prime Minister Modi also launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III for upgradation of around 3,125 km of roads in the state.

More than Rs 420 crore has been sanctioned by the Central government under this phase for the upgradation of 440 km of roads in 15 border and far-flung blocks of the state.

Amid a massive crowd at a public meeting in Chamba, Modi said the BJP's double-engine government made domestic gas connections available for every home in the state.

Trying to build a bond with the locals, Modi said during the Minjar Mela a teacher from Chamba shared information about this place through a letter which he shared in his monthly radio talk show 'Mann Ki Baat'.

He also fondly praised Devika, a Class nine girl student from Kerala, who sang folk song 'Chamba kitni ki door' narrating the town's picturesque beauty. The song has gone viral.

Launching the rural roads scheme, Modi said in the past eight years 12,000 km roads have been built in rural areas.

The Election Commission, which just concluded its three-day visit to the state, is likely to announce the election schedule in the next few days.

The BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections had won all the four seats that saw 72.25 per cent polling.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
New Delhi, Oct 13 : With a view to connect the existing Purvanchal Expressway with Bihar, the Centre has granted approval for 17 km long Greenfield 4-lane Buxar link in Purvanchal of Uttar Pradesh at a cost of Rs 618 crore.

Union Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday informed that the approval for the project has been given and the upcoming project will connect the Purvanchal Expressway built by the Government of Uttar Pradesh from Lucknow to Buxar in Bihar.

"Soon the work of this project will start, the time period of which has been kept for 2 years," said the Minister adding that the Ghazipur-Ballia-Manjhi Ghat and Buxar links of NH-31 are being made Greenfield 4-lane in four packages. This will lead to development of the entire area, he said.

Purvanchal Expressway was inaugurated in November 2021 and is considered to be one of the biggest infrastructure projects completed by the Uttar Pradesh government. The 341-kilometre-long expressway starts from Chandsarai village in the district of Lucknow located at Lucknow-Sultanpur road and ends at Haidaria village on National Highway 31 in Ghazipur district. The expressway has reduced the travel time between Lucknow to Ghazipur from 6 hours to 3.5 hours.

It is expected that the expressway's connectivity with Buxar will further help reduce the travel time from Uttar Pradesh to many cities of Bihar and will give a boost to economic development of adjoining areas.
Chennai, Oct 13 : It is not just the overseas investors wanting their funded Indian startups to house intellectual property rights (IPR) overseas but there are several other reasons for the latter to move out of India, said investors and others.

Recently, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government can talk to the Indian startups and address their concerns so that they can stay in the country rather than moving out.

There is a trend of Indian startups after their initial growth period move out to the US, Singapore and even the United Arab Emirates (UAE), industry officials said.

"Many investors/private equity (PE) funds are based in the US and other places. They also exert pressure on the Indian startup entrepreneurs to move out of India and house their IPRs overseas," an entrepreneur told IANS preferring anonymity.

Interestingly, many investors agreed to that view and also added other reasons for the entrepreneurs to move out after attaining a certain size.

"Technology companies, primarily B2B, software as a service (SaaS) players and deep tech businesses tend to move out to the US and some towards Singapore. The reason they start in India to begin with is the entrepreneurial talent, active investing ecosystem, solid tech employees and most importantly the ability to develop and run pilots at competitive costs," Sarath Naru, Managing Partner, Ventureast, one of the long standing venture capital firms in India told IANS.

According to Naru, the primary reason for them to move out is to be near their market.

"Indian market tends to be small for these businesses and not economically viable to continue to invest in technology and be competitive against global players. The US and Southeast Asia offer large ready markets and it makes most economic and strategic sense to be close to the markets," Naru remarked.

That aside there are secondary reasons for moving out - to house the IPRs overseas and continuous technology access.

The ownership of the IP could still be Indian owned and is usually, to the extent of ownership. There are also some limited situations where specific talent is better available overseas, Naru said.

"Other than the IPR housing reason, investors like the tax regime in certain countries; lower income tax and capital gains taxes. This also attracts the startups to move and later the founders become Non-Resident Indians (NRI)," Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures told IANS.

"Some of these governments give specific incentives like rent reimbursements, grants based on local employment etc. Further, the access to capital which does not invest in Indian companies. Finally, SAS companies, especially enterprise SAS, move to the US/UK to be closer to the enterprise customers," Gopalakrishnan added.

Non-availability of domestic capital is the primary reason for the startups moving out, Gopal Srinivasan, Managing Director and Chairman, TVS Capital Funds, a private equity company, told IANS.

Apart from funding and IPR perception industry officials list out other reasons.

"Raising money from the capital markets, lack of analysts with technical experience, ease of doing business and biodiversity laws are also the factors," Dr. Murali Panchapagesa Muthuswamy, President, Council of Presidents, Association of Biotechnlogy Led Enterprise told IANS.

Difficult online application process, the infamous Indian bureaucratic delays are other issues that are to be sorted out, industry officials said.

(Venkatachari Jagannathan can be reached at v.jagannathan@ians.in)
Mumbai, Oct 13 : The Bombay High Court on Thursday ordered the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation to accept the resignation of its employee Rutuja R. Latke - who is expected to be the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) party nominee for the November 3 bypolls Andheri East Assembly constituency.

Latke is the widow of the erstwhile Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke, who passed away in Dubai in May, necessitating the byelections.

A civic employee, Latke had quit her employment in the BMC in September - a mandatory requirement - to enable her contest the bypolls as a Sena (UBT) candidate.

However, the BMC had refused to accept her resignation, after which she moved the high court for relief today.

Justice Nitin Jamdar, while asking the BMC what was its problem if any employee wants to contest elections, ordered the civic body to accept the resignation by Friday 11 a.m., to enable her file the election nomination papers - for which the last date is also tomorrow.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Supreme Court judge Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, in the split verdict on Karnataka hijab ban, on Thursday said by asking girls to take off their hijab before they enter school gates is an invasion of privacy, attack on dignity, and denial of secular education.

He said this is the time when children should learn not to be alarmed by our diversity but to rejoice and celebrate this, and also this is the time when they must realise that diversity is our strength.

Justice Dhulia said: "By asking the girls to take off their hijab before they enter the school gates, is first an invasion of their privacy, then it is an attack on their dignity, and then ultimately it is a denial to them of secular education. These are clearly violative of Article 19(1)(a), Article 21 and Article 25(1) of the Constitution".

The judgment was delivered by a bench comprising Justices Hemant Gupta and Dhulia. While Justice Gupta dismissed the appeals challenging the Karnataka High Court judgment, Justice Dhulia set aside the high court judgment and quashed the Karnataka government order dated February 5.

The petitioners had moved the apex court, challenging the Karnataka High Court verdict refusing to lift the ban on hijab in educational institutions of the state.

Justice Dhulia said there shall be no restriction on the wearing of hijab anywhere in schools and colleges in Karnataka. He added that the unfortunate fallout of the hijab restriction would be that they would have denied education to a girl child.

"A girl child for whom it is still not easy to reach her school gate. This case here, therefore, has also to be seen in the perspective of the challenges already faced by a girl child in reaching her school. The question this court would put before itself is also whether we are making the life of a girl child any better by denying her education merely because she wears a hijab!" he said.

He added that the constitutional scheme, wearing a hijab should be simply a matter of choice and it may or may not be a matter of essential religious practice, but it still is, a matter of conscience, belief, and expression.

Justice Dhulia said if a girl wants to wear hijab, even inside her class room, she cannot be stopped, if it is worn as a matter of her choice, as it may be the only way her conservative family will permit her to go to school, and in those cases, her hijab is her ticket to education.

In a 73-page judgment, he said, "fraternity, which is our constitutional value, would therefore require us to be tolerant, and as some of the counsel would argue to be, reasonably accommodating, towards the belief and religious practices of others. We should remember the appeal made by Justice O. Chinnappa Reddy in Bijoe Emmanuel -- our tradition teaches tolerance; our philosophy preaches tolerance; our Constitution practices tolerance; let us not dilute it." He emphasised that the Government Order dated 5 February, 2022, and the restrictions on the wearing of hijab, also goes against constitutional values of fraternity and human dignity.

Justice Dhulia said: "Liberty, equality, fraternity, the triptych of the French Revolution is also a part of our Preamble. It is true that whereas liberty and equality are well established, properly understood, and recognised concepts in politics and law, fraternity for some reasons has largely remained incognito. The framers of our Constitution though had a different vision. Fraternity had a different, and in many ways a much larger meaning with the main architect of our Constitution, Dr Ambedkar".

He added that schools, in particular our pre-university colleges are the perfect institutions where children, who are now at an impressionable age, and are just waking up to the rich diversity of this nation, need to be counselled and guided, so that they imbibe our constitutional values of tolerance and accommodation, towards those who may speak a different language, eat different food, or even wear different clothes or apparel! "This is the time to foster in them sensitivity, empathy and understanding towards different religions, languages and cultures. This is the time when they should learn not to be alarmed by our diversity but to rejoice and celebrate this diversity. This is the time when they must realise that in diversity is our strength," he said.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : A 12-year-old boy, who sustained head injuries after being allegedly thrashed by a teacher, died due to delayed hospital admission in the national capital.

The father of the Class VI student dropped him at a school in Greater Noida's Badalpur region, like any other day on October 7. However, just before the school was about to get over, he got a call from the school informing his son Prince had fallen unconscious.

He rushed his son to the nearby health clinic which referred him to a hospital. The hospital referred the child to a higher centre for further management.

However, the family rushed to Safdarjung hospital, but they didn't admit the child in absence of beds. They went to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and then to GB Pant, but the admission was denied.

According to the family, they finally got the bed for his son at LNJP Hospital. Prince was operated upon the next morning. However, the child died hours later, on Saturday evening.

Meanwhile, his father said that when he inquired about the incident at the school, Prince's classmates told him that he was beaten with a cane by his teacher. He said that his son had injury marks on his chest, thighs, shoulder, back and even on his thighs.

As per the report, the child was hit on the hands with a stick thrice by the teacher as he failed in a class test.

After being hit, he fell down and started vomiting and later got unconscious in the classroom.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio was reportedly grilled by the Enforcement Directorate for six hours at a military camp at Rangapahar near Dimapur in connection with the non-existent high court building at Kohima, the foundation of which was laid in 2007 and the state so far has withdrawn over Rs 70 crore towards its construction.

Senior Congress leaders Nagaland unit chief K Therie and former Chief Minister K.L. Chishi submitted that Governor Jagdish Mukhi should immediately take cognisance of the development and initiate actions if NDPP leader Rio, an ally of BJP, fails to resign.

"The ED grilling a Chief Minister in office is a big thing. In order to enable judiciary process to go unhindered and for upholding of the commitment made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Home Minister Amit Shah for zero tolerance against corruption, now it is the responsibility of the state Governor Jagdish Mukhi to dismiss the state government headed by Rio," Therie told IANS.

He said only removal of the Chief Minister will facilitate removing all obstacles to the process of impartial and effective investigation. "Only then can the process deliver justice".

Answering questions, Therie also said for its part the BJP cannot wash off its hands.

"The BJP which is an ally of Chief Minister Rio should ask the Chief Minister Rio to prove his innocence and come clean at once and till the matter is cleared and the Chief Minister cannot remain in office." Sharing similar sentiments, K.L. Chishi told this correspondent: "Rio should resign. The demand for his resignation is justified as Rio is also the Finance Minister in his government and this mess and defalcation happened under his nose with his approval." In case the Chief Minister does not "take moral obligation and step down, the onus is on the Governor to uphold the constitutional and moral propriety".

"The very fact that he was questioned for six hours and he is an elected Chief Minister in office and also a BJP ally who works closely with senior BJP leaders shows there is a prima facie evidence. The Chief Minister must resign," said Chishi.

It has been reported that the construction works of all the other High Courts in the Northeast, including Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur, which started simultaneously have long been completed and are fully functional since 2013.

The matters are being pursued in a special CBI court vide case No. 6 and 7 of 2021, sources said adding the subject matter referred to is "the High Court siphoning of funds without work".

The basic structure of the site (Nagaland) is barely in place, but the Nagaland government till 2018 allegedly withdrew Rs 44.24 crore against electrification and water supply for the project site besides another Rs 22.42 crore for the construction of bungalows for the judges, the area for which was not earmarked.

The amounts were siphoned out between March 2009 and March 2017 through 18 withdrawals by Nagaland's Justice and Law Department, it has been alleged.

ED officials also reportedly kept the probe and questioning of Rio under cover for about three weeks now.

The ED took over the case and started probing the financial angle after the CBI filed two charge sheets in the matter in January at a special court.

Construction works of all the other high courts in the northeast, including Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur, which started simultaneously have long been completed and are fully functional since 2013.

(Nirendra Dev is a New Delhi-based journalist. He is also author of books, 'The Talking Guns: North East India' and 'Modi to Moditva: An Uncensored Truth' )
Panaji, Oct 13 : Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said that the Union Home Ministry has given an assurance to resolve the issue of the United Kingdom visas as soon as possible.

"I have discussed UK visa issue with Home Minister Amit Shah. It will be sorted out soon. There were some foreign ministry related issues, hence it was getting delayed. But he has assured to resolve it as soon as possible. Various other issues related to the state were discussed," Sawant told reporters here.

Sawant had met Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday.

Expressing concern about the low footfalls of foreign tourists due to Covid and other issues, the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) had also urged Chief Minister Sawant to convince the central government to include the UK for issuance of e-visas.

Goa Forward Party president and MLA Vijai Sardesai had on Tuesday claimed that the coastal state will face a loss of Rs 500 crore if tourists from the United Kingdom don't visit the state on account of hindrances in getting a visa.

"I want to appeal to Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant to take up the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lift the visa restrictions. We can come together and meet the PM over the issue," Sardesai had said.

Sardesai had said that Goa is facing cancellation of 7 to 8 bookings per day in small and medium hotels, due to the new visa restriction by the Ministry of External Affairs, where British tourists have to seek a visa from nine centres (Visa Processing) in England.

"This (lifting restriction) is important because in Goa annually minimum 40,000 to 50,000 tourists arrive from the UK. As per statistics of pre pandemic period each tourist spends around Rs 98,000, which means around a Rs 500 crore turnover takes place from this area," Sardesai had said.
Hyderabad, Oct 13 : Hyderabad police have apprehended a Sudanese national illegally staying in India and has deported him.

The sleuths of the Hyderabad Narcotic Enforcement Wing (H-NEW) apprehended a Sudanese national, who was found moving suspiciously at Zaheera Nagar, Banjara Hills.

He was identified as Mohamed Mahmoud Elawad Fadalla, 27 and the police found that his visa had expired in 2018.

On enquiry it was revealed that, he came to India in 2015 on student visa. The visa got expired in 2018 but he continued to stay in Hyderabad illegally. He was also found moving with previous drug offenders.

Upon credible information, the foreigner was apprehended in Banjara Hills and deported to his native country after following due process of FRRO Hyderabad.

The apprehension was made under the supervision of Chakravarthy Gummi, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad-Narcotic Enforcement Wing (H-NEW), Hyderabad City.
Gir Somnath, Oct 13 : The Gir Somnath police have arrested Bhavesh Akbari and his brother Dilip for the murder of 14-year-old Dhairya. The police have sent teams to Rajkot, Ahmedabad and other places to question friends of the accused.

District Superintendent of Police Manoharsinh Jadeja told IANS, "Bhavesh had a suspicion that his daughter Dhairya was under the influence of an evil spirit and so he with the help of his brother Dilip murdered the girl. Both have been arrested." He said so far they have not found any evidence that suggests that the child was sacrificed for the family's prosperity.

However, this is the theory of the villagers because Bhavesh and his brother cremated the girl without informing the village panchayat.

Bhavesh's father-in-law Valjibhai Dobariya in his complaint at the Talala police station has alleged that first Dilip cooked up a story that Dhairya had contracted an infectious disease, had blisters on her body because of which she died. To ensure that others don't get infected, they cremated her without informing their relatives.

Valjibhai did not believe this, so he and his son returned to Dhava village on Wednesday and pressured Dilip to tell the truth, which was shocking for Veljibhai.

Dilip is said to have told the complainant that, "Dhairya was influenced by an evil spirit, so they had taken her to the farm on October 1. We were carrying her extra clothes, which we burned and forced her to stand before the fire for two hours, because of which she developed blisters, the same night they performed black magic on her. On October 2, Dilip and Bhavesh beat her with sticks and iron wire, took her in the sugar cane field, tied her hair to a stick and put two chairs on her sides. She was kept like this for four to five days without water and food and they checked her health daily. On October 7 they found her dead." Early on October 8, they cremated her at the village crematorium. The complainant has alleged that Dhairya did not die because of any infectious disease, but she was murdered by her father and uncle.
Nehru was literally stopped at the gates of Kashmir Valley. Kohala, the intersection where Kashmir's territory touched British India was the place where Nehru was prevented from reaching Srinagar. Actually Nehru and one of his party were slightly injured by a sentry's bayonet in a scuffle on June 20, 1947 when cries of Go Back rent the air.

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) India<sng-qts>s first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was obsessed with the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir as was Muhammad Ali Jinnah who desperately wanted to pouch it. By aligning with Nehru who propped up Sheikh Abdullah as vice president of All India States People Conference, the latter bunged in a monkey wrench in Jinnah<sng-qts>s plan since he perceived Jinnah to be a purveyor of vile Islamist ideology. This was the great game being played on the eve of independence.

Nehru was literally stopped at the gates of Kashmir Valley. Kohala, the intersection where Kashmir's territory touched British India was the place where Nehru was prevented from reaching Srinagar. Actually Nehru and one of his party were slightly injured by a sentry's bayonet in a scuffle on June 20, 1947 when cries of Go Back rent the air.

As president of the All India States People's Conference, he came to the rescue of the incarcerated Sheikh Abdullah, but found himself jailed in the Uri Dak Bungalow by the repressive regime of Maharaja Hari Singh. That is how strong the bond between Nehru and Sheikh Abdullah was.

On the advice of Gandhiji and Maulana Azad, Panditji agreed to return to Delhi. During further Congress top echelons confabulations, Nehru agreed to send Kriplani to Kashmir since he was too closely committed to Kashmir's cause.

Pandit Ram Chandra Kak, Prime Minister of Kashmir and extremely close to British Political Agent Col. Webb, ensured Nehru was not allowed inside the Valley. With Nehru adopting a militant stance, the British Political Department didn't want him to add fuel to an already surcharged atmosphere.

For Nehru, Sheikh Abdullah and Mahatma Gandhi, Kashmir was the shop window for their secularist agenda -- a Muslim majority state ruled by a minority king. Not merely a laboratory for experiment, but a test case for what India was meant to be and stand for.

A confidential note prepared by Pandit Nehru's private secretary Dwarkanath Kachru on June 8, 1947 before the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir's accession to India provides an insight which stands to this day Kachru's note on Kashmir's integration went like this: "Geography, it has been suggested in certain influential quarters, will no doubt play a great part in determining the course which states would follow. Due to the proposed division of Punjab, it is therefore permissible to argue that Kashmir will find itself geographically isolated from the rest of India.

Powerful influences may also develop which will tend to draw Kashmir to the new alignment of forces within areas adjacent to it. But considering the temperament and character of the people of the state and the policy and outlook of the National Conference, it can safely be assumed that under the stress of disintegrating forces, Kashmir would tend to develop progressive nationalism and a political life of its own rather than join any unhappy combination in the areas adjacent to it." Kachru's words were so prescient.

The idea and ideal of Kashmir was integral to both Pandit Nehru and Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah and that remains at the very kernel of Kashmir's accession to the Union of India. Scuppering this was Muhammad Ali Jinnah who arrived in Kashmir to a hero's welcome in May 1944.

His visit in response to an invite sent by Muslim Conference leaders saw him spending close to two months in the Valley.

Shunned by the Ruler, his Prime Minister and Sheikh saheb, it did not stop Jinnah from making incendiary speeches. Take a look at one of them and this throws his obsession for Kashmir into stark relief: "If your objective is one, then your voice will also become one. I am a Muslim and all my sympathies are for the Muslim cause. It is better to live in a hut in Pakistan with a sense of security than to live in a bungalow in India in a shadow of security." Finally, in his address to the Muslim Conference Session in the compound of Jama Masjid, he said: "It is my duty as a Muslim to advise you correctly as to which course would be proper and ensure your success." For close to two months he canvassed across the length and breadth of the Valley, but all to no avail. Only because Sheikh Abdullah, Nehru, and ultimately Sardar Patel, thwarted his designs.

Conspiracy The dramatis personae who played a part in Kashmir's accession included Acharya J.B. Kriplani who visited the Valley in May 1947.

In the hurly burly of activity, this visit by Kriplani was to caution the Maharaja on the broad outlines of the Mountbatten Plan. But Kak played the spoiler, maneuvering to avoid the meeting between the two by advising His Highness to stay on in Jammu. When Kriplani insisted on a meeting with Hari Singh, Kak was forced to accompany him to Jammu.

Kriplani advised Hari Singh to send its representatives to the Constituent Assembly which the Maharaja refused. Then came the June 3 plan and Mountbatten's advice to the Princes to accede to one Dominion or the other.

Kak began to look still towards Jinnah and the Nawab of Bhopal who was busy playing his own games. Kak's idea was to establish independence with the tacit approval of the Muslim League and Jinnah. Then came Mountbatten's visit to Kashmir and his forthright advice about a quick decision in Kashmir's own interest. A vacillating Maharaja with Kak whispering conspiracy theories in his ear was still unsure of which way to go.

Till the dramatic visit of Gandhiji when slogans of 'Mahatma Gandhi zindabad' were heard in the Valley. Kak once again tried circumventing the meeting between Gandhiji and Hari Singh.

It was the Maharani who saved the situation. She wanted the Maharaja's permission to visit Gandhiji in case His Highness didn't invite him to the palace. She also wanted permission for the Yuvraj to accompany her.

Since the Yuvraj wasn't feeling well, the Maharaja ultimately gave in and invited Gandhiji to the palace. It happened so suddenly that Kak remained blissfully unaware and the trio of Maharaja, Maharani and Yuvraj welcomed Gandhiji.

Gandhiji went back and announced in a prayer meeting at Rawalpindi that he had advised Maharaja Hari Singh to release the NC leaders and introduce responsible government. This became the decisive turn in this fascinating Kashmir story.

Yet another momentous event came when the then Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's asked Guru Golwalkar to convince an indecisive Maharaja to accede to India.

Guruji went to Kashmir to get Maharaja Hari Singh to accede his state to the fledgling Indian Union. Guruji explained to the Dogra ruler that he better join India than entertain ideas about independence. But he chose not to.

However, it was only after Kashmir came under attack from Pakistani marauders backed by its army that forced Hari Singh's hand to take the plunge. As the raiders burnt Mahura power station plunging Kashmir into darkness. Hari Singh fled to Jammu driving down in the dead of the night.

When Maharaja Hari Singh, furst under the influence of Kak and then of his Rajguru Swami Sant Deo, who floated the idea of Dogristan, chased away Congress President Acharya J.B Kripalani, sent Viceroy Lord Mountbatten trout fishing and even made Gandhiji wait before seeing him, then Sardar Patel reportedly convinced RSS sarsangchalak Guru Golwalkar through MC Mahajan who been appointed PM to visit him to convince Hari Singh to accede to India.

According to late Madhavrao Muley, then Prant Pracharak of Punjab and J&K, Guru Golwalkar reached Srinagar by air from Delhi on October 17, 1947.

The meeting took place on the morning of October 18. During the meeting, Yuvraj Karan Singh, with his plastered fractured leg, was present while lying on the bed. Maharaja contended that 'My state is fully dependent on Pakistan. All routes pass through Sialkot and Rawalpindi. Lahore is my airport. How can I have relations with India?' Guruji made him understand by saying, 'You are a Hindu king'. By acceding to Pakistan, your Hindu subjects will have to struggle against grave difficulties.

"It is correct that there is no road, rail or air link with India, but it can be set right quickly. In your interest and the interest of Jammu & Kashmir State, it is better for you to accede to India".

Earlier by August 10, the differences between the Maharaja and Kak were unbridgeable and he was pensioned off, replaced by General Jankasingh.

The rest is well documented and though Jinnah tried as late as October 26, 1947 to repeatedly contact Sheikh Abdullah in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's York Road residence, it was a futile exercise as VP Menon returned from Kashmir with the Maharaja's signature on the instrument of accession.

Kashmir's complex and controversial birth was complete, but none of it would have happened with the spirit of Nehru, Gandhi, Abdullah and Sardar Patel.

Kashmir is India and India is Kashmir and this remains a recorded fact of history, unequivocal and categorical.

--IANS scor/

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New Delhi, Oct 13 : Supreme Court judge Justice Hemant Gupta, in a divided verdict, on Thursday dismissed appeals challenging the Karnataka High Court judgment which upheld the state government's February 5 order, prohibiting wearing of hijab inside classrooms in pre-university colleges.

Justice Gupta said: "Secularism is applicable to all citizens, therefore, permitting one religious community to wear their religious symbols would be antithesis to secularism. Thus, the Government Order cannot be said to be against the ethic of secularism or to the objective of the Karnataka Education Act, 1983." "If a particular student feels that she cannot compromise with the wearing of headscarf or of any other student to wear any outwardly religious symbol, the school would be justified not to allow such student, in the larger interest of treating all the students alike as a part of mandate of Article 14, which is central to the theme of Part III of the Constitution," he added.

Justice Gupta noted that the headscarf is not permitted in the school for the students who are studying in Class 10+1 or 10+2. "The students have many years ahead of them where they can carry on their religious faith but the Government Order mandating the wearing of uniform cannot be faulted since the object is in tune with the principles of the Constitution," he added.

A split verdict was delivered by a bench comprising Justices Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia. Justice Gupta dismissed the appeals challenging the Karnataka High Court judgment, whereas Justice Dhulia set aside the high court judgment and quashed the Karnataka government order dated February 5.

Justice Gupta also observed that if the students of one faith insist on a particular dress, there is no stopping for the others to carry their faiths and beliefs to the schools and it would not be conducive to the pious atmosphere of the school where the students seek admission for education.

"In fact, uniform fosters a sense of 'equality' amongst students - instils a sense of oneness, diminishes individual differences, helps focus on learning as students would not be bothered about their social status, improves discipline, fewer conflicts in school, promotes school spirit, generates a sense of belonging, pride, loyalty towards the school, relieves economic pressure on the parents, ensures equality before the educational institution, serves the need of a diverse community and promotes a positive sense of communal identity and does not lead to the growth of disparities of wealth and style," he said in a 133-page judgment.

He said the students are expected to maintain discipline and the school is responsible to lay a strong foundation so as to nurture the students as responsible citizens of the country.

"The Government Order cannot be said to be contrary to the legitimate State goal of promoting literacy and education. Article 21A is not applicable as all the students are over 14 years of age. The students have a right to education under Article 21, but not of insisting on wearing something additional to the uniform, in a secular school, as a part of their religion," he held.

"The Government Order only ensures that the uniform prescribed is adhered to by the students and it cannot be said that the State is restricting the access to education to the girl students through such an Order," he said.

Justice Gupta added that the students cannot assert that they have a right to education but they would avail such right as per their own wish and in the manner which they consider appropriate. "Defiance to rules of the school would in fact be antithesis of discipline which cannot be accepted from the students who are yet to attain adulthood. Therefore, they should grow in an atmosphere of brotherhood and fraternity and not in the environment of rebel or defiance." He said the pre-university college is open to all students of all castes and religions and the object of the state is to provide an opportunity for the students to study in the secular schools.

The top court said: "In view of the divergent views expressed by the bench, the matter be placed before the Chief Justice of India for constitution of an appropriate bench."
Moscow, Oct 13 : Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a veiled threat suggesting that all energy infrastructure in the world is a legitimate military target after the Nord Stream pipeline explosion last month, the media reported.

The authoritarian leader said the blast in the gas pipeline, which western intelligence agencies have blamed on his own country, was a terrorist attack and this has set 'the most dangerous precedent', Daily Mail reported.

Speaking at an energy forum in Moscow yesterday, the Russian president warned that 'any critically important object of transport, energy or utilities infrastructure is under threat'.

In a hidden jab aimed at the west, he suggested that this applied no matter where the infrastructure resides or who manages it, Daily Mail reported.

It comes as nations in Europe try to get set for a tough winter that is set to be dominated by surging energy prices and potential gas shortages brought on by Putin's illegal war in Ukraine and the subsequent damage to the Nord Stream pipeline.

Despite the threat, Britain has promised to continue its support of Ukraine and has promised to send rockets to defend its cities in the wake of Russian barrages that killed at least 19 people and injured scores more earlier this week.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky had called for more help with his country's air defence after the latest attacks and the UK seems set to answer by sending AMRAAM rockets capable of knocking out cruise missiles.

Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War
Bengaluru, Oct 13 : The Karnataka police have arrested five persons for the forceful conversion of a Hindu man to Islam.

The arrested persons have been identified as Ansar Pasha, former corporator in Bengaluru, Nayaz Pasha, Haaji Saab, Ataur Rehman and Shoib.

The police had arrested two accused earlier while the other three were arrested on Thursday. Nayaz Pasha was nabbed from Tamil Nadu.

Investigations revealed that initially Sridhar, hailing from Mandya, was interested in converting to Islam. The accused persons also got the circumcision ritual performed on Sridhar. After that, Sridhar did not want to proceed further but the accused forced him to get converted, the police said.

The case was earlier lodged in Navnagar police station in Hubballi city. It was later transferred to Banashankari police station in Bengaluru.

According to the police, Sridhar's parents had died and the ancestral property was in the name of his father's elder brother. After he initiated a case in this matter, the family was hostile towards him. Due to a financial crisis he had joined a cyber centre.

Sridhar had shared his problems with a Muslim man who was known to him. He had taken Sridhar to a Muslim religious leader. There the accused promised him help and transferred Rs 50,000 to his account. They asked Sridhar to follow their instructions and get converted to Islam.

After Sridhar showed resistance, the accused persons threatened him with a revolver, made him hold the weapon. After taking his photos holding the weapon, the accused threatened him that they would make his photo viral and brand him as a terrorist.

In the complaint Sridhar alleged that the accused had fed him beef in spite of his opposition and sent him to study the Quran at various places. The police have launched an investigation into the possibility of the accused running a religious conversion mafia.
Mumbai, Oct 13 : 'Bigg Boss 10' fame Monalisa, who is currently part of the web series 'Ratri Ke Yatri 2', said that it was amazing to be part of the project. The actress adds that working with director Anil V. Kumar made it even more worthwhile.

"It's an honour to work with a veteran like Anil V. Kumar sir. I remember when his team reached out to me, I jumped at the thought of working with him again and I was very confident in his story. For me, when it's Anil V. Kumar sir, it's only yes," she said.

She added: "Working with Anil V. Kumar sir is always great. I get to learn so many things. My character in 'Ratri Ke Yatri 2' is very challenging and I love doing challenging projects. I can only say when you have mentors like Anil Sir you only grow. And you take back a lot of learnings. It's just awesome to work with Anil Sir. This is my second project with Anil sir." "I was in 'Dhappa' and here again I am in 'Ratri Ke Yaatri 2', it's an anthology series. There are 5 different stories that have been written beautifully by him. It's a great honour to work with him and accept such challenging characters. Being an actor, I want to do different roles that prove I am a versatile actor. It's wonderful to get different characters written by him and getting directed by him because he teaches what he needs and portrays it. This character is a girl in a red light area. I wanted to do this character so nicely that it looks good and my fans like me in this never seen before character. And it's because of him that I could do justice to the character." Monalisa is known for doing Bhojpuri films and she was also seen in 'Nazar' and 'Namak Issk Ka', 'Nach Baliye 8', 'Smart Jodi', and many more.

The story is what sets this series apart, said the actress, adding: "I agree the part was bold. The story was true to its nature. You will often wonder if this is really what a woman thinks. We sometimes tend to be so judgemental but life can be black and white and for these women it surely is. They are doing their job well but we disregard the profession they chose. I feel like we really need to develop a lot of change in society, you never know the profession they have chosen out of what situation. We cannot judge someone without knowing what she has been through, they must have made a choice going through a lot of hardships and I feel like we cannot see someone with such disregard." She added: "My character is very interesting and a bit grey. Having played this role myself, I really feel that we should not discriminate and differentiate between them and us because nobody does this work by choice. I feel let them be themselves; you never know what goes on in their lives. It was tough for me to get into the character but Anil sir made me understand how to talk and enact, behave, helped me with everything. I was nervous though and when he said the act was perfect. I am really excited for the audience's reactions."
Kashipur, Oct 13 : The wife of the head of Jaspur block was shot dead in firing during the raid conducted by the UP police in Bharatpur village in Kunda police station area, Udham Singh Nagar, late on Wednesday evening.

Angered by the death, about 400 villagers blocked the highway in front of the police station. Heavy reinforcements reached the spot. The Kashipur police has registered a murder case against the UP police on the complaint of the block head.

There was a furore in the Udham Singh Nagar police department as soon as the incident came to light.

The police team from Moradabad in UP conducted the raid without informing the Uttarakhand police and were not in uniform. We are probing why the Moradabad police took this action, said DIG Nilesh Anand Bharne of Kumaon division, adding that a case of murder and conspiracy has been registered. The injured UP policemen escaped from our custody when they were admitted to LD Bhatt hospital and we are investigating the matter.

There is also a complaint that when an attempt was made to stop the UP police at Surya Chowki, they broke the barricade and fled. The DIG said that the UP police has been questioned over their lack of communication.

Local MLA Arvind Pandey also reached the spot after getting information about the incident. He said that the Uttarakhand police started investigation immediately. We have full faith in our police. The block chief has shown a lot of tolerance. A bigger tragedy could have occurred since the villagers were angry.

We have spoken to the Chief Minister and are confident that the police will get to the bottom of this incident and justice will be done, added Pandey.

A contradiction has also come to light in the statements of Udham Singh Nagar SSP and the Kumaon DIG. SSP Manjunath TC said that they had received information from the Moradabad police about the raid to arrest the wanted criminal. But there was a clash with the villagers and both sides opened fire. When we arrived, we saw that a woman had been shot dead. Three Moradabad police officers were injured. He added that this was a sensitive matter and the victim's family has registered a complaint.

Further investigation will not be based on statements alone but on facts. Forensic and CCTV evidence will be used for this, he said.
Mumbai, Oct 13 : The Congress' Maharashtra unit on Thursday called upon Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to stop the "sinful" move of shutting down some 14,000 schools ostensibly due to low enrolment of students.

State Congress President Nana Patole said that a majority of these targeted schools are situated in rural, remote, backward, or tribal belts of the state where there are no other educational options available for the poor children.

"They are children of farmers, labourers, ordinary families who sent their children to acquire education at these schools run by the districts. If these schools are closed, then these people from the poor strata shall be totally deprived of educationa It will be like a sin," he told Shinde.

Patole pointed out how Maharashtra is at the forefront in providing quality education at the highest levels, and where primary education forms the foundation of a good academic background for lakhs of students.

"In 2009, the Right To Education Act was passed by the Congress government at the Centre, which provides for free and compulsory education to every child aged 6-14, with admission to the nearest school. The 25 per cent reservations for economically weaker sections in private educational institutions is also applicable under the Act. The State government is duty-bound to ensure that all children get proper education," he said.

Referring to a purported move to shut down around 14,000 schools where the enrollment/attendance figures range from 0-20, the Congress leader said this would totally deprive children in rural, tribal and backward areas of education, and they would be compelled to travel far for attending school.

Hailing the state's glorious legacy, he said many social reformers like Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, Savitribai Phule, Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj, Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil and others had thrown open the doors of schools for the 'Bahujan community' in every village.

"The Congress has taken the message to spread education in the remotest areasa On the contrary, the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Gujarat is closing down 6,000 schools and now plans to shut down 14,000 schools in Maharashtra. This will rob the Bahujans of the opportunity to get educated and progress in life," Patole cautioned.

--IANS qn/vd

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New Delhi, Oct 13 : The iconic cable-stayed-cum-suspension bridge across Krishna river in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana has been approved by the Central government at the total cost of Rs 1,082.56 crore with a construction period of 30 months.

Union Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday informed that after completion, this bridge would be second of its kind in the world and first in India.

The hybrid structural arrangement in the bridge will give a structural advantage to it and make it economical as well as aesthetically pleasing.

The bride would have several unique features like the longest glass pedestrian walkway across a river, gopuram like pylons, signature lighting and a large navigational span. After its completion, the bridge will reduce the distance between Hyderabad and Tirupati by 80 km.

The bridge has beautiful surroundings with the sprawling Srisailam reservoir surrounded by Nallamala forests and high mountains with huge tourist potential and presents an attractive view of Lalitha Someswara Swamy temple on Telangana side and Sangameswaram temple on Andhra Pradesh side.
New Delhi, Oct 13: Geneva, other than being a beautiful city, is the mecca of human rights activists. The UN holds three sessions of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) namely in March-April, June-July and September-October of every year. Council listens to and investigates human rights issues from around the world.

The Baloch people have been presenting their case in the UN against Pakistan, who, they say has colonised them, by establishing a well-oiled exploitative system, targeting the region's vast resources. After many phone calls and coordination, I reached Geneva where Mr Hatim Baloch, who is the coordinator for the Baloch National Movement (BNM) Switzerland and France Chapter, greeted me and escorted me to meet Dr Naseem Baloch, Chairman of BNM. While we shared greetings in front of the UN building, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) was protesting against Pakistani atrocities against Pashtuns.

Dr Naseem took the Chairmanship of BNM in April this year and is himself a torture victim at the hands of the Pakistan Army. Over lunch he spoke about his submission to the UN, Baloch "genocide" by Pakistan and measures taken by Baloch groups to ally together.

Excerpts from the Interview: IN: Briefly tell us about the pointers of your speech which you have submitted at the UN?

DNB: Our organization and friends have been working hard for a long time to get access to the UN and the world powers and for this various associations are working in this direction. Since we have access to the UN and other similar organizations, we can highlight Balochistan and human rights abuses by Pakistan. Currently, the 51st session of UNHRC is going on in Geneva. Countries get 2.5 minutes and Non-State observers like us get 1.5 minutes to speak on our issues. In this session, we highlighted human rights abuses on Baloch people by Pakistan for the year 2022 -- enforced disappearances have been the main contention for Baloch people for decades now and still happening. Other than that, we have also highlighted about Ziarat Massacre in which 11 missing persons were killed in a fake encounter by security forces and the Pakistan Army's brutality on peaceful protesters and targeting of women and children for exercising their fundamental rights.

IN: Why do you think the world continues to ignore Pakistani atrocities in Balochistan? DNB: World powers have their interests and their state apparatus and NGOs revolve around their interests. This holds true for international organisations as well considering they are all interconnected and are busy serving themselves. But we are not disappointed because the fact is Pakistan is committing genocide towards Baloch people and one day world will be reluctant to talk and take action against this grave injustice. The world has been a witness to similar genocide in the past and whenever things reach their peak then world powers and the UN become helpless and take notice of the same, our hope continues to rest with the world as Pakistan is an Aggressor state and no way can we expect anything from the latter. Things are changing very fast and ugly in Balochistan and our work is to highlight all wrongdoings about Pakistan so that one day the world has to take note of it.

IN: Several Baloch groups are functioning in the UN and across the world, don't you think a combined effort will bring out a more meaningful and sustainable result? DNB: We believe that all those Baloch organisations that are fighting for the independence of Balochistan should be in communication and coordination with each other. Not just that but I believe that there are several common points where we have an understanding with other groups and we can work together in those areas. And in line with this, I have written to the Baloch Republican Party (BRP) which is under the leadership of Brahmdagh Bugti and received some positive messages from their side. I have also written to the Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) which is under the leadership of Mr Hybyair Marri and I am in communication with them. We hope that all of us can work together towards the independence of Balochistan.

(The writer is a geopolitical analyst on Pakistan and related issues. The views expressed are personal and exclusive to India Narrative) (The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Shortly after the Delhi police detained Gujarat AAP chief Gopal Italia on Thursday, the Aam Aadmi Party came down heavily on the BJP for the selective targeting and subjugation of the Patidar community in Gujarat.

AAP National Convenor and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, "Patel community is fuming with rage all over Gujarat after the arrest of Gopal Italia. What has Gopal Italia done? AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said, "BJP has a long history of crushing the Patel community's rise by either gunning down their people or arresting them in frivolous cases. Gopal Italia has made a huge leap in politics despite coming from a humble background; why is BJP hell bent on imprisoning him? Harassment and malicious action against Gopal Italia has filled the Patidar community of Gujarat with anger and rage." He alleged that the BJP is targeting the Patidar community in Gujarat out of hatred and malice. It is not the first incident when the Patidars have been humiliated by the BJP. Whenever the BJP has got a chance, it has crushed the Patidar community and gunned down their people. The party also has a history of imprisoning them in frivolous cases.

The BJP has become so rattled by the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections that they are bringing out doctored videos against a young and passionate leader from the Patidar community -- Gopal Italia, he said.

However, a few hours later Italia was released. Kejriwal said that because of pressure from the people of Gujarat, the BJP had to free Italia. This is a victory of the people of Gujarat, he tweeted.
Guwahati, Oct 13 : On her first day of visit to Assam, President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated a number of projects in the state on Thursday.

Murmu inaugurated the supercomputer facility Param-Kamrupa and laboratory for the design and development of high-power microwave components at IIT-Guwahati.

She also virtually inaugurated the Medical College and Hospital at Dhubri and laid the foundation stones for two Zonal Institutes of the National Institute of Virology (NIV) at Dibrugarh in Assam and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh on the occasion.

The President said that within a short span of its existence, IIT Guwahati has made the region and nation proud with its achievements in the national and international arena.

She was happy to note that a few days ago, IIT Guwahati had constructed a 3D-printed sentry post for developing cost-effective and sustainable defence infrastructure for the Indian Army.

President Murmu also said IIT Guwahati is a knowledge centre that can provide technology solutions to connectivity issues and other challenges in the northeastern region.

Since this is the only IIT in the North Eastern Region, IIT Guwahati must shoulder the responsibility to nurture other institutions in the region, work with the state government and the defence forces to strengthen our borders and provide technological solutions to prevent the recurrence of natural calamities in the region.

She urged the institute to encourage innovations, work towards indigenisation in cutting-edge technologies, provide skill development avenues and be a forerunner in making the country Atmanirbhar.

The President also appealed to the science and technology institutes of the country to promote greater research and development so that India can be a leader in technological innovations, beneficial for the larger good of the society.

She moreover said that now the northeast is making big strides towards development and also making extraordinary efforts to provide high-quality healthcare and education systems to the people of the region and the country.

She noted that the government of Assam is further providing support to IIT Guwahati to set up an advanced multispecialty hospital.

She said that it will serve as an example for other esteemed institutes in the country to undertake similar initiatives.

"We all know that the Sun rises first in northeast India and then spreads its light across the country. I hope that this region should be the torch-bearer in spreading knowledge and inculcating scientific temper among people of the country," President Murmu added.
Patna, Oct 13 : Parents of Bihar's Sitamarhi district sold their daughter to a resident of Uttar Pradesh in a fair, an official said.

The incident came to light after the victim fled from captivity of the accused and reached the SP office of Sitamarhi district. The SP of the district immediately directed the SHO of concerned police station to arrest the accused.

The victim is a resident of a village under Dumra police station in Sitamarhi. Her parents took her to Uttar Pradesh to see a fair in Kushinagar district a few days ago and sold her to a youth named Gaurav Kumar.

The accused parents reached home and told the neighbours that she has been married to Gaurav Kumar, hence, not around.

After the victim escaped from Gaurav's captivity, she reached the office of Sitamarhi SP and requested him to take action against her parents.

"We have arrested the father and mother of the victim and questioning is on. We have also conducted the medical examination of the victim and report is awaited. The accused Gaurav Kumar is also on the radar. Investigation is currently underway. The victim was sent to rehabilitation centre," said S.K. Yadav, an investigating officer of Dumra police station.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The Supreme Court on Thursday set aside the Gujarat High Court order, which asked the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) to obtain approval or a waiver as a SEZ compliant unit from the competent authority in respect of its warehouse facility situated in 34 acres within SEZ Area developed by Adani Ports Special Economic Zone (APSEZL).

A bench comprising Justices B.R. Gavai and C.T. Ravikumar said: "We are... of the considered view that the impugned judgment and order of the High Court dated 30th June 2021 is not sustainable in law." The top court said the high court forced the MD of the CWC, which is a statutory body, to accept the first two conditions and leave the third condition to be settled mutually through mediation.

It noted that the offer given by the APSEZL on March 9, 2019 was a composite one so also the acceptance thereof by the CWC was a composite one. "The acceptance of the first two conditions was also dependent upon the 3rd condition. If the High Court was so concerned about settlement of the dispute, then, while compelling the appellant - CWC to accept the first two conditions, it also ought to have compelled the APSEZL to accept the 3rd condition," said the bench, adding that the observations of the high court's division bench were totally unwarranted.

It also expressed concern at diagonally opposite stands taken by two ministries -- Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution -- of the Union of India in the matter.

"We are of the considered view that it does not augur well for the Union of India to speak in two contradictory voices. The two departments of the Union of India cannot be permitted to take stands which are diagonally opposite," said the top court. The bench directed the registry to furnish a copy of this judgment to the Attorney General to use his good offices and do the needful.

The top court said the division bench totally ignored the stand taken by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, which too had opposed such a swapping (the warehouse facility from the present site to a changed site). "Rather than the High Court being surprised with the conduct of the appellant - CWC, it is we who are surprised with the observations made by the High Court. When an issue involves the balancing of interests of a statutory corporation and a private company, the approach of the High Court ought to have been a balanced one," it said.

It added that the high court ought to have taken into consideration that, unless all the three conditions were complied with, the interest of the appellant - CWC, which is a statutory corporation, could not have been safeguarded. "If a settlement was to be arrived at, unless the same was found to be in the interest of both the parties, it could not have been thrust upon a statutory corporation to its detriment and to the advantage of a private entity," it noted.

The CWC, which is operating a warehouse comprising two units with a total capacity of 66,000 MTs at the 34-acre plot, challenged the unlawful inclusion of its land in the SEZ area.

The high court had given three months time to the CWC to either seek and obtain approval as a SEZ compliant unit from the competent authority under the SEZ Act or obtain a waiver of the conditions to comply with the provisions of SEZ Act as a SEZ Unit. If he CWC failed to get such approval within three months, the APSEZ was directed to acquire the land of the same size outside SEZ area for the construction of a warehouse facility within one year. The high court asked the CWC to vacate and give possession of its existing warehousing facility and the land within three months after a new alternative arrangement was made by the APSEZ.

The apex court remitted back pleas by the CWC to the single judge of the high court for consideration afresh, and also to be decided as expeditiously as possible and preferably within a period of six months from the date of this judgment.

"Until further orders are passed by the single judge, the interim order dated 26th April 2019 passed by the Division Bench in LPA No. 22 of 2017 shall continue to operate. We clarify that our order would not come in the way of the parties in arriving at a settlement which would be acceptable to both the parties," it said.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : In what could be a Diwali bonanza for millions of farmers, the Central government may release the 12th instalment of Rs 2,000 of PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana next week, which is expected to benefit 10 crore farmers.

According to sources, the government may release the instalment on October 17.

Around 12 crore farmers are associated with PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, under which a total of Rs 6,000 is transferred to their accounts in three instalments annually.

Till now, the government has disbursed 11 instalments to farmers and the 12th instalment is expected to be disbursed next week.

Farmers however have often complained that the amount doesn't reach them due to several technical glitches related to online transfer of instalments.

To ensure that the amount reaches them, the farmers have to complete e-KYC formalities.

The instalments are transferred to Aadhar linked bank accounts of farmers.

--IANS ans/vd

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San Francisco, Oct 13 : Tech giant Amazon's satellite broadband programme -- Project Kuiper -- will launch two prototype satellites on an upcoming United Launch Alliance (ULA) mission to test system performance in space in early 2023.

Amazon said it created Project Kuiper to deliver fast, affordable broadband to unserved and underserved communities worldwide.

"We couldn't be more excited to join the first launch of ULA's Vulcan Centaur," Rajeev Badyal, vice president of technology for Project Kuiper, said in a statement.

"We've already secured 38 Kuiper launches on Vulcan, and using the same launch vehicle for our prototype mission gives us a chance to practice payload integration, processing, and mission management procedures ahead of those full-scale commercial launches," he added.

According to the tech giant, the first two satellites -- Kuipersat-1 and Kuipersat-2 -- will be completed later this year, and the company is now planning to deploy both satellites on the first flight of ULA's new Vulcan Centaur rocket in early 2023.

"ULA is scheduled to provide 47 launches for our satellite constellation, and using Vulcan Centaur for this mission will give us practical experience working together ahead of those launches," the tech giant said.

The rocket will launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, and the company's prototype satellites are scheduled to share the ride with the Peregrine lunar lander, a NASA-funded spacecraft from Astrobotic.

"Our prototype mission will help us test how the different pieces of our satellite network work together, adding real-world data from space to results from our extensive lab testing, fieldwork, and simulation," Amazon said.

"We will use findings from the mission to help finalise design, deployment, and operational plans for our commercial satellite system, which will provide reliable, affordable broadband to customers around the world," it added.

Alongside preparations for this mission, the Project Kuiper team is starting to scale production to support a full deployment.

Amazon said its first production satellites -- the more advanced spacecraft that will power its commercial broadband service -- are scheduled to launch on ULA's Atlas V rocket.

From there, Amazon will begin to phase in the Vulcan rocket alongside newer heavy-lift rockets from two other space launch companies, Arianespace and Blue Origin.
Hyderabad, Oct 13 : Uzbekistan is providing 2,000 seats in its medical colleges for Indian students who had to discontinue their medical education in war-hit Ukraine, its envoy to India said on Thursday.

Uzbekistan's Ambassador, Dilshod Akhatov said here that at the request of the Indian government, Uzbekistan's Medical Higher Educational Institutes (MHEIs) of Ministry of Health is providing 2,000 seats to relocate Indian medical students from Ukraine.

MHEIs will be providing the students quality education by accepting the Erstwhile MCI and NMC norms (Screening test regulations 2002) and (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate - FMGL Regulations 2021) at an affordable budget for middle class families by providing a study-and-stay-at-a-place with Indian food, he said.

The Ambassador stated that Uzbekistan stands out in international medical education by offering two undergraduate medical programs to Indians -- 6 years MD Diploma and 5+1 years MBBS Degree with one year Internship. To prepare students for the FMGE/NEXT exam, the university has a large modern infrastructure, a large number of teaching beds in associated government hospitals and clinics, and 30 per cent Indian and international professors with supplementary training.

The Ambassador presented the Provisional Admission letters to the students who successfully passed the interview session conducted by the Government Higher Medical Institutes of Uzbekistan like Bukhar State Medical Institute and Tashkent Medical Academy.

Dr B.Divya Raj Reddy who is a Director of NEO and Indian Representative for MHEIs of Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan was present on the occasion.

Under the Uzbekistan-Hyderabad Health Care Exchange programme, the Ministry of Health sent Uzbek surgeons and doctors to AIG, Yashodha, and Medanta hospitals for a month-long programme. The ambassador said due to Covid and conflict, the globe is focusing on health, safety, security, and peace and Uzbekistan is advancing in this direction and emerging as the safest area.

He also announced the Uzbekistan Tourism and Tashkent International Tourism Fair in Uzbekistan from November 30 to December 2. Heads and tourism ministers of different countries will be participating in this fair with international tourists and tour operators/agencies.

Latest updates on Russia-Ukraine War
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The family of an Indian national, who went missing in Kenya 80 days ago along with a fellow Indian, has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene into the matter and ensure their safe return.

Former media executive Zulfiqar Khan (Zulfi), Mohamed Zaid Sami Kidwai and their driver Nicodemus Mwania, a local, are said to have been abducted near the Ole Sereni area in mid-July and driven away in an unmarked car.

"We want to make people aware of who Zulfi really is, question his disappearance, and plead with our Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to intervene and ask the concerned Government of Kenya to start a search operation to get Zulfi back home safe!" the family said in a statement.

A preliminary report handed over to the Inspector General of Police revealed that the three men were last seen when they visited a night club in Westlands, Nairobi, on the night of July 23, The Standard reported.

"We don't know if there is a serious search operation to find him. We don't know if the Indian government has demanded an explanation from the Kenyan government about their missing citizen. We don't even know if our own high commission in Kenya is helping in any way," the family said.

According to local media reports, the two were in the country to join President William Ruto's election campaign Information and Communications Technology (ICT) team.

"The abduction could be a fallout of their contribution in the field of information and technology to Kenyan President William Ruto's re-election campaign," The Star reported.

Khan's last online activity was a July 21 Instagram post - in which he shared photos and videos of his trip to Masai Mara National Park in Nairobi, Kenya.

He last worked as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Balaji Telefilms. Prior to that, he was also the Managing Director of the OTT platform, HOOQ, and the Business Head and Chief Revenue Officer of Eros Now.
Mumbai, Oct 13 : The Bombay High Court on Thursday ordered the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation to accept the resignation of its employee Rutuja R. Latke - who will be the Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray party nominee for the November 3 bypolls to Andheri East Assembly constituency.

Latke is the widow of the erstwhile Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke, who passed away in Dubai in May, necessitating the byelections, and the verdict has come as a huge psychological relief to the Sena-UBT.

A civic employee, Latke had quit her job in the BMC in September - a mandatory requirement - to enable her contest the bypolls as a Sena-UBT candidate.

However, the BMC had refused to accept her resignation, after which she moved the high court for relief.

A division bench of Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Sharmila Deshmukh directed the BMC to issue a "resignation acceptance letter" to Latke by 11 a.m. on Friday.

Friday is the last day to file nominations for the Andheri East assembly bypolls and now the path is clear for Latke to file her papers.

The BMC's lawyer, senior advocate Anil Sakhar had strongly opposed Latke's plea arguing that she had submitted her resignation on October 3 and wanted the one-month notice period to be relaxed.

While this would be at the discretion of the Municipal Commissioner, he claimed that a complaint of alleged corruption was received against Latke on Wednesday, which the Municipal Commissioner would have to consider.

At one point, Justice Jamdar asked the BMC what was its problem if any employee wanted to quit and contest elections.

Latke's lawyer Vishwajeet Sawant pointed out that in the past the BMC accepted the resignation of its employees without even asking for the reasons, and questioned the alleged complaint against Latke.

"The complaint is a manufactured document, evidence of malafide. It's not on a printed letterhead, the date is changed, the complainant is from Andheri West and is not concerned with the petitioner (Latke)," he said.

In her plea, Latke said that she had fulfilled all the conditions, including paying a penalty for the waiver of the notice period, and other formalities but the BMC had not given her the relieving letter, because she was planning to contest the by-elections.

Sena-UBT President Uddhav Thackeray welcomed the verdict but rued how in the current political circumstances, they are forced to knock the doors of the court for every issue.

Senior party leader Anil Parab said that all these years the BMC had no problems against Latke, but after she decided to quit and contest the polls, an alleged graft complaint was suddenly received by the BMC.

"This shows to what level politics had plummeted, but we are thankful to the court for giving us justice. Latke will file her nomination papers tomorrow and we shall ensure her thumping victory," he said.
Kolkata, Oct 13 : An eight-year-old girl has been killed at Chanchal sub-division of Malda district in West Bengal, allegedly as part of black magic rituals conducted by a local tantrik, Bikram Bhagat.

Following the recovery of the victim's body, local people severely beat up the accused and he is currently under treatment at a hospital in Chanchal in extremely critical condition.

An officer of Chanchal Police station has informed media persons that the body of the victim has been sent for autopsy at Malda Medical College & Hospital. "The real reason of death can be ascertained only after the autopsy report comes," he said. Police is also investigating whether the victim girl was raped before murder.

The victim was missing since Wednesday. Finally, on late Wednesday night, her body was recovered beside a water body adjacent to the residence of the accused, Bikram Bhagat. Her throat was slit.

The locals informed police that the accused, who was known in the locality as a tantrik practicing black magic, was earlier also nabbed by the local people while attempting to kidnap a local minor girl for the purpose of sacrifice. However, he apologised and the local people released him with a strong note of caution.

The deceased father of the accused was also known in the locality as a tantrik, though there was no complaint against him ever. The local people also informed the police that after the body of the victim girl was recovered from near the residence of the accused, they rushed to his residence.

"However, he tried to escape. Later, in the face of the angry mob, he confessed that he sacrificed the girl as part of the black magic rituals," local resident Achin Haldar told the police.

The father of the victim is a migrant worker currently working in Bihar. He has three children, the victim was the eldest, and two sons. The victim's mother has demanded capital punishment for the accused.
Bhopal, Oct 13 : Scam-tainted Vyapam, which was renamed as the Staff Selection Board (SSB) in February this year, will now be called the 'Madhya Pradesh Employees Selection Board (MP-ESB). The Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP government has renamed the board twice within a span of seven months, while it is the third time that Vyapam has been renamed since the multi-crore scam broke in 2013.

The state government first rechristened it as the Professional Examination Board (PEB) in 2015. In February this year it was renamed as the Karmchaari Chayan or Staff Selection Board (SSB). Sources claimed that it was renamed after approval from the state cabinet in a bid to repair at least some of the damage to its reputation.

The opposition Congress said the Bharatiya Janata Party government is making all out efforts to hide it's sins through changing Vyapam's name again and again. However, their efforts will not work and the Chouhan government will have to face the allegations as it has not only destroyed thousands of youths careers but several innocent people have been killed.

"By changing the name of Vyapam for the third time the sins of this institution, which has become a monument to corruption, can not be forgotten nor can the nexus of politicians, officers and education mafia involved in it," said K. K. Mishra, head of the media cell of the Madhya Pradesh Congress, who had earlier accused Shivraj's OSD Markam Singh of involvement in the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) paper leak. The TET was executed by the same department but with a changed name.

The Vyapam scam was an entrance examination, admission and recruitment scam. It was functional since the 1990s and was finally unearthed in 2013. It first rocked the government when it surfaced that candidates bribed officials to use imposters to take exams on their behalf.

Apart from all the entrance examinations held for state employees, Vyapam has been conducting the recruitment of class III and IV employees as well. Vyapam also used to conduct only Pre-Medical Test and Pre-Engineering Test till 2004.
Hyderabad, Oct 13 : Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) Working President and state minister K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday promised to adopt Munugode Assembly constituency, which is going to polls on November 3.

Addressing a TRS rally before filling of nomination by party candidate Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy, he promised to personally ensure development of the constituency and Nalgonda district.

Accompanied by K. T. Rama Rao, Energy Minister Jagadish Reddy and leaders of CPI and CPI-M, Prabhakar Reddy reached the office of returning officer to file the nomination papers.

In a massive show of strength, the TRS organised a huge rally from Bangari Gadda to Chandur.

Leading the rally was Rama Rao, who appealed to people to vote for the TRS for the development of the constituency.

KTR, as the TRS leader is popularly known, described the by-election as a fight between a contractor's arrogance and self-respect of Telangana people. He told the gathering that Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy himself admitted that he was given Rs 18,000 crore contract by the Narendra Modi government.

He alleged that Rajagopal Reddy neglected the constituency for four years after getting elected on Congress ticket and has now joined BJP and imposed a by-election for the sake of the Rs 18,000 crore contract.

Alleging that Modi government did injustice to Telangana during the last eight years, KTR appealed to people to teach a befitting lesson to BJP by defeating Rajagopal Reddy.

He exuded confidence that Prabhakar Reddy will win the by-election by a huge margin.

Communist Party of India (CPI) state Secretary Sambasiva Rao and CPI-M Secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram participated in the rally and reiterated their support to TRS candidate.

Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy had lost to Rajagopal Reddy in 2018 by over 23,000 votes. In 2014, Prabhakar Reddy was elected from the constituency. This was first victory for the TRS in the constituency, which was won either by the Congress or the CPI.

Rajagopal Reddy has already filed nomination as BJP candidate.

The Congress party has given ticket to Palvai Sravanthi, daughter of former MP Palvai Govardhan Reddy.

--IANS ms/vd

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Shimla, Oct 13 : The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Thursday dismissed an appeal of East India Hotels Ltd (EIH Ltd) and others against the state in a matter relating to Oberoi Group's Wildflower Hall, a luxury spa on the outskirts of the state capital.

A division bench of Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Chander Bhusan Barowalia passed this order on an appeal filed by EIH Ltd under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.

The Himachal Pradesh government was the owner of Wildflower Hall, which was earlier used by the HP State Tourism Development Corporation as a hotel. In 1993, a devastating fire broke out in the hotel and it got completely burnt down.

The state decided to explore methods and possibilities of putting the hotel back in operation. In furtherance thereto, the state floated global tenders inviting offers from various interested parties for making and running of a five-star hotel at that site.

The appellant, EIH Ltd, which already had an established hotel chain in the country and abroad, participated in the tender process.

A high-power committee was formed and after prolonged deliberations, discussions and negotiations, the state government decided to partner with EIH Ltd.

Under the joint venture, the state envisaged effective participation in all significant decisions which require approval of the state. The parties agreed to incorporate a Joint Venture Company by the name of Mashobra Resorts Ltd (MRL) for the purpose of running Wildflower Hall.

As per the venture, the state was to enjoy shareholding of not less than 35 per cent in MRL, whereas EIH Ltd was to enjoy shareholding of not less than 36 per cent but not more than 55 per cent. The balance 10 per cent was to be reserved for public issue.

The government was entitled to terminate the venture by a written notice in the event the hotel was not made fully commercially operational within four years from the date of handing over of possession of land.

However, the state may in its discretion choose not to terminate the agreement even after expiry of four years. In that case a penalty of Rs 2 crore per annum was to be payable by EIH Ltd to the government.

After expiry of six years from the effective date, if the hotel was still not fully commercially operational, the venture was to stand automatically terminated.

On February 6, 1997, a registered conveyance deed was executed by the government in favour of MRL qua the land at Wildflower Hall. On May 3, 2000, the period of four years from the date of handing over of possession expired without the hotel at Wildflower Hall being made fully commercially operational.

The government, in its discretion, chose not to terminate the venture. However, EIH Ltd failed to pay the penalty amount of Rs 2 crore per annum for the period beyond four years.

On October 31, 2000, MRL submitted application for registration of entire 85 rooms of the hotel to the department. The Tourism Department after carrying out inspection found that out of 85 rooms, only 28 rooms were fully functional and ready for occupation.

Accordingly, the department directed MRL to obtain completion certificate from the Town and Country Planning Department for 28 rooms, without which registration of the rooms could not be granted.

The appellants contended that the joint venture agreement was executed only between EIH Ltd and the government and as such it could not bind MRL which had not even been incorporated.

It was further submitted that there was no legal requirement for completion certificate under the state local laws. The appellants also argued that there were various delays on the part of the government which contributed to delay in completion of the project.

The court found the appellant has failed to make the hotel fully commercially operational by May 3, 2002, which resulted in automatic reversion of the property to the government.

The court found no merit in this appeal and accordingly dismissed it.

Wildflower Hall, sought-after by high-end tourists and celebrities, was long under litigation between the two partners.

British-era Wildflower Hall was once the residence of Lord Kitchener, Field Marshal in the British Army who played a significant role in the early part of World War I.

After India's Independence, the building was handed over to the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation for running a hotel.

Wildflower Hall is located at Charabra at a height of 8,300 feet, and commands a breathtaking view.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : In a tragic incident, three youngsters drowned in a water-logged pit at Kaya Maya Park in south Delhi's Khanpur area. The police said the water had collected in the pit following the recent heavy rainfall in the national capital.

The police said the deceased have been identified as Risabh (16), Piyush (13) and Piyush (16), all residents of Khanpur area.

According to Esha Pandey, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Southeast district, around 2.38 p.m. on Thursday, a police control room (PCR) call was received at the Pul Pehladpur police station regarding the drowning of three children following which an Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) and police teams rushed to the spot.

"The caller, another 16-year-old boy on the spot, told the police that he along with his seven friends came to bathe in the rainwater accumulated in the park. When they were taking a bath, three of his friends, Piyush, Risabh and another boy also named Piyush, went into the pit. They started drowning and after some time they disappeared in the water," said the DCP.

"On the instance of the boy, the police team jumped into the water filled pit. After an intensive search of about 30 minutes all the three children were fished out of the water and sent to Majeedia Hospital in a CAT ambulance, where they were declared brought dead by the doctors," said the DCP.

Meanwhile, a senior official of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority said that Kaya Maya Park is under the jurisdiction of the DDA and rainwater has accumulated because of the recent rainfall.

"The park is so designed that a depression exists which creates a natural pond. After the recent rains it was filled to around six feet, at its highest point," said the official.

This comes two days after six children, aged between eight and 13, drowned in a rainwater-filled pond in Gurugram Sector 111 on Sunday.
Kolkata, Oct 13 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Thursday that it had arrested another absconding accused in the carnage at Bogtui village in West Bengal's Birbhum district in which 10 persons were killed early on March 21.

The arrested person was identified as Bulu Sheikh alias Dollar Sheikh and according to a statement issued by the CBI, he was absconding since inception of investigation of the case.

The accused, with others, had allegedly bought petrol on March 21, which was used for burning the houses in Bogtui, the statement said.

Sheikh was produced before a lower court at Rampurhat in Birbhum on Thursday, which sent him to five days CBI custody.

On March 21, local Trinamool Congress strongman Vadu Sheikh was killed in broad daylight. In the ensuing violence that broke out at Bogtui, several houses were set on fire, causing the deaths.

On June 21, the CBI had submitted its chargesheet at a lower court in Birbhum district, wherein it clearly said that the local police were negligent even as violence swept Bogtui village.

It was also mentioned that despite calls from the villagers, no one from the local police station reached the spot.

The charge sheet said the rioters first locked the main exits, before setting the houses on fire to ensure that no one could escape.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : Supreme Court judge Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia on Thursday quashed the Karnataka government's decision to ban wearing of hijab inside classrooms of pre-university colleges, saying that the Constitution is also a document of trust and it is the trust the minorities have reposed upon the majority.

Justice Dhulia had dissented in connection with Karnataka High Court order, which allowed Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations at Idgah Maidan in Bengaluru's Chamarajpet. The matter was referred to a 3-Judge following "difference of opinion" between the two-judge comprising Justices Hemant Gupta and Dhulia.

Justice Dhulia, in his judgment, said: "We live in a democracy and under the rule of law, and the laws which govern us must pass muster the Constitution of India. Amongst many facets of our Constitution, one is trust. Our Constitution is also a document of trust. It is the trust the minorities have reposed upon the majority." At the beginning of the judgment, Justice Dhulia said: "While I do so, I am conscious that as far as possible, a constitutional court must speak in one voice. Split verdicts and discordant notes do not resolve a dispute. Finality is not reached. But then to borrow the words of Lord Atkin (which he said though in an entirely different context), finality is a good thing, but justice is better." He said it is necessary to have discipline in schools, but discipline not at the cost of freedom, and not at the cost of dignity. "Asking a pre university schoolgirl to take off her hijab at her school gate, is an invasion on her privacy and dignity," he added.

He said a girl child has the right to wear hijab in her house or outside her house, and that right does not stop at her school gate and the child carries her dignity and her privacy even when she is inside the school gates, in her classroom, and she retains her fundamental rights. To say that these rights become derivative rights inside a classroom, is wholly incorrect, he emphasised.

Justice Dhulia said: "All the Petitioners want is to wear a hijab! Is it too much to ask in a democracy? How is it against public order, morality or health? or even decency or against any other provision of Part III of the Constitution. These questions have not been sufficiently answered in the Karnataka High Court Judgement." He said it does not appeal to my logic or reason as to how a girl child who is wearing a hijab in a classroom is a public order problem or even a law and order problem. "To the contrary, reasonable accommodation in this case would be a sign of a mature society which has learnt to live and adjust with its differences," he added.

Referring to challenges already faced by a girl child in reaching her school, he said the question this court would therefore put before itself is also whether we are making the life of a girl child any better by denying her education, merely because she wears a hijab! "Another question which the school administration and the State must answer in the present case is as to what is more important to them: education of a girl child or enforcement of a dress code!"

He noted that many of the senior counsel appearing for the petitioners, that the unfortunate fallout of the enforcement of hijab ban in schools in Karnataka has been that some of the girl students have not been able to appear in their board examinations, and many others were forced to seek transfer to other schools, most likely madrasas, where they may not get the same standard of education. "This is for a girl child, for whom it was never easy, in the first place, to reach her school gate," he said.

In connection with determining as to what is an essential religious practice, Justice Dhulia said that "in my humble opinion courts are not the forums to solve theological questions and courts are not well equipped to do that for various reasons, but most importantly because there will always be more than one viewpoint on a particular religious matter, and therefore nothing gives the authority to the court to pick one over the other".

--IANS ss/vd

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Chennai, Oct 13 : PMK founder-leader, Dr. S. Ramadoss on Thursday urged the Central and Tamil Nadu government to take steps for an anti-superstition law.

In a statement, he expressed shock over the case of "human sacrifice" in neighbouring Kerala which took the lives of two women, including one from Tamil Nadu.

The PMK leader said that in addition to creating awareness among the public against superstitions, there should be strong actions should be taken through legislation to curb such practices and superstitious beliefs.

He said that the anti-superstition law is in place in Maharashtra and Karnataka and urged the Central and Tamil Nadu government to enact it in the state. Dr Ramadoss said that both Kerala and Tamil Nadu are highly literate states and even then such a law was not in place. The PMK founder leader also cited the example of a human sacrifice in the state's Thanjavur last year.

Ramadoss called upon the Tamil Nadu government to enact legislation against superstitious practices in the upcoming Assembly session. He also stated that if there was no sufficient time to enact the legislation during the current session, an ordinance could be promulgated after the session.
Guwahati, Oct 13 : The District Transport Officer (DTO) in Assam's Kokrajhar district was arrested on charges of corruption, as cash amounting to Rs 36 lakh was recovered from his house in an operation by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), officials said on Thursday.

The accused was identified as Sameswar Brahma Muchahary, 54.

The police were carrying out another search operation at his Guwahati residence in the Kahilipara locality.

A slew of raids are being conducted in the state to check the corruption cases. ACB officials have launched several search operations recently to crack down on illegal transactions of funds and public money as well as arrest corrupt officials.

On Wednesday a circle inspector and his personal security officer in the Kharupetia area were arrested on corruption charges. The previous day, an assistant sub-inspector in the Lakhimpur district was taken into custody by the ACB.
Quetta, Oct 13 : Balochistan Police issued a security alert on Thursday warning possible attacks by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) across the province, media reports said.

The letter, issued by the Central Police Office Quetta, said that the banned outfit has threatened to launch attacks in different cities of Balochistan including Zhob, Qila Saifullah, Ziarat, and Loralai, Samaa TV reported The targets, however, have not been identified by the TTP.

In a view of the threat, the police and other law enforcement agencies need to be vigilant and improve security arrangements to avoid any untoward incidents, it added.

On October 8, PPP Senator Raza Rabbani, on a point of public concern, asked Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani during the Senate meeting to direct the Interior Minister to take parliament and the public at large into confidence about the present status of peace talks with the TTP.

Rabbani pointed out that a call had been made to take parliament on board when the disclosure about dialogue with the TTP was made for the first time. He, however, regretted that the demand about a matter linked with the future of coming generations fell on deaf ears, Samaa TV reported.

He said nobody knew about the conditions of the ceasefire with the group and the status of talks.

Earlier, the Interior Ministry had recently issued an alert over the increasing threat of terrorist attacks by the group or its factions after talks with the TTP broke down.
Gangtok, Oct 13 : Army provided emergency assistance, including medical care and food, to 550 tourists, who got stuck in north Sikkim for more than eight hours due to landslides at multiple locations and heavy rainfall and brought them back to safe locations, defence officials said on Thursday.

Defence spokesman, Lt. Col Mahendra Rawat said that the tourists in approximately 150 vehicles were stranded till late on Wednesday evening due to landslides at multiple locations and heavy rainfall in between Chungthang to the major tourist destination of Lachung in north Sikkim.

Despite poor telecommunication network and inclement weather with freezing temperature, soldiers from the Lachung camp immediately got into the action on the request of civil administration to provide all out assistance to the stranded tourists and locals.

Lt. Col Rawat said that at a point, tourists started feeling uneasiness due to traffic blockage and harsh weather conditions. The Army provided immediate relief to stranded tourists in terms of water, food and medical care to elderly persons and infants.

Some of the tourists, shivering due to cold conditions, were brought back to the nearest medical facility for further assistance.

The Border Road Organisation also got into action but the route could not re-opened in spite of best efforts due to heavy landslides and unprecedented rainfall throughout the day on Wednesday.

The defence spokesman said that by late evening all tourists were brought back to the safety of their respective hotels in Lachung. Quick reaction by the troops avoided any mishap and provided much appreciated succour to the tourists.

Noting troops deployed in the area are always at forefront to assist the local administration in any emergency relief work for tourists, he said that earlier also during various occasions, crucial human lives were saved due to prompt action by the army.
Ballari : , Oct 13 (IANS) The final verdict on the hijab row is very important as its impact is not restricted to Karnataka, but for the whole country, and we must wait for it, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on Thursday.

Talking to reporters in Huvinahadagali here, he said the court was seized of the Hijab controversy and the Supreme Court bench has given a split verdict - with one judge backing the ban and the other quashing it.

Bommai said that he will give his reaction only after going through the judgement.

"There were a lot of dimensions for the hijab row. The demand of students is different and the government order is different. Since it involves national and international issues, the government is expecting a clear verdict from the court," he said.

Education Minister B.C. Nagesh stated that they welcome the Supreme Court verdict. "We will wait till the final order. It was expected that the verdict would honour the liberty of women. But, a different verdict has come," he said.

"The government will wait for the final order. Until then, there is no provision in Karnataka government schools and colleges to practice any religion as per the Education Act. The government and other schools will run as per the act," he said.

The Hijab ban will continue in Karnataka, the minister added.

"Until the final order is made, we will ensure status quo in the state. There is no provision to display religious symbols," he said.

He maintained that the apex court would uphold the verdict of the Karnataka High Court. "That does not mean I am speaking against the Supreme Court," he stated.

On assault of RSS workers by some miscreants in Haveri, CM Bommai said arrangements had been going on for last one week and those who went to see the procession route were assaulted. The police have arrested 20 persons in this connection.
Kolkata, Oct 13 : Trinamool Congress lawmaker and West Bengal Board of Primary Education's (WBBPE) former President Manik Bhattacharya gave wrong information in the affidavit that he filed with the poll panel in 2021 when he contested from Palashipara Assembly constituency in Nadia district, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said in the case diary in its probe into the multi-crore West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment scam.

ED sources said that in the said affidavit, Bhattacharya informed that his total assets, movable and immovable combined was little over Rs 2 crore. "However, as our sleuths are going deeper in the probe in the WBSSC scam, it is becoming clear the actual worth of assets and properties owned by him is much more than what he had mentioned in the affidavit," an ED official said.

In the affidavit, Bhattacharya skipped the mention of Rs 2.64 crore in the bank account of his son. In the affidavit that he filed in 2021, he mentioned his pension, honorarium as WBBPE President, and returns from a senior citizens' scheme as his sources of income.

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is conducting a parallel probe in the WBSSC scam, has claimed that former West Bengal Education Minister, Partha Chatterjee ignored repeated complainants against former convener of the commission's screening committee, SP Sinha about the latter indulging in corrupt practices in the recruitment process.

In fact, the Calcutta High Court-appointed probe committee headed by Justice Ranjit Kumar Bag (retired), had held the screening committee as the epicenter of the scam and Sinha as the principal mastermind in the matter.

Both Partha Chatterjee and Sinha are currently under judicial custody.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Leader of the Opposition in Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari told newspersons that Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee too, was aware of the involvement of Chatterjee in the teachers' recruitment scam but remained silent. "A letter has been recovered by ED from Manik Bhattacharya's residence where someone complained to the Chief Minister about the ongoing irregularities. Now the Chief Minister cannot claim ignorance in the matter," Adhikari said.
Patna, Oct 13 : Bihar Police has decided to take custody of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) arms supplier Danish Khan, currently lodged in a Jammu and Kashmir jail after National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested him from Siwan, in a murder case, an official said.

Khan is also wanted in a murder case of a leader in the district.

SHO, Basantpur, Mukesh Kumar, said: "A man gunned down on September 16 last year and Danish Khan was allegedly involved in it. We were trying to nab him. By that time, the Kashmir unit of NIA asked him and his friend Faisal Khan to join the probe. Faisal Khan went with his lawyer to Kashmir. NIA had arrested Danish Khan while Faisal Khan returned home.

"We have been in contact with the NIA since his arrest. The NIA official informed us that the remand will be taken only after the court grants it. We initiated the process to take his remand. He is facing the charge of murder of the Samajwadi Janata Dal President."
Srinagar, Oct 13 : The J&K Police's Special Investigation Agency (SIA) on Thursday presented a charge sheet in the designated TADA court against a serving CRPF constable, accused of having terror links.

Officials said the charge sheet was filed against CRPF constable, Zulfikar Ali Khatana, son of Altaf Hussain Khatana and resident of Kachawa village in Kokarnag tehsil of Anantnag district, under various sections of law for being a terrorist handler of JeM/LeT outfit and for being an agent of Pakistan's ISI.

The FIR was registered against the CRPF constable under the Official Secrets Act, and the Enemy Agents Ordinance Act.

"The constable, posted in 171 Battalion of the CRPF, has conspired with and acted at the behest of Pakistan-based terrorist organisations and agents of ISI and collected and provided secret/classified information regarding location of vital defence installations, shared confidential documents, thereby aided the enemy/adversary to strategise attacks on India and acted on the instructions received from the adversary in its ongoing campaign undertaken by the enemy in subverting the government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir by giving assistance to the enemy.

"Investigation was set into motion for the logical conclusion of the case for judicial determination, which has been completed in less than six months period by the SIA (Kashmir)," an official said.

"It is pertinent to mention here that the terrorist handlers, namely Yousuf Baloch alias Zarar alias Qari Maviah alias Hafiz alias Aziz Bai, and agents of ISI across the border (based in Pakistan) have used cyber space for instigating, enticing and motivating Kashmiri youth to join militant ranks and raise funds and provide logistics for running militant modules amongst the handlers in Pakistan. Their identities are being ascertained and action to expose them and submit evidence against them would follow during the further course of investigation which is continuing," the official added.

These handlers had motivated the accused to act as their sub-agent and provide the desired confidential information besides to arrange logistics for infiltrating terrorists and other required designs for the purpose of sabotage and carrying out attacks on security forces/vital installations to meet the objective of secession of J&K, officials said.
Surat, Oct 13 : A criminal complaint by an AAP leader was filed with Bardoli town police station in Gujarat's Surat that an attempt was made to steal Rs 20 lakh cash from his car but foiled due to a passer-by's intervention.

Meanwhile, police have informed the Income Tax department about the huge amount of cash, and are also investigating the source of cash and for what purpose it was meant.

Bardoli police Sub Inspector M.J. Rathod told IANS that Rajendra Solanki, the AAP candidate from Bardoli Assembly seat for the forthcoming elections, had filed the complaint on Wednesday night that the pillion rider on a motorcycle had stolen the bag carrying Rs 20 lakh cash from his car, but Samaritan Adil Memon chased the robbers, who threw away the bag and fled.

IANS tried to speak to Solanki, but his phone was switched off.
New Delhi, Oct 13 : The World Health Organization (WHO), on the occasion of World Sight Day on Thursday, called for quality, inclusive and affordable eye health care for all.

Poonam Khetrapal Singh, WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia, urged the member countries to accelerate efforts to ensure that "everyone, everywhere has equitable access to high-quality, comprehensive eye health services" in line with the newly adopted Regional Action Plan for integrated people-centred eye care 2022-2030.

"Globally, at least 2.2 billion people have a vision impairment or blindness. At least 1 billion cases of vision impairment could have been prevented or are yet to be addressed. Nearly 30 per cent of the world's blind and vision-impaired live in the South-East Asia Region," said Singh.

Women, rural populations and ethnic minority groups are more likely than other groups to have vision impairment and are less likely to access care.

In 2020, the estimated economic cost of blindness and moderate to severe vision loss globally was $411 billion.

The number of people with presbyopia -- loss of near-distance focus -- is projected to increase from 1.8 billion in 2015 to 2.1 billion by 2030, she said on the occasion.

However, most of the countries have eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, in line with the Region's Flagship Priority on eliminating neglected tropical diseases.

Bhutan, India, Maldives and Thailand have piloted WHO's Revised Eye Care Service Assessment Tool, which aims to integrate eye care programmes into primary, secondary and tertiary care services.

The WHO guidance on strengthening diagnosis and treatment of diabetic retinopathy -- a significant and growing challenge -- continues to be implemented, advancing the Region's Flagship Priority on preventing and controlling noncommunicable diseases.

"Better integrating eye care services into existing health services, particularly to address cataract and uncorrected refractive errors, and especially at the primary health care level - where most people's health needs should be met throughout the life course. Secondly strengthening the eye health workforce, with an emphasis on increasing the capacity of teams of health and social workers that are in close contact with affected individuals and communities, and also boosting community empowerment and engagement", said the WHO official.

Globally, the WHO Member States have adopted two targets for eye care by 2030 - a 40 per cent increase in effective coverage of refractive errors; and 30 per cent increase in effective coverage of cataract surgery.

A new WHO report released this week shows that the median relative quality gap between 'coverage' and 'effective coverage' globally is 33.9 per cent for cataract and 7.3 per cent for refractive error, highlighting the need to not only increase coverage but also quality.

However, the South-East Asia Region aims to eliminate trachoma by 2025, and to ensure that at least 80 per cent of people with diabetes are screened regularly for retinopathy, and that 80 per cent of those identified with sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy are treated by 2030.
Astana, Oct 13 : Slamming Pakistan on the condition of the minority communities living there, Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi on Thursday said the neighbouring country should put its house in order before preaching others.

"With its own record of the dismal treatment of minority communities, Pakistan would be well advised to set its house in order instead of lecturing the world community. This is a country where religious and ethnic minorities are systematically persecuted," Lekhi said here.

While addressing the Conference of Interaction & Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) at Astana -- the capital of Kazakhstan, Lekhi also accused Pakistan of misusing the platform to propagate false and malicious propaganda against India and distracting from the theme and focus of discussions and cooperation among the member states. India is one of the founding members of CICA.

Targetting Pakistan over the treatment of minorities, she said: "The frequent instances of attack and vandalism on the places of worship of minority communities in Pakistan and the countless cases of abduction, forced conversion and marriage of minor girls from minority communities in Pakistan are evidence of the vulnerable status of minorities in this country." She said India, however, has been a home to persecuted minorities fleeing from across the globe.

"India has been undertaking numerous initiatives for the socio-economic development of the minorities in line with our constitutional provisions.

"We have a special civilisational link with the Afghan people. In the current crisis, as a first responder India has provided humanitarian assistance to the tune of 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat and 500,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccine and will continue to provide the same. There are thousands of Afghan nationals who continue to stay in India," she said.
New York, Oct 14 : New York Attorney General Letitia James has asked a state court on Thursday to block the Trump Organization from moving its assets from Manhattan to an entity in Delaware and continuing "it's decade long fraud" which her earlier law suit alleged that former President Donald Trump and three of his adult children were involved in to enrich themselves.

James filed a motion for a preliminary injunction Thursday, telling the judge: "In short, there is every reason to believe that the defendants will continue to engage in similar fraudulent conduct right up to trial unless checked by order of this court." The Attorney General's office wants to block the Trump Organization from transferring assets to any entities without court approval because it felt that the same day that it announced its $250 million lawsuit against the former President and his company, the Trump Organization incorporated a new entity in Delaware, Trump Organization II LLC. The state says the Trump Organization has not provided any assurances that it will not move assets out of New York to avoid potential liability, CNN reported.

Trump has sought to move the case from the current judge assigned in the case, and to the commercial division. The Attorney General's office has opposed the move.

James' office filed a $250 million lawsuit last month, against Trump, his three eldest children and the Trump Organization alleging they used fraudulent financial statements to obtain favourable rates of insurance and loans and tax benefits. The Trumps say the investigation is politically motivated and called Thursday's legal filing "another stunt" to aid James' re-election campaign for Attorney General.

The Attorney General's office asked Judge Arthur Engoron to block the Trump Organization from submitting financial statements to lenders, insurers and others without providing additional information about the techniques it used to value assets. In addition, the state wants a judge to impose an independent monitor to oversee the financial statements.

"The requested targeted relief is designed to mitigate further fraud and illegality during the pendency of this action because the company has present and continuing obligations under existing loan agreements to prepare and disclose Mr. Trump's Statement of Financial Condition as of June 30, 2022 and may also seek additional financing from lenders and renewal of insurance programs on the basis of that Statement," the state attorneys wrote, CNN reported.

"The OAG's filing is nothing more than a thinly-veiled attempt to keep this case with Justice Engoron rather than have it transferred to the Commercial Division where it belongs. We have repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper. This is simply another stunt which Ms. James hopes will aid her failing political campaign," said Alina Habba, an attorney for Trump.

The state also is asking permission to serve Trump and Eric Trump electronically, noting that both individuals and their attorneys have refused to accept service of the lawsuit for nearly one month.

In a bid to bolster their position that they will succeed on the merits of their lawsuit, state attorneys cited a number of examples that they said weigh in their favour, including Trump asserting his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and refusing to answer questions during his deposition this summer. In a civil case the jury can be instructed to apply an adverse inference against a defendant who doesn't answer questions.

In addition, they note that during his sworn testimony, Donald Trump Jr, a top executive of the Trump Organization, "incredibly disclaimed all responsibility for the Statements and their contents" noting that Trump Jr. testified that he was not familiar with generally accepted accounting principles and was not involved in preparing the financial statements.
Jakarta, Oct 14 : Indonesian President Joko Widodo observed the comprehensive inspection train parked at the Tegallur station and listened to the report on the overall construction of the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway (HSR) project.

The Tegallur station is the last station of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR, located in Bandung, the capital of Indonesia's West Java province, with a floor area of 15,268 square metre and a maximum gathering capacity of 1,500 people and peak hourly transmission capacity of 3,200 people.

Widodo on Thursday said that the construction of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR is progressing smoothly in general. The participating parties have made painstaking efforts to overcome complex geological, epidemic and other difficulties to advance the construction with high quality as planned.

He added that the project will speed up and improve the mobility of people and goods, enhance Indonesia's overall competitiveness, and new points of economic growth will emerge in Jakarta and Bandung, Xinhua news agency reported.

During the G20 summit, the results of the construction of the Jakarta-Bandung HSR will be presented, further reflecting the excellent cooperation between the governments of Indonesia and China.

At present, all 13 tunnels along the railway have been completed. More than 92 per cent of the subgrade, bridge and station civil works have been completed. One high-speed electric passenger train and one inspection train tailored for this project arrived in Indonesia on September 1.

With a design speed of 350 km per hour, the Jakarta-Bandung HSR built with Chinese technology will cut the journey between Jakarta and Bandung from more than three hours to around 40 minutes.
Beirut, Oct 14 : The UNESCO has announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago.

"The Sursock Palace is a gem of Lebanese architecture and a powerful symbol of pride and resilience for the Beirut community, " UNESCO's Director General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement on Thursday.

According to UNESCO, the rehabilitation is made possible by the important work carried out by UNESCO and a start-up company ICONEM, which specialises in the digitisation of endangered cultural heritage sites in 3D, Xinhua news agency reported.

"UNESCO has prioritised the rehabilitation of the palace because of its architectural and urban importance, and its significant role in Beirut's history ... We hope that further investments will be made in cultural heritage, which is at the very heart of UNESCO mandate," said Costanza Farina, Director of the UNESCO regional bureau in Beirut.

The Sursock Palace Association will progressively open the palace to the public as a private museum and a cultural hub, providing a space for the cultural and creative industries to exhibit their work and engage with the community, the statement added.

Lebanon's capital city Beirut was rocked by two massive explosions on August 4, 2020, killing more than 200 people and injuring more than 6,000 others.
Washington, Oct 14 : A US jury has recommended gunman Nikolas Cruz to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the Parkland school shooting.

The jury found there was aggravating evidence sufficient to warrant a possible death penalty for the gunman but believed the mitigating factors outweighed aggravating ones.

Broward Circuit Judge, Elizabeth Scherer set the sentencing date for November 1, Xinhua news agency reported.

Cruz, 24, was tried for months for the February 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

He pleaded guilty in 2021 to murdering 17 people, including 14 students, in one of the deadliest school shootings in US history.
Washington, Oct 14 : Two police officers were fatally shot and a third was seriously wounded while responding to a domestic incident in Bristol, Connecticut.

Bristol police told reporters on Thursday that the officers responded to a reported possible domestic violence incident between two siblings before 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

When officers arrived, one suspect was outside of the residence and shots were fired, fatally wounding one officer on the site. The second officer died at the hospital, and the third was seriously injured, Xinhua news agency reported.

The suspect was shot and killed at the spot. The suspect's brother was also shot and was taken to the hospital.
Voxela, Inc. We believe that our investment in Voxela, which is developing AI technology aimed at identifying and preventing the signs of falls, will contribute to our goal of a society that fosters peace of mind and solves challenges through technology. (Hirofumi Kaneko, CEO, Living Platform, Ltd.)

Voxela was founded in Silicon Valley as a company that uses Vision AI to create a comprehensive, personalized database of movements and physical activities. The company has already developed solutions to detect and prevent falls and wandering incidents.

Voxela's mission is to offer excellent care through technology by reinventing what a nursing home should be and leveraging technology to enable affordable care. Voxela's technology addresses the longstanding challenges of eldercare in Japan and globally.

Voxela VCare is an AI care management service that can perform everything from assessment, monitoring of daily conditions, accident detection, notification, and evaluation. It maintains utmost privacy, collecting only necessary information from cameras already installed for monitoring the facility. Voxela VCare enables real-time and medium- to long-term personalized prognosis using data accumulated through daily use.

Living Platform, which operates a nationwide care business with a core focus on nursing homes, childcare, and support for the disabilities, announced that it has invested in Voxela to support the development of its technology.

Accidents such as falls among elderly residents of nursing homes carry a high risk of serious illness and have a significant impact on their subsequent health and quality of life. We believe that our investment in Voxela, which is developing AI technology aimed at identifying and preventing the signs of falls, will contribute to our goal of a society that fosters peace of mind and solves challenges through technology. (Hirofumi Kaneko, CEO, Living Platform, Ltd.)

With the support of Living Platform, Voxela will continue to focus on research and development of AI-based care management that can lay the foundation for eldercare and provide more efficient and effective care while leveraging the knowledge gained from the aging population in Japan.

Please refer to Voxela's Seed Round Press Release from here.

About Living Platform, Ltd.

Living Platform, Ltd. was established in 2011 with the vision of Building a sustainable social security system. Living Platform, Ltd. owns 62 elderly care facilities, 21 support facilities for people with disabilities, and 14 childcare facilities throughout Japan, providing comprehensive services (as of August 31, 2022), and was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers (now Growth Market) in March 2020. https://living-platform.com

About Voxela Inc.

Voxela, Inc. is a Silicon Valley-based technology company with a mission to reinvent eldercare services by developing next-generation care management solutions using Vision AI technology. Founded in 2021 by serial entrepreneurs Yuta Endo, Goutham Kamath, and Yusuke Yoshida, Voxela VCare, a next-generation eldercare solution service, is being introduced at Nursing Home/Assisted Living facilities across Japan, and the company aims to expand to other countries. https://www.voxela.ai

For any inquiries about Voxela, Inc. and its product "Voxela VCare," please contact info@voxela.ai
Honored by BWAF this year for academic excellence is J. Meejin Yoon, dean of Cornell Universitys College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (photo by Conor Doherty) "Our movement is growing momentum and attention, and women leaders like our 2022 honorees are creating new ways to make that possible."--Cynthia Phifer Kracauer, AIAExecutive Director, BWAF

Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation has announced six exceptional women in architecture, engineering, construction and allied fields as honorees to be recognized at their 2022 BEVY Leadership Awards Gala on October 19th.

The annual event, which brings together leading women in varied professions from around the nation, focuses on the widely admired mission of Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation (BWAF) to bring attention to the work of contemporary women in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, engineering, development and construction. The 2022 honorees include one of North Americas most influential engineers, the dean of a top architecture school, a prominent executive in real estate development, and the managing partner of a celebrated international architecture firm.

Throughout the evening gala event at the Bryant Park Grill, each of the women will be cited for beneficial impact in a specialized area and in fields where women are increasingly visible and impactful. The categories of recognition include innovation, mentorship, academic leadership, media engagement, organizational excellence, and emerging leadership  all linked to Beverly Willis Architecture Foundations core mission of changing the industry of design and construction, for women, through education and research.

Since 2014, we have raised awareness of women showing great progress in fields historically dominated by men through this highly respected awards program, and by celebrating their achievements at our annual gala, says Cynthia Phifer Kracauer, AIA, executive director of the Beverly Wills Architecture Foundation. Among the applauded honorees for 2022 are:



Engineer Fiona Cousins, for her widespread impact as Chair of the Americas for the global engineering and design giant Arup

Architect Elaine Molinar, managing partner of the U.S. practice for Snhetta, an acclaimed 100-person interdisciplinary architecture, landscape, and interior design studio with a focus on well-being.

Also honored this year for academic excellence is J. Meejin Yoon, dean of Cornell Universitys College of Architecture, Art, and Planning and one of the founding partners of the architecture and design firm Howeler + Yoon.

For innovation excellence, the award goes to Judy Kessler, a highly accomplished real estate development executive known for leading large-scale building projects as well as supporting housing for low- and moderate-income residents including the formerly homeless.

Other honorees for this years BEVY Leadership Awards include an emerging leader award for Adrienne Hepler, founder of owners representative and project management firm Envoie Projects, and mentorship laurels for construction executive Brennan Gilbane Koch of Gilbane Building Company, a company frequently named atop lists of the best places to work.

Gala Chairs and Sponsors

In addition to the six honorees, the two event co-chairs Jennifer Stone and Ebbie Wisecarver further the representation of innovative leadership that underpins the spirit of the awards gala. Jennifer Stone, AIA, partner at Robert A.M. Stern Architects, is an advocate for high-quality design and collaborative problem-solving, with a talent for bringing together the diverse voices of academic, administrative, and community stakeholders to envision and build a shared future. In addition to her standing as a seasoned architect and business leader, Ebbie Wisecarver is senior vice president and head of global design at WeWork, serving as a strong advocate for gender equality as well as the executive sponsor of the companys employee resource group, Women of WeWork.

Sponsors of the 2022 BEVY Leadership Awards are law firm Zetlin & De Chiara, the engineering firms Thornton Tomasettiand Arup, along with the four architecture firms SHoP, Robert A.M. Stern Architects, Dattner Architects and Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM), as well as real estate developer and manager Brookfield Properties.

On the heels of winning prestigious grants for our podcast audio documentaries about great women in architecture and design, New Angle: Voice, we are very thankful for the strong and steadfast support from our gala sponsors and chairs, adds Kracauer. Our movement is growing momentum and attention, and women leaders like our 2022 honorees are creating new ways to make that possible.

To speak to the honorees and for photographs and information, contact Karen Maserjian Shan at C.C. Sullivan, karen@ccsullivan.com or Chris Sullivan at 914-462-2096. A press kit is available for download here we.tl/t-9BVtXQLR3k and by request.

2022 BEVY Leadership Awards  Honoree Biographies

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE J. Meejin Yoon Dean, Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning

J. Meejin Yoon is the Gale and Ira Drukier Dean of the College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP) at Cornell University, and cofounding partner of Howeler + Yoon. An architect, educator, Yoon is committed to advancing creative and critical practices and pedagogies, scholarship, and research that address the many urgent environmental and social challenges we face in our cities and communities.

Yoon's own work and research examines intersections between architecture, urbanism, technology, and the public realm. Her professional projects include cultural buildings and public spaces including the Institute of Democracy and the Memorial to Enslaved Laborers at the University of Virginia, the MIT Museum at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Living Village at the Yale Divinity School.

Yoon's work has been widely exhibited internationally at venues such as MoMA, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Vitra Design Museum, and the National Art Center in Japan, among others. She is co-author of the recent title Verify in Field: Projects and Conversations Howeler + Yoon (Park Books, 2021) and Public Works: Unsolicited Small Projects for the Big Dig (Map Books, 2009); and author of Absence, an artist book published by Printed Matter and the Whitney Museum of Art in 2003. In 2021, Yoon was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in the field of architecture, the highest recognition of artistic merit in the United States.

INNOVATIVE EXCELLENCE

Judy Kessler

Consultant, Vornado

Kessler, an accomplished real estate development executive, coordinates Vornado's groundbreaking work in the Penn District. She facilitated the company's vision to bring significant improvements to Penn Station and create meaningful change in this derided neighborhood. The plan is taking shape now with over $2 billion of privately funded projects above grade and $3 billion of publicly funded and PPP projects in Penn Station and the transit network below. Kessler brought to bear innovative planning, design, and interdisciplinary and interagency problem-solving to realize these complex integrated plans to help break through decades of intransigence and underfunding.

She previously led pioneering projects, including 15 Central Park West condominium, as a development executive for Zeckendorf Development, and performed early work on what would later become the Moynihan Train Hall as a project director at Tishman Urban Development Corp.

Kessler actively serves on the board of Settlement Housing Fund, a not-for-profit serving more than 25,000 low- and moderate-income residents including the formerly homeless. She also sits on the board of the Urban Design Forum, whose mission is to convene civic leaders to confront the defining issues in New York Citys built environment.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE

Fiona Cousins

Chair of the Americas, Arup

A leader championing the advancement of women in engineering, sustainability, and related fields, Fiona Cousins is the recently appointed Chair of Arups Americas region, a leading global built-environment consulting firm dedicated to sustainable development. Her work is focused on delivering solutions that prepare cities and communities to withstand the impacts of climate change while ushering in a net zero future.

In addition to her role as Chair, Cousins is also an Arup Fellow working to accelerate the firms digital transformation and delivering innovative solutions for a more equitable built environment. Among other key responsibilities, she advises on Arups ongoing climate services initiatives to ensure sustainable outcomes are credible and compelling to clients. Throughout her tenure, she has contributed her expertise to a wide range of iconic projects around the world, including the U.S. Embassy in London and the Fulton Street Station in New York City. As a valued advisor, she has provided counsel on critical climate legislation, including New York Citys recent Local Law 97.

Born in the United Kingdom, she is a published author and avid kayaker. In conjunction with her leadership duties at Arup, Cousins has served as the Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council and earned such honors as LEED Fellow and the AIA New York Chapters Award of Merit in 2017. She helms Arup Americas at a pivotal moment, as the firm moves forward with commitments to achieve net-zero emissions across its entire operations by 2030 and undertake whole lifecycle carbon assessments for significant building projects.

EMERGING LEADER

Adrienne Hepler

Founder, Envoie Projects

Adrienne Hepler is owner and founder of Envoie Projects, an owners representative and project management firm based in New York City. She excels at strategic oversight and planning for complex capital projects, with a particular passion for and expertise in projects for cultural, mission-driven and not-for-profit clients. She builds and directs large teams and is adept at navigating capital projects of all types and sizes through regulatory review and approvals processes to completion on time and on budget.

Prior to co-founding Envoie Projects, Hepler was the Chief Operating Officer for Levien and Company, where she managed staff assignments and client relations, improved operating systems, and directed firm strategy. Before joining Levien, Hepler worked on the owners side, where she served as Director of Capital Projects and Government Relations for The Public Theater in New York City, managing a $42 million renovation to a landmark building, which remained operational during four years of construction.

Hepler is a member of both WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate and the Owners Representative Project Manager Alliance, serves on the Ambassador Council for Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW), and was a Beverly Willis Foundation Emerging Leader.

MENTORSHIP

Elaine Molinar

Managing Partner, Snhetta

Throughout her life and career, Elaine Molinar has followed a path of cultural passion. As a young woman her classical dance studies led her to other artistic interests finally settling into a study of architecture. She has since helped create the Snhetta studio and become a lead designer of significant cultural projects around the world including the Bibiliotheca Alexandrina, the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the National September 11th Memorial Museum Pavilion. She is a co-founder of Snhettas New York studio and the Managing Partner of the portfolio in the Americas. Her focus in recent years has been directing the strategic direction of the practice while improving the platforms by which younger members of the staff may excel. The studio has nurtured several hundred emerging designers during her tenure.

Elaines commitment to the issues of social and physical well-being have further motivated her work. She has cultivated new programs for the company internally and connecting these programs to other independent groups, growing the practice positively for over three decades As the executive sponsor of an internal task force focused on improving the firms understanding of equity, diversity, and inclusion she has made substantial progress fostering a healthy work environment and infusing the firms design work with these values. She has helped form employee work groups and fostered a positive work environment formed by interaction and open dialogue.

Elaine has a deep interest in nurturing the future generation of design professionals and is an active participant in the advisory boards of the Stuckeman School of Architecture at Penn State University and the University of Texas at Austin, her alma mater. She offers a broad perspective rooted in a career that has crossed cultures and generations. As an advisory board member to the online platform Madame Architect, and previously at the Van Alen Institute Elaine has further connected to a wider spectrum of positive cultural influence. Elaine continuously speaks about these issues to a wide range of audiences from student and commercial groups to national and international public officials.

MENTORSHIP

Brennan Gilbane Koch

Director, Strategic Partnerships and Client Relations, Gilbane Building Company

Bio and photograph available by request.

Images and press kit available at we.tl/t-9BVtXQLR3k

IMAGE CREDITS: Photograph of J. Meejin Yoon by Conor Doherty. All other photographs courtesy the respective organizations and individuals.

2022 BEVY LEADERSHIP AWARDS

GALA SPONSORS

Arup

Dedicated to sustainable development, Arup is a collective of designers, consultants and experts working globally. Founded to be humane and excellent, we collaborate with our clients and partners using imagination, technology, and rigor to shape a better world.

Brookfield Properties

Brookfield Properties is one of the worlds largest real estate managers, providing development and management services for projects from office to retail, logistics to multifamily, and hospitality to mixed-use, and bringing high-quality, sustainable real estate to life for everyone, everywhere.

Dattner Architects

A mission-driven firm enriching civic and urban spaces, Dattner Architects transforms environments and strengthens communities through engaged collaboration, thoughtful programming, and creative design.

RAMSA

Robert A.M. Stern Architects LLP is a 200-person firm of architects, interior designers, and supporting staff, with an established international reputation as a leading design firm with wide experience in residential, commercial, and institutional work.

SHoP

SHoP is a firm of architects and innovators, craftspeople and problem solvers, highly trained specialists and proud generalists, who share global expertise in anticipating and designing for whats ahead.

SOM

Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an interdisciplinary collective of architects, designers, engineers, and planners working together to build a better future.

Thornton Tomasetti

An independent organization of engineers, scientists, architects and other professionals who collaborate from offices worldwide, Thornton Tomasetti is committed to being a sustainable, diverse and enduring organization and a global driver of change and innovation.

Zetlin & De Chiara

As one of the country's leading law firms, Zetlin & De Chiara LLP provides sophisticated legal and business counsel to real estate owners, developers, financial institutions, owner's representatives, design professionals, construction managers, and contractors in all aspects of construction law and the built environment.

About BWAF

The Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation (BWAF) is leading a cultural revolution in the building industry that acknowledges, cultivates, and values womens contributions and achievements  past, present, and future. BWAF advocates for gender equity in leadership and recognition in architecture, design, landscape, engineering, technology, real estate and construction. BWAF achieves its mission by researching and documenting womens contributions and achievements in the built realm, educating the public, and transforming industry practices. Through exhibitions, websites, media, public and invitation-only programs, and our acclaimed New Angle: Voice series, BWAF collaborates with museums, universities, professional organizations, and other groups to advance women. We cultivate leaders at all levels. Through our work, we seek to build global change. Visit bwaf.org for more.
The Bloody Mary, Perfected We are excited about bringing the brand to new consumers across the country and continue to look for new partners that share our excitement...

The consumer trend that is bolstering the growth and popularity of all-natural and gluten-free brands is exemplified by the continued momentum of Charleston Mix Bloody Mary. Charleston Mix remains the #1 Craft Bloody Mary, but it is also now the #3 overall best-selling brand in the category. The company posted double-digit growth in each of the 13/26/52-week periods ended June 25, 2022, while other top 10 brands saw flat or declining sales over the same period, according to NielsenIQ.

Charleston Mix maintains its growth trajectory in the core Southeast footprint, but new state distributor relationships and large chain authorizations are expanding at a rapid pace. In Fall 2022, Charleston Mix will be widely available in Wisconsin, the Bloody Mary Capital of the World, as part of the Johnson Brothers Liquor Company portfolio. Additionally, the New England market is now a key piece of the expansion story via a new relationship with the Burke Distributing Corporation. Rounding out geographic availability, the company has new placements in several large grocery and chain retail partners in the Midwest and Texas. Targeted expansion efforts include further penetrating these new high population states and regions.

The power of promotional marketing through partnerships continued to be evident in 2022 with the success of several programs in the company's flagship southern markets. These programs have proved to enhance the established equity that resides in the Charleston brand, and the company plans to expand those programs nationally in '23. Ryan Eleuteri, Charleston Mix's Founder stated, "The great relationships we enjoy with our industry partners have helped drive the phenomenal growth we've experienced, highlighted by the success of our recent campaign with Tito's Handmade Vodka in Florida. We are always looking at opportunities to partner with beloved, innovative brands that add value for our customers."

Several of the companys recent wins have been driven in part by a new partnership with beverage advisory group Intercontinental Beverage Capital (IBC), based out of New York City. The engagement is being led by IBC Partner Scott Weiermiller, who is supporting brand development and sales commercialization activities to assist in the companys aggressive expansion goals.

Although we have high expectations for our long-term objectives, the current state of the business and the great partnerships weve developed gives me all the confidence in the world that our growth projections are realistic and achievable, said Patrick Hollon, Charleston Mix CEO. We are excited about bringing the brand to new consumers across the country and continue to look for new partners that share our excitement, whether its distribution or retail customers or complementary brands for promotional program participation.

Visit CharlestonMix.com to learn more about our story or visit Find The Mix to enjoy a Bloody Mary near you.

About Charleston Mix Bloody Mary

Charleston Beverage Company, LLC was founded and is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina. In 2009, Ryan Eleuteri, Charleston Mix Founder, set out to create a superior alternative to the everyday Bloody Mary. From that original vision, a premium, all-natural and unique habanero mash flavor was born and is now available across the county in two flavors: the original flagship Bold & Spicy and a lighter, vegetable-based, Fresh and Veggie. Compare the ingredient panel and taste profile to mass-produced brands and its clear that he created a winning recipe. With the financial backing and operations management support of a family office investor with deep ties to Charleston, SC, the company is well positioned to continue its aggressive growth plans without interruption.
Ive seen firsthand the profound impact that healthcare advertising can have on people's lives; its why Ill always be grateful to be a part of this industry.

Chris Whaites, Group Creative Director for leading healthcare marketing agency Heartbeat, has been recognized by Xpectives.Health as one of its annual Agency Vanguard Award winners.

Xpectives.Health is one of the leading forums for direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising thought leaders. The Agency Vanguard Award recognizes standout agency team members who are driving innovation and improving patient communications. It is awarded to select agency executives for their extensive accomplishments, influence on future consumer health launches or campaigns, and contributions and service to patients and the overall DTC industry.

Whaites received this honor following nearly three decades in the marketing industry, with 24 of those years devoted exclusively to healthcare advertising. He joined Heartbeat in 2003 as one of the agencys earliest Creative hires and is fast approaching his 20th anniversary with the company.

Along with his immense talent and relentless dedication, he is known for bringing insight, empathy, and a passion for powerful yet simple storytelling to his work. His extensive list of industry experience includes some of the most recognizable brands in healthcare, such as Tylenol, Cimzia, Xyzal, Viagra, and Cialis. More recently, Whaites played a key role in the launch of a blockbuster immuno-oncology therapy, as well as the creative efforts behind an unbranded atrial fibrillation and deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism awareness campaign  where his work earned him seven major industry honors.

"Ive seen firsthand the profound impact that healthcare advertising can have on people's lives; its why Ill always be grateful to be a part of this industry," Whaites noted. "And Im equally grateful to be part of an agency that has allowed me to grow into the Creative I am today. To be mentored by the likes of Bill Drummy and James Talerico makes me one lucky Creative. Im looking forward to the road ahead."

Whaites is the fourth Heartbeat executive to receive Agency Vanguard recognition. The agencys Executive Vice President of Marketing Janelle Starr received the distinction in 2019, following Heartbeat Senior Vice President of Strategy Hudson Plumb in 2018 and President/Executive Creative Director, James Talerico, in 2017.

Whaites and the other Agency Vanguard Award recipients will be honored at a ceremonial dinner on October 13, 2022, at the W Hotel in Hoboken, New Jersey.

About Heartbeat

Heartbeat is a full-service agency for healthcare Challenger Brands. Challengers are playing a high-stakes gamethey must battle behemoth market leaders, upend ingrained treatment habits, or transform a me-too product into yes-please.

The agency is known for serving up distinctive strategies and differentiating approaches, ensuring clients market positions are uniquely owned. Heartbeat designs its organization around a 100% Integration model, housing media, strategy, med comms, creative, technology, and even point of care/population health under the same roof for the tightest, most integrated campaigns possible. It prices work based on outcomes, not outputs. Its innovative model delivers not only alignment but also powerful orchestration, greater efficiency, and maximum impact for every dollar spentall the necessary elements for Challengers to triumph.

Thats the philosophy, heres the creds: nearly 300 employees between NYC & LA; multiple agency leaders with decades of tenure; a pile of awards from the likes of the MANNYs, MM+M Awards, OMMAs, and Clios; an industry-leading commitment to diversity & inclusion (with a Med Ad News D&I Champion nod to match); and a President who dared to be quoted as follows, We celebrate people who stand up and say, You know what? This is dumb. Damn straight.

For more information about Heartbeat, please email marketing@weareheartbeat.com.
We believe better outcomes start with an aligned approach to incident prevention and response. We offer a true triple-threat when it comes to service, combining flat rate pricing, technology, and automatic replenishment to become the only safety partner organizations need."

One Workplace Safety launches today to redefine how first aid supplies, AEDs, and eye wash stations, PPE products and first aid training are provided to businesses. This approach includes complete maintenance, regular inspections, employee training, and RFI inventory fulfillment, combining leading suppliers in one source.

One Workplace Safety (1WPS) uses RFI technology to track supply usage and accurately replenish supplies on schedule. Safety professionals can rest assured they are in compliance, and their employees have the supplies and knowledge they need to respond in the event of a workplace incident. One Workplace Safety serves the greater Chicago, Illinois area, with plans to expand as the business grows.

1WPS CEO Ted Paros was the third-generation owner of Ajax Linen & Uniform, which provided the Chicago area with unparalleled service. He saw a gap in the service level for first aid, AED, and eye wash stations. Most vendors stop at selling the equipment, said Paros. But thats only one part of an effective incident prevention and response program. Equipment needs to be inspected and maintained, employees need to know how to use it, and supplies must be regularly replenished. Incident response management quickly becomes fragmented with multiple vendors, creating a headache. One Workplace Safety was created to bring all the top products and resources together and be that trusted partner safety professionals can rely on to take care of the details so that their workplaces are prepared.

One Workplace Safety uses state-of-the-art RFI technology to track usage and replenish first aid materials accurately and consistently. The technology also gives customers complete visibility into their program to make more informed decisions.

One Workplace Safety provides employee training to teach hazard awareness and best safety practices, as well as first-aid and AED training. The company also offers personal protective equipment (PPE) from premier industry brands, eliminating the need to source equipment from multiple vendors.

We believe better outcomes start with an aligned approach to incident prevention and response, says Paros. We offer a true triple-threat when it comes to service, combining flat rate pricing, technology, and automatic replenishment to become the only safety partner organizations need.

For more information about One Workplace Safety, visit https://1wps.com.
The all-female panel  Behrens will be joined by Tatiana Rice, Future of Privacy Forum; Anna Rudawski, Norton Rose Fulbright; and Veronica Torres, Jumio  is notable in the male-dominated world of tech.

Kuma, which for nearly a decade has helped organizations across sectors shift their data privacy and security risk management from reactive to proactive, announces that Jenn Behrens, Partner and EVP of Privacy and Security, will attend and participate in this weeks IAPP Privacy. Security. Risk. 2022 in Austin.

Presented by the International Association of Privacy Professionals, the largest and most comprehensive non-profit global information privacy community and resource, the annual conference is a major hub of networking, learning, and unraveling the biggest questions in privacy and technology.

Behrens is one of four privacy experts who will present a panel discussion, Picture Perfect: Leveraging Biometrics Without Compromising Privacy & Security, from 9 to 10 a.m. on Friday, October 14. The all-female panel  Behrens will be joined by Tatiana Rice, Future of Privacy Forum; Anna Rudawski, Norton Rose Fulbright; and Veronica Torres, Jumio  is notable in the male-dominated world of tech. Kuma is proud to empower a workforce with 67% female representation and with 58% of employees from diverse backgrounds.

One of Kumas most experienced privacy and security experts, Behrens holds three degrees: a bachelors in psychology, a masters in social work, and a Ph.D. in public policy and administration. She began her career in social work before entering the IT, privacy, and security field as a consultant specializing in digital identity. Behrens certifications include Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP), Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US), Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM), Certified HIPAA Privacy Security Expert (CHPSE), and Certified Information Privacy Professional/Government (CIPP/G).

Privacy and security are increasingly intertwined for organizations making risk-based decisions, and biometrics are more and more a part of that landscape, Behrens said. "This dynamic panel of industry leaders will provide audience members with both strategic and tangible guidance for considering the ethical and legal issues of emerging technologies and solutions that optimize the use of biometric data.

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ABOUT KUMA

For almost a decade, Kuma has provided privacy, identity, and security expertise to various local, state, and federal government agencies, non-profits, and businesses, often in highly regulated sectors. Trust is deeply ingrained in our ethos and is illustrated in the work we deliver in all our engagements. Over the years, Kuma has gained and maintained customer confidence and built a reputation for customizing its cybersecurity services to meet the needs of small and large companies alike, while always grounded in national standards. Kuma rejects a one-size fits all approach, and we are especially proud of the close and long-standing working relationships we have cultivated with our clients as they mature their security, privacy, and identity postures. For more information visit http://www.kuma.pro.
Individuals from underserved communities will be able to receive training for in-demand security roles through this innovative program, said Beverly Benson, Executive Director at Cyversity.

Cyversity, a 501(c)3 non-profit association dedicated to the academic and professional success of minority cybersecurity students and professionals, today announced its partnership with TikTok to create a scholarship program to help women, minorities, and other under-represented start or advance their career in the cybersecurity industry.

The scholarship offers Cyversity members the choice of 1 of 3 cybersecurity cohorts: Application Security, Network Security, or Cloud Security. Training is provided by industry leaders Security Innovation, EC-Council, and Cloud Security Alliance, respectively. All training is mapped to the NICE framework from NIST. Scholarship recipients will also be enrolled in Cyversitys mentorship program and have access to resume writing workshops, mock interviews, and private sessions with TikTok cybersecurity professionals. Recipients will also qualify for potential internship or full-time opportunities within TikTok, upon completion of their training.

TikTok and Cyversity share the goal of promoting diversity within the cybersecurity industry, ensuring individuals from all backgrounds are equipped for the exciting and lucrative career opportunities it offers. With more than1.8 million job openings worldwide, the industry is keen to develop new, innovative talent to continue protecting consumer, business, and government data.

"We believe it's important to help bring representation into the cybersecurity industry through programs designed to diversify, educate, and empower," TikTok said in a blog post. "Whether connecting Historically Black College and University (HBCU) students to the cybersecurity job of their dreams or creating a new scholarship program through Cyversity, we're committed to nurturing next-generation talent and helping under-represented minorities start or advance their career."

TikTok is helping us tackle the need for more cybersecurity professionals, specifically in the disproportionate underrepresentation of women and minority populations, said Beverly Benson, Executive Director at Cyversity. Individuals from underserved communities will be able to receive training for in-demand security roles through this innovative program.

About TikTok

TikTok is the world's leading platform for short videos. TikTok's mission is to inspire creativity and bring fun and exciting experiences to its users. TikTok has offices across the world, such as in Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo. http://www.tiktok.com.

About Cyversity

Cyversity was created as a 501(c)3 non-profit association dedicated to the academic and professional success of minority cybersecurity students and professionals. Cyversity tackles the great cyber divide with scholarship opportunities, diverse workforce development, innovative outreach, and mentoring programs.

Contact

Leslie Kesselring

Kesselring Communications for Cyversity

leslie@kesscomm.com
Acuity Surgical Align Implants Before and After HAnano Surface Treatment That the clearance came after an expedited special 510(k) further establishes a faster path to market for our customers. -Magnus Larsson, Promimic CEO

Promimic AB, the worlds leading innovator in nano surface treatments for improved osseointegration, is pleased to announce a special 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Acuity Surgical Devices, LLC. This is the second special 510(k) FDA clearance of a medical device with HAnano Surface, validating that the regulatory pathway is allowing an expedited clearance process.

The Align portfolio includes additively manufactured titanium devices intended for the following approaches: stand-alone Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (ALIF), Oblique Lumbar Interbody Fusion (OLIF), and Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion (LLIF). Each Align device features an enhanced porous structure designed to improve adhesion to the vertebral body endplates. With this special 510(k) clearance, Align implants also integrate the super-hydrophilic HAnano Surface that has been shown to promote faster and stronger osseointegration in pre-clinical studies with roughened titanium implants.

We are delighted that Acuity Surgical Devices chose our hydrophilic HAnano Surface to further differentiate their product portfolio. That the clearance came after an expedited special 510(k) further establishes a faster path to market for our customers, so that more implants with improved osseointegration can be used clinically, says Magnus Larsson, Promimic CEO.

We are very excited to augment our options within in the Align product family. This collaboration is an example of how Acuity listens to its surgeon partners and continues to invest in total spine solutions to match surgeon needs with patient benefits. We believe the bioactive performance of the nano surface supplementing our enhanced porous structure will make Align implants with HAnano Surface the new gold standard in stability, says John Davidson, President of Acuity Surgical Devices.

HAnano Surface has been evaluated in more than thirty pre-clinical studies, testing a variety of implant materials and designs in different models. It has proven to increase anchoring strength for titanium implants by up to 35% in just three weeks. The studies also show that HAnano Surface up-regulates important bone marker proteins and improves new bone formation on titanium implant surface by 67% at four weeks.*

For more information about HAnano Surface, please visit https://www.promimic.com/. To learn more about Acuity Surgical Devices Align portfolio, please visit https://www.acuitysurgical.com/.

*Data on file at Promimic AB.

About

Promimic is a growth company that develops and markets biomaterials for improved osseointegration to leading companies in the fields of dental and orthopedic implants. The main product HAnano Surface has been developed from cutting edge research at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. The technology is proven to improve osseointegration in over thirty scientific studies and with over 700,000 implants in clinical use. Promimic has offices in Molndal, Sweden and Austin, Texas, USA.

Spine surgeons choose Acuity Surgical Devices for spinal implant solutions. They know they can count on Acuity's unwavering commitment to world class customer support of its premier lumbar, cervical, and biologic evidenced-based systems.

Contact

Chris Whitfield E-mail: chris.whitfield@promimic.com

Bryan Cowan E-mail: bcowan@acuitysurgical.com

HAnano Surface is a registered trademark of Promimic AB, Molndal, Sweden.

Align is a registered trademark of Acuity Surgical Devices, LLC, Dallas, Texas, USA.
Right now, technology that keeps residents safe while augmenting frontline caregivers and staff is absolutely critical, said K4Connect Chief Mission Officer and CEO, F. Scott Moody.

K4Connect, senior livings leading integrated enterprise technology platform enabling the best in care, services and hospitality for older adults, and Vayyar Care, a global leader in automatic fall detection and remote monitoring, have entered into a partnership to bring next-generation touchless, camera-free fall detection technology to senior living residents and operators across the U.S.

Falls are the number one injury risk for older adults, accounting for tens of thousands of fatalities per year and billions in annual healthcare costs. Today, this problem is further compounded by the rapid decline in the caregiver workforce that supports the fast-growing older adult demographic. To address this nation-wide concern, Vayyar Care will integrate with K4Community, K4Connects solution for the residents, staff and operators of senior living communities, to deliver the industrys most advanced automated fall detection solution available.

Vayyar Care leverages advanced 4D imaging radar technology to deliver instant fall detection and activity data that enables personalized, proactive care management. Each sensors wide field of view covers an entire room, operating in all lighting conditions and even dense steam, making it ideal for use in bathrooms where 80% of falls occur. Together with K4Community, the integration will provide senior care operators with a private, passive, low-cost, and proactive resident safety tool that simultaneously alleviates pressure on overstretched care teams.

Since its inception, K4Connects mission has been to curate and apply cutting-edge technologies to specifically support the underserved older adult population. Right now, technology that keeps residents safe while augmenting frontline caregivers and staff is absolutely critical, said K4Connect Chief Mission Officer and CEO, F. Scott Moody. Integrating Vayyar Care with K4Community enables us to bring the best of the best to our community partners today, while establishing a data-driven foundation that can support advanced future offerings built around preventative and predictive care.

The K4Community and Vayyar Care integration will ensure resident safety, promote their independence and respect their privacy, while reducing the administrative burden on staff through automated reporting. Vayyar Care passively monitors residents surroundings around the clock using ceiling-mounted sensors and point cloud imaging technology, and low-power radio waves that penetrate obstructions, such as shower curtains, ensure visibility at all times. K4Connect applies the same principles of privacy and reliability to its award-winning automated Resident Check-In technology that leverages motion and voice-enabled smart home devices to perform daily resident wellness checks. In large communities, Resident Check-In is automatically performing up to 97% of resident checks, resulting in significant time savings and increased staff efficiency.

Partnering with K4Connect represents a significant milestone on Vayyar Cares journey toward becoming the industrys leading fall detection and predictive care solution, said Marc McGrann, U.S. director of sales at Vayyar Care. Integrating our best-in-class solution with the most forward-looking platform providers is central to our vision of transforming the senior care landscape with data that enhances resident safety and gives caregivers the tools they need to anticipate and address a wide range of health and mobility issues.

The Vayyar Care and K4Community integration will be available beginning in 2023. The partnership also fuels K4Connects plans to expand its mission to better serve older adults aging at home and the caregivers and organizations who support them. With access to billions of behavioral and health data points across multiple technology categories (IoT, apps, systems), K4Connect is poised to deliver home solutions that benefit the lives of millions of older adults who need support.

About K4Connect

K4Connect is a mission-driven healthtech company integrating disparate technologies into a single enterprise solution, enabling caregivers and organizations to more efficiently provide the best in care, services and hospitality. We believe meaningful technologies have the power to make the lives of older adults simpler, healthier and happier. Our leading solution for senior living, K4Community, is an ecosystem of smart devices, applications, services and systems that help residents live more independently, while streamlining staff workflows and driving operational cost efficiencies and new revenues for the operators. The entire K4Community experience is powered by our patented FusionOS operating system, enabling all of our community partners to finally unlock the value of enterprise data.

Based in Raleigh, N.C., K4Connect is currently serving tens of thousands of senior living residents and staff at continuing care, independent living and assisted living communities across the nation. For more information, please visit http://www.k4connect.com.

About Vayyar Care

Vayyar Cares touchless 4D imaging radar gathers the essential data caregivers need to protect residents, as well as their dignity, privacy, and independence. The solution delivers instant fall detection and 24/7 visibility on room presence, mobility, time at rest, bathroom visits and more. It overcomes the limitations and drawbacks of standard reactive technologies such as hard-to-reach buttons and cords, unreliable mats, underused wearables and intrusive cameras. Vayyar Care is fully interoperable with any nurse call system and care platform, enabling care providers to deliver person-centered, predictive care that enhances outcomes across the board. vayyar.com/care/b2b

For more information, contact Marc McGrann, US Director of Sales:

Marc.McGrann@vayyar.com

T: +1 919 740 1899
"Our partnership with Acquia has grown significantly over the last eleven years  we are excited by what we have been able to achieve with our teams and look forward to all that we will accomplish in the future," said Jeff Calderone.

Elevated Third, a leading global B2B digital strategy and Drupal Development agency, today announced it was selected as the winner of the 2022 Acquia Engage Award in two different categories: "Doers: Leader of the Pack  Financial Services" for its work with Finastra, and Dreamers: Impactful Low-Code/No-Code Experiences for its work with CoStar Apartments.com. The Acquia Engage Awards recognize the most outstanding digital experiences that organizations around the world are building with the Acquia Open Digital Experience Platform (DXP), including Acquia Drupal Cloud and Acquia Marketing Cloud.

As a proud Acquia Partner, Elevated Third is excited to have achieved two winning submissions. Here are some details about the winning categories and clients:

Doers: Leader of the Pack  Financial Services

Elevated Third and Finastra are long-time partners, and worked collaboratively to redesign Finastra.com, ensuring a focus on customer experience, conversion, and performance. The new corporate website enables Finastra to attract customers across the globe, educate buying teams, and ultimately generate new business for the company, and was the perfect activation for the companys brand refresh.

Dreamers: Impactful Low-Code/No-Code Experiences

Elevated Third and CoStar worked cohesively to build a fresh, new section of the website for CoStars Apartments.com Grow campaign. Using Acquia Site Studios low-code approach, Elevated Third was able to adapt it to the Grow sites needs and find a balance between ambitious design and ultimate sustainability. Acquia Cloud gave the teams the necessary infrastructure to manage multiple site instances along with parallel development workflows.

"Our partnership with Acquia has grown significantly over the last eleven years  we are excited by what we have been able to achieve with our teams and look forward to all that we will accomplish in the future," said Jeff Calderone, CEO and founder, Elevated Third.

This years competition attracted a record 120 entries. Each submission was presented to a panel of respected digital experts, who evaluated them on functionality, integration, performance, user experience, and other criteria.

Showcasing the most impressive digital experiences, across industries and geographies, is a highlight of Acquia Engage, said Mike Sullivan, CEO of Acquia. Each customers story demonstrates the impact that creatively designed and thoroughly executed digital experiences can have on customer engagement and organizational performance.

Many of this years Engage Award winners collaborated with one of more than 600 Acquia partners for specialized Drupal development and integration work, industry expertise, or digital strategy.

Elevated Third will be attending Acquia Engage in Miami on October 25, and will also be a marquee sponsor of Acquia Engage San Francisco in December.

For the most up-to-date news, follow Elevated Third on Twitter and Linkedin.

Elevated Third

Elevated Third is a digital agency that blends strategic thinking with technical doing to solve today's enterprise B2B problems. Since 2004, Elevated Third teams have worked across B2B sectors from fintech to edtech and every kind of SaaS in betweento help solve the most complex marketing, strategic, and digital transformation problems facing enterprise organizations. From Drupal development, UX and design, to demand generation and ABM consulting, Elevated Third is the B2B agency companies trust to get it done. Elevated Third is a 2x ANA B2 Awards Bronze winner and proud partners with BBN.

Acquia

Acquia empowers the worlds most ambitious brands to create digital customer experiences that matter. With open-source Drupal at its core, the Acquia Digital Experience Platform (DXP) enables marketers, developers and IT operations teams at thousands of global organizations to rapidly compose and deploy digital products and services that engage customers, enhance conversions, and help businesses stand out.
SYON Logo Greater freedom, flexibility and the ability to more effectively serve our clients have been the core drivers of our decision to launch Syon. As a team, we have dedicated our wire-house careers to laying down the foundation of a family office group."

Veteran financial advisor Ash Chopra has left Merrill Lynch Private Wealth to launch Syon Capital, LLC, [Syon Capital] a Registered Investment Advisor with the Securities Exchange Commission.

Headquartered in San Francisco, Syon Capital opens its doors with a team of 10 professionals. Most of them were Chopras team members at Merrill Lynch where, prior to their move, they managed approximately $4.5 billion in client assets.

The newly formed RIA has chosen Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. as primary custodian for all client accounts. Having Schwab Advisor Family Offices act as custodian for client assets provides access to a wide range of services.

Chopra, CEO of Syon Capital, explained that the move to independence will empower him and his team to serve their clients best interests -- as fiduciaries -- by offering comprehensive independent advice on all aspects of their financial lives, not just assets. By leveraging a broader arsenal of tools the firm will help manage their clients assets and liabilities, as well as offering access to private investment opportunities.

Greater freedom, flexibility and the ability to more effectively serve our clients have been the core drivers of our decision to launch Syon. As a team, we have dedicated our wire-house careers to laying down the foundation of a family office group, said Chopra. But within a wire-house our ability to brand ourselves as a multi-family office, and serve our clients as fiduciaries, was restricted. As an independent organization our family office model will enable us to serve our clients free from the constraints of a broker/dealer model.

Syons clientele is comprised of some of the nations wealthiest families, executives, and entrepreneurs. The team builds thoughtfully curated and holistic financial strategies to help optimize their clients capital and enhance both their lives and their legacies.

Chopra pointed out that a key factor fueling the decision to become an independent RIA was the teams key differentiator: a commitment to be a clients personal CFO and focus on clients net keep, not just their net worth.

We strive to customize wealth plans to maximize returns, after taxes and fees, across all our clients assets and finances. This is an engaging strategy that we can take to a level that we were unable to as captive employees of our former firm, Chopra added.

Chopras career in the United States started in 1989 as a co-op student. Prior to earning his business degree and joining Goldman Sachs in 2000, he worked as an engineer for a decade. In 2004, he left Goldman to join Merrill Lynch.

About Syon Capital, LLC

Syon Capital, LLC, is a Registered Investment Advisor with the Securities Exchange Commission [SEC], is headquartered in San Francisco California. SEC Registration does not constitute an endorsement of Syon Capital, LLC by the SEC nor does it indicate that Syon Capital, LLC has attained a particular level of skill or ability. The firm specializes in customizing wealth plans for some of the nations wealthiest families, executives, and entrepreneurs. More information about the firm and its services can be found at http://www.syoncap.com

About Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.

These materials have been independently produced by Syon Capital LLC (Syon). Syon is independent of, and has no affiliation with, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. or any of its affiliates (Schwab). Schwab is a registered broker-dealer and member SIPC. Schwab has not created, supplied, licensed, endorsed, or otherwise sanctioned these materials nor has Schwab independently verified any of the information in them. Syon provides you with investment advice, while Schwab maintains custody of your assets in a brokerage account and will effect transactions for your account on our instruction.
Microsoft provides a host of tools for managing risks, governing sensitive data, and maintaining regulatory compliance. When properly set up, the Microsoft Purview compliance portal provides powerful insights and solutions.

Messaging Architects, an eMazzanti Technologies Company and Microsoft 365 expert, shares six tips to get started with compliance in Microsoft 365 in a new article. The informative article first urges readers to conduct a compliance audit and to visit the Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager centralized dashboard.

The author then lists the Compliance Manager Setup Guide as a valuable resource. He encourages readers to configure alerts for potential compliance issues and protect critical data with sensitivity labels. Additional tips include steps to define retention policies and to cover security basics for remote work.

Microsoft provides a host of tools for managing risks, governing sensitive data, and maintaining regulatory compliance, stated Greg Smith, Vice President of Services Delivery at Messaging Architects. When properly set up, the Microsoft Purview compliance portal provides powerful insights and solutions.

Below are a few excerpts from the article, 6 Tips to Get Started with Compliance in Microsoft 365.

Know Your Starting Point

To outline a roadmap for achieving compliance, you first need to determine the current state of compliance in the organization. Conducting a proactive compliance audit can provide a starting point by highlighting risks and identifying areas for improvement.

Get Expert Advice with Guided Setup for Purview

Microsoft offers setup guides to help organizations configure Microsoft 365 productivity tools and security policies and set up device management. The library of setup guides now includes a guide specific to the Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager.

Configure Alerts for Potential Compliance Issues

The Compliance Manager dashboard displays a summary of active alerts. By default, Microsoft includes built-in alert policies for malware activity, possible admin permissions abuse, data lifecycle management problems and potential threats. Additionally, you can define custom alerts specific to your organization.

Protect Critical Data with Sensitivity Labels

A key aspect of Microsoft 365 compliance allows the organization to apply sensitivity labels to protected data. Administrators can then create policies to monitor and govern that data. For instance, by applying a sensitivity label to protected health information, the organization can ensure against improper sharing or deletion.

Get Started with Compliance in Microsoft 365

Its often difficult for organizations to get started with compliance. They can take a proactive approach to compliance and data governance by joining forces with Messaging Architects. With a detailed understanding of the controls and options available, its compliance experts help business leaders take compliance to the next level.

Have you read?

Optimizing Governance, Risk and Compliance in Microsoft 365

5 Microsoft 365 New Features Drive Productivity and Engagement

About Messaging Architects

Messaging Architects specializes in effectively managing and securing an organizations most precious asset, its information. With over 20 years of information management and technology consulting experience, the Messaging Architects team has provided corporations, educational intuitions, health care facilities and nonprofits with methodologies, procedures, and technology to keep their data organized, compliant and secure.

About eMazzanti Technologies

eMazzantis team of trained, certified IT experts rapidly deliver increased revenue growth, data security and productivity for clients ranging from law firms to high-end global retailers, expertly providing advanced retail and payment technology, digital marketing services, cloud and mobile solutions, multi-site implementations, 247 outsourced network management, remote monitoring, and support.

eMazzanti has made the Inc. 5000 list 9X, is a 4X Microsoft Partner of the Year, the #1 ranked NYC area MSP, NJ Business of the Year and 5X WatchGuard Partner of the Year! Contact: 1-866-362-9926, info@emazzanti.net or http://www.emazzanti.net Twitter: @emazzanti Facebook: Facebook.com/emazzantitechnologies.
Dr. Marta Kolthoff, lead physician of Olivia's Angels Perinatal Palliative Care program at AHN, speak at summer memorial event Its our hope that our work extends beyond the hospital to impact how our society culturally handles, supports and talks about infant loss," said Dr. Marta Kolthoff.

Allegheny Health Networks (AHN) Perinatal Palliative Care program, Olivias Angels, will recognize this month as National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month by sharing helpful guidance and resources for grieving parents as well as their friends, family and loved ones.

This month is a special time where we as a clinical community must come together to better educate the public on statistics surrounding pregnancy and infant loss, promote local resources for bereaved families and designate a special time to remember babies who have passed, said Marta Kolthoff, MD, AHN perinatologist and lead physician of Olivias Angels Perinatal Palliative Care Program. As a society, we must do a better job at responding to and supporting families who are experiencing reproductive loss. These babies are no less important than any other baby and this grief must be acknowledged, recognized and supported at the highest level.

In the United States, it's estimated that roughly 24,000 babies are stillborn (at 20 weeks of pregnancy or later) each year, and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) estimates as many as 26% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage (before 20 weeks of pregnancy) making it the most common form of all pregnancy loss.

Olivias Angels is the most comprehensive perinatal hospice and miscarriage support program in the region. Through the program, a team of AHN physicians and caregivers support and care for patients who have experienced a sudden perinatal loss or receive a diagnosis that their childs life will be limited. In certain instances, Olivias Angels can schedule elective c-sections so mom can spend more time with baby while still alive.

Historically, it was common practice to swiftly remove stillborn babies from their mothers which often resulted in complicated grief due to limited time for maternal bonding, explained Dr. Kolthoff. The medical community at-large now views this practice as detrimental and has started to implement certain standards that allow for more time together. At AHN, we have established a strong national reputation for being at the forefront of perinatal palliative care by implementing standard protocols such as this that allow for increased time spent between mom and baby to help patients through their grief journey, among other measures.

In addition to clinical guidance, the team provides extra palliative care, hospice and bereavement care for families. Dr. Kolthoffs team discharges families with keepsakes to remember their children by, such as casted footprints and memory books, reinforces the importance of calling their children by name and hosts bi-annual events to bring families together and find solace in their community.

Founded in 2017, Olivias Angels is embedded in every AHN labor and delivery program and currently provides comprehensive training for caregivers, including first-hand accounts from parents who have lost a child during or shortly after pregnancy. The training is vital to the delivery of coordinated, high-level care for patients and families, tapping into the resources and specialized clinical expertise found at the AHN Womens Behavioral Health Institute.

Most recently, the team launched a virtual support group series for the public to come together and share experiences with perinatal loss. The group meets in the evening monthly and those interested can visit ahn.org to register; participants do not have to be established AHN patients to attend.

Miscarriage is not uncommon, but there remains an evident need for a standardized care approach that validates this loss and removes the enormous stigma and shame women can sometimes face, continued Dr. Kolthoff. Its our hope that our work extends beyond the hospital to impact how our society culturally handles, supports and talks about infant loss.

Dr. Kolthoff provides top-line guidance for those supporting others facing perinatal loss or miscarriage:



Acknowledge the loss: take the time to let them know youre sorry for what has happened and that youre willing to be there to talk if mom or dad feel isolated. In a culture that can sometimes promote just putting on a good face, recognition and gentleness go a very long way.

Refrain from cliches or minimizing the loss: the duration of the pregnancy doesnt minimize its impact and saying things like everything happens for a reason, or you can try for another one, can be hurtful. Show your support by listening, calling the baby by his/her name and validating the expression of emotions like grief and pain.

Be mindful of your social media presence: for someone facing perinatal loss, it can seem that social media is inundated with pregnancy-related news. Be sensitive about what you post and how it could impact others who view it.

Support men & partners, too: fathers, and partners are also grieving, and that grief often goes unrecognized. Take time to specifically check in with significant others and show them youre there if they need to talk about their loss.

Encourage professional help: if you think they may benefit from an added layer of support and guidance from a clinical counselor, therapist or psychologist, refer to the AHN Womens Behavioral Health by visiting the website.

About the Allegheny Health Network:

Allegheny Health Network (AHN.org) is an integrated healthcare delivery system serving the greater Western Pennsylvania region. The Network is composed of 14 hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, Health + Wellness Pavilions, multiple employed physician organizations, home and community based health services, a research institute, and a group purchasing organization. The Network provides patients with access to a complete spectrum of advanced medical services, including nationally recognized programs for primary and emergency care, trauma care, cardiovascular disease, organ transplantation, cancer care, orthopedic surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, womens health, diabetes, autoimmune disease and more. AHN employs approximately 21,000 people, has more than 2,600 physicians on its medical staff and serves as a clinical campus for Drexel University College of Medicine and the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Amy Mathieson has been selected as the new president of FirstService Residential's California market. Amy Mathieson is a proven, established and respected leader in California and throughout our entire organization, having an incredible positive influence on our company in various operational and leadership roles, said Bob Cardoza, west region president.

FirstService Residential, North America's leading community management company, announces Amy Mathieson has been selected as the new president of their California market. As a planned succession, Mathieson succeeds Bob Cardoza, who served as California market president since 2011 and west region president since 2015. Cardoza, west region president, will focus 100% of his efforts on the growth, expansion, and operations of the western united states.

Amy Mathieson is a proven, established and respected leader in California and throughout our entire organization, having an incredible positive influence on our company in various operational and leadership roles, understands our market extremely well, and has built exceptional internal and external relationships with associates and customers, said Bob Cardoza, west region president. Cardoza continued, Amy believes in and lives our culture, has absolutely earned the opportunity, and I could not be more excited to see the continued growth and success of our California operations under her leadership.

Mathieson has held several leadership roles within FirstService Residential including west region vice president of human resources with responsibilities in California, Arizona, and Nevada. Most recently, she served as executive vice president of community management in Orange County as well as leading FirstService Association Consulting, providing planning and budgeting services to land developers and builders.

My journey at FirstService Residential has been rewarding not only because of the tremendous success we have experienced over the years, but the culture and people that truly set us apart, said Amy Mathieson. She continued, I am passionate about growth through a service-leadership mindset whether that be in the number of associations we serve, clients we retain, and the development of our associates.

About FirstService Residential

FirstService Residential is North Americas property management leader, partnering with more than 8,600 communities in neighborhoods across the U.S. and Canada. HOAs, community associations, coops, condos, and strata corporations rely on our extensive experience, resources, and local expertise to maximize their property values and enhance their residents lifestyles. Dedicated to making a difference, every day, we go above and beyond to deliver exceptional service. FirstService Residential is a subsidiary of FirstService Corporation, a North American leader in the property services sector. Find out how we can help your community thrive. Visit http://www.fsresidential.com.
Joyce Davis-Stache, an adoptee in her seventies, has completed her new book To Whom It May Concern: A Letter to All Mothers: a tribute to all who chose life for their unborn children. She reflects on her childhood on a farm in Virginia, escaping the routine life working in tobacco by joining the army, falling in love, and living a full and happy life. She and the love of her life have more than forty cruises, traveling around the world between them. None of this life would have been possible had her mother not chosen life for her.

My love for each and all of those who adopt is inexpressible. This letter is a tribute to my beloved parents with whom I grew old, Davis-Stache said.

Published by Page Publishing, Davis-Staches uplifting tale shares her own lifes story, and the surprise revelation she received in her seventies when a DNA test on Ancestry.com brought her together with a biological brother and a myriad of cousins she never knew she had.

This book is also a silent eulogy for the unborn, Davis-Stache said, Inasmuch as an epiphany, we have never been a part of our mothers body, just attached. Therefore, the termination of a childs life at any stage is not a moral issue, rather a criminal act. To Whom It May Concern is in part the voices of the unborn written by my mothers firstborn.

Readers who wish to experience this inspirational work can purchase To Whom It May Concern: A Letter to All Mothers at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes Store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708.

About Page Publishing:

Page Publishing is a traditional, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors books, including distribution in the worlds largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create, not mired in logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and so on. Pages accomplished writers and publishing professionals allow authors to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues and focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at http://www.pagepublishing.com.
Robin Michelle, who was born and raised in a small steel mill town in Southwestern Pennsylvania named Monessen, has completed her new book Acts of Kindness: Uplifting Short Stories: an inspiring and empowering collection of short stories that show readers how to accept a blessing, how to give a blessing, and how to be a blessing.

Author Robin Michelle is a Monessen High School graduate who attended Westmoreland County Community College for a few semesters in the early 1980s. Shes a single mother who raised four children and is now a grandmother to seven.

While raising her children, Robin worked many different jobs where she met a lot of great people. In every job Robin Michelle had, she left an impression on the people she worked with and vice versa. She is a kind, giving person who loves to treat people the way she wants to be treated. Over the years, in a time of need, she approached total strangers who would help aid her through everyday life situations. The strangers she came in contact with would rarely take her money for coming to the rescue. The trending theme among the people she encountered was love and peace. She has also paid it forward many times and helped many strangers in their time of need. Robin Michelle loves to tell what she calls true acts of kindness stories and shares them with anyone who wants to listen. She has a passion for painting the interior of the familys and friends homes and also interior decorating.

Author Robin Michelle writes, I live in a small city called Monessen. Were about twenty miles west of Youngwood. That is where the college is located. My classes are on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I am a young college student who started college after I met a young man I fell in love with. He is from the 'Windy City' Chicago, Illinois. Hes seen so much in his lifetime compared to mine. We fell deeply in love. We lived in Chicago for a while. Then we decided to move to Pennsylvania. We rented an apartment from my father. He owned an apartment building. All of our family lived there through the years. We both attended WCCC.

Published by Page Publishing, Robin Michelles impactful work reminds readers about how manners will go a long way. This work helps readers understand themselves and others and learn how to trust themselves and go with their instincts.

Readers who wish to experience this compelling work can purchase Acts of Kindness: Uplifting Short Stories at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes Store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708.

About Page Publishing:

Page Publishing is a traditional, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors books, including distribution in the worlds largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create, not mired in logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and so on. Pages accomplished writers and publishing professionals allow authors to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues and focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at http://www.pagepublishing.com.
Clean Electricity Standard Net Zero 2030: Reality vs Delusion Climate activists do not appreciate that to decarbonize the USA alone without using any fossil fuels would cost US$290 trillion, or 13.5 times the U.S.A. 2019 gross domestic product

As COP27  the UN Conference of the Parties to the 1992 Framework Convention on Climate Change approaches (Nov. 6-18, 2022 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt)  the climate rhetoric heats up from Greta Thunberg, promoting her new book and rejecting greenwashing, as per this excerpt, published in The Guardian, Oct. 8, 2022, says Friends of Science Society.

UN Sec-Gen Antonio Guterres, promoting his new anti-greenwashing Net Zero group, bizarrely claimed fossil fuel interests are now cynically using the war in Ukraine to lock in a high carbon future, as per a UN Press release of April 27, 2022. More recently, Petteri Talaas, Sec-Gen of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) claimed "So from climate perspective, the war in Ukraine may be seen as a blessing," as reported by CTV News, Oct. 11, 2022, as he felt it would enhance renewables markets.

On Oct. 12, 2022, Euronews Green reported that Greta Thunberg supported Germany keeping existing nuclear plants on line, though also advocating for more renewables. Earlier this year she had [fumed on twitter about the EU labelling gas and nuclear as green.

Climate activists Naomi Klein and Bill McKibben held a webinar on human rights and climate justice in advance of the upcoming COP27 in Egypt titled: Egypts Carceral Climate Summit. US State Department and Travel Canada advise against staging protests in Egypt without a permit.

Naomi Klein claims that Egypt, as host state for COP27, creates a moral crisis for climate activists. Klein and McKibben reject natural gas and are also pushing for renewables. As outlined by the US EIA, Egypt is a crucial supplier of natural gas to the world, and this is an important income earning market for a country that imports some 80% of its wheat.

The world faces a confluence of critical shortages of fuel, fertilizer, and food  famine and civil unrest will be the result. As NECSI s research found, the Arab Spring of 2011 was primarily driven by skyrocketing world food prices due to US Food-to-Fuel climate ethanol policies. That is surely a failing of the climate justice movement says Friends of Science, as thousands of people were driven to despair and died or were jailed in the violence.

Typically, wind and solar require substantial volumes of natural gas in order to operate on the power grid, as explained in Friends of Science Societys report What You Really Need to Know About Renewables (That the Pembina Institute Wont Tell You) and in their report and video rebutting Deloitte Insights and Climate Reality, titled In the Dark on Renewables. Europe, particularly Germany, is facing crisis scenarios due to the loss of natural gas imports from Russia, meaning large industrial businesses must cut back or shut down operations and blackouts are likely, as explained by Alexander Stahel in this Global Warming Policy Foundation report.

Power grid operations are complex. There is the need for 100% reliable conventional back-up power (typically natural gas) for renewables, but many climate activists don't understand this.

All wind and solar devices are made from astounding amounts of oil, natural gas, and coal, as explained by energy expert Vaclav Smil in this short article on the IEEE To Get Wind Power You Need Oil.

It is simply impossible to meet NetZero targets as energy economist Robert Lyman explains in Magical Thinking: Why NetZero is Neither Possible nor Desirable and Why Renewables Cannot Replace Fossil Fuels by 2050.

Friends of Science Society reports, like Clean Electricity Standard NetZero 2030: Reality vs Delusion compile the work of Professional Engineers conversant with such operations. Climate activists do not appreciate that to decarbonize the USA alone without using any fossil fuels would cost US$290 trillion, or 13.5 times the U.S.A. 2019 gross domestic product.

Neither the materials nor sufficient infrastructure elements could be mined and manufactured to meet the NetZero target dates.

Meantime, other climate activists are attacking biomass, apparently in a demarketing effort prior to COP27, according to this Friends of Science Society video rebuttal to CBCs Fifth Estate program titled The Big Burn.

About

Friends of Science Society is an independent group of earth, atmospheric and solar scientists, engineers, and citizens that is celebrating its 20th year of offering climate science insights. After a thorough review of a broad spectrum of literature on climate change, Friends of Science Society has concluded that the sun is the main driver of climate change, not carbon dioxide (CO2).

Friends of Science Society

PO Box 61172 RPO Kensington

Calgary AB T2N 4S6

Canada

Toll-free Telephone: 1-888-789-9597

Web: friendsofscience.org

E-mail: contact(at)friendsofscience(dot)org

Web: climatechange101.ca


The Delrin business is committed to improving the sustainability of our manufacturing assets in order to deliver increasingly sustainable product offerings to our customers, says Delrin Global Business Manager, Brian Ammons.

DuPont (NYSE:DD) today announced that its global Delrin production facilities have achieved an estimated 10 percent reduction in total scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from 2019 to 2021. The reduction is principally due to Delrin plant modernization efforts which are part of the businesss overall commitment to sustainability.

The Delrin business is committed to improving the sustainability of our manufacturing assets in order to deliver increasingly sustainable product offerings to our customers, says Delrin Global Business Manager, Brian Ammons. The 10 percent reduction in scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions is a result of the innovation and sustainability culture embedded in our organization.

The Delrin Washington Works facility in West Virginia completed three substantial energy efficiency projects aimed at reducing the plants steam and electricity consumption. Since 2020, the facility has received the American Chemistry Council Responsible Care Energy Efficiency award three years running. The Washington Works Delrin plant also recently completed a transition from coal to natural gas steam generation, further reducing Delrin scope 2 emissions.

At the Dordrecht Works facility in the Netherlands, production of Delrin Renewable Attributed resin has contributed to the reduction in scope 1 and 2 manufacturing emissions. The Delrin Renewable Attributed product portfolio is produced entirely with electricity backed by renewable energy credits from wind. Furthermore, steam is sourced from municipal waste energy recovery. The Delrin Renewable Attributed product line, whose base polymer is produced with 100 percent ISCC certified bio-feedstock from waste, provides up to 75 percent reduction in global warming potential (GWP) impacts compared to fossil-based Delrin. Delrin Renewable Attributed was the first commercial bio-based acetal homopolymer and has been recognized for its world-class environmental profile, winning an R&D 100 Award in 2021 as well as a 2022 Gold Edison Award.

Scope 1 covers direct emissions from owned or controlled emissions sources while scope 2 covers indirect emissions from purchased energy resources.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This communication contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance and financial condition, and often contain words such as "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "seek," "see," "will," "would," "target," and similar expressions and variations or negatives of these words.

Forward-looking statements address matters that are, to varying degrees, uncertain and subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, many of which that are beyond DuPont's control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not representations or warranties or guarantees of future results.

Forward-looking statements include statements which relate to the purpose, ambitions, commitments, targets, plans, objectives, and results of DuPonts sustainability strategy. Forward-looking statements include statements related to the standards and measurement of progress against the companys sustainability goals, including metrics, data and other information, which are based on estimates and assumptions believed to be reasonable at the time. The actual conduct of the companys activities and results thereof, including the development, implementation, achievement or continuation of any goal, program, policy or initiative discussed or expected in connection with DuPonts sustainability strategy may differ materially from the statements made herein. The use of the word material for the purposes of statements regarding our sustainability strategy and goals should not be read as equating to any use of the word in the companys other disclosures or filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

See DuPonts most recent annual report and subsequent current and periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for further description of risk factors that could impact the expectations or estimates implied by the Companys forward-looking statements, including (i) the ability to meet expectations regarding the timing, completion, accounting and tax treatments, and benefits, including integration, related to portfolio changes; (ii) risks and costs related to indemnification of legacy liabilities; (iii) risks and uncertainties related to operational and supply chain impacts or disruptions, including ability to offset increased costs, obtain raw materials, and meet customer needs, and (iv) other risks to DuPont's business and operations. Unlisted factors may also present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. Consequences of material differences in results as compared with those anticipated in the forward-looking statements could include, among other things, business or supply chain disruption, operational problems, financial loss, legal liability to third parties, loss of key customers, reputational harm and similar risks, any of which could have a material adverse effect on DuPonts consolidated financial condition, results of operations, credit rating or liquidity. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. DuPont assumes no obligation to publicly provide revisions or updates to any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, should circumstances change, except as otherwise required by securities and other applicable laws.
I couldn't keep quiet but to share the greatness of God's mercy and love He bestows upon us in hopes that others whose marriages are suffering may find hope and restoration in their lives and marriages, too.

Author Mandy Renteria encourages couples that their marriages are worth fighting for in The Devil Messed With the Wrong Girl ($22.49, paperback, 9781662859359; $9.99, e-book, 9781662859366).

Renteria knows what its like. Her husband was caught in addiction; she was self-righteous and bitter. It seemed like the only two options were to get divorced or to settle as civil roommates, but Jesus stepped in and offered a third choice. He gave them true victory and restoration that they never thought possible.

I couldn't keep quiet but to share the greatness of God's mercy and love He bestows upon us in hopes that others whose marriages are suffering may find hope and restoration in their lives and marriages, too. The devil tried to destroy my marriage, so I'm taking the pain I experienced and sharing it with the world to help save marriages, said Renteria.

Mandy Renteria is a Christian author, speaker and licensed professional counselor certified in trauma-focused cognitive behavior therapy. She has personally experienced trauma in her life and in her own marriage. She owns and operates her private practice, Trinity Counseling, serving the Low Country since 2014. She lives with her husband Jose and three children in her hometown of Bluffton, South Carolina.

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Xulon Press, a division of Salem Media Group, is the worlds largest Christian self-publisher, with more than 15,000 titles published to date. The Devil Messed With the Wrong Girl is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


We gave the law firms what they are asking for -- more tools to address the hyperconnected, rapidly moving, press-fueled world dominated by a 24/7 news cycle, said Red Banyan CEO Evan Nierman. It's a way to provide ever-evolving and increasing value to our strategic partners."

International strategic communications agency Red Banyan has launched a new set of attorney-focused legal resources that will allow attorneys to provide a higher level of value and service to their clients in and out of the courtroom.

Red Banyans legal-centric initiative comes in response to a growing number of requests from attorneys to provide assistance and materials they can use to advance their clients goals. Red Banyans objective is to provide legal PR assistance to attorneys so they can win in both the courtroom and the court of public opinion.

We gave the law firms what they are asking for -- more tools to address the hyperconnected, rapidly moving, press-fueled world dominated by a 24/7 news cycle, said Red Banyan CEO Evan Nierman. It's a way to provide ever-evolving and increasing value to our strategic partners to help their clients succeed.

An entire new legal PR section dedicated to helping law firms and attorneys has been added to the Red Banyan website in support of this effort. This litigation PR site-within-a-site can help attorneys from firms of all sizes and areas of focus and specializations with strategic communication services tailored to specific legal needs. Please visit our newly launched legal PR section.

Among the legal PR services addressed by the new website are: media relations, crisis planning & communications, integrated PR & communications, reputation management and litigation support.

Red Banyan works with dozens of law firms across the United States and globally. The law firm PR agencys legal PR experts often fulfill the following roles:



Providing case support through media relations and media outreach

Helping attorneys shape narratives in their clients favor

Ensuring that lawyers win both in the courthouse and in the court of public opinion

The new legal PR site provides attorneys with added support so they can craft legal strategies paired with a media strategy for maximum impact.

Established in 2010, Red Banyan is renowned nationally and internationally as the go-to option for crisis communications and litigation PR. Headquartered in Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, Red Banyan also has offices in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, Denver, Tampa and other cities.

About Red Banyan

Red Banyan is a specialized communications and crisis management firm focused on solving complex, highly sensitive and mission-critical communications challenges. Specializing in crisis communications, corporate public relations, government relations, and legal PR, Red Banyan provides an integrated approach to communications rooted in strategy. Learn more at http://www.redbanyan.com, become a fan on the Red Banyan FaceBook page and follow the firm on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP continues the expansion of its Land Use Practice on Long Island with the addition of John R. DiCioccio (J.R.), as a shareholder in the Bridgehampton office. DiCioccio joins the powerhouse law firm after 12 years of public service in Islip, the last six as Islip town attorney.

J.R. joins a cadre of Greenberg Traurig attorneys on Long Island who know local government and how to get deals done fast and efficiently. As the former Islip Town Attorney, J.R. brings deep land use experience and is the latest addition to our award winning national and global Real Estate Practice. We remain committed to growing our Real Estate Practice, especially the synergy among the Long Island, New York, Westchester, and Florida markets, Greenberg Traurig Executive Chairman Richard A. Rosenbaum said. "Greenberg Traurig is the only BigLaw firm to open its doors on and bring the resources of a top tier global platform to Long Island.

During his tenure as Islip Town Attorney, DiCioccio was the Chief Legal Officer for the Town of Islip serving as Counsel to the Town Board, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, and Industrial Development Agency. As Town Attorney, DiCioccio was involved in all facets of the towns land use process, was responsible for defending the town in all federal and state litigation including defense of Article 78 proceedings and handled all real estate transactions and leasing involving town property. While at the Town of Islip, DiCioccio also maintained a private practice representing clients in residential and commercial real estate transactions and leasing, land use applications before municipal boards outside the Town of Islip, and all related litigation.

Working as a Town Attorney on Long Island for New Yorks third largest township has provided J.R. with an intimate understanding of the intricacies of local laws and processes needed in the Land Use Practice and his regional reputation and experience is a great fit with our firm. Every municipality is different and understanding the nuances of land use and development is a crucial element to representing clients in this area, said Brian C. Doyle and John P. McEntee, co-managing shareholders of Greenberg Traurigs Long Island offices, in a joint statement.

The prospect of growing my practice locally at Greenberg Traurig, a firm known for its stellar reputation in land use, collaborating with its distinguished real estate professionals, and having access to premier global resources is exciting," DiCioccio said. I look forward to working alongside a highly regarded group of lawyers on Long Island and throughout the region and building upon the firms strength in this area.

DiCioccio joins other recent land use hires in the firms Long Island offices including Daniel J. Baker, who along with David Rooney J. Gilmartin, co-chairs Greenberg Traurigs Long Island Land Use Practice. In addition to Long Island, Greenberg Traurig has growing offices strategically positioned throughout the New York Metropolitan area including its flagship in Manhattan, and surrounding Westchester County and New Jersey. The firm has more than 650 real estate attorneys in 43 locations worldwide.

About Greenberg Traurig: Greenberg Traurig, LLP has more than 2500 attorneys in 43 locations in the United States, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. The firm reported gross revenue of over $2 Billion for FY 2021 and is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law 100, Am Law Global 100, and NLJ 250. On the debut 2022 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard, it is a Top 15 firm. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 4.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab and the Center for Resource Solutions Green-e Energy program certifies that the firms U.S. offices are 100% powered by renewable energy. The firm is often recognized for its focus on philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com.
HashCash offers crypto payment processor to a Brazilian fintech firm Logical regulatory frameworks contribute to the overall improvement of the crypto ecosystem. Cryptos revolutionary potential is no longer undeniable, evident from the participation of global financial powerhouses as well as nations from all corners of the world.

Blockchain-powered payment processors have transformed the global financial landscape, offering real-time visibility and quicker cross-border transactions at fractional processing fees. International blockchain development company HashCash Consultants continues making a positive contribution in this segment, offering their white-label crypto payment processor to a renowned Brazilian financial services provider.

Enterprises around the world are quickly integrating blockchain into their existing system architecture and for good reasons. The potential is practically limitless with a significant number of national central banks already conducting blockchain-powered CBDC(Central Bank Digital Currency) projects. Global inter-bank organizations like SWIFT acknowledge successful breakthroughs in interoperability and seamless interaction across international borders facilitating trade and digital asset tokenization across multiple platforms.

HashCash CEO and blockchain pioneer Raj Chowdhury states, logical regulatory frameworks contribute to the overall improvement of the crypto ecosystem. Cryptos revolutionary potential is no longer undeniable, evident from the participation of global financial powerhouses as well as nations from all corners of the world.

The white-label solution by HashCash allows institutional investors to offer crypto payment processing services to their customers and earn attractive commissions doing so. The firm added further UI/UX upgrades increasing the ease of use of its crypto payment gateway Billbitcoins. Enterprises willing to venture and leverage business opportunities using the white-label blockchain-powered solution can access the same features available on HashCashs native crypto payment gateway, Billbitcoins, including zero chargebacks. Cybersecurity is vital in digital asset transactions, and the US-based organization ensures the protection of client assets with cutting-edge platform architecture and multi-feature integrations. In addition, there are multiple packages to choose from, with a free crypto-to-fiat conversion up to the first $ 1 million.

Secure high-speed cross-border transactions and real-time visibility are the defining features of crypto payment processors. Whats easy to miss is the plethora of new business opportunities that these digital assets present, concluded Chowdhury, who had previously offered his views on using blockchain analytics, and IoT-enabled blockchain solutions.

HashCash-designed solutions are deployed in over 26 nations, winning top honors in blockchain development worldwide. Known for bridging the gap between banking and fintech, Hashcash's blockchain-powered white-label solutions also feature a wide range of additional applications and have been received with critical acclaim across Singapore, Vietnam, Ireland, and Finland. The company announced plans for expansion and diversification into the metaverse and Web 3.0 segment this year.

Digital asset payments are gaining acceptance from the largest global organizations in segments as diverse as eCommerce, electronics, software/IT, fashion apparel, and most importantly, the financial services sector. Crypto payment processors can help businesses transform their existing financial infrastructure, optimize operations and gain new clients. A growing segment of consumers, especially the younger generation is opting for crypto payments, with trends showing much higher transaction amounts than credit cards.



About HashCash Consultants:

HashCash is a global software company. HashCash Blockchain products enable enterprises to move assets and settle payments across borders in real-time for Remittances, Trade Finance, Payment Processing, and more. HashCash runs US-based digital asset exchange, PayBito & digital asset payment processor, BillBitcoins. HashCash offers exchange and payment processor software solutions, ICO services, and customized use cases. HashCash propels advancement in technology through Blockchain1o1 programs and its investment arm, Satoshi Angels. HashCash offers solutions in AI, Big Data, and IoT through its platforms, products & services. HashCash solves the toughest challenges by executing innovative digital transformation strategies for clients around the world.
Records management and information management is one of ITs most exciting disciplines to be in right now, and we cant wait to rub elbows in Nashville with our customers and the industrys top leaders.

Infotel Corp, a Tampa-based global enterprise software vendor, is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the ARMA InfoCon Conference in Nashville, Tennessee from Oct. 16-19.

ARMA InfoCon 2022 is the premier educational event for records management, information management, and information governance professionals to learn and share industry best practices. The conference will be held at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, and gives attendees access to leading educational sessions, industry titans from around the globe, certification continuing education units, and unparalleled networking opportunities.

Infotel is proud to sponsor this event and views ARMA InfoCon 2022 as a crucial component of keeping information professionals responsible for the worlds most important data stores educated with the latest innovations in the field. The global pandemic has exponentially accelerated digital transformation in every industry, and information management professionals are tasked with an ever-increasing workload on top of increasingly strict data governance laws from all levels of government in multiple countries.

ARMA InfoCon conferences are the best of the best when it comes to continuing education for information management professionals, and it is now more important than ever, said Jeff Castella, Infotel Managing Director software division. Records management and information management is one of ITs most exciting disciplines to be in right now, and we cant wait to rub elbows in Nashville with our customers and the industrys top leaders.

The Infotel team will be present in booth #727 in the Presidential Hall Lobby and invites all ARMA attendees to stop by to connect with Infotel Senior Consultant, Morgan Attias, to learn more about Infotels intuitive suite of data governance solutions.

Two of Infotels latest innovations, Arvitam, for enterprise digital archiving, and deepeo, for data governance, are built for global enterprises with massive amounts of data to keep track of and endless global data privacy legislation to navigate.

Arvitam is uniquely suited to help the organization undergoing digital transformation and can take data from any format, both physical to digital, and secure it in a unified platform for decades to come, in a sustainable, scalable and cost-effective manner.

Deepeo is Infotels robust data management solution that performs housekeeping tasks across hundreds of databases to manage data deletion according to each companys data retention policies. Deepeo is the perfect solution for companies subject to regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and other state laws where improper data management can lead to costly penalties and in extreme cases, imprisonment. Deepeo offers a sleek visualization dashboard for a holistic view of an organizations data governance and compliance health.

Morgan Attias' Presentation

Infotel will also sponsor an educational speaking session with Attias titled, Protect and Preserve Your Enterprise Data with Arvitam and deepeo from Infotel.

When: Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2022, from 12  12:50 p.m. CT

Where: Gaylord Opryland Resort & Conference Center, Room Lincoln A

About ARMA

ARMA is the world's leading membership organization serving almost 5,000 professionals who manage and govern information. ARMA International is the community of records management, information management, and information governance professionals who harness the benefits and reduce the risks of information. ARMA provides resources, education, certification, and unparalleled networking opportunities. For more information on ARMA, please visit https://www.arma.org/.

About Infotel

Infotel Corp. is a software vendor and IT consulting firm specializing in data performance and optimization solutions across both distributed and mainframe platforms. For more than 40 years, Infotel has delivered proven solutions to help clients improve their data management systems. For more information on Infotel Corp., please visit https://www.insoft-infotel.com/.

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"Intellitec looks forward to learning more about how our customers priorities have evolved and showcasing our ERP solutions designed for the industry.

Intellitec Solutions, based in Newark, DE, will showcase their proven integrated accounting solutions at the 2022 LeadingAge Annual Meeting, Oct. 17-19, 2021 in Denver. As an exhibitor, Intellitec Solutions will join thousands of leaders in aging services and community-based care for conversations focused on elevating care in a sector that continues to be transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Intellitec implements financial and accounting systems for the Senior Living industry. Working with Sage Intacct and Microsoft Dynamics, they have successfully worked with over 800 facilities, and have the experience to ensure their clients Financials are set-up correctly from the start. They also have built proprietary tools to integrate with leading EMR packages, and help clients get the reports and metrics they need. We help accounting teams increase productivity and efficiency. 2022 will represent the 11th year they have showcased their solutions at LeadingAge.

" The LeadingAge Annual Meeting + EXPO is an ideal opportunity to demonstrate our support for aging services," says Rick Sommer, President of Intellitec Solutions. "Intellitec looks forward to learning more about how our customers priorities have evolved and showcasing our ERP solutions designed for the industry.

Collaboration is at the heart of aging services and essential to our ability to harness the opportunities that will propel us forward, said Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge. Were excited to join our community as they connect face-to-face, discuss current challenges with trusted partners, and explore technology and products that offer potential solutions for their organizations to advance in this ever-changing environment.

The LeadingAge Annual Meeting & Expo features expert led education sessions, forums on topics key to the long term care industry, and networking with thousands of aging services professionals from across the country. Attendees evaluating a new accounting solution or interested in learning how to integrate their clinical package with Sage Intacct or Microsoft Dynamics should visit Intellitec Solutions at Booth 1313, or contact them at 866-504-4357.

About Intellitec Solutions:

As a leading provider of General Ledger/ERP accounting software, Intellitec delivers in-house Senior Care expertise for over 800 locations across the United States. The 30-year-old company is certified in Sage Intacct and Microsoft Dynamics and has optimized these solutions for the Senior Living Care Industry. In addition, they have developed automated integrations with leading clinical management packages to share financial and non-financial data. For more information or to schedule a demo, please visit http://www.intellitecsolutions.com or call 866-504-4357.

About LeadingAge:

LeadingAge represents more than 5,000 aging-focused organizations that touch millions of lives every day. Alongside its members and 38 state partners, LeadingAge addresses critical issues by blending applied research, advocacy, education, and community-building. LeadingAge brings together the most inventive minds in the nonprofit aging services field to support older adults as they age wherever they call home. LeadingAge makes America a better place to grow old. For more information: leadingage.org.

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All products mentioned in this release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Law Office of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the class action lawsuit against Alto Pharmacy LLC, call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

The San Francisco employment law attorneys, at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a class action lawsuit against Alto Pharmacy LLC alleging the company violated the California Labor Code. The lawsuit against Alto Pharmacy LLC is currently pending in the San Francisco County Superior Court, Case No. CGGC-22-601836. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

According to the lawsuit filed, Alto Pharmacy LLC allegedly (a) failed to pay minimum wages, (b) failed to pay overtime wages, (c) failed to provide legally required meal and rest periods, (d) failed to provide accurate itemized wage statements, (e) failed to reimburse employees for required expenses, and (f) failed to pay sick pay wages, all in violation of the applicable Labor Code sections listed in California Labor Code Sections  201-204, 226, 226.7, 233, 246, 510, 512, 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 2802, and the applicable Wage Order(s), and thereby gives rise to civil penalties as a result of such alleged conduct.

Alto Pharmacy LLC allegedly failed to reimburse employees for required business expenses. California Labor Code 2802 expressly states that "an employer shall indemnify his or her employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred by the employee in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties..." During employment, Plaintiff and other California Class Members were allegedly required to use their personal cellular phones as a result of and in furtherance of their job duties.

For more information about the class action lawsuit against Alto Pharmacy LLC, call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP is a labor law firm with law offices located in San Diego County, Riverside County, Los Angeles County, Sacramento County, Santa Clara County, Orange County and San Francisco County. The firm has a statewide practice of representing employees on a contingency basis for violations involving unpaid wages, overtime pay, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination and other types of illegal workplace conduct.

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Law Office of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the lawsuit against Central Valley Diner, Inc., call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

The San Francisco employment law attorneys, at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a lawsuit against Central Valley Diner, Inc. alleging the company violated Labor Code  2699, et seq. seeking penalties for DEFENDANTs alleged violation of California Labor Code  201-203, 204 et seq., 210, 218, 221, 226(a), 226.7, 227.3, 510, 512, 558(a)(1)(2), 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 1198, and 2802. The lawsuit against Central Valley Diner, Inc. is currently pending in the Stanislaus County Superior Court, Case No. CV-22-004133. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

According to the lawsuit filed, Central Valley Diner, Inc. allegedly failed to fully relieve Plaintiff and other Aggrieved Employees for their legally required thirty (30) minute meals breaks. Employees were also allegedly required, from time to time, to work in excess of four (4) hours without being provided the legally required ten (10) minute rest periods. The California Supreme Court defines off-duty rest periods as the time during which an employee is relieved from all work-related duties and free from employer control.

PAGA is a mechanism by which the State of California itself can enforce state labor laws through the employee suing under the PAGA who do so as the proxy or agent of the state's labor law enforcement agencies. An action to recover civil penalties under PAGA is fundamentally a law enforcement action designed to protect the public and not to benefit private parties. The purpose of PAGA is not to recover damages or restitution, but to create a means of "deputizing" citizens as private attorneys general to enforce the Labor Code.

For more information about the lawsuit against Central Valley Diner, Inc., call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP is a labor law firm with law offices located in San Diego County, Riverside County, Los Angeles County, Sacramento County, Santa Clara County, Orange County, and San Francisco County. The firm has a statewide practice of representing employees on a contingency basis for violations involving unpaid wages, overtime pay, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, and other types of illegal workplace conduct.

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We look forward to continuing to innovate and changing the world for the better by helping protect and empower as many survivors as possible.

Leda Health, a healthcare company serving survivors of sexual assault, announced today that it has been named to Fortunes 2022 Change the World List. The prestigious annual list recognizes companies that have had a positive social impact through innovative activities that are part of their core business strategy. Leda was selected for its work to give sexual assault survivors more autonomy in the health decisions they face.

Leda Health is beyond honored to be named to Fortunes 2022 Change the World List in recognition of our work to empower survivors of sexual assault, said Leda Health Co-Founder and CEO Madison Campbell. Even though were at the start of our journey as a company, its incredible to see the impact we have already made so far to ensure that all people who have experienced sexual harm are given the options and autonomy they deserve.

Sexual assault continues to be a prevalent issue in the U.S. and worldwide. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, 81% of women and 43% of men nationwide reported experiencing sexual harassment or assault in their lifetime. Yet, 75% of sexual assault cases go unreported. This is due to a variety of reasons, including hospitals and law enforcement not being perceived as safe spaces by underrepresented communities, hospital care being inaccessible for survivors living in rural areas, and a shortage of sexual assault nurse examiners nationwide.

Recognizing the shortcomings in current sexual assault care, Leda Health offers equitable access to healthcare by meeting survivors where they are and providing them with all possible tools for healing. These resources include an Early Evidence Kit for DNA collection that allows survivors to collect forensic material in as little as 30 minutes, enabling survivors to preserve evidence even if they chose not to immediately report their assault. Leda also provides STI testing and Plan B, a mobile application, a 24/7 Care Team for guidance around the clock, and an exam location map.

Leda Health is truly revolutionizing the landscape of sexual assault care by taking into account the multifaceted approach sexual assault care requires, said Leda Health Co-Founder and CTO Liesel Vaidya. We look forward to continuing to innovate and changing the world for the better by helping protect and empower as many survivors as possible.

About Leda Health

Leda Health was founded in 2019 by Madison Campbell and Liesel Vaidya with trauma-informed solutions to care and healing in mind. Based in New York, the survivor-run companys mission is to empower survivors of sexual assault in an effort to break cycles of violence. Today, Leda Healths holistic services include a convenient exam location map and a trained 24/7 Care Team  all aimed at supporting survivor autonomy, increasing access to care, and acknowledging the diversity of healing. For more information about Leda Health, please visit online at Leda.co or on Instagram and Twitter.


Mindray North America Perioperative Solutions Mindray is debuting for the first time together at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2022 their newest point of care ultrasound (POCUS), the TE X Ultrasound Machine, their new A8 & A9 Anesthesia Workstations, and their innovative BeneVision N-Series Patient Monitors at Booth 2847.

Mindray North America, a global leader and developer of healthcare technologies and solutions for ultrasound, anesthesia, and patient monitoring, announced today that they are attending the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) ANESTHESIOLOGY Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA, October 22-24. Mindray is debuting for the first time together at the ANESTHESIOLOGY Annual Meeting their newest point of care ultrasound (POCUS), the TE X Ultrasound Machine, their new A8 & A9 Anesthesia Workstations, and their innovative BeneVision N-Series Patient Monitors. These three product lines push the boundaries of what is possible in anesthesia, ultrasound, and patient monitoring to bring innovation to the perioperative environment.

Based on an insightful look into the perioperative market needs, we realize solutions that build upon existing technologies and workflows are needed to elevate OR clinicians and better support their day-to-day, said Melanie Rosen, Sr. Marketing Manager, Perioperative Solutions. Rosen continued, We are excited to unveil our new, complete perioperative solution at ANESTHESIOLOGY Annual Meeting this year. We invite all attendees to stop by Booth 2847 and witness how we advance medical technologies to make healthcare more accessible.

Mindrays perioperative solutions on display throughout this years ANESTHESIOLOGY Annual Meeting exhibit include:



TE X Ultrasound System: Powered by Mindrays proprietary Zone Sonography Technology+ (ZST+), the newly released tablet-based ultrasound system provides access to advanced diagnostic data, the ability to adapt to various clinical scenarios at the point of care, and best-in-class imaging to help clinicians provide a higher standard of care.

A8 and A9 Anesthesia Workstations: Mindrays newest A8 and A9 anesthesia platform elevates traditional anesthesia by retaining conventional features while introducing innovative technology that complements how clinicians work best.

BeneVision N-Series Patient Monitors: Offering a full suite of monitors, the N-Series delivers a comprehensive, modular platform with user-configurable settings and a platform-wide UI with smartphone-like usability to complement clinical workflow.

With over 30 years of experience, Mindray has deep-seated roots and a sole focus on the healthcare industry. Since its founding, Mindray has been dedicated to developing innovative and accessible solutions. The TE X Ultrasound Machine, the A8 and A9 Anesthesia Workstations, and N-Series Patient Monitors continue this legacy of disruptive technology and apply meaningful innovation to drive impactful results, complementing clinical workflow and enhancing patient care in the operating room.

About Mindray

Mindray is a leading developer, manufacturer, and supplier of medical device solutions and technologies used in healthcare facilities around the globe. We believe we can change lives by making the most advanced healthcare technology attainable for all. We do this by empowering healthcare professionals through innovative, high-value solutions that help create the next generation of life-saving tools across three primary business segments: medical imaging, patient monitoring and life support, and in-vitro diagnostics. Mindray maintains its global headquarters in Shenzhen, China; Mindray North America is headquartered in Mahwah, New Jersey. Our Ultrasound Innovation Center is located in San Jose, California, with additional facilities in major international markets around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.mindray.com.
The Citizens of the Year committee (which is comprised of past Citizens of the Year awardees) were highly impressed by Mr. Manu Shah and felt compelled to create a new award that would better fit his accomplishments, said Elizabeth Holloman, the Executive Director of Orange Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Manu Shah, CEO of M S International, Inc. in Orange County received the Corporate Citizen of the Year award from the Orange Chamber of Commerce during the State of the City. Mr. Gaddi Vasquez, Former United Nations Ambassador, presented the award to him.

State of the City is an annual event hosted by the Orange Chamber of Commerce where the Mayor of the City of Orange presents the annual report to the business community.

This is the first time that the City of Oranges Chamber of Commerce will be giving this award. The Citizens of the Year committee (which is comprised of past Citizens of the Year awardees) were highly impressed by Mr. Manu Shah and felt compelled to create a new award that would better fit his accomplishments, said Elizabeth Holloman, the Executive Director of Orange Chamber of Commerce.

The Corporate Citizen of the Year award is a highly coveted award given to corporate leaders who have made a significant impact on the City of Orange in terms of job creation, revenue generation and social impact.

M S International employs over 500 people in Orange and has established itself as the largest distributor of home improvement materials in the city. Mr. Manu Shah and his family support nonprofits such as Habitat for Humanity, United Cerebral Palsy of OC, Pretend City, Orangewood Foundation, Orange Senior Center and many more.

About MSI Surfaces

Founded in 1975, MSI is a leading supplier of flooring, countertop, wall tile, and hardscaping products in North America. Headquartered in Orange, California, MSI also maintains over 30 state-of-the-art showrooms and distribution centers across the U.S. and Canada. MSI's product line includes an extensive offering of quartz, porcelain, ceramic, LVT, natural stone, and glass products imported from over 36 countries on six continents.

You can find more details about MSIs charity arm here: https://www.msisurfaces.com/corporate/charitable-trust.aspx


The book, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years, highlights the hospitals impressive 100-year history.

Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital (MWPH), a leader in pediatric care for 100 years, is pleased to announce the release of Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years, a new book co-authored by Richard Eliasberg, the son of MWPHs founder and Meg Fairfax Fielding, a local historian and freelance writer.

Published by Richard Eliasberg, Publisher, LLC, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years highlights the hospitals impressive 100-year history. The book, a tribute to Mr. Eliasbergs mother, Hortense Kahn Eliasberg, who founded the hospital at just 22 years old, was written to capture the history of the hospital while it was still fresh in his memory. Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years also recognizes the thousands of named and unnamed volunteers and employees who over the past 100 years have improved the lives of the many patients at Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital.

In 1922, Hortense Kahn Eliasberg founded Happy Hills Convalescent Home for Children in northwest Baltimore City. The home, which served only 20 patients when it first opened, was established to provide children a safe place to recover from illness and surgery. Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years recounts how the small facility grew into the comprehensive inpatient and outpatient pediatric hospital known today as MWPH. The post-acute hospital, a jointly owned affiliate of The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) and Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM), is a trusted provider of family-focused, coordinated care to children throughout the region.

The greatest unknown still today is how my mother, with only an idea and no funds, was able to obtain the participation and support of one of the most renowned doctors in the country, a prestigious banker and philanthropist in Maryland, and the leading theologian of his religion to start Happy Hills, said Mr. Eliasberg. It is remarkable to see the hospital evolve to care for more than 8,500 patients annually  all while remaining committed to the original mission of improving the health and well-being of all children, regardless of their ability to pay.

Mr. Eliasberg was instrumental in the growth and evolution of MWPH and has supported the hospital in many capacities over the years. His efforts include supervising the endowment funds of the hospital, rejuvenating the hospital in the 1970s, being involved in the North Arundel acquisition, and promoting the sale of half of MWPH by the University of Maryland Medical System (which had previously acquired North Arundel Hospital, the sole owner of MWPH) to Johns Hopkins Medicine. In addition, he served on the board as a trustee for many years, including as chair of the hospital board, chair of the foundation, chair of the investment committee, and an Honorary Trustee.

We are so grateful for Richards diligent work in capturing the history of our institution and for his continued support and passion for pushing new ideas and thinking throughout all areas of our organization, said Sheldon Stein, President and CEO of MWPH. Richard is Mt. Washingtons greatest ambassador, and he has truly carried on his mothers legacy by making it possible for countless children throughout the Maryland region to heal and lead healthy lives in our community.

Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years is a 9 by 11 glossy hardcover book with over 200 pages of Baltimores rich history. The book, retailing for $45, is exclusively available at The Ivy Bookshop in Baltimore, Maryland and online.

For more information about MWPHs Centennial book, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: The First 100 Years, visit our website.

About Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital: Celebrating 100 Years

Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital celebrates 100 years of providing family-focused, coordinated care to all children, including those with serious, chronic, or complex medical needs. MWPH was founded in 1922 by Hortense Kahn Eliasberg, who sought to open a home where children could safely recover from illness and surgery. Today, 100 years stronger, the hospital treats more than 8,500 patients each year, helping them to heal, grow, and learn the skills that lead to happier, more independent lives. The 102-bed hospital is a jointly owned affiliate of the University of Maryland Medical System and Johns Hopkins Medicine with locations in the Mt. Washington section of Baltimore City, Prince Georges County, Harford County, via telehealth, and in the community. For more information, please visit mwph.org
Under the Potted Rose: A journey of discovery: a heartfelt tale of lessons learned in unexpected places. Under the Potted Rose: A journey of discovery is the creation of published authors Nancy and John Chase, who have been married for over twenty-three years and have enjoyed serving in various missions, including spending ten years in the Republic of Panama as independent missionaries.

The Chases share, Great! That's just great! Just because I skipped out on that stupid economics class one too many times, I can't graduate with the rest of my class. Now that horrible man, Principal Speace, is assigning me some lame special assignment to earn my diploma. As if I haven't already worked hard enough in the past twelve years. He gave me 50 days to get it done, and it looks like it will take every bit of that ...

Sara is 18 and ready to graduate high school, but because she has skipped class too many times, Principal Speace will not give her a diploma. She is faced with an ultimatum: either complete a special assignment that will last 50 days or return next semester to complete the class.

Coming from an abusive, single-parent home, Sara is eager to graduate so she can get a job and move out on her own, so she grudgingly accepts the assignment.

Each assignment is a mystery. When Sara completes an assignment and leaves her report under the potted rose in front of the school, she finds another brief note from Principal Speace about her next adventure.

What follows are situations that challenge her in every way and shape the rest of her life.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Nancy and John Chases new book is an enjoyable narrative that brings readers lessons on forgiveness, hard work, disappointment, and so much more.

The Chases share in hopes of bringing readers a thought-provoking and encouraging message of Gods grace within the pages of this charming Christian fiction.

Consumers can purchase Under the Potted Rose: A journey of discovery at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Under the Potted Rose: A journey of discovery, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.


NeuroFlow, the market leader in behavioral health integration technology, has secured $25 million in growth capital, led by SEMCAP Health.

With SEMCAP Health as a new strategic partner and investor, the company will continue to expand its groundbreaking referral network and deepen its relationships with payors and providers, determined to identify and triage individuals with behavioral health needs across the spectrum of care. Additionally, NeuroFlow will increase R&D investments to expand its technology platform, which alleviates pressure on providers caused by a growing number of behavioral health patients outstripping a finite supply of behavioral health resources  a longstanding issue made worse by the pandemic. The company will increase headcount across all departments to support rapid growth.

"NeuroFlow is different because we embrace collaboration with others in the space, like telehealth partners, to get people to the most efficient and effective care possible. Organizations, and people, need more than one approach. There is a significant supply and demand imbalance for behavioral health, and no efficient or scalable way to standardize the way people are identified, assessed, and referred. That's why we exist," explained NeuroFlow Chief Executive Officer Chris Molaro. "Since we were founded in 2017 the world has changed so much. Our growth has been fueled by both behavioral health finally being acknowledged and prioritized as well as payors and providers moving closer to value-based care. This financing round was opportunistic for us with a lead investor that is aligned with our vision and experienced in healthcare. We have the strength and flexibility to continue serving our health system and payor partners regardless of whatever the market conditions may be quarter-to-quarter."

In the past year, the company has doubled in size (full-time employees) and has seen considerable adoption in the market by both major health systems and payors, expanding its reach of lives supported from 2 million to 15 million in all 50 states. Last month, the company moved into a state-of-the-art 16,000-square foot office in downtown Philadelphia to support a staffing increase and encourage more collaboration with key partners.

NeuroFlow is the definitive leader in behavioral health integration because its technology effectively connects mental and physical health and supports integrated care models at scale, said Ralph Muller, Executive Chairman, SEMCAP Health. The companys thoughtful approach to patient experience, enterprise workflows, and clinical content is helping healthcare organizations do more with less  clinicians use technology to engage millions of in-need patients to improve outcomes and reduce encounters in expensive, supply-constrained medical settings.

NeuroFlow fits perfectly into SEMCAP Healths strategy of partnering with category leaders in their critical growth equity phase and amplifying their ability to improve healthcare quality, affordability, experience and health equity, added Mark Miller, Managing Director, SEMCAP Health. We are honored to help NeuroFlow advance its mission. Miller joins the companys Board of Directors in connection with the transaction.

About NeuroFlow

NeuroFlow assesses and triages people with behavioral health conditions to get them to the right level of care, providing high-tech and high-touch support for populations that would typically fall through the cracks in todays healthcare system. Proven to drive better clinical and financial outcomes for hundreds of leading health systems, payors, and military organizations covering 15 million individuals, NeuroFlows platform combines consumer engagement with enterprise-level care management software to support behavioral health at scale. To learn more, visit http://www.neuroflow.com.

About SEMCAP

SEMCAP is a growth equity impact investor built to identify and invest in seminal trends that have the greatest impact on humanity - Healthcare, Education and Food & Nutrition. SEMCAP invests in companies across three verticals, which are underpinned by shifting government policy, technology, and consumer values, and are reframing the way business is conducted and how people live. Comprised of industry leading teams, globally recognized leaders, and advisory boards across these transformative investment verticals, SEMCAP seeks to create enduring value and generate above-market returns for investors. Through capital and strategic post-investment support, SEMCAP creates value for investors and empowers innovators to scale rapidly and deliver measurable positive outcomes for future generations. For more information please visit http://www.semcap.com.

About SEMCAP Health

SEMCAP Health is a distinctive investment platform within SEMCAP. Fueled by a leading investment team and a network of Senior Operating Advisors with deep operating and investing experience, SEMCAP Health makes growth equity investments in next generation healthcare technology and tech-enabled services businesses. SEMCAP Health invests with the intention to generate outsized financial returns while advancing healthcare quality, affordability, experience, and health equity. For more information about SEMCAP Health, please visit http://www.semcap.com/seminalhealthcare.
Men Having Babies 10th Anniversary Logo Elevating our commitment through our Impact Partnership builds upon our long standing backing for MHB and expands our support for gay family building with even greater reach through our entire nationwide Pinnacle Fertility network, says Dr. Guy Ringler

Men Having Babies (MHB) is excited to announce Pinnacle Fertility, though its Love is Family platform, a dedicated resource for LGBTQ+ family building, as the first Impact Partner among US IVF clinics. In support of MHBs mission, Pinnacle Fertility is making a substantial charitable donation to the organization to continue helping gay men build the family of their dreams.

The Pinnacle Fertility network includes clinics from across the US, including California Fertility Partners, ORM Fertility, Seattle Reproductive Medicine, Institute for Human Reproduction, Dominion Fertility, Advanced Fertility Care, Reproductive Gynecology & Infertility, Santa Monica Fertility and IVF1 as well as Pinnacle Egg Donors and Pinnacle Surrogacy. The addition of the Pinnacle Fertility network to the 160 providers in MHBs Membership Benefits Program provides a significant enhancement to the discounts accessible to MHB members.

United under a mission of fulfilling dreams by building families, Pinnacle Fertilitys network is a collaboration of more than 25 high-performing fertility clinics and comprehensive fertility service providers, said Andrew Mintz, Pinnacles CEO. Through innovative technology and processes, compassionate patient care, and comprehensive fertility treatment services, Pinnacle Fertility provides families with a high-touch, personalized fertility care experience on their path to parenthood.

Many of Pinnacle Fertilitys world-renowned physicians are pioneers in helping LGBTQ+ intended parents build their families and embody a long-standing commitment to the Men Having Babies mission, said Mintz.

Elevating our commitment through our Impact Partnership builds upon our long standing backing for MHB and expands our support for gay family building with even greater reach through our entire nationwide Fertility network, says Dr. Guy Ringler, Reproductive Physician at California Fertility Partners, a proud partner of the Pinnacle Fertility network and MHB Advisory Board Member. We truly believe Love is Family, and are dedicated to providing the best reproductive care possible to the growing number of MHB members and future gay parents.

Ron Poole-Dayan, MHBs Executive Director and founder, says, MHB has built a vibrant and growing community organization for current and future gay parents. Our mission is to broaden access to affordable and ethical parenting options for gay men, and support the needs of the families we helped create. Funds from our Impact Partners such as Pinnacle Fertility allow us to scale the impact our programming has on our community in numerous ways, including growing the scope of our financial assistance program; increasing our advocacy efforts for safe and ethical surrogacy and for the removal of discriminatory financial barriers (with the recent addition of a dedicated advocacy team member); and expansion of our educational and support programs beyond our existing conferences to also include families and professionals.

Pinnacle Fertility and California Fertility Partners are proud to support the upcoming MHB Conferences in Chicago on October 14-15 and in New York on November 11-13. Attendees can connect with Dr. Guy Ringler in-person in New York, schedule a free in-person or video consultation, and learn more about California Fertility Partners, Pinnacle Fertility and Love is Family.

With the combination of comprehensive in-house IVF, egg donor and surrogacy resources; long-standing collaboration with leading surrogacy and egg donation agencies and other key partners; and the expertise of thousands of egg donation and surrogacy treatments over more than 30 years, Pinnacle Fertilitys physicians and clinical partners are able to expertly guide MHB members and future parents to success with their family-building, said Mintz.

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About Men Having Babies

The international nonprofit Men Having Babies (MHB) is dedicated to providing current and future gay fathers with unbiased advice, support, and financial assistance. The organizations Membership Benefits Program (MBP) offers a wide range of exclusive guidance resources, including MHB's unique Peer Advice Parent Network, and access to discounts from over 160 surrogacy providers. Among the benefits of membership is the ability to apply to the Gay Parenting Assistance Program (GPAP), which annually provides hundreds of individuals or couples with over a million dollars worth of cash grants, discounts, and free services from leading service providers. MHBs annual conferences offer unbiased guidance and access to a wide range of relevant service providers. Their extensive online resources include FAQs, a video library, Ask the Expert articles, and a comprehensive surrogacy and gay parenting research library. The organization also offers a comprehensive Surrogacy Providers Directory, including ratings and reviews of agencies, clinics and law firms. MHBs Advisory Board of distinguished surrogacy professionals leads the provision of expert advice to members, and our framework for Ethical Surrogacy has received endorsements from LGBT parenting organizations worldwide.

For more information about Men Having Babies, visit menhavingbabies.org.

About Pinnacle Fertility

Pinnacle Fertility is the nations fastest-growing physician-centric fertility care platform, supporting high-performing fertility clinics and comprehensive fertility service providers nationwide. Under a united mission of fulfilling dreams by building families, Pinnacle clinics offer innovative technology and processes, compassionate patient care, and comprehensive fertility treatment services, ensuring families receive a high-touch experience on their path to parenthood.

Pinnacle Egg Donors is a comprehensive egg donor program of fully-screened egg donors and frozen egg solutions. Pinnacle Egg Donors are available for fresh cycles exclusively at any clinic within the Pinnacle Fertility network, and frozen eggs are available for treatment at any clinic of a patients choosing.

Pinnacle Surrogacy is a full-service, in-house surrogacy agency available exclusively to patients of any Pinnacle Fertility network clinic. Pinnacle Surrogacy offers fully-screened surrogates, focusses on shorter waiting times, and is committed to making the coordination across each patients journey seamless.

For more information about Pinnacle Fertility, visit pinnaclefertility.com.

About Love is Family

Love is Family, powered by Pinnacle Fertility, is a dedicated platform and online resource serving the specific needs of LGBTQ+ prospective parents. Acknowledging that everyone's path to parenthood is uniquely their own, Pinnacle Fertility and its growing network of fertility practices, are helping LGBTQ+ get specific information and resources they need to start their own journey.

For more information about Love is Family, visit loveisfamly.com.
This moment in time presents a unique opportunity for the future of education; students and teachers are evolving the education system we previously knew," said Dr. Julie A. Evans, Chief Researcher and CEO of Project Tomorrow.

Project Tomorrow, the nations leading education nonprofit, is providing new insight into the long-term impact of the pandemic with increased technology-based instruction in K-12 education. In its annual Congressional Briefing today, the nonprofit presented this years Speak Up Research Project findings. This years results indicate patterns across digital learning for students and teachers coinciding with the effects that the pandemic had on learning.

The Speak Up Research Project is a national research initiative and free service to schools and districts. Since the Fall of 2003, Speak Up has helped education leaders include the voices of their stakeholders in annual and long-term planning. ed.Web.net hosted todays briefing, which featured keynote speaker Kristina Ishmael, Deputy Director of the Office of Ed Tech at the U.S. Department of Education.

This moment in time presents a unique opportunity for the future of education, said Dr. Julie A. Evans, Chief Researcher and CEO of Project Tomorrow. Students and teachers are evolving the education system we previously knew; our students are realizing the benefits of technology and teachers are evaluating this technology with new attitudes and infused styles of teaching to create new bridges and motivate students for self-directed learning to foster a more engaging experience overall.

Key takeaways from the 2021-2022 Speak Up Research Project include:



Principals are concerned with maintaining staff morale, with more than half reporting it as a top concern among many issues still facing districts after the pandemic.

Teachers are more willing to let students have autonomy in how they learn now than before the pandemic, with a huge jump of educators indicating that they feel comfortable in allowing students to have a say in how they want to learn.

Students are more comfortable utilizing school technology to learn and complete assignments. Almost every single category of digital usage in the classroom went up in comfort level among students.

Project Tomorrow will leverage these findings as it works towards the 2023 National Educational Technology Plan (NETP). The U.S. Department of Education recently announced that it has awarded the NETP contract to the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) and its coalition partners, including Project Tomorrow.

Educators can view the Congressional Briefing recording via edWeb and can earn a CE certificate through the platform. In addition to Project Tomorrow, Speak Up 2021-22 was made possible through support from Finalsite, iboss, Spectrum Enterprise, Agile Education Marketing and edWeb.

To view and download this years report, visit https://tomorrow.org/speakup.

About Project Tomorrow & Speak Up

The Speak Up Research Project is a national initiative of Project Tomorrow, an internationally recognized education nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that all students are prepared to become tomorrows leaders, innovators and engaged citizens of the world. Each year, the Speak Up Project polls K-12 students, parents, and educators about the role of technology for learning in and out of school and the impact of new learning models on student outcomes and teacher effectiveness. The Speak Up dataset represents the largest collection of authentic, unfiltered stakeholder voices on digital learning. Since the fall of 2003, more than 6.2 million K-12 students, parents, teachers, librarians, principals, technology leaders, district administrators, communications officers, and members of the community have shared their views and ideas through Speak Up. Education, business, and policy leaders report that they regularly use the Speak Up data to inform federal, state, and local education programs, policies, and initiatives. Learn more at https://tomorrow.org/speakup


"Our commitment to our customers is paramount to our operations and this acquisition will enhance our customer service levels as we leverage our core values of innovation, safety, quality, teamwork, integrity, and respect," said Dan Antonelli, President and CEO, Ruiz Foods.

Acquisition expands flexible manufacturing capacity on West Coast

Ruiz Food Products, Inc., a frozen food manufacturer specializing in Mexican food products, has acquired the assets of Culinary International, LLC, a contract manufacturer of ready-to-eat frozen and refrigerated Mexican foods. Ruiz Foods acquired the assets of Culinary International through its subsidiary RG1 Holding Co., LLC, and it immediately takes over manufacturing operations of Culinary Internationals 75,000 sq ft. manufacturing facility located in Vernon, CA and its nearby 43,200 square foot dry goods and cold storage facility. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The acquisition will provide Ruiz Foods with additional flexible manufacturing capacity on the West Coast.

Culinary International has been a respected and valued supplier for over six years and we are very proud of this long-term relationship, said Dan Antonelli, President and CEO Ruiz Foods. Their expertise in producing retail and foodservice frozen Mexican products will enhance our capacity for flexible manufacturing on the West Coast. Our commitment to our customers is paramount to our operations and this acquisition will enhance our customer service levels as we leverage our core values of innovation, safety, quality, teamwork, integrity, and respect.

We have enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership with Ruiz Foods as a co-manufacturer for some of their most important products, said Robert Sabahat, CEO Culinary International LLC. Our mutual commitment to food safety and quality will only serve to reinforce their core values and commitments to customer service.

We are pleased to announce that Robert Sabahat, CEO of Culinary International, will help lead the transition to Ruiz Foods, adds Antonelli. Sean Minooei, who has capably overseen manufacturing operations at the Vernon facility will continue to provide operational oversight as Director of Operations.

About Culinary International, LLC

Culinary International, LLC is a contract manufacturer of ready-to-eat frozen and refrigerated food making delicious and authentic Mexican foods for over forty years for the co-manufacturing & private label market. Product categories include handhelds, appetizers, entrees, and tortillas. The company is built on long-standing partnerships with many of the leading national Mexican food brands and retailers in the United States. Products are sold at major grocery chains, club stores, and convenience stores across the country. The companys core business is built on Mexican foods and fusion products that are influenced by unique international flavor combinations. Culinary International is committed to advancing culinary traditions through innovative product formulations.

Ruiz Food Products, Inc.

Ruiz Foods Products, Inc. is a privately-owned corporation co-founded by Fred Ruiz and his father, Louis, in 1964. Kim Ruiz Beck, the elder daughter of Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus, Fred Ruiz, is Chairman. Dan Antonelli is President and CEO.

Ruiz Foods is dedicated to premium quality, authentically prepared frozen foods selling to all channels of distribution: retail, convenience store, clubs, vending, industrial, and food service.

El Monterey brand is the #1 selling frozen Mexican food in the United States and Tornados, the companys snack brand is a leader on the convenience store roller grill. Additional brands include Artisan Bistro and Plantivore. Ruiz Foods employs over 4,000 Team Members in five facilities located in the U.S. For more information, please visit http://www.ruizfoods.com. ##

CONTACT:

Pat Summers

Cell: 559-285-1100

pas@smgroupinc.com
This book will strengthen you, bless you and change your outlook on life. In these last days we are all Last Disciples as we continue to follow Jesus Christ and His plans for us

Author Lou Steel shares the story of how he came to Christ and seeks to draw others from the seat of a Harley in Last Disciple ($16.99, paperback, 9781662859427; $7.99, e-book, 9781662859434).

Missionaries take many shapes and reach all corners of the earth. Steels corner is the streets traveled by motorcycle clubs across the country (and beyond), and while trying to reach these hardened souls for Christ he has encountered spiritual attacks, miraculous events and answered prayers.

This book will strengthen you, bless you and change your outlook on life. In these last days we are all Last Disciples as we continue to follow Jesus Christ and His plans for us, said Steel.

Lou Steel is a co-founder and national board member of the Last Disciples MC, a Christian 501(c)(3) whose difficult mission has been to take the Gospel to the hardcore outlaw motorcycle clubs in the U.S. and Australia. Born in California, he attended high school in Italy before returning to attend Cuesta College and Cal Poly. Steel has devoted the past 25 years to his consulting business and ministry.

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Xulon Press, a division of Salem Media Group, is the worlds largest Christian self-publisher, with more than 15,000 titles published to date. Last Disciple is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


The award-winning Acqualina Resort in Miami.

Acqualina Resort & Residences, the Five Star, Five Diamond luxury resort, invites Florida and Georgia residents to rediscover the beauty of the sunshine state with the Staycation Package. With world-class restaurants, curated amenities, a luxurious spa and spacious rooms and suites, Acqualina Resort is at the center of Miamis Sunny Isles Beach providing an exclusive experience and ultra-luxurious beach lifestyle.

Guests who book the Staycation Package will enjoy 15% off the best available rate. Additionally, adults can unwind in the 20,000 square foot Acqualina Spa with a $40 credit for up to two people. Guests will also enjoy a thoughtful welcome amenity, complimentary valet parking and WiFi.

The acclaimed Il Mulino New York brings Italian fare to Acqualina Resort. Guests can also experience Ke-uH for Japanese cuisine and Costa Grill offering Mediterranean cuisine just steps from the beach. Avra Estiatorio will open next month where guests can enjoy this renowned Greek restaurant.

The Staycation Package is available through October 31, 2022 (certain blackout dates and restrictions may apply). For reservations, please call (888) 686.9482 or visit http://www.acqualinaresort.com.

Acqualina Resort & Residences is a place where the charm of a Mediterranean villa meets elegance on the beach. A seaside luxury haven located on 4.5 beachfront acres in pristine Sunny Isles Beach, Acqualina Resort & Residences features 98 impeccably appointed guest rooms and suites and 188 residences with breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean, world-class dining including Il Mulino New York, three oceanfront swimming pools, spacious meeting rooms and an innovative marine biology-based childrens program. A variety of lavish interior and exterior venues provide an ideal background for opulent weddings and memorable events. Acqualina Spa provides guests with an exquisite 20,000-square-foot, two-story tranquil sanctuary of excellence and relaxation. A family owned and operated property, Acqualina is a recipient of the coveted Forbes Travel Guide Awards for both the hotel and spa and the AAA Five Diamond Award.


Texere Appoints Chief Commercial Officer to Drive Continued Growth I am delighted to have the opportunity to play an even more senior role at Texere... In ten years, we have built several respected, established brands, with another two on the runway  and we dont plan on stopping. Its a brilliant time for the business.

Texere Publishing is delighted to announce the promotion of Richard Hodson to the role of Chief Commercial Officer.

Joining Texere as a publisher in May 2014, Richard Hodson oversaw the successful global launch of Texeres first Pharmaceutical brand, The Medicine Maker. After five successful years, Hodson went on to be appointed Commercial Director with responsibility for the commercial, customer support, and project delivery teams for all sectors of Texeres business  Healthcare, Pharmaceutical, and Science.

Coinciding with Texeres 10th anniversary, Hodsons appointment as Chief Commercial Officer will expand his remit to include overall responsibility for all departments that are predominantly externally facing  namely, sales, commercial services, sales support, social media, and editorial.

Reflecting on his new appointment, Hodson said, I am delighted to have the opportunity to play an even more senior role at Texere  and I do not take the trust and expectations placed upon me lightly! Fortunately, I work alongside a truly talented team  people who make the task ahead exciting rather than daunting. In ten years, we have built several respected, established brands, with another two on the runway  and we dont plan on stopping. Its a brilliant time for the business.

Chief Executive Officer Andy Davies commented, Richard has already proven himself a natural and capable leader  and always rises to the challenge. I have no doubt that his unwavering passion for  and commitment to  delivering the best experience to both our audiences and commercial partners will only be further multiplied in his new role as Chief Commercial Officer. And that puts Texere in a very good place indeed.

About Texere Publishing

At Texere Publishing, we deliver compelling, behind the scenes stories that matter in the life sciences and medicine. Our unrivaled access to key opinion leaders, influencers, scientists, and doctors who are making a difference, means that our readers are connected to the pulse of their fields. Founded in 2012, we have expanded our editorial beat to the world with our presence in the US, Canada, and the UK. Visionary. Innovative. Fearless. Join us on our journey to cover the stories that matter to you.

Publishers of The Analytical Scientist, The Cannabis Scientist, The Medicine Maker, The Ophthalmologist, The Pathologist, and The Translational Scientist.

texerepublishing.com | Twitter | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook
The Wall Street Technology Association (WSTA), a not-for-profit organization that provides financial technology and business professionals a forum to learn from and connect with each other, will host an in-person (New York City) and virtual event on Customer-Facing Technologies on October 20, 2022.

Speakers at this event include Platinum Speaking Sponsors: Appian, Grid Dynamics, and PagerDuty; Speaking Sponsors: NTT DATA, Redis, and Sprinklr; Panel Sponsors: Check Point, HUMAN Security, and SAP and representatives from financial services. For more information, visit https://www.wsta.org/event/customer-facing-technologies/

Event Description

Digital transformation is all about serving customers better. As financial services firms embrace technology-driven customer-centricity, their success hinges on knowing which technologies to select, implement, and deploy, and putting in place the organizational structures, policies, and processes that allow them to take full advantage of these technologies.

This session looks at the tools and technologies that enable world class customer facing experiences. It also addresses emerging customer-facing technologies which enable the human factor and how financial services firms can position them in the service of building, deepening, and enriching human relationships. Thought-leadership presentations and a panel discussion will address topics such as next-generation collaboration; advanced digital service; securing collaboration interactions; Integration tools, technologies, and processes, and more.

About the Wall Street Technology Association (WSTA)

The WSTA facilitates virtual and in-person educational and networking events where members meet and exchange ideas and best practices that assist them in effectively capitalizing on technology advances in areas such as Cybersecurity, Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Mobility, Wireless, Machine Learning (ML), Data, Cloud, Blockchain, Digital, Architecture, etc. and dealing with financial industry business challenges. Founded in 1967, the WSTA is a not-for-profit association with a long history of evolving to meet the needs of its members.

The WSTA hosts seminars, roundtables, panel discussions, and social events. These events offer many opportunities to learn about leading technologies, as well as network and share information with industry colleagues. The WSTAs educational TechTrends provides additional content and information about the WSTA and industry-related activities. The website is a dynamic resource providing access to additional resources including webinars, white papers, videos, and information about other industry events.


To date, the creative team behind Viewpoint has cumulatively won over seventy-eight Telly Awards over the last sixteen seasons.

The popular television program "Viewpoint", hosted by actor Dennis Quaid, has again accumulated accolades with episodes of the program by winning multiple Telly Awards. The Telly Awards annually showcases the best work created within television and across video, for all screens. Receiving over 12,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents, Telly Award winners represent work from some of the most respected advertising agencies, television stations, production companies and publishers from around the world.

The Viewpoint program was selected as a winner of a Silver Telly for their Achievements in Cinematography and Art Direction in an episode titled "Today's Lifestyles-Eco Friendly Fashion Forward Eyewear", as well as a Bronze award for Editing in a segment titled "Lifestyle Food & Culture: Plant Based Living", and another Bronze for Direction in "Music in the Pandemic". The Viewpoint team worked with industry experts to accumulate the educational material for the programs, which were then edited by the show's expert team. To date, the creative team behind Viewpoint has cumulatively won over seventy-eight Telly Awards over the last sixteen seasons.

The team at Viewpoint looks forward to submitting additional works for the coming season and will highlight new and important topics across a multitude of industries!

About Viewpoint:

The program was developed to help educate audiences with innovative and invigorating content developed for television. Viewpoint's core creative team continues to push the envelope by introducing new concepts and ideas through the contribution of experts in various fields.
InScribe's digital communities cut across the traditional support silos in higher education, giving students a single place to turn when they need helpno matter the topic or time of day. "We were immediately impressed with InScribe's technology as information is easily searchable, help is just a click away, and collaboration is seamless," said Dr. Willis Walter, College of Education Dean, Virginia State University.

InScribe, which delivers game-changing digital community solutions, today announced a partnership with Virginia State University (VSU) to provide students in its College of Education with more opportunities to connect with faculty and staff, seek help, and build relationships with peers. This virtual community will provide VSU students access to the people and tools they need. It also will demonstrate firsthand how a virtual support system can positively impact the learning experience, knowledge they can leverage as future teachers and education professionals.

VSU is ranked among the country's top HBCUs. The University has been purposeful in the development of programs that promote educational justice through positive, unbiased learning environments, preparing students who are competent, caring, and culturally responsive. VSU's interactive digital community gives students another avenue to explore and collaborate as they grow proficient in these areas, whether they are looking for resources, need academic support, or could use some motivation and encouragement along the way.

"Meaningful and successful educational experiences are not just about content. Developing well-rounded individuals who understand the importance of connection and support is critical to teaching and learning," said Dr. Willis Walter, College of Education Dean, Virginia State University. "With InScribe, our students can form deeper relationships with a network of educators who guide them academically and professionally. We were immediately impressed with InScribe's technology as information is easily searchable, help is just a click away, and collaboration is seamless."

Students can access their digital community directly through VSUs Learning Management System (LMS), which integrates seamlessly with InScribe. Here students can find announcements, ask questions, propose ideas, get to know their peers and faculty, and gain a sense of belonging. VSU can target and personalize information within the community by topic and degree. Because InScribe captures each interaction, students have a library of questions and answers at their fingertips, and they can easily search for information and themes that have already been addressed. This also saves faculty time as they don't have to answer repeat questions over and over.

InScribe's ability to capture interactions is beneficial to the school's administration, too. InScribe's technology allows VSU to look at the kinds of questions students are asking, analyze student challenges, identify patterns, and track responses. This valuable data also will be used by VSU to support its CAEP accreditation.

"VSU's College of Education is in a unique position to provide added support for their students and to help them understand how education technology solutions can be leveraged to connect and engage with their own students one day," said Katy Kappler, CEO of InScribe. "We are excited about the opportunities this partnership provides to VSU students as they embark on their own education careers."

About InScribe

InScribe is a digital student support platform that leverages the power of community and artificial intelligence to connect students with the answers, resources, and individuals they need to succeed. InScribe's digital communities cut across the traditional support silos in higher education, giving students a single place to turn when they need helpno matter the topic or time of day. Students benefit from on-demand, peer-to-peer, and student-to-expert collaboration that helps them feel more connected, increasing student engagement, satisfaction, and retention. Learn more about InScribe at https://www.inscribeapp.com/.

About Virginia State University

Virginia State University is a public historically black land-grant university featuring a 231-acre main campus plus Randolph Farm, a renowned 412-acre agricultural research facility. VSU, where "Greater Happens Here," is located about 20 minutes south of Richmond, VA in the village of Ettrick in Chesterfield County. With approximately 4,200 students, VSU provides a rich cultural environment where our students receive an outstanding support system that is family-oriented and results driven. Our students are taught and nurtured by caring faculty who are accomplished in their field of expertise. Our academic programs deliver distinctive, responsive, and innovative offerings that effectively prepare leaders and scholars to meet the demands of a global society and workforce. To apply or for more information, please visit http://www.VSU.edu.


With 3 New Additions, Nelson Hardiman Adds to the Leading Healthcare and Life Sciences Law Practice in Los Angeles We are living through a period of robust growth and innovation in healthcare and life sciences, translating to new demands for us as a firm."

Nelson Hardiman LLP, is proud to announce that three healthcare attorneys, Jonathan Berger, Shamira Dwarica, and Adella Katz have joined the firm, securing Nelson Hardimans position as the premier specialty healthcare and life sciences law firm in Los Angeles.

Jonathan Berger joins the firm with over 25 years experience advising public and private healthcare providers on regulatory compliance, transactions, corporate governance and operations. As an outside general counsel supporting clients through critical business decisions, Jonathan serves as a trusted resource in who ensures clients make the right strategic choices for their organizations. Prior to joining Nelson Hardiman, Jonathan served as general counsel for a regional radiology group, a multi-state dental services organization, and spent 12 years with a global, science-led biopharmaceutical business in the outpatient oncology space. Prior to that, Jonathan had also gained valuable practical experience working for national providers in acute care, long-term care and specialty hospitals and rehabilitation with large national providers. We are excited to have Jonathans breadth of knowledge and experience advising different types of healthcare clients, said Managing Partner Harry Nelson. His healthcare regulatory and transactional experience made him a compelling addition to our team.

Shamira Dwarica, a recent law school graduate who worked with Nelson Hardiman while in law school, joins the firm on a full-time basis. Within the firms focus on developing versatile attorneys, Shamira brings particular experience in supporting clients in litigation and administrative legal matters, including defense of fraud and abuse allegations in healthcare matters, as well as medical staff and peer review-related work. Her regulatory experience has included corporate practice of medicine compliance, healthcare organizational and professional licensing, as well as compliance with a broader range of federal and California healthcare regulations.

Adella Katz, a recent law school graduate, joins Nelson Hardiman after in-house experience at a Medicare Advantage insurance plan and large hospital system. Adellas focus includes healthcare privacy and data security compliance, including risk analysis for potential breach notification and other issues relating to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA), and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) for private healthcare organizations. Adella also brings experience in navigating Stark law and Anti-Kickback Statute issues, and reimbursement maters (including appeals of adverse benefit and overpayment determinations by insurance companies.

Nelson Hardiman is excited to deepen its bench with these new additions. We are living through a period of robust growth and innovation in healthcare and life sciences, translating to new demands for us as a firm. The addition of Jonathan, Shamira, and Adella deepen our roster of specialized talent. We are grateful to them for helping Nelson Hardiman sustain its leadership as the firm of choice for healthcare and life sciences innovation, said Managing Partner Harry Nelson.

About Nelson Hardiman

Nelson Hardiman LLP is the premier healthcare and life sciences firm in Los Angeles, serving healthcare providers, investors, and organizations that need a hard-to-find level of quality advice on the most sensitive industry issues. Nelson Hardiman has earned a national reputation for its work in the areas of telehealth, behavioral health, and other areas of healthcare and life sciences innovation. The firms litigation practice specializes in defending fraud and abuse and whistleblower actions, government investigations, reimbursement disputes, and other complex business disputes. Nelson Hardimans transactional group handles healthcare organization acquisitions, sales, investment, and financings, and Nelson Hardimans regulatory team advises on compliance with licensing, operational, and reimbursement issues across the full continuum of healthcare industry sectors, with expertise on Medicare and Medicaid requirements, privacy and data security, FDA, and life sciences matters related to devices, biologics, cosmetics, and supplements. The firm has earned a singular position reputation nationally for its leadership in addressing issues in behavioral health. More information about the firm is available at http://www.nelsonhardiman.com or at 310.203.2800.


Members of the US Navy Fleet Readiness Center, Mid-Atlantic - Division 500 were stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia Beach, Virginia, when they received these pens from Woodcraft this year. Woodcraft is grateful to the many volunteers who donate their time and talents turning pens to help make this program for military personnel possible.

Woodcraft needs volunteers to make special pens that will send a message of love and support to active duty members of the military and ones who are recovering from injuries. Pen turning will be done at Woodcraft retail stores during the 19th annual Turn for Troops Turn-a-Thon event on Nov. 5 and 6. Interested volunteers may contact their local Woodcraft store for details.

Volunteers turned 14,703 pens in 2021 to bring the overall 18-year total to 219,970 pens.

Woodcraft is grateful to the many volunteers who donate their time and talents turning pens to help make this program for military personnel possible, President and CEO Jack Bigger said. They are a very loyal group, and we count on them for another successful event this year.

Woodcraft retail stores can provide details for participating in turn-a-thon events. A volunteer who has never turned a pen but wants to participate in the turn-a-thon may check with the local Woodcraft store about whether first-time pen turning instructions will be provided the day of the turn-a-thon. Two Woodworking Adventures blogs also include instructions for how to turn pens: Pen Turning 101 and A Great Start for Basic Pen Turning.

If no local Woodcraft store is available, the local store is not participating, or attending an in-store turn-a-thon is not a comfortable option, contact Lori Harper at Woodcraft corporate headquarters  304-865-4107 or lori_harper@woodcraft.com. She will provide information and instructions for sending finished pens to the corporate office.

A personal connection

Pen makers are encouraged to include notes with their pens. In addition to thanking the military man or woman for their service, notes sometimes include the type of wood used to turn the pen and contact information for the maker.

The Woodcraft store in Seattle, Washington, shared some of these notes written by school children. One student wrote: Thank you for serving our country. You are the kinda person who makes (us) able to sleep easy at night knowing that you guys are protecting us. Thank you.

In return, some recipients also send thank-you notes, which explain why Woodcraft continued to sponsor this event in the midst of COVID and beyond.

I don't normally ask for anything, but would I be able to get one of these pens? I am a disabled veteran with almost 8 years active service in the Army. I deployed twice and was injured during my first deployment when a bomb hit my truck. I have had a hard time with depression, and I think having something physical and knowing someone cared enough to make it for people like me may help some.

A Lt. Col., USAF, with the 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron stationed in Germany wrote on behalf of his squadron praising the unique qualities of the pens his group received. Everywhere I go I see people using them. Thank you for taking the time to make this happen. It really helped boost our teams morale.

A retired Army veteran who works security at a hospital asked for some pens to give out to veterans when he sees them. He later wrote to Woodcraft to report that over four months he had given pens to vets from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and National Guard, some who had served in Korea, Vietnam and Iraq/Afghanistan, and all who were happy for the unexpected gift.

Pen distribution

Requests for pens arrive at Woodcraft throughout the year, and Woodcraft personnel at the corporate office check with military contacts routinely about where to send pens. Sometimes stores will suggest where to send pens, and sometimes military personnel will reach out to Woodcraft after reading publicity about the annual event.

More information about Woodcraft is available at the nearest Woodcraft store, at Woodcraft.com or by calling (800) 535-4482. To learn about Woodcraft franchise opportunities, visit woodcraftfranchise.com or email woodcraftfranchise@woodcraft.com. Woodcraft social media sites include: Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter and YouTube.


Click here for old website
October 11, 2022

Mr. Kevin Hallock

President of the University of Richmond

410 Westhampton Way,

Richmond, VA 23173

Dear Mr. Hallock:

Thank you for calling me to tell me the news about the Boards decision to remove the name of my great-great-grandfather from the Law School. Although not a Baptist, I knew when the University of Richmond disassociated itself from its Baptist roots that it was likely to lose its way and be swallowed up in the prevailing ignorance of popular culture. The Universitys mission is the pursuit of knowledge, but it has forgotten the most fundamental aspiration for those who truly seek knowledge is to understand what influences they let seep into our souls.

The Universitys decision to untether itself from its Christian founding is at the heart of it now not having the honesty or intellectual fortitude to defend itself from the Neo-Marxist woke mob. The difference between the character of T.C. Williams and that of the Cancellation Culture Activists could not be starker. T.C. Williams practiced the tenets of his faith, primarily to love and serve others. The mob that you and the Board are so afraid of worships hatred and ignorance. They feign indignation, but their real objective is destruction. You and the Board have fallen for this subterfuge.

The Board has insulted the honor of my family; thus this response is necessary. Your decision seems much like an ex-parte Stalinist tribunal. The defendant does not get to defend himself, faulty evidence is presented, the party gets the verdict it wants, and a good man is liquidated, forever to be invisible. Could no one in my family be contacted to put on a defense? It is despicable to destroy the character of an exceedingly good man out of political cowardice.

Hatred and jealousy are the oldest and most pernicious sins of mankind. They are the jet fuel that propels Cancel Culture. Perhaps you and the Board do not realize that you are under attack, because this enemy has already infiltrated your ramparts. Academic enlightenment, tolerance and freedom of expression are anathema to the woke mob. Until you and the Board grow a pair of testicles, this enemy will destroy the University of Richmond.

Bob Dylan famously asked who you gonna serve? I did not know T.C. Williams, but my grandmother who I knew well was alive before he died and my parents were very close to all of his children. Having grown up among these people, I can tell you the difference between T.C. Williams and the cancel culture mob. T.C. Williams believed that all men were made in the image of God, and his mission was to love and serve others. This was the primary ethos I witnessed in my family and immediate ancestors, a loving, kind, benevolent family, imbued by the Spirit to help others. The mob you and the Board are afraid of worships a different trilogy, the gods of hatred, division and destruction. Moreover, its ignorance makes it incapable of understanding the nuances of 19th century life. They are blinded by their hatred. You and the Board have chosen to serve these forces.

The hypocrisy and virtue signaling of the Boards decision is beneath the dignity of a great university. Obviously, the Board is interested in illustrating how virtuous it is to its very left leaning and out of touch political contingency. But how virtuous is it for the University to accept the services and largess of the Williams family for 150 years and then disparage the name of their benefactor? If suddenly his name is not good enough for the University, then isnt the proper ethical and indeed virtuous action to return the benefactors money with interest? At a 6% compounded interest over 132 years, T.C. Williams gift to the law school alone is now valued at over $51 million, and this does not include many other substantial gifts from my family to the University. Moreover, is it not a form of fraud to induce money from a benefactor, and then discredit the benefactor after he is long dead? Surely, the Williams family would not have given a penny to the University knowing that the University would later dishonor the family. The ethical and virtuous decision is clear. Return the money.

The most disturbing element of the Boards action is the utter, simple minded ignorance of a university whose mission is to pursue truth, learning and critical thinking. Not only is your poltroonery shameful, but it is void of any logic or academic rigor. One would think that a liberal arts university would understand that history evolves on its own accord, and that there are forces that shape it without unfairly casting judgment on its participants due to its fear of having to defend itself from loud voices of ignorance.

Institutions of human servitude have been around since the beginning of recorded history, and there are many still in existence today. It has only been 157 years since the 13th Amendment. Thus, slavery has existed for more than 99.99% of recorded human history, but suddenly, it is gone from the United States and the western democracies. It is an absolute miracle that we live in a place and time where there is no slavery. Instead of casting blame on people for the times in which they lived, perhaps true academics might examine why slavery has been extinguished in these places? Should we not be thankful of the wondrous age in which we live and perhaps focus on preserving our accomplishments so that our economy flourishes which will prevent slavery from returning? Perhaps true academics could recognize that the achievements of people like T.C. Williams contributed to the demise of slavery and created a bold economic and social order that gave men the opportunity to make a living for themselves and the human dignity derived from such efforts?

Perhaps if you and the Board members were the eternal gods of the universe you pretend to be, you wouldve created an economic and social construct where there was no slavery, indeed no hardship of any kind, and everyone could drink champagne, eat fois gras and have fairies pay everyones bills with pixie dust. But the people who actually lived and tried to survive for thousands of years before T.C. Williams was born created a different world. They had to survive the vagaries of lifes hardships and create a social construct that would allow for survival for both the master and servant. Thus, since the beginning of time various forms of feudalism and servitude were formed. Obviously, you Board members are superior in virtue and intelligence than all humans who preceded you and had any one of you been alive there would never have been any slavery, wars, pestilence, famines or even bad hair days for anyone.

Against all odds, T.C. Williams amassed a great fortune. He may have been the wealthiest man in Virginia at his death. And what did he do with his wealth? He hired thousands of workers, many were blacks and women. Productive work and industry is the only thing that lifts people out of poverty. The Williams family gave away all of their immense wealth, most of it was anonymous and there were substantial inter-vivos gifts. Many Richmond institutions are the result of their goodwill and generosity. I would imagine that since you and the Board members obviously feel morally superior to T.C. Williams, then all board members are also giving away all of their fortune? Since this must be the case, and since my firm does substantial estate planning work, I will do all the estate plans for all the Board members for free. Please call me so we can set up the first appointments.

So who was the better person? T.C. Williams, a man of his times, a devout Christian who proved his love of his fellow man, both black and white through the fruits of his good works or the shrieking low 80s IQ purple haired shrew mouthing non-sensical platitudes about equity and race while protesting outside your office? Who is more accomplished? More sophisticated? More loving? Who has done more for the University of Richmond, T.C. Williams, or all the collective efforts of the ignorant mob you cater to?

Mr. Hallock, are you a better man than T.C. Williams? Have you done more for the University of Richmond than he did? What exactly have you done other than spread division and dishonoring all the people and families who devoted themselves to the University and made it great? These are people of real accomplishments as distinguished from the unhinged and doltish purveyors of ignorance and hate you and the Board grovel to.

And why does the Board cater to the mob? Out of complete and utter cowardice. Its members are afraid that the violent and unhinged perpetrators of ignorance are going to yell at them, picket their offices, break their windows and threaten physical violence against them and their families. You know and the Board knows that this is true. For over 100 years, the law school has been named for T.C. Williams, but suddenly when the hate filled mob shows up on your doorstep, it is fashionable to de-name the law school. I will remind you that just like Stalin had Trotsky killed, the Left always eats its own. They will never be satisfied. They are coming after you. Their mission is always to destroy.

The University itself participated in slavery! Using your Orwellian logic, then shouldnt the University have to change its name? Kim Jong-Un University has a nice ring to it, and it is multi-cultural! Using your T.C. Williams logic, then dont you have to resign since you preside over a school that participated in slavery? Since all history has to be erased, perhaps you can eliminate the history department and use the money to buy therapy dogs, cupcakes and cotton candy for all those poor souls triggered by facts. Then again, you could use the money to bolster your Campus Ministry of Truth and just eliminate facts. After all, facts are bad, they make snowflakes cry.

Your decision to dishonor my family is anti-intellectual, cowardly and hypocritical. I will refrain from calling you a perfidious, busy-body, know-nothing Yankee. Generally, ad hominem attacks dont bolster arguments, even when the veracity of such statements are evident. However, the hubris is duly noted. Within a year of your arrival at the University of Richmond, you dishonor the families that have supported it for generations. By the way, this is the South, when you dishonor generations of someones family, you basically have started a nuclear war.

Since receiving your phone call, my brothers and I and our paralegals have been researching the Board members and faculty at the University of Richmond. Oh boy is this fun! Let him who is without sin cast the first stone! From what we have found and have catalogued, the level of hypocrisy of the Boards action is truly stunning. So far we have found an avowed Satanist, who posts dead animals on his Instagram account. Many virulent racists who publicly announce their racial hatred. Faculty members who advocate infanticide. Faculty members who favor and advocate for the mutilation of children. There are those who wish to cancel free speech and imprison anyone who veers from a nationwide creed of Marxist dogma. We now also know of students who have damaging long term medical problems due to the Board forcing them to take an experimental vaccine, as well as the Boards knowledge of this likely danger. Mmm, Im not aware that T.C. Williams drugged people against their will and gave them heart problems! Come to think of it, I am pretty sure he was against murdering babies and lopping off the sex organs of children.

Despite these very disturbing findings, you and your cowardly board wants to attack a great benefactor of the University and the City of Richmond who died 130 years ago, while using his largess to pay the salary of a genuine, real life devil worshipper!

As mentioned, the university has lost its way. I would appreciate your immediately wiring my firm $51 million, and I will distribute it to T.C. Williams beneficiaries. Then we can discuss the other substantial gifts my family made to the University and the return of this money as well.

Very truly yours,

Robert C. Smith

P.S. Since the University of Richmond is now in the business of banning books and free expression, only allowing woke history that fulfills its Neo- Marxist agenda, I have attached a short primer on T.C. Williams and his times. Dont worry, your head will not explode if you are exposed to ideas not approved by your Campus Ministry of Truth. However, for your own safety, you may want to read this in a closet with a flashlight. The woke mob can be pretty disagreeable at times.
Jamie Lee Curtis reunited with her True Lies co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger at her TCL Chinese Theatre hand and footprint ceremony.

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The 63-year-old actress was honored Wednesday at the historic theater in Los Angeles.

Curtis and Schwarzenegger played married couple Helen and Harry Tasker in True Lies, which opened in theaters in 1994.

Melanie Griffith, a longtime friend of Curtis' and her co-star in the 1981 made-for-television comedy She's in the Army Now, also attended the event.

In addition, Curtis' husband, writer and director Christopher Guest, and their two children, Annie and Ruby, showed their support for Curtis at the ceremony.

Curtis is known for playing Laurie Strode in the Halloween horror film franchise and has also starred in such films as Trading Places, A Fish Called Wanda and Freaky Friday.

She will make her final appearance as Laurie in Halloween Ends, which opens in theaters Friday.

In a recent interview with UPI, Curtis said she and her character of Laurie "are intertwined in a way that it is almost impossible to separate us."
Sons of Anarchy icon Charlie Hunnam says he wanted to star in Shantaram because the Apple TV+ drama is a fascinating tale of survival and redemption that allowed him to explore psychology and philosophy in the not-too-distant past.

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Premiering Friday, the adaptation of Gregory David Roberts' novel follows Australian paramedic, fugitive armed robber and recovering drug addict Lin Ford (Hunnam) as he tries to start a new life in 1980s Bombay. There, he falls in love with the mysterious Karla (Antonia Desplat), and goes into business with the eternally optimistic Prabhu (Shubham Saraf).

Elektra Kilbey, Luke Pasqualino, Alexander Siddig, Richard Roxburgh and Vincent Perez co-star in the series, which was written and executive produced by Steve Lightfoot.

"Redemption is the first leg of the journey," Hunnam told reporters in a recent Zoom interview.

"But there is ultimately no 'there' there, right?" mused the 42-year-old British actor. "Once you've found redemption, it's almost a state of neutrality and, then, where do you go from there?

"For me, the big, big, exciting theme of this is navigating the eternal relationship of light and darkness. It's a journey through the dark to get back to the light for Lin and all of the characters."

Desplat, a 28-year-old French actress added, "All of the characters are in search of their identity. They've all escaped their troubled pasts or lives they wanted to leave behind."

While it might be in their best interests to keep low profiles to avoid drawing attention to themselves, Lin and Karla are drawn to Reynaldo's bar, at which Bombay's colorful communities of expats and criminals mingle. It isn't long before they end up risking their lives to save a friend.

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Lin also is soon called upon to help the people of Prabhu's village, who embraced him when he had no money or even shoes.

"I don't know if he has a hero complex to begin with. It really is simple self-preservation," Hunnam said.

"I don't think he is viewing himself as the hero of his own story or has any great aspirations to be a fixing force in the world," the actor emphasized.

"He's protected and supported by a group of people he, ultimately, feels indebted to and feels like he needs to reciprocate their kindness and support. Almost reluctantly, he rises to the challenge of being a hero in whatever small capacity he is able to do that."

Karla has different motives.

"She gets so caught up in this idea that she needs to validate her fatherly love and the fatherly figure that she wants to impress," Desplat said, referring to Khader Khan (Siddig), Karla's gangster associate.

"She's trying so hard to be this strong, independent woman and try to get rid of her fears and get rid of her demons, which end up catching up to her, which I think is when there is a massive pivotal point from Episode 8 onward.

"She is trying to redeem her actions by trying to be kinder and do something for others that might make her guilt a little more digestible."

The show takes place before the advent of smartphones and ubiquitousness of surveillance cameras, making it easier to disappear for those who want to.

But Desplat said the cast and crew didn't want to overwhelm viewers with period details to constantly remind them that the story was unwinding in the 1980s.

"It still feels like a very tangible world and it feels like it's organic," she said.

"We don't have huge hair and fun outfits. For our world, the most important thing was to make it real and make it as relatable and human as possible. The music that comes with it is so exciting and fun. We have great tunes in the show, but when I came onto the set, I never thought it was screaming the '80s!"

Hunnam said the show was supposed to be filmed entirely on location in India, but had to be moved to Thailand because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"It felt like a tremendous sacrifice to let go of India, but Thailand welcomed us with open arms. Wwe had an amazing production designer, Chris Kennedy, who was able to replicate and create some of the magic," he recalled.

Desplat agreed it all worked out for the best, noting it would have been impossible to shut down city streets in India, meaning pedestrians in modern clothing likely would have ended up in some of the show's scenes.

"It was a curse and a blessing," she said of the change in location.

Hunnam may be pictured riding a motorcycle in ads, but he admitted he spends very little time riding a bike on the show.

"It was part of the book. Lin in the book has quite a love affair with his Triumph. I wouldn't have picked that bike if I was him, but I understand it was of the time and the place," the actor said.

"I understand why we released that picture, because I have quite a big following from [outlaw biker drama] Sons of Anarchy, but, ultimately, I don't think there is much comparison between the shows. I hope people don't expect Sons of Anarchy in India because, unfortunately, we are not going to deliver that."

He laughed when Desplat teased him about not being allowed to ride the motorcycle because of insurance reasons.

"I toured around on the back of a bike a lot and acted as though I was riding it, which was somewhat humiliating," Human said. "But it's just part of the job."
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Generation Z has tremendously influenced the culture of thrifting. It is more common now than ever for people to thrift as a hobby in search of trendy, vintage clothes from decades past. For Joel Hoffman, it is his lifestyle and job. Hoffman and his wife, Jessica Hoffman, are co-founders of Orphintage and alumni of the University of Georgia.
I am not here to convince you of whats right or wrong. I am not here to comment on the actual substantive issue of abortion but rather to compare Americas constant battle with abortion rights to Europes more stable, universal abortion laws.
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center held its 15th Annual Domino Toppling Extravaganza on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2022. Veteran domino toppler and YouTube superstar Lily Hevesh returned with her team to assemble over 25,000 dominos in two and half days that covered the museums Wolf Kahn & Emil
Vermont Hempicurean founder Scott Sparks and manager Jeremy Deschaine stand in front of the new Vermont Bud Barn.
Brattleboro Fire Department Lt. Kevin Lambert stands next to one of the Golden Cross ambulances that the Fire Department is using while responding to a call on July 1, after the town switched from using Rescue Inc.
A decade of controls on public speech has forced many in higher education or public life to pick a side.

Former Tsinghua University lecturer Wu Qiang speaks during an interview at his apartment in Beijing, June 10, 2021.

The 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which convenes in Beijing on Oct. 16, is expected to grant an unprecedented third five-year term to Xi Jinping, the CCP general secretary and state president. In the run up to the congress, RFA Cantonese and Mandarin examined the 69-year-old Xi's decade at the helm of the world's most populous nation in a series of reports on Hong Kong, foreign policy, Chinese intellectuals, civil society and rural poverty.

Growing pressure to submit to the party line has silenced many of China's public intellectuals in the decade since ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping took power.

Wu Qiang, an outspoken former lecturer at Beijing's Tsinghua University, sees the past few years as a struggle to hold onto personal dignity in the face of increasingly authoritarian rule under Xi.

He cites arriving at Shanghai Pudong International Airport in October 2020, after a vacation with his wife in Germany, and being forcibly separated from her by officials, who forced them to quarantine separately.

"I went on a hunger strike in protest at this injury from a basic loss of [human] dignity during the pandemic," Wu told RFA in a recent interview looking back at his experience under Xi Jinping.

While Wu's hunger strike resulted in a U-turn from pandemic enforcers after 35 hours, some of his attempts to stand up to authoritarian bullying have been less successful.

Wu was suspended from his lectureship at Tsinghua University in 2015 for researching the 2014 Occupy Central democracy movement in Hong Kong, as well as mass protests and grassroots elections in the rebel Guangdong villages of Taishi and Wukan.

Wu lodged a legal appeal against his dismissal, but Beijing's Haidian District People's Court rejected his lawsuit in a judgment published on Sept. 10, 2022.

Unsurprised by this outcome, Wu has nonetheless filed an appeal to the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate Court on Sept. 21, saying it was also a matter of personal dignity.

He is looking for some public recognition of his humanity, something he regards as the "most important thing of all" when it comes to the relationship between governments and the governed.

"This is the most important thing of all, regardless of whether you are a laborer with callused hands, a high-ranking leader, a middle-ranking intellectual or a capitalist entrepreneur," Wu said.

Xu Zhangrun, a former law professor, was fired from his post in July 2020 after he called online for political reforms. Credit: Xu Zhangrun Silenced, suspended, fired or jailed

But scholars who dare to criticize those in power, or the way it is wielded, are rarely afforded much dignity or recognition in today's China.

They are more likely to be silenced, suspended, fired, or even sent to prison.

Wu's former colleague at Tsinghua, Xu Zhangrun, met a similar fate.

The former law professor was fired from his post in July 2020 after he called online for political reforms. Xu had earlier been detained on suspicion of "seeking out prostitutes," which have been used before by the Chinese authorities to target peaceful critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Friends said at the time of Xu's detention that it could be linked to the publication of one of his books in New York last month, a collection of some of his most controversial essays and articles, including one accusing Xi of taking China into "a dead end."

Former economics professor Xi Yeliang was fired from Peking University in 2013 after he criticized the government for suppressing freedom of speech, while retired Shandong University professor Sun Wenguang was forcibly "disappeared" by state security police in 2018.

Wei Jian, a professor at the French Institute for Advanced Study in Social Sciences, said many academics have been forced to pick a side under Xi's rule.

When public intellectuals started being attacked, a lot of scholars had to make a choice: to assume the role of [public] experts, or retreat into their ivory towers, only participating in public affairs indirectly, at best," Wei told RFA.

"It has become harder and harder [for Chinese intellectuals] to play any kind of public role over the past decade, due to significant restrictions on freedom of expression in China," he said.

Teng Biao, a former lecturer at China University of Political Science and Law and human rights lawyer, fled China amid tightening controls on freedom of speech under Xi Jinping. Credit: RFA screenshot Realists and moralists

Wei divides public intellectuals into realists, who offer their expertise to those in power, and moralist, who impose on themselves a certain moral standard.

Exiled intellectuals described a situation in today's China where the latter group has been entirely marginalized.

U.S.-based legal scholar Teng Biao said he fled China amid tightening controls on freedom of speech under Xi Jinping.

"I came to the United States in September 2014," Teng told RFA. "I was invited by Harvard University to be a visiting scholar."

"Back then, a lot of people like Xu Zhiyong, Wang Gongquan, also Ding Jiaxi and Zhao Changqing, were getting detained for taking part in the New Citizens' [transparency and anti-corruption] movement," he said.

Teng made the decision not to return to China quickly, during a trip to Hong Kong. After arriving in the U.S. he learned that his wife and child were being prevented from leaving the country to join him.

He said that while the authorities did pursue dissidents during the leadership of presidents Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin between 1992 and 2002, it was in far smaller numbers than under Xi.

"There were some intellectuals, rights defenders, dissidents and so on who were detained during the Jiang and Hu eras, but the numbers were small compared with those detained after 2013," Teng said.

The chilling effect has also spread beyond mainland China, to Hong Kong, and the former Portuguese city of Macau.

Hao Zhidong, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Macau, says he has been forced to abandon his former areas of research. Credit: RFA screenshot Abandoning research

Hao Zhidong, an emeritus sociology professor at the University of Macau who researches Chinese nationalism, said it has already been felt at his institution.

"Things seemed OK in 2015 and 2016, but it started getting difficult in 2017, with increasingly serious [consequences] by 2018 and 2019," Hao told RFA.

He said he has been forced to abandon his former areas of research.

"I'm afraid that if I make contact [with colleagues or interview subjects in mainland China], I could get those people into trouble," he said, tracing the tightening of controls to 2017, when the mass incarceration of Uyghurs in Xinjiang "re-education" camps first began to be reported by the international media.

Around the same time, the CCP's 19th National Congress incorporated Xi Jinping's personal brand of ideology -- Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era -- into the party charter.

Across China, dozens of colleges and universities responded by setting up research programs and institutes to study "Xi Jinping Thought."

According to Wu Qiang, there needs to be some attempt to claw back some of the limited intellectual freedom once permitted by earlier iterations of the CCP.

"Faced with political pressure, the temptations of money and the market, [Chinese intellectuals] have undergone a collective turnaround," Wu said.

"This turnaround needs to be accompanied by greater awareness of dignity," he said. "This personality change ... is a kind of psychology of willing enslavement."

Teng agreed.

"The vast majority of daren't speak out, to criticize injustice or the current political system," he said. "Others go further ... and start lauding its virtues."

"This has had a devastating effect on the accumulated knowledge of the entire nation, on its cultural heritage, and its independence of thought," he said.
Elon Musk suggested the island could become a special administrative zone of China, raising anger among Taiwanese.

A row of Tesla Model S sedans seen outside the company's headquarters in Palo Alto, California, Apr. 30, 2015.

UPDATED AT 04:32 A.M. ET ON 10-13-2022

The Taiwanese military will not buy any more Tesla cars after its boss Elon Musk suggested that China should figure out a special administrative zone for Taiwan. However, the firms China sales hit a record high in September.

During an interview with Britains Financial Times last weekend Musk, the worlds richest man, said he believed a conflict over Taiwan is inevitable.

He said China should figure out a reasonably palatable system for Taiwan, an arrangement thats more lenient than Hong Kong.

Musks suggestion drew angry reactions from Taiwans political circles and the islands minister of defense on Wednesday announced that the Taiwanese military will not buy any more Teslas.

Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng told a legislative session that the army will definitely not make any more purchases from the U.S. electric car maker.

"The procurement of equipment must be in accordance with the needs of the army and in line with government policy guidance," Chiu said.

"The national army currently has no need to purchase additional Tesla vehicles."

Taiwans Minister of Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng at a legislative session on Oct. 12, 2022. CREDIT: Taiwan Central News Agency

Currently Taiwans military has seven Tesla Model 3s and uses them for administrative purposes.

Military officials said all the cars cameras are turned off for security reasons. Each Tesla car is equipped with eight cameras that can relay footage back to the company.

After Musks interview some Taiwanese politicians, including Chao Tien-lin, a legislator from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, called for a boycott of Tesla's products indefinitely unless the businessman changed his tone about Taiwan.

Tesla in mainland China

Albeit relatively modest compared to Chinas mainland, Taiwans market for Tesla electric cars saw healthy growth this year, according to industrys sources.

Tesla sold 1,774 cars in Taiwan in August, a 303.2 percent year-on-year increase, said the islands Overseas Community Affairs Council.

Meanwhile in China, Elon Musks company reported sales of 83,000 cars in September, up 8 per cent from August.

The sector of new energy vehicles, including electric cars and plug-in hybrids, is doing very well in China, according to the China Passenger Car Association.

The company is facing growing competition from local electric vehicle (EV) producers. Its Chinese rival BYD sold 201,000 EVs in September, more than double Teslas sales.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks during the Tesla China-made Model 3 Delivery Ceremony in Shanghai, China on Jan., 2020. CREDIT: STR / AFP

It remains unclear how Musks comments, which are seen by analysts as stoking geopolitical tensions, would affect Teslas business in China even if the billionaires Taiwan suggestion was praised by the Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Qin Gang as the best approach to realizing national reunification.

In his interview with the FT, Musk also said that Beijing doesnt want him to sell his Starlink satellite internet service in China but did not reveal if hed agreed to the request.

This story has been updated to add comments from Taiwan's defense minister and correct the headline
The city government issues a reassurance, but residents say state media aren't following up on the story.

Shanghai, which lies on the Yangtze river estuary, is also criss-crossed by other rivers, including the Huangpu [shown in this file photo]. The river water is becoming less and less drinkable due to the infiltration of salty tidal water from the ocean.

When social media users first heard that the Shanghai government could struggle to source enough fresh water for the city's 26 million residents if there is an increase in salinity in the city's major rivers, their minds immediately turned to the same quip.

"Shanghai tap water comes from the sea!" was among the first comments on Weibo on the news that the city had taken emergency measures to protect local reservoirs from salt water inflows, first reported by the Caixin news site.

The joke, which references a Chinese riddle that reads the same way backwards and forwards, was still going strong on Twitter on Thursday, with @RioJot commenting: "I guess we can really say that Shanghai tap water comes from the sea!"

The city, which lies on the Yangtze river estuary, as well as being criss-crossed by the Huangpu, Wenzao, Yingtao and Wusong rivers and the Suzhou Creek, may be surrounded by water, but less and less of it is now drinkable.

"Inflow of salty tidal waters causes difficulties ... for Shanghai's water sources," the Caixin article, which came after screenshots of an unconfirmed whistleblower account started circulating on social media, said.

"Water flow from upstream is still decreasing due to the drought in the Yangtze river basin, and [the authorities], predicting that salt tides are likely [to backflow into rivers], are ordering reservoirs ... to increase water storage."

The whistleblower post -- reportedly from a city government insider who advised people to stock up on drinking water -- prompted panic buying of bottled water in Shanghai's supermarkets, with photos of people stacking multipacks of water on the backs of bicycles making international headlines.

No reports on shortages

The city government's water resources and oceans bureau issued a statement on Tuesday saying tap water supplies to residential property were normal.

"The Shanghai Yangtze river estuary has been experiencing salt tide inflows since early September," the statement said.

"The city's water supply companies continue to strengthen water quality monitoring and manage reservoir operation and scheduling in a scientific manner."

"Tap water production and supply are normal and water quality is up to standard," said.

Shanghai resident Zhu Jinhua said she had yet to see any official news reports about a possible water shortage in the city.

"Shanghai hasn't had much rain this year," Zhu said. "When it did rain, it was just a drizzle, not a downpour."

"This year was a little worse compared with previous years, so now I have to order bottled water."

'A natural hydrological phenomenon'

Shanghai resident Li Xingsheng said the government is highly unlikely to announce any water shortage ahead of time, unless it is forced to do so.

"They definitely won't report on issues relating to people's well-being," Li said. "As soon as they do [report on the water supply], all the supplies of mineral water and pure bottled water will be snapped up."

The Global Times newspaper, an English-language tabloid with close ties to ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) paper the People's Daily, reported that water supply companies had started boosting fresh water supplies ahead of the salt tides.

"Saltwater inflows are a common natural hydrological phenomenon at the junction of rivers and seas," the paper said. "When the flow of the upstream freshwater river is insufficient, the seawater will pour back into the estuary to form a salt tide."

Saltwater inflows of varying degrees often occur from October to March, it cited the local water bureau as saying.

Shanghai's total water consumption hit 7.743 billion cubic meters in 2021, and that last summer's high temperatures had led to an increase in urban water consumption.

The city's average daily water supply was 8.656 million cubic meters from June through August 2022, an increase of 0.87 percent over the same period last year, according to Caixin.

Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
The residents came from seven villages along the Chindwin river in Mingin township.

More than 4,000 residents from seven villages in Myanmar's war-torn Sagaing region have fled their homes since Oct. 8, as junta troops entered Mingin township, according to aid workers.

When the military column entered Ba Yon Kar village last Saturday troops burned down 34 of the villages 160 homes forcing villagers to seek shelter nearby.

Since then, residents from villages, including Khon Thar, Au, Chaung Wa and Shar Taw, on the banks of the Chindwin river, have also been forced to flee, an aid worker told RFA.

After the burning of Ba Yon Kar village, the junta troops did not continue to torch the other villages but locals still had to flee and stay in the forest. the aid worker said.

Since their villages are by the river, they had to leave them because junta boats were coming up the river toward their villages.

The aid worker said troops still continued to enter Khon Thar village and Au village on Tuesday.

The same day, the Mingin Peoples Defense Force (PDF) Battalion (2) attacked 12 junta vessels, it said in a statement released on Wednesday.

In response around 100 junta soldiers and affiliated Pyu Saw Htee militia members attacked a local PDF camp with two warships, forcing the PDF to abandon the camp, Battalion (2) said in its statement.

RFA has not been able to independently confirm claims that junta forces burned homes in Ba Yon Kar.

In June, when RFA contacted State Administration Council (SAC) spokesman, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, about the burning of houses, he said the SAC does not carry out such acts.
Vietnamese state media on reported on the U.N. resolution, but did not mention Hanois abstention.

Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Nations, Sergiy Kyslytsya, scans the General Assembly with binoculars prior to a vote on the resolution condemning the annexation of parts of Ukraine by Russia, at the U.N. headquarters in New York, Oct. 12, 2022.

UPDATED at 6:05 p.m. on 10/13/2022

Vietnamese state media on Thursday reported on the United Nations General Assembly vote that overwhelmingly condemned Russias attempts to annex four regions of Ukraine, but did not mention that Hanoi, along with Thailand, Laos and 32 other countries had abstained from the vote.

Some 143 countries -- about three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly - voted Wednesday in favor of the resolution that also reaffirmed the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

Dang Hoang Giang, head of Vietnams permanent delegation at the U.N., had seemingly spoken in support of the resolution, but abstained anyway.

Dang said the vote emphasized the necessity of assuring the U.N. Charter and international laws be upheld, comprising the principles of non-interference into internal issues of a nation, non-use of force or the threat of force in international relations, settling disputes on international law, with an emphasis on respecting independence, national sovereignty and integrity of all nations, the state-run Vietnam News Agency reported.

Ho Chi Minh City-based Hoang Hung, a critic of the Vietnamese government, told RFAs Vietnamese Service that Hanois attitude has disappointed many people, adding Vietnam does not want to counter Russia because of defense and oil exploration ties in the South China Sea.

It has been Vietnams line, since the beginning of the war, not to vote against Russia, Hung said.

However, [we] should pay attention to the Vietnam representatives statements at the U.N. General Assembly that always affirm the call for respect for the U.N. Charter, respect for national sovereignty, and respect for the Principle of Non-Use of Force. One understands such calls means Russia [should not] invade Ukraine, but the abstaining vote contradicts their statements. Everyone sees that, Hung said.

Will Nguyen, a Vietnamese-America democracy advocate, claimed communist Vietnam's founding leader would have disapproved of Hanoi's stance.

In my opinion, if Ho Chi Minh were still alive, he would be ashamed of Vietnam for abstaining from the vote, said Nguyen.

In fact, if there is nothing more precious than independence and freedom, Vietnam should have voted to support Ukraine, he said.

Thailand's rationale

Thailand defended the abstention, saying the move was counterproductive and would obstruct constructive dialogue.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed documents to make the four eastern Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson parts of Russia. The annexation came after those areas held referendums, which the West denounced as a sham and illegal.

Condemnation provokes intransigence and therefore greatly reduces the chance for constructive engagement, Suriya Jindawong, Thailands permanent representative to the U.N., said in a statement released by the Thai foreign ministry on Thursday.

Thailand is genuinely concerned about the increased politicization of international principles that have become counterproductive as the means and guidance to end the war.

Such a move marginalizes the chance for crisis diplomacy to bring about a peaceful and practical negotiated resolution to the conflict that may push the world toward the brink of nuclear war and global economic collapse, Suriya said.

Previously, Thailand voted to support the March 2 U.N. resolution condemning Moscows invasion of Ukraine and demanding troop withdrawal. In April, Thailand and a majority of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) abstained from voting to suspend Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council.

This latest resolution, which called on all countries not to recognize Moscows annexation and demanded its immediate reversal, was supported by 143 nations, the highest number since the start of the invasion in February.

Also among the 35 nations abstaining were China and Laos, which both have strong ties with Russia. Just four countries -- North Korea, Syria, Nicaragua and Belarus -- joined Russia in voting against the resolution. Myanmar, which is represented at the U.N. by an opponent of Myanmar's pro-Moscow ruling junta, and Cambodia voted in support of the resolution.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the vote a powerful reminder that the overwhelming majority of nations stand with Ukraine  and in resolute opposition to Russias ongoing war against Ukraine and its people.

The vote delivers a resounding rebuke to Russia for its aggression against Ukraine, Blinken said in a statement.

Cars burn after Russia launches a missile attack in Kyiv, Oct. 10, 2022. Photo: Reuters

Price to pay

U.S.-allied Thailands relationship with China could have played a role in its abstention, a Thai academic said Thursday.

The abstention on the Russo-Ukraine conflict means Thailand does not differentiate between wrong and right, Naing Lin, a political science lecturer at Chiang Mai University, told BenarNews, an RFA affiliated news service.

Thailand, like some other ASEAN countries, has strong concerns regarding its relationship with a superpower, like China, which supports Russia, he said. Whichever way Thailand voted, there is a price to pay.

A retired Thai diplomat concurred Thailand had erred by abstaining.

Russia is clearly wrong in this case  We are a diplomatic country and should have been with the majority of the countries, Russ Jalichandra, a former Thai ambassador to Mozambique and Kazakhstan, told BenarNews.

We dont have a lot of interest in Russia, unlike India. So it was not hard to make the right decision.

Although it abstained, Thailand said it mourns the physical, social and humanitarian destruction of Ukraine and the severe hardships suffered by the Ukrainian people.

Thailand also reiterated its commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a state and the policy of opposing any threats to the use of force to annex the territory of another state without provocation, according to Suriyas statement.

APEC summit

Thailands abstention comes as the country prepares to host the APEC leaders summit in Bangkok on Nov. 18 and 19. The summit is typically attended by leaders from across the Asia-Pacific, including Russia, China and the United States.

Russia, among other countries, has accepted an invitation and preparation by security agencies is taking place, a Thai government source told BenarNews on the condition of anonymity, because he was not allowed to speak to the media.

The Russian Embassy in Bangkok did not respond to BenarNews request for comment on the summit.

On Tuesday, Tanee Sangrat, Thai foreign ministry spokesman, said that nine economies have responded positively to the invitation to attend and eight others are likely to attend.

He declined to name them.

Chinas President Xi Jinping is expected to attend, but U.S. President Joe Biden may not participate because of a family engagement, Thai media reported.

This meeting taking place now is a valuable addition because the top leaders will be able to hold bilateral and sideline meetings to discuss the current complications in the world, Panitan Wattanayagorn, chairman of the Prime Ministers Security Advisory Committee, told BenarNews on Wednesday.

Those meetings could pave the way to solve the current conflict and other tense situations.

BenarNews is an RFA affiliated news service. BenarNews journalist Kunnawut Boonreak in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and RFA Vietnamese contributed to this report.

This story has been updated to amend the byline and add background.
A former soldier in Vietnams central Ha Tinh province claims he was beaten by police in Dien My commune in 2015, then wrongly sentenced to prison. Nguyen Ding Hung, who served two years in the military, told RFA authorities in his village and commune also deny his family local benefits.

They didn't say it directly, but they have restricted everyone from visiting us. They do not let us receive social support for the poor. When our region is hit by typhoons, local people receive a lot of financial and food aids but our family receives none.

Hung said his troubles started in September 2015 when his sister-in-law Tran Thi Nhan was riding a motorbike, planning to sell seafood. Commune police illegally set up roadblocks to check local peoples movements, he said. Commune police seized Nhan's motorbike and seafood for no reason and brought it to the police station where they destroyed the goods and kept the bike, which has yet to be returned to the family, Hung said.

Hung's brother, Nguyen Dinh Hai, objected to the seizure of the vehicle and destruction of goods, as well as local police interrogating his sister-in-law. Hung said that led the then-commune police chief, Ho Xuan Que, to declare he would "punish Hung even though he was not involved in this case.

On October 21, 2015, Hung was driving a motorbike without a helmet when Que hit him on the hand with a stick. When Hung stopped the bike, Hung said Que hit him with a stick many times and used a helmet to hit him in the stomach. The commune police chief also threatened to kill his family, Hung said.

A few weeks later Hung was arrested by the Huong Khe district police on charges of "resisting an on-duty state official" and detained for two months. He was released on bail after just over a month and a half.

At the end of February 2016, Hung was convicted by the district court and sentenced to six months in prison even though his lawyer claimed wrongful conviction because Que did not have the authority to set up checkpoints and control traffic. Commune police also lacked written consent from the district police, which is against the law.

Que later admitted that communal authorities decided to set up the roadblock, not the district police. However, at the appeal hearing later that year Que changed his testimony, affirming that he had performed tasks approved by the district police.

Hung appealed to the Ha Tinh Provincial Court, which transferred the file to the district authorities for re-investigation, and in the second hearing in October 2017, he was still found guilty by the district court with a six month suspended sentence.

Hung continued to appeal and in the second appeal in March 2018, the provincial court upheld the suspended sentence.

Hung told RFA that during the hearings, he accused a district police investigator named Phong of forcing him to admit fighting even though he was beaten by Que.

Hung said he did not accept the verdict and sent petitions to many agencies from the commune to the central level, including the Supreme People's Court, asking for fair hearing. He said that after submitting many petitions to the Supreme People's Court, he received a written receipt of application in 2019 but had heard nothing since.

Hung now works in agriculture and said his family faced many difficulties. Besides not being able to enjoy local benefits, he was also not allowed to do business even though he had served in the military.

Local officials have done so much wrong, the corruption is so great and I denounced them for many things, so they hate me, he said. However, they can't do anything to me because I report the truth."

RFA called the Chief of Police of Dien My Commune, the Police of Huong Khe District, the Chairman of the People's Committee and the spokesman of the district as well as the Ha Tinh Provincial Court, but no one answered the phone. Tran Tuan Anh, Chief of the Office of the People's Council and People's Committee of Huong Khe District hung up after the reporter introduced himself. RFA also emailed District Chairman Ngo Xuan Ninh District Chairman but has not received a reply.
Russia's use of Iranian-made drones to attack Ukraine shows that Russia is both politically and militarily bankrupt, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on October 18 after saying that Russian air strikes in the past week had destroyed almost one-third of Ukraine's power stations.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, Russian protests, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

Zelenskiy said for decades Russia spent billions of dollars on its military-industrial complex, "and in the end they bowed to Tehran to get rather simple drones and missiles."



Speaking in his nightly address, he said strategically, this will not help Russia in any way.



"It only additionally proves to the world that Russia is on a losing path and is trying to draw someone else into its accomplices," he said. "We will definitely ensure an appropriate international reaction to this."



Iran denies supplying drones to Russia, and the Kremlin said it had no information about whether Iranian kamikaze drones were used.



But British intelligence early on October 18 identified the drones used by Russia as being Iranian-made, and the U.S. State Department assessed that Iranian drones were used on October 17 in an attack on Kyiv.



White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre accused Tehran of lying when it said Iranian drones were not being used by Russia in Ukraine.

Jean-Pierre on October 17 told reporters that the White House strongly condemns Russias missile strikes and said the attacks continue "to demonstrate Putins brutality.

The U.S. State Department, meanwhile, said Washington would "not hesitate to use sanctions or take actions" against companies and countries working with Iran's drone program.

State Department spokesman Vedant Patel also said a deepening alliance between Russia and Iran "is something the whole world -- especially those in the region and across the world, frankly -- should be seeing as a profound threat."

Moscow began the recent wave of air attacks last week, hitting residential areas in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

Zelenskiy tweeted early on October 18 that the attacks had caused massive blackouts across Ukraine and that there was "no space left for negotiations" with Russian President Vladimir Putin.



Kyiv's prosecutor office said two people were killed in the October 18 strikes in Kyiv after five others lost their lives in the drone attacks of the previous day in the capital.



NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance will deliver air-defense systems to Ukraine in the coming days. Speaking at a security conference in Berlin, Stoltenberg said the systems would help Ukraine defend itself against attacks, including by drones made in Iran.

Earlier on October 18, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Ukraine's presidential office, said there had been three Russian strikes on an unspecified energy facility in northern Kyiv.

"The situation is critical now across the country. It's necessary for the whole country to prepare for electricity, water, and heating outages," Tymoshenko told Ukrainian television.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack was on "critical infrastructure."

The northern Ukrainian city of Zhytomyr was left without water and electricity supply after Russian air strikes, but its mayor told RFE/RL that the services had been largely restored.

"Around noon, we connected the main sewage plant, and the water supply was more or less operational. Currently, approximately 80 percent of the city has electricity, but the central part of the city remains without it," he said.

Russian troops also shelled energy facilities in Dnipro and blasts were reported in Kharkiv.



Explosions also shook the cities of Kriviy Rih and Mykolayiv, local officials said, a day after Russia launched waves of kamikaze drone strikes that killed at least seven people, four of them in Kyiv, and damaged infrastructure in the Ukrainian capital and several other cities across the country.

"Kriviy Rih. Explosions in the northern part of the city. We are in shelters," Oleksandr Vilkul the head of the central Ukrainian city's military administration said on social media, adding that so far there were no reports of casualties or damage.

In the southern port of Mykolayiv overnight shelling killed at least one person, Mayor Oleksandr Sienkovych said early on October 18.

The Russian-appointed head of the Kherson region announced on October 18 that the civilian population will be evacuated from part of the region as he warned of an expected escalation of hostilities.



Vladimir Saldo on October 18 announced an "organized, gradual displacement" of civilians from four towns on the right bank of the Dnieper River.



The new commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, Sergei Surovikin, said the situation in Kherson "is difficult," telling state-owned Rossia-24 television news channel in an interview, "The enemy is deliberately striking infrastructure and residential buildings in Kherson."

With reporting by Reuters, AP, dpa, and AFP
By recommending that Bosnia-Herzegovina be given candidate status with conditions on October 12, the European Commission picked up where it left off in June when it did the same for Ukraine and Moldova.

In large part due to the war in Ukraine, the EU enlargement process has suddenly been resuscitated again after almost a decade of being out cold.

The question now is whether the 27 EU member states will respond to this recommendation with the same positivity as with Kyiv's and Chisinau's bids. In the summer, a sense of history swayed them. War-torn but reform-ready Ukraine and the pro-EU but vulnerable Moldova needed to be encouraged and recognized, so went the vibe at the time. The candidate statuses granted in June were the "light at the end of the tunnel" those countries needed. Of course, strict conditions were attached that meant it could be a while before they could actually start accession negotiations.

Now, Brussels has tried to repeat the trick with Bosnia. Eight conditions come with the candidate status recommendation. Several of them concern various laws and amendments Sarajevo must implement to make its judiciary fully functional, but there are also reforms needed in migration management, more to be done to ensure freedom of expression and the media, notably judicial follow-ups to cases where media workers receive violent threats, and to make sure that there is coordination throughout Bosnia on EU matters -- something that has proven elusive in the highly divided nation.

A Tall Order

Already this is sounding like a tall order, but there is more. Perhaps the most pressing issue for Bosnia is the long-standing difficulty of finalizing constitutional and electoral reforms that would ensure better and fairer ethnic representation in the country. The West has long tried to find solutions via mediation but to no avail. Few believe anything will change anytime soon. The European Commission is hoping that the carrot of candidate status will be able to focus the right minds and get results.

The EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi was blunt about it when speaking on October 12 in front of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee: "Granting candidate status is an offer from Europe to Bosnia-Herzegovina and to the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina. We are doing this for the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina, but it also comes with high expectations. It is for the elite to turn this into reality."

Will the 27 EU member states buy this? Some countries -- notably Austria, Croatia, and Slovenia -- pushed for speeding up Bosnia's entry after Moldova and Ukraine were granted candidate status in June. To many, their reasoning made sense: it did seem a bit unfair that a country that had waited so long in line was suddenly being leapfrogged by two countries that had only recently applied to join the bloc. And just like Ukraine, Bosnia had also suffered its fair share of war and destruction -- just not as recently.

If this was an oversight, member states now have a chance to correct this by putting Bosnia on an equal footing with Ukraine and Moldova when they meet in Brussels in December to decide on the European Commission's recommendation. And with the reform conditions hard to meet, granting candidate status would, in many ways, be largely symbolic. For the enlargement skeptics, notably in Western Europe, they can point to the punishing conditions and their inherent ambiguity --for example, measuring "decisive steps to strengthen the prevention and fight against corruption" -- and conclude that it will be a long time before Sarajevo advances further on its EU path.

Dire Reading

Yet there is a fundamental difference between Ukraine and Moldova on the one hand and Bosnia-Herzegovina on the other. Despite the hardships facing Ukraine due to Russia's February invasion, the country is still undertaking substantial reforms that Brussels is asking for in various fields. According to EU officials who spoke to RFE/RL, the same can be said of Moldova. When the European Commission comes with its first assessment of how Ukraine and Moldova are doing in the fall of 2023, they might well conclude that they have both made sufficient progress to start EU accession negotiations.

Bosnia-Herzegovina has so far been the exact opposite. Its latest progress report, produced by the European Commission and published together with the candidate status recommendation this week, makes for dire reading. It is perhaps the most damning assessment ever published by the EU on any country in the Western Balkans.

Some highlights from the report: "amendments to improve electoral standards were rejected in parliamentdue to political obstruction [and] the Ministry of Finance and Treasury hindered the smooth organization of the October 2022 elections by withholding the required fundsno progress was made in ensuring an enabling environment for civil societyinconsistency and overly broad discretion persist in applying the rules on appointment, disciplinary responsibility, career advancement, and conflict of interest of judges and prosecutors."

Just for good measure, there is also an entire paragraph on the Serb-dominated Republika Srpska, one of the country's two entities, and its attempts to "unilaterally take over state competences and dismantle state institutions, endangering the country's EU accession perspective."

For the commission, it is language that one associates with a fragile state rather than an almost-ready EU candidate. And EU member states, leafing through the report, will likely conclude the same. One of the unwritten golden rules in Brussels on taking in new members is that one does not "import problems." Bosnia is far from membership, although it's possible candidate status could trigger the country to get its house in order. Otherwise, the European Union and its member states are more likely to focus elsewhere when it comes to potential newcomers.
The hint by Russian President Vladimir Putin wasn't exactly subtle.

"When the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our people," Putin said on September 21, as he announced an order to mobilize hundreds of thousands of men to fight in Ukraine. "This is not a bluff."

By "all means at our disposal," of course, Putin was referring to Russia's nuclear arsenal -- which, along with that of the United States, remains one of the two largest in the world by far more than 30 years after the end of the Cold War.

But the hint left a lot to interpretation, sending intelligence agencies from Washington to London to Berlin scrambling to discern what exactly he meant. U.S. officials have said repeatedly said -- most recently on October 10 -- that Russia has done nothing to cause U.S. or NATO officials to "adjust our posture," meaning order military forces on heightened alert.

Putin expanded on the comment nine days later when, during a Kremlin speech claiming sovereignty over four Ukrainian regions, he declared Russia would defend its territory "with all the forces and resources" it has, and then referred to the U.S. nuclear bombing of Japan in 1945 as a precedent.

There is little indication that Putin is prepared to attack Western capitals with long-range strategic missiles of the sort that would lead to outright thermonuclear war. But there are other possibilities, namely smaller, more portable, nonstrategic nuclear warheads known as tactical weapons.

In an interview with CNN on October 11, U.S. President Joe Biden chided Putin for his nuclear threats, though he inaccurately suggested Putin had explicitly threatened the use of a tactical weapon.

"He, in fact, cannot continue with impunity to talk about the use of a tactical nuclear weapon as if that's a rational thing to do," Biden said. "The mistakes get made. And the miscalculation could occur; no one can be sure what would happen and could end in Armageddon."

Here's what you need to know about tactical nuclear weapons.

Strategic Vs. Tactical

Most people are familiar with the terrifying Cold War-era imagery of intercontinental ballistic or cruise missiles: weapons launched from silos, submarines, and airplanes, or even heavy trucks in the case of Soviet and Russian forces, carrying single or multiple warheads that could rain down on dozens of locations, obliterating cities and populations, and possibly all life on Earth.

The New START treaty, in effect since 2011, is the most recent in a series of major arms control measures limiting the size and deployment of strategic weapons for Russia and the United States. According to the U.S. State Department, both Moscow and Washington have fewer than the maximum allowed number of deployed warheads: 1,550.

But New START limits only strategic nuclear weapons, not tactical nukes.

Also known as nonstrategic weapons, tactical nuclear arms are smaller -- both in size and explosive power -- designed for use in a battlefield or in a theater of operations, said Pavel Podvig, a longtime expert on Russia's nuclear arsenal who also works for the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research in Geneva. Think of a bomb dropped from an airplane.

"The term is problematic because in reality any use of nuclear weapons will be strategic -- it will change (and the intent will be to change) the outcome of the conflict," Podvig said in an e-mail. "Even if they are used in the battlefield (which is unlikely to change anything there), the key message of such a step will be that Russia is prepared to use them more widely and eventually will be ready to use them against the population."

"Using the term 'tactical' can easily obscure that reality: that nuclear weapons get their power from their ability to kill a lot of people," he said.

Tactical weapons  bombs, artillery shells, short-range missiles  are designed to have less explosive firepower than the bigger strategic missiles. The explosive power or yield of a standard strategic nuclear weapon today can range roughly from 500 kilotons to 1 megaton, the equivalent of 1 million tons of TNT. Some nonstrategic nuclear weapons have yields of less than 1 kiloton, but others go as high as 50 kilotons  more than three times the force of the 15-kiloton bomb dropped on Hiroshima  or higher.

Many nonstrategic nuclear weapons can be rendered more or less explosive, something known as dial-a-yield.

These weapons are also smaller in size, and they're not designed to go long distances; if it's on a missile, it might not go more than 500 kilometers. That means they're harder for intelligence -- satellites, or powerful remote sensors, or even spies with binoculars -- to spot, which in turns means it's harder for an adversary to prepare or defend itself.

For that reason, many experts consider them more destabilizing and potentially more dangerous.

So, Who Has Them?

Both the United States and the Soviet Union developed small nuclear weapons in the darkest days of the Cold War arms race. The Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact partners had many more tanks and infantry than NATO did, and use of tactical nuclear weapons was a key element -- called "flexible response" -- of NATO plans to stem a Warsaw Pact offensive on Western Europe.

Since then, however, the United States has moved away from reliance on tactical weapons, as military planners rely instead on more precise weaponry to accomplish the same goals: sophisticated conventional explosives that can pack as big a punch as a nuclear warhead.

Currently, the United States has around 200 tactical weapons deployed in Germany and other NATO allies, including Turkey. Half of these are the B61 nuclear gravity bomb, the sort you simply drop from a plane and then guide to a target.

Under President Donald Trump, U.S. officials called for developing new shorter-range, lower-yield nonstrategic weapons -- a sea-launched cruise missile, among other things -- but those plans are still in development.

Russia, meanwhile, is estimated to have around between 1,500 and 2,000 tactical warheads, including for things like gravity bombs, air-to-surface missiles, anti-ship missiles, cruise missiles, and even torpedoes. Most if not all of these warheads are in central storage, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.

In its war against Ukraine, Russia has also fired cruise missiles from submarines and aircraft, as well as using a short-range ballistic missile system known as the Iskander. The size of a tactical nuclear warhead placed atop an Iskander missile means the missile would be indistinguishable from one carrying a conventional warhead.

One other thing to remember, both for strategic and tactical weapons: A missile with a nuclear warhead attached, or a gravity bomb in a hangar that can be quickly put onto a plane, is considered a "deployed" warhead.

Both United States and Russia have stores of "nondeployed" warheads, mainly in storage; some are intended to be dismantled and destroyed. That means it would take time to get them out of storage and bring them a launch vehicle such as a plane, a truck, or a silo in order to be fired.

But how long that takes depends on lots of variables.

"None of these 'tactical' weaponsare deployed; they are not mated to their delivery systems," Podvig said. "So, they are in fact further away from being used -- it would take a number of steps to deploy them."

Have They Ever Been Used?

No tactical, nonstrategic nuclear weapon has ever been used in conflict.

Other Sabers To Rattle

In the past, Putin and other Russian officials -- not to mention pundits like firebrand TV host Dmitry Kiselyov -- have bragged about Russia's arsenal and some of the newer weapons the military is developing, like hypersonic missiles that could evade anti-missile defenses, or autonomous "drone" torpedoes.

In the Ukraine war, Putin hasn't explicitly threatened the use of tactical nuclear weapons or any specific weapon for that matter. That again leaves some room for how he would follow through on his threats, if he chooses to.

Aside from hitting Ukraine's forces with a tactical warhead, Russian forces could seek some sort of demonstration effect: Detonating a warhead over the Black Sea might not kill anyone but could be aimed to convince the West -- the United States, first and foremost -- that the Kremlin is prepared to use nuclear weapons to achieve its aims in Ukraine.

Or it could detonate a device in a more remote location, like Novaya Zemlya, the Barents Sea archipelago where Moscow has conducted nuclear testing for decades.

Or it could simply test one of its newer experimental weapons and make sure Western intelligence was readily able to witness the tests.

That could be, for example, a nuclear-powered cruise missile called the Burevestnik that has been under development for several years or an autonomous underwater drone capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, something critics have dubbed a "doomsday weapon."

What Effect Would A Tactical Nuclear Explosion Have?

That depends on what it is used for, where, and how.

Killing hundreds of Ukrainian troops on the battlefield with a nuclear weapon would cause outrage, different from the shock-and-awe effect of detonating a warhead over the Black Sea or the Barents Sea.

It's an open question whether the former would cow the Ukrainians into agreeing to peace negotiations. And it's a very open question whether the West would be compelled to pressure Kyiv to negotiate or dial back its support for Kyiv.

At the very least, it would break a taboo on using nuclear weapons, a taboo in place since the United States bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. It would also potentially isolate Russia from its lukewarm partners like China, a nuclear power in its own right.

"It must be understood that the use of a tactical nuclear weapon will not guarantee a turning point in one's favor at all," Andrei Kortunov, director of the government-linked Russian International Affairs Council, wrote in an opinion article published in the Russian daily Kommersant.

"What it will guarantee is the risk of a full-scale nuclear war, complete strategic solitude and [for Russia] the status of an international pariah," he wrote.
More than 800 members of Irans Medical Council have accused the head of the organization of helping the government "cover up" the cause of Mahsa Amini's death while in police custody.

In a statement published on October 11, the group says that Mohammad Raeiszadeh, the head of Irans Medical Council, used the name and reputation of the organization to "legitimize the so-called fact-finding committee to cover up the cause of Mahsa Amini's death."



"The fact-finding committee was formed behind closed doors and has no credibility the signatories added.



Amini, 22, died on September 16, three days after being taken into police custody in Tehran for allegedly breaking the country's Islamic dress code.



Eyewitnesses told journalists that Amini, who fell into a coma after being admitted to a hospital, appeared to have been beaten inside the police van while it was taking her to a detention center.



The doctors who signed the statement said they "regretted" that the head of Irans Medical Council forgot the "moral and social obligation of doctors to defend the people."



An official coroner's report published on October 7 said Amini's death was not caused by blows to the head or limbs but was instead linked to disease, disputing her family's objections that the 22-year-old was in good health when taken into custody for purportedly wearing an Islamic head scarf, or hijab, improperly.



The state-controlled ISNA news agency said on October 7 that a medical board had determined "underlying diseases" were the cause of death while making no mention of whether she had suffered any injuries.



Last month the top medical official in the southern province of Hormozgan had rejected some Iranian officials' claims, saying the most likely cause of Aminis death was a blow to the head.



In a letter to Mohammad Raeiszadeh, the president of the Iranian Medical Council, on September 18, Dr. Hossein Karampour urged the organization to fulfill its duties over Amini's death.



Several other doctors, seeing the pictures of Amini in the hospital, have pointed out on social media that the cause of the bleeding from her ear could be a blow to the head.



Her death has sparked street protests in Iran and strong international reactions. At least 201 people, including 23 children, have been killed in nationwide protests that have rocked Iran since Amini died.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Anti-government protests have raged in cities, towns, and villages across Iran since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16.

But in recent days, the western Kurdish region has become the epicenter of the weekslong demonstrations and the focus of the government's bloody crackdown.

Amini's funeral in Kurdistan Province on September 17 was the catalyst for the nationwide protests. She died three days after she was arrested by Iran's morality police for allegedly violating the mandatory hijab law.

Human rights groups say the authorities have intensified their crackdown in provinces with significant Kurdish populations, including Kurdistan, Kermanshah, and West Azerbaijan.

Iran Human Rights (IHR), an Oslo-based group, said on October 12 that at least 30 people had been killed in the three provinces since the protests erupted. Overall, at least 108 people had lost their lives in demonstrations across the country, IHR said.

The harshest government crackdowns have occurred in Sanandaj, the provincial capital of Kurdistan, and in Amini's hometown of Saghez. Amateur videos from the area appear to show security forces using firearms and tear gas and firing directly into residential homes.

A resident of Sanandaj, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that she had heard the sound of gunshots and explosions during recent nights. "Plainclothes [intelligence] agents and security forces have taken control of all major intersections" in the city, she said.

"People are very angry," she said, adding that residents were "airing their grievances and demands." "People have had enough."

The France-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network said on October 13 that security forces had killed at least 30 protesters, wounded another 825, and arrested more than 2,000 in the predominantly Kurdish regions.

In the past week alone, security forces have killed six protesters in predominately Kurdish areas, according to Zhina Mostajar from Hengaw, a rights group registered in Norway that reports on Iran's Kurdish region. Hengaw says the overall death toll in the Kurdish areas since the protests began is at least 32.

Mostajar says the real extent of the crackdown in Kurdish areas is not yet clear due to a near-total Internet shutdown imposed in the region. But she said the situation was "very concerning."

"The reports we're receiving do not give the full picture," Mostajar, who is based in neighboring Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region, told RFE/RL. "We're receiving information drop by drop and we have to confirm them before being able to publish them."

Reports have suggested that some protesters wounded in the crackdown refused to go to hospital to receive treatment, fearing that they would be detained by security forces.

Amnesty International said on October 11 that it was "alarmed by the crackdown on protests in Sanandaj amid reports of security forces using firearms and firing tear gas indiscriminately, including into people's homes."

Separatist Scapegoats

Iranian journalist Parisa Karami, who is based in the city of Baneh in Kurdistan Province, says residents in Kurdish areas are continuing to protest despite efforts by the government to crush the demonstrations. "There have been sometimes small and at other times larger protests," she told RFE/RL. "But they are going on."

"The situation in our city, Baneh, has been very securitized," Karami added. "Riot police have closed the streets [during protests]. There were clashes and security forces used tear gas."

Iran's hard-line Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), reported on October 12 that the situation in Sanandaj was calm despite the continuing protests. Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi, who visited Sanandaj on October 11, blamed the unrest in the city on "terrorist and separatist groups," a claim dismissed by local activists and journalists.

"Among Kurdish people, there are different [political] parties and groups," Bakhtiar Khoshnam, the editor in chief of Iran's Mokrian news agency, said in an interview from Iraqi Kurdistan. "But these protests have been focused on the slogan of 'woman, life, freedom' and as far as I know there haven't been any separatist chants."

Another journalist, Germany-based Ammar Goli, says the authorities are trying to pin the blame on armed Kurdish groups in order to discredit the protests. "This rhetoric has been used in the past and they have used this propaganda to wage repression in the region," Goli told Radio Farda.

Armed Kurdish opposition groups fighting for autonomy in Iran have sporadically clashed with Iranian security forces. Over the years, Iran has targeted their bases in Iraqi Kurdistan with missiles. Last month, the IRGC launched drone attacks against two Kurdish groups in Iraqi Kurdistan, accusing them of inciting "the riots" in Iran.

The Islamic republic has long been accused of suppressing and discriminating against the country's ethnic minorities, including Kurds, which make up about 10 percent of the population of 84 million.
More anti-government protesters have been killed in Iran as state security forces continued their deadly crackdown on nationwide demonstrations. The Norway-registered Hengaw Organization for Human Rights said at least seven people were killed in Iran's Kurdish region on October 12. Protests erupted almost four weeks ago over the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained over an alleged Islamic dress-code violation.
Iranian security forces continue to ratchet up their crackdown on protests across the country as they try to quell unrest sparked by last month's death of a young woman while in police custody over how she was wearing a head scarf.

Demonstrations on October 13 took place in various cities after reports overnight that several people were killed in clashes with security forces in the country's Kurdish regions.



The Hengaw rights group, which reports on these regions, called for international aid organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and the International Committee of the Red Cross to be given access to the areas amid "intense violence" between protesters and security forces.



On October 13, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, a group that monitors Kurdish-inhabited areas of western Iran, announced the death of three protesters by security forces in the cities of Sanandaj and Kermanshah.



At least 48 other protesters were injured in different cities and the condition of one person was reported to be critical, the group added.



Amini's death came three days after she was taken into custody after being detained by the so-called Morality Police.



Eyewitnesses say Amini, who was of Kurdish background, was beaten, while officials have said she died of illness, though they have not provided any evidence to back up their claim.



Again on October 13, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi blamed the United States for the unrest, accusing Washington and its allies of resorting to "the failed policy of destabilization."



Despite a near-total Internet shutdown by authorities, Iranians were still posting calls on social media for street protests with the aim of supporting people in the western Iranian city of Sanandaj after Iran's security forces launched "an all-out military attack" on protesters.



In a video sent to RFERL's Radio Farda, security agents could be seen violently beating a protester in Tehran.

Another video posted on social media from the western city of Ilam showed police forces pursuing protestors.



Meanwhile, striking workers have been reported in several cities across the country in recent days, especially in southern areas where Iran's oil industry is located, one of the few sectors of the economy able to bring in money for the government.



The Free Union of Iranian Workers announced on October 12, that more than 30 contract workers in the Asalouyeh petrochemical plants have been arrested by security forces for their protests.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Hundreds of thousands of Russians have fled their country since President Vladimir Putin announced a "partial" mobilization on September 21. We asked men who have crossed the borders into Georgia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan what they think about the war in Ukraine.
Before an assemblage of Russias ruling elites late last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin attempted to redefine Moscows flagging war against Ukraine by claiming to annex four more Ukrainian regions, adding that the status of those areas as Russian would never be negotiable and that Moscow would defend the newly grabbed territory by all necessary means  which many observers took as a threat to use nuclear weapons.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy responded immediately by saying there could be no political talks with Russia until Putin was out and by pressing for Ukraines accelerated admission into NATO.



With the attempted land grab, Putin created a new narrative in which the war was no longer a Russian intervention inside Ukraine against Ukrainian troops but a defensive war on Russian territory against a hostile NATO.



The Kremlins attempt to annex the Ukrainian territories was another example of Putins government creating an alternative reality, says historian Nathaniel Knight, who teaches Russian and East European history at Seton Hall University in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

Either Putin wins and forces Ukraine and the West to accept the annexations or -- and this seems most likely the way things are going now -- he suffers a crushing defeat.

But real life is destroying these fantasies, Knight told RFE/RLs Russian Service in a Russian-language interview.



Putins move and his veiled nuclear saber-rattling have ramped up the standoff between Russia and the West, with analysts such as David Kramer, a former State Department official who is now a fellow at the Washington-based McCain Institute, urging that Western leaders not be paralyzed.



The only correct reaction to these threats is expanding military aid to Ukraine to help it win the war and be prepared for any turn of events, he told RFE/RL. Any weakening of support for Ukraine would be a mistake, and we are not seeing this.



Far-Fetched Scenarios



Although Kyiv and the West rejected Moscows annexation gambit as an outrageous violation of international law unworthy of serious consideration, the move had an effect that could prove momentous, analysts say: It shut off most, if not all, possible compromise off-ramps from the conflict for both Putin and the West, leaving room only for more dramatic outcomes.



For Russia, the only possible winning scenario that could boost Putins power and popularity would be a military blitzkrieg, says Yury Yarym-Agayev, a human rights activist and head of the U.S.-based Center for the Study of Totalitarian Ideology. If Russia managed in the course of a few days and without major losses to eliminate the Kyiv government, that would be a step toward strengthening Putins power and popularity inside Russia. But I think a victory for Russia is practically impossible.

[Putin could] withdraw his troops and strengthen control and terror inside [Russia], working to get rid of many people [he considers] dangerous at home."

It is widely believed that Putin expected Russian forces would unseat the Ukrainian government within days of the invasion on February 24, but their advance toward Kyiv was repulsed, and many analysts believe there is little or no chance that a second attempt could succeed.



Either Putin wins and forces Ukraine and the West to accept the annexations or -- and this seems most likely the way things are going now -- he suffers a crushing defeat, Knight says. He should have stepped back earlier.



Putins annexation gambit also reduced maneuvering room for the West, making the idea of compromise with Moscow even less palatable than it had been. Voices of so-called realists who have been urging negotiations with Moscow, even at the expense of Ukraines sovereignty, have been largely silenced.



Of course, there are those in the United States who see any possible outcome as better than a nuclear war, Knight says. But I think everyone understands this is a very dangerous precedent that would mean that any madman or dictator from North Korea, Pakistan, or anywhere with nuclear weapons can just say: Do what I want or there will be nuclear war. This would be intolerable.



For the West, he says, the only way to avoid such a precedent with certainty would be a total defeat of Russia, comparable to what Germany experienced after World War II, including a complete change of leadership[with] some sort of filtration or lustration that would remove all those who are involved with what is going on now.

Maybe we are even talking about military occupation like what happened in Japan and Germany after World War II, he says. Could this happen in Russia? It doesnt seem realistic to me.



Yarym-Agayev describes a similar scenario, adding as well the issue of massive war reparations, the return of other seized territories such as Georgias South Ossetia and Abkhazia and [Moldovas] Transdniester region," and denuclearization.



Trouble At Home



In addition to attempting a land grab in Ukraine, Putin recently launched a military mobilization drive that has proved highly unpopular and, Kramer says, has shown him how weak Russian support for the war may actually be.

If Russia managed...to eliminate the Kyiv government, that would be a step toward strengthening Putins power and popularity. But I think a victory for Russia is practically impossible.

Yes, Putin has mobilized the country, he says, pointing to the protests that have cropped up around the country and the enormous number of Russians who have fled the country to evade the call-up. But it is not the mobilization that he had in mind.



As the domestic situation, despite years of harsh repression of dissent, becomes increasingly tense, Putin may be forced to devote more of his attention to simply remaining in power -- and could turn to even greater repressions as a result.



In this case, mobilization might not be a practical solution to military problems but rather the transition to a new level of control over society, says sociologist Sergei Yerofeyev, who teaches at Rutgers University, also in New Jersey.



[Putin could] withdraw his troops [from Ukraine] and strengthen control and terror inside the country, working to get rid of many people [he considers] dangerous at home, Yerofeyev says. I have in mind not just the elite but ordinary people -- mass repressions. I think these are realistic possibilities. Putin is not cornered.

WATCH: As Russia bombed cities across Ukraine on October 10, fighting continued to rage along the front lines in the east of the country. Artillery battles erupted in the hotly contested Donetsk region near Bakhmut, a strategic city in the Donbas.



Knight says that decisive setbacks in the war against Ukraine could lead to a weakening of central power in Russia, potentially resulting in chaos.



The collapse of Russian statehood is a terrifying possibility, he says, noting that Putin has spent years trying to make himself seem like the sole guarantor of stability in the country and cutting off alternative development paths.



Yarym-Agayev, however, argues the situation in Russia is becoming increasingly revolutionary, but not necessarily violent. Many people, he says, predicted civil war and mass violence when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, but those predictions went largely unrealized.



I foresee a revolutionary change, he says, not the replacement of Putin by [hard-line insider Yevgeny] Prigozhin or [Kremlin-installed Chechen strongman Ramzan] Kadyrov. No, they will all run away. This will be a revolutionary change. But the word revolutionary doesnt mean violence or an armed uprising. It means changes in state structures and in the policies of the people who come to power."
Oksana Leontyeva was killed on October 10 after a Russian rocket hit her car in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. She was traveling to the hospital where she worked as a cancer doctor after having dropped off her 5-year-old son, Hrysha, at his kindergarten. Hrysha's father died suddenly of a heart attack a year ago and his grandparents will now become his guardians.
1 Founded in 1794 by the Russian Empress Catherine the Great as a military and commercial port for the Black Sea and Mediterranean regions, Odesa is the only Ukrainian city that has preserved its 18th- and early 19th-century structures.



The Monument to the Founders of Odesa, also known as the Monument to Empress Catherine the Great, stands above the city square.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said the alliance will "not be intimidated" by Russia's "nuclear rhetoric" after a two-day meeting of the alliance's defense ministers in Brussels.

Stoltenberg on October 13 called the rhetoric dangerous and reckless, and said that Russia knows that the use of a nuclear weapon against Ukraine "will have severe consequences."

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, Russian protests, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

Stoltenberg declined to give any details on NATO's potential response but said even the use of a small nuclear weapon would be very serious, "fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine."

Stoltenberg also said NATO would monitor Russia's annual nuclear drills very closely, as it has done for decades.

The NATO chief was apparently referring to annual exercises in which Russia tests its nuclear-capable bombers, submarines, and missiles. The exercise normally takes place in late October.

NATO has vowed to go ahead with its own nuclear exercise next week. Dubbed Steadfast Noon, it will involve NATO-member air forces flying training flights without live weapons to practice how to use U.S. nuclear bombs based in Europe.

Canceling the drills because of the war in Ukraine would have sent a "very wrong signal," Stoltenberg said earlier this week.

Recent Russian military setbacks in Ukraine have raised concerns that President Vladimir Putin might follow through on threats to use nuclear weapons.

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell echoed Stoltenberg in sending his own strong message to the Kremlin in response to Putin's veiled threats about the use of nuclear weapons.

"Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer, but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated," Borrell said.

The NATO alliance has stopped short of threatening to use its nuclear arsenal to respond, as Ukraine is not covered by its mutual self-defense clause.

Earlier on October 13, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin reaffirmed Washington's commitment to defend "every inch" of NATO territory.

Austin spoke shortly before attending a meeting by NATO's Nuclear Planning Group, which is the alliance's senior body on nuclear issues and handles policy associated with its nuclear forces.

On the sidelines of the meeting, a group of 13 NATO members and Finland, which is in the process of joining the alliance, signed a letter of intent to procure air defense systems such as the Arrow 3 and Patriot.

Some NATO members have been looking to improve their air-defense systems in the wake of Russia's unprovoked war in Ukraine. Others need to replace or upgrade systems after giving weaponry to Ukraine.

On October 12, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group comprising some 50 countries announced at a meeting in Brussels the delivery of new air defenses and committed more military aid to Kyiv to protect against Russia's indiscriminate missile attacks across the country.

Russia has launched waves of missile strikes on several regions of Ukraine for four days in a row, bombing multiple cities, including Kyiv, as reprisals for a blast at the weekend that damaged the only bridge between Moscow-annexed Crimea and mainland Russia.

Pledges from allies included an announcement by France that it would deliver radar and air defense systems to Ukraine in the coming weeks. Canada said it would provide artillery rounds and winter clothing among other supplies.

Germany has sent the first of four planned IRIS-T SLM air-defense systems, while Washington said it would speed up delivery of a promised NASAMS air-defense system.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP
Yemen: Briefing and Consultations

Tomorrow (13 October), the Security Council will convene for its monthly briefing, followed by consultations, on Yemen. Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg and Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya are expected to brief. Head of the UN Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) Major General Michael Beary will brief during the consultations.

Yemens truce, which had been in place since April and was extended twice, expired on 2 October, despite intensive efforts to renew and expand the truce agreement. In the run-up to its expiry, Grundberg visited Riyadh on 26 September, meeting with the President of Yemens Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) Rashad Al-Alimi and senior Saudi officials, and Muscat on 27 September, where he met senior Omani officials and the chief negotiator of the Houthi rebel group Mohammed Abdulsalam. From 28 to 29 September, Grundberg visited Sanaa, where he met Mahdi Al-Mashat, the Chairman of the Houthis Supreme Political Council, among other officials, engaging in intense discussions on how to pay salaries for civil servants as well as issues around the ports, airport and maintaining calm on the front lines, according to the Special Envoys Office. These efforts were supported by a flurry of other diplomatic engagements, including a 30 September statement by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging the Yemeni parties to renew and expand the truces terms and duration based on the Special Envoys proposal. Oman sent a delegation to Sanaa, as it had done in July ahead of the truces last renewal, to help secure an agreement.

The latest proposal that Grundberg had submitted to the parties before the truces expiry, which he described in a statement on 2 October shortly after the truce lapsed, entailed a six-month renewal, the payment of civil servant salaries and pensions, the opening of specific roads in Taiz and other governorates, additional flight destinations from Sanaa airport, unhindered entry of fuel ships into Hodeidah port, a commitment to urgently release detainees, and the strengthening of de-escalation mechanisms through the Military Coordination Committee (MCC). (The MCC, which is overseen by the Special Envoys military adviser, manages the military aspects of the truce and facilitates dialogue.) The longer truce period of six months, instead of its customary two-month renewals, aimed to give space to start negotiations on a formal ceasefire, the resumption of an inclusive political process, and talks on wider economic issues.

In his 2 October statement, Grundberg said that he would continue to engage the parties to reach an agreement, while calling on the sides to maintain calm and refrain from any actions that could escalate violence. Despite reported clashes in several parts of Yemen, including in Marib and Taiz governorates, it seems that there has been no significant resumption of fighting or military operations since the truce expired. At tomorrows briefing, Grundberg is likely to repeat his call for calm in order to give space for negotiations to continue to re-establish the truce. He may call for the international communitys continued support in this regard.

The main obstacle during the recent talks was the Houthis position that their security forces be included in the salary payments of civil servants, which the government could not accept. In a 5 October press statement, Council members expressed deep disappointment over the lapsed truce extension deadline, and said that the Houthis maximalist demands in the final days of negotiations had hindered efforts to reach an agreement. Council members reiterated that they expect the parties to find a way forward to reinstate the truce.

At tomorrows meeting, Council members are expected to echo similar messages, and also to decry any actions that could exacerbate tensions. They are further likely to stress support for the Special Envoys mediation efforts. In this regard, members may be interested in Grundbergs fresh engagements with the sides: shortly after the truces expiry, Grundberg went to Riyadh, and recently completed a visit to Abu Dhabi. Yesterday (11 October), the US announced that its Special Envoy to Yemen, Timothy Lenderking, was travelling to the region to support UN-led negotiations for a truce extension and expansion.

Msuya will be briefing from Yemen, where she is on a mission from 8 to 15 October; she will share observations and reflect on her engagements during the visit. According to a press release at the start of the mission, Msuya was expected to meet with people affected by the conflict, Yemeni officials, UN agencies, and local and international non-governmental organisations, to discuss pressing challenges and humanitarian solutions. She was also to visit sites hosting internally displaced people (IDPs) in Marib and Hodeidah governorates to discuss their challenges. Over 4.3 million people have been displaced since the start of the war in 2015, with 1.6 million people dispersed across more than 2400 sites. Assistance programmes for IDPs have only received some 20 percent of this years required funds, with $230 million urgently needed to sustain programmes, such as those providing life-saving emergency shelter and non-food items to newly displaced people, until the end of the year, according to a 9 October OCHA humanitarian update on Yemen.

Msuya may similarly encourage the parties to reinstate the truce agreement and highlight the humanitarian benefits brought by the six-month armistice. According to OCHAs humanitarian update, fuel imports through Hodeidah port during the truce were more than triple the total fuel imports through the port in 2021. The truce allowed the opening of Sanaa airport to commercial flights for the first time since 2016; 50 round-trip flights between Sanaa and Amman and one flight between Sanaa and Cairo carried 26,642 passengers. The monthly rate of people displaced declined by 76 percent, and there was a 54.3-percent decrease in civilian casualties, from 2,051 (including 630 deaths) during the six months preceding the truce, to 936 (including 288 fatalities) between 2 April and 21 September 2022, according to data from the Civilian Impact Monitoring Project. More than one-third of these casualties were from unexploded ordnance and landmines, which increased by more than 38 percent during the truce, partly due to torrential rains and flooding in July and August that caused these explosive materials to shift.

During her briefing, Msuya may also update the Council on the planned salvage operation of the FSO Safer oil tanker moored off the coast of Hodeidah governorate. On 17 September, the Netherlands announced a pledge of 7.5 million euros for the UN-facilitated plan to prevent a major oil spill from the vessel. The announcement by the Netherlandswhich made an initial pledge in May, also of 7.5 million eurosmeant that the UN had the $75 million required to begin the emergency phase of the operation to transfer the oil from the FSO Safer to a temporary vessel.

During consultations, General Beary is expected to report that since the truce expired, the situation has remained stable and there has been no significant uptick in violence in Hodeidah. He may describe how UNMHA has continued to carry out activities to expand its footprint, including by increasing patrols and engaging the parties to ensure its freedom of movement, deploy personnel and address grievances. Since June, UNMHA has established a permanent presence in the government-held port city of Mokha, in addition to Hodeidah city, and maintains offices in Aden and Sanaa.

For more information, see Security Council Reports Yemen brief in its October monthly forecast.
Page Content

Here's the scene: You're an HR professional, and you realize the 2022 midterm elections are less than a month away. You start thinking about how you can prevent the great political divide from becoming a great workplace divide. As you cogitate, you notice a sales employee wearing a button in support of her preferred political candidate.

You ask her to remove the button because you have customers with diverse political views. She says no, promising to file a case with the Supreme Court because you are violating her First Amendment rights. Note to SCOTUS: We hope you enjoy her as much as we do.

"Well," you tell her, "First Amendment restrictions do not apply to private employers. The First Amendment restricts only government action." She says you are "so wrong," but complies.

You continue down the hallway and see two employees wearing buttons referencing two different political issues:

One employee's button encourages employers to cover abortion services under their group health plans.

The other employee's button calls for greater border control to preserve U.S. jobs.

Thinking of the First Amendment, you tell both employees, "Off with the buttons." And the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) responds, "Off with your head!"

If political buttons relate to terms and conditions of employment, they may be protected under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Indeed, the current general counsel of the NLRB has issued an advice memo on this issue, so we know it is top of mind for the agency.

You go to your office, and you hear two employees fighting over the election. Neither can believe their colleague would consider voting for the other candidate. Time to play referee. You focus on the disruption caused by the fight without regard to the content of their argument, since the NLRB likely would allow employers to focus on the disruption, if substantial, even if the issues discussed were work-related.

You go back to your office and close the door. The phone rings. A manager asks, "If I allow an employee to solicit for one candidate during his working time, do I have to grant equal access to another employee soliciting for the other candidate during her working time?" You reach into your pocket and take a pill. (Yes, it was lawfully prescribed after the last holiday party.)



Political affiliation is not considered a protected group by federal law or by most state and local laws. But forget the law; you don't want to alienate a sizable portion of your workers, customers or business partners. However, allowing solicitation uniformly is not the answer to this question. A uniform exception to your no-solicitation rule during an employee's working time would allow employees to solicit uniformly for unions during their working time.

After you talk with the manager, he asks you, as a friend, who you favor in the Senate race. You consider changing the topic to something less controversial.

Emotions are running hot, and they will only get hotter. When the election is over, you need to work together. People often perceive attacks on their favored candidates as attacks on themselves. So respond to the manager only if you have a strong relationship that is beyond merely professional and you are confident you both can survive knowing you may vote differently. And always consider your power; that may affect how your comments are perceived.

You breathe deeply and begin to relax until you hear an employee making discriminatory comments about a protected group. Now you can't be neutral. If bias is involved, you cannot put up with it. You must respond proactively to disparaging comments about Venezuelans, Evangelical Christians, Black women, white men or any protected group. If you are in a position of power, to ignore is to condone.

One of your colleagues is concerned that the political talk at work is becoming increasingly divisive even where it is not discriminatory. Are there any guidelines that can be developed? Sure.

For all employees in general, as well as HR and other leaders in particular, there is a big difference between stating one's political views and attacking those with opposing political views. For instance, let's take an easy example to the extreme, knowing most cases won't be as obvious: "I support [X]" versus "You would have to be a [insert insulting word] to support [Y]." Generally speaking, HR should allow the former and take appropriate corrective action with regard to the latter (not based on political view, but on how it was expressed).

There also is a big difference between stating one's views in a calibrated tone versus in an inflammatory way. Again, let's take an easy example to the extreme. "While I appreciate others have different views, I believe  " versus "You would have to be a [insert insulting term] not to support  " And, again, generally speaking, HR should allow the former and take appropriate corrective action with regard to the latter.

Soon the election will be over, and you can return to the halcyon days of the holiday season and all the workplace issues that go with it. Then you can refill your prescription.

Jonathan A. Segal is a partner at Duane Morris in Philadelphia and a SHRM columnist. Follow him on Twitter @Jonathan_HR_Law.
Page Content

India's Supreme Court recently observed in a ruling that social welfare benefits should extend to same-sex couples and unmarried partners, even though local laws don't officially address them.

Diversity experts have said these remarks are a welcome step in helping change attitudes in India, but they also agree there's a long way to go before most organizations offer benefits to employees' same-sex or unmarried partners.

To be sure, some employers, especially multinational and technology companies, have been pushing in recent years to make their India units more diverse, but the number of organizations doing this is small.

"The percentage of those that have been progressive is very, very limited," said Tina Vinod, Bengaluru-based global head of diversity, equity and inclusion at Thoughtworks, a technology consulting firm.

For companies to recognize and provide benefits to a broader array of staff and families, they first need to ensure the rest of their employees accept these relationships, experts said.

"Organizations are shying away from asking that question," said Ajay Solanki, a leader in the labor and employment law practice at Nishith Desai Associates in Mumbai.

Question Before the Court

The Supreme Court's remarks came about in a case by a petitioner seeking maternity leave. The petitioner, an employee of a government-run organization, was denied maternity leave for her biological child because she had previously received child care leave for two children that her husband had from a previous marriage.

The petitioner's leave eligibility was governed by the rules for government employees, which state that a female government employee can avail herself of a maximum of 730 days of leave during the course of her government service, for up to two children. This leave can be taken with breaks over the years and can be used for looking after children of any age.

The petitioner's organization said that because she had secured leave to care for her nonbiological children, her biological child would be considered a third child, for which the law does not provide child care leave. A high court upheld this stance.

However, the Supreme Court rejected the high court's ruling, saying that the petitioner should not have to suffer for first becoming a mother in a nontraditional way.

"The black letter of the law must not be relied upon to disadvantage families which are different from traditional ones," said the order of the two-judge bench.

The court added that the definition of "family" goes beyond the traditional norm of husband, wife and children. It may take the form of "domestic, unmarried partnerships or queer relationships. Such atypical manifestations of the family unit are equally deserving not only of protection under law, but also of the benefits available under social welfare legislation," it ruled.

Landscape of Family

In some ways, Indian organizations are liberal when defining family, given India's culture of large families living together. For instance, in the eastern state of Assam, dependents who can claim compensation for an employee's death include siblings, grandparents, children born to unwed parents and even widows who were supported by their parents-in-law.

Some private companies that provide medical insurance to their employees give an option to extend the benefit to up to four dependents, which can include the employee's parents or parents-in-law.

"The concept of family is very unique in India," said Mansee Singhal, rewards consulting leader for India and South Asia at Mercer Consulting (India) in Bengaluru.

At the same time, the construct of family is changing in India, especially with regard to same-sex partners. "Therefore, there's a need to realign benefits," Singhal said.

Changes in the legal landscape help. In 2018, the Supreme Court effectively abolished a colonial-era law that criminalized same-sex relations. As a result, more companies started offering benefits and policies to support their LGBTQ employees, Singhal said.

Ideally, acceptance of staff and their familiesregardless of identity or demographicshould pervade the policies of all Indian employers, experts say. At Thoughtworks, for instance, policies on benefits and leave use the word "partners" rather than "spouses" when describing coverage, Nair said. She added that the company's policy for the prevention of sexual harassment is also gender-neutral.

However, experts say creating policies is not enough unless the company follows through with educating and sensitizing the rest of the staff, which remains a challenge.

"LGBTQ is culturally not accepted in the traditionalist view of what India is today," Nair said. She hopes the recent remarks by the country's highest court could help shift some of those views.

"These things matter, and the [Supreme Court] says the definition of family is much broader," she said.

Shefali Anand is a New Delhi-based journalist and former correspondent for The Wall Street Journal. You can follow her on Twitter.
Page Content

Starbucks is defending itself from claims that it has engaged in unfair labor practices at several sites in response to unionization efforts. A National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) judge recently concluded that the company violated the law in Michigan. The company denies any violations. We've gathered articles from SHRM Online and other media outlets on the news.

Ex-Starbucks Manager Testified Against Company

A former Starbucks manager in the Buffalo, N.Y., area testified before a labor board judge recently that Starbucks officials told him to single out pro-union employees for disciplinary action. Managers who were sent to his store after the union effort went public read him a list of pro-union employees, he said. In one case, the testifying manager added, he was encouraged by a district manager to go through the files of a longtime employee to target her with disciplinary action. A district manager also allegedly told him to make sure at least one manager was always working at the store to discourage talk about the union.

Starbucks denied the testifying manager's claims and said it "respects the right of all partners to make their decisions regarding union issues, whether they favor or oppose representation."

(Vice News) and (Bloomberg)

Judge Found Starbucks Unlawfully Fired Worker



A worker at a Starbucks in Ann Arbor, Mich., was illegally fired after working to help her store unionize, according to an NLRB judge in a recent ruling. A Starbucks spokesperson issued a statement saying the company is disappointed with the judge's decision and plans to appeal.

(WEMU)

Violations Alleged in Texas

The NLRB has issued a complaint alleging a San Antonio store's lead union organizer was unlawfully fired. The complaint also alleges that Starbucks threatened employees they would lose benefits and the ability to transfer to other stores if they unionized and that the company attempted to engage in surveillance of union activities. After the store's union efforts became public, company managers allegedly began strict enforcement of certain policies, singling out pro-union workers.

In a statement, a Starbucks spokesperson responded, "We respect the right of all partners to make their decisions regarding union issues, whether they favor or oppose representation, and in all union dealings, including collective bargaining, we will always engage honestly and in good faith."

(Texas Public Radio)

Starbucks Agreed to Rehire Seven Fired Memphis Employees

Following a Sept. 6 appeals court ruling against Starbucks, the company agreed to rehire seven Memphis, Tenn., store employees it had fired after they participated in efforts to unionize.

(SHRM Online)

Union Drive at Starbucks Has Lost Momentum

More than 240 of Starbucks' approximately 9,000 corporate-owned U.S. stores have voted to unionize over the past year, following an initial victory in Buffalo, N.Y., last December.

The number of Starbucks stores petitioning to hold union elections has dropped dramatically in recent months. The flood of activity in the first half of the year, with a high of 71 petitions filed in March, gave way to a summer lull, with eight petitions filed in August. The NLRB is investigating more than 325 unfair labor practice charges brought by the union Workers United.

"We respect our partners' right to organize but believe the best future is created directly with partners and not a third party," company spokesman Reggie Borges said in a statement.

(Fortune) and (NPR)


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The Night of the 12th 

(M) 115 minutes

In the French mountains near Grenoble, a team of homicide detectives tries to solve a vicious crime, the murder by fire of a young woman called Clara Royer (Lula Cotton-Frapier). A title tells us the French police open files on about 800 new murders each year and 20 per cent remain unsolved.

Although clumsily worded, they are telling us this story will remain unsolved at the end. Thats fairly radical for a whodunnit, but Dominik Moll is one of the most proficient directors in France of mystery thrillers (Only The Animals, Lemming, Harry, Hes Here to Help). This one does not disappoint. The film is about the impact of the case on those who try to solve it - from the dour head of the team, Captain Yohan (Bastien Bouillon), to the six or seven men, and eventually one woman, who work under him.

Captain Yohan (Bastien Bouillon) and Marceau (Bouli Lanners) investigate a vicious murder in The Night of the 12th. Credit:Potential Films

After the jolt of seeing the crime, which is horrible even when filmed in long shot, we notice one unusual thing: French detectives habitually eat together in the office like firemen. That may seem oddly French - and it is - but it underlines the collegiate approach. In a British or American police, the investigator is more often a lone wolf, perhaps with a partner.
November, 1981. Mike Nock is in a studio in Oslo, recording what would become a seminal album in his long career: Ondas. He and the rest of his trio (bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Jon Christensen) are approaching what they think is the end of the atmospheric, slow-rolling piece Forgotten Love. Theyre fading into silence when they see ECM label boss Manfred Eicher in the control room, gesticulating wildly at them through the glass: Keep going! Keep playing!

So they resume their rolling lilt, eventually producing a 15-minute masterpiece of musical hypnosis.

New Zealand jazz pianist Mike Nock ahead of his appearance at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival and the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz. Credit:Rhett Wyman

Its recollections like these that make talking to Nock so entertaining. Now 82, the exuberant New Zealand-born, Sydney-based pianist has a lifetime of stories to share, and an abundance of insights to accompany them. Were talking about Ondas, among other things, because hes about to revisit this repertoire at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival (MIJF), 40 years after the albums release.

Nock hadnt listened to the album for several decades when he was invited to present it earlier this year in Sydney, and found the prospect daunting but exciting.
Electric Vehicle sales have risen 65 per cent in 2022 compared to last year and now represent 3.4 per cent of all vehicle sales, but still well behind the global average of 8.6 per cent.

The Tesla Model 3 continued to dominate EV sales in 2022, accounting for one-third of new EVs sold.

The ACT recorded the strongest EV sales in 2022, with 9.5 per cent of all new vehicles there being electric, followed by NSW (3.7%), Victoria (3.4%), Queensland (3.3%), Tasmania (3.3%), Western Australia (2.8%), South Australia (2.3%), and the Northern Territory (0.8%), a report by the Electric Vehicle Council released today found.

Australia is near the back of the pack for EV policy, the Electric Vehicle Council says. Credit:Owen Humphreys/PA

There has been a 22 per cent increase in fast and ultra-fast charger locations across the country since 2021, with about 350 chargers now available.

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Electric Vehicle Council spokesman Dr Jake Whitehead said while progress is welcome, Australia remains well behind many countries for EV sales and policy.

To put our 3.4 per cent (EV sales) in context  Germany sits at 26 per cent, the UK at 19 per cent, and California at 13 per cent. The global average is 8.6 per cent, Whitehead said.

Because our governments have lagged the world on EV policy, Australia is still something of an afterthought for global EV manufacturers.

Australian consumers have a smaller range of EVs to choose from and they are also being forced to wait for many months or even years to take delivery of new vehicles.

If Australia did not introduce fuel efficiency standards on par with the EU and the US we would continue to lag the world by a huge margin, Whitehead said.
Two men and a woman have been charged following fresh raids in connection with a dramatic drug bust this year, in which police cars were allegedly rammed by a truck carrying $50 million worth of cocaine.

Police said a transnational drug syndicate operating out of Britain was dismantled in July after a joint operation between Australian and British authorities thwarted their alleged attempt to import and distribute 125 kilograms of cocaine, which arrived in NSW hidden inside an industrial generator.

Police arrested three men over their alleged involvement in an international syndicate importing drugs earlier this year. Credit:NSW Police

The joint operation, codenamed Phobetor, led police to raid a property at Cawdor on Sydneys south-western fringe on July 19. Detectives allegedly witnessed a generator being unloaded, then saw a van and truck leave the property and begin driving along the M7 towards the city.

Police tried to stop the vehicles near Horsley Park, where it is alleged the driver of the truck, Daniel Skaines, rammed the vehicle into multiple police cars and kept driving.
About 50,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water will be released early from the south-easts major drinking water and flood storage dam.

A two-week lowering of Wivenhoe Dam from 90 to 80 per cent capacity, freeing up about 116,000 megalitres of flood mitigation capacity, comes after the weather bureau warned of a higher chance of widespread flooding.

To coincide, the government will apply an automatic $55 discount on the next quarterly water bills of more than 1 million south-east Queensland residents as a cost-of-living measure, Queensland Water Minister Glenn Butcher told parliament.

Parliament resumed this week for the first time in six weeks, after a postponement during the national period of mourning after the Queens death, where the government has been lashed over health and budget overruns.
An acclaimed restaurant in the heart of an upmarket Brisbane suburb has been smeared by an anti-Israel campaign, with someone accusing the owners of burying Palestinians and selling their food off as their own.

The owners of Yababa, on Paddingtons Baroona Road, have been targeted with hateful online messages about their business, as well as vulgar graffiti on the footpath at the entrance.

This week Yababa was targeted in what is the restaurants second hateful attack.

Outside the highly rated restaurant, someone wrote: Stolen Palestinian food. Zionists. F--- off.

On Instagram, someone posted a photo of Yababas menu, adding: What, stolen and soaked in blood? Sounds tempting.
Twenty-eight residents of Meckering, 84 miles east of Perth, were injured. Sixteen had been admitted to Cunderdin Hospital, 15 miles away, last night.

PERTH - The wheatbelt town of Meckering (pop. 250) was flattened by the earthquake which rocked Perth and other towns across the southern half of Western Australia at 11 am. yesterday.

First published in The Age on October 15, 1968

Meckering was a scene of utter devastation. Everywhere you looked you could only see demolished houses, said Mr Desmond Berry, of Mount Pleasant, last night. He was in the town an hour after the quake struck.

In Perth the earthquake recorded six on the Richter scale - the highest since a 6.75 tremor struck in 1941. The damaging jolts came over four minutes.

As the city racked and masonry fell to the streets, terrified Perth residents fled from backs of flats, homes and office buildings.

In York, 60 miles east of Perth, three men were injured when the balcony of the two-storied Imperial Hotel collapsed on to Yorks main street.

The tremor was also felt in Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Esperance and Albany.
One of the last remaining COVID-19 restrictions in Western Australia was lifted on Friday, with positive cases no longer required to isolate for five days.

The removal of the rule was agreed upon at a National Cabinet meeting on September 30, with Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly saying the emergency response to COVID-19 was probably finished.

Mandatory masks are no more  as is isolation for positive COVID-19 cases. Credit:Getty

But what rules remain, and how should we approach the virus moving forward?

Since the start of the pandemic, 1.15 million coronavirus cases have been recorded in Western Australia, with around 369 people dying from the virus as of August according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Qantas flight attendants are outraged at the airlines diabolical attempt to slash two hours off their rest times, claiming it will leave them only seven hours to sleep in some cases.

Under a confidential EBA proposal sent to Qantas cabin crew in August, flight attendants would have their minimum rest periods reduced from 12 to 10 hours.

Flight attendants are taking their fight against Qantas proposed EBA to the Fair Work Commission. Credit:SHUTTERSTOCK

Qantas is also seeking to increase shifts from 9.45 hours to 12 hours in duration, with an allowance for some shifts to blow out to 14 hours in unplanned circumstances.

The proposal comes amid controversy over Qantas chief executive Alan Joyces $287,000 pay rise and widespread customer service problems.
Chinese ambassador Xiao Qian is the local face of a superpower on the rise, an increasingly assertive nation with a population and economy that dwarf Australias.

Despite well-publicised recent trade disputes, China remains Australias top export market, its largest source of international students and most valuable source of tourism dollars.

Yet rather than puffed up with a sense of his own importance, Beijings man in Canberra is clearly disappointed by how long it is taking, and how difficult it is proving, to achieve a substantial reset in the Australia-China relationship.

Ambassador Xiao Qian at the Chinese embassy in Canberra. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Xiao is an experienced official, having previously been posted to Ethiopia, India, the United States, Philippines and Hungary. Most recently, he was Chinas ambassador to Indonesia. The fact Beijing chose to send him to Australia shows the importance it places on repairing relations with Australia.
Warning: This story contains graphic content

Bruce Lehrmann described the evening he spent drinking with colleagues on March 22, 2019 as an innocuous night when giving police his account of events in the hours before he is accused of raping his fellow political staffer Brittany Higgins in Parliament House.

In a recorded police interview played to the jury in the second week of his sexual assault trial, Lehrmann said he never went into Linda Reynolds office the night Higgins alleges she woke to him having sex with her on the senators couch.

Bruce Lehrmann arriving at court on Friday morning. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Lehrmann told police in the interview in April 2021 it was possible he could have acted intimately with Higgins during a night out with colleagues, but denied raping her in the early hours of the next morning in Reynolds office, and said, I wouldnt dream about going into the ministers office at all.

Asked whether he behaved intimately with Higgins, he said, I know we were close, but I just cant remember. He agreed it was possible but said his behaviour wouldnt have gone beyond flirtatious.

He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of sexual intercourse without consent.

Read the full story here.
Voters would prefer to see a famous Australian on the $5 note rather than seeing King Charles replace Queen Elizabeth on the currency, but there is no clear majority for either option amid a growing debate about the most worthy candidates to gain the honour.

Only 34 per cent of Australians name King Charles as their choice for the countrys most widespread banknote while 43 per cent would rather see somebody else, such as a famous Australian, given the position and another 23 per cent are undecided.

A narrow majority of Coalition voters  51 per cent  want the new monarch on the note but only 31 per cent of Labor voters and just 13 per cent of Greens voters share that view, highlighting the political gulf in a decision being debated within the government.

The exclusive survey, conducted by Resolve Strategic for this masthead, found that 47 per cent of Labor voters wanted an Australian on the note but only 32 per cent of Coalition voters took the same view, compared to 69 per cent of Greens voters.
SafeWork was created in 2015 when the then-states workers compensation scheme, WorkCover, was split into three entities: icare, SIRA and SafeWork. It was set up as an independent statutory body responsible for regulating work, health and safety and reducing work-related fatalities, serious injuries and illnesses. However, SafeWork was absorbed into the Department of Customer Service with neither a separate board, nor CEO, nor an oversight body. Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello during a budget estimates hearing. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Described by insiders as the departments poor cousin, it has been accused of succumbing to political interference, including in a survey obtained by the Herald. The Public Service Association (PSA) survey conducted in late 2020 found that 20 per cent  one in five inspectors  believed political pressure was behind orders not to issue a contravention notice to a business even when they believed they had evidence of safety contraventions. This included one case where someone died, and several that involved serious incidents.

It cited one inspector saying he had been asked not to attend a site for inspection to not upset the government agency. Another said the agency had lost its identity and was not independent any more. Forty-two per cent of respondents said they had been instructed or pressured by a manager or director to recommend no further action be taken in cases where they had enough evidence to recommend prosecution. Loading The Herald spoke to a number of current and former inspectors, bureaucrats and experts, who described SafeWork as an absent regulator suffering from cultural problems including bullying, as well as structural problems. They said there was a lot of churn among employees due to bullying and not being listened to. The latest figures reveal that in the year to June 30, 26 inspectors have either resigned or retired from SafeWork. One said there were multiple examples where inspectors had recommended further investigations, fines or prosecutions for serious safety breaches that were ignored.

One former inspector, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution, told the Herald that SafeWork wasnt fit for purpose and had become a thin veneer of regulation and a safety system called luck. Another said staff were encouraged to shut up, see nothing, do nothing. Loading The Herald has obtained a briefing document for the Investigation Decision Making Panel (IDMP) at SafeWork titled Ongoing contraventions of the work health and safety legislation regarding friable asbestos removal by Byrne Demolition. It stated that in 2017, SafeWork inspectors went to a site and found serious contraventions including an 18-year-old woman breaking up friable asbestos material and not wearing a mask. Other contraventions stated in the document included subcontractors on the site not having the necessary training to handle friable asbestos or proper personal protective equipment including masks. A report from the inspectors recommended a full investigation, alleging Byrne was allowing contractors to dump 20 tonnes of friable asbestos at a public waste facility without being properly enclosed. The report said the company had an extensive compliance history under two entities and had received prohibition notices and improvement notices in relation to the matters. SafeWork dismissed the recommendation for a full investigation. Further, documents stated that it held discussions and meetings with Byrne Demolition and requested it make a submission into the risks of wrapping friable asbestos into trucks.

The NSW Ombudsman was asked to look into how SafeWork handled some matters, including Byrnes Demolition. In May 2020, a report from the Ombudsman said, The seriousness of the concerns about Byrnes Demolitions practices, coupled with the fact that it failed to provide a submission required of it as part of a program of compliance, warrants further consideration of whether any action should be taken in relation to Byrne. We have recommended to SafeWork that it should consider taking further action. A lawyer for Byrne said that in the companys view there was nothing to submit because no fines or prosecution applied. Inspectors reported being pressured by various internal and external stakeholders to either issue or not issue fines, notices or recommendations for prosecutions for serious safety breaches. Sophie Cotsis, opposition work health and safety spokeswoman, in a letter outlining her concerns A spokesman for Byrne said the report from the SafeWork inspector was bullshit. He said there were no fines, no court, no prosecutions in 30 years. He denied allegations that their workers were handling fried asbestos without proper equipment. In response to claims that 20 tonnes of friable asbestos was dumped without being properly wrapped, he said Byrne had taken 60 to 70 loads from other sites previously and at the time it was not a requirement to wrap it. We did nothing wrong, he said. The spokesman said he was told by a senior executive at SafeWork that it wasnt a requirement to wrap the asbestos, but wet it down and cover it. Cotsis welcomed the auditor-generals decision to review SafeWork, adding the need for action in fixing SafeWork was now.
A man has died at Capricorn Metals Karlawinda gold mine near Newman just two days after a fatality at Gold Fields Saint Ives mine near Kambalda.

Capricorn executive chair Mark Clark said everyone at the Perth-based miner was shocked and saddened by the death.

Another worker has died at a West Australian mine.

Our deepest thoughts and condolences go out to the MACA employees family, friends and colleagues, Clark said.

Mining at Karlawinda has been temporarily suspended, according to Capricorns statement to the ASX.
What in the World, a free weekly newsletter from our foreign correspondents, is sent every Thursday. Below is an excerpt. Sign up to get the whole newsletter delivered to your inbox.

Its been a sombre week in South-East Asia, to say the least.

First, there was the Indonesian football stadium disaster in which 131 people perished  suffocated or crushed in a rush to escape police tear gas. Then there was the daycare massacre in Thailand, in which 36 were murdered, among them 24 toddlers, most of whom were killed with a knife as they slept. Finally, there was the anniversary, here where I am in Bali, of an older wound, the Kuta bombings, which 20 years ago cruelly cut short or changed the lives of so many.

Relatives and friends mourn during a ceremony for those killed in the daycare centre attack at Uthai Sawan. Credit:AP

I spent last Friday and Saturday in Uthai Sawan, in Thailands north-east, where the daycare tragedy occurred. Driving into the small, rural town on the morning afterwards, it was hard to fathom how such an unimaginable crime had been carried out in its midst. Uthai Sawan is one of those places where everyone seems to know everyone else; no one in the community has been unaffected.
Denpasar: The first thing that should be said is that it had been a special day.

From early morning until evening on Wednesday, survivors of the Bali bombings and relatives and friends of the victims came to the memorial at ground zero, as its referred to on the island, to remember loved ones lost and to pay their respects 20 years on.

The video at the 20th anniversary in Bali of the 2002 Bali bombings.

Following an Australian government service at its consulate-general in the morning, the busy thoroughfare running past the monument at Kuta and the former Sari Club site was shut off to traffic from the afternoon, allowing hundreds to gather on the street for a Balinese-run ceremony in which the promotion of peace was the primary message.

For hours afterwards, as the sun set, people made their way up to the memorial and its honour board to the backdrop of gentle piano music, the setting ideal for a moment of reflection.
Helsinki: Many Finnish pharmacies ran out of iodine tablets on Wednesday, a day after the Nordic countrys health ministry recommended that households buy a single dose in a case of a radiation emergency amid increasing fears of a nuclear event due to Russias war in Ukraine.

An accident at a nuclear power plant could release radioactive iodine into the environment, which could build up in the thyroid gland, the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health said on Tuesday.

Fears for the region: a firefighter opens a box full of Iodine tablets in Poland. Credit:Getty

Chemists in many locations in Finland reported on Wednesday they had run out of iodine tablets as citizens rushed to purchase the medicine. Drug wholesalers also said their stockpiles were emptied out.

The ministry said the iodine tablet recommendation is limited to those aged 3-40 because of the potential risks that radiation exposure poses to that age group.
Kyiv: Russian missiles pounded more than 40 Ukrainian cities and towns, officials said on Thursday, after a UN General Assembly resolution called Moscows annexation of Ukrainian territory illegal and Ukraines allies committed more military aid.

Russia repeated its position that the West, by helping Ukraine, indicated that they are a direct party to the conflict and warned the admission of Ukraine to NATO could trigger World War III.

Russians shell Ukrainian positions in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine. Credit:AP

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three, deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Alexander Venediktov, told the state TASS news agency on Thursday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of the NATO military alliance at the end of September after Russian President Vladimir Putin held a ceremony in Moscow to proclaim four partially occupied regions as annexed Russian land.
Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz receives life sentence for killing 17 people

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Putin arrives in Kazakhstan to meet with Turkish President to discuss Ukraine war

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The Emma Foundation has relaunched Project Hope in Sight today for a second year on World Sight Day providing free prescription eyewear to vulnerable students ages 16 years and under.

The theme for this years celebration of World Sight Day, held today, Thursday, October 13, 2022, is Love Your Eyes. The theme emphasizes the need for awareness about eye health and the need for taking measures that protect eyesight. One of the key calls to action today is a pledge to get your eyes tested. The Emma Foundation would like to encourage the public and in particular, parents of children in primary and secondary schools to prioritize their eye health and schedule eye exams, especially if experiencing challenges with their vision. According to eye doctors, regular eye exams help to detect eye problems at their earliest stage, when they are most treatable.

This October, the Emma Foundation will visit primary and secondary schools to spread awareness about the importance of eye health as well as to inform school management about registration for Project Hope in Sight 2022. Students who are uninsured and in need of eye exams will also be assisted this October where possible. The foundation will also be requesting support from all schools to spread eye health awareness by displaying Love Your Eyes posters on campus.

Additionally, the Emma Foundation is launching its social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram today via the handle theemmafoundationsxm; where the public can acquire more information about the Love Your Eyes campaign, register students for Project Hope in Sight and become partners or sponsors of the organizations work. The foundation would like to thank all donors and sponsors and wishes the public a happy and healthy World Sight Day.
~Operation Trigger VII leads to more than 500 arrests across 19 countries.~

LYON, France:--- A joint firearms operation between INTERPOL and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) has led to the seizure of some 350 weapons, 3,300 rounds of ammunition, and record drug hauls across the Caribbean.

Operation Trigger VII (24 - 30 September) saw officers from 19 countries coordinate controls at airports, seaports, land borders, and inland hotspots, acting on intelligence pointing to organized crime groups and individuals involved in firearms trafficking. They also searched warehouses, inspected packages, and carried out targeted checks at firearms dealerships, shooting ranges, and private security companies.

Police made a total of 510 arrests during the week-long operation, including the subject of an INTERPOL Red Notice wanted for murder.

Trigger VII actions also led to the impressive seizure of 10.1 tonnes of cocaine and 2.5 tonnes of cannabis, highlighting the convergence of trafficking routes and the use of firearms used to control the illegal drug trade.

An operational hub was hosted by CARICOM IMPACS in Barbados. Officers from INTERPOL, the Joint Regional Communications Center (JRCC), the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), worked side-by-side to provide real-time assistance to officers in the field.

Pistols and bullets hidden in cereal boxes

When customs authorities in Dominica x-rayed a suspicious package, they sent information to the operational hub for checks on the sender and intended recipient. ATF and HSI queries their respective databases, and officers found multiple firearms purchases, placing the package under surveillance. When the recipient came to collect the shipment, police discovered 20 pistols and multiple rounds of ammunition hidden in cereal boxes. Investigations are continuing both in the United States and Dominica.

HSI and the Royal Bahamas Police Force worked closely on an international controlled delivery from Fort Lauderdale to Nassau. The package, which had been flagged in the US, was monitored throughout its shipment in order to seize two firearms and arrest the recipient.

A number of emerging trends were identified throughout the operation. In St Kitts and Nevis, for example, officers saw their first seizure of firearms assembled using 80 per cent pistol frames. Also known as ghost guns, these weapons are unserialized and untraceable as they are often completed at home using specialized kits, allowing individuals to bypass gun laws and checks.

Record drug seizures

Authorities in Jamaica, with support from US law enforcement, made a record-setting bust when they intercepted 500.2 kg of cocaine - worth approximately USD 25 million - about to be loaded onto a private jet bound for Canada. In a separate case, they also seized 500kg of cannabis.

In Curacao, the Coast Guard stopped vessels carrying a total of 3 tonnes of cocaine and 1.8 tonnes of cannabis. Authorities made 17 arrests in connection with the shipments, believed to have originated in Venezuela. Authorities in Bonaire made similar interceptions of cocaine en route from Venezuela, seizing nearly 4 tonnes.

Several countries reported reverse trafficking routes, an increasing trend, with seizures of cannabis coming from Canada and the United States into the Caribbean region.

Cannabis plants, forged US currency, stolen vehicles and vessels, contraband cigarettes, and alcohol were also seized during the operation.

The results of Operation Trigger VII show how firearms are clear enablers of most types of crime. When we go after their weapons, we also go after the full range of activities carried out by organized crime groups, said INTERPOL Secretary General Jurgen Stock.

The results also highlight the power of what law enforcement bodies can achieve when we work in a joint, coordinated manner, sharing information in real-time on cross-border investigations, the Secretary-General added.

Lt. Col. Michael Jones, Executive Director of CARICOM IMPACS, said: Without this cohesive action among agencies, our region will not be able to effectively tackle illicit trafficking and by extension, transnational organized crime.

Operation Trigger VII allowed authorities to gain a better understanding of existing threats, patterns, trends, and smuggling channels within the region, hence ultimately saving lives. I am indeed proud of the role CARICOM IMPACS played in the exercise and more so of its role as a coordination hub, concluded Mr. Jones.

Stephen Kavanagh, INTERPOLs Executive Director of Police Services, highlighted that the operation was the first joint effort between INTERPOL and CARICOM IMPACS against firearms and would likely yield results for months to come as investigations continue.

The operation was carried out under the framework of INTERPOLs Project Target, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

Participating countries:

Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bonaire, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, France (Guadeloupe and Martinique), Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Turks and Caicos, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On October 10th, 2022, Pro Soualiga delivered a report entitled "The Jus Cogens Right to Self-Determination As The Finalization Of Decolonization" based on twelve questions posed by the Vice Chair of the Decolonization Committee (CCAD) MP Grish Heyliger-Marten. MP Heyliger-Marten posed some pertinent questions to Pro Soualiga regarding our jus cogens or peremptory right to self-determination from which there is no deviation. Based on extensive research and empirical evidence, Pro Soualiga was able to clarify that Articles 2, 44, 50, and 51 of the Kingdom Charter should be screened by an independent body in order to ascertain whether they violate our peremptory right to self-determination. In July of 2022, the State Secretary affirmed that "In case of a conflict between a rule of international law with a peremptory character (i.e. the right to self-determination) and national legislation (i.e. Rijkswetten, Aanwijzingen, Koninklijke Besluiten, Algemene Maatregelen van Rijksbestuur etc.), international law takes precedence over such national legislation. The Dutch State further declared via its Written Statement of 2018 to the International Court of Justice that "..decisions on the political status and the economic, social and cultural developments are made by the people itself, or its legitimate representatives, not by others. Moreover, such decisions shall be made in full freedom, without any outside pressure or interference." The answer that Parliament must now seek from the Kingdom Council of Ministers is if St. Maarten has the jus cogens or peremptory right to make its own decisions regarding its economic, social and cultural development without any outside pressure or interference, how can the Dutch State appoint a governor on St. Maarten? How can Articles 44, 50, and 51 of the Kingdom Charter continue to function?
BONAIRE:--- The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) would like to extend a warm welcome to their newest team member, Frederique van Randwijck, who joined the team on 1 October 2022 to serve as a Relationship Manager. Together with DCNAs Fundraising Committee, local partners, and stakeholders, she will develop strategic plans to raise funds for nature conservation in the Dutch Caribbean.

Frederique brings a wealth of experience to the team. For many years, she served as a policy advisor at the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (Netherlands Fire Service) and the Ministry of Justice (Juvenile Institutions and Juvenile Protection).

Passion for Conservation

In 2016, Frederique started a new career as an account and fundraiser manager for the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF). It was here her passion for conservation, wildlife and nature deepened. This eventually led to her accepting an international position with WWF Zambia, where she lived and worked in Lusaka as a fundraiser advisor from 2021-2022.

Caribbean Bound

This is not Frederiques s first introduction to DCNA, in fact, she has served as a board member for DCNA for the past two years. Fortuitous timing aligned DCNAs need for an extra Relationship Manager with Frederiques desire for a new adventure.

I am eager to dive deeper into this beautiful part of the world and am looking forward to working together with partners, stakeholders, and colleagues to secure its beauty for present and future generations, stated Frederique

Frederique will work closely with DCNA's other Relationship Manager Maartje de Jonge.
Uranium Energy Corp and Rio Tinto Agree to a Transaction on the World-Class Development-Stage Roughrider Uranium Project in Canada

UEC to Acquire Roughrider from Rio Tinto for Total Consideration of $150 million comprised of $80 million in Cash and $70 million in UEC Stock

Cash Portion of the Consideration is Fully Funded with UECa?s $173 million of Cash and Liquid Assets on the Balance Sheet

UEC Welcomes Rio Tinto as a New Shareholder

Roughrider Acquisition Rationale and Highlights:

World-class Project in a Premier Uranium Mining Jurisdiction: Development-stage Roughrider Project has a non-current, historic resource of 58 million lbs at an average grade of 4.73% U3O8 situated in the eastern Athabasca Basin of Canada, where 10% of global uranium production was sourced in 2021.(1)(2)

Unlocking Value and Immediate Synergies with Recent UEX Acquisition: Roughrider will be a 100% owned cornerstone asset that when combined with recently acquired UEX Corporation (aUEXa) projects in the eastern Athabasca, positions UEC with a critical mass of resources to enhance future production plans. Recently acquired and nearby UEC projects to Roughrider include Raven-Horseshoe, Hidden Bay and Christie Lake.

Scaling up in Canadaa?s High-Grade Athabasca Basin: After Cameco and Orano, UEC now controls the largest diversified resource base, hosted in multiple assets in Canadaa?s Athabasca Basin.

Infrastructure, Nearby Operations and Long-Standing Uranium History: There are over 20 uranium deposits, five current and historically producing mines, and two uranium mills within a 100 km distance from Roughrider, providing excellent infrastructure for future development, including all-weather road infrastructure, an all-weather airstrip within seven km and robust electrical grid access, primarily generated from renewable hydroelectric sources.(3)

Leveraging a Decade of Development Work on Path to Production: Since acquiring Roughrider in 2012, Rio Tinto, one of the worlda?s largest and most experienced mine builders, advanced substantial pre-production and environmental baseline work including completion of dedicated geotechnical drilling, shaft vs. decline modelling, establishment of hydrogeological monitor wells, terrestrial and aquatic environmental assessments, heritage assessments, species at risk, and conceptual reclamation plan. This provides a strong foundation and substantial value for completion of upcoming technical reports, efficiently moving the Project forward to a production decision.(4)

Strong ESG Foundation: Starting from the environmental baseline work and ESG initiatives established by Rio Tinto, UEC intends to continue to develop and apply high industry standards in stakeholder engagement, safety, and environmental stewardship. UEC looks forward to engaging with local communities and other stakeholders in the Athabasca Basin in developing this Project for the benefit of future generations.

Fastest Growing Uranium Company in the World: UEC will have invested $570 million with the acquisitions of Uranium One Americas, Inc., UEX and Rio Tintoa?s Roughrider to build the largest diversified North American focused uranium company.

Corpus Christi, TX, and October 12, 2022 a Uranium Energy Corp (NYSE American: UEC, the aCompanya or aUECa  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/uranium-energy-corp/) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive agreement with a subsidiary of Rio Tinto plc (aRio Tintoa) pursuant to which UEC will acquire 100% of Rio Tintoa?s wholly-owned Roughrider uranium development project (aRoughridera or the aProjecta) located in the Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan, Canada (the aTransactiona).

Under the terms of the Transaction, upon close, Rio Tinto will receive $80 million in cash and 17,805,815 UEC common shares, valued at $70 million based on the 5-day VWAP of $3.93 per share as of October 7, 2022. The cash component of the Transaction will be fully funded using UECa?s existing balance sheet, which as of October 10, 2022 was over $173 million in cash and liquid assets.

Amir Adnani, President and CEO of UEC, stated: aWith this accretive fully funded acquisition of the Roughrider Project, wea?re able to achieve multiple objectives: 1) 100% owned, development-stage assets are rare in Canadaa?s Athabasca basin, and wea?re adding a world-class project to anchor our Canadian high-grade conventional business; 2) unlock value from the recently acquired UEX portfolio in the eastern Athabasca Basin as we now have critical mass to advance our production plans; and 3) accelerate production plans for our Canadian high-grade conventional business given the advanced stage of Roughrider and the first-tier ESG, geotechnical and permitting work completed by Rio Tinto since 2012.A We thank Rio Tinto for entrusting UEC with the Roughrider Project and welcome them as our new shareholder.a

Mr. Adnani concluded: aOur next steps for Roughrider will be to first complete an updated S-K 1300 technical report summary based on over 650 diamond drillholes already completed for a total of approximately 225,000 meters of drilling on the Project. UEC is currently engaging with consultants to develop a technical report update in the next few months. Second, UEC intends to progress permitting and a production study of Roughrider and optimize its integration with UECa?s existing Canadian platform.A The acquisition builds on our strategic objective to create the leading Western supplier of secure and 100% unhedged uranium with a two-pronged platform: 1) near-term, fully permitted and low-cost US ISR production; and 2) a Canadian high-grade conventional pipeline.a

Notes:

Subject to the completion of an S-K 1300 technical report summary by UEC after

World Nuclear Association a World Uranium Mining Production and Largest Producing Uranium Mines in 2021.

Cameco Corporation 2021 ESG Report, SaskPower System Map accessible at https://www.saskpower.com

Saskatchewan Environment Publication 2013-014, aRio Tinto a Roughrider Advanced Exploration Programa, accessible at http://www.environment.gov.sk.ca/2013-014EISMainDoc

About the Roughrider Uranium Project

The Roughrider Project is a development stage, conventional uranium project located in the eastern Athabasca Basin of northern Saskatchewan, Canada; one of the worlda?s premier uranium mining jurisdictions. The Project is located approximately 13 km west of Oranoa?s McClean Lake Mill, in close proximity to UECa?s existing Athabasca Basin properties, and covers an area of 597 hectares. The Roughrider West Zone was discovered by Hathor Exploration Ltd. (aHathora) during the winter drilling program in February 2008.

The Projecta?s geology is well understood due to the extensive study and drilling campaigns completed by Rio Tinto and Hathor. Hathor completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment, effective September 13, 2011 (the aHistoric Roughrider Technical Reporta)(1), which included the Roughrider East Zone and Roughrider West Zone and contemplated a conventional mining method. The Historic Roughrider Technical Report is not being treated as current by the Company.

The Historic Roughrider Technical Report included the following historic NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimates:

for the Roughrider West Zone, an indicated resource of 17.21 Mlbs of U3O8 (0.39 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.98% U3O8) and an inferred resource of 10.60 Mlbs of U3O8 (0.04 million tonnes at an average grade of 11.03% U3O8); and

for the Roughrider East Zone, an inferred resource of 30.13 Mlbs of U3O8 (0.12 million tonnes at an average grade of 11.58% U3O8).

The 2011 Historic Roughrider Technical Report resource statement did not include the Far East Zone of the deposit, which may represent additional geological upside. Rio Tinto has not disclosed any updated resource or reserve estimates for the Project.

The Company is treating the Historic Roughrider Technical Report and the mineral resource estimate therein as historical in nature and notes that a Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as current mineral resources. There are no other recent estimates or data available for the Roughrider Project. The Company is disclosing the estimates contained in the Historic Roughrider Technical Report for illustrative purposes and to provide readers with relevant information regarding the Roughrider Project. There are numerous uncertainties inherent in historical estimates, which are subject to all the assumptions, parameters and methods used to prepare such estimates, and while the reliability of the historical estimates is considered reasonable, a Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to allow UEC to classify the historical estimates as a current mineral resource.

Rio Tinto continued to advance the Project after its acquisition of Hathor. In July 2013, Rio Tinto submitted a 101-page Advanced Exploration Program proposal for consideration to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment.(2) The program was intended to initiate an Environmental Impact Assessment (aEIAa) review of the program, with the program intended to provide direct data related to the ore and mine development design. The proposal involved establishment of an upgraded access road, development of an exploration shaft, exploration drifts, operation of a water treatment facility, additional surface support structures and temporary surface storage of both development rock and low-grade waste. A substantial amount of EIA baseline work and community engagement were included in the work submission. The application was accepted, and the project was approved to begin the EIA review process, but no official determination was completed. Rio Tinto subsequently upgraded the access road but did not proceed with the remainder of the proposed program.

Notes:

NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment Technical Report on the East and West Zones Roughrider Uranium Project, Saskatchewan (effective date of September 13, 2011); a copy of which is available under Hathora?s profile on SEDAR. These resources are reported in accordance with the CIM Definition Standards.

Saskatchewan Environment Publication 2013-2014, aRio Tinto a Roughrider Advanced Exploration Programa, accessible at http://www.environment.gov.sk.ca/2013-014EISMainDoc.

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed by Clyde L. Yancey, P.G., Vice President-Exploration for the Company, being a Qualified Person under Item 1302 of Regulation S-K.

Transaction Conditions & Timing

The Transaction is subject to closing conditions customary for a transaction of this nature, with closing expected to occur before month end.

Advisors and Counsel

Rothschild & Co and BMO Capital Markets are acting as financial advisor to UEC in connection with the Transaction. McMillan LLP is acting as legal advisor to UEC.

About Uranium Energy Corp

Uranium Energy Corp is the fastest growing supplier of the fuel for green energy transition to a low carbon future. UEC is the largest, diversified North American focused uranium company, advancing the next generation of low-cost, environmentally friendly In-Situ Recovery (ISR) mining uranium projects in the United States and high-grade conventional projects in Canada. The Company has two production-ready ISR hub and spoke platforms in South Texas and Wyoming, anchored by fully licensed and operational central processing plants. UEC also has seven U.S. ISR uranium projects with all their major permits in place. Additionally, the Company has diversified uranium holdings including: (1) one of the largest physical uranium portfolios of U.S. warehoused U3O8; (2) a major equity stake in Uranium Royalty Corp., the only royalty company in the sector; and (3) a pipeline of resource stage uranium projects. The Company\-s operations are managed by professionals with decades of hands-on experience in the key facets of uranium exploration, development, and mining.

A

Contact Uranium Energy Corp Investor Relations at:

Toll Free: (866) 748-1030

Fax: (361) 888-5041

E-mail: info@uraniumenergy.com

In Europe:

Swiss Resource Capital AG

Jochen Staiger & Marc Ollinger

info@resource-capital.ch

www.resource-capital.chA A

Stock Exchange Information:

NYSE American: UEC

WKN: AAJDRR

ISN: US916896103

Notices to U.S. Investors

UEC is now subject to the requirements of Regulation S-K (subpart) 1300 a Disclosure by Registrants Engaged in Mining Operations with respect to disclosure of mining operations that are material to it.A UEC can only rely on technical information contained in a technical report summary prepared in accordance with Regulation S-K (subpart) 1300.

Safe Harbor StatementA

Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein, the information presented in this news release constitutes aforward-looking statementsa as such term is used in applicable United States and Canadian securities laws. These statements relate to analyses and other information that are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions of management. Any other statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as aexpectsa or adoes not expecta, ais expecteda, aanticipatesa or adoes not anticipatea, aplans, aestimatesa or aintendsa, or stating that certain actions, events or results amaya, acoulda, awoulda, amighta or awilla be taken, occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and should be viewed as aforward-looking statementsa. Such forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, the actual results of exploration activities, variations in the underlying assumptions associated with the estimation or realization of mineral resources, the availability of capital to fund programs and the resulting dilution caused by the raising of capital through the sale of shares, accidents, labor disputes and other risks of the mining industry including, without limitation, those associated with the environment, delays in obtaining governmental approvals, permits or financing or in the completion of development or construction activities, title disputes or claims limitations on insurance coverage. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Many of these factors are beyond the Companya?s ability to control or predict. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements contained in this news release and in any document referred to in this news release. Important factors that may cause actual results to differ materially and that could impact the Company and the statements contained in this news release can be found in the Company\-s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company assumes no obligation to update or supplement any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities.
Vizsla Silver Expands Mineralization At Southern End Of Napoleon

Vizsla Silver Corp. (TSX-V: VZLA) (NYSE: VZLA) (Frankfurt: 0G3) (aVizslaa or the aCompanya  https://www.commodity-tv.com/ondemand/companies/profil/vizsla-silver-corp/ ) is pleased to report results from 12 new drillholes targeting the southern extension of the Napoleon Vein, at its 100%-owned flagship Panuco silver-gold project (\Panuco\) located in Mexico. The new drill holes report high grade silver and gold intercepts from the footwall vein splays and further support grade continuity to the south along the main Napoleon Vein.

Highlights

 NP-22-316 returned 2,767 grams per tonne (g/t) silver equivalent (AgEq) over 1.00 metres true width (mTW) (2,642 g/t silver, 1.60 g/t gold, 1.87 % lead and 4.08 % zinc) and,

 999 g/t AgEq over 1.00 mTW (740 g/t silver, 3.63 g/t gold, 0.23 % lead and 1.23 % zinc)

 NP-22-315 returned 396 g/t AgEq over 1.86 mTW (354 g/t silver, 0.60 g/t gold, 0.19 % lead and 0.51 % zinc) and,

 1,413 g/t AgEq over 1.81 mTW (1,268 g/t silver, 3.12 g/t gold, 0.06 % lead and 0.22 % zinc)

 NP-22-306 returned 359 (g/t) AgEq over 1.52 mTW (235 g/t silver, 1.45 g/t gold, 0.55% lead and 0.61 % zinc) and,

 775 g/t AgEq over 0.91 mTW (320 g/t silver, 5.77 g/t gold, 0.55% lead and 1.34 % zinc)

aWe continue to view the southern extent of Napoleon as a primary target for near-term resource growth at Panuco,a commented Michael Konnert, President and CEO. aWith a local exploration model that continues to be validated through ongoing drilling, exploration along the southern extent of Napoleon has become increasingly predictive. We have now defined several high-grade shoots along the 2.5 kilometre long corridor which remain open for further expansion both along strike and at depth. Additionally, high-grade results from the footwall vein splays demonstrate that the Napoleon Vein Corridor is more than one structure, it is a vein system with increased potential to delineate resources. Of the nine drill rigs currently turning on the property, expansion/conversion drilling continues at Napoleon with two rigs, including one direction rig.a

Details of the Napoleon Southern Extent

Infill and step-out (expansionary) drilling completed to date has led to an improved understanding on the controls to mineralization along the Napoleon vein corridor. Observations based on metal zonation and alteration continue to suggest the corridor has been tilted with the southern extent being at the top of the mineralized horizon, near surface (Figure 3).

Previously reported high-grade gold values closer to surface support the model (see press release dated December 16, 2021), while results disclosed in this news release, show additional high precious metals grades on vein splays at the footwall of the main Napoleon structure. The new vein splays are situated between 50-70 metres into the footwall and merge with the main Napoleon vein at depth.

Deeper directional drilling in holes NP-22-307 and NP-22-314 intersected the Napoleon structure with high base metal and low precious metal concentrations, as predicted by the model. Directional drilling remains ongoing at the southern end of Napoleon, testing both the main Napoleon structure and its vein splays to depth within the aprecious metals richa horizon.

These results serve to further demonstrate the continuity of high-grade silver and gold mineralization along the southern extent of the main Napoleon vein, outside of the March 2022 mineral resource boundary and support ongoing exploration potential of the footwall and hanging wall vein splays. Vizsla has completed structural and 3D geologic modelling of the vein splays and plans to further drill step-out holes specifically designed to test mineral continuity along strike and to depth.

About the Panuco project

The newly consolidated Panuco silver-gold project is an emerging high-grade discovery located in southern Sinaloa, Mexico, near the city of MazatlAn. The 6,761-hectare, past producing district benefits from over 75 kilometres of total vein extent, 35 kilometres of underground mines, roads, power, and permits.

The district contains intermediate to low sulfidation epithermal silver and gold deposits related to siliceous volcanism and crustal extension in the Oligocene and Miocene. Host rocks are mainly continental volcanic rocks correlated to the Tarahumara Formation.

Panuco hosts an estimated in-situ indicated mineral resource of 61.1 Moz AgEq and an in-situ inferred resource of 45.6 Moz AgEq. A NI 43-101 technical report, titled aNational Instrument 43-101 Technical Report for the Panuco Project Mineral Resource Estimate Concordia, Sinaloa, Mexicoa was filed on SEDAR on April 7, 2022, with an effective date of March 1, 2022 was prepared by Tim Maunula, P.Geo., Principal Geologist, T. Maunula & Associates Consulting Inc and Kevin Murray, P.Eng, Manager Process Engineering, Ausenco.

About Vizsla Silver

Vizsla Silver is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company headquartered in Vancouver, BC, focused on advancing its flagship, 100%-owned Panuco silver-gold project located in Sinaloa, Mexico. To date, Vizsla has completed over 210,000 metres of drilling at Panuco leading to the discovery of several new high-grade veins. For 2022, Vizsla has budgeted +120,000 metres of resource/discovery-based drilling, designed to upgrade, and expand the maiden resource as well as test other high priority targets across the district.

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Drill core and rock samples were shipped to ALS Limited in Zacatecas, Zacatecas, Mexico and in North Vancouver, Canada for sample preparation and for analysis at the ALS laboratory in North Vancouver.A The ALS Zacatecas and North Vancouver facilities are ISO 9001 and ISO/IEC 17025 certified. Silver and base metals were analyzed using a four-acid digestion with an ICP finish and gold was assayed by 30-gram fire assay with atomic absorption (aAAa) spectroscopy finish. Over limit analyses for silver, lead and zinc were re-assayed using an ore-grade four-acid digestion with AA finish.

Control samples comprising certified reference samples, duplicates and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Companya?s quality assurance / quality control protocol.

Qualified Person

In accordance with NI 43-101, Martin Dupuis, P.Geo., COO, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has reviewed and approved the technical and scientific content of this news release.

Information Concerning Estimates of Mineral Resources

The scientific and technical information in this news release was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 which differs significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the aSECa). The terms \measured mineral resource\, \indicated mineral resource\ and \inferred mineral resource\ used herein are in reference to the mining terms defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Standards (the aCIM Definition Standardsa), which definitions have been adopted by NI 43-101. Accordingly, information contained herein providing descriptions of our mineral deposits in accordance with NI 43-101 may not be comparable to similar information made public by other U.S. companies subject to the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

You are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral resources will ever be converted into reserves. Pursuant to CIM Definition Standards, ainferred mineral resourcesa are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Such geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade or quality continuity. An inferred mineral resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to an indicated mineral resource and must not be converted to a mineral reserve. However, it is reasonably expected that the majority of inferred mineral resources could be upgraded to indicated mineral resources with continued exploration. Under Canadian rules, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of acontained ouncesa in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute areservesa by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures.

Canadian standards, including the CIM Definition Standards and NI 43-101, differ significantly from standards in the SEC Industry Guide 7. Effective February 25, 2019, the SEC adopted new mining disclosure rules under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the aSEC Modernization Rulesa), with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical property disclosure requirements included in SEC Industry Guide 7. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of ameasured mineral resourcesa, aindicated mineral resourcesa and ainferred mineral resourcesa. Information regarding mineral resources contained or referenced herein may not be comparable to similar information made public by companies that report according to U.S. standards. While the SEC Modernization Rules are purported to be asubstantially similara to the CIM Definition Standards, readers are cautioned that there are differences between the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definitions Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any mineral resources that the Company may report as ameasured mineral resourcesa, aindicated mineral resourcesa and ainferred mineral resourcesa under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release includes certain aForward?Looking Statementsa within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and aforward?looking informationa under applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words aanticipatea, abelievea, aestimatea, aexpecta, atargeta, aplana, aforecasta, amaya, awoulda, acoulda, aschedulea and similar words or expressions, identify forward?looking statements or information. These forward?looking statements or information relate to, among other things: the exploration, development, and production at Panuco, including plans for resource/discovery-based drilling, designed to upgrade and expand the maiden resource, and publication of a resource update in Q4 2022.

Forward?looking statements and forward?looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of Vizsla, future growth potential for Vizsla and its business, and future exploration plans are based on managementa?s reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on managementa?s experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of silver, gold, and other metals; no escalation in the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; Vizslaa?s ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.

These statements reflect Vizslaa?s respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward?looking statements or forward-looking information and Vizsla has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company\-s dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company\-s mining activities in Mexico; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company\-s management team and outside contractors; risks regarding mineral resources and reserves; the Company\-s inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects, including the inaccuracy of reserves and resources, metallurgical recoveries and capital and operating costs of such projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of COVID-19; the economic and financial implications of COVID-19 to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company\-s interactions with surrounding communities and artisanal miners; the Company\-s ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; and the factors identified under the caption aRisk Factorsa in Vizslaa? management discussion and analysis. Readers are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward?looking statements or forward-looking information. Although Vizsla has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. Vizsla does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward?looking statements or forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.
The main mirror for the James Webb Space Telescope is tested in the giant clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has managed or played key roles in hundreds of NASA missions, including the James Webb Space Telescope , the Hubble Space Telescope , Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter , Landsat satellites, the Parker Solar Probe and the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) network.

It is the nation's largest organization of space scientists and engineers, according to the agency's website (opens in new tab). With a main campus just northeast of Washington, D.C., in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The center has a special focus on Earth observations, which has allowed it to track climate change from orbit, and it also manages numerous instruments and missions across the solar system . In essence, it means that Goddard has its hands in missions that span from Earth to beyond the realms of Pluto (where yet another mission in which it has involvement, New Horizons , is in the Kuiper Belt .)

Elizabeth Howell Staff Writer, Spaceflight Elizabeth Howell, Ph.D., is staff writer for the spaceflight channel since 2022 and a contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before that. She once received an exclusive tour of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center for Space.com, to review their Earth observation facilities, VR technology and Hubble Space Telescope operations.

GSFC also manages several installations in other locations, including:

The Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia's eastern shore  a launching site for suborbital rockets, research balloons and research aircraft.

The Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City  a hub for climate research.

The Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility, in Fairmont, West Virginia, where computer programs for space missions are tested. (Johnson was a pioneering Black NASA mathematician who is best known for calculating the trajectory needed to get the Apollo 11 mission to the moon and back.)

The White Sands Complex in New Mexico  one of the ground stations for the TDRS network.

A visitor center at the Greenbelt campus welcomes the public and operates educational programs, and a visitor center at Wallops provides viewing for launches as well as educational exhibits and programs.

Establishment and duties

GSFC was founded shortly after NASA itself, in late 1958. As Alfred Rosenthal explained in his 1968 publication " Venture Into Space: Early Years of Goddard Space Flight Center (opens in new tab)" (NASA, 1968), GSFC provided an institutional base for experts from military projects, such as the Navy's Vanguard satellite program and the Army's work on space communication, who were being transferred to the new civilian space agency.

The center was also assigned a long list of other duties, including theoretical research, the development of instruments to fly in space, interpretation of scientific results from flight programs and administration of contracts.

In contrast to some other NASA centers, such as Glenn and Langley, which were based on established aeronautical facilities, Goddard was created specifically to work on space research.

Related: Read about Goddard's 60th anniversary celebration

Construction of the new center began in 1959 on land formerly owned by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In March 1961, the center was formally dedicated and named in honor of American rocket pioneer Robert H. Goddard , 35 years after he launched the first successful liquid-fueled rocket in Auburn, Massachusetts.

Today, according to the center's website, the main Goddard campus comprises more than 34 buildings on a campus occupying 1,270 acres. All the Goddard installations, combined, employ more than 10,000 people, the center stated in its 2018 annual report (opens in new tab).

An aerial view of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. (Image credit: NASA Goddard/Bill Hrybyk)

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Notable early achievements

A NASA chronology (opens in new tab) of Goddard missions from historian Lane Wallace lists 104 launches in its first decade (1959-1969), including 40 Explorer satellites to measure the space environment surrounding Earth, 10 TIROS weather satellites, five Orbiting Solar Observatories, three Syncom communications satellites, five Orbiting Geophysical Observatories, eight ESSA cloud-photography satellites, two Orbiting Astronomical Observatories and four Applications Technology Satellites. A variety of technical problems affected some of these early missions, but the majority were successful.

Goddard's early Explorer satellites ushered in the new field of space physics by measuring Earth's magnetic field and showing how it reflects most solar wind particles around the Earth while trapping some particles in the Van Allen radiation belts .

Related: Read more about the Delta family

Teams at Goddard managed the 1960 launch of the very first communications satellite  a huge mylar balloon called Echo that reflected radio transmissions back to Earth, as well as the first international space satellites: Ariel, in collaboration with the United Kingdom, and Alouette I, with Canada, both in 1962.

Ariel and Alouette pioneered a "no exchange of funds" type of partnership, in which the partners contribute services and equipment to a project, but none of the partners pays any of the others with money. This arrangement is used to this day in projects such as the International Space Station .

Goddard engineers organized the creation of the Delta rocket as a vehicle to launch small to medium-sized payloads into Earth orbit and used it for many of Goddard's early launches. Among many later variations on the design, the Delta II became an "industry workhorse," with 155 launches from 1989 to 2018, according to Boeing (opens in new tab).

A US Air Force Delta II booster with a GPS satellite. Goddard engineers developed the Delta rocket that was used for numerous launches. (Image credit: U.S. AIr Force photo)

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Goddard's communication network

A satellite in low Earth orbit spends only a few minutes within range of any one tracking station, so many stations are needed to keep in touch with a craft throughout one orbit. As Wallace explains, over the decades, Goddard has organized a series of worldwide networks of antennas on Earth to communicate with spacecraft in orbit, setting an example of international cooperation on technical projects.

Goddard's Minitrack network, created for the very first satellites starting in the 1950s, led to the Mercury Space Flight Network of the 1960s, with seven ground stations and two ships at sea communicating with solo astronauts in Mercury capsules. Communication between ground stations depended on telephone lines, which could fail. So, during Project Gemini , which sent two-man crews into orbit in the mid-1960s, Goddard maintained a backup mission-control center that could take over from Houston if necessary.

To handle the big data downloads from the first robotic space observatories, Goddard set up a new Satellite Tracking and Data Acquisition Network (STADAN), with antenna dishes up to 85 feet (25 meters) wide in 21 locations around the world. Goddard's Applications Technology satellites (ATS) demonstrated the concept of using satellites in orbit to relay messages between spacecraft and Earth stations.

ATS led to TDRS, the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system, which now includes about 10 satellites (opens in new tab) in geosynchronous orbits providing near-continuous communication with the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope and other spacecraft.

Goddard also manages the Near Earth Network of more than 15 worldwide commercially operated ground stations for communication with orbiting spacecraft, and the NASA Communications Network (NASCOM), which sends data between control centers. According to its 2018 annual report, Goddard is working on space communications using laser light, which can transmit more data per second than radio waves.

Goddard's Networks Integration Center, pictured here, leads all coordination for space-to-ground communications support for the International Space Station and ensures complete communications coverage through NASA's Space Network. (Image credit: NASA Goddard)

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Goddard's space exploration accomplishments

Starting in the 1970s, Goddard's work grew to include deeper views into space and a closer examination of Earth using robotic spacecraft.

Orbiting solar observatories watched the sun in ultraviolet, X-ray and gamma-ray light that can't be seen from observatories on the ground because those wavelengths are blocked by Earth's atmosphere . The Solar Max satellite observed solar flares and was also repaired by space shuttle astronauts in 1984, paving the way for future on-orbit servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope.

The Uhuru satellite, developed at Goddard, launched in 1970 and discovered Cygnus X-1, the first observed object thought to contain a black hole. Uhuru's project manager at Goddard, Marjorie Townsend, was the first woman to manage a NASA satellite project.

Other Goddard satellites sensitive to X-rays and gamma-rays established the link between galaxies and mysterious powerful sources of light called quasars. The satellites also analyzed the gas in clusters of galaxies, found new pulsars and discovered gamma-ray bursts .

Another of Goddard's accomplishments was the International Ultraviolet Explorer satellite, which launched in 1978 and featured a new type of stabilizing gyroscope that was later used on the Hubble Space Telescope. The satellite also demonstrated a new "transparent" software system, allowing guest astronomers to use the telescope.

The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite, launched in 1989, made the first precise measurement of the cosmic microwave background , also known as the afterglow from the Big Bang . GSFC scientist John Mather shared the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics (opens in new tab) for the project.

Early weather satellites flew in relatively low Earth orbits, able to photograph a particular geographical region only when they passed over it. In 1975, GSFC developed the first Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES), which flew in a high orbit that kept it almost stationary above the longitude of North America.

The GOES series has progressed through several generations of improvements. The GOES satellites, once built and launched, are turned over to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for daily operation.

An early Goddard geosynchronous satellite, ATS-3, took the first space-based color photograph of an entire hemisphere of Earth in 1967. And an instrument on Goddard's Nimbus 7 confirmed the existence of an ozone "hole" over Antarctica in 1985.

Goddard's facilities and future projects

Goddard's main campus has a number of specialized test and manufacturing facilities (opens in new tab), including:

A centrifuge than can subject 5,000 lbs. (2,268 kilograms) of spacecraft hardware to 30 g.

A reverberation chamber that can generate up to 150 decibels of sound, subjecting hardware to the noise levels of a rocket launch.

A Space Environment Chamber that can achieve a wide range of vacuum and thermal conditions.

The Spacecraft Magnetic Test Facility, with a magnetic coil system that can cancel Earth's magnetic field.

The High Bay Clean Room, suitable for final assembly of a spacecraft, the largest of its kind in the world, with a volume of 1.3 million cubic feet (36,800 cubic meters).

Goddard has a hand in more than 50 current space flight projects. Among them, the James Webb Space Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter have their mission control centers on the GSFC campus. Two currently operating Mars probes, Curiosity and MAVEN , carry Goddard-developed science instruments. Numerous solar missions also have Goddard management, such as Parker Solar Probe which makes periodic close passes by the sun.

If you've seen a particularly beautiful animation of how a solar eclipse works or what makes the moon's phases , it may well have come from Goddard's Scientific Visualization Studio (opens in new tab), which produces still images and animations based on data collected by NASA missions.

Wallops: Small and adventurous flight facility

Relatively small rockets, called sounding rockets, fly up to altitudes from 62 to 870 miles (100 to 1400 kilometers) from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, in Wallops Island, Virginia. Wallops originated as a missile test facility (opens in new tab) at the end of World War II and was put under Goddard's management in 1981.

Sounding rockets provide an economical way to test space instruments and study regions of space that cannot be reached with aircraft, balloons or orbiting spacecraft. By the end of 2018, Wallops had hosted over 116,000 launches, according to Goddard's 2018 annual report.

Adjacent to NASA's operations on Wallops Island is the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (opens in new tab) (MARS), where Antares rockets have launched Cygnus cargo modules to the International Space Station. MARS is operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia.

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket with a Cygnus spacecraft, as seen at sunrise on April 16, 2019, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. (Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls)

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GISS: Climate research in New York City

The Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) (opens in new tab) was established in NASA's early days under the directorship of physicist Robert Jastrow, who had been doing theoretical work for the Naval Research Laboratory's Vanguard satellite program in the 1950s.

When the Vanguard team was incorporated into the new NASA Goddard center, Jastrow convinced NASA managers that the theoretical research division should be located near major research universities to attract academic researchers. In 1961, GISS began operating in offices in New York City near Columbia University.

In the late 1960s, GISS moved a few blocks to the building it now occupies. This building later became famous because its ground floor includes Tom's Restaurant, the regular hangout of characters on the "Seinfeld" TV series.

During its early years, under Jastrow, the institute concentrated on astrophysics and planetary science. Under James Hansen, director from 1981 to 2013, and his successor, Gavin Schmidt, GISS research has turned to climate change and other global aspects of Earth's environment.

Expedition 68 NASA astronaut Bob Hines captured this view of Hurricane Ian on Sept. 28, 2022, which was also tracked by satellites managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. (Image credit: NASA)

Goddard's green initiative

Goddard, which has a special focus on Earth observation missions, maps climate change from orbit and its resulting effects, including sea rise, flooding and more extreme weather. In recognition of climate change, Goddard has a new master plan that received approval in 2022. The plan aims to reduce the square footage of its buildings by 25% in the next 15 years, which will remove about 1.2 million square feet from the main Goddard campus by 2038.

The main area that will be removed is a 100-acre zone known as "Area 400", which used to be used for propellant research until adjacent areas became built up. Since much of the work on propellants is on its way to other NASA centers or to commercial industry, the 11 structures there are mostly devoted to storage or "other support functions," NASA said in a 2022 update.

"Our climate and our environment are extremely important to NASA, but even more so to us at Goddard, where so much of the agency's Earth science research takes place," Ray Rubilotta, Goddard's associate center director, said in a statement (opens in new tab). "Although we no longer need the Area 400 site, it is our hope that environmental considerations will be given utmost weight as the site is dispositioned."

The environmental focus includes energy-efficient construction, putting in green space and place of paved areas, and adding elevated and more robust infrastructure alongside the coast at Wallops, which is finding itself battered by severe storms and rising oceans amid climate change.

Goddard's newer buildings are constructed (opens in new tab) to LEED standards (referring to a common framework for sustainable building assessment) that include a focus on energy management, water conservation and other factors. Sustainability at Goddard includes other metrics as well, including such matters as managing its facilities or operating its programs.

At Wallops, the most pressing priorities for the environment include air quality, natural and cultural resources, site restoration, sustainability and environmental planning, while Greenbelt is devoted to energy consumption and stormwater discharges.

Additional resources

Take a 360-degree virtual tour (opens in new tab) of the Hubble Control Center at Goddard. Watch the complex, weaving trajectory (opens in new tab) planned for the Lucy spacecraft.

References

Boeing. (2022.) Delta Rocket. https://www.boeing.com/history/products/delta-rocket.page (opens in new tab)

NASA. "NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies." https://www.giss.nasa.gov/ (opens in new tab)

NASA. "Scientific Visualization Studio." https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ (opens in new tab)

NASA. (2005, Sept. 21). "Wallops Island - 60 Years of Exploration." https://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/everydaylife/wallops_60th.html (opens in new tab)

NASA. (2018). Goddard Space Flight Center 2018 Annual Report. https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/2018_goddard_annual_report_for_screen_reading_0.pdf (opens in new tab)

NASA. (2021, May 15.) Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS). https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/scan/services/networks/tdrs_main (opens in new tab)

NASA. (2022, Feb. 16.) "Master Plan for NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Receives Approval." https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/master-plan-for-nasas-goddard-space-flight-center-receives-approval (opens in new tab)

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The New Horizons mission's 2015 flyby of Pluto showed scientists geologic activity far more complex than they expected to find.

Textbooks had to be rewritten. Members of the public were outraged. Our understanding of the solar system itself was forever changed on Aug. 24, 2006, when researchers at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) voted to reclassify Pluto, changing its status from a planet to a dwarf planet  a relegation that was largely seen as a demotion and which continues to have reverberations to this day.

Today, the debate about Pluto exposes difficulties in the definition of "planet." The IAU defines a planet as a celestial body orbiting the sun , with a nearly spherical appearance, and that has (for the most part) cleared debris from its orbital neighborhood. But even this set of metrics is not universally agreed upon.

Earth , and even Jupiter , have not cleared many asteroids from their orbital regions despite their large size. Moreover, there are small worlds that are circular and that orbit the sun and yet are not considered planets, such as Ceres .

Related: 15 stunning places on Earth that look like they're from another planet

Elizabeth Howell Staff Writer, Spaceflight Elizabeth Howell, Ph.D., is a staff writer for the spaceflight channel since 2022 and a contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before that. She has covered space missions all over the solar system and beyond, including New Horizons.

Pluto's so-called demotion from planetary status raises larger issues about how to define any object in the solar system, or even in space more generally. It shows that science cannot, sometimes, slot objects into easy categories. Because if the definition of a planet once again widens, it is unclear how to assess the numerous non-circular objects that circle our sun. This may even put the asteroid belt into question, referring to the huge band of small objects between Mars and Jupiter. Or what happens if a planet is somehow broken up into pieces?

All the same, as the Pluto debate took place almost 20 years ago, many still don't quite understand all the fuss, nor why Pluto was knocked from its planetary position. But the solar system's transformation from nine planets to eight (at least by the standard IAU definition) was a long time in the making and helps encapsulate one of the greatest strengths of science  the ability to alter seemingly steadfast definitions in light of new evidence.

What is a planet, anyway?

The word planet (in English) stretches back to antiquity, deriving from the Greek word "planetes," which means "wandering star." The five classical planets  Mercury , Venus , Mars, Jupiter and Saturn  are visible to the naked eye and can be seen shifting in strange pathways across the sky compared with the more distant background stars .

After the advent of telescopes, astronomers discovered two new planets, Uranus and Neptune , which are too faint to spot with the naked eye (Note that this definition of "planet" is following the Greco-Roman tradition on which the International Astronomical Union or IAU's community definitions are based. The names of planets vary by culture and the naked-eye planets were observed around the world during antiquity.)

When astronomers discovered Ceres (today considered a dwarf planet), they initially categorized it as a "planet" among scientific communities of the day. But that began to change as further measurements showed it was smaller than other planets ever seen at the time. Eventually, Ceres was lumped into a group of rocky bodies, called "asteroids", of which we now know of hundreds of thousands of these in the asteroid belt alone.

Pluto was found and classified as a planet in 1930 (note the IAU was formed in 1919) when astronomer Clyde Tombaugh of the Lowell Observatory in Arizona compared photographic plates of the sky on separate nights and noticed a tiny dot that drifted back and forth against the backdrop of stars. Right away, the solar system's newest candidate was considered an oddball, however. Its orbit is so eccentric, or far from circular, that it actually gets closer to the sun than Neptune for 20 of its 248-years-long trip. It also is tilted to the ecliptic, which is the plane upon which the other solar system planets orbit.

In 1992, scientists discovered the first Kuiper Belt object, 1992 QB1, a tiny body orbiting out in Pluto's vicinity and beyond the orbit of Neptune. Many more such objects were soon uncovered, revealing a belt of small, frozen worlds similar to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Pluto remained the king of this region, but in July 2005, astronomers found the distant body Eris , which at first was thought to be even larger than Pluto.

Size of Pluto (lower left) in comparison to Moon and Earth. (Image credit: Tom.Reding, CC BY-SA)

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A planetary conundrum

Researchers had to ask themselves these questions: If Pluto was a planet, then did that mean Eris was one as well? What about all those other icy objects out in the Kuiper belt , or the littler objects in the asteroid belt? Where exactly was the cut-off line for classifying a body as a planet? A word that had seemed straightforward and simple was suddenly shown to be oddly slippery.

An intense debate followed, with many new proposals for the definition of a planet being offered.

"Every time we think some of us are reaching a consensus, then somebody says something to show very clearly that we're not," Brian Marsden, a member of the IAU Executive Committee in charge of coming up with a new meaning for the word planet, told Space.com in 2005.

A year later, astronomers were no closer to a resolution, and the dilemma hung like a dark cloud over the IAU General Assembly meeting in Prague in 2006. At the conference, researchers endured eight days of contentious arguments, with four different proposals being offered. One controversial suggestion would have brought the total number of planets in the solar system to 12, including Ceres, the largest asteroid, and Pluto's moon Charon.

The suggestion was "a complete mess," astronomer Mike Brown of Caltech, Eris' discoverer, told Space.com.

Near the end of the Prague conference, the 424 astronomers who remained voted to create three new categories for objects in the solar system. From then on, only the worlds Mercury through Neptune would be considered planets. Pluto and its kin  round objects that shared the neighborhood of their orbit with other entities  were henceforth called dwarf planets . All other objects orbiting the sun would be known as small solar system bodies.

The New Horizons mission and the planet debate

A contingent of professionals did not take the decision lightly. "I'm embarrassed for astronomy ," Alan Stern, a leader of NASA 's New Horizons mission, which flew past Pluto in 2015, told Space.com, adding that less than 5 percent of the world's 10,000 astronomers participated in the vote.

New Horizons was a significant turning point in the planet debate, as its swift flyby by Pluto showed a world that is far more dynamic than anyone imagined. Large mountains, battered craters and signs of liquid flowing upon its surface all point to a world that underwent massive geological change since its formation. On this basis alone, people like Stern have said, Pluto should be considered a planet since it is a dynamic place, a place that is not so static that only micrometeorites disturb its surface.

Views of Charon , Pluto's moon, also show a very dynamic place, including a red cap on its pole that appears to change appearance with the slow seasonal change that far out in the solar system. Notably, Pluto possesses several moons while two established planets, Mercury and Venus, do not. (Numerous asteroids and dwarf planets also have moons, which make the definition of a planet even more complicated.)

Such views are shared by many in the public. In 2014, shortly before the flyby, experts at the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, debated different definitions of a planet. Science historian Owen Gingerich, who chaired the IAU's planet-definition committee, asserted that "planet is a culturally defined word that changes over time." But the audience watching the CfA debate overwhelmingly chose a different participant's definition  one that would have brought Pluto back into the planetary fold.

Alternative classification schemes continue to pop up. A 2017 proposal defined a planet as "a round object in space that's smaller than a star." This would make Pluto a planet again , but it would do the same to the Earth's moon as well as many other moons in the solar system, and bring the total number of officially recognized planets up to 110. A year later, Stern, along with planetary scientist David Grinspoon, wrote an opinion article in The Washington Post arguing that the IAU's definition was "hastily drawn" and "flawed" and that astronomers should reconsider their ideas.

Will Pluto ever become a planet again?

Such pleas have fallen on deaf ears so far, and it seems unlikely the IAU will revisit the controversy any time soon. Astrophysicist Ethan Siegel responded to Stern and Grinspoon in Forbes by writing (opens in new tab): "The simple fact is that Pluto was misclassified when it was first discovered; it was never on the same footing as the other eight worlds."

Mike Brown also chimed in. "So, hey, Pluto is still not a planet. Actually, never was. We just misunderstood it for 50 years. Now, we know better. Nostalgia for Pluto is really not a very good planet argument, but that's basically all there is. Now, let's get on with reality," Brown wrote on Twitter, where he has embraced his role in the redefinition with the handle @plutokiller.

Why does it matter?

With kids these days (who weren't even born when Pluto was a planet) asking why the definition even matters , astronomers have said that it is no easy answer and we may have to look beyond our solar system in considering what makes a planet and what does not.

More than 5,000 exoplanets , or planets outside our solar system, have been discovered to date and they are showing a huge set of worlds. From " super-Earths " between the size of Earth and Uranus , to "hot Jupiters" orbiting close to suns, to a range of other planetary sizes, the types of planetary environments to consider are changing rapidly.

What this proliferation of planet-forming options shows us is that each solar system may be its own unique environment. While we can say more generally that stars can form planets from collapsing gas and dust in their environment, the individual dynamics that control planet formation are far more complicated. For example, are there multiple stars involved? How much dust is available? Is there a black hole or a supernova blowing the valuable dust and gas away that planets need to grow?

Even if planets are lucky enough to grow up, how they are connected with other planets early in their formation is poorly understood. As worlds interact with each other, their mutual gravities appear to shift planets closer and further from their parent star or in some cases, to fling worlds out of the solar system together.

What this all shows is that our definition of a planet may have to become more situational to account for the number of scenarios in which a world may form. Perhaps planets may be tied to particular formation circumstances or particular zones. All that seems to be known for sure is that as we collect data, planethood and the debate that Pluto has engendered will continue to be debated for quite some time yet.

Additional resources

Learn more about the Kuiper Belt (opens in new tab) from NASA's Solar System Exploration website. See images of Pluto from NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flyby.

References

International Astronomical Union. "Pluto and the Developing Landscape of Our Solar System." https://www.iau.org/public/themes/pluto/ (opens in new tab)

Johns Hopkins Applied Research Laboratory. (2022.) "New Horizons." http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/ (opens in new tab)

NASA. (2019, Dec. 19.) "What is a Planet?" https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/in-depth/ (opens in new tab)

NASA Science Solar System Exploration. "Kuiper Belt." https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/kuiper-belt/overview/ (opens in new tab)

Siegel, Ethan. (2018, May 8). "You Won't Like The Consequences Of Making Pluto A Planet Again." Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2018/05/08/you-wont-like-the-consequences-of-making-pluto-a-planet-again/ (opens in new tab)
New pictures from the third series of Sally Wainwrights multi-BAFTA award winning hit Happy Valley have revealed more about the much-anticipated final instalment. The six-part series, featuring Sarah Lancashire in her iconic role of Sergeant Catherine Cawood for the last time, is made by Lookout Point for BBC One and BBC iPlayer, in co-production with AMC Networks.Catherine is pictured with a bloodied nose in the aftermath of a police raid, while Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton)  with a radically different look  is seen in his prison cell, alongside first-look glimpses of Catherines sister Clare (Siobhan Finneran) and teenage grandson Ryan (Rhys Connah).Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton) stands in a prison cell wearing a grey top. He has a scar with stitches on his forehead and has grown a beard.James Norton as Tommy Lee Royce (Image: BBC)Announced today, the final series will also see the return of Happy Valley favourites Ishia Bennison as Joyce, Shane Zaza as Shaf, Chord Melodic as Sledge, and Mete Dursun as Gorkem. They join the previously announced new and returning cast members: Con ONeill, George Costigan, Charlie Murphy, Derek Riddell, Karl Davies, Susan Lynch, Rick Warden, Vincent Franklin, Amit Shah, Mark Stanley, and Mollie Winnard.Happy Valley newcomers Oliver Huntingdon (The Rising), Jack Bandeira (Sex Education), Alec Secareanu (Gods Own Country), and Anthony Flanagan (Gentleman Jack) will also appear in series three.When Catherine discovers the remains of a gangland murder victim in a drained reservoir, it sparks a chain of events that unwittingly leads her straight back to Tommy Lee Royce. Her grandson Ryan is now 16 and still living with Catherine, but he has ideas of his own about what kind of relationship he wants to have with the man Catherine refuses to acknowledge as his father. Still battling the seemingly never-ending problem of drugs in the valley and those who supply them, Catherine is on the cusp of retirement.Most recently airing on BBC One in 2016, Happy Valley is adored by viewers and critics alike, with series two attracting an average audience of 9.3 million. The first two series each won the BAFTA Television awards for both Drama Series and Writing: Drama for Sally Wainwright, with Sarah Lancashire winning the BAFTA Television award for Leading Actress for series two.Happy Valley series three (6x60) was commissioned by Piers Wenger, former Director of BBC Drama, and is a Lookout Point production for the BBC, co-produced with AMC. Happy Valley is written and created by Sally Wainwright. Series three is directed by Patrick Harkins and Sally Wainwright, and Fergus OBrien, with Jessica Taylor as producer. Executive producers are Sally Wainwright and Sarah Lancashire, with Faith Penhale and Will Johnston for Lookout Point, and Ben Irving and Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC. BBC Studios, who wholly own Lookout Point, is distributing series three in addition to series one and two.Happy Valley series three will premiere on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, and the first two series are available to watch in full on BBC iPlayer now. In the U.S. and Canada, AMC Networks will be the exclusive home for series three which will be available on the AMC+ premium streaming bundle where series one and two are also now available to binge.Further information about Happy Valley series three will be announced in due course
Auserd (Sahrawi Refugee Camps), October 12, 2022 (SPS) - The President of the Republic, Secretary General of the Polisario Front, Mr. Brahim Ghali, called on the European Union to play an active role in finding a just and lasting solution to the conflict in Western Sahara.

President Brahim Ghali, called on the European Union to adhere to international law, international humanitarian law and European law, and to refrain from signing any agreement with the Kingdom of Morocco that affects the territories, waters or airspace of occupied Western Sahara.

In his speech during the celebrations of the 47th anniversary of national unity, the President of the Republic added that it is time for France and the European Union in general to be an effective actor for a just and lasting solution to the conflict in Western Sahara, within the framework of international legitimacy, in harmony with the interests and aspirations of the peoples of Europe and the peoples of the region, in a manner that serves peace, security, progress and prosperity.

He expressed, in the same context, his regret at the recent position of the Spanish Prime Minister, in which he supports the policy of expansion and aggression pursued by the Moroccan occupation state in the Western Sahara and in the entire region, adding that he sticks the same knife in the same bloody wound that Spain caused, with a treacherous stab For the Sahrawi people, through the disastrous and criminally Madrid Agreement of 1975.

The President of the Republic also indicated that regardless of some shameful positions and decisions, Spain cannot evade its legal, political and moral responsibilities towards the decolonization of Western Sahara, and to implement its commitment and duty as a colonial and managing power to enable the Sahrawi people to exercise their right to Self-determination and independence.

Brahim Ghali expressed his confidence that these positions do not represent the position of the Spanish peoples, who have the strongest relations of friendship and neighborliness with the Sahrawi people and a common history, and who are adherent to the support of the Sahrawi people and their just struggle.

The President of the Republic added as a shining proof of this fact, the Wilaya of Auserd is hosting the seventeenth edition of the International Film Festival in Western Sahara, FiSahara, which embodies one of the most wonderful messages of solidarity and support.

He warmly greeted all the organizers and participants of the FiSahara distinguished event for their successful selection of the 7th editions logo Completion of decolonization from Western Sahara.

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New York (United Nations) 12 October 2022 (SPS)- The Deputy Permanent Representative of Venezuela to the UN, Amb. Joaquin Perez Ayestaran, affirmed Yesterday before the UN 4th Committee that his country advocates for the full implementation of the mandate of the UN Mission for the referendum in Western Sahara, MINURSO.

We advocate a peaceful, just, lasting and mutually acceptable solution to the question of Western Sahara, based on the provisions of the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council, and we hope for the success of the Personal Envoy of the Secretary General in his efforts in favor of the reactivation of the political process, with direct negotiations between the parties, as well as the full implementation of the mandate entrusted to MINURSO, he said.

Venezuela, he adds, reaffirms the firm support and unwavering solidarity of Venezuela for the just cause of the Saharawi people, who continue to fight with determination for their right to self-determination. (SPS)

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ReExpozitia, a competitive photography exhibition of aftermaths of natural disasters also featuring photos from the AGERPRES picture library opens today at the National Library of Romania.

According to the organisers, the ReExhibition is a project of the Natural Disaster Insurance Pool (PAID) designed to remind Romanians about the cyclical and repetitive nature of disasters.

The photos that have reached the final of the contest by the same name tell the story of the devastation that natural disasters can cause, through the lens of professional or amateur photographers who knew how to capture the moment, with PAID's goal being to make sure that these stories, although dramatic, will not turn into tragedy, told Agerpres.

The photos are part of a wide-ranging campaign to raise public awareness over the repetitive nature of natural disasters and the importance of home insurance against them.

Selection and judging were carried out by photographer and architect Vlad Eftenie, radio and television presenter Mihai Morar and actress Ioana Ginghina, as part of a contest that took place at the beginning of 2022.

The prize pool is 3,500 euros, with and the first ten photos scored by the jury selected for the exhibition, together with other thematic images from the picture library of the AGERPRES National News Agency.

The exhibition, whose opening was postponed due to the events in Ukraine, can be visited until October 26.

The Natural Disaster Insurance Pool - PAID - is a component of the Romanian catastrophe insurance program, a programme managed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. PAID administers the mandatory home insurance system that covers three basic risks specific to Romania - earthquake, floods and landslides. The actual activity of PAID started in February 2010, and the first day of issuing the mandatory insurance for homes was July 15, 2010.
Defence Minister Vasile Dincu, addressing the NATO ministerial meeting taking place in Brussels over October 12 - 13, spoke about Romania's "constant" support to Ukraine, showing also that Romania backs the neighboring country's NATO accession process, the National Defence Ministry informed in a release on Thursday.

"In these complicated times, Romania continues its constant support to Ukraine, and also backs Ukraine's NATO accession bid, evoking in this respect the decisions made at the 2008 NATO Summit in Bucharest," Dincu said on Wednesday, on the first day of the meeting, Agerpres informs.

On the sidelines of the event, Defence Minister Dincu participated in the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting held in a political and military context marked both by the recent successes of the Ukrainian forces on the battlefield, but also by the illegal move of the Russian Federation to annex the occupied Ukrainian territories, the Defence Ministry said.

Vasile Dincu also attended the Framework Nations Concept-FNC meeting coordinated by Germany, where he reaffirmed Romania's commitment within the FNC initiative, highlighting the solid progress made through the joint effort of the participating states. The DefMin also pointed out the importance of ensuring the coherence, interoperability and complementarity of the efforts of the FNC participating countries, the cited release states.
Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca had a meeting with Vice-President of the European Commission for Democracy and Demography Dubravka Suica, on Thursday, at the Victoria Palace of Government, with whom he discussed the need for policies that respond to demographic challenges that Europe is facing, informs the Executive in a press release.

The Romanian Prime Minister appreciated the substantial contribution of the vice-president of the European Commission in coordinating the activities related to the Conference on the Future of Europe, emphasizing the need for the evaluation process of the recommendations resulting from the conference to result in the transposition of those priorities and directions of action with real resonance for European citizens. Maintaining the unity and cohesion of the member states, together with the firm support for the democratic values of the Union, represent an essential common task, even more so in the current geostrategic context, the release says.

The Head of the Executive emphasized the importance of implementing the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) for the development of the economy and the reformation of society, as well as the considerable added value of the European funds for development and cohesion, Agerpres informs.

Appreciating the support of the European Commission for the enlargement of the Schengen area, the prime minister expressed his hope that Romania will obtain a positive political decision regarding the accession to this free movement area, the press release further shows.
Vice-President of the European Commission for Democracy and Demography Dubravka Suica is paying an official visit to Romania, Thursday to Saturday, the European Commission Representation in Bucharest announced.

On Thursday, the high official will meet Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca, and the discussions will tackle the actions following the Conference on the future of Europe, the Summit for Democracy, skills and labor force mobility, demographic changes, children's rights and gender equality, told Agerpres.

Afterwards, EC Vice-President Dubravka Suica will have meetings with Secretary of State with the Foreign Affairs Ministry Daniela Gitman, Minister of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities Gabriela Firea, Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, as well as with members of the joint committees for European Affairs from Romania's Senate and Deputies' Chamber.

The European official will also tour the Ominis complex for integrated social services dedicated to vulnerable people, including for Ukrainian refugees.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, hails the adoption, on Wednesday, by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), gathered in an extraordinary emergency session, of the resolution condemning the illegal annexation by Russia of some Ukrainian territories, entitled "Territorial Integrity of Ukraine - Defending the Principles of the UN Charter."

The adoption of the resolution was made possible by the favourable votes of a large majority of 143 UN member states, including Romania, according to a press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent to AGERPRES. It is the largest number of votes obtained since the beginning of the illegal war of aggression against Ukraine in favour of a resolution of the UN General Assembly on this topic.

"This result clearly shows the very high degree of international isolation of Russia, but also the determination of the international community to defend the international order based on rules and international law," stated Minister Bogdan Aurescu, told Agerpres.

The resolution was initiated by Ukraine and Albania, following the rejection by the Russian Federation of a similar resolution in the Security Council on September 30. The text was co-sponsored by Romania, along with 75 other UN member states.

At the same time, only five UN member states voted against the resolution - the Russian Federation, Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua and Syria.

"Considering the seriousness of the actions of the Russian Federation, as well as the importance of the theme of territorial integrity for the UN states, the adoption of this resolution with a large majority sends a very clear signal that, by the decision to illegally annex some territories belonging to Ukraine, the Russian Federation violated in a flagrant manner the basic principles of international law, including the provisions of the UN Charter," explains the MAE.

The resolution asks the UN member states not to recognize any change in the status of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions and asks the Russian Federation to revoke the decision of the illegal annexation of some Ukrainian territories, as well as the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of military forces from the territory of Ukraine.

Also, by adopting this resolution, the support of the vast majority of UN member states for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within the internationally recognized borders, including its territorial waters, is reaffirmed. The resolution condemns the so-called "referendums" organized by the Russian Federation in regions within the recognized borders of Ukraine and declares them invalid under international law.

The actions of the Russian Federation are based on the illegal use of force and represent serious violations of the most important principles and norms of international law, enshrined, in particular, by the provisions of the UN Charter.

Adopted shortly after the recent armed attacks launched by the Russian Federation against the civilian population of Ukraine, the resolution also calls on the UN member states and other international organizations to support efforts to de-escalate the current situation.

Romania condemned in the strongest terms the signing of the so-called "accession agreements to the Russian Federation" of some Ukrainian regions under the illegal occupation of Russian troops, as a result of the war of aggression launched by the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

"These actions cannot produce any kind of effect from the point of view of international law, and Romania does not recognize their validity, especially regarding the operation of any change regarding the territorial membership of the Ukrainian regions concerned with Ukraine," emphasizes the Romanian MAE.
The future of Dacia in Romania is a "bright one", the president of the Board of Directors of the Renault Group, Jean-Dominique Senard said on Thursday in Mioveni.

"We are extremely proud, Mr. Prime Minister, to show you what Dacia is today, in this country. And I want to state very firmly that Dacia, for the Renault Group, has a very, very important future. It shows the path to the future of the auto industry and what is happening here, in this country, is a point of reference for us. I tell you very clearly, officially, that the future of Dacia in this country is bright," said Jean-Dominique Senard, after a meeting with the Prime Minister of Romania, Nicolae Ciuca, told Agerpres.

The representative of the French group emphasized that the development plans of the Dacia plants will materialize in the coming years.

"We have huge projects, and these plans will be materialized in the coming years. And it is a message of optimism, because mobility is essential for the future of the economy, and Dacia shows the way for future mobility," Jean-Dominique Senard said.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca visited the Dacia Industrial Platform in Mioveni, where he had a working meeting with the company's management. The head of the Government showed that at the Dacia plants there are prospects for development both for the next ten years and for the period to come.

He emphasized that Dacia employees carry the name of Romania in more than 40 countries where the vehicles produced at Mioveni are exported, which is a source of pride. "The Romanian industry has, at the moment, a say both in Europe and in the world. The Romanian industry has consistency and has a future. Here, on this platform, 15,000 directly employed people work and there is also a collaboration that ensures (...) jobs for another 150,000 people," the prime minister also said.

The head of the Government also showed that he noticed the car maker's ability to adapt to the new environmental requirements of the European Union, which is reflected both in the intention to produce "green energy" and to launch new models with low emissions reduced. "I got off earlier from a car that is going to enter the production line at the beginning of next year and it is a hybrid car, it is a car that, for sure, we want to find as soon as possible in the car shows," Nicolae Ciuca also mentioned.
More than 40 artists and ten specialists from France, Belgium, Serbia, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia and Romania will be present at the 5th edition of the International Historical Comics Festival, which starts Thursday in Brasov.

France and Bulgaria are the countries invited to this year's edition with two special exhibitions, a press release sent to AGERPRES informs.

"Balkans in history" became the main theme for original comics, exhibitions, debates, masterclasses for young artists, competitions and even workshops for pupils, at the 5th edition of the festival.

With the support of the French Institute, the outdoor exhibition called "Europe in a Comic Strip" was brought to Brasov. After the inauguration in Paris held at the headquarters of France's Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Brasov hosts the first itinerary of the exhibition produced by the Cite Internationale de la Bande Dessinee et de l'Image Angouleme.

Moreover, in the Comic book section, Romain Dutter ("Goodbye Ceausescu," Steinkis Publishing House, 2021) and Gael Henry ("L'Ours de Ceausescu," Steinkis Publishing House, 2021), have scheduled meetings with readers at the Council House, on 15 October.

The exhibition called "Bulgarian historical comics - XXI century" is the first promotion demarche of Bulgarian historical comics in Romania. Produced by the Union of Bulgarian Artists (UBA) - the comics section, under the coordination of artists Peter Stanimirov and Rumen Chaushev, personalities of the Balkan comics world, the exhibition displayed at the Council House brings together a selection of works from 16 representative Bulgarian authors.

This year, the "map" of the festival has expanded to six places of Brasov: five places in the historical center of Brasov (the Council Square, the Council House, the Art Museum, the Brasov County Council headquarters and the Heroes' Park), but also in an unconventional space, namely Coresi Shopping Resort.

The exhibition of the international project called "CAN for Balkans" will premiere at Coresi Shopping Resort, on Friday, 11:00hrs.

A multimedia section presents in a new creative way, including video animations, the results of the research project on the history of historical comics in the Balkans, with a focus on the cliches and stereotypes used by comic book authors for the Balkan world. Another section presents the contemporary outlook on the Balkans in history in the form of 64 original comics made by 67 artists, of whom 27 artists from eight countries were selected in the international competition of the European project, organized between March and July 2022.

The program of the edition also includes several related special events - the exhibition called "Communist Propaganda in Art (1948-1989). Collection of the Brasov Art Museum" (curator Radu Popica) and the cartoon show commented by Costel Patrascan.

The Brasov International Historical Comics Festival is organized by the Forums Association, together with the Brasov County Museum of History.
Luc Dardenne, Arnaud Desplechin and Stephane Brize are the filmmakers honored at the 13th edition of "Les Films de Cannes r Bucarest" by the screening of their newest movies, as well as of other landmark titles from their careers in three really special retrospectives, the organizers said in a release.

Thus, Belgian directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne will be featured with their 2011 Cannes Festival winner "Le Gamin Au Velo/The Kid with a Bike".

After the screening of the Dardenne brothers' film "Tori and Lokita" Luc Dardenne will hold a Q&A session moderated by film critic Ionut Mares.

French film director and screenwriter Arnaud Desplechin, one of the Cannes darlings, will be present at the event with his latest film "Frcre et Soeur/Brother and Sister", and with "Trois Souvenirs de ma Jeunesse/Three Memories of My Youth".

After the premiere of "Frcre et Soeur", due on October 22 at 7:30 p.m. at the Elvire Popesco movie theatre, Arnaud Desplechin will deliver an open talk moderated by film critic Ionut Mares, Agerpres informs.

The retrospective of French film director, screenwriter and actor Stephane Brize includes the films "Une Vie/A Woman's Life" - winner of Venice's FIPRESCI Award in 2016, and "En Guerre/At War" - selected to compete at the Cannes 2018 Festival.

"Tori et Lokita", "Frcre et Soeur", "Trois Souvenirs de ma Jeunesse", "Le Gamin Au Velo" and "La Fille Inconnu" are distributed in Romania by Independenta Film.

Directors Thomas Salvador and Tarik Saleh are special guests to the festival, the organizers said.

Thomas Salvador will be present on October 21, starting 6:00 p.m., at the Elvire Popesco movie theater, where he will deliver a two-part open talk: in the first part he will discuss his movie "La Montagne/The Mountain" with critic Ionut Mares, and in the second part he will discuss with forestry engineer Mihai Zotta, holder of more than 20 years of experience in nature conservation.

Thomas Salvador will meet the festival audience at the screenings of Tarik Saleh's "Boy from Heaven" on October 20, at 6:00 p.m., at the Peasant Museum's Cinema, and on October 29, at 8:00 p.m., at the Elvire Popesco movie theater.

Les Films de Cannes r Bucarest 2022 will include an extensive Pier Paolo Pasolini retrospective, at the centennial of the Italian author and director's birth.

Les Films de Cannes r Bucharest is a cultural project financed by the National Center of Cinematography, Societe des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques, the French Embassy and the French Institute in Romania, the Romanian Cultural Institute, Dacin Sara, the Italian Cultural Institute, the Swedish Embassy in Romania. The festival is co-financed by the Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB, as part of the Affective Bucharest Program 2022.
The new air defense systems that NATO member states will benefit from through the European Sky Shield Initiative (ESSI) are "fully interoperable and seamlessly integrated into the allied air and anti-missile defense system and will significantly boost the Alliance's defense capability" against all air and missile threats, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana said on Thursday, on the occasion of the signing ceremony of Letter of Intent for the development of the European Sky Shield Initiative, which took place at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Alliance in Brussels, told Agerpres.

Fourteen NATO member states, including Romania, and Finland, on Thursday signed a letter of intent for the development of ESSI.

"This commitment is even more crucial today as we witness Russia's relentless and indiscriminate missile attacks in Ukraine, killing civilians and destroying critical infrastructure. In this context, I strongly welcome Germany's leadership in launching the European Sky Shield Initiative," said Mircea Geoana, quoted by nato.int.
PAID Romania Director General Nicoleta Radu said on Thursday that in Romania only 20% of the population has home insurance, pointing to risks that uninsured Romanians may run into in the aftermath of disasters.

"Natural events can cause damage. I think we have enough reasons to stop thinking that it can't happen to us. It is happening to us, and things have happened to us in recent years that we would never have thought of. That's why I say that there are things that should make us think more when we have to make decisions regarding our protection," said Radu at the National Library, told Agerpres.

She participated in the opening of ReExpozitia, a competitive photography exhibition of aftermaths of natural disasters also featuring photos from the AGERPRES picture library.

She said that for the protection against disasters, "there is an insurance mechanism that should be activated."

"In Romania, there is the mandatory home insurance designed to cover the three risks of impact - earthquake, landslides and flood. It is an affordable mechanism. The policy was 8 lei per month and despite all this it is difficult to explain why in Romania only 20% of the population has home insurance. Practically, in Romania, four out of five homes do not have any kind of protection against natural disasters (...) We would like those who visit the exhibition to take out insurance as well," added Radu.

Head of the Disaster Prevention Service with the General Emergency Management Inspectorate Francisc Senzaconi called for "increasing resilience" by preparing for major events such as natural disasters.

"We are living in a world where disasters have started to become more and more 'common', that is, we meet them more and more often. And yet we are not aware of their impact on us. In addition to the measures of the government (...), there is a part of prevention that is available to citizens and that applies not in the acute stage of disasters, which we manage, but in the post-disaster stage, when the needs of the population change. Insurance is one of such tools," said Senzaconi.

AGERPRES National News Agency Director General Claudia Nicolae said the agency has a direct relationship both with the authorities and with those affected by natural disasters.

"We are a precious depository, I say, not in praise of the organisation I lead, of 4.5 million photos in the picture library of AGERPRES, with the oldest one being of a flood in 1927. Ours is a direct relationship. Officials have disaster prevention campaigns, insurers try to prevent, because no one wants to end up in a disaster, and we, journalists, have the role of disseminating this information. We have pictures of aftermaths of disasters. You should know that these pictures are not the only ones in the AGERPRES archives. We also have images with a ray of hope, when trying to rebuild and rehabilitate the destroyed," said Nicolae.

She said that photographs remain the most faithful witnesses of an event where journalists and authorities "try to help".

"We can write as journalists, we can tell stories, we can cover reactions, we can present statements of officials, but photographs remain in time and they make the strongest impact on a citizen. (...) Along with journalists, we will see firefighters at the scene, we will see the Emergency Management Inspectorate trying lives, trying to help. We immortalise the moment, while the authorities try to lend a helping hand," she added.

ReExpozitia opened on Thursday, October 13, the International Day for Disaster Reduction, at the National Library of Romania.

It is a project of the Natural Disaster Insurance Pool (PAID) designed to remind Romanians about the cyclical and repetitive nature of disasters.

Taken by professionals and amateurs, the photos are part of a wide-ranging campaign to raise public awareness over the repetitive nature of natural disasters and the importance of home insurance against them.

The exhibition, whose opening was postponed due to the events in Ukraine, can be visited until October 26.

The Natural Disaster Insurance Pool - PAID - is a component of the Romanian catastrophe insurance program, a programme managed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. PAID administers the mandatory home insurance system that covers three basic risks specific to Romania - earthquake, floods and landslides. The actual activity of PAID started in February 2010, and the first day of issuing the mandatory insurance for homes was July 15, 2010.
The idea of joint procurement by Romania and other European countries of defence equipment is an idea that deserves all our attention and we have to look at ways to enter this project, Romania's Prime Minister Nicolae said on Thursday.

He was asked to comment on Romania's intention to jointly procure air defence systems with other NATO or partner states, and whether being part of a European defence system is more effective.

"There has been a whole series of decisions that aimed at joint actions at the European level. We are discussing what happened during the pandemic and we saw that it was a procedure that worked. At the moment, we are discussing the joint procurement of natural gas; it is a procedure that leaders support, and the technical procedure of application will be found. As such, taking into account the capacity of the defence industry, this idea of joint procurement of defence equipment - discussed and approved at the European level - I think it's an idea that deserves all our attention and we need to see the ways to enter this project," Ciuca told a news conference at the end of a visit to the Dacia Mioveni Industrial Platform in Arges County.

Asked about Romania's contribution, if it will be equal to that of the other countries, he said that the provision and distribution of equipment by percentages must be done "according to the size of each armed force, of each individual state."

"And, of course, the level of development of the equipment on the weapon and the specific specialty of each army," Ciuca said

Fourteen NATO allies on Thursday signed a letter of intent for the joint procurement of air defence systems in the category of systems such as Arrow 3 and Patriot, according to the Reuters news agency.

The signing ceremony of the European Skyshield Initiative (ESSI) took place at NATO's headquarters in Brussels.

The participating countries are Germany, UK, Slovakia, Norway, Latvia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovenia.
The President of the Committee for Defense with the Romanian Senate, Nicoleta Pauliuc, received, on Thursday, the ambassador of Ukraine in Bucharest, Ihor Prokopchuk, the discussions aiming at the aggression of the Russian Federation against the neighboring country, a press release by the Senate sent to AGERPRES, reads.

"The main topic of discussion concerned the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, being condemned, in the strongest possible terms, the illegal annexation of the three Ukrainian regions by the Russian state. The Romanian official emphasized Romania's firm support for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine," the statement says, Agerpres informs.

Senator Pauliuc emphasized the solidarity of the Romanian society in relation to Ukraine, recalling the support offered by our country in the political, economic, financial fields, of humanitarian assistance, diplomatic, international and sectoral law fields and, at the same time, she recalled the establishment and operationalization on the territory of Romania of the humanitarian hub from Suceava, as well as the availability of the Romanian state to receive wounded people from Ukraine.

The President of the Defense Committee welcomed the decision of the European Council in June to grant Ukraine the status of a candidate country, which represents "a confirmation of the European future" of the neighboring country.
Prosecutor General Gabriela Scutea signed, on Thursday, at the Eurojust headquarters in The Hague, an amendment through which Romania, through the General Prosecutor's Office - Military Prosecutor's Office Section, joins the team made up of several Eastern European states, which will investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the context of Russia's military attack on Ukraine, told Agerpres.

According to a press release from the General Prosecutor's Office, the joint investigation team was established on March 25, 2022, by Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine, with the support of Eurojust, with Latvia, Estonia and Slovakia later becoming parties.

Also, the Prosecutor's Office of the International Criminal Court in The Hague participates in the joint investigation team.

The purpose of this joint investigation team is to facilitate investigations and prosecutions in cases of alleged international crimes in Ukraine, by increasing cooperation between parties and participants.

The joint investigation team represents a mechanism of international judicial cooperation in criminal matters that includes a legal agreement between the relevant authorities, formed by several states, for the purpose of carrying out the criminal investigation.

On July 11, the Military Prosecutors' Section within the General Prosecutor's Office announced that it had filed an ex officio report and opened a criminal file in which investigations are being carried out regarding the commission of crimes against humanity, in connection with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the consequences of military operations on people with Romanian citizenship from the neighboring country.
Romania and Turkey will organize a university forum next year, the Minister of Education, Ligia Deca, and the president of the Council of Higher Education from Ankara, Erol Ozvar, who is visiting Bucharest, decided on Thursday.

Ligia Deca had a meeting with a delegation led by Erol Ozvar, the discussions was aimed at intensifying cooperation in the field of higher education, the Ministry of Education informed through a statement sent to AGERPRES.

At the same time, an expert level group will be created to address topics of common interest such as the recognition of diplomas, increasing the number of inter-university partnerships and academic mobility, common scholarship schemes for students and teaching staff.

Romania and Turkey concluded a Memorandum of Understanding regarding cooperation in the field of higher education between the Ministry of Education and the Council for Higher Education.
Romania is trying to implement a pilot project for irrigation infrastructure, the investment amounting to 1.8 billion euros on 1,700-kilometer length of irrigation canals, said the Minister of Investments and European Projects, Marcel Bolos, at the videoconference "Business in agriculture", organized by Bursa magazine.

He emphasized that work must be done on the project and the details must be further discussed with the Commission services that serve the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) so that all the details regarding the operationalization of these infrastructures can be finalized and can be included in the REPowerEU chapter, the chapter intended in its entirety to the production, transport, distribution of green energy and to the increase of the energy autonomy and independence of the member state, Agerpres informs.

At the same time, the Minister of Investments referred to the call that is aimed exclusively at the agri-food industry, this time for capitalization with technological equipment that will increase productivity and contribute to strengthening the competitive position on the market.

"We have 150 million euros planned for this type of investment as well. It is also a pilot test of ours, which, depending on the results we will obtain, can be extended," the minister added.
Romania is ready and deserves to enter the Schengen area, argue Romanian entrepreneurs from the Romanian Business Leaders (RBL) community, in an open letter sent to the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Roelof Sander van Ees.

"We, the Romanian entrepreneurs, believe that Romania is ready and deserves to enter Schengen. And together with us, the multinational companies and the Dutch companies believe the same, given that they have declared that they unhesitatingly support this. Your Excellency, the business environment from Romania thinks it's time to unlock the gate to Europe," according to the message sent by RBL on behalf of 350 Romanian entrepreneurs.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands leads by far the ranking of foreign investments based on the country of origin in Romania, with 22 billion euros in 2021, double compared to Germany, which is on 2nd place, according to the RBL press release, Agerpres informs.

"Romania welcomed with open arms more than 5,800 Dutch companies that chose to invest here, from the beer industry, banking industry, agribusiness, technology, trade, shipping and many other fields, names of large companies that chose to invest in Romania for many years. Dutch businesspersons consider Romania to be one of the best places in the region for investments, as highlighted by the fact that they are increasing year by year. On the other hand, we, Romanian entrepreneurs, are also looking with great interest at the Netherlands. We are not only bringing young Romanians to study, but also Romanian businesses and investment funds have chosen your country as their residence," the document reads.

According to RBL, almost 90% of Romanian exports go to the European Union markets, worth about 60 billion euros, of which 85% are machines and manufactured products, transported through customs points that do not cope.

Romanian entrepreneurs claim that every day in the customs from Romania to Europe there are queues of kilometers of trucks transporting goods, and their losses and the losses of the companies whose goods are transported, caused by sometimes spending days at the border points, amount to hundreds of millions of euros.
The Secretary of State for Strategic Affairs, Iulian Fota, on Wednesday had a meeting with Geoffrey Pyatt, assistant to the Secretary of State for Energy Resources within the US State Department, on which occasion the American official mentioned his country's commitment to supply liquefied gas to its allies, "among which Romania plays a leading role," informs the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE), told Agerpres.

According to a press release of the MAE, the two high-ranking dignitaries discussed the perspectives of major bilateral cooperation projects in the field of energy, including the civilian nuclear level, respectively the project of units 3 and 4 of the Cernavoda nuclear plant and the project of the Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). Secretary of State Fota highlighted their important potential for strengthening Romania's energy security and also regional security. The two officials also mentioned the two countries' interest in developing cooperation in other areas of clean energy, such as the wind energy.

The Assistant Secretary of State of the USA also welcomed the commitment of the Romanian side in favour of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, mentioning, at the same time, the commitment of the USA to supply liquefied natural gas to its allies, among which our country plays a leading role, states the MAE.

Further on, Geoffrey Pyatt noted the positive results of the first meeting of the Trilateral of Foreign Ministers from Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, which took place in Odessa on September 15, 2022, and which aimed to strengthen the resilience of the two partners, with an emphasis on the field of energy security, in view of supporting reforms for European integration, reports the same source.

The visit to Romania by the American official comes as a continuation of the dialogue launched on September 20, in New York, between the Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, and the US Deputy Secretary of State, Wendy Sherman, as well as during the B9 ministerial meeting of the same date, on which occasions the officials discussed issues of interest regarding regional energy security, including the results of the Odessa Trilateral, the same press release also states.
As many as 679 new cases of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 were recorded in the last 24 hours in Romania, down 132 from the previous day, with over 14,000 RT-PCR and rapid antigenic tests performed, the Health Ministry informed on Thursday, told Agerpres.

Of the new cases, 151 were in re-infected patients, who tested positive more than 90 days after the first time they recovered from the disease.

Most of the newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in Romania since the previous reporting were recorded in Bucharest City - 186, Timis County - 56, and Cluj County - 42.

The highest 14-day notification rate is in Bucharest City - 1.2, followed by Cluj County - 1.18, and Timis County- 1.

As of Thursday, 3,278,510 cases of people infected with the novel coronavirus were confirmed in Romania.

- Hospitalisations -

As many as 958 people with COVID-19, down 42 from the previous reporting, including 51 minors, are hospitalised in Romania at specialist care facilities.

Out of the total number of hospitalised patients, 100 are in intensive care, up five, including one minor.

Of the 100 patients admitted to ICU, 87 are unvaccinated against COVID-19.

- Deaths -

According to the ministry, seven Romanians, two men and five women, are reported dead in the last 24 hours.

Of the seven deaths, one was recorded in the age group 20-29 years, one in the age group 70-79 years, and five in the age group over 80 years.

All deaths were in patients with comorbidities, and four deaths were in vaccinated patients.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 67,110 people diagnosed with the SARS-CoV-2 infection have died in Romania.
Romanias National Council of Rectors regards and supports academic integrity as a fundamental value of higher education. However, compliance with the principles of academic ethics and integrity is analyzed through mechanisms that are specific to higher education and the rule of law. Therefore, the verdicts issued by individuals on social networks cannot be taken into account, even when the person concerned is a politician.

Romanias National Council of Rectors firmly rejects any sentences of more or less political nature, issued by veritable digital tribunals. Universities play an essential role in substantiating and promoting civic principles aimed at ensuring the proper functioning of the Romanian state and society. Thus, we consider it opportune and necessary to play this role by adopting a steadfast position every time the work ethics of a member of the academic community is judged and assessed within a framework devoid of professional and legal value.

Prof. Dr. Eng. Sorin Mihai Cimpeanu has built his teaching and scientific experience in over 30 years of sustained work that involved passing all the steps legally required for progress in the academic career, resulting in obvious and quantifiable results, as well as recognition by the academic community. All these cannot be wiped out and must be taken into consideration by this genuine lynching process launched on social media.

The document, falsely claimed to have been plagiarized, is a workbook/practical training guide, which is a supporting teaching instrument intended exclusively for project activities and practical work performed by the students of a particular faculty belonging to a particular university. A workbook is not a work that involves scientific creativity, it is not a document that demands original elements that result from the authors personal research activities. To be available to each student that carried out practical training, the workbooks were lithographed within the higher education institution.

This workbook was in no way used by Prof. Dr. Eng. Sorin Mihai Cimpeanu for professional advancement. Moreover, he received the title of Professor in 2006, the year when the workbook was published.

It is worth mentioning that, at Prof. Cimpeanus request, the ethics committee, together with a board consisting of experts in the relevant field, has already initiated an investigation to clarify the situation expeditiously. They will make a decision on the content and development of the students workbook and the according to the general academic and specialist customs

While waiting for the results of the investigation, we consider the public accusations to be unsubstantiated, especially since they were categorically denied publicly by the very person who is said to have been prejudiced - Prof. Dr. Eng. Ioan Plesa.

Considering the above, Romanias National Council of Rectors expresses its firm support for Prof. Sorin Mihai Cimpeanu, President of CNR, legally elected quasi-unanimously (68 Yes, one No) by secret ballot on 20 September 2020.
After the compulsory military training was eliminated about twenty years ago, the war in Ukraine brought back to attention the need for a minimum military training of a part of the population. These days, in eastern Focsani, 30 future reservists are being intensively trained, as part of a national basic training plan of the Ministry of National Defense (MApN).

"Following the hierarchization - assignment process, 30 rank-and-file volunteer reservists, both from Vrancea County and from other counties in the country, began almost seven weeks ago training within the 84th Data Assurance Battalion Marasti, subordinate structure to the 8th Brigade Tactical Operational Missiles Al. I. Cuza from Focsani," the head of the Recruitment Information Bureau of the Vrancea King Carol I Zonal Military Center, Daniel Carut, said for AGERPRES.

Contrary to what one might think, the volunteer reservist recruitment program is not new, and in recent years the number of volunteer reservists was even three times higher than this year, say MApN representatives, Agerpres informs.

"In the first stage, when they arrived at the unit, we had to take them from scratch in all aspects and above all to make them understand the rigors of military life, to fit into the timetable, to respect military orders, the training. The soldiers carried out tactical marches at distances of 15 - 20 kilometers, they were trained on how to use gas masks in a contaminated atmosphere, making a primer, tactical training. Now we are in the last week - that of evaluations and the general conclusion is that they were quite determined to learn, to deepen their knowledge and very motivated, in the sense that probably half of them want to stay in the system,', the commander of the 84th Data Assurance Battalion Marasti within the Operational - Tactical Missile Brigade Al. I. Cuza Focsani, lieutenant colonel Iulian Neghina, told AGERPRES.

31 people started the training course, but, proof of the fact that the army is not for everyone, one of them quit after only three days from the beginning of the training period. Out of the series of 30 soldiers who started the training course in Focsani, 13 are young women. The soldiers come from Vrancea, Arges, Hunedoara, Satu Mare, Bistrita, Bucharest, Vaslui, Olt. 12% have higher education, 12% post-secondary education, 6% with vocational education, 60% have completed high school and 10% have only graduated ten classes. 10% of the volunteer reservists declared that they did not have a job.

The youngest soldier is 19 years old, and the oldest is 49 years old.

Regardless of whether they are motivated by the financial benefits or are attracted by the military uniform or the spirit of adventure, in order to become volunteer reservists, the candidates must pass certain competitive tests, by far the most difficult being the physical test.

The fact tat the army prepares one in a different way for life is also the belief of many recruits who wanted to join the ranks of the rank-and-file volunteer reservists, whether or not they intend to stay in the army in the future.

The volunteer reservists are preparing to perform the duties they will be assigned to the units where they will arrive. Or, better said, they are preparing for war in peacetime, although they wish that this would never happen. About 30% of their training is theoretical, and the rest is practical training.

For the current year, more than 400 places are available nationally for those who want to become volunteer reservists, but MApN is also looking for professional graded soldiers for full-time jobs.

Until October 24, registrations for professional graded soldiers can still be made, those who wish can register at the headquarters of the Recruitment Information Bureau in Focsani.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  Two supporters of President Donald Trump arrested after driving a Hummer with guns and ammunition to a Philadelphia site where votes were being counted in November 2020 were convicted of weapons charges Wednesday but acquitted of election interference.

Prosecutors argued that Vets for Trump co-founder Joshua Macias and co-defendant Antonio LaMotta, both of Virginia, planned a mass shooting as the outcome of the presidential election remained uncertain.

However, Common Pleas Court Judge Lucretia Clemons rejected that theory, finding the men guilty only of bringing weapons to the city without a permit on Nov. 5, 2020.

LaMotta is separately charged with federal misdemeanor offenses stemming from his alleged illegal entry of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Both men remain free on bail pending a scheduled sentencing in December, when they face a possible sentence of probation to 18 months in jail, defense lawyer William J. Brennan said.

The commonwealth has presented no evidence to show that they came here to interfere with an election, Brennan, who represents Macias, said after the one-day, non-jury trial. They came, they stared at a building, they talked to some police officers, and they didnt bother anybody.

The pair were arrested after the FBI in Virginia relayed a tip about their plans to Philadelphia police. Officers stopped the men, who had driven up from Virginia Beach, about a block from the vehicle. Each man had a handgun on him, while an AR-style rifle and ammunition were found inside the vehicle, which sported an American flag and a window sticker for the right-wing conspiracy theory QAnon.

District Attorney Larry Krasner had publicly labeled Macias a shark with ties to far-right extremist groups. The defense painted him as a veteran and active member of an evangelical church.

Despite the judges verdict on Wednesday, Krasner held to his view that the pair drove to Philadelphia to disrupt the election.

If you commit a crime while seeking to undermine peoples right to vote, and to have their votes appropriately counted, you will be held accountable, he said in a statement.

LaMottas lawyer called the election charges unsubstantiated and based on nothing more than speculation.

This is a gun case. While it may have been spun into a case of politics, it was always a gun case and the verdict reflects the same, lawyer Lauren Wimmer told The Associated Press.

___ Follow AP Legal Affairs Writer Maryclaire Dale on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Maryclairedale
ATLANTA (AP)  Before the 2020 presidential election, certifying election results in the states was routine and generated little public attention. That has changed.

Attempts to delay presidential certification in Michigan in 2020 and primary results in New Mexico earlier this year have brought new scrutiny to a process that typically takes place quietly in the weeks after Election Day.

Members of certification boards have raised unsubstantiated claims of fraud or other wrongdoing, focusing new attention on a process that could be manipulated if either side didnt like an election outcome.

Whether partisan actors might try to block or delay certification at the local or state level is a growing concern among election officials, both for the upcoming November midterm voting and then the 2024 presidential election. Here is how election officials prepare for certification, who is involved and what might happen if a county refuses to certify its results.

HOW ELECTION OFFICIALS PREPARE FOR CERTIFICATION

Voting is over when polls close on Election Day, but the work to count and verify the results is just beginning. Through the canvass and certification process, local election officials check to ensure all votes were cast and counted correctly before results become official.

The canvass includes checking lists of voters in pollbooks against the number of ballots cast and researching any discrepancies. Those often are due to clerical errors or mistakes such as someone failing to sign the pollbook.

There are all these little human errors that can happen that could lead to mismatch or discrepancies in the accounting, said Jennifer Morrell, a former local election official who now advises election offices. Best practice is to show them and do your best to account for them and explain them.

Its this reconciliation that election officials also use to detect potential voter fraud, flagging for authorities any issues such as a voter attempting to cast more than one ballot. During this time, many election offices also test equipment and audit the results to make sure the votes were tallied correctly. Others might take those steps after certification.

Most states have deadlines for when the canvass and certification must be completed.

WHO CERTIFIES RESULTS?

Partisan officials are involved in certifying elections, something experts worry about after nearly two years of conspiracy theories falsely claiming the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Republican former President Donald Trump. There is no evidence of widespread fraud or manipulated voting machines, and reviews in battleground states confirmed Democrat Joe Bidens win.

In 45 states, the local boards that handle election certification are either party-controlled or commissions where the members are elected on a partisan basis, according to research by the advocacy group Election Reformers Network.

Once certified at the local level, results are sent to the state for further certification. In virtually every state, officials with ties to political parties play some role, according to the group. This typically involves a board comprised of statewide officials such as the secretary of state and governor, although in some states its the secretary of state who has sole authority to certify an election. Hawaii is the only state where certification is overseen by a nonpartisan chief election official appointed by a bipartisan commission.

THE PROCESS OF CERTIFICATION

Certification involves a public meeting during which election officials report to the local board charged with certifying the results. Those reports detail the number of voters who cast ballots, how many ballots were cast and counted, and any discrepancies that surfaced during the canvass.

Its a ministerial task, meaning those handling certification do not have authority to investigate allegations of fraud or other wrongdoing. Thats up to prosecutors and the courts, which handle challenges filed by candidates or parties. Judges can delay or halt certification if there are questions surrounding an election.

That did not happen in 2020, as numerous judges including some appointed by Trump dismissed his claims.

DISPUTES ARISE AMID PARTISAN INFLUENCES

Local certification is typically handled by a county commission or board of elections. In some places, a separate board of canvassers is formed to handle certification. In Michigan, the county canvassing board is comprised of two Republicans and two Democrats. In Wayne County, which includes Detroit, Republican board members initially voted against certifying the 2020 election but later reversed course.

The Republican members then sought to rescind their vote to certify after receiving calls from Trump. State officials said there was no way to do that, and ultimately the election was certified at the state level.

The law is very clear that the board must certify, said Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. It doesnt say they may or can consider, they must. And so we have the law on our side.

If such a dispute arises again, the state Board of Canvassers has the authority to review and certify a countys election, Benson said. If the state board, which is likewise comprised of two Republicans and two Democrats, similarly deadlocks, Benson said she would seek a court order to compel certification.

That happened recently when the state board deadlocked along partisan lines on whether an abortion measure should appear on the November ballot, and the state supreme court subsequently allowed it.

HAS THIS HAPPENED ELSEWHERE?

Commissioners in a rural New Mexico county initially refused to certify the results of their June primary. They cited distrust of the voting systems used to tally the vote even though the countys election official said there were no problems.

A tiny county in Nevada didn't certified its primary results until it completed a hand count of all ballots.

In the New Mexico case, Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver petitioned the state Supreme Court, which issued an order directing the local commissioners in Otero County to certify. They ultimately did so in a 2-1 vote. The dissenting vote was by commissioner Couy Griffin, who had dialed into the meeting from Washington, D.C. Hours earlier he had been sentenced for entering restricted grounds during the attack on the Capitol, where Congress was meeting to certify Biden's victory.

During the meeting, Griffin acknowledged he had no evidence to support his vote against certification, saying, Its only based on my gut feeling and my own intuition. He has since been removed from office.

If the commission would have refused to abide by the court order, the state was prepared to seek another order to allow the state board to certify the countys results, said Alex Curtas with the secretary of states office.

We werent just going to let some 8,000 people who had voted in Otero County be disenfranchised because their county commission refused to certify their votes, Curtas said.

GUARDRAILS TO PREVENT PARTISAN INTERFERENCE

Election officials in various states say they are prepared to intervene and have the legal means to compel certification if needed.

No county official can just say that she or he just feels or believes or has a vibe or a hunch that something went wrong and feel free to just not certify an election, said Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon.

In Colorado, a new law requires the secretary of state to review any results not certified by a local board by the deadline and certify them if there is no reason not to. But most states have to rely on the courts.

Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections with Common Cause, said voter advocacy groups are prepared to intervene should partisan actors interfere with certification without justification or if a secretary of state refuses to seek a court order compelling a local board to act.

That is why we are here, and there will be lot of advocates and lawyers willing and able to step in and file if the secretary is not interested in using their authority or their position to ensure that the votes of their constituents are counted, Albert said.

Follow AP for full coverage of the midterms at https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections and on Twitter, https://twitter.com/ap_politics
ST. LOUIS  The city's ongoing issues responding to public records requests appeared to come back to bite it Wednesday.

City officials had named a Shell gas station in north St. Louis a public nuisance, accusing it of maintaining a haven for criminal activity. Complaints from neighbors about drug dealing and violent crime had been piling up for years, and had grown louder after police shot a 16-year-old boy there last month. Wednesday's hearing was set to decide the station's future.

But before things got started, Chuck Billings, the attorney for the gas station's owner, asked for a delay. He said his client had disputed the city's allegations and requested in August copies of police reports to prepare a defense.

The city asked for payment on Aug. 31, Billings said, and he sent payment the next day. He said he hadn't heard from the city since.

"I'm not a big Sunshine guy," Billings said. "But I would think they'd have the records sooner than that."

Hearing officer Tom Yarbrough hesitated. He worried about delaying action on a site the city says is dangerous. But he said Billings had a right to see the records first and shouldn't be faulted for the city's delay: "42 days is a reasonable time period to receive those documents," he said.

Yarbrough apologized to the four police officers who'd been waiting to testify and set a new hearing for Nov. 8.

Later, city officials questioned Billings' account. They said they got a request from him concerning the gas station records Sept. 8, responded Sept. 15, and did not receive a reply. They said they could not find the records he referenced in the hearing on Wednesday.

But Yarbrough told the Post-Dispatch that Billings showed him documentation and it appeared to be in order. He noted that attorneys who intentionally misrepresent evidence would open themselves up to serious professional repercussions.

Billings later insisted his documents were in order.

If true, his accusations would add to a list of complaints about the city's handling of Missouri Sunshine Law requests. Journalists and attorneys, who routinely use the law to procure government records, have accused the city of long delays and hiding records. One of those attorneys, Elad Gross, even sued the city last month, alleging officials have "established a system by which they regularly violate Missouri's Sunshine Law and use public funding to deny the public access to public records."

The records concerns on Wednesday added to resident worries over the Shell station, at 2800 North Florissant Avenue.

Multiple people have been shot at the gas station in the past two years. Police have also reported drug dealing on the premises. And last month, the station drew new scrutiny when police shot and killed 16-year-old Darryl Ross, who officers said reached for a weapon as they were chasing him.

City officials got an earful about the gas station at a community meeting last month where Barbara Manzara, who lives nearby, repeatedly asked Public Safety Director Dan Isom why the city hadn't shut down what she called the "Shoot 'em up Shell."

Isom said there had been legal "restrictions" to taking action on the property, but said city officials were aware of the issues and hopeful they could take action soon, perhaps by getting security posted at the station.

It didn't happen Wednesday. Georganna Ekpo, an assistant city counselor handling the nuisance case, declined comment, referring questions to her boss, City Counselor Sheena Hamilton.

Hamilton did not respond to a request for comment.

Manzara, reached Wednesday by phone, was furious.

"The city's failure to be prepared is of a piece with their disregard for the life and safety of residents on the near northside," she said in a text message.

Austin Huguelet  314-788-1651 @ahuguelet on Twitter ahuguelet@post-dispatch.com
This winter, the Oakville-area restaurant Cellar House needed a new chef. As it happened, the chef Chloe Yates needed a new showcase for her talents. Yates herself might not have phrased it that way, but I visited her late food truck Red Dirt Revival and can say it on her behalf.

Yates had been a customer of Cellar House since it opened in 2015 in its original, nearby location. This began as a wine bar adjacent to owner Patrick Ahearns wine shop Bottle Cellars and gradually evolved into a restaurant. In 2020, Ahearn relocated Cellar House to a new home on the same thoroughfare, Telegraph Road.

One evening in February, a Cellar House employee called Yates at home. The restaurants chef had quit. Could she come over right now and cook? She didnt know the menu, but she said yes. Ahearn soon asked her to help consult at the restaurant; a month later, he offered her the position of general manager. Eventually, with the executive chef position still unfilled, she took on that role in addition to GM.

A first-time visitor unaware of this backstory might assume Yates and Cellar House have been together since day one. Her style perfectly fits the restaurants vibe, a casual, friendly neighborhood spot with a higher-end gloss, equally suited to a night out or an impromptu dinner at the bar. Yates cooking is seasonal, sophisticated and abundant in both flavor and plating: a towering grilled bone-in pork chop with a glaze of bourbon, peach and chipotle; a knob of fried burrata in a smoky-sweet sauce of eggplant and roasted red pepper as compelling as the molten cheese itself; a plate of three meatloaf sliders, each of which could pass at a squint for a modestly sized regular burger.

I knew Yates work from her food truck. To my chagrin, this review marks my overdue first visit Cellar House in either its original or current location. The latter is a storefront in a shopping-plaza outbuilding, but once you enter the restaurant, a trick of the warm lighting and the clean design of light wood and subway tiles transports you into a bubble of conviviality. When the restaurant is especially busy on a weekend night, you will raise your voice to be heard just across the table.

As I said, Yates cooking is seasonal, and my visits coincided with the menus shift from summer to fall. The grilled bone-in pork chop I ordered has given way to a version with an apple-carrot reduction and a hash of pork belly, Brussels sprout, parsnip and sweet potato.

Still, the dish as I tried it highlights Yates thoughtful cooking and her kitchen teams skill. The chop itself was expertly grilled, the surface nicely browned where it wasnt deeply crosshatched, the meat tender and juicy through the center. The glaze played on the natural affinity of pork for both fruit and smoky chiles  not to mention the sticky caramel sweetness of bourbon. What brought the dish together, though, was its rather plain-looking bed of smoked cauliflower puree, with its welcome vegetal bitterness and a mild smokiness that underlined the chipotle notes and the porks grill char.

For the pan-seared rib-eye on the new fall menu, Yates makes a bold, even audacious choice: she smothers the entire steak in a cream sauce with mushroom, horseradish and anchovy rather than serve this sauce on the side. This turns out to be a brilliant hack for a steakhouse-quality steak from a pan. The umami rich sauce intensifies the steaks gorgeous crust and (on my tables order) precisely medium-rare meat, while the horseradish adds the exact zip necessary to keep the dish lively.

You will now find bourbon as part of the bourbon-maple glaze coating a piece of pan-seared salmon. Again, the technique here is impeccable crucial when dealing with a fish overcooked as often as salmon is. The autumnally sweet crust, reinforced by a garnish of chopped thyme-candied walnuts, yields to just-opaque flesh. The salmon sits on a sensible bed of roasted carrot and parsnip, but I gladly would have traded that for twice as much of the dishs other side, kale in a walnut cream sauce. This both picks up the salmons accents and punctuates the dish with a verdant counterpoint.

To its credit, Cellar Houses food is difficult to characterize as a whole. Those meatloaf sliders are pure Americana. They are also very clever. The blend of ground beef, pork belly, cheddar and a mix of Coca-Cola and bourbon turns the meatloaf into a sort of compact, all-in-one bacon cheeseburger. A bowl of corn and crab chowder is as delicate as the plate of meatloaf sliders is staggering. The fleeting sweetness of its main ingredients is the most fall-like note on the fall menu. The spicy Thai shrimp in an order of fried shrimp tacos dont buzz with the heat and vibrant aromatics the Thai qualifier suggests, but the dish avoids the larger pitfall of fusion or mashup fare by focusing on the main component: plump, crisp fried shrimp.

Cellar Houses wine origins and selection notwithstanding, I found it difficult not to order cocktails here. There is the bourbon on the food menu and the bottles of whiskey on the shelves behind the bar. There are the cocktails themselves, an impressive array of balance (the Last of the Oaxacan, a mezcal-based cocktail that tastes of citrus as much as smoke) and whimsy (the BBB, bourbon with sherry and banana liqueur, garnished with a bruleed piece of banana).

Dessert is a comforting cushion after dinners abundance: a crisp with apple and pear or a thick, moist square of bread pudding with praline pecan sauce. Neither is light, but you float out of Cellar House nonetheless. Yates has found a home here. Even when you live a half-hour drive away, as I do, you have found a new entry on your list of go-to restaurants.

Where Cellar House, 5634 Telegraph Road, south St. Louis County  More info 314-846-5100; cellarhousestl.com  Menu Contemporary seasonal fare  Hours Dinner Tuesday-Saturday (closed Sunday-Monday)

Rating Highly Recommended  The Post-Dispatch evaluates restaurants on the following scale, lowest to highest: Not Recommended, Recommended, Highly Recommended, Essential. The rating reflects how the restaurant succeeds on its own terms  and how it meets a diner's good-faith expectations of quality food and hospitality  regardless of cuisine, location or cost.

How much Fried burrata  $14 Meatloaf sliders (3)  $20 Pan-seared salmon  $32 Rib-eye steak  $45
Storytelling is an age-old way of forming human connection.

The audience, the musician, the storyteller are all one event, Karen Queen Nur Abdul-Malik explains. Before she takes the stage to tell a story, she gauges the crowd  taking stock of the mood and feelings in the room.

Depending on the vibe she gets from the audience, she may switch up her story selection at the last minute. Abdul-Malik, of Willingboro, New Jersey, is one of the featured performers at the St. Louis Storytelling Festival. The festival is one of the largest free storytelling events in the world. For the first time this year, the St. Louis County Library has taken over hosting the festival with events in venues across the region through Oct. 22.

Abdul-Malik relays stories from the African oral tradition, accompanied by a drummer. Her performances are interactive and may include a call-and-response, inviting people on stage to play instruments or taking on a character role.

Its always about the oneness in the present moment, she says. Abdul-Malik and other nationally renowned storytellers will perform at area schools, senior centers, libraries, the Missouri History Museum, the J Mirowitz Performing Arts Center and the High Low. The festival will include performances for all ages by storytellers including Sheila Arnold, Noa Baum, Trix Bruce, Motoko Dworkin, Nestor Gomez and Bobby Norfolk.

Kristen Sorth, director of St. Louis County Library, says the library was approached by the University of Missouri-St. Louis, the previous host of the festival, to ask if it would take over the program.

We said, of course, because we know how important the program is, Sorth says. The storytellers tell thought-provoking stories that are entertaining and dynamic, Sorth says. Additional events will also include a puppet show and dance performances.

We put our library spin on it, Sorth says.

Abdul-Malik has told stories professionally since 1993. She is also a folklorist. When she recounts a historical story, she strives to have the audience understand how the people in that period lived.

People can see, hear, feel and smell it, she says. At the local schools, she will perform Aesops fables and folktales. She says some of her best audience reactions are at senior centers, with the viewers sharing tears of joy, memories and laughter.

I work with a lot of seniors, and its been magnificent, she says. And for me, being a Black storyteller, its an opportunity to pass on tradition, culture and history.

The festival kicks off at 6:30 pm Oct. 13 with the American Experience through Storytelling at the Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Boulevard. Food and drink will be available for purchase beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Tales After Dark will feature an evening of family-friendly spooky stories at 7 p.m. Oct. 14 at the Florissant Valley Branch, 195 New Florissant Road, South.

A storytelling showcase will take place 7:30 pm Oct. 15 at the J Mirowitz Performing Arts Center, 2 Millstone Campus.

A complete schedule of events and more details are available at slcl.org/storytelling.
ST. LOUIS  The St. Louis Department of Health has launched a massive effort to address substance abuse issues plaguing the city that involves going from zero to 14 new employees dedicated to prevention and improving access to treatment, city officials announced Wednesday.

The new employees will form the Behavioral Health Bureau thanks to nearly $400,000 in funding from the city and another $400,000 administered by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Overdose Data to Action program.

The CDC program will also provide a seven-member team of experts over the next year to help the new health bureau develop a system to collect timely and comprehensive data on drug overdoses and integrate the data into a prevention strategy.

We are building this bureau from nothing, said Dr. Mati Hlatshwayo Davis, health director for the city of St. Louis, at a news conference.

Davis said developing an equitable and data-driven approach to address residents mental health needs has been one of her top priorities since first becoming health director nearly a year ago.

This bureau will prioritize the long-neglected behavioral health supports, especially for Black and brown communities, in the city of St. Louis, she said.

In 2020, there were 1,878 overdose deaths in Missouri, up 19% from 1,581 in 2019, according to state data, making it the leading cause of death of Missourians ages 18 to 44.

The St. Louis region accounts for half of overdose deaths statewide, driving a racial disparity in death rates, the data also shows. Black people are now more than three times as likely as white people to die from an overdose.

Of the 2020 deaths, 503 involved Black people, up 32% from 381 a year prior. Of the 503 Black people who died in 2020, 82% of them were from the St. Louis region.

The city of St. Louis alone saw drug overdose deaths rise from 317 in 2017 to 448 in 2021, St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones said. Thats a 41% increase.

The city of St. Louis also has the highest rate of mental health-related emergency room visits in Missouri, the mayor said.

At every town hall Ive been to this year, community members emphasize the need for better awareness of, and access to, mental health care, Jones said. Residents across our city see firsthand in their neighborhoods the human cost of failing to invest in behavioral health care.

The new bureau represents a holistic approach to improving the quality of life in the city, the mayor said. Neighborhoods are not only healthier, but safer.

Addiction, lack of access to mental health care  these are some of the root causes of crime that we can work on to address before they result in a crisis, an emergency room visit or worse, Jones said.

Daniel Isom, the citys interim public safety director, also praised the new effort as a way to reduce violent crime among individuals turning to drugs to cope with trauma and economic stress.

Mental health is a big part of the safety of individuals but also collectively of our community, Isom said.

By the end of this year, officials said, the new bureau plans to create a comprehensive map of behavioral health services, identify gaps in care and create a public data dashboard about substance use disorders and overdose deaths.

The bureau will work with the CDC team to develop a strategy to reduce the deaths that we can implement, that we have capacity for and that is sustainable, Davis said.

Davis said she has already been collecting input from local mental health services and providers to learn how the St. Louis health department can support their efforts. Many say they need an agency to take a leadership role.

Theres a lot of people who are working in silos and doing a lot of great work who do not have the capacity to really coordinate services, and help meet the needs of those in crisis quickly, she said.

The mayor said the bureau will also be looking at ways to coordinate efforts with neighboring counties.

Regional problems demand regional responses, Jones said, and this new bureau will help us find solutions across city and county borders, and across rivers.
Q: Why is my 10-year-old daughter constantly talking back? She was an amazing person just a few months ago but since school started, she argues about everything. Tips needed please.

From a reader  Since the tween label came out it seems as soon as kids turn 10, they think that they qualify for a teen as opposed to a tween. They want to start dressing, acting and talking like their teenage siblings and their siblings friends. Its a constant battleground. Every time our 10-year-old son started getting mouthy, he was required to put a dollar in the moody jar. Once he found out that a dollar here and a dollar there definitely made a difference in how much allowance he had at the end of the week, his attitude changed pretty quickly.  Tory S. in Toledo, Ohio

From Jodie Lynn  Kids are exposed to so many different things by the time theyre 10 that in some ways their brains are overloaded. Its kind of like the reader above explains: they think that since they are finally a tween, they can start pushing the boundaries at home and at school.

Once kids get into that double-digit arena, they have a tendency to think that its their right to question everything, including family and school. They want to start showing a little more independence by speaking out. Its a sign that theyre growing more confident as theyre growing up, which is very good.

Unfortunately, you will have to be on your toes to set them straight if needed, especially if things get out of hand. Its a delicate balance because we want our children to develop the ability to pose questions but they also need to learn to do it in a discerning way.

At this point in time youll just have to choose your battles. Decide which ones are the most important.

Your daughter is forming her own opinions about things, situations and people. Listen to her and instead of arguing with her, ask her why she thinks what she does before jumping to the conclusion that she is being disrespectful and rude.

Tell her youll be more than happy to discuss something with her as soon as she calms down. Give her a few minutes to do so and when the two of you are ready, have a chat with her to see whats going on. Nine times out of 10, something happened earlier in the day that upset her and she just needs to get some things off her chest.

If she starts raising her voice, reschedule your talk with her for later that day or evening. And keep in mind that when you were her age, chances are that you wanted to be spoken to and treated like an adult.

Buckle up for the next few years; youll need patience and assertiveness.

CAN YOU HELP?

When is a good time to switch from our childrens pediatrician to a regular family physician? Our children are 9 and 11. While they really like their current doctor, theyre also beginning to complain a little about being treated like a baby by the doctor and the nurses. Is this a good age to make the change?
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP)  The FBI agent who questioned a think tank analyst charged with lying to the bureau about his role in the creation of a flawed dossier about former President Donald Trump has twice testified that he believes the analyst was truthful with him, jurors heard Wednesday.

FBI analyst Brian Auten testified for a second straight day at U.S. District Court in Alexandria at the trial of Igor Danchenko. The Russian-born analyst, who now lives in Virginia, faces a five-count indictment alleging he made false statements to the FBI about his sources of information he provided about Trump to British spy Christopher Steele.

Prosecutors allege that Danchenko fabricated one of his sources and obscured another when he was interviewed by the FBI about his role in the Steele dossier. That dossier, commissioned by Democrats in 2016, raised allegations of connections between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin.

During Wednesday's cross-examination, though, Auten acknowledged that he has had positive things to say about Danchenko in past testimony to a Senate committee and to the Office of the Inspector General, both of which conducted their own investigations about the FBI probe into links between Trump and Russia.

The jury heard a partial transcript of testimony Auten gave to a Senate committee in October 2020, in which Auten said Danchenko was being truthful about who his sub-sources were. I dont think he was fabricating sub-sources.

Auten told the jury he stands by the testimony he gave to the Senate.

The testimony was significant for the defense, which says special counsel John Durham has charged Danchenko with a crime when other government agencies found Danchenko to be credible. Special counsel Robert Mueller, who launched his own probe into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election, never saw fit to charge Danchenko.

And the FBI, after three days of voluntary interviews Danchenko gave in January 2017, decided he was trustworthy enough to make him a paid confidential human source who would provide information to the bureau.

Durham was appointed by special counsel by then-Attorney General William Barr to investigate any misconduct in the FBI's investigation of the Trump campaign and its alleged ties to Russia. Danchenko is the third person to be prosecuted by Durham. It is the first of Durhams cases that delves deeply into the origins of the dossier, which Trump derided as fake news and a political witch hunt.

Durham's other two cases resulted in an acquittal and a guilty plea with a sentence of probation.

In the Danchenko trial, prosecutors say he lied when he told the FBI he obtained some of his information in an anonymous phone call from a man he believed to be Sergei Millian, a former head of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce.

Prosecutors say that Danchenko never spoke with Millian and that phone records show he never received an anonymous phone call at the time Danchenko claimed it occurred.

Prosecutors also say Danchenko lied when he told the FBI he never talked with a man named Charles Dolan about the allegations contained in the dossier.

Defense lawyers say that Danchenko did receive a call, perhaps over an internet app, from someone he genuinely believed to be Millian, and that he was truthful when he said he never talked with Dolan about the information in the dossier because their relevant exchanges were over email.
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP)  For months, Bob Stefanowski, the Republican candidate for governor in Connecticut, declined to reveal the clients of his lucrative business consulting firm, saying he had a duty to customers to keep certain things confidential.

Democrats wielded the lack of transparency like a cudgel, saying Stefanowski must be hiding something.

Now, at least one aspect of his work has been revealed. Stefanowski, who has a background in mergers and acquisitions, has acknowledged for the first time that he has done consulting work related to a proposed futuristic, green-energy city in Saudi Arabia, proposed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Stefanowski told reporters during a Zoom call on Wednesday that he has been and remains a consultant to NEOM, the company that is behind the massive NEOM project. He said he's involved with a three-way venture to build a hydrogen plant. Stefanowski initially confirmed his involvement to Hearst Connecticut Media, in a story published Wednesday, saying he has been involved with the NEOM project since 2019.

Stefanowski's acknowledgement came after being presented with documents showing he met with top executives of the planned city, including an email sent in 2018 that referred to a meeting he had in London with someone involved with the Saudi state-run investment fund. Stefanowski confirmed Wednesday that he started his consulting work with NEOM about six months later.

Part of being a consultant is you fly all over the world and try to get business. So I meet with a lot of people all over the world. I don't anymore, said Stefanowski, who said he has scaled back his work with NEOM to a couple of phone calls a week while he runs for governor. He said he found the Saudi project particularly interesting, calling it a noble project that's going to help global warming." The proposed city, to be run entirely on alternative sources of energy, redefines the concept of urban development and what cities of the future should look like, according to a company statement.

Stefanowski told Hearst he did not work directly with the Saudi government or the investment fund. During the Zoom news conference, Stefanowski said he could not say whether he has met the crown prince, listed as chairman of NEOM's board of directors, due to a non-disclosure agreement. However, the candidate said he was given permission by NEOM to discuss limited things related to his consulting work.

Despite human rights issues in Saudi Arabia, Stefanowski said he's comfortable with the project and feels he is helping to control global warming.

Just because you meet with a country doesnt mean you agree with all their policies and procedures, he told Hearst. This is a green energy project that could help the world. Thats what it was limited to.

Saudi Arabia has a complicated relationship with the U.S.

Human rights advocates have condemned the Persian Gulf nation for oppressing dissent and the 2018 killing of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

President Joe Biden said on Tuesday there would be consequences for Saudi Arabia for backing recent oil production moves that were seen as likely to help Russia in its war with Ukraine.

Yet the kingdom has also been a military and diplomatic partner and is seen as a counterbalance to Iran's influence in the region.

Connecticut Democrats, including Gov. Ned Lamont's campaign, have criticized Stefanowski for not revealing his consulting clients. There's no telling whose interests he truly represents, Lamont's campaign said in one written statement. Lamont told reporters Wednesday that he would comment Thursday on the news of Stefanowski's Saudi client, saying he had only read headlines about the revelation.

It poses an awful lot of questions, but I don't want to jump to any conclusions, Lamont said.

Stefanowski, 60, is an accountant and financial analyst who has written two books on mergers and acquisitions. He once worked as the CEO of a payday loan company and has also worked for General Electric and investment bank UBS, among other entities.

Stefanowski previously said he would release what he could ethically and legally provide to the public about his consulting clients.

In a consulting firm, theres always confidential information, he told reporters earlier this year.

Three years of tax documents released in September show Stefanowski and his wife Amy earned a total of $36.8 million and have three limited liability companies, including one called Lolo Consulting.

His campaign said in a statement that Lolo Consulting provides services including merger & acquisition and due diligence support, corporate strategy and other general consulting services. Also, Lolo has advised on acquisitions and joint ventures in the financial services, health care and energy sectors, according to the statement.

This story was corrected to show the company behind the project is spelled NEOM, not NOEM.
EDWARDSVILLE  A police sting at a Metro East scrap yard last month led to accusations that an East Alton scrap yard illegally bought catalytic converters, no questions asked.

In all, Madison County prosecutors are seeking to compel the company to forfeit 287 catalytic converters.

The investigation began when Wood River police arrested a person with stolen catalytic converters who agreed to help police investigate the scrap yard, Summit Processors, according to court records.

The person told officers they had sold catalytic converters to the business at 200 East Alton Avenue several times before and would pose as a seller again.

On Sept. 26, the person, along with an officer with Illinois Secretary of State Police, sold three catalytic converters for $445 to the yard.

The business did not take a photo of the seller, pay by check or ask for proof of ownership and a declaration that the parts were not stolen as required by Illinois law, court documents allege.

Prosecutors obtained a search warrant for the property, then found the other catalytic converters.

A Summit Processors employee accused of facilitating the sting purchase, John T. Freely, was also charged Sept. 26 with two misdemeanor violations of Illinois Recyclable Metal Purchase Registration Law.

A man who answered the phone at Summit Processors Wednesday said no one with the business would comment on the allegations until the court cases have been resolved.

The case comes as catalytic converter thefts have skyrocketed both locally and nationwide because of the parts scrap metal value. In St. Louis, the crime increased 800% from 2019 to 2020, St. Louis police told the Post-Dispatch last year.

Police Maj. Ryan Cousins told the Post-Dispatch in 2021 that Illinois scrap yards not following documentation requirements when buying catalytic converters was a concern for the department.

We will continue to crack down on the demand for such parts by working to ensure the sales of often-stolen vehicle parts like catalytic converters are conducted in accordance with Illinois statutes, Madison County States Attorney Thomas Haine said in an announcement of the cases Wednesday.

Freelys first court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 26. A hearing for the forfeiture case has not been set.
ST. LOUIS  A Florissant woman was sentenced Wednesday to two years in prison for lying on applications to receive hundreds of thousands in COVID-19 business relief loans for herself and others, prosecutors said.

Dionneshae Forland, 51, pleaded guilty in July to several charges, including wire fraud, bank fraud and theft of government property, after submitting fake payroll records, helping her son falsify loan documents and helping others lie on loan documents for the federal Paycheck Protection Program and Missouri Small Business Grant Program.

As part of the sentence, U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White ordered her to repay $787,075. She will also be under supervision for five years after her release from prison.

Forland's son, Dwayne Times, 31, also pleaded guilty to wire fraud and theft of government property. He was sentenced Tuesday to five years probation and was ordered to repay $194,850, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Federal agents have already seized nearly $600,000 from accounts linked to Forland and Times, the release said.
ST. LOUIS  A judge declared a civilian oversight board can start investigating the city jail this week after nearly a month of debate and delay.

The Detention Facility Oversight Board was instructed by City Counselor Sheena Hamilton not to meet, as of Sept. 16, because of a judges preliminary injunction against an ordinance that established the Division of Civilian Oversight, which the detention board now falls under.

Frustrations grew as the jail board sat idle as attention was called to the six people incarcerated at the City Justice Center who have died this year, as well as conditions for inmates and staff.

Circuit Court Judge Jason Sengheiser ordered a preliminary injunction Sept. 9. Police unions filed a lawsuit Aug. 8 against the city and mayor to block the new division, which includes the subpoena-powered civilian police and jail oversight boards.

However, attorneys for the police unions later told the Post-Dispatch they sought to halt the civilian police oversight board, not the jail board.

Judge Sengheiser ruled Tuesday that the Detention Facility Oversight Board may now operate to the fullest extent and is permitted to hire staff and investigators to examine corrections, professional misconduct and detention incidents in a detention facility.

However, the Civilian Oversight Board, which also falls under the new division, still cannot meet, as Sengheiser said the injunction still applies to the police division of the ordinance.

The mayor, the citys top public safety official, some members of the Board of Aldermen and civil rights groups have said the new division would build trust between the community and police, and improve public safety.

However, police unions, including the St. Louis Police Officers Association and the Ethical Society of Police, stated the new division would impede police officer retention and recruitment, and harm public safety.

The Detention Facility Oversight Board will meet Monday, Oct. 24 at 5 p.m.
JEFFERSON CITY  A Republican-backed law requiring Missouri voters to present a photo ID at their polling places survived a court challenge with less than a month to go before the general election.

In a 10-page decision issued Wednesday, Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem dismissed a lawsuit challenging the new voting law. A separate lawsuit on other provisions of the measure is still pending.

The new law, which was approved by the GOP-led Legislature and signed by Republican Gov. Mike Parson earlier this year, has been touted by supporters as ensuring clean elections, even though there have been few examples of voter fraud.

Beetem said the individuals and groups that filed the lawsuit could not prove the law had injured them in their right to vote in the Nov. 8 election.

The court finds that Missouri voters do not have a legally protectable interest in avoiding the everyday burdens of getting an expired license renewed, Beetem wrote.

Beetem said he was tossing the case because they seek relief on a hypothetical situation, and they lack a legally protectable interest in the case.

The American Civil Liberties Union pledged to appeal, calling the decision a procedural pitstop.

Voter ID restrictions disenfranchise Missourians, particularly people of color, people with disabilities, rural Missourians, voters with limited income, seniors and students. Similar attempts to create unnecessary and burdensome obstacles have been struck down multiple times by the courts over the past decade in a half, the group said in a statement Thursday.

In the other lawsuit, the groups say four provisions within the new elections law violate the state constitution.

The provisions targeted include a new rule banning paid solicitation of voter registration applications, a second requiring volunteers who attempt to sign up more than 10 voters to register with the state, a third saying volunteer solicitors must be Missouri voters, and a fourth provision blocking people from soliciting a voter into obtaining an absentee ballot application.

The NAACP, for example, said the new rules will stifle voter registration and absentee voting activities heading into the midterm elections.

The groups said the law is so vague that the ban on absentee ballot solicitation could be used to criminalize a volunteer who tells a voter that will be out of town on Election Day that they can vote absentee.

The new law is the result of an election-year push by Republicans to enact stricter voting requirements as a way to ensure election integrity. It came against the backdrop of former President Donald Trump falsely alleging the 2020 election was stolen from him in key battleground states.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican, deemed the 2020 election fair and secure. On Thursday, he praised Beetems ruling.

Voting is the foundation of our country. It is not only our right but also our responsibility. Rather than restrict, we believe (the new law) makes it easier to vote but harder to cheat, Ashcroft said.

Missouri is among 18 states that have voter photo identification laws, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The law requires voters to show government-issued photo ID at the polls to cast a regular ballot. Voters without proper ID can cast a provisional ballot, which will be counted if they return with valid ID that same day or if their signature is verified by local election officials.

The legislation is House Bill 1878.
ST. LOUIS  Prosecutors on Wednesday charged a St. Louis County teen with fatally shooting a man while driving a motorcycle along a busy street in south St. Louis.

Michael Henderson, 18, was charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of Joseph Raymond Shaw, 42, around 2:15 p.m. Aug. 26 near Nebraska Avenue and South Broadway.

Charges say surveillance video showed Henderson riding a motorcycle and Shaw driving a white Jeep SUV side-by-side on Broadway that afternoon. Henderson pulled ahead, then extended his left arm behind him and shot at Shaw, hitting him in the forehead and killing him instantly.

Henderson lost control of his motorcycle and ran from the scene while Shaw's Jeep spun off the road.

Police tracked the owner of the motorcycle and eventually found Henderson's name and phone number. Cell phone data showed he was in the area at the time of the shooting, police said in charging documents.

Henderson is being held at the St. Louis jail without bond. An attorney was not yet listed in court documents.
ST. LOUIS  The two candidates for aldermanic president spent much of this week flinging shots at each other over social media.

It started Tuesday when Alderman Megan Green bashed her opponent, Alderman Jack Coatar, for getting a big check from Lodging Hospitality Management, which runs Union Station.

Green then spent Tuesday and Wednesday using the campaign donation to tie Coatar to an anti-union effort at the historic downtown hotel, and bolster her own labor bona fides.

She pointed out that before the donation came in, she visited with workers at the hotel trying to organize under Unite Here Local 74 and criticized managements opposition to the effort.

The contribution to Coatar, she said, was retribution for her support for the hotel workers and her talk of requiring companies to be neutral on unionization efforts when they receive city subsidies for a project, like LHM did for Union Station. Im the only candidate who is clearly on the side of working families, she wrote on Twitter.

Coatar responded with his own string of tweets.

He said LHM and the St. Louis Cardinals, who indirectly sent his PAC $50,000 last week, have created thousands of jobs in the city and helped improve downtown St. Louis.

Coatar noted that the firms have also donated to Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, Greens ally: He pointed to a $500 contribution from LHM president Steve OLoughlin and a $2,000 donation from an organization linked to the Cardinals.

Coatar also said he supported the Union Station hotel workers efforts to unionize.

Ill put my record on workers rights and working families up against my opponents any day, he wrote.
JEFFERSON CITY  Charter schools in Missouri could someday tap into a new taxpayer-backed fund to repair buildings and renovate classroom space under a proposal pending in the state treasurers office.

Budget documents filed earlier this month show Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick wants to create a revolving loan fund worth $10 million, giving schools a source of revenue for maintenance costs after previous plans were torpedoed by Republican Gov. Mike Parson.

In June, Parson vetoed $10 million for charter schools in a bill that was funded by federal pandemic aid money.

This funding is limited to charter schools, unfairly limiting access to public K-12 schools, Parsons wrote in his veto letter. Deferred maintenance is the responsibility of the charter sponsor, not the state.

In 2021, Parson also vetoed a $5 million allocation of general revenue funds for deferred maintenance grants for charter schools, using the same rationale.

The governors apparent reluctance to offer a pathway to charter schools seeking a funding source for repairs and maintenance stands in contrast to Fitzpatricks proposal. The Republican treasurer served as chairman of the powerful House budget committee before he was elevated to his post by Parson in 2019.

Doug Thaman, executive director of the Missouri Charter Public School Association, as well as executive director of North Side Community School, said specific details about how the loan fund would operate havent been hammered out yet.

But he said the concept will help because, unlike standard school districts that are funded partially by local property taxes, charter schools dont have the authority to issue bonds for ongoing maintenance of their facilities.

If a charter school needs to put a new roof on their building, this would provide a fund they could draw from, Thaman said.

He envisions charter schools replacing old heating systems, roofs and fixing parts of buildings for classrooms.

Its those larger items, Thaman said.

He said its not clear whether charters that lease their space would qualify for the program or if landlords would be responsible for upgrades and maintenance.

I dont think thats been determined yet, Thaman said.

In the budget request, which is being reviewed by Parsons budget office, Fitzpatrick said the $10 million infusion would be a one-time expense that would serve the charter schools for the next decade.

This appropriation will address the issue by providing seed funds for a revolving loan fund, the request notes. The revolving loan fund will make loans to charter schools for facility and infrastructure needs.

He also said the $10 million could potentially induce private donors to add money to the pot.

Fitzpatrick, a Republican running for state auditor, said the treasurers office would launch the fund, but would not have authority over the distribution of the money.

This one-time funding could be granted to a not-for-profit agency or a state authority to accomplish the goals outlined above, he wrote.

Charter schools in Missouri have sought public money for similar projects in the past.

In 2007, the St. Louis Industrial Development Authority issued a $23 million tax-exempt bond to help charter provider Confluence Academies buy and renovate buildings for its Old North, Aspire and South City schools.

The city agency facilitated an additional $16 million bond in 2019 to help with the purchase of the $12.6 million Beaux Arts Building for Grand Center Arts Academy and the refinancing of an $8.8 million purchase of a St. Louis Public Library building for a high school downtown.

And, in June, the city agency approved $35 million in bonds for Confluence to pay down and refinance debt used to buy and renovate its five school buildings.
ST. LOUIS  The St. Louis Industrial Development Authority on Thursday approved issuing $17 million in bonds to help finance a private companys effort to refurbish Hillvale Apartments in a troubled part of northwest St. Louis.

The authority made the final decision at its regular board meeting with minimal discussion. Director Gilberto Pinela made a motion to approve the measure. Director Troy Doles seconded the motion.

Proceeds of the bonds issued by the authority will be loaned to an affiliate of Denver-based Steele Properties, which expects to buy the property from an affiliate of New Jersey-based Treetop Companies in December before restoring it.

Including acquisition costs, the $34 million effort to overhaul Hillvale, a 146-unit complex at 5830 Selber Court, is supposed to start taking shape when construction starts in January, Justin Unger, of Steele, said Thursday at the board meeting. Unger told the board he expects the project to be finished in June 2024.

Thats when we plan to hold a grand opening for the community, he said.

In addition to the bonds, a raft of additional federal, state and local assistance is lined up to support the project, including $16.2 million in low-income housing tax credits and $2.7 million from local and national housing trust funds.

Last spring, Hillvale was the subject of an extensive story in the Post-Dispatch that revealed out-of-control crime and poor city services. While Mayor Tishaura O. Jones has said she wants to expand affordable housing in places like Hillvale to help working families, others doubted redoing Hillvale would be sustainable unless there are dramatic changes in an area particularly slammed by disinvestment.

Since 2019, there were more than 1,400 emergency calls for service logged with police from the area. Reports showed that many Hillvale residents live in squalor, despite current owners being heavily subsidized through a Project Based Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) Contract.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A member of the Oath Keepers who traveled to Washington before the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol testified Wednesday about a massive cache of weapons the far-right extremist group stashed in a Virginia hotel room.

Taking the stand in the seditious conspiracy case against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and four associates, Terry Cummings showed jurors an AR-15 firearm and an orange box for ammunition that he contributed to the so-called quick reaction force the Oath Keepers had staged at the hotel outside of Washington in case they needed weapons.

I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military, said Cummings, a veteran who joined the Oath Keepers in Florida in 2020.

Prosecutors have said teams of Oath Keepers guarded the arsenal of firearms and were prepared to rush them into the hands of extremists in the capital if needed.

The alleged teams and the cache of weapons are a central piece of the Department of Justices case against Rhodes and four associates charged with seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6 attack. Members of the Oath Keepers stashed the firearms just outside Washington district limits, given the capitol's tougher gun laws.

Authorities have alleged the teams and the stockpile of arms were designed to get weapons into Oath Keepers' hands quickly if they were needed to support a plot to stop the transfer of power from Republican Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden.

Cummings' testimony came in the second week of the trial that is expected to last several weeks. The others on trial are Thomas Caldwell of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio; and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida.

Defense lawyers have not denied the existence of the quick reaction teams but noted that they were never deployed on Jan. 6. They have accused prosecutors of falsely portraying them as an invasion force.

Defense lawyers have said the Oath Keepers often set up quick reaction forces for events, but insist they were defensive forces only to be used to protect against violence from antifa activists or in the event Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. They are not facing any gun charges for bringing the weapons to Virginia.

Rhodes lawyers have said they will argue that cannot find him guilty of seditious conspiracy because all the actions he took before Jan. 6 were in preparation for orders he anticipated from Trump under the Insurrection Act, which gives presidents wide discretion to decide when military force is necessary.

Cummings told jurors that he traveled to Washington on Jan. 6 with other Oath Keepers to be part of a VIP security detail for Trumps rally at the Ellipse. He said he saw it as an opportunity to express my First Amendment rights and see a sitting president speak, which he had never done.

Cummings said his understanding was the quick reaction forces would potentially be used not as an offensive situation, but more as a show of force.

Cummings said he was part of a group that acted as a security team for a VIP at Trumps rally before the riot. Cummings and other Oath Keepers left before Trump's speech was finished and went toward the Capitol.

He recalled Meggs talked about entering the Capitol  something Cummings didnt think was a good idea. He then split off to find a bathroom, and when he returned the group was gone. The group entered the Capitol while he was away, he said. Up to an hour later, Cummings rejoined fellow Oath Keepers from Florida, and eventually Rhodes appeared as well.

Cummings said he did not hear any talk about plans to storm or attack the Capitol, though he also said he wasn't in a position of leadership. He has not faced criminal charges, was subpoenaed to testify for the government and acknowledged on the stand that he has contributed to the legal defense fund of some of the defendants.

Authorities have said that Meggs and the Florida Oath Keepers on Jan. 5 brought gun boxes, rifle cases and suitcases filled with ammunition to the Virginia hotel that served as the home for the quick reaction force. Another team from Arizona brought weapons, ammunition, and supplies to last 30 days, according to court papers. A team from North Carolina had rifles in a vehicle parked in the hotel lot, prosecutors have said.

Prosecutors have described surveillance footage that they say shows Oath Keepers rolling bags, large bins and what appears to be at least one rifle case into the hotel.

Over several days in early January, Rhodes spent $15,500 on guns, including an AR-platform rifle, magazines, mounts, sights and other equipment, prosecutors have said. Caldwell, in one message, suggested getting a boat to ferry heavy weapons across the Potomac River into the Oath Keepers waiting arms.

A former Oath Keeper from North Carolina last week described setting up a quick reaction force for the Million MAGA March in Washington on Nov. 14, 2020, in case Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Thousands of Trump supporters that day gathered at Freedom Plaza along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington to rally behind Trumps false election claims.

The former Oath Keeper, John Zimmerman, told jurors that the Oath Keepers stashed at least a dozen rifles and several handguns in his van parked at Arlington National Cemetery to serve as the quick reaction force on that occasion. He said they never took the guns into Washington.

___

Associated Press writer Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The House Jan. 6 committee voted unanimously to subpoena former President Donald Trump, demanding his personal testimony as it unveiled startling new video and described his multi-part plan to overturn his 2020 election loss, which led to his supporters' fierce assault on the U.S. Capitol.

With alarming messages from the U.S. Secret Service warning of violence and vivid new video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other congressional leaders pleading for help, the panel on Thursday showed the raw desperation at the Capitol. Using language frequently seen in criminal indictments, the panel said Trump had acted in a premeditated way before Jan. 6, 2021, despite countless aides and officials telling him he had lost.

Trump is almost certain to fight the subpoena and decline to testify. On his social media outlet he blasted members for not asking him earlier  though he didnt say he would have complied  and called the panel a total BUST.

We must seek the testimony under oath of January 6's central player, said Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the committees vice chair, ahead of the vote.

In the committees 10th public session, just weeks before the congressional midterm elections, the panel summed up Trumps staggering betrayal of his oath of office, as Chairman Bennie Thompson put it, describing the then-president's unprecedented attempt to stop Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Bidens victory.

While the effort to subpoena Trump may languish, more a nod to history than an effective summons, the committee has made clear it is considering whether to send its findings in a criminal referral to the Justice Department.

In one of its most riveting exhibits, the panel showed previously unseen footage of congressional leaders phoning for help during the assault as Trump refused to call off the mob.

Pelosi can be seen on a call with the governor of neighboring Virginia, explaining as she shelters with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and others that the governor of Maryland has also been contacted. Later, the video shows Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP leaders as the group asks the Defense Department for help.

Theyre breaking the law in many different ways, Pelosi says at one point. And quite frankly, much of it at the instigation of the president of the United States.

The footage also portrays Vice President Mike Pence  not Trump  stepping in to help calm the violence, telling Pelosi and the others he has spoken with Capitol Police, as Congress plans to resume its session that night to certify Bidens election.

The video was from Pelosis daughter, Alexandra, a documentary filmmaker.

In never-before-seen Secret Service messages, the panel produced evidence that extremist groups provided the muscle in the fight for Trumps presidency, planning weeks before the attack to send a violent force to Washington.

The Secret Service warned in a Dec. 26, 2020, email of a tip that members of the right-wing Proud Boys planned to outnumber the police in a march in Washington on Jan. 6.

"It felt like the calm before the storm, one Secret Service agent wrote in a group chat.

To describe the presidents mindset, the committee presented new and previously seen material, including interviews with Trumps top aides and Cabinet officials  including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Attorney General William Barr and Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia  in which some described the president acknowledging he had lost.

Ex-White House official Alyssa Farah Griffin said Trump once looked up at a television and said, Can you believe I lost to this (expletive) guy?

Cabinet members also said in interviews shown at the hearing that they believed that once legal avenues had been exhausted, that should have been the end of Trumps efforts to remain in power.

In my view, that was the end of the matter, Barr said of the Dec. 14 vote of the Electoral College.

But rather than the end of Trumps efforts, it was only the beginning  as the president summoned the crowd to Washington on Jan. 6.

The panel showed clips of Trump at his rally near the White House that day saying the opposite of what he had been told. He then tells supporters he will march with them to the Capitol. That never happened.

There is no defense that Donald Trump was duped or irrational," said Cheney. "No president can defy the rule of law and act this way in our constitutional republic, period.

Thursday's hearing opened at a mostly empty Capitol complex, with most lawmakers at home campaigning. Several people who were among the thousands around the Capitol on Jan. 6 are now running for congressional office, some with Trumps backing. Police officers who fought the mob filled the hearing room's front row.

The House panel said the insurrection at the Capitol was not an isolated incident but a warning of the fragility of the nations democracy in the post-Trump era.

None of this is normal, Cheney said.

Along with interviews, the committee is drawing on the trove of 1.5 million pages of documents it received from the Secret Service, including an email from Dec. 11, 2020, the day the Supreme Court rejected one of the main lawsuits Trumps team had brought against the election results.

Just fyi. POTUS is pissed, the Secret Service message said.

White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to then-chief of staff Mark Meadows, recalled Trump being fired up about the courts ruling.

Trump told Meadows something to the effect of: I dont want people to know we lost, Mark. This is embarrassing. Figure it out, Hutchinson told the panel in a recorded interview.

Thursday's session served as a closing argument for the panels two Republican lawmakers, Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who have essentially been shunned by Trump and their party and will not be returning in the new Congress. Cheney lost her primary election, and Kinzinger decided not to run.

The committee, having conducted more than 1,000 interviews and obtained countless documents, has produced a sweeping probe of Trumps activities from his defeat in the November election to the Capitol attack.

Under committee rules, the Jan. 6 panel is to produce a report of its findings, likely in December. The committee will dissolve 30 days after publication of that report, and with the new Congress in January.

At least five people died in the Jan. 6 attack and its aftermath, including a Trump supporter shot and killed by Capitol Police.

More than 850 people have been charged by the Justice Department, some receiving lengthy prison sentences for their roles. Several leaders and associates of the extremist Oath Keepers and Proud Boys have been charged with sedition.

Trump faces various state and federal investigations over his actions in the election and its aftermath.

Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Jill Colvin, Kevin Freking and Michael Balsamo contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The House Jan. 6 committee took the extraordinary action of subpoenaing former President Donald Trump on Thursday as it issued a stark warning in its final public hearing before the midterm election: The future of the nations democracy is at stake.

The committee is set to shut down at the beginning of next year, and was making its final public arguments ahead of a report expected in December.

We are obligated to seek answers directly from the man who set this all in motion, said Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the panel's vice chairwoman and one of two Republicans on the nine-member committee. And every American is entitled to those answers. So we can act now to protect our republic.

A SUBPOENA FOR TRUMP  BUT NOT PENCE

The subpoena for Trump is a major escalation in the probe. After signaling for months that they may leave the former president alone, the unanimous 9-0 vote for relevant documents and testimony, under oath was definitive.

The committee had long debated whether to seek testimony from or subpoena Trump or former Vice President Mike Pence. Neither has spoken directly to the committee. While Trump has been hostile to the probe both in court and in public, Pence's lawyers had engaged with the panel for several months with no clear resolution.

Pence could still be called or subpoenaed. But several of his closest aides have complied with the investigation, with several of them providing great detail about his movements and state of mind as he resisted Trump's pleas to object to the certification of electoral votes that day and try to overturn their defeat.

In contrast, the committee showed several clips of Trump allies refusing to answer questions before the panel.

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat, said the committee was able to nail down every salient detail in pretty much every element of the offense" except for certain details about what Trump was doing and saying as the insurrection unfolded.

PELOSI AND SCHUMER, IN HIDING

New video aired by the panel showed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reacting emotionally to the news that her colleagues were donning gas masks in the House chamber as rioters neared. She quickly went to work trying to secure and reopen the Capitol.

Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer were seen in unidentified secure locations and talking to security officials. The footage included a conversation between Pelosi and Pence, who was also in a secure location, discussing their return to the session to finish certifying Bidens victory.

The footage was filmed by Pelosis daughter, Alexandra Pelosi, according to two people familiar with the video who requested anonymity to discuss it.

The two leaders are seen working to bring the National Guard to the Capitol amid an hourslong delay. At one point, Schumer said he was going to call up the effing secretary of DOD, referring to the Defense Department.

We have some senators who are still in their hideaways, Schumer told defense officials on the phone. They need massive personnel now.

'CONSIDER WHETHER WE CAN SURVIVE'

The lesson of the committees investigation is that institutions only hold when people of good faith protect them without regard to political cost, Cheney said during the hearing.

"Why would Americans assume that our Constitution and our institutions in our Republic are invulnerable to another attack? Why would we assume that those institutions will not falter next time?" Cheney asked.

The warnings come as Trump is still refusing to acknowledge that he lost his reelection to Joe Biden and is considering another run in 2024  and as many Republicans who deny Bidens win are running in the midterm elections at all levels of government. Many states have replaced election officials who resisted Trumps pressure campaign.

Any future president inclined to attempt what Donald Trump did in 2020 has now learned not to install people who could stand in the way, said Cheney, who lost her own Republican primary this August. Consider whether we can survive for another 246 years.

SECRET SERVICE REVELATIONS

The committee has obtained more than 1.5 million pages of documents from the Secret Service in recent weeks. They revealed some of that information in the hearing, including an email from within the agency on Dec. 11, 2020, the day the Supreme Court rejected one of Trump's attempts to undermine the vote.

Just fyi. POTUS is p-d  breaking news - Supreme Court denied his law suit. He is livid now, one anonymous Secret Service email said.

Multiple emails showed that the agency had ample warnings of violence in the weeks and days ahead of the insurrection.

An alert received by the agency on Dec. 24 said multiple online users were targeting members of Congress and instructing others to march into the chambers, said California Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democratic member of the panel.

California Rep. Pete Aguilar, another Democratic member, said the committee will be recalling witnesses and conducting further investigative depositions based on the Secret Service material. The agency has not turned over text messages it said were deleted.

Aguilar also warned that the committee is reviewing testimony regarding potential obstruction of some witnesses. The committee has said in the past that some witnesses were intimidated against speaking.

CABINET OFFICIALS

The committee showed prerecorded interviews with Cabinet members, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Attorney General William Barr and Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, who said they believed that once the legal avenues had been exhausted, that should have been the end of Trumps effort to remain in power.

Pompeo, who was interviewed by the panel since its last hearing in July, said in his videotaped testimony that he believed that once the Electoral College certified the vote, that was the end of the process for contesting the election. We should all comply with the law at all times, to the best of our ability  every one of us, Pompeo said.

Chao, who is married to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnel, said she decided to resign after the insurrection because it was impossible for me to continue given my personal values and my philosophy."

At the same time, Trump continued to push the false claims of fraud to his millions of supporters.

President Trump knew the truth. He heard what all his experts and senior staff was telling him, said Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, the committees other Republican. His intent was plain: ignore the rule of law and stay in power.

CRIMINAL REFERRALS

Cheney addressed one of the committees remaining questions at the beginning of the meeting, saying the panel may ultimately decide to make a series of criminal referrals to the Department of Justice. At the end of the hearing, she mentioned the possibility again, saying it has sufficient information to consider criminal referrals for multiple individuals.

Members of the committee have long suggested they may suggest charges for Trump or others based on their own evidence. While such a referral would not force any action, it would place political pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland as the department has pursued its own investigations surrounding Jan. 6. And the committee has yet to share any transcripts from its more than 1,000 interviews.

Still, we recognize that our role is not to make decisions regarding prosecution, Cheney said.

Associated Press writers Michael Balsamo, Farnoush Amiri, Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
BRUSSELS (AP)  Russian President Vladimir Putin would be crossing a very important line if he were to order the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned Thursday, with the military alliance and Russia both due to hold nuclear exercises in coming days.

NATO is holding its exercise, dubbed Steadfast Noon, next week. The long-planned maneuvers are conducted around the same time every year and run for about one week. They involve fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but do not involve any live bombs.

Russia usually holds its own maneuvers around the same time, and NATO is expecting Moscow's exercise of its nuclear forces sometime this month. Stoltenberg said NATO will closely monitor what Russia is up to.

Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed.

He added that even any use of a smaller nuclear weapon will be a very serious thing, fundamentally changing the nature of the war in Ukraine, and of course that would have consequences.

Stoltenberg's remarks came after a meeting of NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group, which was held among defense ministers in Brussels, as concerns deepen over Putins insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

The meeting, which usually happens once or twice a year, comes against a backdrop of high tension as some NATO allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

Irresponsible and reckless rhetoric is dangerous, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said of Russian threats to potentially use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. However the U.S. has not seen the need to make any changes to its current military posture or response, Austin said.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russias movements in its war with Ukraine, but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture. Putin's nuclear exercises though could make it more difficult for NATO to understand what Russia's intentions might be, potentially increasing the risk of an accident.

Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise, U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters Wednesday. But what we dont want is to do things out of routine.

This is a routine exercise and its all about readiness, Wallace said, just as NATOs meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance  to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in "Steadfast Noon," which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The main part of the maneuvers will be held more than 1,000 kilometers (625 miles) from Russia.

NATO as an organization doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries  the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

With the Russian army retreating in some places when faced with Ukrainian forces armed with Western weapons, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and declaring a partial mobilization to buttress the crumbling front line.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signaled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains. The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television, French President Emmanuel Macron suggested that France would not respond with a nuclear strike. He also warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric and said he has spoken to Putin several times.

We have a (nuclear) doctrine, which is clear, Macron said. The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.

Too many people are talking about it, he said.

Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Tara Copp in Washington contributed to this report.

Follow the APs coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Inside the El Paso County clerks office in Colorado, where officials had gathered in July to recount votes in a Republican nominating contest for this years midterms, dozens of angry election watchers pounded on the windows, at times yelling at workers and recording them with cellphones.

In the hallway a group prayed for evil to descend on the election team, said the countys Republican clerk Chuck Broerman. Its astonishing to me to hear something like that. The election watchers had showed up to observe a five-day recount of votes for four Republican candidates who claimed the primary was fraudulent in a contest where they faced other Republicans.

Protesters had mobilized outside the clerks office, holding signs with the signature Stop the Steal slogan of former President Donald Trump and demanding the county get rid of its voting machines.

As the United States enters the final stretch to Novembers midterm elections, Reuters documented multiple incidents of intimidation involving an expanding army of election observers, many of them recruited by prominent Republican Party figures and activists echoing Trumps false theories about election fraud. The widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election as alleged by Trump and his supporters was never proven.

Interviews with more than two dozen election officials as well as representatives of groups driven by false theories about election fraud, and an examination of poll-watching training materials, revealed an intensifying grassroots effort to recruit activists. This has heightened alarm that disturbances in this years primary contests could foreshadow problems in Novembers local, state and national races.

Officials and experts worry the campaign will deepen the distrust about Americas election process and lead to further harassment and threats to already besieged election workers.

Election officials in three other states  North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada  reported similar incidents. In 16 North Carolina counties alone, officials noted unusually aggressive observers during Mays primary elections, according to a state election board survey. Some attempted to take photographs of sensitive voting equipment or intimidated voters at polling places, in violation of North Carolinas election laws.

During early voting in Arizonas Pima County, an election observer was told to put away binoculars; another was caught looking at private voter data, and another was asked to stop making comments about fraudulent elections, according to a September report by the county recorders office reviewed by Reuters. State law forbids voter intimidation and obstructing election workers.

Pima county recorder Gabriella Cazares-Kelly said her election staff received multiple complaints from voters that individuals were shouting at them from outside the 75-foot circumference around polling stations, where interaction with voters is banned. The concern is it makes them feel unwelcome, said Cazares-Kelly.

In Nevadas Washoe County, people with night vision goggles stood outside the registrars building and aimed their cameras at election workers counting votes on primary night in June, two Washoe County officials told Reuters.

Poll watchers have been a feature of American democracy since the 18th century, recruited by parties and candidates and regulated by state laws and local rules. People from both parties keep an eye on the voting  and each other  to make sure things go smoothly. In some places, poll watchers are different from challengers, who can point out people they suspect arent legal voters. In other states, poll watchers also do the challenging.

Groups that question the legitimacy of the 2020 vote have helped recruit thousands of observers who support dramatic changes to how Americans vote, including doing away with voting machines and returning to hand-counted paper ballots.

Officials say they are concerned observers intent on rooting out so-called voter fraud could cause unnecessary disruptions and long lines at polling places on Election Day.

Its a real concern, said Al Schmidt, a former Philadelphia city commissioner who received death threats after the 2020 election for refuting false claims of voter fraud. If these people show up to the polls with the intention of disrupting voting from taking place, then I cant imagine a worse threat to democracy than that.

Sandy Kiesel, who heads the Election Integrity Force in Michigan, said her poll challengers will be trained to be polite, respectful and to obey the law.

Were not about trying to hassle poll workers, Kiesel told Reuters. Its about transparency. If we can all see whats going on, maybe we wouldnt have these arguments whether elections are free and fair.

Republican support

In early October, an election-denying group called Audit the Vote PA held a Zoom meeting with almost 80 people that was billed as a deep dive poll watcher training session. The Pennsylvania group says Democrat Joe Bidens 2020 win in the state was illegitimate.

During the call, which Reuters attended, participants compared notes on how to observe the testing of voting machines and when a hand count of votes can be requested, and discussed the legality of taking photographs in polling locations.

Toni Shuppe, Audit the Votes CEO, declined multiple requests for an interview with Reuters, but confirmed the group is focused on encouraging people to become poll watchers in the upcoming November midterms elections.

Andrea Raffle, the Republican National Committees director for election integrity in Pennsylvania, told participants on the call they had already filled 6,000 poll watcher positions in the state this year, compared with 1,000 in 2020. Raffle referred a request for comment to the RNCs national office.

Election conspiracy groups also often appear at events with Republican officials, focused on recruiting volunteers to help watch the polls, according to the groups themselves and county officials. The Republican Party said it welcomes volunteers from many different groups, expects them to respect the law and to follow the partys training. Our program is independent of anything else, said RNC spokesperson Danielle Alvarez.

The RNC has been pouring resources into recruiting observers and workers since being freed from the restrictions of a court-ordered consent decree in 2018. It expects to have trained over 52,000 poll watchers and workers between November last year and the coming election; it said comparative numbers for past elections were unavailable. The consent decree, which sharply limited the partys ability to challenge voters qualifications, was put in place after the RNC, during a 1981 governors race in New Jersey, engaged in intimidation tactics targeted at minority voters.

A spokesman for the Democratic National Committee said they did not have a national number because state party offices manage their poll watcher recruitment. But the DNC says it has hired five staffers to work in North Carolina, Wisconsin, Nevada, Arizona and Texas to counter efforts to subvert the electoral process, including ballot counting and the certification of results.

Growing numbers in North Carolina

In North Carolinas rural Henderson County, as voters cast ballots in Mays primary elections, aggressive groups turned up.

Observers demanded to inspect voting machine tabulators in violation of state election laws. Others repeatedly grilled poll workers or demanded to take pictures inside voting stations. When told to stop, they said they were following guidance from a Republican Party lawyer, said Henderson County Election Director Karen Hebb.

It was stressful, she said. If we refused to let the observers do something, they said you know you can be sued if you dont allow us.

She contacted the sheriffs department after an observer trailed a poll workers car from a polling site to the election board. She said the sheriffs office told her no laws had been broken. The Henderson County Sheriffs Office did not respond to requests for comment.

In typical years, eight to 10 observers each from the Democrat and Republican parties would observe the countys elections, Hebb said. This year, she had nearly 30 Republican Party observers alone, compared to the usual number of Democrats.

Some of the Republican observers later identified themselves as members of the North Carolina Election Integrity Team, a group linked to a nationwide effort led by lawyer Cleta Mitchell, a longtime Republican election lawyer and promoter of voter fraud theories who joined Trumps legal team in his effort to overturn the result of the 2020 elections.

As head of the Election Integrity Network, Mitchell is training election observers and is trying to build grassroots networks of conservatives ahead of the midterms. In the first six months of 2022, her network hosted a series of training sessions for activists in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Arizona.

Although Mitchell and other activists say the effort is nonpartisan, the project is funded by the Conservative Partnership Institute, a Washington nonprofit organization with deep ties to Trumps political network. Mark Meadows, Trumps former chief of staff, is listed as the organizations senior partner. Trumps political action committee, Save America, gave the group $1 million in 2021, campaign finance records show. Meadows and Mitchell did not return requests for comment.

The prospect of scores of unofficial observers turning up at polls already convinced the election system is rigged and assuming election officials are corrupt is a tinder box that could easily explode, said Chris Harvey, Georgias election director in 2020.

People are passionate about politics, and if theres anger and confrontation at the polls, it gets ugly and really dangerous really quickly, he said.

Additional reporting by Tim Reid.
The Biden administration has agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russias invasion. Meanwhile, Mexico has agreed to accept some Venezuelans who are expelled from the United States. The U.S. and Mexico announced the plans Wednesday. The moves are a response to a dramatic increase in migration from Venezuela. In a related announcement, the Department of Homeland Security says it will make available nearly 65,000 temporary work visas for lower-skilled industries, roughly double the current annual allotment.
For years, supporters of Donald Trump have alleged a vast news media conspiracy to cover up the alleged corrupt activities of Hunter Biden, President Joe Bidens son. The allegations typically escalate whenever Trump finds himself in legal trouble over tax evasion, purloining government documents, meddling in elections or leading an insurrection  as if Hunter Bidens legal issues somehow compare and deserve equal coverage.

What about Hunter Biden? The Washington Post reports that federal authorities have gathered enough evidence of malfeasance to charge him with lying on a federal gun-purchase application and tax crimes. If the authorities have the evidence, by all means, the presidents son deserves prosecution with no less vigor than what Trump deserves for his alleged crimes.

Trump followers have been obsessed with Hunter Bidens laptop, which he reportedly left at a repair shop sometime before the 2020 election. It apparently contained 217 gigabytes of information that included records of his overseas business dealings along with all sorts of potentially embarrassing photos and communications. Hunter Biden is a recovering drug addict, and Republicans were salivating at the possibility that his laptop might contain evidence of criminal activity or trying to profit off his family name. Of particular interest were payments he received to serve on a Ukrainian natural gas companys board.

Its been apparent for months that the Justice Department is conducting an investigation and may have referred its findings to a grand jury  all of which, by law, is secret. The Washington Posts story last week cites as sources people familiar with the case.

Hunter Bidens attorney, Chris Clark, didnt deny the contents of the story and actually appeared to confirm some details by issuing a written statement: It is a federal felony for a federal agent to leak information about a Grand Jury investigation such as this one.

No person is above the law. Hunter Biden has never held elective office, and his alleged crimes arent slightly comparable to the seriousness of what Trump did while in office. As private citizens, both allegedly evaded taxes.

As for a vague allegation that Hunter Biden lied on a federal gun purchase form, it apparently involves a question he answered about whether he was an unlawful user of, or addicted to a narcotic drug or controlled substance. He reportedly answered no at a time when he had acknowledged he was smoking crack cocaine. If proven, that means he lied to the federal government  not unlike Trump when he claimed to have handed over all government documents he unlawfully kept at his Mar-a-Lago estate, even though he clearly had not handed them over.

Itll be up to a Trump-appointed federal prosecutor in Delaware to decide Hunter Bidens fate if a grand jury indictment comes down. The fact that hes the presidents son should matter not one whit. No person is above the law.
It was the National Weekend of Bigots. At least, thats what Ana Navarro called it Monday on The View. It was as good a description as any for the soul-draining drumbeat of hate that dominated weekend headlines. There was the Black rapper Ye, nee Kanye West, on Twitter threatening to go death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE who, he complained, have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone who opposes their agenda.

Then there was Marjorie Taylor Greene, a white congresswoman from Georgia, telling a mostly white audience that, Illegal aliens are on the verge of replacing you, replacing your jobs and replacing your kids in school and  theyre also replacing your culture.

Meantime, Nury Martinez, a Los Angeles city councilwoman of Mexican heritage, was heard on a secret recording disparaging people from Oaxaca as little short dark people and using a Spanish term for monkey in reference to a Black child whom she deemed to be in need of a beatdown.

And Tommy Tuberville, a white senator from Alabama, warned a white audience that Democrats want reparations for slavery because they think the people that do the crime are owed that.

It was enough to make you wonder if someones been tampering with the nations water supply. But thats a dodge, isnt it, the idea that this baseness, this sordid profanation of our common humanity, must be the product of something external? It isnt, of course. Indeed, the only thing that makes The National Weekend of Bigots stand out is the very fact that all that hate was concentrated into just a few days and  as is so often the case lately  those speaking felt no need to express themselves covertly. Dog whistles are so 2007.

Not that there were not lame attempts to offer the haters deniability. The reliably silly pundit Candace Owens said of Wests vomitus swill that you couldnt regard it as antisemitic if you are an honest person. Actually, if you are an intelligent person, you think a threat to go death con on people whose worship houses are routinely attacked is not just antisemitic but worthy of attention from federal agents.

Meantime, one of Tubervilles colleagues, Rep. Don Bacon, told NBC News he did not believe the racist comment was a racist comment, but did advise the senator to Be more polite. Because, yes, thats the biggest problem with hate  its so darn discourteous.

It is not at all surprising that Navarros National Weekend of Bigots comes amid a National Era of Enforced Amnesia in which historic memory is vandalized, and any attempt to reflect on the trials of our tribes is barred from the public stage lest someones feelings be hurt. Thats how you get Holocaust memoirs banned by schools and shacks that once housed enslaved people turned into bed-and-breakfasts.

Its how you wind up with history books that tell lies sitting in school libraries and classes that tell truths removed from the curriculum. Its how you get putatively smart people believing incredibly dumb things: like Rick Santorum saying of America before the colonizers arrived, There was nothing here, or Nikki Haley saying of immigration, Weve never in the history of this country passed any laws or done anything based on race or religion.

When amnesia is that profound, who can be surprised that we get weekends like the one we just had? Note that its been over 50 years since the one and only time this country sought to deal in a serious and sustained manner with its racial baggage. Wed rather impose ignorance instead.

And when you do that, can hatred be far behind?

Leonard Pitts Jr. is a columnist for the Miami Herald Email: lpitts@miamiherald.com
DAYTON, Ohio  A rash of local mail thefts coincides with a reported 17-fold nationwide increase in checks stolen from the U.S. mail being posted for sale online. And officials representing postal service police say they are hamstrung in arresting perpetrators, a Dayton Daily News investigation found.

Frank Albergo, national president of the postal police officers association, said mail theft arrests dropped from more than 2,000 in fiscal year 2019 to a projected 1,200 in fiscal year 2022 after a federal policy restricted their arrest powers in 2020.

The U.S. Postal Service has said it is safe to use blue mailboxes to send mail during the day during operating hours. Albergo said he would be reluctant to do so because of the ongoing issues nationwide.

"It's a disaster, it really is," Albergo said.

Officials in the Dayton region are investigating a rash of mail-related crime. Items were stolen from at least seven different post office mailboxes in Beavercreek, Dayton, Kettering and the Centerville/Washington Twp. area.

In Kettering and Riverside, nearly $75,000 in stolen checks were cashed by parties they were not issued to, police said. The United States Postal Inspection Service has offered a $50,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and prosecution of suspects accused in recent armed robberies of mail carriers in Dayton and Trotwood.

The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office said it is aware of 42 cases where mail was stolen, but could not say how much money was stolen from those checks, as the United States Postal Inspection Service handles investigations. That information was not immediately available from the federal agency.

Stolen checks posted online

David Maimon, director of the Evidence-Based Cyber Security Research Group at Georgia State University, leads a team that tracks criminal behavior online. He said that starting in August 2021, they saw a big spike in checks being posted online.

There has been a large increase in stolen checks being posted for sale on the dark web and on encrypted text apps, he said.

"And since then things have exploded even more dramatically. Instead of seeing an average of 114 checks a week, now we are seeing 2,000 checks a week across the country," he said.

He said it started in states like California, Florida, New York and Texas, but now checks from people living in Midwestern states are becoming common.

"Organized crime groups are doing it at this point," Maimon said. "They have people who rob the mail carriers for their (mailbox) keys, (people) who are going to the mailbox and emptying the mailbox and taking them to a hideout, usually cheap hotel room, where criminals sort through the mail, look for the checks, look for the credit cards and then once they find those they usually wash them."

He said washing a check involves removing the payee information from the check and usually the amount it was written for. He said sometimes the thief will cash the checks into drop accounts, and other times the checks will wind up online for sale.

Arrests, prosecution

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio said they are aware of the situation and are taking it seriously.

"Mail theft is a harmful and disruptive crime," a spokeswoman for the office said. "Among other things, mail theft has the potential to interfere with private communications between friends and loved ones, and it can result in significant financial losses through the misappropriation of checks, credit cards, and sensitive personal information."

She said perpetrators could be sentenced to prison for up to five years.

"The U.S. Attorney's Office will continue in its efforts to see that relevant federal laws are enforced in a manner that protects the community and deters mail theft," the spokeswoman said.

But before there is prosecution, there has to be an arrest.

Postal police officers are uniformed officers responsible for protecting the postal system and usually work in metro areas. Albergo, with the Postal Police Officers Association, said they can sometimes be deployed to areas where mail thefts are high. Albergo believes a decision by post office leaders in 2020 limiting postal officer powers away from postal service properties is contributing to the problem.

The United States Postal Inspection Service said postal police still do an important job protecting the mail on Postal Service properties. USPIS said postal inspectors, who are investigators for the service, have "the responsibility to investigate postalrelated offenses that occur off U.S. Postal Service property."

Albergo contends not enough is being done to prevent mail theft.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said he is aware of the ongoing mail thefts in the state.

"This is a very important issue that will require USPS and the United States Postal Inspection Service to review their safekeeping measures, maintenance, and overall management of a key piece of their infrastructure," Brown said in a statement to the Dayton Daily News. "It's past time that Postmaster General (Louis) DeJoy make changes that will protect the privacy of hardworking Ohioans that depend on USPS for crucial goods and services and ensure the safety of mail carriers across Ohio."
by Austin Bay October 12, 2022

On his inauguration day in December 2018, Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO is his acronym) invoked a word that still transfixes Mexicans who seek honest government. The word: impunity.

In his inaugural address, AMLO swore that under his administration, "corruption and impunity" will end.

Why was that significant? Because if he pulled it off, AMLO would transform Mexico into a modern democracy. Like, something a talking head would call Canada South.

Now for the obvious bad news: AMLO has failed.

Critical background: For angry and disenchanted Mexican citizens, "impunity" means embedded injustice within their nation's governing institutions and society. When shouted by protesters, it expresses deep disgust with political and economic leaders who cannot -- or worse, will not -- combat it.

Why don't they?

I'm throwing a curve here. Why would the FBI and major American media try to hide the obvious corruption revealed by Hunter Biden's laptop?

We will come back to that in a moment.

Sept. 26 was the eighth anniversary of the Iguala Massacre (sometimes called the Ayotzinapa Teachers College massacre). The Iguala Massacre is a vicious crime become political cause that exemplifies the evil of "impunity."

In a column published after AMLO's inauguration I wrote, "Impunity directly connects to the Iguala mass kidnappings of Sept. 2014, when 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College in Guerrero state were murdered. International investigators concluded the (government of then-president Enrique Pena Nieto's) investigation was seriously flawed.

AMLO promised to establish a truth commission to answer the questions (related to the massacre) that the Pena administration failed to answer. Two days after his inauguration, he posed for a photo with the parents of the missing students.

With that photo, AMLO put his legacy on the line."

In the last 30 days AMLO's grand commitment to justice has floundered and succumbed to Mexico's corrupt deep state of billionaire oligarchs, corrupt politicians, corrupt cops and corrupt courts.

Bottom line truth: the students were murdered. Several were tortured before they were slain. Some of their remains were hacked with machetes and burned; about 10 bodies were dissolved in acid. Who did it? A drug gang named Guerreros Unidos was involved. Allegedly, the gang had ties to Iguala's mayor.

Also involved: members of the Mexican military.

On Sept. 14 it appeared AMLO might keep his word and attack Deep State corruption. That day authorities arrested Gen. (retired) Jose Rodriguez Perez and two former soldiers for participating in the murder of 43 students at Ayotzinapa Teachers College near the town of Iguala (Guerrero state) on Sept. 26, 2014.

In 2014 Rodriguez commanded the Mexican Army battalion stationed in Iguala. In 2020 Rodriguez and the two other soldiers were convicted of being involved in organized crime.

But after Sept. 14 the Mexican national Attorney General's Office canceled arrest orders for 21 Iguala massacre suspects. Sixteen Mexican Army soldiers were among the 21.

The special prosecutor charged with investigating Iguala resigned in disgust.

After the special prosecutor resigned, someone leaked to the press a study by AMLO's Truth Commission that indicated the special prosecutor lacked "police assistance" in his investigation.

The leaks indicated the Mexican military ordered the executions and then turned the students over to the drug gang.

Hideous? Yes. Murky? Of course, intentionally so. Fact worthy of a psycho-thriller: The head of Mexico's now-defunct Criminal Investigation Agency during the Pena administration is hiding in Israel. Israel and Mexico do not have extradition agreements.

You're horrified? Good. I am too

Unfortunately, the U.S. is poorly positioned to criticize Mexico. Think about America since early 2016. Consider the FISA court corruption to target Carter Page, an innocent man accused of being a traitor. Or the FBI using totally fake accusations cooked up by the Hillary Clinton campaign to target Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn. Add FBI corruption to suppress public knowledge of Hunter Biden's laptop and its hard evidence of influence peddling and tax evasion.

At least Mexican media demands prosecution and punishment for the Iguala massacre. Russian collusion? Major U.S. media proved to be as crooked as the FBI and Hillary Clinton's paid operatives.
In North Korea, security personnel on the Chinese border are now rotated out of their locations as frequently as every three months. This practice began earlier this year when it was noticed that border troops took a few months to develop close relationships with locals and become liable to accepting bribes to allow smuggling in or out of the country to take place. In some parts of the border, it is now customary to rotate company (100 men) or platoon (30 men) size units out of smuggling hot spots randomly every three to six months. Commanders are told to keep their troops segregated from local civilians as much as possible. That is difficult because the border guards know of the economic possibilities and manage to contact locals and arrange bribes to allow smugglers to operate.

People with enough cash are increasingly desperate to get out of North Korea. This is especially true for those living outside the relatively well-fed capital (Pyongyang). In some provinces, deaths from starvation, disease (especially covid19) and suicide are impossible to conceal, despite the government-controlled media ignoring the situation. That means most people rely on rumors, which tend to exaggerate the losses. New rumors keep appearing because reality caught up with earlier rumors.

The government response to these rumors, and the reality behind them, is to increase educational programs that stress the importance of supreme leader Kim Jong Un. The general idea is to elevate the status of Kim Jong Un to the point where he is above all the problems North Koreans are suffering, and shift the blame to evil subordinates who cause the problems. This effort to glorify Kim Jong Un seeks to have him regarded as blameless and, if the supreme leader only knew, the problems would not have occurred. This is why Kim is constantly making public appearances at trouble spots announcing that something is now being done for a problem. Some additional resources are then allocated to that problem. As the economic problems escalate, the additional resources amount to less and less. So does the magical presence of the supreme leader. Kim Jong Uns actual response to this trend is to exercise more care in who gets what from the dwindling resources available to keep key groups (senior officials) and organizations of the security forces loyal.

Fever Relief

Covid19 vaccines are finally available in North Korea. The government does not call the Russian and Chinese vaccines covid vaccines but rather drugs capable of dealing with the annual outbreak of influenza and deadly fevers in general. The government announced in August that the covid19 threat was over as no new cases were reported since the end of July. The new anti-fever drugs were first administered only in provinces where there were still a lot of people with fever. North Korea then announced that the actual covid19 vaccine would be available starting in November. Meanwhile new anti-fever drugs required two injections, with the second one coming several weeks after the first. That was typical of most covid10 vaccines. Those receiving the vaccines dont care what they were called as long as they work.

North Korea only admits to 74 deaths from covid19. Foreign medical experts estimate that China actually suffered two million dead from covid19 while North Korea suffered nearly 40,000, if not more because of the severe shortages of medical care and food. Most East Asian nations kept their covid19 infection rate low. Democracies like Taiwan, Singapore, Japan and South Korea produced verified results that showed how a disciplined response can keep covid19 infections and deaths at very low levels. While most Western nations reported covid19 death rates of 800 to 1,600 per million, South Korea reported 31, North Korea falsely reported only 3 per million, while Japan provided a verified report of 59, as did Singapore with five and Taiwan 0.4 per million. China claimed it suffered only three deaths per million population and much less economic disruption than other industrialized nations. The lower economic disruption is obvious. South Korea suffered much less than other industrialized nations, seeing its GDP shrink only one percent. The only nations with better performance were Norway, which suffered 0.8 percent contraction and China claimed 2.3 percent GDP growth. China admits it has a problem with the accuracy of economic and other data.

It will take a few years before economists and other researchers can discover what really happened in China during 2020. Unofficial reports from China indicate that Chinese covid19 deaths were much higher than reported. Even with that most Chinese were confident enough to go back to work and to large public gatherings like mass transit or movie theaters. To maintain this covid19 advantage China still sharply restricts Chinese from travelling outside the country and quickly quarantines any areas where more covid19 appears. The lower infection and death rates are the result of populations accustomed to acting in a unified and precise manner when confronting an emergency. North Korea has a long border with a populous and industrialized region of China and what happens in northeast China gets into North Korea and the rest of the world via cell phones and the Internet. Reports of local covid19 outbreak lockdowns in northeast and other parts of China continue to happen and thats why covid19 is still active in North Korea.

South Korean Navy Changes Priorities

South Korea has quietly canceled plans to build one or more aircraft carriers for its F-35B stealth fighters. Money for this was simply removed from the naval budget. South Korea changed its F-35 order from F-35Bs to the land-based F-35As. The South Korean Navy is putting more money into new submarines, as these are more useful against Chinese subs and surface ships.

The situation was different three years ago when a 30,000-ton modified LPX II amphibious ship was added to the 2021-25 defense spending plan. Now called CVX, it would be similar but superior to the Japanese DDH F-35B carrier and would be able to carry up to 20 F-35Bs. While the designation LPX II indicates a larger amphibious ship, the LPX II will be built as a CVX aircraft carrier, without facilities for carrying marines and their equipment. For several years South Korean defense officials have discussed building one or more 30,000-ton ships that look like the Japanese DDH (destroyer helicopter carrier) and are modified to handle a dozen or more F-35Bs.

South Korean plans became more obvious when the second Dokdo class LPH (Landing Platform Helicopter) entered sea trials in 2020. As of 2020 South Korea now had two 19,500-ton Dokdo class large amphibious ships. These South Korea LPHs are similar in appearance and operation to the larger American amphibious ships. The LPH flight deck can handle helicopters, as well as vertical takeoff jets like the F-35B. Until recently Korea denied that Dokdos would be used with these jets, but the capability was there. The LPH normally carries 720 combat troops and their heavy equipment. Dokdos also carry fifteen aircraft; two V-22 vertical takeoff transports and 13 helicopters. Marado, the second Dokdo, has a redesigned flight deck that can handle two V-22s at once instead of just one. In addition to a more powerful 3-D surveillance radar for tracking aircraft, Marado has a Phalanx anti-missile system. Marado was apparently modified so it could more effectively handle six or more F-35Bs.

The Dokdo had a crew of 330 plus the ability to carry 720 marines. The ships crew includes pilots and maintainers for the helicopters. In contrast, the LPX/CVX II was to have a crew of over 500, including aviation personnel (pilots, planners and maintainers).

October 9, 2022: In North Korea, two more ballistic missiles were fired from the east coast towards Japan. These two missiles traveled about 350 kilometers. This is the seventh North Korea weapons test in the last two weeks. North Korea said these tests were a protest against the ongoing training exercises involving American and South Korean forces that were conducted during that period. So far this year North Korea has launched ballistic or cruise missiles at least 25 times. This involved about 40 missiles, one of them flying over Japan. Some tests may not have been detected.

October 6, 2022: North Korea sent twelve warplanes south, off the west coast, but these aircraft did not cross the maritime border. South Korea sent 30 warplanes up to intercept the North Koreans. This incident occurred two hours after North Korea fired two more ballistic missiles from its east coast.

October 5, 2022: In North Korea the government did not announce the recent ballistic missiles fired towards Japan. As the details of these missile launches reached North Korean cities the public reaction was muted because it was generally hostile. Most North Koreans feel the food shortages and economic problems and correctly assume that they would have more food if money were not spent on so many ballistic missiles. Openly criticizing the government for not feeding the population can get you arrested and sent to a labor camp. There, the chances of starving to death are even higher. This criticism is not new. Since 2020 North Korea has suffered persistent trade deficits (more exports than imports). In 2020 the deficit was $684 million and $549 in 2021. There will be another deficit in 2022 because internal lockdowns continue, although not as widely as last year. Nearly 60 percent of imports are petroleum products. Not enough other items, like fertilizer, are getting in, which increases the food shortages. Even imports of items for the ballistic missile and nuclear weapons have been reduced, but not eliminated. The state of the armed forces grows worse, mainly because of food shortages. Desertions are up as are the percentage of new conscripts physically unfit for service. The desertions include border guards, who are supposed to receive adequate food supplies but dont and most of them are simply leaving their weapons behind and wading or swimming across the river into China.

October 4, 2022: American and South Korean forces each fired two American ATACMS short range (300 kilometers) missiles into the sea off the east coast. South Korea also fired one of its Hyunmoo-2C missiles but it failed after launch and landed in the South Korean base it was launched from but 700 meters from a residential area. There were no casualties. South Korea developed a 180-kilometer range ballistic missile (Hyunmoo 1) and a 300-kilometer one (Hyunmoo 2) in the 1980s. Both are about 13 meters (40 feet) long and weigh 4-5 tons. Both of these were based on the design of the U.S. Nike-Hercules anti-aircraft missile, which South Korea used for many years. In 2019 it was announced there was now a longer range (500 kilometer) version, Hyunmoo 2C would soon be available. This missile has been tested successfully several times. The failed launch today was later attributed to control system problems in the missile which were not detected before launch.

September 26, 2022: In North Korea the government recommended that everyone resume wearing face masks because of a feared return of covid19 because the annual flu season has begun. In some provinces officials made mask wearing mandatory.

September 23, 2022: North Korea sees benefits from the Russian situation in Ukraine, even as things grow increasingly desperate for Russia as the Ukrainian counter-offensive has been a major success and Russia is in danger of losing all the Ukrainian territory it has occupied since 2014, Now Russia is threatening to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. Russian allies like Iran and North Korea are watching this with keen interest because North Korea already has some crude nukes and recently declared it would use them without warning if they felt threatened. Iran doesnt have any nukes yet but could produce them. Fear of retaliation has made the Iranians more circumspect. Both Iran and North Korea see the Russian nuclear threats as the most realistic use of nuclear blackmail yet attempted and are very much hoping the Russians will win his gamble.

September 8, 2022: North Korean threats to attack Japan have clashed with Japanese public opinion and forced Japan to revise its plans to base two Aegis Ashore systems in Japan. What killed the Aegis project were several of those bad habits. First, as defense officials were working out the details, they found they had underestimated the cost of preparing the two Aegis Ashore sites. That cost was about 25 percent higher than estimated. Costs threatened to increase even more when civilians living near the two Aegis base areas discovered that there were side-effects from the use of Aegis missiles. Planners made some adjustments to the area Aegis would occupy but that was not enough to assure local civilians that the booster portion of the two-stage SM missile would never fall in or near a populated area. In one Aegis Ashore site there were civilian concerns about living too close to the AESA radar Aegis uses to detect and track incoming missiles. Once the Japanese media and local politicians get hold of issues like this, they stay active until the threat goes away. North Korean and Chinese missiles are seen as less of a threat. In Poland and Romania, Russia is always seen as the primary threat and the side effects of using Aegis are not an issue.

The Japanese solution to the problem was to order two 20,000-ton AA (Aegis Ashore) ships whose main purpose was to the carry the Aegis Ashore system and spend most of its time offshore, moving slowly to maintain stability for firing purposes while being less vulnerable targets for Chinese and North Korean armed UAVs, ballistic missiles and warships. Their crews of 110 are just large enough to maintain the ship and operate the Aegis Ashore and missiles. There would probably be at least two crews that would alternately serve on the AA ship. Japan believes it can have these novel missile defense ships in service by 2028. As one of the world's major commercial ship builders, Japan can build the ships quickly and inexpensively. The only drawback with the AA ships is that they would periodically be out of service because of the need to return to port for maintenance or, randomly, to avoid a major storm. The two Aegis Ashore systems were originally ordered because two of them can protect all of Japan. When one of the AA Ships is in port, Japan sends several of its Aegis destroyers to maintain the ABM defense.

Before the AA ships were approved, Japan considered a more expensive solution of building more Aegis equipped destroyers. This is not as effective as Aegis Ashore which, as a land base, is cheaper to maintain and always available to defend against North Korean or Chinese ballistic missiles. Ships have crews and ships spend only about a third of their time at sea. The AA Ships would spend about 90 percent of their time at sea.

North Korea remains the primary threat to Japan. North Korea's unwillingness to get rid of its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs persists. As a result, Japan is still moving ahead to expand its ballistic missile defenses. Most of these will still be based on the Aegis system, which is normally installed on large (8,000 tons and up) warships. Japan has eight Maya and Kongo class Aegis anti-missile system destroyers and is considering ordering two more Kongos, in addition to the AA Ships.

The Maya class destroyers are improved versions of the earlier Atago class destroyers. The Mayas also borrow much from the first four Japanese Aegis-ABM ships, the 9,500-ton Kongos, which were built during the 1990s and modeled on the American Burke class Aegis destroyers. The Kongos have 90 VLS (Vertical Launch System) cells for anti-aircraft/missile missiles as well as ASROC anti-submarine rockets (that carry an anti-submarine torpedo to, in effect, extend the range of the torpedo by 22 kilometers). Japanese Burke type destroyers also carry a five-inch gun and eight Japanese designed anti-ship missiles (similar to the American Harpoon). The Maya class has 96 VLS cells (as do Atagos) as well as more advanced electronics that enable the Mayas to link with the U.S. Navy CEC (Cooperative Engagement Capability) that allows real-time sharing of sensor and other data in real-time between other CEC equipped ships and even shore-based systems like Aegis Ashore.

The two land-based Aegis Ashore anti-missile systems were not expected to be in service until 2024. At that point, Japan would have eight Aegis anti-missile systems and could have two more Aegis anti-missile destroyers by 2024 by upgrading the Aegis systems on two of the older destroyers. That upgrade is more likely now that Aegis Ashore has been canceled. It appears that North Korea will continue to be a threat and how much more of a ballistic missile threat China becomes is still considered less of a problem. China has a long history of threatening but not acting. North Korea has demonstrated an ability to attack without warning and did so in 2010. North Korea has always been less cooperative than China although the Chinese are still a threat.

September 7, 2022: A growing number of North Koreans have found out about the August 15th offer by South Korea to provide massive economic and food assistance if North Korea would give up its nuclear weapons. This offer was not mentioned in North Korean media, which is all state controlled. Thats because the North Korean government turned down the offer because the government considers the nuclear weapons as the primary reason for the continued survival of the Kim dynasty. As more North Koreans suffer from the growing food shortage and economic problems, distrust of and anger towards their government increases.
Strong year-over-year revenue growth of 10%, with sustained gross profit margin of 50%

Newly appointed CEO, Andrew Glashow, to lead next phase of accelerated company growth

Completes first harvest after quarter-end through joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada

LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / October 13, 2022 / CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (OTCQB: CLSH)(CSE: CLSH), (the ''Company'' or ''CLS''), a diversified cannabis company operating as Cannabis Life Sciences, today announced its financial results for the fiscal quarter ended August 31, 2022 ("Q1 2023"). All amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars.

Q1 2023 Financial & Operational Highlights

Management Commentary

"I am thrilled to report solid revenue growth driven by both our retail dispensary and highly visible brand offerings in Nevada's wholesale market," said Andrew Glashow, President and Chief Executive Officer of CLS. "Since stepping in as CEO, I have been delighted by the performance of the entire team and want to thank them for their dedication which helped drive sustained gross margin and profitability. Looking ahead, we are focused on deliberately managing our expenses while leveraging the scale we have built to expand our profitability and deliver strong value for our shareholders."

Mr. Glashow added, "Subsequent to the quarter end, we completed our first harvest through our joint venture with the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada. While the cost of that project is reflected in our current financial results, the high-quality flower we cultivated is only just coming to market and is expected to produce meaningful top- and bottom-line expansion throughout the remainder of our fiscal year."

Subsequent Events

Completed first flower harvest through joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe in Northern Nevada

Announced that, following receipt of the requisite approval of debenture holders and the Canadian Securities Exchange, it amended the terms of its outstanding unsecured convertible debentures (the "December Debentures") issued on December 12, 2018.

Outlook

Despite headwinds which have impeded growth in the broader cannabis industry, the Company expects to expand its wholesale market share in Nevada as it sells through the cannabis grown through its joint venture with Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe. In addition, the Company expects to improve its profitability by reducing its annual corporate expenses by approximately $2.0 million while actively managing rising labor costs. This is anticipated to be achieved through a combination of a $1.0 million reduction in interest expense as a result of the recent restructuring of the Company's December Debentures as well as continued thoughtful management of the Company's corporate overhead expenses.

Q1 2023 Financial Results

Three Months Ended August 31, (In thousands) 2022 2021 YoY% Change Net Revenues $ 6,045 $ 5,501 10% Dispensary Revenue $ 3,889 $ 3,746 4% % of revenue 64% 68% * Production Revenue $ 2,156 $ 1,755 23% % of revenue 36% 32% * Gross Profit $ 3,022 $ 2,915 4% Gross Margin 50% 53% * Net Income $ (1,332 ) $ 4281 -412% Net Income Attributable to CLS $ (1,148 ) $ 428 -369% EBITDA $ 374 $ 1,352 -72%

Q1 2022 and 2021 net Income was positively impacted in the amounts of $348 and $1,174, respectively, by non-recurring payments received related to a confidential settlement agreement to resolve the action and a secured promissory note dated and executed by IGH in favor of the Company effective on June 11, 2021.

The Company's consolidated financial statements, as well as its accompanying management discussion and analysis ("MD&A") have been included in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on EDGAR (www.sec.gov) as well as SEDAR (www.sedar.com). Please refer to the Company's MD&A for additional detail and discussion on the Company's results from operations.

Financial results are also available on the Company's website (https://www.clsholdingsinc.com/investors).

About CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH) is a diversified cannabis company that acts as an integrated cannabis producer and retailer through its Oasis Cannabis subsidiaries in Nevada and plans to expand to other states. CLS stands for "Cannabis Life Sciences," in recognition of the Company's patented proprietary method of extracting various cannabinoids from the marijuana plant and converting them into products with a higher level of quality and consistency. The Company's business model includes licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation and consulting services. https://www.clsholdingsinc.com. Twitter: @CLSHoldingsUSA

Oasis Cannabis has operated a cannabis dispensary in the Las Vegas market since dispensaries first opened in Nevada in 2015 and has been recognized as one of the top marijuana retailers in the state. Its location within walking distance to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas, in combination with its delivery service to residents, allows it to efficiently serve both locals and tourists in the Las Vegas area. In February 2019, it was named "Best Dispensary for Pot Pros" by Desert Companion Magazine. In August 2017, Oasis commenced wholesale offerings of cannabis in Nevada with the launch of its City Trees brand of cannabis concentrates and cannabis-infused products. http://oasiscannabis.com

Founded in 2017, City Trees is a Nevada-based cannabis cultivation, production and distribution company that offers a wide variety of products with consistent results. City Trees products are available in numerous dispensaries throughout the state of Nevada. https://citytrees.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain ''forward-looking information'' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and ''forward-looking statements'' as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, the ''forward-looking statements''). These statements relate to, among other things, the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our business, the results of our initiatives to retain our employees and strengthen our relationships with our customers and community during the pandemic, the effect of our initiatives to expand market share and achieve growth, the expected development of our business and joint ventures, results of operations and financial performance, future liquidity, working capital and capital requirements, the effects of the additional dilution in our common stock that may occur as a result of the amendments to our convertible debentures, and anticipated future events. The continued spread of COVID-19 could have, and in some cases already has had, an adverse impact on our business, operations and financial results, including through disruptions in our cultivation and processing activities, supply chains and sales channels, and retail dispensary operations as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession. In some cases, you can identify forward looking statements by terminology such as ''may,'' ''might,'' ''will,'' ''should,'' ''intends,'' ''expects,'' ''plans,'' ''goals,'' ''projects,'' ''anticipates,'' ''believes,'' ''estimates,'' ''predicts,'' ''potential,'' or ''continue'' or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered together with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. See CLS Holdings USA filings with the SEC and on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com for additional details.

Contact Information:

Corporate:

President and CEO

Andrew Glashow

888-438-9132

Investor Relations:

Rob Kelly

416-992-4539

[email protected]

[email protected]

SOURCE: CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

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Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE: MWA) (Mueller or the Company) today announced that it has entered into a cooperation agreement with Ancora Holdings Group, LLC and its affiliates (Ancora) and announced several governance changes, including the addition of two new directors. The Company also announced an accelerated process to continue its refreshment of the Board of Directors (the Board) over the next three years.

New Independent Directors

The Company announced the appointment of Brian Slobodow and Niclas Ytterdahl to the Board. Mr. Slobodow will join the Board, effective immediately, and Mr. Ytterdahl will act as a non-voting observer of the Board until he is appointed to the Board following the 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the Annual Meeting).

Upon joining the Board, Mr. Slobodow is expected to serve on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and Mr. Ytterdahl is expected to serve on the Audit Committee.

Under the terms of the cooperation agreement, Ancora has agreed to customary standstill, voting commitments and other provisions. A complete copy of the cooperation agreement will be filed on Form 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Creation of New Capital Allocation and Operations Committee

The Board is also forming a Capital Allocation and Operations Committee (the Committee) to focus on capital allocation and operational excellence. The Committee will be co-chaired by President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Hall and Mr. Slobodow, and will include Chairman Mark OBrien. Mr. Ytterdahl will initially be an observer of the Committee and then assume full membership upon his appointment to the Board.

Proactive and Accelerated Board Refresh

The Company also announced that it will accelerate the refreshment of the Board by adding several new directors with fresh perspectives in the near term. This plan is intended to further align the Boards experience and skills with the Companys strategic direction. As part of this plan, following this years Annual Meeting, each member of the Board who has served for more than 10 years will depart during the next three years, with no more than three directors departing in any one year. As of the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, the size of the refreshed Board will be set at 10 directors.

Mark OBrien, Chairman of the Board, commented:

Today accelerates a plan to refresh the Mueller Board, which builds on our commitment to developing a strong track record of diversity and inclusion. The Board continues to work towards ensuring that its directors have the right mix of skills, experience and diversity to oversee and guide Muellers execution of its long-term strategy, while also upholding its commitment to best practices in corporate governance.

Mr. OBrien continued:

Both Brian and Niclas bring valuable operating and supply chain management experience to our already diverse Board. We are confident that Mueller and its stockholders will benefit greatly from their perspectives and insights, and their support of the Companys efforts to enhance shareholder value.

Scott Hall, President and Chief Executive Officer, added:

Now is an important time for Mueller, with a record backlog and healthy demand. Our teams remain focused on executing on our operational improvements and delivering the benefits from our ongoing capital investments that will further position our product portfolio to capitalize on favorable market trends.

Fredrick D. DiSanto, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ancora, concluded:

We appreciate the productive private engagement we have had with Muellers Board and leadership team, and are pleased to reach an agreement that will meaningfully benefit all stockholders and stakeholders. Mueller is a strong, high-potential business with a leading presence in the transmission, distribution and measurement of water in North America. We look forward to seeing our designees add fresh expertise to the Board and support long-term value creation.

Evercore is serving as financial advisor to Mueller Water Products and Kirkland & Ellis LLP is serving as Mueller Water Products legal counsel. Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP is serving as Ancoras legal counsel.

New Director Biographies

Brian SlobodowBrian Slobodow is currently an Operating Partner of Operational Resource Group (ORG) at HGGC, a leading middle-market private equity firm. Mr. Slobodow brings over 30 years of operations expertise to the board, including knowledge in the areas of supply chain and procurement issues. Prior to ORG, Mr. Slobodow served as an Operating Executive at Golden Gate Capital, where he gained extensive experience on management teams, serving as the Chief Operating Officer of Atrium, Chief Executive Officer U.S. Silica Company and President and Chief Operating Officer of Neways International, all of which are current or former Golden Gate Capital portfolio companies. Prior to joining Golden Gate Capital, Mr. Slobodow held multiple leadership positions within Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products and was a Principal at A.T. Kearney. He has previously served as a director on the boards of ANGUS Chemical Company, Cole-Parmer and Springs Window Fashions. Mr. Slobodow holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
FILE PHOTO - The Kohls label is seen on a shopping cart in a Kohls department store in the Brooklyn borough of New York, U.S., January 25, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

(Reuters) - Activist investor group Macellum Advisors is once again pushing for board seats at the struggling department store chain Kohl's Corp and the ouster of its chairman, according to a letter from the hedge fund to the shareholders on Thursday.

Macellum owns about 5% of the retailer and wants its candidates to replace some of the long-tenured directors, including chairman Peter Boneparth and other members of the executive committee.

This is not the first attempt by Macellum, which is led by veteran retail investor Jonathan Duskin, to change the board.

Earlier this year, the hedge fund had pushed to replace 10 directors when the retailer first tried to sell itself, but the move was rejected by investors in May.

The retailer decided against a sale and chose to remain independent in July, disappointing investors who had pushed for a deal and resulting in a plunge in its shares.

Kohl's, whose market capitalization has halved to about $3 billion since the start of the year, said it was disappointed that Macellum has launched another "disruptive public campaign", five months after shareholders rejected its candidates.

Shareholder pressure for Kohl's returned again last month when Ancora Holdings, one of the hedge funds that spearheaded a board shake-up last year, sought the removal of chief executive and board chairman.

"There is an urgent need for change now, rather than waiting another eight months for another contested election at the 2023 annual meeting," Macellum's managing partner Duskin wrote.

In its letter to investors, Macellum also said it had recently approached the board to work together on a refresh, but that was rebuffed by the chairman.

Kohl's said the interactions with Macellum over the past two years have been "unproductive and a distraction from running the business".

(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- 20 Korean tech companies specializing in various technologies such as AI & AI Application, Metaverse, Mobility, SaaS, NFT, IoT and Logistics will participate in TechCrunch Disrupt 2022 in San Francisco from October 18 to 20 at the Korea Pavilion, hosted by KOTRA and KITRI.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012006133/en/

Visit Korea Pavilion hosted by KOTRA and KITRI at TechCrunch Disrupt 2022 during Oct. 18 - 20 in San Francisco (Graphic: Business Wire)

There will be two pitching events of Korean tech companies at the showcase stage to introduce their companies and display their technology and innovation. The first live pitch session by the Korea Pavilion will be on Tuesday, Oct. 18th, at 10 am (PDT); and the second session will be on Thursday, Oct 20th, at 11:30 am (PDT).

The companies are listed below.

Artificial Intelligence

ALI (AI question-answering (QA) system with low data dependency)

Apptest.ai (AI-Based Exploratory Mobile App Test Platform & Cloud Service)

Nota AI (AI model optimization)

SmartMind (One governance platform software ThanoSQL is integrated platform enables the querying and AI modeling of data using only SQL)

AI Application

Cochl (Sound AI platform specialized in ambient sound recognition)

Dabeeo (Map tech / SaaS-type platform providing geospatial data by using AI)

Nuvilab (Developing food scanners that can collect food data)

VisualCamp (Lightweight algorithm AI-based eye tracking software solution)

Metaverse

Fliption (AI-driven face engine software developing virtual face synthesis)

Nalbi (Real-time AI virtual human platform using in social media / camera apps)

SiliconArts (Real-time ray tracing GPU Technology for Servers, Workstations, PCs, Mobile and VR/AR headsets)

Z-EMOTION (Provide one-stop real-time 3D design platform that can be used in fashion design, E-commerce for brands, and the metaverse)

Mobility

BANF (Real-time safety diagnostic system for autonomous truck tires)

Neubility (Cost-effective, in-house-developed autonomous delivery robots)

PABLO AIR (Drone solution & service with self-developed UAS hardware technology)

SaaS | NFT | IoT

Business Canvas (Document platform that redesigns the document files from folders and search to knowledge network)

Monoly (SaaS for enterprise collaboration tool guarantees users data sovereignty with blockchain technology)

Platfarm GALL3RY 3 (A Dapp that automatically converts the crypto assets owned by NFT collectors to share on social media platforms)

TheWaveTalk (Water quality meter, turbidimeter, that measures the water quality of drinking water)

Logistics

Willog (Cloud-based, real-time logistics monitoring solution that logs temperature, humidity, light and shock data during package transportation)

Visit the Korea Pavilion hosted by KOTRA and KITRI at TechCrunch Disrupt 2022 after the registration using Free Expo Pass offered by the Korea Pavilion.

About KOTRA

KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency) serves as a global platform tailored to meet the needs of buyers, investors and Korean entrepreneurs alike.

About KITRI

KITRI (Korea International Trade Research Institute) aims to create new paradigms in international trade through publications and pursue academic activities.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012006133/en/

Sungwoo Park  Marketing Manager

KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency) Silicon Valley

[email protected]

Source: Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency
FRAMINGHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE: AMRC), a leading clean technology integrator specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy, today announced that management will host a Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) plant tour in Phoenix, AZ on Tuesday, November 15, 2022.

The plant tour will begin at 10 a.m. MT and will showcase the largest wastewater treatment biogas-to-renewable natural gas (RNG) facility in the US, designed, built, owned, operated and maintained by Ameresco. The plant tour will be followed by a lunch at 11:30 a.m. MT hosted by management at the Courtyard by Marriott Phoenix West/Avondale. The lunch will include a presentation and Q&A session providing a deeper understanding of Amerescos RNG business.

Analysts and institutional investors interested in attending are encouraged to contact Ameresco Investor Relations at [email protected].

About Ameresco, Inc.

Founded in 2000, Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE: AMRC) is a leading independent clean technology integrator of comprehensive services, energy efficiency, infrastructure upgrades, asset sustainability and renewable energy solutions for businesses and organizations throughout North America and Europe. Amerescos sustainability services include upgrades to a facilitys energy infrastructure and the development, construction and operation of renewable energy plants. Ameresco has successfully completed energy saving, environmentally responsible projects with Federal, state and local governments, healthcare and educational institutions, housing authorities, and commercial and industrial customers. With its corporate headquarters in Framingham, MA, Ameresco has more than 1,000 employees providing local expertise in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.ameresco.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012006030/en/

Media Relations

Leila Dillon, 508.661.2264, [email protected]

Investor Relations

Eric Prouty, AdvisIRy Partners, 212.750.5800, [email protected]

Lynn Morgen, AdvisIRy Partners, 212.750.5800, [email protected]

Source: Ameresco, Inc.
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- American Equity Investment Life Holding Company (NYSE: AEL) announced today that it will release third quarter 2022 earnings and other financial results after the close of market on Monday, November 7, 2022. The third quarter earnings release and financial supplement will be posted on the American Equity IR website at https://ir.american-equity.com/ at that time.

American Equity will hold a conference call on Tuesday, November 8, at 10:00 a.m. CDT to discuss its third quarter financial results and its financial condition, business, investments, operations, and strategy. The call may also include forward-looking statements regarding future performance using terms such as believe, expect, intend, may, plan, strategy, will, or similar words, as well as specific projections of future results. These statements will be based on assumptions and expectations that involve risks and uncertainties, including the "Risk Factors" the Company describes in its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings. The Company's future results could differ, and it has no obligation to correct or update any such statements.

There is a new and simplified event registration that provides two ways to access the call.

Via Telephone

Interested parties may register for the call with the form available at this link, and upon submission (and via follow-up email) will receive the dial-in number and a unique PIN to access the call. Registration is available now or any time up to and during the time of the call. Registration is also available by visiting our IR website at https://ir.american-equity.com/.

Via the Internet

Interested parties who wish to listen to the webcast may register to access it on our IR website at https://ir.american-equity.com/. An audio replay will also be available via the same link on our website shortly after the completion of the call for 30 days.

ABOUT AMERICAN EQUITY

At American Equity Investment Life Holding Company (NYSE: AEL), we think of ourselves as The Financial Dignity Company. Our policyholders work with independent agents, banks and broker-dealers through our wholly-owned operating subsidiaries, to choose one of our leading annuity products best suited for their personal needs to create financial dignity in retirement. To deliver on its promises to policyholders, American Equity has re-framed its investments focus  building a stronger emphasis on insurance liability driven asset allocation and specializing in alternate, private asset management. American Equity is headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa with satellite offices slated to open in 2022 in Charlotte, NC and New York, NY. For more information, please visit www.american-equity.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005942/en/

Steven Schwartz | Head of Investor Relations

American Equity Investment Life Holding Company

515-273-3763 | [email protected]

Source: American Equity Investment Life Holding Company
Up to US$200,000 funding per year for each selected proposal, up to 3 years

Targeting autoimmune disease, renal disease, pain and neurodegenerative disease, bone disease or platform technologies for drug discovery

Application period: January 5, 2023 - February 28, 2023. How to apply.

NEW YORK & DUSSELDORF, Germany & TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Asahi Kasei Pharma, subsidiary of diversified Japanese multinational company Asahi Kasei, is publicly calling for new proposals for drug development research as part of its efforts for open innovation to promote pharmaceutical research and development through enhanced cooperation with universities, research institutes and enterprises around the world. The application period begins at 5:00 a.m. GMT on January 5, 2023 and ends at 8:00 a.m. GMT on February 28, 2023.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005087/en/

Asahi Kasei Pharma's Open Innovation team is seeking to fund innovative proposals from researchers around the world for up to US$200,000 per year, per project in 2023 for proposals about state-of-the-art pharmaceutical drug developments. Joint research opportunities will then be pursued with the drug discovery researchers together with their parent institutions in hopes to create new innovative drugs for diseases that currently have unmet needs or pioneer new platform technologies for drug discovery. How to apply: https://www.asahikasei-pharma.co.jp/a-compass/en/recruit.html

Asahi Kasei Pharma established its Open Innovation Department in October 2016 with the mission to further strengthen and enhance global licensing and alliance-building activities, and has since funded around 5 proposals per year on average with a total of over 20 funded proposals for state-of-the-art pharmaceutical drug developments as well as collected a wealth of creative new ideas. The Open Innovation team is seeking to fund innovative proposals from researchers around the world for up to US$200,000 per year, per project for this upcoming round in 2023. Asahi Kasei Pharma will then pursue joint research opportunities with the drug discovery researchers together with their parent institutions in hopes to create new innovative drugs for diseases that currently have unmet needs or pioneer new platform technologies for drug discovery.

Asahi Kasei Pharma has demonstrated a successful track record in developing new drugs in the realms of autoimmune, renal, neurological, and bone disease, so the organization can provide the greatest contribution from correlating research areas and subjects.

"Asahi Kasei Pharma believes that nobody should have to give up what they would like to do because of illness," said Osamu Matsuzaki, Primary Executive Officer and Head of R&D and Business Development at Asahi Kasei Pharma. We believe great science comes from working together, and we are excited for the opportunity to accomplish this mission with researchers all over the world.

Open Innovation works to establish research collaborations related to innovative drug targets and candidate drug compounds up to the preclinical stage as well as advanced drug discovery technologies. Advancements in exploring a new mechanism of action for treating refractory autoimmune disease is one of the most promising outcomes of the research so far, with many more on the horizon. Asahi Kasei believes that these continued efforts to advance drug discovery and research technology will further contribute to life and living for people around the world.

Outline of the call for proposals

Target applicants:

Researchers at universities, research institutes, and enterprises outside Japan

(researchers based in Japan should refer to the Japanese website)

Research areas and subjects:

Autoimmune disease - new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Renal disease - new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Pain and neurodegenerative disease - new drug candidates and new drug development technologies Bone disease - new drug candidates Platform technologies for drug discovery - drug formulation, analysis methods and organic synthesis

Funding:

Up to US$200,000 per year for each selected proposal

Research period:

1-3 years (milestones will be set for each year, and the content of the research will be reviewed as needed based on the research results)

Submissions will be assessed with respect to their potential as concepts for collaborative research and fostering of research. Further information is available on Asahi Kasei Pharmas Open Innovation website.

About Asahi Kasei Pharma

In accordance with the mission, to sincerely care for each individual life and solve their unmet medical needs with a wealth of ideas and solid science, Asahi Kasei Pharma operates pharmaceutical and diagnostic businesses in the Health Care Sector of the Asahi Kasei Group. Asahi Kasei Pharma has developed numerous innovative drugs in the fields of immunology, neurology, critical care, musculoskeletal disorders, and other rare diseases, contributing to society by providing highly innovative medications to patients who suffer from diseases with previously unmet needs.

To learn more, visit https://www.asahikasei-pharma.co.jp/en/.

About Asahi Kasei

The Asahi Kasei Group contributes to life and living for people around the world. Since its foundation in 1922 with ammonia and cellulose fiber businesses, Asahi Kasei has consistently grown through the proactive transformation of its business portfolio to meet the evolving needs of every age. With more than 46,000 employees around the world, the company contributes to a sustainable society by providing solutions to the world's challenges through its three business sectors of Material, Homes, and Health Care. Its health care operations include devices and systems for acute critical care, dialysis, therapeutic apheresis, transfusion, and manufacture of biotherapeutics, as well as pharmaceuticals and diagnostic reagents. For more information, visit https://www.asahi-kasei.com/.

Asahi Kasei is also dedicated to sustainability initiatives and is contributing to reaching a carbon neutral society by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.asahi-kasei.com/sustainability/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005087/en/

Media Inquiries North America

ATTN: Jonathan Todd

Asahi Kasei America, Inc.

[email protected]

https://www.asahi-kasei.com



Media Inquiries Europe

ATTN: Sebastian Schmidt

Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH

[email protected]

https://www.asahi-kasei.eu

Source: Asahi Kasei Pharma
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Carlisle Companies Incorporated (NYSE: CSL) will release third quarter 2022 results on Thursday, October 27, 2022, after the market close. A conference call to discuss these results has been scheduled for 5pm ET on Thursday, October 27, 2022. The call can be accessed via webcast, along with related materials, at www.carlisle.com/investors/events-and-presentations and via telephone as follows:

Domestic toll free: 844-200-6205

International: 929-526-1599

Conference ID: 776488

Please dial in or access the webcast at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the call. An audio replay will be available on the Companys website shortly after the completion of the call.

About Carlisle Companies Incorporated

Carlisle Companies Incorporated is a leading supplier of innovative Building Envelope products and energy-efficient solutions for customers creating sustainable buildings of the future. Through its construction materials businesses (CCM and CWT) and family of leading brands, Carlisle delivers innovative, labor-reducing and environmentally responsible products and solutions to customers through the Carlisle Experience. Over the life of a building, Carlisles products help drive lower greenhouse gas emissions, improve energy savings for building owners and operators, and increase a buildings resiliency to the elements. Driven by its strategic plan, Vision 2025, Carlisle is committed to generating superior shareholder returns and maintaining a balanced capital deployment approach, including investments in our businesses, strategic acquisitions, share repurchases and continued dividend increases. Carlisle also is a leading provider of products to the Aerospace, Medical Technologies and General Industrial markets through its Interconnect Technologies (CIT) and Fluid Technologies (CFT) business segments.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005072/en/

Jim Giannakouros, CFA

Vice President of Investor Relations

Carlisle Companies Incorporated

(480) 781-5135

[email protected]

Source: Carlisle Companies Incorporated
Northwest Washingtons behavioral healthcare leader has already raised more than 70 percent of the campaigns goal, invites community to invest in regional center to meet intensive mental health needs

EVERETT, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Compass Health is building the future of behavioral health care in the region and community members have an integral role to play. Today, the non-profit organization publicly launched Its Time: The Campaign for Compass Health, a $14 million capital campaign to fund a state-of-the-art facility designed to meet the intensive mental health needs of Northwest Washingtons most vulnerable populations.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005840/en/

Compass Health Phase II Rendering (Graphic: Business Wire)

Compass Healths first-ever capital campaign has already raised over $10 million from lead funders, more than 70 percent of the campaigns goal. To date, the organization has received $3 million from the Sunderland Foundation, $2 million in Community Project Funding championed by U.S. Representative Rick Larsen, $1 million from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, $1 million from The Norcliffe Foundation, and $600,000 from Premera Blue Cross, along with more than 30 significant private gifts.

The champions of this project are community members who care about addressing some of the most urgent needs facing our region, said Tom Sebastian, President & CEO of Compass Health. We are grateful for the support weve received from philanthropic organizations, lawmakers, business and community leaders and dedicated neighbors who wholeheartedly believe in our mission and vision for the Broadway Campus Redevelopment project.

Tom Kozaczynski, who leads the capital campaign as Compass Healths Chief Advancement Officer, said that the purpose of the facility has resonated deeply with community members as it presents a one-of-a-kind opportunity to be a part of the solution to addressing the increasing mental health needs across the region. The campaign focuses on taking action, advocating:

Its time to build the future of behavioral health with architecture, design and function that reflect the sophistication and clinical excellence of the world-class care delivered here.

Its time to invest in solutions to our regions most visible and pressing needs by preventing complex mental health conditions from escalating and diverting high-frequency use of emergency services.

Its time to support recovery, hope and dignity through an environment purpose-built to empower community members with intensive behavioral health needs.

Its time to create a magnet for mental health professionals with a workplace that attracts the team members needed to meet our regions growing demand for care.

Its time to act regionally with a state-of-the-art campus that will benefit community members, first responders, healthcare partners and more across Northwest Washington.

We appreciate every donor that has been involved in this campaign so far, as they have undoubtedly been instrumental in getting us to this point, added Kozaczynski. This is an ambitious project on every level, but through the continued support of individuals, businesses, and foundations across our community, we are confident we will reach our fundraising goal, and deliver this critical resource for the region.

The facility  the second of a three-phase campus redevelopment  will house evidence-based treatment programs and services for individuals with intensive mental health needs. For example, a 16-bed involuntary evaluation and treatment unit will allow providers to connect adults with behavioral health disorders to inpatient services in an acute setting with support available 24 hours a day. For adults with behavioral health disorders that require a lower intensity of care that is focused on long-term, consistent contact and outreach, providers can enroll patients in the outpatient program and services available, helping these individuals avoid emergency department or inpatient stays.

To further alleviate demand for local resources, such as hospitals, law enforcement, and community responders, the facility will house a 16-bed voluntary crisis triage center to offer short-term support for those experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The center will enable law enforcement drop-offs, allowing first responders to bring individuals in crisis directly to the center for immediate care. Treating mental health crises in the triage center is also more cost-effective and supports better outcomes than emergency department or inpatient hospital visits, which are not intended or equipped to address these needs.

This facility will offer the compassionate, successful care delivery system that our community needs to address the mental health challenges that are weighing on us so heavily, said Dr. Gregg Jantz, Founder of The Center  A Place of Hope, and contributor to Its Time. In my eyes, and in the eyes of many, Compass Health is the bridge of hope, and through this project, they are only strengthening and widening that bridge. This is such a timely and important project, and my wife and I are proud to support it. I encourage everyone to learn more about the ways in which this facility will benefit our community and do what they can to help it along, as the need for it grows greater each day.

Overall, the facility is projected to be complete in early 2025 at a cost of $64 million. In addition to the $14 million that the campaign seeks to raise, Compass Health has received significant investment from the State of Washington, including $21 million from competitive and direct appropriations. Philanthropic and public funding sources will help Compass Health leverage investment from the Federal New Markets Tax Credit program that will deliver an additional $10 to $12 million, and the projects remaining balance will be secured through private financing sources.

Compass Health anticipates the facility will have the capacity to serve an estimated 1,500 individuals through more than 30,000 points of service each year. Importantly, individuals will be able to remain in the community during treatment, allowing for family visits, care coordination, and more seamless transition to other services when ready for less-intensive care.

One of the most important aspects of Compass Healths care delivery is that we focus on providing community-based treatment, said Stacey Alles, Chief Operating Officer of Compass Health. This allows us to provide help to clients where they are, and through this timely treatment, we can improve outcomes and the overall health of our communities. This new facility will enable residents to access immediate care for their needs, offering alternative options to hospitalizations, and ensuring the necessary access and support is maintained, as long as they need it.

Leaders at the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, one of the campaigns lead funders, said that Compass Healths ability to work alongside clients and community partners is important.

Our benefactor, Jack Murdock, believed strongly in the importance of investing in resources that support the mental health of individuals, said Pauline Fong, program director at the Murdock Trust. Organizations like Compass Health are doing vital work both in establishing resources but also by building partnerships with community organizations to provide comprehensive support for those in need.

Compass Healths Broadway Campus Redevelopment project encompasses the entire 3300 block of Broadway in Everett and accommodates a broad range of behavioral health services. Its 81-unit permanent supportive housing facility, Andys Place, officially opened in May of 2021, and is now fully leased.

It is exciting to be at a point where we get to invite the community to be a part of this initiative, which will not only transform a block in downtown Everett but will transform behavioral health care in Northwest Washington, added Sebastian.

To learn more about the Its Time Capital Campaign and to donate, visit https://www.compasshealth.org/itstime/. For more information about the entire Broadway Campus Redevelopment, visit www.compasshealth.org/broadwayredevelopment.

About Compass Health

Compass Health is Northwest Washingtons behavioral healthcare leader. A community-based healthcare agency, Compass Health integrates behavioral health and medical care services to form a key section of the community safety net and serve clients and others in need of care and support. From comprehensive mental health treatment to crisis prevention and intervention, supportive housing, childrens services, community education and much more, the non-profit organization serves people of all ages throughout Snohomish, Skagit, Island, San Juan, and Whatcom counties.

Learn more: www.compasshealth.org

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005840/en/

Andrew Olson (425) 349-8374

Compass Health

[email protected]

Annie Alley (206) 466-2713

Firmani + Associates Inc.

[email protected]

Source: Compass Health
Onsite community hubs are accessible to DHA residents on a weekly basis through both in-person services and virtual care

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas (DHA) has launched onsite community hubs at two residential public housing communities in partnership with Parkland Health. These hubs provide various in-person services for DHA residents and the public including health screenings, financial assistance for healthcare, community resources and virtual medical visits.

The onsite community hubs are located at two DHA-owned affordable housing properties including Park Manor and Buckeye Commons. Buckeye properties include Buckeye Trail Family Residences, Buckeye Senior Living and Buckeye Trail Apartments. Services at Park Manor are available every Thursday from 1 to 4 p.m. and at Buckeye Commons every Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon. Virtual care is also available by appointment every Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Parklands MyChart application.

DHA is the tenth largest public housing authority (PHA) in the nation. The agency provides affordable housing opportunities for over 55,700 people through public housing communities and the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program.

We are excited for our continued partnership with Parkland Health as we address the needs of our residents. These community health hubs at Park Manor and Buckeye provide pathways for our residents to enhance their quality of life through vital health services. DHA is a mission-driven organization that believes our communities are stronger when everyone has a chance to thrive. We are eager to continue our vision to create positive change through collaborations with valued partners like Parkland Health, says DHA president and CEO, Troy Broussard.

DHA is one of the largest developers of affordable housing in North Texas. The agency provides access to a variety of supportive services for residents including healthcare, education, employment and training resources, resident leadership, family self-sufficiency programs, homeownership programs, veterans affairs supportive housing and more.

We worked with DHA to prequalify housing applicants for presumptive eligibility in Parklands financial assistance program. The program creates a proactive approach where DHA promotes health ownership among applicants and provides an essential service for individuals working to improve their physical, mental and financial health, said Fred Cerise, MD, Parklands president and CEO.

One of Parklands priorities in addressing health disparities is expanding access through strategic partnerships with trusted organizations like DHA.

Parkland and Dallas County Health and Human Services conducted a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) to identify the geographic areas and populations that experience the most significant health disparities. The study found that there is a high rate of uninsured individuals in Dallas County and a general lack of health literacy across our communities, said Grace Mathew, Innovation Programs Specialist at Parkland Health. Parklands partnership with DHA through the Care & Coverage program helps address health disparities and brings important services to the people that need it the most.

Transportation is a large barrier for low-income individuals that we serve. Being on-site at our community hubs removes a huge barrier for residents. Ultimately, we want to make sure our communities are well taken care of. DHA has a longstanding footprint in Dallas County, and we are proud to partner with a trusted organization that helps us expand our footprint, said Mathew.

To view more of DHAs Resident Empowerment services, visit here.

About DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas (formerly the Dallas Housing Authority)

DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas provides quality, affordable housing to low-income families and individuals through the effective and efficient administration of housing assistance programs. The agency aims to create opportunities for program participants to achieve self-sufficiency and economic independence. DHA provides housing opportunities to ~55,700 people through public housing developments and Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) programs. Our mission is to provide affordable quality housing and access to supportive resources across North Texas. DHA is governed by its Board of Commissioners and administers housing programs funded and regulated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. DHA is an independent, local government entity that is separate from the Dallas City Housing/Community Services department, which is governed by the City of Dallas. For more information about DHA, please visit www.dhantx.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005777/en/

April Foran, Parkland Health, 469-419-4400, [email protected]

DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas

Jacqueline Chen Valencia

CONNECTIVE Agency

[email protected]

Source: DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas
Partnership Expands Entravision 365 Digitals Presence into West Africa

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Entravision (NYSE: EVC) a leading global advertising solutions, media and technology company, announced today that its Africa-based digital business unit, Entravision 365 Digital in Ghana, has become the Authorized Sales Partner of Meta, the company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Entravision 365 Digital will provide support, training, lines of credit and local billing to advertisers in the Ghanaian market, thereby enabling them to meet their business objectives.

This partnership reinforces our commitment to advertisers to connect brands to consumers through local strategic support, creative expertise and relevant in-market training, said Julian Jordaan, Chief Executive Officer of Entravision 365 Digital. As we continue to expand our presence throughout the continent of Africa, we are thrilled to partner with Meta as their Authorized Sales Partner in Ghana to equip and empower local businesses with our top-notch advertising expertise.

Jordaan continued, We are also pleased to welcome Stephen Sawyerr as Country Manager to spearhead our partnership with Meta in Ghana. With over 10 years of management, digital marketing and brand building expertise, Stephen is very well equipped to build a world-class team to support Entravisions growth in West Africa.

Entravision 365 Digital, as an Authorized Sales Partner, will deploy dedicated local expert teams in Ghana to provide businesses with each of the tools crucial to sales growth, while also assisting these same customers in deploying their advertising investments more efficiently across the Meta family of products.

"Ghana is an important country for Meta, and it is a priority for us to invest in the market and to be closer to the people and businesses here, said Enitan Denloye, Regional Director, Meta Africa. As such, we are happy to bring in Entravision 365 Digital as Metas Authorized Sales Partner in Ghana and believe that with their robust local market insights and expertise, we can provide better support for businesses and agencies locally, helping them unlock their potential growth.

About Entravision

Entravision is a leading global advertising, media and ad-tech solutions company connecting brands to consumers by representing top platforms and publishers. Our dynamic portfolio includes digital, television and audio offerings. Digital, our largest revenue segment, is comprised of four business units: our digital sales representation business; Smadex, our programmatic ad purchasing platform; our branding and mobile performance solutions business; and our digital audio business. Through our digital sales representation business, we connect global media companies such as Meta, Twitter, TikTok and Spotify with advertisers in primarily emerging growth markets worldwide. Smadex is our mobile-first demand side platform, enabling advertisers to execute performance campaigns using machine learning. We also offer a branding and mobile performance solutions business, which provides managed services to advertisers looking to connect with global consumers, primarily on mobile devices, and our digital audio business provides digital audio advertising solutions for advertisers in the Americas. In addition to digital, Entravision has 49 television stations and is the largest affiliate group of the Univision and UniMas television networks. Entravision also manages 45 primarily Spanish-language radio stations that feature nationally recognized, Emmy award-winning talent. Shares of Entravision Class A Common Stock trade on the NYSE under ticker: EVC. Learn more about our offerings at entravision.com or connect with us on LinkedIn and Facebook.

About Entravision 365 Digital

Entravision 365 Digital is an African online media and ad-technology business with a rich heritage in the African advertising industry. For 23 years the business has represented the largest publishers and platforms in Africa and have helped global brands reach connected consumers and drive business impact. With a mission to connect publishers to brands, and brands to consumers, Entravision 365 Digital helps brands reach audiences at scale through its exclusive partnership with leading platforms like TikTok, Anzu, Triton Digital and many more. Entravision 365 Digital is a business unit of Entravision, a leading global advertising, media and ad-tech solutions company connecting brands to consumers by representing top platforms and publishers. Learn more about all of our innovative media, marketing and technology offerings at entravision365digital.com or connect with us on LinkedIn.

About Meta

Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements, which are included in accordance with the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, may involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Companys actual results and performance in future periods to be materially different from any future results or performance suggested by the forward-looking statements in this press release. Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from these expectations, and the Company disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statements made by the Company. From time to time, these risks, uncertainties and other factors are discussed in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005164/en/

Entravision

Investors:

Christopher T. Young

Chief Financial Officer

310-447-3870

Kimberly Esterkin

Addo Investor Relations

[email protected]

310-829-5400

Entravision 365 Digital South Africa

Julian Jordaan

Chief Executive Officer

+27 21 555 1975

[email protected]

Entravision 365 Digital Ghana

Steven Sawyerr

Country Manager, Entravision 365 Digital - Ghana

+233 24 287 0903

[email protected]

Source: Entravision
WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Evans Bancorp, Inc. (the Company) (NYSE American: EVBN), a community financial services company serving Western New York since 1920, announced that it will release its third quarter 2022 results after the close of financial markets on Wednesday, October 26, 2022.

The Company will host a conference call and webcast to review the financial and operating results for the period and discuss its corporate strategy and outlook. A question-and-answer session will follow.

Third Quarter 2022 Conference Call

Wednesday, October 26, 2022

4:45 p.m. Eastern Time

Phone: (201) 689-8471

Internet Webcast: www.evansbancorp.com

A telephonic replay will be available from 7:45 p.m. ET on the day of the teleconference until Wednesday, November 2, 2022. To listen to the archived call, dial (412) 317-6671 and enter conference ID number 13733202, or access the webcast replay at www.evansbancorp.com, where a transcript will be posted once available.

About Evans Bancorp, Inc.

Evans Bancorp, Inc. is a financial holding company and the parent company of Evans Bank, N.A., a commercial bank with $2.2 billion in assets and $2.0 billion in deposits at June 30, 2022. Evans is a full-service community bank with 18 branches providing comprehensive financial services to consumer, business and municipal customers throughout Western New York. Evans Insurance Agency, a wholly owned subsidiary, provides life insurance, employee benefits, and property and casualty insurance through ten offices in the Western New York region. Evans Investment Services provides non-deposit investment products, such as annuities and mutual funds.

Evans Bancorp, Inc. and Evans Bank routinely post news and other important information on their websites, at www.evansbancorp.com and www.evansbank.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005693/en/

For more information:

John B. Connerton

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

(716) 926-2000

[email protected]

-OR-

Deborah K. Pawlowski

Kei Advisors LLC

(716) 843-3908

[email protected]

Media:

Kathleen Rizzo Young

Public & Community Relations Manager

(716) 343-5562

[email protected]

Source: Evans Bancorp, Inc.
FHLB Dallas Partnership Grant Program Provides 3:1 Match of Members Donations

LAFAYETTE, La.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Home Bank and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) awarded $17,000 to The Hub: Lafayette Urban Ministries (The Hub). The Hub is a community-based organization (CBO) that provides access to essential resources and support to people recovering from addiction and mental illness.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005742/en/

Representatives from Home Bank and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas awarded $17,000 in grants to The Hub: Lafayette Urban Ministries.

Awarded annually through FHLB Dallas member institutions, Partnership Grant Program (PGP) funds help promote and strengthen relationships between CBOs and FHLB Dallas members. FHLB Dallas matches member contributions of $500 to $4,000 at a 3:1 ratio.

Home Bank is committed to serving the needs of our communities, and we are pleased to join with FHLB Dallas to support The Hub and the incredible work they do across Lafayette, said Kelvin Luster, community development director at Home Bank.

The Hub plans to use its PGP award to continue its weekly program ministries which provides meals and opportunities to participate in classes such as financial literacy, resume building, computer skills and more.

The Hub is one of seven local nonprofit organizations that Home Bank is supporting with PGP funding this year. Together, Home Bank and FHLB Dallas contributed more than $67,000 to seven CBOs across Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

Home Bank pours its resources into communities, said Greg Hettrick, first vice president and director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas. Addiction and mental illness afflict so many people, it is an honor to partner with a financial institution that shows this level of commitment to caring for their constituents.

See the complete list of the 2022 PGP grant recipients. For more information about the 2022 PGP grants and other FHLB Dallas community investment products and programs, please visit fhlb.com/pgp.

About Home Bank, N.A.

Home Bank, N.A., founded in 1908 as Home Building & Loan, is the oldest financial institution founded in Lafayette Parish. Home Bank now serves markets in South Louisiana and Mississippi in 40 locations. Home Bank is committed to serving the needs of our communities. Personal banking has always been Home Banks trademark and that tradition continues as we grow, invest and serve our clients and community. We live our values each day, focusing on integrity, innovation and a commitment to serving others. For more information about Home Bank, visit www.home24bank.com.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $77.7 billion as of June 30, 2022, serves approximately 800 members and associated institutions across our five-state District of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. FHLB Dallas provides financial products and services including advances (loans to members) and grant programs for affordable housing and economic development. For more information, visit our website at fhlb.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005742/en/

Corporate Communications

Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

fhlb.com

(214) 441-8445

Source: Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
New innovation center and Singapore Flexiblend plant to accelerate innovation and broaden co-creation capabilities in Greater Asia

SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- IFF (NYSE: IFF) today announced the opening of its new Singapore Innovation Center, the first in its global network of research, creative and application centers to integrate the technologies, capabilities and expertise of all four business divisions: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent and Pharma Solutions. At nearly 11,000 square meters, it is IFFs largest in the region.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012006035/en/

IFF Invests $30 Million to Expand Regional Footprint in Singapore (Photo: Business Wire)

Its launchfollowing IFFs newly operational Singapore Flexiblend plant in Tuasmarks the latest in the companys nearly US$30 million investment into Singapore. The two sites are part of a series of aggressive investments IFF is making to accelerate innovation, broaden its co-creation capabilities, drive speed to market and enhance accessibility to customers across Asia.

By 2030, Asia is projected to account for 60 percent of global economic growth, said Frank Clyburn, chief executive officer of IFF. For IFF, Asia has demonstrated consistent growth, and we see tremendous opportunity in the future.

Just this year, weve opened innovation centers in the U.S., Latin America, Europe and now Singapore, demonstrating our commitment to advance scientific discovery globally. Together, these significant investments will fast forward innovation across our broad portfolio, supporting our customers in creating differentiated, new-to-world solutions that benefit people and planet.

Situated in Singapores premier biomedical research hub, the ultra-modern center features more than ten creation, design and analytical laboratories, a collaboration studio, and culinary and demo kitchens, providing customers with full sensory capabilities to support each stage of the process from ideation through commercialization. It has one of the biggest dairy processing pilot plants in Southeast Asia, replicating large-scale industrial production processes. The center also houses IFFs global innovation center for fabric care powders and personal wash, the largest scent evaluation facility worldwide, and is the first IFF location to support all scent product categories.

In this integrated space, we will unlock cross-divisional synergies, fast-tracking innovation and accelerating new growth opportunities, said Ramon Brentan, IFF Singapore Innovation Center site leader, and vice president, Greater Asia regional general manager, Scent, IFF. We are very well positioned to offer a comprehensive portfolio for Asian consumers, offering end-to-end solutions that consumers love in food, beverage, health, biosciences and scent. This center is a true powerhouse of innovation and will further strengthen our position as a strategic co-creation partner to our customers in Asia.

The state-of-the-art Singapore Flexiblend plantwhich had its grand opening on Oct. 12will increase supply robustness and provide customized biotechnology solutions catered to the grain processing and animal nutrition and health customers in the region.

We are delighted that IFF chose Singapore to establish its largest innovation facility in Asia. Along with their new Flexiblend plant, these investments demonstrate how innovation and solution-driven companies can leverage Singapores talent, scientific capabilities, and access to regional markets to develop new, sustainable products for Asian consumers, said Mr. Tan Kong Hwee, executive vice president, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).

In Singapores push towards environmentally sustainable growth opportunities in food, wellbeing, home and consumer care, EDB will partner like-minded companies such as IFF for their growth plans and create interesting jobs for Singaporeans in these areas.

IFF is present in 14 countries across Greater Asia and has operated in Singapore since 1969. The Singapore Innovation Center is part of IFFs network of more than 50 research, creative and design centers, which help bring differentiated and integrated solutions to customers around the world.

Cautionary Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

This press release contains forward-looking statement within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including Section 27A of the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act). Forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance and financial condition, and often contain words such as will, expect, anticipate, intend, plan, believe, seek, see, would, target, similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain, such as the impact of the new center to our business. The forward-looking statements included in this release are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update the forward-looking statement to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

Welcome to IFF

At IFF (NYSE: IFF), an industry leader in food, beverage, health, biosciences and scent, science and creativity meet to create essential solutions for a better world  from global icons to unexpected innovations and experiences. With the beauty of art and the precision of science, we are an international collective of thinkers who partners with customers to bring scents, tastes, experiences, ingredients and solutions for products the world craves. Together, we will do more good for people and planet. Learn more at iff.com, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

 2022 by International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. IFF is a Registered Trademark. All Rights Reserved.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221012006035/en/

Michael DeVeau

Chief Investor Relations & Communications Officer 212.708.7164

[email protected]

Source: IFF
ASTONISH confirms the therapeutic potential of nangibotide in septic shock patients with excessive activation of the TREM-1 pathway

ASTONISH confirms that the soluble TREM-1 biomarker predicts response to nangibotide treatment

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Inotrem, an advanced clinical stage biotech company specializing in immunotherapies for acute and chronic inflammatory syndromes, disclosed for the first time today at the International Sepsis Forum held in Barcelona the results for its Phase IIb ASTONISH clinical trial in septic shock patients.

ASTONISH was designed to show the efficacy of nangibotide in septic shock with a precision medicine approach aiming to identify patients who benefit the most from this innovative treatment. This global study enrolled 361 patients across 41 clinical sites in 6 European countries and the United States and succeeded in demonstrating a therapeutic benefit of nangibotide in patients with high levels of the TREM-1 pathway activation marker, soluble TREM-1 (sTREM-1).

ASTONISH studied as a primary endpoint the improvement in SOFA score, a well-established morbidity score evaluating patient clinical evolution and organ function. The change of this score at 5 days after initiation of treatment in the nangibotide-treated arms was compared to the placebo arm in all patients and in patients with a high level of sTREM-1. Importantly, and as part of the prespecified analysis for defining the optimal sTREM-1 cut-off, the benefit of nangibotide high dose treatment versus placebo was clinically and statistically significant at higher concentrations of sTREM-1, representing about 50% of the study population.

Consistent with prior preclinical, observational and Phase IIa trial data in this setting, ASTONISH confirmed that excessive TREM-1 activity is associated with severe immune dysregulation, organ dysfunction and ultimately death.

ASTONISH demonstrates that TREM-1 modulation with nangibotide improves respiratory, cardiovascular and renal function. The study also provided evidence that nangibotide meaningfully impacts other relevant clinical parameters, displaying a trend towards improvement in All-Cause Mortality at day 28 and the proportion of patients Alive and free of organ support at day 28.

Jean-Jacques Garaud, Senior VP Head of scientific and medical affairs at Inotrem, said: The ASTONISH trial was designed as a Phase III enabling trial; it generated positive and important insights about nangibotides therapeutic activity and our precision medicine approach in septic shock. We are enthusiastic about this study and Inotrems capacity to bring a first in class product in an area with a major unmet medical need.

These results represent a major advancement for patients suffering from septic shock. They provide compelling evidence that Inotrems innovative solution targeting the TREM-1 pathway has the potential to become the first causal treatment for this severe and often fatal indication, said Sven Zimmermann, CEO of Inotrem. Based on these data, we intend to advance nangibotide towards registration studies in septic shock. We look forward to discussing next steps with regulatory authorities.

Professor Bruno Francois, Limoges University Hospital and coordinating investigator added: We observed that the TREM-1 pathway was activated in severe infections leading to septic shock. Nangibotide is the first TREM-1 inhibitor and ASTONISH confirms its potential as a new therapeutic option for the septic shock patient population. We are looking forward to bringing definitive evidence, in a Phase III clinical study that nangibotide can reduce mortality in these critically ill patients.

Septic shock is the ultimate complication of sepsis and currently constitutes a high unmet medical need. The incidence of septic shock continuously raises, and mortality remains elevated: it is the 10th leading cause of death in developed countries and the 1st cause of death in intensive care units. There is currently no specific therapy approved for this indication besides antibiotics and symptomatic treatment. Inotrems solution has the potential to become the first mechanism-based treatment for septic shock.

About nangibotide

Nangibotide is a TREM-1 inhibitor peptide with the potential to restore appropriate inflammatory response, vascular function, and improve post septic shock survival. Nangibotide is the formulation of the active ingredient LR12, which is a 12 amino-acid peptide prepared by chemical synthesis. LR12 is a specific TREM-1 inhibitor, acting as a decoy receptor and interfering in the binding of TREM-1 and its ligand. In preclinical septic shock models, nangibotide was able to restore appropriate inflammatory response, vascular function, and improved animals survival post septic shock. Nangibotide in septic shock has been granted the fast-track status in September 2019 by the FDA and the PRIME status in 2017 by the EMA. Nangibotide has also been tested in a Phase II trial in severe forms of COVID-19 (ESSENTIAL). ESSENTIAL data will be communicated on October 25. 2022 at the next ESICM meeting in Paris.

About ASTONISH Study

The Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability of nangibotide in Patients with Septic Shock (ASTONISH) phase IIb trial is a Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo Controlled Dose Selection Study that was performed in Europe and in the US. The study compared the effect of nangibotide at two different doses (0.3 and 1mg/kg/h continuous i.v. infusion for 3 to 5 days) versus standard of care.

About Inotrem

Inotrem S.A. is a biotechnology company specialized in immunotherapy for acute and chronic inflammatory syndromes. The company has developed a new concept of immunomodulation that targets the TREM-1 pathway to control unbalanced inflammatory responses. Through its proprietary technology platform, Inotrem has developed the first-in-class TREM-1 inhibitor, nangibotide, with potential applications in a number of therapeutic indications such as septic shock, severe forms of COVID-19 and myocardial infarction. In parallel, Inotrem has also launched an antibody-based program to develop a new therapeutic modality targeting chronic inflammatory diseases. The company was founded in 2013 by Dr Jean-Jacques Garaud, a former head of research and early development at the Roche Group, Prof. Sebastien Gibot and Dr Marc Derive. Inotrem is supported by leading European and North American investors Inotrem is part of the French Tech 120, a government program dedicated to support the development of fast-growing startups. www.inotrem.com

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Media contact for Inotrem

Anne REIN

Strategies & Image (S&I)

[email protected]

+33 6 03 35 92 05

Source: Inotrem
 Katana closes $35M Series B round led by VC firm Northzone, with the participation of Lightrock and existing investors Atomico and 42CAP.

 Already an industry-leading manufacturing ERP, Katana will continue to move upmarket and expand its feature range to support the more complex needs of SMB manufacturers with omnichannel sales strategies.

 Funds will drive extensive product development plans for Katana's platform approach to building an end-to-end manufacturing ecosystem.

TALLINN, Estonia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Katana, an industry-leading manufacturing ERP software has closed a $35 million Series B round, bringing the total funding to date to $51 million. Funds will be used to scale up Katana's features for small to medium-sized manufacturers, allowing them to manage D2C and B2B sales in an intuitive, industry-leading software solution.

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Katanas management team (from left to right: Hannes Kert, Kristi Schumann, Brett Astrid Vomma, Priit Kaasik, Gristel Tali, Kristjan Vilosius, Oliver Vesi) (Photo: Business Wire)

The investment round is led by global VC firm Northzone, an early investor in Spotify, Personio, and Trustpilot, with the participation of impact-focused growth investor Lightrock, alongside previous investors Atomico and 42CAP. Katana continues to be supported by their angel investors, including Sergei Anikin (former CTO at Pipedrive, also serving as Katanas Chairman of the Supervisory Board), Sten Tamkivi (Co-founder of NFTPort and former Skype executive), and Ott Kaukver (CTO of Checkout and former CTO of Twilio).

I am thrilled to welcome investors to our board who share our teams vision. Were equally grateful for the continued support of our previous investors and angel investors. From offering software to single-person workshops to bigger and bigger manufacturers over time, Katana now serves over 1300 companies across 80 countries. This investment helps us continue to develop a manufacturing ERP platform customers love, as well as offer support to an under-served market which is having its own incredible renaissance., says Kristjan Vilosius, Katanas Founder and CEO.

"Weve been deeply impressed with Kristjan and the team, who combine strong product skills, essential to building something as complicated and powerful as a basic ERP system, with commercial savviness and drive. We believe this unlocks the next category in modern-day, modular, user-friendly software, and has the potential to be a defining business in that category" adds Michiel Kotting, a partner at Northzone, also joining Katana's board.

The end of the Made in China era

As the Made in China era of manufacturing ends, manufacturers are moving closer to consumers, selling directly via their own websites or online marketplaces  often in tandem with a B2B strategy. Consumers are offered a wealth of choice and opt for brands that align more closely with their personal values, with a trend in choosing sustainable, ethically made, or organic products over mass-produced options. There is a rise in D2C manufacturing, resulting in a wave of new-generation manufacturers looking for software that helps them manage their business holistically, connecting all the facets of their business beyond inventory management.

Most traditional business suites for manufacturing are yet to catch up with today's usability standards, proving a barrier as they lack modern API functionality and generally do not integrate well with business essentials like e-commerce stores, accounting platforms, and shipping operators. As a result, the ERP space is known for poor UX/UI and low customer satisfaction. Katanas integration-led approach gives manufacturers an ecosystem of tools and features as opposed to the traditionally siloed, monolithic enterprise solution. By bringing manufacturing software into the digital era and matching the standards of consumer technology and other SaaS verticals, Katana is already named an industry leader in the manufacturing software space by Gartner and is consistently top-ranked in support and ease of use by customers.

Since closing Series A in 2021, Katana launched an open API, app marketplace, and over 60 integrations and feature releases, laying the foundation for the next stage of Katanas evolution. With Series B funding secured, Katana will continue to develop its plug-and-play platform approach by introducing more advanced accounting integrations and more world-class software services to an increasingly extensive app marketplace.

To support these plans, Katana continues to expand its international team, which increased from 30 to over 140 since the close of Series A. Introducing new product development teams will amp up feature releases while expanding customer support teams globally will ensure that stellar customer satisfaction continues to be a key differentiator as Katana serves new markets and larger customers.

About Katana

Founded in 2017, Katana offers everything companies need to keep manufacturing, uniting all the processes, tools, and software manufacturers require with an intuitive and easy-to-use ERP. Global from day one, Katanas portfolio of over 1300 companies ranges from hobby makers to multi-million dollar manufacturing businesses. To date, Katanas founding team has raised over $51 million in funding from VC firms and angel investors and scaled its team of six to 140 employees across North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.

About Northzone

Northzone is an early stage venture capital fund built on experience spanning multiple economic and disruptive technology cycles. In 2022, Northzone announced their tenth fundraise of 1bn to invest from seed to pre IPO startups. Founded in 1996, it has invested in the likes of Personio, Wagestream, Truelayer, iZettle, Northzone is one of the most experienced venture capital funds in Europe, with offices in London, New York, Stockholm, Amsterdam and Oslo.

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Alina Akk

[email protected]

Source: Katana
OTTAWA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Kinaxis Inc. (TSX: KXS), the authority in driving agility for fast, confident decision-making in an unpredictable world, today announced a partnership with Google Cloud to make the markets leading supply chain management solution, Kinaxis RapidResponse, available on Google Cloud.

RapidResponse is the only platform capable of delivering true concurrent planning, which enables the real-time transparency organizations need to make sound business decisions around their supply chain plans and execution. Both Kinaxis and Google Cloud recognize theres also a growing shift amongst businesses to consider environmental, social and governance factors during decision-making, and the two companies share a vision around the role supply chains play toward a more sustainable future for all.

Todays leaders are seeking resilient, sustainable supply chain solutions to power their business, said Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud. We believe the cloud can play a fundamental role in accelerating this progress, which is why were proud to partner with Kinaxis and provide companies with the technologies they need to make smarter use of the earths resources.

RapidResponse supports key business processes such as demand and supply planning, integrated business planning, sales and operations planning (S&OP) and inventory management, and delivers end-to-end transparency with its control tower capabilities. Concurrent planning breaks down organizational silos, unifies disparate data under a single all-inclusive data model, and codifies business-wide trust through the continuous alignment of everyone and everything across a companys end-to-end supply chain.

Kinaxis is an eight-time Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader1, and is positioned furthest on the Vision axis in the 2022 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Supply Chain Planning Solutions. Kinaxis serves top-tier customers around the world in the aerospace and defense, automotive, consumer products, high-tech and electronics, industrial, life sciences, and retail industries, including Toyota, Unilever, Schneider Electric, Santen, and more.

As we continue to see unprecedented demand for our solutions, the market wants Kinaxis to be able to quickly and seamlessly deliver RapidResponse from anywhere in the world. This partnership with Google Cloud will further help us scale our capabilities in achieving that goal, said John Sicard, CEO of Kinaxis. By combining RapidResponse and our unique technique of concurrent planning with the scale, flexibility, and environmental efficiency of Google Cloud, we will be able to jointly empower companies with the supply chain agility and resilience they need to make decisions that positively impact people and the planet, including during times of massive disruption, as were currently experiencing.

This partnership expands Kinaxis multi-cloud approach, which enables the deployment of RapidResponse and its suite of connected applications either on a Kinaxis-hosted and supported private cloud, or a public cloud, such as Google Cloud.

For information about Kinaxis, please follow the company on LinkedIn or visit Kinaxis.com.

About Kinaxis Inc.

Everyday volatility and uncertainty demand quick action. Kinaxis delivers the agility to make fast, confident decisions across integrated business planning and the digital supply chain. People can plan better, live better and change the world. Trusted by innovative brands, we combine human intelligence with AI and concurrent planning to help companies plan for any future, monitor risks and opportunities and respond at the pace of change. Powered by an extensible, cloud-based platform, Kinaxis delivers industry-proven applications so everyone can know sooner, act faster and remove waste. For more Kinaxis news, visit Kinaxis.com or follow us on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements include statements as to Kinaxis' growth opportunities and the potential benefits of, and demand for, Kinaxis products and services. These statements are subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including our view of the relative position of Kinaxis' products and services compared to competitive offerings in the industry. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements. Kinaxis' actual results, performance, achievements and developments may differ materially from the results, performance, achievements or developments expressed or implied by such statements. Risk factors that may cause the actual results, performance, achievements or developments of Kinaxis to differ materially from the results, performance, achievements or developments expressed or implied by such statements can be found in the public documents filed by Kinaxis with Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Kinaxis assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by law.

Source: Kinaxis

1Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Supply Chain Planning Solutions, February 2021. This report was previously titled the Magic Quadrant for Supply Chain Planning System of Record from 2010-2018, and Magic Quadrant for Sales and Operations Planning Systems of Differentiation from 2015-2019. GARTNER and MAGIC QUADRANT are registered trademarks and service marks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Gartner and Magic Quadrant are registered trademarks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

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Media Relations

Jamie Cook | Kinaxis

[email protected]

289-552-4640

Investor Relations

Rick Wadsworth | Kinaxis

[email protected]

613-907-7613

Source: Kinaxis Inc.
Nature-inspired spray paint shade provokes an organic and restorative feel, fosters a connection to the richness of outdoor and strengthens consumers ties to comforts of the past

CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A natural hue that brings the poetic expressions of nature into the home, Spanish Moss is the Krylon 2023 Color of the Year. A nod to all things vintage, this familiar yet inspirational color balances cool and warm accents to seamlessly support the transition between different stylesboth old and new. Spanish Moss delivers the power of green in a matte finish with thoughtful gray undertones to maintain an understated look of luxury that pairs well with a variety of textures and sheens.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005159/en/

Spanish Moss is a natural hue that brings the poetic expressions of nature into the home. (Graphic: Business Wire)

This years color selection is inspired by the comfort and reassurance found in the past, as we look to find contentment in the future, said Ashley Banbury, Senior Color Designer for Krylon. Spanish Moss is a timeless, organic hue that embraces the raw beauty of the natural world. Historically, green has inspired homeowners both indoors and out, and today, it continues to deliver a renewed and contemporary look to heritage pieces.

Increasingly growing in popularity, this heritage trend style pairs perfectly with the 2023 Color of the Years nod to the natural world. Because it relies on upcycled, recycled, vintage and antique, this style plays on do-it-yourselfers (DIYers) individual personalities to create inviting spaces full of comforting personal touches.

Many of us find great comfort in the natural world, said Banbury. Spanish Moss embodies consumers ongoing fascination with caring for and enjoying the environment and speaks to the sustainability movement as well. Its inspiring at-home creatives, while offering a dose of nostalgia and familiarity at the same time, especially when paired with complementary colors like gold, sandstone and copper, that also give a textural nod to nature.

Spanish Moss is available in Krylons Fusion All-In-One spray paint product line, which provides 5X stronger adhesion* and a No-Peel Guarantee.** Plus, Fusion All-In-One spray paints are compatible with most surfaces, so theres no sanding or priming required.

Complementary colors include Metallic Hammered Gold, Textured Sandstone, Metallic Copper and Gloss Clear.

As our perspective on the value of home life continues to shift, and the focus on overall wellness, mindfulness and meditation continues, the organic, restful ambiance of this plant-based color provides a strong, soothing connection to the richness of nature, as well as feelings of authenticity and stability in DIYers most-loved spaces.

Krylon has you covered

Celebrating over seven decades of product innovation and color, Krylon has become a household name for reviving and reimaging furniture, furnishings and everything else that makes you feel at home. DIY consumers trust the Krylon brand to provide a colorful, durable finish for all types of projects.

Fusion All-In-One spray paint and other Krylon products are available at various national retailer locations with selections varying by retailer. Fusion All-In-One offers maximum rust protection and is fast drying. It can be used on plastic, wood, metal, glass, wicker, ceramic and other surfaces without the need to sand or prime.

Spanish Moss and other trending spray paint colors from Krylon are used by DIYers, home improvement enthusiasts and crafters who see possibilities all around them.

Find Spanish Mossthe Krylon 2023 Color of the Yearand more shades for all home decor updates at Krylon.com. With so many color choices, the possibilities are virtually endless.

*Compared to Krylon General Purpose paints.

**If this product, when applied according to product application instructions to a properly prepared surface, peels or fails to perform to your complete satisfaction, contact us with the product number at 1-800-247-3268 or [email protected] to request a refund.

About Krylon

Krylon is a spray paint industry leader whose legacy of product innovation and color has been a source of inspiration for DIYers and crafters since 1947. For nearly eight decades, Krylon customers have trusted its premium products to restore, create and protect. The brands consumer product lines include a wide selection of high-quality spray paints and paint-related products, from general-purpose paints to home decor to specialty products to rust protection and more. Learn more at Krylon.com.

About Sherwin-Williams Consumer Brands Group

Sherwin-Williams Consumer Brands Group offers innovative products to meet customers paint and coating needs. The Group manufactures products under well-known brands such as Valspar, HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams, Dutch Boy , Purdy, Krylon, Minwax, Thompsons Water Seal, Cabot, Dupli-Color and many more. Founded in 1866, The Sherwin-Williams Company is a global leader in the manufacture, development, distribution and sale of paints, coatings and related products to professional, industrial, commercial and retail customers. For more information, visit www.Sherwin-Williams.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005159/en/

Morgan Jupina

akhia communications

440-864-3381

[email protected]

Source: Krylon
LOS ANGELES & SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MedTech Innovator, the largest accelerator of medical devices in the world, in partnership with Asia Pacific Medical Technology Association (APACMed), the first and only regional association to provide a unified voice for the medical technology industry, today announced NousQ as the winner of the 2022 Asia Pacific Accelerator program. The winning company was determined by a live audience vote on Sept. 26 during the MedTech Innovator Asia Pacific 2022 Grand Finals hosted by MedTech Innovator in partnership with APACMed.

NousQ is a Singapore-based company that has developed CLiKX, a novel handheld robotic ventilation tube applicator that offers pediatric patients with otitis media a simple and quick alternative to invasive ventilation tube surgery.

Being part of the MedTech Innovator program has supercharged our acceleration, helped uncover potential blind spots, and extended our networks, said Lynne Lim, founder of NousQ, and Senior Consultant Ear Nose Throat Surgeon, and Adjunct Associate Professor and Visiting Consultant to the National University Health System Singapore. The funding and continued support will provide significant value to NousQ as we work to transform the surgery for glue ear in children and adults.

Selected from a pool of more than 250 applicants, NousQ was awarded the US$175,000 non-dilutive grand prize to advance its business goals and mission to improve future health outcomes of patients in the Asia Pacific region. The company was also awarded a one-year membership to APACMed and was the recipient of the Cambridge Consultants Product Development Award, where they will receive exclusive technical and consultation services from Cambridge Consultants.

Additionally, NousQ was announced winner of Enterprise Singapores (EnterpriseSG) Startup SG award, comprising an SGD$30,000 grant prize and access to extensive resources and networks within Singapores startup ecosystem. The company will also be fast-tracked to EnterpriseSGs SLINGSHOT global startup competition happening at the Singapore Week of Innovation & TeCHnology (SWITCH) in October, where the Top 50 will pitch their solutions on a global stage and stand to win additional prizes.

With otitis media being the leading cause of hearing loss in children, NousQ has the potential to provide a game-changing treatment alternative for millions of pediatric patients around the world, said Paul Grand, CEO of MedTech Innovator. We applaud the hard work and tenacity the NousQ team has demonstrated to earn its spot as the winner of our 2022 Asia Pacific Accelerator program, amidst several other awards.

My utmost congratulations to NousQ on winning the APAC MedTech Innovator 2022 title, said Harjit Gill, CEO, APACMed. The Asia Pacific region continues to be a magnet for medtech innovation and I am thrilled to witness the finalist companies who participated in this years competition are developing breakthrough technologies to advance healthcare for patients. APACMed is proud to support the MedTech Innovator APAC program and we look forward to watching NousQs journey and advancement as they advance their health solution towards commercialization.

Innovation is at the heart of Johnson & Johnson MedTechs mission. Our strategic partnership with MedTech Innovator enables us to support APAC innovators to realise breakthrough healthcare solutions, said Ashley Wittorf, Head of Business Development  Asia Pacific, Johnson & Johnson MedTech. As one of the judges in the competition, Im inspired by and congratulate all the amazing finalists this year.

Congratulations to the winners and finalists of the MedTech Innovator Asia Pacific competition, said Audrey Lok, director of healthcare and biomedical, Enterprise Singapore. We are strong supporters of MedTech Innovators accelerator model which pairs innovative startups with seasoned corporate mentors. We believe it takes a community to bring an idea to market and we are delighted to partner with MedTech Innovator for yet another successful run of their Asia Pacific accelerator and competition."

MedTech Innovator carefully selected 20 best-in-class startups from across Asia Pacific for its 2022 program, providing the companies with exposure to industry leaders and awarding over US$300,000 in cash prizes and in-kind awards. During its final competition, MedTech Innovator also announced the winners of several additional awards.

SharpArrow, Seattle, WA, was awarded one-year of residency by JLABS, Johnson & Johnson Innovations global network of life science incubators.

Medicaretec, Seoul, South Korea, received the Sterile Barrier System Design & Development Award from Oliver Healthcare Packaging, where they will receive exclusive technical and consultation services from Oliver Healthcare Packaging in the development of the sterile barrier system for their device.

ErleaDx, Singapore, was announced the winner of the MedTech Innovator Asia Pacific Best Video Award with a US$5,000 prize.

Judges of the 2022 Asia Pacific final competition included: Ashley Wittorf, head of business development  APAC, Johnson & Johnson MedTech; Sameer Desai, vice president of marketing, Asia Pacific, Align Technology; Purushottam Awasthi, senior vice president and head of strategy and business development, Asia Pacific and Japan, Siemens Healthineers; and Dr. Joseph Smith, chief scientific officer, Becton Dickinson (BD).

MedTech Innovator works closely with stakeholders across the industry to foster the growth of early to mid-stage startups. MedTech Innovators 2022 Asia Pacific program sponsors include Johnson & Johnson MedTech, Nipro Medical Corporation, Align Technology, Oliver Healthcare Packaging, Siemens Healthineers, Cambridge Consultants, Jabil Healthcare and Enterprise Singapore. The MedTech Innovator Asia Pacific Program is held in partnership with APACMed.

About MedTech Innovator

Based in Los Angeles, Calif., MedTech Innovator is the largest accelerator of medical technology companies in the world and the premier nonprofit startup accelerator in the medical technology industry.[i] Its mission is to improve the lives of patients by accelerating the growth of companies that are transforming the health care system. MedTech Innovator matches health care industry leaders with innovative early stage and emerging growth medtech companies for mentorship and support.

To date, MedTech Innovator has supported 509 alumni companies that have gone on to raise US$5.3 billion in follow-on funding, brought 130 products to market, and achieved 30 exits.

For more information about MedTech Innovator, visit https://medtechinnovator.org/ and follow @MedTechAwards on Twitter and on LinkedIn. To receive industry insights and highlights about MedTech Innovators current and alumni participant companies, subscribe to its monthly newsletter.

About APACMed

Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Singapore, APACMed represents manufacturers and suppliers of medical equipment, devices and in vitro diagnostics, industry associations and other key stakeholders associated with the medical technology industry in Asia Pacific.

Providing a unified voice for the medical devices and in-vitro diagnostics industry in Asia Pacific, APACMed works proactively with bilateral, regional, and local government bodies to shape policies, demonstrate the value of medical technology and promote regulatory harmonization. APACMed strives to promote digital health innovation and impact policy that advances healthcare access for patients by engaging with medical device associations and companies in Asia Pacific.

APACMed is also host to the annual Asia Pacific MedTech Forum.

www.apacmed.org

Media Contact:

[i] Gibbs, M., Johnson, B., Silva, B. A., & Berube, K. (2020, July 10). Q2 2020 Life Science Accelerators Insights Cipher Bio. Retrieved September 15, 2020, from https://www.cipherbio.com/blog/life-science-accelerators-insights/

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Joe Duraes

Pazanga Health Communications

[email protected]

(917) 687-6419

Source: MedTech Innovator
Business Leaders That Leverage People Data Can Make Smart Data-Driven Decisions

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- People Intelligence Alliance, an advocacy for data-driven organizations, today published new research that identifies the People Impact Gap  which stands between available people data and frontline decision-making  is costing corporate America $1.8 trillion annually.

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The cost of the People Impact Gap represents the amount of revenue foregone by organizations whose leaders are unable to make smarter data-driven decisions about hiring, retention, productivity and performance of their workforce, said Ian Cook, managing director at People Intelligence Alliance. Very few leaders take an evidence-based approach to understanding and activating the people who make their business successful. In the research we released today, its very clear that business leaders who leverage their people data have much greater business outcomes.

People Intelligence Alliance conducted this research during August 2022 and identified this cost based on work by Janet Marler, a professor at University at Albany, and Lexy Martin, a board member at People Intelligence Alliance and a principal researcher at Visier. Marler and Martin studied the use of people data in solving business problems. They gathered results from more than 200 enterprise organizations and found that organizations with a higher level of ability to apply people data to business problems had higher profit margins and a higher return on assets. The best organizations had a return on assets 137% higher than their peers. They compared the average revenue per employee for the market to the revenue per employee of organizations with a more mature use of people data in decision-making. The difference between the best and the rest was $125,000 per employee per year.

People Intelligence Alliance extended this research, aiming to understand the economic scale of the opportunity presented by the People Impact Gap.

In North America, there are 3,700 organizations with over 3,000 employees. Using a series of studies related to the use of people data in business, People Intelligence Alliance determined that approximately 700 organizations are effectively closing the People Impact Gap today. This leaves roughly 3,000 organizations of this size not applying people data to solve important business problems.

Using the revenue per employee differential of $125,000 per employee per year established in Marler and Martins research leads to a $625 million opportunity per organization. If 3,000 organizations were able to close their own People Impact Gap, the annual impact would be $1.8 trillion in North America alone.

Organizations such as Providence, a U.S. healthcare system with over 100,000 employees, are demonstrating how business leaders can materialize the money that is locked inside the People Impact Gap. This organization leveraged the data it held about people, the different types of work being done, their work experiences, and retention patterns to generate an annual saving of $6 million from a single project. This outcome helped increase pay for a large group of Providences hourly workforce. In the overall analysis of this project, the organization made substantial improvements to its financial position, and its employees took home larger paychecks.

Cook added, While the People Impact Gap is worth $1.8 trillion in economic terms, in the view of the People Intelligence Alliance, its real value is incalculable. Alongside the financial gains, there are very real human benefits to approaching business with a more evidence-based view of your employees. The right way to start closing the gap is to bring together the right business leaders with HR leadership to focus on a key result. And then make the right investment in people and technology to deliver.

Cost of People Impact Gap Methodology

In August 2022, People Intelligence Alliance looked at organizations with over 3,000 employees in North America. This produced a list of about 3,700 organizations. Based on survey data from Deloitte, HR.com and Insight222, it was determined that approximately 700 (18%) of this group have a good level of people analytics maturity. This left 3,000 organizations with either low or no ability to use people data. The mean size of these organizations is 5,000. This results in 3,000 organizations with 5,000 employees each who are missing out on $125,000 of revenue per employee. This equates to $1.8 trillion in economic opportunity.

About Ian Cook

Ian Cook has spent his 20+ year career building business success through people. He started and scaled three companies and a not-for-profit as well as consulted to a host of Fortune 100 companies. What distinguishes Cook and makes him sought-after as a speaker, adviser and executive leader is his ability to link the human side of business to the core drivers of operations and finance. His expertise is accessed daily by thousands of executives who are working to build business success through their people. Cooks commentary has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Economist, Business Insider, CNBC and more. Cook currently serves as the managing director of the People Intelligence Alliance and the vice president of research and strategy at Visier. He holds an M.A. from Edinburgh University (UK) and an MBA from Lancaster University (UK)

About People Intelligence Alliance

People Intelligence Alliance is an advocacy of data-driven organizations addressing the People Impact Gap in corporate America. This gap is caused by the lack of data, which is only exacerbated by complexity, scale and the physical distribution of teams. People Intelligence Alliance members study this data to inform business leaders how to seize the opportunity presented by their people data. Their results speak to costs saved, revenue gained, and a more people-centric approach to business. Learn more at www.peopleintelligence.org.

All brand names and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

Tags: People Intelligence Alliance, People Impact Gap, Ian Cook, people data, future of work, people-centric, workforce challenges, human resources, HR, HR technology, talent intelligence, Visier

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Media Contact:

Dottie ORourke

TECHMarket Communications

(650) 344-1260

[email protected]

Source: People Intelligence Alliance
On-site solar power helps Ontex to achieve carbon neutral operations by 2030 and reduce grid energy dependency.

The Ontex factory in Ortona now houses one of Italys largest systems for on-site solar power generation and consumption, producing a large part of the hygiene product plants electricity.

The new solar installation, developed, financed and operated by Menapy Italia, will produce more than 10 Gigawatthours of green power per year, equivalent to the average consumption of around 3,400 households and saving an estimated 3,700 metric tons of CO2.

ORTONA, Italy--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ontex [Euronext: ONTEX] (BSE: ONTEX) has activated a large solar installation at the site of its factory in Ortona, Abruzzo region, Italy. The new solar installation will produce more than 10 GWh of electricity per year, equivalent to the yearly consumption of around 3,400 households.

The company is opening solar power installations in Europe and the Americas to produce more energy on-site and achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2030. Ontexs factories in Italy and eight other European countries run on 100% electricity from renewable sources. The Ontex Groups total is 91% electricity from renewable sources.

In times of energy constraints, Ontex plans to become carbon neutral and less dependent on energy from the grid through on-site renewable energy generation, energy conservation, purchase of energy from renewable sources, and carbon offsets for the remaining carbon emissions.

Annick De Poorter, Ontexs Executive Vice President for R&D and Sustainability, said: We can now produce around a quarter of the electricity we need to manufacture essential hygiene goods at our factory in Italy. This is another step towards our goal to have carbon neutral operations by 2030.

The solar system was developed and financed by the company Menapy Italia srl, who also installed Ontexs solar power in Eeklo, Belgium and Segovia, Spain.

Federico Dotto, Country Manager, Menapy Italia srl, said: We should shift our power supplies from oil, coal, and natural gas to wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, which are a clear winner when it comes to boosting the economy. Companies across Europe are working hard to reduce their energy needs and improve their impact on the environment. As Menapy, we are proud to support Ontex in achieving their ambitious sustainability goals, which are also a sound business decision.

Construction took nine months and included the clearance and conservation of war devices and memories from the area.

Since 2017, all of Ontexs European factories run on electricity from renewable sources, combining own solar generation with the purchase of renewable electricity via Energy Attribute Certificates (EACs). More rooftop solar capacity is being installed at Ontex plants in Eeklo, Belgium, Puebla, Mexico and Segovia, Spain.

***

About Ontex

Ontex is a leading international provider of personal hygiene solutions, with expertise in baby care, feminine care and adult care. Ontexs innovative products are distributed in more than 110 countries through leading retailer brands, lifestyle brands and Ontex brands. Employing some 9,000 people all over the world, Ontex has a presence in 21 countries, with its headquarters in Aalst, Belgium. Ontex is listed on Euronext Brussels and is part of the Bel Mid. To keep up with the latest news, visit ontex.com or follow Ontex on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

About Menapy

Menapy develops, finances and operates on-site corporate solar power solutions using roofs, ground and parking (PV carports). Menapy serves high-consuming multinational companies all over Europe, with offices in Belgium, France, Spain and Italy. As impact investors, the company creates optimized flexibility and quality by staying independent from installers or component manufacturers. Read more at www.menapy.com LinkedIn YouTube

ONTEX GROUP NV Korte Keppestraat 21 9320 Erembodegem (Aalst) 0550.880.915 RPR Ghent  Division Dendermonde

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Contact information

Ontex

Investors Geoffroy Raskin, +32 53 33 37 30, [email protected]

Media Maarten Verbanck,+32 492 72 42 67, [email protected]

Menapy

Federico Dotto, Country Manager Italia, +39 377 3994 457

Tom Pollyn, Managing Partner, +32 477 062 247

Source: Ontex
Increased capacity, accuracy and accelerated turnaround time now make monkeypox testing available at scale to curb the virus spread

LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Pandemic Response Lab (PRL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Opentrons Labworks, Inc., today announced two new three-target monkeypox tests, each developed and performed by its New York and Maryland laboratories, respectively. These skin lesion tests qualitatively detect three different viral genome targets of increasing specificity: non-variola orthopoxvirus, monkeypox virus species and monkeypox virus clade II. Use of these three viral targets identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) enhances the ability to detect mutant monkeypox virus strains.

The outbreak and spread of the monkeypox virus was declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization and by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in August 2022, when more than 25,000 cases had been identified across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. These U.S. infections make up more than one-third of all cases globally. Currently, only a handful of commercial laboratories have authorization to offer one of the CDC tests that targets a single location in the virus genome common to all non-variola orthopoxvirus.

PRLs offerings add increased diagnostic capacity and accessibility nationwide and improve upon the typical two-to-four-day turnaround time, delivering results to physicians and patients much faster, in less than 24 hours after sample receipt. Additionally, the use of multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction to simultaneously detect viral DNA sequences unique to the genus, the species and the clade safeguards against mutations that could potentially render single-target tests unable to detect mutant substrains.

PRLs market leading molecular testing automation expertise benefits healthcare systems, clinicians and patients by providing affordable, quick turnaround testing to prevent further transmission of viruses and infections, said PRLs General Manager of Laboratory Services, Nick Mitilenes. Our multi-target monkeypox tests include confirmatory results rather than presumptive positive results and do not need additional confirmatory testing.

The monkeypox tests further strengthen PRLs leadership in the diagnostic testing industry and its proven ability to provide fast-turnaround infectious disease test results to address current clinical diagnostic and public health challenges. PRL has been a leader in the COVID-19 response by making affordable molecular SARS-CoV-2 testing accessible on a public health scale. Its monkeypox tests follow the recent introduction of its respiratory and sexually transmitted infection test panels, marking another step toward expanding PRLs diagnostic services beyond COVID-19 into other infectious disease areas.

PRLs Monkeypox (NVO, MPXV Clade II, MPXV) DNA, NAA PCR, swab tests are available in its Long Island City, New York and Rockville, Maryland CLIA-certified laboratories. Tests run in each PRL laboratory are independently developed and validated at their respective facility.

About Pandemic Response Lab

Pandemic Response Lab, a wholly owned subsidiary of Opentrons Labworks, Inc., launched in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to address the pressing need to make rapid, accurate and low-cost testing equitably accessible to all populations. With leading laboratory automation and world-renowned scientific expertise, PRLs revolutionary PCR testing reduces cost and increases speed and accuracy. Outside of its three CLIA-certified laboratories, PRL also performs surveillance-based whole genome sequencing to detect and track SARS-CoV-2 variants and inform public and private health responses. The company is expanding beyond COVID-19 to offer other infectious disease testing to better inform disease management and health outcomes. Learn more at https://pandemicresponselab.com/.

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Michael Sullivan

[email protected]

Source: Opentrons Labworks, Inc.
VENICE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- PGT Innovations, Inc. (NYSE: PGTI) will release its financial results and host a conference call on Thursday, November 10, 2022, to discuss the company's third quarter 2022 results as well as other business matters. The teleconference will begin at 10:30 a.m. eastern time and will be hosted by Jeff Jackson, President and Chief Executive Officer, John Kunz, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Brad West, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Treasurer. The company's press release announcing our financial results will be issued pre-market at approximately 7:30 a.m. on November 10th and will also be available through the Investor Relations section of the PGT Innovations, Inc. website: http://ir.pgtinnovations.com/releases.cfm.

To participate in the teleconference, kindly dial into the call about 10 minutes before the start time: 833-316-0547 (U.S. toll-free) and 412-317-5728 (International). A replay of the call will be available within approximately one hour after the scheduled end of the call on November 10, 2022, through approximately 12:30 p.m. on November 17, 2022. To access the replay, dial 877-344-7529 (U.S. Only toll-free), 855-669-9658 (Canada Only toll-free) and 412-317-0088 (International) and refer to pass code 6872862. Other international replay dial-in numbers can be obtained at: https://services.choruscall.com/ccforms/replay.html.

You may pre-register for the call by using the following link. Please note that you will receive your dial-in number at the time of your pre-registration: https://dpregister.com/sreg/10172064/f4c2e9db40.

You may join the conference online by using the following link: https://event.choruscall.com/mediaframe/webcast.html?webcastid=ffEIxuAB.

The webcast will also be available through the Investors section of the PGT Innovations, Inc. website: http://ir.pgtinnovations.com/events.cfm.

About PGT Innovations, Inc.

PGT Innovations manufactures and supplies premium windows and doors. Their highly engineered and technically advanced products can withstand some of the toughest weather conditions on earth and are revolutionizing the way people live by unifying indoor and outdoor living spaces. PGT Innovations creates value through deep customer relationships, understanding the unstated needs of the markets it serves and a drive to develop category-defining products. PGT Innovations is also the nations largest manufacturer of impact-resistant windows and doors, holds the leadership position in its primary market, and is part of the S&P SmallCap 400 Index.

The PGT Innovations family of brands include CGI, PGT Custom Windows and Doors, WinDoor, Western Window Systems, Anlin Windows & Doors, Eze-Breeze, CGI Commercial, NewSouth Window Solutions, and a 75 percent ownership stake in Eco Enterprises LLC. The companys brands, in their respective markets, are a preferred choice of architects, builders, and homeowners throughout North America and the Caribbean. Their high-quality products are available in custom and standard sizes with massive dimensions that allow for unlimited design possibilities in residential, multi-family, and commercial projects. For additional information, visit www.pgtinnovations.com.

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PGT Innovations, Inc.

John Kunz

Sr. V.P. and Chief Financial Officer

Office: 941-480-1600

[email protected]

Source: PGT Innovations, Inc.
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The United States government has announced a US$2.35 million grant to Project Rozana under the Nita M. Lowey Middle East Partnership for Peace Act (MEPPA), enacted by the U.S. Congress to promote economic cooperation, people-to-people peacebuilding programs, and advance shared community building, peaceful coexistence, dialogue and reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians.

The grant, to be deployed over three years and administered by USAID (US Agency for International Development), will fund the establishment of a Palestinian-Israeli Specialist Nursing Hub comprising four Palestinian and four Israeli hospitals. The program will provide clinical training and professional development to 480 Palestinian and Israeli nurses. Through peacebuilding seminars, real-time consultation, and regular case sharing between participating nurses, the objective is to improve healthcare for patients at facilities in the West Bank and Israel and build cross-border relationships between nurses.

Kenneth Bob, Chair of Project Rozana USA, welcomed the grant, saying it is a significant example of the power of development funds to leverage, in a very positive way, capacity building and peacebuilding outcomes in a region where fear and distrust on both sides have become the norm. Project Rozana aims to make a positive contribution to moving the needle on those attitudes, through healthcare.

Former Obama Israeli-Palestinian Envoy, Ambassador Martin Indyk, a member of the Project Rozana Advisory Council, said the announcement was a powerful endorsement of Project Rozanas peacebuilding efforts.

These USAID funds are being deployed to strengthen essential, broad-based people-to-people engagements that build capacity in the health sector. This helps lay the foundation for sustainable peacemaking, he said.

Professor Dame Anne-Marie Rafferty, Chair of the Project Rozana Nurses Committee, and immediate past president of the Royal College of Nursing (UK) said that nurses are at the forefront of building health capacity globally.

Doing it in a context where there is the added benefit of strengthening cross-border professional relationships, as planned by Project Rozana, is a significant bonus. Nurses are highly respected in their communities and positive influencers.

About Project Rozana

Project Rozana is an international NGO established in Australia in 2013 as an initiative to build better understanding between Israelis and Palestinians using the vector of healthcare. It has since grown to become an international organization with affiliates in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Israel.

This press release is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this media product do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.

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Ellen Shimberg, Director of Development & Communications

[email protected], 215-681-7396

Source: Project Rozana
New Hands-on Platform to Expand Global Access, Inclusion, and Inspiration in STEM Education

GENEVA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Just hours before the 2022 FIRST Global Challenge Opening Ceremonies at the Palexpo, Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), in partnership with DEKA Research and Development Corp., unveiled the XRP (Experiential Robotics Platform) a new robotic platform that is poised to be a game changer for the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education pipeline for generations to come.

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WPI and DEKA developed the XRP robot to be a game changer in STEM education. (Photo: Business Wire)

The XRP robots, still in beta form, are simple, inexpensive, easy to build, and just as programmable as a far more expensive robot. The XRP robots come with built-in educational and software support, and they are designed to operate autonomously, perform basic tasks, navigate on their own, sense distance, and manipulate their environment. Simple, tool-free assembly allows for a quick build and parts can be replaced easily with the use of a 3-D printer. When they come to market next year the 7 inches by 5 inches, weighing less than 1 lb. (17.78 cm by 12.7 cm, .45 km) -about the size of a box of chocolates-will cost less than $50.

Robotics has proven to be extremely effective in stimulating interest in broad areas of science and technology across the entire range of student levels from kindergarten through college, but having access to affordable tools and sustainable support systems is often a barrier, says Winston Wole Soboyejo, interim president of WPI. The XRP was designed and created with that in mind, so more young people from around the world can partake in the exciting activity of building and programming robots. Our world urgently needs more STEM professionals and business leaders with differing experience(s), expertise, questions, and passions to labs and boardroom tables  only then will we be able to create, translate, and deploy new scientific insights and technologies that work for everyone.

All 185 teams representing 180 nations at this years FIRST Global Challenge are given a free XRP to bring back to their home countries. The teams are challenged to share the kits with other schools or organizations who are interested in implementing or expanding robotics programs. With the kits, educators and students also get access to free online courses, created and supported by WPI, on how to build, program, and control the robot, which they can scale up using the same hardware with free software updates.

We are at a critical time across the world when many of our most pressing problems, such as climate change, can be and need to be addressed by science and technology, says Dean Kamen, a WPI alumnus and founder of FIRST Global and DEKA, who has been partnering with his alma mater to engage and inspire young STEM enthusiasts for more than 30 years. The demand for this kind of talent is intense and having a global STEM workforce prepared for the future isnt just a societal need, its good business. Its also essential for every aspect of life on this planet that we continue to empower and encourage kids by joyfully engaging them in activities like the sport of robotics. This will allow the kids to understand their own potential to use scienceand that of science and technologyto solve the worlds great problems.

The actual idea to distribute an affordable robot kit around the world traces its origins to the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when WPI students abruptly switched to remote learning in spring 2020 and FIRST needed to keep competitive robotics teams working together on various entries. Both needed to figure out how to get remote students small, relatively inexpensive robots to work on for hands-on experience. Eventually, WPI incorporated a commercially available robot kit that students could purchase and build at home into its curriculum. A similar version was then used in FIRST robotics competitionsone that was able to use WPILib software, which WPI created for FIRST in 2009. From there, WPI and DEKA Research & Development Corp. continued to work together to create the XRP and help increase the global STEM pipeline with support from an NSF grant through the Engineering For Us All (E4USA) org.

The XRP will change the paradigm for hands-on robotics education around the world by dramatically reducing cost, expanding use, and enhancing curriculum support for teachers, said David Rogers, DEKAs Chief Development Officer, who worked closely with WPI in developing the XRP platform.

Unlike other platforms that require several upgrades to adapt to higher levels of robotics education, the common programming language used in the XRP kits will also allow students to easily transition to more complicated projects.

We considered every aspect of the design and materials to ensure it could not only function at a high level but remain affordable, said Brad Miller, former director of the WPI Robotics Resource Center and senior fellow of WPIs Global STEM Education Initiative. To have a robot that weighs and costs less than a textbookso potentially every student in a classroom could have onewas always our guiding light.

Being able to see the results of your code executed on a classroom robot is one way of maintaining and really encouraging this excitement and enthusiasm within what can be challenging fields with a number of roadblocks, said Joe Doiron, director of WPIs Global Lab and Global STEM Education Initiative.

In the coming months production will increase to provide additional XRPs as needed. In the meantime, WPI is announcing a larger STEM initiative at both the FIRST Global Challenge and XPrize Summit also taking place in Geneva this week. The new Global STEM Education Initiative leverages the universitys expertise and resources to help other countries and underserved schools in the United States provide high-quality, accessible K-12 STEM education. With the programming, activities, and support provided by this initiative, WPI will help educators around the world bring inspiration and possibility to their classrooms.

If you dream big, even when you have very limited resources, the size of your dreams determines the scope of your impact, says Soboyejo. For me, just as important as getting kids excited about STEM, we need to encourage them to dream big and to surround themselves with people that encourage and nurture that dream.

About Worcester Polytechnic Institute

WPI, a global leader in project-based learning, is a distinctive, top-tier technological university founded in 1865 on the principle that students learn most effectively by applying the theory learned in the classroom to the practice of solving real-world problems. Recognized by the National Academy of Engineering with the 2016 Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education, WPIs pioneering project-based curriculum engages undergraduates in solving important scientific, technological, and societal problems throughout their education and at more than 50 project centers around the world. WPI offers more than 70 bachelors, masters, and doctoral degree programs across 18 academic departments in science, engineering, technology, business, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts. Its faculty and students pursue groundbreaking research to meet ongoing challenges in health and biotechnology; robotics and the internet of things; advanced materials and manufacturing; cyber, data, and security systems; learning science; and more. www.wpi.edu

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Media:

Colleen Wamback

[email protected]

+1 508.688.4858

Eileen Brangan Mell

[email protected]

+1 774.437.8768

Source: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
MELBOURNE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Scania and Rio Tinto are developing more agile autonomous haul trucks at a mine in Western Australias Pilbara region to pursue potential environmental and productivity benefits.

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A Scania autonomous truck is loaded at Rio Tinto's Channar iron ore mine in Western Australia's Pilbara region (Photo: Business Wire)

The two companies have established a long-term research and development collaboration agreement for the continuous advancement of this autonomous technology, under which Rio Tinto's Channar mine has become the first active partner site for Scanias autonomous mining solution. The partnership also includes options for the future transition to electric-powered vehicles.

Rio Tinto and Scania launched new trials on Scanias 40-tonne-payload autonomous mining trucks in April 2022 and quickly reached a key milestone of driverless operation in a simulated load and haul cycle environment.

Rio Tinto Group Technical Managing Director Santi Pal said Rio Tinto is excited to partner with Scania to develop a mining solution which will create optionality across our diverse portfolio. Collaboration and partnership is key to reimagining mining in the future.

Our climate action plan includes phasing out the purchase of new diesel haul trucks by 2030, and partnering with industry leaders, such as Scania, across a range of fields, is an important step towards achieving that. As well as the potential decarbonisation benefits, this partnership provides a path to potential productivity improvements.

Scania Vice President & Head of Autonomous Solutions Peter Hafmar said With its dedication to achieving cleaner, more energy-efficient operations, Rio Tinto is the ideal partner and first customer for Scania as we seek to put mining on a pathway to net zero emissions. This is a major step towards the goals of a sustainable autonomous mining solution, and builds on our already fruitful long-term collaboration.

Scanias trucks have potential advantages over traditional heavy haulage trucks, both in terms of emissions and productivity.

In utilising Scanias autonomous mining trucks, energy requirements, mining footprint and infrastructure requirements can be reduced, meaning that capital and operating expenses may also be reduced at suitable sites.

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Please direct all enquiries to [email protected]

Media Relations, UK

Matthew Klar

M+ 44 7796 630 637

David Outhwaite

M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations, Americas

Simon Letendre

M +514 796 4973

Malika Cherry

M +1 418 592 7293

Media Relations, Australia

Matt Chambers

M +61 433 525 739

Jesse Riseborough

M +61 436 653 412

Investor Relations, UK

Menno Sanderse

M: +44 7825 195 178

David Ovington

M +44 7920 010 978

Clare Peever

M +44 7788 967 877

Investor Relations, Australia

Tom Gallop

M +61 439 353 948

Amar Jambaa

M +61 472 865 948

Rio Tinto plc

6 St Jamess Square

London SW1Y 4AD

United Kingdom

T +44 20 7781 2000

Registered in England

No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited

Level 43, 120 Collins Street

Melbourne 3000

Australia

T +61 3 9283 3333

Registered in Australia

ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: Pilbara

Source: Rio Tinto
MISSISSAUGA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, has announced it will invest about $46 million in its Lexington, KY and Lincoln, NE manufacturing plants to modernize their operations and increase circuit breaker and related electrical product output for its customers in the U.S. and Canada. The new investment augments the more than $100 million the company earmarked in 2021 to expedite the reshoring of its manufacturing capability in the North American region which saw organic growth of +12.6 per cent in fiscal year 2021.

The modernization efforts in the 65-year-old Lexington plant and 50-year-old Lincoln plant will include installing new equipment and machinery with the most current and connected technology and automation. The newer technology, coupled with using an architecture optimized for digitization, will help increase the plants quality and capacity and make their operations more energy efficient.

Further, these upgraded manufacturing facilities enabled by digitization and connectivity will improve operational efficiency and mean time between failures, or the average time between repairable failures of a technology product. Since the new, advanced equipment will be connected, employees will be able to monitor and adjust energy usage and perform online diagnostics and predictive maintenance tasks remotely.

To keep pace with the near and long-term demand for our products and to plan for the future, we must invest in our supply chain capabilities, said Ken Engel, senior vice president, Global Supply Chain, North America. Our duty always, and particularly in the context of the current economic and energy environment, is to serve the needs of our customers and partners across our manufacturing and distribution network. These investments are proof of that commitment.

In addition, company officials said:

Construction of its El Paso, TX manufacturing plant is progressing on schedule. The 160,000 square foot plant is projected to be operational by the end of 2022. Hiring for select engineering positions has started, and additional hires will be made through early 2023. The plant will employ about 400 workers.

Expansion of Schneiders Tlaxcala, MX operation continues as the company seeks to meet demand for the circuit breakers and electrical panel boards produced there. The 150,000 square foot operation will employ about 600 workers and will provide the company with the capability to manufacture and ship products in-region should the need arise. The plant is expected to be operational in early 2023.

Schneider will expand its manufacturing operation in Monterrey, MX with a 185,000 square foot manufacturing plant that will build and ship customized switchgear products used to transmit power most often in commercial buildings. The company expects to employ about 325 workers and begin shipping products before the end of 2023.

The Lexington, KY plant is recognized by the World Economic Forum as both an Advanced Lighthouse and a Sustainability Lighthouse for its adoption and use of 4IR technologies and for achieving sustainability and productivity breakthroughs, respectively. Schneider Electric was ranked No. 2 in the Gartner Supply Chain Top 25 for 2022. It recently ranked eighth on the 2022 Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production list by Fortune magazine.

About Schneider Electric

Schneiders purpose is to empower all to make the most of our energy and resources, bridging progress and sustainability for all. We call this Life Is On.

Our mission is to be your digital partner for Sustainability and Efficiency.

We drive digital transformation by integrating world-leading process and energy technologies, end-point to cloud connecting products, controls, software and services, across the entire lifecycle, enabling integrated company management, for homes, buildings, data centers, infrastructure and industries.

We are the most local of global companies. We are advocates of open standards and partnership ecosystems that are passionate about our shared Meaningful Purpose, Inclusive and Empowered values.

https://www.se.com/ca

Discover Life Is On Follow us on: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram | Blog

Discover the newest perspectives shaping sustainability, electricity 4.0, and next generation automation on Schneider Electric Insights

Hashtags: #LifeIsOn #SchneiderElectric #SEGreatPeople #Manufacturing #SupplyChain #IT #OT

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Media Relations - Edelman on behalf of Schneider Electric, Juan Pablo Guerrero

Phone: +1 416 875 7173, Email: [email protected]

Source: Schneider Electric
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SmartRent, Inc. (NYSE: SMRT), a leading provider of smart home and smart building automation for residents, property owners, managers, developers and homebuilders, today announced it will release third quarter 2022 financial results on Thursday, November 10, 2022, following the market close. On that day, Lucas Haldeman, Chief Executive Officer, and Hiroshi Okamoto, Chief Financial Officer, will host a conference call and webcast at 4:30 p.m. ET to discuss the Companys performance. The press release and supporting materials will be available in the Events and Presentations section of the Companys Investor Relations website.

SmartRent Third Quarter 2022 Financial Results Conference Call

When: Thursday, November 10, 2022

Time: 4:30 p.m. ET

Dial-in: To access the conference call via telephone, please register here to be provided with dial-in details. To avoid delays, participants are encouraged to dial into the conference call fifteen minutes ahead of the scheduled start time.

Webcast: A live and archived webcast of the conference call will be accessible from the Events & Presentations section of the Companys Investor Relations website at https://investors.smartrent.com.

About SmartRent

Founded in 2017, SmartRent, Inc. (NYSE: SMRT) is a recognized enterprise property technology leader designed by and for real estate operators. The Companys comprehensive product suite, comprised of smart home building hardware and cloud-based SaaS solutions, provides seamless visibility and control over real estate assets. Its subsidiary, SightPlan, specializes in workflow management solutions that automate the property lifecycle. SmartRent and SightPlans robust, end-to-end enterprise platform increases efficiencies, delivers cost savings and additional revenue opportunities and elevates user experiences. For more information, please visit smartrent.com.

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Investor Contact

Annalise Lasater

Investor Relations

[email protected]

Media Contact

Amanda Chavez

Director, Corporate Communications

[email protected]

Source: SmartRent
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc. (NYSE: SOI) (Solaris or the Company) announced today that it will host a conference call to discuss its third quarter 2022 results on Tuesday, November 1, 2022 at 8:00 a.m. Central Time (9:00 a.m. Eastern Time). Solaris will issue its third quarter 2022 earnings release after the market closes on October 31, 2022.

To join the third quarter 2022 conference call from within the United States, participants may dial (844) 413-3978. To join the conference call from outside of the United States, participants may dial (412) 317-6594. When instructed, please ask the operator to be joined to the Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc. call. Participants are encouraged to log in to the webcast or dial in to the conference call approximately ten minutes prior to the start time. To listen via live webcast, please visit the Investor Relations section of the Companys website, www.solarisoilfield.com.

An audio replay of the conference call will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and will remain available for approximately seven days. It can be accessed by dialing (877) 344-7529 within the United States or (412) 317-0088 outside of the United States. The conference call replay access code is 2240232. The replay will also be available in the Investor Relations section of the Companys website shortly after the conclusion of the call and will remain available for approximately seven days.

About Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc.

Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc. (NYSE: SOI) provides mobile equipment that drives supply chain and execution efficiencies in the completion of oil and natural gas wells. Solaris patented equipment and systems are deployed across oil and natural gas basins in the United States. Additional information is available on our website, www.solarisoilfield.com.

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Yvonne Fletcher

Senior Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations

(281) 501-3070

[email protected]

Source: Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc.
2022 C3 Summit Program Concludes October 20 in Princeton, New Jersey

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- TransPerfect Life Sciences, a leading provider of services and technologies to support global clinical trials and product development for the biopharmaceutical industry, today announced a final call for registration for the 2022 Conversations on Clinical Content (C3) summit. The event is the third in a three-part series and takes place on October 20 in Princeton, NJ. Registration and details can be found at https://thec3summit.com/princeton/.

C3 brings together leading industry executives with expertise in product development and decentralized clinical trials (DCTs) for regional meetings and virtual sessions. The series serves as a platform for industry leaders to share knowledge on important industry trends and topics, including best practices around DCT, patient diversity, patient centricity, and outcome assessments.

The 2022 C3 events have been held in Raleigh, North Carolina, and London, England. Speakers included representatives from Walgreens, Pfizer, Parexel, AstraZeneca, Roche, Evidera/PPD, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Red Nucleus.

Katja Rudell, Senior Director, COA, CDDS, at Parexel and London C3 Summit panelist, said, The C3 sessions were packed with great questions. As a panelist, I appreciated the questions and opportunity to share perspectives with others on stage. As an audience member, the event served as an effective forum to demystify a number of topics related to patient centricity.

Scheduled presenters at C3 Princeton include clinical leaders from CVS Health Clinical Trial Services, Bristol Myers Squibb, Decentralized Trials & Research Alliance, Kyowa Kirin, Savvy Cooperative, Exponent, ProofPilot, ObvioHealth, and MANA RBM.

As a solutions provider assisting companies with their increasingly virtual operations, we work every day with thought leaders who have knowledge that can benefit others on similar journeys, said Michael Smyth, Division President, TransPerfect Life Sciences Solutions. The enthusiasm and willingness to share shown by our speakers has created many thought-provoking discussions.

TransPerfect President and CEO Phil Shawe stated, C3 is a unique opportunity for thought leaders in the clinical community to discuss trends, see recent innovations, and better prepare for the future.

For more information on the C3 Summit series, visit https://thec3summit.com/.

About TransPerfect Life Sciences

TransPerfect Life Sciences specializes in supporting global development and commercialization of drugs, treatments, and devices designed to improve and save lives. Our comprehensive solutions include eTMF and eClinical technologies, paper TMF migration, pharmacovigilance and safety solutions, translation and language services, and call center support. With offices in over 100 cities worldwide, TransPerfect is the ideal partner to ensure that your global launch makes a global impact. For more information, please visit our website at https://lifesciences.transperfect.com/.

About TransPerfect

TransPerfect is the worlds largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business. From offices in over 100 cities on six continents, TransPerfect offers a full range of services in 200+ languages to clients worldwide. More than 6,000 global organizations employ TransPerfects GlobalLink technology to simplify management of multilingual content. With an unparalleled commitment to quality and client service, TransPerfect is fully ISO 9001 and ISO 17100 certified. TransPerfect has global headquarters in New York, with regional headquarters in London and Hong Kong. Visit https://www.transperfect.com for more information on TransPerfect.

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Ryan Simper +1 212.689.5555

[email protected]

Source: TransPerfect Life Sciences
MIAMI & TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- XTM Inc. (XTM or the Company) (QB: XTMIF / CSE:PAID / FSE: 7XT), a Miami and Toronto-based Fintech company in the neo-banking space, providing mobile banking and payment solutions around the world, announces voting results from its annual meeting of shareholders (the Meeting) held on Wednesday, October 12, 2022.

Shareholders voted to approve all matters brought before the Meeting including the setting of the number of directors at four, the election of all director nominees and the re-appointment of MNP LLP as auditors for the ensuing year.

Effective today, Keith McKenzie and Olga Balanovskaya were elected to as new directors and have joined Marilyn Schaffer and Randy Khalaf, who were re-elected to the board. A detailed biography of each of the directors can be found in the Companys management information circular dated September 9, 2022 and which is available for download from the Companys profile on SEDAR.

We welcome Keith and Olgas wealth of knowledge and experience to the board and look forward to continuing to grow XTM with our new slate of directors, said Marilyn Schaffer, the Companys CEO and re-elected director. XTM has an exciting future, and we believe this is the best board to propel the Company forward.

Cameron Chell has resigned from the board after having been a director since XTM went public in 2020. The Company expresses its sincere appreciation to Cam for his contributions to the board and to the Company, and wish him the best in his other and future endeavors.

About XTM

XTM, www.xtminc.com, is a Miami and Toronto-based fintech innovator in the neo-banking space, helping businesses and service workers in the hospitality and personal care space disseminate and access earned wages and gratuities. XTMs Today Solution, comprised of a free mobile app and a Visa or Mastercard debit card with free banking features, is used by thousands of restaurants, salons and staff across Canada and the United States. XTM is a global card issuer and real-time payment specialist. Our technology is used by Restaurants, Salons and service staff at no charge to automate and expedite Earned Wage and Gratuity Access, increasing time and attendance and eliminating cash from ecosystems. XTMs Today solution drives operational efficiencies and delivers a bespoke user experience designed specifically for service workers.

The CSE has not approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release, and the CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005636/en/

Marilyn Schaffer

E: [email protected]

T: 416.260.1641

Source: XTM Inc.
GE Healthcares Pharmaceutical Diagnostics business has announced a long-term agreement with Chile-based mining company, Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM) (NYSE: SQM; Santiago Stock Exchange: SQM-B, SQM-A), to secure its supply of iodine, a key ingredient for contrast media products used in X-Ray and Computed Tomography (CT) procedures globally. The agreement will see SQM increase supply of iodine raw material year-on-year and is part of GE Healthcares broader commitment and investment plan to enable the production of 30 million more patient doses of iodinated contrast media annually by 2025.

The growing global prevalence of chronic disorders has driven significant growth in CT procedures, leading to increased global demand for iodinated contrast media, used to enhance visualization of organs, blood vessels and tissues across clinical care pathways. GE Healthcare is also investing in production capacity to help meet this growing demand, including a new $30 million manufacturing line at its Cork, Ireland, contrast media production facility, which opens this week.

Kevin ONeill, President and CEO, GE Healthcare Pharmaceutical Diagnostics, said: We expect global demand for iodinated contrast media to double in the next 10 years. As an industry leader, we understand our responsibility to help meet this growing demand from customers and patients by investing in production capacity and securing higher volumes of iodine raw material. As one of the largest consumers of iodine globally we value our longstanding relationship with SQM, an important partner for us.

Pablo Altimiras, Executive Vice President of Iodine and Nitrates, SQM, said: Were pleased to continue our relationship with GE Healthcare  a key customer for us for more than 40 years. As one of the largest producers of iodine worldwide with approximately 24 percent of our production used for X-ray contrast media, we are committed to the iodine industry and will continue to improve quality and increase capacity to ensure the reliability of supply, which is essential to so many sectors, including healthcare.

GE Healthcare Pharmaceutical Diagnostics develops and manufactures imaging agents used to support over 100 million procedures per year, equivalent to three patient procedures every second. All stages of its contrast media manufacturing, from development of API to finished product, are managed entirely by GE Healthcare, adhering to current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP). With over 4000 employees globally and seven manufacturing sites, the business also develops and supplies radiopharmaceuticals used to support diagnosis, monitoring and treatment selection across Neurology, Cardiology and Oncology clinical pathways.

About SQM:

SQM is a global company that is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Santiago Stock Exchange (NYSE: SQM; Santiago Stock Exchange: SQM-B, SQM-A). SQM develops and produces diverse products for several industries essential for human progress, such as health, nutrition, renewable energy and technology through innovation and technological development. We aim to maintain our leading world position in the lithium, potassium nitrate, iodine and thermo-solar salts markets.

About GE Healthcare:

GE Healthcare is the $17.7 billion healthcare business of GE (NYSE: GE). As a leading global medical technology, pharmaceutical diagnostics and digital solutions innovator, GE Healthcare enables clinicians to make faster, more informed decisions through intelligent devices, data analytics, applications and services, supported by its Edison intelligence platform. With over 100 years of healthcare industry experience and around 48,000 employees globally, the company operates at the center of an ecosystem working toward precision health, digitizing healthcare, helping drive productivity and improve outcomes for patients, providers, health systems and researchers around the world.
Tecogen Inc. (OTCQX: TGEN) is pleased to announce a follow-on order of two additional Tecochill systems for a large municipality in Connecticut consisting of one 200 ton Tecochill system for an elementary school and one 50 ton Tecochill system for a separate elementary school. In both cases the systems are part of a district-wide upgrade to provide air conditioning to schools that previously did not have central cooling. The two Tecochill units are in addition to three 400 ton Tecochill chiller systems ordered by the district in July. The order brings a total of 7 Tecochill units with a combined capacity of 1850 tons of Tecochill cooling for the municipality, which has been a Tecogen customer for over 20 years.

The municipality is taking advantage of its allocation of American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding for improvements in heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) in the school system to fund the projects. In addition to significant cost savings and additional resiliency to electric grid outages, the municipality is expected to achieve greenhouse gas (GHG) savings of 1,700 tons/year in the aggregate from its Tecochill systems.

We are excited that this Connecticut municipality decided to supplement its order for Tecochill systems in its school and municipal buildings, noted Benjamin Locke, Tecogens CEO. Tecogen equipment is uniquely suited to reduce both energy costs and carbon emissions as electric rates continue to increase, and our equipment enables customers to satisfy emerging GHG reduction goals.

About Tecogen Tecogen Inc. designs, manufactures, installs, and maintains high efficiency and ultra-clean cogeneration products, including combined heat and power systems, air conditioning systems, and high-efficiency water heaters for residential, commercial, recreational, and industrial applications. The companys cost efficient, reliable, and environmentally friendly products for energy production nearly eliminate criteria pollutants and significantly reduce customers carbon footprint.

In business for over 35 years, Tecogen has shipped more than 3,000 units, supported by an established network of engineering, sales, and service personnel throughout North America. Aggregate run hours on Tecogens InVerde cogeneration systems exceeds 5 million hours. For more information, please visit www.tecogen.com or contact us for a free Site Assessment. Tecogen, InVerde e+, Ilios, Tecochill, Tecofrost, Tecopack, Tecopower, and Ultera are pending or registered trademarks of Tecogen Inc.
RAD Dealers Focus on Placing AVA at Gated Communities a Success

Detroit, Michigan, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions, Inc., (OTCPK:AITX), along with its wholly owned subsidiary, Robotic Assistance Devices, Inc. (RAD) today announced that one of its authorized dealers, St. Moritz Security Services, Inc. is experiencing success with deployments of AVA at gated communities. St. Moritz has also placed their fifth AVA order to be deployed at a community in southern Florida.

Weve experienced terrific response and results with RADs AVA at gated communities, said Evan Nardone, Chief Technology Officer at St. Moritz Security Services, Inc. These are primarily HOA managed properties and theyre looking for cost-effective, easy to use solutions that dont require a full-time guard at the gate. AVA is it.

St. Moritz added that they are actively supporting five gated communities with AVAs deployed or awaiting installation.

We love the attention that St. Moritz is placing on AVA at HOAs and other gated properties, said Mark Folmer, President of RAD. Ongoing staffing issues and clients desire to cut costs is certainly driving interest in RAD solutions. St. Moritz is doing an excellent job filling those needs with RAD, Folmer continued.

St. Moritz achieved over $140 million in annual sales in 2022 which ranks them as one of the largest American-owned security companies in the U.S. and in the top 2% of all security companies worldwide. St. Moritz has thirty offices nationwide and covers the entire U.S. and Canada.

AVA (Autonomous Verified Access) is a compact and stanchion mountable unit that provides an edge-to-edge 180 field of vision with advanced access control over gates and other controlled points of entry. AVA takes full advantage of the RAD Software Suite providing an ideal solution for gated communities, logistics and distribution centers, storage yards, parking structures and lots, corporate campuses; anywhere that increased security and visibility is needed at a fraction of the cost. At ISC West in late March, AVA was named a winner of the 2022 SIA New Products and Solutions Awards in the category of Access Control Software, Hardware, Devices and Peripherals.

RAD has a sales pipeline of over 35 Fortune 500 companies and numerous other client opportunities. RAD expects to continue to attract new business as it converts its existing sales opportunities into deployed clients generating a recurring revenue stream. Each Fortune 500 client has the potential of making numerous reorders over time.

RADs parent company AITX has filed for uplisting to the OTCQB. Future announcements will be made regarding the status of the OTCQB application.

Robotic Assistance Devices (RAD) is a high-tech start-up that delivers robotics and artificial intelligence-based solutions that empower organizations to gain new insight, solve complex security challenges, and fuel new business ideas at reduced costs. RAD developed its advanced security robot technology from the ground up including circuit board design, and base code development. This allows RAD to have complete control over all design elements, performance, quality, and the users experience of all security robots whether, ROSA, AVA, ROAMEO, RADDOG, RIO, or RAD Light My Way. Read about how RAD is reinventing the security services industry by downloading the Autonomous Remote Services Industry Manifesto, and request a copy of the recently published Navigating the New Economy: Jobs & Automation, Challenges & Opportunities.

CAUTIONARY DISCLOSURE ABOUT FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTSThis release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this news release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements that are based on current expectations and assumptions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements, including, but not limited to, the following: the ability of Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions to provide for its obligations, to provide working capital needs from operating revenues, to obtain additional financing needed for any future acquisitions, to meet competitive challenges and technological changes, to meet business and financial goals including projections and forecasts, and other risks. No information contained in this news release should be construed as any indication whatsoever of the Company's future stock price, revenues, or results of operations. Additionally, industry data provided herein is of no predictive value regarding the future sale of the Companys products. Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement(s) and/or to confirm the statement(s) to actual results or changes in Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions expectations.

About Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions (AITX)

AITX is an innovator in the delivery of artificial intelligence-based solutions that empower organizations to gain new insight, solve complex challenges and fuel new business ideas. Through its next-generation robotic product offerings, AITXs RAD, RAD-M and RAD-G companies help organizations streamline operations, increase ROI, and strengthen business. AITX technology improves the simplicity and economics of patrolling and guard services and allows experienced personnel to focus on more strategic tasks. Customers augment the capabilities of existing staffs and gain higher levels of situational awareness, all at drastically reduced cost. AITX solutions are well suited for use in multiple industries such as enterprises, government, transportation, critical infrastructure, education, and healthcare. To learn more, visit www.aitx.ai, stevereinharz.com, www.radsecurity.com, radgroup.ai, and www.radlightmyway.com, or follow Steve Reinharz on Twitter @SteveReinharz.

###

Steve Reinharz949-636-7060@SteveReinharz

Attachment

Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions, Inc. Illustration of a single RAD AVA security robot in a simulated autonomous response mode welcoming guests at a gated community. RAD has received another AVA order from authorized dealer St. Moritz Security Services.

Source: Artificial Intelligence Technology Solutions, Inc.
DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Montana and Wyoming farmers can benefit from this alliance and have the opportunity to optimize their input applications by using Augmenta Mantis. The revolutionary VRA control device offers automation to a range of in-season inputs such as Live VRA for Nitrogen, Fungicide, Harvest Aids (Desiccants and Defoliants), and Plant Growth Regulators or fertilizer applications in different zones (Multizone) for various Montana crops such as cereal, pulses, and oil seeds.

Torgerson's customers now have the opportunity to reduce input costs, and chemical loads, and maximize yield potential. Users of Augmenta's Solution in these crops have noticed an increase in their savings of input usage up to 20% on average while maintaining or even increasing their yield.

"This new technology partnership gives our customer base a huge advantage by providing a new path towards crop protection and time savings, soil fertility optimization, all while being more eco-friendly," states Jed Bengtson, Sales and Marketing Director for Torgerson's.

"We are delighted to have partnered with Torgerson's LLC. Through this collaboration, we enable Montana and Wyoming farmers to automate applications and save inputs more easily than ever before," said Jim Evangelopoulos, Augmenta Co-founder and General Manager.

To learn more about how the Augmenta Mantis System works, click here https://www.augmenta.ag/. To find Torgerson's locations, click here https://www.torgerson.biz/.

About Torgerson's LLC

Torgerson's today is a 14-store complex of Agriculture and Construction dealerships across MT and WY. Beginning in 1912 in Ethridge, MT, the heritage of local business partners runs deep. Today they strive to offer the very best solutions for their customers to help them achieve their goals, along with their own. Being on the cutting edge of technology has been part of the heritage and continues.

About Augmenta AgTech

Augmenta is the creator of an innovative real-time VRA retrofit system that fully automates impactful farming agrochemical applications. Its growing global presence includes Europe, CIS, North and South America, and Australia. Its stated mission is to augment the capacity of arable land in a way that is beneficial for both farmers and the environment.

Contact Information: Nota Moustaka Field Marketing Specialist [email protected] +306947676535

Related Images

Image 1: Augmenta _ Torgerson's

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com.

Attachment

Augmenta _ Torgerson's Augmenta _ Torgerson's

Source: Augmenta AgTech
SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Great Place to Work Institute has named California Water Service Group (Group) (NYSE: CWT) a Great Place to Work for 2022-2023, the utility announced today. This marks the seventh year in a row Group has earned this honor.

The two-part Great Place to Work certification includes a Culture Audit and a Trust Index. The Culture Audit focuses on the companys programs and practices on hiring, internal communication, developmental opportunities, training, recognition, and diversity; the Trust Index is based on feedback from all full-time employees about their experiences. The results were compared to other top U.S. workplaces to determine the companys placement.

According to President and CEO Martin A. Kropelnicki, the company has been assessing opportunities to improve the employee experience, because when it takes care of employees, employees can take care of its customers. For example, the company enhanced an already robust benefits package that includesbeyond insurance and retirement plansa family scholarship fund, a charitable donation-matching program, an employee stock purchase plan, and where feasible, flexible work schedules. Through company-wide employee surveys, focus groups for both individual contributors and managers, and support from the executive team, Group also developed a new, comprehensive internal communications strategy to complement ongoing efforts and keep employees informed and engaged.

Our purpose is to enhance the quality of life not only for our customers, communities, and stockholders, but also for our employees. We value our nearly 1,200 team members and believe that being a great place for them to work will enable them to keep focusing on providing quality, service, and value to our customers, communities, and stockholders, said Kropelnicki. It is an honor to be recognized by the Great Place to Work Institute year after year, and we will continue to work hard to earn our employees trust and satisfaction.

About California Water Service GroupCalifornia Water Service Group is the parent company of regulated utilities California Water Service, Hawaii Water Service, New Mexico Water Service, Washington Water Service, and Texas Water Service, a utility holding company. Together, these companies provide regulated and non-regulated water and wastewater service to more than 2 million people in California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington. California Water Service Groups common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CWT. Additional information is available online at www.calwatergroup.com.

Media ContactYvonne Kingman[email protected] 310-257-1434

Source: California Water Service Group
TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Middlefield Group is pleased to announce the closing of its 67th resource fund, Discovery 2022 Short Duration LP (the Partnership), which raised total proceeds of $8.3 million.

The objectives of the Partnership are to provide investors with capital appreciation and significant tax benefits to enhance after-tax returns to limited partners, including the deductibility of 100% of their original investment. The Partnership intends to achieve these objectives by investing in an actively managed, diversified portfolio comprised primarily of equity securities of Canadian gold mining companies.

Middlefield is a leading provider of flow-through share funds in Canada and has a strong track record of delivering positive after-tax returns. Since 1983, Middlefield has sponsored 67 public and private flow-through funds and has acted as agent or manager for over $2.5 billion of resource investments.

The syndicate of agents for the offering is being co-led by RBC Capital Markets and CIBC Capital Markets and includes BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., National Bank Financial Inc., Scotiabank, TD Securities Inc., Manulife Securities Incorporated, Richardson Wealth Limited, iA Private Wealth Inc., Canaccord Genuity Corp., Middlefield Capital Corporation, Wellington-Altus Private Wealth Inc., Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. and Raymond James Ltd.

For further information, please visit our website at www.middlefield.com or contact Nancy Tham in our Sales and Marketing Department at 1.888.890.1868.

This offering is only made by prospectus. The prospectus contains important detailed information about the securities being offered. Copies of the prospectus may be obtained from your IIROC registered financial advisor using the contact information for such advisor. Investors should read the prospectus before making an investment decision.

Source: Discovery 2022 Short Duration LP
TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Labrador Uranium Inc. (LUR, Labrador Uranium, or the Company) (CSE: LUR, OTCQB: LURAF, FRA: EI1) is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive purchase agreement (the Agreement) with Beaconsfield Ventures Ltd. (Beaconsfield) to acquire (the Acquisition) 100% interest in the Anna Lake Project (License No. 34834M) and the Moran Lake B-Zone prospect (License No. 027543M), (together, the Assets). The Assets are two strategically located properties within the Central Mineral Belt (CMB) that provide LUR with new exploration targets with known mineralization (Figure 1).

Pursuant to the Agreement signed on October 13, 2022, LUR has agreed to acquire the Assets in exchange for the issuance of 5,000,000 common shares of LUR (the Common Shares). Price per share shall be determined on the closing date of the acquisition, currently anticipated to be November 1, 2022. As part of the Acquisition, LUR will also assume Beaconsfields obligations to pay an existing 2% net smelter royalty with respect to the Assets to a third party. The Common Shares issued pursuant to the Acquisition are subject to approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange and will be subject to a hold period expiring four months and one day from the date of issuance.

Highlights:

Historic mineral resources in the heart of the CMB  Anna Lake Project contains historical Inferred Mineral Resources of 5.1 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.044% U3O8 containing 4.91 million lbs of U3O8. This estimate is considered to be a historical estimate under National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) and is not considered by LUR to be current. See below for further details. Anna Lake is located along strike from the Melody Hill prospect previously owned by Bayswater Uranium Corporation (Bayswater), where high grade uranium values of up to 28.2% U3O8 occur in granite boulders. See Anna Lake Project description below for further details. Reconnaissance fieldwork conducted by LUR to the northeast of the Anna Lake Property during the 2022 field season revealed a similar boulder train to that described by Bayswater at the Anna Lake Deposit.

 Addition of the Moran Lake B Zone strategically adds to the Moran Lake Trend, and is 3 km from the Moran Lake Deposit, where drilling is currently underway.

Stephen Keith, CEO of LUR, commented, We are very pleased to announce this purchase. This Acquisition will add additional uranium properties to the LUR portfolio with historical mineral resources at Anna Lake and additional exploration targets at both Anna Lake and the Moran Lake B Zone prospect, which we believe will create potential upside for the Company and its shareholders. The Anna Lake Project completes a strategic land package that contains multiple uranium and polymetallic targets. The Moran Lake B zone prospects strategically adds to our Moran Lake Project and provides LUR with additional exploration targets.

Figure 1: Labrador Uranium Projects and Claims on the Central Mineral Belt in Labrador is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5418ebf9-aac7-4f8a-9d30-5b16c393f842

Anna Lake Project

The Anna Lake Project (Figure 2) is located approximately 35 kilometers southwest of the coastal community of Postville, Labrador, and 15 kilometers northwest of the Michelin Deposit held by Paladin Energy. The deposit occurs 9 km to the west along strike from the Melody Hill prospect where high grade uranium values of up to 28.2% U3O8 occur in granite boulders.

Mineralization was first identified on the property in the 1970s by Brinco who discovered an extensive radioactive boulder train which occurs along the southeast margin of a NE-SW trending linear, narrow magnetic high in association with a radiometric anomaly. Numerous large boulders and blocks (1 meters to 5 meters) of pegmatitic rock and metapelite occur in an area outlined by the magnetic high and rugged terrain, with topographic relief ranging from 10 m to 50 m. Radiometric response ranges from 200 cps to 6,000 cps on individual boulders, but also varies on the same boulders.

Brinco collected 11 grab samples, taken from over 2,000 radioactive gossanous garnet-biotite schist boulders which assayed from 0.132% to 3.05% U3O8. Initial grab sampling was followed-up with limited drilling on potential source rocks which produced intercepts of 0.118% U3O8 over 1.5 metres and 0.10 % U3O8 over 2.0 metres in two separate, closely spaced drill holes (Bayswater Press Release  July 12, 2007).

Bayswater subsequently drilled a total of 22,355 meters of core drilling in 67 drill holes during their 2007 and 2008 field seasons. Based on these drilling campaigns, Bayswater produced an initial mineral resource estimate on the property.

Anna Lake Historical Mineral Resource Estimate (North and South)1,2,3

Category Cutoff Mt %U3O8 %Mo Re(g/t) MlbsU3O8 MlbsMo MgmsRe Inferred 0.030 % 5.1 0.044 % 0.014 % 0.198 4.91 1.56 1.00

The mineral resource estimate contained in this table is considered to be a historical estimate as defined under NI 43-101, and is not considered by LUR to be current and is not being treated as such. A Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources. LUR would need to review and verify the scientific information and conduct an analysis and reconciliation of historical drill and geological data in order to verify the historical estimate as a current mineral resource. Reported by Bayswater Uranium Corporation in a Technical Report entitled Form 43-101 Technical Report on the Anna Lake Uranium Project, Central Mineral Belt, Labrador, Canada, prepared by R. Dean Fraser, P.Geo. and Gary H. Giroux, P.Eng., dated August September 30, 2009. A 3-dimensional geologic model of the deposit was created for the purpose of the resource estimate using the Gemcom/Surpac modeling software. A solid model was created using a minimum grade x thickness cutoff of 3 meters grading 0.03% U3O8. Intersections not meeting this cutoff were generally not incorporated into the model. The shell of this modeled zone was then used to constrain the mineralization for the purpose of the block model. Assay composites 2.5 meters in length that honoured the mineralized domains were used to interpolate grades into blocks using ordinary kriging. An average specific gravity of 2.93 was used to convert volumes to tonnes. The specific gravity data was acquired in-house and consisted of an average of seventeen samples collected from the mineralised section of the core. The resource was classified into Measured, Indicated or Inferred using semi-variogram ranges applied to search ellipses. All resources estimated at Anna Lake fall under the Inferred category due to the wide spaced drill density. Either LUR or Beaconsfield would need to conduct an exploration program, including twinning of historical drill holes in order to verify the Anna Lake Project estimate as a current mineral resource.

As stated by Bayswater in their October 15, 2009 press release, the Anna Lake Project covers a strike length of 750 meters and extends down-dip in the plane of mineralization to 663 meters within a broadly undulating sheetlike body. The deposit is open in all directions.

Reconnaissance fieldwork conducted by LUR to the northeast of the Anna Lake Project during the 2022 field season revealed a similar boulder train to that described by Bayswater at the Anna Lake deposit. The boulder train is along strike from the Anna Lake boulder train and consistent with the trend of the regional magnetic anomaly. Radiometric response from individual boulders ranged from 200 cps to 500 cps. LUR has subsequently staked additional ground to cover the extents of the boulder train.

Figure 2: Newly acquired Anna Lake Property (yellow) and newly staked claim blocks covering the north-easterly Anna Lake Trend (purple) is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/422b73a7-a507-4912-b5b9-fe06dedc465a

Moran Lake B Zone

The Moran Lake B Zone (Figure 3) prospect is located approximately 3 km northeast of LURs Moran Lake C Zone deposit and occurs near the edge of a large gabbroic intrusion. This intrusion is associated with a pronounced aeromagnetic anomaly that is much more widespread than the intrusions mapped surface expression, suggesting it is more extensive at depth. This was explored and drilled by Crosshair Exploration and Mining Corp. (Crosshair) in 2006 and 2008. Previous work on Moran Lake B Zone included the completion of eighteen historical drill holes.

The target is hosted in feldspathic sandstones of the Heggert Lake formation of the Bruce River Group Intruded by a suite of mafic dykes. There is a radioactive area of approximately 900 meters in length that is discontinuous and consists of two smaller zones of concentrated radioactivity.

Previous results indicate polymetallic mineralization grading 0.087% U3O8, 0.28% Cu, 13.23 g/t Ag over 11.8 metres were returned from chip sampling surface mineralization. Grab sampling reporting from a 2003 property visit returned 0.295% Cu, 1.2 g/t Ag and 1.03 g/t Au (Crosshair Press Release  November 4, 2004-11-04). Drill campaigns in 2006 and 2008 intersected significant uranium mineralization in several holes.

Figure 3: Moran B Property (yellow) to the northeast of Moran C and A1 on the north-easterly Moran Trend is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ea0f8bcb-ee95-45ea-95bc-5ef3e60cb879

Appointment of New Vice President of Exploration

LUR is also pleased to announce that Ms. Nancy Normore, M.Sc., P.Geo has been promoted from Director, Exploration to Vice President, Exploration as a result of the quality of her work and dedication. Ms. Normore will be responsible for all exploration activities of the Company moving forward.

Ms. Normore has over 18 years of experience exploring for uranium, copper, and nickel from start-up to discovery. While completing a masters degree in geology, she led the field team that discovered the Orora uranium deposit with UEX Corporation. Her experience includes working at Vale, UEX Corporation, CanAlaska Uranium, Axiom Group, Areva Resources, and Dennison Mines, among others.

Stephen Keith, CEO of LUR, commented, We are extremely happy that Nancy has accepted this new role with us. She has done a tremendous job on this first exploration campaign and, although it was a challenging year in the field, we were able to move the program forward. With her demonstrated leadership and coordination, we will be in much better shape next year as we focus on being driven by geology.

In connection with her promotion, LUR has granted Ms. Normore 50,000 stock options pursuant to LURs long-term omnibus incentive plan. Each option is exercisable to acquire one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.70 for a period of five years, subject to the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Technical Disclosure and Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release was reviewed and approved by Matthew Melnyk, M.Sc., CPG, an advisor to LUR, who is a Qualified Person (as defined in NI 43-101).

About Labrador Uranium Inc.

Labrador Uranium is engaged in the exploration and development of uranium projects in Labrador, Canada and holds a dominant land position covering over 139,000 ha in the prolific Central Mineral Belt (CMB) in central Labrador and the Notakwanon Project in northern Labrador. Currently, the Company is advancing the district scale CMB Project which includes the Moran Lake Deposit and Mustang Lake Project. The CMB Project area surrounds several known uranium prospects, including Paladin Energys Michelin deposit, with substantial past exploration work completed, and numerous occurrences of uranium, copper and IOCG style mineralization.

For More Information, Please Contact

Stephen KeithCEO[email protected]+1 (647) 299-0046

Investor Relations [email protected]

Twitter: @LabradorUrLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/labrador-uranium-inc/ Website: www.labradoruranium.com

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to completion of the Acquisition, the Companys future plans with respect to the Assets including planned exploration activities, the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange and other activities, events or developments that are expected, anticipated or may occur in the future. Generally, but not always, forward looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as plans, expects, is expected, budget, scheduled, estimates, forecasts, intends, anticipates, or believes or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, might or will be taken, occur or be achieved or the negative connotation thereof.

Forward-looking information and statements are based on our current expectations, beliefs, assumptions, estimates and forecasts about LURs business and the industry and markets in which it operates. Such forward information and statements are based on numerous assumptions, including among others, that the Canadian Securities Exchange will approve the Common Shares issuable in connection with the Acquisition, that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that historical mineral resources estimates could be verified as current mineral resource estimates, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms, and that third party contractors, equipment and supplies and governmental and other approvals required to conduct the Companys planned exploration activities will be available on reasonable terms and in a timely manner. Although the assumptions made by LUR in providing forward looking information or making forward-looking statements are considered reasonable by management at the time, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be accurate.

Forward-looking information and statements also involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results, performances and achievements of Labrador Uranium to differ materially from any projections of results, performances and achievements of Labrador Uranium expressed or implied by such forward-looking information or statements, including, among others: limited operating history, negative operating cash flow and dependence on third party financing, uncertainty of additional financing, delays or failure to obtain required permits and regulatory approvals, no known mineral resources/reserves, aboriginal title and consultation issues, reliance on key management and other personnel; potential downturns in economic conditions; availability of third party contractors; availability of equipment and supplies; failure of equipment to operate as anticipated; accidents, effects of weather and other natural phenomena and other risks associated with the mineral exploration industry; changes in laws and regulation, competition, and uninsurable risks, community relations, delays in obtaining governmental or other approvals and the risk factors with respect to Labrador Uranium set out in LURs listing statement dated March 2, 2022 filed with the Canadian securities regulators and available under LURs profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Although LUR has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. LUR undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.

Figure 1 Labrador Uranium Projects and Claims on the Central Mineral Belt in Labrador Figure 2 Newly acquired Anna Lake Property (yellow) and newly staked claim blocks covering the north-easterly Anna Lake Trend (purple) Figure 3 Moran B Property (yellow) to the northeast of Moran C and A1 on the north-easterly Moran Trend

Source: Labrador Uranium Inc.
BONITA SPRINGS, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Funds advised by Lee Equity Partners, LLC ("Lee Equity") and Coastwood Senior Housing Partners, LLC ("Coastwood"), two specialized investment firms, announced the signing of an agreement to invest in Discovery Senior Living ("Discovery"), one of the nation's largest and most innovative senior housing operators. The recapitalization will fund Discovery's continued expansion and operational platform enhancements as it positions itself to meet the evolving needs of all industry stakeholders and take advantage of the myriad of opportunities in the maturing industry.

This partnership will usher in the next stage in Discovery's journey to expand its proprietary National and Regional Brand Management structure, enhance its Experiential Living Operating Programs, as well as continue the evolution of its state-of-the-art business processes focused on delivering a modernized platform producing more transparent and predictable outcomes.

"This strategic recapitalization purposefully combines the strengths and successful experiences of three companies and the resultant innovation-focused efforts will allow the acceleration of Discovery's ability to execute its vision of creating a scaled company that outperforms the marketplace, addresses some of the legacy industry paradigms and of course focuses on delivering a customized and holistic resident and team member experience," said Richard J. Hutchinson, CEO, Discovery Senior Living.

"Discovery Senior Living represents the ideal platform to build a leading national senior living operator due to the strength of its team, centralized services, and national and regional brand operating structure. The secular growth tailwinds and consolidation opportunity within senior housing management are very similar to those we observed in the third-party hotel management sector with our Aimbridge Hospitality investment. We seek to replicate that success in partnership with Richard Hutchinson and the Discovery team, as well as Dan Decker and the Coastwood team," said Yoo Jin Kim, Partner, Lee Equity Partners.

"We believe the partnership among Discovery, Coastwood and Lee Equity will be unique in the senior living industry. Discovery contributes its highly scalable platform and best-in-class senior living operations. Coastwood contributes decades of senior living investment and operating experience. Lee Equity contributes its expertise in business and healthcare services along with its buy-and-build experience. We are excited to combine our capabilities to lead the industry with improved quality of care, technology innovation, and data-driven outcomes," said Dan Decker, Chairman, Coastwood Senior Housing Partners, LLC. Mr. Decker will assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors of Discovery Senior Living upon closing.

Hutchinson also added, "After nearly 30 years of working in this industry, I could not be more enthusiastic about pushing forward with the natural evolution of our company and industry and believe we will continue to attract the absolute most forward-thinking owners, capital partners and individuals who want to be a part of our dynamic culture and the future of our industry."

The family of companies in the agreement include Discovery Management Group, Morada Senior Living, TerraBella Senior Living, Discovery Development Group, Discovery Design Concepts, Discovery Marketing Group, and Discovery At Home, a Medicare-certified home healthcare company. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, is expected to close in Q4 of 2022.

With headquarters in Southwest Florida, Discovery Senior Living currently owns and operates a national, multi-branded portfolio of more than 110 communities in 19 states.

About Discovery Senior Living

Discovery Senior Living is a family of companies that includes Discovery Management Group, Morada Senior Living, TerraBella Senior Living, Discovery Development Group, Discovery Design Concepts, Discovery Marketing Group, and Discovery At Home, a Medicare-certified home healthcare company. With almost three decades of experience, the award-winning management group has been developing, building, marketing, and operating upscale senior-living communities across the United States. By leveraging its innovative "Experiential Living" philosophy across a growing portfolio of more than 15,000 existing homes or homes under development, Discovery Senior Living is a recognized industry leader for lifestyle customization and, today, ranks among the 10 largest U.S. senior living operators and providers.

About Lee Equity Partners

Lee Equity Partners, LLC is a New York-based private equity firm that partners with successful management teams to build companies with strong growth potential. Lee Equity targets equity investments of $50 million to $150 million in middle-market control buyouts and growth capital financings in companies with enterprise values of $100 million to $500 million that are located primarily in the United States. The firm invests in a range of industries where the team has deep relationships developed over decades, including business services, financial services, and healthcare services.

About Coastwood Senior Housing Partners, LLC

Coastwood Senior Housing Partners, LLC is an investment firm led by Daniel A. Decker that specializes in seniors housing and related services. The Coastwood partners have extensive investment experience in the senior housing and healthcare services industries, including investments in Omega Healthcare Investors (OHI), Sunrise Senior Living, and Sentio, as well as board experience in a variety of publicly owned and private healthcare service companies.

Contact Information: Heidi LaVanway Vice President of Marketing [email protected] 239.301.5330

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DENVER, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sylvatex (SVX) Inc., Alameda, CA, USA, and Forge Nano Inc., Thornton, Colorado, USA, have signed a memorandum of understanding ("MOU") for the use of Forge Nano's proprietary Atomic Layer Deposition ("ALD") coating technology on Sylvatex proprietary Cathode Active Materials ("CAMs").

Batteries using ALD-stabilized CAMs consistently demonstrate improved performance for every application, including over 40,000 cycles in aerospace, faster charging electric vehicles, and long calendar-life grid-scale energy storage. The collaboration facilitates the delivery of next-generation Li-ion battery CAM at a commercial scale in North America.

Forge Nano is a global leader in surface engineering and precision nano-coating technology using Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD). ALD coatings on CAMs prevent unwanted chemical reactions, unlocking higher capacity, longer life, improved safety, faster charging, and a reduced cost over incumbent coating technologies. ALD also requires significantly less energy than incumbent technologies, and the combination with Sylvatex's capability to produce cathode active materials with reduced cost, capital, and carbon intensity will enable the production of cost- and climate-friendly high-performance materials for battery production.

"Sylvatex is pleased to be collaborating with Forge Nano to bring the technology needed to enable the next generation of batteries in North America," said Mel Luetkens, SVX's Chief Technology Officer. "Combining the improved performance enabled by ALD coatings with SVX's waterless cathode technology that produces CAMs at a 25% reduction in CAM cost and a 40% reduction in plant capital requirements over conventional processing. Using less energy and water will overcome the problems of cathode manufacturing that limit battery manufacturers and OEMs today."

James Trevey, Forge Nano's Chief Technology Officer, adds: "We are excited to be working with Sylvatex to develop high-performance CAMs to make lithium-ion batteries in North America. I believe that ALD is well positioned to enable the next generation of CAMs to be made in North America, leapfrogging outdated processes and improving supply chain security for Lithium-ion batteries. This collaboration adds to our growing set of partnerships across the battery supply chain to enable better batteries and fulfill our vision of using advanced materials to reduce the climate impacts of manufacturing.

About Forge Nano

Forge Nano is a global leader in surface engineering and precision nano-coating technology using Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD). The Company's proprietary technology and manufacturing processes make angstrom-thick coatings fast, affordable, and commercially viable for various materials, applications, and industries. Forge Nano's suite of ALD and Particle ALD (PALD) equipment and services covers the entire spectrum from lab-scale tools to commercial-scale manufacturing. Over the past few years, Forge Nano has received major support and signed meaningful partnerships with Volkswagen, LG Technology Ventures, Mitsui Kinzoku, Air Liquide, and Sumitomo Corporation of Americas.

About Sylvatex (SVX)

Sylvatex (SVX) is transitioning the world's energy systems through foundational manufacturing improvements impacting our zero-emission electric future and grid storage. The Company has developed and is commercializing a lithium-ion battery cathode production technology that uses a sustainable, waterless manufacturing process. By unlocking greater cost-efficiency in battery production, SVX is enabling EV automakers and the battery supply chain to meet the rising demand for lithium-ion batteries while accelerating the widespread adoption of electrified mobility. For more information, visit https://sylvatex.com.

Contact Information: Michael Talarico Marketing Communications Manager [email protected] 720-259-8579

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MONTREAL, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Osisko Metals Incorporated (the "Company or "Osisko Metals") (TSX-V: OM; OTCQX: OMZNF; FRANKFURT: 0B51) and the Northwest Territories Power Corporation (NTPC) are pleased to announce that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that outlines the process of negotiating power connection to the Taltson hydroelectric grid and power purchase agreements.

The MOU will allow both parties to explore, discuss and establish mutually agreeable arrangements through which NTPC can supply and sell hydroelectric power and how Osisko Metals can purchase this electricity and any related services for use at the Pine Point Project site. The sale of excess electricity generated at the Taltson Hydroelectric Facility will be a significant part of the discussions. Depending on the time of year, available capacity from Taltson facility ranges from approximately 3.5 megawatts to 8 megawatts.

The MOU does not commit either party to a power connection agreement but does provide a framework to continue the informal discussion between NTPC and Osisko Metals that has been underway over the past several years.

Jeff Hussey, President and COO of Osisko Metals Incorporated also commented, The Pine Point Project would require additional power when production begins, currently projected to be in 2028. The potential to access clean hydropower is an attractive opportunity that we want to explore further with NTPC. Our preference is to find ways to maximize the consumption of hydroelectric power, thereby reducing the Projects carbon footprint and reducing operating costs.

Diane Archie, Minister Responsible for NTPC, commented, The Government of the Northwest Territories is optimistic about the potential to welcome a new industrial customer in the South Slave to utilize excess capacity from the Taltson Hydroelectric Facility. The Memorandum of Understanding between NTPC and Osisko Metals is a positive sign of future economic growth, benefiting all residents.

Cory Strang, President and CEO of NTPC mentioned, NTPC is committed to being the power provider of choice in the NWT and we look forward to advancing discussions with Osisko Metals on how we can support their efforts to bring the Pine Point Project back into operation. A potentially new industrial customer in the South Slave using the Taltson systems excess hydroelectricity capacity will help to moderate electricity rates for all customers.

NTPC is a wholly owned subsidiary of NT Hydro, which in turn is 100 percent owned by the Government of the Northwest Territories.

Media Contacts:

Jeff HusseyPresident and COOPine Point Mines Ltd.Email: [email protected]

Doug PrendergastManager, CommunicationsNorthwest Territories Power CorporationEmail: [email protected]

About Osisko Metals

Osisko Metals Incorporated is a Canadian exploration and development company creating value in the critical metals space. The Company controls one of Canadas premier past-producing zinc mining camps, the Pine Point Project, located in the Northwest Territories for which the 2022 PEA has indicated an after-tax NPV of $603M and an IRR of 25% is based on the current Mineral Resource Estimates that are amenable to open pit and shallow underground mining and consist of 15.7Mt grading 5.55% ZnEq of Indicated Mineral Resources and 47.2Mt grading 5.94% ZnEq of Inferred Mineral Resources. Please refer to the technical report entitled Preliminary Economic Assessment, Pine Point Project, Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada dated July 30, which has been filed on SEDAR. The Pine Point Project is located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories, near infrastructure, and paved highway access, and also has an electrical substation as well as 100 kilometres of viable haulage roads already in place.

The Company is also in the process of acquiring, from Glencore Canada, a 100% interest in the past-producing Gaspe Copper Mine, located near Murdochville in the Gaspe peninsula of Quebec. The Company is currently focused on resource evaluation of the Mount Copper Expansion Project that hosts a NI43-101 Inferred Resource of 456Mt grading 0.31% Cu (see April 28, 2022 press release). Gaspe Copper hosts the largest undeveloped copper resource in Eastern North America, strategically located near existing infrastructure in the mining-friendly province of Quebec.

For further information on this press release, visit www.osiskometals.com or contact:

Robert Wares, CEO of Osisko Metals Incorporated

Email: [email protected] www.osiskometals.com

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves predictions, expectations, interpretations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and constitute forward-looking information. This news release may contain forward-looking information pertaining to the Pine Point Project, including, among other things, the results of the PEA and the IRR, NPV and estimated costs, production, production rate and mine life; the expectation that the Pine Point Project will be an robust operation and profitable at a variety of prices and assumptions; the expected high quality of the Pine Point concentrates; the potential impact of the Pine Point Project in the Northwest Territories, including but not limited to the potential generation of tax revenue and contribution of jobs; and the Pine Point Project having the potential for mineral resource expansion and new discoveries. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management, in light of managements experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, including, without limitation, assumptions about: favourable equity and debt capital markets; the ability to raise additional capital on reasonable terms to advance the development of its projects and pursue planned exploration; future prices of zinc and lead; the timing and results of exploration and drilling programs; the accuracy of mineral resource estimates; production costs; operating conditions being favourable; political and regulatory stability; the receipt of governmental and third party approvals; licenses and permits being received on favourable terms; sustained labour stability; stability in financial and capital markets; availability of equipment; and positive relations with local groups. Forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information are set out in the Companys public documents filed at www.sedar.com. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Source: Osisko Metals Incorporated
The deadline to apply is November 23, 2022

Washington, Oct. 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced a new funding opportunity for up to $400,000 to be awarded to up to 12 entities including private organizations, colleges and universities, private sector firms, nonprofit organizations and state, local or tribal governmental agencies to provide critical training and counseling to aspiring and existing veteran small business owners as a Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC). The news comes ahead of Nations Veterans Small Business Week 2022 , one of the Agencys flagship events, taking place October 31  November 4, that will put the spotlight on one of the Biden-Harris Administrations priorities  supporting our servicemembers, veterans, and their families at every stage of the entrepreneurial journey.

Under Administrator Guzman, the SBA remains committed to providing more local resources for veteran entrepreneurs, a critical but under-resourced group of entrepreneurs among the small business community, said Larry Stubblefield, Associate Administrator for the SBAs Office of Veterans Business Development . As the focus on serving underserved communities becomes increasingly important, OVBD expects the demand for VBOCs will continue to grow. This expansion will grow the VBOC program from 22 to 34 locations nationwide and assist in supporting veteran small business owners in all U.S. states and territories. The additional locations aim to enhance the experience for veteran small business owners by reducing appointment wait times, increasing local presence, providing additional local training opportunities, meeting the needs of Boots to Business participants, and ensuring that all VBOCs have the necessary resources to perform required counseling and training functions.

With this SBA funding, grant awardees will be able to provide training to transitioning service members and military spouses through the Boots to Business entrepreneurship training program, which is part of the Department of Defenses Transition Assistance Program. Additionally, applicants will provide counseling, technical assistance, financial skill development, comprehensive business assessments, and mentoring services to veterans, transitioning service members, Reserve and National Guard members, and military spouses interested in starting or growing a small business.

Organizations across Alaska, Central California, Colorado, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, Nevada, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, and South Florida may apply for a portion of the total $4.1million in funding available for this program in Fiscal Year 2023.

Each award is made for a base project period of 12 months, with four 12-month option periods, starting May 1, 2023. Additional information about the funding opportunity, including specific coverage areas and instructions on how to apply, can be found at www.grants.gov and by searching  SB-OVVB-23-001 .

Applications submitted via other media, including SBAs website, will be rejected and will not be evaluated. Applications must be submitted via grants.gov no later than 11:50 p.m. EST on Wednesday, November 23, 2022.

SBAs Office of Veterans Business Development will host information sessions on the funding opportunity via this Microsoft Teams link or this call-in number (202-765-1264; access code: 265 542 768#) at the following times:

Thursday, October 13: 3-4 p.m. EDT

Tuesday, October 25: 1-2 p.m. EDT

Monday, November 7: 4-5 p.m. EST

Wednesday, November 16: 1-2 p.m. EST

Please direct all questions about the VBOC funding opportunity to Tangela Liddell at [email protected] . For issues with grants.gov, please call the Grants.gov Support Line at 1-800-518-4726 or email [email protected] .

###

About the U.S. Small Business Administration
MONACO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG) ("Scorpio Tankers," or the "Company") announced today that on Tuesday, November 1, 2022, the Company plans to issue its third quarter 2022 earnings press release in the morning (Eastern Daylight Time) and host a conference call at 8:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time and 1:30 PM Central European Time.

Conference Call Details

Date: Tuesday November 1, 2022Time: 8:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time and 1:30 PM Central European Time

The conference call will be available over the internet, through the Scorpio Tankers Inc. website www.scorpiotankers.com and the webcast link: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/84fjfw9f

Participants for the live webcast should register on the website approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the webcast.

The conference will also be available telephonically:US/CANADA Dial-In Number: 1 (833) 636-1321International Dial-In Number: +1 (412) 902-4260Conference Code: 10172092Participants should dial into the call 10 minutes before the scheduled time.

The information provided on the teleconference is only accurate at the time of the conference call, and the Company will take no responsibility for providing updated information.

About Scorpio Tankers Inc.

Scorpio Tankers Inc. is a provider of marine transportation of petroleum products worldwide. Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns, finance leases or bareboat charters-in 113 product tankers (39 LR2 tankers, 60 MR tankers and 14 Handymax tankers) with an average age of 6.7 years. Additional information about the Company is available at the Company's website www.scorpiotankers.com, which is not a part of this press release.

Forward-Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forwardlooking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forwardlooking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forwardlooking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words believe, expect, anticipate, estimate, intend, plan, target, project, likely, may, will, would, could and similar expressions identify forwardlooking statements.

The forwardlooking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, managements examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Companys records and other data available from third parties. Although management believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Companys control, there can be no assurance that the Company will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. The Company undertakes no obligation, and specifically declines any obligation, except as required by law, to publicly update or revise any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in the Companys view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forwardlooking statements include unforeseen liabilities, future capital expenditures, revenues, expenses, earnings, synergies, economic performance, indebtedness, financial condition, losses, future prospects, business and management strategies for the management, the length and severity of the ongoing novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, including its effect on demand for petroleum products and the transportation thereof, expansion and growth of the Companys operations, risks relating to the integration of assets or operations of entities that it has or may in the future acquire and the possibility that the anticipated synergies and other benefits of such acquisitions may not be realized within expected timeframes or at all, the failure of counterparties to fully perform their contracts with the Company, the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for tanker vessel capacity, changes in the Companys operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for the Companys vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, charter counterparty performance, ability to obtain financing and comply with covenants in such financing arrangements, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessels breakdowns and instances of offhires, and other factors. Please see the Companys filings with the SEC for a more complete discussion of certain of these and other risks and uncertainties.

Contact Information

Scorpio Tankers Inc.(212) 542-1616

Source: Scorpio Tankers Inc.
BUENA PARK, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sun West Mortgage is committed to helping the largest autism nonprofit, Talk About Curing Autism (TACA), in its effort to reach more families in need.

Sun West announced it is a proud sponsor of the National TACA Conference, which returns in person from Oct. 14-16 at the Hilton Orange County in Costa Mesa, California. The conference is a vital forum for parents, caregivers, and professionals to learn about research and treatment in the field of autism.

Preeti Agarwal, their Vice President of Marketing, spoke about Sun West's partnership with TACA and the impact these events have on the lives of the attendees. "We have been supporting TACA for over 10 years and we hope that with our contribution and commitment, we can make a difference. We want parents to feel that they truly have a lender that understands their financial struggles and is there to guide them."

Preeti further elaborated, "As a mom, I saw the struggles that families went through and how their dreams and hopes of purchasing a home were affected. Families face many challenges in managing the personal and financial stress of caring for an autistic child. With our support, we hope to make their lives a bit less stressful, and we want them to know that we understand their unique financial situation."

Sun West is supporting the National Autism Conference by offering complimentary attendance to all its customers and employees. It is also offering attendees the chance to win well-deserved prizes to make the conference as exciting and interactive as possible. "We are proud to support and help more attendees learn about the latest advancements in the field of autism. This conference is vital to promote, nurture and grow the support and understanding of Autism."

For more information or to attend, please visit https://www.swmc.com/tacaconference/.

Visit swmc.com for terms and conditions: https://www.swmc.com/theprocessor. For licensing information, visit www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org. Visit http://www.swmc.com/swmc/disclaimer.php for the full list of license information. Please refer to https://www.swmc.com/TXdis.php to view Texas Complaint Notice and Servicing Disclosure. In all jurisdictions, the principal (main) licensed location of Sun West Mortgage Company, Inc. is 6131 Orangethorpe Avenue, Suite 500, Buena Park, CA 90620, Phone: (800) 453-7884.

Contact Information: Sophie MIchaels PR Manager [email protected] 914 309 8221

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WALTHAM, MA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NewMediaWire -- Tecogen Inc. (OTCQX: TGEN), a clean energy company providing ultra-efficient and clean on-site power, heating, and cooling equipment, is pleased to announce a follow-on order of two additional Tecochill systems for a large municipality in Connecticut consisting of one 200 ton Tecochill system for an elementary school and one 50 ton Tecochill system for a separate elementary school. In both cases the systems are part of a district-wide upgrade to provide air conditioning to schools that previously did not have central cooling. The two Tecochill units are in addition to three 400 ton Tecochill chiller systems ordered by the district in July. The order brings a total of 7 Tecochill units with a combined capacity of 1850 tons of Tecochill cooling for the municipality, which has been a Tecogen customer for over 20 years.

The municipality is taking advantage of its allocation of American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding for improvements in heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) in the school system to fund the projects. In addition to significant cost savings and additional resiliency to electric grid outages, the municipality is expected to achieve greenhouse gas (GHG) savings of 1,700 tons/year in the aggregate from its Tecochill systems.

We are excited that this Connecticut municipality decided to supplement its order for Tecochill systems in its school and municipal buildings, noted Benjamin Locke, Tecogens CEO. Tecogen equipment is uniquely suited to reduce both energy costs and carbon emissions as electric rates continue to increase, and our equipment enables customers to satisfy emerging GHG reduction goals.

About Tecogen Tecogen Inc. designs, manufactures, installs, and maintains high efficiency and ultra-clean cogeneration products, including combined heat and power systems, air conditioning systems, and high-efficiency water heaters for residential, commercial, recreational, and industrial applications. The companys cost efficient, reliable, and environmentally friendly products for energy production nearly eliminate criteria pollutants and significantly reduce customers carbon footprint.

In business for over 35 years, Tecogen has shipped more than 3,000 units, supported by an established network of engineering, sales, and service personnel throughout North America. Aggregate run hours on Tecogens InVerde cogeneration systems exceeds 5 million hours. For more information, please visit www.tecogen.com or contact us for a free Site Assessment. Tecogen, InVerde e+, Ilios, Tecochill, Tecofrost, Tecopack, Tecopower, and Ultera are pending or registered trademarks of Tecogen Inc.

Forward Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements which may describe strategies, goals, outlooks or other non-historical matters, or projected revenues, income, returns or other financial measures, that may include words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "likely" or "may" and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements.

In addition to the Risk Factors described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q under Risk Factors, factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from past and projected future results include the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on demand for our products and services, the availability of incentives, rebates and tax benefits relating to our products, changes in the regulatory environment relating to our products, competing technological developments, and the availability of financing to fund our operations and growth.

Tecogen Media & Investor Relations Contact Information: Benjamin Locke, CEOP: (781) 466-6402E: [email protected]

Source: Tecogen, Inc.
STEINHAUSEN, Switzerland, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) today issued a quarterly Fleet Status Report that provides the current status of, and contract information for, the companys fleet of offshore drilling rigs.

This quarters report includes the following updates:

Deepwater Conqueror  Awarded a two-year contract in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico at $440,000 per day.

Deepwater Asgard  Awarded a one-well contract in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico at $395,000 per day plus a one-well option.

Deepwater Asgard  Awarded a one-year contract in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico at $440,000 per day.

Petrobras 10000  Awarded a 5.8-year contract in Brazil at $399,000 per day escalating annually to $462,000 per day.

Development Driller III  Awarded a one-well contract in Suriname at $345,000 per day plus two one-well options.

Transocean Norge  Awarded a 17-well contract in Norway at dayrates between $350,000 and $430,000.

Dhirubhai Deepwater KG1  Customer exercised a one-well option in India at $330,000 per day.

Paul B Loyd Jr  Customer exercised two 100-day options in the U.K. at $175,000 per day.

Transocean Spitsbergen  Customer exercised a one-well option in Norway at $316,000 per day.

The aggregate incremental backlog associated with these fixtures is approximately $1.6 billion. As of October 13, the companys total backlog is approximately $7.3 billion.

The report can be accessed on the companys website: www.deepwater.com.

About Transocean

Transocean is a leading international provider of offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells. The company specializes in technically demanding sectors of the global offshore drilling business with a particular focus on ultra-deepwater and harsh environment drilling services and operates one of the most versatile offshore drilling fleets in the world.

Transocean owns or has partial ownership interests in, and operates a fleet of, 37 mobile offshore drilling units consisting of 27 ultra-deepwater floaters and 10 harsh environment floaters. In addition, Transocean is constructing two ultra-deepwater drillships.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements described herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements could contain words such as "possible," "intend," "will," "if," "expect," or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on managements current expectations and assumptions, and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. As a result, actual results could differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, estimated duration of customer contracts, contract dayrate amounts, future contract commencement dates and locations, planned shipyard projects and other out-of-service time, sales of drilling units, timing of the companys newbuild deliveries, operating hazards and delays, risks associated with international operations, actions by customers and other third parties, the fluctuation of current and future prices of oil and gas, the global and regional supply and demand for oil and gas, the intention to scrap certain drilling rigs, the success of our business following prior acquisitions, the effects of the spread of and mitigation efforts by governments, businesses and individuals related to contagious illnesses, such as COVID-19, and other factors, including those and other risks discussed in the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, and in the company's other filings with the SEC, which are available free of charge on the SEC's website at: www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize (or the other consequences of such a development worsen), or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to the company or to persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to these risks and uncertainties. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur, or which we become aware of, after the date hereof, except as otherwise may be required by law. All non-GAAP financial measure reconciliations to the most comparative GAAP measure are displayed in quantitative schedules on the companys website at: www.deepwater.com.

This press release, or referenced documents, do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, and do not constitute an offering prospectus within the meaning of the Swiss Financial Services Act (FinSA) or advertising within the meaning of the FinSA. Investors must rely on their own evaluation of Transocean and its securities, including the merits and risks involved. Nothing contained herein is, or shall be relied on as, a promise or representation as to the future performance of Transocean.

Analyst Contacts:Alison Johnson+1 713-232-7214

Media Contact:Pam Easton+1 713-232-7647

Source: Transocean Ltd.
ATLANTA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wounded Warriors Family Support (WWFS) and Assurant (NYSE: AIZ), through the Assurant Foundation, presented retired U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Sean Adams of Gainesville, Georgia, with a specially modified 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 truck as part of the WWFS Mobility is Freedom program.

It is an honor and privilege to partner with the Assurant Foundation to provide combat-wounded veterans mobility, Wounded Warriors Family Support President and CEO Kate McCauley said. Our belief is that given a properly equipped vehicle for their individual needs, combat wounded veterans, such as Sean, will have the freedom to live a productive and quality life with their family. Wounded Warriors Family Support launched Mobility is Freedom in 2015 to provide modified vehicles for combat-wounded veterans. Across the U.S., there are 350 veterans who need modified vehicles because of their combat-related injuries. Assurant has partnered with WWFS since 2018. This is the second mobility-modified vehicle presented to a veteran since the collaboration was formed. Supporting veterans is an important part of our community involvement at Assurant, and we do that throughout the year in collaboration with our newest Employee Resource Group, [email protected], Assurant President and CEO Keith Demmings said. In partnership with WWFS, we honor Seans service and sacrifice and hope this new truck will help his farm business thrive. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks had a profound effect on Adams, who enlisted in the Marines after he graduated from high school. Adams was in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, on a reconnaissance patrol when he was severely injured by an improvised explosive device on Feb. 10, 2012.

The blast took both of Adams legs above the knee and injured both hands and his right arm. He also lost partial vision in his left eye. Adams considers the Navy Hospital Corpsmen and Marines who helped him in the field that day true heroes.

The new truck will help Adams work on his 67-acre hay farm. Mobility modifications include the installation of a special wheelchair lift, a digital accelerator ring and a custom brake handle.

As a veteran, I have seen how much our service members sacrifice to keep our country safe, said Alex Punsalan, senior vice president, P&C Claims and Executive Sponsor of [email protected] Im proud to be part of a company that recognizes the challenges veterans face and honored to be able to support veterans like Sean as part of my work at Assurant.

About Wounded Warriors Family Support Wounded Warriors Family Support is an independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide support to the families of those who have been wounded, injured, or killed during combat operations. This organization is run by combat veterans for combat veterans. Rated a four-star nonprofit by Charity Navigator, Wounded Warriors Family Support aids veterans and their families in healing the wounds that medicine cannot. For more information about Wounded Warriors Family Support, visit www.wwfs.org.

About Assurant Assurant, Inc. (NYSE: AIZ) is a leading global provider of lifestyle and housing solutions that support, protect and connect major consumer purchases. Anticipating the evolving needs of consumers, Assurant partners with the worlds leading brands to develop innovative products and services and to deliver an enhanced customer experience. A Fortune 500 company with a presence in 21 countries, Assurant offers mobile device solutions; extended service contracts; vehicle protection services; renters insurance and lender-placed homeowners insurance. The Assurant Foundation strengthens communities by supporting charitable partners that help protect where people live and can thrive, connect with local resources, inspire inclusion and prepare leaders of the future.

Learn more at assurant.com or on Twitter @Assurant.

WWFS Media Contacts: Kevin Schuster, PR Counsel Mobile: 402.917.6001 Email: [email protected] Martin Duarte, WWFS Mobile: 760.405.7777 Email: [email protected]

Assurant Media Contact: David Biss Mobile: 973-953-0721 Email: [email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bc2ec48e-23d9-4c60-abd2-e4c4cbe918ee

Wounded Warriors Family Support, Assurant Truck Presentation Assurant, through the Assurant Foundation, teamed with Wounded Warrior Family Support Tuesday to present combat-wounded veteran Sean Adams of Gainesville, Georgia, with a mobility-modified 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 Truck. Pictured (from left to right) are Assurant's Alex Punsalan, Keith Demmings and Alecia Bailey, Kate McCauley of Wounded Warriors Family Support and Adams.

Source: Wounded Warriors Family Support
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Aurelius Minerals Inc. (TSXV: AUL) (OTCQB: AURQF) (the "Company" or "Aurelius") is very pleased to announce that, in connection with the acquisition of the Aureus Gold properties, the Company has terminated the master transaction agreement dated as of February 27, 2020 (the "Master Transaction Agreement") between the Company and a fund managed by Sprott Resource Lending Corp. ("Sprott"), pursuant to which Aurelius owed approximately US$7.2 million in deferred payments, and certain guarantees and security had been delivered by the Company to and in favour of Sprott (the "Security Documents"). In consideration for terminating the Master Transaction Agreement and terminating and releasing the Security Documents, and has granted an unsecured 0.6% net smelter return royalty (the "NSR Royalty") on the Company's Aureus East Property to 1000321660 Ontario Inc. ("Sprott Co"), an affiliate of Sprott (the termination of the Master Transaction Agreement, the termination and release of security, and the granting of the NSR Royalty, together, the "NSR Transaction"). The Company thanks Sprott for their support over the past two years. The termination of the Master Transaction Agreement and the termination release of the Security Documents puts Aurelius on a positive financial footing better able to advance the Aureus Gold Properties and Mikwam and Lipton properties (as further described below).

Aurelius CEO, Mark N.J. Ashcroft, P.Eng., said, "The issuance of the 0.6% NSR to Sprott eliminates the need to allocate capital against future deferred payments and reduces this potential burden on the Company. We are pleased that Sprott recognized this hurdle and worked with us in arranging an equitable solution for both parties. The acquisition of the Aureus East property has been very successful and in a short period of time we have completely reinterpreted the geological model, identified significant gold mineralization and established a maiden resource. We look forward to continued success on the ground."

The NSR Royalty is subject to final acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange. Sprott and Sprott Co are both considered to be "Insiders", and the NSR Transaction is considered to be a "related party transaction" for purposes of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company did not file a material change report more than 21 days before the expected closing date of the NSR Transaction as the details of the NSR Transaction and the participation therein by each "related party" of the Company were not settled until shortly prior to the closing of the NSR Transaction, and the Company wished to close the NSR Transaction on an expedited basis for sound business reasons. The Company is relying on exemptions from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements available under MI 61-101. The Company is exempt from the formal valuation requirement in section 5.4 of MI 61-101 in reliance on section 5.5(a) of MI 61-101 as the fair market value of the NSR Transaction, insofar as it involves interested parties, is not more than the 25% of the Company's market capitalization. Additionally, the Company is exempt from minority shareholder approval requirement in section 5.6 of MI 61-101 in reliance on section 5.7(b) of MI 61-101 as the fair market value of the NSR Transaction, insofar as it involves interested parties, is not more than the 25% of the Company's market capitalization.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 as amended (the "1933 Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of U.S. persons (as defined in Regulation S under the 1933 Act) absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements.

About Aurelius

Aurelius is a well-positioned gold exploration company focused on advancing its Aureus Gold Properties, including Aureus East and West, the Tangier Gold Project and the Forest Hill Gold Project located in Nova Scotia and described in detail in the Company's press release of November 18, 2019.

Aurelius is also focused on advancing two district-scale gold projects in the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Ontario, Canada, one of the world's most prolific mining districts; the 968-hectare Mikwam Property in the Burntbush area on the Casa Berardi trend, and the 12,425-hectare Lipton Property on the Lower Detour Trend.

The Company has a management team with experience in all facets of the mineral exploration and mining industry who will be considering additional acquisitions of advanced staged opportunities in Nova Scotia, the Abitibi and other proven mining districts.

On Behalf of the Board

AURELIUS MINERALS INC.

For further information please contact:

Aurelius Minerals Inc.

Mark N.J. Ashcroft, P.Eng., President and CEO

[email protected]

Tel.: (416) 304-9095

www.aureliusminerals.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" under the provisions of applicable Canadian securities legislation, concerning the business, operations and financial performance and condition of Aurelius. All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" with respect to Aurelius within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements with respect to the anticipated receipt of final approval from the TSX Venture Exchange, and the anticipated development of the Aureus Gold Properties. Generally, this forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" , "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" , "believes", or variations or comparable language of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of factors and assumptions that, if untrue, could cause the actual results, performances or achievements of Aurelius to be materially different from future results, performances or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business strategies and the environment in which Aurelius will operate in the future, including the price of gold, anticipated costs and ability to achieve goals.

Certain important factors that could cause actual results, performances or achievements to differ materially from those in the forward-looking information include, among others, gold price volatility, mining operational and development risks, litigation risks, regulatory restrictions (including environmental regulatory restrictions and liability), changes in national and local government legislation, taxation, controls or regulations and/or change in the administration of laws, policies and practices, expropriation or nationalization of property and political or economic developments in Canada, delays, suspension and technical challenges associated with projects, higher prices for fuel, steel, power, labour and other consumables, currency fluctuations, the speculative nature of gold exploration, the global economic climate, dilution, share price volatility, competition, loss of key employees, additional funding requirements and defective title to mineral claims or property. Although Aurelius believes its expectations are based upon reasonable assumptions and has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended.

The Company provides forward-looking information for the purpose of conveying information about current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Aurelius to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related to completion of the updated mineral resource estimate for the Aureus Gold Properties within the expected schedule, risks related to difficulties in executing exploration programs at the Aureus Gold Properties, the Mikwam and Lipton properties on the Company's proposed schedules and within its cost and scheduling estimates, whether due to weather conditions, availability or interruption of power supply, mechanical equipment performance problems, natural disasters or pandemics in the areas where it operates, the integration of acquisition; risks related to current global financial conditions including market reaction to the coronavirus outbreak; competition within the industry; actual results of current exploration activities; environmental risks; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; future price of gold; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; mine development and operating risks; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays in obtaining approvals or financing; risks related to indebtedness and the service of such indebtedness, as well as those factors, risks and uncertainties identified and reported in Aurelius' public filings under Aurelius' SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although Aurelius has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Aurelius disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140453
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc.(CSE: VEGI) (OTCQB: VGGIF) (FSE: 77I) ("Boosh" or the "Company") a premier plant-based brand in the "better for you" food sector, filed its unaudited interim financial statements for the first quarter ended June 30, 2022 ("Q1 2023") on October 6, 2022. All amounts expressed are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

The Company reported sales of $1,449,387 and gross profit of $136,114 for the three months ended June 30, 2022 versus sales of $33,104 and gross profit of $10,109 for the three months ended June 30, 2021. The significant increase in sales and gross profit is attributable to contribution from Beanfields which the Company acquired on February 16, 2022.

Beanfields is a healthy, gluten-free, non-GMO, vegan, top eight allergen-free flavored bean-based chip. Beanfields' products include a broad offering of nine flavors, including Black Bean, Sour Cream and Onion, Fiery Hot and Nacho flavors capitalizing on the industry trends of 'better for you' in the salty snack category and have quickly gained popularity in stores in the U.S. and Canada.

Beanfields was founded in 2010 as a family run business based in California and was sold to new owners in 2016 who expanded the brand into $12M USD annual sales with 7,000 retailers across North America. Through this process their strategy was to focus on sales however their expenses ran high and by 2021 their sales had fallen to $8M annually from lack of operating capital. Since acquiring the company in February, Boosh has focused on maintaining current customer base, reducing overhead and increasing margins through optimization and scaling Beanfields operations for future growth.

Key initiatives include:

The sourcing of a secondary packaging supplier to improve the Company's supply chain and avoid shipping delays. The Company estimates this could result in costs savings of approximately 30% in packaging costs.

Optimization of SKUS to reduce production costs and focus resources on the Company's most profitable products.

Prioritizing key retailers like Whole Foods, Sprouts and Loblaws, which represent approximately 50% of Beanfields' sales. Remaining inventory gets allocated out through UNFI and KeHE, national distributors for the company.

Changing processes for direct-to-consumer sales which have historically generated zero profit on approximately USD$1M in sales.

Reduced number of spice ingredient suppliers from 5 to 2 for simplicity in production and approximately 7% cost savings on processes.

Modifying Ring production process to eliminate a major step in the manufacturing process and achieve approximately 25% cost savings.

Implement a simplified logistics plan with fewer freight forwarders providing improved relationships and projected cost savings with an estimated 10% savings.

Set up new distributor in NYC to service 4,000 independent retailers and food service to increase sales of the 1.5 oz size of chips which generate higher margins.

Reduced overhead by $45,000 a month by consolidating the Company's headquarters in Canada.

The current demand for Beanfields products from retailers across North America exceeds our current supply as we receive purchase orders for approximately $800,000 USD wholesale monthly, but we are working hard to eliminate this gap through pursuing a capital raise in order to ramp up production to meet demand.

Connie Marples

Founder/President

[email protected]

Telephone: 778 840 1700

www.Booshfood.com

About Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc.:



Boosh Plant-Based Brands Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Boosh Food (www.booshfood.com) offers high quality, non-GMO, gluten free, 100% plant-based nutritional comfort foods for the whole family. Through a separate subsidiary, Beautiful Beanfields, (www.beanfields.com) the Company owns Beanfields, a plant-based chip brand sold in over 7,000 stores throughout North America. Boosh, good for you and good for planet earth.

The information in this news release includes certain information and statements about management's view of future events, expectations, plans and prospects that constitute forward looking statements. These statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, the actual results, expectations, achievements or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, the Company's expectations concerning the size of the Financing, its ability to close the Financing in whole or in part or at all and its plan for the proceeds of the Financing. Any number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements as well as future results. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward looking statements will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward looking statements or otherwise.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140416
Penang, Malaysia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Duesenberg Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: DUSYF) (the "Company" or "Duesenberg"), an OTCQB-listed issuer, announced today that on October 13, 2022, the Company closed a private placement financing by issuing 6,458,333 shares of its common stock (the "Shares") at a price of USD$0.12 per Share for total proceeds of USD$775,000 (the "Financing"). The Shares were issued to Mr. Lim Hun Beng, the Company's CEO, President, and director, pursuant to the provisions of Regulation S of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Act") as Mr. Lim confirmed he is not a resident of the United States and is otherwise not a "U.S. Person" as that term is defined in Rule 902(k) of Regulation S of the Act.

The proceeds of the Financing will be used to list the Company's Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange, as well as for day-to-day operations.

For additional information regarding the Private Placement please refer to the Current Report on Form 8-K the Company filed with the SEC on October 13, 2022.

The above does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the Company's securities in the United States. The securities have not been registered under the Act and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. persons unless an exemption from such registration is available.

About Duesenberg Technologies Inc.

Duesenberg Technologies Inc. was established out of the collective ambition of investors experienced in the online business and marketing. Our goal was to help entrepreneurs and businesses turn their own ideas and visions into successful companies. The Company's business strategy relies heavily environmentally friendly technologies. Duesenberg Technologies' goal is to be climate neutral across its full value chain, in line with the goals set by the Paris Agreement. The Company is committed to energy resiliency through Development in Energy Transition Goal. This strategy identifies an immediate and urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to help mitigate the effects of climate change, reduce energy use, and improve air quality. The Company is posed to play a vital role in supporting all three of these objectives by reducing the environmental impact through manufacturing a new type of luxury electric vehicles.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Lim, Hun Beng (Joe), President

CONTACT INFORMATION

Duesenberg Technologies Inc.

+1-236-304-0299

[email protected]

Forward-looking Information Cautionary Statement

Except for statements of historic fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements including, but not limited to delays or uncertainties with regulatory approvals and research and development of an Electric Vehicle. There are uncertainties inherent in forward-looking information, including factors beyond the Company's control. There are no assurances that the business plans for the Company as described in this news release will come into effect on the terms or time frame described herein. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties that could affect financial results is contained in the Company's filings, which are available at www.SEC.gov. We seek safe harbour.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140479
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Go Metals Corp.(CSE:GOCO) ("Go Metals" and/or the "Company")is pleased to announce the Company has entered into an agreement with IBK Capital Corp. ("IBK") to expedite the exercise of certain warrants.

"A warrant exercise allows the company to simplify our capital structure while adding funds for operations at HSP," says Scott Sheldon, Go Metals President.

The company also reports initial planning discussions for a follow up winter drill program at the HSP nickel-copper sulphide project in Quebec.

Scott Sheldon says "We are now satisfied in our logistical ability to return to HSP in the winter. The Company is beginning the planning process for a winter program including liaison with the Innu of Ekuanitshit First Nation regarding expanded exploration on the property."

Further details about individual target priority will be based on assay results as they become available.

About Go Metals

Go Metals targets Canadian battery metal projects to help power a sustainable future. The company flagship is a nickel-copper sulphide project 130 kilometres north of Havre-Saint Pierre, Quebec in the Nitassinan of the Innu of Ekuanitshit.

For further information, please contact:

Scott Sheldon, President

604.725.1857

[email protected]

Forward-Looking Information:

This press release may include "forward-looking information" (as that term is defined by Canadian securities legislation), concerning the Company's business. Forward-looking information is based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the Company's management, including future plans for the exploration and development of its mineral properties. Although the Company believes that such expectations and assumptions are reasonable, investors should not rely unduly on such forward-looking information as the Company can give no assurance they will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. The company disclaims any intent or obligation to publicly update any forward-looking information (whether as a result of new information, future events or results, or otherwise) other than as required by applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140424
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - iMining Technologies Inc. (TSXV: IMIN) (FSE: P1A) ("iMining" or the "Company"), a publicly-traded company that invests in blockchain technology and Web3.0 ecosystem, announces that the Company will be attending the inaugural real estate conference, INITI8, hosted by INITIA Real Estate in Mexico City. iMining's Chairman and CEO, Mr. Khurram Shroff, will be speaking about the Web3.0 industry and more specifically the opportunities related to the Metaverse, a virtual real estate technology focused on social connections. Mr. Shroff will be joined by other industry leaders, including Mr. Salvador Vazquez Bader, a veteran within the traditional real estate industry and Gerardo del Villar, a motivational speaker.

INITIA is a Canadian real estate company based in Edmonton, Alberta and its operations span across other Canadian provinces, including British Columbia and Ontario. In October, INITIA is celebrating the opening of its first office in Mexico and aims to form a link between Mexico and Canada to carry out international real estate transactions. INITIA has identified great opportunities for Canadian investors seeking to invest in Mexico and wants to be the bridge for Mexican investors interested in investing safely in Canadian real estate. In addition to opening INITIA's first office outside of Canada, the firm is also hosting its first annual "INITI8" real estate convention at the W Hotel in Mexico City. The convention will take place on October 21st and 22nd, 2022 with the participation of international speakers, and experts in different fields related to real estate.

"INITIA Mexico is a Mexican company with foreign participation, one of the three partners is originally from Mexico City and lives in Canada. INITIA presents an innovative business model that focuses on digital advertising and generates a partnership-focused relationship with its agents, instead of the traditional brokerage scheme. INITIA, being a brokerage in Canada, has the ability to offer Mexican properties to Canadian real estate investors," said Mr. Greg Rivera, Managing Director of INITIA Mexico.

"I am excited to participate in this convention as it gives me the opportunity to connect with an entirely new audience in Mexico and potentially across different areas of Latin America," said Mr. Khurram Shroff, CEO of iMining. "Additionally, I look forward to discussing and engaging with the attendees on recent developments in the Web3.0 industry and highlighting the opportunities iMining and its subsidiary, Metaverse Advisory Group, are working on within this exciting sector," added Mr. Shroff.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Signed "Khurram Shroff"

Khurram Shroff, President & CEO

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, please contact:

iMining Corporate Offices:

Saleem Moosa, Director

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +1 (844) IMININC (464-6462)

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance, and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions, and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected including, but not limited to, market conditions, availability of financing, actual results of activities, future cryptocurrency prices, operating risks, and other risks in the cryptocurrency industry. All the forward-looking statements made in this news release are qualified by these cautionary statements and those in our continuous disclosure filings available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances save as required by applicable law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140489
Highlights

Infinity Stone expands its land position to over 5,187 hectares, with 28 identified pegmatites, in James Bay Lithium District adjacent to Patriot Battery Metals' Corvette discovery.

Option to acquire an additional 1,336 hectares directly adjacent to the Company's Hellcat Project

Infinity Stone expanded property following the Fall Exploration Program which identified tourmaline, garnet, and muscovite mineralization on the Rouget formation greenstone belt underlying the Hellcat Claim and trending on to the New Claim Block

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Infinity Stone Ventures Corp. (CSE: GEMS) (OTCQB: GEMSF) (FSE: B2I) (the "Company" or "Infinity Stone"), is pleased to announce that it has entered into an option agreement to acquire an additional 1,336 hectares directly adjacent to the Company's Hellcat Project (the "New Claim Block"), which is part of Infinity Stone's larger Camaro Project, near Patriot Battery Metals ("PMET" or "Patriot") Corvette Lithium Discovery in the James Bay Region of Quebec.

The block is contiguous with the northwestern boundary of Infinity Stone's Hellcat Project. The newly acquired area hosts an additional five pegmatite occurrences, with an additional 11 appearing in the southeastern Hellcat Project.

The fall exploration program, conducted by Axiom Exploration Group, Infinity Stone's contracted technical team, (the "Fall Program") was extremely successful in confirming historically mapped pegmatites and identified new showings. 87 samples were collected over 3850 hectares of claims adjacent to the Patriot discovery. The samples have been shipped to Saskatchewan Research Council ("SRC") lab in Saskatoon, Sask., with assay results expected to be returned in the coming weeks.

One of the significant highlights of the Fall Program was the identification of a cluster of highly prospective pegmatitic dykes and cross cutting structures near the northern margin of the Hellcat claims extending to the north, into the newly acquired claim area.

The white, coarse grained, pegmatite dykes in this area were mineralogically characterized by tourmaline, garnet, and muscovite which are common LCT (Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum) pegmatite indicator minerals in the district.

The New Claim Block is underlain by 9 km of strike length of underexplored greenstone and metasediments of the Mesoarchean Rouget formation and Neoarchean Marbot formation respectively. The under-explored Rouget formation greenstone belt represents an attractive exploration target which is geologically similar and proximal to the Guyer Group greenstone which hosts the PMET Corvette Pegmatites.

"Following our recent Fall Program, we moved quickly to expand our footprint and focus on the most prospective areas of the Camaro Project in James Bay," said Zayn Kalyan, CEO of Infinity Stone. "The identification of tourmaline, garnet, and muscovite, in pegmatites on the expanded Hellcat have given us an area of considerable interest and will be critical to our exploration program moving forward," furthered Mr. Kalyan.

Infinity Stone intends to provide a full update regarding the Fall Program in the immediate term.

Figure 1.Expanded Hellcat Claims



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Figure 2.Camaro Project



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Options Terms

Pursuant to the property option agreement (the "Agreement"), the Company has the option to acquire a 100% interest in the Project from Tamed Mining Corp.. (the "Optionor") by (i) making cash payments totaling $150,000 in installments over the course of twelve (12) months, (ii) issuing a total of 2,500,000 Class A Subordinate Voting Shares of the Company in tranches over the course of twenty (24) months.

About the Camaro Lithium Project

The 5,187-hectare Camaro Lithium Project is located adjacent to Patriot Battery Metals' Corvette Property, in the James Bay Region of Quebec, approximately 235 kilometres east of Radisson, Quebec and 245 kilometres northeast of the Cree village municipality of Nemaska. The Project has three property blocks, the Taiga, Hellcat, and Camaro, collectively covering 3,850 hectares adjacent to Patriot Battery Metals' Corvette Lithium discovery in the James Bay Region of Quebec. PMET's CV8 pegmatite, with grab samples averaging 4.6% Li2O, is located 1,400 metres north of the Taiga Project. The newly-discovered CV13 pegmatite cluster is located 1,500 metres north of the Camaro Project.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Case Lewis, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" as defined under NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and a director of the Company.

About Infinity Stone Ventures

Infinity Stone's mission is to be a diversified, single source supplier for the critical energy metals being used in the clean energy revolution alongside its established SaaS solution portfolio. Infinity Stone is meeting the demand from battery and wind turbine manufacturers, nuclear and hydrogen energy producers, and energy metals speculators by acquiring 100% interest in critical mineral deposits and occurrences in stable mining-friendly jurisdictions, close to final use destinations in North American manufacturing hubs.

To register for investor updates please visit https://infinitystone.ventures.

Connect with Infinity Stone

Email | Website | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram/|

Infinity Stone Contact

Zayn Kalyan

CEO and Director

Direct: 778-938-3367

[email protected]

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this news release.

Forward Looking Statements Disclaimer

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "projects", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Such forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or result expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon what management of Company believes are reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The forward-looking statements may also be affected by risks and uncertainties in the business of the Company, including those described in the Company's public filings available on www.SEDAR.com. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140409
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 13, 2022) - Southern Silver Exploration Corp. (TSXV: SSV) ("Southern Silver") reports that it has filed on SEDAR its National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report titled Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Cerro Las Minitas Project, Durango State, Mexico, dated October 13, 2022 (the "Technical Report"). The report was authored by M3 Engineering & Technology Corp. ("M3"), Kirkham Geosystems Ltd. ("KGL"), Entech Mining Limited ("Entech"), and Metallurgical Process Consultants Limited ("MPC").

Filing of the Technical Report follows Southern Silver's news release issued August 29th, 2022 announcing the results of its Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") on its 100% owned Cerro Las Minitas Project, Durango State, Mexico. Highlights from the PEA include:

PEA Highlights (all figures in $US unless otherwise noted):

Robust Project Economics - Base Case: after-tax NPV5% of $349M (C$450M) and IRR of 17.9% (using Ag- $21.95/oz, Cu - $3.78/lb, Pb - $0.94/lb and Zn - $1.33/lb);

Excellent Silver and Zinc Price Leverage - Base-case +15%: after-tax NPV5% of $561M (C$730M) and IRR of 24.4% (Ag- $25.24/oz, Cu - $4.35/lb, Pb - $1.08/lb and Zn - $1.53/lb);

Large-Scale Underground Mining Operation with a 15-year mine life with an annual average plant feed of 14.2 Mozs AgEq (inc. 5.8 Mozs Ag) at an AISC of $13.27/oz AgEq sold;

High-Revenue Project: Base Case gross revenues total US$3.7B with silver representing 42% of revenues, zinc representing 39% of revenues. The project has an Initial CapEx of $341M and an NPV-to-CapEx ratio of 1.0X;

Well Located Project in a mining friendly jurisdiction with excellent infrastructure in southeast Durango state, Mexico; and

Further Exploration Upside: Drilling through to August 2022 has confirmed mineralized extensions to the Mina La Bocona and Skarn Front deposits that have not been incorporated into the current Resource Model. Other deposits remain open laterally and to depth and remain to be explored

About Southern Silver Exploration Corp.

Southern Silver Exploration Corp. is an exploration and development company with a focus on the identification of world-class mineral deposits in major jurisdictions, advancing them either directly or through joint-venture relationships. Our specific emphasis is on advancing the 100% owned Cerro Las Minitas project, one of the world's largest undeveloped silver-lead-zinc deposits, to a production decision.

Southern has assembled a team of highly experienced technical, operational and transactional professionals to support our efforts in developing (recent robust PEA) the Cerro Las Minitas project into a premier, high-grade, silver-lead-zinc mine. Our property portfolio also includes the Oro porphyry copper-gold project where a diamond drill program is underway and the Hermanas gold-silver vein project where permitting applications for the conduct of a drill program is underway; both are located in southern New Mexico, USA.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"Lawrence Page"

Lawrence Page, Q.C.

President & Director, Southern Silver Exploration Corp.

For further information, please visit Southern Silver's website at https://www.southernsilverexploration.com or contact us at 604.641.2759 or by email at [email protected].

Qualified Person

The PEA for the Cerro Las Minitas project as summarized in this release was completed by Kirkham Geosystems Ltd. ("KGL"), M3 Engineering & Technology Corp. ("M3"), Entech Mining Limited ("Entech"), and Metallurgical Process Consultants Limited ("MPC"). The full Technical Report is available on Southern Silver's website and on SEDAR under Southern Silver Exploration Corp.

The scientific and technical content of this news release was reviewed and approved by Robert Macdonald, MSc. P.Geo, VP. Exploration, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include the timing and receipt of government and regulatory approvals, and continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. Southern Silver Exploration Corp. does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/140495
LONDON (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Thursday that several people had been arrested during a foiled attack on the TurkStream gas pipeline on Russian territory, Interfax news agency reported.

Russia has said it is stepping up security on the TurkStream pipeline, which carries Russian gas to Turkey, amid unexplained ruptures on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea and an oil leak on the Druzhba pipeline in Poland.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
New investing website for investors looking for help and information on the stock market.



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The key component of Alpha Beta Stock's investment approach is acquiring and holding high-quality stocks for protracted periods of time. The business fundamentals of businesses and industries are given more weight by ABS than passing market trends.



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SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Apptest.ai is pleased to announce their strengthened global sales partnership with LG U+, one of the largest mobile carriers in Korea. The two companies co-marketed at STARWEST 2022 to promote AI testing. Apptest.ai has been invited to present at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco.

Apptest.ai eliminates the need to build device labs, lab managers, and automation infrastructure development.

Apptest.ai provides a proprietary SaaS solution for mobile app testing that leverages state-of-the-art computer vision and natural language processing techniques to automatically test for errors without writing a single line of code. This solution allows app developers to minimize both time-to-market and costly errors.

To date, no other company has delivered a fully autonomous app testing solution with just a few clicks. The core of Apptest.ai is their cloud-based AI testbot, which allows controlled and randomized testing that is paired with deep learning analytics. With proven product/market fit with high tech companies, the company is expanding its business with carriers, media, fintech, and automotive industries.

Apptest.ai accelerates the development process by automatically executing tests on multiple devices, giving QA professionals, developers, and support professionals the ability to perform automated tests and manual tasks, including reproducing customer issues and exploratory testing. Apptest.ai eliminates the need to build device labs, lab managers, and automation infrastructure development.

"We're excited to have built and launched best-in-class solutions that allow our partners LG U+, Hyundai Motor Group, NBC Universal, GS Caltex, Hyundai Card to directly exceed ongoing software quality and mobile (iOS & Android) / web UX expectations." Stated Jae Jun Hwang, CEO of Apptest.ai. "Automating app error identification fundamentally enables the shift towards AI driven development models."

While application quality is becoming increasingly important, it is simultaneously becoming more complex due to the number of device models, variations in firmware and OS versions, carrier and manufacturer customizations, and dependencies on remote services and other apps. Apptest.ai is proving its B2B partnership success with a turnkey, no code QA/QC automation, enabling companies to identify app errors.

About Apptest.ai

With offices in Seoul and San Jose, Apptest.ai's team consist of entrepreneurs with mobile QA, machine learning and cloud computing experiences. With various industry testing environments, Apptest.ai launched Stego, which enables any QA team to establish automation parameters, without coding, with AI testbots.

Media Contact:Jae June Hwang[email protected]

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SOURCE KIC Silicon Valley
More than 400 Aspen Dental Offices provided free dental care for 3,000+ veterans on June 11, breaking down barriers to care

CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Aspen Dental and Curley Company won the Best Integration Into Culture category at the 2022 PRWeek Purpose Awards for the annual Day of Service initiative. The Purpose Awards recognize activations and innovations that use creative ideas to further positive causes and to celebrate the agencies, brands, public-sector organizations, non-profits and NGOs behind them.

On Saturday, June 11th, more than 400 Aspen Dental locations opened their doors for the 8th annual Day of Service to provide care to more than 3,000 military veterans and their families, resulting in $1.8 million in free dental services. Medical professionals and care teams in the Aspen Dental network of independent offices broke down barriers to care and treated veterans' most urgent dental needs, from fillings and extractions to hygiene and basic denture repairs.

"Our annual Day of Service is core to our mission and it's something that our team can rally around every year," said Bob Fontana, founder and CEO of Aspen Dental Management, Inc. "I'm honored to receive this recognition on behalf of the teams across the Aspen Dental network who give of their time and expertise to care for veterans, and I'm also proud of the message that our team has sent through this campaign. As an industry, we must do more to connect with vulnerable communities and make sure that all members of society have access to high quality, affordable dental care."

Millions of Americans struggle to access dental care every year, and veterans are no exception  in fact, U.S. veterans are ineligible for dental benefits through the Veterans Administration unless they're 100% disabled, have a service-related mouth injury or were a prisoner of war.

The success of this year's Day of Service builds on the ongoing impact of Aspen's Healthy Mouth Movement (HMM), a community-giving initiative launched in 2014 to deliver free dental care to veterans in need across the country. Since the launch of HMM, dentists and their teams from Aspen Dental-branded offices have donated over $26 million in dentistry services to more than 33,000 veterans and people in need. For more information about Day of Service and HMM, visit www.HealthyMouthMovement.com.

About Aspen Dental Offices

Aspen Dental Management, Inc. was founded in 1998 in New York by Bob Fontana with a simple goal in mind: to break down the barriers that doctors and patients face when it comes to dental care. Today, more than 20 years later, with 1,000+ Aspen Dental branded locations nationwide, the mission of the company remains the same  to bring better care to more people. Aspen Dental is the largest group of branded dental offices in the world. For more information, visit aspendental.com, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

About TAG - The Aspen Group

TAG  The Aspen Group was built on the simple idea of bringing better healthcare to more people. The independent healthcare practices TAG supports operate more than 1,300 locations in 45 states through its six consumer healthcare brands: Aspen Dental, ClearChoice Dental Implant Center, WellNow Urgent Care, Chapter Aesthetic StudioSM and AZPetVet. Combined, the practices serve more than 35,000 patients each day and more than 8 million patients each year. TAG is headquartered at 800 W. Fulton Market in Chicago. For more information, visit teamtag.com, and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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SOURCE Aspen Dental
CHICAGO, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Brown Gibbons Lang & Company (BGL), a leading independent investment bank and financial advisory firm, is pleased to announce the sale of Loewy Enterprises, d/b/a Sunrise Produce (Sunrise), a leading Southern California produce distributor, to Investcorp, an alternative investment firm.

BGL's Food & Beverage investment banking team served as the exclusive financial advisor to Sunrise in the transaction.

BGL's Food & Beverage investment banking team served as the exclusive financial advisor to Sunrise in the transaction, which furthers BGL's food and beverage M&A expertise within the broader food distribution market, and in particular, the specialty produce sector.

Founded in 1991 by Paul Carone, and headquartered in Fullerton, California, Sunrise is a prominent route-based, foodservice produce distributor serving a diversified base of over 2,000 accounts. Today, the company provides customers across the restaurant, resort, education, healthcare, and retail sectors with over 3,000 SKUs of specialty produce and other perishable foods sourced from a comprehensive regional supplier/grower network across the western United States. The transaction is expected to fuel Sunrise's future growth including meaningful opportunities for market expansion and future acquisitions.

"My goal in transitioning ownership was to identify a partner who could preserve the legacy, culture, and strong reputation we have built in the competitive Southern California market. Dan, Stephen, and the rest of the BGL team delivered these results for Sunrise, and I thank them for their tremendous work," said Paul Carone, founder and co-owner of Sunrise.

"BGL was an exceptional advisor every step of the way," added David Sapia, CEO and co-owner of Sunrise. "Their hands-on approach helped guide me and my team through the entire process, ultimately yielding a fantastic outcome. They did a great job communicating the unique Sunrise story to the market and helped us identify the optimal partner to support the company's future growth plans."

BGL's Food & Beverage investment banking team, led by Daniel J. Gomez, has deep sector knowledge and extensive transaction experience representing companies across the entire food and beverage landscape. Coverage includes retail of both branded and private label products, global supply chain sourcing, processing, distribution, and wholesale.

About Brown Gibbons Lang & CompanyBrown Gibbons Lang & Company (BGL) is a leading independent investment bank and financial advisory firm focused on the global middle market. The firm advises private and public corporations and private equity groups on mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, financial restructurings, business valuations and opinions, and other strategic matters. BGL has investment banking offices in Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, and New York, and real estate offices in Chicago, Cleveland, and San Antonio. The firm is also a founding member of Global M&A Partners, enabling BGL to service clients in more than 30 countries around the world. Securities transactions are conducted through Brown, Gibbons, Lang & Company Securities, LLC, an affiliate of Brown Gibbons Lang & Company LLC and a registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC. For more information, please visit www.bglco.com.

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SOURCE Brown Gibbons Lang & Company
CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BPOC, one of the longest-tenured healthcare private equity firms, announced today that it has been named to Inc.'s 2022 Founder-Friendly Investors List, honoring private equity and venture capital firms that have a track record of successfully backing founder-led businesses.

To compile the list, Inc. went straight to the source: entrepreneurs who have sold to private equity or venture capital firms. Founders detailed their experiences partnering with private equity and venture capital firms and shared data on how their portfolio companies have grown during these partnerships.

"BPOC's leadership team understands the commitment founders make to grow their businesses and works alongside them to achieve scalable growth in line with a founder's vision. We have a storied history of investing in founder-led businesses, often as the first source of outside capital for many entrepreneurs. This recognition from Inc. is a testament to our transparent and collegial approach as we strive to accelerate growth by investing in infrastructure, implementing operational improvements and connecting founders with our extensive network of industry experts," said Greg Moerschel, Managing Partner at BPOC. "We are honored to be named among such an elite group of investment firms and proud that the founders we partner with recognize our commitment to match their sense of purpose and drive throughout the entirety of the investment."

BPOC seeks to provide founders with strategic value-add services beyond capital resources, ensuring that all aspects of a founder's legacy are protected and strengthened. The firm's investment in operational improvement, technologies and operational expertise allows founder-led businesses to accelerate and scale growth, all while the company's management team retains the independence to lead the business they have built.

"From the initial investment, BPOC was an ideal partner to Paragon Medical, helping us reach the next phase of growth with significant operating expansion, investment in advanced equipment, and strategic planning with executive placements," said Toby Buck, CEO and Founder of Paragon Medical, a leading outsourced orthopedic contract manufacturing organization, and the company for which BPOC was named to the list. "BPOC's goal is to work alongside management to elevate companies to the next stage of growth, and we are proud to have worked side-by-side with the firm in the true spirit of partnership, building on Paragon's strong foundation."

The final list recognizes firms that entrepreneurs collaborate with and trust as they receive the financial support they need to help drive growth. All have successful track records of remaining actively involved with the businesses they invest in. In its fourth year, this year's list brought in Inc.'s most competitive applicant pool, featuring both private equity and venture capital firms across industry sectors.

To see the complete list, go to: https://www.inc.com/founder-friendly-investors/2022

Introduced in 2019, the Founder-Friendly Private Equity Firms list quickly established itself as one of Inc.'s most resourceful franchises. It has become a go-to guide for entrepreneurs who want to grow their companies while retaining an ownership stake.

ABOUT BPOC Founded in 1996, BPOC is a Chicago-based private equity firm that invests exclusively in healthcare companies and is one of the nation's most experienced investors in the industry having raised five funds with total capital commitments of nearly $1.8 billion. BPOC has invested in numerous provider, manufacturing, outsourcing, distribution and information technology companies through growth equity, management buyouts and leveraged recapitalizations. For more information, visit www.bpoc.com.

ABOUT INC.The world's most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community they need to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

The "Founder-Friendly Investors" award is a program designed by Inc. Magazine to help founder-led companies accelerate growth and create revenue. Private equity and venture capital firms that have exited U.S.-based, founder-led portfolio companies are eligible to apply. For investments to qualify, portfolio company founders must have remained actively involved in their business for at least one year post-investment. Winning firms are selected based upon their track record, reputation, leadership and founder references. BPOC is not aware of the number of advisers also surveyed for the award. Like all entrants, BPOC paid a fee to be considered for this award and pays a fee to Inc. Magazine to use the collateral associated with the use of the award. This award is not to be construed as indicative of BPOC's future performance. Reference to an award is only one piece of information relevant to an evaluation of an investment adviser such as BPOC. Finally, this award represents information as of a specific date and time and may not reflect important information related to an evaluation of the investment adviser which has occurred prior to, or subsequent to, the award.

CONTACT:Alex NyeM: 814 671 7497E: [email protected]

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bpoc-recognized-as-a-founder-friendly-private-equity-firm-301648884.html

SOURCE BPOC
Mobile Lab Provides Cutting-Edge Clinical Training for Health Care Providers and Community Health Education

HOPEWELL, N.J., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Capital Health recently announced the launch of its new Advanced Simulation Training Center, a mobile simulation laboratory that provides state-of-the-art, multidisciplinary clinical training for physicians, nurses, emergency medical service providers, and other staff. The initiative was made possible through more than $500,000 of federal grant funding secured by Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), who was recognized for her role in the project at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Capital Health Regional Medical Center.

"As part of our mission to improve services for urban and suburban patients, Capital Health has made a commitment to becoming a leading academic health center for the region," said Al Maghazehe, president and CEO of Capital Health. "The Advanced Simulation Training Center is the latest demonstration of that commitment. Any great endeavor such as this requires strong partners, and we are grateful for the support of Rep. Watson Coleman, whose decades of hard work, experience, and commitment to our community helped bring this initiative to life."

"For over 125 years, Capital Health has provided high-quality medical care to local residents. I am so grateful that some of our country's finest medical professionals are right here in Trenton and this new mobile lab will help reach further into our neighborhoods to better serve some of our most vulnerable populations," said Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman.

High-fidelity simulation is a widely used teaching tool in health care. Capital Health's Advanced Simulation Training Center is a mobile facility that can be driven directly to learners to provide enhanced, customized instruction to doctors, nurses, paramedics, and other staff at or near their place of work. The 40-foot unit has two large, independent simulation rooms equipped with manikins (life-sized models of human bodies) to simulate real patient scenarios. Instructors in two central control rooms create situations that learners will see in real life, document their performance, and provide meaningful feedback. Simulation training like this promotes learning through active hands-on experience in a risk-free environment while supporting the development of teamwork, communication, and critical thinking skills.

Capital Health will use the Advanced Simulation Training Center to provide safe training in advanced cardiac life support, interventional procedures, management of acute hemorrhagic crises, childbirth, infant resuscitation, team care and other areas to prepare the next generation of its medical staff. Additionally, the simulation labs will be used for process improvement, medical error investigation, and research to help Capital Health continue to advance health care quality, safety, and best practices. On top of its clinical training mission, the Advanced Simulation Training Center will provide health education and wellness screenings at local community-based events.

About Capital Health

Capital Health is the Central New Jersey/Lower Bucks County region's leader in providing progressive, quality patient care with significant investments in physicians, nurses and staff, as well as advanced technology. Comprised of two hospitals (Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton and Capital Health Medical Center  Hopewell), a Hamilton outpatient facility, and an extensive network of primary and specialty care practices across the region, Capital Health is a dynamic health care resource accredited by DNV.

A five-time Magnet-designated health system for nursing excellence, Capital Health serves as a Level II regional trauma center, regional perinatal center (including a Level III NICU), and emergency mental health screening center. Capital Health also offers the region's first and most experienced Pediatric Emergency Department and most recently, New Jersey's first Autism -Friendly Pediatric Emergency Department. Capital Health also provides innovative programs such as Capital Institute for Neurosciences including its certified Comprehensive Stroke Center; nationally accredited Center for Comprehensive Breast Care; Center for Digestive Health; Marjorie G. Ernest Joint Replacement Center of Excellence; award-winning Cancer Center; and the Heart & Vascular Institute, which includes the region's first accredited Chest Pain Center. For more information, visit www.capitalhealth.org.

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SOURCE Capital Health
Announces $3.7M in seed funding from Springbank, Alleycorp Impact, Impact Engine, and Atlassian Ventures

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Dandi Technologies, the analytics platform for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace, emerged from stealth today. The company unveiled a first-of-its-kind DEI analytics solution used by people leaders to pinpoint equity gaps in the employee journey and implement data-driven solutions to workforce diversity challenges. The company also announced $3.7M in seed funding led by Springbank and Alleycorp Impact to increase the number of people the platform positively impacts globally.

"We believe Dandi can revolutionize the way companies recruit, retain, and compensate their people," said Jeff Fernandez, Dandi CEO and Co-Founder. "Without the right data, people and businesses are left facing the same 'unsolvable' DEI problems year after year, while demands for racial, social, and financial justice from employees, investors, and regulators only grow stronger. Our platform is putting DEI analytics capabilities and insights directly into the hands of more leaders across organizations and making them easy to understand. You don't need to be a data scientist to use Dandi."

Developed by data, design, and DEI veterans working closely with a group of DEI advisors, the Dandi platform is underpinned by advanced machine learning and makes powerful, realtime DEI data easily available and actionable for every company. With Dandi, organizations can:

Aggregate and analyze existing HR data to generate millions of DEI insights across the employee lifecycle, including recruiting, hiring, promotions, retention, and everything in between.

Leverage intersectional measurement along with sophisticated wage gap analysis to see how interactions between race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexuality and more impact compensation and take meaningful steps toward pay equity.

Integrate Dandi with most leading HR platforms, including Workday, ADP, SAP, Oracle, Greenhouse and Taleo, to easily see how factors like age, gender, LGBTQIA+ status, and marital status influence key metrics.

Give C-suite executives quick and easy access to critical DEI metrics, updated in real-time, through an Executive Dashboard.

Generate custom-branded presentations and export to Google Slides, Powerpoint, and more with a single click.

Share easy-to-understand visualization and detailed reports to shine a light on equity gaps so the right people can take action.

Employee turnover due to racial bias and unfair treatment has cost U.S. employers $171.9 billion over a five year period, according to research from the Society for Human Resources Management. Despite public commitments to DEI from companies in recent years, barely half of the largest U.S. companies share workforce diversity data. Moreover, only 11% report intersectional data  the gold standard for demographic data reporting. The large majority of companies do not have reliable, accurate measures for bias in place.

"With existing tools, it's nearly impossible to operationalize the concept of intersectionality. Dandi changes everything by allowing companies to see how these intersections affect the employee journey and take action," said Lily Lamboy, Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Blue Shield of California.

Dandi has an established roster of customers including Fortune 100 organizations like Blue Shield of California, publicly-traded companies such as Oscar Health and Braze, and fast-growing technology companies like Teachable and Care/Of (acq. by Bayer). Dandi is quick to deploy and affordable: starting at only $15 per employee per year, it's priced to work for businesses of every size.

In addition to Springbank and Alleycorp Impact, investors including Atlassian Ventures, Impact Engine, Uncommon Denominator, AAF, and Heirloom VC joined in funding Dandi's seed round. As a result of the round, Courtney Leimkuhler, Founder and Managing Partner at Springbank, has joined Dandi's board of directors.

"Dandi is creating the instrumentation for the workforce of the future. As more firms commit to DEI and as more regulators around the world demand the data to prove it, Dandi is providing essential tools for leaders and their teams. Jeff and the team have an impressive track record and vision, and I'm personally thrilled to be part of their mission," said Leimkuhler.

"AlleyCorp Impact is proud to co-lead this round and collaborate with its passionate, mission-driven team to position Dandi to be a vital solution in the arsenal of every company that is serious about building an equitable workplace," said Tanya Beja, General Partner at AlleyCorp Impact.

"Dandi is building the analytics tools to create a more equitable workplace for all teams. We're excited about its growth trajectory as more companies prioritize building data-driven DEI programs. Dandi's mission is deeply aligned with Atlassian's values and we look forward to supporting the Dandi team as it makes powerful demographic data actionable for Atlassian's 200,000+ cloud customers around the world," said Matt Sonefeldt, Head of Atlassian Ventures.

For more information about Dandi, visit www.itsdandi.com.

About Dandi

Dandi is the analytics platform for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace. Businesses use Dandi to seeoften for the first timehow they recruit, retain, and compensate their people, giving them the insights they need to pinpoint equity gaps and advance their DEI efforts. Through a team of DEI experts and an extended partner network, Dandi also offers the support businesses need to navigate the challenges of becoming fair and equal workplaces. Founded in 2017 by HR, DEI, data and design veterans, Dandi's mission is to make business better for everyone. Dandi is built by a distributed team with headquarters in New York City and Stockholm, Sweden.

Media Contact:

Kristin MacLaughin[email protected]610-864-0245

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SOURCE Dandi Technologies
Free virtual conference for World Cord Blood Day 2022 (November 15th) to feature renowned transplant doctors and researchers presenting ground-breaking work in cellular therapy using cord blood to treat cancer, HIV, cerebral palsy and autism. In addition, bestselling author, Delia Ephron, to present her memoir about fighting leukemia, "Left on 10th: A Second Chance at Life."

TUCSON, Ariz., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovations using cord blood in cellular therapy, including traditional stem cell transplants and regenerative medicine research, will be featured during World Cord Blood Day (WCBD) 2022. Recommended for healthcare professionals, expectant parents and STEM students, the official virtual conference, hosted by Save the Cord Foundation, will be held on November 15th (register free via Eventbrite).

We are proud to announce the following speakers:

Opening Session Livestream: Dr. Maegan Capitano (Indiana University), protege of the late Dr. Hal Broxmeyer, to discuss history of cord blood stem cells from discovery to application.

On-Demand Sessions:

Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg (Duke University / Marcus Center for Cellular Cures) to give an in-depth update on advances in clinical trials using cord blood and cord tissue in regenerative medicine for cerebral palsy, autism, HIE and stroke.



Dr. Koen van Besien (University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center) to discuss the potential of haplo-cord transplants in cancer and HIV treatments.



Dr. Yvonne Bryson (UCLA) to discuss the potential use of cord blood in HIV treatments with a focus on the "New York Patient"  third person in the world to be cured of HIV.



Bestselling author, Delia Ephron ( You've Got Mail , The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants ) who received a lifesaving haplo-cord transplant for leukemia, will discuss her latest book and memoir, "Left on 10th: A Second Chance at Life."

, ) who received a lifesaving haplo-cord transplant for leukemia, will discuss her latest book and memoir, "Left on 10th: A Second Chance at Life."

Leukemia specialist, Dr. Gail Roboz (Weill Cornell / New York Presbyterian) who treated Delia, will discuss the important role of cord blood in cancer treatments.

View the full agenda here: https://www.worldcordbloodday.org/online-medical-conference-agenda-wcbd-2022.html

Hosted and organized by Save the Cord Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit, World Cord Blood Day 2022 brings together the cord blood community through numerous live events and activities held around the globe and online. QuickSTAT Global Life Science Logistics, recognized leader in medical shipping and healthcare logistics, is the Official Sponsor. Inspiring Partners include Be the Match (NMDP), World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA-Netcord), Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies (AABB), Cord Blood Association (CBA), and Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT).

Visit www.WorldCordBloodDay.org to register free for the online conference and learn how you can participate on-line or at an event locally in your community (#WCBD22 #WorldCordBloodDay).

About Save the Cord Foundation (Organizer and host of WCBD 2022)

Save the Cord Foundation (a 501c3 non-profit) was established to advance cord blood education. The Foundation provides non-commercial information to parents, health professionals and the public regarding methods for saving cord blood, as well as current applications using cord blood and the latest research. Learn more at www.SaveTheCordFoundation.org.

About QuickSTAT Global Life Science Logistics (Official Sponsor of WCBD 2022)

Every day, QuickSTAT, a part of Kuehne+Nagel, safely and reliably moves thousands of critical shipments around the world. For over forty years, QuickSTAT has been entrusted with transporting human organs and tissue for transplant or research, blood, blood products, cord blood, bone marrow, medical devices, and personalized medicine, 24/7/365. QuickSTAT's specially trained experts work with hospitals, laboratories, blood banks and medical processing centers, and utilize the safest routes to ensure integrity, temperature control and chain of custody throughout the transportation process. Learn more at www.quickstat.aero.

Media Contact:

Charis Ober

(520) 419-0269

[email protected]

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SOURCE Save the Cord Foundation
Campaign Dates Announced

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) announces that Drowsy Driving Prevention Week 2022 will be November 6-13. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the campaign.

NSF's annual campaign goal is to reduce the number of drivers who choose to drive while sleep deprived.

NSF encourages everyone to prioritize sleep and drive when alert and refreshed. NSF's annual campaign goal is to reduce the number of drivers who choose to drive while sleep deprived. Drowsy driving is responsible for more than 6,400 U.S. deaths annually. Fall asleep crashes are often caused by not getting the sleep you need.

NSF's drowsy driving prevention resources are available on www.theNSF.org. Drowsy Driving Prevention Week 2022 sponsors include Schneider National and Waymo. Higi is also helping to promote NSF's sleep health messages. NSF independently produces Drowsy Driving Prevention Week and all related official educational content.

Sleep health resources for the public are available at www.theNSF.org.

About the National Sleep Foundation

The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation dedicated to improving health and well- being through sleep education and advocacy. Founded in 1990, the NSF is committed to advancing excellence in sleep health theory, research and practice. theNSF.org SleepHealthJournal.org

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SOURCE National Sleep Foundation
Expanded Information Has Potential to Help Create Greater Home Ownership Opportunities For Millions of U.S. First Mortgage Applicants

ATLANTA, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Equifax (NYSE: EFX) is the first to provide certain telecommunications (telco), pay TV and utilities attributes to the mortgage industry to help streamline the mortgage underwriting process and support loans within the secondary mortgage market. The majority of American adults have at least one utility bill in their name. Delivering certain telco, pay TV and utilities attributes to mortgage lenders alongside traditional credit reports can help create greater home ownership opportunities for 191 million U.S. consumers, 80 percent of whom have traditional credit files, but may benefit from additional insights into their financial profile that can make mortgage underwriting faster and easier. The use of these expanded data insights can also provide visibility to millions of credit invisible consumers - those without traditional credit files - and enhance the financial profiles of thin, young and unscorable consumers as they complete first mortgage applications.

For many Americans, the purchase of a home is a critical first step to establishing wealth. However, credit invisible consumers can struggle to take the first step into home ownership. Often, these consumers must go through a time-consuming manual underwriting process of obtaining physical documentation from third parties to show they have credit history when applying for a mortgage loan. By delivering certain attributes, which are based on a consumer's aggregated history with telco, pay TV and utilities, Equifax is able to provide powerful new insights that help to automate, save time and resources, and streamline the first mortgage process for every applicant  creating more potential for consumers to secure a loan.

"At Equifax, we strive to create economically healthy individuals and communities everywhere we do business," said Mark W. Begor, CEO of Equifax. "While traditional credit reports remain a strong indicator of credit history and past financial reliability, we believe that more data drives better decisions. Reviewing traditional credit reports alongside alternative data insights enables the mortgage industry to develop a more complete picture of a consumer's financial profile to drive greater financial inclusion by potentially streamlining the mortgage underwriting processes for many more consumers. This new offering is another way that we are leveraging differentiated data assets to help more consumers to gain access to mainstream financial services and opportunities."

These Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)-compliant insights provide anonymized information to streamline the mortgage application process as consumers seek approval for a home loan. This expanded data cannot be used by lenders to deny applications for credit or other services.

"The pathway to financial wellness and equity often begins with homeownership," said Craig Crabtree, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Equifax Mortgage & Housing Services. "The key to greater financial inclusion lies in greater levels of visibility. By delivering these mainstream and highly structured telco, pay TV and utilities attributes in addition to its traditional mortgage credit reports, Equifax is providing the mortgage industry with the ability to access enhanced data sets that can further facilitate the mortgage lending processes for more consumers. We look forward to working with the mortgage industry so that, together, we can unlock the full potential in helping millions of Americans achieve their goal of home ownership."

These added consumer insights, delivered alongside Equifax traditional mortgage credit report, will be provided at no additional cost to lenders, helping them to simplify the manual underwriting process, improve the customer experience, and reduce lender costs. Equifax will begin making these insights available to customers in the first quarter 2023.

The inclusion of telco, pay TV and utilities attributes to mortgage lenders is just one of several ways Equifax is promoting greater access to credit. Equifax is committed to removing barriers to financial inclusion, supporting a number of industry initiatives designed to provide underserved populations with the same opportunities to succeed and benefit from the nation's financial system as others.

For more information on Equifax Mortgage and Housing Solutions, visit equifax.com/mortgage.

ABOUT EQUIFAX INC.At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by more than 13,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 25 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.com.

FOR MORE INFORMATIONRebecca Paul-Martin[email protected]

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SOURCE Equifax Inc.
LUXEMBOURG, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) approved Europrivacy as European Data Protection Seal for certification under art. 42 (5) GDPR. Europrivacy enables companies to assess and formally certify their data processing compliance. Europrivacy certificates will be formally recognised in all E.U. Member States and will be taken into account by data protection supervisory authorities in case of litigation.

Europrivacy is an innovative methodology and certification scheme developed through the European research programme to simplify, enhance, and certify compliance with privacy regulations. It covers the GDPR requirements and is extendable to other non-EU privacy laws. Europrivacy is supervised and continuously updated by an International Board of Experts to address regulatory changes. It is made available for free to selected service providers and is already supported by an ecosystem of qualified law firms, consulting companies, solution providers, and certification bodies, including world leaders in each category (more on https://europrivacy.com).

Europrivacy will start by being applied on the territory of the European Union and will progressively be extended to other countries.

Reducing Risks for All Parties

Europrivacy certification enables all stakeholders to identify and select companies that effectively apply personal data protection. It enables companies to identify potential gaps with the regulation and reduce their legal, financial, and reputational risks. They can use it to monitor and document their compliance and to assess third-parties' compliance before transferring data.

Valuing Data Protection Compliance

Compliance is usually perceived as a burden and a cost by companies. With Europrivacy they can value and communicate their GDPR compliance. It turns compliance into an asset, a source of trust and competitive advantages.

Making GDPR Compliance More Effective, Efficient, and Enjoyable

Europrivacy's mission is to make data protection compliance more effective, efficient, and enjoyable. DPOs and auditors can get qualified on the Europrivacy online academy. They benefit from a variety of online tools and resources, including an online community to collaborate and share knowledge with other experts.

An Innovative Certification Scheme

Europrivacy was researched and developed through the European research programme. It brings a whole set of innovations to support GDPR compliance and certification:

A hybrid certification scheme, applicable to all sorts of data processing activities, while addressing domain and technology-specific obligations and risks for the data subjects.

applicable to all sorts of data processing activities, while addressing domain and technology-specific obligations and risks for the data subjects. Applicable to emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Blockchain.

such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Blockchain. Extendable to complementary national obligations , including non-EU regulations.

, including non-EU regulations. A ledger-based registry of certificates for authenticating certificates and preventing forgery.

for authenticating certificates and preventing forgery. Innovative criteria format that is both human and machine-readable.

Testimonials

Dr Sebastien Ziegler, President of Europrivacy International Board of Experts: "Europrivacy's ambition is to build trust and confidence in data protection, and to make data protection compliance as easy and natural as breathing air."

David Mudd, Global Head of Digital Trust Assurance at BSI: "With the amount of our working and social life that we conduct digitally growing exponentially and globally across society, data privacy has never been more important than it is today. The work Europrivacy has done in shaping a flexible yet robust certification scheme for Data Privacy is a key milestone in building consumer trust."

Luca Bolognini, President of the Italian Institute of Privacy, Rome, Italy: "Europrivacy has brought together some of the most seasoned European experts in data protection, cybersecurity and certification in order to deliver an efficient and comprehensive certification scheme that fully covers complex obligations."

Useful Links

Europrivacy website: www.europrivacy.org and https://europrivacy.info

European Data Protection Board: https://edpb.europa.eu

EDPB Opinion: https://edpb.europa.eu/system/files/2022-10/edpb_opinion_202228_approval_of_europrivacy_certification_criteria_as_eu_data_protection_seal_en.pdf

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SOURCE Europrivacy
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Farmhouse Inc. (OTCQB: FMHS) (the "Company") announced today that the Company has its Downtown Los Angeles ("DTLA") Cannabis retail dispensary business for sale. The DTLA dispensary is part of a 35,000 sq. ft. campus that is steps from the 10 freeway, near the up-and-coming Arts District, and close to the University of Southern California.

The dispensary comes with four licenses for retail, cultivation, distribution, and manufacturing with the opportunity to add more in the future. The cultivation business has two dry rooms, six flower rooms, and one properly sized vegetation and mom room. It is equipped with 300 luxx hps flower lights, is a gen-2 facility (considered top of the line when revamped in 2019), has a setup for salt nutrients, and additional automation.

"Farmhouse is connecting investors with an exciting opportunity to purchase a premium DTLA dispensary with a history of competitive revenue in a blossoming district of Los Angeles," said Evan Horowitz, CEO of Farmhouse.

The DTLA dispensary is currently under the control of a court-appointed receiver, Stoneblossom LLC. Tours are available by appointment at LA Farmers Inc. 824 E 17th St., Los Angeles, CA 90021. The sale is subject to court approval.

About Farmhouse, Inc.

Farmhouse has multiple divisions, including the WeedClub Platform, a professional social platform, that enables professionals to connect, discover products and services to scale their businesses. The Company believes it has established itself as the trusted brand to connect the industry through the WeedClub Platform and its @420 Twitter handle. In December 2021, the Company launched its NFT division to connect the cannabis and NFT industries through artist partnerships, NFT licensing and generative projects.

Forward Looking Statements

The Company cautions you that statements in this press release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations. The inclusion of forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation that any of our plans will be achieved. Actual results may differ from those set forth in this press release due to the risk and uncertainties inherent in our business.

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SOURCE Farmhouse, Inc.
RALEIGH, N.C., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- First Citizens Bank today announced that its Middle Market Banking business provided $19 million in financing to Truckee-Tahoe Lumber Company to provide support for their expanding business operations.

Headquartered in Reno, Nevada, Truckee-Tahoe Lumber (TTL) is a family owned and operated business that supplies lumber, building materials, custom doors, cabinets, and hardware from six locations in Northern California and Nevada. TTL is also actively engaged in community support and philanthropy in the markets they serve, having donated over $250,000 to local charities and non-profits in 2020 and 2021.

This latest financing extends a prior banking relationship between Truckee-Tahoe Lumber and the former CIT Group, which merged with First Citizens Bank in January 2022. Proceeds from the financing will be used to capitalize the company's future growth and ongoing investments.

"We are encouraged by the robust growth opportunities in the Northern Sierra Nevada region and look forward to continuing to serve our clients with the finest building materials on the market," said Andrew Cross, President & CEO of Truckee-Tahoe Lumber. "We appreciated the expertise of First Citizens Middle Market Banking in arranging this financing to support our growth objectives."

"Truckee-Tahoe Lumber has a storied past and a bright future as the region's premier building materials supplier," said Brendan Chambers, Managing Director and Group Head for First Citizens Middle Market Banking. "We were pleased to continue our support of Truckee-Tahoe Lumber with this latest financing."

"Truckee-Tahoe Lumber has a strong reputation as a leader in their field. We worked closely with them to understand their goals, as providing financing to middle market companies to support their business objectives is our specialty," said Katrin Engel, a Middle Market Banking Senior Vice President based in San Diego.

First Citizens Middle Market Banking delivers a broad range of financial solutions to midsize clients through a relationship banking model. The business offers deposit solutions, loans, treasury services and other banking products to manufacturers, distributors and a wide variety of service industries.

About First Citizens Bank

First Citizens Bank helps personal, business, commercial and wealth clients build financial strength that lasts. As the largest family-controlled bank in the United States, First Citizens Bank is continuing a unique legacy of strength, stability and long-term thinking that has spanned generations. Founded in 1898 and headquartered in Raleigh, N.C., First Citizens Bank also operates a nationwide direct bank and a network of more than 550 branches in 22 states. Industry specialists bring a depth of expertise that helps businesses and individuals meet their specific goals at every stage of their financial journey. First Citizens Bank brings together personal service and powerful tools to help customers do more with their moneyand make more of their future. Visit FirstCitizens.com. First Citizens Bank. Forever First

MEDIA RELATIONS: John M. Moran 212-461-5507 [email protected]

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SOURCE First Citizens Bank
This is the second notable recognition the company has received this week, following being named to the Fortune 2022 'Change the World' list

DUBLIN, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Medtronic plc (NYSE: MDT), a global leader in healthcare technology, today announced that Great Place to Work and Fortune magazine have honored Medtronic as one of the 25 global companies named to the World's Best Workplaces in 2022.

For more than six decades, the Medtronic Mission has served as a strategic framework for the company and guided its efforts to use technology to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life. In pursuit of fulfilling this Mission, the company recognizes the importance of delivering a rewarding experience for its employees  knowing that when employees are engaged and feel supported, they can more fully contribute their skills and talents to developing life-saving innovation.

The 25 global leaders were selected from organizations that participated in Great Place to Work's employee survey, representing nearly 15 million employees worldwide. The 25 World's Best Workplaces were noted for creating globally exceptional employee experiences, enabling high-trust relationships, and fostering workplaces that are fair and equal for all.

"It's a tremendous honor to be named one of the world's best workplaces," said Geoff Martha, chairman and CEO of Medtronic. "The recognition reflects the contributions of our passionate 95,000+ employees around the globe and their commitment to delivering the best possible experiences for every patient, physician, and caregiver we serve. They work hard every day to fulfill the Medtronic Mission, and their dedication, honesty, integrity, and service allow us to impact the lives of more than 76 million patients each year."

The World's Best Workplaces list is highly competitive. Great Place to Work, the global authority on workplace culture, selected the list using rigorous analytics and confidential employee feedback. Companies were only considered if they are a Great Place to Work-Certified organization.

"This recognition is especially meaningful because it's based on feedback from our employees around the globe," said Carol Surface, Chief Human Resources Officer at Medtronic. "Our Mission compels us to provide a fulfilling experience for all employees, because we know innovation, creativity, and collaboration thrive when our people do too. This honor highlights that commitment and inspires us to continue to make Medtronic a great place to work  for our current employees and those who will join in the future."

Great Place to Work is the only company culture award in the world that selects winners based on how fairly employees are treated. Companies are assessed on their ability to create a great employee experience that cuts across race, gender, age, disability status, or any aspect of employee identity or job role.

"For companies with a global workforce, achieving a consistent experience for every employee is exponentially more difficultand impressive," says Michael Bush, CEO of Great Place to Work. "Despite the many challenges facing global businesses in 2022, these companies have put the well-being of their people first. Their success is proof positive that when companies do right by their employees, no problem is too great to overcome."

The World's Best Workplaces list is the second notable recognition that Medtronic has received this week. On Monday, Oct. 10, 2022, Fortune named the GI Genius intelligent endoscopy module to its prestigious 2022 'Change the World' list. The annual list recognizes leading global companies that exemplify the creative tools of capitalism to address society's most pressing needs.

Medtronic is committed to solving the world's biggest health challenges with healthcare technology. That is why AI and data are not only transformative trends in the industry, but also strategic pillars for Medtronic  and GI Genius is a clear example of that. Today, the GI Genius module is the first commercially available computer-aided detection system using AI to help physicians detect polyps and flag signs of colon cancer. The module is poised to have a world-changing impact in the fight against colorectal cancer and improve patient outcomes by assisting physicians in identifying polyps they might otherwise miss.

About MedtronicBold thinking. Bolder actions. We are Medtronic. Medtronic plc, headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is the leading global healthcare technology company that boldly attacks the most challenging health problems facing humanity by searching out and finding solutions. Our Mission  to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life  unites a global team of 90,000+ passionate people across 150 countries. Our technologies and therapies treat 70 health conditions and include cardiac devices, surgical robotics, insulin pumps, surgical tools, patient monitoring systems, and more. Powered by our diverse knowledge, insatiable curiosity, and desire to help all those who need it, we deliver innovative technologies that transform the lives of two people every second, every hour, every day. Expect more from us as we empower insight-driven care, experiences that put people first, and better outcomes for our world. In everything we do, we are engineering the extraordinary. For more information on Medtronic (NYSE: MDT), visit www.Medtronic.com and follow @Medtronic on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About the World's Best WorkplacesGreat Place to Work selected the World's Best Workplaces by gathering and analyzing confidential survey responses representing 14.8 million employees worldwide at Great Place to Work-Certified organizations. Organizations are assessed on their efforts to create great workplaces and positively impact people and communities across multiple countries around the world. Companies must have appeared on at least five Best Workplaces lists in Asia, Europe, Latin America, Africa, North America, or Australia during 2021 or early 2022, and have at least 5,000 employees worldwide, with 40% outside of its headquartered country. Read the full methodology.

To be considered, all companies use the Great Place to Work Trust Index survey. To get on this list next year, start here.

About Great Place to WorkGreat Place to Work is the global authority on workplace culture. Since 1992, it has surveyed more than 100 million employees worldwide and used those deep insights to define what makes a great workplace: trust. Their employee survey platform empowers leaders with the feedback, real-time reporting and insights they need to make data-driven people decisions. Everything they do is driven by the mission to build a better world by helping every organization become a great place to work For All.

Learn more at greatplacetowork.com and on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in Medtronic's periodic reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

Contacts: Erika Winkels Ryan Weispfenning Public Relations Investor Relations +1-763-526-8478 +1-763-505-4626

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SOURCE Medtronic plc
Multi-year collaboration focuses on advancement of novel anesthesia and pain management technologies and products

NEW YORK and SPRING GROVE, Ill., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), the world's leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health, and Lumoptik, Inc. (Lumoptik), a development stage medical device company with a first-in-kind proprietary light-based technology, today announced a new collaborative relationship. Lumoptik and HSS aim to develop cutting-edge technologies and products to assist with epidurals, pain management procedures and other potential orthopedic and neurology uses, in addition to clinically evaluating Lumoptik's BrightPoint System for assisting with epidurals. This unique relationship combines the clinical expertise of HSS's world-class Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management with Lumoptik's BrightPoint platform technology and product development capabilities to improve how patient care is delivered.

The BrightPoint Epidural Needle Guidance System, Lumoptik's first product, is a low cost, easy to use device which can help clinicians better perform epidurals using the standard-of-care Loss of Resistance (LOR) technique. BrightPoint utilizes a specialized reflectometer that shows the clinician the color of the tissue at the tip of the needle in real time while inside the patient, thus providing an additional, objective indication that the needle is in the correct position. BrightPoint is designed to work as part of the LOR technique, in combination with standard needles and syringes and can help clinicians perform LOR epidurals more safely and reliably than traditional methods.

"HSS looks forward to working with Lumoptik to evaluate and assess the BrightPoint Epidural Needle Guidance System and work on new uses for Lumoptik's innovative platform technology," said Michael P. Ast, MD, chief medical innovation officer and a joint replacement surgeon at HSS. "This partnership is a great example of HSS being able to leverage all areas of its expertise, including anesthesia, in improving musculoskeletal care."

The HSS Innovation Institute played a central role in bringing together the appropriate HSS skillsets and expertise to optimize the collaboration with Lumoptik. "Our mission to advance patient care through new technologies and partnerships aligns with the potential of Lumoptik's technology and our anesthesia team to drive this new innovation forward," said Doug Leach, vice president of Device Innovation at HSS.

"Using epidural anesthesia with patients who have musculoskeletal disease can be particularly challenging given the impact that arthritis and injury can have on the spine," said Michael Singleton, MD, an anesthesiologist at HSS. "I am excited to see Lumoptik's use of technology in an area that is ripe for modernization."

"We are very pleased that a world class clinical organization like HSS sees the opportunity for our BrightPoint Epidural System to potentially become the standard of care. We also look forward to working with them to develop additional high value medical products based on our platform technology. We believe this will be a fruitful relationship for both HSS and Lumoptik," said Frank Lyman, CEO of Lumoptik.

About HSS

HSS is the world's leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health. At its core is Hospital for Special Surgery, nationally ranked No. 1 in orthopedics (for the 13th consecutive year), No. 3 in rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report (2022-2023), and the best pediatric orthopedic hospital in NY, NJ and CT by U.S. News & World Report "Best Children's Hospitals" list (2022-2023). In a survey of medical professionals in more than 20 countries by Newsweek, HSS is ranked world #1 in orthopedics for a second consecutive year (2022). Founded in 1863, the Hospital has the lowest complication and readmission rates in the nation for orthopedics, and among the lowest infection rates. HSS was the first in New York State to receive Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center five consecutive times. An affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, HSS has a main campus in New York City and facilities in New Jersey, Connecticut and in the Long Island and Westchester County regions of New York State, as well as in Florida. In addition to patient care, HSS leads the field in research, innovation and education. The HSS Research Institute comprises 20 laboratories and 300 staff members focused on leading the advancement of musculoskeletal health through prevention of degeneration, tissue repair and tissue regeneration. The HSS Innovation Institute works to realize the potential of new drugs, therapeutics and devices. The HSS Education Institute is a trusted leader in advancing musculoskeletal knowledge and research for physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, academic trainees, and consumers in more than 145 countries. The institution is collaborating with medical centers and other organizations to advance the quality and value of musculoskeletal care and to make world-class HSS care more widely accessible nationally and internationally. www.hss.edu.

About Lumoptik

Lumoptik, Inc. is a medical device company that has developed the BrightPoint Epidural System to assist physicians with needle placement during epidural procedures for childbirth, spine/back pain and surgical procedures such as knee and hip replacements. Over 11 million epidural procedures are performed in the US each year with over 30 million performed worldwide. BrightPoint is a platform technology with multiple potential medical uses in orthopedics, pain management, neurology, vascular access and urology. Lumoptik is a private company with a diverse investor base.

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SOURCE Hospital for Special Surgery
Mattamy also offers package of support initiatives to help its Florida team members in need

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Mattamy Homes and the company's founder Peter Gilgan are donating $1 million to support Florida communities affected by Hurricane Ian  the funds will be split between and American Red Cross and the Florida Disaster Fund.

Mattamy has also announced a package of support initiatives to help its team members in this time of stress and to ease the burden for those who sustained damage during the storm. The initiatives include the following:

Matching Donations  Mattamy is matching team member donations to the American Red Cross or Florida Disaster Fund on a 3:1 basis, amplifying the support even more.

 Mattamy is matching team member donations to the American Red Cross or Florida Disaster Fund on a 3:1 basis, amplifying the support even more. Additional Paid Time off to Volunteer  For storm clean-up and/or food collection efforts.

 For storm clean-up and/or food collection efforts. Mental Well-Being  Enhanced support for mental health services for those affected by Hurricane Ian.

 Enhanced support for mental health services for those affected by Hurricane Ian. Legal Assistance  Reimbursement of legal fees for professional services related to insurance claims or other matters.

 Reimbursement of legal fees for professional services related to insurance claims or other matters. Additional Paid Time Off  Team members who sustained substantial damage during the storm will be granted additional paid days off to secure or repair their home or other property.

 Team members who sustained substantial damage during the storm will be granted additional paid days off to secure or repair their home or other property. Financial Assistance  Mattamy is offering interest-free loans to team members needing assistance with recovery efforts

"Mattamy has 850 US team members with over half located in Florida  together we are responding to the need as our team members join us in supporting those affected by the hurricane," says Peter Gilgan, Chairman & CEO of Mattamy Asset Management and Founder of Mattamy Homes. "It's times like these that we need to come together to support and take care of one another. As Mattamy's culture is built on caring, it was an easy decision, not to mention the right thing to do, to provide immediate and substantial assistance to our team and the community. With the full and unwavering support of the executive committee and the Board, we're proud to offer a program to provide help in this time of need."

About Mattamy Homes

Mattamy Homes is the largest privately owned homebuilder in North America, with 40-plus years of history across the United States and Canada. Every year, Mattamy helps more than 8,000 families realize their dream of homeownership. In the United States, the company is represented in 11 markets  Dallas, Charlotte, Raleigh, Phoenix, Tucson, Jacksonville, Orlando (where its US head office is located), Tampa, Sarasota, Naples and Southeast Florida  and in Canada, its communities stretch across the Greater Toronto Area, as well as in Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton. Visit www.mattamyhomes.com for more information.

About Mattamy Asset Management

Mattamy Asset Management is an asset manager focused on building a diversified portfolio of investments across geographies, asset classes and the spectrum of risk and return. Mattamy Asset Management is the parent company of Mattamy Homes Canada and Mattamy Homes U.S., which together comprise the largest privately held homebuilding platform in North America. Mattamy Asset Management is committed to achieving the best-possible long-term risk-adjusted returns for its clients and functioning as a socially responsible corporate citizen.

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SOURCE Mattamy Homes Limited
Washington's largest private, infill homebuilder partners with 425 Magazine to showcase the latest in-home design innovation

BELLEVUE, Wash., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- MN CUSTOM HOMES, the state's largest private homebuilder specializing in single-family, infill homesites, is pleased to announce that it has launched its first of two Northwest Idea Houses in partnership with 425 Magazine. The home is located in the Robinswood neighborhood of East Bellevue at 2024 150th Avenue SE and features some of the latest home technology innovations integrated throughout and powered by Brilliant's Smart Home System  all of which will be featured in the December issue of 425 Magazine. Proceeds from the sale of the home will benefit Bellevue-based nonprofit, Jubilee REACH for its in-school and community outreach programs.

Whether it's smart connected appliances that automatic software updates and advanced diagnostics an app to start the electric brick pizza oven on your drive home, MN Custom Homes has designed this Northwest Idea House with functional luxury  innovations that make life easier, more comfortable and more affordable over time. Among other features, the home has a built-in flex/study room with space-saving & smart Tonal fitness machine and the expansive Primary Walk-in Closet features an enclosed steam cleaner eliminating dry cleaning trips.

The Robinswood home is transitional in its design with elements inspired by the 1890s William Morris wallpaper found in the powder room. The color palette throughout the house captures the latest trends in layered shades of white, rich wood, warm gray, terra cotta, and sage green. Bold brass fixtures add warmth and character throughout.

In the past 11 years, MN Custom Homes has built 307 single family homes throughout the Greater Puget Sound's Eastside communities of Kirkland, Bellevue and Redmond. With housing in short supply in the region and demand at an all-time high, the company expects another 65 to come online in 2023.

This Northwest Idea House marks the third time MN has gifted proceeds to Jubilee REACH. In addition, 11 subcontractors and vendors also contributed discounts and donations to the home, including Monogram, Seattle Lighting, Signature Interiors, Delta/Brizo, Garage Experts and Abbrio, among others. Jubilee REACH will turn those funds into game-changing assistance for local families, and students who normally struggle to make ends meet. The nonprofit helps local schools host safe and enriching before- and after-school programs, providing English as a Second Language (ESL) families with access to classes, health care and legal services. Its thrift store offers affordable household goods, clothing and groceries to families, and Jubilee hosts community-building events, such as its annual Festival of Trees holiday fundraising celebration.

About MN Custom Homes

MN Custom Homes, LLC is the leading in-fill builder among Seattle's Greater Eastside, building Thoughtful Homes that Inspire Community. Founded in 2011, the company has combined the seamless personalization of a custom home with the efficiencies of in-fill spec construction. Known for its commitment to the communities it serves, MN Custom Homes brings meaningful change through its support of Jubilee REACH, Imagine Housing and the Arbor Day Foundation. In addition to winning multiple "Best Places to Work" awards, the company also holds back-to-back "Builder of the Year" accolades from 425 Magazine. For more information visit mncustom.com.

Media Contact:Margaret Nicoll2063105750[email protected]

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SOURCE MN Custom Homes
SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Netenrich, a leading security and operations analytics company, today announced its sponsorship of the NexGen Conference 2022. Presented by The Channel Company, the conference will be held October 23-25, at the Renaissance Orlando in Orlando, Florida. NexGen brings together managed services professionals interested in innovating their security business to help solve enterprises' most challenging threat intelligence and incident response issues.

Netenrich will showcase its Resolution Intelligence Cloud, a SaaS analytics platform, gaining widespread adoption with service providers for solving the data analytics, automation, and prioritization issues tied to security operations.

Conference attendees are invited to meet company representatives and learn how to optimize security operations with data analytics and automation leveraging Google Chronicle. The Netenrich platform enables organizations to better detect, analyze, and respond to critical threats and incidents tied to high business risk.

NexGen Conference Solutions Pavilion

Netenrich and Google Chronicle: Booth #226

Monday, 10/24: 5:30 pm  7:30 pm

Tuesday 10/25: 4:30 pm  6:30 pm

Schedule a time to speak with Netenrich by contacting [email protected]

Designed for Enterprises at Service Provider Scale

For large enterprises, Resolution Intelligence Cloud uniquely solves the immediate challenges of optimizing security environments. With Netenrich, service providers can scale operations by:

Streamlining threat analytics for service providers and their customers.

Managing multiple Chronicle tenants with multi-level multitenancy which gives analysts the ability to manage and apply rules to one, some, or all tenants in one place for increased control and efficiency.

Offering optional service packs including implementation, threat hunting, and more.

Netenrich in Action

Resolution Intelligence Cloud is a data analytics SaaS platform for managing secure operations. The platform takes a risk-based approach to prioritize critical situations aligned to high-value business assets. It combines real-time analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to provide situational awareness with intelligence to accurately predict, detect, score, and prioritize critical issues.

Netenrich's platform operationalizes Chronicle to deliver insights and context that speed resolution, promote scale, and keep operations aligned to risk. Built-in multitenancy and task automation streamline rule-building, threat analytics, case management, and collaboration out of the box. The platform does the hard work so security teams don't have to.

To learn more about the Netenrich Resolution Intelligence Cloud for secure data-driven operations, visit https://netenrich.com/platform.

Resources

"Evaluating TCO, Productivity, and Performance of SOC Solutions," webinar featuring Simon Aldama, Netenrich Sr. Director of Risk Ops Practice and Jonas Kelly, Google Head of Americas MSSP Partnerships

Resolution Intelligence Cloud on Google Cloud Marketplace available here

Resolution Intelligence Cloud and Chronicle overview

Resolution Intelligence Cloud data sheet

About Netenrich

Netenrich boosts the effectiveness of organizations' security and digital operations so they can avoid disruption and preempt risk. Its Resolution Intelligence Cloud is a native SaaS data analytics platform for managing secure operations. Resolution Intelligence uses advanced analytics and machine learning to transform security and operations data into intelligence that organizations can act on before critical issues occur. More than 3,000 customers and managed services providers rely on Netenrich to deliver secure operations at scale and speed.

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SOURCE Netenrich
FEATURING SINGLES, BONUS TRACKS, B-SIDES, PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED DEMOS, REMIXES, AND CONCERT RECORDINGS

OUT DECEMBER 2 ON UMe/ISLAND RECORDS

Download high-res images here

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Robbie Williams has today announced that a new deluxe edition of his multi-million-selling debut solo album, Life Thru A Lens, will be released on December 2 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the record.

The special expanded 4-CD album, out on UMe/Island Records, combines the original chart-topping record  including the hit singles "Angels," "Let Me Entertain You," "Old Before I Die," "Lazy Days," and "South Of The Border"  as well as bonus tracks and B-sides. The new edition will also feature previously unreleased demos, rehearsal recordings, and rare remixes, as well as the first audio release of the complete concert recorded at London's The Forum in June 1998, released that November as "Live In Your Living Room" on VHS tape and VCD but never reissued.

Life Thru A Lens was originally released in September 1997, spending two weeks at Number 1 on the UK Album Chart and 92 weeks in the UK Top 40. It has sold 2.1 million copies in the UK alone. The deluxe edition will be available in 4-CD Box Set, vinyl, and digital download formats. To listen to or pre-order Robbie Williams' Life Thru A Lens, click HERE.

Robbie secured his 14th UK Number 1 album last month with XXV, which topped the chart in its first week of release. With this amazing achievement, the music icon has now broken the record for the solo artist with the most UK Number 1 albums - only The Beatles now have more UK Number 1 albums than Robbie with 15. His total chart-topping UK albums across his solo work and records released with Take That now stands at 19. It places him in the top two acts of all time with the most Number 1s across their catalog, with only Paul McCartney with more.

The full track-listing for the Life Thru A Lens special edition 4-CD Box Set is 

CD1 - Life Thru A Lens: The Original Album

Lazy DaysLife Thru A LensEgo A Go GoAngelsSouth Of The BorderOld Before I DieOne Of God's Better PeopleLet Me Entertain YouKilling MeCleanBaby Girl Window(silence)Hello Sir (hidden track)

CD2 - Life On The Flipside; B-Sides and Bonus Tracks

Freedom (from "Freedom" CD Single 1, July 1996)Better Days (from "Old Before I Die" CD Single 1, April 1997)Average B-Side (from "Old Before I Die" CD Single 1, April 1997)Making Plans For Nigel (from "Old Before I Die" CD Single 2, April 1997)Kooks (from "Old Before I Die" CD Single 2, April 1997)Teenage Millionaire (from "Lazy Days" CD Single 1, July 1997)Falling In Bed (Again) (from "Lazy Days" CD Single 1, July 1997)She Makes Me High (from "Lazy Days" CD Single 2, July 1997)Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye (from "Lazy Days" CD Single 2, July 1997)Lazy Days (Original Version) (from "Millennium" CD Single 2, September 1998)Cheap Love Song (from "South Of The Border" CD Single 1, September 1997)Walk This Sleigh (from "Angels" CD Single 1, December 1997)Karaoke Overkill (from "Angels" CD Single 2, December 1997)Get the Joke (from "Angels" CD Single 2, December 1997)Angels (acoustic version) (from "Angels" CD Single 2, December 1997)Angels (Spanish Version) (from "The Ego Has Landed" (South America Editions). April 1999)Let Me Entertain You (Full Length Version) (from "Let Me Entertain You" CD Single 2, March 1998)Medley Of Songs From The Motion Picture Soundtrack The Full Monty (from "Let Me Entertain You" CD Single 1, March 1998)I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind Of Thing (from "Let Me Entertain You" CD Single 1, March 1998)I Am The (Res)erection (from "Let Me Entertain You" CD Single 1, March 1998)

CD3 - Work In Progress: The Making of Life Thru A Lens

Freedom (Ambient Mix) (July 1996 Promo Release)Freedom (New Sound Dub) (July 1996 Promo Release)Hey Little Girl (Axis Studios Demo, October / November 1996)Clean (working title Mr. Sheen) (Axis Studios Demo, October / November 1996)Old Before I Die (Crescent Moon Studios Demo, October 1996)Lazy Days (Tower Studios Demo, January 1997)Angels (Tower Studios Demo, January 1997)Red Lights (Tower Studios Demo, January 1997)Average B-Side (Westside Studios Demo, February 1997)Teenage Millionaire (Rehearsal Recording, Spring 1997)South of the Border (Rehearsal Recording, Spring 1997)Killing Me Rehearsal (Rehearsal Recording, Spring 1997)Life Thru A Lens Rehearsal (Rehearsal Recording, Spring 1997)South of the Border (Mother's Milkin' It Mix)Let Me Entertain You (The Bizzaro Mix)

CD4 - Life On The Stage

Let Me Entertain You (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind Of Thing (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Clean (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)South Of The Border (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Average 'B' Side (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Baby Girl Window (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)One Of God's Better People (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)There She Goes (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Killing Me (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Life Thru A Lens (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Teenage Millionaire (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Lazy Days (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Ego A Go Go (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Old Before I Die (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Angels (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)Back For Good (Live at The Forum, London 3 June 1998)

robbiewilliams.com

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SOURCE UMe/Island
-- Financing led by General Catalyst, with participation from all existing investors and new leading institutional investors and mutual funds --

-- Proceeds to advance Odyssey's broad portfolio of precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines --

BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Odyssey Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering next generation precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines, today announced a $168 million Series B financing. This funding, which follows Odyssey's $218 million Series A announced in December 2021, brings the total capital raised to $386 million. The proceeds will enable Odyssey to advance its portfolio of precision immunomodulators and oncology medicines in support of its mission of developing innovative medicines to treat serious human diseases.

The Series B was led by General Catalyst, a leading global venture capital firm and active investor in the healthcare sector. Other new investors participating in the Series B financing include funds and accounts advised by Fidelity Management & Research Company, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., GreatPoint Ventures, Catalio Capital Management, Walleye Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, The Healthcare Innovation Investment Fund LLC, an investment fund associated with SVB Securities LLC, and other institutional investors. The financing also includes participation from all Series A investors including OrbiMed, SR One, Foresite Capital, Logos Capital, Woodline Partners LP, HBM Healthcare Investments, Colt Ventures and Creacion Ventures.

"Odyssey is pioneering next generation therapeutics by marrying a powerful drug discovery engine integrating machine learning, biology, and medicinal and structural chemistry with an exceptional leadership team of proven drug developers. We are pleased to partner with General Catalyst and our world-class syndicate of investors and believe the interest in our immunology and oncology pipeline and capabilities further validates our approach to therapeutic development," said Gary D. Glick, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Odyssey Therapeutics. "We have made tremendous strides since our launch in 2021, and we value the support as we advance multiple candidates into IND-enabling studies in 2023."

"At General Catalyst, we are committed to investing in companies driving powerful, positive and enduring change, and Odyssey's unyielding commitment to improving the lives of patients by targeting the underlying causes of serious inflammatory diseases and cancer aligns with our mission," said Elena Viboch, Partner at General Catalyst. "We are confident in Odyssey's vision, proven leadership and ability to pioneer and develop next generation therapeutics through their integrated platform approach, and we look forward to seeing Odyssey work toward achieving their mission of delivering life-enhancing medicines to patients in need."

"I am delighted to welcome our new Series B investors," said Jeff Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman of the Odyssey Board. "Their investment along with Odyssey's unique combination of experienced and talented drug hunters, new technologies and a broad and deep pipeline of novel targets will accelerate our discovery and development of life-enhancing medicines for patients in need."

Odyssey's immunology and oncology portfolio encompasses eight declared programs initially focused on small molecule and protein therapeutics. In addition, Odyssey is building an industry leading discovery engine that integrates artificial intelligence and machine learning for molecular design; a chemistry platform encompassing proprietary covalent libraries targeting multiple amino acids, molecular glues and natural products; and a functional genomics platform for novel target discovery.

About Odyssey Therapeutics

Odyssey Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing the next generation of immunomodulators and oncology medicines. Composed of an expert team of drug hunters, scientists and industry leaders in foundational biology, chemistry, and data sciences, Odyssey is transforming drug discovery to accelerate and drive the creation and efficient delivery of life-enhancing precision medicines to patients. For more information, please visit www.odysseytx.com and follow Odyssey Therapeutics on Twitter (@Odyssey_Tx) and LinkedIn.

About General Catalyst

General Catalyst is a venture capital firm that invests in powerful, positive change that endures  for our entrepreneurs, our investors, our people, and society. We support founders with a long-term view who challenge the status quo, partnering with them from seed to growth stage and beyond to build companies that withstand the test of time. With offices in San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York City, London, and Boston, the firm has helped support the growth of businesses such as: Airbnb, Deliveroo, Guild, Gusto, Hubspot, Illumio, Lemonade, Livongo, Oscar, Samsara, Snap, Stripe, and Warby Parker. For more: www.generalcatalyst.com.

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SOURCE Odyssey Therapeutics
ST. LOUIS, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- With this vibrant new stamp design, the U.S. Postal Service continues its tradition of celebrating Kwanzaa by dedicating a new Forever stamp today. The ceremony took place at America's Center Ferrara Theater in St. Louis.

"USPS is honored to continue in the celebration of Kwanzaa  a communal tradition that has grown to hold special meaning to millions of people since its inception in 1966," said Eddie Banner, USPS Kansas-Missouri district manager, who served as the dedicating official. "I am pleased to dedicate this colorful and festive stamp in honor of Kwanzaa."

Joining Banner for the ceremony were master of ceremonies Tracie Berry-McGhee, founder of the SisterKeeper Empowerment Center; Jeanice L. Baker, president of the St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; Cheryl McNeil, fixed assets and sales use tax manager customer service at Edward Jones Investments; Cheryl Jordan, pharmacy benefit implementation specialist at Lumeris; and Erin Robinson, stamp artist and Emmy nominated illustrator.

"Kwanzaa reminds us to be intentional in making an impact within our families, communities and culture  to build bridges not barriers," said Baker. "We are excited and honored to have partnered with the United States Postal Service in unveiling this beautiful Forever stamp."

The stamp design depicts two children  a girl and a boy  standing together with a kinara (candleholder) and the seven lit candles (mishumaa saba) in front of them. They are dressed in robes akin to spiritual garments. A light-blue circle behind the children's heads represents wholeness and unifies the figures, and a mosaic motif frames the background.

Art Director Antonio Alcala designed the stamp with original artwork by Erin Robinson.

The Kwanzaa stamp is sold in booklets of 20. News of the stamps is being shared with the hashtag #KwanzaaStamps.

Each year, millions of African Americans gather with friends and family throughout the week of Kwanzaa to honor the Pan-African holiday's seven founding principles  unity (umoja), self-determination (kujichagulia), collective work and responsibility (ujima), cooperative economics (ujamaa), purpose (nia), creativity (kuumba), and faith (imani).

Kwanzaa is a festive time for rejoicing in the prospect of health, prosperity, and good luck in the coming year. It is also a time for contemplation and recollection of past hardships, faced by both individuals and communities, and the ways in which history can inform and impact future happiness.

With origins in ancient and modern first-harvest festivities occurring across the African continent, Kwanzaa incorporates and reimagines many communal traditions as a contemporary celebration and reaffirmation of African American culture.

Postal Products

Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through the Postal Store at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide.

Forever stamps will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price.

A video of the ceremony will be available on facebook.com/usps. Information for ordering first-day-of-issue postmarks and covers is at usps.com/shop.

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

Please Note: For U.S. Postal Service media resources, including broadcast-quality video and audio and photo stills, visit the USPS Newsroom. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the USPS YouTube channel, like us on Facebook and enjoy our Postal Posts blog. For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and facts.usps.com

Contact: Felicia Lott[email protected]usps.com/news

Local: Mark Inglett[email protected]usps.com/news

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SOURCE U.S. Postal Service
Company representatives attending Wild West Pet Show to connect with additional animal health specialists

VALENCIA, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Qtrac by Lavi Industries, a world-leading provider of virtual queue management and appointment scheduling systems, today announced it is partnering with VCA Animal Hospitals, giving veterinary offices the ability to triage patients large and small so doctors can better prioritize care for more acute cases. If the hospital is at capacity, Qtrac's virtual queuing solution creates a seamless referral system so animals can be seen at other locations.

With virtual queuing, crowded lobbies are a thing of the past at veterinary offices in the VCA Animal Hospital network.

With virtual queuing, crowded lobbies are a thing of the past at veterinary offices in the VCA Animal Hospital network. Pets and their humans check in remotely for service and let the hospital know the reason for their visit, including the animal's symptoms and how long they've had them if they're coming in for anything more than a routine check-up.

At the same time, office staff members at network facilities have access to both their own queue dashboard and a centralized referral queue where they can see at a glance if they have the capacity to take incoming cases or if they need to refer them elsewhere. The software sends a message to the referring location indicating whether the referral has been accepted or not.

"Qtrac's virtual queue management system is perfect for veterinary hospitals to help eliminate lobby overcrowding, make patient service more personal and efficient, and improve the patient experience overall," said Steve Covate, VP of sales for Qtrac. "Doctors, technicians, and office staff benefit from greater efficiency, safe and dependable service, and a better customer experience."

Qtrac representatives are attending the Wild West Vet Show on Oct. 12-15, 2022, in Reno, NV, to showcase how a virtual queue solution has the flexibility and adaptability to meet the needs of veterinarians and the animal hospital business model. This annual conference is one of the industry's leading continuing education events where veterinary professionals learn about the latest in large and small animal medicine and connect with other animal health specialists.

"We look forward to connecting with animal healthcare providers to demonstrate how Qtrac's virtual queuing, mobile queuing, and appointment scheduling features can increase the quality of care they provide by improving efficiencies before patients arrive for service," Covate said.

ABOUT QTRACQtrac provides virtual queue management systems to companies of all sizes and across many different industries around the world. Its virtual queuing technology enhances the customer experience by focusing on the way people interact with businesses in order to eliminate lines, increase sales and improve service. Qtrac was founded by Lavi Industries, the premier provider of public guidance and crowd control solutions. Building on Lavi's 40+ years of experience and success in helping the world's leading companies effectively guide people in, through and out of their facilities, Qtrac helps organizations improve their operations by improving the customer journey. More information is available at lavi.com and qtrac.com.

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SOURCE Qtrac by Lavi Industries
SECAUCUS, N.J., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, today announced Jim Davis, CEO-Elect, has made several organizational changes and leadership appointments of seasoned executives to better support the company's two-point business strategy to accelerate growth and drive operational excellence:

Karthik Kuppusamy , Ph.D., is named Senior Vice President, Clinical Solutions.

, Ph.D., is named Senior Vice President, Clinical Solutions. Mark Gardner has been appointed Senior Vice President, Molecular Genomics and Oncology, a new position.

has been appointed Senior Vice President, Molecular Genomics and Oncology, a new position. Kristin Wallace is now Senior Vice President, Compliance, succeeding Tim Sharpe, who retired in August.

"These latest appointments continue to strengthen Quest's leadership team and position us well to continue to innovate in a post-pandemic healthcare environment," said Mr. Davis. "Both Karthik and Kristin are proven Quest leaders and are ready to assume additional responsibilities within our team. Mark comes to Quest with deep knowledge in molecular genomics, genetic sequencing and oncology, combined with commercial and technology expertise which are critical as we drive growth in these areas."

"We have made substantial progress in our transition to new leadership, as evidenced by the strong team Jim Davis has built," said Steve Rusckowski, Chairman, CEO and President. "Quest is well-positioned in the market and Jim has a great leadership team in place as we pursue the next phases of growth and development."

Mr. Kuppusamy is responsible for bringing innovative diagnostic solutions to market through Quest's clinical franchises as well as Pharma Services, Genomic Services, and Global Markets, in partnership with the company's highly capable Medical and Research & Development teams. Previously, he led the North region as General Manager, based at the lab in Marlborough, MA. Before that, he led the Neurology franchise.

He earned a B.S. in electronics and communications engineering from Anna University and a M.S. in biomedical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, both in India. He also holds an M.B.A. in finance and operations from Marquette University and a Ph.D. in electrical and biomedical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis.

In his newly created role, Mr. Gardner is responsible for driving growth in Quest's Advanced Diagnostics offerings by providing genetic sequencing services, cancer diagnostics and working closely with the company's clinical franchises. He joins Quest from Corza Medical, a private equity operating company focused on surgical technologies and tools, where he served as Executive Partner, SVP and GM of European Commercial Operations and Biosurgery Products. He built a career in molecular genomics, next generation sequencing and oncology diagnostics, having served at a range of companies that include Thermo Fisher Scientific, Life Technologies, Invitrogen and Omniseq. He began his private sector career as a McKinsey consultant after serving in the U.S. Navy, where he reached the rank of Lieutenant Commander. He earned a BS degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, an MA in National Security Studies from Georgetown University, and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

As the compliance leader, Kristin Wallace is responsible for maintaining and building on Quest's industry leadership in ethics, integrity, compliance, and privacy. Ms. Wallace joined Quest in 2009 in the legal department as Senior Corporate Counsel. Over the years, she has provided legal support for the company's operations, franchises, pricing, regulatory, privacy, compliance, billing, and Quest for Health Equity. Most recently, as the Chief Regulatory Counsel, she worked closely to oversee FDA review of new tests to support Quest's COVID-19 response. She earned a bachelor's degree from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, and a J.D. degree from Villanova Law School.

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SOURCE Quest Diagnostics
New initiative seeks to identify gaps experienced by patients and caregivers in underrepresented communities along their rare disease diagnosis and treatment journey

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Rare Disease Diversity Coalition (RDDC), the nation's leading voice for alleviating the disproportionate burden of rare diseases on communities of color, and the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD), the leading rare disease advocacy organization, announced plans to conduct a first-ever national survey of underrepresented rare disease patients and caregivers to better understand their unique perspectives and experiences in accessing and affording health care. The research was made possible through a grant from the Black Women's Health Imperative.

"The Rare Disease Diversity Coalition is wholly committed to identifying evidenced-based solutions to alleviate the disproportionate burden of rare diseases on individuals, families, and communities of color, as well as other marginalized communities. We are eager to begin this important work to amplify their voice," said Deanna Darlington, RDDC's Interim Executive Director.

"NORD is grateful for the opportunity to continue to advance patient advocacy and access alongside the RDDC to make a lasting impact for individuals and families living with rare diseases," said Peter Saltonstall, President and CEO, NORD. "The survey findings will elevate and empower the entire rare disease field to better understand and combat the significant health barriers rare disease patients and their caregivers face daily, as well as build a more equitable future for the over 25 million Americans currently living with a rare disease."

The survey will help to inform future efforts by RDDC to bring rare disease experts, health and diversity advocates, and industry leaders together to identify solutions to overcome barriers faced by rare disease patients and their families and to help amplify diverse and marginalized perspectives in rare disease advocacy and research.

NORD brings together rare disease patients, caregivers, leaders, researchers, clinicians, regulators, advocates, and industry to better understand and fight for diversity, equity, and inclusion within the rare disease community. Earlier this year, NORD launched several dynamic resources to educate leaders, advocates, and nonprofit organizations on how a lack of DEI is affecting marginalized groups within the rare disease community.

About the Rare Disease Diversity Coalition (RDDC)  Launched in 2020 by The Black Women's Health Imperative  RDDC is a partnership of the nation's leading rare disease experts, patient and provider organizations, and health equity advocates working to address the extraordinary challenges faced by rare disease patients of color. Through research, advocacy, and collaboration, RDDC aims to advance evidence-based solutions to achieve greater equality within the rare disease community.

About the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)

The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) is the leading independent advocacy organization representing all patients and families affected by rare diseases in the United States. NORD began as a small group of patient advocates that formed a coalition to unify and mobilize support to pass the Orphan Drug Act of 1983. Since then, the organization has led the way in voicing the needs of the rare disease community, driving supportive policies, furthering education, advancing medical research, and providing patient and family services for those who need them most. Together with over 330 disease-specific member organizations, more than 17,000 Rare Action Network advocates across all 50 states, and national and global partners, NORD delivers on its mission to improve the lives of those impacted by rare diseases. Visit rarediseases.org.

Media Contact: Rohan Narayanan, (571) 255-0042, [email protected]

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SOURCE National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BenjiLock, the company founded by Robbie Cabral, has won two prestigious NY Product Design Awards. Its fingerprint bike lock and fingerprint padlock were selected as the winner in two awards categories  Bicycles and Bicycles Accessories and Digital Devices & Technologies  Accessible Technology.

The company first shot to fame when inventor and founder, Robbie Cabral, appeared on Shark Tank, where the company won investment from Kevin O'Leary. Cabral, an immigrant originally from the Dominican Republic, couldn't be more delighted at the recognition his products are receiving. He told us, "I'm incredibly proud of my heritage and am grateful for the amazing opportunities immigrants such as myself receive when coming to America. Receiving these awards couldn't have been timed more perfectly. It's Hispanic Heritage Month, and this is a fitting way to celebrate the occasion and to reflect on the journey I've been on so far."

As a company, BenjiLock is bringing TSA-approved locks and fusing them with additional security technologies to give professional-grade protection to everyday consumers. The award-winning fingerprint bike lock and fingerprint padlock unite a traditional item with forward-thinking digital technology, giving bike owners peace of mind that their pride and joy can be secured in a hybrid way  fingerprint and key.

Although titled the New York Design Awards, the competition received entries from companies across the globe. Additionally, entrants were put through a rigorous judging process, with 17 jurors from 14 countries assessing each product thoroughly before ruling on prize winners.

Thomas Brandt, a spokesperson for the International Awards Association (IAA), remarked, "While the world is adapting to the times that we are in, the unfaltering will and discipline shown by these professionals - were truly awe-inspiring. Robbie Cabral and BenjiLock certainly demonstrated such excellence."

It was a proud moment for BenjiLock to be recognized at such a prestigious event. "Our technology keeps getting recognized," Cabral exclaimed, "to be up against companies from across the globe, and to emerge victorious, shows the true potential for BenjiLock. Many countries selected the fingerprint bike lock and fingerprint padlock as their winners, proving a global need for our inventions  it's fascinating!"

About BenjiLock

Based in Los Angeles, California, and founded in 2014 by inventor and entrepreneur Robbie Cabral, BenjiLock has redefined the personal security experience through hybrid technology with the consumer in mind. Featured on ABC's hit show Shark Tank, Robbie Cabral landed Kevin O'Leary as an investor with a 15% equity stake in the company, catapulting BenjiLock's potential and success by securing a licensing partnership with Hampton Products International, the leader in security and hardware innovations and makers of BRINKS locks. Through this strategic partnership, BenjiLock was able to utilize the 30+ years of experience of Hampton Products International to further its production and manufacturing, escalating the brand to unprecedented levels. Today, BenjiLock's fingerprint technology is expanding into a portfolio of products, including an upcoming line of bike locks, next-generation of padlocks, drawer closets, and cabinet locks, as well as a brand new line of smart home door locks.

For more information, visit BenjiLock.com and follow BenjiLock on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

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SOURCE BenjiLock
OMAHA, Neb., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) will release third quarter 2022 financial and operating results on Thursday, October 20, 2022, at 7:45 a.m. ET. The company's management team will host a conference call and live webcast at 8:45 a.m. ET.

Parties interested in participating via teleconference may dial 877-407-8293. International callers may dial 201-689-8349. A live webcast of the presentation and materials will be available in the investor relations section of Union Pacific's website at www.up.com/investor. A replay of the audio webcast will be available shortly thereafter.

ABOUT UNION PACIFIC

Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) delivers the goods families and businesses use every day with safe, reliable and efficient service. Operating in 23 western states, the company connects its customers and communities to the global economy. Trains are the most environmentally responsible way to move freight, helping Union Pacific protect future generations. More information about Union Pacific is available at www.up.com.

www.up.com

www.facebook.com/unionpacific

www.twitter.com/unionpacific

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SOURCE Union Pacific Corporation
SANDY HOOK, Conn., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- What is the Metaverse? And how will marketers compete in it? Don't miss this American Marketing Association panel when Alvin Wang Graylin, China President at HTC, and other leaders in Metaverse technology forecast the future of communications and marketing.

Metaverse marketing explained by Alvin Wang Graylin of HTC in AMA Panel

The thought-leadership panel will be moderated by Ben Kunz of Mediassociates and held via Zoom at 7 p.m. Eastern U.S. time Thursday, Oct. 20, sponsored by the American Marketing Association and Mediassociates.

Panelists will include

Alvin Wang Graylin, lead panelist. Alvin Wang Graylin has been China President at HTC, leading all aspects of HTC VIVE VR and smartphone businesses from 2016 and this year just added the role of Global VP of Corporate Development, driving key partnership engagements for the company. He is also currently Vice-Chairman of the Industry of Virtual Reality Alliance with 300+ company members, president of the $18B Virtual Reality Venture Capital Alliance and oversees the VIVE X VR Accelerator program in Beijing, Shenzhen and Tel Aviv. Under his leadership, HTC has been voted top VR company in China at the World VR Industry Conference for three of the last four years, and Graylin has been recognized as the most influential person in XR in China the last five years.

Alvin Wang Graylin has been China President at HTC, leading all aspects of HTC VIVE VR and smartphone businesses from 2016 and this year just added the role of Global VP of Corporate Development, driving key partnership engagements for the company. He is also currently Vice-Chairman of the Industry of Virtual Reality Alliance with 300+ company members, president of the $18B Virtual Reality Venture Capital Alliance and oversees the VIVE X VR Accelerator program in Beijing, Shenzhen and Tel Aviv. Under his leadership, HTC has been voted top VR company in China at the World VR Industry Conference for three of the last four years, and Graylin has been recognized as the most influential person in XR in China the last five years. Ely Santos, Founder Metavertising. Santos produces and hosts one of the leading podcasts on Metaverse technology and Web3 development, and is founder of the strategy communications firm Metavertising out of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Founder Metavertising. Santos produces and hosts one of the leading podcasts on Metaverse technology and Web3 development, and is founder of the strategy communications firm Metavertising out of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Adam Ragsdale, CEO and Co-founder of Voca and the Zero Gravity Club. A visionary in the Metaverse space, Ragsdale created the Zero Gravity Club to tell stories in virtual reality with a community involved in a science-fiction odyssey.

CEO and Co-founder of Voca and the Zero Gravity Club. A visionary in the Metaverse space, Ragsdale created the Zero Gravity Club to tell stories in virtual reality with a community involved in a science-fiction odyssey. Ben Kunz, moderator, EVP of Strategy at Mediassociates, a leading media planning, media buying and analytics agency.

Register here:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-the-metaverse-means-for-marketing-tickets-430456947317

For more information:

Ben KunzEVP Strategy MediassociatesAmerican Marketing Association Southern CT Chapter Past President+1 203 506 7269[email protected]

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/what-marketers-must-know-about-the-metaverse-alvin-wang-graylin-of-htc-leads-panel-oct-20-301648919.html

SOURCE Mediassociates
WINNIPEG, MB, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - PADM Medical PRECISION ECO Plant based procedural mask with earloops receives emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. FDA  It is the world's first plant based procedural mask to receive EUA for use in medical and healthcare settings

PADM Medical Group of Companies (PADM Medical Canada and PADM Medical USA), a global leader in the design and development of sustainable medical consumables and eco-friendly sustainable medical products, announced today that it has received its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)1 to market PRECISION ECO, the world's first plant based, procedural mask with ear loops for use in healthcare and medical settings2 in the United States of America3.

Billions of petroleum based, synthetic disposable surgical masks are discarded globally on an annual basis. Increasingly, governments and consumers are recognizing the environmental threats posed world-wide by this plastic pollution. Most disposable Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) consists of petroleum based, non-biodegradable polymers that can take up to 450 years to decompose in our landfills, rivers, lakes, and other natural environments.

PADM Medical's PRECISION ECO Plant Based procedural masks, made using ECOFUSE plant-based materials manufactured by Roswell Textiles from renewable crop resources, will help reduce the adverse impact on the environment of petroleum based, single use disposable face masks. The ECOFUSE materials are industrially compostable and by being plant based, help reduce the CO2 emissions of PRECISION ECO by approximately 55% compared to conventional petroleum-based masks. PRECISION ECO procedural masks generate carbon credits as a result of the net carbon reduction.

Additionally, the PRECISION ECO Compostable/Plant Based Procedural Mask with Earloops is a USDA Certified Biobased product under the USDA BioPreferred Program with a biobased content of 82%.

"The EUA on the PRECISION ECO product is a milestone. It is a reward to our commitment to making eco-conscious products to support the health and wellness of all individuals and our planet. This commitment drives us as a company as we continue to innovate for a greener and more sustainable world. We are working in collaboration with our global partners to develop the vast potential of our PRECISION ECO plant based/compostable masks." said Martin Petrak, PADM Medical Group CEO.

Derek Atkinson, VP of Business Development at TotalEnergies Corbion added: "We should not accept the limitations of the current way of doing things as being the only way. As we try to minimize the impact of our products on the environment, it is these developments that help us realize these ambitions." He continued, "as the supplier to PADM Medical Group of the high purity polylactic acid (Luminy PLA) needed in the production of these groundbreaking biobased surgical masks, we are delighted to learn that PADM has succeeded in obtaining Emergency Use Authorization from the US FDA."

For more information about PADM Medical and PRECISION ECO visit: www.padmmedicalusa.com

About PADM Medical

PADM Medical Group (padmmedical.com) is a global leader in design and development of medical devices, specifically eco-friendly sustainable medical consumables, and products. PADM Medical Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of the PADM Group of Companies. The PADM organization is an operationally diverse entity with a defining focus and expertise in highly technical and advanced manufacturing.

About TotalEnergies Corbion

TotalEnergies Corbion (formerly known as Total Corbion PLA) is a global technology leader in Poly Lactic Acid (PLA) and lactide monomers. PLA is a biobased and biodegradable polymer made from annually renewable resources, offering a reduced carbon footprint versus traditional plastics. The Luminy PLA portfolio, which includes both high heat and standard PLA grades, is an innovative material that is used in a wide range of markets from packaging to consumer goods, fibers and automotive. TotalEnergies Corbion, headquartered in the Netherlands, operates a 75,000 tons per year PLA production facility in Rayong, Thailand and has recently announced the intention to build a second plant in Grandpuits, France. The company is a 50/50 joint venture between TotalEnergies and Corbion. www.totalenergies-corbion.com

__________ 1 The product has not been FDA cleared or approved.2 The product has been authorized by FDA under an EUA for use in healthcare settings by Health Care Practitioners (HCP) as PPE to provide a physical barrier to fluids and particulate materials to prevent HCP exposure to respiratory droplets and large particles during surgical mask shortages resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.3 This product is authorized only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of medical devices, including alternative products used as medical devices, during the COVID-19 outbreak, under section 564(b)(1) of the Act, 21 U.S.C.  360bbb-3(b)(1) unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/worlds-first-plant-based-medical-grade-face-mask-authorized-under-eua-by-us-fda-301648847.html

SOURCE PADM Medical
The direct-to-consumer Chinese food startup partners with Imaginary Ventures; debuts Chinese noodle kits, including new plant-based options in collaboration with Impossible Foods

SEATTLE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Growing direct-to-consumer Chinese food brand Xiao Chi Jie (XCJ)  founded by second generation Chinese Americans Jennifer Liao and Caleb Wang  has raised $10 million in their Series A financing round led by Imaginary Ventures, joining actor Simu Liu, Goldhouse Ventures, and Hyphen Capital along with founders Colin McCabe (Chopt), Jason Wang (Caviar), Gabi Lewis (Magic Spoon), Katrina Lake (Stitch Fix), Scott Cutler (StockX), Shan-lyn Ma (Zola), and more. The startup ships restaurant-quality soup dumplings and Chinese BBQ skewers nationwide, and today debuts new noodle kits which include a plant-based option developed in collaboration with Impossible Foods, featuring the brand's Impossible Pork product.

Liao and Wang started XCJ in 2018 as a restaurant passion project after years of frustrating searches for honest representations of their favorite Chinese street food specialties stateside. The Seattle-based fast casual concept flourished, but the pandemic forced them to innovate; instead of serving hot takeout meals, they started freezing batches of handmade soup dumplings and making local deliveries. Word (and demand) spread like wildfire, and when they started receiving inquiries about national shipping, the founders had their lightbulb moment. They officially launched XCJ as a direct-to-consumer company in late 2020, and have since sent over ten million soup dumplings to home kitchens across the country.

"Despite its prevalence in the U.S., Chinese cuisine is woefully underrepresented  especially in the CPG space," says Liao. "We're excited to partner with Imaginary to change that and continue sharing the diversity and rich depth of the food that we grew up loving."

IMAGINARY invests in iconic, generationally defining brands and the technology businesses that empower them.

"When you break down the $50BN Chinese food market category, it's evident there is a powerful and accelerating consumer demand," says Logan Langberg, Partner at Imaginary Ventures. "While the category is massive, it's in large part comprised solely of restaurants. What's missing from the market is a CPG brand that is an honest representation of Chinese food with the ability to dominate online, wholesale and food service to become a staple in American households. We believe XCJ is that. Excellent quality products, technical founders, vertical integration capabilities and 300% growth just this year further underscore that belief, and we are beyond excited to partner with them."

As trend reports continue to point to the explosive popularity of Asian cuisine in the U.S., XCJ is in a position to supply an increasing demand for consumer food brands that both thoughtfully represent their offerings and are run by diverse founders. The brand's current lineup includes restaurant-quality xiao long bao (soup dumplings); bamboo steamers; sauces (including chili crisp); shao kao (Chinese BBQ skewers); and ice creams. Today, that lineup will grow to include various noodle kits inspired by different regions of China: Sichuan Dan Dan Noodles, Beijing Zha Jiang Noodles, and Shanghai Scallion Oil Noodles. The first two will have the option of making the dish plant-based (a rarity in the Chinese food landscape) by substituting Impossible Pork.

With this funding round, the two-year-old DTC company will continue to focus on high-quality products and customer experience, lean into cultural experiences and education, and explore paths to increase accessibility. XCJ will also rebrand in 2023 to reflect their continued expansion because, as Liao notes, "we want a new name that can continue to grow with us as we invite more people to learn about our food and culture."

For more information about XCJ and to order your first delivery, visit www.thexcj.com.

About Xiao Chi Jie

Growing direct-to-consumer Chinese food company Xiao Chi Jie (XCJ) was founded in 2020 by second-generation Chinese Americans Caleb Wang and Jennifer Liao, who are on a mission to share honest representations of the food they grew up eating and open consumers' minds and palates to new and exciting flavors, textures and aromas. Available nationwide, XCJ's product line includes restaurant-quality soup dumplings, Chinese BBQ skewers, sauces, bamboo steamers, ice creams, and now, noodle kits inspired by different regions of China. For more information, visit www.thexcj.com.

About Imaginary Ventures

In 2018, Natalie Massenet and Nick Brown launched Imaginary Ventures to invest in the tech-enabled brands and platforms that are changing the way we live by providing best-in-class products and experiences. IMAGINARY is a dynamic ecosystem of brands, forging meaningful partnerships and fostering symbiotic relationships within their portfolio, going beyond capital to provide strategic and operational support to drive profitable businesses with staying power. The firm is headquartered in New York and currently has over $1 Billion under management.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xiao-chi-jie-raises-10-million-series-a-financing-round-to-continue-crafting-restaurant-quality-chinese-food-for-home-kitchens-301648885.html

SOURCE Xiao Chi Jie
By Nora Buli and Gwladys Fouche

OSLO (Reuters) -Norwegian police on Thursday responded to a threat made by telephone against the Nyhamna gas processing plant, one of Europe's largest energy export facilities, and later said the incident had been resolved.

The threat came amid heightened concerns about the security of oil and gas infrastructure following suspected sabotage of Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines to Europe, though plant operator Gassco and offshore producers Shell and Equinor said output had not been interrupted.

"The situation has been resolved," police operations leader Per Aage Ferstad said in a statement, adding police did not believe the incident had posed a real danger to the plant.

A suspect had been identified and was known to have made similar threats in the past, police said.

The Norwegian military Home Guard has been guarding the facility since authorities boosted security at Norwegian oil and gas installations in the wake of the Nord Stream explosions on Sept. 26.

Norway is now Europe's largest gas supplier, following a sharp reduction in flows from Russia.

"The gas transport from Nyhamna is running as planned," said a Gassco spokesperson.

The Nyhamna plant processes natural gas from the offshore Ormen Lange field, operated by Shell, and the Aasta Hansteen field, operated by Equinor. It is a major supplier to Britain via the Langeled pipeline.

In recent years, gas produced from Ormen Lange has accounted for up to 20% of Britain's gas consumption, according to Shell.

British and European gas prices spiked on reports of the incident before retreating when police said the situation was resolved.

Nyhamna has an export capacity of some 84 million standard cubic metres of gas per day, according to data from Gassco.

(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche and Nora Buli, additional reporting by Stine Jacobsen; Editing by Edmund Klamann and Mark Potter)
Form 253G2 STARTENGINE CROWDFUNDING

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Filed pursuant to Rule 253(g)(2)

File No. 024-11806

SUPPLEMENT DATED OCTOBER 13, 2022

TO OFFERING CIRCULAR DATED MAY 20, 2022

3900 WEST ALAMEDA AVENUE, SUITE 1200

BURBANK, CALIFORNIA 91505

800-317-2200

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Supplement to the Offering Circular should be read in conjunction with the Offering Circular dated May 20, 2022 and is qualified by reference to the Offering Circular and supplement except to the extent that the information contained herein supplements the information contained in the Offering Circular.

The Offering Circular is available here:

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1661779/000110465922063079/tm2215725d1_253g2.htm.

Additional information about the Company is available in its registration statement filed on Form 10 available here:

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1661779/000110465922104680/tm2226974-1_1012ga.htm, and the financial statements beginning on page F-1 are hereby incorporated by reference herein.

The company has amended its financial statements and related Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and risk factor. In addition, for information covering the three- and six-month periods ending on June 30, 2022; please see the information contained in our registration statement.

As of June 6, 2022, the company is a registered company with the SEC.

Effective July 14, 2022, StartEngine Crowdfunding, Inc. will sell its securities as an issuer-dealer in Texas. The company previously used Dalmore Group, LLC as its broker-dealer in Texas.
WASHINGTON  An administrative judge has ordered the Air Force to pay $300,000 in damages to an Army veteran after the service lost an appeal on an 8-year-old disability discrimination case, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

David Bighia, 61, filed a discrimination complaint in 2014 against the Air Force after applying for a civilian historian job at Laughlin Air Force Base in late 2013. He was offered the job on the condition that he undergo a pre-employment physical since he was told he would be deploying to Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.

Bighia, who served in the Army from 1981 until 1997, said he underwent surgery in 2008 to install a stent in a blocked heart artery. Three years later, he received a second stent after suffering a heart attack. But an Air Force doctor cleared him for deployment if the location had a fixed medical treatment facility, which was available at the Qatar base, according to an EEOC summary judgment of the case.

However, the Air Force rescinded the job offer in March 2014, determining Bighia could not deploy to areas that lacked a treatment facility and there was no guarantee that all possible locations would have one.

An administrative judge at the EEOC in San Antonio found in December that the Air Force had discriminated against Bighia in violation of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The act prohibits a federal agency from discriminating against a person with disabilities. The judge ordered the Air Force to pay Bighia for damages, back pay, legal fees and expenses that could have amounted to an estimated $1.6 million and reinstate a job offer to him.

Bighia on Oct. 7 accepted the job offer from the Air Force that was previously rescinded, said Keith Taubenblatt, Bighia's attorney.

However, in August, the Air Force appealed the compensatory damages and legal fees but not the judge's finding of discrimination nor the award of "equitable relief," meaning job reinstatement, back pay and benefits, according to EEOC documents.

The Air Force argued Bighias relief should be limited, even though the service accepted the judges decision that it discriminated against the veteran in violation of the Rehabilitation Act.

The Air Force appeal was rejected, according to a decision by Carlton Hadden, director of the Office of Federal Operations for the EEOC.

Moreover, the Office of Federal Operations also increased Bighias non-pecuniary damages, which can include emotional pain and suffering, to the statutory maximum of $300,000, and ordered the Air Force to pay within 60 days of the order. The award was previously $275,000.

"We find that the award of $300,000 is more appropriate considering the severity of the emotional harms [Bighia] has suffered,  and loss of enjoyment of life, compounded by the duration of time that has passed since the [Air Force's] discriminatory actions more than eight years ago and which remain unresolved to this day due to the protracted nature of the litigation," Hadden wrote in the decision.

Laurel Falls, an Air Force public affairs officer, said the agency does not intend to appeal the judgment.

The Department of the Air Force is reviewing the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Office of Federal Operations' decision to ensure the agency complies with the commission's order in the decision," Falls said in a prepared statement.

Taubenblatt said Bighia did this to obtain justice for himself, but he also did it because he wanted to make a difference.

He saw that what the agency did here was wrong, and he intuited from that, that he can't be the only applicant that has been barred from the workplace based on misconceptions about a medical condition or based on biases with regard to disabled folks, the attorney said. He wanted to see that change, and if nothing else he wanted to show others that you can stand up to the government when they do something like that, and you can achieve victory.
AUSTIN, Texas  A 29-year-old Fort Hood soldier has been detained on suspicion that he has sexually assaulted multiple other soldiers at the Army base, including an attack involving a gun, according to service officials.

The soldier, who is assigned to the 62nd Engineer Battalion, 36th Engineer Brigade, has not been identified because he has not yet been formally charged, base officials said Thursday.

He was arrested Oct. 2 while entering a gate at Fort Hood and is being held in pre-trial confinement, according to Maria Thomas, the special agent-in-charge of the Army Criminal Investigation Divisions central Texas field office.

A text alert was sent to soldiers living near the intersection of Legends Way and 37th Street at Fort Hood at about 12:44 p.m. on Oct. 2, informing them that a male suspect with a gun was in the area. The text asked for soldiers to shelter in their rooms or stay away from the area.

At about 2:19 p.m., another text message told soldiers that the suspect had been arrested.

Investigators noticed commonalities among unresolved cases in July, but couldnt definitively link the crimes at the time, according to a statement from CID. The agency declined to answer questions about how many cases might be connected to the detained soldier or how long the soldier was targeting other soldiers on the base. CID officials said they would not provide further information because the investigation is ongoing.

Fort Hood and III Armored Corps will continue to implement initiatives begun over the last 18 months to ensure a safe and secure environment for all of our soldiers, family members and civilians at Fort Hood, said Lt. Gen. Sean Bernabe, who took command of Fort Hood last week. We are thankful for the hard work of the Criminal Investigation Division and the soldiers who assisted in apprehending this suspect.

Some of the initiatives that officials credited to helping them arrest the suspect included safety briefings, education on how and when to report suspicious activity, womens self-defense classes, command directed inspections of barracks to ensure proper safety equipment and procedures and the implementation of various investigative tools. They declined to offer further details on exactly how these initiatives were helpful.

Fort Hood began these efforts following the disappearance and death of Spc. Vanessa Guillen in April 2020. Investigators have said she was killed on base by a fellow soldier and then buried near a river outside of Fort Hood.

After her death, the Army launched an external review of Fort Hood. The Fort Hood Independent Review Committee released its report in December 2020 with 70 recommendations to improve conditions for soldiers at the base, as well as changes to overhaul Army CID and the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program.

So far, the Army has completed 65 of the recommendations, the service said.

We continue to work with leaders throughout Fort Hood to build on safety awareness and we will pursue any incidents of sexual assault, Thomas said. Army CID thoroughly investigates every report of alleged felony-level sexual misconduct and follows every lead available.
WASHINGTON - Before the pandemic, the National Air and Space Museum was one of the most popular museums in the world. It drew 6.2 million visitors in 2018 - behind only the Metropolitan Museum of Art in North America - and remained the fifth most popular on the continent in 2019, despite closing some exhibits for the beginning of an extensive multiyear renovation and rehabilitation.

"Millions of visitors can take a toll on a museum space," says Jeremy Kinney, the museum's associate director for research and curatorial affairs.

This weekend, visitors will finally see the results of that transformation in eight revamped galleries, including two with themes new to the museum. Some of the jewels of the collection, including the Wright Flyer, Neil Armstrong's spacesuit and the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia, are in new, inspiring settings. Swept away were the carpeted hallways and the dusty and boring galleries. And of the 1,240 artifacts on display, the Smithsonian boasts that 55 percent of them have never been on display in this museum before, from the supersonic Northrop T-38 Talon in which trailblazing pilot Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran set eight world records to an X-wing starfighter featured in "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" and prosthetic ear tips worn by Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock on "Star Trek."

If you're lucky enough to have a timed ticket - more on those below - or are planning a visit soon, here's what you need to know.

The exhibits center objects in new and different ways.

While a large number of artifacts are new to the Mall, that's not the case with some of the most famous. Take the Wright Military Flyer: Built in 1909 and flown that year at Fort Myer in a demonstration for the U.S. Army, it still has its original fabric covering. Bigger and beefier than the famous 1903 Wright Flyer, it was previously displayed hanging from the ceiling. But now, in the Early Flight gallery, it's down at eye level, just like the better-known Wright brothers plane, which has its own place of pride in a gallery down the hall.

Columbia, the command module for the Apollo 11 mission, was previously in the Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall, "behind Plexiglas," Kinney says, almost in disbelief. In the Destination Moon gallery, it's in a central location in a custom-built case that allows visitors to walk around it, examining the damage caused by the heat of reentry, and trying to imagine three people living inside for any period of time. (Make sure to see the video screen behind Columbia, which shows features of the cramped quarters, from the lockers to the seats, and even offers a view of Michael Collins's famous post-splashdown inscription on one of the instrument panels.)

"Visitors interact with exhibits in different ways," Kinney says. "Some read all the labels, some want the interactive. We have visitors who have a checklist - they're coming to see the first airplane. Others are genuinely curious. The space is designed for this - you want to have the artifact, but you also have the story behind it," so people can put the object in context. The museum is also approaching different groups of visitors, using models or hands-on components for visitors who might have vision or mobility issues, for example.

For Destination Moon, which has some of the Smithsonian's most prized artifacts, it was a matter of shaping the exhibit for a different, younger audience. "We had an Apollo to the Moon gallery in the old museum, but it needed to be re-contextualized," Kinney says. "When the museum opened [in 1976], moon landings were a recent memory." Now, it has been 50 years since a human walked on the moon, and fewer visitors recall where they were when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Sea of Tranquility. There's more information about the space race and its role in the culture of the time.

There's also a desire to tell a wider group of stories: Near the main entrance is the WR-3, a racing plane built by Neal Loving, the first Black pilot and double amputee certified to race airplanes. A display in the Thomas W. Haas We All Fly gallery highlights Jerrie Mock, who took up flying as a hobby and became the first woman to fly solo around the world in 1964. Both planes were previously on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly but now have a more prominent position in the nation's front yard. In Destination Moon, one display addresses "Why only White male astronauts?" by telling visitors about the Mercury 13 - a group of women who passed the same physical tests as NASA astronauts but were never accepted into NASA programs.

Get ready to get interactive.

Artifacts are essential to telling the museum's stories, whether it's the spacesuit that Armstrong wore while hopping around the lunar surface or the stopwatch the Wright brothers used to time their test flights at Kitty Hawk. But looking at objects isn't going to touch every visitor, especially the younger ones. Air and Space has always had flight simulators and interactive games and stations, but the revamped galleries go far beyond anything seen before.

The most immersive experience is "Walking on Other Worlds" in the Kenneth C. Griffin Exploring the Planets Gallery. Visitors walk into the middle of a circular space, more than 25 feet in diameter, surrounded by video screens. Over the course of seven minutes, they're taken to seven locations throughout the galaxy, including Jupiter's moon Titan, Mars and the surface of a comet. With almost 360 degrees of visuals, you can swivel around to see details - the remains of the Huygens Probe, which crashed into Titan in 2005, the rocky red outcrops so familiar from the Perseverance Rover's Instagram feed - while facts appear on the screen, pop-up-video style, talking about the temperature, gravity or surface features. (Methane lakes on Titan? Awesome.) Think of it as virtual reality without the helmet.

Over near the models of Mars rovers, a touch-screen game asks visitors to pilot a rover on missions across the Red Planet's surface, weighing risks of getting stuck versus the chance of scientific discovery, and investigating whether sites may show evidence of water before the solar clock runs down. Throughout the museum, there are chances to build your own solar system, choose the most important elements of a flying car, or track flights and animal migrations projected onto a 10-foot globe.

There are more "traditional" elements to touch and play with, too, such as pulling levers in the Wright brothers gallery to demonstrate the concept of wing warping or moving joysticks in America By Air to show how flight controls, such as rudders and wing flaps, have changed over the years. One of the most basic - and most compelling - is the Evel Knievel pinball machine in Nation of Speed. Visitors are challenged to "jump" a pinball across a chasm, similar to one of the daredevil's stunts, but have to play around with the speed of the ball and angle of ramps to successfully land on the other side.

The museum is not just about air or space.

If we're being honest, some of the galleries feel similar to the old displays. America By Air, for instance, tells the story of passenger air travel, with its display containing Emilio Pucci's swinging '60s stewardess fashions and a walk-through Douglas DC-7, which is absolutely dwarfed by the nose of a Boeing 747. But that's not always the case.

Nation of Speed, one of the new exhibit themes, explores America's obsession with things that move really fast while making a lot of noise. This was a collaboration between Air and Space and the National Museum of American History, which lent items including racecars driven by Richard Petty and Mario Andretti. Sure, Kinney concedes, each museum could have crafted its own exhibition about the need for speed, but it made more sense to join forces, even if, he says with a smile, "we have the fastest artifacts."

The gallery prominently centers the story of Air Force Col. John Stapp, whose 632 mph ride in the rocket sled Sonic Wind 1 exposed him to a G-force of 46.2 - the most faced by a human - and made him "the fastest man alive" while researching rapid acceleration and deceleration. Stapp's experiments help set safety standards for both aircraft and cars.

Kinney says the guiding principle here was, "How can we do an exhibit that's out of the box?" And it certainly is, compared with the focused tales in the other galleries. Here, the displays wander between racing aircraft, rocket engines, record-setting motorcycles and a case of toys, from a Barbie-sized Corvette to Matchbox planes to a three-foot-high model of a German V-2 rocket, which shows how our desire for machines that go faster, faster, faster is imbued at a young age.

There are some curious inclusions, from a 1980s crash test dummies commercial and bricks from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to the taxidermied remains of Gilmore the Flying Lion, the pet of charismatic plane racer Roscoe Turner. (Turner, who broke transcontinental speed records in the 1930s, was sponsored by Gilmore Oil Company, owner of the Red Lion gasoline brand. "It was all about advertising," Kinney says.) The lion had its own parachute when it flew with Turner - which it did for only nine months, the display says, "until Gilmore grew too big" to fit in the cockpit.

"It's a temporary exhibit," Kinney says, but don't rush: In Air and Space terms, that means it's going to be around for a decade.

Not all of the museum's iconic artifacts are on display.

Whether you grew up visiting the Air and Space Museum frequently or you had your life changed by a seventh-grade field trip, you probably had a favorite thing you've seen again and again: the moon rock, Chuck Yeager's sleek Bell X-1 jet, the walk-through Skylab orbital workshop, the puppet theater telling the story of the first balloon flight over the English Channel.

But with only eight of the 23 exhibition and display areas reopened, there's just not space to show everything. Some artifacts, like Yeager's sound-barrier-shattering Glamorous Glennis, have been relocated to Udvar-Hazy during renovations, along with John Glenn's Friendship 7 capsule and Gemini IV. Many artifacts remain in storage, including the moon rock and Skylab.

Some decisions are more complicated. Charles Lindbergh's famous Spirit of St. Louis, used on the first transatlantic flight, is awaiting installation in a new gallery, but in the meantime, museum director Chris Browne didn't want to keep the aircraft off public view, according to spokesperson Alison Mitchell. So if you go up to the second floor and walk past the One World Connected exhibit, you can peer around a corner and, behind velvet ropes, see the shining silver plane.

Getting in might be tougher than you think.

There's a lot of interest in the renovated museum, and the Smithsonian has turned to free timed entry passes to handle the expected crowds. About 8,000 will be available per day at first, though that could change. This weekend, Friday through Sunday are already full, as is Oct. 22. A limited number of same-day passes will become available online each day at 8:30 a.m.

The museum will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., except for Christmas, and passes are required for everyone. Tickets for a new group of dates are released every six weeks; on Sept. 14, the museum opened all dates between Oct. 14 and Nov. 30 for reservations. On Oct. 28, visitors will be able to reserve dates between Dec. 1 and Jan. 14, and then on Dec. 16, reservations become available for dates between Jan. 15 and Feb. 28.

Passes allow admission at the top of the hour between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. (for example, you can't reserve passes for 10:30 a.m.). Visitors should arrive no more than 15 minutes before their admission time, and at busy periods, the museum advises that it may take up to 30 minutes to actually enter. Passes allow entry for up to an hour after the time on the ticket; after that, admission depends on the museum's capacity.
Stanford University apologized on Wednesday after an internal task force confirmed the school had limited the admission of Jewish students during the 1950s and then "regularly misled" those who inquired about it afterward.

The university's president, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, called the restrictions "appalling anti-Semitic activity," in a university-wide note, adding that "this ugly component of Stanford's history, confirmed by this new report, is saddening and deeply troubling."

The practices were first reported on a blog by historian Charles Petersen, who wrote last year in a post titled "How I Discovered Stanford's Jewish Quota" that a memo in the school's archives amounted to "a historical smoking gun."

Petersen found a 1953 letter to J.E. Wallace Sterling, then the president of Stanford, from the assistant of the admissions director, Rixford Snyder, in which it was noted that the incoming freshman class would have a "high percentage of Jewish boys." Snyder, the assistant wrote, "thought that you should know about this problem, since it has very touchy implications."

The memo lamented that "the University of Virginia has become largely a Jewish institution, and that Cornell also has a very heavy Jewish enrollment." It warned that if Stanford were to accept "a few" applicants from two heavily Jewish high schools in Los Angeles, "the following year we get a flood of Jewish applications."

Such a dilemma, the memo said, forced them to "disregard our stated policy of paying no attention to the race or religion of applicants."

The report by the task force - which was assembled nearly a year ago - found in its review of annual reports from the registrar's office that from 1949 to 1952, Stanford enrolled 87 students from the two schools, Beverly Hills High School and Fairfax High School. From 1952 to 1955, however, only 14 students were enrolled from those schools. The report said that records "do not indicate any other public schools that experienced such a sharp drop in student enrollments over that same six-year period or any other six-year period during the 1950s and 1960s."

Tessier-Lavigne, the current president, said the practices - as well as "the university's denials of those actions in the period that followed" - were "wrong," "damaging" and "unacknowledged for too long."

Arguments in a case over modern-day quotas at an elite institution are set to be heard at the Supreme Court this month. A group of Asian Americans is suing Harvard - which also limited its admissions of Jewish students early in the 20th century - alleging that the university unfairly discriminated against them by capping admissions as a sort of "racial balancing" of its students. Harvard denies the allegations. The plaintiffs have cited Harvard's past quotas on Jewish students as evidence in their case.

Petersen, the historian, had written that the only previous comment he could find from the admissions office on the topic was a statement in 1996 to the Stanford Daily, the school newspaper, in which an admissions official said such allegations were simply "rumors" and that "assertions of the existence of quotas are only based on the convictions of the few Jewish members of the Stanford community in the '40s and '50s."

"Either the admissions office was lying," Petersen wrote, "or else they didn't look that hard."

Rabbi Jessica Kirschner, executive director of Hillel at Stanford, said in an email that "for the people who knew there was something wrong despite official denials, hearing the symbolic head of the university speak the truth out loud and apologize is validating, and maybe even healing."

She said the university's response Wednesday was "an example of what productive institutional apologies look like," noting how "a new generation of Stanford leadership took evidence seriously, commissioned a strong task force, and did not flinch when its findings did not reflect well on the institution."

Sophia Danielpour and Ashlee Kupor, co-presidents of the Jewish Student Association at Stanford, said in an email that while they were "disappointed" about this aspect of the university's history, they were "also appreciative that Stanford allowed a thorough discovery process and issued a real apology."

They said they hope the findings spur "concrete changes," including awareness of the Jewish high holidays in relation to the academic calendar and of a "blind spot" in the school's diversity and inclusion efforts "that doesn't always include religious minorities."

In his note to the school, Tessier-Lavigne wrote that Stanford will implement a number of recommendations from the task force, including addressing the "deeply regrettable" scheduling of the start of Stanford's fall quarter during Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, which happened last month. Stanford will also create an ongoing Jewish advisory committee, he said.

Tessier-Lavigne added that "it would be natural to ask whether any of the historical anti-Jewish bias documented by the task force exists in our admissions process today. We are confident it does not."
The United States and Mexico reached an agreement that will allow U.S. authorities to send some Venezuelan migrants back across the border while expanding opportunities for others to apply for legal entry through U.S. consulates abroad, officials said Wednesday.

The arrangement is modeled after Biden administration program that has allowed nearly 70,000 Ukrainians to enter the United States over the past year with a legal status known as humanitarian parole. Applicants must have a person or organization willing to sponsor them financially, and present themselves at U.S. consulates abroad, not at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Venezuelans approved for the program will be allowed to fly to the United States and seek faster approval for work authorization, instead of attempting a dangerous overland journey.

"The actions the United States and Mexico are announcing today are intended to address the most acute irregular migration and help ease pressure on the cities and states receiving these individuals," the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

"Effective immediately, Venezuelans who enter the United States between ports of entry, without authorization, will be returned to Mexico," the statement said. "At the same time, the United States and Mexico are reinforcing their coordinated enforcement operations to target human smuggling organizations and bring them to justice."

The Mexican government said the U.S. has agreed to allow 24,000 Venezuelans to reach the United States by air under the terms of the accord. Mexico, in an effort to discourage Venezuelans from heading directly to the border, will agree to accept Venezuelan migrants under Title 42, a pandemic measure ostensibly designed to protect public health.

Mexico will allow Venezuelans who are currently in Mexico to apply for entry into the United States under the new humanitarian program. But Venezuelans who are new arrivals in Mexico will be detained by the country's immigration authority and possibly deported, officials said.

Deporting Venezuelans from the United States or Mexico has been difficult because the Venezuelan government has frequently refused to allow deportation flights into the country. Mexico has reluctantly accepted U.S. demands on Title 42 since the policy was implemented in 2020. But it would not previously accept Venezuelans largely because of the deportation challenges.

Mexican officials say the program will work only if the U.S. agrees to accept a significant number of Venezuelans under the new visa program, so that migrants believe they have a viable alternative to transiting through Central America.

"We will be watching the program to make sure the numbers are sufficient," said a Mexican official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the agreement.

The Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday an increase the allotment of work visas, adding 65,000 H2-B visas for temporary non-agricultural workers. Of those, 20,000 visas will be reserved for people from Central America and Haiti, according to the department.

With a record number of Venezuelan migrants entering the United States across the southern border in recent months, Biden officials have been scrambling to head off a humanitarian and logistical emergency created by the influx.

Most of the migrants sent on buses by the Republican governors of Arizona and Texas to northern U.S. cities are Venezuelans. New York City mayor Eric Adams said his city's shelter system has been overwhelmed by their numbers, declaring a crisis.

Administration officials familiar with the plan said the agreement has been contingent on getting Mexico to agree to take back more migrants expelled by U.S. authorities using Title 42.

Mexico has limited the number of migrants it receives, citing its shelter capacity limits, and has allowed the U.S. to return relatively few Venezuelans.

Roughly 1,000 Venezuelans have been crossing the U.S. southern border per day in recent weeks, according to the latest available data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

One official familiar with the program expressed skepticism that the U.S. program would be successful if Mexico only agrees to the return of a few hundred migrants per day at the border.

U.S. authorities have virtually no ability to send Venezuelans back to their home country on deportation flights, because the U.S. does not recognize Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro as the country's legitimate president.

Venezuelans who aren't "expelled" to Mexico under Title 42 would continue to be allowed to enter the United States, and if the new program generates backlogs and long queues at U.S. consulates abroad, some of those applicants may not be willing to wait.

Nearly 7 million Venezuelans have left their homeland since 2013, according to the latest United Nations estimates. Many settled in Colombia, Peru and other South American nations, but have opted to make the journey north to the United States in search of better security and economic opportunity.

The Biden administration attempted to end the Title 42 public health policy but was blocked in federal court in May.

Critics said the agreement with Mexico appeared to be another indication of the administration's dependency on Title 42.

"The contours of the Humanitarian Parole Program for Venezuelans have not been presented to us, but we are extremely disturbed by the apparent acceptance, codification, and expansion of the use of Title 42, an irrelevant health order, as a cornerstone of border policy. One that expunges the legal right to asylum," said Thomas Cartwright, an immigrant advocate with the group Witness at the Border.

Miroff reported from Washington, D.C., and Sieff from Mexico City.
SEOUL, South Korea  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised tests of long-range cruise missiles, which he described as a successful demonstration of his militarys expanding nuclear strike capabilities and readiness for actual war, state media said Thursday.

Wednesday's tests extended a record number of weapons demonstrations this year by North Korea, which has punctuated its testing activity with threats to preemptively use nuclear weapons against South Korea and the United States if it perceives its leadership as under threat.

Analysts say Kim is exploiting the distraction created by Russias war on Ukraine, using it as a window to accelerate arms development as he pursues a full-fledged nuclear arsenal that could viably threaten regional U.S. allies and the American homeland.

South Korean officials say Kim may also conduct a nuclear test in the coming weeks or months, escalating a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the United States to accept the idea of North Korea as a nuclear power that can negotiate economic and security concessions from a position of strength.

North Koreas official Korean Central News Agency said the two missiles during Wednesdays tests flew for nearly three hours, drawing oval and figure eight-shaped patterns above its western seas, and showed that they can hit targets 1,240 miles away. The tests demonstrated the accuracy and war-fighting efficiency of the weapon system that has already been deployed at army units operating tactical battlefield nuclear weapons, the agency said.

Kim after the tests praised the readiness of his nuclear combat forces, which he said were fully prepared for actual war to bring enemies under their control at a blow with various weapons systems that are mobile, precise and powerful," according to the report.

He said that the tests send another clear warning to enemies and vowed to further expand the operational realm of his nuclear armed forces to resolutely deter any crucial military crisis and war crisis at any time and completely take the initiative in it.

The missiles flight details and characteristics described in state media resembled what North Korea reported in January following the previous demonstration of its long-range cruise missile system, which was first revealed in September last year.

State media photos of Wednesdays test showed a missile leaving an orange tail of flame as it shot out of a launch vehicle. Kim is seen smiling and clapping from a viewing station established inside an arched structure that appears to be a highway tunnel. Experts say the North may intend to use such structures to conceal its weapons before launch.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said it was analyzing the tests.

The tests were the first known weapons demonstrations by North Korea after it launched 12 ballistic missiles in a span of two weeks through Oct. 9 in what it described as simulated nuclear attacks on South Korean and U.S. targets. Those weapons included a new intermediate range ballistic missile that flew over Japan while demonstrating potential range to reach Guam, a major U.S. military hub in the Pacific, and a short-range missile fired from an unspecified platform inside an inland reservoir.

North Korea said those drills were meant as a warning to Seoul and Washington for staging dangerous joint naval exercises involving the nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in recent weeks, which were intended as the allies show of strength in the face of growing North Korean threats.

Concerns about Kims expanding nuclear arsenal has grown since his rubber-stamp parliament last month passed a new law that authorized preemptive use of nuclear weapons over a broad range of scenarios, including non-war situations, where it may perceive its leadership as under threat. South Koreas military has since warned North Korea that it would self-destruct if it uses its bombs by triggering an overwhelming response from the allies.

While Kim's intercontinental ballistic missiles targeting the American homeland have gathered much international attention, he has also been expanding his arsenal of shorter-range weapons aimed at overwhelming missile defenses in South Korea. The North describes some of those weapons as tactical, which experts say communicate a threat to arm them with small battlefield nukes and proactively use them during conflicts to blunt the stronger conventional forces of South Korea and the United States, which stations about 28,500 troops in the South.

North Koreas provocative tests and threats have prompted calls by South Korean conservatives for the redeployment of tactical U.S. nuclear weapons, which were removed from South Korean soil in the 1990s, or for the South to pursue its own nuclear weapons capabilities.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol refused to give specific answers when asked whether Seoul will consider requesting Washington to bring back its nukes or undertake a NATO-like nuclear-sharing arrangement with his country.

There are various views being expressed in the government and private sectors of our country and the United States regarding the (U.S.) extended deterrence, and we are carefully listening to those opinions and closely examining various possibilities, Yoon told reporters on Thursday. Yoon has repeatedly stressed his government has no plans to seek its own deterrent.

Moon Hong Sik, a spokesperson in Seoul's Defense Ministry, said Thursday the military has not discussed the possibility of pursuing a redeployment of U.S. nuclear weapons.

North Korea has fired more than 40 ballistic and cruise missiles over more than 20 launch events this year, exploiting a divide in the U.N. Security Council deepened over Russias war on Ukraine. The councils permanent members Moscow and Beijing have rejected U.S.-led proposals to impose tighter sanctions on Pyongyang over its intensified testing activity. Experts say the Norths next nuclear test, which would be its seventh overall since 2006, is likely to be the first that the Security Council fails to meet with new sanctions.

Nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang have stalled since early 2019 over disagreements in exchanging the release of crippling U.S.-led sanctions against the North and the Norths denuclearization steps.
BEIJING  President Xi Jinping, Chinas most influential figure in decades, gets a chance to install more allies who share his vision of an even more dominant role in the economy for the ruling Communist Party and tighter control over entrepreneurs at a party meeting that starts this weekend.

The only question, economists and political analysts say, is whether Chinas economic slump might force Xi to temper his enthusiasm for a state-run economy and include supporters of the markets and private enterprises that generate jobs and wealth.

The congress will name a new Standing Committee, China's inner circle of power, and other party leaders, not economic regulators. Those will be appointed by the ceremonial legislature, which meets in March. But the leadership lineup will highlight who is likely to succeed Premier Li Keqiang, the top economic official, and take other government posts.

Xi has called for a great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation by reviving the partys original mission as economic and social leader. During his term, the emphasis has been on politics over economics and on reducing reliance on foreign technology and markets.

Xi is expected to try to break with tradition and award himself a third five-year term as party leader. A report he is due to deliver at the congress will set economic, trade and technology goals for at least the next five years.

Investors will look for signs of "a more private sector-led economy. But with President Xi in place, there wont be much change, said Lloyd Chan of Oxford Economics. Any reforms will be carried out in a way that it will be state-led.

The party faces an avalanche of challenges: A tariff war with Washington, curbs on access to Western technology, a shrinking and aging workforce, the rising cost of Beijings anti-COVID strategy and debt Chinese leaders worry is dangerously high.

Economic growth slid to 2.2% over a year earlier in the first six months of 2022, less than half the official target, sapped by a crackdown on debt in Chinas vast real estate industry and repeated shutdowns of major cities to fight virus outbreaks.

Loyalty to Xi is regarded as key to promotion. One potential candidate for premier, a post that usually goes to the No. 2 or 3 party leader, declared his allegiance by publishing a newspaper article in July that invoked Xi's name 48 times.

Xi Jinping prefers to appoint party apparatchiks, cadres who are loyal to himself, rather than technocrats, said Willy Lam, who researches elite Chinese politics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. This is a big problem if we look at future financial and economic advisers to Xi.

Beijing opened its auto industry to foreign ownership and carried out other market-oriented reforms. But it has failed to follow through on dozens of other promised changes. Meanwhile, the party is pouring money into creating computer chip, aerospace and other industries.

Private sector success stories including Alibaba, the worlds biggest e-commerce company, and Tencent, a giant in games and social media, are under pressure to align with party plans. They are diverting billions of dollars to chip development and other political goals.

Xis government wants manufacturers to reduce reliance on global supply chains and use more domestic suppliers, even if that raises costs.

Under the 1950s propaganda slogan common prosperity, Xi is pushing entrepreneurs to help narrow Chinas wealth gap by paying for rural job creation and other initiatives.

Li, the No. 2 leader, is due to step down as premier next year but at 67 is a year below party retirement age. It isn't clear whether he might stay on the Standing Committee and take a different government post.

Other regulators and policymakers, some foreign-educated and experienced in dealing with foreign markets and governments, are due to leave office over the coming year if retirement ages are enforced.

They include Vice Premier Liu He, a Harvard-trained reform advocate who is Xis economic adviser and the chief envoy to trade war talks with Washington. Yi Gang, governor of the central bank and a former Indiana University professor, Finance Minister Liu Kun and bank regulator Guo Shuqing also are due to go.

When their successors are picked, the big question will be whether Xi has unlimited decision-making authority over the economy and technology, Derek Scissors of the American Enterprise Institute in Washington said in an email.

Is Xi forced by party elites to listen to someone? Scissors said. If its a bunch of toadies, we get more paranoia paraded as policy.

Xis decision to go abroad for last months summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Central Asian leaders suggests he was confident he has a third term locked in and didnt need to stay home to make deals.

Financial markets are hoping for some evidence of internal resistance to Xi to change course on policymaking, Logan Wright and Agatha Kratz said in a report for Rhodium Group. If Xi strengthens this authority, that would suggest elevation of the partys priorities above those of Chinas economic technocrats.

Possible candidates for premier include Wang Yang, who already is a Standing Committee member, according to political analysts. Others are Hu Chunhua and Han Zheng, both deputy premiers, a role that is seen as training for the top job.

Wang, a former party secretary of the southern manufacturing powerhouse province of Guangdong, and Han, who was party secretary of the business capital Shanghai for many years, are seen as politically close to Xi and might represent little change in economic direction.

Hu might represent a potential change. He is seen as politically closer to Xis predecessor, Hu Jintao.

Hu Chunhua, 59, lobbied for the job by citing Xi in every sentence of a July 27 article about farm policy in the main party newspaper.

That showed Hu is very eager to get that position, said Lam. He said Hu has less economic experience than Li, the premier, but at least he comes from a different faction than Xi, which would add to diversity of views.

Potential dark horse candidates include party secretaries Li Qiang of Shanghai or Chen Min'er of the populous city of Chongqing in the southwest.

A potential economic czar to succeed Liu, the vice premier, is He Lifeng, chairman of the Cabinet planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission. A friend of Xi, he is seen as a politician, not a technocrat.

A party statement in August reinforced the dominance of politics by calling for party building. Last month, the party magazine Seeking Truth published a Xi speech that emphasized the partys need for self-revolution to fight corruption and other problems.

That suggests Xi will tighten party control, further narrowing the space for liberal approaches to economic policy, Neil Thomas of Eurasia Group said in a report.
TOKYO  For decades North Korea has threatened to turn enemy cities into a "sea of fire," even as it doggedly worked on building a nuclear weapons program that could back up its belligerent words.

Now, as North Korea conducts another torrid run of powerful weapons tests  and threatens pre-emptive nuclear strikes on Washington and Seoul  it may be taking inspiration from the fiery rhetoric of the leader of a nuclear-armed member of the U.N. Security Council: Russia's Vladimir Putin.

With Putin raising the terrifying prospect of using tactical nukes to turn around battleground setbacks in Ukraine, there's fear that this normalization of nuclear threats is emboldening North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as he puts the finishing touches on his still incomplete nuclear program.

"Putin and Kim feed off each other, routinizing the right to nuke a peaceful neighbor by repeating it without repercussion," said Sung-Yoon Lee, an expert on North Korea at Tufts University's Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. "Putin's threats sound more credible than Kim's, as there is bloodshed in Ukraine every day. But Kim's threats must not be dismissed as empty bluster."

After more than 40 missile launches this year  its most ever  there are a host of fresh signs that North Korea is becoming more aggressive in making its nuclear bombs the centerpiece of its military.

A recent two-week barrage of missile launches was meant, according to North Korean media, to simulate the use of its tactical battlefield nuclear weapons to "hit and wipe out" potential South Korean and U.S. targets. It's believed to mark the first time that North Korea has performed drills involving army units tasked with the operation of tactical nuclear weapons.

The tests  all supervised by Kim  included a nuclear-capable ballistic missile launched under a reservoir; ballistic missiles designed for nuclear strikes on South Korean airfields, ports and command facilities; and a new-type ground-to-ground ballistic missile that flew over Japan.

State media announced Thursday the tests the previous day of long-range cruise missiles, which Kim described as a successful demonstration of his military's expanding nuclear strike capabilities and readiness for "actual war."

There are also indications that North Korea is taking steps to deploy tactical nuclear weapons along its frontline border with South Korea. The North has also adopted a new law that authorizes preemptive nuclear attacks over a broad range of scenarios, including non-war situations, when it perceives a threat to its leadership.

North Korea is still working to perfect its nuclear-tipped missile technology, but each new test pushes it closer to that goal.

"North Korea has been clearly emulating Putin's approach in his war on Ukraine while using it as a window to accelerate arms development," according to Park Won Gon, a professor of North Korea studies at Seoul's Ewha Womans University.

In what's seen as a reference to his nuclear arsenal, Putin has declared his readiness to use "all means available" to protect Russian territory. With a string of defeats in Ukraine leaving Putin increasingly cornered, observers worry that Putin could be tempted to explode a tactical nuclear weapon to avoid a defeat that may undermine his grip on power.

Battlefield nuclear weapons are intended to crush advancing enemy troops in one designated frontline section, and have a low yield compared to nuclear warheads fitted on strategic weapons. But even these types of nuclear weapons would expose huge numbers of civilians in densely populated Ukraine, and possibly Russia and other places, to radiation risks.

It would also have a devastating political impact, marking the first time nuclear weapons have been used since World War II and prompting rapid escalation that could end in all-out nuclear conflict.

The United States and its allies have said they are taking Putin's threats seriously but won't yield to what they described as Putin's blackmail to force the West to abandon its support for Ukraine. Ukraine said it won't halt its counteroffensive despite Russian nuclear strike threats.

U.S. officials have said they don't believe that Kim is going to launch conventional or nuclear attacks because of what the North Korean leader sees happening in Ukraine. Rather, they see Kim as worried that North Korea may be left behind in the international influence battle and therefore escalating because Putin is getting all the attention.

North Korea's missile launches are seen by many as presaging an eventual test of a nuclear device.

Such tests, besides putting Washington and Seoul on the defensive, may be meant to win talks, on North Korean terms, with Washington that could eventually get the North recognized as a legitimate nuclear power. That, in turn, would force the international community to ease crushing sanctions and, eventually, negotiate the removal of nearly 30,000 U.S. troops in South Korea.

Pyongyang's ultimate goal, according to Lee, the Tufts professor, is to complete what Kim Jong Un's grandfather, Kim Il Sung, began in 1950 with the surprise North Korean invasion of South Korea and establish a Korean Peninsula ruled by the Kim family.

Putin's moves in Ukraine could also help Kim by continuing to distract the United States from focusing on North Korea and deepening a divide on the U.N. Security Council where Russia and China side with North Korea and prevent additional sanctions over the North's recent tests, said Park, the analyst in Seoul.

"North Korea is paying as much attention to the (Ukraine) situation as anyone," Park said. If Putin gets away with using nukes without suffering major repercussions, North Korea will see that as boosting its own nuclear doctrine, Park said.

The Korean Peninsula is still technically at war because the 1950-53 conflict ended with an armistice not a peace treaty, and the two Koreas have a history of bloody skirmishes. North Korea fired artillery during South Korean military drills in 2010 that killed two civilians and two South Korean military members on a front-line island. An international panel also blamed the North for sinking a South Korean warship the same year, killing 46.

Similar future clashes could be followed by North Korean threats to use nuclear weapons, said Park. He noted that conventional military clashes between India and Pakistan increased after Pakistan acquired its own deterrent to counter its nuclear-armed rival, mainly because the perceived balance in strength emboldened the countries to carry out more aggressive military action.

Recent North Korean missile tests came despite a U.S. aircraft carrier in nearby waters and during trilateral naval drills between the United States, South Korea and Japan, Park said. "This shows the growing confidence they have in their weapons."

AP reporters Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this story.
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea  Positioning U.S. strategic assets in South Korea is preferable to deploying nuclear arms there to match the threat from North Korea, a senior defense official in Seoul said Thursday.

It is most desirable to deter the North using U.S. strategic assets currently available on the Korean Peninsula, rather than deploying U.S. tactical nuclear weapons, Vice Minister of National Defense Shin Beom Chul told SBS Radio on Thursday.

The United States has roughly 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea as well as a state-of-the-art Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.

The defense ministry has primarily focused on the timely deployment of strategic assets in South Korea, rather than a nuclear sharing agreement with the U.S., Shin said.

His comments follow a call by the leader of the ruling People Power Party to scrap a 1991 inter-Korean denuclearization agreement that prohibits the South from possessing or producing nuclear weapons.

The agreement should be abolished if North Korea conducts its seventh nuclear test, Chung Jin-suk wrote Wednesday on his personal Facebook page.

The moment of decision has come, Chung said. The agreement has been turned into scraps of toilet paper, he added.

U.S. and South Korean officials have said North Korea, which has fired more than 40 missiles in 25 rounds of tests so far this year, is also prepared to test its first nuclear device since 2017.

The communist regime last fired two cruise missiles on Wednesday, according to North Korean state-run media and the Souths Ministry of National Defense. The North alarmed world leaders by launching a ballistic missile over Japan on Oct. 3.

A potential nuclear weapons program in South Korea would be at odds with existing U.S. policy. U.S. administrations under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump have consistently stressed that the White House goal in the region is to rid the Korean Peninsula of nuclear weapons entirely.

We will seek sustained diplomacy with North Korea to make tangible progress toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, while strengthening extended deterrence in the face of North Korean weapons of mass destruction and missile threats, said Bidens National Security Strategy released on Wednesday.

Former senior U.S. military officials have warned against deploying nuclear weapons in South Korea.

During a panel discussion hosted by The Korea Society in New York in November, former U.S. Forces Korea commander Robert Abrams said a South Korean nuclear weapons program is unnecessary and it could potentially lead to misunderstanding and miscalculation by not just North Korea but other people in the region.

Theres been a lot of chatter lately about whether the Republic of Korea should develop its own nuclear weapons program  Im not in favor of that, Abrams said during the discussion, referring to South Korea. I think that would be a bad idea. Theres a lot of unmentioned costs that go towards building a nuclear weapons program that Im not sure has been well thought out.
BERLIN  Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday defended her government's decisions to buy large quantities of natural gas from Russia, which was her country's primary gas supplier when she left office.

Speaking in Lisbon, Merkel said that "you always act in the time you are in" and that she doesn't regret her decisions. She said that it was clear that Germany needed to diversify its energy supplies as it moved away from nuclear and coal-fueled power generation and that gas would be needed during that transitional period.

Merkel said that "from the perspective of that time, it was very rational and understandable to get pipeline gas, including from Russia, that was cheaper than LNG from other parts of the world."

She added that "even in the Cold War, Russia was a reliable energy supplier."

Merkel led Germany from 2005 until last December. During her time in power, the Nord Stream 1 pipeline bringing gas directly from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea came on stream.

Her government also backed the parallel Nord Stream 2 pipeline, despite strong opposition from central and eastern European countries and the United States. It never entered service because current Chancellor Olaf Scholz halted its certification process shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine in February.

"This brutal attack by Russia has brought a change; it's a turning point, and the new government of course has to deal with that and it is doing so," Merkel said.

Germany worked to reduce its dependence on Russian gas following the invasion, while Russia in turn cut supplies to Germany through Nord Stream 1 in June. Moscow cited technical problems that German officials dismissed as cover for a political move. Russia ended the flow of gas through the pipeline altogether at the end of August.

Merkel, who hasn't made many public appearances since leaving office, has already defended her attempts as chancellor to bring about a diplomatic solution to tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

On Thursday, she made clear that she stands by her decision in 2011 to phase out Germany's use of nuclear power at the end of this year, and wouldn't comment on an ongoing debate in Scholz's coalition on whether and how much longer the remaining reactors should be kept online.
Western allies said Thursday they will rush special weaponry into Ukraine to help Kyiv neutralize drones that the Russian military is relying on to attack cities and civilian targets across the country.

NATO will shortly deliver counterdrone equipment to Ukraine, with hundreds of drone jammers, which can help render ineffective Russian and Iranian-made drones, and to protect Ukrainian people and critical infrastructure, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.

Stoltenbergs comments came at the conclusion of two days of talks at alliance headquarters in Brussels, where allies were focused on beefing up air defenses not only in Ukraine, but on NATO turf.

More than a dozen NATO countries are now on board with plans to launch the European Sky Shield, a new air defense initiative on the eastern side of the Atlantic. They signed a letter of intent Thursday at NATO headquarters in Brussels during a meeting of defense ministers.

This commitment is even more crucial today as we witness the ruthless and indiscriminate missile attacks by Russia in Ukraine, killing civilians and destroying critical infrastructure, NATO Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoana said in a statement.

Germany is slated to lead the effort through a shared acquisition strategy. It wasnt clear Thursday when NATO intends the initiative to begin operations, or what weapons systems it will include.

The 14 NATO allies that signed on to the plan are Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania and the United Kingdom.

Finland, which is still awaiting the unanimous approval of member states required for entrance into the alliance, also is part of the effort.

The assets are expected to integrate into NATOs broader air and missile defense network, enhancing the allies ability to defend their collective territory from air and missile threats, alliance officials said.

On Wednesday, American defense leaders said the U.S. and its allies also are aiming to provide Ukraine with an integrated air defense system that will better protect high-priority parts of the country.

The plan came at Kyivs request in the wake of Moscows bombardment of numerous cities across Ukraine.

With the war in Ukraine now in its eighth month, the U.S. and other allies have sent billions of dollars in arms to support the country since Russia launched its full-scale invasion. But the scale of allied support has raised concerns about member states depleting their weapon stockpiles.

NATO agreed on Thursday to take steps to ramp up weapons production.

We all know that we all share the responsibility to prepare and provide ready capabilities and forces to prepare this alliance for the challenges to come, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters at the end of discussions Thursday.
Russia's deadly missile strikes across Ukraine this week have renewed calls for the United States and its partners to provide the government in Kyiv with advanced air defense systems capable of downing incoming fire.

The carnage - stretching from Lviv in the west to the eastern city of Kharkiv - could have been much worse. Ukraine's military intercepted about half of the 84 missiles and 24 armed drones fired by Russia on Monday and Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. Additional strikes were reported Wednesday.

"When Ukraine receives a sufficient quantity of modern and effective air defense systems, the key element of Russia's terror - rocket strikes - will cease to work," Zelensky told Group of Seven leaders this week.

Two U.S. air defense systems known as NASAMS are weeks away from delivery, the Pentagon said following the strikes, and efforts are underway to expedite the process.

Speaking Wednesday at NATO headquarters in Belgium, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the United States and its partners are doing "everything we can, as fast we can, to get the Ukrainian forces what they need to protect the Ukrainian people," though he did not announce any new aid.

WHAT TO KNOW:

Q: How does air defense work?

A: Air defense systems fire projectiles to intercept and destroy airborne threats, including missiles, helicopters and drones.

But it's not as simple as spotting something on radar and firing at it. A blip on a screen has to be identified by how it behaves and its characteristics, including its speed and altitude, said Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank.

Operators must also determine if an object is friendly, such as a civilian or allied military aircraft. If a threat is identified, system operators and commanders then must decide if there is anything they can do to stop it. Time is always the enemy in air defense, and a missile may be traveling fast enough to leave a monitored area before troops can identify, track and fire on it.

"You may be able to see it," Karako said, "but you may not be able to do anything about it."

The composition of each air defense system varies. For instance, the NASAMS suite - short for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems - includes a command post, sensors, a radar system and munitions that can be fired from a stand-alone pod or from the back of a truck. This is the air defense system used to protect the White House.

Q: Where is air defense limited?

A: The earth itself presents challenges depending on what kind of munition is used.

Ballistic missiles fired from land, for instance, produce a lot of heat, which helps detect their launch right away. They also fly with predictable trajectories, the Missile Defense Project wrote in a recent report. Cruise missiles, on the other hand, can be launched from the air or from ships. They are designed to fly low, where the horizon and other background features like terrain can obscure the weapon, making it undetectable for crucial minutes.

That means the physical space that air defense systems effectively monitor can expand or shrink depending on how high the incoming projectile is: The higher the object, the less background noise there is, making it easier for the system's sensors to detect.

The U.S. military is trying to change that, Karako said. One potential solution is to distribute sensors in several places that can pick up information about an object and direct it to an air defense crew, rather than rely on a few systems that may not be close enough. Another possible solution is to place sensors high on tall objects, like a tower, creating a wider area for them to monitor.

Another inherent problem for air defense: There are always more threats than systems meant to defeat them. While Ukraine has its own capabilities, like the Soviet-era S-300, they are probably priority targets for Russia and some have been destroyed since the invasion.

"What Ukraine is asking for, and what we think can be provided, is an integrated air missile defense system," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark A. Milley, appearing alongside Austin, said Wednesday, describing a mix of systems that have different ranges. "That doesn't control all the airspace over Ukraine, but they're designed to control priority targets that Ukraine needs to protect."

Q: What have allies provided?

A: In July, the United States pledged two NASAMS to Ukraine. A midrange system, its radar can see threats up to roughly 80 miles away, depending on the radar being used and other variables such as weather and the size and altitude of a target. Those will arrive within several weeks, officials say, but there will be a much greater delay for the an additional six systems the United States has promised to Ukraine. Those will probably take years to procure and deliver, the Pentagon says. They are part of a larger, long-term effort to build a sustainable defense infrastructure in Ukraine and must first be produced.

Other allies have pledged similar capabilities. Germany said four of its IRIS-T air defense systems are bound for Ukraine. The system is so new that it hasn't been used in a combat environment, according to analysts. Ukraine also has shown interest in France's SAMP/T system. French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday pledged that help would be provided within weeks, but he did not specify what systems would be sent.

A challenge in sending air defense systems is the hardware's scarcity and sensitive components. The United States has inventory, but much of it is at bases overseas, notably in the Middle East and Europe, where American personnel have faced attack or the heightened risk of it. Washington has been reluctant to share other capabilities, such as the Patriot missile system, that the Pentagon would not want captured, Karako said. Milley mentioned the platform during his remarks Wednesday but stopped short of saying whether the United States is considering changing its posture.

Israel, similarly, has rebuffed Ukraine's entreaties to acquire its Iron Dome air defense system, said to be highly effective against incoming rocket fire, as the Israeli government seeks to preserve strategic regional relations with Russia.

National Security Council coordinator John Kirby told reporters Tuesday that Ukraine already has elements of a "layered air defense" in its arsenal, including short-range Stingers sent by the United States early in the conflict and the longer-range, Russian-made S-300. "There is no one silver bullet weapons system that is best used against cruise missiles," he said.

Q: What is Russia using to attack?

A: Russia is firing a mix of older and newer missiles from a variety of locations, including from strategic bombers in the Caspian region and Kalibr cruise missiles lobbed from the Black Sea, said Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Ukraine's defense minister. Kalibr missiles are costly and meant for high-priority targets, making the Russian strategy to hit civilian infrastructure perplexing, as doing so does not clearly advance its military goals. The missiles, designed to penetrate the air defenses of stationary ground targets, fly autonomously and largely horizontally at low altitude, along preprogrammed coordinates.

The Russians have also engineered their S-300 air defense systems to fire at land targets, Sak said, giving the missiles moderate range but because they fly fast at low altitudes, interception is difficult. In July, the governor of Mykolaiv, a city in southern Ukraine near the Black Sea, said Russian forces had affixed GPS devices to their S-300 warheads being fired at land targets, but that they were still inaccurate.

Russian drones provided by Iran also have tested Ukraine's air defense systems. They are small and operate low to evade radar, Sak said, but their proximity to the ground means they are vulnerable to Ukrainian soldiers carrying rifles.

"Our air defense forces show a very good result in interceptions," Sak said. "With Western systems it will be even better."

The Washington Post's Emily Ruahala in Brussels, and Karen DeYoung and Karoun Demirjian contributed to this report.
LONDON  As anti-government protests roil cities and towns in Iran for a fourth week, tens of thousands of Iranians living abroad have marched on the streets of Europe, North America and beyond in support of what many believe to be a watershed moment for their home country.

From those who fled in the 1980s after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution to a younger generation of Iranians born and raised in Western capitals, many in the diaspora community say they feel an unprecedented unity of purpose and affinity with the demonstrations at home sparked by the death of a 22-year-old woman detained by Iran's morality police.

"I see this as a turning point for Iran in many ways -- we've always had political fault lines that divided us, but this time it's people saying, 'I'm with women'," said Tahirih Danesh, 52, a human rights researcher who lives and works in London. "It's phenomenal, it's happened at such speed, and this sense of camaraderie among Iranians has been amazing."

In the past month, large crowds of people of Iranian origin in dozens of cities from London to Paris to Toronto have turned out every weekend for rallies in solidarity with protests that erupted in Iran after Mahsa Amini died in custody after she was detained for allegedly violating strict Islamic dress codes for women.

Many say they have been kept awake at night by a mixture of hope, sadness and apprehension  hope that their country may be on the brink of change after decades of oppression, and fear that authorities will unleash more violence in an increasingly brutal crackdown that has seen dozens killed and hundreds arrested.

Some, like Danesh - whose family smuggled her and her siblings out of Iran in the 1980s to escape persecution  say the images of protesters being violently suppressed by authorities recall afresh the trauma of similar scenes around the time of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

"I'm thousands of miles away, it's 40 years later but the images I see are bringing it all back, it's as if I'm reliving it again," Danesh said.

While Iran has seen waves of protest in recent years, many agree that this time the resistance feels broader in nature and in scope because it challenges the fundamentals of the Islamic Republic. Some say they have never seen the likes of global solidarity for Iran shown by politicians, intellectuals and celebrities, many of whom have cut off locks of their hair in a gesture of support of Iranian women.

"Before, many of us outside had a distanced view of what's happening inside, we couldn't find the same connection. But today Iranians inside are calling for fundamental change. They're saying 'retrieve my Iran'," said Vali Mahlouji, 55, an art curator in London who left Iran in the 1980s. He said he is self-exiled because his work deals with censored artists and art history.

"This unites every Iranian I know, all the different generations of exiles," he added. "People who have been out of Iran most of their lives are feeling restless and sleepless. I don't know anyone who is not sympathetic, and of course, not worried."

The Iranian diaspora is large, including not just those who fled soon after the 1979 revolution, but also later waves leaving Iran because of continued repression or economic woes. More than half a million live in the U.S., and France, Sweden and Germany have communities in the hundreds of thousands, with major centers in Los Angeles, Washington, London, Paris and Stockholm.

In Paris, 28-year-old Romane Ranjbaran was among thousands last week who came out despite a heavy downpour and marched, sang and chanted "Khamenei get out" in Persian and French, referring to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Several women cut off locks of their hair and threw them in the air joyfully.

Ranjbaran, who grew up in France, said she felt "stricken" by what's happening in Iran.

"Iran is part and parcel of my history. My mom has known a free Iran when women were free," she said, as her mother and other family members stood by her side at the rally. "It's an international fight. If we want the situation in Iran to improve, we need international support."

The 1979 revolution ousted the U.S.-backed shah, the monarch whose rule was resolutely secular but was also brutally repressive and plagued with corruption. The revolution joined leftists and other political factions including Islamists, who after the shah's fall seized total power and created the Islamic Republic, ruled over by Shiite Muslim clerics.

Some expatriates have been wary of joining protests because they have family in Iran and regularly travel back and forth. Some raised concerns about the suspected presence of Iranian intelligence agents or extremist factions.

Others say they felt some unease about the protests' aims beyond the unifying cry of "Women, Life, Freedom" and the leaderless nature of the protests.

"I love my country, I want to show support, but every time I go I'm also confused because in every corner of the demonstrations there's a different chant," said Amanda Navaian, a luxury handbag designer in her early 40s who has attended all the recent weekend rallies in London.

Navaian said she wanted to attend protests "for as long as it takes," and has even made plans to potentially organize one herself. She wasn't sure demonstrations abroad will make a real difference, but she said it was crucial "to show we care."

At the very least, she knows she is doing something to dispel what she described as pervasive negative perceptions of Iran and Iranians.

"Islam was forced upon us, this extremism is not who we are. Our country has been hijacked  we were a country of music, dance and poetry," Navaian said.

"People were coming up to me in Trafalgar Square to ask, 'What are you doing?' and I explained why we were there," she added. "Through these demonstrations there's more awareness. Maybe now the international community should wake up to what's happening."

Jade Le Deley in Paris contributed to this report.
An FBI counterintelligence official testified Wednesday he was rattled when he learned he might be in the crosshairs of special counsel John Durham's team as it investigated the bureau's 2016 probe of links between Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Russia.

Brian Auten, the FBI official who supervised intelligence analysts in the 2016 Crossfire Hurricane investigation, said it was "scary" when he was told he was a "subject," rather than a mere "witness," in the case - which could mean potential exposure to criminal charges.

Auten testified in federal court in Alexandria, Va., for a second day in the trial of Igor Danchenko. A private researcher based in Washington, Danchenko was hired by a former British spy, Christopher Steele, to gather information that eventually wound up in the "Steele dossier" of claims about Trump's ties to Russia. Danchenko was indicted on charges of lying to the FBI during interviews in 2017 about the sources behind his research - which Durham contends affected the FBI's work in the Russia probe.

According to his testimony, Auten was a key figure in the 2016 investigation. He supervised FBI intelligence analysts on the case and met with Steele alongside other FBI officials, who offered the former spy up to $1 million for information that could corroborate his claims of a conspiracy between Trump and Russia in court. Steele could not do so, Auten testified.

Auten also met with Danchenko over three days in January 2017 to judge his research and then helped to recruit Danchenko to be a paid confidential informant for the FBI, hoping to ferret out his sources and information, he testified.

Under questioning from Danchenko defense attorney Danny Onorato, Auten said Durham was the first investigator to consider him a "subject" of a probe. The FBI counterintelligence supervisor said he previously had given voluntary accounts of the FBI's 2016 Russia investigation to the Justice Department inspector general and the Senate Judiciary Committee and had prepared and signed a 100-page affidavit on the matter for the FBI's internal affairs division.

Durham was appointed by then-Attorney General William P. Barr during the Trump administration to dig into the origins of the FBI's 2016 probe. Auten said in response to questions from Danchenko's defense team that he retained two attorneys and met with Durham's office in preparation for his trial testimony.

On Durham's first day of questioning Auten, the FBI official repeatedly confirmed he was involved in reviewing warrant applications seeking secret surveillance of a former Trump campaign adviser, Carter Page. The applications were based in part on an uncorroborated claim from Steele's dossier that Trump was in "a well-developed conspiracy of cooperation" with Russia. In a 2019 report, the Justice Department inspector general criticized some of Auten's actions in the Page matter, though the inspector general found no political bias in the FBI's decision-making.

On Wednesday, Auten testified that Danchenko never turned over emails to the FBI that might have shaped the bureau's work. The emails show Danchenko reaching out, seemingly without any success or response, to Sergei Millian, the former president of the Russian American Chamber of Commerce. Prosecutors say Danchenko fabricated Millian as a source for some of the dossier claims, even though the two had never spoken.

"All of those emails would be very helpful to understand the full extent of the communication between the parties," Auten said, adding that they could have helped the FBI "evaluate the course of the information." Auten also said Danchenko should have turned over email communications with Charles Dolan Jr. to the FBI in 2017. Prosecutors say Danchenko "concealed" Dolan, a longtime Washington public relations executive aligned with Democrats, as a source and never mentioned him to the FBI agents asking where he got his information.

For Durham to win a conviction, the jury must find not only that Danchenko willfully deceived the FBI in 2017 but that the lies had a material effect on the agency's investigation. Auten said the FBI's investigative actions "possibly" would have been different had agents seen the emails with Danchenko's outreach to Millian in 2017, to which Durham shot back, "Possibly?" Auten responded that FBI officials might have taken different investigative steps.

Danchenko's team has argued that he did not lie about Dolan to the FBI, because he was asked by agents whether he had "talked" to Dolan about material in the Steele dossier. The two had not spoken, only communicated via email, according to Danchenko's defense. As for Millian, Danchenko's team argued that he gave the FBI his best understanding of the facts at the time: An anonymous person had reached out in a phone call or via a phone chatting app with dirt on Trump and Russia, and Danchenko assumed it was Millian.

"He never said with 100 percent certainty . . . that the anonymous caller was Sergei Millian?" Onorato asked Auten about the FBI's three days of interviews with Danchenko in January 2017. "That's correct," Auten said.

"We asked questions, and he answered those questions," Auten said.
One of former President Donald Trump's lasting grievances from the Russia investigation  that the FBI improperly surveilled an adviser to his 2016 campaign  took center stage on the first day of the politically charged criminal trial of Russian analyst Igor Danchenko.

Federal judges repeatedly signed off on secretive warrants under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to intercept the emails and telephone calls of Carter Page, a U.S. citizen, in part because of an explosive tip that had purportedly been unearthed by Danchenko, Special Counsel John Durham of the U.S. Justice Department told a jury Tuesday in Alexandria, Virginia.

The tip  that an "extensive conspiracy" was underway in 2016 between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin  wound up in the FBI's four FISA warrant applications for Page in 2016 and 2017. Danchenko is charged with lying to the FBI about his source for the information, which has never been backed up.

"Those lies mattered," Durham, who must prove that the allegedly false statements had a material impact on the FBI, said in his opening statement.

Page was never charged with anything and no such conspiracy was ever found, even after an extensive investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller that turned up plenty of unusual contacts between Trump's campaign and Russians.

"This case is about protecting the function and integrity of our government institutions," said Durham, who was chosen during the Trump administration to investigate the Trump-Russia inquiry.

Danchenko, a Virginia-based researcher, was the primary source for the so-called Steele dossier about Trump and Russia that caused an uproar before the 2016 election. After Trump won, the FBI investigated the Steele dossier in depth and interviewed Danchenko numerous times in early 2017.

Danchenko's lawyer, Danny Onorato, told the jury in his opening statement that everything his client is accused of lying about was actually true. Onorato made the claim regarding Danchenko's statements about his sources  not the underlying tips. Danchenko isn't charged with lying about the information itself. He blamed the disputed statements to the FBI on poorly worded questions.

"The questions weren't asked properly and that's not his fault," he said, adding later: "They want you to suspend reality. They want you to become mind readers."

The trial will focus on Danchenko's responses to FBI questions about two of his purported sources, the former president of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce, Sergei Millian, and Charles Dolan, a public-relations executive who had ties to both Hillary and Bill Clinton's campaigns. The government alleges Danchenko falsely said he believed he'd received information from Millian over the phone, and that he lied by saying he didn't talk about the dossier findings in depth with Dolan.

Dolan, who is based in Virginia, is expected to be a witness at the trial. Prosecutors argue that Dolan was a source of much of Danchenko's information, which the Russian analyst allegedly attributed to others to appear more credible.

The Justice Department said in a 2019 report on the FISA applications that one of the Steele dossier reports claimed there was "a well-developed conspiracy of co-operation" between the Trump campaign and Russian leadership, and that Trump's campaign manager, Paul Manafort, used Page and others as "intermediaries" to further the alleged conspiracy. That helped establish the necessary probable cause to get the rare FISA warrant, Durham said.

Page, however, was on the agency's radar even before the Steele dossier was sent to the agency. The FBI determined early on that Page, a foreign policy adviser to the campaign who had ties to various Russian entities, "may wittingly or unwittingly be involved in activity on behalf of the Russian Federation which may constitute a federal crime or threat to the national security," according to the Justice Department report.

Another key finding from the Steele dossier that wound up in the Page FISA application was the claim that he had agreed "to sideline Russian intervention in Ukraine as a campaign issue in exchange for Russia's disclosure of hacked DNC emails to Wikileaks," according to the report.

But those preliminary findings never held up.

"The Crossfire Hurricane team was unable to corroborate any of the specific substantive allegations regarding Carter Page contained in Steele's election reporting which the FBI relied on in the FISA applications," the department said.

The Justice Department did say that several FBI witnesses said that the broad themes of the Steele dossier were consistent with what the FBI and other U.S. intelligence agencies were hearing at the time, including that Russia was trying to undermine American faith in its elections, that Russia sponsored the hack of Clinton campaign emails and that the Russian government "was working to support Trump's election as President."
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.  A jury Thursday recommended Nikolas Cruz get life in prison for killing 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018, sparing Cruz from a death sentence after his lawyers argued he had a troubled upbringing, including allegations that his biological mother abused drugs and alcohol while pregnant.

The sentence caps an emotional three-month trial in which victim relatives and survivors recounted the Valentines Day massacre in painful detail. The 12-member jury deliberated for seven hours before reaching their decision in the deadliest U.S. mass shooting case to go to trial.

On each of the counts, jurors found that prosecutors had established aggravating factors including that the murders were especially cruel and heinous  indicating that the case met the threshold for death penalty eligibility. But they also decided that the most egregious elements of the attack did not outweigh the mitigating factors presented by defense attorneys.

As the verdicts were being read, many parents of the victims gently shook their heads. One juror clutched a tissue, wiping tears from her eyes. Cruz mostly stared down at a desk. Later, as victims family members left the courtroom, some relatives sobbed and collapsed into one anothers arms. Several lashed out angrily at the jurors, accusing them of too easily buying into the defenses argument that Cruz suffered from mental illness.

How could mitigating factors apply to this shooter, who they recognized committed terrible acts - shooting some victims more than once . . . pressing the barrel of his weapon to my daughters chest? asked Tony Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina was killed in the school. That doesnt outweigh that poor little whats-his-name had a tough upbringing?

The gunman had already pleaded guilty to 17 counts of premeditated first-degree murder, and jurors had to decide on his sentence for each count. Cruz also wounded 17 other students and school staff members during his rampage in Parkland, Fla., a prosperous Fort Lauderdale suburb bordering the Everglades.

The shooting galvanized students in Parkland and elsewhere to speak out against gun violence, leading to the creation of the student-led March for Our Lives gun-control movement. The shooting, which Cruz carried out when he was 19, also accelerated school safety and security measures nationwide and prompted debate over arming teachers in the classroom.

Although the trial was designed to help South Florida heal after Cruzs crimes shattered families and left Parkland students struggling with lifelong trauma, it also sparked a discussion over capital punishment as well as whether society should show any sympathy to killers who may be mentally deficient due to possible prenatal alcohol exposure.

In an interview with CBSs Miami affiliate, jury foreman Benjamin Thomas said the decision really came down to one specific juror who believed Cruz was mentally ill.

And she didnt believe, because he was mentally ill, he should get the death penalty, said Thomas, who said a total of three jurors ultimately voted to spare Cruzs life. It didnt go the way I would have liked, or the way I voted, but that is how the jury system works.

After the verdict was released, one juror wrote a letter to the judge identifying herself as one of the people who had voted against sentencing Cruz to death. In the handwritten note, she said shed heard from another juror that some on the panel were accusing her of having already made up my mind before the trial started.

That allegation is untrue, and I maintained my oath to the court that I would be fair and unbiased, she wrote. The deliberations were very tense, and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned that I would vote for life.

Cruzs sentencing trial featured weeks of gruesome, emotional testimony that included video of how he wandered the hallways of the school with an AR-15 rifle, shooting some of his victims at point-blank range. Jurors also toured the wing of the school where the attack occurred, seeing classrooms that had largely been untouched in the years since the shooting.

During closing arguments on Tuesday, prosecutors accused Cruz of carefully planning his attack for years, and they said he carried it out with ruthless precision.

Broward County prosecutor Michael J. Satz said Cruz began researching other mass shootings  including the 1999 attack on Columbine High School and a 2007 shooting at a high school in Finland  several years before he carried out his own assault. Cruz also purchased his rifle a year before the attack and spent several months gradually amassing ammunition.

Three days before he walked into the school, where he was a former student, Cruz made a video in which he foreshadowed his plans by vowing to become the next school shooter of 2018. Cruz selected Valentines Day to carry out his attack, and he moved throughout three floors of the schools 1200 wing shooting his victims  at times pressing his weapon directly onto their skin before he pulled the trigger, Satz added.

The testimony revealed the unspeakable, horrific brutality and the relentless cruelty that the defendant performed, Katz told the jurors. This plan was goal-directed. It was calculated. It was purposeful, and it was a systematic massacre.

But Cruzs defense attorneys urged jurors to spare his life, describing him as a brain-damaged, broken, mentally ill person through no fault of his own.

Throughout the trial, Cruzs defense attorneys alleged that Cruz suffered from neurological disorders related to fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Defense witnesses, including medical experts and some Cruz family members, testified that his late biological mother, Brenda Woodard, was an alcoholic and abused drugs, including crack cocaine, while pregnant with him.

He was literally poisoned in Brendas womb, Melisa McNeill, Cruzs lead defense attorney, told jurors. He was doomed in the womb. And in a civilized society, do we kill brain damaged, mentally ill, broken people?

To apply the death penalty, the jury had to reach a unanimous decision. Speaking directly to jurors during her closing argument, McNeill pleaded with the jurors to take time in reaching their decision, saying they would have to live with the outcome for the rest of their lives.

Sentencing Nikolas to death will serve no purpose other than vengeance, said McNeill, who is a public defender.

Under Florida law for a capital crime, prosecutors had to prove that aggravating factors contributed to Cruzs crimes.

The seven potential aggravating factors included whether the defendant had previously been convicted of a violent felony; whether the defendant knowingly created great risk to a large number of people; and whether a murder was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel.

Although Cruz did not previously have a violent criminal record, Satz said the murder or attempted murder of any of the 34 victims qualifies. Prosecutors also argued that Cruz committed his crime during a burglary because he was a former student who was not authorized to be on school grounds  conditions the jury agreed had been met.

In all, Cruz fired 139 rounds during his 6-minute, 22-second rampage. The medical examiner testified that some victims had defensive wounds, indicating they were shot at point-blank range as they pleaded for their lives.

The jury was directed to consider 41 mitigating circumstances that should spare Cruz from the death sentence even if they found that aggravating factors were involved. Broward County Circuit Judge Elizabeth A. Scherer said those included whether Cruz received proper mental health care while growing up, whether he suffered from attention-deficit disorder and whether he had been traumatized by witnessing the deaths of his adoptive parents.

The judge also asked jurors to consider whether Cruz continues to try to educate himself despite incarceration or remains loved by people.

During testimony, Cruz often sat with his head slumped down over his desk with his hands on his forehead. During the most graphic moments of the testimony, parents of the victims at times rushed out of the courtroom in tears. At one point in the trial, one of Cruzs defense attorneys also cried in the courtroom as Fred Guttenberg described his final words to his 14-year-old daughter, Jamie, before she was killed in the shooting.

But not all relatives of the victims advocated that Cruz receive a death sentence, with even some members of the same family split over the question of whether he should die or spend the rest of his life in prison.

You cannot say that murder is heinous or unforgivable, Robert Schentrup, whose sister, Carmen, was killed in the massacre, wrote on Twitter as the trial got underway in July, while advocating for the murder of someone else.

I love but disagree with my son, replied his mother, April, quoting his tweet. If police did their job that day, the shooter wouldve been killed. . . . Since they didnt do what was needed then, let the court get it right this time.

The Parkland trial was unusual from the beginning, because many mass killers are not taken into custody following their attacks. In Parkland, though, the gunman escaped the school by blending in with other students who were fleeing his carnage, and he was apprehended that same day.

In perhaps the most comparable case, the gunman who killed a dozen people inside an Aurora, Colo., movie theater in 2012 was later prosecuted. The jury convicted that gunman before later deciding he should get life in prison rather than the death penalty.

Much of the Florida case revolved around Cruzs past. Besides using alcohol and cocaine, Cruzs biological mother smoked cigarettes and worked as a prostitute during her pregnancy, damaging his brain, McNeill said. She then put Cruz up for adoption, and by age 3, a child psychiatrist told Cruzs new family that he had severe issues.

His adoptive father died before Cruz reached kindergarten. His adoptive mother called authorities to their home more than 50 times. She never opted to have Cruz committed, his lawyers told jurors, because she would have lost his Social Security check.

Although Cruzs adoptive family lived in a spacious house, McNeill told jurors that the size of his house should not mask the trauma he endured. Cruz often became so angry that he punched holes in the walls and killed animals, McNeill said.

Living in a 4,500-square-foot house in Parkland, it doesnt mean you have a good life, McNeill said.

But prosecutors countered that Cruzs upbringing was not as chaotic as defense attorneys alleged. One prosecution witness described his adoptive mother, who died in 2017, as a caring parent. Satz pushed back on the defenses assertions that his biological mothers alleged alcohol and drug use during her pregnancy was to blame.

Whether or not his mother smoked during pregnancy did not turn Nikolas Cruz into a mass murderer, Satz said. The defendant had a plan, he discussed it, and he carried it out.

Prosecutors also contended that Cruz displayed a pattern of antisocial behavior. Satz said the gunman had an affinity for Nazi swastikas, drawing them on both sides of the magazine of his firearm and on the boots he wore the day of the shooting. Cruz had expressed hatred toward women and had a history of making hateful, racial comments, the prosecutor said.

The jury reached its verdict just 15 minutes after it began its second day of deliberations. On Wednesday evening, about seven hours into deliberations, the jury sent a message to Scherer stating, We would like to see the AR-15.

The message prompted confusion over whether a weapon could be sent into the jury room. As court officials worked to clarify the matter, the judge dismissed the jury for the day. On Thursday morning, the judge and the sheriffs department agreed to send the weapon into the jury room. Within minutes, the jury announced it had reached a verdict.

David S. Weinstein, a Miami lawyer and former state and federal prosecutor, said he was shocked as anyone that the jury sentenced Cruz to life in prison. But Weinstein said Cruzs defense teams closing argument  which asked jurors to consider whether a civilized society should execute someone who may be mentally ill  proved to be very effective.

Weinstein said the verdict also highlights the significance of a 2016 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that forced Florida to rewrite its capital punishment statute to require that death sentences be unanimous.

I think whomever it was, whether it was one or two people, they simply told the rest of them, It doesnt matter how long we sit here, I am not going to change my vote,  he said.

Several parents were outraged at the verdict, saying the jurys conclusion disregarded the victims of the massacre. Others expressed concern it might make it easier for defendants in other cases to escape the harshest punishment. Some nonetheless said it didnt feel right to direct their anger at the jury.

Anne Ramsay, the mother of victim Helena Ramsay, 17, said the verdict left her feeling as though there was no justice. But speaking with reporters after the sentencing, she also sought to shift the discussion back on her belief that stricter gun laws could have helped prevent the attack.

If this murderer had mental problems, he still managed to get a gun, she said. He still managed to get an AR-15 to mow down our kids. Why was he allowed to get an AR-15?

The Washington Posts Danielle Paquette contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON - The founder of the Oath Keepers and other leaders of the self-styled militia organization were in contact with Secret Service officials multiple times in late 2020 and leading up to the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to an agency official and court testimony in Stewart Rhodes's ongoing seditious conspiracy trial.

A former member of the Oath Keepers testified last week that Rhodes, the group's founder, claimed to be in touch with someone in the Secret Service in the months before the riot. A Secret Service official confirmed that members of the agency's protective intelligence division reached out to the Oath Keepers in advance of protests in Washington in November and December as well as the Jan. 6 "Stop the Steal" rally.

Agents regularly engage in such advance contact with protest groups expected to attend public presidential events, the official said. The goal is to explain what items are prohibited and learn more about the protesters' numbers and plans to assess the risk to protected officials.

Rhodes and four associates are now in the midst of a trial expected to last at least a month, in which they face the most serious charges of the criminal investigation into the Capitol riot. Jurors have heard evidence that prosecutors say shows the Oath Keepers wanted to keep Donald Trump in power by force, trial testimony that comes just as the House committee investigating Jan. 6 prepared for what is expected to be its final public hearing Thursday.

The House committee is expected to highlight Secret Service records indicating Trump received multiple warnings on Jan. 6 about rising danger at the Capitol yet continued to insist on traveling there himself, according to people briefed on the records, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal records.

The full extent of what intelligence the Secret Service received from the Oath Keepers is unclear.

John Zimmerman, a former Oath Keeper from North Carolina, testified that he believed Rhodes talked to a Secret Service agent in September 2020 about what weapons they could be carrying while "working" a Trump rally in Fayetteville, N.C. In response to that testimony, a Secret Service spokesman said that "it is not uncommon for various organizations to contact the agency concerning security restrictions and activities that are permissible in proximity to our protected sites."

Veteran D.C. protesters say they rarely deal with the Secret Service compared with other agencies.

"Out of all of the demonstrations I ever planned in D.C. over the past 15 years, the one agency I've had the least amount of interaction with is the Secret Service," said Robby Diesu, who has organized protests for various progressive causes.

But most D.C. protests don't involve organized armed groups known for advocating violent resistance to government authority.

A D.C. police lieutenant was put on leave for his contacts with longtime Proud Boys chairman Henry "Enrique" Tarrio, who is set to go on trial in December on charges similar to those faced by the Oath Keepers. The same lieutenant also reached out to a man he believed led a white-supremacist group. Experts said it makes sense for law enforcement personnel to seek information from extremist groups but that interactions must be handled with care to avoid misinterpretation.

Rhodes and other Oath Keepers have argued that they were regularly in touch with law enforcement and left their firearms outside D.C. because they had no intention of breaking the law on Jan. 6. In multiple encrypted chat conversations before the riot, Rhodes expresses hope that Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act, which he argued would "nullify" D.C. gun laws and all other restrictions on violent behavior.

"I have to try to get Trump the message on the necessity of him waging war on the enemy NOW while still President and Commander in Chief," he wrote to one group of Oath Keepers on Dec. 14, 2020. He said he had stayed in D.C. to press the president, had "passed that message on through one contact" and was "working on others."

Rhodes was in contact with Roger Stone, a close confidant of the former president who was guarded by Oath Keepers on the morning of Jan. 6. Stone denies any involvement in the riot; he is also expected to be a focus of Thursday's House committee hearing.

Trump never called on private militias to act as his defense force, and prosecutors argue that the law would not have allowed it. They note that Rhodes repeatedly said that the group would fight Joe Biden with or without Trump's approval.

"He needs to know that if he doesn't do it, we will," Rhodes said of Trump in a Dec. 29, 2020, message read in court. "And if we have to do it ourselves, without him as Commander in Chief, it will be exponentially harder, and many more of us will die."

When members of the Oath Keepers went into a VIP section at Trump's speech on Jan. 6, the Secret Service required them to leave tactical gear outside and go through metal detectors, another former member of the group testified Wednesday.

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson told the House committee earlier this year that Trump wanted the metal detectors removed despite being told members of the crowd were armed.

"They're not here to hurt me," Hutchinson recalled him saying.

The Washington Post's Spencer S. Hsu, Tom Jackman and Ellie Silverman contributed to this report.
Dane Partridge, a U.S. veteran and former infantryman from Idaho, died this week in Ukraine after suffering injuries from a Russian attack earlier this month, his family told The Post late Wednesday. He was 34.

Partridge, who served as an infantryman in Iraq for 15 months from 2007 to 2009, suffered critical injuries to his neck and brain stem on Oct. 3 when he was hit during a Russian tank attack on his unit in Severodonetsk, a city in Luhansk, his family said, citing a doctor from a Ukrainian hospital. He was on life support until he died Tuesday.

A State Department spokesperson confirmed the recent death of a U.S. citizen in Donbas without naming them.

There are no official public numbers of U.S. volunteer fighters in Ukraine, or of those who have died there, though an official at the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington told The Post in March that about 4,000 had expressed interest in the newly formed International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine. Partridges death follows that of Luke Lucyszyn and Bryan Young in July, Stephen D. Zabielski in May and Willy Cancel in April.

In the first six months of the war, Ukraine lost about 9,000 troops, with more than 7,000 missing, according to official Ukrainian statements, though the numbers could be higher.

Partridge wrote a will before buying a one-way ticket to Poland, where he signed up to fight in the legion in April. His sister, Jenny Corry of Idaho Falls, said he felt a spiritual calling to join.

He felt strongly with almost every bone in his body that he needed to go and he needed to fight, she said. When he did leave, it was emotional for me, because I just knew in my heart it would be the last time I saw him.

Born in Germany in 1988 to a Red Cross aid worker and a member of the U.S. Air Force, Partridge became captivated by the idea of serving in the military from a young age. All he knew growing up were flak jackets, M-16s, guard dogs and seeing NATO exercises, said his mother, Terri Hepworth. That was his world, and it never left him.

When he was 3, the family moved to Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma, and he grew up in the dirt with his friends, playing Army guy, Corry said. They later moved to Rexburg, Idaho, where he decided to join the Army shortly after graduating high school. His family members remember him as the boy who packed extra gear on Boy Scout trips and tried to save stray dogs - even after he was bitten and needed a rabies shot - and as a man with a talent for fixing cars and electronics.

After high school, Partridge served as a turret gunner and a driver of armored vehicles in Baghdad during the Iraq War, according to Matt Reeves, one of his sergeants. Reeves recalled him as a young man with a bit of a temper who quickly transformed into a fine soldier who would engage others in intellectual discussions about religion.

Partridge separated from the military in 2012 with the rank of private first class, according to his father, Dennis Partridge.

I had never seen him happier than in Ukraine. He found his purpose not in the fighting so much as the saving, his mother said, in between sobs. Sometimes, with the civilian world, he just didnt mesh.

His family said they overcame their reservations and supported Partridges decision to volunteer, saying that as members of the Mormon Church they understood his spiritual calling.

He did what few of us are willing to do - he just packed up and went, his father said. He was always willing to help. He was a hard worker, and he certainly cared about his family.

Partridge had decided to continue fighting even after he was wounded by shrapnel from a trip wire this summer. His wife and five children - who range from age 2 to 15 - were able to say goodbye via a video call while he was in a coma during his final week.

He struggled in life, but once he got into the military, he found his element, his mother said. His call sign was Bird - Dane Partridge, call sign Bird. So when you see a bird, think of my son.
WASHINGTON  The Department of Veterans Affairs has suspended the rollout of its new multibillion-dollar electronic health records system until June 2023 to allow more time to overcome recurring problems with the computer program at several hospitals across the country, agency officials announced Thursday.

Right now, the Oracle Cerner electronic health record system is not delivering for veterans or VA health care providers  and we are holding Oracle Cerner and ourselves accountable to get this right, Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Donald Remy said in a prepared statement. We are delaying all future deployments of the new EHR while we fully assess performance and address every concern. Veterans and clinicians deserve a seamless, modernized health record system, and we will not rest until they get it.

The announcement followed the death of a veteran in September at the Chalmers P. Wylie Veterans Outpatient Clinic in Columbus, Ohio, which was reported by The Spokesman-Review, a newspaper in Spokane, Wash.

Patient safety is VAs top priority, and we are investigating the patients death, which occurred at a community hospital, according to a VA statement issued Friday. Currently, this investigation is ongoing and there has not been any determination made on the root cause of this incident.

There was also another records system outage that affected pharmacy services on Oct. 7 for almost 10 hours, according to Fed Scoop, a federal technology website.

The VA said the outage impacted all Defense Department, Coast Guard and VA sites that now use the new records system from the company Oracle Cerner. The agency said Oracle Cerner engineers are working on fixing the problem, but this outage was not the reason for extending the delay on the records system rollout.

The VA had originally scheduled to launch the new records system in July at the Boise VA Medical Center but moved it to 2023 after the VA inspector general released a report that revealed the system caused harm to 149 VA patients.

So far, the new records system has been launched at five of the VAs 166 health care facilities. In some cases, additional launches at some facilities have been postponed because of ongoing problems with records system, along with delays caused by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

At the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, Wash., where the system was launched first in October 2020, issues included unauthorized and inaccurate medication orders, patients' name and gender errors, issues in scheduling primary care appointments, misdirected links to video medical appointments and lost referrals.

In the meantime, the VA said it will continue to focus on the five facilities where the new records system has been launched. The agency said it also will send letters to veterans who had been impacted by the systems issues, inquiring whether they had experienced delays in medications, appointments, referrals, or test results. If they have experienced any issues, the VA said the veteran should reach out to the agency and expect someone to follow up with them within five business days to resolve the issue.

When it comes to delivering the quality health care our nations veterans have earned, we have to hit the mark the first time around, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, said in a prepared statement. Thats why Ill continue holding VA and Oracle Cerners feet to the fire in fixing system-wide issues so existing facilities and any future rollouts guarantee VA health care staff have the tools to provide veterans safe, timely care.

The VA originally signed a $10 billion contract with Cerner in May 2018 to overhaul the agency's health records system and make it compatible with the Defense Departments system. However, the cost of the project later increased to about $16 billion.

Last October, Paul Brubaker, acting principal deputy assistant secretary and deputy chief information officer at VA's Office of Information Technology, told House lawmakers that the agency contracted with the nonprofit Institute for Defense Analysis to calculate an estimate of costs of the Cerner electronic health record system. A review issued in July by the institute estimated the implementation of the electronic health record system would cost nearly $39 billion in 13 years. The estimate also included more than $17 billion to sustain the system.

Rep. Mike Bost of Illinois, the top Republican on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, said the new electronic health record should not be rolled out anywhere else until Oracle Cerner fixes its problems.

When I visited [VA facilities in] Walla Walla [Wash.] in July and Columbus [Ohio] in September, the staff made it clear that this flawed system is making their jobs more difficult and crippling the delivery of care to veterans, and I have heard the same thing from the other sites, Bost said in a prepared statement. Unfortunately, these delays are nothing new. VA and Oracle must prove that this time is different, and I wont allow them to continue throwing good money after bad.

Mike Sicilia, executive vice president for industries at Oracle, which purchased Cerner in June, told the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs in July that he reviewed the system's problems. Oracle took over Cerner's electronic health record contract with the VA, Defense Department and the Coast Guard and established a command center led by Oracle's senior engineers.

Sicilia said at last months Senate Appropriations Committee that Oracle hosted a summit with the VA, Defense Department, Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization Office, and Leidos Holdings Inc. to discuss the federal electronic health record system's performance and its problems. Sicilia said the meeting led to plans for the system and that Oracle sent a letter to the VA detailing the plans and a roadmap.

Sicilia also said Oracle is working with the VA to revamp training for employees to learn to use the electronic health records system. He also said he still thinks the company can still launch a safe rollout at the rest of the VAs facilities in 10 years as it was originally contemplated.
Ms Rocha, a Brazilian national, suffered the injuries in the accident on December 17, 2019, in Summerhill, Dublin

The High Court has awarded 87,000 to a carer for injuries she suffered when she was knocked off her bicycle by a van.

Mr Justice Michael Hanna awarded 87,400 to Gabriele Silva Rocha, of Tara Street, Dublin, for injuries including a fractured wrist and clavicle.

He said this was the first case that he was required to assess under new personal injuries guidelines, which were introduced in 2021 with the aim of bringing more consistency to damages awarded.

He approached the exercise rather differently to how he valued claims using the Book of Quantum, which predates the guidelines.

Liability was not in dispute in the case, which was before the judge for an assessment of damages only.

Ms Rocha, a Brazilian national, suffered the injuries in the accident on December 17, 2019, in Summerhill, Dublin. The court heard she had been stopped at traffic lights when she was thrown from her bike.

Her helmet broke when she struck her head, but she did not suffer any head injuries, the court heard.

She was brought to the Mater Hospital and discharged a few days later. She wore a sling for three months and subsequently had to undergo surgery to insert a plate into her clavicle, said the judge.

The 35-year-old, represented by barristers Gerard Meehan SC and Rachel Duffy, said she continues to suffer with her injuries, which she claimed have hindered her ability to work as a carer. She has been left with some arthritic pain in her wrist.

Her case was against driver Jerzy Skora, with his address given as care of his insurers, AXA Insurance, Wolfe Tone House, Wolfe Tone Street, Dublin.

Mr Justice Hanna said the new personal injuries guidelines are fairly clear and he had no difficulty following them.

He awarded 40,000 damages for Ms Rochas wrist injury, which he said was her primary injury.

He uplifted this by 35,000 to take account of her clavicle injury, scarring and minor psychological effects. These, together with agreed special damages, brought the award to 87,400.

The judge said nursing was clearly her first love, but she feels she is no longer able to carry out some of the physical work.

However, he said, she has an impressive work ethic and has been able to take up an administrative role, as she has a qualification in human resources.
He stated that Kinahan played an "integral part" in importing drugs and firearms to Ireland, the UK, and mainland Europe, as well as money laundering.

Number 10 Coldwater Lakes is now at the centre of a CAB case

The High Court has granted an order for the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) to seize a Dublin mansion controlled by mob boss Daniel Kinahan.

The luxury property is the first to be seized from Kinahan after it was found to be the proceeds of drug trafficking.

An application to appoint a receiver will be heard next month to allow any persons currently living at the house, 10 Coldwater Lakes in Saggart, to vacate it.

Evidence was previously heard that the home was given to Kinahan in partial repayment by Jim Mansfield Jnr after the businessman failed to invest 4.5m for the crime gang.

The cash was handed over in two suitcases for payment of four townhouses in 2009 but the deal never went ahead after the Mansfield fortune deteriorated.

Shelley Horan BL, for Cab, said that relations "soured" after this and that threats were made to the Mansfield family for repayment.

The court was told an agreement was made that three cash sums would be paid and that 10 Coldwater Lakes would also be handed over to Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh, who the Bureau say was acting as Kinahan's agent.

While attempts were made to formalise the handover, this never happened.

The Cab said that the mansion was in control of Daniel Kinahan and that items recovered during a search in 2015 were evidence of this.

This included Kinahan's passport and boarding passes linked to him being present in a bedroom at the property. A further 3,850 in cash was found in a hidden compartment behind a safe in this room which was also part of the Cab proceedings.

Number 10 Coldwater Lakes is now at the centre of a CAB case

Documentation was also found belonging to James Quinn, currently serving a sentence for the feud murder of Gary Hutch, while CCTV footage recovered showed Kinahan's brother Christopher Jnr at the house.

Former boxer Matthew Macklin, a business associate of Kinahan, was also present when gardai searched the house. The court heard he was "courteous" but declined to answer any questions.

Evidence was also given in an affidavit from Det Chief Supt Seamus Boland, of the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, about Daniel Kinahan.

He stated that Kinahan played an "integral part" in importing drugs and firearms to Ireland, the UK, and mainland Europe, as well as money laundering.

The senior detective also said Daniel Kinahan is an individual who "sanctioned a number of murders" as part of the Hutch/Kinahan feud.

He added that Thomas Kavanagh is believed to be an international drug trafficker and key player of the Kinahan organised crime group who is closely associated to Daniel Kinahan.

The High Court heard the Mansfield family disavowed all interest in the property and that efforts had been made to serve papers on the other two respondents.

'Bomber' Kavanagh had been visited in prison in the UK, where he is serving a sentence for conspiring to import drugs but refused to engage with gardai and police officers.

The stunning mansion that gardai say links Mansfield family to gang boss Daniel Kinahan

Efforts to serve papers on Kinahan at two address in Dubai which the bureau believes he still has access to have also been unsuccessful.

A Cab detective contacted DHL to deliver the documents, but they refused citing "operation and commercial" reasons and "reputational risks" after he was sanctioned by the US Government.

Attempts to serve Kinahan had also been made through a third party from whom "Daniel Kinahan stood as best man for his wedding" but this also proved fruitless.

Ms Horan said there is an abundance of evidence to support Cab's position and it was "noteworthy" nobody has claimed ownership over the substantial property.

Mr Justice Michael McGrath said he was satisfied that all reasonable efforts had been made to serve the two men and that they are aware of the proceedings.

He accepted that Thomas Kavanagh and Daniel Kinahan were in possession or control of the property and that it was acquired in hole or in part through the proceeds of crime.

The judge granted an order under Section 3 of the Proceeds of Crime Act for the mansion and cash to be seized and put the matter back to November 15 to hear an application on a receiver being appointed.
Niall McGlynn (38) had been drinking shots, and was deeply apologetic for his behaviour.

A reveller who was stopped by gardai walking down the centre of a road told officers to get f**ked and gave them the two fingers, a court has heard.

Niall McGlynn (38) had been drinking shots, and was deeply apologetic for his behaviour.

Judge Dermot Dempsey imposed a four-month sentence, which he suspended for one year.

The defendant, of Castlefarm in Swords, admitted public drunkenness and threatening and abusive behaviour at Swords Main Street.

Sergeant Patricia McGarrity told Swords District Court gardai were on mobile patrol at 3.25am on August 14 this year, when they came across a man walking down the centre of the road.

Gardai tried to talk to McGlynn, but he told them to get f**ked and he gave them the two fingers.

Sgt McGarrity said McGlynn started shouting that he knew his rights, and then he ran off.

Officers came across him a short time later, Sgt McGarrity said. He was highly aggressive and abusive toward gardai.

Defence lawyer Gerard Kennedy said McGlynn had turned his life around in recent years. He had a job and was in a stable relationship, and was very sorry for this slip.
Keith McCarthys murder trial got underway this week following the death of chef Kerrin Repman

A man who is suspected of involvement in the execution of Limerick crime boss Kieran Keane has gone on trial in the UK in connection with a fatal hit-and-run.

Keith McCarthys murder trial got underway in Chelmsford Crown Court this week following the death of chef Kerrin Repman in Marine Parade, Harwich.

The court has heard that dad-of-three Repman died from his injuries after his vehicle was struck by a BMW being driven by Keith McCarthy in Marine Parade, Dovercourt, in April 2020.

McCarthy, of Hordle Street, Dovercourt, was extradited to England in December 2020 and arrested, after he fled the scene and headed to Ireland.

The Echo reports that the 42-year-old appeared before Chelmsford Crown Court yesterday where he denies murder and inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent.

The court heard Kerrin, a chef, had allegedly racked up a drugs debt and took to selling illicit goods to pay his boss back.

Accord to persecutors, McCarthy had become disgruntled at debts owed to him by this same person, and had begun to direct his anger towards Kerrin.

The prosecutor slams McCarthy had come across Kerrin riding his moped in Fronks Road on April 15, 2020 when he performed a dangerous 180-degree turn to pursue him while his 19-year-old son was in the car.

The chase came to a fatal end when the BMW overtook a stationary car and, when cutting back in near the Cliff Road junction, struck the back of the moped.

Kerrin was catapulted onto the road surface and was declared dead minutes later.

A post mortem examination revealed Kerrin had suffered spinal fractures, an injury to his chest wall and internal bleeding.

The Echo reports that the prosecution allege the defendant intended, at the very least, to cause Mr Repman really serious harm, if not to actually kill him.

McCarthy is suspected of being involved in the murder of Kieran Keane in 2003, which ignited a deadly Limerick feud.

Five members of the notorious McCarthy/Dundon - including Dessie Dundon - gang are currently serving life sentences for the crime.

Keane and Owen Treacy were abducted by members of the McCarthy Dundon crime gang and driven to a lonely country road at Drombana, located a short distance outside Limerick city.

Keane (36) was shot in the head, and Mr Treacy, who received 17 stab wounds, miraculously survived after he played dead.

Mr Treacy was dumped by the gang at the side of the road, beside the body of his dead uncle, however he managed to raise the alarm at a nearby house and was rushed by ambulance to hospital.

He later became the States key witness in the murder trial.

At a previous hearing in April of this year, Judge Christopher Morgan remanded Keith McCarthy in custody at HMP Chelmsford until a further case management hearing on July 29.

Turning to the defendant, he said: Mr McCarthy, you will be produced July 29, if that is the date for the further case management hearing, and you should attend to assist your legal team.

When your trial is called on, if you fail to attend then one of the consequences may well be  if theres no good reason  that the trial firstly will take place in your absence and it may well be that your legal representatives will have to withdraw.

Im sure you will be here, but you must understand there are consequences for your case if you are not.

Mr Repman, who worked as a chef, was remembered by his family as a loveable and talented man.
The court head she was knocked unconscious.

Robert Larkin 38 of Thornberry Sq Clonee Dublin 15 appeared at Dublin District Court. Pic Collins Courts

A MAN is accused of punching and strangling a woman in an alleged attack at a party in Dublin, a court has heard.

Robert Larkin (38), of Thornberry Square, Clonee, Dublin 15, faced a preliminary hearing yesterday.

He appeared before Judge Bryan Smyth at Dublin District Court.

Garda Philip Cunningham outlined the allegations for the judge to decide on the defendants trial venue.

He alleged the woman attended a party with friends and three other males.

According to the garda evidence, she was alone in a room with a male who punched and strangled her before she fell onto the floor. The court head she was knocked unconscious.

The incident allegedly happened at Russell Court, Little Britain Street, Dublin 7, on November 19, 2021.

He is accused of assault causing harm, and no other charges were pending.

Garda Cunningham showed Judge Smyth a copy of the medical report outlining her injuries.

The judge noted she had made a full recovery.

She was not required to attend today.

Judge Smyth accepted jurisdiction for the case to remain in the district court.

He ordered the disclosure of statements and interview videos to the defence.

Mr Larkin, who is on bail, is to appear again next month to indicate a plea.
Judge Martin Nolan said Graham Keating (23) had escaped custody so far but not now

A man who became involved in a fight that spilled into the lobby of a Dublin hotel has been handed a nine-month prison sentence.

Graham Keating (23) pleaded guilty to affray at the Clayton Hotel, Santry on January 1, 2020.

Keating with an address at Bunratty rd., Coolock, Dublin has 18 previous convictions, primarily for minor public order offences.

Handing down a nine-month prison sentence, Judge Martin Nolan said the accused had escaped custody so far but not now.

Judge Martin Nolan said Keating has a severe difficulty with drink and when intoxicated, the accused's behaviour is a cause of nuisance.

Graham Keating   Paddy Cummins - PCPhoto.ie

Garda Jessica Hardington told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday that Keating was seen at 12pm moving from behind a bus shelter outside the Clayton Hotel towards a group of four men.

The accused appeared to be trying to pick a fight with the men, who walked away. Keating followed them, pushing, shoving and throwing punches.

The situation escalated and at one stage eight men were involved in a fight outside the busy bus shelter.. The group of men began to move towards the hotel.

Gda Hardington said the hotel duty manager went to the hotel lobby, which was full, where he met the accused. The manager attempted to reason with Keating who became angry, shouting get out of my way or I'll stab you.

Another young man entered the hotel carrying a stick and tried to reason with Keating, but this was unsuccessful. Keating tried to grab the stick and was also swinging a grey jumper around.

When hotel staff tried to intervene, he said he would stab them. Keating then left the lobby and ran off before gardai arrived at 12.20pm.

Gardai followed Keating, who then threw himself on the ground and started kicking his legs. Keating was arrested and identified himself on CCTV footage. Keating told gardai that he believed the group of men were recording him.

He went to ask them to stop, but had not approached them in an aggressive manner. The accused said he went to the hotel for his own safety.

Gda Hardington accepted defence counsel's contention that Keating had been drinking on New Year's Eve and into the following day.

The investigating garda agreed with defence counsel that Keating apologised for how he spoke to hotel staff when interviewed by gardai. Keating was injured in the fight and had a swollen face when caught by gardai.

In mitigation, defence counsel said her client had gone to the hotel to get away from the fight as he was afraid. Other individuals who were involved in the fight were not caught by gardai.

Defence counsel said Keating is very remorseful for his actions. He had been drinking and had engaged with others to ask them to stop recording him, who came back against him with aggression.

Keating had sought to remove himself from the situation. Keating has one child and is not working, but is looking for work. Defence counsel said intoxication was a factor in Keating's behaviour, but he had learnt his lesson.
Gangland criminal Paschal Kelly has opened an appeal against his conviction and 18-year sentence

Notorious 'tiger kidnapper' and gangland criminal Paschal Kelly has opened an appeal against his conviction and 18-year sentence for a 92,000 post office robbery, during which three women were tied up and abducted.

Kelly (56) was one of a gang of three men who burst into the home of postmistress Susan Lawlor at Seabury Drive, Malahide, Dublin on September 25, 2014. He was sentenced to 18 years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in 2018.

The gang used cable ties to bind Ms Lawlor, her daughter and an Italian student who was staying at the home. The women were brought to a field, where they were held overnight before the gang drove them to Bayside Post Office in Sutton, Dublin.

At one stage Kelly threatened to pour petrol over a car and burn them alive. The raiders eventually left with the cash.

Kelly, with addresses in Cootehill, Co Cavan, and Castlepollard, Co Westmeath, was convicted of trespass and the false imprisonment of Ms Lawlor, her daughter Emma Carter, and student Gabriella Saisa.

He was also convicted of robbery, of threatening to kill the three women and of possession of a stolen vehicle, all on the same date.

The father-of-two had denied all charges.

Today at the Court of Appeal, Kelly's lawyers submitted a total of 10 grounds of appeal against his conviction and four grounds against his sentence.

Martin O'Rourke KC, for the appellant, said the trial judge had erred when allowing the evidence of a prosecution witness identifying Kelly from CCTV to go before the jury. Mr O'Rourke said that without this evidence, the judge would have had to direct the jury to find Kelly not guilty.

Counsel said no-one had specifically identified Kelly as "the perpetrator" of the crime, but it was the contention of two garda witnesses that they had identified the driver of the car used in the robbery.

He said there was no evidence either detective told their superior that they saw the driver when they were interviewed over the discharge of a weapon as they gave chase during the robbery.

Mr O'Rourke said that it was "critical" that in the early stage in the investigation neither guard gave a description of the driver as Kelly.

Reliability of identification and the question of fairness in admitting the evidence were the issues at play, said counsel.

"This is a case where the unreliability of the evidence means it should not be put to the jury," said counsel.

Mr O'Rourke then played CCTV frame by frame to the three judges, footage which he said could not positively identify his client.

"You can't facially identify the person," said Mr O'Rourke of the CCTV. "The person had their hood up, so you can't see a hairline. What you can see is a man in his 50s or 60s with a beard," he said, adding that a jury could not make a facial identification based on the CCTV.

"The jury should have been sufficiently told to not make an identification from that," he said.

The appeal, before presiding judge Mr Justice John Edwards, sitting with Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy and Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, was then adjourned to December 19, when counsel for the State Roisin Lacey SC will reply to Mr O'Rourke's submissions.

The trial heard that Kelly's 60 previous convictions include assaults, escaping lawful custody, robbery and road traffic offences. In March 2015 he was sentenced for threatening to kill a Criminal Assets Bureau officer and failure to provide tax returns.

He received 10 years for a post office robbery in 1997 and four years for another robbery offence in 1989.
Aidan Clohessy (82) was principal of a school for boys with learning disabilities

A St John Of God Brother who was principal of a school for boys with learning disabilities is to go on trial in 2024 charged with indecently assaulting four boys at the school.

Aidan Clohessy (82) with an address at Hospitaller Order of St John of God, Grenada, Stillorgan faces nine charges of indecently assaulting four boys at St Augustine's School, Carysfort Avenue, Blackrock on dates between August 31, 1968 and August 17, 1986.

The defendant was formerly principal of the school.

On Thursday Brother Clohessy appeared at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court where Judge Martin Nolan set a trial date for November 18, 2024 . He remanded him on continuing bail to that date.

At an earlier court date, Judge Nolan lifted reporting restrictions put in place by the District Court which prevented the media from naming the defendant. This followed an application by lawyers representing RTE, The Irish Times, the Irish Independent and the Irish Mail on Sunday.
The verdict is the second big judgment against the Infowars host over his relentless promotion of the lie that the 2012 massacre never happened

The conspiracy theorist Alex Jones should pay $965m (995m) to people who suffered from his false claim that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax, a jury in the US decided on Wednesday.

The verdict is the second big judgment against the Infowars host over his relentless promotion of the lie that the 2012 massacre never happened, and that the grieving families seen in news coverage were actors hired as part of a plot to take away people's guns.

It came in a claim filed by the relatives of five children and three teachers killed in the mass shooting, plus an FBI agent who was among the first emergency services at the scene.

A Texas jury in August awarded nearly $50m (51m) to the parents of another murdered child.

Some plaintiffs hugged in the courtroom after the verdict was read.

Jones was not there, but live video from the court played on a split screen on hisInfowars show.

"Hey, folks, don't go buying big homes," he said.

The Connecticut trial featured tearful testimony from parents and siblings of the victims, who described how they were threatened and harassed for years by people who believed the lies told on Jones' show.

Strangers showed up at their homes to record them. People hurled abusive comments on social media.

Erica Lafferty, the daughter of murdered Sandy Hook head teacher Dawn Hochsprung, testified that people posted rape threats to her house.

Mark Barden said conspiracy theorists had urinated on the grave of his seven-year-old son, Daniel, and threatened to dig up the coffin.

Testifying during the trial, Jones acknowledged he had been wrong about Sandy Hook. The shooting was real, he said. But both in the courtroom and on his show, he was defiant.

He called the proceedings a "kangaroo court", mocked the judge, called the plaintiffs' lawyer an ambulance-chaser and called the case an affront to free speech rights.

He claimed it was a conspiracy by Democrats and the media to silence him and put him out of business.

"I've already said I'm sorry hundreds of times and I'm done saying I'm sorry," he said during his evidence.

Twenty children and six adults died in the shooting on December 14, 2012.

The defamation trial was held in Waterbury, about 20 miles from Newtown, where the attack took place.

The case accused Jones and Infowars' parent company, Free Speech Systems, of using the mass killing to build his audience and make millions of dollars.

Experts gave evidence that Jones' audience swelled when he made Sandy Hook a topic on the show, as did his revenue from product sales.

In both the Texas case and the one in Connecticut, judges found the company liable for damages by default after Jones failed to co-operate with court rules on sharing evidence, including failing to turn over records that might have showed whether Infowars had profited from knowingly spreading misinformation about mass killings.

Because he was already found liable, Jones was barred from mentioning free speech rights and other topics during his evidence.

Jones now faces a third trial, in Texas, at the end of the year, in a claim filed by the parents of another child killed in the shooting.

It is unclear how much Jones can afford to pay.

During the trial in Texas he said he could not afford any judgment over $2m (2.06m).

Free Speech Systems has filed for bankruptcy protection.

But an economist gave evidence in the Texas proceeding that Jones and his company were worth as much as $270m (278m).
Autism and anti-far-right campaigner Fiona OLeary confronted Deegan as two gardai escorted him to a waiting patrol car

A victim of internet troll Eamon Deegan shouted monster at him as he was led away from court to begin an eight-month sentence for harassment on Thursday.

Autism and anti-far-right campaigner Fiona OLeary confronted Deegan as two gardai escorted him to a waiting patrol car outside Cork Circuit Court sitting in Clonakilty.

A distraught Fiona can be heard on video calling out to the 55-year-old: Enjoy jail Eamon  what you did to my family  monster!

Deegan (55) with an address at Springfield Court, Celbridge, Co Kildare, had appeared in court earlier on Thursday to appeal a 10-month sentence imposed on him in the District Court in July this year for harassing Ms OLeary.

At his original court hearing, details of his harassment of Ms OLeary, a mother of five children, four of whom have autism, was heard.

The harassment took place between June 3 and June 7, 2019, Deegan beginning with silent phone calls in the middle of the night before then sending direct messages through the Messenger app.

Mum Fiona OLeary

In the messages  the first batch of which Ms OLeary did not respond to  he called her f***ing vile and said you are a big bag of suicide waiting to happen.

He said Ms OLeary was f***ed up and referring to one of her sons, who is also autistic, said: Would you not focus on that f*** up you raised?.

In another message he said: You are not autistic. Bitch, Im talking to you.

In another he said: There is no such thing as autism, you are just a bad mother.

Again, referring to Ms OLearys son he said: I am willing to experiment on him.

In another he said: I want to experiment on your child, I am a Mensa level polymath.

Details of Deegans previous convictions were also heard at the July hearing, including five for misuse of drugs, one for the sale and supply of drugs, and six for possession of knives.

Jailing Deegan for 10 months, Judge James McNulty said Deegans fondness for knives and his history of drug use would give the injured party genuine cause for concern, he said.

Deegan subsequently appealed the severity of the sentence and was released on bail  but breached the terms of his bail in August by abusing another woman whose child had recently taken her own life.

At Thursdays sitting, Judge Helen Boyle affirmed the 10-month prison sentence before suspending the last two months.

Deegan was also bound to the peace for a period of two years and barred from having any contact with Ms OLeary or her family for a period of five years.

He was also barred from setting up anonymous online accounts and from coming within 200 meters of Ms. OLeary.

Speaking afterwards, Ms OLeary said: Knowing that I can have a Christmas where I wont be threatened or harassed by him is a huge relief.
So heartbroken to learn about the tragic loss of beautiful Kate and her darling Vincent

Hundreds of tributes have been left for the tragic mum and tot who were found dead in their Dublin home ahead of their funerals this week.

A notice on RIP.ie states that Vincent Donohoe (11 months) and his mother Kate (44) of Clonee, Dublin 15 (died) peacefully at home on October 8.

The noticed adds: Predeceased by Kates mum Margaret, brother Paul and Vincents grandparents Tom and Eileen Connolly.

Sadly missed by their loving families, Vincents Dad Tom, aunts Ann-Marie and Louise, uncle Paul, cousins Jonathan, Ross, Cian and Dylan, Kates Dad and Vincents grandfather John, Catherine, sister and aunt Niamh, nephews and niece Ben, Ana and Jay, Kates aunts, uncles, cousins, relatives and friends.

Both will repose at Cunninghams Funeral Home, Clonsilla on Friday evening from 6pm and 8pm ahead of a private family funeral.

In the condolences section people, have left numerous heartbreaking messages including one that reads: Rest in peace Kate and baby Vincent, sincere condolences to all your family.

Another reads: So very sad. There are no words. May the light of heaven shine upon you both. Rest in peace Kate and Vincent.

One other person described Kate as the most precious diamond.

The world wont ever be the same without her sparkle and light. So heartbroken to learn about the tragic loss of beautiful Kate and her darling Vincent. Sending much love to Vincents father Tom, Kates father and sister and family and her hounds. Kate, you are adored. Rest in peace darling Kate and Vincent.

The bodies of Vincent and Kate were discovered together on a bed in an upstairs bedroom of their home last Saturday.

Emergency services rushed to the house in Clonee, Co Dublin after being contacted by a neighbour.

However, it is believed that the mother and child may have been deceased for up to 48 hours at that stage.

It is understood a detailed note was recovered by gardai.

This note has led to the tragedy being classified as a criminal investigation but investigators are not looking for anybody else in connection with the deaths.

A candlelight vigil was held on Monday night for Ms Donohoe and Vincent at a church in Clonee where members of the community are shocked by the tragedy.

Ms Donohoe has been described as a dog-lover, a champion of animal welfare and a well-respected woman who had never before come to the attention of gardai.

Kate Donohoe and her son Vincent

She was described as the only dog groomer in Ireland who specialised in grooming sight hounds such as greyhounds and whippets. Valerie Power, a dog groomer based in Dungarvan, Co Waterford said Ms Donohoe was well known among the dog grooming community.

She said Ms Donohoe lived alone with her son and two greyhounds.

She gave up her dog grooming business called For Dogs Sake after the birth of her son.

She adored that baby, Ms Power told the Irish Independent.

She had an overwhelming love for him. And they had very happy times together.

She described her as the most warm and giving person and her death has caused shockwaves among her many friends.

We became good friends, she said, adding she only just saw Ms Donohue last Monday and she seemed in good form.

I was very shocked by what happened, she said.

Paul ORiordan, founder of the Great Hounds in Need charity based in Co Tipperary, described Ms Donohue as a nice, friendly, happy and bubbly person.
Family say robbery suspect paid off feud gang just days after their mum died and her handbag was stolen

The family of a great-grandmother whose naked body was found in her home after she was robbed were told the prime suspect paid off a drug debt to a gang involved in the Drogheda feud days after her death.

Margaret Bracken (68) was found dead in the hallway of her home in Blackwater Court, Dundalk, Co Louth, on Monday December 16, 2019.

Gardai who arrived at the scene did not seal off the premises as they believed it was a sudden death, and a post-mortem later revealed Margaret died of a heart attack.

However, it later emerged that a handbag which was believed to have contained thousands of euro was missing and a CCTV control box had been taken from the house.

Margarets family believe she suffered the heart attack after confronting the person who took her handbag.

A man was later arrested in relation to the theft but the DPP decided not to prosecute due to a lack of evidence, and the victims family believe vital evidence was lost because gardai did not seal off the scene.

They have been campaigning for justice since her death and at the end of September they spoke to Taoiseach Micheal Martin about Margarets death.

In an interview with the Sunday World, the family have told how Margarets 33-year-old daughter, Amy, recently died of a heart attack and they believe it was brought on by the stress of her mothers death.

Another daughter, Susan McAreavey, along with other family members called to their mothers home on December 16, 2019, after they were not able to reach her by phone.

My key wouldnt open the door, Susan said. We knew there was something wrong so we rang the guards. Two young guards came down and kicked in the front door.

The door slammed back closed on the guards after they opened it. We werent aware at that stage that mammy was behind the door. My husband shouted stay back girls because when the guards kicked in the door [the first time] he seen her.

Margarets naked body was behind the door and two senior gardai were called to the scene.

Margaret Bracken

The officers who arrived decided nothing was untoward and did not seal off the scene.

They stayed seven minutes and came over to us, said sorry for your loss  its a sudden death. There was no doctor there, nothing. We never experienced anything like this before, said Susan.

A doctor then arrived at the scene before undertakers took Margarets body away. It was only after this that the family went into the house and realised something was wrong.

We entered the house. We could see her clothes  where her body was. Her false teeth were by her bedroom door. All her plugs were unplugged, the telephone in the hallway was unplugged. We knew something was wrong.

The family say Margaret would never have gone around the house naked. There was also a handprint on the wall in the hall.

The skylight in her bathroom was open and her family say Margaret wasnt capable of opening it. They say there was also a footprint of a large boot on the toilet seat which was directly under the skylight, and they believe this is how a thief got into the house in an area not covered by CCTV.

There were two opened vodka bottles in the house but Margaret didnt drink vodka and a post-mortem later revealed there was no alcohol in her system.

Someone had also removed a device used to control CCTV from the downstairs of the house.

Margarets granddaughter Mary McAreavey with her daughters Eve Bracken and T0 Susan McAreavey   MCN pics

Margarets handbag, which the family believed contained thousands of euro, was also missing.

The family explained that Margaret won 350,000 on the Lotto a few years previous and would always have a large amount of cash with her.

Gardai subsequently got a warrant to access Margarets bank records, which confirmed that more than 4,900 had been withdrawn two weeks before her death, as well as other withdrawals earlier in the year.

Her family say Margarets body was returned to them the next day.

When she came back to us, she had a mark on left side of her head. Her left hand was black and blue. She had finger marks on her legs and arms. None of these were ever documented, claimed Susan.

The family kept contacting gardai about the situation but say it was only in April 2020  four months after her death  that officers confirmed they were investigating the theft of her handbag.

However, because the scene was never sealed off, gardai said they couldnt examine the house as other people had been there and the scene was contaminated.

Gardai were able to identify a suspect in relation to the handbag theft and they arrested him, but the DPP decided not to prosecute due to lack of evidence.

The man is suspected of being involved in drugs and the family say he was targeted by gang members before Margarets death.

The family said they were told that he owed thousands of euro to associates of the Maguire gang  which was heavily involved in the Drogheda feud at the time  and that he paid back the debt to the gang just two days after Margarets body was discovered.

The same man offered comfort to the family in the days after the great-grandmothers death and was present at her funeral.

Margarets family say they directly accused the man suspected of stealing Margarets handbag to his face.

Her daughter Eve said: We offered him a lie detector test. His wife said he would do it, but he never did it.

Margarets daughter Amy died of a heart attack in her bed at her home in Dundalk in July at the age of 33.

Her sister Susan, who found Amys body, said she believes she died of a broken heart from the strain of the death of her mother.

The more Amy found out about it, the more her heart was breaking, Susan said. She was crying morning, noon and night and took a heart attack in her bed.

She said their mothers death has taken a toll on everyone in the family.

I watched my family lose weight; theyre drained. Were fighting to survive, she said.

Susans husband Gary McAreavey was convicted last year over burning a getaway car used by hitman Caolan Smyth in the attempted murder of James Mago Gately as part of the Hutch-Kinahan feud.

The court heard he was not a member of the Kinahan gang and there was insufficient evidence to conclude that he knew Caolan Smyth had committed the specific offence of attempted murder.
Gardai said no arrests have been made at this stage of an ongoing investigation

The man is being treated in the Mater Hospital in Dublin

A man has been rushed to hospital after suffering serious injuries in an attack in Finglas in broad daylight.

The man, who is in his early 40s, was assaulted in the Main Street area at approximately 10.30am.

He was taken to the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital with serious injuries.

The scene is currently preserved for technical examination.

Gardai said no arrests have been made at this stage of an ongoing investigation.

However, they are appealing for any witnesses to the incident to come forward.

Gardai are investigating a serious assault on a male that occurred at approximately 10.30am on Thursday, they confirmed.

And any road users or pedestrians who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and were travelling in the Main Street area of Finglas between 10am and 11am are asked to make this footage available to gardai.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Finglas Garda Station on 01 666 7500, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
The mans crimes against young girls were previously featured in a TV crime documentary.

CCTV footage showed the last confirmed sighting of Leah Croucher walking to work on the day she disappeared

The remains of missing teenager Leah Croucher have been potentially been found at the former home of a convicted paedophile.

The Daily Mail revealed the mans crimes against young girls were previously featured in a TV crime documentary.

Leah vanished without a trace while walking to work three years ago in Milton Keynes near north-west London.

This week, a tip-off from a member of the public led detectives to focus on a house less than half a mile from where she was last seen.

A murder inquiry was launched when police arrived at the house and found Leahs rucksack and other personal belongings on Monday.

During the search, authorities identified human remains they believe might be those of missing Leah.

The Daily Mail has now reported that a convicted paedophile who was featured in a real-life TV crime documentary used to live in that same house.

The programme discussed his sex crimes committed against two young girls aged between 13 and 15.

He was convicted of 5 separate offences.

It is unknown whether the rented house was occupied at the time Leah went missing in 2019.

The mans parents told The Times that he had moved out before Leah disappeared and they had not seen him for years.

Tragically, a missing poster for the teenager is pinned to a tree less than 15 yards away from the property.

Neighbours recall that Leah would regular pass the house on her way to work.

Distraught neighbours told the newspaper that police regularly knocked on their doors in the search for Leah.

Anyone who lives on the estate remembers Leah going missing and the police search, one resident said.

"I would never have thought that she would be found in a house on the estate. She was so close to home.

The Daily Mail reports that the house is owned by a Kuwaiti family who rarely visit the property as it has been rented out for over twenty years to different tenants. News of the investigation has shaken the area where Leah went missing in the early hours of February 15 2019.

Detective Chief Superintendent Ian Hunter said the police have scoured 1,200 hours of CCTV footage and knocked on 4,000 doors in their search for Leah.

We are dealing with a very difficult scene but we can now confirm that we have discovered a number of items that are linked to Leah, and as such we have now launched a murder investigation, led by our Major Crime Unit, he said.

"It is likely to take some time to formally identify the deceased.

Leahs family continue to be kept informed and updated.

Tragedy again struck the Croucher family just nine months after Leah went missing, losing her older brother to suicide.

"He obviously, as everybody knows, he couldnt cope, he found it very difficult, Leahs mother Claire said of Hayden (24).

The family have said that whoever the culprit is for Leahs disappearance, then they are responsible for Haydens death too.

The heart breaking discovery of remains in the search for Leah does not signal the end of the three year quest for answers.

Police are working to formally identify the human remains found in the house in Milton Keyes and proceed with a murder inquiry.

The four-bedroom property became the target of the search when cleaners made the discovery and alerted the police this week.
The service took to Twitter to show how a e-scooter collided with a pole this week

Dublin Fire Brigade have issued a warning to electric scooter users who are crashing on a nearly daily basis.

The service took to Twitter to show how a e-scooter collided with a pole this week.

Paramedics had to be called to the scene in Phibsborough.

"Collisions with scooters are something we encounter on a nearly daily basis, Dublin Fire Brigade warned on Twitter.

"Serious consideration should be given by users to wear a helmet using scooters.

Earlier this week Paramedics from Phibsborough treated a person after they struck a pole while using their e-scooter.



Collisions with scooters are something we encounter on a nearly daily basis.



Serious consideration should be given by users to wear a helmet using scooters. pic.twitter.com/fxc2Akk6f9  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) October 12, 2022

A photo showing an e-scooter propped up on a footpath beside the pole was posted to Twitter.

An open paramedic bag is positioned next to where the scooter crashed.

The warning from the fire brigade comes as Mayo County Council have appealed for tougher controls on e-scooters.

There are currently no regulations in place nationally, Councillor Ger Deere said, The Connaught Telegraph reports.

"It is anticipated that legislation will come into effect at some stage next year but by then a young person who is travelling on one of these motorised bikes could do serious damage.
This action is to draw attention towards a number of issues, one being the announcement of an expected shortage of 20,000 student beds by 2024.

Students at third level colleges across the country will walk out of lectures and tutorials this morning in protest due to the accommodation and cost-of-living crisis.

This will take place at 11 minutes past 11am, where hundreds of students will gather in college meeting areas or outdoor spaces to shine a light on the financial struggles that many are facing.

This action is to draw attention towards a number of issues, one being the announcement of an expected shortage of 20,000 student beds by 2024.

The union has criticised the government for not capping student rent during the 2023 Budget.

The budget provided a 1,000 reduction in fees for most students; but the USI says PhD students are still fighting for any introduction to cover their cost of living.

Students are calling for an immediate ban on evictions and pushing for the introduction of housing as a constitutional right.

They will also be protesting for the rights of students in digs tenancies and short-term tenants will be eligible for rental protections.

The USI is also wants legislative changes to ensure that the Residential Tenancies Board can intervene with issues relating to security deposits.

They are calling for urgent Government action to place caps on the price of rentals, as well as intervention with public funds to subsidise the construction of affordable, purpose-built student accommodation.

The union is also calling for the abolition of the Student Contribution Charge and purpose that minimum wage will increase to match the current living wage of 13.10 an hour.
Straight to the point

With Sam Uffindell

Tauranga City MP

It has been a very busy week in Tauranga. Ive been out meeting local businesses in Bethlehem, Greerton, Fraser Cove and Mount Maunganui and the support for National in the community is tremendous. I plan to get around to the rest of the businesses in our city over the rest of this year.

National will support the engine of our economy by addressing issues holding businesses back: reducing immigration constraints, eliminating red tape and easing the cost of living crisis.

As you would have seen from the recent local body elections, New Zealanders are disenchanted with the current direction our country is taking and there is a strong desire for change. National will deliver that change in 2023.

Thank you Charlie and Donna at Ngati Ranginui for hosting me at the Kapa Haka event in Tauranga last weekend; I greatly enjoyed it! The Tauranga STEM Festival was an excellent event.

Durham Street was taken over by science, technology, engineering and maths exhibits and it was fantastic to see the community getting involved. These are the subjects we need our children to master in order to develop into a high wage, high skill economy.

I hope to see Tauranga lead the way as New Zealands tech capital! The Hot Pink Walk also occurred last week and there was astounding community turnout in support of breast cancer support services.

We have a great city here and Im proud to be your Member of Parliament. With your support we will make it even better.
Spending rose across a majority of retail industries, with the largest contribution coming from consumables, up $20 million (0.8 pe rcent).

Consumables include items such as groceries (supermarkets) and liquor.

People continued to spend more on items such as food and liquor. This is the third consecutive monthly increase for consumables, says business performance manager Ricky Ho.

Weve seen food prices going up in the past few months, which can impact card spending on groceries.

For the latest information about food prices, see the Food price index.
Rocket Lab, a leading launch and space systems company, today announced it has established a new $10,000 scholarship to support women and gender minorities to pursue science, technology, engineering and maths.

According to the United Nations, within the global space industry just one in five workers are women.

The World Economic Forums latest Global Gender Gap Report also found women globally continue to be underrepresented in STEM fields.

The percentage of graduates in Engineering and Manufacturing is 6.6 per cent for women compared to 24.6 per cent for men, with an even lower representation in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) at 1.7 per cent for women and 8.2 per cent for men.

With innovation driven by different perspectives within a diverse workforce, these statistics put the growing space industrys future at risk.

The Rocket Lab Womens Scholarship aims to change that.

The Scholarship is open to all students who identify as female or non-binary who will be pursuing a tertiary qualification in STEM subject areas relevant to aerospace.

The Rocket Lab Womens Scholarship offers one candidate $10,000 across up to four years of study, to be used towards fees and/or course related costs.

Candidates will be assessed across a range of suitability criteria, including financial hardship, community engagement, aspirations, and their academic resilience.

The Rocket Lab Women's Scholarship is the newest addition to Rocket Lab's offerings to support students to pursue STEM careers and build a new generation of home-grown talent.

The Womens Scholarship joins the existing Rocket Lab Scholarship, now in its sixth year, which provides tertiary funding to students who whakapapa to or have a strong connection with the Mahia and Wairoa communities where Rocket Labs New Zealand launch site is located.

Rocket Lab also supports STEM education in Accomack County, Virginia as a major sponsor of the Virginia Spaceflight Academys Opening Access to STEM Pathways program, which partners with Accomack County Public Schools to provide students with new opportunities to experience an aerospace program, new and engaging STEM curriculum, career readiness, and exposure to new life experiences that students can apply to their academic year.

The program also addresses the disproportionate impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the areas under-served students academic, social, and emotional well-being.

"We know weve got a way to go before our industry reflects the diversity and experiences of wider society, and we want to offer practical solutions instead of just talking about it," says Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck.

"The Rocket Lab Scholarship was developed to foster a diverse talent pool of next-generation innovators, and now the Womens Scholarship is specifically targeted at supporting more women to build fulfilling careers in space."

Both scholarships are part of Rocket Labs multi-tiered education programmes Rocket Labs Space Ambassadors, a group of employees given training and release time to devote to education outreach, met with more than 11,000 students across New Zealand and the U.S. in the first year of the programme.

Under Rocket Labs Education Mission Statement to inspire, inform, and involve communities in becoming the future of the space industry for humanity, Rocket Lab has created world-first education initiatives, including apprenticeships, industry-led rocketry clubs, tutoring programs, teacher accelerators, and designing its own post-secondary qualification for high school leavers pursuing non-traditional careers in aerospace.

"We know that addressing the lack of diversity in aerospace is a complex challenge that requires equity-centred interventions from multiple angles," says Rocket Lab education lead Felicity Powell.

"Weve designed our education programs with their long-term sustainability and impact in mind. We want to know that if were inspiring students to pursue careers in aerospace, we have also paved the runway for them to launch into them too."

Applications are now open for both Scholarships, and close on November 17, 2022. To apply, students should visit https://www.rocketlabusa.com/careers/scholarships/
New measures announced by the Government will further manage the impacts of fishing on South Island Hectors dolphins.

Hectors dolphins are nationally vulnerable with about 15,000 in New Zealands waters.

We need to work to reduce the number of these dolphins killed by fishing to as close to zero as possible, Oceans and Fisheries Minister David Parker said.

While current measures have been effective in significantly reducing the risks of dolphin deaths from fishing, more action is needed to protect populations throughout their natural range.

While the suite of measures we are implementing includes an extension of the commercial and recreational set net closures around Banks Peninsula, its key focus is on implementing a plan to reduce accidental catch of Hectors dolphins in the long term.

This plan will incentivise and support fishers to improve their practices and avoid all Hectors dolphin bycatch. It also sets regulatory limits for bycatch so that I can act quickly and impose further restrictions if necessary.

The introduction of new technology like on-board cameras, real time catch reporting and monitoring of commercial vessel location allow us to better protect these dolphins while allowing fishing to continue, David Parker said.

These give greater certainty that fishing-related dolphin deaths will not exceed the levels necessary to allow these populations to thrive and recover.

The measures build on the restrictions already in place to reduce fishing-related threats to these precious species, David Parker said.

Fishing supports communities throughout the South Island. The new measures will improve protection while also allowing fishers to continue to provide an important economic contribution to our coastal communities.

David Parker said there were significant other risks to Hectors dolphin, including the disease toxoplasmosis. The Government has committed funding to understanding and reducing the threat of toxoplasmosis.

Summary of the changes:

 Extending the commercial and recreational set net fishing closure offshore around Banks Peninsula, which will prevent the transfer of set net fishing activity into this area from those areas that were closed in 2020.

 A Bycatch Reduction Plan that will be applied to all South Island Hectors dolphin subpopulations. The Plan, while allowing fishing to continue, has a mix of regulatory and voluntary measures that will incentivise and support fishers to improve their fishing practices and avoid all Hectors dolphin bycatch.

In the South Island about 16,500 km2 of the coastline is closed to set netting. That will increase to about 17,600 km2 under the new measures. In addition, trawl closures and gear restrictions cover more than 6,900 km2 of the coastline.

Public consultation on the measures took place late last year.

The changes are expected to be implemented by the end of 2022.
With a seeming growing number of desperate Facebook posts asking for help, people are being told to watch out for online scammers looking to make a quick buck from the kindness of strangers.

As the cost of living crisis has deepened across the country, people have been turning to social media for help, but Netsafes chief safety officer, Sean Lyons, is warning prospective Good Samaritans to be careful.

He says just like in any tumultuous time, there are those in genuine need and those who look to exploit the misery of others for their benefit.

Lyons says a good course of action for those wanting to help was to trust your gut and if anything seemed off, then make sure to steer clear.

But that warning comes too late for south Auckland mum Chevonne Taylor who was left out of pocket after helping a woman who claimed she needed help after leaving her abusive partner.

In the post on a local community Facebook page, the woman says she was in desperate need and was living out of her car with her two children.

Doing what she thought was the right thing, Taylor contacted the woman and offered to meet up with her and pay for her petrol  but the woman declined.

Instead, she told Taylor a bank transfer was better, and even though Taylor was a little dubious she sent the woman $50 to help her out.

That was in July.

Then last week she saw the same story from the same woman  this time with a different name and different dates  pop up in another community group, and she realised she had been taken advantage of.

So youre telling me that this woman sits on Facebook all day, every day and scamming people like its a job? says Taylor.

I dont know how someone can lie to people day in and day out, and then go on with their life like everythings normal.

In hindsight, Taylor says there were other red flags, such as the post had the comments turned off so Taylor and others couldnt see how many others were helping.

Lyons says it's good to err on the side of caution, instead offering support to the organisations already working with people like those asking for help.

Personally, I find this pattern of behaviour one of the most awful things people use the internet for, says he.

To prey on peoples good nature... and the goodwill to support people in need and to damage everyones faith in that process is an awful thing to do.

Netsafe provides tips on avoiding scams and staying safe online.

-Troels Sommerville/Stuff.
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Cepsa and Port of Rotterdam join up to create green hydrogen corridor

Cepsa and the Port of Rotterdam are to work together to establish the first green hydrogen corridor between southern and northern Europe, ensuring a green hydrogen supply chain between two of Europes main ports, Rotterdam and Algeciras, as agreed in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by both parties.

 The corridor will connect two of Europes main ports: Rotterdam and Algeciras  The agreement accelerates the decarbonization of heavy industry and maritime transport and supports Europe's energy independence and security

 The deal strengthens Cepsas ambition to become a key player in green hydrogen production in Europe and the leader in Spain and Portugal

 The co-operation is part of Rotterdams ambition to supply Northwest Europe with 4.6 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030 Cepsa plans to export hydrogen produced at its San Roque Energy Park near the Bay of Algeciras, through hydrogen carriers such as ammonia or methanol, to the Port of Rotterdam. Rotterdam is the most important energy port in Europe, handling 13% of European energy demand, while the Port of Algeciras is first in Spain, fourth in Europe, and an important trade route between Europe and Asia. With the Dutch Governments support, and as part of Rotterdams Energy Transition plans, the Port Authority and many private companies active in the port area are developing the necessary infrastructure and facilities for the import of green hydrogen and its distribution into Northwest Europe connecting large industrial centers in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany by means of hydrogen pipelines. Cepsa is the main energy company in Algeciras, close to Gibraltar. This supply of green fuels will help to decarbonize industry and maritime transport in the Bay of Algeciras and Rotterdam and to support the European Unions RePower EU strategy, which seeks to guarantee Europes energy independence and security and stimulate the production of clean energy. The trade lane is expected to be operational by 2027. Cepsa also intends to develop a similar supply chain from its La Rabida Energy Park in Huelva. Maarten Wetselaar, CEO of Cepsa: The opportunity to build the first green hydrogen corridor in Algeciras, the leading energy port in Spain, demonstrates the unique role that Spain, and in particular Andalusia, will play in the energy transition in Europe. Spain is ideally placed to become a world leader in the production and export of green hydrogen, given its strategic location, abundant generation of renewable energies, and its robust energy infrastructures and key ports, such as Algeciras and Huelva. Cepsa, the main energy company in Andalusia, intends to play a leading role in realizing this vision. This agreement is an example of the important collaborations necessary to bring about the energy transition in Europe and to ensure secure and independent energy supply. Cepsa will continue to explore further partnerships in which we can accelerate Positive Motion and the roll out of green hydrogen and biofuels across the continent. Under its Positive Motion strategy, Cepsa aspires to lead green hydrogen production in Spain and Portugal by 2030 with a production capacity of 2GW, half the current target set by the Spanish Government, and to become a major player in Europe. To generate the renewable energy necessary for its production, Cepsa will develop a portfolio of 7 GW of renewable, wind and solar projects alongside working hand in hand with other renewable energy producers in Andalusia to promote the integration of these new plants into the electricity system. Cepsa's Energy Parks in Andalusia have access to the most competitive renewable electricity in Europe, along with well-developed industrial infrastructure and direct sea access, presenting optimal conditions for the development of large scale competitive green hydrogen projects. This advantaged green molecule supply base will support the competitiveness and decarbonization of local industry and form the basis for a significant energy export opportunity, while positioning Spanish ports at the forefront of the supply of green fuels for the maritime sector. Allard Castelein, CEO Port of Rotterdam Authority: Northwest Europe uses far more energy than it can produce in a sustainable way. We are therefore setting up multiple trade lanes for green hydrogen, together with exporting countries and private businesses all over the world. We expect that in 2050 some 20 Mton of hydrogen will flow through the port, of which only 2 Mton will be produced locally. Southern Spain with its abundant space, sun, wind and ports is a logical location to produce green hydrogen for both local use and export. Setting up this trade lane between Algeciras and Rotterdam is a substantial contribution to Europes ambition to reduce CO2-emissions as well as increase Europes energy independency and stimulate our economies. Hydrogen is one of the priorities in Rotterdams Energy Transition plans with Port of Rotterdam working on setting up the infrastructure and facilities for facilitating hydrogen flows by co-developing a number of large projects with its port community members and connected industrial areas in northwest Europe. In collaboration with exporting countries and the cluster of companies operating at the port, it can supply northwestern Europe with 4.6 million tonnes annually by 2030, yielding 46 million tonnes of CO2 reduction.




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ringoism BHPian



Join Date: May 2012 Location: Himachal Posts: 924 Thanked: 3,075 Times

Himachal Lake Districts - A Family Tour something way down there - an obviously large body of water that I hadn't till then known existed...











The only Himachal "lakes" I'd known of in those days were more the size of natural ponds - Rewalsar, Brighu, Prashar... none more than a few acres and some of these even smaller. And this was clearly something different. Unfolded my excellent Nest & Wings paper map (wish I could still get these), discovered what it was, and in these intervening years the thought had occasionally crossed my mind that it would seem a good place to one day explore.









Well, it only took me a decade and a half to get there!



A reminder came when Delhi biker friends had been up early last year (to ride through the Atal Tunnel to Sissu, of course) and after a couple days decided to return to the plains via a lakeside route along Gobind Sagar, testifying afterwards (also providing photo evidence) that it was one of the prettiest and best riding roads they'd ever been on. So that settled it - we were going to have to get there one way or the other.



We had a lot of lost travel time to make up for this year, having been pretty much stuck here in the valley since the onset of Covid; In truth till the Ladakh trip this August, we hadn't ventured as a family beyond maybe 50km's from home - and even that was rare.



Suddenly, with a 10-day Dusshera school holiday looming and the kids once again free (school is always the problem re: meaningful travel), the idea popped into my head. Took the weekend to wind down / do just a little research, and headed out Monday morning - the first stop being to look at a car for sale in Mandi - as some readers may know and I've mentioned in a couple threads, we've been seeking out something more efficient and with more creature comforts for long travels.



In this case the car was an H.P. plated, Dec. 2015 registered Renault Duster; While the body and paint were quite okay (imperfect but good enough), it truly drove just about like new - It was showing a very average 76,000km's on the meter (10k/annum), clutch and shifter and suspension and steering and on-boost power and A/C and everything else felt good and fresh - so imagine my surprise / bewilderment when I checked with the local service center and was told it'd had done 121k by early 2019, and fully 172k as of this past January!!! The owner is a young Army guy who'd bought it from a private party in HR about a year ago - he seemed quite hapless and about as surprised / bewildered as I was to discover this... a real shame how things are in the used-car realm. Probably still a good vehicle, as it must have driven mostly highway miles and really did feel extremely solid and fit. But still, that extra 100,000km's knocks a lakh off the Orange Book value and asking price, and makes resale a more difficult proposition, being that I'd want to be transparent about it.



So that goal foiled or at least put on hold for the time being, we proceeded to a friend's place up on the mountain above Mandi, where we overnighted / breakfasted, and then headed out late morning towards wherever.



Govind Sagar itself was looking a little out-of-the-way on the map, but I still wanted to see at least a bit of it - so headed out towards its northwestern end, making an effort throughout the trip to travel whatever roads skirted the lake / rivers most closely. GMaps Android version doesn't seem to allow us to drag towards alternate routes, and desktop version has a limit of five stops and puts limits on route alterations - so it was quite a chore figuring all this out, and at points, we just ignored "her majesty" (the electronic navigator lady), and drove where we wanted - sometimes where no roads at all were shown, and she (rather rudely) informed us that we were "lost" (Ha! Never!!!).



At any rate, we had time to spare and were in no big hurry, and moreover had no time to really plan every step properly, so this seemed the best approach: drive leisurely, stop as often as we desired, turn in for the day when the light was waning and we felt we'd had enough, and meanwhile soak in the environment and surroundings as completely as possible - this latter goal made naturally easier by the facts that the venerable Marshal offers us no A/C, and that in early October, altitudes below a couple thousand feet are still plenty warm as to require our windows to be fully open most of the time.



The Shivaliks / Dhauladar hills are SO different in terms of climate, topography, flora/fauna, wildlife, and even ethnicity and culture - compared to what we've been used to nearer the greater Himalayas all these years - my wife found much in the local "biosphere" to compare directly to Mizoram, and wondered at many points how so many edible plants could be growing ignored at roadside, their nutritional value and tastiness quite overlooked... We stopped at many points in uninhabited places to pluck a few leaves or pods and sample their aromas and flavors.











First stop of real note along the way was actually at this food truck - I've eaten at a lot of food trucks on a couple continents the past few decades, but this one tops them all for its self-contained creativity in modification... the food was quite decent too, and the place obviously had a good reputation and drew in a lot of local customers coming by on the highway.





Stomachs filled and moving into mid-afternoon, we continued in the direction of the lake, rejecting GMaps' preferred routes and switching to satellite view (map view often omits roads that may not be visible due to tree cover, etc), simply looking for physical roads / tracks that would get us where we thought we might want to be. And in this case, where we wanted to be was in (yes, in) the water; Well-accustomed to our normal environs at 7,000+ft altitude, now at near a quarter of that height we were all feeling pretty hot and sticky and ready for a swim, which we hoped to find a good spot for.



Caught our first view of Gobind Sagar from alongside the road, where we stopped both for the view and to avail of the ice-cream truck helpfully stationed there.











Continued on after a few minutes' break, descending steeply - when we started getting really close, we came through a little market area and saw fish frying roadside - got a couple of choice pieces wrapped and picked up a fittingly chilled beverage opposite, before turning left onto the little track, not knowing as it diminished quite what we'd find at the end - there was absolutely no indication in writing on any of the GMaps views, just showed a dead end near the lake. It took us first through a very beautiful, lush little area with traditional village homes on either side:







The late afternoon sun was providing a warm cast over all the scenery, and as the little track got narrower and rougher, everything around got prettier, as well.



Before long, we emerged to find our wild guess had been a good one - there was a place there obviously developed as a little tourist/local hang-out spot, with some park benches and a grassy area nestled under a stand of eucalyptus, where quite a lot of long-tailed parrot-like birds were flitting about:











There was actually a motor launch sitting there with a woman whom I assumed to be the pilot seated in it - I figured we could look around a bit and have our refreshments, then go for a boat ride, which the kids were very keen to do. Later we came to discover that it was actually a local ferry service that ended up loaded with many more people and a motorcycle, and would take them over to the other side of the lake. The woman had merely been its earliest-arriving passenger. We missed it, and being late sundown I'm not sure whether it would have been returning till the next day - but it would make a great sunset ride and we'd love to go back and take it once.









On the negative side, we realized there was no way we were going to be able to swim here - not due to the depth or temperature or related safety concerns, but because - as we would unfortunately find again and again during this trip - that probably half Himachal's discarded chappals and other footwear, along with a rather large quantity of waste thermocol, empty drink and water bottles / cartons, etc, etc, had created a highly-polluted "skirt" all around the lake, both floating and left back on surrounding land as the water seasonally recedes.



The grassy ground extending back a hundred or more meters from the waterfront wasn't itself much better - badly littered everywhere. There were two policemen posted on-site as the locals started streaming there around sunset, but that didn't stop one family of four (all adults), who had just exited their car, from throwing a bag of household trash directly in the water before continuing on for their pleasant lakeside sunset walk. It is just insane... And I have yet to figure out the precise mindset here. Some of the chappals at Pong Reservoir (the next day's destination), could have even originated in our village above Manali here, as our local river flows into the same Beas that feeds that lake, and our locals here are wont to throw all manner of household and other trash in the river... I am sure it is the same with too many villages and towns along the Sutlej and its tributaries, which feed this Gobind Sagar - but anyway, it is inexcusable anywhere. Strikingly, it was not ignorant-looking uneducated types or drunks or teenaged idiots or unknowing little children who did this so brashly in this case - but "respectable-looking" adults. So it is evident that a lot of "respectable-looking" people all over this region and even more broadly really are frankly extremely stupid - despite whatever education, not able to appreciate their most beautiful treasures - very clearly to their own detriment in more ways than one, as this water very often feeds their own household domestic supplies... So sad, frustrating, and well - WRONG!!! It actually started many years ago, in late 2008 during a stay at a friend's place in Dharamshala. Having arrived on the old, trusty Kb100, it had rained hard in the afternoon (as is common); and as the storm passed over and the darkened skies began to part, standing on the front porch I was graced with the sight of glorious sunbeams descending to earth in the distance, and reflecting brilliantly offway down there - an obviously large body of water that I hadn't till then known existed...The only Himachal "lakes" I'd known of in those days were more the size of natural ponds - Rewalsar, Brighu, Prashar... none more than a few acres and some of these even smaller. And this was clearly something different. Unfolded my excellent Nest & Wings paper map (wish I could still get these), discovered what it was, and in these intervening years the thought had occasionally crossed my mind that it would seem a good place to one day explore.Well, it only took me a decade and a half to get there!A reminder came when Delhi biker friends had been up early last year (to ride through the Atal Tunnel to Sissu, of course) and after a couple days decided to return to the plains via a lakeside route along Gobind Sagar, testifying afterwards (also providing photo evidence) that it was one of the prettiest and best riding roads they'd ever been on. So that settled it - we were going to have to get there one way or the other.We had a lot of lost travel time to make up for this year, having been pretty much stuck here in the valley since the onset of Covid; In truth till the Ladakh trip this August, we hadn't ventured as a family beyond maybe 50km's from home - and even that was rare.Suddenly, with a 10-day Dusshera school holiday looming and the kids once again free (school is always the problem re: meaningful travel), the idea popped into my head. Took the weekend to wind down / do just a little research, and headed out Monday morning - the first stop being to look at a car for sale in Mandi - as some readers may know and I've mentioned in a couple threads, we've been seeking out something more efficient and with more creature comforts for long travels.In this case the car was an H.P. plated, Dec. 2015 registered Renault Duster; While the body and paint were quite okay (imperfect but good enough), it truly drove just about like new - It was showing a very average 76,000km's on the meter (10k/annum), clutch and shifter and suspension and steering and on-boost power and A/C and everything else felt good and fresh - so imagine my surprise / bewilderment when I checked with the local service center and was told it'd had done 121k by early 2019, and fully 172k as of this past January!!! The owner is a young Army guy who'd bought it from a private party in HR about a year ago - he seemed quite hapless and about as surprised / bewildered as I was to discover this... a real shame how things are in the used-car realm. Probably still a good vehicle, as it must have driven mostly highway miles and really did feel extremely solid and fit. But still, that extra 100,000km's knocks a lakh off the Orange Book value and asking price, and makes resale a more difficult proposition, being that I'd want to be transparent about it.So that goal foiled or at least put on hold for the time being, we proceeded to a friend's place up on the mountain above Mandi, where we overnighted / breakfasted, and then headed out late morning towards wherever.Govind Sagar itself was looking a little out-of-the-way on the map, but I still wanted to see at least a bit of it - so headed out towards its northwestern end, making an effort throughout the trip to travel whatever roads skirted the lake / rivers most closely. GMaps Android version doesn't seem to allow us to drag towards alternate routes, and desktop version has a limit of five stops and puts limits on route alterations - so it was quite a chore figuring all this out, and at points, we just ignored "her majesty" (the electronic navigator lady), and drove where we wanted - sometimes where no roads at all were shown, and she (rather rudely) informed us that we were "lost" (Ha! Never!!!).At any rate, we had time to spare and were in no big hurry, and moreover had no time to really plan every step properly, so this seemed the best approach: drive leisurely, stop as often as we desired, turn in for the day when the light was waning and we felt we'd had enough, and meanwhile soak in the environment and surroundings as completely as possible - this latter goal made naturally easier by the facts that the venerable Marshal offers us no A/C, and that in early October, altitudes below a couple thousand feet are still plenty warm as to require our windows to be fully open most of the time.The Shivaliks / Dhauladar hills are SO different in terms of climate, topography, flora/fauna, wildlife, and even ethnicity and culture - compared to what we've been used to nearer the greater Himalayas all these years - my wife found much in the local "biosphere" to compare directly to Mizoram, and wondered at many points how so many edible plants could be growing ignored at roadside, their nutritional value and tastiness quite overlooked... We stopped at many points in uninhabited places to pluck a few leaves or pods and sample their aromas and flavors.First stop of real note along the way was actually at this food truck - I've eaten at a lot of food trucks on a couple continents the past few decades, but this one tops them all for its self-contained creativity in modification... the food was quite decent too, and the place obviously had a good reputation and drew in a lot of local customers coming by on the highway.Stomachs filled and moving into mid-afternoon, we continued in the direction of the lake, rejecting GMaps' preferred routes and switching to satellite view (map view often omits roads that may not be visible due to tree cover, etc), simply looking for physical roads / tracks that would get us where we thought we might want to be. And in this case, where we wanted to be was in (yes,) the water; Well-accustomed to our normal environs at 7,000+ft altitude, now at near a quarter of that height we were all feeling pretty hot and sticky and ready for a swim, which we hoped to find a good spot for.Caught our first view of Gobind Sagar from alongside the road, where we stopped both for the view and to avail of the ice-cream truck helpfully stationed there.Continued on after a few minutes' break, descending steeply - when we started getting really close, we came through a little market area and saw fish frying roadside - got a couple of choice pieces wrapped and picked up a fittingly chilled beverage opposite, before turning left onto the little track, not knowing as it diminished quite what we'd find at the end - there was absolutely no indication in writing on any of the GMaps views, just showed a dead end near the lake. It took us first through a very beautiful, lush little area with traditional village homes on either side:The late afternoon sun was providing a warm cast over all the scenery, and as the little track got narrower and rougher, everything around got prettier, as well.Before long, we emerged to find our wild guess had been a good one - there was a place there obviously developed as a little tourist/local hang-out spot, with some park benches and a grassy area nestled under a stand of eucalyptus, where quite a lot of long-tailed parrot-like birds were flitting aboutThere was actually a motor launch sitting there with a woman whom I assumed to be the pilot seated in it - I figured we could look around a bit and have our refreshments, then go for a boat ride, which the kids were very keen to do. Later we came to discover that it was actually a local ferry service that ended up loaded with many more people and a motorcycle, and would take them over to the other side of the lake. The woman had merely been its earliest-arriving passenger. We missed it, and being late sundown I'm not sure whether it would have been returning till the next day - but it would make a great sunset ride and we'd love to go back and take it once.On the negative side, we realized there was no way we were going to be able to swim here - not due to the depth or temperature or related safety concerns, but because - as we would unfortunately find again and again during this trip - that probably half Himachal's discarded chappals and other footwear, along with a rather large quantity of waste thermocol, empty drink and water bottles / cartons, etc, etc, had created a highly-polluted "skirt" all around the lake, both floating and left back on surrounding land as the water seasonally recedes.The grassy ground extending back a hundred or more meters from the waterfront wasn't itself much better - badly littered everywhere. There were two policemen posted on-site as the locals started streaming there around sunset, but that didn't stop one family of four (all adults), who had just exited their car, from throwing a bag of household trash directly in the water before continuing on for their pleasant lakeside sunset walk. It is just insane...And I have yet to figure out the precise mindset here. Some of the chappals at Pong Reservoir (the next day's destination), could have even originated in our village above Manali here, as our local river flows into the same Beas that feeds that lake, and our locals here are wont to throw all manner of household and other trash in the river... I am sure it is the same with too many villages and towns along the Sutlej and its tributaries, which feed this Gobind Sagar - but anyway, it is inexcusable anywhere. Strikingly, it was not ignorant-looking uneducated types or drunks or teenaged idiots or unknowing little children who did this so brashly in this case - but "respectable-looking" adults. So it is evident that a lot of "respectable-looking" people all over this region and even more broadly really are frankly extremely stupid - despite whatever education, not able to appreciate their most beautiful treasures - very clearly to their own detriment in more ways than one, as this water very often feeds their own household domestic supplies... So sad, frustrating, and well - WRONG!!! Attached Thumbnails































Last edited by ringoism : 10th October 2022 at 22:55 .
Something to look forward to: Microsoft received much-deserved praise when its accessories made gaming easier for those with disabilities a few years ago. The company has finally announced when it will bring a similar level of accessibility to everyday computer use, along with the price for each new accessory.

In May, Microsoft announced its collection of customizable and attachable input devices to help those with disabilities easily make keyboard and mouse inputs. Six new PC accessibility adapters from Microsoft will be available on October 25. Pre-orders went live on the Microsoft store.

The Microsoft Adaptive Mouse can work as a standard compact mouse, attach to the Mouse Tail for a more traditional shape, and use the Thumb Support for extra right-handed or left-handed comfort. It can also connect with up to three devices  wirelessly or through USB-C  for additional functionality and accessibility. The Adaptive Mouse is $44.99, while the Mouse Tail and Thumb Support come bundled for $14.99.

With Microsoft's $59.99 Adaptive Hub, users can replace or expand keyboard input by attaching various other accessories. Like the Adaptive Mouse, it can connect to up to three devices wirelessly or through USB-C. It also wirelessly connects to up to four Microsoft adaptive buttons and supports assistive technology from other manufacturers.

Microsoft offers three adaptive buttons for $39.99 each  a concave d-pad, a joystick, and a convex dual button. Each offers easy access to eight-way directional input in different styles for different accessibility needs. They can also handle complex tasks on PCs and phones through sequence macros.

Through Shapeways, Microsoft offers various 3D-printed tails, supports, and other attachments that can further alter the adaptive mouse and buttons to each user's unique needs. Microsoft also has 3D printed grips for the Business Pen and Classroom Pen 2.

The new accessories echo the Xbox Adaptive Controller, an adaptor hub Microsoft released in 2018 to expand accessibility for Xbox and PC games. It can attach to various assistive peripherals to suit users depending on their disabilities. Since then, products from companies like 8BitDo and Hori have brought similar functionality to other platforms like Android, Raspberry Pi, and Nintendo Switch.
A hot potato: The Hololens-based AR goggles Microsoft provides to the US Army as part of a contract worth up to $22 billion have come in for more criticism after a user said they could endanger soldiers. "The devices would have gotten us killed," said the tester.

Microsoft was awarded a $480 million contract to provide the US Army with Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) headsets in 2018, marking the beginning of a project that has brought much controversy for both entities.

The initial agreement was expanded in March 2021, ensuring Microsoft will provide finalized production versions, parts, and support in an agreement potentially worth up to $21.9 billion across a decade. The Army ordered an initial 5,000 units, valued at $373 million, with around 121,000 to be delivered over the course of the deal.

The first batch of headsets was supposed to be delivered in the fiscal year 2021 but was delayed by a yearthe first deliveries only arrived last month. But it seems they're not without some serious issues.

According to excerpts from an Army report dictated to Insider, a tester has warned that the headsets pose a danger to soldiers due to the light they generate while active, which could alert enemy forces to a wearer's location. The glow from the display is said to be visible from hundreds of meters away.

According to a Microsoft employee briefed about the event, the headset failed in four out of six evaluation events during a recent "operational demo."

Other complaints about the headsets include limiting a soldier's field of view, including peripheral vision, when worn. They're also bulky and heavy enough to impede a wearer's movement.

Microsoft is directing all questions about IVAS to the Army. The military branch says it remains committed to the program and that the operational test so far has generally been considered a success. It did note, however, that the results have shown areas where IVAS has fallen short and needs additional improvements.

The report marks another bump in the road for the long-term IVAS project. Microsoft's original deal resulted in an open letter of objection from employees, forcing CEO Satya Nadella to respond. In April, a Department of Defense oversight agency warned that the massive amount the Army was spending on the goggles could be a waste of taxpayer money as many soldiers weren't fans of IVAS.

Microsoft is said to have expected pushback against the goggles from the beginning. As for the Army, it keeps pointing to the introduction of night vision goggles in the 1970s that received similar criticisms but are now widely used.
In brief: The ongoing saga of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard is showing no signs of ending soon. The latest spat involves the UK watchdog's investigation of the $69 billion deal, which Redmond says is being influenced by Sony.

Last month brought news that the United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) feared that Microsoft's purchase of Activision Blizzard could lead to competition concerns within the video game industry. The regulator said that if Microsoft didn't submit a proposal to assuage these worries, the CMA would open an extended stage 2 phase of its probe in which the acquisition would face increased scrutiny.

Microsoft decided not to offer any remedies to the CMA, leading to the phase 2 investigation. As Ars Technica notes, it could result in the merger being prohibited or a requirement to sell some parts of the business. The CMA today released the full text (PDF) of its decision, which has prompted a biting response from Microsoft in which it claims the regulator is relying "on self-serving statements by Sony" and has adopted its rival's complaints without the "appropriate level of critical review."

Sony's biggest issue with the Microsoft deal is Call of Duty's future. The Redmond firm says Sony is significantly exaggerating the series' importance, and losing a single franchise would not challenge the Japanese giant's dominance. It adds that making Call of Duty available on its Game Pass service doesn't guarantee it will sell more Xbox consoles. Xbox head Phil Spencer previously confirmed that Activision Blizzard games like Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Diablo would end up on Game Pass if the deal completes.

"While Sony may not welcome increased competition, it has the ability to adapt and compete. Gamers will ultimately benefit from this increased competition and choice," Microsoft said in its response. Sony says the deal is "bad for competition, bad for the gaming industry and bad for gamers themselves."

Microsoft had to defend the Activision Blizzard deal after Sony raised concerns over CoD in the past. The Windows maker promised that the next three games in the series, which includes CoD: Modern Warfare II, would be released on PlayStation, at which point Activision's contract with Sony ends. PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan called this proposal "inadequate on many levels."

As Microsoft must still appease regulators in other parts of the world in addition to the UK, Game Pass subscribers hoping to see CoD as part of their subscription might want to wait a while before getting too excited.
In brief: With its high pressures, long hours, and, in some cases, lack of security, the tech industry isn't known for being a great place to workeven though the money's good. That could explain why virtually none of the big-name titans rank in the 100 Most Loved Workplaces of 2022 list, with the one exception being the company in the top spot.

Newsweek worked with the Florida-based Best Practise Institute (BPI) to survey 1.4 million employees at 450 companies, from small organizations to mega corporations, to find out which firms generate the most love from their workers. External public ratings from sites such as Glassdoor and additional research were also used to determine rankings.

The results show employee happiness comes from several factors, including offering remote work, opportunities for career advancement, benefits such as 401(k) plans, and a firm's approach teamwork, collaboration, and ethics.

Surprisingly, the company with the largest number of employees in the top 100 is also the top-ranked: Dell. Alienware's parent company has been praised for allowing employees to control their destiny via its Career Hub, where they can build their development plans, leading to most of Dell's management jobs being filled internally. Job satisfaction and bosses who value feedback were also cited as big positives.

Another reason Dell workers are so happy is the company's openness to remote work. ZDNet notes that 90% of its employees have this option and can work from anywhere worldwide for 29 days each year. Apple and Tesla may want to take note.

Software giant SAP America is second. Like Dell, its position is partly thanks to its development of staff. The company has an in-house incubator for employees to launch new ventures.

The other tech firms to make the top ten are Seattle IT consulting company Avanade (3rd), HR technology firm ZipRecruiter (7th), and San Francisco software firm Zapier (9th).

Plenty of recognizable names are missing from the list: Google, Nvidia, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Even Apple, which prides itself on giving employees the best environment possible, is absent. But then its workers did launch a petition against the company's return-to-the-office mandate. Apart from Dell, one of the only other big tech firms in the top 100 is Cloudflare at 55.

Masthead credit: Christina Morillo
The forthcoming return activities for NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will be streamed live by the space agency, starting on Wednesday, Oct. 12.

The Crew-4 voyage, which included NASA astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, and Jessica Watkins as well as ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, is scheduled to land back on Earth at 5:41 p.m. EDT on Thursday, October 13.

NASA announced in a press release that the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is set to undock from the space station at 7:05 p.m. on Wednesday to start its trip back home.

(Photo : Joel Kowsky/NASA via Getty Images)

CAPE CANAVERAL, FL - APRIL 18: In this NASA handout, NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins, left, Kjell Lindgren, second from left, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, second from right, and NASA astronaut Robert Hines, right, are seen as they depart the Launch and Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center after answering questions from members of the media ahead of SpaceXs Crew-4 mission, Monday, April 18, 2022, in Florida.

However, teams are still monitoring the weather as they follow the path of a cold front that is expected to move over the splashdown regions off Florida's Gulf and Atlantic coasts.

Six hours before undocking, mission teams will do another weather check while continuing to monitor splashdown and recovery circumstances. If initial plans are not followed, undocking opportunities will still be available on Thursday.

On NASA Television, the NASA app, and the organization's website, the parting words for Crew-4, the change of command, the hatch closure, the undocking, and the splashdown will all be shown live. An audio-only post-splashdown news conference will also be held by the space agency.

The Crew-4 astronauts will say their final goodbyes on October 12 and station commander Samantha Cristoforetti will turn over control of the space station to Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev.

The Dragon capsule, which the crew has given the name Freedom, will automatically disengage from the space station on Thursday and land in one of seven predetermined locations in the Atlantic or Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida.

Additionally, Freedom will bring back to Earth critical and essential research, according to NASA.

Complete Timeline of Crew-4's Return to Earth

Wednesday, Oct. 12

 10:05 a.m. - The space station's change of command ceremony and parting statements for Crew 4.

 5 p.m. - Coverage of the hatch closure starts at 5:20 p.m.

 6:45 p.m. - Coverage of undocking will start at 7:05 p.m. undocking with a splashdown on Thursday.

Thursday, Oct. 13

 5:41 p.m. - Splashdown off the Florida coast

 7 p.m. - A media teleconference from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will be held by this time.

Read Also: Russia Discusses Participation in the International Space Station After 2024





Goodbye Crew-4, Hello Crew-5

On October 5, a Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket launched the Crew-5 astronaut mission from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASA's Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japan's Koichi Wakata, and cosmonaut Anna Kikina were included in the astronaut mission. They will all be spending five months on the ISS.

Crew-5 was historic in numerous ways. For instance, Mann made history as the first Native American woman to travel to space, while Kikina was the first Russian to fly with SpaceX.

When the astronauts from Crew-5 arrived, there were already seven crew members aboard the ISS, including four from SpaceX's Crew-4 mission.

But that number will now be reduced as Crew-4 gears to return to Earth.

Related Article: NASA's ISS Captures Hurricane Ian Swirling Towards Florida

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Google has approved Donald Trump's Truth Social app for its Play Store, the official app marketplace for Android users.

While Google has previously barred the Trump social network from its Play Store, it now looks like it will soon be easier to download on Android.

(Photo : Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the American Airlines Center on September 14, 2015 in Dallas, Texas. More than 20,000 tickets have been distributed for the event.

Google and Trump's Truth Social

According to a news story by CNBC, the tech giant has previously rejected the Truth Social app from its Play Store, citing issues with the content moderation of the Trump social media.

The tech behemoth behind Android says that the social media app of the ex-POTUS has violated its internal policies.

Google explained that it requires listings on its app store to "effectively moderate user-generated content and remove objectionable posts such as those that incite violence.

And given that, Truth Social had to update its content moderation policies within the platform to be given a chance to be listed on the Play Store.

The tech juggernaut said the social media service of Trump has agreed to moderate posts that might incite violence, wherein users could end up being kicked out from the platform, CNBC reports.

Although Google required Truth Social to come up with some sort of content moderation, making it unavailable in the Play Store, it now draws millions of users in the United States.

CNBC highlights that roughly 44% of Android users in the US have installed the Truth Social app. It comes despite it waiting for the approval of Google.

It is worth noting that the Trump social media has been available to iPhone users via the Apple App Store since the service debuted early this year.

Read Also: Donald Trump's Truth Social Media App is Still Unwelcome in Google Play Store For Violating Policies

Truth Social is Coming to Google Play Store for Android

This time, it looks like Android users would no longer have to sideload the Truth Social app as it is on its way to the Google Play Store.

(Photo : STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

This photo illustration shows an image of former President Donald Trump reflected in a phone screen that is displaying the Truth Social app, in Washington, DC, on February 21, 2022.

As per the latest report by Reuters, Google has already approved the social media app of the former President of the United States (POTUS), Donald Trump, dubbed the Truth Social app.

No less than the spokesperson of Google confirmed that the renowned tech giant has given the Trump social media a go signal for its listing on the Play Store for Android phones.

Reuters notes in its report that Google added that the parent firm of Truth Social, Trump Media and Technology Group, is set to make its app available on the Android app marketplace in a while.

Related Article: Trump's Truth Social Post Confirms His Crime? Here's What the Former US President Said

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The Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister praised Starlink for its massive help in restoring the connections in critical areas, giving them access to the internet and technology after a massive missile attack from Russia.

Elon Musk says that he is all in support of Ukraine, but it did not bode well for the public who thinks that he is hiding something.

Ukraine's Vice PM Thanks Starlink and its Services

(Photo : YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP via Getty Images)

This photograph taken on September 25, 2022, shows an antenna of the Starlink satellite-based broadband system donated by the US tech billionaire Elon Musk in Izyum, Kharkiv region, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Mykhailo Fedorov's latest tweet talked highly of Starlink's efforts in helping restore connections quickly for the country, and it is now a critical infrastructure for their needs to further their cause.

According to Ukraine's Vice PM, Russia's latest 100 cruise missile attack on the country gravely affected several areas after what happened.

However, the existing Starlink satellite internet connections available in the country helped deliver communications and internet connectivity for all.

Starlink is to remain active in the country and more terminals are coming as per Musk's previous updates, aiming to integrate the internet service more for the public.

Read Also: Elon Musk's Proposal for China-Taiwan Relations Receives Mixed Reactions

Youre most welcome. Glad to support Ukraine.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 12, 2022

Elon Musk says He is Glad to Support Ukraine

Musk replied to Vice PM Fedorov's tweet, saying that he is "glad to support Ukraine," reiterating that he is all in for the country that was victimized by Russia during their conflict. Musk expressed his support for Ukraine after receiving backlash from his previous efforts, and the tech CEO aims to show that he is all in for the country.

Musk's Peace Efforts for Ukraine, Russia

The public is already in a mix for Elon Musk, particularly with his efforts toward Russia and Ukraine's peace where he enumerated a four-point plan that Ukrainian citizens and officials did not accept.

It centered on Ukraine remaining neutral and giving up Crimea to Russia based on history and geographical focus.

The Ukrainian President seemed to have an impact on Musk's latest tweet, particularly as Volodymyr Zelensky also used a poll to ask his country what they want to see from the tech CEO.

In the past weeks, Musk talked about his late nights due to thinking of ways to ease the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, acting as the bridge to both countries and trying to appeal to both parties.

However, his efforts were perceived by citizens as more inclined to help Russia, with people saying that he is "Putin's new bestie."

Still, Musk's previous effort with Starlink is a massive development for Ukraine's needs, particularly with the many terminals delivered to the country and its satellites' focus on its connection in the region. Ukrainians revere Musk's efforts with Starlink, but not so much with the peace efforts, despite the top billionaire expressing his support for the country.

Related Article: Elon Musk Denies Speaking with Russia's Putin About Ukraine But Claims Space, Rocket Conversation

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A new addition to the tools of Microsoft Office Suite has been announced.

(Photo : JOSEP LAGO/AFP via Getty Images)

A Microsoft logo is displayed at the MWC (Mobile World Congress) in Barcelona on March 2, 2022. - The Mobile World Congress, where smartphone and telecoms companies show off their latest products and reveal their strategic visions, is expected to welcome more than 40,000 guests over its four-day run.

Microsoft Designer

A report from Interesting Engineering stated that Microsoft just recently launched its newest tool and addition to the roster of the Microsoft Office suite. Microsoft Designer, which the company offers free, allows its users to create clip art from words. Through a text-to-image model or an AI tool, it can create a variety of unique designs by only typing descriptions.

The app is very similar to the existing apps that do have the same feature, such as DALL-E 2 and Canva. In fact, Microsoft integrated Designer with DALL-E as the creator (OpenAI) of the AI software and was one of the developers that were backed up by Microsoft.

According to XDA-Developers, the idea of the company to develop this application came from Powerpoint, as it suggests template options based on what the users include in its presentation. But the difference between Designer to this is that it will be more advanced and innovative. While this can be used for presentations, users can also do several useful purposes.

Microsoft has a large base of users from several sectors like as companies, government agencies, and schools. CNBC reported that through this newly launched app, the company could expand to additional markets that can also perceive the interest of enterprises.

Waitlist for Early Access

Before launching it as application software, Microsoft released its newly added app for a web preview only as the company wants to know the feedback from several creators and users for them to improve Designer. An invitation will be given by the company for early access to the app. Eventually, the app will be free and will be part of Microsoft 365. To join the waitlist, you may register on the official website of Microsoft Designer.

Additional Microsoft Creator Tools

Aside from the launch of Designer, Microsoft introduced the additional parts of its Creator app. This includes the Create and Image Creator. As per the report, an AI text-to-image model will be added to the company's search engines such as Bing and Edge. This app is made for users who want to design social posts, videos, presentations, flyers, and other projects that require an artistic perspective.

As of now, Microsoft Create is currently available to access and as per the company, users may expect additional features in the future.

Also Read: Microsoft Confirms Integration with Apple Music, Apple TV, and iCloud

Clipchamp also joins Microsoft 365 as it was formally launched through an announcement by Microsoft. This app will be officially part of the productivity suite. Previously, premium filters were available to the subscribers of Microsoft 365. This gave some of the publications and idea that Clipchamp might join the roster of the suite.

Related Article: Microsoft Outlook Still Crashing, Freezing? A Fix is Now Rolling Out

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A recent and strange behavior in a particular kind of quantum material could now be explained by a series of buzzing, beelike "loop-currents," according to research from the University of Colorado Boulder.

The study, published on Oct. 12 in Nature, may aid engineers in creating novel gadgets like quantum sensors or the quantum counterpart of computer memory storage.

"Astonishing and Puzzling"

As reported first by Interesting Engineering, the name "honeycomb" refers to the network of interconnecting octahedra formed by the manganese and tellurium atoms in the quantum material, which has the chemical formula "Mn3Si2Te6."

The research began in 2020, and its recent findings are both "astonishing and puzzling," according to Gang Cao, professor in the Department of Physics and corresponding author.

In most circumstances, the material behaved essentially as an insulator. In other words, when the honeycomb was exposed to a magnetic field, it made it impossible for electrical currents to pass through it.

Gang Cao and his associates now believe they can explain such extraordinary behavior.

Based on experiments conducted in Cao's lab, the team claims that under certain conditions, the honeycomb is alive with small internal currents known as chiral orbital currents or loop currents. Electrons zip around in loops within each of the octahedra of this quantum material.

Since the 1990s, it has been hypothesized that several known materials, including high-temperature superconductors, possess such loop currents, but this has not yet been physically verified.

Cao claimed they discovered a new quantum state of matter, with a quantum transition similar to "ice melting into water."

However, the honeycomb in the study differs greatly from those materials; the CMR only takes place when those similar kinds of magnetic polarization are not present.

According to Cao, the change in electrical characteristics is also considerably more dramatic than what is seen in any other CMR material that is currently known. Hence, the team had to find out its root cause.

Read also: Quantum Microscope to Soon Help Scientists See 'Impossible' Objects Under the Instrument in New Study

Loop Currents

Together with Georgia Institute of Technology co-author Itamar Kimchi, they developed the idea of loop currents. The team hypothesized that a great deal of electron motion could be seen tracing the edges of each octahedron inside their honeycombs.

In the absence of a magnetic field, these loop currents often stay chaotic or flow in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions. It resembles vehicles using two lanes of a roundabout at the same time, as per Interesting Engineering.

The researchers said that this instability can create havoc for electrons moving through the material, boosting resistance and turning the honeycomb into an insulator.

"The internal loop currents circulating along the edges of the octahedra are extraordinarily susceptible to external currents," Cao said in a statement.

"When an external electric current exceeds a critical threshold, it disrupts and eventually 'melts' the loop currents, leading to a different electronic state."

But more importantly, Cao claimed that their findings could pave the way for the creation of quantum technologies.

Related Article: Quantum Technology Competition Heats Up as China Has Taken the Lead in Race

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After suffering a computer glitch on Monday, Oct. 10, NASA's planet-hunting mission is currently in safe mode, as reported first by Space.com.

The NASA Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission was launched in 2018 to look for exoplanets. TESS was originally supposed to be operational for two years, but it has now discovered thousands of candidate worlds and more than 250 confirmed exoplanets.

Safe Mode

However, the spacecraft abruptly entered safe mode on Monday, Oct. 10, stopping observations, according to a NASA statement. TESS staff has discovered that the spacecraft's flight computer was reset, which is why it had to enter safe mode.

According to NASA, the spacecraft is stable, and the science observations yet to be transmitted to Earth appear to be secure as well.

While the team is striving to get TESS back to regular operation, NASA officials wrote that the procedure could take several days.

TESS examines a different area of the sky each month, counting and measuring the brightness of a wide variety of stars. Tiny periodic dimming may indicate that a planet is passing TESS' field of vision as it orbits the star.

Astronomers have utilized TESS data to investigate comets, binary stars, supernovas, and other cosmic objects in addition to finding exoplanets, which is the mission's primary objective.

Read also: NASA Hubble, TESS Discover Water Vapor on 'Super Neptune,' an Exoplanet 150 Light Years Away

Recent Discovery: Ocean Planet

Researchers from the University of Montreal and the Institute for Research on Exoplanets (IREx) recently discovered a new exoplanet with the ocean on its surface.

NASA's TESS spearheaded the discovery and said that the ocean planet is about 100 light years away from Earth and is about 70% larger than our planet.

The ocean planet identified by IREx and the University of Montreal has paved the way for opportunities to understand better the environment surrounding TOI-1452 b.

Water, a necessary component for life, is present on this planet, which is located in the Draco constellation and has oceans covering the majority of its surface.

The new planet was found with the aid of NASA's TESS, and the researchers described the ocean world in a study they published in the Astronomical Journal.

The water on the exoplanet, which is 100 light years away and 70% larger than Earth, is much heavier than the water found on our planet.

The radius and mass of the planet are far less dense than one might anticipate for a globe with an architecture similar to Earth, according to the researchers.

Related Article: NASA's TESS Mission Finds 'Super-Earth,' 50% Larger and 3X Heavier than Earth, as One of the Oldest Stars

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The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is poised to make a huge decision for the total ban of all telecommunications equipment related to Huawei and ZTE.

Axios is the first to report that the federal government agency is expected to include the video surveillance equipment from three other China-based companies in the sales ban.

FCC to Ban New Huawei and ZTE Electronic Devices

(Photo : JADE GAO/AFP via Getty Images)

This photo taken on July 12, 2022 shows the Huawei flagship store in Shenzhen, China's southern Guangdong province.

Before this news came out, the FCC first presented a proposal for this ban in 2019. At that time, the agency chairman Ajit Pai cited that the move would protect the US against the potential security threat from prominent Chinese firms such as Huawei and ZTE.

This time, Axios confirmed that a reliable source said that FCC is officially banning the equipment to tighten its national security.

During Donald Trump's administration, this issue was already on the radar of the FCC. It began when security experts discovered that China could rely on electronic gadgets to spy on people in the US.

In 2021, US President Joe Biden penned legislation about getting equipment licenses in the country. This approval suggests that the government does not want any existence of companies that are deemed to be causing security threats to Americans.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel passed a draft order on Oct. 5 about the sales ban for the equipment. Of course, this further needs approval, so it would be voted on before it becomes official.

Moreover, the proposal is only limited to the new equipment. FCC clarified that the existing devices from Huawei and ZTE will still be distributed unless there's an order to stop their sales.

FCC Will Also Ban the Sales For Video Surveillance Equipment

PCMAG reports that FCC is also planning to include video surveillance equipment in the sales ban. Amid a myriad of cybersecurity attacks, the agency wants to prioritize public safety by preventing these devices from being distributed to consumers.

Aside from Huawei and ZTE, FCC targets three other Chinese firms in the proposal. These include Dahua Technology Company, Hytera Communications Corporation, and Hikvision.

According to a Hikvision representative, the company presents no threat to the US.

"There is no technical or legal justification for why Hikvision should be impacted by the forthcoming Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules," the Hikvision spokesperson added.

Related Article: FCC: US Broadband Availability Reinforces Efforts to Address Internet Access for Americans

FCC Intensifies Crackdown on Robocall Scams

Earlier this month, FCC warned several telecommunication service providers about the rampant robocalls across the country.

According to the agency, the companies will be kicked off if they are non-compliant with the standards when it comes to combating this kind of scam.

The companies can dodge this punishment if they maintain their standards within the Robocall Mitigation database. FCC also wants their implementations to be aligned in STIR/SHAKEN, an organized framework of preventive techniques.

Read Also: Huawei Cell Towers Near US Military Bases: FBI Notices Pattern, Possibly Intercept Comms

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Written by Joseph Henry

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A month after the US Army finally sent a go-signal for Microsoft Corp to deliver its first batch of Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) goggles, soldiers testing the wearable tech reported that wearing the headsets caused nausea and headaches.

A Tech Times report from Sept. 2 tells us that some 5,000 tech-laded headsets have been cleared to be delivered to the troops. This is after high officials of the armed forces previously put the delivery on hold over "concern about the device's performance."

Surfacing HoloLens Issues

The Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) goggles in question are built with mixed-reality technology similar to the HoloLens, including thermal imagery, sensors, night vision, and more.

Microsoft described how troops could use the IVAS to plan and execute military operations in any given situation. The goggles are also designed to improve the soldier's situational awareness, effectively turning him into a superhuman. But it looks like this is not the case, as recent reports claim that the device has been failing quality checks so far.

Read Also: [UPDATE] China Completes Final Module of Tiangong Space Station Ahead of October Launch

In their most recent field test, US soldiers using Microsoft Corp.'s new goggles reported experiencing "mission-affecting physical impairments" like headaches, eyestrain, and vomiting. This is from a Bloomberg report detailing a summary of the field exercise compiled by the Pentagon's testing office.

Based on the most recent Engadget report, the tests are a part of a program called "Soldier Touch Point" that aids the army in gathering real-world feedback and aids Microsoft in improving the specialized HoloLens equipment. In theory, the headsets will give infantry essential battlefield data and night vision.

More than 80% of people who complained of discomfort reportedly started to feel their symptoms less than three hours after donning the specially adapted HoloLens glasses from Microsoft. The system itself continues to fail far too frequently at performing crucial tasks, according to officials.

Failed 4 Out of 6 Evaluation Events

In a recent "operational demo," the device failed four out of six evaluation events, according to a Microsoft employee speaking with Insider. Additionally, the wearer's location could be revealed by the device's glow from the display, which was visible from hundreds of meters away. If these are not addressed soon, all of the headset's gaudy features could be rendered useless.

Despite all of these unfavorable results, the reliability of the most recent model has enhanced unit movement coordination and navigation. Despite this improvement, some reports indicate that soldier acceptance is still low.

With the $22 billion agreement from 2021, Microsoft Corp. will be able to provide the army with more than 120,000 IVAS units. If all options are exercised, the army expects to spend the amount over a decade on Microsoft's combat goggles, spare parts, and support services.

The US military may already send soldiers equipped with augmented reality to its operations in the coming years. The device, however, was initially intended to be used for advanced training, according to officials.

Related Article: Ukraine's Vice PM Thanks Starlink for Help to Restore Connections After an Attack, Musk's Glad to Support

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Telcos in the United Kingdom now have until December 2023 to remove Huawei equipment from their 5G mobile connectivity, CNBC reported.

The said equipment - the kind utilized at phone mast sites and telephone exchanges - must be removed from the telcos' network cores, where some of the most sensitive data is transmitted.

They were under an initial order from the government to comply by January of this year.

In the meantime, the deadline for companies to cut the amount of Huawei equipment used in their non-core networks to 35% has been pushed out to Oct. 31 next year. That is later than the first deadline that was imposed in July.

Banning New Huawei 5G Installments

They will still need to prohibit any new Huawei 5G installations and remove the company's products entirely from their networks by the end of the year 2027. The Telecoms Security Act was legislation passed last year that made the order a permanent part of the law.

The government of Prime Minister Liz Truss has officially implemented the change by sending legal letters to all 35 telecom network operators in the U.K.

Also Read: Aviation Group Appeals for Permanent 5G Airport Restrictions

The Issue Involving Personal Data

Initially, Britain stated that it would be open to allowing Huawei to participate in the rollout of its 5G networks. But in 2020, the government made the decision to prohibit Huawei due to concerns about the safety of its citizens' personal data.

It was determined that the Shenzhen-based company was a high-risk supplier, so there was a chance that it may compromise national security.

Officials on both sides of the Atlantic are concerned that China may be able to spy on important communications and other data due to the technology developed by Huawei.

The China tech firm has rejected the allegations for a long time and characterized the efforts to obstruct it as "politically motivated."

Shortly after the U.S. slapped sanctions on China's tech industry, cutting it off from vital semiconductor supply, the National Cyber Security Centre conducted an emergency examination of Huawei. This review led to the decision to make this choice. This action also occurred in the midst of a heated trade war between China and the U.S., which is a close ally of the U.K.

Before the Extension

Previously, telecom companies such as BT and Vodafone had been instructed to remove Huawei 5G equipment from their core by January 2023 at the latest. On the other hand, a number of businesses voiced their opposition to the measures, expressing fear that they would not have the time to remove the expensive equipment from their infrastructure.

BT submitted a request in June for an extension beyond the government's deadline. The company stated that it might not be able to fulfill the date owing to delays caused by Covid-19 lockdowns. If the prohibition was rushed into effect, BT CEO Philip Jansen even issued a warning that it could cause network failures for the firm's consumers.

On the other hand, Huawei has already been removed from Vodafone's key infrastructure.

Also Read: Airtel Now Offers 5G in India: Is Your Mobile Phone 5G-Compatible?

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Written by Trisha Kae Andrada

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Apple Card's new high-yield savings account from Goldman Sachs has been confirmed.

(Photo : Photo credit should read NOAH BERGER/AFP via Getty Images)

Apple CEO Tim Cook introduces Apple Card during a launch event at Apple headquarters on Monday, March 25, 2019, in Cupertino, California. (Photo by NOAH BERGER / AFP)

The giant iPhone maker announced this new service on Oct. 13, saying that the account will allow users to grow their rewards in the Apple Wallet.

"Savings enables Apple Card users to grow their Daily Cash rewards over time, while also saving for the future," said Apple Pay Vice President Jeffiner Bailey.

She added the new savings account would make Apple Card benefits more valuable. Bailey also said it will offer an easy-to-use tool to help users "lead healthier financial lives."

New Apple Card High-Yield Savings Account Confirmed

According to Engadget's latest report, the new Apple Card savings account from Goldman Sachs will allow consumers to grow their funds.

(Photo : Photo by Michael Short/Getty Images)

Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook speaks during a company product launch event at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park on March 25, 2019 in Cupertino, California. Apple announced the launch of it's new video streaming service, unveiled a premium subscription tier to its News app, and announced it would release its own credit card, called Apple Card.

Also Read: Apple Card Transactions are Missing in Wallet App for Some Users! No Bug Fix Yet?

The giant tech firm confirmed that this new enhancement would be available in the United States in the coming months.

But Apple didn't confirm the exact launch date yet. Although this is the case, there's a chance that the new high-yield savings account will arrive before 2022 ends.

Apple Card consumers can benefit from it by saving their Daily Cash in the new financial account.

They can either have their Daily Cash automatically deposited or have their money manually transferred from a linked bank account or Apple Cash balance.

How Does Apple Card Savings Account Work?

The official Apple Newsroom explained that consumers could use their Apple Cards to set up their savings accounts.

Once they have their own savings account from Goldman Sachs, they can withdraw their funds any time they want.

This new enhancement is exciting because there are no minimum deposit or balance requirements. Consumers can spend, send, and save Daily Cash directly from the Apple Wallet.

If you want to learn more about the new Apple Card high-yield savings account, you can visit this link.

In other stories, Tim Cook recently explained that the Apple Card remains U.S.-exclusive.

Meanwhile, it was confirmed that Apple Card users could appeal disputes that were not resolved.

For more news updates about Apple Card and other related business tech topics, keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: Apple Card Promotion: New Users Can Get Up to 5 Percent Cashback Until January 31; How to Use?

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Written by Griffin Davis

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
"We must go beyond resistance. We must go to a process of decolonialization of our societies, countries, culture, and education," the Bolivarian leader said.

On Wednesday, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro announced that his country will host "the Congress of the Indigenous Movement's New Era" in Nov. 12.

During a ceremony held at the Miraflores palace, the Bolivarian leader reported that said congress will formulate a "work plan" to promote actions in favor of the indigenous peoples.

"We have to hand over Indigenous lands to continue supporting food production, the dissemination of native culture, the in-depth education of our Indigenous children and youth, technological development, and ancestral knowledge," Maduro said.

Proposed by the United Indigenous Movement of Venezuela (MIUVEN), the Indigenous Congress will invite delegations from Central American countries, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

Maduro ordered his ministerial cabinet to prepare a "government plan" that includes special actions in the areas of housing, health, food, and education for Indigenous peoples.

Since coming to power in 1999, Chavez reintroduced Venezuela's indigenous peoples into the country's historical narrative, which had so far erased their heroism and resistance and given greater prominence to the Spanish colonizers. pic.twitter.com/XdnxCDlVC4  venezuelanalysis.com (@venanalysis) October 12, 2022

During the ceremony, in which there were nearly a thousand citizens belonging to Indigenous communities, the Bolivarian leader decreed that October 12 will be the "Day of Indigenous Resistance and Decolonization of all America."

"We must go beyond resistance. We must go to a process of decolonialization of our societies, countries, culture, and education," he said.

Previously, Venezuelan Indigenous peoples went to the United Nations headquarters in Caracas to deliver a document to multilateral officials denouncing the sanctions implemented by the United States and the European Union against this South American nation.
[Sound of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China] Zhong Huayan: More teachers should be attracted to teach in the mountains-Chinanews.com video
Check out the architecture of the historic Spanish Town neighborhood and learn some of its history during a Saturday morning walk led by the Capitol Park Museum's curator. Registration is at eventbrite.com.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size No one who saw Korean director Park Chan-wooks 2003 film Oldboy will forget the scene in which actor Choi Min-sik eats a live octopus. Even more shudderingly horrible was the story, soon circulating at the Cannes Film Festival, where it made a considerable splash, that Park had insisted on shooting it four times. Oldboy was a revenge drama, full of scorching violence of both a physical and emotional kind. Among other distinctions, it established him as a director of graphic, taboo-busting extremes. In more recent years, Park has gradually turned his attention to drama that is more tightly wired, suspenseful and female-focused. Sex and gore were still running hot among the sinister family dynamics in the English-language Stoker (2013), but his next feature, three years later, was an adaptation of Sarah Waters Victorian chiller, Fingersmith, renamed The Handmaiden and set in 1930s Korea. It was notorious not for violence, but for its vivid lesbian sex scenes. With his new film, Decision to Leave, Park shows a restraint that would almost have passed muster under the Hays Code. This is a love story, he says, for and about adults. Nudity was not necessary. I started the movie thinking I would like to tell a story that only experienced people will understand, he told the Korean press later. But when I told people I would make a love story about adults, they immediately responded by saying, it will be a movie with provocative sex scenes. That was when I decided to do exactly the opposite. Park has always cited Hitchcocks 1958 classic, Vertigo, as a reference point. Decision to Leave concerns a conscientious male detective who becomes entranced by a beautiful female suspect; it often feels like a deliberate callback, although he says he never connected the two until critics in Cannes pointed out a few parallels. Both are melancholic stories of obsession, guilt and deception. Both also feature a detective with a greater or lesser fear of heights. Detective Hae-jun (Park Hae-il) and widower Song Seo-rae (Tang Wei) act out a delicate dance in Decision to Leave. Credit:Madman Films Hae-jun (Park Hae-il) is introduced as Busans most accomplished detective. A very different customer from the hard-boiled cops who kickbox their way through most Korean thrillers, he is disciplined, courteous, cultivated and happily married to a witty, pretty and equally high-achieving nuclear scientist working at a power station in Ipo, a few hours drive away. They see each other only at weekends, which gives Hae-jun leeway to work nights at stake-outs. That suits him: he is a habitual insomniac. The only decent sleep he ever gets is in the front seat of a car, huddled under his coat. When an experienced climber is found at the bottom of a rock column, possibly murdered, Hae-jun takes it upon himself to watch the mans widow. She seems an unlikely wife for the deceased, a much older man given to making brash, boastful vlogs about his outdoor adventures. A Chinese immigrant who came to Korea illegally, Song Seo-rae (Tang Wei) is young, beautiful, dignified but girlish, dressed in a succession of colourful fluffy jumpers and swishing skirts. She is suspiciously unmoved by her husbands death, but she could not have pushed him off that rock. Seo-rae works as a visiting carer with the very elderly. On the day her husband died, she was with her favourite old lady.

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Hae-jun interrogates her by day  a process that becomes a kind of courtship  and watches her through binoculars by night. She knows he is watching; he knows she knows. As their intimacy thickens, she will tell him she finds it comforting to know he is out there, guarding her. She is nothing like a femme fatale, an expression Park says he deliberately avoided using. On the contrary, she is warm, charming and flirts with him so openly that it doesnt feel like manipulation  not to him, anyway. Meanwhile, he unpacks the case, one detail at a time. When her alibi crumbles, so does Hae-juns professional certainty, confidence and moral compass. No matter what he discovers, he knows now he will never arrest her. That is his undoing and the romantic clincher. I wanted to make something classically refined where the characters emotions are swirling internally, but on the outside they are quiet. Park Chan-wook, director From the point of view of Seo-rae, knowing what kind of man he is, what kind of detective he is, that kind of choice is stronger than saying I love you a hundred times, says Park. That is the moment when her love towards him starts. You could say she used the detective with her own agenda but, by the second act, this changes completely  to the point where she gives him evidence against her. Of course, she gives him her phone. One of the films many incidental strengths is that mobile phones  so central to everyday life, so resented by scriptwriters trying to concoct mysteries  are pivotal to every plot twist. There may be a nod to Vertigo, but Park certainly isnt stuck in its world. Except, perhaps, by its voluntary restraints. Most of the drama is contained in looks. The most we see the couple do is sniff each other  they are both fond of toiletries  or rifle through each others pockets for a chapstick. Their desire is set to a perpetual simmer.

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I wanted to make something classically refined, says Park, where the characters emotions are swirling internally, but on the outside they are quiet. That turmoil is expressed through scenes of nature, which is also unusual for Park, with a culminating scene on a wild beach. The ocean is dynamic, at one moment calm and then in the next moment there are these huge waves you feel could consume you, he says. That was a good analogy for the emotions of my characters. Tang Wei and Park Hae-il in Decision to Leave. Credit:Madman Pictures He made the detectives quarry Chinese because he wanted to work with Tang Wei, who is mesmerising in the role; the important thing was that she was an outsider with only basic, hesitant Korean. It would make her feel lonely and there would be many inconveniences she would have to go through, he says. And I wanted to set it up so that there would be a distance between them when they first meet and a sense of curiosity about each other. Seo-raes Korean sounds different. Her accent, her pronunciation and word choice are unique. All of that creates a tension. Loading When a conversation heats up, she turns to her phone, speaking in Chinese and using a translation app to communicate. Then Hae-jun  along with the audience  has to wait for the translation machine to work, says Park. What is she saying? We are so curious, because clearly it is something important: she is so emotionally aroused, so excited. But we have to wait. That waiting time is crucial. And when the machine does translate what she said, it comes out as so flat, so dry  and in a mans voice. That irony was very important to me. Park writes his scripts with a female writer, Seo-kyeong Jeong, whom he also describes as his best friend. Many of his films are concerned with giving space to women to speak, be heard and act on their own behalf, even if they do abominable things. Here, we meet a woman who needs a machine to speak for her, which could be taken as a pointed metaphor. Park has never been a polemicist. Not that he is one now, but Decision to Leave certainly does show him in a new light. Decision to Leave opens in cinemas on October 20.

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Seymour flood at record level

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James Dean gave them a bad boy image. Marilyn Monroe showed off their sex appeal. Elvis wore the first black pair, while Bruce Springsteen chose them for the cover of Born in the USA. Tony Blair hardly seemed to be out of them in No 10.

Chances are, you have a pair in your wardrobe  I know I do  and whether theyre 501s, 511s, 701s or Ribcage, they will feature the familiar red tab, brown leather patch and button fly that make them one of the few brands that can legitimately lay claim to that horribly overused term: iconic.

Bruce Springsteen, Marilyn Monroe and Steve Jobs have all been seen wearing a pair. Credit:Getty

A 19th-century pair, found in an abandoned mine in the American West and covered in white wax from the Victorian miners candles, has just sold at auction for US$87,000. The buyer, Kyle Haupert, is a 23-year-old vintage trader from San Diego who said, Im still kind of bewildered, just surprised at myself for even purchasing them.

Im not surprised, Kyle. If theres one thing I know, as an avid Levis wearer, its just how this 150-year-old brand  started by a Bavarian immigrant who sold his blue jeans to Californias Gold Rush prospectors  transcends age, gender and trends. No other jeans have the capacity to unite Barack Obama, Alexa Chung and Jeremy Clarkson. From indie kids to fiftysomething dads; the fashion front row and Hollywood stars, theres something about Levis.
Opal card readers at Sydney train stations are set to be shut down as early as next week after rail workers voted overwhelmingly in favour of the action as part of their prolonged industrial dispute with the state government.

The Rail, Tram and Bus Union has yet to decide when it will inform the government of plans by its members to deactivate Opal readers. It is required to give three days notice of the planned industrial action, which will make the entire Sydney rail network free for commuters.

Rail workers have voted in favour of turning off Opal readers at stations. Credit: Rhett Wyman

RTBU state secretary Alex Claassens said it was likely that it would notify the government next week, but that would ultimately be a decision of delegates.

We think the government will challenge it ... and take us to the Federal Court, he said. The earliest that we could notify is sometime next week.
Investors who leave their Queensland properties vacant for more than six months of the year would be slugged 5 per cent of the value under a proposal by the Greens.

The move comes as figures from Domain reveal the median weekly rental asking price for a house in Brisbane has soared 22 per cent in a year, to $555, while the asking price for units has risen 12.2 per cent to $460.

The party will introduce a private members bill to state parliament on Thursday for the scheme pitched as one solution to the housing crisis.

The Greens want the Queensland parliament to penalise landlords who leave properties vacant for extended periods. Credit:Queensland Parliament/Twitter

For too long, successive governments have propped up a housing system that favours profit for wealthy investors rather than housing for everyday Queenslanders, Greens MP for South Brisbane Amy MacMahon said.
At least 500 homes across the state were inundated on Friday morning, Premier Daniel Andrews said. We think there are another 500 that have been isolated, Andrews told ABC Radio. Theyre very early estimates and the [helicopters] are up in the air now ... so Id say those numbers are absolutely certain to grow. Joe Cymbalista in his daughters flooded house in Oakland Street, Maribyrnong. Credit:Chris Hopkins This is not an isolated flood event where well move into a period of prolonged dry  weve got the ground absolutely soaked and we do have more rain coming. What that will mean is that we will continue to have flood issues in different parts of the state  this is not something that starts on Thursday and ends on Monday, this is going to be something thats with us for quite some time.

Residents in the town of Wedderburn, 214 kilometres north of Melbourne, were urged to move to higher ground about 1am on Friday when emergency services expected the Skinners Flat Reservoir to breach its walls and send fast-moving water flowing onto the Calder Highway. At 3.30am on Friday, an evacuate immediately emergency warning was also sent to residents in Benalla in Victorias north-east because of rapidly rising floodwaters. Evacuation orders were also made in Carisbrook, Seymour and Rochester, SES state commander Josh Gamble said. Residents were being rescued from their homes in Seymour on Friday morning where the Goulbourn River peaked at 8.26 metres about 3am, well exceeding the record flood level set in May 1974 of 7.64 metres. As of 9am, the river level was 7.73 metres and falling.

There was potential for 187 properties to be inundated and a further 279 to be isolated, Victorian SES chief operations officer Tim Wiebusch had said earlier. Seymour resident Julie Wallis watched her possessions being washed away. Theyve all just floated by, Im just hoping the trailer doesnt float by, she told Nine News. Kerianne Speechley said this was the biggest flood she had seen in her lifetime. We had floods in 94, but nothing like this, she said.

Authorities also expect Shepparton to experience its worst flood since 1993 on Saturday afternoon, with up to 600 properties isolated and about 50 properties inundated. Emergency relief centres have been set up in Rochester, Carisbrook and Seymour. Loading In Rochester, south of Echuca, between 250 and 450 properties were expected to be directly impacted by flooding.

Flood levels are forecast to reach similar heights to the last major flood in 2011. Emergency services were door-knocking homes in Rochester on Thursday evening, but many residents chose to stay. The town centre was quiet, although the Shamrock Hotel was still serving customers in the early evening. Resident Joyce Corcoran, who lives in a granny flat behind her daughters house, said she expected her own home would be safe, but the garage would probably get flooded. If I go under, the whole towns stuffed, she said.

Joyce Corcoran sandbagging a friends home as Rochester residents prepare for a Campaspe River flood. Credit:Justin McManus Corcoran said people in Rochester were feeling very nervous. Especially the elderly. But everybodys working together, she said. Criterion Hotel owner Craig Mann said he would stay in the pub with his wife, but many of his friends and family were leaving. Mann, who has only had the business for 12 months, said his business was not insured against floods. Weve got to try and save it, he said. Me and my wife will stay as long as we can.

On Thursday morning, Rochester residents shovelled sand into thousands of bags as the community prepared for the worst-case scenario. The Rochester and Elmore District Health Service evacuated all its residents, patients and staff to other services. Chief executive Karen Laing said authorities told her to evacuate the facility amid fears the floodwaters from the Campaspe River may reach the building. The river is just behind us, she said. At the nearby St Josephs Primary School, principal Liz Trewick closed the school while volunteers stacked sandbags around vents to protect the site, which was badly flooded in 2011.

Trewick said about 50 of the schools 130 students had attended on Thursday, allowing parents to prepare their own homes and keep the calm in the chaos. There are a lot of families that are reliving 2011, so theres a bit of trauma for parents, Trewick said. On Wednesday night, emergency services told a community meeting in Rochester the most likely scenario was a one-in-50 year flood, similar to the one that swept through the town in 1956. Under a less likely prediction, the town could experience a one-in-200 year flood that would exceed the levels of 2011 when hundreds of houses and businesses in the main street were inundated.

The extreme weather has affected kindergartens and schools across the state, with 22 early childhood services closed and five state schools. Loading The SES carried out more than 100 flood rescues across the state on Wednesday and Thursday. State commander Josh Gamble said complacency was the main reason. That is quite significant, and we havent had that many flood rescues for quite some time, for some years in fact, Gamble told ABC Radio on Friday.

Many of these people are putting their own lives at risk, their own children in some circumstances, but more importantly, other community members and responders and thats in all parts of the state not just metropolitan areas. There have been no reported injuries or deaths relating to the flooding. Areas north of the Great Dividing Range were among the heaviest hit by the rain through Wednesday and Thursday and more central areas also saw significant falls, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. Between 9am and 6pm on Thursday, Pyalong recorded 62 millimetres and Avalon Station saw 60 millimetres. While Strathbogie North also recorded a 58 millimetres dump on Thursday, it had copped 187 millimetres since Wednesday morning.

The big wet was starting to clear out of western Victoria on Thursday night and forecasters predict conditions would improve for the states central region and then into the east on Friday. Other than that rainfall over Gippsland and the eastern ranges [on Friday], the rest of the states really not going to see much ... so, less than 5 millimetres for most places, the bureaus Bri Macpherson said on Thursday night. Then over the weekend, its just really isolated showers most likely in the south of the state. Despite this, volumes of water are yet to make their way downstream through river systems.

The peaks might not go through until [Friday] or Saturday for some of the river catchments, so even after the rain has stopped its important to keep an eye on the flood warnings, Macpherson said. SES chief operations officer Tim Wiebusch said La Nina and the negative Indian Ocean Dipole would bring above-average rainfall to Victoria over the next two months. Loading Were probably now looking at a period of six to eight weeks where we could see further rain events that further exacerbate existing flooding. And water storages are absolutely full. Our catchments are absolutely saturated. So every time we see reasonable rainfall totals unfortunately were going to see some communities back under flood warnings again. Thats quite possible.
Amid the doom and gloom of the Liberal Party's election campaign, this weeks policy pledge to reduce the cost of public transport should be a cause for optimism inside the opposition.

For those that missed it, the Coalition has vowed to cap public transport fares at $2 a day for commuters, if elected next month. It also pledged to slash V/Line fares, but more on that later.

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy has promised to slash V/Line train fares if elected. Credit:The Age

Until now, both parties have prioritised spending on the states crumbling healthcare system, and rightly so. But pollsters believe there is a cynicism in the community about the hospital spendathon. Voters know that despite the cash commitments, it will take time to train healthcare workers, build hospitals and reduce the elective surgery waiting list.

Its no secret that the electorate is also desperate for more help from the government to ease cost of living pressures. According to The Ages own survey of about 5500 subscribers and readers, released on Monday  more than one third of voters aged under 45 identified cost of living policies as a vote changer. For those aged over 45, it was one in four.
Premier Mark McGowan has dismissed the Australian Nursing Federations demand for a 10 per cent per year pay increase and suggested an ongoing election for the unions next leader played a role in its actions.

More than 2000 nurses walked off the job on Wednesday at a mass meeting in Perth to reiterate calls for legislated nurse-to-patient ratios and vote on pay rise demands after rejecting the governments September offer of $3120  or 3 per cent per annum  plus a $3000 cost of living payment.

WA nurses at the Australian Nursing Federation meeting at Perth Convention Centre on Wednesday. Credit:Cameron Myles

The ANF had been pushing for a 5 per cent pay increase, but at the meeting nurses voted to bump that to 10 per cent per annum and $4500 payment.

Nurses also voted on a six-week timeline for increasingly severe industrial action if negotiations stalled. This included an initial refusal to work double shifts, then bans on overtime work and eventually closing one in five beds and day-long stoppages at hospitals.
Former NSW premier Mike Baird has been doing a lot of whale watching since he quit the states top job in early 2017, having timed his departure from politics with the purchase of a clifftop house in North Curl Curl.

But neighbours can expect to see a lot less of Bairds ocean-watching from his north-facing terrace in the future, after he and his wife Kerryn listed the family home on Thursday.

Mike and Kerryn Baird have listed their North Curl Curl home. Credit:

The couple are said to be downsizing now that their three kids have all finished school, handing the listing to Clarke & Humels Cherie Humel and James Eyden, who sold it to them.

Baird purchased the five-bedroom home with a swimming pool, spa and separate self-contained apartment in early 2017 for $3.6 million, no doubt partly funded by his new job at the time as chief customer officer at NAB.
Rapid rent rises across regional NSW have left tenants scrambling to find affordable homes, and left some priced out of their local community.

Rents across more than half of NSW regional council areas jumped by at least 10 per cent over the year to September, the latest Domain Rent Report, released on Thursday, shows.

House rents across regional NSW are up more than 10 per cent over the year, but held steady over the past three months. Credit:Kate Geraghty

However, the pace of rent hikes is easing, and industry figures have reported a slowdown in the extraordinary demand that saw rental vacancies plummet and asking rents soar. Still, there is little sign of any price relief for tenants.

Median weekly asking rents for houses and units across regional NSW held steady over the September quarter, but house rents were up 10.6 per cent over the year to $520 per week, and apartment rents lifted 8.1 per cent to $400.
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South Africa: Mabuza calls on traditional leaders to protect women, children

Deputy President David Mabuza has called on all traditional leaders to stand up against all forms of abuse and violence against women and children.

We must condemn those who use culture to undermine women and children's rights, including undermining the common heritage of us all as a people, he said.

Mabuza was speaking on Thursday in Bhisho, Eastern Cape, where he was in his capacity as Chairperson of the Inter-Ministerial Task Team established to respond to issues raised by traditional and Khoi-San leaders.

He described traditional leadership as the most intimate institution that is grounded to the people with a significant role to play in addressing unemployment, inequality, poverty, gender-based violence (GBV), child abuse, and the emotive issue of land.

We must stand firm as leaders and say no to all forms of abuse and violence, and embrace all that is building our nation.

Mabuza said the prevalent challenges of crime, teenage pregnancy, and alcohol and drug abuse require decisive and quick action.

We need to find practical ways to keep children away from drugs and alcohol.

As traditional and Khoi-San leaders, we must alter the course of future generations by emphasising the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse and by providing our communities with the skills, jobs, and extracurricular activities that will help them develop and occupy themselves productively.

He also raised concerns about the infection rate of HIV and tuberculosis, particularly among adolescent girls and young women.

As part of our prevention efforts, we must continue to spread positive and powerful messages to young people about prolonging the onset of sexual relationships as much as possible and when they do, to have sexually safe relationships and live healthy lifestyles.

Rural development

Government will continue to work towards the development and sustainability of rural communities by ensuring the provision of land rights and the transfer of ownership from the State to rightful owners.

We will prioritise inclusive land use management, infrastructure development, and targeted assistance to rural populations, he said, adding that it was essential to prioritise land access as a crucial asset for rural development and economic transformation.

According to the Deputy President, it is crucial for land held in trust by traditional and Khoi-San leaders to be successfully utilised for agricultural, human settlement and industrial development.

Government will collaborate with traditional and Khoi-San leaders to guarantee that ordinary people in traditional communities benefit from commercial land usage.

Heritage

The Deputy President said leaders need to commit to protecting, promoting and preserving heritage for future generations.

We believe that if we preserve our cultural heritage, we will be able to keep our integrity, values, morals and respect for one another as a nation.

Mabuza also called on families, non-government organisations, government officials, educational institutions, businesses and media, to contribute to the promotion and preservation of cultural heritage.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
An emergency team and people stand near a damaged bridge after it collapsed into the river in the town of Ovcar Banja in central Serbia, on Oct. 13, 2022, in a still from video. (rina.rs via AP/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

2 Women Killed, 10 Injured as Hanging Bridge Collapses in Serbia

Two women died and at least 10 people were injured on Thursday after a suspension footbridge collapsed into a river in central Serbia, according to local media reports.

The accident happened in the town of Ovcar Banja when a bus reportedly carrying visitors from Bosnia stopped for a break near the bridge over a local river.

The injured were taken to a hospital in the nearby town of Cacak, where a medic confirmed the deaths, according to local news agency Rina.rs.

Survivor Zlatokosa Palangetic described the moment when the bridge began to collapse.

Suddenly, the bridge supporters began to crack and separate. I dont know what crossed my mind at that point. I thought that was the end, that I would suffocate.

She said she was able to reach the river bank by swimming. I got to the bus, got changed, and I just felt like crying. I did not know what was happening, added Palangetic.

The collapse was probably due to the bridge becoming overladen, local media reported.

Police are yet to issue an official statement.
A general view shows voting results during a UN General Assembly meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on October 12, 2022. (ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images)

4 Countries Joined Russia in UN Vote on Ukraine Annexations

The U.N. General Assembly voted on Oct. 12 in favor of condemning the Russian annexation of four Ukrainian areas amid the ongoing conflict, with four countries siding with Moscow.

Of the 193-member body, 143 voted in favor of a resolution to criticize Russias annexation and referendums last month. Thirty-five abstained, according to a photo posted by the German Foreign Office.

Syria, North Korea, Belarus, and Nicaragua were the only four nations to join Russia. China, India, Pakistan, and a number of African nationsincluding South Africaabstained from voting, according to the tally. The close Russian allies of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan abstained, while Moscow ally Turkmenistan didnt vote.

Belarus is perhaps Russias closest ally, and its territory was used as a staging ground to invade Ukraine in February, while Syria has received significant military support from Moscow amid its decade-long civil war. North Korea shares a border with Russia and offered to deploy troops to Ukraine, and Nicaragua has enjoyed good relations with Russia since the Soviet Union supported the Marxist Sandinista revolution in the late 1970s.

Several days ago, President Vladimir Putin held a ceremony at the Kremlin and signed documents to make the Ukrainian regions of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk part of the Russian Federation. Referendums, which were described as a sham by Western leaders, were held in those areas in September and asked residents if they wanted to join.

The symbolic resolution on Oct. 12 demands that Russia immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders, according to a statement from the U.N.

The U.N.s release erroneously stated that Eritreaan East African country ruled by a one-party state since the early 1990svoted against the resolution, but it abstained, according to the vote tally.

Sergiy Kyslytsya, who serves as Ukraines ambassador to the U.N., claimed the vote is a historic moment, according to The Associated Press.

President Joe Biden said in a statement that the vote demonstrates that the world is more united and more determined than ever to hold Russia accountable for its violations. It is a clear message that Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map and it cannot change borders by force, he said.

But Russias U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, appealed to countries to vote against the resolution, calling it a politicized and openly provocative document and denouncing its sponsors as unscrupulous Western blackmailers.

Nebenzia added that the referendums were valid and noted that the populations of these regions do not want to return to Ukraine.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Thomas and Dawn Munn of Borger, Texas, with four of their eight children in Washington D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. (U.S. DOJ/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

5 Members of Texas Family, Including Disabled Son, Sentenced for Attending Jan. 6 US Capitol Breach

Five members of a Texas family were sentenced to prison time on Wednesday for allegedly breaching the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Parents, Dawn Marie Munn, 57, and Thomas Vincent Munn, 55, from Borger, Texas, brought four of their children, Kristi Marie Munn, 30, Joshua Munn, 25, Kayli Munn, 20 and another minor with them to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, court documents show.

District of Columbia Chief District Judge Beryl Howell on Wednesday sentenced both of the parents to 14 days of intermittent incarceration, to be served in two seven-day periods, 90 days of home confinement, and 60 hours of community service.

Three of their adult children were sentenced to 36 months each of probation and 60 hours of community service, with the oldest child, Kristi, also receiving 90 days of home confinement.

Each family member must also pay $500 restitution. The minor was not charged in the case.

Joshua Munn is physically disabled following an unnamed physical ailment as a child that left him temporarily paralyzed, CNN reports.

Judge Howell during Wednesdays sentencing said that Thomas Munn shouldve known better before leading his family into a chaotic situation.

The Munn family was arrested in July 2021 for allegedly breaching the U.S. Capitol building through a broken window as the joint session of Congress was certifying the 2020 presidential election results.

Their arrest came following an FBI tip from a relative of Kristi Munns fiance, with the agency subsequently launching an investigation into the matter.

The DOJ sentencing memo for Thomas Munn called him out for having a cigarette inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (U.S. DOJ/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Trump Is My President

According to court documents (pdf), the FBI found evidence indicating that the family was unlawfully inside the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, based on information received from a tipster and on open source and government databases.

The investigation revealed multiple videos and social media messages indicating that Kristi, Tom, Dawn, Josh, and Kayli Munn are part of a large nuclear family that traveled from Borger, Texas to Washington, D.C., and entered the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, court documents state.

The court documents also cited social media posts from the family, including one by Kristi Munn which read: Washington D.C. here we come #StopTheSteal #TrumpIsMyPresident.

Another states: January 6th 2021 God bless the USA.

The court documents also cite posts from Tom Munns Facebook posts on Jan. 6, including one that reads: Made it back to the hotel about an hour ago  Have lots of pics and video to follow  I need to tell you all that the media is LYING TO YOU  the DC police opened up on a small group climbing the scaffolding, with gas grenades  The only damage to the capital building was several windows and sets of doors. Nothing inside the capital was damaged.  I can tell you, patriots NEVER made it to the chamber. There was no violence in the capital [sic] building, the crowd was NOT out of controlthey were ANGRY!!!  They are now calling this and [sic] insurrection?

None of the family members committed violent acts, damaged property, or harassed police during their time at the Capitol.

A footnote in the sentencing memoranda also notes that video footage taken from the day of the incident appears to show the family helped pick up trash while in the Visitor Center area.

Kristi Munn films protesters from inside a U.S. Senate conference room on Jan. 6, 2021. (U.S. DOJ/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Our Election Is Not Secure

However, they were subsequently charged with knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in the Capitol Building, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in the Capitol.

They all pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge earlier this year.

Following the sentencing on Wednesday, Dawn Munn apologized for what had taken place on Jan. 6 but said that she had been in Washington, D.C., to find answers regarding the 2020 election.

Im sorry for what happened on January 6, Dawn Munn said, according to CBS. I understand this country has been divided between conservative and non-conservative values. I do not understand why our election is not secure. If we dont have a secure election, we dont have a country.

The mother later added that she would never enter the Capitol building again but explained that she did so on Jan. 6 because she felt she had a right to ask for an explanation for how our election is secure.

Meanwhile, Thomas Munn explained that he had never been political before the events of Jan. 6 but that he had been compelled to speak out after watching what was happening on the news regarding the elections, according to CBS.

The five Munn family members are among more than 800 individuals who have been charged by the Justice Department over their alleged participation in the Jan. 6 breach.

The investigation remains ongoing.

The Epoch Times has contacted the Department of Justice for comment.
Some of the drugs seized by the Metropolitan Police during an operation in London in October 2022. (Metropolitan Police)

70 County Lines Drug Rings Smashed by UK Police Operation

The Metropolitan Police has arrested 230 people and smashed 70 so-called county lines networks of drug dealers during an operation last week.

The Met said on Thursday it had taken more than 4 million ($4.5 million) worth of Class A drugswhich include heroin and cocaineoff the streets of London.

County lines is a term used in the UK to refer to urban drug dealers who supply narcotics to small towns or rural areas, often involving gangs taking over the homes of vulnerable people, from which they deal drugs, a practice known as cuckooing.

But in London it can also refer to networks which are set up in outlying, suburban parts of the city.

Last year the Sentencing Council ordered judges and magistrates to impose stiffer sentences on county lines gangs who cuckooed vulnerable people.

The Met said that in last weeks operation it safeguarded 34 women and 215 boys and adult men, as well as made 234 arrests.

Predatory Gangs Targeted

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Graham McNulty said the operation had helped to protect those who are most vulnerable and easily susceptible to predatory gangs.

He said: County lines bring misery to communities and devastate the lives of those who are most vulnerable in our society. There is an undeniable link between drugs and violence, so disrupting all routes of drug supply continues to be central to our work in making London safer for everyone.

The Met said 109 people had been charged with trafficking in Class A or Class B drugs.

It said 70 mobile phones had been recovered, each of which was allegedly being used to run a county lines network, often known as a line, in which drug addicts phoned the number to get their supply.

Three individuals from west London had allegedly been running a line in Hull, in the north of England, and 11 people had been charged with distributing drugs in Hertfordshire, a rural county just north of London.

The force said a total of 44 kilos of Class A drugs had been seized, which included 8.5 kilos of crack, 31 kilos of powdered cocaine, and four kilos of heroin.

They also confiscated eight kilos of Class B drugs, mainly cannabis, and 334,559 ($376,500) in cash.

The operation led to the seizure of one handgun, two imitation firearms, 34 knives, six machetes, a samurai sword, a meat cleaver, and six knuckle dusters.

The Met also seized 12 cars allegedly used by drug dealers.

The nationwide initiative was part of Operation Orochi, which began in November 2019.

In April 2022 the Met launched a spin-off, Operation Yamata, which was designed to disrupt county lines dealers in London.

The new Commissioner of the Met, Sir Mark Rowley, plans to expand Operation Yamata in a bid to further disrupt drug dealers.
Alleged Source for Steele Dossier Raised Issues With Statements by Igor Dancheko: FBI Official

ALEXANDRIA, Va.An alleged source for the anti-Donald Trump dossier told FBI agents in 2017 that statements made by another alleged dossier source werent accurate, an FBI official testified in federal court on Oct. 12.

Olga Galkina, a Russian citizen and communications adviser, contradicted statements from Igor Danchenko, another Russian national, during an August 2017 interview with FBI agents in Cyprus, FBI official Brian Auten, one of the agents, said.

Danchenko, who has bragged that he was responsible for the bulk of the information in the dossier, told the FBI during interviews in early 2017 that one of his sources was Galkina, prompting agents to travel to meet with her in August 2017.

We were looking, again, for the material that was attributed to Ms. Galkina coming out of the January 2017 interviews. We wanted to get a sense from Ms. Galkinas own words or recollections, etc., exactly how she was oriented with respect to her accesses and whether or not the information was accurate, Auten testified in court in Virginia.

The information Galkina provided was inconsistent in some respects with the information Danchenko provided, according to the official, a supervisory special agent who was involved with both Crossfire Hurricane and special counsel Robert Muellers investigation.

Danchenkos lawyers objected, leading to a sidebar. Out of earshot of jurors, special counsel John Durham said: [Auten] and others go, and they interview Ms. Galkina in Cyprus. Ms. Galkina gives some information thats inconsistent with what Mr. Danchenko had told the bureau. As a result of some of those inconsistencies [government officials] had questions that they then wanted to have [Danchenkos handling agent] pose to Mr. Danchenko. So thats where this is going.

The judge ruled that discussion about the inconstancies should be avoided.

A previous report from the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General (DOJ OIG), citing FBI documents, said that one of Steeles sub-sources told the FBI in August 2017 that whatever information in the dossier that was attributed to him/her had been exaggerated and that he/she did not recognize anything as originating specifically from him/her, but the person was not identified.

Galkina said in a declaration to a U.S. court in 2021 that she has known Danchenko and been friends with him since they were teenagers in Perm, Russia, but that she did not provide Mr. Danchenko (or anyone else) with any information mentioned in the Dossier and that was connected to [certain individuals].

Galkina also said that Danchenko introduced her to Charles Dolan, a longtime Democrat-linked marketer, during an in-person meeting in the United States in 2016.

She did not mention speaking to the FBI, which also went overseas to talk to Steele himself.

Agents did not alert the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to any corrections for facts in sworn affidavits for spy warrants on Carter Page, a Trump campaign associate, even though it relied on parts of the dossier, the DOJ OIG found. Court rules require such reporting.

The FBI by that time had hired Danchenko as a confidential human source. That status remained in place until late 2020.

Igor Danchenko outside the U.S. courthouse in Alexandria, Va., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Vague Information

Danchenko is on trial for allegedly lying to the FBI by not disclosing Dolan was one of his sub-sources. Dolan is slated to testify in the trial, but Galkina is not.

Agents asked about Galkinas relationship with Dolan during the Cyprus interview, according to Auten.

And were you able to get any information? special counsel John Durham, prosecuting the case, asked.

Very vague information to my recollection, Auten said.

Auten said Galkina was hesitant to discuss the matter.

She didnt want to talk? Durham said.

That is what I recall, Auten said.

Okay. So whatever the relationship was between Mr. Dolan and Ms. Galkina led to further investigative efforts? Durham asked.

Correct, Auten said.

John Haughey Follow John Haughey has been a working journalist since 1978 with an extensive background in local government, state legislatures, and growth and development. A graduate of the University of Wyoming, he is a Navy veteran who fought fires at sea during three deployments aboard USS Constellation. Hes been a reporter for daily newspapers in California, Washington, Wyoming, New York, and Florida; a staff writer for Manhattan-based business trade publications.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (right) welcomes Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) at the premier office in Tokyo, Japan, on May 24, 2022. (ZHANG XIAOYU/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Australian Soldiers Could Face Death Penalty Under New Deal With Japan

Australian military personnel could face the death penalty under a new military agreement struck between Japan and Australia, with the Australian Law Council calling on the federal government to withhold making the treaty binding until safeguards are enshrined.

The Japan-Australia Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), which was agreed to in principle by the two countries in January, is designed to facilitate joint training and strengthening interoperability between the two countries and contribute to the peace and stability of the region.

According to the Japanese Ministry of Defence, it will facilitate the implementation of cooperative activities between the defence forces of the two countries and further promote bilateral security and defence cooperation.

Speaking to a parliament inquiry on Oct. 12, the Director of the Law Council, Tass Liveris, said the body has serious concerns about the new treatys lack of protection for Australian soldiers around the death penalty.

There is no explicit provision in the reciprocal access agreement to prevent the imposition of the death penalty in situations where Japanese authorities have in custody or otherwise do not require the assistance of Australian authorities to arrest and successfully prosecute under Japans criminal jurisdiction a member of the Australian Defence Force or its civilian component, Liveris said.

In an email to The Epoch Times, Liveris emphasized that the Law Council believed that while the risk may be difficult to quantify, the federal government should not take a near enough is good enough approach on this important global issue.

Australias commitment to pursuing global abolition of the death penalty is strong and bipartisan, as outlined in its 2018 Strategy for Abolition of the Death Penalty, and this should inform bilateral agreements such as this one with Japan, he said.

He also noted that the Council urged the committee not to approach this question on the basis of a risk assessment or an analysis of the likelihood that a member of the visiting force or the civilian component may be executed or may commit a crime that exposes them to the death penalty.

Instead, the Council advised them to base their decision on the need to uphold and give primacy to Australias strategy, which is absolute in its terms of opposing the death penalty, and to protect our serving personnel.

Liveris said the Council would like to see the federal government withhold its ratification of the RAA until they have in the written agreement that no member of Australias visiting forces, including the civilian component, be subject to the death penalty.

This is a very narrow carve-out from the application of the domestic law of Japan onto the visiting force and the civilian component, and they are very easy words to insert, he said.

It is as simple, as we see with other treaties of a like nature (such as that between Australia and the Philippines), as simple as a statement that says a sentence of death will not be carried out by either party.

According to the Law Council directors testimony to the parliamentary inquiry under the RAA, if a criminal offence occurs in Japans jurisdiction, Australia is obliged under article XXI(5)(a) of the treaty to assist in the arrest and handing-over of a member of the Australian Defence Force or its civilian component.

The only exception applies to situations that accord with an annex relating to the Treatys article XXI, where it considers that such assistance would be inconsistent with its international obligations.

It is only in the record of discussion, which is of less-than-treaty status and therefore legally non-binding, that it is explicitly stated that this exception is intended to include situations where Australia considers there is a sufficient likelihood that the person could be subject to the death penalty. In this context, the Law Council is also concerned by the threshold of sufficient likelihood, he said.

Likelihood of Australians Facing Death Penalty Vanishingly Small

However, a representative of the Department of Defence has told the inquiry that the risk of Australian civilians or military personnel facing the death penalty is vanishingly small.

Hugh Jeffrey, the Acting Deputy Secretary for the Department of Defences Strategic Policy and Industry Group, told the inquiry on Sept. 5 that the defence department believed that the risk was small because the death penalty is rarely applied in Japan, including for crimes of accidental death like in the case of a car accident.

Its not applied, for example, where there is a car accident that you have caused, with multiple fatalities, but not intentionally. It is exceedingly rarely applied even for intentional crimes that dont involve particularly heinous attacks on people, Jefferies said. When you do see it applied, it is applied in particularly extreme circumstances of crimes. The possibility that Australian Defence Force personnel would be involved in such criminal activity, we think, is vanishingly small.

Meanwhile, Air Commodore Patrick Keane noted that the agreement was not dissimilar to other bilateral treaties Australians face around the world.

That kind of division of jurisdiction is a pretty common feature of agreements of this kind. Its one of the issues that are commonly dealt with in any kind of visiting forces agreement for one country in the presence of the other, Keane said.

He noted that, generally, states involved in these treaties will work out some arrangement that, where those offences of the visiting force relate to the personnel and property of the visiting force or occur in the course of official duties, then primary jurisdiction remains with the visiting force.

Japanese Executions Are Surrounded in Mystery, Says Amnesty International

Japan last carried out an execution in July, with the government-ordered hanging of Tomohiro Kato, a man who was convicted of stabbing seven people to death in 2008.

According to Amnesty International, executions in Japan are surrounded by secrecy.

Prisoners are typically given only a few hours notice and some given no warning at all before their death sentences are carried out, Amnesty International said, noting that prisoners families are usually informed about the execution after it has taken place.
A recent scandal should be a hopeful sign that the guardrails of laws, customs, and taboos are still shakily in place, writes Barbara Kay. (Irina Spirid/Shutterstock)

Barbara Kay: The Movement to Normalize Pedophilia Hits a Roadblock, but We Mustnt Let Our Guard Down

Commentary

Radical gender ideology has as its principal goal the queering of norms that are foundational to healthy societies. Queer theory (QT) argues that we need to deconstruct all social binaries: male vs. female, heterosexual vs. homosexual, nature vs. culture. To accomplish this, all human-constructed boundaries must be transgressed with freedom and without consequences. Queering is accomplished through the manipulation of language. Thus, a woman is no longer an adult human female, but anyone who feels that he or she is a woman.

Non-ideologues keep making the mistake of assuming QT followers can be reasoned out of their logic-free dogmas by pointing to the disparities in fairness and safety for actual women that such reasoning creates. QT ideologues would respond that the obliteration of boundaries liberates women from the oppression caused by the gender binary. In eliminating the boundary, you eliminate the oppression, see? The old dictum springs immediately to mind: In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But in practice, there is.

QT has normalized the erasure of the biological binary. But normalization makes sex-boundary pushers restive. The thrill is, after all, in the transgression. The sexual age binary is the current challenge. Advocates for pedophilianow laundered into demurely neutral Minor Attracted Persons (MAPs)are very keen stakeholders in the queering movement. They aim first to cast off societally imposed shame for their paraphilia, and then to achieve the freedom to act on it without censure or legal consequence.

Radical gender theory created a useful infrastructure for them: school curricula, LGBTQ clubs, trans-affirmative medical associations. Pedophiles read the receptive cultural room and began a successful campaign to colonize the system. Drag Queen Story Hour is now a fixture in schools, libraries, and even churches. Several stories on drag queens with records of sexual offences against children have been uncovered, but the response has been a massive shrug of indifference.

A Family Sex Show in Bristol, England, billed for ages 5 and up, which featured full-frontal adult nudity and hard-core queer-theory themes, was cancelled recently after vigorous protest, but the more pertinent question is why it had been funded by Arts Council England. Its associated website instructed invited children to search the internet for images of animals that masturbate and to draw them. (Critic Kathleen Stock acted on this proposed task, and was directed to a video of a zoo-keeper manually stimulating a dolphin.)

The pedophile charm offensive has, however, hit a roadblock.

Britain-based Mermaids is a powerful, high-status charity devoted to support for trans children and their families. It has been enthusiastically endorsed by queer theorists and credulous celebrities.

A few weeks ago, it was announced that Mermaids was being investigated by the Charity Commission following reports that it offered chest binders to teenage girls without parental consent and encouraged puberty blockers for clients.

Then it was announced that a Mermaids trustee, Dr. Jacob Breslow, had resigned following disclosure that in 2011 he had spoken at a conference hosted by B4U-ACT, an organization that promotes services and resources for those who are sexually attracted to children and desire such assistance. His views seem to not have changed since then. Breslow is currently writing a book on the queer lives of childrens desires.

Breslows talk to B4U-ACT was an example of the cognitive legerdemain some employ to dehumanize children and, by elevating the discussion to the realm of theory, airbrush out their experience. Breslow compared children to a shoe used for masturbatory purposes, using as part of his argument (too inappropriate to fully repeat here) that the act would require a rethinking of both the child, which we have just begun, and of the person for whom the child is a sexual fantasy or partner.

Rethinking the child is to disembody the child. And partner implies consent, which children cannot give. But those with deviated minds want children to have sexual agency to soothe their conscience.

Some go further. They portray the child as the aggressor and themselves as a passive target. In a 2020 column in these pages on the topic, I wrote about Frances May 1968 student revolution leader Danny Cohn-Bendit, who published an article about his erotic contacts with some of the 20 children in his care at an alternative kindergarten in Frankfurt. He wrote: Certain children opened the flies of my trousers and started to tickle me. I reacted differently each time, according to the circumstances.  But when they insisted on it (my emphasis), I then caressed them. (The article, and the book in which it appeared, Le Grand Bazar, appeared to critical acclaim.)

When Florida governor Ron DeSantis passed a bill precluding schools from teaching radical gender theory and LGBT pride to children under the age of 8 (falsely nicknamed the dont say gay bill), progressives took to the fainting couch, betraying their QT acculturation. But DeSantis was only reacting as a responsible leader should to the overt grooming of children into too-early consciousness of sexuality and too-early introduction to psychologically destabilizing gender concepts even adults have trouble comprehending.

The yearning for boundaryless sex, including with children, is a timeless human story I have dubbed orgasmic utopianism. The drive to shift the rules for discussion from a morality-based paradigm to a science paradigm in which it is simply another form of sexual desire to be studied with neutrality has preoccupied a certain cadre of psychoanalysts and sexologists for more than a century. The common theme amongst these utopians, as conservative cultural critic Theodore Dalrymple put it, is that sexual relations could be brought to the pitch of perfection either by divesting them of moral experience altogether, or by reversing the moral judgment that traditionally attached to them; all [orgasmic utopians] believed that human unhappiness was solely the product of laws, customs and taboos.

The Mermaids scandal should be a hopeful sign that the guardrails of laws, customs, and taboos are still shakily in place. But the movement bent on normalizing a rethinking of pedophilia will see this embarrassment as a temporary setback, because they believe the cultural zeitgeist is with them. It is.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
U.S. President Joe Biden gives a speech before designating Camp Hale as a national monument in Red Cliff, Colo., on Oct. 12, 2022. (Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)

Biden Says Late Son Beau Lost His Life in Iraq During Monument Ceremony in Colorado

President Joe Biden said his late son Beau Biden lost his life in Iraq during a speech in Colorado, where he designated Camp Hale as a national monument.

I say this as a father of a man who won the Bronze Star, the Conspicuous Service Medal, and lost his life in Iraq, Biden said on Oct. 12.

However, Bidens son died of brain cancer at age 46.

Beau, a two-term attorney general of Delaware and a decorated war veteran, had undergone weeks of treatment at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he passed away in May 2015.

It is with broken hearts that Hallie, Hunter, Ashley, Jill and I announce the passing of our husband, brother and son, Beau, after he battled brain cancer with the same integrity, courage and strength he demonstrated every day of his life, according to a 2015 statement from Bidens office, who was vice president at the time.

Beau suffered a mild stroke in 2010 and underwent surgery at a Texas cancer center in 2013 to remove what was described as a small lesion.

As a captain of the Delaware National Guard, the presidents elder son was deployed to Iraq for a year in 2008. He was awarded a Bronze Star.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the White House for comment.

Then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden talks with his son, U.S. Army Capt. Beau Biden (L), at Camp Victory on the outskirts of Baghdad on July 4, 2009. Biden said that Americas role in Iraq was switching from deep military engagement to one of diplomatic support, ahead of a complete withdrawal from the country in 2011. (Khalid Mohammed/AFP/Getty Images)

National Monument

Biden made the remarks while he designated Camp Hale, a World War II-era military training site in Colorado, as a national monument.

The president on Wednesday signed a proclamation establishing the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument, spanning more than 53,800 acres that will be protected and managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

The move marked the first time Biden used the Antiquities Act, a century-old law allowing presidents to establish protections for sites considered important.

Additionally, the Biden administration also announced on Wednesday it is pausing new mining and oil and gas drilling on 225,000 acres of public land in the Thompson Divide, a natural gas-rich area not far from Camp Hale.

The U.S. Interior Department said the Thompson Divide area has not been available to oil and gas leasing for several years, and there is no current or planned oil exploration or production in the area. It added that pre-existing natural gas leases in the area accounted for less than 1 percent of Colorados overall active federal leases.

House Republicans, led by Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), criticized the move for locking up land that could be used for timber harvesting and mining.

In a letter addressed to Biden in September, the group of 11 lawmakers said the establishment of the monument would impose severe land-use restrictions on the people of Colorado and across the American West. They condemned Bidens executive orders as land grabs that would prevent domestic energy production.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
An aerial photograph shows the Sycamore Farm Solar Farm, in Old Romeny, southeast England, on April 18, 2022. (Ben Stansall /AFP via Getty Images)

British Government Targets Renewable Energy Profits to Bring Down Soaring Bills

Legislation from the government could see excess revenues made by some renewable energy generators capped to reduce the impact of unprecedented wholesale price increases being charged to consumers.

The government announced that its proposed Energy Prices Bill that was introduced in parliament on Oct. 12 will have a cost-plus-revenue limit on electricity generated from wind and solar farms and nuclear energy in England and Wales. The precise mechanics of it will be subject to a consultation to be launched shortly.

The government said that many of Britains wind farms and solar farms were paid much more than normal for their products and were benefitting even though their costs had not increased very much.

Low-carbon electricity generators are therefore benefiting from abnormally high prices, while consumers are having to pay significantly more for energy generated from renewables and nuclear, even though they often cost less to produce, wrote the government.

Britains Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg attends the third day of the annual Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, central England, on Oct. 4, 2022. (Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images)

Abnormally High Prices

The Bill, introduced in Parliament on Wednesday, provides the legislative footing needed to ensure that people and businesses across the UK receive support with their energy bills this winter.

Business and Energy Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg said: We have been working with low-carbon generators to find a solution that will ensure consumers are not paying significantly more for electricity generated from renewables and nuclear.

That is why we have stepped in today with exceptional powers that will not only ensure vital support reaches households and businesses this winter but will transform the United Kingdom into a nation that offers secure, affordable, and fairly-priced home-grown energy for all, he added.

The government said that in the UK market, wholesale electricity prices are set by the most expensive form of generation, presently gas-fired generation. It added that the price was significantly higher in light of Russias appalling invasion of Ukraine and Putins subsequent weaponisation of gas supplies.

Green Policies

In March, Dr. John Constable, director of energy at Net Zero Watch, told The Epoch Times a push to renewable energy and a commitment to Net Zero policies has also made Europe and UK critically dependent on gas in their electricity systems, which has increased the fragility of the underlying conventional systems that are keeping everything going.

In a recent article on the subject, Constable said that the Cost-Plus Revenue bill is unambitious window-dressing that defers the day of reckoning once more.

It takes baby steps in the right direction but shies away from confronting the realities. The current catastrophe is the result of twenty years of misguided renewables policies, and only a root branch reform of those green policies stands any chance of giving real and longer-term relief to UK consumers, he added.

Wind turbines dominate the skyline at the Braes of Doune windfarm in Stirling, Scotland. (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

The government said that this intervention differs from a windfall tax as it will be applied to excess revenues generators are receiving, as opposed to applying to all profits.

Though industry figures disagreed.

Dan McGrail, chief executive of the renewable energy trade association RenewableUK, warned that the move risks skewing investment towards the fossil fuels that have caused this energy crisis.

We are concerned that a [revenue] price cap will send the wrong signal to investors in renewable energy in the UK, he said.

Keith Anderson, chief executive of Scottish Power, which has 40 operational windfarm sites, said he was disappointed by such a significant market intervention.

Its disappointing that such a significant market intervention by the Government has come with so little detail, all this does is create uncertainty, added Anderson.

This crisis has been caused by the cost of gas and its strange the proposed solution is to cap the price of low carbon generation and to leave the gas sector untouched, he added.

PA contributed to this report.
Britons Flock to Donate Blood After NHS Issues 1st Amber Alert Over Low Supplies

Tens of thousands of people in the UK have sought to offer blood since Wednesday after the National Health Service (NHS) issued an amber alert over low supplies.

The alert was triggered after stock levels were predicted to fall below what would be needed for two days, meaning hospitals would need to delay non-urgent elective surgeries that require blood to be on standby, such as hip replacements.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) blamed the shortfall on staff shortages and illnesses following COVID-19 lockdowns. It also said the pandemic has changed donor behaviour as people are less likely to visit collection centres in towns and cities.

NHSBT called on people, particularly those who are O negative or O positive blood types, to donate blood.

Within 24 hours after the alert was issued, more than 10,000 appointments to donate blood over the next few weeks had been booked.

On the blood website, 100,000 people queued to offer help, with some waiting up to an hour to book.

More than 166,000 people also visited the website overall, while 7,500 people registered as new donors on Wednesdaythe highest daily spike in new registrations in 20 years.

Thousands would have been unable to book an appointment on Wednesday, as a lack of staff to run donor sessions has limited how many appointments can be offered, but NHSBT said it was quickly developing a register your interest form so it can work with new donors who tried to sign up, and is urging all donors to come back in a few weeks to check for more appointments.

The NHSBT continued to appeal to the O blood groups, who have been given a dedicated line for priority appointments.

An NHSBT spokeswoman said the public response has been amazing.

We have been reminded in the last 24 hours of the incredible goodwill and spirit of the public towards helping patients in times of great difficulty, she said, thanking existing donors and those who registered for the first time.

Wed like to extend a special thanks to those donors who called us to express their empathy and offering to do anything they could to help, she said.

Staffing and appointment availability continues to be our biggest challenge and the amber alert will remain in place for at least the next four weeks, where unfortunately limited appointment availability to donate will be commonplace due to staffing levels.

The spokeswoman asked people to were unable to book an appointment to check again in a few weeks as hospitals are in constant need of blood, which can only be stored for 35 days.

PA Media contributed to this report.
California Attorney General to Investigate Los Angeles Redistricting Process After Audio Leak

State Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Oct. 12 that his office will investigate the City of Los Angeless redistricting processin light of the recent leak of a racially charged conversation between three city councilors and the head of a labor union.

The investigation is one of the latest developments in the publics reaction to the recording that was leaked Oct. 9.

In the conversation from October 2021, then Council President Nury Martinez made racially disparaging comments toward various ethnic groups, as well as Councilman Mike Bonins 2-year-old black adopted son.

The remarks were made during a discussion on the citys once-a-decade redistricting with Councilmen Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo, and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera.

The group talked about how to keep Latino councilors in office so that Latino districts would not lose financial resources after the maps were redrawn.

Herrera has since resigned as the federations president. Following that, a wave of officials and political candidates condemned the remarks and called for the three city councilors to resign from their posts. Martinez stepped down as council president the day after the leak and later resigned from her council seat Oct. 12.

Los Angeles Councilwoman Nury Martinez attends an event at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles on May 23, 2019. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST))

Bonta said the recorded conversationwhich he said was unacceptable, offensive, and deeply hurtfulmakes a detailed examination of the citys redistricting procedure necessary.

The redistricting process  is foundational for our Democracy and for the ability of our communities to make their voices heard. And it must be above reproach, Bonta said in a downtown Los Angeles news conference.

Given these unique circumstances, my office is going to investigate. Were going to gather the facts. Were going to work to determine the truth and take action as necessary to ensure the fair application of our laws, he said.

Since the incident, multiple community groups have called for establishing an independent commission to replace the councilors role in the redistricting process to avoid conflicts of interest.
California Green-Lights Law to Combat Hate Speech, Misinformation on Social Media

California now features a first-in-the-nation law requiring social media companies to publicly post their policies regarding hate speech, disinformation, harassment, and extremism on their platforms, and report data on their enforcement of the policies.

Social media companies, through their Internet Coalition and other trade associations, vigorously opposed the new law. Court challenges are being considered, trade groups said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 587dubbed the Social Media Transparency and Accountability Act of 2021 and sponsored by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Woodland Hills)in September, saying, California will not stand by as social media is weaponized to spread hate and disinformation that threaten our communities and foundational values as a country.

Governor Gavin Newsom signs CARE (Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment) Court into law alongside state and local leaders and stakeholders in San Jose, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2022. (Courtesy of Office of Governor Gavin Newsom)

Californians deserve to know how these platforms are impacting our public discourse, and this action brings much-needed transparency and accountability to the policies that shape the social media content we consume every day, Newsom added, in a statement.

The new law requires social media companies earning over $100 million a year to disclose their terms of service, defined as a set of policies that specifies the user behavior and activities that are permitted on their platforms, according to the bill text.

These companies need to specify how they define and identify hate speech and disinformation, potential actions against users who violated the policies, and contact information for users with policy questions.

They are also required to drill down on the flagged content and provide public information on the types and numbers of violations. A semiannual terms-of-service report must be submitted to the California Attorney General no later than Jan. 1, 2024. Non-compliant companies are subject to a penalty of up to $15,000 a day for each violation.

Facebook, Twitter, and Google representatives contacted by Epoch Times did not immediately respond to questions about the new law.

However, Metathe parent company of Facebook and Instagramhas been posting quarterly reports on how its community standards are enforced on the two platforms and how many violations are found in each policy area, including dangerous organizations: terrorism and organized hate, regulated goods: drugs and firearms, child endangerment, adult nudity and sexual activity, and fake accounts. The latest report was posted in August.

In this illustration photo taken in Los Angeles on Oct. 28, 2021, a person watches on a smartphone Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiling the META logo. (Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images)

Chamber of Progress, an industry coalition that includes Google and Meta, said last month it was absolutely considering court challenges, saying such mandates raise First Amendment issues.

Its like requiring a bookstore to report to the government which books it carries, or requiring the New York Times to explain which stories it publishes, said Adam Kovacevich, the coalitions CEO.

Eric Goldman, a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law, in Silicon Valley, wrote in a recent blog post that AB 587 has censorial consequences.

Among other problems, Goldman said, by prioritizing certain content categories, the bill tells social media platforms that they must make special publication decisions in those categories to please the regulators and enforcers who are watching them.

The resulting distortions to the platforms editorial decision-making constitutes censorship. Any enforcement actions also will be impermissibly intrusive into the editorial practices of social media platforms, putting regulators in the middle of the editorial process and enabling them to second-guess the platforms editorial decisions, Goldman said.

Jonathan Greenblatt attends Urban League Fights for You Rally on Civil Rights, Hate Crimes, Womens Rights & Economic Justice in Washington, D.C., on July 20, 2022. (Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for National Urban League)

The new law was backed by major civil rights groups, including the Anti-Defamation League, which ran a campaign supporting the legislations passage called Stop Hiding Hate.

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League said the laws enactment was a victory for internet safety advocates from across not only California, but the nation.

From the beginning, [the group] has been insistent that the problem of online hate is too severe, and the consequences are too grave to sit by and do nothing, Greenblatt said.
A new national security strategy is coming out of the White House. As the president warns that Saudi Arabia will face consequences for cutting oil production, the administration notes another key international concern.

The Justice Department is being pressed on the issue of gender transition for minors. Senators are demanding answers.

Rep. Diana Harshbarger (R-Tenn.) joins us to discuss the issue of minors making life-altering changes to their bodies.

A judge has ruled that a former lobbyist cant be forced to disclose his relationship with the Chinese Communist Party. This is after he lobbied then-President Donald Trump in 2017 on behalf of China.

Some Democrats and Republicans are endorsing midterm candidates from the other party. What do they have to say about their decisions?

Theres a new book examining woke culture and cancel culture. Author A.J. Rice joins us to discuss their origins.

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Chinese Communist Party head Xi Jinping (C) waves to attendees alongside Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) and member of the Communist Party of China's Politburo Standing Committee Li Zhanshu (L) after being elected for a second five-year term during the 13th Congress in Beijing, China, on March 17, 2018. (Etienne Oliveau/Getty Images)

China Poised to Be More Belligerent and Dangerous Following CCP Congress: Author

As current leader of the Communist Party, Xi Jinping is expected to secure an unprecedented third term in power this month. If he succeeds, the United States will see a more belligerent and dangerous China, according to Bradley Thayer, the director of China policy at the Center for Security Policy and co-author of the book Understanding the China Threat.

The U.S. priorities should first be to prepare for a far more aggressive and assertive China than what we have encountered thus far, Thayer said on NTDs China in Focus program.

Whether Xi will continue as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will be determined at the CCPs 20th National Congress, set to be held in Beijing starting Oct. 16.

Should Xi secure his position, according to Thayer, he will be able to put his domestic situation in place by neutering dissidents and other opposing elements.

We should expect that he now has the opportunity to convert his power and attention in international politics against his neighbors in the South China Sea, against U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific, and globally, Thayer opined.

We should expect aggression against Taiwan, a continued aggression against India, other Chinese neighbors, [and] the continued support for Putins war in Ukraine, he added.

Thayer pointed to his book titled Understanding the China Threat that examines the conflicting ideologies of the United States and China. The CCPs ideology has been focused on the United States since before the Chinese regime came to power in 1949. And it has since been focused on the United States in an effort to destroy U.S. interests, he said.

In his opinion, Xi has accelerated the regimes aggression toward the West.

The Chinese Communist Party, under Xi Jinping, is a far more belligerent and malevolent force than it was under his previous, essentially, his predecessors, he said.

So we see a belligerence, in terms of its ideological aggression in terms of its military buildup, and its nuclear capabilities and conventional capabilities.

Deploying Troops to Taiwan

The freedom and sovereignty of Taiwan will immediately be at stake if Xi s third term in power is affirmed, according to Thayer.

Hes [Xi] determined to force Taiwan into essentially PRCs control as he did with Hong Kong.

This may happen sooner than we anticipate, not in years or within this decade, as is often said, but almost immediately, even in 2022, and certainly in 2023, he predicted.

The expert pointed to the repeatedly shifting voices of the White House regarding Taiwan issues, noting that the Biden administration has not shown the strength that the U.S. needs to demonstrate to [it will] deter a conventional invasion of Taiwan, which, he said, would put Taiwan at greater risk.

Thus, he suggests that strategic ambiguity from the Biden administration towards Taiwan issues be addressed immediately.

And that is right now that needs to be addressed with a changing force structure in the Indo-Pacific, he said.

Specifically, the United States. should deploy army, marine, and coast guard units to the self-governed island.

The United States should go for a much greater build up of American naval forces and air force presence in cooperation with the Japanese and other allies in the Indo-Pacific.

The move, he said, would weave together a network of support to demonstrate that there is a conventional connection between NATO allies and Taiwan, to ensure that Xi will be deterred from the attack.

The expert further called for concerned Americans to express their support of Taiwan by contacting congressional representatives, elected representatives, and posting on social media.

He called Taiwan a symbol of freedom, a direct antithesis of the Peoples Republic of China, and also a key ally in the fight against the odious Chinese regime.

Fighting Back

To counter a more aggressive regime, Thayer suggested that Americans develop their own awareness of the true nature of the regime so that, youre not fooled by their efforts to cloak it into a common destiny of mankind, or an image of China, which touts scientific progress, or which touts space exploration,  while masking the true nature of the regime, which is a totalitarian dictatorship.

To prevent the Chinese regime from thriving, according to the expert, measures should be taken to put pressure on financiers on Wall Street to stop investing in China, and to prevent Chinese entities from having access to American capital.

We  are funding the Chinese Communist Party, the Peoples Liberation Army, and other the Chinese intelligence services by allowing Chinese entities to raise money on their own in New York. Thats simply outrageous and should be ended, he said.

Hannah Ng Reporter Follow Hannah Ng is a reporter covering U.S. and China news. She holds a master's degree in international and development economics from the University of Applied Science Berlin.
Russian analyst Igor Danchenko walks to the Albert V. Bryan U.S. Courthouse in Alexandria, Va., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Clinton Associate Testifies He Lied About Claim That Made Its Way Into Dossier

ALEXANDRIA, Va.A longtime associate of the Clinton family admitted under oath on Oct. 13 that he lied when he said he spoke to a Republican friend about GOP drama.

I lied. I got it off cable news, Charles Dolan, the associate, testified during Igor Danchenkos criminal trial in U.S. court in Virginia.

Dolan provided information to Danchenko, a key source for the anti-Donald Trump dossier that Hillary Clinton helped fund.

Danchenko is on trial for allegedly lying to FBI agents when he said he had not communicated with Dolan about any of the allegations in the dossier, according to charging documents. Danchenko actually sourced from Dolan at least one of the allegations he provided to dossier author Christopher Steele, a Clinton supporter who harbored animus against Trump.

On Aug. 20, 2016, Dolan messaged Danchenko, relaying what he portrayed as inside information about Trump campaign officials Corey Lewandowski and Paul Manafort.

I had a drink with a GOP friend of mine who knows some of the players and got some of what is in this article, which provides even more detail. She also told me that Corey Lewandowski, who hates Manafort and still speaks to Trump, regularly played a role. He is said to be doing a happy dance over it, Dolan said, including a link to a news article. I think the bottom line is that in addition to the Ukraine revelations, a number of people wanted Manafort gone. It is a very sharp elbows crowd.

Dolan admitted on Thursday he fabricated the GOP friend.

Mr. Danchenko had brought me some business. I wanted to tell him that his sources were good. The woman was on cable news, Dolan said on the stand. Lewandowski hating Manafort, it was pretty common knowledge and all over the news at the time.

Dolans information eventually made its way into the dossier, which included numerous allegations that have since been discredited.

An American political figure associated with Donald Trump and his campaign outlined the reasons behind Manaforts recent demise. S/he said it was true that the Ukraine corruption revelations had played a part in this but also, several senior players close to Trump had wanted Manafort out, primarily to loosen his control on strategy and policy formulation, a report in the dossier, dated two days after Dolans email, stated.

Of particular importance in this regard was Manaforts predecessor as campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, who hated Manafort personally and remained close to Trump, with whom he discussed the presidential campaign on a regular basis.

Dolan told special counsel John Durhams team, which is prosecuting Danchenko, in August 2021 that no information in the dossier was attributable to him.

But in December 2021 he realized the part about Manafort may have originated with him, so he alerted investigators.

When prosecutors showed him the email side-by-side with the dossier report, the two appeared similar, Dolan acknowledged.

John Haughey Follow John Haughey has been a working journalist since 1978 with an extensive background in local government, state legislatures, and growth and development. A graduate of the University of Wyoming, he is a Navy veteran who fought fires at sea during three deployments aboard USS Constellation. Hes been a reporter for daily newspapers in California, Washington, Wyoming, New York, and Florida; a staff writer for Manhattan-based business trade publications.
Then-Chinese vice chair Xi Jinping unveils a plaque at the opening of Australia's first Chinese Medicine Confucius Institute at the RMIT University in Melbourne on June 20, 2010. (William West/AFP via Getty Images)

Confucius Institutes Threaten UKs Capacity to Understand China: Report

Confucius Institutes (CI) in British Universities are damaging the UKs understanding of China, a report said on Wednesday.

The report (pdf), published by foreign policy and national security think tank Henry Jackson Society (HJS), said that out of the 30 CIs in the UK only four were found to be operating within their remit of language and culture that is often attributed to them.

Most institutes have been involved in other activities such as informing government policy and politicians, brokering science and technology partnerships, offering consultancy services to businesses, and cooperating with UK organisations that work with the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a CCP [Chinese Communist Party] agency the interference activities of which were recently highlighted by MI5.

During their investigation of the institutes, authors Sam Dunning and Anson Kwong said they uncovered connections to the UFWD and the CCPs propaganda department, payments to British politicians and political activity; and the establishment of other academic and business networks.

The report said a number of British universities have taken a recent reform of the CIs management structure at face value and referred to the new governing body as a non-governmental organisation, while the body is supervised by the Chinese Ministry of Education, funded mostly by a state-owned propaganda company, and integrated into the CCPs propaganda system.

No Information Provided on Xinjiang, Tibet, Taiwan, and Hong Kong

The limited range of seminars and events organized by the CIs also illustrates that the programme is part of the CCPs deliberate attempts to curate Sinology, the report said.

Among the hundreds of talks and events hosted by the institutes only a handful relate to Chinas 100 million plus ethnic minorities such as the Uyghurs and the Tibetans or their historic territories, the report said.

The provision of information about Taiwan, a country whose situation demands very urgent thought and planning by the UK government, academia, and industry, is also essentially nonexistent, it added. Likewise, there has been no treatment of the predicament of Hong Kong, even as the CCPs crackdown in the city has caused dismay in the UK and demanded a complex governmental response.

The report said Chinese-language sources relating to CIs made clear that the institutes are designed to aid the CCPs integration into universities, and to exploit this integration in order to shape how China is understood and what strategy is adoptedby universities and by all who depend on their intellectual outputin light of this understanding.

China-Controlled Hiring Process May be Illegal

Authors Sam Dunning and Anson Kwong also highlighted the CIs hiring process, which is largely controlled by Chinese partner institutions.

They argue that discrimination against protected characteristics such as race and religion or beliefin the form of ethnic and political vettingmay be breaching British law and calling on the UKs equality watchdog to conduct an urgent investigation.

The report cited the first closure of a Confucius Institute, which occurred at McMaster University in Canada in 2013.

The University closed its Confucius Institute after it refused to remove a discriminatory clause following a complaint from Falun Gong practitioner Sonia Zhao, who felt forced to sign a contract with Hanban [then-government body of CIs] that banned Falun Gong practice, because she was afraid that if she acknowledged that she herself was a Falun Gong practitioner she would be punished.

Sonia Zhao gives a speech about the persecution of Falun Gong in China at a rally in Toronto in August 2011. (Gordon Yu/The Epoch Times)

In 1999, Falun Gong, a popular spiritual practice based on the doctrines of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance and had at least 70 million followers according to official estimates, became the target of a CCP elimination campaign.

Zhaos mother had been subject to two years of imprisonment for following the practice.

The authors called for legislation to demand agreements governing teaching and academic partnership with foreign powers contain terms designed to safeguard freedom of speech and ensure compliance with equality legislation.

Other recommendations include funding to bolster critical China studies, asking CCP members within the CIs to declare their membership privately to the university they are in, and developing new language and cultural programmes with countries such as Taiwan.

MP: Chinese Students Need Same freedoms Other Students Have

At the launching event of the report, Conservative MP Bob Seely said the recommendations, which dont include a ban on the CIs, are incredibly sensible, but he questioned whether they had gone far enough.

Seely said he hasnt decided if he supports a ban but argued it should be debated because the CIs are incompatible with having freedoms and having Chinese students, which he said is really important for the UK.

If were going to have Chinese students here, and if they come in here for a purpose, we have to make sure they have the same freedoms to explore ideas that other students have. So Im wary still of Confucius Institutes, he said.

Bob Seely MP speaks in UK Parliament in Westminster, London, on Jan. 20, 2021. (Parliamentlive.tv/Screenshot)

Asked whether the UK should vet Chinese students in British universities, Dunning said he believes the idea is undesirable and impractical.

Another panelist, journalist Stephen Vines who worked in Hong Kong for 35 years, also said its a good thing for mainland Chinese students to be exposed to a different culture and a level of freedom.

Acknowledging the risk of having a large number of mainland Chinese students here Vines said, on the whole he doesnt believe there should be greater limits on the presence of Chinese students.

Speaking of alternative mandarin language teaching partners to the CIs, Dunning said there are other mandarin speaking countries including Taiwan, Malaysia, or Singapore.

Vines argued that the UK already has the resources with a pool of highly educated people from Hong Kong who are capable of teaching both cantonese and mandarin and are currently excluded owing to the systems dependence on the CCP-backed Confucius Institutes.

Government Reactions

The UK governments response to the report also became a focal point at the event.

Seely lamented over the lack of cross-government strategy on Russia and China, saying the government has always played catch up on potential threats.

Louisa Clarence-Smith, education editor at The Telegraph who reported on the HJS report ahead of its publication on Saturday, said there seems to be confusion in government about what its policy on China is going to be.

The Department for Education initially responded to the report with a statement saying China is a leading member of the international community, and we have a strong and constructive relationship with China in many areas.

Prime Minister Liz Truss gives her first speech at Downing Street, London, on Sept 6, 2022. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Its unclear who had authorised the statement, but after speaking to some senior Conservative MPs, including Bob Seely, who were rather concerned about the tone of the statement, Clarence-Smith hastily got a call on Sunday evening saying actually No 10 [Downing Street] and the Foreign Office want to reassure a different statement, with a much tougher line on China, she told the event.

The new statement said Prime Minister Liz Trusss determination to stand up to China is unwavering and the UK government is committed to doing more to adapt to Chinas growing impact.
Igor Danchenko, right, walks outside the U.S. courthouse in Alexandria, Va., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Crossfire Hurricane FBI Analyst Battered by Both Sides at Danchenko Trial

ALEXANDRIA, Va.Russian business analyst Igor Danchenko may be the defendant, but the governments first witness called to testify against him often appeared to be the one on trial during the first two days of often confounding and dense deliberations delving into the dusky origins of the debunked Steele Dossier.

FBI supervisory counterintelligence analyst Brian Auten was on the stand for more than nine hours on Oct. 12 and Oct. 13 before U.S. Eastern District of Virginia Judge Anthony Trenga.

Auten, who supervised analysts in the 2016 Crossfire Hurricane investigation, was grilled by both the defense and the prosecution after being presented with emails and other documents that he didnt know of or failed to pursue while probing Danchenkos alleged role as the primary sub-source in funneling salacious accusations in 2016 about then-presidential candidate Donald Trump to former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele, who went on to compile 17 discredited reports that were included in the dossier.

The Steele dossier was paid for by Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign and orchestrated by Fusion GPS, a Washington-based strategic intelligence firm implicated in a range of alleged skullduggery on behalf of Clinton and the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 campaign.

Danchenko, a Russian national and Virginia resident, is charged with five counts of making false statements to Auten and FBI special agent Stephen Somma during three January 2017 interviews. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges, which could carry a 25-year prison sentence if convicted.

According to Auten, Danchenko lied to him and Somma by concealing his contacts with Charles Dolan Jr., a longtime Democratic operative, Clinton family associate, and billionaire founder of Cablevision and HBO whos now senior vice president of kglobal, which describes itself as a full-service communications and creative agency based in Washington, D.C., with clients around the globe.

Danchenko is also accused of lying about an alleged July 2016 meeting with Sergei Millian, a Belarusian American businessman and former president of the Russian American Chamber of Commerce, arranged during an alleged phone call from a Russian-speaking man who never identified himself.

As a result of the phone call, which the FBI maintains theres no record of and never happened, Danchenko told Auten and Somma that he went to New York for the arranged meeting with the anonymous caller, who he said he assumed was Millian but never claimed to be certain who it was.

The meeting was a bust because no one but Danchenko showed up, he told Auten and Somma during interviews from Jan. 24 to Jan. 26, 2017.

Danchenkos attorneysDanny Onorato and Stuart Sears of Washington-based Schertler Onorato Mead & Searsmaintain that he told the truth in interviews and ripped Auten for not asking follow-up questions to clarify his responses to what they describe as vague queries.

Special counsel John Durham, appointed in 2020 by then-U.S. Attorney General William Barr to investigate the FBIs 2016 counterintelligence probe into Trump, his campaign, and Russia, also hammered Auten, especially just before he left the stand at the 6 p.m. close of proceedings on Oct. 12.

When Onorato and Durham werent jabbing at each other before Trenga and the jurydespite frequently conferring congenially while seated three feet apartthey were a tag team and Auten was the foil, with both presenting undiscovered emails as new evidence in the case that the counterintelligence supervisor hadnt seen until last week while preparing to testify or while he was on the witness stand.

Durham asked Auten if he or Somma knew what role Dolan played in the affair when they met with Danchenko in January 2017.

Auten said Danchenko never mentioned Dolan during those three days of interviews but, by then, Dolan was a person of interest with the Crossfire Hurricane team, so neither he nor Somma raised Dolans name.

Auten said that in January 2017, he was unaware that Danchenko had met with Dolan in June 2016 and October 2016 in Moscow, where they both attended a conference staged by Young Presidents Organization, a global leadership community of chief executives based in Irving, Texas.

Former UK intelligence officer Christopher Steele in London on July 24, 2020, refused an offer of $1 million from the FBI to name the sources who provided the debunked allegations in the infamous 2016 Steele Dossier. (Tolga Akmen/AFP via Getty Images)

Only last week, he admitted, did he learn of a series of August 2016 email exchanges between Danchenko and Dolan, including one on Aug. 16 in which Danchenko referred to Dolan as Chuck and wrote, I am working on a related project against Trump and asked for assistance.

On Aug. 19, 2016, Dolan responded, Let me dig around and followed through the next day with an email that recounted sharing a drink with a GOP player who told him that then-former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski played a lot of people and wanted (then-Trump campaign manager Paul) Manafort gone.

I will let you know if I learn anything else, Dolan wrote.

In his same-day response, Danchenko thanked him and said his project against Trump was an important project for me and our goals clearly coincide.

Auten said he should have been provided them [the emails] by Danchenko.

If there was anything in the dossier that Mr. Dolan provided, it would have been important for us to know that [in January 2017], Auten said.

Onorato dismissed the significance of the exchange, claiming that the LewandowskiManafort feud was a news story at the time and that it appeared as if the FBI is taking open-source material and laundering it to make it look like its from another source.

He cited an Aug. 14 Politico article that discussed how Lewandowski hates Manafort, which Dolan linked to on Aug. 20, the same day he told Danchenko he had gleaned the tidbit while sharing a drink with a GOP player.

When people tweet, it is available to the public, Onorato said, noting that the information was in the public domain. Anyone could have Googled on Aug. 20 and found that, and that is what Dolan told Danchenko that day. This is not a state secret what Dolan told Mr. Danchenko.

After more than five hours of direct examination by Durham, whos taking the lead in the case, unlike the two previous prosecutions stemming from the investigation, Onorato drilled into Auten for nearly three hours before Durham ended his time on the stand during more than an hour of redirect rebuttal.

During cross-examination, Onorato introduced several email exchanges dating to May 2016 between Danchenko and several contacts during a dizzying blitz of names, dates, and internet communications apps such as FaceTime, WhatsApp, and Skype that Millian and others listed in their contact information and that wouldnt leave a phone record.

The guy who [Danchenko] said he could have received a call from was using these apps, Onorato said. Everything [Danchenko] has told you has been corroborated; everything he told you was truthful.

Yes, Auten said, Id say Im seeing that.

He repeatedly had to admit that he hadnt seen the evidence that was newly introduced in the courtroom.

This information would have been of value in assessing the allegations, Auten said. All the emails would be very helpful in understanding the full extent of communications between the parties.

Despite being the first witness in whats likely to be his penultimate special counsel case, Durham had no sympathy for Auten as a long day in court drew to a close.

While working on Crossfire Hurricane, you were questioned as a witness in the Mueller investigationyou were in the middle of it, he said. Did you guys even bother to pull phone records? Travel records? You did none of these things.

The evidence gathered in the investigation had to be reconstructed because basic investigatory procedures werent followed, Durham said.

Any particular reason why experienced FBI personnel could not request phone records? he asked, referring to Millians phone. Ever run that number down to see phone records?

Auten said he couldnt recall if they pulled those records or not.

Durham mocked Auten for not being more dubious of Danchenkos alleged attempts to collaborate with Millian in his project against Trump.

Millian was a vocal Trump supporter. Would you find it peculiar that someone who was an avid Trump supporter would provide negative information about the Trump campaign? he asked. That is very peculiar, right? Almost unbelievable, wouldnt you say?

Auten conceded that it was, indeed, peculiar.

Durham said Auten and his analysts were much too willing and able to accept this information without proper vetting before launching the investigations that Durham was appointed to investigate.

The conduct of you and others involved in Crossfire Hurricane was under close scrutiny by the Office of the Inspector General, referencing errors of omission and other significant shortfallings.

You are under investigation by the inspection division of the FBI. Isnt it true you got recommended for suspension? Durham asked Auten, referring to a write-up for not disclosing all he knew about surveillance applications that the FBI had filed with various courts, including Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court, during the Crossfire Hurricane probe.

The suspension is under appeal, Auten responded.

Onorato said that when Auten testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about Crossfire Hurricane on Oct. 29, 2020, he had nothing but praise for Danchenko, which was consistent with his previous statements.

All that changed after July 26, 2021, his first meeting with Durhams team, Onorato said.

Thats when your status changed from witness to subject, he said. That was scary?

Auten said, Yes.

Onorato asked, Is that why you had two lawyers with you?

Auten replied, I didnt have any basis at the time not to believe [Danchenko]

He still has no basis to not believe Danchenko, Onorato said.

Correction: The date on which Durham questioned Auten has been corrected to Oct. 12. The Epoch Times regrets the error.
Amanda Todds father Norman Todd is seen outside the New Westminster Law Courts in New Westminster, B.C., Oct. 11, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Jonathan Hayward)

Defence in BC Sextortion Case Now Seeks Two-Year Sentence, Down From Six

A defence lawyer for a man convicted of luring and sexually exploiting British Columbia teen Amanda Todd says a six-year sentence he originally asked for should be reduced to two years.

Joseph Saulnier told a sentencing hearing in B.C. Supreme Court that his client is already serving an 11-year sentence for similar offences against 33 young victims in the Netherlands and more prison time would be unduly harsh.

Saulnier is now seeking a two-year term to be served after Aydin Cobans Dutch sentence is completed in August 2024, and says the Canadian sentence would be for the same course of wrongful conduct.

Justice Martha Devlin questioned Saulniers reasoning several times, saying she is not bound by the Dutch regime and suggesting that the offences against Todd are a separate matter.

Coban was extradited to Canada to face a trial in the Todd case and is serving his Dutch sentence at the North Fraser Pretrial Centre in Port Coquitlam, Todds hometown.

Crown attorney Louise Kenworthy has asked for a 12-year sentence to be served after the completion of Cobans Dutch term, saying he tormented Todd online for over two years and that his conduct was a dominant factor in her suicide at age 15.
Brandon Straka, founder of the #WalkAway Campaign, speaks at the CPAC convention in National Harbor, Md., on Feb. 28, 2020. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Democratic Party Moved From Uncomfortable to Intolerable for Members: #WalkAway Founder

While Democrat voters have been leaving the party for years, their reasons have become more urgent.

When people were feeling pushed away years ago, to the point where they were starting to walk away, there was more of a casual tone about it, former liberal Democrat Brandon Straka, founder of #WalkAway told The Epoch Times. People were beginning to feel the effects of leftist, communism, Marxism infiltration into our society, our culture, and our politics.

Straka founded #WalkAway in 2018 after making his personal decision to leave the party public while inviting others to join him. Since then, thousands of exiting Democrats made social media videos explaining why they were choosing to #WalkAway, giving Straka a window into the minds of these voters.

At that time, people were just noticing changes in the party, he said. They werent always identifying what it meant, but they knew they didnt like how it felt, and quietly left.

But now, its akin to cancer. Cancer doesnt stop growing and spreading just because people dont like it. And whats happening with the left is no different, Straka said. Particularly with them getting rid of Trump, installing Biden, and the Democrats taking full control of the government. This is a cancer thats rapidly growing and spreading now. And its becoming not just uncomfortable, but I think intolerable, for a lot of people.

Democrats More Extreme

Voters have shifted beyond concern to fear and worry, he says.

Under Biden, things have become more extreme, Straka said. People feel concerned about the amount of overreach theyre seeing in the government, the DOJ, the FBI, and thats a lot of what Tulsi [Gabbard] talked about; theres a weaponization now of government agencies and the sort of authoritarian approach to government. Its not reflective of why she became a Democrat. I think that is resonating with a lot of people.

Gabbard, a former U.S. Rep serving Hawaii, released a video this week explaining her decision to leave the Democrat party.

Then-Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) delivers a 20-minute campaign speech at the Des Moines Register Political Soapbox during the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 9, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By weaponizing the security state and federal law enforcement for their own partisan political ambitions, Democrat leaders are undermining the rule of law and turning our democracy into a banana republic, Gabbard said in the video. She talked about policies that have led to violent criminals being released from prison and surging crime rates.

Is it any surprise that firearm purchases for self-defense have skyrocketed over the last couple of years? Under the Obama administration, the IRS was used to target conservative groups, Gabbard said. Now Bidens Department of Justice recently indicted 11 pro-life activists for organizing an event blockading an abortion clinic. They didnt use physical force. They werent dangerous. But seven of the protesters face 11 years in prison and fines of $250,000 each, she said, then mentioned parents speaking about school curriculum being targeted by the administration.

Compared to the 2018 stories of why people left the Democrat party, the reasons have become more alarming. Things have not gotten better, Straka said.

People are truly scared, and they should be. Im living proof that you might be sitting home, minding your own business, and the FBI might break your door down and take you to jail.

Straka says he was scheduled to be a speaker at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

When I got there, the doors to the Capitol were open, and I stood outside the building and shot a video for eight minutes, and then I published my video to Twitter. But while shooting the video, apparently, I had entered a restricted area. And so the FBI raided my house in tactical gear, put me in handcuffs, took me to jail, and charged me with two felonies and a misdemeanor for occupying restricted grounds and for being a part of what they called impeding police officers in the line of duty.

His case went on for a year until he took a deal to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct in conjunction with Jan. 6.

Brandon Straka sits in a simulated jail cell during a demonstration at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas on Aug. 05, 2022. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Republicans Leaving Too

Although Straka is now a Republican, when Democrats leave the party, they dont automatically become Republicans.

A lot of people in the Republican Party are also feeling no longer represented or disenchanted with the establishment Republicans, Straka said.

As members of the Republican Party become more focused on the America First or MAGA agenda, they are less connected to establishment Republicans or Republicans in Name Only (RINOS), he said.

So in a way, a lot of people on the right are also feeling frustrated with their options. And people on the left are feeling pushed away by the extremism of the Democrats. I think that both sides are finding themselves kind of pushed to the middle, Straka said. I think its a kind of amazing thing thats going to happen, where, whether you still align as a Democrat, a Republican, or perhaps an independent libertarian, theres going to be a kind of a rise of a centrist movement because people are just not feeling represented on either side right now.

Event in Washington

The #WalkAway group will be in Washington D.C. on Oct. 15, hosting a debate on race titled The Black American Culture War Showdown. It will feature a live debate between three speakers from the left and three from the right.

Representing the left are Democratic strategist Ameshia Cross; civil rights attorney and radio host Robert Patillo; and author and attorney M. Reese Everson. Representing the right are Delano Squires, research fellow at Devos Center for Life, Religion and Family; author Skemeka Michelle; and GOP strategist Melik Abdul.
An American Express credit card in New Orleans on Aug. 11, 2019. (Jenny Kane/AP Photo)

Details of Over 1.2 Million Credit Cards Leaked Onto DarkWeb BidenCash Website

The credit/debit card details of over 1.2 million people worldwide have been leaked onto a dark web site called BidenCash.

Cyble, a global threat intelligence provider, found that the leaked database contains information including card numbers, expiry dates, CVV numbers, and emails of consumers across the globe, including the United States and Australia.

The subject release of the credit and debit cards data by BidenCash shop is one of the largest leaks of its kind on any of the cybercrime/underground forums in recent times, Cyble said on Oct. 7.

The top countries with the most affected consumers are the United States, with over 675,000 card details leaked, followed by India, Brazil, and the United Kingdom.

In Australia, over 12,600 cards have been compromised.

According to Cyble statistical analysis, American Express (U.S.) was the most impacted bank.

Visa was the most affected card type, followed by Mastercard and American Express.

Analysts from Italian cyber agency D3lab believe the card information mainly comes from web skimmers, where a malicious code is injected into an online payment page.

We have observed many Threat Actors that drive fraudulent transactions and purchases using compromised payment cards. The impacted consumers may face an increased risk of financial fraud due to the leaked information, Cyble said.

The BidenCash shop was established in the dark web in April 2022. Through the use of promotional strategies, such as mass releasing payment card data for free, it has become one of the most popular underground shops.

It was able to fill the void of previous payment card shops that were either retired or cracked down by law enforcement in 2021.

Australians Still Spooked From Largest Data Breach

It comes only weeks after Australians experienced the largest cybersecurity breach in the countrys history, which resulted in 2.1 million identification documents being exposed.

The Optus data leak saw 10,000 Australians have 100 points of identification leaked online, including passport and drivers licence numbers.

Federal police have moved to protect the most vulnerable victims of the cyber attack, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirming that Optus had agreed to cover the costs for replacement passports.

A new police task force was also established to protect impacted customers and safeguard Australians from cybercrime.

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) also launched an investigation into the handling practices of personal information by the Telco giant.

If they have not done so already, I urge all organisations to review their personal information handling practices, and data breach response plans to ensure that information is held securely and that in the event of a data breach, they can rapidly notify individuals so those affected can take steps to limit the risk of harm from their personal information being accessed, Australian Information and Privacy Commissioner Angelene Falk said.
A Texas State Trooper hands out water to group of Venezuelans waiting to be picked up by Border Patrol after illegally crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico into Del Rio, Texas, on June 3, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

DHS Opens New Pathway for Venezuelan Immigrants Under Joint Plan With Mexico

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is introducing a joint border enforcement plan with Mexico to limit border crossings, allowing up to 24,000 Venezuelans to directly land by air at an interior U.S. port of entry.

On Oct. 12, the two governments announced joint actions to curb rising numbers of undocumented Venezuelans crossing their shared border. With immediate effect, Venezuelans who walk or swim across the border after Oct. 12 will be returned to Mexico under Trump-era policy Title 42, which allows for the swift expulsion of most unauthorized border crossers.

The plan includes new checkpoints, resources, joint targeting of human smuggling organizations, and expanded information sharing related to transit nodes, hotels, stash houses, and staging locations.

Mexico Will Accept Deported Venezuelans

In return, Mexico has agreed to accept deported Venezuelan nationals who enter the United States between ports of entry without authorization. Until Oct. 12, Venezuelans werent subject to Title 42 border expulsions, as neither their home country nor a third country such as Mexico was willing to receive them.

The United States will grant tens of thousands of Venezuelans legal pathways by air.

Our comprehensive effort to reduce the irregular migration of Venezuelans also includes a new process to lawfully and safely bring up to 24,000 qualifying Venezuelans into the United States, the DHS announced on Oct. 12. The United States will not implement this process without Mexico keeping in place its independent but parallel effort to accept the return of Venezuelan nationals who bypass this process and attempt to enter irregularly.

Timing Before Midterms Draws Criticism

The operation was announced less than a month before the 2022 midterm elections that could remove Democratic control of Congress. The Biden administration said the move is to ease the ongoing crisis at the U.S.Mexico border, which has been fueled by increased immigrant flows not only from Venezuela but also Cuba and Nicaragua.

More than 150,000 Venezuelans were picked up at the border between October 2021 and August, contrasted with nearly 48,000 apprehended in the 2021 fiscal year, according to U.S. government data.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform, an organization that favors curbs on illegal immigration, denounced the new program as part of President Joe Bidens open border policy.

Once again, Biden is looking to exploit Americans sympathies and permanently resettle hundreds of thousands in the United States by ignoring our immigration laws through the abuse of parole authority, the group wrote on Twitter.

As part of Biden-Harris Admin work to build a fair, orderly & secure immigration system, DHS is announcing joint actions with Mexico to reduce arrivals at our SW border & create a more orderly, safe process for people fleeing humanitarian & economic crisis in Venezuela. pic.twitter.com/pVXUXeglgS  Homeland Security (@DHSgov) October 12, 2022

Eligibility Requirements

These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in an Oct. 12 statement. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.

The plan is modeled on the Uniting for Ukraine program, rolled out in April, which allows Ukrainians fleeing the RussiaUkraine conflict to enter the United States by securing a sponsor to provide financial and other support.

Venezuelans will also need to have a supporter within the United States, pass security vetting, and meet public health requirements, including vaccinations. Those approved via this process can then travel by air directly to an interior port of entry in the United States and later apply for work authorization.

Those seeking to apply must not go to the U.S.Mexico border, according to the Mexican government. Venezuelans who enter Mexico or Panama illegally after Oct. 12 wont be eligible for the program, according to U.S. officials.

The United States was already expelling hundreds of Venezuelans to Mexico before the plan was announced, a Mexican official said. U.S. statistics show 453 Venezuelan expulsions for August, the most recent publicly available data.

US to Provide Additional 65,000 H2-B Visas

At Mexicos request, the United States will provide an additional 65,000 temporary visas to migrants for nonagricultural jobs, the Mexican government stated. Of those visas, 20,000 will be allocated to Central Americans and Haitians.

The Biden administration has aimed at what it calls a Root Causes Strategy: collaborating with other nations to cut border encounters by addressing the violence, organized crime, corruption, and poverty that drive many to flee Central America.

Reuters contributed to this report.
People wait in line at the Women's College COVID-19 testing facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Carlos Osorio/Reuters)

Doctor Cautioned Over COVID Restrictions Criticism Tells Review Board She Was Upholding Oath

An Ontario physician whos been critical on social media of the pandemics management, and cautioned by her professional college for doing so, pleaded her case in front of a review board on Oct. 12, saying her advocacy was part of upholding her oath.

For the past two years, my voice hasnt been heard and ulterior motives have been applied to my intentions, which have always been sincere, Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill told the Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (HPARB).

I hope that this board will look at the evidence that was before the committee and in an unbiased and ethical manner understand that, throughout all of this, I have only tried to uphold my oath.

Gills case was before the board as she attempted to overturn cautions ordered against her by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO).

Gill was the subject of complaints regarding her comments on Twitter that were critical of pandemic management, such as the imposition of lockdowns or the dismissal of early treatment alternatives.

The doctor argued in 2020 that lockdowns would bring a significant social toll and impact children and the marginalized the most, and that mass vaccination should not be a prerequisite to lift stay-at-home orders.

The lawyer representing Gill, Lisa Bildy, told the review board that the complaints are not related to an adverse event from a medical treatment or to the abuse of a patient, with Gill having never received such a patient complaint.

Its only because she has shared scientific studies and opinions on her social media account which go against the COVID narrative preferred by these complainants that shes before this board today, said Bildy.

Bildy, of the Libertas Law firm, said the comments Gill made on social media are within her field of expertise, which includes immunology and virology.

Coordinated Campaign

With the bulk of the complaints against Gill being made within a few days in August 2020, Bildy said this appeared to be part of a coordinated campaign by other physicians and members of the public.

Most of the complaints filed against Gill were dismissed by the CPSO, after it determined that what Gill was advancing was backed by scientific studies and did not represent misinformation as claimed by the complainants.

One contentious issue was Gill promoting the drug Hydroxychloroquine as an early treatment against COVID-19, which the CPSO ruled didnt constitute misinformation.

However, the CPSO retained three complaints and issued related cautions against Gill, which can impact her ability to practice in jurisdictions outside Ontario.

In its decisions, the CPSO wrote that Gill showed a lack of professionalism and failed to exercise caution in her posts on social media, which is irresponsible behaviour for a member of the profession and presents a possible risk to public health.

One of the complaints came from a member of the public, Mark Brown, who said that Gill had made comments on Twitter that were opposed to messages coming from health authorities.

Brown listed three tweets from Gill, one of which dated Aug. 5, 2020, said: Current status of COVID-19[:] 99.9% Politics, Power, Greed and Fear[.] 0.1% Science & Medicine.

Another one from the day prior read: There is absolutely no medical or scientific reason for this prolonged, harmful and illogical lockdown.

The other retained complaint came from another member of the public, Maria Hauschel, who expressed concerns about false and misleading information promoted by Gill.

Lawyer Bildy told the hearing this complaint was mostly focused on the same tweets by Gill mentioned in other complaints, Although this complainant also suggested the doctor Gills tweets were dangerous and a violation of her oath to do no harm.

Bildy remarked that since Gill had received a caution for the same previous tweets, she had received separate caution orders for identical comments.

Thomas Kelly, who sits on the review board and heard the case, said there would be separate decisions made at a later time related to the seven complaints.

He said the board would review how the CPSO processed the complaints and evaluate the reasonableness of its decisions.

An application for judicial review of one of the three CPSO cautions, which followed a Registrars investigation and dealt with the same tweets, has been initiated, hence the board wont review or rule on that one.
DOJ Sued for Refusing to Explain Why It Wont Protect Conservative Supreme Court Justices Homes From Protests

A conservative group is suing the U.S. Department of Justice for refusing to explain why it wont enforce a federal law forbidding what the group called the recent intimidatory protests carried out by radical abortion supporters outside the homes of conservative Supreme Court justices in connection with the reversal of Roe v. Wade earlier this year.

Raucous protests began at the homes of the six right-leaning justices in Maryland and Virginia in the wake of the unprecedented May 2 leak of a draft opinion foreshadowing the courts June 24 decision to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade abortion precedent, and escalated after the ruling itself was issued.

Nicholas John Roske was arrested on June 8 for his alleged plan to assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his Maryland home. Roske reportedly said he wanted to kill Kavanaugh to prevent him from voting to overturn abortion rights and gun control laws.

Section 1507 of Title 18 of the U.S. Code makes it unlawful to picket or parade at or near a residence of a judge with the intent of influencing any judge  in the discharge of his duty. Violators face up to a year in prison, a fine, or both. The section has been challenged in previous legal proceedings but has survived constitutional scrutiny.

The case, Heritage Foundation v. Department of Justice, court file 22-cv-3102, was filed on Oct. 12 in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The Heritage Foundations Oversight Project filed suit, claiming the DOJ has refused to provide documents requested under the Freedom of Information Act explaining why it wont enforce Section 1507. Heritage said its demands for records from various DOJ offices, including the Office of the Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel, the FBI, and the U.S. Marshals Service werent complied with.

The Biden DOJs silence on these radical protests and obviously intimidating tactics was, and remains to be, deafening, Roman Jankowski, senior investigative counsel for the Oversight Project, said in a statement.

The American people deserve to know why Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland not only refused to publicly and unequivocally condemn this behavior, but also why they continue not to prosecute or hold accountable those who facially broke the law in an attempt to influence the proceedings of the Supreme Court. We think there are answers to those questions in the documents we have requested, and we have a right by law to those documents.

On May 10, then-White House press secretary Jen Psaki refused to condemn the protests while insisting that the president supports peaceful protest.

Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley, who is responsible for court security, wrote letters to Maryland officials on July 1 demanding they do more to protect justices whose lives have been threatened, as The Epoch Times previously reported. Curley urged officials to have the Maryland State Police enforce state law, citing 3-904(c) of the Maryland Criminal Code, which provides a person may not intentionally assemble with another in a manner that disrupts a persons right to tranquility in the persons home.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, and Montgomery County, Maryland, Executive Marc Elrich, a Democrat, sharply rebuked Curley, saying its the federal governments job to protect the justices.

Hogans press secretary, Michael Ricci, replied to Curley on Twitter, accusing her of being misinformed and of providing conflicting information.

Ricci tweeted, 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.

But when pressed repeatedly, the office of state Attorney General Brian Frosh, a Democrat who isnt seeking reelection in next months elections, has refused to confirm that it holds the view that the Maryland criminal law is unconstitutional.

Honestly, I am not familiar with the issue Ricci has noted. I will have to check, an unidentified Frosh aide told The Epoch Times by email on July 3.

The Epoch Times has reached out repeatedly to the official since then, but hasnt received a reply.

Meanwhile, on June 16, President Joe Biden signed the Supreme Court Police Parity Act into law. The measure gives Supreme Court officials, including Curleys office, greater authority to protect the court, members of the justices immediate families, and other court employees.

Officials at the Department of Justice and the Supreme Courts Public Information Office didnt respond by press time to a request by The Epoch Times for comment on the new lawsuit.
Electric Vehicles Could Introduce Cyber Risk to Australias Power Grid: Energy Experts

Energy experts have warned that Australia could be subject to cyber-attacks and widespread power outages as more electric vehicles (EVs) connect to the national power grid unless the government takes proper measures early.

They said the cyber security issue had not been raised among the discussions on Australias National Electric Vehicle Strategy and thus needed to be prioritised.

Before addressing the Australian Cyber Conference in Melbourne on Oct. 13, Electric Vehicle Council energy and infrastructure head Ross De Rango said that it was crucial to deal with the issue to prevent devastating outcomes.

How Do EVs Pose Cyber Threat to The Power Grid?

De Rango said Australians would consume about 40 percent more electricity after an increase in EV adoption and that charging them at once and during peak times could be a disaster for the energy network.

He noted that while energy companies could use technology to schedule or orchestrate vehicle charging, new security threats could emerge if regulators connected this technology to the national power grid.

For instance, a hacker could create power outages by exploiting security flaws and making all vehicles charge at the wrong times.

What happens if we are building a system where all of the EV charging normally happens at the right time, and a malicious actor gets involved, and all of a sudden the EV charging happens at the wrong time? he said in comments obtained by AAP.

Thats where cyber security comes into it.

The new Nissan LEAF vehicle is seen in Melbourne, Australia, on July 11, 2019. (Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

De Rango said the manufacturers of electric vehicles and charging equipment, software providers or energy company could take advantage of the security holes in the software, which was something they could not do with traditional power connections.

If you want to spoof [the current] signal, then you need to climb a power pole with a set of alligator clips, he said.

The likelihood of an external malicious actor being able to do that is negligible.

If we have a future where the means of connection and control is via the internet, there is a threat surface there that doesnt exist right now.

Security Flaws in EV Charging Equipment

BlackBerry Asia Pacific and Japan engineering director Jonathan Jackson said overseas researchers had spotted security flaws in electric vehicle charging equipment.

He cited a study by Carlos Alvarez College of Business in the United States, which found major security holes in 13 out of 16 EV charging stations, including a lack of authentication standards.

The vulnerabilities just in the software alone on EVs is showing weve got a long way to go at a global level, not just in Australia, to ensure the security of the energy system, Jackson said.

We dont actually have a choice here. If weve got the stated gain of EVs helping us to drive to net zero [emissions], we are absolutely going to need to tackle this head-on. Its a matter of if, not when.

Furthermore, Jackson said there had been cases of energy suppliers suffering from ransomware attacks, such as Queenslands CS Energy in November 2021 and Americas Colonial Pipeline in May, which showed that the national grid could be a target of malicious actors.

Nevertheless, he said the federal government could protect the countrys energy network if it took action early.

This is an addressable issue, but we do need to talk about it now, he said.

Once all the buildings have got smart EV orchestrated, its going to be incredibly costly for everyone to bolt (security) on afterwards.

The Australian government is calling on the public to provide feedback on its national strategy for EVs. Submission to the consultation will be open until Oct. 31.
Emergencies Act Inquiry Gets a Taste of Court-Like Back-and-Forth on Day 1

The public inquiry into Ottawas use of the Emergencies Act to clear convoy protests got a taste of the back-and-forth that can be expected during the commission as one law professor challenged the governments opening remarks as the commission got underway on Oct. 13.

Robert MacKinnon, general counsel at Justice Canada who is representing the federal government at the inquiry, said in his opening remarks that the evidence the government will be presenting will show that the invocation of the Emergencies Act was a reasonable and necessary decision, given the escalating volatile and urgent circumstances across the country.

Referencing MacKinnons remarks, Ryan Alford, a professor of law at the Lakehead University who is taking part in the commission as part of the Canadian Constitution Foundation delegation, challenged this argument during his own opening statement.

Protesters stand in front of police in helmets and carrying long batons near Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Feb. 20, 2022. (Richard Moore/The Epoch Times)

A reasonable basis is not necessarily a legal, let alone constitutional basis for assuming unprecedented and emergency powers, Alford said.

Alford read part of the legal definition of threats to the security of Canada, which the Emergencies Act references as justification for the invocation of the act: Activities within or relating to Canada directed toward or in support of the threat or use of acts of serious violence.

Elaborating on the legal definition, Alford said it didnt talk about, tied to serious acts of violence in some fashion, or, in conjunction with or somehow associated with, but, rather directed toward or in support of the threat or use of acts of serious violence.

The Emergencies Act defines public order emergency as an emergency that arises from threats to the security of Canada and that is so serious as to be a national emergency.

The Public Order Emergency Commission was formed by the federal government as required by the Emergencies Act to examine the justification of its use. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Paul Rouleau, an Ontario appeal court judge, to head the commission and deliver a report to the Parliament by Feb. 20, 2023.

The act was invoked by the federal government on Feb. 14 to clear out convoy protests against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other restrictions. It was revoked on Feb. 23, after protests were cleared from Ottawa. The act gave law enforcement extraordinary powers and allowed financial institutions to freeze the accounts of protesters and their supporters.

Facts and Events

The opening day of the commission was spent on Rouleau giving an overview of what the public inquiry involves, and hearing opening remarks from different parties who have a standing in the commission.

During his remarks, MacKinnon said government witnesses will be providing the facts and events that led to the governments declaration of a public order emergency.

They will describe the countrywide threats to the security of Canada; the illegal blockades, the disruption and intimidation experienced by Ottawa residents; the threats at our borders and ports of entry; and the real impacts on Canadas trade, international reputation, and the economic well-being of Canadians, he said.

The government witnesses will outline the deliberate step-by-step process in which careful consideration was given to all the available options, which led to the declaration of a public order emergency as a matter of last resort. The witnesses will also provide evidence on how the measures taken for dealing with the emergency were proportional, effective, and time-limited.

Commissioner Paul Rouleau speaks during the first day of hearings at the Public Order Emergency Commission inquiry, in Ottawa on Oct. 13, 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

The convoy protests initially started as a demonstration by truckers opposed to the federal governments requirement for vaccine mandates, but soon expanded to a wider movement supported by those opposed to various COVID-19 mandates and restrictions. The protesters converged in the nations capital in late January, and soon other convoy protests started in other parts of the country, including at border-crossings, which resulted in blockages of cross-border traffic.

In Coutts, Alberta, the RCMP on Feb. 14 arrested 13 people and seized a number of weapons near the site of a convoy blockade, saying the group were alleged to have a willingness to use force against the police if any attempts were made to disrupt the blockade. A day later, the main organizers of the protest site said they will end the protest, since they always wanted to remain peaceful. The government of Alberta has said none of the powers of the Emergencies Act were used to clear the protests in Alberta.

The border-crossing blockade at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario, which was the costliest closure with disruption to the shipment of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods between Canada and the United States each day, was cleared on Feb. 13, a day before the act was invoked.

Government officials have said that the use of the act was necessary to act as a deterrent for repeat blockades.

No Justification

Brendan Miller, one of the lawyers representing Freedom Corp., which he described as an organization that represents the protesters who were in Ottawa in January and February, read out parts of all four legal definitions of threats to the security of Canada that would justify the invocation of the act.

It is our view that there was no justification, whatsoever, to invoke the Emergencies Act, he said.

One: It could be invoked due to espionage and sabotage. Are you going to hear any evidence about espionage and sabotage? The answer to that is no.

Two: It could be invoked on the basis of clandestine or deceptive foreign influence, or foreign influence that involves a threat to a person. Are you going to hear evidence about that? The answer to that is no.

It also could be invoked on the basis of threats or use of acts of serious violence against persons or property. Are you going to hear evidence of violence against persons or property? The answer is no.

A protester holds a sign on Wellington St. during the Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa on Feb. 12, 2022. (Noe Chartier/The Epoch Times)

Lastly, it can also be invoked if there is a group or persons trying to destroy or overthrow, by violence, the system of government of Canada. Are you going to hear evidence about individuals trying to do that? The answer is no,  there was no reasonable and probable grounds to invoke the Emergencies Act, and that the government exceeded their jurisdiction, both constitutionally and legislatively in doing so.

Christopher Diana, a lawyer representing the Ontario Provincial Police, said in his remarks that the police force already had enough legal tools to deal with the protests without the use of emergencies legislation.

The OPP has significant experience in responding to protests, blockades, and similar activities. While the emergencies legislation, in particular the provincial legislation, provided useful tools, there was sufficient legal authority in their absence to deal with the protest activities that took place over this period of time, he said.

David Migicovsky, a lawyer representing the Ottawa Police, said that the police force is usually prepared to deal with different protests, but not the convoy protests of January and February.

What you will hear is that this protest was unique in Canadian history, the police had little time to prepare, he said.

The commissions proceedings are divided into two phases. The first phase, which involves hearing from different witnesses as a fact-finding effort, will end on Nov. 25, after which the second phase, focused on policy, begins, before the commission submits its report in February.
Commissioner Paul Rouleau speaks during the first day of hearings at the Public Order Emergency Commission inquiry, Thursday, October 13, 2022 in Ottawa. Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

Emergencies Act Inquiry Commissioner Says Focus Is on Government Actions, Not Protesters

The commissioner presiding over the inquiry into the governments invocation of the Emergencies Act says the commissions work will revolve around the mandate granted by Parliament, rather than the one given by cabinet which focuses on protesters actions.

While this inquiry will deal with a wide range of issues, its focus will remain squarely on the decision of the federal government, said commissioner Paul Rouleau during his remarks opening the public hearings phase of the inquiry in Ottawa.

He said the mandate from Parliament is one of public accountability, the publics legitimate right to know why the government proclaimed an emergency and whether the actions it took were appropriate.

As well as the mandate given by Parliament and required by law after the Emergencies Act is invoked, Rouleau addressed the additional mandate given by the Liberal government.

Rouleau relayed that cabinet told the commission through an Order in Council to focus on issues such as the evolution, goals, leadership, and participants of the movement, the impact of domestic and foreign funding, the role of misinformation and disinformation, the economic impacts of the blockades, and the role and efforts of police.

The commissioner, an Ontario Court of Appeal judge, said although these topics have been identified as worthy of attention, it is the mandate that has been given to us by Parliament that drives the commissions work.

Rouleau said the main questions the inquiry will try to answer are why the government declared a public order emergency, how it used its powers, and were those actions appropriate.

Freedom Convoy

The Liberal government declared a public order emergency on Feb. 14 to deal with cross-country protests and border blockades demanding the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.

By the time the Emergencies Act was invoked, some civil disobedience activities had already been resolved by regular law enforcement action, and others dispersed of their own volition shortly afterwards.

Emergency powers were only used to clear the Freedom Convoy truck-based protest in Ottawa, with several top officials noting extraordinary powers were needed to compel towing companies to remove the trucks. Such powers are actually already contained in Section 129 of the Criminal Code.

Using the Emergencies Act triggered mechanism reviews such as the establishment of a special joint committee of MPs and senators, which started its work in March.

Some participants in the committee have expressed frustration about the lack of answers provided by ministers testifying and have repeatedly asked if government would lift cabinet confidence and solicitor-client privilege to obtain a fulsome picture of the events.

Commissioner Rouleau also mentioned in his opening remarks having issues with obtaining relevant documents.

He still noted the federal government has deployed considerable efforts to produce documents, with some still being provided as of Thursday. Some are classified under national security grounds or constrained by other forms of privilege, but Rouleau said work is being done to make these available to the public as much as possible.

In addition to a large amount of federal documents, Rouleau said the commission received over 50,000 documents from various entities ranging from police services to private citizens.

The Public Order Emergency Commission will hear from over 50 witnesses until Nov. 25, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Convoy organizers.
A rocket launches from missile system as part of a ground-based intercontinental ballistic missile test launched from the Plesetsk facility in northwestern Russia on Dec. 9, 2020. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

European Union: Russian Army Will Be Annihilated If They Use Nuclear Weapons

A top European Union official warned Russias military will be annihilated by Western forces if Russian President Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answernot a nuclear answer, but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated, European Union High Representative Josep Borrell stated Thursday. This is a serious moment in the history, and we have to show our unity, our strength, and our determination. Complete determination.

During a speech last month, Putin said that he is not bluffing and said he would defend Russias territorial integrity of our motherland by all the means at our disposal in what some interpreted as a nuclear warning. He did not specifically mention nuclear weapons, although other top Russian officials have said such weapons could be utilized.

Despite the suggested threats, U.S. officials last week said there is no clear evidence that the Kremlin will launch a nuclear weapon after U.S. President Joe Biden has said the world faces the biggest risk of nuclear Armageddon since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Well, [Putin] cannot afford bluffing. And it has to be clear that the people supporting Ukraine, the European Union and the Member States, and the United States and NATO are not bluffing either, Borrell said.

We Do Not Want a World War

His comments came just hours after more pacifying comments from French President Emmanuel Macron, who wrote on Twitter that we do not want a World War.

French President Emmanuel Macron (R) speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) before a meeting at the Chancellery on January 19, 2020, in Berlin, Germany. (Emmanuele Contini/Getty Images)

Frances nuclear doctrine rests on the fundamental interests of the nation, Macron also told French news outlets on Thursday. They are defined clearly and wouldnt be directly affected at all if, for example, there was a ballistic nuclear attack in Ukraine, in the region.

Today, first of all, Vladimir Putin must stop this war, respect Ukraines territorial integrity and come back to the table for talks, Macron further said. I tell you that at some point  it will be necessary [for Kyiv to negotiate with Russia]. Thats why I have always refused maximalist positions.

But Macron said that France would supply air-defense systems to Ukraines military following a series of airstrikes on the Eastern European county earlier this week that came in response to a bridge bombing in Crimea.

Were going to deliver  radars, systems, and missiles to protect them from these attacks, Macron told local media, adding that another six Caesar mobile artillery units could also be sent to Ukraine.

Adding to the nuclear tensions, Russian Security Council official Alexander Venediktov said that if Ukraine is admitted to NATO, the conflict in the country would escalate into World War III.

On Sept. 30, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a surprise attempt to fast-track Ukraines application to join NATO. Full NATO membership for Ukraine is far off because all the alliances 30 members, including Turkey, would have to give their consent.

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to World War Three, Venediktov told TASS. The suicidal nature of such a step is understood by NATO members themselves, he said.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Kentish SES volunteer Maxine Douce monitors water level at a bridge on Dowbiggin Street in Railton, Tasmania, Thursday, October 13, 2022. Heavy rain that began on Wednesday night is expected to continue into Friday morning across the northern half of the island state. (AAP Image/Phillip Biggs)

Evacuation Order as Flooding Hits Australias Southern Most State

People in parts of northwest Tasmania have been ordered to evacuate as rivers rise, potentially to levels comparable to deadly flooding six years ago.

Heavy rain across the northern half of the island state began on Wednesday night and is not expected to ease until early Friday morning.

Residents of an area stretching from Liena to Latrobe were on Thursday evening ordered to evacuate if safe to do so, with the regions Mersey River reportedly breaking its banks.

River peaks in some parts could reach levels seen in mid-2016 when flooding claimed the lives of three people and caused $180 million in damage.

Latrobe Council Mayor Peter Freshney said his community was anxious but better prepared.

People and properties that experienced flooding in 2016 are most likely to experience that again, he said.

Were preparing as best we can. (People) have their stock on higher ground, they are moving machinery to higher ground.

We wont be hopefully rescuing people off rooftops  well be rescuing them before the event happens.

Five people and their animals were rescued from a property at Liffey, southwest of Launceston, on Thursday.

The State Emergency Service has received 120 calls for assistance, with acting director Leon Smith warning rivers and tributaries will continue to rise overnight.

There is still a large period of this event to go, he said.

Theres still a level of uncertainty in regards to the peaks. Its expected this situation will be protracted even once the rain stops.

The Great Lakes area in the states central north topped the rainfall tally with 220 millimetres in a 24-hour window, while records were broken in several locations.

A severe weather warning was in place for the top half of the state, while eight rivers were subject to varying degrees of flood warnings.

Deputy Premier Michael Ferguson urged people to pay close attention to alerts and avoid unnecessary travel.

Focusing on safety is our number one priority, he said.

It is consistent with  2016 at this point in time. Were monitoring the situation very closely.

Several evacuation centres have been set up, and many roads have been closed. The wild weather cut power to hundreds of people in the northwest.

Commercial operations at the port of Devonport have been suspended until Sunday, with the closure prompting the cancellation of four Bass Strait crossings by the Spirit of Tasmania ferry.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House chief medical adviser and director of the NIAID, shows a screen grab of a campaign website for Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) while answering questions at a Senate committee hearing in Washington on Jan. 11, 2022. (Greg Nash-Pool/Getty Images)

Fauci Edited Paper by NIH-Funded Group Tied to Wuhan Lab

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), edited a research paper by the group that worked with a high-profile lab in Wuhan, China, to study dangerous bat viruses while pushing back on concerns that the facility could be the source of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The paper, titled Nipah virus dynamics in bats and implications for spillover to humans, was funded by eight federal programs, half of which were from the NIAID that Fauci will lead until December.

Members of the nonprofit research group EcoHealth Alliance, which became a conduit for the Wuhan Institute of Virology to conduct risky bat research using U.S. taxpayer dollars, make up over half of the roughly two dozen authors on the paper.

Fauci edited the paper in 2020 after receiving it for review that Jan. 8, two weeks before COVID-19 brought Wuhan to a complete lockdown. The peer-reviewed scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, better known as PNAS, approved it in September 2020 and published it two months later.

The extent of Faucis input into the paper is unclear. As a public servant for four decades, Fauci has edited scientific papers, notably on the subject of HIV. But his editorial role, given the groups history of ties with the Wuhan lab and the funding it received from his agency, nonetheless raised eyebrows among critics.

Tristan Daedalus, the government affairs director for White Coat Waste Project that has been tracking the EcoHealth and Wuhan labs collaboration, saw in the case a self-licking ice cream cone.

First, Fauci champions dangerous animal experiments to balloon his $6 billion budget. Next, he doles it out via grants to EcoHealth and other white coats in the U.S. and abroad. He and his colleagues then personally edit and approve the experiments they funded for publication in scientific journalsthen claim success because of the publication record. Finally, he renews the payouts to fuel the government gravy train, Daedalus said in a statement to The Epoch Times. Fauci isnt following the science, but EcoHealth sure is following the money.

As the virus spread to other parts of the world, Fauci made repeated efforts to promote a natural COVID-19 origin narrative while downplaying the prospect of a lab leak both privately and in public.

Peter Daszak, a co-author of the PNAS paper and president of EcoHealth, thanked Fauci for backing a natural origin theory in an April 2020 email, according to National Institutes of Health (NIH) records since released through a Freedom of Information Act request (pdf).

I just wanted to say a personal thankyou [sic] on behalf of our staff and collaborators, for publicly standing up and stating that the scientific evidence supports a natural origin for COVID-19 from a bat-to-human spillover, not a lab release from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, he wrote on April 18, 2020, a day after Fauci told reporters that all available evidence on the virus was totally consistent with a jump of a species from an animal to a human.

Peter Daszak (R) and other members of the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of the COVID-19 coronavirus arrive at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan in Chinas central Hubei province on Feb. 3, 2021. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

The work weve been doing in collaboration with Chinese virologists has given us incredible insights into the risks that these viruses represent, so that we can directly help protect our nation from bat-origin coronaviruses, he said, citing an NIH-funded multi-year project on bat coronavirus emergence in China. From my perspective, your comments are brave, and coming from your trusted voice, will help dispel the myths being spun around the virus origins.

Many thanks for your kind note, Fauci wrote in reply.

The project that Daszak cited was suspended later that year and was the subject of inquiries by both the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services over its use of grant funding in China. In August, the NIH terminated the project funding to the Wuhan lab after twice failing to get the Chinese facility to hand over laboratory records.

Faucis agency in late September again greenlit millions of funding to EcoHealth to support its research projects in Asia. One of them relates to the Nipah virus.

Defending the grant decision on Oct. 4, he told a virtual webinar that they cant arbitrarily decide, I just dont want to fund it because people dont like them.

He insisted that he has kept a completely open mind about the possibility that there may have been a lab leak.

But one thing you cannot walk away from, he argued at the event, is that lab leak is a theory with no evidence whatsoever.

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) speaks during a press conference following a Senate Republican luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Sept. 28, 2022. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) introduced legislation following the NIH grant announcement, aiming to cut off federal funding for EcoHealth. She was one of 40 Congress members who recently signed a letter to the NIH condemning its continued funding of EcoHealth.

Taxpayers deserve answers about why Dr. Fauci continues to show favoritism for an organization that has violated federal laws, refuses to turn over documents vital to understanding the possible origins of COVID-19, and demonstrated reckless disregard for safety, Ernst told The Epoch Times.

Dr. Fauci defends the decision to continue funding the group by claiming he had to be fair. Between giving grants and editorial advice, it seems Dr. Fauci has been more than fair to EcoHealth, and its time to be fair to taxpayers!

The NIH, NIAID, Daszak, and EcoHealth didnt respond by press time to a request by The Epoch Times for comment.
A sign for the Food and Drug Administration outside of the headquarters in White Oak, Md., on July 20, 2020. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

FDA Confirms Widespread Adderall Shortage Across US

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday confirmed there is an Adderall shortage in the United States amid reports of people having prescriptions for the ADHD drug.

The FDA is in frequent communication with all manufacturers of amphetamine mixed salts, and one of those companies, Teva, is experiencing ongoing intermittent manufacturing delays, a statement from the agency said, referring to precursors to manufacture Adderalla drug mixture composed of equal parts racemic amphetamine and dextroamphetamine.

According to the FDAs website, supply recovery for different doses and forms of the drug ranges from October 2022 to March 2023.

Until supply is restored, there are alternative therapies including the extended-release version of amphetamine mixed salts available to health care professionals and their patients for amphetamine mixed salts approved indications, the FDAs continued. Patients should work with their health care professionals to determine their best treatment option.

The FDA did not elaborate on why there is a shortage of the drug.

But it said that Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, the top seller of Adderall in the country, is experiencing ongoing intermittent manufacturing delays, the FDA stated. Other drug makers continue to manufacture amphetamine mixed salts, but its not in sufficient quantities to meet the current demand, the FDA added.

Teva, in a statement to news outlets this week, said that it is producing and refilling the supply of generic and branded Adderall at levels above historic demand, before it added: We expect inventory recovery in the coming months.

The Israel-based company will continue to have challenges supplying Adderall for the next two to three months, Bloomberg News reported last week.

And a CVS spokesperson told ABC News the drugstore chain is aware of intermittent shortages of generic amphetamine medication in the supply chain, saying that patients will be prescribed this medication as needed.

We have about 10 doctors working here, and weve all had patients where theyre having a hard time finding it, Allegheny Health Network psychiatrist Gary Swanson, based in Pennsylvania, told KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh.

While the drug is often prescribed for ADHD and narcolepsy, its often misused among people seeking a stimulant high.

Due to its addiction potential, a person can rapidly move from Adderall recreational use to misuse to addiction. While teens and young adults are most affected, anyone can develop an Adderall misuse problem. The physical, psychological, and behavioral symptoms can include, says the American Addiction Centers on its website.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Police are seeking to identify three people involved in the incident. (ACT police)

Federal Police Seeking Information on 2 Men and a Woman Who Allegedly Assaulted Chinese Human Rights Activist

Canberra police are seeking public assistance to identify two men and one woman who are alleged to have assaulted a woman and damaged her car that had signage criticising the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

About 4.10 p.m., a woman returned to her vehicle parked in Acton near Corkhill Street to find three people spray painting the vehicle. The woman was also allegedly assaulted, and her phone smashed during the incident, reads a statement by Australian Federal Police on Oct. 12.

Police are seeking to identify three people involved in the incidenttwo men and a woman.

Police are seeking to identify three people involved in the incident. (ACT police)

Police are seeking to identify three people involved in the incident. (ACT police)

The victim, Nancy Dong, a Chinese woman in her 50s, suffered injuries after being assaulted by the two men, who graffitied Chinese signage on her car that read, End the evil CCP.

Dong, a Canberran local, recorded the incident on her phone before one man snatched it and proceeded to assault her. It is thought the group could allegedly be Beijing sympathisers.

In the footage recorded, Dong could be heard asking the two men in Chinese, What are you doing?

They did not say anything and continued to spray the display board until the entire display board was covered by black spray paint, Dong previously told The Epoch Times.

At that time, the taller young man ran away, and another young man suddenly snatched my mobile phone from behind me and also ran away.

Dong then saw a young woman standing at the entrance of the car park, also recording the two men spray painting. She started to record the young woman, whom she believed was connected with the men.

The altercation led to bruises on Dongs arms and injuries to her lower body that have forced her to require the use of crutches to be mobile.

Injuries sustained to the Canberran women during an altercation with pro-CCP men on Oct. 4, 2022 in Canberra, Australia. (supplied)

The incident comes amid a wave of withdrawals from the CCP and its affiliated resignations that has seen over 400 million Chinese people quit the CCP and an End CCP movement for people outside mainland China to show their support. Many End CCP car rallies have been held in cities around the world to mark this milestone.

Both movements were started by practitioners of Falun Gong, among which Dong is a member.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a meditation practice of the Buddhist tradition with moral teachings centred on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. The practice attracted between 70 and 100 million practitioners in the 1990s, according to the Chinese regimes official estimate.

Taking Falun Gongs popularity in China as a threat to the communist regime, then-CCP leader Jiang Zemin launched a nationwide persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in July 1999, which is still ongoing.

Anyone who can identify any of these three people, or who witnessed the incident, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 1800 333 000, or on the Crime Stoppers ACT website. Please quote reference 7234672. Information can be provided anonymously.

Henry Jom contributed to this report.
Conservative Christian baker Jack Phillips (C) and members of his family and legal team pose for photographs in front of the Supreme Court after the court heard the case Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 5, 2017. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

For Baker Jack Phillips, the Persecution Never Ends

Commentary

Its the 10th year of litigation for Jack Phillips, the Colorado baker whose Christian belief that marriage is between one man and one woman means that he declines to design custom wedding cakes for same-sex unions. Or rather, its the 10th year of his persecution as a Christian by the militantly secular powers that be, both public and private.

In June 2018, six years after the wedding cake dispute began in 2012, he won a partial victory in the U.S. Supreme Court overturning a ruling by the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, and, in turn, the Colorado state courts, that his refusal violated the states Anti-Discrimination Act, which forbids businesses open to the public from declining service to people on the basis of, among other things, their gender and sexual orientation. The high court ruled 72 that statements by one of the commissioners during the proceedings comparing Phillipss beliefs to defenses of slavery and the Holocaust evidenced a hostility to his faith impermissible under the First Amendments guarantee of the free exercise of religion.

Philips was lucky: If that commissioner hadnt shot her mouth off, he might have lost his Supreme Court case.

But that wasnt the end of his travails.

His case involved two gay men who, in July 2012, visited Phillipss business, Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, a Denver suburb, to order a custom cake commemorating their wedding in Massachusetts (same-sex marriage wasnt yet legal in Colorado). After Phillips turned them down (he said he was willing to sell them a cake off the shelf), the men filed a complaint with the commission. It not only ordered Phillips to bake and custom-decorate cakes for same-sex weddings in the future but mandated comprehensive staff training and quarterly reports for the next two years documenting his treatment of same-sex customers.

Phillipss response, the only one that he could square with his conscience, was to stop making custom wedding cakes altogether. That cost him 40 percent of his business and forced him to lay off several long-term employees. The U.S. Supreme Court ruling, following Phillipss unsuccessful trek through the Colorado state-court system, seemed to grant a reprieve.

Except that on the very day that the Supreme Court agreed to hear his case in June 2017, an LGBTQ activist, Denver lawyer Autumn Scardina, dragged Phillips once more to the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, this time on a claim that he had discriminated against her as a transgender woman. Scardina had ordered a custom birthday cake from Phillips, frosted blue but pink on the inside, specifically to celebrate her male-to-female transition. Phillips had again declined, citing his Christian belief that God had created only two sexes and that one sex cant change to another at will. The commission plunged into this new complaint gung-ho, and it looked as though Phillips would lose again. But in August 2018, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in his favor over the wedding cake, his lawyers filed a federal lawsuit (pdf) against the state of Colorado and its officials, alleging a pattern of unconstitutional bullying of the baker on the basis of his beliefs.

The state backed off Phillips by way of settlement. Scardina didnt. In 2019, she filed a private lawsuit in Colorado state court charging Phillips with violating the Anti-Discrimination Act. A judge duly rejected Phillipss argument that he shouldnt be penalized for exercising his right to religious freedom and ordered him to pay Scardina $500 in damages, the maximum amount permissible under the law. On Oct. 5, the Colorado Court of Appeals, the states intermediate-level appellate court, heard arguments on Phillipss request to overturn that decision.

Even if Phillips wins at that level, hes likely to languish for even more years as the litigation drags through higher courtsand then starts all over again when he gets sued for not baking cakes to celebrate polyamorous unions or consensual incest.

Its appalling that in a country with a theoretically robust First Amendment, someone who, on the basis of sincerely held Christian beliefs, declines to go along with a government demand that he not only tolerate but celebrate the LGBTQ revolution must pay the steep price that Phillips has paid for a decade. Even in purely secular terms, its repugnant that an artistand as Phillipss own beautiful creations attest, cake decoration is certainly an artcan be forced to create art that violates his conscience but serves goals approved by the government and the reigning culture.

But the blame, alas, lies directly with the U.S. Supreme Court itself. A 1990 Supreme Court case, Employment Division v. Smith, involved two drug counselors who were fired from their jobs after drug tests revealed that they had been using peyote that they said was part of their religious ritual in the Native American Church. As a result, they were denied unemployment benefits by the state of Oregon. In an opinion writtenparadoxicallyby the religiously conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court ruled 63 that as long as a law is a neutral, generally applicable law that doesnt specifically target religious beliefs and practices, it doesnt violate the First Amendments protection for the free exercise of religion.

The Smith decision might have made some sensecommon senseat the time. Do we as a society really want to hire drug counselors who use hallucinogenic drugs that have no recognized medicinal function? And perhaps Scalias implicit reasoningthat it would be chaotic to allow people to carve out their own personal religious exemptions to laws they didnt likemade some sense, too. But it was inevitable that as culture, at least as practiced by its ruling progressive elites, became more militantly secular, it would use seemingly neutral laws designed to ensure equal treatment of minorities to enforce conformity to its ruling ideology.

Thats why Colorado activists cant let go of Jack Phillipsand why few other bakers who might have moral objections to crafting cakes for same-sex weddings have chosen to follow his courageous example to the detriment of their livelihoods.

Fortunately, the Supreme Court, in February, accepted another case, 303 Creative v. Elenis, involving Lorie Smith, a Christian web designer in Denver who doesnt want to craft wedding websites for same-sex couples and thus potentially falls afoul of the same Colorado law that ensnared Phillips. In a 21 ruling, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals evidenced the same assumption of the superiority of the reigning secular culture and disdain for Smiths beliefs as the Civil Rights Commission did for Phillipss: [A] faith that enriches society in one way might also damage society in other ways, particularly when that faith would exclude others from unique goods or services.

The time has certainly come for the Supreme Court to reconsider its 1990 decision and take the exercise of religion seriously.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
A sign for the National Security Agency (NSA), U.S. Cyber Command and Central Security Service, near the visitor's entrance to the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Md., on Feb. 14, 2018. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Former NSA Worker Accused of Trying to Sell Secrets to Russia to Remain in Custody

A former National Security Agency (NSA) employee accused of espionage after allegedly attempting to sell classified National Defense Information (NDI) to a representative of a foreign government must remain jailed while hes prosecuted, a magistrate judge ruled on Oct. 11.

Jareh Sebastian Dalke, a 30-year-old Colorado Springs resident, was taken into custody based on a signed criminal complaint on Sept. 28 by an undercover FBI agent whom prosecutors say represented himself as a person working for Russias foreign service.

Dalke, who expressed financial need and was seeking compensation in cryptocurrency in exchange for NDI, has been charged with alleging three violations of the 1917 federal law, Espionage Act, which carries a potential term of up to life in prison or the death penalty.

The Army veteran pleaded not guilty to all charges on Oct. 11 during a hearing in Denver federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Kato Crews, who denied Dalke bail following pleas by public defenders arguing that the defendant should be with his family while the case proceeds.

Crews said on Tuesday the stiff penalty Dalke could face makes him a flight risk along with the sympathies he has allegedly expressed for Russia. The judge also said he was not sure that Dalke would honor any conditions he could impose that would allow him to live with his family while awaiting updates on the case.

One of Dalkes federal public defenders, David Kraut, said Dalke supported the household with Veterans Administration benefits and had been supportive of his wife in difficulties in her life. He said Dalke would not want to put her at risk by not complying with bond conditions. However, assistant attorney Julia K. Martinez, said he already had by taking her with him when he went to scout out a public location to transmit the documents.

According to his arrest affidavit, Dalke served as an NSA Information Systems Security Designer for less than a month, from June 6, 2022, to July 1, 2022.

Between August and September, he used an encrypted email account to transmit excerpts of three classified documents he had obtained during his employment to an individual whom he believed was working for a foreign government, but he was actually an undercover FBI agent.

In late August, prosecutors say Dalke requested the undercover agent $85,000 in return for additional NDI allegedly in his possession. He also told the agent that he would provide more classified information in the future, despite him not being employed by the NSA while he was communicating with the agent. He then reapplied to work for the agency that same month.

The NDI that Dalke allegedly stole from the NSAthe U.S. intelligence agency that collects and analyzes signals from foreign and domestic sources for the purpose of intelligence and counterintelligencetargeted U.S. systems and information on U.S. cyber operations, among other topics, according to the affidavit.

During Tuesdays hearing, Kraut downplayed Dalkes access to classified NDI since he only worked at the NSA for less than a month this summer.

Martinez argued that the government does not know whether Dalke obtained more information from the NSA that is stored somewhere else or possibly memorized. She said he has the motivation to sell more secrets if he were to be released.

He knows how to make money. Sell secrets to Russia, said Martinez, who alleged Dalke took the job at the NSA with the intent of selling NDI.

Dalke allegedly told the undercover agent that he had $237,000 in debts and that he had decided to work with Russia because his heritage ties back to your country.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

From NTD News
Freedom Convoy Organizer Concerned That Most Emergencies Act Inquiry Witnesses Are in Government

Freedom Convoy organizer Benjamin Dichter says hes concerned that the majority of witnesses appearing before the upcoming public inquiry into the federal governments use of the Emergencies Act are in the government.

You have 65 witnesses of, it looks like, if Im counting correctly, that [50] of the 65 work for the government. Right away, thats a problem, Dichter, who was the Freedom Convoys spokesperson, told The Epoch Times.

Its quite concerning that you have [50] people who are here, of which many of them, if they dont toe the party narrative, then theyre putting their careers at risk.

The Liberal government invoked the Emergencies Act on Feb. 14 in response to the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa, granting police extraordinary power to clear protesters from the citys downtown core and also allowing banks to freeze accounts of convoy protesters and their supporters.

After the invocation of the act, protesters in Ottawa were confronted with heavy police presence, including riot police wielding batons and tear gas. In one incident, mounted police advanced toward a crowd of demonstrators and knocked down at least two people, one of whom needed hospital care.

The act was revoked on Feb. 23.

As required by the act, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the creation of the Public Order Emergency Commission (POEC) in April to examine the circumstances that led to the declaration being issued and the measures taken in response to the emergency. Trudeau appointed Ontario Appeal Court Justice Paul S. Rouleau to be the POECs commissioner.

On Oct. 11, the POEC released its list of the 65 witnesses it expects to appear throughout the six weeks of public hearings running from Oct. 13 to Nov. 25. The list includes 50 individuals who either hold positions in federal, provincial, or municipal government or are employed in the federal or provincial public sector, such as RCMP and OPP officers.

Eight Liberal cabinet members, including Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, and Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, are listed as expected witnesses.

Freedom Convoy Organizers

Besides Dichter, eight protesters who were present in Ottawa during the Freedom Convoy, including organizer Tamara Lich, are also listed as witnesses, but Dichter says not all of the people listed were part of the Freedom Convoy organizing team.

Dichter said that the Freedom Convoy disassociated itself from protester Patrick King, who the commission lists as a witness, in its first GoFundMe page update.

Pat King does not speak for [the Freedom Convoy] & only represents himself, Dichter said on Twitter, quoting the now-deleted Freedom Convoy page on the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe.

Id never heard of [King] until the Convoy already started, Dichter told The Epoch Times.

Dichter said when he became aware in late January of Kings presence at the Convoy protests, he immediately contacted Lich and they agreed that the Freedom Convoy would disassociate itself from King and ask him to leave the protests.

In a video King reportedly posted online on Dec. 16, 2021, King said, The only way this is going to be solved is with bullets, although it was unclear what he was referring to by this. He also spoke about a massive revolution on a huge scale.

King, who has been charged in relation to the protests, was released on bail in July.

Dichter noted that there are also prominent Freedom Convoy organizers whom the commission has not listed as witnesses, such as Chris Garrah.

[Garrah] was on the ground for a week before the trucks came there, organizing everything, staging it, setting it up. The Ottawa police gave him maps of where the truckers need to park, Dichter said.

He argues that because of Garrahs heavy involvement in organizing the Convoy, he should have been listed by the commission as a witness.

Im going to have to talk about that in my testimony, Dichter said.
A student on graduation day at Coventry University in Coventry, United Kingdom, in an undated file photo. (Alamy/PA)

Frightening Decolonisation Movement Taking Hold of British Universities: Report

Seventy percent of UK universities are undertaking some form of decolonisation, according to a new report.

The British think tank Civitas, which works on issues related to democracy and social policy, claims that while attacks on free speech seem to be worsening, universities are also seeing the spread of a phenomenon known as decolonisation.

The report (pdf) said that decolonisation has no concrete definition, but that it seeks to rewrite academic curricula as well as reorder the university as an institution, in the name of making them more inclusive.'

Is this a threat to academic freedom? The answer is yes, if it entails pressure on academics by radical activists to conform, overriding their independence in setting their reading lists and writing their lectures, wrote report author Richard Norrie, director of statistics at Civitas.

Seven in 10 universities admitted to decolonising their curriculums in some form through official statements or academic advocates.

Frightening

It noted that there is a frightening side of decolonisation, which is the radical idea that the institutions and cultural practices of a society lead to injustice, violence, and exploitation, and can and must be replaced by new ones.

In terms of policy, the report pointed to a Higher Education Policy Institute paper authored by Mia Liyanage, called Miseducation: Decolonising curricula, culture and pedagogy in UK universities (pdf).

Liyanage recommends that universities institutionalise decolonisation by implementing specific departmental roles.

This includes interrogating staff and students positionality before even approaching curricula.

This would mean offering some critical reflexive activities to get them to think about whiteness, and privilege, and the damaging effects of colonialism within their subject area.

That students and staff are to be interrogated on things they cannot help becomes a form of inquisition, said Norrie. This would entail their screening for bad thoughts, he added.

The report added that free speech controversies occur more frequently in universities that have official policies on decolonisation, as well as academic advocates of decolonisation.

Civitas said there were 374 free speech controversies in UK universities between January 2017 and August 2020, with 123 related to transgenderism and 14 to Islam.

It added that threats to free speech, controversies and the new radicalism of transgenderism and decolonisation tend to be associated with top British universities.

However, Norrie said that the think tanks analysis would imply however that these things can happen at any university, despite whatever general patterns there might be.

The Civitas work concludes by arguing there are a growing number of students who prefer cossetting to free inquiry and that top universities are both more woke and more libertarian.

This is despite a poll in June concluding that students in general are significantly less supportive of free expression than they were just a few years ago.

The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill is currently being discussed in Parliament. This legislation will require universities and colleges to defend free speech and help stamp out unlawful silencing, and will give a higher education regulator the power to impose fines on institutions if they breach this condition.
Falun Gong practitioners take part in a parade to raise awareness about the Chinese regime's brutal persecution of the spritual practice, including forced organ harvesting, in New York on May 13, 2022. Larry Dye/The Epoch Times

Global Transplantation Communities Urged to Ban Research From China

A group of medical professionals and advocates is calling on global transplantation societies to stop collaborating with Chinese researchers and to ban transplant-related research papers from China, citing concerns over the human rights atrocity of forced organ harvesting.

The appeal followed a first-of-its-kind restriction issued by the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT), a nonprofit transplantation association. The group announced in late August that it would stop accepting transplantation research papers from China, in an effort to end the abuses currently being carried out under the communist regime.

The group, led by British kidney transplant surgeon Dr. Adnan Sharif, welcomed the decision in an article published in The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation on Sept. 22.

The ISHLT has firmly aligned itself to these ethical principles, which we applaud, and implore others to follow their principled lead, the group wrote.

While international exchange of knowledge, skills and expertise has been a valued hallmark of organ donation and transplantation, collaboration with a transplant program stained with credible evidence of unethical transplant practice that [amounts] to crimes against humanity in relation to organ donor sources.

Evidence has continued to mount since reports and research surfaced in the early 2000s showing that the Chinese regime was forcibly harvesting vital organs from detained prisoners of conscience.

An independent peoples tribunal concluded in 2019 that forced organ harvesting had been conducted in China for years on a significant scale, with imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners being the primary source for organs, as theyre persecuted by the millions under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline consisting of meditation exercises and moral teachings based on truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, have been brutally persecuted by the CCP since 1999. Adherents have been thrown into prisons, labor camps, and brainwashing centers, where many have been tortured in an effort to force them to renounce their faith.

Falun Gong practitioners take part in a Brooklyn parade marking the 22nd year of the persecution of Falun Gong in China on July 18, 2021. (Chung I Ho/The Epoch Times)

After a year-long investigation, the tribunal, also known as the China Tribunal, concluded that the Chinese regime has committed crimes against humanity and stated that governments and international bodies must do their duty concerning the finding.

Engagement therefore poses grave risks for transplantation institutions, groups, and societies of complicity in atrocity crimes and subsequent legal prosecution, the group wrote.

The other experts in the group are Dr. Sheldon Stone, a member of the advocacy group World Uyghur Congress, and Susie Hughes, executive director of the transplant ethics advocacy group The International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China.

Official Data Cannot Be Trusted

The Chinese regime claimed in 2015 that it would cease sourcing organs from executed prisoners and exclusively rely on a newly set up voluntary donation system.

However, Sharif and other researchers have challenged the regimes claims, after recent investigations cast doubt on the veracity of Chinas official statistics on donation and transplant activities.

They referred to a 2019 study published in the scientific journal BMC Medical Ethics that found that Beijings reported organ donation numbers dont stack up and there is highly compelling evidence that they are being falsified.

The conclusion is based on a review of Chinas official data on voluntary hospital-based donated organs between 2010 and 2018, which was published by the China Organ Transplant Response System and the Red Cross Society of China.

A separate report, published in February 2019 in the medical journal BMJ, noted that 440 out of 445 Chinese medical papers failed to clarify whether individuals had given consent to donate their body parts. The study is based on an analysis of papers published in English-language peer-reviewed journals between 2000 and 2017 using research involving organ transplants in mainland China.

Call for Action

In 2021, 12 U.N. special rapporteurs and human rights experts said in a joint statement that they were extremely alarmed by reports of Beijing harvesting organs from imprisoned minorities, including Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Christians.

Sharif has urged medical journals to decline publishing research papers about organ transplantation from China.

Given credible allegations, and absence of evidence to the contrary, can we be sure that Chinese practice conforms to international law and ethical norms? If not, research linked to unethical transplantation is itself unethical, Sharif wrote in an opinion piece published in 2021.

In August, ISHLT updated its policy regarding transplant ethics.

Given the body of evidence that the government of the Peoples Republic of China stands alone in continuing to systematically support the procurement of organs or tissue from executed prisoners, submissions related to transplantation and involving either organs or tissue from human donors in the Peoples Republic of China will not be accepted by ISHLT, the organization stated.

In their latest call to uphold the ethical pillars supporting the profession, Sharif and his co-authors cautioned professionals against training visiting physicians or surgeons who could use the gained knowledge in transplants based on organs from executed prisoners or any other transplant-related crime in their home countries.

We believe this is a bold step that underlines the ethical integrity of the society and call upon other transplantation groups to follow this lead, the group wrote.

Eva Fu, Frank Fang, and Cathy He contributed to this report.
Travis Hester, GM Canada's president and managing director, announces new plans for the Oshawa automobile manufacturing facility at a news conference in Toronto on May 8, 2019. (Chris Helgren/Reuters)

GM Takes on Tesla in Home and Commercial Energy Storage, Management

DETROITGeneral Motors Co. is expanding beyond car making, with plans to offer energy storage and management services to residential and commercial customers through its new GM Energy unit in a move that puts it in even greater competition with Tesla Inc.

GM Energy will bundle the existing Ultium Charge 360 public charging service with two new units, Ultium Home and Ultium Commercial, that will offer stationary storage batteries, as well as solar panels and hydrogen fuel cells, the company said on Tuesday.

Were getting into the entire ecosystem of energy management, GM executive Travis Hester said in an interview.

Our competition in this space on the (automaker) side is really only Tesla, which is a strong energy management company, added Hester, who heads EV Growth Operations. There are a lot of analogies you can draw with Tesla.

Teslas seven-year-old energy generation and storage business, which includes solar panels and stationary batteries, lost $129 million last year on revenues of $2.8 billion.

Hester said GM sees a total addressable market of $120 billion to $150 billion in energy storage and management. He declined to provide a revenue projection for GM Energy.

The Ultium Home service will offer stationary wall boxes, similar to Teslas Powerwall units, with sales and installation scheduled to start in late 2023, timed to the launch of the first Chevrolet Silverado EV trucks aimed at private customers.

As Ford Motor Co does with its F-150 Lightning, the Silverado EV will have bi-directional capability, which means it will be able to feed electricity back into the home during a power outage.

GMs commercial service will offer similar capability to businesses, through larger stationary storage units as well as microgrids connected to hydrogen fuel cells developed by the automaker. Businesses in turn will be able to sell energy back to utilities during peak power consumption periods.

GM will team with SunPower Corp to provide customers with solar panels to enhance energy generation.

This is a new space for us, Hester said. We have core competencies in vehicles and batteries, in cell chemistry, and scale manufacturing. Put that together with our expertise in fuel cells, our dealer network, what weve been doing with OnStar and connectivity, and it seems like an obvious step for us.

By Paul Lienert
A voter casts her ballot with her child at a polling station at Rose Hill Elementary School during the midterm primary election in Alexandria, Virginia, on June 21, 2022. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Grassroots Election Integrity Efforts Go Full Scale for Midterms

Grassroots election integrity efforts have risen to a new level for this years midterms.

With more than 4,500 poll watchers and election workers trained, the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election integrity pilot program was a success, according to the Virginia Fair Election Coalition (VFE), a consortium of more than 20 mostly conservative nonprofits.

Similar efforts are occurring in more states, with more volunteers contributing their time and unique expertise. All are laboring with the same goal in mind: a fair and transparent election.

Across the country, people are waking up to how they can work as citizens to restore faith in the outcome of our elections, Jenny Beth Martin, honorary chairwoman of Tea Party Patriots Action (TPP Action), a conservative grassroots advocacy group with about 3 million members nationwide, told The Epoch Times.

Following the template created by VFE in 2021, TPP Action has trained more than 7,500 people on election integrity in multiple states, according to Martin. The group held state tours in Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to offer election-related training sessions, including poll watching in urban and rural areas.

Based in Georgia, TPP Action also partnered with fair election coalitions in many states and participated in election integrity summits in Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.

The table below contains an incomplete tally of the coalitions work results.

Volunteers are not just complaining about a problem but are taking the time to learn how to solve problems and then taking action based on that training, Martin added.

It Impacts Everything

Elizabeth in Texass Travis County, which covers Austin, is one such volunteer.

She had heard of election irregularities before the 2020 election but didnt seriously look into those issues until after Nov. 3, 2020, when everyday citizens raised concerns about the vote and how it was handled and provided witness accounts. Through this process, she got to know other Texans who shared these worries.

Now, Elizabethwho didnt want her last name disclosed, fearing for her privacy and safetyis an overall coordinator of the Texas team, an election integrity task force consisting of 70 members, with between two and four representatives per county in 31 Texas counties. Thats about 12 percent of the 254 counties in the state.

She is focusing on current and future elections because people cannot talk about [the] 2020 [election] with any objectivity, she told The Epoch Times.

Her team is decentralized and doesnt have an official name yet, she said. Different subgroups focus on different initiatives, including recruiting and training poll watchers, door-to-door canvassing to validate voter roll data, filing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, and persuading counties to stop using voting machines.

Elizabeth left her management consultant job in 2014 so that she could spend more time with her son, now 16. But since 2021, she has devoted herself to election integrity efforts.

If we dont have secure, well-run elections, then theres nothing else that works properly in the country, she said. It impacts everythingthis will impact my childs life.

A man casts his vote during the early voting period for the midterms at the Fairfax County Government Center in Fairfax, Va., on Oct. 7, 2022. (Terri Wu/The Epoch Times)

She added that if Americans couldnt be certain about election security and the accuracy of the results, then I dont know where this country will go. So she felt compelled to contribute her project management skills to the drive to secure the countrys elections.

While election integrity has become a hot-button and highly partisan issue since the 2020 election, this shouldnt be the case, Elizabeth believes. Both sides should feel a sense of urgency.

When are we going to look at it if Republicans dont want to look at it when the Republicans win, and Democrats dont want to look at it when the Democrats win? she said.

Elizabeth became a registered Republican after the 2020 election.

The left has left me, she said, adding that the ideas of the left have become extreme.

In addition, as a moderate, Elizabeth was turned off by fellow liberals unfiltered comments about conservatives. The mean and hateful things said about the conservative side are tragic and disturbing.

To Elizabeth, the general gaslighting was the most challenging part of her efforts in advocating for more secure elections.

Whats frustrating is that it feels like the press and the political parties are manipulating some kind of hatred of Trump to keep people from talking about the real issues, she said.

Public Support

But the most rewarding part of Elizabeths endeavor was to know that many more people cared about the issue. From October 2021 to January 2022, the Texas team, using publicly available voter roll data, canvassed voters of the 2000 election in five counties: Bell, Bexar, Williamson, Hays, and Travis.

When door-knocking in these counties, volunteers asked questions to verify the voters address and whether the voter voted using the same method as recorded: absentee, mail-in, or in-person. The goal was to help with voter data clean-up, she said.

Elizabeth door-knocked in her home county, Travis, and other counties.

Everywhere I go and everyone I talk to, theyre concerned, she said.

They dont know what to do, and they want to do something. They want to be involved, and someone to tell them what to do.

The team knocked on more than 8,000 doors and spoke with more than 5,000 people. Elizabeth estimated the responses to the canvassing were: 95 percent positive, 4 percent neutral, and 1 percent negative.

In her home county of Travis, one of the most consistently Democratic counties in the state, the team knocked on more than 2,000 doors and spoke with 1,000 people. They recorded only two negative encounters involving people who were angry about the canvassing.

In Travis County, the team found about 5 percent of voters reported a different voting method for the 2020 election than that specified in county records. But Elizabeth noted that they would need additional data to verify voting method discrepancies. In addition, 3 percent of the canvassed voters didnt live at the recorded addresses during the 2020 election, according to Elizabeth.

Six months ago, the team started providing feedback on data discrepancies to counties. In the past three months, some of the counties made some of their suggested updates to their voter rolls.

A map showing local congressional district changes outside the Fairfax County Government Center, an early voting site, in Fairfax, Va., on Oct. 7, 2022. (Terri Wu/The Epoch Times)

Efforts Ramp Up

Lynn Taylor, VFE chair and president of the Virginia Institute for Public Policy, a nonprofit education and research organization, said grassroots organizers who worked through the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election didnt disappear and take the institutional knowledge with them, as what would typically happen after an election season.

Not only were they still there, but they are all still working, still increasing the numbers of people out there, the citizens who are working on election integrity, shetol d The Epoch Times. Its been phenomenal. Ive never seen anything like it. Its absolutely wonderful.

During the Virginia pilot in 2021, VFE organized training for poll watchers, weekly meetings during the early voting period, and for state and federal-level experts to be available on election day to answer questions for volunteers.

This year, VFE has continued the practice. It has election integrity task forces in more than 60 counties in Virginia, according to Taylor. In addition, it has organized train the trainer events to deepen the bench of poll watcher trainers. This program has resulted in between 20 and 25 trainers being trained in Fairfax Countythe states most populous county with more than a million peoplealone this year.

Frank Lusby, a coordinator for the Arlington County GOP election integrity working group and an executive of a local nonprofit working to reduce poverty through private sector development, attended a VFE election integrity summit in July 2021, and discovered that no one was leading the effort in Arlington County for the Republican Party. He then volunteered to do it.

My primary interest was to learn more about election integrity and to contribute as best as possible to ensure that we have good transparent elections in Virginia and starting in our locality here, Lusby told The Epoch Times. Easy to vote, hard to cheat.

This year, his working group has more volunteers. That means Lusby has been able to supply poll watchers for all early voting days in the county, unlike during the 2021 election, he said.

In addition to poll watching, they have also expanded to other areas, including crosschecking undeliverable election mail returned to the local election office with voter rolls to ensure the roll is up-to-date, observing the processing of mail-in ballots at the Central Absentee Precinct where all absentee ballots in the county are processed, observing the testing of voting machines (also called logic and accuracy testing) at the county election office, attending electoral board meetings, and visiting nursing homes to educate voters potentially vulnerable to ballot harvesting.

Inside an early voting room in the Fairfax County Government Center, an early voting site, in Fairfax, Va., on Oct. 7, 2022. (Terri Wu/The Epoch Times)

Poll Watching Goes Digital

Jonathan Lareau, a data scientist at a defense contractor in northern Virginia, started looking at election data the day after the 2020 elections.

The idea was that, by looking at these numbers, I would be able to show that everything was fine, he told The Epoch Times.

But he ended up discovering that he couldnt even do the analysis due to problematic and subpar data.

Theres no way to validate our elections, Lareau said. Weve got to fix that [election data] first before we ever have a prayer of actually figuring out whether or not an election was legitimate.

For example, he tried to purchase the states registered voter list as of 2020. The Virginia Department of Elections told him that he couldnt do that; only a current list was available.

In an analysis (pdf) of 2020 election results data in the state that Lareau completed in October 2021, he found that a comparison of precinct-level data and the summary data on the Virginia Department of Elections (ELECT) website showed a difference of 144,463 absentee votes.

He further found that the published 2020 voter turnout ratio, which is the number of votes cast versus the number of registered voters in Virginia, could point to potentially more than 382,000 votes being accounted for incorrectly. ELECT initially reported an 81.48 percent turnout ratio that didnt agree with the 4.5 million votes out of the total 6 million registered voters. If the number of votes was correct, the turnout ratio should have been 75 percent. However, if the turnout ratio was correct and the number of votes was wrong, that could mean 382,000 votes were missing.

Lareau said that the turnout ratio on the current website was updated to 75 percent in September 2021 without a public statement explaining the change. The Virginia Department of Elections also didnt return his inquiries seeking an explanation. The Epoch Times sought comment from the department about this issue, but didnt receive a response.

A registered Republican, Lareau self-identifies as a classical liberal, and is more aligned with conservative values while not religious. He said he had voted in Democrat primaries in 2016, but after that in Republican primaries.

The more he reviewed Virginias election data, the more problems he saw and the more committed he was to fixing them. About six months ago, he founded a nonprofit called the Electoral Process Education Corp. The organization developed a platform to process information collected by poll watchers to help with monitoring efforts. It also acquires from ELECT election data that usually arent available to the public to conduct analysis.

So far, Lareau has invested about $20,000 of his own money this year into the nonprofit, and probably needs to spend another $15,000 to purchase datasets such as voter history and registered voters lists.

Early voting for the midterms started in Virginia on Sept. 23. An early voting sign outside the Fairfax County Government Center in Fairfax, Va., on Oct. 7, 2022. (Terri Wu/The Epoch Times)

On his poll watcher reporting platform, poll watchers can record incidents such as voter intimidation, denial of entry, and prohibition from observation. Such incident reports are instantly flagged for the poll watchers team lead. In addition, specific incidents would go immediately to the Republican Party of Virginias legal hotline, Lareau said.

Lareaus online report also collects counts on a poll pad, an electronic tablet that logs voter check-ins, at the opening and closing of shifts. These figures are provided by poll watchers who are allowed to observe the total counts. If the count at the start of a shift doesnt match the previous days closing count, his program flags an error for further investigation by the poll-watching team lead.

Since Virginias early voting began on Sept. 23, his platform has collected more than 100 reports from 14 poll stations in seven counties and one independent city as of Oct. 4. Thats eight localities out of Virginias total of 133 total.

As of Oct. 12, more than half of the poll-watching records were clear without incidents logged. About a fifth of the records contained reported incidents.

Lareau said election integrity teams in California and Texas were also considering using his platform. According to Elizabeth, six to 10 counties on the Texas team are interested. Early voting got underway on Oct. 10 in California and will begin on Oct. 24 in Texas.

In Lareaus view, poll watchers and digital poll watchers should be a part of a political candidates campaign operation.

Because at the end of the day, there is a lot at stake.

Our elections are the most important thing that we have, he said. If our elections arent transparent and arent secure, then there is no foundation for a general republic. Plain and simple.
Police officers work the scene on the corner of 10th and L streets of a shooting that occurred in the early morning hours on April 3, 2022 in Sacramento, Calif. (David Odisho/Getty Images)

Groups Want to Restore Law and Order in Upcoming Election

SANTA CLARA, Calif.The midterm elections are coming up, and people are fed up with the crime plaguing the state. A coalition of groups hopes to bring law and order back.

A number of community leaders are speaking against, what they call, Californias soft on crime policies.

During a Zoom press conference on Oct. 7, Carl Chen, president of the Oakland Chamber of Chinese Commerce, recalled an incident when someone attacked him in public.

When we went through the whole process, believe it or not, at the sentencing, there were about 30, 40 people. They came to the courthouse, and guess what, they were supporting the attacker, Chen said.

He later got a call from a New York Times reporter telling him his attacker was released and there is a GoFundMe for the criminal.

Oh, my God, are you kidding me? So, what my point is, when people keep talking about Im so sorry that you know, youre committing crimes, and when you go out there and support them, you send them the wrong message, Chen said. I dont think any one of us wants to put people in jail. But there have to be consequences.

According to statistics released by the FBI, the country reported similar levels in crime between 2020 and 2021around 11 million criminal offenses reported. Thats a 5.6 percent increase from the number of reports in 2019.

At the state level, the Public Policy Institute of California found that the violent crime rate increased from 440 per 100,000 residents in 2020 to 466 in 2021. Thats a 6 percent increase in the Golden State.

Of the reported violent crimes, aggravated assaults make up 67 percent. The second most common is robberies at 24 percent, followed by rape at 8 percent, and homicides at 1 percent.

The community leaders agree that policies like reducing felonies to misdemeanors and defunding police have brought about more violence.

I have a personal experience back in China and I went through the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. And the first thing the Red Guard came in and destroyed the basic fundamental social order [to] remove the law and general law. So, it created lawlessness in China. And thats a horrible experience, recalled Jason Xu, president of the Silicon Valley Chinese Association Foundation.

Earlier this year, two district attorneys who faced grassroots-led recalls were criticized for their leniency on crime. San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin was successfully removed from office after two recall efforts joined together.

In Los Angeles, George Gascon also faced a recall, but it failed due to a lack of signatures.

In July, a masked shooter gunned down a man working at a 7-Eleven in Southern California. The suspect is responsible for five other 7-Eleven store robberies across the region, which left two dead and three wounded.

In June, San Diego County officials urged a judge to issue the maximum sentence for a repeat offender arrested in Escondido. It was the tenth time the suspect was arrested in the last two years. They blamed Propositions 47 and 57, and Assembly Bill 109 for the offenders record.

Prop. 47, passed in 2014, downgraded certain thefts and drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.

Prop. 57, passed in 2016, allows individuals convicted of nonviolent crimes to be released early to prevent prisons from overcrowding.

AB 109, passed in 2011, allows current non-violent, non-serious, and non-high risk sex offenders to be supervised at the local county level after they are released from California State prison.

In April, a suspect in the downtown Sacramento mass shooting was released from prison just weeks before the incident. He served less than half his 10-year sentence because of voter-approved changes to state law that lessened his punishment for his felony convictions, allowing him to be released earlier. Six people died, and 12 were injured.

In December 2020, San Jose officials urged the county to change the sanctuary policy after they heard that an undocumented suspect accused of stabbing five people at a San Jose Church was a repeat felon who had been deported three times.

On EpochTVs California Insider program, a district attorney said the current crime wave is fueled by well-intentioned but misguided policies that try to reform the criminal justice system. But it can only be remedied when people start voting for change.

Public safety is a very top priority in any society. As simple as that, we have to strike the balance and cannot go to the extreme. At the end of the day, everybody has to have confidence that we can come home safely after a day of work or school, said Frank Lee, president of the Organization for Justice and Equality.

The community leaders encouraged people to elect officials who can regain that balance.

With reporting by Ilene Eng.
Valerie Kloosterman, 42, was fired from her health care job at a Michigan clinic in 2021 after she raised religious objections to transgender pronoun use and gender-altering medical procedures, photographed on Sept. 30, 2022. (Photo Courtesy of First Liberty Institute)

Lawsuit: Woman Illegally Fired for Opposing Gender-Altering Treatments

Michigan health care worker cited religious, medical beliefs 'contrary to agenda' of employer

A Michigan health care system is accused of wrongfully firing a health care worker who held religious beliefs about gender and sexuality that are contrary to its agenda, a federal lawsuit says.

As The Epoch Times reported last week, former physician assistant Valerie Kloosterman had attempted to avoid suing her former employer, University of Michigan Health-West (UM Health-West).

Attorneys from First Liberty Institute, a non-profit public interest law firm dedicated to defending religious freedom, had sent a letter asking Kloostermans employer to reinstate her and to discontinue alleged illegal and discriminatory practices.

After that attempt failed, First Liberty filed suit on Oct. 11 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, alleging constitutional violations. The Epoch Times has contacted UM Health-West for comment about the suit filed in Grand Rapids, Mich.

This is the health clinic in Caledonia, Mich., where physician assistant Valerie Kloosterman worked for 17 years until she was fired in 2021 over her religious beliefs opposing gender-altering treatments, her lawyers allege in a lawsuit filed against the University of Michigan Health-West, photographed in 2022. (Courtesy of First Liberty Institute)

Culture War Escalates

In a 56-page complaint, First Liberty alleges that UM Health-West violated Kloostermans rights under the state and federal constitutions by firing her last year after she disclosed religious and medical reasons for opposing gender-altering treatments and pronouns differing from patients biological sex.

The lawsuit comes amid rising national and worldwide furor over the use of such treatments for children, as a cultural clash between progressive and conservative ideologies intensifies.

Throughout her employment, Kloosterman received nothing but positive reviews and accolades from her superiors, her colleagues, and her patients, her lawyers wrote.

No one complained about Kloosterman, a married mother of four children.

The hospital gave Kloosterman glowing performance reviews, treated her with appreciation and respect, and did not seek to compel her to violate her religious beliefs or her independent medical judgment, the suit said of previous management.

A medical professional checks a patients blood pressure in an undated file photo. (Anthony Devlin/PA)

Attitude Shift Following Merger

But the hospitals stance changed in mid-2021 after Metropolitan Hospital culminated a 12-year transition to affiliate with the University of Michigan Health System. After that, Metropolitan rebranded itself the University of Michigan Health-West, and then fired Ms. Kloosterman for no reason other than her sincerely held religious beliefs, the lawsuit says.

Problems arose after a diversity training session requested Kloosterman to affirm she agreed with its content. She could not do so honestly. Thus, Kloosterman revealed her reasons for disagreeing with the principles espoused in the training.

Kloosterman adheres to tenets that Christians have held for two millennia, the suit says, including that God created humans as males and females, preordains their sex, and that one should not attempt to erase or to alter his or her sex, especially through drugs or surgical means, the suit said.

After that disclosure, officials grew hostile toward Kloosterman, calling her evil and mocking her religious beliefs, the suit says. Then her employer attempted to compel Ms. Kloosterman to pledge, against her sincerely held religious convictions and her medical conscience, that she would speak biology-obscuring pronouns and make referrals for gender transition drugs and procedures, the court filing says.

A large family Bible, after restoration. (Sandy Stansell) Concerned About Patient Care Kloosterman cited medical-based opposition to the training, too. She promised to uphold the Hippocratic oath, first, do no harm, requiring her to make treatment decisions that she is confident will help patients instead of harming them. Based on her research, Kloosterman believes that puberty-blocking drugs, cross-sex hormones, and gender-reassignment surgeries are experimental, lack validation  and often lead to negative clinical outcomes, such as bone density loss, infection, nerve damage, chronic pain, among others, the lawsuit asserts. In addition, using pronouns that obscure a persons biological sex can cause patients to miss potentially life-saving screenings that are based on sex, such as breast and testicular exams, her lawyers wrote. No patient ever asked Kloosterman to provide those treatments during her 17-year career at a clinic in Caledonia, Michigan, her lawyers said. Kloosterman also never used a pronoun that contradicted any of her patients wishes. Therefore, Kloostermans lawyers believe she would never have been fired if she had kept her beliefs secret. Chloe Cole, an 18-year-old woman who regrets surgically removing her breasts, holds testosterone medication used for transgender patients, in Northern California on Aug. 26, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Intolerance Alleged

In a prepared statement, Kayla Toney, Counsel for First Liberty Institute, said, Because Valerie wouldnt violate her conscience, Michigan Health violated her rights and ended her employment. Toney called UM Health-Wests actions blatantly intolerant.

Kloosterman is the third generation in her family to work in the local health care system and is a lifelong resident of the community. But when UM Health-West fired her, she was barred from saying goodbye to beloved colleagues and patients, her lawyers said.

She is devastated that the University of Michigan health system derided her beliefs and demanded that she choose between her faith and providing health care, Toney said.

Kloosterman is asking the court to declare that her former employers acted in violation of state and federal laws. She also wants the court to require that UM Health-West comply with the laws it allegedly violated and to fully consider employees religious-accommodation requests. In addition, she wants to receive actual, compensatory, and punitive damages, among other remedies.
Neuropathic pain is a disorder characterized by abnormal pain perception, which can cause extreme pain to even mild stimuli and bring great discomfort to daily life. Now, the cells needed for natural recovery from pain have been identified in a Japanese study.

In April, a research project led by Professor Makoto Tsuda and Takahiro Masuda, an associate professor at the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyushu University, identified the cells needed for natural recovery from pain. The results were published in the journal Science in March.

The researchers found that some activated microglia in the spinal cord of mice with nerve injury changed and began to form a specialized subset. The timing of these changes correlated with the duration of pain reduction. The researchers proved the role of this microglial subset by removing it from the spinal cords of mice. After the removal, they observed that the pain did not naturally subside and persisted for a long time.

Although microglia have long been thought to be the culprit in the development of chronic pain, the researchers found that even if the nerves are damaged, the pain can be gradually and naturally relieved in mice. After further detailed study, they found that when the mice experienced pain relief, part of the changes in microglia produced a substance called IGF1 (insulin-like growth factor 1), which effectively relieved pain.

According to the research team, nerve damage caused by cancer, diabetes, herpes zoster, and brain infarction can lead to long-term pain. This chronic pain, known as neuropathic pain, cannot be suppressed by normal antipyretic pain relievers, and even strong drugs like morphine do little to help. However, if compounds can be found that increase the number of microglia subsets, more IGF1 could be produced, leading to the development of effective treatments for chronic pain.

It follows a study of nociceptive nerves by scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, which found that nerve damage can cause sensory neurons previously thought to be unrelated to pain to start transmitting pain signals.

This happens due to a family of small RNA molecules called microRNA (nucleotide). Instead of being translated into proteins, these coding fragments are involved in regulating the expression of other genes. In particular, the microRNA-183 (miR-183) in microRNA plays a major role in this process. The research is published in the journal Science.

The study shows that microRNA levels drop after nerve injury, leading to an increase in certain ion channels. Elevated ion channel density can transform sensory neurons into nociceptive transmitter neurons.

Chronic pain is often associated with a number of diseases, such as rheumatic pain and migraine, Dr. Zheng Jie, MD, of the University of Tokyo, told The Epoch Times.

In the treatment of these diseases, pain-related treatment is very important, he said.

However, existing drugs are not ideal for the treatment of chronic pain due to a series of side effects. This study by the collaborative team of Kyushu University is the first in the world to find cells needed for natural recovery from pain, which is expected to bring a new direction to the treatment of chronic pain patients.
Previous monoclonal antibody treatments against COVID-19 have had mixed results against variants. However, new research uncovered two antibodies that work against all known strains of COVID-19.

The researchers believe that with effective antibody treatment, we will not have to provide booster doses to the entire population every time there is a new variant

The antibodies  TAU-1109 and TAU-2310  bind to a different area of the spike protein than other antibodies, one that doesnt undergo many mutations

Two antibodies have been uncovered that are so effective at neutralizing COVID-19  and all of its variants  that they believe the antibodies could serve as an effective substitute for vaccines

Researchers at Tel Aviv University revealed two antibodies that are so effective at neutralizing SARS-CoV-2  and all of its variants  that they believe the antibodies could serve as an effective substitute for vaccines.1 One of the glaring failures surrounding COVID-19 shots is their lack of effectiveness against emerging COVID-19 strains.

By choosing the spike protein on which to base COVID-19 shots, scientists picked a protein that not only was known to be toxic to humans but was not the part of the virus that prompted the best immune response.

Spike protein mutates rapidly, which essentially destroys virtually any protection that the shot provides shortly after its given. The end result is a seemingly never-ending series of annual shots and boosters, which can only offer rapidly waning protection. If the Israeli researchers findings are verified and the antibodies turn out to be as effective as suspected, it could eliminate COVID-19 booster shots entirely.2

Previous Antibody Treatments Had Mixed Results

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized multiple monoclonal antibody (mAb) cocktails for the treatment of COVID-19. However, as variants emerged, their effectiveness varied, with some becoming ineffective and others retaining their activity.

This indicates that some antibodies elicited by infection are more variation-sensitive than others, and that antibody breadth of specificity, and not only potency, should be considered, the researchers, from the department of clinical microbiology and immunology at Tel Aviv Universitys Sackler Faculty of Medicine,3 wrote in the journal Communications Biology.4

For instance, in January 2022, the FDA limited the use of two monoclonal antibody treatments  bamlanivimab and etesevimab, which are administered together, and REGEN-COV (casirivimab and imdevimab)  to patients infected with a variant known to be susceptible to them.5 The two antibody treatments mentioned had lost much of their effectiveness against the omicron variant, leading to the usage restriction in people infected with omicron.

On the other hand, in February 2022, the FDA issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for a monoclonal antibody treatment known as bebtelovimab, which retained activity against the omicron variant.6 According to the FDA:7

Bebtelovimab works by binding to the spike protein of the virus that causes COVID-19, similar to other monoclonal antibodies that have been authorized for the treatment of high-risk patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 and shown a benefit in reducing the risk of hospitalization or death.

The way the antibodies bind to the spike protein may hold the key to their ultimate effectiveness against various strains. In previous research conducted in October 2020, lead study author Natalia Freund and colleagues isolated nine antibodies from people who recovered from the original COVID-19 strain in Israel. Freund stated in a news release:8

In the previous study, we showed that the various antibodies that are formed in response to infection with the original virus are directed against different sites of the virus. The most effective antibodies were those that bound to the viruss spike protein, in the same place where the spike binds the cellular receptor ACE2.

Of course, we were not the only ones to isolate these antibodies, and the global health system made extensive use of them until the arrival of the different variants of the coronavirus, which in fact rendered most of those antibodies useless.

Two Antibodies Neutralize All COVID-19 Strains

The featured study picks up where the October 2020 study left off, revealing two antibodies  TAU-1109 and TAU-2310  that bind to a different area of the spike protein  one that doesnt undergo many mutations  making them capable of neutralizing all known strains of COVID-19. According to Freund:9

In the current study, we proved that two other antibodies, TAU-1109 and TAU-2310, which bind the viral spike protein in a different area from the region where most of the antibodies were concentrated until now (and were therefore less effective in neutralizing the original strain) are actually very effective in neutralizing the Delta and Omicron variants.

Specifically, they found TAU-1109 is 92% effective at neutralizing the omicron strain and 90% effective at neutralizing the delta strain. TAU-2310 has an efficacy rate of 84% at neutralizing omicron and a 97% efficacy rate against the delta variant.10 The study was conducted in collaboration with the University of California at San Diego, where the two antibodies were sent for additional testing against live viruses in laboratory cultures.

The antibodies were also tested against pseudoviruses at Bar-Ilan University in the Galilee. The results were identical and equally encouraging in both tests, according to a news release.11 Whats interesting is that the mutating virus may have played a part in making the two antibodies so effective. Freund explained:12

The infectivity of the virus increased with each variant because each time, it changed the amino acid sequence of the part of the spike protein that binds to the ACE2 receptor, thereby increasing its infectivity and at the same time evading the natural antibodies that were created following vaccinations.

In contrast, the antibodies TAU-1109 and TAU-2310 dont bind to the ACE2 receptor binding site, but to another region of the spike protein  an area of the viral spike that for some reason does not undergo many mutations  and they are therefore effective in neutralizing more viral variants. These findings emerged as we tested all the known COVID strains to date.

COVID Booster Shots Are Not the Answer

Freund believes that the antibodies are so effective they could ultimately replace COVID-19 booster shots. This is welcome news, as most protection gained from COVID-19 shots, including boosters, doesnt last.

One study funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention involved data from 10 states collected from August 26, 2021, to January 22, 2022, periods during which both the delta and omicron variants were circulating.13 Within two months of the second COVID-19 shot, protection against emergency department and urgent care visits related to COVID-19 was at 69%. This dropped to 37% after five months post-shot.

The low effectiveness five months after the initial shot series is what prompted officials to recommend a booster dose  and the third shot boosted effectiveness to 87%. This boost was short-lived, however. Within four to five months post-booster, protection against emergency department (ED) and urgent care (UC) visits decreased to 66%, then fell to just 31% after five months or more post-booster.14

Rather than admitting defeat, health officials are planning to hand out even more doses of their embarrassingly ineffective boosters with new so-called updated shots. On August 31, 2022, the FDA amended the EUAs of Moderna and Pfizers COVID-19 shots to authorize bivalent formulations to be used as booster doses at least two months after a previous booster or primary serious of the shots.

The bivalent vaccines, which we will also refer to as updated boosters, contain two messenger RNA (mRNA) components of SARS-CoV-2 virus, one of the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and the other one in common between the BA.4 and BA.5 lineages of the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, the FDA stated.15

In addition to the strong possibility that protection against COVID-19 will once again rapidly disappear following the booster, theres a real risk of serious adverse events from repeatedly artificially inflating antibodies in your body via repeated booster shots.

This tricks your body into thinking its always infected with COVID-19, a condition that can only lead to a death zone, accelerating the development of autoimmune conditions such as Parkinsons, Kawasaki disease and multiple sclerosis, according to tech leader and COVID analyst Marc Girardot, who urged a retreat from the COVID shot death zone before its too late.16

With Antibody Treatment We Will Not Have to Use Boosters

There may be a light at the end of the tunnel, as Freund is confident the cross-neutralizing capabilities of antibodies naturally elicited during wild type SARS-CoV-2 infection may end up providing an alternative to booster shots. She stated:17

For reasons we still dont yet fully understand, the level of antibodies against COVID-19 declines significantly after three months, which is why we see people getting infected again and again, even after being vaccinated three times.

In our view, targeted treatment with antibodies and their delivery to the body in high concentrations can serve as an effective substitute for repeated boosters, especially for at-risk populations and those with weakened immune systems.

COVID-19 infection can cause serious illness, and we know that providing antibodies in the first days following infection can stop the spread of the virus. It is therefore possible that by using effective antibody treatment, we will not have to provide booster doses to the entire population every time there is a new variant.

Natural Immunity Is Key

This is encouraging, though not exactly surprising considering whats known about natural immunity  the type earned by recovering from infection. A 2022 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)18 is just one example of research showing natural COVID-19 immunity is not only effective but lasts longer than the immunity thats acquired from COVID-19 shots.19

Whats more, prior COVID-19 infection  i.e., natural immunity  offered better protection against symptomatic omicron infection more than one year later than three doses of COVID-19 shots did after one month.

To put it into numbers, a graph in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that previous infection was 54.9% effective against symptomatic omicron infection after more than 12 months, while three doses of Pfizers COVID-19 shot were only 44.7% effective a month later. The same held true for three doses of Modernas COVID-19 shot, which were only 41.2 % effective after one month, compared to 53.5% effectiveness for natural immunity more than a year later.20

Another one of the most talked-about reports showing the superiority of natural immunity involved data presented July 17, 2021, to the Israeli Health Ministry, which revealed that, of more than 7,700 COVID-19 cases reported, only 72 occurred in people who had previously had COVID-19  a rate of less than 1%. In contrast, more than 3,000 cases  or approximately 40%  occurred in people who had received a COVID-19 shot.21

In other words, those who were vaccinated were nearly 700% more likely to develop COVID-19 than those who had natural immunity from a prior infection.22

Why is there a good chance you havent heard about this news? Repeated booster shots equate to ongoing dollar signs for Big Pharma and the health agencies and officials it controls. So it remains to be seen whether an antibody treatment that targets every COVID-19 variant effectively will ever see the light of day in hospitals and outpatient clinics.

Originally published

References
People walk along a promenade by Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong on Sept. 29, 2022. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images)

Hong Kong Reduces COVID Measures as Its International Shine Dims

Beijings preferential treatment of the city is for its own benefit, industrialist says

Hong Kong was saved by a group of Wall Street executives, who forced Beijing to allow the city to drop draconian quarantine policies which have lasted for two years.

In a bid to revive Hong Kongs rapidly eroding status as a financial center due to strict quarantine policies, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) plans to hold an investment summit with a star cast in early November.

In August, the HKMA invited the chief executives of global investment banks, including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup Inc., and UBS AG.

However, some banks told Hong Kong officials that their executives from the United States and Europe will only attend if they are exempted from hotel quarantine policies.

In response, the HKMA promised to waive quarantine requirements for the summit participants. The bank executives, however, say they dont want special treatment and a negative public perception because other employees of their firms and the rest of Hong Kong are still affected by the restrictions.

As a result, the Hong Kong government announced on Aug. 9 that it would shorten the COVID-19 quarantine period for inbound passengers from 7 days to 3 days.

0+3 Plan

Then on Sept. 23, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu further announced that starting from Sept. 26, inbound travelers would no longer be required to stay in hotels. While the mandatory three-day hotel quarantine would be dropped, they would still be banned from restaurants, and bars for three days. The new quarantine policy is known as 0+3 plan.

John Lee Ka-chiu, the new chief executive of Hong Kong attended the first Q&A session at LegCo., on July 6, 2022. (Sung Bi-lung/The Epoch Times)

Meanwhile, mainland China is still sticking to its Zero-COVID policy. In late September, Chinas state post office, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of State Security jointly issued a circular requiring postal courier companies to strengthen security checks and sterilize all mail and express mail sent to Beijing during the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)s 20th National Congress.

So why is Beijing being lenient with Hong Kong? Elmer Yuen Gong-yi, a Hong Kong electronics industrialist believes that its because the CCP needs Hong Kongs money.

Beijing needs Hong Kong to open up again because Hong Kong is the source of foreign exchange for the CCP, Yuen told The Epoch Times. Seventy percent of Chinas foreign exchange comes from Hong Kong.

If Hong Kong remains isolated for a long time, this financial center will not be able to contribute to the CCP. The CCP is anxious to restore the freedom of travel in Hong Kong, otherwise, all financial capital companies and foreign investment banks would not dare to come to Hong Kong.

Thats why the CCP wants to lift all isolation policies in Hong Kong as soon as possible by November.

People walk past a banks electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange in Hong Kong on Oct. 4, 2021. (Vincent Yu/AP Photo)

Yuen said that some Wall Street executives are still dissatisfied with the current relaxed epidemic prevention policy and are asking for further relaxation.

They are still not satisfied with the 0+3plan, so the government may change it to 0+0 soon, he said. They will only go to Hong Kong if it is reduced to 0+0 by November.

International Status at Risk

Two years of stringent epidemic prevention policies have cost Hong Kong its status as an international financial center as well as an aviation hub.

In the latest edition of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 32) published on Sept. 22, Hong Kong fell from 3rd to 4th place, replaced by Singapore which rose from 6th to 3rd. The report pointed out that the severe travel restrictions in Hong Kong have affected daily business transactions.

International Air Transport Association (IATA) Director General Willie Walsh said that the CCPs Zero-COVID policy has cost Hong Kongs position as a global aviation hub.

Hong Kong has lost its position as a global hub and will struggle to regain it because other hubs have taken advantage of it, Walsh said on Sept. 21 at an IATA conference in the Qatari capital Doha.

A Cathay Pacific aircraft comes into land at Hong Kong International Airport on Aug. 11, 2021. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images)

Data shows that Hong Kongs airport carried only 591,000 passengers in the second quarter of 2022, less than one-tenth of the passenger traffic at Singapores Changi Airport. Singapores airports received 7.3 million passengers last quarter.

Hong Kong has lost tremendously in other areas as well.

Since the outbreak of the CCP virus, wave after wave of Hong Kong residents has left the city. According to the Census and Statistics Department in August, about 113,200 Hong Kong residents left Hong Kong in 2021, compared to 89,200 in 2020.

Many multinational companies that have operated in Hong Kong for decades have moved their headquarters and employees out to places like Singapore and Seoul. Teachers, foreign athletes, and many of the professional elite who taught in international schools have also left.

In September, Hong Kongs financial secretary revealed that Hong Kong could face a budget deficit of more than HK$100 billion (about US$12.7 billion) which would be the second-highest deficit on record.

Why Hong Kong is Essential

Hong Kong plays an important role in the CCPs economy.

Firstly, Hong Kong is a center for equity financing. Mainland Chinese companies have raised $335 billion through Hong Kong listings since 1997 following the U.K. returning the city to China. Since the Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the U.S. dollar and Hong Kong has no capital controls, Hong Kong listings can be a strong currency for foreign acquisitions and investment, an advantage that Shanghai listings dont have.

New York was once a favored alternative listing venue for Chinese companies, but it has become increasingly difficult for them to list in the United States due to multifaceted sanctions against the CCP by the United States, including the recently launched Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act.

A man looks at a banks electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange, on March 1, 2022. (Vincent Yu/Reuters)

Secondly, Hong Kong is also a center for debt financing and the biggest offshore bond issuance center for Chinese companies. Companies are able to borrow from Hong Kong with longer maturities, and they can tap into strong currency funding, according to Alicia Garcia Herrero, chief Asia economist at Natixis, a French investment bank.

Third, Hong Kong is a venue for offshore RMB trading. Hong Kong is the main offshore center for RMB lending, bonds, and trading. Its easier for China to influence the offshore exchange rate in Hong Kong than in other offshore markets, according to Victor Shih, an associate professor of political economy at the University of California, San Diego. That means Hong Kong can support RMB if needed to help stem capital outflows.

Yuen told The Epoch Times that the CCP is using Hong Kong to earn foreign exchange. When the CCP doesnt need it anymore, it wont need to give preferential treatment to Hong Kong, Yuen said.
A member of staff looks at the Rosetta stone displayed for the exhibition "Hieroglyphs: Unlocking Ancient Egypt" at the British Museum in London, on Oct. 11, 2022. The exhibition explores the inscriptions and objects that helped scholars unlock one of the world's oldest civilizations, exactly 200 years since this pivotal moment. (Carlos Jasso/AFP via Getty Images)

How Do We Carve a Rosetta Stone for Today?

Commentary

Todays tsunami of economic, social, technological, and geopolitical dislocation may be more than a temporary setback for humanity. It could lead to an erosion of the ability to access the fragile media we have used to record our lives.

The loss of the mostly papyrus-based documents in the great fire at the Library of Alexandria was already a disaster from which the world never fully recovered. What we face today is potentially a far more serious human setback.

Part of the challenge is that were in a period of a tectonic shift in human history with the fortunate or unfortunate characteristic that its perceived as business as usual and not as a period of extreme change. We see no urgency in finding ways to preserve or even understand history. We see learning consigned to fragile electronic storage, which is even more perishable than papyrus or paper.

We lose wisdom when history becomes inaccessible. And governance without wisdom is primitive. Tools of life and governance may erode and become unstable due to the following:

We have become existentially dependent on electricity for survival, and this pervasiveness is a byproduct of wealth. Yet, its evident that wealth and constant electrical supply are already unstable, and are likely to wane and become patchy for many societies over the coming decades.

Electronic storage devices, as well as electronic languages, have been successively replaced at a rapid rate since the post-World War II period, with a declining ability to retrieve and translate older content (knowledge) into current forms. While the technology and software still exist within specialist areas to access and translate the content, much material is no longer generally accessible. With economic decline, the ability to educate or to assign resources needed for this retrieval process becomes narrowed to pools of expertise, much as literacy and information became confined to monasteries during the Dark Ages.

Politically driven education agendas in many countries have already reduced the general ability to find information, despite the internet, and have restricted awareness that such knowledge exists and is vital. Most societies today are driven by rumor and ignorance.

The result has been that pervasive technology has meant that emotional stimuli (mostly fear) can now be transmitted globally within moments. Still, more profound knowledge and contextual understanding are more difficult to access and transmit. Social and educational transformations have meant that human attention spans have become shorter. Therefore, the ability and desire to understand information become lost to most of society around the world.

Couple that with the reality that most people in all societies would rather accept the diktats of their governments than accept responsibility for individual choice. The rapid march toward societies disassociated from their past becomes inevitable.

Societies ignorant of their past inevitably focus solely on short-term survival, which becomes a transactional process.

It was clear to King Ptolemy V Epiphanes, in 196 B.C., that a transition had occurred in Egyptian history. His was a Hellenistic dynasty, just more than a century into its domination of Egyptfrom its recent history as a Persian satrapyafter it had been conquered by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C.

Perhaps, out of fear of Egypt losing a window into the history of the native Egyptian dynasties, he demanded that a stele of black granodiorite stone be erected in Memphis, Egypt, with the same message repeated in hieroglyphic and demotic scripts, as well as in ancient Greek.

The stone was later moved to the town of Rashid (Rosetta) in the Nile delta, where it was eventually discovered by Napoleonic invaders in 1799.

Visitors view the Rosetta stone at the British Museum in London on July 26, 2022. The Rosetta stonea basalt slab dating from 196 B.C., which bore extracts of a decree written in ancient Greek, an ancient Egyptian vernacular script called demotic, and hieroglyphicshas been housed in the British Museum since 1802. (Amir Makar/AFP via Getty Images)

The Rosetta stone became the first means by which modern scholars could read and understand the hieroglyphics that carried the history of Egypt over the preceding millennia. Ptolemy Vs move was prophetic because a century and a half lateras Caesar pursued his rival, Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus), into Egypt in 48 B.C.the conflict caused the fire that destroyed the great library of Alexandria.

With that, we lost the knowledge of millennia of human endeavors and progress. The Rosetta stone subsequently became a precious clue as to how we might reopen a tiny, inadequate window to much of Egypts pharaonic past. There were fewer mechanisms by which we could understand much of prehistory or even the Dark Agesand the corresponding dark ages in Eurasia, Africa, the Americas, and the Pacificbecause written language was scarce and difficult to preserve.

Arguably, we have been seeing a decline in deep literacy and, therefore, an absence of contextual comprehension of history and cultures since World War II. The mid-20th century marked the period when technological and scientific dominance occurred over classical social knowledge and education. This reached a point by the late 20th century when technological and scientific education came to see knowledge of the classics as a rival, or as unnecessary, to science and technology.

The realityas the peaking of the worship of science and technology was achievedis that deep literacy and historical knowledge are essential partners of science and technology in the constant evolution of human tool-building. Without literacy and access to an understanding of context (wisdom), science and technology began to lose objectivity and purpose.

History records the cycles of wealth and declineboom and bustin which civilizations and population numbers collapse at the pinnacle of wealth and hubris. Were entering such a phase now, with more global consequences than ever.

What have we done to preserve access by future generations to the great history and lessons of our era and preceding eras? How can we devise our own Rosetta stone to pass the torch to generations, even a few decades down the path?

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives, wrote President James Madison.

For six months, the Father of the Constitution sequestered himself in his upstairs study in the familys Virginia home, Montpelier. There, he engaged in an intensive study of civilizationsboth ancient and modernin his quest for wisdom in shaping the Constitution of a young republic. Here, he synopsized his ideas into principles he felt essential for a representative democracy: what would be known as the Virginia Plan, which would become the basis for creating our Constitution.

James Madison would always remember the day, as a youth of 14, when his family moved into the fine brick Georgian house. In fact, he helped carry in the furniture. His father, James Madison Sr., built the symmetrical house in Flemish bond (patterned brick) in the 1760s. It had a center hall and four rooms on the first floor and five rooms on the second. Crowning the house was a low hipped shingle roof with chimneys on both ends. James Madison, Father of the Constitution and fourth president, would consider Montpelier his home for the duration of his life.

Miniature bust portrait of James Madison by Charles Willson Peale, 1783. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

Returning from Philadelphia, Madison brought his wife Dolley to his familys Montpelier home in 1797. Seventeen years her senior, James Madison had married the recently widowed Dolley and adopted her son, John Payne Todd, three years prior. At Montpelier, the Madisons added a 30-foot addition to the house, creating a very fine multigenerational duplex, with separate living quarters for each generation. The older and younger Madisons would visit each other by way of the grand Tuscan portico that was added to the house at the time. It covered the two distinct entrance doors to each familys part of the dwelling. There was no interior passage between them.

A careful examination of the facade reveals the place where the addition was joined to the original house, tying in the new brick to the original corner. Madisons mother Nellie continued to live in the house following the death of James Sr. in 1801.

The younger James Madison had served in Congress, and he formerly retired from public service when he and Dolley moved to Montpelier. In 1801, Madisons good friend Thomas Jefferson appointed him secretary of state. He served in that capacity until 1809, when he was elected president. During the next eight years, he and Dolley would serve as president and first lady, living in the Presidents House until it was burned by the British in August 1814. After restoration, when the charred sandstone exterior was painted, the presidential mansion became the White House.

Portraits of James and Dolley Madison, by Gilbert Stuart, hang in the drawing room above the piano. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

The classical temple at Montpelier, designed by James Madison, housed a 24-foot ice well. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

In 1809, Madison took some of his $25,000-a-year salary as president and began expanding Montpelier. He added one-story wings on either end of the house. On the south side, he created an apartment for his mother. On the north side, he built a library for his 4,000-volume collection. Thomas Jefferson designed a new grand entry door at the center of the mansion, which led into the Drawing Room, where the former president greeted visitors. Comparable to the hall of Jeffersons Monticello, Madisons Drawing Room became a showcase for his interests and ideals. It was designed to make a powerful impression.

According to historian Michael Quinn, Madisons Drawing Room was intended to be a history lesson: For Madison, the history of humanity was really his laboratoryand he had studied past attempts at self-governmentso he knew that what America was today was founded on the past. Prominently hung on the wall is a large painting featuring a Pan figure and a nymph, painted by Gerrit Van Honthorst around 1630. This 17th-century Dutch painting became a reference to the Greek and Roman world and the beginning of democracy. Next to it is a large painting of the Supper at Emmaus, a reference to the time when Biblical ideals informed the affairs of men.

According to Quinn, the final epoch of Americas foundation is represented by the series of presidential portraits arranged in a group. Washingtons portrait is alone at the top. Below are portraits of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe: the first president above the second, third, and fifth presidents. Quinn attributes Madisons omission of his portrait in sequence, between Jefferson and Monroe, to two factors. First, Madison was an incredibly modest man, and second, where his portrait is placed in the room is next to that of his beloved Dolley. This, Quinn stated, shows you what was truly important to the man.

Overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains, James Madisons desk is located in the middle of his second-floor library, where he wrote the foundations of the U.S. Constitution. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

There are busts of many of the nations Founding Fathers in the Drawing Roomall friends of the Madisonsincluding George Washington, John Adams, James Monroe, and Benjamin Franklin. They entertained an endless stream of visitors in the years following the Madison presidency. The Marquis de Lafayette was a guest, as well as Andrew Jackson. If you came as a friend, or with a letter of introduction, you would be welcomed to come further into the family home. If you simply came to the house unannounced, you might only come into the drawing room, which served as a sort of early American visitors center.

If you were an invited guest to Montpelier, however, you might dine with the Madisons in their elegant Dining Room. The walls are covered in wallpaper known as Virchaux Drapery, which is of French design and creates the effect of being in a pavilion. This stylized drapery pattern was designed by the architect Joseph Ramee in partnership with Henry Virchaux, a French emigre printer working in Philadelphia between 1814 and 1816.

James Madison would not sit at the head of the table, as was culturally expected. He preferred to sit along the side. The head of the table would be occupied by Dolley, who directed and coordinated the meals. This arrangement was startling at first to visitors, but soon they found it quite agreeable. James and Dolley gracefully shared the tasks of entertaining: He was more often involved in the weighty affairs of state being discussed, while she enjoyed the art of hospitality.

The dining room walls are covered in reproduction wallpaper known as Virchaux Drapery, which is of French design and dates back to 1815 in Philadelphia. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

Pan, Youths, and Nymphs by Gerrit Van Honthorst, circa 1630. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

Beyond the Dining Room is the wing containing Madisons great library. It was built while he was away, serving as president, but clearly with a future purpose in mind. He had regular correspondence with his builder, James Dinsmore, who also worked for Thomas Jefferson. Mr. Dinsmore weighed in on the design of the library. A letter from Dinsmore reads:

I intended before you went from here to mention to you whether you would not think it advisable to put two windows in the end of the library room? But it escaped My Memory; I have been Reflecting on it Since and believe it will as without them the wall will have a very Dead appearance, and there will be no direct View towards the temple Should you ever build one. My reason for omitting them in the Drawing was that the Space might be occupyd (sic) for Book Shelves but I believe there will be sufficiency of room without as the piers between the windows will be large and the whole of the other end except the breadth of the door may be occupyd (sic) for that purpose.

The windows that Dinsmore suggested were put in, and the round classical temple was built. The library was planned as a space that was large enough for Madison to pursue his last great work: compiling, annotating, and expanding further upon the notes he had taken of the Constitutional Convention (May to September 1787) in order to complete a thorough record of the founding of America. The urgency he felt to perform this work was born in the months of research he had done prior to the convention. In the late 1780s, he carried out a great deal of research to study every historical attempt of mankind to form a democracy, confederation, or any method of representative government.

Visitors of the Madisons described the walls of the drawing room as being entirely covered with

paintings. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

An architectural drawing of the evolution of Montpelier, by Bob Kirchman. (Courtesy of Montpelier)

Madison found little documentation to guide him and numerous accounts of failure. He set out to produce a guide that exemplified the decision and debates of the American founders. During his final years, he wrote a thousand pages that were later compiled into The Papers of James Madison, providing a record for future men who may also be striving for liberty. Even in his 80s, visitors report that his mind was bright as he discussed these ideals. He died at the age of 85, on June 28, 1836the oldest surviving delegate to the Constitutional Convention.

Madison was always fearful that Americas own experiment in self governance might fail. After his death, a document he had written, James Madison, Advice to My Country, December, 1830 was found among his papers. In it he wrote, with clear allusion to both classical and Biblical wisdom:
Indiana Abortion Ban Remains Blocked After State Supreme Courts Decision, Pending Hearing in January

The Indiana Supreme Court issued an order on Oct. 12 that bars the state from enforcing a near-total abortion ban while the court considers whether the ban is in violation of the states constitution.

It comes after a judge blocked the new abortion ban on Sept. 22, putting it on hold temporarily amid ongoing litigation.

State Attorney General Todd Rokita, a Republican, appealed to the Indiana Supreme Court to lift the preliminary injunction, as well as to take over the case, bypassing the typical intermediate step of it being considered by the state appeals court.

Planned Parenthood can present no textual or historical argument in support of a right to abortion, and the Indiana Supreme Court rightly concluded that it needs to resolve the issue right away, Rokita said in a statement.

The five-member court on Oct. 12 denied the request to lift the preliminary injunction, but agreed to take up the case, and scheduled a hearing on the lawsuit for Jan. 12, 2023.

All five members of the court, who were appointed by Republican governors, did not explain their decision. The order, signed by Chief Justice Loretta Rush, said a majority of the court agreed with its provisions but gave no further details.

The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Indiana, which is representing the abortion clinic operators, on Aug. 31 (pdf). The plaintiffs include Planned Parenthood, Whole Womans Health Alliance, All-Options, Inc., Womens Med Group Professional Corporation, and a doctor.

They argued that the state constitution protects access to abortion and that Indianas new abortion ban violates the state constitution.

Indiana became the first state to introduce a tighter ban on abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24 repealed Roe v. Wade. The abortion banalso referred to as SB1had taken effect on Sept. 15 before it was put on hold on Sept. 22. It was approved by Indianas Republican-majority Legislature and was signed into law by Gov. Eric Holcomb on Aug. 5.

The legislation bans all abortions, except in the case of incest, rape, a diagnosis of a lethal fetal anomaly, or in circumstances where abortion is determined necessary to protect the life and physical health of the mother. The rape and incest exceptions are limited to 10 weeks after fertilization; and in such cases, victims would not be required to sign a notarized affidavit attesting to an attack.

Abortion providers violating SB1 stand to have their licenses revoked as well as face fines of up to $10,000, and prison terms of up to six years.

Abortion to Remain Legal for Now

The Indiana Supreme Courts order on Oct. 12 means that for now, abortion will continue to remain legal in Indiana up to 20 weeks after fertilization, or 22 weeks of pregnancy. The procedure is subject to other pre-existing regulations such as requirements for two separate trips to an abortion provider, an ultrasound, informed consent, and more.

Planned Parenthood, ACLU, Whole Womans Health Alliance, the Lawyering Project, and Womens Med issued a joint statement, saying: It is a tremendous relief to know that abortion will remain accessible and legal in Indiana while we continue to fight this ban in court.

Indiana Right to Life CEO Mike Fichter said in a statement in response to the Indiana Supreme Courts decision that the organization is deeply disappointed.

We estimate at least three thousand unborn babies, whose lives otherwise might have been saved, will now needlessly die from abortion as the law remains blocked, Fichter said. Thousands more will die as we await a final ruling after the January hearing. Although we are confident the law will be upheld, it will be far too late for those whose lives will be lost as this is argued in the courts.

According to state data (pdf), a total of 8,414 abortions were carried out in Indiana in 2021.

Bans on abortion at any point in pregnancy are currently in place in 14 states. In Wisconsin, clinics have stopped providing abortions amid litigation over whether an 1849 ban is in effect. Georgia bans abortions once cardiac activity can be detected and Florida, Arizona, and Utah have bans that kick in after 15 or 18 weeks gestation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
State Department spokesman Ned Price speaks on the situation in Afghanistan at the State Department in Washington, on Aug. 18, 2021. (Andrew Harnik/Pool via Reuters)

Iran Nuclear Deal Not State Departments Focus Right Now

The Biden administration is not focused on securing a nuclear deal with Iran amid mass protests that have broken out across the country, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said Wednesday.

Price made the comment during a press conference in Washington when asked by a reporter whether the United States was still looking to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal amid mass anti-government demonstrations across the country.

The protests were prompted by the death of a young woman, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, in police custody. She had been detained by Irans morality police on Sept. 13 for failing to adhere to Irans strict Islamic dress code for women. Amini died three days later while still in police custody.

Her death has sparked outrage across the country, with many calling for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to be removed from power.

Thats not our focus right now, Price said, noting that Washington is focusing instead on supporting Iranian protesters.

I think it is very clear, the Iranians have made it very clear that this is not a deal that they have been prepared to make. The deal certainly does not appear imminent. Irans demands are unrealistic, they go well beyond the scope of the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] and nothing we have heard in recent weeks suggests they have changed position.

Remarkable Bravery and Courage of Iranian People

Our focus right now is on the remarkable bravery and courage that the Iranian people are exhibiting through their peaceful demonstrations; through the exercise of their universal rights to freedom of assembly and to freedom of expression, Price said. Our focus right now is shining a spotlight on them and what theyre doing and supporting them.

The United States withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal under former President Donald Trump, who then imposed tight sanctions on Iran, stating that America would not be held hostage to nuclear blackmail.

However, President Joe Biden has been eager to get Iran back into the deal in the hopes of preventing the country from bolstering its nuclear program, which has been growing.

Indirect talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, mediated by European Union officials, have been ongoing for over 16 months but neither parties have so far managed to come to an agreement owing to disputes over Tehrans demand that Washington provide guarantees that no U.S. president will abandon the deal in the future.

Biden has said he cannot agree to that demand because the nuclear deal is a political understanding as opposed to a legally binding treaty.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in September that it was not in a position to provide assurance that Irans nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful.

In a report (pdf) also published in September, IAEA said that since July 2019, it has verified that Irans total enriched uranium stockpile has exceeded 300 kilograms (661 pounds) of Uranium hexafluoride enriched up to 3.67 percent. Uranium is the main fuel used for nuclear reactors.
A video of former President Donald Trump is played during a hearing by the House January 6 committee in the Cannon House Office Building in Washington on Oct. 13, 2022. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Jan. 6 Committee Votes to Subpoena Trump

The House Jan. 6 Committee on Oct. 13 voted to subpoena former President Donald Trump over his role in the events of Jan. 6.

The resolution, submitted by Ranking Member Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), was passed by the committee unanimously in a 90 vote.

Our duty today is to our country, our duty, and our Constitution, Cheney said. We can act now to protect our republic. So this afternoon, I am requesting that the chairman issue a subpoena for documents and testimony from Donald Trump about the January 6 attack on the Capitol.

The panel wants to hear from him, Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said ahead of the vote. The committee needs to do everything in our power to tell the most complete story possible and provide recommendations to help ensure nothing like Jan. 6 ever happens again.

He is required to answer for his actions, Thompson added.

Thompson said the committee recognized how extraordinary the step was, and that the committee was anxious to take this step in full view of the American people.

Cheney based the motion on the refusal of several Trump officials and allies, including former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former advisor Steve Bannon, to testify.

Mr. Chairman, our committee now has sufficient information to answer many of the critical questions posed by Congress at the outset. We have sufficient information to consider criminal referrals for multiple individuals and to recommend a range of legislative proposals to guard against another January 6, Cheney said. But a key task remains. We must seek the testimony, under oath, of January 6s central plater.

More than 30 witnesses in our investigation have invoked their 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination, and several of those did so specifically in response to questions about their dealings with Donald Trump directly.

The normal Justice Department process, Cheney said, is too slow.

Mr. Chairman, at some point, the Department of Justice may well unearth the fact that these and other witnesses are concealing, Cheney said. But our duty today is to our country and our children and our Constitution. We are obligated to seek answers directly from the man who set this all in motion, and every American is entitled to those answers so we can act now to protect our republic.

After presenting the motion, all nine members of the committee voted to take the almost unprecedented step of subpoenaing a former president.

Legal Challenges

The move will doubtless inspire legal challenges from Trumps attorneys.

There are only a few instances in history of Congress subpoenaing a president.

In the 1840s, Presidents John Quincy Adams and John Tyler were subpoenaed for information on intelligence issues, but the subpoena ultimately went unanswered.

The same occurred in the 20th century, when Rep. Joseph McCarthy attempted to bring former President Harry S. Truman in for questioning by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Like in the case of Adams and Tyler, the subpoena was ignored.

Ultimately, the subpoena against Trump could come to naught by simply expiring.

If Republicans take the lower chamber after the midterm elections, as they are widely expected to do, they could liquidate the Jan. 6 Committee and withdraw the subpoena.

This means that Trumps lawyers will just need to run out the clock with legal challenges, assuming a GOP takeover of the House next year.

Culmination of Months of Targeting Trump

Members of the Democrat-dominated Jan. 6 Committee since the beginning have made no effort to hide their hope that Trump will face criminal charges for his actions on, and leading up to, Jan. 6. Charges that lead to a conviction of insurrection may put an end to his chances of running for reelection, which he has indicated he may do.

I would like to see the Justice Department investigate any credible allegation of criminal activity on the part of Donald Trump or anyone else, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said on ABC News This Week program. They need to be investigated if theres credible evidence, which I think there is.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said the committee has laid out in various legal pleadings the criminal statutes that we think have been violated, and claimed that the panel has evidence that Trump knew Democratic rival Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

I think we can prove to any reasonable, open-minded person that Donald Trump absolutely knew because he was surrounded by lawyers, Raskin said on CNNs State of the Union program. He continues to spread [doubts about the 2020 election results] to this very day. He continues to foist that propaganda on his followers.

When asked during an appearance on ABCs This Week if Trump should face criminal charges, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) said he thought the president was guilty of knowing what he did. Seditious conspiracy. Being involved in these, you know, kind of different segments of pressuring DOJ, vice president, etc.

It remains unclear whether the Department of Justice will take the unprecedented step of opening a criminal investigation of Trump, despite the calls from members of the panel.

Trumps lawyers could not be immediately reached for comment.
A jury recommended life in prison for the Parkland school shooter, who pleaded guilty to 17 murders and 17 attempted murders during the 2018 shooting in Florida. The jury was deliberating between the death penalty and life imprisonment without parole.

Accusing the White House of distorting the facts, Saudi Arabia gives its view of oil production cuts and accusations that its siding with Russia.

Are mainstream political surveys accurate ahead of the midterm elections? A top independent pollster suggests that Republican voters are being undercounted.

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After the Oct. 9, 2022, leak of a racially charged conversation between council President Nury Martinez and three other local officials, protesters flooded the Los Angeles City Hall during the City Council's regular meeting in Los Angeles on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

LA City Council Canceled Friday Meeting as de Leon, Cedillo Defy Calls to Resign

LOS ANGELESThe Los Angeles City Council canceled its Friday, Oct. 14, meeting, with Acting Council President Mitch OFarrell saying on Oct. 13 the peoples business cannot be conducted until Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo resign their council seats.

The two councilors were included in a recorded October 2021 conversation in which racially disparaging statements were made as four officials discussed the citys redistricting process. Nury Martinez, the former council president, and Ron Herrera, who was president of the L.A. County Federation of Labor, have both already resigned following the release of the recording.

Both Los Angeles City Council meetings this week have been delayed or adjourned due to vocal protests over the statements heard on the tape.

In the court of public opinion, the verdict has been rendered and they must resign, OFarrell said of de Leon and Cedillo. Theres too much pain, theres too much deep injury to the soul, to the spirit in the city. And this must happen and the people have spoken.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch OFarrell speaks during a council meeting in Los Angeles on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

At least two council membersCouncilmen Mike Bonin and Marqueece Harris-Dawsonand Councilwoman-elect Eunisses Hernandez had said prior to OFarrells news briefing that the council should not meet Friday without resignations from de Leon and Cedillo.

Hernandez wrote on Twitter Thursday that Cedillo, who she beat in the June primary to claim the seat, was holding the city hostage.

Community will not stop until they resign, she said. Gil knows this.

OFarrell said he had not spoken to either de Leon or Cedillo on Thursday, but he had a frank and lengthy conversation with Cedillo on Wednesday.

He made it very clear he is taking into consideration the gravity of the moment and ultimately what he is going to need to do, OFarrell said of Cedillo.

Los Angeles City Councilman Gil Cedillo (L) speaks about the US Citizenship Act of 2021 and urges action on US President Bidens immigration reform plan outside of City Hall in Los Angeles on April 29, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

OFarrell said he has not been able to reach de Leon.

OFarrell hasnt yet considered canceling meetings beyond Friday, and his office said he will assess all available options moving forward if the two continue to refuse to resign. OFarrell said if he felt the two council members would resign on Thursday, he wouldnt have made the decision to cancel Fridays meeting.

The council on Friday was slated to consider placing a measure on the 2024 ballot that would create an independent redistricting commission for the city, an item that was already carried over from Wednesdays adjourned meeting.

The acting council president noted that he has the support of Mayor Eric Garcetti, who has also called for the pair to resign.

OFarrell said he sensed that de Leon and Cedillo were both weighing their long history in politics and public service and reconciling this transgression with that. De Leon, 55, has been on the council since 2020 and made an unsuccessful run for mayor this year. He previously served in the state Senate and Assembly. Cedillo, 68, has been in office since 2013.

Both are under widespread pressure to step down following the weekend release of a recorded conversation from 2021 involving the three elected officials that included a series of racially disparaging remarks, uttered primarily by Martinez.

Nury Martinez attends Womens March Action: March 4 Reproductive Rights at Pershing Square in Los Angeles on Oct. 2, 2021. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

Under intense pressure, Martinez on Monday stepped down as council president, took a leave of absence on Tuesday, then resigned her seat altogether on Wednesday.

It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home, Martinez said in a written statement Wednesday afternoon.

In a statement moments after Martinezs announcement, OFarrell said Martinezs resignation is the first, necessary step in the process of accountability. When asked later by reporters about Martinezs statement excluding those apologies, OFarrell said: I noticed that.

Martinez issued a statement Monday announcing her decision to surrender the council presidency, and apologizing to Bonin, his husband Sean Arian, and their son.

At least two council membersKrekorian and Marqueece Harris-Dawsonsignaled an intent to have a special election for Martinezs seat, as well as de Leons seat if he resigns. Both of their terms expire in December 2024. OFarrell appointed the citys chief legislative analyst as a caretaker for Martinezs district, and said he is exploring a possible special election to fill the seat. Martinezs term runs through December 2024.

Since Cedillo lost his re-election bid to Hernandez earlier this year, Krekorian suggested swearing in Hernandez immediately if Cedillo resigns.

Calls for resignations have been almost universal among city, state, and federal elected officialsincluding from President Joe Biden, who arrived in Los Angeles Wednesday afternoon for a two-day visit.

Martinez, 49, had served on the council since 2013 representing the Sixth District in the San Fernando Valley. She was the second Latina to serve on the council and was its only female member when she was elected. Six years later, she became the first Latina to become council president when she was elected in 2019, replacing long-time President Herb Wesson.

Prior to being elected to the council, Martinez served on the San Fernando City Council from 200309 and on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education from 200913.

Whats in the Taped Conversation

In the recorded conversation from October 2021, Martinez made racist comments aimed at Bonins 2-year-old black adopted son and at other ethnic groups while the group discussed the politically sensitive process of redrawing council district boundaries.

The recorded conversation was leaked, appearing on Reddit before being removed from the website. City News Service reviewed the conversation, but it was unclear who was responsible for the recording and its leak. The meeting apparently occurred at a Federation of Labor office, and the federation is investigating its source.

Among other comments in the recorded conversation, Martinez belittled Bonin, who is white and openly gay, and criticized his adopted black son for his behavior at a Martin Luther King Day parade, saying the boy was misbehaving on a float, which might have tipped over if she and other women hadnt stepped in to parent this kid.

Theyre raising him like a little white kid, Martinez said. I was like, This kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then Ill bring him back.'

Martinez also called the child ese changuito, Spanish for that little monkey.

De Leon also criticized Bonin. Mike Bonin wont [expletive] ever say peep about Latinos. Hell never say a [expletive] word about us, he said.

De Leon also compared Bonins handling of his son at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade to when Nury brings her little yard bag or the Louis Vuitton bag.

Su negrito, like on the side, Martinez added, using a Spanish term for a black person thats considered demeaning by many.

At another point in the leaked conversation, Martinez recalls a conversation with businessman Danny Bakewell about possibly transferring Los Angeles International Airport out of Bonins council district into Harris-Dawsons.

On the subject of Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomass suspension following an indictment on federal corruption charges, Martinez said Controller Ron Galperin would decide whether Ridley-Thomas still gets paid.

You need to go talk to that white guy, she says. Its not us. Its the white members on this council that will [expletive] you in a heartbeat.

Martinez also took aim at Los Angeles County District George Gascon in profane terms, after the group appeared to discuss whether Gascon would endorse Cedillo in his re-election campaign against Hernandez.

[expletive] that guy.  Hes with the Blacks, she said of Gascon.

Statements of Apology

Martinez, de Leon, Herrera, and Cedillo apologized separately on Sunday for their roles in the conversation.

In a moment of intense frustration and anger, I let the situation get the best of me and I hold myself accountable for these comments. For that I am sorry, Martinez said in a statement provided to City News Service on Sunday.

The context of this conversation was concern over the redistricting process and concern about the potential negative impact it might have on communities of color. My work speaks for itself. Ive worked hard to lead this city through its most difficult time.

De Leon said: There were comments made in the context of this meeting that are wholly inappropriate, and I regret appearing to condone and even contribute to certain insensitive comments made about a colleague and his family in private. Ive reached out to that colleague personally, he said.

On that day, I fell short of the expectations we set for our leadersand I will hold myself to a higher standard.

Herreras statement said: The calls for accountability are loud clear and deserved. I recognize that the community and our affiliates deserved an apology earlier and I am sorry this has not been the case. I had to face my family and granddaughters personally and apologize to them for my failure to stand up to racist and anti-Black remarks in that immediate moment. I failed them in the moment and for that I hold the deepest regret.

And now, I apologize to all of you, Mike Bonin and his family, the affiliates and community members, specifically those in the Black and Oaxacan community. There is no justification and no excuse for the vile remarks made in that room. Period. And I didnt step up to stop them and I will have to bear the burden of that cross moving forward, Herrera said. I will do better and I hope that all of you can find it in your hearts to forgive me.

Cedillo issued a statement saying, I want to start by apologizing. While I did not engage in the conversation in question, I was present at times during this meeting last year. It is my instinct to hold others accountable when they use derogatory or racially divisive language. Clearly, I should have intervened. I failed in holding others and myself to the highest standard. The hurtful and harmful remarks made about my colleagues son were simply unacceptable. We choose public life, but our families should always be off limits and never part of the political discourse.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin speaks during a council meeting in Los Angeles on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

Bonin gave an emotional speech during Tuesdays council meeting, saying he cant forgive any of the council members involved in the conversation until they all resign from the council.

On Wednesday, state Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that his office is conducting an investigation into the citys redistricting process in light of the recorded conversation. He noted that the racist remarks were all centered around the topic of redrawing council district boundaries to the benefit of the incumbent involved in the recording.

City Attorney Mike Feuer called for an expedited special election to establish an independent redistricting commission, followed by an immediate review of current district boundaries.

Joyce Kuo contributed to this report.
LAUSD Board Approves Rescheduling of Optional Instructional Days

LOS ANGELESThe Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education unanimously approved an adjustment to this years academic calendar, shifting four optional instructional days designed to help recoup learning lost during the pandemic to winter and spring break periods.

The district had originally sprinkled the optional instructional days into the school year, with the first set for Oct. 19. But United Teachers Los Angeles, the union representing district teachers, blasted the proposal, saying the days were added to the calendar without proper labor negotiations.

The teachers union members voted in August to boycott the first added day on Oct. 19.

Last month, the district announced it had reached a compromise agreement with UTLA, shifting the optional days to the winter and spring breaksDec. 19-20 and April 3-4. The days will remain optional, and teachers who opt to work will be paid at their regular salary rate.

The LAUSD board approved that schedule on Oct. 11.

Since arriving at Los Angeles Unified, I have been very clear: the districts top priority is to provide all students with opportunities that will set them up for success, LAUSD Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said in a statement Tuesday.

Students achievements should not be influenced by their academic status, learning disabilities, or any demographic factors, Carvalho said.

I am heartened by the collaborative effort with labor partners, which will deliver a focused, impactful approach to Acceleration Days. This move is definitely a win for our students, he said.

With the Acceleration Days rescheduled, the dates on which the optional days were originally going to be held will not become mandatory instruction daysOct. 19, Dec. 7, March 15, and April 19.

The additional school days were announced in April. Carvalho said at the time they will be designed to provide a deep level of supplemental academic support for our students who need it the moststudents who have lost the most ground, students in foster care, students with English language limitations or one or more disabilities.

We must have the courage and compassion to provide extended quality instruction time for these students and professional development for our teachers, he said.

A district representative said the extra instruction days will allow teachers and staff to work with students one-on-one or in small-group settings.
Lebanon's President Michel Aoun delivers a televised speech at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, on Dec. 27, 2021. (Dalati Nohra/Handout via Reuters)

Lebanon to Resume Sending Refugees Back to War-Damaged Syria

BEIRUTLebanon will start sending Syrian refugees back home at the end of next week, President Michel Aoun said on Wednesday, in a process a security official described as voluntary, despite rights groups fears for their safety.

Lebanon hosts the highest number of refugees per capita in the world. The government estimates that the countrys population of over 6 million includes roughly 1.5 million refugees from neighbouring Syria, though well under 1 million are registered with the UNHCR.

The head of Lebanons General Security agency, which is responsible for the countrys borders, said the returns would be voluntary and based on a mechanism first used in 2018.

General Security will pick back up on the return plan for Syrian refugees who would like to go back, Abbas Ibrahim told Reuters, adding that the mechanism had been paused because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

An official source said that the returns would only include those who had voluntarily signed up to go back with Lebanons General Security agency, in coordination with the countrys social affairs ministry, and refugees would not be forced to leave.

Lebanons minister for displaced people, Issam Charafeddine, in July announced a plan that he said would seek to return some 15,000 refugees to Syria per month, basing his move on a claim that Syria had become largely safe after more than a decade of war.

The plan would not involve the United Nations, which maintains that conditions in Syria do not allow for the large-scale return of refugees.

The Lebanon office of the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, said it was not facilitating or promoting the large-scale voluntary repatriation of refugees to Syria.

In the previous rounds of returns, UNHCR had exercised a protection role, providing counselling and being present at departure points.

New York-based advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in July that Syria is anything but safe for returnees.

Syrian refugees who returned between 2017 and 2021 from Lebanon and Jordan faced grave human rights abuses and persecution at the hands of the Syrian government and affiliated militias, Lama Fakih, director of HRWs Middle East Division, wrote in a post.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issued a sweeping amnesty earlier this year for a range of crimes which says it includes those committed by Syrians who fled their country during the 11-year conflict.

Syrian authorities have also said they have eased measures for those who have fled compulsory military service, a major push factor for young men fleeing Syria, including to Lebanon.

But rights groups and diplomats have warned that those guarantees are not sufficient.

In its September report, the United Nations Syria commission said the country was still not safe for returnees.

By Timour Azhari
The Heritage Foundation logo is pictured at a discussion in Washington in this file photo. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

Local School Board Races Garner Interest and Funding

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. Local school board races have never been more prominent than in this election cycle because parents are reacting strongly to what is being taught in classrooms, according to a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation.

Jonathan Butcher, the Will Skillman Fellow in Education at The Heritage Foundation says there is renewed interest in school board elections because parents are having strong reactions to what is being taught in the classrooms and believe that the schools should be representative of their values  and of their community.

When they see something that runs afoul of their beliefs, theyll speak up and say, hey this doesnt represent me, this is not what I want for my kids, he said.

I think that parents have always been interested in whats going on in K12 schools, Butcher told The Epoch Times. Theres always been something in which parents have wanted to voice their opinions on.

Jonathan Butcher is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation. (Courtesy, The Heritage Foundation)

Bridget Ziegler was recently reelected to her Sarasota County school board seat and agrees that since she initially got into politics in 2014, she has seen the interest in school board races increase.

In my race in 2014, we had 50,001 total voters in the August election, Ziegler told The Epoch Times. I went to a runoff and then it went up to 137,369 [voters].

She went on to say that the 2020 turnout was even better as a record 230,000 turned out to vote in local elections. She said she believes it is because people are tired of schools interfering with moral issues that should be taught in the home that has driven the rise in voter turnout and the results of the elections leaning more to the conservative side.

Ziegler said that along with historic record voter turnouts, political action committees have pumped a lot of money into local elections because local elections affect peoples everyday lives, coupled with conservative candidates having to fight a media machine and a liberal teachers union.

In my race, I was just combating a media machine and the [teachers] union so I had to raise more money, but I never saw any kind of national interest, she explained. This is the first time in the election cycle I have seen that now. Unions in the past would take national money and bring it to their local state or local chapter.

The reality, she said, is that conservatives are taking the gloves off and were gonna play ball.

Ziegler said that sticking to policy issues will win conservative seats on school boards and will catapult conservative candidates to state and federal posts because people are now motivated to stop a WOKE agenda, especially in schools.

Bridget Ziegler is a Sarasota County School Board member. (Courtesy, Bridget Ziegler)

Thats how they saw what was happening, she said. They were activated because when you mess with someones kids, youre dealing with a whole different level.

She added that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has for the first time ever, endorsed local school board candidates and most of them have won their races as a result.

Butcher explained that from education issues dating back to the 1950s Johnny cant read to the social studies wars of the 1990s and todays Common Core and gender ideology, parents have always wanted to voice their concerns, he said.

Today, however, families are facing issues that are evoking very strong opposition, such as the radical gender theory and critical race theory, he continued.

Both topics are moral issues and that is why parents are reacting in such a strong way and drawing so much attention to it when they see it in their schools, he said.

Butcher surmises that the COVID lockdowns and investigative journalists exposing shocking material of what is being taught in schools have propelled renewed interest in local school board races.

Parents have more power than they think, he said. Once the material has been exposed parents tend to get more involved.

We see over and over again, once you expose both what Critical Race Theory is and what it is really trying to say about race, and what queer theory is really trying to push when it comes to so-called gender, he explained. [School boards] will either try to hide it or they will actually reverse course.

Butchers theory was recently put to the test as the Duval County Public School District pulled an item from its Sept. 12 agenda because of parental concerns over a reproductive health curriculum the board had planned to pass. Parents were upset about the contents of the kits, which included a seven-inch wooden condom demonstrator in the shape of male genitalia, along with colorful condoms. The kits are intended for use by students in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades.

Parents concerned about Critical Race Theory took home these buttons from a school board activist training session in Sarasota, Fla., on Jan. 19, 2022. (Alexis Spiegelman)

Parents were outraged and showed up at the meeting only to find the item had been removed from the agenda, and the board president announced they would write their own curriculum for reproductive education.

The Heritage Foundation has been presenting training sessions that encourage parents to become more involved by running for local school board seats. The sessions teach basic budgeting practices and topics such as critical race theory and gender identity theory.

A New York Times poll conducted in mid-September showed that parents overwhelmingly objected to teachers instructing their children on sexual orientation and gender identity. When asked if teachers should be able to provide instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in elementary schools, 70 percent were opposed, while only 27 percent were in favor.

Two conservative governors have made parents rights in education a priority and pushed their legislators to pass bills that support parents.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin shows support at a Back to School rally in Annandale, Va., on Aug. 31, 2022. (Courtesy of Spirit of Virginia)

Virginia Gov. Glen Youngkin won his race based on support for parental rights. He decried in his speeches that, the progressive left Democrats are trying to put politicians and bureaucrats between parents and their children.

Since being elected, Youngkin has signed bills that allow parents to see the schools curriculum.

Its a parents child. Not the state, not the governments child, Youngkin said after signing the legislation.

In Florida, DeSantis has come under fire for his legislative efforts to make sure parents have rights and that indoctrination stays out of schools.

The governor signed the Parental Rights in Education bill in March. Dubbed by critics as the Dont Say Gay bill, it blocks classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade.

DeSantis told The National Desk in September that, regardless of party affiliation, parents do not believe it is appropriate to be injecting matters of sexuality and gender ideology to elementary school students.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis addresses the media in Miami, in April 2022. (Courtesy, The Florida Governors Office)

Certain LGBT teaching methods dont have a place in Florida classrooms, he said.

He went on to say that most teachers do not want to discuss those issues either.

I think its been a real help to teachers because most teachers that go into this do not want to be discussing those issues with kindergarteners or first graders. They want to teach them how to read, write, add, and subtract, DeSantis said.

DeSantis also signed a parents bill of rights that empowers parents to exercise the right to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of their children.
Man Convicted of Killing Girlfriend in Santa Ana

SANTA ANA, Calif.A 44-year-old man was convicted Oct. 12 of strangling and stabbing his girlfriend to death with a screwdriver in their Santa Ana apartment nearly five years ago.

Prentis John Hill was convicted of second-degree murder with a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a deadly weapon. Hill is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 28.

Hill was convicted of killing 38-year-old Shannon Pearce Likens on Dec. 16, 2017, in their one-room apartment at 316 W. Fourth Street.

Likens, a divorced mother of three children, had met Hill while they were patients at College Hospital Costa Mesa, said Senior Deputy District Attorney Mark Birney. They both had a history of mental health issues, he added.

The prosecutor showed jurors surveillance video photos of the couple walking to a shared bathroom in the mixed-use residential-retail building where they used a shared kitchen and restroom.

About 11:30 a.m. that day, their neighbors, Brandy Fajardo, and her 18- year-old son, Dylan, heard the two arguing through the paper-thin walls, Birney said. Then they heard repeated hard blows, and a woman scream for help.

They called 911 and told Hill when they saw him in the hallway, Birney said. He said something to the effect, Sorry for the noise.'

Hill had changed out of his blood-spattered shirt, walked a block and a half to his car, and left the area, Birney said.

When officers arrived, they got a key to the locked room and found the victim wedged between the bed and a bookcase, Birney said. They attempted to revive her until paramedics arrived, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Likens was stabbed in the head, through an eye and ear, with a nine-inch screwdriver, Birney said. Her killer also strangled her with her New England Patriots jacket, the prosecutor added.

Hill ended up at College Hospital about 6 p.m. that same day, where he told triage nurse Joseph Baker, I killed my girlfriend  She made me really angry, Birney said.

He also said, I kept stabbing her with a screwdriver over and over, Birney said.

Baker called 911 and Hill, who still had his girlfriends blood on his hands, was arrested, Birney said.

Hills attorney, Mitch Timbanard, deferred on an opening statement. But in court papers, he said his client was in severe distress following the killing and drove around for hours afterward.

Hill is also charged with assaulting another inmate while in custody, but jurors did not hear about that case in the trial.

The victim had a history of suicide attempts and drug and alcohol abuse, according to court filings by her ex-husband.

In September 2013, James Robert Bob Likens IV filed for a temporary restraining order against his then-estranged wife, in which he described a chaotic scene in which she tried to pull their toddler child from his arms, ultimately triggering a call to the police.

He alleged that his spouse had a history of mental problems, and a problem with prescription pills, and had to be hospitalized for psychiatric reasons multiple times. At the time of her killing, their children were 8, 6, and 2.

Likens told City News Service after the victim was killed that he was married to her for 18 years and that her mental health problems could be traced back to a miscarriage of twins. But she was trying to turn her life around at the time of her death.

It sounds like she was doing better. She got an apartment and a job and she was on the up-and-up, he said, adding that she was back on speaking terms with her family and brought Hill with her to a family Thanksgiving dinner.

She was asking about the kids. That was a positive, he said.

Likens said his ex-wife was such a talented saleswoman that Mercedes-Benz moved her family across the country to New Jersey so she could work at the then-number one dealership in the country some years ago.

They gave us a condo on the beach, a new car and kept us out there for a while, he said. She was very, very smart.

But when she got pregnant with twins and lost them, she grew despondent, her ex-husband said.

She got depressed, got some medication for it, and it kind of went downhill from there, he said.
The night scene of an array of edifices and the Jiaxiulou Tower, the city's landmark ancient building for sightseeing, in Guiyang city of Guizhou Province, China, on Sept. 9, 2011. (Feng Li/Getty Images)

Meet the Adam Smith of Ancient China

Chinese philosopher Zhuang Zhou (369-286 BC) was articulating Adam Smiths invisible hand two thousand years before 'The Wealth of Nations'

Commentary

The book of Ecclesiastes tells us that there is nothing new under the sun. The quote reminds us that few things we think of as new are actually new, and economic philosophy is no exception.

While Karl Marx is considered the father of communism, his ideas were not as original as many think. His intellectual precursor was Francois-Noel Babeuf (1760-1797), a proto-socialist of the French Revolution who was executed for participating in a failed coup designed to overthrow the Directory. Decades before Marx was born, Babeuf called for absolute equity and prohibiting private property.

Marxs classical liberal counterpart, Adam Smith, has his own intellectual doppelganger. It is believed that Anders Chydenius was born only a few years after Smith (Smiths precise date of birth is unknown). Like the more famous Scotsman, Chydenius was a champion of free trade, a free press, and equal rights before the law. And a decade before Smith published The Wealth of Nations, Chydenius described an economic process similar to Smiths invisible hand.

Every individual spontaneously tries to find the place and the trade in which he can best increase National gain, if laws do not prevent him from doing so, Chydenius wrote in The National Gain (1765).

The wealth of a Nation consists in the multitude of products or, rather, in their value; but the multitude of products depends on two chief causes, namely, the number of workmen and their diligence. Nature will produce both, when she is left untrammeled.

Though neither Smith nor Chydenius used the term spontaneous orderit didnt appear until the 20th centurythe phenomenon is clearly what both philosophers describe. Its the idea that social order and harmony emerge from the voluntary actions of individuals, not central planning.

Yet neither of these great philosophers were the first to articulate this idea. That distinction belongs to Zhuang Zhou (aka Zhuangzi), a Chinese philosopher and poet who lived during the fourth century B.C.

Zhuang Zhou rejected the Confucianism of the time, which emphasized obedience to national authority in addition to its broader ethical teachings, and embraced (and expanded upon) the teachings of Lao-Tzu, a contemporary of Confucius who opposed state rule and emphasized laissez-faire economics.

Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone, wrote Zhuang Zhou.

Its hard to find a more distilled definition of spontaneous order than this, and economist Murray Rothbard credits Zhuang Zhou (whom Rothbard refers to as Chuang-tzu) as the first thinker to chronicle the idea. And though the concept is simple enough, Zhuang Zhou makes it clear that practicing spontaneous order is hardly simple and exceedingly rare.

There has been such a thing as letting mankind alone, Zhuang Zhou wrote, there has never been such a thing as governing mankind [with success].

The reason spontaneous order is so difficult to practice was the same in ancient China as it is today: the presence of force.

Force is a constant in the pages of history. Whether the text is Plutarch, the Bible, or Zhuang Zhou, history is, in many ways, a chronicle of humans aggressing against one another. This is likely why Zhuang Zhou suggests humans will never leave each other alone, and the best we can do is to create a social order that limits aggression.

As any Philosophy 101 student can tell you, this is why humans enter into a social contract. The presence of force prompts the creation of an authority to keep aggressors in check. As 19th-century economist Frederic Bastiat noted, the problem is that the state soon deviates from its mission and becomes an agent of aggression itself, often under the guise of doing good.

The mission of law is not to oppress persons and plunder them of their property, even though the law may be acting in a philanthropic spirit, Bastiat wrote in The Law. Its mission is to protect property.

Much of the disharmony we see in the world today stems from different views on the purpose of the law. Does government exist to protect private property, redistribute it, or even abolish it?

People have different views on the matter, just like Smith and Marx did. But its clear the discussion is nothing new.

Its also clear that Zhuang Zhou would tell you Smiths vision is the path to a peaceful, prosperous, and harmonious societynot that of Marx. Because good things tend to follow all on their own when things are left alone.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi pose for media prior to their meeting at the Iikura Guest House in Tokyo, Oct. 11, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Yuichi Yamazaki)

Melanie Joly Pushes LNG Ties in Japan and South Korea, Amid North Korea Missiles

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says Canada is set to become a major energy supplier for Japan and South Korea.

She is visiting both countries this week, and says there is an appetite for liquefied natural gas from Canada, beyond a looming megaproject.

A major export terminal is set to open in 2025 in Kitimat, B.C., with Japanese and Korean companies holding a 20 percent stake.

Joly says projects like this will help Canada shore up energy security in the region, where China and Russia have been growing more assertive.

She says a series of missiles that North Korea launched over Japan this month loomed large in her talks with local officials.

The ongoing trip is meant to build on close ties with allies, ahead of an Indo-Pacific strategy that should outline Ottawas approach to dealing with China.

By Dylan Robertson
The logo of Meta Platforms is seen in Davos, Switzerland, on May 22, 2022. (File Photo)

Meta Launches VR Headset That Tracks Facial Expressions and Eye Movements

Meta has introduced a VR headset with multiple cameras to track facial expressions and physical motion, a move that some say is another blow to personal privacy.

When we communicate, all our nonverbal expressions and gestures are often even more important than what we say, and the way we connect virtually needs to reflect that too, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in an event announcing the headset, according to Wired magazine. Zuckerberg is aiming to make Metaverse avatars look more life-like.

When an individual dons a Quest Pro headset, it captures data through five inward-facing cameras that monitor facial expressions and eye movements, along with five external cameras for replicating the persons physical movements.

With the input, the avatar gains the ability to raise eyebrows, wink, and smile just as the person would in real life. Luke Stark, an assistant professor at Western University in Canada, told Wired that the current progression was predictable, and doubted that the default off feature would remain as such for long.

Its been clear for some years that animated avatars are acting as privacy loss leaders, he told the outlet. This data is far more granular and far more personal than an image of a face in the photograph.

Lucas Rizzotto, a co-founder of AR House, a platform for augmented reality, wrote on Twitter: Meta was very clever & sneaky yesterday! Note how they never talked about the Quest Pros built-in eye-tracking (a controversial feature full of potential privacy concerns), choosing to call it expression tracking instead. Now the scary thing sounds palatable and fun!

Rizzotto added: This moves the publics attention away from the controversy & into a use case, giving Meta a window to quietly integrate eye-tracking into their headsets with little resistance. And while I appreciate the cleverness, I hope theyre upfront about how theyre using that data.

Processing of Personal Data

The raw image data processed in real time on the headset for eye-tracking and facial expressions are deleted once processing has been completed, the companys privacy pages state. The raw data is not collected or stored, it claims.

Calibration data will be stored on devices until the user deletes it. However, Meta does collect and retain certain data about your interactions with eye tracking as required for the feature to work properly and to provide the feature, like information about tracking quality and the amount of time that it takes to detect your eyes.

Likewise, the abstracted facial expression data are processed on the device or Meta servers to enable the associated animations.

We collect and retain certain data about your interactions with natural facial expressions as required for the feature to work properly and to provide the feature, the company states.

Besides this, the user can allow access to the data for apps from the Meta Quest Store or App Lab.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Meta for comment.

Headset Specifications

According to the company, Meta Quest Pro will be available from Oct. 25 onward for $1,500, which is $1,100 more than Metas previous Quest 2 headset, with the package including Meta Quest Touch Pro controllers, stylus tips, partial light blockers, and a charging dock.

The headset will be powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ platform with 12 GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, and 10 high-resolution cameras.

In a preview of the device held at the companys Reality Labs offices in Redmond, Washington, Meta listed more product headset launches on the horizon, although no dates were included.

Meta shares fell over 3 percent after the announcement, and are trading at $124.52 after opening on Thursday, indicating a not-so-enthusiastic response from the market.
Whether bbqing for a dinner or an outdoor party, there are plenty of tasty options. (Courtesy of Juicy Juice)

Methane Tax Will Take Away the Backyard BBQ, Nationals Leader Warns

Leader of the centre-right Nationals Party has urged Labor not to adopt New Zealands style methane tax, saying it will cost Australians at the grocery store amid the cost of living crisis.

It comes following the news on Thursday that the Labor government is looking to pledge its support to U.S. President Joe Bidens global pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030.

More than 100 countries backed the Global Methane Pledge at the COP26 climate conference 2021, including the United States and the European Union.

However, Nationals MP David Littleproud warned the move would drive up food prices and would be another blow to families who are really struggling right now.

Littleproud said the Nationals will refuse to support the methane pledge, which he described as just an attack on our farms and ultimately Australian families.

He called on Labor to revert any commitment and start helping Australian families, rather than hurting them even more.

Australians are already hurting with petrol prices, electricity prices and food prices, Littleproud said.

Now the Aussie BBQ is under threat. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wants to take away the backyard BBQ.

We know Australians love their sausages, stakes, rissoles and lamb meals  all of that will become out of reach for many.

We do not want to see the Aussie BBQ available to only the rich  we urge Labor to reject the methane madness idea and embrace the Aussie BBQ spirit instead of destroy it.

Australian Labor Government Pushes Forward With Global Methane Pledge

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen noted the government had started investing in technologies to cut methane emissions in livestock. He also said that a consultation process about whether to sign up for the global pledge is ongoing.

Countries joining the Global Methane Pledge voluntarily commit to working together to collectively reduce methane emissions, he said.

In this way, it is an aspirational, global goal rather than a domestic target.

Meanwhile, the New Zealand government has taken on the proposal by the farming sector for a separate pricing system on greenhouse emissions, which includes paying tax on the methane produced by livestock, most notably its cows and sheep.

The proposal aims to give New Zealand farmers control over their farming system, providing the ability to reduce costs through revenue raised from the system being recycled back to farmers, which will fund further research, tools and technology, and incentives to reduce emissions, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.

The pricing system is designed with the intent that revenue raised from the flatulent tax will go back into the agriculture sector in the form of sequestration investment, transition support, and sustainability research.

Rebecca Zhu contributed to this report.
Soldiers with the 82nd Airborne division walk across the tarmac at Green Ramp to deploy to Poland at Fort Bragg, Fayetteville, N. Car., on Feb. 14, 2022. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)

Microsoft Goggles Induce Nausea and Headaches in American Soldiers

U.S. soldiers who have tested a custom version of Microsofts HoloLens goggles, a mixed reality headset, have reported experiencing mission-affecting physical impairments, according to multiple reports.

Those who participated in the tests suffered nausea, headaches, and eyestrain, a summary of tests compiled by the Pentagon and accessed by Bloomberg states. Soldiers used the goggles in field testswith over 80 percent who reported discomfort having symptoms three hours after use. The device failed in four out of the six evaluation events during an operational demo, a Microsoft employee who was briefed about the event said to Business Insider.

One of the soldiers who tested the goggles said that it would get them killed because the device was generating light. In real-life scenarios, the light would simply alert an enemy of the wearers location. The glow was visible from hundreds of meters away.

Soldiers also found that their field of view was restricted, and the weight of the device limited some of their movements.

In the test summary accessed by Bloomberg, Nickolas Guertin, director of Operation Test and Evaluation, pointed out that the system saw too many failures of essential functions. Despite these drawbacks, however, Guertin did not dismiss the use of the goggles.

Instead, he recommended the U.S. Army to prioritize improvements before it chooses to deploy the devices so as to reduce the physical discomfort of users. He found that the goggles need improvements in their field of vision, display clarity, and low-light sensors.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Microsoft.

HoloLens

Microsoft received the contract to create a modified version of HoloLens for military use in March 2021. The deal, which could be worth more than $21 billion, involved supplying the U.S. Army with more than 120,000 goggles.

In a blog post on Mar. 31, 2021, Microsoft claimed that the modified HoloLens delivers a platform that will keep soldiers safer and make them more effective. The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios.

The Army had placed an initial order for 5,000 goggles that month, valued at $373 million. However, the order was put on hold late last year in order to enhance the technology used in the device. The tests will help decide whether Congress approves the $424.2 million the Army has requested for the program.

The emerging results indicate that the program achieved success in most of the Army evaluation criteria, Brigadier General Christopher D. Schneider said in a statement to Insider.

However, the results also identified areas where IVAS (goggles) fell short and needs additional improvements, which the Army will address, he added. (IVAS is an integrated visual augmentation system.)
Amid the joy of bringing her newborn daughter home from the hospital, a mom from Northeast Ohio fell gravely ill. In a life-saving surgery, she lost her uterus and the chance to give birth to more children. However, her faith in God led her to find another route: she became a foster mom, and her dream of having a bigger family came true.

Lisa Robertson of Hartville, married her husband, JJ, in 2011 after a whirlwind romance. They were shocked and excited to become pregnant with their first child, a girl, just six weeks later.

Something Was Seriously Wrong

Lisa had always dreamed of being a mom and had a textbook pregnancy. But four days after bringing baby Avery home, her health plummeted.

Lisa told The Epoch Times: I was getting fevers. I remember telling my mom that I was so sore, even my hair hurt  it was my first baby, I wasnt sure what to expect with recovery and how I was supposed to feel.

That night was really tough for Lisa as Avery was very unsettled.

When JJ woke up the next day to go back to work, Lisa told him that she just needed to get some sleep and wouldnt be able to be all alone with the baby. Thus, JJ called his mother to look after Avery while Lisa got some sleep.

I probably slept until lunchtime, and as soon as I opened my eyes and tried to get out of bed, I knew something was seriously wrong, she said. My mother-in-law had a friend come over to stay with my daughter, and she drove me to the hospital.

When Lisa was admitted to the hospital her blood pressure was 60/40. She was soon hooked up to wires and monitors and woke in the middle of the night to a flurry of activity as she was being moved to the ICU.

Lisa was diagnosed with group A strep and postpartum septic shock from an unknown origin. It had already turned into necrotizing fasciitis in her uterus. If left untreated, the rare conditionmore common in countries with poor hygiene conditions in hospitalscould have been fatal.

Apart from the septic shock, Lisa also had a kidney infection, pneumonia, and fluid in the lungs.

A week into her hospital stay, the sepsis cleared up. She was still suffering from a high fever, however, so her infectious disease doctor requested a new CT scan.

After the results came in, a team of five doctors discussed the next step forward. An oncologist explained to Lisa that she needed to undergo an emergency hysterectomy as they discovered that the bacteria might be attacking her uterus, Love What Matters reported.

During this time her mother was by her side; however, Lisa begged them to wait for her husbandwho works long hours for his own concrete construction companyto come.

I was thinking how sad I was for him; I would never give him another child, she told The Epoch Times. But when JJ arrived he had only words of comfort for his wife, and told her, Lisa, whatever it takes to save your life, thats okay  this is what needs to happen.

Reality Sets In

Lisa woke up after her surgery feeling loopy from all the medicine.

Lighthearted, JJ helped keep the mood bright, but when Lisa saw the 27 staples across her belly, reality set in. She was 26 years old and would never bear children again.

Upon returning home, Lisa was on a PICC line (peripherally inserted central catheter line) and antibiotics, so she needed help from nurses and family to take care of her baby girl. Six weeks later, her doctor wrote a letter to the family, assuring them that Lisa was finally ready to be left alone overnight with Avery.

However, the full impact of her life-changing surgery hit home six months later after she returned to work as a graphic designer.

I was diagnosed with PTSD, she said. I was experiencing a lot of anxiety being back at work, being away from [Avery]  I carried guilt from what everybody else was feeling, how worried my parents must have been, how scared my husband was, everything I put them through while I did this, not that it was my fault.

During this time, Lisa also researched more about necrotizing fasciitis and found out that her illness had a mortality rate of 75 percent. Those that survived usually lost their limbs, but for Lisa, only her skin had peeled.

Lisas surgeon recommended she see a counselor, which she did for the next ten months. While this benefitted her a lot, she also believes that God revealed Himself amid her pain.

That truly was the most transformative thing in my life, Lisa said. With the surgery, it was like rock bottom. The world had dropped out from under my feet. But then we pursued IVF.

Reconsidering the Path

In November 2014, Lisa and JJ harvested three viable embryos and tried them all with a gestational surrogate, but none survived. Lisa remembers the heartbreaking news as her point of surrender.

Lisa said: I remember sitting in church that Sunday and our pastor preached a sermon on the topic: Following the Savior  Are you willing to reconsider the mission and direction of your life?' He talked about foster care, and it was just one of these moments where you feel like theyre speaking directly to you.

Neither Lisa nor JJ had considered fostering before, but it was like a light switched on for them. They earned their fostering license in November 2015 and have been foster parents for seven years. During this time, they have provided short-term respite care for many children, and long-term care for seven children.

Of those seven, they have adopted two biological brothers.

Lisa said: We have a wonderful relationship with our sons biological mom  our adopted sons have other siblings out there that we get to see, that is with another adoptive family, and we have a great relationship with them.

Lisa, who works with local Ohio nonprofits that impact foster care, has been open with curious Avery, now 10, about the sickness that nearly took her life.

Foster care has brought so much love into their lives, but Lisa believes that the system is broken.

Its Humbling

The foster care crisisso many children, not enough familiesis nationwide, Lisa said, and 60 to 80 percent of foster families quit within the first year owing to a lack of support. She encourages anyone who empathizes to reach out to their local fostering agency, even if they dont plan on hosting children themselves.

Stepping in to support a foster family and your community could make a huge difference, Lisa said. Its humbling, really, to get to be a part of these stories  to step in and care for them when theres really nobody else that can.

Share your stories with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.com, and continue to get your daily dose of inspiration by signing up for the Inspired newsletter at TheEpochTimes.com/newsletter
Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino speaks at a news conference in Ottawa on Sept. 26, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld)

MPs Vote Not to Launch Investigation of Potential Obstruction of Justice Against Mendicino

MPs on the immigration and citizenship committee voted Wednesday not to launch an investigation into allegations that then-Immigration Minister Marco Mendicinos department backdated government documents in 2020.

I think it looks like a waste of time, said Bloc Quebecois MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe during an immigration committee meeting on Oct. 12. And I dont really see a scandal in here.

The committee voted 65 against a motion that wouldve launched a study into allegations of potential obstruction of justice against Mendicinos immigration department in November 2020.

According to Blacklocks Reporter, who obtained the internal emails through Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) legislation, Mendicinos former department misled a federal judge hearing a trademark infringement case to believe that the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act came into effect on Nov. 20 rather than its actual date of coming into force on Dec. 9.

The trademark infringement case arose when a private British Columbia firm called Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council took the federal government to court over the title of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act, claiming it already owned and trademarked the name.

On Nov. 20, 2020, Crown lawyers attended a federal court injunction for the trademark infringement case. On the same day, the Privy Council Office declared publically on its website that the legislation had already come into effect and the same information was passed on to the federal court.

Six days later, Mendicino also declared in a press conference that the legislation had come into effect.

Both Blacklocks and The Canadian Press reported that Mendicino refused to comment on allegations that the backdating was purposeful.

No Fault Here

MPs during the immigration committee meeting on Oct. 12 said the staff in Mendicinos immigration department made a good faith mistake in backdating the documents.

There is no fault here on the part of civil servants, said Liberal MP Sameer Zuberi. They were doing their utmost best and as diligently as possible.

Deputy Minister of Immigration Christiane Fox sent a letter to the committee prior to its Oct. 12 meeting in which she called the backdated documents a result of human error.

All appropriate steps were taken in order to correct the error of the coming-into-force date once it had been discovered, Fox wrote, as the committees chair Salma Zahid read aloud.

To me, its very clear that this was a human error on public servants part, said Liberal MP Shafqat Ali, adding, I think its a waste of our resources and time.

Conservative MPs Garnett Genuis and Brad Redekopp advocated for an investigation into the allegations, with Genuis saying multiple different problems are evident in the allegations and that they should be studied closer.

Im not here to say definitively what did or didnt happen. I think this is why weve put forward a study motion, Genuis said.

Redekopp added it should be questioned whether or not lawyers were instructed by someone in cabinet to say something that actually hadnt happened yet.

Forgive me if Im not too willing to put all my eggs into the basket of a representative of the government coming to this committee meeting and reading some emails to say, Theres nothing to see here. Everythings fine. Lets move on and do something else,' he said.

This is, to me, not a good enough way to study this issue.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
New Brunswick Minister Says Province Cutting Ties With Accredited Schools in China, Citing Concerns With Beijing Regime

With Beijings Confucius Institutes removed from New Brunswicks public schools, the province is now cutting ties with its accredited schools in China that do not teach Canadian values, says Dominic Cardy, the provinces education minister.

I have a serious problem with supporting schools operated by or influenced by the government in Beijing for all the reasons that I hope would be obvious to anyone who comes from a small l liberal democratic country, Cardy told The Epoch Times.

Supporting the regime in Beijing is the last thing that anyone in a democracy should be doing right now.

Cardy announced on Oct. 13 that he is resigning from his position. The Epoch Times spoke to Cardy before his resignation, while he was still the minister.

News of N.B. ending the relationship came last week when Cardy shared on Twitter that he is happy that Atlantic Education International (AEI), the agency responsible for marketing and selling his provinces educational programs worldwide, is phasing out its partnership with schools in China that refuse to teach Canadian values.

There were increased concerns from AEI, that I strongly shared, that the curriculum being used was a distortion of the New Brunswick curriculum, he said in the interview.

Important elements of areas in the history curriculum, social studies, civics, and so on, were not being properly taught as there was a degree of overt censorship from the communist authorities in China, which is not a surprise.

Cardy said that sensitive topics to Beijing, such as the Tiananmen Square massacre, were either not being taught at all or simply glossed over.

The minister added that he and AEI would not allow a Canadian diploma to be given to students who have not gone through a genuine Canadian education.

The areas of our curriculum that focus around critical thinking, free expression, and a democratic approach to life; questioning authority, being allowed to participate in political processesall of those were either cut or severely restricted from the curriculum, and thats not acceptable, he said,

Founding

According to AEI, the partnered schools in China were operated by Advanced Knowledge Database International Inc. (AKD International), a private international school group founded by Francis Pang, a Hong Kong-born Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur, whose long-standing alliance with the agency dated back to 1997.

Schools under the purview of AKD International include its flagship Beijing Concord College of Sino-Canada (BCCSC), Shenzhen (Nanshan) Concord College of Sino-Canada, and Canadian International School of Hefei, among seven others listed on AEIs website, in which Pang holds the position of chair in most of them.

Pangs biography on the Canada China Business Councils website stated that he proposed the first Sino-Canadian joint cooperative college in China in 1994. Within three years, BCCSC was established with Pang playing an instrumental role in liaising N.B.s education department with senior Chinese officials. The partnership would go on for over a decade before it was extended for another 15 years in 2012.

In March 2019, Pang was invested into the Order of Canada. He is also credited with establishing the Confucius Institute of New Brunswick, according to the Governor Generals official website.

The Epoch Times attempted to seek comments from Fang and BCCSC but didnt hear back by publication time.

No Way to Engage

Cardy confirmed that the partnership with AKD International will end by 2027 due to contractual obligations. By then, the province will no longer have any relationship with the schools, he noted.

I think in the past, weve been too quick to sign contracts as a province without paying careful attention to how to end them when necessary and not allowing for changes in circumstances, said Cardy, who was sworn in as education and early childhood development minister on Nov. 9, 2018, after the contracts were signed.

He said people felt more optimistic about China a decade ago and thought that engagement could help the communist state become more open and democratic.

Clearly, that was a mistaken view, he said.

There is no way to engage with a country that persists in discrimination based on religious, ethnic, racial grounds, sexual orientation, and all of the other ways in which China continues to apply a 20th-century authoritarian communist command-and-control model, he said.

Cardy added that his province remains watchful, and is ready to terminate other existing partnerships with schools in China that cater to international students but operate outside the control of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and have adhered to N.B.s curriculum.

Good Riddance to Them

Since being elected as education minister in 2018, Cardy has been the driving force behind the removal of Confucius Institutes (CIs) from his province.

He testified before the Commons Canada-China committee last June that the CIs cultural and language programs include an overt political agenda that included denying the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, having students draw maps erasing Taiwans border with China, and disciplining students who raised questions about Beijings human rights abuses.

Their job is to create a friendly, cheerful face for a government that is responsible for more deaths than nearly any other in the history of our species, Cardy told CBC in February 2019.

The minister told The Epoch Times that the last contract his province signed with CIs happened before he was elected, and did not include any cancellation clause from the Canadian side.

So we had to let the contract end, and we insisted on reducing the programming before it ended, he said, adding that all the programming was completed at the end of the last academic year in August.

[CIs are] now gone from this province, and good riddance to them, he said.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz (L) speaks with Assistant Public Defender Melissa McNeill as the verdicts are read in his trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Oct. 13, 2022. (Amy Beth Bennett/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Nikolas Cruz, Parkland School Shooter, Avoids Death Penalty for Killing 17

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life without parole for the 2018 murder of 17 people at Parklands Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, after the jury said on Oct. 13 that it couldnt unanimously agree that he should be executed.

The jurys recommendation came after seven hours of deliberations over two days, ending a three-month trial that included graphic videos, photos, and testimony from the massacre and its aftermath, heart-wrenching testimony from victims family members, and a tour of the still-blood-spattered building.

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will formally issue the sentence on Nov. 1.

Cruz, his hair unkempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jurys recommendations were read. Rumblings grew from the family sectionpacked with about three dozen parents, spouses, and other relatives of the victimsas life sentences were announced. Many shook their heads, looked angry, or covered their eyes.

The decision came after Cruz pleaded guilty in 2021 to all murder charges.

We are beyond disappointed with the outcome today. This should have been the death penalty 100 percent, Lori Alhadeff, parent of Alyssa Alhadeff, 14, one of the people Cruz killed, told reporters after the sentence was announced.

We have a jury system for a reason. And they let us down, Dr. Ilan Alhadeff, Alyssas father, added.

Assistant Public Defender Melissa McNeill speaks in court before the start of the days jury selection in the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on May 17, 2022. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel via AP, Pool)

Doomed From the Womb

Cruz, now 24, gunned down 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14, 2018. Others were left wounded.

Melissa McNeill, Cruzs lead public defender, urged jurors not to recommend a death sentence for her client.

Sentencing Nicholas to death will change absolutely nothing. It will not bring back those 17 innocent victims that he viciously murdered. It wont. You now know that Nikolas is a brain-damaged, broken, mentally ill person through no fault of his own, she said, describing Cruzs mother as having poisoned her son while he was still in the womb.

He was doomed from the womb. And in a civilized, humane society, do we kill brain-damaged, mentally ill, broken people? Do we? I hope not, McNeill said.

Family members of victims and others attend the penalty phase of the trial for school shooter Nikolas Cruz in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Aug. 1, 2022. (Amy Beth Bennett/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Youre All Going to Die

Michael Satz, the lead prosecutor, noted that Cruz said he picked Valentines Day for the shooting because he wanted to ruin it for everyone.

What he wanted to do, what his plan was, and what he did was to murder children at school and their caretakers, Satz said. Thats what he wanted to do. Thats what he planned to do. Thats what he wanted to do. And thats what he did. And he picked Valentines Day to do it while school was in session.

And you could tell by the evidence in the testimony youve been sitting here listening to everything, this plan was goal-directed. It was calculated. It was purposeful. And it was this systematic massacre.

So he carried out his plan  and he told everybody what his plan is, he said. They found his phone and the cellphone with three cellphone videos on it and the one that he made on February the 11th, 2018, Hello. My name is Nick. Im going to be the next school shooter of 2018. My goal is to kill at least 20 people with an AR and a couple of tracer rounds. I think I can get it done. Location. Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Florida. Its going to be a big event. And when you see me on the news, youll know who I am. Ha, ha. Youre all going to die. Cant wait. Cant wait.

That was his plan, Satz said. He carried it out.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Ormen Lange land plant, or Nyhamna gas plant in Aukra, which receives and processes gas from the Ormen Lange field in the Norwegian Sea is seen on Oct. 13, 2022. (Frank Einar Vatne/NTB/AFP via Getty Images)

Norwegian Police Say Threat Against Major Gas Plant Resolved

OSLONorwegian police on Thursday responded to a threat made by telephone against the Nyhamna gas processing plant, one of Europes largest energy export facilities, and later said the incident had been resolved.

The threat came amid heightened concerns about the security of oil and gas infrastructure following suspected sabotage of Russias Nord Stream gas pipelines to Europe, though plant operator Gassco and offshore producers Shell and Equinor said output had not been interrupted.

The situation has been resolved, police operations leader Per Aage Ferstad said in a statement, adding police did not believe the incident had posed a real danger to the plant.

A suspect had been identified and was known to have made similar threats in the past, police said.

The Norwegian military Home Guard has been guarding the facility since authorities boosted security at Norwegian oil and gas installations in the wake of the Nord Stream explosions on Sept. 26.

Norway is now Europes largest gas supplier, following a sharp reduction in flows from Russia.

The gas transport from Nyhamna is running as planned, said a Gassco spokesperson.

The Nyhamna plant processes natural gas from the offshore Ormen Lange field, operated by Shell, and the Aasta Hansteen field, operated by Equinor. It is a major supplier to Britain via the Langeled pipeline.

In recent years, gas produced from Ormen Lange has accounted for up to 20 percent of Britains gas consumption, according to Shell.

British and European gas prices spiked on reports of the incident before retreating when police said the situation was resolved.

Nyhamna has an export capacity of some 84 million standard cubic meters of gas per day, according to data from Gassco.

By Nora Buli and Gwladys Fouche
Nury Martinez Resigns From LA City Council Amid Outrage Over Leaked Audio

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nury Martinez resigned her council seat Oct. 12 after the recent leak of a recorded conversation from a year ago made her the center of a political firestorm thats sweeping through the second-largest city in the United States.

It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home, Martinez said in a lengthy statement, two days after she gave up her council presidency.

After thanking and apologizing to city staff, colleagues, and constituents, Martinez said: While I take the time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy.

Besides Martinez, Councilmen Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon, and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera could be heard in the taped conversation with racially disparaging remarks about a fellow councilor and other ethnic groups. The recording surfaced on Reddit Oct. 9 but was removed shortly after. Herrera resigned from his position the following day.

Public pressure has been mounting after the leak, with President Joe Biden joining a group of California politiciansincluding Gov. Gavin Newsom, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), LA Mayor Eric Garcetti, LA mayoral candidates Karen Bass and Rick Caruso, and several city councilorsin condemning the officials involved.

After the Oct. 9, 2022 leak of a racially charged conversation between council President Nury Martinez and three other local officials, protesters flooded the John Ferraro Council Chamber at the Los Angeles City Hall during the City Councils regular meeting on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

Angry protesters also disrupted the city council meeting Oct. 11 and the following day, calling for all three councilors to resign.

At least two council membersPaul Krekorian and Marqueece Harris-Dawsonsignaled an intent to hold a special election for Martinezs seat as well as de Leons if he resigns. Both their terms expire in December 2024. Cedillo lost his re-election bid to Eunessis Hernandez earlier this year, and Krekorian suggested swearing in Hernandez immediately if Cedillo resigns.

In a statement moments after Martinezs announcement, acting Council President Mitch OFarrell said her resignation is the first, necessary step in the process of accountability.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch OFarrell speaks during a council meeting in Los Angeles on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

Mayor Eric Garcetti also said Martinez made the right decision, one that I realize is painful to her personally but unquestionably in the best interests of a city that I know she loves.

Racism and hateful words cannot ever be overlooked by our community or within ones self, and she needs the time and space to reflect, make amends and move forward with her life, he said in a statement. Her two former colleagues must arrive at the same decision soon, because Angelenos deserve a government focused squarely on meeting challenges in their neighborhoods that are too serious to risk a paralyzed City Council.

Both mayoral candidates supported the resignation.

Ms. Martinez did the right thing, Rep. Karen Bass said. For Los Angeles to move in the right direction, Mr. De Leon and Mr. Cedillo must resign as well.

Developer Rick Caruso, Basss opponent, said Martinez made the right choice. We need to move forward as a city and heal.

Gov. Gavin Newsom additionally called the resignation the right move.

Again, these comments have no place in our state, or in our politics, and we must all model better behavior to live the values that so many of us fight every day to protect, he said in a statement.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin speaks during a council meeting in Los Angeles on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via YouTube/LACityClerk)

In the taped conversation, Martinez spoke about Bonins black son as ese changuitoSpanish for that little monkeywhile recalling seeing the boy misbehaving on a float during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade. She said if she and another woman didnt step in to parent his kid the float may have tumbled over.

Theyre raising him like a little white kid, she said in the recording. I was like, this kid needs a beatdown, let me take him around the corner, and then Ill bring him back.

De Leon chimed in and said Bonin treats his child the same way as when Nury brings her Goyard bag or the Louis Vuitton bag.

While referencing Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, Martinez said [Expletive] that guy, hes with the blacks. The conversation, which the officials did not know was being recorded, also included Martinez making disparaging comments about Oaxacans, an indigenous group from Mexico.

Los Angeles City Council member Kevin de Leon speaks during an event in Redondo Beach, Calif., on May 22, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

Herrera, Cedillo, and de Leon issued statements of apology after the leak Oct. 9.

There were comments made in the context of this meeting that are wholly inappropriate, and I regret appearing to condone and even contribute to certain insensitive comments made about a colleague and his family in private, de Leon said. On that day, I fell short of the expectations we set for our leadersand I will hold myself to a higher standard.

Herrera said: There is no justification and no excuse for the vile remarks made in that room. Period.

I apologize to all of you, Mike Bonin and his family, the affiliates and community members, specifically those in the Black and Oaxacan community, he said.

Cedillo said it is his instinct to hold others accountable when they use derogatory or racially divisive language.

I want to start by apologizing. While I did not engage in the conversation in question, I was present at times during this meeting last year.  Clearly, I should have intervened, he said.

Los Angeles City Councilman Gil Cedillo (L) speaks about the US Citizenship Act of 2021 and urges action on US President Bidens immigration reform plan outside of City Hall in Los Angeles on April 29, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

Currently, it is unclear who recorded the conversation, which reportedly took place at a Federation of Labor office, and who posted it on Reddit.

The federation referred to the recording as illegal and said it is investigating the source of the leak, which was a serious security and privacy breach at its offices, according to an email sent to some of its affiliates and first reported by the Los Angeles Times.

Since 2013, Martinez served on the LA City Council and represented the 6th District in the San Fernando Valley. Six years later, she was the first Latina to become president of the council, replacing long-time President Herb Wesson.

City News Service contributed to this report.
Several Oath Keepers listen to a speech prior to President Donald Trump's presentation at the Ellipse on Jan. 6, 2021. (U.S. District Court/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Oath Keeper Witness Says He Went to Capitol to Help If Things Got Out of Control

WASHINGTONAn Oath Keeper member testified under subpoena on Oct. 12 at the federal courthouse for the Oath Keepers ongoing seditious conspiracy trial that he went to the Capitol on Jan. 6 to assist if things went out of control.

Terry Cummings, 66, who served for 21 years in various classified locations for the Air National Guard, said that the Oath Keepers were present on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington in case innocent people were hurt and the police wouldnt intervene.

Cummings joined the Oath Keepers organization in 2020 while living in Florida. He was concerned about what was happening in Oregon, where he was born, with Antifa and Black Lives Matter protests. He described Portland as a beautiful, safe area with festivals, but then Antifa came about. At some point, people have to stand up. He was bothered because authorities werent doing anything about it.

The idea of coming to D.C. was an opportunity to express his First Amendment rights, said Cummings. He traveled with other Florida Oath Keepers members.

Cummings brought with him an AR-15 but left it at a hotel in Virginia. He said there were a lot of firearms cases. I havent seen so many weapons in one location since I was in the military. He knew about the Quick Reaction Force based at that hotel but believed they would only use the ammunition in defensive-only circumstances. Cummings testified that he didnt bring his firearm to Washington because the law didnt allow him to.

Cummings said the government will return his firearm after the Oath Keepers investigation is over. On the prosecutors request, he showed his weapon in front of the jury as an exhibit.

On the morning of January 6, 2021, he was at the Ellipse, providing security for VIPs. Cummings and other Oath Keepers had VIP passes which allowed them to stay 20 yards from President Donald Trump. Before Trump finished his speech, Kelly Meggs, a defendant on trial, told them they had to escort a VIP to the Capitol area. Cummings didnt recall her name, describing her as a Latina woman.

In the meantime, said Cummings, Kelly received a message, they have breached the Capitol. Cummings and other Oath Keeper members continued to walk toward the Capitol.

Even though he knew what the word breach meant, he didnt understand what was going on, testified Cummings; he was looking around the Capitol grounds, observing. He said he saw people trying to climb the walls on the west side, but none of those people were Oath Keepers.

Was there any conversation to protect the police? questioned Louis Manzo, a prosecutor. Cummings didnt recall but said, if someone was in need of help, we will probably assist.

Phillip Linder, a defense attorney, asked Cummings if, during his drive from Florida to Washington, he had heard discussions about storming the Capitol on January 6. He said no. Also, Linder questioned if he and other Oath Keepers members started walking faster when Meggs received the message about the Capitol breach. Cummings responded that they were already walking at a fast pace but didnt increase it when Meggs received the message.

Defense lawyer Bradford Geyer asked Cummings if he had heard the Oath Keepers mention insurrection or attacking police. He said no.

Another defense attorney asked him if he had received instruction from the Oath Keepers to activate the Quick Reaction Force on January 6. Cummings responded no.

The prosecutors displayed Signal messages from Stewart Rhodes to Oath Keepers Florida, a group chat on Signal, which Cummings was a part of. He didnt recall reading those messages.

Cummings has not been charged with a crime.

The U.S. government charged Rhodes, Meggs, and three other defendants on trial with seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, aiding and abetting, conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging any duties, destruction of government property, civil disorder, and tampering with documents.
The Orange County Board of Supervisors meet in Santa Ana, Calif., on Aug. 25, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

OC Supervisor Runs for Re-election to Reduce Homelessness, Strengthen Social Services

Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffee is running for re-election Nov. 8 for the District 4 seat, which includes Fullerton, La Habra, Brea, Placentia, and portions of Anaheim and Buena Park.

Chaffee, who was elected Supervisor in 2019, is running against Sunny Park, the mayor of Buena Park. All four of Chaffees supervisorial colleagues have endorsed him.

I relate to anybody and everybody, and I dont act on the basis of politics, he told The Epoch Times.

Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffee in Irvine, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2022. (Jack Bradley/The Epoch Times)

Chaffee said when he first ran for the board, he knew one term wouldnt be enough, as it takes time to get familiar with the role.

Now that Im fully loaded, so to speak  I have some things that I know I can do, he said.

As a supervisor, Chaffee works with the countys state and congressional representatives to allocate funding to local county services.

One such example, he said, is Be Well OC, a mental health support system serving Orange County that dispatches crisis counselors in a van to address non-emergency mental health crises.

The organization also has a campus in Orange that helps people with substance abuse, trauma, and other mental health issues, and also has what is called a sobering center, where police can drop off inebriated individuals found in public, Chaffee said.

Its a pretty unique system. We dont turn anyone away, he said, including those without medical insurance.

Chaffee said he wants to work toward creating two more campuses locally, so the whole county has access to mental health services.

The Be Well OC clinic in Orange, Calif., on Jan. 13, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

He also said, if re-elected, he would work toward embedding more county social service workers into policing and provide around-the-clock services to the homeless that cover northern Orange County, dispatching social workers that accompany police to de-escalate incidents.

That changes the culture within the police department. They learn more about de-escalating and the value of social services, he said.

As a supervisor, Chaffee has also implemented whats known as the Fourth District Kindness Awards, which recognizes individuals each year for their kind acts and community service.

During his tenure, Chaffee has also launched the Future Leaders Program for local high school juniors and seniors, which acquaints the students with various professionsfrom firefighters to elected officialsby having representatives speak to them.

Chaffee, who is a member of the Orange County Housing Finance Trusta joint powers authority between the county and various cities which funds housing projects for the homeless and low-income familiesadditionally said, if re-elected, he would work toward building more affordable housing with state and county funding.

According to Chafee, the group aims to create around 1,500 more affordable housing units by 2025.

Chaffee was born in Long Beach and moved to Fullerton while in elementary school.

Following in his fathers footsteps, who was the city attorney for Fullerton, Chaffee became a general practice lawyer in 1969.
A close-up of an Ottawa Police officers badge in Ottawa on April 28, 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

Ottawa Officer Suspended for Probing Link Between Childrens Death and COVID-19 Vaccines Ordered to Return to Work

In an Oct. 11 internal hearing of the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), Helen Grus was told that she was no longer suspended, though she is to return to work under certain restrictions and conditions, according to Donald Best, an independent journalist and former detective with the Toronto police.

Grus is a detective with the Ottawa Police Services (OPS) sexual assault and child abuse unit, which is mandated to investigate child abuse and neglect.

Gruss next hearing is scheduled for Dec. 6, 2022.

Concerns About Mandates
Worry heaps the troubles of tomorrow onto the troubles of today

What, me worry? was the slogan of Mad Magazines fictitious Alfred E. Neuman, whose boyish image became the magazines logo. Cartoonist Harvey Kurtzman, who helped develop the icon, remarked that his was a face that didnt have a care in the world.

In truth, few people past the age of 18 have carefree faces, and by the age of 25, even fewer would adopt What, me worry? as a guiding principle of life. The world is too much with us, William Wordsworth wrote, and for most of us, thats just a plain fact. Unlike Neuman, we worry.

Some of these worries are easily put to rest. When we take the car in for servicing, we have the mechanic check the air in the spare tire. If we are afraid that well forget a friends birthday, we mark it on a calendar or put it in our phone.

But these small anxieties arent the fears that add stress lines to our foreheads or keep us awake until all hours of the night. Theres no quick fix for those voices in our heads, the whispers of apprehension and imagination kicking into overdrive. These are childhood terrorsmonsters under the bed, ghosts in the attictransformed into dragons for more mature audiences. The pre-med student is certain hes going to flunk his first college calculus test; the expectant 28-year-old is worried sick that shell be a terrible mother; despite his exemplary record, the software salesman is terrified every day that he isnt measuring up and will find himself unemployed.

But heres some good news: A number of researchers have found that most of what we fret and fume about never comes to pass.

In How Often Do Your Worries Come True? Seth Gillihan reports on one such study at Penn State University, in which subjects kept track of their short-term worries. All of these participants, incidentally, had general anxiety disorder. The results? Ninety-one percent of their fears never saw the light of day. And of those worries that did become reality, a third of them induced less stress than anticipated. These results, Gillihan points out, are examples of what some researchers have called worrys deceits, the scenarios we act out in our minds that usually never appear.

Nor is worry about the future necessarily a bad thing, at least when kept in check. Worry can give us time to strategize possible outcomes, to consider options and tactics should the imagined fear become real, and to muster up courage in the face of looming disaster.

Sometimes we try to conquer these worries about the future by confiding in friends. A kind word, some sound advice, a pat on the backand in certain circumstances, a kick in the rearcan be helpful. When Douglas MacArthur went to take the exams to enter West Point, tests for which he had dedicated months of preparation, he was so afraid of failure that he felt physically sick and wanted to give up and return home. With her encouraging words, his mother pushed away those doubts, and MacArthur ended up outscoring the other candidates by far. He entered the Academy, excelled as a cadet, and went on to become one of the most famous generals in American history.

Other tips for fighting worry can be found online. Google How not to worry about the future, and a battalion of websites pop up, with suggestions ranging from learned optimism to breathing exercises.

Perhaps the best bit of advice, which appears on many of these lists, is to focus our attention on todays tasks, or as some call it, mindfulness. Barring grave catastrophes, when we take care of the present, the future generally takes care of itself.
Pumpjacks at the Kern River oilfield in Bakersfield, Calif., in a file photo. (Jonathan Alcorn/Reuters)

Over 70% of Canadians Support Increasing Domestic Oil and Gas Production to Cut Global Dependency on Russia

Over 70 percent of Canadians say they support increasing Canadas oil and gas production to reduce the worlds dependence on Russian energy, according to a recent poll.

Released by market research firm Leger on Oct. 12, the poll found that 72 percent of Canadians indicated their support for producing and exporting more domestic oil and gas resources.

The poll was conducted with 1,535 Canadian residents aged 18 and over from Sept. 30 to Oct. 3, via the firms online panel.

The respondents were asked if they support or oppose Canada developing and exporting more oil resources internationally given that one way [Russian President] Vladimir Putin has paid for his invasion of Ukraine is through selling Russias oil and gas resources to Europe, the United States, Canada and other countries.

Among those who expressed their support, 49 percent indicated they strongly support the move, and 23 percent said they somewhat support. Thirteen percent would either somewhat oppose or strongly oppose increasing oil exports while 15 percent said they dont know.

The conflict between Ukraine and Russia is now entering its eighth month. Since the invasion started on Feb. 24, Canada has banned the imports of Russian crude oil.

Business Case

In March, federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Canada has the capacity to increase oil and gas exports by up to 300,000 barrels per day by the end of 2022, in order to reduce global dependence on Russian energy exports.

In a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Aug. 22, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters he is open to easing regulatory requirements for the export of Canadian natural gas to Europe, but questioned whether a business case exists for such investments.

A day after Trudeau played down the economic viability of the investments, Scholz said he hopes Canada can play a major role in helping to ease its shift from Russian gas imports.

For now, this means increasing our LNG imports. We hope that Canadian LNG will play a major role in this, Scholz said at the time.

According to the Leger poll, 54 percent of respondents agreed with a statement that said Canada can help its European allies only if government roadblocks that prevent the production of these resources, and the building of new pipelines, are removed.

Sixteen percent say there is no business case for increasing oil exports as its too costly for companies to develop and export the resources to Europe while 30 percent said they dont know.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Jake Cronenworth (9) of the San Diego Padres hits an RBI against Los Angeles Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw during the third inning in game two of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, on Oct. 12, 2022. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

Padres Bullpen Shuts Down Dodgers to Even NLDS

LOS ANGELESJurickson Profar hit a go-ahead single in the sixth inning, Manny Machado and Jake Cronenworth hit home runs and the San Diego Padres evened the National League Division Series at one win apiece with a 53 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, Oct. 12.

The Padres bullpen delivered four more scoreless innings after tossing 5 1/3 shutout frames in Game 1 of the best-of-five set. San Diego earned its first-ever postseason victory against Los Angeles in five tries.

Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy and Trea Turner homered for the Dodgers, who won a franchise-best 111 games in the regular season but now must win twice in three games in order to advance.

Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw gave up three runs on six hits in five innings with no walks and six strikeouts. Padres starter Yu Darvish (20) allowed three runs on seven hits over five innings with two walks and seven strikeouts.

Yu Darvish (11) of the San Diego Padres pitches in the first inning in game two of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, on Oct. 12, 2022. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Unlike Game 1, when the Dodgers grabbed the early lead, the Padres went up first on Machados opening-inning home run to left, his second of the postseason.

The Dodgers answered quickly with Freemans first-inning home run and a blast in the second from Muncy to take a 21 lead.

Max Muncy (13) of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates his solo home run in the second inning in game two of the National League Division Series against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, on Oct. 12, 2022. (Harry How/Getty Images)

Machado hit an RBI double in the third to even the score again, and Cronenworth rolled an RBI ground ball to first base two batters later.

The Dodgers kept their long-ball show going in the third when Turner tied the score 33 on a home run to left, his second in two games.

The Padres pushed in front in the sixth against Brusdar Graterol (01). After an error by Turner at shortstop put two Padres runners aboard, Profar rolled an RBI single to right field for a 43 advantage.

Los Angeles looked set to even the score with no outs in the bottom of the sixth, putting runners on the corners to end Darvishs night. But hard-throwing right-hander Robert Suarez struck out Justin Turner and got Gavin Lux to ground into a double play.

Suarez escaped his own jam in the seventh. A Cody Bellinger single and a Mookie Betts double put two aboard with one out. Suarez got Trea Turner to ground out, intentionally walked Freeman to load the bases, then got Will Smith to fly out.

Cronenworths home run in the eighth off right-hander Blake Treinen gave the Padres a 53 lead.

In addition to two scoreless innings from Suarez, Nick Martinez and Josh Hader kept the Dodgers off the scoreboard, with Hader recording four outs for his first save of the postseason.

By Doug Padilla
A series of missile strikes this past weekend by Russia against Ukrainian cities, including Lviv, the western city that has been housing a large number of the internally displaced Ukrainians, has increased the likelihood of a new wave of Ukrainian migrants. But other factorsincluding potential energy disruptions in Ukraine this winter and in food and fertilizer exports leading to famine in Africaare also expected to impact the number of migrants from Ukraine and Africa.

These and other issues will be addressed in a panel discussion, sponsored jointly by the Center for Immigration Studies and the Hungarian Migration Research Institute, on Thursday, Oct. 13 at 9:30 a.m. ET. Experts from the United States and Europe will examine the refugee and internally displaced person (IDP) challenges produced by the war and faced by Ukraine, Europe, Africa, and the United States.

Hear from researchers who have recently returned from a fact-finding trip to Ukraine about internal displacement and the energy situation as winter approaches. Hear how Ukrainians are coming to the United States now, and what we might expect in the future.

Date: Oct. 13, 2022, at 9:30 a.m.

Location: Capitol Hill Club, 300 First St. SE, Washington, D.C.

Participants:

Nayla Rush, Senior Researcher, Center for Immigration Studies

Viktor Marsai, Director, Migration Research Institute

Kristof Gyorgy Veres, Andrassy National Security Fellow, Center for Immigration Studies

Monika Palotai, Visiting Research Fellow, Hudson Institute

Mark Krikorian, Moderator, Executive Director, Center for Immigration Studies

* Click the Save button below the video to access it later on My List.

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A poster at an RSU 22 school suggests that it's more interesting to make your own gender than to be born a man or woman. Photo was taken in Maine's RSU school district. (Courtesy of Kevin, Hannah, and Lucy)

Parents Pulling Their Kids From Maryland Schools Over Radical Curricula, Transgender Policies

A parents revolt against school boards is roiling local elections in counties across Maryland, according to activists speaking to The Epoch Times.

Many parents have pulled their students from public schools and joined parent co-operatives for home schooling.

They have been dubbed Mama Grizzlies, but they include dads and granddads, and they are steamed up about vaccination policy and radical new gender ideology.

School systems have been pulling kids away from the parents for years, but parents have not been paying attention, said school reform activist April Montgomery to The Epoch Times.

Montgomery, a Frederick County mother, decided to homeschool her three children in late September.

Activist parent April Montgomery in Frederick County, Maryland. (Courtesy of April Montgomery)

My children have learned during the last two weeks more than they learned all of last year, she said.

The schools opened after lockdowns and emphasized emotional learning instead of focusing on the loss of learning during the long school closures. Academics went out the window, said Montgomery who ran as a candidate for the Frederick County school board but failed to get her name on the ballot.

A salient issue for many is the new approach to sex education, which she believes encourages some teens to identify as transgender.

Kids are taught that if you are not comfortable in your body you might be transgender, she said. Yet I know of no girl between the ages of 11 and 14 who is comfortable with her body. I wasnt at that age.

Her views reflect the findings of Abigail Shrier, author of Irreversible Damage, who argues that the recent phenomenon of teen girls coming out as boys is an example of a new social contagion.

Montgomery, a former specialist in kindergarten enrichment in another school system, noticed that the new gender ideology is being emphasized in most classes, not only those dubbed family life.

My daughter, who is 14, brought home a photo of a lesson on inclusive pronouns in English class, which taught the new pronouns of ze and zir to be used with persons who did not identify as either male or female, she said.

We were surprised because the administration had told parents that gender studies would be restricted to family life, Montgomery said.

Heather Fletcher, field director for Our Voices for Freedom, a Frederick County citizens advocacy group. (Courtesy of Heather Fletcher)

The faculty members ask every child in the 9th Grade to register pronouns that may be used in class, as opposed to being used with their peers or their parents, to enable students to hide their transgender names from their parents, according to Montgomery.

The schools are giving children the idea that bodily autonomy is their childrens decision without involving the parents at all, she said.

Maryland public schools are known to encourage transgender clubs in several counties.

All of Montgomery Countys 26 high schools and 40 of its middle schools have transgender clubs that meet during the school day or at close of it. Most Frederick High Schools have these clubs, according to Montgomery, who has been active in Moms for Liberty in Frederick County, a parents rights advocacy group.

Frederick County public schools are not a safe place for children, says Heather Fletcher, field director for Our Voices for Freedom, a two-year-old citizens advocacy group in the county.

Fletcher pulled her three children out of elementary public school in October of 2021 and ran for Frederick County School Board during the primaries.

The schools are not on the side of parents if they oppose a childs decision to identify as a member of the opposite sex, according to Fletcher.

The way school psychologists are doing this, they meet a child with confusion about his or her sex, and the law requires the counselor to affirm the gender the child chooses. Thats not helping the child, Fletcher said to The Epoch Times.

Lisa Ruth, a mother in Kent County, Maryland, whose daughter has identified as transgender. (Courtesy of Don Makowski)

Some parents are in shock that school counselors wont help them when their teenage children announce to them that they are transgender.

For Kent County working mother Lisa Ruth, that moment came in January when her 17-year-old daughter told her that she was determined to transition into a boy.

After some research, Ruth found out that the school counselors and teachers were required by law to provide gender-affirming care to her daughter.

All they asked of my daughter was which pronoun will you be using to describe yourself?

Ruth tells The Epoch Times she is heartbroken and frustrated that in the school system teachers, as well as therapists and counselors, are prevented by law from intervening with what she believes is her daughters temporary confusion about her sexual identity.

A person of faith, Ruth says, If I keep pushing against this I may do more harm. So, at this point, Im ready to let go, and let God.

Some parents are in shock that school counselors wont help them when their teenage children announce to them that they are transgender.

Moms for Liberty chapters in nine Maryland counties have focused on school board elections that will be decided on Nov. 8.

The Harford County chapter of Moms for Liberty welcomed Republican candidate for attorney general Michael Peroutka at their Oct. 5 meeting where he signed a Parents Pledge, according to chapter chair Suzie Scott.

Moms for Liberty chapter in Harford County stand with candidate for attorney general Michael Peroutka on Oct 5, 2022. (Courtesy of Susan Scott)

The text of the pledge: I pledge to honor the fundamental rights of parents including, but not limited to the right to direct the education, medical care, and moral upbringing of their children.

I pledge to advance policies that strengthen parental involvement and decision-making, increase transparency, defend against government overreach, and secure parental rights at all levels of government.

A group of concerned citizens in Montgomery County, bordering Washington and the wealthiest county in Maryland, has published a sample ballot for county voters that identifies candidates who are aligned with parents rights, financial transparency, and academic excellence, according to Dee Reuben, the founder of United Against Racism in Education.

The Maryland teacher unions have endorsed candidates they favor in a list they call the Red Apple ballot, Reuben said to The Epoch Times. The opposing slate is what we call the Blue Book ballot, she said.
Pennsylvania State Senators to Pitch Parental Rights Protection Act in Upcoming Hearing

Admiral Rachel Levine, assistant secretary of HHS and former state health secretary, asked to testify

From potty training to high school graduation, it used to go without saying that parents had ultimate authority over how to raise their own children. Parents impart nutritional and health habits such as limiting sugar and setting a bedtime. Parents teach social, emotional, and religious values such as how to treat people with respect or when to start dating.

But in recent years parents have found themselves in conflict with public schools, which have gone beyond reading, writing, and arithmetic to teaching values previously reserved for parents.

If the last three years have taught us anything, its that we can no longer take for granted the assumed rights we hold as parents and guardians. The COVID-19 pandemic showed us just how far the government will go to intervene in the health and welfare of our children, Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano told The Epoch Times.

Mastriano is the Republican candidate for Pennsylvania governor.

Universal masking and discriminatory quarantine policies left millions of kids behind socially and academically. Now the Department of Education has given schools a pass to push radical gender ideology and sexually inappropriate content to children as young as 5, and when parents ask questions or dare to object, theyre equated to domestic terrorists, he said. It shouldnt be controversial to say parents should direct and guide the upbringing, education, and health care of their kids. But thats the path progressive ideology has led us down.

Parental Rights Protection Act

While 12 other states currently define and protect parental rights, Pennsylvania does not have a state statute recognizing these rights. Mastriano introduced the Parental Rights Protection Act in January, and on Oct. 18, the Senate State Government Committee will host a hearing on the act.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano gives a victory speech at his election-night party at The Orchards in Chambersburg, Pa., on May 17, 2022. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The act defines and protects parental rights, asserting that the liberty of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, care, and welfare of the parents child is a fundamental right and that neither a state nor a nonstate agency may infringe upon the right without demonstrating that the law or ordinance is narrowly tailored to meet a compelling governmental interest by the least restrictive means.

Parents have struggled to access content their children are seeing. The legislation will also codify a parents right to access and review all school records related to their child, a right to review all instructional materials used throughout the school year, and the right to opt their child out from certain curriculum that the parent finds to be objectionable or harmful.

In the past year, Pennsylvania schools have hosted a drag show and encouraged kids to bring dollar bills to give to gyrating, scantily clothed dancers; spent thousands of dollars training teachers to embrace critical race theory; and provided books with pictures and instructions for sex acts.

Critics can try to paint this any way they want, and they will, but no matter what, this bill reaffirms what we already know to be true. Parents, not the government, know whats best for their children, Mastriano said.

Rachel Levine Asked to Testify

The Pennsylvania Senate State Government Committee has sent a letter to Admiral Rachel Levine, assistant secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and head of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. Appointed by President Joe Biden in 2021, Levine is the first transgender woman to hold a federal office at this level. Levine promotes gender affirming care for children and recently posted a message on Twitter urging all children 6 months and older to get flu vaccinations.

Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine meets with the media at the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) headquarters in Harrisburg, Pa., on May 29, 2020. (Joe Hermitt/The Patriot-News via AP)

But Pennsylvanians know Levine as the face of COVID-19 information early in the pandemic, from Levines time as state secretary of health. Levine gave daily updates on the spread of COVID-19 and the states policy changes. Levine also worked with the state education department to develop policies including school closures and mandatory masking.

The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare how far public officials can go to interfere with ordinary parental rights, including the unconstitutional universal masking orders and unreasonable quarantine policies that left students behind, socially and academically, said the committees letter to Levine, signed by Mastriano and committee Chair Sen. Dave Argall, a Republican. This erosion of parental rights compounded when political ideology began seeping into curriculum for public schools that further divides children over issues of race, gender and socioeconomic background.

Most disturbing of all, some guidelines now encourage school employees to hide information about a students health and wellbeing from their parents or guardians. The rapid evolution of these policies coincides with the National School Boards Association publication to the U.S. Department of Justice of an inflammatory letter that described parents as domestic terrorists for questioning the trajectory of their childrens education.

Levine is widely recognized for expertise in pediatric medicine, the letter says, mentioning certifications from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine.

This, combined with your institutional knowledge of the intersection of public health and education, make your testimony particularly compelling and thought-provoking, the letter said.

The hearing will feature other speakers, including parents and education advocates.

The public is invited to the hearing on Oct. 18 at 10:30 a.m. at the Pennsylvania Capitol building in Harrisburg. Levine has not responded to the invitation yet, Mastrianos office said. The Epoch Times reached out to Levine and HHS for comment.

The legislative session is over in days, meaning there is not enough time to pass the legislation in the current session.

This is more of a preview for next session, Chad Davis, executive director of the Senate State Government Committee, told The Epoch Times. Hopefully well have a more friendly governor, in terms of their relationship with parents, who would advocate more strongly for this bill.
Police: Missing Georgia Toddler Likely Dead, Mother Named Prime Suspect

Authorities in Georgia believe a 20-month-old boy who disappeared from his home about a week ago is dead, and the toddlers mother is now a prime suspect in the case.

We are saddened to report that CCPD and the FBI have notified Quinton Simons family that we believe he is deceased, the Chatham County Police Department (CCPD) said on Twitter late Wednesday.

Leilani Simon, Quintons mother and the prime suspect in his disappearance and death, has not been arrested or charged in the case, police added.

We know that thousands of people around the world will be heartbroken by this news, and we share your sorrow, the department said.

Jeffrey Hadley, the police chief in Chatham County, will provide more details about the case at a news conference later on Thursday, officials said, adding that they wont make any further statements, or answer any questions, until that time.

Quinton was reported missing by his mother in Savannah on Oct. 5. He was last seen in his home along Buckhalter Road wearing a light blue Sesame Street shirt and black pants.

The childs disappearance prompted a massive multi-day search that included a team of search dogs and a helicopter with heat-seeking technology, Hadley told reporters on Oct. 6. A few dozen FBI agents also assisted local police with the case.

Some detectives worked 18 to 20-hour days in hopes of finding the boy alive.

Were going to hold out hope that hes still alive, and that we can find him and bring him home safe to his parents, Hadley said during a press briefing last week. But, well continue to look at all angles and exhaust all investigative avenues.

Were going to hold out hope that hes still alive, and that we can find him and bring him home safe to his parents, Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley told reporters today. But, well continue to look at all angles and exhaust all investigative avenues. pic.twitter.com/9oVjBPwFjL  Chatham County Police Department (@ChathamCountyPD) October 6, 2022

No Amber Alert was issued for Quinton, Hadley said at the time because that would require police to first determine the child had been kidnapped.

Heated Altercation

Quintons babysitter, Diana McCarta, told WSAV in an exclusive report that she had previously called Georgias Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) because she was concerned for the childs welfare.

McCarta told the station that shes not the only person in the area who is concerned over Quinton and his brother, claiming other people in the neighborhood also talked to DFCS officials.

The 20-month-old boy was last seen at the home where he reportedly lived with his mother, her boyfriend, his 3-year-old brother, and the childs maternal grandparents, Thomas and Billie Jo Howell.

The local TV station has obtained video footage that shows a heated confrontation between McCarta and Quintons grandmother, who reportedly has legal custody of the missing boy and his 3-year-old brother.

The footage shows Howell pointing her finger at the babysitter and yelling, This is my baby, not yours.

Howell was allegedly angered over McCartas suggestion of holding a memorial for the missing toddler.

Youre awful to say youre going to put up a memorial, the grandmother could be heard yelling. My babys not dead.

From NTD News
Pro-abortion activists outside the Michigan State Capitol during a "Restore Roe" rally in Lansing, on Sept. 7, 2022. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images)

Progressive Women Rally Against Michigans Reproductive Freedom for All Ballot Proposal

A group of Progressive women gathered on the steps of the Michigan Capitol Building in Lansing on Oct. 13 to urge the states voters to reject a proposed amendment to the Michigan Constitution that they say would deregulate the states thriving abortion industry and put women in danger.

Kristen Day, executive director of a national organization called Democrats for Life, told the crowd, It doesnt matter if youre pro-choice or pro-life. This is about  making sure that (women) are not put in unsafe situations when faced with an unplanned pregnancy.

Democrat Monica Galloway, president of the Michigan Municipal League and a former Flint, Michigan, city council member, said in her remarks, The amendment would take away the right for parents to be informed if their daughter is seeking an abortion  (the) amendment extends the fundamental right to abortion to children and blocks any restrictions on it if the restriction infringed on the persons autonomous decision-making.

Galloway predicted that, should Proposal 3 pass, Women in this state will be travailing and wailing over the fact that they have given up their parental rights.

I am asking parents to take a serious look at what this says.

Left-wing pro-life protesters with Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising protest outside the US Supreme Court on June 15, 2022 (Jackson Elliott/The Epoch Times)

The president of the Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, Terrisa Bukovinac, a self-described atheist, feminist, and leftist, called Proposal 3 a truly anti-woman proposal.

Theres nothing progressive about [it], she said, adding that Proposal 3 would remove all safety regulations for abortion seekers.

Several speakers warned voters not to be deceived by slick marketing and urged them not to be taken in by the lengthy proposals simple and innocuous summary printed on the ballot.

Sarah Burchart, president of Michigan Democrats for Life, warned, Proposal 3 sounds like its keeping the status quo  [but] the wording of this proposed constitutional amendment [goes] far beyond Roe.

Burchart quoted a portion of the propositions language that says the state cannot penalize, prosecute, or otherwise take adverse action against someone for aiding or assisting a pregnant individual in exercising their right to reproductive freedom.

For some time, other critics of the proposal have maintained that the use of the word individual does not differentiate between adults and minors.

They say the proposal specifically characterizes sterilization as a protected right not requiring parental consent, and through that process, brings transgenderism into the Michigan Constitution.

These radical changes have been quietly slipped into the text in such a way that Michigan voters will not see them if they only read the summary of the proposal, said rally speaker Lucy Moye, the national chairperson of the American Solidarity Party.

Loren Khogali, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, an organization that strongly supports Proposal 3, wrote on the groups website:

We will not allow forced pregnancy in our state, nor will we stand by as the devastating impacts of a post-Roe world disproportionately impacts people of color (and) LGBT communities.

The majority of Michiganders know that abortion is health care.

Michigan is on the right side of history as we lead the way with Reproductive Freedom for All.

Protesters shout as they join thousands marching around the Arizona Capitol in Phoenix after the Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision on June 24, 2022. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

The Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative received more than enough petition signatures to obtain a place on the Nov. 8 ballot.

The proposal survived an effort to keep it off the ballot due to numerous spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors in the text of the petitions.

If approved by voters, legal experts believe Proposal 3 will invalidate dozens of existing Michigan statutes, such as the 24-hour waiting period before an abortion can be performed; providing pregnant women with fetal development information and ultrasounds of the infant prior to an abortion procedure; a law requiring abortions to be performed only by physicians; and the possible redefinition of statutory rape, which currently holds that a minor child is legally incapable of giving consent to having sex with an adult.
Q: I dread Halloween because my dog, Bruiser, is afraid of the costumed trick-or-treaters. He cowers from children who arent wearing masks and barks ferociously at those who are, sometimes scaring them to tears. I want this year to be different, but I dont know what to do.

A: Costumed children can look like monsters, especially when their masks prevent Bruiser from making eye contact with them and reading their facial expressions. He undoubtedly becomes even more frightened when the children, high on sugar, squeal for joy and charge into his home to grab another fistful of candy.

Youll need to protect Bruiser from all this. Seclude him in a back room with his favorite chew toys and some soothing music or television for distraction. Dim the lights and plug in an Adaptil diffuser to fill the room with a calming pheromone.

If you dont think that will be adequate, talk with his veterinarian about an anti-anxiety medication. Give it to Bruiser a couple of hours before you expect the children to arrive so it has time to get into his system and start working.

Be sure Bruiser wears an identification tag on his collar in case he escapes from the back room and bolts out the front door. A microchip provides additional assurance that youll get him back if he runs away.

Keep Bruiser away from the candy, most of which is toxic to dogs. Stash any leftover candy where he cant reach it. The most worrisome treats are chocolate, licorice, sugar-free candy that contains xylitol, and lollipops or other candy with an undigestible component.

Monitor Bruiser around your Halloween decorations and light cords so he doesnt become entangled or chew on them. If he shows interest in your corncob decorations, remove them before he eats them. Dont put candles in jack-o-lanterns; dogs can singe their hair or even topple the candles, starting a fire.

And, have fun!

Q: Why are black cats associated with scary witches and Halloween?

A: During medieval times, black cats were reviled because people suspected they helped witches perform sorcery. People also believed witches could transform themselves into black cats. So, anyone who crossed paths with a black cat expected to be cursed with bad luck.

In 1233, Pope Gregory IX condemned black cats and sanctioned the torture and burning of them. Two centuries later, Pope Innocent VIII instructed inquisitors to burn cats along with their witches.

In 1649, Englands King Charles I was arrested and charged with treason the day after his beloved black cat died. Soon after, he was declared guilty and beheaded.

In both Europe and America, people who feared witches and witchcraft punished or killed those who kept black cats. They also burned black cats alive on bonfires.

On the other hand, some cultures have revered black cats. In ancient Egypt, people welcomed them into their homes to court favor with Bast, the cat goddess. Today, many people around the world believe black cats bring good luck and prosperity.

If you have a black cat, keep him or her inside on Halloween. If you dont have a black cat, consider adopting one of these alluring but under-appreciated felines from your local shelter or rescue organization.
Putin Warns All Global Energy Infrastructure at Risk After Nord Stream Pipeline Blasts

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that all energy infrastructure throughout the world is at risk following explosions on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea last month.

Speaking at an energy forum in Moscow on Wednesday, the Russian leader said the explosions at the pipelines were a terrorist attack that have set the most dangerous precedent, Bloomberg reported.

It shows that any critically important object of transport, energy, or utilities infrastructure is under threat irrespective of where it is located or by whom it is managed, he said.

Officials from both the West and Russia are investigating the blasts to the crucial pipelines that occurred on Sept. 26. Russian officials have blamed unfriendly countries for the explosions, while the United States and its allies have suggested Russia may have been behind the incident.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak, meanwhile, has said that the leak is nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression toward the EU, and claimed that Russia wants to destabilize the economic situation in Europe and cause pre-winter panic.

Putin on Wednesday blamed the damage to the pipelines on U.S., Ukrainian, and Polish sabotage, and claimed that those nations had benefited from the explosions, which caused major gas leaks.

Officials in NATO and the European Union have stressed the need to secure energy infrastructure in their countries following the leaks in the pipelines, which came in the wake of Western sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine.

Polish Pipeline Leak

On Wednesday, Polish operator PERN said it had detected a leak in a pipeline that carries energy supplies from Russia to Europe, including Germany, Poland, Belarus, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Austria.

The Druzhba oil pipeline is located just over 40 miles from the Polish city of Plock.

At the moment, the causes of the incident are unknown  pumping on the damaged line was immediately switched off. Pumping through the other line remains undisturbed, the company said in a statement.

However, Mateusz Berger, the Polish governments representative for Strategic Energy Infrastructure told Reuters that there were no grounds to believe the leak was caused by an act of sabotage and that it was likely accidental.

Here we can talk about accidental damage, Berger said. We are living in turbulent times, different connotations are possible, but at this stage we have no grounds at all to believe that, he added.

Earlier this month, German officials branded cuts to cables essential to the rail network in the northern part of the country an act of sabotage, but stopped short of blaming Russia.

Meanwhile, Putin has suggested that Russia redirect supplies that were meant to run through the damaged Nord Stream pipelines to the Black Sea, thereby establishing a gas hub in Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly sought to play the role of mediator in the RussiaUkraine conflict.

The Russian president has also touted using one intact part of Nord Stream 2 to supply the EU, although European officials have been quick to rebuff that idea as relations between the Kremlin and the West continue to worsen.
People take pictures of rare banners of political protest from an overpass in Beijing on Oct. 13, 2022. (Screenshot of Fangshimins Twitter account via The Epoch Times)

Rare Protest Against Xi Appears in Beijing Days Before CCPs Congress

A rare protest against Chinese leader Xi Jinping took place in Beijing on Oct. 13, widely-circulated images and photos show, just days ahead of the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) 20th National Congress.

Two white banners bore slogans, including a call for Xis ouster and an end to the draconian zero-COVID policy, according to numerous images and videos circulating on Twitter, which is blocked in China.

The banners unfurled on Sitong Bridge in Haidian district, a university district in the northwest of the capital city, according to images and clips taken from various angles.

Smoke could be seen emanating from the overpass, and a man could be heard chanting slogans with loudspeakers, according to footage from the scene.

Such an incident poses an embarrassment for Xi, who is expected to secure an unprecedented third five-year term in office in the upcoming party congress. Held every five years, the meeting is set to kick off on Oct. 16 in Beijing, during which the next round of top leadership will also be unveiled.

Dissenters and petitioners previously told The Epoch Times that since September, police have appeared on local streets, monitoring their homes day and night.

With just days left to the pivotal political meeting, its highly unusual for protests to pop up in the country, especially in the political center of Beijing, where a city-wide mass surveillance system has been installed since 2015. According to Comparitech, a UK-based cyber security website, approximately 7.9 million surveillance cameras watch the city 24 hours daily.

Photos online purport to show a rare protest in Beijings Haidian district just ahead of the 20th Party Congress. Extraordinary given pre-Congress security + surveillance Among the slogans: Dont want PCR tests, want to eat Dont want a Cultural revolution, want reforms pic.twitter.com/9RwyDb36RM  Bill Birtles (@billbirtles) October 13, 2022

Let us strike from schools and from work and remove the dictatorial traitor Xi Jinping, one of the two banners read.

The other banner said: No COVID tests, we want to eat. No lockdowns; we want freedom. No lies; we want dignity. No Cultural Revolution; we want reform. No leaders; we want votes. We dont want to be slaves; we want to be citizens.

The CCP has made it clear that it will remain committed to its zero-COVID policy, though frequent lockdowns and repeated mass testing have fueled widespread frustration in Chinese cities. Small-scale protests erupted in Shanghai and other Chinese cities earlier this year.

As of Oct. 10, at least 36 Chinese cities have been placed under some level of restrictions or lockdown, affecting around 196.9 million people, up from the previous weeks 179.7 million, according to an estimate by Japanese bank Nomura.

Beijing is testing its 21 million residents every three days, with people required to present a negative result on a PCR test taken within 72 hours to enter any public venue or take public transportation.

A member of security stands guard ahead of Chinas 20th Communist Party Congress in Beijing on Oct. 13, 2022. (Noel Celis/AFP via Getty Images)

Censorship

On Thursday evening, there was a noticeable police presence in the area, with several police cars and officers standing watch at the thoroughfare where the banners had been hung, according to Reuters. It added there were no traces of the banners or of fire.

A nearby resident told The Epoch Times that he shut the door immediately when he saw the protest. He declined to discuss details over the phone, saying that the control has been tightened in recent days.

Several locals said theyd heard of the protest but could not share it on WeChat, the countrys most popular messaging app.

A Beijing resident expressed support for the protest.

People have rights to express their ideas, which was protected by the Constitution, he told The Epoch Times on Thursday. However, when people express their thoughts in public, no matter the means, they will be accused of picking quarrels and stirring up trouble.

Picking quarrels and stirring up trouble is a frequent charge used by the CCP to silence critics.

On Chinas heavily censored internet, search terms related to the protest yielded no results as of Thursday.

Additionally, a song called Sitong Bridge, the name of the Haidian bridge, by an artist called Biuya was censored on various Chinese music apps, according to Reuters.

Reuters, Hong Ning, and Xia Song contributed to this report.
Police officers in Ottawa on Feb. 18, 2022, during Freedom Convoy protests in the capital city. (Richard Moore/The Epoch Times)

RCMP Falsely Claimed Freedom Convoy Protesters Were Armed, Documents Show

The RCMP falsely claimed on Feb. 14the same day cabinet invoked the Emergencies Actthat Freedom Convoy protesters gathered outside Ottawas Parliament buildings were armed, internal documents show. Ottawa Police Service (OPS) interim chief Steve Bell later confirmed no weapons were found among protesters.

Intelligence information also suggests that convoy protesters are beginning to weaponize themselves, read an RCMP briefing note sent to cabinet deputy ministers titled Truckers Convoy And Protective Services, obtained by Blacklocks Reporter.

Officers are constantly monitoring the shift in behaviour and will respond accordingly, it continued.

The briefing notes timestamp was dated 12:59 p.m. on Feb. 14. Four hours later, the Liberal government invoked the Emergencies Act, granting police authority to use extraordinary force in clearing protesters from Ottawas downtown core.

The RCMP briefing note also said that around 250 uniformed officers were outside Parliament and approximately 350 officers were being deployed daily in support of our protective mandate.

Cabinet revoked the Emergencies Act on Feb. 23, just nine days after it came into force.

On Feb. 16, while the act was still in force, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told reporters that Freedom Convoy protesters were committing potentially deadly crimes.

Dangerous criminal activity occurring away from the TV cameras and social media posts was real and organized, he said, according to Blacklocks Reporter.

No Concerns

A Toronto Star article published on March 19 cited an anonymous police source claiming that some Freedom Convoy protesters had loaded shotguns in their trunks.

Five days later, Bell contradicted this report while testifying before the House of Commons public safety committee on March 24.

Were weapons found? Were loaded firearms found, yes or no? asked Conservative MP Dane Lloyd while questioning Bell over whether the allegations in the article were true.

No, not relating to any charges to this point, Bell responded.

Lloyd also asked if cabinet wouldve been informed if police had found loaded firearms amongst the protesters.

They would have been immediately aware if you had found firearms, correct? Lloyd said.

There would have been public notifications made, Bell replied.

Internal documents from the public safety departments Government Operations Centre (GOC) dated Feb. 14, also obtained by Blacklocks Reporter, characterized the Freedom Convoy as a peaceful protest having little impact on federal operations.

Approximately 10 people on Parliament Hill and approximately 100 on the surrounding streets, read the GOCs daily security update released the same day cabinet invoked the Emergencies Act.

No concerns at this time, said an assessment by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service included in the report.

Omid Ghoreishi and Noe Chartier contributed to this report.
Signage for a real estate property is seen in Carlton North, Melbourne, Australia, on July 18, 2018. (AAP Image/James Ross)

Real Estate Body Shoots Down Calls for Public Landlord Register

The Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) has criticised a proposal to create a landlord register that will tell the public how many properties an owner may have and their place of residence.

The proposal, put forward by Tenants Queensland, argues that such a system would balance out a supposed imbalance of power between landlords and tenants and keep rogue landlords honest.

When renters are trying to secure a property, they provide a whole lot of information about themselves, usually to a real estate agent, sometimes before they even see a property. But [the renter] knows little if anything about the landlord, said Penny Carr, the CEO of Tenants Queensland, in comments obtained by The Guardian.

She said the policy could also outline whether landlords were renting out their properties on a short or long-term basis and whether they were vacant.

We want to know who we are benefiting when we make those policy decisions because, usually, policy has winners and losers, she said.

The Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute backed the comments, which said a landlord register could keep a small minority of cowboy landlords in check.

We need to balance the use of the property as a nest egg for the investor with it being a nest for the person living in it, said Michael Fotheringham, managing director of the Institute. At the moment, that balance still leans in favour of the investor.

A Square Peg for a Round Hole

In response, REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella said a register would do little to deal with the housing crisis affecting the state and noted the extensive regulatory regime already in place.

Governments, at all levels, are already aware of who and how many property owners are providing housing for Queenslandersthey certainly know how to get in touch with them because they issue relevant tax, rates notices, and other fees directly to them, she said in a statement on Oct. 13.

Were also concerned that if a landlord register was established under the guise of informing government policy, that the motive of using it to find new ways to punish and strongarm investors into decisions around how they use their property would inevitably become apparent.

Mercorella also said tenant and landlord relations were already governed by standard agreements.

This means that everyone in a tenancy relationship has the ability to communicate as and when necessary, and given the ongoing obligations between the parties, its in everyones interests to keep these lines of communication open, she said.

The state is currently grappling with a housing and rental crisis driven by high interstate migration from the southern states of New South Wales and Victoria during the pandemic years.

In fact, in the year to March 2022, the states population increased by 53,984, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. A bigger net gain than any other state and territory by far.
Rep. Chip Roy, Fellow Lawmakers Demand FBI Provide Data on FACE Act Enforcement

A group of 37 lawmakers led by Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) has publicly criticized the Federal Bureau of Investigations for the continued politicization in some of its activities and operations, and has called on the Bureau to clarify when and in what circumstances it is enforcing the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.

In a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray, the lawmakers accuse the Bureau of abdicating its role to enforce the law in a neutral manner and charge it with becoming, in effect, a political tool of the Biden administration, particularly when it comes to detaining and prosecuting individuals involved in protests at abortion clinics in the aftermath of Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization.

The alleged FBI overreach and double-standards comprise the latest chapter in long-running tensions between President Joe Bidens administration and state and municipal officials whose legal and jurisdictional prerogatives have gone ignored, as in the ongoing crisis over illegal immigrants shipped from border states to unprepared sanctuary cities who support Bidens open-border philosophy.

The recent rise in high-profile FBI investigations into pro-life Americans raises well-founded concerns that the FBI has amassed too much power and has become a partisan cudgel wielded by the Biden administration at the behest of progressive activists against political opponents and dissenters, the letter states.

Of particular concern to the lawmakers is an Oct. 5 incident after reports emerged of the indictment of 11 pro-life activists for alleged FACE Act violations committed during a demonstration outside an abortion clinic in Tennessee. In another incident cited in the letter, the FBI on Sept. 23 arrested Mark Houck, a pro-life activist, who had allegedly pushed a volunteer at a clinic while attempting to come to the defense of his son. Local authorities had dismissed the charges against Houck, yet the federal enforcement agents arrested him anyway on FACE Act grounds.

The letter cites yet another incident, first reported by The Daily Signal, in which FBI agents on Sept. 27 grilled pro-life demonstrators outside a Planned Parenthood branch in Minnesota, seeking to gain information about an encounter where a Planned Parenthood customer tried to cut up a pro-life sign and an activist physically intervened to stop her. Again, the FBI took action even though a local court had dismissed the charges against the pro-life activists.

And in yet another incident referenced in the lawmakers letter, authorities in the Eastern District of New York on Sept. 29 brought charges against Father Fidelis Moscinski for having placed a lock on the entrance to an abortion clinic. Here, too, federal law enforcement acted without regard for the fact that a local court had already handed down a sentence against the actor in question.

Overzealous prosecutions under the FACE Act weaponize the power of federal law enforcement against American citizens in what should firmly be state and local matters. Further, these abuses of federal power against pro-life Americans based solely on their beliefs undermine the American peoples trust in the FBI, the lawmakers argue.

Double Standards?

Compounding the lawmakers concerns, the zeal of federal officials to prosecute anti-abortion demonstrators and activistseven in cases where local officials have not deemed it appropriate to pursue chargescontrasts with the FBIs failure to charge those involved in attacks on and vandalization of more than 72 Catholic churches and facilities offering counseling and resources for pregnant women, the letter continues.

These heinous, violent, and organized crimes across state lines are in violation of the FACE Act, yet the same federal enforcement agency so concerned with putative pro-life aggression and lawbreaking has shown no inclination to do anything about such offenses, the lawmakers charge.

It is clear that congressional scrutiny of the FBIs use of the FACE Act is needed to ensure the FBI is applying it as Congress intended and, if not, to determine whether the FBI can continue to be trusted with this authority, they state.

To that end, the letter concludes with a list of questions, demanding information regarding: the number of investigations that the FBI has brought under the FACE Act in each year from 2019 to the present year; how many of those investigations have to do with abortion facilities, pregnancy centers, and churches, respectively; how many cases target subjects whose alleged offenses had previously been dealt with by state courts; on what grounds the Bureau launches a FACE Act investigation when state courts have already dismissed the charges; what resources the FBI is putting to use in its investigations; and whether the Department of Justice has issued new guidance about FACE Act investigations since the Supreme Courts Dobbs ruling.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the FBI for comment.
Ranking Member Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) listens during a House Judiciary Committee mark up hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington on June 2, 2022. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Rep. Jordan Warns AG Garland to Preserve Docs on Inflammatory School Board Memo

House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has told the Department of Justice (DOJ) to preserve all documents related to its controversial school board memo, signaling that Judiciary Republicans will focus on the issue if they retake the House.

In a September 2021 letter to President Joe Biden, the National School Boards Association (NSBA) characterized disruptions at school board meetings across the nation as a form of domestic terrorism and hate crime.

Specifically, the NSBA was referencing an increasing number of parents across the United States attending school board meetings to voice their opposition to the content being taught their childrenincluding controversial, Marxism-inspired critical race theory, left-wing positions on sexuality and gender, and, in some cases, even explicit or pornographic sexual images.

The NSBA proceeded to ask for federal assistance in dealing with these frustrated, outspoken parentsassistance that Attorney General Merrick Garland promptly provided.

Days after the NSBA letter, Garland issued a memo directing federal law enforcement to help address the alleged disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against teachers and school leaders. Garlands response immediately raised suspicions among some Republican members of Congress, who have sought to keep the issue alive and have responded with promises like a parents bill of rights if they take Congress next year.

In a letter to Garland obtained by The Epoch Times, Jordan and Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), the GOP ranking member on the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, demanded that Garland preserve all documents related to the controversial memosuggesting that Republicans dont mean to let the issue die if they take control again.

Dear Attorney General Garland, the letter began. We are investigating the Biden Administrations misuse of federal criminal and counterterrorism resources to target concerned parents at school board meetings.

The two Republicans cited a DOJ memo from Oct. 4, 2021, in which Garland offered support and resources to law enforcement agencies against parents who complained. The lawmakers accused Garland of using the issue to manufacture a pretext for the use of federal law-enforcement authorities against parents.

The American people, however, deserve much more accountability and transparency, they wrote.

The two noted that a series of letters and requests for information sent to Garland have either gone unanswered or have received short replies that leave out crucial requested information.

Parents voicing their concerns at school board meetings are not domestic terrorists, Jordan and Johnson wrote. Yet, your anti-parent directive remains in effect, and as a result, the threat of federal law enforcement continues to chill the First Amendment rights of American parents.

The lawmakers noted their intention to pursue an investigation into the matter, calling it a serious misuse of federal law-enforcement resources. They resubmitted each request for information that they sent to Garland and asked for an answer by no later than Oct. 25, 2022.

Finally, the two congressmen gave Garland notice to preserve all existing and future records and materials in your possession relating to the topics addressed in this letter, and to take all reasonable steps to prevent the destruction or alteration, whether intentionally or negligently, of all documents, communications, and other information, including electronic information and metadata, that are or may be responsive to this congressional inquiry, including text messages and emails.

The DOJ did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

One of Many Promised Probes

Jordans request represents only one of several probes that Republicans have vowed to pursue if they take the House.

Since Democrats took control of the lower chamber in January 2021, they have orchestrated a probe into President Donald Trumps actions on and leading up to the Jan. 6 Stop the Steal rally.

The House Jan. 6 Committee is almost exclusively chaired by Democrats. In a break from precedent, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) refused to accept House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthys choice to chair the GOP side of the committee. While the speaker technically has that authority, heretofore it has been standard for the minority party to appoint its own members.

After McCarthy appointed Jordan to head Republicans on the committee, Pelosi refused to allow it, citing concerns about the integrity of the investigation.

Instead, Pelosi appointed Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) as ranking member of the committee. Only one other Republican, retiring Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) is on the panel. Both lawmakers are virulent Trump critics, and GOP opponents of the committee have often painted its aims as little more than a partisan witch hunt.

By corollary, Republicans have promised a slew of investigations into Democrats if they take the House, as observers favor them to do.

These promised probes range from issues like Joe Bidens role in his sons business dealings with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma to Pelosis role in leaving the U.S. Capitol unprepared in terms of security ahead of Jan. 6. Others have pushed for probes into or even the impeachment of Garland and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for his handling of security along the Southern border.

Because it is unlikely that Republicans will take enough seats in the Senate to overcome the 60-vote filibuster threshold, and because the White House will still be occupied by a Democrat, investigations in the House would be one of Republicans strongest political tools.

Bill Pan contributed to this report.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser attends March for Our Lives 2022 in Washington on June 11, 2022. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for March For Our Lives)

Restaurant Sues Washington, DC Health Department After Being Closed for Violating COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

The owner of a restaurant shut down by Washington, D.C., officials for violating the citys strict COVID-19 vaccine mandate sued the city on Oct. 13.

Eric Flannery owns The Big Board. Washington authorities in February ordered the restaurant to close, citing violations of food code regulations and Mayor Muriel Bowsers requirements that venues only let in customers who presented proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

The D.C. Department of Healths actions, including making the restaurant pay a re-opening fee, were unlawful because the District of Columbias Home Rule Act generally requires legislation enacted by the city be reviewed by Congress, according to Flannerys lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Emergency legislation is exempted from the Home Rule, but only for 90 days.

The Mayors rolling emergency orders authorized by the D.C. Councils successive emergency amendments make a mockery of this constitutional requirement. The repeated extension of emergency orders for months on end, authorized by the D.C. Councils emergency legislationwhich was not approved by Congresshave thwarted Congresss reserved constitutional power under D.C. Code  1206.02(c)(1), the lawsuit states.

As a result, the Mayors Orders upon which the DC Health suspension and fines relied are ultra vires, and the suspension and the fines themselves, are ultra vires, null, and void.

Bowser, a Democrat, issued emergency orders in March 2020 and they were repeatedly extended after authorization by the D.C. Council.

Bowsers Dec. 20, 2021, order mandated masks in many indoor venues and another order said restaurants could not let in any people over age 12 unless the people presented proof of vaccination. Violations of those orders were cited in the shutdown order.

The vaccination requirement was lifted on Feb. 15 and the mask requirement was withdrawn on March 1.

Flannery wants the court to declare that the health agencys actions were illegal in part because the legislative amendments and emergency order extensions violated the Home Rule Act and the power Congress is granted in the U.S. Constitution; that the actions exceeded the agencys regulatory authority; and award damages, including the $100 reopening fee.

The D.C. Department of Health, the D.C. Mayors Office of Legal Counsel, and the mayors office did not respond to requests for comment.

This case is not just about The Big Board, Robert Alt, president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, which is representing Flannery, said in a statement. It is about ensuring that government abides by the U.S. Constitution even during emergencies including global pandemicsperhaps especially then. We are a nation of laws, not of autocratic mayors, city councils, and government agencies.
Retired Tennessee Judge Shares Thoughts on What to Expect in the Supreme Courts Next Session

'They are bound by what the Constitution says.'

The U.S. Supreme Court has returned to work after a three-month summer break. As this will be the first term with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson on the bench, one retired judge shares his thoughts on what to expect.

According to an NPR report, the Supreme Court is the most conservative it has been in 90 years, with an unprecedented 62 percent of its rulings in the 20212022 term falling on the conservative side of the scales. However, Justice Ketanji Brown Jacksons support for progressive ideologies has stirred concern among some conservatives.

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on her nomination to serve on the Supreme Court in Washington on March 22, 2022. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

Jackson has been criticized for her support of critical race theory and her praise of the 1619 Project, liberal ideologies based on the divisive idea that America was built on a foundation of racism and slavery, and was segregated into permanent classes of white oppressors and oppressed minorities.

While Jackson has never ruled directly on the issue of abortion rights, her position that women have a right to abortion is consistent with the Democrat Partys pro-abortion stance. During a time when states like Florida and Georgia have enacted laws preventing transgender indoctrination of childrendefined by transgender advocates as attacks on LGBTQ rightsJacksons appointment to the Supreme Court was heralded by those in the LGBT community as a sign of hope. They believe that adding her nearly flaw-free LGBTQ+ record to the supermajority of conservative justices who in their rulings have shown to be hostile to LGBTQ+ people and criminal defendants will make it a more credible government body.

As noted in a Feb. 25 report for FiveThirtyEight, an assessment of Jackson by Judicial Common Space predicted she would be somewhat of a moderate, slightly to the right of Justice Elena Kagan and well to the right of Justice Sonia Sotomayor. A separate assessment by the Database of Ideology, Money in Politics, and Elections portends Jackson will become the new liberal standard bearer on the Supreme Court, placing her well to the left of Kagan and even Sotomayor. According to this metric, the report stated further, Jackson is actually one of the most liberal judges on the D.C. Circuit.

Still, Paul Summers, a former judge and attorney general for Tennessee, is optimistic that shes going to try to do the right thing.

Paul Summers is a former attorney general of Tennessee with a law career spanning over 30 years. (Courtesy of Paul Summers)

Summers has worked in the legal field for over 30 years. He was a member of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals and, most recently, a senior judge for Tennessees circuit, criminal, chancery, and business courts. Before entering private practice in 2006, he served as a district attorney and state attorney general.

Ive seen it all, Ive done it all, Summers told The Epoch Times.

Our Clairvoyant Founding Fathers

While Summers conceded that Jackson might have her own personal opinions, he said that does not change what the Constitution of the United States says. While the Constitution was ratified in 1789, Summers contends that not only were our Founding Fathers smart, they were clairvoyant.

They created three separate but equal branches of government, Summers explained, adding that while two were completely political, the third branch is, and should be, nonpolitical.

Thats the judicial branch, he clarified, noting that while the executive and legislative branches run for election for two, four, or six years, members of the judicial branch are placed by presidential appointment and congressional approval and, as a whole, they are not political.

They are not bound by policies, Summers explained. They are not bound by polls. They are not bound by politics or ideology. They are bund by what the Constitution says.

However, during questioning at her confirmation hearing (pdf), Jackson refused to take a position on whether or not humans possess inherent or inalienable rights, as she admitted is reflected in the Declaration of Independence.

Regardless of Jacksons personal opinions and support of liberal causes, her position on the Supreme Court did nothing to dilute the conservative super majority. Jackson replaced Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1994 to fill the seat of the retiring justice Harry Blackmun. Described as a pragmatic moderate acceptable to Democrats and Republicans alike, Breyer was easily confirmed by the then Republican-controlled Senate in a vote of 879.

The Triumph of Originalism

In an Aug. 4 policy paper, the Senate Republican Policy Committee (RPC) described the Supreme Courts first full term with the six-justice conservative majoritymade possible by President Donald Trumps nomination of Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrettas historic.

The high courts June 24 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, and the June 23 ruling striking down New Yorks 1913 law that placed limits on carrying concealed handguns outside of the home, prompted some legal experts to declare the triumph of originalism.

The Supreme Courts Oct. 3 court order (pdf), reversing a federal appeals court decision that upheld one of Massachusetts toughest gun laws, dealt its second blow to gun control.

The 6-to-3 decision again illustrated the power of the six conservative justices, all of whom voted to strike down the New York law, in setting the national agenda on social issues, The New York Times reported, noting that the courts three liberal members dissented.

Pro-life activists demonstrate on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on June 27, 2016. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)

In addition to its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which has received the bulk of the medias focus, the court embraced the doctrine of originalism and its role of defending the Constitution in several other significant cases, the RPC report stated. Conservative justices ruled to strengthen religious liberty protections, protect the Second Amendment rights of people to defend themselves outside of their homes, reduce the power of unelected bureaucrats, and return power to the people through their elected representatives.

Even The New York Times described the 20212022 term as a triumph for the theory of constitutional interpretation known as originalism.

Originalism refers to a judicial philosophy based on the belief that the text of the Constitution should be interpreted strictly as it was written by the Founding Fathers. Asked to explain originalism in English during her confirmation hearing, Barret said: So in English, that means that I interpret the Constitution as a law, that I interpret its text as text and I understand it to have the meaning that it had at the time people ratified it. So that meaning doesnt change over time. And its not up to me to update it or infuse my own policy views into it.

During her confirmation hearing in June 2010, Justice Elena Kagan said we are all originalists, adding that the Framers were incredibly wise men, and if we always remember that, we will do pretty well, because part of their wisdom was that they wrote a Constitution for the ages.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg gestures while speaking during the inaugural Herma Hill Kay Memorial Lecture at the University of California at Berkeley, in Berkeley, Calif., on Oct. 21, 2019. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)

While speaking at an event in Washington in November 2011, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said that, albeit in a different way, she counted herself as an originalist too.

Equality was the motivating idea, it was what the Declaration of Independence started with, but it couldnt come into the original Constitution because of the odious practice of slavery that was retained, she said. I think the genius of the United States has been from the original Constitution where We the People were white property-owning men to what it has become today.

Not Bound by Politics

Summers, a self-professed independent, currently serves as chairman of the Keep Nine Coalition. As reported Sept. 1 by The Epoch Times, the Keep Nine Coalition is an organization pushing for lawmakers to amend the Constitution and codify that the U.S. Supreme Court must be limited to nine justices.

As Summers explained, several former attorneys general got together about 15 years ago and decided to form a coalition on a nonpartisan, bipartisan basis to preserve the independence of the Supreme Court. What they proposed was a simple, 13-word amendment, saying The Supreme Court of the Unites States shall be composed of nine justices.

Of the 15 former attorneys who formed the Keep Nine Coalition, eight were Democrats and seven were Republicans, with Summers being the only independent.

So, it clearly was bipartisan, Summers asserted. They understood what the Supreme Court does. They understood the role of the Supreme Court and they further understood that the Supreme Court is not bound by polls, politics, emotions, or ideology. They try to interpret the Constitution as it stands. They try to interpret federal law as it stands. They also endeavor as human beings to determine whether or not a state statute complies with the federal Constitution.

According to Summers, there are about 7,000 applications for permission to appeal before the Supreme Court annually. He said every case is controversial and every case was based on politics or polls. However, while only about two percent of those cases ever rise to the level of being heard by the high court, every one of the opinions that is rendered by the Supreme Court finally decides an issue that saw conflict among the 13 circuit courts.

Based on the Constitution

According to Summers, every case that comes before the United States Supreme Court is controversial. However, its not unusual for them to reverse themselves.

Pro-life activists demonstrate outside the Supreme Court of the United States in Washington on June 13, 2022. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

Lets take the Dobbs case for example, Summers posited. They basically overruled the previous decision made in Roe v. Wade. The court ruled that abortion is not a federal constitutional right. Its Roe decision was incorrectly decided as were other progeny cases, and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives, which is what our Constitution is all about. The Dobbs decision was based on the Constitution, not on polls or politics. Abortion was not, I repeat, not abolished. The decisions regarding abortion were returned to the states where they belong. This is not the first time that the Supreme Court reversed itself. Theyve reversed themselves over 100 times since 1789. This is a case that has gained a lot of attention, but its not the first time.

In the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson, the court ruled that separate but equal was constitutional. But in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, the court ruled that separate but equal was unconstitutional, reversing the previous ruling.

The 1963 ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright overruled a 21-year opinion (Betts v. Brady) that originally said states did not have to provide counsel for indigent defendants.

Its not unusual for the Supreme Court to overrule itself, Summers said. Its just a matter of their rulings getting more attention during an election year.

The New Term

During this term, Supreme Court justices will hear challenges that involve race and elections, and in some cases, the cross section of both.

This term, the justices will take up a pair of affirmative action cases regarding college admissions. The casesStudents for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolinaallege the schools discriminate against Asian-American applicants.

Another case, Merrill v. Milligan, considers race and voting access, arguing that Alabama violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965 when the state failed to create a second district where black voters made up the majority. The justices will also wrestle with free speech and LGBT rights in 303 Creative LLC v. Aubrey Elenis.

Every case the Supreme Court rules on is absolutely important and absolutely important to somebody, Summers said. But whats happened is, particularly with the media, in an era where information is so instantaneous, the Supreme Court will come down with an opinion and within an hour people will formulate an opinion about whether or not thats right or wrong without reading any briefs or even knowing the case existed.

As a result of living in the era of the social media information super highway, Summers said Supreme Court rulings become an instantaneous issue, which is immediately argued through political ideology on both sides. What Summers and the coalition of fellow former attorneys general want to do is to make absolutely sure that we have an independent Supreme Court, an independent judiciary that bases its decisions on the law and the Constitution.

While Summers could not comment on how he thought the high court would rule on the individual pending cases, he is confident that high court will continue on its current course of following the Constitution in its rulings.

I dont think anything is going to change in this next session, he said. We need a court that abides by the rule of law, that all men and women are created equal and endowed with certain inalienable rights like life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Finally, and most importantly, we need to make sure the judiciary is a check and balance of the abuse of power by the other two branches. Thats whats important.
Iraqi security forces block a road leading to the Green Zone in Baghdad as lawmakers gather for their fourth attempt this year to elect a new state president, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. (Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP via Getty Images)

Rockets Strike Iraqs Green Zone as Deadlocked Parliament Meets

BAGHDADNine rockets landed on Thursday around the Iraqi capitals Green Zone, home to government buildings and foreign missions, the military said, shortly before parliament began a session to elect a new president amid a protracted political deadlock.

Several members of the security forces were injured in the attack, the military statement said without giving more details.

Similar attacks took place last month as the parliament was holding a vote to confirm its speaker.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Rocket attacks on the Green Zone have happened regularly in recent years but are normally directed at Western targets by Iran-backed extremist groups.

Thursdays vote comes amid deep political divisions that have led to a year-long stalemate. Parliament convened shortly after the missile attack.

The presidency is a largely ceremonial position, but the presidency vote is a key step in the political process because the president invites the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc to form a government.

Thursdays parliament session comes a year after an election in which populist Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr was the biggest winner but failed to rally support to form a government.

Sadr withdrew his 73 lawmakers in August and said he would quit politics, prompting the worst violence in Baghdad for years when his loyalists stormed a government palace and fought rival Shiite groups, most of them backed by Iran and with armed wings.

Under a power-sharing system designed to avoid sectarian conflict, Iraqs president is a Kurd, its prime minister a Shiite, and its parliament speaker a Sunni. Disagreement among the main Kurdish parties that run the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in north Iraq has prevented the selection of a president.
A gas leak from Nord stream 1 in the Swedish economic zone in the Baltic Sea in this picture taken from the Swedish Coast Guard aircraft on Sept. 28, 2022. (Swedish Coast Guard/Handout via TT News Agency/via Reuters)

Russia Rebukes Germany, Denmark, Sweden for Not Including It in Nord Stream Probe

LONDONRussia said on Thursday it had summoned diplomats from Germany, Denmark, and Sweden to complain that representatives from Moscow and Gazprom had not been invited to join an investigation into ruptures of the Nord Stream gas pipelines.

Russia will obviously not recognise the pseudo-results of such an investigation unless Russian experts are involved, the foreign ministry said.

The cause of the ruptures in the Nord Stream pipelines, which run under the Baltic Sea, remains unclear, but European Union countries have pointed to sabotage.

The gas leak in the Baltic Sea from Nord Stream photographed from the Coast Guards aircraft on Sept. 27, 2022. (Swedish Coast Guard via AP)

Swedens Foreign Ministry said it had not received any summons on Thursday, adding in an email that diplomats in Moscow were last week given a copy of a letter to Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, demanding Russia be part of the probe.

Sweden has rejected the calls, denying Russian authorities to be part of the investigation or to share any findings before it is completed.

The Danish Foreign Ministry said, the Russian wish to participate in the investigation of the Nord Stream leaks has been brought up through diplomatic channels in Moscow and Copenhagen.
The event took place within the framework of the exchange of experiences at the Global Meeting for Climate, the Amazon, and Tropical Forests.

En el marco de la segunda Reforma Agraria, el presidente de la Republica @PedroCastilloTe recorrio las plantaciones de cacao y cafe en el Fundo "Nino Jesus" en Moyobamba, region San Martin. pic.twitter.com/SSScC55lys

??#AHORA | En el marco de Intercambio de Experiencias del Grupo de Trabajo de Gobernadores por el clima y el bosque en Moyobamba; el jefe de Estado @PedroCastilloTe inspecciona avances de riego tecnificado de cafe en fundo Nino Jesus, que permite optimizar el uso agua. pic.twitter.com/fsx5KcpCdj
An aerial view shows a residential building heavily damaged during a Russian military attack in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, on Oct. 13, 2022. (Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Handout via Reuters)

Russia Strikes Ukrainian Towns, NATO Plans Europe Air Defences

KYIV/BRUSSELSRussian missiles have pounded more than 40 Ukrainian cities and towns over the past 24 hours, as NATO allies meeting in Brussels unveiled plans on Thursday to jointly beef up Europes air defences with Patriot and other missile systems.

We are living in threatening, dangerous times, said German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht at a signing ceremony where Germany and more than a dozen of European NATO members committed to jointly procuring weapons for a European Sky Shield to better protect their territory.

Moscow renewed warnings that more military aid for Kyiv agreed earlier this week at the NATO meeting made members of the U.S.led military alliance a direct party to the conflict, and said admitting Ukraine to the alliance would trigger a World War.

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three, deputy secretary of Russias Security Council, Alexander Venediktov, told the state TASS news agency on Thursday.

Moscow has repeatedly justified the Feb. 24 invasion in what it calls a special operation, by saying Ukraines ambitions to join the alliance posed a threat to Russias security.

Washington and other NATO members have provided Ukraine with weapons to fight Russia and imposed economic sanctions.

Ahead of the meeting of NATOs defence ministers, including close-door talks by its nuclear planning group, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed to defend every inch of members territory.

Even before the invasion, NATO had dragged its feet on Ukrainian membership. Shortly after Russias invasion began Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signalled he was willing to consider neutrality.

Zelenskyy has since asked for fast-track membership, hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin proclaimed controlled regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia as Russian land on Sept. 30.

In the past 24 hours Russian missiles hit more than 40 settlements, while Ukrainian air force carried out 32 strikes on 25 Russian targets, Ukraines Armed Forces General Staff claimed.

The southern port city of Mykolaiv came under massive bombardment, local officials said.

Ukraines Prosecutor Generals Office three people were killed in the strike.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III (C) addresses the Ukraine defense contact group meeting at NATO headquarters during the first of two days of defense ministers meetings in Brussels on Oct. 12, 2022. (Omar Havana/Getty Images)

Kamikaze Drones

Russia also targeted a settlement in the region of Ukraines capital Kyiv, where three drone strikes hit critical infrastructure early on Thursday, the regions administration said on Telegram.

Governor of the Kyiv region, Oleksiy Kuleba, said that based on preliminary information the strikes were caused by Iranian-made loitering munitions, often known as kamikaze drones.

Ukraine has reported a spate of Russian attacks with the Shahed-136 drones in recent weeks. Iran denies supplying the drones to Russia, while the Kremlin has not commented.

Missiles struck about 30 multi-storey buildings and houses, gas pipelines and power lines in the city of Nikopol in the Dnipropetrovsk region, leaving more than 2,000 families without electricity, regional governor Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on Telegram.

Reuters was not able to immediately verify the reports.

On Wednesday, more than 50 Western countries met to pledge more military aid to Ukraine, especially air defence weapons, after Putin ordered heavy retaliatory strikes in response to an explosion on a bridge in Crimea.

Germany has sent Ukraine the first of four IRIS-T SLM air defence systems, while Washington said it would speed up delivery of a promised NASAMS air defence system.

At least 26 people have been killed since Monday in the Russian missile attacks. Ukrainian officials reported strikes at 28 energy installations.

Stressing the urgency of further assistance, Zelenskyy told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Thursday that Ukraine still had about only 10 percent of what it needed to protect itself against Russian air attacks.

By Max Hunder and Sabine Siebold
Safe and Effective: A Second Opinion

Commentary

The phrase safe and effective accompanied a mass vaccination campaign throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. An Oracle Films Production, available on EpochTV, examines the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine. It follows the emotional testimonies of vaccine-injured adults and exposes the unethical tactics employed by the media and big tech to encourage vaccination uptake and censor opposing narratives.

The film Safe and Effective: A Second Opinion provides the other side of the story. Using facts, real-world data, and expert opinions and analysis, it is a must-watch for those desiring to be truthfully informed about the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Emotional Testimonies

Although the COVID vaccine was heralded as a success, there is growing evidence that the shot can have devastating consequences. Personal testimony from those in the vaccine-injured community reveals many feeling abandoned by the NHS and government they once trusted.

You take one for the team, so I took the vaccine, but now the team is running in the opposite direction, said one vaccine-injured person. Another man said through tears, Just let people know that, when it goes wrong, theres no help at all.

This group has had to band together to support one another through physical and emotional trauma. Side effects such as slurred speech, chest pain, seizures, heart disease, inability to walk, loss of limb function, and more have changed their lives permanently.

Doctors Sound the Alarm

An influential figure in the medical community and a consultant cardiologist, Dr. Aseem Malhotra, says after being double vaccinated and one of the first to take the Pfizer vaccine, I have, after several months of critically appraising the data, speaking to eminent scientists at Oxford, Stanford, and Harvard, speaking to two investigative medical journalists, and being contacted by two Pfizer whistleblowers, reluctantly concluded that this vaccine is not completely safe and has unprecedented harms which leads me to conclude that it needs to be suspended until all the raw data has been released for independent analysis.

He is not alone. Many more international scientists have also sounded the alarm. Millions of COVID vaccine injuries and thousands of deaths have been reported through official channels worldwide. Now, governments are accused of covering up the data and the media of telling only one side of the story.

How Rare Are Adverse Events?

In the UK, adverse events are reported to the MHRA database. As of Aug. 24, the MHRA shows 432,819 alleged adverse reactions and 2,240 deaths. The government website for reporting vaccine adverse events in the United States, the VAERS database, has recorded 1,400,350 alleged adverse events and 30,796 deaths as of Sept. 2. Although not all these reports will be confirmed as vaccine-induced, not all reactions are reported. In fact, data reveals that adverse events are largely underreported.

Dr. Clare Craig, a diagnostic pathologist, calls it a scandal of such epic proportions, saying that it is frightening to even approach it. Craig explains that the COVID vaccine is different technology than traditional vaccines, noting that it doesnt prevent the illness.

Dr. Aseem Malhotra says that the spike protein, which they initially believed would remain localized to the arm, appears to be distributed throughout the body after vaccination, found in every major organ system several months after, causing either a direct reaction through toxicity or an autoimmune reaction. That is the most likely explanation behind the mechanism of harm from the mRNA products.

Rushed Vaccine, No Liability

Development of the shot was done at warp speed, so much so that governments had to indemnify drug companies from injury claims. When the Pfizer vaccine reported efficacy at 95 percent on Nov. 18, 2020, governments gave the green light. However, Dr. Malhotra argues that the methodology used to report this efficacy rate was flawed. Relative risk reduction exaggerates the benefits of a medical intervention, which he notes would serve the interests of someone trying to sell something. Absolute risk reduction, however, shows how many lives are saved versus lost. To only share relative risk is considered unethical in medicine, yet, that is what was done with the COVID vaccines.

According to Pfizer trials, the relative risk reduction was 95 percent, while the absolute risk reduction was 0.84 percent. This means the vaccination only provided a 1 in 119 chance of improving COVID-19 outcomes. So, we were basically sold on something that ultimately, in retrospect now, was very very misleading.

The FDA initially locked away trial data for 75 years while the vaccines were being rolled out. After a court finally ordered their release, Alexandria Latypova, a research specialist in clinical trials, was one in a group of experts who examined the vaccine clinical trial data. Her assessment concluded that Pfizer skipped major categories of safety testing altogether. The toxicity of the COVID-19 vaccines mRNA active ingredient was never studied.

Latypova said the FDA and Pfizer knew about significant toxicities associated with gene therapy medicine and that the CDC, FDA, and Pfizer lied about the vaccine staying in the injection site. Her examination of leaked Moderna documents also revealed that vaccine-induced antibody-enhanced disease was identified as a serious risk.

Did the COVID Vaccine Save Lives?

Pharmaceutical companies and health agencies decline to comment on adverse events and prefer to point to the 20 million lives the vaccines have allegedly saved. Dr. Malhotra calls this statistic science fiction, not scientific fact. He explains this claim is based on a very poor quality observational study and that a higher quality level of evidence does not show any reduction in COVID mortality of statistical significance and no reduction in all-cause mortality. He concluded that really, this statement is almost implausible.

Why were the vaccines authorized so quickly? What is the relationship between the regulators and the companies they regulate? Dr. Malhotra says regulators cannot be trusted to be independent, citing that 86 percent of the funding for the UK MHRA comes from the drug industry itself. Regulators being funded by the very industry they are supposed to regulate is a huge conflict of interest. Australias TGA receives 96 percent of its funding from the drug industry, while Europes EMA is 89 percent, Japans PMDA is 85 percent, the U.S. FDA is 65 percent, and Canadas HC is 50.5 percent.

Did Doctors Enable Informed Consent?

According to Dr. Craig, what was happening with informed consent was hugely concerning. I think what concerned me the most were doctors who werent informing themselves. She said many doctors simply got all their information from the news or the government, accepting it without question.

Dr. Malhotra believes that the lack of acknowledgment of vaccine injuries being a major issue is rooted in willful blindness. People want to ignore the truth about vaccines to feel safe, avoid conflict, release anxiety, and protect prestige. One thing thats become very clear now is that the vaccine doesnt prevent transmission and, in fact, has very limited efficacy, if any, in preventing infection, he said. Therefore, it becomes an issue of individual choice. And certainly, when you look at age groups under 70, the harms clearly seem to outweigh the benefits for most people.

Deaths from COVID rise sharply with age, with most deaths occurring over the age of 70. Yet, governments have pushed the vaccines on the youth. According to CDC data, actual cases of myocarditis within seven days of COVID vaccination for males are exponentially higher than expected, particularly in the 12-24 age group.

The documentary on EpochTV references the sudden deaths happening, particularly among athletes. In addition, the Office of National Statistics confirmed that in England and Wales, deaths are up 11.7 percent in 10- to 14-year-olds and nearly 15 percent in the 50-59 age group. Just those two age groups alone could equate to an excess of 75,000 deaths in 2022 in England and Wales this yearand not from COVID.

Unethical Psychological Tactics

SAGE is the British governments scientific advisory group. According to SAGE meeting notes, the British government employed tactics such as emotional manipulation and fear to persuade the public to get vaccinated. Dr. Christian Buckland, psychotherapist and counselor, said its important to understand that there has been the promotion of unethical psychological techniques over the last two years to encourage behavioral change, including artificially increasing the need to be afraid.

He also cites that these tactics were based on numbers that have since been shown to be inflated. This has led to a sharp division between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated. When the mandates and coercion came into play, tensions continued to rise. Dr. Buckland explained that when you use unethical means to manipulate people, it becomes dangerous, encouraging the demonization of other people and raising not just fear but also anger.

Government, Media, and Big Tech Censorship

The SAGE strategies also point to the use of media to advance their message and cover up any alternative narratives, such as the BBC admitting it is their policy not to engage with anti-vaxers, regardless of if they are credible or not. Massive marches of people advocating for their bodily autonomy in Britain were ignored, while an estimated half a billion pounds of public money was spent on media advertising.

Then there was the Trusted News Initiative, which, according to the BBC, is an industry collaboration of major news and global tech organizations working together to stop the spread of disinformation. Partners of this initiative included the BBC, Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft, Youtube, the AFP, and The Washington Post, among others. Governments, media, and big tech companies worked together for a common script- their script. They aggressively advanced their version of the truth, intentionally silencing any opposing narratives. This media campaign was utterly void of free speech, balanced reporting, and partiality.

Its Time for People to Know the Truth

According to the UKs Office for National Statistics, between Jan. 1 and May 31 this year, 15,113 people died of COVID-19 in England90 percent of those people had received at least one COVID vaccine. A paper published in the United States, with a key author being the Director of Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery, found that for every one vaccinated person that could be prevented from hospitalization with COVID, up to 98 young people could be injured from the COVID vaccine. Meanwhile, in 2021, Pfizer doubled its revenue by $81 billion and is projected to surpass $100 billion in revenue in 2022.

Perhaps proper scientific debate during the vaccine rollout could have led to less vaccine injury. Maybe greater emphasis on informed consent would have led to a more accurate risk-benefit analysis for those choosing to get the shot. Would millions have been so confident in taking the vaccine had they known the unskewed data?

Tragically, these measures were not allowed under the mainstream narrative of safe and effective. As a result, the public was misled about the safety and efficacy of the COVID vaccine. Now, it is time for them to know the truth. Share this documentary, available on EpochTV, to help inform others.

Watch Safe and Effective: A Second Opinion on Epoch Cinema here.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud poses for the media at Bellevue Palace in Berlin, Germany, on March 27, 2019. (Fabrizio Bensch)

Saudi Arabia Rejects White House Criticism of Oil Output Cuts, Says US Asked for Delay Until Midterms

The Saudi Arabian government on Wednesday night rejected White House criticism over a decision by a cartel of key oil-producing countries to cut production of the much-needed resource and confirmed the Biden administration requested it delay until after the U.S. midterm elections.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud also accused the U.S. government of attempting to distort the facts about the kingdoms position on the Russia-Ukraine war.

On Wednesday, White House national security adviser Ned Price denied reports that Biden administration officials had requested the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) delay its decision to cut oil production until after the midterms.

I certainly cant confirm that report. What I can confirm is that we conveyed a consistent message to the Saudis: energy supply needs to meet energy demand. We have made the point repeatedly that we have a multiplicity of interests with Saudi Arabia; energy is one of them, Price said at a State Department press briefing.

And in the context of those discussions regarding energy, we have had senior members of the administration travel to Saudi Arabia in recent months. This was notthis engagement did not take place solely in the context of October 2022 or September 2022.

But the Saudi foreign ministers statement, released hours later, confirmed that the Government of the Kingdom clarified through its continuous consultation with the U.S. Administration that all economic analyses indicate that postponing the OPEC+ decision for a month, according to what has been suggested, would have had negative economic consequences.

An oil pumpjack works in the Permian Basin oil field in Stanton, Texas, on March 12, 2022. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

After OPEC+ on Oct. 5 decided to slash oil output by 2 million barrels per day, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One that it was a mistake and accused the group of aligning with Russia.

Russia is one of the OPEC+ cartels 13 key members, along with Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Venezuela, and more.

Responding to the criticism, Saudi Arabias foreign minister insisted OPECs decision was purely about maintaining a balance of supply and demand and limiting volatility in the oil markets.

The Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would first like to express its total rejection of these statements that are not based on facts, and which are based on portraying the OPEC+ decision out of its purely economic context, bin Farhan Al Saud said in a statement.

White House Attempts to Distort Facts Are Unfortunate

Bin Farhan Al Saud said Saudi Arabia takes a principled position with respect to the Russia-Ukraine war and described the attempts of White House officials to distort the facts as unfortunate but ultimately unpersuasive.

Saudi Arabia, the foreign minister said, supports U.N. resolutions regarding the Russia-Ukraine war based on the Kingdoms position on the importance for all countries to adhere to the United Nations Charter, principles of international law, and the kingdoms rejection of any infringement on the sovereignty of countries over their territories.

Representatives of OPEC member countries attend a press conference after the 45th Meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee and the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting in Vienna, Austria, on Oct. 5, 2022. (Vladimir Simicek/AFP via Getty Images)

The Kingdom stresses that while it strives to preserve the strength of its relations with all friendly countries, it affirms its rejection of any dictates, actions, or efforts to distort its noble objectives to protect the global economy from oil market volatility, bin Farhan Al Saud said.

Bin Farhan Al Saud added that the kingdom views its relationship with the United States as a strategic one beneficial to both, and in what was perhaps a diplomatic hint, stressed the importance of building on the solid pillars of the relationship.

The Kingdom also stresses the importance of building on the solid pillars upon which the Saudi-U.S. relationship had stood over the past eight decades, he said. These pillars include mutual respect, enhancing common interests, actively contributing to preserve regional and international peace and security, countering terrorism and extremism, and achieving prosperity for the peoples of the region.

Midterms Pressure

The Saudi officials statement on the heels of OPECs decision deals a second blow to President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats ahead of the midterms.

The Biden administration had for months tried to lobby Saudi Arabia to produce more oil, not less, with Biden even visiting the kingdom in July.

OPECs decision to reduce oil production puts pressure on the Biden administration, which has significantly dipped into the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) for several months in an effort to keep gas prices down for Americans, citing the Russia-Ukraine war for higher prices.

Gas prices over the $6.00 mark are advertised at a 76 Station in Santa Monica, Calif., on May 26, 2022. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

The cartels decision to cut oil production also signifies Bidens failure to influence Saudi Arabia during the July visit to the kingdom to ask for increased oil production amid historically high U.S. gas prices.

Since Biden took office in January 2021, Republicans and oil industry officials have lambasted the administration for ending construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, suspending drilling leases, and favoring electric vehicles.

Officials in his administration have also been accused of being out of touch with ordinary Americans concerns while touting electric cars in the face of record-high gas prices earlier this year.

The Epoch Times asked the White House for comment.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen participates in a discussion at the annual Freedman's Bank Forum at the Treasury Department in Washington, on Oct. 4, 2022. (Michael A. McCoy/Reuters)

Secretary Yellen Worried About Liquidity in the Treasury Market

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen admitted to being concerned about liquidity in the Treasury debt market during an event in Washington on Oct. 12.

The potential loss of liquidity is a worrying situation, Yellen said in a question-and-answer session following a speech at the event, according to Bloomberg. She pointed out that even though the overall supply of Treasurys has risen, the balance-sheet capacity of broker-dealers to engage in market-making has not increased much. The Federal Reserves standing repurchase facility can be helpful in providing the market with liquidity, she added.

A key reason why big financial institutions are thought to be reluctant to act as market makers in the Treasury market is the supplementary leverage ratio, which requires capital to be put against such activity. Since the end of 2019, outstanding Treasury debt has increased by roughly $7 trillion.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the Fed began purchasing $80 billion worth of Treasurys every month to keep the economy stable. Now, the central bank is doing the reverseoffloading up to $60 billion worth of Treasurys per month.

In a recent note to clients, strategists at Goldman Sachs warned that any volatility shock in the Treasury market can trigger further deterioration in market liquidity. In recent times, trading in U.S. Treasurys has seen some of its largest swings since the beginning of the pandemic.

While we dont anticipate any issues with the Feds current QT [quantitative tightening] plan in the near term, the odds of an accident will likely rise as we go deeper into the QT process, the note said, according to Bloomberg.

Greg Recine, vice president of MSCI Research, believes liquidity in the Treasury market might become worse in the future as the Fed aggressively reduces the size of its balance sheet.

Investors in U.S. Treasurys may face higher transaction costs, and institutions hedging with U.S. Treasurys may incur greater trading losses resulting from hedge slippage, Recine said, according to ETF Stream.

Shrinking Portfolios, SEC Reforms

With the Fed focusing on QT, the central bank is no longer the biggest buyer of Treasurys, raising the question of what will plug this gap. Americas large commercial banks are reportedly shrinking their securities portfolio when compared to 2021.

As of Oct. 5, the Fed had purged $81 billion from its holdings. This is the most extreme outflow in Fed holdings since March 2020.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed a measure to boost the use of central clearing in the Treasury market. The move is said to be aimed at improving the resilience of the $24 trillion market.

The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) raised concerns about the proposal, according to Reuters. At present, DTCCs subsidiary Fixed Income Clearing Corp. is the chief clearer of Treasurys.

While the risk mitigation and transparency benefits of central clearing are well documented, we recognize the impact the proposal will have on a market structure where bilateral activity has been the ongoing practice for various market participants, the DTCC said.
The offices of the Santa Ana Unified School District in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Southern California Community Leaders Demand Investigation Into Crisis Lines, LGBT Chatrooms

Community and faith leaders in Santa Ana, Calif., are demanding answers from the local school board about the National Suicide Hotline allegedly referring students who indicate they are confused about their gender identity to a controversial LGBT advocacy organization without parental consent.

The group asked Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) trustees at their Oct. 11 board meeting to investigate The Trevor Project, which provides 24-hour access to counselors and other support services for LGBT youth, and its affiliated TrevorSpace chatrooms. They also requested the removal of posters promoting the service in school bathrooms and hallways.

The National Suicide Hotline, which can be reached by dialing 988, surveys children of all ages about their genders and sexualities and gives them a list of 11 genders from which to choose, according to Brenda Lebsack, a teacher in the district who did not attend the meeting. Those who are confused about their gender or sexuality are referred by the crisis counselors to The Trevor Project, she said. The National Suicide Hotline is required to be on every California students ID card.

Critics said they are skeptical of the impact of The Trevor Project and its chatrooms which are open to 13- to 24-year-old LGBT youth.

Members of the public make comments to Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) trustees at a board meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via SAUSD)

Sarah Aguilar, a youth leader in Santa Ana and recent graduate of Cal State University Fullerton, accused The Trevor Project of supporting perversion in its affiliated TrevorSpace chatrooms by allegedly allowing children to discuss a wide range of sexual topics such as bestiality and kink.

She also said SAUSD students no longer feel school is a safe place for students of faith who may disagree with some ideas about gender promoted by teachers.

They feel they must hide their religious beliefs and family cultural values, otherwise they will be bullied and harassed, she said. Some students even fear physical violence or threats because of their religion.

A psychology major, Aguilar stressed the importance of mental health among children.

It is wrong that these mental health crisis lines use technology to indoctrinate and sexualize children behind parents backs, she said. Our Hispanic community respects and trusts those in authority. However, they do not send their children to school to be indoctrinated or sexualized.

Sarah Aguilar, a youth leader in Santa Ana and graduate of Cal State University Fullerton, speaks to Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) trustees at a board meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via Santa Ana Unified School District)

Victor Cota, a graduate of schools in the district and a youth pastor said that last month he emailed the school board about concerns regarding the suicide hotlines referrals.

Lebsack, the teacher, obtained evidence of the survey questions from the National Suicide Hotline while posing as child confused about gender identity and worried about telling her parents, she told The Epoch Times.

The survey asks children to check one or more boxes or make up their own gender, Lebsack said.

It asks respondents to select from agender, boy/man, genderfluid, genderqueer, girl/woman, intersex, non-binary, trans, trans masculine, trans feminine, two spirit, prefer not to identify, or Write in how you identify. Additionally, it asks children their sexual orientation, whether they are asexual, bisexual or pansexual, gay or lesbian, heterosexual or straight, questioning or unsure, prefer not to answer, or Other  Write in.

Cota said he also sent evidence that children interact with adults to explore genders and sexualities on TrevorSpace, meaning children can talk about sex with adults without their parents knowledge, including through private messages.

Anyone can chat with these kids in these spaces, he said. I checked it out with my own eyes. I was shocked at the types of chat groups I found.

Brianna Cota, a middle school teacher, parent, and pastor, who is Victors wife, said she found it hard to believe rumors about TrevorSpace.

I had to see it with my own eyes, she said. It was worse than I imagined.

The TrevorSpace chatrooms that allow teenagers and young adults to discuss sex and gender make the platform a hunting ground for sexual predators, she said.

Brianna Cota, a middle school teacher, parent, and pastor, speaks to Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) trustees at a board meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via SAUSD)

Valerie Diaz-Toro, a high school senior told the board Christian students are harassed, shamed, bullied, cussed out, ridiculed, and socially ostracized in Santa Ana and that their constitutional right to freedom of religion is not respected.

Ive had to stay quiet in my experience while people talk about Christianity as horrible, she said.

When one of her friends said in a class discussion that she believed in God and Jesus, she was called a racist, transphobic, hater and even a Nazi, Diaz-Toro said. School is not about tolerance and kindness anymore. Were being told to believe what they tell us about gender and sexuality, or we will be hated and threatened.

Nilsa Juarez told the board that teaching children there are many genders is an assault on our Latino culture and faith.

These expansive gender teachings intentionally create confusion in our children. This indoctrination puts a wedge between parents and their children, he said. The books in our elementary schools telling children that their gender can change easily based on their feelings, and that there are unlimited pronouns to choose from, is a betrayal of trust.

The indigenous culture of Santa Ana reflects family values, and the community believes that there are two genders: male and femalenot 50 genders, he said.

Araceli Justiniani, a retired district employee, asked the board for total transparency and the truth about all subject materials in school libraries, school data forms, modified definitions, online resources, crisis lines, and counseling that teach about gender and sexuality.

Our district is made up of undocumented families, many of whom are fleeing tyrannical countries, as well as citizen families. Both families want the best education for their children, she said. Our children do not belong to the state, and we and they want to be heard.

Many parents dont want their children to be told gender is based on feelings or assigned by a doctor, she said. Keeping parents in the dark about all these genders that educators and community partners are promoting is not a full and fair partnership.

John Palacio, a trustee of the Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD), speaks at a board meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via Santa Ana Unified School District)

John Palacio, a trustee, suggested the board should investigate the complaints.

If those issues raised are real  then we just need to deal with it, Palacio said. There was some reading material that they talked about that we need to address as well. I dont need to go into details, because I think youre very much aware [of] that.

Rigo Rodriguez, school board president, objected to the dehumanizing and disgusting language that he claims was directed especially at LGBT students and suggested concerns raised during public comments should be scrutinized for accuracy.

Im asking the superintendent to please fact-check, he said. I really hope that the deeper intention was not to  take a resource away from students who need it. Were going to fact-check these issues because anytime a serious allegation is brought up, we need to really inquire.

Trustee Carolyn Torres, vice president of the board, acknowledged Oct. 11 as national coming out day, and criticized dehumanizing language she claimed was directed at the LGBT community.

Carolyn Torres, a trustee of the Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD), speaks at a board meeting in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 11, 2022. (Screenshot via Santa Ana Unified School District)

It was hard for me to hear, kind of the horrible things said about my family, LGBTQ family, friends, students, staff, she said.

She denounced the parents and students concerns as anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, and dismissed TrevorSpace as a fake site unaffiliated with The Trevor Project.

But it does raise a concern, which is maybe we need to have some awareness mechanism to let people know that there are fake sites, she said. If TrevorSpace was the group, I would be concerned too, but its Trevor Project.

However, The Trevor Project which did not respond to a request for comment on the issue, promotes TrevorSpace, along with TrevorChat, TrevorLifeline, and other services on its website.

Trustees Torres, Rodriguez, and Palacio did not respond to inquiries after the meeting.

The Trevor Projects 2020 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health found that LGBTQ youth in the survey identified with more than 100 different combinations of terms to describe their gender identity. More than 40 identities are listed on the Trevor Projects website.

A screenshot of The Trevor Project website homepage. (Screenshot via thetrevorproject.org)
Former President Donald Trump gets ready to speak during a Save America rally in Warren, Mich., on Oct. 1, 2022. (Emily Elconin/Getty Images)

Supreme Court Rejects Trump Request in Mar-a-Lago Records Case

The Supreme Court on Oct. 13 turned down a request from former President Donald Trump related to records that were seized by FBI agents from his Florida estate.

Trump filed an emergency application to vacate a stay entered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. That stay is preventing both Trumps lawyers and the special master in the case from accessing all of the records with classified markings.

Justice Clarence Thomas, a George H.W. Bush appointee, referred the application to the full court. The court announced on Oct. 13 that it was denying the request.

The court didnt list how each justice voted on the request nor the final vote tally.

Applications are directed to a certain justice, with each justice being responsible for one or more appeals courts. Those justices can then rule on the application themselves or refer the application to the full court for consideration.

Four criteria must be satisfied for a court to grant a stay, including that irreparable harm will result from the denial of a stay and that, upon review, the full court will decide the decision being challenged was erroneous.

Trump lodged the application on Oct. 4, about two weeks after the appeals court issued its ruling.

Lawyers for the former president said the appeals court didnt have jurisdiction to curtail the special master review. The Department of Justice disagreed, telling the court to reject Trumps application.

After FBI agents raided Mar-a-Lago in August, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, inserted U.S. District Judge Raymond Dearie, a Reagan appointee, as a third-party special master to review the materials and help adjudicate disputes over privilege and other matters.

Agents seized about 100 records with classified markings from Mar-a-Lago, as well as roughly 11,200 nonclassified materials, according to the latest inventory lists from the government.

While the appeals court ruling blocked Trumps attorneys and Dearie from viewing the materials marked classified, the government still had to produce copies of the nonclassified records to the lawyers and the special master. That process has been completed, a lawyer for the government informed Cannon on Oct. 12.
A Navy Force helicopter under the Eastern Theatre Command of the Chinese army takes part in military exercises in the waters around Taiwan, at an undisclosed location, on Aug. 8, 2022. (Eastern Theatre Command/Handout via Reuters)

Taiwan Says China Looking at Ukraine War to Develop Hybrid Strategies

TAIPEIChina is looking at the experience of the war in Ukraine to develop hybrid warfare strategies against Taiwan including using drones and psychological pressure, a senior Taiwanese security official said on Wednesday.

Taiwan has been carefully studying the lessons of the Ukraine war to inform how it may react should China, which views the democratically ruled island as its own territory, ever makes good on threats to use force to enforce its sovereignty claim.

The Chinese communist regime mounted military exercises around Taiwan in August to express its anger at a visit to Taipei by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and it has maintained its military activities since then, though at a scaled-back pace.

Speaking in parliament, Taiwans National Security Bureau Director-General Chen Ming-tong said China was also paying attention to what was happening in Ukraine.

This year, the communist military has borrowed from the experience of the RussiaUkraine war to develop hybrid warfare against Taiwan and strengthen its combat training and preparation against strong enemies, he told lawmakers.

After Chinas August drills, it expanded its grey zone and hybrid activities against Taiwan, especially with the use of drones that have flown both near Taiwan-controlled islands off Chinas coast and into Taiwans air defense identification zone, Chen said.

Taiwan says the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) grey-zone warfare campaign involves irregular tactics to exhaust a foe without resorting to open combat, like frequently flying into Taiwans air defense zone and forcing Taiwans air force to scramble.

The CCP has released images of Taiwans military online to slander it and attack the government, he said, referring to video that circulated on Chinese social media in August of Taiwanese soldiers on offshore islands taken by drones.

These activities highlight that the Chinese communists have increased their cognitive warfare, grey zone activities and other hybrid methods, which have constituted a new form of threat to national security, Chen added.

The CCPs Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Chinese regime has blamed Taiwan for the increase in tensions, saying it is colluding with foreign forces against Beijing to promote the islands formal independence.

Taiwan is bolstering its defenses in the face of the stepped up China activity, and navy commander Chiang Cheng-kuo said that includes a new generation of destroyer given that its fleet of 26 main warships was on average 20 to 30 years old.

Were planning for the capital ships, but the tonnage is yet to be decided, he told the same parliament session.

Chen said the CCPs military threats had coalesced support from the United States and its allies for Taiwan to ensure what happened to Ukraine would not be repeated across the Taiwan Strait.

This will enhance Taiwans ability to deal with China and deter their plots to attack Taiwan, he said.

Russia calls its invasion of Ukraine a special military operation.

By Ben Blanchard
The Ukrainian War Phase II: Are We Slowly Inching Toward World War III? Is the US Prepared?

Commentary

The Ukrainian war has entered a second, more dangerous phase.

This phase is marked by a significant Russian escalation of hostility, a call up of roughly 300,000 reservists, renewed Kremlin threats that all options are on the table, including the potential use of theater nuclear weapons and a Russian declaration that, following a plebiscite, the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine have been annexed to Russia. The Kremlin has subsequently announced that further Ukrainian advances in these territories would constitute an attack on Russian territory.

Even more troubling is the appointment of Russian General Sergei Surovikin as the overall commander of Russian military forces in Ukraine. Surovikin has a reputation for ruthless brutality. He directed what geopolitical strategist and author Peter Zeihan called the siege-starve-surrender policy that destroyed Aleppo in the Syrian Civil War. Per Zeihan:

Russian cruelty in the Ukraine War to this point has had the feel of standard operating procedure, rather than any conscious state effort to inflict human suffering. That now appears to be changing. Surovikins elevation to theater commander means Putin has decided war crimes are no longer to be casual, but deliberate. No longer incidental, but celebrated.

As the Ukrainian war shifts to a more brutal, Chechen war-like phase, the likelihood of an exit ramp that could bring the fighting to an end continues to recede, and the probability of continued escalation, a potential spillover into NATO territory, and unintended consequences continues to increase.

On Oct. 8, a truck bomb exploded on the Kerch Strait Bridge. The 12-mile structure connects Crimea with Russia and is a vital supply line for Russian military forces in southern Ukraine. The truck bomb ignited several railcars full of fuel and damaged portions of the bridge. As of Oct. 10, the bridge appears to be functioning but at a reduced capacity. Kyiv has not taken credit for the attack. The Kremlin branded the assault an act of terrorism and responded with a barrage of cruise missile attacks against Ukraines principal cities.

Black smoke billows from a fire on the Kerch bridge that links Crimea to Russia after a truck exploded near Kerch, Ukraine, on Oct. 8, 2022. (AFP via Getty Images)

Simultaneously, Ukrainian forces advancing toward Kherson and Nova Kakhovka are getting close to the sluice gates controlling water flow from the Dnieper River to the Crimean Canal. The canal is Crimeas principal water source and is vital to maintaining agricultural production in that region. The combination of cutting off Crimeas water source and further damage to the Kerch Strait bridge would make Russias position in Crimea extremely difficult in the short term and unsustainable in the long term. In tandem, the two events would precipitate a further escalation from Russia.

The escalation of the Ukrainian conflict is occurring as a closer working relationshipif not a de facto political, diplomatic, and military allianceis developing between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. Dubbed Warsaw Pact 2.0, the alliances existence was underscored at the recent summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization when Russia and China declared that they fully supported each others foreign policy agenda.

The Ukrainian escalation has far-reaching consequences. Are we slowly, albeit inadvertently, inching our way into a world war?

The Historical Parallels

Historians have long debated which events marked the beginning of World War II. Was it the Japanese seizure of Manchuria, Italys invasion of Ethiopia, Adolf Hitlers annexation of Austria, or his seizure of the Sudetenland and the eventual absorption of all of Czechoslovakia?

All these events were dramatic escalations of violent aggression by a powerful country against a weaker opponent. However, none of these conflicts neednt have led to a worldwide war. They were regional conflicts and could easily have remained that way.

What transformed a series of unrelated and local conflicts into a world war was the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. In the aftermath of that attack, Hitler, who felt that Germany was already in an undeclared war against the United States (one being fought by British and Commonwealth proxies), declared war against the United States. Benito Mussolini followed soon after.

Neither country was obligated to go to war with the United States. The Axis Treaty between Germany, Italy, and Japan was intended to be a defensive alliance. It specifically excluded the obligation to declare war if a member was the aggressor. Nonetheless, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.

In doing so, they linked a series of regional conflicts into one worldwide conflagration that brought American military forces, and to a slightly lesser extent British and Commonwealth military forces, into the multiple military theaters of a global war.

Fast forward some 80-plus years later. The four countries most determined to change the global order are increasingly linked together in a de facto alliance. None of them have a specific mutual defense treaty that formally binds them together. Beyond a desire to rewrite the post-war, American-led global system, they have little else in common and are often competitors in other regions of the world, especially in the Middle East/Persian Gulf and in Central Asia.

Three of those four countries have nuclear weapons. Iran will soon have them. China, Russia, and Iran are staging increasingly larger joint military exercises. North Korea and Iran are supplying military equipment and munitions to Russia slated for the Ukrainian war.

While it does not appear that China is supplying any armaments to Russia, it has emerged as the principal market for Russias commodity exports, especially oil and gas. Without access to Chinas market for its commodity exports, the Russian economy would likely collapse.

The current state of cooperation does not mean that the four countries are contemplating or will carry out coordinated military actions. It does mean, however, that the United States and its allies must consider such coordination a real possibility.

Moreover, even if there isnt any explicit coordination, a conflict in one region, and the likelihood of U.S. preoccupation with it, might spur military adventurism elsewhere.

The recent stepped-up missile tests by North Korea are a case in point. The missile drills are meant to mimic both a conventional and nuclear strike against South Korea, Japan, and U.S. naval assets in the region. Its not a coincidence that Pyongyangs recent aggressiveness is occurring when the Ukrainian war is entering a new, more dangerous phase.

People watch a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, on Sept. 25, 2022. (Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images)

Likewise, a nuclear-armed Tehran will precipitate a nuclear arms race in the Persian Gulf, adding an additional layer of complexity and risk to the regions geopolitics. Its long been rumored that Saudi Arabia was heavily involved in funding Pakistans nuclear development program on condition that Riyadh could obtain such weapons from Islamabad should it ever want any. Tehrans nuclear monopoly in the Gulf will likely be very short-lived.

During World War II, Japan never advised its German and Italian allies that it was preparing a strike against the U.S. naval fleet at Pearl Harbor or that the raid was the opening step in a broad campaign to attack American and British interests in the Pacific. On the other hand, Berlin did tell Tokyo of its impending attack on the Soviet Union, hoping to entice a Japanese invasion of Siberia. Though Japan, heavily involved at the time in planning its attack on the United States, and with the memory of its defeat by Soviet and Mongolian forces at Khalkhin Gol still fresh, opted not to participate.

Is US Ready for a Multi-Conflict Global Crisis?

How a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan might impact the regional ambitions of Russia, Iran, and North Korea is unclear. Regardless of whether any of those countries have foreknowledge of Beijings plans, its likely that they would take advantage of the resulting situation to advance their agendas.

Even without any explicit planning or coordination, its probable that multiple incidents of aggression, or at the very least aggressive behavior, would occur relatively simultaneously. All those incidents would draw in the United States. In short, U.S. military forces could find themselves engaged or on high alert in multiple conflicts around the world. In short, a worldwide crisis!

Whether such a scenario is probable is anybodys guess. Its certainly possible, and its unquestionably a scenario for which the United States should be prepared. That begs the question: Are U.S. military forces capable of simultaneously engaging in multiple theaters of operation, and significantly, does the Pentagon have enough reserve capacity to replace its losses and remain engaged in multiple theaters?

The answer is probably no. Some Pentagon sources have already expressed concern that U.S. military aid to Ukraine has significantly depleted U.S. stocks of some weapon systems and ammunition. European reserves are also significantly low, meaning that if NATO found itself in a conflict with Russia, it would be drawing heavily on already depleted U.S. supplies.

Naval power would play an important role in any conflict in the Sea of Japan (Korea), the East and South China seas (Taiwan), and the Persian Gulf (Iran). Such conflicts would also likely involve using significant firepower, possibly nuclear, to create area denial zones for the U.S. Navy and could precipitate significant losses of naval assets.

The USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier sails in the South China Sea on Oct. 16, 2019. (Catherine Lai/AFP via Getty Images)

Could the U.S. Navy continue to effectively project military power in multiple theaters under these circumstances, especially if U.S. naval forces were also being used to simultaneously protect critical shipping from attack by unconventional forces or disrupt Chinese maritime supply lines? Given the current depleted state of the U.S. Navy, the answer is no.

Airpower would also play a critical role. The United States has airbases staged around all these potential conflict zones. With aerial refueling, it also can project airpower anywhere in the globe from bases in the United States. Conducting worldwide operations from domestic U.S. bases, however, is hard on crews and airframes and a heightened operational tempo is not sustainable over the long term.

Moreover, you cant win a war with just airpower, recent experience in the Balkans notwithstanding. At best, in the event of a regional conflict, U.S. airpower could slow down an aggressors advance, disrupt their timetable, and hinder their ability to concentrate their offensive assets. Such actions will buy time, but not a victory. Could the United States sustain a heavy schedule of air operations over multiple theaters of conflict simultaneously? Probably in the short term, assuming supplies are sufficient, but not in the long term.

Ditto for U.S. ground forces. The United States has small but significant ground forces in these possible theaters of conflict. But these forces are meant to serve primarily as a trip wire and to guarantee a continued military commitment and presence by the United States. While important, they would likely be dwarfed by the ground forces that each of these aggressors could bring to bear, although local allies would offset part of that disadvantage.

Simply put, the growing de facto alliance between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea could create a situation where the United States finds itself simultaneously embroiled in multiple global conflicts. Whether you choose to call such a scenario a world war or World War III is irrelevant. The important question is whether the U.S. military can simultaneously respond on a global basis to multiple conflicts and sustain its presence there, considering the expected losses. The answer is probably no.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Protestors against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine passports by the government rally at City Hall in New York City on Aug. 25, 2021. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

The Unvaccinated Deserve Reparations

Commentary

I am being somewhat ironic. But really, not that ironic.

How many people in the land of the free lost their ability to care for their families for refusing to go along with the COVID-19 jab mandates?

For saying no to injecting themselves with an experimental gene therapy vaccine, even though most of them werent at severe risk from the virus?

When Pfizer executive Janine Small admitted to the European Parliament on Oct. 10 that the vaccine had never been tested to stop the viruss transmission, many may have subsequently felt vindicated.

Rob Roos, a conservative member of the European Parliament for the Netherlands, asked Small point-blank whether the claim that we were all fed from day one of the vaccines release had any grounding in fact.

Those who refused the shot on principle endured the vitriolic attack by their government and peers. They were labeled as antisocial and denied access to society in many cases.

Roos may have made his statement in Brussels, but it also resonated with those of us in the United States and Canada. The latter endured particularly draconian lockdown orders and vaccination requirements.

When Dr. Anthony Fauci told us that the vaccine turns you into a dead end for the virus, we were told to trust the science. Now, Small tells us that the speed of science was moving too fast to be able to test that claim.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, testifies during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies hearing in Washington on May 17, 2022. (Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images)

In other words, she reaffirmed what many of us already knewmuch of the COVID fiasco has been unrelated to any actual science but rather it was a pretext for the government to increase its power.

Conform, or else become an untouchable. That was their goal all along. Divide and conquer. Remember when nearly 50 percent of Democratic voters said they would potentially be OK with forcibly interning the unvaccinated in isolated locationsyou know, as in camps? Forty-eight percent wanted the government to fine or imprison anyone who merely questioned the efficacy of vaccines.

It isnt just livelihoods. How many families were torn apart by the governments nonsensical tyranny? Many of us had holidays canceled, gatherings unattended, and relatives who just outright stopped talking to us because we werent vaccinated.

They bought into the narrative that was pushed on us from every direction: No vaccine, no life.

What about going to nursing homes or hospitals to see our loved ones in their most vulnerable moments when they most needed the warmth and comfort of friends and family gathered around? Even when we said, Fine, Ill get tested if I need to. Nope. Not good enough.

Were there vaccine requirements in place when George Floyd died, and the entire country was allowed to go on an anti-racist blood-letting, parading in the streets and burning down cities?

No? Oh, right, that was when more than 1,000 medical health professionals signed a letter saying that the protests were more important than any worries related to COVID.

What about when all those young professionals celebrated in front of the White House gates when Joe Biden was declared the winner of the presidential race, attacking an effigy of then-President Donald Trump?

Well, of course, you cant let COVID get in the way of thatTrump posed the greatest threat to this country since the Cuban missile crisis. Remember all those mean tweets!

This is nothing new to most of us here. Anyone who could see beyond the facade of the established science knew that the media and government, as well as the medical and pharmaceutical industries, were propagating falsehoods and exaggerations to cow us into going along with their agenda.

A bottle is shown reading Vaccine COVID-19, and a syringe next to the Pfizer and Biontech logo on Nov. 23, 2020. (Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images)

The COVID response is a social trauma that will likely take at least a generation to recover from. As we learn morenot only about the vaccines ineffectiveness in stopping the virus, but the potentially harmful side effects accompanying itthe wound will only grow deeper.

This all says nothing of the largely pointless lockdowns, the repercussions of which have yet to be fully understood. Skyrocketing drug use and overdose, stunted mental development for children and impaired learning, increased depression, and missed doctor appointments. All of these considerations were buried under the government demand to trust the science.

Still, many of these considerations were out of our control. Whether or not we got the vaccine was one of the few areas where we had an actual choice. In the United States, at least, they still did everything they could to make that choice as difficult as possible.

Sure, youre free not to get the vaccinebut youre a bad person, and we will do everything in our power to ostracize you from society.

So hearing Small (the Pfizer executive) plainly state that they had no scientifically tested basis for claiming that the virus stopped transmission might seem like a victory.

But its only a moral victory.

Im not kidding when I say that I believe reparations are justified. Maybe not in a cash handout, but an easy place to start would be the various businesses that were forced to fire employees offering to hire back the unvaccinated with back pay for the income lost. The government should support this.

Then again, those employees might not want to be rehired by the employers who betrayed them. The government should still pay the difference in lost income for those who lost their jobs.

Washington can send endless billions to Ukraine because of democracy. So why not take care of the citizens in our own country? You know, the citizens that it turned its back on.

Thats likely too much to expect, at least from this administration. We all know that. Most of the individuals who refused the jab on principle probably dont want Washingtons money anyway. Thats fine.

But theres one other thing that the people of this country undoubtedly deserveeven more than reparations. Its something that they will almost definitely never get.

How about an apology?

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
A 3D printed Tik Tok logo is seen in front of a US flag in this illustration taken Oct. 6, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters File Photo)

TikTok to Enter US E-Commerce With Seattle Fulfillment Center

TikTok, owned by ByteDance in China, will build a global fulfillment center in Seattle, and set up an e-commerce supply chain system, said its job listings on LinkedIn, as first revealed by Axios on Oct. 11.

The ads in the past two weeks invited applicants for the planning and solution design of fulfillment centres, tasked with diverse fields in logistics, supply chain, and inventory management. TikTok also has offices in New York and Los Angeles.

Claiming TikTok is the ideal platform to provide a better e-commerce experience to users, with its more than one billion online users, the companys ads suggest it can compete with other shopping platforms such as Amazon and Walmart.

New Competitor in E-Commerce

Considering warehousing is an expensive undertaking as you vie with established competitors, Neil Saunders, managing director for GlobalData Retail, believes the massive audience and customer base of TikTok could pose a threat to incumbents and prove to be a highly disruptive force.

However, others have a different view. Its idiotic, said Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter. They have no chance of competing and it is a complete waste of money and time, according to The Associated Press.

According to Insider Intelligence, there is a $37 billion market on the U.S. social media sites, known as social commerce, and about 23.7 million U.S. customers will make at least one purchase through TikTok in 2022.

However, the London-based TikTok Shop, its first QVC-style shopping outside Asia launched in 2021, was troubled by poor performance due to low and nascent general consumer awareness and adoption, reported the Financial Times in July.

(L-R) YouTube Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan, TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas, and General Manager of Twitters Bluebird Jay Sullivan testify during a hearing before Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in Washington on Sept. 14, 2022. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The innate vulnerabilities in the TikTok system have caused security concerns when the app is downloaded by customers, as The Epoch Times reported previously.

Israel cybersecurity firm Checkpoint found a series of flaws that could enable attackers to manipulate user content, upload and delete videos, and reveal sensitive data such as birthdate, payment information, and email address.

In June, BuzzFeed News reported that leaked audio showed that engineers of ByteDance, TikToks parent company based in Beijing, had repeatedly accessed nonpublic data about U.S. TikTok users.

Any U.S. user data that can be accessed by a private company in China can undoubtedly also be accessed by the Chinese Communist Party, Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) told The Epoch Times at the time.
The meeting seeks to exchange experiences to preserve and promote the development of tropical forests.

"It is impossible to move countries forward if we do not link these experiences with the community, with local and regional governments, and with the central government," the Head of State said at the meeting that took place at Moyobamba Cultural Center on Wednesday night.

"Peru is diverse and has a wide variety of climates, but the most important aspect which is worth mentioning is its human resources. The Government is willing to help their communities move forward," Mr. Castillo remarked.

Authorities from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, the United States, Indonesia, Mexico, and Peru are joining this exchange.

The GCF Task Force is an organization that works to protect the world's tropical forests, the climate, and the Amazonia. It is made up of 39 subnational governments from 10 countries.

Moreover, the organization is chaired by the Governor of Yucatan (Mexico) and the Governor of San Martin (Peru) Pedro Bogarin Vargas.

The meeting kicked off on October 10 and will come to an end on October 13 with the signing of the San Martin Declaration, in which global actions will be proposed to reduce deforestation and achieve a climate agenda for the world's tropical forests.

El mandatario @PedroCastilloTe participo en un evento cultural del Encuentro Global por el Clima , la Amazonia y los Bosques Tropicales en Moyobamba, region San Martin. Participaron autoridades de Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Mexico, Indonesia, Peru, Ecuador y EE.UU. pic.twitter.com/MNc64th64g
Twitter War Between Virginia Senate Candidate and Liberal Journalist Results in CPS Call

PUNTA GORDA, Fla.A Republican candidate for a Virginia U.S. Senate seat is under fire from a liberal journalist for allegedly teaching her child about Christopher Columbus.

Self-described multi-media journalist, David Leavitt admitted calling in a report to Virginia Child Protective Services (CPS) that Tina Ramirez was teaching her child to be a racist, and asked his 330,000 Twitter followers to call CPS as well.

Can someone please call child care services on Tina Ramirez whos teaching her child to be a racist? Leavitt posted on Twitter on Oct. 10.

This comes in response to a tweet Ramirez made where she said she was teaching her child real history.

I teach my daughter real American history, Ramirez stated in her tweet. I refuse to join the radical lefts campaign to erase history.

Ramirez described herself as a Hispanic single mother with a black daughter.

Leavitt responded by tweeting, Having a black daughter doesnt make you any less racist.

Ramirez fired back at Leavitt.

Mighty bold and liberal of you to lecture a Hispanic mother with a black daughter on racism, Ramirez fired back. Whats next are you going to lecture me on womens rights?

Ramirez said Leavitt tied up phone lines and wasted state resources for what she described as political persecution.

He waited an hour on hold, tying up the lines of our CPS professionals trying to help Virginias children, she continued in her tweet. The radical left is willing to put our children at risk to cancel conservatives.

Leavitt claims that he telephoned Virginia CPS and was kept on the line for more than 10 minuteswhich ended up being more than an hourcalling it unacceptable.

The Virginia state hotline for child abuse is a 10-plus minute hold and is experiencing high call volumes with 14 callers ahead of me, Leavitt tweeted. This is absolutely unacceptable. How many people try to report child abuse and hang up? How many children will continue to be abused?

Leavitt then launched a barrage of tweets informing his followers of the wait times that ranged from 10 minutes to 60 minutes.

Rapid Response Director for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Christina Pushaw offered up advice to Ramirez in her Tweet.

Isnt this a crime in Virginia? Pushaw queries. Its like making a false 911 call or Swatting. Report him to the state police and AGs office. Get him arrested. If he doesnt face consequences, he will do it again.

According to Virginia state statutes, calling in a false report to CPS is a Class 1 misdemeanor, and previous convictions can carry a class 6 felony. For class one misdemeanors, in Virginia, a year in jail or a $2,500 or both can be imposed.

For class six felonies, a jury can impose a prison term from one to five years, and without a jury, a 12-month prison sentence can be imposed and a fine of $2,500 or both, according to state statutes.

Ramirez has since filed a complaint with the Virginia attorney generals office.

I spoke with AG @JasonMiyaresVAs office this morning about being falsely reported to CPS. He stands behind parents rights and Im confident that the AG will fight for individual parents decisions to raise their kids and guard against efforts to weaponize our schools and CPS, she said in a tweet.

The Epoch Times reached out to Leavitt, senatorial candidate Ramirez and Jason Miyaress office and did not receive a response by press time.
Britain's Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace poses for a group picture on the second day of a NATO Defence Ministers meeting at the NATO Headquarter in Brussels on Oct. 13, 2022. (Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images)

UK to Send Air Defence Missiles to Ukraine

The UK will for the first time give Ukraine rockets that can shoot down cruise missiles, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said on Thursday ahead of a NATO meeting in Brussels.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile) rockets will help protect Ukraines critical national infrastructure as Russias latest indiscriminate strikes on civilian areas in Ukraine warrant further support to those seeking to defend their nation.

The announcement came after Moscow launched a wave of deadly missile and drone attacks on Ukraines cities and power plants this week.

The AMRAAM will be used with the NASAMS (National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System) air defence systems pledged by the United States.

Augment the American Platforms

Wallace told Sky News the AMRAAM missile will join the U.S. systems as they are the same type of missiles so they will really augment the American platforms in Ukraine.

The package will also include hundreds of air defence missiles of other types previously provided, hundreds of additional drones, and 18 howitzer artillery guns on top of the 64 already delivered, the MoD said.

The UK also pledged 10 million ($11 million) to NATOs Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine, which will go towards urgent non-lethal assistance such as winter clothes, shelters, generators, fuel trucks, and ambulances for the Ukrainian Army.

The defence secretary told Sky News it was not a risk that the Western allies will run out of weapons to support Ukraine with because unlike Russia the West has the ability to refurbish or indeed manufacture a new supply chain, which is what were doing right now.

The UK-Danish joint lead international fund is all about placing orders in a manufacturing space to make sure that we can go on between 2023 and 2024, and keep going on, he added.

Wallace said he would not speculate on how NATO would respond to a nuclear attack by Russia on Ukraine, adding: The fundamentals are that NATO is an alliance of all types, conventional and nuclear powers, and fundamentally we are here to make sure our readiness is for whatever is thrown at us.

Bolstering Ukraine

According to the MoD, more than 10,000 anti-tank missiles, including NLAW, Javelin, and Brimstone missiles, have been given to Ukraine to bolster its armed forces since the war began.

The government further confirmed that almost 100,000 rounds of artillery ammunition, nearly three million rounds of small arms ammunition, 2,600 anti-structure munitions, and 4.5 tonnes (5 tons) of plastic explosives have been sent to the country.

Six Stormer vehicles fitted with Starstreak launchers, along with hundreds of short-range surface-to-air missiles, more than 28 M109 155mm self-propelled guns, 36 L119 105mm artillery guns and ammunition, and more than 2,000 unmanned aerial systems have also been provided, along with counter-battery radar systems and communications and electronic warfare equipment.

PA Media contributed to this report.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva participates in a town hall discussion with civil society organizations at IMF headquarters in Washington on Oct. 10, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Ukraine Needs $4 Billion a Month to Keep Government Operating: IMF

Ukraine needs between $3 billion and $4 billion a month in financial help to ensure its government does not collapse amid its ongoing conflict with Russia, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday.

Indeed, the Ukrainian authorities have done an impressive job in managing their economy through extremely difficult circumstances following Russias invasion, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said at the Second Ministerial Roundtable Discussion for Support to Ukraine in Washington, D.C.

Despite this, Georgieva said Ukraines financing needs will remain strong throughout next year.

This requires actions on the part of the authorities but importantly also the international community, Georgieva said. The external financing requirement will remain large as long as the war is ongoing. Our current thinking is that the financing requirements will be around US$3-US$4 billion per month in 2023.

Georgieva noted that the billions of dollars in financial aid would go towards much-needed resources for basic social services, rebuilding of infrastructure in the country, and energy imports.

We all have to be alive to the possibility that social and infrastructure requirements could push financing needs beyond this range, depending on the evolution of the war, she noted.

Zelensky Appeals to Donors

The IMFs estimate came on the same day that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made an appeal to international donors for billions of dollars in financial aid.

Zelensky said roughly $38 billion to $55 billion was needed to cover next years estimated budget deficit, and another $17 billion was needed to help the country begin rebuilding critical infrastructure, including schools, housing, and energy facilities.

The more assistance Ukraine gets now, the sooner well come to an end to the Russian war, and the sooner and more reliably we will guarantee that such a cruel war will not spread into other countries, Zelensky said via video teleconference to finance ministers at the World Bank and IMF annual meetings on Wednesday.

The IMF and World Bank have already provided Ukraine with $35 billion in grant and loan financing this year, Georgieva said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration has committed a total of $15.8 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

However, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who was also in attendance at the IMF meeting on Wednesday, appeared to suggest that there will continue to be pressure on the United States to provide aid to Ukraine over the next year.

Yellen encouraged financial donors to keep stepping up to provide financing to the war-torn country while noting that Washington recently reaffirmed our commitment to Ukraine through congressional approval of another $4.5 billion in grant assistance, which we will begin to disburse in the coming weeks.

This is in addition to the $8.5 billion in grants already disbursed, making the United States the largest provider of economic assistance to Ukraine, Yellen said. As Russias shameful actions continue, we must continue our joint efforts and begin planning for Ukraines needs in 2023.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, and Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk pose with a request for fast-track membership in the NATO military alliance in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 30, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)

Ukraines Admission to NATO Guaranteed to Lead to World War 3: Russian Official

Ukraines admission to NATO could trigger a third world war, the Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Alexander Venediktov, warned on Thursday.

In an interview with the Russian state-owned news agency Tass, Venediktov said that NATO itself is fully aware of the consequences of Ukraine being accepted into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Ukraines application for a fast-track NATO membership is rather a propaganda move, Venediktov claimed. Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three.

Apparently, thats what they are counting onto create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again, Venediktov noted.

But given that many members of the Kyiv regime are out of touch with reality, I wouldnt be surprised if some people out there really expect their country to be admitted to NATO, he said.

Venediktovs comments come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier this month announced he has applied for a fast-track membership for his country to join NATO.

We are de facto allies. This has already been achieved. De facto, we have already completed our path to NATO. De facto, we have already proven interoperability with the alliances standards, Zelenskyy said in a video on the Telegram app announcing the move.

His application came shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin celebrated the annexation of four partially occupied regions of Ukraine: Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson.

West a Direct Party to the Conflict

Venediktov on Thursday also repeated a position that has been continuously pushed by Russia: that the West is directly involved in the conflict owing to the help it has provided to Ukraine amid its war with Russia.

We are also aware that, despite statements about not being involved in the events in Ukraine, the real actions taken by Westerners show that they are a direct party to the conflict, Venediktov said.

Ukraines accession to NATO will automatically give the Wests involvement [in the conflict] a new quality, the fifth article will come into effect, he said, adding that members of NATO understand the suicidal nature of doing so.

On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen implored donors to provide more financial aid to Ukraine to ensure its government stays afloat amid its ongoing war with Russia.

Speaking at the Second Ministerial Roundtable Discussion for Support to Ukraine in Washington, D.C., IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the country needs between $3 billion and $4 billion a month in financial help to ensure its government does not collapse.

Yellen also asked financial donors to keep stepping up and providing more money to the war-torn country, while noting that the Biden administration will continue to provide financial assistance to Ukraine through 2023.

On Monday, President Joe Biden promised Zelenskyy that Washington will supply Ukraine with advanced air defense systems so that it can defend itself against Russian attacks.
South African Police Service (SAPS) vehicles are seen parked outside the United States (US) Embassy in Pretoria on June 3, 2020. (Photo by Phill Magakoe / AFP)

US Embassy Issues Travel Warning to Americans Visiting South Africa

The U.S. Embassy in South Africa is urging Americans to be situationally aware when traveling to the countrys famed Kruger National Park and to only make stops at designated areas.

Due to an increase in crime, to include the recent murder of a foreign tourist, the U.S. Embassy in South Africa recommends that U.S. Citizens avoid Numbi Gate at Kruger National Park and instead use either Paul Kruger or Phabeni gates when entering and leaving the park, the embassy said in an Oct. 11 statement.

A German tourist was shot and killed in a robbery in Kruger National Park, according to reports last week. Officials told Deutsche Welle that a tour group was stopped by armed assailants as they made their way to Numbi Gate.

When the suspects demanded that they open their doors, the driver locked the car, local police spokesperson Brigadier Selvy Mohlala told the media outlet. One of the suspects then shot the German tourist, killing him, according to reports.

The U.S. Embassy called for U.S. citizens to be aware when traveling in the area and only make stops at designated areas, such as service stations and garages.

Be mindful that protests and road closures are frequent in the area. It is recommended that everyone contact their lodge or hotel before travel to understand current road and travel conditions, the statement reads. If you encounter issues, contact the Police or your lodge.

South Africas crime rate has soared in recent years amid exceptionally high unemployment rates.

Other Recent Alerts

About two weeks ago, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow issued an alert that Americans should try to depart Russia after the Kremlin announced that it would mobilize hundreds of thousands of soldiers to fight in Ukraine.

Russia may refuse to acknowledge dual nationals U.S. citizenship, deny their access to U.S. consular assistance, prevent their departure from Russia, and conscript dual nationals for military service, that alert states. U.S. citizens should not travel to Russia and those residing or traveling in Russia should depart Russia immediately while limited commercial travel options remain.

Several weeks before that, the U.S. Department of State issued a kidnapping advisory to citizens in Mexico following cartel attacks on businesses.

U.S. citizens are advised to adhere to restrictions on U.S. government employee travel. State-specific restrictions are included in the individual state advisories below, the August notice reads. U.S. government employees may not travel between cities after dark, may not hail taxis on the street, and must rely on dispatched vehicles, including app-based services like Uber, and regulated taxi stands.
Chris Geldart, D.C. Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice, speaks at a news conference near a collapsed pedestrian bridge in Washington, D.C., on June 23, 2021. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Washington Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Resigns After Assault Charges

Washington, D.C., Deputy Mayor Chris Geldart resigned Wednesday following assault and battery charges after allegedly getting into an altercation outside a gym in Virginia in early October.

Geldart allegedly had a verbal dispute with a man after opening his car door and hitting the vehicle belonging to the victim, according to Arlington County Police in Virginia.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Geldarts resignation on Wednesday, refusing to go into detail about their conversation but saying both agreed the focus should be on the big issues affecting D.C.

Im saddened to say that Ive accepted the resignation of Deputy Mayor Chris Geldart but I am proud of the work that we have done together over the last eight years and I am immensely grateful to Chris for his service to this city, Bowser told reporters at a press availability.

Chris has been a very capable and effective public servant and Ive gotten to know him over the years in several roles.

Geldart previously served as director of D.C. Homeland Security and director of the Department of Public Works before becoming deputy mayor for public safety.

Many of you will remember the great work Chris did for us in the 2016 blizzard, Bowser added. Hes also played a significant role in our COVID response.

We certainly wish Chris well, she added. That said, we both agree that the focus should be on the big issues affecting D.C.

City Administrator Kevin Donahue will step in to provide leadership of Geldarts former department until a new deputy mayor is appointed. Donahue previously served in Geldarts former role.

The Alleged Assault

Geldart was already placed on leave after the charges were filed against him while it was under review, with Bowser calling the incident a dispute over something minor.

Geldart and the alleged male victim argued in a parking lot outside a gym. Police said the former deputy mayors car door struck the vehicle that the victim was entering.

The dispute escalated, during which the suspect allegedly grabbed the victim by the throat, Arlington County Police Department spokeswoman Ashley Savage told Arlington Now.

The alleged victim filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the Magistrate and a warrant for assault and battery was issued for Geldart, Savage said.

Geldart later turned himself in to law enforcement and was released on a court summons, she said.

The alleged assault and battery was reportedly captured in purported video footage that shows a larger man approaching another man in a parking lot before the larger appears to push the other one away. The larger man is then seen walking back to the vehicle.

Graham Woodward, whos identified as a trainer at the gym, claimed himself to be the alleged victim in the video. He previously told Fox5 that the gym staff had been dealing with Geldart at Golds Gym for a while.

Its a little frustrating, right? Because hes way too big to be trying to be a bully, especially with his position, he said, adding: Something needs to be done because you cant just abuse your power like that. Thats pretty frustrating on my end.

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
A Russian serviceman guards in an area of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station in territory under Russian military control, southeastern Ukraine, on May 1, 2022. (AP Photo)

West Pledges to Supply Ukraine With More Air Defense; Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Loses Power

KYIV, UkraineWestern powers pledged to supply Ukraine with more potent air defense systems following a series of retaliatory Russian missile strikes.

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant suffered a blackout when a missile damaged a distant electrical substation, Ukraines state nuclear operator said. The power loss increased the risk of a radiation emergency because the plant needs electricity to prevent its reactors from overheating.

Energoatom said the external power source was repaired after about eight hours and that the plants emergency diesel generatorswhich rely on uncertain fuel deliveries in the war zoneprovided backup in the meantime, but a similarly hazardous interruption could happen at any time.

Russia has seized the plant and is not taking any steps to de-escalate. On the contrary, it is shelling important infrastructure daily, the companys press service told The Associated Press.

Hundreds of cities and towns across Ukraine lost electricity after Russia launched a wide-ranging missile assault Monday in retaliation for a truck bomb explosion that damaged a bridge linking Russia with the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014.

With repairs to the grid still in progress, Ukraines prime minister asked people to reduce evening energy consumption by 25 percent and prepare for winter by keeping essentials such as warm clothes, candles, flashlights, and batteries ready.

Ukraines Western allies met at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday to calibrate their response to Russias latest attacks.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III (C) addresses the Ukraine defense contact group meeting at NATO headquarters during the first of two days of defense ministers meetings in Brussels on Oct. 12, 2022. (Omar Havana/Getty Images)

U.S. Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Ukraine wants its Western partners to provide it with a complete air defense system to contend with Russian warplanes and missiles. Milley spoke to reporters after a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, about 50 nations that meet regularly to assess Kyivs needs and drum up equipment.

What Ukraine is asking for, and what we think can be provided, is an integrated air missile defense system. So that doesnt control all the airspace over Ukraine, but theyre designed to control priority targets that Ukraine needs to protect, Milley told reporters

Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyys office, said the meeting was historic because decisions to close the sky for Ukraine were being made there. Ukraine has put a priority on bucking up its air defenses, but NATO member nations have worried how to do that without triggering a wider war in Europe.

An abandoned car lies on the ground in a heavily damaged grain factory where Russians forces gathered destroyed vehicles at the recaptured town of Lyman, Ukraine, on Oct. 11, 2022. (Francisco Seco/AP Photo)

Zelenskyys office said Moscows retaliatory strikes killed at least 14 people and wounded 34 over the last day in the Zaporizhzhia region and the Donetsk region to the east. At least 19 died in Mondays opening onslaught, including five in Kyiv.

A day after Ukraines Defense Ministry announced the arrival of the first of Germanys four promised IRIS-T air defense systems, the defense minister of the Netherlands said her country would deliver $14.5 million worth of air defense missiles in light of Russias recent attacks.

These attacks reinforce the governments belief that they can only be answered with unwavering support for Ukraine and its people, Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongreher said. The Netherlands, like our partners, will not be intimidated by Russia.

French President Emmanuel Macron, in a television interview Wednesday evening, promised prompt delivery of more cannons and also anti-aircraft systems and missiles.

The United States is expected to deliver two advanced NASAMs anti-aircraft systems in the coming weeks.

The nuclear scare and pledges of more Western support came amid a flurry of developments in Russias 7.5-month-old invasion.

Moscows main domestic security agency said it arrested eight peoplefive Russians and three citizens of Ukraine and Armeniaover the blast on the Kerch bridge between Russia and Crimea. A truck loaded with explosives blew up while driving across the bridge Saturday, killing four people and causing sections of road to collapse, Russian officials said.

Thick black smoke rises from a fire on the Kerch Bridge that links Crimea to Russia on Oct. 8, 2022, in a still from video. (AFP via Getty Images)

The span opened four years after Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, serving as a symbol of Moscows regional dominance as well as a crucial route for military supplies for its troops in Ukraine and for Russians traveling to a popular vacation destination.

The Federal Security Service, known by the Russian-language acronym FSB, alleged the detained suspects acted on orders of Ukraines military intelligence to secretly move the explosives into Russia using forged documents.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Andriy Yusov denied the accusation that his country was involved, telling reporters, The entire activity of the FSB and the Investigative Committee is nonsense.

Zelenskyys office said in a morning update that strikes on central and western parts of Ukraine had ceased but Russian shelling and attacks involving drones, heavy artillery and missiles continued in eight southeast regions.

More than a dozen missiles were fired at the city of Zaporizhzhia and its suburbs, damaging residential buildings. Part of a larger eponymous region that Moscow has illegally annexed, the city remains in Ukrainian hands while Russian forces control the area where the nuclear plant is located.

In Nikopol, a city of 104,000 across the Dnieper River from the plant, three people were gravely wounded, including a 6-year-old girl. Over 30 multistory residential buildings were damaged, as as well as private houses and schools, Ukrainian authorities said.

Rafael Grossi, the head of the U.N.s International Atomic Energy Agency, said the loss of external power at the nuclear plant for the second time in five days again exposed how precarious the situation is, and he pleaded again for a security zone around the plant.

All six of the Zaporizhzhia reactors were stopped earlier due to the war. But they still require electricity to prevent them and their spent fuel rods from overheating to the point of a meltdown that could release radiation into the atmosphere of Ukraine and potentially other European countries, including Russia.

In the Donetsk region, Russian tanks shelled the city of Avdiivka, damaging residential buildings and a market. Seven people were killed and eight wounded, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Zelenskyys office, said via Telegram, posting photos of bodies on the ground by a kiosk with potatoes and bread on the counter.

Earlier Wednesday, Ukraines southern command said its forces recaptured five settlements in the southern Kherson region, on the western fringe of an arc of Russian-controlled territory in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Near the southern city of Mykolaiv, Ukrainian forces shot down nine Iranian Shahed-136 drones and destroyed eight Kalibr cruise missiles, the presidential office said.
What John Rich Told Us at His Party

Commentary

Country music star John Rich gives the best parties.

Well, the best ones Ive been to anyway and I suspect as good as just about anybodys for the absolute good times, friendliness, and patriotism of the atmosphere and the graciousness of the host and his wife.

Im lucky enough to have gone to three in the four-plus years that Ive been in Nashville.

The music, of course, is out of this world. At various parties, Rich plays, as well as a host of others from Travis Tritt to Larry Gatlinplus Lee Greenwood singing God Bless the U.S.A.and many more, including some I hadnt heard of but should have.

His home is a perfect venue because the main room has a bandstand that rivals most nightclubs or honky-tonks, with a wall-sized window overlooking the Nashville skyline of Bob Dylan fame.

The walls are festooned with photographs of country legends, even in the elevator, as well as many of the host in the company of that deceased local deity of deitiesJohnny Cash.

The swimming pool is, you guessed it, shaped like a guitar.

Theres also plenty of Richs own Redneck Riviera whiskey on hand.

The whole thing makes you feel like its cool to be conservative these days, and it is. Were the real counter-culture now and have been for some time. Theyre basically out of it.

One of the parties I attended was a fundraiser for Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), another was to welcome The Daily Wire to Nashville, and the third, on the night of Oct. 11, was to celebrate Donald Trumps Truth Social app, the Rumble video platform, and Richs very recent No. 1 hit Progress, which was heavily promoted by those two social media outlets.

Which meant the song was sung on stage, accompanied by not just the usual band but also by former Rep. Devin Nunesthe truly gutsy then-politician and hero who first uncovered Russiagate and now runs Truth Socialand the lawyer and national security hero Kash Patel, who, as The Epoch Times subscribers know, was heavily involved in that same unmasking of left-wing criminality.

Others from The Epoch Times were in the houseSenior Editor Jan Jekielek and Lee Smith (the man who wrote the book about Nunes, Patel, and Russiagate that was made into a film) among them.

Smith was in Nashville to give a speech to the Nashville Republican Women the next day.

That speech began with Lee summarizing something quite interesting that John Rich spoke about at his party. John likes to say a few words between songs and this particular statement resonated.

Rich talked about the Americans who died in World War II, but in a slightly different manner than the way to which we are normally accustomed. He reminded us that they were very young men18- to 20-year-oldswho had dreams of their own of all sorts, dreams that would never be fulfilled.

But these were the very people who had built this country in the first place, who made America the land of the free.

And we lost them and what they would do for our country, the companies, and businesses, small and large, they might build, their inventions, their creative work, the families they might have.

They were some of our best, dead on the battlefields in Europe and on Pacific islands.

More to the point, their deaths changed the demographics of our country and created what we are living through now.

The balance of population power switched left.

Our woke world is the result of that population deficit, three-quarters of a century later.

I got a shiver when Rich spoke about the feeling you get when something suddenly makes sense in a way that youve never heard before. It was surprising, although I should have known better, that this real historical insight was coming from a country music star and not some pundit with a degree from Yale and a sinecure from a think tank.

Anyway if you havent heard Progress yet, listen here.

Richs lyrics begin this way:

Theres a hole in this country where its heart used to be

And old glorys divided, on fire in the street

They say building back better will make America great

If thats a wave of the future, all Ive got to say Stick your progress where the sun dont shine

Keep your big mess away from me and mine

And if you leave us alone, well wed all be just fine

Stick your progress where the sun dont shine

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
White House Slams OPEC. Really?

Commentary

Have you ever read a headline that struck you with amazement and caused you to think, Did they really do that? That was my reaction when I read the headline in The Wall Street Journal, U.S. Takes Aim at OPEC for Oil Production Cuts.

Specifically, the White House denounced OPEC+s announcement of their intention to cut their production of crude oil by 2 million barrels per day (bpd). The petulant rebuke of the Biden administration and congressional Democrats and their accompanying threats of retaliatory action against OPEC are stunningstunning in their supercilious arrogance, stunning in their hypocrisy, and stunning in their short-sightedness.

The member states of OPEC+ are, to the best of my knowledge, sovereign nation-states. They also have nationwide monopolies on oil production within their territories. As sovereign states, their leaders have a right to increase or decrease the production of crude as they wish. To hear the president and his minions chastising the decision by Saudi Arabia et al. to cut production reeks of colonialist attitudes. Apparently, Team Biden believes that countries that receive U.S. military aid are bought and paid for, and therefore must do our bidding. Thats not exactly an endearing or winsome attitude. Its reminiscent of President Jimmy Carters bizarre tendency to bully governments with whom there had been cooperation, if not friendship, while treating hostile governments with gentleness and conciliation.

Sorry, Mr. President, but those sovereign nation-states are free to do whatever they want in regard to oil production. They are under no obligationlegal, moral, or economicto take actions that will reduce American energy costs and so give your party a boost in the approaching midterm election. Truly, the White Houses implied presumption that sovereign nations should adopt policies to suit American preferences is disrespectful, insulting, arrogant, and obscene. It could take years to repair the unnecessary diplomatic damage that the Biden administrations haughty and intemperate outburst has caused.

What makes Team Bidens scolding of OPEC even more unconscionable is the sheer hypocrisy of it. Biden has made no secret of his desire to bury the American fossil fuels industry. He has consistently pursued policies to impede domestic production of oil and gas since day one of his presidency (see here and here, and here). Doesnt the president see the absurdity of threatening to punish foreign governments for doing exactly what his own administration has been doing so aggressivelynamely, reining in the production of crude oil?

Whatever shortage of oil there is in this country is more the fault of the Biden administration than of any foreign power.

Responding to the OPEC announcement, our governments chief diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, averred, We are working every single day to make sure to the best of our ability that, again, energy supply from wherever is actually meeting demand in order to ensure that energy is on the market and that prices are kept low.

He should be embarrassed to make such a statement. When he speaks of best efforts to obtain energy from wherever, I think Im correct in concluding that from wherever includes the United States. But here in the States, the truth is the exact opposite of Blinkens assertion. Team Biden is mak[ing] sure to the best of [their] ability to prevent domestic oil supplies from meeting domestic demand. With its tirade against OPEC, the administration is trying to browbeat foreign governments into producing what its making difficult for American oil companies to produce in America.

Finally, for Team Biden to label OPECs decision short-sighted is the ultimate hypocrisy. According to the Wall Street Journal article, Bidens congressional allies are pitching bills that would potentially seize the assets that OPEC member countries own in the U.S., or mandate the removal of U.S. armed forces from Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. Either measure would be extremely short-sighted.

U.S. policy since the end of World War II has been to uphold a world order in which the property rights of each country are to be protected and upheld. For our congress to threaten to seize the property of sovereign nations when they chart an independent path and exercise their right to develop their resources at a pace of their own choosing is to undermine confidence in U.S. law and justice. U.S. bullying and rapacity could possibly drive erstwhile friendly or semi-friendly governments away into alliances with American enemies like Russia and China.

As for threatening to remove U.S. armed forces from Saudi Arabia, lets not forget the reason why those forces are deployed there. It hasnt been because we approve of the Saudi monarchy and all its policies and actions; rather, it has been because if Saudi oil production were drastically reduced, there would be massive economic pain in many countries around the world and, in some cases, wrenching political convulsions. The Biden/Democratic threat to withdraw American military forces raises the specter of the destabilization of Saudi Arabia, or worse, that a hostile power in the Russia-China axis like Iran might attack, cripple, and even destroy Saudi Arabias oil production infrastructure. Its hard to think of a more short-sighted policy than taking actions that could destabilize the Arabian Peninsula.

What about the moral aspect of our relationship with Saudi Arabia? Team Biden is engaging in moralizing of a peculiarly selective nature. The White House is vehemently denouncing a country in which government policies are enabling its population to prosper and thrive, while at the same time overlooking the gross privations and devastation inflicted on the Venezuelan people by the Venezuelan government. Biden is willing to withhold criticisms of and retaliation against the inhumane Venezuelan regime in the craven hope that dictator Nicolas Maduro will increase oil production. In a world in which governments are far from perfect, what ethical principle would impel our president to threaten a relatively benign government while adopting a conciliatory policy toward a relatively brutal government?

Instead of reacting with temper tantrums to OPECs announcement, the president and his congressional allies should have kept their mouths shut and opted for a cooling-off period. I heard one geopolitical analyst say that OPEC may be currently producing as much as 2.8 million bpd less than their stated quota. If thats so, then reducing the quota by 2 million bpd may be a non-event. I wrote may be  producing because its hard to trust OPECs published production figures completely. Its also hard for OPEC to guarantee the compliance of all its members with the cartels quotas, because national self-interest often leads individual members to cheat by producing more than their agreed-to quota.

Whether OPEC does or does not reduce its production of crude oil, the obvious need remains for the United States to increase domestic production. Unfortunately, given the hostility of the dominant party in Washington to domestic oil production, that need will likely remain unfilled.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
California Governor Gavin Newsom makes an appearance after the polls close on the recall election, at the California Democratic Party headquarters in Sacramento, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2021. (Fred Greaves/Fred GreaveszReuters)

With Money for Mudslinging, Democrats Mop Up California

Commentary

If you have a look at the contributions flowing into the California Democratic Party and compare them to the contributions that the California Republican Party attracts, it isnt even close. For this election season, Jan. 1 through Sept. 24, the Democrats have collected $19.1 million, and the Republicans less than half that, $9.5 million.

Even this understates Democratic power, however, because the Democrats were sitting on a substantial war chest, and the Republicans were not. As of Sept. 24, the California Democratic Party reported $29 million in available cash; the Republicans, only $4.0 million. Going into the final weeks, Californias Democratic Party has seven times as much money as the Republican state party.

If you have a look at the ads the Democrats are running to ensure their dominance over California politics, that isnt subtle either. They are mudslinging as hard as they can, and it works, because it has always worked.

Extreme, Far-Right Politicians

In every quasi-competitive race, examples of Democrats wielding both overwhelming spending supremacy and underhanded campaign tactics are plentiful. For example, in Assembly District 7, Democrat Ken Cooley has raised $1.6 million, while his opponent, Republican Josh Hoover has raised $650,000. And money talks.

In a barrage of mailers and television ads, Cooley claims Hoover stands with extremists who want to outlaw abortion with no exceptions for victims of rape and incest, and that Hoover has spent his entire career working for extreme, far-right politicians and helped them echo and advance Donald Trumps dangerous agenda.

This first claim is cleverly misleading. By saying Hoover stands with extremists, and then saying those extremists want to outlaw abortion with no exceptions, it implies that Hoover wants to outlaw abortions with no exceptions. But that is not Hoovers position, it is the position of some of his supporters.

As for Hoovers alleged association with extreme, far-right politicians, this is an inaccurate portrayal of Hoovers previous bosses, Kevin Kiley and Mimi Walters, who are both measured politicians with impeccable character. Cooley, on the other hand, is a machine politician who once worked for Ron Calderon, a Democratic politician who spent 3.5 years in prison after being convicted of accepting bribes.

But Hoovers campaign doesnt have enough money to tell that story. The same money disadvantage shows up everywhere. In contested Assembly District 27, Republican Mark Pazin has collected $733,000 in contributions, Democrat Esmeralda Soria has collected nearly $1.4 million. In the supposedly contested Senate District 16, Republican David Shepard raised $425,000 and has $30,000 left. Democrat Melissa Hurtado raised $2.3 million and has $546,000 left. These disparities are typical.

When it comes to top offices, the financial advantage Democrats wield over Republicans is laughable. Newsoms campaign account had a Sept. 24 balance of $23 million, 53 times as much money as Brian Dahle, the Republican challenger, whose ending cash balance was $408,000.

The same story applies across every race for high office. For Lieutenant Governor, the Democrats cash was $4.0 million, while the Republican had $9,000. For Secretary of State, the Democrats cash was $920,000, and the Republicans was a whopping $102. For Attorney General, the Democrat had $2.1 million and the Republican $711,000.

Trumps Big Lie

You cant win campaigns with no money, and Californias Republicans have almost no money. Its a bad joke, more so as the Democrats use all that money to portray themselves as weak underdogs, fending off Trumpian hordes.

The race for Assembly District 40, another close one, is a rare case where there is near parity in contributions. Republican Suzette Valladares, perhaps benefitting from incumbency, has raised $912,000, only slightly behind her Democrat challenger Pilar Schiavo at $1.02 million. But have a look at the dirt Democrats are throwing on the Republican:

The incumbent is a Republican who traffics in Trumps Big Lie. Valladares opposes the right of women to decide when they will become a parent. She also takes credit for blocking CalCare, which would have expanded healthcare coverage to all Californians.

Unpacking these allegations is a representative excursion into the Democrat strategy: If you have any concerns about voter integrity, you are participating in Trumps Big Lie. If you have any concerns about aborting six month old healthy fetuses with no restrictions, which is California law, you are against a womans right to choose. And if you dont want to see the state government take over the entire health care systemand nobody has the slightest idea how that would be implementedyou are against providing health coverage to all Californians.

The vacuous absurdity of these allegations ought to be self evident. When pigs fly, the California Legislature will do anything that truly jeopardizes a womans right to choose an abortion. Californias health care system already has layers of coverage beyond what Obamacare offers, and it isnt going anywhere. As for voter integrity, a successful Democratic political consultant and expert on the California voter file recently told me, laughing as he said it, that the file is a joke, rife with inaccuracies. He would know. But if anybody cares about voter integrity, just call them a conspiracy theorist, and move along.

Unions, Big Corporations Back Democrats

The disparity in fundraising in California between Republicans and Democrats is systemic. If you go to the California Secretary of State website and download the Contributions Made spreadsheet, you will see who is giving to the state Democratic Party. This analysis will debunk any suggestion that Democrats are protecting Californias citizens from the big bad corporations. AT&T, $791,000. Blue Shield, $1.47 million. California Apartment Association, $1.19 million. California Dental Association, $800,000. California Real Estate PAC, $2.06 million. California Medical Association, $1.18 million.

While corporations donate substantial sums to the Democratsbecause Democrats win and wield powerthe corporate agenda is balkanized. They want access and they have specific and disparate priorities. Not so with the government unions. They have an unwavering common agenda: more government, more government workers, higher pay for government workers. Any politician that challenges that agenda is targeted via a unified union effort and is defeated. With that power, of course, government unions now control all policy decisions in Sacramento and throughout California.

Californias public sector unions collect and spend nearly $1.0 billion per year. They donate hundreds of millions every election cycle to political campaigns, and almost every donation is to a Democrat. If they make donations to Republicans, it is in the handful of safe Republican districts where they want to make sure they control the Republican.

The big players at the state level donating directly to the Democratic party should surprise nobody. Cal Fire, $330,000. California Federation of Teachers, $235,000. California Professional Firefighters, $478,000. California Association of Electrical Workers, $450,000. California State Council of Laborers, $170,000. California State Council of Service Employees, $605,000. California State Pipe Trades Council, $250,000. California Teachers Association, $845,000. Faculty for Our Universitys Future, $178,000. SEIU affiliates, $627,000. Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 104, $235,000. Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, $300,000. State Building and Construction Trades Council, $625,000. And dozens of smaller union contributions.

With hundreds of millions to spend every year on politics, Californias government unions are everywhere. Its easy enough to go to the California Secretary of States website and see who is contributing to the campaigns for Governor, other high offices, the senate and assembly candidates, or the ballot initiatives. But government union influence only begins there. It extends into every city and county, every special district and every school board. There is not one race in California where government unions arent interested in the outcome, so long as the successful candidate will then be in a position to negotiate over pay and benefits for public employees. And if that were all, that would be bad enough.

Unfortunately, the agenda of government unions is increasingly in alignment with the broader economic agenda of Californias business oligopolies and major individual donors. They share a common interest in creating scarcity through excessive laws and regulations. The enhanced enforcement apparatus means more jobs for public sector workers. The new regulations mean more barriers to entry and more expensive compliance requirements for smaller emerging companies that lack the scale to withstand the new rules. And the politically contrived scarcity, in all things, means higher demand-driven revenues and more profits for those corporations left standing.

This is the world that a virtually unassailable coalition of special interests in California has created. To protect their empire, they massively outspend Republican candidates, using their cash advantage to dirty them all as racists and climate deniers. It works.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Members of the Iranian community and their supporters rally in solidarity with protesters in Iran, after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody for allegedly improperly wearing a hijab, in Ottawa on Sept. 25, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Justin Tang)

Zahra Kazemis Prosecutor Included in Canadas New Iran Sanctions

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Thursday that Canada is adding more Iranian officials and entities to the sanctions list.

The measures will mean 17 individuals and three entities are barred from entering Canada or doing business with most Canadian firms.

These sanctions are targeted at Iranian officials who have committed or enabled human-rights violations against women, or perpetuated disinformation, Joly said.

The list includes Mohammad Javad Zarif, Irans recent longtime foreign minister, whom Canadian groups had asked to be sanctioned.

It also includes Saeed Mortazavi, the prosecutor who ordered the torture of Zahra Kazemi, an Iranian Canadian journalist who died in custody in 2003.

Joly said it was particularly important to list Mortazavi.

My message to the Iranian regime is we havent forgotten, and we will never forget, and thats why were imposing these new sanctions, Joly said in an interview Thursday morning from Seoul, South Korea.

The fresh sanctions will also apply to Brig.-Gen. Amir Hatami, Irans former defence minister and a senior adviser to the current commander-in-chief.

Also listed are Peyman Jebelli, the head of the state broadcaster, and Hossein Shariatmadari, the editor-in-chief of the state-controlled Kayhan newspaper that Jolys office accuses of regularly publishing antisemitic propaganda, Holocaust denial and threats against Canadas allies.

A senior prisons official Gholamreza Ziaei will be listed, as will senior government adviser Ali Larijani. A commander of police forces in southwestern Iran, Manouchehr Amanollahi, is also on the list.

Those listed will have their Canadian-held assets frozen, as Ottawa tries to put a new law into action to seize those assets and disperse them to victims and human-rights defenders.

Later Thursday, federal cabinet ministers were expected to share more details of the round of sanctions announced last Friday, which are meant to bar high-ranking members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps from entering Canada, for life.

That move followed mounting pressure by the Conservatives and members of the Iranian diaspora in Canada to list that entire organization as a terrorist group, which experts argued is not feasible.

By Dylan Robertson
That release could not be found.
In a tweet on Wednesday evening, Minsa stated that cases were reported in Metropolitan Lima (2,158), Lima Provinces (34), Callao (189), La Libertad (132), Arequipa (114), Piura (26), Lambayeque (24), Ucayali (19), Ica (16), San Martin (14), Cusco (13), Loreto (11), Tacna (10), Ancash (6), Madre de Dios (6), Junin (5), Huanuco (3), Cajamarca (2), Moquegua (2), and Puno (1).

Minsa reported 2,441 hospital discharges. Besides, all patients received medical care and are being monitored, as contacts are identified.

The ministry encouraged the population to call line 113, extension 6, or go to the nearest health facility in case they have symptoms like rashes or skin lesions.

What is monkeypox?

Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by a virus transmitted to humans from animals. Monkeypox symptoms are similar to smallpox symptoms, but milder.

Transmission

Animal-to-person transmission occurs through direct contact with the blood, bodily fluids, or cutaneous or mucosal lesions of infected wild animals such as rodents and primates from Africa.

Human-to-human transmission can result from close contact with respiratory secretions, skin lesions of an infected person or recently contaminated objects.

How to avoid infection

- Avoid contact.

- Wash your hands.

- Wear a facemask.

- Isolate yourself if you have symptoms.

?? El Ministerio de Salud informa que 2441 personas han sido dadas de alta por #ViruelaDelMono y se han detectado 17 casos nuevos. Todos vienen recibiendo asistencia medica y se viene realizando seguimiento a sus contactos. pic.twitter.com/o9xHN5y3nU
The Economy Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) have raised concerns over Nigerias failing democracy and her incompetencies in leading the African continent politically

With insecurities ravaging the country and tensions, especially among political parties, Amb. Aderemi Ajibewa, Director, of Political Affairs, ECOWAS Commission, said elections have the potential of aggravating existing fault lines in societies; hence the need for stakeholders' engagement in electoral processes.

Ajibawe stated this on Tuesday during a "Stakeholders Consultative Meeting on Peaceful 2023 General Elections and Political Transition in Nigeria", convened by ECOWAS Commission and WANEP in Abuja

He said, as political parties and candidates crisscross the length and breadth of the country in the run-up to the elections for campaigns and mobilization of voters, they must resist the temptation of drawing on ethnoreligious sentiments and other identities that can exacerbate the nations fault lines".

According to him, election campaigns must be issue-based and must be devoid of hate speeches, disinformation, and misinformation.

He added: "All stakeholders and actors in the electoral process, including the umpire- the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the security agencies, the various political parties and their respective candidates, the civil society, youths, women, traditional and religious leaders, should work together to ensure that the entire process is inclusive and transparent.

"Thus, leading to an outcome that will be generally regarded as credible and acceptable, not only to the contestants, their political parties, and Nigerians generally, but also to friends of Nigeria and the international community.

In the same vein, Chukwuemeka Eze, Executive Director of WANEP, noted that the fiercely competitive nature of party politics has been a factor threatening stability in the country.

Eze listed other factors identified including lack of transparency, ethnicity, and religious differences in the political system. He expressed concern that a country like Nigeria with high expectations from the international community to lead the continent into electoral decorum and civility, is continually experiencing high levels of suspicion and lack of confidence in key state institutions that directly or indirectly superintend the electoral process. He stressed that allegations of partisan security forces, the partiality of the judiciary, and the lack of independence of the Electoral Commission among others abound.

"An important dimension with the potential of heating the polity is the increased cases of identity, ethnicity, and religiosity in body politics. Politicians are now comfortably pursuing their agenda along ethnic and religious lines rather than along ideological lines. This development threatens the growth of formal democracy, national cohesion, and development and creates animosity amongst citizens who now view themselves through parochial lenses," Eze lamented.

Also speaking, Agada Elachi, President of the Institute of Chartered Mediators, ICMC reiterated the need for collaboration between INEC, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and security agencies during the forthcoming general election

Specialized actors, NGOs, CSOs, and security agencies have roles to play to ensure a free, fair, and violent election and as such we must sit together and deliberate what the likely challenges are and how we can minimize them," he concluded.

The stakeholder's consultative meeting was held to provide space for knowledge exchange and experiential learning to enhance collaboration amongst key stakeholders towards the conduct of a peaceful and credible election; assess the state of preparedness, identify gaps and risk factors for instability relating to the electoral and transition process; articulate and sustain stakeholders' efforts in ensuring peaceful and credible electoral process; and elicit the commitment of political parties and actors, security agents, INEC and CSOs towards a peaceful election.
The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) and the International College for Democracy and Human Rights Scholars have graphically debunked the latest lies told by Nigerias INEC Chairman in the far away United States of America to the effect that INEC has deleted 2.7m double registrations from the 2022 Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise. A recent graphic research work, numbering 23 pages, put together by Nigerias Intersociety, locally and globally respected for in-depth research and investigation on democracy and human rights matters; had exposed a litany of illegalities perpetrated by Nigerias INEC ahead of the countrys crucial Presidential Election fixed for 25th Feb 2023. The INECs illegalities include identification of the 50 major poll rigging plots and the 12 major elections rigging Nigerian States to watch in the 2023 Presidential Poll.

The International Democracy College inclusive of the Intersociety had on 29th and 30th September and 5th October 2022 written to US Vice President, the US Secretary of State, the US Assistant Secretary of State and head of the Bureau of African Affairs and the sixteen key US Lawmakers, strongly urging them to monitor Nigerias INEC and revisit their funding supports and other international engagements with the Commission and at all times tie them to credible electoral process accountability. It is our observation that since then, Nigerias INEC and its Chairman have become restlessly engaged in globe trotting and damaged image repair in addition to dishing out white lies before the international critical democracy partners. INEC had in its latest lies told at an event put together by the respected National Endowment for Democracy (NED) on Tuesday, 11th October 2022 in the United States disputably disclosed that it has deleted 2.7m double registrations from the recent (July 2021/July 2022) Continuous Voters Registration exercise.

Contrary to the above lies told, a recent independent graphic research evidence has exposed and disclosed that Nigerias INEC has deliberately, discriminatorily and ethno-religiously destroyed no fewer than 18.1m of over 27.4m voters registered in 2022 voters registration and validated only 9.3m others that are most likely represented disproportionately along Nigerias ethnic and religious lines. Nowhere was it also mentioned where the INEC Chair theoretically or graphically disclosed to his hosts in USA the number of migrants, minor and ghost names flooding the Nigerias National Register of Voters including who brought them into the Voters Register, how they were smuggled into the Voters Register and whether such migrants, minors and ghost names, independently estimated at 15m by Intersociety have been deleted or not from the Voters Register.



We had also stated in our Joint-Letterto respected Presidents of National Endowment for Democracy (NED), National Democratic Institute (NDI) and International Republican Institute (IRI) that the highly disputable voters data account given by Nigerias INEC Chairman is nothing short of a case of a typewriter teaching an ICT expert on the functionalities of ICT including its biometric application. That is to say that if the Nigerias INEC Chair is truly ICT literate, he would not have made such mockery of himself and the Commission at such technologically advanced international capital. This is more so when the functions of ICT biometric technology are so elementary that they do not warrant special and international referencing as INECs major policy achievement ahead of Nigerias 2023 Presidential Poll. The respected Presidents of NED, NDI and IRI were specifically told in clear terms that Nigerias INEC has been hiding or using double/multiple registrations as a cover to disenfranchise tens of millions of truly Nigerian citizens of voting age including destruction of 18.1m of the 27.4m voters registrations or registrants recorded in the 2022 Continuous Voters Registration exercise. These, the Commission has been perpetrating and perpetuating while turning total blind eyes on millions of migrants, minors and ghost names flooding the Voters Register as registered voters in Nigeria to vote in the 2023 Presidential Poll.

The above were contained in our Joint-Letter, dated 12th Oct 2022 and addressed to the President and CEO of the National Endowment for Democracy, USA, Damon M. Wilson, the President of the International Republican Institute, USA, Daniel Twining, PhD and the President of the International Democratic Institute, USA, Ambassador Derek Mitchell. The critical highlights of the above also formed part of our latest international radio interview with the Voice of America (VOA), granted by our Chief Strategist, Emeka Umeagbalasi who is the Board Chair of Intersociety. We had in our Joint-Letter emphasized the need for the respected leaders of NED, NDI and IRI and other international critical partners supporting Nigerias democratic process to ensure that Nigeria holds crisis or turbulence free, participatory, inclusive, secure and credible General Elections especially the Presidential Poll in 2023 and that such Elections cannot take place without maximum enfranchisement through voters registration and issuance of Permanent Voters Cards, of citizens of voting age without discrimination as to their religion, ethnicity and class; all line with the common mission of NED, NDI and IRI to advance democracy and freedom around the world including motivating people to engage in the political process and guide politicians and government officials to be responsive to citizens.



The respected Presidents of NED, NDI and IRI were also called upon to thoroughly study the attached Special Investigative Report by Intersocietyso as to be grounded with the facts of the matter and assert sufficient international pressure on Nigerias INEC to mandatorily issue PVCs to over 32m registered Nigerian voters, reopen its registration centers, enfranchise and issue PVCs to 7m-11m disenfranchised successful online registrants and wipe out all traces of registered millions of minors, illegal aliens and ghost names from the Voters Register. The 32m registered voters denied permanent voters cards (PVCs) include not less than 20m denied PVCs since 2019 and 12m new registrants denied PVCs since 31st July 2022. The respected leaders of NED, NDI and IRI were further called upon to tie their engagements with Nigerias INEC especially funding supports and exchange programs to credible electoral process accountability.

Among the signatories to Our Joint-Letter to respected leaders of NED, NDI and IRI in USA who are also part of this statement are the leading USA Democracy Campaigner, John Gregg, a leading Swiss Rights and Democracy Campaigner, Bernhard Wanner, a Renowned Diplomat and Former Nigerian Envoy to South Africa, Ambassador Uche-Ajulu Okeke, Chairman of World Igbo Congress, USA, Prof Anthony Ejiofor, a Renowned Physicist and Board Chair of Ekwenche Research Institute, USA, Prof Justin Akujieze, a Renowned Prof of Criminology and Counter-Terrorism Expert, Prof Paul Obianaso, a University Don, Prof Jerry Chidozie Chukwuokolo, a Renowned Human Rights Campaigner and Former Government Commissioner in Ebonyi State, Chief Abia Onyeike, a leading Computer Security Engineer, Ikenweoke Nwandu, a leading Researcher/Investigator and Board Chair of Intersociety, Emeka Umeagbalasi, South-East Chair of the Civil Liberties Organization, Comrade Aloysius Emeka Attah, a frontline Legal Practitioner and Executive Director of Intl Human Rights and Equity Defense Foundation, Justus Uche Ijeoma Esquire, an iconic New Media Expert, Chief Ositadinma Agu and two Renowned Doctors of Law and respected Feminists, Dr. Adaora Nwamaka Iguh and Dr Mrs. Ngozi-Chuma Umeh, among others.

Contacts:

Phone/WhatsApp Nos.: +2348174090052, +2348035090548, +2348035372952



Email:

[email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] ,




The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) is leading the national response to an ongoing outbreak of cholera in affected states in Nigeria. A total of 2187 confirmed cases of cholera have been reported from 31 states and 233 deaths recorded from the 1st of January to the 25th of September 2022.

Following a recent increase in the number of cholera cases, the multi-sectoral National Cholera Technical Working Group (TWG) in collaboration with partners has been supporting affected states in risk communication, active case search, case management, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions. The NCDC-led multisectoral TWG includes representation from the Federal Ministries of Environment and Water Resources, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.

The outbreak has been exacerbated by limited access to clean water and sanitation facilities, open defecation, and poor hygiene practices. In response, NCDC and its partners have supported the affected states with commodities for case management and laboratory diagnosis, materials for risk communications, and response guidelines among other things. However, medical interventions alone are not sufficient to address the root causes -water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) - of cholera outbreaks.

Cholera is a waterborne disease, and the risk of transmission is higher in areas that lack adequate sanitation facilities and/or a regular supply of clean water. Unsafe practices such as improper disposal of refuse and open defecation endanger the safety of water used for drinking and personal use. These practices lead to the spread of water-borne diseases such as cholera. Without proper WaSH, Nigeria will continue to be at risk of cholera outbreaks along with the associated suffering and deaths.

The long-term solution for cholera control lies in access to safe drinking water, maintenance of proper sanitation (especially the discontinuation of open defecation) and the practice of hygiene. We continue to advocate to State Governments to prioritise action for solutions that ensure access to and use of safe water, basic sanitation, and proper hygiene practices in communities.

We also urge Nigerians to keep their environments clean, only drink or use water that is boiled and stored safely, ensure food is cooked and stored in a clean and safe environment, avoid open defecation, and wash their hands regularly with soap and running water.

Cholera is preventable and treatable; however, it can be deadly when infected people do not access care immediately. Nigerians are advised to visit a health facility immediately if they have sudden onset of profuse watery diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, and weakness.

As the NCDC continues to work with partners to lead the health-sector response to cholera outbreaks, we call for an urgent improvement in access to clean water, proper sanitation, and hygiene.

About Cholera

Cholera is a water-borne disease characterised by the sudden onset of profuse watery diarrhoea, which can lead to sudden death because of the rapid onset of dehydration, if not managed on time. Other symptoms include nausea, vomiting, and weakness. Most infected people may only show mild symptoms or have no symptoms at all. The time between infection and the appearance of symptoms of the disease is 2 hours to 5 days. The disease is easily treatable if detected early. Most infected people can be treated successfully through prompt administration of oral rehydration solution (ORS), to replace lost fluids and electrolytes. The ORS solution is a powder that can be reconstituted in boiled or bottled water. Without rehydration, approximately half the people with cholera die. With treatment, the number of fatalities drops to less than 1 per cent. Severely dehydrated people may also need intravenous fluids.

People most at risk are:

People of all ages living in places with limited access to clean water.

People living in areas with poor sanitation.

People who consume potentially contaminated food or fruits without cooking properly or washing them with clean water.

People who do not perform hand hygiene at appropriate times.

Relatives who care for sick people with cholera at home.

Healthcare workers including doctors, nurses, and other health workers provide direct patient care in the absence of standard precautions.

To reduce the risk of cholera, the NCDC offers the following advice:

Ensure that water is boiled and stored in a clean and covered container before consuming.

Practice hand personal hygiene by washing your hands frequently with soap under clean running water. Use alcohol-based hand sanitiser if soap and clean water are not available.

Ensure that food is well cooked before consumption. Only consume raw food such as fruits and vegetables, after washing thoroughly with safe water.

Avoid open defecation, indiscriminate refuse dumping and ensure proper disposal of waste and frequent clearing of sewage.

If you experience sudden watery diarrhoea, please do not self-medicate, visit a healthcare facility immediately and take all sick persons with the signs or symptoms above to a healthcare facility immediately.

Healthcare workers are advised to practice standard precautions at all times i.e., wearing gloves while handling patients or providing care to an ill patient/relative.

About NCDC

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) is the countrys national public health institute, with the mandate to lead the preparedness, detection, and response to public health emergencies. The Bill for an Act to establish NCDC was signed into law in November 2018, by President Muhammadu Buhari. The mission of the NCDC is To protect the health of Nigerians through evidence-based prevention, integrated disease surveillance and response, using a One Health approach, guided by research and led by a skilled workforce.

Contact

NCDC Toll-free Number: 6232 | SMS: 08099555577 | WhatsApp: 07087110839Twitter: @NCDCGov | Facebook: @NCDCgov | Instagram: @NCDCgov | NCDC Media Releases

Signed:

Dr Ifedayo Adetifa

Director General

Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.


Lusaka, October 13, 2022Zimbabwean authorities and ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) should investigate the assaults and harassment of journalists covering events of public interest in the past week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.

The increasing cases of violence against journalists in Zimbabwe is becoming a serious source of concern and must be strongly condemned, said Angela Quintal, CPJs Africa program coordinator, in New York. Press freedom violations and the rising impunity for crimes against journalists should not be tolerated as the country prepares for a general election in 2023.

Between Thursday, October 6, and Monday, October 10, five journalists were assaulted, briefly detained, and prevented from covering events by police, ZANU-PF activists, and suspected government agents from the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO):

On Thursday, October 6, in Mbare, a suburb south of the capital Harare, police assaulted NewsDay reporter Moreblessings Nyoni after he was found taking pictures of Harare City Council employees demolishing vending stalls and residential structures, the journalist and news reports said. According to the journalist, who communicated with CPJ via messaging app, police asked for his press card before assaulting him using batons, leaving him with a swollen arm and painful buttocks. I showed them my press card, but they said, Its fake. You are a sellout, the journalist said.

On Saturday, October 8, in Harares Kuwadzana neighborhood, ZANU-PF members and people believed to be members of the CIO assaulted Voice of America correspondent Godwin Mangudya and forced him to delete footage captured at the ruling partys central committee elections, according to the journalist who spoke to CPJ via messaging app, news reports, and the Zimbabwean chapter of the regional press freedom group Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA). Mangudya was held for over an hour and his personal and work-related data was wiped from his devices before they were returned, the journalist and MISA statement said.

On Sunday, October 9, around 1 p.m. in Masvingo, about 183 miles (294 kilometers) south of capital Harare, ZANU-PF security officers barred NewsDay journalist Desmond Chingarande from covering the central committee elections, which were held at Masvingo Teachers College, according to the journalist, a news report and MISAs Zimbabwean chapter. Chingarande told CPJ via messaging app he was informed that NewsDay reporters were not being allowed in. Other journalists from state broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation were granted access to the event, he added.

On Monday, October 10, in Mbare, police assaulted Dunmore Mundai and Gadaffi Wells, journalists from Alpha Media Holdings HStv, according to the journalists who spoke to CPJ via messaging app, news reports, a MISA statement, and the International Federation of Journalists. The two were in the area filming a documentary when they captured an exchange between police and vendors from ruling ZANU-PF and opposition Citizens Coalition for Change over vendors market stands, the journalists and MISA statement said. Mundai and Wells were only released after identifying themselves as journalists despite having news cameras, the journalists said.

CPJ did not get any response from phone calls and repeated queries sent via messaging app to ZANU-PF information director Tafadzwa Mugwadi and police spokesperson Paul Nyathi.
The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide and indeed all the men and women of goodwill received the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the Leader of the Independent Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) by the Appeal Court with great excitement, jubilation and consummate relief. In several drinking parlours, across the country, people of various categories were seen, popping champagne, clinking glasses and dancing, signaling the end of an era in the history of the Igbo and Nigeria.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, on Thursday, October 13, 2022 quashed the terrorism charge the Federal Government had preferred against the detained leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. It discharged and acquitted him of the seven-count charge pending against him before the Federal High Court in Abuja. In a land mark judgement, the appellate court led by Justice Jummai Hanatu, stated that the Federal Government flagrantly violated the law, when it forcefully rendered Kanu from Kenya to the country for the continuation of his trial; and that such extra-ordinary rendition, without adherence to due process of the law, was a gross violation of all international conventions, protocols and guidelines that Nigeria is signatory to, as well as a breach of the Appellants fundamental human rights.

The world have watched with keen interest the trial of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and it is therefore self-evident that the judgment is a major boost to the image of Nigeria among the comity of nations. This is a plus to the Nigerian democracy and a sign that brighter days lie ahead. What occurred today is a sign of bright light at the end of the tunnel.

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide led by Ambassador Professor George Obiozor, CON has maintained that Nnamdi Kanu is a phenomenon that expresses the injustice, orchestrated alienation and inequity against the Igbo. On the other hand, all the oppressed groups in Nigeria are symbolized in Nnamdi Kanu. Nnamdi Kanu therefore, symbolizes the Igbo collective-unconscious. Obiozor has repeatedly reminded the federal government that the incarceration of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is an ill wind that blows no body any good. The fate of Nnamdi Kanu had caused tremendous apprehensions including the Monday Sit at Home, its enforcements by the unknown gun men, the roadblocks on the major roads in all parts of Igbo land and ultimately the monumental loss of goods, especially in the South East of Nigeria. This explains why the landmark judgement by the appeal court justices has reverberated across the country and beyond with jubilation galore.

Barrack Obama, the former President of the USA had lamented that the bane of Nigeria and other Third World countries is the lack of strong institutions. He bemoaned the manipulation of the State institutions such as the judiciary, Electoral Management Bodies, etc. In an ideal democracy, structures, such as the Electoral Management Body (EMB), in our case the INEC, should stand above the government. In our bizarre democracy, there is no distinction between the EMB and the government because the members of INEC are recruited by the same government. At any rate, this day in history will always be remembered with immense passion.

Ohanaeze Ndigbo salutes the courage and uprightness of the Court of Appeal justices for this landmark judgement. We want to use this opportunity to commend the indefatigability, steadfastness and commitment of all the legal luminaries that sacrificed their intellect and resources in defence of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and in the pursuit of justice. There are several courageous Nigerians, the social prophets and cosmic agents who spoke out against the incarceration of Kanu. The fourth estate of the realm and the civil society have shown tremendous support throughout the struggle. The Diaspora Igbo whose spirit remained indomitable. We salute their courage and solidarity. We are certain that whatever Nnamdi Kanu may have lost in persecution will be maximized by the eternal rewards in heroism.

Our joy knows no bounds. This is because the South East of Nigeria used to be the most peaceful geopolitical zone in the country. But, since April 2021 when the Owerri Correctional Centre was overwhelmed by unknown gun men and over 1800 prison inmates discharged, the South East has not known peace. Today, it is Eureka! A glorious day; a day of peace re-found; a day of peace profound; a day of rebirth and indeed a day that injects grassroots impetus and momentum to the Igbo renaissance. Above all, it is a remarkable day that clears the coast for the irreversible contagious Nigerian movement for 2023. We are happy that today, history has vindicated the just.

Dr. Chiedozie Alex Ogbonnia, National Publicity Secretary, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide

Dr. Chiedozie Alex Ogbonnia is the National Publicity Secretary, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide
Chinese state media signals no end to zero-COVID curbs

BEIJING: Chinas state media yesterday (Oct 12) signalled no let-up in its strict zero-COVID policy, publishing an editorial - the fourth this week ahead of the Communist Party Congress - vowing to never lie flat on virus controls.

COVID-19Chinese

By AFP

Thursday 13 October 2022, 09:00AM

Lockdowns and restrictions in major cities like Shanghai continue as China persists with its zero-COVID policy. Photo: AFP

The messaging dashes widespread hopes from the Chinese public and overseas observers that the strategy might be relaxed after the congress, a twice-a-decade political reshuffle which begins Sunday and will set the blueprint for the countrys development.

China is the last major economy still trying to stamp out COVID-19 within its borders, through a series of harsh measures involving snap lockdowns, mass testing and travel restrictions.

These have kept case numbers low, but left the countrys economy battered - causing knock-on effects globally - and reinforced its isolation from the world.

Yesterday, Communist Party flagship mouthpiece the Peoples Daily newspaper claimed that lying flat has no way out, referencing a slang term for relaxation popular among Chinese youth.

It argued loosening restrictions would overwhelm Chinas medical system and lead to further mutations of the virus.

China is currently facing its worst nationwide surge in cases since early September.

The country reported its first incidence of the BF.7 Omicron subvariant in late September, which has caused a spiralling outbreak in the northern region of Inner Mongolia with over 4,000 infections as of yesterday.

BF.7 was also detected in Shenzhen, a major manufacturing and tech hub in the southern province of Guangdong, earlier this week.

The vaccination rate has not yet formed a sufficient barrier against severe illness and death, the editorial wrote.

It is precisely because of our insistence on dynamic zero-COVID that we have protected peoples lives and health to the greatest extent possible.

Only 86% of elderly Chinese have received two doses of the COVID vaccine, according to the Peoples Daily, while the more effective foreign mRNA vaccines are not approved in China.

The Peoples Daily piece follows on from two successive editorials this week on the same theme, portraying COVID control as an existential struggle for China that pits its political system against the West.

The struggle against the epidemic is a trial of material strength as well as a battle of spirits, it said in a Tuesday editorial.

The article was trending on social media platform Weibo on Tuesday, but online comment sections were disabled.

State news agency Xinhua also ran an editorial Tuesday vowing never to lie flat.

In the lead-up to the congress opening in Beijing on Sunday, officials have rushed to squash outbreaks across the country, imposing new lockdowns and restrictions in major cities like Shanghai.

President Xi Jinping, who has staked his political legitimacy on the zero-COVID policy, is expected to secure a norm-breaking third term at the event.
Iceland ponders Phuket consulate

PHUKET: Thorir Ibsen, the Iceland Ambassador assigned to the Embassy of Iceland in Beijing, was in Phuket yesterday (Oct 12) to discuss opening a consulate on the island, according to Phuket officials.

politicstourismeconomics

By The Phuket News

Thursday 13 October 2022, 10:58AM

Mr Ibsen met with Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew at the Phuket Governors Lounge at Provincial Hall, said a report of the meeting by the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department (PR Phuket).

The meeting was for two to discuss tourism and the opening of the consulate in Phuket, said the report.

Joining the meeting were Kanyarat Kalpyawarat, whose position was undisclosed, and Pornphan Sittichaiwijit, described as the Honorary Consul of Norway in Phuket Province.

The Ambassador of Iceland asked about measures to take care of Icelandic tourists visiting Phuket, said the report.

The Governor of Phuket explained the measures to take care of the safety of tourists in Phuket, the report continued.

The Governor also asked for support in Thailands bid for Phuket to host the Specialized Expo 2028, the report added.

The report offered no further details of the meeting.

The meeting yesterday marked a continuation of developing diplomatic talks between Iceland and Thailand.

Ambassador of Thailand to Norway Vimolbajra Ruksakiati met with Hogni S. Kristjansson, Ambassador of Iceland to Norway, in Oslo last Thursday (Oct 6).

Both sides exchanged views on ways to promote bilateral relations between Thailand and Iceland, especially in the field of tourism, reported Thailands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).

Before the COVID-19 situation, many Thais would like to visit Iceland and Thailand was among the popular destinations for Icelandic tourists, the MFA noted.

Therefore, both sides hope that the lifting of travel measures would mark the revival of exchange of tourists between the two countries.

Both sides also agreed that the ongoing Thai-EFTA FTA negotiations will contribute to expanding trade volume between Thailand and the members of European Free Trade Association (EFTA), including Iceland, the MFA added.

The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) comprises Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

At that meeting in Oslo, Ambassador Vimolbajra informed Ambassador Kristjansson of Thailands bid to host EXPO 2028  Phuket, and also sought Icelands support in the bid.

The Thai Embassy in Oslo looks forward to further enhancing our close cooperation between our two Embassies for the continued close and friendly relations between Thailand and Iceland, the MFA said in its report.

In Thailand, Iceland has two Honorary Consuls present, Chamnarn Marksean (Mark) Viravan and Poul Weber, both based in Bangkok. (See contact details here.)
Mum sorry over killer sons actions

BANGKOK: The mother of Panya Khamrab, the former police officer who carried out the nursery massacre in Nong Bua Lam Phu, says she deeply regrets what her son did.

disastersdeathhomicidemurder

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 13 October 2022, 01:08PM

A photo of one of the child victims is placed on his coffin before the cremation ceremony. Picture: Lillian Suwanrumpha / AFP

The coffins of the victims of the massacre are set on fire during a cremation ceremony in Na Klang in northeastern Nong Bua Lam Phu province. Picture: Lillian Suwanrumpha / AFP

The attack in northeastern Thailand is the deadliest mass shooting ever recorded in the country. Photo: AFP

She has offered apologies to the victims families and plans to visit each family to say sorry in person soon, reports the Bangkok Post.

Her regret was conveyed by Dr Amporn Benjaponpitak, Director-General of the Mental Health Department, who said the killers mother wanted to contact the families, so she recorded a video message.

Panyas mother wanted to send her apologies and express her regret at not being able to attend the royally-sponsored cremations, said Dr Amporn.

She also said his mother had denied receiving any threats or being forced to leave her home in tambon Uthai Sawan by local people who may have blamed her for what happened, as claimed by some media outlets.

In her video message, which she was happy to have published, she said she could not attend the funeral rite because she was so upset.

I would like to apologise to everyone for my sons actions. I am truly and deeply sorry. Ill pay a visit and offer my apologies to every family when I am less distressed. I am very sorry, she said. She is currently staying in Udon Thani with another son.

Meanwhile, Dr Amporn said the department has categorised the number of post-traumatic stress disorder cases stemming from the massacre into three groups  red, yellow and green.

The number of most affected in the red group has risen from 170 to 260 people and includes witnesses, injured people and relatives, she said.

Medical staff have evaluated the victims mental state. They have also evaluated stress levels in the yellow group which comprises rescue volunteers, teachers of two nearby schools and local administrative officials indirectly affected by the incident, she said.

Two department deputy director-generals, Dr Thiti Sawangtham and Dr Jumpot Promsida, felt the local funeral rites and religious ceremonies played a great part in the healing process for those affected.

They said shared grief and empathy created emotional support for everyone involved in the tragic incident. The Mental Health Department has asked people and the press to respect the privacy of survivors.

After the cremation on Tuesday, families collected the ashes at Wat Rat Samakkhi, Wat Sri Uthai and Wat Thep Mongkhon Phichai.
Phuket honours King Bhumibol

PHUKET: Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew led a mass ceremony this morning to commemorate the passing of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, now called King Bhumibol The Great, who passed away on this day six years ago.

culture

By The Phuket News

Thursday 13 October 2022, 09:50AM

King Bhumibol, also referred to as Rama IX, passed away at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok on Oct 13, 2016. He was 89.

The official events began at Phuket Provincial Hall at 7am with a candle lighting ceremony and a mass blessing, followed by merit-making by offering alms to 89 monks at the main courtyard at the Phuket Provincial Administration Center, where Phuket Provincial Hall is located.

Joining the activities were hundreds of officials, including heads of government offices on the island, along with students, members of community organisations and members of the public.

A candle-lighting ceremony and a wreath laying ceremony will be held at the Phuket Auditorium building at the administraion center tonight, starting at 7pm

Today is a public holiday in Thailand and will see many activities throughout the country held to honour the King.

Although the sale of alcohol is not prohibited by law today, police traditionally encourage people to refrain from drinking alcohol on the day as a sign of respect and in honour of King Bhumibol.
Thailand abstains in UN vote against Putin land grab

NEW YORK: Thailand has abstained in a United Nations vote condemning the Russian annexation of four regions of Ukraine, saying the increased politicisation of international principles has become counterproductive to efforts to find peace.

RussianUkrainepolitics

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 13 October 2022, 05:29PM

Photo: AFP

The resolution yesterday (Oct 12) in the UN General Assembly drew 143 votes in favour and five against - by Russia, Syria, Belarus, North Korea and Nicaragua - while 35 countries abstained. The latter also included China, India, South Africa and Pakistan despite a major US diplomatic effort to seek clearer condemnation of Moscow.

US President Joe Biden said the vote sent a clear message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who annexed four Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine last month after public referenda dismissed by most other countries as fraudulent, reports the Bangkok Post.

The resolution called on all states, the UN and international organisations not to recognise any of Russias annexation claims and demanded the immediate reversal of its annexation declaration.

On Monday, the UN rejected Russian efforts hold a secret ballot on the matter. A majority of member countries elected to hold the vote in public.

The vote showed Russia that it cannot erase a sovereign state from the map, Mr Biden said in a White House statement.

By attacking the core tenets of the UN Charter, Russia is tearing at the very foundations of international peace and security, the statement said. The stakes of this conflict are clear to all - and the world has sent a clear message in response.

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, had urged all nations to send a message that the world will not tolerate seizing a neighbours land by force.

Today it is Russia invading Ukraine. But tomorrow it could be another nation whose territory is violated. It could be you. You could be next. What would you expect from this chamber? she said.

The vote was largely the same - with a net two more votes against Russia - as when the General Assembly in March condemned the initial invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement elaborating on its decision to abstain, the Permanent Mission of Thailand to the UN said: It has long been Thailands long-standing and consistent policy to be opposed to the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity of any state, and to the unprovoked acquisition of the territory of another state by force.

However, Thailand chose to abstain from the vote on the resolution because it takes place during an extremely volatile and emotionally charged atmosphere, and thus marginalises the chance for crisis diplomacy to bring about a practical and negotiated resolution to the conflict that may push the world to the brink of nuclear war and global economic collapse.

We are genuinely concerned about the increased politicisation of international principles that has become counterproductive as the means and guidance to end the war. Condemnation provokes intransigence and therefore greatly reduces the chance for constructive engagement.

The statement is consistent with the view expressed earlier this year by Pornpimol Kanchanalak, a special envoy to Myanmar appointed by Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai. The international community, she said, was getting stuck in cancel rhetoric when it came to dealing with the military junta in Myanmar.

Condemnations, sanctions... have reached diminishing returns, she told a conference in Singapore in June.

Thailand also abstained in a vote to suspend Russia from UN Human Rights Council in April this year, citing the need for inclusivity. But it did vote to condemn Russias aggression in Ukraine in March.

South Africas UN envoy, Mathu Joyini, said in a statement: We have abstained on the resolution because we believe that the objective of this assembly in keeping with its mandate must always be to contribute to a constructive outcome conducive to the creation of sustainable peace in Ukraine.

Indias envoy, Ruchira Kamboj, said that the entire Global South has suffered a substantial collateral damage from the war and that pressing issues were not addressed in the resolution.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. reArmenia and The Future Armenian foundation signed a memorandum of cooperation on October 13.

According to the memorandum, the sides plan to come up with joint projects and initiatives, contribute to their effective implementation, organize joint events, conduct safe experience exchange and create joint working groups to discuss and get solutions to issues of mutual interest.

We share the same goals. We want to unite Armenians within the frames of productive cooperation. The community that gathered both around the Future Armenian and us must solve serious issues with its knowledge, experience and finances and achieve measurable results. The signing of the Memorandum is just the first step. I hope we will work in different directions, will come up with numerous projects and will move on with discussions and concepts, reArmenia Director Gevorg Poghosyan said.

He said that now Armenia is in a hybrid war. According to him, there is a heavy battle now at least in five directions. The one is the diplomatic corps, the next is economic, then cultural, then media war and hot war on the ground. The defeat in one of these directions will directly affect the other. And by understanding this, we must direct all our efforts for declaring victories in all fields, he said.

The Future Armenian foundations cooperation and program manager Karen Daduryan highlighted the signing of the memorandum and stated that they will try to do everything possible for the signing of the document to be directed to concrete projects. Our foundation has 19 pan-Armenian goals, the implementation of which is also supported by the people. Considering that goals, concrete programs will be developed. This could happen through a convention which will be organized in March, he said.

Daduryan informed that the convention should have taken place earlier, but it was postponed due to the recent tense situation in Armenia. We are trying to assist the communities that need the most help, in other words, preparedness, crisis management. There will be collection of resources, partners, creation of a network thanks to which the initiatives will be implemented, Karen Daduryan said.

reArmenia and The Future Armenian aim at contributing to Armenias development and prosperity through the effective cooperation of all Armenians.
Thalang police continue drug clampdown

PHUKET: Authorities continued their crackdown on illegal drugs after arresting a man on Tuesday (Oct 11) in the Srisoonthorn area of Thalang.

drugspolice

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Thursday 13 October 2022, 04:06PM

The man, Mr Wuttikrai (family name withheld), was apprehended at a property in Moo 3 of Srisoonthorn around 4:20pm and found to be in possession of 2,662 methamphetamine tablets (ya bah) and 117.05 grams of crystal meth (ya ice).

Police also discovered in his possession digital scales, drug related paraphernalia and a motorcycle, all of which they confiscated.

Wuttikrai was taken to Thalang police station and charged with possession of a category 1 illegal drug with intent to sell and the illegal use of a category 1 drug.

The raid was carried out by Bancha Thanu-in, Thalang District Chief; Siripong Leeprasit, Deputy District Chief of the Administrative Administration Group; Wisut Romin, Deputy District Chief of Security together with members of the Territorial Defense Volunteer Division under the Thalang 3rd Battalion.

The arrest came a day before Thalang Police demonstrated their zero tolerance approach to illegal drug use or provision when they arrested three men, two of whom were found carrying just one methamphetamine tablet (ya bah) each.

The zero tolerance order was made by Thalang Police Chief Pol Col Pisit Chuenphet to arrest all people found with drugs, no matter how much they were found to be involved with.

It comes after the tragic shooting and stabbing rampage last Thursday (Oct 6) at a nursery in the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lam Phu where 36 people were killed, including 24 children.

The assailant was an ex-policeman dismissed from the force after being found in possession of illegal drugs although reports state he was not under the influence of drugs when the attack happened.

The incident has prompted Thailands Interior Ministry to confirm it will toughen its gun possession and drug laws.
THURSDAY, Oct. 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly one of every 20 people who had COVID still haven't recovered completely from their initial infection six to 18 months later, a new study shows, while another 42% say they have only recovered partially from their bout with the virus.

While most people recover quickly and completely after infection with COVID-19, some people develop a wide variety of long-term problems. Therefore, understanding long COVID is essential to inform health and social care support, said study author Jill Pell, a professor of public health at the University of Glasgow.

The study was launched in May 2021 to understand the long-term impact of COVID 19 infection by comparing it with the health and well-being of people who had not been infected.

Exactly what symptoms people with long COVID were experiencing were varied, but the condition had an impact on all aspects of daily life and reduced peoples overall quality of life. Most commonly reported symptoms were breathlessness, chest pain, palpitations and brain fog.

People who were hospitalized were more likely to have long COVID, as were older individuals, women, those from deprived communities and people with preexisting physical or mental health problems.

Our study is important because it adds to our understanding of long COVID in the general population, not just in those people who need to be admitted to [the] hospital with COVID-19, Pell said in a university news release. By comparing symptoms with those uninfected, we were able to distinguish between health problems that are due to COVID-19 and health problems that would have happened anyway.

To study the issue, researchers analyzed over 33,000 laboratory-confirmed COVID cases and matched those with almost 63,000 never-infected people from the general population. Both groups were followed via questionnaires at 6, 12 and 18 months. About 13% of people in the study reported improvement over time, but 11% reported some deterioration.

Those who had asymptomatic infections and those who had been vaccinated before their infection were fully or partially protected from long COVID, the researchers noted.

This study provides novel and important evidence on long COVID in Scotland. We know that being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can reduce the likelihood of developing long-COVID and therefore we encourage those who are eligible for the COVID vaccine to take the opportunity to enhance their protection by getting vaccinated, said Dr. Andrew McAuley, consultant healthcare scientist at Public Health Scotland.

One public health expert applauded the study.

The beauty of this study is they have a control group, and they can isolate the proportion of symptomatology that is attributable to COVID infection, Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University in St. Louis, told the New York Times.

It also tracks with the broader idea that long COVID is truly a multisystem disorder, Al-Aly added, with effects seen not only in the brain, not only in the heart -- its all of the above.

Collaborators in the Scottish study were Public Health Scotland, the NHS in Scotland and the Universities of Aberdeen and Edinburgh. The findings were published Oct. 12 in Nature Communications.

More information

The U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on long COVID.

SOURCE: University of Glasgow, news release, Oct. 12, 2022; New York Times
This picture was taken last winter at Cabot Square  on the border of Westmount  as several people helped a homeless man who had fallen off the bench he was sleeping on.
Democratic Attorney General Maura Healey and pro-Trump Republican Geoff Diehl clashed on everything from energy and education to abortion and whether those in the country illegally should get drivers license in Massachusetts during their first debate for governor Wednesday
The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, at the meeting with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, emphasized that the Russian Federation always keeps issues related to the normalization of the situation in the region in focus, ARMENPRESS was informed from the official website of the Russian President.

"Naturally, we always keep issues related to the normalization of the situation in the region in focus. I hope that we will use this opportunity to discuss all these issues again," said the Russian President.

Putin and Aliyev met in Kazakhstan within the framework of the conference on strengthening cooperation and trust measures in Asia.
Have an interesting bit of news youd like to see mentioned in the Along the Way column? Email it to Natasha Connolly at news@thesunchronicle.com .
FILE - A migrant family from Venezuela walks to a Border Patrol transport vehicle after they and other migrants crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and turned themselves in June 16, 2021, in Del Rio, Texas. The Biden administration has agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted after Russias invasion, while Mexico has agreed to accept some Venezuelans who are expelled from the United States, the two nations said Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The statement issued by the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan that allegedly on October 13, between 15:15 and 15:50, the units of the Armenian Armed Forces opened fire in the direction of the Azerbaijani positions located in the southeastern part of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, is misinformation", ARMENPRESS was informed from the Defense Ministry of Armenia.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The co-rapporteurs on the PACE on Armenia issued a statement calling on Azerbaijan to immediately withdraw its forces from the occupied territories of Armenia and release all prisoners of war.

ARMENPRESS reports, Kimmo Kiljunen (Finland) and Boriana Aberg (Sweden) noted that they are worried about the numerous reports of war crimes or inhumane treatment by the armed forces of Azerbaijan.

They noticed that the military prosecutor's office of Azerbaijan decided to investigate the facts, expressing hope that these investigations will be public and transparent.

"While both sides accuse each other of resuming hostilities, Azerbaijani armed forces are occupying Armenian territory, violating Armenia's territorial integrity and Azerbaijan's obligation to settle conflicts peacefully under the Charter of the Council of Europe. Thus, we call on the authorities of Azerbaijan to immediately withdraw the troops from all parts of the territory of the Republic of Armenia and release the prisoners of war held by them," the co-rapporteurs emphasized.

They emphasized that only diplomatic measures will provide a fair and lasting solution to the conflict, which will be benefitial for the populations of both countries.
A technical group from the European Union will arrive in Armenia on October 13 to discuss the issues relating to the exact deployment location of the EU civilian mission along the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Paruyr Hovhannisyan told reporters at a briefing.

October 13, 2022, 14:37 EU technical group to arrive in Armenia to discuss deployment of civilian mission

STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 13, ARTSAKHPRESS-ARMENPRESS: When asked where the EU civilian mission will be deployed, the deputy FM said that these issues are being discussed.

Today a technical group from the EU will arrive, which will discuss these issues and all the criteria based on which the EU mission must be deployed, he said.

In response to the question that the CSTO has also expressed readiness to send observers, the deputy minister said: We are open to all proposals thanks to which our security will be strengthened, and we will avoid the situation we had in September.
Russian missiles pounded more than 40 Ukrainian cities and towns, officials said on Thursday, after a U.N. General Assembly resolution called Moscows annexation of Ukrainian territory illegal and Ukraines allies committed more military aid.

Russia repeated its position that the West, by helping Ukraine, indicated that they are a direct party to the conflict and warned the admission of Ukraine to NATO could trigger World War Three.

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three, deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Alexander Venediktov, told the state TASS news agency on Thursday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of the NATO military alliance at the end of September, after Russian President Vladimir Putin held a ceremony in Moscow to proclaim four partially occupied regions as annexed Russian land.

In the past 24 hours Russian missiles hit more than 40 settlements, while Ukraines air force carried out 32 strikes on 25 Russian targets, Ukraines Armed Forces General Staff said.

Mayor of the port city of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Senkevich, said in a social media post that the southern city was massively shelled.

A five-storey residential building was hit, the two upper floors were completely destroyed, the rest  under rubble. Rescuers are working on the site, he said.

A shipbuilding centre and a port on the Southern Bug river off the Black Sea, Mykolaiv has suffered heavy Russian bombardments throughout the war.

Russia also targeted a settlement in the region of Ukraines capital Kyiv using explosive drones early on Thursday, the regions administration said on the Telegram messaging app.

Governor of the Kyiv region, Oleksiy Kuleba, said based on preliminary information the strikes were caused by Iranian-made loitering munitions. These are often known as kamikaze drones.

Critical infrastructure facilities were hit by the drones, said Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Zelenskiys office.

Missiles struck more than 30 multi-storey and private houses, gas pipelines and power lines in the city of Nikopol in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and more than 2,000 families were left without electricity, Dnipropetrovsk Governor Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on Telegram.

Reuters was not able to immediately verify the report.

NATOs secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, said Russias missile attacks were a sign of weakness. Russia is actually losing on the battlefield, Stoltenberg said.

As his forces have lost ground since September, Putin has intensified the conflict, ordering the call-up of hundreds of thousands of reservists, proclaiming the annexation of occupied Ukrainian territory and repeatedly threatening to use nuclear weapons to protect Russia.

Putin has threatened to use nuclear weapons to protect Russian soil, which he says includes the four regions he declared annexed last month.

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he doubted Putin would resort to nuclear weapons. A senior NATO official said a Russian nuclear strike would almost certainly trigger a physical response from Ukraines allies and potentially NATO.

UN CONDEMNATION OF RUSSIA

In New York, three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly  143 countries  voted on Wednesday in favour of a resolution condemning Russias attempted illegal annexation of the four partially occupied regions.

Only four countries joined Russia in voting against the resolution  Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote, including Russias strategic partner China, while the rest did not vote.

Moscow in September proclaimed its annexation of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine  Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia  after staging what it called referendums.

Zelenskiy said on Twitter he was grateful to 143 states that supported historic #UNGA resolution (Russias) attempt at annexation is worthless.

In Brussels, more than 50 Western countries met to pledge more military aid to Ukraine, especially air defence weapons, on the heels of heavy retaliatory strikes this week ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to an explosion on a bridge in Crimea.

Pledges from allies included an announcement by France that it would deliver radar and air defence systems to Ukraine in the coming weeks. Britain pledged air defence missiles, and Canada said it would provide artillery rounds among other supplies.

At the meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Brussels, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Russias latest attacks laid bare its malice and cruelty since invading Ukraine on Feb. 24. At least 26 people have been killed since Monday in Russian missile attacks across Ukraine.

Ukraine had shifted momentum since September with extraordinary gains, but would need more help, he said.  Were going to do everything we can to make sure that they have whats required to be effective, Austin told reporters.

Since Mondays attacks, Germany has sent the first of four IRIS-T SLM air defence systems, while Washington said it would speed up delivery of a promised NASAMS air defence system.

The more assistance Ukraine gets now, the sooner well come to an end to the Russian war, Zelenskiy said by video to a forum during International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Washington.

Russias U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the General Assembly ahead of the vote that the resolution was politicised and openly provocative, adding that it could destroy efforts to reach a diplomatic solution.

SOURCE: REUTERS
Ukraines allies on Wednesday announced delivery of new air defences and committed more military aid to Kyiv after intense Russian missile strikes and in anticipation of fighting through a harsh winter.

More than 50 Western countries met in Brussels on the heels of heavy retaliatory strikes on Ukraine this week ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to an explosion on a bridge in Crimea.

Pledges from allies included an announcement by France that it would deliver radar and air defence systems to Ukraine in the coming weeks. Canada said it would provide artillery rounds and winter clothing among other supplies.

At the meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Brussels, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Russias latest attacks had laid bare its malice and cruelty since invading Ukraine on Feb. 24. At least 26 people have been killed since Monday in Russian missile attacks across Ukraine.

Ukraine had shifted momentum since September with extraordinary gains, but would need more help, he said.

I expect that Ukraine will continue to do everything it can throughout the winter, to regain its territory and to be effective on the battlefield, Austin told reporters.

And were going to do everything we can to make sure that they have whats required to be effective.

A senior U.S. defence official said there was an outpouring of support to help Ukraine get through the winter fighting months.

Since Mondays attacks, Germany has sent the first of four planned IRIS-T SLM air defence systems, while Washington said it would speed up delivery of a promised NASAMS air defence system.

These victories belong to Ukraines brave soldiers. But the Contact Groups security assistance, training, and sustainment efforts have been vital, Austin said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the increased aid would strengthen the counteroffensive.

The more assistance Ukraine gets now, the sooner well come to an end to the Russian war, Zelenskiy said by video to a forum during International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Washington.

UKRAINE OUTLINES ECONOMIC AID NEEDS

Zelenskiy said Ukraine needed about $55 billion in financial support next year  $38 billion to close the budget deficit and $17 billion to rebuild critical infrastructure such as schools and housing.

Air raid sirens sounded across parts of Ukraine for a third day on Wednesday. There were reports of some shelling, but no sign of the countrywide strikes of the previous two days.

Transatlantic alliance NATOs secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, said Russias missile attacks were a sign of weakness. Russia is actually losing on the battlefield, Stoltenberg said.

European Union energy ministers were meeting in Prague to strategise over an energy crisis caused by the war.

Global attention has been focused on the security of Russian energy pipelines to Europe since the main undersea gas pipelines were damaged by suspected sabotage last month.

Western countries have not said whom they blame for explosions that blew holes in the two Nord Stream 1 pipelines and one of two pipes that make up the new Nord Stream 2 project, but have implied they believe it was Russia.

Putin said on Wednesday gas could now be delivered through the remaining undamaged Nord Stream 2 pipe, but it was up to Europe to allow it. The new pipeline, completed but never opened, has been suspended by Germany since the invasion.

HURRICANE OF VIOLENCE

As his forces have lost ground on the battlefield since September, Putin has intensified the conflict, ordering the call-up of hundreds of thousands of reservists, proclaiming the annexation of occupied Ukrainian territory and repeatedly threatening to use nuclear weapons to protect Russia.

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he doubted Putin would resort to that. Putin is a rational actor who has miscalculated significantly, he told CNN, saying he believed the Russian leader had expected his invading troops to be welcomed.

A senior NATO official said a Russian nuclear strike would change the course of the conflict and almost certainly trigger a physical response from Ukraines allies  and potentially from NATO itself.

In the capital Kyiv, residents cleaned up after this weeks strikes.

It is not that they are fighting the military, they are just driven by the desire to destroy, destroy, destroy us, said Yulia Datsenko, a 38-year-old paramedic, as she surveyed damage to her apartment.

Pope Francis denounced the bombings, part of what he called a hurricane of violence.

On the battlefield, the Ukrainian governor of partially occupied Donetsk province said seven people were killed in Russian shelling of a market in the frontline town of Avdiivka.

Ukraines military said its forces consolidated control of several settlements recaptured from Russian troops on the west bank of the Dnipro River, near the Russian-occupied town of Beryslav in the Kherson region.

Reuters was not able to verify battlefield reports.

SOURCE: REUTERS
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A weekly eastern Kentucky newspaper is trying to do its part to keep the upcoming general election legal and fair
Vladimir Putin proposed to Recep Tayyip Erdogan to create a gas hub in Turkey.

October 13, 2022, 16:58 Putin tells Erdogan about creating gas hub in Turkey

STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 13, ARTSAKHPRESS: "After consultations with your energy minister and the head of Botas, we agreed with Gazprom, and I said this publicly: if there is interest from Turkey and our possible buyers from other countries, we could consider building another gas pipeline system and creating a gas hub in Turkey for sales to other countries, to third countries. First of all European countries, of course," said Russian president during a meeting with his colleague on the margins of the sixth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, news.am informs, citing RIA Novosti.

The day before, in his speech at the forum Russian Energy Week, the head of state noted that Moscow could move gas transit from the Nord Stream to the Turkish Stream. According to him, this decision is justified in terms of economic benefits, in addition, this route is safer.

"We could regulate the prices at a normal, market level, without any political coloring," Putin said.

However, he called the current cost of this type of fuel exorbitant.

He also reminded about recent attempts of Ukrainian authorities to organize a terrorist attack on Turkish Stream: "As you heard, they also tried to blow it up, but thank God this did not happen, it is successfully operating".
An embattled local suburban enclave also suffers rising violence.

Here's the postscript . . .

"Officers responded just before 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and discovered 34-year-old Orson Roth III dead alongside a man who had been shot and was in serious condition.The second victim was transported to an area hospital.Police say witnesses reported hearing gunshots and seeing two men running from the area."

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . .

Grandview police investigating fatal shooting in O'Donnell Park KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Grandview Police Department announced Thursday it is investigating a fatal shooting in O'Donnell Park, located at 13500 Kurzweil Road. Officers responded just before 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and discovered 34-year-old Orson Roth III dead alongside a man who had been shot and was in serious condition.

Grandview police investigate deadly shooting at park GRANDVIEW, Mo. - Police are investigating a deadly shooting at a county park. Grandview officers responded to a report of gunfire at O'Donnell Park, southeast of Grandview's Amphitheater, around 5:20 p.m. Wednesday. Officers found the body of 34-year-old Orson Roth III. Police say he'd been shot and killed.

Grandview police find one man critically shot and another dead in O'Donnell Park On Thursday, Grandview police are investigating a double shooting that left one man dead the night before. On Wednesday, Oct. 12, at approximately 5:20 p.m., officers responded to a call of shots fired at Jackson County's O'Donnell Park.When they arrived, officers found 34-year-old Orson Roth III dead from a gunshot wound and another man who had been shot in critical condition.

Developing . . .
Sign of the times from the Sunflower State as diverse communities speak up and more schools switch up their branding . . .



Check-it . . .



"A Lawrence resident and member of the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas, told members of the Kansas State Board of Education on Tuesday perpetuation of offensive team names or mascots created a hostile educational environment in schools."

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
An after work errand for the civically responsible . . . AND/OR yet another way to "p0wnz" the libs or fight with relatives at Thanksgiving.



Here's the word . . .



On Wednesday, the Kansas City Public Library is hosting a voter education event. It's from 6-7:30 p.m. at the North East Branch.



An expert from the League of Women Voters will explain what is on the ballot.



Voters in Kansas have until Oct. 18 to register.



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
Three residential break and enters were reported in the citys East York district from Oct. 11 to Oct. 17, according to Toronto Police Service. Thats up from one reported during the previous week.
Attendees can register to win Alaska cruises, pan for gold, sample Alaska craft beers and more

SEATTLE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Holland America Line is bringing the Great Land to Phoenix, Arizona, with the all-day Alaska Cruise and Travel Show Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022, at the Hilton Scottsdale Resort and Villas. The free-to-attend, action-packed expo runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and invites locals who are dreaming about an Alaska cruise vacation to come learn, engage and see the best ways to experience this incredible destination with Holland America Line.

Holland America Line Standard Photo/Logo

Having celebrated its 75th Anniversary of Alaska exploration in 2022, Holland America Line is rolling out the red carpet with an immersive display of all-things Alaska for the event. Attendees will be able to meet the people who bring Alaska to life, make s'mores, take part in gold panning (and keep what they find!), try their hand at axe throwing, and enjoy live presentations and demonstrations.

"No one knows Alaska like Holland America Line, and our Alaska Cruise and Travel Show enables us to show off our decades of expertise through engaging and hands-on experiences," said Bill Fletcher, senior director, destination marketing, Holland America Line. "Alaska is an easy-access, bucket-list destination for residents of the Phoenix area and a great escape from the heat. By hosting this event we'll be able to reach people who are thinking about an Alaska cruise but want to learn more from our team and our partners."

Those who register and attend will have a chance to win one of seven Alaska cruises for two. Attendees who book a Holland America Line Alaska cruise or Cruisetour at the show will receive a special promotional offer, including up to $350 spending credit per stateroom.

Scheduled for the Alaska Cruise and Travel Show presented by Holland America Line:

Attendees can meet an Alaskan Lumberjack from the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show in Ketchikan, Alaska, who will demonstrate axe throwing, and attendees will have the opportunity to test their own skills.

Just like the prospectors of the Klondike Gold Rush of the 1800s attendees can pan for real gold and perhaps take home an authentic nugget.

Attendees will feel like they are at McKinley Chalet Resort's Denali Square as they roast marshmallows and make s'mores around a faux firepit.

Attendees will learn more about Holland America Line's enrichment and entertainment programming that brings Alaska on board through authentic experiences that focus on culture, cuisine and adventures ashore.

All who attend will enjoy live presentations from Alaska operators to see and hear about what they can experience in Alaska.

Story continues

Shore excursion operators  from the White Pass and Yukon Route Railway in Skagway to the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show in Ketchikan  and Holland America Line representatives will be on hand to share more about what to expect when traveling to Alaska with the only cruise line that ventures into the Yukon Territory (hint: it involves river rafting, zip-lining and going deep into the wilderness to spot grizzlies and caribou).

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For more information about the Alaska Travel Show presented by Holland America Line, visit the Alaska Cruise and Travel Show website, consult a travel advisor, call 1-877-SAIL HAL (877-724-5425) or visit hollandamerica.com . To register for the Alaska Travel Show, visit AlaskaTravelShow.com.

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Find Holland America Line on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the Holland America Blog. You can also access all social media outlets via the home page at hollandamerica.com.

About Holland America Line [a division of Carnival Corporation and plc (NYSE: CCL and CUK)]

Holland America Line has been exploring the world for 150 years with expertly crafted itineraries, extraordinary service and genuine connections to the destinations. Offering an ideal mid-sized ship experience, its fleet visits nearly 400 ports in 114 countries around the world and has shared the thrill of Alaska for 75 years  longer than any other cruise line. Holland America Line's 11 vessels feature a diverse range of enriching activities and amenities focused on destination immersion and personalized travel. The best live music at sea fills each evening at Music Walk, and dining venues feature exclusive selections from a Culinary Council of world-famous chefs.

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Westerdam in Glacier Bay, Alaska. (PRNewsfoto/Holland America Line)

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SOURCE Holland America Line
AUBURN  An audit of the Auburn Enlarged City School District's finances was largely positive, but the district was warned to reduce its unassigned fund balance to comply with state regulations.

During a meeting Tuesday, Gregg Evans, partner with the accounting firm The Bonadio Group, gave a presentation to the board of education on the audit of the district's financial statements as of June 30. A copy of the firm's audit report given to The Citizen did not note any material weaknesses in the district's financials.

Evans told the board their responsibility "is the numbers in these financial statements" while he said his responsibility is to give an opinion on those numbers.

"Happy to report it's an unmodified opinion, which means it's a clean opinion, the highest level of assurance that we can give. Had we come in and the records were not in good shape or they weren't able to provide supporting documentation for the numbers in those financial statements, we'd have a different opinion, so again, this is where we want to be," he said.

However, Evans later said it was found that Auburn's unassigned fund balance was about three times higher than the legal limit of 4% of unrestricted fund balance for districts, under the state's real property tax law.

"You had anticipated using $1.4 million of your fund balance for the year. That didn't happen. You actually ended up increasing that fund balance by $3.9 million. So what does that leave you with? You were able to increase your reserves and in your unassigned fund balance, which is truly, no strings attached, your savings account, you ended up with about 12% of next year's budget," Evans said. "I point that out because New York state says that number should be 4%, so my advice to you tonight is to make sure you come up with a plan to get that number down to 4%, or the board of New York state will likely be looking at that at some point."

He then talked about "what drives that."

"Over the last couple of years, we've certainly had a lot of swings in revenue, both state and federal, so budgeting becomes tough. The other piece of that is employee benefits, which, this year was a favorable balance of about $3 million, so again, a very tough number to predict when you're doing a budget but at some point we expect those numbers to creep back up to pre-pandemic levels," Evans said.

After Evans finished, Lisa Green, Auburn's business official, said the district had never exceeded that 4% unassigned fund balance limit before the pandemic. In April 2020, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office said the governor would be able to announce adjustments to aid on a quarterly basis. Although those changes never came, Green said that prompted Auburn to set that fund balance higher than 4%. Auburn Superintendent Jeff Pirozzolo previously said the district exceeded that 4% regulation in order to pay back what could have been removed through those aid adjustments.

Green said expenditures are down and the district saw some savings due to the impact of the outbreak. She said when the district was doing remote learning, it saved money on costs such as transportation and substitute teachers. Green added that federal grant money Auburn received "takes some pressure off the general fund, we can run expenses through that."

"We have that money, we're spending federal money that maybe is allowing us to keep more money in the general fund," she added. "But we are developing a plan to bring that fund balance down. We're looking at some one-time purchases that we can do to use that fund balance and get it down to the 4% level. We know that where it needs to be."

The district has argued for the state to increase that 4% limit for unassigned fund balances to at least 8%, saying "Every school, I think, believes that." Evans noted school districts are the only municipal entities held to that 4% limit.

Green said the audit went well and praised the efforts of district's treasurer, Tessa Crawford, who started earlier this year. Green said the district's expenditures were below what they budgeted for, "we came in very close to our budgeted revenue amounts."

"Everything was positive in the report, and really, the only possibly negative thing is that our fund balance was more than the 4%," Green said. "But in my opinion, that's a good problem to have, is to have more money than you need, because then we can take advantage of that, use it to purchase something that the district needs, that the students need. Better than us being too low in our fund balance and then we have to raise taxes more."

Evans said the district's financial documents were "fairly stated," meaning there was documentation to back up those statements.

"A clean opinion, no findings, so that's exactly what the district should strive for," he said.

The audit said that as of June 30, Auburn's total liabilities, or the amount the district owes, exceeded its assets, or what it owns, by $178,040,577, the district's net position. As June 30, 2021, the district's total liabilities exceeded its assets by $189,701,593, so there was an increase of $11,661,016 from 2021 to 2022.
As the health care industry in New York state continues to struggle with a shortage of workers, the state is raising the minimum pay for home health aides.

The state Department of Labor on Thursday announced a minimum wage increase to $17 per hour in New York City, Long Island and Westchester, and $15.20 per hour for the remainder of the state.

The action follows an order by the department of labor and state budget director raising the general minimum wage to $14.20 for counties outside of New York City, Westchester and Long Island beginning on Dec. 31, leading to an additional $1 increase an hour for aides in those locations.

According to a news release, under public health law, home care aide refers to a home health aide, personal care aide, home attendant or other licensed or unlicensed person whose primary responsibility includes the provision of in-home assistance with activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living or health-related tasks but does not include those working on a casual basis, a relative through blood, marriage or adoption of the employer or the person for whom the worker is delivering services, under a program funded or administered by federal, state or local government.

Home care aides may be owed extra pay in addition to minimum wage rates for:

 Overtime: Home care aides must be paid 1 times their regular rate of pay for weekly hours over 40 (or 44 for residential employees).

 Call-in pay: If home care aides go to work as scheduled and their employer sends them home early, they may be entitled to extra hours of pay at the minimum wage rate for that day.

 Spread of hours: If home care aides workdays last longer than 10 hours, they may be entitled to extra daily pay. The daily rate is equal to one hour of pay at the minimum wage rate.

 Uniform maintenance: If home care aides clean their own uniform, they may be entitled to additional weekly pay.

The labor department said that the only time an employer may reduce wages below minimum wage is to claim a limited allowance for meals and lodging, provided they do not charge for those services.

To learn more about minimum wage rates, visit the department of labor's minimum wage webpage.

We know how valuable our home care aides are, especially with the shortages were currently seeing, state Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said in a statement. This minimum wage increase will ensure home care aides are well paid and able to support themselves and their families, which will help attract more people to the profession. Overall, this will ensure better worker retention and patient care.
The Ohio Department of Health recently announced COVID-19 boosters with the new formulation to target Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are now available statewide.

The Pfizer booster is available to Ohioans 12-years-old and older and the Moderna vaccine is available to those 18 years and up. Statehouse News reported that doctors are urging Ohioans to get those vaccines now. One of those Ohio doctors is Anna Goroncy, MD, of the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the UC College of Medicine.

Statehouse News reported that while the newer variants of COVID-19 are less severe than previous ones, there is a growing concern about people who are developing "long COVID."
The choice of missile strike targets by Russia proves it has no concern for the lives of civilians.

Thats according to the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command, Ukrinform reports.

Russias targeting process has consistently demonstrated no concern for avoiding civilian casualties and other collateral damage, the agency wrote on Twitter Wednesday.

Russia has shown a diminishing ability to hold territory in Ukraine. Its attacks on critical infrastructure are likely intended to degrade Ukrainian public resolve, though they have often had the opposite effect, the report reads.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on October 10-11, Russia launched massive missile strikes across the territory of Ukraine involving more than a hundred cruise missiles and drones. As a result of the attack, critical infrastructure facilities were damaged, power supply and mobile communications were interrupted in some areas.
During an air-raid alert Thursday morning, one of the communities of Kyiv region was hit by enemy one-way attack drones.

Thats according to Oleksiy Kuleba, the chief of the Regional Military Administration, Ukrinform reports.

"We have attacks on one of the communities in our region. Tentatively, this was an attack by kamikaze drones," the head of the region wrote.

The official added that rescuers are already working on the scene.

As reported, during the air alert October 12, an enemy air target was shot down in Rivne region. In Zhytomyr region, air defense forces engaged an unidentified aircraft.

As reported earlier, Russia has deployed Iranian-manufactured unscrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) since at least August 2022, including the one-way attack Shahed-136 variant. Russia included Shahed variants among the extensive wave of strikes it conducted on October 10.

Previously, the Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russia had launched a total of 86 Shahed-136s and claimed that 60 percent had been destroyed in the air.

Despite a reported range of 2,500 km, the Shahed-136 only has a small explosive payload. It is unlikely to be satisfactorily fulfilling the deep strike function which Russia probably aspired to use it for, the British Defense Ministry reported earlier.
French President Emmanuel Macron says he will engage in talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin whenever he deems necessary.

The statement came as Macron spoke with France 2, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"When we try  and this is our goal  to build peace, we must talk. We have to talk to the main actors  whenever its necessary, I will talk to Vladimir Putin. At some point  hopefully as soon as possible  it will be necessary to bring all stakeholders back to the negotiating table. And there will be a discussion of peace  on the one side by Ukraine, and on the other by Russia," Macron said.

At the same time, he expressed belief that Putin must put an end to the ongoing war and respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

According to the French president, he last spoke with Putin a few weeks ago, regarding the security situation at the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant, which had been captured by Russian forces on March 4.

As reported, Macron said that in the coming weeks, Ukraine would receive from France a batch of radars and air defense missiles.
The war in Ukraine has entered a new phase, in which Europe must finally shed its fear of Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this in an interview with Germany's ZDF heute journal, Ukrinform reports.

"Europe hasn't shed its fear of Russia yet," Zelensky said. "How would the Russians react to that? What does Putin have to say about that? And what happens when Putin is gone one day? Those are Europe's worries."

Commenting on the risk of Putin's use of nuclear weapons, Zelensky admitted that such a risk exists, but added that Putin will only use nuclear weapons if "he knows very well that there will be no consequences for him after the use." Zelensky said that Europe must not allow itself to be blackmailed and therefore must not show its weakness towards the Russian leadership. The task of all of Europe, he said, is to show Putin that no one will talk to him and he will remain isolated. Then the Russian society will understand that they elected as president a person who threatens everyone with nuclear weapons.

Zelensky said that more than ten heads of state and government of the closest partner countries, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, immediately called him after a Russian missile attack on October 10.

Speaking about negotiations with Moscow, Zelensky said that "we are dealing with inadequate people," with terrorists who do not know what they want, so there is no point in negotiating with this leadership.

Photo: President's Office
Russias terror must be responded with force at all levels: on the battlefield, with sanctions, and legally.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said this in his video address to the nation, Ukrinform reports.

The full text of the address is provided below:

Good health to you, fellow Ukrainians!

Today I took part in the work of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe - outlined the most important things for us in achieving peace and restoring Ukraine and the international legal order after this war.

We also have a powerful response from PACE, which is the first international organization to designate the current regime in Russia as terrorist.

It is very important that this is a political signal. A signal to all states - members of the Council of Europe and all states of the world, that there is nothing to talk about with this terrorist group, which appropriated Russia and unleashed the most heinous war in Europe in 80 years.

Terror must be responded with force at all levels: on the battlefield, with sanctions, and legally

We will create a special tribunal for the crime of Russian aggression against Ukraine and ensure the operation of a special compensation mechanism so that Russia will bear responsibility for this war at the cost of its assets.

I am grateful to all our partners in the Council of Europe who work for justice for Ukraine and our entire continent. I am grateful to our PACE delegation for truly effective work!

I am also grateful to all Ukrainian diplomats and our friends in the world and in the United Nations who helped consolidate the world community of states in such a way that we gained the highest support at the UN General Assembly for the entire time of the Russian terrorist war.

The world sees what is happening. It knows the price of the farce that Russia staged in the occupied territory under the guise of sham referenda. 143 UN member states supported the resolution, which protects the basic principles of the UN Charter and condemns Russia for the criminal attempt to annex our territory. This is a record number of states supporting Ukraine today. But I believe that there will be more.

Four states came out on the side of Russia - this is very eloquent. North Korea, Nicaragua, Belarus and Syria. Such a list that everything is clear.

I am grateful to each of the 143 states!

Today, an important meeting of our team, which deals with the issue of the release of prisoners, took place in the online format with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international organizations related to this process.

Very important things were said. In particular, those concerning the institutional work of the Red Cross to guarantee the safety of those held in Russian captivity.

I believe that the International Committee of the Red Cross is not a club with privileges where they get paid and enjoy life. The Red Cross has obligations, primarily of a moral nature. The mandate of the Red Cross must be fulfilled. It is necessary to immediately do what is completely logical for the Red Cross.

There is Olenivka. In fact, a concentration camp where our prisoners are kept. Access to them is required, as it was stipulated. The Red Cross can make it happen. But you have to try to make it happen. Ukraine is ready to facilitate this.

The mission of the Red Cross can work on the model of the mission of the IAEA. But this requires leadership. Conscientiousness is required. Understanding who and why created such an institution as the Red Cross is required.

I am grateful to the team that continues to engage in exchanges: Budanov, Yermak, Usov, Maliuk. Today, we managed to return another 20 Ukrainians from captivity. 14 warriors of the army, four warriors of the territorial defense, one national guard and one warrior of the Navy. We are working on getting everyone back!

Our Air Forces continue the battle for Ukrainian skies. As in previous days, I received hourly reports of downed Russian missiles and drones. During the day, 11 missiles were fired, six missiles were shot down in Mykolaiv, Lviv and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Thank you to everyone who fulfills this task!

We urgently restore damaged infrastructure objects.

I also want to celebrate today the warriors of the 5th separate assault regiment of the Ground Forces, the 1st separate battalion of the marines and the battalion of the 4th brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine for their skillful and heroic actions during the defense in the Bakhmut direction.

This direction is still one of the toughest on the front. Thank you to everyone who defends our positions there and inflicts tangible hits on the occupiers.

Now Russia is sending thousands of its mobilized men to the front. They have no significant military training, but their command does not need it at all. They expect that the mobilized Russians will be able to survive in the war for at least a few weeks, then they will die, and then new ones will be sent to the front. But during this time, such use by Russian generals of their people as "cannon fodder" makes it possible to create additional pressure on our defenders.

It's a tangible pressure. And I am grateful to all our warriors who endure it. I am also grateful to the partners who understand that in such conditions we need an increase in defense assistance. I thank everyone who fights, works and helps to protect Ukraine!

Tomorrow we will definitely celebrate - everyone in their place - one of our most important days. Intercession, Day of Defenders of Ukraine. The holiday of all our warriors - from ancient times to the present, from the Cossacks to the insurgents, from all of them to the warriors of the modern army.

Tomorrow will be the 233rd day of our full-scale defense. And new steps that bring us closer to peace and victory.

We do not relax! We beat the enemy! We follow the safety rules! We listen to the air alarm signal, especially tomorrow!

And we do everything to strengthen Ukraine!

Glory to Ukraine!
French President Macron is convinced that the self-proclaimed leader of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, will face problems if he tries to get his country more actively involved in the Russian war on Ukraine.

Emmanuel Macron made the statement on the air of France 2, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"If Lukashenko decides to get even more involved in this war, he will do it against the vision of a large part of his nation. And he will do it by taking responsibility, which, I think, will not pass without problems for him," said the French leader.

Read also: Lukashenko orders deployment of joint forces with Russia

At the same time, when asked whether Lukashenko's statements indicate a possible expansion of the conflict, Macron answered: "I think this is part of the risks."

As reported, Lukashenko said he had agreed with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the deployment of a "joint regional grouping of troops" involving Belarus and Russia forces.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, Catherine Colonna, said Belarus would be warned about additional sanctions in the event it joins the Russian war on Ukraine.
The resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly condemning Russia's illegal attempts to annex the occupied territories of Ukraine is a clear message to Moscow.

This is said in a statement of U.S. President Joe Biden on the UN resolution entitled Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations."

Today, the overwhelming majority of the worldnations from every region, large and small, representing a wide array of ideologies and governments  voted to defend the United Nations Charter and condemn Russias illegal attempt to annex Ukrainian territory by force. The stakes of this conflict are clear to alland the world has sent a clear message in response: Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map. Russia cannot change borders by force. Russia cannot seize another countrys territory as its own. Ukraine is entitled to the same rights as every other sovereign country. It must be able to choose its own future, and its people must be able to live peacefully inside its internationally recognized borders, the statement says.

Biden said that nearly eight months into this war, the world has just demonstrated that it is more united, and more determined than ever to hold Russia accountable for its violations.

Together with the UN General Assembly, we will not tolerate illegal attempts at annexation or the theft of a neighbors land by force. We will stand up for international law, the UN Charter, and the rights and protections it affords to Ukraine and its people  and to every state and people everywhere, the U.S. president summarized.

As reported by Ukrinform, the UN General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution entitled "Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations," which condemns Russian pseudo-referendums held in occupied Ukrainian territories. As many as 143 countries voted in favor of the resolution, five countries voted against it, and 35 abstained. Russia, Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua and Syria voted against the document.

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Europe can play a historical role in establishing a special international tribunal to bring Russia to justice for the crimes committed by Russian troops in Ukraine and developing a mechanism of reparations to be paid by Russians.

The relevant statement was made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his online speech at a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

Europe can play a historical role in establishing a special tribunal over Russias crime of aggression against Ukraine. Lets do it! This will be the best way to protect the principles of international law, Zelensky said.

According to the President of Ukraine, Europe can also take the lead in efforts intended to ensure the recovery of losses caused by Putins war.

A lions share of Russian assets is concentrated in Europe, and they should be used to compensate for the damage caused to Ukraine.

We have to develop a compensation mechanism, and we suggest how to create it. The corresponding project has already been prepared by Ukraine, and I ask you to support it at the level of Europe and at the level of the UN General Assembly, Zelensky noted.

In his words, bringing the aggressor to justice will be a powerful guarantee of peace in the world.

We should continue our dialogue in order to hold Russia as the aggressor state and each of Russian murderers and executioners accountable for all the crimes committed during this war, for each manifestation of terror. When such legal mechanisms are developed and come into effect, this will be one of the most powerful guarantees of long-term peace, the President of Ukraine stressed.

A reminder that, in April 2022, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a resolution proposing that an ad hoc international tribunal investigate and prosecute the crimes of Russias armed aggression in Ukraine.

Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine

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Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chinese automotive supplier Bethel Automotive Safety Systems Co., Ltd. ("WBTL") on Oct. 10 signed an agreement with the management committee of Taizhou Bay New Area to launch an automotive chassis Wire-Controlled Brake System (WCBS) project in Taizhou city, Zhejiang province.

Under the agreement, WBTL and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group ("Geely Holding") will build a joint venture dedicated to the intelligent automotive chassis system business, in a bid to boost the share of its WCBS products in China's passenger vehicle market.

Photo credit: WBTL

According to WBTL's press release, it launched the WCBS as far back as 2019 and put the product into volume production in June 2021. The company said its WCBS was expected to be installed into over 20 production models this year.

Adopting WBTL's proprietary One-Box solution, the WCBS integrates such components as vacuum booster, electronic vacuum pump, master cylinder, ESC (electronic stability control), and EPB (electronic parking brake) systems, with a better ability to meet the new NEV (new energy vehicle) and intelligent vehicles' demands for braking systems.

Founded in June 2004 and listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, WBTL specializes in the R&D, manufacturing and sales of automotive safety systems and advanced driver assistance systems. It has independent development capability and product series for mechanical brake systems, such as disc brake module, fixed caliper, integrated parking brake, foundation brake, booster, and light weight products (aluminum knuckle, aluminum control arm, aluminum caliper), according to the introduction from the company's website.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, following an urgent debate on "Further escalation in the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine," has adopted a resolution declaring the Russian Federation a terrorist regime.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, 99 out of 100 PACE deputies voted in favor of the document and one abstained.

In particular, PACE deputies supported an amendment to the draft resolution, which states: "Declare the Russian Federation a terrorist regime."

The Assembly also voted to speed up the creation of a Special International Tribunal to prosecute the crime of aggression against Ukraine and set up a comprehensive international compensation mechanism, including an international register of damage.

In addition, the Assembly supported the amendment to provide Ukraine with the necessary air defense systems.

In particular, in view of the escalation of Russian aggression against Ukraine, the Assembly in today's resolution updated its assessments and recommendations, which it has adopted since the beginning of the large-scale aggression.

Therefore, the Assembly called on the member states of the Council of Europe:

to reiterate their unwavering support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders;

to unequivocally condemn the so-called referendums held in the Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson between 23 and 27 September 2022, and to refrain from recognizing any effects of them;

to condemn the Russian Federation's attempted annexation of the regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson as a violation of international law and a major threat to international peace and security, and to avoid recognizing any effects of it;

to be firm and united in exerting a policy of maximum pressure on the Russian Federation to immediately cease its aggression;

to support financially the reconstruction of Ukraine and provide necessary air defense systems;

to ensure a comprehensive system of accountability for serious violations of international law arising from the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine actively co-operating with the Ukrainian authorities on this issue, and, in this context:

- declare the Russian Federation a terrorist regime;

- speed up the establishment of a Special (ad hoc) International Tribunal to prosecute the crime of aggression against Ukraine;

- establish a system to examine the measures to ensure and secure accountability;

- set up a comprehensive international compensation mechanism, including an international register of damage and actively co-operate with the Ukrainian authorities on this issue;

- recognize Russian political parties that have previously voted for illegal decisions encroaching on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and other countries, as groups and entities that facilitate terrorism.
UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection Gillian Triggs addresses Excom 2022.  UNHCR/Mark Henley

During a year in which the war in Ukraine, along with other conflicts, pushed the number of forcibly displaced people to over 100 million, the UN Refugee Agencys Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Gillian Triggs, urged governments and other actors to take bold steps to ensure peace and protect those forced to flee their homes.

Each year we report ever increasing numbers. Each year the dire plight of those displaced deepens, Triggs said in a speech at the annual meeting of UNHCRs Executive Committee in Geneva on Thursday. It is time for some refreshed thinking, some original ideas and initiatives, and strategies to promote peace and protection.

Triggs called on governments to step up efforts to safeguard the right of people fleeing conflict and persecution to claim asylum. The war in Ukraine has shown why the right to seek and enjoy international protection  a core principle of the 1951 Refugee Convention, and of UNHCRs mandate  remains so necessary, she said.

The global response to the Ukrainian protection crisis shows that, with political will, countries and their citizens welcome millions in an emergency, she said, adding that other countries such as Bangladesh, Turkiye and Pakistan have provided protection to the displaced for years.

While millions of Ukrainian refugees have been admitted to other countries and given protection, Triggs said she was troubled to observe efforts by a small number of States to adopt extreme policies to avoid their international obligations.

Deterrence has become the priority  despite the failure and expense of such policies, she said, citing attempts by some governments to transport refugees thousands of miles away for processing in other countries.

Statement: UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Gillian Triggs speaking at the Executive Committee meeting in Geneva.

She urged governments to focus on improving the management and efficiency of their asylum systems to address bottlenecks at courts and in procedures to return people assessed as not in need of international protection to their countries-of-origin.

Efforts to externalize asylum processes, to deny access to asylum at the border, to push back or adopt draconian deterrence policies are not the answer, she told the meeting of UN Member State representatives and observers from other UN agencies and intergovernmental organizations.

As forced displacement has risen, so have protections needs, from the millions of displaced children unable to go to school, to the women and girls at greater risk of sexual abuse and exploitation. Triggs said the climate crisis has added another layer of risk.

It has a disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable and has a multiplier effect in forcing people to flee to safety, she said, giving the example of Mozambique  a country already facing violence and displacement in the northern province of Cabo Delgado that was battered by five tropical storms and cyclones in the first few months of this year.

Mitigating the impacts of climate change and safeguarding international protection are two of eight areas identified by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, to be targeted for accelerated action by UNHCR over the next four years.

Others outlined by Triggs include finding solutions for internally displaced people  who make up about 60 per cent of the worlds forcibly displaced people; expanding opportunities for refugees to be resettled or to benefit from other solutions such as labour mobility programmes, academic and community sponsorships, and family reunion; and strengthening efforts to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.



The global protection crises we face cannot be resolved unilaterally, Triggs concluded. We must act collaboratively, and we have the tools to do so.

One of those tools is the Global Compact on Refugees, which calls for a whole of society approach in responding to refugee situations. Referring to it as our lode star, Triggs invited delegates to work with UNHCR towards the second Global Refugee Forum in December 2023, to translate the principle of equitable responsibility sharing into action.
On the evening of 31 December, as the hours ticked down to the New Year, 40-year-old Aguiratou Diallo was at home with her four children in their village near the town of Koumbri in northern Burkina Faso, when a group of armed men burst into the courtyard outside.

They threatened to hurt us if we were still there when they returned the next day. Then they fired into the air to scare us, said Aguiratou, whose husband was away at work at the time.

I was so frightened. The whole family  including my grandmother, aunt, and my husbands brothers and sisters  met up and left the village. We set off on foot without any belongings. There were about 40 of us, and it took us 20 hours to reach Ouahigouya.

After rejoining her husband, the family were moved to a site hosting other families who had fled their homes, where UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and its partners provided them with shelter, blankets, mattresses and other essential items.

Our biggest concern now is water, because the wells are nearly empty, Aguiratou explained. Our wish is for peace to return so that we can go home.

Our biggest concern now is water, because the wells are nearly empty."

Aguiratou and her family are among some 11,400 people  mostly women and children  who fled their homes during the first few weeks of January, following continuous attacks by armed groups on the town of Koumbri and its neighbouring villages.

This latest wave of displacement in Africas Sahel region  which includes Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali and Niger  has pushed the total number of people forced to flee within their own country in the region to beyond two million for the first time.

The countries that make up the Sahel are among the worlds least developed and are now the epicentre of the fastest-growing displacement crisis globally, driven by years of violent attacks by armed insurgent groups and criminal gangs.

See also: Grim milestone as Sahel violence displaces 2 million inside their countries

More than one million of those uprooted are from Burkina Faso, where the numbers forced to flee to other parts of the country in search of safety nearly doubled in 2020 alone.

Another of those who fled the area around Koumbri in early January was 81-year-old Salamata, who together with her three sons and their families left the land they farm after armed men swept into their village, killing several inhabitants.

One of the victims was the son of my neighbour, who Ive watched growing up, Salamata said. During the attack we heard gunfire, bullets were flying everywhere and even falling in our courtyard. I was very scared for my children, who were still outside.

"Bullets were flying everywhere and even falling in our courtyard."

The next day, even though we didnt want to leave our village, we left in order to save our lives, she added.

Like most of the new arrivals in Ouahigouya and nearby Barga, Salamata and her family are being hosted by local residents, in her case a nephew who is currently sheltering 78 people.

Another Ouahigouya resident who moved there from Koumbri two decades ago is 72-year-old Micailou, who opened up his large courtyard and stores of rice to accommodate and feed nearly 400 of those who fled for several days until local partners found alternative shelter for them.

When I lived in Koumbri I was a kind of local leader, so when they arrived, I didnt hesitate to welcome them. As a human being, its a moral duty, Micailou said.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of shelter, they had to spend three nights sleeping on the ground, he added. My greatest wish is that understanding can be established between communities so that peace can return. Then everyone will be able to return home undisturbed.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi speaks during the 73rd session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme in Geneva.  UNHCR/Pierre Albouy

GENEVA  Governments inability to prevent conflict and tackle crises including COVID-19, climate change and the rising cost of living is increasing hardship for more than 100 million forcibly displaced people and leading more to flee their homes, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees warned at a high-level meeting on Monday.

In such a complex world, we need to work together, Filippo Grandi said at the opening of UNHCRs annual Executive Committee meeting in Geneva. Unfortunately, the international community has become quite unable to do so: unable to make peace, or even prevent predictable catastrophes. To share vaccines. To reduce risks from the climate emergency. To spend a little now  money, political capital, or both  to avoid much greater expense in the future.

In response to record displacement, the High Commissioner urged governments to work towards finding solutions that have remained, for far too many and for far too long, elusive.

Russias invasion of Ukraine in February has pushed global displacement to unprecedented levels, triggering Europes largest and fastest refugee crisis since the Second World War.

UNHCR is striving to assist Ukrainians wherever they have been displaced, Grandi said. He praised the leadership of the Ukrainian authorities and the response of countries that have together received more than 7 million refugees.

But he warned that the situation inside Ukraine remains grave, with more than 6.2 million people internally displaced and many more in need of humanitarian assistance.

I share the governments concerns about the looming winter, the High Commissioner said. This requires an all-hands-on-deck approach  Millions of Ukrainians, especially the aged and disabled, are counting on us.

High Commissioner's opening statement to the 73rd session of the UNHCR Executive Committee

He added that the response to the Ukraine crisis has debunked myths put forward by some politicians that Europe is unable to accommodate those fleeing violence and persecution, or that public opinion is against taking in more refugees.

We must not accept the denial of access to territory for those seeking asylum, often through violent pushbacks; we must not normalize attempts to outsource asylum responsibilities, Grandi said.

I also reject what we have heard some politicians on this continent tell their voters: that Ukrainians are real refugees while others  fleeing similar horrors, but from different parts of the world  are not. There is only one word to define this attitude: racist, he added.

"We cannot pay attention only to the latest crisis at the expense of the rest."

The High Commissioner shared his deep concern over UNHCRs funding levels for other emergencies and the impact of underfunding on refugees and host communities around the world.

We cannot pay attention only to the latest crisis at the expense of the rest, he warned. Emergencies in Afghanistan and Ethiopia and long-running crises affecting Rohingya and Syrian refugees and countries in the Sahel mean millions still require urgent help, with resources lagging far behind their needs.

If we do not receive at least an additional US$700 million, especially for our most underfunded operations, between now and the end of this year, we will be forced to make severe cuts with negative and sometimes drastic consequences for refugees and host communities, Grandi warned.

See also: Funding shortfall forces UNHCR to cut vital programmes in DR Congo

Concerted action is also needed to find solutions for tens of millions of people displaced within the borders of their own countries by conflict and violence, and to end the scourge of statelessness for millions more.

Despite the worrying global picture, there are pockets of hope. The High Commissioner pointed to Cote dIvoire, where more than 96 per cent of refugees have returned home after years of civil strife. Despite challenges, more than 600,000 former refugees have also returned to South Sudan.

Refugees and migrants from Venezuela, meanwhile, have benefited from the temporary protection mechanism established by Colombia and similar regularization efforts being undertaken by Ecuador and other countries in the region.

Grandi encouraged governments to take inspiration from such achievements as they prepare for the second Global Refugee Forum in Geneva at the end of 2023. The first forum in December 2019 resulted in more than 1,400 pledges  and more since  by governments, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and others to find new ways to support forcibly displaced people and their hosts.

Grandi urged countries to make good on the pledges of the last Forum and prepare the ground for more pledges at the next.

He concluded: The redoubling of that action, that drive and determination to help, to assist, and mostly to resolve, must be done together  as United Nations  and that must start today.
Azmera (left) and Medhn supervize the construction of new tukuls (durable shelters) in Tunaydbah refugee camp, Sudan. They both worked in construction back home in Tigray, Ethiopia.  UNHCR/Afarin Dadkhah Tehrani

Before conflict erupted in Ethiopias northern Tigray region nearly two years ago, everything was on track for Medhn Enday, a refugee mother of two. She had earned her degree in construction engineering from Mekelle University, in the regional capital, and then worked as a forewoman before starting her own company. I was working as a contractor and I had been winning tenders, she recalls. I was taking care of my family, my children, my own home and my life.

When the fighting forced her to flee across the border to Sudan, all of that came to an end. But in Tunaydbah refugee camp, Medhn has found a way to put her specialist skills to good use, working with another female engineer to help build over 600 durable shelters for their fellow refugees.

Like Medhn, Azmera Glmedn worked in construction back home in Tigray, supervising several projects for the local government. When war broke out, she also had to leave everything behind, escaping to Sudan with her husband and their two children. We came with nothing, says Azmera.

Despite the uncertainty and upheaval, Azmera and Mehdn have found purpose in Tunaydbah, building new lives for themselves as they build new homes for the other refugees.

At the beginning, I was feeling bad because I did not expect to live this kind of life, Azmera says of finding herself living in a refugee camp. I felt unfortunate. But now I feel Sudan is my second home.

Medhn is a forewoman and Azmera a site supervisor in the construction of sturdy tukuls, traditional circular stone houses with thatched roofs, that are far better at withstanding extreme weather than the tents and rickety stick and tarpaulin shelters they replace.

Sudan: Refugee women use their engineering skills to build shelters for other refugees

In 2021, heavy rains and strong winds tore through the fragile shelters in Tunaydbah and nearby Um Rakuba refugee camp, making thousands of refugee families homeless once again. Last year, I witnessed the destruction caused by the heavy rains and strong winds, and I feel happy doing this job knowing that Im helping keep families safe, says Azmera.

Working for MedAir  a partner to UNHCR, the UN refugee agency  Medhn and Azmeras team is building tukuls in Tunaydbah, each with shoulder-high stone walls and thick weather-proof thatch, some even topped with ornate Ethiopian Coptic crosses that are a reminder of home.

I supervise construction, from setting out and reading the plan, to controlling the quality of the construction, says Azmera. I also trained 40 women and changed their perception on construction. We recruited them and gave them an opportunity to work.

Azmera (left) and Medhn walk through Tunaydbah refugee camp where they are working together to build durable shelters for other refugees.  UNHCR/Afarin Dadkhah Tehrani

Azmeras skills and knowhow mean she is respected in this traditionally male-dominated industry. No one underestimates me because I am a woman, she says.

UNHCR, and partners, MedAir, NRC and ACTED, have together constructed a total of over 2,300 durable, weather-resistant shelters in Tunaydbah, Um Rakuba and Babikri camps, all in Sudans Gedaref State.

In addition, to mitigate the impact of floods, UNHCR, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and other partners have constructed drainage systems and canals in flood-prone areas around the camps.

For Medhn and Azmera, all of this is more than just a way to keep busy. It allows them to put their hard-earned skills to good use, to earn a living, to do something for others, and to contribute to their community.

One thing that I will never forget when I leave here, says Azmera, is that we worked hard for the community that is here with us now, and will be with us when we go back home.


Beijing (Gasgoo)- In September, Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd. (Changan Automobile) saw its year-to-date overseas sales volume of its wholly-owned auto brands surge 48.06% year over year.

In the past month, Changan Automobile sold 215,411 vehicles, representing a year-on-year increase of 14.42%. In the Jan.-Sept. period, the groups cumulative sales volume amounted to 1,680,740 vehicles, notching down 2.97% year on year.

In the first nine months of the year, the automaker's wholly-owned vehicle brands sold 1,323,045 vehicles worldwide, representing a 2.01% decline from the earlier year. Among which, 951,470 units were passenger vehicles, up 2.46% compared to a year ago.

SL03; photo credit: Changan Automobile

In September, Changan Automobile sold 30,046 new energy vehicles (NEVs) under its wholly-owned brands, indicating a 163.15% year-on-year hike. By the end of September, the companys year-to-date sales volume of wholly-owned NEVs amounted to 156,348 units, more than doubling from the previous year with a 117.85% increase.

In the first nine months of the year, Changan Automobile moved a total of 139,406 wholly-owned brands vehicles abroad, representing a robust growth of 48.06% from the same span last year.

As to the companys joint-venture brands, Changan Ford and Changan Mazda sold 30,448 vehicles and 7,087 vehicles respectively in the past month, which slipped down 5.12% and 59.17% compared to the previous year. In the Jan.-Sept. period, Changan Ford and Changan Mazda sold a respective 191,216 vehicles and 84,060 vehicles cumulatively, indicating a subsequent 8.62% and 9.76% dip year-on-year.
With Gasgoo Daily, we will offer daily important automotive news in China. For those we have reported, the title of the piece will include a hyperlink, which will provide detailed information.

Huawei-backed AITO able to sell 20,000 vehicles monthly: Huaweis Yu Chengdong

CEO of Huaweis Intelligent Automotive Solution Business Unit, Yu Chengdong, claimed AITO should have delivered over 16,000 vehicles in September, and the auto brand already possesses the capability of selling over 20,000 vehicles monthly.

Photo credit: AITO

First autonomous driving test scenario international standard published

According to Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said that the first international standard on autonomous driving test scenarios, the ISO 34501, is officially published. The standard-making process was led by China.

ORA Lightning Cat starts presale

Presale of the Lightning Cat model under Great Wall Motors ORA brand officially kicked off today. Users who placed a 2,000 yuan-deposit from Oct.12-Oct.31 will have 5,000 yuan taken off their final purchase price, said the automaker. The model can be expected to be on the market on October 27.

Photo credit: ORA

Chinas automotive sensor supplier ANNGIC completes Series-C financing round

Shenzhen-based automotive sensor supplier ANNGIC recently completed its Series-C financing round, raising over a million yuan, the company announced earlier this week.

Shanghai aims to see L3 vehicles account for over 70% of newly produced cars by 2025

Shanghai is set out to build a comprehensive intelligent traffic and green transportation system citywide in C-V2X, intelligent connected vehicle terminals, and mobility as a service (MaaS) aspects.

Changan Automobile's auto sales jump 14.42% YoY in Sept. 2022

In September, Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd. (Changan Automobile) saw its year-to-date overseas sales volume of its wholly-owned auto brands surge 48.06% year over year.

Digital China, Gausscode to jointly promote digital transformation in auto industry

Cloud and digitalization service provider Digital Chinas subsidiary, DC Clouds, inked a strategic cooperation with Gausscode to promote the digitalization in the automotive industry.

Geely Holding, Bethel Automotive Safety Systems to build auto chassis system joint venture

Chinese automotive supplier Bethel Automotive Safety Systems Co., Ltd. ("WBTL") on Oct. 10 signed an agreement with the management committee of Taizhou Bay New Area to launch an automotive chassis Wire-Controlled Brake System (WCBS) project in Taizhou city, Zhejiang province.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- Cloud and digitalization service provider Digital Chinas subsidiary, DC Clouds, inked a strategic cooperation with Gausscode to promote the digitalization in the automotive industry.

Photo credit: Digital China

The long-term partnership will focus on the applications of digital cloud integration in the auto industry, building integrated digital cloud solutions for the industry.

At the signing ceremony, Digital China and Gausscode jointly issued the "Shenzhou Cloud| Digital Cloud Car io+ Service", to fully leverage the two companies understanding, strong technical capabilities, and industry accumulation in the field of digitalization and cloud. The duo will provide double helix solutions in terms of cloud computing and big data for the auto industry.

The cooperation will revolve around on digital cloud governance, digital cloud analysis, digital cloud application, and other aspects. Combined with multi-dimensional digital services including big data tool platform, intelligent decision-making system, and innovative solutions, Digital China and Gausscode aim to contribute to the the digital transformation and development of the automotive industry.

In the future, with their consensus on digital cloud integration, Digital China will work closely with Gausscode on the horizontal expansion of the automotivee industry, and carry out multi-dimensional cooperation and in-depth innovation across multiple other industries.
Opinion: Music can help get you through midterms
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Russia will not supply oil to countries that will set a price ceiling, neither at $60 per barrel, nor at any other cost, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Russia will not supply oil to countries that will set a price ceiling, neither at $60 per barrel, nor at any other cost, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said.

On Wednesday, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen proposed a price cap for Russian oil at about $60 a barrel. Russian President Vladimir Putin, commenting on the West's idea to limit prices for Russian energy, stated that Russia would not supply anything abroad if this would be contrary to its own interests.

"Russia will not supply those countries that will set a price cap, whatever it is, $60 or another. This is interference in market instruments. We are ready to work with those consumers who are ready to work on market conditions," Novak told the Rossiya 1 broadcaster.

The US could put a cap on its supplies to Europe, Novak said.

"As for the head of the US Treasury, who proposed some figure, we would probably advise our US partners in this regard to set some price cap for the resources they supply to Europe," he said.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that due to problems on the northern route, Budapest received only 30% of the initial volume of gas from Russia through Austria, all this volume is being redirected to the southern route through the TurkStream by agreement with Gazprom.

"Based on a long-term agreement, we bought a smaller amount of gas from Russia along the route through Austria, which, due to problems on the northern gas pipelines, is now only 30% operational. Today we agreed that the initial volume of gas entering Hungary from Russian Federation through the northern direction, would be redirected to the southern direction," Szijjarto said.

He stressed that the TurkStream remained the only reliable gas pipeline for Hungary, which receives 100% of the planned volumes, and that Hungary welcomed Russia's decision to redirect gas supplies to Europe from the northern route to the south, as it enhances the security of Budapest's energy supply.

The minister said that on October 13, the head of Gazpromexport would sign a document granting Budapest a deferment in gas payments.
Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Oct, 2022 ) :President Joe Biden's administration said Wednesday it would prioritize winning over China, seeing it as the only global rival to the United States, even as it also works to constrain a "dangerous" Russia.

"The post-Cold War era is over, and the competition is underway between the major powers to shape what comes next," Biden's national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, said in a speech at Georgetown University to unveil the national security strategy.

The strategy said the 2020s would be a "decisive decade for America and the world" -- for reducing conflict, promoting democracy over authoritarianism and confronting the key shared threat of climate change.

"We will prioritize maintaining an enduring competitive edge over the PRC while constraining a still profoundly dangerous Russia," the strategy said, referring to the People's Republic of China.

Vladimir Putin's Russia "poses an immediate threat to the free and open international system, recklessly flouting the basic laws of the international order today, as its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine has shown," the strategy added.

China, "by contrast, is the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to advance that objective."
BERLIN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Oct, 2022 ) :German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has slammed Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, accusing him of launching a crusade against the West and the rules-based international order.

"This war is not only about Ukraine. (Putin and his enablers) consider the war against Ukraine to be part of a larger crusade," Scholz said in a video message for the Progressive Governance Summit.

"A crusade against liberal democracy. A crusade against the rules-based international order. A crusade against freedom and progress," the Social Democrat politician said.

"A crusade against our way of life. And a crusade against what Putin calls the collective West. He means all of us," Scholz added.

His comments came days after Russia launched a wave of missile strikes across Ukraine this week, following a blast which damaged a strategic bridge linking Russia and Crimea.
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London, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Oct, 2022 ) :Embattled British Prime Minister Liz Truss faced fresh woes on Thursday after a prominent Conservative party insider said some of her own MPs were considering a push to replace her with two former rivals.

"All sorts of different people are talking about all sorts of different things because the Conservative backbenchers are casting around for a possible replacement for (finance minister) Kwasi Kwarteng, even for a possible replacement for Liz Truss," Paul Goodman told the BBC.

Goodman, a former Tory MP who is editor of the influential ConservativeHome blog, said that less than 40 days into her premiership "all sorts of Names are being thrown about" to replace the beleaguered leader.

MPs have been alarmed by a YouGov poll two weeks ago that gave the main opposition Labour party of Keir Starmer a huge overall lead of 33 points.

The poll came after the government's controversial September 23 mini-budget that spooked the financial markets, heaping further pressure on cash-strapped households battling a cost-of-living crisis.

The lead is the biggest the Labour party has recorded in any published poll since the late 1990s heyday of former leader Tony Blair.

Goodman said that the names being talked about included former finance minister Rishi Sunak -- who stood against Truss for the leadership of the Tory party -- and "even Boris Johnson", whom she replaced as premier and party leader early last month.

"One idea doing the rounds is that Penny Mordaunt and Rishi Sunak, who, after all, between them got pretty much two-thirds of the votes of MPs (in the leadership contest), come to some kind of arrangement and essentially take over." Mordaunt, a former defence minister, also stood against Truss, and is currently a member of her government.

- Austerity fears - Truss has enjoyed the shortest honeymoon period of any British political leader in living memory, so much so that The Economist this week said she had "the shelf-life of a lettuce".

On Wednesday, she appeared in parliament for the first time since the contentious mini-budget and told MPs she was "absolutely" committed to maintain current spending.

But with Currency, bond and other markets spooked by the extra borrowing earmarked to pay for the mini-budget's tax cuts, fears have grown that she will slash government department budgets, returning to the unpopular austerity policy of a decade ago.

The respected Institute for Fiscal Studies on Tuesday said the government would have to cut spending by more than 60 billion ($67 billion) just to stabilise debt levels by mid-2027.

Goodman said there were increasing doubts whether they could find the savings required, and if they do, whether they would calm the markets or cause further turmoil.

A small number of individual MPs had in recent days demanded government U-turns on Truss's tax cutting policies, he added.

"I don't really know if they're a majority or not, but if I'm right then we will see the government have great difficulty in getting this package of cuts together." Foreign Secretary James Cleverly on Thursday, however, insisted the government should "absolutely stick" with Kwarteng's mini-budget to help drive economic growth.

"I think changing the leadership would be a disastrously bad idea politically and also economically," he told BBC radio.

- 'Trashed' - Cleverly was speaking a day after a difficult meeting between Truss and members of her party.

MP Robert Halton told Truss at the meeting she had "trashed the last 10 years of workers' Conservatism", referring to initiatives such as apprenticeships, the left-leaning Guardian daily reported.

After the behind-closed-doors meeting, one MP told the paper the atmosphere had been "funereal".

Another was quoted as saying she had "done absolutely nothing to reassure colleagues whatsoever".

Truss is the Conservative party's fourth leader in seven years.

Johnson was forced to quit in July after dozens of resignations from his government in protest at a series of scandals.
Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Oct, 2022 ) :The United States on Wednesday offered new help to Haiti in combatting the Caribbean nation's spiraling security and health crises, but made clear it was reluctant to send troops for a proposed international force.

Promising more steps to come, President Joe Biden's administration imposed US visa restrictions on Haitians blamed for the unrest and said it was working with Mexico on a draft UN Security Council resolution to create targeted sanctions and additional security measures.

At the request of the Haitian government, the US Coast Guard will also deploy one of its major cutters to patrol off the capital Port-au-Prince, the State Department said, describing the move as an "additional sign of resolve and support." Brian Nichols, the top US diplomat for the Western Hemisphere, and Lieutenant General Andrew Croft, deputy commander of the US Southern Command, began two days in Port-au-Prince where they will meet Prime Minister Ariel Henry and other key stakeholders, the State Department added.

"We are sending a clear message that the United States will continue to support the Haitian people during this critical time," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

He said the United States was identifying Haitian officials and others involved in street gangs that have blocked humanitarian aid and would prevent them as well as their families from entering their giant neighbor to the north.

"Our intent in imposing these visa restrictions is to demonstrate that there are consequences for those instigating violence and unrest in the country," Blinken said.

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BAIKONUR SPACE CENTER (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Nothing predicts that the AngoSat-2 satellite built by Russia for Angola will have problems like its predecessor satellite, Russian state space corporation Roscosmos Director General Yury Borisov told reporters.

"At the moment, there are no signs of emergencies," Borisov said.

He said the satellite has been put into the calculated orbit, its solar panels have been deployed, and the satellite has begun its orientation. The Roscosmos chief said the Angolan control center took control of the satellite.

Should something unforeseen happen to the AngoSat-2 satellite, all risks are covered by the contract, Borisov said.

On October 12, a Proton-M rocket was launched from the Baikonur space center with the AngoSat-2 telecommunications satellite built in Russia on Angola's request. It was built to replace AngoSat-1, communication with which was lost shortly after launch in late 2017.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- HOZON Auto, the Chinese startup owning the new energy vehicle (NEV) brand NETA, on Oct. 10 signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Grand Sirius Company Limited ("GSE") for its foray into Myanmar's electric vehicle market.

Per the agreement, HOZON Auto will join hands with the Myanmar-based company to introduce the international version of the NETA U and the NETA V, and relevant services into the local auto market.

Photo credit: HOZON Auto

HOZON Auto said Myanmar's government had released a slew of incentive policies to shore up the development of the local NEV market in recent years. Meanwhile, the hike in oil prices also boosted local consumers' demands for electric vehicles (EVs). Thus, Myanmar is of great potential to become an emerging NEV market.

As HOZON Auto's strategic partner, GSE will help the Chinese NEV startup provide Myanmar's consumers with industry-leading one-stop intelligent EV mobility services by leveraging its advantageous resources deployed in multiple core cities by its subsidiaries, and its operations that span such industries as automobile trade, car care, real estate, and media.

With an increasingly fast pace for overseas business expansion, HOZON Auto announced its foray into the auto markets of countries like Israel, Nepal, Laos, and the aforesaid Myanmar during the past two months. As of mid-Sept., the startup had received orders of over 5,200 vehicles from overseas markets.
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BUDAPEST (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th October, 2022) The EU energy ministers did not make any specific decisions at an informal meeting in Prague, but this is for the better, since their earlier decisions harmed the energy security of the bloc, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.

In addition, Szijjarto one more time noted that Hungary would not support European Commission's proposals harmful to EU energy security, including the introduction of a price cap for Russian gas, since it would exacerbate the energy crisis.
(@FahadShabbir)

ASTANA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko accused the West on Thursday of going all out to destabilize his country after it agreed to never acquire nuclear weapons.

"Belarus is one of the former Soviet republics that voluntarily gave up nuclear weapons. What did we get in return? Instead of genuine international legal guarantees, we got empty declarations, such as the Budapest Memorandum, and constant attempts to destabilize the situation," he said in Astana.

Lukashenko, who spoke at the Kazakhstan-initiated Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia, said the West openly orchestrated anti-government protests in 2020 after trying out the scenario in Ukraine in 2014.

Belarus accused the United States, a signatory to the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances, of violating the pact by imposing economic sanctions on it in 2013. The 1994 memorandum promised that nuclear powers would not use economic coercion or military force against ex-Soviet countries if they signed up to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
The trilateral meeting Russia-Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan was initiated by Russian leader Vladimir Putin, since the situation is quite complicated, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) The trilateral meeting Russia-Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan was initiated by Russian leader Vladimir Putin, since the situation is quite complicated, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"Yes, it was initiated by President Putin. In general, the situation is rather complicated and, of course, few countries like Russia can take steps to help resolve the situation and reduce tension," Peskov told the Rossiya 1 broadcaster.

The undefined territories between the two states periodically become a zone of conflict. The last time the situation on the Tajik-Kyrgyz border escalated on September 14-16.

The Kyrgyz side reported 63 killed and 198 injured citizens as a result of clashes. Tajikistan reported 41 killed and 30 injured.

On September 25, representatives of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan signed a protocol on the settlement of the situation, in which they agreed to end conflicts on the border and speed up the process of delimitation and demarcation. Also, according to the document, the parties agreed to mothball four border points in those places where conflicts most often occurred.
WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said he visited Russian businessman Viktor Bout, who is serving a 25-year prison term in the United States.

"We were met at the prison very well, the Americans were polite and gave us an opportunity for holding a meeting for more than 1.

5 hours," Antonov told journalists after the visit on Wednesday.

Antonov shared that Bout is energetic, understands the situation, and really wants to return to the homeland.

"He misses his family, his mother and worries about what's going on in Russia as well as how the special military operation is proceeding," Antonov said.
TASHKENT (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th October, 2022) Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev proposed on Thursday that Asian countries appeal to the UN General Assembly to establish a high-level negotiating group on the security situation in Afghanistan, adding that consideration of the country's issues is losing steam amid myriad of global problems.

"To achieve a broad consensus on the Afghan issue and take practical measures at the global level, we propose considering the possibility of a joint appeal by Asian countries to the UN General Assembly with the initiative to form a high-level international negotiating group to prepare an algorithm for the phased implementation of the parties' obligations and agree with the Afghan authorities on it," Mirziyoyev said at the sixth Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia held in Astana.

The Uzbek leader believes that"the issue of the Afghan settlement has started to fall by the wayside" amid other acute international problems.

"We cannot allow a repetition of the sad experience of the past, when this country (Afghanistan) actually turned into an international terrorist hub," Mirziyoyev added.

Since taking power in the country in August 2021, the Taliban (under UN sanctions over terrorism) have been battling a local chapter of the Islamic State terror group (IS, banned in Russia), which is believed to be behind the majority of bomb explosions in Afghanistan. According to the Taliban, the IS presence in the country is small but it continues carrying out attacks on civilians and police.
DuBard School Recognizes Community Members at Speakeasy Event

Thu, 10/13/2022 - 09:09am | By: Van

The DuBard School for Language Disorders at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) presented awards to members of the community who have helped the organization throughout the years at the recent DuBard Speakeasy event.

A special part of the Speakeasy each year is recognizing individuals in the community who have shown tremendous support of the DuBard School and its students, said Dr. Missy Schraeder, DuBard School Director. It is because of volunteers and community support that the DuBard School continues to thrive.

Three awards were presented at the DuBard School Speakeasy this year: DuBard School University Friend, Community Friend, and Award of Distinction. The recipients were as follows:

DuBard School University Friend  Dr. Lachel Story, Dean of College of Nursing & Health Professions

Dr. Story has been an advocate for DuBard School for Language Disorders. She has gone above and beyond and has been actively engaged in DuBard Schools administration finances, government relations and mission.

DuBard School Community Friend  The Honorable Missy McGee, MS State Representative.

Rep. McGee has been a staunch supporter of DuBard School and special education services with the Mississippi Legislature. She has and continues to advocate in the MS House of Representatives and is consistently proactive in communicating with and for DuBard School.

DuBard School Award of Distinction- Mr. Edward Ed Langton

Since joining the DuBard School family in the early 1990s, Mr. Langton was integral in the formation of the DuBard Schools Advisory Board, Finance & Development Committee, and Government Relations Committee. Over the last 30+ years, he has been and continues to be completely selfless in sharing his time, guidance, wisdom, and resources in championing the DuBard School. His dedication to the success of the DuBard School and The University of Southern Mississippi has been invaluable.

About the DuBard School for Language Disorders

The DuBard School for Language Disorders was established in 1962 and is a clinical division of the Southern Miss School of Speech and Hearing Sciences. DuBard School serves children with severe language/speech disorders, including the written language disorder of dyslexia, and/or hearing impairments and provides guidance and counseling for parents and families of the children. The school is a practicum site for university students majoring in speech-language pathology, audiology, and dyslexia therapy. DuBard School for Language Disorders is a United Way agency. Further information is found at www.usm.edu/dubard.
LOS ANGELESCarnal Media has signed newcomer Serg Shepard to an exclusive contract. His first scene, "King Size Rubdown," debuts today on FunSizeBoys.com.

In the scene, Shepard plays a new client at a spa where things take an erotic turn between him and a veteran masseuse (Dillon Stone). To watch the scene, click here.

As part of the signing, Shepard's movies will make their debut on FunSizeBoys.com and ScoutBoys.com.

"Sergs handsome good looks and shredded muscle body make him a perfect match for Carnal Medias array of sites (Carnal Plus)," the company said in its announcement today.

"At 16, I left high school to live alone and study art, music and language in Kyiv. This was shortly after the Soviet Union fell apart. Later, I went back to Eastern Ukraine as a Mormon missionary in 1997, and was there for two years sharing the Book Mormon ... a show which would later go on to be one of Sergs favorite musicals on broadway! said Carnal Media CEO and performer Legrand Wolf. When I first received an application from Serg, I was stunned by his looks. But when we started chatting, I was taken by his charisma. I knew within the first few minutes of our first meeting that Serg would be a brilliant addition to our team, and I wanted to make Serg a Carnal exclusive. A few weeks later we were filming with him, and I can confidently say he is incredibly gifted sexually, and he knows exactly how to play it for the camera!

Shepard said he was pleased to sign with Carnal Media, one of his favorite companies. I messaged Legrand Wolf directly via Twitter because his websites are what Ive jacked off to for years. He responded the same day and I was flown out to shoot shortly thereafter. The experience with everyone on the team was the best Id had with any adult company, so when offered an exclusive, I told Legrand I wanted to be on his team.
Cancer Centers of Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH) opened a new medical oncology clinic at the Flagstaff Medical Center (FMC) in July that offers comprehensive cancer services in one location for northern Arizona residents.

The clinic  called the NAH Medical GroupMedical Oncology Clinic -- offers a variety of cancer services for northern Arizona patients, including medical and radiation oncology and infusion. Its team has a number of specialists in different areas, including radiologists, pathologists, social workers and mastectomy fitters, as well as a nurse navigator, clinical pharmacist and genetic counselor.

The idea is to support patients through their treatment by responding to physical, emotional and social needs that might arise in their care.

I want patients to be able to come here and have all the answers they need to be supported, to be able to call in and ask questions so that they can approach whatever treatment it is without fear," said Deborah Lindquist, MD, a board-certified medical oncologist and hematologist who leads the clinic.

Oncology care in Flagstaff had been previously available in smaller practices throughout the city. While the dispersed options are still open for local patients, medical professionals who work at the new clinic say combining different cancer services in one location has benefits for both staff and patients.

It definitely takes a multidisciplinary approach to be able to collectively care for all our oncology patients," said oncology service line administrator Amy Stapleton, BSN, RN, OCN. " ... By us opening up here, it allows us to have medical oncology, radiation oncology, as well as infusion services at one location -- which also allows our team members to collaborate in a bit more depth."

The clinic first opened July 11 after a lot of behind-the-scenes work. A space in FMCs west campus was remodeled and there was an effort made to communicate the changes to services offered.

It has two patient entryways: one for radiation oncology on the north side of the building, and one on the east side for medical oncology and outpatient infusion. These share a reception area to allow patients to easily access both areas of service as needed.

It might start from somebody having an abnormal mammogram, for instance, and then they might need to come and see a medical oncologist and see what next needs to happen, Lindquist said.

Lindquist added: Often we work with all the surgeons and radiation doctors and medical oncology together. ... Sometimes it's helping with the diagnosis, sometimes they already have the diagnosis and were involved in how best to treat it. Then afterwards, its follow-up. Patients who have had cancer, they need to be followed regularly, need to know when they need CT scans or when they need mammograms. So we take care of that for them as well.

The clinic also has plans for research getting started that focuses on breast cancer

I think the importance of bringing the comprehensive program to Flagstaff is bringing all of their necessary care into, or closer to, [patients] backyard, Stapleton said. We service patients all across northern Arizona, and being able to have one dedicated place for them to go takes a lot of that fear and that anxiety away for them.

More about the clinic can be found at nahealth.com/cancer-centers-northern-arizona-healthcare, or by calling 928-773-2271.
Truck-mounted launchers blasted off rockets and U.S. stealth fighter jets streaked across the northern Philippine sky on Thursday in a combat drill that marked the latest display of American firepower in a region where Washington has tried to deter what it warns as Chinas growing aggression.

The live-fire exercises at a gunnery and bombing range in a desolate valley in Capas town north of Manila were the highlight of two weeks of combat readiness maneuvers, which included mock amphibious assaults and joint coastal defense tactics involving more than 2,500 American and Philippine marines.

Howitzer artillery shots boomed across the dusty valley hemmed in by a mountain range and hills from U.S. and Philippine marine fire positions, some concealed by camouflage tents.

Called Kamandag  a Tagalog acronym for Cooperation of the Warriors of the Sea  the military maneuvers ending on Friday were being held simultaneously with combat drills between U.S. Marines and Japanese army forces on Japans northern island of Hokkaido that involve about 3,000 military personnel from the two sides, U.S. military officials said.

U.S. Maj. Gen. Jay Bargeron of the Japan-based 3rd Marine Division has said the exercises were aimed at bolstering the defensive capabilities of the U.S. alliance with the Philippines and Japan, and ensuring that we are prepared to rapidly respond to crisis throughout the Indo-Pacific.

This exercise is an important opportunity to bring together U.S. and Philippine capabilities and personnel to strengthen our combined readiness, proficiency and trust, U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Kurt Stahl told The Associated Press.

Americas High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System or HIMARS rocket launchers, which have recently helped Ukraine gain momentum in its war with Russia, and F-35B supersonic fighter jets were showcased in the military exercises on Wednesday and Thursday.

The HIMARS launchers fire GPS-guided missiles. Depending on the munitions and system configuration, HIMARS are capable of hitting targets up to 300 kilometers (186 miles) away, Stahl said. The highly mobile launchers are hard for the enemy to spot and can quickly change position after firing to escape retaliatory airstrikes.

While it could deliver a precision strike against critical targets like a communications system or radar, HIMARS could also be used to stop an enemy force from gaining on a contested piece of coastal terrain, Stahl said.

F-35B jets also can play a significant role in increasing battlefield awareness between allied forces on the ground and in the air through a communication link, and providing details on positions of adversarial forces, he said.

Stahl echoed remarks by Philippine military officials that the regularly scheduled annual exercises were not directed against any country.

The combat maneuvers, however, were being held at a time when Washington has more sternly warned Beijing over its increasingly assertive actions against Taiwan and rival claimant states in the South China Sea.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said American forces would defend Taiwan if Beijing tries to invade the self-ruled island, sparking angry protests from China.

Separately in July, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on China to comply with a 2016 arbitration ruling that invalidated Beijings vast territorial claims in the South China Sea. He warned that Washington is obligated to defend the Philippines under a 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty if Filipino forces, vessels or aircraft come under attack in the disputed waters.

The ruling was issued by a tribunal set up in The Hague under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea after the Philippine government brought China to arbitration in 2013 over Beijings seizure of a shoal off the northwestern Philippines. China did not participate, called the arbitration decision a sham and continues to defy it.

Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also have overlapping claims in the busy waterway, where an estimated $5 trillion in goods passes each year and which is believed to be rich in undersea gas and oil deposits.

The military drills were the first large-scale exercise between the treaty allies under newly elected Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office in June after a landslide election victory.

His predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, was an outspoken critic of U.S. security policies and nurtured closer ties with China and Russia.

Early in his presidency, Duterte threatened to sever ties with Washington and frowned on military exercises with American forces that he said could offend Beijing.

Duterte later attempted to end a key defense pact that allowed large number of American forces to visit the Philippines for combat exercises but walked back his threat.
TRANSCRIPT:

The Inside Story: Flashpoint Ukraine

Episode 61  October 13, 2022

Show Open:

Unidentified Narrator:

FLASHPOINT UKRAINE

A DRAMATIC ATTACK ON A KEY RESUPPLY LINE RATCHETS A RUSSIAN REPONSE AS THE KREMLIN RAINS DOWN FIRE ON UKRAINE

WHERE IS THIS WAR HEADING?

AND HOW WILL UKRAINE REBUILD FROM THE ASHES OF CITIES ONCE UNDER RUSSIAN OCCUPATION?

NOW ON THE INSIDE STORY... FLASHPOINT UKRAINE

The Inside Story:

ELIZABETH LEE, VOA Correspondent:

Hi. Im Elizabeth Lee, VOA Correspondent.

A stealth attack on a bridge connecting Russia to Crimea has been met with a barrage of Russian missile attacks striking targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

How the October 8th pre-dawn explosion happened and who carried it out remains a mystery. Russia says a Ukrainian truck bomb caused the damage in what President Vladimir Putin called an act of terrorism.

Ukraine has not publicly acknowledged carrying out the attack.

Completed in 2018, the 12-mile-long Kerch Strait Bridge was a pet project of Putins. It connects Russias Taman Penninsula with Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

With a chunk of the bridge now in the sea below, a key supply route for Russia to transport equipment and troops has been disrupted.

Russias response began Monday morning, firing dozens of cruise missiles, hitting infrastructure targets as well as city streets, parks and tourist sites.

U.S. President Joe Biden condemned Russias missile attacks, saying the attacks killed and injured civilians and destroyed targets with no military purpose.

Bidens statement said the attacks reinforced the U.S. commitment to Ukraine.

An emergency meeting of the Group of Seven nations resulted in a reaffirmation of support to Ukraine for as long as it takes, according to a joint statement by the G-7 nations.

VOA White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara gets us started.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA, VOA White House Bureau Chief:

Russia's airstrikes on Ukraine Monday have killed at least 19 people, prompting an emergency virtual meeting between the leaders of the worlds wealthiest nations, the G-7, on Tuesday and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President: We also have a detailed statement from the Group of Seven, in particular, that all those responsible for terror against Ukraine will be brought to justice. Starting with the current political leadership of Russia and ending with everyone who serves these terrorist interests.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA: G-7 leaders coordinated efforts to provide Ukraine with economic, security and humanitarian assistance,said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary: President Biden has also discussed with G-7 partners what more we can do together to prioritize air defense capabilities for Ukraine, which has been and will continue to be a U.S. priority.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:

Moscow, which has been partially mobilizing its population, said that more Western military aid for Ukraine means further escalation and a possible clash between Russia and NATO.

But observers say air defense systems are necessary not only to protect civilians but to create a sense of normalcy in Ukraine.

Becca Wasser, Center for a New American Security:

To eventually try and get some of the Ukrainians who have fled since Russia's invasion to return. And the aim here for President Zelenskyy is to restart Ukrainian economy, which has taken a massive blow since Russia's invasion.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:

The U.S. has committed more than $16 billion in security assistance for Ukraine since Russias invasion in February.

Luke Coffey, Hudson Institute:

The U.S. and our partners have given Ukraine some air defense systems, but nothing on the big strategic level like the Patriot missile defense system, for example.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:

The White House would not confirm whether its considering providing the Patriot missile defense system, which can counter tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and advanced aircraft.



John Kirby, National Security Council Spokesperson:

We plan to continue to provide air defense systems to Ukraine. And when there's something to announce in that regard, we'll do that as we have for the last eight months.

PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:

Weapons and other security aid will be discussed at the Ukraine Security Consultative Group meeting in Brussels on Wednesday.

Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, Washington.

ELIZABETH LEE:

NATO Defense Ministers got together this week in Brussels. While there, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff also met with the 50-nation Ukraine Defense Contact Group to coordinate next steps.

Details from VOA Pentagon Correspondent Carla Babb:

CARLA BABB, VOA Pentagon Correspondent:

With Ukrainians still reeling from the onslaught of indiscriminate Russian missiles this week, the top U.S. general blasted the missile attacks as a war crime.

Gen. Mark Milley, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman:

Russia has deliberately struck civilian infrastructure with the purpose of harming civilians. They have targeted the elderly, the women, and the children of Ukraine. Indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilian targets is a war crime in the international rules of war.

CARLA BABB:

The European Union also accused Russia of committing war crimes this week, with dozens of Russian missiles killing at least 26 people. Russia launched missiles during rush hour Monday, targeted civilian infrastructure  parks, busy intersections and power plants  not military facilities.

U.S. President Joe Biden:

Its brutal. Its beyond the pale.

Retired Col. Robert Hamilton, Foreign Policy Research Institute:

These are the latest in a really, really long list of war crimes that Russia has committed in Ukraine, going back to Bucha, right? The suburb of Kyiv, which when the Russians withdrew, the mass graves, and mass graves that have been found in eastern Ukraine.

CARLA BABB:

Ukraines urgent weapons wish list for NATO leaders includes more howitzers to provide artillery fire, and more air defense weapons to shoot down incoming missiles. Germany has delivered the first of its air defense systems to Ukraine, and a senior U.S. defense official told VOA that the U.S. will deliver two NASAMS -- National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems -- to Ukraine within the next month. This is the same type of system used to protect the skies of the U.S. capital.

At the top of Ukraines wish list to NATO, according to officials, are Multiple Launch Rocket Systems  tracked vehicles capable of launching 12 rockets at Russian targets before reloading. Such weapons are considered crucial in Ukraines counteroffensive.

Lloyd Austin, US Secretary of Defense:

We're going to do everything we can to make sure they have what's required to be effective. And most recently, we've seen them be very effective, both in the east and down in the south as they've taken back quite a bit of territory from the Russians.

CARLA BABB:

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called Russias actions in recent weeks the most serious escalation of the war since the invasion in February.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscows latest missile attacks came in direct response to a truck bombing Saturday that damaged a strategic bridge linking mainland Russia with the Crimean Peninsula. The Russian military has been using the bridge to resupply its forces in Ukraines south.

Carla Babb, VOA News, The Pentagon.

ELIZABETH LEE:

Before the bridge attack and Russian missile response, the ground war appeared to be moving into a critical new phase as Ukrainian forces regained territory that Russian troops had occupied since the February invasion.

Details from our Henry Ridgwell in London:

HENRY RIDWELL, Reporting for VOA:

Ukrainian troops have broken through Russian lines in the southern region of Kherson  liberating several villages. Kyivs forces now control settlements some 30 kilometers behind previous front lines.

Yaroslav, Ukrainian Soldier:

The mood of the boys, everything has changed, compared to what it was before  it has become much better. There is some light at the end of the tunnel, inspired by victories.

HENRY RIDWELL:

Ukrainian forces are also consolidating territorial gains in the east. The city of Lyman is in ruins; its streets littered with burned-out Russian tanks and dead soldiers.

Ukrainian generals say they have advanced 55 kilometers over the past two weeks close to Kharkiv. Russian forces are struggling to hold their line.

Karolina Hird, Institute for the Study of War:

We've had reports that the units in northern Kherson Oblast are completely understrength, understaffed and stretched along a very, very long front line that the Russian troops just do not have the men to fill.

HENRY RIDWELL:

The United States announced an additional 625 million dollars-worth of new security assistance for Kyiv this week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week announced the annexation of four areas of Ukraine  a move rejected by most of the international community. Analysts say the war is entering a critical moment.

Charles Kupchan, Council on Foreign Relations:

It's becoming in some ways make or break for Putin. His ability to survive depends on some level by saying, I've succeeded in defending the Russian homeland and expanding it. Where this goes, nobody knows. But it's safe to say that this probably is the most perilous moment for Mr. Putin since he took power about 20 years ago.

HENRY RIDWELL:

Putin has said he will use any means necessary to defend Russia  raising fears he could use so-called tactical nuclear weapons.

James Acton, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Nuclear Policy Program:

Stuff is trending very badly for Russia. Now, I don't know how bad it has to be before Russia would consider using nuclear weapons in a very serious way. I'm not even sure Putin knows in his own mind how bad this would have to be for him to use nuclear weapons.

HENRY RIDWELL:

For now, Russia is trying to turn the tide with conventional forces. The defense ministry said this week over 200-thousand men have already been drafted into the armed forces since a partial mobilization was announced two weeks ago.

Karolina Hird, Institute for the Study of War:

These forces are unlikely to provide any sort of additional defensive capabilities or offensive capabilities in the short run. And in the long run, these troops are unlikely to be well trained or necessarily highly motivated.

HENRY RIDWELL:

Russian forces continue to launch shells and missiles into Ukrainian-held territory  often into civilian areas. This convoy of evacuees fleeing the city of Zaporizhzhia was hit September 30. Dozens were killed  including many women and children. Moscow did not comment on the attack.

Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, London.

ELIZABETH LEE:

Through the echoes of air raid sirens, millions of school children are returning to classrooms in Ukraine.

More than two thousand (2,000) schools are reportedly damaged or destroyed by Russias war.

115 kilometers east of Kyiv is the village of Bohdanivka. Russian troops occupied it and burned much of it to the ground before Ukrainian forces reclaimed it.

VOA Eastern Europe Chief Myroslava Gongadze was there to show us how they are rebuilding.

MYROSLAVA GONGADZE, VOA Eastern Europe Chief:



Bohdanivka was under Russian occupation for 20 days. Russian forces turned the local school and kindergarten into a base and the hospital. When the Ukrainian army came to liberate the village, the Russians set fire to school facilities, reducing them to ashes.

Walking amid the ruins of her life's work, the school director recalls how she ran with her teenage daughter at night across a field and forest for safety and how devastated she was when, on her return, she saw what happened to her school.

Ludmyla Deyko, School Director:

School and kindergarten in a village - its the heart of everything. So, this was the most painful thing that happened in our village. When we learned that the school was on fire, we hoped it could survive. But soon we learned that there was nothing left of the school.

MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:

Standing in the place that was her office, she speaks of how technologically advanced her school was and how she dreams of bringing her students back here. She is pushing to rebuild the school as soon as possible.

More than 300 schoolchildren in this village did return for the new school year and local authorities are trying to accommodate the families and bring normality to the children's lives.

Olexandr Kutzenko, who oversees the local government education system, says that all the children in this village have resumed their education in nearby facilities.



Olexandr Kutzenko, Local Education Official:



At this time, we are working on rebuilding the education facility. We understand that the country is at war and there is not enough money, so we are hoping for help from investors in terms of rebuilding.

MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:





For now, as a temporary solution, this local cultural club is reorganizing to host the school. The civil society initiative, SaveEd foundation, led by former Minister of Education Hanna Novosad, is helping with this project and others around the country.

Hanna Novosad, Former Education Minister:



Russia is waging the war, not just against Ukrainian people, (but) against the education system. If you look at the scale of destruction, it is enormous and it's really hard not to notice that they are deliberately destroying our schools. More than 2,000 schools around the country are damaged, and there are hundreds of villages like this Bohdanivka where no school is left and no access to education. And they do it very explicitly for ideological reasons as well.

MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:

Despite the devastation, learning facilities for children are coming back to life.

Hanna Novosad, Former Education Minister:

We are arranging here so-called digital learning space for kids who live in this village, where they will have access to devices to the internet where they will be able to work alone or have their online lessons.

MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:

Children and teachers are eager to participate and learn. Even on Sunday, children return to their damaged school and join the effort to bring their community back to life.



Myroslava Gongadze, for VOA News, Bohdanivka, Ukraine.

ELIZABETH LEE:

Among those sharing the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize is the Center for Civil Liberties, a Ukrainian human rights organization.

Its leader, Oleksandra Matviychuk told VOAs Myroslava Gongadze that what Ukraine needs most, is weapons.

Oleksandra Matviichuk, Center for Civil Liberties in Ukraine:

Ukraine needs weapons, an additional amount. Because Russian people will tolerate war criminals, but they will not tolerate losing war criminals. This military defeat in Ukraine provides the first signs of bankruptcy of Putin's ratings in Russia.

ELIZABETH LEE:

Its been a busy couple of weeks for our Eastern European Bureau Chief, Myroslava Gongadze.

She spent some time in her native Ukraine, reporting on the situation there.

Then she reported from the Warsaw Security Forum and then came to the U.S. for a few days.

I caught up with her while she was in Boston to get a debrief on what shes seen and heard.

Thank you for joining us Myroslava. Can you share with us what was happening in Ukraine as far as what people are feeling and experiencing before the attack on the bridge? What was the mood like? And then what's the situation now as far as you understand?

Myroslava Gongadze, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief:

You know, during the time that I was I was in Kyyv. It was just before this latest attack. The mood in Kyyv was pretty calm, and people were happy that Ukraine is making advances. Ukrainian military forces are making advances in on the east and south. So everybody were upbeat, about about the situation.

There was a lot of worries as well about possibility of using nuclear weapons. And there was a lot of discussions about that. However, people were happy and Kyyv was pretty calm. However, after the last last attack, and the mood changed a lot because people had to sit in the shelters for five hours. They did not know what was happening and it's was pretty big shock for a whole population of Ukraine because attack happened all over Ukraine in almost every important city and every important facilities were bombed by Russian forces.

ELIZABETH LEE:

So, at the Warsaw security forum, what are officials from the US and Europe saying about this potential nuclear option?

Myroslava Gongadze, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief:

General Petraeus said that there are other options that Putin actually had how before using nuclear. He said before using nuclear, Putin would try to to basically make Ukrainian state dysfunctional. They try to try to make the life in Ukraine unlivable right now. General Hodges said that the best effect nuclear has when the strongest nuclear has one it's not used, and that's what he was trying to tell President Putin and he said that the United States and the Western community have to send a very, very clear, strong message to Putin. And to his his circle, that this would not be tolerated at all. And the response from the Western response from us would be very strong.

ELIZABETH LEE:

What are the Ukrainian officials telling you?

Myroslava Gongadze, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief:

They say that they would fight there's no way Ukraine would go for any peace talks right now or a peace negotiation because the peace is not possible at this at this moment. And in this stage of war, the peace only possible when you Russian forces for the out of Ukraine and then only then the negotiation is possible. And Ukrainians are resolute in their in their determination. Pushing Russian forces out of Ukraine, and we saw that on Battlefield Ukraine is winning and it this is clear for foreign and NATO generals and for officials. So that's why basically, Putin is waving this nuclear flag because that's all his only option he has at this point.

ELIZABETH LEE:

What was it like for you, personally to be there and covering it and with the Ukrainians?

Myroslava Gongadze, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief:

Elizabeth, I spent time in Odessa, Karkiv, Azoom. I went to mass graves in Azoom right after the liberation of the of the town. And it's shocking. It's difficult to watch. It's difficult because you obviously see all this tortured bodies, dead bodies, mass of them are kids in mass graves. And you cannot forget that that image, it's standing in front of your eyes. So it's a difficult for me personally because obviously I'm Ukrainian and this is my countryman basically dying and suffering.

ELIZABETH LEE:

Its been six months since word started to filter out about a massacre in the town of Bucha.

Hundreds of bodies were discovered including dozens of people killed execution-style --- hands tied behind their backs, shot in the head at close range.

Despite the trauma, the rebuilding of Bucha is underway. Our Anna Chernikova was there.

ANNA CHERNIKOVA, Reporting for VOA:

Images of the atrocities committed by Russian army in Bucha at the outskirts of Kyiv shocked the world months ago. The city was devastated, and in mass graves, hundreds of bodies were found.

When the city was liberated in April, it was impossible to imagine that life could ever return to normal here. With classrooms destroyed, a return to school was unthinkable anytime soon.

But six months later, Buchas children  and those internally displaced from other parts of Ukraine - are coming to classrooms that have been quickly rebuilt.

Teachers and parents are happy the children will be back after everything they went through.

Viktoria Osadcha, School Headmaster:

When I came here after the occupation, when it was liberated, I came to the school to see what was going on here. These broken windows - I didn't think that we would be able to welcome the children by September first. To be honest, I thought that we would just have a remote studies format.

ANNA CHERNIKOVA:

But as the war is ongoing, the risks remain very high.





Alina Pylypenko, Parent of First Grader:

Indeed, I will be worried, but weve been told that the basement will be equipped with Wi-Fi, we have already packed an emergency bag for the child, just in case. Still, we hope that everything will be fine.



ANNA CHERNIKOVA:

Instructors say their teaching approach will never be the same as it was before Russias February invasion.

Lidia Malai, Ukrainian language teacher:

I am no longer the teacher I was before February 24. What I saw, what I experienced and what I am witnessing and experiencing now. Of course, it will definitely affect my work, my educational work with children. And the children, the children also saw everything.





ANNA CHERNIKOVA:

This school, like others in Bucha, was renovated with the help of the US Global Empowerment Mission, an international charity. Its founder, Michael Capponi, believes that this is not just an education investment, it is the restart of countrys economy on various levels.

Michael Capponi, GEM Founder:

All of this is like the ecosystem, like it starts moving in a positive direction again. So thats why I always say, thats a multitude of reasons why a minimal investment of $100 000 for a school, imagine what it does right, it solves so many different things than just the educational problem.



ANNA CHERNIKOVA:

Thousands of Ukrainian children who are getting back to their studies despite the everyday danger of war proves education is a core for the countrys survival.

Anna Chernikova, VOA News, Bucha.

ELIZABETH LEE:

With a history of close ties to Russia, NATO member Bulgaria is not providing weapons to Ukraine --- limiting its contributions to helmets, bullet-proof vests and humanitarian aid.

It also includes extending an olive branch to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war.

VOAs Tatiana Vorozhko reports from Sofia.

Yevheniia Serheieva, Displaced Bucha Resident:

When the fire broke out, firefighters could not come. This apartment no longer exists. The gates are broken; tanks used to drive here.

TATIANA VOROZHKO, VOA Correspondent:

Yevheniia Serheieva shares photos from her neighbors in Bucha, Ukraine, in the Kyiv region.

With her husband and five-year-old daughter Solomiia, she left Bucha on February 20  the family had planned a short vacation in Budapest, Hungary.

Yevheniia Serheieva, Displaced Bucha Resident:

We walked around Budapest for four days. Then life seemed to stop. I volunteered in Budapest that whole time  we lived there for two months, then we moved here to join friends.

TATIANA VOROZHKO:

Serheieva volunteers at the Mother Ukraine center in Sofia, Bulgaria. Olena Koceva, head of the Ukrainian union Mother Ukraine, says most of the recent refugees who come to Bulgaria are from the occupied regions of Ukraine and have nothing.

Olena Koceva, Head of Mother Ukraine Union:

Many people come from Mariupol, Melitopol and Berdyansk. People came out of the occupation after a grueling and long journey.

TATIANA VOROZHKO:

In March, the Bulgarian government housed temporarily displaced Ukrainians in hotels. They also received access to subsidized medicine, education and social services.

Sociologist Ognyan Minchev says despite some pro-Russian sentiment in Bulgaria, most people responded to the Ukrainian refugees' needs.

Ognyan Minchev, Institute for Regional and International Studies Director:

ost of those refugees are women with their children. So, you cannot be hostile towards women and children if you are a normal human being.

TATIANA VOROZHKO:

Bulgarians also donate to Mother Ukraine.

Olena Koceva,, Head of Mother Ukraine Union:

I am grateful to our Bulgarians. They are ordinary people, legal entities, companies who give us gifts, who bring food or money or transfer money to our accounts. We have already sent over 50 tons of humanitarian aid to Ukraine, most of which was donated by Bulgarians.

TATIANA VOROZHKO:

However, Koceva, says, the intensity of assistance has been gradually dropping over time.

Yevheniia Serheieva, Displaced Bucha Resident:

There is less aid and fewer donations. People are already tired of the war.

TATIANA VOROZHKO:

As of late September, 136-thousand Ukrainians registered for temporary protection and nearly 57,000 remain in Bulgaria, according to the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR.

Many of them are being housed in hotels, as part of a government- and European Union-funded program that will run through the end of October.

Tatiana Vorozhko, VOA News, Sofia, Bulgaria.

ELIZABETH LEE:

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Australia is considering a request from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to provide military training support against the Russian invasion.

Australia, the largest non-NATO contributor of military aid to Ukraine, has sent missiles and armored personnel carriers as well as humanitarian supplies. Australia has already imposed sweeping sanctions on Russian institutions and its political and military leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In the wake of deadly missile attacks in Ukraine by Russia, Australian officials said it was clear that the conflict would be protracted and that the Canberra government was working on how we stand with Ukraine over the long term.

Since February, Australia has granted visas to about 9,000 Ukrainian refugees. Russia has responded by placing Australia and other European nations, the United States, Japan and South Korea, on a list of unfriendly countries.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Wednesday that any military training authorized by the Canberra government would only happen outside of Ukraines borders.

We are the largest non-NATO contributor [to Ukraine]. The suggestion is not going into Ukraine," said Albanese. "The suggestion is whether Australians could provide support for training in Europe and we will give consideration to that, as we will give consideration to the other requests.

The move would be supported by opposition lawmakers in Canberra. However, opposition leader Peter Dutton warned that any deployment of Australian forces into Ukraine would be a provocative act.

In a statement Monday, activists from the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations again called on Canberra to declare the Russian government, armed forces and FSB, (the) secret service organization, terrorist organizations under Australian law.

Ukrainian groups have this week attended peace rallies in Hobart, Melbourne and Sydney. Demonstrators are Thursday gathering outside of the Russian Embassy in Canberra.

They want the international community to do more to stop the war.

The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations Stefan Romaniw said in a statement Monday that current sanctions [against Russia] have failed to stop the slaughter.
As Australia prepares to end mandatory coronavirus isolation rules Friday, new research shows that almost a third of adults have had symptoms of long COVID. In Canberra, a parliamentary health committee has heard clinics are being contacted by more patients struggling with ongoing ailments.

COVID-19 cases reported in Australia continue to fall, but the consequences of infection are still being felt.

A study published Wednesday by the Australian National University said that about one in three adults who have had the virus had symptoms that lasted for longer than four weeks, a common indicator of so-called long COVID.

Symptoms include extreme fatigue, heart palpitations, joint and muscle pain as well as insomnia and a cough. The study also stated that many patients with long COVID also experienced low mood.

In parliament in Canberra, the House of Representatives Health Committee started Wednesday an inquiry into long COVID and repeated COVID infections.

Melissa McIntosh, a lawmaker and deputy chair of the committee, told reporters in Canberra that the investigation would be thorough.

We are hearing so much anecdotal reporting when it comes to long COVID and I, myself, experienced some form of long COVID after contracting COVID and still have the effects today many months after COVID as do many other Australians, she said. So, we want to collect the evidence, speak to people who have experienced long COVID and also to speak to their families, to speak to researchers and to organizations. Even mental health organizations.

The Australian National University study has shown that females, young Australians, and those living in middle-income households have the highest probability of contracting the virus.

Australia on Friday will end compulsory five-day isolation for people who test positive to COVID-19, removing one of the countrys last remaining disease-control restrictions.

Australia did have some of the worlds toughest coronavirus measures. It closed its borders to most foreign nationals for more than two years and had some of the worlds longest lockdowns.

Government data shows around 5,000 COVID infections are now being reported each week on average, compared to more than 110,000 in mid-January 2022.
A monkeypox outbreak has been confirmed in the town of Mbonge, health authorities in Cameroon say, but armed separatists are preventing workers from investigating suspected cases.

Cameroon government officials say health workers have been deployed to the districts of Kumba and Mbonge to communicate to hundreds of civilians with suspected monkeypox infections to immediately isolate and avoid contact with other people and animals, including pets.

Kumba and Mbonge are districts located in Cameroon's English-speaking southwest region near the border with Nigeria.

Emmanuel Lenya Nefenda, the highest ranking Cameroon public health official in Kumba, said civilians are being educated after a suspected monkeypox infection was confirmed in Kumba. He said the case was reported after the confirmation by Cameroon public health officials of a monkeypox outbreak in Bole Bakundu, a village in Mbonge.

In order to prevent the spread of the highly contagious monkeypox, Nefenda said people should avoid contact with wild animals, avoid eating wild animals, and wear clean clothes, as opposed to "bush clothes" that may have had contact with rats or other animals.

Nefenda spoke from Kumba via the messaging app WhatsApp.

The government says one case of monkeypox was confirmed in Kumba, and the patient is receiving treatment in a hospital isolation ward. Several dozen specimens have been collected from suspected patients and sent to specialized laboratories in Cameroon's capital, Yaounde, for laboratory examinations.

Health officials are warning civilians to take suspected patients to hospitals, and not to herbalists or African traditional healers in villages. But villagers say ongoing battles between separatists and government troops make it impossible for suspected patients to be transported to hospitals, which are far from towns.

Separatists on social media platforms, including Facebook and WhatsApp, say any health worker sent by Cameroon's central government in Yaounde should obtain an authorization from fighters.

But the government says only Cameroon state officials can assure the safety of health workers assisting people suspected of monkeypox infections.

Eko Eko Filbert, the highest government official in charge of public health in Cameroon's English-speaking Southwest region where Kumba and Mbonge are located, said armed groups should allow medical staff members to render humanitarian services.

Monkeypox is contagious, he said, but can be contained with the help of health workers.

Eko said no health official deployed to assist civilians suspected of monkeypox infection has been attacked, but that frightened health workers are scared of going out to search for patients and suspected patients.

The government says it will protect both its citizens and health workers.

The U.N. says Cameroon is a monkeypox endemic country but displacement away from established surveillance systems due to armed conflicts increase the risk of undetected transmission.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said 21 countries in the past week reported an increase in monkeypox cases, mostly in the Americas, which accounted for almost 90% of all cases reported last week.

The WHO says cases in the global monkeypox outbreak have topped 70,000 and warned that a decline in new cases does not mean people should drop their guard, as the slowdown in new cases worldwide could be the most dangerous time in the outbreak.

The U.N. says the disease causes fever, muscular aches and large boil-like skin lesions.


As the City of Flagstaff continues to manage a response to multiple post-fire flood corridors, engineering teams have narrowed down two potential fixes for a particularly problematic culvert  one that was identified as a flood risk at least 16 years ago.

The culvert in question is a 4-by-8-foot box culvert that channels the Schultz Creek drainage beneath Highway 180 near Flagstaff Fire Department Station No. 5. During this year's monsoon season, sediment and debris from the Pipeline Fire scar easily overwhelmed the culvert numerous times, causing floodwaters to overtop Highway 180, force closures, and inundate residences in the Stevanna Way and Coconino Estates neighborhoods.

My wife and I volunteered to let water go through our property this summer, said flooded Stevanna Way resident Steve Puhr. But its not going to happen again. Weve built a wall.

During Tuesdays Flagstaff City Council meeting, Puhr was visibly livid as he spurred Council to demonstrate swift leadership in addressing the faulty culvert. He claimed there had been governmental awareness of the culverts inadequacy for at least 16 years.

Minutes from a 2006 planning and zoning commission meeting between Coconino County and the City of Flagstaff regarding the construction of Flagstaff Fire Department Station No. 5 contain references to concerns that the existing culvert will have to be torn up and redone at some point in the future in order to bring the station out of the floodplain, noting that it will also benefit some residents on Stevanna Way who are now in the floodplain.

The same minutes reflect conversation that the floodplain issue was to be addressed incrementally, with building the fire station being the first priority, but that over the long range they hope to look for solutions that will resolve the issue for the entire area.

Now, the culvert is finally getting the attention it has long needed.

I wasnt here 16 years ago, said Flagstaff Mayor Paul Deasy in response to Puhrs critique. But sometimes it does take catastrophic events for us to recognize a problem exists.

Aiming to console Puhr, Deasy said, Im hoping that through the presentation today you see how much design, how much coordination is happening to try to correct the problem.

According to Ed Schenk, city stormwater manager, the existing culvert overwhelms at flows of about 100 cubic feet per second (cfs). During post-fire flooding of Schultz Creek this monsoon season, some storms produced flows of at least 800 cfs.

But two new designs for the culvert, presented by SWI Engineering to city council on Tuesday, promise to bring its capacity up to 950 cfs.

As described by Stephen Irwin, project engineer for SWI engineering, the team began with more than 10 different hypothetical deigns and narrowed them down to the two most promising options.

Option one is a double barrel of two 8-foot by 5-foot culverts that follow the existing culverts diagonal path beneath Highway 180, then into an open channel at the edge of the Atwood Family Trust parcel. From there, option one would direct floodwaters into another set of culverts that dive beneath Quintana Drive and into the Rio de Flag drainage.

Option two is more of a straight shot, Irwin explained, that would use similar 8-foot by 5-foot culverts to direct waters from Schultz Creek under Highway 180 at a perpendicular angle. Such conveyance would then stay underground and run beneath the south edge of the Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church before entering directly into the Rio de Flag.

There are pros and cons to each option, Irwin said.

Option one would likely be less expensive at an estimated cost of $4.99 million, but would require more complex property access, including construction within a county island that is outside of city jurisdiction.

The complexities could also equate to a longer period before project completion, Irwin said.

Option two is estimated to cost more at $5.34 million, but requires less complex property access, would take place entirely within city limits and could retain the existing culvert as an overflow structure.

There should be less utility conflict as well, Irwin said.

Option two is the most likely choice, said Sam Beckett, Flagstaff streets section director. He also noted that the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), which has been a partner in the project due to its impacts on Highway 180, supported either option, but prefers option two because construction would require a less invasive closure of Highway 180.

According to Beckett, ADOT may also be able to contribute funds toward the project completion.

Because there was no damage to Highway 180, this project is not eligible for ADOT emergency funding, Beckett reported. But theyre still looking at all viable options to support this project.

He added: They have been great partners so far, and been at the table for the design process."

City council after the presentation raised the question of how the Rio De Flag channel would handle the additional input from either culvert design. Irwin responded that as long as the main channel did not flash flood at the same time as the Schultz Creek tributary, floodwaters should be able to stay within the channel.

Simultaneous flash flooding of the main channel and the Schultz Creek tributary is possible but the likelihood is pretty low, Irwin said. He also noted that certain amounts of armoring the main channel at the point of the tributarys input would be necessary to protect from increased erosion.

Tuesdays city council presentation also included updates of other flood mitigation projects around the city, including the Schultz Creek retention basins above the Highway 180 culvert -- which are expected to be complete by Oct. 26.

Financial reports estimate the total costs of preseason mitigation, flood response, property damage and new mitigation to total more than $16.7 million.

The city is now placing pallets within neighborhoods where sandbags can be stacked for pick-up, but ciity officials recommend keeping them in place, however. To request a pallet drop off, call (928) 213-2102.

While a completion date and final design for the Highway 180 culvert project has not yet been determined, there will be further opportunity for public discussion of this and other Pipeline West flood mitigations during a community meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 24, in Flagstaff City Hall.
The congressional panel investigating the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6 of last year unanimously voted Thursday to subpoena former President Donald Trump to testify about his role in stoking the violence and his weeks-long efforts to upend his loss in the 2020 election.

We need to hear from Donald Trump, the committee chairman, Congressman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, said. He said Trump needs to answer for his actions  part of his scheme to stay in power.

We have an obligation to see President Trumps testimony  in full view of the American public, Thompson said.

The committees vice chair, Congresswoman Liz Cheney of Wyoming, said the panel must see the testimony of January 6ths key player because numerous Trump aides refused to answer the committees questions, choosing instead to invoke their constitutional right against self-incrimination. Trump helped to defeat Cheney in her bid for reelection to the next Congress.

All nine committee members in a televised roll call vote favored the Trump subpoena, seeking his testimony and documents he might have relating to his efforts to stay in office rather than to acknowledge he had lost to Democrat Joe Biden, now the countrys 46th president.

Whether Trump, a Republican, would cooperate with the Democrat-dominated committee or would try to block its subpoena, is in question.

Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich said the former president would not be intimidated by the committee's "meritless rhetoric or un-American actions in voting for the subpoena. The spokesman in a tweet also called the committees members bitter, power hungry & desperate.

Trump has contested other efforts to question his presidential and post-presidential actions, filing repeated legal challenges, sometimes winning, sometimes losing, but always delaying a final resolution.

To this day, Trump falsely claims he was cheated out of reelection because of voting irregularities in several states he narrowly lost to Biden.

He has called the select House of Representatives committee  seven Democrats and two vocal anti-Trump Republicans  political thugs and scoundrels.

In its final public hearing unless Trump agrees to testify, the committee showed a collection of videos of the mayhem at the Capitol 21 months ago and snippets of testimony from Trump aides who repeatedly told him he had lost reelection and that whatever irregularities might have occurred in the voting or vote-counting were not enough to upend the outcome.

The committee said he lost 61 of 62 legal challenges in the various states he lost narrowly to Biden, and the one case was inconsequential to the national outcome.

The committee contends that Trump had a premeditated plan to declare victory on election night on November 3, 2020, whether he was winning or losing, which is what he did at the White House in the early hours of November 4 even though the election outcome was in doubt at the time.

Trump called the continued vote-counting  millions of mail-in ballots that heavily favored Biden  a fraud on the American people. Frankly, we did win.

Trump ignored or rebuffed aides admonitions to acknowledge Bidens victory in the following weeks, leading up to the mayhem at the Capitol two months later as lawmakers were in the early stages of certifying Bidens Electoral College victory.

At one point, the panel showed a video clip of a Trump aide, Alyssa Farah Griffin, who visited him in the Oval Office as a television newscast happened to be showing a picture of Biden.

Can you believe I lost to that [f-ing] guy? Trump said, according to Griffin. But publicly, Trump continued to tell millions of his supporters he had won the election.

Thursdays hearing unfolded less than a month before nationwide congressional elections on November 8, in which Democrats narrow political control of Congress is at stake, and two years ahead of the 2024 presidential election, with Trump, a Republican, signaling he is likely to mount a new run for the White House against Biden.

Witnesses at the earlier hearings in June and July said Trump repeatedly pressured Vice President Mike Pence to block Congress on January 6, 2021, from certifying the Electoral College vote. Pence refused to acquiesce to Trumps demand, drawing his ire as Trump-supporting rioters stormed the Capitol.

Some of the rioters, more than 800 of whom have been arrested, shouted Hang Mike Pence! a suggestion one Trump aide said the president thought was appropriate. Gallows had been erected on the National Mall within eyesight of the Capitol.

Trump, witnesses said, also considered sending the names of fake, Trump-supporting electors to the Capitol for the official Electoral College vote count to replace the official Biden electors in states Trump lost by narrow margins.

Trump is facing several criminal investigations stemming from his actions as he tried to remain in power, including a sweeping Justice Department probe into whether he helped foment the Capitol riot by urging his supporters to go there and fight like hell as lawmakers were certifying his loss.

In the southern state of Georgia, a prosecutor in Atlanta, the state capital, is investigating Trumps request to the top state elections official to find him 11,780 votes, one more than he needed to overturn his 11,779-vote loss to Biden.

The state-by-state vote counts are essential in U.S. presidential elections because the countrys leader is not elected by the national popular vote count, which Biden won by more than 7 million votes. Rather, the outcome is effectively determined in the Electoral College, with each states number of electors roughly determined by its population, with the biggest states holding the most sway. In most cases, all of a states Electoral College votes go to the popular vote winner in that state.

The House investigative committee has no power to bring criminal charges against Trump but could make a criminal case referral to the Justice Department in a final report it expects to complete before the end of this year. If Republicans succeed in taking control of the House starting in January, they will almost certainly disband the committee.

The subpoena of Trump could easily delay the committees efforts to close the investigation by December.

Since its last public hearings, the committee obtained more than 1.5 million pages of documents and communications from the Secret Service, the presidential security agency. They include details of how agents blocked Trumps attempts to join his supporters at the Capitol even after their assault on the countrys seat of government had already erupted.

Trump, after rallying his supporters near the White House to stop the steal of the election, angrily berated a Secret Service agent when he realized his security detail was taking him back to the White House, where witnesses say he watched the riot on television for more than three hours before publicly urging his supporters to go home.
Ukrainian officials said Thursday the countrys capital region was hit by Iranian-made drones operated by Russian forces, while Ukraines military said Russian missiles had hit 40 different settlements throughout the country during the past day.

Deputy head of Ukraines presidential office Kyrylo Tymoshenko said the drones hit critical infrastructure facilities around Kyiv.

Officials described the drones as so-called kamikaze aircraft, which carry explosives and crash themselves into a target.

Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Sienkovych also reported Thursday overnight shelling in the southern Ukrainian city that destroyed a five-story apartment building.

The aerial attacks came as Ukrainian partners worked to supply additional air defenses to the country.

The more audacious and cruel Russian terror becomes, the more obvious it is to the world that helping Ukraine to protect the sky is one of the most important humanitarian tasks for Europe of our time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday.

Britain announced Thursday it would send Ukraine rockets capable of shooting down cruise missiles, as NATO defense ministers gathered in Brussels to discuss support for the Ukrainian military.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that while Russian President Vladimir Putin tries to force untrained, unwitting Russian civilians to the front lines through the conscription of 300,000 reservists, Ukraine has shown the world that the military and military power of a free people fighting for their democracy and their sovereignty prevails.

Their courage inspires us all, Austin said. Putin chose war. But Ukraine chose to defend itself. And it has done so magnificently.

The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, accused Russia of committing war crimes with its recent attacks.

He said Moscow has increased their strikes on civilian infrastructure, power generation, and dams. Russia has deliberately struck civilian infrastructure with the purpose of harming civilians. They have targeted the elderly, the women, and the children of Ukraine. Indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilians as targets is a war crime in the international rules of war.

Putin has said Russias missile attacks this week on cities throughout Ukraine, including the capital, Kyiv, came in direct response to the truck bombing last Saturday that destroyed part of the strategic Kerch Bridge linking mainland Russia with the Crimean Peninsula. Russia seized the peninsula in 2014.

On Wednesday, Moscows FSB security service announced it has arrested eight people, including five Russians, linked to the incident. It said three Ukrainians and Armenians helped carry out the attack.

The FSB statement accused Ukraines military intelligence service of launching the attack, what it characterized as a terrorist act. The FSB blamed it on explosives hidden in the back of a cargo truck that was detonated on the bridge.

The FSB contended that a 22-ton bomb deployed in the attack was shipped from the Ukrainian port of Odesa before following a circuitous route through Bulgaria, Armenia and Georgia.

Ukrainian officials have strongly signaled they carried out the attack but not officially claimed responsibility. Ukraines Ministry of Internal Affairs called the Russian investigation nonsense.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
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Russian forces used Iranian suicide drones to attack Ukraines capital. NATO defense ministers continued meeting in Brussels, vowing to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia for as long as it takes. A lawyer re-careers yet again, following Russias latest invasion of her homeland.
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected former President Donald Trump's plea to step into the legal fight over the FBI search of his Florida estate.

The justices did not otherwise comment in turning away Trump's emergency appeal.

Trump had pressed the court on an issue relating to classified documents seized in the search authorized by a federal judge of Mar-a-Lago.

The Trump team was asking the justices to overturn a lower court ruling and permit an independent arbiter, or special master, to review the roughly 100 documents with classified markings that were taken in the Aug. 8 search of Mar-a-Lago.

A three-judge panel from the Atlanta-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit last month limited the special master's review to the much larger tranche of non-classified documents. The judges, including two Trump appointees, sided with the Justice Department, which had argued there was no legal basis for the special master to conduct his own review of the classified records.

But Trump's lawyers said in their application to the Supreme Court that it was essential for the special master to have access to the classified records to "determine whether documents bearing classification markings are in fact classified, and regardless of classification, whether those records are personal records or Presidential records."

The Justice Department said in a Supreme Court filing that Trump's request had no merit.

The FBI says it seized roughly 11,000 documents, including about 100 with classification markings, during its search. The Trump team asked a judge in Florida, Aileen Cannon, to appoint a special master to do an independent review of the records.

Cannon subsequently assigned a veteran Brooklyn judge, Raymond Dearie, to review the records and segregate those that may be protected by claims of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege. The Justice Department objected to Dearie's ability to review the classified records, prompting the 11th Circuit to side with the department.
A two-judge bench of Indias Supreme Court has expressed opposing views on whether students can wear the Muslim headscarf in classrooms, a contentious issue that had sparked widespread protests earlier this year and become a flashpoint over the rights of minorities.

The southern Karnataka state imposed a ban on students wearing the hijab in classrooms in February. It was challenged in the top court after another court upheld the government order on the ground that wearing the hijab is not an essential practice of Islam.

In the closely watched judgments delivered on Thursday, one judge said that authorities can enforce a uniform in schools, while the other held that the right to wear the hijab cannot be restricted by the state.

Justice Hemant Gupta upheld the ban saying that all communities should follow the dress code.

Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia on the other hand said that the high court took a wrong path by focusing on whether the hijab was an essential religious practice and wearing it was "ultimately a matter of choice - nothing more and nothing less."

He said that his focus was on education of the girl child, especially in rural areas and questioned whether the ban would make her life better.

Petitioners had expressed worries that girls might stop attending school if they were prevented from wearing the headscarf.

The issue will now go before a larger bench of three or more judges to settle.

The ban on the hijab in classrooms is not countrywide  it has only been enforced in Karnataka.

Following the split verdict, state authorities said that the ban will continue. Our rules do not permit religious clothing inside the class, Karnataka Education Minister B.C. Nagesh told reporters. Saying that worldwide ladies are demanding they will not wear hijab, even in countries like Iran, he expressed hopes that a verdict by a larger bench will support the ban.

Defending the decision to stop girls from wearing the headscarf, the states Hindu nationalist government had told the Supreme Court that its decision was religion-neutral and aimed only at promoting uniformity and discipline.

Critics however had slammed the order calling it an instance of marginalization of the countrys Muslim minority under the Bharatiya Janata Party. India is home to 200 million Muslims, who make up nearly 14 percent of the population.

The controversy erupted after a government-run school in Karnatakas Udupi district had stopped Muslim girls from attending class wearing the hijab in December last year. After Muslim students staged protests, the issue took on a religious dimension as Hindu activists staged counterprotests, demanding that the saffron shawl, a Hindu religious symbol should also be allowed in schools.

Supporters of the ban said that it was within the jurisdiction of schools to set dress codes which should take precedence over any religious practice.

But rights advocates and activists say it violates the fundamental right to education and privacy. The uniform can never be more important than education. In a democratic country, it is a matter of choice whether a girl student wears the hijab or not, said Zakia Soman, co-founder of a Muslim womens rights group called the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan.

Activists said that comparisons with the anti-hijab protests in Iran were misplaced because wearing the hijab is not mandatory in India.

I agree that the hijab is a patriarchal imposition and is not mandatory in Islam. But for a girl to understand that she requires education, said Soman. That opportunity for that girl to educate and empower herself can be thwarted by the ban on hijab.

She said the split verdict reflected a country that was becoming increasingly polarized on religious lines.

With the top court failing to settle the issue, the debate will likely continue to rock India in the months to come.
Iranian American businessman Siamak Namazi was forced to return to Tehran's Evin prison on Wednesday after Iranian authorities had given him a furlough on October 1 and let his elderly father leave Iran for medical treatment on October 5, their lawyer said.

Namazi, who in 2016 was convicted of espionage-related charges that the United States has rejected as baseless, on Thursday will mark seven years since his arrest and detention in Iran, said Jared Genser, a lawyer for the family, in a statement.

"Yesterday, members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) informed Siamak  that his furlough would not be extended further, without providing any explanation," Genser said, saying the furlough was renewed once on October 8. "Late this morning (Tehran time), Siamak was taken back into custody by the IRGC and forced to return to Evin Prison."

Iranian Americans, whose U.S. citizenship is not recognized by Tehran, are often pawns between the two nations, now at odds over whether to revive a fraying 2015 pact under which Iran limited its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief.

In addition to Namazi, other U.S. citizens detained in Iran include environmentalist Morad Tahbaz, 67, who also has British nationality, and businessman Emad Shargi, 58.

The Iranian mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Namazi's case.
Every week, Israeli volunteers with the group Humans Without Borders drive young, seriously ill Palestinian children in the West Bank to and from Israeli hospitals, where they receive treatment not available in the Palestinian health system. The Palestinian Authority covers costs for treatment but not transport. Many patients are too weak to travel by bus, and some can't afford the fare. Linda Gradstein joined one of their trips. VOA footage by Ricki Rosen
A powerful jihadist group has taken over a strategic town in northwest Syria following days of clashes with several militia groups who were controlling the area, local sources said.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly known as al-Nusra Front, entered the town of Afrin on Thursday after its former rulers withdrew their forces, according to residents and a monitor group.

Afrin, a Kurdish-majority city, had been under the control of Turkish-backed armed groups since 2018 after a Turkish military offensive that ousted Syrian Kurdish forces that Ankara considers terrorists.

A resident in the town told VOA that he witnessed "tanks and military vehicles belonging to [HTS] rolling into Afrin after the other militias who were previously in our city abandoned their positions and left with their vehicles and equipment."

The resident, who declined to reveal his identity because it could endanger him, added that "he heard about very small skirmishes between the two sides in a few parts of the city, but the militiamen didn't really resist the oncoming militants."

HTS is an Islamist group that has been in control of most of Idlib province in northwest Syria, one of the few areas that are outside the control of Syrian government forces.

Designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S., the group was the main affiliate of al-Qaida in Syria until 2018 when it formally severed ties with the global terror group. Experts, however, say the militant group has maintained its al-Qaida-inspired ideology.

In the takeover of Afrin, at least two other similar Islamist groups were involved with HTS, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Thursday's developments follow three days of clashes between HTS and its allies on the one hand and Turkish-backed groups on the other in the vicinity of Afrin.

Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Syrian Observatory, told VOA that at least 30 positions in the area had been controlled by HTS fighters prior to their controlling of Afrin.

Several armed opposition factions fight under the umbrella of the Syrian National Army (SNA), which is backed by Turkey. Rights groups have accused these Islamist groups of abuses against civilians in Afrin and elsewhere in northwest Syria.

Military experts said the recent advances of HTS show that SNA factions have had deep divisions.

"The most important point in this development is that the SNA has been divided into two sides," said Ahmed Rahal, a former Syrian army general who currently works as a military analyst in Istanbul, Turkey. "One faction has obviously sided with [HTS leader Abu Mohammad] al-Jolani and one side against him."

Rahal told VOA that "handing over Afrin this way and the withdrawal of SNA fighters from the city show that these fighters don't have a plan nor a desire to fight."

"There is currently a talk about regrouping efforts to try to retake Afrin, but I don't think these SNA factions are capable of executing such plans," he added.

Rights groups voiced concerns that the HTS takeover of the northwestern Syrian town could expose the local population to further abuses.

"It is still not clear what is going to happen as the situation is still unfolding, but if al-Nusra stays in Afrin, there certainly will be more human rights violations against our civilians," said Ibrahim Sheikho, a member of the Human Rights Committee in Afrin, who was displaced from the city following the Turkish invasion in 2018.

"These people are even more radical than the groups that had ruled Afrin since 2018. Al-Nusra has the same ideology as ISIS and they will impose it on people in Afrin," he told VOA, using another acronym for the Islamic State terror group.

The Turkish government has not yet commented on the recent reported developments.

This story originated in VOA's Kurdish Service.
New Zealand has unveiled plans to tax the greenhouse gas emissions of farm animals, in a controversial proposal designed to tackle climate change.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the levy, announced Tuesday, would be the first of its kind in the world.

Gases naturally emitted by New Zealand's 6.2 million cows are among the country's biggest environmental problems.

The scheme would see farmers pay for methane gas emissions from their cattle as well as the nitrous oxide in the urine of livestock.

Ardern told farmers they should be able to recoup the cost by charging more for climate-friendly products.

She said the "pragmatic proposal" would reduce agricultural emissions while making produce more sustainable by enhancing New Zealand's "export brand."

The government hopes to sign off on the proposal by next year, and the tax could be introduced in three years' time.

But with New Zealand going to the polls in the next 15 months, the proposal could cost Ardern rural votes as farmers quickly condemned the plan.

Andrew Hoggard, president of the Federated Farmers lobby group, said the scheme would "rip the guts out of small-town New Zealand."

He argued the tax could push farmers into growing trees on fields currently used to rear livestock.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand, representing the country's sheep and cattle farmers, said the plan failed to take into account rural measures already in place to counter greenhouse gases.

"New Zealand farmers have more than 1.4 million hectares of native forest on their land which is absorbing carbon," said chairman Andrew Morrison.

"It's only fair this is appropriately recognized in any framework from day one."
Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life without parole for the 2018 murder of 17 people at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, after the jury said Thursday that it could not unanimously agree that he should be executed.

The jury's recommendation came after seven hours of deliberations over two days, ending a three-month trial that included graphic videos, photos and testimony from the massacre and its aftermath, heart-wrenching testimony from victims' family members and a tour of the still blood-spattered building.

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will formally issue the sentence later.

Cruz, his hair unkempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jury's recommendations were read. Rumblings grew from the family section  packed with about three dozen parents, spouses and other relatives of the victims  as life sentences were announced. Many shook their heads, looked angry or covered their eyes.

Cruz, 24, pleaded guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members and wounding 17 others on Feb. 14, 2018. Cruz said he chose Valentine's Day to make it impossible for Stoneman Douglas students to celebrate the holiday ever again.

During the prosecution's rebuttal case, Satz and his team argued that Cruz's smooth movements with the gun and his ease in reloading helps show he does not have any neurological disorders, as claimed by his attorneys.

Lead defense attorney Melisa McNeill and her team have never disputed that Cruz committed a horrible crime, but they say his birth mother's excessive drinking during pregnancy left him with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and put him on a path that led to the shooting.

The massacre is the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the U.S. Nine other people in the U.S. who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is awaiting trial.
Across the U.S., there's a shortage of police officers that is often blamed on a tight labor market and negative perceptions of the job after a spate of incidents in which officers killed unarmed Black people. Even so, many signing up for law enforcement jobs in and around Washington say they hope to build a better and kinder force, as VOA's Laurel Bowman discovered. Videographer and producer: Adam Greenbaum
The Biden administration and U.S. lawmakers are pushing this week for longtime ally Saudi Arabia to face consequences for agreeing to reduce oil production.

OPEC+, which includes Saudi Arabia, the 12 other members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and 10 other oil-exporting nations, announced last week that it would cut its oil production target by 2 million barrels a day, despite U.S. objections.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said the decision was unanimous and based on economic considerations.

Some members of Congress are calling for an end to arms sales to Saudi Arabia. U.S. President Joe Biden signaled Wednesday he was willing to consider that proposal when Congress returns from a recess next month.

Were going to react to Saudi Arabia and were doing consultation when they come back. We will take action, Biden told reporters.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez said in a statement Monday that the Saudi decision was tantamount to underwriting Russias war in Ukraine. The United States has been working to sanction Russian oil exports as punishment for the unprovoked February invasion.

There simply is no room to play both sides of this conflict  either you support the rest of the free world in trying to stop a war criminal from violently wiping an entire country off of the map, or you support him. The kingdom of Saudi Arabia chose the latter in a terrible decision driven by economic self-interest, Menendez said.

Menendez proposed that Congress freeze all aspects of the U.S.-Saudi security relationship, including arms sales and security cooperation. Senate and House Democrats introduced a proposal late Tuesday that would halt all sales for one year.

Saudi Arabia is clearly the driving force in this decision. It's the dominant power in OPEC+, it has been for years and so singling out Saudi Arabia makes the most sense, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, one of the bills co-sponsors, told reporters Wednesday.

I believe the Saudis have consistently been miscalculating in the past couple years, and it's probably because [former U.S. President Donald] Trump candidly gave them carte blanche. A lot of the deals that were taking place over the previous administration gave them a sense of security, and what President Biden is trying to do is just return to the proper balance, Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, another co-sponsor, told reporters.

Blumenthal and Khanna wrote Sunday in an editorial in American political publication Politico that Saudi Arabia does not have other good options for arms purchases, giving the U.S. leverage.

Make no mistake, this is a move on oil prices that was designed, Aaron David Miller, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former State Department Middle East analyst and negotiator, told VOA.

The decision to cut production comes ahead of midterm elections in the United States November 8.

What the Saudi crown did [was] to literally undermine the president's political position, certainly with respect to oil prices, weeks before the midterms and at the same time undermine the president's position, the international community's position, in an effort to isolate [Russian President] Vladimir Putin in terms of his aggression against Ukraine by supporting him politically and economically, Miller said.

Congressional Republicans have been less vocal about what consequences Saudi Arabia should face for the oil production target cut but have criticized the kingdom for human rights violations and other concerns in the past.

Some of the senators from gas-producing states in the United States were deeply concerned about two years ago when Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ [countries] took certain decisions that led to a severe drop in the price of oil. I think the broader picture is that from a bipartisan basis, the U.S.-Saudi relationship is not on a stable foundation, Brian Katulis, vice president of policy at the Middle East Institute, told VOA.

Blumenthal told reporters he was in talks with Republicans about his legislation. Lawmakers are due to return to Washington after the midterm elections.

Cindy Spang contributed to this report.
The Somali Journalists Syndicate is coming under pressure from the government, with authorities trying to enter its offices in Mogadishu and arresting the organizations secretary-general.

Analysts think the actions may be related to a government order banning media coverage of militant group al-Shabab.

Security agents had been caught on camera trying to gain entry to the offices of the syndicate, known as the SJS. Then on Tuesday, authorities detained the groups secretary-general, Abdalle Ahmed Mumin, at the citys international airport.

The actions rattled Somalias media members. Mohamed Ibrahim, syndicate president, said, "On behalf of Somali Journalists Syndicate and entire Somali media fraternity, I condemn the arrest in the strongest terms possible and call for the Somali government to release him immediately. Also, this attack represents an attack to all Somali media.

The raid came shortly after the SJS and three other media organizations jointly protested a government directive against publishing content from al-Shabab.

The Ministry of Information has said media should not publish content from the militant group. It also blocked access to 40 social media accounts and websites deemed to be affiliated with al-Shabab.

Journalists warn the directive could be used against independent media.

Authorities on Wednesday said Mumin had been detained on a "security-related charge," but Ibrahim questioned whether it could be linked to the joint statement protesting the order.

The government has not consulted the Somali media stakeholders at this directive and also it represents and also shows how the Somali government is trying to manipulate and silence independent voices, he said.

Neither the police spokesperson nor the Ministry of Information responded to VOAs requests for comment.

Many journalists are dismayed at the government order, which they say could endanger them and curtail the freedom of expression and the publics right to know.

Mohamed Bulbul, a journalist with Mogadishu-based Universal Television, told VOA that the directive put journalists at increased risk.

"Al-Shabab immediately issued a warning against those who obey the order," he said. "So you can feel [at risk] because the reporter is not driving a bulletproof car and is not armed."

Security analysts argue that the Somali government is caught in a difficult situation, trying to balance the rights of journalists with securing victory against al-Shabab.

Abdiaziz Hussein Issack, a security analyst with the Hamad Bin Khalifa Civilization Center, a cultural and research center in Denmark, said, "I think that the government's decision is a double-edged sword. If the decision is used and implemented well, it would be a good thing and productive. Terrorist propaganda can be stopped and freedom of speech can be protected. But if any party tries to use it for its own interest, it will be dangerous.

According to Issack, journalists must avoid sensationalizing terrorism. The journalists and the media should report what happened but avoid exaggeration or propaganda issued by the terror group, he said.

Al-Shabab has proved adept at using online platforms and social media to spread its propaganda.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared last week that there was no neutral position in the war against al-Shabab, saying, You are either with the government or the terrorists.
A former employee of Donald Trump has told federal agents the former president asked for boxes of records to be moved within his Florida residence after receiving a government subpoena demanding their return, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

The FBI conducted a court-approved search on August 8 at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, seizing more than 11,000 documents, including about 100 marked as classified.

The employee, who was working at Mar-a-Lago, was cooperating with the Justice Department and has been interviewed multiple times by federal agents, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the situation. The witness initially denied handling sensitive documents and in subsequent conversations with agents admitted to moving boxes at Trumps request, the newspaper reported.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A Trump spokesperson said the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden had "weaponized law enforcement."

"Every other president has been given time and deference regarding the administration of documents, as the president has the ultimate authority to categorize records and what materials should be classified," Trump spokesperson Taylor Budowich told the newspaper.

Budowich accused the Justice Department of leaking "misleading and false information" to the media.

The document investigation is one of several legal woes Trump is facing as he considers whether to run again for president in 2024.
Iraqs military said Thursday nine rockets landed in Baghdads heavily fortified Green Zone.

The attack happened as lawmakers gathered for a session of parliament to elect a new president.

Security officials said at least five people were injured.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Rocket fire targeted the Green Zone late last month as lawmakers convened to vote on a parliamentary speaker.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
A failed engine and high waves were to blame for the fatal shipwreck that killed at least 18 Europe-bound migrants off the coast of Greece last week, one survivor tells VOA.

Speaking to VOA Somali by phone, Mustafa Farah, a survivor from Somalia in his 20s, said about 50 migrants were traveling on an overloaded boat that departed Izmir, a city on Turkeys Aegean coast, the evening of October 5, bound for Greece.

As we traveled under cover of night, strong winds swept the Aegean Sea, and the tragedy started to appear when the engine of the boat ... failed, he said. We floated for hours in the sea. The waves were too high. About three meters, Farah said.

According to Farahs account, late that same night, the flimsy rubber raft crashed on a rocky tip of Greek shores and disintegrated just a few hundred meters off the coast of Lesbos, on the easternmost rim of Greece.

By late Wednesday, the same night we set out from Turkey, the vessel was swept into a rocky inlet and the tragedy happened, Farah said.

The sinking sparked a dramatic overnight rescue effort as island residents and firefights pulled the shipwreck victims to safety up steep cliffs.

Some survivors and the dead bodies of the Somali migrants were taken to Mytilene, the capital of Lesbos.

Farah said one boy and 17 women died in the accident. He said another 30 people, including 13 men and 17 women, survived.

Hamza Mohamed Ismail, a Somali refugee in Mytilene who saw the migrant bodies, speaking to the VOA Somali service, gave slightly different totals, saying a 14-year-old Somali boy and 20 women were among the dead.

Ismail says the survivors he saw, most of them young women, were in a full state of shock and could not immediately talk about what happened.

The Associated Press reported that the coast guard on Greeces eastern island of Lesbos said the bodies of 16 young African women, a man, and a boy were recovered after a dinghy carrying about 40 people sank.

Coast guard officials added that 25 people were rescued by late Thursday.

In a separate incident, another boat packed with migrants sank off the Greek coast the evening of October 5, killing several other migrants. Dozens of people from that boat remain missing.

The sinkings are the deadliest in recent years and the tragedies add to rising tensions between NATO allies Greece and Turkey over the safety of migrants at sea, with Athens accusing its neighbor of failing to stop smugglers active on its shoreline and even using migrants to apply political pressure on the European Union.

Turkey denies the allegations and has publicly accused Greece of carrying out reckless summary deportations, known as pushbacks.

Most migrants who reach Greece travel from nearby Turkey, but smugglers have changed routes  often taking greater risks  in recent months to avoid heavily patrolled waters around eastern Greek islands near the Turkish coastline.

Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly last month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Greece of turning the Aegean Sea into a graveyard."
Sophisticated spyware poses an "existential" threat to investigative journalists, causing sources to remain silent for fear of being identified, a U.S. media watchdog warned Thursday in a report.

Echoing demands by dozens of NGOs, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called for an immediate moratorium on the development, export, sale and use of spyware until robust guarantees are implemented to safeguard journalists.

"I know for a fact that a lot of people are scared to talk to me. A lot of people are scared of writing me, they're scared that my phone is watched," Moroccan journalist Aida Alami, who works for The New York Times, said in the report.

The same is true of Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi, who works for the Direkt36.hu website and whose name appeared among those targeted by Israeli-made Pegasus spyware in a scandal that broke in 2021.

"The biggest fear now is that this [Pegasus] affair will have a chilling effect on sources, and paradoxically this enormous scoop will hinder our work in the long run," Panyi was quoted as saying in the report.

More worryingly for the CPJ, "old methods of defense don't work" against the latest surveillance tools, which don't require a target to click on a link or download an attachment but simply receive "an unanswered call" or even "an invisible text message."

"There's nothing new about governments or criminal gangs spying on journalists or activists," the report says.

"But the development of high-tech 'zero-click' spyware  the kind that takes over a phone without a user's knowledge or interaction  poses an existential crisis for journalism and the future of press freedom around the world."

When the latest spyware has infected a phone, "it can eavesdrop on a call before encryption takes place, much like reading a letter over a writer's shoulder before it is sealed in an envelope."

The committee, which details the cases of four countries (Mexico, Hungary, Morocco and India), warns that "even in democratic societies, the political will to restrict spyware," which is also used for purposes such as monitoring suspected terrorists, "may be lacking."

Beyond a moratorium, CPJ calls for import and export restrictions on countries that use these technologies as a tool of repression and for the creation of an international treaty limiting their trade.

The committee called on companies that develop this software to make a public commitment to press freedom and include explicit clauses in contracts and licenses prohibiting spying on journalists.

The CPJ said the companies should revoke access to spyware when abuse is detected and reported.


The explosion of Russia's key connection with Crimea is the latest flashpoint in Russia's war on Ukraine. Where will the battle turn next on The Inside Story-Flashpoint: Ukraine. Airdate: October 13, 2022.
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NATO defense ministers on Wednesday discussed ways to bolster Ukraines air defense systems to combat the barrages of missiles from Russia on civilian targets throughout Ukraine -- a bombardment the top U.S. general has called a war crime. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb has details.
A new report finds half of all countries globally lack early warning systems that could save lives by alerting communities of impending disasters, including typhoons, droughts, and heatwaves. The joint report by the U.N. Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, or UNDRR, and the World Meteorological Organization is being released to mark the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Extreme weather is increasing in frequency and intensity. The United Nations estimates up to 3.6 billion people live in areas that are highly vulnerable to climate change and related disasters. It says the number of recorded disasters has increased by a factor of five, driven in part by human-induced climate change and more extreme, unpredictable weather events.

The UNDRR predicts 560 disasters will take place annually by the year 2030. It warns the number of droughts will increase by 30 percent and the number of scorching heatwaves will triple by 2030.

Loretta Hieber Girardet is UNDRRs chief of the risk knowledge, monitoring and capacity development branch. She says the best ways for communities to protect themselves and to adapt to climate change is to scale up early warning systems. Yet, she notes only half of the world has functioning systems in place.

This means that one out of three people globally, primarily in small island developing states and least developed countries and six out of every 10 persons in Africa lack access to effective early warning systems," Girardet said. "This is unacceptable.

She says lack of early warning leads to loss of lives and livelihoods and unnecessary damage to assets. She says new data show disaster-related deaths are eight times higher in countries with limited early warning coverage than in those that have comprehensive systems in place.

And yet we know that early warnings by only 24 hours can cut the ensuing damage by 30 percentA climate-related hazard does not have to translate into a disaster," Girardet said. "It becomes a disaster because communities are not prepared and because the vulnerabilities and exposures of that community has not been mitigated.

Many early warning systems cover only one type of hazard, like floods or cyclones. However, given the many extreme, unpredictable climate-change-related events, the United Nations urges countries to invest in multi-hazard early warning systems. Such systems, it notes, can address several climate-induced disasters that may occur simultaneously.
The United Nations said Wednesday that it had so far received $90 million, or only about 11%, of the $816 million total flash appeal to assist 9.2 million flood victims in Pakistan.

The pace of the arrival of the committed amount has slowed in the past two weeks, the U.N. lamented in a statement.

We are responding with what we have, but it is not enough. We appeal to the world: Please speed up the response, it said.

U.N. and Pakistani officials say the major concerns are outbreaks of waterborne diseases, nutrition, drinking water, shelter and food security in the aftermath of the climate change-induced flooding that has affected 33 million people in the country.

Pakistan could see as many as 2.7 million malaria cases in the 32 worst-hit districts by January 2023, and 5.74 million more people are a step or two away from famine, the U.N. warned.

The flooding submerged huge swaths of the country of about 220 million people, killed more than 1,700 people, including 639 children, washed away 800,000 homes and killed more than 1.1 million livestock.

"Seventy percent of those affected by the floods are women and children. Seventy-nine percent of crops in Sindh [province] are damaged completely. These are not just numbers in a vacuum but illustrate the scale of the damage," Pakistani Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman said Wednesday.

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that 3.8 million hectares of cropland in Pakistan were inundated.

The Pakistani government estimates that the flooding destroyed at least 1.6 million hectares of farmland, and with large areas still underwater, new crops cannot be planted, particularly in the southern Sindh province.

The U.N. noted Wednesday that more than 350,000 small farms are in flood-hit areas, and if those farmers are unable to sow seeds in time, it will directly impact the food basket for all of Pakistan.

The planting window is very short, starting now [October] till December, and farmers will need seeds and fertilizers immediately, the U.N. said.

US cautions against aid misuse



Meanwhile, reports of corruption and theft of flood relief items, especially in Sindh, have prompted the United States, a major humanitarian aid contributor, to caution against such practices.

This is something we take very seriously, not only in Pakistan but anywhere around the world where American taxpayer dollars are implicated and when there is an urgent humanitarian interest at stake, which is clearly the case, in terms of the response to the flooding in Pakistan, State Department spokesman Ned Price said Tuesday.

Price told reporters in Washington that "adequate tracking mechanisms" were in place to ensure U.S. response activities were meeting the humanitarian need in Pakistan.

We also are required to provide regular program updates on the progress of activities and any security concerns, and we require our partners to immediately report any potential diversions, seizures or losses immediately," he said. "So, this is something we take very seriously.
The Biden administration agreed to accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants who arrive at U.S. airports, similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russia's invasion, while Mexico has agreed to take back Venezuelans who come to the U.S. illegally over land, the U.S. and Mexico said Wednesday.

Effective immediately, Venezuelans who walk or swim across the border will be immediately returned to Mexico under a pandemic rule known as Title 42 authority, which suspends rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19.

Any Venezuelan who illegally enters Mexico or Panama after Wednesday will also be ineligible to come to the U.S. under the offer.

The U.S. offer of parole for up to 24,000 Venezuelans is modeled on a similar program for Ukrainians who fled Russia's invasion and will hinge on Mexico "keeping in place its independent but parallel effort" to take back Venezuelans who come illegally, the Department of Homeland Security said.

The moves are a response to a dramatic increase in migration from Venezuela, which leapt over Guatemala and Honduras in August to become the second largest nationality arriving at the U.S. border after Mexico.

"These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way," said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. "Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here."

In a related announcement, Homeland Security said it will make available nearly 65,000 temporary work visas for lower-skilled industries, roughly double the current annual allotment. At least 20,000 of those temporary visas will be reserved for Haiti and northern Central American countries.

Until now, Mexico has agreed to accept migrants expelled under Title 42 only if they are from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, in addition to Mexico, resulting in highly uneven enforcement. The U.S. struggles to expel other nationalities because of the cost, strained diplomatic relations and other considerations.

Poor relations with the Venezuelan government have made it nearly impossible to apply Title 42. The pandemic rule has been used 2.3 million times since March 2020 but applied only 2,453 times on Venezuelans.

In August, Venezuelans were stopped 25,349 times, up 43% from 17,652 in July and four times the 6,301 encounters in August 2021, signaling a remarkably sudden demographic shift.

The announcement amounts to a potentially major expansion of Title 42 even though the administration recently sought to end it. Senior officials told reporters they are bound by a federal judge's decision in May to keep Title 42 in place.

Venezuelans who successfully apply online will come to the United States through an airport, similar to an effort that began in April to admit up to 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war for stays of up two years. The U.S. has admitted tens of thousands of Ukrainians since then, including nearly 17,000 in August.

Venezuelans, like Ukrainians, must have a financial sponsor in the United States.

They also must figure out how to reach the U.S. There are currently no flights allowed from Venezuela thanks to U.S. concerns about the safety of Venezuela's aviation industry. The restriction applies to charter and commercial flights.

Venezuelans do not have to be in Venezuela to be eligible and may come from other countries, administration officials said.

An estimated 6.8 million Venezuelans have fled their country since the economy tanked in 2014, mostly to Latin America and Caribbean countries. But the U.S. economy's relative strength since the COVID-19 pandemic has caused Venezuelan migrants to look north. The Biden administration's inability to apply Title 42 has provided more incentive.

Mexico, under pressure from the U.S. administration, introduced restrictions on air travel to limit Venezuelan migration to the United States in January, but many then shifted to a dangerous route over land that includes Panama's notorious Darien Gap.

The surge in Venezuelan migration has emerged as a major challenge to authorities in the U.S., Mexico and Central America and a test of a hemispheric agreement reached in June in Los Angeles for countries that host migrants to confront issues together.
Top U.S. officials are ramping up efforts to convince Americans that the upcoming midterm elections will be safe and that the results can be trusted.

The director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency (CISA) Thursday became the latest official voice to join the chorus, while noting the election threat environment is more complex than it has ever been.

We are not aware of any specific or credible threats to compromise or disrupt election infrastructure, CISAs Jen Easterly told reporters during a virtual briefing.

Easterlys comments followed similar assurances in recent days from the White House and the head of U.S. Cyber Command, who told an audience in Washington on Tuesday that we are seeing no significant indications of attacks that are being planned right now.

But with just three weeks until U.S. voters head to the polls, the challenge for election officials is daunting.

Questioning elections legitimacy

A December 2021 poll by the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, with a margin of error of 3.1%, found that more than 20% of respondents believed the outcome of the 2020 U.S. presidential election was definitely not legitimate.

A YouGov poll of 1,500 U.S. citizens conducted in July found 24% of those surveyed had no confidence the 2020 U.S. presidential election was held fairly.

When asked about their confidence that the 2022 midterms will be held fairly, 13% said None at all," while 19% said Only a little.

The YouGov polls margin of error was +/- 2.7%.

A recent analysis by The Washington Post found more than 290 political candidates who deny the results of the 2020 election will be on the ballot in November, with election deniers running for office in 48 of the 50 U.S. states.

A key driver of such doubt has been former President Donald Trump, who continues to claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Trump and his political allies, however, have lost more than 50 lawsuits in state and federal courts alleging fraud, but his followers and others still continue to challenge the credibility of U.S. elections.

State and local election officials have sought to push back, though they say it is taking a toll.

This false narrative is still disrupting our lives, Deborah Scroggin, the director of the Oregon Elections Division at the Oregon secretary of states office, wrote earlier this month in The Oregonian.

Throughout the state, local elections officials are spending countless hours responding to election deniers, Scroggin added. Weve seen a flood of public records requests and legal threats during critical stages of preparing for November. These are attempts to delay and disrupt our work.

Still, Meagan Wolfe, the president of the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED), remains optimistic.

This has been a challenging few years, Wolfe, who also serves as the Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator, told reporters during CISAs briefing Thursday. But I feel confident that election officials will rise to the occasion, as we've seen them do time and time again.

Increase in election-related threats

The challenge extends beyond a lack of confidence among a significant minority of Americans. The lingering doubts about the trustworthiness of U.S. elections has led to threats.

Officials with the U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation say they have received more than 1,000 reports of election-related threats since June 2021. To date, 11% of the cases have required additional investigation, resulting so far in at least six arrests and one conviction.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security warned in its most recent National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) bulletin that the midterm elections could serve as a rallying point for domestic extremists bent on violence.

Pressed on rumors that armed Americans may try to gather at polling places to oversee or secure the vote, CISAs Easterly said Thursday, We have not seen any specific or credible information about those types of threats at this point in time.

However, Easterly and other officials said CISA and its partners across government are paying close attention.

We have a very tight partnership with state and local election officials if there's any of that information that's picked up, so we can get that to them to ensure that they're aware of it, she said.

CISA is also working to empower state and local election officials so they know what to do in case they are confronted with situations that could escalate to violence, going as far as to post a training video on its YouTube channels.

CISA has also been working to combat the constant din of disinformation, collaborating with groups like the National Association of Secretaries of State to promote a trusted sources initiative called #TrustedInfo2022.

We know from what we've learned that the most impactful way of combating disinformation is to empower local election officials as the trusted voices within their communities to help voters get the accurate information they need to have confidence when they go to the ballot box, Easterly said.
The the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says Zimbabwean authorities and ruling Zanu PF should investigate the assaults and harassment of journalists covering events of public interest in the past week.

In a statement, CPJs Africa program coordinator Angela Quintal in New York, said, The increasing cases of violence against journalists in Zimbabwe is becoming a serious source of concern and must be strongly condemned.

Press freedom violations and the rising impunity for crimes against journalists should not be tolerated as the country prepares for a general election in 2023.

Since Thursday last week, five journalists were assaulted, briefly detained, and prevented from covering events by police, ZANU-PF activists, and suspected government agents from the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO).

CPJ said on Thursday last week in Mbare in Zimbabwes capital, Harare, police assaulted NewsDay reporter Moreblessings Nyoni after he was found taking pictures of Harare City Council employees demolishing vending stalls and residential structures.

According to the journalist, who communicated with CPJ via a messaging app, police asked for his press card before assaulting him using batons, leaving him with a swollen arm and painful buttocks.

I showed them my press card, but they said, Its fake. You are a sellout, the journalist said.

On Saturday in Harares Kuwadzana neighborhood, ZANU-PF members and people believed to be members of the CIO assaulted Voice of America correspondent, Godwin Mangudya, and forced him to delete footage captured at the ruling partys central committee elections.

According to the journalist, who spoke to CPJ via a messaging app, news reports, and the Zimbabwean chapter of the regional press freedom group Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), Mangudya was held for over an hour and his personal and work-related data was wiped from his devices.

On Sunday in Masvingo, about 183 miles (294 kilometers) south of Harare, ZANU-PF security officers barred NewsDay journalist Desmond Chingarande from covering the central committee elections, which were held at Masvingo Teachers College.

Chingarande told CPJ that he was informed that NewsDay reporters were not being allowed in. Other journalists from state broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation were granted access to the event, said the journalist.

On Monday in Mbare, police assaulted Dunmore Mundai and Gadaffi Wells, journalists from Alpha Media Holdings HStv, according to the journalists who spoke to CPJ via messaging app, news reports, a MISA statement, and the International Federation of Journalists.

The two were in the area filming a documentary when they captured an exchange between police and vendors from ruling ZANU-PF and opposition Citizens Coalition for Change over vendors market stands, the journalists and MISA statement said.

Mundai and Wells were only released after identifying themselves as journalists despite having news cameras, the journalists said.

CPJ did not get any response from phone calls and repeated queries sent via messaging app to ZANU-PF information director, Tafadzwa Mugwadi, and police spokesperson Paul Nyathi.
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A trifecta of livestock promotion, agricultural education and preservation of the Western way of life, will keep cowboys, ranchers, kids and families busy and highly entertained at the 55th annual Northern International Livestock Exposition (NILE) Oct. 14 to 22.

The immersive experience includes everything from cattle breed and junior livestock shows and a western marketplace to team roping, barrel racing and rodeo competitions.

The jam-packed nine-day event will attract more than 600 exhibitors from across the U.S. showcasing their animals and wares, multiple hands-on kid-focused activities, student-driven 4-H competitions and a Radiant Rodeo for fans with special needs. For shoppers, three tradeshows will be packed with merchandise.

This is such a wonderful opportunity for our Billings residents to take advantage of our Western culture and have the opportunity to get close to cattle, sheep, goats, horses and so much more, said Leah Morgan Clark, NILE general manager. There is something, literally, for everyone. For residents who have just moved here, for ranchers, horse lovers, students.

Against the backdrop of thousands of cattle at the Expo Center and Montana Pavilion, the exposition will include several exciting new activities as well as some variations on standard favorites. In addition to the wildly popular Runnin the Rims Barrel Race, A Spin 2 Win team roping competition will pit two-man teams against a steer in the ultimate challenge in speed. Mountain States Stock Dog Trials will showcase highly trained dogs in a series of competitive maneuvers designed to move cattle.

These dogs are incredibly amazing to watch, Morgan Clark said. If you are a dog lover, this event features the best of the best of these specialty dogs and what they can do. For ranchers, these dogs are invaluable when they are out moving cattle, especially when the ranchers dont have enough help. These dogs become their second cowboy.

Morgan Clark said one significant change this year is that NILE will be hosting its own preliminary rounds of the highly competitive Ranch Rodeo Finals. In the past, teams have had to qualify somewhere else to compete at the NILE event. This year, 34 teams, the majority of them from Montana, will compete in the preliminaries at the Super Barn prior to the final competition at the Metra Park arena. Teams will be competing in three categories: doctoring, trailering and branding along with Wild Cow Milking and Ranch Bronc riding competitions.

For more information on the NILEs daily schedule, please visit thenile.org.

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It seems only fitting that the Anaconda Smelter Stack is in clear view from the windows of the Barclay II Supper Club. The stack, completed in 1919, is one of the tallest free-standing brick structures in the world at 585 feet. In its heyday, Anaconda was the site of the smelter operations that processed copper ore from Butte. These operations were the economic lifeblood of this small community which sits in the shadow of the Pintler Mountains. In September of 1980, The Atlantic Richfield Company dealt a significant blow to Anaconda when they permanently shut down the copper smelter. Some 1,000 employees were left jobless, and many chose to seek work elsewhere, impacting the communitys vitality.

One Anaconda resident, Dorothy Barclay, was determined to open a supper club with her sister-in-law in 1981. Her kids thought she was crazy, given the towns current economic hardships. Forty-one years later, Barclay II is still going strong, thanks to Dorothys kids and grandkids. Dorothy set the tone for the restaurant that prevails today  warm smiles, kind words, and the ability to make every customer feel special.

When Dorothy passed at 72, her daughter Sandy Barclay Mattson took over the reins of running the business. Sandy, who still works at Barclay II, has passed the torch of responsibility on to her three children, George Mattson, Tammy Mattson, and Stephanie Hekkel. I sat down with all of them to learn a bit more about this iconic restaurant. Their most significant change happened last July. The family designed and built a new facility, attached to the new Forge Hotel on the east end of Anaconda and in full view of the Smelter Stack. Barclay II has a swanky bar with first come, first serve to sit for drinks and dinner and a more formal dining room, reservations only. There is also a room in the back for receptions and banquets. Im curious if there is a definition for supper club. Sandy and her kids pause, not sure how to answer. Stephanie says, I guess a place with white tablecloths and candles on the table. And a place that only serves supper.

The bars interior has touches of copper mixed with earthy shades of brown and black. A bank of windows and high ceilings keep the space light and airy. High-backed upholstered booths, along with wood tables, provide ample seating. The family mentions that prisoners at Montana State Prison in nearby Deer Lodge made all the tables and booths. The craftsmanship is superior, as fine as anything Ive seen in a name-brand furniture store. The restaurant area uses the same colors found in the bar, although the lighting is very subdued, lending a bit of intrigue to the room. I could imagine the copper kings of the last century hunkered down in a dark corner booth, secretly negotiating mining rights while dining on steak and sipping bourbon.

Barclay II has a custom of serving complimentary raviolis and spaghetti with every meal. When I asked how this tradition came to be, the family looked at each other inquisitively, then Stephanie remarked, All we were ever told is that it was something that came from Meaderville. Meaderville was a small suburb of Butte, settled by Italian immigrants. By the 1930s, the town had gained a reputation as the boisterous place for booze, women, gambling, and surprisingly, for its exceptional supper club restaurants, which served spaghetti and raviolis with each meal.

Dorothys parents migrated from Italy and settled in Anaconda. But its likely her interaction with the Italian community in Meaderville spurred her on to open a supper club and serve the raviolis and spaghetti with every meal. Sadly, Meaderville would be crushed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, making way for the Berkeley Pit. Luckily for diners, Barclay II carries on the tradition of an outstanding supper club in Montana with Italian roots.

Come hungry if heading to Barclay II for dinner. For starters, tenderloin kabobs, sauteed mushrooms, deep-fried ravioli, steak poutine fries, and blue cheese steak flatbread are options. Meals include a house salad, shrimp cocktail, spaghetti, ravioli, and your choice of French fries, baked potato, or vegetables. The menu is extensive, but this restaurant is best known for its tenderloins, which can be paired with crab, prawns, or sauteed scallops. Grilled salmon, halibut, and fish and chips are additional seafood choices. Pasta dishes include shrimp, clam, vegetable, or mussel scampi. I ordered a tenderloin, which was exceptional  fork-tender, juicy, and rich in flavor.

Barclay II plays off its mining history with specialty drinks. The Smoke Stack blends Knob Creek smoked maple bourbon and Disaronno liquor over ice. The Slag Martini features Chambord, Blue Curacao, and Tanqueray shaken and served up. On tap is the Copper Chute Amber Ale, brewed exclusively for Barclay II by Smelter City Brewing in Anaconda. Their wine list includes selections from Oregon, California, New Zealand, and of course, Italy.

There is no doubt that Barclay II has stood the test of time due to a tight-knit family committed to each other and to serving the Anaconda community. While so many eateries have been hard hit with employee retention, especially during the pandemic, this has not been an issue at Barclay II. Its a result of non-family employees being treated like family and showing their loyalty with ongoing employment. There have only been five cooks in the 41 years of operation. I find that remarkable, given in this day and age, longevity in the workforce is a rare thing.

Anaconda was a dinner destination for myself and hubby Ed. The doors opened at 5 p.m., and by 5:45 p.m., the bar area was almost full. Sandy, George, Tammy, and Stephanie were moving about like ants on the march, tending to customers. Many were long-time patrons, given the banter flowing between them and the owners. While the restaurant is upscale in its physical appearance, an overall down-to-earth vibe makes Barclay II a very inviting place for supper. When we walked out the door with bellies very full, I knew I was leaving with some new friendships.
Active shooter hoax calls that have plagued schools around the country in recent weeks reached North Dakota on Thursday.

Dispatchers received a call about a supposed active shooter at a Bismarck-area school on Thursday morning that police spokesman Lt. Luke Gardiner said "gave a specific room number and seemed very real." Fifteen officers responded and determined the call was a hoax.

"Officers then began to check other schools throughout Bismarck and were eventually notified that this was also taking place throughout North Dakota," Gardiner said. "It was ultimately determined that these calls were fake."

Schools in Minot, Grand Forks, Jamestown, Fargo, West Fargo, Williston and Watford City also received hoax calls, according to reports from school and law enforcement officials in those cities.

Similar calls have been made to schools in various other states in recent weeks. Several South Dakota schools were hit on Thursday. Such incidents are called "swatting," since they often result in a response from a SWAT team. The FBI last month said it was aware of the trend and taking it seriously.

North Dakota State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler on Thursday said the calls are unfortunate, but added that the response from school officials, law enforcement and emergency responders was reassuring.

Todays events are a reminder that we must be vigilant about our preparation efforts to keep everyone safe, she said.

Any threat received at Bismarck Public Schools is treated as valid until determined otherwise, according to spokesman Steve Koontz.

"BPS maintains a close relationship with local law enforcement agencies, and has school resource officers working with the district to ensure student safety," he said.
Antonio Canova died in Venice on this day in 1822.

Italy is marking the bicentenary of the death of Antonio Canova with a series of events in honour of the celebrated neoclassical sculptor who died in Venice on 13 October 1822.

Born in 1757 in the Venetian Republic town of Possagno, Canova grew up largely in the care of his paternal grandfather Pasino, a stonemason who nurtured the young boy's precocious talent from an early age.

As a teenager Canova was apprenticed for two years to prominent sculptor Giuseppe Bernardi, known as Torretti, before undertaking academic studies and opening his first studio.

Canova gained widespread recognition for his early works, commissioned by a Venetian senator, including statues of Eurydice (1773-1775), Orpheus (1775-1776) and Daedalus and Icarus (1779), all of which are in the collection of Museo Correr in Venice.

At the age of 22 Canova travelled to Rome where he studied neoclassical sculpture as well as ancient Roman and Greek art.

In 1781 he established a workshop in the Eternal City and received patronage and support from the Rezzonico family of Pope Clement XIII and from Venetian ambassador Girolamo Zulian.

Canova won acclaim for his monument to Pope Clement XIV, unveiled in the Basilica dei SS. Apostoli in 1787, and his tomb for Pope Clement XIII, installed in St Peter's in 1792.

Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss

Canova's international fame was sealed in 1793 with Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss (Amore e Psiche) commissioned by Colonel John Campbell and today in the collection of the Louvre in Paris (a second version is in the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg).

In 1796 Canova undertook the monumental marble sculpture of Hercules and Lichas, completed only in 1815, and now in the collection of the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in the Italian capital.

Napoleon

When French troops arrived in Rome in 1798, Canova returned to Possagno where he devoted himself to painting and travels in Europe.

He returned to Rome two years later and in 1802 he met Napoleon in Paris and received a commission to create a monumental statue of the First Consul.

This was the start of a series of works portraying members of the Bonaparte family, most famously the sublime sculpture of Napoleon's sister Pauline Bonaparte as Venus Victrix (1808), today a star attraction of Galleria Borghese.

Pauline Bonaparte as Venus Victrix

In 1815 Pope Pius VII appointed Canova as chief delegate to the Congress of Paris, a mission that proved successful in repatriating numerous precious artworks looted from Italy during Napoleon's ascendancy.

Canova was celebrated worldwide for The Three Graces, after an English collector commissioned a second version of the original created for Napoleon's first wife Josephine de Beauharnais (now in the Hermitage in St Petersburg).

Regarded as a masterpiece of neoclassical European sculpture, the second representation of the three mythological daughters of Zeus was unveiled in London to much fanfare in 1817.

Today the piece is displayed alternately at the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Scottish National Gallery.

The Three Graces (detail)

In 1820 Canova completed a life-size marble statue of George Washington, in the style of a Roman general, commissioned by the state of North Carolina.

The work was installed in the North Carolina State House in 1821 but was destroyed by fire a decade later.

The last work Canova designed was the new parish church for his native town, Possagno, in the province of Treviso.

Tempio Canoviano

Construction of the Tempio Canoviano began in 1819 however the artist never saw the building completed as he died three years later in Venice, on 13 October 1822.

Upon completion of the project in 1830, Canova's remains were transferred to the neoclassical church in Possagno whose design recalls the Pantheon in Rome.

Canova's heart is enshrined in a pyramid monument in the church of Frari in Venice, which has recently undergone restoration, while his right hand is in the city's Accademia di Belle Arti.

Gipsoteca Canoviana

Today Possagno hosts the Canovian Gypsotheca which preserves the heritage of the artist and houses a treasure trove of his works.

Meanwile those in Rome  in addition to visiting Canova's masterpieces around the city  can call into Caffe Canova Tadolini on Via del Babuino, the former studio of Canova and later his apprentice Adamo Tadolini, and enjoy a coffee surrounded by sculptures and casts by both artists.

Cover image: Pauline Borghese as Venux Victrix in Galleria Borghese. Photo credit: Vasilii L / Shutterstock.com.
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This weeks annual meetings of the World Bank could have important implications for the climate crisis and could help shift the trajectory of global warming. Multilateral development banks can make or break the transition to renewable energy, and governments are their shareholders. Its time for those governments to step up and make sure the banks are prepared to advance the process.

To stop climate chaos from causing enormous human suffering and decimating the global economy, we must bend the emissions curve down, now. There is no mystery about what needs to happen next. The share of renewables in the global energy mix must increase exponentially, and the use of fossil fuels must decrease to zero in the coming decades. Emissions must stop rising immediately and fall by 45% in the next eight years. Developing countries need to meet rising demand for cheap energy with renewables and adapt to the catastrophic impact of the climate crisis.

In all this, multilateral development banks, including the World Bank, are essential drivers and sources of finance. The global economy doesnt lack liquidity, but its either sitting on the sidelines or invested in fossil fuels and carbon pollution. Multilateral development banks can help shift that liquidity where its needed.

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We need to triple current investments in renewables and meet the adaptation needs of the developing world, which are set to increase to some $300 billion a year by 2030.

The climate and development mandates of International Financial Institutions  the World Bank and other development banks  clearly require them to act. But their current business models are painfully averse to risk.

Financing renewable energy projects in developing countries can cost up to seven times more than it does in North America or Europe  largely because financiers charge high premiums to cover perceived risk.

Fossil fuel projects involve many risks: price volatility; liquidity and operational risks; and legal risks connected with their central role in the climate crisis. But these risks are well-known and understood, and there are standard ways to manage them. There is no equivalent shared understanding or risk-management strategy for renewable energy, particularly in emerging markets.

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Multilateral development banks are the only institutions that can break this cycle. Its time for their shareholders  led by the governments of developed economies  to demand an overhaul.

Changing the banks approach to risk doesnt require legislation, or even parliamentary approval. It simply requires decisive action.

I therefore urge these government shareholders to act in five areas.

First, increase the scale of renewable energy finance. Tell the banks managers to set ambitious volume targets for investment in renewable energy infrastructure. That should include flexible electricity grids and storage capacity to accommodate renewables. Countries should also be supported to put in place incentives and regulatory systems for renewables. This would send a powerful signal that could be leveraged by developing countries to negotiate with private financiers.

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Second, increase tolerance for risk. Government shareholders must tell the management of multilateral development banks to adjust their capital guidelines, adequacy policies and rules to enable them to increase lending and take reasonable risks. Their own projects are limited  but by acting as first-loss investors and risk-takers, these banks can leverage huge increases in private finance. They should also consider lowering risk ratings and increasing the risk-tolerance thresholds of their private arms, which would unlock vast amounts of capital.

Third, phase out fossil fuel finance. Government shareholders should require all multilateral development banks to publish their plans to phase out direct and indirect support for fossil fuels before the COP27 climate summit in Egypt next month. At the same time, the banks should retrofit their investment portfolios toward renewables. The banks private arms must also get on board.

Fourth, substantially increase the quality and quantity of finance for adapting to climate change. Government shareholders should tell the managers of multilateral development banks to put adaptation, resilience and vulnerability at the heart of their operations. All their investments should be climate-proof. They should also press the banks to allocate 50% of climate finance to adaptation.

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Fifth, reform their incentive structures. Management and staff members of multilateral development banks must be held accountable for delivering on their climate and sustainable development mandates. Banks that move furthest and fastest should be first in line for recapitalization.

Taken together, these five steps could solve the issue of real and perceived risks around financing renewables in developing countries and direct more support toward adaptation and resilience. Where public money leads, private investors will follow.

If governments act now as shareholders of the multilateral development banks, they could kick-start a virtuous cycle of investment in renewable energy, changing the trajectory of our catastrophically warming planet.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Antonio Guterres is the secretary-general of the United Nations.

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Looking southeast from the Acropolis of Athens, the silhouette of the tanker Pskov barely stood up last week against the azure waters of the Aegean Sea. Inside her navy blue hull, almost 300 meters long, a hidden treasure: a shipment of liquefied natural gas.Europe is thirsty for LNG after Russia shut down most of its pipeline gas sales to the continent, turning energy into a weapon in its war against Ukraine and its Western allies. Dozens of LNG carriers like the Pskov are docking into Europe now, hauling friendly gas supplies from overseas to keep the lights on and the houses heated this winter.But the Pskov didnt sail to Greece from a Western ally, like Qatar. No; ironically, she sailed from Russia itself. And not from any unremarkable Russian LNG port. Instead, it was the maiden shipment from a new terminal that Moscow is using to sell some of the very same gas that only a few weeks ago it shipped to Germany. The new facility is located alongside the infamous Portovaya turbine pumping station on the now defunct Nord Stream 1 pipeline.

The Pskov  and her unlikely origin  is part of a much wider, and ballooning, trade thats receiving very little attention despite its political and economic significance. Almost under the radar, Russia is still selling hundreds of millions of dollars in LNG cargos, mostly to the same nations that have imposed sanctions against Moscow.Its a powerful weapon in its arsenal of energy armament. Although better known for its vast pipeline gas exports, Russia is also the worlds fourth-largest LNG shipper, only trailing Qatar, Australia and the US, and ahead of others like Malaysia and Nigeria.The LNG sales arent nearly as big as the gas pipeline exports once were, but remain a source of money. The Kremlin seems to have scored a geopolitical win by keeping revenues from global LNG sales intact, argues Anne-Sophie Corbeau, a scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University in New York.

Western countries have imposed sanctions on Russian oil, but they havent touched Russian gas. Thus, almost 80% of the LNG that the Kremlin has exported so far this year has gone to European and Asian nations that have imposed some sort of punitive measures against Vladimir Putin. They are paying market prices for the gas, and wiring the money directly to the Russian presidents supporters.Putting China aside, Japan, France and Spain account for much of the purchases. On their current trajectory, Russian LNG sales will hit an annual record high in 2022, according to estimates based on tanker tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Between January and September, shipments have averaged 2.78 million metric tons a month, compared with an average of 2.62 million for the full 2021 year and an average of 2.56 million in 2019, before the pandemic.

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Spain, the worlds sixth-largest LNG buyer, has imported so far in 2022 more from Russia than any other year. Belgium is on track also to beat its own annual record. And France has bought about 6% more between January and September than during the whole of 2021.

The purchases show how Russia continues to exploit the Achilles heel of Europe and Northeast Asia: their dependency on natural gas. In Japan, that geopolitical tool is quietly working, with Tokyo taking a timid policy response against Russia. While top American and European energy companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp. and Shell Plc have left Russia, the Japanese government has counseled its domestic energy champions to stay. Japan has also insisted on excluding oil sales from a key Russian energy project from the G-7 oil price cap.The LNG flows also show how Russia plays a cat-and-mouse game with its gas buyers in the West, shutting down some exports but keeping others open, cashing in record prices and using them as political and economic leverage. Its part of an economic hybrid war that Putin mastered as a former KGB intelligence officer.Should Europe continue buying Russian LNG? The moral case is obvious: no. And, above all, not from a Russian terminal built to bypass, if only partially, the now-defunct Nord Stream 1 pipeline. The economic case is less clear cut: Next year, Europe would need all the LNG it can get hold of to rebuild, again, its gas stockpiles before a fresh heating season starts. As the International Monetary Fund put it earlier this week: Winter 2022 will be challenging for Europe, but winter 2023 will likely be worse. If the war in Ukraine continues, the continent needs the shipments. The benefit for Europe, avoiding a gas shortage next year, is probably larger than the benefit for Russia via extra revenue. From a pure economic view, it perhaps makes sense to buy from Russia. But the geopolitical case is as simple as the moral one: As long as Europe buys Russian gas, whether via pipeline or LNG carrier like the Pskov, it would be at the mercy of Putin. Its a sellers market  and the seller, none other than the Russian president, can decide at his discretion when to close the valve or stop the ships.

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This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Javier Blas is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering energy and commodities. A former reporter for Bloomberg News and commodities editor at the Financial Times, he is coauthor of The World for Sale: Money, Power and the Traders Who Barter the Earths Resources.

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In the US, pundits are predicting that a wave of women voters outraged by the recent Supreme Court decision on abortion will help Democrats retain control of the Senate, and possibly even the House. They may be right. But a closer look at right-wing politics in Europe should give Democratic strategists pause.

Across Europe and the UK, women and minorities are increasingly populating the top ranks of hard- and far-right parties. Italys next prime minister will be Giorgia Meloni, leader of the populist Brotherhood of Italy, a party with fascist roots. British Prime Minister Liz Truss fancies herself an even tougher version of Margaret Thatcher, though so far with limited success. Marine Le Pens Rassemblement National is now the largest opposition group in Frances National Assembly.

Trusss cabinet also contains a remarkable number of people with South Asian or African backgrounds, including Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng, whose parents came to Britain from Ghana. The Labour Party shadow cabinet, by contrast, includes only one person of color -- David Lammy, who oversees Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.

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As in the US, left-wing parties in Europe and the UK pride themselves on championing underrepresented groups. So why are so many notable politicians from those groups gravitating rightward?

In part, they appear to have been drawn by the rights populist messaging. They believe that they stand for the common people and are hostile, in rhetoric at least, to urban, educated elites. Meloni grew up in a working-class area in Rome. Her father abandoned their family and was later sentenced to prison. Truss prides herself on her state school education, unlike many British Conservative politicians (but not Thatcher) who attended expensive private schools. While Le Pen comes from a well-off political family, she has spent much time in the bleak industrial north of France, where she claims to feel most at home.

Women and minorities who enter right-wing politics also tend to harp on the idea that they worked hard to overcome social hurdles and expect others to do the same. Such claims are sometimes a little less than honest. Truss is the daughter of a professor of mathematics. The only social hurdle Le Pen had to overcome was the stain of her fathers fascist tendencies. And Kwarteng was educated at Eton, Cambridge and Harvard. Still, this is not an unfamiliar standpoint. Often, immigrants and other minorities who are successful like to ascribe their rise to personal merit and hard work. They can have limited tolerance for people who have not done as well.

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Older immigrants are not always kind to newcomers either. Once people move out of relative poverty in heavily immigrant areas to richer suburbs and their children join the upper-middle classes, their politics often shift rightward. It was not for nothing that many South Asians voted for Brexit, attracted by the Tories opposition to a more generous immigration policy.

The exceptions to this rule, in the US at least, have been Jewish Americans, who have mostly remained staunch Democrats. This is probably due to an instinctive distrust of any hint of nativism, a creed that, to put it mildly, has never been kind to Jews. But even Jews have been unsympathetic to newcomers in the past, notably to poorer, less well-educated Jews from eastern Europe, who they feared would make trouble for more established citizens.

All this poses a challenge for left-wing parties counting on the support of women and people of color. An important part of the problem is ideological. Progressives tend to treat minorities as social and economic victims who need to be helped by the state. The thought is that less privileged people need preferential treatment to succeed.

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As progressive parties rely more and more on highly educated urban elites, and less on labor unions and industrial workers, this kind of thinking has become more prevalent. Union leaders fought for workers rights and better conditions. Left-wing ideology today is more concerned with combating prejudice against racial and sexual minorities.

Fighting prejudice is a good thing. And giving people who have been the victims of racism better opportunities in education and other areas of life is commendable. But there is a political risk that minorities will react badly to what is seen as condescension. People dont necessarily like being treated as victims. Preferential treatment can be resented when it results from feelings of guilt among the most privileged.

This, as well as social conservatism about sexual and religious matters, is one reason why more and more Latinos and even Blacks in the US voted for Donald Trump, why the Tory cabinet is filled with women and people of color, and why women lead the far right in Italy and France. The left can no longer take the rainbow coalition of race and gender for granted. If they fail to learn this lesson, the far right is bound to get stronger, and then we will all be worse off.

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This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Ian Buruma is professor of human rights at Bard College. His latest book is The Churchill Complex.

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The bipartisan congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the US Capitol wrapped up what is likely to be its final public hearing by emphasizing the obvious: Former President Donald Trump spearheaded a wide-ranging attempt to overturn the results of a presidential election, and the failed coup would have never happened without his involvement.

The central cause of January 6 was one man: Donald Trump, Representative Liz Cheney, a Wyoming Republican and committee member, said at Thursdays hearing. Our nation cannot only punish the foot soldiers who stormed our Capitol. Those who planned to overturn our election, and brought us to the point of violence, must also be accountable.

So there it is. All of the witness statements, video and audio recordings and clearheaded, gripping narrative that have accompanied these indispensable hearings boil down to a referendum on accountability. While hundreds of the rioters who laid siege to Congress have been charged with crimes and received prison sentences, the architects of the putsch have thus far largely escaped the consequences of the various political and social disasters they set in motion.

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At this point, voters and law enforcement are the two most vital channels for meting out full accountability to Trump and his merry band of coup plotters. And the committee has not only challenged those camps to fully embrace accountability but to have a realistic understanding of what is at stake if they shirk their duties. With every effort to excuse or justify the conduct of the former president we chip away at the foundation of our republic, Cheney noted. Indefensible conduct is defended, inexcusable conduct is excused. Without accountability it all becomes normal, and it will recur.

Much hand-wringing has greeted the prospect of political upheaval sparked by Attorney General Merrick Garland (a Democrat) choosing to indict Trump (a Republican) on charges of, say, conspiring to defraud the US, obstructing official government proceedings, seditious conspiracy and dereliction of duty. That possibility is fine to consider, but it shouldnt be prioritized over the incalculable damage that will result from accepting the idea that a former president and his minions are above the law.If Garland prosecutes Trump, hell have to convince a jury that Trump knew he lost the 2020 presidential election and chose to overturn that result as part of a criminal conspiracy. Anyone who has engaged with the totality of evidence that the Jan. 6 panel has presented  much of it from Republicans and former members of Trumps own White House  should have little doubt that Trump knew exactly what he was doing and that proving that in a courtroom wouldnt be elusive.After all, the hearings have shown that the Jan. 6 wasnt an isolated incident  much less what one GOP lawmaker described as a normal tourist visit despite helping barricade the House gallery doors  but part of a premeditated and broader assault on democracy that involved months of planning. Conspirators called that effort the January 6 strategy, and one of them advised others to keep the scheme secret.The lawlessness at work here hasnt been lost on jurists who have looked closely at Trumps conspiracy. In March, US District Judge David Carter said that Trump likely and knowingly committed fraud when he and one of his lawyers, John Eastman, plotted to block Congresss certification of the 2020 presidential election to keep Trump in office. Carter called the effort a coup in search of a legal theory.

Thanks to the Jan. 6 committees conscientious, hard work and deft storytelling, other aspects of the attempted coup have come into sharp focus. Trump insisted that the 2020 election was rigged even though his closest advisers bluntly told him that wasnt the case. (Former Attorney General William Barr told the committee that he told Trump that his riffs were bullshit, rubbish and idiotic.)Michael Luttig, a well-regarded former judge and staunch conservative, told the committee that Trump is a pure insurrectionist. Donald Trump and his allies and supporters are a clear and present danger to American democracy, he said. They would attempt to overturn that 2024 election in the same way that they attempted to overturn the 2020 election. But succeed.The hearings offered a harrowing account of how much pressure Trump applied to former Vice President Mike Pence to persuade him to corrupt the 2020 election by refusing to approve the electoral count  including exposing Pence to physical harm. Trumps team filed scores of groundless and unsuccessful lawsuits challenging election results in swing states and leaned on Republican election officials to play ball by finding nonexistent evidence of electoral fraud. Innocent poll workers were publicly smeared by cronies such as Rudolph Giuliani.Jarring, violent videos of the Jan. 6 siege were troubling highlights of the hearings, and they offered touchstones for the testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson, a onetime aide to Trumps last chief of staff, Mark Meadows. She said that Trump was repeatedly warned about the possibility of violence at the Capitol and chose to ignore the alarms. When he spoke to seditionists at the Ellipse, he promised, instead, that he would march with them to the Capitol. He wanted to join in. (The Secret Service derailed that plan, much to Trumps chagrin  and more evidence around that drama surfaced at Thursdays hearing.) When he later watched the violence on a White House TV, he merely beamed.

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While ignoring repeated entreaties from his staff to stop the violence, Trump called senators to encourage them to delay certifying the election. He took to Twitter to post a video link to his incendiary speech at the Ellipse and to question Pences courage.

If Republicans take control of the House in the coming midterm elections, they will defenestrate the Jan. 6 committee as quickly as they can. So we might as well thank everyone on the committee now for educating the American public on the gravity of this dangerous moment. The committee also decided to issue a subpoena to force Trump to testify, but that may be a theatrical gesture this late in the proceedings. Even so, the committee has crafted an indelible portrait of his culpability.

Trumps efforts to overturn the election were not random or disconnected, Representative Elaine Luria, a Democrat, said at Thursdays hearing. Rather they were part of a coordinated, multipart plan to ensure that he stayed in power. Donald Trump was the driver behind each part of this plan. He was personally and directly involved. Of course a key element of the plan was continuing to convince tens of millions of Americans that he did not, in fact, lose.And Trumps standard-bearers are legion. As the midterms draw near, consider this: Many Republican candidates running for Congress or governor around the country continue to peddle the lie that the 2020 election was fraudulent and have made that claim a centerpiece of their bids for power. Trumps poison is in other politicians veins. If they secure office, theyll have the ability to torpedo legitimate election results.The GOP doesnt need Trump at the steering wheel to continue savaging the Constitution, and that handiwork alone merits tough-mindedness among voters and law enforcement about taking on him and his legacy.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Timothy L. OBrien is senior executive editor of Bloomberg Opinion. A former editor and reporter for the New York Times, he is author of TrumpNation: The Art of Being the Donald.

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Kanye West has given Adidas AG the perfect excuse to walk away from their long-running partnership  and in a way that may be less financially damaging for the sportswear giant. West, now known as Ye, commands an almost fanatical following. Up until now, that has been part of the appeal for companies that have collaborated with him. If Ye puts his name on something, it will sell.

Even after his years of controversies, those who dared to criticize him became the subject of his fans ire. For example, when people took to Gap Inc.s Instagram account earlier this year, imploring the retailer to end its deal with Ye after his treatment of ex-wife Kim Kardashian, his supporters called on Gap to retain him.

When Ye said last month that he wanted to end his partnerships with Gap and Adidas, and criticized the German company and its outgoing Chief Executive Officer Kasper Rorsted, Adidas stayed quiet. His fanbase  a crucial part of his ability to sell everything from padded jackets to ugly sneakers  would have made any corporate collaborator think twice about breaking things off.

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But Yes recent behavior has crossed new lines, and Adidas now looks more at risk of a boycott from its broader customer base for maintaining ties with the musician than of a backlash from Ye fans for severing them.

First came the White Lives Matter T-shirts at his Paris fashion week show in early October. This alienated some of his closest allies, such as Supreme creative director Tremaine Emory. It drew criticism from Vogue fashion editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson. It likely hurt many of his fans. And anti-Semitic comments, prompting Twitter and Instagram to restrict his account, only added to the damage.

Adidas said last week, in the wake of the Paris show, that it was reviewing its arrangement with the celebrity. In a statement, it said that although the Yeezy tie-up is one of the most successful collaborations in our industrys history, all successful partnerships were rooted in mutual respect and shared values.

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But Adidas gets part of the blame for its current predicament.

It stayed quiet after Yes many previous controversies, including his run for president in 2020 and his harassment of Kardashian. If anything, these episodes only kept Ye in the limelight and his Yeezy line a big seller. One of the few times Adidas weighed in was in 2018 when Rorsted said the company didnt support Yes comments about slavery being a choice. Adidas declined to comment for this column; Ye could not be reached.

Now his behavior has become so egregious that the sportswear giant cant avoid being drawn in. As a German company, it is likely to be particularly sensitive to any perceptions of ignoring anti-Semitism.

But a review doesnt necessarily mean a split. Even during the interim period, the company and the musician will continue to co-manage the current product.

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This may be because the Yeezy line is still a cash cow. It is estimated to contribute annual sales of 1bn ($974.5 million) to 1.5bn, or 4%-8% of Adidas group revenues. In the worst-case scenario, if all Yeezy products were to be taken off shelves, it would lose these sales at a time when it is also battling a slowdown in China and muscular rivals Nike Inc. and New Balance in the US.

But if the two were to go their separate ways, right now, Adidas may have a stronger negotiating hand. Yes personal brand is diminished. Meanwhile, going it alone wont be easy, as Ye will have to replicate all of the infrastructure provided by his corporate partners. And he has recently taken aim at Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE and the most powerful man in luxury. That may limit his ability to find high-end backers for future Yeezy endeavors.

Against this backdrop, Adidas may find it easier to come to an agreement with Ye, whereby it can keep some Yeezy designs on the market, even as the two no longer develop new products. That, in turn, could reduce the financial pain from a split.

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Ye is seeking to make amends. He said he met with Vogues Karefa-Johnson and is reported to have reached out to Arnaults son and Tiffany & Co. executive Alexandre Arnault, and he has also been open about his mental health struggles. Still, companies will be more reluctant to sign him up than they were just two years ago when Gap shares rose the most in 40 years on the news of their tie-up.

You cant manage me. This is an unmanageable situation, Ye told the audience ahead of the now infamous Paris show.

For Adidas, and any other firms wanting in on Kanyes marketing magic, that is at the very heart of the dilemma.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering consumer goods and the retail industry. Previously, she was a reporter for the Financial Times.

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ST. PETERSBURG, Russia  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday hailed a recent decision by OPEC, Russia and other oil producing nations to limit production as key to stabilizing the global energy market, as he met the leader of the United Arab Emirates for talks on fostering economic ties. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight Speaking at the start of his talks in St. Petersburg with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi and the president of the United Arab Emirates, Putin hailed the ties between the two countries as important for regional and global stability.

Despite all the difficulties that exist in the international relations today, ties between Russia and the United Arab Emirates are an important factor of stability in the region and the entire world, Putin said at the start of his talks with Al Nahyan.

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The Russian leader noted Al Nahyans support for the decision of the OPEC+ group that includes Russia to limit oil production to shore up oil prices, saying that our decisions, our action, arent directed against anyone.

Putin said: Our actions are aimed at ensuring stability in global energy markets to make both comsumers of energy resources and those who deal with production and supplies feel calm, stability and confidence, to help balance supply and demand.

The decision by OPEC+ to cut oil production by 2 million barrels a day has outraged the West, where many saw it as a move that would help Putin finance Russias action in Ukraine. The production cut also risked saddling President Joe Biden and Democrats with rising gasoline prices just ahead of U.S. midterms.

The United Arab Emirates has maintained close business ties with Russia and sought to refrain from joining the sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other Western allies over Moscows action in Ukraine.

Putin hailed Al Nahyan for mediation efforts that helped solve some really sensitive humanitarian issues in Ukraine. Im aware of your concern about the development of the situation and your desire to contribute to the settlement of all disputed issues, including todays crisis in Ukraine, Putin said.

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In the rapidly shifting Ukraine war, the growing failure of Russian President Vladimir Putins ground game is causing him to seek asymmetrical responses. Most visibly, he is turning to what is essentially a terror-bombing campaign against the civilian population of Ukraine. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight Much like the V2 blitzes Nazi Germany directed against British cities in World War II, these missile attacks will accomplish very little tactically. Instead, they will heighten the already enormous anger and resolve of the Ukrainians and likely cause US and European supporters to accelerate arms deliveries. These may include some weapons previously held back to avoid escalation between Russia and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

I led a major air campaign over Libya in 2011, Operation Unified Protector. The mission, assigned to NATO by the United Nations Security Council, was to create a no-fly zone to keep the dictator Moammar Qaddafi from using his air and ground firepower to massacre his political opponents. We launched over 25,000 air sorties, dropped nearly 10,000 precision-guided weapons, and closed the skies over Libya.

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But ultimately, to depose the Qaddafi regime, the rebels had to create an effective ground force, which they eventually did. What I observed is that air power  even massive air superiority  cannot ultimately take and hold ground. Putin will discover the same thing.

The Russian leader fired yet another army commander (this one lasted seven weeks) and installed a new chief for his special military operation. That leader, General Sergei Surovikin, is dual-hatted as the senior leader of the Russian air force. Surovikin is also an accused war criminal who led indiscriminate bombing campaigns in Syria and Chechnya. His ascension to the top post in Ukraine, truly a poisoned chalice, indicates that the bombing campaign will be prolonged.

Yet it is unlikely to significantly change the facts on the ground, and will deplete the Kremlins dwindling supply of artillery, particularly smart weapons to use against Ukrainian logistics networks  something the Russians failed to do effectively thus far.

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The West needs to put more capability in the hands of the Ukrainians. Some of the systems under consideration include:

 MiG-29 Soviet-era fighters, now in the Polish air force. These could be given to the Ukrainians immediately, as their pilots already fly them very capably. In exchange, the US would provide the Poles with American F-16s.

 F-16s. Early models of the Fighting Falcon are relatively simple to fly, and very lethal in both air-to-air and air-to-ground combat. The US would need to train a cadre of Ukrainian pilots, probably at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

 Surface-to-air defensive missile systems. These would likely be the Patriot, which can cover a wide area and is relatively easy to train to operate, and Iron Dome (developed jointly with Israel) for the defense of population centers and critical infrastructure.

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 More sophisticated electronic jamming systems.

 Enhanced offensive cyber capabilities, to go after Russian intelligence and targeting operations.

So, what happens when the bombing campaign proves ineffective? Putin has other asymmetrical cards to play, including cyberattacks on Western targets. Several key US airports had their websites hacked this week  the customer-facing portions, not actual command-and-control or radar systems. Pro-Russian hackers claimed responsibility. The question is whether this was a warning shot or the best the Russians could muster.

Putin would likely direct cyberattacks at soft targets like consumer supply chains  recall the meatpacking and fuel-pipeline ransomware hacks of last year. US and allied hard targets  military command and control, financial systems, critical infrastructure like electric, water, gas and transportation grids  are better defended. An attack any of those vital systems would invite a significant counterstrike by US Cyber Command, something that worries the Kremlin considerably.

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Worst case: Putin could use a tactical nuclear weapon, either to shock the Ukrainians into surrender, or to simply destroy an even bigger swath of targets. While its not inconceivable, I would place a tactical nuke in the 10%-15% range of probability. This desperate move would immediately shift world opinion against Russia, and put enormous pressure on China and India to abandon their neutrality.

Most likely, however, Putin will continue his strategy of massive bombing through the winter, even as his stockpile of precision weapons dwindles to nothing. His best hope is that the Europeans will crack under high energy prices and cold homes, the demoralized Ukrainians will sue for peace, and the US will get caught up in fractious domestic politics.

Dont count on it. The bet Putin is placing on air power, like so many other aspects of his strategic analysis, is a bad one. Missiles and planes are seldom decisive over a determined foe on the ground, a lesson the Kremlin will learn soon enough.More From Bloomberg Opinion:

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 Putin Wont Use a Nuke. Chemical Weapons, Maybe.: James Stavridis

 A Decision Tree for Biden if Putin Goes Nuclear: Andreas Kluth

 Ukraines Army Is Winning But Its Economy Is Losing: Niall Ferguson

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

James Stavridis is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. A retired U.S. Navy admiral, former supreme allied commander of NATO, and dean emeritus of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, he is vice chairman of global affairs at the Carlyle Group. He is the author most recently of To Risk It All: Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion

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FARGO, N.D.  The North Dakota Supreme Court ordered a lower court judge to reconsider his decision to prevent the states abortion ban from taking effect pending the outcome of a clinics legal challenge. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight The state Supreme Court late Tuesday ordered Judge Bruce Romanick to weigh the clinics chances of succeeding in reconsidering whether his decision to temporarily halt enforcement of the ban was correct.

The Red River Womens Clinic, the states only abortion clinic, argues that the states constitution grants the right to abortion.

Romanick last month denied a request to lift his stay of a law banning abortion while the clinics challenge is pending. In declining to weigh in on the clinics chances of winning the lawsuit, Romanick wrote that doing so would essentially have the court determine the final validity of the parties claims. That question, he said, was better addressed at a trial or in response to a motion for summary judgment.

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It was the second time the judge blocked the so-called trigger law, which had been set to take effect at the end of August.

North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley certified a July 28 closing date a few days after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. But Romanick rejected that date based on a technical issue involving the timing of the ban, after which Wrigley argued that the judge hadnt sufficiently considered whether the clinics lawsuit would succeed.

The high court said in its ruling Tuesday that Romanick should determine the substantial probability of succeeding on the merits and then to determine whether the injunction remains appropriate based on all the factors.

Romanick is required to respond by Oct. 17.

Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University Law School, said Wednesdays order from the high court is no surprise.

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This is entirely, if not embarrassingly, predictable, Turley said. Judge Romanicks opinion was notably disconnected from the governing standard on preliminary injunctions. It was strikingly improvisational and the Supreme Court is ordering the court to return to the more scripted standard for such applications.

Bismarck attorney Jesse Walstad, who has appeared before Romanick on several occasions, said Romanicks decision to delay enforcement of the ban is meant to ensure that all sides have a full and fair opportunity to make their arguments.

So when youve got a case such as this with constitutional gravity, you dont want to rush to a decision, Walstad said. You want to make the right decision the first time and that takes a little bit of time because you dont want in this sort of case to make the timeline so important in the absence of the stay.

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Meetra Mehdizadeh, an attorney for the Center for Reproductive Rights, which is helping the clinic with the suit, did not comment directly on the state Supreme Courts ruling but said Romanick has already recognized the devastating harms that would come with the trigger ban.

North Dakotans undoubtedly deserve the ability to make personal decisions about their own bodies and lives, and providers should not be afraid to do their jobs in caring for their patients, Mehdizadeh said in a statement.

The clinic is pursuing its legal challenge even though it closed its Fargo location in August and opened a clinic in neighboring Moorhead, Minnesota, where abortion remains legal.

When Romanick blocked the law from taking effect, he acknowledged that the clinic had moved but noted that doctors and hospitals would still be affected by the statute.

The law would make abortion illegal except in cases of rape or incest or when the life of the mother is in danger  any of which would have to be proven in court. Otherwise, a doctor who performs an abortion would face a felony charge.

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Term limits for elected officials in North Dakota are a good idea.

Measure 1 on next months election ballot is not.

When voters go to the polls Nov. 8 theyll give thumbs up or down to the measure, which limits to eight years the length of time that legislators and the governor can serve the people.

That proposed limit is far too restrictive. In eight years legislators barely have a chance to get their feet wet. If we kick them out just after theyve had a chance to get good at their jobs were being pretty short-sighted. If voters decide they want to keep them around a bit longer they should have that option.

Still, we dont want them to make a career out of legislating, and we do have a very small number of them who were first elected before some of their current colleagues were born. While serving 30 or 40 years is too long, eight years is too short. Perhaps a limit of 16 years would be more reasonable.

In the case of the governor, a limit of two four-year terms might be prudent, but we dont have any history with governors overstaying their welcome. Only twice in our history have governors served more than eight years. Bill Guy served three terms in the '60s and '70s, and John Hoeven served 10 years until he resigned in 2010 to move to Congress.

Meanwhile, we have a long history of other state elected officials serving far more than eight years, but Measure 1 is silent on limits for those offices. Thats another flaw of the measure. If term limits are good for some, they should be good for all.

The bottom line is that Measure 1 proposes a nub of a good idea, but it does it poorly. If were going to undertake this monumental change, we need to do it the right way, not the expedient way.

There are additional problems surrounding the measure, not the least of which is the suspect motives of those proposing it. Many of the sponsors of the measure are known to have staked out extremist conservative views and appear to be motivated by their disappointment in the Legislatures response to their special interests.

Those apparently include several election measures that failed as well as consideration of freedom bills like mask mandates and vaccination requirements.

Their motives, or what voters believe their motives to be, are important. Good public policy is made by thoughtful and respectful give and take, not by grinding axes.

Furthermore, its reasonable to question the integrity of measure sponsors, some of whom were complicit in a fraught petition process to get the measure on the ballot. That process was, in the least, dishonest, and in the most, fraudulent.

All of this justifies a no vote on the term limits measure, especially considering that unacceptably long legislative service is the exception, not the rule. While there are obvious examples of those who serve too long, most do not.

Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner of Dickinson, who is retiring this year after more than 20 years in the Senate and two terms in the House, calculates that 70% of legislative seats have turned over since 2011.

Of 141 current legislators, 66 have served for more than eight years. Thats less than half. Just 31 have served more than 16 years, and several of them, either by their own choice or by redistricting, are retiring this year.

Measure 1 Chairman Jared Hendrix of Minot has acknowledged there has been notable turnover in the Legislature, but he complained to The Bismarck Tribune that the turnover hasnt been in the right positions. In other words, some of the people he would prefer to be out are still in. Changing the law to suit his preferences is not good policy.

Theres one final flaw in Measure 1. Lost in the rhetoric over term limits is a provision that bars the Legislature from making any changes once the law is enacted. Any changes, the measures language says, would have to be approved by a vote of the people.

Another bad idea. If in a year or two we learn the measure has spawned significant unintended consequences, the Legislature needs to be able to step in and fix them.

Besides, the Legislature is already restricted from changing an initiated law by a statute that says it must have a super majority vote to do so.

Response to Measure 1 has revealed an appetite among the voters to support term limits, but this is the wrong way to do it.

Legislators ought to recognize that and take it upon themselves to do it the right way.
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Olga Lopatkina paced around her basement like a trapped animal. She hadnt heard from her six adopted children stranded in Mariupol for over a week, and she didnt know what to do. The family would end up getting caught up in one of the most explosive issues of the war: Russias open effort to take Ukrainian orphans and bring them up as Russian.

An Associated Press investigation shows that Russias strategy is well underway. Thousands of children have been taken from basements of bombed out cities like Mariupol and from orphanages in the Russian-backed separatist territories of Donbas. They include those whose parents were killed by Russian shelling, others in institutions or with foster families.

Russia claims many of these children have no parents or guardians, or that they cant be reached. But the AP found that officials have deported Ukrainian children to Russia or Russian-held territories without consent, lied to them that they werent wanted by their parents, and given them Russian families and citizenship.

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The investigation is the most extensive to date on the grab of Ukrainian orphans, and the first to follow the process all the way to those already growing up in Russia. It drew on dozens of interviews with parents, children and officials in Ukraine and Russia; emails and letters; Russian documents and Russian state media.

Raising the children of war in another country or culture can be a marker of genocide, an attempt to erase a peoples very identity. Prosecutors tie the policy directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Its not something that happens spur of the moment on the battlefield, said Stephen Rapp, a former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues who is advising Ukraine on prosecutions.

Russian law prohibits the adoption of foreign children. But in May, Putin signed a decree expediting granting Russian citizenship to Ukrainian children without parental care.

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Russia has prepared a register of suitable Russian families for Ukrainian children and offers substantial financial support. It portrays the adoptions as an act of generosity. Russian state television airs ceremonies of officials handing out passports to Ukrainian children.

How many is hard to say. Ukrainian officials claim nearly 8,000 children have been deported to Russia.

Russia hasnt given an overall number. In March, Russian childrens rights ombudswoman Maria Lvova-Belova said 1,000 children from Ukraine were in Russia. Many more have come since, including over 230 in early October.

Lvova-Belova herself has taken in a Mariupol teenager and has been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department, the European Union, Canada and Australia. Her office referred the AP to her reply in a state-owned news agency that Russia was helping children to preserve their right to live under a peaceful sky and be happy.

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The AP visited a leafy seaside camp near Taganrog, where hundreds of Ukrainian orphans were housed.

One professional foster mother in the Moscow region said the local social services called her to take in Ukrainian children. Already fostering six Russian kids, she picked three from Mariupol. After a guardianship court case in now occupied-Mariupol, she was granted custody of the children, who are now Russian citizens.

The children said after their foster mother dropped them off at a bunker in Mariupol, the Russian military got them out. They had to choose between adoption by a Russian family and life in a Russian orphanage.

At the house with a courtyard and inflatable swimming pool, the 15-year-old girl said she is eager to start a new life in Russia  in part because her school in Ukraine was bombed, one of her classmates died, and almost everyone has left.

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Russia was also accused of stealing children from Ukraine in 2014, after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula. Then, Ukraine reported to the European Court of Human Rights that more than 80 children from Luhansk were abducted at a checkpoint and taken to Russia. Separately, Russian families adopted at least 30 children from Crimea.

This time, at least 96 children have been returned to Ukraine since March following negotiations, some at top government levels.

In Mariupol, Lopatkinas kids cowered for days in a basement at the resort where theyd been vacationing. The 17-year-old foster son, Timofey, minded his younger siblings  three with chronic illnesses or disabilities.

They lost contact with their mother when the power went out across the city. Then a Mariupol doctor succeeded in evacuating them  only to be turned back by pro-Russia forces at a checkpoint. They ended up in a hospital in the separatist Russian-controlled Donetsk Peoples Republic, or DPR.

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When Timofey messaged his mother, she was already out of the country. He was livid.

It took a few calls for Olga Lopatkina to explain to Timofey what had happened.

For the music and arts teacher who had lost her mother as a teenager and her home in the 2014 fighting, the nightmare with her children was the hardest thing she experienced. When this war broke out, it quickly became deadly to get from her home in Vuhledar, now a front line, to Mariupol, 100 kilometers (60 miles) away. Her 18-year-old biological daughter, Rada, was stranded with her uncle near Kharkiv, another front-line city.

When the bombing approached, Lopatkina decided to head to the borders, fetching her daughter along the way. They made their way to France.

She campaigned Russian and Ukrainian officials and reached out to activists. The Donetsk authorities finally told her she could have her children back if she came through Russia to get them. She feared a trap and declined.

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In the DPR, officials told Timofey a court would strip Lopatkina and her husband of their guardianship and his younger siblings would end up with new families in Russia.

Then finally, a breakthrough. DPR authorities agreed to allow a volunteer with power of attorney from Lopatkina to collect the children.

After a three-day bus trip through Russia, the children met their father in Berlin and drove to France. The burden of responsibility was gone, Timofey said. I said: Mother, take the reins, thats all ... Im a child now.

___

Lori Hinnant, Cara Anna and Erika Kinetz contributed to this report.

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HELSINKI  Many Finnish pharmacies ran out of iodine tablets Wednesday, a day after the Nordic countrys health ministry recommended that households buy a single dose in a case of a radiation emergency amid increasing fears of a nuclear event due to Russias war in Ukraine. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight An accident at a nuclear power plant could release radioactive iodine into the environment, which could build up in the thyroid gland, the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health said Tuesday.

Pharmacies in many locations in Finland reported Wednesday they had run out of iodine tablets as citizens rushed to purchase the medicine. Drug wholesale also said their were stockpiles emptied out.

The ministry said the iodine tablet recommendation is limited to those aged 3-40 because of the potential risks that radiation exposure poses to that age group.

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The ministry didnt mention Russias war in Ukraine and didnt disclose where such nuclear accidents could potentially take place. It only said it had revised guidelines on the use of iodine tablets to match the latest iodine recommendations set by the World Health Organization.

However, Petteri Tiippana, director general of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland, told the Finnish newspaper Ilta-Sanomat there was a link between the update and the situation in Ukraine.

Yes, the war in Ukraine has influenced the updating of the instructions, Tiippana told the newspaper. People must have up-to-date instructions should such a need arise.

In a case of a radiation emergency, sheltering indoors is the main way for people to protect themselves from hazardous radiation, the Finnish health ministry stressed.

___

Follow the APs coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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LOS ANGELES  The effort by three Latino politicians to maximize their influence in Los Angeles backfired after a leaked recording of their meeting exposed crude and, at times, racist banter that has already led to one city councilmembers resignation and could have broader legal and political consequences. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight If the other two councilmembers heed calls to step down, their constituents will have lost some of their most powerful leaders and a state investigation into their private meeting could lead to criminal charges and undo efforts to draw districts in their favor.

Pressure mounted Thursday on Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon to resign a day after former council President Nury Martinez stepped down for comparing another colleagues Black son to a monkey, belittling Mexicans from the state of Oaxaca and making crass remarks about Armenians and Jews.

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Acting City Council President Mitch OFarrell canceled Fridays scheduled meeting, saying members couldnt conduct business until the two step down.

The recording from a year ago of the three speaking with a labor leader revealed a rare glimpse of behind-the-scenes maneuvering during the politically charged process of redrawing political boundaries every decade.

Aside the from the shocking and salty dialog, the unusual element was that the conversation was recorded and aired publicly, said Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College and member of the California Citizens Redistricting Commission that draws district boundaries for congressional, legislative and other state-level races.

What we hear in those tapes is classic backroom negotiations of redistricting, Sadhwani said. We hear politicians who are not looking out for the interests of their constituents but are looking out for the interests of themselves towards reelection ... drawing districts in such a way that their friends can win seats as well. Its the worst kind of abuse of power.

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Whether it crossed the line into criminal activity or results in civil action, possibly leading to the redrawing of district boundaries, will depend on what Attorney General Rob Bontas investigation finds.

Bonta did not mention what type of crime may have been committed. But Gregory Totten, chief executive officer of the California District Attorneys Association, said it could focus on whether the politicians had a conflict of interest that influenced their actions.

Totten and Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who was a member of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, said criminal charges would be less likely than an order to draw new maps for districts.

Investigators could look into whether the rights of a particular racial or ethnic group were diluted in violation of the federal Voting Rights Act.

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In the recording, the issue of race frequently surfaced.

Latinos, who make up nearly half the citys population, only had four  or just over a quarter  of the 15 seats on the council at the time. Black people, who make up less than 10 percent of the population have three  a fifth  of the seats.

De Leon says Bonin, who is white, is like the fourth Black on the council and implied he wouldnt stand by Latinos.

Hell never say a (expletive) word about us, de Leon said.

The group discussed how to fill the seat held by Mark Ridley-Thomas, a Black member facing federal corruption charges, who was eventually suspended by the council.

Martinez said the African Americans look at this as a hostile takeover if they appointed an ally.

The one who will support us is Heather Hutt, said Cedillo, referring to the Black woman who eventually was picked to fill Ridley-Thomas seat.

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Hutt has joined other members calling for Cedillo and de Leon to resign. She said in a statement that she was unaware of the conversation the three had and said she was legitimately chosen for the council.

The audio tapes released this week lay out a dangerous plot to weaken Black political representation across Los Angeles County, Hutt said. Let me be clear  I am a Black woman, not a pawn.

Levinson said the recording gives the impression they are explicitly drawing lines on the basis of race. She said she would not be surprised to see a lawsuit designed to throw out the maps.

Its all boiling down to: Did they draw the lines to hurt Black voting power? Levinson said. What Bonta is ultimately going to have to determine is  (are they) essentially saying, We want to make it difficult for African American voters to elect the candidate of their choosing. 

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Challenges to district maps drawn through a partisan process are not uncommon in other states, and the U.S. Supreme Court just last week heard arguments on a challenge out of Alabama.

But the Attorney Generals office and experts could not point to other cases in California since voters in 2008 adopted the independent citizens redistricting commission that has drawn the maps after the last two censuses.

Local jurisdictions operate under different rules.

The city of Los Angeles has a commission appointed by councilmembers to draw up maps that can then be approved or rejected by the council. The recording was of a discussion over frustration with the proposed maps.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer has called on City Council to call a special election in the spring with an amendment to redraw the lines for the 2024 elections, independent of influence by city officials.

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This ultimately is about political power in this city, Feuer said. The credibility of those (redistricting map) lines, and the power those lines reflect, will be tainted now given this conversation for sure, until there is some substitute provided.

The council, meanwhile, has been thrown into chaos by the scandal. Raucous protesters shut down a meeting Wednesday.

OFarrell said he has spoken with Cedillo, who was unseated in the primary and due to leave office at the end the year, and thinks he will resign.

OFarrell and others havent been able to reach de Leon, who is not facing reelection until 2024.

De Leon has apologized for his remarks and for what he said was appearing to condone Martinezs comments. Cedillo said he should have intervened.

Both men appeared at Tuesdays meeting and left after being booed and yelled at.

___

Thompson reported from Sacramento. Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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RIO DE JANEIRO  Brazils two presidential candidates sought to firm up support in their traditional bases Wednesday, with Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva campaigning among the poor in Rio de Janeiro(s Alemao slum and incumbent Jair Bolsonaro appearing among the faithful at the vast Aparecida basilica in Sao Paulo state.

Earlier this month, da Silva, Brazils former president who governed he country from 2003 to 2010, topped the first round of voting with over 48% support. Bolsonaro got 43% support. Since neither received enough votes to win outright they are now headed to a Oct. 30 runoff.

Both men seem to have chosen to celebrate the nations patron saint, Our Lady of Aparecida, in their comfort zone.

In Alemao, surrounded by Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes and local community leaders, da Silva attacked his opponents public security and education policies.

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The State only shows up in the community through the police; we have to end this! said the man universally known as Lula. Before the police comes, health, culture, education must come.

In favelas and outskirts of large Brazilian cities, da Silva has regained much of the ground his party had lost in recent years, and especially in the 2018 presidential elections.

This is the big turning point from 2018 to 2022, said Pedro Abramovay, Open Society Foundations executive director for Latin America. The Workers Party had a significant increase in votes, mainly because it grew a lot in the outskirts.

Many Brazilians were disappointed by Bolsonaros handling of the pandemic, in which nearly 700,000 people died  one of the worlds largest tallies.

Still, the Workers Party candidate trails more than 10 percentage points behind Bolsonaro in the state of Rio, and 7 points in Sao Paulo  two important states.

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Bolsonaro has also gained in popularity in mid-sized cities, Abramovay said. And him and other political analysts are still waiting to see what impact the current governments spending spree ahead of this years elections will have in poorer areas.

Bolsonaro backed Congress when it sharply raised subsidies in July  the equivalent of about $7.6 billion  to increase welfare benefits, a subsidy for cooking gas and create new cash-transfer programs for truck drivers and taxis.

This month, the president has brought forward payments of the welfare program, so that it would land in the bank accounts of millions of families a few days before the second round of the election  and not after. He also included some 500,000 more families into the program and promised a thirteenth instalment to single mothers.

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I think it is safe to say that if it werent for the help of the Auxilio Brasil (welfare program), Lula would have won in the first round, Abramovay said.

At the Aparecida basilica, tens of thousands of worshippers were making their annual pilgrimage, some traveling on foot for days to attend one of the several services held Wednesday.

The cathedral can welcome up to 35,000 people and after downsizing its services during the COVID-19 pandemic, the basilica has now entirely reopened.

Bolsonaro is faring particularly well among evangelicals, who represent about a third of the population and have embraced his conservative agenda. Many evangelical pastors have used their pulpits to back the presidents re-election bid.

Silvana Alves, a 38 year-old teacher from Sao Paulo, was not thrilled by the presidents visit. For her, mixing politics and religion isnt very healthy.

If they are here today it is not necessarily to celebrate Our Ladys Day, but because we are in a period of elections. They want to win votes, right? Alves said.



AP video reporter Tatiana Pollastri contributed to this report from Aparecida.

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MEXICO CITY  Mexicos Congress has approved a constitutional reform that allows the armed forces to continue performing domestic law enforcement duties through 2028. Putting soldiers on the streets to fight crime was long viewed as a stopgap measure to fight drug gang violence, and legislators had previously said civilian police should take over those duties by 2024.

But President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador supports relying on the military indefinitely because he views the armed forces as more honest. The president has given the military more responsibilities than any Mexican leader in recent memory.

The reform backed by Lopez Obrador passed the lower house late Wednesday, and must still be approved by a majority of Mexicos 32 state legislatures.

Most experts agree that Mexico needs better-paid, trained and equipped civilian police. The army and marines were called in to aid local police forces in 2006 in fighting the countrys well-armed drug cartels. Mexicos state and municipal police are often corrupt, poorly trained and unprofessional.

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But Lopez Obrador has relied almost exclusively on the military for law enforcement. He eliminated the civilian federal police and created the National Guard, which he now wants to hand over completely to the Defense Department.

Lopez Obrador has relied on the armed forces for everything from building infrastructure projects to running airports and trains.

The reform extending the military mandate also promises to restore some funding to improve state and local police forces, which Lopez Obrador cut soon after he took office in December 2018.

However, new measure  which was already approved by the Senate  does not specify how much funding will be provided to improve civilian police other than saying it cannot be less than the annual increase in funding given to the military and National Guard.

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In fact, under a bill passed this week by the lower house, much of that funding would come from the government confiscating domestic bank accounts if they have laid untouched for six years or more.

But on Thursday, Lopez Obrador said he opposed giving even that money to police, saying it should be for disabled people, the elderly, health care.

Starved for money, many local police forces are in a precarious state, with ill-paid cops working 24-hour shifts and having to buy their own equipment or uniforms.

We have seen in the south, southeast of Mexico a lot of them dont even wear uniforms; they wear a white T-shirt and boots they have to buy themselves, said Magda Ramirez, a researcher at the civic group Mexico Evalua.

There isnt funding even to buy indispensable things like bulletproof vests or equipment, she noted. Even in better-funded police departments  and there are some, especially in northern Mexico  police officers often must fix their own patrol vehicles.

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Okay, maybe you have a uniform and a bulletproof vest, but you are fixing your own patrol car. Youre a policeman, not a mechanic, Ramirez said.

Critics note the military is not trained for police work and does little investigation. The armed forces have been accused of human rights violations while performing law enforcement duties.

But polls have found most Mexicans trust the military more than local police and want the army and navy to continue in law enforcement tasks. That is not surprising, given the poor state of most of the police forces they have seen; but most Mexicans have never been given the choice between good, efficient police and soldiers.

The problems with law enforcement in Mexico are unlikely to be solved by the army or the militarized National Guard, said security expert Alejandro Hope.

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Crimes arent reported. When they are reported, they arent investigated. When they are investigated, they arent prosecuted properly, said Hope, noting that none of that will be solved by a military force that carries out patrols, but doesnt investigate.

For example, the National Guard has about 118,000 officers and the Mexican army and navy have about 140,000 deployable troops. There are 400,000 local police: That is where the efforts should be concentrated, Hope said.

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Here's what we know about the Kremlin's playbook for creating division in the U.S. (Video: Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post, Photo: MICHAEL KLIMENTYEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL/POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock/The Washington Post)

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On a late July day in 2016, Donald Trump, the GOP nominee for president, stood at a lectern in Florida, next to an American flag, and urged a U.S. adversary to become involved in the election campaign and find tens of thousands of emails wiped from the server of his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.



Russia, if youre listening, he said at a news conference at one of his resorts, I hope youre able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.

That same day, July 27, several Russian government hackers launched an attack against the email accounts of staffers in Clintons personal office, according to a sweeping indictment Friday by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. At or around the same time, the hackers also targeted 76 email addresses used by the Clinton campaign, investigators said.

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The remarkable timing of the Russian attempt on Clintons servers is just one of the new details revealed in the indictment of 12 Russian military intelligence officers, who Mueller alleges hacked the email accounts and computers of Democratic officials and organizations in an audacious effort to influence the U.S. election.

Although the broad outlines of the hacking and influence campaign have been widely reported, the indictment describes for the first time the identities, techniques and tactics of the operation to disrupt American democracy.

It includes details on how the Russians, using an encrypted file with instructions, delivered their trove of hacked emails to WikiLeaks, the online anti-secrecy organization led by Julian Assange that became the main platform for the Russians to display their trove of hacked emails.

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The deputy attorney general announces the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence agents in connection with hacking during the 2016 election. (Video: The Washington Post)

The indictment also reflects an aggressive but somewhat inartful operation in which hackers used the same computer servers to launder money by using the online currency bitcoin as they did to lure their victims and to register sites they used for hacking.

The hackers worked for the spy agency called the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff, or GRU, the indictment said.

They also allegedly targeted a state election board, identified by U.S. officials as Illinois. The Russians stole information about 500,000 voters, including names, addresses, partial Social Security numbers, dates of birth and drivers license numbers, according to the indictment.

This is maybe the last major missing piece of Muellers mosaic of charges on Russian election interference, said David Kris, who headed the Justice Departments national security division during the Obama administration and now leads consulting firm Culper Partners.

Russias Foreign Ministry rejected the indictments allegations as lacking evidence and described the indictment as a clear effort to derail Mondays Helsinki summit, where President Trump is to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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The new indictments follow earlier charges that Russian operators of social media accounts spread propaganda and false news stories during the 2016 campaign. Absent from Fridays indictment are any allegations of conspiracy between Russian operatives and Americans, including members of the Trump campaign.

The single most remarkable thing is that the special counsel names and shames 12 GRU officers, goes into detail of its operation and does this at a moment when we are days away from the Helsinki summit, said Thomas Rid, a strategic studies professor at Johns Hopkins University who was one of the first researchers in 2016 to identify Guccifer 2.0, an online identity created as part of the GRU operation.

Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein said Friday that the indictments timing was dictated purely by the determination of prosecutors that the information was sufficient to present to a grand jury.

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While Russian hacking, especially for espionage purposes, is decades old, using digital tools to steal data and then release it to embarrass and stoke divisions  weaponizing information  was the innovation, one that U.S. spy agencies did not see coming until too late.

Another Russian spy agency, the SVR, allegedly hacked the network of the Democratic National Committee in 2015. But it was the military units whose alleged interference Mueller singled out, and the SVR is not mentioned in the indictment.

Two GRU teams in particular, Units 26165 and 74455, both located in Moscow, carried out most of the campaign, beginning in early 2016, according to the indictment.

One of Unit 26165s officers, Senior Lt. Aleksey Lukashev, used various online fake personas, including Den Katenberg and Yuliana Martynova, to craft spearphishing emails to trick Clinton campaign members, including Chairman John Podesta, into clicking on links that enabled the hackers to obtain the victims login and password credentials, the indictment said.

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Another unit mate, Capt. Nikolay Kozachek, allegedly crafted the X-Agent malware used to hack the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and DNC networks in April 2016. Both were among those indicted.

Unit 74455, also known as the Main Center for Special Technology, engineered the release of the stolen documents through a website it created called DCLeaks and the online persona Guccifer 2.0, according to the indictment.

The campaign began as early as March 2016, when Lukashev crafted and sent a spearphish email to Podesta that was designed to look like a security notification from Google, the indictment stated. The spoof email instructed the user to change his password by clicking on a link. Podestas assistant, following the instructions of a security technician, dutifully complied, according to people familiar with the incident.

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Emails hacked from Podestas account would be released on WikiLeaks in a steady steam later that year, ensuring that material embarrassing to Clintons campaign would continue on a daily basis to deflect from her message in the weeks leading up to the election.

The GRU allegedly broke into the networks of the DCCC in April 2016, by spearphishing an employee.

The hackers installed keystroke loggers, which let them see what the employees were typing, and took images of employees computer screens, according to the indictment.

The DCCC served as the hackers gateway to the DNC. Armed with the credentials of a DCCC contractor authorized to gain access to the DNC network, the GRU infiltrated the national committee, eventually gaining access to 33 computers, according to the indictment.

Once inside the DCCC and DNC computers, the hackers searched for keywords related to the 2016 election, prosecutors allege. In mid-April 2016, they searched one DCCC computer for terms including hillary, cruz and trump, the indictment states. The hackers also copied particular DCCC folders, including one labeled Benghazi Investigations. And they targeted computers that contained information about opposition research and field operation plans for the 2016 election.

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The hackers used computer network infrastructure that they leased inside the United States, including in Arizona and Illinois, to move files from the targeted computers.

On June 22, the indictment stated, WikiLeaks sent a private message to Guccifer 2.0 asking to have access to the material, saying it will have a much higher impact on its site.

The GRU made repeated attempts to transfer the stolen DNC emails to WikiLeaks beginning in late June 2016. On July 14, the Russians got an email to WikiLeaks with an attachment titled wk dnc link1.txt.gpg. The attachment contained an encrypted file with instructions on accessing an online archive of hacked DNC documents, the indictment said.

On July 18, WikiLeaks confirmed it had the 1Gb or so archive and would release the material this week, according to the indictment.

On July 22, three days before the Democratic National Convention opened, WikiLeaks put up the DNC email archive of more than 20,000 emails and other documents hacked by the GRU, the indictment said.

Anton Troianovski in Berlin contributed to this report.

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My phone pings. A friend request from the guy I went on a date with. I feel a sense of dread as I flick through his photos. My shoulders tense and rise to my ears before I let out a sigh of relief  he has friends of colour.

The older I get, the more I find myself scanning the crowd to find faces like mine. Children of immigrants, those with a mixed heritage and third culture kids. We gravitate towards each other with a sense of solidarity, even if our cultures are vastly different. It feels good to know we have shared experiences, from being familiar with the feeling that you have to assimilate to whiteness, to knowing to remove your shoes before you enter a house.

In a multicultural society, why is it that large social groups are made up of white people only. Credit:Michael Mucci

Being half white and growing up in a very Anglo-Saxon suburb, this hasnt always been the case. In high school, I clung to my white privilege as it allowed me to laugh off comments like youre not really Asian or you dont count.

In an attempt to show us what other cultures looked like, our school even took a busload of teenage girls to Footscray to see how refugees and migrants live. I remember the squeals and grimaces at the markets as we walked past skinned ducks and ox tongue. Tiny noses being turned up at the sight of lunch.
The ambassador told the Herald and The Age that efforts to reset the relationship were off to a good start under the new Labor government, but both sides needed to take action to avoid momentum stalling. It seems were not moving fast enough, not as fast as China would expect, Xiao said in an interview at the Chinese embassy in Canberra. Penny Wong has met her Chinese counterpart twice since the May election but said in September it would be a long road to improving relations between the two nations. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Its improving but on a slow, bit-by-bit basis. Trade Minister Don Farrell said on Tuesday: I dont think we ever want to get into a situation where we again are so reliant on China.

Defence Minister Richard Marles met Chinas defence minister in Singapore in June, while Foreign Minister Wong has met her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, twice since the May election. Loading A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson responded to the ambassadors remarks by saying: Australia and China have taken important steps to stabilise the relationship, including through a range of constructive ministerial engagements. This will require continued engagement and goodwill on both sides. We will continue to pursue stabilisation, but as Foreign Minister Wong said to State Councillor Wang [last month], Australias interests are constant and the government will always speak out when necessary on the issues that matter to the Australian people. Xiao said he had been in discussions with officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs about practical steps Australia and China could take in coming months to improve the relationship.

Xiao said he had stressed that while the resumption of ministerial-level meetings was welcome, we need to take some actions beyond talking. In a relationship, you need two hands to clap. Xiao described the coming G20 summit in Jakarta, APEC meeting in Bangkok and East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh as important opportunities for the two nations to repair relations and argued the economic gain could help boost the Australian government budget  and end the argument over income tax cuts. Penny Wong gives a speech to her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at the G20 meeting in July. Credit:Johannes P. Christo If we have good relations between China and Australia, if we come back to a normal relationship, come back to comprehensive co-operation, why should Australia worry about the tax? You dont have to worry about the tax cuts, he said. Commenting on calls for Australia to reduce its dependence on China, Xiao said: Somebody may say that Australia can co-operate with many other countries. Congratulations. But in my view, you cannot find any other partner like China, you cannot find a better partner [than] China.

Xiao angered some observers with a major speech to the National Press Club in August that included an assertion that China reserved the right to take control of Taiwan by force, but he played down that prospect in his interview this week and said Chinas goal was peaceful reunification. Loading Xiao said Xinjiang and Taiwan were two issues that are frequently, in certain ways, disrupting our efforts to reset the relationship. I wish that the people in this country and the Labor government will be looking at the issues in a more objective or more balanced way, and address those issues in a constructive way, he said. And we can talk about our views over these issues  but for public statements, its hurting the Chinese people.

Public commentary on these topics was not conducive to creating a favourable atmosphere, he said, rejecting widespread claims China had pursued a policy of genocide in Xinjiang. Loading Asked about the detention of Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who has been in custody in China for two years and is yet to learn the outcome of a closed trial held in March, the ambassador said he had no authority to interfere with the judicial process but could offer other help. I am willing to provide whatever assistance I can from a humanitarian perspective and in accordance with Chinese law to facilitate contact between Cheng Lei and her family or the Australian embassy in China, he said. The Australian government has called for basic standards of justice and humane treatment for Cheng, while the International Federation of Journalists has criticised the complete lack of transparency around the trial and called for her release.

On Taiwan, the ambassador said Chinas official position was that there should be one country, two systems but acknowledged the Australian stance adopted in December 1972 only accepted a one China policy. Loading We look to Australia to understand the Chinese position on Taiwan and stick to its China policy, he said. Xiao said China had no problem with Australia pursuing economic ties with Taiwan. But we cannot accept any kind of official relationship between Australia and Taiwan, he added. Asked whether Wong or Farrell could be welcomed to Beijing for ministerial talks, he said: Id love to see various kinds of high-level contacts and added that neither side should apply preconditions to the meeting.
The Chinese government has provocatively characterised the AUKUS partnership between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom as a race-based military grouping of white nations, saying it was sending a negative message to the Asia-Pacific.

As China struggles to rouse opposition to AUKUS in key international forums, the countrys ambassador to Australia also argued Australia was setting a dangerous precedent on nuclear proliferation by seeking to acquire nuclear-powered submarine technology.

Chinas ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian, said AUKUS set a dangerous precedent on nuclear proliferation. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Its three Anglo-Saxon countries building up a new block, ambassador Xiao Qian told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age when asked about the AUKUS pact.

What kind of message are you sending to the rest of the world? [That] you are basing your interest on your ethnic natures? This is not positive, to be honest.
Australians fled Sydney and Melbourne to escape the harsh reality of COVID lockdowns but most drew the line at departing their home state as they sought out a safe place to ride out the pandemic.

Data from the 2021 census, released on Wednesday, showed substantial levels of intra and interstate movement out of the nations two largest cities as people headed for the regions.

Over five years, almost 41 per cent of people changed their address, the census shows. Credit:Natalie Boog

To gauge how often and how far Australians move homes, the census  conducted in August last year as most of the east coast was in COVID lockdown  asked people if they were living in the same place as they were in August 2020 and in August 2016.

Just over 79 per cent of residents, or 19.9 million people, lived at the same address as a year earlier. There were 55,130 Australian-born people who moved back from overseas, a sharp fall on previous censuses due to the effective shutdown of the international border.
Director Andrew Dominiks Blonde, now available on Netflix and starring Ana de Armas as blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe, is a long film. Not merely because of its almost three-hour run time but also because it feels long when youre watching it. The latest attempt to explore Monroes complex life of stardom, abuse, and mental illness attempts to do a lot with its long takes and drawn-out plot devices, but still leaves the viewer with a poignant question: Is that it?

The first approximately two hours comprise most of the films longness. Blonde opens with a long establishing shot of Norma Jean Mortenson (Monroe was a stage name) being driven into the middle of a fire in Californias Hollywood Hills by her mentally unstable mother, Gladys. Shortly after the two are directed to leave, Gladys attempts to drown the seven-year-old Norma Jean in a bathtub as offscreen narration explains Gladys belief that her daughter caused her husband to leave. The child is then sent to an orphanage. Things dont get better from there.

From the minute Norma Jean begins a career as a pin-up girl named Marilyn Monroe, the film begins its graphic depiction of the exploitative nature of Hollywood. Monroe is raped by Darryl Zanuck, the producer of scores of Hollywood classics ranging from The Grapes of Wrath to The Longest Day and reputedly the inventor of the casting couch. Shortly after, she gets a role in a film as a result of yet another casting directors being more interested in ogling her body than her acting abilities. The sexualization continues with Monroes polyamorous relationship with Charles Chaplin (the famous Chaplins son) and Edward G. Robinson Jr., even as her stardom beginning to skyrocket, the lines between her real self and the persona she displays in front of the cameras beginning to blur.

Its as Norma Jean grows into the Marilyn Monroe we all know (or think we know) that we get to see the brilliance of actress Ana de Armas, the true highlight of the film. Criticisms of de Armas Spanish accent fall by the waysideher accent is perceptible but not to the point that it detracts from the plot, especially when one considers the complicated cinematic principle that its not actually Marilyn Monroe talking. De Armas absolutely disappears into the role, painting a moving picture of the two sides of Monroes characterboth the mentally unstable, trauma-laden Norma Jean and the primped, polished film star. The audience can easily tell not only which persona is in the room but also the extent to which de Armas blends the two personas later in the movie as a way of showing Monroes heightened instability. De Armas fulfils any good films primary goalshow, dont tellwith nuance and artistic grace throughout the runtime.

Unfortunately, not everyone involved in the making of the film expressed de Armas ability to show not tell, and the main culprits in that regard are the writers. Blonde is not a particularly well-written film: The plot feels unbalanced and routinely devolves into dialogue and interactions that fail to orient the viewer as to whats actually happening. The first sex scene, with Chaplin, resembles a cross between a fever dream and a Salvador Dali painting. While there may be no truly non-awkward way to shoot a sex scene, Monroes bed suddenly turning into a waterfall (the scene happens in the lead up to her role in Niagara) definitely highlights her mental instability, but not in a way that evokes pity or reflection.

This gets to another persistent problem with Blonde: The attempts to create some kind of moral core to the character result in the viewers being treated to too-on-the-nose dialogue. After the persistence-of-Niagara sex scene, Monroe realizes shes pregnant with Chaplins child and elects to have an abortion out of worry that the child will inherit her mothers mental instability. Although she changes her mind while on the table for the abortion, its too late to stop the procedure and the baby dies.

Much press attention has been drawn to Blondes problematic portrayal of abortion. Again, the heavy-handedness of the dialogue is one issue. At a film premiere after the abortion, Marilyn looks out at a sea of reporters and admirers and asks herself, tears streaming down her face, For this you killed your baby? This doesnt make the movie an anti-abortion fever dream as Vanity Fair claims, but something much worse: confusing. If, as director Dominik claims, Blonde isnt a pro-life film, then this self-doubt over the morality of the act feels weirdly misplaced. If it is in fact a pro-life film, the rhetorical question feels eye-rollingly unsubtle, more suited to a Pureflix film than something that premiered at the Venice Film Festival.

Nevertheless, Blonde could be considered a kind of pro-life film, but its not making a particularly cogent case in its treatment of the abortion issue. Showing the real effects of miscarriages (Monroe had several throughout her life, which the movie addresses) on the psyche is important and effective. Inserting an abortive procedure into the life of a celebrity who quite possibly never had one, however, feels like a cheap, manufactured controversy that serves to further confine Monroes full personhood to her reproductive capabilities.

Monroes spouses only worsen the fleeting nature of the actress emotional connections. While her first and little-known marriage to her next-door neighbor Jim Dougherty doesnt show up in Blonde, her marriage to Yankee star Joe DiMaggio doesa sincere and mature relationship occurring after Monroes early flings with Chaplin and Robinson. Bobby Cannavale turns in a solid performance as DiMaggio in the depiction of a marriage that starts well but ends in divorce after the athlete indulges in a string of drunken attacks instigated by everything from a blackmail attempt by Chaplin and Robinson juniors to the famous subway-grate scene in The Seven Year Itch. After leaving DiMaggio, Monroe falls into the arms of her third and last husbandplaywright Arthur Miller, a kind and seemingly good-hearted man played by Adrien Brody.

Past the midpoint of the film, when Monroe gets pregnant by Miller, her fetus asks her, You wont hurt me this time, will you? When Marilyn explains her regret over her previous abortion, the baby tells her: Yes, you meant to. It was your decision. The talking fetus is yet another reminder of the biggest issue with Blondethe movie simply cant show not tell the moral lessons it wants the audience to take away, whether its her fling with Chaplin or her rape at the hands of John F. Kennedy, leaving us with nothing more compelling than a talking fetus berating its mother as a cheap CGI substitute for moral depth.

The movie wants to humanize Marilyn Monroe and make her inner life the subject of our own reflection, but it cant provide any meaningful points of reference for the audience beyond Monroes body, which is portrayed in typically exploitative fashion. Her mind is constantly shifting focus, the sign of her intensifying mental instability, leaving us unable to grasp any sense of a real her. This is an issue that could perhaps have been resolved by giving more life context to the various supporting characters Monroe interacts with, but the only consistently-referenced side character throughout the movie is Monroes father, whom we never meet or get the chance to care about as a real person.

In addition to de Armas exceptional performance, the movie has one other big positivewith the exception of that aforementioned waterfall sex scene, the cinematography is extremely well done. As the movie nears its end, the dialogue dwindles, allowing the audience to find meaning in the excellent camera work that highlights the loneliness of Monroes later days. One particular scene, where Monroe is looking for a tip to give a delivery man, searching in vain throughout her house in a desire to do one singular good deed, is perhaps the most well-crafted bit of direction in the movie. The scene contains zero dialogue and simply shows us the tragedy of a woman who had money and fame but never truly wanted anything more than to do the right thing by herself and others. By the time she arrives with the money, the delivery man is long gone. Its a brilliant shot, and the only downside is that its the most meaningful scene in a movie that runs almost three hours and was budgeted at $22 million. The scene depicting her death from barbiturates is similarly impactful, containing almost no words and concluding the film with a long fade to black, looking up at her body from the floor of her bedroom.

Blondes greatest assets are de Armas and the fanciful camera work, and for the few times when thats all thats onscreen, in near silence, the movies potential for greatness shines through. Overly literal and at times hackneyed storytelling and the attempt to manufacture controversy for its own sake relegate this movie to just that: potential. The filmmakers take much of the Joyce Carol Oates novel upon which its based as mere fact. Perhaps if they had been more skeptical, a more gracious depiction of Monroes life and trials would have been forthcoming.

In a twist of irony in a biopic of a megastar, the only meaningful moments in the film are the simple and the universally understandablethe dark moments that showcase the hopelessness of a tormented woman who was victimized by so many, from her mother to her coworkers to her lovers. It would have been nice if Blonde hadnt added to the victimization.
Jessica OGrady of Geelong, who was on the Sari Club dancefloor when the car bomb exploded outside 20 years ago, walked out in tears when the footage of the venue in flames was on screen. Weve been to many anniversaries here and up until that point every single one of them had been beautiful and respectful and today had been a really, really nice day up until that point. I just cannot believe that they showed that, she said. Nobody needs to see that. We lived through that. We were right here. Her friend Kirra Clarke, who was a first responder after the attack, was also dismayed. [They were] speaking about it being a homage to the families, how can that be? she said. No one wants to see that. Its hard enough to see the sanitised version. Can you imagine if thats your loved one in that site, and were here to pay respect and they show that?

Onlookers watch vision of the Bali bombing aftermath on a big screen at the 20th anniversary memorial of the event in Kuta, Bali. Credit:Chris Barrett A spokesman for Indonesian polices anti-terror squad Detachment 88, which made the video and was involved in organising the night, said on Thursday it deeply regretted that the video evoked sadness again for the victims We had no intention to raise the trauma but to remind us about the danger of terrorism, Detachment 88 spokesman Aswin Siregar said. It was especially for the younger generation who did not experience the tragedy or who did not know about it. But we understand and we would like to apologise that some parts of the video were incongruous to the victims. It was not intentional to cause sadness. Sirgear said officers from Detachment 88, which was established with the aid of Australian funding and training after the Bali bombings, had received complaints on Wednesday night.

The event, which followed an earlier Indonesian-run peace ceremony at the memorial in the afternoon and an Australian government-organised tribute at its consulate-general in Denpasar, was attended by Indonesia Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian and National Police Chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo, who placed flowers at the monument. Loading There were also Australian officials there including Penny Williams, the ambassador to Indonesia, and representatives from other countries. Speeches from Indonesia President Joko Widodo and former Australian prime minister John Howard were beamed over the two big screens to start proceedings. Widodo said we all must unite against terrorism, describing the Bali bombings as a barbaric act clearly aimed at creating provocation and terror in the midst of society.

Howard gave a nod to the spirit of cooperation between Indonesian and Australian police, who joined forces to hunt down those responsible for the bombings, setting the tone for ties between the two nations. Those who carried out these attacks wanted to drive a wedge between Indonesia and Australia, he said. We can take comfort from the fact that they failed utterly to do that. The video package, titled Harmony in Diversity, was presented as a documentation of Indonesias success in tracking down and convicting the culprits and tackling extremism in recent years. It also included a clip of a plane flying into one of the World Trade Centre towers in New York City on September 11, 2001.

The handling of the event appeared to be another example of the sometimes divergent outlooks between Indonesia and Australia on sensitive political and cultural issues. But siblings Lesley Reynolds and Jeff Marshall of Adelaide, who lost their father Bob Marshall in the attack, said they found it deeply confronting. An Australian flag is seen during the commemoration in Bali. Credit:Getty When they put up that footage of the bombings and the bombers and everything, it just took us straight back. There is some of that footage we havent even seen, Reynolds said. They missed the timeline [as well]. I feel really disappointed and let down.

Marshall said: It was hard to watch. I just put my head down. I couldnt watch it. We stayed around tonight because we thought tonight was about Australians, the 88 people who died, and there is nothing. All we got was bombs and carnage. Those guys [the perpetrators] should never be shown again. Theyve been executed and theyre out of our lives. Now theyre throwing them in our faces. Its crazy. Some Australians at the site said they were also unhappy they were not permitted to enter the land of the former Sari Club to light a candle at the time of the bombings 20 years ago because it was being used on Wednesday night as a car park for vehicles ferrying government officials. The sight on screen of Patek, who has been made eligible for parole 11 years into his 20-year prison, also went down poorly. The former Jemaah Islamiyah bomb maker has been held up by Indonesian police as a model for reforming extremists and could soon walk free if his release is ticked off by the Indonesian government.

Loading I walked out in disbelief when I saw Umar Patek and Ali Imron [who was sentenced to life in jail over the bombings] and the explosion. At 11.05pm on the 20th anniversary, I thought this cant be happening, said Melbourne man Jan Laczynski, who was in Bali on the night of the attack and lost friends. Im a hardened person. Ive met all these terrorists in a courtroom, face to face in a documentary. Im shocked and I dont shock easily. I saw girls crying in front of me. I couldnt believe it. Candles were lit during the late-night service to remember the victims and there was also a poem read about love and pluralism, accompanied by dancers. - with Karuni Rompies and Amilia Rosa
They cannot actually vote, but they can vote with their feet, says Alfred Wu a professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in Singapore and an expert on the political economy of Greater China. The middle class that can is quietly starting to leave or planning to leave. In Japan, British schools Malvern College, Rugby, and Harrow, famed for educating royals and members of parliament, are setting up campuses to cater to high-end Chinese demand. In Malaysia, the number of Chinese student applications has doubled. In Europe, there has been a rush on Chinese applications, to Greece, after the government announced it would double the cost of an investment visa from $380,000 to $760,000. Across Southeast Asia, but particularly in Singapore, Chinese buyers are dominating the market for properties worth more than $5 million - making up 20 per cent of sales so far in 2022. International schools in Singapore are receiving a lot of inquiries, not just from Hong Kong, but from the mainland, Wu said. In some cases, Chinese parents are enrolling their children in Singaporean schools and pay tens of thousands of dollars in fees to secure a place before getting out of the country. More than 100,000 Hong Kong residents applied for a British National Overseas visa in 2021 and China remains Canadas second-largest source of permanent migrants.

Joe Jin, who owned a baby product online shop in China says he had been considering migrating to Canada for the past decade but circumstances this year forced his hand. What made me actually take action is the further education of my elder son who will enter high school this year and the bleak prospects of my own business, says the 45-year-old, who has moved on a student visa and begun work as a courier. He misses home but does not regret his decision. Immigration brings a huge change in lifestyle and sometimes loneliness, he says. In Australia, the most recent set of Department of Home Affairs data shows that China once again became Australias largest source of permanent migrants in 2020-21, topping India for the first time in the past five years with 22,207 places.

Zheng Guo, an international steel trader, is now considering a move to Australia despite the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the two countries and his concerns about COVID-fuelled racial discrimination in Australia. Doing international trade requires lots of travel and visas. However, as foreign countries do not recognise the Chinese vaccine, I have to take prolonged quarantine, at my own expense, says Zheng. Another reason is to provide a better educational environment for my son, who will enter middle school this year. Educational opportunities have always been a key reason for middle-class and wealthy Chinese families to go abroad to both give their kids a better chance at attending prestigious universities and minimise the pressures of gaokao - Chinas high-stakes university entrance exams. But under COVID-19 they have also become an excuse to get out of a country that has maintained strict control over passports throughout the pandemic. China has not opened yet and many people are hoping to go out, but the Chinese government has been issuing few passports, says Jack Zhang an immigration consultant based in Shenzhen.

Zhang says the number of passports issued in China in the first half of 2021 was only 2 per cent of the same period in 2019. Today, its almost impossible to get a passport for visiting family or tourism but studying abroad or doing business is relatively easy, he says. Chinese people living overseas live a free life, like many of my friends who live abroad. However, inside China, we are in a closed state, not that free, such as in Shenzhen, as soon as there was an outbreak, it was locked down. Outside the Canadian visa centre in Beijing in September more than a dozen people were standing in a queue waiting to see if they would be allowed to leave.

Im planning to visit family members in Canada, says one woman who asks to be identified due to the political sensitivities of travel. The most difficult part of international travel is to get a Chinese passport because it is not issued regularly in recent years due to COVID-19. Getting money out of the country is also tricky. Chinese migrants have to establish bank accounts overseas, and then transfer their Chinese yuan into an exchange account run by another company. The exchange company then holds the yuan and transfers the equivalent foreign currency from a foreign exchange bank account to get around Chinese government restrictions on transferring money across borders. Xi Jinping is expected to be awarded an historic third term. Credit:AP On Chinese social media services Weibo and WeChat run xue or run philosophy went viral in May, as residents in Shanghai grappled with food shortages and millions were sealed in their apartment blocks. But even as some of those pressures have eased, immigration agents say demand for a way out has continued to grow. Some are resorting to extreme measures. In August, CNN followed 33-year-old Wang Qun as he made his way to the United States. The bubble tea shop owner got his passport by applying for a language school in Ecuador, flew to the capital Quito, caught a bus for 1600 kilometres to Colombia, took a boat across to Panama, spent three days hiking through the Panamanian jungle, made it through Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Guatemala before scrambling across the US-Mexico border. He was one of the dozens following instructions in an online forum on how to immigrate illegally from China to America.

In the years after Xi Jinping came to power, Chinas policies have become tighter and tighter, the economy is not doing great  and (his) dictatorship is only getting worse, Wang told CNN. More than 2000 Chinese Communist Party members will gather for a week from Sunday to anoint Xi as General Secretary for a third term where they could also name him as either Chairman or Peoples Leader and elevate him alongside Mao Zedong in the pantheon of Chinese leaders. Xi has ruthlessly pursued COVID-zero more than any other world leader, turning an impossible task into a personal test for both him and the Chinese people. Loading Fences once again encircled neighbourhoods in Shanghai on Monday and staff were locked inside restaurants. Mobile units have been installed on sidewalks to carry away close contacts to quarantine, dashing hopes of any real easing of restrictions before the end of this year. We must remain vigilant against the spread of the epidemic, increase our confidence and patience in our countrys epidemic prevention and control policies, Chinese government-controlled media outlet Peoples Daily said in an editorial on Tuesday.
Olga Lopatkina paced around her basement like a trapped animal. She hadnt heard from her six adopted children stranded in Mariupol for over a week, and she didnt know what to do.

The family would end up getting caught up in one of the most explosive issues of the war: Russias open effort to take Ukrainian orphans and bring them up as Russian.

Olga Lopatkina embraces her adopted children in a park in Loue, western France in July. Credit:AP

An Associated Press investigation shows that Russias strategy is well underway. Thousands of children have been taken from basements of bombed out cities like Mariupol and from orphanages in the Russian-backed separatist territories of Donbas. They include those whose parents were killed by Russian shelling, others in institutions or with foster families.

Russia claims many of these children have no parents or guardians, or that they cant be reached. But the AP found that officials have deported Ukrainian children to Russia or Russian-held territories without consent, lied to them that they werent wanted by their parents, and given them Russian families and citizenship.
New York: Alex Jones must pay $US965 million ($1.5 billion) in damages to numerous families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting for falsely claiming they were actors who faked the tragedy, a Connecticut jury said on Wednesday, marking the second multimillion-dollar verdict against the conspiracy theorist in just over two months.

The verdict came after three weeks of testimony in a state court in Waterbury, Connecticut, not far from where a gunman killed 20 children and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012. Jones claimed for years that the massacre was staged as part of a government plot to take away Americans guns.

Infowars founder Alex Jones appears in court to testify during the Sandy Hook defamation damages trial in Connecticut. Credit:AP

In August, another jury found that Jones and his company must pay $US49.3 million to Sandy Hook parents in a similar case in Austin, Texas, where the headquarters of Jones Infowars conspiracy theory website is located.

Lawyers for families of eight Sandy Hook victims during closing arguments in Connecticut last week said Jones cashed in for years on lies about the shooting, which drove traffic to his Infowars website and boosted sales of its various products.
The person most likely to own Twitter next month has proposed solving the war in Ukraine by letting Russia keep territory, won praise from a top Chinese diplomat for suggesting China take control of Taiwan, and welcomed a widely followed celebrity back to Twitter who had just had his Instagram account suspended for threatening Jews - all within the past week.

Billionaire industrialist Elon Musks moves have heightened alarm about what he will do with Twitter, which he has faulted for being too restrictive about legal but false or hateful speech.

Elon Musk: in touch with Vladimir Putin. Credit:AP

Since autocrats already use the platform to spread lies about opponents and whip up violence and mayhem, Musks pursuit of approval from two of the most powerful is especially unnerving.

Its a very good illustration as to why it would be a disaster if Musk does come to own Twitter, said Paul Barrett, deputy director of New York Universitys Stern Centre for Business and Human Rights. You could have provocations, whether engineered by Musk himself or by others, that could have global implications.
Just in case you needed yet another reason to be disappointed in your fellow humans, here I am with more depressing news. Researchers from University of Utah found that four out of ten Americans they surveyed stated that they did not practice full disclosure with othersi.e. they lied or withheld informationabout having COVID-19 or enacting COVID-safe practices. Why? Well, because they wanted to "feel normal" or "exercise personal freedom." The authors of the study posit that this lack of honesty is potentially helping the virus spread and prolonging the pandemic. University of Utah Health explains:

"COVID-19 safety measures can certainly be burdensome, but they work," says Andrea Gurmankin Levy, Ph.D., a professor of social sciences at Middlesex Community College in Connecticut. As co-lead author of the study, she worked in collaboration with Fagerlin and other scientists at U of U Heath as well as researchers elsewhere in the United States.

"When people are dishonest about their COVID-19 status or what precautions they are taking, it can increase the spread of disease in their community." Levy says. "For some people, particularly before we had COVID vaccines, that can mean death."

Some of the most common incidents were:

Breaking quarantine rules

Telling someone they were with, or were about to see, that they were taking more COVID-19 precautions than they actually were

Not mentioning that they might have had, or knew that they had, COVID-19 when entering a doctor's office

Telling someone they were vaccinated when they weren't

Saying they weren't vaccinated when they actually were
Star Wars: Andor continues to fascinate me without relying on blatantly obvious easter eggs or fan service, and instead is a pretty direct translation of what made the animated Clone Wars and Rebels great into live-action. Character development and storytelling.

The heist goes off with most of the hitches you could predict. However, the robbery appears to be a success, as many Galactic credits were stolen. The Rebel leaders haven't been exposed, the next-stage funding appears secured, and a guy I expected to be dead is only severely wounded*. Cassian is still Cassian, perhaps the character showing the most negligible growth thus far.

We get a lot of Empire culture and another view of Star Wars parenting. This time it is an Imperial Commanding Officer and his family. So far, everyone is a pretty lousy parent. I suppose the 'kidnapped by the Jedi' thing might be preferable. The look at how the Empire and a local culture rub one another the wrong ways during their star gazing festival is also excellent and out of the animated series.

Mon Mothma shows us how ineffective and useless the Imperial Senate had become five years before the Emperor just disbands it entirely. The senate is pretty useless. I can see why Mothma would look to build a rebellion, she needs someone to listen to her ideas.

Six weeks in and no force users, no Wookie comic relief. Strange things are afoot in the Star Wars universe.

*I have been told I am too optimistic.
Student finds healing, passion through art at WSU

October 13, 2022

Addie Harmon displayed two large paintings, reflecting her inner world, in the Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Gallerys main exhibit room, while her immersive forest installation, complete with audio, video and tree branches casting looming shadows from the ceiling, had its own gallery space.

Her art was part of Weber State Universitys spring 2022 BFA Thesis Exhibition, where Bachelor of Fine Arts majors displayed their work as a capstone project.

While opportunities like the exhibition give students experience to take into their careers, for Harmon, it meant so much more. Seeing museum guests connect with her art validated the many hours she spent creating it and boosted her confidence, something she needed after several difficult years.

I recently went through a divorce, an abusive living situation, experienced death and loss, experienced birth and renewal, and moved three times in six months, said Harmon, about the years leading up to the exhibition.

Harmon grew up in Springville, Utah, and lived in Logan, before moving to Ogden with her husband to attend WSU in 2018.

My very first semester, I took Drawing 1, and it was very scary, said Harmon, who began creating art seriously for the first time at Weber State.

She soon overcame her nervousness and developed her own art style.

My work is precarious and frantic at times, resisting norms while also yearning for them, she said. Im working to learn how to utilize passion, fury and mad dashing, as well as technique, form and composition, to achieve my weird, creative ways of expressing myself and making my inner world outer.

A year later, her husband joined the military. She felt lonely during his nine months of training, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult to see family and friends and classes were held online. When he returned, the couple discovered they had grown apart, and, after trying to save the relationship, divorced. Losing her husbands financial support, she moved in with housemates and experienced an abusive living situation. After relocating two more times, her pet chinchilla, Cinnamon, died.

Harmon thought shed never have the chance to study abroad, dealing with financial struggles, school stress and a shaken self-confidence. However, along with showcasing her art in the exhibition, she received a scholarship to visit Venice for three weeks during summer 2022.

It was 14 students and two professors, and we all lived in this little apartment we rented out, she said. We would go to see art basically everyday.

At the La Biennale di Venezia, a festival featuring artists from around the world, she saw video pieces by Egle Budvytyte and paintings by Ficre Ghebreyeusus that reminded her of her own work.

In the past, she thought traveling overseas wouldnt be possible for her, but the trip made her realize she could go anywhere.

It was scary, but amazing, and I regret nothing, she said. The world, traveling, visiting other countries, experiencing different cultures  these all became accessible, in reality as well as in my mind.

After she graduates in spring 2023, she is considering graduate school to continue studying art, and expressing herself.

In the art world, especially at WSU, I feel like Ive finally found my tribe, the people I vibe with, she said. I feel like I can be myself here.
"Human Aggression" is a 24-minute documentary written and produced in 1976 by famed social psychologist Stanley Milgram (who conducted the controversial Obedience Experiments at Yale in the 1960s).

"These teenagers belong to a gang, the Young Skulls," says Milgram at the start of the film, which shows a multicultural group of teenagers wearing colorful clothes with gang insignia. "In this film, we will follow the gang through an ordinary day and see what part aggression plays in the lives of its members."

The gang, fully aware that they are being filmed, seem to enjoy performing for the camera. In one scene, they jump on a moving car and beat it with sticks, feet, and fists.

In another scene, a member of a rival gang, the Blue Angels, encroaches on the Young Skulls' turf, and a scuffle ensues. The leader of the Young Skulls (who may very well have been the inspiration for the gang leader in 1979's Being There) removes the vest of the Blue Angel and spits on it.

In another scene, one of the Young Skulls, who challenges the leader in the hierarchy of the gang, receives a ritual beatdown to put him in his place.

It's interesting to see the grim, dirty old New York of Taxi Driver.

Now I want to watch The Warriors again!

Thumbnail image: Morhos Film Lab/YouTube
The Supreme Court has elected to remain uninvolved and rejected former President Trump's request to further muddy the waters and add delays to the investigation of the stolen documents. The DOJ has maintained that the 100 classified or otherwise secret documents should be treated as such. The Special Master and 11th Circuit agreed. However, Trump's Judge Cannon somehow got confused. Maybe Trump also marks his personal documents TOP SECRET with a black sharpie.

CNN:

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an emergency request from former President Donald Trump to intervene in the dispute over classified documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago estate in August.

Trump had asked the justices to reverse a federal appeals court and allow a special master to review about 100 documents marked classified, a move that could have opened the door for his legal team to review the records and argue that they should be off limits to prosecutors in a criminal case.

But in a brief order, the court denied the request. There were no noted dissents.

For now, the documents will stay out of the reach of the special master.
NWS Weather Alert NOTE: This information is provided by the National Weather Service. Forecast may differ from local information provided by our own 69News Meteorologists

...FREEZE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 9 AM EDT WEDNESDAY... * WHAT...Temperatures in the lower 30s. * WHERE...In New Jersey, Morris, Hunterdon and Somerset. In Pennsylvania, Berks, Lehigh, Northampton, Western Chester, Western Montgomery and Upper Bucks. * WHEN...From midnight tonight to 9 AM EDT Wednesday. * IMPACTS...Frost and freeze conditions will kill crops and other sensitive vegetation. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold. &&
LOS ANGELES (AP)  The founder and CEO of a software company targeted by election deniers was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of stealing data on hundreds of Los Angeles County poll workers.

Konnech Corporation's Eugene Yu, 51, was arrested in Meridian Township in Michigan and held on suspicion of theft of personal identifying information, while computer hard drives and other digital evidence" were seized by investigators from the county district attorney's office, according to the office.

Local prosecutors will seek his extradition to California.

We are continuing to ascertain the details of what we believe to be Mr. Yus wrongful detention by LA County authorities," Konnech said in a statement that ended: Any LA County poll worker data that Konnech may have possessed was provided to it by LA County, and therefore could not have been stolen' as suggested."

Konnech is a small company based in East Lansing, Michigan. In 2020, it won a five-year, $2.9 million contract with LA County for software to track election worker schedules, training, payroll,and communications, according to the county registrar-recorder/county clerk, Dean C. Logan.

Konnech was required to keep the data in the United States and only provide access to citizens and permanent residents but instead stored it on servers in the Peoples Republic of China, the DAs office said.

The DA's office didn't specify what specific information allegedly was taken. But officials said it only involved poll workers, not voting machines or vote counts and didn't alter election results.

But security in all aspects of any election is essential so that we all have full faith in the integrity of the election process, District Attorney George Gascon said in a statement.

With the mid-term General Election 35 days away, our focus remains on ensuring the administration of this election is not disrupted, said a statement from Dean C. Logan, the LA County registrar-recorder/county clerk.

There wasn't any evidence that any election worker was bribed or extorted and an investigation was pending into whether any of the data went into inappropriate hands, the DA's office said.

Konnech previously said that all the data for its American customers were stored on servers in the United States, the New York Times reported Monday.

The paper reported that Konnech and Yu, who was born in China, became the target of claims by election conspiracy theorists that the company had secret ties to the Chinese Communist Party and had supplied information on 2 million poll workers.

There wasn't any evidence to support those claims, but Yu received threats and went into hiding, the paper said.

Konnech also has contracts with Allen County, Indiana, and DeKalb County in Georgia, the Times said.

On its website, Konnech said it currently has 32 clients in North America.
FILE - A person walks into the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) headquarters in Hsinchu, Taiwan on Oct. 20, 2021. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips for smartphones and other products, said Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022, quarterly profit rose 79.7% over a year earlier to $8.8 billion amid surging demand.
SOUTH HEIDELBERG TWP., Pa.  Change how you operate or close up shop. That was the message Berks County District Attorney John Adams and others delivered Wednesday to the operators of the state's Wernersville Community Corrections Center.

"They have worn out their welcome and community leaders, we are all in agreement," Adams said during a news conference that was streamed live on WFMZ.com. "The center must close, and the way it operates must change."

16:37 WATCH: News conference on Wernersville Community Corrections Center Berks County District Attorney John Adams and Pennsylvania Rep. Barry Jozwiak held a news conference to address their concerns about the Werne

Adams and state Rep. Barry Jozwiak stood side by side, saying they want the Wernersville Community Corrections Center to close. They said they talked with Department of Corrections Secretary George Little, who has agreed to reduce the parolee population to 50.

"The secretary has responded and is willing to make some changes and meet with us to discuss the future of this facility," said Jozwiak, a Berks County Republican who served as the county's sheriff for 12 years and a state trooper for 25 years.

For Jozwiak and Adams, they said recent criminal incidents involving parolees have sparked the effort, including a recent drug-related incident that prompted a search.

"Which discovered a loaded semiautomatic rifle in the trunk of the car along with several loaded magazines," Jozwiak said. "This occurred within one mile of Conrad Weiser High School."

The school district joins South Heidelberg Township and neighboring municipalities in calling for the shutdown. The planned proposal also calls for the parolees to only be from Berks County.

"It gets rid of the gangbangers out of Philadelphia, some of the more serious offenders," Jozwiak said. "Berks County has its share, of course, but I think what you just said is probably true. They have family ties here."

Meanwhile, an ongoing zoning case remains tied up in the court system, as South Heidelberg continues to question if the state even has proper use to operate the facility.

"By the rulings by the local authority as well as the county, which confirmed our belief that we will indeed win at the commonwealth level," said Sean McKee, the South Heidelberg Township manager.

Overall, Adams and Jozwiak said they're pleased with the discussion they recently had with the Department of Corrections, and they hope to see changes coming soon.

"He understood the problem," Adams said of Little, "recognized it, understood changes need to be made and needed to be made immediately."
WERNERSVILLE, Pa. - Oct. 13 is Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day, and a Berks County native is speaking about her experience with the disease.

"From the very start my diagnosis was stage 4 breast cancer," says Conrad Weiser graduate Ashley Rizzuto.

By the time she was 38 years old Rizzuto was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer that had spread to her liver.

"I've heard from all my doctors 'you're so young for this'", says Rizzuto, "but I've actually met quite a few women, under 40 years old like me, young mothers that have stage 4 breast cancer."

There is no cure, but there are several treatments.

"I have not yet had chemo, surgery or radiation," says Rizzuto. "I've been on hormonal therapy and targeted treatments."

Ashley's cancer has been responding well to treatments overall, but there's a lot of uncertainty.

"There are only so many treatments," says Rizzuto. "You're on a treatment till either it stops working, or your body can't handle the side effects. Then you go on to the next and the next treatment but eventually you run out of treatments or your cancer mutates to a point where it doesn't respond to any of the current treatments that are out there."

It's something a lot of people don't understand because outwardly she doesn't have the telltale signs of cancer.

"I'm doing well, but when you look at the statistics, it's a lot scarier," says Rizzuto.

Less than 30% of people with metastatic breast cancer live more than five years.

"I look great, I feel great but there's this whole other piece of my life going on right now," says Rizzuto.

She'll be sharing her story at a benefit in New York City for the Light Up MBC event, which will help raise money for research.

People can donate online.

"I feel like I need to do something to help other people going through this," says Rizzuto.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - A major announcement came Wednesday for the city of Bethlehem. City leaders say Bethlehem is undergoing an economic and cultural renaissance, and now they want it to have a community center on the Southside.

Winston Alozie, the CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Bethlehem, says this project is a long time coming.

"I'm hopeful to see community spaces, areas where kids can get all the schoolwork, I'm hopeful to see all the recreational spots," Alozie said.

The project is in its infancy, as the details are still being worked out. Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds says the project will go through different phases. Right now they are figuring out what the community is looking for in a rec center and what types of services it would offer. Then comes the real planning.

Mayor Reynolds said, "We're going to try to figure out how we raise the money to build it, but how do you make it financially sustainable and how do you make it something that matches the vision that our community is looking for."

And organizers say they want the community to shape the building and what it offers. They're looking for input from all generations, but Bethlehem Area School District Superintendent Joseph Roy says he wants students' voices to be heard.

"Let the kids talk about, you know, what their experiences are in the neighborhood, what would they like to see, be able to do, what kind of place they want to be able to call their community center," Roy said.

While this project may be just taking form, many organizations and community members say they are committed to making it happen.
My first thought was I want to be here for my daughter and I may not be able to be here for as long as I wanted, said Lenny Rafalko.

Rafalko is one of 30,000 people with ALS in the United States. He was 62 when he was diagnosed with ALS in 2019, and just days ago he and his wife Marta celebrated their first wedding anniversary.

Marta at times will feed me to save energy. I can still eat, still watch the Phillies. I can root, boo, and cheer, he said.

The Montgomery man has a medical win to cheer, too. Relyvrio is the first ALS treatment drug FDA has approved in five years. It will be available in November. It slows the progression of the disease by better protecting nerves in the spinal cord and brain. Tony Heyl of the ALS Association of Greater Philadelphia, whose grandfather died from the disease, says that shows science is working.

So the next drug treatment or mix of treatments can be used to create a therapy for a person with ALS. Everyone's ALS is different, he said.

Funds to help pay for its testing stem from the Ice Bucket Challenge. In 2014 it raised $115 million in six weeks.

This weekend the Lehigh Valley Walk to Defeat ALS celebrates its 20th year, with the goal of raising more than $100,000.

So those people will be able to receive a wheelchair when they need it. A power wheelchair. They'll be able to receive better home care, Heyl said of what the funds will help with.

With Marta and their 100 pound-plus 17-month-old Bernese Mountain dog Norm, Lenny has that support. He's not sure the new drug will help but is certain even a small if not cold gesture, can make an impact years later.

You may not be affected by it now but you are helping the community that is affected and someday you never know, it may benefit your own physical health, he said.

The walk is Saturday at Cedar Crest College at 10 a.m. Registration is still open.
EASTON, Pa.  The staff at Northampton County's youth detention facility is close to falling under 25% of what is needed, and one county commissioner said Wednesday that the value of having the Juvenile Justice Center should be reviewed.

"At some point, we're going to have to analyze whether or not it's worth it," John Cusick said.

At council's budget hearing, acting juvenile center Director JaMarr Billman said the center is down 36 positions, with four workers leaving in November.

"As of Nov. 1, we'll be operating under 25%," he said.

The center on Ferry Street in Easton is too short of workers to take in youth from other counties. That costs the county revenue. Northampton County charges $290 per day for detention of out-of-county youths.

Billman said the lack of staff comes down to money. Pay for youth-care workers starts at $16.46, and during the process of recruiting and hiring new workers, many candidates find other jobs that pay more. Job candidates have to go through interviews and receive multiple clearances. That can take as long as six weeks.

"By that time, they're looking for other jobs," Billman said.

In Bucks and Montgomery counties, he said youth workers can start at more than $20 per hour. Billman said Northampton County would have to pay $20 per hour to be competitive, add staff and generate revenue from out-of-county admissions.

The job is not easy, Billman said. Youth in detention have often been through trauma. The main job for the center's workers is to keep the kids safe, but he said it goes beyond that.

"We're role models," he said. "We have to be teachers at times."

There is little council can do about pay at the center. Its workers are represented by a union, which is in the process of negotiating with the county administration. Commissioner Ron Heckman (members of council are known as commissioners) noted that council is not part of labor negotiations.

Commissioner Cusick said other counties have shut down juvenile facilities and that based on the 2023 budget, the county contribution to the center would increase about $1 million.

"We're taking care of fewer kids, and it's costing us more money," Cusick said, looking at the 2023 budget numbers.

That number, however, is based on full staffing, and the center is nowhere near that.

Billman said that if the center closed, the county would wind up spending a lot more. Sending youths to other detention centers can cost $390 or more per day.

"We're talking about millions of dollars to the taxpayers," he said.

Council President Lori Vargo Heffner ended the discussion of the juvenile center, saying it can be reviewed again at a meeting Nov. 2.

County Executive Lamont McClure's proposed 2023 budget totals $544.8 million and keeps the real estate tax at 10.8 mills. Each mill represents $1 in tax on $1,000 of assessed property value. At 10.8 mills, the owner of a property assessed at $50,000 would pay $540 in taxes.

County Council will hold three more budget hearings before voting on McClure's spending plan on Dec. 1.
Now that the former drug warrior Joe Biden is pardoning weed smokers, he needs to consider legalizing cocaine, too, says The Economist. It admits that if cocaine was legal, "more people would take it. But the benefits of lifting drug prohibition are well worth the individual and societal harms that legal coke would unleash.

Legal cocaine would be less dangerous, since legitimate producers would not adulterate it with other white powders and dosage would be clearly labelled, as it is on whisky bottles. Cocaine-related deaths have risen fivefold in America since 2010, mostly because gangs are cutting it with fentanyl, a cheaper and more lethal drug. Legalisation would defang the gangs. Obviously, some would find other revenues but the loss of cocaine profits would help curb their power to recruit, buy top-end weapons and corrupt officials. This would reduce drug-related violence everywhere, but most of all in the worst-affected region, Latin America.

I doubt cocaine will be legalized in the United States soon because too many powerful interests benefit from prohibition. Corrupt government officials, the CIA, and the DEA, rely on prohibition to fund their dark projects and keep their offshore bank accounts fat. Law enforcement also likes prohibition because it keeps them employed and allows them to seize assets and property from citizens, often people of color, without due process. The prison industry also loves prohibition because it keeps its prisons full and their profits soaring. Pharmaceutical companies and alcohol and tobacco industries are also against the legalization of cocaine because it would cut into their profits. And, of course, the cartels don't want cocaine to be legalized because it would put them out of business. Most of all, politicians love prohibition because it allows them to look like they are "tough on crime" and "keeping us safe" even though they are really just lining their pockets with dirty money.
PHILADELPHIA - People from Pennsylvania Task Force 1 are back home after helping hurricane victims in Florida and Puerto Rico.

Gov. Tom Wolf greeted nearly 50 returning members in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

The task force was first called to help with Hurricane Fiona relief in Puerto Rico, before they headed to Florida for Hurricane Ian recovery.
Beauty Systems Group in Schuylkill County is eliminating 57 jobs, according to a Pennsylvania notice.



The business is at 210 Industrial Park Road in East Norwegian Township, east of Route 61.



The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry posted a WARN notice Wednesday that the business will close as of Dec. 16.



The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act is a federal requirement that notice be provided in advance of job losses at certain businesses.



"In general, employers are covered by WARN if they have 100 or more employees," according to the Labor & Industry website.



A phone call to the Schuylkill County location was not answered.



Beauty Systems Group is owned by Sally Beauty Holdings Inc. That company, based in Denton, Texas, sells beauty supplies globally through its Sally Beauty Supply and Beauty Systems Group businesses, according to a news release.



Sally Beauty Holdings is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol SBH. Shares were trading at $12.58 at 12:21 p.m. Thursday. In the past 52 weeks, they have traded as high as $21.58 and as low as $11.28.
"You've had this view your entire life?" I asked 73-year-old Dick Foder while looking out over his farm.

"Oh yes," he said.

"It will stay this way?" I asked.

"It will stay this way forever," he resolutely stated.

Our conversation happened on his glorified go-cart as we covered Fedor's 180-acre preserved farm in Carbon County.

"A lot of people we don't even know yet are going to enjoy this in the future. That's the goal of the referendum," he said while driving.

A referendum called Carbon County Water, Farms and Land is on the ballot in the Nov. 8 election. If voters approve it, the county could borrow up to $10 million over the next 20 years to better fund farmland, wildlife habitat and open space preservation, especially near rivers, lakes and streams. This would help maintain the quality of the watershed.

"So your concern is views like this could be marred by development?"

"Yes," answered Dan Kunkle as we looked out at a vista spectacled with yellow, orange and red-leaved trees near the Lehigh-Carbon County line.

For 20 years, Kunkle led the rehabilitation of Lehigh Gap Nature Preserve. Since January he's been on a grassroots county tour stressing preserving the best parts of Carbon, not denigrating development. He has the support of all three county commissioners.

"We would like that directed toward places where it would not destroy our natural resources. We want to help our residents but not destroy what makes Carbon County so special," he said.

He admits fears of the Lehigh Valley, like warehouses, are a factor, as the county doesn't have a lot of preservation funds. He adds that outdoor recreation is a huge money driver for the local economy. New development, with the need of new roads, lights, water and sewer systems, is actually very costly for counties.

For taxpayers, how much would all this cost?

Even if all the money is borrowed at one time, $10 million, it would be $1.80 per month. But that's not how this will work. The money is only borrowed for each project, so taxpayers are only paying for what is owed at that time. Kunkle says with matching funds and grants the money could be upwards of $30 million.

Back at Fedor's we drove up to a huge majestic white oak with sprawling limbs that sits alone on top of a hill overlooking several valleys below.

"The woman I bought the farm from was born in 1885. She said when she was a little girl, the tree was the same size," he said.

Fedor, who once turned down more than $2 million cash for his land, says saving scenes like this are priceless.

"We want to save the best of what we have that was handed down generations back," he said.

The question on the Nov. 8 ballot will only be for voters in Carbon County.
HELSINKI (AP)  Latvia on Thursday rejected as absurd" claims by Amnesty International that it is violently mistreating migrants attempting to enter the European Union member country through Belarus.

The human rights watchdog said in a report released Thursday that Latvian authorities have violently pushed back refugees and migrants - mostly from Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East - from the countrys borders with Belarus and of subjecting many to grave human rights violations, including secret detention and even torture.

In emailed comments to the Associated Press, Latvias Ministry of Interior said that not a single case has been identified" of Latvian authorities having used physical force or applied special means and that no complaints of such behavior have been recorded.

We do not support the efforts of Amnesty International to equate the malicious instrumentalization of migration and intentional threat to the EUs external border by Belarus, on the one hand, with genuine asylum seekers and persons in a vulnerable situation, on the other hand, the ministry said.

Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics tweeted that Amnesty International has lost any credibility and this report further proves complete degradation of once respected human rights organization while his country rejects these bogus accusations.

A key allegation in the report is that Latvia, a Baltic nation of 1.9 million, uses rules stipulated under a declared state of emergency to suspend migrants rights to seek asylum in border areas, allowing Latvian authorities to forcibly and summarily return people to Belarus.

The report said dozens of refugees and migrants have been arbitrarily held in tents at the border in unsanitary conditions" and that only a small percentage of people were allowed into Latvia. The vast majority" of migrants have been placed in detention centers and offered limited or no access to asylum processes, legal assistance or independent oversight."

Elisabeth Arnsdorf Haslund, spokeswoman for the United Nations agency UNHCR for refugees in the Nordic and Baltic countries said the agency has and continues to receive information and reports of people being denied entry into Latvia from Belarus as well as reports on violence and abuse.

Arnsdorf Haslund said the UNHCR acknowledges Latvia's security concerns and shares concerns about instrumentalization of asylum seekers, refugees and migrants," but urged the country's authorities to live up to their international obligations and ensure access to territory and asylum procedures.

"We understand that Latvia has faced an extraordinary and challenging situation; however legitimate security concerns should be addressed without undermining refugee protection and the human right to seek asylum, Arnsdorf Haslund told the AP.

Latvia shares a 173-kilometer (107-mile) border with Belarus. It is currently building a barbed-wired fence to cover large parts of the border in a project scheduled for completion by 2024.

The Latvian Interior Ministry said once the state of emergency was declared in August, authorities had announced that migrants' asylum applications would be assessed individually and entry would be permitted once humanitarian grounds is established."

No country is under an obligation to allow every foreign national who desires to do so, to enter its territory, and all the more, those who are making deliberate attempts to cross the national border illegally, the Latvian interior ministry said.

Latvia's Ombudsman Juris Jansons said officials from his office have visited areas along the Latvian-Belarusian border on several occasions and no infringements of rights were found during these visits." He added that although the state is duty-bound to guard it territorial security, it must also ensure that the restrictions imposed are really necessary, do not disproportionately restrict the human rights of individuals.

In the past few years, Latvia and neighboring Lithuania and Poland have seen a surge in the number of migrants trying to enter their countries from Belarus.

Lithuania last year accused Belarusian police officers of illegally entering its territory to push a group of migrants over the border. The EU has earlier condemned Belarus for what it said was an attempt by the country to instrumentalise human beings for political purposes.

Follow all AP stories about global migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration

T
BALTIMORE (AP)  An Ohio man who seriously wounded a romantic rival in Maryland by planting a homemade bomb inside a gift-wrapped box on the victim's front porch has pleaded guilty to federal weapons charges.

Clayton Alexander McCoy, 32, of Chesterland, Ohio, pleaded guilty in Baltimore on Wednesday to transporting explosives with intent to injure and to possession of an unregistered firearm/explosive device in connection with the 2020 explosion at the victim's home in Carroll County, Maryland. He faces up to 30 years in prison when he's sentenced.

As part of McCoy's guilty plea, he admitted building a pipe bomb at his home in Ohio and driving it to the victim's home, intending to kill the man, U.S. Attorney Erek Barron said in a news release. McCoy knew the victim and his girlfriend through a live action role-playing battle game called Dagorhir, according to court documents.

In October 2020, McCoy expressed romantic feelings for the woman, who informed McCoy that she was in a relationship and did not share McCoys romantic feelings, prosecutors said. McCoy then devised a plan to build and deliver a bomb to the woman's boyfriend with the intent to remove him as a romantic rival, prosecutors said.

Late that month, McCoy drove the bomb made of shrapnel and BB's to the man's home and left it inside a gift-wrapped box on the front porch. When the man opened the box, the bomb exploded and seriously wounded him.

The victim spent more than two weeks in the hospital, had to use a walker and underwent multiple surgeries to remove shrapnel from his body, prosecutors said.

Two attorneys with the Office of the Federal Public Defender who represented McCoy did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
JERUSALEM (AP)  A group of Jewish settlers rampaged through a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank on Thursday, attacking shops and residents with stones and iron bars, according to Palestinian reports and amateur video from the scene. Over 40 Palestinians were reported wounded.

It was the latest violence in the northern West Bank, where the Israeli military has been conducting nightly arrest raids against suspected Palestinian militants.

Unrest also erupted in the contested city of Jerusalem. Israeli police unleashed live rounds, tear gas and stun grenades on Palestinians throwing stones, firecrackers and firebombs, marking the biggest spasm of violence in the city in months.

Clashes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem wounded 18 Palestinians late Thursday, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported, saying Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians with stones and clubs. The confrontations followed similar unrest across several neighborhoods in east Jerusalem the night before.

It was not immediately clear what sparked Thursday's rampage in the northern West Bank, but Palestinian militants in the area have carried out several roadside shootings in recent weeks. The area is home to a number of hardline settlements, whose residents often intimidate Palestinians and vandalize their property.

Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official who monitors settlement activities in the area, said some 70 settlers from the hardline settlement of Yitzhar appeared in Hawara, on the outskirts of the city of Nablus, without warning.

He said mobs beat Palestinians, damaged shops and cars and set fire to a city park. He said 22 people were struck by stones, and 20 others were beaten up.

The Israeli army was doing nothing but protecting them, he said.

Among those injured was AP photographer Majdi Mohammed, who was struck in the knee and lightly hurt by an Israeli tear gas canister fired by a soldier.

Amateur video from the scene showed young settlers brandishing clubs as they ran through the streets and approached shopkeepers. At one point, a shopkeeper with his back against a wall swung a stick at a group of youths, while a second Palestinian threw a stone at them. Soldiers fired into the air and stood next to a group of settlers, apparently trying to keep the group's separated.

The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

Tensions in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem have soared since a Palestinian assailant shot and killed an Israeli soldier at a checkpoint at the entrance to the Shuafat refugee camp earlier this week.

Late Thursday, the extremist far-right lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir visited Sheikh Jarrah, a neighborhood that has become a focal point of heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians in east Jerusalem.

Friends, if they throw rocks, shoot them! he said in a widely shared video as he brandished a pistol, apparently addressing Israeli settlers confronting Palestinian protesters.

Meanwhile movement in and out of Shuafat, a neglected Jerusalem slum, has been restricted as troops search for the shooter.

The overnight street violence appeared to have subsided by Thursday morning, as tens of thousands of Jews were flocking to Jerusalem to celebrate the week-long Sukkot holiday, surging into east Jerusalem's Old City, often a focal point for tensions.

Police said they arrested 23 Palestinians throughout disturbances on Wednesday, half of them minors. Police said masked protesters threw firebombs, stones and fireworks at officers. Video footage released by Israeli police showed a street littered with burning debris and trash bins set alight.

Police said in some cases officers used live fire against the protesters. There was no immediate report of injuries.

The police manhunt has further disrupted the lives of residents of Shuafat, an area that has long seen neglect at the hands of Israeli authorities. Police initially closed Shuafat's entry and exit points and while they have since reopened, officers were stopping cars in and out of the neighborhood, triggering snarling traffic jams and disrupting the residents' daily routine.

In response, shops, businesses and schools across east Jerusalem closed Wednesday in protest of the police measures and in solidarity with Shuafat.

More than 120 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the West Bank and east Jerusalem this year, making 2022 the deadliest year since 2015. The fighting has surged since a series of Palestinian attacks killed 19 people in Israel last spring.

Israel says most of the Palestinians killed have been militants. But stone-throwing youths protesting the incursions and others not involved in confrontations have also died.

Israel says the raids are needed to dismantle militant networks at a time when Palestinian security forces are unable or unwilling to do so. The Palestinians say the raids undermine their security forces and aimed at cementing Israel's 55-year military rule.

Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, along with the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and later annexed that part of the city. It considers the entire city its eternal, undivided capital. The Palestinians seek those territories for their hoped-for independent state, with Jerusalem's eastern flank as capital.
Exclusive: Oscar winner Ariana DeBose will appear in concert at The London Palladium.

DeBose's stage credits include the original Broadway cast of Hamilton, Summer: The Donna Summer Musical (she was later nominate for a Tony Award for her performance in the show), Bring it On, Pippin and A Bronx Tale.

On screen, she won an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance as Anita in Steven Spielberg's 2021 big-screen version of West Side Story.

Other film credits include The Prom, while on television she's appeared in Schmigadoon!, Westworld and hosted Saturday Night Live.

In the near future DeBose will appear in Disney musical film Wish, as well as Kraven the Hunter and another season of Schmigadoon!.

But before that, she's going to be gracing the Palladium stage in London on Saturday 1 April 2023, alongside musical director and collaborator Benjamin Rauhala (Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway).

Producers Fourth Wall will hold a pre-sale before the concert, with sign-ups open now.
It's taken this production of C P Taylor's play, starring David Tennant, some three years to get to the stage. Delay hasn't dulled the pertinence of a moral tale of a man who believes himself to be good yet drifts passively into evil, yet somehow neither the story nor the production itself quite land as powerfully as anticipated.

The protagonist here is Halder, a professor of literature in Frankfurt, who has written a novel on euthanasia, spurred partly by his experience with his own blind and demented mother, which brings him to the approving attention of the Third Reich. At the start of the play, in 1933, he is chatting to his best friend  his only friend  Maurice (Elliot Levey), a Jewish psychiatrist, about his belief that all that "anti-Jew rubbish" is "just balloons they throw up in the air to distract the masses."

By the close, as a member of the Nazi party, Halder has been actively involved in every stage of the atrocities that led inevitably to the obscenity of the Holocaust  from book burning, to Kristallnacht  without ever once losing his sense that he is doing nothing wrong.

The action unfolds like a dream play, in fragments floating through Halder's mind. Director Dominic Cooke has taken the radical decision to reduce a large cast to three, with Tennant playing only Halder, but Levey and Sharon Small taking multiple parts. This increases the claustrophobia and neurosis of Halder's journey, as does Vicki Mortimer's plain-walled, cell-like set.

David Tennant and Sharon Small in Good

 Johan Persson

But it also confuses an already difficult text. In particular, it is hard for Small to switch between Halder's mother, his depressed wife Helen and the sprightly student Anne, for whom he leaves Helen and his children. She discovers poignancy, particularly as Helen, and also adeptly turns her hand to playing a variety of high-ranking SS officials, but the constant switching of voice in an already fragmented text flattens the trajectory of Halder's descent.

The strength and subtlety of Taylor's writing lies in his ability to suggest the varied ways people delude themselves by shutting out realities in front of them. Halder's ultimate betrayals are suggested by his ability to blind himself to his smaller failures; his abandonment of those closest to him, his narcissism, his inability to listen to any voice other than his own. The band he hears in his head is obliterating his guilt and his conscience, allowing him to argue that burning books is a way of improving educational attainment and that driving Jews out of their homes is warning them to leave the country.

Writing in 1981, Taylor was describing Nazi Germany but also suggested in his author's note that he was thinking of the crimes' of the West against the Third World  "my part in the Auschwitzes we are all perpetrating today". This sense of constant moral equivocation, of hypocrisy, and of the small compromises that allow evil to thrive, is what makes the play of ongoing universal significance.









In this context, Tennant is perfect casting. He has a remarkable ability as an actor to suggest a darkness beneath an affable surface. His quick charm, his nervy smiles, conceal an emptiness that is always there. His irritation with his mother is fired by a terrible nervous tension. He's always selfish, even when he is pretending to be concerned. As the play progresses, his mouth tightens, his chin lifts, and his body seems to constrict.

It's a chilling performance rather than a moving one. Which leaves it to Elliot Levey to locate the play's emotion. He does this perfectly, encapsulating Maurice's humour and gentleness, and the way they struggle against his rising panic. He holds both sadness and affection in his face, as he listens to Halder's constant self-justification; his eyes light with anger when he hears him asking why Jews didn't leave when they could.

The moral emptiness behind that lie rings through the night. Good isn't perfect, but its lessons demand to be understood.
Help still wanted: hiring dominates employers' concerns

Finding and keeping qualified talent is top of mind for employers in the Buffalo Niagara region.

It once again the led the list of employers' foremost concerns in a survey of Buffalo Niagara Partnership members.

There is no bigger obstacle for Buffalo Niagara employers than attracting and retaining talent at all levels, said Dottie Gallagher, the Partnership's president and CEO.

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Our community must double down on our efforts to not only attract high-quality talent from outside the region, but upskill or reskill our current workforce to stabilize the labor market, help employers grow, and provide meaningful careers for many Western New Yorkers currently lacking economic opportunity, she added.

The employers' second-biggest concern was labor costs, stemming from increases in the minimum wage, market-demanded wages and per-employee costs, according to the Partnership. Rounding out their top five concerns were market conditions, taxes and regulations. About 160 people completed the survey, which was conducted in mid September.

The struggle to find and keep workers isn't new. But the issue isn't going away, either.

The region's unemployment rate stood at just 4.1% in August, tying a modern-day low that was set 22 years ago, according to state data.

The push to fill jobs is also visible in the help wanted signs, job fairs and open interviews that are plentiful these days.

Tops Markets is offering bonuses of up to $2,500 for new hires at its distribution center in Lancaster. Cabela's is aiming to add 25 employees at its Cheektowaga store for the holidays. Moog has an "employee referral challenge," in which an existing employee can earn up to $5,000 for successfully referring candidates online for eligible jobs at the manufacturer.

A recent Canisius College economic report said the number of employed residents in the Buffalo area was much closer to that of 2019, even if the number of payroll jobs was still far below the pre-pandemic level.

That same report said the tightness in the local labor market wasn't due to a shrinking population, but rather labor market shifts such as retirements, remote work arrangements and more self-employed people.

The hiring challenge hits home with employers in the Partnership survey. More than three-quarters  76%  of the companies surveyed said they have unfilled positions, and 77% said they plan to add new employees this year.

Those responses indicate the demand for new hires isn't abating.

The results of the Partnership's member survey also show how the way people work has taken root since the pandemic hit. Long term, 70% of the companies responding said they plan to use remote and hybrid work schedules.

Employers gave a mixed view of the business climate. Only 17% of them felt the state was becoming more business friendly  but that was up from only 7% who felt that way last year.

And 86% said they viewed the region's business climate as favorable, up from 73% a year ago.

Meanwhile, 60% of employers in the survey projected increased revenue next year, which was down from 2021. And, in a sign of the growing wariness over the possibility of a recession, 12% said they planned to delay investment, which was double the percentage of a year ago.

The Partnership survey also asked employers about diversity. Over half of respondents said they struggle to achieve a diverse workforce. That figure was down 7 percentage points over two years.

Curing 'productivity paranoia'

A Microsoft survey analyzed the gap between how well hybrid workers think they're performing, and how managers are seeing things.

Eighty seven percent of employees said they were being productive, while an almost equal number  85%  of leaders said the move to hybrid work has made it challenging to have confidence that employees are being productive.

"Productivity paranoia risks making hybrid work unsustainable," the WTI Pulse Report said. "Leaders need to pivot from worrying about whether their people are working enough to helping them focus on the work thats most important."

The survey drew upon responses from 20,000 people in 11 countries.

Hotel hiring

Hotels face extensive hiring challenges, according to an industry survey.

Eighty-seven percent of respondents to an American Hotel and Lodging Association survey said they were experiencing a staffing shortage. Thirty-six percent of them called it a severe shortage. Housekeeping was their greatest hiring need.

What are they doing about it? Most  81%  have boosted wages, nearly two-thirds are offering more flexible work hours, and a little more than a third have expanded benefits, according to the trade group. The organization has also launched a multichannel ad campaign in 14 cities.

The hotel association said national average hotel wages through June were over $22 per hour, the highest on record.

Want to know more? Three stories to catch you up:

THE LATEST

Catch up on the latest news from the Buffalo Niagara economy:

A conference examined ways to improve food security in Buffalo: The American Food Equity Conference identified programs that will help ease the food insecurity plaguing Buffalos East Side and other low-income areas. But they need money to succeed.

A new microbrewery is on tap for the West Side neighborhood near the H.H. Richardson complex.

Plans to turn the former Lion Brewery on Jefferson Avenue into apartments won backing from the Buffalo Planning Board.

A Cleveland auto dealer plans to open a car sales business on the site of the former Parker's Great British Institution business across from the Tesla plant on South Park Avenue.

The deadline for a stadium benefits plan is nearing  with no sign of a final deal in sight.

Pioneer Credit Recovery is cutting 230 jobs in Arcade and Perry because of declines in its student loan collection business.

The president of Oishei Children's Hospital is leaving for a new job.

ImmunityBio is eliminating nearly 40 jobs in Dunkirk as its plans to ramp up operations are paused.

A California plastics maker is planning to turn a former pet supply company facility in Angola into its East Coast distribution center.

Clarence manufacturer Seal & Design is planning to expand its facility, and it is seeking tax breaks from the town's IDA.

For Kaleida, meeting the increased staffing requirements included in its tentative labor agreement with its main unions won't be easy.

ICYMI

Five reads from Buffalo Next:

1. For kids with autism, a different way of learning: Canisius College's Institute for Autism Research offers a unique social skills intervention that starts with young children, but could improve the quality of life for all autistic people.

2. As Micron picks Syracuse, will Genesee County ever land its own semiconductor win? The Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park, or STAMP, pitches its ability to lure workers from both Rochester and Buffalo. But is its location, in an isolated spot in the Town of Alabama, more of a liability than economic development officials think?

3. Will there be enough snowplow drivers this year? Some municipalities say they are short-staffed, and others say they are ready for the winter months.

4. A handful of solar farms proposed for sites across Western New York will be among the biggest in the state, which is pushing to get more electricity from renewable sources.

5. Let's strike! But just for a day or two: It is all part of a shifting strategy by labor unions to pressure employers, while limiting the financial pain work stoppages inflict on workers.

The Buffalo Next team gives you the big picture on the regions economic revitalization. Email tips to buffalonext@buffnews.com or reach Deputy Business Editor David Robinson at 716-849-4435.

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Local hospitality operator Jayesh Patel has acquired one of the region's largest hotels  the struggling Millennium Airport Hotel Buffalo in Cheektowaga  in a major bet on a revival of the hospitality industry.

Patel's Rudra Management & Rosewood Hotels paid $6.7 million through a limited-liability company to buy the 301-room hotel through an online auction in early September, according to deed records filed this week with the Erie County Clerk's Office.

That's more than triple the starting bid of $2 million, and equates to $22,265 per room.

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Patel said the hotel will be operated as an independent for the first year, while it undergoes a renovation and Patel negotiates a new brand contract.

Patel said he is "in conversations with multiple different brands," including flagships like Marriott, Hyatt and Hilton, so the extent and type of renovation would depend on "the brand offers and the brands' desire to fly their flag here."

The acquisition adds to Patel's existing portfolio of over 25 hotels in Western New York, Rochester, Syracuse, northwestern Pennsylvania, Baltimore and Georgia. However, most of those are midrange or economy hotels or motels, making the eight-story upscale Millennium more unique among Patel's holdings.

"The location is the first thing that attracted us. Our office is right around the corner," Patel said. "We had our eyes on the property, how neglected it was, and what was the potential for the hotel. That was one of the biggest reasons."

The prominent suburban hotel  located next to the Walden Galleria  had been operated by Millennium Hotels and Resorts, but was owned by a group of investors that includes Josephine G. Malecki, Francis Fuest, Kevin Zola, Eugene P. Zola, Ronald Juzdowski and Christine Davies.

They chose to sell the 50-year-old full-service hotel after Millennium decided to end its brand relationship after 17 years at a time when the hospitality industry is still struggling amidst the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and continued traveler hesitation. As a result, the hotel was sold "unencumbered by management and debt" and "free and clear of leases and franchise obligations."

Patel's company is currently engaged in four to six months of planning the work, which he said would be mainly cosmetic and modernizing the hotel. But he doesn't expect a major change in the use.

In the meantime, he said the hotel would remain open, unless a temporary or partial closure is necessitated to reconfigure any part of it. Occupancy is currently running around 40% to 45%, with typical rates of $90 to $110 per night.

"I feel very confident about the future of the hospitality industry," Patel said. "Taking existing inventory and upgrading it makes a lot of sense."

Built in 1973, the Millennium stands on 8 acres at 2040 Walden Ave., and includes 12,000 square feet of meeting and event space, as well as Walden's Restaurant and Twigs Lounge. Previously a Four Points by Sheraton, it was taken over as part of a package of hotels in 1999 by London-based Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, a hospitality management and real estate firm that owns, manages and operates more than 145 hotels in 80 locations.

Millennium & Copthorne, which operates under the Millennium Hotels brand, is the hotel division of Singapore-based City Developments Ltd., a real estate company that itself is owned by the Hong Leong Group. It touts that its properties are located in "key gateway cities" such as London, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Dubai, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong. In the United States, it has 15 hotels, including four in New York City.
Royal Borough organisations that took part in a 7,700km relay for the upcoming COP27 summit had a fantastic run on their 12km stretch.

Organised by GoodGym, which combines good deeds with fitness, a number of people took part in the Windsor leg of the non-stop Running out of Time relay on Friday, October 7.

This began on September 30 in Glasgow, host of COP26  the UNs Climate Change Conference.

It ends in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, marking the location of this years COP27. This makes a journey of 7,767km across 18 countries, taking 38 days and nights.

The baton was designed by the same people who made the Commonwealth Games baton.

It has 18 lengths of wood representing the countries the relay will travel through and four metal rings holding the wood together.

Each ring symbolises a level at which action against climate change is needed: individual, local community, national and global.

There is a scroll in the middle of the baton contained a message from young people, addressed to the decision makers of the next COP summit.

This was read out in English by children at the start of the relay and will be read out again in Arabic when it reaches the finish.

The message focuses on the need for young people to receive quality climate education in order to lead and build a future that is inclusive and sustainable for all.

Windsor and Maidenhead group co-ordinator Amy Lovell carried the baton, leading GoodGym runner joined by other groups with an environment focus or supporting active travel.

This included RBWMs Climate Partnership, Windsor Cycle Hub, Maidenhead Great Park campaign, and Windsor Ascot Maidenhead Active Travel (WAMACT), among other participants.

The Windsor leg of the relay started at the Prince Albert Pub in Windsor and travelled down the Long Walk, finishing at the M&S Simply Food in Old Windsor.

One of the key messages the relay hopes to get across is the importance of local community action in the fight for climate stability, and also the need for local groups to work together, said Amy.

As we set of running, we all started sharing stories and it wasn't long before I was getting excited about the new connections being made and the potential for future collaboration on environmental projects.

The baton to due to arrive in Sharm El-Sheikh on November 6.

See the Running Out of Time website to check where the baton is up to now at https://running-out-of-time.com/
Canadian Pacifics CP Has Heart community investment program has provided another $20,000 in funding to Winona Health.

We appreciate CPs support of cardiac care at Winona Health, said Robin Hoeg, chief operating officer for hospital and primary care. With these funds, well purchase a defibrillator to enhance the cardiac care we can provide right here in our community.

A defibrillator is a device that sends an electric pulse to the heart to restore a normal heartbeat, sometimes referred to as shocking the heart. They are used to prevent or correct an arrhythmia (an uneven heartbeat that is too slow or too fast). And, if someones heart suddenly stops, defibrillators can also help the heart start beating again.

CP is proud to once again donate $20,000 to Winona Health for updated defibrillators, said Barry Major, trainmaster in La Crosse. Investing in the communities we operate in and through is very important to us. We are confident this donation will help the hospital to provide patients in Winona and surrounding areas with care using the very best cardiac equipment possible.

In all, CP has given $60,000 toward medical equipment at Winona Health.

The gift was received through CPs community investment program, CP Has Heart, which focuses on improving the heart health of adults and children in communities across North America. A previous gift from the CP was used toward upgrading the cardiac monitoring system in the Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation department.

For information about Winona Health, visit www.winonahealth.org or call 507-454-3650.
JUNEAU  A Columbus man has been found guilty of robbing the Horicon State Bank in Neosho in January.

Alan Schade, 44, entered no-contest pleas to felony counts of robbery of a financial institution and bail jumping, and a misdemeanor count of theft. He was wearing a GPS monitor at the time of the Jan. 26 robbery and another one in Jefferson County two days before, investigators found.

Schade appeared before Dodge County Circuit Court Judge Brian Pfitzinger, who found Schade guilty and dismissed but read into the record several other charges against him. Schade could face 25 years in prison followed up by 15 years of an extended supervision on the robbery charge.

District Attorney Kurt Klomberg said in a press release that he will be recommending 15 years in prison but may also recommend up to 18 years of supervision.

Successfully robbing a bank is not possible, Klomberg said. With all the techniques employed through modern police investigation along with the excellent work performed by our Sheriffs Office, there is just no way to be successful committing this type of crime. Given the likely penalties that will be handed down by the court, bank robbery really does not pay.

According to the criminal complaint:

A Dodge County detective responded to the bank on Jan. 26 following a bank alarm at 3:19 p.m. Two bank tellers said a man  later identified as Schade  gave a note to one of them. The note told the bank employees to put everything in a bag and that no one would get hurt, and Schade passed a plastic grocery back to one of the tellers.

The bag was filled with cash with known and documented serial numbers. Schade then left in a truck that he had parked in the parking lot.

The tellers believed Schade had entered the bank around noon the same day and asked for deposit slips but did not complete any bank transaction before leaving. At that time, Schade was in different clothing, but he left in the same vehicle. Although the license plate wasnt visible in the security video from the bank that police viewed at the time of the robbery, they were able to make out the video in the earlier incident. The plate was registered to Schade.

In addition, the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office sent a crime alert regarding a bank robbery in Jefferson County on Jan. 24. Schade was believed to be the suspect in that bank robbery as well and involved in other criminal activity in Jefferson County. Schade has not entered a plea in Jefferson County, but the Dodge County case may be consolidated with the Jefferson County case prior to sentencing.

Schade was located in Waterloo on Jan. 27 and had the money that had been marked by the bank in his possession, according to the criminal complaint. The owner of the home where Schade was found consented to a search, and law enforcement located clothing that matched the clothes worn during the bank robberies.

Schade was brought to the Dodge County Sheriffs Office where it was noticed that he was wearing a GPS ankle monitor related to a Waukesha County case. The detective was able to get GPS data that showed Schade was at a bank in Ixonia on Jan. 24 at 5 p.m. when it was robbed and at the bank in Neosho on Jan. 26 at both noon and 3:17 p.m.

Schades sentencing in Dodge County is scheduled for Jan. 4.
WAUPUN  Mayor Rohn Bishop announced at the City Council meeting Tuesday night that the citys first sculpture, Recording Angel, was celebrating its 99th birthday on that very day.

During the meeting he welcomed two representatives of an ad hoc committee to mark the 100th anniversary of the memorials dedication at Forest Mound Cemetery. A centennial re-dedication is being planned for Nov. 7, 2023.

The sculpture was commissioned by Waupun industrialist and sculptor Clarence Addison Shaler to honor his wife, Blanche Bancroft Shaler. She died in 1921. Clarence Shaler enlisted the talents of Lorado Taft to create a heroic-sized image of a female angel. The angel is depicted reviewing a book of the names of the just. Her head is raised heavenward, following souls paths as they ascend to heaven.

The sculpture is one of eight that dot the city, all either created or purchased by Shaler. It is because of those bronze memorials that Waupun was known as the City of Sculpture. The name still has standing even though larger cities may have more statues than Waupun.

Kyle Clark of the Waupun Historical Society and Sue Haefmeyer of Waupun Fine Arts were introduced as ad hoc planning committee members.

We were contacted by Rohn asking if we were interested in co-chairing this committee and we agreed that we could help bring a couple things to the table and make it a success, said Clark. We can work together with the historical society, the fine arts group and others, and we agreed to participate.

We had a meeting last night for Waupun Fine Arts and theyre all on board, said Haefmeyer. We also have three art teachers on the board and they want to get the children involved. Its very exciting and were all looking forward to it.

She added, Shaler had this sculpture made to honor his wife, but its also honoring Waupun. Were blessed to have it. Its beautiful. Its my favorite one.

Its especially beautiful this time of year, said Bishop, who is leading a campaign to again refer to Waupun as the City of Sculpture.

Id like to thank you both for leading this effort, he said. This is the first of Waupuns sculptures but hopefully well be doing the End of the Trail in 2029 and keep going from there. Well have centennial celebrations for all of them and that will be really cool.

The End of the Trail is another sculpture in Waupun. It was dedicated in 1929.

Code enforcement

Also at the meeting the council approved the hiring of a part-time code enforcement officer. The position is budgeted for 350 hours in 2023. It will be administered by the Waupun Police Department.

It is a separate position with the Waupun Police Department but it will work with other departments, said City Administrator/Director of Economic Development Kathy Schlieve. The job is to monitor and enforce a variety of applicable codes, ordinances and regulations of private and public properties. Enforcement is related to zoning, land use, nuisance ordinances, health and sanitation, blight, water restrictions, junked vehicles, solid waste and other codes as assigned. The officer is responsible for investigating violations, initiating procedures to abate the violation, correspondence specifying necessary corrective action, compliance and compliance dates, and accurately documenting all work completed in the records management system.

She added, The code officer will serve as a resource and provide information on local and state regulations to property owners, residents, businesses, the general public and other city departments.

Demand for enforcement has been high, Bishop said.

Youd be amazed how many calls I get for code enforcement every week, he said. It never ends.

No to development

The council unanimously voted to deny an application to develop land north of the city as residential lots, agreeing with a 3-2 vote by members of the Waupun Plan Commission. The area is in the citys extraterritorial zoning plan boundaries, falling within a mile-and-a-half of the citys boundaries. The lot lies east of North Madison Street near Catherine Court and Hawthorn Drive.

Reasons for denying the request include the areas lack of connectivity to city streets and that it could block future development in the town of Waupun.

Bishop advised the council that he did not approve of rural subdivisions, essentially blocking city expansion and taking advantage of city services without paying city taxes.

I appreciate Mayor Rohns comment about us being hemmed in in the future, advised City Attorney Dan Vande Zande. Legally we cant annex this land into the city, so we have to consider approval or denial based on what we have in the plan. We have to consider what the highest and best use of the residential land might be. This does not deal with that. It deals with one lot. Now youre stuck. Whatever you plan for the future has to go around that lot. Does that say that this is inappropriate? No, I cant say that. But as Rohn stated, once you let this lot in it regulates how this land is developed. Are we potentially blocking off streets? Weve seen that happen before. That becomes an issue for us.
The New Lisbon First Responders honored their former EMS director Richard Weiland for his 40 years with the city Wednesday night.

Weiland started out as a volunteer EMT in 1982, and later took on many roles in the community. He was a a member of the Camp Douglas Rescue Squad and Mauston Area Ambulance Association, telecommunicator for Juneau County and firefighter and safety officer for the New Lisbon Fire Department.

Rep. Tony Kurtz and and Sen. Howard Marklein were present to award Weiland a plaque with a signed Certificate of Commendation on behalf of the Wisconsin State Legislature. They also gifted him a United States flag that was flown over the Capitol.

One of the things that I was impressed by was the recruiting, training, nurturing, taking people under your wing That is awesome, Marklein said. We can serve as individuals, but its all even greater when we have a legacy.

Weiland held several leadership roles throughout his career. He served as the president of the New Lisbon Fire Department, director of the Mauston Area Ambulance Association and facilitator of the Juneau County EMS Association.

When asked what he plans to do in his retirement, Weiland smiled and said, Nothing.

"I didn't expect any of this," he said, gesturing to the plaque. "I was just going to slip out the door. But I wish our little group the best. I encourage people to volunteer."

Andy Hare, the current NLFR president, added that replacing Weiland wont be an easy task. Finding volunteers with that amount of dedication  and training them  takes time and effort.

Those are really big shoes to fill. Our first priority is to get more people in the service, Hare said. But now, the biggest thing is to give him some recognition and appreciation for all his years of service.
Columbia County officials are learning about how all citizens can get access to high-speed internet. A new committee is inviting a major internet provider along with local officials to its next meeting.

The ad hoc broadband committee was formed in August after Sup. Char Holtan suggested using $500,000 of American Rescue Plan Act funds to help get high-speed internet to citizens. The committee is expected to invite clerks from all 35 municipalities across the county to its next meeting in November to explain the committees goal and possible funding.

A survey was sent out to all 35 municipalities but County Clerk Sue Moll said only 13 responded. Of those 13, a number said they would like to learn more by attending a meeting or possibly helping financially get the county connected.

The county received $11.1 million in ARPA funds and currently has about $216,000 left. A full list of how Columbia County has used ARPA funds is available on the county website on the accounting department page.

Committee members discussed inviting representatives from Spectrum to attend their meeting on Nov. 17.

Holtan said her internet in Friesland is good but not great. She said she has heard from other people who have told her they still have DSL internet. The committee also briefly discussed reliability issues with satellite internet.

On Thursday afternoon the committee met to get insight from various groups including a state official with the Wisconsin Broadband Office, staff from a telephone company and an Iowa county official who is attempting to get all of Iowa County hooked up to fiber-optic internet.

Jaron McCallum from the Wisconsin Broadband Office, a part of the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, explained that the county has a number of financial opportunities with state and federal grants.

Committee members asked McCallum about coverage maps and why they are difficult to get a hold of. He said the maps are a good starting point but are simply not accurate enough to find out which addresses in the county have internet access and what the speed is.

The committee has been asked by the County Board to provide it with data, mainly financial information, about connecting the county with fiber-optic lines. Sup. Tess Car sits on the committee and discussed how fiber optic is its preferred connection.

Fiber-optic connection is what were going for, Carr said. It seems like wireless and relying on hot spots would be a last resort.

Larry Bierke, Iowa County administrator, was also asked to speak to the committee. He was given the assignment of getting all Iowa County residents high-speed internet back in 2016. Bierke explained he has worked with numerous providers and explained the confusion with working with those companies.

Its the maps that youll want to look at and they wont let you, Bierke said. He also said Iowa County attempted to do wireless connections with hot spots but it didnt work.

Fiber optics are the gold standard, Bierke said.

The third group was the Marquette-Adams Telephone Cooperative. It has been providing internet for customers since 2011 and since 2014 has had all fiber-optic lines.

CEO Jerry Schneider said that the cooperative is already in Columbia County and could help with parts of the county but could not help with the entire county.

We can reach out to the northern part of Columbia County, Schneider said. We have no ambitions to serve all of Columbia County. Its just too big of a bite for us.

Committee members also learned a new set of internet service maps could be released in the near future that would be more accurate than the maps currently available. Those maps would be helpful in assessing where the county has connectivity concerns.
Abraham Lincoln was re-elected president of the United States in 1864. Males in Juneau County voted 726 for Lincoln, with 687 for his opponent McClellan. This took place the same year that Ben Boorman bought Maughs Mill, a huge flour manufactory. In addition, the business included a lumber mill and wool carding shop. The first public building in the county was a jail in Mauston. Boorman furnished material for the building from his lumber mill.

Juneau County had established 68 school districts by the 1880s, enrolling 3,744 students. Teaching staff consisted of five males, and 83 females. The women were not allowed to continue to teach if they married.

With the onset of the Civil War in 1861, Rufus Dawes and John Kellogg organized the Lemonweir Minutemen who became Company K. Plugging the slogan, Rally, Boys, Rally!, in a matter of days more than 100 men signed up to serve. When the governors office gave orders to meet a mustering officer with a full company, Dawes spent a good deal of time on horseback rounding up his men. They bivouacked in Longworthy Hall in Mauston. This large, half a block long building was located where McKinneys and the Odd Fellows Hall sits now. Longworthy Hall was razed in 1913.

By 1860, the Wisconsin Supreme Court settled the matter of the Juneau County courthouse situation. It was deemed the recent referendum, on the matter of location, was fraudulent. Therefore, after being located in New Lisbon for a couple years, the county seat remains in Mauston to this day.

During the 1860s, 15 post offices opened in the county. Among those no longer in existence are Sentinel in Summit, One Mile Creek in Lindina, Seven Mile Creek, east side of Creek near Highway 12, Fountain in the township, Waucedah in village of Rogers Mill; Lemonweir near Lemonweir Mills, Armenia in the township, Mt. Zion in Plymouth, Mather in the village, Duester in Cutler; Pinery, Smiths Mill, and Beaver Mills all served logging camps, Werner and Zanoni served the village in Germantown.

The 1860s county population was just under 9,000. Citizens shipped 30,000 bushels of wild cranberries from the marshes, all picked by hand, many by Native Americans; 93,000 pounds of hops were shipped from Mauston, with women and young people doing most of the harvesting. The arrival of the railroad in the late 1850s made this possible.

Newspapers of the nation carried the news of Bloody September that took place within a territory of a 40-mile radius. Two murders were swiftly followed by two lynchings.

Photographer Schuyler Gates of Kilbournnow Wisconsin Dells, was attacked and killed by young Patrick Wildrick who was later taken from the Portage jail and lynched by an estimated crowd of 125-150 men. He is buried in Lyndon Stations Catholic Cemetery. This took place shortly after William Spain got into an altercation with Barney Britt. Spain shot and killed Britt in Portage. A mob of men broke the jail door down, and dragged Spain to the nearest tree and hanged him. Spain was an attorney for many Stewart Settlement families in Lindina in the 1850s, filing land paper, drawing up deeds and legal documents. The fifth murder took place at Lemonweir Mills. Richard H. Davis, owner and operator of the mill, was robbed and found dead near the depot. His murder remained unsolved. The last murder took place on a marsh near Necedah. Frank Provensal, a man of mixed blood, was shot and killed by Bill Dandy, who was the son of the great Chief Dandy. The trial found the jury unable to reach a verdict, the state eventually dropping the charge. Four men murdered and two more lynched, in a 12-day span of time, was a record Juneau, Adams, Columbia and Sauk counties do not care to repeat.
Responses to the Wisconsin State Journals candidate questionnaire. The election is Nov. 8.

Shellie Benish

Party: Republican

Age: 52

Address: Lodi

Family: Married to John Benish Jr.; sons Kyle and John III

Job: Administrator/clerk/treasurer, village of Black Earth; clerk, town of Lodi

Prior elected office: Administrator/clerk/treasurer, local municipal government, 19 years

Other public service: Wisconsin Certified Municipal Clerk and mentor, Wisconsin Municipal Clerks Association; volunteer senior fitness exercise instructor, Northwest Dane Senior Services; member of Wisconsin Municipal Treasurers Association; International Institute of Municipal Clerks; Wisconsin Women in Government

Education: Bachelors degree in interdisciplinary studies, minor in public administration from UW-Green Bay

Dave Considine (I)

Party: Democratic

Age: 70

Address: Baraboo

Family: Married to Gretchen; five children and 13 grandchildren

Job: Representative, state of Wisconsin

Prior elected office: Eight years, four terms representing the 81st

Other public service: Public school teacher for 30 years

Education: Bachelors degree in elementary education from UW Whitewater; masters degree in education from Viterbo University

Q&A

Why are you the best candidate for this office?

Benish: My career in local public service along with my ability to listen to the residents shows my commitment to solving problems and providing solutions. I feel that I can voice their thoughts and opinions at a state level. Im not a polished politician. I am a committed, dedicated, hard-working woman that believes in common sense and getting the job done right.

Considine: My prior experience as a full-time farmer/small-business owner and public school teacher have given me a broad range of experiences, as well as my record in 8 years of service listening and advocating for the citizens of my district and the state of Wisconsin. My reputation as a collaborator who can work across the aisle and get things done.

What is the most important issue in this election and how would you address it?

Benish: We are seeing an unacceptable rise in crime the last couple of years. Criminals are not being held accountable. I would support bail reforms that keep violent criminals from being released early or on low-bail amounts. We should continue efforts to support law enforcement and hire more officers. Keeping communities safe is priority.

Considine: Individuals rights to vote, attend an excellent public school, make their own decisions about their medical care and live safely in their communities are the most important. Introducing legislation that would lessen the gap between those who are richest and poorest.

What changes, if any, would you make to the states election system?

Benish: As a Wisconsin Certified Municipal Clerk and over 60 elections under my belt, my expertise could address the shortcomings in our election system identified by the nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau in its 2021 audit. Im focused on the 2022 election and if elected will work to make sure election laws and all laws are followed.

Considine: I would make it easier to register and vote in all communities.

What are your priorities for the states $5 billion surplus?

Benish: Wisconsin families and small businesses are struggling. Legislation should focus on sending at least a portion of the surplus back to the taxpayers. A focus on cutting income taxes for middle-class families or eliminating the burdensome personal property tax, which continues to hamper small businesses, would be helpful as well.

Considine: I would return it to local units of government and schools to fix their roads, bridges and buildings to help lessen the property tax load in Wisconsin.

Should abortion be legal in all cases, illegal in all cases or something in between? Explain.

Benish: This is an issue people feel very strongly about and there will be much debate and discussion when Legislation reconvenes. I am endorsed by Pro-Life and believe in exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother, and this is what will guide me as a representative in the Assembly as this issue is discussed.

Considine: Something in between, as it was when Roe was in place.

How should the state improve educational outcomes, especially in the wake of how the pandemic affected student achievement?

Benish: The pandemic certainly shed a lot of light on education. Its been a challenge to parents, kids and schools. It has shown us transparency needs to be provided to parents when it comes to what is being taught to our children. Legislation should support funding for our schools, hold schools accountable and increase transparency for parents so they know what is being taught to their children.

Considine: Properly funding our schools and educators and getting rid of special education vouchers.

How should the state address its workforce challenges, both in the public and private sectors?

Benish: Wisconsin has a shortage of workers across the board, including in important industries like education, health care, food and the trades. The Republican Legislature took aim at each of these areas last session with a number of bills and also passed legislation to attract and retain more police officers and veterans. Unfortunately, Governor Evers vetoed many of the bills.

Considine: One thing the state can do is assist with the day care shortage and then push the federal government to change immigration laws and allow people to come here and work. Wisconsin has more people in the workforce than we have had for over four years. We dont have enough people.

Was the Michael Gableman investigation of the 2020 election a good use of taxpayer resources? What follow-up should there be?

Benish: Legislation could certainly address any shortcomings identified by the nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau in its 2021 audit. I am focused on the November election and in speaking with constituents about the real issues that are impacting them right now like inflation, education issues, and a statewide rise in crime.

Considine: No, and Speaker (Robin) Vos should be held accountable for that fiasco.
MILWAUKEE  In two decades of street outreach on Milwaukees south side, evangelical pastor Marty Calderon has offered Bible study, gang prevention, a safe place to stay for those battling addiction, and help getting jobs for those newly released from prison.

But as hes watched rising crime threaten those efforts to clean up his impoverished neighborhood, Calderon started bringing Republican politicians to his ministry, God Touch.

He hopes the largely Hispanic, working-class community will hear what they can do for it  and the conservative candidates will learn these voters reality, especially their immigration journeys.

Weve never had the Republicans come as strong as they are.  Im very cautious doing this because I just dont want people thinking theyre going to come get a vote, Calderon said in his sanctuary, adding that he doesnt push specific candidates on his community. Im just saying go out and vote, and pray about it.

Republican candidates across the country are seeking to expand recent gains the party has made with Hispanic voters from Florida to the Rio Grande Valley to Los Angeles. What seems to be driving them are bread-and-butter issues that Calderons neighbors constantly mentioned to Associated Press reporters last week  rampant lawlessness, struggling schools, and food and gas prices creeping beyond their paychecks reach.

Those consistently matter more to Latino voters than immigration, allowing Republicans to make inroads that constitute a big re-alignment  if they end up splitting their vote close to 40% Republican and 60% Democratic instead of historically a third of Latinos voting with the right, said Geraldo Cadava, a Northwestern University history and Latino studies professor.

Swinging even a few thousand votes in a state like Wisconsin  which delivered minuscule margins for Trump in 2016 and for Biden in 2020  could impact national politics because GOP Sen. Ron Johnson is in a close re-election race with Democratic challenger Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes.

A month before the midterms, Johnson was talking about the importance of renewed faith as he met with Calderon and other community leaders in the Republican National Committees one-year-old Hispanic outreach center, two blocks from God Touch.

Were showing up, Johnson said of the partys outreach in communities like this. We have a universal message.

Minutes earlier, Republican U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil, whose southeastern Wisconsin district is just a few miles south, had also made a stop at the storefront center, decorated with yard signs, an elephant-shaped pinata and U.S. and state flags.

These efforts encourage Hilario Deleon, 21, who grew up on the south side and, after losing his dishwashing job during the COVID-19 lockdown, got involved in Republican campaigning.

Weve failed in the past to be in the community, he said of the GOP. He added that he likes to see political and faith leaders walking the walk, like Calderon's weekly food distribution. I like to see God through peoples actions.

Wisconsins elections commission doesnt collect race or ethnicity data, but the immigrant rights advocacy group Voces de la Frontera estimates there are about 180,000 voters among the states Hispanics, nearly 40% of whom live in Milwaukee. Most are of Mexican origin, followed by Puerto Ricans.

And 46% of Latino registered voters consider themselves independent, according to pollster Charles Franklin of Marquette University Law School. His aggregate polling data over the last two years shows that Wisconsin Latino voters fall about halfway between whites and Blacks on political issues  and 71% identify as Christian.

Political parties cant take this population for granted, said Felipe Hinojosa, a professor at Texas A&M University who studies the connection between religion and politics among Latinos.

He finds the centrality of faith to many Hispanics daily life doesnt automatically make them Republican, but being an ethnic minority doesnt reflexively make them Democratic, either.

Little wonder that bilingual canvassers were door-knocking last week across Milwaukees south side. They came from both Voces de la Frontera Action, which endorses Democrats, and Operacion Vamos (operation lets go, in Spanish), the Republican Partys new Hispanic outreach organization.

Walking past taquerias and historic churches, founded by Central European immigrants and now attended largely by Mexican faithful, the canvassers stopped at modest, single-family homes, many with Halloween decorations but no campaign signs.

Carrying Voces flyers promoting pro-immigrant, pro-working class candidates  the Wisconsin Democrats running for statewide office  Deisy Espana, a 20-year-old college student, said the unfair treatment her undocumented parents suffered motivates her activism.

But Latinos are switching over because of the lack of fulfilled promises, she added, especially on immigration. Voces founding director, Christine Neumann-Ortiz, said she feared disenchanted Latinos might not vote at all.

Vamos canvassers faced a different kind of challenge with uncommitted Hispanic voters.

Folks on the ground hear, No one ever reached out to us before or I didnt expect Republicans to reach out to us, said Ana Carbonell, a consultant for Hispanic outreach with the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which launched Vamos efforts this midterm season in nine key states, including Wisconsin.

In a late September poll by the Pew Research Center, more Latinos said they felt that the Democratic Party works hard to earn Latinos vote and cares about Latinos than the Republican Party.

The historic lack of outreach to the Latino community leaves Hispanic voters to bundle their own issues, often based on faith, instead of buying into an ideological package from either party, said Ali Valenzuela, an American University professor of Latino politics. That can benefit Republicans when the focus is on the economy, as in these midterms.

Since April, Vamos in Wisconsin has contacted more Hispanic voters there than over the last three election cycles combined  voters like the woman who chucklingly told two Vamos canvassers last week, Youre in the wrong neighborhood.

I can always learn more, she nevertheless added, taking their flyers.

Nearby, Artemio Martinez, a construction worker from Mexico married to a U.S. citizen, said he was grateful Vamos knocked on his door.

As his 2-year-old daughter played with the bilingual flyer listing Republican statewide candidates under Equipo Ganador!  the winning team, described first as pro-faith and pro-family  Martinez said he hadnt planned on voting.

But if the senator (Johnson) will do something about this, he added, referring to the crime and drug use he sees all around the neighborhood, We will bring our support and vote so that things can change in the community.

Working on new siding for his white home, Noah Ledezma also said he wasnt sure if he would vote. He supported Republicans in the past, because he feels the party is more aligned with his Christian faith and family values.

But now he believes that no matter whos in office, life keeps getting harder for working class people like him  born of Mexican immigrants, the father of five works in construction while his wife is a schoolteacher.

All theyre doing is bickering, he said of politicians. You have to see the change. You have to see them working together.

The Vamos canvassers and their literature didnt sway him. But what might is if Johnson showed up in person to take open questions on a crucial topic like education.

Its different when you see them out here, Ledezma said. Lets say I ask  Senator, what are you going to do thats going to be different?  And youre hearing it from the horses mouth  I can say, Im going to hold accountable. Okay, you have my vote.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Ive always supported the, you know, exceptions.

Thats what U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson said in a recent interview with a Fox 6 reporter about abortion, specifically a 2011 bill the senator co-sponsored that would have granted fetuses and people equal rights under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

That measure didnt explicitly mention abortion. But it clarified that fetuses from the point of fertilization would be protected by the same rights as people. And it did not include exceptions for rape or incest.

Thats a key component of such personhood bills, said Mary Ziegler, a law professor and legal historian at the University of California, Davis who writes about abortion.

Personhood is not consistent with rape and incest exceptions because, as most anti-abortion or pro-life groups would tell you, if you view that fetus or unborn child as a person, the same as like a 5-year-old, you couldnt take the life of the 5-year-old because it was conceived in rape and incest, Ziegler said.

Around the time the 2011 federal measure was introduced, Ziegler said, states were advancing efforts to introduce their own equivalent bills or ballot measures.

Yet, Johnson has supported many other abortion bans that do contain exceptions for rape and incest.

He supported an abortion ban after 20 weeks of conception that held exceptions for rape, incest and saving the mothers life in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021.

And in July 2021, Johnson signed on to a U.S. Supreme Court brief asking the high court to uphold a Mississippi law that banned abortions after 15 weeks with exceptions for a severe fetal abnormality or medical emergency but not for rape and incest.

As the senator has said numerous times he personally believes life begins at the moment of conception, but he fully supports allowing the democratic process in each state to decide at what point does society have the responsibility to protect that life, Johnson spokesperson Alexa Henning said in a statement.

So whats the rest of the story?

While most of the abortion measures Johnson supported did allow for exceptions, the 2011 measure did not. It is not true that the senator has always supported such exceptions.
The importance of a legally binding treaty on business and human rights to protect communities

Reflections ahead of the next round of treaty negotiations at the United Nations in Geneva later this month

On 27 and 28 July 2022, the Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS), the Alternative Information and Development Centre (AIDC), and Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) hosted a two-day Indaba on the United Nations Binding Treaty on Business and Human Rights in Johannesburg.

In June 2014, the United Nations Human Rights Council took steps to develop an international legally binding instrument to regulate the activities of transnational corporations and other businesses. It is currently referred to as the UN Binding Treaty on Business and Human Rights. The Resolution to begin the process on the Binding Treaty was put forward by Ecuador and South Africa.

Out of 20 countries that voted in support of the Resolution, 10 were African countries, an indicator that the continent is committed to protecting communities from corporate impunity and holding corporations accountable for rights violations. This is because African communities are the ones who bear the burden of the social, political, economic, and environmental effects of business.

Activists from host communities, trade unionists, civil society organisations and social movements from Southern Africa, and government officials from South Africa participated in robust discussions on a legally binding instrument on corporate accountability for human rights at the Indaba. Although the Fourth* revised draft of the Binding Treaty is yet to be published, participants discussed what should be included into the next draft of the Binding Treaty, emphasising that communities must be at the centre of this process.

It was important to highlight the lived experiences of communities impacted by large natural resource extraction during the Indaba. This informed the discussions on how the lived experiences of the communities and lessons learnt from the Covid-19 Pandemic could influence the next draft of the Binding Treaty as well as the negotiations at the 8th session of the Intergovernmental Working Group, which will take place from 24  28 October 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Pandemic highlighted existing inequalities, and further disproportionately impacted marginalised communities and individuals, including precarious and informal workers, and communities impacted by corporations, in a myriad of ways. As has been the case globally, efforts to contain the virus brought into sharp relief again the fault lines of inequality that so many bear the brunt of on a daily basis, particularly vulnerable host communities that disproportionately shoulder the environmental and social impacts of natural resource extraction and corporations activities. The Pandemic further highlighted the need for a legally binding instrument to protect vulnerable communities from corporate abuse where power and wealth are often highly concentrated.

Activists noted that some corporations excluded host communities and workers from process of developing Covid-19 policies and used the Pandemic as an opportunity to reduce workforces, mechanise processes and maximise profits.

The Indaba focused on learning from experiences during the Pandemic, amplifying communities voices, and findings ways to strengthen African states participation during the Geneva negotiations. The attendees identified several examples of how threats to communities land, rights, and well-being can manifest in the natural resource space and ways the Binding Treaty could hold corporations accountable for rights violations. A strong theme of the Indaba was the need for communities to be involved in decisions about what happens on the land they own and use. This has been spotlighted recently in the South African courts, with the successful appeal to Shells exploration rights along the Wild Coast. Many supporters of the exploration claimed that the community was anti-development, however, the judgement highlighted the fact that communities deserved to be listened to and properly consulted on matters regarding their own land, and have a say on what kind of development is best for each community.

The UN Binding Treaty on Business and Human Rights is an important instrument for protecting human rights and helps shift the way in which human rights are viewed. Traditionally, human rights protection has been seen as something that exists between the State and civilians, but now we see that it includes corporations, and they can no longer hide behind those assumptions.

Following the two days of discussions and reflections, the group developed and endorsed resolutions, which calls for inter alia communities right to say no in addition to the inclusion of free prior and informed consent in the draft Binding Treaty, and the use of processes such as the Indaba to bring labour, civil society organisations, and governmental organisations together.

Participants acknowledged and commended the South African governments important, positive, and proactive role that it has played in the Binding Treaty process, and welcomed the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), Department of Justice, and Department of Trade and Industrys (DTI) continued support for the Binding Treaty and South Africas role keeping up the momentum to regulate transnationals corporations under international human rights law.

Zanele Malindi is an attorney based at the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, Wits University, and Jessica Lawrence is an attorney based at Lawyers for Human Rights.

* Since the writing of this article, the Chairperson of the IGWG has released a statement advising that the Friends of the Chair process could not start working on a new text proposal for the treaty and therefore this years negotiations will focus on the Third Revised Draft of the treaty.
A Buffalo food processing plant that would package locally grown food to increase healthy options in underserved communities.

A project to turn a derelict building on Delavan Avenue into an indoor food-growing facility, farmers market and community health space.

Food justice in the spotlight: 'Equal access to fresh food is a civil right and a human right.' Im designing this effort to move beyond words and to create a platform for long-term investment in East Buffalo projects that will improve food access, and we are prepared to meet that goal, organizer Kevin Gaughan said.

An initiative to add seven city properties to an urban farm project to greatly expand its capacity for growing fresh, nutritious food in the food-challenged Bailey Green area.

These are all programs that will help ease the food insecurity plaguing some of Buffalos low-income areas. But they need money to succeed, and investing in them is one action that can make a difference for the future of Buffalo.

But it will take a lot of money  upwards of $20 million, by one estimate.

Those were the conclusions reached at the American Food Equity Conference held Wednesday at the Seneca One tower, where about 40 food, financial and philanthropic experts from Buffalo and across the country discussed the citys grocery gap and potential solutions to close it.

The conference, organized by Buffalo attorney Kevin Gaughan and sponsored by several corporate and community organizations, was a response to the food crisis that followed the May 14 mass shooting that killed 10 Black people at the Tops Markets on Jefferson Avenue.

The white supremacist shooter targeted the store because the neighborhood it serves is 78% Black. The accused shooter said his goal was to kill Black people, but he also removed a main source of fresh food from a wide area during the two months the store was closed.

Co-chair Rita Hubbard-Robinson said that 80% of Buffalos Black population lives in 14 neighborhoods east of Main Street  why we say East Side,  she said.

Five East Buffalo ZIP codes, including 14208, where the hate crime was committed, saw a 30% higher mortality rate during the pandemic due to nutrition-related health problems, Hubbard-Robinson added.

The impact of 'food apartheid'

The panelists from near and far shared reams of statistics showing how discriminatory lending practices known as redlining and other forms of racial discrimination set up Black communities for a precarious future. In Buffalo and elsewhere, the food deserts that resulted had adverse effects on health, crime, education and mental illness caused by what many term food apartheid.

But the real nuts and bolts of the conference came at the end, when projects by three local food warriors were set forth in what became an almost Shark-Tank-like ask for the financial support they need to succeed.

Allison DeHonney, CEO of Urban Fruits and Veggies, Alexander Wright, founder of the African Heritage Food Co-op and Hubbard-Robinson, the founder of Project Rainfall, an urban aquaponics farm and farm market will have their projects lifted up for support by the conference, Hubbard-Robinson said.

National participants received a morning tour of Buffalos neighborhoods that included visits to those projects to give potential investors, advisors and supporters a look at what three Black entrepreneurs have already done to address the problem and how the wider community can help them achieve their vision.

After racist Buffalo massacre highlighted 'grocery gap,' leaders gather to talk food solutions The American Food Equity Conference, organized in response to the May 14 racist massacre, will bring national experts and local project leaders together to address the "grocery gap" in Buffalo.

Local solutions

DeHonney said she raised $3 million and needs $4 million more to fully fund her Urban Fruits and Veggies operation to expand to offer more indoor growing technology, an indoor market and community space for other efforts such as a childhood obesity program.

DeHonney and Wright also described their business plan for the states first food processing plant owned by people of color. The enterprise would process their locally-grown produce to provide products like baby carrots for daycare centers and blanched vegetables for senior programs in Western New York. Their plan calls for $5 million in funding to renovate a building and equip it for food processing.

Hubbard-Robinson's Project Rainfall on Delavan Avenue has gutted a vacant industrial building and needs assistance to renovate the building, which is owned by the Buffalo Urban Development Corp. She said she hoped the state would provide $6 million to finish the building, and she needs another $3.2 million for equipment and other services.

Wrights African Heritage Food Co-op is in better financial shape. He is receiving more than $3.2 million in state and federal grants to develop his market at 238 Carlton St. He said he is seeking investment to be able to pay his employees a living wage and provide health benefits. But, he said, his ask was that investors consider supporting DeHonneys and Hubbard-Robinsons projects, which are further behind in coming to fruition.

The three collaborators described their projects as a three-legged stool that will work together to support each other while serving three separate communities on the East Side, all of them lacking in nearby sources for fresh food.

At the end of the day, John Koelmel of Catapult Consulting said his rough calculations put the total needed to make these projects happen at about $20 million, which he called not exactly chump change, but anything but insurmountable.

He asked those holding financial strings and access to political power in the room to leave with a promise to ask how they can help.

How do we deliver the funding and financing to develop these programs and begin to make real progress, he asked, and otherwise move beyond that treading water stage that we seem to be perpetually in and enable Allison, Alex and Rita and so many others to be able to swim much more opportunistically upstream?

Ted Janicki, president of Bank of America Buffalo, pledged to host a follow-up meeting to devise funding and financing solutions, including looking at tax credits and other programs to tailor assistance to the projects, which he said will be in a position to further invest in their communities once they succeed.

Why improving food access in Buffalo neighborhoods won't be a 'one-size-fits-all solution' In the three months since the Tops massacre, a broad network of local advocates, organizers and social entrepreneurs  plus public and private funders  have accelerated efforts to improve food access in disinvested neighborhoods.

Lewis Clarke of the State Department of Health said Buffalos effort to make success stories happen will have the power to attract more state interest and change policy in the future.

I will bring back to the Department of Health that Buffalo has solutions that can be successful there and elsewhere, he said.

More information including video and PowerPoint slides on the conference can be found at americanfoodequity.org.
Students attend the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at Henan Museum of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, Oct. 12, 2022. [Xinhua/Xu Jiayi]

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua)  The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. The previous two lectures of the "Tiangong Class" series were delivered by the Shenzhou-13 crew from the station's core module Tianhe.

The lecture content includes a capillary effect experiment, the vibration of liquid and liquid-solid mixtures, drinking water with a super-long straw, rotating and flipping wrenches, and introducing a plant growth study.

The astronauts first gave an introduction of the Wentian lab module. They noted that Wentian has an independent control system. It can take over the operation and control of the whole space station when the Tianhe core module has emergencies.

Liu showed the students the motion and vibration of liquid in a microgravity environment. She also sipped mango juice with a two-meter straw.

In another experiment, two tumbling T-handles illustrated how their motion relates to their rotation mode and mass distribution. The phenomenon, popularly known as the Dzhanibekov effect, is easier to be observed in space than on Earth.

The astronauts also had an interaction with the students and answered their questions.

A six-grader from Yunnan Province shared his germination test of Arabidopsis thaliana at school. Wearing mixed-reality glasses, Chen Dong showed the students the Arabidopsis thaliana at different stages of blooming in a microgravity science glove-box.

Arabidopsis thalianaa is a model for understanding the molecular biology of plant traits in space. The science glove-box is a sealed working area in the space station where crew members can perform experimental procedures in cells and plants.

When answering a question from a Beijing student about how to become an astronaut, Chen said that China has started selecting the fourth batch of reserve astronauts, adding that the spacecraft pilots will be recruited from the in-service pilots of the armed forces.

"The space station is waiting for you," said Chen.

At the end of the class, the trio expressed their expectations for the students on Earth. "The Mengtian lab module will launch into orbit soon, and we will witness the historical moment when China's space station is fully completed," Chen said. "We expect you guys to build our space home better in the future."

Students conduct experiments while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at Henan Museum of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, Oct. 12, 2022. The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth. The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong. It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. [Xinhua/Li An]

A student introduces his experiment while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at a middle school in Dali, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Oct. 12, 2022. [Xinhua/Chen Xinbo]

Students conduct experiments while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at No.1 Middle School of Heze in Heze, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 12, 2022. [Xinhua/Xu Suhui]

Students attend the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 12, 2022. [Xinhua/Luo Xiaoguang]

(Source: Xinhua)
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, makes an important speech at the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC, in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. [Xinhua/Ju Peng]

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua)  The 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded its seventh plenary session in Beijing on Wednesday with a communique issued.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, made an important speech at the four-day session, which was presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

It was decided at the plenary session that the 20th CPC National Congress will open on Oct. 16 in Beijing, according to the communique.

Entrusted by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Xi delivered a work report to the plenum.

The plenary session also discussed and adopted a report to be made by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress, a work report of the 19th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) to the congress, and an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

The three documents will be submitted to the upcoming congress for examination and deliberation, read the communique.

During the session, Xi delivered explanatory remarks on the draft report by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress. Wang Huning made explanations on the draft amendment to the CPC Constitution.

It was noted at the session that over the past year, confronted with a complex and challenging international situation and demanding tasks of advancing reform, promoting development, and maintaining stability at home, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee has fully implemented Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in securing new and major achievements in the undertakings of the Party and the state, creating favorable conditions for convening the 20th CPC National Congress.

The past five years since the 19th CPC National Congress have been unusual and extraordinary, said the communique.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has held high the banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in completing the historic mission of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and thus realizing the first centenary goal, and in embarking on a new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing toward the second centenary goal, the communique said.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in effectively coping with the grave and complex international situation and a series of major risks and challenges, and pushing forward socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era in an energetic manner, according to the communique.

Many tough problems that remained unsolved for a long time have been solved, many things of vital importance and long-term significance have been accomplished, and major achievements that captured the attention of the world have been scored in the cause of the Party and the country, the communique said.

The communique noted that these major achievements have been the result of concerted efforts of all Party members and all Chinese people under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, and the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

It emphasized that, the Party has established Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and has defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This reflects the common will of the Party, the armed forces, and the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, and is of decisive significance for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era and for driving forward the historic process of great national rejuvenation.

The session took stock of the work of the 19th CPC CCDI, noting that discipline inspection commissions at all levels, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, had resolutely implemented the Party's strategic decisions of self-reform and full, rigorous self-governance.

An overwhelming victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and this has been consolidated across the board, it read.

The session analyzed the current situation and the tasks, and hosted in-depth discussion on major issues including upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era, and building a modern socialist country in all respects. It made full preparation for the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, the communique said.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee opened in Beijing on Oct. 9, with 199 full members and 159 alternate members present. Members of the CCDI and leading officials of related departments were also present in a non-voting capacity.

In accordance with the CPC Constitution, the session decided to admit Ma Guoqiang, Wang Ning and Wang Weizhong as full members to the 19th CPC Central Committee. They had been alternate members of the committee.

The session also endorsed the expulsion of Fu Zhenghua, Shen Deyong and Zhang Jinghua from the CPC, as was decided by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, as well as the punishment on Li Jia, who was removed from his post in the Party.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China. [Xinhua/Yan Yan]

Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng attend the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), in Beijing, capital of China. [Xinhua/Xie Huanchi]

Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng attend the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), in Beijing, capital of China. [Xinhua/Xie Huanchi]

The seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing, capital of China. [Xinhua/Ding Haitao]

(Source: Xinhua)
Situated in the southwestern portion of the US State of Vermont in Bennington County, Bennington is home to a vibrant community center with a fascinating past, beautiful architecture, independently owned businesses and small-town friendliness. The Bennington Battle Monument, the state's tallest man-made structure, is located in downtown Bennington. The town's historical significance also extends to its physical structures, making it a fantastic tourist attraction to view some of the classic architecture that was quite common in this portion of the country in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Geography And Climate Of Bennington

Aerial view of Bennington, Vermont in spring.

Bennington covers a total area of 110.1 sq. km, of which 109.4 sq. km is land, and 0.7 sq. km is water. It is one of Bennington County's two shire towns, as well as the state's third-largest town and sixth-largest municipality. The town is placed along the western end of the Green Mountains and is drained by the Walloomsac River and its tributaries. Bennington is geographically much closer to the capital cities of Concord, New Hampshire, Albany, New York, and Hartford, Connecticut, than to Vermont's capital Montpelier.

According to Koppen Climate Classification, Bennington experiences a humid continental climate, with warm, rainy summers and cold, snowy winters. The average yearly temperature ranges from 14F to 79F, rarely falling below -4F or rising above 86F. July is the warmest month, having an average temperature of more than 69F. Having an average temperature of less than 40F, January is the coolest month. On average, the city receives 44 inches of rain and 65 inches of snow each year.

Brief History Of Bennington

Exterior of Bennington County Courthouse in Bennington, Vermont. Editorial credit: jenlo8 / Shutterstock.com

Before the colonists arrived, the area was inhabited by the indigenous Abenaki people, who were attracted by the plenty of fish and wildlife in and along the area's various waterways. As part of the Benning Wentworth Grants, the town was first chartered in 1749 and was named Bennington in honor of the Governor of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth. Congregational Separatists from Connecticut and Massachusetts founded the town's first settlement in 1761 in what is now known as Old Bennington. Samuel Robinson, the group's leader, set up camp in the river valley following his return from the French and Indian War. The group established a town-meeting government within a year, which is still in place today with minor changes. The town is also well known for the Battle of Bennington, which took place during the American Revolutionary War.

Population And Economy Of Bennington

Being southern Vermont's most populous town, Bennington has a population of 15,333 inhabitants as per the latest US Census. Bennington's population has declined by -0.64% from the most recent census and is now falling at a pace of -0.32% annually. White (Non-Hispanic) (93.9%), Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (2.47%), White (Hispanic) (0.972%), Other (Hispanic) (0.808%), and Asian (Non-Hispanic) (0.55%) make up Bennington's top five ethnic groups. The poverty rate in the town is 13.18%, with an average household income of $62,978. The median price of a home is $162,700, and the median monthly rent in prior years has been $866. In Bennington, the average age is 45.5 years, 38.3 years for men and 47.9 years for women.

The town developed into a textile, pottery, wood goods, and paper hub during the 19th century. Manufacturing (batteries, automobile components, composites, stoneware, plastic items, and hand tools), agriculture (particularly maple sugar), and tourism are the three main pillars of the current economy. With over 1,300 employees, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center is the town's largest and Vermont's seventh-largest employer.

Attractions In Bennington

Old Bennington

Autumn leaves change color by the Old First Church in Bennington, Vermont. Editorial credit: J.A. Johnson / Shutterstock.com

A trip to Old Bennington is like traveling back in time, even though it is totally inside the boundaries of the town of Bennington. Less than 200 people live in this historic community, which has lovely old structures and a very interesting background. The Jedidiah Dewey House, constructed in 1763, is the oldest house. The Old First Church, one of Vermont's most stunning and well-known churches, is situated nearby and was constructed in 1805.

The Bennington Battle Monument

Aerial view of Bennington Battle Monument in Bennington, Vermont.

The Bennington Battle Monument is Vermont's tallest man-made structure standing at 93 m. The vistas from the top make it the most well-liked of all the state historic sites in Vermont. The Battle of Bennington, which took place on August 16, 1777, is commemorated by the Bennington Monument, which was finished in 1889. Brigadier General John Stark and 1,400 New Hampshire soldiers defeated two British army detachments who were attempting to seize a store of food and ammunition where the stone obelisk now stands.

Bennington Museum

Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont. Image Credit: Daderot, via Wikimedia Commons

The purpose of the Bennington Museum is to display the inventiveness of 18th-century Bennington and its surroundings. Visitors can explore and observe a wide variety of relics, paintings, and stonewares around the museum. The most extensive public collection of American folk artists, including Anna Mary Robertson's "Grandma" Moses, is displayed as part of the permanent collection exhibitions.

Burt Henry Covered Bridge

Burt Henry Covered Bridge in Bennington, Vermont.

The Burt Henry Covered Bridge, is believed to have been constructed in the 1830s. The Walloomsac River is crossed by this single-span town lattice truss bridge, which is more than 120 feet long overall. The bridge can only accommodate one lane of traffic because it is barely 18.5 feet wide.
Laramie is a college town with a thriving cultural scene, a wealth of outdoor recreation opportunities, and a strong western heritage. It is also known as the "Gem City of the Plains" and is also the county seat of Albany County. The city is nestled between two mountain ranges and is the proud location of the University of Wyoming.

Laramie is the third largest city in Wyoming, with an estimated population of 31,407 as of 2020. For those who enjoy the great outdoors, Laramie is home to a wide variety of natural attractions. The city promises a wealth of activities and views for a trip full of memories, whether one spends the day shopping in the historic downtown district, touring one of the many renowned museums, or getting a taste of local culture and leisure.

Geography Of Laramie

Historic downtown area of Laramie. Editorial credit: Rolf_52 / Shutterstock.com

Laramie is situated at 411847N 1053514W and stands at an elevation of around 7,165 feet above sea level. It has a total land area of 18.36 square miles. Laramie is situated on a high plain between the Snowy Range, which is about 30 miles to the west, and the Laramie Range, which is located 7 miles to the east. East of the Laramie Range, the Laramie River flows through Laramie before joining the North Platte River. The city is located 130 miles north of Denver, Colorado, and roughly 50 miles west of Cheyenne, Wyoming. Laramie is located along US Routes 30, 80, and 287 and is still a significant Union Pacific Railroad line junction.

Climate

According to the Koppen climate classification, Laramie itself has a humid continental climate with warm-humid summers and dry-cold winters. For warm-weather activities, late June to late August is the ideal time of year to visit Laramie. The city experiences an annual average temperature of 41.0F. The warmest month, July, has an average temperature of 64.0F, while the coldest month, January, has an average temperature of 21.0F. Laramie experiences 11.0 inches of precipitation on average every year. The average number of days with precipitation is 92.0, with July recording the highest precipitation (11.0 days) and January recording the least amount of precipitation (6.0 days).

History Of Laramie

The countryside around Laramie.

Several thousand people settled in what is now known as Laramie in 1868 when the Union Pacific Railroad was being built, creating a tangle of tents and shanties on the treeless plain between the Laramie and Medicine Bow hills. A small group of builders remained to build a permanent city from an earlier anarchic settlement after most of them left. Laramie expanded gradually yet steadily. It gained notoriety in 1870 as the location of the country's first "mixed" jury trial, in which six women served on a grand jury. With the Wyoming Territorial Prison's creation in 1873, the area's lawlessness significantly decreased.

The University of Wyoming (UW), the state's only public university, was founded in 1886 after governor Francis E. Warren approved a bill establishing it. The university's location was chosen to be in Laramie and officially opened in 1887. For many years, employment was generated by the hunt for precious metals in the Medicine Bow Mountains, 30 miles to the west. The University of Wyoming, the railroad, cattle and sheep ranches, forest products, and cement production have been the significant economic drivers in Laramie.

Demographics And Economy

According to the United States Census Bureau, Laramie houses 31,407 residents as of 2020, where 48.3% are females, and 51.7% are males. The city's racial makeup is 80.2% white (non-Hispanic/Latino), 10.8% Hispanic or Latino, 3.8% Asian, and 1.4% African-American or Black. The rest are distributed among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN), Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders, and mixed races. English is spoken by 88.4% of the population. The rest speak Spanish (4.8%), Indo-European languages (3.2%), Asian and Pacific Islander languages (2.8%), and other foreign languages (0.7%). Only 29.5% of the population in Laramie are naturalized US citizens. And veterans make up 5.8% of Laramie's population, of which 87% are males, and 13% are females.

As of the same 2020 Census, the employment rate in Laramie is 66.1%, with a poverty rate of 23.9%. The homeownership rate is 47.1%, where the median gross rent cost is $824 per month, with a median household income of $47,463. The percentage of people without healthcare coverage is 9.4%. According to Sperling's BestPlaces, the unemployment rate in Laramie is 4.3%. Moreover, over the past year, the job market in Laramie has decreased by -2.2%. Compared to the US average of 33.5%, future job growth is expected to be 19.5% during the next ten years.

Attractions In Laramie

Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site. Editorial credit: Chad Robertson Media / Shutterstock.com

Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site

The Wyoming Territorial Prison, the state of Wyoming's first state prison, was constructed in 1872. It's the only federal prison in Wyoming. More significantly, it is the oldest structure in the vicinity that is still in use. You may find out how they punished and rehabilitated prisoners inside the jail, which is now a museum belonging to the University of Wyoming.

Laramie River Greenbelt Park

The Laramie River Greenbelt Park offers hiking opportunities for those who like the outdoors. The 5.75-mile park features a range of activities that can make you sweat, including walking, jogging, dog trails, and river fishing.

Wyoming Women's History House

You may not be aware that Wyoming is also known as the "Equality State." Louisa Swain, a resident of Laramie, was the first woman to vote in Wyoming on September 6, 1870. She voted following the new law granting men and women equal voting rights. The first woman court bailiff of record in the world was Martha Symons Boies, who arrived after Swain. The Wyoming Women's History House recognizes Swain, Boies, and other notable Wyoming-born women. Thirteen exhibits highlighting each female icon's accomplishments are located within the residence. Women's affairs conferences are also held here.
A week into a frantic regionwide hunt for a man suspected of ramming his car into his estranged wife's vehicle and then shooting her to death in front of her three children in the backseat, Buffalo Police got a tip that paid off.

It sent law enforcement officers swarming into the area around Bissell Avenue near Walden Avenue at midday Wednesday. A detective spotted the suspect  Adam R. Bennefield, 45  jumped out of his vehicle and began chasing him, Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said. A U.S. Marshal drove around to head him off. Officers then tackled Bennefield to the ground in a grassy lot and took him into custody.

Two hours later, he was in Buffalo City Court for arraignment on second-degree murder charges and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child  one for each of the children who saw their mother slain.

"A community member came through with a tip, who was able to reach out to a trusted member of our department. And that was able to get us on the right track," Gramaglia said at a virtual news conference from Dallas, Texas, where he and Erie County District Attorney John Flynn were attending a criminal justice conference.

Buffalo Police had been working with the U.S. Marshals Service Regional Fugitive Task Force to try to track Bennefield down.

Pastor Tim Newkirk of GYC ministries, who has been helping the victims, said he heard about police activity on Bissell Avenue on Wednesday and arrived to see U.S. marshals putting Bennefield into a car. The street was filled with uniformed and undercover police, he said.

Newkirk said he called Keaira Bennefield's father with the news.

He was relieved, Newkirk said.

Newkirk added that he, too, was relieved.

He was armed and dangerous, Newkirk said. I also feel sad for the family, who is beginning the process of saying goodbye. He said the family is in middle of planning the slain woman's funeral.

Suspect in Buffalo homicide was charged with assault in Cheektowaga the day before Law enforcement is looking for Adam R. Bennefield, 45, to question about the death of his estranged wife Keaira Bennefield, 40, who was shot in front of her children in her SUV at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at Shawnee and Richlawn avenues in the city's Leroy neighborhood.

The killing of Keaira Bennefield, 40, has shocked Buffalo and raised many questions about whether more could have been done to protect her.

Early on the morning of Sept. 28, police responding to a 911 call arrived at Keaira Bennefield's home on Barbara Place in Cheektowaga. She told them that her estranged husband had punched her.

Officers found Adam Bennefield locked in a bathroom and took him to Erie County Medical Center. Initially, police planned on charging him with harassment  which is a violation, similar to a ticket.

But Keaira Bennefield called the police back the following day and said she believed that what her estranged husband had done to her was more serious than harassment. She then referenced video from a surveillance camera that she had placed inside her home that showed her being beaten.

Once police obtained the video on Oct. 2, they decided to raise the charges to third-degree harassment and other misdemeanor charges. Adam Bennefield turned himself in Oct. 4 and was arraigned. Because the charges were misdemeanors, he was released on his own recognizance. However, the judge issued him a stay-away order.

Police: Arrest warrant issued for man accused of shooting his estranged wife in SUV Anyone who sees Adam Bennefield is asked to call 911 but to not engage or confront him. Crime Stoppers Buffalo has offered a $7,500 reward for information on Bennefield's whereabouts.

Meanwhile, Keaira Bennefield, working with a domestic violence advocate, went to stay with her mother.

The next morning, she put on a bulletproof vest, according to Newkirk, to drive her children to school. She was at the corner of Shawnee and Richlawn avenues in the city's Leroy neighborhood when authorities say Adam Bennefield rammed his vehicle into hers, then pulled out a shotgun and shot her.

Buffalo Police tried to pull his car over, but it drove onto the Kensington Expressway headed in the wrong direction, police said. Police later found the vehicle. Gramaglia said a shotgun was recovered.

Adam Bennefield has a history of violence against women. In 2000, he was convicted of smashing his car into an ex-girlfriend's vehicle as she was driving. He then carjacked her vehicle, with the ex-girlfriend and a female passenger inside.

Flynn said in the Cheektowaga case, Bennefield faced only misdemeanors because his wife didn't show any serious injuries.

Mother's slaying in Buffalo intensifies GOP blast of bail reform "This really is a serious and horrific failure of bail reform laws," Nicholas Langworthy said. "But for the changes to our criminal justice system in 2019, this would never have happened."

"The judge had no choice but to release the defendant," Flynn said. "None of the charges were qualifying offenses." Bail reform laws enacted in 2020 prevent judges from imposing cash bail for almost all misdemeanors and non-violent felonies.

In Buffalo City Court on Wednesday, Assistant District Attorney Ryan Haggerty asked Judge Kevin Keane to remand Bennefield, to hold him in jail without the possibility of bail. Bennefields attorney, Emily Trott, did not ask for bail for her client.

A grand jury investigation is now underway, and the hearing Wednesday was adjourned until Nov. 15 to give the jury time to complete that probe.
Calls for Welsh Government to address real challenge of staff retention in Welsh NHS

North Wales politicians have urged the Welsh Government to do more improve staff retention and recruitment in the region.

A report released by the RCN Wales (Royal College of Nurses) last month found that the number of registered nurse vacancies had risen from 1,719 in 2021 to 2,900 this year.

It provides an estimate of the vacancies across Wales health boards based off Freedom of Information requests.

However it is stated that Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board did not reply to the RCNs FOI, which is described in the report as being deeply concerning.

Speaking in the Senedd yesterday Health Minister Eluned Morgan admitted that staff retention is the real challenge.

North Wales Conservative MS Sam Rowlands questioned the minister on her assessment of the RCNs report and what action the Welsh Government is taking to retain staff.

He said: Im sure, Minister, youd agree with me, and as you initially outlined, that there is a challenge in recruiting and retaining nurses in Wales.

In light of this, what further and specific action do you think that you and Welsh Government could carry out to, first of all, recruit more nurses, and, also, to make sure that were retaining those hard-working nurses that we already have?

The minister said she is committed to ensuring that Wales has the right number of numbers and healthcare staff but that retaining staff is the biggest challenge being faced.

She said: The number of training places for nurses has increased over 69 per cent since 2016thats 2,396 more nurses that have come on to the system.

Part of the problem is that weve got to actually make sure that we retain peoplethats the real challenge as far as Im concerned. Ive asked Health Education and Improvement Wales to work with the RCN to look at what we can do in this space to help retention.

I think its also worth emphasising that weve recruited an additional 400 international nurses this year.

And I was very pleased, on Monday, to meet the health Minister for Kerala in India, who were going to now be making a partnership with, so that we can recruit directly from Kerala, so that we can have a direct route to qualified, high-quality students.

They were very clear to me that they are happy to train them up, theyre happy to send them over. And what happens is that the remittances are sent back to Kerala, and thats why its in their interest also for us to take on these nurses.

So, there are some plans in place, we know that weve got a lot further to go, but this is a global pressure that everybodys really facing.

The minister also faced questions from North Wales MS for Plaid Cymru, Llyr Gruffydd, who challenged the minister on what work is being done to make sure the demand on Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is being met.

He said: We know, of course, that one in eight nursing posts is vacant in north Wales. We also know from the chair of the health board that of the 642 GPs that we have in north Wales, a quarter of them are over 65, and a third of that 642 are expected to retire in the next five years.

Twenty per cent of posts are filled by locum doctors at the moment, before those I mentioned will retire.

Do you therefore accept that one of the historical failings of this Government, and previous Governments, is the failure to sufficiently plan for the future workforce in this sector, and the upshot of that failure, then, is that we have shrinking staffing levels, that it costs more to the public purse to fill those vacant posts, and it puts more pressure and burden on the shoulders of those left behind?

Ms Morgan said that work has carried out to improve recruitment at the health board, stating that 20,000 people now work for Betsi Cadwaladr.

She added that there are plans to recruit an additional 380 in the next two years.

Ms Morgan said: The idea there is that the board wants to get local people to take those posts, so they have a plan for that. And what is important therefore is that that planning is done. I had a meeting with the General Medical Council last week.

They demonstrated exactly how many people are going to leave because theyre going to retireretirement, thats the word.

In terms of nurse training, as you heard from the previous question, we are already training far more nurses than we were in the past; more than 69 per cent more than we have in the past.

The difficulty is is that we have to retain people in the system; thats where the tension is. And we understand that there has been great deal of pressure on these people over the past two years.
North Wales veteran who almost died after catching flu urges people to get jabbed

An RAF veteran who almost died after catching flu is urging others to protect themselves with a free vaccination this winter.

Mark Beech, 65, was rushed to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd by ambulance a couple of days after Christmas in 2018  and woke up in intensive care more than two weeks later.

He woke up in isolation, surrounded by life-saving equipment and nursing and medical staff in masks and gowns. Because he had a tracheotomy to help support his breathing, he was unable to speak.

Mark spent a further two weeks recovering in hospital and now attends outpatient appointments for related conditions and rehab.

Doctors called his daughters to his bedside twice because they feared he may not pull though.

I was very lucky, Mark said. It was a life-changing experience for me. I dont think Ill ever recover from it.

The consultant told me if I hadnt been so strong and had so much willpower then I wouldnt be here today.

Mark, who lives in Rhyl, had contracted the H1N1 strain of flu  and says the illness has obliterated his life.

Im very lucky to be here, because I really didnt realise how serious it was, Mark said.

I lost a month of my life in hospital, and then my way of life when I came out. Thats as simply as I can put it.

Prior to catching the flu Mark used to be able to walk on the beach with his daughter and her dog or go walking in Betws Y Coed.

However he is now only able to walk for five or 10 minutes at a time before needing to find somewhere to sit down.

He said: If I go to the supermarket I need to have a trolley to lean on. I need to get a taxi even to go short distances.

I havent even just walked around the town centre for such a long time  I would just have to keep stopping.

Mark served all over the world with the Royal Air Force Regiment between 1973 and 1997.

After leaving the services, the 65-year-old managed a number of businesses  before moving to North Wales and taking on a role advising on health benefits. He now volunteers with a veterans charity.

He said he would urge everyone eligible for the flu free vaccine to protect themselves, their family and vulnerable people in the community by taking up the offer.

I could have had a flu jab, but I chose not to because I didnt think I needed one, Mark said. Now I would say to anyone  if you dont have one you could die, its a simple as that.

Anything that will stop people from getting the flu is a good idea.

I know it will help with the pressure on the NHS and on NHS staff too. But the bottom line is this will help you to look after yourself and avoid the flu.

Public health experts have already warned that Wales could be facing a severe flu season for the first time since the pandemic, while COVID-19 continues to circulate in the community.

Last month, Wrexham Maelor critical care specialist Dr Andy Campbell urged people in North Wales to protect themselves against flu.

Free flu and Autumn COVID-19 booster vaccines are available to all adults aged 50 or over, plus priority high-risk groups including health workers, carers and people with underlying health conditions.

All children from Reception to Year 11 will be offered a painless nasal spray flu vaccine at school. Parents should look out for more information from their childs school and make sure they return their consent form.

Children aged two and three (on August 31 2022) will also be invited to receive a spray flu vaccine at their GP surgery.

Betsi Cadwaladr immunisations coordinator Leigh Pusey said: If you are in a priority group then getting your flu vaccine and Autumn COVID-19 booster is crucial.

Please help to keep yourself well by making sure you take up this opportunity.

Protecting children against flu is particularly important, and getting the painless nasal spray vaccine will help to protect children in North Wales from becoming seriously ill this winter.

It will also help to stop children  who mix with so many others at school and nursery  from passing the flu virus on to members of their family and more vulnerable people in the community.

More information on how to get your flu vaccine at Autumn COVID-19 booster is available here.
This statement is being sent out and distributed to nearly 100,000 workers in the United Auto Workers (UAW) by UAW presidential candidate Will Lehman. The WSWS has endorsed Lehmans campaign. For more information, visit WillForUAWPresident.org.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In less than one week, you will begin receiving ballots in the mail for the UAW elections. I have included information on how to vote and how to obtain a ballot if you dont get one on my website. I urge all of you to vote, and to vote for me, Will Lehman, for UAW president. I am campaigning to build rank-and-file power on the shop floor in opposition to the entire UAW apparatus.

I am writing to you today, however, on another matter that is critical to the interests of all workers, in the US and throughout the world. That is the case of Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks. Assange is currently imprisoned in the United Kingdom and faces extradition to the US, where he would be prosecuted under the Espionage Act. He could receive a 175-year sentence or even be executed.

Julian Assange [Photo by David G. Silvers, Cancilleria del Ecuador / CC BY-SA 2.0

Assange is being persecuted for one reason and one reason alone: He revealed the truth about the actions of the American government abroad, the same government that represents the corporations that exploit us here in the United States.

One of the most significant initial exposures by WikiLeaks was a video, released in 2010, depicting the US Army killing unarmed civilians and journalists in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. The footage was filmed three years earlier, in 2007, in the early years of the US occupation of Iraq. I urge all of you to watch this video, which is titled Collateral Murder.

Collateral Murder

The video was followed by the release of the Iraq and Afghan war logs in 2010 and the Guantanamo files in 2011. These documents, which were made available to the public thanks to the heroic actions of whistleblower Chelsea Manning, exposed a lie that is central to the propaganda of the US government, Democrat and Republican alike: that the wars abroad are about defending democracy.

For this reason, Assange has been subjected to more than a decade of vicious and uninterrupted persecution. He is currently in Londons Belmarsh maximum-security prison, where he recently contracted COVID-19. The UK High Court ruled late last year that he could be extradited to the US, even though the trial itself revealed that the CIA had plotted to kidnap and murder him.

Beyond his personal fate, there are two critical issues for workers in the defense of Assange.

First, the persecution of Assange is an attack on basic democratic rights, including the First Amendment right to free speech and a free press. Assange is guilty of telling us the truth, of exposing lies that the government does not want exposed.

The corporations and the wealthy in this country depend on a bought-and-paid-for media, which parrots whatever the government tells them. We experience this every day, when workers are denounced in the media for our efforts to secure a decent wage and a future for ourselves and our families. If an individual can be jailed and prosecuted for revealing true information, it sets a dangerous precedent that will be used against any worker who speaks out and opposes the demands of the corporations, aided and abetted by the union apparatus.

Second, Assange has helped to expose the reality of American militarism. How much money has been spent and how many lives lost, including of US soldiers, to wage endless war abroad? And for what? They throw around words like democracy and freedom to convince workers that these wars are worth the cost, but the reality is that they are about securing the domination of American corporations over the entire globe. More than 1 million Iraqis and Afghans have died to achieve this end.

The consequences of these wars are felt by all of us. More than $1 trillion is expended on the US military every year, while they claim that no money is available to provide decent living conditions for workers. One veteran kills him or herself every 80 minutes in the US, the consequence of post-traumatic stress disorder from what they saw and experienced at war. As soon as their bodies are no longer useful to the ruling class, veterans are essentially discarded by the government.

Now, the Biden administration is escalating a conflict with Russia that Biden himself said last week could lead to Armageddonthat is, the annihilation of the entire planet in nuclear war. And what is this all about? The government of Vladimir Putin represents the oligarchs in Russia, and the invasion of Ukraine must be opposed by all workers. However, this invasion was a response to the expansion of the US-led NATO military alliance up to Russias borders and the massive armament of Ukraine by the US.

Everything that the media tells us about this war is a lie. It is not a war about democracy. Ukraines government is comprised of neo-Nazis who praise people who helped carry out the Holocaust during World War Two. The oligarchs who run Ukraine recently passed a labor law eliminating the right of millions of workers to collectively bargain. You wont hear that on the nightly news.

The same military-industrial complex that provoked the war in Iraq is escalating war against Russia today, but on an even larger and more dangerous scale. The US banks and corporations are fighting to control Eastern Europe at the expense of their Russian rivals. The US ruling elite is prepared to make the working class suffer greatly, and even sacrifice millions of lives, to expand the domination of American corporations.

Workers in the US and throughout the world have no interest in the war. We have the same interests as workers in Russia, Ukraine and in every country. We are exploited by the same corporations. We confront the same problems. We will suffer the same consequences if the catastrophe of nuclear war is not prevented.

Workers should know that the labor movement has a long and proud tradition of defending democratic rights, as these rights are critical for all workers. It should also be recalled that the UAW withdrew from the AFL-CIO in 1968 in opposition to the Vietnam War. The fact that the trade unions no longer even raise these critical issues is part of the same process that has led to their domination by a privileged apparatus that serves the interests of the companies.

For these reasons, it is critical that all workers take a stand in defense of Julian Assange. It will not be through appeals to the ruling elite and their politicians that his freedom will be secured, but only through our intervention. We must connect the fight to defend our interests with the defense of Assange, the defense of democratic rights, and opposition to war.

Sincerely,

Will Lehman
Work in the auto industry? We want to hear from you: Fill out the form at the end of the article to tell us about your workplace conditions.

On August 12, Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler) worker Travis Baker died after suffering a severe injury during his shift at the Belvidere Assembly plant, near Rockford in northern Illinois.

Travis Baker. Image used with permission from the family. [Photo]

Nearly two months after his death, the circumstances which led to the tragedy remain unclear, and his family still does not have a death certificate from the Winnebago County coroners office.

Manufacturing workplaces have increasingly grown to resemble industrial slaughterhouses, with preventable accidents occurring with appalling regularity. On September 30, another Stellantis worker, Thomas Tank McAuliffe, died after reportedly falling from the roof of the Sterling Stamping plant in suburban Detroit. Just 10 days earlier, two brothers, Ben and Max Morrissey, were killed in a fire at the BP Husky refinery plant near Toledo, Ohio.

A number of workers at both Belvidere Assembly and at Ford Assembly in Chicago contacted the World Socialist Web Site after reading about Travis death to speak out on dangerous conditions in the auto industry and the related loss of health and life.

A Stellantis Belvidere worker told the WSWS Autoworker Newsletter, I was there the day that happened and I was told that he was found dead and the security team and Fire Marshal tried to revive him and he was taken by LifeLine. No Chrysler personnel did anything to help. Poor man. And he died a few days later.



Stellantis is too cheap to pay for anything. Our gates are falling apart and the factory needs a lot of upgrades. They dont want to fix anything.



I had a fall and injured myself because of the poor conditions. The only thing they did was finally fix the floor after many, many complaints on it. Every day, workers complain about the poor conditions.

Belvidere Assembly [Photo: WSWS]





Another worker at the plant said, At Stellantis Chrysler in Belvidere, they turn off lights at 6 p.m.! Its pitch black, cant see nothing. And they turn off all the air.



The worker also explained that sub-contract workers at the plant are owed back pay: We just made it to 17 bucks and were supposed to get a raise in March 2022 but didnt get it until August 2022. No one has said anything about back pay or nothing. Nobody cares what the contract or the union book says. They do what they want, when they want. With nobody here watching them, how would you know what is going on?



This is the worst company Ive ever worked for. They want us to come to work with COVID, and dont care if you had family members die from it. They keep it secret and never tell when an employee has COVID. This plant is messed up. Id always wanted to work here and now its like I did all that to just to be underpaid, overworked and not appreciated.

A Ford Chicago Assembly worker, commenting on the death at Belvidere, told the WSWS, What happened to Travis is very sad. I feel bad for his family. Safety is not important to any automotive factory, I know that first hand. I have seen people die in Ford plants. But Ford always says that the person didnt die in the plant, the person always died at the hospital. So that way these companies dont have to pay. When will it stop?



And also very sad that no one from the UAW has talked with his family. That is one of my biggest fears, that I would die inside of one of Fords plants. Thats another reason why I am retiring next contact in 2024. Safety is not important to them. I hope for the best for his family.

I have had friends that have died inside of Ford St. Louis and Chicago. One of my good friends died just six months before retirement, at almost 62. She was waiting till she turned 62 years old and she didnt make it! I still think about her all the time. She had the same seniority as I do.



I have always been very safe at Ford, always watching everyone and everything. Never got hurt in 32 years, but one day I lost focus for one minute and I got hurt badly at Ford Chicago. It had been my fourth plant and never got hurt until then.



Chicago Assembly is very unsafe. Most people dont understand what autoworkers go through on a daily basis.

As the companies have pushed speed-up and ever-greater productivity demands, in the relentless pursuit of profit, the United Auto Workers union bureaucracy has repeatedly worked to whitewash dangerous conditions and corporate negligence, including covering up the deadly impact of COVID-19 in the plants.

But the sacrifice of workers lives to private profit has also produced growing anger and opposition. Will Lehman, a candidate for president of the UAW, has called for the transfer of power to rank-and-file workers and control over workplace safety. Writing in a recent statement on fatal workplace accidents, he said:

In opposition to the coverup of industrial injuries and deaths by the corporations, government safety regulators and the union bureaucracies, I call for independent investigations by rank-and-file workers to uncover the truth and hold accountable all those responsible for the ongoing carnage in Americas workplaces.
Two men were charged this week in separate criminal incidents targeting Eden Supervisor Melissa Hartman, and police are investigating how the cases are connected, authorities said Wednesday.

First, a 40-year-old Buffalo man is charged with throwing objects into two homes on Hillbrook Drive on three occasions earlier this year  including a dummy pipe bomb tossed into Hartmans home. Adam A. Jones has told investigators he was paid to do this, Eden Police Chief Gregory Savage said.

Eden police probe string of strange incidents on Hillbrook Drive Someone  or perhaps more than one person  threw objects on six separate occasions through the windows or front doors of three homes on Hillbrook Drive, a residential street off North Main Street.

In addition, a Hillbrook resident who lives next door to Hartman is accused of a campaign of harassment dating to 2021. Luigi Palmieri, 48, is charged with repeatedly violating an order of protection obtained by the Hartmans.

The sets of incidents both center on Hartman, who is running for Erie County clerk, and on Hillbrook Drive. Police have not charged Palmieri in damaging the homes, but they are exploring any ties among the incidents.

It's hard to imagine that there's two scenarios playing out over there, Savage said. I believe they're connected, but we haven't been able to definitively show that.

Eden supervisor says police investigating partial pipe bomb thrown into her home Melissa Hartman, who switched political parties from Republican to Democrat in February and is running for Erie County clerk, said the device had multiple threats written on it.

Palmieris attorney, Dan DuBois, said his client denies wrongdoing and, further, is not involved in the criminal mischief incidents along Hillbrook.

At this point, these are allegations, DuBois said. These allegations arise from a long-standing neighbor dispute.

The incidents came to public attention in April, when Hartman revealed someone had thrown a partial pipe bomb through a window at 3 a.m. March 28.

Hartman said at a news conference that the pipe bomb, which did not explode, had messages threatening her if she didn't drop out of the county clerks race.

Hartman has served as Eden supervisor since 2016, initially as a registered Republican before switching parties to run for clerk as a Democrat.

One week later, Eden police announced the dummy pipe bomb was one of six times that someone had thrown objects into homes along Hillbrook. In August, Eden police disclosed a seventh such incident.

In all, Savage said Wednesday: Hartmans home was struck once; the Palmieri home next to hers was not struck; the home to the west of Palmieri's was struck five times; the next home over was not struck; and the next home to the west was struck once.

The other homes were hit with rocks or pieces of metal, Savage said.

On Tuesday, Jones was charged with felony criminal mischief for two incidents on March 6 and Aug. 15, targeting the home that was struck five times in all, and for throwing the fake pipe bomb on March 28 at the Hartmans home. The other four incidents remain under investigation.

Savage said Jones has no direct connection to Hillbrook, but he claimed to police that someone paid him to take part in these incidents.

Jones did not name Palmieri, said Savage, who declined further comment on the identity of the possible conspirator.

Jones appeared Tuesday in Eden Town Court, but the town justice recused herself. Police said Jones will be arraigned when the case is transferred to another court.

The incidents tied to Palmieri date to July 2, 2021, when he is accused of setting off a powerful firework near members of the Hartman family at their home, according to the Erie County District Attorneys Office. No one was hurt.

He was charged in Eden Town Court with reckless endangerment, harassment and unlawfully dealing with fireworks. The case was adjourned in contemplation of dismissal on Jan. 4, but the Hartmans obtained an order of protection.

Palmieri is accused of violating that order on numerous occasions. The District Attorneys Office didn't identify who obtained the order, but Savage confirmed it was Melissa Hartman and her family.

First, on Oct. 27, Melissa Hartman said she twice saw Palmieri driving near Eden Town Hall.

On April 3, prosecutors say, Palmieri drove slowly past Hartmans son with no legitimate purpose as the son walked on Route 62 near Legion Drive. On May 14, Palmieri is accused of driving past and stopping in front of the Hartman home as their children played outside.

On July 13, Palmieri entered Eden Town Hall during a Town Board meeting, prosecutors say, before a town police officer asked him to leave. However, Hartman told authorities she saw Palmieri waiting outside Town Hall after the meeting ended.

The final incident took place at 11:30 p.m. Aug. 20. Savage said a party one block over had just ended and large groups of young people were walking through the neighborhood, drawing residents out of their homes.

Authorities say Palmieri yelled at Melissa Hartmans husband and then confronted her as she was walking with a neighbor. Palmieri was holding a large metal flashlight and shining it at Melissa Hartman and the neighbor, sparking an argument, prosecutors said.

When Palmieri moved toward the pair, the unnamed neighbor punched Palmieri. Prosecutors say he acted in self-defense.

Given the number of people involved, Savage said he asked the Sheriffs Office to investigate.

Palmieri was given an appearance ticket and the case was transferred to Hamburg Town Court after both Eden town justices recused themselves. He was arraigned Tuesday on charges of menacing and criminal contempt, both misdemeanors.

He also is charged with criminal contempt for the earlier incidents that, prosecutors say, violated the order of protection. He is set to return to Hamburg Town Court on Dec. 6.

Asked how an order of protection works, on a practical level, when the two parties live next to each other, Savage said, That's the question of the year, and I think the answer to that is it does not work.

DuBois, Palmieris attorney, said his client initially got along well enough with the Hartmans. He said an incident about two years ago, precipitated by the Hartmans, triggered a falling out, but he declined to reveal specifics.

We're glad that these charges were removed from the Eden court and moved to a neutral jurisdiction  not one where, you know, Ms. Hartman is essentially the boss of the of the police department, Dubois said. Savage said Hartmans position has not affected how town police handled the case.

Hartman declined an interview request, but issued a statement through her office.

This is an ongoing police matter, and my administration will continue to work closely and in complete cooperation with all of law enforcement to ensure the safety of every home, business and resident of Eden, Hartman wrote.

News Staff Reporter Harold McNeil contributed to this report.
The Gas Price Commission set up by the German government presented a proposal on Monday for cushioning high natural gas and energy prices with government money. It envisions lavish cash gifts for large corporations and the wealthy, while the poor, ordinary earners and small businesses will still be unable to absorb the skyrocketing costs despite government aid.

24 million private households and small businesses are expected to bear the full brunt of higher gas prices in the heating-intensive winter months of January, February and possibly March. The tariff has risen from around 7 cents per kilowatt hour before the sanctions against Russia were imposed to between 20 and 30 cents.

For December, the Commission proposes a one-time payment equal to this Septembers monthly bill. This is a highly arbitrary value, as the September bill for many households was still based on the old prices. The main beneficiaries are wealthy villa owners with high gas consumption, who are treated in the same way as tenants of small apartments.

A certain watering can subsidy was unfortunately unavoidable, commented the chairmen of the commission, economic expert Veronika Grimm, the president of the BDI industry association, Siegfried Russwurm, and the chairman of the IG BCE chemical workers union, Michael Vassiliadis, with a shrug.

It will not be until March or April that private customers and small and medium-sized enterprises will be able to purchase 80 percent of their previous years consumption at its government-subsidized price of 12 cents. That is still almost twice as much as before the Ukraine war. For anything above that, they will have to pay the full market price.

In total, this is expected to cost the state around 66 billion by the end of April 2024. A further 30 billion is earmarked for subsidizing around 25,000 large companies with an annual consumption of over 1.5 megawatt hours, which will start benefiting from subsidized prices as early as January 1.

They will be guaranteed a gas price of 7 cents per kilowatt hour for 70 percent of the previous years consumption. BDI President Russwurm claims that this is roughly equivalent to the 12 cents for private consumers, since it is a pure procurement price and not the gross tariff including taxes and fees, as is the case for private customers. But it is obvious that large corporations are being favoured. Here, too, the Commission is acting according to the watering-can principle. Highly profitable corporations benefit from the state money just as much as those threatened with bankruptcy.

The 96 billion for the gas price cap does not include the 50 billion the government is using to rescue intermediaries like Uniper, which have run into difficulties due to the lack of supplies of cheap gas from Russia. This money then ends up directly in the bank accounts of the big energy companies, which are making record profits because of the high prices.

The gas price cap and the bailout of the middlemen will require around three-quarters of the double whammy package of 200 billion announced by the German government in September. This does not even take into account rising electricity and oil prices. Indeed, the massive rise in electricity prices is only partly due to the high price of gas, which economists generally believe will never return to pre-war levels. And a new price explosion is looming on the oil market.

The reason is the EU Commissions effort to impose a price cap on Russian oil exports to all countries in the world. It is to be enforced by punitive measures against shipping companies that transport Russian oil and against insurance companies that insure the shipments. If Russia defies these measures, it faces a massive shortage of oil and diesel and a corresponding price explosion.

Efforts to get Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries to increase production have failed. Instead, OPEC countries, fearing international price dictates, have cut production by two million barrels per day. To prevent a further price increase before the November mid-term elections, the US is now discussing an oil export ban, which would additionally hit Europe.

The huge sum of 200 billion for lowering the price of gas will not be financed directly from the federal budget so as not to jeopardize the debt ceiling, to which the Social Democrat-Liberal Democrat-Green coalition continues to adhere. Instead, the government has reactivated the Economic Stability Fund, which was set up in 2008 to rescue banks during the financial crisis and relaunched in 2020 to protect corporations such as Lufthansa and TUI from the consequences of the coronavirus crisis.

But unlike then, when at least some of this money flowed back after the crisis subsided, the 200 billion (and what will follow) will have to be fully financed from the national budget, which will inevitably come at the expense of social spending due to rapidly rising arms expenditures. With the war against Russia, which NATO has systematically provoked and continues to escalate despite the danger of nuclear war, the German government has also declared war on the working class.

All representatives of the ruling class are moving together in this: The establishment parties, from the Greens, the SPD and the Left Party to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the business associations and the trade unions. As in World War I, when the unions and corporations agreed to an industrial truce, and in World War II, when the Nazis united them in the corporatist German Labour Front, they are again conspiring against the working class.

The Gas Price Commission set up by the German government embodies this fusion of state, corporations and unions. It consists of 21 representatives from business, science, social associations and unions and is headed by the boss of the largest business association, Siegfried Russwurm, and the chairman of the chemical workers union, Michael Vassiliadis. The latter is also the partner of Yasmin Fahimi, chairwomen of the German Union Confederation (DGB) and a leading SPD politician.

The aggressive actions of the German government and its allies are exacerbating not only social antagonisms in Germany and across Europe, but also national tensions within the EU. Leading European politicians have strongly protested the 200 billion package because, in their view, it constitutes a trade war measure.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban called it the beginning of the EUs self-laceration and scolded: The rich are helping their companies with huge sums, while the poor cant. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi warned it undermined the logic of the [European] Union at its roots.

In a newspaper article, EU Commissioners Thierry Breton (France) and Paolo Gentiloni (Italy) complained about the consequences for member states that do not have the same budgetary leeway as Germany to provide comparable support to their companies and households. They warned that what was ultimately at stake was the success of our European project.

This vicious circle of social attacks, national tensions and war, which threatens the survival of humanity, can only be broken by the independent intervention of the international working class. It must break with the parties and unions of the ruling class and link the struggle against wage theft, social cuts, and war with the struggle for the overthrow of capitalism and the construction of a socialist society.
Leaked audio of leading Democratic Party politicians in Los Angeles, California, making racist statements about African Americans, indigenous people, Armenians and Jewish people has generated widespread popular anger in Americas second largest city and thrown the political establishment into crisis.

The Democratic Party, desperate to contain social opposition, has responded with well-rehearsed posturing of moral outrage and the usual shopworn calls for the exemplary punishment of individual malefactors. But far from being a case of a few bad actors, the incident exposes both the reactionary character of the racialist political strategy of the Democratic Party and the rottenness of American capitalist politics as a whole.

On October 9, an individual anonymously posted audio of a conversation held last fall between the head of the Los Angeles County AFL-CIO, Ron Herrera, and three Democratic members of the Los Angeles City Council: Council President Nury Martinez, Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo.

The conversation took place at the county headquarters of the AFL-CIO during a meeting to discuss redistricting, the process by which the politicians representing the citys elite carve the population into racial enclaves and distribute the spoils of government power.

Employing the crass language of racial tribalism, Nury Martinez referred to the black child of a rival City Council member as a changuito, the Spanish term for little monkey. Saying the child needs a beatdown, she added, Let me take him around the corner. She attacked former Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon for being for the blacks.

In a discussion related to which faction of the local elite should control the area around Koreatown, Martinez (2020 salary = $207,000) mocked the areas indigenous immigrants, who are impoverished, often undocumented and come from the southwestern Mexican state of Oaxaca, as short little dark people without shoes. These comments expose the Latino bourgeois politicians in the Democratic Party as hostile to the defense of immigrants rights.

The stench of racism and chauvinist reaction hangs over all the parties of capitalism. In Pennsylvania, Republican candidate for governor Doug Mastriano denounced Jewish schools in an openly anti-Semitic attack on his Democratic opponent, who is Jewish. Racialism and nationalism are intrinsic to bourgeois politics. In every country, the ruling class perceives and explains the world in racial terms and aims to maintain its domination by fomenting antagonisms within the international working class.

In the Los Angeles audio, City Council President Martinez disparaged the white members of this Council and noted with striking eloquence that they will motherfuck you in a heartbeat. The Council members describe other individuals by the color of their skin (example: Was she a black lady?). Herrera states proudly that the meeting participants are forming a little Latino caucus of our own.

During the same meeting, AFL-CIO head Herrera referred to Jewish state Assemblyman Richard Katz as Katz and his crew, stating obliquely that they have an agenda. Martinez responded affirmatively, saying the judiosthe Jews cut their deal with South LA and are going to screw everyone else.

Martinez also referred to an Armenian City Council member, saying, He also wants his guy elected.  They want to assure, they want to be reassured that they have, not an Armenian district in the Valley, because that doesnt exist, but they want as many Armenians in that district as possible to be able to play. Gil Cedillo then remarked that all Armenians have last names that end in i-a-n.

This is not a case of a few minor players in local politics. The four people captured on the audio are leaders of the Democratic Party in the largest state in the country. Martinez has been floated as a possible future mayor. Cedillo is a former state senator, and De Leon is former president pro-temp of the state Senate, who ran for the US Senate in 2018.

Before becoming head of the county AFL-CIO, Herrera (2019 salary = $149,627) was head of the Teamsters at the Port of Los Angeles. In January of this year, Herrera appeared with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg at the port and pledged to enforce a speedup to ease port congestion.

On Tuesday, hundreds of protesters of all races, including many Latinos with signs saying fuera Martinez!, broke up a meeting of the City Council and demanded the resignation of the three Council members. Herrera resigned as head of the LA County Federation of Labor Tuesday. On Wednesday, protesters again filled the Council chambers and prevented the Council from reconvening. On Wednesday afternoon, Martinez announced her resignation from the City Council.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Biden viewed the racist remarks as unacceptable and appalling. Biden himself, however, has a long history of racist remarks. In 2007 he referred to Barack Obama as the first mainstream African American who is articulate and bright and clean. In 2006 he said you cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. In 1977 he said desegregated schools would force white children to grow up in a racial jungle.

The Biden administrations real concern is that the crisis may impact next months midterm elections or undermine his administrations efforts to escalate the war against Russia in Ukraine. Biden will be in Los Angeles for a fundraiser with Nancy Pelosi Thursday and is expected to deliver remarks on the matter.

For all the self-righteous denunciations coming from the Democratic Party and its media apparatus, the language used by the City Council members is the political language of the party itself. The Democratic Party is a filthy miasma of racial resentment on all sides, and the leaked audio reflects this reality.

For the last 50 years, the Democratic Party has abandoned any past association with social reform and has instead promoted racial politics as a mechanism both for cultivating support in the affluent upper middle class and for dividing the working class.

In the aftermath of the urban rebellions that shook the country in the 1960sincluding the 1965 riot in Watts, which Democratic Governor Pat Brown suppressed with 14,000 National Guard troopsthe Democratic Party sought to develop a base of support within the elite of various racial groups. A Democratic Party commission in 1972 (the McGovern-Kerner Commission) restructured party primaries and internal organization to minimize the role of the labor movement and elevate the importance of caucus groups based on race and gender identity.

In the subsequent decades, as identity politics came to dominate the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party became the dominant party in Los Angeles. An influx of immigrants from all over the world turned Los Angeles into one of the most diverse and international cities in history, with a powerful working class closely linked by the process of production to workers in Latin America and Asia. The Democrats engaged in an identity-based strategy of divide-and-rule, cultivating black nationalism, Chicano nationalism and other forms of identity politics as a method of rule while cutting social programs and taxes on the rich.

This strategy became more deeply embedded after the 1992 riot, when anger erupted across the city over the acquittal of police responsible for brutally beating Rodney King. In the 1990s, as the Democratic administration of President Bill Clinton ended welfare as we know it, Democratic city politicians increasingly presented themselves as representatives of various racial groups fighting over ever-shrinking funding for social programs.

The audio of the meeting makes clear that identity politics has nothing to do with improving the conditions of workers. It is about weaponizing identity to enrich the affluent upper middle class. The Los Angeles Democrats racist comments took place in the context of proposing ways to use racial identity to win patronage over government contracts and secure domination of various union locals so as to gain access to dues money and staffing positions.

It is not accidental that the racist conversation included the head of the county AFL-CIO, and it took place at its headquarters. Over the same period that the Democratic Party has made identity politics the axis of its operations, the trade unions have overseen massive losses in jobs and wages on behalf of American corporations, blaming foreign workers and promoting nationalism. De Leon and Cedillo were both longtime union bureaucrats before running for office, De Leon with the California Teachers Association and Cedillo with the Service Employees International Union.

Two of the figures exposed in the audio have close ties to the pseudo-left, which has long promoted nationalism and identity politics within the Democratic Party. In the audio, Cedillo talks about his former membership in the Stalinist Communist Party USA alongside previous Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. De Leon, for his part, spoke at a DSA-Los Angeles event in 2017. The Ventura County DSA hosted a meet the candidate event in 2018 to promote de Leons run for the US Senate.

Though the leaked audio exposes the racism of leading Latino Democrats, the Democratic Party is steeped in racialist politics. African American Democrat Stacey Abrams declared in 2018 that there are inherent racial differences. The New York Times 1619 Project is devoted to a racialist reinterpretation of history, presenting the past as well as the present as characterized by irreconcilable racial conflict.

The audio proves the Democrats racial politics and the open racism of the increasingly fascist Republican Party are only two sides of the same coin. Reading the transcript of the Los Angeles Democrats conversation on redistricting, one would hardly know that the slurs and jokes did not come out of the mouth of Trump himself.

Identity politics has greatly enriched the wealthiest minority of each racial group, but it has been a disaster for the working class of all races and nationalities. Nowhere is this truer than Los Angeles, where there are over 50 billionaires and 70,000 homeless people, where the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $2,800 and gas costs $6 a gallon, where public transit is in shambles and 96,000 Angelenos have died of the coronavirus. Masses of undocumented immigrants confront daily the threat of deportation.

The depraved incident shows that racial and identity politics have nothing to do with the interests of the working class. A powerful movement of the global working class is emerging across every continent, and the task of socialists is to unite the working class across all racial, national, gender and ethnic lines into one movement for social equality. This means turning to class politics based on the real, economic divisions in society. It means waging a ruthless struggle against identity politics in all forms.
Last Thursday evening, the billionaire incumbent governor of Illinois, Democrat J.B. Pritzker, and his Republican challenger, Darren Bailey, a millionaire businessman from Xenia, shared the stage in the first of two debates in advance of next months midterm elections. Early voting began Friday in Illinois.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, left, speaks as his Republican challenger state Sen. Darren Bailey, right, listens during the Illinois Governor's Debate on the stage in Braden Auditorium at the campus of Illinois State University in Normal, Ill., Thursday, Oct.6, 2022 [AP Photo/Ron Johnson]

Pritzker is favored to win re-election by a wide margin and has been endorsed by the Chicago Tribune, which has supported every Republican gubernatorial candidate for more than 20 years. Baileys campaign is buttressed by more than $50 million from Dick Uihlein through a PAC operated by Dan Proft, the ultra-conservative activist behind a number of media outlets. Uihlein is the billionaire heir to the Schlitz brewing fortune.

The intervention of three billionaires in the governors race, one Democratic and two Republican, is making the Illinois governors race the most expensive on record. Pritzker spent more than $35 million during the Republican primary contest to ensure that Bailey, a fascist in all but name, won the GOP nomination for governor, beating out more moderate candidates.

This was part of a nationwide electoral strategy on the part of the Democrats based on the cynical calculation that they would fare better in the general election against extreme-right Republicans, including many endorsed by Donald Trump, than against less extreme ones. This has facilitated the transformation of the Republican Party into an openly fascistic organization. More than half of the Republican candidates standing in the November 8 elections, including Bailey, are election deniers who do not accept the legitimacy of the Biden administration.

The debate event itself was bitter and at times chaotic. The candidates dodged questions in order to take pot shots at one another, but both candidates made crime a central point in their campaign.

Bailey, who refuses to acknowledge Joe Biden won the 2020 election, has the endorsement of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) as well as the Chicago FOP. He claimed that a rise in crime will result from the ending of cash bail in Illinois through the SAFE-T Act, which goes into effect on January 1, 2023.

The law limits the circumstances in which a judge can order pretrial detention and take into consideration the alleged crime and the accuseds past history. It will likely reduce the number of people incarcerated before trial. It also permits judges to detain those accused of serious crimes instead of allowing them to be bailed out.

Bail reform has popular support since it is common in the US for those accused who cannot afford to post cash bail to remain locked up for long periods, sometimes weeks or months, including right up until their trial. The average pretrial detention is 34 days, according to Illinois State Police data analyzed by Loyola University of Chicagos Center for Criminal Justice Research.

Republicans also oppose the SAFE-T Act because it limits the predatory practice of using bail as a funding source. Some counties perversely rely on bail money to support their operations, and in the debate Bailey defended this status quo.

Pritzker defended the SAFE-T Act and his record of support for the police, saying, If you want to reduce crime, you have to solve crime, and do what Ive done. Which is to increase the number of state police, build state-of-the-art crime labs and make sure that were funding violence prevention.

On the question of abortion, Bailey was asked whether hed favor any exceptions for rape and incest victims, which he avoided answering by presenting the law as settled. He said, Illinois has the most permissive abortion laws in the nation. Nothings going to change when Im governor. I couldnt change them.

Pritzker then stated that Bailey wanted to eliminate a womans right to choose. He wants to take away womens reproductive rights, the incumbent said.

Baileys anti-abortion position is well known. He was asked about his 2017 comparison of abortion to the Holocaust during his campaign for a seat in the state House, in which he declared, The attempted extermination of the Jews of World War II doesnt even compare on a shadow of the life that has been lost with abortion.

In the November election, there are two open seats on the Illinois Supreme Court, currently made up of four Democrats and three Republicans. A judges term is 10 years. According to Ballotpedia, Mark Curran, a Republican, once a sheriff in Lake County, later a senior prosecutor with the Lake County States Attorney's Office and a special assistant to the US Attorney, will face Democrat Elizabeth Rochford, a circuit court judge in Lake County, just north of Chicago. In the other race, incumbent Republican Supreme Court Justice Michael Burke is facing a challenge from Appellate Court Justice Mary Kay O'Brien, who is a Democrat.

On the ballot in November is a constitutional amendment guaranteeing workers the right to select their representation and collectively bargain at work, to which Bailey said: My message is this: Unions, stay in your lane and everything will be fine. Leave Mom and Pop and private business alone.

Bailey said, Were being crushed by property taxes, crime. Were being crushed by failed education, and its all because J.B. Pritzker is hellbent on becoming the most radical leftist governor in America.

In addition to a large farm business that produces corn, soy and wheat, Bailey operates an unaccredited private school, Full Armor Christian Academy, with locations in Illinois and Kentucky, where his wife is executive director. The school boasts of its heavily armed teachers and staff.

On gun violence, Pritzker declared, I believe we ought to ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines in the state of Illinois. Bailey responded semi-coherently: The Highland Park shooting, it shouldnt have happened because of the laws that are on the books, but when Governor Pritzker doesnt follow or obey these laws, these things happen.

After the Highland Park shooting, which killed seven and injured 48, Bailey stated on Facebook: Move on and lets celebrate the independence of this nation.

The Bailey campaign is being showered with support from the most right-wing sections of the Republican Party. At a Republican gala dinner in downstate Marion two days after the debate, Donald Trump Jr. stumped for Bailey. He said: [W]e need a push for strong Republicans in all of these offices. Darren Baileys in this room right now. You have a chance to do that here. If theres ever a chance you can unseat the lunatic in your governors mansion right now, its this year. Because people are looking at every little thing thats going on and theyre saying, What the hell is happening to our country?

Trump, Jr. employed threatening and violent political language at the event, saying, Were sick of turning the other cheek. Were sick of the live-and-let-live while theyre out there every day trying to destroy our values, our beliefs, our freedoms and our Constitution. Here in Illinois, get him to the governors mansion. This is a war of attrition, guys, and like I said, every aspect of your existence is on the table.
The Sri Lankan media, like its international counterparts, is deliberately keeping people in the dark about the mounting threat of nuclear war between the US/NATO and Russia. If the media mentions anything about this real and present danger, their remarks end with futile appeals to the imperialist powers and Russia to halt the war.

The mushroom cloud from the worlds first test of a thermonuclear device, dubbed Ivy Mike, over Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands on November 1, 1952. (AP Photo/Los Alamos National Laboratory) [AP Photo/Los Alamos National Laboratory]

The threat of nuclear war has been acutely present since the Russias invasion of Ukraine in February in response to the increasingly provocative military encirclement of Russia by the US and NATO. Seizing on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Washington and its allies immediately instigated their long-planned war against Russia, providing billions of dollars in modern weaponry to the Ukraine government of President Zelensky.

There is nothing progressive about Russias actions which are based on reactionary Russian nationalism and hark back to Czarist traditions. On September 21, following a series of military reversals in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared that he was ready to use all weapon systems available to us to defend his country, indicating his readiness to use nuclear weapons.

US President Biden responded by pouring oil onto the fire, taking the threat of a catastrophic nuclear conflict to a higher level. He declared on October 6, We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Thus far, the Sri Lankan media has simply republished reports from news agencies that mention in passing the nuclear war danger. Colombos English-language Sunday Times reproduced one article by US defence analyst Ted Galen Carpenter who directly discusses the danger of nuclear war.

In February, when Russia invaded Ukraine, the Sri Lankan media wrote numerous articles about the war, many of them blaming Putin. This included several reports about the destruction caused by the war, with particular attention paid to the deep impact that the conflict was having on the Sri Lankan economy.

Overall, Russia and Ukraine accounted for 2 percent of Sri Lankan imports and 2.2 percent of exports in 2020. Both countries are vital sources for Sri Lankan wheat imports and major export destinations for Sri Lankan black tea. In fact, Russia and Ukraine purchase about 18 percent of Sri Lankas tea. Likewise, 45 percent of Sri Lankas wheat imports are sourced from Russia and Ukraine. Sri Lanka also imports potassium chloride, a vital agricultural fertiliser, from both countries.

On October 5, the Daily Mirror, Sri Lankas leading English-language newspaper published a lengthy editorial entitled Power hunger and war in Ukraine. It says nothing about the nuclear war threat but notes that falling exports of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and corn from Russia and Ukraine were impacting on the wellbeing of people around the globe, and particularly the poor.

[T]he root of the problem, it admits, has been the enlargement of the NATO and attempted encirclement of Russia but that Moscow is equally responsible. The US and its allies, and Russia are a battle for supremacy and motivated by power hunger.

The editorial concludes: Despite the collateral damage inflicted on the people of Ukraine, despite the rising cost of living and food shortages inflicted on the poorest sections of the global population, no efforts are being made to bring the war to an end as billions of dollars are being spent on the war.

By claiming the conflict is a result of power hunger, the Daily Mirror is covering up the real factors behind the US-led NATO war against Russia. Driven by the insoluble economic and social crisis of capitalism, Washington and its allies are attempting to subordinate Russia and ultimately China to its economic and strategic interests. For its part Russia, which is not an imperialist power, is seeking to reach an accommodation with the US.

A September 1 editorial in the Island, another Colombo-based daily, refers to the destruction in Ukraine and laments that the big powers do not care to avert conflagrations which cause immense suffering to humans and could even lead to nuclear strikes. The Western powers, it states, are overreacting against Russia, and calls on the US and its belligerent allies to wise up and rethink their Ukraine strategy without behaving like a bunch of overgrown school bullies.

Other English- and Sinhala-language media have published similar comments, insisting that escalating US-led war against Russia is the result of subjective factors. The ruling elites in Sri Lanka and in other backward countries, are being drawn into Washingtons geo-strategic agenda. As US imperialism has repeatedly told the Sri Lankan ruling elite, Colombo must fully endorse Washingtons military preparations for war against China.

One week after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, then Sri Lankan President Gotabhaya Rajapakse declared that his government would not take sides in the conflict. The Rajapakse regime, which already faced an unprecedented economic crisis and was attempting to impose new burdens on workers and the poor, did not want to upset its trade relations with Moscow.

In April, popular anger erupted into mass anti-government protests, escalating into general strikes and demonstrations that forced Rajapakse and his government to resign. Rajapakse appointed pro-US stooge Ranil Wickremesinghe as acting president who was then elevated into the presidency by the discredited parliament.

Health workers march Colombo on July 7, 2022 [Photo: WSWS]

Like his predecessor, Wickremesinghe has agreed to impose the International Monetary Funds austerity measures on the working class and the rural masses, but also officially maintains Rajapakses position on the Ukraine war.

In July, Wickremesinghe told an international panel discussion on Preventing Hunger and Famine that, [Western] sanctions wont bring Russia to its knees, but it will bring the rest of the Third World to its knees That cannot go on. Its not only the fault of the European Union. Russia has a responsibility too. They must call for a ceasefire and should not put the world for further sufferings.

While Wickremesinghe is a long-trusted ally of US imperialism, Washington is stepping up its pressure on Colombo, demanding that his government fully align itself with the preparation for war against China.

The international working class, guided by the international Trotskyist movement, is the only social force that can stop the imperialist drive towards a third world war and the nuclear war threat. This requires putting an end to capitalism, the source of imperialist war and its replacement with socialism.

To this end, the Socialist Equality Party (SEP), together with its sister parties of the International Committee of the Fourth International, are fighting to build a unified anti-war movement of the international working class based on a socialist perspective.

On October 16, the Socialist Equality Party and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality are holding an online public meetingBuild an international working-class movement to stop nuclear war dangerto discuss this perspective. We urge workers, students and youth to register and attend this crucial event.
Germanys traffic light coalition government is supporting the escalation of the NATO proxy war against Russia in Ukraine with further arms deliveries to Kiev and a reinforcement of its own war offensive.

Germany delivers the first of four IRIS-T SLM air defence systems to Ukraine, announced the Ministry of Defense on Tuesday via Twitter. The recent Russian missile attacks on Kiev and other cities has shown how important this capability is for the self-defence of Ukraine.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksi Resnikov praised German arms supplies, stating, A new era of air defence has begun in Ukraine. IRIS-Ts from Germany are already here. The American NASAMS are coming. This is only the beginning. And we need more. No doubt that Russia is a terrorist state.

In a further tweet, he expressed his personal thanks to his German colleague, Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD), for her partnership and strong commitment to supporting Ukraine and assured, We will win.

The system produced by the German defence company Diehl Defence is one of the most modern air defence systems and, according to the manufacturer, is suitable for 360-degree all-round defence against aircraft, helicopters, drones, cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles. Even the German army does not yet have IRIS-T systems.

Diehl IRIS-T SLM launcher (Matti Blume, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons) [Photo]

The delivery of the system is part of the massive war escalation that is currently being organized by the leading NATO powers and increases the risk of a nuclear third world war. Just a few days ago, US President Joe Biden warned against a nuclear Armageddon. Now the war is being fuelled massively.

At the beginning of the latest meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced an expansion of NATO states military production capacities. The longer this war lasts, the more important it is that we are able to replenish supplies, he said. In the war against Russia, Ukraine needs a wide range of different systems. They need almost everything.

Germany is playing an increasingly prominent role in the flooding of Ukraine with deadly military equipment. According to the official list of the German government on military support services for Ukraine, the following further arms deliveries are planned or already on their way:

16 Zusana armoured howitzers (joint project with Denmark and Norway)

130 field heaters

36 ambulances

10 Bridge systems (heavy and medium bridge systems)

90 heavy-duty semitrailers

4 self-propelled howitzers 2000 with ammunition package

2 multiple rocket launchers MARS II with ammunition

50 Dingo armoured Transport Vehicles

167,000 rounds of handgun ammunition

12 M1070 Oshkosh heavy-duty semitrailers

20 70mm rocket launchers on pickup trucks with 2000 rockets

255 rounds of 155mm Vulcano artillery ammunition

30,000 rounds of 40mm ammunition

5032 antitank handguns

200 commercial truck vehicles

24 drone defence systems

16 BEAVER bridge-laying tanks

The delivery of heavy battle tanks is also being prepared. Before the meeting of NATO defence ministers began, the chairman of the federal parliaments (Bundestag) Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael Roth (Social Democrats, SPD), calculated that 13 European states had a total of 2,000 Leopard 2 tanks. He therefore suggests that together we put together a contingent of Leopard 2 tanks, which we then deliver to Ukraine as quickly as possible.

The proposal was immediately supported by the Chairman of the Defence Committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (Free Democrats). In addition, she reiterated her demand on Deutschlandfunk radio to also provide Ukraine with Marder infantry fighting vehicles from the German armed forces. These are now urgently needed by the Ukrainian army, especially on the southern front, she claimed. Russias approach is pure terror and beastly.

Coming from the mouth of a leading German warmonger, this is repulsive and hypocritical. Putins invasion is reactionary and corresponds to the unscrupulous interests of the capitalist oligarchy that has ruled the Kremlin since the Stalinist dissolution of the Soviet Union. But the Russian missile strikes do not come close to the destruction perpetrated by the US-led and German-backed wars in the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, where entire countries have been destroyed and millions of people killed.

Above all, representatives of German imperialism should remain silent for all time when it comes to the question of war crimes. If anything was bestial, it was the crimes of German imperialism. During the Second World War, the Wehrmacht waged a war of extermination in the East, which claimed the lives of between 24 and 40 million inhabitants of the Soviet Union. Six million Jews were industrially killed in extermination camps. Some of the worst massacressuch as that of Babyn Yar, where a special commando unit shot 33,771 Jews in two daysoccurred in Ukraine.

The official propaganda that today the war against Russia is about self-defence of Ukraine or even about peace, democracy and saving human lives is an absurdity. In reality, it is about the same predatory goals as then. The imperialist powers have provoked Putins invasion of Ukraine to defeat Russia militarily and exploit the resource-rich country. They cooperate with fascist forces in Kiev and use the Ukrainian population as cannon fodder.

The ruling class in Germany also sees the war as an opportunity to rise again to a leading military power despite its historical crimes. As the most populous nation with the greatest economic power and a country in the middle of the continent, our army must become the cornerstone of conventional defence in Europe, the best-equipped military force in Europe,' said Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) at the recent German army (Bundeswehr) conference in September.

Berlins plans to organise Europe under German leadership are now being intensified. According to a report by Der Spiegel, On the sidelines of the NATO Defence Ministers Meeting in Brussels headquarters, a joint declaration of intent will be signed by the European states wishing to participate in the common defence system against ballistic missiles and other aerial threats proposed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

According to Der Spiegel, the Israeli Arrow system is likely to be purchased for missile defence. The news magazine makes no secret of the fact that Germany is thus preparing for a potential nuclear war. The system is designed to launch rockets beyond the Earth's atmosphere, writes Der Spiegel. Above all, incoming nuclear, biological or chemical missiles are to be destroyed safely by means of these so-called high shooters.

Scholz already announced the establishment of a German-European missile system as part of the war escalation against Russia in March. It was urgently necessary that we provide the Bundeswehr [Armed Forces] with more resources, with more tanks, more air defence capabilities, and enable it in many other ways so that it can perform the task it has to perform, he explained on the ARD show Anne Will at the time. The multibillion-dollar project is now underway.
The United States is continuing to ramp up tensions with North Korea following a series of North Korean missile tests even as Washington intensifies its confrontation with China. The US is exploiting these missile launches as the pretext for its military build-up against China, particularly in North East Asia alongside its military alliesJapan and South Korea.

North Korea has conducted a number of missile tests between September 25 and October 9. The latest launch took place shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday morning when Pyongyang fired two, short-range ballistic missiles (SRMB) into the Sea of Japan. In total, the North has launched 12 projectiles, including sending an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRMB) over Japan on October 4. It was the first missile North Korea has launched over Japan since 2017.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, and South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, right, pose for the media before their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 17, 2021. After Tokyo, President Joe Bidens top diplomat and defense chief are traveling to South Korea after North Korea made sure it had their attention by warning the United States to refrain from causing trouble amid deadlocked nuclear negotiations. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, Pool)

On Monday, which was also the 77th Party Foundation Day, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that the missile drills took place under the simulation of loading tactical nuclear warheads. The exercises confirmed the order of taking tactical nuclear warheads out and transporting them and of managing them in a rapid and safe way at the time of operation.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was quoted as saying, This is the verification of the operation posture of our war deterrent and, at the same time, an occasion that proved the reliability of the thorough preparedness of the state nuclear defense posture.

North Korea is responding to the US war planning in the region, which is primarily aimed at China as Washington and Tokyo, backed by South Korea, attempt to provoke a war over Taiwan. The US plans include a return to large-scale military exercises with South Korea and Japan on Chinas doorstep.

At the same time, Washington is creating a situation to which Pyongyang feels it must respond. The US had halted large-scale joint military exercises with South Korea under the previous Donald Trump administration in a tacit agreement with Pyongyang to place a moratorium on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests.

The US and South Korea have now resumed major war games for the first time in five years. The Pentagon deployed the USS Ronald Reagan nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and its strike group to the Sea of Japan for joint drills beginning September 26. Following the launch of the IRBM on October 4, the US redeployed the USS Reagan, which had left the previous week, to the Sea of Japan for additional drills in a move the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff called very unusual.

The US State Department on Monday also denounced North Koreas missile tests as unlawful and destabilizing the region while reject[ing] the notion that our defensive actions to respond to the DPRK [North Korea] threats justifies their escalatory and unlawful behavior. The State Department claimed, We remain committed to a diplomatic approach to the DPRK and call on the DPRK to engage in dialogue.

In reality, Washington has refused to address Pyongyangs well-founded security concerns. North Korea, an impoverished, former colonial country of 26 million people, has long been the target of US imperialism, from the division of the Korean Peninsula and the 19501953 Korean war to the Trump administrations threats in 2017 to totally destroy the country. Furthermore, the US has a long track record of illegal invasions and regime-change operations in countries around the world that do not line up behind US interests.

Washingtons claims that it is committed to a diplomatic solution to the dangerous standoff with North Korea ring hollowparticularly as the US wages war against Russia in Ukraine at the risk of nuclear Armageddon.

US imperialism, backed by Japanese imperialism and South Korea, has systematically isolated Pyongyang through crippling economic sanctions, which have created an economic crisis alongside the COVID-19 pandemic. As it targets China over Taiwan, the Biden administration has allowed North Korea to languish under these conditions, including new sanctions on October 7 targeting two individuals and three entities. Pyongyangs missile tests represent an attempt to bring Washington to the bargaining table to negotiate an end to these sanctions.

South Koreas right-wing administration of President Yoon Suk-yeol, which came to office in May, has also contributed to this instability on the Korean Peninsula. Yoons presidential office stated on Monday, It is important to accurately recognize the grave security reality on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia and prepare appropriately for it. Seoul has followed Washingtons lead, not only in restarting joint military exercises but on a key US demand: the improvement of bilateral relations with Japan.

Driven by trade and other disputes, Seoul and Tokyos relations have been strained in recent years. However, last Thursday, Yoon and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida spoke by phone to discuss their response to North Korea, and denounced Pyongyangs weapon tests. Yoon stated the following day, We shared the understanding that if relations between South Korea and Japan return to the good times of the past at an early date and exchanges between businesses and between our people become smooth, it will be of great help to the two countries economies.

What goes unstated is the fact that improved relations between the two is a necessity from Washingtons standpoint for its anti-ballistic missile system being installed throughout the region. This system above all targets China and includes the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery installed in Seongju, South Korea and its corresponding radar, two of which are deployed in Japan. In order to effectively operate this system, the US requires high-level, bilateral intelligence sharing and cooperation between Tokyo and Seoul.

In addition, on October 6, the US military delivered equipment to Seongju to complete an upgrade of its THAAD battery. The presence of the battery and its radar system capable of spying on Chinese territory has falsely been presented as a necessary defensive measure to protect the South Korea population from a North Korean attack. From its current location, however, the batterys 200-kilometer range does not even cover Seoul, South Koreas capital of ten million people.

Amid a rapidly intensifying US confrontation with China, US pressure on North Korea is creating another dangerous situation in the Asia-Pacific that could spiral into a larger conflict.
This statement was submitted by the Young Guard of the Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL), an organization in Russia that has declared its political support for the International Committee of the Fourth International. Representatives of the YGBL participated in a meeting of the ICFI and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality on October 9 to discuss the building of a movement of young people against war.

1. The Young Guard Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL) openly declares its solidarity with the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) and the International Youth and Students for Socialist Equality (IYSSE) in the organization of an international youth movement against the war between Russia and the US-NATO over Ukraine.

2. As proof of this solidarity, the YGBL representatives participated in the international meeting of the ICFI and IYSSE against the war held on October 9. At this meeting, the YGBL expressed its political support for the ICFI and IYSSE. The representatives of the YGBL also voted to take steps to establish an international anti-war youth movement as part of the struggle for a socialist perspective.

3. The world capitalist system is now in an acute crisis, which ultimately determines the reactionary policies of the capitalist countries and the dynamics of the class struggle in society. The whole capitalist system is bursting at the seams because of the unresolved problems of the 20th century: above all, the contradictions between the social character of production and the private-capitalist form of appropriation, and between the globalized economy and the division of the world into nation-states. The exacerbation of these contradictions leads capitalist countries to reactionary, chauvinistic and militaristic policies. The United States, faced with an acute crisis, seeks to redivide the world on new terms.

4. The new world order that the United States wants to establish looks like this very possible picture: Russia and China are to be subordinated to imperialism and divided, if that is necessary to maintain direct control over their natural, industrial-technological and human resources.

5. The European imperialist powers support the United States for their own place in the new redivision of the world. At the same time, European imperialism, while placed on rations by the United States, sees a way out of its economic and geopolitical predicament only in a redivision of the world in which it can regain its former greatness.

6. Japan, South Korea and Australia support the US only as much as it suits their interests in the struggle against China in the Pacific region. These countries will support the US as long as it allows them to compete with China. The process of dividing spheres of influence will revive the contradictions between the Pacific capitalist powers, which are as much in limbo as Europe.

7. The crisis of 2008 revived class struggles around the world. The Arab Spring of the early 2010s is vivid evidence of this revival. It forced US and European imperialism to take more decisive measures. In 2014, they supported a coup d'etat in Ukraine. Through this coup, the US was able to create all the conditions to build a bridgehead in a future war against Russia.

8. The Covid-19 pandemic that erupted in 2020 exacerbated the contradictions of capitalism and was the trigger for a more rapid expansion of US imperialism in preparation for war against Russia and China. The US embarked on a more provocative path of abandoning the one-China policy, and increasing its support for Ukraine, as expressed in the NATO summit in August 2021, which supported Zelenskys Crimean platform.

9. The reactionary regime of Vladimir Putin emerged from the treacherous dissolution of the Soviet Union by the Stalinist bureaucracy and the restoration of capitalism. The policies of Putin, in the final analysis, are aimed at safeguarding the wealth of the post-Soviet oligarchy against the pressure of Western imperialism from above and, even more critically, against the movement of the Russian working class from below.

10. Within this geopolitical and social context, Putins adventurist invasion of Ukraine on February 24 was the Russian oligarchys response to NATOs relentless expansion to the east. The Putin regimes main objective was to achieve through the pressure of its Special Operation a new round of talks with the US-NATO, since the last round ended up crossing red lines on the part of the US-NATO, which caused Putins invasion.

11. The Russian bourgeoisies desire for an equal partnership with the West was one of the most utopian delusions. This delusion, historically derived from Stalins policy of Popular Fronts and then peaceful coexistence, developed among the fledgling class of Russian capitalists in the 1990s.

12. The Putin regime has not gotten rid of this utopian delusion. Its whole policy has been to maneuver and seek compromise with the West, with whom the Russian oligarchy wanted to be on equal footing. Except that Western imperialism, with its conquering ambitions for Russia, did not care about these conciliatory tones of Putins regime.

13. For the Ukrainian oligarchy, with its frankly comprador nature, it was profitable to promote dreams of an independent democratic Ukraine with its self-determination. However, this utopia was quickly shattered against the wall of reality represented by the system of world imperialism, where it became the instrument of Western capital in its imperialist ambitions against Russia.

14. Ukraines independence ended before it had even begun, as did Russias utopian dreams of an equal dialogue with the West. Both countries, which suffered from the disastrous collapse of the Soviet Union, faced a grim reality. Neither had the possibility of realizing in practice their reactionary goals.

15. Capitalist Russia remained independent only to the extent that it still possessed the Soviet legacy: military bases in the former Soviet republics, a vast arsenal of nuclear weapons and a wealth of raw materials. The Russian oligarchy quickly acquired a dual position: as a raw materials appendage, it wanted to independently manage and control the transfer of raw materials and profits from them.

16. Ukraines dreams of real independence are a mirage within the current capitalist system. The only real solution to the Ukrainian question can be a world socialist revolution. And this does not only apply to the Ukrainian question. Any local question can only ultimately be resolved on the world stage, that is, in a global way.

17. The course of the war after Putins invasion of Ukraine increasingly emphasizes the reactionary nature of this invasion. While claiming to be fighting for the independence of the Russian people from the threat of Western imperialism, Putin is in fact only defending the independence of the Russian oligarchy to exploit the Russian working class and the countrys raw material wealth.

18. The recent defeats of September and October underscore that the Putin regime has no way out of the current crisis for Russian society. It will not have such a way out in the future. All of the military and political activities of the Putin regime will only contribute to the escalation of Western imperialism and the deterioration of conditions for the Russian, Ukrainian and international working class.

19. The prospects for the present war, when thought within the framework of the capitalist system, are very bleak. First, this war will take on a long-term character and will not only be fought between Ukraine and Russia. It is the first step in inflaming the world situation to the point that the threat of a third world war is simply inevitable. All countries of the world will take part in the future war.

20. Secondly, the nature of the war will be determined by the policies of the ruling classes, which now stand on a blatantly anti-human position. The ruling classes are recklessly moving toward the use of nuclear weapons in the conflict, thereby creating the real possibility of a nuclear Armageddon. The specter of planetary destruction arises from the insane policies of imperialist and capitalist governments. The recklessness of the ruling capitalist elite compels young people to ask whether they will be allowed any future at all.

21. However, humanity is not inescapably doomed to destruction. The YGBL rejects the fatalism of the pessimists, whose outlook is trapped within the confines of what is possible within this existing world capitalist order. We insist that there is also an optimistic option, based on a socialist perspective, which can be realized in the context of a mass political struggle of the international working class. The world consists not only of imperialists and oligarchs. There is also a massive working class, whose collective labor, in all its diverse, complex and infinitely creative forms, is the driving force of human progress.

22. The international working class is the only revolutionary force in society capable of resolving the crisis of capitalism, dealing with poverty, inequality, war, disease and climate change. This revolutionary character is embedded in the social and economic conditions of the working class, in the historical development of its struggle against class oppression.

23. Therefore, the struggle against Western imperialism and other capitalist countries, including Putins regime, must be based on a broad mobilization of the working class as part of the struggle to transform capitalist society into communist society. This poses the challenge of building a real, not imaginary, revolutionary leadership in the working class. Only through such a leadership can the political consciousness of the working class be raised to the level of achieving the socialist revolution and taking state power all over the world.

24. The greatest crisis of our time for the working class is the crisis of revolutionary leadership. Revolutionary leadership is the main missing puzzle in the successful struggle against the bourgeoisie. This factor, which is subjective in nature, must be the last step for the successful spread and consolidation of socialist revolution throughout the world.

25. A real revolutionary leadership of the working class can only be that organization which has systematically processed all the past historical experience of Marxism and the workers movement. The revolutionary strategy and tactics of proletarian leadership in the modern world will precisely take shape on the basis of the assimilation of this experience as well as of objective conditions.

26. The International Committee of the Fourth International is the only international organization capable of resolving the crisis of revolutionary leadership in the working class. The ICFI exists as the only legitimate successor to the Fourth International and to Leon Trotsky. It is even more correct to say that the ICFI is the Fourth International.

27. The orientation of the YGBL toward Trotskyism is not a mere whim of a number of individuals sympathetic to Trotsky. It is based on the fact that Trotskyism is the only legitimate heir to Marxism, that it is Trotskyism that represents the independent line of the proletariat in its struggle for socialism, that Trotskyism is the Marxism of the 21st century. Only on the foundation of Trotskyism is the realization of the world revolution possible.

28. Trotskys heroic struggle against the reactionary nationalist bureaucratic regime led by Stalinwhose name will forever live in infamy as the gravedigger of the Bolshevik Party and the October Revolutionhas been vindicated by history. The dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 confirmed his warning that the Stalinists regime, unless overthrown by the working class, would lead to the destruction of the Soviet Union.

29. Moreover, Trotskys theory of permanent revolution provided a scientific analysis of the political dynamics of the international class struggle in an epoch that he so profoundly described as the death agony of capitalism. Only an understanding of reality in the Marxist vein, of which Trotskyism is the true expression, will help the proletariat to realize its position.

30. The International Youth and Students for Socialist Equality is the youth wing of the ICFI. The main task of this movement is to ensure a connection between youth and the working class in their common struggle for socialism. For young people, because of the likely onset of World War III, the question of their future is now more important than ever.

31. If young people want a better future for themselves, they must fight for it. The struggle for the future inevitably becomes a struggle against capitalism, which leads the youth to a socialist perspective. However, the struggle of the youth must not be isolated, the youth must realize that their main ally in the struggle for the future is the working class.

32. The raison detre of the IYSSE is to organize and coordinate youth internationally, which is impossible without explaining to youth the most important theoretical and historical questions of relevance to the present state of affairs. The youth movement is an important part of the independent labor movement against imperialism and war.

33. The current tasks of the YGBL are based on a clear understanding that there is a modest knowledge in Russia and other former Soviet republics of the ICFI and IYSSE, of the activities that these organizations are engaged in in other countries. Therefore, the YGBL will seek to expand the influence of the ICFI and IYSSE on the consciousness of the masses in the former Soviet Union.

34. If you stand in solidarity with the statement of the YGBL, join us in our struggle to build sections of the ICFI and IYSSE in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet republics. Building sections of the ICFI and IYSSE will be an essential step toward resolving the crisis of revolutionary leadership and bringing about a socialist revolution throughout the world.
The Clarence community is rallying around four children orphaned by a murder-suicide as they and their extended family prepare for a funeral service next week.

Numerous efforts are underway to raise money for the children left without any immediate family here after, authorities say, their father shot to death their mother and their paternal grandparents over an hour one morning last week before turning the gun on himself.

Three GoFundMe accounts and a fund established by the Eastern Hills Church have raised more than $100,000 for the Bergum children, according to Lead Pastor Pat Jones. That doesn't include fundraising underway within the Clarence School District and other institutions.

"I think everybody had the same shock and disbelief, that something like that could even happen. And then, of course, after the shock the immediate concern is the children," said Micaela Lauer, president of the Harris Hill Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization, which is asking the public to donate gift cards for the family's use.

Jones will lead Tuesday's funeral service for the family members killed on Oct. 6: Mary Beth Bergum, 37, the children's mother; Nancy, 64, and Mark Bergum, 66, their grandparents; and Erik Bergum, their father.

"The decision was made in consultation with the kids. They wanted to have just one service," Jones said.

The children  one sister and three brothers who range from 9 to 16 years old  were in school at the time of the fatal shootings, which took place at their parents' home in Clarence, their grandparents' home elsewhere in the town and at a private shooting range in Newstead.

Authorities say Erik Bergum left behind a largely illegible note that provided a timeline of his violent rampage that morning but the message did not explain why he had done this.

The children spent the evening after the shootings at the home of a family friend, officials said.

They do not have any other living family in the Buffalo area. Mary Beth Bergum is from Maryland and her father, stepmother, brother and sister-in-law have been up here since late last week, Jones said.

The church's youth pastor, and his wife, were close to Mary Beth Bergum and have supported the children over the past week, Jones said. The church also has started an online fundraising account that can be accessed at ehwc.org/bergum.

"We do accept that there is a God that's bigger than all of this," Jones said. "And he loves these kids and the family. And he is going to grant them grace to see through this."

Clarence schools have provided grief and trauma counseling for any students who need help.

The PTOs at all six Clarence schools and the district's Family Support Center are holding a drive to collect gift cards to donate to the children that runs through Tuesday.

Hall, a relative, has raised the goal of her fund to $400,000 to help cover the children's long-term needs.

"The kids are doing as well as can be expected and are currently being showered with love and support from family, friends, and neighbors, in addition to the knowledge that your donations will help them with financial security," she wrote.

The Brothers of Mercy Nursing and Rehabilitation Center will hold a remembrance vigil for the Bergum family at 11 a.m. Oct. 25 at the main entrance to the center, 10570 Bergtold Road, Clarence.

The center also will let employees make a donation for the chance to dress casually for a few days over the next two weeks to benefit the children.

Mary Beth Bergum worked at the center from 2017 to October 2021, officials said.

A manager was so impressed with Mary Beth Bergum's work as a nurse's aide that she encouraged her to get trained as an registered nurse, recalled her friends and former co-workers, Lynn Brady and Catie Flynn.

"She was such a devoted, proud mother," Brady said. "She would literally beam when she talked about her children. She was so proud of them and loved them so very much."

Visitation will be held from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday at Dengler, Perna, Roberts Funeral Home, 8630 Transit Road, East Amherst.

Services will begin at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Eastern Hills Church, 8445 Greiner Road, Clarence.
A Dunkirk man was arraigned Thursday in Chautauqua County Court on a four-count indictment charging him injuring two children  an 8-year-old and a 12-year-old  in a shooting last July.

Javier Cruz-Corraliza, 34, was charged with first-degree assault, two counts of first-degree attempted assault and second-degree assault, according to the Chautauqua County District Attorney's Office.

Chautauqua County Judge David Foley set bail at $25,000 cash or $50,000 property bond.

Cruz-Corraliza, represented by Buffalo attorney Nelson Torre, is due back in court on Nov. 28 for a discovery conference.

District Attorney Jason Schmidt commended the Dunkirk Police Department for its work on the case.

Dunkirk Police Chief Dave Ortolano credited the department's detective bureau and patrol division, which worked closely with the District Attorney's Office, and also credited the Fredonia Police Department and New York State Police for their assistance in the investigation, along with the U.S. Marshals Service for its assistance in locating Cruz-Corraliza.
A Jamestown man was arraigned Thursday in Chautauqua County Court on a second-degree murder charge in connection with a fatal shooting on Oct. 19, 2021, according to Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt.

The shooting happened on Water Street in Jamestown.

Following the unsealing of an indictment, 23-year-old Jonathan Camacho-Monge was charged in the murder of Angel Pacheco, 46, also of Jamestown. Chautauqua County Court Judge David Foley set bail at $250,000 cash or $500,000 property bond.

An indictment was filed on May 2, but Camacho-Monge was being held in Pennsylvania on a felony-level charge for about six months, which led to the delay in his arraignment on the indictment.

Camacho-Monge, represented by a public defender, is due back in court on Nov. 14 for a discovery conference.

Schmidt commended the Jamestown Police Department's Detective Bureau for its work on the case. Jamestown Police Chief Tim Jackson said detectives spent months working the case and also commended their efforts.
A landlord who rented a residence on Buffalo's Lower West Side to tenants despite an Erie County Health Department order has been arraigned on a count of willful violation of health laws, Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announced.

Carrie A. Preischel, 40, of Boston, was released pending an appearance for further proceedings Nov. 14 before City Court Judge Gary Wilson.

Flynn said that a "Do Not Occupy" notice had been posted on the property at 468 Fargo Ave. after an inspection by a public health sanitarian in January 2020 revealed unsafe levels of lead.

Flynn noted that some mediation work had been done, but the property still was not in compliance when a second notice was posted in January 2021.

Nevertheless, Flynn said, the property reportedly was rented to another tenant, who stayed through February 2022.

Preischel is the third landlord to be prosecuted by the Erie County District Attorney's Office for a lead paint violation since the public health law went into effect in 2014.

Any Erie County resident concerned about exposure to lead is advised to contact LEADSAFE Erie County at 716-961-6800 or email leadsafe@erie.gov.
As Gov. Kathy Hochul blankets New York's airwaves with ads touting her commitment to abortion rights this election season, the State of New York is backing her campaign promises.

Hochul, the Democratic incumbent berating Republican Lee Zeldin's anti-abortion stand as "extreme," buttressed her own abortion rights credentials Wednesday by announcing a new, $13.4 million round of support for abortion providers. At Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village, Hochul emphasized her effort to make New York a safe haven for abortions that she launched in May in anticipation of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

Zeldin, meanwhile, has not assigned a corresponding high priority to abortion opposition. He recognizes the political reality that abortion will remain legal in New York, his campaign says, acknowledging the Legislature would never approve a measure to make it illegal.

"We do not expect the Democratic majorities in either house to send to a Gov. Zeldin a bill to change the laws in New York," said campaign spokeswoman Katie Vincentz.

But Hochul continues to highlight the issue. On Wednesday she delivered an impassioned message at the Manhattan church, recalling New York's early legalization of abortion and comparing it to other basic rights. She said while she always took for granted the right to abortion, her daughter and granddaughter now cannot  except in New York.

"I never foresaw a world where this would happen. That is the reality we're living with right now," she told her audience. "But we don't give up. We don't give up because we'll fight, we'll fight like hell to make sure that no one ever touches these rights right here. And we'll be that beacon of hope.

Hochul has good reason to dwell on the thorny question of abortion, which has never disappeared since New York legalized the procedure in 1970  three years before the Supreme Court decision. An October poll conducted by Siena College shows New Yorkers oppose  67%-27%  the Dobbs v. Jackson decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. The survey also found 72% of New Yorkers say abortion should be always legal or mostly legal, compared to 21% who say it should be mostly or always illegal.

Siena found economic issues are dominating the 2022 campaign, with 50% of surveyed voters listing it as top concern; 15% said abortion.

Still, the governor takes the message not only to select audiences in Manhattan, but across the state via television ads. In an ad titled Hardest Day launched on Oct. 3, a Long Island woman named Jackie Burbridge shares her abortion story and calls out Zeldin for "his extreme anti-abortion agenda."

"If elected, Lee Zeldin would put women in harms way, banning abortion without exceptions for rape, incest, and lives like Jackies," the Hochul campaign said.

Hochul's campaign has focused on Zeldin's alleged opposition to abortion even in cases of rape, incest or life of the mother, which it says justifies the "extreme" label. It notes that Zeldin, a Suffolk County congressman, cosponsors the Life at Conception Act, which has not been brought to a vote. The Hochul campaign claims that Zeldin answered "yes" on a Long Island Coalition for Life questionnaire asking: "Would you vote for legislation to protect innocent human life from conception to natural death?"

Because Zeldin did not exercise an option to list exceptions, Hochul's campaign says its ads listing Zeldin as opposed to abortion even in cases like rape or incest are correct.

Vincentz, however, says the ads inaccurately portray the congressman's position.

"He does believe in exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother," she said Wednesday, noting, "he has not made it a pillar of his campaign."

As governor, Hochul has earmarked a $25 million Abortion Provider Support Fund, more than in any other state, to "ensure abortion remains safe, legal and accessible in New York." During the program's first round, the Department of Health awarded $10 million to 13 programs, covering 63 sites funded under the Comprehensive Family Planning Program.

Awardees in the second round announced Wednesday include Buffalo Women Services and the Erie County Department of Health.
The biggest new investment Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz will make in his proposed 2023 budget is in law enforcement.

He proposes spending $14.2 million to cover salaries and benefits for 57 new Sheriff's Office jobs, along with other increased department costs. The additions are designed to reduce overtime and improve both jail and road patrol staffing.

In return, Poloncarz said he will hold Sheriff John Garcia to his commitment to contain overtime costs, which have greatly exceeded budgeted amounts every year. Poloncarz's willingness to earmark such a large amount of money to the sheriff is both a sign of goodwill toward the new Republican sheriff, as well as a test of Garcia's leadership.

"We're giving them new positions," Poloncarz said. "But the sheriff is giving me his word they're going to reduce the overtime conditions for the Holding Center and the Correctional Facility."

In response, Sheriff Garcia commended Poloncarz for his staffing commitment and said he's confident he can reduce overtime costs.

"It's my job, going forward, to administer the office in a fiscally responsible and prudent manner," he said.

Criminal justice agencies grapple with recruitment challenges Personnel administrators for local police departments, sheriff's offices and jails are reaching farther down on their civil service lists to find candidates still interested in job openings.

Poloncarz, who will officially release his budget proposal on Friday, also wants to commit $2.3 million for pay upgrades in the District Attorney's Office in response to a request from District Attorney John Flynn, who said that hiring and retention have become a major issue in his department for the first time because lawyers have so many other private-sector opportunities, including remote work options, that pay better.

A new entry-level assistant district attorney, for instance, would go from being hired at $60,010 a year to being hired at $76,835 next year.

Making a deal

Since becoming sheriff in January, Garcia has campaigned heavily for more staffing at both the jails and for road patrol. He and union leaders have decried the level of forced overtime at the jails, which they call inhumane.

Poloncarz told The Buffalo News he's gotten the message and described his conversations with the sheriff in recent months.

"People are burning out," he said. "They shouldn't be working, basically, 24 hours in a row in a jail position. But you have to help me, too. If we give you these new positions, you'd better not continue forced overtime."

The county executive expressed some skepticism of Garcia's ability to contain overtime because of prior experience. Sheriffs before Garcia have routinely pledged to cut overtime costs if the county administration and County Legislature would approve new jobs in the Sheriff's Office. But inevitably, overtime has still risen.

Poloncarz said he doesn't want to play games. This time, he said, he's holding up his end of the deal and will wait and see if Garcia holds up his end next year.

The new positions, which will cost $4.7 million, include:

 47 new jobs at the downtown Holding Center and Correctional Facility in Alden. That includes 30 full-time corrections officers and jail deputies, 10 part-time Holding Center guard positions, plus six sergeants and one lieutenant.

 Nine new positions for police services and road patrol, including six deputies, two supervisors and an assistant.

 One nurse educator in the Correctional Health Division.

Forced overtime roils the ranks of Erie County jail deputies and officers The amount of overtime hours at the correctional facility in Alden and the Holding Center in Buffalo has not changed much from year to year, but those hours are being assigned to a smaller pool of corrections officers and deputies who can be forced to work up to 32 hours in overtime every week.

The Buffalo News has reported how new jail deputies and corrections officers are unwilling to volunteer for, or work, the high amounts of overtime that their predecessors did. Many have resorted to calling in sick or claiming paid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. That has forced fewer officers to bear higher overtime burdens, since inmates cannot be left unguarded.

"When the county executive came over and told me that they were going to give us more staff, I was happiest for our staff because I talk to them everyday, and I keep on telling them every day, hang in there," Garcia said. "I live this every day, and I see the suffering."

Allocating personnel for reintegration programs to help inmates leave jail healthy and ready for work also requires a greater staffing commitment, Garcia said.

On the policing side, Garcia said patrol deputies are spread too thin among the 18 towns, villages and territories the Sheriff's Office is expected to police. Having more officers should reduce overtime and improve training opportunities, Garcia said.

Overtime budgeting

Anyone used to scrutinizing the Erie County budget has learned to ignore the budgeted overtime figure for the Erie County Sheriff's Office because it's always unrealistically low.

This year, for instance, $7.4 million was budgeted for overtime in the jails. But Garcia said he expects the Sheriff's Office will spend more than $12 million in overtime this year. On the police services side, overtime was budgeted at $4.7 million for this year, but will likely wind up costing about twice as much, he said.

Even though the number of positions recommended by the county executive represents one of the biggest, if not the biggest, investments in Sheriff's Office personnel since Poloncarz took office, it still falls short of sheriff's staffing requests, and is less than what the State Commission of Corrections recommends, Garcia said.

Poloncarz said he doesn't expect overtime to evaporate, but he does want forced overtime to end.

While Garcia said he expects to significantly cut overtime, he didn't guarantee he would meet budgeted overtime numbers for next year.

Ongoing dispute

Despite some mutual goodwill, Garcia remains adamantly opposed to Poloncarz's recommendation that all high-level administrative appointees, including Sheriff's Office chiefs, be reclassified as salaried instead of hourly workers entitled to overtime.

The cost of safety: OT for stadium, arena security under scrutiny Appointed Sheriff's Office administrators collectively receive more overtime pay, by far, than those in any other county department or elected office. Over the past year, they have collected more than $700,000 in overtime.

Sheriff's Office administrators have consistently been among the highest recipients of overtime among non-union county government appointees, receiving thousands of dollars in overtime above their base pay every year.

Garcia defended that compensation, saying police work is a 24/7 job.

Poloncarz said Sheriff's Office administrators already receive a higher level of base pay than the people who work for them, and that their handling of emergencies is not different than that of the commissioner for Social Services, Central Police Services or Probation.

Erie County plans to stop paying overtime to top appointees and department heads The administration's new proposal comes in response to what has been previously reported over the last two years: No other major county in New York pays this kind of overtime to top administrators.

"During Covid, it's arguable that it was the Health Department and Emergency Services that worked harder than the Sheriff's Office," he said.

Garcia said he couldn't disagree more, and hopes there's room for future compromise.

"If he's comparing that, he should be embarrassed," Garcia said. "That's outrageous. I've done this job for 25 years in Buffalo, and I've done it here, and every day my people are going out to scenes in the middle of the night while everybody else is sleeping."
Right-wing conspiracy figure Alex Jones company has already filed for bankruptcy protection, and its not clear how much of the staggering $965 million verdict reached Tuesday hell actually wind up paying to the 15 plaintiffs in the defamation case about his lies about the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting.

Jones plans to appeal the massive monetary damages that a Connecticut jury ordered him to pay, which comes after a judgment against him in August awarding $49.3 million to the family of a Sandy Hook victim in a separate case in Texas.

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But legal experts say Jones, founder of Infowars  which has been banned by all major internet services  is almost certainly ruined financially.

Were talking about such outsized numbers that even if hes able to bob and weave some, I just dont see how he winds up anything but basically broke now for the rest of his life, Harry Litman, a former U.S. Attorney, said in an interview Tuesday with MSNBC. Litman currently is an associate with whistleblower law firm Constantine Cannon in San Francisco.

Jones was sued for defamation by several of the families of Sandy Hook victims after he had claimed the December 2012 shooting in Connecticut  in which 20 children and six adults were killed  was a giant hoax perpetrated by crisis actors, and that no one died in the massacre. He falsely accused the parents of the Sandy Hook victims of colluding with the government in an imagined plot to curtail Americans gun rights.

In the Texas case, Jones testified that he would be unable to afford to pay a jury award of even just $2 million. In the same case, economist Bernard Pettingill Jr. estimated Jones has a net worth of between $135 million and $270 million.

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In July, Infowars parent company, Free Speech Systems, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, revealing that the owners of Infowars had taken out more than $62 million from the business.

Aint no money, Jones said on his Infowars show Tuesday as the nearly $1 billion verdict was being read (via Mediaite). Do these people actually think theyre getting any of this money? He added that he lost count of the damages and began selling vitamineral fusion from the Infowars store in an effort to raise money.

Norm Pattis, Jones attorney, said he intends to appeal the Connecticut jurys damages award. According to CNN, he called the decision a dark day for freedom of speech. We disagree with the basis of the default, we disagree with the courts evidentiary rulings, Pattis said. In more than 200 trials in the course of my career I have never seen a trial like this.

Jones, 48, is almost certainly the most prolific conspiracy theorist in contemporary America, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. In 2018, YouTube, Facebook, Spotify and Apple Podcasts banned Jones from their platforms, citing violations of their hate-speech policies.

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Darla Logan vividly remembered the first time she spotted what, she still believes, was Bigfoot. It was 1987.

After finishing her waitressing shift in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, she took the shortcut home. Her car was out of commission and the walk was a simple 15 minutes. While cutting through a clearing, Logan saw what looked like a dead tree.

"I realized there's a face to this dead tree," Logan said before she whispered that it was "really ugly."

The figure, which she said looked akin to a tall orangutan, stood still when Logan made the decision to turn around and walk the long way home, foregoing thoughts of a shortcut. Once there, she snagged one of her sons to return to the spot. Although they couldn't find any footprints in the packed earth, Logan said she could tell something had been standing in the spot she spotted Bigfoot.

Logan's retelling isn't the first story shared about the elusive sasquatch with folklore tales of cryptids ranging from the Ozark Howler to Momo the Monster circulating for generations, but Bigfoot is among the most legendary.

Although the creature was absent, a group of 75 enthusiasts attended the first Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference at the Christian County Elks Lodge Saturday in Ozark, Missouri. Event Coordinator Mary Ann Ziebell said she was going to be happy if 50 people showed up, so her hopes were exceeded. She's already planning for next year's conference slated October 2023.

Darla Logan, of Poplar Bluff, wears a "Bigfoot Odyssey" shirt while listening to a speaker during the Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference Oct. 8, 2022.

'People either believe or they think we've lost our freaking minds'

When she realized there may not have been a sasquatch conference previously in Missouri, Ziebell jumped at the chance to set one up. She contacted members from the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, Ozark Mountain Sasquatch, a crypto linguist and others to speak at the all day conference Oct. 8.

"It falls one of two places: people either believe or they think we've lost our freaking minds  there's really no in between," Ziebell told the News-Leader minutes before the conference began. "Now with some people, it wouldn't matter if you dragged a body in here, they're not gonna believe it."

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Mary Ann Ziebell is the event coordinator for the Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference Oct. 8, 2022.

For the doubters, Ziebell said spending a night in the woods may change their mind.

"First of all, they have to be observant when they're out there," Ziebell said. "We are so disconnected from nature."

After decompressing away from electronics for a few days, Ziebell said you should be able to notice when the noise dies down, as if something is in the woods.

"There's an apex predator in the area," Ziebell said before explaining that you should be listening for what's called wood knocks. "There's something out there that's got hands to pick up a stick and hit it against the tree."

Ziebell said she first encountered sasquatches only recently. She was on an expedition with her husband in 2019 when she saw one illuminated by the full moon.

"It was standing behind a tree, but it did what they call peekaboo, where it sways to one side to the other," Ziebell said.

T-shirts for the Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference on sale Oct. 8, 2022.

After doing a headcount of their group of 10, Ziebell said there was an extra person.

"They're like, 'There's 11 of us sitting here,'" Ziebell recalled before the creature ran off and another one was spotted behind the group. "It was not hiding; it wanted us to pay attention to it. So after discussing it, we decided that maybe there was a baby or a youngling."

Southwest Missouri is a "hotbed" for sightings, Ziebell said.

"You can go 30 minutes outside of Springfield and find all kinds of things," Ziebell said.

'Our goal is to prove that these things are real  100%'

This isn't the first time the News-Leader has written about cryptids. Reporter Wes Johnson interviewed a man about reportedly photographing the Ozark Howler in 2017, and journalist Gregory Holman wrote about Animal Planet's show "Finding Bigfoot" visiting the Ozarks. Springfield resident Ron Boles was featured in that episode and was the first speaker during the Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference.

Ron Boles shared about his sightings during the first Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference Oct. 8, 2022.

Conference guests brought along casts of footprints allegedly belonging to sasquatches, tools for thermal imaging and other supplies that help in searches. Larry Newman, a retired detective and now bail bondsman, discussed steps for securing evidence, even discussing the proper way to dust for finger prints.

Ozark Mountain Sasquatch Team Leader Shane Carpenter had dozens of castings strewn across two folding tables in the corner of the elks lodge. Many of the footprints may be from juveniles from one area of private land, Carpenter said. Even if Carpenter didn't have his own sighting story, he would still believe.

"There are thousands and thousands of reports of these things, and if only one of those reports is true, these things are real," Carpenter said, before retelling his first sighting took place in 1984 when he was 10 years old near West Plains. "Our goal is to prove that these things are real  100%."

Shane Carpenter talks about castings during the first Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference Oct. 8, 2022.

There are similarities in the stories Carpenter hears from others.

"They don't want to tell their friends because then they're the only weird Bigfoot person," he said. "I want them to tell me their stories because it's like therapy for them. I know this because I went through this myself."

After getting pushback from his father after his sighting in the '80s, Carpenter didn't open up about his experience until he had another encounter while on a hike with his family in 2013.

"I had to stop and tell my wife and hope my wife was gonna believe me and not think I'm a crazy man," Carpenter said. His wife believed him and Carpenter remained grateful and "obsessed" with spending the last few years still on the hunt for Bigfoot.

'We keep an eye out, from a distance'

Darla Logan holds her phone as it displays a photo she took in 2006 of footprints she says supposedly belong to Bigfoot.

Logan's encounter in '87 wasn't the last time she got close to a cryptid. Logan, now a nurse and still living near Poplar Bluff, was visiting her sister and spotted footprints she believed belonged to Bigfoot. She had an iPod with her and took a few photos of the melting markings in 2006 and later uploaded them to social media in 2021.

Her search isn't over.

"We keep an eye out, from a distance," Logan said, laughing.

Follow Ozark Mountain Bigfoot Conference on Facebook to learn more.

Sara Karnes is an Outdoors Reporter with the Springfield News-Leader. Follow along with her adventures on Twitter and Instagram @Sara_Karnes.

Castings of alleged Bigfoot footprints are on display at the Christian County Elks Lodge in Ozark Oct. 8, 2022.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Bigfoot believers gather for sasquatch conference in Ozark, Missouri
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) was endorsed on Wednesday by 14 family members of her Republican challenger, former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, according to a new report.

Catherine is a model of the Nevada grit that we so often use to describe our Nevada forefathers. Her entire career is not a simple sound-bite that merely speaks of supporting Nevada, the family members wrote in the letter, shared by The Nevada Independent.

The three-page letter chronicles Cortez Mastos public service, lauds her Senate decisions and highlights her support for womens rights, Nevada industries and land preservation  but does not mention Laxalt as her opponent.

Its not surprising that once again a handful of family members and spouses, half of whom do not live in Nevada, and most of whom are Democrats, are supporting a Democrat. They think that Nevada & our country are heading in the right direction, Laxalt said on Twitter after the endorsement.

I believe Nevadans dont agree with the Biden/Masto agenda of high gas prices, soaring inflation, rising crime, and an open border, the Republican candidate added.

This isnt the first time that members of Laxalts family have turned away from his campaign ambitions. A dozen members of Laxalts family previously penned an op-ed in the Reno Gazette Journal urging voters against the then-attorney general when he ran for governor in 2018.

A spokesperson for Cortez Mastos campaign told The Hill that the Democrat appreciates the Laxalt familys addition to a growing list of bipartisan supporters.

The tight race between the two candidates has some wary of a potential red wave in the midterms.

A poll released Wednesday showed Cortez Masto up 2 points over Laxalt, 46 percent to 44 percent, just four weeks ahead of the November elections.

Updated: 8:57 p.m.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
The post Cuba Gooding Jr. Avoids Jail Time After Pleading Guilty in Forcible Touching Case appeared first on Consequence.

Cuba Gooding Jr. will avoid jail time after pleading guilty to a lesser charge in his forcible touching case in New York City.

Earlier this year, the 54-year-old actor pleaded guilty to one count of forcible touching after being accused of assaulting three different women in 2018 and 2019. However, after completing a six month alcohol and behavioral program, prosecutors agreed to lessen Goodings charge to a harassment violation.

By replacing his misdemeanor plea with a plea to a noncriminal violation, Gooding not only avoids jail time, but will not have a criminal recording, according to The Associated Press.

Gooding was initially arrested in 2019 after a 29-year-old woman said he had groped her breast without consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge in Manhattan. Surveillance footage captured the incident, showing him putting his hand on her leg and chest. Another video clip saw her confronting him about it, which led to security intervening. Following that incident, two more women came forward with allegations of unwanted contact against Gooding.

Cuba Gooding Jr. Avoids Jail Time After Pleading Guilty in Forcible Touching Case

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Presidential Residences

Joe Raedle/Getty. Inset: Zach Gibson - Pool/Getty Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. Inset: Donald Trump.

Weeks after FBI agents searched Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence for classified information, an employee of the former president has reportedly told agents that they were instructed to move boxes from a storage unit to a residence at the property  at the direction of Trump himself.

CNN reports that "a source familiar with the witness' description" has told the FBI they were directed to move boxes from a basement storage room at Mar-a-Lago to Trump's residence at the members-only Palm Beach property.

The outlet reports that the transport of the boxes was caught on surveillance footage, which the FBI has since obtained.

RELATED: A Timeline of the DOJ's Investigation into How Donald Trump Has Handled Classified Documents

According to CNN, the boxes were moved after federal investigators issued a subpoena for access to classified documents taken to Mar-a-Lago after Trump left the White House.

The controversy surrounding Trump's storage of potentially classified documents began shortly after he left office and returned to Mar-a-Lago; the National Archives and Records Administration inquired about missing records, ultimately retrieving 15 boxes of documents that Trump had brought to Mar-a-Lago.

In May 2022, the Justice Department issued a subpoena for additional records. FBI agents paid a visit to Mar-a-Lago the following month to inquire about other documents that may have been left behind at the property. (Trump's attorneys wrote in a court filing that Trump himself was on-site and greeted the agents at one point during this meeting.)

The FBI ultimately collected 38 classified documents that day, along with a signed letter from the Trump team certifying that "a diligent search" of the property had been conducted and all classified documents had been handed over.

RELATED: Trump Suspected of Violating Espionage Act, According to Mar-a-Lago Search Warrant

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But according to a court filing, the FBI later uncovered "multiple sources of evidence indicating that ... classified documents remained at the Premises" after that June visit.

So, on Aug. 8, the FBI executed a search warrant of Mar-a-Lago, with Trump breaking the news in a statement sent via email to his supporters, explaining that his "beautiful home, Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents," and declaring the raid "prosecutorial misconduct."

Earlier reports by Newsweek and the Wall Street Journal indicated that the August search of Mar-a-Lago may have been spurred by a whistleblower.

Days after the search was conducted, the search warrant and property receipt from Aug. 8 were made public, revealing that the FBI was looking to gather anything that might show Trump had removed or destroyed records, obstructed justice or violated the Espionage Act.

Never miss a story  sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.

Among the many materials retrieved during the Aug. 8 search were 11 sets of classified documents, including some marked "top secret" that are only meant to be viewed at secure government facilities. The Washington Post has reported that "a document describing a foreign government's military defenses, including its nuclear capabilities," was also among the items seized.

CNN reports that the Trump employee who allegedly moved the boxes first told investigators they had not handled any sensitive documents or boxes at Mar-a-Lago. The outlet adds that once the FBI "developed evidence that prompted investigators to go back to the witness," the person revised their story, telling investigators that Trump himself had given instructions on moving the boxes.
The claim: Photo shows George W. Bush holding a phone the wrong way

Earlier this year, former President George W. Bush  known for his occasional gaffes  mistakenly called the Iraq invasion unjustified during remarks in May about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Some social media users are now sharing a photo they claim shows another Bush slip-up. An Oct. 3 Instagram post purports to show Bush holding a corded phone to his ear, but with the earpiece by his mouth.

The post garnered more than 1,300 likes in four days.

"If u ever feel u suck at life, just remember George Bush took a photo holding a phone upside down," reads text included in the image.

Some social media users believed the image was real.

"I think bush purposely acted stupid," one user commented. "Easier to get away with stuff if people dont think you have guile."

But the image is altered. The original photo, taken by a White House photographer, shows Bush holding the phone properly.

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USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the claim for comment.

President George W. Bush speaks during a news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House August 9, 2007 in Washington, DC.

Image is altered

The original photo of Bush was captured March 7, 2003, by White House photographer Eric Draper during a call with then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The photo was used by media outlets at the time.

In the original photo, Bush can be seen talking on a telephone held the correct way. Details that match between the photos, such as Bush's hair, tie and positioning, and the arrangement of frames behind him, show the altered image is based on the Blair call photo.

Fact check: Joe Biden quote about his age was targeted at an audience member, not his wife

The altered image is a zoomed-in version of the original and also appears to show Blair edited into one of the gold frames. The altered image also adds a watermark of the Instagram handle @davie_dav, an account known for posting viral memes.

Story continues

Our rating: Altered

Based on our research, we rate ALTERED an image purporting to show Bush holding a phone the wrong way. A photo of Bush from a call with Blair in March 2003 was edited to make the phone in the image appear upside down.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Image altered to show George Bush holding reversed phone
Hunter Gossett, 19, worked at J&Y Auto with his friend Thane Morgan, a high school student who died by suicide in November 2021.

Hunter Gossett, 19, worked at J&Y Auto with his friend Thane Morgan, a high school student who died by suicide in November 2021. As a survivor of multiple attempts, Gossett is too familiar with the challenge of suicide. We will never understand his pain or what he was going through, Gossett says of Morgan. He never gave any warning signs or red flags or tells or giveaways at least that me or anyone else sawthat he was in danger of taking his own life. He seemed like a really happy kid. Credit - Brandon Kapelow

Brandon Kapelow is a filmmaker and photographer from Wyoming. He is a suicide-loss survivor and a peer-support facilitator for SOLACE and the Greater Los Angeles chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

I was raised in the wilds of western Wyoming and spent my childhood exploring the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, camping in Idaho and Montana, and visiting family in Colorado and New Mexico. It was a beautiful but difficult place to grow up. Apart from Alaska, these are the states that continually rank highest for deaths by suicide, earning the Intermountain West the ominous designation the Suicide Belt.

My father made his first suicide attempt when I was 8 years old. He struggled for years with undiagnosed bipolar disorder and succumbed to his illness after four more attempts, in 2005 at age 64. After seeing friends and family members hospitalized or prescribed medication for suicidal ideation or attempts, Ive come to realize how widespread this issue is for thousands of people living in small communities across the West, like the one where I grew up. Many of these Americans are struggling to process the complexities of grief that come with living through a generation or more of suicide loss, yearning for support and connection while surrounded by a culture that is rarely willing to offer or accept it.

I decided to travel to Catron County, a high-desert region in New Mexico along the Arizona border with the highest rate of suicide death of any county in the contiguous U.S. from 2010 to 2020, at 63.2 per 100,000 people. (The average national rate for the same time period was about 13.2.) I wanted to meet people who were living at the heart of this issueto hear their stories and provide a window into their grief, as it mirrored my own. Ive always found catharsis in talking about my experiences with suicide, and I hoped that this project might provide similar relief to those who chose to sit and speak with me. (Some asked that I omit their last names to help protect their families privacy.)

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In the absence of formal behavioral-health resources, churches like the Fence Lake Community Church help people cope with suicidal ideation or grief. A major part of my ministryI call it group therapy on Sunday morningis to take out of the Scriptures these verses that build people, lift people, says Dr. Gary Knouf, a pastor at the Quemado Cowboy Church. Almost everybody, after they leave Sunday, is full of hope. Brandon Kapelow

Of the four homes on this short stretch of road in Alma, N.M., part of Catron County, two had owners who died by suicide. Brandon Kapelow

Catron County covers a vast area of 7,000 square miles and is home to nearly 3,600 people, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Among them are more than twice as many veterans, seniors, and Native Americans than in the average county: three groups at highest risk for suicide death. The population has experienced a 4% decline from the decade prior that reflects a national trend of urbanization that has hollowed out communities across rural America. I spent my whole life being a cowboy, working on ranches, Ron, the eldest of a four-generation ranching family, told me. I think thats why you see these rural areas having such a high incidence [of suicide]all of a sudden, weve become irrelevant. Despite a life of continuous employment in ranching, Ron struggled to make ends meet after a heart issue caused medical bills to start piling up. His financial problems and feelings of low self-worth collided, and in the winter of 2019, Ron attempted suicide.

Photographing Ron, I saw a version of my father staring back at me. He, like Ron, survived a suicide attempt that resulted in significant facial damage and spent months undergoing reconstructive surgeries and rehabilitative care before resuming a life forever altered. Meeting people like Ron often required leading with my own story, in an effort to pierce the dense clouds of stigma that still loom heavily over the West. What I didnt expect was how often Id find daylight.



Early in my trip I stopped at J&Y, a local auto-body shop in the town of Quemado, to get air for a leaky tire. Owner Jerry Armstrong, who also serves as the volunteer fire chief, an EMT, and a church deacon, asked what brought me to Catron; when I told him, he started to cry. One of his employees, a high school student named Thane Morgan, had taken his life just three weeks prior. Armstrong employs a number of local teens in his shop, and he worries about the ripple effects of Morgans suicide. I see those kids and its like, How many of em are going to follow suit? he told me. Morgan was not the first teen at J&Y to attempt suicide. I feel guilty a lot of the time for even saying, Ive also been suicidal before, because hes the one who actually went and did it, says Hunter Gossett, one of Morgans friends at the shop. I get the reason for wanting to do it. At the same time, Im still here.

Suicide contagion among teens is a real phenomenon. In the early 2010s, Reserve Independent School District in Catron County experienced a string of student suicides that prompted administrators to implement a peer-support program in which students were trained to look out for warning signs among classmates. The program was such a success that local administrators wonder if a similar program could be as effective among the countys adult residents.

Cathy, 69, and Dennis, 75, relax with their support dog Ricky. Cathy has lost relatives to suicide and has survived several attempts. During a recent attempt, she reached out to a hotline for help, an experience she called a fart in a windstorm. [The responder] was quite young, and I guess I was her first active caller, she says. She did not know anything about elderly depression. She just knew what she had to say  'Do you have a plan? Do you have a significant other? I mean, am I talking to a person? We're talking about my life. Cathy and her husband are starting a support group called Bridge to Hope in order to bring new resources into their community. Theres a legacy of hopelessness. And Im trying to be a light. Brandon Kapelow

The DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) Program in Reserve, Catrons county seat, is one of the countys only behavioral-health resources. Deborah Boyer, the clinics director and a suicide-loss survivor, sees firsthand the overlapping needs in addressing substance abuse and suicide prevention. The stigma is horrible here. If somebody uses drugs or has attempted suicide or has mental illness, we just alienate them immediately, she says. We need some compassion because it ain't working the way it's going right now. Brandon Kapelow

Locals refer to a home on Main Street in Reserve as the Death House since two consecutive occupants died by suicide. Brandon Kapelow

Tremendous progress in suicide prevention and mental health has been made in the U.S. in 2022. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline network was launched, and a landmark bipartisan gun safety bill passed, which strengthens red-flag laws and invests in community-based violence-prevention and behavioral-health initiatives. New federal policy changes also make telehealth services for mental-health care more accessible to people in rural areas through Medicare and Medicaid. And a recent survey published by Harris Poll found that 80% of U.S. adults report that they would tell someone if they were having thoughts of suicidea 13% increase since 2015.

Read More: How 988 Will Transform Americas Approach to Mental Health

But it will be an uphill battle for people in Catron and similarly remote Western counties. Federal data published on Sept. 30 found that in 2021 the U.S. suicide rate rose by 4% after two years of declines. The regions lack of resources is visible in almost every sector of public health and safety, including law enforcement, emergency medical services (EMS), and mental-health care. There isnt a state-run hospital in the countyonly a medical clinic in Reserve (the county seat) that is funded and operated by a private religious organization. The nearest Veterans Affairs (VA) clinics are several hours away. A single therapist services the region, and they dont work with children. Theres a wellness center in Reserve, but according to staff there, locals dont want to be seen walking in the front door.

For 911 emergencies, volunteer EMTs are often dispatched from their homes or workplaces to respond to the incident. If the issue is beyond the capabilities of the local clinic, patients are taken to hospitals in neighboring counties several hours away. The burden on first responders is particularly high due to the nature of living and working in small communities. We know 80% to 90% of the people that we transport, says Mike Shriver, an EMS driver and former state policeman. Mikes wife Vicki Shriver, the Reserve district EMS medical chief, is often confronted with situations for which established protocol is insufficient. The medical system for behavioral and psychiatric patients is broken, she says. There used to be a mandatory 72-hour hold for an attempted suicide  Now sometimes theyre released within 12 to 24 hours, which I dont think gives the hospital a chance to do a complete evaluation. Theyre home before I get the paperwork done.

As a history buff, veteran, and a suicide-attempt survivor, Larry Iams, 74, maintains a careful relationship with his guns. Most of the time he keeps them locked up at a friend's house in Arizona so that theyre out of reach. Brandon Kapelow

After student Thane Morgans suicide in November 2021, administrators at Quemado High School brought in mental-health professionals to help counsel students. Years earlier, the neighboring Reserve school district had implemented a peer-support system in response to a string of teen suicides. Local officials point to the success of that program in giving students the tools and training to support one another and be alert to warning signs among peers. Brandon Kapelow

Rusty Stewart, 47, a pastor at the First Baptist Church of Quemado, used to wear a gun on his hip that he described as his backup plan. After a suicide attempt, he was placed under observation at a hospital and told that people who commit suicide go straight to hell, he remembers. Stewart now uses his position at the pulpit to try to dispel stigma about mental health. I think most depressed, suicidal people are probably closer to God than most Christians. I know because theyre the ones that are really reaching out for help. Brandon Kapelow

Absent a social safety net, the community must care for itself. This feeling of self-reliance is so ingrained that in 1994, Catrons county commissioners voted unanimously to pass a nonbinding resolution that stipulated every household should have a gun. In 2019, the county commission again voted unanimously to become part of a national group of Second Amendment Sanctuaries, counties across the country that nullify certain gun-safety measures, such as red-flag laws, that were designed in part to help law-enforcement officers remove lethal means from people in suicidal crises.

For Larry Iams, a combat veteran and historic-gunfight reenactor, the issue of firearm safety is urgent. Iams was first attracted to Catron County because of its solitude and its support of the gun culture he cherishes. But following the death of his wife, solitude turned quickly into isolation, and a suicidal episode landed him in a VA hospital. He now locks up his guns at a friends home in neighboring Arizona to keep them out of reach. People that are wanting to do this need somebody that they can trust and talk to, he says. Thats going to be hard sometimes because theres not a lot of people around.

The stark geography of Catron and other Western counties like it increases the likelihood of social isolation, another major risk factor for suicide. Theres a lot of solitude in the West. Conditions are harsh, says Dr. Gary Knouf, pastor at the Quemado Cowboy Church, where Morgans memorial service was held. Maybe the greatest dysfunction in America is loneliness. The experience of loneliness is not purely emotional; social isolation has harsh physical effects on the body, such as increasing stress-hormone levels, and is a risk factor for suicide.

Kathleen, 84, left, and Rose, 79, play cards at the Glenwood Senior Center. Both have lost family members to suicide. The senior center is one of the few dedicated spaces for social connection for the areas aging population. Brandon Kapelow

Synthetic flowers lie at the grave site of a 56-year-old man who died in January 2021 from complications related to substance abusebut his mother believes the real cause of death was suicide. Stigma and other factors make it difficult to accurately track suicide deaths, which often leads to underreporting. According to Craig Lang, an EMT, first responders feel inclined to avoid classifying a death as a suicide in order to spare surviving family members stigma and shame. Brandon Kapelow

A sunrise reflected in the windows at Dave Mollers house outside of Alma, N.M. When Moller ended his own life, he left his treasured home and belongings to his friend Cresta. Brandon Kapelow

Seniors especially feel the sting of loneliness. At the southern end of Catron County sits the Glenwood Senior Center, one of the few places left for older residents to gather. They were going to shut down all the senior centers in Catron County, which, unfortunately, would have probably increased our suicide rate, says Amy Whetham, the centers supervisor. These seniors, its the only thing they have. Whetham has lost two family members to suicide and has struggled with several attempts through the years; she knows some of her colleagues have too, but nobody talks about it. Theyre older, and thats how they were raised, Whetham says. You dont talk about this stuff.

Throughout the course of this project, residents kept telling me that it was easier to share their stories with a stranger than with members of their own community. I spoke with people of different ages and walks of lifefrom parents to police officers, teenage students to health care providers and county clerksand despite every demographic being touched by suicide, most people hadnt discussed it in a while. I was the one who kept having to end the conversation, as if they felt it might be a long time before they got the opportunity to talk about it again.

But there are signs of healing, too. Ron had always been private about his suicide attempt. But in December 2021, nearly two years after his life-altering crisis, he felt something inside him shift. He was ready to talk. He visited his neighbor Craig Lang, an EMT, to thank him for finding him, praying for him, and saving him that day. Ron also tried tracking down the deputy sheriff who was present, but Lang told him that the man had retired shortly after the incident because he kept having nightmares; he later moved out of the county.

Hilda Kellar, 73, is the mayor of Reserve and owner of K&B Timberworks, one of the regions few remaining industrial employers. She has lost two family members to suicide, including her father, who struggled with chronic pain after an incident with falling timber. Her own struggles with physical pain gave her empathy. My dad was ready to go, and I don't judge him for it because I know how I have felt with that pain, she says. "A few years back, I got back surgery  I was hurting so bad that I used to pray for God to take me. I also understand that you can survive it. So I know not to give up. Brandon Kapelow

Reflections off Quemado Lake, near 19-year-old Hunter Gossetts childhood home. I was raised not to show emotion. If I cried, I was called a little bitch, he says. But luckily, Ive learned that its OK to express emotion and not be OK sometimes. Try to always be OK, and youre going to crumble. Brandon Kapelow

The road to Sunflower Mesa, where a local teen attempted suicide in 2002. Some attempt survivors, like Amy Whetham, supervisor of the Glenwood Senior Center, experience a change in perspective. I started being more open about being bipolar, which seemed to help a lot, she says. Growing up, I didnt want to talk to anybody. But its part of who I am. Theres nothing to be ashamed about. I know that I do want to live. Im not ready to go anywhere yet. Brandon Kapelow

Ron now spends his days working the ranch with his wife and children, wondering why he was spared. He says that despite lingering feelings of regret, he ends each day filled with gratitude for being alive, for getting to enjoy more moments with his grandkids. It would have fragmented my family, so maybe thats why God let me live, he says. He leans back into the seat of his truck and looks out toward the rolling cattle pastures. Maybe just me talking to you is some of what it is. Maybe somehow I have kept somebody else from doing this. Maybe thats what this is all about.

If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental-health crisis or contemplating suicide, call or text 988. In emergencies, call 911, or seek care from a local hospital or mental-health provider.
Italys David di Donatello Awards are launching an innovative ecological initiative under which they will monitor the environmental sustainability of productions in the running for the countrys top film prizes.

The move is being touted as a first of this type by Davids organizers who are hoping it can become a game changer in prompting companies in Italy and across Europe to reduce the environmental impact of their film productions.

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To monitor the carbon footprint and other green aspects of movies submitted to the Davids, the organisation has forged a partnership with EcoMuvi, an Italian protocol that certifies a film productions ecological sustainability from pre-product through post.

Starting with films entered in the 2023 edition of the Italian prizes, the David di Donatello Academy will be asking production companies of submitted entries to fill out a detailed questionnaire prepared by EcoMuvi. This will be done on a voluntary basis, with no obligation to adhere to the initiative. EcoMuvi will then analyse the provided data that will be used to compile an overall report on the state of sustainable film production in Italy.

The David Awards will therefore become the first national film academy in Europe to monitor the progress of national sustainable production, the org. said in a statement.

In the U.K. a BAFTA-affiliated organization called Albert has been encouraging sustainability in film and TV production through The Climate Content Pledge, which has been signed by CEOs from 12 of the U.K.s biggest media brands, who account for 70% of U.K. audiences consumption of film and TV.

David di Donatello Academy president Piera Detassis in the statement called the move a first step. She added that she hoped that this attention to sustainability can find support from production companies in Italy and also positively stimulate the dialogue [on sustainability] underway within other national film academies at an international level.

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We are honored and proud to be able to support the academy on this path, said EcoMuvi chief Ludovica Chiarini.

We are sure that under their guidance we will be able to find the best way to put the skills that we have acquired in almost 10 years as a pioneer in this sector in Europe at the service of such a complex project that is tenaciously innovative and ambitious, Chiarini added.

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President Donald Trump speaks during a rally on November 3, 2020 in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Kamil Krzaczynski/Getty Images President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The latest (and possibly final) hearing by the U.S. House committee investigating the riots of Jan. 6, 2021 on Thursday ended with a bombshell: a unanimous vote to subpoena President Donald Trump for testimony and documents related to the investigation.

"He must be held accountable," Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson said in Thursday's hearing, noting that there was historic precedent for seeking a president's testimony.

"We recognize that a subpoena to a former president is an ... extraordinary action," Thompson said, adding that the "stakes are so high" that the committee would hold its vote in public view.

Committee vice-chairman Liz Cheney  a longtime Republican who found herself the target of ire by Trump after she voted to impeach him for his role in the riot  offered the motion to subpoena the former president, which passed unanimously.

Experts say it is unlikely Trump would testify, though the dramatic moment in Thursday's hearing could still have legal fallout: if Trump does not testify, the committee would vote on whether to hold Trump in contempt of court, and could then send the matter on to the Department of Justice.

Two Trump allies  Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro  have previously been charged with contempt of court by the Department of Justice for failing to appear before the committee. Bannon will be sentenced later this month.

RELATED: 5 Key Moments from the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot Hearing, from Never-Before-Seen Video to Ivanka Trump's Testimony

The hearings began on June 9 and featured new revelations about the events leading up to the attacks and how the former president and his allies responded.

The committee has heard testimony from former White House aides and Trump family members about Trump's anger at having lost the election, and his behavior on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021. The committee has also heard testimony from Justice Department officials who detailed Trump's unrelenting pressure to find evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

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In previous court filings, the committee has argued that Trump could potentially be charged by the Department of Justice with criminal violations for his role in the event.

Trump has long maintained the investigation into his conduct around Jan. 6 is politically motivated and he did nothing wrong. He alternately praised the mob of his supporters when they stormed the U.S. Capitol and told them to be peaceful.

He later warned, "These are the things and events that happen .... Remember this day forever!"

Elsewhere in Thursday's hearing (which is expected to be the final public hearing in the investigation), the committee aired never-before-seen footage of lawmakers being evacuated as Trump supporters breached the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.

RELATED: Donald Trump Jr. Pleaded with Mark Meadows to Urge His Father to Stop Capitol Insurrection, Texts Reveal

While the committee's investigation wasn't a criminal one, members of the committee have said the hearings would help determine exactly what sorts of charges could arise.

Speaking to CNN's Jake Tapper in December, Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger  an anti-Trump Republican serving on the committee  said he wasn't prepared to say whether he believes the former president committed a crime, but that the House committee should have "a pretty good idea" once its probe is over.

"I don't want to go there yet to say, 'Do I believe he has [committed a crime]'? I think that's obviously a pretty big thing to say. We want to know though, and I think we'll  by the end of our investigation and by the time our report is out  have a pretty good idea," Kinzinger, 43, said on CNN's State of the Union. "We'll be able to have out on the public record anything Justice Department needs maybe in pursuit of that."

The congressman continued then: "Nobody is above the law. And if the president knowingly allowed what happened on Jan. 6 to happen and, in fact, was giddy about it, and that violates a criminal statute, he needs to be held accountable for that."

A poll conducted by ABC News/Ipsos found that nearly six in 10 Americans believe Trump should be criminally charged for his alleged role in the Capitol riots.
Kyle Haupert, 23, a vintage clothing dealer from San Diego placed the winning bid (liveauctioneers.com)

A pair of Levis jeans from the 19th century has sold for $87,000 (78,000) at auction in New Mexico, making them one of the most expensive pairs of vintage jeans ever sold.

The jeans were discovered by a denim archaeologist in an abandoned mine shaft.

They were auctioned at the Durango Vintage Festivus on 1 October, where they were listed as one of the oldest known Levis from the gold rush era and described as the holy grail of vintage denim collecting.

They were in a good/wearable condition, as described in the listing.

The pair of jeans were described as in in amazing condition for the age (liveauctioneers.com)

The winning bid was placed by Kyle Haupert, 23, a vintage clothing dealer from San Diego for $76,000 (68,209), but after buyers premiums, the total price for the jeans came to $87,400.

Im still kind of bewildered, just surprised in myself for even purchasing them, he told The Wall Street Journal.

He put up 90 per cent of the winning bid, while Zip Stevenson, a Los Angeles-based denim expert, paid the remaining 10 per cent.

The vintage jeans, which the listing said were in amazing condition for the age, were covered with bits of wax used in candles by miners to light the narrow tunnels in the gold mine and featured a buckle-back waist adjuster above the back pocket.

The inside label reads: The only kind made by white labor (liveauctioneers.com)

They are most likely the oldest levis that have ever sold at a live auction, as per the listing.

The inside label reads: The only kind made by white labor, which dates the pair to the late 1800s, in reference to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which forbid Chinese workers from the US. The slogan was dropped in the 1890s, said The Wall Street Journal.

According to The Times, Mr Haupert and Mr Stevenson have already received great interest in the jeans and believe they could be worth as much as $150,000 (134,553).
Netflixs Italian arm is hunting for anti-heroes.

During a session here at MIA Market in Rome, Netflix Vice President of Italian Originals Eleanora Tinny Andreatta said Italy had been traditionally starved of characters from the imperfect hero to the rough hero and wanted more of these tropes in her local programs.

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Appearing alongside Netflix EMEA chief Larry Tanz, she pointed to Everything Calls for Salvation, a drama about a troubled young man who is forced to spend a week in a mental hospital, only to find friendship and love from his fellow patients.

Its loosely based on Daniele Mencarellis novel of the same name and directed by Francesco Bruni, and launches on Netflix tomorrow globally. Audiences members in Italy seemed enthused by a trailer of the show, which has hints of One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest.

Its a story that looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the young generation, how were walking on a subtle line of being safe and the darkest times of our lives, said Andreatta.

Moreover, We want high entertaining stories that can also break taboos and challenge people, said Andreatta, who joined Netflix from Rai in 2020. The audience is asking for more and more so to connect with them we have to be connected to the spirit of the time. Were trying to build our slate: adaptation of big IP, original stories and creating anti-hero narratives. Italy didnt have those stories before.

Tanz, who has appeared at several events of the past few months and has flown into Rome from Netflixs new Poland office, noted Netflixs EMEA approach would be local plus variety, which is a global strategy for the streamer.

Andreatta cheered local Italian producers by urging them to think big. We need stories that represent Italians and are made for the Italian audience and then can go to 190 territories, she said. We want to work with the best authors and directors, and we know we have to be successful in Italy first and be connected to the needs of the local audience.

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The audiences also got first looks at Everything Calls For Salvation and feature Robbing Mussolini.

Before Netflixs session, the streamer unveiled Vatican Girl: The Disappearance of Emanuela Orlandi, a documentary series produced by the multi-award winning British TV production company Raw, premiering globally on Netflix on October 20. The show looks at the case of Emanuela Orlandi, a 15 year-old girl living in Vatican City who disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 1983.

Raw executive producer Mark Lewis and senior producer Chiara Messineo are sitting down this afternoon to talk about the making of the show during a separate Cinema Barberini session this afternoon.

Andreatta said it was a show thats full of substance and mystery but also is very sensitive, from a production company that has won several prizes and really afforded this difficult subject what it needed.

Netflix Italy expansion

Netflix opened a 70-person office in Rome earlier this year and unveiled a massive slate of films and TV shows, one of the streamers biggest plays in Europe to date, as Deadline reported at the time.

New shows included a drama based on Il Gattopardo (The Leopard), a drama from Indiana Pictures and the UKs Moonage Pictures, with British director Tom Shankland attached; Cattleya-produced thriller Inganno (working title); Lotto Gang (working title), from BIM Produzione and Feltrinelli Originals and loosely based on the biggest scam in Italian history; and I Hate Christmas, a comedy from Lux Vide.

On the non-scripted front, it ordered Wanna, a crime docu-series from Fremantle Italy; Running For the Truth: Alex Schwazer from Indigo Film; and Summer Job from Banijay Italia, which is billed as the streamers first original reality format, while new films included Robbing Mussolini, a heist caper from Bibi Film; Cosimo Gomezs My Name is Vendetta, an action flick from Colorado Film; GT Films Love & Gelato, written and directed by Brandon Camp; Under the Amalfi Sun, a follow up to Under the Riccione Sun from Lucky Red; and Jumping From High Places, based on a novel of the same name and produced by Lotus Film.

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New York Citys own Show Me The Body have shared WW4, the third offering from their forthcoming album Trouble The Water, due October 28 via Loma Vista Recordings.

Beginning with ominous banjo plucks and rhythmic vocals from frontman Julian Cashwan Pratt before an explosive finale, WW4 arrives coupled with the visuals directed by Oliver Shahery, portraying a day in the life of Julian with his neighbor and close friend of CORPUS, Anthony.

This Sunday, Show Me The Body will perform at Nothing Fest IV in California ahead of launching the European and UK leg of their continuing World War Tour, which begins next Friday in Vechta, Germany and features support from Powerplant across the 15 dates with stops in Hamburg, Berlin, Zurich and Verona before wrapping up in London on November 7. Show Me The Body will also take the world tour to New Zealand for two dates, performing in Wellington and Auckland, along with Australia for four dates in December hitting Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Perth.

Recorded entirely at CORPUS studios in Long Island City and produced with Arthur Rizk (Power Trip, Turnstile, Municipal Waste), Trouble The Water is the culmination of nearly a decade of barrelling against New York Citys structural ambivalence and indifference; an invocation to a like-minded global community to consider the alchemy of family-building, and of turning water to blood.

The 12 tracks of Trouble The Water both reference and pay homage to the physical city, and the New York Sound: not one particular genre, but the people and subcultures that encapsulate its true foundation, style, and spirit. The band does this while expanding upon and reckoning with the hyperlocal territory of 2019s Dog Whistle, which features the standout track Arcanum.

Although the title invokes the ancient alchemy Moses wielded to free and unite Israelite peoples, Trouble The Water refuses nostalgia or mimicry. Instead, it considers the sublime power of the unifying physical practices that can be enacted daily, to invoke immeasurable spiritual and collective reactions.

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Buoyed by moments of stinging stillness and compulsive, almost optimistic malfunctioning rhythms, the work is literally a conjuration to dance and move. If we are really living through the end of the world, maybe every movement we make, no matter how slight, is actually boundless and radical.

Pre-order Trouble The Water.

For the latest music news and exclusive features, check out uDiscover Music.

uDiscover Music is operated by Universal Music Group (UMG). Some recording artists included in uDiscover Music articles are affiliated with UMG.
Clif Smart, left, and Hal Higdon.

Citing the potential for a dangerous precedent, the leaders of Springfield's largest university and community college are publicly weighing in on the proposed rezoning of 4.2 acres near Sequiota Park, even though neither of them live in the area.

Clif Smart, president of Missouri State University, and Hal Higdon, chancellor of Ozarks Technical Community College, said they will vote "yes" on Question 1, a local referendum, on Nov. 8.

If a majority of voters approve, the land on South Lone Pine Avenue will be rezoned from single-family residential, allowing the developer to move forward with a multi-story apartment complex across from the park. The controversial project has faced years of opposition from the Galloway Village Neighborhood Association.

The developer secured approval from the Planning & Zoning Commission and the City Council, but was put on hold when a contingent of neighbors gathered several thousand signatures to force a referendum election on the issue.

The referendum process, outlined in the City Charter, allows citizens to take a recently-enacted decision by City Council to a vote of the people.

Aided by city staff, the developer sued to block the referendum vote, saying the process was in conflict with state zoning law. A Greene County judge agreed, but was overruled by the Missouri Court of Appeals in June in a unanimous judgment that described the city's rationale for avoiding a public vote as "cancerous" and implied it could be seen as an attempted "end-run around the referendum requirements in its own charter."

More:'Cancerous' 'disingenuous' 'duplicitous'  judge rebukes city, paves way to referendum on Galloway development

By order of the court, the issue was placed on the ballot, where it will be decided by voters across the city, after years of back-and-forth.

Smart, Higdon say vote is about economic development

Higdon and Smart said the ramifications of the vote are significant.

"This is a very, very dangerous precedent we're setting in our city. If you're looking at economic development, if this thing is successful, it's going to set the city back decades," Higdon said.

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He put it a different way: "If this fails, Springfield is closed for business."

Smart said there is a simple question at the heart of this debate: "Are we going to be a pro-growth community or not?"

He said pushing the decision on a narrow zoning issue to a vote of the entire city may have a chilling effect on future development, which may impact the university. He referenced the expansion of IDEA Commons, daylighting of Jordan Creek, the Grant Avenue Corridor, and other work downtown and near Missouri State.

"If in fact the community, as a whole, is going to have to vote to approve development projects, the result of that is we're not going to have any or we're going to have very few," Smart said.

He said the city's existing process for vetting projects "makes sure conservation is taken into account, that neighbors are taken into account, as well as the economic development piece."

Smart said voters elect the mayor and City Council, which appoints the Planning & Zoning Commission. "We have to trust them to analyze projects and decide what is appropriate and work with developments in neighborhoods to drive consensus and then approve a project and move forward."

More:Anonymous texts seek to gather information about voter thoughts ahead of Galloway rezoning

A Facebook page urging a "yes" vote on the local referendum announced its first public endorsements Friday: Higdon and Smart. They were asked to speak out by the developer, Mitchell Jenkins.

On Monday, two more names  Christina Ford and Scott Bailes  were added.

In interviews Monday with the News-Leader, Smart and Higdon said they were motivated to get involved because the bigger issue  not this particular development  although both said they support the plan.

"Is it a good development? Yes. Is it an appropriate use of space? Yes," Higdon said.

The Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce has signaled its support for the project. Higdon, on the chamber board, met the developer and followed the issue closely.

"This is a great young couple who are Springfield natives who are putting their life savings in it and I just feel like it is a good development," Higdon said. "If we're going to have rules to work in Springfield, we have got to abide by those rules and not let a small group of people hold the city hostage on important issues like economic development."

Smart called it a "solid project that I would have voted for" but acknowledged if rezoning was the only issue, he would not have weighed in.

"What we are all really voting on here is do we want Springfield to continue to grow and thrive and be a place that people move to and have adequate housing and great facilities," he said. "That is what is on the ballot."

Smart said the city vetting process worked and, as a result, the neighborhood had "significant input" in reshaping the project.

"They're maintaining most of the trees. They're maintaining four of the historic buildings," Smart said. "Everything that should have happened, happened here. The neighborhood had real input and adjustments were made so that we have a project that fits the neighborhood."

Anonymous texts seek to gather information about voter thoughts ahead of Galloway rezoning

Smart said developers who want to build in the city have to trust that if they follow the rules, and they secure approval at each level, the projects will move forward.

"The process gets tremendously bogged down if there are public votes," Smart said. "The result is that developers will develop projects somewhere else, whether that's Republic or Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania."

He added: "We need to be one of those cities that wants great projects."

In September, after the chamber endorsement, the Galloway Village Neighborhood Association said: "The remedy of the referendum should be reserved for only the most egregious cases of government failure to represent the will of its citizens, which unfortunately has occurred in this case."

The association said the referendum process is not an easy process "but citizens felt so strongly about this dense proposal and Sequiota Park that we were able to gather 2800+ signatures in 18 days. The character of our unique corner of Springfield should not be sacrificed through attempts to silence the lawful rights of Springfield citizens granted under our Citys Charter."

Both leaders say endorsement is appropriate

As the longest-tenured higher education officials in this part of Missouri, Smart and Higdon are well known. They also serve on numerous boards in the community.

Asked if it was appropriate for them to weigh in on the rezoning issue, both said yes.

"It is no less appropriate than do I vote in the next presidential election? Do I give to candidates who I agree with? Do I express my opinion on my personal Facebook page?" Higdon said. "When you become a public official, unless you are an elected official, I don't think you give up your individual rights."

Smart, as the MSU president, said he looks at ballot issues through the lens of how it impacts the university. He said in the past dozen years, he has only publicly endorsed one other "issue" on the ballot: The city ordinance that banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In the past, Smart has also endorsed candidates and made public his stance on proposed tax issues.

Smart said he supports "meaningful growth," good housing and "projects that make this a good place to live" and that is also important to the long-term success of Missouri State.

"In the 12 years I've been doing this, my board that I report to, has specifically said 'Clif we want you do be more than the leader of the university, we want you to be a community leader.' So that is the expectation," Smart said.

"When there are things that ... are happening in our city that impact the university, they expect me to be involved and representing the university on those issues."

Claudette Riley is the education reporter for the News-Leader. Email tips and story ideas to criley@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Smart, Higdon publicly endorse plan to rezone land in Galloway area
America has Groundhog Day. Now Malaysia has Stone Turtle, a beguiling, all-around-gorgeous reimagining of Southeast Asian folklore that finds its characters caught in a loop of vengeance, lust and violence from which they cannot escape. Here, its a dead-serious political statement rather than rom-com karma that forces island-dwelling refugee Zahara (Asmara Abigail) and an intrusive outsider (Bront Palarae) to play out repeated versions of a cautious standoff: She deals in precious leatherback turtle eggs; he claims to be a wildlife researcher but pursues her with a passion that suggests other priorities.

Stone Turtle marks a welcome comeback for Woo Ming Jin (Woman on Fire Looks for Water), a leading voice in the Malaysian New Wave who spent the past decade working in more mainstream waters, churning out a mix of zombie flicks and popcorn movies. Now, having picked up a prestigious FIPRESCI prize at Locarno, hes back on the international festival circuit with a project that intriguingly applies elements of genre filmmaking to a more anthropological art-house format. The result is a loony marriage between The Wicker Man and Woman in the Dunes, as an enigmatic siren in scarlet robes traps a man on the beach for all eternity, building to a dangerous ritual where lives are sacrificed and a straw effigy is set ablaze.

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The movie opens with a jolt, as a woman (Masyarah Mazlan) surrenders her child to Zahara and then submits to a shocking ceremony, which appears to be some kind of feast but ends with its guest of honor having her head smashed in from behind with a boulder. More upsetting still is the implication that the woman has willingly accepted whatever punishment this represents. Her sacrifice is intended to restore her parents honor, now that the victims daughter, Nika (Samara Kenzo), is old enough to be raised by someone else.

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Woo focuses on Zahara and Nikas horrified faces at the window when the fatal blow is delivered, making clear that whatever crime the woman has committed, her death serves as an example to the rest of this cut-off community. Later, we learn that the injustice was far greater than we could have imagined  whatever shame the woman may have caused was nothing compared with the sexual assault by which Nika was conceived  in a film that confronts issues such as rape and immigrant rights not as didactic talking points but as dramatic hurdles to the characters happiness.

Nika is now Zaharas responsibility, and though the girl had learned to read in relative isolation, its time to bring her to the mainland for a more formal education. Unfortunately, the local bureaucracy insists that the girl present the appropriate documentation first, which creates another kind of circularity: Without the proper paperwork, Nika cant enroll in school, and without school, shes stuck on the margins of society. Stone Turtle never reveals where Zahara and her sister originally came from, taking its name from the island where theyve been hiding out, presumed to be uninhabited  which gives the place an almost haunted quality, as if its residents might be ghosts.

Along the Malay Peninsulas east coast, people really do squat off the grid like this, and though its illegal for them to harvest the eggs of endangered species, authorities turn a blind eye to such behavior, since its practically their only means of survival. Woo could have spun this black-market activity into a gritty thriller, but instead he opts for something more mysterious and poetic, bolstered by the rare beauty of the environment  and the films attention-grabbing star. The whole film rides on the performance of Abigail, who has the tricky task of conveying strength gained from past traumas without revealing too much about what Zahara has been through.

When a man, Samad (Palarae), shows up on the island in a small boat, his arrival jeopardizes the refugees fragile existence. Samad says hes looking for leatherback turtles, but seems more interested in Zahara and the girl, with whom he shares a local folktale about two turtles. Woo presents this legend via hand-drawn animated sequences (overseen by indie animator Paul Williams, who worked on tropical-island toon The Red Turtle). Although the childrens story was intended to teach kids about greed, the film that contains it serves as a more adult-oriented cautionary tale.

Quite unexpectedly, considering the seductive buildup, Zahara and Samad wind up killing one another in a cave by the beach, and the film resets. From here, Stone Turtle grows increasingly abstract. Still, tricky as it can be to untangle, everything that follows does add up according to a kind of mesmerizing dream logic, whereby the looping format plays off culturally specific ideas of karma and reincarnation. By nature, folk stories have been told countless times before, and though Zahara seeks to break the cycle of the one in which shes trapped, the Groundhog Day format fits Woos project well: Its both a fresh way to present that old violence begets violence message and a reminder of the infinite variations certain stories have in that region, where the details change but the lesson remains the same.

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Immediately after nominees were chosen in last months Republican and Democratic primaries, New Hampshire voters overwhelmingly said they had already decided which candidate they plan to pick in the general election for governor.

Republican incumbent Gov. Chris Sununu had backing from 55% of likely voters, putting him well ahead of his Democratic challenger, Dr. Tom Sherman, a state senator from Rye, who trailed with 37%, according to a UNH Survey Center poll conducted in the days after the Sept. 13 primary election.

Just 8% of likely voters said they were undecided, suggesting Sherman may have an especially tough time finding enough votes to overtake Sununu, a Newfields resident. (The poll included 870 likely voters with a margin of sampling error of 3.3%.)

Dr. Tom Sherman, a Democratic state senator from Rye, is challenging Republican Gov. Chris Sununu of Newfields in the 2022 election.

Even so, Sununu said hes not taking his reelection for granted.

This is New Hampshire, so no race is ever determined until Election Day. I try to run like Im three votes down, Sununu said in an interview, borrowing a campaign trail adage from the late Ray Burton, who served for decades on the Executive Council.

Sherman, meanwhile, said one of his campaigns biggest challenges is the fact that his name is still unfamiliar to many Granite Staters. To fix that, he said hes been ramping up his television ad buy and crisscrossing the state.

People need to know who I am, so they can feel comfortable voting for me. I know that, Sherman said in an interview.

The more interaction I have with the public  the better chance I have to show that contrast with Sununu, he added.

For those who still havent decided whether to pick Sununu or Sherman in the Nov. 8 general election  or those who are thinking about changing their minds  here are three key policy areas where the two major-party candidates differ:

1. Housing affordability

New Hampshire state Sen. Tom Sherman, the Democratic candidate for governor, speaks Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022 in front of Harmony Homes in Durham, alongside state Sen. Rebecca Perkins Kwoka, D-Portsmouth.

Sununu and Sherman agree that rising housing costs present a challenge, but they disagree on how exactly state leaders should respond. While the incumbent touts a big-ticket program that was approved earlier this year, the challenger emphasizes his plan to bake recurring investments into the state budget.

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Sherman said his housing plan calls for the state to spend $35 million per year, a recurring investment that will fit easily in the budget since the state has been seeing budget surpluses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Shermans plan includes $500,000 annually for a new grant fund to help municipalities update their zoning regulations. It also adds $5 million per year to double the capacity of the existing Affordable Housing Fund, which gives low-interest loans and grants to support affordable housing projects. And it adds another $10 million per year to triple the existing Community Tax Credit Program, which invites businesses to buy credits that help fund local initiatives, including housing projects.

When I talk about an investment, Im talking about this complex interconnected system that supports our businesses and our workforce, Sherman said. You start providing housing for people who want to come to New Hampshire, you start making it possible for businesses to actually recruit and retain employees, and that return on investment will be several fold.

Gov. Chris Sununu visits LDI Solutions in Rochester Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022.

Sununu said one key issue with Shermans housing plan is its scale.

Hes proposing a fraction of what Im actually doing, Sununu said. I have a $100 million InvestNH affordable housing fund. Its not an idea. Its not something were batting around. Were doing it. The grants are going to be released in a couple of weeks. Its really exciting stuff. The state has never done anything like that before.

Sherman's campaign says he would continue Sununu's $100 million InvestNH plan and add to it with the recurring $35 million annual budget investments in his plan.

Sununu was referring to the $100 million housing fund his administration established with federal cash from the American Rescue Plan, a stimulus package Congress passed last year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. New Hampshire officials have received a flood of applications for the InvestNH grants, which are expected to go before the Executive Council on Nov. 2.

The InvestNH program includes $60 million in matching grants for developers and owners of multi-family rental housing units to boost the availability of rental units affordable to people who make less than 80% of the area median income. The program also includes $40 million in municipal grants to incentivize new affordable housing units, help cities and towns demolish dilapidated buildings and update their zoning rules.

Sherman said one key issue with the InvestNH program is that its based on a one-off injection of federal cash, not a recurring investment at the state level. Sherman said Sununu is touting the benefits of a Band-Aid made possible by Democrats in Congress.

That is one-time funding, Sherman said. Theres no long-term strategic plan.

When asked how he plans to derive sustainable long-term benefits from the InvestNH program, Sununu said this is part of a strategy to support the strength of New Hampshires economy. That, in turn, leads to healthy budget surpluses and gives leaders flexibility in future years, he said.

Ive created record surpluses every year to invest in projects, whether they be housing or hospitals or mental health or (confronting) the opioid crisis, he said. Weve been able to do that every single year Ive been governor because we have such a strong economy, we balance our budgets and we have never created or increased a tax in the state.

Sherman, however, said the fact that New Hampshire has run such large surpluses for three budgets in a row, including more than $400 million in the most recent fiscal year, suggests priorities may be a bit off kilter.

To me, what that means is we are under-budgeting and we need to be reinvesting in New Hampshire, he said, arguing that his $35 million housing plan represents a tiny fraction of the annual budget surplus.

The median cost of a single-family home in New Hampshire rose to $440,000 in March, according to the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute. And the monthly median cost of renting a two-bedroom apartment rose last year to about $1,500 with utilities, an increase of 24% since 2016  an increase that came before this years rise in fuel and energy costs.

2. Energy policy

In response to steeply rising energy costs, state leaders this month finalized their approval of $35 million in state funds to help Granite Staters pay their electricity and heating bills this winter. The short-term solution, which will distribute $650 in credits to moderate-income households, won the support of both Sununu and Sherman, though the two candidates have differing views on the factors that led to current problems.

Sherman claims Sununu has resisted efforts to diversify New Hampshires energy sources, leaving the state overly reliant on natural gas. Sununu, meanwhile, claims Democrats are pursuing expensive ideas too aggressively while also fumbling on worthwhile efforts to bring relatively clean hydropower to the region.

Sununu said policymakers must look at energy-related topics from the perspective of ratepayers. Thats why I vetoed a lot of legislation that might have sounded good on paper but was clearly going to drive up costs and rates well over and above what were seeing today, he said.

Gov. Chris Sununu is seen at LDI Solutions in Rochester Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022.

As one example, Sununu cited the Transportation and Climate Initiative, a multistate collaboration to reduce carbon emissions and improve transportation. Sununu announced in late 2019 that New Hampshire would not participate. The initiative, he argued, would add a gas tax of up to 17 cents per gallon, with minimal positive results for the state.

At the end of the day, it really would have just been subsidizing public transportation in Boston and costing our taxpayers a lot of money every time they fill up gas, Sununu said.

Sununu said leaders need to push toward renewable energy sources. But you dont just drop everything and do it, he said, because the costs can be enormous. There need to be feasibility studies and public input to find a cost-effective path forward, he said.

Calling himself a big believer in hydro, Sununu said liberals erred when they campaigned against the Northern Pass project, which had sought to build a 192-mile electrical transmission line for hydroelectric power from Quebec to New England.

New Hampshire state Sen. Tom Sherman, the Democratic candidate for governor, seen Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022 in Durham.

Sherman, however, said its wrong for Sununu to claim that bringing alternative energy sources online will send rates through the roof.

Our neighboring states have already done a great job of starting to expand their energy options, Sherman said. We havent because hes blocked every effort weve had to do that.

Sherman supports lifting the caps on net metering. Sununu does not.

3. Education policy

Sununu and Sherman have also disagreed heartily on matters related to publicly funded education, including the states Education Freedom Accounts, which allow eligible families to send their kids to nonpublic schools and take public funding with them.

Sununu, who supports the EFAs, said Democrats have been amping unfounded fears that this program will defund public education or bankrupt classrooms. That was a lot of fearmongering on the Democrats part because they didnt want lower-income families to have the same opportunities as everyone else, he said.

Gov. Chris Sununu arrives in Rochester Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022.

Sherman, who has said he would sign legislation to eliminate the EFAs program, said he doesnt believe they are a good or appropriate use of taxpayer dollars, especially since private and religious schools can discriminate on the basis of disability.

Our public schools need as much resources as they can get, he said.

Sherman acknowledged that his children have attended public and private schools. That has no bearing, he said, on his assessment of whether the EFAs program is good public policy.

My responsibility is to all of the kids of New Hampshire, he said. My responsibility, no matter what Ive done personally, is to make sure public dollars are being spent as wisely and as accountably as they possibly can be.

Participation in the program has grown faster than expected. When it launched last year, there were 1,572 students participating. As of last month, there were 3,025 students, which will cost the states Education Trust Fund about $14.7 million this year, as the New Hampshire Bulletin reported.

Aside from ongoing conversations about public education funding, next year will likely bring renewed attention in Concord to fundamental questions about the relationship between educators and parents. New Hampshire House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, signaled his intent to explore legislation to establish a parental bill of rights.

When such a bill came up earlier this year, Sununu vowed to veto it, citing concerns about the challenges it could pose for children. The bill would have required schools to enact policies to tell parents promptly about any action the child takes related to gender expression or identity, a provision that drew concern from advocates for LGBTQ rights.

This type of policy proposal could make waves next year in Washington, too. Karoline Leavitt, the GOP nominee challenging Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District, held a press conference late last month in Manchester to call for a federal parental bill of rights. Leavitt criticized Manchester schools for a policy that directed teachers not to notify parents if a student updates their gender pronouns.

Sununu, who endorsed Leavitts candidacy, declined to comment on her position. Speaking generally, he said parents and teachers should view each other as partners in a childs journey through the education system.

New Hampshire state Sen. Tom Sherman, the Democratic candidate for governor, speaks with daycare owner Brynn Coleman at Harmony Homes in Durham Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

If there is an issue in a childs school that can affect the health and safety of that child, then the teachers and administration have a responsibility to communicate with the parents if something is potentially affecting the health and safety of the child, he said. Its really that simple.

Sherman similarly said parents and teachers should work together as a team. When a child discloses personal information to their teachers, the teachers need to work with the child to help the child talk to their parents, he said.

I think that its really important that that relationship between the teacher and the parent be as strong as possible, so they can collaborate in helping to raise that child, he said.

More issues: abortion and marijuana

In addition to their differences on housing, energy and education policy, Sununu and Sherman have struck notably different tones on abortion and marijuana.

Sununu, who describes himself as pro-choice, has expressed support for New Hampshires 24-week abortion ban that he signed last year as part of the state budget, though he has also said he would love to sign legislation that would remove criminal penalties for doctors who violate it.

More: Why Democrats in NH are focused on abortion. What do voters think?

Sherman, who argues Sununu doesnt actually support abortion rights, said New Hampshires current law, which took effect this year, puts womens health care in the third trimester at extreme risk. Sherman has said decisions on whether to terminate a pregnancy after 24 weeks should be left to women in consultation with their doctors.

Last week, President Joe Biden announced pardons for thousands of people with prior federal convictions for simple marijuana possession, and he called on all governors to follow suit. Sununu has recently said now still isnt the right time for New Hampshire to legalize marijuana, though he signed a bill in 2017 to decriminalize possession of small amounts of the drug, expanded access to medical marijuana, and gave people a way to have their old marijuana possession convictions annulled, according to his office.

More: Will NH follow Biden in pardons for marijuana possession?

Sherman, meanwhile, said he would seek to expedite pardons for state-level marijuana possession charges and move forward with legalization right away.

These stories are shared by the Granite State News Collaborative. Steven Porter is the founding editor of Granite Memo.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: NH governor election 2022: Sununu vs. Sherman policy differences
Taylor Swift - Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for MTV/Paramount Global

The nominations for this years 2022 MTV European Music Awards have arrived, featuring a number of familiar faces along with 17 first-time nominees, including Summer Walker, Saucy Santana, Doechii, Kim Petras, and Dove Cameron.

The MTV EMAs this year will take place at the PSD Bank Dome in Dusseldorf, Germany, on November 13th and will be broadcasted on MTV in over 170 countries. However, for those who will be unable to tune in live, Paramount+ and Pluto TV will be streaming the event starting on November 14th. Fans can vote for their favorite nominated artists on the MTV EMAs website from now until November 9th at 11:59 PM CET.

At this years EMAs, Harry Styles carries the most nominations, with nods in seven different categories after the release of his third studio album, Harrys House, including Best Song and Best Artist. At the age of 32, Taylor Swift follows Styles in nominations, appearing in six categories herself, from Best Video for her new rendition of All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylors Version) to Best Pop Artist. Swift is closely followed by Nicki Minaj and Rosalia, who are both nominated for five different awards in categories, including Best Artist.

This year is proving to be an exceptional one for up-and-coming artists, with many newcomers receiving their first-ever nominations in the Best Push category, spotlighting new artists like Shenseea and Gayle. There are even recently developed categories, such as Best Metaverse Performance, that gives creativity within online spaces an opportunity to be acknowledged for artists such as BTS for their performance in Minecraft and BLACKPINK virtual concert on PUBG MOBILE.

Although a host has still not been announced for the 2022 EMAs, last year, the show was hosted by the Bay Area rap star Saweetie, in Budapest, Hungary. Justin Bieber was the most nominated artist, receiving acknowledgments in eight different categories, and BTS came out as the most decorated, receiving four different awards.

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This year is proving to be a big year for women, and an even bigger year for pop releases  with Swift set to release Midnights later this month, on October 21st.

Visit the official MTV site for the full list of nominations.

For the latest music news and exclusive features, check out uDiscover Music.

uDiscover Music is operated by Universal Music Group (UMG). Some recording artists included in uDiscover Music articles are affiliated with UMG.
paris hilton

ABC via Getty

Paris Hilton has recounted the sexual abuse she says she experienced at a Utah boarding school. In an article published with The New York Times Tuesday, the 41-year-old claimed she was forced to get cervical exams at 16 years old while at Provo Canyon School in the late 90s.

"Very late at night, this would be around like three or four in the morning, they would take myself and other girls into this room and they would perform medical exams," she explained. "This wasn't even with a doctor. It was with a couple of different staff members, where they would have us lay on the table and put their fingers inside of us. And I don't know what they were doing, but it was definitely not a doctor."

"It was really scary, and it's something that I really had blocked out for many years but it's coming back all the time now, and I think about it," Hilton said while tearing up. "And now, looking back as an adult, that was definitely sexual abuse."

Hilton is just one of more than 50 former patients, employees and experts who detailed to the outlet allegations of physical, verbal, emotional and psychological abuse at these facilities, which were supposed to help children with mental health and behavioral issues.

The heiress was sent to the Utah therapeutic boarding school for 11 months in an attempt to tame her rebellious partying as a teenager.

RELATED: Paris Hilton Heads to D.C. to Continue Advocacy Work for Child Abuse: 'Such an Inspiring Time'

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A slew of lawsuits and government reports aligned with former patients' claims of horrific treatment children faced at these centers for decades, according to the Times. The outlet also recovered security camera footage of patients being assaulted and restrained.

"Sleep-deprived & heavily medicated, I didn't understand what was happening," Hilton wrote of the alleged sexual abuse on Twitter. "I was forced to lie on a padded table, spread my legs & submit to cervical exams. I cried while they held me down & said, 'No!' They just said, 'Shut up. Be quiet. Stop struggling or you'll go to Obs.'"

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"This was a recurring experience not only for me but for other #survivors. I was violated & I am crying as I type this because no one, especially a child, should be sexually abused," Hilton continued. "My childhood was stolen from me & it kills me this is still happening to other innocent children. It's important to open up about these painful moments so I can heal & help put an end to this abuse."

RELATED: Paris Hilton Opens Up About the Secret Terrifying Abuse She Suffered as a Teen

Paris Hilton's solitary confinement booth on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, USA - 11 May 2022

Shutterstock Paris Hilton's solitary confinement booth on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, USA - 11 May 2022

RELATED: Paris Hilton Heads to D.C. to Continue Advocacy Work for Child Abuse: 'Such an Inspiring Time'

Hilton and others told the Times that the abuse was able to continue for so long, she claims, because staff members were monitoring and restricting their phone conversations with parents.

"The staff member just hung up the phone, screamed at me, told me, 'You have your phone privile ges taken away. We're going to tell your parents that you are manipulating them, that you're lying,'" Hilton said.

Since opening up about the experience, Hilton has been working to reform institutions that administer cruel psychiatric treatment to minors.

"I want these places shut down," Hilton said in her documentary This Is Paris. "I want them to be held accountable. And I want to be a voice for children and now adults everywhere who have had similar experiences. I want it to stop for good and I will do whatever I can to make it happen."

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
PETOSKEY  Temple Bnai Israel has announce they will be hosting a presentation by Vered Kater RN MSN of Jerusalem Israel entitled Disaster Preparedness in Israel 2022 at 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 17 in the temples social hall.

If you are unable to join in person, email tbipetoskey@gmail.com to request the Zoom link to the lecture.

Kater has traveled extensively to various parts of the world, volunteering her services and seeking to help others improve their health. She has trained in Holland, Israel, England and the United States. Her work has included health nursing and teaching on Kibbutz, Hadassah Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania, St. Louis University and several visits to Uganda, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Rwanda and other parts of the world.

Born in Holland during World War II, she was separated from her parents at just six weeks of age as the Nazis were rounding up all Jews in in her country. Kater is thankful for the righteous Christians who hid her for several years and became her war parents. Kater moved from Holland to Israel in 1966; just in time for another war.

Temple Bnai Israel is located at 505 Michigan St. in Petoskey.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Temple Bnai Israel to host presentation by Vered Kater
(from left) Danielle Deadwyler as Mamie Till Mobley and Jalyn Hall as Emmett Till in Till, directed by Chinonye Chukwu.

Emmett Till was kidnapped, tortured, and lynched in Mississippi in 1955 because he whistled at a white woman. This is historya story that every Black American knows all too well. In the new film Till, that black mark in American history is told best in a grave and concise moment that shows his mother, Mamie Till Mobley, standing over his mutilated body and declaring My sons body returned to me reeking of racial hatred. Its a moment registered in books and magazine covers, and its exactly what audiences need to see and hear in a movie that tells this story.

Director Chinonye Chukwu made a name for herself with the incisive and precise Clemency (2019). Here she takes on the enormous task of dramatizing the events of the murder of Emmett Till and its aftermath, perhaps an impossible one, but she handles it with aplomb. The film starts with Chicago native Till (Jalyn Hall) as he prepares to leave for Mississippi to visit his cousins. His mother Mamie Till Mobley (Danielle Deadwyler) worries about the visit because she understands how Black people are treated in the South. Be small there, is her advice to him. We know what happens next. The film does not show the lynchingnot a spoiler since its outlined in the marketing and a directors statementbut rather what happened before and after.

Read more

Chukwu has shown a great knack for collaboration with actors and drawing marvelous performances out of them (see Alfre Woodard and Aldis Hodges staggering work in Clemency). She evidences it again with Deadwyler in Till. Centering the film on Mamie is the right decision, and Deadwyler absolutely deliversshes heartbreaking from literally her first moment on screen, able to demonstrate not just a mothers love but also her resilience. Wherever Chukwu places her camera, Deadwylers face makes us understand not just what Mamie is going through but rather the reality of what this country does to its Black citizens. Its a performance of quiet strength and loud emotion, though Deadwyler is never loud or histrionic. She just simmers with profound pain.

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Whoopi Goldberg as Alma Carthan, Mamies mother and Emmets grandmother, is a casting coup. As expected, she brings gravitas and warmth to the brief role. However, what makes this particularly meaningful is that we all know and love Whoopi, who most audiences have known for most of their liveswhether because of Celie in The Color Purple (1985) or being on TV every day in our homes. Shes familiar to us. Shes family. And because of that, seeing her as Emmet Tills family makes this story more urgent, more personal. It happened in our family. Therein lies the strength of this film.

Chukwu has personalized Till, or Bobo as hes lovingly referred to by family, so that hes not just a symbol. Hes flesh and blood, hes a boy who enjoys teasing his mother, hanging out with his cousins. More importantly, hes full of joy. That joy defines the last few days of his life, and Hall leans into showing it so that the audience feels the acute pain of his absence. And whenever hes with Deadwyler, everything becomes more real because of her grounded and ferocious performance.



TILL | Official Trailer | MGM Studios

The film is also strong in portraying the familial bonds of the extended Till family and the guilt they carried for not being able to prevent the murder. As Moses Wright, on whose watch Emmett Till was kidnapped, John Douglas Thompson sensitively modulates an admittance of guilt and culpability.

The script, credited to Michael Reilly, Keith Beauchamp, and Chukwu, is less successful. In attempting to provide historical context and give credit to the many brave people who mobilized for the trial of Tills murderers, it loses some focus. Theres an economy in the narrative in Mamies scenes, with just the right information given to the audience. Chukwu trusts Deadwyler to deliver the pathos needed in scenes bursting with strong emotion. But the trial and whats around it, in contrast, are full of exposition. Many characters are introduced by name and given a moment to tell us what their historical link to the story is, but beyond providing an a-ha moment for the audience and cementing everybodys historical role, these bits stop the narrative dead in its tracks.

Additionally, the score by Abel Korzeniowski is a tad too melodramaticespecially after Deadwyler has avoided all of that. She doesnt need the bombast and all the audience needs is her perceptive and stoic performance. And otherwise, the films visuals are not distinctive. But the moments that are most powerful in Till are those where Chukwu concentrates on peoples faces filling the screen, both actors and extras. After all, history is told by the people who witness it.
Move over, Rick Dalton and Cliff Booth.

Angela Lansbury, the beloved Tony-winning star of Murder, She Wrote, and Beauty and the Beast, who passed away on Tuesday, was wise enough to whisk daughter Deidre Shaw away from cult leader Charles Manson before the infamous 1969 murders committed by his followers.

In 2014, Lansbury told the Daily Mail, It pains me to say it but, at one stage, Deidre was in with a crowd led by Charles Manson. She recalled that Deidre and her son Anthony found Manson charismatic and were fascinated by him.

Once she realized hard drugs were involved, she made the decision to move the whole family from Los Angeles to Ireland where they wouldnt be exposed to all the bad influences of Hollywood. I said to Peter, We have to leave,' she said of her late husband Peter Shaw, who died in 2003.

Also Read:

Angela Lansbury Tributes Pour in Around Hollywood: Legend Across So Many Mediums

Lansbury took a temporary hiatus from acting and, luckily, both kids kicked the habit. Moving to Ireland was like beginning all over again and it afforded us that time to get back to basics really, she told the British newspaper. We were so very, very lucky we spotted what was happening just in time, she said. Thinking about what might have happened, fills me with dread.

Also Read:

Angela Lansbury, Legendary Actress of Stage and Screen, Dies at 96

Anthony would go on to direct Lansbury in 68 episodes of her series Murder, She Wrote, and the 1992 TV movie Mrs. Arris Goes to Paris.

Members of the Manson family committed the Sharon Tate and LaBianco murders in August 1969, killing nine people in one of the most shocking series of crimes in Californias history.

Manson was tried and sentenced to death in 1971, which was later commuted to nine life sentences. He was denied parole several times and died on Nov. 19, 2017.

Also Read:

Angela Lansburys 10 Best Film and TV Roles, From Gaslight to Beauty and the Beast (Photos)
I flew from Maui to Oahu via Hawaiian Airlines. Ashley Probst

I island-hopped from Maui to Oahu on a 40-minute Hawaiian Airlines flight and loved the experience.

I enjoyed the gorgeous aerial views of the islands and sipped on complimentary tropical-fruit juice.

The flight was great, but I recommend tourists fly from exciting Oahu to relaxing Maui instead.

As someone who's lived in Hawaii, I've island-hopped via plane many times.

I've flown from Maui to Oahu countless times. Ashley Probst

Growing up on Maui, I often traveled to Oahu for family gatherings. The brief flight was always an easy island-hopping experience, and I've taken the journey dozens of times.

To get to Oahu, I fly with either Mokulele or Hawaiian Airlines. Though Mokulele is a 10-seater commuter plane that feels like an intimate tour of the islands, Hawaiian Airlines is usually cheaper and offers non-stop flights.

I recently took the 40-minute flight from Maui to Oahu via Hawaiian Airlines. Here's how it went.

Maui and Oahu have vastly different vibes and offer unique experiences.

The island that's best for you depends on what you're looking to get out of your vacation. Ashley Probst

Before booking any flight, it's important to note that each Hawaiian island has its own vibe.

If you're looking for a relaxing respite, Maui may be more your speed, whereas party animals and city people may prefer Oahu's fast-paced energy.

That being said, both destinations have world-renowned beaches and surf spots, shopping and dining, historical sites, and stunning natural beauty so there's no shortage of those on either island.

If you want to experience both islands, I recommend starting with Oahu and then visiting Maui at the end of your trip.

In my opinion, traveling inter-island is less stressful than flying to the mainland.

You can expect the flight to be relatively short. Ashley Probst

No matter which islands you're hopping between, you can expect the short jaunt to be easier than flying to the mainland.

I typically arrive at the airport one hour before my flight with only one carry-on bag to expedite the airline's security-checkpoint process.

Booking an early morning flight helped avoid long lines at security.

I arrived at the airport an hour early so there was ample time to board my flight. Ashley Probst

In August, the Department of Transportation installed a tent at Kahului Airport to provide shade for passengers waiting in long lines amidst concerns about extensive wait times.

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In order to avoid these crowds and make the most of our travel day, my group and I booked an early-morning flight that departed at 8:30 a.m. Luckily, we were more intimidated by the Starbucks line than the wait to get through security.

I bought a digital boarding pass on the Hawaiian Airlines app.

I was glad I bought my ticket on the Hawaiian Airlines app. Ashley Probst

I bought my ticket through the Hawaiian Airlines app so I was able to download a digital boarding pass that came with a QR code.

I thought it was more convenient to have my ticket ready and pulled up on my phone instead of keeping track of a physical boarding pass.

Passengers crowded around the entrance to board the flight.

It seemed like every passenger wanted to be the first to board the flight and stow their belongings. Ashley Probst

Akin to the Oahu energy, passengers rushed to the front of a haphazardly formed line to board our flight and be the first to store their belongings in the overhead bins.

I thought it felt chaotic at first but the passengers eventually established a more organized flow.

After boarding your 40-minute Hawaiian Airlines flight, there's usually just enough time to enjoy a refreshing beverage before arriving in Honolulu.

We flew on the fleet's smallest plane, which is designated for inter-island travel.

We flew on a Boeing 717. Ashley Probst

Boeing 717 planes are deemed efficient for short-haul flights, including trips between islands. The Boeing 717 is the smallest in Hawaiian Airlines' fleet and can seat a maximum of 128 people

Though I didn't think the seats were as comfortable as the ones on larger vessels, the service and views were still top-notch.

There was only one bathroom at the back of the plane.

I made my way to the back of the plane. Ashley Probst

Since the flight was so quick, I don't normally use the onboard restroom. However, I wanted to see what the bathroom was like so I got up to check it out during the flight.

I thought the bathroom was clean.

I checked out the bathroom during the flight. Ashley Probst

The onboard bathroom appeared to be a lot cleaner than those on some mainland flights I've been on, perhaps because not many people use it during such a short trip.

Flight attendants had just enough time to pass out refreshments.

I received a cup of passion-orange-guava juice. Ashley Probst

During the plane ride, flight attendants passed out water and POG (passion-orange-guava) juice, which is packaged in small, sealed cups that remind me of my elementary-school days.

By the time flight attendants came back around to collect any trash, the plane was already descending into Honolulu.

In my opinion, the aerial views alone are worth the cost of a plane ticket.

We took pictures of the gorgeous views during the flight. Ashley Probst

No matter how you're flying, I think traveling inter-island guarantees spectacular views.

I also recommend sitting on the right side of the plane when flying from Maui to Oahu since these seats offer the best views of both islands.

The flight was delightful but I'd recommend flying from Oahu to Maui instead.

I definitely recommend the flight to those visiting Hawaii, but only if you're traveling in the opposite direction. Ashley Probst

I've found that the experience of island-hopping doesn't change with the direction you're going, but I'd recommend that tourists start on Oahu (most flights from the mainland will likely land in Honolulu anyway) and then visit Maui.

If I were visiting myself, I would choose Oahu's fast-paced city environment as a fun way to begin the journey, and then balance my vacation with the relaxing respite of Maui. Of course, you might not have time to island hop  if you're only staying for a few days or a week, I think it's better to fully experience one island instead of trying to squeeze in multiple stops.

Overall, I only recommend island hopping to tourists who believe they'll get the most out of their vacation by starting on Oahu and ending on Maui, going in the opposite direction of my Hawaiian Airlines flight.

Read the original article on Insider
If the past week has shown us anything, its that flying cars are no longer some far-off fantasy.

Two startups hailing from entirely different continents have successfully launched electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft just five days apart. Chinas Xpeng Motors showed off its flying car in the skies of the United Arab Emirates, while Germanys Volocopter took its air taxi for a spin in Italy.

More from Robb Report

Xpengs eVTOL, which goes by the name of X2, completed an unmanned, 90-minute test flight over the city of Dubai on Monday. The X2 aircraft is fitted with eight propellers (two at each corner) that can push it to a top speed of 80 mph with zero carbon emissions. It can also seat up to two passengers.

The X2 in Dubai.

We are making step-by-step (moves) to the international market, Xpengs general manager Minguan Qiu said in a statement. First we selected Dubai city because Dubai is the most innovative city in the world.

On Thursday, meanwhile, Volocopter conducted its first crewed public test flight in Rome. The two-seater Volocopter 2X was in the skies for about five minutes with a test pilot at the helm (no passengers, though). It flew twice along a figure-eight path at a speed of around 25 miles per hour and a height of around 131 feet.

The electric Volocopter 2X in Rome.

To recap, the Volocopter 2X is equipped with 18 fixed-pitch propellers that are each powered by a separate electric motor. Designed for short, metropolitan jaunts, the near-silent, emissions-free aircraft can cover up to 17 miles at speeds of up to 62 mph, according to Volocopter.

Perhaps more importantly, the VoloCity took off from a vertiport built at Romes Fiumicino Airport. This is Italys first advanced air mobility (AAM) testing vertiport and the launch marks a major milestone. The Aeroporti di Roma is working toward launching commercial operations between the airport and Rome by 2024.

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The Volocopter 2X.

Todays event represents a significant milestone in our path as pioneers in testing and implementing Advanced Air Mobility in Italy, and in playing our part in making urban transports increasingly sustainable and seamless, Marco Troncone, CEO of Aeroporti di Roma, said in a statement.

Volocopter also hopes to have the production model of the eVTOL operational for the 2024 Paris Olympics, with a functioning vertiport at the Pontoise-Cormeilles-en-Vexin airfield outside of Paris. Perhaps Xpeng will venture into veriports next.

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The Biden administration will allow certain asylum-seekers from crisis-stricken Venezuela to enter the country lawfully if they have a U.S.-based financial sponsor in a bid to deter illegal crossings along the southern border, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced Wednesday.

Conversely, Venezuelan migrants who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally could face rapid expulsion to northern Mexico under a recently forged agreement with the Mexican government, senior U.S. government officials told reporters. Previously, Mexican authorities generally did not accept expulsions of Venezuelans.

Under the sponsorship program, modeled after another Biden administration policy that has allowed tens of thousands of displaced Ukrainians to enter the U.S. since April, up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants will be granted permission to fly to a U.S. airport and live in the country for two years.

Like the Ukrainians welcomed in the U.S. after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, eligible Venezuelan migrants who pass background checks will be granted parole, a humanitarian immigration authority that allows beneficiaries to apply for work permits. Parole, however, does not provide a path to permanent legal status.

In addition to the numerical cap, the sponsorship program for Venezuelans includes several eligibility restrictions, including a ban for migrants who cross the U.S.-Mexico border unlawfully after Wednesday's announcement and those who have been deported from the U.S. in the past five years.

Venezuelans who illegally enter Mexico or Panama after Wednesday will also be disqualified from the sponsorship process, which U.S. officials said is contingent on the Mexican government upholding its commitment to accept the return of migrants from Venezuela who enter the U.S. illegally.

The eligibility rules, a senior U.S. official said, are designed to discourage Venezuelans from embarking on the perilous, multi-country trek across Central America and Mexico that tens of thousands of Venezuelan migrants have already undertaken over the past year to reach the U.S.

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The trek often includes a days-long journey on foot across Panama's infamous Darien Gap, a roadless jungle that more than 150,000 migrants, 107,000 of them from Venezuela, have traversed this year, according to Panamanian government statistics.

"You hear the stories out of the Darien Gap. These journeys across the continent are incredibly dangerous. They're fueled by human smuggling organizations. We're seeing loss of life," a senior U.S. official said. "So, we view this as a humanitarian issue. We want to reduce irregular migration and expand legal pathways."

Wednesday's announcement could mark a seismic shift in U.S. border policy for Venezuelan migrants, who have journeyed to the U.S.-Mexico border in record numbers over the past year amid their home country's economic collapse and political turmoil.

Since October 2021, U.S. border officials have processed more than 150,000 Venezuelan migrants, government data show. Up to now, the vast majority of Venezuelan migrants have been released and allowed to pursue asylum claims because the U.S. generally has not been able to expel them to Mexico or Venezuela, where the repressive government in Caracas rejects U.S. deportations.

But senior U.S. officials said migrants who bypass the new sponsorship process and seek to enter the country unlawfully will face expulsion to Mexico under Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that blocks migrants from seeking asylum. The pandemic-era policy has remained in place due to a federal court order.

"These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Wednesday.

In a statement, the Mexican foreign ministry confirmed the agreement with the Biden administration, saying it will continue "Mexico's unilateral policy of receiving migrants under Title 42 for humanitarian reasons."

"Given the current increase in migration and the need for orderly, safe, regular and humane access for migrants in the region, Mexico will temporarily allow some Venezuelan citizens to enter our national territory across the northern border," the Mexican foreign ministry added.

Those looking to sponsor Venezuelan asylum-seekers will need to submit an online application with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Prospective sponsors will be required to undergo background checks and prove they are in the U.S. lawfully and have the financial means to sponsor Venezuelan migrants.

Asked how Venezuelan migrants with no family or friends in the U.S. will find sponsors, a senior U.S. official said the Biden administration will work with the private sector to identify would-be sponsors, noting the aim is to replicate the success of the sponsorship policy for Ukrainians, dubbed Uniting for Ukraine.

Under Uniting for Ukraine, 67,000 Ukrainians with U.S. sponsors have been granted humanitarian parole to enter the country, DHS figures show. In less than six months, USCIS has received sponsorship requests from over 146,000 U.S.-based individuals.

U.S. officials said they will evaluate the Venezuelan sponsorship program to determine whether to continue it. A version of the policy that was considered internally included migrants from other countries, including Cuba and Nicaragua, which have also seen record numbers of their citizens journey to the U.S., people familiar with the matter said.

"We're committed to implementing this new process and seeing if it works. And if it does in fact have its intended effect, we may consider in the future whether we can apply it elsewhere," a U.S. official said.

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jan6-hearing-moments.jpg House Jan. 6 select committee hearing - Credit: Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post/Getty Images

The Jan. 6 committee is holding its ninth and  supposedly  final public hearing on Thursday. The panel is expected to key on former President Donald Trumps role in the riot, and to exhibit evidence provided by a Danish film crew that trailed longtime Trump ally Roger Stone, who has been connected to extremist groups who played a role in the attack. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) told CNN this week that the committee will present pretty surprising new material.

The committees final hearing was initially scheduled for Sept. 28, but was postponed due to Hurricane Ian. The hearing on Thursday will be its first since July 21, when the committee detailed what Trump was doing as the riot unfolded, bringing an end to a blistering two months of televised revelations about the effort to overturn the election results culminating with the violent breach of Congress. Heres a refresher on some of the biggest moments from those first eight hearings as the committee prepares to present its findings to the public for the final time.

More from Rolling Stone

Trump had a direct and personal role in effort to push states to overturn the election results

The committees fourth hearing detailed how Trump pressured individual state legislators to get them to go back into session and declare him the winner, or to send two slates of electors to Congress so that Vice President Pence could choose the one declaring Trump the winner. It didnt work, which led Trumps team to try to fabricate fake slates of electors for states to send to Washington. According to federal district Judge David Carter, President Trump and others likely violated multiple federal laws by engaging in this scheme, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said.

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Mark Meadows and Steve Bannon warned things were going to get bad on Jan. 6

Former Mark Meadows aide Cassidy Hutchinson testified in June that the former chief of staff told her things might get real, real bad on Jan. 6.

The warning came on Jan. 2, 2021, after former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani told Hutchinson she should be excited about what was going to happen in four days. Hutchinson said Giuliani said something to the effect of, Were going to the Capitol, its going to be great. The president is going to be there. Hes going to look powerful.

Hutchinson says she then spoke with Meadows about the conversation. Meadows, who was in his office, didnt look up from his phone. He said something to the effect of, Theres a lot going on, Cass. I dont know, Hutchinson recounted of what Meadows told her in response to Giulianis comments. Things might get real, real bad on Jan. 6.

Bannon said on his radio show a few days later, on Jan. 5, that all hell was going to break loose on Jan. 6. The committee revealed he had talked to Trump earlier in the day.

Trump demanded armed supporters be let into rally before calling for march to Capitol

Hutchinson also testified that on Jan. 6, Trump insisted that security measures be taken down at his Ellipse rally in order to boost the size of the crowd, arguing that people carrying weapons were not here to hurt me. Hutchinson said she overheard Trump say something to the effect of, I dont fucking care that they have weapons. Theyre not here to hurt me. Take the fucking [magnometers] away. Let my people in. They can march to the Capitol from here.

Cassidy Hutchinson says Trump wanted a bigger crowd at his rally, and he said:



"I don't fucking care that they have weapons. They're not here to hurt me. Take the fucking mags away. Let my people in. They can march to the Capitol from here. #January6thHearings pic.twitter.com/cRJkpIkv7C  philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) June 28, 2022

President Trump was aware that a number of the individuals in the crowd had weapons and were wearing body armor, added committee Vice Chair Liz Cheney before playing a clip of Trump telling the crowd that, Were going to walk down  and Ill be there with you  to the Capitol.

Trump lunged at Secret Service agent who refused to take him to the Capitol

Hutchinson also testified that on Jan. 6 an irate Trump railed against aides and Secret Service officers who refused to transport him to the Capitol, allegedly yelling, Im the f-ing president, take me to the Capitol now, and attempting to grab the steering wheel of the presidential limousine as it left the rally at the Ellipse.

The president reached up toward the front of the vehicle to grab at the steering wheel, Hutchinson said. Mr. Engel grabbed his arm and said, Sir, you need to take your hand off the steering wheel. Were going back to the West Wing. Were not going to the Capitol. Mr. Trump then used his free hand to lunge toward Bobby Engel. When Mr. Ornato had recounted this story to me he had motioned toward his clavicles.

Multiple GOP lawmakers sought pardons for trying to overturn the election

Perry contacted the White House in the weeks after Jan 6. to seek a presidential pardon, Cheney said in June of Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.), who tried to get a Trump-loving official appointed attorney general after William Barr didnt do enough to help overturn President Joe Bidens win. Multiple other Republican congressmen also sought presidential pardons for their roles in attempting to overturn the 2020 election, Cheney added.

Josh Hawley ran away from the rioters he had cheered on

Hawley voted against certifying the election results, in addition to raising a fist in solidarity with mob.

Here's Josh Hawley sprinting away from the mob he saluted when he had a police barricade to protect him. pic.twitter.com/uEJXdYmsjv  nikki mccann ramirez (@NikkiMcR) July 22, 2022

Trump personally tried to tamper with Jan. 6 witnesses

Cheney closed the committees sixth hearing with a revelation that Trump attempted to call a witness following the committees previous hearing. The witness did not answer the call, instead having their lawyer inform the committee. Cheney says the committee supplied the information to the Department of Justice.

It seems others tried to tamper with witnesses, as well. Cheney also read a statement from a witness who was told they would stay in good graces in Trump World if they continued to be a team player. The witness was also warned that Trump reads deposition transcripts. Another witness was called before their deposition and told that he knows youre loyal, and youre going to do the right thing when you go in for your deposition.

Trump told staff Mike Pence deserved to be hanged on Jan. 6.

The rioters attacking the Capitol set up a mock gallows for Vice President Mike Pence, who refused to illegally stop the certification of the election. The committee revealed that Trump endorsed the crowds chants of Hang Mike Pence when speaking to his advisers. Maybe our supporters have the right idea, he said, according Cheney. Mike Pence deserves it.

Trump bashed Pence on Twitter as the riot was unfolding, which, as the committee revealed during its third hearing, caused the mob to surge. The situation was already bad, Sarah Matthews, a former aide to Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, recounted. It felt like he was pouring gasoline on the fire by tweeting that.

The hearings made abundantly clear that Trump condoned the riot. President Trump believed his supporters at the Capitol  and I quote were doing what they should be doing, Cheney said. This is what he told his staff as they pleaded with him to call off the mob.

Trump not only personally refused to call off the mob, he ignored a call from the Pentagon, instead opting to call senators to encourage them to delay or object to the certification, as Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) said in July. Nevertheless, Trump was well aware of the situation at Congress. The committee established that he and his White House team knew within 15 minutes of leaving the stage at the Ellipse that the Capitol was besieged and under attack.

Best of Rolling Stone

Click here to read the full article.
150 dollar old fashioned cocktail

Robert Haynes

Who would pay $150 for a bottled old-fashioned? We guessed "whiskey geeks with deep pockets." Drinks industry vet Robert Haynes calls them "sophisticated sippers," and he's betting they'll clear out this year's stock by December.

On October 12, Chicago spirits brand Sunday's Finest Cocktails launched the limited edition Gold Fashioned, a ready-to-drink (RTD), bottled old-fashioned that puts a hefty price tag on a classic cocktail.

The bottle has something of a pedigree: Frontman creator and co-founder Haynes is an ex-Chicago bartender, best known for his tenure at The Violet Hour, a James Beard Award-winning cocktail bar in Logan Square, where he also co-founded the acclaimed (now closed) cocktail bar, Analogue, in 2013. He then co-founded Apologue Liqueurs in 2018. And after a sell-out first batch in 2021, Sunday's Finest Gold Fashioned's 2022 blend elevates last year's concept even further.

What makes this bottled cocktail, dubbed by its creators (which also includes co-founders Jordan Tepper and Damiane Nickles) as the "world's first luxury RTD," worth the price? The production is small, topping out at just 3,000 bottlings, and the packaging design is an experience of its own. The recipe involves a bespoke blend of "vintage" Bardstown-born bourbon and Indiana rye, plus proprietary saffron bitters, crafted sustainably by the handful with ingredients from every inhabitable continent.

World-Class Whiskey and Bitters

A typical old-fashioned cocktail is built with bourbon, simple syrup, and in the words of David Wondrich, "a couple splashes of bitters." For that last part, Haynes and his team had a different idea: "What if we sourced the world's most exquisite spices from the six inhabitable continents?"

The base is a blend of 15-year Kentucky straight bourbon, nine-year Kentucky straight bourbon, and six-year Indiana straight rye. The rye is MGP, well-known in the spirits business for producing some of the world's best whiskeys. The bourbon is sourced from an independent barrel broker in Bardstown, and its origins are under wraps, tied up with an NDA.

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Those spices (and continents) include Afghan saffron (Asia), Tahitian vanilla (Oceania), single-estate Ecuadorian cacao (South America), French gentian root and bitter Seville orange peel (Europe), and fair-trade demerara sugar from Malawi (Africa). More specifically, the saffron is hand-picked and -packaged, sourced directly from Afghan farmers, via fellow certified B Corp Rumi spice.

150 dollar old fashioned cocktail

Robert Haynes

For the Grade-A Tahitian vanilla, Sunday's Finest partnered with Chicago-based Rare Tea Cellar, helmed by Rod Markus, "known for sourcing the absolute best of the best," says Haynes  think Michelin-star restaurants and cocktail bars  "and we found great vanilla beans that were almost a foot long and fat as your finger." The bitter Seville orange peel is, of course, from Spain. And the gentian root? "Wild-harvested from the French Alps," says Haynes. Sweetening the deal is the fair-trade demerara sugar from Malawi, which Haynes says makes for a silky syrup that brings out the whiskey's complexity.

Lastly, the package comes with an atomizer of orange zest to spritz your drink with, should you be missing the optional orange peel garnish.

Batches and Blending

Any bottle that says "small batch" isn't saying much. After all, size is relative. For this, we'll make an exception: Sunday's Finest Gold Fashioned is produced in what can only be described as one big small batch, starting with a single liter. It was a "slow and steady production process," says Haynes. "Also, everything is very expensive, so not a lot of room for air, especially once you get to larger batch sizes."

From liter to gallon and, finally, full-batch size, tasting and tweaking took two months' time.

Serving suggestion is to "slowly" pour about 2 oz. over ice (the bigger the cube, the better, for less watering down). Spritz once with orange zest. By these measurements, each 750 ml. bottle contains about 12 servings, which puts you at $12.50 per drink. For those with a slightly heavier pour, the per-drink price is on par with a bar serve.

To Haynes' point: "If you're going to even your great cocktail establishment in a major market, the house old-fashioned costs 15 to 17 bucks, depending on where you are. I'm sure it's going to be made with a nice whiskey. Chances are, it's highly unlikely that it's going to be made with something that has a six-, nine-, or certainly 15-year age statement on it."

The Gold Fashioned is available to purchase online at sundaysfinest.com and ReserveBar, as well as select retailers nationwide.
Kazuki Takahashi

Peter Endig/EPA/Shutterstock

More details are emerging about the July 4 death of Yu-Gi-Oh! creator Kazuki Takahashi.

The Japanese manga artist is being remembered as a "hero" after dying while reportedly trying to help rescue a U.S. soldier, an 11-year-old girl and her mother from a current at a dive spot in Japan.

Major Robert Bourgeau, 49, told military newspaper Stars and Stripes that Takahashi had tried to help rescue those who were caught in the riptide when he drowned. A spokesman for the Japan Coast Guard added that Takahashi's body was recovered 1,000 feet away from the shore of Awa, Nago.

The Japan Coast Guard did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

A marine official reported on July 6 that a body was floating in the water, Japanese outlet NHK reported. First responders arrived on the scene and declared that individual dead. The next day, it was confirmed to be Takahashi. He was 60.

RELATED: Boaters Whose Ship Sank in Shark-Infested Waters Have Emotional Reunion with Coast Guard Rescuers

"You play that 'what if' game a lot," Bourgeau told Stars and Stripes, adding of Takahashi, "This guy had a huge impact on the world."

On July 4, Bourgeau, who is from Missoula, Montana, was serving as a scuba diving instructor at Mermaid's Grotto around 2 p.m. local time.

He recalled, "The conditions were really, really rough." He saw a local woman screaming for help as her daughter and a 39-year-old soldier were being swallowed by a heavy current. They were roughly 100 yards from shore at the time as the six-foot waves hit them.

Bourgeau teamed up with one of his scuba diving students to reach snorkelers, and another student called for help.

RELATED: 3 People Fending Off Sharks Rescued 'Just in the Nick of Time' in Gulf of Mexico After Boat Sinks

While Bourgeau managed to rescue the girl, he said he quickly grew tired as he pulled her closer to the shore. Along the way, he came across her mother, who by that time had also been pulled into the dangerous waters.

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"I grabbed mom and I grabbed [the girl] and I just kicked for all life," he said.

Takahashi also intervened and jumped into the water himself, Bourgeau said, telling Stars and Stripes he didn't see him in the water. Instead, one of Bourgeau's students spotted him coming in and out of the current until he was pulled away completely.

RELATED VIDEO: At Least 22 Dead, Dozens Missing in Venezuela Landslides After Unusually Heavy Rains

"He's a hero," Bourgeau said. "He died trying to save someone else."

Bourgeau said he was able to bring the mother and daughter to safety; however, he was not able to help the soldier while in the water.

"That was one the hardest things I have ever had to do, I let [the man] go so I could save myself," he wrote in a witness statement that the Army gave the publication.

Never miss a story  sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"I didn't think I was going to make it," he said. Bourgeau added that his children were on his mind during ordeal.

Once he made it out, he instructed the soldier on how to get out of the current and to shallow waters.

The manga artist was traveling alone and was found wearing snorkeling equipment, the Coast Guard told NBC News, which also reported that the Coast Guard said there were "damages to his body which looked like they were caused by some sort of marine animal."

Sources also told NHK that Takahashi took out a car rental for roughly three weeks. However, before he was scheduled to return it, the company was notified that the vehicle had been sitting idle for some time. The car was found by employees 12 kilometers (roughly 7.5 miles) from where Takahashi was recovered.

Takahashi, whose real name was Kazuo, started his career as a manga artist, according to The New York Times. He found success after a story he wrote about a spiky-haired boy named Yugi and his magical gaming powers gained a following.

Yu-Gi-Oh! went on to become a global craze that spawned trading cards, a long-running anime series, books, movies and video games.
Four students and a teacher were injured after a fire broke out during a chemistry class at a Virginia high school, officials said.

A possible fire in a chemistry classroom was reported Wednesday shortly before 9:30 a.m. at Dinwiddie County High School in Dinwiddie, located about 40 miles south of Richmond, fire officials said.

Three students who suffered burn injuries in the fire were transported to a Richmond hospital, including one by air medical helicopter, Dinwiddie Fire & EMS said. A fourth student was treated at the scene for a minor burn injury, and a teacher was later transported to a local hospital, also due to a burn injury, the department confirmed.

PHOTO: Students were released early due to an incident in a chemistry classroom at Dinwiddie High School in Dinwiddie, Va., Oct. 12, 2022. (WRIC )

The conditions of the hospitalized victims are not available at this time, fire officials stated.

"The exact chain of events leading up to the fire remain under investigation," Dinwiddie Fire & EMS said in a statement.

MORE: Carbon monoxide leak reported at Pennsylvania day care, 28 hospitalized: Fire officials

The fire occurred during a demonstration and was confined to the classroom, according to Dinwiddie County Public Schools.

"The fire alarm was pulled and all students were immediately evacuated out of the building to their designated safe areas," the district said in a statement.

Fire crews responded to the school within minutes of the emergency call, by which time the fire had been extinguished and all students and staff had been evacuated from the building, fire officials confirmed.

Students were dismissed before noon and will remain home on Thursday for remote learning. Students will be able to return to the school building on Friday and support services will be available, the district said.

4 students, 1 teacher injured in classroom fire originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Stock image (PA)

A passenger plane was escorted to Stansted airport by RAF aircraft on Wednesday night after a potential threat was reported onboard.

The plane - which had been travelling from Dalaman in Turkey to Manchester - was diverted to the London airport after police were informed of the incident shortly after 9pm.

Two Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon aircraft were scrambled from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, to intercept the aircraft that was causing concern.

It was escorted to Stansted, were it was parked a distance form the airport and was met by police upon landing.

Passengers were evacuated from the plane, and the runway was closed while officers investigated.

Essex Police said on Twitter: Shortly before 9pm, we received a report of a potential threat on board. [The plane] was escorted to Stansted, where it landed safely.

We led a safety operation during which a https://t.co/UQCqVh1dmK flight from Dalaman to Manchester was diverted to @STN_Airport tonight, Weds 2 Oct.



Shortly before 9pm, we received a report of a potential threat on board.



It was escorted to Stansted, where it landed safely. pic.twitter.com/ZzFB9Sd3Gg  Essex Police (@EssexPoliceUK) October 12, 2022

It was parked away from the main passenger terminal. The runway was closed for a time while enquiries were carried out.

Officers were then able to establish there was no threat on board. Onward travel was then organised for the passengers and the runway was re-opened.

One woman told how her friends daughters - who were aboard flight LS922 - were left terrified by the incident.

My friend is on this plane with her family, she wrote on Twitter on Wednesday night. She has two autistic little girls who are complete meltdown mode right now.

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Budget airline Jet2 apologised to customers who were affected by the incident.

On Twitter on Wenesday night, it said: Our teams are working very hard to look after customers, and we would like to apologise to everyone onboard for any inconvenience or upset caused by this unforeseen incident.

We understand that the authorities were alerted to a potential security threat, however this has been downgraded and the incident has been declared as over.

A Stansted airport spokesperson added: A Jet2.com flight from Dalaman to Manchester diverted to Stansted Airport this evening. The plane landed safely and parked on a remote stand away from the main passenger terminal with Essex Police in attendance.

The runway was closed for a short time but has now re-opened.
President Joe Biden creates his first national monument. Los Angeles City Council meeting ends with protesters shutting officials down. And how scientists are using rats with human cells in their brains to better understand us.

 Hey! Laura Davis here. It's Wednesday  ready for the news?

But first, you gotta see these pictures: The Natural History Museum's prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition revealed some seriously striking images of creatures around the world. I love the flamingos and the Russian house bears. Check out the incredible pictures here.

The Short List is a snappy USA TODAY news roundup. Subscribe to the newsletter here or text messages here.

'This is the story of America the beautiful'

We've got a new national monument, y'all. President Biden on Wednesday signed the designation of Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument, protecting for future generations a rugged landscape in the heart of the Rocky Mountains where the legendary 10th Mountain Division trained for alpine warfare during World War II. "This is the story of America the beautiful," Biden said. "You just can feel the power in this place." It is the country's 130th national monument. Learn more about the new national monument here.

Los Angeles City Council meeting ends amid rowdy protests

Another day of uncertainty in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, the Los Angeles City Council's former president, Nury Martinez, resigned in disgrace after audio leaked this week of her using racist language in a conversation with other councilmembers. Earlier in the day, the embattled council attempted a meeting to discuss the issues, but it ended before city business could be conducted when demonstrators drowned out officials. Protesters stomped, clapped and chanted in celebration as the chamber's lights dimmed and officials filed out of the room. Following Wednesday's meeting, council member Mitch O'Farrell, who is acting president, said the council members in the recording must resign from their positions to allow the city to move on.

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Timeline: How racist leaked audio dismantled Los Angeles City Council.

 Protesters call for resignations after racist remarks caught on tape.

What everyone's talking about

The Short List is free, but several stories we link to are subscriber-only. Consider supporting our journalism and become a USA TODAY digital subscriber today.

Former Texas police officer arrested after shooting teen in parking lot

The San Antonio Police Department announced Tuesday that former officer James Brennand was arrested and faces charges of aggravated assault after he shot a 17-year-old in a McDonald's parking lot. "It was unjustified both administratively and criminally," San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said. Brennand was responding to an unrelated call and saw Erik Cantu sitting in his car eating a hamburger. Thinking it was a potentially stolen car that had evaded him earlier, Brennand approached the vehicle  a move that ultimately ended in Cantu's shooting. Brennand was later fired, while Cantu was left unconscious and on life support.

Accidental nuclear Armageddon?

President Biden recently said the world is now at the highest risk of nuclear "Armageddon" in decades due to Russia President Vladimir Putin's increasingly threatening language. The use of nuclear weapons has huge disadvantages besides the threat of all-out world war. The radioactive fallout would likely kill thousands of civilians, destroy infrastructure, and contaminate the food and water supply. Experts worry a nuclear exchange between Russia and the U.S. could happen accidentally, even if neither side intentionally wanted one. History shows the potential is there.

Cuban Missile Crisis, a misplaced tape: When the world came close to nuclear disaster.

Ukraine news: Russia arrests 8, including 5 Russians, in Crimean bridge bombing; Pentagon derides 'nuclear saber-rattling.' Wednesday's updates.

Real quick

 What's the weather up to in your neck of the woods? Check your local forecast here.

Unlocking the human brain with rats?

These rats have human brains in their brains. Yeah, that might sound like the newest Halloween special on Netflix, but this is real. Dr. Sergiu Pasca knows that brain conditions can be difficult to understand and treat, so he put clumps of human cells in the brains of rats at his Stanford University lab. Teach a rat that it can get water from a spigot only when its human cells are activated, and it will learn how in about two weeks. Pasca believes his work will eventually help scientists better understand psychiatric conditions  like autism and schizophrenia  and by using cells from typical brains in some rats and cells from people with brain conditions in others, he can see what's different. Keep reading.

Dr. Sergiu Pasca, a researcher at Stanford University, says the study is helping him "discover defects you would not be able to see in a dish."

Are these images too similar?

Reader votes are in: Yesterday, I asked you to vote on whether the two images below looked just a bit too much alike. Out of 168 total votes, 84 of you thought there was no infringement: "Yeah, it's the same picture, but it's not EXACTLY the same. Think of the fashion industry." And 73 readers thought that yes, it is copyright infringement. "I'd be hopping mad if that was my photo of Prince." The rest of the voters wanted to know what SCOTUS had to say about it. Thanks for voting!

As it turns out, the Supreme Court on Wednesday was just about as divided as Short List readers. The justices argued for nearly two hours over the case that pits Andy Warhol's foundation against a photographer who claims copyright infringement on a 1981 photo of Prince. But it's not so simple: Is it different enough because it's Warhol? Is a different meaning enough to distinguish the two? Here's what happened in court.

Are these too similar? Exhibits included in a Brief in Opposition filed to the Supreme Court of the United States for a copyright case between Lynn Goldsmith and the Andy Warhol Foundation concerning a 1981 photo by Goldsmith of the musician Prince (L) and illustrations by Andy Warhol based on the image (R).

A break from the news

 Quiet quitting is a trend at work. Can you also quietly quit your relationship?

 October Prime Day ends today! Shop these 175+ deals while you still can.

 How much do I need to retire? What to consider when making plans.

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Send her an email at laura@usatoday.com or follow along with her adventures  and misadventures  on Twitter. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Camp Hale National Monument, Los Angeles City Council, Erik Cantu shooting, nuclear war threats. Wednesday's news.
"Food is a passion for me and its really important for me to try local cuisines," De Laurentiis told T+L.

Sonja Flemming/CBS via Getty Images

Food Network star Giada De Laurentiis is known for cooking up classic Italian favorites stateside, but while traveling  to Italy or anywhere else  she enjoys meals with intention and experience in mind.

"Food is a passion for me and its really important for me to try local cuisines," De Laurentiis told Travel + Leisure. "With that being said, I like to be mindful about what Im consuming as I never want to feel sluggish and tired while exploring an amazing place."

The celebrity chef, who recently launched her own Italian cuisine and lifestyle-inspired e-commerce site, Giadzy  By Giada de Laurentiis, has zeroed in on making authentic Italian cooking accessible for all after having met with farmers and developed new recipes as a part of the endeavor.

Its been a dream of mine to bring authentic Italian ingredients to people's homes and I feel really honored to share products, and these farmers stories with the world," she said of the site. "We do so much research on the regions and traditions these products are derived from and many of the purveyors are friends or people my family has known for generations. Its thoughtful and incredibly intentional."

Giadzy is currently home to 150 Italian recipes with 100 more coming before the holidays, she told us.

De Laurentiis also clued us in on her routines and go-tos when it comes to traveling. Naturally the author of "Eat Better, Feel Better: My Recipes for Wellness and Healing, Inside and Out" told T+L, that "everything is a balance," when it comes to eating on a trip.

"I plan my meals," she said. "I get excited about new restaurants to try and [then] leave the rest up to spontaneity."



However, when it comes to travel prep, De Laurentiis trades spontaneity for practicality.

For starters, the food expert is keen on hydrating while on a flight. And if she doesn't have fresh snacks on hand, such as sliced apples or fennel, she'll have Pan d'aria Tradizione Puffed Crackers in her bag.

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"I find the cleaner I eat on a flight, the better I feel when I arrive," she noted.

And when it comes to beating jet lag, she readies her mind and body as much as possible before takeoff by setting her watch for the time zone of her destination.

"I also always travel with a scarf to put around my neck because I get cold," she said. "I like to layer so Im ready for whatever."

For skincare on-the-go, we can't say we're surprised that De Laurentiis has a homemade recipe for her exfoliant  rice flour and olive oil  that she uses everyday and includes in her travel kit.

Much like all explorers and travel lovers, the chef chalks her workouts up to walking in new places  but will pack a workout band for a post-flight stretch session in her hotel room.

"I find that Im active all of the time, so an actual workout feels less necessary," she said.





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Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
One of Marvel Comics greatest and sometimes heartbreaking love stories is that of the X-Mens Storm and TChalla, the Black Panther. Even if they didnt have a romantic history, the two share the honor of being the publishers most prominent African superheroes. But the bond runs far deeper than that for the Kenyan mutant weather goddess and the King of Wakanda. Although, it took decades for both characters to tie the knot. But could we maybe see that history play out, in a way, in Wakanda Forever? Before we get to that, heres a history of the romance between the King and Queen of Wakanda.

The Marvel Comics History of X-Mens Storm and Black Panther

Marvel Comics

Storms history in the comics is far more expansive than anything we saw in the Fox X-Men films. She was born Ororo Munroe, the child of an American photojournalist and a Kenyan Princess. Although born in the U.S., Ororos parents eventually moved to Cairo, Egypt. While still a child, both her parents died in a tragic accident, leaving Ororo homeless. Left to wander the streets of Cairo alone, she became a child pickpocket, stealing for Achmed El Gibar, who was essentially an adoptive parent for her. She would later work for the Shadow King, which facilitated her first encounter with a young Charles Xavier.

Childhood Sweethearts

Marvel Comics

Eventually, she left Cairo to discover her roots in her mothers homeland of Kenya. On her way there, she came across a young TChalla, who had left Wakanda to learn about the world. He ended up getting kidnapped, and Ororo rescued him using her recently emerged mutant weather-controlling powers. The two teenagers had an instant bond, and young love blossomed between them. But the duties of the throne called to TChalla, and the two would not reunite until they were both adult superheroes, one an Avenger, and one an X-Man. This story was told by the Uncanny X-Men dream team of Chris Claremont and John Byrne, in 1980s Marvel-Team Up #100.

Marvel Comics

However, thats not the only version of how the pair met. In a later Storm mini-series in 2006, their first encounter was retconned. It was now a young TChalla who saved a young Storm. At the time, Marvel Comics was giving more importance to their Avengers franchise than the X-Men, so they probably wanted to uplift one of Earths Mightiest Heroes over an X-Man. Regardless of what the true first meeting was, their young romance was still a part of their past. It was shocking that it took Marvel Comics over 25 years to revisit it in a meaningful way.

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The Marriage of King TChalla and Queen Ororo

Marvel Comics

In the mid-2000s, TChalla rekindled his love for Ororo, and helped her reunite with both her American and Kenyan relatives. In 2006, in Black Panther Volume 4: #14 and #15, King TChalla finally proposed to Storm. Ororo, having broken up with her former X-Man love Forge, said yes to her childhood sweetheart. The wedding took place in Black Panther Volume 4: #18. This occurred right in the middle of the superhero Civil War, and the Avengers and others called a truce so everyone could attend the festive occasion. For one day at least, they all put their grievances aside to celebrate the happy couple.

Wakandan Power Couple

Marvel Comics

For the next six years, the royal couple had a fairytale romance. Well, as much as can be possible for two active superheroes. During the Civil War, both Black Panther and Storm were on team Cap (something MCU TChalla was definitely not at first). For a brief time, both Black Panther and Storm were members of the Fantastic Four. In fact, the FFs Baxter Building served as the Wakandan embassy in the United States. When TChalla slipped into a coma after the events of Dark Reign, after which his sister Shuri became Black Panther, Ororo stayed by his side as Queen until he awoke. What would ultimately tear them apart for good was their loyalties to their respective superhero families  the Avengers and the X-Men.

Why Did Black Panther and Storm Divorce?

Marvel Comics

Ultimately, what broke the royal couple apart was the Avengers vs. X-Men event, or AvX. When the Phoenix force was returning to Earth, the mutant population, which had been decimated by the Scarlet Witch, believed the Phoenix could reactivate the X-gene. The Avengers saw the destructive Phoenix Force as too unpredictable, something that needed stopping. This caused a massive war between the two teams. Black Panther took the side of the Avengers, and his wife, the side of the X-Men.

Marvel Comics

When Namor the Sub-Mariner, now powered by the Phoenix and on the side of the X-Men, flooded Wakanda, the casualties were severe. Unable to forgive his wife for taking the side of the X-Men over the kingdom she ruled over, TChalla had the High Priest of the Panther Clan annul their marriage. It just so happened that the Black Panther was the High Priest. The two heroes separated, and although there was much bitterness between them at first, they are now fairly amicable exes.

Black Panther and Storms Son, Azari

Marvel Entertainment

Although Storm and Black Panther split up in the 616 universe, there were worlds in the Multiverse where they not only didnt divorce, they actually had a child. On both Earth-555326 and Earth-10943, the two had a son named Azari TChalla. In the animated film Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow, they introduced us to the first version of Azari, a teen who inherited his fathers powers of the Heart-Shaped Herb, and the control over lightning of his mutant mother.

For the comics, another teenage version of Azari debuted in 2010, with the same power set. He lives on the same Earth as other next-generation heroes like Spider-Girl. So far, theres no sign that TChalla and Ororo in the 616 are getting back together, much less having a child. But anything is possible in comics. And eventually, those comics might inform the MCU.

Could Storm Make Her MCU Debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever?

For years, fans have speculated that Storm might make her MCU debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Janelle Monae even petitioned Ryan Coogler to play the part. But so far, it seems like Storm is not in the film. At least, thats what theyve told us. Marvel has held on to some pretty big secrets before. So we wouldnt be that shocked to see Storm show up. One popular fan theory suggests that Nakia is an assumed name for Ororo. One that she used as a Wakandan War Dog, and her mutant powers will activate in Wakanda Forever. Thus, revealing that she has always been Storm. Now wouldnt that be wild?

And if Nakia becomes Black Panther, it would mean our second protector of Wakanda is an iconic X-Man. But since Nakia is a long-time comic book character, were not sure Marvel would want to erase one character to serve another. While we sadly wont ever see Chadwick Bosemans Panther romance Storm, the Multiverse is vast. So who knows? Maybe Storm and another version of TChalla are happily married on Battleworld? Meaning we may see a version of the royal couple in Secret Wars. Stranger things have happened in the MCU.
New York-based French jewelry brand Ginette NY is celebrating 20 years in business with its latest collection.

Founder Frederique Dessemond is marking the anniversary by reviving some of the labels most iconic designs and putting them together in a historic charm sautoir and charm bracelet, along with a 20-piece anniversary collection.

More from WWD

Not only is this the brands 20th anniversary but it is also the 20th birthday of my oldest daughter. She has been with me this entire journey, Dessemond said.

Back in 2002 when I launched Ginette NY I wanted to create elegant and modern pieces, something that the person wearing it could emotionally connect to as well, she remarked of her beginnings. The brand has grown from there with a mix of understated yet luxurious pieces like delicate bangles, sparkling drop earrings, tiny studs and pendants.

For two decades, Dessemonds background in art history and knowledge of modern French architecture has infused each Ginette NY design with a subtle balance of structure, emotion and sensuality. Using pure materials and natural stones, combined with architectural and design inspiration, the collections are a luxurious reflection of her artistic perspective.

When I started, we just did gold with small diamonds, then I introduced powerful stones like onyx, malachite and turquoise. This was so the wearer could enjoy the power of the stones and their benefits, she said.

The new collection ranges in price from $300 to $3,000, selling at Ginette NY boutiques.

Click here to read the full article.
As Hispanic Heritage Month continues through Saturday, a top Department of Defense Official said more can be done to increase Hispanic representation in the military.

Hispanic Heritage Month was signed into law in 1988 by former President Ronald Reagan and recognizes the culture and contributions of American citizens of Hispanic origins coming from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

It is observed annually from Sept. 15-Oct. 15.

Gilbert Cisneros, the DODs undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, spoke during the 19th National LATINA Symposium's Distinguished Military Service Awards on Sept. 30.

"We still need more improvement in Hispanic representation in our officer corps and especially in our general and flag officers," Cisneros said.

More:Latinos are fastest growing population in US military, but higher ranks remain out of reach

According to Army demographic data released in June, out of 465,239 soldiers, 80,244, or 17.2%, are Hispanic.

Of the 80,244, 71,106, or 19%, make up the regular Armys enlisted ranks; 6,799, or 9%, are officers; and 1,780, or 12%, are warrant officers.

According to the demographics, 12,427 of the enlisted soldiers are Hispanic women; 1,666 are Hispanic women officers; and there are 246 Hispanic women warrant officers.

None of the Army's Hispanic women officers are higher than the rank of colonel, while there are 70 command sergeants major on the enlisted side.

There are no Army Hispanic men at a brigadier general or four-star general rank, while there are three Hispanic men major generals and one Hispanic man lieutenant general.

With Fort Bragg being the Armys most populated installation, heres a look at its Hispanic service members who have served locally and made contributions in the military.

More:Fayetteville Explained: Puerto Rican contributions to America's largest military installation

Medal of Honor recipients

Master Sgt. Roy Benavidez was a Congressional Medal of Honor recipient for his May 2, 1968, actions in Vietnam.

 Staff Sgt. Roy Benavidez, who was assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces Command, was at the forward operating base in Loc Ninh on May 2, 1968, when helicopters attempting an extrication of a 12-man Special Forces reconnaissance team returned after being attacked by enemy fire.

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Benavidez, having voluntarily boarded a returning aircraft to assist in another extraction attempt, jumped from the chopper and ran toward wounded members of the team while under enemy fire, becoming wounded in the leg, face and head.

Disregarding his injuries, he threw smoke canisters to direct the extrication aircraft and moved wounded team members toward the aircraft, providing protective fire.

Under enemy fire, he recovered a body and classified documents of a dead team member, again being wounded, this time in the abdomen and back.

After the helicopter crashed, killing the pilot, Benavidez aided the wounded who were aboard it and created a defense perimeter.

He called in tactical air strikes to suppress the enemys fire, and, when administering aid to a wounded team member, was struck in his thigh.

Still, Benavidez helped move soldiers toward another extrication aircraft that arrived, killing two enemy soldiers in the process.

Benevidez's final act was to collect or destroy classified material and ensure the remaining wounded were brought to the aircraft, before being extricated himself.

He is credited with saving the lives of at least eight men.

Staff Sgt. Felix Conde-Falcon is a Medal of Honor recipient who was killed in Vietnam.

 Staff Sgt. Felix Conde-Falcon was part of the D Co., 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division when he was killed April 4, 1969, in Vietnam.

After artillery and airstrikes, Conde-Falcon led his platoon in a charge to clear an enemy bunker while under fire. Conde-Falcon destroyed two other bunkers and came under fire when rejoining his platoon.

Moving toward the enemy with three other men, Conde-Falcon killed those inside the nearest fortification, when he ran out of ammunition.

During an attempt to secure another bunker, Conde-Falcon was shot and killed.

He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by then-President Barak Obama in 2014.

Pvt. Joe Gandara of Santa Monica, Calif., enlisted between 1942 and 1943 and served in World War II with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division.

 Pvt. Joe Gandara was a paratrooper with the D Company, 2nd Battalion, 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division, when he was killed June 9, 1944, in France.

Gandaras detachment came under enemy fire from a Nazi force that pinned the men to the ground for four hours.

Gandara voluntarily advanced alone toward the enemy position. Firing his machine gun from his hip as he moved forward, he destroyed three hostile machine guns before being fatally wounded.

He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 2014.

Sgt. 1st Class Jose Rodela is awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama.

 Sgt. 1st Class Jose Rodela was serving as company commander of Detachment B-36, A Co., 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces Command, in the Phuoc Long Province, Republic of Vietnam, when his battalion came under mortar, rocket and machine gun fire Sept. 1, 1969.

Rodela placed his men into defensive positions to prevent the enemy from overrunning the battalion and repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire for 18 hours.

While providing suppressing fire and assisting the wounded, he was hit in the back and head by a B-40 rocket while recovering a wounded comrade.

Rodela retired from the Army in 1975 and was awarded the Medal of Honor in 2014.

 Capt. Humbert Roque Rocky Versace was an intelligence officer for special operations when he was captured by Viet Cong guerillas in Vietnam, on Oct. 29, 1963  two weeks before he was due to return home.

Versace was accompanying a civilian irregular defense group on patrol when the group came under fire from the enemy force.

According to his Medal of Honor citation, Versace provided cover fire to friendly forces and resisted capture despite being wounded.

Once captured, he assumed command of fellow American prisoners while locked in irons in an isolation box.

Versace attempted to escape four times and protested improper treatment of other American prisoners, before being placed in leg irons and gagged.

The last time fellow prisoners heard from him, he was singing God Bless America.

Versace was executed Sept. 26, 1965.

His remains have never been recovered.

Versace was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on July 8, 2002, and is the first Army soldier to receive the award for his actions as a POW, according to the Army.

Bragg buildings that honor fallen Hispanic soldiers

 Maj. Federico Jose Fernandez was a 307th Engineer Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division soldier who was killed in a training accident March 30, 1982. Fernandez Child Development Center is named after him.

 Staff Sgt. Edwardo Loredo was a paratrooper assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment who was killed June 24, 2010, by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan. Loredo Child Development Center was dedicated in 2016 and is named after him.

 Staff Sgt. Joe S. Rodriguez, was a 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry paratrooper killed in action Feb. 29, 1968, in Vietnam while serving with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. Rodriguez Child Development Center is named after him.

Other notable Special Forces soldiers

Maj. Ivan Castro became the first blind graduate of the Maneuver Captain's Career Course at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Castro, who grew up in Puerto Rico, enlisted in the Army in 1988 and later served with the 82nd Airborne Division, 7th Special Forces Group and other units.

He was serving with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division on Sept. 2, 2006, in Iraq as a scout platoon leader when he was in the process of moving his men to a new location.

A mortar struck a nearby building and a second blast that was five feet away from Castro caused injuries to his shoulder, arm, nose, cheekbone, finger and lungs.

He lost his right eye, as shrapnel lodged into his left eye.

After 17 months of recovery, Castro returned to the 7th Special Forces Group and was later chosen to command the special operations recruiting company.

He retired from the Army in January 2017 and has since founded the Special Operators Challenge.

More:Major saluted in bittersweet ending to a career spent overcoming obstacles

 Retired Master Sgt. Isaac Camacho was serving with the Detachment A-21, 5th Special Forces Group when Viet Cong forces attacked his camp Nov. 24, 1963, in Vietnam.

According to Camachos Distinguished Service Cross citation, the then-sergeant first class maneuvered through fire to man a mortar and engaged the enemy until ordered by his commanding officer to withdraw from the camp.

Camacho was captured after separating from his commanding officer in the darkness.

After losing weight for 18 months, guards removed his shackles to use for new prisoners.

During heavy rain, Camacho removed a bar from his cage to slip through on July 9, 1965.

He was the first American soldier to escape Viet Cong captivity.

Camacho later retired from the Army in 1975.

Top leaders

Retired Gen. David Rodriguez previously served with the 82nd Airborne Division and commanded the U.S. Armed Forces Command.

 Retired Gen. David Rodriguez was commander of the 82nd Airborne Division from April 2006 to August 2008 and is the division's longest-serving commander who served in combat, with a total of 15 months.

Earlier in his career, he commanded the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment and deployed with the 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment during Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

Rodriguez was commander of the division during the 2007 enemy surge in Afghanistan and later become a four-star general of the U.S. Army Forces Command.

 Retired Brig. Gen. Hector Pagan grew up in Puerto Rico and served with the 7th Special Forces Group in Panama during Operation Just Cause from 1988 to 1990. In 2003, he commanded the 5th Special Forces Group during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Pagan become deputy commander of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command in 2006 followed by being deputy commander of the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School in 2007. Pagans last military assignment was as commander of the Special Operations Command South before he retired in 2010.

 Command Sgt. Maj. Julie Guerra is the sergeant major for the Armys deputy chief of staff for intelligence at the Pentagon. Guerra previously served at Fort Bragg as a first sergeant for the B Company, 519th Military Intelligence Battalion, 525th Military Expeditionary Brigade. She has also spoken out against sexual assault and harassment in the Army.

 Command Sgt. Maj. Delia Quintero is the senior enlisted advisor for the Army Cyber Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon, Georgia. She has previously served in various ranks at Fort Bragg including section sergeant and first sergeant within units under the 35th Signal Brigade; first sergeant for the 18th Airborne Corps Noncommissioned Academy; brigade commander of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division and supervisory operations sergeant major for the 82nd Airborne Division.

More:Cyber Center of Excellence introduces new senior enlisted advisor

Air Force

Ramon "CZ" Colon-Lopez is the senior enlisted adviser to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and was inducted into Puerto Ricos Distinguished Veteran's Hall of Fame in 2017, according to his biography.

From 1999 to 2005, Colon-Lopez was a special tactics element leader for the 24th Special Tactics Squadron at Pope Air Force Base.

While serving in Afghanistan from 2002 to 2004, Colon-Lopez earned his first Bronze Star for providing presidential security detail for Hamid Karzai.

He earned a second Bronze Star for his actions during a March 11, 2004, mission to capture a target who was funding terrorism. During the mission, a helicopter Colon-Lopez was in was shot at and damaged as it landed. Colon-Lopez suppressed enemy fire from another three helicopters. He and his team were able to kill two enemy fighters, capture 10 and destroy rocket-propelled grenade rounds and small-caliber weapons resulting in no American deaths because of their actions.

In 2007, he was the first Hispanic to be awarded the Air Forces new Combat Action Medal created to recognize airmens actions while under fire or firing at the enemy in an unsecured combat zone area.

Colon-Lopez has also previously served as the senior enlisted advisor for the 24th Tactics Squadron from 2009 to 2011 at Pope Air Force and was group superintendent of the 724th Special Tactics Group at Pope.

Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Notable Hispanics and Latinos who have ties to Fort Bragg
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Iranian American businessman Siamak Namazi was forced to return to Tehran's Evin prison on Wednesday after Iranian authorities had given him a furlough on Oct. 1 and let his elderly father leave Iran for medical treatment on Oct. 5, their lawyer said.

Namazi, who in 2016 was convicted of espionage-related charges that the United States has rejected as baseless, on Thursday will mark seven years since his arrest and detention in Iran, a lawyer for the family, Jared Genser, said in a statement.

"Yesterday, members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) informed Siamak .. that his furlough would not be extended further, without providing any explanation," Genser said, saying the furlough was renewed once on Oct. 8. "Late this morning (Tehran time), Siamak was taken back into custody by the IRGC and forced to return to Evin Prison."

Iranian Americans, whose U.S. citizenship is not recognized by Tehran, are often pawns between the two nations, now at odds over whether to revive a fraying 2015 pact under which Iran limited its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief.

In addition to Namazi, other U.S. citizens detained in Iran include environmentalist Morad Tahbaz, 67, who also has British nationality, and businessman Emad Shargi, 58.

The Iranian mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Namazi's case.

(Reporting By Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Mark Porter and Sandra Maler)
Pras Michel attends TEDxWaterStreet: RESET at Bryant Park Ballroom on May 06, 2021 in New York City.

Updated as of 10/18/22 at 10:23am E.T: Representatives of David Kenner, the lawyer who is defending Pras Michel in his upcoming trial, shared Michels witness list with The Root. Of the 23 people named who may have to testify, two are former presidents: Barack Obama and Donald Trump. Read the entire list below:

Bekkedam, Barry  former financial advisor to Mr. Michel

Broidy, Elliott  Political consultant, former Chair of RNC Finance Committee

Carson, Ben  former Secretary of Housing and Urban development

Gouzer, Loic an official at Christies auction house

Higginbotham, Azadeh  Wife of George Higginbotham

Higginbotham, George  former legal counsel to Mr. Michel

Hilliard, Erica  Assistant to Elliot Broidy at Broidy Capital

Johnson, Jeh  former head of Homeland Security

Kelley, John former POTUS Chief of Staff

Lidsky, Harry  FBI Investigator

Lum-Davis, Nicki

Malone, Rich  Financial expert for Defense

Moscowitz, Marc former financial advisor to Mr. Michel

Obama, Barack  Former President

Richardson, Neville  producer director former financial advisor of Mr. Michel

Ross, Helene  office manager to Bekkadems consulting company (FCBOC)

Rousseau, Joel promoter and friend of Mr. Michel

Sessions, Jeff  Former U.S. Attorney General

Trump, Donald  Former President

Wengei, Guo  PRC dissident

White, Frank  Former Presidential Fundraiser

Wynn, Steve  Hotel and Casino owner

Zitman, Andrew  Supervisory FBI Special Agent

On November 4th, Fugees member Pras Michel is set to go to trial. The Root has previously reported that the artist is facing federal money laundering charges. Michel has pleaded not guilty. According to Politicos Playbook, over seventy people are being prepped as tentative government witnesses.

Read more

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The list includes numerous Trump officials as well as actor Leonardo DiCaprio. Apparently, his 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street was partially funded by money that prosecutors claim was looted from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund. Back in 2019, Michel pleaded not guilty to federal charges of conspiracy and falsifying records.

The Justice Department believes Michel was one of the many affiliates of Jho Low and 1MDB, a wealth fund that championed economic development in Malaysia. Low is being accused of stealing from the slush fund valued at $4.5 billion.

Allegedly, Michel received somewhere in between $8-$40 million for helping Low. That same year, DiCaprio provided secret testimony to a Washington, D.C. grand jury about the supposed role he played in the scheme. He was labeled a witness to an alleged conspiracy that used money from the 1MDB fund to finance The Wolf of Wall Street through its connections to the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation.

The Trump officials that are also possible witnesses include former national security adviser H.R. McMaster, former White House chief of staff John Kelly and former deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger. The former RNC deputy finance chair and lobbyist Elliott Broidy is also a tentative witness.

In 2020, he pleaded guilty to serving as an unregistered foreign agent aiding Malaysian and Chinese interests. Broidy was charged in the federal investigation regarding 1MDB but Trump pardoned him in 2021.
Despite their unfortunate reputations, snakes can make great pets for many people who might not otherwise have time in their schedule for a dog or a cat. Most species just require setting up a habitat and sticking to a relatively spaced-out feeding schedule, making them surprisingly low-maintenance members of the family. Unfortunately, however, there are some cases where these domesticated pets somehow find their way into nature. And now, officials in one state are warning residents they should watch out for escaped snakes and reptiles. Read on to see which place is dealing with new non-native animals.

READ THIS NEXT: 9 Ways to Snake-Proof Your Yard, According to Experts.

It's becoming more common to see invasive species in some areas.

Invasive species are far from a new concept in ecology. Even in just recent history, animals have ended up in new habitats when they're purposely introduced to help reduce the population of a local pest or accidentally hitch a ride in cargo. Such was the case for the joro spider, which recently began spreading through the Southeastern U.S. after likely stowing away on a ship from Asia. And invasive hammerhead worms have started to move across the South after they likely "hitchhiked to the United States on the roots of horticultural plants and may continue to be accidentally spread across the country on roots or soil of potted plants," according to Katelyn Kesheimer, PhD, an entomologist with Auburn University and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.

But as temperatures around the world change due to climate change, they're also making the move to new areas themselves. Highly venomous yellow-bellied sea snakes have begun showing up on California shores with increasing frequency as warmer ocean temperatures have allowed them to expand their habitat northwards, Charles van Rees, PhD, conservation scientist and naturalist at the University of Georgia, recently told Best Life. But while the aquatic reptiles are not an immediate threat to beachgoers despite their "highly toxic venom," their presence alone is the sign of a much bigger issue.

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"The real problem here is ecological," van Rees previously told Best Life. "Warming waters mean that a lot about our oceans is already changing, and fast. This could mean harmful algal blooms, the disappearance of beloved wildlife, crashing fisheries, or other problems."

Now, another ecological change has caught the attention of authorities.

Officials are warning residents in one state that escaped snakes and reptiles are rising.

Residents of states where snakes and other reptiles are common are often aware of their presence and usually ensure they're left alone. But according to officials in South Carolina, there has been an increase in non-native snakes, reptiles, and amphibians reported as lost, escaped, or released according to the state's Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

"Since 2013, we have received nearly 250 reports of at least 30 non-native reptile and amphibian species escaped or released in South Carolina," the agency wrote in a Facebook post on Oct. 4. "The most commonly reported species include Mediterranean house geckos, brown anoles, Cuban tree frogs, black and white tegus, sulcatta tortoises, and ball pythons. However, we have also documented Burmese pythons, green iguanas, various monitor lizard species, and two crocodilian species."

The number of reported reptiles is also on the rise, with three cases in 2013 spiking to a high of 90 in 2020 before settling at 45 in 2021, according to SCDNR data, per The State. The state has counted 38 so far this year.

RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter.

The invasive species could have a serious impact on the local ecosystem.

While South Carolina's climate isn't ideal for all of the discovered species to survive and procreate through the winter, some experts are concerned that some of the animals will be able to reproduce and begin to populate. White and black tegu lizards, a giant reptile that can grow to be more than four feet long, are especially a concern and have made up many of the reports across "numerous" counties in the state, The State reports.

"They seem to be pretty cold-hardy, especially in the lower portions of the state," Will Dillman, assistant chief of wildlife for SCDNR, told The State. "So there is some potential for them to be able to overwinter and reproduce," adding that neighboring Georgia already has established populations of the reptile. There, Georgia Department of Natural Resources officials warn that the invasive lizard has a negative impact on the ecosystem by eating the eggs of birds, alligators, and tortoises, while also potentially carrying exotic parasites that can spread to native wildlife, per The State.

Compared to other states, South Carolina also has more loopholes regarding the sale of venomous snakes and other animals at reptile shows, making it a unique local issue. Recent changes in reptile sale laws aimed at protecting local turtle populations have failed to make such activity illegal.

Authorities are asking residents to report any non-native snake or reptile sightings.

South Carolina isn't the only state that struggles with environmentally ruinous invasive snakes and reptiles. In nearby Florida, escaped and released Burmese pythons have become such a threat to local species that the state government has established a bounty program to help cull the population. But for now, the SCDNR is asking residents to do their part in keeping the wrong types of animals out of the state.

"We want to remind and encourage everyone to be a responsible pet owner and recommend that anyone considering an exotic pet make sure it's legal in South Carolina as well as in your county and municipality," the agency said in its Facebook post. "Always do your research before purchasing a pet to learn about the requirements of the specific species."

The SCDNR also encourages people to keep reporting sightings of non-native reptiles by taking a photo of the animal and recording its location with a nearby address or GPS coordinates. You can then email it to the agency at herps@dnr.sc.gov.
Offering in-state college tuition to undocumented immigrants only encourages a broken immigration system.

There is no doubt the immigration system in this country is broken. Now, a measure on the ballot this November could further incentivize unlawful entry into Arizona.

Proposition 308 allows a student who is not a legal citizen to qualify for in-state tuition at any state university or community college. The only criteria for eligibility is graduating from high school, or obtaining a high school equivalency diploma while maintaining a physical presence in Arizona for at least two years.

While proponents want to focus on lowering the cost of tuition, the real genesis of the problem is a broken immigration system. The recipients of this benefit, should it pass, are neither Arizonans nor U.S. citizens, which is the current requirement to receive in-state tuition.

As an Arizona state senator, the priority is to facilitate Arizonans getting into higher education and entering the workforce. Proposition 308 has a misplaced focus. The place to resolve the status of whether a nonlegal citizen can receive in-state tuition is in Washington, D.C., not on the Arizona ballot.

Democrats have control of the presidency and both chambers of Congress. If this really was a pressing issue among voters, the business community and for our economy, it would be fixed.

Few GOP lawmakers supported this measure

Arizona voters have already weighed in on this very issue.

In 2006, the Legislature referred Proposition 300 to the ballot, which required recipients of certain state-funded services to be legal citizens in the United States. The measure specifically prohibited nonlegal citizens from receiving in-state tuition. Arizona voters overwhelmingly approved the proposition by a vote of 71% in favor and 29% against.

Another view: Proposition 308 can right many wrongs

One of the most misleading claims by proponents is that Proposition 308 was passed by the Legislature with broad bipartisan support. In 2021, Senate Concurrent Resolution 1044 (which became Proposition 308) passed the Senate with the support of all Democrats, but only three of 16 Republicans voted in favor.

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In order to get the legislation passed in the House of Representatives, a procedural motion was made to bypass the Speaker and bring the legislation up for a vote. As a result, the entire legislative process was skipped in the House. The resolution passed the House with all Democratic votes; however, only four of 31 Republicans voted in favor.

'Dreamers' can still access scholarships

Let me be clear, this proposition is not about so-called Dreamers, contrary to what the supporters want you to believe. Remember, anyone from anywhere who has been here only a minimum of two years will be eligible for in-state tuition.

If this was intended to address Dreamers, the language of the proposition would have specifically referenced the qualifications to be considered one. It does not do that in any way.

Further negating this justification by the proponents is that a three-judge panel of a federal appeals court on Oct. 5 ruled that President Obama did not have the authority to institute the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program. In fact, new applicants are now prohibited from even enrolling in the program to seek DACA benefits.

According to a recent Arizona Republic article, there are financial resources available at all three state universities, Grand Canyon University and several private organizations to assist nonlegal citizens who want to attend college.

In another Republic article, it was stated that more than 130 business, community, faith and elected leaders support this effort. There is nothing preventing them from providing financial aid, as well as other supportive resources to assist the students.

Prop. 308 sends a mixed message. Vote no

The bottom line is theres very little support for this proposition.

Voters have already overwhelmingly spoken. The federal government has utterly failed to address the real issue, and these students have other avenues available to them in their pursuit of a college education.

This proposition sends a mixed message. The current environment in our state and country is that nonlegal citizens are being flown and bused to sanctuary cities that claim to welcome these nonlegal citizens, while shipping containers are being used to seal the border.

To enact an incentive like this only encourages illegal immigration  it is nonsensical.

Thats why Im encouraging you to join me in voting no on Proposition 308.

Michelle Ugenti-Rita represents Legislative District 23 in the Arizona Senate. Reach her at mugenti-rita@azleg.gov.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Prop. 308 doesn't address real issue: Illegal immigration
Roy Browning Jr. pleaded guilty to lesser charges Wednesday for killing his wife, JoEllen, in 2019 in Iowa City.

Browning, 70, appeared in court and entered a guilty plea to one charge of second-degree murder after years of his trial being put on hold. Browning was charged with first-degree murder and initially pleaded not guilty in November 2019, but the trial has been continually postponed since March 2020 and was supposed to occur on Nov. 1 of this year.

Johnson County District Court Judge Kevin McKeever said the plea carries a maximum 50-year sentence and Browning would have to serve at least 70% of that, or 35 years, before being eligible for parole. McKeever said the sentencing is set for Dec. 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the Johnson County Courthouse.

BROWNING, ROY CARL Jr., 67 / MURDER 1ST DEGREE - 1978 (FELA)

Browning did not speak beyond stating his guilty plea and answering McKeever's questions, acknowledging he understood his rights and the consequences of pleading guilty. The plea agreement, under case law from North Carolina vs. Alford, means he does not admit guilt, but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence for a conviction.

Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness told the Press-Citizen she consulted with the children of the defendant and the victim before making this plea offer and they agreed with it.

"I think it will be good for them to have the case done and comply with their wishes," Lyness said.

JoEllen Browning was a longtime administrator with the University of Iowa health system before prosecutors say Roy Browning stabbed her to death at their home in Iowa City in April 2019 when she was 65.

JoEllen Browning emailed her husband that April regarding discrepancies in a bank account and asked him about contacting a representative from their bank, according to an affidavit. She scheduled an appointment and informed Browning via text April 4 that they were going to meet with a representative the next day.

Roy Browning acknowledged the meeting, but later that day went to a paint supply store and purchased gloves and towels, the complaint states.

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In the affidavit, investigators say that the banker planned to tell the Brownings that money had been removed from a joint account and Roy Browning had taken out high-interest loans without his wife's knowledge.

JoEllen Browning had a retirement and life insurance policy worth in excess of $2 million.

On April 5 at about 7 a.m., Roy Browning called Iowa City police reporting that his wife was unresponsive in her bedroom, the complaint says. She had been stabbed in the front and back of her torso and on her left hand; her death was ruled a homicide.

The affidavit says Roy Browning's DNA was found in samples taking from hand nail clippings from JoEllen Browning. The probability that the same DNA profile would be identified among unrelated individuals would be less than 1 out of 310 trillion, according to the analysis.

Browning was arrested Oct. 28, 2019, and has remained in jail since on $5 million bail.

George Shillcock is the Press-Citizen's local government and development reporter covering Iowa City and Johnson County. He can be reached at (515) 350-6307, GShillcock@press-citizen.com and on Twitter @ShillcockGeorge

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Browning pleads guilty to lesser charges in 2019 Iowa City murder
JIM WATSON via Getty Images

NASA  Artemis I  11  14  12  07  1  9 NASA  16  1  04  19  1  45 

NASA  SLS  Orion Artemis I  11  4 
Indonesia, which is a net importer of petroleum, is one country that would likely be affected by the price cap and has avoided pledging its support. Nick Oxford/Reuters

A price cap on Russian oil could backfire on the global economy, Indonesia's finance minister warned.

If a price cap is met with retaliation from Russia, it could result in oil prices being pushed higher.

The move could also set a precedent for other commodities, which would hurt some of Indonesia's exports.

A price cap on Russian oil will backfire on the global economy, and the move likely influenced OPEC's recent decision to slash its production of oil, according to Indonesian finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

The cap on Russian oil prices has been in the works by G7 nations and is set to roll out by the end of the year, with expected support from the European Union. The measure is intended to lower skyrocketing energy prices  but Russia has threatened to retaliate against a price cap, potentially slashing more supplies off the market and drive prices even higher.

That could have serious consequences for the global economy, Indrawati warned, noting that the fallout from Russia's war in Ukraine was no longer limited to the battlefield.

"The war is no longer just a military war  I think that's really changed the landscape of geopolitics, diplomacy and economic relations  What does it mean for the global economy?" she said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday.

Indonesia, which is a net importer of petroleum, is one country that would likely be affected by the price cap and has avoided pledging its support. China and India, who have become major customers of Russian oil, have also avoided getting on board, although a US Treasury official reported that talks with the two countries on the price cap have been "positive."

Additionally, a price cap on Russian oil could inspire market intervention for other commodities, Indrawati noted. That could harm Indonesia as a major exporter of natural gas, coal, nickel, and palm oil  and its economy has been reliant on those exports as the strong US dollar hammers rival currencies and spurs volatility worldwide.

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She added that price cap plans likely influenced OPEC's recent decision to cut oil production by 2 million barrels a day, as officials she's spoken to in Saudi Arabia have expressed concern about the price cap setting a precedent.

"When the United States is imposing sanctions using economic instruments, that creates a precedent for everything  and that's going to create uncertainty  not only for Indonesia, for all other countries," Indrawati said. "The Saudi and OPEC response to this is because of exactly that."

Read the original article on Business Insider
By Moira Warburton

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury is investigating whether Florida Governor Ron DeSantis improperly used federal funds to pay for flights transporting migrants from Texas to Massachusetts, the department confirmed in a letter to U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday.

The Republican governor took credit for flying about 50 migrants last month to the island of Martha's Vineyard, off the coast of Massachusetts, in a move intended to draw more attention to the rise in crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of the Nov. 8 midterm elections.

Democrats and migrant rights advocates decried the move, as well as a campaign by Texas and Arizona that bused thousands of migrants to cities, including Washington, New York and Chicago, as using people as "political pawns."

DeSantis, who is up for re-election in November and is also seen as a potential 2024 White House contender, said the flights were organized to call attention to Democratic President Joe Biden's immigration policies.

Democratic Senator Ed Markey and other federal lawmakers from Massachusetts sent a letter to the Treasury shortly after the flights, asking it to examine whether DeSantis used interest from federal COVID-19 loans to pay for the flights.

The Treasury has asked for more details on how Florida used money obtained or derived from a fund intended to support states during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a response to the lawmakers from Richard K. Delmar, deputy inspector general for the department.

Investigators will rule on whether Florida used interest from the fund for the flights and whether this is permitted, Delmar said, adding they "will get this work underway as quickly as possible."

DeSantis' office did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment.

In a statement on Wednesday, Markey said he applauded the department's swift response.

"For the sake of the migrants who were lured onto charter planes under false pretenses, and for the commendable Commonwealth residents who rallied together to offer support, I hope that this investigation sheds light on whether Governor DeSantis misused funds that were intended for COVID relief for Floridians," he said.

A Texas county sheriff last month opened a criminal investigation into the flights.

(Reporting by Moira Warburton in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone and Aurora Ellis)
Fans of former Democratic presidential nominee Tulsi Gabbard were seen shouting and arguing with Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez supporters at a town hall on the issue of Ukraine.

Ms Ocasio-Cortez was hosting a town hall on Wednesday when, as video posted on social media showed, she was heckled by supporters of Ms Gabbard.

Congresswoman, none of this matters unless theres a nuclear war which you voted to send arms and weapons to Ukraine, shouted one of the protesters of Ms Ocasio-Cortezs support for Kyiv, before mentioning Ms Gabbard.

Tulsi Gabbard, shes left the Democratic Party because theyre (Democrats are) war hawks, said a man who identified himself as Jose Vega on Twitter after the heckling, Fox News reported.

Video showed supporters of the Democrat congresswoman responding to the protesters, although the replies could not be heard. Ms Ocasio-Cortex meanwhile tried reasoning with the pair, one of whom she called rude.

Mr Vega meanwhile wrote on Twitter: My friend Noggatone and I confronted Congresswoman AOC on her support for Nuclear War and Ukrainian Nazis. I call her out for being a coward in the face of the party that will push us all into Nuclear war right now. Will she stand up like Tulsi Gabbard and fight for peace?

My friend @Noggatone and I confronted Congresswoman @AOC on her support for Nuclear War and Ukrainian Nazis. I call her out for being a coward in the face of the party that will push us all into Nuclear war right now. Will she stand up like @TulsiGabbard and fight for peace? pic.twitter.com/aQiQvQSWIN  Jose Vega - Vote Diane Sare! (@JosBtrigga) October 13, 2022

Under US President Joe Biden, the US has sent around $17.5bn in military aid to Ukraine, making it the biggest supporter of the country since Russian president Vladimir invaded in February.

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Many Republicans, in addition to Ms Gabbard, have long accused the Biden administration and NATO allies of leading the world to a nuclear war or world war three over the Ukraine conflict, which was started by Russia.

Some on the right have also seen military aid as an apparent blockade on peace, although Russia has continued to escalate its war on Ukraine after hopes of overthrowing the countrys democratically elected government ended in failure earlier this year.

In March, Ms Gabbard shared a fringe conspiracy theory about the presence of US biolabs in Ukraine that would result in pathogens being released around the world.

Those remarks, which were unfounded, were rebuked by figures including Utah Senator Mitt Romney, who said the former Hawaii senator had spread treasonous lies that amounted to Russian propaganda.

On Tuesday, when Ms Gabbard announced her departure from the Democratic Party, she cited dragging us ever closer to nuclear war as a reason for her long anticipated departure from the very same party she once tried to represent as president.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has warned Ukraines supporters  namely Europe and the US  that if our territorial integrity is threatened, will use all means we have, in an apparent nod to nuclear warheads.

The White House has said it has not seen indications that Russia is preparing to imminently use nuclear weapons following Mr Putins warnings last month, which were followed by Ukrainian successes in the occupied eastern regions of the country.

Mr Biden was meanwhile reported as saying at a recent event: Hes (Mr Putin) not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons because his military is, you might say, significantly underperforming.

The Independent has contacted Ms Ocasio-Cortezs office for comment.
Grace Dean/Insider, Allard Schager/Getty Images

A man is suing the maker of Texas Pete hot sauce because it's not actually made in Texas.

The lawsuit claims the company violated advertising and competition laws by labeling it as a "Texas" product.

Labels on the sauce bottles say that it's made by a North Carolina company.

A California man is suing hot sauce brand Texas Pete over the fact the sauce is not made in the state, but instead made hundreds of miles away in North Carolina.

Philip White alleged in the 49-page class-action lawsuit, filed in September, that the sauce's manufacturer had violated advertising and competition laws. As well as its name, the lawsuit argues that its packaging, which includes a cowboy holding a lasso and a "lone star" like the one in the state's flag, make the product look like it's from Texas.

Texas Pete is made by TW Garner Foods Co., which is headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, some 800 miles from the eastern border of Texas. The lawsuit says that the company "has cheated its way to a market-leading position" by labeling its product as a Texas product.

There is "surprisingly nothing Texas" about the product, the lawsuit says: "The products are standard Louisiana-style hot sauces, made with ingredients sourced outside the state of Texas, at a factory in North Carolina."

A bottle label reviewed by Insider describes Texas Pete as a "product of the USA" and lists Garner Foods' North Carolina headquarters. It does not specify where the ingredients come from, and nowhere on the bottle does it claim to be made in Texas.

Grace Dean/Insider

Unlike "Louisiana-style" sauces, which can be made anywhere using ingredients sourced from inside or outside the Pelican State, using "Texas" in a sauce's name suggests that it was either made in Texas or using ingredients from the state, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit alleges that Garner Foods "concocted this false marketing and labeling scheme" to play into interest in Texas as well as the popularity of the state's cuisine and hot sauce.

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"The geographic origin of a product matters to consumers, and a company is therefore prohibited from misrepresenting it," the lawsuit says.

A webpage about the brand's history acknowledges that the product is made in North Carolina and that the name "Texas Pete" was coined in 1929 based on Texas' reputation for spicy food and the nickname of the founder's son.

"We are aware of the current lawsuit that has been filed against our company regarding the Texas Pete brand name," a Garner Foods spokesperson told Insider. "We are currently investigating these assertions with our legal counsel to find the clearest and most effective way to respond."

The lawsuit says that White bought a bottle of Texas Pete Original Hot Sauce in September 2021 for around $3. "Had White known the product was not made in Texas, he would not have purchased the Product, or would have paid significantly less for it," the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit asks for damages to be paid to customers who paid a price premium for the product based on the belief it was a genuine Texas product, as well as an order requiring the company to change its advertising and labeling practices.

The two parties met to discuss the lawsuit, according to a court filing. Garner Foods has until November 10 to respond to the complaint.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The Munn family at the Capitol riot (US Justice Department)

In early January 2021, the Munn family hitched their camper to the back of a pickup truck, loaded it, and set out from their hometown of Borger, Texas, for a trip back east. The family outing was to be less vacation and more of a field trip, focusing on civics. Former President Donald Trump had called his supporters to Washington DC to protest the results of what he deemed a stolen election, and the Munns counted themselves among his loyal followers.

With dreams of an alternate reality guiding them  one in which Mr Trump retained power and the Democrats were ousted from the White House  the Munns began their journey. Signs taped to the back of their camper proclaimed with pride  "We Are Q."

The Munns would go on to make history, though not as successful patriots taking back their country after an allegedy rigged election, but instead as what may be the first family to be sentenced for participating in the Capitol riot.

The members were handed their sentences on Wednesday by DC District Court Chief Judge Beryl Howell.

Prosecutors sought a month of prison time for the parents, Dawn and Thomas Munn, and 21 days of jail for their three adult children. A fourth Munn child  a minor  also entered the Capitol with the rest of the family, but Ms Howell declined to sentence the child according to CBS News correspondent Scott MacFarlane.

Ultimately, Ms Howell sentenced Kristi Munn, the oldest of the adult children, to three years of probation with home detention. The other two adult children, Josh Munn and Kayli Munn, were also sentenced to three years probation but were spared home detention.

The Munn parents were both sentenced to 14 days in jail, three years of probation and 90 days of home confinement.

All of the sentenced Munns pleaded guilty to a single charge of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

If the Munns felt remorse for taking part in the Capitol riot, they were not making a show of it during their sentencing hearing. While pleading for leniency, Dawn Munn continued to parrot claims that the US election system is not secure, and lamented that the "country has been divided between conservative and non-conservative values."

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"I do not understand why our election is not secure," she said. "We have an election coming. I hope and pray people can feel safe in it."

Ms Howell  who called the Capitol riot a "catastrophic security breach of the Capitol building  scolded the mother for trying to undermine the security of an election process she claimed to want to protect.

"You do not enter the Capitol through a broken window in a mob that stopped the democratic process," she said.

Dawn's husband, Thomas, an Army veteran, explained that he and his family had been riled up by what they were seeing on "the news."

The Munn family camper adorned with the proclamation DC Bound We Are Q' (Justice Department)

"I got myself overwhelmed," he told Ms Howell. "I've never been political before. I just kept watching what was happening on the news."

When asked what news programming he watched, he replied "Fox News," and admitted the rest of his information came from internet research.

Ms Howell chastised Mr Munn, saying he "should've known better before leading the family into a chaotic situation."

The family's adult daughters, Kristi and Kayli, insisted to Ms Howell that their parents raised them "to do right."

Kayli, 20, went on to explain that she and her family were fully convinced that their actions were just when they entered the Capitol on 6 January, 2021.

"We had an idea in our heads that we were fighting a monster," she said.

Kristi Munn, 30, inside the Capitol building on 6 January, 2021 (Justice Department)

When asked to clarify who or what the "monster" was, she avoided a clear answer. However, she did present a morsel of regret, saying she wished that everyone "would have stopped" during Mr Trump's Stop the Steal rally and refrained from entering the Capitol.

That being said, it was also Kayli, the youngest of the family's adult children, who, according to Ms Howell, told FBI agents that she saw members of "antifa" infiltrating the crowd on the day of the riot.

The demeanours of the family were notably more sombre on the day of their sentencing than in the days before and after the riot. The aforementioned QAnon trailer was shared with pride to Thomas's Facebook page, and upon returning to Texas he sent social media messages to a friend describing how he and his family crawled into the Capitol through a broken window.

He described it as "super cool." His friend replied "oh so u broke in?"

Dawn Munn was anything but shy about her involvement. In at least two messages to different friends Ms Munn bragged about participating in the failed insurrection.

The Munn family appears on surveillance footage walking around the interior of the Capitol building (Justice Department)

"We went in and stormed capital [sic]," she wrote to her friend. To the other, she revealed that "we were in capital [sic] ... I do mean IN the building!!"

In the weeks and months  and now more than a year  since the Capitol riot, federal agents have been sweeping across the country to arrest and charge participants with a variety of crimes ranging from parading to seditious conspiracy. According to The New York Times, a tipster turned the FBI onto the Munns, and agents were able to quickly ascertain that the family had breached the Capitol on 6 Jaunary.

Members of the family appear in surveillance video taken from the Capitol interior on the day of the attack. In one photo, Kristi Munn can be seen inside the building wearing a green hoodie, camouflage pants, and a Trump banner wrapped around her neck like a cape.

Another snippet of surveillance footage captured the entire family walking through a mostly empty hallway in the Capitol building. The family was not accused of participating in any violence while inside the Capitol and reportedly did not break anything, though Thomas can be seen smoking a cigarette inside the building.
The Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday that its establishing a new pathway for migrants fleeing Venezuela to legally resettle in the United States.

The program, which mirrors a similar option for Ukrainian refugees, will allow up to 24,000 qualifying Venezuelans to come live and work in the U.S. Migrants crossing the southern U.S. border will be sent back to Mexico, which has coordinated with the U.S. on this plan.

These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

To be eligible, migrants must have a financial sponsor in the U.S., pass safety screenings and meet various vaccination and other health requirements. Venezuelans will be ineligible if theyve been ordered to be deported from the U.S. in the past five years, illegally cross into the U.S. following this announcement or already have the qualifications to relocate to a different country.

Stranded migrants, mostly from Venezuela, get on a boat in the Colombian port town of Necocli to cross into neighboring Panama to continue their journey to the United States on Oct. 11, 2022. (Photo: DANILO GOMEZ via Getty Images)

Stranded migrants, mostly from Venezuela, get on a boat in the Colombian port town of Necocli to cross into neighboring Panama to continue their journey to the United States on Oct. 11, 2022. (Photo: DANILO GOMEZ via Getty Images)

Venezuelans approved to enter the U.S. will be allowed in via air travel.

Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future, Mayorkas statement continued. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.

DHS said in its announcement Wednesday that the State Department will carry out a robust in-region messaging campaign to inform Venezuelans of the new process and warn them of attempting other forms of entry into the U.S.

The strategy comes amid a staggering increase in migration from Venezuela, where an increase in political turmoil, corruption and violence has forced people to flee for their lives, often on equally dangerous journeys across Central America with little more than the clothes on their backs.

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According to DHS, four times as many Venezuelans have attempted to cross the U.S.-Mexico border this year than last.

Many of those attempting to reach the U.S. take a dangerous route through Panamas Darien Gap, a dense and hard-to-police jungle where migrants risk violence, rape and extortion by gangs and other criminals.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

Related...
The FBI is warning voters against election-related crimes, a standard warning before all major elections but one that warrants increased vigilance this year amid threats to local election workers.

Specifically, the FBI is warning voters against ballot and voter fraud, campaign finance violations and civil rights violations such as voter suppression and voter intimidation.

"Free and fair democratic elections are one of the founding pillars of the United States," the FBI said in its 2022 November midterm elections warning. "The FBI is committed to protecting every eligible citizen's right to vote. Consistent with past practice, the FBI is providing this information to educate voters about federal election crimes and how to avoid them, and to encourage voters to report suspected violations to your local FBI field office."

Examples of federal election crimes include giving false information when registering to vote, voting more than once, buying votes, changing ballot markings, intentionally lying about the time or place of an election to prevent people from voting, and threatening voters with physical or financial harm, the FBI noted. The FBI also warned voters about fraudulent political action committees that reroute funds for personal gain.

FILE: NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 28: A poll worker peels voting stickers during the June Primary Election at Brooklyn Central Library on June 28, 2022 in New York, New York. / Credit: Michael M Santiago/GettyImages / Getty Images

The FBI encouraged voters to know when, where and how they will vote; seek out trustworthy information; report suspected election-related crimes; and do research before making political donations.

Meanwhile, seven states continue to see unusual levels of threats to election workers, senior FBI officials said in a briefing earlier this month. Since June 2021, the FBI has received more than 1,000 tips concerning threats to election workers, according to the agency. Roughly 11% of those tips have led to FBI investigations.

Those states are Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Wisconsin  all states where the 2020 election results were questioned, officials noted. President Biden won each of those states. FBI officials are discussing how to deal with these threats as state officials in 8,800 election districts prepare for the midterm elections next month.

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Last week, an Iowa man was arrested for allegedly threatening to "lynch" and "hang" a Maricopa County, Arizona, election official nearly a year after the 2020 election, the Justice Department announced. Mark Rissi was arrested Thursday for allegedly leaving voicemails for the unnamed election official, in which Rissi allegedly threatened the official with lynching, hanging, and torches, according to the indictment filed against him.

 Andy Triay and Jeff Pegues contributed to this report

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Finland on Friday said it would "significantly restrict" the number of Russian "tourists" it will permit to cross its borders as an exodus of Russian men attempt to flee and avoid conscription.

The Finnish government said its decision was made over concerns that issuing swaths of visas to Russian men would cause "serious damage to Finland's international position."

Few details were released on the restrictions that Helsinki will now enforce, though its decision comes after other neighboring nations took steps earlier in the week to block Russian tourists from crossing their borders.

RUSSIA DETAILS WHO WILL EVADE CONSCRIPTION, WAR IN UKRAINE

Finlands latest decision has meant that all land border crossings connecting Russia to Europe have been blocked.

The move comes as thousands of Russian men have reportedly begun fleeing the country following Russian President Vladimir Putins decree this week calling for a "partial mobilization" to funnel more men into the war in Ukraine.

Russian army conscripts put on their uniform at the military registration and enlistment office in St. Petersburg, on April 22, 2014. Tens of thousands of Russian troops are massed on Ukraine's eastern border in what NATO believes is a state of readiness to invade. Photo credit should read OLGA MALTSEVA/AFP via Getty Images

PUTIN'S CALL FOR RUSSIAN CONSCRIPTS WILL REQUIRE ARMS MOSCOW DOESN'T HAVE, NATO CHIEF SAYS

Putin said he would be mobilizing "reservists," which suggested anyone of conscription age could be forced to fight in Ukraine.

Russian men ages 18-27 are required to serve in Russias ranks for one year, though certain conditions like higher education and health could help some male populations skirt the requirement.

Some 300,000 men are expected to be mobilized to fight in Ukraine, where Russian troops have allegedly seen significant losses, though Moscow said Friday that tech, business and state journalists will be exempt.

Kyiv has claimed that while over 9,000 of its troops have perished in the fighting, nearly 55,000 Russian soldiers have been killed.

Death tolls throughout the war have not been independently verified.

But images depicting airports packed with fighting-age men and thousands causing traffic jams at border crossings suggest Russian citizens are unwilling to risk the statistics of fighting in Ukraine.
Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; Getty

They all know me from The Muppet Show, Linda Ronstadt cracks when I mention the twentysomethings in my house who represent just the latest generation of fans to discover the music she made that soundtracked so much of the 1970s and 80s.

Of course, Linda Ronstadt was a global superstar during the Golden Age of rock and rollnotably the first woman to headline arena tours, earning her the nickname First Lady of Rockwho went on to make a series of massive-selling Trio albums with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris, before she took a decided left turn and recorded three American Songbook albums with the big band leader Nelson Riddle, and then embraced her Mexican heritage in a very big way, recording a series of Mariachi-inspired Spanish language albums, at a time when her record label thought the move was career suicide.

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Those albums, however, went on to sell millions and earn the icon multiple Grammys. Its something, as Ronstadt recounts in her memoir, Simple Dreams, from 2013, that shes enormously proud of. They also paved the way for her new book, Feels Like Home: A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands, out now. Chock-full of the Mexican ranch recipes Ronstadt learned at home, it also recalls a time before walls and politics had driven a wedge between a culture she remembers as fluid, when the Southwest was communal rather than rife with cultural conflict.

The book and its recipesit filled in a lot of the blanks of your memoirbut its a little more political, too. The time youre writing about in the book, as you say, was when the border was very porous. You went back and forth. Everyone went back and forth. The culture was fluid, the food was fluid. Obviously, things have changed dramatically. Tell me a little bit about that time and the differences with today.

Well, the fence is just an insult in the landscape. Its totally unnecessary. Most people that come in illegally come in with visas and overstay them. And also, they can dig around the fence; they can climb over it; they can cut a hole in it. It just makes it harder to do. And the workers pump the wells dry in order to make concrete. Thats bad for the water table, bad for the farmers, and horrible for animals and plants. And Trump did that. The crisis at the border! There is no crisis and no emergency. When I last visited there, it was quiet as can be. People were shopping, people were taking their kids to school, skateboarding and whatever. It was just perfectly normal.

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Linda Ronstadt performs a song from her album Canciones De Mi Padre on the Johnny Carson Show. The album went double platinum, and at the 31st GRAMMY Awards won Best Mexican-American Performance. Steffin Butler/NBCU Photo Bank

And historically, that cross-pollination of cultures, which you write about repeatedly in the book, and the recipes, arent necessarily Mexican.

Well, Im writing about Mexican ranch cooking. Because theres lots of different kinds of cuisines in that region. In Mexico, you walk three blocks, you change culture. Youve got different clothes, different food. Its really varied, if you take the time to travel around and pay attention. Therere so many different languages spoken in Mexico, too. Its just really diverse.

I think thats something people in the Southwest understand, but right off the bat in the book it feels like youre educating people about not just your history, but the history of the culture and the last 150 years, which was obviously really important to you.

Yeah. I dont think people humanize Mexicans fully. But the cowboy outfit, that came from Mexico. The Western saddle style came from Mexico. We sing songs and eat food that comes from Mexico. And yet some people dont want to give them fully human qualities, because I guess they think theyre not deserving. Theyd rather they be invisible. On the other hand, we took their land in the Mexican War. And it was a huge chunk of land. It went all the way up to Wyoming. And maybe they havent forgotten that, but they still speak to us for some reason.

When you first started recording your Spanish language albums, which were huge successes, it seemed that there was a moment when the cultures, particularly in the Southwest, seemed to merge a little bit. But things have changed so dramatically. I was just in Texas a month or two ago, and 90 percent of the foodwhich they call Tex-Mexis really a version of Mexican food. All the people in their MAGA hats were eating Mexican food.

Of course.

Heyday

Could you talk a little bit about the disconnect that has happened in your lifetime. Even though the food is the commonality, were a long way from that porous border.

Well, there are really three cultures. Theres American culture, Mexican culture, and Mexican-American culture. And theyre very distinct cultures. The Mexican-American culture influences both Mexico and United States. And Mexicans were here when [Juan Bautista] de Anza came; California, Arizona, New Mexico, and all the way up to Wyoming was bought from Mexico. And so, those people didnt migrate. The border migrated. And they were suddenly made second-class citizens on their own land.

I loved the letters included in the book. You have your great grandmothers letters, your aunts letters, and your letter to the pope. You havent lost your political edge, but those letters also humanize Mexicans and Mexican Americans. I cant help but wonder if there wasnt a little bit of political gamesmanship going on there?

Oh, Ive always had strong politics. [Laughs] But I dont like to put it in a confrontational way. I like to put it in an informative way. Because theyre really nice folks and they have great skills and great insights. Its a really moral society, thats really cooperative. I mean, you cant steal from a neighbor, because they wont help you fix your fence next week! You know, I was talking to my mother, and I asked, When did all the crime start to happen? Because, when I was growing up, there was no crime in the village. You could walk around at four in the morning and be totally safe. And she said, When they became wageworkers rather than cooperative farmers and ranchers. Just think about that. You know, American ranchers will build a solitary house in the middle of a huge cattle ranch, on thousands of acres. Mexicans build their house in the village, and then share the grazing land. And that sort of community makes for good moral behavior. So, they come over here and theyre shocked at how lawless we are.

American culture is obviously capitalism writ large. It was never about a cooperative thing. It was always about land ownershipand people ownership for a timeand so it seems strange that such close neighbors dont share those morals. Especially because the western part of the United States was very much cut off from the eastern part of the United States until about 150 years ago.

Yeah, it was.

It was very much the West as opposed to the United States. So, in doing your research, and learning about the history of your ancestors and your family in that part of Mexico, did you learn much about the growth of American culture over the years, and was there ever a time when that more cooperative nature bled over into Arizona and New Mexico and Texas?

Well, it bleeds over in the ranches some. American ranchers will think hes a rugged individualist who has no need for the government, even though hes riding on federal government highways, shipping his cattle on federally financed railroads, and hes getting subsidies for his land. But hes unwilling to admit that. In Mexico, they have to scrape along with no regard to their government, so they help each other. In Mexico, you have to know a guy who knows a guy. Thats the only way to get things done.

Thats a theme that comes up a lot in your memoir, and also in this book. Ive known a lot of solo artists, and its a different breed. But in reality, you never really were that. You always wanted to be a part of a group. You were always cooperative.

Well, I grew up singing in harmonies with my family. You know, they say blood on blood sounds good. We had shared genes and that made our voices blend better. And we had an ideal range that worked out perfectly for harmonies. So, I guess thats what I was looking for when I went to California.

But whether its Dolly and Emmylou, or the Eagles or Joe Papp or Jerry Wexler, it seems to me you were always looking for good collaborators. You werent one of those people who was its my way or the highway. So, given what we just discussed, maybe that nature was just sort of there in your DNA.

Well, I was self-indulgent. I really wanted to do what I really wanted to do. Like, the Nelson Riddle songs I recorded, theyre self-indulgent. Theyre so fun to sing, and theyre so much higher quality than the songs I was getting in the 80s from publishing companies. So, I wasnt cooperating with the record company, but I cooperated with Nelson.

The record company didnt want you to do it.

No, they didnt. But they were good about it. When they saw I was determined to do it, they got behind it and tried to support it. They didnt just throw it away there in the world.

Honoree Linda Ronstadt attends the 42nd Annual Kennedy Center Honors at Kennedy Center Hall of States on December 8, 2019, in Washington, D.C. Paul Morigi/Getty

In your memoir, there are a lot of musicians who, although they became more thoughtful, more aware of womens rights later in life, in the 70s and 80s, they were young, hard-charging guys emblematic of that era. So, did you feel like an other or even like a den mother to these guys? Or did they treat you like an equal?

I think all of that sexism was there, and very present in those days. But the people I was friends with were good people. Jackson Browne is a good person. Don Henley tries really hard to be a good person. [Laughs] I think its important to him. He has real values. But, you know, its hard when you become the idol of the world. Its hard to not think youre curing cancer. And people get real self-important. I think theres such a thing as adult-onset narcissism. I think thats what a lot of us are victims of. But in terms of being a woman in music, I discovered a little secret: Musicians like to play music. And they dont want anything that stops the groove. So, if you can play the music, they dont care who you are, as long as you keep the groove.

As I was preparing for this interview, my youngest and I pulled out Simple Dreams, and we listened to some of your stuff from around that period, and so we also watched The Muppet Show episode. What do you remember about being on The Muppet Show?

Oh, I loved doing The Muppet Show. The Muppet Show was innovative, great television. The puppeteers were so talented. They could act, too, because it was like method acting where you can only use your hands, and through very deliberate actions. They were so talented. And Jim Henson, the guy that voiced Kermit, he was just incredible to work with. He was so inspiring. And he was real cooperative! [Laughs] He let me come up with a skit and got really enthusiastic about it. He was just great. I think he was in love with Bernadette Peters, by the way. But then, I was in love with Bernadette! If I liked girls, Id go for her, but I dont like girls. Anyway, it was two amazing weeks of my life where I had permission to act silly. Come to think of it, we should all get to be on The Muppet Show! That would solve a lot of our problems.

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Even deer can't outrun toxic "forever chemicals.

Whether youre heading into the woods this fall in pursuit of one, or a lover of the forest that deer inhabit, that's probably worth knowing. Certainly wildlife managers in several states are taking notice.

Elevated levels of the ever-present chemicals  known technically as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)  have turned up in deer harvested in several states, prompting localized do not eat health advisories, according to an Associated Press report.

The human-made chemicals, which do not break down over time, are often found in water and soil and can be absorbed by plants eaten by deer. They are also used in cookware, food packaging, firefighting foam and other manufactured products. At high concentrations, they have been linked to cancers and other health problems.

PFAS research: URI center that studies 'forever chemicals' awarded five-year grant

Other states have issued advisories about eating deer

In Maine, where hunting and fishing are important drivers of the economy, the state Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife issued a do not eat advisory last year for deer harvested in about a 200-square mile area around Fairfield, north of Waterville.

The source of the PFAS contamination there is thought to be sludge from area papermills which had been spread as fertilizer on several Fairfield fields as far back as the 1970s, Nate Webb, wildlife division director at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, said in an interview with The Journal.

Deer subsequently foraged in those fields. Five of eight deer from the area harvested by hunters and tested had concerning elevated levels of PFAS.

The health advisory generated a lot of concern from hunters in that area and across the state, Webb said. So, it is definitely a pretty high-profile topic again as the annual deer hunting season is under way.

New Hampshire, Wisconsin and Michigan have also issued advisories about eating deer liver or other deer organs after similar tests detected elevated levels of the chemicals.

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RI does not currently test deer for PFAS

In Rhode Island, PFAS testing is focused and expanding on identifying sources of contamination in ground and surface waters, and setting standards for the ubiquitous chemicals found everywhere  including in most humans.

The state does not currently test for PFAS in deer, Mike Healey, spokesman for Rhode Islands Department of Environmental Management, said in an email.

Healey noted that in Maine, the fields around Fairfield were known to have high levels of PFAS, thus helping to identify an area of deer habitat worthy of testing.

In Rhode Island the state Health Department and the DEM share oversight of PFAS testing and both agencies would need to agree to a new policy of testing deer for PFAS.

Healey, however, shared the same potential economic and environmental concerns raised by Maine sportsmen and biologists if sometime in the future a similar discovery of elevated levels of forever chemicals were found in Rhode Island's deer population.

Managing the deer population

As hunting is the most effective way to manage deer populations, a health advisory like the one issued in Maine could make managing deer and other species far more difficult, said Healey.

Hunters might opt out of the annual harvests, Healey said, leading to more deer over-population, an increase in car/deer collisions (each year about 1,000 in Rhode Island, 1,163 in 2020) and destruction of forest habitat from over grazing.

And the loss of hunting-generated income "would be profound."

Former State Police Supt. James Manni, an avid deer hunter, says he's concerned about forever chemicals now appearing in wild game.

"One of the main reasons people hunt for and eat venison is because its organic and the deer arent fed chemicals or antibiotics," he said. "Its alarming to me that these very harmful substances, typically associated with factory made goods, are showing up in the wild.

Rainer Lohmann is an oceanography professor at the University of Rhode Island who also codirects a science partnership with URI, Harvard and the Silent Spring Institute that studies PFAS.

Lohmann says finding forever chemicals in Rhode Island deer would not be a major surprise.

The question, he said, would be at what level? And whether an advisory is needed. Given that PFAS are in a lot of items, this gets tricky fast.

Email Tom Mooney at: tmooney@providencejournal.com

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI's DEM doesn't test for PFAS in deer, but has been found in ME. NH
According to the criminal complaint, the victims mother said Prokupek sexually touched her daughter in a parking lot in March in Cadott. She said the girl has mental disabilities that put her in an age range of 1 to 3 years old. When they returned home, the girl told her mother that Prokupek had sexually touched her. A swab was taken from her body that found a DNA profile consistent with him.
If there is a single species of audio component that has gained popularity over the past few years, it would have to be the integrated amplifier; a single box whose entrails combine a control preamplifier with a power amp, sometimes with a phono preamp and even a DAC and streamer added into the bargain. All of this shoehorning is easily accomplished, and makes for a compact, lifestyle-friendly package that gains instant approval of spouses and partners less disposed to elaborate displays of audio finery.

These all-in-one components even find favor with seasoned audiophiles who may simply be tired of the clutter and complexity of racks, cables, cords and overbearing contraptions populating the room. And while nearly every manufacturer offers an integrated, or even a family of them, few of these represent no-holds-barred solutions that are able to compete in sound quality and engineering finesse with the best separates.

More from Robb Report

The Luxman L-507z integrated amplifier.

Generally, it comes down to price, and realistically, its hard to sell a serious integrated for less than $5,000. In the case of the ones sold in big-box stores, designers are relegated to using op-amps, Class D amplification and other cost-, weight- and space-saving formulas to move these underwhelming products out by the pallet load.

But that, dear reader, is not you. Manufacturers like Luxman recognize that theres a market for a luxury component like the L-507z. One of Japans oldest audio brands, Luxman was founded in 1925 and still designs and manufactures its products in Yokohama. And while it continues to advance vacuum-tube technology, the company is equally on the cutting-edge of solid-state design and has incorporated some truly state-of-the-art features into its newest integrated amplifier.

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The L-507z delivers 110 wpc into 8 ohms, and 210 wpc into 4 ohms, sufficient to drive virtually any speaker.

The formal design of Luxmans integrated amps is legendary, instantly recognizable from the stoic front panel featuring prominent VU meters that inform as much as entertain. To the right is the volume knobbut not just any. The seemingly straightforward, utilitarian feature is actually nothing of the sort since its a LECUA1000 (Luxman Electric Controlled Ultimate Attenuator) with 88 discrete steps that allow for the finest adjustments and preserve maximum detail at every volume setting. The fact that it was first featured in Luxmans C-900u, a $20,000 control amplifier, is proof that good things in technology can trickle down.

The Luxman Electric Controlled Ultimate Attenuator (LECUA) knob has 88 discrete steps for fine-tuning the volume.

Although the L-507z resembles its predecessor, the L-507uX Mark II, new things are happening inside. Luxmans Z Series features LIFES1.0, the Luxman Integrated Feedback Engine System. Implemented in the brands recent M-10X power amplifier and representing an advance from the previous ODNF (Only Distortion Negative Feedback) amplifier design, LIFES1.0 reduces distortion by controlling anomalies caused by feedback topology that can compromise the accuracy of music reproduction.

Although the L-507z resembles its predecessor, new things are happening inside.

Fundamental to the design goal was creating an amp with power and delicacy. The L-507z delivers 110 wpc into 8 ohms, and 210 wpc into 4 ohms, sufficient to drive virtually any speaker. Users get bass and treble controls, four unbalanced and two balanced inputs as well as outputs for two sets of speakers. And, importantly, a phono stageselectable from moving magnet to moving coilis also included.

Under the chassis impressive machined top plate, a highly regulated power supply with a new EI-type transformer and an array of eight 10,000 F filter capacitors are visible. Serious headphone listeners will appreciate the Pentaconn 4.4 mm headphone jack on the front panel. Supplementing the standard 6.3 mm jack and using five conductors for balanced output, it improves channel separation and makes the L-507z an excellent alternative to a standalone headphone amp.

Flexible and user-friendly, the L-507z offers XLR and RCA inputs, with the ability to connect two speaker systems.

The rear panel has a 12-volt trigger, making the L-507z compatible with home-automation systems. And a wireless remote is supplied that also operates Luxman CD players, built since 1996, a thoughtful nod to non-obsolescence. Thick aluminum chassis panels and density-gradient cast-iron feet contribute to a corporeal heft of 56 pounds, a weight as substantive as this $8,995 integrated amplifiers sound.

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Click here to read the full article.
Kai Atallah cant forget the bright lights.

The 9-year-old from west Michigan isnt talking about the sun streaming through a classroom window. Not the shine of a bottle rocket zooming into the sky as he watches with his Cub Scout troop, or the spotlight spinning from the fedora worn by Inspector Gadget, one of his favorite television characters.

Hes referring to the harsh barbs of overhead fluorescent bulbs that are etched into his memory, shining down onto the white concrete walls and firm carpet of a room he could not escape.

Youre trapped, and alone, in a room and you cant get out. And you just get more and more frustrated and more and more angry and more and more upset, Kai said, his words coming rapidly.

Kai Atallah identifies plants with an app during a field trip to a local park Friday, Sept. 9, 2022, in Holland.

I kicked the door, pounded on the door. Yelled.

Kai is one of thousands of Michigan schoolchildren subjected in the last five academic years to practices meant only for emergencies: seclusion and restraint.

While Michigan lawmakers tried to ban the tactics in 2016, a Free Press investigation found educators across the state secluded or restrained students nearly 94,000 times in the last five school years. The state began collecting data in the 2017-2018 school year following the passage of new laws.

That means on average, more than 100 times a day, Michigan educators used what experts say are psychologically damaging practices on children. Considering most schools limited or canceled in-person classes for weeks or months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the daily usage of both seclusion and restraint are likely much higher.

Our most vulnerable children

More than 2,000 students were secluded or restrained in public schools every year with the exception of 2020-2021, when many students attended class remotely due to the pandemic. Like Kai, four out five have disabilities.

There are 1.4 million students in Michigan schools, 194,514 of them have disabilities.

Seclusion frequently involves adults forcing young children into a small, padded room and leaving them inside for a minute or sometimes as long as two hours. Restraint entails adults physically limiting a students movement using force.

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Substantial scientific research published over decades shows the potentially harmful impact of secluding and restraining children, especially those with disabilities. An expert who spoke with the Free Press said there are no scenarios where seclusion is appropriate, arguing the practice creates trauma that can compound the behavioral problems educators used to justify seclusion.

Kai was 5 when diagnosed with autism during the spring of his Kindergarten year. Seclusion and restraint soon became a part of his daily school routine.

Kai Atallah swings as he listens to his mom, Cassie Atallah, read to him during his homeschool lesson Friday, Sept. 9, 2022. Kai, an autistic child, has been homeschooled for more than two years after the use of restraint and seclusion in the classroom.

His school, Black River Public School in Holland, didnt report to the state how often Kai was forced into what they called the time away room or the reset room. But Kais mother, Cassie, kept track: During one six-month period in first grade, she says school officials informed her Kai was secluded 93 times, sometimes in a seclusion room or sometimes in a conference room. Black River is a charter school with about 900 students. Administrators did not respond to a reporter's questions over email or voicemail.

Cassie and her husband, Daniel, said they believe the educators who made the choice to restrain or seclude Kai are largely dedicated professionals trying their best. But the parents feel the school failed Kai, and his educators'decisions still have a devastating impact on him and his family.

Its been deeply, deeply, deeply painful for me.  I had to quit my job to keep my son safe, said Cassie, a former art teacher at a Michigan public school.

I havent been able to have play dates in the same way as other people have. Hes not invited to birthday parties the way other people are. This has been my entire identity for years. I havent been able to work. I havent been able to experience life the way other parents do and its very draining.

Kai and Cassie Atallah read about the holocaust during an afternoon homeschool session Friday, Sept. 9, 2022, in Holland. Kai has been homeschooled for more than two years after experienceing the negative effects of restraint and seclusion in a school enviroment.

The nearly 94,000 instances of seclusion and restraint recorded by the state likely undercounts how often the tactics are used in Michigan schools, according to a Free Press analysis.

Thats because the elected officials who sought to ban these practices six years ago did not include ramifications for not following the law. There are no penalties, for instance, for the improper use of seclusion and restraint or for failing to report accurate numbers to the state.

Former Lt. Gov. Brian Calley in the past described the practices as inhumane and barbaric. The mid-Michigan Republican was the architect of the 2016 legislative package while he was in office with then-Gov. Rick Snyder. In a recent interview, Calley said the only way he could get enough votes was to ensure the bills explicitly excluded consequences for breaking the law.

Of all my time in office, and all the initiatives that I worked on, the degree of difficulty in getting a ban on seclusion and restraint practices in schools is perhaps the most discouraging, said Calley, now president of the Small Business Association of Michigan.

What I was unable to accomplish was a real penalty for noncompliance. That was the line in the sand. I couldnt get the bill passed if it had penalties for noncompliance. I very much consider that unfinished business.

The Free Press found multiple instances where educators violated the letter or spirit of the law. Among them:

 Districts are not supposed to seclude elementary school kids for longer than 15 minutes and kids in middle and high school for longer than 20 minutes unless theres an emergency. We identified multiple cases where children were secluded for more than an hour.

 We found at least two districts that reported zero acts of seclusion and restraint to the state  but were later exposed for using those tactics. Calley believes other districts reporting zero have likely evaded the state reporting requirements.

 Districts are supposed to analyze the data they collect in an effort to find ways to reduce how often they use seclusion and restraint. We asked the 15 districts that reported usingthese tactics the most for any analysis they had conducted  only one provided any written documentation beyond the numbers reported to the Michigan Department of Education. Two others asked for $3,198.75 and $176.40 for documents. The Free Press declined to pay those fees, arguing the records are public and should be released for free or nominal costs.

A state Education Department spokesman wrote in an email that the department had no power to enforce seclusion and restraint laws, or to check in with districts about why they were using either tactic tens of thousands of times.

Despite state inactivity, federal investigators have taken some action. The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights is investigating eight Michigan school districts for their use of seclusion and restraint.Earlier this year, Huron Valley Schools in Oakland County in order to resolve a federal investigation agreed to improve how it uses seclusion and restraint. The department declined to say whether the district is actually living up to its end of the bargain.

Federal inquiries are slow; some have dragged on for more than seven years. All the while, many of Michigans most vulnerable students are isolated in dark rooms or pinned down by adults who have deemed various behaviors as emergencies, according to limited records obtained by the Free Press. Examples of reported behavioral emergencies range from children fleeing adults and flipping chairs to hugging a peer too tightly and ripping up paper.

The law defines a behavioral emergency as a situation in which a pupil's behavior poses imminent risk to the safety of the individual pupil or to the safety of others. Seclusion and restraint may be used only as a last resort emergency safety intervention, according to the law.

In a 2019 incident in Huron Valley Schools, a student was secluded for 13 minutes after reportedly losing a game of Connect Four and also threatening to stab an adult with a thumbtack. In another from the same school district, a student was restrained for four minutes after an argument with a peer over reindeer prompted an outburst that included throwing objects and spitting.

In Kais case, the boy on occasion threw classroom materials and kicked them. In other times, he hit staff. Another time, during an emotional meltdown, records show Kai marked up another students arm with scissors.

He was doing things that were threatening to safety. But at the same time you think, no one was really in danger, Cassie said, noting that Kai was 5 years old at the time, her 3-foot-tall little guy.

Initially, his parents werent sure what was happening or what they should do. Kai would come home after spending minutes  but occasionally much longer, according to his mother  restrained or tucked away in a tiny room and not tell his mom and dad anything.

I wouldnt, to be honest, Kai said, when asked what he said to his parents about being secluded.

Because it was too bad to talk about.

When Cassie and Daniel pulled Kai out of school in 2020, Cassie took on the role of homeschooling Kai full-time. Hes made substantial emotional progress since then, thanks in part to therapy and medication.

But its a process that required a fair amount of privilege, time and money. Those resources may not be available to other Michigan students restrained or secluded thousands of times since Kai left the public school system.

Cassie and Kai Atallah work to construct paper airplanes during a homeschool lesson at their home in Holland. Kai, who was diagnosed with autism, has been homeschooled for more than two years after experiencing the negative effects of restraint and seclusion while in school.

With time to reflect, Kai and his parents are talking now. They want to speak for the thousands of Michigan families whove endured comparable treatment and demand change.

Im going to put this as blunt as I can: Seclusion and restraint should be illegal. Its wrong, Kai said.

'Adults are supposed to keep me safe'

Seclusion and restraint are not unique to Michigan. For decades, educators across the country have used both practices in an effort to curtail behavior from challenging children.

Experts warned educators about the dangers of using excessive seclusion and restraint for decades as well.

A 2009 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office found hundreds of allegations of death and abuse tied to children secluded and restrained in schools dating to 1990. Among the reported incidents: a 7-year-old who died after being held facedown for hours, children as young as 5 fastened to a chair with bungee cords and duct tape, and a 13-year-old who allegedly hanged himself in a seclusion room after prolonged confinement.

The report noted that while some experts thought seclusion and restraint techniques were useful, many determined they could result in death, physical injury or long-lasting psychological trauma, findings echoed in a 2014 U.S. Senate report.

Use of either seclusion or restraints in nonemergency situations poses significant physical and psychological danger to students, reads the introduction to the Senate report.

There are many ways to physically or emotionally hurt a child, especially one with a disability, by using restraint and seclusion, said Laura Strunk, a professor at Minnesota State University and a practicing school psychologist for a rural school district in Minnesota.

Strunk conducted a national study on the use of seclusion and restraint in schools. She said beyond the possible physical perils of broken bones and bruises, even the act of touching a child or forcing them into isolation can have drastic psychological consequences.

Realistically, we have a lot of the kiddos that we work with who have disabilities do not want to be touched. They have sensory issues, they may have been harmed by other people, so they might have some trauma that theyve experienced in the past regarding touch from other people, Strunk said, explaining that kids may think: Adults are supposed to keep me safe, so why are they locking me in this room all by myself? 

Typically, she said adults who use seclusion or restraint argue they are keeping the school community safe, or that theyre intervening to ensure a student has the chance to successfully regroup.

But, she argued, the techniques are almost always unnecessary, and justifiable rarely.

It should never be an option, honestly. We know its an option, but it really should never really be an option, Strunk said.

Frequently, educators responding to the students behavior are expecting a small child to effectively regulate their emotions, a tall order even for many adults who dont have behavioral or learning challenges.

The agitation of the staff person just escalates the student, and then they feel like the student is out of control and so they need to restrain them. When in fact, if you go back and if you could record the scenario of something like that, you would actually see that it was probably the school staff who was out of control, Strunk said.

Foundationally, she thinks using these practices comes down to a lack of trust between educator and child, and a lack of training. When students are agitated, trained educators can pick up on cues and address problems earlier to avoid restraint, she said.

Other reports arrived at similar conclusions. A 2019 expose from ProPublica found Illinois schools routinely used seclusion in violation of state law. But it also noted the federal government fails to properly collect data on how often either practice is used, highlighting the fact theres no way to know whether districts are reporting accurate numbers.

Before and after the ProPublica series, federal lawmakers weighed creating a national standard to limit the usage of both tactics in schools. Repeatedly, they failed to act, leaving regulation up to states.

In 2016, Michigan lawmakers took action. The resulting legislative package created a system with an appearance of oversight, but in reality offers few avenues to determine whether vulnerable students are truly protected.

Sometimes they need to be treated like animals

Back around that time, Calley walked up to a Republican colleague who he thought may be an ally.

Because both have children with autism, Calley, then the lieutenant governor, figured the state representative might share his criticism of secluding and restraining students with similar challenges as their children.

He was wrong.

I said, These kids are being treated like animals. And his response was, Well, when kids act like animals, sometimes they need to be treated like animals,  said Calley, who recounted the discussion in a recent interview.

I really walked away from that interaction heartbroken about the callousness of the response.

Problems with seclusion and restraint in the state go further back than 2016.

In 2003, a 15-year-old Kalamazoo-area boy diagnosed with autism suffered what appeared to be a seizure at Parchment High School, after which he started acting combative. Multiple adults forced him facedown to the ground, holding his arms and legs.

He died within a couple of hours. The boys mother settled a lawsuit against Parchment School District in 2006 for $1.3 million.

The same year, the Michigan State Board of Education enacted policies on secluding and restraining students. A decade later, some administrators, educators and lawmakers suggested schools followed the rules. But Calley and others received numerous troubling reports.

It prompted Calley, working with then-state Rep. Frank Liberati, a Democrat from Allen Park, and others to introduce a package of bills. The measures banned all seclusion and restraint outside of emergency situations, defining what constituted an emergency. They required school districts to fill out reports every time an educator used seclusion or restraint and to notify parents as soon as possible. Districts were supposed to take that data, analyze it and use it to inform training and responses to challenging behavior.

The entire package aimed to eliminate the use of seclusion and restraint, according to the text of one bill.

More:Many Michigan schools charging for lunch again  and debts could add up fast

More:Michigan confirms investigations at Wayne County juvenile jail

There were few overt efforts to sink the bills, Calley remembers. The Michigan Education Association and the Michigan Association of School Boards publicly supported the final legislative package. But he said behind the scenes, there was a coordinated campaign to ensure educators could still use these practices and face few ramifications when they did.

He specifically remembered multiple interactions where, every school seemed to have a story about some giant student with a disability that was dangerous and they were afraid of.

It was almost like there was a conference somewhere and everybody said, Say 6 (foot) 3! Theres this 6-(foot)-3 young man, and hes 17 years old and he can overpower everybody,  Calley said.

He specifically recalled an anecdote about a student being strapped to what was described to him as essentially a dolly in order to go by a school cafeteria, because the student exhibited problematic behavior while passing the lunchroom in the past.

That type of practice is so outrageously unreasonable, that it really gave me a passion to  change the law so that it is banned, Calley said.

You cant just do this in health care settings. Parents cant just tie up their kids. The conclusion that I came to after reviewing the law is that the only place where nonemergency restraint and seclusion was legal was in schools.

Advocates argued that without including reporting requirements in the law, it was impossible to know whether the use of seclusion and restraint was being abused. Opponents suggested the bills went too far: Some districts that wanted to continue using seclusion wouldnt have any rooms that complied with requirements in the bill. Additional training and reporting requirements meant more time and money, something educators generally cant spare, opponents also argued.

Educators who testified during legislative debates underscored these points. Marvin Nordeen, a school psychologist in northern Michigan said he supported the package overall and trained others in behavioral techniques crafted to cut down on using seclusion and restraint.

But he argued lawmakers had to ensure educators could still legally restrain or seclude children.

There are times when it becomes very dangerous, and we end up doing it whether we want to or not. It is the dirtiest part of my job, Nordeen testified.

When I leave at the end of the day, after having done that, I feel dirty.  Unfortunately it is a necessity at times, in some situations.

While Calley, Liberati and others were successful in securing the measures passage, Calley wishes they could have done more.

I think its just human nature that people want to avoid accountability. In education, there are a lot of questions, a lot of scrutiny, a lot of reporting. Part of it, I think, is just fatigue (from) an industry that feels like theyre just under the microscope all the time, and this was just one more thing that they didnt want to have to deal with, Calley said.

The measures passed the Senate with almost unanimous support and the House with an overwhelmingly bipartisan majority vote. But the opposition of a few key lawmakers may have ramifications on any future legislative action.

 Lana Theis, then a Brighton Republican state representative, voted against the package. Shes currently the chairperson of the Senate Education and Career Readiness Committee, and is expected to win reelection this fall.

 Other current lawmakers who voted against the measure and are seeking reelection include Sens. Jon Bumstead, R-North Muskegon; Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, and Dan Lauwers, R-Brockway Township. All three voted against the package while serving in the House.

 State Sen. Tom Barrett, R-Charlotte, is running for Congress in mid-Michigan. He voted against the package while serving in the House.

 Former House speakers Tom Leonard, R-DeWitt, and Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, also opposed the package. During one committee hearing, Chatfield  a former private school teacher  said he has a child and sister with disabilities, and suggested the practices may be necessary in some circumstances.

Christine Greig was a House lawmaker at the time and sponsored bills in the package. The Northville Democrat, who went on to become the House democratic leader in 2018 before leaving the Legislature in 2020, said she thought by the end of the legislative process that the legislative bill package was a success.

But after reviewing the Free Press investigation, she said its clear more needs to be done.

To see now, after its been in place for several years, that we have some ISDs and some school districts that are going backward, is what it looks like, its just disheartening, Greig said during a recent interview.

Just looking at these numbers, we obviously didnt go far enough with the accountability side of it, and the follow-up. To me, it just looks like a huge gap in the law right now.

Greig stressed that she thought educators genuinely may need to use seclusion or restraint in rare circumstances, and if she were still in office shed want to hold hearings about the tactics, the laws and what exact changes should be made.

But in theory, tying funding to reporting requirements may be a more effective way to ensure compliance with the law, she said.

Its tough to do to schools, but you can always use the power of the purse. If theyre not reporting things and complying, that theres some kind of funding implications, Greig said.

You also want to look at, just, the public pressure you can put on a district through public transparency, too.

He doesnt need punishment. He needs help

Cassie, Daniel and Kai Atallah hope revealing their struggles will help others.

Cassie had kicked around doing something for years, in part because Kai wanted to take action. She says he wrote and delivered a speech to the mayor of Holland about problems with seclusion and restraint.

Theres very little the mayor can do about statewide education policy, but Cassie said Kai felt the speech went very well.

I told him, Someday, Im going to give you a voice. Im going to give you a venue. Were going to make change,  she said.

For Cassie that started with a phone call to the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint, a national organization. After chatting with founder Guy Stephens, a Maryland native whose son was repeatedly secluded and restrained, Cassie connected with other Michigan parents of children with similar experiences. Theyre organizing and preparing to take more concrete actions, such as speaking to the State Board of Education, to tell lawmakers about the problems they see.

Kai Atallah climbs trees on a recent day as he and his mom go on a field trip during the afternoon hours of his homeschooling in Holland. Kai had been homeschooled full-time for the past 2.5 years in response to the use of restraint and seclusion tactics by his previous school. Kai was diagnosed with autism during his kindergarten year and the use of seclusion negatively affected his experience in the classroom.

Cassie said they want lawmakers to evaluate whether both tactics are actually reserved for emergencies, potentially narrowing the legal definition. Lawmakers need to ensure educators have the training, time and resources necessary to respond to potentially problematic behavior in ways that do not lead to seclusion or restraint, she said.

If seclusion is defined as something thats legal here, thats going to be in the back of their mind: If this doesnt work, I can use that, Cassie said.

After pulling Kai from school, Cassie said they spent the next six months deschooling. They traveled, saw family and visited national parks. Eventually they returned to a somewhat more structured day, but lesson plans are crafted to help Kai manage his emotions and designed to change if hes particularly enjoying a subject.

Hes learning: Cassie said when Kai got really into the founding fathers, he memorized the entirety of the musical Hamilton. When they traveled to New York for a showing, he sat spellbound for the whole performance.

He is just so far beyond where he was. He can handle so much more, Cassie said, noting hes also taking new medication that is helpful. He doesnt need punishment. He needs help.

Kai said he loves his homeschool version of physical education class, but he noted hes not learning only at home.

After considerable discussion, Cassie and Daniel decided to try public school again. Theyre starting slowly; Kai is going to a special local public school program a few days a week.

Cassie and Daniel are happy, but cautious. They want to believe this can work, and that it is OK to trust another school system. After months of discussions, educators have agreed in writing not to seclude Kai.

If you take away seclusion as an option, they have to rethink the whole process, Cassie said.

But Daniel worries none of those agreements will matter in the heat of the moment should Kai struggle to regulate his emotions in the classroom.

Hes afraid educators  with no one to stop them  will ignore the agreement and put Kai back in the room theyve worked so hard to flee.

This series was produced with assistance from the Center for Health Journalism at the University of Southern California as part of the 2022 National Fellowship at the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism.

Contact Dave Boucher: Dboucher@freepress.com and Lily Altavena: laltavena@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan students are secluded, physically restrained in schools
The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) is cautioning borrowers to be aware of a new wave of harmful scams that attempt to take advantage of confusion surrounding President Joe Bidens plan to forgive up to $20,000 in federal student loans.

There has been a great deal of uncertainty since the announcement of the Administrations student loan forgiveness plan as details continue to emerge, said Rep. Mike Peifer, PHEAA board chairman. This creates ideal conditions for unscrupulous scammers to capitalize on the most vulnerable  those who can least afford to be the financial victims as they are already struggling to manage their student loan debt.

More:What's going on in and around Somerset County?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has received many complaints from borrowers about companies promising to deliver student loan services in exchange for fees. Borrowers often believed they were talking to their loan servicer, or a company that was acting on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education.

Scammers have become more sophisticated in recent years, using highly-sophisticated methods to lure unsuspecting borrowers into profit schemes, said Sen. Wayne Fontana, PHEAA board vice chairman. The most effective way to avoid becoming the victim of a scam is to remain vigilant and knowledgeable, especially when asked by anyone to provide personal information or while engaging in any financial transaction.

Scammers use multiple modes of communication to reach borrowers, including social media, text messages, emails, or phone calls. They are also very skilled at posing as government representatives and may even have look-alike government websites and logos to trick unsuspecting victims.

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Borrowers are encouraged to visit the U.S. Department of Educations Federal Student Aid (FSA) website, studentaid.ed.gov, to check on the status of the loan forgiveness program and only work with their trusted partners when assistance is needed with managing their student loans. Borrowers should never pay for a service that is available to them for free.

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Here are some red flags you should look for to avoid being scammed:

Claiming to be affiliated with your loan servicer or the U.S. Department of Education  The company claims to be associated with the U.S. Department of Education or a federal loan servicer but does not have your loan details readily available in their system.

Receiving out-of-the-blue calls, emails or text messages claiming to be from the government In general, the government will not attempt to contact you using these methods unless you grant permission.

Charging upfront fees for free programs or services  Scammers often attempt to charge money for programs and services that borrowers can access for free. Loan forgiveness, loan consolidation, student loan forbearance, and deferment are all provided for free by your federal loan servicer.

Requesting to sign a power of attorney  Some consumers have been asked to sign a power of attorney or other third-party authorization so they can make changes to their account. Dont give this power to someone unless you know and trust them.

They pressure to decide quickly  Scammers might tell you that you only have a limited time to take advantage of an offer or program. Take your time. An honest company will not pressure you to decide quickly. If theres any doubt, end the conversation and research the company to confirm whether they are legitimate.

They ask you to provide personal information  Consumers reported being asked for their Social Security number, bank information, FSA ID, and studentaid.gov login information. If youve shared your personal information with someone whom you suspect to be a scammer, log in and change your account password as soon as possible. You should also check your account information (contact email, address, and phone number) to make sure its still accurate.

Encouraging you to cease communications with your loan servicer  Scammers will often encourage consumers to end communication with their loan servicer. It's crucial for you to maintain communication with your loan servicer. Avoid any company that urges you to make payments to their company instead of your loan servicer or to stop communicating with your loan servicer.

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If you have been targeted by a scammer or think you may be a victim:

Cancel your payments.  If you realize after the fact, work with your bank to cancel or block your scheduled payment. Banks should have policies in place to help you avoid future fraudulent activity.

Contact your servicer.  They can help you protect your account. If you signed a power of attorney giving the scammer the right to communicate with your servicer on your behalf, get it revoked.

Submit a report to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Inspector General.

Contact the Pennsylvania Attorney Generals Office.

For information regarding the recent loan cancellation announcement, contact your loan servicer or visit studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement.

This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Watch out for student loan forgiveness scams
Mounting fears that Russian President Vladimir Putin could resort to a nuclear weapon to stem his losses in Ukraine have prompted debate about what are the real red lines for Moscow and Washington.

Putin has made only general threats to use nukes if Russia is attacked, though its unclear what that means given Moscows expanding claims of Ukrainian territory.

The United States, in response, has pledged catastrophic consequences if Putin goes nuclear, but President Biden in an interview Wednesday declined to offer any details about a U.S. response.

Several U.S. officials and experts offered support for the strategic ambiguity behind Bidens comments.

Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Biden should be clear that if Putin takes the nuclear route, the U.S. will not feel constrained to basically provide direct support to the Ukrainians to be able to ultimately win this war and defeat Putin.

He also said that Bidens dire if unspecific warnings speak loudly.

The president is talking about Armageddon, hes talking about catastrophic consequences. I cannot imagine that if Putin uses a nuclear weapon that that doesnt take the nuclear genie out of the bottle, he told The Hill.

Several security analysts who spoke to The Hill on Wednesday said being ambiguous gives the Pentagon and White House necessary flexibility.

What you dont want to do is to say very specifically if A then B, because then what you do is you allow Putin to kind of have that calculation, said Steven Horrell, a former U.S. naval intelligence officer now with the Center for European Policy Analysis.

He said the administrations current stance of being clear there will be consequences but not relaying specifics will hopefully deter that action  a tactical nuclear [weapon] or other in Ukraine, but doesnt pin the U.S. to any ultimatums.

U.S. presidents have learned painful lessons in the past from drawing too bright of red lines.

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Red lines is, I think, a very scary word in Washington, particularly following President Obama and the red lines supposedly drawn in Syria, and a lot of politicians and also leaders will shy away from that, said Monica Montgomery, a policy analyst for the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.

Obama delivered a speech in 2012 promising to intervene in the Syrian civil war if Syrian President Bashar Assads forces used chemical weapons, but then didnt follow through when those weapons were deployed a year later, which critics said emboldened Assad in crushing his opponents.

Montgomery said red lines can also be read as permitting other brutal actions.

I think Putins already extremely aware of the risks that nuclear use would bring NATO into the theater, she said, adding it was still wise to leave room to maneuver, as some theoretical uses of nuclear weapons may not justify such a drastic response.

Drawing red lines runs the risk of escalation by locking both sides into a dangerous tit-for-tat, argued Mathieu Droin, a visiting fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

If at some point the U.S. finds itself in a position where it has to respond, clearly thats a trigger for escalation, he said.

However, Droin said there is value in discrete discussions with Russia about the limits and the risks of its activities in Ukraine to manage the risk of escalation.

Moscow has repeatedly suggested red lines during the war, warning against long-range U.S. missiles near Russias border, saying that an attack on Crimea would elicit a Judgment Day response and most recently suggesting that attacks on newly annexed territories of Ukraine will not be tolerated.

So far, increased Western support for Kyiv and continued Ukrainian gains in annexed territories have not spurred an extraordinary response from Russia.

Jeremy Shapiro, director of research at the European Council on Foreign Relations, warned against underestimating the Kremlins nuclear threats in an article for War on the Rocks this week  especially if Russias losses continue and Putin becomes convinced the future of his rule is at risk.

Experts on the Russian military have long suspected that Russian nuclear signaling is an elaborate bluff meant to instill fear and caution in a weak-willed Western enemy, he wrote. But events in Ukraine and the possibility of a catastrophic military loss may have changed that calculation. Nobody really knows. It is likely that the Russians dont know either.

Chris Miller, a Russia expert at the Fletcher School at Tufts University, argued that Putin has not communicated clear and credible red lines, which he said is a good sign in terms of Moscows readiness to use a nuclear weapon.

Its dangerous to draw a line if youre Putin, because if a line gets crossed you have to act or you lose your credibility, he said.

The West has largely avoided steps that could lead to direct confrontation, with the U.S. refusing calls to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine and NATO only now considering air defense systems that Kyiv has long been calling for.

In an interview with CNNs Jake Tapper on Tuesday, Biden would only say that red lines have been discussed within the administration and gamed out by the Pentagon.

Theres been discussions of that, but Im not going to get into that. It would be irresponsible of me to talk about what we would or wouldnt do, he said.

Biden added that he believed Putin was a rational actor who had totally miscalculated when he invaded Ukraine.

Other officials have not been so vague on what a potential response from the West would be.

A senior NATO official on Wednesday said any Russian use of nuclear weapons would almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from NATO itself, according to a press officer, as reported by CNN.

That echoed a prediction from former CIA Director and retired Gen. David Petraeus, who said the U.S. would respond to a Russian nuclear attack by leading a NATO effort that would take out every Russian conventional force that we can see and identify on the battlefield in Ukraine and also in Crimea and every ship in the Black Sea.

Ahead of any major military move by Russia or the West, the U.S. and its allies are currently focused on outfitting Ukraine with systems to bolster its air defenses.

Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on Wednesday said the West needs to give Kyiv such systems in order for the embattled nation to help defend its airspace against attacks from Russian forces.

What needs to be done here by all the various countries that were at the conference today is chip in and help them rebuild and sustain an integrated air and missile defense system, Milley told reporters following a Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Brussels.

He added that different systems owned by several countries, including Germany and Israel, should be provided to Ukraine and used in combination to protect its skies.

I think its actions that count a hell of a lot more than words at this point, Panetta, the former Defense secretary, said. And I think if the United States and our NATO allies continue to provide support to the Ukrainians and provide the more advanced weapons  particularly air defense weapons that Ukraine needs  that says a lot right there.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Two Augusta area men were indicted by a federal grand jury for possessing illegal firearms.

Steve Shontell Heath, 46, of Hephzibah, and William Beau Devore, 21, of Martinez, A 46-year-old Hephzibah man and a 21-year-old Martinez man are each charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

The cases are being investigated as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods in collaboration with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI to reduce violent crime with measures that include targeting convicted felons who illegally carry guns, according to a news release from the Southern District of Georgia U.S. Attorney's Office.

Guns seized: 'We hear you': Richmond County Sheriff's Office seizes guns, drugs off the streets

Homicide on the rise: Number of Richmond County homicide deaths reaches 2021 total

As we continue the fight against violent crime in our neighborhoods, removing guns from the hands of convicted felons helps keep our citizens safe, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. We appreciate the outstanding work of our law enforcement partners in protecting our communities.

In the past four years, more than 775 suspects have been federally charged in the Southern District of Georgia for illegal firearms offenses, most often for possessing a firearm after conviction for a previous felony, according to the release.

Recent federal legislation signed on June 25 increased the maximum penalty for illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon from 10 years to 15 years.

Recent sentencing for Augustans facing federal charges:

Robert Alexander DuBose, 40, of Augusta, was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Richmond County sheriffs deputies investigating a vehicle break-in in November 2020 arrested DuBose after finding a pistol in his pants.

Elijawan Leysath Rhodes, 29, of Augusta, was sentenced to 33 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Richmond County Sheriffs Office investigators responding to gunfire at a Wrightsboro Road motel Dec. 31, 2021, arrested Rhodes after a brief chase when they found a pistol in Rhodes vehicle.

Michael Jordan Sharp, 31, of Augusta, was sentenced to 36 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,200 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sharp was on parole from a felony conviction on state charges for sale of methamphetamine when Richmond County sheriffs deputies and officers from the Georgia Department of Community Supervision found a pistol while searching his home.

Neqwaun ONeal Roberson, 23, of Augusta, was sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,000 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Richmond County sheriffs deputies arrested Roberson in September 2021 on outstanding warrants for state charges, including aggravated assault and armed robbery, and found a loaded pistol in his pocket. Roberson is a member of Loyalty Over Everything (LOE) criminal street gang in Augusta.

Ziquane Sandford, 24, of Hephzibah, was sentenced to five years of probation and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to dealing in firearms without a license. Sandford admitted he sold firearms on four occasions without the required license.

Charles Dean Jones, 26, of Grovetown, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. A Georgia State Patrol trooper charged Jones in November 2021 after an attempted traffic stop, pursuit and crash of the motorcycle Jones was riding in Columbia County. Jones had a loaded pistol in a backpack he was wearing.

Christopher Fitzgerald Jones, 35, of Augusta, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Richmond County sheriffs deputies arrested Jones in October 2021 on a felony warrant resulting from a series of domestic altercations. Jones was carrying a pistol at the time of his arrest.

More: 'We're not backing down': Augusta forms new Violent Crimes Unit, Special Victims Unit

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Augusta area men indicted for possessing illegal firearms
United Nations  The United Nations General Assembly Wednesday voted overwhelmingly to condemn Russia's so-called annexation of a large swath of Ukraine, and demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from those areas. Saudi Arabia was among the nations who voted in favor of the resolution. By a 143-5 margin, the General Assembly condemned Russia's "attempted illegal annexation" of four Ukrainian territories, and called for Russia to "immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces." The five nations who voted against the measure were Russia, Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. China was among 35 nations who abstained from voting.

A general view shows voting results during a United Nations General Assembly emergency meeting to discuss Russian annexation in Ukraine at U.N. headquarters in New York City on Oct. 12, 2022. The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted to condemn Russia's annexations of parts of Ukraine after Moscow vetoed a similar effort in the Security Council. / Credit: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images

The resolution, which also called on nations to "refrain from any action that might be interpreted as recognizing any such altered status," marked the strongest support to date for Ukraine from the 193-nation General Assembly since the start of the Russian invasion.

President Biden, in a statement Wednesday night praising the vote, said "143 nations stood on the side of freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity."

"The stakes of this conflict are clear to all  and the world has sent a clear message in response: Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map. Russia cannot change borders by force," Biden's statement read. "Russia cannot seize another country's territory as its own. Ukraine is entitled to the same rights as every other sovereign country. It must be able to choose its own future, and its people must be able to live peacefully inside its internationally recognized borders."

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to U.N., told world leaders in General Assembly Hall that "our message is loud and clear: It does not matter if you as a nation are big or small, rich or poor, old or new. If you are a U.N. member state, your borders are your own and are protected by international law. The path to peace does not run through placations. The path to peace does not involve turning the other way in the face of these flagrant violations. Peace does not, and has never, come from silence."

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After the vote, Thomas-Greenfield told reporters it was a "monumental day," and later tweeted, "Kherson is Ukraine. Zaporizhzhya is Ukraine. Donetsk is Ukraine. Luhansk is Ukraine," referring to the territories that Russia now claims as its own.

Sergiy Kyslytsya, Ukraine's U.N. ambassador, told CBS News the vote was a "collective effort of an overwhelming majority, and the call of moral duty and reason."

"Who wants or can afford to be on the wrong side of the fence at this historic moment?" Kyslytsya asked. On Oct. 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed laws annexing four Ukrainian regions in the wake of "referendums" staged by Moscow in the areas. Those referendums were condemned by the international community as shams, with Ukraine, the head of the U.N., the U.S. and many other countries dismissing the move as a blatantly illegal land grab. "A trail of blood is left behind the Russian delegation when it enters the General Assembly," Kyslytsya told the General Assembly Wednesday, referring to the brutality of attacks against civilians since the war began. The vote was telling in how far the international community has come to send a unified message to Russia. All members of the Gulf Cooperation Council - which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates - voted in favor of the resolution. Abdulaziz Alwasil, Saudi Arabia's U.N. ambassador, said that the support for the measure comes out of a "commitment to the firm principles of international law and Charter of the United Nations ... We confirm the need to respect the sovereignty of states with neighboring relationships." Prior to the vote, Vassily Nebenzia, Russia's U.N. ambassador, warned that the measure could "destroy any and all efforts in favor of a diplomatic solution to the crisis." His caution was not heeded. Following an Oct. 8 explosion which caused the partial collapse of a bridge linking Russia with the Crimean Peninsula, Russia launched two days of retaliatory strikes on Monday and Tuesday in which dozens of missiles and drones were fired at Ukraine. At least 19 people were killed and more than 100 injured. Russia on Wednesday announced that it had arrested eight people in connection with the explosion. "The latest barrage of missile attacks against civilian infrastructure in Kyiv and cities that Russia now claims as its own through its sham referenda, reveal to us the true nature of this war," Bob Rae, Canada's U.N. ambassador, told the General Assembly Wednesday. "This is not a "special military operation," he added. "It is a war to punish and destroy Ukraine." Olof Skoog, European Union ambassador to the U.N., told reporters after the vote that "the result today is a resounding statement that rejects Russia's actions and considers them illegal: the sham referenda, the alleged annexations, all of it. It proves today that it will not stand, and that it is declared null and void, and simply has no validity." Josep Borrell, high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, tweeted that "Russia will be held accountable," adding that the General Assembly vote "unequivocally rejected Russia's illegal annexation." Wednesday's vote came after the U.N. Security Council failed to adopt a resolution in late September on the same topic because of Russia's veto. Although General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, the weight of a condemnation by almost 75 percent of the world's nations sends a message to Russia, U.S. officials said. "There is a very simple way to end this war," a senior White House official, speaking on background, told reporters last week, echoing what President Biden told the U.N. General Assembly in September. "Russia can stop the fighting, pull back its troops to Ukraine's borders, and the war will be over."

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The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted to condemn Russia's annexation of parts of Ukraine, a move US President Joe Biden said sent a "clear message" to Moscow.

The General Assembly approved the resolution with 143 in favor and five against, but 35 nations abstained including China, India, South Africa and Pakistan despite a major US diplomatic effort to seek clearer condemnation of Moscow.

The resolution "condemns the organization by the Russian Federation of so-called referendums within the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine" and "the attempted illegal annexation" announced last month of four regions by President Vladimir Putin.

It calls on all UN and international agencies not to recognize any changes announced by Russia to borders and demands that Moscow "immediately and unconditionally reverse" its decisions.

The vote showed Russia that it "cannot erase a sovereign state from the map," Biden said in a White House statement.

"By attacking the core tenets of the UN Charter, Russia is tearing at the very foundations of international peace and security," the statement said. "The stakes of this conflict are clear to all -- and the world has sent a clear message in response."

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, had urged all nations to send a message that the world "will not tolerate seizing a neighbor's land by force."

"Today it is Russia invading Ukraine. But tomorrow it could be another nation whose territory is violated. It could be you. You could be next. What would you expect from this chamber?" she said.

- International condemnation -

The United States had put special energy into seeking to persuade South Africa and especially India, a growing US partner that has a historically close relationship with Russia and also abstained in the Security Council, where it holds a non-permanent seat.

The vote was largely the same -- with a net two more votes against Russia -- as when the General Assembly in March condemned the initial invasion of Ukraine.

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Bangladesh, Iraq and Senegal -- which abstained in March -- on Wednesday voted to condemn Russia.

Eritrea, one of the world's most closed states, moved from a "no" to an abstention, while Nicaragua, under growing international pressure over human rights, switched from abstaining to voting "no" alongside only Russia, Belarus, North Korea and Syria.

"South Africa considers the territorial integrity of states and that of Ukraine to be sacrosanct, and we reject all actions that undermine the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and international law," said South Africa's representative, Mathu Joyini.

"We have abstained on the resolution because we believe that the objective of this assembly in keeping with its mandate must always be to contribute to a constructive outcome conducive to the creation of sustainable peace in Ukraine," she said.

Western powers counter that Russia is not genuinely interested in peace, as witnessed by deadly strikes on civilians in Kyiv and western Ukraine.

India's envoy, Ruchira Kamboj, said that "the entire Global South has suffered a substantial collateral damage" from the war and that "pressing issues" were not addressed in the resolution.

Bangladesh, explaining its move to condemn Russia, said that the international community should also stand firm against any attempt by Israel to annex occupied Palestinian territory.

"We strongly believe that the purposes and principles of the UN Charter regarding respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and peaceful settlement of all disputes must be complied universally for everyone, everywhere, under all circumstances," said Bangladesh's ambassador, Muhammad Abdul Muhith.

sct/bfm/to
Editors note: This list was created Oct. 2 and updated Oct. 10.

North Naples

KC American Bistro and The Local are open starting Oct. 3.

Naples slowly re-opened when power was restored. Off Immokalee Road, Pizzatta Pizzeria & Apertivo re-opened Sept. 30 to a brisk lunch business.

Two Fillets lounge and bar

Closer to U.S. 41 at Riverchase Plaza, three restaurants were open for lunch: Firehouse Subs, China Wok and New York Pizza & Pasta.

Two Fillets is also open.

More: Naples restaurants: Two Fillets, the new fish-cow mashup in North Naples  JLB review

Mercato restaurants open after Hurricane Ian

At Mercato, Vincenzo Betulia opened Bar Tulia Sept. 30 for lunch. Lunch and dinner service was to resume Oct. 1 as it does for down the street neighbors Angelic Desserts and Bakery and The Cave Bistro & Wine Bar at Galleria Shoppes.

Also open as of Sunday: AZN Azian Cuizine, Bravo!, Burntwood Tavern, The Hamtpton Social, Kilwins, The Pub, Rocco's Tacos and Tequila Bar.

Restaurants at Mercato Shops Oct. 2.

Fifth Avenue South restaurants reopening after the storm

Several of Fifth Avenue South's prestigious restaurants also opened. Sept. 30 welcomed the re-openings of Bice, The French, Molto, Ocean Prime, Tulia and Bar Tulia, L'Olivio and Roma.

Neighboring Del Mar, Vergina, Aqua, La Pescheria, Thai Sushi by K.J., Gelato & Co re-opened Oct. 1.

Across the street on the odd-numbered 300 block, neither The French nor Sails could open until Oct. 4 as their side of the street had no power for their kitchens.

Sails' owner Corinne Ryan said the restaurant had to throw away its food. She has yet to see an FPL truck. Following the restaurant's clean-up efforts, her staff is ready to work but she isn't optimistic about Sunday food deliveries.

Although Ryan canceled guests' reservations for Saturday dinner and Sunday brunch, power was restored Oct. 3.

Both Sails and The French open Oct. 4.

Fifth Avenue Coffee expects to reopen on Oct. 2 as does Jimmy P's Charred in Bonita Springs.

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On Third Street South, The Bevy first opened on Oct. 1 then lost power. It re-opened with a limited menu Oct. 3.

Yabba Island Grill re-opened Oct. 5

Other Naples restaurants that have opened, and more information

New York Pizza & Pasta is cash only Oct. 1

The Claw Bar at Bellasera is open.

Hogfish Harry's and Hooters on Gateway Lane is open.

Le Indya on Pine Ridge is open for dining in and takeout.

Uncle Julio's near Coastland Center is open with limited hours.

Miller's Ale House, full menu.

Shula's at Hilton Naples is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

BRK Pizza near Costco is open as of Oct. 2.

Also in North Naples, Parmesan Pete's at 7935 Airport-Pulling Road has reopened. The restaurant is open for lunch 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Friday and for dinner 4:30 p.m.-close Monday through Saturday. ParmesanPetes.com

When heading out, be sure to bring cash as many including Lamoraga and Zinos, cannot accept credit card payments.

Open in East Naples: 21 Spices; Bistro la Baguette, Carole's House, Celebration Park, LowBrow Pizza, Three60 Market; Sam Sneads at Lely Resort is open for lunch and dinner; Twisted Sheep Pizzeria (try the French onion mac and cheese or kung pao meatballs); Naples Pizza of SW FLA in Berkshire Commons Plaza.

Marco Island

Open: CJ's on the Bay has limited hours; Deep Sea Lagoon at The Esplanade; Island Chicken; Italian Deli; IslaMarotta and Red Rooster for breakfast and lunch; MichaelBob's; NachoMama's; La Tavola.

More: Restaurant review: Marco Island's La Tavola offers spotless, old-school charm  JLB

As of Oct. 4, Cocomo's Grille, Marco Prime, Sand Bar and The Speakeasy are open.

Bonita openings

Chops City Grill opened Oct. 5.

Iguana Mia with a limited menu.

Marcos Pizza at 24851 S. Tamiami Trail in Bonita Springs is open 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Old 41 is open; cash only.

Domino's on Old 41 is open.

Roy's is open for dinner.

Trackside Donuts at 28001 Old 41 Road is open until they sell out

This story is continuously updated. If you're a Collier County restaurant owner and your business is open, contact diana.biederman@naplesnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Naples, Bonita restaurants reopen after Hurricane Ian - here's a list
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) wasted no time in fulfilling his education campaign promises after he was elected to office.

Since his inauguration earlier this year, Youngkins administration saw the passage of a substantial education budget; the governor signed the Virginia Literacy Act and executive orders banning critical race theory; and the Virginia Board of Education released new model policies retracting accommodations for transgender students.

The actions represent policy wins on issues that are popular among the broader GOP.

Experts say his performance could make him a standout in the leadup to the 2024 presidential election, where making good on campaign promises could give him an extra boost.

Youngkins victory last year made him the first Republican elected to a statewide office in Virginia since 2009. The businessman-turned-politician made education and parents role in their childrens education a key issue on the campaign trail, resonating with suburban and independent voters.

The 55-year-old governor was able to harness interest in national education topics such as critical race theory, mask mandates and LGBT issues during his campaign.

The governor ran on and was elected on his premise of empowering parents and restoring excellence in education. Since being elected, hes been delivering on it since day one, an official with Youngkins office told The Hill.

Youngkin signed orders to make masks optional in all schools, directed schools to ban lessons that were inherently divisive and ordered an investigation into the Loudoun County school district after it gained national attention for an alleged case of sexual assault.

The early actions taken by the commonwealths governor mirror those of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is up for reelection and is widely viewed as a top potential GOP presidential contender in 2024.

DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education bill and legislation that would ban transgender students from participating on sports teams that correspond with their gender identity.

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In late September, the Virginia Board of Education released an updated set of model policies mapping out the treatment of transgender students in schools, from use of names and pronouns to the use of bathrooms and sex-designated school facilities.

These policies have garnered backlash from Virginia Democrats and even high school students in the state whove staged walkouts in protest.

Students at McLean High School in McLean, Va., walk out of classes to protest Gov. Glenn Youngkins proposed changes to accommodations to transgender students.

But some bipartisanship has also been found in Virginia, following the passage of an extensive education budget back in April.

The Youngkin official praised the bipartisan work on the budget, highlighting teacher pay raises, money for school resource officers and school safety, $100 million to lab schools and school construction.

Gianni Snidle, press secretary for the Democratic Party of Virginia, described the most recent education budget to The Hill as historic but doesnt believe the governor deserves the credit for it.

We did end up passing a historic education budget, but that was due to Senate Democrats efforts, not Governor Youngkin, Snidle said, adding Republicans only got on board with the teacher pay raises after Democrats proposed it.

Still, Youngkins policy wins have made him popular among Republicans in his state and have grabbed the attention of the GOP nationwide.

Veteran Republican strategist Doug Heye told The Hill that following through on campaign promises can often be a rare thing in politics.

Hes following up on promises that he made, which in politics sometimes can be a rare thing. And its why you see he has a net approval rating in the state and more and more Republicans are wanting him on the campaign trail in these closing weeks of the campaign, Heye said.

Youngkin has made the rounds during his short time in office, campaigning for fellow Republicans like Maine gubernatorial candidate Paul LePage. Hes also campaigned for Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R), who is seeking reelection this year.

Youngkin campaigned with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) in September as he faces off against Democrat Stacey Abrams for the governorship in November.

This type of popularity can be useful for a presidential bid.

The best way to do this is talk about [education issues] in the context of delivering on promises. If youre running for president, obviously we dont know that he is, different issues react differently in primary states and things like that. But if hes able to talk about how hes delivered and continues to deliver on promises he made, hes on good footing, Heye said.

But for now, Youngkin has waved off questions about a potential 2024 presidential run. The Youngkin official told The Hill the governor is focused on keeping his education promises in office.

Hes focused on delivering for Virginians, and empowering parents and focusing on education and restoring excellence will always be some of his key priorities, the official said.

But even Democrats say that the Republicans efforts in office indicate that he has lofty political ambitions.

Snidle said he has no doubt Youngkin has 2024 ambitions.

I think right now everything that Youngkin is doing is through the lens that he is running [in] 2024. Theres no doubt about it, Snidle said. The far-right policies that hes trying to push in Virginia  Virginians dont want that, but it works for his MAGA Republican base. He has to show them that if he wants to be the nominee, hes going to cater to them and thats what hes doing here.

The next challenge Youngkin will have to face in education in Virginia is the ever-growing teacher shortage that is plaguing the country.

While Youngkin has proposed a plan to make licensure for teaching in Virginia more flexible to make it easier for out-of-state teachers and retirees to help fill the void, Democrats and the Virginia Education Association (VEA) have said it is not enough.

We have a teacher shortage because of Governor Youngkin and Republicans attacking our public schools. Our teachers, they get harassed, Snidle said.

The VEA said at the time of Youngkins proposal that they can get behind some of his plan but that there is more he needs to do to help alleviate the shortage of teachers.

Our current budget surplus could be used effectively to solve this problem, which affects all Virginias citizens. By what he decides to do with those funds, our governor will show us if he truly values education and solving our teacher shortages, VEA President James J. Fedderman said.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
A Melrose man was placed on three years probation for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. Joshua Munn was also ordered to pay $500 in restitution and perform 60 hours of community service.

Munn of Melrose was charged in July 2021 in federal court with illegally entering a restricted area or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in the Capitol building, parading/demonstrating/picketing in the Capitol building.

Munn and four of his family members initially pleaded not guilty to all four counts but reached a deal to plead guilty on the demonstrating inside the Capitol charge.

According to the criminal complaint, Munn was among five family members who traveled from Texas to Washington, D.C., to protest the counting of electoral votes that certified Joe Bidens victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. The five were among the first who entered the Capitol building and disrupted what had previously been a routine process.

The complaint says prosecutors were tipped off by a relative that all five had entered the Capitol building.

Munn reportedly posted about the incident on his Facebook account. He wrote ... family marched on DC today it was extremely cool we did enter the Capitol building ... Second group there was no evidence from the protesters at all it all came from the police believe it or not.

One of Munns siblings, Kayli Munn, received the same sentence. Another sibling, Kristi Munn, received the same sentence plus 90 days of home confinement.

Joshua Munns parents, Thomas and Dawn Munn, were sentenced to three years probation, 14 days of incarceration, 90 days of home confinement, 60 hours of community service and $500 in restitution.

The FBI agent who investigated the case is based in northern Texas. Although the complaint lists Joshua Munn with a Wisconsin address, it doesnt reference any connection that any member of the family has to Wisconsin.
STURBRIDGE  The pocket off Route 20 where trucks stopped for servicing for many years will be flattened for a $17.5 million multifaceted project come 2023.

The seven-acre property, which was last active as New England Truck Stop Inc., was purchased by Noble Energy Real Estate Holdings in 2020.

Michael Frisbie, owner of the Hartford-based company, said that the two-part project will be a convention center for electric vehicles and a travel stop with a charging station and gas station.

An Electrical Vehicle Discovery Center at 201 Charlton Road in Sturbridge will have a driving range for electrical vehicles, a restaurant, a charging station and a convention center.

The convention center, to be named Electric Vehicle Discovery Center, will be run in a two-floor 16,000-square-foot building aiming to promote the use of electric vehicles.

It will also house an electric car showroom where visitors will be able to test-drive the cars, according to Frisbie.

The project also includes a highway travel stop with a charging station for electric cars and a Noble Gas Inc. gas station.

While the travel stop is expected to be running as early as February, the convention centers opening will be no earlier than fall 2023, Frisbie said.

The $7.5 million center will be run in partnership with the Canadian nonprofit organization Plugn Drive, which in 2017 opened a similar location in Toronto, according to the projects website.

It will cost $7.5 million to build, according to Frisbie, whereas the travel stop will cost $10 million.

He said that he chose a location in Massachusetts due to the states tendency to be progressive when it comes to the environment.

Sturbridge Town Administrator Robin Grimm welcomes the project, as she says that it will be another addition to Sturbridges other tourist offerings, citing Sturbridge Village and 25 miles of hiking trails.

She added that the town will offer a 10-year tax exemption understanding with the company for the convention center, which will start at 100% and will be reduced by 10% every year.

We're really excited about the project, said Grimm. Sturbridge has a lot of spirit of tourism and we're very excited because of the fact that it will draw people into our community.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Sturbridge route 20 electric car convention center gas station
Gecko Robotics and Siemens Energys ultrasonic technology-based robotic inspections will transform the future of infrastructure inspections and maintenance.

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands & PITTSBURGH, October 13, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gecko Robotics, a leader in using advanced robotics and enterprise software to help ensure the availability, reliability and sustainability of critical infrastructure, today announced a three-year collaboration with Siemens Energys European Field Service organization to market and perform advanced ultrasonic robotic inspections services across Europe.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005396/en/

Gecko builds wall-climbing robots and enterprise software to protect the infrastructure of daily life. At a time of massive disruptions and surging demand, Geckos technology is helping to maximize the productivity, reliability and longevity of the assets that underpin essential industries including power generation, oil & gas refining, heavy manufacturing, transportation and more. (Photo: Business Wire)

These advanced robotic inspections are poised to strengthen critical infrastructure and transform how installed equipment is inspected and maintained. Together, the two companies will develop new technologies and services to better serve customers across several industries, including pulp & paper, power generation (conventional and renewable) and oil & gas.

"Over the past year, we've worked closely with experts from Siemens Energy to understand the value and impact that the collaboration of our companies can create for the European energy market," noted Ryan Herman, Geckos Managing Director, Europe. "Its become clear that by coming together to serve these customers we can unlock new data insights and help achieve reliability and efficiency not previously possible."

Ultrasonic Robots Will Bring Unparalleled Advantages to European Customers

Siemens Energys European Field Service organization and Gecko Robotics have already completed inspections across Europe in Poland (pulp/paper), Belgium (waste to energy), the Netherlands (food processing) and the UK (power generation). In support of the collaboration, Siemens Energy has established a new Product Competence Center in the Netherlands, with expansion plans underway.

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"The collaboration between Gecko Robotics and Siemens Energy brings the best of both worlds together to deliver end-to-end value for our customers. With one of the industrys largest installed fleets of rotating equipment, Siemens Energy will provide unparalleled customer access to bring proven robotics technology to its wide customer base," according to Herman Smit, Manager Robotic Inspections at Siemens Energy. "The robotic inspection system will not only ensure safe and reliable operations of customer assets but also provide rich multi-modal data to make condition-based maintenance of static equipment much more feasible."

Gecko Robotics robots are remote controlled and equipped with ultrasonic transducers, localization sensors, lasers and HD cameras. They climb vertically and horizontally, adhering magnetically to an extensive range of equipment types to scan for changes in thickness, cracks, corrosion, blistering and other forms of degradation. The robots also include localization technology to pinpoint exact locations on an asset, allowing for truly accurate inspections that enable inspectors to examine corrosion trends over time, predict when failures will occur and estimate when repairs will be necessary.

Data captured by Geckos robots and its software platform can then produce a validated report within 24 hours, allowing inspectors to quickly assess and make informed decisions about ongoing maintenance or repairs. This process and quick turnaround also enable inspectors to reduce asset downtime and lost production, while ensuring critical repairs are conducted with high confidence.

By aligning with Siemens Energys European Field Service organization, Gecko gains a local presence across Europe, access to local technical talent and the opportunity to work with customers in the region. Siemens Energy will be responsible for hiring and training local technicians and customer service personnel across Europe, allowing Gecko Robotics to efficiently deliver state-of-the-art technology, while adhering to all local safety and labor regulations.

About Gecko Robotics:

Gecko builds wall-climbing robots and enterprise software to protect the infrastructure of daily life. At a time of massive disruptions and surging demand, Geckos technology is helping to maximize the productivity, reliability and longevity of the assets that underpin essential industries including power generation, oil & gas refining, heavy manufacturing, transportation and more. Geckos robots capture data at orders of magnitude greater scale and fidelity than traditional, manual inspection methods. Combined with Geckos software, this data magnifies the contributions of human experts while eliminating the need to enter dangerous areas themselves. This results in optimized maintenance, greater uptime, informed CAPEX investment, significant cost savings, lower environmental footprints and fewer workplace injuries. www.geckorobotics.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005396/en/

Contacts

Carmen Mantalas

GMK Communications for Gecko Robotics

carmen@gmkcommunications.com
Baggage being unloaded from an Easyjet plane

EasyJet has warned the closure of Ukrainian airspace could continue to cause flight disruption next summer.

Congestion in the skies over Europe is causing delays for airlines, chief commercial officer Sophie Dekkers told MPs.

Ukraine's airspace has been closed since February due to Russia's invasion.

Airlines also said the tight labour market would continue to make hiring enough staff difficult.

Ms Dekkers told the Transport Select Committee this had caused a severe air traffic control challenge, because lots of traffic had to be routed through "a very narrow funnel across Europe".

This, she said, meant any flights going through southern Europe were subject to delays and knock-on effects.

The low-cost carrier does not think this will change in the near future, so the need to allow for delays would be taken into account when building its schedule for summer 2023.

The travel industry is hoping strong appetite for holidays carries on into next year to help the sector recover, despite cost-of-living pressures and other challenges.

Demand rebounded quickly after travel restrictions were lifted in March, but many aviation businesses were caught out by staff shortages, including of ground handlers.

A number of airlines were forced to trim their schedules, and some airports to impose capacity limits.

Looking ahead to next summer, representatives from British Airways and Gatwick Airport told the committee recruitment remained a challenge.

EasyJet said that the labour shortage "broadly is the biggest risk for next year".

Gatwick Airport called on the government to open up the sector to international visas for employment.

Figures released this week showed that the UK's number of job vacancies had dropped back from its record level, but still remained high.

Ms Dekkers said EasyJet was finding the market of candidates more restrained than ever because it could not "use resource from within Europe to be part of [its] growth".

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She said the proportion being rejected because they were "international" applicants and couldn't be offered UK employment had risen from 2% to around 40%.

In June, the boss of Ryanair, Michael O'Leary, told the BBC the UK government should allow more workers from Europe to fill vacancies post-Brexit. The government said it wanted firms to invest in workers from the UK.

This week Mark Tanzer, the boss of travel association ABTA, said the recruitment challenge triggered by people leaving to work in other industries during the pandemic would "certainly continue as the war for talent rages on".

Mr Tanzer also said he expected businesses would "battle strong economic headwinds for the next year".

Heathrow Airport said on Tuesday that the outlook for future demand remained uncertain due to "growing economic headwinds, a new wave of Covid and the escalating situation in Ukraine".

Heathrow's cap on daily departing passenger numbers, designed to ensure staffing levels can cope, will be lifted on 29 October.

But the airport is working with airlines on an alternative system which can be used to manage capacity at peak periods such as Christmas, if necessary.
Cosmopolitan cocktail

Getty Images

Whether you came into adulthood during the Sex and the City era, or found author Candice Bushnell's four fiercely independent female compatriots in reruns and reboots, you know that the Cosmopolitan cocktail was nearly the fifth friend to Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda. But the drink's origins didn't begin with the Patricia Field-styled fab fourit was inspired by a classic sour.

"It's a compelling cocktail because, contrary to what people think about it being a sweet, pink thing, it's actually in the same family as the margarita, the Sidecar, and the whiskey sour," says veteran bartender Toby Cecchini, the Cosmopolitan's inventor. "When done with the proper specifications, people are surprised by how grabby it is."

Related: Vodka Cocktail Recipes You'll Make Again and Again

A Cosmo Is Born

Cecchini created the drink in 1988, while working as a bartender at the Odeon in downtown Manhattan, a hot spot popular with '80 icons like Madonna, Andy Warhol, and Robert DeNiro. A waitress he worked with at the time had just returned from a trek to San Francisco, and told him about a pink-hued concoction with vodka, Rose's Lime, and Rose's Grenadine that she'd encountered while there. Cloyingly sweet and relying almost entirely on artificial ingredients, it wasn't a drink Cecchini took much stock inbut its pretty color and martini-glass presentation gave him an idea. Why not create a new riff on a classic sour?

Absolut Vodka had just released its first flavored offshoot, Citron, and Cecchini was keen to experiment with the new subtly lemon-flavored spirit. He tinkered with it and eventually settled on a combination of fresh lime juice, Cointreau, a dash of Ocean Spray cranberry juice cocktail for color, and a twist of lemon.

Enter Carrie Bradshaw

A decade later, when Sex and the City adopted the pretty pink Cosmopolitan as its own, it came to symbolize more than just a happy hour clink for its core characters: It fit the bill for something else Bushnelland, towards the end of the '90s, the adapted show's producerswas trying to achieve. "Her characters put on their Jimmy Choos, made their own worlds, and drank Cosmos," Cecchini says. "It became a symbol that made women feel sophisticated and seen."

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Stylish Variations

"The Cosmo is a pretty simple drinkbasically, a flavored vodka with a touch of Cointreau. But you need to rely on that fresh lime juice. It supports the flavor," says Linden Pride, the co-owner of New York's Dante, a popular cocktail bar with locations in SoHo and the West Village. At the latter location, the cocktail menu has a section that showcases its own Cosmopolitan list, offering multiple riffs on the classic.

The most popular, he says, is the Cosmojito, a mash-up of both the Cosmopolitan and the mojito, combining Grey Goose L'Orange with Cointreau, fresh lime juice, their own house-made cranberry juice, mint, and a splash of Perrier. Once you master the classic, give the White Cosmo or a Black Currant Cosmo a trythese are excellent offshoots of the original, as well.

Making the Classic Cosmopolitan

To make a classic Cosmopolitan, Cecchini insists on the drink's original blueprintsubbing in cheaper ingredients or taking short-cuts just doesn't result in a snappy, bright, and quenching drink.

It Should Be Tart

"People are constantly telling me they use any old vodka, or triple sec instead of Cointreau, or simple syrup, or less lime juice. People make all kinds of iterations. But there's a reason I stick to my original ingredients and specs," Cecchini says. "When done right, the Cosmopolitan is never a cloying, affected drink. It's a tight, bracing sour."

Stick to Cranberry Juice Cocktail

The Cosmopolitan is all about quality ingredients. But what about that Ocean Spray cranberry juice? For Cecchini, other versions are too drying and tannic, as well as too tart in combination with the acidic punch of the lime juice. So, don't deviate. "It was part of the original spec of the cocktail I created," he says. "The way I make the drink is very dry and sour. The cranberry juice cocktail ends up being the perfect cap on the drink, especially because, for a liqueur, Cointreau is not terribly sweet. Plus, it gives it that coloringjust a splash of pink."

Proportions Matter

Cecchini's original recipe was made to fill '80s-era martini glasses to the brim (they were giant!). Today, when someone in the know implores him to make his classic at the Long Island Bar, the establishment he now owns in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, he measures with today's slightly smaller glasses in mind.

1  ounces of Absolut Citron

 ounce fresh lime juice

 ounce Cointreau

 ounce Ocean Spray cranberry juice cocktail

Shake the ingredients with ice, strain into a coupe or a martini glass, and adorn with a lemon twist.
EastEnders has confirmed six fan-favourite characters will return for Dot Cottons funeral (BBC)

EastEnders has confirmed that six characters are set to return to Walford for Dot Cottons funeral.

The residents of Albert Square will say an emotional farewell to the beloved launderette worker in a special episode following the death of actress June Brown at the age of 95 in April.

Among those paying their respects is Jacqueline Jossa, who played Dots step-granddaughter Lauren Branning, and she said her return to the BBC soap was a no brainer.

Other faces from Dots past heading back are George Lofty Holloway (Tom Watt), Colin Russell (Lord Michael Cashman CBE), Barry Clark (Gary Hailes), Mary the punk Smith (Linda Davidson), and Disa OBrien (Jan Graveson).

Brown portrayed the role of Dot for 35 years, and became part of the Branning clan after marrying Jim in 2002.

Jacqueline Jossa will reprise her role of Lauren Branning for the special episode (PA Archive)

She left the show in January 2020, with her character deciding to live in Ireland with her grandson, Charlie.

Speaking on why it was important to have so many people from Dots past return, executive producer Chris Clenshaw said in a statement: Its an honour to invite so many of Walfords beloved characters back to pay tribute to Dot.

Over the years, Dot profoundly impacted the lives of many young people struggling with lifes biggest challenges. Her warmth, heart, and compassion changed lives  so we wanted to reunite some of the people she helped the most.

Im thrilled these talented and generous actors wanted to share this special experience with us so we can give Dot a fitting send-off.

While exact details of the episode are being kept under wraps, what we do know is it will see Lauren (Jossa) return for the first time since leaving for a new life in New Zealand with son Louie back in 2018.

And while much of her former home has changed, there is one resident who catches her eye.

On how she feels about coming back for the emotional storyline, Jossa shared: Coming back to EastEnders for Dots funeral was a no-brainer, and it was a real honour to be invited back.

I had a lot of fun but, of course, it was bittersweet. It was amazing to be back, but hard to be filming this storyline. I can tell the viewers now that Dot gets the beautiful send-off that she deserves.

Reflecting on what Brown meant to her, she added: June was the light and joy of EastEnders. I had so much fun working with her, the incredible stories and how infectious and witty she was. June is a legend and I miss her very much.
helena christensen, mingus reedus

Agata Serge

Helena Christensen and her son Mingus Lucien Reedus work the cameras once again.

The pair collaborated with Berlin-based fashion brand Marcell Von Berlin for a powerhouse campaign celebrating its Suits Collection, a line of tailored and colorful pieces for men and women.

In a press release shared by the label, MVB founder and creative director Marcell Pustul shared that the '90s supermodel, 53, "caught the eye of the brand and became the perfect face and inspiration for the campaign."

"Everything she has accomplished in front of and behind the camera makes her a true icon," said Pustal, who recognized the parallels between Christensen's independent and elegant attitude and the Suits Collection.

As for Mingus, whom Christensen shares with her ex Norman Reedus, the designer was inspired by the 23 year old's "young, dynamic & ambitious" personality.

In having the Denmark-native and her son on board, Marcell Von Berlin hopes to reach global influence and a new generation.

RELATED: Norman Reedus and Ex Helena Christensen Share Sweet Tributes for Son's 20th Birthday

helena christensen, mingus reedus

Agata Serge

RELATED: Helena Christensen Shares Rare Selfie with 21-Year-Old Son Mingus: 'Bring Your Kid to Work Day'

Photographed by Agata Serge in New York, the campaign captures the mother and son in bold, fashion-forward looks including a twinning moment a la their matching teal suits and the uber chic outfit pictured above.

"I really enjoyed working with Marcell and his brand, he is professional and very dedicated to his work and it shows in his wonderful designs," shared Christensen in a release. "It was very special for me to shoot this campaign alongside my son. We had a really fun day and the pictures." she added.

Never miss a story  sign up for PEOPLE's free weekly newsletter to get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.

RELATED: Helena Christensen Models Alongside Son Mingus, 21, in Victoria's Secret Mother's Day Campaign

Christensen and Mingus previously partnered up with Victoria's Secret for its Mother's Day campaign celebrating the strengths of moms through all stages of parenthood.

In the emotional black-and-white video campaign, which also featured fellow models Grace Elizabeth and Sabrina Karlsson, Mingus asked his mom and UNHCR Global Goodwill Ambassador about what surprised her most about being a parent.

"I wouldn't say surprised but overall what a crazy beautiful journey it's been and how much you've taught me compared to what I feel I've taught you. It's the best thing ever. So much work. So much beautiful work," Christensen shared.
Olivia Wilde took cues from Mar-a-Lago while crafting the idyllic town of Victory for the script for her psychological thriller Don't Worry Darling.

The filmmaker has discussed some of the political undertones of the film, revealing that former President Donald Trump inspired her team while they brought the ideology touted by Victory architect Frank (Chris Pine) and Co. to the page.

"We had a bunch of Trump quotes up on our board when we were writing the script, and there was this gross tendency of Trump's to be very nostalgic about a better time," Wilde said in a new cover interview with Elle published Thursday. "What these men are referring to is a time that was horrific for anyone who wasn't a straight white cis man."

DON'T WORRY DARLING

Warner Bros. Pictures Olivia Wilde and Nick Kroll in 'Don't Worry Darling'

She added, "It was interesting to recognize that I had spent my entire life lusting after the iconography of this time when I would've had very few rights."

In the movie, Florence Pugh stars as Alice, a 1950s housewife who lives in the utopian community with her husband, Jack (Harry Styles). But the troubles of a fellow housewife (Kiki Layne) soon bring cracks to the facade, and Alice begins to suspect that her husband's company, spearheaded by a charismatic and mysterious Frank  who, for lack of better phrasing, wants to make America great again  is hiding dark secrets.

Olivia Wilde, Nick Kroll, and Chris Pine in 'Don't Worry Darling'

Warner Bros. Pictures Olivia Wilde, Nick Kroll, and Chris Pine in 'Don't Worry Darling'

Wilde previously revealed that Pine's character was based on Canadian media personality and psychologist Jordan Peterson, whom she described as "this pseudo-intellectual hero to the incel community" to Maggie Gyllenhaal in a recent Interview magazine conversation. Incels, she explained to Gyllenhaal, are "basically disenfranchised, mostly white men who believe they are entitled to sex from women."

"They believe that society has now robbed them  that the idea of feminism is working against nature, and that we must be put back into the correct place," Wilde said. "This guy Jordan Peterson is someone that legitimizes certain aspects of their movement because he's a former professor, he's an author, he wears a suit, so they feel like this is a real philosophy that should be taken seriously." (Peterson had an emotional response to the comments, tearing up during an interview with Piers Morgan.)

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Incels aside, Wilde concluded, "But it was a dream to work with all these evolved men on this movie who understood what we were trying to say."

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

Related content:
Top US general calls Russia out for war crimes, saying Putin's forces are purposefully gunning for civilian targets

Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley. AP Photo/Susan Walsh

Gen. Mark Milley said Russia's "deliberate" attacks on Ukraine's civilians are a "war crime."

The Russian military launched a barrage of deadly strikes on cities across Ukraine this week.

"Indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilian targets is a war crime in the international rules of war," said Milley.

US Army Gen. Mark Milley said Wednesday that Russia's latest deadly missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities were "deliberate" strikes on civilian targets, making them a "war crime."

Russian President Vladimir Putin's forces launched strikes on cities across Ukraine this week, including the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, in retaliation for damage done to a key bridge between Russia and Crimea, an important supply line in Russia's war against Ukraine.

"In the past few days, Russia has increased their strikes on civilian infrastructure, power generation and dams," Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the top US general, told reporters after a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels, Belgium.

Milley said that Russia "deliberately struck civilian infrastructure with the purpose of harming civilians."

"They have targeted the elderly, the women and the children of Ukraine," Milley said, adding that "indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilian targets is a war crime in the international rules of war."

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who spoke alongside Milley, said that Russia's latest "assaults on targets with no military purpose again reveal the malice of Putin's war of choice."

"Russia's atrocities have further united the nations of good will that stand with Ukraine," Austin said.

Milley and Austin's remarks follow an earlier statement by President Joe Biden.

"These attacks killed and injured civilians and destroyed targets with no military purpose," Biden said earlier this week. "They once again demonstrate the utter brutality of Mr. Putin's illegal war on the Ukrainian people."

Since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in early February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other governments have repeatedly accused Putin's forces of committing heinous war crimes in the eastern European country.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Wednesday was the start of what may very well be the first trial of its kind in Somerset County  two murder victims, four defendants, five defense attorneys, two state prosecutors and approximately 50 witnesses, according to court officials.

Check back here each day for daily updates on this developing story.

Day 1: The wheels of justice did not move for potential jurors.

Potential jurors, 100 strong, waited Wednesday in Somerset County courthouse's courtroom two and the adjoining conference room for the selection process to begin only to be sent home at the end of the day and ordered to return the next day for the process to begin anew.

The seven attorneys in this case  five defense and two prosecution  hashed out potential problems in pretrial motions before the judge ending at around 4 p.m. when Somerset Judge Scott Bittner, who will preside over the double murder trial, presented his decisions in a different courtroom away from the waiting jury panel.

Two defense attorneys asked for a continuance to have extra time to adequately prepare with new information presented Wednesday during the pretrial motions. Another defense attorney requested that his client's case be severed because "two star prosecuting witnesses" will testify that his client was not present at any of the moments of the charged crime.

Bittner did not agree to grant either motions. He did however give the attorneys an additional day to work with any new information obtained Wednesday, by ordering them to pick a jury Thursday and then present opening statements on Monday. Initially, the attorney would have selected a jury and immediately present opening statements to the panel. Then witness testimony would begin going through Friday and continuing on Monday and the remainder of the week.

The judge did not respond either way to a request by one of the defense lawyers to clock a defense witness with immunity from self-incrimination so she would testify at trial. Initially that witness was charged and to be among the defendants at trial. Her case was severed.

Story continues

The crime

The crime crossed Cambria and Somerset counties lines, involved kidnapping and torture and shooting to death of two friends, James Smith, of Portage, and Damian Staniszewski, of Duncansville, in March 2017.

The defendants are accused of various roles in torturing the two friends in the basement of a Johnstown house, and then driving Smith and Staniszewski to a wooded area along Ligonier Pike in Conemaugh Township where the men were shot to death.

Smith and Staniszewski allegedly stole a large quantity of drugs and money from a stash house" in Johnstown belonging to a member of the East Main Money Gang based out of Columbus, Ohio.

The defendants

Devon Lee David Wyrick, 28, Hollidaysburg, formerly Columbus, Ohio, was severed from the cases and trial regarding the co-defendants by Judge Scott Bittner Thursday morning in response to a request for him to do so.

Samson Ezekiel Washington, 30, Johnstown

Deandre Callender, 29, Somerset

Marekus Edward Benson, 32, Johnstown

The Jury

About 100 county residents, out of an original summons of about 250, are prospective jurors were chosen by Thursday afternoon, according to Somerset County Court Administrator Tammy Escalera.

Jury box in Somerset County Courthouse

Day 2: A jury picked, a defendant severed

Seven females and five males will sit on the jury with two males and two females selected as alternates by late afternoon on Thursday. Over the next week, those Somerset County residents selected to sit on the jury will hear opening statements by defense and prosecuting attorneys. Next will be testimony by witnesses from both sides that may include the defendants, who are not legally obligated to testify. Up to seven witnesses a day may be heard, according to court documents. Following comes closing statements by both sides before the presiding judge charges the jury on the crimes they will consider in the case. Jurors must find each defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of all the elements of each crime. Otherwise, they must find them not guilty. Last, the jurors will go into a small room to deliberate and make their decision, return to the courtroom, where their decision will be read aloud in the record by a representative of the county clerk of courts.

The security

Security has been tripled at the Somerset County Court of Common Pleas over the trial that began scheduled for seven days, but could run nine days, depending on how long jury deliberation takes, according to law enforcement officials.

The defendants are alleged to be connected with the East Main Money Gang out of Columbus, Ohio.

The investigation

Family members of Smith and Staniszewski filed missing persons reports with the state police within days of their disappearance. Police found an abandoned vehicle identified by Smiths and Staniszewskis families as the one the two men were last seen in together about a half-mile from where their remains would be discovered by a hunter the following September in 2018. Their remains were identified by law enforcement forensics shortly afterwards. Washington and Wyrick were arrested and charged in the case two months later. Benson and Callender were charged in May 2021.

The charges

The three defendants are charged with two counts each, one for each victim, of criminal homicide, kidnapping, unlawful restrain and aggravated assault. All initial four defendants also are charged with two counts of criminal conspiracy to commit the offenses.

The prosecutors

Prosecuting are Evan Anthony Lowry II and Kara Rice of the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. Lowry started his legal career in the Allegheny District Attorney's Office in 2010 and moved into the Attorney General's Office eight years later. In 2020 he was promoted to senior deputy attorney.

Rice was assistant district attorney in Mercer and Allegheny counties for the past 15 years before becoming a deputy attorney general.

The defense attorneys

Pittsburgh attorney Jaclyn Shaw and Ebensburg attorney Ashlan Clark represents Washington.

Somerset attorney Matthew Zatko represents Callender.

Somerset attorney Patrick Svonavec represents Benson.

Pittsburgh attorney Sally Frick represents Wyrick, who requested and was granted severance from his co-defendants and the trial on Thursday morning.

The judge

Bittner was elected to his position in Nov. 3, 2015. Prior to the election, he worked as an attorney in private practice at the Somerset County law firm Fike, Cascio & Boose.

This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Two week Somerset County trial: Double murder
A top Russian official has warned the west that the admission of Ukraine to Nato could trigger World War 3.

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three, the deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation told Tass on Thursday.

Apparently, thats what they are counting on - to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again.

Alexander Venediktov also repeated a Russian position that the west, by helping Ukraine, indicated that they are a direct party to the conflict.

It comes after the UN General Assembly condemned Moscows attempted annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

Only four countries joined Russia in voting against the resolution - Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote, including Russias strategic partner China, while the rest did not vote.

Meanwhile, in Brussels, more than 50 Western countries met to pledge more military aid to Ukraine, especially air defence weapons, on the heels of heavy retaliatory strikes this week ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to an explosion on a bridge in Crimea.

Key points

Russian missiles target Mykolaiv

UN General Assembly denounces Russias annexation

Putin: Russia can resume gas supplies via Nord Stream 2

Crimea bridge allegations nonsense, says Ukraine after arrests

Power out again at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

Watch: Elon Musk removed from billboards thanking westerners for supporting Ukraine

08:09 , Emily Atkinson

UN general assembly condemns Russia annexation in incredible vote

07:50 , Emily Atkinson

The UN has voted overwhelmingly to condemn Russias annexations of four Ukrainian regions.

The resolution was supported by 143 countries, while 35 nations abstained. Meanwhile, five countries rejected the vote: Russia, Belarus, North Korea, Syria and Nicaragua.

Tweeting this morning, the chair of the defence select committee called the vote incredible.

Story continues

Further global isolation for Putin, Tory MP Tobias Ellwood wrote. Russias soft and hard power has collapsed. Russia has now lost any post-soviet superpower status which Putin was so determined to redeem.

Incredible UN vote against Russia condemning annexation. 



143 for. 5 against.

Further global isolation for Putin.



Russias soft and hard power has collapsed.



Russia has now lost any post-soviet superpower status which Putin was so determined to redeem. pic.twitter.com/ZAAQaqEl3r  Tobias Ellwood MP (@Tobias_Ellwood) October 13, 2022

We do not want a world war, says Macron

07:35 , Emily Atkinson

We do not want a world war, French president Emmanuel Macron has said after Russia threatented that the admission of Ukraine to Nato could result in a third global conflict.

Taking to Twitter last night, Mr Macron added: We help Ukraine to resist on its soil, never to attack Russia. Vladimir Putin must end this war and respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Nous aidons l'Ukraine a resister sur son sol, jamais a attaquer la Russie. Vladimir Poutine doit cesser cette guerre et respecter lintegrite territoriale de lUkraine.  Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) October 12, 2022

Russian troops attempting consolidate along new Mylove front

07:20 , Emily Atkinson

Vladimir Putins forces are likely attempting to consolidate along a new front line west of the village of Mylove in the Kherson region, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

Heavy fighting continues along this line, especially at the western end where Ukrainian advances mean Russias flank is no longer protected by the Inhulets River, the MoD said in its intelligence update on Twitter.

Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 13 October 2022



Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/FZVE8WGrqG



 #StandWithUkraine  pic.twitter.com/Z7N8K3PYkA  Ministry of Defence  (@DefenceHQ) October 13, 2022

Poland sees no signs of any third-party interference in oil pipeline spill

07:05 , Namita Singh

The Polish operator of an oil pipeline says there are no signs of any third-party interference related to a leak in a pipeline that is the main source of crude oil from Russia to Germany.

Pern, the operator, said in a statement late Wednesday that its technical services had located the site of the spill after removing most of the contamination from the area.

Based on first findings and the manner in which the pipeline was deformed, it appears that at this point there are no signs of any third-party interference, Pern said. However, more detailed analyses are underway to determine the cause of the incident and to repair the pipeline so that crude oil pumping can be restarted as soon as possible.

A handout picture released by ImageSat International (ISI) on 30 September 2022, shows an image from an intelligence report depicting a release of gas emanating from a leak on the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, in the Swedish economic zone in the Baltic Sea (ImageSat International (ISI)/AFP)

Pern detected a leak in the Druzhba pipeline on Tuesday evening 70km from the central Polish city of Plock.

The Druzhba pipeline, which in Russian means Friendship, is one of the worlds longest oil pipelines. After leaving Russia, it branches out to bring crude to points including Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Austria and Germany.

The incident follows leaks late last month in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines running along the Baltic seabed, and amid an energy standoff between Russia and the West over Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Denmark and Sweden say those natural gas pipelines were attacked with large amounts of explosives, and the discovery of another leak so soon in an oil pipeline had raised concerns.

AP

Explainer: Power cuts raise risk at Ukraine nuclear plant

06:44 , Namita Singh

A Ukrainian nuclear power plant that has been surrounded by Russian forces lost power Wednesday morning when a Russian missile damaged a distant electrical substation, increasing the risk of radiation disaster, according to the plants operator.

The power to Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant was restored about eight hours later, the International Atomic Energy Agency said.

But experts say the outage  the second one in five days  shows just how precarious the situation at Europes largest nuclear plant is. They say repeated power outages over short periods of time are only making the problem worse.

Read the report to find out about the risks:

EXPLAINER: Power cuts raise risk at Ukraine nuclear plant

Admission of Ukraine to Nato can lead to third world war, threatens Russian official

06:37 , Namita Singh

The admission of Ukraine to Nato could result in a third world war, the deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Alexander Venediktov, told the state Tass news agency in an interview today.

Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three, Tass cited him as saying.

Apparently, thats what they are counting on - to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again.Mr Venediktov also repeated a Russian position that the West, by helping Ukraine, indicated that they are a direct party to the conflict.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky announced a surprise bid for fast-track membership of the Nato military alliance at the end of September, after president Vladimir Putin held a ceremony in Moscow to proclaim the four partially occupied regions as annexed Russian land.

Woman arrested for spitting at officer during protest over Ukraine war outside Russian embassy in Washington

06:30 , Namita Singh

Police arrested a woman on Monday for allegedly assaulting an officer during a protest outside of the Russian embassy in Washington, DC.

Demonstrators gathered outside of the embassy to protest Russias invasion of Ukraine, where Vladimir Putins forces have increased brutal shelling attacks on civilians and major metro areas as Russias suffered surprise military setbacks in its campaign.

One banner at the Monday event called out Russia for the mass terror unleashed on innocent civilians.

During the protest, a woman was filmed having a heated encounter with uniformed Secret Service agents on hand, who protect foreign diplomatic missions in the capital.

Read more in this report:

Woman arrested for spitting at officer during Ukraine war protest at Russian embassy

The forgotten Ukrainian refugees across the EU struggling for help

06:29 , Namita Singh

Countries across Europe have been accused of discriminating against non-Ukrainians who have fled Russias invasion, write May Bulman and Maud Jullien.

The forgotten Ukrainian refugees across the EU struggling for help

The forgotten Ukranian refugees that Britain wont help

05:59 , Namita Singh

Non-Ukrainian nationals who escaped the same invasion have been cut out of the schemes offering sanctuary. Now they find themselves alone with nowhere to turn, reports our social affairs correspondent May Bulman.

They fled Putins war too  but Britain wont help because of their nationality

Drone strikes hit critical infrastructure in Kyiv: Zelenskys office

05:50 , Namita Singh

Critical infrastructure facilities were hit by drone strikes early today, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Volodymyr Zelenskys presidential office said in a statement.

Another attack by kamikaze drones on critical infrastructure facilities, Mr Tymoshenko said on the Telegram messaging app.

Ukraine has reported a spate of Russian attacks with Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones in recent weeks. Iran denies supplying the drones to Russia, while the Kremlin has not commented.

UK to send anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine

05:49 , Namita Singh

The UK is to send air defence missiles to Ukraine to help it defend against Russian rockets.

The Amraam rockets will be the first to be donated by the UK that are able to shoot down cruise missiles

Hundreds of additional air defence missiles will be donated and a total of 18 more artillery guns and hundreds of aerial drones will also be sent over to Ukraine, defence secretary Ben Wallace announced.

My colleague Eleanor Sly reports:

UK to send anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine after wave of Russian rocket attacks

Explainer: US weapons systems Ukraine will or wont get

05:38 , Namita Singh

Ukrainian leaders are pressing the US and western allies for air defense systems and longer-range weapons to keep up the momentum in their counteroffensive against Russia and fight back against Moscows intensified attacks.

Defense secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday said allies are committed to sending weapons as fast as we can physically get them there. And he said defense leaders meeting in Brussels are working to send a wide array of systems, ranging from tanks and armored vehicles to air defense and artillery.

But there are still a number of high-profile, advanced weapons that Ukraine wants and the U.S. wont provide, due to political sensitivities, classified technology or limited stockpiles.

Read this report to find out about some of the weapons Ukraine will or wont get:

EXPLAINER: US weapons systems Ukraine will or won't get

More than 50 countries pledge military aid to Ukraine

05:37 , Namita Singh

In Brussels, more than 50 Western countries met to pledge more military aid to Ukraine, especially air defence weapons, on the heels of heavy retaliatory strikes this week ordered by Russian president Vladimir Putin in response to an explosion on a bridge in Crimea.

Pledges from allies included an announcement by France that it would deliver radar and air defence systems to Ukraine in the coming weeks. Britain pledged air defence missiles, and Canada said it would provide artillery rounds among other supplies.

A general view of a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliances headquarters in Brussels, Belgium 12 October 2022 (Reuters)

At the meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Brussels, US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said Russias latest attacks laid bare its malice and cruelty since invading Ukraine on 24 February. At least 26 people have been killed since Monday in Russian missile attacks across Ukraine.

Ukraine had shifted momentum since September with extraordinary gains, but would need more help, he said. ...Were going to do everything we can to make sure that they have whats required to be effective.

Biden hails UN General Assembly vote condemning Russias annexation

05:19 , Namita Singh

US president Joe Biden hailed UN General Assemblys (UNGA) overwhelming support condemning Russias attempted illegal annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

The stakes of this conflict are clear to all, and the world has sent a clear message in response  Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map, he said in a statement.

President Joe Biden speaks before designating the first national monument of his administration at Camp Hale, a World War II era training site, Wednesday, 12 October2022, near Leadville, Colo (AP)

Russia cannot change borders by force. Russia cannot seize another countrys territory as its own.

Zelensky grateful for UNGA resolution

05:15 , Namita Singh

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Twitter he was grateful to 143 states that supported historic [UNGA] resolution ...(Russias) attempt at annexation is worthless.

Grateful to 143 states that supported historic #UNGA resolution "Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the UN Charter". The world had its say - RFs attempt at annexation is worthless & will never be recognized by free nations.  will return all its lands pic.twitter.com/FupYPfZz8M    (@ZelenskyyUa) October 12, 2022

UN General Assembly denounces Russias annexation

04:55 , Namita Singh

The UN General Assembly voted to condemn Russias Attempted illegal annexation of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine.

About three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly voted in favour of the resolution, deepening Russias international isolation.

Only four countries joined Russia in voting against the resolution - Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote, including Russias strategic partner China, while the rest did not vote.

Earlier in September, Russia has proclaimed the annexation of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine  Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia  following referendums.

Russian ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia address members of the general assembly prior to a vote on a resolution condemning the annexation of parts of Ukraine amid Russias invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations headquarters (Reuters)

Meanwhile, Ukraine and its western allies denounced it as illegal and coercive.

Russias UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the General Assembly ahead of the vote that the resolution was politicised and openly provocative, adding that it could destroy any and all efforts in favour of a diplomatic solution to the crisis.

Russian missiles target Mykolaiv

04:28 , Namita Singh

Russia has unleashed a barrage of missiles on the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, a day after the United Nations General Assembly condemned Moscows annexation of four areas.

A five-storey residential building was hit, the two upper floors were completely destroyed, the rest  under rubble. Rescuers are working on the site, Mayor Oleksandr Senkevich said in a social media post, adding the southern city was massively shelled.

A shipbuilding centre and a port on the Southern Bug river off the Black Sea, Mykolaiv has suffered heavy Russian bombardments throughout the war.

Shelling hits Kyiv region, says local administration

04:24 , Namita Singh

A settlement in the region of Ukraines capital Kyiv was hit by shelling early this morning, the regions administration said on the Telegram messaging app.

Rescuers are already working at the site, the administration said, without providing further details on where the shelling took place.

Reuters was not able to immediately verify the report.

Why is Russia at war with Ukraine and what does Putin want?

Thursday 13 October 2022 00:03 , Eleanor Sly

Russias special military operation has been raging for almost eight months as the conflict records devastating casualties as well as the displacement of millions of Ukrainians.

President Vladimir Putin began the conflict by claiming Ukraine needed to be demilitarised and de-Nazified.

Ukraine has defied odds throughout the conflict and defended against Russian attacks with the help of western military aid. In recent weeks president Volodymyr Zelenskys forces launched a major counter-offensive to retrieve the besieged city of Kharkiv but as Ukraines resistance grows, Mr Putins threats of escalating the conflict grow also causing concern globally of whether nuclear warfare will be unleashed.

Yellen says Russian oil price cap in $60 range would allow Moscow some profit

Wednesday 12 October 2022 23:32 , Eleanor Sly

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Wednesday that a price cap on Russian oil exports in the $60-a-barrel range should be sufficient to reduce Moscows energy revenues while still allowing profitable production.

Ms Yellen told an event at International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings that Russia has been willing to produce and sell oil in the $60 range over the past five to seven years.

So certainly a price in that range would be sufficient to feel that Russia could profitably produce and sell oil, Ms Yellen said, adding the United States and its Western allies were still discussing where to set the price for a capping mechanism. This will come into effect on 5 December.

What would happen if Belarus army join Russia in Ukraine war?

Wednesday 12 October 2022 22:46 , Eleanor Sly

Statements made this week by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko have reignited fears that his army could join Russian forces in Moscows war against Ukraine, but the authoritarian leader appears reluctant to lend his troops to the effort, despite perceived pressure from Moscow.

Russia has already used Belarus, its longtime and dependent ally, as a staging ground to send troops and missiles into Ukraine.

Analysts say if Belarus small and inexperienced military gets involved, the additional troops could help Moscow cut off some key transportation corridors, but likely wouldnt significantly boost Russian President Vladimir Putins capabilities on the battlefield.

Read more here:

UN condemns Russias attempt to annex parts of Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:53 , Eleanor Sly

The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly condemned Russias attempted illegal annexation of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine.

They called on all countries not to recognise the move and strengthened a diplomatic international isolation of Moscow since it began its invasion of its neighbour.

Three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly - 143 countries - voted in favour of a resolution that also reaffirmed the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

Its amazing, said Ukraines UN Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya told reporters after the vote.

Only four countries joined Russia in voting against the resolution - Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote. These included Russias strategic partner China, while the rest did not vote.

Today it is Russia invading Ukraine. But tomorrow it could be another nation whose territory is violated. It could be you. You could be next. What would you expect from this chamber? Thomas-Greenfield told the General Assembly before the vote.

Woman arrested for spitting at officer during protest over Ukraine war outside Russian embassy in Washington

Wednesday 12 October 2022 21:10 , Eleanor Sly

Police arrested a woman on Monday for allegedly assaulting an officer during a protest outside of the Russian embassy in Washington, DC.

Demonstrators gathered outside of the embassy to protest Russias invasion of Ukraine, where Vladimir Putins forces have increased brutal shelling attacks on civilians and major metro areas as Russias suffered surprise military setbacks in its campaign. One banner at the Monday event called out Russia for the mass terror unleashed on innocent civilians.

During the protest, a woman was filmed having a heated encounter with uniformed Secret Service agents on hand, who protect foreign diplomatic missions in the capital.

Read more here:

Woman arrested for spitting at officer during Ukraine war protest at Russian embassy

Joe Biden warns of consequences for Opec as it sides with Russia even as Saudi Arabia attempts de-escalation

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:35 , Eleanor Sly

Joe Biden has warned of consequences for Saudi Arabia after the Opec+ group announced a cut to oil production, in line with Moscows wishes.

The 13-member Opec+  a larger version of the organisation to include non-OPEC members that was formed in 2016  said last week that it would cut its oil production by 2 million barrels per day in November, sending prices soaring ahead of winter.

The decision came in spite of US objections and a meeting between Mr Biden and Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud in July over the issue of global energy prices.

Gino Spoccia reports:

Joe Biden warns of consequences for Opec as it sides with Russia

Iodine pills in short supply after Finland updates guideline

Wednesday 12 October 2022 20:10 , Eleanor Sly

Many Finnish pharmacies ran out of iodine tablets Wednesday, a day after the Nordic countrys health ministry recommended that households buy a single dose in a case of a radiation emergency amid increasing fears of a nuclear event due to Russias war in Ukraine.

An accident at a nuclear power plant could release radioactive iodine into the environment, which could build up in the thyroid gland, the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health said Tuesday.

Pharmacies in many locations in Finland reported Wednesday they had run out of iodine tablets as citizens rushed to purchase the medicine. Drug wholesale also said their were stockpiles emptied out.

Read more here:

Iodine pills in short supply after Finland updates guideline

Ukraines forgotten refugees: Lottery of rights across EU leaves thousands struggling for help

Wednesday 12 October 2022 19:40 , Eleanor Sly

The EUs decision to offer unprecedented rights and freedoms to refugees fleeing Russias invasion of Ukraine less than a month after the war began was widely celebrated.

An exceptional measure known as the temporary protection directive, designed to provide immediate protection for at least one year in the event of a mass influx of refugees, was invoked by the EU on 4 March 2022  for the first time in the blocs history.

It would mean that all those fleeing the war would be granted rights to schools, medical care and employment for one year, the European commission said.

All those fleeing Putins bombs are welcome in Europe, President of the commission Ursula von der Leyen proclaimed. German interior minister Nancy Faeser called the temporary protection plan a paradigm shift for the EU.

May Bullman and Maud Jullien report:

The forgotten Ukrainian refugees across the EU struggling for help

Biden global strategy tackles China, Russia, domestic needs

Wednesday 12 October 2022 19:08 , Eleanor Sly

The White House laid out a national security strategy Wednesday aimed at checking an ascendant China and a more assertive Russia even as it stressed that domestic investments are key to helping the US compete in the critical decade ahead.

The administrations first national security strategy, a document required by statute, stresses the need for a foreign policy that balances the interests of global allies with those of middle-class Americans.

We understand that if the United States is to succeed abroad, we must invest in our innovation and industrial strength, and build our resilience, at home, the strategy states.

Biden global strategy tackles China, Russia, domestic needs

Over 50 countries promise weapons for Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 18:21 , Eleanor Sly

Over 50 Western countries have promised more weapons for Ukraine, in particular air defences following Russias most intense missile strikes since the war started in February.

At the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that Russias latest attacks had laid bare its malice and cruelty since it began its invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine had shifted momentum since September with extraordinary gains, but would is in need of more assistance, he said.

These victories belong to Ukraines brave soldiers. But the Contact Groups security assistance, training, and sustainment efforts have been vital, Mr Austin explained.

Head of UNs nuclear watchdog returns to Kyiv

Wednesday 12 October 2022 17:53 , Eleanor Sly

Rafael Grossi, the head of the UNs nuclear watchdog, tweeted a photo of himself returning to Kyiv following a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg which took place on Tuesday.

Belarus edges closer to joining the war

Wednesday 12 October 2022 17:34 , Eleanor Sly

A flurry of military activity in Belarus this week has caught the attention of Ukraine and the west, who have taken it as a potential sign that President Alexander Lukashenko may commit his army to support of Russias war effort in Ukraine.

Mr Lukashenko has ordered troops to deploy with Russian forces near to the Ukraine border, and his defence ministry says combat readiness drills are under way. On Tuesday, the interior ministry held exercises to eliminate sabotage groups near Yelsk, only 20 km (12 miles) from the border with Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has asked the Group of Seven (G7) countries to place an international observer mission near the border, while France warned Belarus it could face more Western sanctions if it deepened its involvement in Ukraine.

Belarus allowed itself to be used as a launchpad for Russias Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine but has not joined the fighting directly. Analysts say Lukashenko would have no choice but to comply if Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded he enter the war, at a moment when Moscow is reeling from a series of defeats and facing unprecedented public criticism of its generals failings.

Reuters

Russia arrests eight over Crimea bridge attack as Putin again blames Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 17:03 , Eleanor Sly

Russia has arrested eight people over the explosion that damaged the Crimea Bridge at the weekend.

Those arrested include five Russians, three Ukrainians and an Armenian. Moscow has previously blamed Ukrainian secret services for the explosion.

On Wednesday, Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) said the explosion was organised Ukrainian military intelligence and its director, Kyrylo Budanov. The explosive device was moved from Ukraine to Russia via Bulgaria, Georgia and Armenia, the FSB claimed.

David Harding reports:

Russia arrests eight over Crimea bridge attack as Putin again blames Ukraine

Russian nuclear attack would draw physical response, says Nato official

Wednesday 12 October 2022 16:30 , Liam James

A Russian nuclear strike would change the course of the conflict and almost certainly trigger a physical response from Ukraine allies and potentially from Nato, a senior Nato official told Reuters.

Any use of nuclear weapons by Moscow would have unprecedented consequences for Russia, the official warned.

It would almost certainly be drawing a physical response from many allies, and potentially from Nato itself, he said.

The official added that Moscow was using its nuclear threats mainly to deter Nato and other countries from directly entering its war on Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier today said Western leaders were being provocative by using nuclear rhetoric regarding Russia.

US president Joe Biden yesterday said he thought it unlikely that Vladimir Putin would order a nuclear attack.

Putin undecided on G20 visit, says Kremlin

Wednesday 12 October 2022 15:57 , Liam James

The Kremlin said it still remained to be seen if Vladimir Putin would attend Novembers G20 summit on the resort island of Bali.

A large number of international forums are planned for November, Mr Putins foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.

If you are asking about the G20, then there is still a lot of time before the G20, as well as before other forums  well wait and see, Mr Ushakov said.

Joe Biden, asked if he would meet Mr Putin at the G20, said he did not see a good reason for a meeting with the Kremlin chief.

It would depend on specifically what he wanted to talk about, Mr Biden told CNN, adding that if Putin wanted to discuss the jailed American basketball star Brittney Griner then he would be open to talking.

Russia frittering away missile stocks it cant replace  Nato

Wednesday 12 October 2022 15:32 , Liam James

Russia has depleted a significant proportion of its precision-guided missiles in its invasion of Ukraine and its industry cannot produce all kinds of ammunition and weapon systems due to Western sanctions, a senior Nato official said on Wednesday.

The official said he did not know how long it would take for Russia to mobilise the 300,000 troops Moscow is aiming for, and suggested it could take a few months.

An assessment by military observers the Institute for the Study of War concluded that Russia had diverted its dwindling missile stocks from strategically significant causes by taking aim at civilian areas of Ukraines cities rather than front line targets.

Turkish president expected to float peace ideas to Putin

Wednesday 12 October 2022 15:08 , Liam James

Vladimir Putin will meet Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan for talks in Kazakhstan tomorrow, a meeting at which the Turks are likely to raise ideas for peace in Ukraine, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.

Now many say that the Turks are ready to come up with other initiatives in the context of the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, Mr Ushakov said.

There are reports in the press that the Turkish side is putting forward specific considerations in this regard, I do not exclude that Erdogan will actively touch on this topic during the Astana contact. So a very interesting and, I hope, useful discussion awaits us.

Turkey has been facilitating talks between the two sides and outside bodies such as the UN throughout the war.

Dutch to send 15m air defence missiles to Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 14:49 , Liam James

The Netherlands will deliver 15m (13.1m) worth of air defence missiles to Ukraine in reaction to Russian air raids on Ukraine earlier this week.

These attacks ... can only be met with unrelenting support for Ukraine and its people, Defence minister Kasja Ollongren wrote in a letter to parliament.

Ukraine has been pleading with Western nations for air defence support after Moscow launched a wave of missile strikes on cities across Ukraine.

Nato members and allies are meeting today in Brussels to discuss additional support.

British businessman charged in US over Russian oligarch links

Wednesday 12 October 2022 14:25 , Liam James

A well-known British businessman has been arrested in the UK after being accused of helping a Russian oligarch to evade US sanctions.

Graham Bonham-Carter was arrested on Tuesday and is accused of funding properties bought by oligarch Oleg Deripaska as well as expatriating his art. He has denied this.

The US Department of Justice said the American government would seek Bonham-Carters extradition following the charge against him. Deripaska has previously been sanctioned by America.

The charges allege that Deripaska instructed Bonham-Carter to set up a company called GBCM Limited to manage his properties, two of which are in New York and one in Washington.

British businessman charged in US with helping Russian oligarch evade sanctions

They can just open the tap: Putin says Russia can resume gas supplies via Nord Stream 2

Wednesday 12 October 2022 14:04 , Liam James

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Moscow was ready to resume gas supplies to Europe via the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Speaking at a Moscow energy forum, Putin said the gas could be supplied through one remaining part of the crucial energy pipeline.

But he added that it was up to countries in Europe to decide if they wanted resume supplies.

Russia is ready to start such supplies. The ball is in the court of the EU. If they want, they can just open the tap, said Putin.

Recent unexplained explosions damaged the Nord Stream 1 pipeline and one of the two links of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, causing a massive gas leak and taking them out of service.

They can just open the tap: Putin says Russia can resume gas supplies to Europe

Watch: Family of three rescued from rubble in Zaporizhzhia

Wednesday 12 October 2022 13:45 , Liam James

Emergency services in Ukraine rescued a family trapped under the rubble of a destroyed building following a Russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia.

Footage shared on social media shows three people crawling to safety as officials clear a path through the debris around them.

Rockets partially destroyed a house and outbuildings in a village close to Zaporizhzhia, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. The account also confirmed that the family rescued did not require medical help.

Russian strikes only strengthen allied resolve

Wednesday 12 October 2022 13:27 , Liam James

Russian missile strikes on Ukraine have laid bare the malice and cruelty of its war and further united the international community to support Ukraines military efforts to defend itself, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday.

Mr Austin, speaking at the start of a Ukraine-focused meeting at Nato headquarters, praised Ukraines military gains since September, calling them extraordinary and saying they had changed the dynamics of the war.

These victories belong to Ukraines brave soldiers. But the Contact Groups security assistance, training, and sustainment efforts have been vital, Mr Austin said, addressing the gathering of defense leaders, including from Ukraine.

Reports of Russian missile strikes have come out of Ukraine for a third day, with the governor of Donetsk accusing Moscow of killing seven in an attack on a crowded market in the town of Avdiivka.

Russia arrests eight over Crimea bridge attack as Putin again blames Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 13:09 , Liam James

Russia has arrested eight people over the explosion that damaged the Crimea Bridge at the weekend (David Harding writes).

Those arrested include five Russians, three Ukrainians and an Armenian. Moscow has previously blamed Ukrainian secret services for the explosion.

On Wednesday, Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) said the explosion was organised Ukrainian military intelligence and its director, Kyrylo Budanov. The explosive device was moved from Ukraine to Russia via Bulgaria, Georgia and Armenia, the FSB claimed.

The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, also said that it had prevented further Ukrainian attacks in both Moscow and the western Russian city of Bryansk. Later, Russian president Vladimir Putin repeated a claim that Ukraines special services were behind the attack.

Russia arrests eight over Crimea bridge attack as Putin again blames Ukraine

Signs of torture on bodies found in Ukraine town liberated from Russian forces

Wednesday 12 October 2022 12:45 , Liam James

Latest despatch from Kim Sengupta in Ukraine:

Two separate mass burials sites, for civilians and soldiers, have been found on the edge of the cemetery in Lyman, recently liberated from Russian forces. Some of the 78 remains recovered so far have signs of having met a violent end.

There are body parts, gunshot and shrapnel wounds, smashed ribs and skulls, severe deep cuts. Some of the dead are very young; one is a year-old baby girl buried with her parents.

Among the corpses taken out and zipped into black body bags are Ukrainian soldiers in torn and frayed combat uniforms. Some have signs of having been handcuffed and blindfolded and have bullet holes in their heads, according to officials.

Ukrainian authorities say they expect to find around 200 bodies at this burial site  one of several discovered in areas that had been occupied. The bodies of 534 civilians have been found in the area around Kharkiv alone. Serhii Bolnivov, the chief investigator of the region has claimed that torture chambers have been found in almost all large towns and cities where the Russian military units were based.

Standing beside the graves here in Lyman, Pavlo Kyrylenko, head of civil and military administration in the Donetsk region, says there are visible signs of torture. Some of the soldiers have tapes on their hands and over their eyes, there are trauma injuries to many of the other bodies, he says. But all the cases will need to be investigated thoroughly before we can establish the cause of death.

Signs of torture on bodies in Ukraine town liberated from Russian forces

Russian strike on crowded market kills seven  Ukraine

Wednesday 12 October 2022 12:28 , Liam James

At least seven people were killed and eight injured in a Russian strike on a crowded market in the town of Avdiivka in Donetsk, the regional governor said.

The Russians struck the central market where many people were at that time, Pavlo Kyrylenko said in a statement, adding that there was no military logic for such an attack.

Pictures shared by the Ukrainian official showed dead bodies and a buidling in flames. The Independent could not verify their authenticity.

Kyrylenko shared this image among others of damaged stalls and dead bodies (Donetsk governor)

Polish oil leak likely accident, say officials

Wednesday 12 October 2022 12:08 , Liam James

An oil leak on a pipeline carrying oil from Russia to Poland was most likely an accident, Polish officials said.

Polish pipe operator Pern said it detected a leak on the line last night. We reported this earlier [8.12].

The leak caused concern as it came weeks after attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines from Russia to Germany.

Why is Russia at war with Ukraine and what does Putin want?

Wednesday 12 October 2022 23:35 , Eleanor Sly

Russias special military operation has been raging for almost eight months as the conflict records devastating casualties as well as the displacement of millions of Ukrainians.

President Vladimir Putin began the conflict by claiming Ukraine needed to be demilitarised and de-Nazified.

Ukraine has defied odds throughout the conflict and defended against Russian attacks with the help of western military aid. In recent weeks president Volodymyr Zelenskys forces launched a major counter-offensive to retrieve the besieged city of Kharkiv but as Ukraines resistance grows, Mr Putins threats of escalating the conflict grow also causing concern globally of whether nuclear warfare will be unleashed.

Read more:

Why is Russia at war with Ukraine and what does Putin want?

Desperate Russians fleeing Putins call-up orders sail to South Korea

Wednesday 12 October 2022 11:50 , Liam James

In a desperate bid to avoid being called up to fight in Ukraine, more than 20 Russians sailed in yachts from North Pacific ports to South Korea, but most have been refused entry, according to reports.

Hundreds of thousands of Russians are reported to have fled their homeland since Vladimir Putin ordered a military mobilisation last month in the face of losses on the frontline of his invasion.

Russians trying to avoid the draft have mostly crossed over to neighbouring countries such as Finland, Georgia and Kazakhstan.

This might be the most imaginative way anyone has tried to flee though.

Desperate Russians fleeing Putins call-up orders sail to South Korea
Page Content

The European Union's regions and cities believe that developing a macro-regional strategy for the Mediterranean basin would allow to tackle jointly the necessary green and digital transitions, as well as socio-economic, migratory and security challenges. Climate change, environmental deterioration, the proliferation of extreme weather events, water scarcity, loss of biodiversity and food security do not know any borders and are a serious threat to the three shores of the Mediterranean. The European Committee of the Regions points out in its opinion that a macro-regional strategy would help developing concrete joint projects and bring greater coherence between the existing initiatives and funding programmes implemented by different government levels.

While Mediterranean populations share a common historical and cultural heritage, wide disparities in development levels affect the stability, prosperity and security of the region. At the same time, the Mediterranean basin is particularly affected by the consequences of climate change. At the current rate, global warming will reach 2.2 degrees in the Mediterranean area by 2040, meaning that it will warm at a rate 20% faster than global average. The consequences are already visible in the form of heat waves, forest fires, floods and other events linked to extreme weather. The region also accounts for 50% of the world's water-poor population.

Rapporteur Nikola Dobroslavic (HR/EPP), President of Dubrovnik-Neretva Region, said: "We need a macro-regional strategy in the Mediterranean. The Mediterranean Sea, which connects cultures, economies, regions, and states on its shores is one of the most polluted seas and heavily impacted by climate change. The macro-regional approach, already tested and proven by the European Union in several parts of the continent, would certainly help EU and non-EU regions and countries across the Mediterranean basin to fight together their common challenges, in particular climate change, digital transition, sea and air pollution."

The opinion drafted by Mr Dobroslavic was adopted at the European Committee of the Regions' plenary session this week. It underlines that the strategy needs to be designed at the whole Mediterranean basin level and gradually and ultimately cover the three sub-basins: Western, Eastern and Adriatic-Ionian, covering also countries outside EU and putting particular focus on island regions. There should be a solid and representative multi-level governance scheme with a general assembly and executive board including local and regional authorities, thematic working groups; annual rotating presidency and technical secretariat. The strategy should target a limited number of shared challenges, starting with climate change, digital transformation and the environment, as well as the necessary green transition. As first step, the European Commission could launch a pilot project on zero marine pollution in the Mediterranean.

The Committee believes that the macro-regional strategy would bring the missing operational instrument to implement a concrete action plan and joint projects in response to priorities identified by other cooperation frameworks, such as Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) or the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM). It points out that large amount of existing funding from territorial cooperation programmes and instruments can be mobilised to support Mediterranean projects. Many programmes implemented directly by the European Commission, such as Horizon Europe, LIFE or Erasmus+, are open to the participation of third countries and are therefore an interesting source of additional funding.

The Committee calls on the European Council and Commission to launch the work on a Mediterranean macro-regional strategy so that it could be approved already under the Spanish Presidency in the second half of 2023. Representatives of other Mediterranean regions and networks expressed their support for the initiative at the plenary session and during a workshop organised at the European Week of Regions and Cities on 13 October.

The President of Abruzzo Region Marco Marsilio (IT/ECR) said: "In the light of the serious global environmental and energy crisis we are experiencing, it is urgent to draw up a common strategy, aimed at enhancing the development of the entire area in its land and maritime components, based on the promotion of renewable energy and the creation of an integrated multimodal Euro-Mediterranean transport network, as well as on the pillars of the blue economy, connectivity, environmental quality and sustainable tourism."

More information: Macro-regional strategies in the EU (European Commission)

Contact:

Lauri Ouvinen

Tel. +32 473536887

lauri.ouvinen@cor.europa.eu
U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington Vanessa Waldref speaks at the local domestic violence coalition meeting Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022, in Yakima, Wash.
White pelicans paddle around in slack water on the Snake River near the end of Martindale Road in Franklin County.
Yejin Choi, a computer scientist in Seattle, developed new ways to train computers to understand language. Choi is among this years 25 winners of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundations prestigious fellowships known as genius grants. (Jovelle Tamayo / The New York Times, file)
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The Polish government disagreed with the verdict and filed an appeal, which in this case means a request for retrial by the Grand Chamber of the Strasbourg Court. Such requests, however, are not granted automatically. This happens only in exceptional situations  i.e. when there is a serious issue regarding the interpretation or application of the European Convention on Human Rights.

On Monday afternoon, the ECtHR press office reported that a total of 11 appeals were rejected. Among them was the request of the Polish government in judge Zureks case. While the court did not provide specific reasons for its decision, the ruling means that the cases were not suitable for review by the Grand Chamber.

- The fact that a party disagrees with the verdict and argues against it is not enough. The grounds of appeal are very strict and concern very serious interpretive problems- Magorzata Maczka-Pacholak, Mr. Zureks attorney, told "Wyborcza" prior to the ECtHR announcing its decision.

Now that the ECtHR has rejected the Polish governments motion for review, "the judgment in the case of Zurek v. Poland is final".

"A strategy aimed at intimidating and silencing criticism"

The ECtHR first addressed the case in a verdict from June 16, finding that Waldemar Zurek, who gained notoriety for his vocal criticism of the ruling camps judicial overhaul, has been the victim of politically-motivated persecution. The Strasbourg court ordered Poland to pay judge Zurek EUR 15,000 in compensation for violating his rights guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights.

REKLAMA

Zurek was a member and spokesman of the National Council of the Judiciary until 2018. He was removed from the council before the end of his constitutional term as part of the ruling camps judicial overhaul. The ECtHR ruled that he was deprived of his right to a fair trial because there was no way for judges removed from the NCJ to appeal the decision.

The court found that the judge's right to freedom of expression has been violated as well, as his criticism of the governments judicial "reform" met with a relentless campaign of persecution. Security services and tax authorities conducted aggressive investigations of the judge and his relatives. Zurek was stripped of his position as spokesman for the Krakow court. The Ministry of Justice requested a background check on his work. These are just a few examples.

"Given the accumulation of measures taken by the authorities, it seems that they can be characterized as a strategy aimed at intimidating (or even silencing) the applicant over the views he has expressed in defense of the rule of law"- the European Court of Human Rights concluded.

Polish authorities: nothing but standard measures

The Polish government argued that these were simply standard measures unrelated to the judge's criticism of the justice system "reforms". However, the ECtHR noted that further attempts at intimidating the judge followed his subsequent media appearances. They were taken by bodies controlled or appointed by the executive branch - the Central Anticorruption Bureau, the Ministry of Justice, and the president of the Krakow court. The ECtHR deemed their actions to be an impermissible interference with the judge's right to freedom of expression.

REKLAMA

- On the one hand, I am glad that all violations against me were documented and the Court confirmed them in its justification. But on the other hand - as a judge, I sued my state in an international court. I'm a public servant, and it turned out that I had to go this way- Zurek told "Wyborcza" after the verdict was announced.

- But my personal reasons are the least important here. Rather, my case is part of a bigger fight for the rights of Polish citizens, who go to court and hope to stand in front of a judge who is not afraid of any political power, and is only limited by his knowledge, regulations, and ethics- he said.

***

REKLAMA

Every day, 400 journalists at Gazeta Wyborcza write verified, fact-checked stories about Polish politics and society, keeping a critical eye on the ruling camps persistent assault on democratic values and the rule of law; the growing cultural tension between religious fundamentalism and human rights; and the ongoing Russian invasion in Ukraine. Our journalists are on the front lines in 32 Polish cities, reporting from the streets, hospitals, and courtrooms about issues that move public opinion.

We decided to make our service available to everyone free of charge in order to provide access to high quality journalism for expats and English speakers interested in Polish affairs.

The access to information should be equal for all.
The fresh newsletter for the International Community in Hungary - described by readers as a "Great read each week" - is now available for your interest and use via the link below.
Nebraska is among 11 states getting $1 billion in funding under the State Small Business Credit Initiative, the U.S. Treasury Department announced Tuesday.

The state's cut is $64 million, to be split equally between a loan participation program and a venture capital program.

The loan program will provide companion loans for up to 50% of the principal loan amount through the Nebraska Growth Loan Fund. The venture capital program will provide direct investments through seed and Series A investment rounds distributed by the Nebraska Seed and Development Fund. The program is a direct investment model with a focus on underserved small businesses.

This is an historic investment in entrepreneurship, small business growth and innovation through the American Rescue Plan that will help reduce barriers to capital access for traditionally underserved communities, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen said in a news release. Im excited to see how these SSBCI funds will promote equitable economic growth across the country.

The small-business credit program has been around since 2010, but it was expanded as part of the American Rescue Plan Act to provide up to $10 billion to the 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories and tribal governments.

The latest grants to Nebraska and the other states bring the total to $4.8 billion in funding to 31 states.

With the $64 million, Nebraska has now gotten $177 million in federal grants in just the past two months, including $88 million from the Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund to expand broadband in rural areas and $25 million from the Build Back Better Regional Challenge to establish a robotics cluster at Nebraska Innovation Campus.
YORK  A bench warrant has been issued for a 19-year-old woman from Kansas City, Mo., who is accused of assaulting deputies with the York County Sheriffs Department and damaging a cruiser.

Angelique Herrington failed to appear this past week for a hearing in York County District Court before Judge James Stecker.

According to court documents, a deputy with the York County Sheriffs Department conducted a traffic stop, in the middle of the night, on S. Lincoln Ave.

Another deputy arrived to assist and the female passenger said she was Brianna Herrick but could not provide a date of birth. Officers said she tried to walk away from the deputies and they handcuffed her.

Deputies said in court documents that she resisted their efforts to place her in the back seat of a patrol unit, kicking deputies in the legs and groin. She also struck a deputy in the head with her handcuffs and at some point a taser had to be deployed.

It was also noted there was a dent and scratches on the outside of the cruiser.

She later told a deputy and an officer with the York Police Department that her name was Angelique Herrington, according to court documents.

During a search of the vehicle, deputies found pipes, grinders, other forms of paraphernalia and an alcohol container.

She has already pleaded not guilty to eight charges: second degree assault of an officer, a Class 2 felony; third degree assault of an officer, a Class 3A felony; third degree assault of an officer, a Class 3A felony; resisting arrest, a Class 1 misdemeanor; obstructing a peace officer, a Class 1 misdemeanor; criminal mischief, a Class 3 misdemeanor; minor in possession, a Class 3 misdemeanor; and false reporting, a Class 1 misdemeanor.

It is not clear whether a failure to appear charge will be added after last weeks no-show.
Long ago, during World War I, a motorcycle brand was in existence, and even today it enjoys a following that almost all of its rivals are eyeing to enjoy since forever. No prizes for guessing the name right because the answer is straightforward and simple - Royal Enfield. The brand produced its first 2-stroke motorcycle in 1914 when the world was busy fighting with itself. The 770 cc V-twin motor of the motorcycle developed 6 hp. Well, fast forward to 1924, and the company launched 8 new motorcycles with a new 351 cc OHV 4-stroke engine, which laid the foundation for Royal Enfields 350 cc motorcycles that rule the roost even today. However, things have modernised to a high extent now. Therefore, lets discuss how the Royal Enfield Classic 350 has evolved from WW1 to the 21st century.

Evolution of Royal Enfield

In 1932, the legendary Royal Enfield Bullet was born, while the brand made its entry to our shore only in 1949. Ever since then, the Bullet has been an aspirational purchase for Indian enthusiasts.

Royal Enfield production began in India

The first order was placed by the Indian Army as the department was in search of a motorcycle for patrolling borders. The army placed an order for 800 units of the Royal Enfield Bullet 350. Soon after, the company launched new models in the Indian market. The first of all was the Taurus - a diesel-powered iteration of the Royal Enfield, followed by Thunderbird, Continental GT, Himalayan, Classic, and the most recent one of all - Hunter 350.

Also read - Iconic Yamaha RX100 to make a comeback in India? Here's what the new motorcycle can get

Gen-1 Royal Enfield Classic 350 launched in India

In 2009, the Royal Enfield Classic brand name made its entry into our market in two forms - Classic 350 and Classic 500. The Classic 350 used a single-cylinder, 4-stroke, twin-spark, air-cooled engine that displaced 346 cubic centimetres of charge to develop a peak power output of 19.1 bhp and maximum torque of 28 Nm.

The motorcycle came paired to a 5-speed transmission. It used a single-downtube chassis with engine as stressed member, while it had a kerb weight of 195 kilos. The Gen-1 Classic 350 was on sale with a 19-inch front rim and an 18-inch rim on the rear.

Also read - Mercedes-Benz 2022 sales surpass 2021 numbers in just 9 months; preparing to launch a 7-seater electric SUV in India

Gen-2 Royal Enfield Classic 350 launched in India

In 2021, a second-generation avatar of the Royal Enfield Classic 350 made its way to the market. It features revised styling that embodied the essentials of the original design rather neatly. On the whole, the design looks modern yet so similar However, major changes were made to the technical bits.

It now has a new 349 cc J-Series engine that puts out 20.2 bhp and 27 Nm of peak output. Moreover, the chassis is a twin-downtube setup, while the kerb weight remains the same at 195 kilograms. While these changes do not look ground-breaking on paper, the motorcycle definitely boasts improved NVH levels and handling characteristics. Furthermore, the updated avatar also comes with improved switchgear and instrument console.
German flag carrier Lufthansa has stated that it will now permit Apple devices on its aircrafts after previously prohibiting AirTags on its flights. AirTags were prohibited from bags by Lufthansa last week because they posed a risk to aircraft. The airline's regulation, however, made no mention of this. The airline's Twitter account was requested to confirm the suspension after the first reports in German media. These devices are permitted on Lufthansa flights, the airline announced on Twitter.

"The German Aviation Authorities (Luftfahrtbundesamt) confirmed today that they share our risk assessment, that tracking devices with very low battery and transmission power in checked luggage do not pose a safety risk. With that, these devices are allowed on Lufthansa flights," the airline tweeted.

Also read: Hyderabad-bound Spicejet flight makes emergency landing; smoke detected in cockpit

In one tweet, Lufthansa wrote: "Banning activated AirTags from luggage as they are classified as dangerous and need to be turned off." Pressed further on the classification, the carrier claimed: "According to International Civilian Aviation Organisation (ICAO) guidelines, baggage trackers are subject to the dangerous goods regulations."

The German Aviation Authorities (Luftfahrtbundesamt) confirmed today, that they share our risk assessment, that tracking devices with very low battery and transmission power in checked luggage do not pose a safety risk. With that these devices are allowed on Lufthansa flights.  Lufthansa News (@lufthansaNews) October 12, 2022

Apple Insider previously stated that Lufthansa's ban on AirTags was incorrectly based on ICAO restrictions. It claims that if CR2032 batteries were truly dangerous, it would be illegal to bring watches that also used CR2032 on aeroplanes.

Apple unveiled AirTag in April 2021. It is designed to serve as a key finder that helps people locate their belongings. It is a small, lightweight device with a perfectly engraved polished stainless steel body. It connects to an iPhone, so you can track other devices. The device has an IP67 classification, meaning it is water and dustproof. It may be purchased in India for Rs 3,190. The device has been known to help its users in finding lost objects ranging from small wallets to expensive cars.

With inputs from IANS
In order to address the need for international operations in the aviation industry, IndiGo, the country's largest airline by passenger volume, has decided to operate wide-body aircraft in the coming months. This was verified in a statement from IndiGo. As a result of this, Vistara and Air India would face stiff competition with the low-cost carrier's entry into the league of wide-body aircraft. Moreover, to make India a hub for international aviation, the government recently considered operating wide-body aircraft with Indian carriers. Additionally, the civil aviation ministry had encouraged low-cost carriers like IndiGo and SpiceJet to consider adding wide-body aircraft to their fleets as well as consider growing into full-service carriers like Vistara and Air India.

"As an interim measure, we have decided to take on wet/damp lease certain aircraft to cover the shortfall for our scheduled international operations," the budget carrier said. "International air travel is going through a strong period of recovery, and demand continues to rise in the upcoming festive and winter season. This is a positive sign for the industry, and IndiGo remains very bullish on strong growth for international travel to and from India in the future," IndiGo added.

"IndiGo currently has over 275 narrow-body Airbus aircraft in its fleet and 26 international routes, including 74 domestic routes," a company official said.IndiGo has received approval from the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the induction of wide-body aircraft under the wet lease.

Also read: Delhi International Airport sees HUGE rush of immigrants in post-Covid travel rebound

"We have received an in-principle approval from the regulators for the same, and the induction of these aircraft remains subject to further requisite regulatory approvals. We are committed to exploring every opportunity possible to overcome these capacity challenges and provide our customers with efficient and affordable air travel," an IndiGo statement read.

According to aviation sources, the budget airline will finalise a deal to wet lease with Boeing 777 aircraft to increase international routes for western countries. In an earlier statement by the outgoing CEO of Interglobe Aviation, Ronojoy "Rono" Dutta, expressed his confidence multiple times that IndiGo would operate a direct flight to London in the coming days and also mentioned that, "buying wide-body aircraft is just a matter of time."

He added that the time has come for India`s low-cost airline, IndiGo, to get into the wide-body aircraft business. Interglobe Aviation operates the carrier IndiGo. "However, as the aviation industry globally continues to face significant supply chain disruptions, we have been exploring a multitude of solutions to enable us to continue our operations smoothly and to provide our customers with efficient and affordable travel," an IndiGo statement said.

(With inputs from ANI)
An Indian Navy's MiG-29K fighter jet, on a routine sortie, crashed off the coast of Goa on October 12, 2022 morning after developing a technical malfunction. The pilot ejected safely, landing in the ocean, the Navy said and the naval headquarters later ordered a Board of Inquiry (BoI) into the incident. While the pilot ejected safely, he landed in the Arabian Sea, near Goa and needed immediate evacuation. Although the Indian Navy deployed a chopper to evacuate the pilot, the pilot was spotted by Indian Coast Guard's Dornier Do-228 plane.

The Indian Coast Guards Dornier aircraft were lined up for a flypast in Karnataka yesterday, but were diverted to locate the MiG-29K fighter jet of the Navy, 60 miles off the Goa coast, said ICG officials. In a display of joint effort between the two maritime forces, the ICG Dornier located the pilot who had ejected in a dingy.

Meanwhile, a Navy chopper also reached the location to rescue the pilot. The two Dorniers completed their mission in 40 minutes, concluded the ICG officials. The MiG-29K is an all-weather carrier-based multirole fighter aircraft developed by Russian aerospace company Mikoyan (MiG).

#WATCH | Indian Coast Guards Dornier aircraft were lined up for a flypast in Karnataka yesterday but were diverted to locate the MiG-29K fighter jet of the Navy 60 miles off Goa coast: ICG officials pic.twitter.com/f0DFuArn5U  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

"A MiG 29K on a routine sortie over sea off Goa developed a technical malfunction while returning to base. The pilot ejected safely and has been recovered in a swift search and rescue operation," the Navy said in a brief statement. "The pilot is reported to be in stable condition. The Board of Inquiry (BoI) has been ordered to investigate the cause of the incident," it said.

Indian Navy MiG-29K crashes

The Indian Navy had procured a fleet of 45 MiG-29Ks from Russia over a decade back at a cost of around USD 2 billion to operate from INS Vikramaditya. In November 2020, a MiG-29K aircraft of the Navy crashed into the Arabian Sea off the Goa coast after taking off from aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

A MiG-29K twin-seat fighter aircraft had crashed in South Goa district in November 2019 and both the pilots had ejected safely. Another MIG-29K crashed into the Arabian Sea off the Goa coast on February 23, 2020 after taking off from INS Hansa, a prominent naval air station at Vasco in Goa.

With PTI inputs
Are NFTs Bad for the Environment? The Truth Revealed

Disclaimer: The Industry Talk section features insights from crypto industry players and is not a part of the editorial content of Cryptonews.com.

There is regular media coverage on blockchain networks consuming vast levels of energy. According to recent reports, Bitcoin alone consumes more energy that the entire population of Argentina.

Therefore, that begs the question - are NFTs bad for the environment? Read on to find out what our research concluded.

IMPT - The Most Eco-Friendly NFTs

Overall, we found that while some crypto assets and NFTs can be bad for the environment, this isn't the case across the board. IMPT, for example, is a newly launched project that actually contributed to environmentally-friendly causes through its carbon credit ecosystem.

In a nutshell, IMPT enables consumers and organizations to buy digital tokens that are subsequently converted to carbon credits in the form of NFTs.

Users of the ecosystem can elect to burn offset their carbon credits and thus - this has a long-lasting positive impact on the environment.

Moreover, IMPT is also one of the most sustainable cryptocurrencies from an investment perspective, as users have the option of selling their carbon credits on the secondary market.

Should the global value of carbon credits increase, this would offer an opportunity to generate gains.

IMPT is currently offering its digital tokens via a presale launch, with early stakeholders having access to the best price possible.

Visit IMPT Presale Now

NFTs and the Environment - The Basics

Before being able to evaluate whether or not NFTs are bad for the environment, it is important to have an understanding of the basics. First and foremost, just like conventional crypto assets - NFTs operate on the blockchain network.

This means that NFTs operate in a decentralized manner and thus - transactions are verified by miners. When a new NFT is minted, for example, this requires a transaction on the respective blockchain. In turn, this requires miners to verify the transaction via complex mathematical equations.

This process - depending on the blockchain, often requires vast levels of electricity consumption. As noted above, recent estimates suggest that the Bitcoin network consumes more energy each year than the entire population of Argentina. With that being said, the vast majority of NFTs operate on the Ethereum blockchain.

Until recently, Ethereum was also bad for the environment in terms of energy consumption. However, as we discuss in more detail shortly, Ethereum has since migrated from a proof-of-work consensus mechanism over to proof-of-stake. As such, this means that transactions on the Ethereum network now represent the most energy-efficient cryptocurrencies and NFTs.

How NFTs Can be Bad for the Environment

In this section, we take a much closer look at the question - how do NFTs hurt the environment?

NFT Transactions

We should first explain why NFTs require the use of a blockchain network and transactional throughput. This will help answer the question - are NFTs bad for the environment?

The first transaction that occurs is when a new NFT is minted.

This is a term that refers to the creation of a new NFT on its respective blockchain.

The transaction will be posted to the newly minted NFT on the network, which will be validated by miners.

As we cover shortly, miners are paid transaction fees - which are covered by the person that mints the NFTs. This can and will vary considerably depending on the network, albeit, as we have established - the vast bulk of NFTs are Ethereum-based.

After buying an NFT from an online marketplace, the provider will transfer the non-fungible token to the user's private wallet. Once again, this will require another transaction on the blockchain that must be validated by a miner.

In essence, every time that there is a movement of the NFT from one wallet to another, this will demand another transaction. This issue is exacerbated when you consider that some NFT collections will consist of thousands of individual tokens.

Pre-Ethereum Merge

As we briefly noted earlier, the majority of NFTs operate on top of the Ethereum blockchain. This is a key factor to take into account when attempting to answer the question - how do NFTs harm the environment?

Prior to its recent merge to proof-of-stake, Ethereum was utilizing the proof-of-work mechanism - just like Bitcoin.

While ultra-secure and transparent, proof-of-work transactions are extremely bad for the environment. The reason for this is the way in which transactions are confirmed and validated by blockchain miners.

The typical process is as follows:

Each 'block' on the network contains a range of transactions, which will cover both cryptocurrencies and NFTs

In order to verify the transaction as valid, miners are tasked with solving ultra-complex mathematical equations

These equations are so complex that no human could realistically solve them without the aid of a computer and specialist device

The technology needed to solve proof-of-stake transactions ultimately requires vast sums of electricity - owing to the complexity of the equation

When assessing NFTs effect on the environment, the above example highlights that much-needed energy is being wasted on validating transactions.

Moreover, as the previous proof-of-work system utilized by Ethereum could only handle the region of 15/16 transactions per second, this meant that the network was often overloaded. In turn, this required more energy consumption and thus - unfavorable fees.

During the peak of the NFT craze in 2021, Ethereum transaction fees were averaging $3-4. Consider that a new 10,000 NFT collection being minted would there demand tens of thousands of dollars - just to pay miners.

This in itself could be considered as bad for the environment and society as a whole.

Post-Ethereum Merge

After many years in the making, Ethereum is now a proof-of-stake blockchain. This means that the network is significantly more efficient, which feeds down to NFTs.

First and foremost, Ethereum no longer requires miners to solve ultra-complex mathematical equations to validate NFT transactions. Instead, the proof-of-stake mechanism offers a fairer and much more energy-efficient system.

In fact, according to a recent article published by Reuters, the Ethereum merge has since resulted in a transactional throughput process that is now 99% more environmentally friendly. This means that minting and transferring NFTs is no longer a strain on energy resources.

Furthermore, fees are now significantly lower, not least because the proof-of-stake system now has the capacity to scale more than 100,000 transactions per second.

How NFTs Can be Good for the Environment

While it is true that NFTs on the Ethereum network still requires energy consumption and transaction fees, there are a number of projects in this space that are actually looking to do good things for the environment.

We discuss this sentiment in more detail in the sections below.

Carbon Offsets

The possibilities with NFTs are virtually endless. One such angle that enables NFTs to be good for the environment is that they can provide a framework to offset carbon emissions.

Many countries around the world have installed a limit on the amount of carbon emissions that companies can emit each year, and the specific allocation will vary from one jurisdiction to the next.

Should a company have a need to emit more harmful emissions than the allocation allows, they are required to purchase carbon credits. One of the most efficient ways to achieve this is through NFTs.

For example, IMPT is building an ecosystem that will enable businesses to buy and sell carbon credit emissions. Moreover, those holding IMPT tokens can convert the digital assets to NFTs and subsequently decide to offset the carbon emissions. As such IMPT has been dubbed the greenest cryptocurrency on the market in 2022.

In turn, this has a positive impact on the environment. Furthermore, as NFTs operate on the blockchain, all carbon credit transactions are publicly verifiable on the public ledger.

Alternative Minting Processes

We briefly discussed earlier that when a new NFT is minted, it requires a transaction on the blockchain. This means that miners are required to verify the transaction, which consumes energy.

However, innovative minting processes mean that there are now ways around this issue.

For instance, 'batch' minting enables creators to mint an entire NFT collection through a single transaction. This will be especially useful for creators that wish to mint a sizable collection of many thousand NFTs.

Another option for creators is to opt for 'lazy' minting. This enables creators to mint a new NFT collection, but the transaction for each token does not require a blockchain movement until a sale is made.

While lazy minting will at some point still requires a transaction, this will only be the case as each token is sold.

After all, many creators will mint an entire NFT collection and perhaps only sell a small portion of the allocation. This means that unsold NFTs will not require a blockchain transaction.

Tree Planting

While NFTs can also extend to other environmentally friendly causes, one such area that is becoming prominent is the planting of new trees.

In its most basic form, users can buy an NFT that represents a tree that will be planted by the respective project.

As the NFT operates on the blockchain, it is possible to get a full overview of the tree-planting process in a transparent manner.

Charitable Donations

We also came across a number of NFT projects that make sustainable donations to charitable causes. This is funded through the transaction fees that are generated when NFTs are bought and sold.

When the project collects transaction fees, it can donate a portion of the funds to environmental causes. In turn, this can actually result in the blockchain becoming carbon-negative, meaning that it does more good than bad to the environment.

The Best NFTs That Help the Environment

Thus far in this insight we have answered the question - are NFTs bad for the environment?

In this section, we now explore some of the best NFT projects in the space right now that are generating a positive impact on environmental causes.

1. IMPT - Carbon Offset Ecosystem and Secondary Marketplace

Overall, we really like the work that the team at IMPT is doing for the environment through their innovative carbon offset ecosystem. First and foremost, IMPT is built on top of the Ethereum blockchain.

As we covered extensively earlier, Ethereum has since migrated to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, which is 99% more energy-efficient than its proof-of-work counterpart. As such, crypto asset and NFT transactions on the IMPT platform do not require vast levels of energy consumption.

With that said, it is the carbon offset program that really takes IMPT's dedication to the environment to the next level. In a nutshell, users can register an account with IMPT and proceed to buy the project's native token. The IMPT token can then be converted to carbon credits, which are then minted into an NFT that is securely stored on the blockchain.

At this stake, NFT holders have a duo of options. Environmentally-focuses users can elect to burn the carbon credits that are represented by IMPT tokens. After burning a token, this offsets carbon emissions. In turn, users will receive an NFT collectible that comes with unique artwork. The other option offered by IMPT will appeal to investors.

Put simply, the IMPT token reflects the value of global carbon credit prices. This means that users can list their carbon credits on the IMPT secondary marketplace. If carbon credit prices increase, this means that buyers will need to pay a higher price to purchase the IMPT token. As such, this offers an investment opportunity in its own right.

IMPT tokens are currently available to purchase in a much-anticipated presale launch. A limited number of tokens are currently available at a presale price of $0.018. Once this initial batch sells - the price will increase by just over 27% to $0.023. Once the presale has concluded, IMPT will list on public exchanges, which will enable the public to buy and sell the token.

Ultimately, crypto presales like IMPT not only offer an attractive upside from an investment perspective, but the project is contributing to positive environmental causes. For further details users can read the IMPT whitepaper as well as join the official Telegram group with over 12.5k subscribers.

Visit IMPT Presale Now

2. Algorand - Carbon Negative Since 2021

Founded in 2019, Algorand is a popular blockchain project that offers super-fast transactions at low fees. Moreover, Algorand is committed to a wide variety of environmentally-friendly causes. At the forefront of this is its proof-of-stake protocol (POS). While somewhat similar to Ethereum's proof-of-stake mechanism, POS is even more energy-efficient.

In turn, Algorand claims that its blockchain network has been carbon negative since 2021. Algorand is also partnered with a plethora of projects that are tasked with solving environmental issues.

For instance, in partnership with ACCIONA, the Oaxaca Wind Project continues to generate clean energy in Mexico. This provides more than 700,000 households with clean, locally produced energy. The Algorand blockchain also has the capacity to mint, store, and trade NFTs. This could be a great alternative to Ethereum-based NFTs, considering the carbon-negative status of Algorand.

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3. Coorest - Tree-Planting Initiative Through NFT Ownership

Coorest is an innovative project that enables users to help continue to the environment through NFTs and tree-planting initiatives. In a nutshell, each NFT is backed by 10 trees in the real world. Each NFT will allegedly absorb 250 kg of CO2 emissions each year.

The first batch of trees will be planted in Northern Europe, with an estimated timeframe of Q4 2022 - Q2 2023. Coorest also notes that NFT holders will receive a Proof of Carbon Compensation Certificate, should they wish to offset their carbon footprint.

The Verdict - Can NFTs Help the Environment & Fight Climate Change?

This market insight has explored why NFTs are bad for the environment. The vast majority of NFTs are built on the Ethereum blockchain which, prior to its proof-of-stake migration, requires vast levels of energy to confirm minting and transfer transactions.

However, since the upgrade, Ethereum NFTs are now considered 99% more energy-efficient. Moreover, there are NFT projects like IMPT that are actually helping to fight climate change.

Through its blockchain-based ecosystem, IMPT enables consumers and businesses to offset their carbon footprint. Through the IMPT token, users can also gain exposure to the carbon credit trading markets.

A limited number of IMPT tokens are now being offered at preferential prices via a presale launch.

Visit IMPT Presale Now

FAQs

Are NFTs bad for the environment?

Whether or not NFTs are bad for the environment will ultimately depend on the blockchain that they are built on. For example, NFTs built on the Ethereum blockchain - which covers the vast majority of this industry, are no longer detrimental to the environment. Since the proof-of-stake migration, Ethereum NFTs utilize 99% less energy.

How much energy do NFTs use?

The amount of energy required when minting or transferring NFTs will depend on a variety of factors. This includes the type of blockchain that the NFT is built on and how congested the underlying network is. The larger the number of NFTs within a collection, the more energy is required.
Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) is set to welcome the world's biggest passenger plane Airbus A380 for the first time. The plane owned by Emirates Airlines is set to land in India tomorrow, October 14, 2022. The maiden flight of the plane has been preponed as the Emirates Airlines plane was earlier planned to land in India two weeks later. The aircraft was planned to touch the Indian grounds on October 30. It is to be noted that the double-decker aircraft owned by Garhoud-based airline will land in Bengaluru from Dubai. Furthermore, the Bengaluru Airport authorities have started preparations to handle the landing of the aircraft.

The news of Bengaluru Airport authorities making preparations to welcome the aircraft was shared via their official handle with the caption saying, "The Emirates Airbus A380 will land at #BLRAirport on Oct 14. Our teams are gearing up for this historic maiden flight to #BLR. Our engineers and operations team are testing infrastructure and processes. We are waiting for the big day with bated breath. #Emirates #Smoothlanding." The post also had a photo of the world's biggest passenger plane.

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Emirates Airbus A380 landing on Bengaluru Airport

Based on reports of the Deccan Herald, the Emirates EK562flight being carried out by Airbus A380 will take off from Dubai at 10 am and will land in Bengaluru at around 3:40 pm tomorrow. Following this, the aircraft will make a return trip from Bengaluru to Dubai, making its maiden flight from the airport.

The Emirates Airbus A380 will land at #BLRAirport on Oct 14. Our teams are gearing up for this historic maiden flight to #BLR. Our engineers and operations team are testing infrastructure and processes. We are waiting for the big day with bated breath.#Emirates #Smoothlanding pic.twitter.com/Ly0hUK3CFb  BLR Airport (@BLRAirport) October 12, 2022

World's biggest plane: Airbus A380

The landing of the plane on the Kempegowda International Airport is significant as the plane is the world's biggest aircraft. The Airbus A380 is 72.7 metres long, weighs between 510 and 575 tonnes, and stands 24.1 metres tall. Although Airbus has given its final A380 to Emirates and will no longer produce the aircraft, it is still in service by a number of airlines, with Emirates being the biggest. The enormous A380 offers 45 percent more seating area than the Boeing 777, more legroom, and the largest screens in every class.
New Delhi: Alphabet unit Google could face antitrust charges next year over its digital advertising business, with EU regulators frustrated over the slow pace of settlement talks with the company, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Google's ad business is Alphabet's biggest moneymaker, accounting for about 80% of annual revenue, despite efforts over the past decade to push into selling hardware, subscription services and cloud computing technology.

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The European Commission launched an investigation into Google's adtech business in June last year, concerned that the U.S. tech giant may be getting an unfair advantage over rivals and advertisers. The company, which risks its fourth billion-euro fine, subsequently sought to settle the case but concessions were minor and very preliminary, one of the people said. Google has racked up more than 8 billion euros ($7.7 billion) in EU antitrust fines in the last decade.

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The EU competition enforcer is likely to issue the charges early next year although the timing may still change, one of the people said. The Commission declined to comment. Google, which is the world's leading seller of online advertising, well ahead of Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms Inc, had no immediate comment.
New Delhi: Indias big ed-tech and Unicorn company BYJU has announced to layoff 5% of its staff that is around 2500 in the coming months in order to make the company profitable by the end of this financial year. The company futher informed that it would hire over 10,000 teachers in the coming months to expand the ed-tech segment and reach the teacher workforce strenght of 20,000.

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To avoid redundancies and duplication of roles, the move will result in five per cent of its 50,000-strong workforce (about 2,500 people) to be "rationalised across product, content, media, and technology teams in a phased manner", the company said in a statement.

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Besides, it plans to create unit of K-10 business by adding its acquistions like Toppr, Meritnation, TutorVista, Scholar, and HashLearn platforms. Over the last three years, BYJU`S acquired multiple companies whose integration with its core business is now complete.

BYJU aims to achieve overall profitability by March 2023.

Since significant brand awareness has been created in India over the past few years, there is a scope to optimise marketing budgets locally and prioritise spending to increase brand awareness in overseas markets, the statement claimed.

After six stressful and tough months, the company`s Co-founder Byju Raveendran recently said that "the worst is finally over" and there is only "growth ahead" as seen in the company`s FY22 financial results, where it logged Rs 10,000 crore in gross revenues.

As a mature organisation that takes its responsibility towards investors and stakeholders seriously, we aim to ensure sustainable growth alongside strong revenue growth. These measures will help us achieve profitability in the defined time frame of March 2023, Mrinal Mohit, CEO of Byjus India business, said.

(With IANS Inputs)
New Delhi: Live online learning platform Vedantu on Thursday announced it has bought a majority stake in test preparation platform Deeksha (Ace Creative Learning Pvt Ltd) for $40 million.

Deeksha is one of the leading K-12 test preparation players in Karnataka and according to Vedantu, this strategic partnership will further its hybrid education strategy.

Since 1998, Deeksha has created over 65,000 success stories through its 39 centres across three states.

"With this acquisition, our mission is to empower and scale Deeksha's current learning model by deploying our disruptive in-house hybrid technology to reach the masses in remote areas and create impact at scale," said Vamsi Krishna, CEO, and Co-Founder, Vedantu.

This culmination of online and offline capabilities will help us expand our hybrid learning initiatives, Krishna added.

This partnership will leverage Vedantu's technology and integrate it into offline centers to create a scalable hybrid model which provides access to quality teaching, even in remote tier 3 and 4 towns at affordable cost.

"Through this partnership, we will leverage Vedantu's LIVE Class platform for our students and provide a hybrid solution that maximizes learning outcomes through personalised learning algorithms," said Dr. Sridhar, Co-Founder, Deeksha.

Deeksha said it will bring in close to 13,000 of its students to Vedantu's platform.

In addition, Deeksha will leverage Vedantu's already existing strong credentials in LIVE Classes, educational technology, and strong pedagogical content.

On Vedantu more than 1 million students attend Live classes every month and more than 35 million users every month from over 10,000 cities and more than 50 countries access free content, tests, doubts and videos on the platform and its channels on YouTube, according to the edtech company.
Karva Chauth 2022 puja, vrat, Henna designs: Karwa Chauth festivities and rituals hold a very special place in people`s hearts, especially women. Women fast from sunrise till moonrise and pray for the good health of their spouses, however, it`s just not about that. There are a lot of rituals and special elements that are attached to the festival that make it even more special. One of them, of course, is Henna or Mehendi, as many call it.

Women love to dress up for the occasion and Henna is an important part of their look. And fiscally speaking, it`s a great occasion for Henna artists to make money too! And if you`re wondering where you should be going for getting a good Henna design done, fret no more!

We`ve curated a list of a few places across New Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata where you can go and get your hands soaked in the beautiful colours of Henna.

New Delhi: Karwa Chauth is one of the most widely celebrated and in fact, awaited festivals in the Northern parts of India, especially New Delhi. In Delhi, local henna artists throng markets like Lajpat Nagar or Kamala Nagar during the occasion. If you're staying in South Delhi, Lajpat is a good option for you. For North Delhi residents, Kamala Nagar is where you'll find henna artists at every nook and corner during the time.

In West Delhi, Karol Bagh or Jwala Heri in Paschim Vihar is your place. Even local salons in Rajouri offer a great deal during the time so if that`s close to where you`re putting up, you can check it out.

Coming to Delhi-NCR, Noida's Atta Market and Gurugram`s Galleria market is where you`ll find henna artists in great number.

Kolkata: Bara Bazaar in Kolkata is famous for having one of the best local henna artists in the city. And during Karwa Chauth, the rush there is just crazy! New Market, Esplanade, and New Alipore are some other places you can check out, according to your convenience.

Mumbai: For Mumbai residents, Lokhandwala Market is your place! The local Lokhandwala market is where you have very high chances of running into your favourite celebrity getting their Henna done. Local salons in Bandra or Powai also give great deals during that time.
Washington: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday hailed the deployment of the cash transfer scheme in India and described it as a "logistical marvel" considering the sheer size of the country.

Addressing a Fiscal Monitor Press Briefing, IMF`s Deputy Director of Fiscal Affairs Department Paolo Mauro said the global lender has several examples of how companies deploy cash transfers and "there is a lot to learn" from India.

The top IMF official made this comment on the sidelines of annual meetings of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG).Mauro said, "From India, there is a lot to learn. There is a lot to learn from some other examples around the world.""We have examples from pretty much every continent and every level of income. If I look at the case of India, it is actually quite impressive," he said.

Underlining the sheer size of the country, the top IMF official said it is a "logistical marvel" how these programs that seek to help people who are at low-income levels reach literally hundreds of millions of people."There are programs that target specifically women. There are programs that target the elderly, farmers," he said in response to a question on India`s cash transfer schemes," he added. The IMF official also pointed to the success of a lot of technological innovations in India and the use of the unique identification system, the Aadhaar, in making the cash transfer scheme a success.

IMF`s Director of Fiscal Affairs Department Vitor Gaspar said, "we are collaborating with India in that context as one of the most inspiring examples of the application of technology to solve very complicated issues of targeting support to the people who need it most."This praise for India`s cash transfer scheme comes as the country continues to maintain its position as the fastest-growing major economy in the world.

In its latest World Economic Outlook report, the IMF noted, "The outlook for India is for growth of 6.8 per cent in 2022, a 0.6 percentage point downgrade since the July forecast, reflecting a weaker-than-expected outturn in the second quarter (April-June) and more subdued external demand."In its July 2022 report, the IMF had pegged India`s GDP growth for 2022 at 7.4 per cent. The IMF latest projection on India`s GDP growth is lower than the 7 per cent growth pegged by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the financial year 2022-23.
New Delhi: On the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank meetings, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held back-to-back bilaterals with global finance ministers and heads of the top international organizations in Washington DC on topics that centred on important economic issues. The minister held a series of discussions during her bilateral meetings with top officials of several international bodies including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), money laundering and terrorism watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Sitharaman held bilateral talks with UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner where both leaders exchanged views on several key economic issues. The finance minister also held wide-ranging discussions with the FATF President Raja Kuman during her jam-packed schedule on Wednesday. (Also Read: Slurrp App becomes the first food app to bring in Celebrity Chefs to cook with Delhi Home Chefs)

Moreover, Sitharaman held talks with OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann and South Korea Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-Ho. Sitharaman is on an official visit to the United States to attend the IMF and the World Bank annual meetings, the G20 Finance Ministers and the Central Bank Governor (FMCBG) Meetings. (Also Read: Invest in THIS post office scheme to get Rs 16 lakh in 10 years; check details here)

The Finance Minister is holding bilateral meetings with a number of countries from around the world. She is also holding one-on-one meetings with leaders and heads of the European Commission. On the sidelines of IMF-WB, Sitharaman met ministers from Egypt, Bhutan, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and South Korea.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met her Bhutan counterpart Lyonpo Namgay Tshering in Washington and expressed India`s wish to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries including hydropower, and COVID-19 assistance, among other issues."

Union Finance Minister Smt. N Sitharaman meets with Mr Lyonpo Namgay Tshering, Finance Minister of Bhutan, on the sidelines of the IMF-WB annual meetings, in Washington DC, today," the finance ministry tweeted."The FM said that India is looking forward to expand bilateral cooperation between the two countries to new and emerging areas such as space, digital technologies, the financial sector, the health sector and tertiary education," the ministry added.

Sitharaman reiterated that India would like to take forward and "further deepen India-Bhutan bilateral relations for the development and well-being of our people."The Bhutan Finance Minister, on his part, thanked the Indian government for providing aid in implementing their 12th Five-Year Plan and the additional USD 200mn currency swap arrangement."

Lyonpo Namgay Tshering expressed gratitude to GoI for providing assistance in implementing their 12th Five-Year Plan and the additional $200mn currency swap arrangement. He also thanked India for the BhimUPI and RuPay rollout already done in Bhutan," the ministry said.

During the last part of the visit, the Union Finance Minister will attend roundtable meetings with USIBC and USISPF on themes to `Strengthen Investment and Innovation in India-US Corridor` and "Investing in India`s Digital Revolution".These meetings with leading business leaders and investors are aimed at highlighting India`s policy priorities and deliberating on measures to facilitate foreign investment by showcasing India`s attractiveness as an investment destination.
New Delhi: Amit Sadh has become one of the most popular actors in the OTT space as he carved a niche for himself in the thriller genre. With hits like Breathe and the recent Duranga, he has truly mastered the genre. Duranga became the most viewed Zee5 original series, boasting of a huge 270 Million+ viewing minutes. Loaded with multiple twists and turns, the 9-part thriller suspense series also co-stars Abhijit Khandkekar, Barkha Sengupta, Rajesh Khattar, Divya Seth and Zakir Hussain. Helmed by Pradeep Sarkar and Aijaz Khan, the show has been produced by Goldie Behl.

Amit Sadh had a surprise cameo in Duranga season 1 and got much appreciation from the audiences and the makers. Now the actor has bagged the lead role in Duranga Season 2. Sharing his excitement, the actor shared, "It's time for some thrill yet again! Ab aayega asli maza, filming begins soon!" The popular series garnered a lot of attention amongst K-Drama fans as well. Amit's character got a detailed introduction in the last episode, leaving fans asking for more of him!

Excited fans took to the comments section to share their love and support for the actor. best wishes for the release... Time to shine AGAIN, commented one fan. Your presence in the series was a pleasant surprise @theamitsadh ... eagerly waiting for the second season, added another fan.

See the post here

The season 1 of Duranga ended on a major cliffhanger, creating a sensation amongst audiences. Season 2 hasn't still begun filming yet but it's in the pipeline. With such talented and capable star cast, the fans of the show cannot control their excitement for its season 2.
New Delhi: Delhi Police on Thursday (October 13) detained Aami Aadmi Party (AAP) Gujarat chief Gopal Italia from the NCW office. Italia was summoned by NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma for using "abusive & indecent language" against PM Modi. Sharma, after the hearing, said that Italia had claimed that he was not the person in the video in a verbal statement. However, in his written response, he said he did not mean it. While Italia's hearing was going on, AAP supporters reportedly tried to enter the NCW building in the national capital, following which police had to be called to restrain them.

According to officials, Italia was detained after the hearing for "creating a situation that disrupted law and order in the area"

Delhi | AAP Gujarat chief Gopal Italia detained from NCW office by Delhi Police https://t.co/qSkvPOJqPD pic.twitter.com/LKjdiDbvSn  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

He denied getting a summon but his reply is ready. He also denied his presence in the video but in his reply, he accepts tweeting.He had claimed it wasn't him in the video: NCW chief on AAP Gujarat chief summoned over a purported video where he used derogatory language for the PM pic.twitter.com/XO9O4EOOtO October 13, 2022

Earlier last week, BJP's IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya shared the purported video of Italia on Twitter where the AAP leader can be heard calling PM Modi a "neech aadmi" (a lowly person).

It has been reported that the video is from 2019 and was made during the run-up to the general elections.

AAP, however, has defended its Gujarat unit chief and said that BJP is using an old video of Gopal Italia to target him now as he comes from a poor family and belongs to the Patidaar community.

(with agency inputs)
Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena group got the biggest relief from the High Court today. After the death of late MLA Ramesh Latke, the seat of Andheri East constituency was vacant. A by-election was announced for this seat by the Election Commission. BJP have already announced candidates for this by-election. But, Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray was in trouble for the last two to three days. Because Ramesh Latke's wife, Rituja Latke, was working for the Municipal Corporation. She had resigned from her municipal job. But until that resignation was approved, she could not file the nomination form for the by-election. Interestingly, only two days were left to fill out the nomination form. But her resignation was not accepted by the municipal administration. So we saw a big political uproar in the state. Many different developments took place. Finally, the Thackeray group went to the Bombay High Court for the seniors of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation to accept the resignation of Rituja Latre. The Bombay High Court gave relief to Latke in this matter.

Direction of Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court, while giving a hearing on this matter, gave a clear direction to the Mumbai Municipal Administration that they should accept the resignation of Rituja Latke by 11 o'clock tomorrow morning. Also, the court has ordered that the municipal commissioner should give a clear reply to Rituja Latke regarding the approval of her resignation and inform the court. This is a big relief for Rituja Latke and Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena group. Now the entire state is paying attention to what exactly will happen in the Andheri East by-election.

Also Read: 'You 40 TRAITORS and I can resign, LET...': Aditya Thackeray challenges Eknath Shinde on 'Private Limited Company' ROW

Andheri East By-Election: BJP Candidate

The BJP has already announced its candidate for the Andheri East by-election. Murji Patel has been announced as a candidate by the BJP. Interestingly, Murji Patel has also started vigorous campaigning in the constituency. But there is no certainty as to what will happen in politics. Because in view of the events of the last two days, there is talk that a candidate from Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's group will contest the Andheri East by-election. Therefore, there is an atmosphere of confusion in the BJP fold. Interestingly, Murji Patel has also commented on this. Patel has responded to the media that he will not stand for the by-election if the party tells him.

Also Read: 'So this made Shinde group understand our STRATEGY': Uddhav Thackeray group makes SHOCKING allegation against Election Commission

Prestige Fight for Eknath Shinde

On the other hand, many developments are happening in Eknath Shinde's group. Various discussions are going on about who exactly will be the candidate for the Shinde group. But a decision is likely to be taken by late tonight. The candidate for the by-election was announced by the BJP for many days. But the court battle between the Shinde group and the Thackeray group last week is likely to have delayed the decision to field a candidate from the Shinde group for the by-election. The Election Commission has announced provisional new names and symbols for both the Shinde and Thackeray factions for the Andheri by-election. Therefore, there is a discussion that perhaps the Shinde group is more insistent on fielding its candidate for this seat.

'Plan B' of Uddhav Thackeray

On the one hand, developments were taking place in the BJP and Shinde group to decide the candidate and the strategy for the by-elections, while on the other hand, the developments were happening at a very fast pace in the Thackeray group. Thackeray group candidate Rituja Latke's resignation was not accepted by the Municipal Corporation. So her candidature was in danger. The information came from sources that if the resignation of Rituja Latke was not accepted by the Municipal Corporation, Plan B was being prepared by the Thackeray group. But in the meantime, there were signs of factionalism among local ex-Corporators of Shiv Sena. All these developments were happening in parallel. Meanwhile, the High Court gave relief to Rituja Latke. So, now there is a high possibility that Rituja Latke will contest the by-election from the Thackeray group.
Cumberland County commissioners Wednesday awarded 17 organizations $7.1 million in grants from federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.

During a finance meeting, commissioners reviewed a list of recommended awards for programs that improve the physical health and mental health of county residents directly or indirectly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The county is making grants available to support health initiatives, infrastructure projects and business/nonprofit COVID-19 recovery efforts. No decisions have been on the other two categories of county pandemic recovery grants.

ARPA was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, 2021. The legislation includes $350 billion for eligible state, county and local governments.

Of the $350 billion, Cumberland County was awarded $49,214,152. In September 2021, the commissioners approved the allocation of $2.5 million of ARPA money to three local higher education institutions, awarding $1.4 million to Central Penn College, $600,000 to Messiah University and $500,000 to Shippensburg University.

Since then, the county has developed a process on how to allocate the remaining $46.7 million. The action taken Wednesday represents the first round of grants awarded under that process.
Srinagar: Indian Armys assault dog named Zoom that was injured during an encounter in Anantnag district died during treatment at Military Veterinary Hospital in Srinagar. An official said that the dog that was under treatment at a veterinary hospital died around noon today. He said that apparently, he was fine, but he had three bullets and was critical. We used the best treatment. Surgery was also done however, it suddenly started gasping and soon collapsed. Earlier, Zoom was operated upon as it had gunshot wounds on the face and rear right leg. Zoom, the official said, was tasked with clearing the house where terrorists were hiding during an encounter in the Kokernag area of Anantnag district on October 10.

The dog went inside the house and attacked the terrorists. During the operation he received three bullets, resulting in critical injuries. Zoom, a Malinois or Belgian Shepherd was born in September 2020 and joined the Armys 28 Army Dog Unit (ADU), having a service of 8 months. It is the second dog which died in an anti-terror operation in the last 4 months earlier axel assault Dog got killed in the Baramullah area in an encounter.

Op Tangpawa, #Anantnag.



Army assault dog 'Zoom' critically injured during the operation while confronting the terrorists. He is under treatment at Army Vet Hosp #Srinagar.



We wish him a speedy recovery.#Kashmir@adgpi@NorthernComd_IA pic.twitter.com/FqEM0Pzwpv  Chinar Corps - Indian Army (@ChinarcorpsIA) October 10, 2022

Army Assault Canine 'Zoom' laid down his life in the line of duty. He suffered gunshot wounds during Op Tangpawa on 09 Oct 22 where he fought gallantly with terrorists, saving lives of soldiers. His selfless commitment and service to the Nation will be remembered forever. pic.twitter.com/R6i7Cv5WG5  Chinar Corps - Indian Army (@ChinarcorpsIA) October 13, 2022

Also Read: BIG ALERT: Jammu administration withdraws order authorising tehsildars to issue residence certificates to non-locals
KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate, which recently arrested Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Manik Bhattacharya in connection with the West Bengal teacher's recruitment scam, has reportedly collected several incriminating documents and digital evidence pointing to the involvement of several high-profile persons in the scam. According to reports, the central financial probe agency has also seized a letter suggesting money transfer in several bank accounts and a reference to the states Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee  all pointing to the fact that huge money was taken from people in lieu of providing jobs to them.

The central probe agency also claimed to have seized a CD allegedly containing the names and roll numbers of candidates picked for the states primary teachers exam among other key pieces of evidence in the multi-crore teachers recruitment scam.

According to the sources, the agency also claimed to have found a letter purportedly addressed to CM Mamata Banerjee confirming that 44 aspirants paid Rs 7 lakh each in return for a job and the said amount was allegedly collected by a TMC office bearer.

It may be recalled that the Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday arrested Trinamool Congress legislator and former president of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE), Manik Bhattacharya in connection with the multi-crore WBSSC recruitment irregularities scam.

In its first chargesheet that was presented before the special PMLA court last month, the ED named Manik Bhattacharya and also mentioned some crucial details on how he played a key role in the recruitment irregularities scam.

In its chargesheet, the agency also mentioned some telephonic communication between Bhattacharya and the former West Bengal education minister, Partha Chatterjee that clearly hinted towards the former WBBPE president`s involvement in the scam. Partha Chatterjee is already in judicial custody in the case.

ED sources said that Bhattacharya played a key role in increasing the actual number scored by ineligible candidates to accommodate them in the recruitment process.

"There are a host of other allegations, including illegal collection of money from individuals getting admission in Bachelor of Education colleges in the state. He also indulged in massive irregularities in the teachers` eligibility test for the recruitment of primary teachers in different state- run schools in West Bengal," the ED officials said.

It is also alleged that he selectively increased the marks of some candidates in teachers` eligibility tests after some errors were detected in the question paper of the entrance test.

Before he was arrested by the ED, Manik Bhattacharya had a shield from arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) till October 10. However, there was no such restriction on the ED from taking similar steps. The ED exercised that advantage and that too hours after the apex court-provided shield for Bhattacharya expired.

His arrest triggered a war of words between the ruling TMC and the main opposition BJP over the scam. Reacting to his arrest, Trinamool Congress`s Rajya Sabha member, Dr Santanu Sen said that although the party does not have any comment to offer on the development, they want the central investigative agencies to complete their investigation as early as possible without dragging it for an indefinite period to give advantage to any political party.

On the other hand, the BJP welcomed the move by the ED and said that the central agencies are moving in the right direction and slowly more heavyweights in the case will be netted. The CPI(M) central committee member, Sujan Chakraborty said Manik Bhattacharya`s arrest was inevitable. "He was trying to evade the arrest by adopting a number of techniques, but ultimately could not avoid that," he said.
Ahead of the Karva Chauth festival, members of the Hindu Mahasabha have warned of dire consequences if a Muslim artist applies henna on the hands of Hindu women in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar. BJP MLA from Khatauli Vikram Saini said on Wednesday that Muslim youths opening mehndi shops have a different intention. They have 'love jihad' in their minds. Saini said, "They do love jihad under the guise of applying mehndi. Many such cases have come to the fore. My request to Hindu women is to either apply mehndi at home or in a Hindu artist's shop or beauty parlor."

Meanwhile, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has opened 13 mehndi stalls. The VHP tasked its members to ensure that Muslim male make-up artists did not apply henna to the hands of Hindu women. They are verifying the details of Mehndi artists by checking their Aadhar cards. Hindu Mahasabha member Lokesh Saini said that this step is to save our brothers and sisters from falling prey to love jihad. He said, "Hindu women should approach those stall owners who understand the importance of Karva Chauth."

Let us tell you that in 2021, a similar incident was reported in Muzaffarnagar. An FIR was also registered against a group for taking out a march to ensure no Muslim applies henna to a Hindu client.
Pakistan has been humiliated dozens of times at the hands of India on the international level. The neighbouring country which is battling poverty, terrorism and natural calamities, has so many sorrows to cry about but every time it starts shedding tears on Kashmir. The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday called an emergency session to condemn Russia's attempts to hold a referendum on Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhia and to annex these areas.

In today's DNA, Zee News' Rohit Ranjan will analyse Pakistan's never-ending disease of using international platforms over Kashmir.

According to the rules, Pakistan also got a chance to express its views on this issue but Pakistan dragged the Kashmir issue here too. But the result was the same as it happens every time, India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ruchira Kamboj lashed out at Pakistan. Along with Ruchira, Rajya Sabha Deputy Speaker Harivansh also reprimanded Pakistan. He had reached the African country Rwanda to participate in the IPU assembly. India has also demanded from Pakistan to give up its illegal occupation of PoK.

Last year when the whole world was battling the Covid-19 pandemic, Pakistan used this platform to promote its anti-India agenda and even then India retaliated fiercely.

Today Pakistan is standing on the verge of becoming a ruined and failed country, the prices of food items and fuel are sky-high. Pakistan does not even see the pain of floods in its country and those who lost everything because of it.

Similarly in 2019, when Imran Khan was the Prime Minister of Pakistan, he was scaring the world that there would be bloodshed in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 but statistics show that today Kashmir has maximum peace, stone pelting cases have come down and it is on a new path of progress.

According to the United Nations Charter, its major objectives are to establish international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among nations based on the principle of equal rights and self-determination for the masses, and to get international cooperation in solving international problems.

But Pakistan has been using this platform only to cry about Kashmir and cover its factory of terrorism, which was once again exposed by India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ruchira Kamboj.
United Nations: In a major snub to Pakistan, India yet again dismissed as "frivolous and pointless" Islamabads attempts to raise the Kashmir issue during the UN General Assembly vote on Russia`s annexation of Ukrainian territories. India`s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj on Wednesday slammed Islamabad`s "mindset" that keeps bringing it up with falsehoods regardless of the context, saying that it deserves "sympathy". Pakistan should instead stop cross-border terrorism, she added.

Speaking after the Assembly had voted to condemn Russia`s annexation of areas of Ukraine, Pakistan`s Permanent Representative Munir Akram said he looked forward to "similar concern and condemnation about the attempts by India to formalise" what he termed the annexation of Kashmir.

In a muddled attempt at linking Kashmir to the Ukraine issue, he said that while Pakistan "endorses the basic principle reflected in the draft resolution that referenda cannot apply to people`s and regions, which are part of a sovereign state and in an environment which is not free", it had abstained on the resolution.

He then added, "Under international law, the right of self-determination applies to people who are under foreign or called colonial domination and those who have not yet exercised the right to self-determination as in the case of Jammu and Kashmir." Pakistan routinely brings up the Kashmir issue regardless of the topic at the UN or its relevance.

Replying to it, Kamboj told the Assembly, "We have witnessed, unsurprisingly yet again, an attempt by one delegation to misuse this forum and make frivolous and pointless remarks against my country." "Such statements deserve our collective contempt and sympathy for a mindset which repeatedly utters falsehoods," she said.

#WATCH | Entire territory of J&K is & will always be an integral part of India... We call on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism so our citizens can enjoy their right to life & liberty: Ruchira Kamboj, Permanent Representative to the UN



(Source: UN TV) pic.twitter.com/cKY0QoRNCm  ANI (@ANI) October 12, 2022

Kamboj declared, "The entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir is and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India irrespective of what the representative of Pakistan believes - or covets." "We call on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism so that our citizens can enjoy the right to life and liberty," she said.

Later exercising Pakistan`s right of reply to her comments, Gul Kaiser Sarwani, a counsellor in that country`s UN mission, repeated its standard statement about Hindutva, RSS, the BJP and cow "vigilantism" and what it asserts is the condition of minorities.

India also abstained with 34 countries on the resolution, which received 143 votes, with only four countries joining Russia in voting against it. India maintains that a referendum would be irrelevant because the people of Kashmir have voted in elections in India and have elected their own governments.

Moreover, a Security Council adopted on April 21, 1948, that Pakistan disregards requires it to withdraw its troops and interlopers from all of Kashmir.
New Delhi: Farooq Abdullah, the former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, has lashed out at the central government for the alleged mistreatment of Muslims in the country. He claimed to be an Indian Muslim, not a Chinese Muslim. He made the remarks at an event hosted by the Nationalist Congress Party, or NCP, to commemorate the 75th birthday of Chhagan Bhujbal, a senior NCP leader. Sharad Pawar was in charge of this event. Abdullah's remark comes just days after two BJP leaders - an MP and an MLA - allegedly gave hate speeches at a Delhi event calling for a "total boycott" of a community, presumably Muslims, that opposition leaders and critics of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party, the BJP, have labelled extremely dangerous.

"Everyone may be different. But together we can build this country. That is called friendship. Religions don't teach people to hate each other...This is Hindustan. It belongs to everyone," said Abdullah. He was jailed for over a year after his special status to Jammu and Kashmir under the Constitution was scrapped in August 2019.

Also Read: Gopal Italia's new video surfaces abusing PM Modi's mother; BJP calls AAP Gujarat chief 'gutter mouth'

Shiv Sena's Uddhav Thackeray, lyricist Javed Akhtar and NCP leader Ajit Pawar were among the leaders who attended this event. Mr Thackeray's attendance at the NCP's Mr Bhujbal's birthday party is linked to the Shiv Sena. For one thing, the NCP is an ally of Mr Thackeray's Sena group, which is opposed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's group.

(With agencies inputs)
United Nations: India has again maintained its neutrality on a UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution condemning Russia`s annexation of Ukrainian territories, and abstained on Wednesday at the UNGA's emergency session. India's Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj stated that it was consistent with New Delhi`s "well thought out national position", and called for a diplomatic solution to the vexed issue. The resolution, which received 143 votes, with only five countries voting against it, and 35 abstaining, passed with the required two-thirds majority showing Russia`s isolation. The UNGA action followed Moscow`s veto of a similar resolution on October 1 in the Security Council.

Ruchira Kamboj, who explained India`s decision, said that with its "firm resolve to strive for a peaceful solution through dialogue and diplomacy, India has decided to abstain". She also directed criticism at Russia without naming it and said, "We have consistently advocated that no solution can ever arrive at the cost of human lives. Escalation of hostilities and violence is in no one`s interest."

She also quoted from External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar`s speech at the Assembly in September in which he implied support for Ukraine in the conflict, saying, "We are on the side that respects the UN Charter and its founding principles".

Explaining India`s abstention, she said, "The path to peace requires us to keep all channels of diplomacy open. We, therefore, sincerely hope for an early resumption of peace talks to bring about an immediate ceasefire and resolution of the conflict," adding "India stands ready to support all such efforts aimed at de-escalation."

The global South has suffered collateral damage from the conflict`s effects on fuel, food and fertiliser, Kamboj said, adding "We must therefore not initiate measures that further complicate a struggling global economy."

She also cited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remark in the presence of Russia`s President Vladimir Putin, wherein, he "has said unequivocally that this cannot be an era of war."

My Prime Minister has said unequivocally that this cannot be an era of war. With this firm resolve to strive for a peaceful solution through dialogue and diplomacy, India has decided to abstain: Ruchira Kamboj, Permanent Representative to the UN at UNGA pic.twitter.com/9E36kdcn8c  ANI (@ANI) October 12, 2022

In the run-up to Wednesday`s vote at the UN General Assembly, India had voted with the West and in opposition to Russia on three procedural motions that did not affect its neutrality in a substantive way. It had also abstained on the recent resolution in the Security Council and on the two resolutions in the Assembly condemning Russia in March.

Ukraine`s President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with Prime Minister Modi last week amid an intense diplomatic push for support for the resolution, according to the External Affairs Ministry. The Prime Minister had reportedly told Zelensky that there could not a be the military solution and that dialogue was the way to end the conflict, offering India`s readiness to work on peace efforts. PM Modi also emphasised the importance of respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of nations, the ministry said.

Before the vote at the Assembly, Russia`s Permanent Representative Vasily Nebenza repeated Moscow`s assertions that the four regions of Ukraine had voted in the 90 per cent range in referendums to join Russia. Ukraine and several countries have called the referendums an illegal sham because they were held under military occupation.

Nebenza accused the Western countries of threatening nations with economic consequences if they did not vote with them and demanded a secret ballot, which was rejected by the Assembly. Moscow retained its support of four that it had in the two Assembly resolutions in March, although Eritrea abstained this time, while Nicaragua switched position to back Russia.

Also read: Pentagon didn't have to be asked: Biden over US action if Russia uses nuclear weapons on Ukraine

Speaking to reporters after the session, Ukraine`s Permanent Representative Sergiy Kyslytsya called the vote "historic" and said that it was "very bad" for Russia that only four countries joined it.

Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal voted for the resolution, while Sri Lanka abstained. Afghanistan and Myanmar, which continue to be represented by the elected governments that have been overthrown, voted for the resolution.

China abstains on vote amid high-pressure diplomatic campaign of West

Meanwhile, China abstained from the vote. Although the West unleashed a high-pressure diplomatic campaign, it managed to get only two more votes than for the first resolution in March and three more than for the second one.

Speaking before the vote, US Permanent Representative Linda Thomas-Greenfield appeared to take a hard line against diplomacy and dialogue that she saw as placatory, adding "The path to peace does not run through placations. The path to peace does not involve turning the other way in the face of these flagrant violations". "The only way to bring peace is to stop this aggression, to demand accountability, to stand together with conviction, to show what we will not tolerate", she added.

Pakistan raises Kashmir issue again

The UN Assembly session also witnessed a sideshow by Pakistan, which stuck to its gimmick of bringing up Kashmir regardless of the topic on the agenda. India's Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj dismissed it as an attempt to misuse the UN forum with "frivolous and pointless remarks".

Islamabad`s Permanent Representative Munir Akram, who abstained on the resolution, said that he looked forward to a "similar concern or condemnation" of what he called India`s attempts to formalise the "illegal annexation" of Kashmir.

#WATCH | Entire territory of J&K is & will always be an integral part of India... We call on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism so our citizens can enjoy their right to life & liberty: Ruchira Kamboj, Permanent Representative to the UN



(Source: UN TV) pic.twitter.com/cKY0QoRNCm  ANI (@ANI) October 12, 2022

India has said that the people of Kashmir have exercised their right to self-determination by voting in several elections and electing governments.

Kamboj called on Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism while declaring, "The entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir is and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India irrespective of what the representative of Pakistan believes - or covets."

(With IANS Inputs)
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday (October 13, 2022) delivered a split verdict on the ban on hijabs in Karnataka's educational institutions and referred the matter to the Chief Justice of India for constituting a larger bench. While Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the appeals against the March 15 verdict of the Karnataka High Court that had refused to lift the ban and held that hijab is not part of "essential religious practice" in the Islamic faith, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the pleas and observed that it is ultimately a "matter of choice". Reacting to SC's split verdict on the hijab ban, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that he was expecting a "unanimous judgment" in favour of girls going to schools wearing hijab. The Lok Sabha MP, a barrister himself, also agreed with Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia that wearing a hijab is ultimately "a matter of choice". He, however, said that the decision of the Karnataka HC was "bad" and that it "misused" Quranic commentaries and translations.

"Girls of Karnataka are wearing hijab because Allah has asked them to do so in Quran," Owaisi said.

He also hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said that it made an "issue" out of it.

Earlier in the day, Justice Gupta, who was heading the bench, said that there is a "divergence of opinion" while pronouncing the verdict on a batch of 26 petitions. He said that he has framed 11 questions in his verdict and answers to them are against the appellants.

The list includes questions on the ambit and scope of the right of freedom of conscience and religion under Article 25 and the right to essential religious practices under Article 25.

In view of the split verdict, the bench directed that the appeals against the high court verdict be placed before the Chief Justice of India for constituting an appropriate larger bench.

While pronouncing the verdict, Justice Gupta said he has framed 11 questions in his verdict.

He read out the 11 questions, which include what is the ambit and scope of the right of freedom of conscience and religion under Article 25 and what is the ambit and scope of right to essential religious practices under Article 25 of the Constitution.

"Whether fundamental rights of freedom of expression under Article 19 (1) (a) and Right of Privacy under Article 21 are mutually exclusive or are they complementary to each other," Justice Gupta said while reading out the questions.

He said another question framed in his verdict is whether the wearing of hijab is considered an essential religious practice and the students can seek the right to wear headscarves to school as a matter of right.

"The answers, according to me, of all these questions are against the appellants. I am proposing to dismiss the appeals," Justice Gupta said.

On the other hand, while pronouncing his judgment, Justice Dhulia said the high court had probably taken a "wrong path".

"The main thrust of my judgment is that this entire concept of essential religious practices, in my opinion, was not essential for the disposal of the dispute. And the court probably took wrong path there. It was simply a question of Article 19(1) (a), its applicability and Article 25(1) primarily. And it is ultimately a matter of a choice, nothing more, nothing less," he said.

Justice Dhulia said while deciding this case, the education of a girl child was on his mind.

"It is common knowledge that already a girl child primarily in rural areas and semi-urban areas has a lot of difficulties to face," he said, adding, "So are we making her life any better, that was also in my mind".

Justice Dhulia said that he has quashed the state government's February 5, 2022 order which banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges.

"In view of the divergent opinions expressed by the bench, the matter be placed before the chief justice for constitution of an appropriate bench," the bench said.

Earlier on March 15, the high court had dismissed the petitions filed by a section of Muslim students of the Government Pre-University Girls College in Karnataka's Udupi seeking permission to wear the hijab inside classrooms, ruling it is not a part of the essential religious practice in the Islamic faith.

The apex court had reserved its verdict on the pleas on September 22 after hearing arguments in the matter for 10 days.

During the arguments in the top court, a number of the counsel appearing for the petitioners had insisted that preventing Muslim girls from wearing the hijab to the classroom will put their education in jeopardy as they might stop attending classes.

Counsel for the petitioners had argued on various aspects, including the state government's February 5, 2022 order which banned wearing clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order in schools and colleges.

Some advocates had also argued that the matter be referred to a five-judge constitution bench.

The counsel appearing for the state had argued that the Karnataka government order that kicked up a row over hijab was "religion-neutral".

Insisting that the agitation in support of wearing hijab in educational institutions was not a "spontaneous act" by a few individuals, the state's counsel had argued in the apex court that the government would have been "guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty" if it had not acted the way it did.

The state government's order of February 5 was challenged by some Muslim girls in the high court.

(With agency inputs)
NEW DELHI: Delivering a split verdict in the Karnataka hijab ban case, the Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed the petitions challenging the old Karnataka High Court order upholding the hijab ban in educational institutions, while another Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed them. "There is a divergence of opinion," said Justice Hemant Gupta, who then asked 11 questions to the petitioners before dismissing their plea. He said he agrees with the Karnataka High Court's order.

"It's ultimately a matter of choice and nothing else. Uppermost in my mind was the education of the girl child. I respectfully disagree with my brother judge," Justice Dhulia said.

Supreme Court Justice Hemant Gupta, while dismissing the petitions against the hijab ban, also referred the matter to the Chief Justice Of India for ''appropriate direction.''

Spilt verdict in Karnataka Hijab ban case; Justice Hemant Gupta says the matter is referred to the Chief Justice Of India for appropriate direction pic.twitter.com/pREf2RggSs  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

"Its a matter of choice, nothing more, nothing less," Justice Dhulia said while pronouncing the order.

Karnataka Hijab ban case | Its a matter of choice, nothing more, nothing less, says Justice Dhulia while pronouncing the order.



Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the appeals and set aside the Karnataka High Court order https://t.co/oCmBSQIANI  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

Welcoming the SC verdict, Karnataka's minister BC Nagesh said, "We welcome the Supreme Court verdict. We had expected a better judgement as women worldwide are demanding to not wear hijab/burqa. Karnataka HC order remains applicable in interim time; the ban on wearing of hijab in educational institutions of the state remains."

Meanwhile, advocate Barun Sinha representing the Hindu side said, "In view of a split verdict by the Supreme Court, the order of the Karnataka High Court will remain applicable in the interim time."

"The operative part of the order says that the matter has to be placed before the Chief Justice of India for the constitution of a larger bench or another bench," Advocate, Ezaz Maqbool, the lawyer for the main petitioner side.

The top court passed the order in response to various petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court order which upholds the ban on Hijab in educational institutes. Various petitioners have approached the apex court challenging the Karnataka HC order upholding the Karnataka government`s order which directs strict enforcement of schools and colleges` uniform rules.

One of the appeals in the top court has alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practicing their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation".

The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India".

A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on Hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit.

The Hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry.

After this, boys from several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka.

As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue.

On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Thursday pronounce its judgement on various petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court order which upholds the ban on Hijab in educational institutes. The top court bench of justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia will pronounce the judgement today.The Supreme Court had earlier reserved its order on various petitions challenging Karnataka High Court upholding the ban on Hijab in educational institutes.

The arguments in the matter went on for 10 days in which 21 lawyers from the petitioners` side and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, Karnataka Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi argued for the respondents.

The court was hearing various pleas against Karnataka HC`s judgement upholding the Karnataka Government`s decision to direct educational institutes to prescribe uniforms in educational institutes.

Addressing the court, Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, in his rejoinder submission had said that the Karnataka Government Circular which enforced the dress code has no reference to the Popular Front of India (PFI). Senior Advocate Dave was representing the petitioner.

Various petitioners have approached the apex court challenging the Karnataka HC order upholding the Karnataka government`s order which directs strict enforcement of schools and colleges` uniform rules.

One of the appeals in the top court has alleged "step-motherly behaviour of government authorities which has prevented students from practicing their faith and resulted in an unwanted law and order situation".

The appeal said the High Court in its impugned order "had vehemently failed to apply its mind and was unable to understand the gravity of the situation as well as the core aspect of the Essential Religious Practices enshrined under Article 25 of the Constitution of India".

A bench of Karnataka High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice JM Khazi had earlier held that the prescription of uniform is a reasonable restriction that students could not object to and dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on Hijab in education institutions saying they are without merit.

The Hijab row erupted in January this year when the Government PU College in Udupi allegedly barred six girls wearing the hijab from entering. Following this, the girls sat in protest outside the college over being denied entry. After this, boys from several colleges in Udupi started attending classes wearing saffron scarves. This protest spread to other parts of the state as well leading to protests and agitations in several places in Karnataka.

As a result, the Karnataka government said that all students must adhere to the uniform and banned both hijab and saffron scarves till an expert committee decided on the issue.

On February 5, the pre-University education board released a circular stating that the students could only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and that no other religious attire would be allowed in colleges.
Since boyhood, Alexander Kose has been fascinated by war machines in motion.

The retired Army colonel and veteran tank crewman will be among the reenactors bringing to life this weekend the heritage of the armored and artillery branches of the U.S. military.

The U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center will host Army Heritage Days Saturday and Sunday at 950 Soldiers Drive, Middlesex Township. Free and open to the public, the event runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The weekend will feature running World War II era tanks and live artillery firing demonstrations. There will also be living history displays, historical weapons demonstrations and history-based STEM  science, technology, engineering and math  experiences such as a World War II coastal artillery station.

The event will continue inside the Visitor and Education Center where visitors can participate in a veterans meet and greet and explore the museum exhibits. The public can also visit the museum store or partake in the Army Heritage Center Foundations book sale.

Parking is free and the heritage center is handicapped accessible. For more information, visit the website at https://ahec.armywarcollege.edu or call: 717-245-3972.

Kose is a reenactor with the 68th Tank Battalion of the 6th Armored Division as well as a volunteer member of AHECs U.S. Tank Corps. The mission of both groups is to preserve, maintain and crew vintage armored fighting vehicles and to conduct driving and firing demonstrations along with interpretive living history educational programs.

Im privileged to have this opportunity and eternally grateful to the owners and museums that make it all possible, Kose said.

In todays 5 Questions, The Sentinel gives Kose an opportunity to delve deeper into the significance of tanks and armored warfare.

Q: What role did tanks play on the historic battlefield?

A: Tanks have been an integral part of mechanized, combined arms maneuver warfare since they debuted in combat at the Battle of the Somme in September 1916.

Q: What was it like for tank crews of the past?

A: Tough, hot, cold and very dangerous.

Q: The tank that you will be in this weekend, did it see combat? What do you know of its history?

A: It is a fully restored/operational 1944 M4A3E8 Sherman tank owned by John Tippins of Sewickly. The crew includes retired U.S. Army tankers and a former U.S. Navy helicopter pilot.

We believe the turret was in action, somewhere, because of damage evident on and in it, but weve not be able to discern its history. Easy 8s were used during WWII, in the Korean War and the Arab-Israeli conflicts.

The turret and hull were separate components from two different tanks that were put together after a war.

Q: What are some of the challenges involved in repair and maintenance?

A: Nothing we cant overcome; our efforts are a labor of love.

Q: What do you hope the public takes away from seeing the old tanks in operation or up close?

A: While each of the vehicles we crew is a truly magnificent historical artifact, the real story is the young soldiers who took them into combat, their crews.
KCET Counselling 2022: Karnataka Examinations Authority, KEA has released the mock seat allotment result on kea.kar.nic.in. KEA released it on October 12, 2022, instead of the original October 13 release date. Candidates have been instructed to get their documentation checked by October 11, 2022, as KCET counselling is already taking place. Originally set for October 8, the deadline for document verification was later extended until October 11. Candidates may modify their choices now that the mock seat allocation for the medical and dental programmes is available. Currently open, the window will conclude on October 15, 2022. On October 17, 2022, the Seat Allocation for Round 1 will be released after taking into account the modifications made by students.

Candidates are urged to make the necessary modifications well in advance of the deadline to avoid a last-minute rush, even though the deadline to alter options expires on October 15. ALSO READ: IIT JAM 2023 application last date extended till October 14 at jam.iitg.ac.in

KCET Counselling 2022: Heres how to check

Go to the official websitecetonline.karnataka.gov.in

On the homepage, look for the latest announcement

Click on link which reads, 12-10 PGET 2022 Medical/Dental/DNB mock allotment result

After being redirected to another page, enter PGET number and click on submit

The result will be displayed on screen

Go through it and download the same

A candidate's application will be withdrawn if they fail to provide a legitimate study certificate, a certificate of study in Kannada that has been countersigned by the relevant BEO, and other original certifications.
New Delhi: Amid the horrifying case of Human Sacrifice in Keralas Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam First Class Magistrate Court sends all three accused to 12-day Police custody till October 24 for allegedly killing two women as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals. Earlier on Wednesday, the Ernakulam magistrate court remanded all the three accused of killing two women allegedly as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals in Kerala's Pathanamthitta on judicial custody. The accused will be under judicial remand for a 14-day duration which will end on October 26.

The issue came to the fore on Tuesday when three persons, including one woman, were suspected of luring and killing two women allegedly as a human sacrifice in black magic rituals, the City Police Commissioner CH Nagaraju confirmed.

"Two dismembered bodies have been found buried inside the premises of a house in the Pathanamthitta district within 24 hours after they went missing," the police said. "The murders were brutal; the women were killed within 24 hours after missing. The manner of killing is indescribable," Nagaraju said earlier.

Also Read: Kerala Human Sacrifice: Special Investigation Team set up to investigate horrific murder case

According to the official, the murders took place on June 6 and September 26. Kadavanthra police registered the case in Kochi following the report of a missing woman which was filed in September. The arrested persons were identified as one Shafi, and the husband-wife pair of Bhagaval Singh and Laila.

"The main suspect is Shafi who brought the women. His aim was money. It is being investigated whether the accused Shafi approached more women for a 'human sacrifice ritual'," Nagaraju said. "The CCTV footage was helpful in nabbing the accused," he added.

Union minister V Muraleedharan on Tuesday hit out at the Kerala government alleging a"delayed response" by the state police, and said that a member of the CPIM was involved in the incident.

"The delayed response of the Kerala Police smells foul & exposes that women are not secure in Kerala Is @pinarayivijayan Govt delaying it deliberately because of the involvement of a @CPIMKerala member? Disgusting that @CMOKerala remains mum when two women are brutally killed," the minister tweeted.

(With ANI inputs)
Thiruvananthapuram: A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been ordered by Kerala Police chief Anil Kant in connection with the horrific Human sacrifice Black Magic murder case in Kerala in which two women were allegedly murdered and cut into pieces. Kochis Deputy Commissioner of Police S Sasidharan has been appointed the head of the SIT to investigate the case. Perumbavoor ASP Anuj Paliwal will be the chief investigating officer. Apart from this, Ernakulam Central Assistant Commissioner C Jayakumar, Kadavantra Station House Officer Baiju Jose, Kaladi Station House Officer Anup NA will be the investigating officers, and Elamakara Police Station Sub Inspector Aine Babu and Kaladi Police Station Sub Inspector Bipin TB will the members of the team. According to media sources, the SIT will work under the direct supervision of the department ADGP law and order.

Earlier on Wednesday, a shocking revelation came out in the remand report by the police in the human sacrifice case. According to the report, one of the victim women was cut into 56 pieces by the accused in the human sacrifice case. The remand report further revealed that the accused Muhammad Shafi and the woman accused Laila inserted a knife into the vagina of the victims.

As per the remand report, "For getting economic prosperity, the two accused, Bhagaval Singh and Laila conspired for the crime with the help of prime accused Muhammed Shafi."

"On 26-09-2022, Shafi approached the 52-year-old Padma, who used to sell lottery tickets at Kochi. Shafi lured her by offering Rs 15,000 for sex work. Then she agreed and went with Shafi to the home of Bhagaval Singh and Laila in the Pathanamthitta district. There, the accused strangled her with a plastic cord around her neck to make her unconscious. After that, Shafi inserted a knife into her vagina of Padma and then cut her throat for killing. After that, they cut her into 56 pieces and put it into buckets and then buried her in the pit," the report said.

Another incident happened in June this year. The accused Shafi approached another woman, Roslin in the Kottayam district and lured her by offering Rs 10 lakh for acting in a blue film. She agreed to it and went to the same place as the couples home. There, they tied her hands and legs to a cot and a cloth was inserted into the mouth and plastered it. When she was unconscious, the accused woman Laila inserted a knife into the vagina of the victim. Then she cut her throat. Then the second accused Bhagaval Singh cut off the victims breast and kept it. And the three accused jointly cut her into pieces and buried in the pit.

Kerala police disclosed on Wednesday, a day after the alleged human sacrifice case in Kerala came to light, that the prime accused may have eaten the flesh of the victims. In a news conference, Kochi commissioner CH Nagraju stated that the primary accused, Shafi, is a pervert with a criminal history.

The issue came to light on Tuesday when three people, including one woman, were arrested on suspicion of enticing and killing women as human sacrifice in black magic rituals, City Police Commissioner CH Nagaraju stated earlier that day.

Police apprehended three people, including one Shafi and the husband-wife pair of Bhagaval Singh and Laila. The Ernakulam magistrate court on Wednesday remanded all three accused on judicial custody for a 14-day duration which will end on October 26. Police are also investigating if any sexual exploitation has been done by the prime accused.

(With ANI inputs)
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday termed the act of depicting Mahatma Gandhi as asur by the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha during Durga Puja in Kolkata as 'shameful'. Breaking her silence on the issue, Mamata said, "During Durga Puja, an idol resembling Mahatma Gandhi was showcased in place of Asura. What punishment should be given to them? Public will reply to such shameful act. I was very disappointed but didn't say anything because there could've been protests during Puja".

The idol of asura resembling Mahatma Gandhi was installed at the pandal, following which a complaint with the Kolkata Police to was filed. Later, changes were made to the idol of asura following the intervention of the Kolkata Police.

Also Read: "Hate-Agenda" disrespects Mahatma Gandhi

Outraged over the installation of the idol at southwest Kolkata, people on social media sought immediate arrest of Hindu Mahasabha leaders who organised the Durga puja.

During Durga Puja, an idol resembling Mahatma Gandhi was showcased in place of Asura. What punishment should be given to them? Public will reply to such shameful act. I was very disappointed but didn't say anything because there could've been protests during Puja: WB CM Banerjee https://t.co/q9uWn63xSg pic.twitter.com/1eKnPjId3v  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

Organisers Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha, however, claimed that it was a "coincidence" that the Mahishasur idol, which had a bald head and was dressed in a white dhoti and round glasses, bore resemblance to Gandhi, but social media was not convinced.
New Delhi: Officers of Mumbai Airport Customs, on October 11-12, 2022, seized 15 Kgs of gold valued at Rs 7.87 Crore in four cases and Foreign Currency worth Rs 22 Lakh in two different cases. Seven passengers have been arrested in connection with the case. Case details are as follows:

GOLD CASES:

Case 1

Based on intelligence developed by officers of CSMIA, an Indian national who arrived by Emirates flight EK 500 from Dubai was caught with 9.895 Kgs of Gold valued at Rs 5.20 crore. The gold was kept in a specially designed chest belt with nine pockets which was found wrapped around the chest and shoulder. The Indian National revealed that the gold was handed over to him at Dubai by two Sudanese passengers. The Sudanese passenger was also intercepted and caught. All three passengers were arrested and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.

Case 2

Based on specific intelligence, gold in dust form weighing 1.875 Kgs valued at Rs. 99.75 lakh seized from an Indian national who had arrived from Chennai to Mumbai by Indigo flight 6E 6149 (earlier landed from Sharjah). Gold dust packets were concealed in Undergarment. Passenger was arrested.

Case 3

Based on intelligence, gold in dust form weighing 1,068 grams & 1,185 grams valued at Rs. 56.81 lakhs and Rs 58.78 lakhs respectively was seized from 2 Indian passengers who had arrived from Jeddah by flight Saudia SV 772. Gold dust packets were found concealed in undergarments. Both the passengers were arrested.

Case 4

Based on profiling, gold dust in wax form weighing 973 grams and valued at Rs 51.17 lakhs was seized from a Sudanese national who had arrived by Emirates flight EK-504 from Dubai. Gold dust in wax in eggs form was found concealed in the rectum by the passengers. The accused was arrested.

FOREIGN CURRENCY CASES:

Case 5

Based on profiling, an Indian national who was to board SpiceJet flight SG-13 from Mumbai to Dubai was caught with Fifty thousand Dirhams (Rs Eleven Lakh Twenty Thousand) concealed inside the Customised round shaped cavity of the biscuits stuffed in the packet. Interception was made in departure DFS area after passenger crossed the Customs declaration counter.

Case 6

In another case, an Indian national who was to board SpiceJet flight SG-13 from Mumbai to Dubai was caught with Forty-five thousand Dirhams (Rs Ten Lakh Eight Thousand) concealed inside the Customised round shaped cavity of the biscuits stuffed in a packet. Interception was made in departure DFS area after passenger crossed the Customs declaration counter.
NEET UG Counselling 2022: The National Medical Commission (NMC) has issued the academic calendar for the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) programme. According to the NMC's academic schedule for 20222023, the first-year MBBS batch's lessons will be held from November 15, 2022, until December 15, 2023. The first year of the professional course will include instruction in Anatomy, Physiology, and Biochemistry for the students. On December 16, 2023, the MBBS program's second year will begin.

The first and second-year MBBS batches last for 13 months each. The associated universities of the individual colleges may choose their own vacation and exam dates in accordance with the academic sessions, according to NMC's statement. ALSO READ: UGC NET History paper leak: NTA issues official notice denying allegations after students protest

MBBS Batch 2022-23 Academic Calendar

MBBS Year Session Dates MBBS 1st year November 15, 2022 to December 15, 2023 MBBS 2nd Year December 16, 2023 to January 15, 2025 MBBS 3rd Year (Part 1) January 16, 2025 to November 30, 2025 MBBS 4th Year (Part 2) December 2023 to May 2027 Internship June 1, 2023 to May 31, 2028 PG 1-Jul-28

guidelines in addition to the MBBS dates. The NMC has mandated that additional tests be held one month after the regular exams and that the results be made public within 15 days of the exam. Additionally, there won't be any additional batches.
Bengaluru: Soon after the Supreme Courts split verdict on Karnataka hijab matter, state Minister for Power, Kannada and Culture V. Sunil Kumar on Thursday, October 13, 2022, said that the question of reversal of ban order does not arise. "There is no question of reversing the state government`s order issued on February 5, banning hijab and other religious symbols in education institutions of the state. The uniform rule will continue in schools and pre-university colleges," the Minister said.

While interacting with reporters, the minister stated the government has issued a circular in this regard. There is no question of backtracking on the ban. "The Supreme Court has given a split verdict over the matter and we will not take back our decision," he reiterated.

"No student can attend classes wearing hijab. Congress and the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) must understand that they can not go against society," he stated.

When the court directs not to wear hijab, they approach the Supreme Court. With this, it is understood that there are communal forces and conspiracy behind this, the Minister stated. He further stated that in Muslim nations such as Iran and Iraq there is stiff opposition to hijab and they are saying no to hijab. Here, protests are staged demanding the right to wear hijab in schools and colleges.

The PFI mindset should change at least now. The organisation is already banned. Congress also supported it, he stated. The minister further gave a suggestion to Congress party that they should attach the slogan of `hijab chodo` along with Bharat Jodo Yatra. If they do it, it will create a good atmosphere. Uniform rule has been implemented to ensure equality by making all students look the same, he stated.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday (October 13, 2022) laid the foundation stone of two hydropower projects and launched Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)-III in Chamba, Himachal Pradesh. Addressing the gathering, Prime Minister Modi hailed Bharatiya Janata Party's double-engine government and said that their "working style is different from the rest". The Prime Minister said that the BJP's double-engine government is "a government that respects its culture, heritage and faith".

"Including Chamba, the whole of Himachal is a land of faith and heritage," he added.

"The working style of double-engine government is different from the rest. Our priority is how to make people's lives easier. That's why we are giving maximum emphasis on tribal areas, and hilly areas," Modi said and listed measures like providing gas connections, piped water, health services, Ayushman Bharat, and road connectivity in remote and hilly areas.

"If we are making wellness centres in the villages, at the same time, we are opening medical colleges too in the districts," he stated.

Throwing light on the cauldron of heritage and tourism of Himachal Pradesh, Prime Minister Modi recalled his recent visit to the Dussehra Festival in Kullu and remarked that we have heritage on one side and tourism on the other.

Tourist places like Dalhousie and Khajjiar is going to be a driving force for Himachal in terms of spirituality and tourism wealth, he said.

"Only the double-engine government recognizes this power. Himachal has made up its mind and will change the old custom and will create a new tradition," Modi stated.

Underlining the focus on the development of tribal communities, he said that the government has taken another landmark decision in giving tribal status to the Hati community of the Giripar area of Sirmaur.

"It shows how much priority our government is giving to the development of the tribal people," he said.

Delighted to be in Chamba. Numerous initiatives are being launched here which will further Himachal Pradesh's growth. https://t.co/PLixerpOtU  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 13, 2022

Taking a jibe at the Opposition, Prime Minister Modi said that the previous governments of Himachal Pradesh and at the Centre thought of the remote and tribal villages only at the "time of elections", but the double-engine government of today strives to serve the people 24*7.

Recalling the efforts of the government to provide relief to poor families during the Covid-19 pandemic, he also highlighted the free ration program.

"The world looks at India in astonishment that the government has been providing food grains to more than 80 crore people in the country for the past one and half years," he noted.

Prime Minister Modi was speaking after laying the foundation stone of two hydropower projects - the 48 MW Chanju-III Hydro-electric Project and the 30 MW Deothal Chanju Hydro-electric Project.

According to officials, both these projects will generate over 270 million units of electricity annually and Himachal Pradesh is likely to get annual revenue of around Rs 110 crores from these projects.

During his one-day visit to the poll-bound state, Modi also launched Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) - III in Himachal Pradesh for the upgradation of around 3,125 kilometers of roads in the state. He also laid the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park and dedicated the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Una to the nation.

In Una, launching projects related to pharma, education & railways. These will have positive impact on the region's progress. https://t.co/NafVwqSLJt  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 13, 2022

Prime Minister Modi also flagged off the inaugural run of the new Vande Bharat Express from Amb Andaura, Una to New Delhi.
New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday accused the Indian government of committing atrocities in Jammu and Kashmir and said that the onus was on New Delhi to engage in a result-oriented manner. While addressing the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Summit in Kazakhstan, Sharif said he is "absolutely ready" to have a serious dialogue and discussion with Indians, provided that they show the "sincerity" of purpose and they show that they are ready to discuss issues that have really kept India-Pakistan at a distance over decades.

"Pakistan desires peaceful relations with all its neighbours, including India. However, until India brings its atrocities in occupied Kashmir to a grinding halt, just and lasting peace will remain elusive," he said.

At CICA Summit, I explained how India uses the mantra of democracy to hide its gross human rights abuses. The world should recognise brutal nature of Indian policies in IIOJK. The terrorised valley of Kashmir is manifestation of bullet being a preferred Indian policy than ballot.  Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) October 13, 2022

Hitting back at Sharif, India's state minister for external affairs Meenakshi Lekhi said that Pakistan has once again used the CICA platform to "promote false and malicious propaganda" against India. She also said that Pakistan is diverting attention away from the grouping's discussions.

"The union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have been and will remain an integral part of India. Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on Indias internal affairs," Lekhi said.

She said that Sharif's remarks amounted to "gross interference in Indias internal affairs, sovereignty and territorial integrity" and were inconsistent with CICAs principles guiding relations between member states.

She also called on Pakistan to stop the "grave and persistent human rights violations in Pakistan-occupied Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh" and to refrain from any further material changes in the status of the region.

"Pakistan should also vacate the Indian territories that are under its illegal and forcible occupation," the minister added.

Delivered India's statement at the 6th CICA Summit.Highlighted India's approach to international relations based on the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, & our contribution to the global fight against COVID-19. Reiterated importance of CICA for multipolar Asia & the World. pic.twitter.com/zCWwf5CIVn October 13, 2022

"Pakistan is the global epicenter of terrorism and continues to be the source of terrorist activities, including in India. Pakistan continues to not invest in human development but provides their resources for creating and sustaining the infrastructure of terrorism," Lekhi said.

(With agency inputs)
Chennai: Congress presidential candidate and Kerala MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday said that while there is no ''spirit of enmity'' in his party, his campaign for the party president's post is getting a good response as compared to the treatment being given to party veteran Mallikarjun Kharge. Tharoor lamented that he was not getting an encouraging response from the Congress state party leaders to his candidacy. The Thiruvananthapuram MP said that though he was not complaining, he expected a better response from the Congress office bearers to his ongoing campaign for the party presidents post.

When quizzed about his "uneven playing field" remark, Tharoor said, "...In several PCCs, leaders welcomed and met Mallikarjun Kharge Saheb. But it wasn't done for me. I visited PCCs but PCC chiefs weren't available. I am not complaining, but do you not see a difference in treatment?"

#WATCH | On his "uneven playing field" remark, Congress pres candidate Shashi Tharoor says, "...In several PCCs, leaders welcomed&met Kharge Sahab. Wasn't done for me. I visited PCCs but PCC chiefs weren't available. Not complaining, but do you not see a difference in treatment?" pic.twitter.com/sNJMVEo0Nh  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

We are contesting the elections, there is no spirit of enmity in our party. Kharge Sahab is my senior leader and I have worked closely with him. The election is about two colleagues seeing how to work to strengthen the party, Tharoor said while interacting with media persons.

Tharoor urged his party members to vote for him only if they want the party to go with change and asked them if they are satisfied with the situation. If you think everything is fine, don't vote for me as I want such a change in the party that would bring back voters who didn't remain with us in 2014 & 2019, Tharoor said.

Tharoor on Wednesday said that he strongly believes that internal elections within the party make the party strong and that a strong Congress will make the country strong.

While campaigning in Ahmedabad, Tharoor, after addressing party delegates, urged them to vote for him. He also interacted with media persons during which he said the party needs to be strengthened at the block level. He said that he hopes that Congress becomes the party of young India.

He said that he aims to bring those voters, who had deserted the party in 2014, back to the Congress fold in 2024. He also said that he wished that women get more weightage in the party.

Tharoor said he has no difference with his rival Mallikarjun Kharge, and once the elections are over and results are out, he will work with Kharge without any hesitation. Whoever wins the elections, will be the victory of Congress, he added.

It may be noted that Kharge is reportedly receiving huge support from the Congress office-bearers during his visit to different PCCs while campaigning for the Congress presidents post.

Amid intense speculations about receiving enormous support from the Gandhi family, Kharge recently clarified that Sonia Gandhi was not suggesting his name to Congress office bearers as she has decided to stay neutral in the party presidential poll.

Meanwhile, the Congress` Central Election Authority (CEA) has barred the party general secretaries and other office-bearers from voting in their assigned states in the party`s presidential poll, and can instead vote in their home states.

In a circular, Madhusudan Mistry, the CEA chairman, said, "As you are well aware that the polling for the election of the Congress President is scheduled to be held on Monday, 17th October 2022 at all PCC Headquarters from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"In order to remain impartial and maintain transparency in the election process, the Central Election Authority has decided that no AICC General Secretaries/ State In-charges, Secretaries and Jt. Secretaries would be allowed to cast their vote in their assigned states."

Therefore, they have been requested to cast their vote either in the home state or at AICC Office, as per their choice, said the order. Allaying fears of being identified, the Congress Central Election Authority (CEA) Chairman on Wednesday assured the voters of the secrecy of the ballot in the October 17 party presidential poll.

While issuing standard protocol for the voting till the counting of the votes, Madhusudan Mistry said that there was no numbering on the papers and only counterfoil with detail will be kept with the election authority while ballot boxes will be sealed and unsealed in front of the election agents. Ahead of the counting of votes, all the ballot papers will be mixed so that no one would know how many votes the candidate got from a particular state.

He said that they have received a complaint that has been addressed by the CEA. In the fray for the top post are Shashi Tharoor and Mallikarjun Kharge. Sixty-seven booths have been set up in all the states, the party`s CEA has said.
Air Canada will expand its international network next summer, launching new services to Europe, the airline announced on Thursday. (Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Air Canada will expand its international network next summer, launching new services to Europe, resuming some flights to Japan and increasing flight frequency to several destinations as the airline eyes a more fulsome recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Montreal-based airline announced on Thursday that it will launch new flights to Europe next summer, flying from Toronto to Brussels, Montreal to Toulouse and Montreal to Copenhagen five times a week starting in June. Air Canada will also resume additional service to Japan, flying from Toronto to Tokyo Haneda daily starting next May, and from Vancouver to Osaka four days a week beginning next June. It resumed flights to Tokyo's Narita airport in April.

The announcement comes after Japan introduced new border measures this fall that allow all foreign nationals entry with proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test, easing two years of pandemic restrictions.

Air Canada says it will also increase the frequency of flights on existing routes across its international network, including on various flights to Europe, the Middle East and Africa, South America, Australia and Asia.

"We continue to pursue our disciplined approach of expanding our global network in response to anticipated demand," Air Canada's senior vice-president of network planning Mark Galardo said in a statement.

"Customers can start planning ahead and book with confidence."

Earlier this month, Air Canada announced new daily transborder flights between Halifax and Newark, and between Vancouver and Houston.

The increase in the number of flights is part of Air Canada's response to a surge in demand for international travel in the post-pandemic recovery. While the expansion signals that the airline's capacity will increase next summer, it remains to be seen whether it will reach or surpass pre-pandemic levels.

The airline industry is still recovering from the pandemic. While travel demand surged in the summer, it was still below pre-pandemic levels. Air Canada said in its most recent quarterly results that the airline expects available seat mile capacity in 2022 to be 74 per cent of 2019 levels. The airline will report third-quarter earnings on Oct. 28.

Story continues

With files from The Canadian Press

Alicja Siekierska is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow her on Twitter @alicjawithaj.

Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.
Bareilly: BJP leader's wife was shot dead in a clash between Uttar Pradeshs Moradabad Police and villagers of Bharatpur in Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar district on Wednesday, October 12, 2022, according to a UP Police official. This comes after the UP police raids the residence of a local BJP leader, killing his wife allegedly by a police bullet, leading to villagers confining and thrashing the police team. The police further stated that they are in communication with the Uttarakhand Police Department. Following the event, protests erupted against the matter later in the day. Speaking on the issue, the SSP of Udham Singh Nagar, Manjunath TC, calling the matter sensitive, assured a purely factual and serious investigation.

The incident was reported on Wednesday from Bharatpur village in Kashipur area of Udham Singh Nagar. According to the information, a team of Uttar Pradesh Police in plain clothes arrived here for a raid at the residence of Gurtaj Bhullar, a BJP`s local area Block President, in Bharatpur village under the Kunda police station area on Wednesday evening.



The raid was to nab a wanted dumper driver from Thakurdwara in Uttar Pradesh, who was allegedly hiding at Bhullar`s house. The family of Bhullar opposed the police action and allegedly clashed with them. Their argument went on for half an hour, before it turned violent and saw firing from both the sides. It was alleged that a bullet shot by the Uttar Pradesh Police personnel hit Bhullar`s wife Gurpreet Kaur, who died on the spot.

This is a sensitive matter. The victim woman's family has given a complaint. Have registered the case. The further probe will be purely based on facts, not only on statements. Forensic, CCTVs to be used for probe, SSP said.

Uttarakhand | This is a sensitive matter. The victim woman's family has given a complaint. Have registered the case. Further probe will be purely based on facts, not only on statements. Forensic, CCTVs to be used for probe: SSP Udham Singh Nagar, Manjunath TC pic.twitter.com/WYUknRcVuK  ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) October 13, 2022

Speaking to ANI, Additional director general of police, Bareilly, Rajkumar said that a team of police from Uttar Pradeshs Moradabad district had gone on a search operation for a wanted criminal following which they were taken hostage and fired upon.

"Two of our personnel are critically injured and they are undergoing treatment. We are investigating the matter. We are in contact with the Uttarakhand Police," he said. As per the Uttarakhand Police earlier yesterday, the police had gone there to arrest a criminal carrying reward of Rs 50,000.

(Image Source: ANI Twitter)

Deputy Inspector General of Police Moradabad, Shalabh Mathur said that the weapons of the police team which reached to search for the criminal were seized after they were taken hostage.

"The accused is a wanted criminal carrying a reward of Rs 50,000. He escaped from there (Bharatpur village). When our police team reached, they were taken hostage & their weapons were snatched," the DIG said.

"Our five police personnel got injured and they are undergoing treatment. Uttarkhand police confirmed that a woman has died in this incident," he added.

Moradabad police have registered an FIR invoking several sections of IPC including rioting, harbouring offenders, resisting arrest, attempt to murder, dacoity, causing hurt to public servants and criminal conspiracy. While one accused was booked by name (wanted criminal), 35 unknowns were booked as well. Uttarakhand Police said they will take fair and legal action in this matter.

(With agency inputs)
New Delhi: Amid continuous stubble-burning incidents after ban in Punjabs Moga, the Deputy Commissioner of Moga, Kulwant Singh on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, warned of strict action against those found violating the norm. Action will be taken against all those found burning stubble, DC Kulwant Singh said. Meanwhile, an undertaking has been signed by the government workers hailing from agricultural backgrounds against stubble burning. Those in govt jobs, hailing from an agricultural background have taken undertakings that they will not burn stubble, Singh added.

Moga, Punjab | Stubble burning continues



Action will be taken against all those found burning stubble. Those in govt jobs, hailing from an agricultural background have taken undertakings that they will not burn stubble: DC Kulwant Singh pic.twitter.com/h5Od97HLd0  ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2022

Singh had announced that those who found burning stubble in the district may be deprived of government facilities and will also face legal action. He also added that the firearms license of the violators shall be cancelled with immediate effect. He said that Nambardar, Panch and Sarpanch of each village will be held responsible for fire incidents. If a Nambardar himself sets fire to his field, his nambardar post will also be gone, said the deputy commissioner. Similarly, legal action will also be recommended against Panch and Sarpanch to the department, he said.

Also Read: Rs 2,500 per acre fine for Gurugram farmers if caught stubble-burning

According to the Deputy Commissioner, if government employees or officials are agriculturists or lease their land for farming, they must sign an undertaking not to burn stubble. For the infringement, they will face severe departmental repercussions.

(Image Source: ANI)

Singh stated that the district administration was considering suspending crop compensation payments to farmers who would break the decree. He stated that the Moga district has an adequate supply of machinery for stubble control. This machinery's information is being uploaded to the I-Khet app. Farmers should make the most of this equipment. The district administration will shortly release helpline numbers to assist farmers.

Stubble burning is the deliberate burning of straw stubble that remains after grains such as rice and wheat have been harvested. Despite its harsh effects on air pollution, this method is still widely used today because of its convenient and cheap approach.

Some Punjab farmers have defied the restriction on stubble burning. They claim that they will continue to burn paddy stubble until they are adequately reimbursed for the costs of alternative agricultural residue disposal methods. The Punjabs AAP government backed down after declaring it would offer 2,500 per acre to paddy growers; wherein the Centre was to split 1,500 per acre, while the Punjab and Delhi governments were to share 1,000 per acre.

According to data from the government-run monitoring agency, System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), the average contribution of stubble burning to Delhi's PM 2.5 level in November 2021 was 14.6%. This could be greatly reduced if severe procedures are implemented. Furthermore, more CBG plants must be promoted. Farmers must be given confidence in all initiatives that are implemented. Aside from this, crop rotation could be a long-term solution.
Indian Railways has sent a notice to Lord Hanuman stating that a temple has been encroached upon in Dhanbad city of Jharkhand. In the notice, Lord Hanuman was asked to remove the temple and hand over the vacant land to the Railway Section Engineer within 10 days. This notice has been pasted on the wall of the temple located near the West Dam of the city. Directly addressed to Hanuman ji, the notice states that you have illegally occupied railway land. This is a legal offence. If this place is not vacated within 10 days, then legal action will be taken against you. The last line of the notice says to consider it very important.

The railway has sent notices against encroachment to about five dozen people living in Khatik Basti, located near the temple. During this time, the Hanuman temple has also been described as encroachment. The people who got the notice to remove the encroachment say that they have been living here since 1921. They make their living by doing small businesses like selling fruits, fish, vegetables. The railway team has pasted a notice to vacate all the houses of the locality as illegal occupation.

The local people have opposed the railway notice. On Monday and Tuesday, a large number of people gathered near the temple and protested the railway notice.
New Delhi: Diabetes, a lifelong condition that causes a person's blood sugar level to become too high, is among the top ten causes of deaths worldwide. Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU), is a serious complication of diabetes, affecting approximately 25% of diabetic patients. When identified, over 50 per cent are already infected and over 70 per cent of cases result in lower limb amputation. Queen's University Belfast has come out with a new bandage treatment, known as a scaffold, to treat diabetic foot ulcers & also cost-effective while improving patient outcomes.

The 3D printing method was first demonstrated in the 1980s, and since then, the field of 3D printing (3DP) and bioprinting has grown rapidly in recent years due to technological developments and a greater understanding of the capabilities using these technologies, particularly in the development of scaffolds for tissue engineering applications. In the fabrication of 3D (bio) printed scaffolds, the user is firstly required to design a scaffold using computer-aided design (CAD).

Specialist software can then be used to slice the design prior to printing, providing a set of printing instructions for the printer; each 3DP manufacturer provides the software. A wide range of advantages is offered by 3DP, including the capability to rapidly produce elaborate (scaffold) designs of various sizes at low cost. Moreover, 3D-bioprinted scaffolds have shown the ability to achieve high cell loading and maintain high levels of cell viability while also providing structural support to the wound.

The treatment strategy required for the effective healing of diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is a complex process that is requiring several combined therapeutic approaches. As a result, there is a significant clinical and economic burden associated in treating DFU. Furthermore, these treatments are often unsuccessful, commonly resulting in lower-limb amputation.

Graphical abstract

This new research demonstrates outcomes with significant implications for patient quality of life, as well as decreasing the costs and clinical burden in treating DFU. Recent research has focused on drug-loaded scaffolds to treat DFU. The scaffold structure is a novel carrier for cell and drug delivery that enhances wound healing.

Springler Link Research

The research, published in Springer Link, was presented by Professor Lamprou at the Controlled Release Society (CRS) Workshop Italy.

Professor Dimitrios Lamprou, a Professor of Biofabrication and Advanced Manufacturing at Queen's School of Pharmacy and corresponding author, explains: "These scaffolds are like windows that enable doctors to monitor the healing constantly. This avoids needing to remove them constantly, which can provoke infection and delay the healing process.

Schematics showing (a) extrusion-based, (b) inkjet-based, and (c) laser-assisted bioprinting technologies

"The 'frame' has an antibiotic that helps to 'kill' the bacteria infection, and the 'glass' that can be prepared by collagen/sodium alginate can contain a growth factor to encourage cell growth. The scaffold has two molecular layers that both play an important role in healing the wound."

What experts say

According to expert Ashok Jhingan , Sr Phycisian & Sr director BLK Max, "the annual incidence of diabetic foot ulcer worldwide is between 9.1 to 26.1 million. Around 15 to 25% of patients with diabetes mellitus will develop a diabetic foot ulcer during their lifetime.

The majority of patients with diabetes who develop foot ulcers are male (more than two-thirds). Furthermore, most of them are between 40 and 70 years of age. Older patients face significantly more complications than younger ones.

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a precipitating factor in almost 90% of diabetic foot ulcers. Chronically high glucose (blood sugar) levels damage nerves, including the sensory, motor and autonomic nerves. Diabetic neuropathy also damages the immune system and impairs the body's ability to fight infection.

Infection is a frequent (40%-80%) and costly complication of these ulcers and represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality. It is estimated to be the most common cause of diabetes-related admission to hospital and remains one of the major pathways to lower-limb amputation.

Dr. Jhingan also states that the most common risk factors for ulcer formation include diabetic neuropathy, structural foot deformity and peripheral arterial occlusive disease.New bandage therapy, called scaffold, has been created to treat diabetic foot ulcers (DFT) that is less expensive while also providing better patient outcomes by researchers at Queen's University Belfast.

The scaffolds, which are created by 3D bioprinting, gradually release antibiotics over a period of four weeks to cure the wound. The Journal of Drug Delivery and Translational Research published the study.Diabetes is counted among the top 10 causes of death worldwide. It is a lifelong condition that raises a person's blood sugar levels.

A devastating consequence of diabetes, diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) affect about 25 per cent of diabetic patients. More than 50 per cent of cases when discovered are already infected, and more than 70 per cent of them require lower limb amputation.In order to effectively treat DFU, a complex treatment plan comprising several combined therapeutic approaches is required. As a result, treating DFU entails a severe clinical and financial burden. Amputation of the lower limbs is frequently required since these treatments are often unsuccessful.

This new study shows results that have significantly affected patients' quality of life and reduced the expense and clinical burden of treating DFU. Drug-loaded scaffolds have been the subject of recent research to cure DFU. The scaffold structure is a novel carrier for cells and medications that improves wound healing.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Commonly Used Bioprinting Technologies Bioprinting technology Advantages Disadvantages Inkjet-based bioprinting Low cost

High cell loading and viability

High resolutions (upto 100 micrometre)

Suitable for scale-up activities

Allows direct printing of cells and other biologics

Suitable for in situ bioprinting applications Additional processing steps may be required (eg chemical crosslinking)

Polymer degradation has been associated with continuous inkjet bioprinting Extrusion-based bioprinting Low cost

Higher cell seeding than inkjet-based technologies

High cell viabilities

Moderate (300-600 micrometre) to high (200 mucrometre)

Suitable for production of large scale scaffolds

Allows direct printing of cells and other biologics

Generally requires low printing temperature and pressures

Capable of printing high viscocity materials High temperatures may be required for high viscocity materials, ruiling out the loading of biologics

Additional processing steps may be required (eg chemical crosslinking) Laser-assisted bioprinting High-speed printing

High resolution (10 micrometre)

High cell loading

No nozzle required which avoids clogging issues

Suitable for in situ bioprinting purposes Time-consuming preparation of the ribbon for printing

More expensive than inkjet and extrusion-based technologies

Laser source is a potential disruption to cell viability

How to prevent foot ulcers?

Dr. Ashok Jhingan states - wearing clean, dry socks that don't have tight elastic bands, which may restrict blood flow to the foot. Doctors advise people with diabetes to avoid walking barefoot and wearing sandals, which expose your feet to splinters, concrete, or sand, which may scrape or irritate the foot.

Keeping your diabetic wounds clean and free from infection is order number one. Some simple diabetic wound healing products include regular antibiotic ointments like Polysporin or Neosporin.
On the occasion of the Andheri by-election, the conflict between the Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde factions in the state reached an extreme. In the wake of this election, the Election Commission has frozen the Shiv Sena name and the bow and arrow symbol and given new names and symbols to both groups. Meanwhile, the Thackeray group has written a letter to the Election Commission (EC) and has made some serious allegations. The Thackeray group has alleged that the EC has exposed their strategy and has written a 12-point letter to the Election Commission.

The Election Commission on Monday gave the election symbol 'Mashaal' to the Thackeray group and the 'Shield-Talwar' symbol to the Shinde group. Also, the Commission has allotted new party names 'Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray' to the Thackeray group and 'Bala Saheb's Shiv Sena' to the Shinde group.

Allegation Made By Thackeray Group

The Thackeray group has alleged that the allocation of names and party symbols is biased towards the opposite side. The Thackeray group has written a letter to the Election Commission and 12 points have been raised in it. The Thackeray group has alleged bias in the decision taken by the Election Commission. The letter criticized the functioning of the commission.

Also Read: Andheri East Bypoll: Biggest RELIEF for Uddhav Thackeray, Bombay High Court asks THIS to BMC

12 points Letter

We have given options to the Election Commission for the party name and symbol which were intentionally placed on the website. This made the Shinde group understand our strategy. Otherwise, how are the options on both sides the same? The Thackeray group has asked for this. Thackeray's group's lawyer Vivek Singh has handed over this letter to the Election Commission. The Thackeray group had given options to the Election Commission such as 'Trishul', 'Rising Sun' and 'Mashaal'. The alternatives given by the Shinde group also include the first two symbols. Apart from this, there is a similarity in the options given for the party name. Both groups gave 'Shiv Sena Balasaheb Thackeray' an option.

Also Read: 'You 40 TRAITORS and I can resign, LET...': Aditya Thackeray challenges Eknath Shinde on 'Private Limited Company' ROW

The Election Commission had given the election symbol 'Mashaal' to the Thackeray group on Monday. Earlier, the Shinde group had submitted three alternative symbols, 'Trishul', 'Rising Sun' and 'Gada' to the Commission. The symbol 'rising sun' was not on the open list, the symbols 'trident' and 'mace' had religious references. Moreover, the 'trishul' symbol was also given as an alternative by the Thackeray group. Therefore, the commission rejected all the three options given by the Shinde group and asked to give them three new options on Tuesday. Accordingly, out of the given symbols, the Commission has allotted the 'Shield-Sword' symbol to the Shinde group.
New Delhi: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee launched a scathing attack on the BJP on Thursday and accused it of misusing central agencies. While speaking at a TMC-organized Durga Puja Vijaya Milan function in Kolkata, she warned the saffron party to be prepared for the central agencies to come back on them when they are no more in power.

"Today, you are in power and are showing off your central agencies. Tomorrow when you won't be in power, these central agencies will enter your residence and pull you out holding your ears. That day will come soon," news agency ANI quoted Mamata as saying.

Recently, several Trinamool Congress leaders have been arrested by central agencies. While TMC MLA Manik Bhattacharya was arrested in connection with the West Bengal teacher recruitment scam, Anubrata Mondal was arrested in a cattle smuggling case.

The Enforcement Directorate had earlier arrested Partha Chatterjee, the then Minister in the West Bengal government, in the teacher's recruitment scam.

Meanwhile, Mamata also broke her silence on the Mahatma Gandhi look-alike asura idol that was placed at a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata and termed it a "shameful act". The Bengal Chief Minister further said that she was disappointed but didn't say anything because there could have been protests during Puja.

"During Durga Puja, an idol resembling Mahatma Gandhi was showcased in place of Asura. What punishment should be given to them? The public will reply to such a shameful act. I was disappointed but didn`t say anything because there could`ve been protests during Puja," she said.

(With agency inputs)
Mumbai: Shiv Sena Rajya MP Sanjay Raut, who is currently in custody, has asserted that he will never betray his party president Uddhav Thackeray, who he described as his Senapati (commander) as he vowed to return to his family members soon. Raut said all this in an emotional letter written to his mother in which he vowed that he will never desert his party and Shiv Sena chief.

The letter, which was shared on social media, was written by him on August 8, sitting on a bench outside the court after he got judicial custody - a week after his arrest on August 1 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

In his letter, Raut recalled how his mother - Savita R Raut - had sat stoically near a photo of the Shiv Sena founder, the late Balasaheb Thackeray at their home, when the ED team raided their home (July 31), and how she finally lost composure and broke down when the sleuths took him away that evening.

"You gently rebuked me... started crying... I heard your cries above the roar of hundreds of Shiv Sainiks raising slogans outside, came outside and waved to them, told me to `come back soon, and kept your hand raised till the (ED) car went out," Raut mentioned in the letter.

Promising to come back, Raut told his mother that thousands of jawans guard the borders for months before going home, some never return... but wars are like this. "Even I am fighting against injustice, I will never bow before the enemies of Shiv Sena, meaning Maharashtra, that`s why I must remain away from you... Haven`t I learnt this from you," Raut asked?

In his letter, Raut recalled how his mother referred to Shiv Sena chief and the painful exits of Chhagan Bhujbal and later Narayan Rane, and four months ago Eknath Shinde. She even asked him "you wondered why these people left, what did they not get (in Shiv Sena) a and urged me to do anything to save the party," Raut wrote in the letter.

Raut stated that in order to save the party, a struggle was necessary and as ingrained by Mom, he committed himself to "never deceive the Shiv Sena or Balasaheb Thackeray". "Uddhav Thackeray is my dearest friend and my Senapati (commander). The party is facing a major crisis... If I betray him at such a critical juncture, what face will I show to Balasaheb?" he wondered.

Raut said this is no time to lose morale or surrender, or, how would he step outside in the people, and as taught by his Mom, he would "never go on the knees due to the fear of the ED, IT, etc, which rattled many MPs, MLAs and they abandoned the party". "I don`t want my name in the list of `cheats`. Someone has to remain firm. I have the courage, given to me by Balasaheb and You," he said.

Raut, while stating that everybody knows the charges against him are fake and cases are false, alleged that "many were terrorized or threatened at `gun-point` to make bogus statements against me", and he was even advised to dump the Thackerays.

"Such things even Lokmanya Tilak and Veer Savarkar and many others had undergone. Many Shiv Sainiks sacrificed themselves for the party. Now, when the same Shiv Sena is facing trouble, how can I quit the battlefield like the other leaders?" Raut asked.

He rued how Maharashtra has gone to the hands of wrong people who want to destroy the state`s pride and existence, and much is going on behind the scenes, "but how can we afford to bend our heads or tie our hands like slaves".

Raut said he had just heard that even Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi or Nationalist Congress Party`s Rohit Pawar, are being similarly targeted, "but all this will spark a new revolution and Democracy will take a re-birth".

"Just as you are my Mom, the Shiv Sena is the mother of all, I was under pressure to betray her, warned not to speak against the government or face consequences. But I was not cowed down by such threats and pressures, which resulted in our separation. Don`t worry, I will come back. Till then, Uddhav and other Shiv Sainiks shall be your sons. Take care!" Raut signed off.

The Sena MP was nabbed in an alleged money-laundering case in the Patra Chawl redevelopment case, and his custody has been extended till October 17, even as the party got a new name and symbol (Flaming Torch).
Uttar Pradesh: A 12-year-old boy, who sustained head injuries after being allegedly thrashed by a teacher, died due to delayed hospital admission in the national capital. The father of the Class VI student dropped him at a school in Greater Noida`s Badalpur region, like any other day on October 7. However, just before the school was about to get over, he got a call from the school informing his son Prince had fallen unconscious.

He rushed his son to the nearby health clinic which referred him to a hospital. The hospital referred the child to a higher centre for further management.

However, the family rushed to Safdarjung hospital, but they didn`t admit the child in absence of beds. They went to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and then to GB Pant, but the admission was denied.

According to the family, they finally got the bed for his son at LNJP Hospital. Prince was operated upon the next morning. However, the child died hours later, on Saturday evening.

Meanwhile, his father said that when he inquired about the incident at the school, Prince`s classmates told him that he was beaten with a cane by his teacher. He said that his son had injury marks on his chest, thighs, shoulder, back and even on his thighs.

As per the report, the child was hit on the hands with a stick thrice by the teacher as he failed in a class test. After being hit, he fell down and started vomiting and later got unconscious in the classroom.
New Delhi: The BJP on Thursday asserted that it will always be opposed to students wearing hijab or any dress other than uniforms in schools, and said religious freedom cannot be used to promote "separatism". Soon after the Supreme Court gave a split verdict on the ban on hijabs in Karnataka educational institutions, BJP national general secretary C T Ravi, a senior party leader from the state, said it will not be appropriate for him to comment on the judgment. But he will always speak against the "separatist mindset" that, he claimed, promotes the use of Muslim headscarves in schools.

"Uniform in schools is meant to promote uniformity among students. I believe that separatism is promoted in the garb of issues like the promotion of the burqa or hijab. This mindset was the reason behind India's partition. This separatism progressively morphs into extremism which can be a source of terrorism," he claimed.

Rules mandating wearing uniforms in Karnataka schools have been in force since 1965, he said.

Citing popular protests in Iran, an Islamic country, against the mandatory use of hijabs, he claimed that religious freedom in India cannot mean the promotion of "separatist" designs.

He added that the issue is not about wearing or not wearing hijab but what to wear in schools. And there should be no hijab or other dresses in schools but only uniforms, he said.

Following the split verdict, the two-judge Supreme Court bench referred the matter to the chief justice of India for constituting a larger bench.

While Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the appeals against the March 15 verdict of the Karnataka High Court that had refused to lift the ban and held that hijab is not part of "essential religious practice" in the Islamic faith, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed the pleas and observed that it is ultimately a "matter of choice".

During the arguments in the top court, a number of counsel appearing for the petitioners had insisted that preventing Muslim girls from wearing the hijab to the classroom will put their education in jeopardy as they might stop attending classes.

The counsel appearing for the state had argued that the Karnataka government order that kicked up a row over hijab was "religion-neutral".

Insisting that the agitation in support of wearing hijab in educational institutions was not a "spontaneous act" by a few individuals, the state's counsel had argued in the apex court that the government would have been "guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty" if it had not acted the way it did.
A court battle is going on between the group led by Uddhav Thackeray and the Shinde group led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde over the issue of claiming the party Shiv Sena. Various petitions have been filed on the basis of different issues and their joint hearing is going on before the five-member constitution bench of the Supreme Court. Similarly, both groups claim the party in various meetings and events in the state. Chief Minister Shinde has often said that "Shiv Sena is not a private limited company." Yuva Sena leader Aditya Thackeray has now responded to this criticism in an interview given to a news channel.

Eknath Shinde Group Claims

Shiv Sena is not a private limited company. Eknath Shinde says that Balasaheb's thoughts are not the 'Jagir' of the Thackeray family. He had also said that even a person who was not born with a golden spoon can become the chief minister and the party president. Basically, the propaganda is going on that Shiv Sena belongs to the Shiv Sainiks. Balasaheb also used to say so. The Shiv Sainiks have a claim on Shiv Sena. Only the Thackeray family cannot stake their claim on it. Shinde is trying to promote something that other people can also claim. Shinde is saying that the real Shiv Sainiks are with him. The Shinde group is claiming that the Shiv Sainiks who did not want to form an alliance with the Congress are with them.

Also Read: 'So this made Shinde group understand our STRATEGY': Uddhav Thackeray group makes SHOCKING allegation against Election Commission

Aaditya Thackeray Attacks Shinde

Aditya Thackeray has given a direct challenge to the Shinde group that claims Shiv Sena. Aditya has given a challenge to the Chief Minister who stated that this is not a privately owned organization. Aditya said, "It is ridiculous. He did what he had to do for two and a half years. When the opportunity comes that you can buy others with a box, then you did what you wanted to do. There are two main things behind saying it's ridiculous. If that is the case, why do they need the name Thackeray, the name Shiv Sena? If Shiv Sena has no private property, you 40 traitors and I alone will resign from MLA and go to the people. Let the verdict be made once and for all among the people. Whatever the decision is, we will accept it."
PROVIDENCE  Gov. Dan McKee on Tuesday voluntarily made public his state and federal tax returns, and he called on his Republican challenger Ashley Kalus to do the same.

In April, both sent word they had filed for extensions, but their spokesmen indicated they would make their tax filings public when they were filed.

According to the filings that McKee, 71, made public on Tuesday, he and his wife, Susan, paid $30,068 in federal income taxes, and $8,085 in state income taxes to Rhode Island on their $203,508 adjusted gross income.

Their 2021 income included her $56,511 pension as a retired public school reading teacher, and $41,808 in Social Security benefits.

No law requires any political candidate in Rhode Island to make their tax returns public, but the majority of top office candidates have done so in recent years.

Most of their filings are reflections of salaried government employees who at top echelons in Rhode Island often make less than the career state employees around them.

In some cases, they are revealing, however, like former Gov. Gina Raimondo's disclosures, which detailed income from her blind trust holdings in Point Judith Capital during years when the state was locked into its own investment in her former venture capital company.

When asked why McKee was willing to make his own family's returns public, spokeswoman Andrea Palagi said: "The Governor believes its in the publics interest to release this information."

The McKees' returns reveal little new about their life.

But Kalus is a relatively new arrival to Rhode Island.

On her financial disclosure filings with the state Ethics Commission earlier this year, she indicated that Doctors Test Centers - the entity created by her plastic surgeon husband, that had the state contract for a Covid testing and vaccination site - paid her between $500,001 and $1 million in 2021.

Political Scene: McKee, Kalus duking it out in public and in private over testing contract

Story continues

The filing did not provide a full picture. It is unclear, for example, to which state Kalus and her husband - Jeffrey Weinzweig - paid their resident tax returns in 2021, whether it was Florida  where Kalus was registered to vote until shortly before declaring her run for governor  or Illinois, where she had a "homestead exemption" on a home.

A Kalus spokesman told The Journal on April 19 that: "Ashley had to file for an extension, but will release her returns upon completion."

With the Oct. 17 tax filing deadline for people who sought extensions now less than a week away, there was no immediate response on Tuesday from the Kalus campaign on when she intends to make good on that pledge.

Previous coverage: Questions swirl amid Ashley Kalus and Gov. Dan McKee's still-unreleased tax returns

Noting that McKee has made his returns public since he last faced voters in 2018, his campaign spokesman Alana O'Hare said recently: "We hope Ashley Kalus will also release at least three years of tax returns as well."

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Gov. McKee releases tax returns, upping pressure on Kalus to do same
Mumbai: It`s the first Karwa Chauth of actor Alia Bhatt and she has received a beautiful wish from her mother-in-law Neetu Kapoor. Taking to Instagram, Neetu shared an adorable picture of her daughter Riddhima Kapoor Sahni and daughter-in-law Alia Bhatt from the wedding day of Alia and Ranbir. "Wishing my beauties Happy Karva Chauth. @riddhimakapoorsahniofficial @aliaabhatt #myjaans," she captioned the post. In the image, Riddhima is seen sitting next to Alia, who was dressed in a gorgeous ivory saree. Reacting to her mother`s Karwa Chauth wish, Riddhima dropped a string of red heart emojis in the comment section. Karisma Kapoor also dropped yellow heart emojis on aunt Neetu Kapoors post.

Fans could not control their excitement either and started showering their love and concern in the comments section. Awww alia's first karva chauth, commented one fan. I hope Alia is not fasting, added another. Riddhima is Neetu and late Rishi Kapoor`s daughter. She met Delhi-based businessman Bharat Sahni while studying in London. They got married in 2006, after four years of dating. They are doting parents to daughter Samara. Speaking of Alia, she tied the knot with Ranbir Kapoor on April 14, 2022.

The duo is currently expecting their first child. In June, Alia announced her pregnancy via cute post on Instagram. "Our baby coming soon," Alia posted on Instagram, adding a picture of her undergoing sonography while Ranbir watches her. Alia Bhatt also keeps on sharing the images of her baby bump which adds to the delight of her fans.

See the pic here

Ranbir and Alia fell in love with each other while shooting for `Brahmastra` five years ago. Alia has always talked about Ranbir as her childhood crush and hence sparks flew between them when they began shooting for Ayan Mukerjis Brahmastra Part 1: Shiva. It was their first film together.
New Delhi: Central government has given a big gift to the non-gazetted central employees. Diwali Bonus has been announced by the the Ministry of Finance. They will be given non-productivity linked bonus (ad-hoc Bonus) according to the salary of 30 days. It also includes Group C and Group B employees of the Central government who don't come under any productivity linked bonus scheme.

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Who will get the bonus?

Bonus will also be given to those non-gazetted central government employees coming in Group B and Group C. These are the employees who are not covered under any Productivity Linked Bonus Scheme. The benefit of the ad-hoc bonus will also be given to the employees of the central paramilitary forces. Apart from this, temporary workers will also get the benefit of this.

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How much ad-hoc bonus will be given?

Bonus will be counted on the basis of either the average employee salary or the highest amout of count, whichever is the lowest. 30 day Bonus will be equivalent to 30 days salary. For example, if an employee is getting Rs 7000 per month, the average bonus will be around Rs 6908.

In this, according to the calculation, 7000 * 30 / 30.4 = Rs 6907.89 (Rs 6908) will be made. The benefit of such bonus will be available only to those Central Government employees who have been in service on 31 March 2021. During the year 2020-21, continuous duty has been given for at least six months. Temporary employees appointed on adhoc basis will also get this bonus. However, there should be no break in service in the meantime.

Such employees, who have been out of service, have resigned or have retired on or before 31 March 2022, will be treated as a special case. Under this, those employees who have retired or died illegally on medical grounds before March 31, but have done regular duty for six months in a financial year, will be considered eligible for ad-hoc bonus.

The bonus will be fixed on 'Pro Rata Basis' based on the nearest number of regular service of the employee concerned. In such a case, it becomes the responsibility of the borrowing organization to provide adhoc bonus, PLB, exgracia and incentive schemes etc., provided such provisions are in force. If an employee is in the grade of 'C' or above and is withdrawn from foreign service midway during the financial year, then the rule of adhoc bonus has been made in this regard.

Under this, if the parent department of that employee has received bonus and exgratia amount from the foreign department in the financial year, then that amount will be given to the employee concerned. Even after reverting, if the bonus is due from the central government of the worker, in such a situation, the central government can ban his adhoc bonus.
New Delhi: Karwa Chauth is celebrated mostly by married women in the northern and western part of India for the long life and of their husband and marital bliss. Women keep fast for their husbands and pray for his long life. It is a symbol of the bonding between husband and wife. It is that time of the year when husbands renew the pledge of a happy married life. This Karwa Chauth 2022, husbands can think of some fabulous financial gifts for their wives that not only provide long term security, but also promise asset multiplication in the future. Some investment plans can be started with a very low investment amount, while some also ensure rebate on taxes.

Here are five fabulous financial gifts you can give to your wife this Karwa Chauth 2022

1) Systematic Investment Plans

Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs) are touted as safe investment options. SIPs don't require a big commitment too. You can start a SIP with amount as low as Rs 500 a month.



2) Post offices Monthly Income Schemes (MIS)

Post offices Monthly Income Schemes (MIS) can be a great gift to your wife so that she gets a regular monthly income for her own needs.

3) Health Insurance

In the uncertain times that we live in a health insurance policy with an adequate cover will take care of your wife during any untoward incidence which requires hospitalization. It will also help your family to meet the burgeoning medical expenses.

4) Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS)

Since the Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) can be started with an investment as low as Rs 500, it will not be much of a burden for you. An ELSS also provides tax rebate under section 80 C of Income Tax Act

5) Any form of Gold

Gold is considered both auspicious and a safe haven investment. You can buy gold in any form for her. IT could be ETFs or Physical gold or gold jewellery or Bonds the choices are innumerous.
New Delhi: The 12th installment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) will be credited by the government to farmers' account before Diwali. The beneficiaries of PM-KISAN scheme, who have eagerly been waiting for the PM Kisan 12th installment money might hear the great news on October 17.

As per latest media reports, the Modi government might transfer the PM Kisan 12th installment of Rs 2,000 in the bank accounts of eligible farmers during the inauuration of the two day summit of Agri Startup Conclave & Kisan Sammelan being organised by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.While, some media reports had previously reported that the government might credit Rs 2000 in beneficiary farmers accounts on October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti).These are however just initial reports, while the government has not officially confirmed anything regarding the transfer of Rs 2,000 to beneficiary accounts of PM-KISAN scheme.

Here is how to check your PM-KISAN installment status

1. Go to official PM Kisan website.

2. Now click on Farmers Corner.

3. Now click on the Beneficiary Status option.

4. Now a new page will open.

5. Enter your Aadhaar number, mobile number.

6. After this you will get complete information about your installment status.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released 11th instalment of financial benefit under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme on May 31. PM Modi transferred an amount of around Rs 21,000 crore to more than 10 crore beneficiary farmer families.

The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) Scheme was launched by PM Modi in 2019. The Scheme aims to provide income support to all landholder farmer families across the country with cultivable land, subject to certain exclusions.

Under the Scheme, an amount of Rs 6000 per year is released in three 4-monthly instalments of Rs 2000 each directly into the bank accounts of the beneficiaries. In a financial year, PM Kisan installment is credited thrice through --Period 1 from April-July; Period 2 from August to November; and Period 3 from December to March.
New Delhi: Garena Free Fire releases redeem codes on an everyday basis. The 12-digit redeem code consists of alphabets and numbers. Players can get rewards such as skins for in-game weapons and characters to improve their gaming experience.

Garena Free fire is banned in India. However, if you are located outside India, you can access the reward codes and redeem them. For that you will be required to visit official Garena Free Fire reward site and log in to your Facebook, Google, and Twitter IDs to access the Free Fire redemption page. (Also read: WhatsApp entering film-making biz, movie to premiere on Amazon Prime Video and YouTube)

Check out the Garena Free Fire Redeem Codes for October 13, 2022

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(Also read: OMG! An 18-year boy hacks Uber, employees' thoughts someone is joking)

How to Redeem Garena Free Fire codes for today, October 13, 2022

Step 1: Go to the official Garena Free Fire redemption portal



Step 2: Log in on the portal with either your Facebook, Twitter, Apple, Google, VK, or Huawei ID.



Step 3: Enter a redeem code in the designated text box.



Step 4: Click on the Ok button to get free rewards in your game account.

(Disclaimer: Garena Free fire is banned in India. Hence we advise people to adhere to government rules)
New Delhi: The company said in a statement to IANS that it is currently working with operator partners for a seamless roll-out of the 5G experience for users."We are working closely with our operator partners and are committed to rolling out OTA updates across all our 5G devices by end of November 2022, enabling Indian consumers to experience 5G seamlessly," a Samsung India spokesperson told IANS.

"Samsung has pioneered 5G technology development since 2009 and took the leading role in standardising 5G technology globally," the company spokesperson added. In India, Samsung has the widest portfolio of 5G devices. (Also Read: Good news for Apple users! Users are likely to get 5G update THIS month)

The announcement came as the government convened a meeting of handset manufacturers and telecom service providers on Wednesday to ensure a smooth transition towards the new technology. Prioritising software upgrades would enable the early adoption of 5G in India. (Also Read: Invest in THIS post office scheme to get Rs 16 lakh in 10 years; check details here)

Airtel and Jio have rolled out their 5G services in key metros in a phased manner. There are no 5G rollout plans from Vodafone-Idea yet. India is home to more than 500 million smartphone users and over 100 million users with 5G-ready smartphones wish to upgrade to a 5G subscription in 2023, according to the latest Ericsson report.

The study said that Indian smartphone users are willing to pay a 45 per cent premium for a plan bundled with novel experiences, which could be a delight for Internet service providers ready with 5G.

However, there are multiple challenges ahead for telecom service providers to meet the roll-out deadlines.
New Delhi: Karva Chauth is celebrated with great enthusiasm nationwide, where women observe fast from sunrise to moonrise for the longevity of their life partners.

The literal meaning of Karwa Chauth means offering Argya to the moon using an earthen pot known as Karwa on the Chaturthi of the Karthika month.

Celebrating Karva Chauth will be &TV actors, which include Neha Joshi (Yashoda, Doosri Maa), Sapna Sikarwar (Bimlesh, Happu Ki Ultan Paltan), and Vidisha Srivastava (Anita Bhabi, Bhabiji Ghar Par Hai).

As Yashoda in &TV's Doosri Maa, Neha Joshi shares, Because I am a Maharashtrian, we do not celebrate Karva Chauth. However, I enjoy the festival because it is about love, feeling, sacrifice, and selflessness, which any married woman would want to celebrate and cherish. Though I will not be fasting, I will certainly wish my husband from Jaipur a happy Karwa Chauth, as this is my first Karwa Chauth with Omkar (Laughs). Every year, some of my friends plan Karwa Chauth parties, which I have attended, and it is fascinating to see them dressed in beautiful red sarees, applying traditional Mehandi, wearing matching glass bangles, and fasting. These celebrations are a lot of fun. So, ladies here's wishing you a happy Karva Chauth and a successful fast."

As Bimlesh in &TV's Happu Ki Ultan Paltan, Sapna Sikarwar shares, Karva Chauth holds a special place in my heart, and I thoroughly enjoy the customs my family has been following over the years. Every year my in-laws visit us a day before prep for the festival the next day. I wake up early in the morning to have sargi while my husband serves me food. My husband pampers me throughout the day. Dressing up for this day always tops my list. Different energy flows within me, making me have the least food craving on Karva Chauth! I love the application of henna on my hands and being ready with the solah Srinagar. My husband takes my daughter on a long drive and me after dinner, and we click lots of photos too. My husband makes me feel very special on this day, and I wish all the ladies get lots of love and attention from their husbands in Karwa Chauth for a lifetime. Happy Karva Chauth.

As Anita Bhabi in &TV's Bhabiji Ghar Par Hai, Vidisha Srivastava shares, If there is one day where I get the most attention and pampered by my husband, it is the day of Karva Chauth. Every year I observe fast on that day and even my husband as he doesnt want me to go through this alone, he is very romantic (laughs). On this day, I wake up early in the morning for Sargi, and towards the early evening, all women in my house gather for the puja. It is that time when women dress up in their finery. Mehandi application is one of my favourite activities, along with buying beautiful Chuddas and jewellery. Me and my husband I both eagerly wait for the moon and then break our fast with water and sweets. Lastly, I wish all the beautiful women a very happy Karva Chauth.

Watch Doosri Maa at 8:00 pm, Happu Ki Ultan Paltan at 10:00 pm, and Bhabiji Ghar Par Hai at 10:30 pm, airing every Monday to Friday only on &TV!
Beijing: A rare protest against Chinese President Xi Jinping and his government's rigid zero-Covid policy took place in Beijing, days before he is expected to be handed an unprecedented third term in office at a landmark meeting of the ruling Communist Party. Photos circulating in social media on Thursday showed two banners hung on an overpass of a major thoroughfare in the northwest of the Chinese capital, protesting against Xi's unpopular zero-Covid policy and authoritarian rule. Unfazed by the rare protests, China on Thursday ruled out a rollback of the zero-COVID policy, saying no timeline can be fixed over the restrictions to fight the deadly pandemic, amidst growing frustration over the damage it is inflicting on jobs, businesses, economy and public life.

China has no timeline for an exit from its COVID strategy, a senior government advisor heading an expert panel bluntly said over the state-run CCTV, dashing hopes that the 20th Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) beginning here on October 16 may modify or reverse the tough policy.

Liang Wannian, who heads China's expert panel on COVID-19, said, "it's not scientifically possible to clearly delineate, while acknowledging public expectations of the rollback of the policy ahead of the Congress, which was widely expected to confer a third term to President Xi, who is an ardent advocate of the zero-COVID policy.

"We have been working to beat the pandemic but at this stage, from a scientific point of view, it is difficult to say definitively in which month we will have reached this standard," he was quoted as saying by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post on Thursday.

His comments came as rare protests displaying banners expressing resentment over the zero-COVID policy appeared on social media.

Banners displayed on a bridge in the district of Haidian, home to universities and tech firms in Beijing, read "Food, not COVID test"; "Reform, not a Cultural Revolution"; "Freedom, not lockdowns"; "Votes, not a leader. Dignity, not lies. Citizens, not slaves" etc.

The banners appeared to have rattled officials in China - where political protest is rare - as they hurriedly deployed police on numerous over bridges in Beijing to ensure that the protests are not spread, while mobile patrolling has been intensified in the city.

Gauging the public resentment, the CPC mouthpiece People's Daily came strongly in support of the zero-COVID policy and accused those of "lying flat."

"If there is a large-scale COVID-19 resurgence, the spread of the epidemic will have a serious impact on economic and social development, and the final cost will be higher and the loss will be greater," one of the commentaries in the daily said.

Xi, 69, too said in recent times that China witnessed fewer deaths due to the zero-COVID policy unlike in the rest of the world.

The coronavirus, which first surfaced in Wuhan towards the end of 2019 before it spread to the world causing death and devastation, has become the Achilles heel of the Chinese economy resulting in its worst slowdown due to persistent lockdowns of top cities in the country.

Big productive cities like Shanghai, Chengdu, Xian and several top ones and two-tier cities suffered or continue to suffer periodic prolonged lockdowns severely disrupting people's lives.

A new Hazmat suit-wearing police and health officials have become a common sight all over China.

Public resentment is brewing as the slowdown is resulting in job losses. According to recent data, China's unemployment rate grew to about 19 per cent, the highest in recent years.

While China claims to have vaccinated the best part of the population, officials complain of vulnerable groups like people above 60 years who are a cause of concern.

In almost all cities, especially in Beijing, people have to undergo testing for COVID on alternative days without which they cannot enter public buildings, restaurants, transport services or even taxis.

Under the zero-COVID policy, travel and transportation services within China and its connectivity to the world are hit hard. So much so that most of China's massive infrastructure including its once most busy airports is currently wearing a deserted look.
Pyongyang: North Korea has test-fired two long-range strategic cruise missiles, state media reported on Thursday, October 13, 2022, while adding that leader Kim Jong-un guided the test-fire of the missiles on the spot. The test fire was aimed at further enhancing the combat efficiency of the long-range missiles deployed for the operation of tactical nukes, Korean Central News Agency reported. Kim Jong-un expressed "great satisfaction" over the result of the test fire and appreciated the high reaction capabilities of the country`s "nuclear combat" forces, the state media added. North Korean leader has been witnessing the country`s tactical nuclear operation training over the past few days.

On Monday, the state media released photos of Kim inspecting a missile launch at an undisclosed location in the country. The missile that North Korea fired over Japan on October 4 was a newly developed missile aimed at delivering stronger warnings to its enemies, the report said.

Tensions are escalating in the Korean peninsula as Kim-led North Korea launched several missile tests, including one that flew over neighbouring Japan. The United States and its allies responded with bombing drills. Pyongyang has fired several missiles in the past few weeks which has raised concerns in the region, with the US, South Korea and Japan responding with missile launches and joint military exercises this week, CNN reported.

North Korea launched a suspected ballistic missile on Saturday, a day after the US and South Korea finished a naval exercise. This was a follow-up of an unidentified ballistic missile over Japan on Tuesday. This is the first such missile launch in years, prompting a warning for residents to take cover in northern Japan.

On Saturday, South Korea`s Joint Chiefs of Staff called them a "serious provocation" which harms peace and safety. "North Korea`s repeated ballistic missile launch is a serious provocation that harms peace and safety of the Korean Peninsula as well as the international community, and it is also a clear violation of the UNSC resolution," the joint chiefs said.

The joint chiefs reported that the projectiles launched had a flight range of about 350 kilometres and an altitude of about 90 kilometres. Slamming the missile launch, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned if North Korea continues "down this road" of provocation it will only increase the condemnation and increase the isolation, CNN reported. Under the Kim Jong-un regime, North Korea this year has tested a record number of missiles as it expands its weapons arsenal.
Protestors at the Los Angeles City Council meeting on Oct. 11 call for three councilmembers to step down following racist comments.

The leaked recording of three Los Angeles city councilmembers and the head of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor engaged in a conversation peppered with racist and disparaging remarks shook L.A. and the nation this week, with President Biden calling on Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon to resign.

Earlier Tuesday, nine prominent Latino leaders released a joint letter calling for the resignation of the councilmembers. Among them was Miguel Santana, who served as the City of Los Angeles top administrator for more than seven years and is now president and CEO of the Weingart Foundation, which supports efforts for racial, social and economic justice in Southern California. (Santana said he signed the letter as an individual, independent of his role at the foundation).

Santana spoke with Capital & Main about why he believes the councilmembers should step down as well as the policy reform and community actions that are vital to governing a multicultural Los Angeles with a Latino majority.

The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Capital & Main: Why did you and other Latino leaders call on the councilmembers to resign?

Miguel Santana: As difficult as it is for these councilmembers to step away, it is now necessary for them to do so. As a member of the Latino community, as a civic leader, as someone who loves this city and whos been here my whole life, I feel its especially important that the Latino community be the first to say, Its time for you to resign.

We need to demonstrate that as we become the majority population we can govern, and that were not going to simply mirror and duplicate the racist systems which the city was founded on. A hundred years ago, redlining was understood as being the law of the land, and people in City Hall drew lines to ensure that Latinos and other people of color didnt have representation, to ensure that we had a segregated community, didnt have access to quality education or jobs or even the ability to purchase a home.

Story continues

Now, were in those seats as Latinos and we have to be clear that were not going to simply follow that pattern. And so it is this moment that we separate ourselves from the legacy racist policies and demonstrate that we can govern in a different way thats much more inclusive of all Angelenos.

Other than not saying racist things that get recorded, what are some things that you think should be done by Latino leadership or any city leader now?

It really starts by putting at the forefront of our policies the experience of those who have been historically marginalized and who are at the worst end of all the different indicators in our community. From homelessness to education to unemployment, poverty, healthcare outcomes, if we really start with those who have the least amount of access, who have struggled to survive, then I think we build a community that ensures that everyone has an opportunity to thrive, and that informs how districts are drawn, how policies are implemented and the distribution of resources.

When you place those who are the most disadvantaged at the center of this work, then it lifts up everybody. And I think that really is an important frame of how we think about the way government, philanthropy, the private sector engages with our community.

In the minds of the councilmembers, and among some of their supporters, there might be a sentiment that these are people who are valuable because theyve built up clout over time and that losing them would be too much of a cost. What would you say to that?

Thats what makes it so hard. Gil Cedillo was the only person who was fighting to give drivers licenses to the undocumented. We wouldnt have that today if it wasnt for Gil. Nury Martinez has been one of the loudest champions for children in poverty. Kevin has made groundbreaking work around climate change in his career. Theyve been advocates on issues advancing social and racial justice.

But what matters the most in this case is what happens when no ones watching and what ultimately informs your governance and your decision making. When you are limited to a zero-sum game framework where it is thought that if we give something to a different community, its a loss for our community, then all of that work reaches a ceiling.

The truth is that Latinos cant advance the issues that are most important to the Latino community by ourselves in a multiracial community like Los Angeles. Whether it comes to policing, ensuring access to services, ensuring quality education for our children, access to healthcare, if we just rely on the Latino community to advance those issues then our ability to make real progress is really challenged.

Its the same way for the African American community or the Asian American community  all of these issues impact every community. So its painful that what has been exposed is a framework, really a relic of the past, a sense that I can only support one community. Its shortsighted, outside of being racist and bigoted, because it ends up hurting everybody, including the Latino community. Latinos wont have representation in those districts for a period of time, should they do the right thing and resign. There are no winners here. Weve all lost as a result of this moment. But one thing is certain  we cant move forward until they step down and allow that work to be done.

Is the notion of people being irreplaceable also misguided?

Our democracy is founded on this idea that everyone can be replaced, and in fact should be. There are no dictatorships here, at least hopefully not yet. Representation is constantly evolving. Were seeing that in the outcome of the recent election in Council District 1, where a longtime serving councilmember, Gil Cedillo, has been unseated by a young, up-and-coming Latina, Councilwoman-elect Hernandez. So I think it is at the essence of our governance that every four years the community gets to decide whether youre the best person for that role. Thats what makes our democracy what it is.

You talked about the zero-sum framework. Do you think there are things in the design of our government or the way we create district boundaries that heighten these kinds of conflicts? This, after all, is what they were talking about when these comments were made.

Were all human beings and were designed to protect ourselves and our self-interest, and politicians are no different. This has been the history of this country as well, that those in power work very hard and often do whatever it takes to stay in power. And the city and the county have been subject to litigation when its been white leaders who have demonstrated that pattern.

Cases have gone all the way up to the Supreme Court, as it did in the county of Los Angeles. And so ultimately, to create as much of a neutral process as possible, the only answer is to create a truly independent redistricting body whose role is to consider all the factors  representation of all communities being one  and set district lines accordingly and to require that those in power simply accept them without making any real substantive changes to them.

That pattern is taking place at the state level. We recently saw it at the county level. It must happen at the city level.

What else needs to be done to address the current crisis in L.A.?

I think what we need to do now is really have this very difficult conversation, not only between communities but amongst communities. As Latino leaders, we need to be clear that we do have a responsibility to govern representing everyone.

And then in the African American community, for those who are in elected office, how do you ensure that youre representing the district that is the heart of the Black community and at the same time maybe a majority Latino community? And instead of just saying, Well everybody has to take care of their own, and creating a framework of, If you leave me alone, Ill leave you alone, thinking about it more holistically.

What gives me hope is that at the Weingart Foundation, we see that every day in the work thats being done by our partners in the immigrant rights space where Latinos, Asian Americans, African immigrants, Haitian immigrants come together around shared values, shared issues, shared challenges. They sit at the same table, they organize together, there is no division among whos more important. You see that in coalitions that are being formed in the Inland Empire that are bringing marginalized communities together around job creation, or access to education here in Los Angeles. So whats different this time, as someone who was here during the civil unrest of the 90s, is that there is an authentic, genuine relationship among grassroots organizations and community leaders who come together to fight for greater equity in the distribution of resources.

Is there a way, other than people changing their mindset, to get government or big institutions to develop this different kind of consciousness we see in community organizations?

Well, having independent district lines created is a way of removing individual interests from a very politicized process to maximize representation. Electing people who represent the entire community in their districts, not just the English- speaking community, is another way. But those things dont just happen. It requires conflict. Conflict is part of what exposes racism and discrimination and inequity, as were seeing today. And its not just about resolving that conflict, but acknowledging the underpinnings of it, leaning into that, and knowing that its there. Its having an honest conversation about a path forward.

Government rarely reforms itself. And in this moment of crisis in governance, its going to require the community to establish a path forward. Its not going to come from City Hall. And we have to be vocal, we have to be insistent, we have to vote, and we have to put systems in place, assuming the worst, but also ensuring that we dont just leave it to creating an independent commission and now everythings okay. Because thats not the only way in which this kind of zero sum game framework plays itself out. [Change] requires real work, and its why we need a vibrant, thriving, strong civic leadership thats multicultural, that is grounded in community, and that is willing to raise the tough issues when it most matters.

When you held the highest administrative post in the city, you had your own setback. As these councilmembers face the prospect of resigning, theyre probably in a position where they feel theyre giving up their reason for being. What would you say to them?

Twelve years ago, I was arrested for drunk driving. It was a wake-up call for me. The only thing I had to change was everything. I had to assess my lifestyle, my priorities, my relationships, my friends, how I spend my time, my work. It was a moment of truth for me. I made the choice to accept the lesson that I was being taught through that experience and have been sober now for 12 years. That moment saved my life. And Im very fortunate that at the end of the day, that happened to me.

When we all face setbacks, we all have moments of truth, moments that were not proud of. Theyre not always as public. So my advice to three people who I know well, who Ive stood by and who stood by me, is to take this moment to really reflect on what most matters  your family, your community, your values, your legacy  and to take the next steps that allow you your own healing process. I have no doubt that each one of them is undergoing a tremendous amount of pain to have their deepest, darkest thoughts exposed to the public.

Not only is the need for them to remove themselves from that conflict important for the community so that the community can heal; its important for them personally so that they can heal, so that they can move on with their lives.

I dont wish anything bad to any one of them. I hope that they grow from this experience and are able to talk about this moment 12 years later, the way I could talk about my moment. But in addition to it being a personal failing, the implications are much broader. This is bigger than them now. This is about how, as a Latino community, we can demonstrate that we can govern and represent everybody. Its about our relationship to other communities who have stood by us, and who weve stood by on many issues, and its about the future of the city. And so its important that they do the right thing, the honorable thing, and allow that process to begin.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Miguel Santana: Latino majority must not duplicate L.A.s racist past
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After being closed for a year due to a fire, Bonne Terre Ministerial Alliances Helping Hands thrift store will be open for business next week, beginning Monday at 10 a.m.

When the announcement was made Monday on Facebook, the commenters were jubilant.

Awesome, I cant wait!

Wonderful news!!

girl, imma be standin outside waitin

The thrift store at 526 Benham St., housed in the old Bonne Bowl bowling alley which was gifted to the alliance by local businessman Sharo Shirshekan, was damaged by fire in October 2021 when a homeless woman reportedly set a dumpster on fire to keep warm, and the blaze grew out of control, damaging the west side of the building.

Since then, a major community source for discounted clothing, baby supplies and housewares has been unavailable. People discovered how much they relied on the store for their needs. Donors discovered how much they relied on the thrift store to take their extra stuff after spring cleaning, house-closing, moving, or yard sales.

Andrea Ellis is the community services coordinator for Bonne Terre Ministerial Alliance (BTMA). She said she recently had to make a post regarding the reconstruction status because volunteers and BTMA board members were fielding hot comments from customers frustrated by the slow reopening.

We had to wait for construction to end, we couldnt control that, she said. I hated that everyone was waiting, but we were waiting, too. Hopefully, theyll come on Monday and find out its worth the wait. Our volunteers are amazing, theyve been working so hard.

Pastor David Wiant of Centenary United Methodist Church is the vice president of BTMAs board of directors, and said even some of the board members were fielding frustrated calls from the stores usual customers.

We know the community has been waiting patiently, for the most part, and were very grateful and excited its finally opening, he said, adding that theres also talk of having a grand opening celebration at a later date.

Frank Glass, who provides maintenance for the thrift store, said hes been working for some weeks now on shelving, cleaning, and helping the volunteers who are mostly older women who have been with the thrift store for ages.

I cant say enough about how hard they work. Theyre amazing. I cant keep up with them, sometimes, he said.

Ellis said the store takes just about any kind of donation, except for mattresses, TVs, large appliances, and they have to be discerning when they accept upholstered furniture, since sometimes well-meaning people unintentionally bring furniture with critters in the stuffing and fabric.

Wooden chairs, stools, tables and shelves are fine though, she said.

Ellis said they can hardly keep some things on the shelf. Clothing is hot, as well as baby supplies and toys fly off the shelves around Christmas time.

Ellis said volunteers are welcome to join the thrift store mission to help fold clothes, keep things tidy, help shoppers and take in donations. They can reach Ellis at 573-534-7077 or btmacommunitycoordinator@gmail.com.

The hours are Monday through Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to noon. The store is closed Thursday and Sunday.

Bonne Terre Ministerial Alliance also offers financial assistance for utilities, food vouchers and prescriptions through their office, which is run by Ellis. She says she is not able to help with rent, transportation or hotel rooms, but often, if someone calls in looking for help, she can point them in the right direction. Its best if they call or email her for an appointment.

The Helping Hands Thrift Store supports that assistance program.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported three area accidents, including one involving a fire truck.

At 7 a.m. on Thursday at the intersection of Puebla Drive and Nianga Drive in Goose Creek, a 2006 International Fire Truck driven by Goose Creek Fire Chief Brian Friese was heading north traveling through an intersection on the way to a fire call when the brakes failed.

The brakes failed going through an intersection, and we had to hit the ditch to prevent the truck going through someones barn, said Friese.

The fire truck reportedly overturned after hitting the ditch.

The MSHP reported Friese, 51, of French Village, received minor injuries but was wearing a seat belt. He was transported by a private conveyance to Parkland Health Center. Friese said he was the only one in the truck at the time. The fire truck received minor damage and was towed by Marlers Towing.

Also on Thursday morning, MSHP said a 2009 Dodge Caliber driven by Megan Johnson, 26, of Bonne Terre, was traveling northbound before crossing the center median of US 67 north of the St. Francois State Park and struck a 2013 Chevrolet Equinox driven by Harold Jones, 58, of Bismarck, head on.

Johnson and her passenger Marcus Albino, 27, of Deltona, Florida were reported to be wearing seat belts, both receiving moderate injuries. Johnson was transported to Parkland Health Center by the St. Francois County Ambulance District, while Albino was transported to Mercy South by the St. Francois County Ambulance District.

Jones was reported to not be wearing a seat belt and received serious injuries. Jones was transported to Mercy Hospital St. Louis by Air Evac.

Both vehicles were listed by the MSHP as totaled, and were towed by Buckley Towing.

According to the MSHP, on Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. a 2003 Kawasaki Prairie driven by Tara Hardin, 33, of Bloomsdale, was traveling south on Three Oaks Drive in Ste. Genevieve County when Hardin drove the Kawasaki Prairie into a ditch, causing the ATV to overturn and ejecting Hardin in the process.

The MSHP does know now if Hardin was using any safety devices while riding, but the report does state Hardin received serious injuries and was taken to Mercy Hospital St. Louis by Air Evac. The Kawasaki Prairie received minor damages and was driven from the scene.
Whether student debtors will get the loan relief promised by President Joe Biden is now in the hands of a Missouri federal judge.

For nearly two hours Wednesday, attorneys for the six states challenging the plan to forgive almost $500 billion in student debt argued with Department of Justice lawyers over which laws should govern the decision.

The states are arguing that the debt relief, which would impact 95% of people with outstanding student loans, harms entities that service the loans and treasuries that would benefit from taxes on forgiven debt.

At the end of the hearing in St. Louis, U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey did not make a ruling on the states request for a temporary restraining order to block the program. He also did not indicate when he would issue a decision.

Autrey did pepper both sides with questions during the hearing. For example, he focused on whether the states suing over the debt have a right to bring the case.

It is hard to make a cake if you dont have a pan to put that cake in, Autrey said. That pan is standing. It doesnt matter if you have all the ingredients.

The lawsuit was filed by attorneys general from Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina. It names Biden, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and the Department of Education as defendants.

Biden on Aug. 24 announced that people still paying debt from direct federal student loans would receive forgiveness on up to $20,000 of the outstanding balance. Every borrower with an income of $125,000 or less  $250,000 for married couples  during 2020 or 2021 will have $10,000 in debt forgiven.

Borrowers who also received Pell grants while in school will have $20,000 in debt forgiven.

During the hearing, attorneys for both sides said that will eliminate about $500 million of the $1.6 billion in outstanding debt on federal student loans.

The lawsuit asserts that each of the suing states will be harmed by the action, either through lost tax revenue on forgiven debt or indirectly through lost revenue to agencies like the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, or MOHELA. Each of the states use the same figure for taxable income as is reported on federal forms and the student debt is not being treated like other forgiven loans, which must be reported as income for tax purposes.

MOHELA was founded in 1981 to help finance student loans issued by banks. In its early years, it sold bonds and purchased debt from banks, then used payments to retire the bonds. Through numerous changes in federal loan rules, it has become a major servicer of debt, acting as the collecting agent for loans made directly from the federal treasury.

As of June 30, MOHELA was servicing 5.2 million federal student loan accounts nationwide and servicing $168.1 billion in debt. It doubled the number of federal loans being serviced in the most recent fiscal year and added 1,000 staff and contract employees, according to its most recent annual report.

Student loan relief cuts off servicing revenue for debtors who have their entire loan forgiven, Nebraska Solicitor General James Campbell argued Wednesday.

The money they lose from servicing these loans, there is no way to get that money back, he said.

In its response to the lawsuit, the federal government argues agencies like MOHELA are not guaranteed any particular level of revenue from that work.

Missouri cannot sue on MOHELAs behalf because the law establishing it allows it to sue and be sued in its own name, said Brian Netter, deputy assistant attorney general. He noted that the information about MOHELA included in the states lawsuit was obtained through a Sunshine Law request to the agency, not by the agency volunteering it.

We think there are plenty of indications here that if MOHELA has an injury, that MOHELA could be a plaintiff, Netter said.

MOHELA did not respond to an inquiry from The Independent about the lawsuit.

The possibility that the states may lose tax revenue is not enough to sustain the lawsuit, Netter added. They are free to change their definition of income.

The states are free to choose to tax these matters however they please, he said.

The key dispute Autrey must resolve is which law should control the decision to issue debt relief.

The Department of Education is citing the HEROES Act, a 2003 federal law giving the department power to alleviate hardship for student borrowers in a national emergency. That law allows agencies to bypass regular processes to make decisions quickly.

The states argue that the regulations for relieving debt exceed the authority granted by the HEROES Act and should instead be governed by the Administrative Procedures Act, which provides for comment periods and requires agencies to justify their decisions in light of those comments.

The HEROES Act cant be stretched as far as the Biden administration wants, Campbell said.

The federal government is acting in a hidden, ever changing and increasingly crumbling escapade of lawlessness, Campbell said.

A lengthy comment period would have defeated the purpose of debt relief, Netter said. The goal, he added, is to help people before a COVID-19 pause in repayments ends Dec. 31.

The HEROES Act provides the U.S. secretary of education broad authority to act in a way that prevents economic harm as a result of that emergency, he said.

Just like emergency aid for hurricane victims isnt limited to actions while the hurricane is spinning, Netter said, the debt relief is intended to relieve economic damage still resulting from the pandemic.

The effects have to have been caused by the national emergency and the relief has to be designed to remedy those harms, Netter said. The fact that the pandemic conditions seem to be improving now are neither here nor there.
A man convicted of voluntary manslaughter in California has been trespassed from all Corvallis School District schools and the local Boys & Girls Club.

According to Benton County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Jaimi Glass, the agency served a trespassing order to Tony McClung, 51, prohibiting him from being on any school district property or the Boys & Girls Club of Corvallis.

Glass said the agency received a call from Crescent Valley High School asking that McClung be formally banned from the campus after he allegedly stole cans from the property and followed students around.

They were uncomfortable with him there, Glass said.

On Monday, Corvallis School District Superintendent Ryan Noss called the Benton County Sheriff's Office and asked that McClung be trespassed from all school district properties because McClung reportedly had been seen around other schools in the area as well, Glass said.

In an email sent Wednesday morning, Oct. 12, Corvallis School District parents learned staff had been instructed to contact law enforcement if they see McClung on campus, and the safety of students is their priority.

We understand the concerns among families about why the district did not share this information sooner, the email said. In situations like this, we always aim to share accurate and timely information in consultation with law enforcement.

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It was not clear what incidents may have been reported at the Boys & Girls Club.

Crimes committed

In 2010, McClung was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in connection to the death of a Shingle Springs, a California woman, the Mountain Democrat newspaper reported. Authorities discovered the victims body in a plastic bag Sept. 2, 2006, in the home the victim shared with McClung, the newspaper reported.

McClung was initially arrested on suspicion of murder but later pleaded to the lesser manslaughter charge. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison, the Mountain Democrat reported.

McClung has been in the Benton County area since 2017, according to Glass. He is not a registered sex offender.

Oregons online court database shows McClung has been convicted of first-degree theft, criminal driving while suspended or revoked, driving under the influence of intoxicants, recklessly endangering another person and failure to perform duties of a driver.

Glass said there are no safety concerns to the public at this time, considering McClungs criminal history in Oregon.

Staff writer Joanna Mann contributed to this report.
Linn County Sheriff's deputies have arrested an Albany man for allegedly stabbing someone and leaving him with life-threatening injuries.

Although the incident took place at a campsite with others around, no one rendered help, according to a Linn County Sheriff's Office news release. The victim reportedly walked 250 feet before finding someone who would help.

Deputies arrested John Wesley Kersey, 72, on suspicion of first-degree assault. He was booked into the Linn County Jail on Wednesday, Oct. 12.

Dispatch received reports at around 6:08 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11 of a stabbing on Quartzville Road outside of Sweet Home, according to the news release.

A truck operator radioed the trucking dispatch center, according to the agency, and later provided more details to deputies at the scene, including suspect vehicle information.

Deputies found the victim, a 36-year-old homeless man from Arizona, and provided life-saving measures while other deputies found and stopped the suspect vehicles, according to the news release. Medics transported the victim by ambulance to Lebanon Hospital and later to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis by Life Flight.

He suffered life-threatening injuries but is expected to survive, according to LCSO.

Investigators discovered the victim and Kersey, also homeless, had traveled to the Quartzville area with a group. Police allege the victim and Kersey argued after Kersey got into a vehicle and reportedly rammed into the victim. Kersey then jumped out of the vehicle and allegedly stabbed the victim multiple times.

No one at the campsite gave medical care or attention to the victim, the news release said. The victim was able to walk around 250 feet where he was found by the truck operator who reported the stabbing.

Kersey is accused of first-degree assault, first-degree attempted assault and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon. The investigation is ongoing and more charges may be pending, the news release said.

Kersey was scheduled to be arraigned in Linn County Circuit Court on Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 12.
A federal jury has convicted a Philomath man for failing to register as a sex offender in Oregon.

The panel found Daniel Lynn Goering-Runyan guilty of one count of failing to register as a sex offender in violation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, according to a U.S. Attorneys Office District of Oregon news release. The decision was handed down in Portland on Wednesday, Oct. 12.

In September 2014 Goering-Runyan was sentenced to 12-15 years in Nebraska state prison following a conviction for sexually assaulting a 5-year-old girl, according to the news release, citing court documents.

At the time of his sentencing, Goering-Runyan acknowledged his requirement to register as a sex offender, the news release said. He reportedly reviewed and signed five more notices of his sex-offender registration requirements while in prison.

When he was released in September 2021, Goering-Runyan signed a certificate of service acknowledging his receipt of a letter from the Nebraska State Patrol indicating his lifetime obligation to register as a sex offender. Goering-Runyan registered as a sex offender in Nebraska upon release.

Two months later, he moved to Houston and was told to register as a sex offender in Houston within three days of his arrival. Goering-Runyan did not do so, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Three weeks later, he traveled to Corvallis by bus and arrived Dec. 25, 2021, according to the news release. Over the next four months, Goering-Runyan lived in multiple places in the Corvallis area, the news release said.

He obtained an Oregon identification card from the DMV in early May but never registered as a sex offender as required under state and federal law, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

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On May 3, a federal grand jury indicted Goering-Runyan. The next day, the Corvallis Police Department arrested him.

The U.S. Marshals Service in Portland and Omaha, Nebraska investigated the case with help from the Oregon State Police, the Corvallis and Philomath police departments, the Benton County Sheriffs Office and the Lancaster County (Nebraska) Sheriffs Office.
Benton Countys attempt to take about 29 acres of mostly farmland for its planned criminal justice campus is set for its first formal court appearance Oct. 25.

The county is trying to seize a North Corvallis property it claims is worth more than $5 million, between Corvallis Wastewater Reclamation facilities and the HP Inc. campus on Highway 20.

Property owners argue the county doesnt have funding or development plans for the site and its eminent domain case is an overreach.

The county has failed to certify any basis for its request for immediate possession of the property, wrote defense attorney Bruce Cahn in an Oct. 5 court filing.

County officials envision a centralized site for its criminal justice system, starting with the building that will take over for the 134-year-old courthouse likely to collapse in an earthquake and district attorneys office.

Those first projects carry an anticipated $58-million price tag, an estimated $33 million in loans with the rest paid by grant funding.

Eventually, the sheriffs office and the county emergency management division could be sited on the campus as well as a jail to replace the building from the mid-1970s the county claims is too small.

The campus could cost more than $167 million.

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Nick Kurth, manager of the countys Justice System Improvement Program, said the county will take a $100 million bond measure to voters in May. Construction of the courthouse and the Benton County District Attorney's offices are not included in what it would pay for.

County officials had McFadden Ranch, as the site is called after its current owner, assessed and then offered a little more than $5.47 million. The county filed a complaint Sept. 9 in Benton County Circuit Court, suing to condemn the land under Oregon takings law to be repurposed for the public safety and welfare.

Eminent domain is an extremely rare path for Benton County to choose, and we dont take it lightly, County Counsel Vance Croney stated in a September news release.

The court gave the property owner until Oct. 5 to respond, while the owner's attorney was out of the country.

With the owner's response on Oct. 5, judge Matthew Donohue will oversee the case.

At best, the county has requested access to the property in order to do some pre-planning surveying, utility location, soil testing, and preliminary location analysis for the new courthouse, wrote Cahn.

The entire property, 85.43 acres, was last valued at about $7.15 million in county tax records.

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Oregon is giving Albany $1 million to create more housing opportunities, however who gets that money is still left undecided.

The City Council, at its Wednesday, Oct. 12 meeting, considered three organizations with very different strategies to address housing issues and homelessness: the Creating Housing Coalition, DevNW and Habitat for Humanity.

Habitat for Humanity would put the money toward the construction of two single-family houses.

DevNW asked for $750,000 that would help fund a multimillion-dollar project with 40 houses in Albany. Representatives presented the request as a make-or-break factor in whether the project is built at all.

The Creating Housing Coalition would use the funds for its home village project. Hub City Village will be the first tiny house community in Albany, with various residents including veterans and people with disabilities.

Creating Housing Coalition Director Carol Davies came forward to advocate for the funding to go to the tiny home project.

On a daily basis, I see people who are appropriate to live in this village, she said.

She then described people she had come into contact with who would be good candidates for the project, such as the man with such severe health issues that medical bills caused him to lose his house. Then there was the woman who lost her job and was frightened, living out of her car trying her best to feel safe along Interstate-5 with her dog.

These are the people who are being displaced right now, she said.

Councilor Ray Kopczynski preferred to allocate the money between the Creating Housing Coalition and Habitat for Humanity, he said, adding he didnt like the ultimatum that was presented by DevNW.

Councilor Matilda Novak disagreed, saying she valued their honesty and thought that 40 homes were a considerable amount.

Council member Marilyn Smith proposed giving $350,000 to the Creating Housing Coalition, $275,000 to Habitat for Humanity, and leaving the remaining balance to be allocated later.

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In the end, Smith, Kopczynski and Councilor Dick Olsen voted in favor and Novak voted in opposition. Councilor Stacey Bartholomew excused herself, because she is president of the Creating Housing Coalition.

That meant the motion did not pass because four approvals are required. The issue will be brought back at the next City Council meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 26.
Paul Pazen, Denvers outgoing police chief, will retire Oct. 15, after he announced at the end of August his intention to step down. His 27 years with the Denver Police Department included four years as chief and a stint as the commander of patrol District One before that.

Pazens tenure as chief included helping launch the Support Team Assisted Response program in 2020 in concert with community organizations. The program sends pairs of mental health clinicians and paramedics to low-level, non-violent calls that implicate behavioral health needs. And under his leadership, the agency was one of the first departments to adopt the Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement from Georgetown University Law Center, which trains officers on peer intervention to prevent situations from unnecessarily escalating.

Pazen helped oversee the adoption of new use-of-force policies in 2018, which included prohibiting officers from watching footage from their body cameras before they are interviewed by investigators, creating a chart to train officers on making split-second decisions and prohibiting deadly force if a person only poses a danger to themselves.

And, last year, the department began a hot spot policing strategy, which concentrated resources around five intersections police say made up a disproportionate number of the citys shootings and homicides. The department has since expanded the strategy to include three more areas.

Yet, Pazen has been outspoken, saying he believes state policies regarding pretrial release and supervision practices have been too lenient in the case of people convicted of violent crimes.

He also led the department during a time of historic challenges: The agency has struggled with a staffing shortage of about 170 officers as of September, an issue exacerbated by putting new recruit classes on hold in 2020 because of the pandemic; increased response times to calls for service; and, eroded public trust in policing. In addition, homicides began to increase in 2020, with 67 tallied this year as of Wednesday.

The department has faced intense scrutiny for recent high-profile force incidents, including a mid-July shooting in Lower Downtown involving a man police say threatened officers with a gun. Officers shot the man several times and also injured six bystanders. And, last spring, a jury found the city liable for how police handled the 2020 protests in the wake of George Floyds death in the custody of Minneapolis police.

Pazen hasn't revealed specifics of his plans for what comes next, including addressing long-simmering rumors of a potential mayoral run next year. But he sat down with The Denver Gazette this week to talk about the departments recruiting and retention challenges, responding to violent crime and auto thefts and investment in response strategies that dont involve armed officers.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

What was your impression of the police department when you took it on in 2018, and what kind of police department do you think you're leaving?

First and foremost, this department is built on a strong foundation. The department's been around for more than 162 years. And not all of it is perfect, not all of it is something that has gone exactly the way it was intended. We've had some successes and we've had some setbacks in that entire time. So, it's important that we reflect on what our successes are, what those areas for improvement are, and then try to learn from them. So, really, even before taking office, I was part of it. I led a district and I've been part of this department since 1995. And even in that 28-year time period, there's been some successes and there's been some areas where we could and need to learn from, and that is going to be the case moving forward for, I think, any agency, whether it's law enforcement or another public sector, department that serves community. We've got to continue to try to grow, to develop and learn from the approaches that we've taken.

When you joined the police department, about 5,000 people were competing for around 100 jobs. And, obviously, the picture is very different today. What challenges have been with recruiting officers, whether it's the pandemic, whether it's scrutiny that officers feel like they're facing; any number of challenges within the last few years? I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on not just in the last few years, but over the past couple of decades. What do you think changed to make those recruiting challenges really exacerbate?

I think it's a combination of different factors in this, and at the top of the list would be the intense scrutiny that law enforcement officers face now. Back in 1994 is when I applied for this police department ... There were 4,000 or 5,000 people waiting in line to get in there. Everybody took the test at the same time.

Now in talking to civil servants, or even talking to other police chiefs throughout the state and throughout the country, that pool is much narrower  fewer folks than what we used to be able to attract  and that's a challenge for us. Because you want a lot of folks. That way you are able to get the best and the brightest from a deeper pool of individuals.

I'm really happy with the folks that we've seen. We may have a smaller pool, but they're very committed. They're very sharp.

We need folks from beyond the police department in bigger roles to say, Be the change that you want to see. We need leadership in public and private sectors to say we do need quality officers. We need officers from every segment of our community to represent every segment of our community and we want folks with big hearts.

We have to think about what drives us toward a profession and what keeps us in our profession. And most of us want to feel valued in in our workplace. We want to be respected in our workplace, whether that's in the public sector or the private sector.

All too often, we have painted with this broad brush and not looked at folks as individuals, but almost vilified an entire profession. I think it's important that we come together and say, 'No, let's not paint with a broad brush.' Let's treat people as people, individuals as individuals, let's hold them accountable for their individual behavior, and if they step out of line, that we address that. But it doesn't mean that just because somebody does something in Minneapolis or in Louisville, or in a different part of the country, that all folks that do that profession are guilty of the same thing.

You were an early proponent of STAR (Support Team Assisted Response) when it was being developed. During a recent Citizen Oversight Board meeting, the chair was asking, due to officer shortages, can that be an opportunity to invest in alternative programs? To direct those resources toward programs like STAR? Are there additional alternative response programs that you would like to see?

We championed all of these issues.

I'm proud of our efforts in expanding the co-responder program in 2016. We started with four and now we've got 40. Seven days a week, 24-hour-a-day coverage in all six police districts is awesome. I'm also proud of our outreach case coordinators that don't get the attention that they deserve, because if Paul's in crisis, and whether STAR helps me because I'm armed or a co-responder helps me because I'm armed, that follow-up piece that the outreach case coordinators do to prevent the future crisis is critical. So, those are different alternative approaches.

We have 29 crash report technicians, so, if it's a low-level crash, nobody's drunk or intoxicated, folks have insurance, people aren't fighting, you don't need an armed police officer with a badge to respond to that. So, we created the crash report technicians, and we expanded that during my tenure. And same with the property report technicians, folks that can handle some of these low-level cases that don't need an officer. So, we built all of those areas out.

Here's the part that gets misinterpreted with STAR. I am the biggest proponent for STAR, outreach case coordinators and co-responders. This gives us potentially better outcomes for individuals in crisis, and it can help prevent tragedies from occurring. That is pretty amazing. But it's not a crime prevention approach. It's not a crime reduction approach. If we had 1,000 STAR vans, it's not going to reduce one shooting, one murder, one robbery. That's not what it's designed for. What it is designed for is pretty special in and of itself.

And folks start to say, STAR is what we meant by defund or de-center. The mental health calls that STAR can handle is 2.8% of DPD's calls for service. Last year, total calls for service  not STAR-related or mental health-related calls for service  went up 4.2%. So that little bit that you can shift from the 2.8% that that doesn't require a police officer, okay, that's great. But total calls went up 4.2%. At the same time, calls for service go up and your available resources have dropped a little bit.

So, forever I will tell anybody, anywhere in the country and beyond, and have, that implementing a STAR, co-responder and an outreach (program) is critical. That you want not only that response, but you also want that follow up. If Paul's in crisis today, and STAR or co-responders helped me, well, what about next week?

That's why I brag about these outreach case coordinators so much  they get no attention. It's like, they're kind of the heroes in this equation. We have been pushing the envelope for alternative response for a long time. But at some point you do need a uniformed police officer to address issues.

We've discussed increases in crime over the last several years, especially more serious types of crime and recruiting issues. How do you respond to those who say all this happened on your watch? All this happened during your time as chief?

I would point to 2019, before anybody ever heard of the pandemic, before anybody was impacted by the economic conditions that had a direct impact on the resources available to address these issues, before the political divide that created lots of strain and harm to our entire country and the social unrest as a result of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. I rolled out very ambitious proposed reforms, changed the use of force policy and got that over the finish line when it was very much in doubt, rolled out our strategic plan.

We did drive crime down in in 2019. We did do it in a fair and just way, because we actually arrested 6,000 fewer people than we did the previous year, and we focused on the biggest issues that were impacting our community safety at the time.

So, now let's specifically talk about the crime issues that are facing us in Denver, which are very similar to the crime issues facing the entire state of Colorado. What I would say is the women and men of this police department; the officers, the investigators, the supervisors; they didn't forget how to police. Ten years ago, we weren't in this boat. Ten years ago, we were one of the safer states in the entire country.

So, when I say that the women and men of this police department didn't forget how to police, we had to shift focus to the biggest problems. And by volume, auto theft was one of those big problems. And, so, for example, last year in 2021, we arrested more people for auto theft than any year in our history. So, we're focusing the limited resources on the biggest problem by volume.

Same with the violent crimes that we're talking about  murders and shootings that have all gone up. Our officers took more illegal guns off the street last year than any year in our history.

And then I think the last piece that I would point to that would show that that our officers are very effective and efficient would be the clearance rates. So, (in) major cities, it was a national story a couple of months ago. CBS News nationally was going to New York, Washington DC, Baltimore to Philadelphia, Chicago  all of the major cities in the United States and pointing to the fact that the clearance rates, the solve rates, on murders had fallen to 50% or below. At the same time, CBS News didn't come knocking on the door (asking), "Hey, how come you guys are like Baltimore, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia? Where you're not solving these cases?

So, I think that shows that with the available resources, our folks were focused absolutely in the right areas by arresting more people for auto theft than any year previous, by taking more illegal guns off the street than any year previous, and by continuing to solve the murders and the non-fatal shootings.

Prior to my taking this position, we used to solve those (non-fatal shootings) about 32% of the time. And then one of the innovations that I'm super proud of, and (of) the people that actually do the work, we solve those at 66% of the time.

Those would point to a very effective police department that is dealing with an increased workload, the increase in calls for service at the same time.

With hot spot policing  we talk quite a bit about the homicides and the shootings as particular issues in those areas where the department has focused. On shootings, the public data is a little bit trickier, just because they're classified as aggravated assaults. Examining data for homicides and shootings going up citywide, does that suggest that they're just being pushed elsewhere out of these hot spots?

That's exactly why you identify the issues early, right? So, rewinding the clock, studying 2020, where 26% of the homicides and 49% of all of the shootings took place in 1.56% of Denver's landmass, the five original hotspots that we see. That is, again, similar to identifying what the problem is and then focusing your attention on the issues.

Focusing in those particular hotspots, we reduced the shootings and murders in four of those five. We saw an increase in LoDo, a 7% increase. And yes, we did plan for shifts in dynamics of that. So, MLK and Holly had dramatic decreases. Forty-seventh and Peoria, Alameda and Federal, dramatic decreases.

That's why the additional three areas saw increases. Dartmouth and Havana, Raritan and Mississippi, 14th and Federal.

We've seen some success in some of these, but it's not a quick fix. It's just using that data in order to identify those hotspots, working on those evidence-based solutions that are beyond even beyond the police department: Working with Public Works, working with Parks and Rec, working with the civil rights (and) community affairs folks, working with all of the different entities within the whole of government and the nonprofits to address that. It gives you the best opportunity for success.

But it's not a be-all, end-all. You continue to look for any displacement and then you address those areas based on the particular circumstances of those areas. High-density apartments have a different impact than a business district. So, you can't replicate what was done at Federal and Alameda and say, "We can do this at Havana and Dartmouth and have the exact same results." So you have to specialize based on what is driving the issues in that particular area.

You mentioned changes (in 2018) to the use-of-force policy. How do you respond to those who would point to things like the incident that we had in LoDo in July or the outcome of the lawsuit that we had earlier this year over the (2020) protests? What would your response be to people who point to those things and say, 'Have things changed? What's different?'

So, I am very proud of the forward-leaning use of force policy that I helped get across the finish line. It was done in concert with a use of force committee. We trained every officer in the department; it wasn't just rolling out a new policy. Every officer in the department had to go through training on this, and I'm very proud of what that looked like.

We also recognize what occurred with the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, and we implemented changes to our use of force policy, to our crowd management policy as a result of the lessons learned. The 8 Can't Wait, we were one of the first departments to comply with all eight of the suggested policy recommendations as a result of that. (8 Cant Wait is a national campaign by Campaign Zero after George Floyds death for use of force policy changes that the organization recommended law enforcement agencies immediately adopt.)

So, I think folks that would be critical of the use of force policy, certainly take a look and see how that compares nationally. It's one of the strongest, one of the most forward-leaning there is anywhere in the country. And then the disciplinary process, contrary to some opinions, there is accountability with the Office of the Independent Monitor, the conduct review and the public-facing reports that the OIM does twice a month to talk about each one of the cases here. Reviewing those over the last couple of years, last four years, I think that you would on the evidence side see that we do hold people accountable for their actions, that people that that violate policy are held accountable. Folks that go way overboard are separated from this department.

Some of the challenges that we dealt with here (with the George Floyd protests) are very similar to what we saw in Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Louisville. Name the city that had similar types of challenges that you could point to and say, "They did it right. If Denver just copied what this city did, then everything would have turned out fine." These are challenging situations, right?

Generally, this department has done very well at managing some of those large crowds  the Women's March, the DNC.

This one was at a much larger scale. I mean, there were folks across the globe that came out on this particular incident.

These things are tough. There's not an easy answer. So, we took the feedback, we looked in, we took the external feedback with the 17 recommendations (from the OIM); we implemented those right away. There's ongoing training with outside agencies, so, that way, we can do everything possible.

But really, the answer to this is let's prevent that tragedy from happening in the first place, right? That's where STAR and co-responders can help individuals in crisis and prevent that from happening. And getting us here, that's where ABLE  officers stepping up, saying, you're getting out of line. Taking me off so that way I don't exacerbate a situation or create a tragedy that the rest of law enforcement either in that department or others are going to have to deal with.
Girl Scout Troop 9095 Cadettes earned their Silver Award by completing the Buddy Benches and Kindness Campaign Project.

The Girl Scout Silver Award is the highest award a Girl Scout Cadette can earn. The award represents a girls accomplishments in scouting and her community as she grows and works to improve her life and the lives of others. Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama congratulates Cadettes Elizabeth Beth Ann Braden, Hana Hutchison, LeeAnne Leger, Megan Riffle, and Bailey Pietras for earning their Silver Award.

By earning the Girl Scout Silver Award, these scouts have taken a step in becoming community leaders. Their accomplishments reflect leadership and citizenship skills that set them apart.

We built benches for Holly Hill Elementary and Pinedale Elementary schools (in Enterprise). The benches have been placed on playgrounds and designed for children to sit at while making friends a bit easier. We also went and talked to kids about spreading kindness and being compassionate, a news release about the award stated.

The volunteer fire station gave the girls a space to build the benches and taught troop members about tool safety, specifically safety techniques and handiness skills the girls can use later in life and helped each girl foster a greater sense of independence.

Girls interacted with adults on a professional level and learned how to plan, email (communicate), build, assemble, paint, install, speak to adults and children about (anti-bullying/the power of kindness), film and edit a video, and some other valuable life skills while working toward their 50 hours of service for the Girl Scout Silver Award.

The girls set out to make a difference in their community by speaking kindness into existence and giving kids a space to experience that. They learned that by working together, as a team, they could accomplish great things.

Through scouting, girls learn to face challenges head-on, embrace failure as a learning opportunity, and find solutions to social issues all while building the skills and courage they need to take the lead every day. Earning the Silver Award is just one of the accomplishments girls can do as part of Girl Scouts. To join Girl Scouts or learn more about volunteering, visit www.girlscoutssa.org.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A defeated Donald Trump pulled out all the stops as president to overturn the 2020 election, the chairman of the House Jan. 6 Committee said Thursday, focusing on fresh evidence from the Secret Service about the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The 10th public session, likely to be the panel's last public hearing before the November midterm elections, was delving into Trump's state of mind," said Chairman Bennie Thompson as he described a Trump multi-part plan to overturn the election.

Trumps staggering betrayal of his oath led to an attack on a pillar of our democracy," Thompson said. "It is still hard to believe.

The committee is starting to sum up its findings that Republican Trump, after losing the 2020 presidential election, launched an unprecedented attempt to stop Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Bidens victory. The result was the mob storming of the Capitol. Full story:

Highlights from the Jan. 6 committee hearings so far:
Elba Distribution Systems Company (EDSCO) is celebrating its 30th anniversary Friday, Oct. 21, with a customer appreciation luncheon from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. at its home office located in Elba.

We are a family at EDSCO, said Carrie Whitworth, president and owner of EDSCO since 2011. We are excited to be able to mark this momentous occasion with our wonderful employees, customers, and friends in our community.

Whitworth began her career at EDSCO in 1999 after high school. I have learned so much about the fastener industry since my career began. It is surreal to be a part of this celebration. There are many people who need recognition for helping this company reach this milestone and I stand on the shoulders of those who were here before me to teach and guide me.

EDSCOs headquarters is in Elba. Its territory covers the regions of central and south Alabama and the Florida panhandle as well as orders that are shipped throughout all of the United States.

We love being able to operate our business in a small community, Whitworth said. We are blessed to be a part of many small communities in the surrounding areas and to provide fasteners to both large and small businesses inside those communities.

EDSCO was opened in 1992 by its original owners Daniel Stephens and Ed Gannon. Gannon sold his ownership interest in the company to Stephens in 1995. Stephens continued to build the company until 2011 when he retired and sold to Mrs. Whitworth.

EDSCO came from very humble beginnings, said Stephens. My uncle and I wore all the hats in the beginning. We were eventually able to acquire some help and were blessed to have employees like Gene Strickland and Scotty Moulton to help us build the company into what it became for us.

Today, EDSCO has grown from two to 16 full-time employees to keep up with the growing demand from an ever-expanding customer base.

Today, Carrie and her team have continued to build on our early success, stated Stephens. She has expanded the companys reach and has been very successful in growing the company into what we knew it could become.

EDSCO is a full-line distributor of dependable fasteners including nuts, bolts, washers and screws. EDSCO also has a manufacturing facility to produce anchor bolts, concrete anchor bolts, large diameter cable and threaded rod. It also provides a full line of industrial items such as industrial gloves, safety glasses, drill bits, cleaning supplies, first aid kits, and more.
The logo of VietinBank seen at a branch in Hanoi. Photo by Shutterstock/TK Kurikawa

VietinBank has recalled Do Thanh Son and made him deputy CEO after seven years at OceanBank, which he successfully led out of trouble.

He will hold the post for five years starting October 11.

He was a branch director at VietinBank when he was sent to ailing OceanBank as chairman in 2015.

Do Thanh Son, new deputy CEO of VietinBank. Photo courtesy of OceanBank

Son and other VietinBank executives were tasked with restructuring OceanBank, one of the three weakest banks in Vietnam and with large debts that the State Bank of Vietnam acquired in 2015 for zero dong.

The bank had accumulated losses of VND17.9 trillion as of the end of 2019, but it has been declining since.

Industry insiders said it could be transferred to another lender to manage.

Luu Trung Thai, deputy chairman of lender MB, said at a recent OceanBank meeting that a partnership with OceanBank is "both a political mission and an opportunity for MB."
A section of National Highway 1K near the My Phuoc - Tan Van Intersection is covered with dust, October 12, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Gia Minh

Connecting Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong and Dong Nai, National Highway 1K lacks traffic lights and is normally covered in dust, impeding visibility.

On the morning of Wednesday, a section of National Highway 1K near the My Phuoc  Tan Van intersection in Binh Duong Province appeared in its now normal state: lines of trucks, the loud noise of horns, and polluted air.

Living by the highway, Thanh, 50, said her daily chores include splashing water in front of the house dozens of times, which still fails to save her furniture from the dust.

The area near the intersection is home to many warehouses, industrial parks and a quarry and with Dong Nai and Binh Duong being major industrial hubs and HCMC the country's economic hub, the route, therefore, must serve trucks with large loading capacity almost around the clock.

Many of the trucks are not properly covered, causing soil and rocks to fall onto the street.

Besides, the highway has many downgraded sections where the surface of the street is broken, resulting in even more dust.

Sometimes the dust is so thick it affects driver visibility, leading to accidents.

"Two years ago when there was still toll collection, the highway was frequently cleaned up and maintained but ever since the collection stopped, it has been increasingly degraded and accidents happen all the time," said Thanh.

Apart from the dust, the lack of traffic lights along the highway is another threat for commuters.

At the meeting points of the highway with Lo O and Thong Nhat streets in Binh Duong, the traffic light system has been broken for a long time and drivers must fend for themselves.

"The situation is most serious at the intersection with Street No.9 that leads to HCMC.

"As there are no traffic lights, drivers would cross the street as they wish. Apart from a high risk for accidents, it causes the intersection to suffer frequent, heavy traffic jams," said a truck driver named Van Thang, 35.

Drivers cross the street as they wish as there is no traffic light at the intersection of National Highway 1K and Street No.9, October 12, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Gia Minh

Meanwhile, the toll booths along the highway, after stopping operation in 2020, have now become barriers blocking the street and causing congestion.

National Highway 1K runs 21 kilometers from Linh Xuan Intersection in HCMCs Thu Duc City through Binh Duong until it meets National Highway 1 in Dong Nai Province.

With a width of 20-23 meters, it stretches two kilometers in HCMC and five kilometers in Binh Duong.

Every day, it serves tens of thousands of vehicles.

A project to upgrade the highway was finished 15 years ago under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) format. By then, two toll gates were set up in Dong Nai and Binh Duong. In October 2020, the investor finished recovering capital and stopped collecting the toll fee.

However, the toll booths have not been removed until now as authorities and the investor have not completed administrative procedures.

"Ever since the toll collection stopped, it is very dangerous when driving through the area near those booths at night as there is no light," said a local woman named Tran Thi Phuong, 54.

Phuong said she had seen many cars hitting median strips placed at the booths at night.

In 2021, 15 accidents were recorded along the highway section in Binh Duong, killing six and injuring 14. In the first half of this year, there were 14 cases including four fatalities and 10 injuries.

For the section in HCMC, four accidents from late 2021 to September this year killed three people.

Authorities in Binh Duong and HCMC have proposed the Ministry of Transport allow them to operate and manage the section of National Highway 1K in their localities so they could take initiative to fix and maintain the route.

However, Nguyen Thanh Thuan, deputy director of Binh Duong's Transport Department, said the BOT contract that the Department for Roads of Vietnam under the Transport Ministry signed with the private investor to upgrade the highway has not been settled, meaning the proposal could therefore not be approved.

"We have proposed the ministry come up with solutions to remove the toll gates and repair the traffic light system but so far, the ministry has not replied," he said.

Nguyen Van Thanh, head of the road administration unit No.4 under the Department for Roads of Vietnam, which oversees managing road projects in southern and south-central Vietnam, said the unit has taken over the highway since 2020.

He said in the past two years, the unit has maintained the highway more than a few times but due to a limit of funding, some issues have not been handled thoroughly.

Regarding the two toll gates, Thanh confirmed that the unit has not finished procedures on the financial settlement with the private investor and that the booths would be removed as soon as those procedures are completed.
Man arrested for smuggling over 700 iPhones from Singapore

A man was detained Thursday facing charges for smuggling hundreds of iPhones from Singapore to HCMC.

Ngo Thach Hao, 33, was caught at HCMC's Tan Son Nhat airport with 246 iPhones carried from Singapore. The collection included used iPhones 12, 13 and brand new iPhones 14.

A search at his house in the city found another 463 iPhones.

The phones were worth more than VND10 billion ($414,165), police said.

Ngo Thach Hao at a HCMC police station, with the iPhones he smuggled from Singapore, October 13, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Nhat Vy

Hao said he was hired to smuggle used phones from Singapore to Vietnam for a price of VND2 million a trip.

Some people in Singapore would deliver the phones to him at Changi airport or his hotel in Singapore, he said.

The phones are to be sold in Vietnam.

Police said Hao had traveled to Singapore more than 10 times from early September for the smuggling.

An investigation is going on.
A Congolese boy walks past a wall in Beni, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, April 1, 2019. Photo by Reuters/Baz Ratner

The Vietnam Embassy in Angola has advised Vietnamese to research carefully before going to Africa for work, following multiple reports of workers who could not leave.

The embassy on Monday said it had received multiple requests for help from Vietnamese citizens being trapped in certain African countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.

The workers said they were in particularly tough circumstances.

Some said they were persuaded to come for construction work, with accommodations and meals covered, and a monthly salary of $1,500-3,000. Others were promised "easy jobs with high pay" at VND30-90 million ($1,247-3,742) a month.

But in fact, they were forced to work at casinos or karaoke parlors, had their passports seized by employers, or had their salaries delayed or reduced. Some were told to owe $8,000 of living costs and travel costs to Africa, and they would have to pay this money back if they want to return to Vietnam, or they would be reported to authorities.

Many workers could not speak local languages, making it difficult for them to contact authorities for help.

The embassy said it is trying to deploy citizen protection measures for the workers.
South Africa: SA, UN-Habitat join forces for sustainable human settlements

Human Settlements Minister, Mmamoloko Kubayi, says it is becoming increasingly urgent to move with speed in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and New Urban Agenda, both of which will contribute to the creation of stable and prosperous societies throughout the world.

The Minister on Thursday hosted the Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Maimunah Mohd Sharif, who is on an official visit to South Africa from 12 - 17 October. The Executive Directors visit will include the launch of the Global Action Plan Framework on Informal Settlements and Slums.

The framework is aimed at accelerating the SDGs and New Urban Agenda, while searching for solutions in response to the challenges of informal settlements and slums.

South Africa has placed informal settlement upgrading as a pivotal focal point for the creation of sustainable human settlements in urban centres. This, Kubayi said, is in line with SDG 11, which is to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. It also ties in with the sections in the New Urban Agenda, which deal with informal settlements and slums.

We have also adopted the development of integrated human settlements as a guiding policy response to address historical exclusionary spatial arrangements of the apartheid era.

This policy seeks to transform the spatial housing settlements in South Africa by creating more inclusive, denser, mixeduse urban areas, Kubayi said.

While collaboration with UN-Habitat has yielded tangible results, Kubayi said it has been ad hoc and limited in scope and impact.

The desire in government and UN-Habitat to have a more comprehensive but focused and impactful collaboration resulted in the process of developing a Collaboration Framework, which began shortly after Habitat III.

The purpose of this Collaboration Framework is to jointly establish a firm base between South Africa and UN-Habitat to work towards achieving South Africas aspiration for sustainable urban development, set in NDP [National Development Plan] 2030, the Minister said.

South Africa and UN-Habitat intend to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding, which commits them to jointly prepare a proposal for a deeper partnership between them.

We are also working towards getting the necessary government approvals, so that UN-Habitat can set up an office here in South Africa as soon as next year, said Kubayi.

The partnership will include the following areas of collaboration:

Improving living conditions of communities living in informal settlements through accelerating informal settlements transformation in an inclusive and participatory manner.

Area-based approach to crime and violence prevention (including through municipal structures and capacity building for community engagements).

Improving accountability and fortifying municipal governance, and improving access to financing.

Urban monitoring system that factors diversity of cities and urban areas, including smart cities.

Built urban and community resilience to address social, physical, economic and environmental vulnerabilities and reduce risks of disasters and effects of climate change through an integrated planning approach (aligned to District Development Model).

During the visit, Sharif and Kubayi will hold bilateral discussions on strategic partnerships and country programmes, and sign a MOU between South Africa and UN-Habitat, among others.

From 13 to 16 October 2022, together with the South African delegation, Kubayi and Sharif will visit KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and Gauteng to assess the work that is being done to upgrade informal settlements through the provision of basic services and transfer of people to permanent housing structures.

The formal and informal settlements to be visited include Pemilton in Durban, Bosasa and Conradie Park in Cape Town, and Rugby Club and Fleurhof housing development in Roodepoort, Johannesburg.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Press Release

October 13, 2022 ANC HEADSTART INTERVIEW OF SEN. WIN GATCHALIAN WITH KAREN DAVILA ON POGO HEARING AND DEPED BUDGET Q: I first wanna ask you, you were in that meeting with the Chinese ambassador with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senator Robin Padilla. What exactly did he say? SEN. WIN: It's a simple case of misappreciation and context is very important. When we asked about POGO to the Chinese Ambassador, he explained that in China, there were cases of suicides because of addiction to online gambling. Therefore, the Chinese Law is very strict when it comes to number one, betting online, number two investing in online gambling businesses. And then number three, working in online gambling businesses. And then we went on to say that in order to prevent their citizens from engaging in online gambling businesses, whether working or investing, they implemented a blacklist. And he made an example of Cambodia. So I think the appreciation was not in line with one another. But it's very good that the Chinese Embassy has already clarified this issue. So the issue is now clarified through the official statements of the Embassy. Q: So Senator, is it fair that the Chinese Ambassador? To what degree was giving a warning? SEN. WIN: I didn't feel that it was a warning but the context, we have to look at the context, because what we are saying is that there are growing cases of suicides in China, and there are growing cases of people getting very indebted because of online gambling and the context there is they're implementing mechanisms to prevent their citizens from going abroad because a way for their citizens to skip the law is to go abroad, working in POGOs,investing in POGOs, playing online, so that is their concern. And whatever their policy, whatever mechanisms they want to employ, that's their own concern being a sovereign nation. So one of the mechanisms that they were thinking about or implemented in the case of Cambodia is blacklisting. Just to be fair, my appreciation, he never categorically said that the Philippines will be blacklisted anytime soon. Q: Yes. Okay. So now it is clear. So I'm curious right now, where did it come from that the Philippines is blacklisted? So do you believe that's the part that's lost in translation here? SEN. WIN: Definitely. Again, it's a simple case of misappreciation, I don't think we should blow this up. Definitely translation is part of the challenge. The challenge, definitely. And, again, there's so many things that were being talked about. It was very important, to be fair, also, the courtesy call was very cordial. It was a courtesy call and the aim of the courtesy call is to strengthen the relationship between the Senate, our country and also China. Q: All right, now moving forward, given the hearings. I know that you still have to come out with a report but putting, considering the Chinese ambassador's, statements on the effect of POGO and what they've done to Cambodia. Should we heed their warning so to speak, or their concerns about POGO? SEN. WIN: That's the question I posed to PAGCOR. The first is we have to understand the macro scenario of POGO. Where is POGO going? What is the future of POGO? What are the risks? What are the risks that the country will face when we cultivate POGO? These are the questions that I posed to PAGCOR because we need to understand if POGO is a business that can be sustained. Because right now, if you look at the external policies of China, what's happening in Cambodia, we found out here in ASEAN that it's only in the Philippines that allows POGOs so far, based on our research. Q: Because Cambodia and Vietnam, tama ba ito Senator, they used to have and then now they banned it? SEN. WIN: Correct, based on our research, Cambodia used to have a POGO industry, but they banned it. The same with Vietnam, but it's not as big as ours, but they banned it. Cambodia is actually a very good example because they also experience an increase in crime. So, what they did is they also banned POGOs and online gambling businesses. So in other words, we have to look at the industry as a whole. And we found out through the hearing that number one, there's no roadmap, meaning there's no direction for POGOs. And then number two, because of all of these risks, from China, from other countries, the biggest risk is crime. This business is quite unstable and if you have an unstable business, then it's very difficult to predict the growth of the business and where the business is going to. It's also very difficult to promote it because if we promote it and then one day POGO will stop, then we will have massive unemployment that will happen in our country. Q: But then you've also said that we don't need POGO. This was a statement you had made. SEN. WIN: Just to give context again. We also found out from the hearing that 50 percent of our total revenues, the revenues that we get here in the Philippines, through the POGO business is from China. So a big chunk, half of the revenues derived by POGO businesses is coming from China. So China plays a very important role. And we also found out that recently, China really cracked down on investing and participating in both POGO businesses, because in their Chinese law, we also did some research that you can be put in jail for three years if you are caught working, investing and participating in POGO. So because of that, this becomes an uncertainty in the POGO industry because a large chunk of your business comes from China. Q: Okay, but then, based on the hearing, let's talk about the economic impact of POGO. I know that you have David Leechiu in the Senate hearings and he raised concerns on how this would affect the real estate market in the Philippines. And they claim that P19 billion worth of revenues are coming from POGOs, in real estate investments. Is that correct, Senator? SEN. WIN: From the data that Mr. Leechu submitted to us, we tried to call out the data. Basically, he was saying that P24 billion of direct and indirect revenues will be lost or we have gained P24 billion from POGOs since 2017. It's about 0.13% of our GDP. But we have to also understand that the POGO during its heyday and the POGO now are wildly different. After the pandemic, after the crackdown, and after the soaring of crimes, we saw a big dip in terms of POGO revenues. I'll give you an example. If you compute all taxes, direct taxes from POGOs, also from rent, also from utility. That's about P34 billion that our government gets. This is in 2021. So that's about 0.2% of our GDP. So it's not a sizable amount and that's why my conclusion here, personal conclusion here, if POGO disappears in the Philippines, we won't feel it in the long run, because it's only 0.2% of our GDP. But I will admit that in the short run, in the short term, there will be implications to our real estate industry and most especially to employment because right now POGO employs about 20,000 Filipinos. In the short run we need to find a replacement job for them. The good thing is that 20,000 Filipinos, I found out during the hearing, are also technically inclined, they work in IT, they work in customer service, they have technical jobs, so meron silang skills, they have skills, and those skills can be easily absorbed by the BPO industry. We also found out through research that the BPO industry is growing at 8%. So that's quite fast, and they're employing about 1.5 million Filipinos, Filipinos and foreigners. So in other words, that 20,000 because of their skills that they got from working in service providers in POGOs can be easily absorbed and we will put a lot of emphasis in the transition employment of those 20,000 who will lose their job. Q: And another issue to consider is diplomacy. Foreign Relations. This is another issue considering those victimized by POGO while they are not Filipinos, they are Chinese nationals who are gambling right outside the country, but then some I think it was Senate President Migz Zubiri said how would we feel if they did E-sabong in China and then our citizens are still gambling when E-sabong is banned? SEN. WIN: That's why context is very important. That's why I had to lay down the concepts on why the Chinese ambassador mentioned that blacklisting issue. And because in China, there's now a growing concern of Chinese citizens being indebted, Chinese citizens committing suicide because they cannot pay their debts. Q: Same with E-sabong, right? SEN. WIN: The same case with e-sabong, and we also found, actually I have some Filipino Chinese friends who texted me, there are also cases of teenagers in China betting on online gambling. So this is a growing social concern for them. So they will also do whatever they can to arrest that growing social concern. That's their prerogative being a sovereign state. They're also doing the same. And during the heyday we're getting a lot of revenue from POGO. Close to about 14 billion in terms of taxes and fees. So that's quite a lot for us considering also that there was a pandemic, we were scrambling for revenues. That's why at that time, we gave our own national necessity priority, meaning to collect revenues. And that's why we enacted that POGO taxation Law. But the thing is, this also came out in the hearing that despite the pandemic, in 2020, 2021, the crime related to POGO increased from 30% to 50% of all kidnap for ransom cases. So imagine that the number of POGO licensees are going down from 60 to 30. But the crimes related to POGO are going up. So in other words, my analysis on this is that the crimes associated with POGO are very difficult to disentangle. And that's probably the nature of POGO because it's banned in China. A lot of these operators who are connected to crime syndicates, also came here to the Philippines because they're the only ones who can operate this type of businesses because they're totally banned in China. Q: So what do you think Senator happened? I know the PNP reported in the hearing that there have been no crimes related to POGO since September 15. Right. So what do you make of that report? SEN. WIN: You know naman in our country, kapag mainit people lie low. And they either don't do anything or don't report it because we're conducting hearings regularly. I think that's an aberration to crime reporting, but this is the thing that we found out. We're losing the war against POGO related crimes. Because the PNP reported to us that in the last four years, they investigated 99 POGO related crimes, and we found out that only one was convicted. So out of the 99, close to 100, only one was convicted. That's a measly 1% conviction rate. So kaya lumalakas ang loob ng mga crime syndicate because they know that they will not be convicted, only one out of the 99 was convicted. Q: Okay, now recently, I know that there are over 3,000 POGO workers who also signed up for police clearance, have you heard about this? SEN. WIN: That's what we found out from the PNP. I was going to say that that's their initiative because this is the sad part, we found out also that major government agencies are not communicating on a regular basis. I'll give you an example. The licensees of PAGCOR are not given on a regular basis to the PNP so they don't know who the underground POGO and the legitimate POGOs are. Q: Yeah, General Azubrin admitted that. SEN. WIN: Correct, on record. And so the PNP took it upon themselves, that, for example, in your area of jurisdiction, you have a lot of POGOs there, they implemented a police clearance mechanism wherein they will issue police clearances to the POGO workers. So that's their own initiative and we have to give credit to the policemen because they're trying to do whatever they can so that peace and order will be maintained in their communities. Q: But the problem is pwedeng may police clearance sa mga illegal, the POGO operator? SEN. WIN: They can also issue police clearance to illegal POGOs. They can also issue police clearance to illegal POGO workers, because they don't have the records. This is also a classic case of structural issues. Another thing that we found out is that PAGCOR and BIR are also not talking regularly. In fact, the last time that they formally met was last June and we found out that the declaration of POGO companies to BIR is grossly undervalued. This year, we actually lost 1.9 billion in terms of taxes from POGO because PAGCOR holds the audit for gross gaming revenue. BIR is self declaration, whatever you want to indicate. So we found that underdeclaration is close to about P40 billion. So the revenue that we are collecting by the BIR is grossly undervalued by about P1.9 billion. So there's also tax evasion, because they're supposed to declare truthfully to the BIR. Q: Shouldn't PAGCOR and BIR be working together? SEN. WIN: There's actually a mechanism in the law for them to work together. And that's actually a perennial sickness of government agencies that they don't coordinate or they coordinate, kapag may problema na. But in the law, they should sit down together, everyone; the Bureau of Immigration, the PNP, the BIR, PAGCOR so that they can regularly exchange data and update their data, but it's a structural problem. It's definitely a sickness in our country, and that's now affecting government revenues. Q: Now, let's be fair to those who are operating legally, they may be asking right now. I mean, two days ago, they had a press conference, the Association of POGO workers, I'm sure you've seen that. And then tax paying POGO companies are asking, why go after us? We're paying taxes. There are those that are illegally doing POGO operations, why not run after them? Or they claim now even E-Binggo is not being noticed. Gross bets are reaching billions of pesos, as much as E-sabong at its peak. SEN. WIN: It can be argued that the whole business model of POGO is unstable. And the reason for that is the revenues that we derive from, the biggest revenue generator for POGO which is China has some policy issues on POGO. So my point there is, if you have an unstable business, you now run the risk of having people who can lose their jobs in the future if that policy will change. I'll give you an example. The BPO industry has been here for the last 20 years. They're growing at around 8% per annum and they are employing 1.5 million employees now and they're projected to grow by to about 10% in the next five to 10 years. I made the comparison because you can see that there's a direction for business process outsourcing. In fact, they want to go much higher in terms of value. So in that case, we can plan, we can encourage people to work in business process outsourcing, we can help them grow employment without running the risk of unemployment in the future. So that's what I meant by unstable business model because we can encourage people to go and work for POGOs and one day we say sorry, nagbago ang policy ng China and then we run the risk of unemployment. Q: Now you have two sides here, you have some lawmakers that are of course justifying, finding ways to compromise the existence of POGOs in the country. Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said yesterday, he said let's face it, the lobby is also strong. That's what he said yesterday, and of course there are lawmakers like yourself and others who feel it's not worth it. Will this be resolved if the President Just makes the decision as you had hoped for, should he just make that decision? SEN. WIN: The Senate is conducting hearings using data and statistics. So our recommendation will be based on statistics, data, evidence and validated information. And I'm sure the President will do the same. Of course, the crime element is very heavy. That's the social cost. And, unfortunately, looking at the trend, it seems to me that it's very difficult to disentangle the POGO industry and crime. I told you earlier that despite the number of licensees going down in the last two years, the crime rate went up. So it's very difficult to disentangle it and then if you look at the nature of the POGO industries, a lot of them are people who cannot skirt Chinese laws by coming here to the Philippines. So those are the qualities of investors that are coming to the Philippines. Hindi kasi sila maka-operate sa China, so to skirt that, they come here to the Philippines. We want investors who are legitimate, we want investors who are long term, we want investors who are crime free. Those are the investors that we want to attract here to the Philippines. Q: So I wanted to ask you, would you want the President or are you calling on the President to make a decision? I mean, if you remember former president Duterte, at one point finally decided to end e-sabong. I mean, it was way close to the end of his term, but he did it. So do you believe that it should be the President who will make a decision and you hope for him to do it soon? SEN. WIN: From the hearing yesterday by Senator Angara, he asks Executive Secretary Bersamin about POGOs. And the way I understand it, the Palace, the Malacanang is looking at this very carefully, studying it also. And they're also looking and listening to the Senate hearings, and they will probably use the Senate hearings as a basis for their decision. So it can go parallel, that while the Senate is conducting its hearings, we will give our recommendations of course to the executive because at the end of the day, they will be the ones implementing it. And the palace is also studying on their own, so it's good that both sides are studying because at the end, we'll arrive at some conclusion but in our case, the way we're conducting our hearings is we're using a lot of data, a lot of statistics and we're getting a lot of evidence because we want to recommend a position that is well grounded on facts and validated information. Q: Okay, let's move on to another topic quickly. Let's talk about the 2023 budget. The idea of this budget is it's a no additional tax budget, right? In terms of funding services for this budget. What to you is the biggest challenge with the 2023 budget? SEN. WIN: Well fiscal space will be the biggest challenge Karen, because the challenge there is how to reduce deficit, how to reduce our debt, while not sacrificing social services. Investing in education, continuing to fight pandemic, investing in health. These are the priorities, but at the same time, we're trying to manage our fiscal position by reducing our deficit back to the pre-pandemic levels of about 2 to 3% and also our debt to about 30 to 40%. Of course, it will not happen overnight. But the most important thing here is, there's a plan already. And second, the most important thing is to spend judiciously. There's still a lot of room to reduce expenses. For example, there are some attached agencies there that cannot justify their.. Q: Yeah yeah, Spend judiciously you are the chairman also of the Senate Committee on basic education. The DepEd is asking for 150 million pesos in confidential funds, and some of your colleagues say this is the first. Is that necessary? Does the DepEd Secretary need confidential funds? SEN. WIN: These are the facts. There are crimes happening in our schools. For example, drugs, abuses, harassment, especially drugs and even human trafficking, we found out that there also cases.. Q: Why does it have to be in confidential funds? SEN. WIN: The way I understand the process, to apprehend and also to stop all of those crimes is to investigate by gathering information. And the funds that will be used, the funds that will be allocated will be used to gather information. And again we have to put this in context. We're talking about 50,000 schools nationwide, and 23 million students nationwide. So some might be big on face value, but if you look at the entire magnitude of our public school system it's quite big. And it's quite important also to arrest those crimes being perpetrated in our schools. Q: Now, let's talk about this. I mean, I know it may seem political, but it shouldn't be if the President right now is with 5 billion pesos in confidential funds essentially, then you have the Office of the Vice President, I think at half a billion. Am I correct? 500 million, then the Vice President being DepEd secretary is asking for 150 million. And then the irony of this policy of the National Intelligence Agency of the country, the NICA with 141 million, like 9 million pesos less than the confidential funds that's in DepEd. So do you find this ironic or what do you make of this? SEN. WIN: Karen we have to understand, the law allows it. When I was a mayor, we also had intel at that time, intelligence fund pa ang tawag. We also have intelligence funds that we use to fight drugs and those intelligence funds were used to give money to informants to do buy busts operations, majority with buy bust operations, and they also need to understand that aside from the law authorizing it, there are mechanisms to assure the public that the funds are not being misused. I'll give you an example. Those funds should be approved by the Office of the President. Number two, those funds will be audited by COA. And then number three, those funds should be regularly reported back to Congress. There are mechanisms for check and balances. They are not slush funds that we give and then they can just spend it whenever, on whatever they want. Those funds have limitations in terms of what can be spent on and there's reporting mechanisms, both to COA and also to Congress. Q: Okay, so what you're saying is the confidential funds for these offices, the Office of the President, Vice President, and even the one that the DepEd is asking is not spared from the auditing of the Commission on Audit? SEN. WIN: No, no, definitely not. In fact, I know for a fact that there are a lot of LGUs that the COA turned down, they are spending on intelligence funds but were asked to return the funds. I know a lot no, this is a regular case in the local government unit. So if the COA finds out that they spent the funds, but these are done in confidence because of the nature of the activity, but the COA saw that it's not within bounds of the law. The local government will be asked to return the same to the national government. If they are not within the bounds of the law, they will be asked to return it. Q: Okay. All right. Now, I know with education, it's a whole different show. We can actually talk about the budget for education. My last question is let's talk about SPED. At one point it was discovered it had no budget. And then I think the lower house was aligned. I can't remember if it's 80 million going to SPED or 90 million right now. But what worries me as a mother, with a child with special needs, is the fact that the Department of Budget and Management said that it's the DepEd, they didn't know how to spend the SPED budget. That's why they declined it. SEN. WIN: Karen, we now have a law. The inclusive education law. This is a brand new law. And this law puts us in line with global standards when it comes to inclusive education. And we're one of the few countries that have this type of law, this type of inclusive education law and we need to to promote it and spend on it. So we also flagged the Department of Education on that, and it's good that the Department of Education acknowledged that they should put funds. They're putting close to about 500 million in terms of funding but personally, I think that's small, I think we should increase it to not less than a billion because we need to put Inclusive Learning Resource Centers... Q: And we have to train teachers. SEN. WIN: But the most important Karen is intervention. A lot of our children with special needs cannot go to a Makati Med or to St. Luke's to go to a developmental pediatrician. We need to get those experts in the facilities to the countryside and that's the aim of the inclusive education that we need to fund seriously. Q: All right. On that note Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, thank you so much for joining me on Headstart today. When is the next hearing for POGO? SEN. WIN: We're scheduling in about two weeks from now we're just waiting for information to come in. Q: And that would be the last one. SEN. WIN: That will be the last. Q: All right. So after that you'll have a committee report by then? SEN. WIN: I'll be working with Senator Bato Dela Rosa, there are two components to this, the revenue side and also the peace and order side. So we'll work together to come up with a single direction.
Russia tourists at a beach in Cam Ranh in Khanh Hoa Province, central Vietnam, November 2021. Photo courtesy of Cam Ranh Rivera Beach Resort

Nha Trang, a popular beach resort town in central Vietnam, plans to welcome tourists from Kazakhstan and Russia on tour packages from late this month to boost its year-end tourism.

Bui Quoc Dai, deputy director of tour operator Anex Vietnam, said his company will cooperate with Vietjet Air to organize charter flights to bring tourists from Kazakhstan, Russia and some countries in Eastern Europe to Nha Trang of Khanh Hoa Province from Oct. 25.

There would be two weekly charter flights departing from Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan to Cam Ranh International Airport, around 40 kilometers from Nha Trang beach resort town.

"Many Russian tourists wishing to visit Vietnam on their winter holiday escape would transit in Kazakhstan and board these charter flights to Nha Trang as direct flights from Russia to Vietnam have not yet resumed," Dai said.

"However, due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine military conflict, the number of Russian visitors to Nha Trang would be quite low," he added.

Each flight will carry 180-200 tourists who would stay at three-to-five-star resorts in Nha Trang from one week to 28 days.

Amid the shortage of Russian tourists due to political tensions, the travel firm will focus on exploiting this new travel market, Dai said.

There are numerous similarities between the Russian and Kazakhstan markets as tourists from the latter take long-term vacations during the winter season, which starts in October.

Nguyen Thi Le Thanh, director of Khanh Hoa's Department of Tourism, said the opening of these charter flights to Nha Trang will help diversify the international tourism sector in the absence of Chinese and Russian visitors, its biggest sources before the pandemic.

In the first nine months of this year, Nha Trang welcomed 6,700 Russian tourists, accounting for 4.3% of total foreign arrivals.

Vietnam is one of the five most popular travel destinations for Russians for the New Year holiday, according to data from Russian travel site OneTwoTrip based on customer bookings with departures between Dec. 31 and Jan. 8, 2023.

After the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out in February, direct flights from Russia to Vietnam were suspended.

Currently, Russian tourists only come to Vietnam in small groups. They have to transit in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before taking a flight to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City.
Vietjet to launch first direct air route between Vietnam, Kazakhstan

Low-cost carrier Vietjet on Wednesday announced the opening of the first direct air route connecting Vietnam and Kazakhstan.

From Oct. 25, there would be two weekly flights from Nha Trang, a popular beach resort town in central Vietnam, to Kazakhstan's biggest city Almaty every Tuesday and Saturday.

This would be the first direct air route between both countries, said Chu Viet Cuong, deputy general director of Vietjet.

Earlier, tourists and businessmen from Vietnam to Kazakhstan often had to transit several times in Thailand and India.

Cuong said the new route would facilitate the development of bilateral trade and tourism activities between the two countries.

In 2020, trade turnover between the two countries reached $380.8 million.

Round-trip airfares of the direct route will cost VND19 million ($789) per person.

Vietnam reopened its borders in mid-March after two years of closures.

Vietnam has yet to waive visa requirements for Kazakh visitors while Kazakhstan offers visa exemptions for Vietnamese tourists.
The United States, in coordination with the government of Switzerland and Afghan economic experts, has announced the establishment of a fund to benefit the people of Afghanistan, or the Afghan Fund.



The United States remains committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan amidst ongoing economic and humanitarian crises. Pursuant to Executive Order 14064, President Joe Biden has enabled $3.5 billion of Afghan central bank reserves to be used for the benefit of the people of Afghanistan while keeping them out of the hands of the Taliban. The Afghan Fund will make targeted disbursements of that $3.5 billion to help provide greater stability to the Afghan economy.



The people of Afghanistan face humanitarian and economic crises born of decades of conflict, severe drought, COVID-19, and endemic corruption, said Wendy Sherman, United States Deputy Secretary of State. With the establishment of the Afghan Fund, the United States and its partners take an important, concrete step forward in ensuring that additional resources can be brought to bear to reduce suffering and improve economic stability for the people of Afghanistan while continuing to hold the Taliban accountable.



Wally Adeyemo, United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, said The Talibans repression and economic mismanagement have exacerbated longstanding economic challenges for Afghanistan, including through actions that have diminished the capacity of key Afghan economic institutions and made the return of these funds to Afghanistan untenable. Through this Fund, the United States will work closely with our international partners to facilitate use of these assets to improve the lives of ordinary people in Afghanistan.



The United States is already the largest donor of humanitarian assistance, Deputy Secretary Sherman noted. We have worked

with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank to make available more than $1 billion in assistance for basic services and other urgent needs, in addition to providing over $814 million in

U.S. humanitarian aid directly to implementing partners to support the Afghan people while preventing funds from benefiting the Taliban. Now, the Afghan Fund will be part of our ongoing

diplomatic and humanitarian efforts on behalf of the people of Afghanistan.
My name is Misty Atkins. I am the mother of three children, one of whom I homeschool. I moved to Elko County in 2012 and fell in love with the area shortly after. There is so much to do here, and the scenery is phenomenal. There is always an adventure to be had in the hills and something new to see over every ridge.

I, like many others over the past 2 years, have been watching this pandemic and our governments response with an eye of concern and consideration. I was truly concerned by what I witnessed within our school district. Those observations motivated me to get involved.

One of my top priorities is to get our students on the right track with education. Nevada is 50th in the nation and Elko County is 5.5-6 percentage points below Nevadas average. Our students deserve better and our teachers want to provide a quality education.

I observed a need for someone that wont back down when facing an oppressive government. I am that person. There is a way to make things work for everyone without taking away the rights of parents and students, and I will work to make that happen.

Along the way, I discovered a glaring lack of transparency that has gone unexplained and unaccounted for. I am the person who will work to make Elko County School District transparent and responsive to parents concerns.
Nancy Brune and Ray Spencer

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Term limits for an incumbent on the Las Vegas City Council have opened the race for political newcomers looking to score a four-year term on the board. Nancy Brune and Ray Spencer are seeking to replace term-limited Michele Fiore, who is running as the Republican nominee for Nevada State Treasurer.

Nancy Brune

As the founder and former executive director of the Guinn Centera nonpartisan data-driven policy center  Nancy Brune says she is a proven problem solver.

After the worst of the pandemic passed, Brune said she left the policy center to take a more active role in local non-partisan government. She realized many of Nevadas most pressing issues could be solved on the county and city level.

We have some really big challenges, Brune said. In the face of these problems our local government is not doing its job. We have some politicians that spend more time playing to partisan allegiances than actually coming up with a plan.

Brune, a registered Democrat, said she has a track record of working across the ideological spectrum to find solutions that work for Nevadans as a researcher and policy expert.

I seek to govern the same way I led the Guinn Center which is identifying the problems were trying to solve by looking at the data and research that exists to find solutions, Brune said.

Housing and public health are some of her top priorities, said Brune, adding that if elected she would push to represent the council on the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority and the Southern Nevada Health District.

Brune supports public-private partnerships, which use public funds to minimize risk to private investors and encourage them to invest in low-income communities.

If elected, Brune said she would take the lead on bringing Community Development Corporations into the city, a non-profit community-based organization dedicated to revitalizing underserved communities. Various similar sized cities have used such corporations to develop affordable housing in blighted neighborhoods, said Brune.

Bringing more dollars into the city through federal grants is another priority, said Brune. Nevada ranks 46th for federal grants per capita. The city must improve its ability to successfully pull in federal dollars, said Brune. Over the last couple of years, Brune said she has written grants that brought in $20 million dollars to Nevada to fund college and career pathways for struggling residents.

Residents of Ward 6 have expressed concern over water availability as the city grows. Brune said there are common sense solutions to conserve water on the local level. She proposed performing a water audit for every large public and private project so residents know up front what the water usage will be and how it could affect water availability.

Research also shows denser developmentlike condominiums and townhouses saves water, Brune said, arguing that the city needs to have a serious conversation about finding the right place for such developments.

Brune said Ward 6 residents should vote for her over her opponent Ray Spencer, a former Las Vegas Metro Police sergeant, because she has the expertise to create solutions.

My opponent has a very deep history in one area which is law enforcement, but I would argue that city council members deal with a whole host of issues: housing, land use, education, law enforcement. I have worked and done research in all of those areas, including law enforcement.

The other difference, sadly, is that even though this is a non-partisan race he is playing to partisan politics, Brune said, adding that residents have grown tired of partisan bickering. Theres a choice between electing someone who will bring you more of the same, because hes doing it on the campaign trail, versus someone who truly wants to put good policy and people over politics.

Ray Spencer

After repeated interview requests, Ray Spencer, a former Las Vegas Metro Police sergeant, agreed to an interview, but could not be reached in time for publication. I will reach out in the coming days, Spencer said in a text, but he did not.

On social media Spencer said public safety was his top priority and vowed to use city city funding to place more police officers in Ward 6 neighborhoods.

Spencer, a registered Republican and political newcomer, referred to himself as the public safety candidate in the race for Las Vegas City Council Ward 6. Spencer said he will use his 25 years of experience in law enforcement to improve community safety.

In May, during an interview on Nevada Week Spencer said he believes there is a trend of officials going soft on crime, which he argued is leading to an increase in crime.

Prior to running for city council, Spencer was the commander of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Departments homicide section. Spencer said his solvability percentage was 93% in 2020.

The police can only do so much, Spencer said about criminal reoffending. The criminal justice system in all honesty is bursting at the seams.

Spencer was the incident commander for the Route 91 shooting, the deadliest U.S. mass shooting in modern history for which he was awarded the Medal of Valor by the LVMPD.

While Spencers campaign page is mostly dedicated to public safety and crime, he has also expressed support for small businesses, responsible development, and protecting Floyd Lamb Park.

On his campaign site, Spencer also noted that education and transparent government are among his top policy priorities and vowed to improve those issues if elected to the seat.
Question 3 on the Nevada general election ballot in is an initiative that, if enacted, would eliminate partisan primaries and establish an open primary election and a top-five ranked-choice voting general election.

All candidates for U.S. Congressional, Nevada state constitutional offices and State Legislator elections and all voters would participate in a single primary election regardless of party affiliation or non-affiliation. The top five finishers would advance to the general election, with the general election winner determined by ranked-choice voting.

Ranked-choice gives voters the right to rank up to five candidates in order of their preferred choices or to vote only for their top choice.

Under current law, Nevadas partisan primaries are open exclusively to Nevadans who register as Republican (30%) or Democrat (33%). Current law excludes the growing 37% of all Nevada voters not registered as Republican or Democrat from taxpayer-funded partisan primary elections.

These closed partisan primaries are controlled by political party activists and increasingly dominated by the most extreme party constituents. The current system excludes voters and entitles a very small, partisan minority to determine the general election candidates.

Nevada would be adopting a jungle primary system leaving the top-five vote getters, regardless of political party, facing off in a ranked choice runoff election in November.

In 2004, Washington became the first state to adopt a top-two open primary system in which all candidates are listed on the primary ballot. The top two vote-getters, regardless of their partisan affiliations, advance to the general election for congressional and state-level elections.

Consequently, its possible for two candidates belonging to the same political party to win in a top-two primary and face off in the general election.

California followed suit in June 2010 when voters adopted Prop. 14. It was intended to moderate the states politics and give centrist candidates a chance. The open top two primary was meant to reduce extreme partisanship and encourage independents.

The extent to which the change had a moderating effect on California politics is debated. It did result in Democratic Senators Kamala Harris and Dianne Feinstein, in 2016 and 2018, having no Republican general election opponents.

In 2020, Alaska voters narrowly approved (50.5%-49.5%) a ballot initiative establishing an open primary for state offices and congressional elections. The initiative also established top-four ranked choice voting for general elections.

Maine voters approved ranked choice voting in 2016 (52%-48%) conducting their first election using this system in 2020.

Ranked choice voting for local elections is used in more than 20 U.S. cities, including progressive enclaves like Cambridge, Massachusetts; San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley, California; and Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.

New York City, the largest voting population in the U.S., used ranked choice voting in 2021.

But ranked choice voting has met resistance.

Despite being vastly outspent and having endorsements from Democratic Senate progressives Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, Massachusetts voters decisively rejected (54.8%-45.2%) ranked choice voting in 2020. GOP Governor Charlie Baker argued ranked choice voting was too confusing and complicated for voters.

Alaska had an eccentric result in their first use of the ranked choice system in an August special House election. It didnt work as intended. Democrat Mary Peltola won despite being the first ranked choice of only 39.7% of voters. Unfamiliar with the system, majority Republicans failed to vote strategically.

Nevada Voters First PAC is spending more than $7 million on advertising supporting Question 3.

Not surprisingly, the political partisans  both Democrats (Gov. Steve Sisolak, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, Jacky Rosen) and Republicans (Rep. Mark Amodei) oppose Question 3.

An open jungle primary should be adopted in Nevada. Closed party primaries disenfranchise 600,000 Nevada voters.

Question 3s fatal flaw is attempting to lock a confusing general election top-five ranked choice system into the Nevada Constitution. Its a bridge too far.

Reluctantly, Ill vote No on Question 3.
A U.S. expert on China hailed the country's development in the past decade as 'remarkable' and lauded the Chinese people and its government for putting their shoulder to the wheel to make dreams into reality. Charlotte Christensen, vice president of the Oregon China Council (OCC), made the remarks in a recent interview. Christensen hailed China's development in the past decade as 'remarkable', and said that the country's great achievements cannot be summed up in a single word.

Click here to watch the video.




China's development and achievements in poverty alleviation in the past decade is impressive, and good China-U.S. cooperation is important for everyone, said Jeffrey Greene, executive director of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation. Greene said China has not only made great contributions to the cause of global poverty reduction, but also provided much assistance to third world countries. In addition, China has actively participated to safeguard world peace and promoted common development, fully demonstrating the responsibility of a major country.

Click here to watch the video.




Various foreign leaders spoke highly of China's development over the past decade, giving prominence to its people-centric concept and popular support from the masses of people. Yves Leterme, former Prime Minister of Belgium who has been to China more than 20 times in the past two decades, noted that the country has achieved huge development since his first visit, adding the pioneering spirit of bold trials and constant innovations has been deep-seated in the CPC statecraft wisdom.

Click here to watch the video.




Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core, China has taken self-reliance in science and technology as a strategic support for international development, continued to implement the strategy of innovation-driven development, and striven to build itself into an innovative and powerful country in science and technology. After ten years of sheer endeavor and leapfrog development, China's science and technology sector has undergone historic, overall and structural changes, successfully entering the ranks of innovative countries.

Click here to watch the video.




Press Release

October 13, 2022 LEGARDA LEADS THE "CAMPAIGN FOR NATURE" HIGH AMBITION COALITION At no other time in the history of this country have we seen the confluence of high-level reactions to the dual threats of climate change and biodiversity collapse. United States Senator Russell Feingold sought the guidance and leadership of Senator Loren Legarda in bringing the Philippines into the High Ambition Coalition (HAC). With the conviction brought about by twin disasters placing us among the most vulnerable, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) sent Notes Verbale to the Permanent Missions of France, Costa Rica, and the UK to the United Nations in New York. Dated October 5, 2022, these Notes signified that the Philippines will join the High Ambition Coalition and the Global Ocean Alliance. As a strong advocate of climate change adaptation and mitigation, Legarda secured the commitment of the DFA and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in joining the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for Nature and People. The HAC has set an aspiration of protecting at least 30% of the world's land and ocean, through increased public and private financing, to ensure long-term management and local governance, and clear implementation mechanisms to nature so we can recover ecosystems by the year 2030. This is consistent with the United Nation's declaration of this decade as one for Ecological Restoration. Nor surprisingly, 2030 is also the target for reaching our Sustainable Development Goals. Legarda started to raise the alarm over climate change as early as several decades ago. The world has since slowly woken up to the realities of what we have done to nature and its systems. Unfortunately, it was massive typhoons, crop damage, heat waves and disease outbreaks that are aggravated by the changing climate that has forced us to finally admit humanity's role in the changing planet. The Philippines is one of the places where we can see the most vulnerabilities as well as demonstrate the greatest progress in shifting our development direction to consider what is happening to the planet. Through nature-based solutions, we can do what we have set out to do and succeed in protecting remaining forests and coastal areas. We will then not only have the multiple benefits these ecosystems produce such as food, water, clean air, medicines, and shields against disaster. We will also be reducing our contribution to the greenhouse gases being emitted that is still pushing us towards disaster. While our contribution in terms of emissions is minimal, what we do to the ecosystems that will allow them to benefit us will also have the side benefit of reducing our contribution further. Legarda adds, "We should not even be calling the very survival of our species and all that we rely on to live as high ambition. A species such as ours that is sentient and has intelligence is expected to understand what to do to save itself. Yet we have not done so, blinded by different determinants of success and progress." "I am glad that the DENR and the DFA sees their way clearly to joining in these initiatives. Both have determined that these commitments are, after all, already within their plans. I therefore challenge all of government, in the crafting of the Philippine Development Plan and in their planning and budgeting to ensure that these commitments can be fulfilled." "I call on the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to ensure that the Expanded National Integrated Protected Area Systems (E-NIPAS) Act, or Republic Act No. 11038, is fully funded as required by law. We cannot expect to save our remaining natural ecosystems in these protected areas without the necessary personnel." "I call on the Department of Education (DepEd) to fully implement the Environmental Awareness and Education Act, or Republic Act No. 9512, and ensure that we are training students not just for a workforce that will drastically change as we confront climate change but for a greener future, to enter into what the Green Jobs Act, Republic Act No. 10771, will generate" "I call on the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to strategize under a changing climate, reconsidering coastal development that reduces greenbelts and mangroves in favor of concrete infrastructure, to focus instead on ecosystem management infrastructure such as septic, septage and treatment systems, and support to public transportation instead of the irrational addition to the road network despite the higher and higher costs of fossil fuels." "These are but a few of the agencies who might persuade themselves that this crisis and this 30x30 campaign does not involve them. But for preserving the life-giving capacity of our archipelago, we need all hands-on deck, a whole of government and a whole of society approach," Legarda concluded.
Looking back on the past decade, what changes in China have been most impressive? From fighting against poverty to advancing rural revitalization across the board, let's hear what Erik Nilsson, an American who has lived and worked in China for more than a decade, has to say.

Starting from his own experience, he tells vivid stories of China's poverty alleviation with a backdrop powered by extended reality (XR) technology.

Watch this video to learn more.
Delegates from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) arrived in Beijing on Thursday.

This is the first delegation to arrive from outside Beijing on Thursday.

More than 2,200 delegates, representing more than 96 million CPC members across the nation, are arriving in the capital to attend the congress, scheduled to open on Oct. 16.
The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting on Aug. 31 to seek opinions and suggestions from non-CPC personages on the draft report to the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting and made an important speech.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son (Source: VNA)

The FM made the statement in an interview to the press on the occasion of Vietnams fresh election to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the 2023-2025 tenure.

Emphasising the significance of this great event, Son said along with security, peace and development, the promotion and protection of human rights constitute one of the three main pillars underpinning the United Nations (UN). The UNHRC is the most important mechanism on human rights within the UN system. It is a forum for dialogue, cooperation and promotion of human rights across countries in the world.

In Vietnam, the Party and State consistently identify the people as the center, the actor, the most important resource, and the purpose of the developmental process. This well-founded view has been set out in detail in Vietnam's socio-economic development plans and strategies, and is also institutionalized under the Constitution and the law. Accordingly, human rights, and citizens' political, civil, economic, cultural and social rights are recognized, respected, protected and ensured pursuant to the Constitution and the law.

As an active and responsible member of the international community, Vietnam always seriously and fully implements its international commitments on human rights, and makes all efforts to advance human rights domestically and internationally. Vietnam successfully fulfilled its UNHRC membership for 2014-2016, and actively promoted dialogue and cooperation in this process. Such efforts left positive impressions and are highly regarded by the international community, he said.

Therefore, the FM stressed Vietnam's election to the UNHRC for 2023-2025 is of great importance in various ways.

First, it helps reaffirm Vietnams sound and consistent position and policy on the special importance attached to the human factor and on how best Vietnam can harness the human element in national development. This view holds that economic growth must be closely linked with cultural and human development, and social progress and justice must be upheld. It is also a testament to Vietnam's immense achievements so far in upholding the people's right to mastery, and our respect for, and protection and championing of human and civic rights according to the Constitution and the law.

Second, it contributes to the implementation of the foreign policy line set by the 13th National Party Congress. The policy calls for the elevation of multilateral diplomacy to a higher level, active participation and proactive engagement at instrumental multilateral forums of strategic significance, as a channel to further enhance Vietnam's global standing and prestige. Vietnam's election to the UNHRC stands testimony to Vietnam's tireless efforts in fulfilling its international human rights commitments. More than that, it is also a confirmation of the international community's support, trust and expectation for Vietnam given Vietnam's important and responsible contributions to the advancement of human rights worldwide.

This event is all the more significant as this year marks the 45th anniversary of Vietnam's accession to the UN. This will be a great opportunity for Vietnam to continue contributing to the common efforts of the UN and the international community in protecting and advancing the universal values of human rights, striving together for peace, national independence, democracy, and development cooperation and social progress.

Third, Vietnam's active participation in and contributions to the UNHRC will broadcast a strong message of a peace-loving Vietnam that champions humanistic and humanitarian values. It will also be instrumental in helping Vietnam's Ministries and agencies at all levels, its people and international friends, gain a more complete, accurate and deeper understanding of Vietnam's position, policy and achievements in the area of human rights. In addition, it enables Vietnam to call on the support, advice, and experience sharing from the UN and other international partners in order to better uphold human rights, civic rights, and the people's right to mastery in the new period of national development.

In summary, the fact that Vietnam was elected for the second time to the UNHRC is the culmination of the efforts of the entire Party, people, ministries and agencies at all levels, and the entire political system, in implementing the sound policy line and position of the Party and State for national development and international integration. This success is attributed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the external relations organs, other competent ministries and agencies. Their thorough preparations, and effective advocacy at different levels and through various channels, especially the high-level diplomatic channel and via the Vietnamese missions to the UN, have made this success possible.

Regarding the directions and priorities of Vietnam in its upcoming term on the UNHRC, FM Son said that Vietnam today enjoys a new national posture and strength after thirty five years of Doi Moi with sound policies and position, and experience accumulated since its previous terms as a member of the UNSC and the UNHRC. This lays a very important foundation for Vietnam's confidence in performing its mandate at the UNHRC for 2023-2025.

As a reliable partner, and an active and responsible member, Vietnam will continue to work closely with fellow member states and make substantial contributions to the common work of the UNHRC. These include advancing dialogue and international cooperation in the spirit of mutual respect and understanding, and promoting human rights taking into account the particular conditions and legitimate needs and interests of countries, especially developing countries.

We will join hands with other member states to advance initiatives and solutions for the right to live in peace, right to development, rights of vulnerable groups, gender equality, right to access to healthcare, education and employment, and response to climate change and epidemics, among many others. In its 2023-2025 term, Vietnam will perform its reporting obligation under the 4th Cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), and other international conventions on promoting civil and political rights, fighting discrimination, and championing the rights of women and persons with disabilities, he said.

With the consensus and close coordination within the entire political system under the leadership of the Party and the administration of the State, alongside the support of the international community, Vietnam will certainly fulfill its mandate at the UNHRC, the diplomat affirmed./.
Students attend the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at Henan Museum of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, Oct. 12, 2022. (Xinhua/Xu Jiayi)

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. The previous two lectures of the "Tiangong Class" series were delivered by the Shenzhou-13 crew from the station's core module Tianhe.

The lecture content includes a capillary effect experiment, the vibration of liquid and liquid-solid mixtures, drinking water with a super-long straw, rotating and flipping wrenches, and introducing a plant growth study.

The astronauts first gave an introduction of the Wentian lab module. They noted that Wentian has an independent control system. It can take over the operation and control of the whole space station when the Tianhe core module has emergencies.

Liu showed the students the motion and vibration of liquid in a microgravity environment. She also sipped mango juice with a two-meter straw.

In another experiment, two tumbling T-handles illustrated how their motion relates to their rotation mode and mass distribution. The phenomenon, popularly known as the Dzhanibekov effect, is easier to be observed in space than on Earth.

The astronauts also had an interaction with the students and answered their questions.

A six-grader from Yunnan Province shared his germination test of Arabidopsis thaliana at school. Wearing mixed-reality glasses, Chen Dong showed the students the Arabidopsis thaliana at different stages of blooming in a microgravity science glove-box.

Arabidopsis thalianaa is a model for understanding the molecular biology of plant traits in space. The science glove-box is a sealed working area in the space station where crew members can perform experimental procedures in cells and plants.

When answering a question from a Beijing student about how to become an astronaut, Chen said that China has started selecting the fourth batch of reserve astronauts, adding that the spacecraft pilots will be recruited from the in-service pilots of the armed forces.

"The space station is waiting for you," said Chen.

At the end of the class, the trio expressed their expectations for the students on Earth. "The Mengtian lab module will launch into orbit soon, and we will witness the historical moment when China's space station is fully completed," Chen said. "We expect you guys to build our space home better in the future."

Students conduct experiments while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at Henan Museum of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, Oct. 12, 2022.

The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. (Xinhua/Li An)

A student introduces his experiment while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at a middle school in Dali, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Oct. 12, 2022.

The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)

Students conduct experiments while watching the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at No.1 Middle School of Heze in Heze, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 12, 2022.

The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. (Xinhua/Xu Suhui)

Students attend the third live class of the "Tiangong Class" series at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 12, 2022.

The third live class from China's space station was held Wednesday afternoon, delivered by Shenzhou-14 crew members Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe to students on Earth.

The main classroom is located at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The class is also being attended by students from other three classrooms in Yunnan, Henan, and Shandong.

It is the first science lecture from the Wentian lab module. (Xinhua/Luo Xiaoguang)

Editor: ZAD
Candy Nip (1st R), director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York, attends the opening ceremony of an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City. Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

NEW YORK, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City.

Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions.

With the year 2022 marking the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the exhibition presents the works of more than 25 local and international firms.

"Hong Kong's architecture embodies the city's rich culture and cosmopolitan character. The innovative displays in the three core zones of the exhibition fully epitomize the timelessness and timeliness of the architectural achievements of Hong Kong in the past quarter-century," said Candy Nip, director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York.

"Street Scene Dream," an installation that creates the illusion of life through animation, features inspiration that was obtained from Hong Kong's long coastline, and the time-lapse videos in this artwork show what appears on street billboards at different times in the city.

The team behind "Street Scene Dream" is trying to give an artistic representation of the emotional and historical connection to residential constructions and street signs in Hong Kong, said Paul Shepherd, who is one of the masterminds of the installation.

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York said it will organize a two-day symposium on urban design and sustainable architecture in partnership with the American Institute of Architects New York.

Located at the Ideal Glass Studios in Manhattan, the exhibition will remain open to the public until Oct. 25. Earlier, the exhibition had been staged in Beijing and Hangzhou cities, with the fourth and the last leg of the exhibition to be unveiled in Hong Kong in December.

The exhibition in New York is organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Architects with the support of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York. 

People visit an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City. Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

People visit an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City. Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

People visit an exhibition on Hong Kong's architecture in New York, the United States, on Oct. 11, 2022. An exhibition to showcase Hong Kong architects' expertise, style and unique insight is being held in New York City. Named "Beyond Territories - Made Make Making," the exhibition starting Tuesday features miniatures of buildings and audio-visual installations for visitors to explore and have interactions. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

Editor: JYZ
Aerial photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows a view of the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port along the Oujiang River in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Aerial photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows the ruins of an ancient dock at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Undated combo photo shows porcelain wares discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua)

Aerial photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows part of the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Aerial photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows the ruins of an ancient dock at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows ruins of buildings from different periods discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

A researcher checks the ceramics discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 11, 2022.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Undated combo photo shows porcelain wares discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua)

Aerial photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022 shows ancient ditches discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

A staff member covers the foundation of an ancient building at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 10, 2022.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

A researcher checks a Longquan celadon ware discovered at the archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 11, 2022.

The archaeological site of Shuomen ancient port was discovered at the end of 2021, with ruins of ancient buildings, shipwrecks, and porcelain pieces unearthed in the following archaeological excavations. According to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, the discovery is important to studies of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)

Editor: JYZ
By Guangming Daily Research Team

The vast land of Xinjiang boasts three mountain ranges and two basins. It stretches as far as eyes can see, to places where lush pastures extend to horizon. Countless flocks and herds roam on the green land, where Chinese of all ethnic groups join hands to transform Gobi deserts into oasis, adding vitality to the beautiful land of Xinjiang.

A policeman helps local herdsmen herd sheep in Altay, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, September 3, 2022. (Photo/ Guangming Picture)

The ancient Silk Road that connected then Chinese capital Changan and Rome ran through Xinjiang. The vicissitudes of times have seen camels criss-crossing endless deserts, and the sun setting behind the mountains far away. Our great forebears, adventurers and explorers alike, left their footprints in trade and cultural exchanges on the mysterious land of Xinjiang, triggering endless imaginations for future generations.

It was here that Lin Zexu, a famous patriot, the loyal minister of the imperial court in Qing Dynasty who fought the opium trade, lived in exile after being sacked. Lin left to us the famous poem that I shall dedicate myself to the interests of the country in life and death, irrespective of personal weal and woe. Lins footprints covered both sides of the Tianshan Mountains, prospecting the territory, encouraging agricultural activities, dredging Kaner wells and leaving behind legacies that benefited one generation after another.

It was here that a battalion of Han Dynasty troops took off their military uniforms and settled down for development. They buried the hatchet and turned swords into plowshares, transforming farming villages into cities. They were defending national borders and the ecosystem here. Today, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps have taken up a similar role, becoming modern-day boundary markers that will never fade away.

It was from here that enchanting melodies spread across the country and became tunes that echo in the hearts of generations of Chinese. Household songs such as the The Girl of Darban City, Alamu Khan, Why Are the Flowers So Red, Xinjiang is a Good Place, The Grapes of Turpan are Ripe and the The Shepherd of Koktokay are odes the beauty of this land, and the infinite love of the Chinese people for Xinjiang.

Xinjiang, with its exotic scenery, bountiful produces, unique charm and ever-changing looks, has drawn the attention of the world.

Unfortunately, exactly because of its vastness, many people have failed to see its full picture; and few have been there because it sits so far away in the hinterland of the Eurasian Continent. Worse still is the fact that people with ulterior motives are pouring dirty water on Xinjiang ...

Then what does Xinjiang really look like today?

The Guangming Daily research team recently paid a visit to Xinjiang, walking into its streets and communities, and villages and towns, to find out how the locals live and work, and how they perceive the changes that have taken place.

Lets start the journey and walk into a real, full-dimensional Xinjiang.

I

With great virtue comes great success. Labor has nourished our virtue and shaped the landscape of the places we live. For thousands of years, people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang have explored the land under their feet with hard work and diligence. Today, people in Xinjiang are passing on this spirit. Every ethnic group and every worker deserves a solemn salute, for they have created a prosperous Xinjiang under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.

A volunteer helps local farmers pick grapes at a village in Awat County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 20, 2022.(Photo/ Guangming Picture)

Against the scorching heat of the vast Gobi in the west of Aksu, we walked into a 65,000-mu (4,333-hectare, or 10,708-acrefruit orchard of Hongqipo Group in late June. It seemed as if we could hear the sizzling sound of apples, pears and grapes turning juicy and sweet under the sun.

According to He Zhangwei, technical director of the orchard, only 50 workers are needed to manage the entire orchard. The whole process is mechanized, which improves the efficiency by 90% and reduces the cost by 90%. Now we use tree planters, machine ploughs, straw crushers and electric, intelligent and driverless tractors. He pointed to the drone flying over and said, This is our drone supported by the Beidou navigation system and its spraying fertilizer now. All you need is to mark the longitude and latitude of the orchard on your phone, and the drone will take care of the rest.

With two basins sitting in between three mountain ranges, Xinjiang is blessed with over 100 million mu of arable land, where large agricultural equipment can be used to great effect. Science and technology have become the highlight of Xinjiangs agriculture, where the mechanization rate for main crops has reached 85.48%.

In Wensu CountyXinjiangs key cotton producer in Aksu Prefecture, hundreds of thousands of acres of cotton is blossoming with milky white, light pink, and light yellow flowers. Although cotton-picking season has not yet arrived, standing here, one can imagine the spectacular harvesting scene in autumn.

The ample sunshine, warm wind, and the water melted from snow are blessings for cotton. Quality of the cotton produced here is second to none in the world: the cotton lint is long and soft, and the color is pure and clean. The long-staple cotton in Xinjiang not only has good looks, its highly elastic, durable and wear-resistant. Its fiber is 35% longer than that of ordinary cotton. The air permeability of cloth made of Xinjiang cotton is 5 times that of ordinary cotton. Cotton production in Xinjiang accounts for 89.5% of Chinas total, and 20% of the worlds.

A cotton picker is seen working in fields in Aksu Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Sept. 26, 2022. (Photo/ Guangming Picture)

Cotton farms nowadays are increasingly less reliant on human labor. Machines get to do most of the job from plowing the land to picking the cotton. Youd see if you come in autumn, that cotton-picking machines neatly line up in a row, the entire farm could be harvested with only a few round trips. It is such an enjoyable scene. Last year I earned nearly 3 million yuan, and labor cost was only a fraction of that, said Manuti Daouti, a cotton farmer who planted 3,000 mu of cotton.

Aymel Tulhong is a large cotton farmer in Xayar County of Aksu Prefecture. Last year, his planting area exceeded 1,900 mu thanks to the alluring income from the cotton business. Cotton picking was completed within one week, and I earned over 1 million yuan because of these machines, he said.

Photo taken on Oct. 4, 2021 shows cotton fields at Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. (Photo/ Guangming Picture)

Statistics show that the mechanized harvesting rate of cotton in 2021 exceeded 80%, and 95% of the cotton in northern Xinjiang was picked by machinery.

There are also some small plots not suitable for mechanized picking and need to be picked by hand. However, in Xinjiang, hand-picking is an attractive job due to the lucrative pay. In the two-month harvesting season, not only locals in Xinjiang rushed to the job, cotton pickers from Shandong, Henan, Gansu and other parts of the country would also join the silver-hunting game. A skilled cotton picker can earn more than 20,000 yuan in two months. Maimaitimin Atagula, a local farmer in Hotan, said that last year he and his wife earned nearly 20,000 yuan after working 40 days in Aksu. Were definitely going again this year, he said.

Our reporters heard this Uygur proverb along the trip: The hard-working get to eat lamb leg, and the lazy drink cold water. On both sides of Tianshan Mountains, working has become a spontaneous choice for people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The people of Xinjiang today are creating happy lives by doing decent jobs of their voluntary choice.

Statistics show that in 2021, the per capita disposable income of urban residents in Xinjiang exceeded 37,000 yuan, and for rural residents, the figure exceeded 15,000 yuan, both had grown more than 100 times from that of 1978. Today, 2,020 service stations for outdoor workers and 4,622 lounges and breastfeeding rooms for female workers have been built in industrial parks with a high concentration of workers.

Xinjiang Siwei Textile Company is a cotton enterprise that came into operation last year in Aksus Awati County. Buyhemuti Toheti, head of the company, said with anger: Some people are so jealous that they smear Xinjiang with forced labor. They must be thinking with their toes: why would anyone force us to pursuit a happy life?

The white cotton is the flower of happiness for the people in Xinjiang. In the United States, however, there is a dark history of forced labor associated with cotton. The white cotton in southern US was once soaked with the blood and tears of black slaves  its a sin that the US can never wipe off.

Black slaves, inadequately clothed and fed, exhausted all their strength for cotton picking under guns and whips. In 1860, cotton production in the US was 130 times what it had been in 1800, behind which was the unimaginable physical and mental devastation of the blacks.

The value of labor squeezed from black slaves by American slaveholders amounted to $14 trillion in current prices. According to statistics, in 1850, 80% of US exports were produced by slaves. It was slavery, rather than democracy, that paved the US and Wests way to prosperity.

Even today, US immigration law remains supportive of modern slavery, and there is a strong correlation between certain visa types and forced labor. Studies have shown that over 70% of victims of forced labor in the US arrived with a legal visa.

To this day, there are still some 500,000 child labors in the US working in agriculture. Many start working from 8 years old, working for up to 72 hours a week. Between 2003 and 2016, 237 child labors died in agricultural accidents in the US, according to US media.

Cotton, flawlessly white and pure, is natures blessing to Xinjiang. To boycott Xinjiangs cotton is to reject the gift from nature.

The so-called Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act shows how the US is blatantly meddling in Xinjiangs affairs, and flagrantly interfering with Chinas internal affairs to achieve the goal of containing China with Xinjiang. This is a manifestation of bullying and hegemony, and a dangerous, provocative move.

But how can anything ever be achieved by inciting the boycott of Xinjiangs cotton?

An overseas netizen once launched a challenge to reject Made-in-China products, and the result was a bleak one: the challenger ended up running almost naked on the street, wrapped only in a green bath towel.

This is not to say that China is unstoppable, but rather, we live in a global village and are bonded together in one way or another. Xinjiangs cotton has been warming our day-to-day life, and its not something that people can cut off easily. The question for those Western politicians demanding the boycott is, are you ready for a naked run?

5

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Editor: Zhang Zhou
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the citizens who reduced electricity consumption during peak hours.

"Across the country, recovery continued today after a two-day Russian missile attack. Then energy facilities were damaged in 12 regions and the capital. As of this time, the technical possibility of supplying electricity in most areas has been fully restored. In four regions, work continues, repairs should be completed soon," he said in a video message on Wednesday.

According to Zelensky, "our power engineers in some cities and regions are forced to apply stabilization shutdown schedules. This is necessary solely to maintain the normal operation of the entire power system in such conditions  in conditions when production of electricity has decreased."

"And I want to once again thank all our people who have reacted to this situation consciously and are making their very important contribution to ensuring the normal operation of Ukraine's power system. You should continue to distribute your electricity consumption over the hours of all days in order to use equipment that requires a significant amount of electricity as little as possible during peak hours," the president said.

He also thanked all the heads of regions, mayors of cities and heads of communities, who have significantly reduced consumption of electricity in the public sector.
A difficult year will be in front of Ukraine in 2023: the public finance deficit is estimated at $3-4 billion, it is necessary to ensure sustainability of the economy, and the IMF will provide support: an international forum will be brought together in the near future to solve this problem, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva has said.

"What we need to look into is how to ensure sustainability of the economy Our preliminary estimate is that somewhere between $3-$4 billion are necessary on a monthly basis," she said at the Second Ministerial Roundtable Discussion for Support to Ukraine as part of the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington in Wednesday.

Responding to the call of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to bring together an economic forum, which meets on a regular basis, and looks into the macroeconomic framework in the country, the financing gap and look at how to close this gas, Georgieva said that such work is already underway.

She said that the IMF will be assembling the forum as soon as possible.

She also said that the Fund has a new platform to engage, which is the programme with monitoring from the board, which is a pathway to a full-fledged program for Ukraine, which Zelensky called for.

"We are moving with you in the direction of a strong Ukraine," Georgieva said.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that a new IMF program for Ukraine could be early next year.

Georgieva said that the Fund's team, together with the Ukrainian team, immediately after the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank, will determine the macroeconomic framework and also what that would mean in terms of budgetary implications.

She expressed her hope that the war would end sooner rather than later. "But from what we are seeing, we have to be there for the Ukrainian people," the head of the IMF said.

She recalled that Ukraine's international partners have already mobilized $35 billion, a significant part of which has already been transferred, and called for further support, especially in grants.

According to Georgieva, further needs will be determined, firstly, by the cost of social services, which depends on war and migration, and secondly, the cost of reconstruction of vital infrastructure, which also depends on war and on prioritization.

"And three, what are the energy needs of the country, how much needs to be imported to provide for people in Ukraine, and it would depend, whether, in addition to of course the horrors of war," the managing director added.

She said that the senseless war of Russia against Ukraine has sharply worsened the prospects for the global economy and brought the most dramatic consequences for the people of Ukraine.
EU ambassadors have agreed that EU countries will not accept persons with Russian travel documents issued in the occupied regions of Georgia and Ukraine.According to the European Union, this decision is a response to Russia's reckless and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine, the issuance of Russian international passports to residents of regions occupied by Russia; On Russia's unilateral decision regarding the recognition of the independence of the separatist territories of Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia."Russian travel documents issued in the regions occupied by Russia in Ukraine or in the separatist territories of Georgia are not accepted for obtaining a visa or for crossing the borders of the Schengen zone," the statement said.According to the EU statement, Russian travel documents issued in the occupied regions are no longer recognized or are in the process of being recognized by EU member states.According to them, this decision is aimed at establishing a common approach, ensuring proper functioning of borders and a common visa policy, protecting the security of EU member states.According to the statement of the European Union, based on this mandate, the Czech Republic, the country holding the presidency of the European Union, is ready to start discussions with the European Parliament.The Russian Federal Security Service released information that 12 accomplices in the Crimean bridge bombing have been 'identified' and according to them, two of them are Georgian citizens. The agency also stated that "the Intelligence Division of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, its head Kirill Budanov, employees and agents are behind the terrorist attack." The government agency TASS published the statement of the Federal Security Service.The Security Service press service told the publication that "the explosives were brought to the Crimean bridge from Odessa via Bulgaria, Georgia and Armenia".The agency wrote based on FSB data that the explosive device was disguised in rolls, constructed of polyethylene, and weighed 22,770 kilograms. According to the agency, the cargo was sent from Odessa port to Bulgaria at the beginning of August.
The American people stand resolutely with Ukraine in the face of Russia's brutal and illegal war, especially after the October 10 barbaric strikes on nonmilitary targets throughout the country, and will begin disbursing additional grant assistance in the coming weeks, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen has said.

"The United States recently reaffirmed our commitment to Ukraine through Congressional approval of another $4.5 billion in grant assistance, which we will begin to disburse in the coming weeks, and that's in addition to the $8.5 billion in grants already disbursed," she said at the Second Ministerial Roundtable Discussion for Support to Ukraine as part of the annual meeting of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington on Wednesday.
Ukraine has received $1.3 billion in additional emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said.

"$1.3 billion of additional emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund has arrived in Ukraine. The funds will be used to finance priority needs: strengthening defense capabilities, paying pensions, social programs and supporting the economy," Shmyhal wrote on his Telegram channel on Thursday.

According to him, in general, since the beginning of the full-scale war, the IMF has provided Ukraine with $2.7 billion.

"Also, in the near future, we will start preparing a new special program with the Fund, which will start working next year. We thank our partners and allies for their unwavering support," the prime minister said.
As part of the Steel Front military initiative founded by Rinat Akhmetov, more than 2,000 drones and walkie-talkies, 700 vehicles and half a million liters of fuel were handed over to Ukrainian soldiers, the businessman's press service told Interfax-Ukraine.

He also handed over more than 150,000 bulletproof vests produced at SCM enterprises to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. "For this, metallurgists have mastered the technology of smelting special armored steel of a high level of protection, and also found contractors who sew plate carriers," the press service reported.

In addition to bulletproof vests, the soldiers also received other means of protection: more than 20,000 helmets and 40,000 first-aid kits produced in accordance with NATO standards. "Because this war is primarily a war of high technology, Akhmetov has channeled millions to purchase vehicles, drones and walkie-talkies. This is what gives our soldiers an advantage at the front," the press service said.

More than 1,011 modern drones and 1,292 walkie-talkies, 1,600 special devices (thermal imagers, rangefinders) have already been handed over to the military. To ensure the mobility of the units, the SCM businesses handed over more than 700 vehicles to the front, primarily reliable off-road vehicles, and provided them with fuel. In total, 595,000 liters of fuel were sent to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and peaceful cities.

"We do not plan to stop and will do everything to bring Ukraine's victory closer. And we will definitely win," Akhmetov said.

As reported, since the beginning of the war, SCM companies have sent over UAH 3 billion to help Ukraine and Ukrainians, and this figure is growing every day.
Ukrenergo has now refused introduction of emergency power outage schedules in Ukraine thanks to the stabilization of electricity supply by the company itself and regional energy distribution companies, as well as thanks to the help of consumers who have reduced the use of electrical appliances during peak hours, head of the board Volodymyr Kudrytsky said.

"Last night in Kyiv, the region and the entire central region, dispatching restrictions were not applied. From 19.55, restrictions were lifted in the north-eastern regions of our state. During the day, neither in the morning nor in the evening, the introduction of emergency shutdown schedules is not yet planned," Kudrytsky said on Facebook.

According to him, this became possible thanks to the stabilization of energy supply in all regions of Ukraine by the specialists of Ukrenergo and regional energy companies, as well as the economical consumption of electricity by citizens in the evening.

"However, we must be ready for new attacks by the enemy. Ukrenergo, as the transmission system operator, is doing everything to protect its infrastructure and quickly restore it," the head of the company assured.

At the same time, he noted that the recommendation to reduce consumption during periods of peak load in the energy system in the morning from 8 to 11 and in the evening from 17 to 23 remains valid.

"We continue to recommend, if possible, transferring the use of powerful electrical appliances to night hours, when the level of consumption in the power system is the lowest. This will help us stabilize the power system and safely go through the heating season this winter," Kudrytsky explained.
Zelensky on Ramstein: Helping Ukraine to protect sky is one of most significant humanitarian tasks for Europe

Western allies' assistance to Ukraine in protecting the skies is one of the most significant humanitarian tasks for Europe of our time, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said in an evening video message following a meeting of the Contact Group in the Ramstein format in Brussels.

"Today, a regular meeting was held in the format of the defense Ramstein. Quite productive. First of all, they discussed providing our country with anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense systems. The more audacious and cruel Russian terror becomes, the more obvious it is to the world that helping Ukraine to protect the sky is one of the most important humanitarian tasks for Europe of our time," the head of state said.

Zelensky thanked the partners for a decision to strengthen the effective defense of Ukraine in the air.

The President also noted the fighters of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the southern direction.

"Good results have been achieved there, in particular, four Russian attack helicopters and more than ten Iranian-made UAVs have been shot down," he said.
Lithuanian Minister of National Defense Arvydas Anusauskas announces Vilnius' intention to supply the Ukrainian army with winter uniforms and equipment, 120-mm mortars on the M113 platform, armored cars, thermal imagers and UAVs.

"Lithuania continues and will continue to support Ukraine. We will provide the Ukrainian army not only with winter clothing and winter equipment, we will provide 120-mm mortars on the M113 platform, armored cars, thermal imagers, drones, etc.," Anusauskas wrote on Facebook on Wednesday following a meeting in the Ramstein format in Brussels.

He specified that when the specified batch of military aid is sent, the total amount of support for Ukraine from Lithuania will increase to EUR 230 million.

"To develop and restore our capabilities, we signed new contracts for the supply of weapons," the minister said.

At the same time, Anusauskas also stressed that the meeting participants agreed on the accelerated delivery of new air defense systems to Ukraine, new M270 (tracked HIMARS), additional ammunition and much more, which "will not be in open reports."

"The United States is trying to get the West to jointly develop an integrated air defense system for Ukraine," the head of the department summed up.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) may become the first international organization to declare Russia as a "terrorist state," President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday, speaking via video link at a PACE session.

Europe, he said, "can play a historic role in the creation of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Russian Aggression against Ukraine. Let's do it! This will be the best way to protect the principles of international law."

"Europe can take the lead in efforts to recover the damage caused by this war. We must create an appropriate compensation mechanism  and we propose how to do it. The corresponding draft has already been prepared by Ukraine. I ask you to support it  both in Europe and at the level of the UN General Assembly," the President said.

Zelensky also called for "advocating the provision of Ukraine with a sufficient number of modern air and missile defense systems. Already this year we must protect our sky from the terror of Russia. If this is done, it will be a fundamental step to end the entire war as soon as possible."

Zelensky announced the need to "ban the aggressor state from oil and gas exports. Russia must see zero in the accounts in order to think about the benefits of peace. That should be the point of EU sanctions packages."

He stressed that we must "finally find how to force Russia to fulfill the demand of the IAEA and, without exaggeration, of all mankind  that is, to ensure the demilitarization of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Russia should not just withdraw military equipment from there, but withdraw all of its militants."

According to the president, "never before has a united Europe been as strong as it is now. So focused on everything that's necessary to keep Russian terrorists from ruining our lives. That's the power of dialogue. We will isolate Russia together."

"Ukraine has offered its own path to peace. This is the European path. The path of dialogue and integrity. The path of the implementation of agreed decisions to protect Ukraine and humanity as well as constantly increase the price of war for the aggressor. The path of bringing the perpetrators of the war to justice and compensation for damage. This is the path to victory," Zelensky said.

According to him, "it is much shorter than it looks." "But only under the condition that the dialogue for its sake is honest, between all those who really value freedom, and that this word 'dialogue' does not cover the desire to turn a blind eye to the war," he stressed.
The UK will supply Ukraine with Amraam anti-aircraft missiles for NASAMS air defense systems, the corresponding decision has already been made by British Defense Minister Ben Wallace.

The corresponding statement was made by Wallace himself, commenting on the recent shelling by Russian invaders of civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.

"Russia's latest indiscriminate strikes on civilian areas in Ukraine warrant further support to those seeking to defend their nation. So today I have authorised the supply of Amraam anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine," The Guardian quotes Wallace.

"These weapons will help Ukraine defend its skies from attacks and strengthen their overall missile defence alongside the US NASAMS," the minister said.
Energoatom President Petro Kotin refuted earlier assertions in the Russian media that Zaporizhia NPP would need Russian fuel.

"There are a lot of rumours and fake statements from Russians. All of them are fakes. And actually it's not easy to just transfer the fuel loading in Zaporizhzhia from one supplier to another," Kotin said in an interview with Reuters.

According to him, there are fresh fuel supplies in storage at the six-reactor plant.

At the same time, he said that just to prepare for this transfer from one supplier to another you need about three years.

At the same time, he said his biggest fear was a cutoff of external power needed for cooling the reactors, all of which are in cold shutdown, and a loss of emergency diesel generators.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov says that understanding of what, when and how can be delivered by partners in terms of air defense to close the Ukrainian skies will come next month.

He said this on Thursday in Brussels to Ukrainian journalists, commenting on the course of meetings in the Ramstein format and with defense ministers of NATO member countries.

"The main thing is that the political decision has been made. Then there will be testing ... I am for our expectations to be justified  tomorrow the sky will not be closed ... These are expensive systems, complex, for which you need to train  so that there are no illusions that everything will change tomorrow," he explained the situation.

In addition, Reznikov stated that "no air defense system in the world guarantees 100% protection." "It is impossible to close the sky 100%  this is so that there are no illusions. The only question is the percentage of possible interception  today our glorious air defenses systemically shoot down up to 50% of all threats with existing resources. Therefore, if we bring it up to 60% -70% -80%  it will be wonderful. This is the first thing. The second thing is short range, medium and long range  40-80-200 km  this is approximately how these systems are divided. And they can be different  SAM is also an air defense system, even Stingers are air defense systems. We need to look at where we have gaps, such as critical infrastructure facilities," the minister detailed.

According to the head of the defense department, within the Contact Group in the Ramstein format, which is an "American project," the Pentagon "sent a public signal to everyone yesterday that we are starting to work to speed up assistance to Ukraine as much as possible." "Within two weeks, we will have an understanding, approximately, of who and what gives us  someone gives us missiles and so on  now they are studying. The next month will give us the answer to this question  when, how much and how," Reznikov stressed.

Speaking about past meetings, the minister stated that he could not "talk about everything in detail." "The main thing: about a month and a half ago, we thought about what else to ask our partners for in order to strengthen our air defense from what they can give and from what they have available, and that it will not be a big problem for them... and yesterday during the meeting this was discussed at a serious level. All partners heard the relevant request, which was supported by the American partners, and this is the main thing that it is necessary to strengthen Ukraine's air defense as quickly as possible," he outlined the nature of the discussion.

Reznikov mocked that Ukraine has two support options in this war: "these are our partners, not only the alliance  yesterday there were 50 delegations [at the meeting of the Contact Group], but, in fact, we have another one who supports us support this is Kremlin."

"Every time they commit another idiotic act  there is no other way to call it, they increase the level of support for Ukraine. My partners used to ask me what I was afraid of  and I answered that it was the so-called fatigue syndrome so that your people would not get tired of this war, and you would start helping us less. Every time my warning goes off the rails, something happens. Missiles fired all over Ukraine two days before the meeting. And yesterday, all the ministers told me  you have no idea, we have such a level of support for Ukraine that it just rolls over  people demand this from them. The Kremlin is doing everything so that the world continues to support us. They say  tell the Ukrainians that they inspire us, we are impressed, and thank you. And every time two main things sound: firstly, you are waging war not only for yourself, but also for us, for the entire democratic world, and this is not pathos. And secondly, we assure you that we will be with you to the end, no matter how much it takes," the minister said.
refugeewatchonline

In the run up to the Gujarat state legislative elections, the Congress party has promised Rs. 3 lakh as one-time financial assistance to the families of the arrested fishermen languishing in Pakistani jails. A daily allowance of Rs. 400 has also been promised and a compensation of Rs. 50 lakh for every boat seized by the Pakistani authorities.

Compensating the fishermen and their families for loss of livelihood is a welcome move, even if it is prompted by the electoral compulsions. There are over five lakh fishermen in Gujarat who along with their families constitute an important voting population. However, throwing money at the problem is unlikely to permanently resolve the issue, Bharat Bhushan writes.

There were 630 Indian fishermen from Gujarat in Pakistani jails on July 1 this year. The number of Pakistani fishermen in Indian custody was 95. The arrest of fishermen is a low priority issue for the Indian political class. Imagine what the national outcry would be, asks Jatin Desai a social activist and journalist working with the fishermen in Gujarat, if it were 630 IT professionals who had been kidnapped and jailed by Pakistani authorities.

Fishermen from both sides are accused of crossing the border inadvertently while fishing off the coast of Gujarat. This is an area where the maritime border between India and Pakistan remains unmarked because of an outstanding dispute about Sir Creek. So although no maritime border exists between India and Pakistan in the Gulf of Kutch, the Indian Coast Guard and Pakistans Maritime Security Agency regularly arrest fishermen and seize their boats from what each claims is their part of the sea. The arrested fishermen languish in jails for several years before their nationality is verified, consular access is given to them, their prison terms served and final repatriation to their home countries.

A google map screenshot of Sir Creek.

India and Pakistan exchange lists of prisoners twice a year  on January 1 and July 1  Pakistan describes the arrested fishermen as Indian or believed-to-be Indian and India as Pakistani or believed-to-be Pakistani. On July 1, the number of Indian fishermen in Pakistans custody was 633. Three have died in jail since then  Kalu Vira on July 6, Ukabhai on August 27 and Jatinbhai on September 3.

Not all the Indian fishermen arrested are from Gujarat  increasingly a number of them are migrant workers from Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. Thus in 2020, Pakistan relased 20 fishermen who were arrested off the coast of Kutch but were from Sirkakulam and Vizianagaram districts of Andhra. In November 2021 a fisherman from Maharashtra, Sridhar Ramesh Chamre, was shot dead and another from the state injured when Pakistans Maritime Security Agency fired at a boat that had sailed from Gujarat. On September 30, Pakistan seized two more Indian boats and arrested 16 fishermen, seven of them from Maharashtra.

The erosion of diplomatic ties between India and Pakistan has meant that many joint mechanisms such as the Joint Judicial Committee on Prisoners are in disarray, the communication and interaction between civil society in the two countries has been impaired and even goodwill exchange of prisoners is rare. Under these circumstances, fishermen who have completed their prison terms, continue to stay in jail and some even die while waiting to be repatriated.

Thus, for example, Nanoram, a Gujarat fisherman, competed his jail term in Pakistan on January 16, 2019 but died at a cardiovascular hospital in Karachi on February 3, 2022. His remains were sent to India on April 4, 2022. Kalu Vira whose body was sent to India on August 23 this year had competed his sentence in December 2021, he fell ill and died in Karachi in July 2022. Had his nationality been verified he may have been sent back to India after completing his sentence and his family would have seen him alive. The fate of Pakistani fishermen in Indian custody mirrors this process.

There is no evidence of fishermen from either side being involved in any anti-social activity. They stray into the maritime area claimed by the other country while chasing schools of fish. More Indian fishermen stray over to the other side because there is less on the Indian side. Rapid development along the coast of Gujarat has changed the ecological balance of the sea leading to pollution and destruction of fish habitats. A lot of fishing from the Kutch coast is also based on the incentivisation of the Tandels (Captains) of the fishing boats by their owners. This puts pressure on the crew (Tandel and the fish workers or Khalasis) to pursue higher volumes of catch. The economic rewards are lucrative enough for them to take the risk of straying into Pakistans territorial waters.

There are no piecemeal solutions possible to this problem. A number of humanitarian measures have been suggested after the fishermen are arrested: to seek early trial, quick verification of their nationalities and repatriation by sea instead of land (through the Wagha-Attari land border) so that their boats can also be returned. However, these are and will remain band-aid measures.

The two possible paths to a permanent solution are: cooperative fishing and resolving the Sir Creek dispute between India and Pakistan. Measures for cooperative fishing can include giving joint licences with quantity restrictions to fishermen from both countries. An institutionalised Maritime Economic Cooperation Agreement might also enable joint exploitation of other maritime resources in the sea. But such proposals are not even on the discussion table between India and Pakistan.

Demarcating the maritime boundary between India and Pakistan in the Gulf of Kutch will enable a permanent political solution to the problem. The dispute centres around differing interpretations of the boundary along the Sir Creek, a 96 km estuary which divides Pakistans Sindh province from Gujarat in India. In 2007, Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf had said that the Sir Creek boundary dispute could be resolved in 10 minutes. However, with the suspension of the composite dialogue between the two countries there has been no movement forward despite considerable agreement in the past on demarcating the maritime boundary from the seaward side (instead of from a land terminus, on which there is no agreement) and a joint survey of the estuary in 2007.

The dire state of bilateral ties means that previous attempts to reduce the size of the dispute by resolving at least the maritime boundary have been stalled. That would have been most useful for the fishermen of the two countries. Under these circumstances then, perhaps the election promise of the Congress party is all that the fishermen can hope for.

Bharat Bhushan is a journalist based in Delhi who may be reached at bharatbhushan11[at]gmail.com). Follow Bharats work on twitter at @bharatitis.
Putin to use nuclear weapons only when he knows well there to be no consequences for him  Zelensky

Russian President Vladimir Putin will use nuclear weapons only when he knows well that there will be no consequences for him, now the task of Europe is to show him that he is isolated, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is sure.

As Zelensky said in an interview with the German ZDF TV channel, the risk of Russia using nuclear weapons still remains, but Europe should not allow itself to be blackmailed.

"We cannot show weakness towards the Russian leadership ... Putin will use nuclear weapons only if he knows very well that there will be no consequences for him after the use," the Ukrainian president said.

"Why did he fire 100 times [with missiles and UAVs recently in Ukraine]? Because the consequences have not harmed him yet ... He has no success on the battlefield. He must justify himself [to his people]," Zelensky continued, explaining the reason why Russia carried out so many strikes.

Now, the President of Ukraine noted, the task of entire Europe is to show Putin that no one will talk to him and that he will remain isolated.

"Then Russian society would understand that they have elected a man who threatens all with nuclear weapons as a president," he said.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced the intention of Paris to continue providing military assistance to Ukraine in its resistance to Russian aggression.

"We don't want a world war. We help Ukraine resist on its land, but never attack Russia. Vladimir Putin must stop the war and respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine," Macron wrote on Facebook on Thursday.

He stated that France would transfer Caesar artillery mounts to Ukraine to conduct a counteroffensive, radars, systems and missiles to protect against air attacks, armored personnel carriers, and also help train the Ukrainian military.

"We will continue to support the Ukrainian resistance and intensify our military assistance," the head of the French state summed up.
Poland hands over 150 Starlinks to Ukraine to resume communication in Kharkiv region

The Polish government has handed over 150 Starlink terminals to Ukraine to resume communications in the de-occupied territories of Kharkiv region, the press service of the Digital Transformation Ministry of Ukraine reported on Thursday.

"In Izium, Balakliya, Kupiansk and nine other liberated cities, people were able to contact their relatives again. Three public WI-FI points from Starlink in Izium and one in the village of Dibrova also started working," the ministry said on Telegram.

According to the release, some of the transferred terminals were given to mobile operators and Internet providers, to which Starlink allows to establish a backup connection.

"Also, local authorities received the terminals - 24 city and rural councils of Kharkiv region. This is necessary for effective coordination of the restoration of the territory liberated from the Russians," said Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov.

The ministry added that Starlink terminals help establish communication between humanitarian organizations, public utilities, Ukrposhta and regional authorities.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation thanks the Polish government for its support and assistance with Starlink terminals for Ukraine.

In early September, Fedorov announced that up to 20,000 Starlink terminals were already operating in Ukraine.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Thursday voted for a resolution on recognizing Vladimir Putin's regime in Russia as a terrorist one, said Ukrainian parliamentarian, member of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE Oleksiy Honcharenko.

"PACE has just adopted a very strong resolution on Ukraine! Ninety-nine affirmative votes of delegates. Only one abstained. This is a historic result! Full support of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe," Honcharenko wrote on Telegram.

He noted that the resolution contains paragraphs that, among other things, recognize Vladimir Putin's regime in the Russian Federation as terrorist. "This is a powerful signal on a global scale, and this is another step for Russia to be recognized as a sponsor of terrorism," the MP stressed.

Honcharenko also said that in the resolution, for the first time in history, the Council of Europe stated that a certain country (in this case, Ukraine) should be given weapons. "We are talking about air defense systems to protect civilians," the parliamentarian said.

He added that PACE also recognized Russia's presence in the UN Security Council as illegal, since there are no legal grounds for Russia's presence in the Council, and also pointed to the need for the speedy establishment of an international tribunal.

"Another step that brings us closer to the international isolation of Russia! We are working further for the sake of Ukraine's victory," Honcharenko summed up.
Twenty more people released as part of next prisoner exchange with Russia

As part of the next prisoner exchange with the Russian Federation, 20 more people were released, among them 14 servicemen of the Armed Forces, 4 territorial defense fighters, one National Guard officer and one naval serviceman, head of the Presidents Office Andriy Yermak said.

"Our people are returning home... 20 people were released from captivity. These are 20 stories of Ukrainian heroes: 14 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, four soldiers of the territorial defense, one National guardsman and a Navy serviceman," Yermak wrote on his Telegram channel.

According to him, among those released from captivity there are people whom the Russians held in a colony in Olenivka (Donetsk region), as well as in the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhia and Kherson regions.

Currently, they are undergoing a medical examination.

"Everyone is happy to be on their native land. They were very much expected at home. We'll get everyone back. Otherwise it will not be," Yermak added.
Four Kalibr cruise missiles were shot down in the sky over the western regions of Ukraine on Thursday, October 13, according to the Facebook page of Zakhid (West) Air Command.

"On October 13, Russian occupation forces attacked critical infrastructure facilities in the western region with Kalibr cruise missiles from the Black Sea. Four cruise missiles were destroyed by the forces and means of air defense of the Zakhid Air Command in our area of responsibility," the report says.

As reported, the Russian occupiers on Thursday launched a missile attack on a military facility in Lviv region, there were no casualties. It was also reported about explosions, previously, from the operation of air defense systems, in Chernivtsi, Ternopil, Volyn and Rivne regions.
The Russian occupation forces launched one missile attack, made 15 air strikes, and mounted 22 shelling attacks using multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) against Ukraine in the past 24 hours, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) has said in its updated on Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine as of 18 p.m. on Thursday.

"The enemy continues to attack the critical infrastructure and civilian objects in Ukraine. Facilities and civilians in Nalyvaikivka in Kyiv region, Mykolaiv and Nikopol came under fire. The enemy used cruise, aircraft, surface-to-air missiles and Iranian-made drones for the attacks," it said.

"The threat of missile and air strikes from the air space and the territory of the Republic of Belarus remains," the General Staff said.
Interfax-Ukraine to host discussion 'What's purpose of Russia's nuclear blackmail of Ukraine and world? Is use of weapons of mass destruction possible?'

On Monday, October 17, at 12.00, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency's press center will host a discussion entitled "What's purpose of Russia's nuclear blackmail of Ukraine and world? Is use of weapons of mass destruction possible?" Participants include Director of the Institute for Global Strategies Vadym Karasiov; political expert Kostiantyn Matviyenko; political expert Oleksandr Kochetkov (8/5a Reitarska Street). The broadcast will be available on the YouTube channel of Interfax-Ukraine. Admission of journalists requires registration on the spot.
The African Union pledged in 2016 to silence the guns by the end of 2020, an ambitious agenda of ending armed conflicts on the continent. Just two months before that deadline, the deadliest war in years erupted in Ethiopia.
The European Union and Morocco on Tuesday signed a "green partnership" deal they hope will bolster cooperation on renewable energy.
AFP: The US government said that Beijing has ambitions to become the worlds leading power and the US would prioritize maintaining an enduring competitive edge over the PRC. What is your comment on this?

Mao Ning: It is neither popular nor constructive to hold on to the Cold War zero-sum mentality and play up geopolitical conflicts and major power competition. China and the US are both major countries in the world. As the biggest developing and developed country, China and the US have a responsibility of defending world peace and stability and promoting economic prosperity and development. The US needs to follow the principle of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, follow through on President Bidens five-noes commitment, and work with China to bring China-US relations back onto the track of sound and steady development.

Reuters: So just following up on this National Security Strategy that the White House released. It said that even after Russias invasion, China represents the most consequential challenge to the global order and the United States must win the competition against China. Does the foreign ministry have any response to this?



Mao Ning: We have noted the new National Security Strategy released by the US government. The world is undergoing changes unseen in a century. Nevertheless, peace and development remain the unchanging theme of the times and the shared aspiration of humanity. We oppose the outdated Cold War mentality and zero-sum mindset. We see no benefit in any rhetoric or act that plays up geographical conflict or major power competition, for they go against the trend of the times and the aspiration of the international community. They are not going to be welcomed and will not succeed.

Chinas development is fundamentally about the happiness of the people and rejuvenation of the nation. China has always been a force for world peace, a contributor to global development, a defender of the international order, a provider of public goods and part of the mediation efforts on hotspot issues. This is the reality known to the international community.

China and the US are respectively the biggest developing country and the biggest developed country with a responsibility of preserving world peace and stability and promoting economic prosperity and development. China and the US stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. The US needs to follow the principle of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, follow through on President Bidens five-noes commitment, and work with China to bring China-US relations back onto the track of sound and steady development.

Xinhua News Agency: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently called on the international community to provide assistance to African countries to respond to climate change. He said countries must deliver concrete action on loss and damage. For many countries, particularly in Africa, climate change is a question of survival. What is your comment?



Mao Ning: We have noted the Secretary-Generals remarks. China has been supporting Africa in responding to climate change and has never been absent. The eighth ministerial meeting of FOCAC adopted the Declaration on China-Africa Cooperation on Combating Climate Change, proposed to establish a China-Africa partnership of strategic cooperation of the new era for the fight against climate change, and included the green development program in the first three-year plan of China-Africa Cooperation Vision 2035. Last month, China hosted a ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative and put forward the Global Clean Energy Cooperation Partnership, and its first group of projects include cooperation with 19 African countries on climate change and green development.

China not only helps African countries respond to climate change with every sincerity, but has also lived up to its commitments on global climate response. We actively advance low-carbon development and green transition at home and work hard to deliver the targets for carbon peaking and neutrality. We have played a constructive part in the multilateral climate process and made historic contribution to the conclusion and implementation of the Paris Agreement. Chinas effort adds a strong boost to the global climate response.

Climate change is a global challenge and bears on the future of humanity. It thus requires a global response. Developed countries have unshirkable historical responsibilities for climate change. They need to adhere to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, take the lead in substantial emission reduction, and honor their pledge of financial, technological and capacity-building support for developing countries.

Yonhap News Agency: It is reported that in response to the threat of the DPRKs nuclear weapons, the ruling party in the ROK has proposed that the country needs to re-deploy the USs tactical nuclear weapons. Do you have any comment?



Mao Ning: We have noted the reports. Relevant parties need to fulfill their respective international obligations and commitments, and take concrete actions to uphold peace and stability on the Peninsula and in this region.

Reuters: After North Korea test-fired two long-range strategic cruise missiles on Wednesday, the North Korean side said the country should continue to expand the operational sphere of the nuclear strategic armed forces to resolutely deter any crucial military crisis and war crisis, according to KCNA. Does the foreign ministry have any comment on this?



Mao Ning: Chinas position on the Korean Peninsula issue remains unchanged. China is committed to upholding peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

Reuters: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Wednesday that the United States must prevent China from weaponizing trade as a tool of geopolitical coercion, as Russia has done so during its invasion of Ukraine. Does the foreign ministry have any comments?



Mao Ning: China is always against politicization and weaponization of economic and trade issues. We are committed to defending liberalization and facilitation of global trade and investment, and defending the stability of global industrial and supply chains. It is the unilateral and protectionist practices of certain countries that have impeded international economic and trade cooperation.

Under the current circumstances, the relevant parties need to abandon the unilateral and protectionist approach and work with the international community to ensure the industrial and supply chains are secure and smooth, safeguard the stability of the system, rules and foundation of the world economy, and promote the steady recovery of the world economy.

AFP: After German Chancellor dismissed decoupling with China, German Foreign Minister said that Germany should reduce its dependency on trade with China. Do you have any comment on this? Also, can you confirm that German Chancellor is going to visit China next month?



Mao Ning: If attitude toward a country is based on values and normal economic and trade ties are politicized, it will not contribute to international cooperation or help diversify markets. Over the past five decades since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Germany, practical cooperation and mutual benefits have always been the defining feature of our bilateral relations. Both countries have been deeply engaged in and benefited from each others success. The two sides need to stay practical in advancing mutually beneficial cooperation so as to deliver more for the two countries and two peoples.

As for the high-level visit you mentioned, I have no information to offer at the moment.

Global Times: Samantha Cristoforetti, a female Italian astronaut working aboard the international space station, recently posted several photos taken from space on her social media account. She quoted a few lines from an ancient Chinese calligraphy masterpiece by Wang Xizhi titled Preface to Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion to go with the photos: Looking up, I see the immensity of the cosmos; bowing my head, I look at the multitude of the world. The gaze flies, the heart expands, the joy of the senses can reach its peak, & indeed, this is true happiness. The post has been liked by many people in China and elsewhere. Do you have any comment on this?



Mao Ning: I have read about it too and the Italian astronaut certainly has my like. Exploring the universe has been mankinds dream since ancient times. Thanks to scientific and technological progress, reaching beyond the moon has become a reality. Humanity will continue to benefit from the noble endeavor of exploration and peaceful use of space.

Just a few days ago we also saw a video clip shared online showing the magnificence of our blue planet Earth seen from Chinas space station. Countries around the world can and need to work together to look after the planet we all call home and make the world a better place for all.

CNR: It is reported that the military barracks in Djiboutis Tadjoura region were attacked by Armed FRUD (Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy). The attack has left seven soldiers killed, four wounded and six missing. Do you have any comment?



Mao Ning: We have noted relevant reports. China is shocked by and condemns the attack. We express deep condolences to the family of the victims. China firmly supports the efforts of the government and people of Djibouti to uphold peace and stability in the country.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi attended on Monday the graduation ceremony of a new class of police cadets at the Police Academy in New Cairo.

Minister of Interior Mahmoud Tawfiq, members of the Supreme Police Council, and top academics received President El-Sisi upon his arrival at the premises of the Police Academy.



The graduation ceremony started with playing the national anthem.

The event was attended by the families of the graduating cadets, who showcased thir skills in a colourful militray-style show.



It was also attended by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayyeb, Coptic Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria, Minister of Defence Mohamed Zaki and a host of ministers and state officials.

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NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday said Russia was striking Ukraine's infrastructure to make up for battlefield losses by its troops and vowed allies would "step up and sustain" support for Kyiv.

"I think what we saw yesterday (Monday) is actually a sign of weakness, because the reality is that they are not able to make progress on the battlefield. Russia is actually losing on the battlefield," Stoltenberg said on the eve of a meeting of NATO defence ministers.

"So the way they're able to respond is by indiscriminate attacks on Ukrainian cities, hitting civilians, critical infrastructure."

Russia has unleashed a wave of missiles strikes across Ukraine after a blast damaged a key bridge to the annexed Crimea peninsula that the Kremlin blamed on Kyiv.

Western backers of Ukraine will meet in Brussels on Wednesday to discuss further arms deliveries to Kyiv to help defend itself and "liberate territory from Russian occupation," Stoltenberg said.

He welcomed announcements from the US and Germany that advanced air defence systems were on their way and said he looked forward to "further deliveries".

NATO allies have funnelled weaponry worth billions of dollars to Ukraine for it to battle Moscow's invasion and are now scrambling to resupply their own dwindling stockpiles.

"We will take decisions to increase our stockpiles of munitions and equipment, to speed up the delivery of capabilities," Stoltenberg said.

NATO ministers will hold a meeting of their regular nuclear planning group after Russian President Vladimir Putin ratcheted up tensions with veiled threats of using nuclear weapons.

"We have not seen any changes in Russia's posture but we remain vigilant," the NATO chief said.

NATO is set to hold its annual nuclear deterrence exercise, named Steadfast Noon, next week. Stoltenberg called it "routine training".

The meeting in Brussels this week will also focus on bolstering protection for critical infrastructure after suspicious leaks in the Nord Stream gas pipelines running from Russia to Europe that NATO branded "sabotage".

Stoltenberg said the alliance had "doubled our presence in the Baltic and North seas to over 30 ships supported by maritime patrol aircraft and undersea capabilities".

Sweden and Denmark are currently probing the leaks. NATO has not formally apportioned blame for the incident.

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NATO defense ministers met Wednesday as the alliance's member countries face the twin challenges of struggling to make and supply weapons to Ukraine while protecting vital European infrastructure like pipelines or cables that Russia might want to sabotage in retaliation.

In the almost eight months since President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops into Ukraine, the 30-nation military alliance has been treading a fine line, as an organization, providing only non-lethal support and defending its own territory to avoid being dragged into a wider war with a nuclear-armed Russia.

Individual allies though continue to pour in weapons and ammunition, including armored vehicles and air defense or anti-tank systems. They're also training Ukrainian troops, building on the lessons NATO has taught Ukraine's military instructors since Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula in 2014.

But as the Russian missile strikes across Ukraine this week demonstrated, this is not enough. NATO defense ministers were taking stock Wednesday of the supply effort so far and to debate ways to encourage the defense industry to ramp up production in short order.

"Allies have provided air defense, but we need even more. We need different types of air defense, short-range, long-range air defense systems to take (out) ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, drones, different systems for different tasks,'' NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.

"Ukraine is a big country, many cities. So we need to scale up to be able to help Ukraine defend even more cities and more territory against horrific Russian attacks against their civilian populations,'' Stoltenberg told reporters before chairing the meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

At the same time, national military stocks and arsenals are being depleted. Some countries are growing reluctant to provide Ukraine with more when they are no longer entirely sure that they can protect their own territories and airspace.

The issue, as one senior diplomat put it, is: "how do we arm Ukraine without disarming ourselves?'' The diplomat spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions involve collective security concerns.

For the defense industry, predictability is paramount. Companies need long-term orders and certainty before they commit to extend production lines. But no one is sure how long the war in Ukraine will last, making it difficult to know how much equipment is needed.

Still, Putin's attack on a sovereign country without provocation, and his threats to use nuclear weapons to defend seized territory, have made many allies neighboring Russia and Ukraine jittery.

So the United States and its partners want to boost weapons production by sending clear signals to industry, as they pool resources and send Ukraine the hardware that it needs, all while ensuring that no major gaps appear in national stockpiles.

Putin, for his part has warned NATO against deeper involvement in Ukraine. In recent weeks, as power and gas bills spiral and Europe struggles to decrease its dependency on Russia for energy, apparent acts of sabotage damaged two major pipelines once meant to bring natural gas to Germany.

The Polish operator of the Druzhba, or "Friendship'', oil pipeline, one of the world's longest pipelines and which originates in Russia, said Wednesday that it had detected a leak underground near the city of Plock in central Poland. The line supplies crude to Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Austria and Germany.

Stoltenberg said that following the apparent sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Germany, NATO has "doubled our presence in the Baltic and North Seas to over 30 ships, supported by maritime patrol aircraft and undersea capabilities.''

It's small comfort, given that about 8000 kilometers (nearly 5,000 miles) of oil and gas pipelines crisscross the North Sea alone. Systems, networks and grids are impossible to watch 24/7. Even the resources of energy companies, national authorities and NATO may not be enough to keep guard.

NATO's aim, for now, is to better coordinate between these actors, to better gather intelligence and improve the way it is shared, and watch over facilities, with aerial and undersea drones and other surveillance equipment.

No responsibility has been established for the pipeline incidents. But NATO is also trying to be clear in deterring Russia. "Any deliberate attack against allies' critical infrastructure would be met with a united and determined response,'' Stoltenberg said ahead of Wednesday's meeting.

He declined to say what kind of response that might be, or whether an accumulation of such hybrid attacks might trigger NATO's collective defense clause, Article 5 of its founding treaty, which ensures that an attack on any one ally would be met with a response from them all.

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Egypt's Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said that negotiations between Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over a new financing package are going well, noting that both sides agreed on all aspects related to the package.

"All files related to the International Monetary Fund's loan have been agreed upon, and we are working now on the final completion stage of the loan programme," he told US network CNBC Arabia on Wednesday evening on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Washington.

Egypt began talks with the IMF in March to secure a fresh loan to back its plans for economic reform and meet the countrys financial needs due to the global economic challenges amid the Russia-Ukraine war.

Maait said the world is going through a crisis and the government is working on alleviating its intensity domestically, assuring that the Egyptian citizen should not shoulder the full burden of the global financial crisis.

In September, the government introduced a new social protection package to help people cope with the ramifications of the Russia-Ukraine war.

The current stage is difficult, but is being managed well, assured Maait.

The finance minister stressed that emerging economies and middle-income nations are the most affected by the global economic crisis, adding that the state of uncertainty that prevails in the world is deepening the economic crisis.

The minister referred to the exit of $22 billion in hot money -- indirect investments in local debt instruments -- from the Egyptian market on the heels of the war.

Maait said the government is ready to make the Egyptian pound exchange rate flexible if necessary, underscoring that the soaring USD has applied pressure on all currencies, including the Egyptian pound.

In an interview with Saudi news TV channel Al-Arabiya earlier this month, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said a final agreement with Egypt about a new loan could possibly be reached within weeks.

Since the start of the government's implementation of the IMF-backed economic reform programme in 2016, Egypt has secured three loans from the fund, including a $12 billion loan to execute the first wave of reforms (November 2016 - July 2019) under the Extended Fund Facility.

This was followed by two separate loans amounting to $8 billion in 2020 to tackle the harsh impacts of the pandemic, under the IMFs Rapid Finance Facility and Stand-By Arrangement.

So far, no more details have been released on the size of the new package.

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Saudi Arabia rejected as baseless Thursday accusations that last week's output cut by oil cartel OPEC and its allies, including Russia, was politically motivated against the United States.

"Saudi Arabia has viewed the statements... which have described the decision as the kingdom taking sides in international conflicts and that it was politically motivated against the United States," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia would "like to express its total rejection of these statements that are not based on facts and which are based on portraying the OPEC+ decision out of its economic context," it added.

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In a speech delivered on Thursday at the Military Academy in Cairo during the graduation ceremony of a batch of students, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi asserted that Egypt "is standing on solid ground"; and is more capable than ever of facing the various challenges and crises.

Egypt can resist the impacts of the current global crisis, which affected the whole world, just as it did with other crises and challenges over the past years.

The president said Egypt had successfully managed to overcome the Covid-19 crisis and was able to adapt to its ramifications, and that the country has succeeded in uprooting terrorism completely.

Two years ago, everyone thought that coronavirus would be the end but it blew over just as many crises had and the current crisis will, the president added.

El-Sisi said that during the terrorist attacks perpetrated against Egypt between 2013 and 2014 he had been confident that these attacks would blow over.

He affirmed that with Gods help Egypt will prevail against the difficulties it is currently facing.

Addressing the graduates, El-Sisi said that graduating college is an important milestone in the life of a graduate of any college or university, military or not.

He also emphasised that persistence was of utmost importance in overcoming the various challenges.

During the ceremony, students of the police and military academies presented the Military Academy Shield to President El-Sisi.

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The Cairo International Centre for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding (CCCPA) hosted a three-day training course to educate Arab peacekeepers on gender-responsive peace operations.

Related CCCPA organises training programme on addressing human trafficking

The training course, which was taught Tuesday through Thursday, was organized in collaboration with the government of New Zealand, through UNDP, with the participation of 10 peacekeepers from Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Jordan, Djibouti and Egypt.

The event was inaugurated by New Zealand's Minister of Defense Peeni Henare, who is on a visit to Egypt, alongside CCCPA Director General Ahmed Abdel-Latif, Ambassador of New Zealand to Egypt Greg Lewis, and UNDP Egypt Deputy Resident Representative Sylvain Merlen.

High-level representatives from the Egyptian ministries of foreign affairs, defense, and interior also attended the inauguration ceremony.

The training aimed to advance gender-responsive peacekeeping by equipping Arab military and police UN peacekeepers with the necessary knowledge and skills to perform their duties during deployment.

It also sought to deepen their understanding of the implementation of the agenda of UN Security Council resolution on Women, Peace and Security, thus enabling them to better integrate the aspect of gender into UN peacekeeping operations. The training also focused on upholding UN standards of conduct, as well as addressing gender-based violence against women in armed conflicts and dealing with sexual exploitation and abuse.

The event coincides with the anniversary of the landmark UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, first adopted in 2000.

New Zealand is proud to be a longstanding contributor to global peacekeeping efforts, Henare said, affirming that its contributions in this regard embody the value it places on promoting peace and stability.

He expressed his appreciation of the CCCPAs Women, Peace and Security Agenda training course for providing the opportunity to speak with peacekeepers from the region, as understanding how conflict impacts genders in different ways is an important skill.

The minister also asserted that the skills of peacekeeping, peacebuilding, and conflict resolution remain as important as they ever have been; this is why the work of organizations such as the CCCPA is key.

Abdel-Latif expressed appreciation of New Zealand's government for its support of this training programme, which stands as a true testament to the power of partnerships in advancing peace and security.

Egypt and New Zealand are strong supporters of UN peacekeeping and the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda, he added, noting that the training reflects a concrete commitment to strengthening the capacities of Arab peacekeeping personnel on gender perspectives and women, peace, and security.

The training also builds on the success of the 2019 first action-oriented 'Training of Trainers on Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in Peacekeeping' that the Center delivered to African practitioners in cooperation with the government of New Zealand, marking a step towards expanding collaboration in this area to the Arab world, Ambassador Abdel-Latif added.

Founded in 1994 by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the CCCPA is an Egyptian public agency specialized in training, capacity building, and research in the fields of peace and security in Africa and the Arab region. Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry heads the board of directors of the CCCPA.

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Alvaro Iranzo, ambassador of Spain to Egypt, stressed in a speech during the celebration of the anniversary of the National Day of the Kingdom of Spain that Egyptian-Spanish relations "are excellent thanks to the joint will of the Egyptian and Spanish governments and peoples."

Delivering Ambassador Iranzo's speech in his stead, Alfonso Diaz Torres, deputy head of the diplomatic mission of Spain in Egypt, said that the two countries also share many values and interests, which have become richer over the years in all fields.

The celebration, which was held at the Spanish embassy in Cairo, was attended by high-level representatives of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, including Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the official spokesman for the foreign ministry.

It was also attended by a host of ambassadors and military attaches at various embassies and other members of various diplomatic corps in Cairo.

Iranzo said that Egypt is a major country due to its key role as a regional power of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East."

"It is a political and cultural beacon to the Arab world," he stressed.

Although I came to Egypt only a few weeks ago, I did not need much time to make sure of the depth of the political, economic and social ties between our two countries, and the close historical, cultural and human rapprochement that binds us as Mediterranean countries, Ambassador Iranzo said.

I am confident that this trend will continue and be reinforced in the future, and there is a firm intention of Spain to be represented at the highest political level at the UN Climate Summit COP27."

"In this context, we congratulate and welcome the launch of the National Dialogue in Egypt, and the reactivation of the presidential pardon committee.

Spanish-Egyptian economic cooperation

Egypt is a country working on an ambitious program of economic development. Spain and its companies wish to participate in these efforts more actively in order to contribute to the advancement of economic and social rights for the benefit of the entire population of Egypt," Iranzo affirmed.

"In addition, there is great potential for growth for Spanish companies that are operating in the country in many sectors that are important to Egypt such as transportation, infrastructure, renewable energy, agriculture, and water and health. There is also a potential for growth that is not limited to the economic field since political and diplomatic relations have reached great harmony."

Ambassador Iranzo pointed out that the number of high-level bilateral visits has increased significantly in the past two years, culminating in the fruitful visit of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to Cairo last December, followed by a visit to Spain last April by Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

Confidence in success of COP27

Iranzo affirmed his countrys confidence in the Egyptian leaderships ability to make the international meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh a success and to steer it towards concrete, achievable and verifiable agreements.

These agreements will help confront the inevitable growing challenge of climate change, not only in our own interests but also, most importantly, in the interest of future generations, he added.

The Spanish ambassador also highlighted the cooperation between Egypt and Spain on global issues such as combating terrorism, fighting organised crime, and stemming irregular migration.

These challenges must always be met with the utmost respect for political, economic and social human rights, which are part of a comprehensive and global development agenda, said Iranzo.

Spain: A message of peace and cooperation

This celebration of Spain's National Day coincides with the historic event in the the arrival of the Spanish mission led by Christopher Columbus to America. From here, we shed light on the unity of the Spanish nation and its message in order to introduce itself abroad under the banner of peace and cooperation, he added

For all the representatives of Spain abroad, the National Day is always a special occasion, but this time it acquires more importance because it is the first time that we celebrate this occasion after my arrival in Cairo as a new ambassador, without restrictions related to the Coronavirus."

"On the other hand, the concept of joint responsibilities today is more important than ever as the international community faces an armed aggression against Ukraine in one of the biggest crises in decades. This invasion of a sovereign state is a violation of the most basic values and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, affirmed Iranzo.

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By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

"The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Hungary has increased by 9.2 percent in the first eight months of 2022, and the main goal is to further expand relations, Labour and Social Security Minister Sahil Babayev said, Azernews reports.

He made the remarks during a meeting with the newly-appointed Hungarian ambassador Tamas Torman.

Recalling that this year marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Hungary, the minister mentioned that 50 documents were signed between the two countries in the past period. In this regard, he stated that the joint declaration on strategic partnership signed in 2014, created the conditions for the further deepening of relations.

Speaking about Azerbaijans historic victory and the liberation of its territories, he noted that great construction works are currently underway out there.

Sahil Babayev underlined that the desire of Hungarian companies to join these construction works is gratifying.

This, as well as the credit line of the Hungarian Eximbank in the amount of $120 million for the Hungarian companies that will be involved in these works, and granting by the Hungarian side of  25,000 for demining of the liberated territories, once again expresses the friendly relations, he said.

He noted the importance of further expanding economic cooperation and stressed the need for joint efforts to increase trade turnover.

Briefing the ambassador about the dynamics of the socioeconomic development of Azerbaijan, the minister drew attention to the importance of bilateral business relations between local and Hungarian businessmen. He mentioned that Hungarian business circles might also be interested in participating in projects to be implemented in the Alat Free Economic Zone.

In his turn, the ambassador stressed that Hungary is determined to expand relations with Azerbaijan, and noted that bilateral cooperation is constantly developing.

The activities of the joint commission on economic cooperation between the governments of Azerbaijan and Hungary and the results of the 8th meeting of the commission, held in February of this year, were also discussed.

Additionally, the meeting included an exchange of views on the current situation and the prospects for the development of relations between the two countries.

The diplomatic relations between the two nations were established on November 27, 1992. The Hungarian embassy in Azerbaijan was established in January 2009, while the embassy of Azerbaijan was opened in Hungary in September 2004.

The trade turnover between the two countries totaled $35.1 million in 2021.
Malpass' remarks came as he addressed the G24 meeting of ministers and governors, held in Washington, as he highlighted the efforts of WB to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate climate action.



"We already supported 49 countries across all regions with $6.3 billion committed in operations that include food security and nutrition, only in the first months of the (Russian-Ukrainian) war, until June 2022... including a $500 million project in Egypt to maintain uninterrupted access to bread for poor and vulnerable households, strengthen the country's resilience to food crises, and support reforms that will help improve nutritional outcomes," Malpass said.



The developing world is facing an extremely challenging outlook shaped by sharply higher food, fertilizer, and energy prices, rising interest rates and credit spreads, currency depreciation, capital outflows, and a higher level of debt that adds to higher inflation, impacting especially the poor, he said. With the current trends, the risks of a global recession in 2023 are high, he added.



In this context, the World Bank Group stands ready to support you, both IDA and IBRD countries  as the availability and cost of financing are challenging, more so as global interest rates increase.



He pointed out that the world is not going to meet the goal of ending extreme poverty by 2030. COVID-19 impacts have been devastating and the impacts of the war in Ukraine increased the challenges. Its a crisis facing development, according to him.



The COVID-19 pandemic pushed about 70 million people into extreme poverty in 2020  the largest since our monitoring began, he said. And the global median income declined by 4 percent in 2020  the first decline since our measurements of median income began. Geopolitical conflicts and extreme weather events have hurt countries and people worldwide, with the poor bearing the brunt, especially women and girls.

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NATO's secretive Nuclear Planning Group met Thursday as the military alliance presses ahead with plans to hold a nuclear exercise next week as concerns deepen over President Vladimir Putin's insistence that he will use any means necessary to defend Russian territory.

Defense ministers led the session, which usually happens once or twice a year, at NATO headquarters in Brussels. It comes against a backdrop of high tension as some NATO allies, led by the U.S., supply Ukraine with advanced weapons and munitions to defend itself against Russian aerial attacks.

NATO is keeping a wary eye on Russia's movements but has so far seen no change in its nuclear posture.

But additional uncertainty comes from the fact that Russia is also due to hold its own nuclear exercises soon, possibly at the same time as NATO or just after, according to NATO diplomats. That could complicate the 30-country military organization's reading of the war and of Moscow's intentions.

``Russia will also be conducting its annual exercise, I think, the week after or just after the annual exercise,'' U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told reporters. But ``what we don't want is to do things out of routine.''

``This is a routine exercise and it's all about readiness,'' Wallace said, just as ``NATO's meeting is all about making sure we are ready for anything. I mean, that is the job of this alliance _ to make sure that the 30 partners together are ready for what is thrown at us. And we have to continue to work at that.''

NATO's exercise, dubbed ``Steadfast Noon,'' is held around the same time every year and runs for about one week. It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads but doesn't involve any live bombs. Conventional jets, and surveillance and refuelling aircraft also routinely take part.

Fourteen NATO member countries will be involved in the exercise, which was planned before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The main part of the manoeuvres will be held more than 1,000 kilometres (625 miles) from Russia.

NATO as an organization doesn't possess any weapons. The nuclear weapons nominally linked to the alliance remain under the firm control of three member countries _ the U.S., the U.K. and France. But France insists on maintaining its nuclear independence and doesn't take part in Nuclear Planning Group meetings.

With the Russian army retreating under the blows of Ukrainian forces armed with Western weapons, Putin raised the stakes by annexing four Ukrainian regions and declaring a partial mobilization of up to 300,000 reservists to buttress the crumbling front line.

As his war plans have gone awry, Putin has repeatedly signalled that he could resort to nuclear weapons to protect the Russian gains. The threat is also aimed at deterring NATO nations from sending more sophisticated weapons to Ukraine.

In an interview with France 2 television on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron warned about the responsibilities of leaders when it comes to nuclear rhetoric. He said he has spoken to Putin ``several times.''

``We have a (nuclear) doctrine which is clear,'' Macron said. ``The dissuasion is working. But then, the less we talk about it, the less we brandish the threat, the more credible we are.''

``Too many people are talking about it,'' he said.

Earlier this week, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg described Putin's remarks as ``dangerous and reckless,'' and underlined that the allies ``have also conveyed clearly to Russia that it will have severe consequences if they use nuclear weapons in any way.''

Stoltenberg warned that it ``would be absolutely the wrong signal to send'' if the world's biggest security organization were to cancel the manoeuvres.

``NATO's firm, predictable behaviour, our military strength, is the best way to prevent escalation,'' he said. ``If we now created the grounds for any misunderstandings, miscalculations in Moscow about our willingness to protect and defend all allies, we would increase the risk of escalation.''

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At least nine rockets targeted Iraq's parliament inside the heavily fortified Green Zone on Thursday ahead of a much-anticipated session to resolve a political crisis, Iraq's military said.

The rocket attack delayed the parliament session scheduled to take place to elect a president, a key step toward resolving Iraq's stalled government formation one year since federal elections were held. The session is still scheduled to take place later on Thursday.

At least five people were wounded in the attack _ three were civilians and two were military personnel _ the officials said without giving more details. The culprits were not immediately known.

The attacks, which appeared to be an attempt to derail the scheduled session, struck after the Coordination Framework, an alliance made up of mostly Iran-backed Shia parties, submitted a formal letter claiming to be the largest bloc in Parliament.

The alliance named Mohammed Shia al-Sudani as their nominee for the premiership, a key legal step before the next government can be formed.

Many feared protests by the followers of influential Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, a political opponent of the Framework, ahead of the session.

His supporters stormed the parliament on June 30 and stalled the government formation process when al-Sudani was first named nominee by the Framework.

Al-Sadr's party won the largest number of seats in the October 2021 federal election, but he ordered his lawmakers to resign after failing to secure a quorum to vote in a government that would exclude his Iran-backed allies.

Under Iraqi law, before lawmakers can vote on the nominee for the premiership, they must elect a president.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

It was not the first time rocket attacks have targeted the parliament building as lawmakers prepared to attend a session.

On Sept. 28, three rockets targeted the Green Zone as a session was convened to renew confidence in parliament speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.

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Iraqi lawmakers elected Abdel Latif Rashid as new state president Thursday in hopes of ending a year of political gridlock and violence in the war-scarred nation.

Rashid, 78, replaces fellow Iraqi Kurd Barham Saleh as head of state after the two-round vote in parliament, winning more than 160 votes against 99 for Saleh, an assembly official said.

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The event is the world's third largest, gathering almost all tech-based companies.

The 43rd round of the GITEX for Africa will be launched next year in Morocco, which is expected to significantly focus on digital transformation in Africa and how African countries can leverage the new technologies for the benefit of their people, especially amid the ongoing challenging times and the cascading crises the continent has been enduring.

Ahram Online met with a number of international companies that are operating in Egypt and others that are planning to enter the market. All of these companies asserted their intention to expand in the Egyptian market as a critical hub for the MENA region and the main gate to Africa.

Ajay Nawani,p spokesperson and sales engineering operations director for the Middle East and Africa at the US-based Sophos, told Ahram Online that Sophos, specialised in next-generation cybersecurity, initiated its operations in the region 15 years ago and in the Egyptian market it provides cybersecurity consultations to partners and customers.

The pandemic has made working remotely the new normal. Thus, the work landscape has expanded depending on utilising the internet to do the work, which means that this landscape is in need to protect its data, including in a continent like Africa. Also, the companies need their employees to be more productive, so they invest heavily in digital transformation that is expanding currently in a massive way. Every company became an IT company, indeed, counting significantly on tech solutions. Cybersecurity has become vital for all companies at the time being.



Nawani explained that the digital transformation efforts Egypt has been making over the past few years are drastic and people have become aware of digital transformation and automation.

Egypts government has created a proper environment for investment and doing business in the local market and we have seen a lot of off-shore businesses that are operating now in the country. We really plan to expand in the Egyptian market which we see as a high-potential market and we are very optimistic about it.

Ahram Online also talked to Tamer Odeh, spokesperson and regional sales director for Middle East, Turkey and Africa at the US-based SentinelOne, which also has a presence in Egypt and set to participate in the upcoming Cairo ICT expo scheduled in November.



SentinelOne is in talks with the banking sector in Egypt and it has kickstarted an open dialogue with the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to provide cybersecurity services as well as its Extended Detection and Response (XDR) technique. It also has engaged in operations with a number of local private sector companies and plans to cooperate with Egypts government in this respect.



Odeh said that the annual spending on digital transformation across the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa is set to top $58 billion, as regional governments and organisations increasingly look to technology to find new efficiencies and respond to changing demands and new challenges.

While digital transformation can certainly make a difference, the downside is governments and businesses then become potential targets for a variety of global threat actors. As a result, the need for effective cybersecurity is at an all-time high Odeh noted.



He also pointed out that cybersecurity solutions must be able to see across every corner of the enterprise and offer rapid and efficient protection across the organisation and an automated response across the connected security ecosystem.



Speaking of Egypts digital scene, Odeh said that Egypt has been transformed dramatically in this regard, praising the establishment of the New Administrative Capital as one of the smart cities the country is building.

He added that Egypt is highly talented in the engineering space, development space, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups space, which all make it a market of potential.

We definitely would like to go on with our operations in the country and to expand in operations and investment. Egypt has a significant population that also has potential to be tapped from our side through expanding in the local market. Egypt is a focal market for this company, Odeh explained.



Senior Vice President of US-based Swimlane Jim Pickering asserted the significance of cybersecurity in the Middle East. Swimlane is a low-code security automation company that plans to enter the Egyptian market over the short term.



Globally, there is already a shortage of some 2.72 million cybersecurity professionals, and a critical need for the workforce to grow 65 percent to effectively defend organisations assets. When you consider that the Middle East cybersecurity market on its own is projected to more than double from $20.3 billion in 2022 to $44.7 billion by 2027, driven by significant government economic diversification drives, its fair to say that the recruitment of cybersecurity professionals from within the region or from international markets will continue to significantly challenge organisations, Pickering told Ahram Online. Companies cannot compete in the digital world without some type of automation, Pickering added.



He stressed his companys intention to enter the Egyptian market in the upcoming six months, adding that it will pave the way for this through its participation in the upcoming Cairo ICT Expo.

The market is really expanding and booming in Egypt. In the first phase of our operations in Egypt, we plan to work through distributors and other partners beside our employment plan. Egypt will be our hub for operations in the North Africa region in general. Over the past two years, Egypt has managed to facilitate the investment procedures as and invest heavily in the ICT sector. The market is becoming more attractive for foreign investments.



Founder and vice president of ManageEngine, the IT management division of Zoho Corporation, which provides IT management solutions Shailesh Davey told Ahram Online that

Egypt is one of the fastest growing markets for his company in the MENA region.

Weve been growing consistently, at more than 35 percent over the past three years. We expect the same rate of growth, both in terms of revenue and new customers in 2022 as well.



Though the needs are different, one thing is clear. Across industries, there is a desire to digitalise and automate critical functions. There is demand for identity and access management (IAM), and cybersecurity solutions, while IT service management and endpoint management are always key focus areas for organisations, Davey explained.



ManageEngine has been working in the Egyptian market for 15 years focusing on the private sector, while it is getting in connection with a number of ministries for potential cooperation, he added.

Egypt is giving a great push to e-government and other efforts related to digital transformation and this represents a significant potential that we surely need to tap to expand more in the local market. The Middle East region as a whole has become in the picture in terms of digital transformation."
Natural gas prices for cement industries have increased and other fuel prices are expected to follow

Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli has decided to increase the prices of the natural gas sold to Egypts cement factories by 109 per cent starting on Monday. According to the decision, the selling price of natural gas for cement factories increased from $5.75 per million British thermal units (BTU) to $12 million BTU.

The government had previously raised natural gas prices for steel, cement, petrochemicals, and fertiliser factories in October 2021 by $1.25 to reach $5.75 per million BTU and by $0.25 for other industries to $4.75 per million BTU.

Ahmed Al-Zeini, head of the Building Materials Division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, said that the decision will not affect the selling prices of cement during the coming period, especially since about 90 per cent of the factories use coal as a main source of fuel.

Only the Arish Cement Factory depends mainly on natural gas, and accordingly it is the only factory to be affected by this decision. Cement prices now range from LE1,24 to LE1,500 per ton.

According to Al-Zeini, the cost of energy represents from 50 to 60 per cent of the cost of the final product and cement factories in Egypt depend on coal, diesel, and natural gas for production.

Ahmed Sherine, head of the Cement Division at the Federation of Egyptian Industries, said in a telephone interview with the MBC Egypt channel that a decision had been taken 10 years ago to ban the use of natural gas in heavy industry, including at cement factories, and use coal as an alternative.

The production of natural gas in Egypt was then limited in comparison to the current period.

Sherine added that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in the increased prices of coal, and some cement factories were allowed to use small amounts of natural gas as a result.

He pointed out that there are 22 cement factories, of which only 10 are qualified to use natural gas. These can cover 10 to 15 per cent of their energy needs by using natural gas, he added.

Egypts average production of natural gas was about 6.7 billion cubic feet per day, and average domestic consumption was about 6.1 billion cubic feet per day during 2021-22, according to the Ministry of Petroleum.

According to the Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), work is underway to carry out 14 projects to develop gas fields, in addition to drilling 20 new natural gas wells, with a total initial production estimated at 1.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day at a total investment cost estimated at about $680 million.

In an attempt to reduce the volume of subsidies directed to the energy sector and petroleum materials, the prices of fuel are also expected to increase in the next few days.

The cabinets Fuel Pricing Committee has begun meeting to study the prices of petrol and diesel, given the international oil prices and the exchange rate of the pound against the US dollar.

The latter has been gaining value compared to the Egyptian pound over the last few weeks, and one dollar currently costs LE19.69. Brent Crude oil is currently being traded at slightly over $90 per barrel.

A decision last week by members of OPEC+, a group of countries that includes the largest global oil producer Saudi Arabia, to slash production by two million barrels per day is expected to lead to hikes in oil prices.

Last July, the Fuel Pricing Committee raised the prices of petroleum products in Egypt, those currently in effect, by between 50 piastres and LE1 per litre.

Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli issued a decision to implement a quarterly automatic pricing mechanism for petroleum products in June 2019. It allows the price of the product to rise and fall, according mainly to the change in the costs of oil and exchange rates.

According to the pricing mechanism, fuel prices are only allowed to fall or rise by a maximum of 10 per cent of their current value every three months.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 13 October, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

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Daren Tang, director-general of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) was in Cairo recently to take part in the launch of Egypts first National Intellectual Property Strategy (NIPS). During his stay he met President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi to discuss Egypts Development Vision 2030 as well as the presidents strong support for the implementation of the Vision and National IP Strategy. Tang told Al-Ahram Weekly how IP can act as an engine for growth, catalyst for jobs and a key feature of the knowledge-based economy.

How important is intellectual property to the advancement of world economies today?

As products of the worlds oldest continuing civilisation, Egyptian ideas, inventions, and creations have shaped and influenced humankind throughout history. Your country has been an innovation powerhouse for millennia.

What is innovation? It is the process through which an idea is commercialised, creating real, on-the-ground impact. Intellectual property [IP] plays a critical role in this process by giving those who create something new  brands, designs, technologies, content  the ability to prevent others from stealing their ideas, and then the incentive and power to bring these ideas to the market.

So when an Egyptian designer like Temraza creates a new design, she can use IP to protect its designs and to ensure that the company can continue growing its business.

At the broader level, countries can use IP as a powerful catalyst to create jobs, attract investments, support entrepreneurship and drive economic and social development. This has certainly been the economic strategy pursued by an increasing number of developing countries, including India, Turkey, Vietnam and Brazil, to name a few.

As a country shifting to a knowledge-based digital economy, IP will become more and more important in Egypt. Raising awareness of IP, therefore, is fundamental. I was pleased to see that this is one of the main pillars of Egypts recently launched IP strategy. But raising awareness of IP is not an end in itself, but a means to an end. Ultimately, we must build the culture of belief in, and respect for, innovation. We must also work to build a more inclusive IP ecosystem that better serves women, youth and small and medium-sized enterprises [SMEs]. Lastly, we must connect IP to peoples everyday lives and make it relevant to everyone  moving IP out of the shadows and into the light. It is only by broadening our work and connecting it to a much wider and more diverse range of stakeholders that we will help people to see the value of IP.

Egypt launched a national strategy to protect intellectual property. How do you see the challenges which might affect its implementation?

Egypts IP strategy is bold, far-reaching, and comprehensive, looking at IP from a horizontal rather than a vertical perspective. This means that it will touch on the work of many different ministries, as well as stakeholders from industry, businesses, research, and other sectors. The challenge will, therefore, be one of coordination across many different stakeholders and actors.

However, I am confident that Egypt will be able to meet these challenges. The launch of the National IP Strategy by the prime minister, with many other key ministers in personal attendance, is unprecedented, and immediately sends a signal of holistic and comprehensive support.

The ancient spirit of Egyptian innovation and dynamism continues to this day with the country preparing for a new chapter of growth under the umbrella of Egypts Development Vision 2030. This vision of using innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology to create a knowledge-based economy and sustainable growth is very much aligned with WIPOs desire to transform IP from a technical issue into a powerful catalyst for jobs, investments, business growth and, ultimately, economic and social development.

What was the impact of Covid-19 on intellectual property rights?

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, data collected by the World Intellectual Property Organisation shows that innovation activities continue to grow, powering ever-increasing numbers of economies and enterprises around the world.

Although the pandemic has been a great disruptor, it has also been a powerful accelerator, encouraging many companies and countries to re-imagine growth strategies. The answer is increasingly to turn to entrepreneurship, innovation, and digitalisation, areas where IP plays a critical role in success. As a result, more and more countries, including emerging economies, are looking to use IP as a powerful tool for growth and development.

For example, I recently visited Cambodia and was impressed by the countrys successful and widespread use of geographical indications to promote local artisanal products in global markets. Similarly, during a visit to Cape Verde, I observed the nations interest in using IP to position itself as a hub for the digital economy through the establishment of technology parks and other cross-sectoral measures. And in a meeting with CEOs of startups from Brazil earlier this year, I noted the resilience of the SME sector in a country that has fostered 26 unicorns [startups with a value of over $1 billion] in recent years.

Here in Egypt, you too are emerging from the pandemic to a transformation of the Egyptian economy. Last year, intangible assets  including IP, data and know-how  passed a symbolic milestone, accounting for more than half the value of Egypts top 15 firms. One example of an Egyptian company whose value is mainly in the form of IP and intangible assets is Fawry, which in 2020 became Egypts first unicorn.

Egypts startup ecosystem is now one of the most vibrant in the region, with close to 600 tech startups across the country. And last year, venture capital investment exceeded all previous records, with close to 150 deals agreed, totaling nearly $450 million, and projected to hit $1 billion in two years.

But it is not just new firms that are using intangible assets to grow. Last year, the brand value of Egypts top 5,000 companies rose by 150 per cent to $2.8 billion, underlining the increasingly close relationship between enterprise brand value and economic vibrancy.

The use of IP to grow a business is also increasingly a feature of Egyptian SMEs and entrepreneurs. Take the story of the fashion firm Okhtein. Formed by two sisters who grew up in Cairo, Okhtein has rapidly established itself as a chic and fashionable global label. Just four years into the companys development, Okhtein bags are sought after and carried by discerning buyers from all over the world. As one of the sisters, Mounaz Abdel-Raouf, describes it: Egypt and the Arab world are full of heritage, so we thought to transform this into a carriable piece of art.

How do you see the relationship between the Internet and intellectual property rights?

The Covid-19 pandemic placed additional pressure on creative industries. Traditional revenue sources were severely disrupted and in-person events, like concerts and book fairs, disappeared. In addition, the pace of digital transformation accelerated at a time when many industry players, especially those in developing and the least developed countries, lacked the means to respond to it.

On the other hand, streaming platforms boomed during the height of the pandemic as we were stuck at home amid a fearful scourge. That created new opportunities not just for the platforms, but for creators across the globe who developed new content to entertain themselves and find new audiences. Look at what the over 50 million content creators in Egypt are doing on TikTok and other social media platforms. With just a mobile phone and a mastery of meme culture, they are making a living from videos they shoot at home or in their neighbourhoods, dancing, singing and generally mixing it up.

With Egypt being the media hub of the Arab world, enjoying the highest number of Internet users in the region and experiencing a blossoming startup scene, the Egyptian government is focused on fostering the growth of the digital economy. I saw first-hand how the government is accelerating the countrys digital transformation, investing massively in capacity building and training, digital services reforms and upgrading infrastructure.

This means massive opportunities are available in the digital economy for the countrys creators and youth culture generally. During my trip to Egypt, I was able to enjoy the countrys wonders, both ancient and contemporary, and have great hope that Egyptians will continue to draw on their rich innovative and creative heritage and harness new technologies, as you have done through thousands of years of history. WIPO stands ready to help the government, and its people, however it can, to ensure that IP plays an affirmative role in Egypts next period of economic and cultural growth.

What role can innovation and the intellectual property system play in advancing global efforts to build a green future that enhances the wellbeing of people?

Innovation and technology will certainly play a major role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. Our work on this has advanced over the years. Through our global technology matching platform, WIPO GREEN, we are connecting providers of climate change-related technologies with those seeking solutions. While there is no shortage of new ideas out there, their diffusion and adoption can sometimes struggle to keep pace with the scale, size and urgency of the challenge at hand.

Through WIPO GREENs acceleration projects, we are supporting industries such as the Indonesian palm oil sector and Latin American agriculture as we explore green opportunities and solutions. This is how IP can help address global challenges on the ground.

WIPO is also planning on launching a new knowledge resource later this year that looks at technology products and trends, with the first edition focused on climate change adaptation. We plan to unveil this new publication during the COP27 climate meeting here in Egypt later this year, so stay tuned.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 13 October, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

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Experts at a Cairo seminar this week concurred that climate action must be mindful of poverty reduction and development

The world must take a holistic approach to dealing with climate action, Mahmoud Mohieldin, high level champion for the UN COP27 Climate Change Conference, told a seminar in Cairo this week.

There is no value in climate action that could result in more poverty or compromise on improvements in living standards or have a negative impact on the labour market, he stressed.

The seminar, part of The Road to COP27 Distinguished Lecture Series, was organised by the Egyptian Centre for Economic Studies, the Economic Research Centre, the Institute for National Planning, and the Centre for Economic and Financial Research Studies, together with the World Bank.

A reductionist approach to climate change has resulted in negative results on sustainable development without achieving much on the climate action front, Mohieldin said, calling instead for a holistic approach that deals with climate action within a sustainable development framework especially in developing economies and emerging markets.

Stephane Hallegatte, a senior climate change advisor in the sustainable development practice group at the World Bank, agreed. According to Hallegatte, a recent World Bank report showed that world poverty has stopped decreasing over the past few years, as it had been doing for decades before.

He said that the main challenge the world must face is the adaptation imperative of how to ensure successful development and poverty reduction while combating a changing climate.

Any climate action that could mean more people in poverty is counterproductive. If the goal is to slow down climate change, we need to make sure climate action does not slow down poverty reduction, he said.

Hallegatte showed how GDP was less impacted when adaptation interventions were introduced in five countries in the African Sahel. Household surveys to find out why people failed to exit poverty had showed that they were most affected by spikes in food prices and loss of income from agriculture, natural disasters such as drought, as well as diseases and health shocks, he said.

To build resilience, he said in his presentation titled Climate and Development: Synergies and Trade-Offs 2022, development needs to be inclusive, offering better education and higher agricultural productivity, infrastructure development and access to markets, financial inclusion and private sector development, stronger and more efficient social protection systems, and universal access to healthcare.

He noted that the infrastructure needed for development must be designed for tomorrows risks. Three per cent is the average increase in infrastructure costs to build more resilient infrastructure, he said, yet it means $4 in net benefit for each $1 invested in infrastructure resilience. In the meantime, the cost of delaying action by one year would cost $100 billion.

Nonetheless, there are limits to what adaptation can achieve, Hallegatte said, and climate change will continue and temperatures will continue to rise until emissions reach net zero. He acknowledged that the rich countries must play a greater role in reducing emissions, but he said all countries will have to act.

He recommended that developing and emerging economies adopt a development model based on new technologies and innovation such as wind and solar energy. There are barriers to developing countries accessing those cheap and promising technologies, and we need those barriers to go, he said.

Some 150 years after the invention of the domestic electricity supply, some 600 million people are still without access to electricity, added Homi Kharas, deputy director for the global economy and development programme at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

We cannot continue to have this slow diffusion of technology.

He noted that research has shown that financing is the biggest problem for developing economies. He invited international financial institutions to come up with a way to reduce the cost of capital and make it more affordable and put them on an equal footing with the advanced economies.

A certain amount of capital has to come in a concessional way, especially to cover activity that does not have a revenue stream, he said. International financial institutions can expand their financing, broaden their instruments to mobilise additional private finance, and do it in a way to not generate more debt, he said.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 13 October, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

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Second was Amazon despite reported exploitative conditions in its warehouses, followed by IBM, Microsoft, LG, Apple, Adobe, Google parent company Alphabet, Siemens and Bosch.

The Korean electronics giant shot up from the also-rans at 106th last year in the annual rankings of big multinational corporation published last week.

Samsung Electronics tops this year's list of the World's Best Employers by Forbes magazine.

Forbes ranked the companies based on surveys of 160,000 employees in 58 countries in June and July of this year. It asked them about their employer's image, economic footprint, talent development, gender equality and social responsibility.

It also took into account evaluations of rival companies and whether employees would recommend the companies to friends and family.

Employee satisfaction with their employer's response to the coronavirus pandemic was also a factor in this year's survey.

Samsung rose to the top spot largely due to its effective COVID-19 response. The company swiftly shut down factories and implemented flexible working conditions to deal with the impact.

Last year, no Korean company ranked among the top 100, but this year 12 Korean companies made the cut. Naver ranked 37th, Amore Pacific 42nd, Korea National Oil Corporation 62nd, CJ 64th, Nongshim 72nd, NCsoft 73rd, Mando 74th, Hyundai Motor 80th and SK Group 88th.
The United States would not support redeploying tactical nuclear weapons to South Korea, or a nuclear weapons sharing arrangement with Seoul, according to a U.S. State Department official, after a leading South Korean presidential candidate proposed the move.

"All I can say is, U.S. policy would not support that. And I would be surprised that the people who issued that policy don't know -- or [who] issued those statements -- don't know what U.S. policy is," said Mark Lambert, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Japan and Korea, in an online forum.

The statement was in response to a question about Yoon Suk-yeol, a conservative South Korean presidential candidate, who this week said he would ask Washington to redeploy tactical nuclear weapons or agree to a nuclear-sharing deal if South Korea were threatened by North Korea.

The U.S. withdrew tactical nuclear weapons, sometimes known as battlefield nuclear weapons, from South Korea in the early 1990s. Conservative South Korean politicians have for years called for their redeployment, especially as North Korea has expanded its own nuclear weapons program.

Yoon appears to be the biggest name in South Korean politics to recently make such a call. Opinion polls suggest Yoon, a former prosecutor general, would be locked in a tight race with Lee Jae-myung, a left-leaning provincial governor, for the presidential election in March. Both appear to be frontrunners to become nominees of their parties.

"It is not the first time for a conservative politician to make that promise. But certainly Yoon is the first leading candidate to do it," said Lee Sang-sin, a political science expert at the Seoul-based Korean Institute for National Unification.

Nearly 70 percent of South Koreans support the country developing its own nuclear capability, suggested a poll released earlier this month by South Korea's Asan Institute, a research organization. That finding is broadly in line with other polls on the issue, said Lee, who focuses on public opinion.

"Given the geopolitics and North Korea, that shouldn't surprise anyone. Of course, the public doesn't understand the complexity and the possible costs of nukes. We have been under the nuclear threat from North Korea for so long, and it's natural that people want something that makes them feel safe," he added.


By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Hungary is seeking to add Azerbaijani gas to the country's energy complex, Hungarian ambassador to Azerbaijan Tamas Torman has said.

He made the remarks at an event to mark the Hungarian National Day and the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Hungary and Azerbaijan, Azernews reports.

"Today, when Europe is facing a substantial energy crisis, Hungary sees Azerbaijan as a crucial energy partner. We welcome the launch of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (ICB), as well as cooperation between Serbia and Azerbaijan on gas supplies," he said.

Reconstruction of liberated lands

The ambassador also stated that Hungary eyes participation in the reconstruction of Azerbaijan's liberated territories, adding that Hungarian companies may engage in infrastructure recovery and landmine clearance activities.

"The country can share its expertise in the agricultural sector as well," he said.

Recalling that 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations, he noted that Hungary has always been a supporter of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Business cooperation

Speaking at the event, Labour and Social Security Minister Sahil Babayev stated that Azerbaijan and Hungary have considerable potential for business cooperation.

He noted that commodity turnover between the two countries increased by 9 percent year on year.

"The investment portfolio between the two countries is likely to grow as well. Top-level collaboration can already be seen in agriculture, transport, and education sectors," he said.

Moreover, the minister added that the two countries are actively engaged at a high political level.

"As a chairman of the Azerbaijani-Hungarian Intergovernmental Commission, I would like to express hope for the fruitful activities of the commission and further successful economic cooperation between the two countries," he said.

The diplomatic relations between the two nations were established on November 27, 1992. The Hungarian embassy in Azerbaijan was established in January 2009, while the embassy of Azerbaijan was opened in Hungary in September 2004.

Around 50 documents have been signed between the two countries. Azerbaijan and Hungary have also had fruitful cooperation within international and regional organizations. Hungary signed a strategic partnership agreement with Azerbaijan on November 11, 2014.

The trade turnover between the two countries totaled $35.1 million in 2021.
For decades, Ho Pin made accurate predictions about China's next leadership line-up -- no small feat, given the black-box nature of Beijing politics.

But now, days before the opening on Sunday of China's most important political meeting in a decade, the New York-based journalist said there's little point, given the power amassed by leader Xi Jinping. "It's not about who's going to be in the Standing Committee any longer," he said, referring to the handful of people who will be named to lead the ruling Communist Party for the next five years. "No matter who they are, they all have one thing in common: They all have to listen to Xi."

It's a sharp contrast from an earlier era, when jostling factions leaked salacious details to the foreign press, and a reflection of a consolidation of power that has swept away competitors and stifled internal dissent.

Ten years ago, scandal after scandal rocked Beijing's political establishment in the run-up to a prior Communist Party congress, the one that brought Xi to power.

Most damaging was the murder of a British businessman by the wife of Bo Xilai, a brash and rising political star. Bo was expelled from the party and sentenced to life in prison for bribery and corruption -- eliminating a chief rival to Xi.

The run up to this party congress, by comparison, is hushed. Gone, Ho said, are the factions, pluralism and open political differences that once existed within China's one-party system. "Chinese politics is entering a completely new stage," he said.

Even in the days of Chairman Mao Zedong, who founded communist China in 1949, there were competing factions. During his reign, many politicians were purged, then rehabilitated, then purged again, as Mao encouraged factional struggle to enhance his own power.

After his death, leader Deng Xiaoping loosened controls dramatically, sparking an economic boom and some liberalization. He also instituted term and age limits for party leaders, meant to prevent the rise of another strongman like Mao.

But Xi has swept those rules aside. The party has loosened age restrictions, stopped naming obvious successors to the Standing Committee, and scrapped term limits for China's presidency -- paving the way for Xi to retain power for a third five-year term, and possibly indefinitely. That has made it more difficult to guess new appointments, Ho said. The previously formulaic rules of succession helped Ho forecast China's leadership line-up four times since 2002 by analyzing officials based on their age, education, work experience and relationship with other leaders.

Now, he said, China's new leaders are much more likely to be handpicked by Xi based on their competency and loyalty, unconstrained by past precedent and with little of the factional wheeling-and-dealing that used to take place.
The government has asked the U.S. to share tactical nuclear weapons in order to boost its defenses against North Korea.

A high-ranking government official said on Wednesday, "If North Korea pushes ahead with a seventh nuclear test, we will face a whole new level of threat. We are discussing with the U.S. ways to radically strengthen the U.S.' extended deterrence to fit the changed security situation on the Korean Peninsula."

The government has in mind the rotational deployment of strategic U.S. military assets near the Korean Peninsula such as an aircraft carrier group equipped with nuclear weapons or nuclear-powered submarines.

One security official here said, "What's being discussed is a [South] Korean-style nuclear sharing scheme that could avoid triggering protests from neighboring countries and a regional nuclear arms buildup."

But the White House and U.S. State Department have not commented on the issue and referred reporters to the South Korean government for comments.
Hyundai plans to invest a whopping W18 trillion into "software defined vehicles" over the next eight years (US$1=W1,425).

SDVs are vehicles whose features and functions are enabled entirely through software.

In a press event on Wednesday, Hyundai said it will equip all its cars with the latest wireless communication technology from next year and make sure that they have innovative software by 2025, starting with the level-3 autonomous cars that will be introduced late this year.
China's dynamic decade: Up and out of poverty

From:China Daily | 2022-10-13 15:53

Looking back on the past decade, what changes in China have been most impressive? From fighting against poverty to advancing rural revitalization across the board, let's hear what Erik Nilsson, an American who has lived and worked in China for more than a decade, has to say.

Starting from his own experience, he tells vivid stories of China's poverty alleviation with a backdrop powered by extended reality (XR) technology. Watch this video to learn more.
KYODO NEWS - Oct 13, 2022 - 20:05 | All, Japan

The Japanese government said Thursday it will scrap in principle health insurance cards in fall 2024 and integrate them into the "My Number" national identification system.

According to the plan, My Number cards will become mandatory as Japan's health insurance system covers all residents. The move is part of efforts to promote cards issued under the ID system, which has proven unpopular with only half the population currently carrying them.

The government will also consider moving up the date for integrating driver's licenses into the system from the current goal of the end of fiscal 2024, Digital Minister Taro Kono told a press conference.

The plan to integrate driver's license data into the national ID system was announced in June 2020. The Digital Agency said Japan is at this point not considering abolishing the current format of licenses.

The ID card system, launched in 2016, issues a 12-digit number to each citizen and foreign resident in Japan to incorporate a range of personal data such as information related to taxes and social security.

As part of efforts to push the country's digitalization, the government aims to have almost all citizens obtain My Number cards by March 2023.

But only 49 percent had created and collected cards as of the end of September, partly because people remain concerned about leakages of personal information.

"We will work even harder (to dispel such concerns)," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said at a press conference, underscoring that the government has been trying to enhance public awareness of the safety of the My Number system.

The government says the system will make it possible for various procedures to be done electronically, increasing convenience for people. For instance, holders of the cards can issue certificates of residence at convenience stores without going to municipal offices.

People can already use their My Number card as a health insurance card. With their consent, medical institutions can access the system to collect information on past prescribed drugs and health checkups designated to prevent lifestyle diseases.

"This will help improve the quality of healthcare," Kono said.

To promote the use of the My Number system, the government has decided to give shopping points worth up to 20,000 yen ($136) to individuals who have acquired a card or who file an application by the end of this year.

Kono said My Number cards can be added to Android smartphones from May 11 next year. But he said it is still undecided when the cards can be used with iPhones.

Related coverage:

Japan to cover 99.9% of households by fiber-optic networks in 2028
KYODO NEWS - Oct 13, 2022 - 17:44 | All, Japan, World

Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada warned Thursday that North Korea may have already completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test, all while conducting a spate of test missile launches that began at the start of this year.

Hamada also said during a parliamentary session that Pyongyang's weapons technology has developed "at a rapid pace," acknowledging it has become "more difficult to intercept" missiles it launches.

He expressed wariness that Pyongyang might conduct its first nuclear test since September 2017 in the not-so-distant future, given the progress of repair work at the nation's only known nuclear test site, in Punggye-ri in the nation's northeast.

North Korea has repeatedly fired missiles, including a recent ballistic projectile that was the first to fly over the Japanese archipelago in five years. Pyongyang is banned from using ballistic technology and carrying out nuclear tests under U.N. Security Council resolutions.

The launch last week of the intermediate-range ballistic missile, which Japan's Defense Ministry said traveled about 4,600 kilometers, has fueled fears that North Korea could engage in further military provocations.

Earlier Thursday, North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency reported leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test-firing of two long-range strategic cruise missiles in person the previous day.

Kim was also quoted by KCNA as stressing North Korea should "focus all efforts on the endless and accelerating development" of nuclear weapons.

Hamada said Pyongyang is believed to already possess miniaturized nuclear weapons, while it has also evolved its hypersonic weapon technology and that of missiles that can fly on irregular trajectories.

Despite these developments, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said at the same parliamentary session that U.N. Security Council resolutions aimed at thwarting Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile ambitions "have been working effectively, given North Korea's severe economic situation."

Hayashi added that Japan will continue working with other countries like the United States and South Korea to ensure the full implementation of the resolutions, which were adopted beginning in 2006 to impose sanctions on Pyongyang.

Related coverage:

North Korean leader oversaw test-firing of long-range cruise missiles

North Korea says it fired new ballistic missile over Japan on Oct. 4

North Korea says missile tests are for self-defense, pose no threat
KYODO NEWS - Oct 14, 2022 - 23:00 | All, World, Japan

North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan early Friday, the Japanese government and South Korean military said, the latest in a series of missile tests that have heightened regional tensions.

The missile, launched at around 1:47 a.m., apparently traveled some 650 kilometers at a maximum altitude of 50 km and splashed down outside Japan's exclusive economic zone, some 370 km from its coast, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters.

Friday's launch was the eighth occasion North Korea has test-fired ballistic missiles since late September and came after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was reported by the country's official media to have overseen the test-firing Wednesday of two long-range strategic cruise missiles.

Since the start of the year, North Korea has carried out 27 rounds of missile tests, including cruise missiles. But the tests since Sept. 25 have been at an unprecedented pace and include one fired earlier this month over the Japanese archipelago for the first time in five years.

North Korean ballistic missile launches in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions have come amid growing speculation that the country could conduct a seventh nuclear test in the near future.

Friday's launch prompted South Korea to impose unilateral sanctions on its northern neighbor for the first time in five years, blacklisting 15 North Korean individuals and 16 organizations involved in the North's nuclear and missile development programs.

In Tokyo, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a press conference that Japan supports South Korea's move and will consider what additional sanctions it can impose on the North.

Japan lodged a protest with North Korea through its embassy in Beijing, with Hayashi calling the latest launch "totally unacceptable."

The U.S. State Department condemned the launch and said Washington continues to seek "serious and sustained dialogue" with North Korea but that Pyongyang "refuses to engage."

The South Korean military's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew about 700 km from an area near Pyongyang at around 1:49 a.m.

The missile possibly flew on an irregular trajectory, the Japanese defense minister said, adding there were no immediate reports of damage to Japanese aircraft or ships.

More than 10 North Korean military aircraft, meanwhile, flew near a no-fly zone set up between the two Koreas from late Thursday to early Friday, prompting South Korea to scramble fighter jets, the JCS said.

The North Korean aircraft reached a point some 5 km north of the no-fly zone on the western side of the Korean Peninsula and a point roughly 7 km north of the zone on the eastern side, the JCS said.

The North also fired about 130 artillery rounds toward the Yellow Sea on the peninsula's west past 1 a.m., followed by around 40 rounds toward the Sea of Japan, which lies east, according to the JCS.

North Korea fired a barrage of artillery shells into coastal waters again late Friday afternoon -- about 90 shells into the Sea of Japan and about 300 into the Yellow Sea, the JCS said. None of the shells, including the earlier rounds, landed in South Korea's territorial waters, it said.

South Korea's Defense Ministry said it has warned North Korea over Friday's provocations through inter-Korea military communication lines.

The ministry said it told the North that the artillery firing in western and eastern maritime buffer zones violate a 2018 military agreement and urged Pyongyang to "abide by it and ensure a similar incident will never happen again."

The bilateral pact, which bans hostile acts by either side in border areas, was signed on Sept. 19, 2018, on the sidelines of the Panmunjom Declaration signed by then South Korean President Moon Jae In and North Korean leader Kim following their summit.

An official of South Korea's presidential office warned also Friday that the future of the military agreement depends on North Korea's attitude.

The official stressed the South Korean government respects this and other military agreements with the North and that Pyongyang should do the same.

"It was North Korea that violated the Sept. 19 military agreement today and therefore, whether it will be maintained depends on North Korea."

The North's official Korean Central News Agency, quoting a spokesman of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army, said North Korea took unspecified "strong military countermeasures" after South Korea conducted artillery fire for about 10 hours near the forward defense area" of the North's military.

The South Korean military is scheduled to hold a field training exercise from Oct. 17 to 28. The drill will be aimed at countering North Korean threats and involve U.S. forces in South Korea, making a further North Korean response likely.

Related coverage:

Japan warns North Korea may have completed nuclear test preparations

North Korean leader oversaw test-firing of long-range cruise missiles

North Korea says it fired new ballistic missile over Japan on Oct. 4
KYODO NEWS - Oct 13, 2022 - 07:01 | All, World

The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution Wednesday that criticizes Russia for annexing four Ukrainian regions last month and determines the referendums aimed at justifying the territorial expansion were "illegal."

The world body's assembly also urged Moscow to retract the declaration of the annexation of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia as part of the invasion of its neighboring country, which began in February.

The 193-member assembly approved the resolution with 143 votes in favor. Five members, including Russia and Belarus, opposed it, while China, India and 33 others abstained.

The assembly "condemns" the referendums and the subsequent annexation of the regions and the events "have no validity under international law and do not form the basis for any alteration of the status of these regions of Ukraine," the resolution said.

The moves are "inconsistent with" the principles of the U.N. Charter, it said.

"One country cannot take the territory of another by force," Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said at the session. "If you are a U.N. member state, your borders are your own and are protected by international law," she said.

Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzya defended the annexation, saying at the session that the results of the referendums showed the populations of the regions "do not want to return to Ukraine" and the polls were held "in full accordance with the norms and principles of international law."

Related coverage:

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By Rudy Madanir and Christine Tjandraningsih, KYODO NEWS - Oct 13, 2022 - 16:34 | World, Feature

Ni Luh Erniati lost her husband 20 years ago in the triple bombings on the Indonesian resort island of Bali that claimed 202 lives, and it took a long time for her to come to terms with her anger.

I Gede Badrawan, head waiter at Sari Club, was among those killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up in the popular night spot in Bali's busy tourist area of Kuta on Oct. 12, 2002, leaving Erniati with two children.

The anger that filled her heart only lessened in recent years, after she realized that it would only bring her more pain and vengeance would not give her peace of mind.

The 52-year-old was lost for words when in late September she finally met Umar Patek, the bomb maker, at Porong Prison in East Java Province. The so-called Demolition Man rushed to her, cried and kissed her feet.

"He begged for forgiveness," she said, recalling their one-hour meeting. "I touched his hands and told him that I had already forgiven him."

Erniati's meeting with Patek was arranged by the counterterrorism police unit Detachment 88, named after the 88 Australians killed in the blasts, as part of the government's so-called deradicalization program for convicts who were formerly terrorists.

Detachment 88, working with the National Counterterrorism Agency, claims that the program has changed the radical thinking of hundreds of former terrorists.

"Their mindsets have drastically changed. In particular, they regret what they did," the agency's chief, Boy Rafli Amar, told Kyodo News in a recent interview.

Amar claimed that more than 90 percent of the around 900 terrorism-linked detainees had voluntarily joined the program, which provides a dialogue with experts who convince them that violence is not the way to find a solution for their grievances.

The inmates were also taught "to be more tolerant and to accept differences of religion and ethnicity," the police general said.

At the end of the program, which also includes entrepreneurship training, the participants must pledge their loyalty to the state in return for reduced sentences.

Marthinus Hukom, chief of Detachment 88, said separately that Patek was one of the success stories of the program and a "model" case for reforming other militants.

Patek and Ali Imron, another convicted Bali bomber, are set to appear in a counterterrorism campaign video to be released on YouTube this month.

Patek became eligible for conditional release in August after his prison sentence was reduced from 20 years.

His release, however, has been delayed due to opposition from survivors of the bombings and relatives of the victims. The Australian government has also objected to his release.

Hukom pointed out that one of the key tasks ahead is to prepare the ground for the public to embrace the convicted former terrorists.

"Don't let the stigma of terrorism stay on them forever," he told a group of selected journalists during an interview. "If they are isolated, they will return to their exclusive group."

He added, "We have to create room for reconciliation between the victims and the perpetrators."

Both Amar and Hukom said Jemaah Islamiyah, the Southeast Asian arm of al-Qaida that was responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings, and other terrorist networks have been weakened by the arrests of many senior members.

Over the past four years, more than 1,300 arrests have been made, the police said. No organized terrorist attacks have occurred since 2018, when suicide bombers hit three churches in the East Java provincial capital of Surabaya, leaving 28 people dead.

"If you want to measure the success (of the program), I can say that in the past two years, no recidivism has been seen," Hukom said.

Amar warned, however, that threats still remain.

"The younger generation (of terrorists) is still active and reorganizing with a different style of operation," he said.

Related coverage:

Survivors, relatives remember 20th anniversary of Bali bombings
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, makes an important speech at the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC, in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded its seventh plenary session in Beijing on Wednesday with a communique issued.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, made an important speech at the four-day session, which was presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

It was decided at the plenary session that the 20th CPC National Congress will open on Oct. 16 in Beijing, according to the communique.

Entrusted by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Xi delivered a work report to the plenum.

The plenary session also discussed and adopted a report to be made by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress, a work report of the 19th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) to the congress, and an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

The three documents will be submitted to the upcoming congress for examination and deliberation, read the communique.

During the session, Xi delivered explanatory remarks on the draft report by the 19th CPC Central Committee to the 20th CPC National Congress. Wang Huning made explanations on the draft amendment to the CPC Constitution.

It was noted at the session that over the past year, confronted with a complex and challenging international situation and demanding tasks of advancing reform, promoting development, and maintaining stability at home, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee has fully implemented Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in securing new and major achievements in the undertakings of the Party and the state, creating favorable conditions for convening the 20th CPC National Congress.

The past five years since the 19th CPC National Congress have been unusual and extraordinary, said the communique.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has held high the banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in completing the historic mission of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and thus realizing the first centenary goal, and in embarking on a new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing toward the second centenary goal, the communique said.

Over the past five years, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has united and led the whole Party, the armed forces and the people of all ethnic groups in effectively coping with the grave and complex international situation and a series of major risks and challenges, and pushing forward socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era in an energetic manner, according to the communique.

Many tough problems that remained unsolved for a long time have been solved, many things of vital importance and long-term significance have been accomplished, and major achievements that captured the attention of the world have been scored in the cause of the Party and the country, the communique said.

The communique noted that these major achievements have been the result of concerted efforts of all Party members and all Chinese people under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, and the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

It emphasized that, the Party has established Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and has defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This reflects the common will of the Party, the armed forces, and the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, and is of decisive significance for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era and for driving forward the historic process of great national rejuvenation.

The session took stock of the work of the 19th CPC CCDI, noting that discipline inspection commissions at all levels, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, had resolutely implemented the Party's strategic decisions of self-reform and full, rigorous self-governance.

An overwhelming victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and this has been consolidated across the board, it read.

The session analyzed the current situation and the tasks, and hosted in-depth discussion on major issues including upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era, and building a modern socialist country in all respects. It made full preparation for the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, the communique said.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee opened in Beijing on Oct. 9, with 199 full members and 159 alternate members present. Members of the CCDI and leading officials of related departments were also present in a non-voting capacity.

In accordance with the CPC Constitution, the session decided to admit Ma Guoqiang, Wang Ning and Wang Weizhong as full members to the 19th CPC Central Committee. They had been alternate members of the committee.

The session also endorsed the expulsion of Fu Zhenghua, Shen Deyong and Zhang Jinghua from the CPC, as was decided by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, as well as the punishment on Li Jia, who was removed from his post in the Party. 

The seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)

Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng attend the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng attend the seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), in Beijing, capital of China. The plenary session was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

The seventh plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held from Oct. 9 to 12 in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan and Russia have discussed cooperation within the OPEC plus format, Azernews reports.

The discussion took place during a meeting between Azerbaijan's Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov and Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak on the margins of Russian Energy Week in Moscow.

"In Moscow, we had fruitful discussions with A. Novak, Russian Deputy Prime Minister, on bilateral and global energy agenda issues," Parviz Shahbazov tweeted.

During the meeting, the parties expressed satisfaction with the development of relations between the two countries, which rose to the level of alliance in all spheres.

They discussed issues related to the development of bilateral relations in the energy sector, as well as prospects for expanding energy cooperation in the electricity, renewable energy, oil and gas sectors.

Moreover, the parties also exchanged views on the work done toward the creation of the North-South electric corridor.

Parviz Shahbazov arrived in Moscow at the invitation of Alexander Novak to participate in the Russian Energy Week International Forum, being held from October 12 to 14.

Azerbaijan and Russia cooperate in different sectors, such as the 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.

Azerbaijan's investments in the Russian economy have exceeded $1.2 billion, with the lions share of it invested in the non-oil sector. In addition, Russian investments in Azerbaijan's economy totaled $6.3 billion, with $5 billion in the oil sector and $1.3 billion in the non-oil sectors.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Russia amounted to $2.9 billion in 2021, making Russia Azerbaijans third-largest partner.
A bus carrying migrants drives along a portion of the border wall in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 10, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

EAGLE PASS/HOUSTON, the United States, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections.

BORDER TOWN SWAMPED

Eagle Pass, a border town in the U.S. state of Texas, has become one of the busiest crossing points along the Rio Grande river that separates the United States and Mexico during the fiscal year 2022, which ends on Sept. 30.

According to data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, more than 2.1 million migrants crossed the border in the first 11 months of fiscal 2022, a record high in U.S. history.

Unlike in the past, the current influx was primarily driven by migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua, data showed. U.S. relations with all three countries are deeply strained, contributing to economic misery there while making it difficult to send them home.

Luis, a 23-year-old Venezuelan migrant who did not give his full name, told Xinhua on Friday that it took him seven months to risk his life trekking the entire distance from his hometown to the U.S.-Mexico border.

"The crossing of the Darien Gap was especially dangerous. It took me six days to complete. I was so hungry the entire time. Along the way, I saw dead bodies. Some drowned, others collapsed," Luis said outside a migrant resource center in San Antonio, which is about two and a half hours away by car from Eagle Pass.

The Darien Gap is the only overland route connecting Central and South America, stretching over sixty miles through forest and swamp. It is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world.

However, this does not mean that migrants are safe once they cross the border into the United States. Late last month, a detention center warden and his twin brother opened fire on a group of migrants who had stopped for water along a farm road near the United States-Mexico border in Texas, killing one and injuring another.

More than 800 migrants died at the border in fiscal year 2022, hitting a record high, NPR reported recently, citing internal government figures shared by a senior Border Patrol official. Many of them died as a result of the extreme heat or drowning. In an interview with CNN, Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber said he finds bodies of migrants almost every day.

THRUST INTO SPOTLIGHT

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, whose reelection campaign in 2022 is focused on border security, launched the "busing strategy" in April to protest U.S. President Joe Biden's border policies.

Abbott has accused the Biden administration of "ignoring and denying the historic crisis at our southern border, which has endangered and overwhelmed Texas communities for almost two years." Arizona, another border state dominated by Republicans, later joined Texas in migrant busing.

Republicans are "playing politics with human beings, using them as props," Biden said, slamming Abbott and other Republican governors over the relocation of migrants last month.

Thousands of migrants have been bused from the southern U.S. border to New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago since April, leaving these Democratic cities scrambling to find adequate shelters for them.

Another Republican, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, chartered two flights to send migrants recruited in San Antonio, Texas, to Martha's Vineyard, a Democrat-dominated rich island in Massachusetts, last month.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency on Friday in response to the unprecedented influx of asylum seekers, following in the footsteps of Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who declared a public emergency and requested the National Guard to assist with the arrival of migrants this summer.

"This is unsustainable. The city is going to run out of funding for other priorities," Adams said, blaming political motivation and lack of coordination for the man-made humanitarian crisis.

"What's happening is very disturbing to a lot of people," Juanita Martinez, Democratic Party Chairwoman of Maverick County, Texas, told Xinhua in Eagle Pass on Monday.

"It has wasted money for a political stunt for Abbott. He is using these poor people as a political stunt," Martinez said, referring to the migrant busing. "We need a change here in Texas. We need to turn Texas blue."

Republicans and Democrats are attempting to highlight their differences on a variety of issues ahead of the November elections, with immigration being a key focus, according to a Pew Research survey released on Thursday, with Democrats' messaging this election cycle resonating more with Latino voters.

As the partisan feud intensifies, immigration will be a key driver in the midterm elections, according to a Wall Street Journal poll released last month, which warned that if Republicans do not show some leadership on the issue, they will allow "a big opportunity to slip away." 

A bus carrying migrants is seen along a portion of the border wall in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 10, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

Migrants seeking asylum line up to board a bus at a checkpoint in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 10, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

A bus carrying migrants departs from a U.S. Border Patrol processing facility in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

Migrants seeking asylum wait to board a bus at a checkpoint in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 10, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

A Texas National Guardsman escorts a group of migrants toward a checkpoint in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

A man opens a gate for a bus to exit a U.S. Border Patrol processing station in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

A migrant seeking asylum boards a bus at a checkpoint in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 10, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)

Migrants seeking asylum line up at a checkpoint in Eagle Pass, Texas, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2022. Buses carrying migrants from Republican-led border states continue to arrive in liberal bastions like New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, dragging the U.S. migrant crisis into the eye of the storm of partisan battles ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Nick Wagner/Xinhua)
How does rice grow in space? An astronaut in China's space station shows the progress of plant growth on the Wentian lab module, during a livestreamed science class to students on Earth. #GLOBALink







Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Cellphone photo taken on Sept. 3, 2022, shows the scene of an attack on the outskirts of Beledweyne, the administrative town of Somalia's Hirshabele state. (Photo by Hashi/Xinhua)

The Somali National Army (SNA) said its forces have killed over 50 al-Shabab militants in a foiled attack on its base at a village in the Hiran region of central Somalia.

MOGADISHU, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Somali National Army (SNA) said Wednesday its forces killed over 50 al-Shabab militants in a foiled terror attack on its base at a village in the Hiran region of central Somalia.

Odowaa Yusuf Rage, Chief of Defense Forces said that the deadly dawn attack at the army base located in Yasoman village left three soldiers dead. Defense forces defeated the militants and killed 50 of them who attempted to raid the army base, Yusuf was quoted by the SNA Radio as saying.

He said the ongoing military operations will be intensified in the area to flush out all the terrorists who have been staging terror attacks in the region.

Cellphone photo taken on Sept. 3, 2022, shows the scene of an attack on the outskirts of Beledweyne, the administrative town of Somalia's Hirshabele state. (Photo by Hashi/Xinhua)

The Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism had earlier said the SNA backed by the local forces had received intelligence information about the impending attack but moved swiftly and successfully repulsed the insurgents.

The ministry said the fierce fighting took place in Yasoman village, about 35 km northeast of Bulaburte city.

The Somali forces backed by pro-government militia have liberated more than 40 villages and killed over 500 al-Shabab militants in the past three weeks in operations in central Somalia. The militant group has lost ground to the Somali government and African Union troops in recent months but still controls some territory in southern and central Somalia.
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- UN engineers in South Sudan repaired breaches in a dyke that affected thousands of people in a Unity state displaced persons camp, a UN spokesman said on Wednesday.

"The dyke was constructed last year by UNMISS (UN Mission in South Sudan) and the International Organization for Migration to help protect more than 100,000 displaced families as well as to get access to the airport following the worst floods in 60 years," said Stephane Dujarric, the chief spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"Water is now being pumped out of flooded parts of the camp and the mission is repairing roads north of Bentiu to help secure the trade route, as access to the town is limited because of the flooding," Dujarric said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in its most recent situation report that flooding impacted more than 900,000 people in 29 counties across South Sudan and the southern part of the Abyei Administrative Area.

It said people in Unity state were in one of the worst affected areas in the country and that the breaching of the dyke occurred in the early hours of Sunday, increasing water levels in Bentiu town. Water reached the highest levels in flooding this year.

OCHA said that funding shortfalls hampered response activities, security and physical access. 
Li Zhanshu, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, presides over the 126th meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the 13th NPC Standing Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)



BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) will convene its 37th session from Oct. 26 to 30 in Beijing.

The decision was made on Thursday at a meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the NPC Standing Committee, which was presided over by Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

According to the proposed agenda, lawmakers at the session will thoroughly study and implement the guiding principles of the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

The lawmakers are also expected to review a draft revision to the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women, a draft law on the protection of the Yellow River, and a draft revision to the Animal Husbandry Law, among other bills and reports. 
Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2022 shows the dome shaped gate of the eighth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur, Bangladesh. (Xinhua)

The design of the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge incorporates an Islamic-style dome and a Chinese knot, reflecting the bonds between China and Bangladesh and the cultures of the two places.

DHAKA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The architectural heritage across the Islamic world is impressively rich and Bangladesh, as a Muslim-majority country, is no exception.

There are many iconic Islamic structures including mosques, palaces, tombs and fortresses in Bangladesh. A more recent addition to the heritage of Bangladesh is the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge, built with Chinese government funds.

Weng Changmin, deputy manager of the project, told Xinhua recently that it had taken over four years to build the bridge, which officially opened to traffic on Sept. 4.

The structure is a testament to the friendship between China and Bangladesh. The bridge design incorporates an Islamic-style dome and a Chinese knot, reflecting the bonds between China and Bangladesh and the cultures of the two places, he said.

A man takes photos of two youths in front dome-shaped gate of the eighth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur, Bangladesh on Oct. 7, 2022. (Xinhua)

The 2.96-km bridge, formally known as the Bangmata Begum Fazilatun Necha Mujib 8th Bangladesh China-Friendship Bridge, crosses the Kocha River in Pirojpur district, 185 km southwest of the capital Dhaka. It has become an unexpected tourist hotspot in the region.

"I've come to see the 8th Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge," visitor Nasreen Jahan Mukta told Xinhua. "It is incredibly beautiful. People in southern Bangladesh regions have benefited a lot from the bridge. China has always been a friend and hopefully will remain a friend of Bangladesh. Many thanks to them."

Another visitor, Shahnewaz Khan, said the gate and railings on both sides of the bridge are made in a pattern similar to Muslim mosque design and are very beautiful.

"Many thanks to the Bangladesh government and the Chinese government for this," he said, noting that the bridge had put an end to another dangerous ferry service in the region.

Photo taken on Oct. 7, 2022 shows the eighth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge in Pirojpur, Bangladesh. (Xinhua)

Another tourist, Saiful Islam, spoke of how difficult it had been to cross the river before.

"We had a lot of trouble while going to the other side. Now that there is a bridge, we can come and go from Pirojpur to Kaukhali without any difficulty. And we don't have to wait for the ferry."

Eight Bangladesh-China friendship bridges have been built with Chinese aid across Bangladesh since the 1980s.
QUITO, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Ecuador and Costa Rica have made significant progress in free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations, Julio Jose Prado, the Ecuadorian minister of production, foreign trade, investments and fishing, said on Wednesday.

"Very important advances" have been made in the negotiations, the first round of which began on Aug. 8, Prado tweeted, adding that a new round of negotiations will be held at the end of this month in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica.

On the sidelines of the IX Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles in June, Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso and his Costa Rican counterpart, Rodrigo Chaves, announced that the two countries would start FTA negotiations.

The issues on the table include market access, rules of origin, customs procedures, trade facilitation, trade and labor issues, intellectual property, public procurement, technical barriers to trade and regulatory consistency, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, commercial protection, competition policy and electronic commerce.

For Ecuador, reaching an FTA with Costa Rica is key in its strategy to consolidate the country's position in the Central American market where it already has trade agreements with Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador.

Canned fish, bananas, chemicals and pharmaceuticals are among the exports from Ecuador to the Costa Rican market. 




HEFEI, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Greeting Pine, one of China's most famous trees, is undergoing a comprehensive "physical examination."

The tree, which stands at about 1,700 meters above sea level on Huangshan Mountain in east China's Anhui Province, is believed to be between 800 and 1,000 years old.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
JERUSALEM, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians broke out across the West Bank and East Jerusalem on Wednesday, killing a Palestinian youth.

The Israeli police said in a statement that "hundreds" of Palestinians clashed with Israeli police officers in several neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, hurling rocks and firecrackers at the forces and the passing Israeli cars, while the troops fired stun grenades and tear gas to disperse them.

At least two officers were lightly injured, and an Israeli car was hit by rocks, the police said.

The clashes broke out in East Jerusalem's Shuafat refugee camp, where Israeli troops continued the manhunt for the killer who shot dead an Israeli soldier at a checkpoint in the camp on Saturday, as well as in the neighborhoods of Al Issawiya, Silwan, A-Tor, Ras Al Amud, Jabal Mukabar, Tzur Bahr and Beit Hanina.

Protests erupted also in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, where at least two Palestinians were injured by Israeli fire, according to Palestinian media reports.

There were no immediate reports of Palestinian injuries in East Jerusalem.

In the morning, the Israeli military said in a statement that it imposed a partial closure on Nablus and closed major routes because of "increased security operations" in the area during a hunt for two Palestinian militants who shot on Tuesday an Israeli soldier who was securing a settler march outside the settlement of Shavei Shomron, west of Nablus.

This was the latest escalation in the Palestinian-Israeli tension in the West Bank, a territory seized by Israel in the 1967 war. Israel has kept its control over the land despite the Palestinian struggle for independence and international condemnation. 
A staff worker inspects the warehouse at Dongli branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

Wheat is transported to the warehouse by conveyor belt at Dagang branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

A staff worker conducts heavy metal content test in grain at Dagang branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

A staff worker conducts grain moisture content test at Dagang branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

A staff worker adjusts temperature of the warehouse at Dongli branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

Aerial photo shows trucks loaded with grain at Dagang branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

A staff worker inspects the warehouse at Dongli branch of Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Oct. 12, 2022. Affiliated to China Grain Reserves Group (Sinograin), Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. mainly stores wheat and corn with a total storage capacity of about 500,000 tons, which is the largest central grain reserve depot in Tianjin.

In recent years, Central Grain Reserve Tianjin Dongli Direct Warehouse Co., Ltd. has implemented 24-hour temperature monitoring in the warehouse to reduce the loss of grain caused by the change of temperature. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Attracting investment is necessary to prevent oil shortages and price volatility in the oil market in the future, Azerbaijans Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov has said, Azernews reports.

He made the remarks while addressing the panel discussion, entitled New challenges-new opportunities. What awaits the global oil and gas market? at the Russian Energy Week International Forum.

Speaking at the panel discussion, he shared his views on balancing the global oil market and the development of green energy under new realities.

The minister noted that hydrocarbons will remain important in the changing energy architecture, but the picture of the oil and gas sector in the world is likely to be different.

Stressing that there is currently political and investment support for green energy, Parviz Shahbazov noted that last year 257 GW of renewable energy capacity was commissioned worldwide, adding that $365 billion was invested in this sector, as evidence of the green energy development.

Today many countries are successfully implementing a green energy policy and have no problems with energy security. Azerbaijan is one of such few countries, he added.

In this regard, he mentioned that wind and solar energy facilities with a total capacity of 4,700 MW are currently being created together with international energy companies.

A little later, we have plans for projects with a capacity of 6 GW, he said.

Azerbaijan's Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov is attending the Russian Energy Week International Forum, at the invitation of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak.
Local residents buy vegetables at a market under COVID-19 prevention and control measures, in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Sept. 2, 2022. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yan, an empty-nester in her 70s in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, dialed the local citizen hotline 12345 one day to seek help for solving one new problem: picking up groceries.

Due to a leg injury, Wang was unable to collect deliveries at the gate of her residential compound, which was under closed-off management due to COVID-19 flare-up.

Half an hour after Wang's call, a community worker contacted her and promised to arrange daily deliveries to her doorstep.

"My children are out of town, so I was a bit anxious at first. Now I feel much assured as I'm assigned a personal liaison," said Wang.

When Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province and a megacity of 21 million people, was hit by a COVID-19 resurgence in September, local authorities turned 12345 into a service desk for solving urgent difficulties facing residents during the outbreak.

Between Sept. 1 and 27, the hotline received about 1.58 million calls or online messages related to the epidemic, with 98.29 percent of the cases solved. A special team was also set up to expedite cases concerning senior citizens, children and pregnant women, officials said.

In virus-hit Chinese cities, more flexible and custom-made measures are being rolled out to protect both the work and lives of ordinary people, while preventing large-scale outbreaks.

The Chinese government has stressed coordinating epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development, and adopting targeted and science-based measures to minimize the epidemic impact on people's work and lives.

In an effort to ensure supplies of livelihood-related commodities, the Ministry of Transport has vowed to keep logistics vehicles, postal and express distribution outlets and service stations in normal operation during the epidemic.

In tourist city Jinghong, Yunnan Province, authorities offered free meals and are negotiating reduced hotel fees for stranded tourists in the Gaozhuang area after a COVID-19 flare-up prompted travel restrictions in early October.

The city has since Oct. 8 allowed non-local travelers to embark on return trips as long as they could provide negative test results.

Local communities are fully mobilized to care for epidemic-affected residents. In Chengdu, all neighborhoods are divided into 126,000 "micro-grids," served by 149,000 volunteers recruited from couriers, community workers and retirees.

"Each of such micro-grid personnel is responsible for contacting and helping an average of 12 households," said Zheng Zhi, an official with Chengdu's community management commission.

Wearing a red jacket, courier Wang Kehao is one of such micro-grid workers. His new job involves delivering epidemic-control materials and necessities, collecting epidemiological information and reporting residents' complaints to authorities.

"I'm impressed by the community staff who stick to their tasks despite bad weather. By working together, we'll get through this soon," said one resident in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province. After an infection was reported in a local residential complex, volunteers worked overnight to assemble a testing kiosk and facilitate grocery pick-up.

New technologies have facilitated communication in this process. In Chengdu, after big data had helped identify a flurry of complaints about grocery purchase, the municipal commerce bureau immediately organized dozens of retail companies to offer regular deliveries to closed-off neighborhoods.

A telephone AI was also employed to make over 60,000 calls, collecting information for epidemiological investigation and issuing reminders of tests and vaccination.

"The epidemiological tracking used to involve over a dozen staff members making phone calls all day long. It is now done by the robot in an hour, so our people have more time for other epidemic prevention work," said a doctor from the West China Hospital of Sichuan University.

The Chinese mainland on Wednesday reported 322 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases and 1,154 local asymptomatic carriers, compared with 374 and 1,386 on Tuesday. 
The Sursock Palace is pictured in Beirut, Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2022. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)

BEIRUT, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago.

"The Sursock Palace is a gem of Lebanese architecture and a powerful symbol of pride and resilience for the Beirut community, " UNESCO's Director General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement.

According to UNESCO, the rehabilitation is made possible by the important work carried out by UNESCO and a start-up company ICONEM, which specializes in the digitization of endangered cultural heritage sites in 3D.

"UNESCO has prioritized the rehabilitation of the palace because of its architectural and urban importance, and its significant role in Beirut's history ... We hope that further investments will be made in cultural heritage, which is at the very heart of UNESCO mandate," said Costanza Farina, director of the UNESCO regional bureau in Beirut.

The Sursock Palace Association will progressively open the palace to the public as a private museum and a cultural hub, providing a space for the cultural and creative industries to exhibit their work and engage with the community, the statement said.

Lebanon's capital city Beirut was rocked by two massive explosions on Aug. 4, 2020, killing over 200 people and wounding more than 6,000 others. 

An interior view of the Sursock Palace is pictured in Beirut, Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2022. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)

An interior view of the Sursock Palace is pictured in Beirut, Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2022. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)

Picture shows the rehabilitation work at the Sursock Palace in Beirut, Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2022. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)

Picture shows the rehabilitation work at the Sursock Palace in Beirut, Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2022. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with the Swiss government and the Sursock Palace Association to finance the rehabilitation of the Sursock Palace, an iconic building damaged by the Beirut port blasts two years ago. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

TAIYUAN, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- China launched a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province early Thursday.

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the satellite S-SAR01 lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (Beijing Time).

The satellite has entered the preset orbit. Its primary users will be the Ministry of Emergency Management and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

By obtaining 5-meter resolution S-band radar image data, the satellite will support disaster prevention, reduction, relief, and environmental protection. It will also serve natural resources, water conservancy, agriculture, forestry, earthquakes, and other fields, said the China National Space Administration.

Thursday's launch was the 443rd mission by the Long March rocket series. 

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)

A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01, a new satellite for disaster reduction, emergency management, and environment monitoring, blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province Oct. 13, 2022. The rocket lifted off at 6:53 a.m. (2253 GMT Oct. 12) and sent the S-SAR01 satellite into the preset orbit. (Photo by Xu Chunlei/Xinhua)
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- China's envoy on Wednesday urged developed countries to honor their climate financing commitments to Africa during a UN debate.

Helping Africa cope with climate change is not about how loudly one chants slogans, but rather about the commitments being fulfilled and Africa's needs being met, Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations told the UN Security Council debate on climate and security in Africa.

Developed nations have pledged to provide 100-billion-U.S. dollar annual climate financing to developing countries. European countries have also pledged to double financing support to climate projects in poverty-stricken African countries by 2025.

These pledges cannot and must not be just lip service. Historical arrears must be made up as soon as possible. A new collective quantitative goal should be defined, so that African countries can receive actual funds needed to carry out work that produces tangible results, Dai said.

He added that the international financial institutions and climate finance platforms should also lower financing threshold to ensure that the climate finance is accessible to Africa in a fair way.

Lately, when it comes to climate change issues, the vacillation and retrogression on the part of some developed countries is a cause for concern, the envoy said, emphasizing the need for international equity and justice on climate issues.

Many countries in Africa are still at the early stage of industrialization, facing the dual task of socioeconomic development and climate change response. Developed countries, on the other hand, have already achieved industrialization, Dai said.

"Asking Africa and other developing countries to assume the same climate responsibilities as developed countries goes against international equity and justice," he said.

To meet the temperature control target set by The Paris Agreement, developed countries should take the lead in drastically reducing emissions and significantly moving up the date to achieve carbon neutrality, so as to provide development space for Africa and other developing countries, said the envoy.

He also noted that China's support to Africa in combating and tackling climate change has been consistent and ever-present.

China in September organized a ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative, where a proposal was made to promote the global clean energy cooperation partnership. Among the first projects is the cooperation on climate change response and green development in 19 African countries, said Dai. 
BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yan, an empty-nester in her 70s in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, dialed the local citizen hotline 12345 one day to seek help for solving one new problem: picking up groceries.

Due to a leg injury, Wang was unable to collect deliveries at the gate of her residential compound, which was under closed-off management due to COVID-19 flare-up.

Half an hour after Wang's call, a community worker contacted her and promised to arrange daily deliveries to her doorstep.

"My children are out of town, so I was a bit anxious at first. Now I feel much assured as I'm assigned a personal liaison," said Wang.

When Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province and a megacity of 21 million people, was hit by a COVID-19 resurgence in September, local authorities turned 12345 into a service desk for solving urgent difficulties facing residents during the outbreak.

Between Sept. 1 and 27, the hotline received about 1.58 million calls or online messages related to the epidemic, with 98.29 percent of the cases solved. A special team was also set up to expedite cases concerning senior citizens, children and pregnant women, officials said.

In virus-hit Chinese cities, more flexible and custom-made measures are being rolled out to protect both the work and lives of ordinary people, while preventing large-scale outbreaks.

The Chinese government has stressed coordinating epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development, and adopting targeted and science-based measures to minimize the epidemic impact on people's work and lives.

In an effort to ensure supplies of livelihood-related commodities, the Ministry of Transport has vowed to keep logistics vehicles, postal and express distribution outlets and service stations in normal operation during the epidemic.

In tourist city Jinghong, Yunnan Province, authorities offered free meals and are negotiating reduced hotel fees for stranded tourists in the Gaozhuang area after a COVID-19 flare-up prompted travel restrictions in early October.

The city has since Oct. 8 allowed non-local travelers to embark on return trips as long as they could provide negative test results.

Local communities are fully mobilized to care for epidemic-affected residents. In Chengdu, all neighborhoods are divided into 126,000 "micro-grids," served by 149,000 volunteers recruited from couriers, community workers and retirees.

"Each of such micro-grid personnel is responsible for contacting and helping an average of 12 households," said Zheng Zhi, an official with Chengdu's community management commission.

Wearing a red jacket, courier Wang Kehao is one of such micro-grid workers. His new job involves delivering epidemic-control materials and necessities, collecting epidemiological information and reporting residents' complaints to authorities.

"I'm impressed by the community staff who stick to their tasks despite bad weather. By working together, we'll get through this soon," said one resident in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province. After an infection was reported in a local residential complex, volunteers worked overnight to assemble a testing kiosk and facilitate grocery pick-up.

New technologies have facilitated communication in this process. In Chengdu, after big data had helped identify a flurry of complaints about grocery purchase, the municipal commerce bureau immediately organized dozens of retail companies to offer regular deliveries to closed-off neighborhoods.

A telephone AI was also employed to make over 60,000 calls, collecting information for epidemiological investigation and issuing reminders of tests and vaccination.

"The epidemiological tracking used to involve over a dozen staff members making phone calls all day long. It is now done by the robot in an hour, so our people have more time for other epidemic prevention work," said a doctor from the West China Hospital of Sichuan University.

The Chinese mainland on Wednesday reported 322 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases and 1,154 local asymptomatic carriers, compared with 374 and 1,386 on Tuesday. 




PRAGUE, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- European Union (EU) energy ministers held an informal meeting here on Wednesday to discuss solutions for high gas prices, preparing for the energy situation this winter, and a possible revision of the electricity market.





Produced by Xinhua Global Service
A soldier of a demining team uses a landmine detector to clear a pasture in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)

HAJJAH, Yemen, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- A demining squad had been toiling under the sun for days on a pasture in Yemen's northern Hajjah province, trying to clear the land for nearby villagers.

The pasture, which covers approximately 19 square km in the Abs district, is a mix of desert and drought-resistant shrubs, not particularly appealing for grazing. But for hundreds of families living in the nearby Bani Hassan village, this land is all they could rely on to secure food and income.

The Abs district was once a frontline of Yemen's deadly civil war. After the government forces recaptured it from the Houthis in mid-2019, many villagers came back only to find their houses, schools, and roads in ruins.

"When we came back, we were not surprised to find that our houses were destroyed, because there was a war and this was expected," said Mohammed Hassan, a resident of the Bani Hassan village. "But soon we found that our land, roads, and even villages were dotted with landmines. This is much worse."

Landmines are a hidden and hazardous vestige of the cruel conflicts in Hajjah, where thousands of families have been trying to unburden themselves from the plight of war and start a new life from the wreckage.

Thousands of people, mostly children, fell victim to these insidious and lethal weapons while walking on pastures, farms, roads, or even around schools in the government-held province.

Ahmed Sofan, an officer of the demining team, said that so far they have removed more than 4,000 landmines from this area.

"The removed mines included anti-tank mines, anti-personnel mines, and other types of explosive devices made from plastic and camouflaged in the shape and color of small and medium rocks. They were very hard to detect," Sofan said, adding that "the work is continuing."

The Saudi Project for Landmine Clearance in Yemen (Masam) estimated that over 1 million landmines have been laid since the outbreak of the civil war in late 2014, when the Houthi group took control of several northern provinces and forced the Saudi-backed Yemeni government out of the capital, Sanaa.

The Masam project claimed to have removed over 360,000 mines across Yemen since 2018, adding that 33 deminers were killed and more than 42 were injured during demining operations.

The civilian casualties are much higher. Landmines, unexploded bombs, and other explosive remnants in Yemen caused 338 civilian casualties in 2021, including 129 fatalities, according to the UN-affiliated Civilian Impact Monitoring Project.

Ibrahim Kadish, another farmer at the Bani Hassan village, said he lost 12 sheep in a mine explosion while he was grazing them in the area several weeks ago.

"Landmines are threatening our lives everywhere, preventing us from herding sheep and cultivating the land. This exacerbated our suffering as economic conditions deteriorated during the ongoing civil war," Kadish said, standing next to the deep crater of the explosion, where the carcasses of his dead sheep were half buried in the dirt.

"Now I always let my sheep or cattle walk ahead of me when I graze them," Kadish said.

Hassan said that six of his neighbors, including three children, had their hands and feet amputated in mine explosions when they were herding sheep.

"We know this place is dangerous. But we have to feed ourselves. It's either starvation or trying our luck in a death trap," Hassan said. 

A soldier of a demining team disassembles a landmine on a pasture in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)

A soldier of a demining team shows excavated landmines in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)

A farmer holds a piece of shrapnel from an exploded landmine in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)

A farmer stands next to the carcass of his sheep killed in a landmine explosion in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)

A soldier of a demining team shows excavated landmines in the Abs district, Hajjah Province, northern Yemen, on Oct. 7, 2022. (Photo by Mohammed Al-Wafi/Xinhua)
Look at the visual chart! These students' vision meets the standard required of pilots in the Air Force. How did they achieve perfect sight? Physical exercise, outdoor activities and lots of sunshine help prevent the 536 students at Wantang Primary School in Yunnan Province's Pingbian Miao Autonomous County from suffering short-sightedness.



Produced by Xinhua Global Service




UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- China hopes the United Nations could prioritize its financial resources for development to better reflect the needs and concerns of developing countries, a Chinese envoy said on Wednesday.

Cheng Lie, counsellor of the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations, made the remarks at a meeting of the Fifth Committee of the UN General Assembly, at which UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented the program plan and the proposed program budget for 2023 of the world body.

In the current situation, the vast developing countries are facing bigger challenges in economic recovery and looking forward to better support from the United Nations. However, the budget level of development sections has too little increase to reflect the demand and appeal of developing countries, Cheng said.

"We hope that the (UN) Secretariat could optimize the budget allocation to ensure development is prioritized with adequate and sustainable financial resources, in order to respond to the actual difficulties and concerns of developing countries, and promoting the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda," said the counsellor.

China notes with concern that under section 24, the Secretariat for the first time includes resources to implement the mandates expected to be adopted in the name of new and expanded mandates, Cheng noted.

Pre-judging the mandate of the General Assembly or the UN Human Rights Council and front-loading the potential resources into budget section goes against the basic principle of "mandate first, programme next, budget last," he said.

The program plans approved by the General Assembly lay the basis for program budget, which reflects program plans from the perspective of finance. They commonly ensure that the United Nations would be able to accurately implement mandates and priorities of member states. Neither of them should be undermined or ignored. Any changes in the budget modality should not weaken or cut off the relations in-between, Cheng said. 
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune (2nd R, Rear) attends a signing ceremony of Algiers Declaration in Algiers, Algeria, on Oct. 13, 2022. A total of 14 Palestinian factions on Thursday signed in Algiers a reconciliation deal that aims to end their 15-year-long division, state-run ENTV reported. The deal, formally known as Algiers Declaration, was signed by representatives of 14 Palestinian factions, including the Fatah party and Hamas, during a ceremony in the presence of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (Xinhua)

ALGIERS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- A total of 14 Palestinian factions on Thursday signed in Algeria's capital Algiers a reconciliation deal that aims to end their 15-year-long division, state-run ENTV reported.

The deal, formally known as Algiers Declaration, was signed by representatives of 14 Palestinian factions, including the Fatah party and Hamas, during a ceremony in the presence of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

Over the past months, the Algerian authorities had held informal talks with Palestinian factions, trying to persuade them to meet in Algiers to discuss a proposal for reconciliation that will pave the way for elections to establish a national unity government.

The Fatah party led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and its main rival Hamas, now the ruling faction of the Gaza Strip, have been divided since the last elections in 2006 that were won by Hamas.

Hamas seized control of Gaza months after the 2006 elections, while Fatah has been administering the West Bank. 

Photo taken on Oct. 13, 2022 shows a view of a signing ceremony of Algiers Declaration in Algiers, Algeria. A total of 14 Palestinian factions on Thursday signed in Algiers a reconciliation deal that aims to end their 15-year-long division, state-run ENTV reported. The deal, formally known as Algiers Declaration, was signed by representatives of 14 Palestinian factions, including the Fatah party and Hamas, during a ceremony in the presence of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (Xinhua)

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune (7th R) and representatives of Palestinian factions pose for photos during a signing ceremony of Algiers Declaration in Algiers, Algeria, on Oct. 13, 2022. A total of 14 Palestinian factions on Thursday signed in Algiers a reconciliation deal that aims to end their 15-year-long division, state-run ENTV reported. The deal, formally known as Algiers Declaration, was signed by representatives of 14 Palestinian factions, including the Fatah party and Hamas, during a ceremony in the presence of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (Xinhua)
By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan have discussed issues of development of cooperation in support of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), Azernews reports.

The discussion took place during the meeting between Azerbaijani Small and Medium Business Development Agency Board Chairman Orkhan Mammadov with the Kyrgyz Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Marat Sharshekeyev.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the framework of the recently signed memorandum, experience exchange and cooperation expansion between Azerbaijani and Kyrgyz businesses.

To recall, this week, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan signed a memorandum of understanding on SMBs cooperation. The memorandum provides for the promotion of cooperation in trade and investment, exchange of information on actions, experience and services provided by SMBs, organization of business missions, development of bilateral relations between entrepreneurs, search for business partners, as well as support for the creation of cooperation platforms.

Diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan were established on January 19, 1993. The embassy of Azerbaijan in Kyrgyzstan was established in October 2007, while the embassy of Kyrgyzstan in Azerbaijan was opened in October 2014.

In total, around 58 documents were signed between the two countries. The trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $9 million in 2021.
Abdul Latif Rashid is seen at the parliament in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country, the parliament said. (Iraqi Parliament/Handout via Xinhua)

BAGHDAD, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country and ending a year of political deadlock.

The parliament session was held shortly after unidentified militants fired nine Katyusha rockets on the heavily fortified Green Zone that houses key government buildings, including the parliament.

The rocket barrage wounded some security members and civilians in the zone, the media office of the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said in a statement.

According to the power-sharing system in Iraq after 2003, the presidency should be reserved for the Kurds, the parliament speaker's post for the Sunnis, and the prime minister's for the Shiites.

In Thursday's session, Rashid received 162 votes in the second round of voting, defeating Barham Salih, who gained 99 votes, while eight votes were considered invalid, according to the media office of the parliament.

The newly-elected Rashid was later sworn in as the President of Iraq, the fifth president of the country since 2003.

Abdul Latif Rashid, 78, is a veteran Kurdish politician born in the city of Sulaimaniyah in northeastern Iraq. He worked as Minister for Water Resources from September 2003 to December 2010.

He is an active member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) under the leadership of Jalal Talabani, who became president of Iraq in 2005.

Rashid was formerly a spokesperson for the PUK in Britain, where he received a bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1968 from Liverpool University, a master's degree in 1972, and a doctorate in Engineering from Manchester University in 1976.

After the parliament session, Rashid tasked Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani with forming a new government as al-Sudani was nominated by the Coordination Framework (CF), the largest parliamentary alliance and an umbrella group of Shiite parliamentary parties.

Al-Sudani, now as the prime minister-designate, will have 30 days to form the new government, according to the constitution.

Al-Sudani previously served as minister of human rights from 2010 to 2014 and minister of labor and social affairs from 2014 to 2018.

Iraqi caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi congratulated al-Sudani, and wished him success in the task of forming the government.

Rashid's election as president came as political tensions have been rising in the past months between the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's Sadrist Movement, the biggest winner in the parliamentary elections in 2021, and its rivals in the CF alliance.

Al-Sadr demanded to dissolve parliament and hold early elections, but it was rejected by the CF parties, which became the largest bloc after al-Sadr ordered his followers to withdraw from the parliament in June. 

Lawmakers attend a parliament session in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country, the parliament said. (Iraqi Parliament/Handout via Xinhua)

Lawmakers attend a parliament session in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country, the parliament said. (Iraqi Parliament/Handout via Xinhua)

Lawmakers attend a parliament session in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country, the parliament said. (Iraqi Parliament/Handout via Xinhua)

Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani is seen at the parliament in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 13, 2022. Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday elected Abdul Latif Rashid as the new president of Iraq, marking a crucial step toward forming a new government for the country, the parliament said. After the parliament session, Rashid tasked Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani with forming a new government as al-Sudani was nominated by the Coordination Framework (CF), the largest parliamentary alliance and an umbrella group of Shiite parliamentary parties. (Iraqi Parliament/Handout via Xinhua)
This file photo shows South African technicians working inside of a locomotive to be assembled at the Transnet Engineering Koedoespoort Plant in Pretoria, South Africa, on July 27, 2017. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan)

South Africa's government said that the continuing strike by workers of Transnet, the national port and freight-rail operator, is harming the economic growth prospects.

JOHANNESBURG, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The government said Wednesday that the continuing strike by workers of Transnet, the national port and freight-rail operator in South Africa, is harming the economic growth prospects.

Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan, Minister of Employment and Labor Thulas Nxesi, and Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza in a joint statement issued Wednesday also called for an end to the strike by Transnet workers who had gone on a strike last Wednesday over salary disagreements, disrupting operations of the country's ports.

South African Minister of Employment and Labor Thulas Nxesi speaks at a job fair of Chinese-invested enterprises in Johannesburg, South Africa, on April 14, 2022. (Photo by Yeshiel Panchi/Xinhua)

"Government is extremely concerned about the negative impact on the South African economy, particularly, those sectors that are dependent on Transnet for their logistical services. We need to remind all that if we are able to, as soon as possible, resume exports of agricultural products, mineral resources, and other manufactured products, we will be contributing to sustaining hundreds of thousands of jobs across the economy," said the statement.

"It is the view of Government, that it will be in the interests of the country to find a speedy resolution to this impasse and for parties to continue to engage and, where appropriate, to employ the facilitation services of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration. Our country cannot afford further job losses in other sectors of the economy and the interruption of imports and exports to and from South Africa," the statement said.

The government urged parties to return to the negotiations table. They were encouraged to balance the rights of workers who are affected by rising prices, against the long-term stability and growth of Transnet and the economy as a whole. The three ministers also called on the workers not to destroy the property during the strike.

Many organizations representing steel makers, farmers, and the freight industry have expressed concern that the strike is affecting the economy.
ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) on Wednesday disclosed it has set Feb. 6 as a referendum voting date to create the East African country's 12th region.

In a press statement, NEBE said registration of voters will commence on Dec. 20 and end on Jan. 3. The statement further said the final referendum vote tally announcement date has been set for Feb. 15.

In August, Ethiopia's House of Federation, the upper house of parliament, approved a resolution to hold a referendum on the creation of the country's 12th region.

In a press statement, the House of Federation said the resolution was approved after authorities in six zones and five districts that are currently under the Southern region filed a petition for the formation of a new region.

The House of Federation said the petition was received from Wolayita, Gamo, Gofa, South Omo, Gedeo and Konso zones as well as from Derashe, Amaro, Burji, Alle and Basketo special districts.

Ethiopia currently has 11 regions. Over the years, several ethnic groups in the country have been campaigning to create their own regions, occasionally sparking fears of political instability in the East African country. 
LUSAKA, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government said on Thursday that it was on course to resolve the "crippling debt crisis" in order to create a conducive environment required for enhanced local and foreign investments as well as economic growth.

The Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane said having acquired assurances from official creditors, a follow-up meeting will soon be convened to explore the signing of a memorandum of understanding on debt restructuring.

He said the outcome of the debt restructuring process was an opportunity for the southern African nation to "rise from the ashes" and become a trusted global investment partner.

"For us, it is important that we pay what we owe," he said in remarks delivered during an investor seminar on the sidelines of the ongoing 2022 annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, according to a release.

The minister said the debt restructuring process will create the needed sustained wealth creation to enhance the country's capacity to repay creditors.

According to him, the common framework for debt treatment was the most practical solution available under the country's circumstances in resolving the crisis and facilitate conditions required for enhanced local and foreign investments.

Zambia's external public debt reached 14.87 billion U.S. dollars as at end of June 2022.

In August, the IMF approved a 1.3 billion dollars, three-year loan to Zambia, a crucial step in the country's quest to restructure its debt. 
Vehicles line up to refuel at a gas station in Tunis, Tunisia, on Oct. 14, 2022. Tunisia decided to release strategic oil reserves amid rising global oil prices and fuel shortages in the country, Director General of the Tunisian Society of Refining Industries (STIR) Fakhta Mahouachi said on Thursday. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)

TUNIS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Tunisia decided to release strategic oil reserves amid rising global oil prices and fuel shortages in the country, Director General of the Tunisian Society of Refining Industries (STIR) Fakhta Mahouachi said on Thursday.

"A number of internal and external factors have forced Tunisia to use its strategic stocks of oil," Mahouachi told private radio station Mosaique FM, adding that this is a measure adopted by several countries following the recent surge in oil prices on global markets.

Tunisia's decision on the release of strategic oil reserves came after three consecutive days of fuel shortages at all stations in the Grand Tunis area, which includes the provinces of Tunis, Ariana, Ben Arous, and Manouba.

Mahouachi confirmed the fuel supply will improve at all gas stations in the next 24 hours after the discharge of fuel cargoes from a ship in the northern province of Bizerte.

Long queues are seen at gas stations across the capital Tunis. Tunisian authorities are working to mitigate the repercussions of a fuel shortage, as it has been accompanied by a significant drop in the market supply of a number of essential commodities, such as cooking oil, butter, milk, sugar, and mineral water.

Saleh Ben Sassi, a 49-year-old employee at the Ministry of Agriculture, told Xinhua that he had to get up very early and go to the gas station near his neighborhood in El Ouardia, a residential area in central Tunis, in a bid to get a few liters of fuel before work.

"I'm not the only one who came early ... in this long queue, I'm not sure if I'll get my share of fuel," Ben Sassi said.

"The situation has become very worrisome, especially since there is a severe shortage of several other consumer goods in addition to the lack of fuel," he added.

Ben Sassi believed there was hope that the shortage of essential goods could be solved soon. "The government has promised to supply the domestic market with all the products by the beginning of next week," he said.

Fatma al-Yahawi, a secondary school teacher, told Xinhua that she had to skip class for the second day in a row, because her car was out of petrol due to the "suffocating" and "unprecedented" fuel shortage.

On the sidelines of the fourth edition of the Tunisian-Libyan Economic Forum held on Wednesday, Tunisian Trade Minister Fadila Al-Rabhi stressed that all consumer products are available.

"I want to reassure the citizens that all materials are available, including fuel," she said, adding "we call on the citizens to rationalize consumption, and there is no need to be anxious." 

Photo taken on Oct. 14, 2022 shows a closed gas station in Tunis, Tunisia. Tunisia decided to release strategic oil reserves amid rising global oil prices and fuel shortages in the country, Director General of the Tunisian Society of Refining Industries (STIR) Fakhta Mahouachi said on Thursday. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)
People visit the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology in Tunis, Tunisia, on Oct. 13, 2022. The 14th edition of the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology (SIAT 2022) opened on Wednesday in the northern suburb of Tunis. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)

TUNIS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The 14th edition of the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology (SIAT 2022) opened on Wednesday in the northern suburb of Tunisia's capital Tunis.

Under the theme "Intelligent Investment for Sustainable Development," the three-day event was organized by the Agricultural Investment Promotion Agency (APIA) and inaugurated by Prime Minister Najla Bouden Romdhane.

"SIAT 2022 offers farmers and investors an opportunity to exhibit their new technologies and learn about the opportunities available for the promotion of agricultural production," APIA's Director General Inji Douggui was quoted as saying by Tunis Afrique Presse.

More than 200 exhibitors will participate in this year's edition, according Douggui.

So far this year, investments in Tunisia's agricultural sector have exceeded 400 million Tunisian dinars (122 million U.S. dollars), representing an increase of 30 percent year on year, Douggui said. 

People visit the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology in Tunis, Tunisia, on Oct. 13, 2022. The 14th edition of the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology (SIAT 2022) opened on Wednesday in the northern suburb of Tunis. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)

People visit the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology in Tunis, Tunisia, on Oct. 13, 2022. The 14th edition of the International Exhibition of Agricultural Investment and Technology (SIAT 2022) opened on Wednesday in the northern suburb of Tunis. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)
WINDHOEK, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Namibia's Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform Calle Schlettwein said Thursday that collaborative efforts are needed to manage transboundary and shared water resources regionally.

Speaking during the 13th session of the executive committee of the African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW) in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, Schlettwein said 2022 has been a year in which Africa has had to deal with climate change and its devastating water-related disasters that have ravaged every corner of the continent.

Urgent responses are required to strengthen the ability to reduce the disease burden and mortality rates associated with failures in sanitation and hygiene services provision and invest in water to create greater resilience to climate, health, and food system shocks, and improve the management of water-related disaster risks, he said.

"It is against this background that I invite you to champion a new narrative on water that emphasizes the full potential of water in the economy and society," he said.

"Notably, we must be at the forefront of promoting water infrastructure development as a means to provide a service (which is water) to the economy," he said, adding that it is this service that in turn enables growth and development to happen.

"More importantly, we have to emphasize the packaging of such water resource management functions as water storage and flood control, from a socio-economic perspective," he said. "Promoting such interventions for investment should underscore their eventual utility in both economic and social terms to provide water for food and energy production. In so doing, the synergies between and among the four sectors will optimize strategies to achieve water, food, energy, and environmental security."

Namibia is hosting the 13th session of the Executive Committee of AMCOW where officials of African governments are meeting to discuss what can further be done to facilitate action on the achievement of the water and sanitation goals of the continent. 
WELLINGTON, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- A new analysis of old data suggests that the endangered erect-crested penguin's bizarre nesting habit -- rejecting the first egg they lay -- is because they can't feed two chicks, and the second, larger egg has a better chance of success.

Lloyd Davis of the University of Otago in New Zealand and his colleagues described these findings and their implications for penguin conservation in the online journal PLOS ONE published on Thursday.

The numbers of erect-crested penguins have declined sharply in the last 50 years, impacted by climate change, with storms and mudslides in recent decades wiping out parts of colonies, and killing nesting penguins.

The data about the endangered penguin's highly unusual breeding habits used in the study was collected in 1998 by Davis and his two colleagues, as these observations are still the most recent and most extensive data collected on erect-crested penguins, according to the researchers.

Erect-crested penguins lay more eggs than they can rear. They lay a smaller first egg, followed by a larger second egg around five days later. Davis' team found that the first egg typically is lost from the nest either before or soon after the second egg is laid, and parents sometimes deliberately break or eject the egg.

The researchers suspect that erect-crested penguins retain the reproductive habits of their ancestors, which laid and hatched two eggs. Current birds sacrifice the first egg since they cannot provide enough food for two hatchlings. The first egg may be small because it forms as the female migrates to the island, while the second egg, formed on land, has fewer constraints and grows larger.

This odd behavior is accompanied by surprising fluctuations in the penguins' hormone levels, researchers cautioned, calling for greater research attention and conservation efforts for erect-crested penguins. 
ASTANA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The sixth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) is being held in the Kazakh capital here from Wednesday to Thursday.

The idea of convening the CICA, a forum on security issues, was proposed by Kazakhstan in 1992 at the 47th session of the United Nations General Assembly. The CICA is committed to working out and implementing multilateral confidence building measures aimed at promoting peace, security and stability in Asia and strengthening cooperation in these areas.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the founding of the CICA. The forum, as an important mechanism in Asia for dialogue and consultation on security issues, has been playing a constructive role in enhancing mutual trust and coordination among countries and maintaining security and stability in Asia over the past three decades.

The CICA started operation in March 1993. Its first summit was held in the Kazakh city of Almaty in June 2002, when the Almaty Act and the Declaration on Eliminating Terrorism and Promoting Dialogue among Civilizations were signed and approved in order to bolster peace, security and stability in Asia.

After that, four CICA summits were convened in Almaty in June 2006, in the Turkish city of Istanbul in June 2010, in the Chinese city of Shanghai in May 2014, and in the Tajik capital of Dushanbe in June 2019. Kazakhstan has been holding the CICA presidency since 2020.

Currently, the CICA has 27 member states as well as 14 observer states and organizations. It has established discussion and decision-making mechanisms, including meetings of heads of state and government (summits), meetings of foreign ministers, sessions of the senior officials committee, and meetings of the special working group. Summits and meetings of foreign ministers are held alternately, and the country holding the presidency hosts the two events.

The permanent administrative body of the CICA, the secretariat, was launched in June 2006. It moved from Almaty to Astana in September 2014. 
SYDNEY, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Australian farmers and rural small businesses are warned of a surge in scams targeting the agricultural sector, particularly regarding heavy machinery purchases.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the country's peak consumer protection body, said on Wednesday that reports to their Scamwatch have shown Australian farm businesses have lost more than 1.2 million Australian dollars (about 753,000 U.S. dollars) to scammers in Jan.-Aug., an increase of 20 percent compared to the same period in the previous year.

Tractors and heavy machinery sales made up the bulk of the scams, with losses topping 1 million Australian dollars (about 627,000 U.S. dollars).

"Scammers were highly sophisticated in the ways they impersonate a business -- some fake websites have ABNs (Australian Business Number) for instance -- which is why we are urging farmers and business owners to be alert to the scam risks and do extra checks to avoid getting caught out," ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh said in a statement.

The regulatory body urged businesses to take precautions against any seller whose prices seem too good to be true, and not to pay up front, instead to insist on payment after delivery of goods.

The ACCC also reminded the farmers not to provide too much personal information as scammers are targeting more than just money.

"Legitimate sellers will only ever ask for enough information to deliver what you've ordered, so it is important not to give too much personal information over the phone or online as you may fall victim to identity theft," Keogh added. 
Hong Kong: Govt objects to UN officials comment

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government today expressed strong disapproval of a United Nations officials recent remarks on a Hong Kong court case concerning the National Security Law.

The remarks were made by a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights about the Hong Kong courts reasons for the sentence delivered on October 8 in regard to a case of conspiracy to incite the commission by other persons of the offence of subversion under the National Security Law, the Government said in a press release.

As the legal proceedings are yet to be completed, it would not be appropriate to comment on the details of the case, it explained.

Stressing that the principles of human rights protection must be observed when safeguarding national security, the Government noted that human rights, as well as the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights are enshrined in the National Security Law.

It further elaborated that Article 4 of the National Security Law provides that human rights shall be respected and protected in safeguarding national security in the Hong Kong SAR, and Article 5 affirms adherence to the rule of law while enforcing the law against offences endangering national security.

The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal has pointed out that these two articles are centrally important to the interpretation of the National Security Law generally.

The National Security Law was enacted to restore the enjoyment of rights and freedoms that citizens had been unable to enjoy during the period of serious violence between June 2019 and early 2020, the Government reiterated.

The National Security Law has indeed achieved the intended effect, and has swiftly and effectively restored stability and security, it added.

This story has been published on: 2022-10-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan is expected to supply 11.5 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe by the end of 2022, in accordance with previously signed contracts, the country's Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov said to reporters on the Russian Energy Week, Azernews reports per Trend.

He noted that the export volume would probably remain unchanged or slightly increase in 2023.

Speaking about the capacity of the Southern Gas Corridor, the minister stated that it could be doubled by 2027.

"The Southern Gas Corridor capacity of 16 billion cubic meters in the direction of Turkiye may be expanded to 31 billion, and further along the Trans Adriatic Pipeline may increase from 10 billion to 20 billion cubic meters per year," he said.

Moreover, Parviz Shahbazov said that the volume of oil and gas condensate production in Azerbaijan is expected to reach 34 million tons in 2022.

Noting that the same volume is planned to be produced in 2023, he stated that oil production in the country is in a stable situation.

"Azerbaijan maintains a stable level of production through new wells," he said.

Azerbaijan's Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov is attending the Russian Energy Week International Forum, at the invitation of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak. The use of traditional and renewable energy sources, cooperation in global energy markets, energy transition, and other topical issues are being discussed at the forum. The event is being attended by government officials from a number of foreign countries, international organizations operating in the energy sector, heads of influential companies, and leading experts.

With the completion of the TAP (Trans-Adriatic Pipeline) construction on December 31, 2020, Azerbaijan began commercial gas supplies to Europe via the Southern Gas Corridor.

Last year, TAP transported 8.1 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe. In 2023, Azerbaijan plans to increase gas supplies to Europe to 11 billion cubic meters.
PARIS, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Paris city council on Wednesday voted to pass the initiative to switch off digital advertising screens earlier in public spaces to save energy amid the energy crisis.

The initiative was presented by the French Green Party at the city council.

"There are approximately 9,000 digital advertising screens in France, and it is estimated that 3,000 of them are in the windows of Paris," Fatoumata Kone, the president of the Green Party told the city council.

From Sept. 23, Paris already started to turn off earlier lighting at its places of interest, including the Eiffel Tower and Paris City Hall, in a bid to save energy. 
Photo shows former Croatian President Ivo Josipovic receiving an interview with Xinhua in Zagreb, Croatia. (Xinhua/Li Xuejun)

ZAGREB, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, is very progressive, important and visionary, said former Croatian President Ivo Josipovic.

"Definitely it is a very progressive idea, an idea that starts from the ideal of global peace" and is "very important," especially in today's world, Josipovic said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

Even a small country like Croatia can contribute significantly to this concept, he noted.

"I think that Croatian policies have always been in favor of global peace and global cooperation, so I am completely sure that Croatian leaders will follow this idea. I am sure that our society will be very happy with this project and will contribute to it," he said.

Regarding the concept as a long-term project, the 65-year-old former president said: "It is a visionary project for many years. Definitely, world leaders can contribute to it by having good policies and good cooperation with each other."

Josipovic also appreciates the pursuit and practice of multilateralism by the Chinese government.

Multilateralism is a safeguard for most countries in the world, especially for small ones like Croatia, he said, adding that multilateralism has been a guiding principle for Croatia's foreign policy.

Josipovic, who served as Croatian president from 2010-2015 and has visited China many times, has been advocating friendly relations between Croatia and China and promoting the in-depth development of bilateral ties.

Speaking of the economic and trade cooperation between Croatia and China, he cited the Peljesac Bridge, the largest infrastructure project in Croatia undertaken by a Chinese consortium, as "a very good example of the successful cooperation with Croatia and China."

"I hope there will be more opportunities to cooperate with China," he said.

The 2.4-km cable-stayed bridge over the Mali Ston Bay of the Adriatic Sea connects Croatian mainland and the Peljesac Peninsula. The bridge was opened to traffic in July and has greatly facilitated Croatia's traffic.

"The Peljesac Bridge is a very important project for Croatia because it connects the two parts of Croatia divided by sea," Josipovic said, adding that it is very important economically and politically.

Recalling his multiple visits to China, he called China's economic development a miracle.

"China is very successful not only in economy but also in culture, science and sports, etc. I am completely sure that China will continue this incredible development and I wish all the best to China and Chinese friends," he said. 
MOSCOW, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Without the participation of Russian experts, Moscow won't recognize any results of investigations into leaks on the Nord Stream pipelines, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

In a statement, the ministry said it had summoned envoys from Germany, Denmark and Sweden in recent days to express "bewilderment" over Russia's exclusion from a joint probe into the sabotage.

If Russian experts are not allowed to take part in the investigation, "Moscow will proceed from the fact that the mentioned countries have something to hide or are covering up for the perpetrators of these terrorist acts," the ministry said.

"Russia, of course, will not recognize any 'pseudo-results' of such an investigation unless Russian experts are involved," it added.

On Sept. 26, a series of explosions and subsequent gas leaks occurred on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipelines, causing what might be the largest single release of methane in history.

Both pipelines were built to transport natural gas from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea. 
HOUSTON, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- A former police officer on charge of shooting a 17-year-old who was eating at a McDonald's parking lot in San Antonio of the U.S. state of Texas was released on bond on Wednesday, authorities said.

James Brennand was arrested on Tuesday night and charged with two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office. He was released after posting 100,000-U.S.-dollar bond for each count.

The victim, identified as Erik Cantu, has been in critical condition after being shot multiple times on Oct. 2 by Brennand, a probationary officer with seven months of experience responding to an unrelated disturbance call at the time. Brennand has since been fired.

Cantu was on life support and non-responsive, Cantu's family said on Tuesday in a statement released to local media outlets.

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said on Tuesday that the charges would change if Cantu succumbs to his injuries.

"It was unjustified, both administratively and criminally," McManus told reporters.

The charges and arrest came within hours of a protest held in front of San Antonio Police Department's headquarters demanding Brennand's arrest on Tuesday.

A pre-hearing is set for Nov. 23, according to Bexar County Jail records. 
PRAGUE: According to Petr Fiala, the prime minister of the Czech Republic, the European Political Community (EPC) will have its next meeting in Chisinau, the capital of Moldova.

According to the Xinhua news agency, Fiala made the comments following the first-ever EPC summit, which was held in Prague on Thursday and featured over 40 European leaders.

Along with the member states of the European Union (EU), the so-called "EU+" group included a number of Western Balkan countries, non-EU nations that are heavily integrated into the single market, the United Kingdom, and Turkey.

The energy crisis and issues of peace and security dominated the conversations among the European leaders, according to a statement released by the EU following the conference.

"At a time when Europe's peace and security are being endangered, we need more communication, more listening, and more mutual understanding, not less," said European Council President Charles Michel, according to the statement.

He said, "And that's what we accomplished at the inaugural European Political Community."According to the European Union , the EPC aspires to advance political discourse and collaboration on matters of shared concern and to boost the security, stability, and prosperity of the European continent.

The EU's top officials will convene on Friday for an informal summit to examine the most urgent problems the union is now facing, including the conflict in Ukraine and Russia and their economic repercussions.

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Britain to donate air defense missiles to Ukraine  Wallace 13 October, 12:16 PM Ben Wallace announced new arms deliveries (Photo:REUTERS/Toby Melville)

UK Defense Minister Ben Wallace announced the next package of military aid for Ukraine, which will include missiles, artillery and UAVs, Reuters reported on Oct. 12.

The new package, in particular, will include 18 howitzers and AMRAAM missiles for NASAMS air defense systems.

"Russia's latest indiscriminate strikes on civilian areas in Ukraine warrant further support to those seeking to defend their nation, Wallace said.

Read also: Latvia calls for more weapons to Ukraine after Kremlin sets dates for sham referendums

"So today I have authorized the supply of AMRAAM anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine."

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The AMRAAMs, or Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles, will be provided in the coming weeks, and can be used with the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS air defense systems pledged by the United States.

Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder announced on Sept. 16 that Ukraine should receive the first two NASAMS batteries in about two months (approximately in mid-November).

On Oct. 11, the United States announced that it would speed up the delivery of the two NASAMS systems to Ukraine after Russia's massive missile strikes on the previous day.

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Israel providing Ukraine with intelligence about Iranian drones  media 13 October, 05:11 PM According to the NYT, Israel provides Ukraine with intelligence about Iranian kamikaze drones (Photo:REUTERS/Vitalii Hnidyi)

Israel is providing Ukraine with basic intelligence about the Iranian drones Russia has begun to use to attack Ukrainian cities, U.S. newspaper the New York Times reported on Oct. 12, with reference to a senior Ukrainian official.

It noted that Ukraine has asked Israel for air defense systems as well, given the successes of that countrys Iron Dome system, as well as the longer-range Barak 8.

Israel has so far declined, however, reluctant to provoke Russia into obstructing Israeli airstrikes in Syria, where Russia has a military presence.

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At the same time, according to the Ukrainian official, Israel is providing Ukraine with basic intelligence about Iranian drones, while a private Israeli firm is providing Ukraine with satellite imagery of Russian troop positions.

The use of Iranian drones was first reported on Sept. 13, after the Ukrainian Armed Forces shot down a Shahed-136 UAV in Kupyansk, Kharkiv Oblast.

The aggressor has been using these aircraft more and more often in recent weeks. It is known the Russian army has rebranded them as Geran-2 drones.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during his video address to the G7 summit on Oct. 11 that according to Ukrainian military intelligence, Moscow had ordered 2,400 Iranian Shahed-136 loitering munition UAVs.

In addition, according to the regional department of the Zakhid (West) Territorial Defense Forces, at least 20 Iranian-made Shahed-136 kamikaze drones are believed to have been delivered to the Luninets airfield in Belarus.

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Photo: mi

Xiaomi Civi 1S has been recently launched in China. The company has launched its mid-ranger in China and will soon launch around the globe. It means the phone can be soon expected in Nepal also.

The design and specifications of this phone are similar to last years Xiaomi Civi. Overall, this is a great mid-range offering from Xiaomi.

Portable Xiaomi Civi 1S has a slim body and is lightweight. The phones solid build offers a superb display for the users to enjoy. Its camera specification is also impressive as it maintains high resolution while capturing photos and videos. Similarly, it has a splendid charging feature with a decent battery backup. The stylish design makes it a complete package.

Lets know about the phone in detail.

Specifications

Dimensions Height: 158.3 mm

Width: 71.5 mm

Thickness: 6.98 mm

Weight: 166 grams Display 6.55-inch OLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, 950 nits Sim Dual sims Resolution 1,080*2,400 pixels, 402 PPI density OS Android 12, MIUI 13 Chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G+ 5G (6nm) GPU Adreno 642L Storage 128GB / 256GB UFS 2.2 SD card slot No RAM 8GB / 12GB Camera Front: 32 MP, AF

Rear: 64 MP, f/1.8,PDAF

8 MP, f/2.2, 120-degrees FOV (ultrawide)

2 MP, f/2.4 (macro) Audio Stereo speakers

No 3.5mm headphone jack Battery 4,500 mAh, li-po, non-removable

55W fast charging

Quick charge 4+ Sensors In-display, optical fingerprint sensor

Ultrasonic distance sensor

Ambient light sensor

Rear light (colour temperature) sensor

Flicker sensor

Acceleration sensor

Gyroscope

Electronic compass

Linear motor

Infrared remote control Colours Black, blue, pink, silver Price (Expected) Rs 45,000

Design and display

Photo: mi

Xiaomi Civi 1S has a glass front, glass back and an aluminium build. The gradient flash diamond texture provides a pleasing look to the back panel of the phone. Xiaomi has advertised that its look is like the stars in the Milky Way galaxy. The design of the camera panel is also neat and does not occupy a huge space. Similarly, the curve edges on the phone allow a better grip for the users. The vertical Xiaomi branding looks neat as usual. However, there is no official IP rating on the phone.

Photo: mi

Xiaomi claims the design of Xiaomi Civi 1S has undergone repeated polishing, hence presenting a thin and delicate body line. The phone weighs only 166 grams and is 6.98mm in thickness. This makes Xiaomi Civi 1S one of the lightest and slimmest smartphones available on the market. It is available in black, blue, pink and silver colour variants.

Photo: mi

On the front is a 6.55-inch centre punch hole OLED display that offers a resolution of 1,080*2,400 pixels with 402 PPI density. The ultra-narrow bezels on the phone offer a bigger field of view while the HDR10+ and Dolby Vision features provide an enhancement in the colour and contrast of the media. The display supports up to 120Hz refresh rate and a touch sampling rate of 240Hz. Similarly, it can also reach a peak brightness of up to 950 nits, which is impressive. The display has Gorilla Glass 5 protection.

Cameras

Photo: mi

It is safe to say that cameras are the main focused element of Xiaomi Civi 1S. The phone has a triple camera setup on the back. The main 64MP camera is housed together with 8MP, 120-degrees FOV ultrawide and 2MP macro sensors. On the front is a 32MP selfie shooter. There are so many creative camera modes on the phone. The main camera on the back and the front camera have autofocus mode for quick snap whereas the rear camera also has an EIS feature.

Some of the interesting camera modes include vlog video, voice caption, motion capture, time-lapse photography, video filter, video beauty, video super stabilisation, 960fps slow motion shooting and macro video.

Photo: mi

Recording videos can be fun with this phone as there are more than a handful of video modes to enhance and beautify the scenes and the subject. Moreover, the main camera on Xiaomi Civi 1S can record 4K resolution videos at 30 fps, which is capable of capturing 1080p resolution videos at 120fps. Meanwhile, the front camera can record videos at 1080p resolution up to 60fps.

Performance and memory

Photo: mi

Xiaomi Civi 1S runs on MIUI 13 based on Android 12. The phone is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G+ 5G (6nm) chipset and the graphical duties are handled by Adreno 642L. In this price range, this is one of the best chipsets a smartphone can have. It should provide a stable performance during gaming or any heavy-duty work.

The phone is available in either 8GB or 12GB of RAM coupled with 128GB or 256GB of internal storage. There is no option of expanding the memory with a microSD card.

Battery life, connectivity and others

Photo: mi

Xiaomi Civi 1S gets powered by a 4,500mAh non-removable li-po battery. The battery can get charged through a 55W fast charger, which will get the battery fully charged from nil in just 45 minutes.

The phone can house dual sims that are connected to 5G networks. Similarly, the phone also has Wifi 6 for better and faster internet connectivity. Bluetooth 5.2 on the phone can be used for wireless pairing with other devices while the USB Type-C 2.0 cable is used for charging and wired connectivity. The phone also has support for NFC and GPS.

Photo: mi

Xiaomi Civi 1S also has impressive audio. Xiaomi claims that this phone has flagship super-linear stereo dual speakers that support Dolby Atmos for a more realistic and detailed listening experience. However, there is no 3.5mm headphone jack on the phone.

Notable features of Xiaomi Civi 1S are:

One of the slimmest and lightest designs

OLED display

Shining back panel

Gorilla Glass 5 protection

Dolby Vision and HDR10+

120Hz refresh rate

Android 12

64MP AI triple camera

32MP selfie shooter

4K video recording

Powerful and power-efficient chipset

55W fast charging system

Dolby Atmos stereo speakers

Xiaomi Civi 1S is priced at CNY 2,299 for the base 8/128GB variant. The phone is currently available in China only and if launched in Nepal, one can expect a starting price range of Rs 45,000. This can be the best phone in this price range if it gets launched in Nepal.
*

Local COVID cases in China rise to highest since Aug. 20

*

Covid epicentre in northern region of Inner Mongolia

*

Parts of Shanghai close leisure, entertainment venues

(Adds one more Shanghai district suspending entertainment venues in para 14)

By Ryan Woo

BEIJING, Oct 10 (Reuters) - China called for "patience" with its tough COVID policies and warned against any "war-weariness" as local cases soared to their highest since August, days ahead of a pivotal Communist Party congress.

Many countries are learning to co-exist with COVID-19, but China has repeatedly quashed any speculation of a let-up in its policies, which can range from locking down a local community to an entire city, even though fatalities remain low by global standards and symptoms, if any, are mostly mild.

Pressure on officials to stop outbreaks as soon as they spring up has risen in recent weeks as the highly transmissible Omicron sub-variants BF.7 and BA.5.1.7 appeared in mainland China for the first time, ensnaring travellers during a just-ended week-long national holiday.

Across China, 1,939 locally transmitted cases were reported on Oct. 9, the highest since Aug. 20, according to Reuters calculations based on official data published on Monday.

Thousands of cases caused by the BF.7 have been reported in Inner Mongolia since Oct. 1, turning the region into China's latest COVID epicentre and wrecking havoc on travel plans during the National Day "Golden Week" holiday.

A few days into the Golden Week, the western region of Xinjiang also barred people from leaving as cases ticked higher. Tourists stranded in Xinjiang could seek temporary work as electricians, cooks and wood craftsmen, advised authorities in its capital Urumqi.

Shanghai, which locked down its entire population of 25 million in April and May, reported 34 local cases on Oct. 9, the most in almost three months.

"The transmission and pathogenicity (of Omicron) have not weakened, and it still poses a relatively large threat to the elderly and people with underlying diseases," according to a commentary in the state-owned People's Daily on Monday.

Story continues

"It is for this reason that we must remain vigilant against the spread of the epidemic, increase our confidence and patience in our country's epidemic prevention and control policies, and overcome any numbness of the mind, any war-weariness, any thought of leaving things to chance, and any complacency."

The COVID restrictions came days before a once-every-five-years Communist Party congress starting on Oct. 16, where Xi Jinping is widely expected to extend his decade-long leadership for another five years.

Xu, a native from Inner Mongolia who works in Beijing, had planned to take the train back to the Chinese capital on Oct. 7 after attending a friend's wedding in her hometown of Baotou, but has since been trapped there due to a local quarantine lockdown.

"What I worry most now is when I can get to return to Beijing," said Xu, who declined to identify herself further.

"All this waiting around is tough."

'NOT OVER'

While most of the new infections in Shanghai were detected in quarantine, the city's Putuo, Changning and Jiading districts weren't taking any chances, announcing on Monday the suspension of leisure and entertainment venues.

One recent Changning case was a man who arrived from Xinjiang on Oct. 2. He was declared a carrier five days later.

Guests at the hotel where he stayed have been locked down. Patrons to the bars and restaurants he visited have been treated as close contacts.

Sona and her husband were told to quarantine themselves at home after going to an underground bar strip the Changning case visited.

"It wasn't even the same day as the guy was there, and we weren't even at the same (restaurant)," said Sona, a foreigner who has lived in Shanghai for years, speaking on condition of anonymity.

They have not been able to leave their home, as a magnetic device on the door installed by the authorities would track its opening and closing.

"It's really, really hard to deal with - you think it's over, but its not over." (Reporting by Ryan Woo; Additional reporting by Beijing Newsroom and Casey Hall in Shanghai; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Ana Nicolaci da Costa)
(Adds portfolio manager comments)

By Junko Fujita and Tom Westbrook

TOKYO, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Japanese 10-year government bonds traded for the first time in five sessions on Thursday, while yield spread between the 10- and 20-year bonds reached the widest in seven years.

The 20-year government bond yield rose one basis point to 1.070%, its highest since December 2015. The 10-year JGB yield fell 0.5 basis point to 0.245%, in its first trade since Oct. 5.

The gap between yields on the two tenors widened to 81.1 basis points (bps), the largest since May 2015.

The Bank of Japan has been aggressively keeping the 10-year yield below 0.25%, the top end of the ceiling under its yield curve control(YCC) scheme, as it keeps an ultra-low rate policy to support the economy, going against the global tide of tightening to contain inflation.

"The Bank of Japan owns so many bonds... And with 10-year yields butting up against the YCC target, theres no real incentive for anyone else to trade," said Tom Nash, a fixed income portfolio manager at UBS Asset Management in Sydney.

"If you want to day trade Japan, you do it in other tenors that the Bank of Japan doesn't have such a big footprint in."

The 10-year bonds had been untraded for four straight sessions, the first such occasion since newly issued 10-year bonds became the benchmark in 1999.

Yields on nine-year bonds maturing in September 2031, which are outside the BOJ's target for controlling yield movement, were last at 0.284%, indicating the upward potential for the benchmark 10-year yields.

The 30-year JGB yield fell 0.5 basis point to 1.470%, after hitting a two week high in the previous session, when the government held an auction for the notes with the same maturity.

"The outcome of the auction was weak," said Ataru Okumura, strategist at SMBC Nikko Securities. "And that probably lifted demand for the notes in the secondary market from life insurers."

The 40-year JGB yield fell 1 basis point to 1.690%.

The two-year JGBs were not traded and the yield stayed at -0.060%, while the five-year yield rose 0.5 basis point to 0.065%. (Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by Kim Coghill)
By Azernews





By Laman Ismayilova

The Baku State Circus has organized a colorful show for children of martyrs and veterans, Azernews reports.

The idea to hold a charity show "International Circus: Festival Winners" belongs to Allahverdi Israfilov, a world-famous circus performer, and winner of a number of prestigious awards in circus art.

Before the start of the show, the acting director of the circus, Nahid Agayev said that the show program includes a circus act with Karabakh horses.

"Today, we are opening a new season of the Baku State Circus with an international program. The first show is a charity one, we hold it for the families of martyrs and veterans of the Karabakh war. The show is very interesting, a colorful show with elements of winning programs of international circus competitions that will be presented to the audience. At the same time, we will demonstrate a national circus act with Karabakh horses and dancers," Agayev said.

Allahverdi Israfilov said that the program offers many surprises for the Azerbaijani audience. He stressed the importance of creating national circus acts on the platform of the Baku Circus.

"We have combined two different genres in this performance. We really want to demonstrate this number not only in Azerbaijan but also in other countries, so that they can see our national color and beauty of Karabakh horses," Israfilov noted.

The audience was also entertained by a fascinating performance full of bright and interesting circus acts. Talented circus performers - clowns, aerialists, illusionists, animal trainers, strongmen, and others presented breathtaking performances.

The show program "International Circus: Festival Winners" will run from October 14 to November 27, 2022.

For the entire period of the demonstration of the program, visiting family members of martyrs and veterans will be free. Family members of martyrs and veterans, who wish to watch the circus program can contact the Baku State Circus.

Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az and Milli.Az.
America's 6 biggest banks are expected to set aside $4.5 billion in Q3 to cover future loan losses  why that's a clear bad sign for the global economy

Fears of a looming recession and a tightening economy are pushing the countrys big banks to prepare for the worst.

According to a report from Bloomberg, six of the biggest banks in the U.S.  JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley  plan to set aside about $4.5 billion to protect against loan losses in their third-quarter earnings.

Banks typically build up their loan loss provisions when there are concerns borrowers wont be able to make their payments.

Its not hard to see why theyre scrambling to prepare. The unrelenting increases in the federal funds rate set by the Federal Reserve  now at 3% to 3.25%  has already seen borrowers begin to default on loans, credit card payments and other variable-rate debts.

And by setting aside these massive reserves, banks are signaling theyre anticipating having to handle more losses in the future as consumers continue to feel the squeeze of rising interest rates and scorching-hot inflation.

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What these banks are reacting to

Lenders are already starting to feel the effects of the Fed's fight on inflation. Four of the biggest banks in the country are expected to report losses this week in their quarterly earnings reports, including JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley.

Normally, a higher interest rate would be a good thing for banks  their earnings tend to rise with interest rates. But banks are seeing a dip amid the fluctuating markets  fewer deals are being made and investors are holding back as warning signs of a recession persist.

And thats led many banks to add to their loss reserves.

The amount banks add to their loan loss reserves then gets subtracted from its earnings. Conversely, when a bank releases those reserves, that money is added to its earnings.

Story continues

Banks and lenders adjust their cash reserves according to the potential losses on their outstanding loans  theyre setting aside money for problem loans that get paid late or not at all. When a loan goes unpaid, a bank will tap into the loss reserves cash to cover it.

When banks release their loan loss provisions, it generally means the economy is healthy and borrowers wont have any trouble making payments. When they build them up, its a sign they expect borrowers to have trouble making payments.

Many lenders were forced to bolster their reserves to the tune of tens of billions during the crash in March 2020 when the pandemic hit  but in the year that followed, as the economy recovered, they released them. And now they're having to reverse course  for good reason.

Concerns already started last quarter

In the second quarter of this year, JPMorgan reported significant losses and built $428 million in bad loan reserves. The sentiment behind that doesnt seem to have changed for the bank.

Earlier this week, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned some kind of recession will be coming in six to nine months, according to CNBC.

WellsFargo also saw big losses in the second quarter. The bank reported its profits were halved as it pushed funds to its reserves to cover potential losses.

Those losses are already eating away at bank profits. In the second quarter of 2022, early delinquencies  loans 30 to 89 days past due  increased $11.4 billion (25%) compared to the same period in 2021, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a federal banking regulator.

Which means that as the Federal Reserve continues its aggressive fight against inflation, banks seem to expect delinquencies will persist, as consumers and commercial clients have a harder time making payments in a tightened economy.

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Year-to-Date ("YTD") Gross Sales increased 67% to $13.8 million

Q3 2022 Gross Sales were $4.7 million - establishing a new record for the company

Achieved Positive Adjusted EBITDA (2) and Positive Cash Flow from Operations (5) for Q3 and YTD

Maintained a strong balance sheet with $8 million in cash and no bank debt

KELOWNA, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 12, 2022 / Avant Brands Inc. (TSX:AVNT)(OTCQX:AVTBF)(FRA:1BU0) ("Avant" or the "Company"), a leading producer of premium handcrafted cannabis products, is pleased to announce its financial results for the quarter ended August 31, 2022 ("Q3 2022").

"Q3 2022 established a new quarterly sales record for the Company, while generating positive adjusted EBITDA and cash flow from operations," said Norton Singhavon, Founder and CEO of Avant. "Continuing from this positive momentum, we have experienced an exceptional start to Q4, both from a recreational and export sales perspective."

Avant achieved record gross revenues, positive Adjusted EBITDA(2), and positive cash flow from operations(5), for the three and nine months ended August 31, 2022. Total sales revenue for the first three fiscal quarters of fiscal 2022 has already exceeded total sales revenue for all of fiscal 2021 by $2.8 million (+25%). As of August 31, 2022, the Company had $8 million in cash, $27 million in working capital and no bank debt.

Key Financial & Operational Highlights: Q3 YTD 2022 vs. Q3 YTD 2021

Total production at the Company's four facilities increased by 69% to 3,976 kg.

Cannabis sales volume increased by 98% to 2,495 kg.

Gross Revenue increased by 67% to $13.8 million.

Q1, Q2, and Q3 2022 have been the three highest revenue quarters in the Company's history.

Recreational cannabis sales accounted for 80% of Gross Revenue with the remainder being export and bulk sales (vs. 81% in the prior year).

Recreational cannabis gross revenue per gram declined by 2%, from $7.27 to $7.14, as the Company continues to withstand significant price compression.

International dried flower exports totalled over 600 kg.

Adjusted EBITDA(2) increased by $0.3 million to $0.2 million.

Story continues

Key Financial & Operational Highlights: Q3 2022 vs. Q2 2022

Total production at the Company's four facilities increased by 7% to 1,420 kg.

Total Gross Revenue increased from $4.5 million to $4.7 million (+5%), establishing a new record.

Recreational cannabis Net Revenue increased from $3.1 million to $3.7 million (+20%), demonstrating the growing demand for the Company's core sales channel.

Recreational and Medical divisions both achieved record Gross Revenues.

Net loss from operations was significantly reduced from $4.4 million to $0.5 million, as a result of the Company's dedication to becoming profitable in the near future.

Adjusted EBITDA(2) increased by $1.2 million to $0.7 million.

Other Highlights & Subsequent Events

During and subsequent to Q3, the Company launched a diverse range of premium products under the BLK MKT, Tenzo, Cognoscente and Treehugger brand names. The primary distributors of these products are the Ontario Cannabis Store, the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch, and other provincial and territorial distributors.

The Company entered into an amended Shareholders Agreement related to 3PL Ventures Inc. ("3PL") effective June 1, 2022, increasing its ownership stake in 3PL from 49% to 50%, and achieving recognition as General Manager of the 3PL business. The Company is now in a position to exercise control over 3PL and has commenced consolidating 3PL financial results into its financial reporting (in accordance with IFRS).

Alberta Craft Cannabis Inc.' was renamed as Avant Craft Cannabis Inc.'. Accordingly, the vast majority of the Company's branded products are now sold within domestic recreational channels with Avant' as the selling licensed producer.

Changes to Israeli government cannabis import requirements caused some Avant export shipments to be delayed from Q3 2022 to Q4 2022. As a result, Q3 2022 export revenues were less than expected (reflecting sales to Australia only), but exports are expected to increase in Q4 (based on actual shipments plus additional shipments that are scheduled to ship in Q4).

The quality of the Company's products is driving demand that exceeds the aggregate output of its cultivation facilities. Accordingly, during the course of fiscal 2022, the Company has been executing various co-packing agreements, and exploring M&A opportunities, with a view to prudently expand capacity over time.

Financial Highlights

Q3 YTD

2022 Q3 YTD

2021 % Change Revenue $ 13,767 $ 8,234 67 % Excise tax (1,540 ) (1,076 ) (43 %) Net Revenue 12,227 7,158 71 % Recreational revenue 9,361 5,698 64 % B2B revenue 2,434 1,354 80 % Medical revenue 169 106 59 % Management fees and other revenue 264 0 N/A Gross margin before fair value adjustments (1) 3,370 2,867 18 % Gross margin % before fair value adjustments (1) 28% 40% (31 %) Gross margin 3,500 1,861 88 % Operating expenses 9,504 4,587 107 % Other income (expenses) 3,896 (709 ) 650 % Net loss before income tax (2,108 ) (3,547 ) 41 % Adjusted EBITDA (2) 173 (53 ) 426 % Kilograms of cannabis flower sold 2,495 1,261 98 % Kilograms of cannabis produced 3,976 2,347 69 % Average recreational gross pricing per gram (3) 7.14 7.27 (2 %) Weighted average gross pricing per gram (4) 5.64 6.47 (13 %)



Note 1 - Gross margin before fair value adjustments is a non-IFRS performance measure. Refer to "Non-IFRS Financial Measures And Other Measures" below for further details. Management determined that the exclusion of the fair value adjustment is an alternative representation of performance. The fair value adjustment is a non-cash gain (loss) and is based on fair market value less cost to sell.

Note 2 - Adjusted EBITDA is a non-IFRS performance measure. Refer to "Non-IFRS Financial Measures And Other Measures" below for further details.

Note 3 - Average recreational gross pricing per gram is a non-IFRS performance measure and is calculated by determining the total recreational sales divided by the total number of recreational grams sold. Refer to "Non-IFRS Financial Measures And Other Measures" below for further details.

Note 4 - Weighted average gross pricing per gram is a non-IFRS performance measure and is calculated by determining the total flower sales divided by the total number of flower grams sold. The primary driver of change in this metric is the shift in business mix (e.g. between recreational and export sales). Refer to "Non-IFRS Financial Measures And Other Measures" below for further details.

Note 5 - Cash flows from operations before changes in net-working capital is a non-IFRS performance measure and is calculated by adjusting the net loss from continuing operations for items not affecting cash, but before applying changes in non-cash operating working capital.

Conference Call

Management will host a conference call to discuss the financial results on October 13, 2022, at 4:00 PM Eastern Time / 1:00 PM Pacific Time.

Dial-in Information

Canada/USA Toll Free: +1-800-319-4610

International Toll: +1-604-638-5340

A transcript of the call will be posted on the Company's website at www.avantbrands.ca within 48 hours of the call.

A copy of the Management Discussion & Analysis ("MD&A") and Financial Statements for Q3 2022 can be downloaded from the Company's SEDAR profile, or on its website at www.avantbrands.ca.

About Avant Brands Inc.

Avant is an innovative, market-leading premium cannabis company. Avant has multiple operational production facilities across Canada, which produce high-quality, handcrafted cannabis products, based on unique and exceptional cultivars. Avant's products are distributed via three complementary sales channels: recreational, medical and export. Avant's recreational consumer brands include: BLK MKT, Tenzo, Cognoscente and Treehugger, which are sold in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut. The Company's medical cannabis brand, GreenTec, is distributed nationwide, directly to qualified patients through its GreenTec Medical portal and through various medical cannabis partners.

Avant is a publicly traded corporation listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:AVNT), and cross-trades on the OTCQX Best Market (OTCQX:AVTBF) and Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FRA:1BU0). The Company is headquartered in Kelowna, British Columbia and has operations in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario.

To learn more about Avant, access the investor presentation, or learn more about its consumer brands, please visit www.avantbrands.ca.

For additional information, please contact:



Investor Relations at Avant Brands Inc.

1-800-351-6358

ir@avantbrands.ca

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION:

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" as defined under applicable Canadian securities legislation, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Company with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Forward-looking information is often identified by the words "may", "would", "could", "should", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" or similar expressions and includes information regarding: the growing demand for the Company's core sales channel; the Company's dedication to becoming profitable in the near future; the Company's ability to increase production levels at the 3PL facility; the Company's ability to expand it's global export client base; the Company's ability to increase the quantity of cannabis products available for sale; and expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Examples include statements that the Company will operate in a fiscally disciplined manner; preliminary financial results are subject to the completion of the Company's financial closing procedures and have not been audited or reviewed by the Company's independent auditor; that the Company will build long-term shareholder value and reduce operational expenses; or that the Company will increase its revenue and gross margins.

Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical fact but instead reflects management's expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, such information involves risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed on such information, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements of the Company. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information are the following: regulatory and licensing risks; changes in consumer demand and preferences; changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets and inflation-related risks; the global regulatory landscape and enforcement related to cannabis, including political risks and risks relating to regulatory change; compliance with extensive government regulation; public opinion and perception of the cannabis industry; and the risk factors set out in the Company's annual information form dated February 28, 2022, filed with Canadian securities regulators and available on the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. For instance, there can be no assurance that the Company's financial results for Q3 2022, including the Company's revenues or any other preliminary financial results for Q3 2022 will be as projected. Although the Company has attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information, which speak only as of the date of this news release. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

NON-IFRS FINANCIAL MEASURES AND OTHER MEASURES:

Certain measures, such as adjusted EBITDA, gross margin before fair value adjustments, operating expenses from continuing operations, and average recreational gross pricing per gram, in this press release do not have any standardized meaning as prescribed by International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and may, therefore, be considered non-IFRS financial measures, non-IFRS measures, or other measures and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Non-IFRS financial measures are used by management to assess the financial and operational performance of the Company. The Company believes that these non-IFRS financial measures, in addition to conventional measures prepared in accordance with IFRS, enable investors to evaluate the Company's operating results, underlying performance and prospects in a similar manner to the Company's management. As there are no standardized methods of calculating these non-IFRS measures, the Company's approach may differ from those used by others, and accordingly, the sue of these measures may not be directly comparable. Accordingly, these non-IFRS measures are intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. These measures include:

Non-IFRS Measures - gross margin before fair value adjustments; adjusted EBITDA; operating expenses from continuing operations

Non-IFRS Ratios - gross margin %; average recreational price per gram; weighted average gross price per gram

Refer to the Company's MD&A for additional details.

ADJUSTED EBITDA:

The Company has identified adjusted EBITDA as a relevant industry performance indicator. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-IFRS financial measure used by management that does not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies.

Management defines adjusted EBITDA as income (loss) from continuing operations, as reported, adjusted for depreciation and amortization, equity (gain) loss on investment in associate, financing costs, gains and losses on sale of marketable securities, CEWS, interest and accretion, share-based payments, fair value gain on acquisition, impairment of inventory, change in fair value of biological assets realized through inventory sold, and unrealized gains and losses on changes in fair value of biological assets. Management believes this measure provides useful information as it is a commonly used measure in the capital markets to approximate operating earnings. See table below for determination of specific components of adjusted EBITDA.



Three months ended August 31 Nine months ended August 31

2022 2021 2022 2021







Income (loss) from continuing operations $ 2,231 $ (2,646 ) $ (2,108 ) $ (3,435 ) Depreciation and amortization 1,330 378 2,832 1,217 Equity (gain) loss on investment in associate - 240 (1,233 ) 516 Financing costs 8 16 31 121 (Gain) loss on sale of marketable securities (5 ) - 157 - Canadian emergency wage subsidy - (581 ) - (1,480 ) Interest and accretion - - - 1,664 Share based payments 340 25 3,339 150 Non-refundable deposit - - - (25 ) Impairment of inventory - - - 213 Fair value gain on acquisition (2,715 ) - (2,715 ) - Change in fair value of biological assets realized through inventory sold (1,982 ) (1,050 ) (3,348 ) (858 ) Unrealized (gain) loss on changes in fair value of biological assets 1,508 3,351 3,218 1,864 Adjusted EBITDA $ 715 $ (267 ) $ 173 $ (53 )

SOURCE: Avant Brands, Inc.





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/720205/Avant-Brands-Reports-Record-Revenues-for-Q3-2022




Straits Research - Market Research Strategy | Strategy Consulting | Business Research | Business Consulting | Market Research

The global building information modelling (BIM) market size was valued at USD 4.68 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 11.97 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 11% from 2022 to 2030. In the market for building information modelling, North America is anticipated to hold the largest market share.

New York, United States, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global Building Information Modelling platform is witnessing a surge due to the growing migration towards urban areas has increased the number of infrastructure projects. Further, the rising foreign direct investments in the emerging nations have bolstered industrialization together with the Building Information Modelling market. Additionally, the favoring government regulations that have led to the mandatory adoption of the BIM software in most of the countries are anticipated to have a positive impact on the market.

Further, the growing utilization of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality technologies, IoT to design green buildings has fostered the growth of the Building Information Modelling market. However, the high cost of investment and the slower adoption of technology in the construction sector has hampered the growth of the market.





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Report Scope

Report Metric Details Market Size USD 11.97 billion by 2030 CAGR 11% (2022-2030) Historical Data 2019-2020 Base Year 2021 Forecast Period 2022-2030 Forecast Units Value (USD Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered Offering, Project Life Cycle, Application, End-User, Regions Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, LAME and the Rest of the World Key Companies Profiled/Vendors Autodesk(the U.S.), Nemetschek (Germany), Bentley Systems(the U.S.), Trimble(the U.S.), DassaultSystemes (France), Rib Software (Germany), Asite (the U.K.), Aveva (the U.K.), Hexagon (Sweden), Archidata (Canada), Acca Software (Italy), Arcadiasoft(the U.S.), Procore Technologies(the U.S.), Concora(the U.S.), Poyry (Finland), Beck Technology(the U.S.), Computers and Structures(the U.S.), Robert McNeel& Associates(the U.S.), 4M Company (the U.S.), and CCT International (Canada) Key Market Opportunities An increasing number of smart cities and modern architectural infrastructures Key Market Drivers Rapid Urbanization and Surge in Infrastructure Projects

Growing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the engineering and construction sectors

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Regional Analysis

North America dominates the Building Information Modelling Platform Market on account of the presence of advanced infrastructure, increasing adoption of cloud services, and the presence of major key players.

The Asia Pacific to exhibit the fastest growth the Building Information Modelling Platform Market due to the increasing foreign direct investments, favoring government regulations, the increased investments in the construction and real estate sector.

Key Highlights:



The global building information modelling (BIM) market size is projected to reach USD 11.97 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 11% from 2022 to 2030.

The lockdown has ebbed the utilization of Building Information Modelling software owing to the temporary stoppage of all the construction projects.

The software segment caters to the highest markets share among the different offering in the Building Information Modelling Platform Market.

The preconstruction segment caters to the highest markets share among the different project life cycle in the Building Information Modelling Platform Market.

In the market for building information modelling, North America is anticipated to hold the largest market share.

The key players in the global Building Information Modelling market are

Autodesk(the U.S.)

Nemetschek (Germany)

Bentley Systems(the U.S.)

Trimble(the U.S.)

Dassault Systemes (France)

Rib Software (Germany)

Asite (the U.K.)

Aveva (the U.K.)

Hexagon (Sweden)

Archidata (Canada)

Acca Software (Italy)

Arcadiasoft(the U.S.)

Procore Technologies(the U.S.)

Concora(the U.S.)

Poyry (Finland)

Beck Technology(the U.S.)

Computers and Structures(the U.S.)

Robert McNeel& Associates(the U.S.)

4M Company (the U.S.), an

CCT International (Canada) among others





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Market Segmentation

By Offering

Software Architectural Design Sustainability Structure MEP Construction Facility Management.

Services Software Support and Maintenance Project Management and Support.



By The Project Life Cycle

Preconstruction

Construction

Operations

By The Applications

Buildings

Industrial

Civil Infrastructure

Oil & Gas

Utilities

Others

By The End-User

AEC Professionals

Consultants and Facility Managers

Others

By Region

North America

Europe

The Middle East and Africa (MEA)

Asia-Pacific

South America





TABLE OF CONTENT

1 Introduction

1.1 Market Definition

1.2 Market Scope

2 Research Methodology

2.1 Primary Research

2.2 Research Methodology

2.3 Assumptions & Exclusions

2.4 Secondary Data Sources

3 Market Overview

3.1 Report Segmentation & Scope

3.2 Value Chain Analysis: Building Information Modelling Market

3.3 Key Market Trends

3.3.1 Drivers

3.3.2 Restraints

3.3.3 Opportunities

3.4 Porters Five Forces Analysis

3.4.1 Bargaining Power of Suppliers

3.4.2 Bargaining Power of Buyers

3.4.3 Threat of Substitution

3.4.4 Threat of New Entrants

3.4.5 Competitive Rivalry

3.5 Impact of COVID -19

3.6 Market Share Analysis

4 Offering Overview

4.1 Introduction

4.1.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2 Software

4.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.2 Architectural Design

4.2.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.3 Architectural Design

4.2.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.4 Sustainability

4.2.4.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.5 Structure

4.2.5.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.6 MEP

4.2.6.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.7 Construction

4.2.7.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.2.8 Facility Management

4.2.8.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.3 Services

4.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.3.2 Software Support and Maintenance

4.3.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

4.3.3 Project Management and Support.

4.3.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

5 Project Life Cycle Overview

5.1 Introduction

5.1.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

5.2 Preconstruction

5.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

5.3 Construction

5.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

5.4 Operations

5.4.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6 Applications Overview

6.1 Introduction

6.1.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6.2 Buildings

6.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6.3 Industrial

6.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6.4 Civil Infrastructure

6.4.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6.5 Oil & Gas

6.5.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

6.6 Others

6.6.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

7 End-User Overview

7.1 Introduction

7.1.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

7.2 AEC Professionals

7.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

7.3 Consultants and Facility Managers

7.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

7.4 Others

7.4.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8 Regional Analysis

8.1 Introduction

8.1.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.2 North America

8.2.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.2.2 The U.S.

8.2.2.1 By Offering

8.2.2.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.2.2.3 By Applications

8.2.2.4 By End-User

8.2.3 Canada

8.2.3.1 By Offering

8.2.3.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.2.3.3 By Applications

8.2.3.4 By End-User

8.2.4 Mexico

8.2.4.1 By Offering

8.2.4.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.2.4.3 By Applications

8.2.4.4 By End-User

8.3 Europe

8.3.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.3.2 Germany

8.3.2.1 By Offering

8.3.2.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.2.3 By Applications

8.3.2.4 By End-User

8.3.3 France

8.3.3.1 By Offering

8.3.3.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.3.3 By Applications

8.3.3.4 By End-User

8.3.4 The U.K.

8.3.4.1 By Offering

8.3.4.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.4.3 By Applications

8.3.4.4 By End-User

8.3.5 Italy

8.3.5.1 By Offering

8.3.5.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.5.3 By Applications

8.3.5.4 By End-User

8.3.6 Spain

8.3.6.1 By Offering

8.3.6.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.6.3 By Applications

8. 3.6.4 By End-User

8.3.8 The Rest of Europe

8.3.8.1 By Offering

8.3.8.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.3.8.3 By Applications

8. 3.8.4 By End-User

8.4 Asia-Pacific

8.4.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.4.2 Japan

8.4.2.1 By Offering

8.4.2.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.4.2.3 By Applications

8. 4.2.4 By End-User

8.4.3 China

8.4.3.1 By Offering

8.4.3.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.4.3.3 By Applications

8. 4.3.4 By End-User

8.4.4 Australia

8.4.4.1 By Offering

8.4.4.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.4.4.3 By Applications

8. 4.4.4 By End-User

8.4.5 India

8.4.5.1 By Offering

8.4.5.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.4.5.3 By Applications

8. 4.5.4 By End-User

8.4.6 The Rest of Asia-Pacific

8.4.6.1 By Offering

8.4.6.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.4.6.3 By Applications

8. 4.6.4 By End-User

8.5 The Middle East and Africa (MEA)

8.5.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.5.2 Saudi Arabia

8.5.2.1 By Offering

8.5.2.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.5.2.3 By Applications

8. 5.2.4 By End-User

8.5.3 South Africa

8.5.3.1 By Offering

8.5.3.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.5.3.3 By Applications

8. 5.3.4 By End-User

8.5.4 The UAE

8.5.4.1 By Offering

8.5.4.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.5.4.3 By Applications

8. 5.4.4 By End-User

8.5.5 Egypt

8.5.5.1 By Offering

8.5.5.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.5.5.3 By Applications

8. 5.5.4 By End-User

8.5.6 The Rest of MEA

8.5.6.1 By Offering

8.5.6.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.5.6.3 By Applications

8. 5.6.4 By End-User

8.6 South America

8.6.1 Market Size & Forecast, 2020-2030, (USD Million)

8.6.2 Brazil

8.6.2.1 By Offering

8.6.2.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.6.2.3 By Applications

8. 6.2.4 By End-User

8.6.3 Argentina

8.6.3.1 By Offering

8.6.3.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.6.3.4 By Applications

8. 6.3.4 By End-User

8.6.4 Chile

8.6.4.1 By Offering

8.6.4.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.6.4.4 By Applications

8. 6.4.4 By End-User

8.6.5 Peru

8.6.5.1 By Offering

8.6.5.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.6.5.4 By Applications

8. 6.5.4 By End-User

8.6.6 The Rest of South America

8.6.6.1 By Offering

8.6.6.2 By Project Life Cycle

8.6.6.4 By Applications

8. 6.6.4 By End-User

9 Company Profile

9.1 Autodesk

9.1.1 Company Overview

9.1.2 Financial Performance

9.1.3 Recent Developments

9.1.4 Product Portfolio

9.2 Nemetschek

9.2.1 Company Overview

9.2.2 Financial Performance

9.2.3 Recent Developments

9.2.4 Product Portfolio

9.3 Bentley Systems

9.3.1 Company Overview

9.3.2 Financial Performance

9.3.3 Recent Developments

9.3.4 Product Portfolio

9.4 Trimble

9.4.1 Company Overview

9.4.2 Financial Performance

9.4.3 Recent Developments

9.4.4 Product Portfolio

9.5 Dassault Systemes

9.5.1 Company Overview

9.5.2 Financial Performance

9.5.3 Recent Developments

9.5.4 Product Portfolio

9.6 Rib Software

9.6.1 Company Overview

9.6.2 Financial Performance

9.6.3 Recent Developments

9.6.4 Product Portfolio

9.7 Asite

9.7.1 Company Overview

9.7.2 Financial Performance

9.7.3 Recent Developments

9.7.4 Product Portfolio

9.8 Aveva

9.8.1 Company Overview

9.8.2 Financial Performance

9.8.3 Recent Developments

9.8.4 Product Portfolio

9.9 Hexagon

9.9.1 Company Overview

9.9.2 Financial Performance

9.9.3 Recent Developments

9.9.4 Product Portfolio

9.10 Archidata

9.10.1 Company Overview

9.10.2 Financial Performance

9.10.3 Recent Developments

9.10.4 Product Portfolio





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Recent Developments

On March 11, 2020, Bentley System acquired GroupBC one of the U.K. based in cloud services for construction information management. This acquisition aims at pooling the resources of both the companies and expands its infrastructure revolution requirements thereby reinforcing its position in the U.K. market

On October 23, 2018, Hexagon acquired Bricsys - a fast-growing CAD (computer-aided design) software developer. The acquisition aims at strengthening the construction portfolio of the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) market





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Canadian Renewable Energy Association

Vittoria Bellissimo will move into the role on October 31, 2022

Vittoria Bellissimo

CanREA names Vittoria Bellissimo as its incoming President & CEO.

OTTAWA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) today named Vittoria Bellissimo as its incoming President and CEO, effective October 31, 2022, replacing Robert Hornung who is retiring from the role.



I am delighted to welcome Vittoria as the new President and CEO of CanREA, said Jason Chee-Aloy, Chair of CanREAs Board of Directors.

Wind energy and solar energy are Canadas lowest-cost sources of new electricity generation and, coupled with energy storage, will be critical to Canadas efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We are pleased that Vittoria will continue CanREAs work to enable Canada to capitalize on its massive untapped renewable energy potential.

Vittoria comes to CanREA after more than 10 years of working with electricity customers as the Executive Director of the Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta and almost 20 years in the electricity sector. Previously, she worked in renewable energy procurement at both the Ontario Ministry of Energy and the Ontario Power Authority.

I am excited to take on this role at a time when Canada must dramatically increase its use of wind, solar and energy storage to meet its climate change commitments, said Bellissimo.

CanREAs 300+ members are leaders in Canadas energy transition, and I look forward to advocating on their behalf for the policy, regulatory and market changes required to enable the responsible, sustainable, and accelerated deployment of these technologies.

Net-zero pathway studies consistently conclude that wind and solar energy must be the primary sources of new electricity generation in Canada. These sources are vital as we move to decarbonize and expand our electricity production to support greenhouse gas emission reductions across the economy in sectors like transportation, buildings, and heavy industry. This is because wind and solar energy are the lowest-cost sources of new electricity generation, new developments are scalable and can be rapidly deployed, and Canada has massive untapped wind and solar energy resources.

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In my 19+ years with CanREA and the Canadian Wind Energy Association, wind and solar energy have moved from the margins to the mainstream, said CanREAs outgoing President and CEO, Robert Hornung.

I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to play a role in this transformation and confident that Vittoria and the excellent CanREA team will successfully advocate for Canada to take the steps required to make CanREAs 2050 Vision a reality.

CanREAs 2050 Vision, Powering Canadas Journey to Net-Zero, demonstrates that Canada will need to increase its installed wind and solar energy capacity ten-fold by 2050 to achieve its net-zero commitment.

The CanREA Board would like to thank Robert Hornung for his many years of leadership and service to the industry and his role as the founding President and CEO of CanREA, said Chee-Aloy. We wish him the very best in his retirement and future endeavours.

CanREA members, and members of the media, can meet CanREAs new CEO, Vittoria Bellissimo, at the Electricity Transformation Canada conference and exhibition in Toronto on October 26 to 28, 2022.

Quotes

I am delighted to welcome Vittoria as the new President and CEO of CanREA. Wind energy and solar energy are Canadas lowest cost sources of new electricity generation and, coupled with energy storage, will be critical to Canadas efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We are pleased that Vittoria will continue CanREAs work to enable Canada to capitalize on its massive untapped renewable energy potential.

Jason Chee-Aloy, Chair of CanREAs Board of Directors

I am excited to take on this role at a time when Canada must dramatically increase its use of wind, solar and energy storage to meet its climate change commitments. CanREAs 300+ members are leaders in Canadas energy transition, and I look forward to advocating on their behalf for the policy, regulatory and market changes required to enable the responsible, sustainable, and accelerated deployment of these technologies.

Vittoria Bellissimo, incoming President and CEO, Canadian Renewable Energy Association

In my 19+ years with CanREA and the Canadian Wind Energy Association, wind and solar energy have moved from the margins to the mainstream. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to play a role in this transformation and confident that Vittoria and the excellent CanREA team will successfully advocate for Canada to take the steps required to make CanREAs 2050 Vision a reality.

Robert Hornung, outgoing President and CEO, Canadian Renewable Energy Association

The CanREA Board would like to thank Robert Hornung for his many years of leadership and service to the industry and his role as the founding President and CEO of CanREA. We wish him the very best in his retirement and future endeavours.

Jason Chee-Aloy, Chair of CanREAs Board of Directors

For more information or for interview opportunities, please contact:

Communications

Canadian Renewable Energy Association

647-268-3382

communications@renewablesassociation.ca

About the Canadian Renewable Energy Association

The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) is the voice for wind energy, solar energy and energy storage solutions that will power Canadas energy future. Our diverse members are uniquely positioned to deliver clean, low-cost, reliable, flexible and scalable solutions. For more information on how Canada can use wind energy, solar energy and energy storage to help achieve its net-zero commitments, consult Powering Canadas Journey to Net-Zero: CanREAs 2050 Vison. Learn more at renewablesassociation.ca. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. Subscribe to our newsletter here. Become a member here.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/19bdd014-c054-4568-9471-ce4816904e86




HONG KONG, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In the latest episode of Quest's World of Wonder, CNN anchor and correspondent Richard Quest returns to Singapore to explore and reconnect with the DNA of the island-nation.

CNNs Richard Quest returns to Singapore on Quests World of Wonder

Quest begins his journey catching up with one of Singapore's best-known comics, Rishi Budhrani. Born and bred in the city-state, the comedian is fiercely loyal to Singapore and shares his tongue-in-cheek humour with Quest explaining why he describes his home as a 'moody teenager'.

Singapore is a melting pot of excellence when it comes to cuisine and at the core of eating is the Hawker Centre, an integral part of culture and daily life. Quest visits a Hawker Centre with Dr Leslie Tay, a doctor by profession and a foodie by passion. He introduces Quest to his favourite hawkers including one who has been cooking the same dish for 40 years and another who is trying to preserve the tradition for the next generation.

Next, Quest meets Sam Lo, a Singapore-based visual artist, who is shaking up the island's conservative mindset. Lo uses art to try and define and understand the culture of Singapore. Lo also gives Quest a crash-course in Singlish  a type of informal English unique to Singapore.

Finally, Quest heads to Gardens by the Bay, an example of how Singapore strikes a balance between lush green oasis and steel and concrete jungle. Both a garden and an architectural marvel, it's now one of the country's most iconic landmarks. Quest meets with Gardens by the Bay's Mei Leng Lim and learns the secrets to growing orchards, the national flower.

Quest's World of Wonder  Singapore trailer: https://bit.ly/3SKAcHn

Quest's World of Wonder  Singapore images: https://bit.ly/3TfyzRJ

Airtimes for 30-minute special:

Saturday, 15th October at 8:30pm SGT

Sunday, 16th October at 4:30am and 2:30pm SGT

Monday, 17th October at 8:30am SGT

Saturday, 22nd October at 1:30pm and 11:30pm SGT

Monday, 24th October at 5:30am SGT

Tuesday, 25th October at 3:45am SGT

Wednesday, 26th October at 3:45am SGT

About CNN International

CNN's portfolio of news and information services is available in seven different languages across all major TV, digital and mobile platforms, reaching more than 475 million households around the globe. CNN International is the number one international TV news channel according to all major media surveys across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific region, and Latin America and has a US presence that includes CNNgo. CNN Digital is a leading network for online news, mobile news and social media. CNN is at the forefront of digital innovation and continues to invest heavily in expanding its digital global footprint, with a suite of award-winning digital properties and a range of strategic content partnerships, commercialised through a strong data-driven understanding of audience behaviours. CNN has won multiple prestigious awards around the world for its journalism. Around 1,000 hours of long-form series, documentaries and specials are produced every year by CNNI's non-news programming division. CNN has 36 editorial offices and more than 1,100 affiliates worldwide through CNN Newsource. CNN International is a Warner Bros. Discovery company.

SOURCE CNN International
Acquisition of Syrinx bolsters DeWinters technology staffing capabilities with software development skillsets and adds East Coast reach

CAMPBELL, Calif., October 13, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DeWinter Group ("DeWinter"), a Silicon Valley-based provider of finance & accounting and technology staffing and recruitment, has acquired Syrinx Consulting ("Syrinx" or the "Company"), a greater Boston-based provider of high-end software development and technology staffing solutions. The acquisition of Syrinx adds significant scale to DeWinters fast-growing technology line of business, Maris Consulting Group, and expands its skillset offering to its clients.

Syrinx is a leading provider of high-end software development and technology staffing solutions serving clients in the greater Boston area. The Company has built a strong reputation in the marketplace since its founding in 1998 through a relentless focus on sourcing high quality, hard-to-find candidates with specialized skillsets across programming languages, including .NET, Python, Java, and SQL. The Company also produces a podcast called "Underserved", which hosts leaders and visionaries from across the technology industry.

"Syrinx has a great reputation and brings tremendous value to our platform," said Shane Oberg, CEO of DeWinter. "They have strong internal talent and access to complementary skillsets that will enable us to better serve our collective clients", commented Scott Davidson, President of Maris Consulting Group, DeWinters technology division.

"Partnering with DeWinter is a great opportunity for our people and our customers," said Andrew Gelina, CEO of Syrinx. "DeWinter has a culture and mindset that aligns well with ours and I am excited to see what we can do together," Colin Reposa, President of Syrinx, added.

The combined business will be able to offer clients on the West and East Coast a full suite of staffing and recruitment services for specialized finance & accounting and technology talent demands.

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DeWinter is backed by New Heritage Capital ("Heritage"), a Boston-based private equity firm focused on investing in and partnering with founder-led businesses. The DeWinter founder-owners partnered with Heritage in 2020 to accelerate growth through organic and M&A initiatives.

About DeWinter Group

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Silicon Valley, DeWinter is the preeminent provider of mid- and senior-level finance & accounting and technology talent. DeWinter serves some of the worlds leading companies with a broad range of contract staffing, direct hire, and retained search services. For more information visit: https://www.dewintergroup.com/

About Syrinx Consulting

Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Greater Boston, Syrinx is leading provider of software development talent. For 20+ years, Syrinx has sourced hard-to-find engineers and developers with extensive experience building software and working with the latest technologies. For more information visit: www.syrinx.com

About New Heritage Capital

Heritage is a Boston-based private equity firm with a twenty-year history of partnering with growing, middle market, founder-owned businesses. With its innovative investment structures like the Private IPO, Heritage provides founders with a combination of liquidity and growth capital while allowing founders to maintain control of their business. With decades of experience at managing growth, Heritage gives its partners the strategic, operational and financial guidance to help its companies reach their growth objectives. For more information, please visit: www.newheritagecapital.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005264/en/

Contacts

Charlie Gifford

New Heritage Capital, LLC

617-320-9506

cgiffford@newheritagecapital.com
Maryland's largest HBCU connects students and therapists

BALTIMORE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- If 95% of surveyed students feel their mental health has been negatively affected within the past year, why is it that only 1 in 3 BIPOC Americans receive the help they need? This question begins to offer insight into the difficulties faced by many young adults from diverse backgrounds who do not get necessary mental health support. "Opportunities for economic mobility will not be possible unless we provide the counseling and support that is a major factor in ensuring student success," said Dr. Aisha Francis, President of Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, a private institution with 74% students of color. To reduce stigma and increase accessibility surrounding mental health, many institutions are turning to scalable technologies designed to assist their current campus counseling centers to provide inclusive, flexible, and equitable mental health resources and support.

Uwill has become the leading mental health and wellness solution for colleges and students. The most cost-effective way to complement a college's mental health offering, Uwill partners with more than 100 institutions including Boston College, University of Michigan, American Public University System, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Uwill is also the teletherapy education partner for NASPA. For more information, visit uwill.com

The past eighteen months have exacerbated a nationwide campus mental health crisis...

Morgan State University is one of many schools launching a solution that gives students immediate access to licensed therapists based on needs and preferences including gender and ethnicity. "As the largest HBCU in Maryland, we are committed to expanding the promise and opportunity of higher education to a multiethnic, multiracial, and multinational student body. This means prioritizing mental health and wellness so our students can pursue academic success," said Dr. Sonya Clyburn, Director of Counseling Services at Morgan State University. "By using Uwill's environment, students can select counselors who match their ethnicity, language, or demographic preferences, which reflects our mission to offer students resources that are responsive to their unique needs."

"As the leading teletherapy platform within higher education, we seek to provide a personalized approach to telehealth that allows students to get the support they need, when they need it, from a counselor they can connect with and relate to," said Michael London, Uwill Founder and CEO. "An emerging technology like ours helps colleges respond to the ongoing challenges students face."

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Uwill aims to remove barriers by providing free and accessible therapy. According to the US Census Bureau, African Americans are approximately 1.5 times less likely to be covered by health insurance, one barrier noted in accessing therapy.

"Remaining free to students has been a priority. Insurance is not needed to receive help from Uwill, " said London. "One of the greatest difficulties facing underrepresented populations today is a lack of access to sufficient care because of stigma, family disapproval, or lack of opportunity," said Uwill counselor Stephanie Black Dos Santos, "Uwill's goal to ensure free therapy for all college students with easy and discreet access helps to overcome these obstacles."

Ultimately, In order to best support the whole student for success in college and beyond, it is critical to build a strong mental health foundation and provide all students with ample opportunities to get the help they need. "The past eighteen months have exacerbated a nationwide campus mental health crisis that affects both students and faculty alike," said Dr. Russell Swagger, president of Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University, a Wisconsin tribal university also partnered with Uwill. "Tribal colleges like LCOOC have felt this pain more acutely than other institutions  making it especially important that we meet the university community where they are and provide access to a diverse group of counselors. Uwill's ecosystem and broad counselor team are enabling us to do just that."

Morgan State University's partnership with Uwill also includes an immediate and direct crisis connection that has quickly gained popularity because it eliminates the common approach consisting of a combination of an in-take assessment, phone-tree, or triage. The solution has been designed to expand the capacity of Morgan State's counseling center and provide more students with the support they need. Utilizing its proprietary technology and counselor team, Uwill pioneered the first Higher Education therapist matching platform and wellness environment. The solution offers an immediate connection to an available licensed counselor based on student preferences, all modalities of teletherapy, a 24/7/365 crisis connection, wellness programming, detailed reporting, and support.

About Uwill

Uwill has become the leading mental health and wellness solution for colleges and students. The most cost-effective way to complement a college's mental health offering, Uwill partners with more than 100 institutions including Boston College, University of Michigan, American Public University System, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Uwill is also the teletherapy education partner for NASPA. For more information, visit uwill.com

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SOURCE Uwill, Inc
Carte Blanched is a fully integrated F&B studio delivering new and extraordinary culinary experiences

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LONDON, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ennismore, the fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company, today reveals Carte Blanched  a specialist in-house team of operators, chefs, mixologists and creatives who create bespoke, forward-thinking, authentic and culturally relevant food and beverage concepts for Ennismore's lifestyle brands.

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Unique to Ennismore, Carte Blanched creates new and develops existing F&B brands for hotel owners, overseeing everything from conception through to opening and beyond to deliver extraordinary destinations for both locals and international guests. Across Ennismore's 100 lifestyle hotels, there are 190 restaurants and bars that generate approx. 50% of total revenue - a testament to each brand's connection to the local community.

The expertise of Carte Blanched is strengthened by a global network of hospitality collaborators and partners, including: Selin Kiazim & Laura Christie, founders of Oklava; Monica Berg & Alex Kratena, the multi award winning duo behind Tayer and Elementary; Kris Yenbamroong, LA's Night + Market; Andrei Soen, Singapore's Park Bench Deli; Layo Paskin & Zoe Paskin, the team behind Palomar, The Barbary, Evelyn's Table and The Blue Posts in London, and Tuscan Butcher Dario Cecchini, of cult Netflix show Chef's Table.

Within its portfolio, Carte Blanched has over 40 brands, and since 2021, it has opened 17 new outlets in Europe and the Middle East. Carte Blanched is behind some of those most coveted culinary experiences, including:

Tandoor Tina at 25hours Dubai - the smells, tastes, and colours of exotic and carefree travels around India with fresh, quality ingredients and bright flavours cooked in the Tandoor oven and on the grill

Four Corners at The Hoxton, Barcelona - Italian American restaurant specialising in Detroit style pizza with a menu from Pizza Czar, Anthony Falco

Seabird at The Hoxton, Southwark - Seafood restaurant boasting London's longest oyster list

Fi'Lia at SLS Dubai  Italian-Mediterranean cooking based on the philosophy of food passed down from one generation of women to the next, by Sara Aqel, winner of Michelin Bib Gourmands

Bibo at Mondrian Shoreditch - A lively space, perfect for casual lunches and spirited dinners with chef Dani Garcia

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"The F&B experience is an integral part of what sets lifestyle hospitality brands apart from your traditional hotel brands, and Carte Blanched is how we ensure our restaurants and bars are authentic and culturally relevant globally and in local markets", said Sharan Pasricha, Founder & Co-CEO of Ennismore. "Carte Blanched is a completely new and unique approach to how we deliver extraordinary drinking and dining destinations - from concept to execution  for our owners and hotels. and is one of the vital ways which sets Ennismore apart from our competitors. I am incredibly proud of the team we have pulled together, who are the best in their field."

The launch of Carte Blanched comes alongside some exciting new projects, including:

Floating World - a fabulously excessive, Japanese-influenced restaurant that specialises in bold flavoured, easy-to-share food with stylish, immersive design and flamboyant cocktails

Dollars - a new sandwich bar concept in Partnership with Andrei Soen, the mastermind behind Park Bench Deli  the buzzy American sandwich spot and deli in the heart of Singapore

Chet's  a Thai-Americana restaurant in partnership with LA based Kris Yenbamroong (Night + Market)

Bottega di Carna - a nose to tail Italian inspired restaurant in partnership with Dario Cecchini

Mr Nakamoto  an American steakhouse with Japanese flavours inspired by the mid-Manhattan dining of the Mad Men era

Carte Blanched's services span from strategic development, market research, including local insider knowledge trend reports and culinary and beverage innovation, to brand identity creation, recruitment, training, and marketing and PR. In addition, before fully launching a new brand, the Carte Blanched team tests the concept to the public in a three-month pop-up at La Cave  its incubator kitchen situated beneath The Hoxton, Holborn  to obtain vital customer feedback and crucially build brand awareness.

The Carte Blanched team includes:

Sharan Pasricha, Carte Blanched Leader and Ennismore Founder  One of Conde Nast Traveller's '50 People Changing The Way We Travel', Sharan ensures seamless integration between the studio and other business functions within Ennismore

Jules Pearson, VP of Creative  Having been at Ennismore since the beginning, growing The Hoxton globally, Jules leads the creative, using marketing insights to create F&B brands and partnerships that are relevant now and remain so in the future

Wayne Brown, VP F&B Development  Culinary  Wayne oversees chef collaborations utilising his experience leading hospitality concepts and groups, including Disruptive Restaurant Group, SBE and Marina Bay Sands

Alex Ghalleb, VP of Operations  With over 20 years of experience in hospitality, including Soho House, Gold Notting Hill and Pizza East, Alex creates the seamless bridge between concept and reality

Nick Comaty, VP of Operations & Development for MEA, Turkey & India - Nick is based in Dubai, and has over 20 years of experience in hospitality, from independent venues such as Nammos Dubai and the Mina group to hotels such as the SLS Miami and Gramercy Park NYC, Nick creates, operates, and builds impactful experiences

Gareth Evans, Beverage Director  With over two decades of experience operating Jason Atherton's award-winning bar venues worldwide, Gareth oversees all beverage collaborations

Micaela Philippo, Brand Director  A creative and brand strategy specialist, having worked with concepts such as Pachamama, Chicama and Farm Girl, Micaela produces unique, research-based concepts with integrity

Caroline Strauss, Director of F&B Openings & Special Projects  Oversees the development of Carte Blanched projects in the Americas and openings globally. Caroline comes from independent F&B background, including Bar Lab and Starr Restaurants

Carmen Tomasic, Director of F&B, Asia Pacific - Based in Singapore, Carmen heads up F&B for Asia Pacific, drawing on a broad wealth of hospitality experience, from overseeing hatted restaurants and cocktail bars, to events with companies including Merivale group, QT hotels and Ultra Music festival

Peter Macias, Global Executive Chef  Carte Blanched's very own Executive Chef, Peter joins the team with over 16 years' experience working in kitchens across Miami and Los Angeles, including Sawyer, Kettle Black, and Kimpton La Peer Hotel. Early in his career, Peter was mentored by Nina Compton and Michael Pirolo at Scarpetta in Fontainebleu

Ennismore's In-House Studios

Carte Blanched is one of Ennismore's four specialised in-house studios, obsessing every guest touch point. These studios  a unique offering in the hospitality industry - work with owners to elevate their property and create an authentic brand experience for their guests. They include AIME Studios  an award-winning interior & graphic studio; Staymore  a Digital Product & Tech Innovation lab; Ennismore Partnership Studio  which drives global partnerships and brand awareness, and Carte Blanched.

ennismore.com | carte-blanched.com

MEDIA CONTACT

Tara Breeze, Bacchus Agency

ennismoreglobal@bacchus.agency

ABOUT ENNISMORE

Ennismore is a creative hospitality company with a global collective of entrepreneurial and founder-built brands with purpose at their heart. It curates and manages unique properties and experiences in some of the most exciting destinations worldwide.

Founded in 2011 by entrepreneur Sharan Pasricha, Ennismore and Accor entered a joint venture in 2021 to create a new autonomous entity, with Accor holding a majority shareholding. Creating the world's fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company, it brings together Ennismore's know-how in building brands with creative storytelling, design, and authentic experiences, with Accor's wealth of knowledge in delivering scale, network growth and distribution.

Under Sharan Pasricha, Founder & Co-CEO, and Gaurav Bhushan, Co-CEO, Ennismore comprises 14 brands - with 100 operating properties and a further 160 in the pipeline - and a collection of over 150 culturally relevant and diverse restaurants and nightlife destinations.

Ennismore puts innovation at the centre of everything it does, with four dedicated in-house specialist studios, which obsess every guest touchpoint, including Carte Blanched  a fully integrated F&B concept platform; a creative studio of interior and graphic designers; a digital product and tech innovation lab, and a partnerships and collaborations division.

Ennismore has been included in Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies lists in 2020 and 2021; ranked#29 in FT1000: Europe's Fastest-Growing Companies; and is part of FT Future 100 - the UK's fastest-growing businesses that are shaping the future of their sector.

The Ennismore brands: 21c Museum Hotel, 25hours Hotels, Delano, Gleneagles, Hyde, JO&JOE, Mama Shelter, Mondrian, Morgans Originals, SLS, SO/, The Hoxton, TRIBE and Working From.

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SOURCE Ennismore
SINGAPORE, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Gilead Sciences, Inc. and IAS  the International AIDS Society  have renewed their Me and My Healthcare Provider partnership to expand the campaign in Brazil, Hong Kong, Mexico, South Korea and Taiwan. The collaborative partnership, now entering its second year, offers an opportunity for people affected by HIV to celebrate the contributions of healthcare professionals who have made a difference in their lives.

"Healthcare workers are an integral part of ensuring access and continued care for people living with or at risk of HIV," IAS President Sharon Lewin said. "Whether it is a client's first visit to a health facility or a day-to-day interaction, every single worker can enable a stigma-free and health-promoting experience. We are elated to continue this meaningful partnership with Gilead. Amplifying the Healthcare Provider Champions' inspiring stories of their stigma-free care approach will go a long way to bringing us one step closer to an HIV stigma-free future for all."

According to the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), discrimination in healthcare settings is one of the major obstacles to ending the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 [1].

Launched in 2015, the Me and My Healthcare Provider campaign recognizes healthcare workers who deliver quality HIV prevention, treatment and care in the face of discriminatory laws and stigmatizing traditions and belief systems. The campaign aims to build a better understanding of what motivates Healthcare Provider Champions to provide inclusive and stigma-free services, further illuminating information-based and skills-building strategies adopted in local healthcare settings to enable inclusive care [2]. By highlighting their stories, the campaign ultimately hopes to encourage replication and empower other healthcare providers to raise their voices against stigma.

"To fully embrace our client-centric care approach, we need to tackle stigma and discrimination," Belinda Jump, Executive Director, Medical Affairs Head, Intercontinental Region, Gilead Sciences, said. "We are honored to collaborate once again with the IAS on the Me and My Healthcare Provider campaign to recognize exemplary role models in the healthcare setting. Through our partnership, we are committed to providing a platform to amplify their voices with the hopes of inspiring and empowering the healthcare community to confront stigma head-on."

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This year, the campaign is expanding to include a USD 20,000 seed grant to organizations based in Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan. This will support the co-design and implementation of a local campaign, as well as work with the 2023 Healthcare Champion pairs to enhance training activities for healthcare workers to promote stigma-free service delivery in their communities. Find out more here ; proposals are welcomed now until 25 November 2022.

Nominations for 2023 Healthcare Provider Champions from Brazil, Hong Kong, Mexico, South Korea, and Taiwan will open in early 2023. Champions and their nominators will be announced at IAS 2023, the 12th IAS Conference on HIV Science, in Brisbane, Australia, where they will also be invited to attend a broad range of stigma-related events to share their best practice examples.

For any questions about the Me and My Healthcare Provider campaign, please reach out to advocacy@iasociety.org . Click here for detailed stories about the 2022 Healthcare Provider Champions.

[1] UNAIDS. (2018). Global Partnership For Action To Eliminate All Forms of HIV-related Stigma and Discrimination. 4. https://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/media_asset/global-partnership-hiv-stigma-discrimination_en.pdf [2] UNAIDS. (2020). Evidence for eliminating HIV-related stigma and discrimination. 34-37. https://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/media_asset/eliminating-discrimination-guidance_en.pdf

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that has pursued and achieved breakthroughs in medicine for more than three decades, with the goal of creating a healthier world for all people. The company is committed to advancing innovative medicines to prevent and treat life-threatening diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis and cancer.

For 35 years, Gilead has been a leading innovator in the field of HIV, driving advances in treatment, prevention and cure research. Gilead is committed to continued scientific innovation to provide solutions for the evolving needs of people affected by HIV around the world. Through partnerships and collaborations, the company also aims to improve education, expand access and address barriers to care, with the goal of ending the HIV epidemic for everyone, everywhere. Gilead was recognized as the number one philanthropic funder of HIV-related programs in a report released by Funders Concerned About AIDS.

In Asia, Gilead has launched the Asia Pacific Rainbow Grant since 2018, providing more than USD 4.5 million to 112 organizations across Asia Pacific. Gilead operates in more than 35 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, California.

For more information on Gilead Sciences, please visit the company's website at www.gilead.com/ , follow Gilead on Twitter (@GileadSciences) or call Gilead Public Affairs at 1-800-GILEAD-5 or 1-650-574-30.

About the International Aids Society

IAS  the International AIDS Society  convenes, educates and advocates for a world in which HIV no longer presents a threat to public health and individual well-being. After the emergence of HIV and AIDS, concerned scientists created the IAS to bring together experts from across the world and disciplines to promote a concerted HIV response. Today, the IAS and its members unite scientists, policy makers and activists to galvanize the scientific response, build global solidarity and enhance human dignity for all those living with and affected by HIV. The IAS also hosts the world's most prestigious HIV conferences: the International AIDS Conference, the IAS Conference on HIV Science and the HIV Research for Prevention Conference.

For more information about the IAS, please visit https://iasociety.org/ and follow the IAS on Twitter (@iasociety).

SOURCE Gilead Sciences, Inc.
SPHERICAL INSIGHTS LLP

The Global Virtual Cards Market Size was valued at USD 11.7 billion in 2021 and The market is growing at a CAGR of 21% from 2021 to 2030; Companies Covered:American Express Company, Capital One, BTRS Holdings, Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wise Payments Limited, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Marqeta, Inc., MasterCard, Skrill USA, Inc., Stripe, Inc., WEX Inc., Adyen, Bento Technologies Inc., Billtrust (BTRS Holdings Inc.), Citigroup Inc., ePayService, DBS Bank Ltd, HSBC, Revolut Ltd, Stripe, Inc., State Bank of India, Mastercard, Marqeta, Inc., Standard Chartered Bank, WEX Inc., Wise Payments Limited and Other Prominent key players form world.

New York, United States, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Global virtual Cards Market Size is projected to grow from USD 11.7 billion in 2021 to USD 65.0 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 21% during the forecast period. as per the latest research report by Spherical Insights & Consulting. Asia Pacific is expected to grow the fastest during the forecast period.

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A virtual card enables secure online transactions since it lowers the possibility of disclosing the actual credit/debit card information to the merchant. There are very chances of cloning or fraud because virtual cards are only visible to the user. Additionally, each virtual card is only intended for one use. It is made specifically for a single online transaction and is only valid for 48 hours. Depending on the bank, the credit limit and validity term may change. Virtual cards are less expensive than physical cards since there is no cost involved in making the cards and procuring the raw materials. Moreover, several banks charge very few from customers holding virtual cards. Additionally, since everything is managed online, the virtual bank may lower operating expenses, which allows them to lower the fees for the virtual cards they issue to their clients. In addition, virtual cards give users additional security advantages compared to actual cards. Moreover, users can customize their spending caps on a virtual card, increasing their savings. These are some driving factors for the growth of the virtual card market. However, the increasing demand for digital payment options among users, such as Gpay, UPI payments, net banking, Phonepe, etc., hinders the markets growth. The increasing use of mobile phones and innovative technological advancements, such as the incorporation of 5G technology, is expected to provide growth opportunities for the market during the forecast period.

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Browse key industry insights spread across 199 pages with 127 market data tables and figures & charts from the report  Global Virtual Cards Market Size , Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Card Type (Debit Card, Credit Card), By Product Type (B2B Virtual Cards, B2B Virtual Cards, B2C Remote Payment Virtual Cards, C2B POS Virtual Cards), By Application (Consumer Use, Business Use), and by Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2021  2030  in detail along with the table of contents

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This research report categorizes the market for Virtual Cards based on various segments and regions and forecasts revenue growth and analysis trends in each of the submarkets. The report analyses the key growth drivers, opportunities, and challenges influencing the Virtual Cards market. Recent market developments and competitive strategies such as expansion, product launch and development, partnership, merger, and acquisition have been included in order to draw the competitive landscape in the market. The report strategically identifies and profiles the key market players and analyses their core competencies in each sub-segments of the Virtual Cards market.

Based on the Card Type, the Virtual Cards market is categorized into Debit Card, Credit Card. The credit card segment will account for the greatest revenue in the market owing to the growing concerns among businesses and individuals to prevent corporate fraud. In order to reduce these risks, companies have switched to centralized, controlled, and seamless payment methods like Virtual Credit Cards (VCCs). In addition, several banks have partnered with fintech firms to offer virtual credit cards to customers. For instance, the Bank of Baroda announced in November 2021 that it would partner with OneCard, a fintech firm, to offer a virtual credit card that will arrive in three minutes. On the VISA Signature platform, this credit card was supposed to be made available by BOB Financial Services Limited (BFSL) and managed by OneCard.

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Based on region, the Virtual Cards Market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, South America and Middle East & Africa. Europe is expected to be the largest market. The U.K., Germany, and other European nations, with a rising inclination for cashless transactions, are projected to fuel the growth of the virtual cards market in the region. Additionally, several market participants are introducing cutting-edge items to the European market to entice consumers to use virtual cards. For instance, Stripe introduced Stripe Issuing in European countries in April 20, 2021. Businesses may now have more control over how their money is spent thanks to Stripe Issuing, which makes it possible to create, manage, and distribute both virtual and physical payment cards.

The Asia-Pacific market is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR between 2021 and 2030, owing to the increasing use of smartphones and internet penetration. The growing adoption of smartphones in countries like India, China, and Japan is expected to help grow the virtual market in the Asia Pacific region. Additionally, the rising use of smartphones in these nations has increased consumers' propensity for making digital payments, boosting the need for virtual card payment solutions. For instance, according to a report released by Asian Bankers Worldwide in October 2021, Japan has a penetration rate of 70.6% for digital wallets, which is predicted to rise to 98.6% by 2025.

Key Companies & Recent Developments

The report offers the appropriate analysis of the key organizations/companies involved within the global Virtual Cards market along with a comparative evaluation primarily based on their product offering, business overviews, geographic presence, enterprise strategies, segment market share, and SWOT analysis. Companies Covered: American Express Company, Capital One, BTRS Holdings, Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wise Payments Limited, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Marqeta, Inc., MasterCard, Skrill USA, Inc., Stripe, Inc., WEX Inc., Adyen, Bento Technologies Inc., Billtrust (BTRS Holdings Inc.), Citigroup Inc., ePayService, DBS Bank Ltd, HSBC, Revolut Ltd, Stripe, Inc., State Bank of India, Mastercard, Marqeta, Inc., Standard Chartered Bank, WEX Inc., Wise Payments Limited and Other Prominent key players form world.

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By Trend

As reported, on 13 October, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev was interviewed by Turkish Haber Turk TV channel. On 14 October, the TV channel broadcast the interview with the head of state. Trend presents the interview.

- We are with the President of Azerbaijan, Mr. Ilham Aliyev. Mr. President, you have a busy schedule, both at the front and in diplomacy. Thank you very much for your time with Haber Turk.

- Thank you.

- Mr. President, a meeting between Armenia and Azerbaijan took place in Moscow, which lasted 11 and a half hours. But after that meeting, Armenia bombarded the city of Ganja and targeted civilians with particular cruelty. It is noteworthy here that Armenia aims at Azerbaijan from its own territory. Why did Armenia need this attack at a time when the meeting was held at the diplomatic level? Have you received the desired support from the world community or any messages on this issue?

- This dirty policy of Armenia is understandable because they resort to such heinous actions whenever they are defeated on the battlefield. The display of cruelty towards civilians and unarmed population is a common thing for them. The Azerbaijani people saw this on the example of the Khojaly genocide. This time the Azerbaijani Army, having carried out a successful operation along the entire front, liberated several cities and villages. Our operation to liberate us from the occupation continues successfully. This morning, I was informed that the Azerbaijani Army has achieved even more impressive successes in this direction. We will provide this information at the right time.

The reason for this treacherous attack by Armenia is that they are trying to expand the geography of this conflict and involve the Collective Security Treaty Organization of which they are a member. This is why they bombard Azerbaijani lands, civilians and provoke us to retaliate. But as I said, our revenge would be on the battlefield. We never take any action against civilians. All our goals are military. From the first days of the operation, military targets were reviewed again and we eliminated them with precise and aimed fire. The Armenian army suffered a lot of damage. We have destroyed more than 200 tanks, two S-300 anti-aircraft installations, numerous other pieces of equipment. A total of 33 tanks and other hardware have been taken as trophies.

This is another terrorist act on the part of Armenia, but it cannot break the will of the Azerbaijani people. We will fight the enemy with even greater determination, we will liberate our lands with even greater zeal, and we will raise the flag of Azerbaijan in all the occupied lands.

As for the reaction of international organizations and the international community to this, as always, Turkey has openly and unequivocally supported us on this issue again. The statements of my dear brother Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the statements of other high-ranking officials were further manifestation of the position of brotherhood. Pakistan and its Prime Minister have made a very positive statement, showing great solidarity. Other countries have made similar statements. But I can't say that it was widespread on a global scale. However, it is as clear as day. A statement is made about a ceasefire, but such a cowardly attack is organized less than a day later. This shows yet again who is not interested in a ceasefire.

I said that our goal is to return the citizens of Azerbaijan to all the occupied lands. I said that the ceasefire would allow things to move from a military onto political and diplomatic levels. At the diplomatic level, this issue should be resolved around the negotiating table, Armenia should withdraw from the other occupied territories, Azerbaijani citizens should return there and peace should be established. But it seems that Armenia's plans were completely different. They believed that by using this ceasefire, they could reduce their military losses, gain time, mobilize new forces and thus continue their attacks on Azerbaijan. They were wrong. I said that if Armenia did not act positively, they would regret it, and I was right.

- Mr. President, your Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Armenian foreign minister held a meeting that lasted 11 and a half hours. When this meeting was underway, you said that you have one condition  they should provide a timetable, in other words, a timetable for Armenia's withdrawal from Karabakh. Was the timetable provided at the Moscow meeting? Did Moscow submit any project or plan related to the future of Karabakh?

- No, the timetable was not provided, but we did not particularly insist on that because we were satisfied with the provisions of the Moscow agreement, the Moscow statement that met our interests. I should also say that the Moscow discussions dragged on because there were plans to include articles that did not suit us in this statement. We didn't know about that. When our foreign minister arrived in Moscow and sat down at the negotiating table, proposals were presented to both ministers. Naturally, I was informed as we were in constant contact. I set out our conditions outside of which no arrangements were possible.

This is why, given the situation, we have slightly softened our position in relation to the timetable. But this does not mean that there will be no timetable. There will be one. When? This will be established during the discussions. It was indicated in the statement that the discussions would be resumed on the basis of the fundamental principles, i.e. the Madrid principles, which confirm the return of our occupied lands to Azerbaijan. At the same time, the format of negotiations remains unchanged. In particular, negotiations will be held between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The participation of any representative of the so-called "Nagorno-Karabakh republic" in these talks is not negotiable. We are satisfied with that. Our expectation was that negotiations should start immediately and the timetable should be presented to us within these negotiations. We must be satisfied with this timetable. In other words, it cannot be a long process. We have waited for 30 years. The patience of the Azerbaijani people has already run out. I am sure that if negotiations resume, this timetable will be provided to us. However, the violation of this agreement, of this statement on the part of Armenia shows that they simply intend to gain time and continue attacks on Azerbaijan.

- Mr. President, Armenia is making attempts related to the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia is trying to solicit political pressure from France, Russia and other countries with a strong Armenian diaspora. You are taking a decisive position on the issue of liberating Karabakh from occupation. What is your model related to Karabakh after its liberation? Will it be an autonomous region or an independent entity? What will be the process related to Karabakh like?

- First of all, I have to say that the attempts currently being made by Armenia are inappropriate and very harmful for themselves because no country will ever grant independence to Nagorno-Karabakh, which is an integral part of Azerbaijan and belongs to it from the point of view of international law. No country will recognize it. This being the case, all such attempts will be fruitless. The territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is recognized by the whole world. Notice that the Minsk Group co-chair countries recognize our territorial integrity. We have initialed a document entitled "Partnership Priorities" with the European Union. It expresses support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty of Azerbaijan and the inviolability of our borders. So I do not believe that any country will recognize the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh because an hour later we will cut off all diplomatic ties with such a country. Definitely! Therefore, all attempts by Armenia are designed simply for the internal audience, i.e. its own public, as if they are engaged in some kind of diplomatic activity too.

As for the post-war period, there will be no changes in our position. Our position is based on historical justice, international law and best international experience. In other words, at the first stage the Armenian armed forces must withdraw from the occupied territories. In principle, this issue has already been reaffirmed within the Minsk Group  five districts, then two districts, then Nagorno-Karabakh itself, Shusha, Khankandi  the Azerbaijanis lived in many villages there. Azerbaijani citizens must return there and discussions on the future of Nagorno-Karabakh in a new environment, in a new climate will be continued. We will get even closer to peace. Therefore, there is no change in our position on the Armenians living there. Azerbaijan is a multiethnic state. Thousands of Armenians live in different parts of Azerbaijan, especially in Baku, and they are our citizens. There are many ethnicities living in our country and this increases the strength of our country. Therefore, the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh should not be worried at all. Once we save their lives from that criminal junta, they will live better, safer, in a more secure environment and their well-being will improve because they live in poverty now. We will invest in it, we will implement social programs there, we will have programs to create jobs. All this will be a new stage for the Armenians living there and the Azerbaijanis who will return there.

This is our position. And Armenia's position is to expel the Azerbaijanis from there, carry out ethnic cleansing, raze the historical and religious sites of Azerbaijan to the ground, and then declare that this is ancient Armenian land. The Armenians were resettled there by tsarist Russia at the beginning of the 19th century. This is history. We know this history. Therefore, this is our position. The Azerbaijani people know and support this position.

- Mr. President, as far as I understand, you have explained not only the operation but also the period after it, provided a phased concept. However, we know that during the conflict, sad events took place in Karabakh, 30,000 Azerbaijani Turks were killed, became martyrs. Will the two peoples be able to live together again in this geographic space? Or will Armenians and Azerbaijani Turks live in separate districts? What is the plan?

- You know, the Azerbaijani people are very kind. That is exactly why representatives of dozens of other ethnicities live in Azerbaijan peacefully and with dignity. Therefore, I am absolutely convinced that Armenians and Azerbaijanis will be able to live together in these regions. Just like they live in other places of Azerbaijan today, just like, for example, they live in Georgia. More than 300,000 Azerbaijanis and about 200,000 Armenians live in Georgia. In some villages, they live together, in the same village. There are no problems between them. They live like normal neighbors  in Russia, in Ukraine and other countries. Why can't we do it here?

I believe that we must be ready for that. We must prepare our peoples for this. Everything I have told you today is accepted by the Azerbaijani people and receives their support. At the same time, this is my appeal to the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh today. Let them know that the Azerbaijani people are not their enemy. The Azerbaijani people simply want to live in the land of their ancestors. They have the right to do so. Let them live there alongside us. But to drive us out of there so that they could live there on their own is unfair. We can never agree to that.

Of course, any war ends in peace. Therefore, we must also look at the post-war stage now. If both sides show a firm will and international organizations help us in this matter, then I think this can be achieved. It won't be easy but we must try to achieve this.

- Mr. President, Armenia is currently shelling the settlements of Azerbaijan. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan takes aim only at military sites in the course of operations, conducts operations only in the territories of the Karabakh region. At the same time, Armenia is shelling Ganja, Mingachevir, Barda and other places with dense population centers. What is the goal: to sow panic, chaos and fear? What is the psychological state of the Azerbaijani people at the present time?

- You are right, the goal is exactly this  to sow panic, chaos and fear. Azerbaijan is a completely different country today. A new generation has grown up. New people have been raised in the conditions of independence  patriots, both morally and physically strong. At the same time, the older generation has a completely different world outlook today. Our state has a strong determination. We have a powerful army. That is why the heinous attacks failed to break our resolve. The city of Tartar suffered the most from the Armenian vandalism. Thousands of shells fell on Tartar. Tartar is a small town. Not as big as Ganja. I was informed this morning that from 7 o'clock to half past 9, over a thousand shells fell on the city of Tartar in two and a half hours. But the people of Tartar stand as firmly as a mountain, united in a single fist, do not go anywhere and say: we will die but we will not retreat. The same holds true for Aghdam, Goranboy, Aghjabadi and all other regions located close to the frontline. They are used to living face to face with the enemy. In 2016, after the famous April battles, I went to the regions affected by Armenian vandalism. I visited one village. The distance from that village to Armenian positions was 100-150 meters. Our servicemen told me: don't go there, don't go, it is dangerous there. I replied that our people live there, isn't it dangerous for them? Imagine how brave and proud these people are to live there, create and raise children under enemy fire. Such are Azerbaijani people!

So these treacherous attacks will not force us to deviate from the chosen path. Another goal of Armenia is to stop us. They think these mean strikes will stop us. Nobody can stop us because our cause is fair. We are going along this path and we are following it successfully. We raise our flag, free our lands and we will go all the way to the end!

- Mr. President, regarding the Minsk Group. Although the conflict has been going on for 30 years, no solution has been found. Yesterday, in an interview with one of the media, you spoke about the possibility of revising the format, more precisely, the possibility of changing the composition. What should this composition be like? Should Turkey get a seat at the negotiating table? The fact is that a message came from Russia in the morning that they did not really want Turkey's presence at this table. What is your attitude to this issue? I would like to ask you another question in this regard. Mr. President, if Russia wants to send peacekeepers to Karabakh, how will you react to this? If I am not mistaken, one of the media outlets has already asked you this question.

- First of all, I must say that the dispatch of peacekeepers to the region should take place on the basis of the consent of both countries  Armenia and Azerbaijan. The dispatch and composition of peacekeepers. In other words, who will be there and what countries they will represent. If one of the countries vetoes it, then, of course, this will not happen. The second question is that everyone should understand: when people talk about sending peacekeepers today, they talk about Azerbaijani lands, the territory of sovereign Azerbaijan. Without our permission, no country will be able to send its peacekeepers to our lands. This is against the law. This runs counter to international law. This is unacceptable.

Therefore, we are not worried about that. There may be such efforts and intentions. I do not rule that out but all questions should be decided at the table. I must also say that the fundamental principles that are the topic of discussion envisage the dispatch of peacekeepers at the final stage. First of all, it is necessary to resolve the issues I have noted - the liberation of our lands, the return of internally displaced persons, the opening of borders, the establishment of transport and trade communications. After that, the dispatch of peacekeepers is not rule out. But since we have not come close to a positive result in the 30 years of negotiations, this issue was not discussed at all. So there may be various assumptions and interests on this issue but it is impossible without Azerbaijan's consent.

As for the question related to the activities of the Minsk Group, I have already said several times that the Minsk Group was established in 1992. We do not know what groundwork there was at the time. There are countries in this group that are not interested in this region at all. They have no interests and no influence in this region. Therefore, if they want a solution to this conflict  we do want this  then there must be countries that could contribute to peace in real life.

Of course, we see fraternal Turkey in this process. We welcome this. We know that the Minsk Group was established by the OSCE, which has its own rules. There are probably some legal procedures involved in changing the composition of this group. We don't want to go too much into detail. Therefore, I said that it did not matter whether this would be de jure or de facto  the main thing is that Turkey should be at this table. It is already there because my dear brother, dear Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has repeatedly met and talked with respected Putin about the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. For many years now, i.e. for more than 10 years, this issue has been on the Turkish-Russian agenda. I am aware of this. Both the President of Turkey and the President of Russia told me about this. Turkey is already there. There is an even larger volume, an even larger scale now.

You know, the Turkish Foreign Minister, Mr. Mevlut Cavusoglu, speaks on the phone with Mr. Lavrov, the Turkish Defense Minister Mr. Hulusi Akar, speaks with Mr. Shoigu. Who can say that Turkey is not in the process. If there is no Turkey, then why are you saying this? Turkey is there. And we will do everything possible to keep it this way because this issue cannot be resolved without Turkey's participation. Everyone should understand this. As for the formal side of the issue, I repeat that the Minsk Group may remain, it has not achieved any result in 30 years anyway. But the sooner this issue is resolved, the sooner the Minsk Group will become unnecessary.

- Mr. President, on the one hand, the prime minister of Armenia Pashinyan danced in Shusha before the operation and tried to cheer up his people. On the other hand, suffering defeats in this war, he began to blame Turkey. He accused Turkey of transferring foreign fighters here. At the same time, we see that international media also devote a lot of attention to this topic. Among other things, one of the American newspapers circulated reports about foreign fighters and Turkish planes in Azerbaijan. How do you assess that dance of Pashinyan? Is the current situation obvious? Secondly, I would like to know your opinion regarding Turkey's position and the topic of these aircraft.

- Pashinyan's dance in a drunken stupor and his other insults aroused legitimate anger among the Azerbaijani people. We are avenging these escapades of his on the battlefield. Azerbaijani soldiers are showing on the battlefield who is right and who is not. We demonstrate our power, the will of the people on the battlefield. Pashinyan's other provocations also do not and will not remain unanswered. The dignity of the Azerbaijani people is being restored. The blood of our martyrs does not and should not remain unavenged. The cities and villages we have already liberated are our best response to the likes of Pashinyan. He already understands who is who. I warned him. I told him that this path would lead them to disaster. I told him not to play with the dignity of the Azerbaijani people, to be attentive and careful. He thought that Armenians of the world would protect him. He thought that big states would fight in his place, and he still wants it today. In the course of one day, he telephoned the President of Russia, esteemed Vladimir Putin, several times. Some of these calls were reported on in the media, others were not. We have information that even after the latest ceasefire, Pashinyan called Putin. These actions of his, of course, demonstrate that this person is in panic, he is confused. The Azerbaijani army is inflicting such a crushing blow on the enemy that they have found themselves in an awkward state. This is one side of the issue.

As for the involvement of Turkey here or the transfer of some foreign forces, this is an absolute lie. I have already expressed my attitude to the issue related to the Turkish F-16. Turkish F-16 aircraft are here. They flew here during the exercises, stayed here afterwards and after the Armenian attacks. But they are on the ground, not in the air. None of them took part in this war. Not a single person from Turkey participates in this war. As for foreigners, this is also a lie. This is slander. We were not provided with any evidence. There were just statements from France and Russia, and that was all.

- Has any specific evidence been provided?

- There is no evidence. No statements were made. Our intelligence is not informed of anything.

I can tell you now that our intelligence agencies contacted the countries that slandered us and asked for evidence. They did not give any. Only words. Let them write whatever they want in the media, we are not concerned. Western media have always been on the side of Armenia. They treated us negatively before. Therefore, we are used to this kind of slander. But statements of certain officials are unacceptable. Either prove it or take your words back. This is not the case. And this is not necessary. Azerbaijan has a strong enough army to resolve these issues on its own.

Besides, as for the participation of foreign citizens, let them look at Armenia and see how many terrorists there are there. There are RKK camps there. They also exist in Nagorno-Karabakh. After the liberation of this region from the invaders, we will destroy these camps too. So many foreigners are taking part in these battles against us today. The terrorists killed there have passports of Canada and Lebanon. Whether they are of Armenian origin or not is another matter. A citizen of another country has come here and is fighting against us. They are mercenaries.

They also say that Turkey is providing military assistance to Azerbaijan. You know, Turkey is our brother. Our fraternal relations have already gone through great trials. We buy military equipment from Turkey, but we also buy it from other countries. We buy it from Russia, Israel, Belarus, Iran, Ukraine, Eastern European countries, including Turkey. Turkey has a developed military-industrial complex today. Why shouldn't we buy it from them? Notice what Armenia is doing. We buy everything with money. I have a complete list and it will be published later, but I want to draw your attention to several issues. During these two weeks, more than 200 Armenian tanks were destroyed and 33 tanks were taken as trophies. In other words, we have destroyed 233 Armenian tanks. Two S-300 installations were destroyed. Everyone knows the cost of each one. In addition, the OSA-35 air defense systems were destroyed. "TOR", "KUB", "KRUG", trucks, anti-tank weapons. If you count all this, the cost of equipment we have destroyed and taken as trophies is estimated at 1-2 billion dollars. The question is where poor Armenia found the money to buy all this. Did it buy it with money? No! They received it for free. Everyone knows who gave it to them. They give and continue giving them weapons. After the clashes in Tovuz District, the conflict ended on 16 July and starting from 17 July cargo planes began delivering weapons to Armenia every day. Are these items in Armenia's budget? No! Armenia's foreign exchange reserves amount to $1.5 billion. That's all. It has no more money. The external public debt of this country is approximately $8 billion. So it is a failed state. Where does so much of destroyed equipment come from? And much more equipment will be destroyed. If the war continues, we will destroy their entire army, all of their army! Therefore, the sooner they stop the war, the more tanks and guns they will be able to save. There is so much more of this is on the territory of Armenia. Russia has a military base in Armenia and there are 5,000 soldiers there. Does Turkey have a military base in Azerbaijan? No! Armenia's border with Iran and Turkey is protected by Russian border guards. Are there Turkish border guards on the border of Azerbaijan? No! So no-one should accuse us. Otherwise, we will have to reveal all the unpleasant moments.

- Mr. President, you have mentioned RKK camps in Karabakh. Is there information in what districts they are located?

- We have intelligence about this. I don't want to talk about this in more detail. Most of all, they are present in mountainous regions. A part of the occupied territories is in the mountains and a part is in the lowland. Most of all, they are located in forests and mountainous areas. We have repeatedly contacted international organizations in this regard. Even when I was in my previous capacity, as a Member of Parliament and head of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, I raised the issue there too. I drew the attention of European parliamentarians to the fact that they should apply sanctions to Armenia. Armenia is a terrorist country, a country that encourages terror. Therefore, this kind of intelligence is available. At the same time, this was confirmed in a statement of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. For some reason, this statement was not published in any media. It said that foreigners were fighting in Azerbaijan. Even though Armenia is not mentioned in that statement, it says that RKK is also involved in the battles. It is clear that there can be no RKK in Azerbaijan. Why isn't there a single word about this in the Western media? They want to conceal this, to divert attention from it. But after the flag of Azerbaijan is hoisted on all these lands, not a single terrorist can remain there alive.

- Mr. President, issues of energy security are being discussed today. Armenia has carried out attacks that targeted TANAP or pipelines going to Turkey. How will you ensure security in this direction? Europe needs energy resources. What do European friends think about this?

- They are a little worried. Of course, we take this into account because anything can be expected from Armenia. One of the reasons for the clashes that took place in Tovuz district in July was also to approach this pipeline or to establish control over it. That was why they wanted to enter our territory and occupy new lands. But they experienced the bitterness of defeat. Since 2006, when the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline was put into operation, to this day, there has not been a single problem on the territory of Azerbaijan related to the security of pipelines, not a single one  neither technical nor due to any provocation. Because on the territory of Azerbaijan we have a fairly sophisticated security system. Monitoring, physical protection and electronic protection are carried out. The location of the pipeline deep under the ground provides a certain degree of protection from air attacks, of course. But if Armenia implements these dirty intentions, i.e. plans to put the pipelines out of operation, then the response to their actions will be very tough. We have already warned them about this. I believe that European countries that will receive gas through TANAP next year should also warn them because TANAP is not only our project. It also has other shareholders. TAP has European shareholders. This is a project of exceptional importance for the energy security of Europe. Therefore, we should all be interested in this project not sustaining any damage.

- Mr. President, I want to ask one more question. Pashinyan is confused now. He has endangered not only himself but also the Armenian people. The 3 million people living in Armenia are in danger. Did any of the Armenians living of Europe, some businessmen working there act as an intermediary, saying that the Armenian people are not to blame, he is crazy. Have there been any phone calls from people interested in speaking about that?

- No, we have not received any phone calls or messages in this regard. But this wasn't something unexpected. You know, every leader, every manager must have some experience. Knowledge also matters, but you need experience, managerial experience. The people who have now come to power in some countries have no experience whatsoever. He did not even run a small collective farm. He didn't even manage a small company or a shop. He probably didn't even manage five people. How can he lead a country? It is difficult to lead a country, especially in our region. This is not so difficult in established European countries because there are countries where people do not even know who is leading them. People are not interested in this, they live their own lives, there is an established system, everything is systematized. In our region, a lot depends on the person leading the country  life, security, well-being of people, international authority. Pashinyan is a man from the street. Who was he before? Nobody! A writer, not even a writer but a correspondent for a newspaper. He came from the street and became a leader. What did he do after that? He is leading Armenia into an abyss. Look, there is absolute dictatorship in Armenia today. Criminal cases have been initiated against both ex-presidents. One of them served a couple of years, then he was released, but the criminal case remains open. The other was forbidden to travel outside the country. Two days before these clashes, the chairman of the main opposition party was arrested. Then Pashinyan crushed the Constitutional Court, dissolved it. He blackmailed the chairman of the Constitutional Court, threatened him with arrest and placed his own people there by force. He imprisons journalists and media representatives. One of them went on a hunger strike and died in prison. There are problems in the international arena, with traditional allies. He has created problems with Russia, Belarus and other traditional allies. Now Pashinyan pins most of his hopes on the Collective Security Treaty Organization. In Russian, this organization is called the CSTO. Its Charter says that in the event of an attack on one of the countries from the outside, the other member-countries must save it. But the general secretary of the CSTO was an Armenian, a man of the previous regime. He threw him in jail, thus insulting this organization too. He has done so much. Everyone already knows that Pashinyan is a product of Soros. He is someone managed by Soros. The source of the coups and "revolutions" that took place in post-Soviet republics is one and the same. Soros has already become a household word. I don't mean only him. Look for photos of Pashinyan with Soros on the Internet. They stand hand in hand, pressed against each other. A disgusting photo. This is who his father is. Therefore, Soros controls him. The events that took place in Armenia are yet another defeat for Soros.

In 2005, they wanted to do the same in Azerbaijan  the Orange Revolution. But I stood in front of them, crushed them, drove them out of here and then closed the Soros foundations. I drove other non-governmental organizations out of here. I said that we know what to do ourselves. Go and make revolutions somewhere else. They settled in Armenia, money started flowing there through non-governmental organizations and people were brought up in that spirit. Today, 90 percent of Pashinyan's team are representatives of Soros, Transparency International, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other similar dirty organizations. Therefore, in an interview with one of the Russian channels the other day, I said that our goal is not to create problems for Pashinyan. The longer he stays in power, the better for us. You know what I mean.

- Mr. President, last question. Frankly, I didn't plan to ask it but I want to ask it as well. How will events develop after this? There is very serious public support from Turkey. In other words, speaking about the public, I mean people, everyone watches your speeches and supports them. I have been in Azerbaijan for 15 days, I have visited Barda, Mingachevir, Ganja. People provide you with tremendous support. Wherever we have been, I ask people, and they say: "Never mind, let my house be destroyed, let my car burn out, that doesn't matter, the main thing is to return Karabakh". Immense support! We see this when we ask each of them a question. Everyone here supports you  both the opposition and the government. How will this process develop now? What do you expect? How long do you think this process will last? You are the son of an experienced father, the son of Heydar Aliyev, the most experienced political figure in the Caucasus and the region. Do you remember what he told you about Karabakh, Turkey and this region?

- You know, we will solve the problems of people whose houses have been destroyed. Let them not be worried. And in the shortest possible time. I remember when Armenia attacked us in April 2016, more than 1,000 houses were destroyed. During my meetings with the owners of these houses, I said: don't worry, we will restore all the houses. About eight months later, I visited them again, I visited Aghdam and other front-line regions, and handed them the keys to their houses.

An earthquake occurred in the city of Shamakhi a year and a half ago, and thousands of houses were destroyed. I went there and said: don't worry, we will restore all the houses. We did that too. There are several houses left, but they will also be restored. About 10 years ago, a flood occurred in our country, a large area remained under water. More than 5,000 houses were destroyed. All of them were restored by the state. My approach is this: if you had a house with an area of 100 square meters, you will get a new one with an area of 120-150 square meters. If you had a shack, then you will get a new beautiful and well-renovated home. Therefore, people who have lost their home and property will receive help. In addition, many people in our villages have also lost their livestock. It was a source of income for them. I have already issued an instruction, they are calculating how many animals have been lost, and this will also be reimbursed. We will definitely resolve this issue. The Azerbaijani people know that they will not apply to any insurance company, that there will be no red tape, that some official will not create problems for them because all this is under my personal control. Everyone knows this, and my instructions will be fulfilled.

These events demonstrate the greatness of the Azerbaijani people again. They say, let my house be destroyed, let my property be gone if only Karabakh is returned. We all live with this idea, everyone. For 30 years, we have lived with this dream, in separation  for 30 years. Wasn't there supposed to be an end to that? We will put an end to this and are doing exactly that.

Therefore, we must only go forward in this matter now. We gave Armenia a chance. We did not have to agree to this ceasefire. We could have said that we disagree. Who could have forced us?! No-one! We agreed to this so that people would not die on this and on the other side. I feel sorry for them too. They are also being driven. Our Ministry of Defense has circulated video footage of Armenian soldiers being chained, chained to iron, to each other's feet so that they do not run away. So many such bodies have been found. This is horror. They are not humans. On top of that, punitive battalions have been following Armenian soldiers in recent days. If someone retreats, then they shoot them on the spot. So there is such atrocity, such fascism.

Since we have lived with this dream, we want to return there, but in a peaceful way. Therefore, we gave Armenia a chance  observe the ceasefire, do not violate it, sit down at the negotiating table, resolve this issue, return our lands to us. We don't need your land. We do not claim the lands of Armenia. I told you that the Armenians can live on where they lived. We have no problems with them. So our policy fully consists in this at the current stage.

As for the post-war period, of course, not only the region but also the whole world will change. It is already changing. Everyone saw our power. We will be reckoned with even more. The role of Azerbaijan in certain regional issues is already very significant, and it will grow further. Of course, the Turkish-Azerbaijani unity will become even stronger. This is vital for both Turkey and Azerbaijan. The unity of Turkey and Azerbaijan brings stability and peace to the region because our intention is to secure our interests.

Turkey plays a very important stabilizing role in the region and in the new geography today. The support my dear brother Recep Tayyip Erdogan has provided since very first hours of these clashes has maintained stability. Some may not understand this. If it were not for these words, if my brother had not said that Azerbaijan is not alone and that Turkey is next to Azerbaijan, then the situation may have deteriorated. Someone else may have tried to fish in troubled waters here. Therefore, we must now create a new strategic picture, a strategic vision in this region. We have already started thinking about this, but we do not want to get ahead of ourselves. First, we need to solve this job, complete this work, restore our territorial integrity, after which a new period will begin for Azerbaijan, a new period will begin for the region, the balance of forces will change, and I believe that the power of Turkey and Azerbaijan will increase even more.

- Mr. President, thank you very much. You have taken your time despite the busy schedule, in particular when news comes from the frontline. On the other hand, you are in the thick of diplomatic processes. Of course, during the conversation with you, during this interview, I saw again that you are actually very well aware of what is happening in Armenian society. On behalf of Haber Turk, I express to you, Mr. President, my deep gratitude for your time.

- Thank you! Many thanks.








GR8 People

Partnership combines industrys top technology and global RPO provider to deliver unmatched flexibility, personalization, and performance in a single platform for customers and the enterprise

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GR8 People, the leading talent acquisition platform to source, attract, engage and hire every workforce type in one seamless experience, announced today that it has partnered with AgileOne to provide GR8 Peoples Direct Sourcing component. The partnership between GR8 People and AgileOnes global RPO services will provide companies worldwide with the unmatched ability to source, attract and engage candidates quickly and continuously, with a modern Talent CRM providing qualified, interested and available talent at the ready.

Direct sourcing enables companies to hire contingent workers from their own talent pools rather than from third parties and saves significant time and costs. AgileOne has been using the GR8 People Platform to successfully build talent pools of pre-qualified contingent workers for clients looking to leverage their brand to attract candidates. The Platform easily integrates with leading Vendor Management Systems to centralize candidate data and provides visibility into candidates skills and availability, enabling significant cost savings and accelerating talent flow to attract, engage and hire the best workforcewhen, where and how you need it.

As a global RPO, our success is built on our ability to be flexible and agile so we can deliver our services on our own timeline. With GR8 People, we can implement each of our clients on our own, including system integrations, management of workflows and portal branding; being able to do this without vendor involvement speaks to the maturity of the product and its ease of use, said Janet Kelbley, Sr. Business Analyst at AgileOne. She added GR8 Peoples product maturity has also enabled us to manage all our hiring types  contract, contingent, temp, perm and gig  within a single solution thanks to the flexibility and depth of its workflow engine.

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Were thrilled to partner with the AgileOne team to bring our joint direct sourcing solution to AgileOne clients, said Patrick Amaral, Chief Customer Officer of GR8 People. In todays active business environment, companies need to have a strategy and solution for engaging contingent talent by offering a frictionless experience thats seamless, boundless and effortless.

About GR8 People

GR8 People is for everyone in recruitment who wants to do their job better, faster and more simply. Our global technology platform sources, attracts, engages and hires every workforce type in one experience thats seamless, boundless and effortless. Built with best-in-class, automated workflows, it helps every user perform at their best.

Contact

Alex Adams

aadams@gr8people.com

215-693-1192








IBA SA

New contract to provide broader access to diagnostics in emerging markets

Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium, October 13, 2022  IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A., EURONEXT), the world leader in particle accelerator technology and the worlds leading provider of radiopharmaceutical production solutions, today announces a new contract with Sweden Ghana Medical Centre (SGMC) for an IntegraLab PLUS in Accra, Ghana. SGMC is a leading private cancer care center focused on providing the highest quality cancer treatment in West Africa. The contract marks IBAs increasing presence in the region with operations in 21 countries.

IntegraLab PLUS is a fully integrated solution that combines equipment and services for establishing a radiopharmaceutical GMP production center, tailored to each customers specific needs. The contract includes the delivery of an IntegraLab solution, consisting of the installation and integration of a Cyclone KIUBE 100 with Synthera Extension, Synthera+ HPLC and IFP loader. Sweden Ghana Medical Center will benefit from IBA's expertise for the complete setting-up of its radiopharmacy.

This contract follows several others signed in Tanzania and South Africa, and further highlights IBAs ambition to broaden access to cancer diagnostics and treatments in regions of the world with low population density and limited access to healthcare. The demand for diagnostic and therapeutic equipment in Africa is rapidly growing, with cancer cases rising to over 800 000 cases1 per year in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This latest announcement follows IBAs launch of the Cyclone KEY in January this year, which will provide more widespread global access to diagnostic solutions in oncology, neurology and cardiology as it answers a demand from the African market for a compact radiopharmaceuticals production solution.

Olivier Legrain, Chief Executive Officer at IBA, commented: This contract marks an important milestone for IBA as we expand the use of our technology into emerging markets such as Africa. Continued innovation from our RadioPharma Solutions Business Unit is vital to providing patients with access to much needed diagnostics and treatments, something that is core to IBAs mission and reinforced by the continued development of our technology. We look forward to working with SGMC and to helping them to achieve their mission of being at the forefront of cancer care in Africa.

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Dr. Clement Edusa, CEO and Medical Director at Sweden Ghana Medical Centre, added: At SGMC, our vision is to provide the best possible cancer care across West Africa. The IntegraLab will allow us to provide the most innovative diagnostic imaging tests to our patients, with the hope that we can identify disease and therefore start an appropriate course of treatment much quicker. IBAs technology, not only provides us with a cost efficient and user-friendly cyclotron system but also tailored solutions that meet our specific needs, allowing us to provide the best possible care to our patients.

***ENDS***

About IBA

IBA (Ion Beam Applications S.A.) is the world leader in particle accelerator technology. The company is the leading supplier of equipment and services in the field of proton therapy, considered to be the most advanced form of radiation therapy available today. IBA is also a leading player in the areas of industrial sterilization, radiopharmaceuticals, and dosimetry. Based in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, the company employs approximately 1,600 people worldwide. IBA is a certified B Corporation (B Corp) meeting the highest verified social and environmental performance standards.

IBA is listed on the pan-European stock exchange EURONEXT (IBA: Reuters IBAB.BR and Bloomberg IBAB.BB).

More information can be found at: www.iba-worldwide.com

About Sweden Ghana Medical Centre (SGMC)

At SGMC, our vision is to offer the best private cancer care in West Africa. Our promise is that in everything we do, we will always strive to take away the burden of cancer.

Our mission is to be a role model across Africa for oncology care. SGMCs medical team is known for its excellent standards and the high quality of services and personal care we provide. We are pacesetters in our field, with skilled employees who are motivated to deliver the best cancer treatment outcomes for all our patients.

More information can be found at: https://www.sgmccancercentre.com/

CONTACTS

IBA

Soumya Chandramouli

Chief Financial Officer

+32 10 475 890

Investorrelations@iba-group.com

Olivier Lechien

Corporate Communication Director

+32 10 475 890

communication@iba-group.com

Consilium Strategic Communications

Amber Fennell, Angela Gray, Lucy Featherstone

+44 (0) 20 3709 5700

IBA@consilium-comms.com







1 https://gco.iarc.fr/today/data/factsheets/populations/971-sub-saharan-africa-hub-fact-sheets.pdf





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VADUZ, Liechtenstein, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Implantica AG (publ), a MedTech company at the forefront of bringing advanced technology into the body, announces that the RefluxStop procedure to treat acid reflux is now being successfully implemented at Spire Manchester Hospital, part of the Spire Healthcare Group, with a network of 39 hospitals and 8 clinics across England, Wales and Scotland.

Mr. Paul Goldsmith, General and Upper GI Surgeon, consultant at Spire Manchester Hospital, recently successfully treated the first patient with the RefluxStop method. "I am very happy to be one of the first surgeons in the UK to offer RefluxStop, which offers a surgical option for all anti-reflux patients including those who may have not been eligible for surgery in the past," said Mr. Paul Goldsmith.

"We consider it a milestone that the RefluxStop procedure is being offered at Spire Manchester, part of the Spire Healthcare Group which is the second largest provider of private healthcare in the UK with 47 hospitals and clinics. Many thanks to Mr. Paul Goldsmith, one of the UK's foremost anti-reflux surgeons, we look forward to continuing our collaboration. With over 4.5 million daily acid reflux sufferers in the UK, we anticipate that more and more hospitals and KOLs will begin operating with the RefluxStop procedure, designed to become the new standard of care in acid reflux treatment," says Peter Forsell, CEO of Implantica.

For further information, please contact:

Nicole Pehrsson, Investor Relations

Telephone (CH): +41 (0)79 335 09 49

nicole.pehrsson@implantica.com

Implantica is listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market in Stockholm.

The company's Certified Adviser is FNCA Sweden AB, info@fnca.se

The information was sent for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, on October 13, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. CEST.

About Implantica

Implantica is a medtech group dedicated to bringing advanced technology into the body. Implantica's lead product, RefluxStop, is a CE-marked implant for the prevention of gastroesophageal reflux that will potentially create a paradigm shift in anti-reflux treatment as supported by successful clinical trial results. Implantica also focuses on eHealth inside the body and has developed a broad, patent protected, product pipeline based partly on two platform technologies: an eHealth platform designed to monitor a broad range of health parameters, control treatment from inside the body and communicate to the caregiver on distance and a wireless energising platform designed to power remote controlled implants wirelessly through intact skin. Implantica is listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market (ticker: IMP A SDB). Visit www.implantica.com for further information.

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Newsroom

https://www.implantica.com/media/media-kit

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/19732/3647476/1637992.pdf Implantica announces Spire Manchester Hospital in UK begins operating with RefluxStopa https://news.cision.com/implantica/i/spire-1st-surgery-manchester,c3100289 Spire 1st Surgery Manchester https://news.cision.com/implantica/i/spire-manchester-hospital2,c3100291 Spire Manchester Hospital2 https://news.cision.com/implantica/i/mr-paul-goldsmith-spire-manchester,c3100292 Mr Paul Goldsmith Spire Manchester https://news.cision.com/implantica/i/peter-forsell-implantica,c3100293 PETER FORSELL IMPLANTICA https://news.cision.com/implantica/i/refluxstop,c3100294 REFLUXSTOP

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MONTREAL and TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - Fiera Comox Partners ("Fiera Comox") a global private investment firm with approximately CA$3.0 billion in assets under management as of September 30, 2022, and an affiliate of Fiera Capital Corporation (TSX: FSZ) ("Fiera Capital") is pleased to announce the appointment of Jeff Zweig to the role of Partner, Vice Chair, and Head of Asset Management.

Jeff Zweig (CNW Group/Fiera Comox Partners)

With 25 years of experience, Jeff will provide governance oversight across Fiera Comox's global portfolio of private investments, working to drive long-term value and improve sustainability outcomes. Jeff joins Fiera Comox's Board of directors and Management Investment Committee as the firm deploys capital across the rapidly growing strategies in Agriculture, Private Equity, and Private Credit.

Jeff was most recently the President & CEO of Mosaic Forest Management ("Mosaic"), Canada's leading private timberland manager, a role he held at Mosaic and predecessor companies for over seven years. In 2018, he successfully led the multi-billion-dollar transaction that brought together Island Timberlands and TimberWest under the ownership of two leading Canadian pension funds to create Mosaic Forest Management.

During his tenure, he drove significant improvements in safety, sustainability, and financial performance. Mosaic became the first forest company in British Columbia to achieve the Progressive Aboriginal Relations certification and the first forest company globally to certify its organizational carbon footprint through the UK Carbon Trust. Most recently, the organization launched the largest nature-based carbon credit project in Canada.

Prior to Mosaic, Jeff held senior executive roles at BHP and Inco in Australia, Europe, and Canada. He is past Chair of the Business Council of British Columbia, and the current Chair of the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, the federally funded organization responsible for stewarding Canada's national cancer control strategy.

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Jeff holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts, a Bachelor of Laws, and a Master of Business Administration (gold medallist) from the University of Western Ontario.

"We are thrilled to have Jeff join us as a Partner at Fiera Comox," said Antoine Bisson McLernon, Partner and Chief Executive Officer, Fiera Comox. "He is an international leader in the resource sector, bringing deep operating and commercial experience, and a strong focus on ESG across a range of commodities and geographies."

Fiera Comox's private investment management business has grown rapidly to over CA$3.0 billion, underpinned by strong returns, a focus on long-term value creation, and responsible stewardship.

"I am delighted to join the Fiera Comox partnership and look forward to building on the existing strong investment strategies with an unrelenting focus on driving long-term value and positive sustainability outcomes," added Jeff Zweig.

Disclosure

The information presented is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, any investment product. The information presented in this document, in whole or in part, is not investment, tax, legal or other advice, nor does it consider the investment objectives or financial circumstances of any investor.

About Fiera Comox Partners

Fiera Comox Partners is a global investment manager that manages private investment strategies in Private Equity, Private Credit and Agriculture. As of September 30, 2022 Fiera Comox manages approximately CA$3.0 billion in AUM. Fiera Comox has completed more than 60 investments across 7 countries in private assets globally. Established in 2016, Fiera Comox is jointly owned by Fiera Capital Corporation and the Partners of Fiera Comox. The firm aims to deliver attractive long-term returns to its investors while preserving capital and investing responsibly. www.fieracomox.com.

About Fiera Capital Corporation

Fiera Capital Corporation is a leading independent asset management firm with a growing global presence and approximately C$156.7 billion in assets under management as of June 30, 2022. The Company delivers customized and multi-asset solutions across public and private market asset classes to institutional, financial intermediary and private wealth clients across North America, Europe and key markets in Asia. Fiera Capital's depth of expertise, diversified investment platform and commitment to delivering outstanding service are core to our mission of being at the forefront of investment management science to create sustainable wealth for clients. Fiera Capital trades under the ticker FSZ on the Toronto Stock Exchange. www.fieracapital.com

Headquartered in Montreal, Fiera Capital, with its affiliates in various jurisdictions, has offices in over a dozen cities around the world, including New York (U.S.), London (UK), and Hong Kong (SAR).

Each affiliated entity (each an "Affiliate") of Fiera Capital only provides investment advisory or investment management services or offers investment funds in the jurisdictions where the Affiliate and/or the relevant product is registered or authorized to provide services pursuant to an exemption from registration.

In the U.S., asset management services are provided by Fiera Capital's affiliates who are investment advisers that are registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or exempt from registration. Registration with the SEC does not imply a certain level of skill or training. For details on the particular registration of, or exemptions therefrom relied upon by, any Fiera Capital entity, please consult this webpage.

Additional information about Fiera Capital, including the Company's annual information form, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE Fiera Comox Partners

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The Brainy Insights

The rising prevalence of colorectal cancer, the growing prevalence of obesity, and the ever-increasing number of local manufacturers are also helping to boost the laparoscopy devices market growth during the forecast period. The growing healthcare industry in developing markets is due to the rising private & public initiatives undertaken by market stakeholders across the nations. The North American region emerged as the largest market for the global laparoscopy devices market, with a 45.36% share of the market revenue in 2021.

Newark, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As per the report published by The Brainy Insights, the global laparoscopy devices market is expected to grow from USD 9.60 billion in 2021 to USD 17.71 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 7.04% during the forecast period 2022-2030.



The increasing adoption among healthcare practitioners worldwide is anticipated to expand the demand for the laparoscopy devices enterprise during the projection period. Moreover, the countries' supportive government policies and regulations, increasing incidences of morbid obesity, and ever-increasing demand from emerging nations are also helping to propel market growth. However, the shortage of skilled professionals and the high cost of these instruments restrain the market growth. Furthermore, the proliferation in the adoption of robot-assisted laparoscopic surgeries & introduction of innovative laparoscopic tools are opportunities for market growth.



Request a Sample Copy of the Research Report: https://www.thebrainyinsights.com/enquiry/sample-request/12870



Laparoscopy Devices Market Report Scope



Report Attributes Details Market Size (2030) Around $17.71 Billion Market Size (2021) $9.60 Billion CAGR (2022-2030) Over 7.04% Base Year 2021 Forecast Year 2022-2030 Market Segments Application, Product, End-User, Regions Geographic Analysis North America, Europe, South America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa

Competitive Strategy



To enhance their market position in the global laparoscopy devices market, the key players are now focusing on adopting the strategies such as product innovations, mergers & acquisitions, recent developments, joint ventures, collaborations, and partnerships.



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Market Growth & Trends



The growth of the laparoscopy devices market is driven by the rising disposable income and the ever-increasing awareness of the advantages of laparoscopy devices. Moreover, the growing adoption of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is the market growth trend. This is mainly because minimally invasive therapies are more securer than conventional operational methods. Additionally, increased the number of bariatric surgery procedures globally in the last few years due to rising demand for obesity treatment. Further, the increasing number of patients suffering from health conditions like myomectomy & hysterectomy surgeries, uterine fibroids and endometriosis and expanding knowledge about the improved healthcare infrastructure in emerging nations are also helping to propel the market growth. Also, the increasing prevalence of chronic medical ailments like diabetes, cancer, and urological disorders is boosting market growth. Moreover, the development of innovative laparoscopic appliances & expanding healthcare industry in emerging economies such as South Africa, Russia, Brazil, India, and China are promoting market growth during the forecast period.



Quick Buy - Laparoscopy Devices Market Research Report: https://www.thebrainyinsights.com/buy-now/12870/single



Key Findings:



 In 2021, the general surgery segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 21.24% and market revenue of 2.03 billion.



The application segment is divided into bariatric surgery, colorectal surgery, general surgery, urological surgery, and others. In 2021, the general surgery segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 21.24% and a market revenue of 2.03 billion. This growth is attributed to the rising disposable income of consumers. Further, by 2030, the bariatric surgery segment will likely dominate the market due to the rise in the prevalence of obesity globally.



 In 2021, the energy systems segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 20.26% and market revenue of 1.94 billion.



The product segment is divided into robot assisted systems, laparoscopes, energy systems, hand access instruments, suction or irrigation systems, closure devices, and others. In 2021, the energy systems segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 20.26% and market revenue of 1.94 billion. This growth is attributed to the growing number of bariatric procedures.



 In 2021, the hospital's segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 41.12% and market revenue of 3.94 billion.



The end-user segment is divided into clinics, hospitals, and others. In 2021, the hospital's segment dominated the market with the largest market share of 41.12% and market revenue of 3.94 billion. This growth is attributed to the increasing demand for laparoscopy devices in ambulatory surgical centers & physician offices.



Schedule a Consultation Call with Our Analysts/Industry Experts to Find Solution for Your Business at: https://www.thebrainyinsights.com/enquiry/speak-to-analyst/12870



Regional Segment Analysis of the Laparoscopy Devices Market:



 North America (U.S., Canada, Mexico)

 Europe (Germany, France, U.K., Italy, Spain, Rest of Europe)

 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, Rest of APAC)

 South America (Brazil and the Rest of South America)

 The Middle East and Africa (UAE, South Africa, Rest of MEA)



The North American region occurred as the largest market for the global laparoscopy devices industry, with a market share of 48.35% and a market value of around 4.64 billion in 2021. North America currently dominates the laparoscopy devices market due to the increase in the geriatric population and the region's prevalence of gastrointestinal and abdominal diseases. Moreover, the growing dependence on laparoscopic surgeries compared to open surgeries, growing cases of obesity, and different chronic diseases are also helping drive the region's market growth. Further, the Asia Pacific region is expected to show the fastest CAGR of 9.01% over the projection period. This growth is attributed to the raised number of advanced, well-equipped hospitals. In addition, the increasing trend of medical tourism and ever-growing investment are also driving market growth in this region.



Key players operating in the global laparoscopy devices market are:



 ConMed Corporation

 B. Braun Melsungen AG

 Karl Storz SE & CO. KG

 Boston Scientific Corporation

 Johnson & Johnson

 Smith & Nephew Plc

 Olympus Corporation

 Stryker Corporation

 Richard Wolf GmbH

 Intuitive Surgical

 Medtronic PLC

 Microline Surgical, Inc.

 SCHOLLY Fiberoptic GmbH

 Mindray Medical International Limited

 Victor Medical Instruments Co., Ltd

 Richard Wolf GmbH

 Peters Surgical

 Cook Medical

 CONMED Corporation

 AMNOTEC International Medical



This study forecasts revenue at global, regional, and country levels from 2019 to 2030. The Brainy Insights has segmented the global laparoscopy devices market based on below mentioned segments:



Global Laparoscopy Devices Market by Application:



 Bariatric Surgery

 Colorectal Surgery

 General Surgery

 Urological Surgery

 Others



Global Laparoscopy Devices Market by Product:



 Robot Assisted Systems

 Laparoscopes

 Energy Systems

 Hand Access Instruments

 Suction or Irrigation Systems

 Closure Devices

 Others



Global Laparoscopy Devices Market by End-User:



 Clinics

 Hospitals

 Others



About the report:



The global laparoscopy devices market is analysed based on value (USD Billion). All the segments have been analysed on global, regional and country basis. The study includes the analysis of more than 30 countries for each segment. The report offers in-depth analysis of driving factors, opportunities, restraints, and challenges for gaining the key insight of the market. The study includes porters five forces model, attractiveness analysis, raw material analysis, supply, demand analysis, competitor position grid analysis, distribution and marketing channels analysis.



About The Brainy Insights:



The Brainy Insights is a market research company that provides actionable insights through data analytics to companies to improve their business acumen. They have a robust forecasting and estimation model to meet the client's objectives of high-quality output within a short period. They provide both customized (client-specific) and syndicate reports. Their repository of syndicate reports is diverse across all the categories and sub-categories across domains. Their customized solutions meet the client's requirements whether they are looking to expand or planning to launch a new product in the global market.



Contact Us



Avinash D

Head of Business Development

Phone: +1-315-215-1633

Email: sales@thebrainyinsights.com

Web: http://www.thebrainyinsights.com




Historic Gift Funds New Center for Agricultural Innovation and Research Grants to Drive a Sustainable Future

DAVIS, Calif., Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of California, Davis, today announced that philanthropists Lynda and Stewart Resnick, co-owners of The Wonderful Company, have pledged the largest gift ever to the university by individual donors. The $50 million pledge will support the school's longstanding commitment to address today's most pressing challenges in agriculture and environmental sustainability.

(PRNewsfoto/The Wonderful Company LLC)

The $50 million gift will establish the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation, with $10 million of the Resnicks' gift to be directed toward annual competitive research grants through the Resnick Agricultural Innovation Research Fund. Their donation also supports UC Davis' $2 billion fundraising campaign, "Expect Greater: From UC Davis, for the World," the university's largest philanthropic endeavor to date.

"Protecting and preserving our planet for the future means we must take bold steps and push the boundaries of what's possible," said Stewart Resnick, who is also a member of the UC Davis Chancellor's Board of Advisors. "UC Davis is at the forefront of tackling climate change, developing groundbreaking technologies and solutions to reduce our collective carbon footprint, and creating a more sustainable agriculture system. This gift aims to help our greatest scientific minds rise to the great challenge of our time  the sustainability of our planet for future generations. Lynda, I, and The Wonderful Company are proud to partner with UC Davis to support this all-important work."

Design on the Resnick Center is expected to begin in 2022, with construction slated for completion by 2026. Once built, the new 40,000-square-foot, LEED-certified, state-of-the-art hub will house classrooms, research and lab spaces, and student career and advising support near the current plant sciences building off Hutchison Drive in Davis.

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This initiative will unite experts from across UC Davis focused on five thematic research areas including identifying innovative solutions for agricultural byproducts, maximizing water and energy efficiencies, developing next-generation technologies, making crops more resilient and sustainable in the face of a rapidly changing climate, and expanding access to nutritious food. Ultimately, the center will explore new ways of balancing food production with leading sustainability practices while advancing the global agricultural industry with scalable solutions.

"Thanks to this historic gift from Lynda and Stewart Resnick, UC Davis will further expand its global reach, helping to shape the future of sustainable food production," said Gary S. May, chancellor, UC Davis. "This gift demonstrates a continued commitment to innovative environmental stewardship and allows us to create science-based solutions that can be rapidly deployed while mitigating the impacts of climate change."

The Resnick Agricultural Innovation Research Fund will provide grants to promote cross-collaboration and strengthen the network among research faculty, agricultural producers, food companies, pharmaceutical companies, commodity boards, and other key stakeholders. Beginning this year, competitive research grants will be awarded annually to UC Davis faculty and Cooperative Extension specialists focused on identifying value-added properties in pistachio, almond and pomegranate byproducts.

"Many specialty crop byproducts are treasure troves of compounds that can promote health, improve soil quality, influence microbial ecology, or be converted into valuable products," said Helene Dillard, dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. "This transformative gift will help increase the potential of these byproducts, enhance sustainability and create new markets."

The Center will provide student advising and career support including for more than 60 Wonderful Scholars enrolled at UC Davis. The Resnick-created Wonderful Scholarship program was initially established to provide college scholarships to the children of Wonderful employees from the Central Valley. It has expanded over the last 28 years to also award college scholarships to Wonderful Education Career Pathways Program students, as well as graduates of the Wonderful College Prep Academy and neighboring schools. Many of these recipients are first-generation college students.

The Wonderful Company, co-run by the Resnicks, is one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, whose iconic brands include FIJI Water, POM Wonderful, Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos, Wonderful Seedless Lemons, Teleflora, JUSTIN, JNSQ, and Landmark wines. Every year, the Resnicks invest in education, community development, and health and wellness initiatives across the Central Valley and beyond, a place-based giving approach centered on investing in, listening to, and collaborating with the communities where their employees live and work. To date, the Resnicks have invested more than $2.3 billion in philanthropy, with more than $1.3 billion invested in environmental sustainability, to help combat climate change and preserve the planet for future generations.

"The Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation will be a game-changer for research and teaching," said Shaun B. Keister, vice chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations. "Now, experts from diverse fields will have the critical resources and tools needed to train the leaders of tomorrow. The Resnicks' vision is a testament to what philanthropic partnerships with UC Davis can achieve."

Together, donors and UC Davis continually strive to advance and accelerate sustainability and social responsibility initiatives to create positive outcomes for the planet and people.

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SOURCE The Wonderful Company LLC
Mammoth Freighters LLC

ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mammoth Freighters LLC (Mammoth) announced today that AviaAM Leasing (AviaAM) is the launch customer for its new 777-300ERMF freighter conversion with the signing of a conversion agreement for six 777-300ERMF freighters. AviaAM is a global aviation holding company engaged in tailored aircraft leasing and trading services. Having completed multiple 737-800 passenger-to-freighter aircraft conversions this year, AviaAM is making major investments in multiple freighter types as it continues with its expansion plans in the air cargo market.



Including this order, Mammoth now has firm orders for twenty-nine 777 freighter conversions distributed across multiple customers, and another twelve 777 freighter conversions in advanced stages of commitment.

We are excited that AviaAM has selected Mammoth and will be the launch customer for the 777-300ERMF, stated Co-CEO Bill Tarpley. As AviaAM expands its strategic focus in the cargo sector, the superior widebody operating economics of the Mammoth 777-300ERMF will perfectly compliment their growing fleet of next generation freighters.

The first and conformity 777-300ER of this order will commence the conversion process in early 2023 at Aspire MROs state-of-the-art facility at Alliance Airport in Fort Worth, Texas. Upon redelivery, the aircraft will be able to carry 99.79 tons of cargo on transatlantic routes and is expected to serve EU-USA or China-EU trunk routes.

We are pleased to begin collaborating with Mammoth, a Boeing Licensee for the Boeing 777-300ER passenger to freighter conversions, commented Tadas Goberis, the Chairman and CEO of AviaAM Leasing. With a deeply experienced leadership team, state-of-the-art P2F conversion facilities and flexible attitude, I trust that together we will meet the demand for wide body converted freighters to replace aging ones and accommodate future growth across our group airlines fleet. Our new partnership exemplifies AviaAMs strategic effort to expand our presence in the air cargo market, further strengthening our position as a reliable and world-class leasing and trading services provider.

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The Mammoth 777-300ERMF is a fuel efficient, high-volume, heaving lifting, long-range freighter that will reliably serve the global air cargo market for decades to come, Mammoth Co-CEO Bill Wagner stated. We are grateful to partner with AviaAM and look forward to supporting their fleet growth initiatives with Mammoth 777-300ERMF freighters.

AviaAM Leasing is a family member of Avia Solutions Group (ASG), a leading aerospace services group with over 100 offices and production facilities worldwide. ASG is significantly backed by the assets of over 9,500 highly skilled aviation professionals, serving more than 2,000 clients throughout Europe, Asia, North America, Australia, and worldwide.

About Mammoth Freighters LLC

Mammoth Freighters LLC (Mammoth) was founded in December of 2020 by two top cargo conversion program executives  Bill Wagner and Bill Tarpley  specifically to design, develop, convert, and support the development of passenger to freighter conversions. The launch type is the Boeing 777 (both the 200 LR and 300 ER variants). The Mammoth converted 777 is one of the most productive and economical 777 long range freighters in the world.

Mammoth, a Boeing Licensee for the Boeing 777, is developing a global production and conversion site network accommodating 7 production lines which will include multiple production lines at Aspire MRO in Ft. Worth, Texas as well as additional conversion capacity planned at several other sites around the world.

Mammoth is backed by private investment funds managed by Fortress Investment Group LLC and its affiliates. Mammoth is based in Orlando, Florida with engineering offices in Escondido, California and Seattle, Washington.

For more information, visit: Mammoth777.com

About AviaAM Leasing:

Global provider of aircraft leasing, trading and remarketing solutions. Achievements in aircraft finance and commercial lease over the past decade has put the company among the TOP-50 leasing players in the market. Within recent 5 years only, AviaAM Leasing has attracted over $2 Billion investments, executed more than 150 aircraft transactions and implemented over 50 conversion and recovery projects.

AviaAM Leasing is a family member of Avia Solutions Group, leaders in end-to-end capacity solutions for passenger and cargo airlines worldwide. Its vast portfolio of services to clients includes ACMI, charter and cargo aviation, aircraft leasing and trading, MRO services, business aviation and VIP airline procurement, pilot and crew training, recruitment services, together with multiple complementary services spanning a wide range of associated operations. The Group manages over 100 offices and production facilities globally.

For more information, please visit: www.aviaam.com and www.aviasg.com

CONTACT: Contact: Brian C. McCarthy Vice President Marketing and Sales +1 772.877.1931 bmccarthy@mammoth777.com




OTTAWA, ON, Oct. 12, 2022 /CNW/ -

Note: All times local

Washington, D.C., United States of America

The Deputy Prime Minister will attend the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group.

7:30 a.m. The Deputy Prime Minister will attend the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting.





Closed to media.

The Deputy Prime Minister will hold bilateral meetings with international partners throughout the day.

This document is also available at https://deputypm.canada.ca

SOURCE Deputy Prime Minister's Office

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Company Logo

Medical Device Testing Services Market

Medical Device Testing Services Market

Dublin, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Medical Device Testing Services Market - Forecasts from 2022 to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global medical device testing services market is estimated to surge at a CAGR of 14.79% from a market value of US$32.434 billion in 2020, to achieve a market value of US$85.156 billion by the end of 2027.

The presence of companies offering varied medical device testing services fuels the market growth in the forecast period. For example, companies offer medical device testing services for biocompatibility testing, biological safety, chemical characterization, analytical chemistry, environmental monitoring, and long-term and accelerated shelf-life testing.

Furthermore, with the growing need for testing the quality and reliability of medical devices, the market for medical device testing services holds strong growth opportunities during the forecast period.



Companies also offer medical device testing services that provide full support right from the device concept designing design to post-market applications. These services are highly beneficial due to stringent regulations for product development; hence, any defect in a medical device or inability of a medical device to serve the required medical purpose would lead to product disqualification. Therefore, strict regulations for device development and approval contribute to surging market demand during the forecast period.

By applying its unique combination of solutions that include medical device testing, regulatory, reimbursement, quality consulting, and clinical research services, the company offers support throughout the full development continuum, from bench to actual patient applications. The company's offices are located across the Asian, European, and North American regions and support fast-track market introduction in the world's major markets.



Geographically, North America is projected to hold a significant market share. At the same time, the Asia Pacific region is estimated to be the fastest-growing market in the global medical device testing services market during the forecast period.



The growing medical device industry will continue to surge and drive the market demand during the forecast period and the emergence of novel and innovative medical devices.



The global medical device industry is projected to grow steadily during the forecast period. Industrial growth is further supported by the growing demand for innovative medical devices, including wearables and innovative health services like health data. This is mainly because lifestyle diseases are gaining momentum with time due to the adoption of unhealthy living conditions. Hence, this is creating a high demand for the development of portable medical devices to keep a constant check on the vital parameters, further providing robust market growth prospects during the forecast period.

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Governments around the globe are working on cutting healthcare costs (especially on lowering the number of hospital visits) and demand greater value regarding improved patient outcomes. Companies are expected to step out of their traditional device manufacturing to achieve this. Instead, a need for integrating services and data intelligence coupled with their products is being realized to deliver holistic solutions, further bolstering the B2B activities and strengthening the creation of the new business-to-consumer (B2C) activities.

This will further require the manufacturers to adopt different strategies in the form of mergers & and acquisitions and strategic partnerships and collaborations. The medical device companies will ultimately play a bigger role in the value chain and will get an opportunity to interact with the end consumers closely. This would further aid in increasing the company's revenues and, in turn, would contribute to lowering the number of hospital visits.



By utilizing the various medical device testing strategies, it is expected of a medical device manufacturer that the company checks every functionality of its medical device right from the concept designing stage to the post-market applications. In the case of any defect being found, it would lead to huge losses to the company.

Hence, with the growing medical device industry, medical device testing services hold importance to assist in properly manufacturing the device. Testing services can be provided in-house or can be outsourced. Furthermore, with the surging number of chronic diseases worldwide, the market is projected to hold strong growth prospects and develop novel medical devices through continuous innovations and technological advancements.



Segmentation:

By Type

Medical Device Testing Solution

Certification & Auditing

Scientific Support Services

By Services

Cardiovascular Device Testing

Orthopedic Implant Testing

Microbiological Analysis

Shelf-Life Testing

By Sourcing Type

In-House Testing

Outsourced Testing

By Geography

North America

USA

Canada

Mexico

South America

Brazil

Argentina

Europe

UK

Germany

France

Spain

Middle East and Africa

UAE

Israel

Saudi Arabia

Asia Pacific

Japan

China

India

South Korea

Thailand

Indonesia

Taiwan

Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction



2. Research Methodology



3. Executive Summary



4. Market Dynamics



5. Medical Device Testing Services Market Analysis, by Type



6. Medical Device Testing Services Market Analysis, by Services



7. Medical Device Testing Services Market Analysis, by Sourcing Type



8. Medical Device Testing Services Market Analysis, by Geography



9. Competitive Environment and Analysis



10. Company Profiles



Companies Mentioned

SGS SA

Intertek Group plc

Bureau Veritas

DEKRA

Eurofins Scientific

The British Standards Institution

Nelson Laboratories, LLC (A Sotera Health Company)

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/irpv9y

Attachment

CONTACT: CONTACT: ResearchAndMarkets.com Laura Wood,Senior Press Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./ CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900




Middlefield Canadian Income PCC Net Asset Value

Middlefield Canadian Income PCC

Middlefield Canadian Income - GBP PC

(a protected cell company incorporated in Jersey with registration number 93546)

Legal Entity Identifier: 2138007ENW3JEJXC8658

Net Asset Value

As at the close of business on 12 October 2022 the estimated unaudited Net Asset Value per share was 129.83 pence (including accrued income).

Investments in the Company's portfolio have been valued on a closing price basis.

Enquiries:

JTC Fund Solutions (Jersey) Limited

01534 700 000




By Azernews





By Sabina Mammadli

Azerbaijani Deputy Interior Minister Seyfulla Azimov and his Uzbek counterpart Shukhrat Sobirov discussed combating drug addiction, international terrorism, extremism, human trafficking, and cybercrime.

The discussion took place within the framework of the visit of the Azerbaijani delegation to Uzbekistan to participate in the third meeting of the Uzbek-Azerbaijani interdepartmental coordination working group on October 11.

The sides also exchanged views on the cooperation between the two foreign ministries.

At the end of the meeting, the parties signed the Protocol of the event, which reflected the agreements the parties have reached.

The diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan were established on October 2, 1995. The embassy of Azerbaijan in Uzbekistan was established in August 1996, while the embassy of Uzbekistan in Azerbaijan was opened in July 1998.

The friendly relations between the two countries are based on shared values ??and historical ties, as well as a number of joint statements and agreements signed during bilateral visits and meetings.

The volume of trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan amounted to $111.9 million in 2021.
As someone who has dedicated their career to patient care, I am compelled to advocate for ensuring that all have access to the care that they need. Thats why I stand firmly in support of the ballot measure to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade that have existed for nearly 50 years.

U.S. women of reproductive age have never known a world that did not respect their right to make the decisions that are best for themselves and their families. Anyone in Michigan who would vote no is voting to revert back to the 1931 law  an archaic time when almost all abortions were a crime, including when the pregnancy was the result of rape or when it endangered the womans health.

In my more than 40 years of practicing medicine as an OB/GYN I have cared for countless women. I have heard their stories. Ive held their hands as they have rejoiced at their opportunity to give life when possible and witnessed their remorse when circumstances in their lives meant that it was not possible. Women who make the deeply personal decision to have an abortion come from all walks of life and they do not make this choice lightly.

More:The abortion rights amendment made Michigan's ballot. Here's exactly what it says

Endorsement:Pass ballot initiatives to protect abortion rights, voting

Doctors work hard to foster relationships with our patients, relationships built on trust and privacy. Modern American culture has valued a society that respects a womans right to privacy in the exam room with her doctor. The law must restore this respectful boundary between a womans rights and the reach of the government.

OB/GYNs know that pregnancy is a very risky condition for many with a variety of life-threatening complications that can arise at any time. When serious complications arise, doctors must be able to provide all treatment options. Thats why decisions around pregnancy should be made by women with the advice of their physicians. Its horrible to think that one of my patients would be forced to travel to another state to receive up-to-date treatment for life-threatening situations  but Michigans 1931 ban would do this.

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Reverting back in time to the 1931 law is frightening. The outdated notions make it hard for doctors to know where to draw the line, leaving significant room for harm and even death. Recently a Texas woman had to travel to New Mexico for treatment of her life-threatening ectopic pregnancy because her physician at home was afraid to treat her. That is the overreach created by outdated, over-broad and vague abortion bans. As other states enact and enforce invasive laws from yesteryear, we must ensure that Michigan remains a haven for sensible healthcare.

A recent study finds that since Texas implemented its abortion ban, risks of serious pregnancy complications doubled. In Wisconsin, pregnant women are being forced to delay life-saving treatment because doctors fear criminal prosecution for offering the safe, evidence-based health care modern medicine provides. One Wisconsin woman bled for more than 10 days, unnecessarily, because doctors were afraid of breaking the law by treating her incomplete miscarriage. Another woman's water broke at just 18 weeks of pregnancy, probably too early for the fetus to survive. Her doctor had to consider legal implications before providing abortion care to ensure that the woman didn't develop sepsis. In yet another instance, a Wisconsin doctor had to wait over an hour to treat a patient with a ruptured ectopic pregnancy. The woman was bleeding and was going to die without treatment, but the doctor felt they needed to wait for a second opinion to avoid prosecution.

Doctors expect to see many more potentially deadly infections if abortion bans are enforced.

We all heard the heartbreaking story of the 10-year-old Ohio rape victim who was forced to go to Indiana for abortion care. We dont want to live in a society that would force young girls who are victims of rape or incest, whose bodies are not ready for childbirth, to have their lives further shattered by being forced to give birth.

A complication in pregnancy can quickly become life-threatening, and tying a doctors hands could result in her death when she in fact has a right to the standard medical care would provide. Thats why passage of Proposal 3, a commonsense measure, is so critical.

Dr. Rosanna DeGrood is a retired OB/GYN from Ann Arbor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Opinion: Support Prop 3 to keep government out of a woman's exam room
VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Ritchie Bros. (NYSE: RBA) (TSX: RBA) announced today that the company's third quarter financial results will be released before market open on Monday, November 7th.

Ritchie Bros. will host a conference call to discuss its results at 8:00 a.m. ET the same day.

Analysts and institutional investors may participate via conference call, using the following dial-in information:

Conference ID: 04106719

Participant Toll-Free Dial-In Number:

North America - 1-888-664-6392

UK - 08006522435

Canada: 1-416-764-8659

Media and other interested parties may listen to live webcast of the call at https://investor.ritchiebros.com .

Following the call, a replay will be available at the same website. A telephonic replay of the conference call can be accessed after 2:00 pm Eastern time, at 416-764-8677 or 1-888-390-0541 (using passcode 106719 #).

About Ritchie Bros.:

Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. (NYSE and TSX: RBA) is a global asset management and disposition company, offering customers end-to-end solutions for buying and selling used heavy equipment, trucks, and other assets. Operating in a number of sectors, including construction, transportation, agriculture, energy, mining, and forestry, the company's selling channels include: Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, the world's largest industrial auctioneer offering live auction events with online bidding; IronPlanet, an online marketplace with weekly featured auctions and providing the exclusive IronClad Assurance equipment condition certification; Marketplace-E, a controlled marketplace offering multiple price and timing options; Ritchie List, a self-serve listing service for North America; Mascus, a leading European online equipment listing service; Ritchie Bros. Private Treaty, offering privately negotiated sales; and sector-specific solutions GovPlanet, TruckPlanet, and Kruse Energy. The Company's suite of solutions also includes Ritchie Bros. Asset Solutions and Rouse Services LLC, which together provides a complete end-to-end asset management, data-driven intelligence and performance benchmarking system; SmartEquip, an innovative technology platform that supports customers' management of the equipment lifecycle and integrates parts procurement with both OEMs and dealers; plus equipment financing and leasing through Ritchie Bros. Financial Services. For more information about Ritchie Bros., visit RitchieBros.com.

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Cision

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ritchie-bros-to-host-third-quarter-2022-results-earnings-conference-call-on-november-7th-2022-301647997.html

SOURCE Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers
Earlier this summer, the US FDA greenlit the sale of over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids, and now we're seeing some from one of the largest audio companies in the world. Sony has announced the availability of its first OTC hearing aids, the $1,000 CRE-C10 and $1,300 CRE-E10, built in partnership with WS Audiology.

The devices are built for daily use for those with mild to moderate hearing loss. They're controlled via Sony's "Hearing Control" app that guides users through setup and allows them to personalize settings like volume control. It also allows a "self-fit" that adjusts to appropriate pre-defined hearing profiles "based on thousands of actual, real-life audiogram results," Sony said.

Sony Electronics' CRE-C10 self-fitting OTC hearing aids

The CRE-C10 model (above) offers a battery life of up to 70 hours of continuous use. Sony says they're one of the smallest OTC hearing aids on the market, offering a discreet design that's "virtually invisible when worn" and "exceptional sound quality." It goes on sale this month for $1,000 at Amazon, Best Buy, and select hearing-care professionals.

Meanwhile, the CRE-E10 (at top) has a more earbud-like design, powered by a rechargeable battery with up to 26 hours of life between charges. It's Bluetooth compatible as well, so users can connect to devices and listen to streaming audio or music, though only on iOS, Sony says. Those will go on sale for $1,300 sometime this winter at Sony's website.

Last year, Bose and Lexie unveiled their own OTC hearing aids with the SoundControl lineup, and launched the first B1 model for $900 a couple of days ago. Companies like Jabra have also leaped in. And last year, Sennheiser sold its consumer audio business to the hearing aid specialist Sonova. While the prices are still not what you'd call cheap, they're far less than prescription hearing aids that can run $1,000-$4,000 per ear, according to Consumer Reports.
Large-scale collaboration will leverage each institutions expertise and infrastructure to advance understanding of the biological basis of pediatric cancers, identify new vulnerabilities of these diseases and accelerate cures globally.

Three of the worlds top research institutions join forces to drive progress against pediatric cancer

Pictured L to R: Francisca Vazquez, Ph.D., Broad Institute Cancer Dependency Map Project director, Kimberly Stegmaier, M.D., Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, vice chair of Pediatric Oncology Research and Charles W.M. Roberts, M.D., Ph.D., St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center director (Credit: Sevenpair Studios)

Boston, MA and Memphis, TN, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital today announced the largest academic collaboration of its kind to transform and accelerate the identification of vulnerabilities in pediatric cancers and translate them into better treatments.

The collaboration is supported by a new joint funding investment by all three institutions of more than $60 million over five years. This investment will support infrastructure development and scientific work by a team currently composed of more than 80 collaborating investigators, data scientists and research staff. The effort is expected to reach 100 members as each institution adds employees.

By combining the intellectual leadership, technical expertise and institutional resources of the three institutions, this new collaboration is designed to address critical gaps in knowledge related to the biological basis of childhood cancer, and how it might more effectively be treated. The Pediatric Cancer Dependencies Accelerator project, notable for its large scale of investment, number of collaborating scientists and scientific scope, will accelerate progress in the development of new treatments for aggressive childhood cancers by:

Developing and deploying genome editing techniques to identify hidden vulnerabilities (dependencies) in a range of high-risk childhood brain, solid and blood cancers.

Leveraging emerging technologies to characterize the genetic and epigenetic landscape of pediatric cancers.

Developing model systems where none currently exist for high-risk childhood cancers that have poor outcomes.

Identifying effective combination therapies and mechanisms of drug resistance and shortening the timeline for developing new therapies.

Developing computational approaches to mine and integrate data and developing innovative software tools for data sharing.

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The project is co-led by Charles W.M. Roberts, MD, PhD, St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center director, Kimberly Stegmaier, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, vice chair of Pediatric Oncology Research, and Francisca Vazquez, PhD, Broad Institute Cancer Dependency Map Project director.

Despite many advances, cancer remains the number one cause of death by disease for children in the U.S., Roberts said. It can take decades in a research lab to understand mechanisms and develop new treatments. Through this project, we believe we can now leapfrog barriers to rapidly identify therapeutic vulnerabilities in childhood cancer and translate those into targeted therapies in the clinic much faster.

Our first-generation Pediatric Cancer Dependency Map project was wildly successful but just the tip of the iceberg, Stegmaier said. I am so excited about this unprecedented collaboration among three extraordinary institutions. The PedDep Accelerator will uncover novel, and much needed, new therapeutic targets while also revealing the mechanistic underpinnings of a wide range of childhood cancers, providing a treasure trove of data for our research community.

"The PedDep Accelerator exemplifies the power of deep collaboration and of bringing a multidisciplinary team together across institutions to tackle an important disease challenge that affects children worldwide," Vazquez said. "Through data sharing and tool development, we are committed to creating a resource that the scientific community can leverage to make a real impact on childhood cancers. I am excited to see the impact this project will have on the pace of therapeutic discovery for pediatric tumors."

Pediatric cancer: An opportunity for innovation and discovery

The collaboration builds on groundbreaking research initiatives from each institution. Over the past decade, the St. Jude-Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project and other large-scale sequencing efforts have yielded rich insights into the genomic landscape of pediatric cancers, including the understanding that most disease-driving genetic mutations are not druggable. Developing precision therapies will require identifying cancer dependencies and vulnerabilities that are not revealed by mining genomic datasets alone.

The Cancer Dependency Map (DepMap) Initiative at Broad has developed extensive, world-class datasets and computational infrastructure that has impacted research and target discovery programs worldwide. Launched in 2015, the Pediatric Cancer Dependency Map Project (PedDep) served as a proof-of-concept to apply the DepMap approach to childhood cancers. For example, whole-genome CRISPR screens have now been effectively deployed at scale to identify vulnerabilities in hundreds of adult cancers, and proof of principle has been established that these approaches can also identify weaknesses in childhood cancers, which often have much simpler genomes. Large-scale drug screening capabilities have also been developed. That infrastructure and expertise will be leveraged and expanded through this effort.

The project will rely on modeling expertise from St. Jude and Dana-Farber in the creation of patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models that use cancer cells from patients, and thus more closely match the biology of the disease as it appears in the clinic. Computational biologists at St. Jude will contribute a breadth of expertise on the analyses of epigenomic and genomic characterizations, data visualization and the development of computational pipelines. Additionally, St. Jude infrastructure will facilitate combination drug screening and in vivo CRISPR- and drug-screening approaches.

Cross-functional groups will include Broad, Dana-Farber and St. Jude investigators, focusing on three core disease areas (brain tumors, hematological malignancies and solid tumors) and bringing to bear pan-cancer expertise in data science, functional genomics and large-scale drug screening. Together, researchers at these institutions will enhance and accelerate progress by combining unique strengths and resources to address the greatest challenges to understanding and treating pediatric cancers.

###

About the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard was launched in 2004 to empower this generation of creative scientists to transform medicine. The Broad Institute seeks to describe the molecular components of life and their connections; discover the molecular basis of major human diseases; develop effective new approaches to diagnostics and therapeutics; and disseminate discoveries, tools, methods, and data openly to the entire scientific community.

Founded by MIT, Harvard, Harvard-affiliated hospitals, and the visionary Los Angeles philanthropists Eli and Edythe L. Broad, the Broad Institute includes faculty, professional staff, and students from throughout the MIT and Harvard biomedical research communities and beyond, with collaborations spanning over a hundred private and public institutions in more than 40 countries worldwide. For further information about the Broad Institute, go to http://www.broadinstitute.org.

About Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is one of the worlds leading cancer centers with a unique and equal balance of cancer research and treatment. Dana-Farbers mission is to reduce the burden of cancer through scientific inquiry, clinical care, education, community engagement, and advocacy. Dana-Farber is a federally designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School.

We provide the latest treatments in cancer for adults through Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center and for children through Dana-Farber/Boston Childrens Cancer and Blood Disorders Center. Dana-Farber is the only hospital nationwide with a top 5 U.S. News & World Report Best Cancer Hospital ranking in both adult and pediatric care.

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and cures childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to 80% since the hospital opened 60 years ago. St. Jude freely shares the breakthroughs it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing and food  so families can focus on helping their child live. To learn more, visit stjude.org or follow St. Jude on social media at @stjuderesearch.

Media Relations Contacts

Karen Zusi-Tran  Broad Institute

Desk: (617) 714-8600

kzusi@broadinstitute.org

Ellen Berlin  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Desk: (617) 632-5357

Ellen_berlin@dfci.harvard.edu

Emily Gest  St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital

Desk: (901) 595-0260

Cell: (901) 568-9869

emily.gest@stjude.org

Attachment

CONTACT: Chelsea Bryant St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (901) 595-0564 chelsea.bryant@stjude.org




Former president Donald Trump speaks to supporters at a rally to support local candidates at the Mohegan Sun Arena on September 03, 2022 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Donald Trump's social-media app Truth Social is live on the Google Play Store.

Google blocked its submission from the store in August for violating moderation guidelines.

The app launched earlier this year, and Trump has touted it as a free-speech alternative to Twitter.

Former President Donald Trump's social-media app Truth Social has been approved for the Google Play Store, nearly two months after its submission was blocked.

Axios first reported on Wednesday that Google approved the app, which went live for download on the Play Store soon after the story was published.

"Apps may be distributed on Google Play provided they comply with our developer guidelines, including the requirement to effectively moderate user-generated content and remove objectionable posts such as those that incite violence," a Google spokesperson told Insider in a statement.

The app was already available for download on Apple's app store.

All apps, including Truth Social, have to implement strict moderation guidelines and commit to enforcing those policies in order to be approved, Google said, and remove users who violate those rules.

For instance, Truth Social has guidelines that prohibit posts that "depict violence, threats of violence or criminal activity."

Trump launched Truth Social in February, after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook in the aftermath of the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters.

He's touted the platform as a free-speech alternative, but it ran into trouble with Google in August for a lack of content moderation. Google removed it from the Play Store, meaning over 40% of smart phone users couldn't access it.

"On Aug. 19, we notified Truth Social of several violations of standard policies in their current app submission and reiterated that having effective systems for moderating user-generated content is a condition of our terms of service for any app to go live on Google Play," Google said in a statement at the time.

Shares for the SPAC Digital World Acquisition Group, which announced plans to merge with Truth Social last year, rose 9% on Wednesday after Axios' report.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Burgeoning newsletter curates informative, impartial news for curious readers, with unprecedented open rate and diverse audience; Previews brand refresh with new logo

CHICAGO, October 13, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With trust in news sources plunging to all-time lows, an increasing number of Americans are shunning traditional partisan news sources for burgeoning newsletter 1440, the daily news briefing edited to be as unbiased as humanly possible, in one simple email. The media company today announced that it has surpassed 2 million active subscribers - more than doubling year-over-year. The company also reported an astounding industry-leading 53 percent newsletter open rate amongst its subscribers, driven largely by word of mouth. 1440s readership is already equal to the number of viewers of the top prime time cable news network, and is on track to eclipse the audience for the current top cable news shows and other partisan news outlets by 2023 - a key indicator that clickbait-weary Americans crave a factual and impartial approach to staying informed.

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Chicago, 1440 is a free daily email newsletter curated by a lean team of editors, experts, and analysts that scour hundreds of sources across science, culture, politics, and business to deliver a simple, informative report on news of the day. 1440 is under the editorial direction of Editor-In-Chief and Co-Founder Dr. Andrew Steigerwald, a scientist that has spent nearly a decade working on technology and innovation public policy, including a stint as a legislative fellow in the U.S. Senate. The largely bootstrapped company is already turning a profit and boasts 42 months of consecutive revenue growth and 8-figure annual revenue, suggesting impartiality is the antidote for doom-scrolling. The newsletter is designed to be read in under five minutes and aims to serve the left, right, and center, who are looking for facts without motive.

"Americans are exhausted by the constant barrage of negative headlines, manufactured breaking news alerts, and agenda-driven talking heads. These dominate coverage at the majority of media outlets, which rely on outrage clicks for shrinking advertising dollars," said 1440 Co-founder and CEO Tim Huelskamp. "Were still human and arent perfect, but based on our growth rate and reader feedback, we think were on to something. We strive to deliver fact-focused content as unbiased as humanly possible, so our readers are informed and can develop their own opinions on the issues and topics shaping the world."

1440s approach seems to be a winning formula regardless of political party lines, location, gender, or other demographics. Based on self-reported metrics, their 2 million plus readership is unprecedentedly split evenly across Independents, Republicans, and Democrats, across coastal and rural geographies, and gender. 1440 prioritizes the experience of its readers and only permits two carefully curated advertisers a day that aligns with its values and those of its readership.

1440 will be unveiling its new visual identity later this month, reflecting the companys mission to provide facts without motives. Along with a new logo, 1440 will reveal additional visual designs, typography, and imagery throughout its website and newsletter.

Leading 1440s team of editorial analysts are:

Dr. Andrew Steigerwald, Editor-in-Chief

Drew oversees the creation and strategy of audience-facing products, including the daily digest. His background is in science and technology, with a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary materials science from Vanderbilt. Leaving academics in 2012, he pursued an interest in public policy in Washington, DC, including working as a legislative fellow in the US Senate and serving as a senior adviser within the US Department of Energy.

Sony Kassam, Chief Content Officer

Sony helps write the daily digest and leads the weekend edition newsletter. Before joining 1440, she spent five years at Bloomberg Industry Group in Washington, D.C., where she edited news stories, wrote a daily newsletter on U.S. tax policy, and reported on worldwide tax developments. She holds a masters degree from Northwestern Universitys Medill School of Journalism and a bachelors degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

To learn more about 1440 and to subscribe, visit www.join1440.com.

About 1440 Media

1440 is the daily newsletter helping 2M+ Americans stay informed - it's news without motives, edited to be as unbiased as humanly possible. On a mission to fix distrust in the media, 1440's team of editors, experts, and analysts scour hundreds of sources across science, culture, politics and business to deliver an impartial report on the day's news so readers can be more informed. Designed to be read in under five minutes, 1440 aims to serve the vast majority of Americans who are exhausted by the constant barrage of agenda-driven coverage. 1440 was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Chicago. To subscribe, visit www.join1440.com and follow @join1440 on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221013005337/en/

Contacts

Media Contact:

Angela Nibbs, 1440@maven-pr.com
JPMorgan Chase and Company President and CEO Jamie Dimon - EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/REUTERS

The US is heading for recession within months, the chief executive of America's biggest bank has said as he warned of a very, very serious mix of headwinds.

Jamie Dimon, the head of JPMorgan, said that untamed inflation, rising interest rates, and Russias war in Ukraine are likely to tip the US into recession by the middle of next year.

He warned that all three issues remain persistent drags on the global economy, challenging the outlook for growth in the coming months.

Mr Dimon said: These are very, very serious things which I think are likely to push the US and the world  I mean, Europe is already in recession  and theyre likely to put the U.S. in some kind of recession six to nine months from now.

The Wall Street executives comments come at a time of increasing market uncertainty, as the strong recent US jobs data was seen by many investors and traders as a fresh catalyst for the US Federal Reserve to take a more hawkish stance on inflation. Markets are now pricing in heftier interest rate rises in order to cool down the American economy.

Mr Dimon said the Fed waited too long and did too little as inflation jumped to a 40-year high over the past 18 months. However, he added that the central bank is clearly catching up.

Fed officials have raised rates five times so far this year to the current range of 3pc to 3.25pc, and have indicated that they plan to top 4pc by the end of this year.

Mr Dimon told CNBC at a conference held in London: Lets all wish him success and keep our fingers crossed that they manage to slow down the economy enough so that whatever it is, is mild  and it is possible.

It can go from very mild to quite hard and a lot will be reliant on what happens with this war. So, I think to guess is hard, be prepared.

Mr Dimon said he couldnt predict how long a potential recession in the US might last, but remarked that the economy was actually still doing well at present and consumers were likely to be in better shape compared with the 2008 global financial crisis.

But given the disorderly financial conditions and volatility, the same could not be said for the stock market. Mr Dimon said the S&P 500, an index composed of the 500 largest US public companies, could yet fall by another easy 20pc from current levels, and that the next 20pc would be much more painful than the first.

All eyes will now turn to JPMorgans third-quarter financial results, which are scheduled to be released on Friday. Shares of the bank are trading at a 33pc discount year-to-date.
Wesdome Gold Mines

TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd. (TSX: WDO) (Wesdome or the Company) today announces third quarter (Q3) 2022 production results. All figures are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated.

Duncan Middlemiss, President and CEO commented, Eagle River production for the quarter was in line with revised guidance. During Q3, there was a planned shut down in July to complete mill upgrades and refurbishment work, which went according to plan and has already yielded operational gains such as reduced reagents consumption.

At Kiena, the mine also had a planned shutdown in July for necessary hoist upgrades. As well, the critical components of the paste fill plant were delivered and installed in Q3, with plant commissioning on track for later in Q4. Once the paste fill system is fully operational, we will have the ability to focus on mine development which will result in increased operational flexibility, and be better positioned to operate successfully in the challenging ground conditions encountered in Kiena Deep. We are currently tracking to produce towards the lower end of the 120,000  140,000 combined guidance range this year.

Amounts are denominated in Canadian dollars Third Quarter Year-to-Date 2022 2021 Variance % +/(-) 2022 2021 Variance % +/(-) Ore milled (tonnes) Eagle River 52,247 56,003 (3,756 ) (7 %) 165,428 172,600 (7,172 ) (4 %) Mishi 3,595 3,727 (132 ) (4 %) 23,153 30,293 (7,140 ) (24 %) Kiena 16,112 30,470 (14,358 ) (47 %) 63,752 30,470 33,282 109 % 71,954 90,200 (18,246 ) (20 %) 252,333 233,363 18,970 8 % Head grade (grams per tonne, g/t) Eagle River 10.7 13.4 (2.7 ) (20 %) 10.6 13.8 (3.2 ) (23 %) Mishi 2.8 2.3 0.5 22 % 3.2 2.4 0.8 33 % Kiena 10.2 5.8 4.4 76 % 9.5 5.8 3.7 64 % Gold production (ounces) Eagle River 17,405 23,621 (6,216 ) (26 %) 54,495 74,853 (20,358 ) (27 %) Mishi 270 212 58 27 % 2,005 1,920 85 4 % Kiena 5,208 5,511 (303 ) (5 %) 19,234 5,511 13,723 249 % Total Gold Production 22,883 29,344 (6,461 ) (22 %) 75,734 82,284 (6,550 ) (8 %) Production sold (ounces)3 27,500 30,000 (2,500 ) (8 %) 81,500 80,957 543 1 % Revenue from gold sales ($ millions)4 $61.8 $67.5 ($5.7 ) (8 %) $190.2 $177.2 $13.0 7 % Average realized price per ounce2 $2,246 $2,249 (3 ) (0 %) $2,334 $2,239 95 4 %

Notes:

Numbers may not add due to rounding. Average realized price per ounce is a non-IFRS measure and is calculated by dividing the reported revenue from gold sales by the number of ounces sold for a given period. Please reference the Company's interim management discussion and analysis for the period ended June 30, 2022 filed on SEDAR for their calculations. YTD 2021 production sold includes 1,793 ounces of gold sold from the Kiena bulk sample which was processed in Q4 2020 and sold in Q1 2021. YTD 2021 revenue excludes $3.9 million of revenue from the Kiena bulk sample, which was processed in Q4 2020 and sold in Q1 2021. The incidental revenue was credited against the cost of the Kiena exploration asset.

Technical Disclosure

The technical content of this release has been compiled, reviewed and approved by Frederic Langevin, Eng, Chief Operating Officer, a "Qualified Person" as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

ABOUT WESDOME

Wesdome is a Canadian focused gold producer with two high grade underground assets in Canada, the Eagle River mine in Ontario and the recently re-started Kiena mine in Quebec. The Company also retains meaningful exposure to the Moss Lake gold deposit in Ontario through its equity position in Goldshore Resources Inc. The Companys primary goal is to responsibly leverage this operating platform and high-quality brownfield and greenfield exploration pipeline to build Canadas next intermediate gold producer. Wesdome trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol WDO, with a secondary listing on the OTCQX under the symbol WDOFF.

This news release contains forward-looking information, which may include, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the future financial or operating performance of the Company and its projects. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as plans, expects, is expected, budget, scheduled, estimates, forecasts, intends, anticipates, or believes or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, might, or will be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results, or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances, managements estimates or opinions should change, except as required by securities legislation. Accordingly, the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company has included in this news release certain non-IFRS performance measures, including, but not limited to, mine operating profit, mining and processing costs and cash costs. Cash costs per ounce reflect actual mine operating costs incurred during the fiscal period divided by the number of ounces produced. These measures are not defined under IFRS and therefore should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to or more meaningful than, net income (loss) or cash flow from operating activities as determined in accordance with IFRS as an indicator of the Companys financial performance or liquidity. The Company believes that, in addition to conventional measures prepared in accordance with IFRS, certain investors use this information to evaluate the Company's performance and ability to generate cash flow.

For further information, please contact:

Duncan Middlemiss

President and CEO

416-360-3743 ext. 2029

duncan.middlemiss@wesdome.com or Lindsay Carpenter Dunlop

VP Investor Relations

416-360-3743 ext. 2025

lindsay.dunlop@wesdome.com 220 Bay St, Suite 1200

Toronto, ON, M5J 2W4

Toll Free: 1-866-4-WDO-TSX

Phone: 416-360-3743, Fax: 416-360-7620

Website: www.wesdome.com





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Sometimes youre just not prepared.

A young man I know recently began teaching at a college in a Southern city and school officials asked him if he would also be interested in conducting a public speaking class one night a week at a nearby morticians school.

At first he was a little hesitant, but then he said, What the heck! The money was good, so he agreed.

Well, the young man was to find that students at a morticians school are a bit different from the 18- to 22-year-olds he was used to teaching in his regular classroom, especially when it came to show and tell.

During a lesson on using visual aids, a student pulled out a set of embalming clamps as part his project and began discussing them. He told the class from whom he had bought the clamps and suddenly there were ooohs and aahs floating around the classroom.

He [the seller] is a legend in embalming! someone exclaimed.

The student had apparently just returned from an embalming convention where he had met the most famous embalmer alive and somehow managed to secure a set of his clamps. The class was impressed beyond belief.

Oh, well. I guess every profession has its heroes.

The young man texted me another quote that caught him off guard. During a lesson before the public speaking class, he heard the teacher emphasize, You just got to get in there and grab that trachea!

Oh, and even those novice morticians learned one thing from handling bodies: never ride a motorcycle.

Morticians also have their own jokes.

That town was so small the most exciting thing to do on a Saturday night was go down to the funeral home and view the bodies.

I guess you never know what youre going to hear in the embalming room.

One of the best undertaker stories I ever heard involved a man who put on a big front while he was alive. When he died his wife wanted a blowout funeral and chose the most expensive casket the local funereal director had. She wanted her husband to be sent to the great beyond in style.

When it came time to pay the bill, however, the widow admitted that she was all but penniless and the undertaken quickly realized that he would likely never see a dime of his money.

The woman said her husband knew he couldnt afford a big funeral but wanted one anyway. He told her, After Im in the ground, what is the undertaker gonna do about it?

Well, this undertaker, or so the story goes, came up with a plan. He went out one night and dug up the grave and switched the corpse from that expensive casket to a pine box. Then he sold the slightly used casket to some other customer.

That really happened, or so they say.

Then there was the story of the man in Southwest Virginia who wanted his final resting place to be up near the top of a steep ridge to he could look out over the hollow for all eternity.

Six pallbearers started up the ridge but when they were almost at the top one slipped on a loose rock, they dropped the casket and it bounced down the steep incline, finally breaking open and tossing the corpse into a pile of leaves.

The mourners were aghast as the undertaker tried to get the body back into the coffin. When the dearly departed was finally back in the coffin, the bereaved wife looked down on the face of her dead husband one last time. shook her head and exclaimed, How many times did I tell you theyd never get that casket up this damn mountain!

Women always seem to get the last word.

This column is a little macabre, but hey, it is October and Halloween is just around the corner. The moon is full and spooks are everywhere. When you drive around at night at this time of year, you must not only watch for deer but also witches on broomsticks.

When you venture out into the dark, never forget the wolfbane to repel the werewolves or a silver crucifix for the vampires. Never trust a bat!

What about scaring off ghosts? Just rattle your embalming clamps.

Chases them away every time!
By Trend

The initial inventory activities and monitoring of historical and architectural heritage have started in Azerbaijan's Lachin, the State Service for the Protection, Development and Restoration of Cultural Heritage of Azerbaijan told Trend.

The events are being held by the Ganja Regional Department of the State Service for the Protection, Development and Restoration of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan.
Interstate 95 travelers should expect overnight delays this week in the Fredericksburg area.

The Virginia Department of Transportation sent out alerts late last week for full traffic stops in Spotsylvania County related to the demolition of the U.S. 17 overpass for a widening project.

VDOT sent out another alert Tuesday about similar overnight I95 traffic stops in the work zone of the American Legion Bridge replacement in Stafford County.

Lane closures in both work zones are scheduled to start at 10 p.m. each night and full traffic stops of up to 30 minutes will be in effect between midnight and 3 a.m. through early Friday.

The American Legion bridge is being rebuilt to handle the widening of I-95 as part of the 10-mile express lanes extension. The traffic stops will allow crews to set beams on the concrete piers.

Demolition of the old U.S. 17 bridge is expected to last four weeks, according to VDOT.

The first half of the new bridge over I95 is ready, and traffic was recently shifted onto the new span so work can start on the southbound side of the new bridge. The lanes in the completed half of the new span will eventually serve northbound traffic.

Crews started work on the demolition project Tuesday.

There also will be single lane closures this week in the area of the Rappahannock River bridge where crews are pouring concrete on the new span for the northbound Rappahannock River crossing project, which is adding three new lanes to the interstate in that direction.
A Circuit Court judge on Wednesday overturned the dismissal of a lawsuit filed earlier this year alleging that members of the Spotsylvania School Board violated Virginias Freedom of Information Act.

The case was dismissed in July by the Spotsylvania General District Court, and attorneys for the plaintiff, Courtland High School graduate Makaila Keyes, and the School Board were in court Tuesday morning for a hearing on Keyess appeal of the dismissal.

Circuit Court Judge Ricardo Rigual found that Keyeswho is being represented by Fred and Jenna Edwardshas standing to claim that rights and privileges granted to her by FOIA were denied when School Board members went into a closed session at their Jan. 10 meeting without first holding a public vote to enter into the session.

The closed session in question resulted in the firing without cause of former superintendent Scott Baker.

Jeremy Capps, attorney for the School Board, argued at the hearing Tuesday that since the closed meeting was exempt from FOIA for a legitimate reasondiscussion of personnelKeyes does not have any rights that were denied.

In his opinion, however, Rigual pointed to Virginia Code section 2.2-3700, which states: All public records and meetings shall be presumed open, unless an exemption is properly invoked.

The procedure outlined for a public body to overcome the presumption that its meetings are public must be followed, and any exception to this presumption must be properly invoked, Rigual wrote. The petitioner correctly asserts that [Virginia Code] setting forth the procedure for a closed meeting is a right or privilege conferred by the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.

Because board members did not follow procedure and hold an affirmative vote to go into the closed session, they did not properly invoke an exception to FOIA, and therefore Keyes can claim that her rights under the Act were denied to her, Rigual found.

There will be a trial in Circuit Court on this claim, Jenna Edwards told The Free LanceStar Thursday.

Also in his ruling, Rigual sustained the dismissal of another claim in Keyess petition, which is that the School Board violated FOIA by conducting a closed session that did not appear on the posted agenda for the meeting.

Rigual found that no relevant provision of FOIA requires public meetings to have agendas or requires that a posted agenda be followed.

Petitioners suggestion that the spirit of Virginias FOIA would be best served if local governing bodies, at public meetings, only considered matters on appearing on a previously published agenda must be addressed to the General Assembly, Rigual wrote.

Edwards said Keyes will appeal this dismissal.

Rigual also sustained the dismissal of Keyes third claim, which is that the board violated FOIA by following a substantially different agenda than the one made available to the public in advance.

He noted, however, that FOIA does require that if there is an agenda, it must be made available to the public at the same time it is made available to members of a public body.

Riguals ruling permits Keyes to amend her claim to allege that the altered agenda was never made available to the public, which Edwards said she plans to do.
The Fredericksburg Sister City Association is teaming with local artists from varied backgrounds to create what seems like the picture-perfect fundraiser for Ukrainian people devastated by war.

For the first time, those who partner with other cities across the globe are focusing their efforts on the same charitable event: an art auction and reception to help provide assistance for those in the war-torn country.

The spirit of the sister cities has always been one of embracing other cultures and other nations and this is one to the max, said Collette Caprara, a Fredericksburg writer and artist.

She and her husband, David, are founding members of the FredericksburgKathmandu sister city group, formed in 2015 after earthquakes in Nepal killed almost 9,000 people. Caprara saw then how people in the Fredericksburg area responded to the tragedyand organizers of the FXBG4UKRAINE event have seen the same willingness to help.

Its wonderful to live in a community that says yes, said Betsy Glassie.

Motivated by the terrible devastation caused by the war, she and fellow Liberty Town artist Wendy AtwellVasey talked about some sort of citywide art exhibit. AtwellVasey mentioned the discussion to her husband, Craig, whos president of the Fredericksburg Sister City Association, and he brought up the idea to the general membership.

The whole group responded enthusiastically, he said.

When he described the event at a sister-city potluck a few weeks later, people volunteered to help with the planning, secure donations and do anything else they could, said Vasey, who is chairing the event.

So many artists offered numerous pieces that organizers had to limit the auction to about 30 selections, including photographs and oil paintings, collages, sculptures and wooden pieces. Their estimated value ranges from $100 to $1,200, and theres a recommended starting bid attached to each piece.

Sunflowers have become one of the ways people across the globe have shown their support for Ukraine, and the countrys national flower is well-represented in the donated artwork. Examples range from Capraras Sunflower Symphony, which has single flower heads reaching up to a blue sky, to Elizabeth Seavers Green Thumb, a whimsical cat with a seed packet in its bib overalls and a sunflower looming over it.

Some paint a picture of the city sponsoring the event or represent the countries that are part of the sister-city partnership.

Fredericksburg Sunset by Laurie Watkins includes familiar downtown scenes, including the spire of St. Georges Episcopal Church, and pink-tinged clouds in the sky. AtwellVaseys Snowfall shows Fredericksburg rooftops under a light dusting of snow.

Paula Raudenbushs A Window in France is a graphic sketch that shows the romance of that ancient wall, the weathered shutters, the subtle balance of just enough tone, according to a review by Kathryn Willis.

The mural that Cathy Herndon painted near the Fredericksburg train station and on a wall in the Italian sister city of Este, shows a dove with outstretched wings. Shes adapted the work, called Columbia for All, on canvas and has added even more international touches: words on slips of paper that float around the dove. Theres the Ukrainian word for hope, imagine in French, share in German, grow in Italian and learn in Nepali.

The reception also will include work from Ukrainian artists and musicians. Traditional foods from Ukraine will be served along with samples from some of the sister cities along with wine and beverages.

All funds raised will be divided among World Central Kitchen, Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders, groups helping with humanitarian needs in Ukraine.

Olga Bilyk is of Ukrainian heritage and said its been extremely painful to watch whats happened in the birthplace of her parents. Shes also been touched by the efforts of fellow residents of Fredericksburg.

Its amazing that the mayor and the Sister City Association have taken it upon themselves to help to whatever degree they can the Ukrainians who have been displaced through no fault of their own, she said. We thought we had evolved into more peaceful and different times but apparently not.

The current war is painfully similar to what her parents went through in the early 1930s when they fled dictator Joseph Stalins regime. He created a famine in an attempt to wipe out small farmers in the fertile country and about 4 million people starved to death.

We understand the trauma that millions of displaced Ukrainians are going through right now, she wrote in an email about her and her husband. Our parents went through much the same when they immigrated to America to escape Stalins wrath. We share in their proverbial Trail of Tears.

After the online silent auction, there will be a live auction at the reception for other works, including ones donated by Tetiana Kadnikova, who continues to paint and sell her wares at an Alley of Artists event in Ukraine. Her daughter, Ganna Anya Kadnikova, also studied art and has worked in fashion but never lost her love for painting, according to Willis, who provided commentary about the two.

Ganna Kadnikova is married to an American diplomat and when the war started, she convinced her mother to come from her home, in Dnipro, eastern Ukraine, to eastern Europe with them. She stayed a while, but when the daughter and husband returned to the United States, the elder Kadnikova went back to her homeland and resumed her painting.

Ganna Kadnikova brought 33 of her mothers works with her, and after she heard from her brother-in-law about the Fredericksburg event to help Ukraine, donated two of them, as well as one of her own paintings.

After resettling in Dnipro, her mother has joined with other retirees to support friends whose family members are fighting for Ukraine, and to help refugees whose homes have been destroyed.

Shes also thrown herself into her art, Willis wrote, focusing with a new passion on Ukrainian culture and displaying her work under the constant threat of bombs.

We need to show the Russians that we are not afraid to continue to lead our lives, our Ukrainian lives, Tetiana Kadnikova said to Willis.

More information about the event and artists featured is available online at fxbg4ukraine.org.
Bluffs Trinity Lutheran Church will be hosting its annual soup supper/canned food drive from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19.

This is the 14th year the church has provided a free homemade soup dinner in exchange for nonperishable food items. The collected food will be donated to the LifeHouse Food Pantry in Fremont to help less fortunate people in our area.

If you don't have any extra food items, but would still like to contribute, a freewill offering will be taken to benefit the churchs Russian refugees. Everyone can eat for free even if they have nothing to donate.

A quilt raffle and craft /bake/quilt sale will also be going on throughout the evening.

Bluffs Trinity Church, 1693 County Road 17, Fremont, is located 2 miles north of Sapp Brothers and 5 miles west of John Deere on County Road Q. (At the corner of County Road 17 and County Road Q).

For additional information, contact Rev. Sean Tyler at 402-651-5415. This is a Thrivent Action Team event.
More than two years after the coronavirus moved classes exclusively onto Zoom, nearly 9 out of every 10 students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln continue to enroll in at least one online course.

The ease of accessing an online course and the utility of doing so has boosted the number of credit hours UNL students are taking each semester and helped push the four-year graduation rate to its highest level in a decade.

UNL will aim to build on those successes by creating a new administrative position to work with faculty, staff and administrators to develop credit and non-credit programs, identify new market areas and grow enrollment.

The inaugural assistant vice chancellor for digital and online learning  a job description was posted last week  will also create opportunities for learners of all ages, said Katherine Ankerson, who started as UNLs executive vice chancellor in January.

That means creating online courses for high school students seeking to earn college credit, ensuring the online course catalog is robust enough to meet the needs of UNL's students seeking to earn credit over the summer, and developing offerings for individuals in the workforce seeking to acquire new skills, Ankerson added.

I want to see somebody who is entrepreneurial and collaborative, who has a strong background in developing online programs and understands the needs of diverse students, she said.

The move to hire a champion of digital and online learning, according to the job posting, comes after the University of Nebraska opted to shut down its systemwide online education program earlier this year.

After starting with a single online degree program in 2007, the University of Nebraska Online Worldwide  later shortened to NU Online  was offering 34 undergraduate and 121 graduate programs by 2020.

NU Online enrolled 5,500 Nebraskans and 8,000 others from every state in the U.S. during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But, as online programs took off at other colleges and universities across the country, and with a limited budget, Mary Niemiec, associate vice president for digital education, told the NU Board of Regents in December 2020 she anticipated growth would slow through 2025.

The challenge has always been how to make us stand out, Niemiec told board members at the time. We dont have the money to throw at the wall and see what sticks.

As part of its effort to trim $43 million from its budget in response to the fiscal challenges created by the pandemic, administrators opted to close NU Online.

Doing so cut eight positions from Varner Hall; one of those individuals was rehired in another open position at NU, spokeswoman Melissa Lee said. Two additional staff members resigned.

NU then moved the online education initiative to the campuses, which have the advantage of built-in branding, and where decisions can be made in conjunction with college deans, members of the faculty, student service offices and other departments, Lee said.

It was an opportunity to think about the best approach for online learning and what makes the most sense at the system level and at the campus level, Lee said. This is an area where it makes sense for the faculty and deans to own this.

NUs system office will still offer support and look for chances where each of its campuses in Lincoln, Omaha and Kearney can collaborate through Jaci Lindburg, who became associate vice president for digital education in July 2021 after Niemiec retired. Lindburg has a full-time staff member and a part-time staffer to support online education at the system office.

But campuses like UNL's will have the opportunity to tailor the program to their strengths or shift quickly to meet new needs from employers or the demands of students.

Ankerson said UNLs new administrator  a position she said the university views as essential  will work within her office with a keen eye on the future, anticipating changes that will happen in online education as well as the needs of private industry.

They will also collaborate closely with the Center for Transformational Teaching, which assists faculty in designing courses using a variety of pedagogies and technologies, as well as with non-academic offices to provide support for students, and to ensure quality across UNLs online offerings.

Online and digital learning doesnt just occur here in Lincoln or in Omaha, Ankerson said, it provides opportunities across the state.
As the Nov. 8 general election edges ever closer, voters are getting ready to head to the polls in Dodge County.

Or fill out an early voting ballot.

The polls will open at 8 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

Dodge County Clerk and Election Commissioner Fred Mytty said polling places for this mid-term election will be the same as the May primary with two exceptions.

Fremonters in Precinct 3A formerly voted in Fremont City Auditorium, 925 N. Broad St., but Keene Memorial Library, which is undergoing an expansion and remodeling project, is using that building as its temporary location.

So Precinct 3A voters need to go across Ninth Street to Metropolitan Community College at 835 N. Broad St., to cast their ballots.

The Precinct 3C location also has changed. In the past, voters in this precinct voted at the former Bradys Meats and Foods or other locations.

We finally got a permanent location, Mytty said.

Now, Precinct 3C voters will cast their ballots at the former ENCOR building at 935 S. Schneider St.

Part of this building is used for storage. However, the county remodeled the northeast part of the building which now serves as a room for emergency management meetings. It also will be used as a polling place and includes restrooms.

Instead of going to a polling place, some voters may opt to cast an early voting ballot.

For many years, Douglas and Lancaster counties have had whats called an indefinite absentee list.

All those on the list would be sent an application for an absentee ballot.

In the 2020 election  during the COVID-19 pandemic  the Nebraska Secretary of State mailed out absentee requests to every voter.

On that form was a place where people could check indicating that they wanted to be on an indefinite voter absentee list.

I assumed it was temporary, just for that election, Mytty said. But according to the Secretary of States office, once they (voters) are on that list, its indefinite.

Mytty said about 4,000 people are on that list out of 22,000 voters in Dodge County.

The clerks office recently mailed out applications for early voting ballots to people on the list.

Thus far, its received about 2,900 applications back from voters asking for an early voting general election ballot.

Voters, who received an application, have until Oct. 21 to get it to the clerks office to receive a ballot.

Those who miss that deadline still have until 4:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 7  the day before the election  to vote in person at the county clerks office in the courthouse.

Otherwise, they need to go to the polls in their precinct.

Mytty also noted a change in terms regarding the early voting ballots.

Formerly, they were called absentee ballots.

Historically, Mytty said, voters had to be absent from the county to request an absentee ballot. A voter had to have a disability or be in the hospital or some other situation to receive a disabled ballot.

That criteria is gone.

They switched that to be the all-inclusive, early voting ballot, Mytty said. It doesnt label you. Some people dont like to be called, disabled and some people dont like to show that theyre out of town on Election Day, because then that means other people might know their house is empty.

Mytty said the early voting ballots can provide voter convenience.

Voters can mail back their application for a ballot or place it in a drop box between the Dodge County Courthouse and the Dodge County Judicial Center.

Once we get that, we will send out the ballots to them, Mytty said.

The ballots must be returned before 8 p.m. election night.

Voters who want to know whats on the ballot can see sample ballots online by visiting dodgecounty.nebraska.gov/election-commission. Voters can find their precinct and polling place on this page, too.

The ballots include the candidates and proposed initiatives.

Voters also can call the clerks office at 402-727-2767 and request to receive their specific precincts ballot.

Ballots also are published in all the newspapers in the county.

Mytty encourages voters to learn about the candidates.

Its so much better for voters to acquaint themselves with the candidates prior to going to the polls, Mytty said.

A list of candidates in several races accompanies this story. Candidate Q&As will run in the paper the week of Oct. 17.

Polling places in Dodge County are:

City of North Bend  VFW Hall

City of Scribner  Scribner City Community Room, 530 Main St., Scribner

Cotterell/Union/Ridgeley/Pleasant Valley  VFW Hall, North Bend

Webster-Dodge  Dodge City Hall

Pebble-Snyder  Snyder Auditorium

Platte East  Church of Christ, 4163 N. Broad St.

Platte West  Christensen Field Community Room, 1730 W. 16th St.

Nickerson-Maple  Nickerson Firemans Community Room

Everett-Cuming _ Scribner City Community Room, 530 Main St., Scribner

City of Hooper  Hooper Public Library

Logan/Hooper  Logan View Junior-Senior High School

Elkhorn  Trinity Lutheran School, 16th Street and Luther Road, Fremont

Fremont Precincts

Note: Some locations are polling places for more than one precinct.

1A  Evangelical Free Church, 2050 N. Lincoln Ave.

1B  Anderson Conference Center, 900 N. Clarkson St.

1C  Trinity Lutheran School, 16th Street and Luther Road

1D  Gifford Tower, 2510 N. Clarkson St.

1E  St. Patricks Catholic Church, 3400 E. 16th St.

2A  First Congregational Church, 1550 N. Broad St., Northeast entrance

2B  StoneBridge Christian Church, 1041 N. Nye Ave.

2C, 2D, 2E  Nebraska Extension of Dodge County office, 1206 W. 23rd St.

3A  Metropolitan Technical Community College, west entrance, 835 N. Broad St.

3B  Dodge County Courthouse, Fifth Street and Park Avenue

3C  Old ENCOR building, 935 S. Schneider St. (former ENCOR workshop building)

3D  Christensen Field Community Room, 1730 W. 16th St.

3E  Salem Lutheran Church, annex building, Sixth and C streets

4A, 4B  Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 1544 E. Military Ave.

4C  Deerfield Clubhouse, 1021 S. Howard Drive (Howard and Old Highway 8)

4D  First Lutheran Church, 3200 E. Military Ave.

4E  Swanson Hall of Science, Eighth and Irving streets
The Office of Congressman Mike Flood has announced that district staff will host mobile office hours in Fremont on Wednesday, Oct. 19.

The office hours will be 12:30-2:30 p.m. at Fremont Area Chamber of Commerce, 128 E. Sixth St., Fremont.

During the office hours, district office team members will be available to assist with challenges regarding federal agencies, military academy nominations, scheduling requests and any other needs constituents might encounter.

Congressman Flood maintains permanent offices in Lincoln and in Washington, D.C. Location and contact information for the permanent offices can be found at flood.house.gov.
BOSTON (AP)  Democratic Attorney General Maura Healey and pro-Trump Republican Geoff Diehl clashed on everything from energy and education to abortion and whether those in the country illegally should have access to drivers license in Massachusetts during their first debate for governor Wednesday.

Both candidates are working to shore up their partys base while reaching out to independent voters, who make up the bulk of the electorate in Massachusetts ahead of the Nov. 8 election.

One point of contention centered on the future of education in Massachusetts.

Diehl said parents are upset about some public school curriculum and want more school choice options. Diehl said his daughter was required to watch a video and acknowledge she has the advantage on the playing field and in the classrrom because she is white.

I want to give parents that choice to be able to send their children where they think they should go and not get indoctrinated in our schools, he said.

Healey said every child "regardless of their race, their ethnicity, their zip code should have access to a high quality education.

She said Diehl would limit student access to books.

He wants to ban books. He wants to require that any time a child wants to go into a public library they have to get a permission slip, she said. "Thats not the direction we need to go."

On the push for renewable energy, Healey said she would have signed the same legislation Republican Gov. Charlie Baker signed earlier this year intended to bring the state closer to its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

It makes sense. It's where we are. It's where we are going, she said. As governor I'm going to continue to work on efforts to diversify our portfolio, to rein in costs, to modernize the grid.

Diehl said Healey and other Democrats are painting a too-rosy picture of the ability of the state to replace fossil fuels with renewable sources of energy like solar and wind. He declined to say if he would have signed the bill.

If the goal is to be completely carbon free by 2050, I'm not not sure that's possible. If we can, great, but let the free market decide that," he said.

Another difference between the two came on the issue of abortion.

Healey said she would actively work to protect access to abortion, Diehl who hailed the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, said as governor his job would be to protect peoples health care choices." He said that sometimes that might require putting his personal views to one side.

The two also split on whether the state should repeal a new state law that gives those in the country illegally the ability to obtain drivers licenses.

Healey said the new law makes sense from a public safety standpoint because it allows the state to better identify who's behind the wheel, ensures they properly understand the rules of the road and are insured in case of an accident.

Diehl is leading an effort to repeal the law at the ballot box saying in part that it opens the door to drivers using the licenses to illegally register to vote.

Another figure hovering over the debate was Trump.

Healey repeatedly tried to tie Diehl to the former president, saying he would bring Trumpism to Massachusetts.

Diehl in turn tried to steer the debate away from the former president and said that unlike some Trump supporters, he believes President Joe Biden won the election.

Obviously Joe Biden won the election. Just look at how bad the economy is," he said.

Diehl served as co-chair for former President Donald Trumps presidential campaign in Massachusetts and won his endorsement for governor in a state the roundly rejected Trump in 2016 and 2020.

Healey is hoping to make history as the states first woman and first openly gay candidate  and the nations first openly gay woman  elected governor. Healey and her running mate Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll are also hoping to become the states all-female governor/lieutenant governor ticket.

Diehl, a former state representative, and his running mate Leah Allen Cole, also a former state representative, are hoping to keep the governors office in Republican hands, in a state that otherwise tends to elect Democrats to statewide office.
A Polish oil pipeline operator says a leak has been detected in a pipeline in Poland which is the main route through which Russian crude reaches Germany. The operator said Wednesday that it detected a leak in the Druzhba pipeline that originates in Russia on Tuesday evening 70 kilometers (45 miles) from the central Polish city of Plock. It said the cause of the leak wasn't known. The incident follows leaks late last month in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines running along the Baltic seabed. A Polish government security official, Stanislaw Zaryn, says the leak could be the result of an accident, but that officials are still investigating and looking at all possible explanations.
Nearly 10 years passed before prison health officials provided a Pap smear for inmate Niccole Wetherell.

When she finally got one, in August 2019, the gynecologist examining her could see the cancer growing in her cervix without the aid of a microscope. Eighteen months later, the cancer killed her at age 40.

An investigative report released Tuesday by the State Inspector General of Corrections faulted Nebraska's prison system for Wetherell's death.

According to the report, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services did not track when inmates were due for preventive care like Pap smears. Nor has the department set up an electronic health records system that could have provided tracking, despite a 2015 law requiring such a system.

"The forensic pathologist who performed her autopsy speculated that a timely Pap smear could have detected her cancer sooner and possibly would have helped extend her life," the report said.

Wetherell was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma, the most common type of cervical cancer and one that is highly survivable if caught early. Federal health guidelines recommend that women age 30 through 65 get Pap smears every three years to check for cervical cancer. State prison policy requires the same.

But medical records show that Wetherell went from September 2010 until August 2019 without a Pap smear, the report said. She only got the 2019 screening after asking for one because she was having abnormal menstrual symptoms.

A nurse practitioner who is the primary caregiver at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women in York, where Wetherell was incarcerated, explained the gap by saying the department had no way to track when inmates needed preventive care. She told the inspector general that Wetherell's case prompted her to create a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to monitor patient visits.

The lack of tracking occurred despite a 2015 state law requiring the state prison system to "ensure that complete and up-to-date electronic records are maintained for each person committed to the department."

Seven years later, however, virtually all inmate medical records are still kept in paper form. The report said various proposals and attempts to create or acquire an electronic health record system, along with the appropriation of more than $2 million, have produced little.

The current plan is to develop an in-house system, working with the State Office of the Chief Information Officer. Two limited pieces of the system, a behavioral health module and an intake appraisal form, went live last year. The report said it is not clear when the rest of the system will be finished or to what extent it will be able to share information with outside health providers.

Inspector General Doug Koebernick recommended that the department provide the Legislature's Appropriations, Judiciary and Health and Human Services Committees with a detailed update on the electronic health records system in November, a recommendation that the department rejected.

Koebernick also recommended that the department cease efforts to build an in-house system if one cannot be fully implemented by July 31, 2025, and seek state funds to purchase a system instead. The department accepted that recommendation.

State corrections officials did not respond to a request for comment on the report and its findings on Tuesday.

Wetherell was serving a life sentence for the 1998 murder of 19-year-old Scott Catenacci in a Bellevue park in 1998. She was 18 at the time and among six people ages 16 to 20 involved in the killing.

By the time of her death, she had become a leader among the other inmates, the report said. She got her associates degree through a program with York College, served as a peer mentor and volunteered with the service dog training program Domesti-PUPS. In a 2018 TEDx talk to fellow inmates and staff, she talked about trying to give hope in what feels like a hopeless situation.
A plenary session of 6th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia has kicked off in Astana.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is attending the event.

The heads of state and government posed together for a group photo.

President Ilham Aliyev made a speech at the plenary session.

Speech by President Ilham Aliyev

-Distinguished President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev,

Distinguished Heads of State and Government,

Ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, I would like to thank President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for his invitation to the 6th CICA Summit and for hospitality.

During President Tokayevs recent successful official visit to Azerbaijan we had fruitful discussions on current issues of the bilateral agenda.

Azerbaijan supports the political and socio-economic reforms in Kazakhstan under the leadership of President Tokayev.

Dear colleagues,

As a result of the victory gained in the Second Karabakh war, 2 years ago Azerbaijan liberated its territories from the occupation of Armenia, put an end to the three-decades-long Karabakh conflict, ensured justice and itself, enforced the implementation of the 4 UN Security Council resolutions adopted in 1993, demanding unconditional withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijans occupied territories.

Our cities and villages, cultural and religious monuments, mosques have been purposefully destroyed, desecrated and plundered throughout almost 30-year occupation by Armenia. Even mosques were used as stables for keeping animals.

Unfortunately, during three decades, we never heard any opposition from Armenian society to such vandalism, vice versa, this destruction and Armenian vandals, war criminals were even glorified and presented as heroes.

Armenia committed systematic war crimes against Azerbaijani civilians and military personnel. Around 3900 Azerbaijani citizens still remain missing since the First Karabakh War. Most of them have been tortured, killed and buried in mass graves. This year, we discovered mass graves in two liberated villages.

Armenia has to provide Azerbaijan with information about the fate of missing persons and exact locations of mass graves. We demand this information for almost 2 years, but Armenian Government refuses to share it with Azerbaijan thus associating itself with criminal leaders of previous Armenian regimes.

Azerbaijan is among one of the most mine-contaminated countries in the world. According to initial estimations, during the times of occupation, Armenia planted more than one million landmines. During 2 years after the Second Karabakh War, more than 250 Azerbaijani citizens were killed or severely injured as a result of landmine explosions. International experts estimate that Azerbaijan needs nearly 30 years and 25 billion US dollars to solve issues related to demining.

Now, in parallel with mine clearance operations, Azerbaijan with its own financial resources, undertakes a large-scale reconstruction works in the liberated areas. We have also begun the return process of the former internally displaced persons back to their native lands. The program called Great Return has started.

Despite the resolution of the Karabakh conflict, Armenia continues its provocations at the border, the latest of which was committed this September. Azerbaijani Armed Forces had to take resolute counter-action to repel the military provocation of Armenia. All responsibility for such provocations lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia.

Despite the three-decades-long suffering of more than 1 million of Azerbaijanis ethnically cleansed by Armenia from their native lands, despite unprecedented barbarism, destruction of hundreds of our cities and villages, Azerbaijan offered Armenia to sign a peace treaty based on mutual recognition of each other's territorial integrity.

Dear colleagues,

Large-scale transportation infrastructure projects implemented by Azerbaijan transformed our country into one of the important international transportation and logistics hubs. In the first 9 months of 2022, the transit through Azerbaijan increased by nearly 65 %.

Azerbaijan makes significant contribution to the development of the East-West and North-South transportation corridors. Azerbaijan actively promotes the creation of the Zangezur Corridor, which will be an integral part of the Middle Corridor.

Since 2019 Azerbaijan is chairing, by unanimous decision of Member States, the Non-Aligned Movement, the second largest international structure after the UN. Our chairmanship was unanimously prolonged for one more year until the end of 2023.

We are making huge efforts to strengthen the solidarity within the NAM and to increase the Movements political weight and global visibility. Azerbaijan actively promotes the idea of NAMs institutionalization to this end. In this context, it is worth mentioning the NAM Parliamentarian Network and the NAM Youth Organization, established by the initiatives of Azerbaijan. We also suggested to convene next year a high-level meeting of the NAM Member States to exchange views and formulate the position of the Movement concerning the post-COVID-19 world.

Thank you!
Republican attorney general candidate John Kellner is facing a third campaign finance complaint, a historic benchmark among those seeking to become Colorado's chief legal officer.

No attorney general or candidate for that office has more than one complaint in the 22 years TRACER, the campaign finance database run by the Colorado Secretary of State's Office, system has tracked those complaint.

The three complaints against the Kellner campaign were all filed by Ethan Black of ProgressNow Colorado, which recently ran afoul of campaign finance laws and was fined more than $16,000. It was the go up's second such fine over its Republican-targeted "voter's guide" in the past year.

The most recent complaint against the Kellner campaign, filed Oct. 4., alleges the Republican Attorney Generals Association held a fundraiser on Aug. 28 for Kellner at The Broadmoor hotel in Colorado Springs. Kellner failed to disclose expenditures or in-kind donations related to the use of resort facilities, space, food, beverages, waitstaff, bartenders, or other goods or services for the fundraiser.

The complaint alleges the campaign: "illegally failed to disclose expenditures his candidate committee made to cover these costs; RAGA covered such costs and Kellner illegally failed to disclose in-kind contributions from RAGA; or the private resort covered such costs and Kellner illegally failed to disclose in-kind contributions from the resort."

All are violations of state campaign finance law, according to the complaint.

RAGA, through independent expenditure committee Colorado Freedom IEC, has contributed $357,000 in support of Kellner.

Kellner's campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

The repeated violations raise questions about Kellner's ability to follow the law, according to Bruce Brown, an attorney in Idaho Springs and the former district attorney for the Fifth Judicial District.

"Colorado campaign finance rules serve an important role in assuring voters obtain transparent and timely information. A candidate for a law enforcement leadership position, such as attorney general, should and is held to a higher standard given the need to set the best possible leadership example for the rule of law," he said. "Indifference to election rules should call into question Mr. Kellners ability to fulfill the duties of the office he is seeking, since an attorney general has a legal duty to assist in the conduct of fair elections."

The first two Kellner complaints were filed in May and July. The Kellner campaign was found to have violated campaign finance laws but was allowed to fix those violations.

The May complaint said Kellner had taken an illegal $500 campaign contribution on Jan. 27, 2022 from Michael Fields, a professional lobbyist for Advance Colorado Action.

That contribution came in during the legislative session. Statewide candidates, including for attorney general, are prohibited from accepting lobbyist contributions while the legislature is in session. Fields claimed he didn't know that was illegal.

Kellner was allowed under state law to "cure" the violation. Kellner said he was unaware Fields was a lobbyist and the contribution was returned in May.

Fields made another $500 contribution in July.

The second violation, in July, alleged Kellner held a fundraiser at a donors residence in Douglas County.

The donor, Ron von Lembke, "presumably incurred expenses for goods and services consumed" during the April fundraiser. Those expenses are considered in-kind campaign donations. Von Lembke also contributed the maximum $1,250 per cycle donation to the Kellner campaign, so the total of the in-kind and monetary contributions exceeded the allowable limit under state law.

The in-kind donations were not reported, another alleged violation of campaign finance law.

Kellner submitted an intent to cure in August while the investigation was underway by the Elections Division.

The corrected campaign finance report said another donor, Karen Bergey of Lone Tree, contributed the food and drink for the fundraiser, valued at $150.

No other costs were incurred for the fundraiser, according to the motion to dismiss filed by the Elections Division. The motion noted: "Respondent violated Colorado campaign finance law by failing to timely file an in-kind contribution related to the April 20, 2022, fundraising event."

While the number of complaints lodged against Kellner is historic for the office, one other current candidate for constitutional office has more.

Secretary of State Jena Griswold had five complaints filed against her this year, which are being handled by the attorney general's office and are still open. The status of those complaints is unknown.

Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser also faced a complaint last year, filed by attorney Suzanne Taheri on behalf of Defend Colorado, though it was dismissed due to lack of evidence of a violation.

In the 2021 complaint, Weiser was alleged to have participating in a fundraising event as part of a trip to Hawaii in June 2021 to attend the Attorney General Alliance meeting.

In his response, Weiser denied the allegations. He said he had followed all applicable campaign finance laws tied to the event, paid $437.50 for attending the fundraising event, reported that expenditure as well as all contributions stemming from the fundraiser.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, a Democrat, speaks at a voter registration event sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign and One Colorado on Sept. 17, 2022, in Lakewood. Weiser is running for reelection to a second term against Republican John Kellner, the district attorney for the 18th Judicial District.
For the fifth year, students wanting to apply to a Colorado college or university can do so for free for a short period of time.

Gov. Jared Polis and the Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) announced the annual Colorado Free Application Days Wednesday.

Students can apply to public Colorado colleges and universities and several private institutions for free from Tuesday, Oct. 18 through Thursday, Oct. 20., according to a Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) release.

There is no cap on the number of institutions to which people can apply. Application and fee waiver information are available through the CDHE.

The days are part of Colorado Applies Month, a five-week, statewide campaign to encourage people to pursue post-secondary education. The campaigns goal is to improve access to further education and training and increase Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and Colorado Application for State Financial Aid (CASFA) completion rates.

Last year, the campaign drew 63,000 applications, almost half of which being from students of color and more than a third from first-generation students.

According to the Colorado Applies Month website, 75% of all jobs and 93% of top jobs require a certificate or degree. Expanding access to further education is " increasingly critical for Colorados economy and workforce," according to the release.

I am happy to be announcing this years free application days and hope that Coloradans considering going to college take advantage of this exciting opportunity, Polis said. Removing application fees allows students to get one step closer to their dream school.

For more information, visit Colorado Free Application Days and Colorado Applies Month.
Tiffany Miera, a fifth grade math teacher at Needham Elementary School in Durango, thought Mondays assembly was a typical gathering of students and staff. It didnt take long for her to realize how wrong she was.

The Milken Family Foundation, a national nonprofit dedicated to strengthening K-12 education, was there to give a teacher a $25,000 achievement award.

We have so many amazing teachers who are deserving of an award like this, Miera said. I was super excited for whoever it might be.

When Mieras name was called as Colorados Milken Educator Award recipient, she could barely believe her ears.

It was definitely a shock, she said. I was like, Who? Me? I mean, I was just doing my job.

Mieras surprise award was part of an annual coast-to-coast appreciation tour the Milken Family Foundation has been conducting for 35 years.

Hailed by Teacher Magazine as the Oscars of teaching, the Milken Educator Award has a twofold purpose: To thank the countrys top early- and midcareer teachers for their dedication, and to bolster K-12 education by retaining its best educators. Surveys show that teachers who feel valued are less likely to leave the profession.

Talented teachers like Tiffany Miera provide the kind of guidance and compassion that students carry with them through learning and life, said award program founder Lowell Milken, who presented the award.

Miera, a Needham Elementary alum, does whatever she can to give back to the school and community that raised her. Shes a big believer in meeting students where they are, and she embraces an open-door policy that extends beyond school hours. Students will sometimes stop by her house  which is just a few blocks from the school  for extra help.

Ms. Miera is an invaluable member of her school and community, said Colleen ONeil, Colorado Department of Education's commissioner of educator talent. She is a trusted leader among her colleagues and is dedicated to improving and supporting her hometown of Durango. We are so grateful to have teachers like her in Colorado who offer their talents to mentor fellow educators and demonstrate their passion for student learning.

Mieras dedication is paying tangible dividends. According to Colorado Department of Education data, the percentage of Needham fifth graders meeting or exceeding math standards jumped from 25.4% in 2019 to 42.9% in 2022.

When I see my students achieve, I'm so proud of them, because I know how hard they worked to get there," she said.

Surprise is a key element of the awards program, said foundation spokeswoman Jana Rausch. Whenever possible, Milken likes to deliver the good news himself. The funds are unrestricted, which means Miera can use her $25,000 any way she chooses.

Miera, who recently completed her second masters degree, said she plans to use some of the money to pay off student loans.

The foundation plans to surprise as many as 40 elementary school teachers over the course of the 2022-23 school year.

Well, it definitely worked on me, Miera said. I had no idea what was going on until they called my name.
The city of Colorado Springs is weighing whether to gate Old Stage Road to reduce late-night shooting across private property, vandalism, lighting fireworks, dumping and other illegal activity.

You voted:
An official reception has been hosted on behalf of President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in honor of the heads of state and government attending the 6th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) held in Astana.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the event.

Will be updated
By Trend

French La Gazette online newspaper published an article about the issues related to the second anniversary of systematic terrorist attacks on the civilian population of Ganja city by the military-political leadership of Armenia, and the fact that international organizations haven't yet given a legal assessment of these crimes, Trend reports via the newspaper.

The article noted that Ganja city got bombed five times by the Armenian Armed Forces in October 2020.

"During the missile attacks serious damage was caused to the city's infrastructure, buildings, including residential buildings, and vehicles," the article said.

Along with Ganja city, Armenia also attacked, using missiles and heavy artillery, other Azerbaijani cities - Barda, Yevlakh, Beylagan, Tartar, Gabala, Goranboy, Aghjabadi and Khizi.

The article informed that as a result of these attacks, 93 civilians, including 12 children, and 27 women died. A total of 454 people, including 35 children received injuries of varying severity, 181 children lost one of their parents, 5 lost both parents, and all members of one family died.

The article also noted that although the Azerbaijani side appeals to international organizations in connection with the fact of Armenia's terrorist attack in Ganja and other cities, these structures prefer to remain silent and don't put any pressure on Armenia.

"There are 1,000s of facts about the brutal murder of Azerbaijani civilians by Armenians. Armenians committed genocide of Azerbaijanis in Khojaly, Bashlybel, and Garadaghli, which is proved by facts, photos and video evidence. The indifference of international organizations to the facts related to these crimes, to photo and video evidence of an attack on Ganja city, death of civilians, demonstrates their biased attitude," the article said.

In addition, the article stated that the archives of the relevant bodies of Azerbaijan contain official documents, video and photographic materials about these crimes, including information about the type of missiles that were used during the missile attacks on civilians in the country.

International organizations should give a legal assessment of these events, punish war criminals, and make fair decisions regarding the crimes committed by Armenians so that the confidence and respect of the Azerbaijani people in these organizations will increase, the article said.
The Republican state lawmaker who lost a primary challenge to U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert is backing the Democratic nominee for the seat.

Calling Boebert the "poster child" for the dangers of excessive partisanship, state Sen. Don Coram, R-Montrose, on Wednesday said that while he differs with Democrat Adam Frisch on plenty of issues, he believes the Aspen businessman can better represent the Western Slope-based 3rd Congressional District.

"I believe Adam Frisch is a good man," Coram wrote in a guest column for the Montrose Press. "I have had the opportunity to visit with him and get to know him better over the last few months. I know him to be decent, honest, and persistent. He has demonstrated that he is more interested in representing the district than being a celebrity. Thats important."

Added Coram: "Lets elect someone who cares about representing the majority of people in the middle that are fed up with extreme partisanship and juvenile antics."

Frisch welcomed the endorsement in a statement calling Coram "an upstanding leader and public servant who cares deeply about the people of Western Colorado.

Said Frisch: Coram recognizes that extremists like Boebert make it impossible to get things done for the people of CO-3. I am building a strong bipartisan coalition to ensure that the people of Southern and Western Colorado have an effective representative in Washington who will focus on the issues facing their families, their communities, and their businesses.

A Frisch spokeswoman said Coram will co-chair the campaign's Republicans for Frisch group.

Covering portions of the Western Slope and southern Colorado, including Pueblo County and the San Luis Valley, the sprawling 3rd CD leans Republican and hasn't sent a Democrat to the U.S. House since 2008. National election forecasters rank Boebert as a heavy favored for reelection.

Boebert dismissed her former rival's announcement.

Don Coram voted like a liberal Democrat, so it's no surprise that he would endorse the liberal Democrat in this race, she said in an emailed statement.

The former owner of a gun-themed restaurant in Rifle, Boebert unseated five-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton in the 2020 Republican primary and has since become one of former President Donald Trump's most prominent and vocal congressional supporters.

Coram lost a bid to oust Boebert by a nearly two-to-one margin in the June primary following a heated campaign in which he criticized the first-term incumbent as ineffectual and primarily concerned with stoking outrage, a line of attack revived by Coram in the endorsement op-ed.

"Bottom line, instead of working to represent the people in the 3rd CD, Lauren spends her time jet-setting around the country promoting herself and extreme rhetoric that only divides this country further," Coram wrote. "Its disgraceful and we should expect more from our United States representative."

In the same op-ed, Coram threw his support behind Colorado's Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser, who is facing a challenge from Republican John Kellner, the district attorney in the 18th Judicial District.

Colorado GOP spokesman Joe Jackson suggested that Coram's endorsements across party lines could backfire.

If anything, this will just cost Phil Weiser and Adam Frisch more votes across the Western Slope," Jackson said in a text message.

Colorado Democratic Party chair Morgan Carroll, however, called Coram's decision to back Weiser and Frisch "another example of Republicans who can no longer stay silent while the extremists take over the Colorado Republican Party."

Said Carroll: "Coram, along with most Coloradans, are interested in moving the state forward  not having their rights stripped away.

Another erstwhile Boebert primary challenger, Archuleta County industrial crane operator and first-time candidate Marina Zimmerman, ended her write-in campaign on Tuesday and is urging her supporters to vote for Frisch, the Colorado Times Recorder reported.

The most important and urgent goal is to do all we can to make sure Lauren Boebert is not reelected, Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman, who failed to qualify for the GOP primary ballot, is one of three official write-in candidates for the seat. She left the Republican Party and changed her registration to unaffiliated this summer, she said, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

The endorsements land on the heels of an internal poll released last week by the Frisch campaign showing the Democrat in a statistical dead heat with Boebert just over a week before mail ballots go out to most Colorado voters. Conducted by Colorado polling firm Keating Research, the survey found Frisch trailing Boebert among likely voters by 2 points, within the poll's margin of error.

Frisch announced earlier this week that he raised nearly $1.7 million in the most recent fundraising quarter, outpacing the $900,000 Boebert's campaign said she plans to report in the campaign finance report due on Saturday.
By Trend

France's desire to mediate between Azerbaijan and Armenia at any cost is directed against the important steps taken within the Brussels format, which took place as a result of the serious efforts of the European Council President Charles Michel, Azerbaijani political expert Elchin Mirzabayli told Trend on October 13.

According to Mirzabayli, this can also be considered as an example of France's insincere behavior towards the European Union, of which its a member, its destructive activities, and its attempts to put its own interests above the interests of the EU.

"France, speaking of human rights and freedoms, democracy and the right of peoples to self-determination, still has colonies. The territory of the de facto colonies of modern France, scattered almost throughout the oceans, is 560,000 square kilometers and has more people than Armenia, he said.

Guadeloupe and Martinique, Saint Barthelemy, and Saint Martin in the Caribbean Sea, French Guiana, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean close to South America, Reunion and Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, French Polynesia, made up of 130 small islands in the Pacific Ocean, as well as Wallis and Futuna, and New Caledonia are still considered civilized, democratic French colonies, the expert noted.

Why France, speaking about some special rights for a handful of Armenians living in the zone of temporary responsibility of Russian peacekeepers on the territory of Azerbaijan, doesnt give these rights to Reunions population of more than 800,000 people and Guadeloupe with a population of about 500,000 people, or doesnt give independence to Martinique islands population of 400,000 people? Mirzabayli also said.

Now this country is again trying to interfere in matters which have nothing to do with it, related to other peoples and states, to raise again issues taken off the agenda due to the 2020 second Karabakh war, which resulted in the implementation of UN Security Council resolutions, as well as due to diplomatic efforts, and clearly wants to impede the peace process, he pointed out. However, following the conduct of the current leadership and relevant institutions of this country, contrary to international law and the peace process, the mediation of France between Azerbaijan and Armenia is completely impossible. France is a party acting in the interests of the Armenian lobby and is on the side of Armenia in all matters.

The expert added that no one in Azerbaijan has forgotten and will not forget the negative activities of France as one of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group for almost 30 years.

"In the current situation, France's attempts to interfere in the Brussels format are undoubtedly connected with the intention of Paris to exclude the European Union as a separate institution from this process and act on behalf of the EU, as in the case of the institution of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship, Mirzabayli said.

France wants to appropriate the Brussels format and make it a platform for defending the interests of Armenia. From this point of view, Azerbaijan should not participate in the process, the results and course of which are already known, and should refuse all meetings held with the participation of France, he noted. The country which committed genocide in various countries of the world, including Rwanda and Algeria, as well as accusing others of committing genocide on the basis of fictitious claims, in no way can demonstrate a fair position on the issue of crimes of genocide, occupation, terrorism, and vandalism committed by Armenia over the past almost 30 years.

The Azerbaijani people dont have any confidence and dont even want to hear the name of this country [France] in the context of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations," concluded the expert.
Six of the eight candidates vying for seats on the Floyd County Board of Supervisors brought their ideas about taxation, the law enforcement center and proposed carbon pipelines to the public Wednesday evening at a candidate forum.

The forum, sponsored by the Charles City Area Economic Development Corporation and the American Association of University Women, allowed candidates one minute each to answer several questions throughout the 90-minute event.

In August 2021, Floyd County voters approved a change in how supervisors are elected. Previously, each member of the three-member body was chosen by voters from the entire county. The new system divides the county into three districts, with voters in each district voting only for the supervisor living in that district. District One encompasses the southern and southwestern portion of the county. District Two includes most of Charles City proper, while District Three includes the northern and most of the western part of the county.

Of the eight candidates, only Doug Kamm is running as an incumbent. Current supervisors Roy Schwickerath and Linda Tjaden declined to run for reelection.

All of the candidates agreed that property taxes are too high and have risen too quickly over the last four years. According to the Floyd County website, total rural property tax rates have risen from $8.85 per $1,000 of taxable valuation to $10.56 per $1,000.

District Two candidate Joshua Mack said the county has seen many fiscal changes in the past four years.

"The most significant one we've seen is the $2 million increase in taxes, along with the $13.5 million approved by voters in 2018," he said, referring a bond referendum voters approved to renovate the law enforcement center and courthouse.

Former state representative and District One candidate Mark Kuhn said he's had enough of rising taxes.

"I'm running for county supervisor because every time I get a tax statement it's higher," Kuhn said. "It's becoming frustrating, and I question the way the money has been spent in some cases, and hopefully we can get it under control."

District Three candidates Jayson Ryner and Jeff Hawbaker were unable to attend.

Kuhn suggested the county use a portion of the more than $3 million of federal American Rescue Plan funds it has received to ease the burden on taxpayers. He also is in favor of using those funds to make sure the courthouse and law enforcement center construction is completed.

Kamm, who has served on the board for 12 years, said the courthouse project has been delayed due to supply chain issues, and the contractors are still working under their original 2019 bids.

"The LEC project isn't as overbudget as everybody thinks it is," Kamm said. "We're using some of the ARP funds for that, but if it wouldn't have been for COVID we wouldn't have had those funds. And if it wouldn't have been for COVID, that law enforcement project would have been done a long time ago. If you really want to know about that project, you need to ask."

A firm completion date for the LEC and courthouse projects has not been released.

The candidates also discussed two proposed carbon sequestration pipelines and the possible use of eminent domain. Both Summit Carbon Solutions and Navigator LLC. are attempting to gain access to private and public land through the use of easements to build pipelines that would carry liquified carbon dioxide from ethanol plants to be sequestered underground at locations in North Dakota and Illinois.

Kuhn, along with all the other candidates, agreed that forcing landowners to allow the pipeline on their property isn't right. They also agreed the issue will mostly be decided at the state, not the county, level.

District Two candidate Dennis Kiefer echoed Kuhn's sentiments.

"As far as eminent domain, I don't think it's fair or just to have a money-making private company to have the power of eminent domain if the landowner is opposed to it," Kiefer said.

The candidates for District One are running for a two-year term. All other candidates are up for four-year terms. The election is set for Tuesday, Nov. 8. In-person early voting at the courthouse will begin Oct. 19 and absentee ballots must be mailed by Oct. 24. More voting information can be found at the Floyd County website or the Floyd County Auditor's Office Facebook page.
DES MOINES  Gov. Kim Reynolds received the highest grade for fiscal responsibility among the nations governors in a report issued by the conservative Cato Institute.

The biennial report grades governors on their fiscal policies from a limited government perspective, and awards higher grades to governors whose states have cut taxes and spending, according to the Cato Institute.

Reynolds was one of five governors  all Republicans  to receive an A grade from the report, and she had the highest score, just ahead of New Hampshires Chris Sununu, Nebraskas Pete Ricketts, Idahos Brad Little and Arizonas Doug Ducey.

Reynolds says that her politics are based on the ideas of limited government, personal responsibility and individual initiative, the report says. As governor, she has translated those beliefs into lean budgeting and major tax reforms, earning her the highest score on this report.

The report noted the tax cut legislation passed by Iowa lawmakers and signed into law by Reynolds in 2018, 2020 and 2022, the final of which will phase state income taxes down to a flat rate of 3.9 percent by 2026. At that point, the cuts will reduce Iowans income taxes  and thus also reduce state revenue  by nearly $2 billion annually.

The Cato Institute also reports that state spending under Reynolds, who became governor in 2017, has grown at an average rate of just 2.3%.

Iowa prides itself on stewarding taxpayer dollars with care and an eye toward growth, Reynolds said in a news release from the governors office. That means exercising restraint in our spending and taking every opportunity to return tax dollars to the hardworking Iowans who generated them in the first place. This is their money  not the governments  and they have a right to expect their own representatives to act like it. Im grateful to the Cato Institute for recognizing that Iowa does so.

Reynolds plans to join the Cato Institute for a virtual seminar to discuss her fiscal policies and tax cuts, her office said.

Powerball winner: Someone who bought a Powerball ticket at a Forest City store won a $2 million prize in Mondays drawing, the Iowa Lottery announced.

It is Iowas second big Powerball win this year, following a Northeast Iowa couple that won $2 million in January.

The latest winning ticket was bought at a Caseys, which will receive a $2,000 bonus for selling the ticket. The ticket came within one number of winning the $404 million jackpot, the lottery said.

Large prizes must be claimed at the Iowa Lotterys offices in Clive within a year of the drawing.

New website: The Iowa Department of Education launches its redesigned website, educateiowa.gov. According to the department, the new site improves users experience and will better serve the more than 2 million individuals who visit the site annually.

The new site is expected to produce faster page load times, improved search capabilities and a modernized design to make site navigation easier.
Danville Community College  in partnership with Dan River Region Entrepreneur Ecosystem, Longwood Small Business Development Center, River District Association, Danville/Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce and The Launch Place  is seeking students from Pittsylvania County Schools, Danville Public Schools, Caswell Public Schools, area private schools, DCC, and the community to participate in its annual Idea Fair.

This years event will be held in-person from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 15 in the Temple Building on the DCC campus.

Innovation, imagination, and big ideas are concepts that we want to foster and grow at DCC, said Jerry Wallace, president of DCC. By offering a venue for students to come present their work, we create a safe space for students to be wildly innovative and to be recognized for their ideas. As an institution of higher education, our ability to be involved in this project is exceptionally important to us.

The Idea Fair is conducted each year on National Entrepreneurs Day, an annual observance occurring on the third Tuesday of November, which honors people who have built an empire from absolutely nothing.

Hosting the Idea Fair at DCC is always exciting, said Cornelius Johnson, vice president of academic affairs and student services. Participants always come prepared with amazing projects and ideas they have put a lot of work and thought into. It is wonderful to see the collective innovation of students from our region.

The Idea Fair, meant to ignite innovation and creativity in students, seeks to address disparities, such as the lack of intentional entrepreneurial programming for women and people of color, an underdeveloped pipeline for youth entrepreneurship, and a lack of support for entrepreneurs facing isolation.

Every great invention or business started with an idea, said Willie Sherman, professor of business at DCC and coordinator of the Idea Fair. We encourage our participants to share their ideas because those ideas could become a business or invention that could change the lives of many.

To participate, students submit their original entrepreneurial ideas to be judged by a panel of volunteers from local high schools, universities and businesses. Projects will be judged on originality, creativity, project design, presentation, innovation, diversity, economic impact, sustainability and how well the project solves a relevant problem. Participants must be present to explain their projects to the Judges and other attendees.

Winners will be awarded for their submissions. First place prize for a high school senior attending DCC next year is $1,000. The first-place student will receive $300, a second-place finish earns $200 and a third-place student will win $100. Each additional participant will receive $50.

To register, visit www.danville.edu/ideafair2022.

To learn more, contact Sherman at 434-797-8470 or willie.sherman@danville.edu
In a span of 12 hours, flames caused damage to two homes in Danville.

The first happened Wednesday afternoon when a fire that started in a kitchen heavily damaged a Danville home.

It was shortly after 3 p.m. when the Danville Fire Department was called to 157 Smith St., an area in the southern part of the city.

Arriving units found heavy smoke and flames coming from the back of the one-story brick home.

Everyone was outside the home when crews arrived, a news release from battalion chief T.E. Napier Jr. reported.

The blaze broke out in the kitchen, the news release stated. Thats where most of the severe damaged was centered. The rest of the home suffered smoke and heat destruction.

The fire marshals office ruled the cause as careless handling of cooking materials, Napier wrote in the release.

There were no injuries reported. The American Red Cross is helping the family.

A total of 16 personnel responded to the scene along with two engines and a ladder truck.

A second fire broke out at about 3 a.m. Thursday. Crews responded 13 Augusta Ave. to find smoke coming from the roof of a two-story home.

Firefighters then discovered heavy fire on the second floor and attic of the home, a news release reported.

The second floor was heavily damaged by fire and the first floor sustained water damage. For this blaze, 20 personnel responded and remained on scene for nearly four hours.

The fire marshals office determined the fire to be electrical in nature. The American Red Cross is helping the homeowner, the release stated.

In both blazes, the fire department was assisted by the Danville Police Department, Danville Utilities and the Danville Life Saving Crew.
By Trend

Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu discussed bilateral relations and regional security developments in a phone call held Tuesday, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.

The ministers discussed the Istanbul Grain Agreement, which was signed between Turkiye, the United Nations, Russia and Ukraine on July 22 to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports.

Akar reiterated that Turkiye is ready to do its part for peace in the region as it has done so far.

According to the statement, the ministers also exchanged views on Syria.

Akar stressed Ankara's top priority is to permanently prevent the terrorist threat and corridor and to neutralize terrorist organizations in northern Syria along Turkiye's border.

The importance of complying with the previously reached agreements on this issue was once again emphasized between the ministers, according to the statement.
" " You may have to do some interviewing before you find a therapist that you're comfortable with. FatCamera/Getty Images

Taka W. (who asked that we withhold her last name) of Sandy Springs, Georgia, has seen a number of therapists since her sister died more than two decades ago, but only in 2017 did she finally connect with one who was able to help her start the healing process from childhood traumas, the loss of her parents and sister and a painful divorce. "She practically saved my life," she says, adding that she and her counselor enjoy a "wonderful relationship." Taka's one of millions of people around the world who turn to therapy to heal the wounds of the past, find better ways to cope and hopefully set a better tone for future generations.

The Covid-19 pandemic greatly increased the demand for therapy. Many Americans tried it for the first time during the last two or three years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 21.6 percent of adults in the U.S. sought and received some type of mental health services in 2021, compared with 19.2 percent in 2019. A 2021 survey by the American Psychological Association said psychologists reported "a large increase in demand for treatment of anxiety and depression compared with last year," according to a press release.

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If you're new to therapy, you might be wondering how you find a good therapist. Looking at a list from your insurance provider may seem impersonal. And you might be uncomfortable asking for recommendations from friends. Even if you do find a psychologist, a poor match can lead to stilted, ineffective sessions that don't develop into a productive relationship.

"The best therapist for you is someone who fits your personality and who's able to understand and help you with the particular issues you want to work on," says Boston-based psychotherapist Angela Ficken. "You don't always find 'the one' on the first date. Not every therapist out there is going to be 'the one,' either."

Doing a bit of prep work on the front end can lead to a better pairing. Natalia T. (who asked that we withhold her last name) of San Diego, California, has seen a few therapists over the years, some of whom have worked out, and some that haven't. "I would recommend that everyone does a little reflection before they look for a therapist to identify what issues are bringing them to seek therapy," she says. "This reflection can help ground your search."

Fortunately, the mental health industry has caught onto the truth that patient/provider matchmaking is no easy feat, and so the process has evolved. Here are some effective ways to find a good therapist, from people who really know.
For All U of U Health Patients & Visitors
A 25-year-old Helena woman was accused of driving the getaway vehicle after a shooting in August.

Patience Breann Davis was charged with two felony counts of accountability for attempted deliberate homicide, two felony counts of accountability for assault with a weapon, and one felony count of theft.

On Aug. 14, an officer investigated a report of a stolen vehicle after its owner reported it disappearing that same day from a parking lot on the 500 block of Euclid Avenue. Four days later, the stolen vehicle was seen on Helena Housing Authority surveillance cameras circling around Stuart Homes just before two men were injured in a shooting there.

The suspected shooter, 22-year-old Jory Jerae Songer of Helena, was later arrested and charged with two felony counts of attempted deliberate homicide and two felony counts of assault with a weapon.

After the shooting, investigators believe Songer was picked up by the stolen vehicle driven by Davis. The vehicle was discovered the next day in Helenas Yesco parking lot with a man and his dog sleeping inside.

On Sept. 13, Davis was arrested on outstanding warrants unrelated to the shooting. During an interview with authorities, she admitted to stealing the vehicle on Aug. 14. She originally denied she was near Stuart Homes during the shooting, but then she admitted to driving the vehicle around the complex about the time the shooting occurred.

She told authorities she didnt expect to see the shooting suspect again that night, but the suspect did get back into the vehicle after the shooting. Davis denied knowing anything about the shooting.

Davis is also being charged with felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs and misdemeanor criminal possession of drug paraphernalia for crimes allegedly committed in March.

On March 15, officers were dispatched to Euclid Avenue for a report of gas theft. The driver of the vehicle was Davis, according to the affidavit filed on Sept. 26 in Justice Court of Helena.

Two black bags were found in the vehicle, and on March 22, an officer was granted a search warrant for the bags.

Inside the bags were used syringes, small baggies containing a white crystalline substance, a clear container with a white crystalline substance, pictures of Davis, and debit cards in someone elses name, said officials.

On April 12, the small baggies with the white substance tested presumptive positive for meth, and the evidence was forwarded to the Montana Crime Lab for further testing. A chemical analysis report indicated that one of the bags contained meth, according to court reports.

As of Aug. 11, the investigation was listed as ongoing.

All are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A lawsuit filed against Lake County and the Montana governor will proceed as a class action case on behalf of all current and future inmates of the county jail, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

The lawsuit aimed at improving conditions at the jail began gathering steam earlier this year, when 38 inmates saw their complaints  hanging largely on dangerous and unsanitary conditions, lack of health care access and refusal of religious practices  consolidated into one case. The case now bears 54 individual plaintiffs, several of them members of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, whose reservation overlaps with much of Lake County.

Constance Van Kley, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs, said the class certification ensures any benefit awarded in the lawsuit will benefit all inmates.

"If the plaintiffs succeed on their constitutional claims, all inmates will be entitled to constitutionally adequate conditions of confinement," Van Kley said in an email Wednesday. "And if the plaintiffs succeed but the conditions at the Lake County Jail do not improve, all inmates will be able to enforce the judgment."

Lake County meanwhile is playing both offense and defense in the legal arena over the conditions at its jail.

Just because the inmates' case took hold, Lake County made its own public plea to the state for funding toward a 60-year-old arrangement called Public Law 280, in which tribal police coordinate with state and local law enforcement in their jurisdiction, rather than federal law enforcement.

The state, the county argues, has not paid into the resources for that arrangement, leaving Lake County on the $4 million hook for expenses outside its taxable population and pushing conditions at the jail to what local officials described as a "breaking point."

In that dispute, Lake County first sought to negotiate funding from the state. After that approach met an impasse, the county sued the state in July in District Court to recover the costs going back to 1963, when Public Law 280 was enacted.

In the case at hand, Lake County also filed a crossclaim against Gov. Greg Gianforte, arguing he is responsible for the ultimate funding and administration of the costs associated with Public Law 280.

U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy noted Tuesday the defense argument that many of the inmates who had filed complaints were no longer housed at the jail, and that some of those complaints had been varied. However, the judge noted the conditions at the jail are suffered equally by those currently incarcerated there, as well as those who will be housed there in the future.

"Each inmate might have a slightly different concern on a different day, but they are all subject to living in the same conditions and suffering the same harms," Molloy wrote.
Republican Ryan Zinke continued to outraise and outspend Democrat Monica Tranel  but that margin tightened somewhat in the final stretch of the campaign  according to numbers released by the campaigns this week for the quarterly period ending Sept. 30.

In the race to represent Montanas new western congressional district, Zinke, a former congressman and Secretary of the Interior, has for the past year handily outraised both his primary and general opponents.

Tranel, an attorney who was previously the legal counsel for the state Public Service Commission, for the first time broke the $1 million mark for quarterly fundraising. Her campaign brought in $1.1 million during the third quarter. They spent $955,000, and ended with $353,000 cash on hand.

Zinke raised $1.7 million from July 1 through Sept. 30. The campaign spent $2.1 million during the third quarter, leaving $525,000 in the bank.

Zinkes fundraising haul pads an existing gap between the two campaigns in total fundraising to date. Tranels third-quarter numbers bring her fundraising total to $2.4 million, while Zinkes campaign hit $5.5 million this month.

Libertarian John Lamb had not previously raised enough money to require him to report campaign finance information. As of Thursday he had not filed any new reports with the Federal Election Commission.

The quarterly financial reports, which include detailed information about where the campaigns cash is coming from and where its being spent, are due at the FEC this weekend. Zinkes campaign filed their full report Thursday. A Tranel spokesperson said their campaigns likely wouldnt be filed until Saturday.

Outside spending has also started to ramp up in the race, with a pair of super PACs recently making dueling six-figure expenditures to benefit both candidates.

Big Sky Voters PAC has spent $371,000 on communications opposing Zinke since it was created in mid-September, according to FEC filings. And the super PAC More Jobs, Less Government has spent $314,000 opposing Tranel and supporting Zinke since late August.

Absentee ballots, which typically about three-quarters of Montana voters use to vote, started getting mailed out this week. Election Day is Nov. 8.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has opened two new telehealth sites for veterans in Montana.

One of the new Accessing Telehealth through Local Area Stations, or ATLAS, sites is at the University of Montana in Missoula, and the other is at Montana State University in Bozeman.

The ATLAS sites give student and faculty veterans enrolled in VA care through the Montana VA Health Care System the option to connect with their VA providers at either campus. ATLAS provides comfortable, private spaces equipped with high-speed internet access, site attendant support and technology needed for video telehealth visits through VA Video Connect.

This is groundbreaking, said Pat Beckwith, director of UM Military and Veteran Services, in a release. No other universities in the nation provide VA telehealth services like this on their campuses. We are excited about this opportunity. Its an innovative and collaborative way to better serve our military-affiliated students and staff.

Beckwith said the ATLAS site will assist the 1,400 military-affiliated students who attend UM, which this year earned a Gold ranking for being a Military Friendly School from MilitaryFriendly.com.

We appreciate the VA selecting our campus for this service, said UM President Seth Bodnar, himself a military veteran, in a release. We are working toward becoming the most military- and veteran-friendly campus in the nation, and this helps us build momentum toward that goal.

ATLAS enables VA to provide services that do not require hands-on exams, including mental health appointments, nutrition counseling, select primary care visits and social work assistance.

ATLAS sites also eliminate potential barriers to care, including long travel times, transportation costs and poor internet connectivity, particularly in remote areas.

Veterans who want to schedule an appointment at either of the universitys ATLAS sites can call 877-468-8387. To learn more about these ATLAS sites, visit the Military and Veteran Services Office at the University of Montana.

For more on the ATLAS pilot program, visit the VA Office of Connected Care website at bit.ly/3fU4E38.
I am a doctor training at the Family Medicine Residency of Western Montana to become a rural family physician. I am also the mother to my giggling 6-month-old son. Before this baby, we had 13-week missed miscarriage. At our second routine ultrasound, I was told, I am so sorry; there is no heartbeat. We had made it through the first trimester, but for some still-unknown reason, our tiny boy had died. When I decided I wanted to hold him, and not have him removed through surgery, my doctor prescribed misoprostol, a medication known for its use in abortions, to induce cervical dilation to make my body let go. I am immeasurably grateful for the chance my husband and I had to hold our baby, name him and bury him.

LR-131 terrifies me because it would take those moments away from parents solely on whether their babys heart had, or had not yet, stopped beating.

While the poorly conceived aim of bill LR-131 is to punish abortion, it will have broader effects for women and their babies who experience preterm labor and severe fetal anomalies. We see this in Texas, where pharmacies refuse to stock methotrexate, the medication used to treat ectopic pregnancies by stopping growth of the embryo, and providers hesitate to prescribe misoprostol and mifepristone, medications that treat missed miscarriages and also initiate medication abortions. Many patients who receive terminal diagnoses for their babies are told to continue until the baby either dies, or is born and placed on brief, isolating and even painful life support.

I am training to become a full-spectrum family doctor, delivering babies, caring for hospitalized patients, covering the emergency room and seeing patients in clinic. Born Alive LR-131, however, makes me worried that I could not stay in Montana to provide the quality care my patients need. LR-131 would allow physicians to be charged with a felony, fined up to $50,000, or sentenced to 20 years in prison if they do not resuscitate any infant born with a heartbeat.

I am not alone in this fear. Hospital recruiters are struggling to fill OBGYN slots in states with abortion bans, even amongst doctors who do not provide abortions, because of the extensive crossover between abortions, miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies and caring for patients who find themselves or their fetuses at risk of death or disability.

I chose medication to induce labor to give birth to my dead son for the chance to hold him. I wanted to touch his tiny fingers and look at his face. The only photo I have of him is my most important picture; he has a soft smile and one arm behind his head; he looks relaxed and mischievous. He is as small as a peach and his skin is too see-through and I adore him.

When doctors and parents already know that the best choice for a family is to NOT pursue intensive medical treatment, I cannot fathom taking away those precious minutes of life to inflict pain on a baby, alone and separated from its parents. As a doctor, I refuse to harm a family like that. As a wife and a mother, I cannot risk prison time. I will leave Montana, if that is what it takes to provide compassionate, quality care to my patients.

Vote NO to LR-131 to keep Montana a state that protects constituents right to privacy and decisions over bodily autonomy. Vote NO to LR-131 to keep Montana a state where doctors feel safe to practice appropriate, compassionate medicine. Vote NO to allow heartbroken parents the chance to hold and love their non-viable babies.
By Azernews





By Ugur Duyan

Turkiyes Istanbul will host the world's largest halal expos - the 9th Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Halal Expo and the 8th World Halal Summit on 24-27 November, Yeni Shafak daily reports.

The World Halal Summit is organized by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and its Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation in collaboration with the Institute of Standards and Metrology of Islamic Countries, as well as with the Center for the Promotion of Islamic Trade.

The exhibition, which is the most significant commercial cooperation platform in the halal industry, aspires to make Turkiye the central nation in the halal market with its $4 trillion volume.

The 9th OIC Halal Fair and the 8th World Halal Summit, aimed at attracting the sector's two billion customers to Turkiye, especially to the food, medicine, cosmetics, tourism, and finance sectors.

The event will be hosted at the Istanbul Expo Center under the main topic, entitled "For Sustainable Trade: Discover All Aspects of the Global Halal Industry's Development".

The fair, which is billed as the largest halal event in the world, seeks to attract over 500 purchasing experts across the world.

The event, which is expecting over 40,000 guests, including 10,000 international ones, will pave the road for companies to gain a bigger portion of the halal industry through B2B deals.

The expo, which is projected to attract national and individual participation from over 25 nations, will bring together various sector leaders from industries such as food, cosmetics, textiles, finance, and tourism. Furthermore, businesses from other industries such as logistics, publishing, packaging, and education are anticipated to attend the event.

Halal Expo is an annual event organized in cooperation with the Islamic Centre for Development of Trade (ICDT), the Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC), with the support of the Turkish Trade Ministry and other related ministries and public institutions of Turkiye.

The previous edition of the OIC Halal Expo, held on November 25-28, 2021, covered 13,137 square meters of exhibition space, hosted 354 exhibitors from 32 countries, 31,067 trade visitors from 96 countries, and 352 hosted buyers, who attended 5,280 B2B meetings. The Hosted Buyer Program is backed by the Turkish Trade Ministry.

The OIC Halal Expo, which will be held concurrently with the World Halal Summit, will provide an outstanding exhibition area as well as a distinct platform for a diverse range of workshops, meetings, and side events, as well as a B2B Meetings Program with the participation of professional hosted buyers and delegates, among other activities related to the definition of halal.
DECATUR  Amber Oberheim is painfully familiar with the emotional stress and agonies that can overwhelm police officers and their families.

The widow of slain Champaign Police Officer Chris Oberheim  an officer who grew up in Decatur and also served as a policeman here  lost no time in responding when she heard of Wednesdays shooting that left a suspect dead and two Decatur cops wounded.

Those injured officers have since come home from hospital and now resting and are beginning their recovery process, said Decatur Police Chief Shane Brandel in an update Thursday.

Oberheim hopes to help with that recovery. Ive taken a minute to try and coordinate some services between the Critical Incident Stress Management Team and The Wounded Blue organization, which serves officers on a national level, she told the Herald-Review.

The Decatur Area CISM Team works to provide mental health, emotional support and other help to first responders subjected to tragic events. Its already been dealing with calls for assistance in the wake of the shooting.

When theres a critical incident like this in our first-responder world, we allow the agencies to reach out to us for support, said Tara Ulis, a member of the CISM Team. This is a pretty big deal for them.

The Wounded Blue specializes in providing similar assistance to police officers wounded or disabled in the line of duty. Oberheim says it has a very strong peer support team ready to listen and understand the concerns of suffering colleagues.

The thing about cops is cops dont like to talk to other people about their feelings much at all, said Oberheim. But in the event you can get an officer to talk to another officer, that is a really good way of trying to provide the support they need.

And she said it is not only the officers involved who might need help after a shoot-out like the Wednesday incident that shocked Decatur: two officers shot in a close-range exchange of gunfire, and one hit multiple times, with convicted felon Jamontey O. Neal, 32, shot dead after police say he shot first during a traffic stop.

The Wounded Blue is one of the organizations helping stage an event this week in Terre Haute called the National Law Enforcement Survival Summit. The occasion is designed to help police officers and their families cope with all the unfortunate experiences they may encounter in the line of duty.

Oberheims Peacemaker Project 703, the philanthropic organization she and her family founded to support cops and their families after her husbands shooting death in the line of duty in 2021, was a joint sponsor of the summit with The Wounded Blue.

Oberheim said the latest Decatur shooting, marking the third city officer wounded by gunfire this year, underscores the need to back the police and provide them with whatever help we can. She also says it serves as a wake-up call to the rest of society to get involved and do something about the gun violence that threatens us all.

I am about supporting the police, that is my passion and my purpose because I feel they are often completely misunderstood and misrepresented, she added.

But at the end of the day its about everyones safety: being able to take your kids to the park without worrying or going to the grocery store without worrying about what could be going down in the Walmart parking lot. Its about protecting the lives of all of us.

Oberheim said shes worried about changes in Illinois law that police are concerned will make it harder to keep criminals off the streets. She said citizens must use the power of the ballot box come November to vote for people who will make a positive difference in our lives.

And we really deserve better from the leadership of our state, she said.

Oberheim has been heartened, however, by the response she has seen from Decaur and Macon County after the Wednesday shooting.

I like the way the people have come together and the way they support each other and the way the city and county support law enforcement, she added.

She said the situation was still far from perfect, but it was trending in the right direction and stood as a marked contrast with Champaign County, where she didnt feel the same level of backing.

Ulis with the Decatur Area CISM Team said she has also noted a tide of community support for first responders after the Decatur shooting.

For mental health wellness in general, when people feel like they have support from the general community, its so helpful for them to go back out there and do their job again, Ulis said.

Oberheim will be the guest speaker Wednesday at the Mount Zion Community Prayer Breakfast from 7 to 8 a.m. at the Mount Zion Convention Center. She will discuss her faith journey before and after her husbands death.

Staff writer Donnette Beckett contributed to this story.
DECATUR  As the investigation gets underway into the shootout with police that left Decatur man Jamontey O. Neal dead early Wednesday and sent two wounded cops to the hospital, the citys police chief spoke of the dangers officers faced in trying to combat gun violence.

Shane Brandel said the police departments Community Action Team, along with the department's Street Crimes unit, had seized more than 60 illegally owned firearms since May.

So without a doubt, we have been concerned this whole time that there would be a violent incident involving the officers, Brandel said, speaking at a news conference Wednesday morning.

We hoped that wouldnt happen but we also understand that, when you are targeting violent offenders, at times we may be faced with a serious situation  I am just fortunate enough to have police officers that are dedicated to this community and who are willing to go out and do this work day in and day out.

The two wounded officers have not been identified but Brandel said they were part of the Community Action Team. One officer was shot multiple times and the other hit once in what was described as two exchanges of gunfire with Neal, 32. Brandel said Neal reached for a gun and fired first after a traffic stop at 12:25 a.m. in the 1300 block of East Walnut Street.

Brandel said one officer has since come through surgery at Decatur Memorial Hospital. He was described as in serious but stable condition and the other officer was described as being in stable condition.

Four police officers were described as firing their weapons and Neal was hit multiple times. One of the officers firing was a deputy with the Macon County Sheriffs Office. Macon County Sheriff Jim Root said his officers regularly help Decatur police in targeting gun crime.

Brandel would not comment on why Neal was selected for the traffic stop, saying only it was "based on information known to the officers prior to the stop." But the Community Action Team is known to target gun offenders and a check of Macon County Circuit Court records shows Neal is a felon convicted of gun crime.

He had been charged with murder in connection with the 2010 shooting death of Christopher T. Beasley, who was killed with a shot to the head in April of that year in the 700 block of East Orchard Street. Neal took a plea deal in 2011 that saw the murder charge dismissed while he pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a weapon and obstructing justice; he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The gun violence Wednesday marks the third city cop to be injured in the line of duty this year following the wounding of patrol officer Stephanie Vail. She was hit and cut by bullet fragments January 8 after prosecutors say the suspect she was chasing, Joseph Luckee Williams, opened fire at her with a machine gun that jammed. Williams denies charges of attempted murder.

Response system

Neal is Black and his death triggered a pre-arranged response system where police brief key members of the citys minority community about the circumstances of any officer-involved shooting. The idea is to counteract gossip and rumors and the spread of false information that may inflame community feeling and distort the facts.

Michael Diggs, president of the Decatur Branch of the NAACP, was at Wednesdays news conference. He said the police briefing procedure had worked smoothly and just in time, as he was already aware of rumors making the rounds that presented the police in a disparaging light.

When the NAACP needs to come forward and protest or do whatever, then we will, said Diggs.

But if we dont have to because procedures are going well, then we just want to make sure the community understands what is going on. You might say we are intermediaries, and we just want to make sure the police are connected to the community and the community is connected to the police.

The actual investigation into the actions of the Decatur police officers in the shooting is being handled by the Illinois State Police, which is standard procedure in these situations. Lt. Anthony Kestner, a commander with the State Police Zone 5 Division of Criminal Investigation, told Wednesdays news conference he will head the inquiry.

He said the state cops will have little to say for the moment as the investigation continues. But Brandel said his police department, which is also conducting its own investigation, will be releasing officer body cam video of the shooting.

The police chief said his department wanted to be as open and frank about what happened as it can. We have solid relationships, wonderful relationships, with our community, Brandel added. And I hope those relationships have put us in a position where we are able to handle this situation the best we can as we move forward and trust that the system conducts its investigation like it is supposed to. And, when the time is right, that information will be released to the public.

In the meantime the city is left to worry about streets gripped by fears of gun crime. Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe said the police, despite their heroic efforts, are going to need help from citizens if we want to combat violence.

We are constantly asking people to speak up about what they know, said Wolfe, referring to witnesses and others who have information that could put criminals behind bars.

The prosecutors cant do their jobs and keep bad guys off the street if they dont have the support of the community when it comes to saying what we know and then showing up for court to give evidence. The city is never going to get a handle on this if we dont have the community backing us up.

One approach to reluctant witnesses to shootings and other crimes is not to have to rely on them so much. The city of Decatur is paying around $250,000 a year to lease a FLOCK brand camera system which watches high-crime neighborhoods and helps police trace vehicles driven by criminals.

City Manager Scot Wrighton said FLOCK had already proved to be a fantastic success and the mayor said the city wanted to expand its camera program.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)  A jury spared Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz from the death penalty Thursday for killing 17 people at a Parkland high school in 2018, sending him to prison for the remainder of his life in a decision that left many families of the victims angered, baffled and in tears.

The jury's recommendation came after seven hours of deliberations over two days, ending a three-month trial that included graphic videos, photos and testimony from the massacre and its aftermath, heart-wrenching testimony from victims' family members and a tour of the still blood-spattered building.

Keep scrolling for scenes from the courtroom

"We are beyond disappointed with the outcome today," Lori Alhadeff, whose daughter, Alyssa was killed, said at a news conference after the jury's decision was announced.

"This should have been the death penalty, 100%. Seventeen people were brutally murdered on Feb. 14, 2018. I sent my daughter to school and she was shot eight times. I am so beyond disappointed and frustrated with this outcome . I cannot understand. I just don't understand."

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will formally issue the life sentences Nov. 1. Relatives, along with the students and teachers Cruz wounded, will be given the opportunity to speak at the sentencing hearing.

Cruz, his hair unkempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jury's recommendations were read. Rumblings grew from the family section  packed with about three dozen parents, spouses and other relatives of the victims  as life sentences were announced. Many shook their heads, looked angry or covered their eyes, as the judge spent 50 minutes reading the jury's decision for each victim. Some parents sobbed as they left court.

The jury found there were aggravating factors for each victim, however, they also found mitigating factors. And the jury could not agree that the aggravating factors that would have warranted the death penalty outweighed the mitigating ones.

Tony Montalto, father of Gina Montalto, said: "How can the mitigating factors make this shooter, who they recognized committed this terrible act  acts, plural  shooting, some victims more than once on a pass, pressing the barrel of his weapon to my daughter's chest. That doesn't outweigh that poor little what's-his-name had a tough upbringing?"

"Our justice system should have been used to punish this shooter to the fullest extent of the law."

Cruz, 24, pleaded guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members and wounding 17 others on Feb. 14, 2018. Cruz said he chose Valentine's Day to make it impossible for Stoneman Douglas students to celebrate the holiday ever again.

The massacre is the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the U.S. Nine other people in the U.S. who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart is awaiting trial.

Lead prosecutor Mike Satz kept his case simple for the seven-man, five-woman jury. He focused on Cruz's eight months of planning, the seven minutes he stalked the halls of a three-story classroom building, firing 140 shots with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, and his escape.

He played security videos of the shooting and showed gruesome crime scene and autopsy photos. Teachers and students testified about watching others die. He took the jury to the fenced-off building, which remains blood-stained and bullet-pocked. v gave tearful and angry statements.

Cruz's lead attorney Melisa McNeill and her team never questioned the horror he inflicted, but focused on their belief that his birth mother's heavy drinking during pregnancy left him with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Their experts said his bizarre, troubling and sometimes violent behavior starting at age 2 was misdiagnosed as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, meaning he never got the proper treatment. That left his widowed adoptive mother overwhelmed, they said.

The defense cut its case short, calling only about 25 of the 80 witnesses they said would testify. They never brought up Cruz's high school years or called his younger half-brother, Zachary, whom they accused of bullying.

In rebuttal, Satz and his team contended that Cruz did not suffer from fetal alcohol damage but has antisocial personality disorder  in lay terms, he's a sociopath. Their witnesses said Cruz faked brain damage during testing and that he was capable of controlling his actions, but chose not to. For example, they pointed to his employment as a cashier at a discount store where he never had any disciplinary issues.

Prosecutors also played numerous video recordings of Cruz discussing the crime with their mental health experts where he talked about his planning and motivation.

The defense alleged on cross-examination that Cruz was sexually molested and raped by a 12-year-old neighbor when he was 9.

***
In a rare move, New Braunfels City Council members on Monday approved the first reading of a rezoning and special use permit request for a pla
PHILLIPS, Va.  Jim Lapis sauntered across the first of five new trestles, savoring the tranquility of the Wolfe Run Gorge.

These are deep, dark woods sliced by the historic passage of what was once a railroad line  abandoned for decades and left for nature to reclaim its route.

But nature  and neighbors  proved no match for the Mendota Trail Conservancy. This non-profit group has masterminded miles of making the Mendota Trail a natural reality, cutting brush and moving stones and garbage.

Come Friday, the Mendota Trail reclaims more of the old railroad bed  with an additional 2.5 miles opening to the public with five scenic trestles built in the backwoods of Washington County, Virginia, at a nearly-forgotten railroad stop called Phillips.

The gorge is small, but wild with cliffs and trees standing as shoulders on each side of the trail.

These woods are lovely, dark and deep  to quote ol Robert Frost, Lapis, the president of the conservancy, said.

On Friday, at 3 p.m., the public is invited to a grand opening ceremony  not at the actual site of the new section. The ceremony, featuring political dignitaries, is set to be held at the Mendota Trailhead off Mendota Road, Bob Mueller, the treasurer of the Mendota Trail Conservancy, said.

The new sections five restored trestles span as much as 82 feet.

That is what is impressive, Mueller said. Five more trestles in that area, where the creek just goes back and forth under the old rails.

It resembles the Straight Branch on the Virginia Creeper Trail  a popular rail trail known nationwide and containing most of it 34-mile length within Washington County.

The Virginia Creeper Trail inspired the building of the Mendota Trail, Lapis said.

But while the Creeper is averaging about 250,000 annual visitors, the Mendota Trail pulls in less than 10% of that figure.

For now, its like a wild western cousin to the Creeper. But it may not be that way for long, Lapis predicted.

The Mendota Trail is slated to wrap up its last 1.5 mile section  with even more trestles  and be completely connected in May 2023.

Already, theres talk of a shuttle service, hoping to capitalize on the downhill ride the Mendota Trail offers from Haskell Station to Mendota  with virtually no uphill climbs for about 10 miles.

Its apparent, starting at Phillips, that youre making an uphill climb to Benhams  the site of a large parking area, about five miles from the trails beginning in Bristol, Virginia, along Inland Road.

State money  $350,000  from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation paid for the new trestles over Wolf Run, a mountain stream with a bedrock basin ripe with riffles, ruffles, ripples and rapids.

Anywhere you see a stone bench, theres a water feature, Lapis, who lives in Bristol, Virginia, said.

Bill Tindall, 79, of Church Hill, Tennessee, has helped engineer the rebirth of the rail corridor for recreation. Hes from New York, where he grew up in the woods and found working on this trail to be a satisfying hobby.

Tindall also personally invested money to help restore the first bridge near Bristol to get the trail started, he said, and paid for the most dramatic trestle  a crossing over the North Fork of the Holston River near Mendota, a once-incorporated community at the base of Clinch Mountain.

There trestles have been neglected for about 30 to 40 years. Its been a major transformation, Mueller said. Nature took its toll over the years, but we did our best to make them safe and usable again.

The missing 1.5-mile section will require rebuilding more trestles, though a couple are already completed.

All total, the trail will span 12.5 miles  less than half of the Virginia Creeper Trail and only a fourth of Virginias longest rail-trail, New River Trail State Park.

Yet for all of the dreams of trying to make the Mendota Trail a reality, including a squabble with neighbors only a few years ago, it all seems like a miracle to Lapis.

The final section is expected to cost $466,000  using more state money  to construct four more trestles, including a 150-foot span not in a good shape that stands 40-feet high. Lapis said.

I think its going to be a fantastic complement to the Virginia Creeper Trail, Tindall said. Its just going to be a little more wild. Its got to be more of a destination. People are going to want to stay and have a lunch.
Hickory Career and Arts Magnet High School students celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month with a fair on Wednesday as Spanish I and II students presented projects on their choice of Hispanic countries.

The event was Spanish language teacher Esteban Lopezs idea. He started planning at the beginning of the school year, said Curriculum Coordinator Ellen Barefoot Annas.

Lopez is from Argentina and joined HCAM last November. He is passionate about teaching not only the Spanish language, but about Hispanic cultures around the world.

The goal was for students to learn about and embrace other cultures.

Andrew Madrigal and his team presented on Costa Rica, where his family is from. The night before the fair, Madrigal learned his father used to be neighbors with native Costa Rican actress Maribel Guardia.

Costa Rica is one of the happiest nations in the world, Madrigal said. Everyone is so sweet when I go there.

The event drew a large crowd of students who curiously stopped at each table and listened to presentations by their fellow students.

This is HCAMs first Hispanic Heritage Fair. Given the turnout and warm reception, Lopez said he hopes to have another next year.
A brother and sister are accused of abusing a Winston-Salem woman with disabilities who was locked in a room last year for more than 12 hours, authorities said Thursday.

Mary Kathleen Adkins, 37, of Bramblewood Trail is charged with two counts of domestic abuse involving neglect and/or exploitation of a disabled adult, Winston-Salem police said.

Her brother, George Murray Adkins Jr., 28, of Yadkin College Road in Lexington is charged with one count of the same crime.

At 5:37 p.m. on Jan. 29, 2021, police were called to 1913 Bramblewood Trail. Officers found Lauren Kimel, 30, climbing through a bedroom window and calling from help from her home on Bramblewood Trail.

Mary Adkins was Kimel's live-in caregiver but was not there when the officers arrived on the scene, police said.

Police say George Adkins shared responsibility with his sister for Kimel's care.

Investigators allege Kimel was left in locked room for than 12 hours without supervision or the "necessities of life."

Mary Adkins and George Adkins were released from custody Oct. 7 on written promises to appear in court this week. It was not immediately clear what occurred during the Oct. 10 court date.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Winston-Salem police at 336-773-7700 or Crime Stoppers, either at 336-727-2800 or on the Spanish line at 336-728-3904.

Crime Stoppers of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County is also on Facebook.

The Text-A-Tip line at 336-276-1717 allows people to text tips, photos and videos to the police.
Not all farms have the space or labor on site to raise their own dairy replacements, so it is not uncommon for calves to be transported to a custom grower early in life. While this type of calf rearing system can work well for the farm and the animals alike, getting to their destination can present challenges, especially for young calves.

David Renaud, an assistant professor at the University of Guelph, noted that calves face an accumulation of stressors when they are transported long distances, commingled, and moved to a new location. During Australias recent Growing Beef from Dairy Conference, he shared results from a study that looked at the impact of long duration transportation on dairy calves.

Renaud and colleagues worked with dairy farms in Canada and evaluated the calves in the study prior to transport. The calves were then randomly assigned to be transported for six, 12, or 16 hours. All calves rode on the same trailer and were taken to the same calf raising facility. Health, growth, and physiological factors were tracked before, during, and for 14 days following transport.

There were 170 calves in the project, and Renaud said it yielded interesting results. The calves that were transported the longest (16 hours) had the highest rate of diarrhea, and those calves experienced an additional day of diarrhea compared to the calves that traveled six hours. The 16-hour group also had higher rates of respiratory disease.

Younger calves seemed to be more impacted by long travel times, as calves that were transported under 7 days of age were most likely to be affected by respiratory disease.



Age when they depart the dairy farm also has a really important influence of their success when they reach their final destination in terms of ability to cope with the stress of transportation and their ability to perform well at the facility, Renaud noted.

The calves in the 16-hour group also had lower glucose levels and higher body fat mobilization, which Renaud said was related to calves not being fed during transport, on top of other stressors such as heat or cold stress. These calves also took longer to recover to their pre-transportation body weight following the trailer ride.

While transporting calves long distances may be unavoidable for some farms, Renaud offered a few recommendations to help reduce the negative impacts. For starters, he said to provide a milk meal prior to transit, as this improves the calfs ability to manage transport.

Upon arrival, calves should be provided with desirable growing conditions, including an advanced plane of nutrition and ample bedding.

Renaud also shared a small study that showed calves receiving a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) prior to transport had better growth following an eight-hour trailer ride. The value of controlling inflammation and stress with NSAIDS is an area that can be explored more, he said.



And finally, he said minimizing the duration of transport is critical, as longer rides appear to have more long-lasting impacts on the calf. Still, managing transportation stressors are worthwhile, regardless of the distance of the trip.

No matter how long we transport a calf, it is stressful. We need to take that into consideration, Renaud concluded.

To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2022

October 10, 2022
Back in My Day is an Information Age series profiling some of our older ACS members and Information Age readers speaking about their early days in IT.

This week we speak with Jan Kornweibel, aged 81, from Perth, Western Australia.

How did you get started in IT?

It began in 1965 when I was in London doing the Australian travelling bit. Of course, London in the 1960s was absolutely swinging. We had a dinner party and I was saying to a friend that I wasnt enjoying the work I was doing and one of them piped up and said, why dont you do computer programming?

Computers were just something in cartoons to me in those days. But I said to those friends, "Well, you know in the Underground theres an advertisement that says, if you can complete this puzzle you can be a computer programmer.

I could always do them  I assumed it was easy  but none of the others could. They were all university graduates, smart people, so I thought Id better check this out.

So I went and did an aptitude test. You had to get 85 per cent to get into this course and I got 99.

We decided to put our next summers money  we went away with two summers of money  into me doing the course.

Out of 20, only two of us passed.

For a Western Australian with a fairly conservative upbringing, it was a real eye-opener to me because there must have been 10 different nationalities on this course.

How did you go finding IT work in the 60s?

The institute that ran the course had a list of companies that, if you passed, you could approach.

These companies were interested in taking graduates from this program because there were no university courses in computer programming back then.

A couple of the international companies I approached, which I wont name, said they would only take males, not females  it was like I was back in Australia!

But in the end I got a job with Colgate Palmolive.

The team at Colgate Palmolive would have been about eight people, three of us were females. One other girl and myself had done the course but the others had university degrees in other fields.

Back then, companies needed software developers but it was the hardware that cost money. So they took people on who had at least studied something and could be trusted with the hardware.

After working with Colgate, I went travelling for nine months and then wrote to the IBM manager back in Western Australia to say I was working in computing and he said to contact them when I came back.

So I did, but the IBM centre manager wanted a man and said I was too young.

Anyway, my father happened to know one of the managers of [betting company] TAB and helped get me a job there.

In 1967 I was working at the TAB with another female, but the industry was still very much dominated by males.

At the first Western Australia Computer Society dinner I went to, they didnt even bother to turn the light on at the hotels female toilets.

"This photo is taken in a museum in Munich, in 2018," says Jan. "The child is my grand-daughter and she was caught acting for the photo labelled My Nana Jan was an early pioneer in computing. I worked on IBM 360s for some years, from about 1968, in Perth, mainly in COBOL, but also Fortran. Before then, it was assembly languages, and RPG. Seeing it in a museum now really does show how far my days go back!"



What kind of technology did you work with?

In the early days they were all card systems.

With Colgate Palmolive I worked on an IBM 1401 but halfway through that year they got a General Electric mainframe, one of their third-generation mainframes.

At TAB we developed their first online system, that was back to using the 1401, but we didn't have any proper terminals. We ran a pilot of what we developed for one of the Melbourne Cups. There were about five or six developers and we all went to different TAB branches and we were using telex machines as terminals.

It worked well, so the manager the next year went off to Sweden and got dumb terminals.

When developing that online system, it was mostly done during the late afternoon and into the early hours of the morning because the TAB needed the 1401 themselves.

They also had a contract with WA Police who would come in and run programs on that computer.

Those were fun times. We all worked hard but we enjoyed what we were doing.

I worked at the TAB until 1969 when I had my first child. Being the TAB, they used to bet every day on whether I would turn up.

After having my child, I mostly did contract work. Perth being a big village, it was easy to get known and be reliable.

I also enjoyed learned new programming languages, especially when mini-computers came in.

I had people coming and picking up my coding sheets because I mostly worked from home. As the kids got older, I ran play groups with like-minded women and got more involved with ACS where I introduced special interest groups.

What were some of your career highlights?

I enjoyed my early programming contract work and the variety of work. It was really easy to get contract work in Perth.

Through ACS, I was running a special interest group on computers helping with disability. And thats what led to me being awarded a Winston Churchill Fellowship.

Churchill died when we were in London and I was among the thousands of people who went past where his body was lying in state. Straight away, people were going around collecting donations for the fellowship. I would never have dreamed back then, that in 1981 I would be awarded a Churchill Fellowship.

The fellowship let me expand on the special interest groups I was working on with ACS which was about how to embed technology directly into peoples lives. I travelled, studying the practical implementation of technology for people with disability.

I helped bring four of the main scientists Id worked with back to Australia to give papers at conferences.

We wanted to show people with disabilities, the people who worked with them, and their families, what would happen in the future with the computing.

One speaker from the UK had been adapting Apple Computers word processing package to help people communicate using a switch with their foot.

An important idea we tried to get across was that accessibility was more of a design problem than a technological one.

Q: How would you encourage other people to get the same satisfaction and find the same passion for technology as you have?

For someone starting in IT as a career, I say they should enter it as soon as they get an opportunity.

I think with things like cyber security theres a lot more areas now  it doesnt have to be coding or nothing. Technology is wider, its a much bigger field than it once was.

As soon as you get an opportunity, you need to keep your eyes open, because its wider than in my days being a programmer and a system analyst and thats about it.

I do think you have to study and learn continually but also be prepared for changes in direction  you've got to think outside the box for yourself personally as well as for the work youre doing.

I also think once people are further in their careers or have retired, they should think about what they can offer to the community.

Theres so much you can offer once you have that kind of experience.

Since retiring, I have been working in conjunction with Curtin University helping people with autism complete international software testing certification.
Google is offering scholarships for women and First Nations Australians. Photo: Shutterstock

Google has launched a range of online training courses aiming to upskill Australians in tech-related fields, with a number of the countrys largest companies already agreeing to recognise the microcredentials.

The Google Career Certificates have been created by Google experts in a range of tech fields, including IT support, data analytics, project management, digital marketing and UX design.

They will consist of flexible online courses which will take about six months to complete with 10 hours of study each week.

The courses will cost $56 per month through a Coursera subscription, equating to $336 in total if its completed in six months.

Google will also be providing 10,000 scholarships for these online courses for women and First Nations Australians.

The courses will be flexible and will take between three and six months to complete, depending on how much time is dedicated to them.

With 10 hours completed per week, one course will take six months.

Google has also gathered a consortium of some of Australias largest companies which have agreed to recognise the qualifications and signalled interest in considering graduates in open roles.

These companies include Australia Post, Woolworths Group, Canva, Optus and IAG.over across five years, through thousands of new jobs and digital infrastructure.

Google Australia managing director Mel Silva said the new training offerings will help drive Australias goal of being a leading digital nation.

Google Australia managing director Mel Silva announced the certificates. Photo: Supplied

Technology-related roles are in demand across all industries in Australia and employers place a premium on these skills, Silva said.

But for many people, its hard to find the time for long-term formal training, especially mid-career or with other responsibilities.

The great thing about Google Career Certificates is that they provide practical, hands-on experience and flexibility along with the skills Australians are looking for.

And we are excited to work with leading organisations and partners to help connect people with these new qualifications directly to job opportunities.

Federal Minister for Industry Ed Husic spoke at the launch of the new microcredentials.

Too long as a country weve not recognised that the pathway on skill development. That is altering.

Because there are a lot of us here that went through primary school, high school and then we go through TAFE or university, that was it, your learning finished at around 25 and then you were out in the workforce, Husic said.

He added the government wants to work with companies like Google in fundamentally changing the way education is delivered in Australia.

Youre being agile in the development of skills, Husic said.

The other thing that I love is the fact that Google is also targeting underrepresented people in the community to train them up. We commend businesses like Google and others that want to step up and invest in skills and opportunity, he said.

We want to work with you. We want to make sure that weve got the settings right as a government when it comes to education and training.

Google has partnered with Indigitek, Project F, Generation Australia and Code Like a Girl to distribute the 10,000 scholarships for the online courses.

Technology and digital skills have potential to create immense opportunities  but we will only realise the potential if all Australians can participate, Silva said.

The Business Council of Australia has thrown its support behind the project.

Micro-credentials mean people can get the skills they need - when they need them, Business Council of Australia CEO Jennifer Westacott said.

Googles leadership is critical to building the digital skills workers and businesses need, especially for those who are underrepresented in digital roles.

Australia is facing a growing skills gap. According to a recent report from the Australian Computer Society (ACS), there is an ICT jobs gap of 60,000 extra workers per annum over the next five years, yet only 7,000 students are studying IT degrees.

IT employers in Australia have been urged to relax their requirements for a degree for some tech roles, in a bid to aid the shortage of staff.
By Azernews





By News Center

The Polish army is going to employ Turkish unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) in October, Yeni Shafal reports, citing Wojciech Skurkiewicz, Polish Deputy Defense Minister.

"Polish army will be equipped with Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles in October," Skurkiewicz said.

"We see how these drones operate in real-world dangerous and combat situations. It is a critical component of the military modernization," Skurkiewicz said, emphasizing the importance of the Turkish drones.

Poland is the first NATO member country to purchase unmanned combat aerial vehicles from Turkey.

Earlier, the international media described it as a "game-changer" with its spectacular performance in the second Karabakh war in 2020.

Bayraktar TB2 drones were the key to Azerbaijan's win over the Armenian forces in 2020 and put an end to the escalation of the long-standing conflict over the separatist enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The armed unmanned aerial vehicle Bayraktar TB-2 resurfaced on the agenda, with films showing it blowing up Russian tanks, armored vehicles, and surface-to-air missile defense systems.

Since the first Bayraktar TB-2s drones were delivered to Qatar in 2018, the company has signed 19 export agreements, including with Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan. Six new transactions have been added to these export deals in the last three months alone.

Baykar is a private Turkish defense company specializing in UAVs and artificial intelligence, which was founded with 100 percent domestic capital in 1984 under Baykar Makina by Ozdemir Bayraktar.

The companys primary goals were the production of automotive parts such as engines, pumps, and spare parts to ensure the localization of the automotive industry in Turkey.

In the 2000s, the company took steps toward producing unmanned aerial vehicles in line with the developments and progress in the aviation sector.
EIU open

studios set

CHARLESTON  Spend the afternoon visiting the studios of EIU faculty and graduate students to learn about their research and practices from 1-4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14.

Hosted by the Tarble and EIU Department of Art + Design at the Tarble Arts Center, Doudna Fine Arts Center, and Burl Ives Studios.

Library plans

fall book sale

MATTOON  The Mattoon Public Library's annual Fall Book Sale will take place from 8 a.m.-noon Saturday, Oct. 15, in the Mattoon Library Lower Basement Community Room.

The sale will feature a wide variety of books, primarily adult fiction and non-fiction titles, as well as sci-fi, paperback romances, as well as lots of chapter books for juveniles and teen/young-adult titles.

This is a "donation-only" book sale, and all payments should be made in the form of a donation to the Mattoon Library.

While the library will able to provide some bags, attendees should plan to bring their own.

Work day set

at Embarras

CHARLESTON  The Embarras Volunteer Stewards will hold a workday at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, for bush honeysuckle removal on the hill at Lake Charleston. Meet at the parking by the entrance to the dike.

All are welcome and no prior experience is necessary. Sturdy footwear and gloves are recommended. Tools are provided.

Visit embarrasstewards.org for more information.

Legion plans

quarter auction

MATTOON  The American Legion Auxiliary will be hosting a quarter auction Thursday, Oct. 20. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with bidding starting at 6:30 p.m.

The auction will feature over 15 vendors with items including crafts, books, toys, purses, wallets, makeup, gift certificates, kitchenware and more.

Profits from the action, held the third Thursday of each month, benefit American Legion Auxiliary projects. This month the proceeds will go to Operation Sleigh Ride.

The monthly quarter auction has brought in over $29,000 for the community projects.

Food and drink will be available. The American Legion is located at 1903 Maple Ave., Mattoon.

Trunk or Treat at Mattoon Rehab

MATTOON  Mattoon Rehabilitation and Health Care Center will be holding a Trunk or Treat event from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21.

Come see decorated car trunks with volunteers handing out treats.
CHICAGO - It was a day Jason and Keely Roberts thought they would never see. Their 8-year-old son, Cooper returned to school for the first time since suffering life-threatening injuries from the Highland Park shooting on July 4.

Cooper, who now uses a wheelchair, started third grade on Monday, joining his twin brother, Luke. The news comes a few weeks after Cooper reunited with his family for the first time since the shooting.

We cried in the parking lot as he wheeled himself into the school, cried as we pulled out of the parking lot  we were just a mess! the family said in a statement. The life-threatening nature of his injuries and the significant rehabilitation he has needed (and continues to need for hours every day) made it seem as though returning to school would be something we could only hope for way in the distant future.

Coopers return to school was near perfect, the family said.

He loved every minute, and his exact words were, if I had not been shot, paralyzed, and had to be in a wheelchair, it would have been a perfect school day, but it was a really great day! I loved it! 

The third grader will need to remain in day therapy each week and will be reevaluated on a consistent basis, which will mean a slow and gradual transition back to school.

He will not be able to attend school all day or every day, according to the family.

Nevertheless, his return to school this week is an incredible milestone for a little boy who almost three months to the day of his first day of third grade had been desperately fighting for his life from critical gunshot wounds and is now wheelchair bound, the family said.

The Roberts family said Cooper has anxieties about how being paralyzed affects him in physical, social and academic environments.

The endless what if questions he thinks about  these run across his mind and out literally all day long, like an endless reel of worry, the family said. We have also learned, fast and hard, that we can only take one day at a time.

There is sadness and pain with Coopers return to school, the family said. He is sad to not be able to run around in the field with friends at recess; he cannot play in the jungle gym, hang on the monkey bars, slide down the slide, swing on swings or kick a ball.

Yet, Cooper continues to affirm for us that his spirit, his soul, his Cooperness remains, the family said. The hideous, evil act did not take that from him because he wont let it.

The family described Cooper as the sporty kid who is more concerned about others than he is about himself and who loves his family and friends fiercely.

The family said they attribute Coopers survival to the love and prayers received from around the world.

We continue to ask for your prayers for Cooper, the family said. We believe that Coopers story is just beginning and that he can, and will, show the world that there is no greater power in the world than the power of love.

A GoFundMe page to cover the medical and financial needs the Roberts family will face as their journey of healing continues has collected more than $2 million.
GALESBURG  A western Illinois woman has been arrested on a warrant for concealment of death after human remains were found in a storage unit.

Marcy Oglesby was arrested Tuesday after the remains were found in a storage unit in Maquon on Friday.

Oglesby was being held Wednesday. It was unclear whether she has an attorney who might comment on her behalf.

The identity of the body found in the storage unit has not yet been established. No identification was immediately possible due to the condition of the body. Knox County Sgt. Brad Davis said investigators are trying to match DNA from the remains with family members.

The remains were discovered after Knox County deputies responded to a complaint about an odor coming from the storage unit.

The case remains under investigation by the Knox County Sheriff's Department.

Maquon is about 150 miles southwest of Chicago.
SPRINGFIELD  With less than four weeks until Election Day, state Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, is airing broadcast television ads for the first time since securing the Republican gubernatorial nomination in late June.

The ad buy is for $534,000, Bailey campaign spokesman Joe DeBose confirmed to Lee Enterprises. It will air on broadcast television in the Chicago media market, where about two-thirds of the state's voters reside.

The 30-second hit begins with a warning that "some of the scenes you are about to see are graphic and not suitable for children" before flashing images of crimes being committed and a scroll below showing various crime numbers.

"Under J.B. Pritzker and Lori Lightfoot, crime is out of control," Bailey says in a voiceover. Next, now looking directly at the camera, Bailey promises to "end Pritzker's no cash bail policy that's putting violent criminals back on our streets" and to "increase police recruitment and retention to put more officers in our neighborhoods."

Republicans have sought to make crime, which spiked in several of the state's urban areas during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and has remained above pre-pandemic levels in many areas, a significant campaign issue in 2022.

They have also zeroed in on the SAFE-T Act, the landmark criminal justice reform law signed by Pritzker in 2021 that, among other things, will eliminate the state's cash bail system starting in January.

To this point, much of this anti-crime messaging has come from outside groups, most notably the People Who Play By The Rules political action committee, which is run by conservative radio host Dan Proft and bankrolled by billionaire megadonor Dick Uihlein.

Since the end of June, Uihlein has poured nearly $34 million into the PAC's coffers, including a $13.9 million donation reported last week.

In contrast, Bailey has only raised about $2.7 million since winning the Republican primary in June, including $1 million from Uihlein and, just last week, $700,000 from his mother, Jean Bailey.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker has poured more than $155 million into his campaign's coffers since March 2021, allowing him unfettered access to voters through television and digital advertisements among other mediums.

The anti-crime message has been before voters' eyes for months, but now it is also coming directly from Bailey.

But given that the message on crime is already being pushed by outside PACs and Bailey's limited resources  a half-million dollars is modest when talking political ad buys in Chicago television  it is fair to question whether that is the prudent strategy.

Late last month, a poll conducted by WGN-TV found that crime ranked fourth among the most important issues for voters. It fell behind the economy, threats to democracy and abortion. Only 10% ranked it as their top issue.

This matches the results of other polls, which have shown that crime as an issue but not the issue in this campaign.

J.B. Pritzker has increased taxes on working families and crime is skyrocketing on his watch," DeBose said, responding to an inquiry from Lee Enterprises about the ad's focus on crime. "Darren Bailey is committed to making life safer and more affordable for everyone. This ad about Pritzkers dangerous anti-police policies is just one of the many steps to get our message directly to voters.

Though Republicans have claimed that the SAFE-T Act contains several unfunded mandates that will inevitably lead to tax increases or a reduction in services, Pritzker's fiscal year 2023 budget includes funds to hire new Illinois state troopers and grants set aside to help retain police officers. Bailey voted against those proposals.

No amount of false advertising can paint a rosy picture of Darren Baileys disastrous voting record thwarting public safety, said Pritzker spokeswoman Eliza Glezer. Bailey had his chance to vote for police recruitment and retention efforts and, instead, voted no.

But for all the attention on crime in this campaign, polling shows that "it's the economy, stupid," may still be the winning argument for candidates.

Not that those issues can't coexist. But, with scant resources, the lack of focus on the top issue on the minds of voters is a bit surprising.

But perhaps those pushing the messaging on crime know something we don't.

Kinzinger endorses Democrats

Rep. Adam Kinzinger, one of former President Donald Trump's fiercest Republican critics, announced this week that he is endorsing several Democrats for statewide office.

Through his Country First political action committee, Kinzinger released a listed of endorsed candidates, which included Democratic gubernatorial candidates Josh Shapiro (Pennsylvania) and Katie Hobbs (Arizona) and Democratic Secretary of State candidates Adrian Fontes (Arizona), Cisco Aguilar (Nevada), Steve Simon (Minnesota) and Jocelyn Benson (Michigan).

Kinzinger also endorsed some Republicans who have caught Trump's ire, such as Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Ak., and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

"Now more than ever, its critical we elect leaders up and down the ballot who are loyal to the Constitution and willing to be a bulwark for democracy  regardless of their political party affiliation," Kinzinger said.

Kinzinger, a Bloomington native who is not seeking reelection, added that people must "set partisan politics and ideology aside in order to preserve our nations democracy and demand accountability in our leaders."

Each of the Democrats Kinzinger endorsed is running against a Republican who denies the results of the 2020 presidential election and has promulgated conspiracy theories.

The secretaries of state races are particularly important. Forty-seven of 50 states have a secretary of state and in 38 of those states, they serve as the chief elections officer.

Kinzinger did not make an endorsement in the Illinois secretary of state's race between Republican nominee Dan Brady and Democratic nominee Alexi Giannoulias.

This is not much of a surprise since the Illinois office, unlike many of its counterparts in other states, has little to do with running elections. That role instead is filled by the Illinois State Board of Elections.
Six people have been charged as part of the ComEd bribery scandal over the past two years, but none had ever stepped foot physically in a federal courtroom  until now.

Timothy Mapes, the former chief of staff to then- Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, walked into the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on Thursday morning for a status hearing on charges he lied to a federal grand jury investigating the alleged ComEd scheme.

The in-person hearing, a relative rarity in a building still operating under COVID-19 protocols, had been called by U.S. District Judge John Kness, who took over Mapes case after the previous judge, John Lee, ascended to the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

Among the business attended to during the brief hearing was the postponement of Mapes scheduled jury trial in January, which Kness said was unavoidable since he is dealing with other trials that month and still needs to get up to speed on Mapes case.

Kness said that with the dam bursting on trials in this building, which are backlogged due to the pandemic, he wanted to get a new date for Mapes trial as soon as possible. He initially proposed a date in March, but prosecutors immediately nixed that idea as they are scheduled to begin an eight-week trial for the so-called ComEd Four bribery defendants that month.

Kness set hearing for Mapes for Nov. 29, when he will hear arguments on pending motions and likely set a new trial date.

Mapes, 67, of Springfield, is free on a recognizance bond. He entered the courthouse Thursday with his attorneys and did not speak during the 15-minute hearing.

An indictment filed last year alleged Mapes repeatedly lied during a March 31, 2021, appearance before the grand jury when asked about Madigans relationship with his longtime confidant Michael McClain, who was charged in 2020 with orchestrating a bribery scheme by Commonwealth Edison to shower money on Madigans associates in exchange for the speakers help with legislation in Springfield.

Mapes also lied when he said he had no knowledge that McClain had communicated with two unnamed state representatives in 2018 on Madigans behalf, the 11-page indictment alleged. The Tribune reported they are Rep. Bob Rita of Blue Island and former Rep. Lou Lang of Skokie.

Mapes, one of the closest advisers from Madigans extremely small circle of trusted associates to face charges, has denied wrongdoing, maintaining that federal authorities are attempting to squeeze him to give up incriminating information on Madigan.

His indictment in May 2021 caught many by surprise, particularly since he was granted immunity from prosecution by the U.S. attorneys office and warned by the chief judge before his testimony before the grand jury that failing to answer truthfully could result in criminal charges against him.

His attorneys have said in court filings their defense will include that Madigan kept information close to the vest and kept private conversations with others private, and that McClain often talked mysteriously, cryptically, and oddly  including about and when referring to Madigan.

Madigan, 80, was indicted in March on federal racketeering charges alleging his elected office and political operation were a criminal enterprise that provided personal financial rewards for him and his associates.

The 22-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury comes after a yearslong federal investigation and alleges Madigan participated in an array of bribery and extortion schemes from 2011 to 2019 aimed at using the power of his office for personal gain.

Madigan has pleaded not guilty.
CHICAGO  The soon-to-be unveiled 2022 Illinois Report Card shows student academic growth has rebounded and slightly outperformed pre-pandemic levels in reading and math  a positive trend that state education officials attribute to statewide investments of federal pandemic relief funds.

Although student academic growth slowed significantly during the pandemic, the 2022 baseline student growth percentile on this years state report card shows that academic growth appears to be heading in the right direction, Illinois State Board of Education spokeswoman Jackie Matthews said.

But Matthews also said that despite the positive news in the area of student achievement, the impact of frequent disruptions to student learning is also evident on this years state report card.

Proficiency is not where it was before the pandemic, but this accelerated rate of growth shows us were on the right track, Matthews said in a statement this week.

On the 2021 Illinois Report Card, students showed dramatic declines in academic achievement and higher rates of chronic absenteeism.

The new data from Illinois school districts that delivered the mandated Illinois Assessment of Readiness in spring 2022 to students in third through eighth grades and the SAT to high school juniors are expected to be released Oct. 27, officials said.

This years state report card features several new data elements, including an informational tool called the Equity Journey Continuum, which allows districts to track their progress toward closing gaps in student achievement, opportunities and supports, Matthews said.

The tool analyzes data points that districts already collect and report to ISBE through the lens of equity to make that data more useful for improving outcomes for all students, Matthews said.

For the first time since 2019, Illinois schools will be rated once again, as required by federal law, using four possible designations:

Exemplary, which recognizes the highest performing 10% of schools.

Comprehensive, which identifies the lowest performing 5% of schools.

Targeted, which identifies schools whose overall performance is above the lowest performing 5% of schools, but that have one or more student groups whose performance is on par with the lowest performing 5% of schools.

Commendable, the designation for all other schools.

The designations are determined by multiple measures of performance, Matthews said, and for the states elementary and middle schools, the primary indicator  which accounts for 50% of the designation  is student growth.

Among the data, student growth measures how much students progressed in one year compared to other students in their grade statewide who started at the same baseline, and proficiency reflects the percentage of students who met or exceeded grade level standards who scored in the top two out of five possible IAR performance level categories, including: Level 5, exceeded expectations; Level 4, met expectations; Level 3, approached expectations; Level 2, partially met expectations; and Level 1, did not yet meet expectations.

For Illinois high schools, the primary indicator, accounting for 50% of the designation, is the graduation rate.

Matthews said Illinois did amend its accountability plan to account for the impact of the pandemic on most of the accountability indicators.

The state also created an opportunity for early exit from school improvement status for schools newly designated for targeted or comprehensive support if they meet certain criteria that indicates the designation is more likely a result of pandemic data anomalies rather than an accurate measure of school performance, Matthews said.

Although all states are federally required to designate schools that are targeted for comprehensive support, in Illinois these schools will participate in a four-year cycle of school improvement, including conducting a needs assessment, developing an improvement plan, and implementing the plan, Matthews said.

As funded by federal Title 1 school improvement grants, the states lowest performing schools are assigned an IL-EMPOWER coordinator, an ISBE employee hired to support schools through the improvement process.

A spokeswoman for Chicago Public Schools said the states largest school district supports assessments and accountability systems that inform school improvement work in order to help students succeed as they prepare for college, career, and civic life.

As a means of differentiating school performance, the states summative designations help target additional state funding to schools with the most need, which are then used to engage external partners in improvement efforts and those additional dollars are helpful, CPS spokeswoman Mary Fergus said in a statement.

In our districts experience and under our former accountability system, we found that the emphasis on labeling schools for their performance solely on student outcomes was more punitive than informative to a school community, Fergus said.

CPS is in the process of working to build a new approach to accountability aiming to drive school improvement and promote equity and excellence, Fergus said.

We would emphasize that there are many factors such as school leadership, innovative teaching and parental engagement that make up a schools climate and culture and contribute to student success beyond just a narrow set of student outcomes, she said.

At Elk Grove Village-based Community Consolidated School District 59, Superintendent Terri Bresnahan said although the longitudinal growth data for students and the level of transparency around the data can be beneficial, school ratings themselves are not helpful.

Rating students across schools, districts and the state with labels does not help improve the learning and growth of our students and their educational experience, Bresnahan said.

Yet Bresnahan said she appreciates the support some of the districts schools have received from the states IL-EMPOWER system, which she said has allowed schools to access additional funding to provide support and resources to individuals and groups of students in a targeted way.

Access to these funds certainly supported our students and schools, and we are grateful for that, she said.

John Burkey, executive director of the Large Unit District Association, applauded the state boards efforts this year to provide targeted support for struggling schools.

The point is not to use a hammer, but to provide schools with the support they need to get better, Burkey said.

I think the state assessment data are important if we use it in a positive way  to help students and schools move forward, Burkey said. Our schools are absolutely overwhelmed right now, and if IL-EMPOWER can be a vehicle to support those who are most in need, it will be a very positive thing.
The other day one of my social media acquaintances posted a news story about a hideous case of domestic violence. She asked, Whats wrong with men, anyway?

The question was rhetorical. She thought she knew exactly what is wrong with men. They are possessive, selfish, arrogant and violent. The story she posted merely illustrated the problem.

Men commit many more crimes, especially violent crimes, than women. Men commit seven times more murders. There have been 128 mass shooting in the United States since 1982, only three committed by women. Men make up 93% of the prison population.

For many (my social media acquaintance included), the explanation for all this is toxic masculinity. It is not that men are by nature violent; it is that we raise them that way. We need to bring up our children  and our boys especially  to be less aggressive.

Its the wrong answer, using the wrong metaphor.

A powerful metaphor can take hold of our collective imagination, shaping our responses to people and events without thinking about whether the response makes sense. In the case of toxic masculinity, it is a metaphor that has corrupted the ways we think about gender.

Today, whenever a man behaves badly, the incident is sure to be regarded by some as yet another instance of toxic masculinity. As everyone knows, you rid the environment of toxins by removing them or diluting them to the point that they are no longer dangerous. Thus, if the misbehaving man is a public figure, there will be an expectation that he be removed and the force of his example diluted.

After actor Will Smith strode onstage and slapped Chris Rock at this years Oscars, he was banned from the Academy for 10 years. The dilution part came a day after the incident, when Smith issued an apology: I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.

The entire ritual is insincere. The members of the Academy who voted to banish Smith are the same ones who nominated him for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Muhammed Ali, the same ones who earn vast profits from the John Wick franchise. Smith is employed by Hollywood to tell stories about a world that is all too deficient in love and kindness, where violence is routinely used to bring some semblance of order. Nobody demanded that he stop making action pictures.

Notice the irony of issuing a public statement claiming there is no place for violence while the evening news celebrates the Ukrainians heroic resistance to the Russian invasion. Smiths critics accuse him of not really meaning it. They are right. Its a dumb thing for the star of the Bad Boys movies to say.

But heres the point: He shouldnt have to say it in the first place. Smith should have apologized for poor judgment and a lack of self-control. But that would not have been enough to save his public image. He was required to renounce aggressiveness, the willingness to use violence in any circumstances. He had to apologize for being the wrong kind of man.

We have a crisis of masculinity in this country, but its not because masculinity is toxic. Its because we dont know how to talk about being a man. In fact, we dont even think its important.

One of the most surprising things I learned from Richard Reeves enlightening new book, Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do About It, is that several states are not measuring how boys as a whole are doing in school. There is a long-standing assumption that of course boys are doing just fine.

But they are not doing just fine. Reeves, a senior fellow of economic studies at the Brookings Institution, has compiled convincing evidence that boys are falling behind at every level of education, from K-12 through college, in just about every subject area.

If the evidence showed merely that girls are catching up, or even that they are doing much better in some areas than boys, that would be a reason to celebrate. But thats not whats happening. Girls arent just catching up, boys are going backward. And thats a reason for concern.

Reeves proposes that we recruit and train more male teachers, put more resources into technical education and have boys enter kindergarten a year later. All of these are thoughtful, practical suggestions, worthy of serious consideration.

But the crisis of masculinity is not confined to our schools. It has deep and broad cultural roots. More than anything, it is a crisis of virtue.

As a society, we are telling our kids how not to be a man and thinking that is good enough. But you cannot teach someone how to reach a destination by pointing out the wrong path. Our boys need positive, practical examples in their lives.

If we want our boys to grow up into responsible adults who are dependable and trustworthy, who can be good fathers, and neighbors and citizens, we need to teach them not just what is wrong with men but what is right with men.

Our boys need more than behaviors to avoid; they need heroic examples to which they can aspire. Now more than ever, we need good men to step up and show the way.
Whenever historic homes get flooded, building contractors often feel compelled by government regulations to rip out the water-logged wood flooring, tear down the old plaster walls and install new, flood-resistant materials.

It's a hurried approach that's likely to occur across southwest Florida in the wake of Hurricane Ian. But restorers Paige Pollard and Kerry Shackelford say they know something that science is yet to prove: historic building materials can often withstand repeated soakings. There's often no need, they say, to put in modern products such as box-store lumber that are both costly to homeowners and dilute a house's historic character.

"Our forefathers chose materials that were naturally rot-resistant, like black locust and red cedar and cypress," said Shackelford, who owns a historic restoration business. "And they actually survive better than many of the products we use today."

Pollard and Shackelford are part of an emerging movement in the U.S. that aims to prove the resilience of older homes as more fall under the threat of rising seas and intensifying storms due to climate change. They hope their research near Virginia's coast can convince more government officials and building contractors that historic building materials often need cleaning  not replacing  after a flood.

In Florida, historic preservationists already fear older homes damaged by Ian may be stripped of original materials because so few craftsmen are available who can properly perform repairs.

"There are some companies that just roll through, and their job is just to come in and gut the place and move on," said Jenny Wolfe, board president of the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation.

Pollard and Shackelford's joint venture in Virginia, the retrofit design firm Building Resilient Solutions, opened a lab this year in which planks of old-growth pine, oak and cedar are submerged into a tank mimicking flood conditions. The tests are designed to demonstrate historic materials' durability and were devised with help from Virginia Tech researchers.

Meanwhile, the National Park Service has been working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on similar research at the Construction Engineering Research Laboratory in Champaign, Ill.

Researchers there have read through construction manuals from the mid-19th and early 20th centuries to assemble everything from tongue-and-groove flooring to brick walls coated with plaster. The materials were lowered into water containing bacteria and mold to simulate tainted floodwater.

The research may seem glaringly redundant considering all of the older homes that stand intact along the nation's coasts and rivers: many have withstood multiple floods and still boast their original floors and walls.

Pollard and Shackelford say lumber in older homes is resilient because it came from trees that grew slowly over decades, if not centuries. That means the trees' growth rings were small and dense, thereby making it harder for water to seep in. Also, the timber was cut from the innermost part of the trunk, which produces the hardest wood.

Plaster can also be water resistant, while common plaster coatings were made from lime, a substance with antiseptic qualities.

But here's the problem: U.S. flood insurance regulations often require structures in flood-prone areas to be repaired with products classified as flood-resistant. And many historic building materials haven't been classified because they haven't been tested.

U.S. regulations allow exceptions for homes on the National Register of Historic Places as well as some state and local registries. But not everyone fully understands or is aware of the exceptions, which can be limited.

The far bigger challenge is a lack of expertise among contractors and local officials, Pollard said. Interpretations of the regulations can vary, particularly in the chaos after a major flood.

"You've got a property owner who's in distress," said Pollard, who co-owns a historic preservation firm. "They're dealing with a contractor who's being pulled in a million directions. And the contractors are trained to get all of that (wet) material into a dumpster as quickly as possible."

In Norfolk, Va., Karen Speights said a contractor replaced her original first floor  made from old-growth pine  with laminate flooring after her home flooded.

Built in the 1920s, Speights' two-story craftsman is in Chesterfield Heights, a predominantly Black neighborhood on the National Register of Historic Places. It sits along an estuary of the Chesapeake Bay in one of the most vulnerable cities to sea-level rise.

"I still believe I had a good contractor, but flooding was not his expertise," Speights said. "You don't know what you don't know."

Along Florida's Gulf Coast, there are thousands of historic structures, said Wolfe of the Florida Trust. A large number of them are wood-framed houses on piers with plaster-and-lath walls.

Many likely just need to be dried out after Ian, Wolfe said. But only so many local contractors know what to do "in terms of drying them slowly and opening up the baseboards to get circular airflow."

Andy Apter, president-elect of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, agreed that many contractors aren't well-versed in older building materials.

"There's no course that I know of that teaches you directly how to work on historical homes," said Apter, a Maryland contractor. "It's like an antique car. You're going to be limited on where you can find parts and where you can find someone who's qualified to work on it."

But interest in the resilience of older homes has grown since Hurricane Katrina, which deluged hundreds of thousands of historic structures along the Gulf Coast in 2005, according to Jenifer Eggleston, the National Park Service's chief of staff for cultural resources, partnerships and science.

Eggleston said the park service recognized the growing need to protect older structures and issued new guidelines last year for rehabilitating historic buildings in flood-prone areas.

The guidelines recommend keeping historic materials in place when possible. But they don't list specific materials due to the lack of research on their flood resistance.

That's where the studies come in.

A recent study by the park service and Army Corps found that some historic materials, such as old-growth heart pine and cypress flooring, performed considerably better than certain varieties of modern lumber, Eggleston said.

Those particular floor assemblies could be dried for reuse after so-called "clean water" damage, Eggleston said. But they would likely require refinishing to remove "biological activity," such as mold and bacteria.

Pollard and Shackelford said they're hoping for an eventual shift in practices that will save money for homeowners as well as taxpayers, who often foot the bill after a major disaster.

In the meantime, flooding in historic areas will only get worse from more frequent rain storms or more powerful hurricanes, said Chad Berginnis, executive director of the Association of State Floodplain Managers.

"Think about our historic settlement patterns in the country," Berginnis said. "On the coasts, we settled around water. Inland, we settled around water."
New book

I cant wait to read New York Times reporter Maggie Habermans new book, Confidence Man, about former President Trump and the travesties of his presidency. Im sure there will be fresh revelations about his misdeeds while in office.

Conservatives dont like Haberman because her reporting makes Trump look bad. Liberals dont like Haberman because they say she should have blown the whistle on Trump much sooner rather than save the dirt for her book.

But no one claims that shes wrong. She had unequaled access to Trump because shes among the best reporters working today and he knew it.

Randy Cusio

Winston-Salem

Vote for democracy

Voting in every election is very important, and this year it is extremely significant. Democracy is on the ballot!

I want to be represented by a legislator who embraces our right to vote  someone who will make it easier rather than harder to vote! As the slogan says: when people vote, democracy wins. I do not want any legislator who perpetuates the Big Lie and threatens fraud if they lose.

I want a legislator who will stand up and fight for womens reproductive rights and health care, not take away established rights. For a political party that has proclaimed no big government, why are Republicans interfering with family planning and reproductive decisions?

I want elected officials who trust and respect our teachers and education system. CRT is not taught in public schools, but history is. We need to teach our children to celebrate history and learn from our mistakes. We cannot fear the truth!

I also want these same officials to respect all students  no child should suffer from the cruelty of discrimination. We need advocates for teaching love, kindness and acceptance and who will stop perpetuating past prejudices.

I want elected officials who are pro-equality, pro-truth, pro-democracy. Do your research! Go to the League of Women Voters vote411.org to learn about all the candidates. Then, vote!

Carol Ashley

Winston-Salem

A serious matter

Wow, Sarah Absher is hot! Im voting for her!

Thats what were supposed to think when we see her placards, right? Most candidates for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school board are satisfied with getting their name in the public or performing well in candidate forums. But Absher wants to make sure were aware of her slender figure, as she stands flirtatiously with her hand on her hip. If that doesnt qualify her to serve on the school board, what would?

Education is a serious matter  perhaps the most serious matter. it shouldnt become the playground of cartoonish Marjorie Taylor Greene clones.

Lynn Steinhauser

Winston-Salem

Study history

I want to commend Richard Groves on the well-written column When we refused to welcome the stranger in the Oct. 2 journal. I too watched the documentary The U.S. and the Holocaust by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein.

Every American should watch this and understand where we have failed refugees in the past and the dangers of antisemitism, isolationism and anti-immigration.

Every American except for those who are full descendants of Native Americans are here because their ancestors sought a better life in a country offering freedom to be, to work, to live.

We can be proud to be Americans without following those who think patriotism means insurrection.

Last, sending immigrants who have come seeking asylum to states that are governed by Democrats is a cruel reminder that some politicians and their constituents need schooling in the cruelties of the past.

If we dont study history, it will repeat itself.

Glenda Wilkinson

Winston-Salem

Targeting

The FBI and Department of Justice arent targeting Republicans as some out-there Republicans claim; theyre targeting criminals.

I can see how that might be confusing, though.

Hank Boles

Winston-Salem
By Azernews





By News Center

The Pars IV 6x6 special operations vehicle, which was made solely for the demands of the Turkish armed forces, has passed all reliability and durability tests, and the countdown has begun for the delivery of the first batch of vehicles, Yeni Shafak reports.

"The vehicle is the first of its kind. I've never seen a vehicle with such high levels of protection, agility, and heavy equipment. It is much superior to its European alternatives," Aybars Kucuk, the FNSS (Defense Systems) Marketing and Programs Group President, stressed.

The Pars IV 6x6 Special Operations Vehicle has been developed as part of the 6x6 Mine Protected Vehicle (MKKA) Procurement Project, which was signed by FNSS and the Turkish Defense Industries Presidency (SSB).

Kucuk underlined that the vehicle systems and configuration are entirely tailored to the customers needs, and the customer chooses the weapons to be installed on the vehicle. The company works with the project group, which includes project coordinators, solution partners, and customers, during the project's design and development process, preparing it for the task once all testing is completed.

He added that a variety of tests such as mines, ballistic and hand-made explosives, maneuverability, environmental conditions, and electromagnetic compatibility were carried out during the testing to meet the customer's expectations.

"This vehicle has successfully passed all of these stages. Our vehicle has completed all reliability and durability tests in line with military standards. Testing on asphalt roads, stabilized road tests, and driving tests in thick mud under extreme conditions have all been performed. Our mass manufacturing continues, and the first batch of vehicles is being prepared for delivery, Kucuk emphasized.

He pointed out that the special operations vehicle provides the highest level of protection, as well as much more than mine-resistant vehicles, known as MRAPs.

"Our vehicle is resistant to ballistics, mines, and hand-made explosives at high levels defined by military standards. Intensive testing, particularly against mines and hand-made explosives, was conducted, and it passed all of them successfully. This is the product of over a decade of hard effort by our engineers. FNSS has developed various projects both at home and abroad over the previous ten years, producing a wide range of vehicles. All of them were subjected to extensive mine-detonation tests. No other firm in Europe possesses our degree of engineering. For years, there has been no fresh development in Europe. We have been working on this project for many years, Kucuk underlined.

Kucuk said that as the level of protection increased, the vehicle became heavier, yet the technical teams devised a design with the agility that would not be expected from such a vehicle.

"This is a vehicle for special missions. It must be able to move rapidly to the scene or under threat, and it must do so in all circumstances and terrain. We have a unique design for this. The engine of our automobiles is located in the center. As a result, the vehicle's weight distribution is relatively neutral. We employ hydropneumatic suspensions that can be adjusted depending on the vehicle's asphalt, stabilized road, or rough terrain driving position. Thanks to this feature, the vehicle can almost fly over the bumps in the test area, which is like a motocross track, and land in a very balanced way and continue its operation and movement," he added.

Kucuk further revealed that the vehicle employs thermal cameras with 360-degree views, which provide the driver and commander with an over 180-degree field view.

"These cameras can detect every movement surrounding the car. They are capable of detecting automatically. You can even see the menace lurking behind the bush. We collaborated with a local electronics manufacturer as our solution partner to create a unique camera. This camera combines thermal radiation and daylight to provide a sense of depth and the ability to perceive obstacles such as pits and bumps even in complete darkness. This enables the vehicle to function even when the headlights are turned off. The camera is unaffected by the opposing side's headlight. We are going to utilize this homegrown camera in all of our vehicles, Kucuk emphasized.

He underlined that the vehicle has two remote-controlled weapon systems that can be equipped with three different types of weaponry, providing 360-degree firing with no "dead zone."

The vehicle also has been equipped with an acoustic target identification system, which detects targets accurately using supersonic acoustic waves when a shot is fired at it and directs the weapon systems towards the danger.

We did not purchase or install any particular brand or product. Even prototype systems used across the world were tested in real surroundings under comparable conditions. Two systems, one native and one foreign performed admirably. This is how we made it work. It now functions flawlessly, in harmony with all of our systems, Kucuk stressed.

Kucuk emphasized that FNSS sells large quantities of 6x6 and 8x8 vehicles to two friendly countries.

Since it is the first of its kind, we believe that once this vehicle is in the inventory, it will have tremendous potential. I'm not aware of any vehicle with such high levels of protection, agility, and heavy equipment on it. These vehicles have already outperformed their European alternatives. Our advertising efforts continue. First and foremost, it must be entered into the inventory. We hope that not only this vehicle but all of our cars and systems that we are now developing in Turkiye, will be very successful," he emphasized.
John Oliphant is director of the global public health program being developed in the College of Health Sciences and Technology at Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology (RIT). He also is an associate professor in the PA program at RIT and assistant medical director of associate health at the University of Rochester Medical Center: Thompson Health in Canandaigua, N.Y. Jallah Kennedy is executive director and a research scientist at Roads To Health in Galloway, N.J., and Monrovia, Liberia, and a member of the adjunct faculty of the global health program at RIT. The authors have disclosed no potential conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise.

Acknowledgment: The authors would like to thank their Liberian colleagues for their assistance with article: Agnes N. Dagbe, MS, RN; Mary Ambuley, PA; Jerry Kollie, PA; Norris David, PA; James Sorsor; Joseph Colmah; Rebecca Scotland, PA; Philip Willie, PA; Prince Patrick Myers, MD; and Paul Mertens, MD.

Kathy Pedersen, MPAS, PA-C, department editor
The Nebraska Public Service Commission announced Wednesday that an Iowa company has surrendered its Nebraska grain dealer license.

Global Processing Inc. of Kanawha, Iowa, which owns and operates grain facilities in Lexington and Haigler, surrendered its license Wednesday after a PSC audit showed it did not have enough funds to cover its grain purchases made in the state.

The PSC said in a news release that members of its Grain Department staff conducted an examination of the company's two Nebraska grain facilities last week and discovered the financial shortfall.

Through discussions with company management, it was determined that it was in the best interest of Nebraska producers/sellers that the company no longer be allowed to do business as a grain dealer in our state, PSC Commission Chair Dan Watermeier said in a news release.

By surrendering its license, Global Processing cannot take any action that would classify it as a grain dealer in the state, the PSC said, including but not limited to buying grain from producers/sellers with the intent to sell such grain.

Watermeier said producers and sellers who may have done business with the company and have questions should contact the PSC Grain Department.
A 15-year-old boy has been hospitalized and a 14-year-old boy is in custody after a reported stabbing Thursday in Waverly's Wayne Park.

Lancaster County Sheriff's deputies responded to the park, a green space located near all of the town's schools, shortly before noon Thursday.

The 14-year-old stabbed the older boy "multiple times" and was taken into custody by the Nebraska State Patrol at the scene, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release.

The 15-year-old was taken by ambulance to a Lincoln hospital where he is being treated for "possible life-threatening injuries," the agency said.

Reached by phone, Sheriff Terry Wagner said the suspected stabber had not had run-ins with deputies before Thursday's incident.

He said investigators were still conducting interviews and hadn't determined what  if any  connection there was between the two teens ahead of the stabbing.

Waverly students were out of school Thursday for fall break.

Wagner said the 14-year-old would likely be lodged at the county's Youth Assessment Center overnight before the case is turned over to the Lancaster County Attorney's Office for any potential charging decision.

Crime scene technicians canvassed for evidence at the park, which remained closed Thursday afternoon.

The Sheriff's Office will release additional details on the stabbing Friday morning.
Lincoln Public Schools is getting closer to being able to do a full-scale test of its "reunification" drill, practicing how students are moved to a new location and connected with their parents in case of disaster.

But first, the district has a few more components to test  including how it manages a large surge of parents  part of its "building block" approach to the yearly exercise, LPS Security Coordinator Kyle Poore said.

On Thursday, Saratoga Elementary School students and families will take part in the drill, which will include moving students to a nearby building before busing them to Lincoln Southwest High School, the district's designated reunification site.

LPS has run the drill three times, each exercise zeroing in on one aspect of the plan that would be called upon if a crisis were to arise  from something as small as a water main break to more serious threats like a school shooting.

Last year, the district studied how it would work with a handful of parents  including non-English speakers  to meet up with their children.

This year, the district is focusing on the sheer volume of people, using Saratoga parents, along with students enrolled in Union College's International Rescue and Relief program, to test how a number of people arriving at the same time would affect the process.

"This is kind of the last testing point," Poore said.

Students will be taken to a relocation site  typically a nearby church or other building  before being bused to Lincoln Southwest, where they'll be reunited with parents instructed to meet them there.

In past drills, students typically waited together in the Southwest gym, but now they go to classrooms with an assigned teacher, which the district found was more effective.

"It's a very important responsibility, and it has to be done the right way," said Mark Hosking, deputy director of Lancaster County Emergency Management, which helps LPS design and execute the drill along with first responders. "You can't take it all on in one time, you have to break it up into parts and pieces."

Officials spend months planning for this drill, including going over "tabletop" exercises in the spring.

The Uvalde, Texas, shooting in May that left 19 elementary school students and two teachers dead occurred after those LPS tabletop meetings, but the tragedy still informed Thursday's planned exercise, Poore said.

Officials studied the reunification process in Uvalde, which Poore said "went well" despite criticisms of the initial response by law enforcement.

"It confirmed what we're doing is  working," Poore said.

The Uvalde district used its website to direct parents to a nearby civic center where they could be reunited with their children, something LPS is looking to incorporate into its own plans.

Next year, the district plans to test the response of its secondary designated reunification site  Lincoln North Star  before possibly doing a full-scale drill in 2024.

That exercise would likely take place over the summer and involve first responders going through mock exercises  like an active shooter drill  in one district building while the full reunification piece is tested in another.

LPS was one of the first districts in Nebraska to put the reunification plans into place, a testament to how "proactive" the district is about safety and security, Hosking said.
Lauren Kintner, a key figure in the Ricketts administration who played a major role in legislative relations, will leave state government later this month after 24 years as a member of the governor's cabinet in Nebraska.

Kintner served as lead policy adviser and legal counsel to Gov. Pete Ricketts and his two predecessors, Govs. Dave Heineman and Mike Johanns, holding the position of director of the governor's policy research office.

In that role, Kintner has been a key figure in working with members of the Legislature on behalf of the governor.

"She has helped the executive branch advocate for sound policy through three administrations," Ricketts said, "and her contributions have left a positive impact in Nebraska that will be felt for generations to come."

"Lauren has been a valued adviser," the governor said.

Kintner led the advancement of key policy initiatives that have led to "ushering in tens of billions of dollars in tax relief," Ricketts said, while curbing state expenditures, expanding services and support for Nebraska veterans and law enforcement officers, and cutting regulation for Nebraska business owners and entrepreneurs.

Kintner's departure is effective Oct. 24.
The Journal Star editorial board continues its 2022 general election endorsements with two contests for the Nebraska Legislature and two for the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners.

Nebraska Legislature

In District 26, the Journal Star editorial board endorses Jane Raybould. The Lincoln City Council member and businesswoman would bring her fact-based business experience and her work on the council to the Legislature.

Her opponent, former City Council member and audiologist Roy Christensen would bring similar experiences to the Capitol with his open-minded, consultative conservatism.

Rayboulds views on issues, including the need for criminal justice reform, increased state funding of public education and maintaining the current state abortion law, more closely align with the editorial boards positions.

In District 2, the editorial board endorses Sarah Slattery. Slattery, a chef and small business owner who calls herself the school lunch lady would bring her advocacy for education and child nutrition to the Legislature, work to ensure accessible health care, protect workers rights and leave Nebraskas abortion laws unchanged.

Her opponent, incumbent Sen. Ron Clements would continue his work as a numbers guy on the Appropriations Committee, work for property tax relief, would support further restrictions on abortion and would support public voting for legislative committees, thereby weakening the nonpartisan Legislature.

After redistricting by the Legislature, District 2 now includes a portion of southeast Lancaster County, essentially suburban Lincoln. Slattery is the better fit for that new area of the district as well for Cass County.

Lancaster County Board of Commissioners

In District 1, the Journal Star editorial board endorses Sean Flowerday. Incumbent Flowerday, will continue his work to increase public health services, develop wind and solar energy while respecting property rights and collaborate in the development of a second water source for the city and county.

His opponent, general contractor Cameron Hall, is running on a platform aimed at reducing county spending, halting the increase in taxes created by rising property valuation and providing resources for roads and bridges

Flowerday, who has served as board chair, has ably represented the central Lincoln district and its working class population and should continue to do so.

In District 5, the editorial board endorses Rick Vest. Incumbent Vest brings his skills at mediation, working in both labor and management, to build consensus on the board. He will address the need to reduce jail overcrowding due to mental health issues and work to expand broadband, water services and infrastructure in the rural areas outside Lincoln.

His opponent, kitchen and bath remodeler Jason Kruger, would prioritize public safety and infrastructure.

Vest, who has helped reduce the countys tax levy, increase its cash reserve and addressed infrastructure needs, deserves re-election.

About our endorsements

As with all of our editorial board opinions, our election endorsements dont necessarily reflect the unanimous opinions of our members but rather a consensus. We arrive at them after candidate interviews, reviewing news stories and research. While we consider the board an advocate for the community, our endorsements, and all our opinions, are intended to initiate discussion.
The Kenosha News "Boo Crew" was back for another weekend of fright nights. This year's haunt tour included stops at Dr. Destruction's Haunted Manor, Soul Reapers Haunted House and the Kemper Center Haunted House.

This year's "Boo Crew" Kenosha News team includes:

Jillian Craig, a former haunted house actor who recently moved to this area from Ohio (where the Cleveland Browns resemble the Walking Dead this year) for a reporting job at the Kenosha News.

Joe States, a reporter who started at the News as a college intern in the summer of 2021. He claims nothing scares him ... we'll see!

Liz Snyder, aka the easiest person in the world to scare. She avoids black cats, horror movies  and her own basement. She "retired" from the Haunted House Beat but came back this year, joining these two newbies.

Sean Krajacic, who agreed to capture elusive images of the undead for the newspaper.

Dr. Destruction's Haunted Mansion

Dr. Destruction, also known as Dale Wamboldt, celebrates his 30th year of running his haunt at Jerry Smith Farm, located at 7150 18th St. It started as a Haunted Bus and has since expanded to a corn maze filled with frights at every corner.

Bonus Attraction: Jerry Smith Farm also features hand-painted pumpkin displays, a petting zoo, hayrides, concessions and a country store.

Fun Fact: The haunt is open during the day on weekends and is also open for business throughout the week.

OUR COMMENTS:

Liz: The corn maze is a cool way to start your tour ... look out for things lurking in there! Also, there's nothing spookier than rustling corn stalks. I love that most of the attraction is outside, which adds to the fun, and the classical music set mood throughout the visit. The night we visited, the full moon was rising over the pumpkin farm, which added to the atmosphere.

Wondering if it's too scary? Remember this: Your friendly neighborhood pumpkin farm would never hurt you. Still, if you hear a chain saw, it's best to RUN.

Joe: I really liked having to run away from the chainsaw-wielding clown at the end of the maze.

Jillian: The scares were well-timed throughout the maze. Actors were hidden throughout, and I found myself checking behind my back throughout the haunt.

FAMILY CALL: The attraction is fun for all ages, but younger patrons may enjoy the experience more during daylight hours.

DETAILS: The Haunted Manor is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday-Friday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $10 and the last day to visit is Oct. 30. jerrysmithfarm.com

Soul Reapers Haunted House

Located at the Kenosha County Fairgrounds, 30820 111th St., Soul Reapers Haunted House boasts four themed attractions.

Sabrina and Tim Rasch, owners of the haunt, have been running their attraction for seven years. The journey through the haunt starts with Madame Mizerys mansion before patrons are led to the Hospital of Hell. Next is a swamp and mineshaft, and then the journey ends with a trip through Underworld.

Tim Rasch builds everything in his back yard throughout the year and had four weeks to set it all up. It took multiple semi-trailers filled with sets and equipment to get everything to the fairgrounds.

Bonus Attraction: Although it is not a ticketed item, the entrance is filled with haunt actors, music, lights and fog. Patrons can interact with characters and take photos with them before they enter the haunted house.

Fun Fact: Tim Rasch grew up always wanting to own a haunted house and got his start by decorating the front yard of his home as a kid. The first Halloween prop he ever made was a guillotine.

OUR COMMENTS:

Liz: The makeup and character work is especially good. Spend some time while you're waiting in line interacting with the scare actors. Some of the scenes are rather gory, so hold off on eating that rare steak until after you've gone through this attraction.

They have a fun playlist and lots of mist outside, leading to spontaneous dance parties breaking out. And, as always, when you hear a chain saw starting up, it's best to RUN.

Joe: I liked that there is a good mix of special effects, themes and characters. I really like the laser/fog machine effect in one of the rooms. The old mansion house was my favorite building, mostly because of the theme.

Jillian: The sets and makeup look very professional. Every interaction I had with an actor was fun  especially my interactions with the clown who made me a balloon animal while I waited in line.

FAMILY CALL: This haunt is best suited for ages 12 and older. The gore within the house sets are graphic and may not be suitable for younger ages.

DETAILS: The haunt is open Fridays and Saturdays from 7 to 11 p.m. and on two Sundays, Oct. 23 and 30, from 7 to 10 p.m. Online advance tickets are $18 for regular admission and $25 for VIP fast pass. Tickets at the gate are $20 and $27. soulreapershaunt.com.

Kemper Center Haunted House

Back again for another year, the Kemper Center Haunted House, which is put on by the Teen Task Force through the Concerned Citizens Coalition, brings scares to an already spooky structure. Located at 6501 Third Ave., the buildings, already intimidating at night, are lined with headstones warning patrons of toxicity inside.

This year's theme is "Sector 13" and features a dark and mysterious maze.

Bonus Attraction: A lights-on "kiddie hour" is 6 to 7 p.m. During Kiddie hour, children can trick-or-treat throughout the haunted house. Lingering candy was found on the walk through the haunt.

Fun fact: The haunted house has been a Teen Task Force project for more than 20 years. Even if you don't go during trick-or-treat time, you can purchase popcorn, candy and other snacks for just $1 in the haunted house staging area where you buy your tickets. Sales from the candy and other concessions go toward supporting the Teen Task Force.

Very nice: Kemper Center's Haunted House has indoor bathrooms, a rarity in the haunted attractions world.

OUR COMMENTS:

Liz: The first floor is a series of rooms with creepy inhabitants. Theres a lot of chaos and screaming (too much screaming for my taste  sometimes quieter scares are the best). There's a LOT of fog inside this house, so take a deep breath outside and hurry through!

The second floor is a pitch-black, twisty maze, which can be very confusing. Im surprised Im still not in there, bumping into walls. It's very disorienting, which I suspect is the whole point. If you're in there, keep your cell phone in your pocket, please. Too many folks were cheating by turning on their phones, which destroys the darkness and the creepy vibe.

Joe: The maze was lots of fun, and I expected someone was hiding in there. It was fun to wander around in the dark.

Jillian: The maze was very discombobulating and disorienting, which heightened my surprise when arriving at the same room with the same scary actor twice. I liked how the actors timed their scares well and the effects helped build suspense throughout the haunt.

Sean: Overall, it was fun to be back at the haunted houses this year. It's been a while since we've toured them.

FAMILY CALL: Take the kids during the daytime hours, 6 to 7 p.m., for a lights on tour -- and FREE candy.

DETAILS: Opens at 7 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 29. Kiddie hour starts at 6 p.m. $10 admission for adults, $5 for kids (age 10 and younger). kempercenter.com.
SOMERS  The University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 900 Wood Road, has been awarded a $1.2 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Education to establish an Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) aimed at helping more adults in the region to complete four-year college degrees.

The EOC project will be launched this fall and will be funded over five years through the TRIO Program, a federally funded grant program that provides services to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. The EOC will be housed at the UW-Parkside Center for Adult and Returning Students (CARS), which will oversee the program.

The EOC aims to serve 850 participants annually and will be staffed with three full-time employees who will be hired by UW-Parkside this fall. It will target adults of working age in Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties in the southeast and Lake and McHenry counties in northeast Illinois. The population-dense target area is home to a high number of residents with low baccalaureate achievement rates who would benefit from an EOC at UW-Parkside. The EOC will give priority to low-income, minority, and veteran adults, as well as first-generation students. The program aims to close existing equity gaps in degree completion, which in turn can help program participants improve their earning potential and career advancement opportunities.

The EOC at UW-Parkside will equip hundreds of area residents with resources that can bolster their educational achievements, career success, and overall quality of life, stated Dana Roders, adult student program manager for Professional and Continuing Education at UW-Parkside. Were thrilled for this opportunity to serve our community and make a lasting difference in peoples lives.

The UW-Parkside Educational Opportunity Center will work in partnership with two- and four-year higher education institutions in the region, county workforce development offices, veteran services offices, and correctional facilities. The goal is to have participants apply for college admissions and enroll in postsecondary education.

Participants without a secondary degree will have the opportunity to earn a high school diploma or its equivalent. Partnering institutions include Gateway Technical College, UW-Whitewater, and Herzing University.

The need for an EOC to fill the education and skills gaps in the region is well documented. Of the 1.4 million residents in the target area, about 14% are low income, and 62% have yet to earn a bachelors degree. Of those, 85,645 (8.77%) are adults who do not yet have a high school diploma or its equivalent, and 521,561 (53.44%) hold a high school diploma but not a bachelors degree, according to 2019 Census and Department of Labor data.

Education beyond high school has never been more important than it is right now. Employers are struggling to fill much needed jobs in our community, stated Deann Possehl, UW-Parkside assistant provost for student success. The EOC program will provide much needed support for adults in our community interested in pursuing additional education.

EOC staff will work with community partners to offer program participants access to information about postsecondary educational opportunities, career exploration services and workshops on financial literacy and college readiness. Staff will also assist program participants through the application and enrollment process for the program of their choice.

EOC staff will be working one-on-one with each program participant to help them set financial and career goals, said Roders, who is coordinating the project. This practice will help participants to identify their own incentives to enroll in and complete postsecondary degree programs.
MADISON  Former Journal Times Editor Peter D. Fox is among distinguished industry leaders who will be inducted into the Wisconsin Newspaper Hall of Fame by the Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation on Thursday, Nov. 10, at The Madison Club, 5 E. Wilson St.

As an undergraduate attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Fox served as a part-time copy editor for the Wisconsin State Journal, joining the paper full time during graduate school.

After eight years with the State Journal, during which he earned his bachelors and masters degrees in journalism from UW-Madison, Fox was named city editor of the Billings (Montana) Gazette in 1981. He became regional editor in 1983 and, in 1985, returned to Wisconsin to serve as editor of The (Racine) Journal Times, a position he held for nearly nine years.

After leaving the newspaper industry in 1994, Fox served as director of public information for the University of Wisconsin and, later was named workforce development coordinator and secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Employment by Gov. Tommy Thompson.

In 2004, he was named executive director of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association, a role he held until 2010. During his tenure, the association made significant strides in membership participation and services to the states daily and weekly newspapers. Fox acted as a leading advocate for open records and meetings and helped pass the states Whistleblower Protection Act. He also launched Wisconsins free public notice website and digital newspaper archive.

Over the years, Fox has been honored with Distinguished Service Awards from the UW-Madison School of Journalism and the WNA. He also served as advisor of Montana State Universitys student newspaper, The Exponent, from 2011 to 2019.

Prior to working in newspapers, Fox served in the U.S. Army Security Agency from 1967 to 1970 as a Russian linguist and was stationed in Japan and Taiwan. He later served in the Wisconsin Army National Guard in a variety of positions, retiring with 32 years of service and the rank of colonel.

The other 2022 inductees are Emma Brown (posthumous), The Wisconsin Chief, Fort Atkinson; Dickey Chapelle (posthumous), Shorewood native, photographer and one of the first female war correspondents, killed in Vietnam; Charles Chuck Gauger, Trempealeau County Times, Whitehall; and Phil Muench (posthumous), Grant County Herald Independent, Lancaster.
By Azernews





By News Center

The Turkish government will continue undertaking important projects, Yeni Shafak reports, citing Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoglu.

Karaismailoglu delivered remarks while inspecting the recently built 1915 Canakkale Bridge.

The technical team provided Karaismailoglu with information, who took the elevator to the 204-meter-high segment of the bridge on the European side of the tower. Deputy Minister Enver Iskurt, AK Party Canakkale Deputy Julide Iskenderoglu, and others accompanied the minister.

Addressing the media on the bridge, Karaismiloglu informed that another important project in Canakkale had been completed and placed into service.

We are overjoyed and proud. It gives me great pride to be a part of such large projects. We opened the Assos and Troy tunnels on the Kucukkuyu-Ayvacik road in Ayvacik today. We have connected two vital lines on the Istanbul, Canakkale, and Aegean axis today. We are currently 204 meters above sea level, on the European side of the 1915 Canakkale Bridge. It is 204 meters tall; however, it is only the bridges height above sea level. Another 45 meters lie beneath the sea, Karaismailoglu stressed.

Karaismailoglu emphasized that the bridge is the world's largest and highest pier steel bridge, and the effort done would benefit the nation for centuries.

"Of course, we have become one of the countries with the most advanced domestic and national engineering technologies in the world. Turkish experts and Turkish engineering solutions are now sought when there is a major infrastructure project anywhere in the world. That is why we are so proud. We shall continue to carry out initiatives that are inspirational to the rest of the world and make our country proud. Today we were at Canakkale. We'll spend the weekend in Diyarbakir. Then we'll be at another region of our country to launch a valuable project, the minister underlined.

Turkiye inaugurated the 1915 Canakkale Bridge, the sixth project that connects Asia and Europe, on March 18 with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his presence.

The implemented transportation projects have played a significant role in Turkiye's four-fold economic growth over the past 20 years.

The 1915 Canakkale Bridge, built alongside the 15 July Martyrs and Fatih Sultan Mehmet bridges, connected the two continents for the sixth time and became an alternative route between Asia and Europe.

A total of $169.2 billion has been invested in transportation and communication over the past 20 years.

The bridge, one of the mega projects that connect Asia and Europe, is full of symbols from its length to its height, from its color to its viaducts.

The bridge has been equipped with codes related to both the Canakkale war and Turkish history.

The bridge reflects some Turkish-Islamic motifs, as well as draws inspiration from Ottoman architecture. The vertical lines, which stand out in many historical works of Turkish-Islamic architecture, were also used in the tie beams of the bridge.

It is possible to see the vertical lines that Mimar Sinan brought to Ottoman architecture in many works. The similar vertical lines, which can be noticed in the Selimiye and the Suleymaniye mosques, as well as in the Buyukcekmece Bridge, add a historical atmosphere to the bridge.

Moreover, critical dates are included in the figures regarding the length and height of the bridge. The 2,023-meter middle span between the two steel towers of the suspended tower marks the 100th anniversary of the Turkish republic.
The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train will be returning again this year, after missing the last two years amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two Racine County stops are scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 8.

First, from 7-7:30 p.m., the train is scheduled to make its annual stop at the Amtrak Depot, 9900 E. Exploration Court, Sturtevant. Then, at 8:15 p.m., it will make its second-ever at the railroad crossing at Highway G in Caledonia, near The Depot Tavern, 11402 Highway G.

More Wisconsin stops are planned for Dec. 9 in Wauwatosa, Hartland, Oconomowoc, Watertown and Columbus. On Dec. 10 in Wisconsin, the Holiday Train is scheduled to stop in Portage, the Wisconsin Dells, Mauston, Tomah, Sparta and La Crosse.

The Holiday Train has been a transcontinental staple along railroad tracks from the west coast to the east in the U.S. and Canada.

Each year, Canadian Pacific collects food donations for the food banks of the communities it operates in, with dozens of annual Holiday Train stops being the centerpiece for those collections. This year, donations will again be going to the Racine County Food Bank.

At each stop, live music from recording artists is performed from a stage on the train. At the two Racine County stops this year, scheduled to perform are folk-rocker Alan Doyle and Kelly Prescott, a pop-country artist who performed the last time the train was in Racine County three years ago.

In 2021, in the absence of the Holiday Train, The Depot and Raymond School collaborated to collect about two tons of donations for the food bank.

According to Canadian Pacific, the Holiday Train has raised more than $15 million and collected more than 5 million pounds of food since 1999.
BURLINGTON  Neighboring residents and businesses are raising loud objections to resurrected plans for transforming an old family farm into a mining site to make room for expansion of an industrial park.

Among those voicing opposition is custom vehicle designer LDV Inc., an affiliate of the Lynch Auto Group, a longtime member of the Burlington business community.

Members of the Burlington Plan Commission heard Tuesday from LDV executives and many others about concerns that the proposed mining operation for sand and gravel would cause disruption and health risks for neighbors.

City officials, however, said the proposed 75-acre farm redevelopment at the Highway 11 bypass and Highway P would generate badly needed economic growth and property tax revenue.

City Administrator Carina Walters acknowledged that the project involves challenges, but she said it would result in an estimated $40 million boost in the citys property tax base.

This is a good development, a good project for the city, Walters said.

After hearing from both proponents and critics, Plan Commission members agreed to take more testimony at their next meeting Nov. 9 before deciding whether to support the development on Burlingtons south side.

Reesman Co. is asking the city to rezone the property and grant a permit so that the site at 808 and 892 McHenry St. can be mined for sand and gravel, then converted into an expansion of the nearby Burlington Industrial Park.

The same concept stirred opposition from environmentalists in 1990, prompting city officials to reject Reesmans plan at the time.

The former Sullivan family farm is a scenic agricultural site surrounded by trees, with a large hill that Reesman wants to excavate for sand and gravel to be used as raw material in construction. Once the hill is gone, Reesman would erect several new buildings for businesses to occupy in the expanded industrial park.

Company Chairman J.R. Reesman told plan commissioners that he expects to yield 200,000 tons of sand and gravel annually over a period of 10 to 12 years. The material would provide raw material for construction projects throughout the region, Reesman said.

We use this material every single day, he said. We would not be in business without it. And nothing would get built without it.

Neighbors said they oppose the proposal because they fear that the mining operation would create excessive dust and noise, leaving the neighborhood in an unhealthy mess.

LDV President Kurt Petrie held up a large photograph of his operation at 180 Industrial Drive, showing dozens of newly finished custom vehicles that, he said, would become covered in dust from Reesmans above-ground quarry.

Petrie said LDV also employs 280 people whose vehicles could be damaged by the mining.

This doesnt make sense where its at, he said. It doesnt fit the area.

Plan Commission members also heard from residents on Eastbrook Drive and Dale Drive, both located just east of the proposed development site.

Brad Gietzel, a homeowner on Dale Drive, said he has a son with health issues that could be aggravated by dust from the excavation proposed to take place on the neighboring farm.

Gietzel said city officials should look elsewhere for new industrial development. He added: We need to preserve what is left of the natural beauty around us.

Another resident pointed that schools are located nearby where children could be exposed to unhealthy effects from the mining.

Reesman offered assurances that his company would use trees and other buffers to minimize any disruption to surrounding residents and businesses. He offered other examples of places where his company has operated without complaints from neighbors.

If we do it right, he said, people dont even know were there.

Other benefits cited by city officials include Reesmans plan to build a connecting road to the industrial park, which would ease traffic congestion in the area and allow better access for emergency vehicles.

Alderman Tom Preusker, who serves on the Plan Commission, noted that Burlington has few remaining areas available for industrial growth. Preusker also said state-imposed tax caps limit the citys ability to raise enough revenue to keep pace with growing demands for basic services.

The city should create places for new industry, he said, to expand the tax base and maintain needed government services.

Our only option, really, is to grow, he said.
1. Yes. Its important to cast my votes early and avoid the lines on Election Day.

2. Yes. With nearly two weeks of early voting, its a more convenient way to take part.

3. No. Its better to wait until Election Day, in case any last-minute information surfaces.

4. No. Im not planning to vote early or on Election Day. It isnt worth my time.

5. Unsure. It depends on how the campaigns are shaping up. Ill play it by ear.

Vote

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LINCOLN  Global Processing Inc. of Kanawha, Iowa, on Wednesday surrendered its Nebraska grain dealer license to the Nebraska Public Service Commission.

The company owns and operates facilities in Lexington and Haigler.

On Oct. 7, members of the PSC Grain Department conducted an examination of the Haigler and Lexington facilities followed by a detailed accounting of the companys financial records, which determined Global Processing Inc. was operating with insufficient funds to cover its grain purchases in Nebraska.

Through discussions with company management, it was determined that it was in the best interest of Nebraska producers/sellers that the company no longer be allowed to do business as a grain dealer in our state, said Commission Chair Dan Watermeier.

By surrendering its license, Global Processing Inc. cannot take any action that would classify it as a grain dealer in the state, including, but not limited to, buying grain from producers/sellers with the intent to sell such grain.

Watermeier said, If you are a producer/seller who may have done business with this company and has any questions we would encourage you to contact the PSC Grain Department.
LEXINGTON  Families are invited to celebrate fall holiday traditions at several fun events planned at YMCA of the Prairie branches in October.

The Orthman Community YMCA in Lexington, 1207 N. Grant, will host a Monster Mash from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 28. The event will include the Nightmare on Grant Street haunted trailer, Halloween snacks and drinks, games and more.

Costumes are encouraged. Participants must register by Oct. 25. The fee is $10 per person for anyone age 4 and older.

The YMCA at Gothenburg Health, 910 20th St., will host its first Zombie 5K Run on Oct. 29. Check-in will start at 5 p.m. at the YMCA with the race starting at 6 p.m. Registration is due by Oct. 26 and is $20 (free for Zombies).

The Gothenburg YMCA will also host Halloween Nerf Wars & Costume Contest from 6-7 p.m. Oct. 30 for kids in grades K-6. In addition to Nerf Wars, kids will enjoy cider, donuts, treats and a costume contest. The fee is $7 for members or $15 for non-members.

At the Don Sjogren Community YMCA in Holdrege, 1415 Broadway, the First State Bank is sponsoring the free annual family pumpkin decorating event from 9-10:30 a.m. Oct. 29. Kids and families can decorate pumpkins with stickers, felt, yarn, googly eyes and more. No carving required, and no mess to clean up!

The Phelps/Harlan County CASA Superhero 5K Run/1 Mile Walk will also take place that day at the YMCA. The race registration begins at 10 a.m. with the race starting at 11 a.m.

The YMCA in Holdrege will also host a free Halloween Glow Stick Swim & Treat from 5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 29 in the indoor swimming pool. The pool will be lit up with glow sticks, party lights and glowing beach balls.

For more information, visit www.ymcaoftheprairie.org.
Screenshots of a text thread between the Popcorn Taverns owner and two staff members were released Wednesday, revealing racist comments, slurs and discrimination against the Black and Jewish communities.

Owner Dan Parisey and manager Ben Tremain, in a group text with an employee who has now quit and shared the messages on Facebook, discussed a potential hire. Discussing the interviewee, a Black man, Parisey wrote, Should we have another black person here to translate? and How many times do I have to tell you guys we dont hire colords (sic).

Tremain in a message says of the interviewee, Everyone deserves a fair shake. But when u told me the black guy from (a restaurant) in my head I was thinking like, hope its not the guy Im thinking of. Tremain later stated his reasoning as witnessing the man being overly verbal and unresponsive with staff at his place of employment.

The former employee suggests waiting to see how the interview goes before discounting the man, to which Parisey responds, Heres the things about these (n-word) and Jews..., adding of potential hires, As long as theyre not black or Jewish and later, No way were turning into a black bar, with a winking tongue out emoji.

The former staffer says in her post she is ashamed of participating in the thread without calling out the behavior and was compelled to do the right thing in identifying the words and actions as unacceptable.

In a response on its Facebook page Wednesday evening, the Popcorn Tavern stated Parisey had resigned and his words in no way reflect the feelings of our establishment or space. The Popcorn Tavern embraces diversity within our community. He owned the tavern with his father.

In effort to explain Pariseys behavior, the post states Parisey has been struggling with his health for a long period of time, and brain injuries have deteriorated his ability to properly think and filter his words.

The post also called out the former employee by name, claiming she is aware of Pariseys condition and the intent behind her releasing the messages is appalling.

As of Thursday morning, nearly 300 comments appeared below the post, the vast majority calling out the embarrassing apology and inappropriateness of excusing racism on a health condition. Facebook members also expressed anger at the business calling out the former employee as a way to shift blame and asked if the potential hire was given an apology.

Bobbi Rathert, local advocate with Hope Restores, said in an interview with the Tribune the sickening messages offer proof systemic racism is alive and well, in La Crosse and noted, Mr. Parisey is not the only one to believe in these racist ways, hes just the unfortunate soul to do so openly.

Pariseys words are likely not new to him, as it just falls out in his expression so clearly. The hiring practices, Rathert says, are likely standard to the business, and the vile thoughts not a slip of the tongue.

Nine hours after the initial apology from the business, Parisey posted on the Popcorn Tavern Facebook page, starting with a comment under the post reading,Jesus Christ...just let me apologize without getting mad.

In a separate post, under the Popcorn Tavern account, Parisey said his health was not an excuse, and claimed he never ha(s) been and never will be racist, as he is a supporter of womens rights, the LQBT (sic) community and Black Lives Matter, causes to which he has donated a lot of time, money and effort.

Parisey further apologized for his stupid comments but used the justification that both other parties know I joke about that (expletive) which I now understand is very inappropriate.

Later on Parisey wrote: Again this is all on me and I own up to it. Im sure this post will make people mad at me for some reason. All I can say is Im sorry and wish nothing but the best for everyone in this community and everywhere. Peace out.

Rathert says the apology from The Popcorn Tavern and Parisey only excuses the behavior through denial, claiming supportiveness of diversity work, and using health problems that made me do it.

Rathert says flagrant racism is the consequence of both actions and inactions in the community, calling for a city that practices and participates in inclusivity, social justice, anti-racism and acceptance.

Racism, homophobia, transphobia, antisemitism and other forms of discrimination and prejudice should not be tolerated to any degree whatsoever by anyone, Rathert says.

The Tribune attempted to call the Popcorn Tavern, which opens at 4 p.m., on Thursday morning. There was no option to leave a voicemail. An email message from the Tribune was sent Tuesday morning at 10 a.m.

An attempt to reach the tavern by phone after 4 p.m. was unsuccessful.
By Trend

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, will hold a bilateral meeting in Astana to discuss the recent developments in the Russian-Ukrainian war amid Ankaras planned initiatives for ending the armed conflict, Trend reports citing Hurriyet Daily News.

The two leaders will come together on the sidelines of the Sixth Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) to be held in Kazakhstans capital Astana on Oct. 13. Their latest meeting was in mid-September in Samarkand. Erdo?an is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko who will attend the summit as an observer. The summit will bring leaders together from 27 countries.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the media on Oct. 11 that Ankara may suggest the start of a new round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Along with the Ukrainian war, Erdo?an and Putin will also discuss bilateral ties as both countries are willing to deepen economic and trade ties.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)  A divided jury spared Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz the death penalty Thursday for killing 17 people at a Parkland high school in 2018, sending him to prison for the rest of his life in a decision that left many families of the victims angered, baffled and in tears.

This is insane. Everyone knows right? Chen Wang, 14-year-old shooting victim Peter Wang's cousin, yelled during a news conference after the decision was read. We need justice.

Cruz, 24, pleaded guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members, and wounding 17 others, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018.

The three-month trial included graphic videos and photos from the massacre and its aftermath, heart-wrenching testimony from victims family members and a tour of the still blood-spattered building. The jury rejected the death penalty after deliberating for about seven hours over two days.

Cruz's lead public defender, Melisa McNeill, told the jury during her closing argument Tuesday that life in prison would still be a horrible punishment and suggested that other prisoners might target him.

But that wasn't enough for many family members, who went before television cameras, one by one, to express their shock and anger at the jury's decision. Some called Cruz a monster," while others cried.

We are beyond disappointed with the outcome," said Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter, Alyssa, was killed. This should have been the death penalty, 100%. ... I sent my daughter to school and she was shot eight times. ... I cannot understand. I just dont understand."

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. The seven-man, five-woman jury unanimously agreed there were aggravating factors to warrant a possible death sentence, such as agreeing that the murders were especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel.

But one or more jurors also found mitigating factors, such as untreated childhood issues. In the end, the jury could not agree that the aggravating factors outweighed the mitigating ones, so Cruz will get life without parole.

Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will formally issue the life sentences Nov. 1. Relatives, along with the students and teachers Cruz wounded, will be given the opportunity to speak.

Cruz, his hair unkempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jurys decisions were read. Rumblings grew from the family section  packed with about three dozen parents, spouses and other relatives of the victims  as it became apparent the jury was not going to recommend the death penalty. Many shook their heads or covered their eyes as the judge spent 50 minutes reading the jury's decision for each victim. Some parents sobbed as they left court.

Jury foreman Benjamin Thomas, in an interview broadcast on local TV station WPLG, indicated more than one juror voted for life in prison.

We went through all the evidence and some of the jurors just felt that was the appropriate sentence," Thomas said. I didnt vote that way, so Im not happy with how it worked out, but everyone has the right to decide for themselves.

He said he feels bad for the families of victims and that it hurt to watch the decisions being read in court.

This has been really hard on my heart  Id rather not see anything like this ever again, he said.

The jurors pledged during the selection process that they could vote for a death sentence, but some victims' parents  some of whom attended the trial almost daily  wondered if all of them were being honest.

Denise Cunha, one of the jurors, sent a short handwritten note to the judge defending her vote for a life sentence, and denying that she intended to vote that way before the trial began.

The deliberations were very tense and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned that I would vote for life, wrote Cunha. She did not explain her vote.

Multiple family members talked about the years they waited for justice. They thanked prosecutors for their work, but in the end, they said they got another blow.

Tony Montalto, father of 14-year-old Gina Montalto, expressed disbelief. He said the jury recognized that Cruz committed terrible acts, "shooting, some victims more than once on a pass, pressing the barrel of his weapon to my daughters chest. That doesnt outweigh that poor little whats-his-name had a tough upbringing?

Our justice system should have been used to punish this shooter to the fullest extent of the law," he said.

Michael Schulman, the stepfather of teacher Scott Beigel, said the decision gives anyone a license to kill, then claim mental illness as a defense. This animal deserves to die. He hunted all of these people, Schulman said. He planned it for months.

As he spoke to the media, Schulman held up a laptop with an image of Cruz in the school hallway with a gun. The last thing my son saw was the gunman aiming at him, he said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that in a case like this, where youre massacring those students with premeditation in utter disregard for basic humanity ... I just dont think anything else is appropriate except a capital sentence.

Just days after the shooting, Cruz's defense had offered that he plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence. But then-Broward State Attorney Mike Satz rejected that. Satz appointed himself to be Cruzs lead prosecutor.

Broward State Attorney Harold Pryor released a statement Thursday saying: We have not shied away from telling all of the horror, all of the loss, all of the devastation, all of the pain, all of the facts, all of the truth. We hope that, while there is no such thing as closure, this will bring some measure of finality and justice to this terrible chapter.

Gordon Weekes, Broward Countys public defender, said his teams success in getting Cruz a life sentence is not something they will celebrate.

Doing this work as a public defender, you know there will be difficult days and you may be subjected to trauma in order to prepare your case. But you set those things aside because of your oath, your commitment and the importance of this Constitution we all cherish, Weekes said.

Cruz, a former student at the school, said he chose Valentines Day to make it impossible for Stoneman Douglas students to celebrate the holiday again.

Satz kept his case simple, focusing on Cruzs eight months of planning, the seven minutes he stalked the halls of the three-story building, firing 140 shots with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, and his escape.

He played security videos of the shooting and showed gruesome crime scene and autopsy photos. Teachers and students testified about watching others die. He took the jury to the fenced-off building, which remains blood-stained and bullet-pocked.

The defense team never questioned the horror inflicted, but focused on their belief that Cruz's birth mothers heavy drinking during pregnancy left him brain damaged and condemned him to a life of erratic and sometimes violent behavior that culminated in the shooting. His adoptive father died in front of him when Cruz was 5, leaving his adoptive mother alone and overwhelmed by his behavior, they argued. They also said he was raped by a 12-year-old neighbor when he was 9.

The prosecution contended that Cruz did not suffer from fetal alcohol damage but has antisocial personality disorder. Their witnesses said Cruz faked brain damage during testing and that he was capable of controlling his actions, but chose not to.
A Sun Prairie middle school teacher who was arrested last week, accused by police of recording students in a school bathroom, was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury on three counts of production of child pornography, according to federal court documents.

Matthew E. Quaglieri, 34, of Sun Prairie, was scheduled to appear Wednesday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Madison for arraignment.

The indictment contains no details about what Quaglieri is accused of doing, but it states that on Sept. 22, Sept. 23 and Sept. 29, he "knowingly and intentionally used a minor ... to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct," and that the materials he used, specifically an Apple iPad, had been transported in interstate and foreign commerce, making it a federal crime.

The three counts involve two minors, who are only identified in the indictment as "Minor 1" and "Minor 2."

Production of child pornography carries a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison, with a maximum of 30 years.

On Friday, Sun Prairie police issued a statement saying they were alerted Friday about inappropriate behavior by a staff member at Prairie View Middle School. It stated that the school district was cooperating with the investigation and that the state Division of Criminal Investigation was assisting.

Letters sent to parents on Friday stated a male student reported feeling uncomfortable and may have been recorded in a restroom at Prairie View.

Police subsequently learned that a teacher had been recording students in the bathroom, the district said.

Quaglieri, who identifies himself on his LinkedIn page as a music teacher, was suspended. He has been in the Dane County Jail since late Friday night.

In an update emailed to parents on Tuesday, district officials said they are limited in what they can tell the public because of the investigation, but there was no evidence to suggest that recording devices were planted by anyone.

"However, our Facilities and Grounds team swept the bathrooms at Prairie View before school on Monday," the district wrote. "No devices were found."

Quaglieri would be the second area teacher accused of recording students to be charged in federal court.

In October 2021, former Madison East High School teacher David Kruchten, 39, of Cottage Grove, was sentenced to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to produce child pornography, after planting cameras in the hotel rooms of students during overnight trips for DECA, a business education program.

Kruchten is currently incarcerated at the federal prison in Milan, Michigan.

This story will be updated.
Wisconsin utility regulators have discontinued the last consumer protections put in place for the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Public Service Commission imposed a shutoff ban and other protections in March 2020. The commission lifted the ban in 2021 but left in place a handful of others, including a requirement that utilities allow low-income customers to avoid disconnection by agreeing to a payment plan and a waiver of credit card processing fees.

The commission voted unanimously Wednesday to end all pandemic-related requirements.

I think that it is time to  get back to business as usual, Chair Rebecca Valcq said.

Commissioner Tyler Huebner said many utilities have implemented more flexible payment plans but pointed out pandemic protocols can be a financial hardship for many people.

I hope that continues, Huebner said. COVID is out there. Im coming off of it myself.  If youre working retail, restaurant, youre not working.

Wisconsin is in line to receive about $100 million this year in federal funding for the low-income energy assistance program plus another $1.3 million a year through 2026 from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, though the PSC says energy assistance funding will be lower than in 2021.
Plans to build a $700 million natural gas generating plant in Superior cleared another hurdle Thursday when a Wisconsin judge dismissed claims of bias against a regulator who later sought a job with one of the plants owners.

The Public Service Commission voted in 2020 to grant Dairyland Power Cooperative a permit to construct the 625-megawatt Nemadji Trail Energy Center, which the La Crosse-based utility would share with two Minnesota utility companies.

Clean Wisconsin and the Sierra Club challenged the permit on environmental grounds but later discovered former PSC Commissioner Mike Huebsch applied for a job as CEO of Dairyland shortly after voting to approve the project, though he did not get the job.

Based on that discovery, Dane County Circuit Judge Jacob Frost allowed the environmental groups to add the bias claim to their challenge.

Frost reversed that decision Thursday, citing a state Supreme Court decision on a similar bias challenge brought in a separate court case involving the Cardinal-Hickory Creek power line.

Frost said the 4-3 ruling, in which the courts conservative majority said a mere appearance of bias by a public official is not a due process violation, left him little choice.

I am left wondering when you could show a substantial risk of bias without showing actual bias, Frost said.

Evan Feinauer, staff attorney for Clean Wisconsin, said the Supreme Court ruling has upended a long-accepted legal standard of substantial risk, making it so that plaintiffs cant even gather evidence without first proving bias.

They want these cases to be exceedingly rare, Feinauer said. You basically need a smoking gun to even allege there was bias.

Frost previously dismissed the environmental groups claim that the PSC failed to consider the full environmental impact of the plant. That decision is currently before a state appeals court.

Dairyland spokesperson Katie Thomson said the company was satisfied with the ruling and reiterated the utilitys claims that the plant will support grid stability, low carbon goals and renewable energy resource expansion by providing essential, on-demand and low-emitting energy to power peoples lives in any weather.

The utilities say the plant is needed as a bridge to support intermittent clean energy sources like wind and solar as they retire their coal-fired power plants, but construction of new fossil fuel infrastructure is incompatible with state and national policy goals as well as widely accepted steps required to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.

Environmental advocates warn such plants could be obsolete well before they are paid off.

The groups contend the commission erred in determining the plans met state guidelines and the environmental review was deficient.

The PSC declined to consider the impact of the 2.7 million tons of carbon dioxide its expected to produce each year, saying it lacked that authority over a non-regulated utility such as Dairyland.

Minnesota regulators declined to review the climate impacts because the plant would be built out of state, a decision upheld by the Minnesota Supreme Court.

In August, the Environmental Protection Agency said a preliminary environmental review by the Rural Utilities Service failed to account for the projects full climate impact and that the utilities seeking to build the plant should be required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as a condition for receiving federal funding.
On Monday, employees from the Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union in Winona participated in the companys Plus It Forward Day. This is the St. Paul based credit unions tenth year of having a company-wide community service day.

In Winona, this took the shape of serving breakfast at the Winona Catholic Worker, yardwork cleanup for the Winona Sheltering Network, having a clothing drive in the office during the month of October, as well as a $500 donation to each organization they gave their time to during day.

Our annual Plus It Forward Day is on Indigenous Peoples Day, so most financial institutions are closed, said Winona Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union branch manager Jamie Baumann. But instead of being at home and relaxing, we take the time to go out and spread goodness in our communities.

Throughout the 10 years for the Plus It Forward Days there has been growth in organization and impact each year said Baumann.

These are the members we work on a daily basis. But we get to meet them where they are at versus them coming to us, Baumann said. Thats one of the things that stayed the same since the first year of giving.

Baumann said the Winona Affinity Plus branch takes its time to figure out how they want to spend their Plus It Forward Day.

We sit down as a team in Winona and through word of mouth, having conversation with our members who need some support, we have a really great conversation and then whittle it down from there, Baumann said. So the focus is really Winona, its not one person or one organization. Thats why we try to spread our love a couple different ways.

Plus It Forward Day has been one of the Affinity Plus employees favorite days of work, Baumann said. Because its a different way to see how they can help people. Hearing from the community that they feel supported from the credit union has been one of the most rewarding and heartwarming things, said Baumann.

I think it speaks to the Plus It Forward Day mentality, said Baumann. Were not just writing checks to people and taking the day off but writing checks and also going there and doing the work and spending time with these organizations. So that not only can they feel our thanks by giving a donation but they can also really feel our support by having us there, having conversations, and being boots on the ground with these groups in the community.
By Azernews





By Sabina Mammadli

An international conference is planned to be held in Azerbaijan's Shusha on National Press Day, Chairman of the Azerbaijani Press Council Rashad Majid said.

He made the remark during the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Azerbaijan's Media Development Agency and the Press Council.

Majid noted the importance of international cooperation in this field, adding that the Press Council will conduct the relevant work.

"The Press Council believes that holding an international conference in Shusha on July 29 on National Press Day can contribute to the development of international cooperation," Mejid added.
This article appears in the October 14, 2022 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

June 9, 2015

Again, the Case of Germanys Role

[Print version of this article]

Editors Note: This article first appeared in EIR Vol. 42, No. 25, June 19, 2015, pp 4-9.

EIR Founding Editor Lyndon LaRouche gave the following analysis at a strategy discussion June 9, after German Chancellor Angela Merkel had agreed to Obamas policy of excluding Russia from the G7 Summit.



Lets start with a very significant issue; again which pertains to the German situation. It pertains to the argument that I presented as part of our team on Monday; that the three senior members of the German team [former Chancellors Helmut Schmidt and Gerhard Schroder, and current Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeiered.], who are partly technically in retreat, but are actually quite active. German policy works that way.

But the issue is simple; theres only one nation in Western Europe which has any actual, efficient integrity in economy, and that is Germany. The German economy is still an efficient economy in structure; it has a certain amount of garbage accumulated from the so-called left wingthe wild wing, or whatever. But you have three active leaders in the German organization; two of whom are technically retired (but that doesnt mean much), and one who is the active leader. And so what theyve done is, theyve laid out a policy which is a challenge to Merkel; a direct challenge to her. Which would mean that Germany would tell Merkel, Stop the shit! And you are not going to have Germany excluding Russia, because Russia is a part of Europe; the Russian economy is a part of Europe, its a very good part of Europe. Its one of the strongest parts of Europe.

One of the strongest forces of Europe is the German economy. Although the German economy has been suffering the effects of other things along the line; and therefore, the pressure on them has been increasing. And this increase threatens to destroy the functional integrity of the German economy.

The French economy is very poor; the Italian economy is more or less shattered. Spain and Portugal are almost nonexistent in terms of being nations as such; even though the Spanish used to have a great railway system, relatively speaking, but theres not much left of anything else there.

So, the point is this: Germany cannot continue to accept the rate of collapse of the actually efficient part of the German economy. Because otherwise, Germany would become as rotten as most of Western Europe is. This includes France and Italy and so forth; they are not competent systems. Theyve been broken down before then, and how this breakdown occurred is a matter of history, so we dont need to go through it here. But thats the fact. Germany is the only nation in Europe, outside of Russia, which has any real integrity as a functional economy.

Merkel the Problem

The others? Take the case of our own United States.

What do we produce in our own United States in terms of economy? Less than bullshit. The skills of our people have been driven to a level, where they are practically non-functional. If they had any functional potentials, theyre denied the use of them. And there are very few exceptions to that; and its only a sprinkling of exceptions of specialists, like certain machinists institutions and things like that, which are significant. But theyre highly withdrawn; theyre contracted, because the U.S. economy is disintegrating and has been disintegrating at an accelerating rate.

So therefore, Germany is the only economy in this particular sector, in terms of the northern quarters, the only one that has actual integrity as an economy. France does not; Spain has lost it a long time ago. We dont even talk about some other places; theyre gone.

And so therefore, the issue is rather complex, but its fun. First of all, if Germany is allowed by itself to open up an active economic policy relationship with Russia, then the Russian economy is strengthened; and the German economy is protected against an imminent systematic disintegration, where it goes into the also-ran category of most of the rest of Western Europe.

So this is the reality; and the problem is Merkel. As long as Merkel has any control with her policies over the German economy, the German economy will be soon plunging into the dismal condition of the other parts of Western and Central Europe. And thats the situation.

Now, the other part of the thing is, again: If Germany is able to function in trade relations on technology, production, then you cannot have a war between Germany and Russia, or war-like situation. In that case, the whole thing is jammed up; and Obama and all these other things get into jeopardy. Because look at where China is; China is the most powerful nation in terms of personnel on the planet. It has the highest rate of technological progress of any nation on the planet. The United States is a pinko, relative to what China represents today in terms of technology.

Will the U.S. Destroy Itself?

But this is what we are! Because everything that we are concerned about, in the United States in particular, depends upon these kinds of considerations that Ive just mentioned. And it represents it in two respects: Will the United States destroy itself? Because if it goes to war, it will be destroying itself; as well as bringing down a lot of other nations in general warfare.

So, there is no possibility of a capitulation to what Obama represents, or what most of Wall Street represents, in particular. The British Empire, without this kind of control, is really weak; its a failure, itll disintegrate. Theres nothing much there; the whole British sector is disintegrating, and it should. And the disintegration is, why? Its not because somebody said Lets do this, or lets do that. Actually, the British population is not competent to live; and a lot of other parts of Europe have lost the competence to live. They cant maintain themselves; they cant cope with the threats that reality presents to them.

That defines what our policy has to be; which is the point I presented, together with our team, on Monday. Thats our policy. And our policy is, we have to get rid of Obama; we have to get rid of the Wall Street crowd, which throwing out Obama will do.

So, all the other talk about this and that, and this could be and that might be, and this might be, is all nonsense. Forget it! Dont even mention it anymore. Youre wasting time and distracting attention. Were now at a point where were coming to a point of crisis; where the world is coming into a point where everything is coming into a common point of consideration. Not a scattered bunch of points, but one concentrated point. That point is, on the one hand, going to thermonuclear war; thermonuclear war means the extermination of the human species.

But, you say, Well, we wont do that. Well, how are you going to stop it? How are you going to prevent it? Its almost now. If Obama continues as President, it probably will happen; and it probably will happen within as soon as weeks, or maybe a couple of months. And when it happens, youre all dead. Thats the issue! All this other stuff is just peripheral gossip. This is the issue which is now a global issue; defining the fate of mankind globally, with one big fell swoop.

And war, when it goes offif it does go offaint gonna take long to go. Thermonuclear warfare under present modern conditions. General warfare? Nah.

By Contrast, John Kennedy

We almost hit that, as has been noticed again and again, in the Soviet threat on Cuba. The Cuba crisis with Kennedy. What President Kennedy prevented, with his brother, working together; created the last stage of the Soviet Union to withhold, to destroy its thermonuclear weapon system. And they did it; and if you had the right seasoning, you get up there and watch, the explosion, the great black and fiery motions going over northern Russia, the backlands. Boom, boom, boom; going for weeks. Firing off these weapons; weapons which could have wiped out the United States. And they didnt. Why? Because of John F. Kennedy, knew how to handle this problem, he and his brother. And he and his brother did the job.

So, youre in a situation like that time. You cant say, Well, this part of the planet, and this part of the planet, and this part of the planet, are different parts of the planet. Bunk! We have a global system, a global threat, a global process, and we have to take account of that. Now what that means is, youre not going to have nations as such engaged in war against nations as such. That is no longer a feasible process. Either you have extermination war, or you dont. And what happened, when the Soviet system blew up, the Soviet weapons system under Khrushchov, was a touch point; the model for the extermination of mankind. And what the situation is now is way beyond anything like that.

So therefore, what we do, you say, Well, were only a small organization. Thats nonsense; we have more brains than these guys do. Or at least I know something about that. Our conceptions are competent. The conceptions of Wall Street? Wall Street has no competence whatsoever. If Wall Street has to run an economy, the people of that nation will die. Its inevitable; because theyre cannibals. And what do cannibals eat? Human beings.

So therefore, the idea that you have a practical solution, or a practical option, or this sort of thing, is a pure mythology; it beats the stupidity of people who dont know any better. And unfortunately, most of the classes of students of universities and so forth todayforget the other schoolsthe universities, theyre traps. The typical mentality of the person at the university level, is absolutely systemically incompetent. They cant do anything thats needed in general. A relative handful of people inside the United States are capable of doing anything.

So therefore, these kinds of considerations and the relationship between Germanys situation, its effect within the European system as well as Russia; the effect that this has on larger parts of the planet integrally, including China, including India, including all the nations of South America, for example. Most of the nations of Asia are nations which are immediately threatened by any development of this nature. This means that mankind has to have a new conception of mankind. All the old so-called practical expositions are nonsense.

Defend the Existence of Mankind

Now this is what we touched on in the discussion on this matter on Monday. And it has to be carried further, because its crucial now. If we could pull offand we dont have the power to do itbut if we know what it could be; we have a good idea of what to do to make it, should be. And that is, get Merkel either thrown out of office, or subdued totally; let the three chief exponents of the Russian system negotiate the system.

Russia is the only economy in Europe which has any inherent utility, in Western Europe at all. So if Germany, which is the only functional part of a modern economy in that part of Europe, if they are enabled to conduct trade, a system of trade voluntarily in development, technological progress, with Russia. It doesnt mean they have to make any big deal; all they have to do is say, We are trading with each other once again. Doing that is sufficient, to stabilize all of Europe; because if Germany were to flop, all of Europe would disintegrate. Its already ready to disintegrate, and in the process of pre-disintegration.

The sum total of this thing is, that principle does not arise from force. Principle arises from mental powers. It is the human mind and the development of the powers of the human mind which are the only efficient force by which mankind can defend the existence of mankind.

And that is what this policy must be for our organization. All the other stuff, the popular stuff, the interpretations, the explanations of why things happen, and this happens, its all been garbage. Ive been through the whole pit of the thing; its all garbage.

To run society, you have to run it from the top down. The top down means the intellectual ability to create a successful society on a general scale. To develop the necessary relations among nations which make the conditions for doing that possible.

In other words, you have to look at history from the top down. And all the fallacies are people who thought about history from their summed-up time, bottom up. And therefore, what were doing right now, in this organizationI mean look what you get in Wall Street; look at what you see in New York City. Look at what you see in different parts [of the country]. Look at California; look at the government of California. Look at the government of Texas; look at the government of Louisiana; look at the government of Georgia. And look at the government ofyuck, I puke Virginia. This is all crap! It does not decide the powers of mankind; its a source of the farces of mankinds experience. And we have to understand that. The idea of being humble; Well, you dont know anything about this. I know enough to know youre totally stupid. Thats my usual answer for these creeps.

But we have to understand that thats our policy. That was the discussion that we had, effectively, on Monday; and what we circulated during the course of Tuesday, today. Thats the issue. And its whats in the minds of a few people, relatively, always in the history of mankind, that decides what the outcome could become, under stress conditions.

A New Basis for Peace

Like the case of Bismarck. How did the great wars of the Twentieth Century occur? They would never have occurred if Bismarck had still been in charge. And when they got rid of Bismarck, what happened? Bang, bang, bang! Everything began to collapse. The assassinationsthe assassination of the President of France, all these other assassinations and things, and little wars and test wars; like the one with Japan, for example. All these wars began to occur. And then one bright daybang!and then World War I was suddenly there. Were in a World War I precondition right now. Its not the same kind of conflict, its not the same terms; but its the same logic.

Look at the Twentieth Century. People think that theyre smart because they got a Twentieth-Century education. Thats the dumbest thing I ever heard! Its a fact. I know this because of my experience with the education system; and I knew very early in life that the education system I was subjected toboth in secondary schools and in universitieswas crap. And the principle is exemplified by the fact that there was only one man in the Twentieth Century as a scientist, who was really qualified for physical science as a leader: Albert Einstein. All of the rest of them called themselves great things, had certain degrees of qualified talent, but none of them except Einstein understood the principle of science, of scientific progress. And thats the difference.

And therefore, we have to understand what this organization must be; and how it must make itself self-organized, to the mission which is required. Because youre in your situation, all explanations, all the usual customary practical expositions are just crap. And weve reached the point that all that stuff is way past. What we have is a relationship to China, a relationship to India, a relationship to some South American nations which are now emerging. Theyre not perfected yet, but they have promise. We see the relationship between China and the South American nations; what their development is, what the promise is. So what we want to do is, establish this kind of peace; which is not really a simple peace where everybodys going to have one-world dreams and so forth. But its a way in which the nations of the world can organize and interchange their organizational efforts into a culminating something else.

And when you look at what Ben [Deniston] has had fun withthe Galactic Systemand then you go back before the Galactic System was known, to Kepler. The history of mankind is that what most people believe is nonsense. The history of mankind is like the discoveries of Kepler. The discovery of Kepler is that theres a higher order in the Solar System and beyond the Solar System, which is something which began to become known through the work of Kepler. That mankind is a unified process, implicitly. It has different characteristics, but the way it expresses its commonality, is in the convergence of ingenuity. And its this kind of convergence of ingenuity of different nations and different cultures of a particular time, which is the thing upon which mankind depends.

How are we going to control the galaxy? How are we going to control even the practical system as such, as we have it now? It means we have to organize the relations of mankind, throughout mankind, to meet this challenge. And to bring nations together now, with their different languages, their different habits, and all these kinds of things that go there; and we see what China is showing, and what is otherwise being shown in the process now; and China is the leader in this process. That would develop a relation among nations, and among the peoples of nations, which becomes an efficient means for the commonality of the general interest. It does not mean they have to adopt common things; common habits, common everything; but they have to converge on the efficiency of the common goal.

And thats what we have to understand. And dont get out and try to say, Well, here, Ive got some facts. And these facts are going to tell me the thing is going to work this way. All those kinds of explanations that I know, are crap. Yes, theres divergence in the form in which development occurs, among nations, under conditions. But! Theres a principle of convergence, which unifies the process, of the destiny of mankind. And the best thing to say is, Thats whats going to happen. Enjoy the ride.

Thats what our policy has to be. . . . And thats what our issue is right now. Were going to be going through this week and the next week; and were on the edge, were right on the edge, of the extinction of humanity, if things arent organized the right way.

The Potential of Germany and Russia

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CC/Heinz-Josef Lucking

And this case of the German case, of the three leading senior officials: On the surface it simply looks like, well, Germany is the only nation which has any integrity as a producer nation in Western Europe. All the others are either dead, or heading for the garbage heap. So therefore, were not talking about any simplistic thing.

Germany has a technological capability which none of its neighbors do, in terms of productive economy, because you take the economy as a whole. The economy as a whole functions like a unit; so you cant pick out this point and that point and this point. It doesnt work; youve got to look at the economy as a whole. And youve got to find out where the balance lies, which is the difference between collapsing and arising. Germany still has, up until this time, an advantage over all the other nations of Europe in technology, in terms of its productive capabilities. Its the most advanced nation in capabilities in production; in the production of national economy.

So, that is what is being challenged for Russia now by Merkel. Merkels policy threatens to bring Germany down, as an economy. On the other hand, if Merkel is thrown outwhich is the optimal thingyou know, sometimes its better to throw the garbage away than trying to pick the food out of it. Some people may know that technology. But the point is, if Germany continues to allow the suppression of what its productive potential is in the market, then the German economy will be in trouble, functional trouble. Otherwise, if Germany is allowed, by Germany, to deal with Russiathis is not to make big deals with Russia, but just simple deals with Russia, technology dealsin that case, then you actually do several things. You prevent Europe from becoming what it is now threatening to becomea garbage heap.

So, if you free up the German technological potential in the economy, you suddenly create, what? You open up the development of the economy of Russia. Were not talking about weapons; were talking about economy, economy in general. In that case, if Germany, which is the dominant economy in Western Europe; every other economy is a piece of shit relative to Germany today; so if that economy is taking over Europe, that driver, that increment, is being injected, the benefit of what Germany can represent injected into Europe generally, what happens? No desire for war.

And the war-makers are threatened, because what happens if Germany integrates, if they try to destroy Germany, or involve Germany in a war, no good result is possible.

And no good for the United States, either. The United States could not survive the effect of a collapse of the Russian economy; because that would be a war economy. And the war system now, which Russia is fully equipped for full-scale warfare, full-scale warfare to take on the United States, too. Do you want that?
This transcript appears in the October 14, 2022 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

[Print version of this transcript]

Eva Karene Bartlett

An On-the-Ground War Report from the Donbass

This is the edited transcript of the presentation of Eva Karene Bartlett to the Oct. 6, 2022, press conference sponsored by EIR, titled We Will Not Be Silenced! Speaking Truth in Times of War. Ms. Bartlett is a Canadian-American activist, commentator, blogger, and wartime correspondent. Subheads have been added.

The video of the entire conference is available here.

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Schiller Institute Eva Karene Bartlett

In Donetsk

Thanks for having me participate in this panel. I apologize for being a bit late; its not easy to be on time here. Im in Donetsk; I came back here on Sept. 17th. At the very moment I was arriving in the city, midday, Ukraine was shelling central Donetsk with 155mm NATO-caliber weapons which killed four civilians, one of whom was still lying on the ground when I got to the area where she had been murdered.

Two days later, on Sept. 19th, Ukraine shelled different areas of central Donetsk, killing 16 civilians. I went to one of the areas where it was a massacre; there were nine people killed in that one spot. Their bodies were still on the ground; pieces of bodies were strewn down the street. It was a horrific sight.

Three days later, Ukraine again shelled central Donetsk, this time near a busy central market. Also, on a street with a streetcar, with public transportation, pedestrians, a church in the other direction. That shelling killed six civilians; again, their bodies were still on the ground at the time I arrived about 30 minutes after the shelling.

These are all completely civilian areas of Donetsk; they were not military targets. This is not the first time, of course. We know that Ukraine has been shelling central Donetsk. They were doing so in August when I was here, they were doing so in June when I was here. Donetsk civilians are being terrorized.

The reason Im a little bit late is I was meeting with a journalist I know who I worked with in 2019. He was explaining to me, because I wanted to know, not being a weapons expert of any sort, I wanted to clarify: Is there any legal basis for what Ukraine is doing here? He said, No. If Ukraine was actually striking a military target and there were civilians who were injured or wounded, and Ukraine is doing so, that would be a different issue. But when Ukraine fires five or seven or ten shells into the center of the city, thats pure terrorism.

This has continued, by the way, post-referenda. I was just looking at some notes from a local Telegram channel. October 1st, seven people were killed in Donetsk; October 2nd, two people; October 3rd, two people; October 5th, three people killed. Thats 14 people killed in the span of five days. Some days ago, around 6 p.m., using the HIMARS system, Ukraine fired missiles onto central Donetsk, hitting two different shopping mall areas. Thankfully, as I understand, the air defense shot down the missiles, but still, there was considerable damage. Nobody was killed that day, thankfully, but it could have been, of course, a lot worse.

In Horlivka

Just yesterday, I went to Horlivka with a couple of journalists. Horlivka is north of Donetsk; its a very hard-hit area, especially the villages around Horlivka. Theyve been shelled relentlessly for over eight years. I had gone to one of them in 2019, and I went back there yesterday. Basically, and again what I was told by the journalist that I was with today, what I saw, were the remains of the houses that I saw in 2019, most destroyed at this point.

So, I went to the administrative building of Horlivka, and talked with the head of that village to hear about the Ukrainians continued shelling. I didnt go beyond. In 2019, I went beyond that administrative building, and I saw houses; some were still standing, most were in states of utter disuse. Roofs were blown off; walls blown out. One was still smoldering from having been shelled two days prior. This time I wasnt able to get there, because it was too dangerous to go there. I did go to another village and tried to interview people there. Most of the people were moving quickly through the town center, but not because they were afraid to be interviewed. Sometimes thats the case; sometimes people fear reprisals if they are interviewed by foreign media. In this case, I was told they feared sticking around the town center, because Ukraines shelling was so frequent.

I drove around that town and saw quite a lot of destruction. Most of the people I saw who were still there were elderly. In my experience, the elderly either dont have anywhere to go, dont have the means to go anywhere, or dont want to leave their homes. So, they are being terrorized by Ukraines shelling. One man was standing on his balcony, and he pointed to the fact that his windows were blown out. He said that he had just covered them with plastic sheeting and was going to have to endure winter with that. That is the case in many areas of the Donbass which have been affected by Ukraines shelling.

The Referenda

I dont know how much I can address in terms of repercussions for being observers at the referenda, because I havent left here yet. I havent received any sort of emails, but Im aware that colleagues who came here to be observers at the referenda have been threatened with some sort of sanctions or otherwise. I myself have not received that. I do expect, being both a citizen of the U.S. and Canada, that I probably will.

I want to state from the perspective of someone who was here prior to, during, and after the referenda, that in terms of how the media has covered thatand Im sure maybe this has already been discussed, so I apologize for making a repeated point.

Most of us on this panel know that the referenda were held in a very democratic and free manner, [though] perhaps not the most ideal. There wasnt always 100% privacy, but frankly people here didnt care, because it was well known what they wanted. And that was to join Russia.

I was going around to different areas of Donetsk, including Kievky, which is a very hard-hit area, routinely, repeatedly shelled on an almost daily basis by Ukraine. I went to Kirovsky. Same situation; this one in western Donetsk. I went to Horlivka, and I went to Mariupol. This is during the five days of the referenda. I saw volunteers from the Voting Commission going door-to-door, and Im aware of how Western media is construing, more how Western media is portraying things as people having had a gun pointed at their head. That was not the case. There were local soldiers providing security, but nobody was intimidated by them. I started asking people, Is anyone coercing you to vote? And they would laugh, and say, No, weve been waiting for this for over eight years.

So, frankly the way the Western media isits not surprising the way theyve been reporting on the referendabut in my experience, people here were overjoyed that the referenda finally came about, and theyre overjoyed with the results. I did conduct interviews the day after just to follow up and see, ask more of the same questions. One of the things they would say when I asked, What do you expect, having joined Russia? theyd say, Peace. Thats their overriding will, is peace. They want an end to Ukraines shelling. They also hope for some kind of economic stability, but peace was the overriding issue.

The People of the Donbass

Im sorry I didnt have time to prepare a speech. I didnt have time to do much of anything. One other point I do want to emphasize is that whereas if were following some of the comments coming from people holding extremist views in Ukraine, they view people here in the Donbass as subhuman, as expendable, as people they can kill. When I talk to people here, however, most people refer to Ukrainians as their brothers and sisters, and they just want an end to this war. They want to be stable; they want their rights as Russian speakers. But theyre not calling for bloodshed; theyre not calling for more death. They just want peace and stability.

Its really a shamealthough again not surprisingthat Western media wont air this; it is a shame how dehumanized people here have been. How their entire narrative has been disappeared from the medias reporting on things here. The media implies things started only in February of this year, when we all know it started in 2014. Theyve paid very dearly for not wanting what happened in Kyiv and Odessa to come to them here. Theyre some of the most humane people Ive met, very kind. Theyre very well-informed; they have no disillusions about whats happening here. When I ask the questionbecause I know the way the media is spinning thingsDo you feel like Russia invaded here? one mans reaction was, How can Russia invade when we wanted to join Russia?

I dont blame people in the West for not understanding whats happening on the ground here, because there are simply very few Western reporters who will come here. They do exist, though. Any of the Western media that I have seen hereand Ive only seen in March two French media channelswere presented with the same information that we were presented with, but they chose not to report on it. So, its on their hands, the fact that they havent reported the truth. I know they have directives.

Im very happy to be here, and to be able to share my experiences with you and the people who read my work or follow what I have to say on social media and my Telegram channel and on YouTube.

If anyone has a question now or later, Id be happy to address that.
This article appears in the October 14, 2022 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

[Print version of this article]

Dr. Natalia Vitrenko

History Acquits Us and Will Be Proud of Us:

The Banning of Our Party Is Unjust and Unlawful

The following statement was released Sept. 30, 2022 by Natalia Vitrenko, a leader of the Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine, after the Zelensky governments ban on her party was upheld by Ukrainian Supreme Court in what it called a simplified procedurea fast track with no attention to the violations of truth and law raised in the PSPUs appeal. Dr. Vitrenko is an economist who has published many analyses of Ukraines physical economy and its looting over the past 25 years; a Peoples Deputy of Ukraine, 1995-2002; and a former leading Presidential candidate (1999) whose campaign was violently attacked, including with grenades. Subheads have been added.

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Schiller Institute Dr. Natalia Vitrenko

Message to members of the Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine (PSPU), members of the Central Committee of the PSPU, and friends all over the world:

On 27 September 2022 in Kyiv, the Administrative Appeals Court of the Supreme Court of Ukraine partially satisfied the PSPUs Appellate Complaint, by deleting from the ruling of the 8th Administrative Appeals Court in Lviv, dated 23 June 2022, a part of the abhorrent charges, while allowing the decision on banning our Party to stand.

Court Ruling Was a Politically Motivated Punishment

I believe that this not only is a politically motivated punishment of our Party, but it tramples on all the foundations of European democracy. The principle of the supremacy of law, enshrined in the Constitution and in conventions, has been trampleda principle that consists of lawfulness; legal certainty; the prohibition of arbitrary actions; guaranteed access to due process, provided by independent and fair courts; respect for human rights; the prohibition of discrimination; and guaranteed equality before the law.

The PSPUs Appellate Complaint smashed to pieces the ruling by the court of the first instance, showing that it was unlawful and baseless. Our opponents, represented by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (MinJust) and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), failed in their suit, their written answers to the PSPUs Appellate Complaint, and their oral arguments before the Supreme Court, to refute a single legal substantiation of the invalidity of their accusations against our Party.

The Supreme Courts 27 September decision was handed down by a panel of judges chaired by S. Ukhanenko, to whom the PSPU, during the court session, officially presented grounds for no-confidence and for a transfer of the case to the full Court.

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CC/Sasha Maksymenko

The decision to ban the PSPU was political and discriminatory in nature, rather than juridical, because the motive for banning the Party was based on political accusations, not on any legal substantiation of violations of the Constitution of Ukraine or the European Convention on Human Rights by the PSPU.

I cite here one of the accusations by the MinJust, supported by the SBU, in their Statement of Claim:

The Party protests against Ukraines joining NATO and the EU, against the rehabilitation of OUN-UPA [Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and Ukrainian Insurgent Army] fighters, declares fidelity to Eastern Slavic culture and canonical Orthodoxy, and envisions Ukraine in an inter-state union with Russia and Belarus.

It is absolutely obvious to any honest human rights organization or any European jurist, that such politically motivated accusations as those, made by the Ukrainian government, are inadmissible as the basis for banning parties, under the Constitution of Ukraine (Art. 37), the European Convention on Human Rights (Art. 11, p. 2), European Court precedents, or the Venice Commission of the OSCE.

Principles of the PSPU: Peace and Development

From the very beginning, when our Party was founded in 1996, the Progressive Socialists offered Ukraine a strategy for domestic and foreign policy, based on the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine (1990) and the Declaration of the Rights of the Nationalities of Ukraine (1991), which were passed by the Ukrainian Parliament, and which defined the essential nature of national sovereignty after the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine had been supported in the All-Ukraine Referenda of 17 March 1991 and 1 December 1991.

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President of Ukraine webpage

In the setting of the tragedy of the disintegration of the USSR, only the principles declared by the people of Ukrainenamely, a neutral, non-bloc status for the country; the impermissibility of the sale of land and the looting (in the form of privatization) of economic capacities belonging to the entire nation; equal rights for the citizens of Ukraine regardless of ethnicity, faith, language preference or cultural tradition; and Ukraines entry, on an equal footing, into a new inter-state union with the republics of the former USSRoffered a guarantee of peaceful coexistence with the former Soviet republics and the successful development of Ukraine as an independent, sovereign state. They provided Ukraine with territorial integrity within its 1991 borders and a guarantee of security from all leading countries in the world.

This explains the hatred of our Party on the part of world imperialism and Ukrainian nationalism (fascism). They always fought against us, because we openly opposed the model of peripheral, colonial capitalism, imposed upon Ukraine by the IMF [International Monetary Fund], and we opposed privatization, the creation of an oligarchy, financial speculation, the cheap-labor model, capital flight, labor flight, the sale of land, the extermination of the Russian language and languages of ethnic minorities, the rewriting of history, debasement of the Soviet peoples victory in the Great Patriotic War, and making heroes of collaborationists from the OUN-UPA, and were against government agencies unleashing of terrorism against the canonical Orthodox Church.

I am proud of our Party and of every rank-and-file member, because we have been the only party in Ukraine to propose a scientifically based, comprehensive program of reforms for the country. I am certain that the implementation of our program would have prevented the current tragedy of the war, destruction of the economy, dying out of the population, and territorial losses.

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Courtesy of Natalia Vitrenko

Neither I, the leaders of our Party organizations, nor the members of the PSPU ever called for a violent overthrow of the constitutional order or for violence of any sort. The goals and activity of our Party abided by all the norms and principles of democracy. Neither the MinJust nor the SBU offered a single piece of evidence to the contrary in court. We were prepared to achieve our goals through competition in elections. In the fight against us, however, terrorism, fakery, raider takeovers, slanders, and threats were employed.

PSPUs Popular Strength in Ukraine

The Party nominated me as a candidate for the Presidency of Ukraine four timesin 1999, 2004, 2009, and 2019. Those in power allowed me to take part in the elections only in 1999 and 2004. In 1999, when some of the attributes of democracy still remained in Ukraine, the power of our ideas and the populations support of them were so great, that sociological polls forecast that I would defeat the incumbent President L. Kuchma in the second round.

But the terrorist attack on me, 2 October 1999 in Krivoy Rog, when two RGD-5 grenades were thrown at me and my entourage, was used by my opponents to frighten the voters, and I was deprived of victory. Victory was stolen from our Party through vote fraud in the parliamentary elections of 2002 and 2006. But popular support for the ideas and actions of the PSPU was very high at that time, because when we entered the Supreme Rada of Ukraine as a caucus in 1998, we had showed our fighting qualities, task-orientation, and commitment to principle. The members of our Party who were elected to local self-government bodies carried on the same kind of self-sacrificing fight.

I am grateful to every member of the PSPU who fought in our ranks selflessly and with all their heart to save Ukraine and transform the world. I am also grateful to the millions of people who supported our sacred struggle by voting for us. A deep bow to you all!

The position of our Party was always an impediment to the ruling governments ability to loot the country, mercilessly exploit the population of Ukraine, and conduct domestic and foreign policies in the interests not of their own people, but of the Wests imperialists.

Under the Constitution of Ukraine, responsibility for peace and for the lives, dignity, and health of the citizens lies with the institutions of state power, headed by the President.

Failing to meet its responsibilities and engaging in detestable mind control, the government of Ukraine issued a piece of fakery in the form of the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine dated 18 March 2022, implemented by the President of Ukraine with his Decree dated 19 March 2022, to suspend the activity of several parties in Ukraine, including ours. And in order to prevent us from defending our rights, freedoms, and legal interests in civil and administrative courts, the 8th Administrative Appeals Court of Lviv ruled on 20 May 2022 to freeze the PSPUs bank account. This deprived us of the possibility of contesting in court, as untruthful, the NSDCs decision, the Decree of the President of Ukraine, and the entire evidence base submitted to the court by the MinJust and the SBU.

In violation of Article 55 of the Constitution of Ukraine and Article 6 of the European Convention, we were deprived of access to the court, because of the impossibility for the PSPU to pay the court fee from its bank account. Our purpose would have been to refute, on the basis of our own lawsuits, the false information submitted by the MinJust and the SBU as the basis for banning the PSPU.

The blocking of our bank account also deprived the PSPU of the right to hire the services of a lawyer. Vladimir Marchenko and I were forced to conduct the entire, exhausting legal battle ourselves. He represented the interests of the PSPU before the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court refused to accept as evidence the Statement of the CC PSPU, Ukrainian Democracy Needs To Be Defended by the Supreme Court against the Governments Dictatorship; or the statements of Chairman of the PSPU, Peoples Deputy of Ukraine [Member of Parliament] in 19952002 N. Vitrenko, I Defend Peace, Socialism, and Democracy, Not War, Nazism and Capitalism; of First Deputy Chairman of the PSPU, Peoples Deputy of Ukraine in 19902002 V. Marchenko, The Supreme Court Is the Last Hope for Defending Democracy against the Arbitrary Actions of the MinJust and the SBU, and Against the Establishment of a Dictatorship; of Member of the CC PSPU, Deputy of the Mykolaiv Regional Council in 20062010 Larisa Shesler, Relations between Ukraine and Russia: I Have a Right to My Opinion; and of Member of the CC PSPU, Deputy of the Romny Municipal Council in 20022010 and outstanding athlete of our time Sergei Gavras, I Bear Witness before God, the Court, and History: Testimony of a Champion. The Court was in a panic over the inability of the MinJust and the SBU to refute the evidence presented in these declarations, regarding the true goals and activity of the PSPU.

Simplified Procedure To Ban Parties

In contrast, the Court deemed worthy as evidence fabrications from the Internet, submitted by the SBU, without any investigation of the primary sources or confirmation of their truthfulness. The Court also accepted, without evidence, some distorted fragments of interviews of N. Vitrenko and L. Shesler and the attribution to the PSPU of financing terrorists, propagandizing in favor of war, and justifying the actions of the Russian Federation.

The Supreme Court, in politically motivated discrimination against the PSPU, denied all 19 of the motions made by our Party, including the ones on access to evidence of the activity of the OUN-UPA; on confirmation of any violations of law on the part of the PSPU, established by the judges; on the illegality of the Decree of the President of Ukraine dated 19 March 2022; on asking the Constitutional Court for a determination of the constitutionality of that Decree; and others. Brought to light in court was the monstrous position of the MinJust and SBU, that Ukraine refuses to fulfill its obligations under the UN Charter (Article 25), and therefore to obey the UN Security Council resolution on the Minsk Accords. In addition, the refusal to adhere to the Charter and Judgment of the Nuremberg International Military Tribunal.

The Supreme Court undertook no investigation at all of whether the norms of law were legally applied by the Lviv court in banning the Party. The Court allowed Vladimir Marchenko only 20 minutes to present our case. It did not allow argument, citing the fact that the Court was considering the banning of the Party using a simplified procedure. Think about that: banning a party, with the institution of the party being a foundation of democracy in general and European democracy in particular, using a simplified procedure! Without proper investigation of the evidence or application of the norms of law!

It will be interesting to see what conclusion the Venice Commission draws regarding democracy in Ukraine, based on the example of the banning of the PSPU.

I am convinced that neither those in power in Ukraine, nor the Supreme Court, have succeeded in defeating our ideas or proving the illegality of our activity. Their ban on the Party is not the period at the end of a sentence, but a comma. History acquits us. The true guilty parties in the tragedy of the war will be named. Truth and justice will prevail.
This article appears in the October 14, 2022 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

SCHILLER INSTITUTE SEMINAR

Stop the War Before Its Too Late

With Current and Former Ibero-American and Caribbean Legislators

[Print version of this article]

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Both photos: Schiller Institute Left: Helga Zepp-LaRouche; right: Diane Sare

Oct. 9A group of current and former legislators from two Ibero-American and two Caribbean nations joined Schiller Institute founder and president Helga Zepp-LaRouche and independent LaRouche candidate for U.S. Senate from New York Diane Sare Oct. 7, for a seminar titled, Stop the War Before Its Too Late, Eliminate the Causes of the War Danger.

Indicative of what Mrs. Zepp-LaRouche described as the revolutionary period through which the world is living, three hours of lively and serious discussion saw a group of people who had never previously met, holding diverse views on how to respond to the global crisis, coalesce into an inspired group committed to acting together internationally, rising above local concerns or narrow interests to address the needs of one humanity, as Mrs. LaRouche put it.

In addition to Mrs. LaRouche and Diane Sare, participants included Donald Ramotar of Guyana, former parliamentarian for the Peoples Progressive Party, 1992-2011, and former President of Guyana, 2011-2015; Jorge Robledo of Colombia, former Senator, 2002-2022, the Dignity Party; Maria de los Angeles Huerta, Mexico, former deputy, MORENA, 2018-2021; Dr. Rodolfo Ondarza, Mexico, former deputy in the Mexico City Legislative Assembly, 2015-2018, Workers Party (PT), and Dr. Kirk Meighoo, Trinidad & Tobago, former independent Senator, 2004, United National Congress. Fabiola Morales of Peru, a 2022 deputy of the Popular Renovation Party, scheduled to attend, sent regrets and best wishes; she was unable to attend due to an urgent congressional session to which she was called.

A New Peace of Westphalia

The participants were particularly moved by Mrs. LaRouches discussion of the principles of the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which were presented as the model for the Schiller Institutes call for a new security and development architecture put forward at several of its conferences this year, after it became clear last April that the U.S. and the U.K. werent going to allow Kiev to negotiate with Russia to end the Ukraine war. Then British Prime Minister Boris Johnson personally traveled to Kiev to deliver that message.

Those Westphalian principles which call for forgetting past crimes for the sake of peace; of taking into account the interest of the other, with the understanding that foreign policy must be based on love of humanity and strengthening the role of the state in rebuilding from the rubble field of war, are absolutely required today, Mrs. LaRouche said, if there is to be any hope for peace and development. She urged the participants not to just look to Ibero-America or the Caribbean, but to go to a higher order and look at humanity as a whole.

Her call for a growing movement of elected officials to demand a new paradigm and leave geopolitics behind, and to contribute to creating a chorus of voices that will demand new relations among nations, informed subsequent discussion and inspired the participants to formulate specific proposals reflecting that international focus.

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All photos: Schiller Institute

The groups enthusiasm, and the sense of urgency to act quickly given the war threat, was such that all agreed they should meet again in a few weeks, but with an expanded groupincluding representatives from European nations as well as from other Ibero-American countries. Prior to the meeting, Jorge Robledo had circulated a draft document for discussion, addressing the need for peace and security. A coordinating committee was set up to prepare a final Declaration calling for further organizing activity, including the Schiller Institutes Dennis Small, Donald Ramotar and Maria de los Angeles Huerta. They took extremely seriously Zepp-LaRouches final comment that we have to move fast. A window of opportunity is open, but not for long.

We Will Not Be Silenced!

Moderator Dennis Small opened the seminar with a strategic overview, noting that the world today faces a far worse crisis than the 1962 Cuban Missile crisis. In 1962, President John Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev had the intelligence to engage in negotiations. Today no such channels currently exist, he said, and the world is in the midst of economic disintegration which has seen no parallel since the 14th century New Dark Age. As Lyndon LaRouche had forecast, Small pointed out, it is the bursting of the speculative bubble, the destruction of the physical economy and depopulation and deindustrialization of the planet, that are behind the drive for war.

Lyndon and Helga LaRouche founded the Schiller Institute 40 years ago to warn what would happen if neoliberal policies and the speculative looting of the countries of the Global South continued, and they put forward alternative programmatic solutions to industrialize and develop especially developing nations.

Small detailed the way in which the Ukrainian crisis had been orchestrated over the past thirty years with NATO and the U.S. crossing every red line that Russian President Vladimir Putin warned would constitute an existential threat to his nation. This included the dramatic eastward expansion of NATO, organizing the 2014 fascist Maidan coup and allying with the Nazi Azov Battalion and followers of Hitler-ally Stepan Bandera.

The U.S. State Department and its NATO allies set up and financed the Ukrainian Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) which, along with its parallel Myrotvorets website and hit squad, are tasked to intimidate, silence and kill anyone who opposes the war, Small explained, and that the first 30 names on the CCDs kill listnumber one on the list is Helga LaRoucheare members or friends of the Schiller Institute or individuals who have participated in recent Schiller Institute conferences.

But, Small warned, They wont silence us. Were here to evaluate and inform others and get out our proposals. Todays seminar participants arent affiliated with the Schiller Institute, he said, but they have ideas and proposals to deal with the crisis, to approach it from a higher standpoint, seeking to define a universal form of cooperation as the great Cardinal Nicolas of Cusa did in his conception of the Coincidence of Opposites.

A Serious Debate

Speaking with the authority and insight of a former head of state, Donald Ramotar gave a hard-hitting account of what he said is the most dangerous global situation to exist since 1962, which he attributed to the complete breakdown of politics and diplomacy. The U.S. goal was always to weaken and destroy Russia, to make it a second-class state, bleed it white and break it up, he said.

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EIRNS/Robert Wesser

He recounted in detail what has been done over the eight years of a Ukrainian army, armed to the teeth by the West, bombing the Donbass region, killing 15,000 people. Through the Minsk agreements, Russia tried to secure peace, he said, but Germany and France sabotaged that, and Ukraine has been turned into a de facto NATO state. Backed by the U.S., the U.K., and NATO, he said, Ukraines role has been to entrap and destroy Russia. Add to that, he said, Western wars and invasions that destroyed Iraq, Libya, Syria and Afghanistan, and NATOs eight years of shelling and bombing of the Donetsk and Lugansk republics of eastern Ukraine.

Detailing Western duplicity toward Russia over years, and the methods used by the West to keep developing countries in a colonial status, the former Guyanese President stressed the need to really look at the current system. The problem is that people arent thinking globally, he said. I believe that for a lasting solution to take place there needs to be a re-examination of the international social and economic situation so that we can have the resources of the world better distributed to all their people.

Non-Alignment the Solution

In his remarks, Kirk Meighoo of Trinidad & Tobago stressed that what exists today is pure imperialism which we all oppose. The majority of people wish to see a new international order, both in military and economic terms. When former British colonies of the Caribbean became independent in the early 1960s, he said, they decided that they didnt want to become part of the NATO or U.S. bloc. Rather they were sympathetic to the Non-Aligned Movement. The idea was to chart an independent path. Meighoo reported that he only learned of Lyndon LaRouches policies for a New Bretton Woods and proposals to develop the world economy in the past few years, but has worked for decades on the idea of creating a new economic order.

Meighoo noted that even though former British colonies became independent, they were still neo-colonies, kept dependent on the North Atlantic system. Trinidad & Tobago did actually begin a process of industrialization in the 1970s, he said, but ultimately that collapsed.

Today, we see the future in the present, he stressed. The multipolar world is emerging, with China, Russia, and Iran, so now is the time to push the New World Order forward and to come together. Look to the BRICS and Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). How to solve the Russia/Ukraine conflict? he asked. Were going to have to organize an international diplomacy differently ... and it cannot only be security and military, its going to have to be economic as well, including such alternatives as a non-dollar system for trade and investment.

Dennis Small commented that the concept of the Non-Aligned Movement and the Spirit of Bandung resonates with most of the world. Nations are attracted to the BRICS and the BRI, and there is a wave of opposition to the direction the world is going in. But the question is, what form will that take?

An American Viewpoint

Diane Sares presence in the discussion was important, as she represents the United States that should be, as it was founded, and that Lyndon LaRouche represented. She reported on the process of collecting 66,000 signatures for her campaigns ballot status, in which she told people she was running to prevent nuclear war, and people took that seriously.

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All photos: Schiller Institute

Her campaigns Oct. 6 demonstration in front of the office of her Democratic party opponent, Senator Chuck Schumer, with a large banner asking, Why is Schumer Supporting Nazis in Ukraine? didnt provoke a hysterical response from passersby. Are people waking up to reality? Perhaps, she said. Sare also reported on the Oct. 6 Schiller Institute press conference in which several prominent individuals who are on the CCD and Myrotvorets kill lists participated, under the title We Will Not Be Silenced! Speaking Truth in Times of War.

Sare also stressed the importance of improving relations between the U.S. and South America, as two assassinated U.S. presidents, William McKinley and James Garfield, had intended to do. The video of todays seminar, she said, should be widely disseminated in the U.S., because Americans dont know much about the rest of the world, and perhaps they can learn to show solidarity with other nations.

Dennis Small also responded to Ramotars comment about the lack of any real leadership, in the U.S. or Europe. Its true, he said, that since the death of Franklin Roosevelt, there havent been any true statesmen in the U.S. (Jack Kennedy was a partial exception). But, if you look at U.S. history, you see there has been a visceral hatred of the British. We were born out of a revolution against the British Empire, he emphasized. So, in a key period such as today, to whom can we look for models? There is Martin Luther King, and there is Lyndon LaRouche, Small said. LaRouche was the greatest economic forecaster, and he and his wife and political partner Helga Zepp-LaRouche accomplished great things. LaRouche was sent to jail in an attempt to silence him, but that failed, Small added.

Agreement on Principle

There was a broad-ranging discussion among all the participants, each of whom added their own perspective and analysis, but came to an agreement on the need to act together on the basis of a straightforward declaration of principles on which they all agree. There was a spirited discussion of the proposals among all the participants, emphasizing the need for a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine conflict and bringing more people into a global discussion.

In his opening presentation, Senator Robledo had reviewed the history of the so-called Ukraine crisis, including the eastward expansion of NATO which Russia repeatedly warned was threatening its basic security as a nation. He took note of Pope Franciss urgent call for a negotiated, peaceful solution to the war. And he issued a closing urgent call to all people of good will around the world to speak out, that no one and nothing can be allowed to take us to an extremely destructive war, or even a nuclear war. We call for this demand to multiply from all corners of the Earth.

In the discussion period, Mr. Robledo stressed the urgency of the situation, noting that his Dignity Party in Colombia is working on a specific proposal to unify forces around the world to resolve the conflict without increasing the threat of nuclear war, and offer security guarantees to all parties. This is something that should be spread throughout the Americas, he said, and could have a multiplier effect around the world. Im optimistic, he stated. I think the world is waking up, and, demanding a solution now.

Maria de los Angeles Huerta, a former Mexican Congresswoman who remains engaged in legislative activities, began by denouncing the forces that are promoting war, identifying the military-industrial complex as well as the Establishment that promotes neoliberal economic policies. She took the opportunity to read a number of paragraphs from Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obradors recent presentation to the United Nations, urging that a five-year truce be adopted in Ukraine, and that Pope Francis, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi be asked to help mediate the situation. The issue still lies in how to overcome the immense hegemony of those who hold power over the world and how we can build this new possibility [of a non-aligned group of countries] from the ground up.

In the discussion period, Huerta expressed her support for the idea that Helga Zepp-LaRouche had presented, of the overriding importance of the One Humanity as the only basis, given the extreme crisis facing all of Mankind, for solving all local and national concerns. Huerta posed the organizing challenge for all present: We all have a general idea of what to do; the question is, how to do it.

Small commented that one important flank in this effort has arisen from Lopez Obradors proposal to the U.N., which needs to be strengthened with an economic policy perspective of replacing todays bankrupt financial system with one based on high-technology industrial development of all nations, especially of the Global South. He noted that Lopez Obrador in his recent summits with both President Trump and President Biden had stressed the high-points of U.S.-Mexican relations in the Lincoln-Juarez and Roosevelt-Cardenas periods, when the joint interests of both nations were given a priority. One way to return to that today, Small concluded, would be for Mexico to call for joint cooperation with the U.S. and China in the development of great infrastructure projects in Mexico and the entire Caribbean Basin region, which would be a win-win-win policy for all.

Dr. Ondarza, a medical doctor, noted that there is a spirit against war and violence, seen in the reactions of many people around the world, who arent asleep, who are rising up. Raising peoples awareness is crucial, he said, especially on the nature of the global economic crisis, which is only being worsened by the Establishments policies of the Great Reset and sanctions targeting Russia.

He suggested that the answer will be through the creation of an international organization which he proposed could be called the Society for Peace and Development, and he recommended that medical organizations be mobilized as well. Wherever there is the love of the art of medicine there is the love of humanity as well, he emphasized. He also pointed to the importance of Mexican President Lopez Obradors proposal for ending the Ukraine conflict, made to the UN, quoting Mahatma Gandhi: There is no road to peace  peace is the road.

Zepp-LaRouche responded to the various proposals and comments by emphasizing that these initiatives can spread quickly, because the world is in a revolutionary period. Look at the upheaval taking place in Europe, she said, as a result of the economic disaster wrought by sanctions. Germany is ready to explodeit will cease to be an industrialized nation if things dont change.

But the solution isnt a technical one, she underscored. Rather, a new paradigm of thinking is necessary. Look at the transition from the Dark Ages of the 14th century, where scholasticism, witchcraft and superstition prevailed, to the Italian Renaissance, in which Nicholas of Cusa established a revolutionary new way of thinking, a Coincidence of Opposites thinking, which stressed the perfectibility of the human being and the concept that the One is a higher power than the Many.

Cusa established a new paradigm, a complete change in axioms, Zepp-LaRouche explained, and this is exactly what is needed today. We must think in terms of one humanity and its long-term survivability. This requires an international discussion, in many countries. People should recall Friedrich Schillers profound concept that one has to be a world citizen and a patriot of ones own country at the same time. These are not contradictory, Zepp-LaRouche stressed. Thinking individuals and many groups should be involved in this process, she said.

In response to these remarks, Ms. Huertas inspired comment undoubtedly reflected all the participants thinking. What has happened here today can spark and give rise to a resurgence of the spirit, she said. I repeat that as citizens of the world, we need to consider collective action, as part of a world effort.
This editorial appears in the October 14, 2022 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

[Print version of this editorial]

EDITORIAL

The Nuclear Warmongers Set a Financial Collapse in Motion

Oct. 9The most extreme war government in Europe, that of UK Prime Minister Liz Truss, by stupidly pledging to bail out the price-gouging energy merchants of that war on Russia with 200400 billion in borrowed government funds, has set off instability in a quadrillion-dollar global bubble of unpayable debt and derivatives. It has lit a match under the tinder that the U.S. Federal Reserve and European central banks have been piling up since the last global financial crash, in 2008. Now that the bonfire of all that financial speculation is beginning to burn, political leaders and active citizens around the world must prepare, through urgent conferences and discussions, a new economic architecture. That new architecture must block debt leverage for speculation and instead fund credits for development, for infrastructure of power, water and health, and for industrialization. It must do what President Franklin D. Roosevelt intended for the Bretton Woods credit and monetary system in 1945, and must do so for the benefit and progress of every nation in the world.

Those leaders and activists nowand soonjoining with the Schiller Institutes accelerating mobilization to prevent NATOs war from becoming world war, will be best prepared to launch the conferences to create such a new Bretton Woods.

The Bank of England informed the UK Parliament by letter Oct. 5 that the Truss government blunder had quickly come within hours, overnight Sept. 2728, of major UK pension funds collapsing, which in turn were bailed out by the Bank, and that those City of London banks which had provided leverage loans to the funds were also potentially at risk and the financial system destabilized.

Describing the contagion it saw from a particularly dangerous form of financial derivatives breaking down, the Bank of England reported:

A large quantity of gilts [UK government bonds ed.], held as collateral by banks that had lent to these LDI [Liability-Driven Investment ed.] funds, was likely to be sold on the market, driving a potentially self-reinforcing spiral and threatening severe disruption of core funding markets and consequent widespread financial instability. [emphasis added]

By the Oct. 79 weekend, reports were surfacing in a number of financial press outlets, such as that in Asia Times: Global Margin Call Hits European Debt Markets, with the blurb, Hedges blow up after risk gauges in Germanys government debt market exceeded those of the 2008 world crash.

The most dangerous and widespread of all financial derivatives contracts created in the 2530 years post-Glass-Steagall, the roughly $500 trillion in nominal value of interest-rate swaps, ruined many a municipality across the trans-Atlantic world, leading into that 2008 world crash. The 2008 crash itself was triggered by a mere $65 trillion of another kind of derivative, credit default swaps. Derivatives are threatening a bigger, and worse crash now because of the underlying physical collapse of production and productivity by the central banks policy since 2008, and now, the collapse of agriculture and industrial economy themselves, since the start of 2020.

The City of London, the Bank of England, and the European Central Bank are escalating pressure for the U.S. Federal Reserve to join the return to quantitative easing before it is too late. But the financial system blowout threat they are warning of, requires the opposite of such liquidity pumping and bond buying by central banks. It requires immediately the control of derivatives, now particularly interest-rate derivatives, through Glass-Steagall action to force the commercial banks to abandon these derivatives. The 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act in the U.S. Congress several years ago would have done this.

And it requires that new architecture of credit for industrial/agricultural development, led by technological progress. The Schiller Institutes accelerating series of meetings at all levelsnext on Oct. 15, an international youth conferenceopens up that potential.
British Empire Media Lead the Charge To Defend Democratic Party from Tulsi Gabbard

Oct. 12, 2022 (EIRNS)Anglo-American intelligence circles are not amused that Tulsi Gabbard is using the widespread public attention she is getting for leaving the Democratic Party, as an opportunity to warn the American people that the world is on the brink of nuclear war, and its the U.S. political elite and military-industrial complex which are responsible.

Democratic Party hacks sneered that she wasnt a Democrat anyway. Party strategist Max Burns retailed old smears that Gabbard is cozy with dictators, in an NBC opinion column, and lied that her charge that Democrats are dragging us ever closer to nuclear war was made with vaulting hyperbole but no evidence.

British networks went over the top. Londons liberal Independent newspaper rushed out an exclusive story today claiming Tulsi Gabbards ties to secretive cult may explain her perplexing political journey. The article, signed by correspondent Bevan Hurley, definitely qualifies as vaulting hyperbole but no evidence. Hurley labels her as a darling of Russian propagandists and the American far-right, who alleged upbringing in an offshoot of the Hare Krishna movement with strict devotion to a secretive guru sheds light on her apparent fondness for Vladimir Putin. You get the idea.

British intelligence stringer and former Conservative Party MP Louise Mensch has jumped into the fray, ranting in one tweet that American patriot Gabbard is an out and out traitor, and a Russian asset. You are a disgrace to the uniform. You are unworthy to be a soldier. You are unworthy to be an American. Good riddance.

Mensch won her first big journalist name with a campaign to discredit Edward Snowden and the Guardian for publishing his exposes; she was then notorious for her early role in spreading preposterous lies back in 2016 that Donald Trump was run by Russians; and she now specializes in running operations against anyone not giving 100% support for Ukraines war to the death against Russia, arguing as she tweeted a few days ago,

it is the duty of civilized people to be Russophobic right now. U.S.-Canadian war correspondent Eva Bartlett reported that Mensch had fingered her to Ukrainian special forces when she was in the Donbass in August, shortly before the Ukrainians bombed a hotel where foreign journalists were staying. Bartlett told the Schiller Institutes Sept. 10-11 conference panel to Defend the Right To Deliberate!

that Menschs tweet had the tone that Bartlett should be liquidated.
Tulsi Gabbard Tells Americans To Wake Up to Nuclear War Danger, Threats to Freedom of Speech

Oct. 12, 2022 (EIRNS)Former Democratic presidential pre-candidate Tulsi Gabbard is using the flurry of political attention generated by her announcement that she has walked out of the Democratic Party, to raise the alarm bells on those two strategic points.

In her Oct. 11 appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience, hosted by podcaster and comedian Joe Rogan, whose podcasts average about 11 million viewers per episode, Gabbard focused on the imminent danger of nuclear war with Russia, which she argued is not provoked by Vladimir Putin, but by the United States and some European nations in NATO that are using the Ukrainian military and people as chess pieces with the aim of regime change in Russia. The military-industrial complex is happy to send all those weapons to Ukraine, but, she asked, if we vote to send these billions of dollars to Ukraine, is that strengthening our national security or undermining it?

Gabbard, a combat veteran, who is a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve, charged: What were seeing now is essentially a proxy war. The U.S. is engaging in a proxy war with Russia using Ukraine essentially as their military. U.S. leaders pushing to prolong the Ukraine war have put us in the most dangerous position we, the American people, and the world have ever been in, in that a nuclear war could break out in a week.

She dismissed the idea that a nuclear war could be limited:

Whether theyre tactical or strategic nukes, it doesnt matter, there is no way to win this. That would spark a nuclear war, World War III, and the result of that is the destruction of the world as we know it.... People need to know that this is the reality we are facing. Our leaders have pushed us and led us to the brink of nuclear war. They have their own bunkers and way to protect themselves. There is no shelter for the American people.

Rogan and Gabbard discussed how Hawaiians discovered in 2018, when a false incoming missile alert was set off over the island, that theres no place where you can take your loved ones and your kids to be protected not only from the blast, but the fallout, the lack of food and water.... Gabbard and Rogan aired for viewers the absurd Public Service Announcement put out by New York City authorities in July, which told viewers they would be safe if they did three things in case of a nuclear attack: (1) Get inside. (2) Stay inside. (3) Stay tuned in. In outrage, the two demanded to know, stay tuned to what?

Instead, Gabbard insisted:

The United States and some of these European NATO countries are fuelling this war and need to provide the leadership to bring about a negotiated outcome. That is what needs to happen here to prevent the destruction of the planet and life as we know it. Theyre not doing that and they are failing the American people and putting us in this position of not knowing where were going to be in the event this kicks off.

Appearing on Fox News Tucker Carlson show, also last night, Gabbard tied the failure of American people to stand up against this imminent danger of nuclear war to the witch-hunts against anyone breaking with the official narrative:

The whole environment of fear that those in power, these elitists in power, have fomented to where people are afraid to speak the truth.... Theyre afraid to exercise their right to free speech because, hey, you might lose your job, you might be canceled, you might be trashed. And God forbid, in Washington, you might not be invited to the cool kids parties. You might not be as popular, Gabbard charged. So rather than taking a stand standing up for peace ... we have too many people who are war-mongers subservient to the military-industrial complex ... with no mind to the costs and consequences of their decisions which are actively pushing us to the brink of nuclear holocaust....

The Rogan Experience 15-minute nuclear threat discussion with Gabbard had over 2 million views within 24 hours of its posting on his YouTube channel.
Gulf Islamic Investments (GII), a leading Shariah-compliant global investment company, has successfully closed its second Indian Growth fund (IGP2) this year.

The performance of its two India-focused funds, whose value exceeds $300 million, has encouraged GII to further widen its investment operations in India as part of the companys continued growth strategy.

From its operational base in the UAE, supplemented by a presence in other leading global financial centres and a planned office in India, GII manages assets of more than $3 billion in private equity, venture capital and real estate.

Stakes in two healthcare firms

GII made its first investments in India in 2020. Its India Growth Portfolio I (IGP-I) comprised stakes in two Indian healthcare companies. Boosted by their success and continued client demand, GII launched IGP-II beginning of 2021, a superior investment platform with a more diversified portfolio across high-growth sectors such as electric mobility, consumer products, healthcare and technology.

The companies chosen by GIIs specialist investment team for IGP-II include Hero Electric (the market leader in the Indian electric two-wheeler industry), Soothe Healthcare, Bombay Shaving Company, Nysaa Retail, UpScalio and Encube Ethicals.

Pankaj Gupta, and co-Founder co-CEO of GII, said: Indias increasing move towards e-commerce and economic expansion across the whole nation provides beneficial opportunities for GIIs sustainable investment plans, with its commitment to responsible business.

Mohammed Al Hassan, co-Founder and co-CEO of GII, added: GIIs global reach, trusted expertise and bespoke solutions have already found a welcome home in India. Our investors are keen to maximise Indias diverse investment opportunities in further structured and well-managed IGP funds.-- TradeArabia News Service
Alstom, a global leader in green and smart mobility, said it has been awarded a five-year operation and maintenance contract with Jeddah Airports Company (Jedco), thus firmly cementing itself as a top performer in the sector of operations and maintenance (O&M) services in Saudi Arabia and the region.

With this contract, Alstom will continue to provide O&M services for the Innovia automated people mover (APM) within the King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA), Terminal 1 in Jeddah, said the company in a statement. The airport is one of Saudi Arabias largest air facility, occupying an area of 102 sq km, welcoming up to 30 million passengers through the airport every year.

The company had earlier secured the contract in August 2019 until June 2021, which was previously awarded due to continued positive performance.

The contract, which is for a period from June 2022 through to 2027, is valued at SR200 million ($53.2 million).

Alstom pointed out that the O&M contract was one of its many projects in Saudi Arabia. It had earlier supported the Haramain high-speed rail line between Makkah and Madinah and had also supplied an integrated metro system for Lines 3, 4, 5 and 6 in addition to providing its maintenance.

On the contract extension, Managing Director (Saudi Arabia) Mohamed Khalil said: "Alstom has been present in the kingdom for more than 70 years and our strategy is one of long-term partnership cementing a sustainable legacy within the kingdom. We are now honoured to sign this extension and solidify our partnership with Jedco."

Khalil said the deal also reiterates Alstoms commitment to supporting the development of Saudi Arabia's public infrastructure in line with Vision 2030.

"We will continue to enhance the performance of King Abdulaziz International Airport by continuing to offer world-class operations and maintenance, with a best-in-class team," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
European leaders have been paying a lot of attention to natural gas projects in Africa. The interest comes at a time when European officials are trying to find new energy resources because of reduced natural gas flows from Russia.

New LNG project near Senegal

A new liquefied natural gas (LNG) project off Africas western coast has received visits from the leaders of Poland and Germany.

The field is about 80 percent complete. It is near Senegal and Mauritanias coasts. It is expected to hold about 425 billion cubic meters of gas, five times more than what Germany used in all of 2019. But production is not expected to start until the end of next year.

The new field will not help solve Europes energy crisis caused by Russias war in Ukraine. But, Gordon Birrell, an executive for project co-developer BP, said the development could not be more timely. That is because Europe is seeking to reduce its use of Russian natural gas to power factories, generate electricity and heat homes.

Current world events are demonstrating the vital role that (liquid gas) can play in underpinning the energy security of nations and regions, he told an energy industry meeting in West Africa last month.

Europe aims to strike new deals

The 27-nation European Union is getting ready for the possibility of a complete Russian gas cutoff. EU energy ministers have been debating price limits on energy prices in recent weeks. European leaders have visited Norway, Qatar, Azerbaijan and especially countries in North Africa, where Algeria has a pipeline running to Italy and another to Spain.

In July, Italy signed a $4 billion gas deal with Algeria. The deal came one month after Egypt reached an agreement with the EU and Israel to increase sales of LNG. Angola also has signed a gas deal with Italy.

An earlier agreement will let Italys biggest energy company start production at two Algerian gas fields this week. But, experts said it is not clear when production will start from the July deal.

Senegalese President Macky Sall wants African countries to benefit from these projects. But African leaders do not want to export all their gas  an estimated 600 million Africans lack electricity.

It is legitimate, fair and equitable that Africa, the continent that pollutes the least and lags furthest behind in the industrialization process should exploit its available resources to provide basic energy, Sall told the U.N. General Assembly last month.

Algeria is a major gas supplier. In 2020, Algeria and Egypt made up 60 percent of the natural gas production in Africa. But Algeria cannot make up for Russian gas cuts to Europe, said Mahfoud Kaoubi. He is a professor of economics at the University of Algiers.

Russia has an annual production of 270 billion cubic meters  its huge, Kaoubi said. Algeria is 120 billion cubic meters, of which 70.50 percent is intended for consumption on the internal market.

Egypt also is looking to export more natural gas to Europe. The country is even limiting energy for shopping center air conditioners and streetlights so it can export gas.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Egypt hopes to bring in an additional $450 million a month in foreign currency. State media reported that he wants Egypt to use 15 percent less energy at home so it can be exported.

And a new, three-party deal calls for Israel to send more gas to Europe through Egypt, which can liquefy it for export by sea. The EU says it will help the two countries increase gas production and exploration.

Im John Russell.

Krista Larson reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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Words in This Story

vital  adj. extremely important

underpin  v. to strengthen or support (something) from below

region  n. a part of a country, of the world, etc., that is different or separate from other parts in some way

benefit  v. to be useful or helpful to (someone or something)

legitimateadj. fair or reasonable; allowed according to rules or laws

lag  v. to move more slowly than others

exploit -- v. to use (someone or something) in a way that helps you

consumption  n. the use of something (such as fuel)
Hundreds of pilot whales died this week on the beaches of the Chatham Islands, about 800 kilometers east of New Zealand.

It is the second large stranding of whales in recent weeks. About 200 pilot whales died in the Australian state of Tasmania in late September.

New Zealand officials said the islands are home to about 600 people. Rescue groups went to help but they could not get the whales back in the water. Many of them died naturally but others were euthanized because they could not be saved. At least 477 whales are believed to have died.

New Zealands Department of Conservation wrote about the stranded whales on Facebook.

These events are tough, challenging situations, the department wrote. Although they are natural occurrences, they are still sad and difficult for those helping.

Daren Grover works for a group called Project Jonah that works to rescue whales. He called the event a heartbreaking loss.

He said the islands distance from New Zealand and the presence of sharks in the water made it hard to help the whales.

Dave Lundquist is an adviser for New Zealands Department of Conservation. He said the department does not try to save whales on those islands because the sharks make it unsafe for both people and the whales.

He called euthanasia the kindest option.

Grover said the Chatham Islands are a place where whales go to find food. As the whales get closer to land, however, they can become confused.

Strandings of large groups of whales are common in the summer, scientists say.

Grover said the whales use a system called echolocation to find food and avoid barriers underwater. But as they get closer to land they can lose their place if the water level changes quickly.

Before they know it, Grover said, theyre stranded on the beach.

Grover said the whale bodies will not be moved. They will decompose naturally.

Nature is the great recycler, he said.

Im Dan Friedell.

Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by The Associated Press.

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Words in This Story

strand v. to cause something that is normally in the water to be stuck on land

euthanize v. to kill to prevent suffering

challenging adj. something that is difficult

option n. a possible choice

confused adj. unable to understand a situation

decompose n. to slowly break down into a simpler form through a natural process

recycle v. to make something new from something that has been used or worn out

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The Rosetta Stone is the star of a new show opening Thursday at the British Museum in London. The exhibition opening marks the 200th year since the mystery around the ancient carvings on the stone was solved.

The British Museum is under increasing pressure to give the stone back to Egypt. Thousands of archeologists and supporters there again demanded its return just last week.

French troops found the stone in the walls of an Egyptian fort in 1799, near Rosetta, a town about 55 kilometers from Alexandria. They gave it to British forces as part of a surrender agreement. The British Museum has held it since 1802.

The stone dates back about 2,400 years. It contains the same writing in three languages: hieroglyphs, an ancient Egyptian language called Demotic and ancient Greek.

When it was discovered, nobody knew how to read hieroglyphs.

Thomas Young of Britain and then Jean-Francois Champollion of France decoded their meaning in 1822. They found that the writing came from clergy to mark the reign of the Egyptian king Ptolemy V.

More importantly, the writing on the stone was an important clue that helped experts learned to read Egyptian hieroglyphs, a writing system that used pictures and symbols.

"We decided because the Rosetta Stone was such an important key to that decipherment that we will do this properly: with an exhibition that also features our star objects," said Ilona Regulski, head of Egyptian written culture at the museum. "It's a wonderful moment to celebrate," she added.

Yet the exhibition is under dispute.

Egyptian archaeologist and former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass recently called for the return of the stone and other foreign-held treasures he called "stolen."

The British Museum told AFP that Egypt has never made an official request for the Rosetta Stone's return. Regulski called the stone a "universal object" and said "it doesn't really matter where it is, as long as it's available to people."

The exhibition Hieroglyphs: Unlocking Ancient Egypt will run through February 19 of next year. It explores how hieroglyphs disappeared after Egyptians developed other forms of writing.

Museum director Hartwig Fischer said, "For the first time in 3,000 years Ancient Egyptians spoke directly to us."

I'm Caty Weaver.

Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting from Agence France-Presse and British Museum.

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Words in This Story

decode - v. to understand the true or hidden meaning

reign - n. the period of time during which a king, queen, etc... is the ruler

decipherment - n. act of finding hidden or true meaning

properly - adv. in a way that is acceptable
The American space agency NASA says a recent experiment that crashed a spacecraft into an asteroid successfully changed the path of the orbiting object.

NASA announced the results on Tuesday. It said it was the first time that human action had changed the motion of a space object.

The operation was called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART. The DART spacecraft crashed into an asteroid called Dimorphos on September 26. Dimorphos is a small moonlet that orbits a larger asteroid named Didymos. The crash happened about 11 million kilometers from Earth.

The crash, or impact, was observed by powerful telescopes. The observations showed the impact created a crater in the asteroid. It also led to dust and rock flows that stretched several thousand kilometers.

The goal of the crash was to see how it might redirect the asteroids path and speed. Before the impact, Dimorphos was completing one orbit around Didymos every 11 hours and 55 minutes. After the crash, the orbital period was reduced by 32 minutes, to 11 hours and 23 minutes.

Scientists involved in the project had predicted a reduction of 10 minutes, so they were pleased with the actual test results.

NASA described the crash as the worlds first planetary defense test. But the asteroid targeted in the mission did not present any actual threat to Earth.

However, NASA and its international partners continuously search the skies for what scientists call near-Earth objects (NEOs). Such objects include asteroids and comets that come within 50 million kilometers of Earths orbit. Scientists estimate there are billions of asteroids and comets orbiting our sun.

At a media event to announce the results, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said, This mission shows that NASA is trying to be ready for whatever the universe throws at us.

Lori Glaze is NASA's director of planetary science. She said, Lets all just kind of take a moment to soak this in ... for the first time ever, humanity has changed the orbit of an object in space.

NASA officials said four telescopes were involved in measuring the orbital period. All of them are in Chile and South Africa. Two American-based radar telescopes also helped confirm the results.

Former American astronaut Rusty Schweickart said he was clearly delighted by the results and the attention the mission has brought to asteroid redirection. Schweickart helped launch the nonprofit B612 Foundation, which seeks to develop tools and technologies to protect Earth from asteroid strikes.

NASA has said that no known asteroid larger than 140 meters in size has a reasonable chance of hitting Earth in the next 100 years. But scientists have predicted that in the very distant future, such a strike is possible.

For example, historical records of Earths geology show that a nine-kilometer wide asteroid struck Earth about 66 million years ago. This huge explosion put the planet into a long winter and killed off nearly all dinosaur life.

NASA plans to launch a telescope in 2026 called the Near-Earth Object Surveyor. It will aim to better identify large asteroids and comets that could threaten Earth within 48 million kilometers.

Planetary defense experts say changing the motion of threatening near-Earth objects is less dangerous than blowing them up and creating additional pieces that could fall down on Earth. This is especially the case when objects can be identified years ahead.

Nancy Chabot is a planetary scientist with Johns Hopkins Universitys Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland. She led the $325-million DART mission. Chabot said, We really need to also have that warning time for a technique like this to be effective.

NASAs Glaze added, Youve got to know theyre coming.

Im Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse and NASA.

Quiz - NASA Says Asteroids Path Successfully Changed in Recent Test Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

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Words in This Story

asteroid  n. a rocky object that goes around the sun like a planet

crater  n. a big hole left in the ground or an object by a force of impact

mission  adj. a flight by an aircraft or spacecraft to perform a specific task

soak  v. to take in an amount of something

delighted  adj. happy and pleased

technique  n. a method for doing something

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New Zealands government recently proposed taxing the greenhouse gases from farm animals as part of a plan to fight climate change. Farm animals produce gases through natural processes like burping and urinating.

The government said the taxes would be a worlds first. They said that farmers should be able to get the money back by charging more for climate-friendly products.

But farmers quickly criticized the plan.

Federated Farmers is the industrys main political support group. It said the plan would rip the guts out of small-town New Zealand and see farms replaced with trees.

Andrew Hoggard, the groups president, said farmers had been trying to work with the government for more than two years. They were working on a plan to reduce greenhouse gas production that would not decrease food production. Hoggard said, Our plan was to keep farmers farming. But, with the taxes, he said, farmers would be quickly selling their farms.

The conservative ACT Party is the main opposition group. Members of the party said the plan would increase worldwide greenhouse gas production by moving farming to other countries that were less efficient at making food.

More cows than people

New Zealands farming industry is very important for its economy. Milk products, including those used to make milk for baby food in China, are the nations largest export earner.

There are just 5 million people in New Zealand. But the country has some 26 million sheep and 10 million farm animals producing milk and meat.

About half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas comes from farms. Farm animals produce gasses that warm the planet like methane and nitrous oxide from burping and urinating.

The New Zealand government wants to reduce greenhouse gas production and make the country carbon neutral by 2050. Under the governments proposal, farmers would start to pay for greenhouse gas production in 2025. The price has yet to be finalized.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said all the money collected from the proposed tax would be put back into the industry. It would support new technology, research, and payments for farmers.

Agriculture Minister Damien OConnor said New Zealand farmers were already experiencing the impact of climate change with periods of dry weather and flooding. Taking the lead on agricultural emissions is both good for the environment and our economy, he said.

The proposal is similar to another unsuccessful proposal made in 2003 to tax farm animals for their methane production. Back then, farmers greatly opposed the idea and political opponents criticized it. And the government dropped the plan.

The debate in New Zealand is part of a larger international discussion on the effects of farming on the environment and the steps some say are needed to reduce its impact.

In the European nation of the Netherlands, farmers have blocked large, busy roads with farming products and vehicles. They did so to protest government proposals to decrease the production of greenhouse gases.

Im Jill Robbins.

The Assocaited Press reported this story. Greg Stachel adapted the story for Learning English.

_________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

greenhouse gas - n. gas that cause the warming of the earth's atmosphere

burp - v. to let out air from the stomach through the mouth with a sound

urinate  v. to send urine out of the body

rip the guts out of  phr. v. to hurt someone or something in the worst possible way

efficient  adj. capable of producing desired results without wasting materials, time, or energy

_______________________________________________________________

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Addleshaw Goddard, a leading international law firm, has announced a new leadership role for Bevan Farmer who has been appointed the new head of its Qatar operations, combining that additional responsibility with his existing role as Co-Head of the Middle East construction and engineering team.

An industry veteran, Farmer specialises in construction and engineering disputes and has worked in the GCC and Mena regions for more than a decade.

He succeeds Ahmad Anani who recently announced his decision to retire from the Addleshaw Goddard partnership.

In Qatar, Addleshaw Goddard has a team of lawyers able to advise on the country's laws, the QFC and England. Since the office opened in 2012, it has developed strong relationships with the regions key government agencies, corporate entities, financial institutions, regulatory bodies and private individuals.

Alongside traditional strengths in corporate, banking and finance including Islamic Finance, Commercial Litigation and Construction, the practice also offers market leading expertise in infrastructure, projects and energy, employment and real estate. The firm has 70+ lawyers and fee earners operating across the Mena region.

Welcoming Farmer into the fold, Head of Middle East and Asia Andrew Johnson said: "He is incredibly well respected in his specialist field, excellent at building strong relationships with clients and enthusiastic about growing AGs brand in the region."

"So as we approach our 10th anniversary, he is absolutely the ideal person to lead, encourage and ensure that we continue to expand our business in this key market and support the ambitions of clients in both the public and private sectors," he added.

Farmer had joined Addleshaw Goddard in 2014, becoming a partner in 2016 and co-head of the Middle East construction and engineering practice in 2020.

He has particular expertise across a broad range of industry sectors, including transport, infrastructure, utilities, industrials and energy.

On his new role, Farmer said: "We have a fantastic group of lawyers across the Middle East whose approach is dynamic, entrepreneurial and innovative and we are very well placed to provide clients with specialist, local market expertise, on any regional assignments, and also in relation to their international investment portfolios during this time of immense growth and change."

"The imagination and impact we bring to our client assignments combined with our ambition and the ongoing investment we have planned for our business in Qatar wilI continue to distinguish Addleshaw Goddard and I am exciting to be leading the firm in this market through the next important stages of its growth," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
MINDEN  Several area marching bands will be among the 40 that will take part in the 32nd annual Minden Bandfest on Saturday, Oct. 15.

Sponsored by the Minden Chamber of Commerce, the parade and field competition attract bands from across central Nebraska, with 40 bands planning to make the trip to Minden this year.

The 1 p.m. parade will feature the bands marching along Brown Avenue. The judges are located at Fourth and Brown. The contest uses a three-judge scoring system. They will judge in three areas: marching, music and overall general effect.

Bands from the Dawson County area include:

Class D  Overton, Eustis-Farnam and Sumner-Eddyville- Miller

Class B  Cozad

Eustis-Farnam Public Schools K-12 music teacher Renae Olson said, We have been attending Minden Bandfest for 12 years now. For the past six years we have received a Superior rating.

This parade is only bands, no floats. I enjoy that aspect of the parade. Since Harvest of Harmony we have been working on a lot of musicality components of our piece, Olson said, We have also been working on step style as well as some different technical things with our formation.

We march in a wedge formation which only one other school does in the state of Nebraska. With our success at Harvest of Harmony the kids are excited and ready to showcase what we have to offer on Saturday!, concluded Olson.

Overton Public Schools instrumental music teacher Evan Neben said, While Harvest of Harmony was quite familiar to me, this will be my first time participating in Minden Bandfest, though the Overton Band itself has been going to the event for some time.

The week after going to Grand Island, we took a break from marching and focused on pep band so that I didn't burn out my students. Now, we are taking this week to improve our marching techniques such as horn carriage, proper roll steps and walking the tightrope as my former band director called it, Neben said.

We are one of 40 bands that will be marching the parade route, and this makes me hope that we can truly compete against the other schools, Neben noted.

Sumner-Eddyville-Miller Public Schools music instructor Justin Bosak said they have been competing in Minden for over 10 years and always work hard to earn a superior rating.

The past 6 years we have achieved our goal to the point where the seniors now go around to the underclassmen while we're in formation waiting to march and check their uniforms and make sure they're mentally and physically prepared for the competition. It's been a cool thing to see, said Bosak.

The S-E-M band has been focusing on the feedback they received from the Harvest of Harmony judges in Grand Island two weeks ago.

We've been working on getting our sound to blend better the past two weeks so it isn't just trumpets blaring. The students have done a great job of putting in the work to learn to control their air flow and get the sound we're looking for, Bosak said, We've also been working on perfecting our roll step style of march, we went back and watched film of us and discussed what we needed to fix.

Overall I feel like we're peaking at the right time. We're looking forward to competing this Saturday, Bosak concluded.

Parade awards will be presented prior to the field competition at 3 p.m. at Kuper Field. There is an admission fee at the field of $4 for adults and $2 for students.

Ten bands will compete at the field, including Cozad, which gives those bands a final tune-up before the state field marching competition the following week.

Field competition gives the bands the opportunity to show their repertoire, coordination of drill to the music, the use of contrasts, special effects and auxiliary units.
Mark Bohnhorst, Michael Fitzgerald (Saint Olaf College), & Aviam Soifer (University of Hawaii at Manoa - William S. Richardson School of Law) have posted Gaping Gaps in the History of the Independent State Legislature Doctrine: McPherson v. Blacker, Usurpation, and the Right of the People to Choose Their President (Mitchell Hamline Law Review, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

The so-called Independent State Legislature Doctrine (ISLD) was the jurisprudential heart of the effort by former President Trump and allies to overturn the 2020 presidential election and was featured in the briefs in Texas v. Pennsylvania. The idea that state legislatures might have power to intervene against the popular vote for the Electoral College helped animate the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.

Frighteningly, at the end of its last Term, the Supreme Court accepted review of a North Carolina case (Moore v. Harper) in which Republican Party legislators invoke the ISLD doctrine to contend that state legislators are at liberty to create entirely partisan congressional districts, freed from constraints in the North Carolina Constitution as interpreted by the states judiciary. A decision in favor of these legislators would directly implicate their parallel power to reject or ignore any states popular vote for President.

The ILSD theory rests on dubious dicta in McPherson v. Blacker (1892). McPherson concluded that "plenary power" over the appointment of presidential electors was "conceded" to state legislatures through "practical construction" of the Constitution. Yet, the Court excluded, with almost surgical precision, extensive historical evidence that shows that the legislative election of electors was not intended by the Framers nor by those who ratified the Constitution. Further, such legislative election authority was vigorously contested whenever it matteredin the presidential elections in 1800, 1812, and 1824and was soon thereafter abandoned in the face of the claim that this doctrine was a "usurpation. The doctrine was more emphatically rejected following the Civil War, including through Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment. Nonetheless, Bush v. Gore repeated McPhersons historical amnesia and provoked a doctrine that directly threatens such core democratic values as state court authority to interpret state constitutions and the power of the people to elect the President of the United States.
Arabian Contracting Services Company has announced that it has entered into an agreement with Faden Media, a major digital advertising media group in Saudi Arabia, to acquire the entire company for SR1.05 billion ($280 million).

A major player in the kingdom's outdoor marketing sector, Arabian Contracting Services Company is backed by the Middle East Broadcasting Company. The MBC Group had in 2020 acquired a minority stake in Al Arabia, the leading out-of-home advertising solutions provider in the region.

This deal represents an extension of the strategy of the Arabian Contracting Services Company by entering profitable alliances and partnerships locally and regionally, with the aim of maintaining its leading position, said the company in its filing to Saudi bourse Tadawul.

The pact will help enhance its market share by taking advantage of the competitive advantages and acquiring a larger share of the outdoor advertising market, whether roadside advertising or indoor advertisements, it stated.

Headquartered in Riyadh, Faden Media is a limited liability company set up by Prince Abdulaziz bin Mashhor bin Mosaad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in 2006 with a capital of SR25 million. It has successfully established business across digital advertising media on buildings and retail stores.

Following the go-ahead from the company board, Arabian Contracting Services Company said it will pay 70% of the transaction value upon completion of the agreement and the remaining 30% on March 31, 2023.

The transaction will be financed from the bank loans in addition to company's own resources, it stated.

However, it clarified that the completion of the transaction was subject to a few pre-conditions mentioned in the purchase agreement, including obtaining approvals from the relevant government authorities, and obtaining the approval of the General Authority for competition.-TradeArabia News Service
It took Jessica Escamilla at least a year and a half to open BigSur Cantina on Madisons Far West Side from the time her sign went up, and the transformation from Martin OGradys Irish Pub is dramatic.

The colorful flags that cover BigSurs ceiling give it a festive feel, and the big menus are so professional you might think the restaurant is part of a chain.

Escamilla has employed a number of gimmicks, including a three-pound burrito thats free if you can eat it in 12 minutes or less. She said about 15 people have tried, and four have succeeded since the restaurant opened Aug. 29.

No one in our party of three was up for that challenge, but one of the best things we ordered was the Cinco Cinco burrito ($14), named after Cinco de Mayo, the May 5 celebration of Mexican heritage.

It was stuffed with a generous amount of ground beef, plus rice, beans, corn and Oaxaca cheese, and smothered in three sauces, green, white and red, in vertical stripes to approximate the Mexican flag. Some cilantro sat in the center as the coat of arms. It was enormous and delicious.

The tacos were equally impressive, but the corn tortillas were on the small side. They were at least packed with fillings. The BigSur ($4.50) with carne asada, avocado, melted Oaxaca cheese and pico de gallo, stood out.

So did From the Farm ($4), a winning combination of portobello mushrooms, roasted corn and plantains, black bean spread, grilled queso fresco, and enough chipotle cream sauce to pack some heat. Where so many restaurants let vegetarians down with meatless attempts that flop, BigSur comes through here.

The Wabo Cali taco ($4.50) was also spectacular with chorizo, shrimp, Oaxaca cheese, onions and chipotle cream sauce. We ordered the tacos as part of a plate ($13), which effectively made the rice and beans complimentary.

BigSurs San Diego enchiladas ($16) had excellent marinated grilled chicken, but were otherwise plain. The three corn tortillas were also filled with spinach, poblano peppers and Oaxaca cheese.

They came topped with green mole sauce, sour cream and queso fresco without overdoing it. I appreciated how the rice had lime and cilantro and the borracho beans, or drunken beans, were cooked in beer with cilantro, onion, garlic, bacon fat and other ingredients.

The giant platters were scorching hot, so watch your fingers. Nearby, an order of Bettys Blazin Fajitas was set on fire.

The only gimmick we went for turned out to be a disappointment. When Escamilla described BigSurs trash can nachos ($16) before the restaurants opening, I was intrigued, especially when she told me that she and her father, Richard Baer, who owns the restaurant with her, made the cans.

It turned out to be just a giant metal can, the kind vegetables come in, with the label removed. My friend called it a No. 10 can, the size restaurants use. When our server emptied its contents on the plate, the big reveal was underwhelming: an enormous mass of beige with no visible cheese.

The menu promised refried beans, corn, melted queso dip, pickled red onion, pico de gallo, guacamole, crema and jalapenos. The beans dominated in a negative way, but the nachos benefited from a generous amount of pulled pork. Chicken tinga and ground beef were the other meat options.

My friend said he warmed to the nachos because of the abundance of tasty pork.

The guacamole trio ($12) was also a mixed bag, with two bland scoops of guacamole and one fabulous one with pineapple and bacon that the menu also offers on its own. Surprisingly, the trio was served with carrots and celery in addition to tortilla chips.

Its worth noting that the tri-colored chips were inferior chips that detracted from the enjoyment of the guac. We didnt take our waiter up on a second round.

My friend did have a second margarita. He ordered his on the rocks ($8) and I had mine frozen ($8.50). Both were great, and I appreciated how the frozen one wasnt exactly frozen, but instead semi-melted. The small slices of lime in both drinks were a nice touch. I think the margarita could use more tequila, but thats just me, my friend said.

We arrived around 6 p.m. on a Friday and were lucky to get a comfortable booth in back. The bar was full, and by 7, a good-size crowd had formed to wait for a table.

The music  The Who, R.E.M., Bruce Springsteen  wasnt too loud and came from the jukebox by the bar, which Escamilla said uses a background feed when no one prompts it.

The bathrooms are labeled Bettys and Barneys, in keeping with the California surf theme. The womens room had too much air freshener, so I made the quickest exit possible.

Otherwise, BigSur, which was inspired by a cantina Escamilla visited with her father while driving along the coast on Route 1 near Monterey, California, is a place where its easy to kick back and savor a leisurely meal.

Diner's scorecard Restaurant: BigSur Cantina Location: 7436 Mineral Point Road Phone: 608-203-6637 Website: bigsurcantina.com Hours: Sunday through Tuesday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday 11 a.m. to midnight Prices: Appetizers $2 to $12, tacos $3.50 to $4.50, soup $8 and $12, salads $11 and $12, entrees $14 to $26, dessert $7 to $9 Noise level: Medium Credit cards: Accepted Accessibility: Yes Outdoor dining: Yes Delivery: No Online ordering: Not yet Drinks: Full bar Gluten-free: Lettuce tacos, corn and blue corn tortillas Vegetarian offerings: A handful Kids menu: Yes Reservations: Yes Parking: Lot Service: Great Bottom line: Fun atmosphere with creative tacos and burritos, including a 3-pound burrito that's free if you eat it within 12 minutes.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP)  Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips for smartphones and other products, said Thursday that its quarterly profit rose 79.7% over a year earlier to a record $8.8 billion amid surging demand.

Quarterly revenue rose 47.9% over a year ago to $19.2 billion, the company reported.

TSMC, headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, makes processor chips for brands including Apple Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. Many of their products are assembled by factories in China, which has exposed TSMC to the possible impact of U.S.-Chinese tension over technology and security.

TSMC's U.S.-traded shares fell 14% in value after Washington on Friday tightened restrictions on Chinese access to advanced computer chips. Those controls are based on limiting the ability of TSMC and other suppliers to use U.S. chip or manufacturing technology for Chinese customers.

The American Embassy in Beijing didn't immediately respond to a question about whether TSMC had received an exemption that might allow normal supplies to Chinese factories to continue.

TSMC's CEO, C.C. Wei said in an earnings conference call that the rules set restrictions at very advanced levels mainly used for artificial intelligence or supercomputing applications.

Therefore, our initial assessment is the impact to TSMC is limited and manageable, Wei told analysts. We are closely monitoring the situation to ensure we comply with all the rules and regulations.

TSMC's chip supplies to China already were restricted under a 2020 order by then-President Donald Trump that prohibits vendors from using U.S. technology to manufacture for Huawei Technologies Ltd., a maker of network switching gear and smartphones. Washington says Huawei is a security risk and might facilitate Chinese spying, which the company denies.

Chipmakers are benefiting for demand for next-generation telecoms, high-performance computing and chips for use in products from cars to medical devices.

TSMC announced plans last year to invest $100 billion over the next three years in manufacturing and research and development.

Most semiconductors used in smartphones, medical equipment, computers and other products are made in Taiwan, South Korea and China.

That has prompted concern among American officials about reliance on supplies that might be disrupted by conflict between China and Taiwan. They are lobbying TSMC and other chipmakers to set up factories in the United States.

TSMC announced plans last year to build its first chip factory in Japan. The company and Sony Corp. later said they would jointly invest $7 billion in the facility.

TSMC operates a semiconductor wafer fabrication facility in Camas, Washington, and design centers in San Jose, California, and Austin, Texas.

The company has announced plans for a second U.S. production site in Arizona.
THURSDAY, Oct. 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- CVS Health announced Wednesday that it will lower the prices of its brand of menstrual products by 25 percent in 12 states that tax tampons, pads, and similar items.

Twenty-one states tax these essential products, according to USA Facts. But their high cost can be tough on low-income women, advocates say.

"Period poverty is a common, yet hidden and stigmatized, public health issue in the United States and globally," Jhumka Gupta, an associate professor at George Mason University in Virginia, told CBS News. "It can reduce women's participation in school and the workplace." Gupta published a study in 2021 that showed 10 percent of college women cannot access menstrual hygiene products.

CVS Health has already started paying sales taxes on the products in Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. But it cannot pay the taxes in every state, because some do not allow organizations to pay customer taxes, CBS News reported.

While some states view menstrual hygiene products as luxury items, they are necessities that can be hard for low-income people to afford, health experts said. A double standard exists in places like Texas, which requires state tax on menstrual products, listed as "wound care dressings," while not taxing male libido enhancers or gender-neutral products like Band-Aids, CBS News reported. Other countries face similar issues: Scotland recently was the first to mandate free menstrual products.

"Gender inequality, extreme poverty, humanitarian crises, and harmful traditions can all turn menstruation into a time of deprivation and stigma, which can undermine their enjoyment of fundamental human rights," the United Nations Population Fund said in May.
The State Patrol early Thursday morning received information from the Greendale Police Department on a missing person whose phone was pinging off of I-94. Troopers were sent to the last known area, and were able to find the 2008 Chevrolet Uplander, which had traveled a significant distance off I-94 into a wooded area, Sgt. Bret Manke said in a statement.
Students: We want to help you help someone in need.

As it does each year, the Wisconsin State Journal is inviting children and teens to write a brief letter about someone in their community who could use a helping hand during the winter holidays. Readers ages 18 and younger are asked to explain what they would do if they had $200 to help someone else.

Helping Hands coordinators will choose some of these letters and help carry out the writers plans to aid a classmate, friend, neighbor or community member. Letters are carefully screened to make sure these gifts are being sent to people who are among those who need them the most. The selected entries, edited for length and to avoid identifying recipients, will be published in the State Journal in December.

Heres how to submit a letter to Helping Hands:

Email it to helpinghands@madison.com, or mail it to: Helping Hands, Attn: Gayle Worland, Wisconsin State Journal, P.O. Box 8056, Madison, WI 53708. Families, classes or other groups may submit entries individually or in a single envelope.

Include the following: The writers first and last names, age, grade, school and community/city name, plus a parent/guardians name, email address and phone number in case we have questions. Teachers and group leaders, please also include your name, email address and phone number so we can contact you. Whenever possible, please include the name and city of the person or family described. This information will not be published.

The deadline for entries is Monday, Nov. 21. All emails and postal mail should be received by that date.

Please email your questions to helpinghands@madison.com. Were happy to help.

The Helping Hands program is supported by the State Journals Empty Stocking Club and the generosity of our readers. To support Helping Hands, please donate online at emptystockingclub.com or mail a check to Empty Stocking Club, Wisconsin State Journal, P.O. Box 8056, Madison, WI 53708, and write Helping Hands in the subject line.
A UW-Madison historian noted for humanizing military conflicts is among 25 academics awarded a prestigious MacArthur Foundation fellowship, known as a genius grant, of $800,000.

Monica Kim is an associate professor and UW-Madisons William Appleman Williams & David G. and Marion S. Meissner Chair in U.S. International and Diplomatic History. Her research breaks down U.S. intervention tactics throughout the 20th century. She also authored The Interrogation Rooms of the Korean War: The Untold History.

Kim began her work when she entered graduate school, wanting to study something that was a bottom-up history, an analysis of history that takes perspective from ordinary people when it comes to warfare, as opposed to heads of state. At the same time, the U.S. was invading Iraq and Afghanistan.

As I was doing research on the Korean War, I was also hearing about what was happening at (Guantanamo Bay), at Abu-Ghraib, Kim said Wednesday.

(Putting both situations side by side) kind of just exploded the idea that a war is a kind of discrete event, she said. How does warfare actually affect our every day, even over here?

In naming its 2022 list of fellows this week, the MacArthur Foundation noted their exceptional creativity, future promise and potential for the fellowship to advance their work.

According to the university, Kims work is distinctive for the emphasis its placed on the average human in times of conflict, sharing the experiences of those on the ground, such as soldiers and farm workers, and bringing to light cultural aspects previous historians rarely made note of in relation to decolonization.

The MacArthur Fellowship is a no-strings-attached grant, and Kim is mulling how best to use it.

I think this grant money gives me the opportunity to create some kind of possible hub or lab perhaps, to bring together activists, scholars and critical journalists, to really think of a different way of getting at geopolitics, Kim said.

Im really hoping that by bringing those different people together, we get a different sense of the different scales of how we need to be acting, but also being very critical of how warfare is shaping our every day right now, she said.

MacArthur fellows come from a myriad of fields, with the grants funding projects in filmmaking, astrodynamics, law, computer science, education and more. UW-Madison has been home to five MacArthur fellows in the past, most recently in 2019, when Lynda Barry, Chazen Family Distinguished Chair in Art, and Andrea Dutton, a professor in the Department of Geoscience, made the annual list.
To hear the candidates tell it, a vote for either Republican Sen. Ron Johnson or Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in Wisconsins U.S. Senate race could spell disaster if the wrong person wins.

Electing Johnson, one side says, can save the country from financial ruin, protect the border from an existential threat and reduce crime.

A Barnes victory, the other side says, will guarantee womens right to abortion and ensure passage of landmark climate legislation and Medicare for all.

In reality, in a body with 100 seats, the ability of any one senator to deliver on the vast promises the candidates are making is limited.

But depending on how Democrats perform elsewhere  especially in Pennsylvania, Nevada and Georgia  theres one issue that could make the election here especially consequential: The desire by most Democrats to abolish the filibuster.

Under Senate rules, most legislation requires 60 votes to pass. But many Democrats, including Barnes, want to change the rules and allow measures to pass on a simple majority. At least two Democratic senators  Kyrsten Sinema, of Arizona, and Joe Manchin, of West Virginia  oppose the move now. But if the party can pick up two more seats in November, Democrats could end the filibuster early next year without their votes.

Doing so could allow Democrats to extend abortion protections to all 50 states, pass voting rights measures and enact far-reaching climate change legislation. Of course, if Republicans regain control of the legislative body later, they could just as easily repeal those measures and promote their own agenda with a simple majority instead of 60 votes.

What youre going to have is just ping-pong in policy, Johnson said of abolishing the filibuster last month. It would be incredibly destabilizing. The Senate, as dysfunctional as it is, is at least a stabilizing body. And if you want real strong economic growth and stuff, you need a stable government, you need a stable business environment.

Barnes spokesperson Maddy McDaniel said Republicans, including Johnson, have used the filibuster to take away our freedoms, partially in reference to the Oshkosh Republican voting to block an effort to codify abortion protections.

Whether Democrats pick up two seats or Republicans regain control of the U.S. Senate does hinge largely on how the Nov. 8 election goes in Wisconsin.

If Barnes wins in Wisconsin, Democrats would have a 95-in-100 chance of winning control of the U.S. Senate, according to political analysis website FiveThirtyEight, which as of Thursday afternoon says the race leans toward Johnson.

If Barnes wins, the analysis goes, U.S. Senate races in Ohio and North Carolina  which right now lean Republican  would become toss-ups. It would also mean Pennsylvania is safely in Democratic hands, meaning Democrats could pick up as many as four seats  more than enough to abolish the filibuster.

If Johnson wins in Wisconsin, Democrats would still have a 54-in-100 chance of winning control of the U.S. Senate, FiveThirtyEight concluded. But the only seat currently held by a Republican that would have a good chance of flipping under that scenario would be Pennsylvania, meaning Democrats probably wouldnt have enough votes in favor of abolishing the filibuster.

Back and forth

Far more Democrats than Republicans currently support eliminating the filibuster. Doing so would benefit whichever party is in charge by making it easier to adopt new laws and repeal old ones.

The catch is: Theres no guarantee Democrats will be in charge. From the 1930s until the early 1980s, Democrats held the U.S. Senate majority far more often than Republicans. Since 2003, Republicans and Democrats have each held the majority in five congressional sessions.

If you are in a period like were in right now, where majority control flips back and forth every few years, then (abolishing the filibuster) absolutely could be a source of policy instability, UW-Madison political science professor David Canon said.

Members of both parties have increased support for eliminating the filibuster when theyre in the majority, Canon said  a sentiment that often goes away when they become the minority party.

Democrats dont like filibuster now; they would love the filibuster in the future when theyre in the minority party, he said.

A brief history

Under a Democratic majority in 2013, the Senate voted to lower the threshold to cut off debate for most presidential nominations from 60 to a simple majority. Republicans criticized the move at the time.

Johnson accused Democrats at the time of changing the rules to distract public attention away from the failure of Obamacare and to make it easier to pack the federal courts with ideologically extreme judges who will rubber stamp the radical agenda of the Democratic Party.

Four years later, under a Republican majority, Republicans with Johnsons support decreased the threshold to advance Supreme Court nominations from 60 to a simple majority. This time, Democrats were angered by the move used to confirm now-Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. (But the rule change would later allow Democrats to confirm Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.)

The following day, in April 2017, more than 60 senators sent the bodys Republican and Democratic leaders a letter urging them to maintain the 60-vote threshold for legislation. Johnson did not sign on to the letter.

In 2019, Senate Republicans, with Johnson in support, deployed the so-called nuclear option to limit debate on some judicial and executive branch nominations.

Harry Reid forever damaged the Senate by deploying the nuclear option in 2013, Johnson said at the time. (Then-Senate Minority Leader) Chuck Schumer has further harmed the Senate with his senseless obstruction. Republicans were forced to use Harry Reids precedent to end Democrat obstruction.

Just days after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, President Joe Biden advocated for ending the filibuster in order to codify abortion protections. Sinema and Manchin came out against the idea, sinking the proposal.
Closing remarks

Johnson used his final remarks to remind voters of the classic campaign line: Are you better off?

Johnson brought up the economic polices of the Biden administration and warned Barnes would be a "rubber stamp" for the president's policies.

Barnes said Johnson is trying to "lie and distract" voters.

"For the last 12 years, we've experience the failures of his leadership and representation," Barnes said.

War in Ukraine

The first foreign policy question in either of the Wisconsin Senate debates, Barnes said he's "proud of the Ukrainian" people. He said there's no appetite for U.S. soldiers getting directly involved in the conflict and called for more sanctions on the Russian government.

Johnson called for more transparency over weapons shipments to Ukraine.

Barnes brought up reports that the FBI warned Johnson he might be a "Russian asset." Johnson said a "corrupt" FBI set him up with the briefing as the debate audience laughed.

Immigration reform

Barnes said his immigration perform plan includes a "path to citizenship" for DACA recipients and their families but didn't elaborate on specifics. He dodged a second question on specifics for giving immigrants citizenship later in the debate.

Johnson touted his Senate committee work to send immigrants who entered the United States back to Mexico, which he claimed cut entries into the country.

In response to another question on giving immigrants citizenship, Johnson said he tried to work with the Trump administration to peg citizenship to immigrants' contribution to the economy. The Biden administration's immigration policies has made immigration reform more difficult, the senator said.

Abortion rights

Barnes avoided a direct question about what term limits for abortion he does or doesn't support to attack Johnson's opposition to abortion rights.

Johnson avoided the question too, and said he supports abortion rights being determined by a voter referendum.

"I can't think of a better way of solving this problem once and for all," Johnson said.

Johnson added he'd push a future Wisconsin Republican governor to have a voter referendum on abortion rights.

Barnes brought up that most Wisconsinites support abortion rights.

"His position is too out of touch," Barnes said.

Support for police

A discussion of eliminating qualified immunity for police officers and Congressional legislation spiraled into attacks about the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and the 2020 demonstrations.

Barnes tried to undermine Johnson's outspoken support for law enforcement to bring up officers injured during the Jan. 6 riots.

"This talk about support for law enforcement, it's not real," Barnes said. "It's not true."

Johnson said that pushes for defunding law enforcement have impacted police recruiting. He also said eliminating qualified immunity would be a deal breaker for a compromise on criminal justice reform.

Gun violence

"These are not unique stories," Barnes said in response to a question about a recent shooting in Milwaukee that killed a 12-year-old girl.

The lieutenant governor then attacked Johnson for receiving campaign contributions from the gun lobby and his opposition to background checks.

Johnson repeated a campaign line that gun violence can be solved through "renewed faith, stronger families and more supportive communities."

After that, the Republican attacked Barnes for his opposition to cash bail and said keeping people in jail will fix gun violence.

"What I see is the violent criminals your administration released," Johnson said to Barnes. The state parole board controls who paroled, not the governor.

Johnson repeatedly brought up the Joseph Project and his involvement with it as an example for addressing community gun violence.

The Joseph Project is a faith-based program that works to train people, many with criminal backgrounds, for jobs. It was started at the Greater Praise Church of God in Christ by the churchs pastor, Jerome Smith, and Johnson and his staff.

Minimum Wage

Johnson said Congress shouldn't set a minimum wage and used the question to attack the Biden administration on inflation and it's impact on the value of wages.

Most people looking for jobs right now are making 12, 13 or 15 dollars an hour," Johnson said.

Barnes brought up that he's supported a $15 minimum wage since 2015.

Johnson then brought up his humble beginnings working in the private sector. He doesnt have a clue how to create jobs, the senator said of Barnes.

Barnes responded by saying he's frustrated that Johnson has turned his back on workers.

Social security

"I want to save social security."

Johnson repeated a line he's brought up on the campaign trail in response to attacks he wants to cut social security. Johnson then pivoted to inflation again by saying it's cutting into seniors' savings.

Barnes largely ignored a question about what policy changes are included in his plan for social security and attacked Johnson's stance instead.

Hes coming for your retirement, Barnes said, adding that he wants people making under $400,000 not see a rise in taxes, but didnt go into detail about his plan.

Inflation

On the topic of inflation, Johnson blamed government spending on ever-rising inflation.

"I've voted no on this deficit spending," Johnson said, pivoting to Barnes' support for climate change initiatives and their price tag.

Barnes said he would combat inflation by passing a "middle-class tax cut" and making the child tax credit permanent. He then attacked Johnson on supporting the 2017 Republican-led tax cut.

On the topic of the tax cuts, Barnes used it to claim Johnson was using tax payer money to pay for shuttling his private plane between Washington, D.C. and the senator's vacation home in Florida.

"Middle class families are footing the bill for millionaire lifestyles and it needs to stop," Barnes said.

Johnson retorted by saying Senate ethics approved the travel back to the capital.

Attacks immediate

Barnes and Johnson wasted no time attacking each other as the debate kicked off.

Barnes said Johnson has been downplaying and avoiding specifics about his record after more than a decade in the Senate. Barnes chided Johnson for inheriting wealth and business connection from his spouse's father.

Johnson responded by calling the Democrat a "performer" and an "actor," who is repeating slogans staffers and others write for him.

"Take anything Mr. Barnes says with a huge grain of salt," Johnson said.

Check back with Madison.com for live updates.
A pair of Levi's jeans from the 1880s has sold at an auction in a small town in New Mexico for more than $87,000.

The jeans -- found in an abandoned mine by a "denim archaeologist" -- were bought by 23-year-old Kyle Hautner and Zip Stevenson, a veteran of the vintage denim market.

"We didn't have any plans to buy the jeans together until the auction started, which is kind of insane looking back on it," Stevenson told CNN.

The jeans were sold for $87,400 -- one of the highest prices ever paid for a pair of denims -- including a 15% buyer's premium. Hautner paid 90%, while Stevenson contributed the remaining 10%

Stevenson has run a denim repair shop in Los Angeles for nearly three decades -- but he had never found a pair quite like this.

"These jeans are extremely rare -- especially in this fantastic worn condition and size," he told CNN.

Stevenson first heard about the jeans "about five years ago when they were first discovered" in the American West by Michael Harris, who "has looked in at least 50 abandoned mines for five years and has not found a pair of equal quality," according to Stevenson.

Only a couple of similar pairs exist -- but they are kept in museums and too delicate to wear.

This pair, however, "are surprisingly durable, so they definitely can be worn," Stevenson told CNN. "There's a couple of soft spots on the jeans that could use a bit of reinforcement but otherwise they're super-duper solid jeans."

"I could easily imagine Johnny Depp or Jason Momoa wearing them," he said.

The auction was held at the Durango Vintage Festivus on the outskirts of the small town of Aztec. The four-day festival is put on by vintage denim expert Brit Eaton -- who described finding items like this as "a total addiction."

"I needed a 'headliner' that would rival the music acts I booked. I knew these jeans would be a major draw," Eaton told CNN.

"I've been doing this business for a quarter of a century and the average vintage jeans are worth about $100. So to find a pair this valuable is once in a lifetime."

Eaton said he didn't originally intend to sell the jeans, which was why he put them up for this "massive" price. But given their rarity, he said, it was "no surprise" that they were snapped up at auction. "It was super fun to see them sell live to floor bidders," he said.

While iconic of the American West, the jeans also bear witness to a dark episode in the country's history. An inside pocket is printed with the phrase "The only kind made by White Labor." The Wall Street Journal cited a Levi's spokesperson who explained that the company used this slogan after the introduction of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882, which barred Chinese laborers from entering the US. The WSJ reported that Levi's dropped both this policy and the slogan in the 1890s. The act was repealed in 1943.

What does Stevenson plan to do with the jeans now? "We would consider offering them for sale to an extremely interested private buyer," he said, but added that the owners would prefer them to be bought and displayed in a museum "such as the Smithsonian or the Metropolitan Museum of Art."

For now, they're kept in a safety deposit box near Stevenson's Denim Doctors store in Los Angeles and are available for viewing by appointment.
Gun violence is a clear and present danger to the lives of Americans. Voters want candidates to address it.

From horrific mass shootings to the slower but grislier toll of daily gun homicides, gun violence is an epidemic that killed more than 45,000 people in this country last year  an increase of 43% from the previous decade.

This year, the horrific murders of children and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, the racially motivated execution of Black shoppers in Buffalo, New York, and the combat-style killing of families watching a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois, have again burst open our hearts and minds.

These unspeakable tragedies are just the tip of the iceberg. The first six months of 2022 saw more than 350 mass shootings.

Special interest groups such as the National Rifle Association claimed that passing laws to curb these killings would somehow make Americans less safe. The facts demolish this idea.

What could account for this? Its not complicated  because we have the highest rate of civilian-owned guns per capita. Even within the United States, gun deaths are highest in the states with the fewest gun restrictions, according to a study by Everytown for Gun Safety.

The evidence is clear that the more guns and fewer gun safety measures a country has, the greater the violence and death from firearms.

Assault rifles are especially deadly, designed to inflict the greatest lethal damage to the human body in rapid-fire volleys. Evidence shows six times more people are murdered in a mass shooting with an assault weapon than with a handgun.

Finally, courts have repeatedly found that gun safety does not conflict with the Second Amendment. And the right to bear arms simply does not override the right to life.

But the pro-gun lobby ignores these facts and propagates outright distortions by vastly outspending all of the gun safety organizations. The NRA is one of the largest special interest lobbies in the United States, and it spends freely to peddle its lies and buy off politicians willing to repeat them.

As a result, too many politicians are wary of running for office explicitly on gun safety  and Congress has done almost nothing to address it.

The federal ban on assault weapons expired in 2004, and attempts to revive it were weak until the massacre in Uvalde. This year the Democratic-controlled U.S. House passed an assault weapons ban. Still, it had no chance in the anti-majoritarian Senate.

In a glimmer of hope after Uvalde, lawmakers finally passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act last summer. The bill made modest advances by requiring background checks for gun buyers under age 21, tightening the so-called boyfriend loophole that gives unmarried domestic abusers access to guns, and providing needed funding for mental health care.

Still, it contains little actual gun control. Instead, the new law invests $300 million in so-called school safety measures that are nothing more than the manifestation of the false NRA narrative that militarizing our schools makes us all safer.

But not all gun safety candidates are intimidated by the NRAs money and influence  even in traditionally pro-gun states.

Rep. Lucy McBath, whose son was murdered in a shooting, won a series of tough races in Georgia with a message about stopping gun violence. Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is running on a gun-control agenda in the same state. And in Texas, former Rep. Beto ORourke is challenging the NRA-funded Gov. Greg Abbot on a gun safety agenda, with voters saying they trust ORourke more on the issue of guns.

Elections are complicated, so these candidates may or may not triumph. But their willingness to take on the gun industry and its special interest front groups shouldnt be surprising. More than two-thirds of voters told pollsters they want stricter gun control measures in a June survey by Morning Consult and Politico. So a commonsense message about stricter gun laws should be a winning one.

We all want our families to be safe. Candidates should campaign proudly on a gun-safety agenda.
A new study has listed `factories automation as one of the top three emerging trends in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the UAE in 2023. The other two upcoming trends for 2023 in the two GCC countries, according to the study by Poly, are smart living and smart working.

Factories automation

As KSA works to establish several smart cities, there is a tendency within the kingdom toward factory automation. The main objective is to benefit from Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies and smart innovations, reduce costs, and raise efficiency, the study revealed.

In the near future, around 4000 factories all over the KSA will be largely dependent on automated machines and smart technologies. This is part of the recently launched The Future Factories Program, initiated by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, it noted.

The Saudi government aims to utilise the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) to achieve considerable progress in its production sector, through the blend of various innovative technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, robots, 3D printing, and the internet of things to establish a strong economy based on the latest technologies and innovations.

In the UAE, the government announced in October 2021 the plan to harness the technology of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The purpose of this plan, The Projects of the 50, is to raise productivity and deliver more innovative products using automated systems during the coming fifty years in an initiative that is unprecedented in the region.

These automated systems that will be managing functions in several factories would enable employees to have more flexibility in their working hours and pattern. According to the new Poly study, Recruit, Retain and Grow, 88% of UAE companies believe that employees should be allowed to request flexible working hours from day one. Furthermore, Over half (56%) of all organizations, and 69% of UAE-based organizations, believe that if they dont address their hybrid work processes and plans, theyll start to lose staff and be unable to attract new talent.

Bob Aoun, Sales Director at Poly, says: The operation of factories and various production facilities which relies on AI- technologies became a vital element in the success of the production in any given sector. This move is crucial to increase profit and maintain growth and sustainability.

Smart cities will boost smart working

Smart working, aka hybrid working, is equally popular among employees and employers because it boosts productivity. Almost 70% of the UAE firms believe that failing to address their hybrid work procedures and strategies will result in employee turnover and an inability to recruit new talent.

We are moving a step further as a world and seeing the conversations around smart cities start at the same time. The linear city "The Line" in Saudi Arabia has been proposed with the objective of facilitating a perfect work-life balance for its residents.

The same trend is getting quite prevailing in the UAE. Arising from the Emirati government's vision for 2021, one of the most important priorities is to establish a sustainable environment and infrastructure that achieves the goals of the future.

The first smart city to be launched in the UAE goes back a decade ago. Masdar City is the first smart and sustainable city in the region. This progressive city benefits from a blend of advanced technologies and methods from the architecture of the city to the utilization of solar energy to depend on sustainable and renewable resources.

We are entering an era of smart living where smart working will become non-negotiable. This requires smart working methods and tools to empower this change, the study points out.

Aoun says: The entire KSA is a progressive region. We no longer have an excuse to not believe in hybrid working or smart working. For example, 33% of companies are seeing productivity gains from hybrid working in excess of 50% within the UAE itself.

Smart working

Smart working has put the power in the employees hands, and autonomous decision-making is on the rise as more people are adopting hybrid working patterns. However, the lack of sufficient resources for hybrid work enablement, such as technology, policies, and manager training, ultimately disempowers employees. Only 51% of organizations globally have taken steps to prevent people from feeling like they need to be always on. Weakened organizational culture leaves the workforce demotivated and unwilling to go the extra mile  quiet quitting.

Companies should provide employees not only with flexibility in working conditions but also armor them with the technology and communicate how to utilize the technology to their advantage. Technology should equalize hybrid working experience no matter where the job is done from, rather than causing overwork and burnout.

Aoun comments: Dont just give employees the technology and let them figure it out. It is extremely important to communicate to employees regarding the company culture, rules of engagement, and especially training managers who are responsible for people management. 10% of UAE organizations have seen employee burnout, and 13% have seen a reduction in employee engagement because everyone worked from a different location.

The three new trends in KSA and the UAE reflect the future vision of the country to have a progressive lifestyle from all aspects. The transformation towards relying on cutting-edge technologies has become crucial for the advancement of any country. However, the provision of the required tools and devices plays a significant role in this regard.--TradeArabia News Service
PAUL  A young woman from Paul was named the overall winner at a statewide program for young women last weekend.

Claire Neibaur was one of three contestants from the Magic Valley to appear in the Distinguished Young Women of Idaho contest, which took place on Oct. 7 and Oct. 8 at the Civic Auditorium in Idaho Falls.

Neibaur, a Minico High School senior, was named the Distinguished Young Woman of Idaho.

Neibaur hadnt done a competition-style program before. She said her favorite parts of the weekend were spending time with the other contestants and helping with a service project of packaging donations for the needy.

Ive always kept a 4.0, and I have good grades, but there were really, really smart girls up there, Neibaur said. Grades and interview, its all a part of it. I feel confident talking to people, but interview skills and being put on the spot isnt always my thing. I did not think I would be in the top ten, and it was a really big surprise.

Billed as the oldest and largest scholarship program for high school girls, the Distinguished Young Women program evaluates participants in five categories: scholastics, interview, talent, fitness, and self-expression.

Neibur was awarded prizes for fitness, as well as for her talent performance of Contemporary Pointe Ballet. All together, Neibaur was awarded scholarships totaling $5,250 over the weekend. In April, Neibaur was named regional Distinguished Young Woman of North Mini-Cassia in April, where she received $3,300 in scholarship awards. Neibaur would like to attend Utah State University and hopes to pursue Veterinary Medicine.

Neibauer will advance to the national level at the 66th Distinguished Young Women National Finals in Mobile, Alabama, in June 2023. Andi Bulkeley from Burley received $3,550 as regional South Mini-Cassia winner in April. At the state contest last weekend, Bulkeley won a Be Your Best Self Scholarship for $600 for her work in bettering the Burley community.

Maddi Barfuss from Twin Falls also attended the competition and played a violin medley of the Phantom of the Opera for the talent portion. Barfusss preferred school is Utah State University; she would like to pursue nursing.

Distinguished Young Women program, formerly Americas Junior Miss, was founded in 1958 as a way to reward the accomplishments of high school senior girls seeking to pursue higher education.
Editors note: This feature first ran Nov. 1, 2012, in the Times-News and at Magicvalley.com.

A new grade school was built on the edge of town in 1916.

Washington School was handy for families living on the outskirts of Twin Falls. But its convenient location  at the intersection of Addison Avenue, Blue Lakes Boulevard and Shoshone Street  led to its eventual demise.

The town grew rapidly in its first dozen years, prompting the construction of Washington School just outside the city limits. Back then, Addison and Blue Lakes marked the north and east edges of town.

The school sat at the northeast corner of North Five Points, where Albertsons supermarket sits today.

As Twin Falls continued to grow, so did the traffic on the three streets in front of Washington School.

Many of the schools students needed to cross two of the streets before and after school  and many walked home for lunch at noon.

A stoplight was eventually installed at the intersection and teachers were assigned traffic duty. In 1959, the Twin Falls Police Department took over the duty.

A student safety patrol was created to assist the traffic cop at the intersection. Lynn Brandon was part of that safety patrol in 1972.

There were no buses at Washington School when I went there, said Brandon. We all walked to school.

The safety patrol consisted of sixth-grade students who had good grades and showed responsibility, he said.

Members of the safety patrol wore red caps and orange Sam Browne belts, and carried long poles with red flags at the end.

Every school day  morning and afternoon  the safety patrol would position themselves at each of the five corners of the intersection. The traffic cop, whom Brandon remembers only as Johnny, would insert a key into a control box on a pole at the school corner. When turned, the key triggered the stoplights, bringing all traffic to a halt.

The student lieutenant would give the order and the safety patrol would lower their flags into the lane of oncoming traffic, while other students scurried safely across the intersection.

In 1975, Washington School was torn down and replaced by Sawtooth Elementary School in a neighborhood with less traffic.

When built, the Twin Falls Times called Washington School one of the most modern schools in Idaho, complete with a basement heat plant, a stage and assembly room, three storage rooms and two toilet rooms.

The first three schools in Twin Falls  Bickel, Lincoln and the first Twin Falls High School  were two-story, red brick buildings. Washington School broke this pattern with its gray stucco walls and single-level construction. The school was built in a unique L shape.

High school students on Shoshone Street who could see the grade school from their buildings second-floor windows dubbed Washington School, The Tombstone.
HANSEN  Residents will have a chance this month to restore wildlife habitat lost in the Badger Fire.

Some 20,000 sagebrush seedlings will be ready to go into the ground on Oct. 22, and volunteers are being asked to gather at the Dry Creek area south of Hansen for the effort. Similar events have occurred in the South Hills, the last ones being in April.

People who have volunteered in the past come from all backgrounds, with a common thread of they all want to help restore wildlife habitat and volunteering to plant is a way of giving back to Idahos wildlife resources, said Terry Thompson, Idaho Fish & Game regional communications manager.

The event is organized by the Sawtooth National Forest, Minidoka Ranger District and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game Magic Valley Region. Work gloves and planting tools will be provided. Volunteers should bring a lunch and water. Porta-potties will be provided at the planting sites as well.

Children can help with the event, and it isnt difficult to plant the seedlings, which typically are about 4-6 inches tall, Thompson said.

We provide a short training on how to plant sagebrush seedlings  with the intent of providing the best possible opportunity for the plants to survive. There are definitely proper techniques that folks need to be aware of, he said. That said, we have all ages come to help out  Ive seen kids in the 6-8 year old age group there with their parents.

According to Scott Soletti, Minidoka district wildlife biologist, last years planting project was a great success, with 110 volunteers participating and planting approximately 15,000 plants. Planting success was one of the best on record with over 90% survival on many of the planted sites. These projects result in improved big game and sage-grouse habitat on some really important winter range.

Forest Service and Fish and Game staff will meet volunteers at the bottom of the Dry Creek Road before heading up to the planting sites. Work gloves and planting tools will be provided. Volunteers should bring a lunch and water. Porta-potties will be provided at the planting sites.

First Lite, a locally-based national outdoor wear manufacturer who is committed to conservation, will be offering a $200 gift certificate to one of the volunteers who helps plant sagebrush on Oct. 22.

Volunteers can either be individuals, families or organized groups said TanaRae Alberti, volunteer services coordinator with Fish and Game, Magic Valley Region, its always heartwarming to hear from volunteers how much they enjoy getting out to help Idahos wildlife by restoring habitats destroyed by wildfires.

The seedlings come from seed sources close by the burned area.

We also use volunteers to help collect seeds that is then grown out in area nurseries, such as the Forest Service nursery outside of Boise, Thompson said.

To sign up for this volunteer planting opportunity, contact Alberti at 208-324-4359 to ensure enough planting tools and materials are available on the day of the project.

For more information about future volunteer opportunities, contact F&G volunteer services coordinator TanaRae Alberti by calling 208-324-4359 or by emailing tanarae.alberti@idfg.idaho.gov; or contact Minidoka Ranger District wildlife biologist Scott Soletti at 208-677-8292 or by emailing scott.soletti@usda.gov.
Mozambican police announced yesterday that they have intercepted 14 young people in Chimoio, central Mozambique, on suspicion of being recruited by rebel groups terrorizing Cabo Delgado, in the north of the country.

The group of Mozambicans, aged between 16 and 38, were travelling in a vehicle carrying passengers when they were approached by the police, said Mario Arnanca, spokesman for the corporation in Manica province.

A 43-year-old woman, presumed to be of Zimbabwean nationality, was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the case.

The woman denies the charges, claiming that she was taking the group to participate in a performance of traditional dances in Inhambane, in southern Mozambique.

We are talking to each [of the 14 involved] to ascertain whether the womans claim is true or not, but so far we are finding the information strange, said the police spokesman, quoted by Mozambique Television.

The operation was triggered after one of the members alerted the authorities of the Equestrian Center neighborhood, in Chimoio, where the group members are said to have been selected.

Cabo Delgado province is rich in natural gas, but has been terrorized since 2017 by armed violence, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.

The insurgency has led to a military response since a year ago with support from Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), liberating districts near gas projects, but new waves of violence have emerged south of the region and in neighboring Nampula province.

In five years, the conflict has left one million people displaced, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and about 4,000 dead, according to the ACLED conflict registration project.
The Minister of Territorial Administration of Guinea-Bissau, Fernando Gomes, admitted yesterday the postponement of the legislative elections scheduled for December 18, after a meeting with political parties that considered difficult to hold the elections on the scheduled date.

We decided today to convene the political parties to discuss the electoral process together and the ideas and opinions were unanimous, with the parties recognizing that at this stage of the process it is difficult to hold the elections on December 18, Gomes said.

The political parties with and without parliamentary seats, the Minister of Territorial Administration, the Technical Office for Support to the Electoral Process and the National Electoral Commission met yesterday for about three hours at the Government Palace in Bissau to discuss the ongoing electoral process.

They all agreed that it will be very difficult and it was suggested that the Government work on another schedule to submit to the President of the Republic, said Fernando Gomes, pointing out that the meeting was good because there was an almost general consensus from the parties that the December 18 date is impractical.

Guinean President Umaro Sissoco Embalo dissolved Guinea-Bissaus parliament on May 16 and scheduled early parliamentary elections for December 18.

The main political parties in Guinea-Bissau have called for a voter registration drive, which according to the law should take about three months, but has so far not started.
On Wednesday, October 12, six Western nations, including the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom, signed a united declaration regarding the conflict in Ethiopia. Regarding the countrys worsening humanitarian catastrophe and rising conflict, they expressed their grave worry. While the likelihood of the peace negotiations announced last week is still highly dubious, they call for a halt to the hostilities and for political discourse.

It seems to be an indication of extreme impatience. Six nationsand not the leastimportant economic allies of Ethiopia, Australia, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United Statesreleased a joint statement on Wednesday. In a statement that was very forceful in its demands, the African Union urged the Ethiopian government and the regional authorities in Tigray to immediately cease military offensives, agree to a cessation of hostilities, allow unhindered and sustained humanitarian access, and seek a negotiated settlement through peace talks.

The six states also condemn the involvement of Eritrean military forces in the war and call on them to stop their military operations and withdraw from northern Ethiopia. All foreign actors must stop fuelling this conflict, they said.

The declaration, which comes while the war continues, follows several days of diplomatic silence, even though there had been discussion of peace negotiations in South Africa before the weekend. Future negotiations modalities are still being discussed in private, but their existence is no longer guaranteed.
The United Nations General Assembly voted on Wednesday, 12, a resolution condemning Russias annexation of four regions of Ukraine.

Angola, Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau voted in favor of the resolution, which condemns Russias illegal annexation attempt of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine and calls on all countries not to recognize the measure.

Mozambique, as it had done in the previous vote, chose to abstain, while Sao Tome and Principe was absent.

In total there were 143 votes in favor, five against, and 35 abstentions. Russia itself voted against the resolution, as well as Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua, and Syria.

In relation to previous votes, Cape Verde kept the same vote against Russia, Angola, which had chosen to abstain, now voted in favor, and Guinea-Bissau voted for the first time.

Most of those who abstained, with China at the head, are African countries. In explaining the Angolan governments vote, the ambassador to the United Nations said it voted in favor of this resolution in accordance with its convictions about the well-founded principle of the sacrosanct territorial integrity enshrined in its own Constitution, which defines Angola as a unitary and indivisible state, whose territory is inviolable and inalienable.

Maria de Jesus dos Reis Ferreira also cited the provisions of the United Nations Charter and the Constitutive Act of the African Union (AU).

The diplomat recalled that the relations between Luanda and Moscow date back to the former USSR which played a decisive role in our fight against colonialism and against the invasion of Angolan territory by the army of the apartheid regime of South Africa and today, she said, there is a close relationship of friendship and cooperation in several areas of common interest.
CONSORT flow diagram. Credit: Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities (2022). DOI: 10.1111/jppi.12436

A web-based app shows potential for advancing the communication skills of children with developmental disorders in low- and middle-income countries, according to a recent study co-authored by Georgia State University researchers.

The self-guided app, designed to be used by caregivers in South Africa, provides structured activities that encourage caregiver-child communication and can be implemented into daily routines.

"It has the potential to make a difference in how families interact with their children with significant communication disabilities," said lead author MaryAnn Romski, Regents' Professor in Georgia State's Department of Communication and Department of Psychology.

Romski and co-author Rose Sevcik, Regents' Professor in Georgia State's Department of Psychology, have been collaborating with researchers in South Africa since a 2002 College of Arts & Sciences faculty trip to the country. They saw firsthand the differences between the United States and South Africa in the degree of communication support offered to children with developmental disorders.

"The children receive intervention once a month for 30 minutes," Romski said. "In the U.S., it would be two to three times a week for an hour."

This contrast is due to a limited number of speech-language pathologists in South Africa.

Furthermore, many families lack the means to bring children to the hospitals where support is provided. To combat this issue, Romski, Sevcik and their colleagues set out to create a more accessible alternative.

"The purpose was to develop an app to be used by rural families," said Romski. "We took the intervention protocol we'd developed in the U.S. and modified the material for an app."

The team of U.S. and South African researchers, including University of Pretoria Professor Juan Bornman, conducted focus groups in which they asked families and speech-language clinicians in South Africa for their input in developing the software.

What they created was a web-based, self-guided app with instructions in both English and Setswana, one of several official languages of South Africa, that provided caregivers with structured activities they used at home with their children.

The app consisted of 48 sessions in three topic areas: creating communication opportunities, modeling communication and responding to the child's communication. In their own homes over the course of 12 weeks, caregivers and children completed the guided activities together.

The app was given the Setswana name "Nna le wena," meaning "me and you."

Researchers recruited families whose children were receiving speech-language therapy at local hospitals. While half of these families continued with therapy only, the other half were asked to use the app, installed on a tablet provided by researchers, in addition to therapy.

According to the study, published in a special family-themed issue of the Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, there was a modest difference between groups in their objective measures of progress, which the authors noted could be a result of sample size and the standardized assessment measures.

However, the feedback from caregivers was encouraging. More than half of those who completed at least 44 of the 48 sessions reported that their children showed progress in their communication skills, such as using words instead of crying.

"While it seems minor, they're actually big leaps in what a child can do," said Romski. "The children become more intentional in how they're communicating."

While caregivers had previously relied on a professional to help their child only once a month, "Nna le wena" offered caregivers in South Africa a blueprint for supporting their child's development at home.

"This framework may also have usefulness in other countries around the globe, including the U.S., to support and empower caregivers as the drivers of early communication interventions," the authors wrote.

The study was published in the Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities.

Explore further Self-help groups empower caregivers of children with disabilities

More information: Mary Ann Romski et al, Using a selfguided app to provide communication strategies for caregivers of young children with developmental disorders: A pilot investigation, Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities (2022). Mary Ann Romski et al, Using a selfguided app to provide communication strategies for caregivers of young children with developmental disorders: A pilot investigation,(2022). DOI: 10.1111/jppi.12436
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A new study that links the location of brain injury to levels of depression in patients following the injury has identified two distinct brain networks; one associated with increased depression symptoms and one associated with decreased depression symptoms. The large-scale study led by researchers with University of Iowa Health Care expands on previous findings and suggests that these brain networks might be potential targets for neuromodulation therapies to treat depression.

Neuromodulation therapies such as transcranial magnetic stimulation, or deep brain stimulation, are emerging as new non-pharmacological treatments for mood disorders. However, understanding which areas of the brain to target to get the best therapeutic effect is still limited.

The new findings, which are published in the journal Brain, used brain imaging scans and depression scores from 526 patients who had acquired localized areas of brain injury from a stroke or other type of traumatic brain injury. A detailed statistical analysis of the patients' data allowed the researchers to correlate the brain lesion locations with levels of depression experienced by the patients in the months following the brain injury.

"We found some really interesting results identifying specific brain structures that were associated with higher levels of depression post lesion, and surprisingly, also found some areas that were associated with lower-than-average levels of depression post lesion." says Nicholas Trapp, MD, UI assistant professor of psychiatry and lead author of the study.

Risk and resilience networks in depression

Using data from functional brain scans of healthy subjects to understand how these structures were interconnected, the researchers then discovered that the risk and resilience regions were not randomly scattered within the brain. Instead, regions most strongly associated with increased depression coincided with the nodes of the so-called salience network, which is involved in task reorientation, attention, and emotion processing.

In contrast, peak resilience regions that were associated with less depression, were part of a network known as the default mode network, which is thought to be involved in introspection, or self-referential thinking.

"Previous studies have suggested nodes of this network may be hyperactive in people with depression, who are prone to ruminating," says Trapp, who also is a member of the Iowa Neuroscience Institute. "It's possible that lesions within this network may alter that circuit in a way that leads people to report less depression."

Patients whose brain lesions did not fall within either network had an average score of depression following their brain injury and provided a comparison group in the study.

Strength in numbers

The initial lesion mapping approach used by Trapp and his colleagues is a powerful tool for inferring if a brain region is required for a behavior, emotion, or cognitive ability. If damage to a specific area leads to loss of the ability, the area is most likely required for the ability. However, identifying an effect when the regions are spread across a network within the brain requires data from many patients, which may have hindered earlier smaller studies.

Trapp and his team were able to conduct they study thanks to two large patient registries: the Iowa Neurological Patient Registry based at the UI, and the Vietnam head injury study, which is affiliated with researchers at Northwestern University.

"Being able to identify these brain regions is really a product of having a large sample to study," Trapp says. "It's very challenging to recruit these patients and collect the data that's required. The decades of efforts here at the University of Iowa (establishing and maintaining the Iowa Neurological Patient Registry) positions us extremely well to do these types of studies."

Trapp hopes the findings will improve understanding of the causes of depression and potentially lead to better treatments.

"This could open the doors to potential studies looking at deep brain stimulation, or non-invasive forms of stimulation like TMS, where we might be able to modulate the specific brain areas or networks that we've identified, to try to get antidepressant effect, or potentially other therapeutic effects," he says.

Explore further Deep brain stimulation to brain area linked to reward and motivation is potential therapy for depression

More information: Nicholas T Trapp et al, Large-scale lesion symptom mapping of depression identifies brain regions for risk and resilience, Brain (2022). Journal information: Brain Nicholas T Trapp et al, Large-scale lesion symptom mapping of depression identifies brain regions for risk and resilience,(2022). DOI: 10.1093/brain/awac361
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Sexual function changes with age, with some of the most dramatic changes occurring around the time of the menopause transition. A new study sought to determine whether sexual function, as well as accompanying adverse mental and physical health outcomes during menopause, differed by sexual orientation. Study results will be presented during The North American Menopause Society (NAMS) Annual Meeting in Atlanta, October 12-15, 2022.

It's no secret that, for many women, sexual function declines with age. An estimated 25% to 85% of postmenopausal women report challenges with sexual function. Evidence suggests that sexual minority women (SMW), a term encompassing a range of sexual orientations for women with same-sex attractions or partners, may have an increased risk of adverse mental and physical health outcomes in and after the menopause transition, including more severe menopause symptoms. However, research also suggests that SMW demonstrate more resilience during the menopause transition.

Overall research regarding SMW's experiences of menopause, however, is extremely limited. A new study involving nearly 200 women veterans aimed to help fill that gap and identify what differences exist in the menopause experience relative to sexual function by sexual orientation. The researchers found that midlife and older SMW veterans were more likely to be sexually active and reported better sexual functioning and less pain during sexual activity compared with their heterosexual peers. Sexual minority women were also less likely to report some vaginal symptoms.

"Although not tested, we believe that SMW with same-sex partners may have more favorable sexual function outcomes during the menopause transition due to greater variation in sexual behaviors, compared to heterosexual women who are likely to engage in penetrative sex with men," says Dr. Anna Blanken, lead author of the study from the San Francisco VA Health Care System. "Additionally, our data suggest that psychosocial factors such as depression, anxiety, and trauma may have greater impact on sexual function of heterosexual women, compared to SMW."

"This study supports the value of healthcare professionals having open conversations with their patients so that they can better understand their lifestyles and preferences in order to offer appropriate treatment and care options," says Dr. Stephanie Faubion, NAMS medical director.

Explore further Past history of abuse leads to worse menopause symptoms
DP World has signed a partnership agreement with WaterAid, a leading international organisation tackling the global water security crisis, to deliver long-lasting, comprehensive water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure.

WaterAid works in 27 countries to provide clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. DP World is a leading provider of global smart end-to-end supply chain logistics, enabling the flow of trade across the globe. It operates in 78 countries across six continents, including many of those served by WaterAid, such as Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, Senegal, India and Pakistan.

Under the agreement, DP World will advocate for the private sector to address water and sanitation challenges globally, in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 6, to ensure access to water and sanitation for all.

Maha AlQattan, Group Chief People and Sustainability Officer, DP World, said: "Access to WASH services is a critical focus area of DP World's 'Our World, Our Future' strategy under the Water legacy pillar. While we're already making great strides across our three legacy pillars of Education, Women's Empowerment and Water, a partnership with WaterAid will take that progress one step further. We recognise the clear material value of water to our business model: clean oceans provide critical arteries for trade, and clean water is a vital part of the value chain of every product we transport. That's why it's vital that, as the world's leading trade facilitators, we become vanguards of the communities in which we aim to make a positive impact."

Tim Wainwright, Chief Executive Officer, WaterAid, said: "WaterAid exists to ensure that everyone, everywhere, has access to clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene services. That's why we're keen to partner with DP World, an organisation that recognises the critical importance of access to WASH services and can drive impact at scale. Access to these services is central to gender equality, quality education, community health and economic development. Our partnership will ensure we have the resources to collaborate with local governments and roll out these much-needed programmes."

The global partnership with DP World starts in Mozambique, where an estimated 37% of the population dont have access to safely managed drinking water; 63% dont have access to safely managed sanitation services and 12% of households do not have access to handwashing facilities or soap and water.

WaterAids work in the country is focused on the rural northern Niassa Province, which is disproportionately affected by the lack of WASH services. The World Heath Organization (WHO) estimates that while more than 90% of the population in the southern province of Maputo has access to safe water, in Niassa the figure is only 38%.

DP World will invest GBP 200,000 over the next year to allow WaterAid to design and implement a comprehensive WASH programme to meet the unique needs of the most vulnerable communities in the country.

The WASH programme includes technical infrastructure, system strengthening, community capacity building, government advocacy and integration through other key WaterAid sectors  health, education, nutrition and livelihoods. The infrastructure plan covers building solar water supply systems, as well as building and rehabilitating sanitary blocks for patients and health staff, at five healthcare facilities in the Cuamba district.

DP World has already invested $90 million in Mozambiques Port of Maputo, turning it into a gateway for southern Africa and unlocking enormous business opportunities in the region. More trade translates into a greater GDP and more resources for development, including water.---TradeArabia News Services
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Having symptoms of COVID-19 has been associated with worse mental health and lower life satisfaction.

The study, which is part of the COVID-19 Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing National Core Study, is published today in The Lancet Psychiatry. The study is led by researchers from King's College London and University College London in collaboration with several UK institutions. The study looked at the impact of COVID-19 infection on subsequent mental health and well-being.

Data was taken from 11 longitudinal studies between April 2020 and April 2021, in which there were 54,442 participants with and without self-reported COVID-19.

Researchers found that rises in psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and lower life satisfaction were associated with prior self-reported COVID-19. The associations with poorer mental health did not lessen over time after infection, highlighting the potential enduring impacts of the disease and the need for a longer follow-up process from health care providers.

Self-reported COVID-19 was consistently associated with psychological distress, regardless of whether people tested positive for antibodies to the virus. These effects of infection were felt similarly in different groups of gender, ethnicity and socio-economic circumstances.

The study suggests that the infection of COVID-19 might impact mental health most in older people as people with self-reported infection aged 50 years and older showed a stronger association with poorer mental health. This might reflect that older people are more likely to experience more severe COVID-19 symptoms, greater worry around infection, and increased risk of blood vessel (microvascular) or brain (neurological) changes after infection. This contrasts to the effect of the pandemic overall on mental health, where previous studies have shown that women and adults aged 25-44 have had the greatest adverse impacts.

Joint first author Dr. Ellen Thompson from King's College London said, "These findings suggest that there were prolonged mental health consequences of COVID-19 infection for some people at the beginning of this pandemic. Understanding why this is the case will be key to finding treatment strategies for those affected as well as preventing such effects in future pandemic waves."

Senior author Prof. Praveetha Patalay from University College London said, "This study brings together many of the UK's longitudinal studies to provide a comprehensive overview of the impacts of COVID-19 infection on population mental health. Compared to most studies to-date that have focused on more severe and hospitalized cases, this study demonstrates the impact of infection during a pandemic on overall population mental health and well-being."

Explore further COVID infection doubles risk of mental health and financial problems in older adults
Credit: Microscope images of bacterial biofilms, either untreated or treated with MCC5145 at varying concentrations. Credit: M. Blaskovich, et al., Science Translational Medicine (2022) DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abj2381

An experimental antibiotic is under development that is capable of neutralizing a wide range of drug-resistant, Gram-positive bacteriapathogens that protect themselves in a slimy shield, called a biofilm, designed by nature to keep threats out.

Bacterial infections are extraordinarily difficult to treat when pathogens are protected by a biofilm. The film forms as a consequence of bacterial colonies growing together in a tough and protective matrix. Infections caused by bacteria protected by biofilms are often chronic and extend across a complex range: Dental infections that lead to tooth loss can be worsened by biofilms. Deadly drug-resistant lung infections, bacterial infiltration of the sac surrounding the heart, wound infections, and even infections of the blood can all be complicated by the presence of biofilms.

Antibiotic treatment of biofilm-shielded bacteria are challenging, doctors say, because many conventional antibiotics can't penetrate the slime to kill the active bacteria.

In Australia, Dr. Mark Blaskovich of the Center for Superbug Solutions at the University of Queensland's Institute for Molecular Bioscience, has been working with an international team to address resistant infections that involve biofilms. Blaskovich and colleagues call their experimental medication MCC5194, and describe it as a modified version of vancomycin, the potent antibiotic backed by decades of use.

The difference between MCC194 and unmodified vancomycin is that the experimental drug acts as a torpedo when encountering biofilms. In preclinical tests, MCC5194 killed major Gram-positive bacterial threats such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureusMRSAand destroyed the bacterial biofilm. The drug was also effective in tests against other Gram-positive bacteria, and eradicated their biofilms, too.

For patients worldwide, the annual morbidity and mortality from biofilm-forming infectious bacteria are formidable. In addition to MRSA, Streptococcus pneumoniae is another biofilm-forming bacterium that is difficult to treat. But as the global health crisis of antimicrobial resistance has inexorably increased, solutions have been few and far between. Worse, the current research pipeline isn't producing enough new antibiotics to overcome the problem, which Blaskovich and colleagues attribute, at least in part, to economic factors. Antibiotic development at pharmaceutical companies is not a high priority.

"Drug-resistant Gram-positive bacterial infections are still a substantial burden on the public health system, with two bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae, accounting for over 1.5 million drug-resistant infections in the United States alone," Blaskovich wrote in Science Translational Medicine.

In 2019, 250,000 deaths were attributed to these pathogens globally, Blaskovich added, noting that "drug-resistant Gram-positive bacterial infections remain a critical concern, and new treatment modalities against them are needed in the clinic."

The research, which included teams in the United States, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, exposed hundreds of clinical isolates of MRSA and other Gram-positive bacteria to MCC194. In addition to tests of infected human cells, the team also tested the drug in a murine animal model. One set of experiments involved a thigh infection in the mice. Another arm of the tests judged MCC194's effectiveness against septicemia caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae.

The new compound outperformed the approved antibiotic vancomycin, according results reported in Science Translational Medicine, and destroyed tough-to-eradicate bacterial biofilms while prompting a low rate of resistance.

The team said their findings suggest MCC194 might one day be part of medicine's armamentarium aimed at bacterial infections that have become increasingly resistant to standard antibiotic therapy. The hope is that MCC194 becomes a medication exclusively for drug resistant Gram-positive bacteria, particularly those encumbered by biofilms.

Gram-positive bacteria are those that absorb the coloring agent known as crystal violet stain, which imparts a deep purplish hue in these pathogens when viewed under a light microscope. Gram-positive bacteria have a thick peptidoglycan outer layer that retains the stain.

In contrast, Gram-negative bacteria don't readily absorb crystal violet staining. They have a relatively thin peptidoglycan layer that is sandwiched between an inner and outer cell membrane. Gram-negative bacteria include some of the most notorious drug resistant species: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella, Acinetobacter, and E. coli.

These pathogens often appear pinkish when viewed through a light microscope following crystal violet staining. Gram-negative species, like their Gram-positive counterparts, are readily capable of forming biofilms. P. aeruginosa, a menace when it comes to deadly lung infections, is characterized by a tenacious biofilm.

Even though efforts to combat biofilm-forming bacteria are not as robust as they should be, most research that is underway focuses largely on Gram-negative species and the complex nature of its cell membranes, Blaskovich and colleagues say.

That focus, they contend, overlooks an inescapable need for agents to treat patients infected with stubbornly resistant Gram-positive bacterial strains. "We have developed a preclinical glycopeptide antibiotic that has excellent potency against hundreds of isolates of methicillin-resistant S. aureus and other Gram-positive bacteria," Blaskovich asserted, adding "the optimized compound [MCC194] was more potent than its parent, vancomycin, and had a low rate of resistance, suggesting that this candidate compound may warrant further development."

Explore further New drug candidate fights off more than 300 drug-resistant bacteria

More information: Mark A. T. Blaskovich et al, A lipoglycopeptide antibiotic for Gram-positive biofilm-related infections, Science Translational Medicine (2022). Journal information: Science Translational Medicine Mark A. T. Blaskovich et al, A lipoglycopeptide antibiotic for Gram-positive biofilm-related infections,(2022). DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abj2381

 2022 Science X Network
Credit: Weiwei Chen

We all are likely to underestimate the daunting physical barriers faced by female employees due to the prevalence of working tools designed for men, but previous research has documented such an effect in various sectors. In construction, where the majority of the tools are sized for a man of average stature, for example, musculoskeletal disorders are common among female workers. In the U.S. military, weapons systems were required to accommodate a user with 5th to 95th male percentile body dimensions, which prevented many women from flying fighter planes.

What is still undocumented, though, is what happens when more adaptable tools, that require less physical force to operate, are introduced.

Harsh Ketkar (Bocconi Department of Management and Technology), Seth Carnahan (Washington University in St Louis), and Brad Greenwood (George Mason University) observed the introduction of robotic tools adaptable to a surgeon's physique in laparoscopic surgery, and concluded that it disproportionately improved female surgeons' performance and their well-being. While these tools were beneficial for both male and female surgeons, they improved performance and well-being to a greater extent for female surgeons. At the same time, though, gender differences in status still limit women's access to the new platforms.

In standard laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon operates by standing over an elevated table and manipulating a variety of unadaptable tools (e.g., staplers, graspers). Because laparoscopic surgeons are 80% male, tools are often made and purchased with the average able-bodied man in mind, with the consequence that 21% of female surgeons (versus only 3% of male surgeons) require hand treatments as a result of using misfitting tools.

However, more adaptable robotic surgical platforms (i.e., da Vinci surgical suites), which require less physical force to operate, have begun to replace these older tools. As such platforms provide the surgeon with a seated and adjustable station from which they can manipulate a robotic arm, female surgeons may benefit from the use of these tools more than their male colleagues. Preliminary surveys suggest that surgeons report lower, sex-equivalent rates of discomfort when using robotics.

Analyzing a Florida dataset of 637,783 patient admissions from 2009 to 2015, where the primary procedure performed was a laparoscopic surgery (robotic and traditional), the authors observe that the introduction of robotic platforms led to performance improvement both for men and for women. The improvement, though, was roughly double for female than for male surgeons.

A surgeon's performance was measured by a patient's length of stay in the hospital. Shorter hospital stays suggest, in fact, that the patient experienced fewer complications from the procedure.

The improvement was driven by female surgeons with a high recent workload (because they were more fatigued by an intensive use of standard tools) and working in male-dominated units (where standard tools are particularly tailored towards men's average physical characteristics).

Female surgeons allowed to use robotic tools also recorded a slightly lower turnover, thus showing their appreciation for organizations that provide them with adaptable job tools.

Even here, though, there is a flip side of the coin. Despite such evidence, findings indicate that female surgeons are no more likely to use robotic surgical platforms than male surgeons. "Some interviews suggest that gender differences in status, as well as pre-existing attitudes and biases with respect to technology and gender, may still act as barriers for women to access these tools and get trained on them," Dr. Ketkar said.

Explore further Study finds no differences in performance between male and female surgeons

More information: Harsh Jayant Ketkar et al, Do New Job Tools Improve Women's Performance in Male-Dominated Fields? Evidence from Robotic Surgery, SSRN Electronic Journal (2022). Harsh Jayant Ketkar et al, Do New Job Tools Improve Women's Performance in Male-Dominated Fields? Evidence from Robotic Surgery,(2022). DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.4072729

Provided by Bocconi University
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Bright Health Group will end individual and family health insurance coverage and reduce its Medicare Advantage coverage to just two states, steps that will cut its revenue in half.

The moves, announced Tuesday, represent a dramatic retreat for the Bloomington, Minnesota-based company that built a national presence in just five years.

After attracting billions of dollars in investment capital, Bright Health's fast growth created the need to meet greater regulatory reserve requirements. Coupled with pandemic-related payouts, the company reported huge financial losses. Executives said the restructuring would ease those pressures and bring stability.

"We would expect to see much greater predictability in our revenue and growth margins," Mike Mikan, the company's chief executive, told investors in a conference call.

Bright Health currently sells coverage on government-run exchanges in 15 states. But it said it will no longer offer coverage in any of them beginning in January, effectively mothballing that line of business.

Bright also announced it will withdraw Medicare Advantage plan offerings in four states, leaving only California and Florida.

The company will decamp in January from individual health insurance markets in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Nebraska, North Carolina, Texas and Tennesseeextending the previously announced withdrawal from Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia. In a document footnote, Bright said there is a chance it may continue some individual plan coverage in California.

It is unclear how the downsizing will affect its employee base. The company did not respond to a request for comment.

Bright Health said it will now focus on its non-insurance business. The company operates medical clinics that will be a part of its "fully aligned care model," which integrates data and analytics. This model aims to deliver better value for aging and underserved patients in the company's largest marketsCalifornia, Florida and Texaswhere 26% of the nation's seniors live.

The company's NeueHealth division, which operates more than 75 primary care clinics, is profitable.

For 2022, the company expects sales on the lower end of its previously forecast range of $6.8 billion to $7.1 billion. Mikan said executives expect revenue of at least $3 billion for 2023 after the retrenching.

J.P. Morgan downgraded Bright Health's stock after the news.

"A complete reversal of BHG's initial strategy since going public about 15 months ago doesn't alleviate our concerns about execution and consistency," wrote Lisa Gill, a senior analyst with J.P. Morgan, in a research note on Bright's announcement.

Gill also noted the "major strategic pivot" was unexpected.

Bright Health also announced a new infusion of cash, raising $175 million in "convertible preferred equity capital." Executives told investors in August there was "substantial doubt" the company could continue without raising more capital.

The company hasn't posted a profit and, in the first six months of 2022, reported a net loss of $432 million.

"This is a pretty substantial retreat," said Steve Parente, a health economist at the University of Minnesota. "It makes sense that they're sticking with the Medicare market in two very large states."

Trying to crack a health care insurance market dominated by a handful of large, national players was never going to be easy, Parente said. "It was always going to be a heavy lift to do this," he said.

Bright Health launched in 2015, one of many startups seeking a toehold in the concentrated health insurance industry. It began offering its first plans in Colorado in 2017. Co-founder and original chief executive Bob Sheehy was previously CEO of UnitedHealthcare, the nation's largest health insurer and an arm of UnitedHealth Group.

As a startup, Bright Health raised more than $1.5 billion in financing. It then raised more than $900 million in a listing on the New York Stock Exchange in June 2021the largest-ever IPO of a Minnesota-based company.

But from an initial price of $18 a share, Bright Health's stock tumbled for months, landing on Monday at a new low of 91 cents.

News of Bright's restructuring sent its stock up more than 28% on Tuesday, closing at $1.17 a share. On Wednesday the stock price fell to $1.02 at midday.

As of June, Bright Health had about 970,000 individual market enrollees and 120,000 people in Medicare Advantage plans.

Explore further UnitedHealth 4Q profit drops, still tops Street 4Q forecasts

2022 StarTribune.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Discarded cigarette butts are a top source of plastic pollution, and a new study estimates that banning menthol cigarettes in the United States would lead to 3.8 billion fewer littered cigarette filters each year, saving about 750 000 kgor 1.7 million poundsof waste each year.

Cigarette butts are the most-littered items in the world. Smokers litter about 4.5 trillion cigarettes each year globally. Although cigarette butts are small and may appear environmentally harmless, they are made of cellulose acetate, a plastic that is slow to break down. Littered cigarette butts leach nicotine, heavy metals, and other toxic chemicals into soil and water supplies. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that these chemicals pose a serious threat to wildlife and the environment.

Researchers at the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Policy Evaluation Project at the University of Waterloo in Canada previously reported that 1.3 million smokers in the U.S. would quit if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were to implement its recently proposed ban on menthol cigarettes. That projection is based on the demonstrated effect that Canada's menthol cigarette ban had on quitting.

In calculating the reduction in the amount of plastic waste, ITC researchers multiplied their previous projection of 1.3 million quitters by the average of 12 cigarettes smoked per day, from an earlier ITC study, and then multiplied by 365 to get the yearly total. In the U.S., two-thirds of cigarettes are littered. These calculations resulted in their estimate that there would be 3.8 billion fewer cigarettes littered per year after a menthol ban in the U.S.

"These calculations show that at the same time a menthol cigarette ban in the U.S. would have a tremendous impact in reducing smoking, it would also have an enormous impact on reducing the environmental toll of those cigarettes not smoked and littered. The findings further justify the FDA's proposed menthol ban," said Dr. Geoffrey T. Fong, professor of psychology and public health sciences at Waterloo, and the principal investigator of the ITC Project.

WHO has long recognized that tobacco products damage the environment in addition to its devastating harms to smokers and non-smokers from secondhand smoke. Indeed, its 2022 World No Tobacco Day called attention to the environmental damage from tobacco products. WHO and environmental organizations are calling for bans on plastic cigarette filters to reduce single-use plastic waste.

On April 28, 2022, FDA released proposed rules to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. The agency is currently reviewing feedback submitted during the public comment period.

The estimates of reduced plastic waste littering after the proposed U.S. menthol cigarette ban were published in Tobacco Control.

Explore further New study adds to evidence that bans of menthol cigarettes help smokers quit

More information: Lorraine V Craig et al, Calculating the potential environmental impact of a menthol cigarette ban in the USA, Tobacco Control (2022). Journal information: Tobacco Control Lorraine V Craig et al, Calculating the potential environmental impact of a menthol cigarette ban in the USA,(2022). DOI: 10.1136/tc-2022-057563
Plan of room A representing the sites of samples and Ct values. *Air samples were collected over a period of 10 min at a rate of 50 L/min (500 L total). Ct=quantitative PCR crossing threshold value of monkeypox DNA detected. Credit: The Lancet Microbe (2022). DOI: 10.1016/S2666-5247(22)00257-9

Monkeypox virus can be shed into the surrounding environment by people who are infected, particularly in shed skin particles and in debris from monkeypox skin lesions and scabs. The virus is relatively hardy and under appropriate conditions can remain infectious on surfaces for weeks, creating a potential infection risk to others.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) recommends that patients with monkeypox who have severe disease requiring hospital admission are cared for in isolation rooms, with infection prevention and control (IPC) precautions that aim to contain potentially infectious virus within the room and protect staff who enter. However, to date it has been unclear whether these measures are proportionate to the potential virus exposure risks.

To investigate this, researchers from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, the University of Oxford's Nuffield Department of Medicine and the UKHSA conducted a study which collected samples from the rooms of patients hospitalized with monkeypox. The findings have been published in The Lancet Microbe.

The research team assessed the extent of virus shedding onto surfaces in specialist isolation rooms containing patients admitted to hospital for the management of severe monkeypox. They also investigated whether the virus was detectable in air samples from the rooms.

The researchers found that viral DNA shed by the patients could be found on multiple surfaces throughout the isolation rooms (56 (93%) positive by PCR out of 60 samples). Monkeypox virus DNA was also found on personal protective equipment (PPE) worn by healthcare workers caring for these patients, and in the anterooms where they remove their PPE. Monkeypox virus DNA was also detected in five out of twenty air samples taken within these isolation rooms.

Changing bed linen was an activity particularly associated with detection of monkeypox virus DNA in air samples in the room. This suggests that viral particles, probably in shed skin particles, can become suspended in the air when bed sheets are changed. Monkeypox virus capable of replicating in cells under laboratory conditions (an indicator that the virus could infect other people) was identified in two of four PCR-positive samples selected for virus isolation. This includes air samples collected during the bed linen change.

Lead author, Dr. Susan Gould, from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, says, "Our results found that changing a patient's bedding appears to be particularly associated with an increased ability to detect monkeypox virus in air samples. In 2018, a UK healthcare worker was thought to have developed monkeypox after being exposed to the virus while changing a patient's bedding, before monkeypox had been considered and diagnosed. Our results suggest that changing bed linen used by hospitalized patients with monkeypox does indeed increase the risk of exposure to virus, by disturbing virus on bed linen and allowing it to be suspended in the air."

In addition to detecting virus DNA, the researchers were able to isolate replication-competent virus in some surface and air samples. The results show, for the first time, that monkeypox virus in some air samples taken around patients hospitalized with monkeypox is capable of replicating in cells and is not just 'dead' virus. Dr. Gould says that "these results suggest that monkeypox virus shed into a hospitalized patient's environment poses an infection risk that needs to be managed."

Senior author on the paper, Dr. Jake Dunning, of the University of Oxford's Nuffield Department of Medicine and the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, says that "it is important to note that detection of virus, even when demonstrated to be infectious, does not necessarily mean that exposure to the virus in real life would result in infection of the exposed person. However, it does reveal a potential transmission risk and one that is reasonable to control in hospital settings. Our results confirm that the strict IPC measures we follow in specialist infectious diseases centers are necessary and appropriate."

This investigation specifically evaluated exposure risks when caring for patients admitted to specialist facilities in hospitals. The results and recommendations may therefore not apply to other settings, such as outpatient clinics where patients attend for a short time, interactions differ, and the virus is unlikely to accumulate to such an extent. There is no suggestion that transmission of monkeypox virus via aerosols is a common way for the infection to spread from one person to another.

Dr. Gould added that "in the context of ward-based care, our results support infection prevention and control measures designed to protect against exposure to infectious virus on surfaces and in the air, such as appropriate PPE, as well as applying measures designed to contain shed virus within hospitalized patients' isolation rooms, including the use of negative pressure rooms and doffing areas."

The study was led by scientists from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Oxford, as part of the National Institute for Health and Care Research Health Protection Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, which includes the University of Liverpool as a partner.

The HPRU in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections and UKHSA identified a need for environmental sampling in hospitals managing inpatients with monkeypox and rapidly began investigations. Prior to publication the team shared its results with those caring for patients with monkeypox admitted to hospitals in the UK, and with international partners, infectious diseases specialist networks, and public health organizations.

Dr. Dunning says that "this work demonstrates the ability of HPRUs to conduct rapid, reactive studies to obtain data from novel outbreaks, focussing on research that informs public health guidance and policies, as well as improving patient care."

Explore further Monkeypox virus on surfaces: No proof that contact can cause infection

More information: Susan Gould et al, Air and surface sampling for monkeypox virus in a UK hospital: an observational study, The Lancet Microbe (2022). Susan Gould et al, Air and surface sampling for monkeypox virus in a UK hospital: an observational study,(2022). DOI: 10.1016/S2666-5247(22)00257-9
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Men and women in the UK have a higher probability of dying than predicted, a new report has found. The results, published in European Actuarial Journal, could have a big impact on the future viability of pensions schemes. The research from Bayes Business School, which looks at death rates for people aged 50 to 95, paints a bleak picture for men and women in the UK.

Examination of 21 high-income countries over a period of 50 years analyzed the patterns of death rates between 1960 and 2010 and then explored whether what has happened since 2010 followed the predicted patterns.

The data shows that following decades of improvement in the probability of dying and in life expectancy, since 2011 the probabilities of dying for people in the UK are higher than forecasts based on the earlier trends.

There is also a marked difference in gender. It is most starkly shown in UK women, whose average improvement in the probability of dying has fallen from 2.1 percent a year (2000-2010) to 0.84 percent (2011-2017). In UK men, the improvement rate is the lowest it has been in almost 40 years (1.18 percent), since the 1980s.

The data showed a trend in death rates among women that was worse than expected in 19 of the 21 analyzed countries. Of the 21 countries examined, the UK ranked 17th-worst for women and 19th-worst for men.

Co-author Professor Steven Haberman, of Bayes Business School, says these negative trends in the UK may be attributed these to the negative consequences of the government's austerity policies after the 2008 recession and higher-than-normal levels of winter deaths.

Professor Haberman, a Professor of Actuarial Science, believes the findings pose an alarming trend, and have sizable societal implications following the proposal to increase the state pension age from 65 to 68 by 2046.

"If these rates of mortality improvement are lower, it means that State pensions, private pensions and annuities are cheaper to fund. This means, for example, that defined benefit pension schemes (like USS) are probably in a better financial situation than expected," he states.

"That has implications because it is government policy to increase the state pension age on the basis that people are living longer. But this might not now be the case. We might be making people work for longer and then be faced with a shorter time in retirement to enjoy our pension. So, has the retirement age been pushed up too quickly? The answer may be yes," he observes.

Other findings from the report show that the speed of mortality rates improving in Denmark are significantly ahead of the rest of Europe. Additionally, the mortality improvement rates of women in Greece, Italy and the Netherlands were noticeably worse on average after 2010, than other countries, for example, worse than France, Germany and the UK.

The countries in which men's mortality rates are improving most noticeably are Norway, Denmark, Ireland and Belgium, although it is a more balanced trend than in women. The picture is different for men in the UK, Italy and Germany, who have shown the slowest improvements in Europe.

Explore further Report finds the UK is lagging behind other countries' mortality trends

More information: Viani B. Djeundje et al, The slowdown in mortality improvement rates 20112017: a multi-country analysis, European Actuarial Journal (2022). Viani B. Djeundje et al, The slowdown in mortality improvement rates 20112017: a multi-country analysis,(2022). DOI: 10.1007/s13385-022-00318-0
Credit: Environmental Science: Water & Technology

Before a community hospital is stretched thin with COVID-19-patients, even before antigen testsno matter how rapidreturn results, there is one place that may be able to capture the number of COVID-19 infections in a community.

A new research paper from the lab of Fangqiong Ling, assistant professor of energy, environmental and chemical engineering at Washington University in St. Louis' McKelvey School of Engineering, has shown the viability of wastewater as an accurate tool when it comes to describing COVID-19 outbreaks in a community. Beyond proving the usefulness of COVID-19 detection, the breadth of the paper's analysis also makes it a resource for other researchers in the fast-growing field of wastewater epidemiology.

The research was published as the cover story of the July 22 issue of the journal Environmental Science, Water Research & Technology.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers across the world have begun or ramped up existing water monitoring programs. Working collaboratively with the Washington University School of Medicine and researchers from two other universities, Ling and David Mantilla-Calderon, a postdoctoral associate in her lab, took advantage of the data to determine what, if any, relationship they could find between the number of COVID-19 cases reported in an area and the amount of genetic material from SARS-CoV-2 in municipal wastewater.

Starting with 101 studies of wastewater from around the globe, Ling and her team decided on a set of common variables and other inclusion criteria that had to be met to accurately combine data for a kind of "study of studies" known as a meta-analysis systematic review. This kind of study allows researchers to investigate a question using much more data than they could have collected themselves; ultimately, they were able to use 20 of the 101 studies.

"In general, we found a positive correlation," Mantilla-Calderon said. As recorded cases went up, they found more viral material in the wastewater. "But it's not a one-to-one correlationthe strength of the correlation changes with each system." That's because every wastewater system is unique. Mantilla-Calderon knows this better than most because he has a background in wastewater monitoring and is familiar with the ways these systems can vary.

Wastewater systems can be built from different materials and use different processes or chemicals at different parts of the system. They often are built in different configurations and serve vastly different-sized populations. Adding to the study's complexity, among the 20 papers that shared enough variables to be included in the study, different researchers used different RNA extraction methods.

It's these quirks of individual wastewater systems and of researchers' methods and preferences that have led to a field full of data without enough context to make it generalizable. With this paper, however, Ling's lab has made a significant contribution toward defining that context.

"The study provides general statistical guidance," Mantilla-Calderon said. In the future, researchers will be able to use it to help them better understand how to interpret their data, given the kinds of samples they have and the systems they are working with.

It also begins to bridge any gaps between medical researchers and engineers.

"We use the same kind of meta-analysis systematic review method that's typically used in clinical research," Ling said. "This creates a kind of common language for medical researchers and engineering researchers."

This may facilitate the exchange of data and results, leading to a more robust understanding of the relationships between viruses moving through the engineered world and diseases spreading through populations.

Why wastewater?

"Our premise is that wastewater, unbiased way to collect information," Mantilla-Calderon said. It has the potential to be a more representative sample of infection than, for instance, cases reported by a hospital for several reasons, including:

Asymptomatic people don't get tested as often.

Some people don't have easy access to tests.

Many people with mild symptoms use home tests, and those results aren't shared with hospitals.

Not everyone sheds the virus through fecesstudies suggest about 40% to 65% of people do. But of that group, about 50% are asymptomatic and likely would not have been tested.

"The public wastewater infrastructure is perhaps the piece of social infrastructure that's most equitable toward people," Ling said.

More information: David Mantilla-Calderon et al, Emerging investigator series: meta-analyses on SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA levels in wastewater and their correlations to epidemiological indicators, Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology (2022). David Mantilla-Calderon et al, Emerging investigator series: meta-analyses on SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA levels in wastewater and their correlations to epidemiological indicators,(2022). DOI: 10.1039/D2EW00084A
Vials containing sewage water are scanned a method for monitoring Covid-19 in sewage, which can also be used to trace the source of other outbreaks, including monkeypox and hepatitis. Credit: Mariel Perez Zabaleta

Researchers in Sweden have created a method that now makes it possible to monitor sewage for a virus that has is believed to be linked to hepatitis outbreaks worldwide. First developed for the COVID-19 pandemic, the method can be adapted for a number of viruses, including monkey pox, offering a valuable addition to the public health toolkit.

In a recent study conducted by researchers from KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, adenovirus F41 was detected in wastewater samples at the Swedish Environmental Epidemiology Center-KTH node in Stockholm. The results were presented in September to the European Commission and Swedish authorities.

The F41 virus is known for causing outbreaks of gastroenteritis in childrenwhich typically causes diarrhea and vomitinga condition parents often refer to as "stomach flu." But a recent outbreak in the U.S. suggested that F41 may also lead to liver inflammation.

Several children in Alabama were hospitalized during the summer with hepatitis symptoms but they tested negative for hepatitis, while testing positive for F41. That outbreak led the U.S. Centers for Disease Control to begin an investigation into the possibility of a link between F41 and hepatitis A, B and C.

KTH researchers Zeynep Cetecioglu Gurol and Mariel Perez Zabaleta say that in the event of such outbreaks, the method could be used by public health authorities to trace the source. "If we know the water system plan, we can collect wastewater samples close to schools, hospitals or airports," Cetecioglu Gurol says. "Even if wastewater is mixed from multiple parts of a community, the samples are going to be more concentrated than the samples taken directly from the wastewater treatment plants."

The researchers adapted a sampling technique that had first been created at KTH in 2020 to monitor COVID-19 virus particles in wastewater collected at Stockholm's sewage treatment facilities. Perez Zabaleta says the technique can also be used to detect not only F41 but monkey pox and seasonal viruses such influenza and norovirus.

She says the researchers are now adapting their methods to detect the presence of antibiotic resistance via sewage samples.

Explore further Researchers see increasing virus cases via Stockholm wastewater
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

A team of researchers at the University of Copenhagen working with a colleague from the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine in Berlin has developed a new theory to explain how spinal neuronal circuits control locomotion in turtles. The study is published in Nature. Martha Bagnall with Washington University in St. Louis, has published a News & Views piece in the same journal issue, outlining prior research efforts aimed at learning how nerves in the spine control locomotion in animals and the work by the researchers on this new effort.

Prior research has suggested that nerves in the spine are arranged in small groups that are responsible for inciting muscle movementsome of the groups were believed to be responsible for flexor motor control while others are responsible for extensor motor control. The thinking has been that control is passed back and forth between the two groups, allowing for actions such as walking. In this new effort, the researchers challenged this model.

To better understand how the nerves in the spine are used by the body to control locomotion, the researchers attached electrodes to the spines of several test turtles to record neural activity as the subjects reacted to tickling. Tickling was used to urge the turtles to simulate walking as they were held in place.

In studying the recordings, the researchers found that neural activity was not passed back and forth between groups responsible for flexor and extensor control. Instead, they found that the neurons in the spine responsible for motor control were arranged in random fashion and were activated at different times. They also found that neuronal activity occurred in circular activity patterns. Such patterns have been seen before, the researchers note, in the part of the primate brain that controls arm movements. They have been named rotational dynamics.

The researchers used their findings to create a new model of spinal neuron circuit locomotion control. Their model shows neurons that are randomly located and connected but in a way that allows for circular neuronal control of rhythmic muscle movement such as that used in walking.

Explore further Like tiny drill sergeants, neurons identified in spinal cord coordinate our steps

More information: Henrik Linden et al, Movement is governed by rotational neural dynamics in spinal motor networks, Nature (2022). Henrik Linden et al, Movement is governed by rotational neural dynamics in spinal motor networks,(2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05293-w Martha W. Bagnall, Neurons that control walking go round in circles, Nature (2022). DOI: 10.1038/d41586-022-02238-1 Journal information: Nature

 2022 Science X Network
Edge Group entity, Jaheziya, a single-stop service provider for defence solutions and emergency response services, and the UAE Cybersecurity Council (CSC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote cooperation.

They will conduct exchanges in cybersecurity-related fields, while Jaheziya will deliver cyber awareness programmes to designated communities. The agreement was formalised at Gitex, the annual enterprise technology and global digital transformation event taking place from October 10 to 14 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

The agreement was signed by Dr Mohamed Hamad Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government, and Omar Al Zaabi, Senior Vice President Trading & Mission Support, Edge.

Conducting exchanges

As per the MoU, the two organisations will promote and conduct exchanges in ICT cybersecurity-related fields, with a particular focus on cooperation, deterrence, prevention and responses to cyber-attacks across relevant cyber fields, awareness-building and educational programmes, as well as scientific and technological research and development, all conducted in accordance with the UAE principles of equality, reciprocity and respect.

Jaheziya is also working with the UAE CSC to deliver community cyber awareness programmes, especially for women, youth, senior citizens, and people of determination. This agreement furthers Jaheziyas earlier drive to spread greater cyber awareness, which resulted in over 300,000 trainees throughout the UAE.

Dr Al Kuwaiti said: This agreement will provide consistent, quality risk prevention and cybersecurity best practice training to designated communities across the UAE. We aim to unite efforts and capabilities that will result in the development and dissemination of the latest cyber awareness programmes, enabling confidence while fortifying response readiness.

Cyber defence awareness

Al Zaabi said: We are proud to strengthen our countrys cyber defence awareness and threat mitigation by partnering with the UAE Cybersecurity Council. As a leading provider of emergency response services, Jaheziya is uniquely positioned to provide bespoke, in-depth cyber awareness programmes that ensure optimal preparation for communities operating in cyber-related fields. We look forward to utilising our distinct capabilities and meeting the perpetual demand for superior cybersecurity solutions in the UAE.

Jaheziya, part of the Mission Support cluster at Edge, provides systems engineering, technical project management services, and knowledge and training solutions. It is the regions leading provider of emergency firefighting and rescue services, comprehensive military training, systems engineering and technical project management services, inclusive of systems integration.-- TradeArabia News Service
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is proposing sweeping changes in the way chicken and turkey meat is processed in an effort to reduce salmonella illnesses from food contamination. But those changes could require meat companies to make extensive changes to their operations. The agencys Food Safety and Inspection Service will begin a lengthy process of proposing new rules by holding a public hearing on Nov. 3 to get input from the poultry industry and others. The government wants new regulations rolled out beginning next year and completed within two years. Proposed changes include testing incoming flocks of chickens and turkeys for salmonella before they enter the slaughterhouse and limits on how much certain strains of salmonella can be on meat sold to consumers.
City and county officials in Missoula have hired a different security contractor to patrol around homeless shelters and adjoining neighborhoods for the next year.

Also, city officials announced that there is no longer sufficient funding, staff and infrastructure to safely operate the Authorized Camping Site and it will close on Nov. 16.

On Wednesday, city houseless initiatives program manager Emily Armstrong told the City Councils housing committee that her office had earlier this year released a request for proposals for a security vendor to provide services across Operation Shelter sites, which includes the Emergency Winter Shelter.

City staff reached out to five vendors and received four proposal responses. A review committee made up of city and county staff reviewed the proposals and chose Black Knight Security and Investigations, a company that already is contracted by Missoula Parks and Recreation and the Missoula Parking Commission. The company also provides security at City Hall and the Missoula County Courthouse.

The city and county will both split the $500,000 cost of the security contract for the next fiscal year, and the money will come from funds allocated to both governments by the federal American Rescue Plan Act.

Armstrong said that Black Knight had proposed a different model than the current security services provider, Rogers International.

Black Knight will provide more of a roving security service, meaning staff members will not be stationed 24/7 at sites like the neighborhood around the Poverello Center or the residential streets around the Emergency Winter Shelter on Johnson Street.

This type of presence is an intentional decrease than the more intensive model of stationed staff person that weve had over the last year, Armstrong explained. "Were decreasing the intensity of constantly felt security service."

Rogers International operates with a 24/7, stationed-guard model. Black Knight, in contrast, has indicated they will have security personnel readily available to respond to calls for service, but will not have staff members at sites all the time. They will also be patrolling city-owned parks.

Long debate

The ensuing discussion among City Council members illustrated the wide disagreement and diverging opinions about what type of security is needed around homeless shelters in Missoula.

Ward 6 Council Member Kristen Jordan said she was concerned about having armed security guards patrolling a vulnerable population, while Ward 5 Council Member Stacie Anderson said that constituents shes talked to who live near homeless shelters say that security provided by Rogers International made them feel safer.

In terms of not having someone permanently at the locations, more of a roving presence, the feedback we received last year was the level of service provided at the winter shelter seemed to be good, Anderson said. When I talked to people in the neighborhood around the Poverello Center, they really appreciated the security and said the neighborhood felt safer.

Anderson said she wanted to make sure Black Knight would provide that same level of security.

However, Jordans comments were focused on her concerns about hiring a private security firm instead of additional city police officers. She noted that she feels that Black Knight personnel are exceptionally professional at the county courthouse. However, she said shes seen research that shows that private security firms have a lack of accountability and are a threat to civil liberties.

I really have a problem with the private security firms overseeing our vulnerable populations, Jordan said.

Armstrong responded by pointing out that the opinions expressed by the two council members are at odds with each other, and noted that some community members want more intensive security and other community members want less intensive security.

Were tasked with finding that middle ground, Armstrong explained.

Armstrong also noted that Ward 3 Council Member Daniel Carlino was concerned about the fact that Black Knight Security and Investigations had been placed on probation by the state of Montana for employing an armed security guard who did not have the proper firearm license to carry a gun. (To see a PDF of the complaints about Black Knight, visit this story online at Missoulian.com.)

We were previously aware of the concerns (Carlino) brought up and touched base with Black Knight, Armstrong said. We are very confident in their ability to provide the services needed.

After Armstrongs presentation, Carlino spoke up.

Are we concerned that were hiring a company to walk around the streets with guns that has previously hired people that are unlicensed to carry guns and is also on probation from the state for the same thing? Carlino asked.

Representatives with Black Knight addressed the council and said that theyve cleared up the processes that allowed that to happen. Nikki Hill, the vice president of the company, said that she would be surprised if any private security firm in the state hasnt at some point overlooked an employee thats not licensed to have a gun.

With staffing and the fact that it takes six to eight weeks to get somebody licensed, thats where its so easy to maybe overlook that, especially if you have somebody coming in with a military background or coming in with a license from a different state, Hill said. Yes, weve been on probation for working somebody unlicensed and I can guarantee you that no longer happens.

Camp site closing

Several residents of the Authorized Camping Site spoke and said that they hoped that the site could remain open through the winter. An outreach worker who often visits the site, where about 60 people live, also expressed the same opinion.

Carlino asked if ARPA funds could be used to keep the Authorized Camp Site open.

However, Armstrong and city chief administrative officer Dale Bickell said the challenges of keeping the site open in the winter are insurmountable, especially because it lacks running water. Armstrong noted that outreach workers have been in contact with people living there to give them a heads up that the site would be closing, and the goal is for them to be able to move to the Emergency Winter Shelter, which opens on Oct. 31.

"We're stuck between a rock and a hard place," said Ward 3 Council Member Gwen Jones, noting that the city is trying to make sure that funds are available to operate homeless shelters next year when federal funds dry up in case a crisis services levy fails to pass this November.

Carlino said he hopes the City Council makes a budget amendment to keep the Authorized Camp Site open.

Jordan insinuated that the city is "rushing" the process to close the Authorized Camping Site and not listening to the people who live there.

Ward 4 Council Member Mike Nugent pushed back on that accusation.

"I also think that as a community we are struggling with how we fund this, how much we fund it," he said. "The levy is a very interesting conversation."

However, he said, people that frame the conversation as though city staff haven't worked hard and looked at all options does a disservice to those staff members.

The council was not actually voting on whether to keep open the Authorized Camp Site on Wednesday. Members voted on three issues: To fund the Emergency Winter Shelter for the next year for $700,000 in federal ARPA funds, to fund a contract with Black Knight Security for the next year for $500,000 in federal ARPA funds, and to fund a one-month extension of security provided by Rogers International at the Authorized Camp Site for $130,000 in federal ARPA funds.

All three motions passed, but the motion to fund the contract with Black Knight was referred to a committee for a future discussion.
It rains down from the bellies of aircraft large and small, coating foliage below in a flaming red gel that won't actually burn: aerial fire retardant.

But sometimes fire retardant lands in waterways. And a new lawsuit filed in Billings on Tuesday accuses the U.S. Forest Service of violating the Clean Water Act by illegally polluting water and harming the environment when retardant is dropped into water. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court by the nonprofit Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics (FSEEE). The group previously gave the agency a 60-day notice of intent to sue, dated June 23.

Aerial fire retardant, a chemical gel dropped by aircraft ahead of fire fronts with the goal of making foliage less likely to ignite as flames approach, is a mainstay of wildland firefighting in the West. As megafires exceeding 100,000 acres become more common, and as development pushes into fire-prone landscapes, the crimson chemical retardant dropped from low-flying air tankers is one of the most obvious and dramatic indicators of firefighting agencies in action.

Like fires themselves, the Forest Service's use of retardant has steadily increased in recent years. The agency exceeded 50 million gallons of annual retardant use for the first time in 2020, according to the Associated Press. It again used more than 50 million gallons of retardant in 2021. The agency paid almost $200 million for retardant those two years combined. The exceedance of 50 million gallons was a sharp uptick from about 30 million gallons annually over the 10 preceding years.

The agency told the Associated Press this summer, "No two wildfires are the same, and thus its critical for fire managers to have different tools available to them for different circumstances a fire may present. Fire retardant is simply one of those tools."

It's a tool Montanans are familiar with. Aircraft ranging in size from single-seat propeller planes to behemoth DC-10 jetliners dropped retardant on fires around the state this year, including in population centers like Missoula and Helena, where fast-moving grass fires threatened subdivisions. Missoula is home to Neptune Aviation, a contractor operating a fleet of BAe-146 Large Air Tankers, as well as the Forest Service's Region 1 Aerial Fire Depot and the Missoula Air Tanker Base.

Perimeter Solutions, the manufacturer of ammonium phosphate-based fire retardant used by the Forest Service, is headquartered in a suburb of St. Louis. Fortress Fire Retardant Systems, a newer company founded by a former interagency Type I incident commander, is partly based in Stevensville, south of Missoula. This year the Forest Service tested the Fortress product, made from magnesium chloride sourced from the Great Salt Lake, at just one air tanker base nationwide: Ronan, north of Missoula. The agency tested a previous formulation of Fortress' product, which the company says is significantly safer than the Perimeter product, in Missoula last year.

Neither Perimeter nor Fortress is subject to the lawsuit, nor is Neptune. Representatives of all three companies declined to comment for this story. A Forest Service spokesperson told the Associated Press the agency doesn't comment on pending litigation. A spokesperson for the Forest Service's Region 1, headquartered in Missoula, did not reply to a voicemail or text message Wednesday. The Forest Service's Region 1 aviation officer did not respond to a voicemail.

Andy Stahl, executive director of FSEEE, did not reply to a voicemail Wednesday. No one was available for comment at the Northern Rockies Coordination Center in Missoula.

In its notice of intent to sue, FSEEE states that the Forest Service's own records show that the agency dropped 761,282 gallons of retardant into navigable waters on Forest Service-managed lands across 376 separate incidents between 2012 and 2019. The nonprofit argued, "Fire retardant is a pollutant. Aircraft are point sources. The U.S. Forest Service and its contractors have discharged and continue to discharge retardant from aircraft into navigable waters."

The agency has determined that the retardant it uses "may affect" 57 threatened and endangered aquatic species, and is "likely to adversely affect" 32 other aquatic species.

The Clean Water Act, the group stated, "prohibits the discharge of pollutants from a point source to waters of the United States," except with a valid water treatment permit and other conditions. The Forest Service stated that the Environmental Protection Agency, which oversees enforcement of the Clean Water Act, exempted the agency from the permit requirement. FSEEE disputes that the agency is exempt.

The Forest Service has also instituted a 300-foot buffer around waterways for retardant drops, but the buffer has exceptions and drops sometimes encroach within 300 feet anyway.

"In sum," FSEEE stated, "the Forest Service's discharges of retardant pollutants into waterways from aircraft point sources is continuous, on-going, and un-permitted, in violation of the Clean Water Act." The group stated it would seek an injunction from the court that blocks further unpermitted releases.
A man accused of chasing people with a machete around downtown Missoula two weeks ago now faces a slew of felony charges.

Todd D. Deveny, 41, is charged with three counts of attempted deliberate homicide and one count of assault with a weapon, all felonies, according to an amended affidavit filed in Missoula County last week.

Court documents allege the incident started just after 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 30. Officers got reports that a man was threatening people with a machete and knife in downtown Missoula.

Three witnesses were gathered outside of a bar when a man they said was unknown to them approached with a machete in one hand and a knife in the other. Officers identified the suspect as Deveny.

One of the witnesses described Deveny as extremely furious and thought Deveny would attack him with his weapons, charging documents state. A chase ensued. The three ran from where they were standing with Deveny allegedly behind them, wielding a machete.

One of the three hid in a local business on West Broadway Street, charging documents state.

The third witness stated she recognized Deveny from a previous, brief encounter a few days prior. No one had hurt him at that time, but she said Deveny believed he was wronged by the group.

She also noted Deveny took a swing at one of her friends during the incident. She started to run and was followed by the suspect, whose attention was diverted when another witness drew Devenys focus away from her, charging documents allege.

At some point during the altercation a bystander, reportedly carrying a concealed weapon, noticed what was happening while he was in traffic, according to charging documents. The bystander recalled seeing a man being chased by another man with a machete, holding it above his head in a striking position.

The bystander saw the suspect come out of a local business on West Broadway. Charging documents allege Deveny then approached the bystander with the machete, also held over his head in a striking position.

In response, (the bystander) stated he drew his concealed weapon and began to order the male to drop the machete to get on the ground, charging documents read.

As he was trying to call 911, police arrived. The man said he has a concealed weapons permit out of Colorado and used to be in the military.

Officers took photos of items found in the street. This included a large machete, a handgun and multiple cellphones.

Deveny was arrested. An officer removed a knife that was clipped to Devenys pocket, as well as what appeared to be a machete sheath. When talking with police, Deveny claimed two of the involved witnesses had beat him up today, charging documents read. He also stated the bystander pulled a gun on him.

Deveny made statements to law enforcement saying he hunts people, and nodded toward one of the witnesses while he was talking. Detectives asked Deveny to explain more about the chase with the three witnesses  he replied with statements indicating his intention to kill them, charging documents allege.

In a second interview with detectives, Deveny said he had another interaction with two of the witnesses a few days earlier. When he was sleeping outside, he recalled being kicked multiple times, injuring his face. Missoula police responded to this incident, but their records didnt show any citations being issued.

Deveny appeared in court last week, and is being held on a $500,000 bail at the Missoula jail. He hasnt entered a plea to the charges yet. His arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 17 in Missoula County District Court.
ST. LOUIS (AP)  A federal judge in St. Louis is weighing the fate of the Biden administration's plan to forgive student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans following a court hearing on Wednesday.

It's unclear when U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey will rule on the lawsuit filed by six Republican-led states that seeks an injunction to halt the student loan forgiveness plan. Whatever he decides, an appeal is likely.

Democratic President Joe Biden announced in August that his administration would cancel up to $20,000 in education debt for huge numbers of borrowers. The announcement immediately became a major political issue ahead of the November midterms.

The proposal prompted a lawsuit filed in September by Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina. Other lawsuits followed, including one filed Monday by the Job Creators Network Foundation alleging that the administration violated federal procedures by failing to seek public input on the program.

In the lawsuit brought by the states, a court filing on behalf of the administration said the Department of Education has broad authority to manage the federal student financial aid programs. It stated that the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003, or HEROES Act, allows the secretary of education to waive or modify terms of federal student loans in times of war or national emergency.

COVID-19 is such an emergency, the filing stated.

The Congressional Budget Office has said the program will cost about $400 billion over the next three decades. James Campbell, an attorney for the Nebraska attorney general's office, told Autrey that the administration is acting outside its authorities in a way that will costs states millions of dollars.

What they're trying to do is go around Congress, and this they cannot do, Campbell said.

The plan would cancel $10,000 in student loan debt for those making less than $125,000 or households with less than $250,000 in income. Pell Grant recipients, who typically demonstrate more financial need, will get an additional $10,000 in debt forgiven.

The administration faced threats of legal challenges to its plans almost immediately. Conservative attorneys, Republican lawmakers and business-oriented groups asserted that Biden was overstepping his authority in taking such sweeping action without the assent of Congress. They called it an unfair government giveaway for relatively affluent people at the expense of taxpayers who didn't pursue higher education.

Meanwhile, many Democratic lawmakers facing tough reelection contests distanced themselves from the student loan plan.

The HEROES Act is a post-Sept. 11, 2001, law meant to help members of the military. The Justice Department says the law allows Biden to reduce or erase student loan debt during a national emergency. Republicans argue the administration is misinterpreting the law because, in part, the pandemic no longer qualifies as a national emergency.

But attorney Brian Netter of the U.S. Department of Justice said the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic is still rippling. He said student loan defaults have skyrocketed over the past two-and-a-half years.

This (the HEROES Act) is a statute about emergencies  about national emergencies, Netter said.

The cancellation applies to federal student loans used to attend undergraduate and graduate school, along with Parent Plus loans. Current college students qualify if their loans were disbursed before July 1. Administration officials said applications for debt relief will be available in October.

The plan makes 43 million borrowers eligible for some debt forgiveness, with 20 million who could get their debt erased entirely, according to the administration.

Autrey did not give an indication when he will rule on the injunction request.

Binkley reported from Washington, D.C.
BURLINGTON, N.C. (AP)  A severed finger left behind at the scene of an attempted home invasion last week in North Carolina led investigators to a suspect in the case, police said.

Burlington officers responded to a report of an attempted home invasion Thursday morning after a resident who had started a vehicle in the driveway encountered an armed man who tried to force his way into the house, police said in a news release.

Police said the two struggled and the man's gun went off, grazing the resident's chest, before the resident was able to shut the door on his hand. The resident was not seriously injured.

Crime scene investigators found a finger, believed to have been severed when the resident forced the door shut, inside the suspects glove, which fell off during the struggle, police said.

Investigators used fingerprints to identify a suspect, police spokesperson Emily-Lynn Adkins said by telephone in the city about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northwest of Raleigh.

Vernon Wilson, 67, of Hillsborough was arrested Monday on charges that include first-degree burglary, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, inflicting serious injury and possession of a firearm by a prohibited felon. Wilson was held on a $250,000 secure bond, police said.

Court records don't list an attorney for Wilson, according to the clerk of court's office.
Franklin County voters will choose from four candidates for two judge seats to oversee cases ranging from teens stealing cars to divorces and custody battles.

The Dispatch talked with the four candidates for two judgeships on Franklin County Domestic Relations and Juvenile court about their qualifications. And they were asked about how they would decide what to do pretrial with youth criminal defendants, particularly in cases related to car thefts  a crime on the rise among teens in the county.

Early voting in Ohio begins Wednesday, Oct. 12, and the general election is Nov. 8.

What you need to know

Four candidates are running for two judge positions on the Franklin County Common Pleas Court's Domestic Relations and Juvenile division.

Common pleas court races are supposed to be nonpartisan in Ohio and party affiliations do not appear on the general ballot, but candidates run in partisan primaries.

Common pleas court judges in Ohio are elected to six-year terms and are paid $155,485 annually in 2022.

Meet the candidates

Below is information on the candidates in contested races, including some of their experience, information they provided in an interview with The Dispatch and ratings from the Columbus Bar Association. This includes a poll conducted by the bar association of central Ohio attorneys on which judicial candidates they prefer.

The bars nonpartisan Judiciary Screening Committee rates judges based on their qualifications, including education, experience, training, character and temperament, according to their bylaws. This year, the screening committee issued star ratings on a scale of one to five with five stars signifying superior qualifications, three stars signifying the candidate meets qualifications and one star signifying the candidate does not possess the qualifications necessary to be a judge.

In another bar poll, attorneys rated sitting judges on a five-point scale  with five representing excellent  on factors including their objectivity, temperament, knowledge and timeliness.

Story continues

Election 2022:What you need to know about Ohio Supreme Court races

Judge Kim A. Browne vs. Don Roberts

Kim A. Browne (D)

Experience:

2002-present: Judge, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas' Domestic Relations and Juvenile division. She was appointed in 2002 and first elected in 2004.

1996-2001: Attorney in various roles at Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation

CBA Judiciary Committee: Five stars

CBA Preference Poll: 79.2%

CBA Judicial Performance Poll: 3.17

What the candidate says: Browne, a judge for two decades, said she is the best person for the job because she has the experience. Browne also was the court's administrative judge for six years before leaving the role this year to focus on her campaign.

Browne switched her party affiliation from Republican in Democrat in 2021. She said at the time that as an African American woman, she was disturbed by what the GOP had become. She was the third county judge to flip, a move critics say was to win reelection in an increasingly Democratic county.

When law enforcement officials held a news conference in February 2021 calling out Franklin County Juvenile court judges for not doing enough to help keep teens already charged with crimes  particularly in car thefts  from committing more crimes, the judges rebuffed the claims.

Browne, the administrative judge at the time, and the six other county juvenile judges released a statement calling the news conference an effort to spread propoganda and fear.

Talking to The Dispatch recently, Browne said she is concerned by the rise in juveniles stealing cars and how to handle them.

I like to emphasize that everybody is innocent until they're proven guilty, she said. The courts philosophy is we will hold (a juvenile accused of crime in detention) if you are a danger to yourself, a danger to the community or if we can't trust you to come back to court to answer for what you've done.

Browne said detention can be very disruptive for youths and has to be weighed carefully. Factors to consider, Browne said, include the seriousness of the crime, age of the defendant, if they were already on community control or had prior offenses, and how involved they were in the crime. If a gun was involved, she said, the defendant is automatically held.

Don Roberts (R)

Experience:

2013-present: Solo practitioner

2009-2012: Associate Attorney, Suzanne K. Sabol & Associates, concentrated in family law

2003-2008: Supervising Attorney, The Legal Aid Society of Columbus

CBA Judiciary Committee: Two stars

CBA Preference Poll: 20.8%

What the candidate says: Roberts said hes practiced in domestic and juvenile court over the past two decades in 48 Ohio counties, but primarily in Franklin County.

I have a passion for representing my clients. I love my clients, he said. But I feel that the next step for me is actually to play this role.

His practices primary focus has been family law. Roberts has represented some clients  primarily people he was already representing in family court  in criminal cases, such as domestic violence cases.

Roberts served in the U.S. Air Force, worked as a police officer and worked as a bailiff in municipal court before he became a lawyer.

Roberts is interested in bringing specialized dockets to family court to expedite divorces, including one for first responders who do shift work, making custody agreements difficult.

Discussing the rash of juvenile car thefts and other crimes with The Dispatch, Roberts said he believes sentencing someone quickly to a short sentence is more effective than giving them a long sentence.

Douglas Nobles vs. Janie Roberts

Douglas Nobles and Janie Roberts are running in a special election for an unexpired judgeship term that ends in January 2025.

Douglas Nobles (D)

Experience:

2018-present: Prosecutor, Columbus City Attorneys Office

2016-2018: Staff Attorney/Law Clerk Supervisor, Franklin County Public Defenders Office

2015-2016: Staff Attorney, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Division of Domestic Relations

CBA Judiciary Committee: Four stars

CBA Preference Poll: 66.3%

What the candidate says: Nobles said he has the benefit of experience on both sides  as a prosecutor and a defense attorney  as well as experience as a neutral third party when he was a staff attorney in domestic relations court.

I understand the issues on both sides, he said. Im running because I want to help people, and I want to be a public servant.

Discussing holding juveniles pretrial, Nobles said hed weigh each case, keeping in mind the publics safety and the rights of the victims. Nobles said the juvenile courts need to dig into the deeper issues that are leading adolescents to commit more crimes.

We have to figure out why theyre in front of us and how can we help stop the cycle, and connect them with resources, he said.

Janie Roberts (R)

Experience:

2006-present: Solo practitioner with a concentration in domestic/juvenile cases

1997-2006: Magistrate, Franklin County Common Pleas Juvenile Traffic Court

1990-1994: Assistant Attorney General, Ohio Attorney Generals Office

CBA Judiciary Committee: three stars

CBA Preference Poll: 33.7%

What the candidate says: Roberts first ran for domestic relations and juvenile court judge in 2018, losing to Terri Jamison. She didnt plan to run again, she said, but then an opportunity presented itself.

Jamison was elected to the 10th District (Franklin County) Court of Appeals, and Gov. Mike DeWine appointed Republican Dana S. Preisse in August 2021 to replace her on the county Domestic Relations and Juvenile court. Preisse ran unopposed in the Republican primary special election to keep her spot.

But after the primary, Preisse decided to drop out. The Franklin County Republican Party chose Roberts to replace Preisse on the general election ballot.

I want to be a judge in domestic court where I practice, Roberts said. I have practiced exclusively since 2006 in juvenile and family court. I have done every kind of case I can do in those courts.

Roberts said juvenile crime has escalated in the decades shes been a lawyer, and added that car thefts have gotten out of hand in recent years. In serious crimes involving guns or felony car thefts, Roberts said she would hold the accused youth in detention at least overnight.

Its not just to punish the kids but to keep them safe and give them consequences. These kids are dying, she said. Its not right for the kids, the communities or the families. I believe a lot of the parents want more consequences for them, too.

jlaird@dispatch.com

@LairdWrites

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Four candidates for Franklin County Domestic and Juvenile judgeships
Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) has launched the Global Futurist Society to be headquartered at the Museum of the Future (MOTF), creating an alliance that will make Dubais MOTF as an epicenter for the worlds futurists and visionaries.

The Association of Professional Futurists and The Millennium Project became founding members of the Global Futurist Society after signing a collaboration agreement with DFF.

The agreement was signed during the Dubai Future Forum 2022, the first edition of the worlds largest gathering of futurists, at MOTF. The landmark partnership will pave the way for more collaborations and for other organisations to join the Global Futurist Society in the coming months.

The MoU signing took place in the presence of Mohammad Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Managing Director of Dubai Future Foundation; Omar Sultan Al Olama, UAE Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications; and Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of DFF.

Physical centre

The Global Futurist Society headquarter at MOTF creates a physical centre for international and cross-border dialogue on how nations, private enterprise, entrepreneurs and citizens can navigate and work towards building a positive and responsible future for humanity. It will harness the knowledge and expertise of local and global networks and members of the constituent parties to shape practices in future foresight and horizon scanning, while identify cross-border trends which can be shaped, mitigated and capitalised upon.

Al Gergawi said: MOTF will be an incubator for global institutions, experts and all those interested in imaging and designing the future. It will provide an innovative, integrated ecosystem to promote global dialogues and collaborations between different parties around all future-related topics, trends, insights and transformations without any limitation to human creative thinking and imagination flow.

Global partnerships announced at the Dubai Future Forum represent a key milestone for MOTF. They will contribute towards its goals of foreseeing and planning the future. These partnerships mark another achievement for the UAEs ongoing contribution to shaping and creating a promising, prosperous future for humanity, he added.

Use of foresight

Commenting on this agreement, Shermon Cruz, Chair, Association of Professional Futurists, said: Global interest and impact of foresight, in many different ways, has heightened all over the world. The commitment to expand the understanding and use of foresight requires a global, dynamic and collaborative effort. The partnership between the Association of the Professional Futurists and the Dubai Future Foundation aims to nurture that commitment. The Association of Professional Futurists is pleased to be part of the Global Future Society to contribute to continually advance excellence in the foresight profession and demonstrate the value of foresight to our stakeholders and the world.

Echoing his commitment to the newly established society, Jerome C. Glenn, Co-Founder and CEO of The Millennium Project said: The acceleration of global change and interdependency requires global futures research to improve the prospects for humanity; therefore, The Millennium Project  a global participatory think tank  is very pleased to participate in the founding of the Global Future Society a great initiative of the Dubai Future Foundation.

The Global Futurist Society is special in that it enables previously siloed groups to deepen cross-border collaboration and cooperation on areas of common interest. It will also leverage the Museum of the to be where discussions regarding the future are anchored. Moreover, it will become the single largest collective of futurists, researchers, planners and analysts, leveraging perspectives from all regions of the world to create a truly global perspective of the future.

This was announced on the sidelines of the inaugural Dubai Future Forum, the worlds largest gathering of futurists, convening 700 leading experts, scientists, innovators, and luminaries at the Museum of the Future to discuss, debate and predict the future trajectory of the world.-- TradeArabia News Service
Bessler

Heading to the Arkansas Capital city, Morehead State volleyball will get its first eyes on one of the newest members of the OVC, Little Rock, this weekend.The Eagles and Trojans will meet up in a league series Friday at 7 p.m. ET and Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.The matches can be seen live on ESPN+. In its history, MSU is 2-4 all-time against teams from Arkansas.MOR: 8-10 (4-3 OVC) | LR: 3-16 (0-7 OVC)First-ever meetings- Senior setter Bridgeteclipsed the 3,500 career assists mark this past week, now with 3,598 career helpers. She is now in sole possession of third place in career assists at Morehead State. Bessler also had a team-high 13 digs at Tech and now has three consecutive double-double matches and seven double-doubles this year. She has 31 career assist-dig double-doubles.- Bessler has been First-Team All-OVC three consecutive seasons. If she were to make the first-team again this fall, she would be just the third player in program history to be a four-time First-Team All-Conference player for the Eagles and the first setter to do so. The others were(2018-21) and Dayle Hamontree Harms (1987-90).- Sophomore right-sidehas strung together three straight double-digit kill stat sheets. Moving into the starting lineup midway through her freshman year in 2021, Welborn has 300+ plus career kills.- Middle blockerhas eight consecutive matches with at least 2 or more blocks. Included in that was an eight-block effort at Tennessee Tech Wednesday and a season-high nine rejections against Lindenwood on Sept. 24. Se has 13 multiple-block matches in 2021.leads MSU and ranks eighth in the OVC with 2.94 kills per set. Hulsman has a streak of four consecutive double-digit kill performances. She has 781 career kills in 94 career matches.
A prosecutor asked that a Butte man with at least nine DUI convictions be sentenced to four years in prison custody Thursday with no recommendation for further treatment programs, saying it was a waste of taxpayer money.

The state has tried countless times to afford the defendant treatment and it hasnt worked out, prosecutor Kelli Fivey said of 54-year-old James Walter Schoonover.

District Judge Kurt Krueger agreed with that but went beyond a plea deal recommendation of four years, giving Schoonover the maximum five years in custody of the Montana Department of Corrections with no request for more treatment. He also fined him $5,000.

Krueger said Schoonover had an extensive criminal history that included at least nine DUI convictions and 14 felonies overall and he continued to offend despite previous DOC treatment programs.

The sentence was for driving under the influence of drugs on Sept. 8, 2021. He later pleaded guilty to the charge, admitting he was on drugs when he was pulled over by a Montana Highway Patrol trooper in Butte.

He had at least eight previous DUI convictions and possibly more, Fivey said. He had been arrested for DUI at least two more times but there are no court records indicating how those cases years ago turned out.

Were talking at least nine  possibly 10 or 11, she told the judge. And what do we get? Another felony, another felony, another felony. The state spending more money on treatment is no good.

The Montana Legislature enhanced possible sentences for repeated DUIs during the 2021 legislative session but they were not in effect when Schoonovers latest offense occurred.

According to prosecutors, a trooper spotted a car with no operational tag lights driving on the shoulder at Montana and Front streets on Sept. 8, 2021.

There were others in the car but Schoonover was driving and didnt have a license, insurance or other documents. He gave the trooper a false name and birth date, then an address that came back to a sporting goods store on Harrison Avenue.

He was sweating profusely even though it was 52 degrees and he was wearing a tank top, the trooper said, and he was on the nod  a state of alternating in and out of drowsiness thats a common sign of narcotic use.

He said at one point that he couldnt continue field sobriety tests, and as he was walking back to the patrol car, he made a huge spectacle of laying on the ground after purposefully running into my patrol car, the trooper said.

Troopers ultimately determined Schoonovers true identity and he was wanted on a felony warrant and had a revoked license. A blood draw was done at St. James Healthcare.

On Thursday, public defender James Dolan said he was OK with four years in DOC custody but said the sentence should include further treatment.
Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff Ed Lester confirmed Thursday night that a male involved in a standoff with law enforcement since Wednesday afternoon is dead.

"The situation on the 500 block of West Aluminum Street has ended," Lester said in a Thursday night release. "The male subject who was armed and had barricaded himself inside a residence is deceased. The male was found dead in the basement of the residence."

Lester added that officers will remain at the scene overnight and the investigation will continue Friday morning.

Normal activity can resume in the area as there is no further public safety threat.

"Id like to thank Sheriff Leo Dutton of Lewis and Clark County for sending his SWAT team and bomb squad to assist in this incident," Lester said in the release. "The incident did not end the way I had hoped, but Im thankful all officers involved are safe."

The Lewis and Clark County SWAT team joined the Butte-Silver Bow SWAT team Thursday at the scene of a standoff that began early Wednesday afternoon in the 500 block of Aluminum Street.

Officers used an armored car and a small drone earlier Thursday to search the house.

A woman was evacuated from the residence late Wednesday afternoon.

Lester had asked the public to stay away from the area and said he would keep the public updated.

Steve McGrath recently moved into the house next door to the home where the standoff occurred. He was walking home from dropping his vehicle for maintenance and encountered police, who asked him to leave the area.

As McGrath observed the police officers and SWAT team from afar Wednesday he said he hoped for a peaceful resolution.

"I just hope the lead doesn't start flying," he said, noting that he had a cat at home.

Until the commotion Wednesday McGrath had enjoyed his new residence, having moved from an area in Butte with traffic and other noise.

"I love this neighborhood," he said. "It's really quiet."
Shaun Jeszenka noticed that the Jefferson Rivers flow downstream of the Waterloo Bridge had faded fast, waning toward bone dry.

A U.S. Geological Survey gauge nearby had registered a dramatic drop in flow, and Jeszenka immediately suspected an irrigation ditch just upstream from the gauge was pulling a significant amount of water from the Jefferson.

He visited the diversion site and saw changes, including the instream installation of a blue tarp, designed to divert more water into the ditch  which serves both the Fish Creek Canal and Jefferson Canal.

The Fish Creek and Jefferson canals share a headgate at the river and the Jefferson Canal branches off Fish Creek.

On Aug. 14, Jeszenka observed, The Jefferson River is nearly dry at the Waterloo Bridge. Flows there are 41 cfs right now, the water temperature is 78 degrees. The historic low flow is 39 cfs. We are going to have a fish kill soon. (The abbreviation cfs is a measure of the volume of water passing any given point in a river in one second.)

That observation led him to conclude, after decades of working the regions blue-ribbon trout streams, that something has to change.

John Merkel, who is a user on the Jefferson Canal, said the Fish Creek and Jefferson canals strive to keep the river flows at 50 cfs. He said the ranchers who are users on the Jefferson Canal needed the water and had the authority to take it at the diversion near the Waterloo Bridge (also known as Parsons Bridge.)

Right now, the outfitters dont have water rights going back to 1885, he said.

Jeszenka owns Frontier Anglers in Dillon. Like many Montanans, he has witnessed the impacts of drought, competition for water and climate change and believes its time to mandate a minimum flow for Montanas rivers.

These resources cant rely on the charity of irrigators leaving water in the rivers to survive, Jeszenka said. Its just going to get hotter. There will be less water. The future looks like its only going to get worse.

Previous attempts to mandate a minimum flow through legislative action have failed. Thats largely because water rights are a complex, thorny and emotional issue, especially for ranchers who divert water to raise feed for cattle and farmers who require water for crops.

Jeszenka said he envisions a different path  a statewide ballot initiative. Conservation organizations in Montana have scored key victories in years past by going straight to voters  banning, for example, new open-pit cyanide heap leach gold and silver mining and new game farms.

Jeszenka hasnt drafted the wording or wrestled yet with whether a minimum flow would be tailored to reflect the differing watershed realities of individual rivers. He hasnt fully contemplated what the constitutional complications might be.

If nothing else, as climate change forecasts predict a grim future for cold-water fisheries, Jeszenka wants to start a conversation.

Dean Hanson, a rancher who draws water from the Fish Creek Canal, said conversations among water users about drought management have been ongoing since before the Jefferson River Watershed Council released a Drought Management Plan in 2000.

Hanson described the drop in flow witnessed by Jeszenka and others via the internet as short-lived. The goal is to keep 50 cfs in the river, he said.

Yet 50 cfs is not intended to support a healthy river. Instead, it is a target intended to prevent major setbacks or fish kills.

In years past, Montana Trout Unlimited has not supported legislative bills seeking a mandated minimum flow.

The organization is cautious also about Jeszenkas proposed ballot initiative.

Clayton Elliott, conservation and government affairs director for Montana Trout Unlimited, said that if a mandated instream flow initiative made the ballot and passed, it would stir animosity in some quarters and trigger lawsuits about property rights and other complex issues.

Youre going to have a decade of litigation, Elliott said. I understand the intent and the concern.

He and many others concerned about Montanas rivers believe a better approach would emphasize collaboration with agricultural interests. Ranches are better for streams and wildlife than subdivisions, they say.

Keeping ag in these watersheds is a very good thing, Elliott said.

Yet irrigators pull a lot of water from rivers and streams.

Irrigation needs are greatest from about mid-July to mid-September, a time when river flows are at their lowest and water temperatures at their highest.

River flow depletion is a leading cause of aquatic species imperilment in the U.S., particularly for fish, according to the Nature Sustainability journal. The primary cause for flow depletion throughout the arid West is irrigation of cattle-feed crops, according to the journal article.

Jeszenka said he has no desire to create hardships for Montanas agricultural communities who depend on river water to cultivate hay, alfalfa and other crops.

My family has ranched in Montana for generations, he said. No one wants to see people get put out of business.

That holds true too for outfitters in southwest Montana, he said, who faced restrictions again this year on the Big Hole, Jefferson, Ruby and Beaverhead rivers, as well as other businesses relying on fishing-related revenues.

The restrictions and closures also affected everyday anglers yearning for a float or wade.

Previous efforts to secure an instream flow mandate through legislation have encountered stiff opposition from the Montana Stockgrowers Association and others.

In July 2021, Hatch Magazine profiled Joseph Gutkoski, who fought long and hard to change Montana water law  through the courts and Legislature  to try to maintain a minimum instream flow.

Gutkoski, who died in August 2021, favored a law that would limit the water use of farmers, ranchers and others during dry years  preserving at least 25% of a streams average annual flow.

The bill he favored would have applied only to rivers considered important fisheries by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks that were also prone to dewatering.

As envisioned by Jeszenka, who is in the earliest stages of pursuing a ballot initiative, this approach could fare better than another try in the Legislature.

Pedro Marques, executive director of the Big Hole Watershed Committee, said he was aware of Jeszenkas concerns and the irrigation controversy this summer on the Jefferson River.

He said he believes a mandated instream flow would provoke negative reactions.

The watershed committee was formed after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service considered adding the fluvial arctic grayling population in the Big Hole River to its list of threatened and endangered species.

A group of ranchers in the upper Big Hole agreed to leave some water in the river during low flows to help avoid having the feds involved in their irrigation practices.

The trouble with a mandated instream minimum flow is that it comes off to ranchers as heavy-handed, Marques said. And if the state or feds are going to regulate how much water the fish get at the expense of their private property rights you would probably lose all the cooperation that we currently have.

He added that a plunge in brown trout numbers in the Big Hole River probably reflects a dramatic increase in angler days and not just the impacts of low flows.

Everybody needs the water, Marques said, referencing ranchers, anglers and others. As soon as we pick winners and losers, its going to get ugly real fast.

He said the Big Hole Watershed Committee is considering a host of measures to manage water as climate change effects continue. Meanwhile, Brian Wheeler, executive director of the Big Hole River Foundation, lauded the cooperation in the upper Big Hole.

The work being done in the Big Hole is a really good working collaborative example, and I seriously commend the folks who've undertaken those voluntary measures and called on their neighbors to follow suit, Wheeler said.

But quantitatively speaking, it's a drop in the bucket, and I'm not aware of any mechanism to prevent a junior water right to use what a senior water right chooses to leave in the river, he said. So, I understand why folks feel strongly that it's not enough.

In Montana and elsewhere in the West, senior water rights receive higher priority than more recent ones. Rights are linked to uses considered beneficial, such as irrigation or mining. After work by the state, Montana Trout Unlimited and others, keeping water in a river to support fish and recreation is also considered a beneficial use.

Instream flow rights held by Montana FWP are geared toward conserving water for fish.

Meanwhile, Wheeler said the Big Hole River Foundation continues its work to monitor the health of one of the states most famous rivers.

A silver lining of last year's historic low flows was that the river never went dry, despite worse conditions than in 1988 when it did go dry at Wisdom, he said. Yet, it was even worse this year when I sampled at Mudd Creek Bridge on Sept. 17th; the flow was one-third of last year's historic low: 15 cfs vs. 45 cfs.

And if we see more years like this, well, no one really knows where the breaking point is, but we're probably going to find out.
MUSCATINE  It was standing room only Thursday morning at the Muscatine Family Restaurant as many eager fans and members of the Muscatine County Republicans waited to hear an address from Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who is seeking to keep her position over challenger Deidre DeJear.

During the speech, in which Reynolds was joined by GOP candidates U.S. Rep. Marianette Miller-Meeks and Iowa attorney general hopeful Brenna Bird, she encouraged a red wave. She opened by commenting at the large number of people who had attended the event and thanked the owners of the restaurant, commenting that small business is what drives the Iowa economy.

At every event we have been seeing record turnouts, Reynolds said. They are excited and they are ready to take this country back.

Reynolds spoke of several challenges she has faced as governor, including flooding, the COVID-19 health emergency and a derecho. She spoke of how Iowans pull together during a crisis and said that Iowa is much better off for it.

She also criticized the Biden administration, saying there is insanity every day. She said the U.S. is seeing reprecussions from such things as open borders and high fuel prices. She also said she saw a stark contrast to that in Iowa under conservative leadership.

We trusted Iowans to do the right thing and they did, she said. Reynolds spoke of things like rejecting lockdowns and letting people make their own decisions as a positive in the state. She also said the state was no longer taxing retirement income.

She commented that Iowa had recently made a top 10 list for best states to live. Reynolds also commented a red wave doesnt happen unless you show up. You have to show up and support things.
MUSCATINE  This week, it was announced that both the Iowa Citzens Foster Care Review Board (FCRB) and the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program are looking for Muscatine County-based volunteers to help advocate for local children in the foster system.

For the FCRB specifically, Nancy Manion, program coordinator, explained that the board is meant to consist of seven members. But with Muscatine County having only five members currently, with one of them having already announced their departure, more members are needed as soon as possible.

Were a citizen review board that meets every other month to review kids who were placed out of their home and into the foster care system, Manion explained, adding that the FCRB is in need of board members who would be willing to give up their time and talent to be part of the process of reviewing these kids who are in foster care.

Not all kids that are removed from their home by the Department of Human Services are placed in foster care  in fact, the Department of Human Services has been doing a fantastic job making sure that kids are placed with relatives if at all possible, with foster care being an alternative result, Manion continued. So those kids are placed with people that they dont know in situations they arent aware of, and I always feel like those kids especially need more attention.

There are no specific requirements for FCRB, other than the applicants needing to be at least 19 years old. Those wishing to volunteer must be available from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of every other month in Muscatine. FCRB will also provide training for volunteers so that they have an understanding of the child welfare system, juvenile court and issues that are presented by these children and the families theyre involved in.

When asked about the importance of finding community members who are willing to volunteer, Manion said: They provide a unique aspect. As a community member, they get to know some of the things thats going on in the community and the resources offered there. So they bring that sense of community with them  it really does make that special connection (with the child).

As for the CASA program, it focuses more on providing advocates for kids who are currently in the juvenile court system and who have likely been affected by abuse or neglect. Advocates who are assigned to a child or sibling group will visit them on a monthly basis. Although CASA volunteers will have more flexible hours, they are also meant to be more active in forming a connection with the child that they meet.

Volunteer advocates are expected to make contact with all involved in the childs life before submitting a report to the juvenile court judge on what theyre observing and hearing, which will then be used to help the judge make an informed decision on what would be in the childs best interest. These advocates will also establish a relationship with the child, learning about their feelings about their situation as they get to know them, thus making the role more personal than the FCRB

We have a lot of different professionals who are involved in these cases that are court involved, but the CASA does bring in a unique individuals perspective, and they really do get to concentrate on one child or one family at a time and really dedicate their energy to learning more about that familys situation, Manion said.

For more information on volunteering opportunities for both the FCRB and the CASA program, residents can visit www.childadvocacy.iowa.gov or contact Manion directly at 563-214-7019.
MUSCATINE  Many dogs currently in shelters are waiting for their perfect forever home and are ready to be the perfect pet. But for other dogs, like Pocket, theres a different path thats perfect for them.

Last week, Pocket (formerly Payton), a 7-month-old Belgium Malinois that had been rescued by It Takes a Village (ITAV) Animal Rescue and Resources, was adopted by Jenny Lea Wyffels, behavior consultant/K9 trainer and owner of Cooperative Canine Concepts. Through this adoption, Pocket not only has a forever home but a new role as an ambassador for Wyffels company.

Before being officially adopted, Pocket was fostered by Jessie Ng, who quickly began noticing Pockets talents and natural abilities for detection. Realizing that Pocket had some working-dog traits, Ng reached out to Wyffels, asking her to evaluate Pocket.

Initially, Wyffels shared that she had been unsure about Pocket.

While we do use Belgium Malinois in K9 work, simply being that breed does not necessarily mitigate that animal to be a good candidate for that kind of work. In fact, I would say more often than not the breed itself has nothing to do with candidacy for the work, she explained. Not every shelter dog can become a police K9 dog.

Her opinion began to change, however, after seeing the results of the hunt tests she had Pocket partake in  tests that measure whether or not a dog has the necessary qualities required for a detection dog, specifically the desire to hunt for items with their nose. Wyffels then took Pocket out into several public locations such as Farm and Fleet, Lowes and PetSmart for additional hunt tests.

Dogs that are good for this kind of work will remember the ball and will just have to have it and will continue searching for it. Theyre almost obsessive, which usually makes for horrible pets but great working K9s because of this obsessiveness along with other qualities, she said.

With every test, Pocket continued to pass with flying colors, showing both talent and enthusiasm for each of her hunts.

Everywhere I took this dog, she was absolutely incredible and just kept getting better and better," Wyffels said. "I think she has the most natural ability I have ever seen in a dog in a hunt test in over a decade.

At that point, Wyffels felt like she couldnt send Pocket to another organization and instead needed her to stay there and be an ambassador for narcotics work as well as for rescue adoption.

She was too good to turn down, Wyffels said.

Instead of being donated or sold to a police K9 department, Pocket will continue to live with Wyffels and mostly serve as an ambassador/demo dog for Wyffels company, partaking workshops, continued education and seminars with other K9 departments in order to show departments and other trainers what K9 detection dogs are capable of. In addition, she will also take detection work private sector contracts.

Wyffels said her biggest hope for Pocket was that she would get to continue doing exactly what shes doing now, while also showing how people can sometimes find phenomenal working K9s in local shelters.

She continues to surprise us, and I hope she continues to surprise everyone else that meets her. We hope that dogs like these encourage departments who may not have the funds and resources to go through typical K9 programs to reach out and show interest in maybe taking on a K9 as a rescued resource, she said.

(Pocket) is just such an incredible dog, Meagan Koehler, president of ITAV said. Obviously (Wyffels) is well-versed in what it takes for these positions, and for her to see what she sees in Pocket is just reaffirming everything that our foster mom, (Ng), had said too. We are so excited that this is what the future holds and are so proud of Pocket.

These dogs dont get into positions where they can thrive without rescues like ITAV and without people like (Koehler) and (Ng) who recognizes when a dog probably isnt the right for the average pet home and tries to find their right placement, Wyffels said. Theres so many dogs in shelters that need to be evaluated for K9 work, and it really does take advocates to keep pushing us to meet with them.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  A veteran Las Vegas police officer patrolling an area that officials identified as a hotspot for crime died after being shot early Thursday during an exchange of gunfire with a man who was later arrested, authorities said.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo told reporters that Officer Truong Thai was fatally wounded while he and another officer answered a 1:08 a.m. emergency call about a domestic disturbance near the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

The suspect was armed with a firearm and fired at our officers, Lombardo said. Both responding officers discharged their duty weapons. One officer was struck.

Thai was wounded in the torso and died at a hospital, Lombardo said.

A woman who was nearby was wounded and was taken to a hospital, where she was expected to survive, police said.

The suspect, Tyson Hampton, 24, of Las Vegas, drove away from the shooting scene and initially refused to surrender when he was stopped several blocks away, Lombardo said. A police dog was used during Hampton's arrest, and Lombardo said Hampton received minor injuries.

Hampton, who was identified by police as the suspect in the domestic violence call, was due to be booked into the Clark County jail pending an initial court appearance on charges including murder and attempted murder. Records did not immediately reflect if he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

Court records showed that Hampton had a criminal history in Las Vegas, where he pleaded no contest in April 2021 to a reduced charge of displaying a weapon in a threatening manner. A felony charge of assault with a weapon was dismissed. Hampton was represented by the Clark County public defenders office at that time.

The incident demonstrates the dangers our officers face every day just putting on the uniform and doing their job, said Lombardo, who did not immediately identify the other officer involved in the shooting.

Thais death came during an exceptionally violent week for officers across the country, including in Connecticut, where two officers were fatally shot and a third was wounded late Wednesday while answering an emergency call about possible domestic violence.

Police in North Las Vegas shot and killed a man Monday, after they said he pointed a gun at people while wearing a Halloween mask. Officers in neighboring Henderson were involved in a shooting Wednesday, although no gunshot injuries were reported.

Also, a Henderson police officer was wounded and a suspect was killed in a shooting Sept. 26.

The Las Vegas shooting on Thursday was the 10th this year involving officers covering the city and Clark County, including the casino-lined Strip.

On Sept. 10, Officer Tierney Tomburo, 24, was wounded but returned fire and killed her alleged assailant, 27-year-old Gabriel Charles, during a foot chase after he ran from a traffic stop near the same spot where Thai was fatally wounded. Tomburo has since been released from the hospital.

At that time, Assistant Sheriff John McGrath identified the area  near Flamingo Road and University Center Drive, several blocks east of the Las Vegas Strip  as a hotspot for violent crime.

Thai, 49, joined the Las Vegas police department in 1999, and Lombardo described him as an honorable and commendable officer. The sheriff declined to fully detail Thai's career until he said Thai's ex-wife and daughter had time to mourn.

Thai is the guy everyone wanted to work with, said Steve Grammas, head of the Las Vegas police union and a former police officer who said he worked with Thai decades ago in the same coverage area.

He loved police work," Grammas said. "He could have finished his career in a specialized unit. But he felt his place was on the street.

Thai was a firearms instructor among many roles over the years, the department honor guard said on Twitter.

The department allocated $30,000 to settle a discrimination case Thai filed in 2011 with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, claiming he was subjected to different employment conditions because of his race, according to a Las Vegas Review-Journal report.

Thai became the first Las Vegas police officer killed by gunfire in the line of duty since October 2017, when Officer Charleston Hartfield was shot and killed by a gunman who opened fire from a high-rise hotel into an open-air concert crowd on the Las Vegas Strip. Hartfield was attending the concert. Fifty-eight people died that night and hundreds were injured in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

Two officers, Igor Soldo and Alyn Beck, were killed in June 2014 when they were ambushed as they sat as a pizza shop by a married couple who espoused anti-government views. They also killed a man in a nearby Walmart before dying in a confrontation with police.

This story corrects the name spelling of Officer Igor Soldo in the final paragraph.
A new ad from the Democratic challenger in the southeast Iowa congressional race claims sitting Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks wants to outlaw all abortions nationwide. No exceptions for rape, incest, or to save a womans life.

The U.S. Supreme Court this summer overturning Roe v. Wade, long-held protections for abortion until fetal viability, spurred public debate over restrictions on abortion and is seen as a key issue by Democrats ahead of the midterm elections.

Miller-Meeks said in a September debate and has said in interviews that she supports exceptions for rape, incest, and a womans life. She endorsed a bill from U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks with those exceptions.

Christina Bohannans ad is referring to Miller-Meeks co-sponsoring of the Life at Conception Act, a House proposal with 163 Republican co-sponsors that would guarantee a constitutional right to life of each born and pre-born human person from the moment of fertilization without explicit exceptions.

In an interview last week with a Quad-City Times reporter, Miller-Meeks said when asked about the Act: I think that you can recognize medically that life begins at conception, and still have exceptions, as I've already noted. So again, my long-held position in multiple public interviews has been I'm pro-life with exceptions for life of the mother, rape, and incest.

Bohannan continues in the ad: I never imagined my daughter would grow up having fewer rights than I had. Im fighting to protect our right to choose. When it comes to our bodies, women should be in charge, not Washington politicians.

Iowa Sen. Kevin Kinney releases ad celebrating "Noah's law"

Iowa Sen. Kevin Kinney, a Democrat from Oxford, released his second ad of the election cycle, highlighting his work on a law honoring a Tiffin teen who drowned in the Coralville Reservoir in 2020.

When Noah Herring drowned in 2020, the people with him did not call for help, according to reports at the time, and did not tell the Johnson County Sheriffs office where his body was.

In the ad, Noahs cousin, Amber Herring, sitting with his mother Lisa Herring, tells the story of getting the law passed.

We reached out to Senator Kevin Kinney, who helped us pass a law so that what our family went through; another family does not have to go through, she says.

The ad was paid for by the Iowa Democratic Party.

The law, signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2021, makes it a crime to not call emergency responders when someone appears to be in imminent danger and increases penalties for not telling authorities the location of a corpse. Three juveniles and one adult were charged with lesser crimes related to Herrings death, but failing to alert authorities was not a crime at the time.

In a statement, Kinney said the law was a bipartisan effort and the legislation was written with input from Herrings family.

I then worked across the aisle to get Noahs Law passed unanimously, he said. Im honored to have the support of Noahs family, and I will continue to work to protect crime victims and their families in the State Senate.

Grassley announces farmers coalition

Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley's campaign announced the county chairs of the Farmers for Grassley Coalition, a group of farmers who support Grassleys reelection.

The campaign previously announced the leadership of the group, which includes Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, former presidents of the Iowa Farm Bureau and Iowa Corn Growers Association, and former Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey.

The list includes farmers from all of Iowas 99 counties. Grassley also announced a veterans coalition from the 99 counties in September.

Congress will rewrite the Farm Bill next year and we need a farmer to represent our interests in the U.S. Senate, Larry Madson, Shelby County farm chair, said in a news release from the campaign. ...Chuck is the strong voice we need to strengthen and sustain the family farm for generations to come. Iowa agriculture needs Chuck fighting for us more than ever.
Students from Jane Addams and Lincoln-Irving Elementary Schools in Moline arrived to school by foot by or wheel on Wednesday to celebrate "Illinois Walk and Roll to School Day." Earlier this month, Gov. Pritzker formally proclaimed Oct. 12 as Illinois Walk and Roll to School Day to promote active lifestyles for children and support eco-friendly transportation practices.
While 67% of North American buyers reported they have resumed international incentive travel, only 50% of buyers from the rest of the world are back to travelling internationally, said an industry expert.



We see good signs of recovery, but these signs vary, added Kevin Regan, SITE Foundation President.



From a verticals perspective, the 2022 ITI study is forecasting positive growth over 2019 for the finance & insurance and ICT sectors, but pharma, auto and direct selling are forecasting static or negative growth.



The newly released 2022 Incentive Travel Index (ITI) reports that, overall, the incentive travel industry is strong. Recovery is progressing, program design is evolving and there is increased interest in new destinations.



While industry-wide trends emerged, the study reflects variation by geography as well as by sector. The ITI enables incentive industry professionals to target the data they need to make decisions to meet their specific goals.



The Incentive Travel Index is a joint initiative of Financial & Insurance Conference Professionals (FICP), the Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) and the Foundation of the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE Foundation) and is undertaken in partnership with Oxford Economics.



Program design continues to evolve, and we can clearly see shifting preferences impacting program inclusions as a more diverse workforce become qualifiers. For example, we saw wellness emerge as a key program activity, said IRF President Stephanie Harris.



While activities that promote relationships was the top choice across the industry, we see some interesting differences across regions. A key difference is that sustainability and CSR opportunities were considered more important by industry professionals outside of North America.



The desire to travel to new destinations has increased for North American buyers, while the rest of the world indicated they will select destinations closer to home, said FICP Executive Director Steve Bova, CAE.



When it comes to destinations themselves, North American respondents preference for domestic and Caribbean destinations are up, with most stating that they will use these destinations more in the coming year than they did in 2019.  TradeArabia News Service
The U.S. on Wednesday authorized updated COVID-19 boosters for children as young as 5, seeking to expand protection ahead of an expected winter wave.

Tweaked boosters rolled out last month for Americans 12 and older, doses modified to target today's most common and contagious Omicron relative. While there wasn't a big rush, federal health officials urged that people seek the extra protection ahead of holiday gatherings.

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Now the Food and Drug Administration has given a green light for elementary school-age kids to get the updated booster doses, too  one made by Pfizer for 5- to 11-year-olds, and a version from rival Moderna for those as young as 6.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends how vaccines are used, also signed off.

Americans may be tired of repeated calls to get boosted against COVID-19, but experts say the updated shots have an advantage: They contain half the recipe that targeted the original coronavirus strain and half protection against the dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron versions.

These combination or "bivalent" boosters are designed to broaden immune defenses so people are better protected against serious illness whether they encounter an omicron relative in the coming months  or a different mutant that's more like the original virus.

"We want to have the best of both worlds," said Pfizer's Dr. Bill Gruber, a pediatrician. He hopes the updated shots will "re-energize interest in protecting children for the winter."

The updated boosters are "extremely important" for keeping kids healthy and in school, said Dr. Jason Newland, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Washington University in St. Louis.

Parents should know "there is no concern from the safety perspective with the bivalent vaccines, whether Moderna or Pfizer," Newland added.

Only people who've gotten their initial vaccinations  with any of the original-formula versions  qualify for an updated booster. That means about three-fourths of Americans 12 and older are eligible. As of last weekend, at least 13 million had gotten an updated booster, White House COVID-19 coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha estimated.

To pediatricians' chagrin, getting children their first vaccinations has been tougher. Less than a third of 5- to 11-year-olds have had their two primary doses and thus would qualify for the new booster.

This age group will get kid-size doses of the new Omicron-targeting booster  and they can receive it at least two months after their last dose, whether that was their primary vaccination series or an earlier booster, the FDA said.

"Vaccination remains the most effective measure to prevent the severe consequences of COVID-19," Dr. Peter Marks, FDA's vaccine chief, said in a statement.

While children tend to get less seriously ill than adults, "as the various waves of COVID-19 have occurred, more children have gotten sick with the disease and have been hospitalized," Marks said.

For the updated booster made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech, 5- to 11-year-olds would get a third of the dose that anyone 12 and older already receives. Pfizer said it could ship up to 6 million kid-sized doses within a week of authorization, in addition to ongoing shipments of adult-sized doses.

Until now, Moderna's updated booster was cleared only for adults. FDA just expanded that adult bivalent dosage to 12- to 17-year-olds, and authorized half the dose for kids ages 6 to 11.

As for even younger tots, first vaccinations didn't open for the under-5 age group until mid-June  and it will be several more months before regulators decide if they'll also need a booster using the updated recipe.

Exactly how much protection does an updated COVID-19 booster shot offer? That's hard to know. Pfizer and Moderna are starting studies in young children.

But the FDA cleared the COVID-19 booster tweaks without requiring human test results  just like it approves yearly changes to flu vaccines. That's partly because both companies already studied experimental shots tweaked to target prior COVID-19 variants, including an earlier Omicron version, and found they safely revved up virus-fighting antibodies.

"It's clearly a better vaccine, an important upgrade from what we had before," Jha said this week.

Jha urged adults to get their updated shot in October  like they get flu vaccinations  or at least well before holiday gatherings with high-risk family and friends. People who recently had COVID-19 still need the booster but can wait about three months, he added.
With worries about recent closures of local schools and the continuing enrollment declines in the Napa Valley Unified School District, voters will be selecting three board members, out of seven total, for the district's board of education in the Nov. 8 election.

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Two candidates are vying for NVUSD trustee Area 1, which includes a northern portion the city of Napa and Yountville, as well as unincorporated areas of Napa County. Three are running to take the Area 6 seat, which covers much of the Browns Valley neighborhood on Napa's west side and runs slightly across Highway 29. And two are seeking the seat for Area 7 covering a wide swath of west Napa.

Area 3 is also technically in play this fall, but incumbent Cindy Watter is unopposed and will retain that seat by default.

Other local education races outside of NVUSD are, for the most part, not competitive. Five Napa County Office of Education board seats are up for election, but only one is being contested. And no Napa Valley College board seats are contested this year  of four that are open  though the NVC board will receive two new members who are running unopposed.

NVUSD Area 1

Robin Jankiewicz, currently president of the NVUSD board, is running to retain her Area 1 seat against challenger Jim Silver, a parent of three children in district schools and managing director at Ren Acquisition Inc., part of the New Frontier Wine Company.

Jankiewicz  a former investment banker, former district parent and longtime Napa resident  was originally selected by a past school board to her current seat in 2018, and she ran unopposed for a full term later in the year.

She said her first priority in leading the board, and in running for re-election, is to make sure the district remains financially stable, which she said gives it room to pursue important educational goals from a holistic standpoint. Fiscal stability is largely what the board has tried to achieve during her tenure, she said, which has coincided with a period of rapidly declining enrollment and, therefore, enrollment-based funding from the state.

Parents advocate on behalf of their children; my job is to advocate on behalf of 16,000 children, Jankiewicz said. During my tenure on the board we have exercised financial stewardship, increased cash reserves and created a much more stable financial outlook.

Jankiewicz added that many important issues within education  achievement gaps, language barriers, serving all types of learners  exist within the context of how well individual districts can support their educators, which also goes back to fiscal stability.

If we dont control and we dont exercise financial ownership and oversight, were not able to provide what our job is about, Jankiewicz said. Our job to provide the best quality education we can. It is our responsibility to execute financial oversight in order to deliver what we are supposed to deliver.

In regard to the Mayacamas Charter Middle School  which Jankiewicz, along with the rest of the board, voted to deny last year, a decision recently overturned by the California Board of Education  Jankiewicz said she isnt opposed to charter schools, but she didnt believe Mayacamas would complement what the district already offers.

Given that and the financial impact the school would have on the district, Jankiewicz said, it wasnt in the best interest of the board to support the school.

Its the choice of the few at the expense of many, Jankiewicz said. Everyone understands the desire for choice, but we have to be prudent enough to understand the impact of that choice. It is the the role of the trustee to understand the impact in its totality, the impact on 16,000 students.

Silver, a political newcomer and five-year Napa resident, said he was inspired to run for the position on Dec. 9, 2021, the night the NVUSD board voted to deny the Mayacamas charter.

It doesnt matter what you think about the charter school; the way the petitioners were treated by the board was a travesty. It was unbecoming of the office these people held, Silver said. And so it was that night I decided to run.

Silver said he was generally satisfied with how the district handled the COVID-19 pandemic, but he feels the districts educational offerings have fallen steeply in quality over the past five years, and he wants to reverse that decline. Parents in the district have had a difficult time with school closures and displaced students, Silver said, and he expects enrollment will continue to drop unless the district does more to improve NVUSDs reputation.

Silver also said he believes the district should prioritize providing a perfect education over a perfect budget.

I dont believe in fiscal responsibility at all cost, Silver said. I believe in fiscal responsibility that results in a perfect education for children.

He added that the board should be trying to sell the district to families who may or may not want to come to Napa, who could potentially grow the local tax base and increase enrollment. He also thinks Napa should have a greater quantity of small schools with low student population instead of larger schools.

Napa Valley is the kind of community that should have small schools dotted around all over the place, Silver said. We should not be moving 20,000 cars a day up and down (Highway) 29 trying to drop off kids to mega-schools.

Silver also expressed unease with members of the district administration living outside of Napa and board members not having kids in NVUSD schools.

Its surprising to me that there isnt more of a touch point between the board and the population, the parents and the teachers, Silver said. They seem to be floating by themselves alone and away from the population. Im out here and I can tell you the parents are really, really angry.

NVUSD Area 6

Elba Gonzalez-Mares is running to retain her Area 6 seat against Tyrone Navarro and district parent Summer Gilgallon.

Navarro didnt respond to multiple requests for comment Wednesday afternoon. He said in an email Thursday that he isn't running an active campaign at this point, that he threw his hat in the ring because he thought Gonzalez-Mares wasn't running for reelection.

"While I think I could serve well as a Trustee of the NVUSD, I am not running an active campaign because I feel the current incumbent is doing a good job at representing the district," Navarro said in an email.

Gonzalez-Mares, a longtime Napa resident and alumna of Napa district schools  as well as the executive director of the Community Health Initiative Napa County  has served on the NVUSD board since 2016, except for a roughly six-month period when she moved to a new area of Napa. Like Jankiewicz, she stressed the importance that fiscal responsibility has played during her time on the board. She said she thinks the board has done a great job communicating about the impact of declining enrollment with the Napa community.

As a board member, that was really critical because we cant really talk about programs or curriculum or staff and looking at their salaries and trying to be competitive if you dont have that stability in your finances, Gonzalez-Mares said. Were no longer at that critical stage; we can reorient our time and expertise and skills to talk more about programs and curriculum.

Gilgallon said shes lived in Napa for six years, and she decided to run for the board because she feels theres a need for greater transparency at the board level. She said shes seen a lot of confusion and mistrust in the community toward district schools, and its felt like no one really understood why we cant seem to fix some of these major problems that were having.

It feels like theres a very kind of defensive culture being created on this school board," Gilgallon said.

And instead of approaching the community from the standpoint of We want to hear from you, some of these people on the school board dont even have kids in the district. Thats frustrating. And we feel like as a community no one is asking us what are our main concerns.

Gilgallon said she wanted to bring some positivity to the board and think of ways to solve the districts financial problems. She suggested a special local sales tax for funding schools might be possible, and she wants to see the board advocate at the state and federal level for other plans to get a greater amount of financial resources.

Wheres the positivity and creativity, what are we doing for the future? Gilgallon said. We just need some new energy."

NVUSD Area 7

Area 7 is the only trustee zone up for election with no incumbent in the race, as former trustee Jason Dooley vacated the position in May.

Patrick Mathis, a district parent who works at a winery, is running against Julianna Hart, a NVUSD alumna and senior studio manager for Sephora, for the seat.

Mathis said his interest in running was piqued after having children attend the district. He said hes been actively trying to learn how things work  and would continue doing so while on the board  and he believes his focus on the board would be financial stewardship.

Mathis added that he knows right-sizing the district by closing schools isnt popular, but he noted that enrollment continues to drop and further school closures will likely be necessary. Its important that the district get a strong hold on its finances, he said, so that necessary improvements to schools and programs can be made.

There is going to be more school closures, Mathis said. Its something theres going to be some concern about. But I dont want to have a financially bankrupt and, ultimately academically bankrupt, district.

Hart said that, owing to her past attending the district and having her children attend the district, its been upsetting to see programs be cut and schools close. She suggested that its necessary to have options in schools to find themselves, including career technical education options such as welding classes.

I fully understand the importance of providing a quality education to our children, which can be daunting during this time of significant financial difficulties facing the district, Hart said in a press release. We need trustees who can find creative solutions, who are willing to challenge the status quo, and who will focus on providing a better education while providing fiscal responsibility to the community.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify that Jim Silver is a five-year Napa resident.
LOS ANGELES  COVID-19 has scrapped many large holiday celebrations during the last two years.

But with the pandemic in a lull and plentiful resources available to help thwart the worst the coronavirus has to offer, theres hope that fall and winter gatherings  including Halloween, Thanksgiving and other end-of-year holidays  could be closer to normal for many Californians.

People should plan on being able to get together with the people that they love, Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said recently.

But that optimism, as always, is tinted with caution. Families with members who are at high risk of developing severe COVID-19 illness should consider taking some additional precautions, officials say. Theres also the lurking possibility of a resurgence over the colder months, as has happened each of the past two years, and any significant upticks in transmission could warrant additional intervention.

As we have learned throughout the pandemic, each surge and each variant brings with it unique characteristics relative to our neighborhoods and communities specific conditions, including level of immunity, the California Department of Public Health wrote in a statement to The Times. As we enter the next phase with COVID-19, we will be ready to build on what we have learned over the past two years to meet the COVID-19 challenges that lie ahead.

First and foremost, officials say now is the time for residents to get both an updated omicron COVID-19 booster  formulated to combat BA.5, the dominant coronavirus strain circulating nationwide  and a flu shot, if they havent already.

Since both flu and COVID-19 vaccinations take time to reach full potency, getting the shots now will help ensure optimal protection heading into November and December.

Because the bivalent booster has great potential for providing significantly increased protection against omicron, which is whats circulating now, this boost to the immune system has the potential to make a big difference in reducing disruptions and heartache this fall, Ferrer said.

Ferrer said it is still possible for people to recover from COVID-19 and get reinfected several weeks later.

Among them was Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla, who said he tested positive for the coronavirus in mid-August and then tested positive again in late September. In a statement, Bourla said he hadnt received his companys updated bivalent omicron booster yet, since he was following CDC recommendations to wait three months after a prior infection before getting the updated shot.

The ongoing risk of reinfection is one reason why layers of protection remain sensible, health experts said.

Vaccination  or negative COVID-19 test result verification, especially indoors  remains an important strategy to reduce transmission in large gatherings, especially where masks are removed for eating [and] drinking, and where activities that increase transmission risk are occurring, even when masks are being worn, according to the state public health department.

For indoor gatherings that include higher-risk individuals, Ferrer recommended guests get tested on the day of the event. Doing so lowers, although does not eliminate, the risk that an infected individual whos asymptomatic or presymptomatic may unwittingly expose others.

Fresh airflow is also important, as that can help flush out viral particles.

If an event is held inside, opening windows or doors can also help maximize ventilation, officials say. And while thats usually not a problem in Southern California, such a step may be tougher as temperatures drop.

Those at higher risk also might feel safer if they wear a high-quality, high-filtration mask, such as an N95, KN95 or KF94, according to Ferrer.

We should all take advantage of the fact that we can be together with the people we love this holiday. Were just going to have to be careful if there are people that were gathering with that are at higher risk, she said.

The caveat is that people should pay attention to coronavirus transmission rates.

California last month replaced its broad recommendation for masking in indoor public settings with a more nuanced set of guidelines tied to the COVID-19 community levels established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC sorts counties into three tiers  low, medium and high  based on their levels of coronavirus transmission and the impact that spread is having on local hospitals.

When a countys COVID-19 community level is high, the state recommends everyone 2 and older mask up in indoor public places.

In the medium level, masking is recommended in crowded indoor spaces for those at higher risk. Everyone else is advised to consider wearing a mask in indoor public settings.

And in those counties where the COVID-19 community level is low, state health officials say people at higher risk should consider wearing a mask in public indoor places, but for everyone else, it is a matter of personal preference.

As of Thursday, virtually all California counties  except for three in the states far north  were in the low community level.
Nouriel Roubini: In some sense, World War III has already started

EU considers paying Elon Musk to provide Starlink Internet to Ukraine

U.S. will continue to take practical, aggressive steps to make it difficult for Iran to sell drones to Russia

German Prosecutor's Office searches Deutsche Bank headquarters

Head of Germany's national cybersecurity agency fired amid reports of ties to Russia

Uruguayan Chamber of Deputies condemns Azerbaijan's invasion of Armenian territory

Spanish minister: EU is far from solution to energy crisis

Fake Azerbaijani names of Syunik province communities removed from Google Maps and Google Earth apps

Artsakh President presents details of meetings held in Yerevan to MPs

Lavrov: Russia sees no point in maintaining its previous presence in Western countries

UAE: OPEC+ decision has no political motive

Opposition to David Price: Right to self-determination is the right of people of Artsakh to survive

Iran is ready to negotiate with Ukraine to resolve ambiguities

Deputy Speaker of Armenian National Assembly: 47 PACE deputies made written statement condemning Baku's aggression

Lapid will discuss Kiev request for Israeli systems with Kuleba

Morawiecki: Poland is not afraid of losing EU funds

Armenian President meets with Sofia Mayor

Speaker of Armenian National Assembly to Norway FM: Withdrawal of Azerbaijani Armed Forces from Armenia is a priority

Nikol Pashinyan receives delegation headed by Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt

Iran responds to Borrell's garden and jungle statement: EU needs to accept realities or it will continue to wither

Pashinyan: No one can accuse Armenia of evading its obligations

Congressman: U.S. was not active in terms of security in Armenia, but now situation is changing

Indian defense company Solar group says it has received orders from Armenia for 'Pinaka' missiles

Price: U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan will not be used for offensive purposes against Armenia

Military expert assesses possibility of new hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Russian Embassy: Armenians' attitude towards Russians who moved to Armenia remains very friendly

Clarification by Price: What Could Armenian-American military cooperation look like?

Armenian Defense Minister visits DEFEXPO exhibition in India

President of Artsakh talks about results of discussions held in Armenia

Borrell angers UAE with his comparison of world outside Europe to 'jungle'

Public Council formed in Artsakh

China Daily: Party's anti-graft efforts generate fruitful outcomes

Price: We demand that Azerbaijan return to its initial positions

Aghajanyan: This visit should be seen as another stage in dynamic development of Armenian-American relations

Ukraine will officially ask Israel for transfer of air defense systems

Head of National Assembly Commission: 2023 state budget turned out to be biggest in Armenia's history

Turkey conducts test launch of its own ballistic missile over Black Sea

Students of Brusov State University hold protest outside building of Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia

Armenia MFA: Yerevan has always openly and publicly stated its position on dialogue with Turkey

Military exercises of IRGC Ground Forces on border with Azerbaijan continue for second day in Iran

Blinken accuses China of violating status quo on Taiwan

Armenian Foreign Minister: We see Azerbaijan's unconstructive behavior

Izvestia: European banks stop accepting SWIFT-transfers from Russia

Mirzoyan calls on Cavusoglu to speak for himself

Norwegian FM visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex and pays tribute to victims of Genocide

Mirzoyan: We need to understand to what extent CSTO recognizes this aggression against Armenia

MFA: Armenian authorities apply to OSCE to send observers to border with Azerbaijan

NYT: Conflict between Turkey and Greece may cause split of NATO

Ararat Mirzoyan Details of peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan were presented to Norwegian FM

Price of gas in Europe drops to almost $1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters for first time since June

Armenian Defense Minister meets with his Indian counterpart

First images of damage to Nord Stream are published

Erdogan's spokesman: Meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy is impossible now

Peskov redirects question of drone purchases from Iran to Russian Ministry of Defense

Secretary of Armenian Security Council presents consequences of recent Azerbaijani aggression to Brazilian ambassador

Trial of Robert Kocharyan and Armen Gevorgyan is held in Yerevan

IAEA chief says he wants to meet with Putin again

Pashinyan: Azerbaijan creates fake news on ceasefire violations by Armenia

US House of Representatives members visit Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Taliban, Iran border guards fire at each other

Another high treason exposed in Armenia

Armenia MOD: Azerbaijan armed forces violate ceasefire in Sotk-Kutakan sector

World oil prices on the rise

Trump slightly ahead of Biden in New York Times poll

Armenia defense minister heads for India

Newspaper: Karabakh dissatisfied with President's Yerevan visit, meeting with Armenia PM

Azerbaijan fires toward Armenia positions at night

Zelenskyy: Ukraine needs much more modern air defense systems

Liz Truss is called upon to resign

EU to review relations with China

White House accuses Iran of lying

Poland may not receive 75 billion euros in regional aid from EU

Crash of SU-34 in Yeysk captured on video

SJC: Criminal case will be initiated against judge Arusyak Aleksanyan

Germany fines Telegram more than 5 million euros

Scholz instructs ministers to prepare to extend operation of Germany's remaining three nuclear power plants

Two people killed in Yeysk after military plane crashed

Saudi Arabia rejects U.S. accusations of supporting Russia amid war in Ukraine

Only candidate for post of military prosecutor of Armenia is named

Expert: Iran is preparing for scenarios in form of attacks on Azerbaijan and sending troops to Artsakh

German intelligence service opposes Chinese company's investment in Hamburg port

Fire area at crash site of Su-34 in Krasnodar territory is 2,000 sq. m.

EU approves military training mission for thousands of Ukrainian servicemen

Supersonic Su-34 fighter-bomber crashes in Krasnodar territory

Elon Musk on likelihood of World War III

EU Commission intends to propose 'dynamic' natural gas price cap this week

Dmitry Medvedev: Supplies of weapons to Ukraine will ruin relations between Russia and Israel

Charles Michel welcomes rapid deployment of EU mission on Armenian border

Swiss MPs horrified by consequences of Azerbaijani aggression: We support Armenians

European Union announces new sanctions against Iran

Tehran Times: Iran remains vigilant about developments in South Caucasus region

Natural gas supply to Armenia will be temporarily suspended

Daily Beast: Biden must stop next Armenian Genocide before it's too late

Pashinyan: Azerbaijan is looking for pretext to launch new military aggression against Armenia

Turkish Foreign Minister: Baku insists on equal status of 'Lachin' and 'Zangezur' corridors

Foreign Ministry: Iran has repeatedly stated that it has not sent weapons to either side of war in Ukraine

U.S. House of Representatives delegation arrives in Yerevan

IRGC commander: Changing regions geography is red line for Iran

Uzbek officials banned from being dishonest and swearing on social media

Lawyer: Erik Aleksanyan does not accept charges against him
The leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) have convened a virtual meeting to support Ukraine after the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Chinese observers believe that the West, anticipating a prolonged proxy war to deplete Russia, will continue to fan the flames by providing more weapons to Ukraine and should be blamed for the current rise in tensions, the Global Times reports.

According to Chinese experts, one of the key points of the future escalation of the conflict is the position of Europe, in connection with which they urged Europe not to turn into a complete vassal of the United States so as not to lose its independence and not to damage its own interests.

The G7 meeting was held after Russia on Monday launched a large-scale attack on Ukrainian facilities in retaliation for the deadly explosion on the Crimean bridge. It also comes amid a looming energy crisis in Europe that has shaken its unity.

Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China's foreign ministry, said what is happening is alarming. She said China calls on the parties concerned to find appropriate ways to resolve the differences through dialogue and consultation, and China is ready to work with the international community and continue to play a constructive role in de-escalation efforts.

An expert on Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian studies told the Global Times on condition of anonymity that the G7 meeting in part helps the U.S. reunite its allies amid emerging cracks between the U.S. and Europe and within Europe over the escalating Russia-Ukraine conflict as well as the deepening energy crisis.

Meanwhile, according to the expert, the G7 meeting is also aimed at wearing down Russia's continued military support for Ukraine. According to the expert, increased military support for Ukraine will also be the West's response to Russia's attack on Kiev.

Chinese observers said that the U.S. and the West should be blamed for fomenting escalation, when the urgent task is to call for a negotiated cease-fire on all sides.

Cui Heng, an expert at the Center for Russian Studies at East China Normal University, noted that Europe seems to be consumed by the United States and cannot make decisions based on its own interests.

As for the NATO leaders' meeting in the coming days, Cui said that "condemning" Russia is likely to be the main agenda, given that the West has very few tools left to impose sanctions on Russia.

He noted that the West has been actively orchestrating an indirect war, and meanwhile the U.S. has also manipulated Ukraine through a system of external management. The system allows the U.S. to use the weakness of Ukrainian elites against them, and to spread disinformation in Ukraine, the expert said.

The Biden administration's waves of aid to Ukraine had unpleasant consequences at home, as Republicans criticized him for destabilizing the market and inciting war.

As for the further trend of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, in the expert's opinion, the degree of escalation of the situation in the future depends on Europe's position.

In his opinion, Russia's actions are aimed at forcing the West, primarily Europe, to change its attitude towards Russia. Moscow is playing its energy card to put pressure on Europe so that the latter does not turn into a full vassal of the United States.

Possible future scenarios include the independence of Europe from the U.S., indicating the possibility of a dialogue between Russia and Europe, as well as a split Europe, with some countries tying themselves to the U.S. chariot and others choosing Russia, the expert believes.
Everything we know about Neoma, Saudi Arabia's large-scale architectural landmark, sounds like science fiction. Flying elevators, zero-carbon zones, and swimming as a way to get to work-none of this has ever been seen before on the scale envisioned by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), Fortune reported.

Now the futuristic city is trying to entice managers to head up growth industries like tourism and technology with annual pay of up to $1.1 million, the Wall Street Journal reports, based on an internal Neom document. And that number could get much higher if bonuses and other incentives are included.

Neom is one of Prince's efforts to diversify Saudi Arabia's economy, which is the world's largest oil exporter. According to the Wall Street Journal, to create the image of a more welcoming host, Neom will also serve alcohol at one of its resorts, a milestone for the Islamic kingdom, where alcohol is banned.

Saudi Arabia is also hoping to attract new talent thanks to the complete absence of income tax, which means executives will be able to keep their entire million-dollar salaries. The project says it has already hired a number of experts from around the world.

Neom, which is expected to be the size of Belgium, , has a wide range of positions for project managers, including marine biologists, drainage engineers and others. Some are related to Line, an ambitious 1,600-foot tall structure that will house 9 million residents.

MBS announced Neom back in 2017 with a total budget of $500 billion. Reuters reports that the first phase of the project will cost $319 billion, half of which will be provided by the sovereign wealth fund.
The European ban on the import of most crude oil from Russia will come into force in December. EU leaders were next tasked with finding new sources of crude oil ahead of a very dark and cold winter, Oilprice.com reported.

EU leaders have stepped up efforts to switch from Russian energy to other energy-rich countries, although they may find it difficult to increase energy imports because of limited spare capacity around the world.

Monica Malik, chief economist at the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, said the Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia , and the United Arab Emirates will not be able to increase production to replace Russian oil in Europe.

After all, the world is heading toward a much tighter oil market before the end of the year following OPEC+ cuts. This could inadvertently trigger a super-cycle in pricing as Brent crude approaches $100 a barrel.

Without reserve capacity, EU leaders will find it difficult to produce oil around the world because production cannot be ramped up quickly.

One senior EU diplomat noted that their prosperity is based on cheap energy coming from Russia.

Europe's energy security is in dire straits as the cold season approaches. The problem with limited global capacity and higher energy costs only strains Europe to the core. This winter, there are risks of blackouts across the bloc due to reduced energy supplies from Russia and the inability to quickly increase imports from abroad. The UK warned of this scenario a few days ago.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to visit China around Nov. 3-4 in an attempt to balance business interests and the issue of human rights violations, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.

This will be Scholz's first visit to China as Germany's leader since taking office in December, and the chancellor will use talks in Beijing to also seek clarification on China's dual role in the Ukrainian conflict, a source said.

In a separate trip to Asia, Scholz plans to visit Vietnam and Singapore with a large business delegation around Nov. 12-14 and then travel to the G-20 leaders' summit in Bali, Indonesia, Nov. 15-16, where the conflict in Ukraine is likely to take center stage.

Scholz's travel plans are part of a broader effort to change Germany's strategy in the Asia-Pacific region, which could heighten tensions with Chinese President Xi Jinping. But the chancellor has made it a priority to meet with Xi to improve relations. Despite the differences, Scholz is convinced that Europe needs China as a partner in the international fight against climate change.

The German government is working to hone a new national strategy toward China aimed at reducing dependence on the world's second-largest economy, diversifying supply chains and improving security.

Speaking at a business conference in Berlin, Scholz defended his approach to China. Globalization has been a success story that has brought prosperity to many people, Scholz said.

The chancellor added that his government seeks to diversify business ties.
Following the launch of Menas 50 Best Restaurants, sponsored by S. Pellegrino & Acqua Panna, in Abu Dhabi earlier this year, the awards programme is set to return to the city for its second edition in January 2023.



The event will be held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism  Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi).



Chefs, restaurateurs, media and gourmets will gather once again in the UAE capital to celebrate and showcase culinary talent from all over the region in a series of events that will be held from 27 January through to 1 February, with the gala awards ceremony itself taking place on Monday, 30 January.



The inaugural list of Menas 50 Best Restaurants, announced in February 2022, highlighted the diversity and richness of the regions gastronomy, featuring restaurants from 14 cities, with Dubais independently owned 3 Fils taking the coveted title of The Best Restaurant in the Middle East & North Africa.



William Drew, Director of Content for 50 Best, says: We are so excited to be returning to the UAE capital for the second edition of the Menas 50 Best Restaurants awards in partnership with our destination host, DCT Abu Dhabi. The launch event and ranking celebrated the immense culinary talent in the Middle East and North Africa in a way that had never been done before in this region. We look forward to highlighting the work of more restaurants and hospitality teams through the second edition of the awards, along with an expanded 50 Best event programme, inspiring people from around the world to travel, explore and seek out new culinary adventures.



Ameera Al Mazrouie, Festivals Development Unit Head at DCT Abu Dhabi, says: We are excited to be hosting Menas 50 Best Restaurants for the second consecutive edition, shining a spotlight on the vibrant culinary scene in Abu Dhabi and the wider region. We are inspired to work with 50 Best again, especially having seen a tremendous response to the gala ceremony and celebration of the inaugural list, held in Abu Dhabi earlier this year. We are also thrilled to bring back 50 Best Week Abu Dhabi, surprising foodloving residents and visitors with experiential dining and unique collaborations, set to be hosted across the UAE capital in 2023.



Highlights from the programme in Abu Dhabi will include the thought-leadership forum #50BestTalks and an extensive series of 50 Best Signature Sessions: collaborative dining events featuring leading chefs from across the world, as well as the best regional talent.



50 Best Signature Sessions is set to feature chefs such as Massimiliano Alajmo of legendary restaurant Le Calandre in Rubano, Italy (No.10 in The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants 2022), Hiroyasu Kawate of the acclaimed Florilege in Tokyo (No.30 in The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants 2022), rising star Jessica Rosval of Massimo Botturas Casa Maria Luigia in Modena, Italy and Maira Yeo of Cloudstreet in Singapore, who was voted Asias Best Pastry Chef in 2022. Further culinary stars from other parts of the Mena region will also participate in the series.



Each visiting chef will collaborate with local culinary talent to create unique one-off dining experiences for Abu Dhabis residents and visitors alike. Key events in the overall programme will be open to foodloving consumers on a ticketed basis, with further details revealed in due course.



Three special awards announcements will precede the live programme, including Middle East & North Africas Best Female Chef on 7 December, the Icon Award on 4 January and the American Express One To Watch Award on 18 January.



The Voting Process

The list is compiled by the Menas 50 Best Restaurants Academy, an influential group of 250 key leaders in the restaurant industry across the region, each selected for their expert opinion of Middle East and North Africas restaurant scenes. The Academy is divided into six regions: the Gulf; Saudi Arabia; Levant-plus; Israel, North Africa (East) and North Africa (West).



Each region has its own panel of members including a chairperson, called the Academy Chair, to head it up. The panel is made up of food writers and critics, chefs, restaurateurs and highly regarded gourmets. For the 2023 list, each Mena Academy member voted for up to seven restaurants, with at least two of these located outside the country where they are based. None of the events sponsors has any influence over the voting process.  TradeArabia News Service
French President Emmanuel Macron accused Russia on Wednesday of purposefully provoking the recent clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan as part of an effort destabilize the Caucasus region and beyond, Reuters reported.

"What's been happening on the border the last two years ... 5,000 Russian soldiers are allegedly there to guarantee the border, (but) the Russians have used this conflict which dated back several centuries and played Azerbaijan's game with Turkish complicity and came back to weaken Armenia which was once a country it was close to," Macron said speaking to France 2 television.

"You see what's happening? It's an effort by Russia to destabilize. It wants to create disorder in the Caucasus to destabilize all of us," he noted.

He added: "Armenia is a country with which we [i.e., France] have a unique connection. Azerbaijan launched several attacks along the border. We have condemned them. We will not leave the Armenians."

Macron reminded that the meeting of the heads of Armenia and Azerbaijan was held in Prague, with the mediation of the head of France and the European Council, which, according to Macron, was the first time in recent history that the head of Armenia met with the president of Turkey.

When asked if the EU has a position of tolerance towards Azerbaijan because it has signed a natural gas supply agreement with it, Macron noted that France does not buy natural gas from Azerbaijan.

"Of course, several European countries have [natural] gas agreements [with Azerbaijan]. But I will tell you about the voice of France and Europe, and I say that our values and principles cannot be bought with either gas or oil," the French president concluded.
YEREVAN.  Zhoghovurd daily of the Republic of Armenia (RA) writes: As it is known, the ambassadors of the European Union [(EU)] have agreed to send a civilian mission to Armenia, which shall be stationed along the border with Azerbaijan in order to build trust and contribute to [border] delimitation ().

Let's stress: the members of the civilian mission cannot cross the [Azerbaijani] border themselves and must remain stationed, conduct observations only in that place. Suppose, in our case, the members of the mission cannot cross into Azerbaijan, as they can be subjected to aggression or capturedlike the RA citizens. They are not armed, therefore they cannot have influence in that regard, and their mission is only intermediary.

The fact that the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, said that he will work with the mission as far as it relates to Azerbaijan, will not interfere with the work, as, one way or another, they will be stationed right on the RA border. From morning to evening, they must conduct monitoring, if there are violations, record them, nothing more.

It is a very important question where these observers should stand. Armenia should demand that they be stationed in the [RA] territories that existed before May 12, 2021, when Azerbaijani troops entered the sovereign RA.
Armenia National Assembly (NA) deputy speaker Ruben Rubinyan, who is also the Head of the Armenian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), delivered an address at the PACE Autumn Session. Rubinyan noted as follows, in particular:

Indeed, my country, my democratic country, was recently attacked by its authoritarian neighbour. The attack was completely unprovoked and unjustified. Many civilians were killed. Settlements were damaged. Civilian infrastructure was damaged. Mr Gavan presented it all.

But why did this happen, dear friends? It happened because the aggressor wasn't condemned before.

I remember during the last session, here in this hemicycle, I was talking about another Azeri incursion into sovereign Armenian territory which happened in 2021. I was talking about Armenian prisoners of war that are still kept in Azerbaijan. They were kept in Azerbaijan back then, they are still kept there. Now, a couple of months later, we have a new aggression, a new occupation, new prisoners of war, some of whom were killed, and there is footage of these videos, of them being summarily executed by the Azerbaijanis immediately after being captured. This happened because they were not condemned before.

Dear colleagues, Mr Samad Seyidov, the Chair of the Azerbaijani delegation is going to speak after me. Most probably, he is going to resort to the good old Azerbaijani tradition of denial saying that Azerbaijani aggression simply did not happen, but the Armenians deserved it. This is what he is going to do. He is going to tell Mr Gavan, Ms Aberg, and the other speakers that they are wrong, that there is no incursion into Armenian territory. Why? Because it's his job. Mr Samad Seyidov's job is to justify the actions, the illegal crimes, of his authoritarian government here.

Speaking about the necessity of talking about peace in this organisation, I want to inform you that the President of PACE, Mr Kox , invited me and Mr Seyidov to have a meeting in Paris when we had a Monitoring Committee meeting. This meeting had to be held on 15 September. Why did it not happen?

Simply because two days before this meeting my country was attacked by Azerbaijan and I didn't go to Paris.

Dear friends, it's possible to talk about peace when your colleague wants to talk about peace. It's impossible to talk about peace while they are shooting at you, while they are occupying your territory. It's impossible.

I understand that many of our friends have been reluctant to take sides when it comes to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It is complicated. I understand.

This is different. Whenever there is a case of an authoritarian government attacking its democratic neighbour and occupying its territory, this must be condemned, and the Azerbaijani troops have to withdraw from Armenian territory immediately, and Armenian prisoners of war should be released.
East Jerusalem has calmed down after hours of unrest. Police are preparing for more clashes. A faint calm seemed to return to Jerusalem Thursday morning after hours of clashes in Palestinian neighborhoods throughout the city. Meanwhile, Israeli security forces are preparing for the possibility of more fighting in the coming days, Cursorinfo reported.

Palestinian protesters threw rocks and Molotov cocktails, launched fireworks and set tires and trash cans on fire in several neighborhoods Wednesday night, Thursday.

Police are expected to step up force levels across the capital in the coming days, the public broadcaster Kan reported.

According to Haaretz, four reserve units of the Border Police have been notified of a potential call to help secure the city. A decision on the units' deployment is expected later Thursday morning, the report said.

This is not Guardian of the Walls 2, but the situation in Jerusalem could get out of hand, a senior security source told Kan Channel, referring to the conflict between terrorist groups in Israel and Gaza last May and the accompanying violence between Jews and Arabs in Israel.

Police reported that two officers were lightly wounded by shrapnel from suspected homemade explosives in the Issawiya neighborhood. Footage from the vicinity shows an army jeep that appears to have caught fire.

Officials said Thursday morning that 23 people have been detained in connection with the unrest in Jerusalem in recent days, with nine detained in raids on their homes in Issawiya on suspicion of involvement in the violence.

All night long, the roar of fireworks and sonic grenades echoed through various parts of the capital, and clashes were reported in neighborhoods throughout East Jerusalem.

In Sheikh Jarrah, there were reports of fighting between Jews and Arabs, with both groups apparently armed with rocks.

There were also reports of violence in Silwan, Kafr Aqaba, and A-Tura.

The violence came amid growing unrest in the capital and in Judea and Samaria, where sporadic clashes were also reported Wednesday night.

Israeli troops were also reported to have come under fire again in Shechem early this morning as they escorted a small group of Jewish pilgrims to Joseph's Tomb in the city.

As a reminder, there has been unrest in Shuafat for several days, where Israeli forces have closed the area since Saturday evening after shelling a nearby checkpoint.

The unrest occurred as Jewish Israelis were celebrating the holiday of Sukkot, which usually attracts thousands of visitors to Jerusalem and its Old City, which often causes tensions with Palestinian residents.
There are about 266 thousand apartments in the capital Yerevan, of which about 30 thousand were unoccupied at the beginning of the year, but now that number has dropped to 23 thousand; that is, about 7,000 uninhabited apartments have been inhabited. The Minister of Economy of Armenia, Vahan Kerobyan, told this to reporters Thursday.

"At the moment, 23 thousand apartments [in Yerevan] are empty, and we have work to do there. And we are working to bring more and more of these apartments into circulation so that people can rent apartments at a cheaper price. (...). We have loans that are subsidized with which people can renovate their apartments and rent them out; this is a very good and appealing tool," Keropyan said.

In addition, according to the economy minister, they are now creating a new program that should encourage hospitality companies to set up new hotels and hostels.

"One of the reasons for not filling many job openings today is that there are no apartments, hostels with affordable rent in Yerevan. This will enable people from the provinces to come to work in Yerevan," added Kerobyan.
Vladimir Putin proposed to Recep Tayyip Erdogan to create a gas hub in Turkey.

"After consultations with your energy minister and the head of Botas, we agreed with Gazprom, and I said this publicly: if there is interest from Turkey and our possible buyers from other countries, we could consider building another gas pipeline system and creating a gas hub in Turkey for sales to other countries, to third countries. First of all European countries, of course," said Russian president during a meeting with his colleague on the margins of the sixth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, RIA Novosti reported.

The day before, in his speech at the forum Russian Energy Week, the head of state noted that Moscow could move gas transit from the Nord Stream to the Turkish Stream. According to him, this decision is justified in terms of economic benefits, in addition, this route is safer.

"We could regulate the prices at a normal, market level, without any political coloring," Putin said.

However, he called the current cost of this type of fuel exorbitant.

He also reminded about recent attempts of Ukrainian authorities to organize a terrorist attack on Turkish Stream: "As you heard, they also tried to blow it up, but thank God this did not happen, it is successfully operating".
France will supply Ukraine with radars and air defense systems in the coming weeks, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with France 2. He did not specify what type of anti-aircraft missiles and how many will be delivered.

"This is a new phase of ground, sea, air and drone bombing on basic infrastructure and civilians," Macron said, adding that radars and anti-aircraft missiles will be delivered in the coming weeks to "protect the country from drones and missile strikes."

Paris has previously supplied Ukraine with Mistral anti-aircraft missiles. A source with knowledge of the matter said Paris would provide Crotale, short-range anti-aircraft missiles used to intercept low-flying missiles and aircraft, Reuters reported.

Ukraine's defense ministry posted a video on social media Wednesday aimed at gently pushing France to show its support through arms deliveries after repeated criticism that Paris was not doing enough.

"We can't supply as much as the Ukrainians are asking for because we need to leave some to defend our eastern flank. We are defending our national territory," Macron said. He reiterated that he had agreed with Denmark to redirect six Caesars howitzers it ordered to Ukraine. According to diplomats, the technical details of the deal have yet to be confirmed.

Earlier, the French Defense Ministry announced that it was stepping up its support for NATO's eastern flank by sending more tanks to Romania, Rafale fighters to Lithuania and infantry to Estonia.

Macron said a negotiated settlement between Ukraine and Russia will happen at some point, but it must be on Kiev's terms. "We are preparing to spend the winter in this context of war," Macron said, adding that he would continue talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin if necessary.
Saboteurs were arrested while attempting to undermine the Turkish Stream pipeline, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, Interfax reported.

"Some forces, about the possible origin of these forces Putin hinted, (...) they have already encroached on the Turkish Stream as well. Saboteurs were taken, several people were arrested. They wanted to blow it up. On our territory, onshore," Peskov told reporters on Thursday.

Earlier in October, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Ukrainian authorities had tried to blow up one of the sections of Turkish Stream.

According to Peskov, Europe is actually deprived of the possibility, even if it has to, to buy Russian gas, "Turkish Stream" is the only reliable route, so Putin suggested to his Turkish colleague Tayyip Erdogan to build a gas hub.

"The gas hub is really a very interesting topic. Look, there have been terrorist attacks, and indeed Europe is actually deprived of the possibility, even if they have to, of buying our gas," Peskov told reporters, according to RIA Novosti.

He added that now Europe is doomed to buy expensive liquefied gas from Americans. At the same time, "Turkish Stream" remains the only reliable route. "Since it is the only reliable route now, Putin suggested the possibility of making a separate hub on the Turkish border to supply gas to those wishing to do so," Peskov said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov briefed his colleagues on the progress of the special operation, the results of the referendums on the liberated territories and their incorporation into the Russian Federation during a meeting of the CIS Foreign Ministry.

The Russian Foreign Ministry reported that the foreign ministers of the CIS member states exchanged opinions on topical international and regional issues and identified key areas of cooperation within the organization for the future. "Special attention was paid to the situation around Ukraine. Sergey Lavrov informed the partners in detail about the progress of the special military operation, the results of referendums in the liberated territories and their incorporation into Russia."

The meeting resulted in important decisions aimed at strengthening integration ties in the law enforcement, cultural, humanitarian and human rights spheres. The Regulation on the Commission of Plenipotentiaries for Children's Rights of the Commonwealth member states was approved, which will facilitate the establishment of closer ties through "children's ombudsmen".

The ministers also agreed on a plan of multilevel consultations of the CIS member states in 2023.

A number of adopted decisions will be submitted for consideration by the CIS Council of Heads of State on October 14 this year and the CIS Council of Heads of Government on October 28 this year.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called the statements of French President Emmanuel Macron, who accused Moscow of "purposefully provoking" the recent clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, blatant and absolutely unacceptable.

"We find Macron's claims that Russia is using the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to destabilize the South Caucasus outrageous and absolutely unacceptable. Such attacks are in line with the anti-Russian policy of the West to demonize Russia and are the evidence of the attempts to transfer the confrontational logic from Ukraine to other parts of the post-Soviet space, including the South Caucasus. The absurd fabrications of the French president reveal Paris' disinterest in establishing lasting peace in the region and call into question his country's ability to play a constructive role there.

Unlike France, which even during periods of aggravation between Baku and Yerevan limited itself to the standard appeals for peace, Russia contributed to the settlement of the conflict in practical terms. Our country made a decisive contribution to the signing of a trilateral statement of the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia on November 9, 2020, which ended the bloodshed. The peacekeeping contingent deployed in accordance with this agreement remains the guarantor of security in the region. Peacekeepers effectively prevent incidents in their area of responsibility, help establish peaceful life - deliver humanitarian aid, and restore infrastructure. With their assistance, 53,000 refugees have returned home, more than 2,000 bodies of dead have been returned, a total of 146 detainees have been returned, and over 25,000 explosive devices have been deactivated.

It is Russia that has launched a comprehensive normalization of relations between Baku and Yerevan. With the Russian participation, efforts to promote the peace agenda on the basis of the statements of the leaders of the three countries on November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021 continue. In particular, steps are taken to unblock all economic and transport communications in the South Caucasus, delimit the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, conclude a peace treaty, establish a dialogue through the public and experts.

Attempts of Paris to drive a wedge into Russia's relations with Azerbaijan and Armenia, which are close to us and with which Russia has longstanding and multifaceted ties, are doomed to failure and will only lead to further devaluation of France's authority in the region," says a comment by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.
Moscow keeps issues of the settlement between Yerevan and Baku in its sights, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev in Astana.

"Naturally, we always keep issues related to the settlement of the situation in the region in our field of vision. I hope we'll use this opportunity to have another talk on all these issues and synchronize our watches."

According to him, Russia remains one of the leading trade and economic partners of Azerbaijan. "The trade turnover is growing: last year it increased by, I think, 14%, this year it increased by more than 7% during the first seven months. Our economic operators have invested $4.5 billion in the Azerbaijani economy.

Co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Commission meet regularly and work is going on on the plan proposed by you, which is designed up to, I think, 2024 inclusive, on a number of promising and interesting projects you suggested," Putin said.

Aliyev, in turn, assured that Baku is set up for "long-term peace." "We are set up for long-term peace and, for our part, we believe that we have proposed quite constructive theses for the peace to be finally achieved," he said.
Regarding some publications in the press related to the explosion on the Crimean bridge, below is a detailed description of the process of transportation of the goods in question by the GuRG Group and the subsequent transportation to the Russian Federation with a transit declaration, a statement released by the Armenian State Revenue Committee stated.

The statement reads in part:

"First of all, it should be noted that on September 26, 2022 in the Georgian port of Poti for a vehicle with cargo covered with a tent (22 places, 22770 kg), sent by the Bulgarian organization "BALTEX CAPITAL S.A." in the name of "GU RG Group" LLC (06962573), a transport bill of lading (CMR) was filled out. At 14:53 on 27 September 2022, a truck with a tent cover entered the territory of the Republic of Armenia. The driver of the truck was Artur Terjanyan, a citizen of Armenia and Georgia.

On September 27, at 15:00 the truck was weighed in Bagratashen customs point, after which it was X-rayed. As a result of X-ray examination no risk factors were detected, after which at 16:53 the cargo was declared on the transit declaration  05100033/270922/0049515 to the "GU ARG Group" Ltd (AVHK 06962573). For further formalities the Ararat Customs Department, Temporary storage warehouse of Terminal Alliance Company was selected. At the exit from the customs territory at 17:00 the corresponding mark "checked out" was made in the "Border Cross" system.

The vehicle arrived at the temporary storage warehouse of Terminal Alliance JV 5 hours and 46 minutes later, at 22:46. On September 28, 2022 at 09:43 the transit declaration 05100033/270922/0049515 was given the status "finished" at the temporary storage warehouse of the JV "Terminal Alliance". Then the customs value was clarified, and on September 29 at 4:12 p.m., after the declarant had submitted the cargo documents to the customs authorities, the cargo was inspected at the temporary storage warehouse JV "Terminal Alliance". In particular, without emptying the cargo from the cargo vehicle, the layered film of one of the rolls of polyethylene film was checked (in order to verify the correct classification of goods under the TN VED). Problems with incorrect classification of the TN VED were not detected, and the customs authority at 16:40 released the goods.

From this stage the goods in question acquired the status of the EAEU goods and were handed over to the declarant, but the truck did not leave the warehouse of LLC "Alliance Terminal". Without leaving the warehouse at 10:24 a.m. on September 30 2022 the transit declaration 05100010/300922/0017152 was submitted and registered by the same declarant, on which "GU RG Group" Ltd filled in the transit declaration for transportation of the same goods from Armenia to Russia (consignee - Russian "Leader" Ltd). A simple process established by the EEU legislation in daily practice took place.

The goods were delivered to the Russian Federation in the same Georgian vehicle, the driver was the same. The transit declaration received a "yellow track" interface, since the HS code of the goods is included in the list of controlled dual-use goods. The customs authority also checked the availability of the necessary document on whether or not the cargo is a dual-use commodity.

The transit declaration for the specified polyethylene construction film was accompanied by an expert opinion, issued on 30.09.2022 by the SPE PAP AREXPERTIZA, certifying that this product is not a dual-use product. Confirming this, the transit declaration of September 30, 2022 at 16:16 hours received the status of authorized.

It should be mentioned that during the whole period of the goods being under the customs control at the temporary storage warehouse of Terminal Alliance Company the truck transporting the goods was under the view of the camera lens. It was not unloaded, reloaded or loaded with other goods until the customs procedures of entry into the RA and transportation to Russia were fully completed.

The vehicle arrived to Bagratashen customs point on 01.10.2022 approximately at 00:15 o'clock. At about 00:30 X-ray examination was carried out, the results of which confirmed the same image which was obtained from the X-ray examination carried out at the entry to Armenia. After that, at 00:38 at Bagratashen checkpoint, the shipment received the "exit from customs authority" status. The transit declaration on 05.10.2022 received the status "completed" at the customs point of Upper Lars.

Thus, the processes of importation, customs control, X-ray inspection, customs clearance, paperwork, and exportation took place in a proper and lawful manner. No risk factors were detected during the physical, X-ray examination of the cargo at the entry and exit of the Republic of Armenia.

Copies of all the documents confirming the above-mentioned facts, as well as the X-ray machine photos, the movements recorded by the video surveillance devices in the customs control zones are preserved."
The situation in the region is such that anything can happen despite last week's processes, including the Prague meeting, Iranian MP of Armenian descent Robert Beglaryan told NEWS.am.

Beglaryan assured that in recent months, Iran's attention to the South Caucasus, especially to the processes around Armenia, has been growing, so whatever domestic issues in Iran, they cannot distract attention from the region.

"The Armenian-Iranian parliament's friendship group recently visited Iran and meetings were held with the deputy chairman of the Committee on Security and International Relations.

Yesterday the Iranian Foreign Minister said Tehran is keeping a close eye on the processes and will not tolerate or allow any border or geopolitical changes in the region. This signal was sent to both Azerbaijan and Turkey.

According to my information, which comes from the parliament and other places, the protests in Iran are on the decline. Authorities have managed to control the situation in the cities where they take place," the MP added.

During the 44-day war, Iran's spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a four-point statement.

"One of the points concerned the need to ensure the security of the Armenians of Karabakh. Iran's policy in this direction has not changed.

It was recently stated in the parliament that Iran does not accept any other changes than those specified in the statement of November 9, 2020, especially the presence of non-regional forces. This is not in the interest of Iran," Beglaryan stated.

The meeting of Russian, Turkish and Iranian leaders in Tehran in July this year, during which Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei expressed Tehran's sensitivity and "red lines" in regard to Armenia and the unacceptability of border changes between Iran and Armenia, should also be recalled.

Aram Danielyan
When heads of German companies learned last month of a proposal by the Economics Ministry to screen all investments in China, as part of a series of new measures, there was an uproar. The proposal was soon shelved, a ministry source and a business executive told Reuters, Reuters wrote.

Frustrated that they were not sufficiently consulted on proposals to make business with China less attractive, which could have big consequences for German firms, senior business leaders later rejected the proposal in a meeting with Economy Minister Robert Habeck.

According to two sources, executives from chemical giant BASF, Deutsche Bank and industrial group Siemens attended the meeting.

The Green Party, which runs the ministry, has long advocated a tougher stance on China, and last month Habeck said Germany would adopt a tougher approach to trade.

The ministry's investment review proposal was driven by a desire to limit the transfer of certain technologies and avoid increased dependence in some sectors, one meeting participant said.

"We can only warn against Germany turning away from China," said Markus Jerger, head of the Mittelstand Association, part of an alliance representing over 900,000 of the small and medium-sized firms that form the backbone of Europe's biggest economy," he said.

Politicians and German leaders generally agreed that the country needed to reduce its economic dependence on China, given their concerns about industrial espionage, unfair competition or human rights abuses.

The war in Ukraine has also dealt a blow to the longstanding German tenet that economic interdependence will help open up "authoritarian" states, and has forced Berlin to focus on how it should balance profit and risk in its dealings with them.

But when it comes to China, companies say the stumbling block is how Germany can reduce its dependence without causing more damage to an economy that is already facing a recession next year and without causing a negative reaction from Beijing.

Cracks are also appearing within the tripartite coalition government, which is set to release Germany's first China strategy paper next year.

"Decoupling is the wrong answer. We don't have to decouple from some countries," Scholz, who plans to visit China later this year, said on Tuesday. "I say emphatically we must continue to do business with China."

German investment and trade in China hit record levels in the first half of 2022, and big business says it is out of the question to exit the world's second-largest economy.

Instead, corporate giants such as BASF and automakers BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are putting more money into China to create independent local supply chains, in part to insulate their operations from geopolitical disputes and trade wars.

"With the 'local for local' strategy, we stabilise our regional portfolio against external influences in the best possible way," a BASF spokesperson said.

Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, BMW and BASF account for one-third of all European investment in China in 2018-2021, according to a study by the Rhodium Group, a New York-based research firm. "It is impossible to completely disentangle China and Europe," said Tobias Just, a spokesman for Mercedes-Benz, which sells three times as many cars in China as it does in the United States and has two Chinese companies as its largest shareholders.

"Our strategy is local for local, not just for geopolitical reasons, but for natural hedging, proximity to core markets and cost benefits as well," Just said.

BMW and Volkswagen also told Reuters that they are sticking with plans to invest more in their long-standing Chinese operations.

But the Rhodium study said smaller European companies are increasingly reluctant to take the growing risks associated with investing in China.

A spokesman for the Economics Ministry said it is closely monitoring the investment behavior of German companies as part of its strategic considerations on how to behave with China.
Assyrian Fighter Killed By Turkish Drone Strike

Ibrahim Mikhail. DAYRIK, Syria -- On Wednesday, while in the performance of his duties in Dayrik (Al-Malikiyah), North and East Syria, Sutoro (Syriac Security Forces) official Ibrahim Mikhail was martyred in a Turkish drone attack, according to the statement of Sutoro General Command.

Martyr Ibrahim Bassam Mikhail, nom de guerre "Aryo", was born in Hasakah to Rachel Shamoun in 1998. He has two brothers.

Martyr Aryo throughout his years with Sutoro, he performed many tasks and advanced through the ranks.

He participated in military and security campaigns and had completed numerous military and political training courses.

"The permanent escalation of the Turkish targeting of our forces and defenseless civilians is the result of the silence of international forces and guarantors of the ceasefire agreements," read the statement.

The statement emphasized following in the footsteps of the martyrs, as well as defending the security and stability of the region against all forms of aggression and terrorism.

People of Dayrik from all denominations and ethnic groups, denounced the brutal Turkish attack. They gathered near the place of the strike, near Nowruz Camp, and issued a statement. They said they would not stay silent regarding the Turkish violations and would punish traitors who support Turkish fascism.

The attack that resulted in the martyrdom of Aryo also wounded two commanders of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). One of the wounded commanders, Shibli Deriki, recently managed joint exercises with the US-led International Coalition.

President of the Universal Syriac Union Party (USUP) in Lebanon Ibrahim Mrad published the news of Aryo's martyrdom on Facebook, saying: "Glory and eternity to the martyrs of our Christian Syriac resistance."
"There is not and cannot be an international mechanism for Karabakh," Hikmet Hajiyev, head of the foreign policy department of the Azerbaijani presidential administration, said in response to an interview with Armen Grigoryan, secretary of the Armenian Security Council.

According to him, the talks held in Washington and elsewhere "adhered to the Brussels agenda and dealt exclusively with issues of a peaceful settlement." "In Washington, it was decided that negotiations should be conducted with a specific time frame for the conclusion of a peace treaty. In this regard, the very draft of the peace treaty was presented in advance at the meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Geneva. I emphasize that the draft included the standard provisions contained in such agreements on the normalization of relations between the two countries. In particular, the peace treaty implies mutual recognition of sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-interference in internal affairs, etc."

"Both at the talks in Brussels and in Washington, representatives of Azerbaijan emphasized that Baku will not discuss issues related to the sovereign rights of our country with any third party. The issue of the rights and security of Karabakh Armenians will be resolved in accordance with the Constitution of Azerbaijan... In Washington, our delegation stated that Azerbaijan, in accordance with its international obligations, regularly submits various reports to the UN and other organizations. These reports reflect information regarding the Azerbaijani government's activities, aimed, for example, at ensuring the rights of national minorities. In the future, these reports will include actions aimed at ensuring the rights of Armenian residents living in Karabakh.

In other words, there is and can be no question of creating any international "mechanism" set up to control the rights and security of Armenian residents living in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan," he said.

Armen Grigoryan said that the main agenda on the Karabakh issue was "how we can create an international mechanism for Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan to discuss the security and rights of Karabakh Armenians." "We hope that in the process we can form this international mechanism so that there is an opportunity for discussions between Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan about rights and security."
Nothing can hinder the supply of Iranian arms to Armenia, Iranian MP of Armenian descent Robert Beglaryan told NEWS.am. He reiterated that nothing can prevent it. "Iran is likely to express its desire to discuss the issue and be useful to Armenia. In the current situation, I don't think it's not worth negotiating, groping for sentiments on both sides on this issue.

At the moment I cannot say whether there have been negotiations about it at the level of the relevant officials of the two countries. I do not rule out that there are and will be opportunities to supply Iranian weapons to Armenia," the deputy said.

Earlier Indian media reported that the Indian Defense Ministry has signed a major order to export missiles, rockets and ammunition to Armenia. It was reported that the arms contract was signed by the governments of the two countries in early September.

In the next few months Armenia is expected to receive over $240 million worth of arms. The order includes the first-ever export of local Pinaka multiple rocket launchers, already in service with the Indian army. As part of the package deal, India will also supply anti-tank missiles and a range of ammunition to Armenia. This is not the first time that weapon systems have been exported to Armenia. In 2020, India delivered four Swathi radars to the country.

These radars, designed to Indian Army specifications, are used to track approaching artillery shells, mortars and missiles, as well as to pinpoint the location of enemy launchers and positions. Radars have been used successfully on the borders of Pakistan and China.

Aram Danielyan
Armenia should do its best to delay the process of negotiations and signing the document, because in case of repeated aggression, we should not expect Azerbaijan's actions to change even after the provisions and signing of the document, Yervand Tarverdyan, chairman of the United Armenia Party, told NEWS.am.

"The world is in a very tense state; the superpower leaders are solving their problems, and they have no time to think about a third country; at least, there is no rush. One cannot be on an equal footing in forcing the signing of a document. For me, the position of China, which clearly states that there can be no resolution of the Artsakh issue without a settlement, and the position of Iran, which states that there should not be significant changes in the region, are acceptable to me. I think that our interests derive from these approaches," he said.

Tarverdyan did not rule out that Western countries interested in signing a peace treaty actually have other goals.

"Perhaps the West is concerned that there are Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh providing security. The consolidated West wants to provoke discontent in any state bordering the Russian Federation, so the French president says that the September aggression was carried out with the knowledge of Russia. We must unite our interests and use our good relations with both France and Russia to strengthen our position and be protected. Unfortunately, the policies of small countries are determined by the policies of superpowers," Tarverdyan said.

He does not consider the steps taken by the authorities to solve acute problems to be sufficient. According to him, the inadequacy of the authorities is evident in the decisions made in all spheres.

"It is a wrong approach when we ask some state to come and protect us. The authorities should unite the society, and not say that we do not have the resources, even if we really do not have them. You have to unite people around the idea that our defense is within the country, that we have to fight for our land and water if necessary. You have to get rid of the loser mentality. If you approach any document from the point of view of a loser, you won't succeed," Tarverdyan stressed.